《Bookworld Online: Marsh Man》 000 Prologue Welcome dear friends, to the Virtual Reality Full Immersion System called Bookworld Online! This is your chance to live the lives of your favorite characters from your favorite stories. Not only can you complete the stories as they exist and live the actual life the character lived, you can also diverge from the known canon of information and forge a new path for your favorite character to follow. I know this sounds too good to be true, and in some respects it is. You will only be given choices during key moments and not on a constant basis, since our computers can only handle so many requests at one time. Some scenes and actions are done by default in order to keep the narrative going... however... if you diverge too far from the normal story lines or choose an original story based on the characters and their lives, then the process can become even more exciting for you, the player. So, will you relive what you know and only change a single moment or will you branch out on your own and see what our team of writers can come up with for you to experience? It is all up to you! _______________ I sat there and read the popup again and wondered what the gaming company thought they were doing when they thought giving me the intro popup again was a bright idea. I looked at the choices available since my last search and passed most of the more popular things and found something I had read years ago. I was a little surprised that they would have such an obscure story available. The thought of playing through it tickled my fancy, since it was one of my old favorites. Just like with the last story I played, The Rogue Necromancer, they had branching stories based on the book and had options for continuing the main story or for taking a side road into new territory. Those options caught my fancy the last time, so this time I wanted to see how close to the original they could make it and still give me options to choose from. I had finished reading the story a long time ago and I still went back occasionally, just so I could imagine where I wanted it to go. With this virtual reality option, perhaps I could finally get my chance to show the original author how things should have gone, assuming they were even given access to this version. I was still fully loaded into my full immersion VR harness, my nutrition injectors were still set for the appropriate times for meals while I was inside the VR world, and after I checked the time that had passed, it had only been an hour for each day I had been playing, not counting the interludes. I had only been immersed for a day! What a great vacation this was turning out to be! I inquired about the time compression ratio again and received the same answer. It was different for each book. Depending on the content and if you chose a branch story line or not, a whole book could be lived through in only an hour or it could take up to a full day, like my last story had been. If there was a series, it could take a week or more, depending on if you played them all through at once or not.Stolen novel; please report. I still didn''t intend to take breaks or anything, because I wanted to take full advantage of the full immersion. I didn''t want to break the story up, either. When I started something, I wanted to do it all without having to wait or worry about trying to pick it back up after leaving for a while. I flipped through the choices I had with the story and narrowed myself down to taking a quick run through the book and passed on the side adventure. ¡°I read the book and I want to play through it.¡± I said and chose the main story. It asked me if I really wanted to play what they called the normal content. ¡°I wanted to skip the info dump, too.¡± I said and chose yes... then I was shocked when I was given a choice to play it as a woman or as a man. ¡°What... how...¡± I shook my head and reached for the woman option... then smiled. ¡°You know what? I''ve tried a character gender swap before. I''m sticking with the normal content as much as possible.¡± I chose a man for the main character and everything went black. _______________ You have chosen the main story of the little known book, Marsh Man. Your gender choice is (MALE) and all characters and interactions have been maintained to fit this narrative. The relationships are still the same. Grudges are still held, friendships and acquaintances are still the same, as is the life choices made by the male character. Do you wish to read the Character Blurb for your adventure? _______________ ¡°Yes.¡± I said, just so I could see what kind of changes they had to make to make it playable, even though I actually wanted to skip this part. _______________ Your name is David Drake and you are a 10 year old slave to the Marsh Hag. You were bought from your parents when you were only a small child at two years old. You don''t really remember your old family at all. That''s a good thing, since you would hate them on sight for selling you to her. All you''ve known for your whole life is pain. Endless pain and borderline torture are your daily bread and butter. You don''t enjoy it and actively try to flee when the Hag approaches you with that gleam in her eyes. You know exactly what she wants to do to you when she gets in her moods. You are usually quickly healed and receive a lot of training and experience as her unofficial apprentice. It''s unofficial because she would never pay to have you registered as an actual apprentice. To everyone else, you are just the boy she took pity on and brought into her home. What they don''t know is that you are much more than that. So much more. You are her food. She uses you as her own personal buffet and she indulges herself quite often. You even have the permanent scars to prove it. You assume you know why she likes to consume you as much as she can, and you couldn''t be farther from the truth. You will discover the real reason soon enough. You have learned many things from her, mostly without her knowing, since you have been helping more and more with her spell work the last few years and her potion making. The only parts you can''t do are the magic condensing rituals that her potions require and the mana infusions that a lot of her other creations need. _______________ Do you wish to initiate the Main Storyline with these parameters? _______________ Hold on, it has the same main character name as the last story I played through? Really? I thought. Other than that, it actually is pretty close to what I remember. ¡°Let''s do it.¡± _______________ Preparing the scenario. Initiating characterization. Loading stats and abilities. Adding personal character update. Basic physical responses adjusted for new story. Personality blocks in place. From this moment on and until the end of the story, you are David Drake. Please play responsibly. Waiting... waiting... done. Playing Bonus Content movie... 001 Prologue Our farm was failing. Our animals would seem to be fine one day and then they would get sick and die. Half of our breeding stock was gone, from both the cows and the chickens. It was getting to the point that we weren''t sure if we could stay on the farm anymore. Our four kids were a drain on our money, our food, and on our patience. Our youngest son was only two and he had spent more time sick in bed than he had moving around after he learned to crawl. We didn''t really know what was wrong with him and we had tried several expensive healing potions to try and fix the problem. He would be fine for several weeks, then he would fall ill again. It wasn''t until our youngest daughter saw him drinking from the animal trough and told us about how stupid he was for doing it, that we realized what was wrong. The water we only used for the animals had something poisonous in it. We contacted someone that the man at the general store said could provide some help. What we didn''t know, and he didn''t tell us, was that she was a Hag. A dirty old woman showed up on our doorstep, clearly a little drunk, and she swore at us for calling her in the middle of the day. She wore bundles of rags that looked like they had been sewn together by a child and her hair was a stringy and wild mass that seemed to follow its own rules for how it was supposed to move. ¡°Damn peasants.¡± The Hag said in what she thought was a whisper, when in reality was her normal speaking voice. ¡°WHAT DO YOU WANT?¡± She yelled, thinking that was her normal voice. ¡°Can you please remove the poison from the water source we use for animals?¡± I asked her. ¡°CAN YOU PAY?¡± The Hag yelled. ¡°I have several silver pieces...¡± I started to say. ¡°BAH!¡± The Hag hit my hand and the six coins flew part way across the room and clattered to the floor. The three healthy children laughed and scrambled to pick up what was a fortune to them. ¡°Silver. Just silver.¡± The Hag mumbled. ¡°I need much more than silver for my needs.¡± Both I and my wife stared at her and we didn''t know what to do. If she didn''t want what we had saved up, there was nothing that we could come up with to pay her. ¡°Momma!¡± Our youngest boy said loudly to get our attention, then promptly threw up on the floor at my wife''s feet. Instead of picking him up like he wanted, my wife pushed him aside and started to clean up the mess. ¡°I can''t go five minutes without having to clean up after you!¡± My wife exclaimed at the boy, who just gurgled and spit up a bit more for her to clean. She huffed in frustration and then sighed as he threw up again, only on her hand this time. ¡°HIM!¡± The Hag yelled and pointed a gnarled hand at my youngest son. ¡°I''ll fix your problems for free if you give me him.¡± ¡°WHAT?¡± I yelled in response. ¡°You can''t... he''s just...¡± ¡°I''ve heard he''s been sick a lot.¡± The Hag said. ¡°A real burden on such a large family.¡± ¡°No, he...¡± I stopped talking, because I heard that it was bad to lie to a Hag. ¡°I''ll buy him.¡± The Hag said and stepped forward. ¡°A gold coin.¡± I caught my breath, my wife gasped, and the other three children dropped the silver coins they had just finished gathering up. That''s a hundred silver coins! I thought. ¡°W-why would...¡± ¡°Do you agree?¡± The Hag asked. ¡°It''s a good deal, yes?¡±A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ¡°I... well...¡± ¡°Yes, yes. Your son. Blabba blabba.¡± The Hag waved her hand. ¡°I will fix your water problems... both of them... and take the boy to heal him.¡± ¡°But...¡± The Hag let out a guttural growl. ¡°Fine! You drive a hard bargain! Two gold coins for the boy, I''ll fix your water problems, and I''ll cast growth on your crops for a month.¡± ¡°A month!¡± My wife exclaimed, because that would mean we could harvest three months early. ¡°Do you agree?¡± The Hag asked and took out two gold coins. I looked around myself at the run-down house. The three other children were still dumbstruck at the sight of actual gold coins and they stared at their little brother. Then there was my wife. She had a greedy expression on her face, which made me realize something. I knew then that our youngest son was seen as nothing but a burden by everyone. Including me. ¡°We agree.¡± I said and suddenly felt the weight of two gold coins in my hand, as if they had appeared there by magic, and the Hag had my son swallowing a purple colored foul smelling potion. In the next moment, he was laughing and bundled up in some of her rags and she wore him like a pack on her back. ¡°Follow me.¡± The Hag said, suddenly sober, and left the house. I ran out after her, surprised she could walk so fast, and saw her do something amazing after she asked me where my irrigation trench was. I pointed her in the right direction and we went there. She bent down and looked at the inch deep stagnant water, dipped her hand in it, then spat out some black substance. The Hag shook her head and a wooden staff appeared in her hand and she stuck it into the muddy bottom of the trench. She mumbled and muttered some nonsensical sentences and phrases, I felt my skin crawl for several seconds, then I heard the sound of rushing water. To my surprise, a small wave of water came and pushed out all of the stagnant water. She reached down and caught something and lifted it up, cackled at a large cracked clay container, then it disappeared. She flipped her staff over and jammed the end into the bottom of the trench again. She mumbled something else and my skin crawled again, then there was a cracking sound. It sounded like a rock breaking. I turned around to see the trench go from where it was supposed to end, extend out across my field at a right angle, then it did it again and came all the way back to the water source. It made a moat around my house and the huge field, which was impossible to do in only a minute, and the water didn''t stop flowing. It kept flowing through at a sedate pace, meaning it wouldn''t stagnate, and I couldn''t believe it. The Hag made the staff disappear and she turned towards the field. ¡°This is your main crop, yes?¡± I nodded. My most expensive crops were grown right here in this field, because it always produced the best results. She held her hands out and spoke her magic again. I saw her hands glow green, which was something I had seen a magic user do to cast a spell, then my skin felt like it wanted to crawl off. The entire field started to shake, shoots of water were sucked out of the irrigation trenches, and seeped into the dirt. Before my eyes, the crops popped stalks up through the dirt and into the sunlight. ¡°I''ll be back in a week to cast it again.¡± The Hag said. ¡°Your crops will be grown by the end of the month.¡± ¡°Thank you!¡± I exclaimed. ¡°Thank you!¡± The Hag smiled crookedly at me and walked away at a slowed pace, as if she was exhausted, and left my farm. I waited until she was out of sight before I ran over to the house and went inside. ¡°You have got to see this!¡± I said and took my wife and three children outside to look at the large growing field and the flowing water. ¡°Isn''t this amazing?¡± ¡°It is.¡± My wife said with a huge smile as she took my hand. She felt the two gold coins there and her smile grew even wider. ¡°It really is.¡± Our lives improved significantly after that. The gold coins went a long way to make the house better, gave us all new clothes, and our crops after the month was over became the biggest and best crops anyone in the village had seen in years. A month after that, I, my wife, and my four children were the happiest we had ever been. No, three children. I only have three children. I thought as we all sat down to dinner. I looked at the little chair we had used for the baby. It was tucked into the corner of the room and had a bunch of things hanging on it, as if it hadn''t been used by a baby. We are all happy, right? I asked myself and looked at my wife. Her smile was a little strained and the wrinkles around her eyes were more pronounced. I looked at my children and saw they had happy faces, and yet, they also looked a little sad. My youngest daughter wasn''t trying to hide her feelings very much. She looked up from her plate and her smile turned even more fake as a tear appeared at the corners of her eyes. She looked back down at her plate and the tears dripped onto the great tasting food. She ate it as if she wasn''t crying on it. I looked down at my own plate and two large tear drops fell onto my food. I did what my daughter did and I ate the food. It tasted salty. 002 Marsh Madness ¡°Ow ow ow ow!¡± I said as the old hag slurped up the blood from the cut she had made to my wrist. ¡°Oh, stop complaining.¡± The Hag said and gave the cut a long lick. ¡°Use the number four potion. I don''t want you tasting like swamp frog again.¡± ¡°You labelled it.¡± I said and felt a bony hand slap my face and then the back of my head. ¡°OW!¡± ¡°Don''t talk back, Boy.¡± The Hag said. ¡°If you knew I labelled it wrong, then you knew what it was when you drank it!¡± I opened my mouth to lie and she whacked the back of my head again. ¡°OW! Yes! I knew!¡± ¡°You thought I wouldn''t drink from you if you tasted bad?¡± The Hag asked and cackled a laugh that changed tone mid-cackle to that of a soft seductive voice. The old hag''s features lost their sharpness as her skin became healthy and smooth. Her wild and untamed grey hair reformed and became luscious black locks that framed her face and made her crazy eyes seem normal. ¡°Yes, this is going to be one of my good days.¡± Oh, crap. I thought and my eyes grew fearful, because it was never a good day for me when she decided to have one of her good days. Never. ¡°I''ve groomed you for years to become the perfect restorative for me, Boy.¡± The now quite beautiful Hag said. Or Sorceress, as she preferred to be called when in this form. ¡°Now strip off and get on the bed for me, while I go and get my tools.¡± _______________ You have a choice to make. Do you stick around and do as the demented Sorceress demands or will you try to flee and risk your life in the marsh again? A) Do as she says. B) Spit in her eye. C) Flee. D) Grab one of her tools and fight. E) Bargain. She''s going to flay me again. Or fillet me. Or both. I thought, fear filling me. The pain she puts me through is unimaginable and she never gives me one of her numbing potions. She says it changes the taste too much when I couldn''t feel it. She never listens and she''s too strong to fight, too. I shook my head. I choose C. _______________ Once the Hag''s back was turned I ducked down and crept towards the back of the cluttered hut. I had made a hole in the wall at the back a bit larger over the last few weeks. The problem with that was it sometimes let the spiders in when the protective wards fluctuated. I didn''t care about that right now, though. I just needed to get out of there. I avoided making any noise and moved the large pot that she brewed the stinky potions in, then scrambled through the hole. I didn''t bother trying to pull the pot back into place, because that would only delay me. She would know where I got out, anyway. Somehow, she always knew. I grabbed the little bag I had made of an old shirt and did my best to avoid the traps we had set up for the various creatures that roamed by. The last thing I wanted was to get caught so easily. Once I started running, I didn''t want to make it too easy for her to get me back. I made it out to the more wetter part of the marsh and slipped into the waist deep water. It wasn''t very deep, considering I was only ten, and I made it to the next drier area. I opened my little bag and drank the number four potion, just like she asked, then I drank number six and number seven. I felt my energy double because of four. I felt my muscles thicken and my strength double because of six, then my mind cleared and I felt smarter because of seven. Once again, stupid me drank the important one last. I realized my mistake and ran as fast as I could before the backlash hit me. I made it nearly a hundred feet and over two more water breaks before my stomach knotted up and it doubled me over. Stupid, stupid, stupid! I thought and tumbled to the damp ground as a huge headache tried to split my head apart. You are supposed to drink seven first! Then six to stop the effect, then four to heal it! Stupid! I laid there and convulsed for several moments, moments I knew I didn''t have, then the spasms ended. I felt a tangling vine wrap around my bare ankle and I scrambled to my feet. I kicked it off before it gained a hold and then I took off running. Bare feet were not suited for running in a marsh that was full of odd-shaped and sharp rocks, sticks, branches, and brambles. I had no choice, though. It''s not like the Hag ever bought me clothes or shoes to run in.This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. I stepped on a particularly pokey stick and it pierced the skin. I hopped away from it and then hopped around for a moment to let it heal, thanks to the number four potion, then I took off running again. I chose a different direction, since running in a straight line was pretty much impossible in a marsh. I dove between two trees and through a large spider web. Luckily, I had seen that the occupant was well up the tree and had avoided getting bitten by it. Those damn things always stung for days, even after the treatment for the poison. It let out a screech and I winced at it. The Hag was sure to hear that and come this way. I changed directions again and wadded through another water area, then ran for another minute. That was when my luck ran out. In front of me was about a twenty foot waterway, something a skiff could easily traverse, except that I didn''t have a skiff. Or a boat. Or even a piece of driftwood. _______________ You have a choice to make. Will you brave the depths of one of the many waterways and try to escape or will you backtrack and hope that you don''t meet the Hag on the way? A) Dive in. B) Go back and find another way. C) Climb a tree. D) Surrender. E) Drown yourself. Those are great options! I thought sarcastically. Do you even know what''s in the waters?!? I sighed and thought about going back, then shook my head. I worked too hard to give up now. I thought and looked down at my tattered pants. I choose C! _______________ I had an idea and took out my tiny knife, barely the stub of a real knife that she let me use, and I cut off part of my pant leg. I bundled it up and tossed it out into the water, then ran to the nearest tree and scrambled up the side of it. Since I was pretty small and didn''t weigh much, the tree didn''t sway when I reached about twenty feet up. I took out the short rope I had stolen and tied it around my waist and around the tree to hold me, since I would never have the strength to hold on for a long time all by myself. I perched on the edge of a branch and sat there while I waited for the inevitable. I heard a sloshing in the water and a mass of something came up out of the depths and poked the piece of cloth I had thrown. NO! I thought, then the creature splashed out of the water and snatched the cloth into its mouth and dove away. I needed that, you damn beast! I was tied to the tree, so it was a lot harder to cut off another piece of cloth. I managed to, then I snapped a small piece of branch off to give it some weight, then tossed both out and into the water. They plopped and bobbed on the surface just in time. ¡°BOY!¡± The Sorceress yelled and her angry voice cut through me like her knives usually did. ¡°If you aren''t dead by the time I find you, you are going to wish you were!¡± I stayed perfectly still and waited for her to make an appearance. I slowed my breathing down and only took very shallow breaths. It was a technique she taught me for when she needed me to dive down into the watery depths for potion ingredients that didn''t grow on the surface of the marsh. I had been gathering ingredients for her ever since I could walk and hold things in my hand without dropping them. I heard a splash and several snapping twigs and turned my head to look at a very enraged Sorceress as she smashed her way through the underbrush. The damp ground had soaked her clothing up to her knees and she was mightily pissed as she stomped over to the waterway to look at the piece of clothing I had thrown there. I almost laughed when the underwater beast splashed and took the second piece. I felt something move above me and I didn''t dare move myself. If it was what I think it was, then moving was the last thing I wanted to do right then. The bright green head of a poisonous snake slithered into view and over my shoulder. It was three inches thick, a mamma snake, and she wasn''t happy to have someone on her tree as she turned her head and looked at me. _______________ You have a choice to make. It''s pretty obvious what you should do. I mean, you don''t actually want to die, do you? A) Call for help. B) Grab the snake. C) Untie the rope holding you. D) Do nothing and die. I read the options and they were all pretty much the same thing. If I called for help, the Hag would find me and the snake would bite me and kill me. If I try to grab the snake, it would bite me and kill me. If I untie the rope, I''ll fall to the ground and it would kill me. I''d rather hope for the best. I thought. I choose D. _______________ I looked at the angry snake for a second, then closed my eyes. There was nothing I could do to save myself, so the only thing I could do was wait. I heard the hiss of the snake just before its teeth sank deep into my cheek. One fang stayed in the flesh and squirted its deadly poison inside, while the other had gone right through the skin and had popped into my mouth. The poison squirted right to the back of my throat and I swallowed it automatically. My face turned bright red as the first dose of poison filled my cheek. My throat withered and contracted as the second dose flowed like tree sap down into my stomach. I started to shake and convulse as the poison did its work. As fate would have it, I let out a gurgling sound, just as my hand hooked the knot I had tied on myself. It was a slip knot, since that was the only kind I could tie, and my spastic hand pulled the rope free. The Sorceress turned at the sound of my gurgle and her eyes nearly bulged out of her head as she witnessed me fall the twenty feet down the tree with a startled snake wrapped around my neck. Everything went black when I slammed head first into the mushy marsh ground. 003 Spider Clash ¡°Stupid fool of a child!¡± The Hag''s loud voice woke me up. ¡°If I didn''t need you so much I would have let you stay dead!¡± I shivered at the hatred in her voice and waited for her to hit me. When she didn''t, I opened my eyes and saw her sitting there staring at me. I wasn''t sure what the look was on her face, then she reached over and I thought she was going to rub my chest. Instead, her fingertip dug into the flesh of my chest and she peeled off a large fillet that she had carved out. ¡°This tastes terrible when it''s numb.¡± The Hag said with a frown and took a bite out of it. She chewed with an angry expression and swallowed, then took another bite. I looked down at the rest of my chest and three other fillets had been cut out and eaten already. At least I can''t feel it this time. I thought and closed my eyes. I just hoped that I could sleep through the rest of her meal. _______________ You have another choice to make, disgusting as it is. Will you try to garner some sympathy or will you endure in silence? A) Cry. B) Yell angrily. C) Scream. D) Piss yourself. E) Ask for food. F) Beg to leave. G) Do nothing. All of them are bad. I thought with a sigh. I want to do nothing; but, I haven''t eaten since... I don''t know how long I''ve been unconscious. I choose E. _______________ ¡°Can I have something to eat?¡± I asked, my voice barely above a whisper. I didn''t want to startle her or make her angrier at me than she already was. ¡°Gimmie, gimmie, gimmie.¡± The Hag said, almost in disappointment. ¡°You want me to give you everything.¡± I thought about arguing that I never ask for anything and decided it was smarter to keep my mouth shut. ¡°Fine.¡± She said and moved to my thigh. Her knife flashed faster than I could see and then a two inch by two inch square chunk of the flesh was cut out. I opened my mouth to protest as she held it up and covered it in blue flame for an instant. Before I could speak, she shoved the cooked meat into my mouth. I gagged on it and she hit my stomach. The air pushed the chunk out and it flew several feet and landed on the dirt floor. ¡°Don''t waste good meat.¡± The Hag said with a shake of her head. ¡°Chew it and then swallow, stupid.¡± She said and shoved the chunk back into my mouth without wiping it off first. She held my mouth closed and I had to chew it or choke again. I did and then let tears come to my eyes as I swallowed some of my own body. ¡°You asked for some.¡± The Hag said and cut off a chunk for herself. ¡°It tastes awful when you''re not in pain or afraid, doesn''t it?¡± She asked as she put the chunk in her mouth and chewed. ¡°I can still taste Viper venom.¡± I had ignored the taste completely, so I was grateful for that. I tasted the venom directly and that wasn''t fun. ¡°The snake...¡± ¡°You''ll have to clean it to make the soup.¡± The Hag said and I heard a scuttling sound. ¡°You need to fix that damn hole in my wall, too!¡± The Hag''s knife flashed around in an instant and the squeal of the foot-wide spider was loud inside the small hut as it was impaled on the wall behind the Hag''s head. ¡°It''s too small to add to the soup. He would boil up into nothing.¡± The Hag said in disappointment. ¡°Even when you screw up, you can''t do it right.¡± I thought about arguing, then sighed instead. I really did screw up and didn''t do it right. ¡°You''re lucky we finished that batch of number four.¡± The Hag said and reached over, plugged my nose, then poured the potion down my throat. I tried desperately to not swallow it, because I knew what was going to happen if I did. She closed my mouth and cut off my air, which meant I had better swallow or suffocate. It took me thirty seconds to decide that I wanted to live, even if it caused me more pain than dying would. I swallowed the potion and it flowed down into my mostly empty stomach. Then it took effect. ¡°HHHHGGGGGHHHHH!¡± I groaned as she held my mouth closed to stop my screams. The numbing potion was removed by the healing potion, which meant I instantly felt all of the chunks and fillets she had cut out of me while I was unconscious and numb. Thankfully, the potion started healing me and the missing parts regrew and filled in.The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. The bad part was, I now had brand new skin in those patches and my old skin was darker, weathered, and covered in deep scars from previous carvings. My skin looked like a patchwork cloth, just like my clothing. She always made sure to never carve up something anyone else could see, like my face, lower arms, or calves. The last thing she wanted was to give away the secret of her youth and beauty. ¡°Get dressed and get to work.¡± The Hag said and grabbed my arm, pulled me up into a sitting position, then she slapped my face. ¡°OW!¡± I yelled and held my still damaged cheek. The fang that had only pierced the surface was almost healed; but, the hole in my cheek the other fang had punctured had only shrunk in size. ¡°That''s for being so stupid.¡± The Hag said and slapped the good side of my face. ¡°That''s for making me waste so much of my power to keep you alive and to stop your face from rotting off.¡± ¡°But... the potions...¡± ¡°They aren''t a cure all, Boy.¡± The Hag said. ¡°I would be making a fortune off of them if they were.¡± I opened my mouth to argue that she had been making a lot of money from them and she raised her hand to strike me. I winced and ducked my head to avoid it and she nodded. _______________ A basic choice and depending on what you do first, the Hag could possibly let you eat today. Actual food, not your own flesh. That was disgusting. A) Prep the large snake for soup. B) Fix the hut. C) Hunt for ingredients. D) Brew potions. She''s pretty angry at the hole I made, so I better fix that. There''s no point in delaying it. She won''t let me near the back of the hut for a while, anyway. I thought. I choose B. _______________ ¡°Make sure you take the number two potion before going outside. The wards are weak today.¡± I smartly didn''t tell her that I had intentionally scratched a few of them days ago to weaken her sense magic, that way I could sneak away easier. I took the potion, which was a mix of spider poison, the number one potion (which was a weak general health potion), and stagnant marsh water. I was pretty sure she spit in it, too. She never told me why she always does that. I put my damp clothes back on and left the hut. I picked up the short pole that I needed to beat off the spiders that got too close. If you weren''t careful, you could sometimes get a rare jumping one. They looked the same as the normal ones, so you always had to be careful. I didn''t hesitate when I saw one and I always swung first. It made a satisfying squish sound. The only problem was, they almost never travelled alone. When I went around the hut, six of the damn things were fighting to try and get into the hole first. _______________ Another choice so soon? Okay, let''s see what we can do. Well, good luck. A) Fight. B) Flee. C) Cry. D) Call the Hag. E) Pee your pants. F) Let them eat you. There''s no choice here. I thought. I choose A. _______________ I resigned myself to being bitten at least a few times, and dove into the middle of them and started swinging. I hoped that if one was a jumping one, I was too close for them to jump on me. I was half right. One was a jumping one. It had no problem jumping as it jumped straight up and landed on my face. To my utter surprise, its fangs tried to bury themselves into my cheek... where the hole was! I laughed and pulled it off of my face. It squealed in surprise and I smashed its body with the short pole, then I kicked, stomped, and swung at the five remaining spiders. There was quite a lot of guts and goo, and I looked around for any more. I didn''t see any, then realized one might have gotten inside. I ran around to the doorway and went inside the hut. ¡°I thought I told you...¡± The Hag started to say when I raised the short pole. ¡°Don''t you dare!¡± I lunged past her and slammed the end of the pole into the head of the spider that was about to jump on her. ¡°I got it!¡± I said happily as the spider died. Maybe she''ll be nicer, now that I saved her! ¡°YOU IDIOT!¡± The Hag yelled and slapped the side of my face so hard that I saw stars. ¡°I was training that spider!¡± ¡°H-h-huh?¡± ¡°They are the perfect spies! They can crawl anywhere! They have eight eyes! They can even understand words!¡± My head was ringing from the hit and I stared at her with shock on my face. ¡°Get your worthless hide out of my sight!¡± The Hag said and slapped me again. I fell to the floor and cried, pain shooting through my damaged cheek. ¡°Don''t come back until all of your chores are done!¡± She nearly yelled, then she kicked me in the side and pushed me out the door. ¡°You better hope that I find another suitable spider soon.¡± She said with a deadly voice. ¡°Or you are going to wish I had let you die.¡± _______________ Here we go. Now it''s the good stuff. Pick wisely. A) Apologize. B) Cry. C) Tell her off. D) Attack. E) Run. F) Tell her to kill you. I didn''t even have to think about it. I choose C! _______________ ¡°I already wish I was dead, you stupid Hag! Every day!¡± I said angrily and threw a tantrum. ¡°I hate you! I hate you so much! I wish you would get eaten by a water beast! I wish you would shrivel up and die!¡± ¡°BOY!¡± The Hag yelled. ¡°Every day you hurt me and you always treat me like I''m nothing! I try and I try and I do everything you say, and you never say one nice thing to me! NEVER!¡± I yelled. ¡°Do you know why I always try to run away? That''s why! I even saw a spider trying to leap at you and I saved you! What did you do? YOU HIT ME!¡± The Hag stood there and gave me the same expression she had given me when I woke up. ¡°You taught me to kill spiders whenever I saw them. I did just that.¡± I said and the pain in my face lessened. ¡°If you want your hut fixed, do it yourself.¡± ¡°Boy.¡± The Hag said and stepped menacingly out of the hut. I turned away from her and sat down on the ground. ¡°Go ahead. Hit me. Kick me. Kill me. Eat me until there''s nothing left. I don''t care anymore.¡± I said and crossed my arms. ¡°I don''t care.¡± To my surprise, nothing happened. A moment later, I heard the door to the hut close. 004 Food For Thought I sat there on the ground and whacked the occasional spider that passed close by or tried to bite me. I was glad that only the small ones travelled around, because the bigger ones were terrifying. It wasn''t the venom, it was that they were so big that when they bit you, the fangs stabbed and killed you before the venom could do the work. _______________ You have a choice here. What you chose will be crucial to how things progress. Be careful. A) Go inside. B) Apologize. C) Yell again. D) Stay where you are. E) Cry. F) Eat the spiders. The only thing I want to do is sit here. I thought with indignation. I choose D. _______________ I didn''t know how long I sat there, even when the sun started to set and the darkness of the marsh crept up from the ground and covered everything. I wasn''t very good at telling time and it could have been a couple hours or all day. I didn''t know and I didn''t care. I heard the door of the hut creak open and didn''t turn around. ¡°Boy.¡± The Hag said, her voice barely a guttural growl. ¡°I think it''s time you were taught your place.¡± I didn''t turn around, even when I felt two bony hands grab my shoulders. I looked up and fear filled me. The Hag was shrivelled up and her hair was mostly gone. Her eyes were two half-filled yellow orbs and she couldn''t blink her eyelids. I opened my mouth to scream and she spit in it. I instantly choked on it and my throat closed over and my body convulsed. It must have been a venom of some kind, because my whole world became a terror filled kaleidoscope with visions of unimaginable horrors and pain. I couldn''t scream, because my throat was closed off. I could breathe, thankfully. I screamed and screamed in my head as I pretty much lost my mind to the horrific things I could see. It went on and on for I didn''t know how long. Eventually, my mind seemed to adjust to it. The horrors were less scary. The visions less real. The pain lessened. It seemed to take forever until everything faded away and I regained my eyesight. I was once again on the Hag''s bed and I was too afraid to look down at myself, knowing what I knew about the Hag. ¡°You better look, Boy.¡± The Hag said and I turned my head to look at her. She was no longer shrivelled and was back to her very beautiful self, which meant it was very bad for me. ¡°You need to get used to the constant reminder I have given you.¡± She said with a wicked smile. My breathing sped up and I was too scared to move. She reached out and grabbed my wrist, then she lifted my right hand and showed it to me. ¡°NO!¡± I yelled. The smallest finger on my hand was missing! I only had three fingers and a thumb now. It looked like I never had a small finger on that hand and it was healed over. I lifted my left hand on my own, knowing what I would see, and saw that it was the same. ¡°Every time you try to grab something, for the rest of your life, you will be reminded of me.¡± The Hag said with satisfaction as fear filled me. ¡°I''ve told you over and over. I am not your mother. I OWN you. Kind words for you will never pass my lips. I bought you for two copper when you were only a sick little baby. Your parents were actually eager to be rid of you.¡± She laughed her pleasant laugh that made me even more afraid. ¡°If they only knew what I had in store for you, they would have upped the price!¡± My parents. I thought and hate filled me. It''s their fault this happened to me! The Hag smiled as she felt it from me. ¡°Be careful when you try to walk. I''ve taken a few toes from you as well.¡± My anger deepened and I lifted my head to look at my feet. The two smallest toes on each foot were gone and like my missing little fingers, they also looked like they were never there in the first place. I wiggled my remaining toes and thought that I was now just like those three toed monsters that roamed the marsh every few months. I would be leaving similar footprints in the damp ground.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. _______________ Nice going. Your little tantrum got you maimed. What do you want to do now? A) Cry. B) Throw another tantrum. C) Beg for food. D) Get used to it. E) Make soup for the Hag. The first three won''t do anything. I thought and looked at the fourth option. No, she won''t give me time to do that. I know she won''t. I sighed. I choose E. _______________ I carefully slid to the edge of the bed. I was unsteady with only six fingers and two thumbs, because my brain kept trying to spread out my small fingers to stabilize me. I put my feet on the floor and knew I was going to fall the first time. I also knew that the Hag was going to laugh at me for it, too. I pushed off of the bed and tried to stand up. My balance was completely off and I took two stumbling steps before I dropped to the ground. I hurt both my hands when I tried to catch myself, because I didn''t have the extra finger and the sides of my hands slammed into the ground, instead of my palms. I took two breaths and got my knees under me, then started to crawl instead. The Hag laughed. ¡°Are you going back to being a baby now?¡± She asked. ¡°I hope you don''t think I''m going to change you. I didn''t do it when you were a baby and I''m not doing it now! Ha hahaha!¡± I ignored her and crawled over to the large cooking cauldron and the snake''s long body was coiled up in it. I pulled it out onto the dirt floor and took out my stub of a knife. I held the snake''s head steady and jammed the knife into the neck, just behind the head. It took me a few tries, since I only had three fingers to keep a grip on the handle. I managed to not mangle the snake or my fingers, then I tossed the head into the metal bucket for poison potion ingredients. I flipped the snake''s body over and pulled more of it out of the pot, then did my best to be both careful and precise as I skinned the snake. It took a long time for me to do the entire six feet and then I lopped off the end where the cloaca was. I ran my stub knife all the way back up the entire length of the snake, dug inside of it, then pulled out all of the internal organs. I tossed them into a different bucket that was used for other potions, then I put the body back into the large cauldron. I looked at the spot where the cauldron had to go for me to start cooking the soup and I sighed. I would have to stand up to do it and I was going to fall again. I decided to just drag the cauldron over to the spot first, rather than carry the thing. I half-crawled and held onto the cooking pot as I moved across the dirt floor to the right spot. Now that I was there, I realized there were no hand holds for me to lift myself. I sighed again and did my best to brace myself with the cauldron, then pulled myself up onto my unsteady feet. I stayed there for a minute to try and keep my balance. I took a deep breath and grabbed the handles, lifted it for only a second to get it up onto the rack over the cold fire pit, then dropped it in place. I slipped and fell, banged my chin on the pot and my cheek on the handle, and my knees slammed against the stone fire pit. I cried out in pain and recoiled as I rolled onto the floor on my back. I didn''t know what to rub first, because everything hurt. The fire pit suddenly burst into flames and I let out an inarticulate yell as my hair almost caught fire. I rolled away from the heat and checked my hair to see if anything had burned and found several chunks missing. It didn''t look like it was burned, which was a relief. It always took longer to grow back when it was burned off. I crawled over to the side of the hut to where the barrel of water was and realized my dilemma. I couldn''t carry water over to the cauldron. _______________ A minor choice. I''d let the Hag starve if it was me. A) Ask for help. B) Plead. C) Appeal to her common sense. D) Tell her to get it herself. E) Beg. Most of them are bad, so I have to go with A. I choose A. _______________ ¡°I can''t cook your favorite soup without water.¡± I said, my voice sad. ¡°Can you help? I only need half a container.¡± The Hag gave me an angry look and I didn''t change my expression as I pointed to the container. She stomped over and grabbed the container, splashed it into the barrel and then tossed the container and the water across the hut. Luckily, the container went right into the pot and I heard the water splash and sizzle around the snake. I didn''t say thank you, because she would definitely hit me if I did, and I noticed my short pole on the floor. I crawled over to it, tucked it into my pants, then went to the pot again. I used the pole to help myself stand up, stuck my hand into the pot and pulled out the container, then used one of the large spoons to stir the snake. There was enough water in the pot that as long as I was careful, the meat would slide off of the snake''s skeleton and I could remove the bones easily. With the water and the meat left, I could add some nice marsh grass, the mushrooms that always grew near the hut, and a few tubers that grew beside the waist deep waterway nearby. After a few sprinkles of seasoning and letting it simmer, it would be ready. The entire time I worked, I was afraid of what the Hag would do to me next. After a while, I could almost feel her satisfaction at accomplishing what she had intended, which was fixing her mistake at letting me think that she cared about me at all. I glanced down at my mangled hands and feet and I definitely knew where my place was. Firmly under her watchful eyes and in her terrible and tenderizing care. 005 New Normal _______________ Montage mode engaged. Skipping miscellaneous events. Done. _______________ Over the next month, for some reason, my life seemed to pass like a montage. I remember doing it and experiencing it; but, it didn''t take any real time at all as I had to relearn how to do everything with one less finger on each hand. Cutting up food, skinning and cleaning animals, and mixing potions. You don''t realize how much your little finger actually does until it''s gone. It was the same with my feet. Losing two toes on each foot had forced me to relearn how to walk and keep my balance. It was one of the weirdest experiences I had ever had. I even tried to tie sticks and rocks in the place of my missing toes, just to try and get my normal walk back, and it didn''t work. Once I even cheated and tried on one of the Hag''s shoes. Not only didn''t it work, I also earned a day in the marsh gathering yellow moss. If it was the green kind, I wouldn''t have a problem with it. The yellow, though... the frogs owned the yellow part of the marsh. You wouldn''t think that a normal sized frog could cause trouble. You would be wrong. The little monsters looked identical and they all had different properties. Some had acid on their skin. Others had a really useful greasy film that when spread on torches, it burned for hours. The best ones let you taste bright colors and made your tongue into an electric buzzer. Anything you licked with it would feel a shock. Or you did. I honestly can''t remember much after licking one. Except that you never lick the bottom. Never, ever lick the bottom. I lost the feeling of my tongue for two whole weeks and had to take a number four potion afterwards. My life returned to normal soon after I became capable again. Normal as it always was for me, I mean. Beatings with hands, large wooden utensils, and once with a long pole, because I had managed to dodge a particularly nasty clawed hand from her when she was having her own anger tantrum. She had tried to brew a really difficult potion and it hadn''t worked. Even after she made a special meal of my backside to fill her stomach, she couldn''t muster up enough magic to infuse the potion properly. That really pissed her off, because she had used up the very last of the special ingredients that she had bought in the village that was several days travel away. She wouldn''t tell me what the potion was for or told me why she needed it, considering it was the very first time I had seen her trying to make it. I couldn''t read or write, so I was only going by her instructions and the pictures in some of the books that she had. ¡°Boy! I need to go to the village again.¡± The Hag said and gave me a knowing look. I was instantly filled with fear and she licked her lips as I slowly crossed the room and climbed onto her bed. I pulled up the rag I wore and she took out her razor sharp knife. After several strained and painful minutes, she had two nice fillets cut out from my chest. I drank the number four potion and the holes she had made regrew out to the surface of my skin and hurt like hell. ¡°Do NOT leave the hut! I don''t care if it somehow catches fire or gets overrun by quill frogs.¡± The beautiful Hag said and licked the blood from her fingertips. ¡°If I come back and you aren''t here, I''ll have to do something to make sure that you can never leave the hut.¡± The evil smile she wore sent shivers down my spine. ¡°Do you understand?¡± ¡°Y-y-yes.¡± I said and visibly shook. ¡°I will be back in a week.¡± The Hag said and picked up a box of the number one potions and the number four potions. ¡°I better make that two weeks. I may have some errands that need to be done around the village.¡± I stood there and watched her leave the hut, then I walked over to the window and looked out. The Hag put the boxes into the small boat-like skiff, then kicked it to push it into the small waterway that was barely twenty feet away. She hopped on the flat bottomed boat and I watched in awe as it slowly puttered away without her having to use the long pole to push it or the oars to row. _______________ The Hag is gone! You''re going to be all alone and on your own for the next two weeks. What are you going to do? I know what I would do. You should do that, too. Choose wisely. A) Stay and be good. B) Stay and be bad. C) Run like the wind. D) Burn everything. E) Drown. My very first thought was me defying the Hag and her removing my fingers and toes, just a reminder that I was hers and that I was to never defy her again. It''s A. I choose A.If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. _______________ For some reason, those two weeks seemed to pass like a montage. I remember doing it and experiencing it; but, it took no real time at all. I gathered ingredients and made number one potions up to the point that she would have to take over. I also made number four potions to the same point. I wouldn''t dare spit in them myself, though. I didn''t have the paralytic venom she had and I was sure it was an essential ingredient. She spit in everything she made, after all. I smiled as I thought about what the villagers would do to her if they knew they were drinking her spit, then I immediately shivered and ducked my head in shame. If she ever found out that I had that thought, she would flail me again. Or flay me. It would depend on her mood and if she was hungry. ¡°BOY!¡± The Hag yelled and I walked over to the front door and opened it. The flat bottomed boat puttered into view and then slid partially onto the dry part around the hut. ¡°Get out here and carry in the supplies!¡± I walked over to her and she still wore her disguise as an old woman. She pulled off the charm around her neck and her beauty reappeared. She stepped out of the skiff and onto dry land, then she looked around. ¡°You''re lucky that you''ve kept up with your chores.¡± The Hag said, slightly disappointed. I didn''t tell her that I had two sets of potions for her to finish, because I didn''t want her to think that I was trying to impress her. The last time I did that, she hit me so hard that she nearly tore my head off. I carried the sacks off of the boat and put them onto the ground, then went to pick up a large cask. ¡°I''ll get that.¡± The Hag said. I left it alone and dragged the large bag of oats to the side, then rolled it off the edge and onto the ground. I was very glad that burlap was so durable, because any other cloth would have burst from me doing that. Once I had all of the supplies on the ground, including the two empty boxes of potion bottles, I transferred everything into the hut. You couldn''t leave anything outside the hut''s protective wards, because all the little bugs and creatures would infest it and consume it before you knew it. Although, I had discovered a neat little trick with an oat covered skewered frog. If I left it out for a week, the most delicious grubs anyone had ever tasted, either grew inside or nested there. The Hag would let me sneak off with a frog or two on occasion and she wouldn''t complain that I was wasting her precious oats, just because the meals I made with the grubs always tasted that much better. Now that we had a huge bag of fresh oats, for the next two months, we were going to have some of the best tasting meals we ate all year. The Hag didn''t say anything when she carried her cask of alcohol into the hut and saw the two large cauldrons filled with the two nearly completely prepped potions. I had left a number one potion in front of one and a number four potion in front of the other, just so she would know what pot had what potion in it. _______________ You have a minor choice to make. It only determines the order in which you do things. A) Go spider hunting. B) Go frog hunting. C) Gather ingredients for dinner. D) Relax. With the big bag of oats, there was only one choice for me. It was B. I choose B. _______________ ¡°I''m going frog hunting.¡± I said, eager to start the delicious grub gathering, and picked up my short pole. I already had my stubby knife and I slung the draw string of an empty sack over my shoulders, which hung the sack under my left arm, the perfect spot to quickly stash clobbered frogs. ¡°Don''t forget to do the leaf trick.¡± The Hag warned me about testing for the acid frogs and I nodded. The last thing that either of us needed was to have the limited number of sacks we had be depleted. I left the hut and made my way to the part of the marsh that was near the yellow moss section. It was the best hunting area, because the frogs kept trying to expand their territory and they were easy pickings. I was gone for several hours and gathered dozens of frogs, of both the oil kind and the magic licking frogs. I never tried to hide one of them for myself, though. The Hag always knew when I tried to hide stuff like that. On the way back, I found some brightly colored mushrooms and fungus bulbs that the Hag would definitely want cooked with her frog legs. I added them to the sack, careful of the oil covered ones, and went back to the hut. ¡°Boooy.¡± The beautiful Hag said, her voice slightly slurred. ¡°Y-you''re lucky I don''t f-fancy children.¡± I ignored the Hag, because she had already opened the cask and had a half empty cup of alcohol in her hands. She always made comments like that and I had no idea what she was talking about. She never fancied me when she was sober, so why would she fancy me when she was drunk? I took out the mushrooms and the Hag perked up at the sight, then I took out the fungus bulbs and she shot to her feet. ¡°BOY! Where did you get those?!?¡± The Hag exclaimed and walked over to me as if she was missing several toes. ¡°I found them on the way back from hunting frogs.¡± I responded, slightly afraid. ¡°Did you pick them all? DID YOU?!?¡± The Hag yelled and I shivered in fear. ¡°N-no, I... I only took enough to cook with the frog legs.¡± I said and ducked my head, afraid that she would smack me for not taking them all. I felt her hands go around me and I thought for sure that she was going to crush me in her embrace. She let me go a moment later. ¡°You''re a good boy.¡± The Hag said and I froze at the very first kind words to ever pass her lips. ¡°Don''t ever pick them all. Once a month, we can go back and get another handful. They are the most precious ingredients a potion maker could ever hope for.¡± She said and I looked at her face. It had a kind expression and it absolutely terrified me. ¡°I''ve done my delicious work on you too well.¡± The thought of her cutting me up to add to the frog legs had my whole body shivering. The Hag took the sack off of my shoulders. ¡°I''ll make dinner. You go and clear out the spiders around the hut.¡± I gave her an incredulous look for a moment about her cooking a meal, then I realized what I was doing. I gasped and ran from her before she could whip me for giving her that look. Over the next hour, I cleared away every single spider from our several hundred feet wide dry patch of marsh, too terrified to show my face inside the hut without doing exactly what she said. 006 Good Choices When I was done clearing out all of the spiders I could find, even the bigger ones that had started to encroach through the trees, I went back to the hut. I went inside and as I closed the door, I smelled the slightly burning pot on the fire. I walked over to the water barrel and took half a container, then went over to the pot. She hadn''t fried the frog legs like she was supposed to and had tried to make soup. _______________ All right. You need to try and rectify the situation. Somehow. Don''t ask me how you''re gonna do it, because this is totally messed up. I''ve already asked for a replacement and I hope they get here soon. I don''t want to witness this crazy shit anymore. A) Finish the horrible soup. B) Salvage the frog legs. C) Leave it. D) Go to bed. E) Lick a frog. I''ll get in trouble for most of that. I thought with a touch of sadness. I better choose B. _______________ I poured in the water to try and salvage the soup and then did my best to fish out the frog legs. They were not soup material, because there wasn''t enough meat on them for that. I took down the small pan that I used to fry things and picked up a frog from the bag and rubbed my finger on it. It was an oil frog, so I plopped it into the pan and rubbed it all over. I tossed it back into the bag and used my stubby knife to clean up the legs that the Hag had almost ruined. I added them to the pan and let them simmer in the oil. I went to the wooden bench and ignored the fungus bulbs there, chopped up the mushrooms and added them to the soup. I didn''t really have any meat to add to the pot, then remembered all of the supplies that the Hag had brought back. I went over to the pile and tried to be as quiet as I could, while I looked for something I could use. I found a double fist sized chunk of ox meat and almost shouted with joy. I wasn''t allowed to use my stub knife on such rare meat, so I very carefully picked up the small step ladder she had and placed it against the wooden bench and climbed it. I stared at the long and very sharp steak knife that hung in a place of reverence. My mind fought itself as I debated using the knife to prep the meat, or just tossing the whole chunk of meat in and hoping for the best. After five minutes of listening to the frog legs sizzle, I grabbed the knife and climbed back down. I moved the ladder and put the meat on the bench. I took a deep breath and let it out, then put the knife on the edge of the chunk and pushed down. I almost gasped in surprise when the knife cut through the meat like it was barely there. I chuckled under my breath as I quickly chopped it into strips, then chopped it the other way and into chunks. I added them to the soup, which was quickly becoming a stew, and I flipped over the frog legs. The delicious smell filled the hut and my mouth watered as I went back outside to get some more tubers. I chopped them up, quick as a flash, thanks to the new knife. Having a sharp knife made everything so much easier to cut and chop up things. _______________ You have an important decision to make. This will definitely change how the story progresses. Please, please, make the right choice. A) Keep the knife. B) Use the knife. C) Kill the Hag. D) Put the knife back. E) Carve up the Hag. Are you trying to get more of my fingers and toes removed? I asked, incredulous. I am not risking what I have left, just on the chance that the Hag might die. I thought. I don''t want to have to learn how to walk again, so I chose D. That wasn''t the right choice, you idiot. You should have cut the fucking bitch''s throat when - (CLICK) Author interaction has been suspended. Please continue to play. You will be contacted again when it is appropriate. The D option of putting the knife back has been initiated. Thank you. _______________ I wasn''t stupid enough to try anything with a knife that I wasn''t sure could hurt the Hag, let alone kill her, so I put the step ladder against the bench and hung the knife back up where it was supposed to go. I even faced the blade the right way and then put the step ladder back where it was supposed to go. I cooked both things, simmered the stew and fried the frog legs, and made sure that both were edible. I ate one frog leg and had a bowl of stew, and both were the most delicious foods I had ever eaten. I wasn''t sure what was in those mushrooms; but whatever it was, soaking the frog legs first made them taste a hundred times better than they should have.This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. I still put out half a dozen frogs at the side of the hut to gather the grubs, since they were good eating, and went back inside to go to bed. When I walked over to my spot on the floor beside the Hag''s bed, I finally noticed her. Her beautiful body was completely naked and her long flowing black hair on her head was between her legs, too. Oh, and her armpits. I thought about throwing a blanket on her, then saw the three frogs on the bed. I didn''t have to lick one to know what kind of frogs they were. I wasn''t sure why the hair between her legs was wet, since the rest of her was dry, except where she had rubbed one of the frogs across her breasts. I tried to take that frog from her hand and she wouldn''t let it go. I tugged a little hard and she jerked her hand away from me. I thought she was going to wake up and whack me, then she put the frog to her mouth and licked it. Her whole body shivered and her breasts heaved, then she... I kid you not... rubbed the frog between her legs a couple of times. ¡°Mmmmm.¡± The Hag moaned. I jumped away, in case she woke up, and she let out a satisfied sigh instead and dropped the frog. I thought about reaching over to take it, then thought better of it. I kind of knew what licking those frogs did to my brain when I licked them, so I couldn''t even imagine what rubbing it between your legs did. I left the three frogs on her bed and went over to my corner to lay down. I wasn''t cold, even though the marsh cooled off during the night. I wasn''t sure why the cold didn''t really bother me anymore and I didn''t question it. I curled up into my normal ball and hugged my knees as I ducked my head into my arms. It was the safest way to not have something crawl into your mouth. I thought about the Hag asleep on her bed, completely naked and her mouth open, and I smiled. Maybe something might find the inside of her mouth was a nice and cozy place to stay? I fell asleep with that happy thought and didn''t wake up until morning. Not surprisingly, I was awake first. I stood up and walked over to the Hag and saw that she was in the same position she had been in the night before. She also had a fairly big poisonous centipede on the cheek of her face. It looked like it was trying to decide if going into the moist opening it had found was worth its time. I held in my smile as I poked it with my index finger, to try and coax it to go inside. It must have guessed that was what I wanted, because it dove into the Hag''s mouth. The Hag let out a startled gurgle and sat up as she clamped her mouth shut. Her teeth cut off the back of the centipede and she started chewing on what was still in her mouth. ¡°Ugh, what...¡± The Hag saw the back half of the centipede wiggling on her lap. Without missing a beat, she plucked it from her lap and tossed it into her mouth. ¡°Early breakfast.¡± She said and looked at me. ¡°Sorry, Boy. I got it first.¡± _______________ Your standard choices are as follows. Please choose one. A) Cry. B) Complain. C) Laugh. D) Distract her. E) Tell her she''s naked. F) Kiss her feet. I wasn''t sure what to make of the different way the choices were handled. I''ll choose D, just to be safe. _______________ ¡°Breakfast.¡± I said and pointed to the dozen pairs of frog legs hung up over the cooking pot. The Hag turned her head to look and her eyes widened. ¡°I don''t remember cooking that!¡± ¡°How many frogs did you lick?¡± I asked, curious. The most I ever did was two and I didn''t even know who I was for three days. ¡°I can''t remember.¡± The Hag said and rubbed her face and smelled frog on her hands mixed with something else. She took in a sharp breath and looked down at her lap again. Her naked lap. She saw the frog by her leg and then she turned slightly and saw the one that had been by her chest and one by her head. ¡°No, I... why did I...¡± She stopped talking and gave me the most intense stare I had ever seen. ¡°Boy.¡± She said in a deadly voice. I was quivering from the look and the sound. ¡°W-w-what?¡± ¡°Take off your clothes.¡± I didn''t even think about refusing and stripped off my ratty top and patchwork pants right there. The Hag dropped down and put her face right next to my peepee and I blushed. I couldn''t help it. She gave it a sniff, and another, then she sat back on her heels and looked up at me with relief on her face. ¡°You don''t smell like me.¡± ¡°N-no, why would I?¡± I asked and put a hand over myself, then decided to pull my pants back up and bent down to do that. ¡°You''ll find out soon enough.¡± The Hag said and stood up at the same time, which put the hairy space between her legs near my face. Of course, me being absolutely stupid, took two sniffs of it like she had done to mine. I smelled the frog and an underlying musky smell. I wasn''t sure what it was and the smell seemed to climb down the back of my throat. ¡°What...¡± I swallowed, as if I could taste something, and looked up at her as I pulled my pants up the rest of the way. ¡°What is that smell?¡± ¡°You''re not old enough to understand that yet.¡± The Hag said. ¡°Warm my breakfast.¡± ¡°It already is.¡± I said and put my top back on. ¡°The frog legs are in the heat, right over the low fire, and the stew is on the fire.¡± ¡°Stew?¡± The Hag asked and went over to the pot and stirred it with the large wooden spoon. ¡°You used my ox meat!¡± She exclaimed. ¡°I was saving that for a special meal!¡± I winced at the anger in her voice. ¡°You tried to boil the frog legs last night and I needed something to put in the soup when I saved them.¡± I said. ¡°It''s okay, though. The pot''s huge. You won''t have to cook anything for weeks.¡± ¡°That wasn''t the point.¡± The Hag said and did up a bowl for herself, then she gave me a stern look. ¡°Half a bowl and one frog leg.¡± ¡°I know.¡± I said and served myself. ¡°I had the same last night.¡± I sat down and started eating. The Hag nodded and walked over to her bed and sat down on it. She gave me that same odd look she gave me twice already, and I wished I knew what it was that she was thinking. I bought the meat for you, you ungrateful little bastard. The Hag''s words entered my head and I was so stunned by it that I fainted. 007 Food Prep I woke up and was happy that I still had my remaining digits. It was a constant fear when I went to sleep now. I discovered that I was on the Hag''s bed again and shivered involuntarily. When she came over to peer down at me, I shivered voluntarily, because she still looked beautiful. ¡°Get to work.¡± The Hag said to me. I hopped off the bed and ignored the slight sting of my wrist, which meant she had drunk my blood again. She couldn''t have given me a full potion to heal it, which meant she didn''t finish infusing the two large pots of potions that I had prepped for her. We were getting low on them and I guess she didn''t want to waste another one on me. I left the hut and did my outside chores, checking the traps and retrieving anything they caught and resetting them, gathering more potion ingredients, and then cleaning the things we caught. I worked hard, even though I felt a little weaker than I had the last two weeks. I knew she would hit or kick me if I complained and said I needed to sleep. When she wasn''t looking, I dipped my hand into the still simmering pot of stew and grabbed a piece of the tender ox meat. I almost gave myself away when I hummed in happiness. The Hag turned to stare at me and I held up the nice coax beaver. Not only were they rare, they barely ever came out of their dens. She nodded, because she knew the rare parts would allow her to make some of her more exotic potions and give it that extra kick that she liked so much. She ignored me after that and I relaxed and kept working. If I had known any better, I would have asked her why she was letting me do all the intricate work with a dull stub of a knife. I wasn''t stupid enough to ask for the sharp knife, since it was kept out of my reach for a reason. I worked all day and when night fell, I went outside and checked the frogs I had set out for grub gathering. They were coming along nicely and I left them there for one more night. The grubs could be harvested and then I could make a nice mulch with them that we could spread on the leavened bread she brought back from the village. I was tempted to save them for soup seasoning instead, then decided that a pate would be better. The mushrooms I had gathered before were much better as soup seasoning, anyway. _______________ You have a generic choice to make that will affect the story progression. Please choose one: A) Cause Trouble. B) Stay silent. C) Work like normal. D) Wreck everything. E) Run away. Nope! I thought as I read the choices. I decided that I don''t want to die anymore. I choose C. _______________ I was suddenly still as a montage passed through my mind that spanned weeks, then months. The weather turned cold and snow and ice covered everything, then I was suddenly in the middle of winter and stood in the same spot I had been. I wasn''t cutting up the coax beaver, though. It was a weevil and I remembered clobbering it with my pole when I had ventured out to gather snow for the water barrel. ¡°Hurry up, Boy.¡± The Hag said. I nodded and finished up my work prepping it. I added the gizzards to the shallow pan and let them start frying, then added the cleaned meat chunks into the large pot of stew. To my surprise, the area where the fungus and mushrooms grew, never froze over. They kept growing, no matter the weather, and once a month I made the journey to gather more. Thanks to the Hag''s instructions, I learned how to refine, prepare, and convert the fungus into a fine powder. She wouldn''t tell me what the powder was used for, though. She just whisked it away after I prepped each batch and I never saw it again. The smell of great food filled the hut and I finished cooking it. I did up a large plate of fried gizzards for the Hag and added a bowl of stew. I took out the huge jar of pate I had made and spread some onto a piece of leavened bread. I was about to hand it to her when a popup appeared. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. What you choose will change how the story progresses significantly. Choose wisely.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. A) Hand it over unaltered. B) Poison it. C) Spit in it. D). Bleed on it. E) Give more of yourself. I looked at the Hag''s face and her beauty was starting to fade. Wrinkles grew out and her black hair was shifting to grey. I liked her better as the ugly old version of herself; but, she was a lot angrier then. I took a deep breath and straightened my back, because I was about to do something that terrified me. I choose E. _______________ I put the piece of bread down and slowly reached for the Hag''s belt. ¡°What do you think you are doing?¡± The Hag asked, her voice deadly. I held my trembling hand out to her and pointed to her knife. ¡°Do you really think I''m going to hand over my killing knife?¡± The Hag asked. She drew it out quick as a flash and sliced it across my palm. I hissed at the open cut, then turned my hand over and dripped the blood into the stew. Her eyes widened at the gesture, then I turned my hand back, palm upwards, and made a ''give me'' motion to the knife. She looked like she was seriously considering cutting off my hand, then she frowned and turned her knife around and placed the handle into my hand. I almost dropped it, because I only had three fingers, then gripped it tightly. The Hag prepared herself to jump away from the warming fire as I sat back. I pulled off the old and dirty blanket I had on to stay warm. It had a huge hole in it and I wore it like a poncho. I took off my top next and the Hag stared at me as I raised a trembling hand. ¡°No.¡± The Hag whispered. My hand became steady and I made a proper cut across part of my chest muscle. I had seen and felt her do it to me hundreds of times and I repeated her motions. I couldn''t do it in an instant like her, though. By the time I had finished cutting the fillet out, I was sweating and the terror in the air was so thick that I could taste it. To my surprise, the taste was sweet. I peeled the fillet out of my skin and plopped it onto the piece of leavened bread with the grub pate on it, then I slowly handed the knife back. My hand shook and I almost cut my wrist with it. The Hag took the knife and put it to her lips. She stuck out her tongue and slowly licked it as she stared into my eyes. I was already terrified, so I saw the look for what it actually was. She was teasing herself. I somehow knew that she was forcing herself to not chow down the stew with my delicious blood in it. The bread that now had a piece of my precious beauty restoring flesh on it was so tempting that she was feeding on her own greed and anticipation. They were the strangest feelings I had ever felt. I picked up the bread and held it out to her, and she thought I was going to poison her. I didn''t know how I knew that, I just did. I put the bread to my own mouth and was about to bite into it, when it suddenly disappeared and the Hag moaned as she bit into it. The combination of my blood on the bottom of it and my flesh on the top, with the great tasting grub pate, was the most delicious thing she had ever tasted. I reached for a number four potion and she didn''t stop me from drinking it. I felt the cut on my hand heal and my chest regrew out to the way it used to be. I put my top back on and my blanket poncho, then served myself a half bowl of stew. It stopped partway to my mouth and I looked to see the Hag was beautiful again and she had her hand on the edge of the bowl. We looked into each other''s eyes for several moments, then she let an evil smile spread across her face and let the bowl go. I saw the glob of blood slide down the inside edge of the bowl and looked back at her face. I knew that she was daring me to do it. _______________ Will you accept the dare or concede that she is stronger than you? A) Eat it. B) Toss it in her face. C) Try to scoop out the blood. D) Dump it in the pot. E) Tease her. Finally! I get an option to start doing it back! I choose E! _______________ I held the bowl with one hand and put my bare finger into the boiling hot stew. I slowly stirred it around to make sure that her blood was mixed in well and watched her eyes the entire time. She was staring at my finger. I pulled it out and sucked on it, which somehow made my lips tingle, then I tipped the bowl up and drank the broth. The Hag was suddenly standing over me and stared down into the bowl to see if I was actually drinking it. When she saw that I was, her face gained that same odd look she had given me several times before. ¡°You did it. You really did it.¡± The Hag said, her voice full of disbelief. ¡°I never thought...¡± I shovelled the solid contents into my mouth and chewed them as that tingling feeling moved out of my stomach and filled my body. I didn''t let her see that it was affecting me, though. The Hag walked back to her side of the warming fire and sat down. ¡°Tell me when you pass out.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± I asked. ¡°What do you...¡± The tingling sensation filled my head and everything went black. _______________ Account Management break ordered. Initiated. Cool down time: 30 minutes. Stress level: 87% Physical Trauma: 21% Mental Trauma: 66% Will you survive the Hag''s corruption? Will the terror be too much for your young mind to handle? Will you become a Hag yourself? Will you die and have to start over? What the heck is all this? I asked myself. Constant stress levels above 75% have been maintained for an extended period of time. Your mind needs time to adjust to the circumstances and a mandatory break has been established. I want to keep playing! I was finally getting back at that sadistic bitch! Story play will resume when break ends. Cool down time: 28 minutes. Goddammit. I thought in frustration, then waited in pitch blackness for the story to resume. _______________ 008 Hut Life _______________ Cool down time will end in three... two... one. Please enjoy your playing experience. It''s about goddamn time! I thought. _______________ I opened my eyes and found myself in the Hag''s bed. She sat beside it, like she always had when I fell unconscious. I really need to stop doing that. I thought to myself in consternation. It was then that I noticed something. To my utter surprise, I was dressed in normal clothing. I had pants that went down to my ankles and a sweater that didn''t have any holes in it. I had socks on and it felt very weird. I looked down at my feet and wiggled my remaining toes. The empty space in the sock where my small toes were supposed to be, hung off to the side. ¡°Starting this spring, you will accompany me into town.¡± The Hag said and I stared at her. I didn''t know how long I had been unconscious or what had happened while I was. ¡°You will learn what I teach you and you will obey me in all things.¡± She stood up and loomed over me, and my terror filled the hut. ¡°Good. Good.¡± She said and leaned in close. ¡°Be prepared for me to feast even more on you now.¡± My whole body shivered and I stared into her eyes. They had a depth to them that could swallow someone whole, and I... I stared at them and thought that the little dancing flecks of gold in them were worth it. Everything I had been through was worth it. The Hag blinked her eyes and the little gold flecks had disappeared and terror filled me again. ¡°It''s good to know that you aren''t immune.¡± She said with a smile, then she opened her mouth to reveal her jagged and sharp teeth. She lunged and bit my ear. She growled and worried it, as if she was a dog and I was a chew toy. It took her several minutes to tear some of the cartilage off and she chewed on it in front of my face. I hadn''t screamed, or cried, or even yelled at the sight. I was too scared for that. I saw her swallow and then she leaned back down and started sucking on my half-missing ear. The blood wasn''t gushing, so it wasn''t a grievous wound; but, the blood flowed constantly, so she had quite the feast that day. I had to drink a number four potion to repair the damage and she didn''t stop me. I was lucky, because she hadn''t been malicious in her feeding and the ear quickly reformed. The bleeding stopped and I didn''t have any lingering scars. The Hag must have felt my relief, because she leaned back down and bit into my ear with her teeth. She didn''t chew, or tear, or anything. I felt her saliva, or I suppose it was her venom, sink into the teeth marks. I smelled the burning flesh and I squirmed, even though I didn''t feel anything. ¡°Poisonous snakes aren''t the only creatures that can cause permanent damage to you.¡± The Hag whispered, then she licked my ear and walked over to the fire. I reached up and rubbed my now numb ear and felt the several holes that her bite had left. ¡°You didn''t have to do that.¡± I said and sat up. ¡°I can''t feel my ear.¡± The Hag laughed. ¡°Give it a few days.¡± She said and scooped out some of the stew. ¡°You need to make another batch soon.¡± I didn''t have to ask her what she meant. My own damage was depleting our stock of number four potion and I was going to have to hunt for the ingredients even harder, because it was winter and I would have to venture out even farther than I had before to get them. I let out a sigh and walked over to the warming fire, knelt down and helped myself to a half portion of stew. There was only a couple days worth of food left, which meant that I needed to make even more food. Without being asked, I left the hut and checked the various traps and things around the hut and on the drier parts of our little area, then brought in the catches. A couple of near-rabbits were a bit too skinny for what I wanted to use them for, so I just skinned them and cleaned off the meat, then tossed it right into the old stew. I added more water and tubers, then sliced up some more tasty mushrooms and added them as well. I left it to brew and went back out to reset the traps, hunted any more spiders that were trying to encroach on our territory, then went back inside. By the time I returned, I saw that the Hag had gone to bed and had extinguished the torches I had made using the frog oil. I knew what that meant, so I closed up the hut and checked for any creatures that might have entered, then went to the corner of the room by the Hag''s bed. I was surprised when I saw that instead of my normal hole-ridden blanket, it was a relatively fresh boar skin. I didn''t say anything as I crawled in underneath the thing and the warmth was even more soothing than the Hag''s numbness was on my ear. ¡°You owe me another willing fillet.¡± The Hag said into the silence. I shivered from the thought of being stupid enough to do that again and my terror filled the hut. I felt her satisfaction at my terror and then for some reason, I fell asleep. _______________ Time compression activated. Story elements are too generic and repetitive for fun or effective story progression. Please stand by while we progress you to an appropriate spot in the narrative. _______________ I watched as a montage played before me. Days, weeks, and months passed in front of me and each one only had slight variations. Those were the parts where I made the monthly trek to gather more mushrooms and fungus bulbs, converted the fungus into the required powder that the Hag wanted, and she whisked them away to do whatever it was that she did with them.A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Suddenly, it was spring and the pervasive chill faded slightly. Nearly the entire marsh came back to life, after what was a fairly long winter, and the boxes that had the small bottles of potions the Hag sold in the village had filled about a quarter of the available space in the hut. There really wasn''t much to do during the winter, except brew potions when the ingredients became available, eat, and sleep. ¡°Boy!¡± The Hag''s voice carried from outside and into the hut. ¡°Come here now!¡± I tossed off the boar skin that I was under and shot to my feet, then ran out of the hut to her. ¡°Where is my boat?!?¡± The Hag nearly yelled and pointed to the spot where the boat should have been. I walked over to the spot and didn''t see it, then looked down into the waterway. I thought I saw a faint outline of something big, like the boat. I held in my sigh about the boat being sunk. _______________ You have a choice to make. Be wise and careful if you value your remaining digits. A) Reach in and grab it. B) Dive in. C) Use a stick. D) Splash the water. E) Tell the Hag to do it. I almost laughed at the last option. She called me out here, just so she wouldn''t have to do it. I thought and looked at my hands with a missing finger on each. The other options all require my hands close to or in the water, so the only real choice is C. I choose C. _______________ I quickly looked around and found a half-decently long thin branch and went back to the spot that I saw the outline, then knelt by the edge of the water and carefully probed the water with the end of the stick. When nothing reacted, I moved the stick down into the water and poked whatever the outline was. In the next second, I was soaked from head to toe in freezing cold water when it splashed up like a fountain. I fell backwards and most of the stick in my hand was gone and I had several scrapes on my knuckles. I stared at one of the water beasts that must have been resting right there and it had almost taken my hand. The beast wasn''t going anywhere and looked to be trapped as it thrashed around, then it settled down. ¡°We need a new pushing pole.¡± The Hag said from behind me. ¡°I''ll make one right away!¡± I said and ran to the hut, grabbed the tiny hand saw, then went around to the other side of our little dry area. I crossed the water there, after checking for another water beast, even though it wasn''t deep enough for one to hide on that side, and found an appropriate tree. It took me ten minutes to cut the thing down and I quickly cleaned it of branches. I did it fast, because the one thing you couldn''t do was make the Hag wait for longer than she thought she should. I crossed the water again and ran back to her. The Hag took the pole and looked it over, reluctantly nodded at the good job I did, then she took out her killing knife. She made several notches on the end, staggered for some reason, then she sharpened the end of the pole. I stared at her using her blade for such a mundane thing, worried that it was going to dull and I would be blamed. ¡°It never dulls.¡± The Hag said without looking at me, made a final swipe to make the end of the pole a sharp point, then she walked over to the water. I knew what she was going to do and walked over with her. I wasn''t worried about the splashing, since I was already soaked, and I felt a tingle as the Hag did something to the pole. I stared again as the pole seemed to gain a metallic shimmer, then she plunged it into the water. We were both covered in water as the beast splashed around from being stabbed. The Hag repeated the action several times, shifting the pole from side to side. I didn''t understand what she was doing, until the beast stopped moving around and the water was filled with blood. ¡°It''s going to take a lot of treatment to make the meat edible.¡± The Hag said, a little disgustedly. She pulled up the pole and the beast''s body floated up to the surface of the water. She flipped the pole up and looked at the blood-stained end, used her knife to slice off the blood covered part, then sighed as she tossed the pole aside. ¡°It''s too short to use now.¡± I kept my mouth shut and didn''t mention that it would have been fine if she had left it alone. ¡°You can''t use a point to push the boat, stupid.¡± The Hag said, as if she read my mind. ¡°It would stick into the bottom of the marsh and would pull you off balance and probably out of the boat.¡± Oh. I thought. ¡°Now drag the damn thing out of the water.¡± The Hag said and I knelt as I reached for the closest fin. ¡°Watch your hands on the spikes. I don''t feel like healing you or saving your life again so soon.¡± Just once a year, then. I thought sarcastically and she smacked the back of my head really hard. I fell forward and caught myself before I was impaled by those spikes. ¡°Don''t be a smart ass.¡± The Hag said. ¡°Hurry up!¡± I struggled and managed to get part of the tail of the beast onto the dry part. Even partially in the water, the thing was really heavy. ¡°Oh, for Tartarus'' sake!¡± The Hag spat and handed me a small vial. ¡°Drink this.¡± I recognized the number six potion and took it reverently. ¡°I said to hurry UP!¡± The Hag said and lifted her hand to smack me again. I downed the potion and let the tingling feeling fill me. She had only let me drink it once before and that was six years ago when I was five. I had to help her build out the hut and carry the materials after she cut them down. Strength coursed through me and I had to hide my smile as I grabbed the tail of the creature and stood up. I walked backwards and still struggled as the huge thing was pulled onto the dry part. I had never seen anything like it before. The giant jaws with rows and rows of teeth, the beady little eyes, and the rows of spikes it had in its less protected areas, made the thing an impressive and terrifying sight. ¡°Now get my boat.¡± The Hag said and pointed into the water. _______________ You have a choice to make. It could make things better or worse for you. A) Hesitate and do it. B) Jump in. C) Be careful. D) Tell the Hag to do it. E) Strangle the Hag. Ha. I thought. Even with boosted strength, there''s no way I could overpower the Hag. I read the other options and made my decision. I choose C. _______________ I picked up the discarded pole and went over to the water near the right spot, then used the pole to jab and splash in the water, knowing that making noise and movement would draw out another one, if it was there. When nothing happened, I took several deep breaths and dove into the water. I swam down the fifteen feet to the bottom and saw that the skiff was half-buried in the mud. I dug it out as best as I could, dislodged it, and dragged it back to the surface. The Hag didn''t praise me for it, even though she knew that I had held my breath for nearly twice as long as I normally would and finished the task of emptying the flat bottom boat without having to make several trips. I could feel her approval, though. She grabbed the edge of the boat and pulled it out of my hands onto the dry area easily, which proved my previous choice of not trying to strangle her, was a smart one. ¡°Godsdammit.¡± The Hag said and looked at the bottom of the boat. A hole that was nearly the same size as the beast''s maw was in it. 009 Boat Trouble I looked at the fairly big hole in the bottom of the boat and sighed. _______________ You have a choice to make. What you choose here can change the course of the story. A) Cry. B) Complain. C) Try to fix it. D) Moan about the loss. E) Get angry. F) Swim. G) Ignore it. That''s not really a choice. I thought, because it was time to go to the village. If we didn''t bring the potions we made, then we wouldn''t have the money to buy more supplies to survive the summer. I have to try and fix it, because swimming the whole way was not an option with the water beasts in the area. I choose C. _______________ ¡°I think... I think we can...¡± I stopped talking and looked at the Hag. ¡°I need to borrow your knife.¡± Unlike the last time I used it, she didn''t hesitate and handed it to me. I took off running and she didn''t yell or try to stop me. I already had the hand saw on me, so I made my way across the water at the back of the hut and ran into the marsh forest. I was very, very tempted to just cut down several smaller trees and try to tie them together or something. I knew that wasn''t going to be enough, though. I found a tree that was almost a foot in diameter and nodded, then got to work. They were pretty rare to find them that thick and close by, so I took my time to cut it down. It was fairly tall as well, so when it toppled over, it took several smaller trees with it. I wasn''t one to waste an opportunity, so I used the Hag''s knife and cleaned them of branches as well as the main tree. I tied them together, with the branches in the bundle, and dragged them back to the water. Compared to the water beast, the trees were practically weightless. They weren''t, they were just half the weight. My strength was still boosted, so I made short work of bringing everything across the water and over to where the Hag still stood and I untied the bundle. She looked like she was going to ask me for the knife back, then she kept her mouth shut and watched me work. I had seen pictures in one of her books when I was brewing the number ten potion. The ingredients were simple and abundant and it was a very easy potion to make, which meant it was cheap and practically worthless to the Hag. I had still done up a batch years ago and used it only occasionally. I couldn''t tell what the words said; but, the pictures showed using the potion to hold two pieces of wood together. The problem I had was I needed flat wood and I knew that flat wood was inside the round trees. I just had to cut it out. I couldn''t do that with my stub knife, so I never tried it before. With the Hag''s knife that never dulls, I took it and carefully put it in only a little. I dragged it down the whole length of the largest tree and then made a cross cut a couple feet up the trunk. I used the knife tip to pry up part of the bark, then almost laughed when the whole piece made a cracking sound and it fell off to leave the tree bare. I moved up and made more cross cuts, then skinned the rest of the tree. I used the hand saw to cut off the top ten feet or so, since it was way too thin to get a nice flat piece out of. I held the knife, poised to strike, then closed my eyes. If this didn''t work or if I damaged the knife, the Hag would probably take another set of toes from me. I felt my hand tingle and the knife shook slightly, then I felt that now was the time. I opened my eyes and jammed the knife into a spot that was slightly off center of the tree. To my surprise, the tree practically split all the way down the length. I almost laughed again at the result, then repeated the same thing two inches away. I went down the length and cleaned it up as much as I could and cleaned off the splinters. I was left with a long plank that was freshly cut wood. I looked at the knife and marvelled at the blade. True to the Hag''s word, the knife was still as sharp as it was when it was cutting my flesh. The Hag''s hand shot out and snatched it from me, then it was back in her belt and in the sheath it normally rested in. I didn''t comment and dragged the plank over to the boat. I flipped the flat bottom boat over and the hole looked a lot worse from this side. Luckily, it was made of wood and it should work. I didn''t bother trying to cut the hole out or tried to square it off or anything. I jogged over to the hut and went inside, grabbed a handful of number ten potions, then took one of the last number nine potions.Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. She''s going to kill me. I thought and walked back out. The Hag''s eyes hardened when she saw what I had and I ignored her low growl. I used the too short pole to measure the size of the hole and the plank I had made could cover it three times length-wise and just over half of it width-wise. It was a relief, so I used the hand saw to cut the plank in half, then very carefully applied the fortifying potion to it. I used a scrap piece of cloth, that just so happened to be my old top, and made sure both pieces of wood were covered. A few minutes later, the two fresh pieces of wood turned a little grey, which meant they were as good as they were going to get. I had to use four of the number ten potions, two on the pieces of wood and two on the boat, then rested the planks on the bottom of the boat and held them in place to let the potions meld the wood together. I was very glad that I hadn''t gotten any of it on my fingers, because the two pieces of wood were no longer pieces of wood and were now a part of the boat. I sat down on the ground beside the boat and looked at the flat bottomed boat that wasn''t quite as flat bottomed as it used to be. I flipped it over to see that it was actually stable with the extra weight and height. As a final precaution, I poured the last number ten potion I had into the cracked hole, then used the hand saw to cut off several chunks from the split log I had and filled in the hole as best as I could. I sat back and let the potion do its work. It took a little while to ensure that it was done. When it was, I didn''t look at the Hag and pushed the boat back into the waterway. It floated there and didn''t sink. ¡°Check it properly.¡± The Hag said and picked me up, then tossed me in as if I weighed nothing. ¡°AHH!¡± I yelled before I could stop myself and I landed in a heap on the bottom of the boat. The entire boat bobbed up and down in the water and moved out into the middle of the waterway. The part of the boat that had the hole, that I was laying on, wasn''t wet or looked like it was leaking at all. It worked! I thought in relief and sat up, then saw the Hag''s angry expression. _______________ You have a choice to make. What will you do? A) Run. B) Apologize. C) Tell the Hag off. D) Go back. E) Do a rude gesture. F) Swim. I looked down at my hands and knew the only answer was the safe answer. I choose D. _______________ I grabbed the old pole that was still inside the boat, hefted it over the side, then pulled and pushed myself and the boat back to the shore. I had stood on the damaged part the whole time. I didn''t say anything at all when I hit the dry area, put the pole down, and stepped off the boat. I dragged it partially onto the dry area and then turned and stood beside the Hag as she stared at the boat. ¡°Don''t you ever leave in the boat without me again.¡± The Hag said with barely suppressed anger as her fists shook. ¡°You don''t have that many fingers left.¡± I didn''t comment that it was an accident, because it didn''t matter. I had been in the boat, her exclusive property, and it had left the shore without her. I knew deep down that it was a worse crime than trying to escape on my own had been. I could never, ever, leave her there with no means to get back to the mainland. _______________ You have a minor choice that might impact how the Hag sees you. A) Console her. B) Tell her off. C) Joke. D) Ignore her. E) Compromise. F) Attack her. The choices aren''t really in my favor. I thought as I read them again. I think I better take the best option that''s available. I''ll choose E. _______________ I turned to look at her and saw the anger on her face. ¡°We need a safer boat for you to use.¡± The Hag''s face lost the anger and she turned to look at me. ¡°What did you say?¡± ¡°I don''t know how long that boat will be safe to use. You can''t be travelling in it like you used to. You need another boat.¡± I said. ¡°Maybe even a bigger one, so when you load it with stuff, it won''t be so easy to tip.¡± The Hag squinted her eyes at me. ¡°You want me to spend...¡± ¡°We have half the hut full of winter potions.¡± I said. ¡°Instead of making six or seven trips like last year, we can make two, maybe three, if they have a boat there for you to buy.¡± ¡°We.¡± The Hag said with a snarl. ¡°You told me that we were going to the village together, starting in spring.¡± I said. ¡°We can only bring four cases without overloading the boat or tipping it this trip. If we have another for the second trip, then both boats could empty the hut.¡± The Hag stood there for a full minute to see if I was trying to trick her, and all she got from me was that I was completely serious. We really could do everything in a couple of trips with the two of us working. ¡°Fine.¡± The Hag said and I didn''t let her acceptance sway my mood at all. I let the danger of the trip fill my mind and let my emotions about that overwhelm my eagerness to see what the village looked like. ¡°I''ll load the boat.¡± ¡°One number one and three number fours.¡± The Hag said as I walked towards the hut. ¡°I know.¡± I said, that way she would get more upfront money and could use it to buy a boat. I hid the thought that they might not have a boat for sale in the back of my mind. I had to hope that they did. If they did, then neither of us would have to worry about being left in the marsh with no way to leave. I really hoped that they had a boat. 010 Going To Town I had a very hard time trying to keep my enthusiasm hidden as I poled us through the marsh. We had to stick close to the dryer areas that the normal waterways allowed, because if we went deeper, there wasn''t a pole long enough to get us through some of the open areas. I wasn''t even sure if there was a bottom to some of them, considering some of the large things I knew swam through them. None of the creatures and monsters that I knew were in the overhanging trees tried to attack us. I wasn''t shocked by this, since the Hag never complained about being attacked. I was pretty sure they were as scared of her as I was, so staying away from her was the smartest thing they could have done. They must have known that choice would save their lives. When the large dock for the village came into sight, I almost yelled and changed it into a cough. The Hag glared at me and I ducked my head as an apology. I knew better than to draw attention to myself like that and admonished myself for it. She nodded her head and looked back towards the dock. The Hag was wearing her disguise necklace and she looked like her old and wrinkly self with the wild hair. Even though I knew she was still the terrible beauty underneath, her current visage was easier for me to accept as the one that did those horrible things to me. My beauty restoring flesh had been dined on a lot this past winter and my brain wanted to attribute it to the old hag and not the pretty one. It was an odd feeling to have. There was a tall and skinny kid that was about six feet tall that waited for us at the dock. I wasn''t sure how it was possible for her to send word ahead of us to let them know she was coming, though. Maybe she''d tell me if I asked? I thought and glanced at her to see her shake her head. I guess not. ¡°Where''s your tying rope?¡± The kid asked and looked at the end of the boat. ¡°Grouper.¡± The Hag said and the kid nodded. They would try to eat anything that looked like food. ¡°I''ll git another from the store and be right back.¡± The kid said and took off. I almost laughed at the flailing limbs the kid had as he ran like his life depended on it. ¡°You could learn a thing or two from him.¡± The Hag said. _______________ You have a chance to chat. What will you discuss? A) The boat. B) The kid. C) The potions. D) Your skill. E) The Hag. F) The weather. No real good choice there. I''ll go with the kid. I choose B. _______________ ¡°I would only learn how to die quicker.¡± I commented and watched the kid disappear inside a small wooden building. ¡°Even on dry land, he''s off balance. I can''t imagine what he would be like in a boat.¡± The Hag gave me a stare that said to shut up, so I did. ¡°I meant mentally.¡± She said and waited for me to counter, and I didn''t even think of a counter for her statement. If she wanted to think someone else had more smarts than me, I wasn''t going to argue about it. The Hag nodded and we waited for a few minutes for the kid to return. To my surprise, the idiot tied one end to the dock and then jumped into the water right beside us. The Hag immediately reached out and grabbed onto the dock to stop the boat from rocking and I lunged to grab the two cases of potions that started to slide from the jostling. ¡°I take back what I said.¡± The Hag said as the kid grabbed the end of the boat and pulled himself partially onto it with us and shook the cases of potions even more. He tied the other end of the rope onto the knob on the end of the boat, then let go and swam over to the shore. I waited for the boat to stop rocking before I let the cases go and fixed them to stay stacked without falling. The kid had run back down the dock to us, then grabbed the end of the rope tied to the dock. ¡°SLOWLY!¡± The Hag yelled and several people near the dock turned to look. ¡°Sorry, miss Hag.¡± The kid said and slowly pulled the slack out of the rope and then pulled us in tight to the dock. He looped the excess around the post and looked into the boat. ¡°Do you need help with...¡± ¡°No.¡± The Hag spat. ¡°I can''t have you drop them in your clumsiness and waste all my hard work.¡± I locked my brain down and didn''t correct her and say that it was all my hard work. I hid those thoughts behind being very careful about handing the boxes of potion up onto the dock. The height difference was only to my waist; but, the boxes were big and heavy. They were full of liquid, after all. The Hag let out a growl as she looked at me. ¡°I''ll be careful!¡± I said and moved to the front of the boat, braced my legs on the edge, then slowly lifted the top wooden case. I got it to the right height and turned just enough to get the corner onto the dock, then I carefully pushed it onto the dock. I let out the breath I was holding and then repeated the process for the second box. The Hag actually moved over the other two boxes to me and I didn''t have to do it myself. I transferred them to the dock as well.This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. The Hag jumped up from the boat and looked down to the end of the dock. ¡°Boy! Go get me that cart.¡± I scrambled up and out of the boat to do as she bid and the tall kid beat me to it. I winced and waited for the Hag to hit me for not being quicker. When she didn''t, I widened my eyes, because she was looking at the other kid and not me. His name must be Boy, too. I thought to myself as the kid came back with the hand-pulled cart. ¡°Load the cart, David.¡± The Hag said and neither of us moved, since we were both named Boy. She turned to look deep into my eyes. ¡°David.¡± She said, almost in a growl. ¡°Load. The. Cart.¡± Me? You meant me? I asked myself, completely shocked. ¡°Now.¡± The Hag said through gritted teeth. I hopped and quickly loaded the four crates onto the hand-pulled cart. The Hag waved at the handles and I took the position, then pulled the cart as we followed the boy all the way down the dock to the mainland. My feet wobbled a little when they hit solid ground, which was something I wasn''t quite used to. Thankfully, the feeling only lasted a second and I walked normally after that. ¡°MOMMA!¡± The tall kid yelled before he opened the front door of the general store. ¡°I TOLD YOU NOT TO YELL, KARL!¡± A woman yelled back as she came out of the back room and looked out through the front door. ¡°Oh! Customers!¡± She said and her face changed from anger to a pleased smile. ¡°What can I do for you?¡± ¡°Where''s Mack?¡± The Hag asked and the pleased smile disappeared from the woman''s face. ¡°Dad''s taken ill.¡± The woman said. ¡°I''m Diane and I''ll be running the store until he feels better.¡± ¡°Did he tell you that I was raising the price of my goods?¡± The Hag asked. Diane took in a quick breath and glanced at me with worry in her eyes. _______________ You have a choice to make. Will you do the right thing? A) Say no. B) Say yes. C) Shake your head. D) Nod your head. E) Make a scene. F) Run. She looks scared, so I''m pretty sure she thinks that the Hag is trying to scam her. In fact, I think the Hag is trying to scam her. I thought and glanced at the smile on the Hag''s face. She is. I shook my head. No, I can''t let her make other people miserable. I choose C. _______________ I shook my head and did my best to not smile at Diane''s instant relief. ¡°No, my father didn''t mention any price increase.¡± Diane said and her smile returned. ¡°In fact, he said if you didn''t bring enough this time, he would pay you even less.¡± The Hag let out a huff that was more growl than anything, knowing that Diane was trying to scam her right back. ¡°All right, I won''t increase the price this time.¡± Diane kept her smile. ¡°How many do you have for us?¡± ¡°We have a case of health potions and three cases of healing potions with us.¡± I said. ¡°I don''t know how to count past ten, so I don''t know how many are in each.¡± Three gasps met my words and Diane''s and the kid''s surprised faces looked back at me. The Hag''s face was a solid blank mask; but, I could feel her simmering anger. ¡°I''m too busy with chores and gathering ingredients to learn more than that.¡± I said with a laugh. ¡°We''ve got a lot more cases back home, too.¡± ¡°That''s good, because that''s not going to be enough for us.¡± Diane said and the Hag relaxed. ¡°We just need to buy another boat and we''ll have the rest of the cases here by tonight.¡± I said. ¡°I think old Simon has a boat or two available.¡± Diane said. ¡°He''s closed right now, though.¡± The Hag let out a grunt of dissatisfaction. ¡°I didn''t want to stay overnight.¡± ¡°We could make another run and...¡± I started to say and the Hag shook her head. ¡°No, it would be a waste to go all the way and only come back with four more cases.¡± The Hag said. ¡°Carry in the ones from the cart and I''ll mark them down.¡± Diane waved at the large wooden counter. ¡°I''ll need to take one of each right away.¡± The Hag opened her mouth to speak and Diane held up a hand to stop her. ¡°I''ll pay and not just give you store credit.¡± Diane said and the Hag nodded. I brought in the cases and Diane marked them down and counted them, out loud, as she pointed to each potion vial. I stared at her as she taught me how to count all the way up to thirty six, right in front of the Hag, and I remembered everything she said. She did the other three cases and I told her which one was the case of general health potions. ¡°I know. Thank you.¡± Diane said and took out a silver coin and ten copper coins. ¡°A silver for the healing potion and ten copper for the health one.¡± The Hag took the money with a grumble, because she had hoped to get more money for them. She walked over to the closest shelf to see the condition of some of the vegetables and things they had. I glanced around and was amazed at all the things I could see. Ropes, lanterns, clothing, oats, chicken feed, horse feed, bags of seeds, and a whole bunch of stuff that didn''t have labels. ¡°How''s grandpa?¡± Spencer asked in a whisper. ¡°Not good. He''s been sick ever since he caught that snake in the shed.¡± Diane said and put the two potions in her pocket. ¡°I just hope these potions help.¡± _______________ You have a chance to change how things go. What will you do? A) Offer help. B) Stay quiet. C) Ask about him. D) Show off. E) Be smart. F) Leave. I''m pretty sure Diane and Karl think I''m dumb, so... I choose E. _______________ ¡°It depends on the color of the snake.¡± I whispered to them without looking at them. Diane caught her breath and then she pretended to check something on the shelf I was looking at. ¡°It was green with yellow diamonds on the back.¡± I winced at the thought of handling it without cloth covered hands. ¡°Number one isn''t going to be enough and four will only heal the wound, since it only works on flesh and not poison.¡± I whispered and dug into my pocket. I looked around and saw that the Hag was bent over and rummaging through a big bag of potatoes, so I pulled out a small vial and slipped it into Diane''s hand. ¡°What''s this?¡± She asked, surprised to see something she hadn''t seen before. ¡°It''s number three. Snake counter juice. You can''t give it to him all at once, though. Only three drops, wait an hour, then six drops, then an hour and ten more drops.¡± I whispered. ¡°If he doesn''t get better, do it again tomorrow and then give him number one, wait an hour, then number four.¡± Diane held the small vial in her hand and it disappeared from sight. ¡°There''s only two doses.¡± She said, barely above a breath, and I nodded. ¡°This... this is why you can count to ten.¡± I nodded again. ¡°She''s going to kill me for losing my only snake juice.¡± I whispered and walked away from her and over to the Hag. ¡°We''ll be back tomorrow to shop for more goods.¡± The Hag said without looking at her. ¡°I... I look forward to it.¡± Diane said and I glanced at her just before we left the shop. She had the vial clutched to her chest and nodded to me. I nodded back and followed the Hag over to the small two story inn. I was looking forward to staying inside an actual building for once. I might even get to sleep in a bed of my own. I thought and let a smile grow on my face. 011 The Inn ¡°I need a room. The cheapest.¡± The Hag said as we entered the inn. ¡°But...¡± I started to say and she whacked me so hard that I fell to the floor, dazed. ¡°We won''t need an extra blanket.¡± The Hag said. ¡°I... I''m sorry.¡± The woman that ran the inn said. ¡°I can''t have you... um... he''s only...¡± ¡°He sleeps on the floor, you trollop!¡± The Hag spat. ¡°Don''t assume things you don''t understand.¡± She glared at the brown haired woman. ¡°Becky.¡± ¡°I haven''t been called Becky since I was...¡± Rebecca stopped talking when she realized who she was talking to. ¡°Yes, I''m sorry. I did make a mistake. The room will be three copper and a copper for the extra occupant, two copper each for breakfast, and...¡± ¡°If you tell me to take a bath, I''ll skin you alive and watch your kids dine on your innards.¡± The Hag said. Her voice was even and there wasn''t a trace of growl in it, even though that was a threat that was worth a bit of a growl. Rebecca''s face drained of color and she held out a room key with a shaky hand. The Hag dropped the appropriate copper coins onto the counter, took the key, and led me to the room. It was sparse and cozy at the same time and the Hag pointed to a spot on the floor in the corner that was near the bed. I did not miss the similarity to the way it was at home. ¡°Sit there and stay there.¡± The Hag said and I walked over to the spot, sat down, and looked at her. ¡°I have some errands to run, so you are to wait for my return.¡± She glared at me. ¡°DO. NOT. LEAVE.¡± I nodded several times, pulled my knees up to my chest, then ducked my head down. I heard her leave and shut the room door. I also heard the key in the lock. _______________ You have a choice to make. Will you defy the Hag? A) Stay put. B) Run. C) Cry for help. D) Leave the room. E) Pee your new pants. Yeah, those are great options. Thanks. I thought with sarcasm. I decided that I was going to play it safe already, so I''m going to choose A. _______________ I didn''t lift my head and I didn''t move from the spot. I stayed there for most of the day and didn''t even take more breaths than were necessary. I knew for a fact that when she came back, she would know it if I moved or tried anything. I didn''t know how she always knew what I was up to, she just did. I also knew that she would never tell me how, the same as when I was curious about anything else. She always cut me off and stopped me from asking questions and I never questioned it. The Hag came back to the room a long time after the sun set and I could tell that she had been drinking. I didn''t know what, though. By the way she wobbled in through the door and dropped the key, I was pretty sure that she had drunk a lot of whatever it was. ¡°Boy.¡± The Hag said as she stumbled into the room and shut the door. ¡°You like it here in the village, don''t you?¡± _______________ Here''s your chance to tell the Hag how you really feel. Will you take it?Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. A) Admit you do. B) Call her a bitch. C) Say you don''t know. D) Admit you''re scared. I read the options twice, then twice more. I... I... I''m scared that I''ll pick the wrong answer. I thought and looked at the Hag and saw her growing ire. I choose D! _______________ ¡°I''ve never been here before.¡± I said in a soft voice. ¡°People look at me weird and I don''t know what to say to them.¡± I looked at the Hag and let her see and feel the fear I felt. ¡°You''re the only person that...¡± ¡°Shh.¡± The Hag said and wobbled over to me. She pat the top of my head to comfort me and then she dug her fingers into my hair. ¡°Your hair is changing.¡± She said and pulled it forward to show me the black streaks growing through the dirty blonde mass I used to have. ¡°My... hair...¡± I whispered and looked at it. ¡°That''s my blood going through you.¡± The Hag said and I looked up at her. ¡°Get up off the floor.¡± ¡°But...¡± The Hag gripped my hair again and pulled me up to my feet. ¡°OW!¡± I said loudly and she slapped the bad side of my face with the permanent snake bite damage. ¡°Don''t fake pain, Boy.¡± The Hag said and wavered in her stance, then she almost toppled over. I grabbed her to stop her from falling, for some reason, and sat her on the bed. ¡°Faking pain only gets you more pain.¡± ¡°But...¡± The Hag slapped the bad side of my face again. ¡°I can keep hitting you until you understand.¡± She said and slapped me again. ¡°No, I... I get it.¡± ¡°Good.¡± The Hag said and laid down on the bed. ¡°Ugh, this thing is too soft. My spine is bending unnaturally.¡± I was surprised to hear this and looked around for some kind of solution. The only thing I saw was the thick skinned rug. I picked it up and showed the Hag. She squinted her eyes, then rolled off to the side. I put it down on the bed and folded it in half, then she rolled back over. ¡°Ahhh, that''s better.¡± The Hag said and reached out for my hand. _______________ What will you do? Be smart or be stupid? A) Slap it. B) Take it. C) Kiss it. D) Kick it. E) Lick it. F) Bite it. G) Ignore it. H) Hug it. The safest option for me and for her, is B. I''ll choose B. _______________ I reached out and took her offered hand. I stared at it like it was something I had never seen before. The Hag closed her hand on mine and her strong grip cracked several of my knuckles and snapped two of my fingers. I didn''t cry out, even though it hurt, because of what she had said only minutes ago. ¡°I smelled one of my potions near one of the houses I haven''t visited before.¡± The Hag said in a deadly voice and I looked into her eyes. The deep pools didn''t try to suck me in like the last time I saw them so close. ¡°I... must have...¡± ¡°Don''t lie.¡± The Hag said and squeezed harder, which snapped my last finger. ¡°I lost my snake juice.¡± I said through gritted teeth. ¡°I really did.¡± I concentrated on digging through my pockets and not finding it. ¡°I should have left it home and forgot.¡± ¡°Do you know how much that potion costs?¡± The hag asked me and eased her hold on my hand. The pain didn''t lessen, however. ¡°N-no.¡± I said and looked at my hand and the three broken fingers. ¡°I only know what the health and healing potions cost.¡± The Hag huffed and smiled. ¡°No, that''s how much I sell them for, not what they are actually worth.¡± ¡°I don''t understand.¡± I said. ¡°No, you don''t.¡± The Hag said and let my hand go. ¡°You will learn.¡± I cradled my hand to my chest and didn''t show her how painful it was. ¡°You''re learning.¡± The Hag said and closed her eyes. ¡°You will... learn... well.¡± She breathed and then fell unconscious. _______________ Another choice, another way to fail. What will you do? A) Take her knife. B) Take her hand. C) Check her pockets. D) Strangle her. E) Kill her. It''s bad that the last two options aren''t connected or count as the other. I thought. I can''t take the knife, because she''ll know and stop me. Her hand... no, she already proved that was a mistake. I''ll choose C this time. _______________ I very carefully rummaged through the various pockets in her clothing, which was a lot harder than it was supposed to be, since she was still wearing her old hag disguise. I did a lot of fumbling and found several odd and squishy things that were hidden in her clothing. I didn''t linger and kept searching, then found several vials. I pulled them out and sighed as I found two number fours, the healing potion, and one of the rare number nines, the fortifying potion. I drank the healing potion and my fingers fixed themselves and healed. I put the other potions back where I found them and then put the empty vial in her hand. I hoped that she would think she drank it while drunk and I laid down on the patch of floor that she picked for me. I cuddled in on myself and did my best to sleep as much as I could before morning. I assumed it was going to be a doozy. 012 Morning Woes I awoke to pain as the Hag kicked me in the chest. I coughed and gagged on some blood, then barely managed to not let it drip on the floor. ¡°Don''t ever try to trick me into thinking I drank my own potions.¡± The Hag said. ¡°I was drunk, not stupid.¡± ¡°I didn''t... want you to... blame me... if I can''t work today.¡± I choked out, my chest on fire. ¡°You snapped... my knuckles and... broke my fingers last night.¡± The Hag glared at me to see if I was lying, so I lifted my bloody hand to show her the still swollen knuckles. She grabbed my hand and felt the knuckles, then huffed. ¡°You didn''t cry out.¡± The Hag said. ¡°You said... not to complain.¡± I responded, then coughed again and I couldn''t stop the blood splatter this time as it went between my bloody fingers and sprayed on the floor. ¡°Don''t waste it!¡± The Hag said and bodily picked me up and held my bloody mouth over her open mouth. I had a coughing fit from the sudden movement. I couldn''t block the spray, because my arms were out to the sides, so I hacked up some blood and other fluids and spit them right into her mouth. She didn''t react until I stopped coughing. The Hag closed her mouth and swallowed what was in her mouth, licked her lips, then her eyes locked onto my blood-covered hands. I was suddenly on the bed and her rough tongue licked my hands and then she sucked on my fingers. I wasn''t sure what I was feeling, because it was both disgusting and fascinating to me, which was really weird. When my hands were clean, the Hag''s wild eyes caught the blood on my mouth and chin. _______________ You have a story changing choice to make. Will you make the right one or will you make another mistake? A) Stay still. B) Struggle. C) Cough on her again. D) Kill her. E) Kiss her. F) Scream. G) Whimper. What''s with the kiss and kill options? I''m only eleven in the story so far! I thought in exasperation. I read the options and only one of them ensured that whatever she''s planning to do won''t last long. All of the others would make it last a lot longer and coughing on her didn''t work at all. I have to stay still, so I choose A. _______________ I didn''t struggle or try to force myself to cough. I stayed perfectly still and the Hag moved in close and licked my chin clean. I felt a dribble of blood start to roll out of the side of my mouth and the Hag growled at me for trying to hold it in. She poked a finger into my cracked chest and I opened my mouth to scream in pain. The Hag lunged forward and I felt something like suction as our lips locked together. I was filled with a tingling feeling and it was the weirdest I had ever felt before. Her tongue swirled around and cleaned my teeth and tongue. I could sense her swallowing up all the spit and blood that had gathered in my mouth and then she almost moaned as her weight on top of me caused my cracked chest to puncture my heart. A gush of what I would later learn was my ''heart blood'' flooded into my lungs and she sucked it up and into her own mouth. This time she did moan and kept sucking on my mouth. My body shuddered and then I started to shake uncontrollably as my lungs collapsed and I lost my ability to breathe. The Hag stopped sucking immediately and looked at what she had done. The tingling stopped and for some reason, I was both glad and sad about it. The Hag took out the potions I had found in her pockets and she held up the number four potion. ¡°You need to drink!¡± She said and popped the cork, then tried to tip it into my mouth. It just gathered at the back of my throat and didn''t go anywhere. ¡°DRINK IT, DAMN YOU!¡±If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. If I had any breath, I would have laughed and told her that I had forgotten how to swallow in my panic to try to breathe. ¡°Fine.¡± The Hag said and her knife suddenly appeared in her other hand. I felt the knife slide easily into the top of my throat and then she sliced down to the top of my sternum. I screamed mentally, because I felt the intense pain of having my throat be split and I couldn''t scream for real. I couldn''t even choke as she used two of her fingers to push the bit of number four potion down my now completely open throat and down my esophagus and into my stomach. To my surprise, she stopped and took out the number nine potion, the fortifying potion, then she poured that down my throat. NO! I thought as I remembered what it did to the wood planks. ¡°Quiet and let me work, foolish child.¡± The Hag said and poured the rest of the number four potion into the exposed hole of my throat, partially sat me up to let it flow into my stomach, and held me there as she dug out my stub knife from my belt. I could only stare at her as she made a dozen quick slices across the slit she had carved into my neck with her own knife, then she held the skin together. I didn''t feel the fortifying potion, I assumed because the healing potion was taking effect as well. It was either that, or I had blacked out and missed some time. I wasn''t sure. I hadn''t taken a breath in a long time. I felt my body tingle as the healing potion flowed out of my stomach and I finally felt my lungs expand. My ribs popped out and back into place and my sternum snapped back together. I felt the smaller cuts across my neck knit back together and expected to feel the long slit fix itself as well, and it didn''t. I took in a long and deep breath and I thought I felt my throat flex, when it shouldn''t. I reached up to touch it with my fingers and felt the long and jagged slice that was still in my neck with twelve cross-hatched slices that had healed and were holding it together. I opened my mouth to speak and only a gurgle came out. ¡°Your body has been fortified with a potion intended for solid objects.¡± The Hag said, as if that explained everything. ¡°You might get the use of your voice back. Or not.¡± I waved at my throat and then at her. ¡°It''s a magic knife. The damage it causes is permanent.¡± The Hag said and shrugged. ¡°That''s what you get for almost dying on me when I''m feeding.¡± _______________ You have another choice. Good luck. You''ve been making absolutely wonderful choices so far that have worked out so well for you. A) Show anger. B) Show sadness. C) Cry. D) Pee yourself. E) Ask for the knife. F) Run. G) Sleep. You''re the one giving me these choices, asshole. I thought and read them again. Those don''t help me at all. None of them. How the hell am I supposed to make things better for myself if all you give me are bad choices? I sighed. You know what? Never mind. I''m going to do what I want, so fuck your stupid choices. If she ends up killing me, then it''s your fault. When I play through this again, I request the same narrator that helped me during my other story be assigned to me. When no message appeared, I nodded. In fact, I''d like him to be assigned permanently to my gaming profile, assuming he''s okay with that. I thought. For now, I''m going to choose E. _______________ I opened my mouth and thought about getting angry about it, then remembered who I was dealing with. I held in my sigh and motioned for the knife. ¡°You want revenge, do you?¡± The Hag asked with a growl and eased away from me. I shook my head, because she misunderstood me. I pointed to my stub knife and she handed it over without a word. I slowly stood and all of my muscles were stiff. I walked over to what looked like a bathroom and inside was a piece of shiny metal behind the sink. I looked at the reflection of the horrible jagged scar the Hag left, sighed, then raised my knife to my neck. The Hag was instantly there and grabbed my hand. ¡°I won''t let you kill yourself.¡± She said. ¡°I need you and the sweet escape of death is a long, long time away for you.¡± I turned the knife over and touched her skin with it. ¡°Go ahead. I''ll remove your remaining fingers and...¡± The Hag started to say, then I made a very small cut, then another, then another, in a neat and tight little row. She saw her hand heal after a moment and then she looked at my neck. She nodded and let my hand go. I turned back to the reflective metal and used my stub knife as I made many, many small incisions into my skin. It hurt... oh god did it hurt... and I never made a sound or flinched as I repeated the tiny cuts all the way down my throat. To my surprise, very little blood came out, even with hundreds of tiny cuts. When it did, it was slow, like tree sap. I assumed that was thanks to the fortifying potion and I was grateful, because the Hag didn''t have another number four potion on her. I knew who had a lot of them, though. Diane that worked in the general store. 013 The Boatmaker We left our room at the inn and the innkeeper named Rebecca had been standing in the hallway. She had something that looked like an old and very rusted sword in her hand. It wasn''t raised in a threatening manner and she stood there awkwardly, as if we had caught her doing something. ¡°What do you want, Becky?¡± The Hag taunted. ¡°I was just... I thought I heard you yelling.¡± Rebecca said. ¡°So, you stood out here the whole time after you heard my yell?¡± The Hag asked with an evil grin and Rebecca blushed in embarrassment, because she hadn''t come into the room to help. I guess we did catch her doing something. I thought and realized that no one was going to help me. The Hag waved to me. ¡°Tell her all the horrible things I''ve done to you, David.¡± My throat was lacerated, mostly my own work, and my vocal cords were frozen by the fortifying potion. I couldn''t even make a gurgling sound now. ¡°There, see? David doesn''t complain about his treatment. Why should you?¡± The Hag said with a laugh, grabbed me by the arm, and hauled me down the hallway. We went through the lobby and it had a young man wearing a weird set of clothing and a sword on his hip, who was waiting there at the desk. He gave us an odd look and then his face lost its color when the Hag growled at him. I guess that''s why he wasn''t in the hallway with Rebecca. I thought as we left the inn. The Hag took me over to the docks and pulled me into the large warehouse-like wooden structure. ¡°I need a boat.¡± She said to the little girl behind the counter beside the door. ¡°MOMMIE!¡± The little girl yelled. A woman that looked a lot like the old hag stood up and came out from behind a large normal boat that she had been working on. Her hair was black and not grey, though. ¡°Oh, it''s you.¡± She said and sighed. ¡°I thought I had an actual customer.¡± ¡°You do, Michelle.¡± The Hag spat and hated that the woman thought she was a waste of time. Michelle shrugged. ¡°What do you want?¡± ¡°A boat.¡± The Hag said angrily. ¡°What else would I want?¡± ¡°A boat fixed. New oars or push pole. Safety devices...¡± Michelle stopped talking when she realized who she was talking to. ¡°What kind of boat?¡± ¡°A large flat bottomed boat, at least twice the size of my old one.¡± The Hag said and pointed out the end of the warehouse. Michelle walked over and peered out at the large dock and nodded. ¡°All right, I think I have something. It''s over this way in the last slip.¡± The Hag dragged me over to the spot and the boat was almost three times the length of our old boat and twice as wide. I wonder why it''s so long? I thought as I looked at it. ¡°Why did you make it so long?¡± The Hag asked. ¡°It was ordered for a shore fisherman that needed to carry a lot of big fishing nets, then he fell ill during the winter and died.¡± Michelle said and gave the Hag an angry look for a second, then she sighed. ¡°I guess I can''t blame you for not delivering health and healing potions during the winter.¡± ¡°It''s not safe to walk on the ice.¡± The Hag said without inflection, as if it was an old argument and she had said the line countless times. ¡°I know, I know.¡± Michelle said and rubbed a hand over her face. ¡°I lost Simon, too.¡± ¡°Which one?¡± The Hag asked with a gleam in her eye. Michelle stopped rubbing her face and glared at her. ¡°I won''t be selling my boy, so you can get that evil thought out of your head right now.¡± The Hag cackled. ¡°If you ever change your mind...¡±This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°He''s too old for your liking, anyway.¡± Michelle said and then gasped. ¡°I can''t believe I just thought that.¡± She shook her head. ¡°Do you want this thing or not?¡± The Hag let my arm go and examined the boat very closely for several minutes. _______________ You have a choice to make. Will you make the right one? A) Push the Hag. B) Kick the Hag. C) Tap her shoulder. D) Yell (pretend). E) Flail your arms. I shook my head at the stupid options. I would definitely get in trouble with all of them, except one. I choose C. _______________ I reached out and tapped the Hag''s shoulder. She stopped looking at the boat and glared at me like Michelle had glared at her. I pointed to the boat with one hand and used the other to tap her shoulder again, then I pointed out the end of the warehouse and tapped my own chest. ¡°You want this huge monstrosity?¡± The Hag asked, surprised. ''You'' I mouthed and tapped her shoulder again. ¡°Do you know how long it''s going to take me to make a boat this size safe for use in the marsh?¡± The Hag asked, clearly angry. ¡°My boat is perfectly safe for use on the water.¡± Michelle said, not understanding what the Hag meant. ¡°I''m not worried about what''s on the water.¡± The Hag said without looking away from me. ¡°You will need to help me.¡± I didn''t need for her to spell it out for me as my fear of being filleted escaped my control. ¡°Very well.¡± The Hag said and turned to look at Michelle. ¡°We need to discuss the price.¡± ¡°My husband''s... my office is right over there.¡± Michelle said and led the Hag away from me. I stared at them as they went into the office and left me alone in the warehouse. _______________ Another choice. Good luck with it. A) Stay. B) Run. C) Get in the boat. D) Get in your old boat. E) Talk to the little girl. F) Walk outside. I didn''t even have to think about it. I choose F. _______________ I turned right around and walked across the warehouse, passed the little girl, and walked outside. Even though my movements were a little stiff, I didn''t stop there. I walked all the way back up to the general store and went inside. ¡°Hello, can I help...¡± Diane started to say the normal response, then she saw me. ¡°David!¡± She exclaimed and came around the counter, almost ran over to me, and took me into a bone-crushing hug. ¡°It worked! Your snake juice worked!¡± She said and let me go. ¡°Thank you so much for...¡± Her eyes saw all the slightly bloody cuts across my neck. ¡°Oh, no! What happened?¡± I mimed a knife in my throat and then tapped my stubby knife. ¡°Oh, David! You poor thing.¡± Diane said, sadly. I shook my head and pointed to my neck and then pointed to the cases behind the counter. ¡°Would a health potion work?¡± Diane asked me, unsure. I shook my head and pointed to another case. ¡°Healing? All right.¡± Diane said and went behind the counter to take one of the vials. ¡°You can have one for what you did.¡± I shook my head as I accepted the potion, then I poured a little onto my fingers. Diane caught her breath when she saw that I only had three fingers and watched me rub the potion onto my neck, then I drank the rest of the potion. To her surprise, all the little cuts faded away and all that was left was a nasty jagged scar that was half an inch wide. I felt the change with my fingertips and smiled, because the slice that the Hag had given me was completely closed. It wasn''t going to look pretty, I knew that; but, I no longer had a hole in my neck that couldn''t be healed. I had taken the Hag''s poor attempt to create new wounds to hold the other one closed, to the extreme and pretty much erased the old wound with hundreds of new ones. ¡°Iiiiii... paaaaaay... baaaaack.¡± I said. ¡°No, you gave me that potion for my father and...¡± ¡°Losssssst.¡± I said and shook my head, then I walked away. I left the general store and walked back to the warehouse where the Hag was negotiating for the boat. I knew she wasn''t going to get away without paying or trying to trade her services, since Michelle didn''t look like she needed any help from the Hag. I made it back to the new boat just in time, because the Hag came out with a scowl and Michelle had a grin. ¡°BOY! Get that boat onto the water!¡± The Hag said loudly and I immediately complied. The strength potion had worn off yesterday and I was still moving a little stiffly. Even so, when I grabbed the front end of the boat, I managed to drag it over to the edge of the warehouse. I moved around to the back and sat down, then pushed with my feet. I did that a couple of times and then the boat started to tilt. I got up and half-ran, half hobbled to grab the rear tie as the boat slid off and into the water. I looped the rope around the post that was there and the boat came to a stop. ¡°I can''t believe someone so small did that.¡± Michelle said, completely surprised. ¡°My apprentice isn''t worthless.¡± The Hag said and walked over to the opening at the end of the warehouse and jumped into the boat. Apprentice? I asked myself, shocked. ¡°Get the oars and poles!¡± The Hag commanded and I grabbed them and handed them to her. She put them into the boat and gave me a glare. ¡°Get the old boat and you better keep up with me.¡± She said in a deadly voice. I nodded several times and untied the rope, then did my best to run out of the warehouse, ran down the dock, and untied our boat. I climbed in and picked up the push pole, shoved off from the dock, then was surprised that the Hag was already out of the large area in front of the warehouse, past the large dock, and was entering the waterway that would lead us back towards the spot where we could travel deeper into the marsh. Come on, come on! I thought and used the pole to push the boat along to try and catch up. Just a little faster! I can''t lose sight of her, or I''ll have my legs filleted, too! Somehow, the little boat picked up a bit more speed and it was a little bit easier to push it. YES! I yelled in my head and pushed and pushed with the pole until my arms were sore, then I pushed some more. 014 Oopsie To my relief, I kept up with the Hag all the way back to the hut. I was sore all over and was exhausted; but, it was worth it. To say that she was disappointed that I was right behind her was a severe understatement. I could somehow feel that she wanted me to fail, just so she could feast on me even more than she normally did. I did my best to ignore that and tied up the old boat next to the new one, then I pretty much collapsed onto the ground beside it. _______________ You have a choice to make. Come on, be smart about it. A) Stay. B) Run. C) Eat. D) Cook. E) Point to the spiders. F) Swim. G) Beg for help. H) Lay there. Oh, for god''s sake. I thought. I hate spider bites! I choose E. _______________ I was laying on my back and could clearly see the large webs above our heads. I barely lifted my arm and pointed, then all my strength left me. I wanted to move out of the way and I just couldn''t. I had overexerted myself way more than I had thought I could and now I was paying for it. It surprisingly didn''t hurt and yet I was stiff and couldn''t relax. It must be the fortifying potion. I thought as the Hag took out her knife and picked up the long pushing pole from the new boat. The next ten minutes were the most terrifying and the most exhilarating minutes I had ever experienced in my life, because I finally saw what the Hag was like when she was fighting something. She was deadly in her strikes to the smaller one foot wide spiders, horrific in her brutality with the two foot wide spiders, and accurately deadly in her attacks to the five foot wide ones. The Hag''s knife hand moved faster than I could see as she slashed, stabbed, and dismembered spiders and severed their legs. Her kicks were magnificent as she buried her heel into their heads and then stepped on the corpses of fallen spiders to reach the others that she had knocked senseless with the pole. That wasn''t the best part, though. The best part was that she stood right over top of me while she did it all. Not one single spider touched me as she defended me to the best of her ability. She took several spider bites and didn''t react at all, not even from the big ones. She fought them off and kept fighting until there wasn''t a single spider left in the area to attack. For the first time in my life, I saw that the Hag was out of breath, hurt, and tired. She flicked the knife and all the spider blood on it was flung off. She sheathed it and then she dropped the pole. She staggered a little to move away from above me, then she dropped to her knees. Her skin started to turn to a sickly green, which meant that she was suffering from a severe spider venom overdose. I had been the same way several times in my life and I knew that if she didn''t get the potion soon, she wasn''t going to make it. She fell forward onto the ground and her eyes locked onto mine. _______________ Come on! Make the right choice here! It''s simple! A) Let her die. B) Get the potion. C) Offer blood. D) Offer flesh. E) Don''t be stupid. F) Choose A. What was it I told you before? Oh, yeah. Fuck your choices. I thought with satisfaction. I choose D. _______________ My arms didn''t want to work, so I willed them to move. I barely got my thumbs under my thin sweater and pushed it up to expose my belly. It was only an inch and my strength was gone again. The Hag stared at me and I could only move my eyes from her to my belly and back to her. She didn''t need more of an invitation and dragged herself over to me. She wasn''t gentle as she opened her mouth and bit into my flesh. She tore off a chunk and quickly chewed it, then she put her mouth over the wound and sucked up a bunch of blood. She took another bite and chewed, then sucked up even more blood. I wasn''t surprised that her sickly green color faded to a light green tinge, which meant she was out of danger. Unfortunately, she didn''t stop eating to go and get the potion. Nope, she kept going and when I felt too lightheaded to keep my eyes open, I closed them and fell unconscious.Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. _______________ Are you an idiot or something? No, you''re insane. You''re actually encouraging her to eat you! I''ve got her right where I want her. I thought. No, you''re just messing with me. There''s no way that what you''re doing is going to help you. Just watch. I thought in satisfaction. Believe me, you are going to be surprised. I don''t believe you, and neither do the other narrators. We''re all taking bets on how you''ll score on the Levenson Psychopathy scale. Put me down for two hundred credits on the self-inflicting pain index with justification rationalization. Oh, come on. You can''t bet on yourself! That''s not fair. Then if no one guesses correctly, I get the pot. I thought with a smile. You can add it to my gaming credits when I win. All right, you got it. If no one guesses what you actually score, you get the betting pool. Suckers. I thought with a laugh. No one can pick my answer, either. Dammit. Okay, get ready. You''re about to wake up. Oh, joyous day. Don''t mind the pain. Getting your guts chewed on isn''t pleasant. No kidding? I thought. Here we go. _______________ ¡°Uggghhhh.¡± I groaned as I woke up. I opened my eyes and saw that I was on the Hag''s bed. My thin sweater was still intact and I was happy about that, because it was the first new piece of clothing I had ever gotten. I didn''t want it ruined. ¡°You''re finally awake.¡± The Hag said and I looked over to the large cooking pot. She took out a ladle full and put it into a bowl and brought it over to me. ¡°That has me in it, doesn''t it?¡± I asked. ¡°Of course it does.¡± The Hag said. ¡°It also has those mushrooms, spider, snake, frog, grub, and very small bit of the fungus powder.¡± _______________ I''m not allowed to comment anymore, because it might influence you and the betting. A) Eat. B) Cry. C) Spit on her. D) Pee yourself. E) Yell. F) Ask what''s going on. I need to know the effects of that powder. I thought. I choose A. _______________ I immediately opened my mouth to accept a spoonful. ¡°Feed yourself, stupid.¡± The Hag said and slapped the side of my face. At least it was the good side and it didn''t hurt as much. ¡°You''re not immobilized anymore.¡± I lifted my arm and it was still a little stiff. ¡°Will it always be like that?¡± ¡°Since I had to apply a non-living potion to a living being, yes.¡± The Hag said. ¡°Your bones and muscles have been fortified and you aren''t strong enough to handle it.¡± ¡°That''s what happened?¡± I asked, a little surprised. I sat up and took the bowl from her. ¡°You exhausted yourself and your muscles locked up.¡± The Hag said. ¡°You saw. It happened to me, too.¡± My eyes widened and I stared at her. ¡°You took a fortifying potion, too?¡± ¡°Not just one and not all at once.¡± The Hag said with a smile, which bared her teeth. I wasn''t as repulsed by the sight now. I guess allowing myself to get chewed on made me accept a few things. I was still terrified of getting eaten by her, though. I don''t think that would ever change. ¡°That''s why the poison worked so fast. You couldn''t fight against it.¡± I said and the Hag nodded. I took a spoonful of soup. I looked at it, then shrugged and ate it. The Hag watched me and I wasn''t sure why, then I felt it. Something inside me shivered. I didn''t know what it was, because I had never felt it before. It was there and it... it... liked the soup. No. Not the soup. It liked that fungus powder. A lot. I looked at the Hag and she nodded again. ¡°Eat.¡± The Hag said and walked back over to the cooking pot. ¡°We need to leave with the potions to get them back to town before nightfall.¡± ¡°What about the wards?¡± I asked and didn''t bother with the spoon and tipped the bowl into my mouth. ¡°I''ve already recharged them and modified the new boat.¡± The Hag said. I took a moment to lift my sweater and looked at my belly. Little divots were scattered in a half moon pattern all over the left side of my stomach. ¡°That''s after two number four potions.¡± The Hag said. ¡°It won''t get any better.¡± ¡°Magical wounds.¡± I said with a nod. I finished the soup and walked over to her and gave her the bowl back. ¡°I''m ready.¡± ¡°Load the boats and we can be off.¡± The Hag commanded. ¡°We won''t need the smaller boat.¡± I said and picked up a crate. It was a lot lighter than it should have been. ¡°What did you say?¡± The Hag asked. ¡°I can fit the cases on the one boat.¡± I said and left the hut. I was definitely stronger, even if I was a little stiff. I quickly distributed the cases on the boat, careful of both the balance and weight distribution. I had learned years ago how important that was, considering the rules were beaten into me when I did it wrong. I finished the task and went back to the hut. ¡°It''s ready.¡± I said and the Hag gave me something like a water skin pouch. ¡°Supper.¡± The Hag said and put one on herself. She had forgotten to bring something with her yesterday and that was why she had struggled near the end of the spider fight. She left the hut at a fast walk and I darted over to the rack of potions, grabbed a number four healing and several number two spider potions, just in case, then ran after her. We got in the new boat and the Hag looked at my work. She didn''t praise me and just nodded, not realizing that that was praise all on its own. I picked up the slightly damaged and bent pole, tossed it into the other boat and took that one, then pushed us off. I concentrated on getting us there faster, just like I had on the way home, and the large boat sped up a little and was easier to push. I knew not to exert myself, though. Becoming immobile was not a good survival tactic in a marsh that could kill you when you weren''t paying attention. 015 Back To The Store I poled our new and much larger flat bottomed boat over near the large dock by the village. No one was around, since it was getting late in the evening, so it was my job to tie us up properly and to get us moored to the dock safely. Even though I had pushed us the entire way, I hadn''t exhausted myself. I had taken the Hag''s words to heart and paced myself. I wasn''t sure why the boat seemed to help with that and I wasn''t stupid enough to ask about it. It worked and that was all I needed to know. I quickly ran to the front of the boat and held onto the rope to tie to the dock, and tossed the middle of the rope instead. It flopped over the closest post and I pulled the slack out of it, then I very slowly pulled us in tight to the dock. I didn''t want to damage the brand new boat, so I took off my thin sweater and laid it over the side that would hit the dock. It was just thick enough that when the boat bumped the wood of the dock, it made a thump and that was it. I grinned at my ingenuity and then quickly unloaded the cases of potion onto the dock, careful of both the balance of the boat and the weight distribution. I still felt strong from the last meal I had eaten, even all these hours later, and I was done much sooner than I usually would have been. Without being asked, I scrambled up onto the dock and ran down the end to get the hand pulled cart. It was going to take me two trips with all of the cases we had brought this time and I loaded half of them up. I was very careful pulling the heavy cart along the dock, watched the pits and dips in the wood as I passed them, and pulled the cart over to the general store. The Hag was right there with me in her old woman disguise and opened the door. ¡°DIANE!¡± ¡°Hello?¡± Diane asked and came out of the back room. ¡°Oh! Hello.¡± She said and came right over. ¡°You made it back a lot quicker than I thought you would.¡± ¡°It''s the new boat.¡± The Hag said, I assumed to deflect that it was actually me being stronger that did it. ¡°I see you filled the cart!¡± Diane said happily. ¡°This should do us for...¡± ¡°There''s more in the boat.¡± I said and her eyes almost sparkled. ¡°That is great to hear!¡± Diane said, excitedly. ¡°Let''s get these transferred to the back room and you can start picking out the supplies you need.¡± I nodded and carried each crate through the store and into the back room. When I dropped off the last one from the first load, I quickly handed Diane a healing potion to replace the one I had borrowed before. ¡°You didn''t have to...¡± Diane started to whisper. ¡°I''ll go get the other crates.¡± I said and cut her off, then left to go and get them with the hand cart. I loaded it up and was just as careful pulling the cart as I was the first time. Just because I was nearing the end of the job, that didn''t mean I could slack off or possibly make a mistake. When I stopped at the door of the store, I saw the Hag turn away from the window. She had been watching me the entire time and I was relieved that I had been smart enough to not rush. I finished carrying all of the crates into the back room and Diane counted them all and opened each one to make sure they were full, then added the numbers to a clipboard. She made sure to show it to me as she did. _______________ You have a minor choice to make. Will you make the right one? A) Pretend to read. B) Shake your head. C) Tell her you can''t read. D) Run. E) Ask for a hug. Pretending to read doesn''t get me anything except in trouble later. I thought. I also shouldn''t speak, so... I choose B. _______________ I slowly shook my head when she pointed to where she was adding them up. Diane took in a sharp breath and covered her mouth. ¡°You can''t read.¡± She whispered and I nodded. She touched my arm briefly and then led me out of the back room and to the front of the store. ¡°I have the final total for you.¡± She said to the Hag, who quickly came over to us and looked at the clipboard. The Hag almost frowned at the amount, then she hid her consternation and looked at me. ¡°We need to work harder, it seems.¡± I nodded and didn''t speak, because I knew that trying to say that it was more dangerous during warmer weather to get ingredients was as redundant as saying those same ingredients were harder to find in winter. The Hag started pointing to items on the shelves and I grabbed them and put them on the hand cart that I had left just outside the door. Two large burlap bags of oats, sacks of vegetables, skins of oil for the single lamp she wanted, bundles of fabric for some reason, and a large barrel of wine. Diane had to help me with that one, since I was only 11 and despite being a bit stronger, I couldn''t handle something so awkward without help. She even helped me bring the load to the boat and helped me put the barrel into the boat. _______________ You have another choice to make. The Hag can''t see or hear you from here. A) Complain about the Hag. B) Complain about your life. C) Warn Her. D) Ask for a hug.This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. That''s not really a choice. I thought, knowing what the Hag was like. I choose C. _______________ ¡°She''s going to raise the prices next time.¡± I whispered as Diane handed me one of the sacks of oats. ¡°I know. I saw the look in her eyes when I showed her the total.¡± Diane said. ¡°I also remember her saying it when you first came in.¡± She handed me the lantern and nothing else. ¡°Thank you for shaking your head and letting me know there wasn''t a price change then. I would have been in so much trouble if the store lost all that extra stock if you hadn''t.¡± There wasn''t much I could say, so I waved at the cart. She handed over the oil skins and then the bags of vegetables. ¡°David, can I ask... I mean, you look like...¡± Diane paused with a bundle of cloth in her arms as her eyes roamed over my scarred chest and then looked me in the eyes. ¡°What happened to your face?¡± ¡°Snake venom.¡± I said and used two fingers as I pointed to the hole and scar on my cheek. Diane took in a sharp breath. ¡°No! You... you gave me...¡± ¡°Shh!¡± I grabbed the bundle of cloth from her. ¡°It was before I gave you that.¡± Diane let out a sigh and handed me another bundle. ¡°What about your ear?¡± I opened my mouth to say, then remembered I was to never, ever say what the Hag did to me. I just shook my head and put the last item into the boat and covered it with a tarp. I climbed up onto the dock and we went back to the store. She didn''t ask me anything else as the Hag pointed out a new hand saw, a bow and several quivers of arrows for some reason, and what looked like a good piece of meat. To my surprise, she also picked out a nice knife from the small rack behind the counter. ¡°These are just the blacksmith''s display items.¡± Diane said. ¡°If you want to look at his wares...¡± ¡°Is he open right now?¡± The Hag asked, knowing full well that he wasn''t. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Then I will take that knife and the hatchet on the wall.¡± The Hag said and Diane took both, wrapped them up with their leather sheaths separately, and handed them over. ¡°We will be back when we have more to sell.¡± ¡°You still have more store credit to...¡± ¡°I want two barrels of spirits next time.¡± The Hag interrupted and held the wrapped meat to her chest. Diane looked at the balance of the store credit and after a few markings, she looked at the Hag. ¡°I''ll forgive the remainder and you can consider the next barrel paid for.¡± The Hag gave her a squinted look for a moment, huffed and nodded, then led me out of the store. I dropped the hand cart off at the end of the dock for the next person to use and carried the remaining bundles to the boat. I packed them under the tarp and made sure everything was secured, then the two of us sat down and ate some of the soup we had brought to eat. I felt the energy of the powdered fungus fill me and tried to not smile at the feeling. I untied the rope and pushed on the dock to get the flat bottomed boat away from it, grabbed my thin sweater and slipped it on, then picked up the push pole. I eased us along the shallow part and back to the entrance of the waterway that would eventually lead us back home. I wasn''t stupid enough to ask to stay for another night in the inn, not with a boat full of supplies that would be left unguarded. I poled at a steady pace and my desire to get us home quicker made the boat go a little faster and feel lighter, even with all the extra weight. I didn''t fight that feeling and used it as much as possible. The Hag didn''t speak at all for the entire trip. It wasn''t until we were halfway home, I started to realize that she had lied about how far away the village was from where we lived. Or at least, that''s what my young brain tried to tell me. We had gone there and come back in a single day and not the three days she told me, and that got me wondering where she went during all that extra time. _______________ You have a minor choice to make. Will you make the right one? A) Accuse her. B) Push her over the side. C) Argue. D) Keep quiet. E) Resent her. F) Ask to go. There''s no good choices at all there. I choose D. _______________ I kept my mouth shut and did my best to push my thoughts away. What she did was her own business, especially if she didn''t want to tell me what she did. The last thing I wanted was for her to think I was trying to interfere with her business. It wasn''t until we arrived home in the middle of the night and I had unloaded all of the supplies, that she finally spoke. ¡°You told her that I was raising the prices.¡± The Hag said in a voice without inflection. _______________ You have another choice to make. A) Lie. B) Tell the truth. C) Deny it. D) Spin a tale. E) Tell her you like Diane. F) Stay quiet. I am not messing this up now, not after coming this far. I thought. I choose B. _______________ ¡°Yes.¡± I admitted. ¡°I remember the look on her face when you mentioned it this morning.¡± The Hag gave me an angry look and I ducked my head and waited for the hit. When it didn''t come, I kept speaking. ¡°I didn''t want her to be angry the next time we saw her. If she decides that she won''t buy the potions or tells her father not to, we have nowhere else to go to sell them.¡± I listened to the Hag breathing, since that was the only sound I could hear, then she huffed. ¡°At least you didn''t say how much it was going to go up.¡± The Hag said. ¡°Like you told me before, I don''t know how much they are worth, only what you sell them for.¡± I said and carried everything into our little hut. ¡°Where are the two spider potions?¡± The Hag asked and pointed to the side of the room. ¡°I have them here.¡± I said and produced them. ¡°In case we met any more spiders on the way.¡± ¡°You are lucky you didn''t steal them.¡± The Hag said as she took them from me and put them back. ¡°You''ll need them tomorrow.¡± I nodded and divided up the supplies and put them where they would stay until we used them. It made our small living space that much smaller; but, we were used to that and I didn''t want to admit that when we were almost out of supplies, it worried me that we had so much space inside. It meant there wasn''t much food left and that meant I would eat a lot less than I normally did. ¡°Go check the traps.¡± The Hag said. I left and quickly did so. There was nothing, which meant that her wards were still going strong. I came back inside the hut ten minutes after leaving and saw that she was working over the large cooking pot. I didn''t comment and went right over to the vegetables. I took several different ones and prepared them, as well as the last of our tasty mushrooms, then added them to the cooking pot. I was surprised that some of the meat she had just bought was already chunked up and floated in the water. I caught my drool before it escaped my mouth and turned to ask her to add a bit of the fungus powder to it as well. As if she knew what I was thinking, she produced a small vial with it inside, then sprinkled a tiny little bit into it. My mouth opened in shock that the small amount in a huge pot had given me so much extra energy and made me feel so good afterwards. ¡°Now you know why it''s so sought after by potion makers.¡± The Hag said and gave me that same odd look she would give me occasionally. ¡°You will make the trek to gather more tomorrow.¡± I nodded several times in agreement. ¡°We''re out of mushrooms, too.¡± ¡°Do not leave without talking to me first.¡± The Hag said, a bit cryptically, then she fell silent and we both cooked our supper that night. 016 Go Get It After eating supper, I was sent to bed early. I wasn''t tired, or at least I didn''t think I was. I laid down and closed my eyes, then suddenly it was the next day and I was being kicked awake. At least she aimed for my foot and not my gut or groin this time. ¡°You need to go.¡± The Hag said and walked over to the bench that we prepared potion ingredients on. ¡°Take the sacks and don''t come back until you fill two of them.¡± I walked over to the spot with the other potions and drank one of the spider venom ones and put the last one in my pocket. I grabbed the new hatchet, the new hand saw, and the two sacks. I hung them on my back to keep them out of the way and walked over to the Hag. I stood there for several moments without saying anything. ¡°What do you want?¡± The Hag asked and glared at me. _______________ You have a choice to make. Be smart and be wise. A) Tease her. B) Hug her. C) Remind her. D) Kick her. E) Kiss her. F) Spit in her face. Um, I think she''d like a couple of those and hate a couple of others. I''m going with C. _______________ ¡°You told me to talk to you before I left.¡± I said and didn''t look into her eyes. Sometimes I could get away with it, unless she thought I was being defiant. Then she would pound it out of me. The Hag stared at me for a minute, then she reached behind herself and pulled out the knife she had bought at the general store, except that it didn''t quite look like the same knife. It seemed to gleam in the light and looked about a hundred times sharper. I glanced up at the large knife hanging up where I couldn''t reach it and back at her. ¡°Yes, it''s just as sharp.¡± The Hag said and passed it to me. ¡°This is your life.¡± She said and gripped my hand over the handle of the knife so tightly that I thought my fingers were going to break. ¡°You will live or you will die with this blade in your hand.¡± I felt a tingling sensation in my hand and then the knife glowed slightly. She slipped the sheath over the top of the still glowing blade, which hid it from view. ¡°Never take it off for any reason. Always have it on you and you will always have something to depend on.¡± The Hag said and let my aching hand go. ¡°Don''t lose it.¡± She said and turned around to face the bench. ¡°I will take your hand if you ever come back without it.¡± I stood there and trembled as the adrenaline wore off and my hand hurt. ¡°Go. Now.¡± The Hag said, her voice commanding and terrifying. I didn''t need any more incentive to move and took off out of the hut and ran around it. I made it to the first waterway that I had to wade across before I stopped. I took several deep breaths and looked at the knife in my hand. It was a good size for me and fit as if the hilt was moulded to my hand. It was then that I looked closely and saw that instead of the normal handle, it really had reformed to fit my hand. It took me nearly ten minutes to tie it to both my waist and my thigh. It just didn''t want to sit right until I angled it for an easier draw. I practised with it and could pull it out and swing it in only a few seconds. That was pretty slow, considering how quickly I could get attacked, so I grabbed a stick and probed the water, which didn''t stir anything up, and waded across it. Once across, I kept an eye out for any creatures and practised pulling the knife out to attack, over and over. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Speeding up tasks. Done. Resuming. _______________ I watched the entire day pass before my eyes as if in a blur. I gathered ingredients, fought several larger spiders, gripping vines, and two poisonous snakes. My new knife easily cut them all apart and it made me very happy. The snakes had been near the perpetual mushroom and fungus bloom area. Apparently, it was a good area to catch smaller prey. Unfortunately, there were none around for me to catch. I had also found a huge wide tree, one that was big enough for the Hag''s use. I had chopped it down with the new hatchet and used the hand saw to cut it into three inch wide coins nearly two feet across. I left the bark on them and tied the coins together, using the thin rope I had salvaged from my last pitiful escape attempt. I had two stacks of them and then I wondered what I was going to do to get them home. _______________ What you choose here could change the story from here on out.Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. A) Take the wood. B) Take the ingredients. C) Take both. D) Take nothing. E) Do Something else. If I had the Strength potion, I''d choose C. Not taking anything would guarantee a beating. Taking just one or the other might also make me get in trouble. I thought and looked at the last option. Yeah, all right. I''ll do that. I choose E. _______________ I looked at the two large sacks of potion ingredients that we needed and the smaller sack of the precious ingredients, and made my decision. I needed to make two trips. I quickly moved my cut coins off to the side and hid them under some brush, just in case any large creature came along and tried to nibble on all my hard work. I tied the small sack to my waist and then tied the two large sacks together. Now that they were technically one burden, I hung it over my shoulder and let one sack dangle down my back and one down my front. It was going to slow me down doing it this way; but, I needed at least one arm free in case I met anything along the way. I left the area and my speed was definitely a lot slower with the off-center weight. I tried shifting it to over both shoulders and that just dragged me down even more. I should be carrying them, one in each hand for balance. I couldn''t do that, so I would shift from one shoulder to the other instead. I eventually made it back home without incident and instead of just opening the door, I tapped on it and held up my knife. The door opened and the Hag''s angry eyes softened for a moment when she saw me with the knife out. They hardened again and she growled at me. ¡°Get in here with those ingredients!¡± The Hag barked. I slid the knife back into the sheath and brought in the sacks. I put them down carefully, groaned at my sore shoulders, and looked over at the potion rack. ¡°Don''t even think about it.¡± The Hag said and held a hand towards my waist. I untied the small sack with the mushrooms and fungus in it and handed it over. ¡°I found a wide tree.¡± I said and held my hands apart to show her. ¡°It was a wildwood and I already made two stacks of ten coins with it.¡± The Hag squinted her eyes at me. ¡°Why didn''t you take them?¡± ¡°I couldn''t with the large sacks full.¡± I said. ¡°They will be useless tomorrow if you already cut down the tree!¡± The Hag nearly yelled. I didn''t flinch, because I had made my choice. ¡°That''s why I want the Strength potion.¡± I said and pointed. ¡°I''ll take the extra rope and bring back the rest of the tree if you want.¡± ¡°You...¡± The Hag raised a hand and then stopped. ¡°Wait, you''re going back out? Right now?¡± I nodded several times. ¡°You''re going to go and get the coins, even if I don''t give you the potion?¡± The Hag asked. ¡°They weigh about the same as the sacks. I think.¡± I said. ¡°I even left the bark on them so the rope doesn''t dig in too far.¡± The Hag''s angry face became the same as it did when she gave me that odd look. ¡°Fine.¡± She said and walked over to the rack and came back with the potion. ¡°If you die on the way, don''t expect me to save you.¡± ¡°I have my knife now.¡± I said confidently. ¡°You''re too young to have that much bravado.¡± The Hag said. I drank the potion and let the feeling fill me. ¡°I''ll be back.¡± I said, my voice just a bit deeper and I grabbed the small length of rope hanging by the door. I left the hut at a confident run and not a fearful one like that morning. I had completely forgotten to ask her what bravado meant and then promptly forgot that I wanted to ask her. With strength coursing through my muscles, my thin frame easily traversed the difficult patches that I struggled with when normal. I didn''t have to wade through water and jumped them instead. I did my best to not laugh as I moved at my fastest run speed. The marsh proved to be no obstacle, especially since I retraced my steps and the areas were relatively safe to pass through, because I had killed the creatures already. I made it back to the right area and found a near-deer was starting to chew on the fallen wildwood tree. I quickly drew my knife and lunged at the beast with six antlers. I landed on its back and before it knew what had hit it, I slit its throat all the way across and clamped my arms around its neck above the cut. It gurgled and stumbled, not knowing what had happened to it, then it plopped down to the ground as its strength left it. ¡°Ha... ha...¡± I said and stood up to catch my breath. Running and struggling to hold onto something were two very different things to do with strength. One was fun and the other was taxing. I would have to remember that in the future. I looked at my knife and it gleamed in the darkness. It was glowing slightly and I looked down at the creature. ¡°Was it the blood, taking a strong life, or are you just happy to be used?¡± I asked the knife. It didn''t respond and I didn''t think it would. I hadn''t noticed the glow before when killing spiders and snakes; but, that was daytime and maybe I just didn''t see it. Either way, I knelt and sliced open the belly. Unlike some of the smaller creatures, the Hag never used anything from inside a near-deer. She said it was a waste to try and make it edible. I used the knife to cut the attachments like she showed me and then dumped them out. I couldn''t stick around very long now, since nearly everything in the marsh would want to come after a large fresh kill like this. The thing was, now I had a problem. How do I take a tree and a near-deer along at the same time? While I thought about it, I dug out the two stacks of coins and was relieved to see that they had been untouched by the near-deer''s grazing. I set them next to the deer and used the hatchet to clear the branches off of the rest of the tree, used the rope to tie a kind of harness on the thicker end of it... and then I looked at the deer. ¡°Ha!¡± I barked a laugh and untied the harness, picked up the creature and slid it onto the tree, which just happened to fit into the cavity the removed guts had left. With a few choice cuts with my trusty knife and liberal ties with the ropes, I now had a near-deer tied to a tree with a pull harness on it. I hung the tree coins around my neck and then knelt as I put my arms through the two loops of the rope harness and hooked them on my shoulders. I stood up and the tree lifted up behind me to my knees. I took several tentative steps to see if it was going to be okay, and thanks to my extra strength, it wasn''t a heavy burden. Also, I wasn''t lifting it and carrying it. I was dragging it behind me and that cut the weight down significantly. My arms were still free and I could also slip out of the shoulder loops quickly if necessary. I walked, then jogged, then ran. I was at my normal running pace, thanks to all the extra weight, and that was fine. I would be back home long before the potion ran out. Not even once did I wonder why, at some point, I had started thinking of the Hag''s rickety old hut as home. 017 Time Flies The Hag had a blank expression on her face. I was both scared and pleased, which was a really odd feeling. I had tapped the front door of the hut with the hilt of my trusty knife and when she opened it, she saw what I had strapped to my back. I knelt and took my arms out of the loops I had over my shoulders and stepped aside so that she could see everything. While she stared at the gutted near-deer and tree combination, I took the bundled tree coins from around my neck and held them out for inspection. She turned her head to look at me and she had that odd look again. I wasn''t stupid enough to ask what it was, since I had decided that I was going to live and I wasn''t going to run from my fear and terror anymore. She took the bundle of twenty tree coins and looked at them, then huffed at the rope marks in the bark. She untied the rope holding them and then used her own knife to slice off the bark. The wood underneath was perfect and unmarked. She nodded very slightly and put them in the hut beside the work bench, then she came out and looked at the rope I had tied around the creature. ¡°Undo that.¡± The Hag said and pointed. I knew how I had knotted it to stay in place, so I reversed it and after a couple of minutes, the near-deer easily slid off of the trunk. Because I had left the bark on the tree, the blood hadn''t soaked into the wood underneath. I almost saw the hint of a smile on her face and I quickly looked away. I knew that when she was happy, she was also easier to anger, so I stood there and waited for her instructions. ¡°Keep cutting the coins from the tree until you get to here.¡± The Hag pointed to a spot just over ten feet away from the cut end, then she easily picked up the near-deer. ¡°Don''t use the end for firewood. I have other plans for it.¡± I went to the tree and started cutting. I did ten, then ten more, then ten and ten again. I reached the place where she pointed and stopped cutting. I looked at the piles of them and was glad that I hadn''t tried cutting more of them where I found it. There was no way I could carry them if I had and I didn''t have enough rope to bundle them up to carry properly. Even being temporarily strong didn''t make me able to lift odd shaped or awkward things. When I was done, I made sure to tie up the tree to the side of the hut to keep it off the ground. I brought in the cut off coin sections and stacked them beside the ones she had peeled. Without being asked, I used my own knife and peeled the others while the Hag butchered the near-deer. She wasn''t neat or clean with her cuts and she mangled some of it, which meant she didn''t have a lot of experience with the skill. It didn''t matter, though. She cut it all up into much smaller chunks anyway and we would use it for stew for the rest of the month. The Hag looked over at me and observed my meticulous work and she didn''t swat at me or tell me that I was doing it wrong. I hid my satisfaction at that, because I didn''t want her to think I was doing it for her. Oh, no. I was doing it for myself. I wanted to protect myself and being the best helper she ever had was all I could do to achieve that. To my surprise, it worked. The anger, the occasional swats for doing things wrong, and the hollering for wasting her time became less and less prevalent over the summer. Things passed before my eyes as I gathered ingredients and helped prepare potions, skinned and butchered things we caught in the traps, and then we made another trip to the village. By this time, my dirty blonde hair was completely black. Funnily enough, no one mentioned the change. Of course, we were dealing with Mack at the general store again and Diane wasn''t around, so she didn''t see my slightly changed appearance. Mack gave us the extra barrel of spirits, just as Diane had promised, and he didn''t complain when the Hag informed him that her prices had gone up. The man had only smiled and haggled with the Hag for several odd items that he had just brought in. I wasn''t sure what ''spices'' were; but, the Hag was very happy to get a large bundle of them for nearly half of our potion delivery. I wouldn''t understand for another year why the spices were so important to her. It let us keep meat and water fowl for a lot longer! _______________ Summary Mode engaged. Events too generic to play through visually. _______________ Preserving meat made me desire more of the spices and I worked extra hard during both the winter and summer months over the next couple of years to make as many potions as I could to buy more preservation spices. The Hag didn''t comment at my enthusiasm, except to warn me that if I farmed too much out of an area, I would have to go farther out to get the same common ingredients, which increased the danger. I nodded solemnly and had to agree that I had to go farther and farther out to get more ingredients and that was not a good thing, no matter what time of year it was. I did my best to rein in my enthusiasm and would occasionally see a nod or an appraising look from the Hag. I wasn''t sure why I was enjoying the sense of satisfaction that gave me.Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. It was odd, since I was not anywhere near the point where looking for her approval was a part of what I wanted in life. Or... at least... I didn''t think it was. I had always tried to distance myself from her and her proclivities, especially the drinking binges and her weird behavior when she was too drunk to remember what she did. During one particular episode when I was fourteen, she asked for me specifically to gather only the magic frogs that made you taste colors and to ignore the oil and acid ones. It actually made me reconsider staying in the hut with her. That was something, because sleeping outside meant visits from all sorts of creepy crawlies and they got everywhere. I wised up and only ''found'' several of the illicit frogs, nowhere near my normal amount, and brought home an abundance of oil frogs instead. She was angry and slapped me around a bit, then she licked one of the frogs and her eyes glazed over. She pulled me into bed with her soon after, the both of us fully clothed, and she cuddled and cooed at me. It was scary as hell. I shivered in her arms and she kissed my forehead, then my cheek, then she buried her face into my neck and bit me. I shuddered as she sucked on my blood that flowed freely from her bite. The Hag let out a low moan at the scared feelings I was giving her with my blood and then she promptly fell asleep. I promised myself that I would stay well away from her when I delivered the frogs the next time. I didn''t even consider not delivering them, which would have saved me a lot of hassle in the long run. I didn''t know any better at the time, though. I just drank a number four potion and moved on. Over the next few years, as she taught me everything she knew, the Hag passed me certain potions discretely and ordered me to drink them. I did so without question, because if there was one thing the Hag disliked, it was someone telling her no. Especially me. I hadn''t told her no since she had taken my fingers and toes years ago, so she was pretty used to me doing everything that she told me to do. The people in the nearby village became used to seeing me around with her as well. We looked alike, with our mangled appearances and wild hair. Hers was a disguise of course, since no one knew that she was a terrifying beauty underneath her illusion disguise. I looked like a younger version of her old hag disguise and that was perfect for her purposes. No disguise was needed for me. Everyone felt pity for the both of us and gave us a lot of space when we appeared in the town. It was only twice a year when we were both there, making potion deliveries. She would go on her own occasionally to get more to drink or to do ''errands''. She never told me what those errands were and I never asked. _______________ Summary mode disengaged. Normal play resumed. _______________ I woke up one spring morning and I was in the Hag''s bed. I didn''t remember anything at all of the night before. Or the day before. Or the week before. I groaned as I sat up and I rubbed my head. I had a splitting headache and it took my eyes several minutes to adjust to being opened. When I finally could see without pain, I saw several things that surprised me. The hut was a complete mess. Everything was strewn everywhere. The potion ingredients I had gathered were spread all over the floor, the bench was on its side, and the equipment was scattered haphazardly. The cooking pot was tipped over and the last of the stew was congealed on the side of it. The potion rack for our personal use was also empty, even though I distinctly remember painstakingly refilling it, and there were frog carcasses everywhere. They weren''t normal frogs either. They were magic licking frogs. ¡°Oh, no.¡± I whispered as I looked at the mess. _______________ You have a choice to make. Will you make the right one? A) Go back to sleep. B) Look around. C) Try to remember. D) Forget it all. E) Run. Dammit, how are any of them a good choice with a headache? I asked myself and sighed. Okay, there''s not really much I can do without knowing what happened, so I''ll chose C, despite how much this is going to hurt. _______________ I looked at the devastation of the hut and wracked my brain to try and come up with a reason. My head throbbed and pounded as I did my best to recall something of what happened. I knew it was almost a fruitless gesture, since licking the magic frogs excessively almost always erased everything you did from your memory. It took me nearly ten minutes before I remembered one key moment from over a week ago. It was the day that the Hag said was my birthday and I was now an adult. I had never heard of such a thing before and she explained what it meant. She told me that it was the day she had rescued me from my horrible parents and had claimed me as her own. She was drunk, of course, so I didn''t understand a lot of what she said as she babbled about not knowing when I was actually born and just adopted that day as my birthday, since that was the day that mattered to her. I didn''t understand what she meant, until she handed me a mug of something. She ordered me to drink it and I did. In one gulp. She stared at me for a second and she laughed. Actually laughed. That scared me and she took my hand and told me to not worry, which scared me more, and she laughed harder. ¡°Lick this.¡± The Hag said and handed me a frog. After that, everything she said made perfect sense. I understood it all. Or so my alcohol and frog addled brain convinced itself. How she wanted me tough to survive whatever life threw at me, just like she did. How she never thought of me as a burden. How she liked that I had grown both strong and valuable to her, for both my terror and my willingness to feed her. How she loved me more than she thought she could ever love anyone, even herself. Then she kissed me. After that, was the best and weirdest time of my life, and I had had some very weird times. Almost dying being several of them. That was nothing to what we did to each other that night, though. And the next day. And the day after that. Oh, the day after that was... My head gave a particularly hard throb of pain and cut off my thoughts. I looked down at myself and saw that I was completely naked. She had done some things to me that I hadn''t understood at the time and felt absolutely wonderful and terrifying at the same time. She loved that she got that reaction from me and it only fueled her own need to keep that feeling going. Of course, we both went out hunting frogs at one point and then I lost track of both time and what we did after that. I tried to get out of bed and felt dizzy, so I laid back and closed my eyes. I wasn''t tired, despite feeling exhausted, and I just laid there and listened to everything around me. I didn''t notice anything out of the ordinary, until I realized something. For the very first time in a very long time, I could not hear the telltale sounds of the Hag nearby. 018 Remembrances It took a good hour for the headache to subside to a very dull roar in the back of my head. I sat up again and I was still naked. That was also a surprise, because usually when I woke up naked, pieces of me were usually missing and the Hag was chewing on them. My chest was whole and since I didn''t remember drinking any healing potions, I had to assume that she hadn''t feasted on me. Then again, since I couldn''t remember and every single one of the personal potions we had were gone, we both could have drunk the strength, fortifying, poison resistance, and healing potions together and done some terrible things to each other. I looked around at the mess of the hut and that must have been exactly what had happened. ¡°Hag?¡± I asked, tentatively. There was no response, so I slid off the edge of her bed and stepped on a bundle of clothes. I was relieved to see that they were mine and picked them up. I had no idea how they had gone through whatever happened unscathed. I didn''t question it and pulled on my pants and shirt. My knife was there in the sheath I had made on my own and had sewn into the thigh. It was easier than trying to tie and untie the original sheath from my thigh every time I wanted to change my pants. I owned three pairs of pants and two tops now. One was a dark green shirt and the other was a smooth fabric that only covered my torso from my neck to my waist and left my shoulders and arms bare. She never told me what it was called, so I just called it a torso shirt. It didn''t have buttons and pulled on over my head. My first time putting it on was an experience, let me tell you. I finished getting dressed and stood perfectly still. I closed my eyes and let my other senses do the work, like the Hag had taught me, and I held my breath. I felt a light breeze, which meant either the door or the window was open. I could smell the moss outside, the spilled ingredients, and the old stew. I pushed those smells aside and took in a long slow breath through my nose. I couldn''t smell her. I concentrated on my ears and listened. The trees rustled in the light breeze, the water lapped at the dry area around the hut, the sole lamp creaked as it moved a tiny amount. I couldn''t hear her. I opened my eyes and let my vision widen, as if it was nighttime. It was a trick that the Hag had taught me to allow more light to enter my eyes. She said that it let you see things that you would normally ignore. I let my eyes soak in the entire scene of the hut. I picked out the individual ingredients on the floor, the partially open door, and the very still spider that hid behind the turned over work bench. I pushed it all aside because I needed to see what wasn''t there. I looked at the missing potions. I looked up above the counter and the very sharp cooking knife was gone. I looked to the side to see the Hag''s small bag was gone. I finally looked down at my feet where there seemed to be another slightly clear area where another cloth bundle might have been. She''s gone. I thought and took a deep breath. ¡°She''s gone.¡± I said out loud. _______________ You now have a very important choice to make. Come on! Make the right one! A) Chase her. B) Curse her. C) Be happy. D) Be sad. E) Hope she comes back. F) Hope she''s dead. G) Be decisive. H) Be indecisive. I) Wallow in pity. J) Kill yourself. K) Live your life. L) Run. Wow, your choices still really suck for the most part, even with so many to choose from. I thought and read them over again. Well, there''s only one real answer for me, since it''s what I''ve been working towards all this time. I smiled. I choose K! _______________ ¡°This place is a mess.¡± I said and let out a sigh. ¡°Oh, well. I guess I better clean it up.¡± I carefully made my way over to the sacks and grabbed one, then started sorting out the salvageable potion ingredients from the too damaged ones. I pointedly ignored the spider as it tried, quite fruitlessly, to scurry silently out from behind the knocked over work bench and then it squeezed out through the partially open door. It took me nearly all day to put the hut back to the way it had been before. I had managed to save nearly all of the potion ingredients, mainly because most of them needed to be ground up or boiled anyway. I fixed the work bench with a number ten potion, the glue potion that I now knew was actually a melding potion for similar items. The Hag thought it was one of the weakest potions she could make and I knew differently. It was actually the best and most versatile potion to ever exist. She just didn''t see the value in sticking things together and didn''t realize the uses such a potion had. What''s that? The push pole isn''t long enough? Add a bit of potion and another piece of pole and you had an extra long and strong pole. Is that a hole in your wall? A bit of potion and a piece of wood and the hole was covered. If you took the time to cut out a similar sized piece, it would fit in the hole and it would be like the hole was never there.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. It was quick to make and easy to brew, so I had been stockpiling it while the Hag infused her magic into the normal potions we sold. She knew I was doing it and didn''t say anything, even when I asked her to finish it for me, until two years ago when I came to the part of the recipe where it required her to spit in it. She walked over to me at that point and grabbed me by the back of the neck instead. ¡°This is the crucial part.¡± The Hag said and put her hand on my belly. ¡°You are not spitting in it. It''s not bile from your stomach and it''s not saliva from your mouth.¡± She moved her hand up and poked the bottom of my chin. ¡°You have my blood in you now. There is a thing growing there, just under your tongue.¡± ¡°Venom?¡± I asked and looked into her eyes. ¡°No. It is a catalyst. Without it, the things we make are nothing more than marsh water stew with different ingredients.¡± The Hag said. ¡°You can''t just spit and hope that some of it is added. You need to practice using the gland. Like a muscle.¡± I reached up and rubbed the spot under my chin and then I reached out and rubbed hers. ¡°Mine''s tiny!¡± The Hag cackled a laugh. ¡°You''ve never used it before and I''ve used mine for years.¡± ¡°How do I do it?¡± I asked, genuinely curious. ¡°Let me show you.¡± The Hag said with a grin as she pulled my mouth open and dug her fingers under my tongue. I gagged for several seconds and felt her fingers press on... something... then a tiny little stream of dark liquid squirted out and into the cooking pot. I forgot that I was gagging and stared at the pot as the liquid quickly dissipated into the glue potion. ¡°Hmm, not bad for the first time.¡± The Hag said and let me go. ¡°It''s not nearly enough for the general health potion, so you''ll only be practising on the glue potion for now.¡± She said and briefly stood there and used her magic to infuse the potion, then she walked back over to where she was working. ¡°It takes an hour to refill, so you have that long to finish that batch and to make another.¡± I finished the steps to make the potion and used an old clay jug to pour it into. I had washed it first, since I didn''t want to contaminate it, and put the lid on it. The Hag didn''t say anything to me and I did up another potion just in time. She didn''t say anything and came right over to me at the right time and I didn''t gag this time when she did the same thing and added it to the potion. This time, she pointed to the racks of old and cracked vials. ¡°Clean those and use them for it.¡± The Hag said. ¡°But... I have two more clay jugs to...¡± ¡°Do you?¡± The Hag asked and pointed to the one I had filled. ¡°Check it.¡± I went over to it and took the cover off, only to see that the clay jug was now a solid mass of clay. ¡°What happened?¡± I asked, shocked. ¡°It filled in the space between the sides of the unsealed clay.¡± The Hag said and took it from my hands. ¡°The down side is it''s now hard and unusable.¡± She said and casually tossed it against the wall of the hut and the entire thing shattered as if the jug had been empty and clay shards went everywhere. ¡°Clean that up first.¡± I ran over and did as she said. As long as the potion was simmering, it would stay that way. Once it was poured into vials and cooled, then its properties would activate and it could be used. The clay jug lesson was one that I would remember for years, because of the implication. That was why I thought of it as the best potion ever. I had trained my gland over the last two years and now I could use it by just pressing down on it with my tongue. I think I had impressed her by the massive growth of it and she didn''t ask me how I had done it. If she had asked, I would have told her. I cheated. She had given me the clue when she told me that it took an hour to refill and I didn''t have enough for the general health potion. Instead of only using the gland when I was brewing a potion, I used it every hour and gathered it up, let it refill, and used it again. I had to make water skins and used the number six waterproofing potion to seal it, then filled them with my catalyst. I couldn''t keep them around, so when she would go into her drinking binges, I would make the healing potions and added my stored catalyst as well as from my mouth. She would always wake up and use her magic to infuse the cooking pot. She never questioned me when I told her that she had already spit in it and was too drunk to finish it. I had become very good at hiding my real thoughts from her and all she got from me was her stumbling around and flopping into bed. I stopped my reminiscing and looked around the restored hut. ¡°My home.¡± I said and had the distinct feeling that it was mine. I smiled and went outside, checked the wards to make sure they were still good, then did a quick check of the traps. I didn''t catch anything, so I went back inside the hut and went to bed. I had a long day tomorrow. I needed to keep gathering ingredients to make the next batch of health and healing potions. My eyes went to the empty rack of personal potions and decided I would refill that again, too. They were just too useful to not have them on hand. In fact, I decided that I needed to fill the rack and also needed to keep a set or two on my person, just in case. Living in a marsh was a dangerous place and you never knew when you would need a potion for an emergency. _______________ Montage mode engaged. _______________ Days, weeks, and months passed as I gathered ingredients and made the potions from memory. It felt really weird using my own magic to infuse the potions, though. It left me weak, like after the Hag drank my blood. I filled every vial available with health and healing potions and used up all of my stored catalyst. That was fine, though. I could refill the water skins in less than a day. Then I did. I found several thick wildwood trees and used strength potions to bring them home. I had watched the Hag make her wards for years, so I knew exactly what to carve into the clean coins of wood. I did them better than her, to my surprise. After I infused the wards with my magic, I used the fortifying and waterproof potions on them. They shrunk slightly and I could feel the pulse of energy from them. I covered the hut with them and instead of lasting a month like the Hag''s did where she had to infuse them again or replace them, mine stayed active for the spring, summer and fall. _______________ Montage mode ended. Resuming normal play. _______________ I woke up on the normal day that the Hag and I would deliver the potions to the village before the winter season and I realized then that I had made a very crucial mistake during all of my preparations during the warm months. The large boat was gone. 019 To The Village I went outside to the old small boat and sighed at the sorry state it was in. We hadn''t used it in years. Even though I did my best to keep it water worthy, it had suffered the ravages of time. _______________ You have a crucial choice to make. This will decide whether or not you survive the winter. A) Stay home and forage. B) Take the boat. C) Try to fix it. D) Improve it. E) Make another one. Jesus! Okay, thanks for the warning that I might die. I thought and shook my head. Staying home is out, since we would have done that years ago if it was a viable option. Taking the boat like this is a mistake. Fixing it is an option; but, it can only take four crates of potion and I would need to make a bunch of trips to get all the crates to the village. I read the last two options and sighed. I didn''t know anything about making a boat. Both of them seemed like I was putting my life in unnecessary danger and I knew I had to try one of them. Aw, screw it. I''ve got tons of the number ten potion. I''ll choose D. _______________ I took my time and cleaned the boat out and checked on the enchantments that the Hag had added to it. It had taken her a long time to trust me with the secret. Under the seats of the boat and glued to the boat, were two of the one foot wide wildwood engraved coins. One was for ease of movement and one was for lightness. I had been using them by mistake for a long time and she couldn''t figure out how I could use them without knowing I was using them. I tried to tell her that I just wanted to go faster in the boat and she didn''t believe me. She broke three of my fingers before she realized that I didn''t even know where the coins were, let alone what was on them. I was pretty shocked when she showed me where they were and what they did. I didn''t accuse her of lying to her face; but, I did think it. She smacked me good for that one, then she showed me what they really did. ¡°I deserved that.¡± I had said and rubbed the damaged side of my face as I stared at the boat moving by itself. I had seen her do it a few times and thought she was using her own magic to do it. ¡°I am using it, stupid.¡± The Hag responded and then taught me how to properly use them. Now, I had a particular problem. The coins were melded into the wood of the bottom of the boat. One on the bow and one on the stern. I wasn''t sure what would happen to them if I cut the boat up. Would they still work or would the enchantment break because the boat was damaged? I sighed and picked a spot about a third of the way back from the front of the boat. Either way, I needed to modify the thing. I used the hand saw and carefully cut down the short side of the boat, flipped it over and cut all along the bottom, then stood it up on the other side and cut the other side. The front third of the boat dropped to the ground and I nodded. Now the hard work would begin. There were a lot of normal trees scattered around and they had flat pieces of wood inside of them, so I just had to cut them down and get the wood out. I used my knife to split the wood the way she taught me and made several planks the proper length. I needed it about ten feet longer, so that was how long I made the planks. It wasn''t going to be as big as the other boat, though. I could take a lot more crates with it, which was what I wanted. Making only a couple of trips would be a lot better than making a bunch of them. I worked for nearly half the day and used both the fortifying and glue potions liberally on the new wood, then I applied the waterproofing potion and glued the new section into the old boat. I applied pieces of fortified and waterproof wood across the joins between the boat and the new section, patched up the other damaged and worn through areas, and glued everything in place. I let the potion sit for an hour to let it do its work, flipped it over, then applied it to the bottom. When I was done, it looked like an abomination of wood pieces and could sink at any moment. It was a mess and it didn''t look water worthy at all. I knew better, though. The whole thing was now a single solid piece of wood. It wasn''t streamlined or smoothed down very much, even with judicial cuts with my knife to take the corners off. I flipped it up to the right side and eased it over to the waterway. I tied on the rope so that it wouldn''t float away on me, quickly used the prodding pole to see if there were any water beasts in the water, then put the boat in. It floated, like I knew it would, and I secured it properly by pulling it half onto the dry area. I used a bit of my magic to activate the two enchanted wood engravings and they didn''t work. I tried infusing them again and nothing happened. I sighed and used my knife to cut them away and had to make two new ones. It was late afternoon by the time the boat was ready. I tested the enchantments and they worked, so I quickly loaded the boat up with the potion crates. I was careful of the weight distribution, because the last thing I needed was to get partway there and suddenly tip over and lose everything. I thought about adding wood to the side of the boat to try and prevent that, then sighed, because it would catch up on everything if I did. I was going to have a hard enough time with the modifications I already did to it. I went into the hut and grabbed one of the strength potions I had hidden behind a false panel in the work bench. There was no need to have them out in the open, even if I was technically the only one out here. You never knew who... or what... could be lurking about. I drank the potion and let its familiar feeling fill me. I had been using it only when necessary, since some of the ingredients were rare, even in a marsh that was pretty much designed for growing them.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. I didn''t over-harvest them, either. I had taken the Hag''s advice and only took just enough for my needs and never more than could grow back by the time I came back to get more. It was a delicate balance that I had maintained for years with the fungus blooms and the mushrooms, so I had no trouble applying the same technique to other ingredients. I made sure I had everything I needed, shut and locked the hut door with a little bit of magic, then went to the now long flat bottomed boat. I pushed it into the water, untied it, and picked up one of the two poles that I had prepared for it. I would never make the mistake of not having a backup pole, just in case. One spider swarm incident was enough to teach me to always have a spare. I pushed off from the shore and poled through the water as I remembered the Hag fighting desperately over the top of me. Her powerful strikes were debilitating, her knife swipes lethal, and her graceful fighting technique was a sight to see. At the time, I was much too young to appreciate it for what it was. I only saw the act itself and not the work that went into it. It was only with hindsight that I could admire what she did that day. It was still terrifying, because I had been so lucky that she had never hit me that hard. She could have killed me at any time if her scolding had been serious at any point. In fact, she did almost kill me by accident a couple of times. That was more because of her hunger to stay young and beautiful and for any pleasure that it had given her at the time. It was not because of anger or intention on her part. She needed me. Or so I thought. I activated the enchantments on the boat and poled along at a very fast pace as I tried to go over everything that the Hag and I had gone through over the years. She taught me a lot during all that time and not once did anything give me the impression that she wanted to leave. In fact, I had thought that she was going to stay living in the hut forever. I mulled over everything and still expertly guided the boat along the proper waterways to take me to the village. With the strength potion boosting me to aid the boat''s movement enchantment, I sped along very quickly. I didn''t notice that I was travelling much faster than I normally did, though. It wasn''t until I approached the break in the marsh and stopped the boat''s enchantment that I realized I had made the trip in almost half the time. I pushed that information aside and saw several other boats at the large dock. I had to go along the other edge of it to find a spot to tie it up. ¡°I can''t believe that thing even floats!¡± A man''s laughter filled voice said from the actual boat next to where I stopped. I say actual boat, because it wasn''t a flat bottomed one and had a keel, a small mast, and everything a normal boat had. I ignored the taunt and tied my boat onto the dock. There were several people moving up and down it, which meant that something was going on. I didn''t know what, though. _______________ You have a choice to make. Will it be a good one or a bad one? A) Stay. B) Unload onto the dock. C) Leave. D) Sit and watch for a while. E) A&B. F) C&D Finally! You''re giving me better options. I thought. Let''s see now. If whatever is going on is important, I don''t want to be here and trying to carry crates of glass vials with people on the dock and moving around like they are. I also can''t leave, because I need supplies for the winter. I let out a sigh. I can''t sit here, since I''ll be in the way of the other boats, so I better choose F. _______________ I started to climb off the boat, then changed my mind. There were too many people for me to safely move my delicate cargo from the boat to the general store. I liked it a lot better when it was nice and quiet in the village and there weren''t a lot of people around. I decided to wait to do my business and untied the rope securing me to the dock. I pushed off and used my pole to push my boat back along the shore. ¡°Hey! I didn''t mean to scare you off!¡± The laughing man''s voice said and a few others joined in. I ignored him again and went over to a different waterway and made sure I was far enough away to be out of sight of the dock, then I turned the boat around and sat down to wait. I just hoped that whoever the people were on those boats cleared out before the general store closed, because Mack wasn''t going to be happy with me if I didn''t make at least a partial delivery today. I looked up at the sky and guessed that I had a few hours left to make it on time, so I would try again in a little while. If the boats haven''t gone by then, I might have to try going right up to the shore and ignore the dock completely. The problem with that was the general store was up the road from the end of the dock. I would have farther to travel and the cart I would need to use didn''t work well over rough ground, especially with potions in glass vials. If the Hag was here, she would have terrified everyone and no one would dare cross her. I thought as I sat back to wait, then I thought about the men on those boats. Hurry up and get out of the way! I need you to leave as soon as possible, so I can get to the dock and make my delivery safely! I felt the enchantments on the boat try to activate and stopped them. The last thing I needed was for someone to see me putting around on a flat bottomed boat without pushing it with a pole. I closed my eyes and thought about my magic. The Hag claimed that I started to develop it because of her treatments to make me who I was. I kind of knew that was a lie and didn''t know why. My magic didn''t feel like hers. Hers was like a spider''s web that was almost sticky when she used it. Mine was like a gush of fresh clean water and I suspected that was why she fed from me so much. She liked the taste of it. I looked down at my hands. Even though it had been about six months since the Hag left, I could only now feel my magic starting to get stronger. I hadn''t made the connection until my birthday, when she gave me an extra dose of fungus powder and I felt my magic surge in response. She had sliced open my wrist and sucked in the entirety of my magic, surge and all. I nearly passed out and she gave me a number four potion, then the true festivities began. Six months. I thought and made fists with my hands. It took me that long to heal what she did that day. I opened my hands and crossed my arms as I looked out through the waterway to watch the small harbour. My thoughts went to all the times she fed from me, the times when she tried more complicated potions and she failed because she didn''t have enough magic after taking mine, and the times she ate my flesh. I rubbed my sides as a chill ran down my back from those memories. How strong would my magic be if she hadn''t eaten it all these years? I asked myself and saw one of the boats floating by. It was the one with the laughing man on it and I smiled as he was ordered around to do tasks. Another boat soon floated past as it deployed its sail and I readied my own boat for travel. At the speed they were leaving, the dock might just be empty by the time I work my way back over to it. 020 In The Village I approached the dock and nearly all of the bigger boats had set off. I smiled and made my way along the shore and came to the dock. I went around it this time and tied my odd-looking flat bottomed boat in my usual spot. Only a few of the local boats were left and they were empty, so I wasn''t worried about other people on the dock possibly wrecking my things. I quickly transferred the crates to the dock, my strength potion still in effect, and I ran down the dock to get the hand cart. I had to be careful with it, because with my extra strength, I could easily break the thing. It was old and a little rickety, since it was used so much, and I brought it over to the stacks of crates. I loaded them up and took my time to get it all the way down the dock and up the road to the general store. Barely anyone was around and I hoped that I wasn''t too late. I opened the door and spoke. ¡°Ho, the store!¡± I said a little loudly, in case Mack was working in the back. ¡°It''s about damn time!¡± Mack nearly yelled as he came out of the back room. ¡°You should have been here this morning! We''ve got sick people already and you know that winter is only going to make things worse!¡± I ducked my head and winced as I waited to be hit. That always happened after I was yelled at. I was a little surprised when the hit didn''t come. ¡°Well, I guess it''s not your fault, is it, boy?¡± Mack asked and patted my shoulder. ¡°AH!¡± I jerked back and ducked my head even more as I rubbed the spot automatically, even though he hadn''t actually hurt me. ¡°I''m sorry it took so long. Really really sorry! I had to fix the boat and then I had to come all this way alone and...¡± ¡°You''re alone?¡± Mack asked, pointedly. _______________ You have a very crucial choice to make. I know what I would do. Will you do the same? A) Lie. B) Tell the truth. C) Run. D) Attack. E) Yell for Diane. F) Rob the place. G) Burn it down. What the hell kind of choices are those last ones? I thought, incredulous. There''s no way I''m going to wreck everything! Where would I get supplies? How would I live all winter? I shook my head. I also can''t tell him the Hag is gone, because I know he''ll change the deal he has with her. Not only that, if they know she''s gone, they might freak out and assume that no more potions are coming. So, I''m going to choose A. _______________ ¡°For this part of the trip.¡± I lied. ¡°I had to take the smaller boat because a water beast ate the other one. I piled the crates into the smaller boat and she couldn''t come with me.¡± Mack looked at me rubbing my shoulder and he let out a sigh. ¡°You have my sympathies. I haven''t seen you use the small boat in years.¡± ¡°It was in a sad state.¡± I said and stopped rubbing my shoulder. ¡°It took me all morning to fill the holes.¡± ¡°I bet.¡± Mack said and helped me carry in the crates. ¡°She was pretty angry about the boat, let me tell you.¡± I said and then whispered. ¡°She cursed and hollered for an hour before she told me to get here as fast as I could and look for a new boat.¡± Mack let out a sigh. ¡°That damn Hag is going to ruin me.¡± He said and looked at me. ¡°How much are the vials going to be this time?¡± I let out a fake chuckle. ¡°Well... that''s the thing. She was so angry that she... ah... forgot to tell me if she was raising the prices.¡± Mack gave me a look of disbelief for about ten seconds, then he barked a laugh and kept laughing. It lasted several minutes and I waited until he was done before I spoke again. ¡°She can''t punish me if we use the same prices as last time.¡± I said with a weak smile. Mack reached out to pat my shoulder again and I jerked and winced. His face went from laughter to sympathy and he nodded. ¡°All right. I''ll give you last spring''s rates, so pick out what you want and I''ll add it all up.¡± He said and went behind the counter. ¡°Although her potions are the cheapest I''ve ever seen, especially compared to a normal mage''s rates, it usually takes two or three doses of them to get the same effect.¡± I was definitely surprised to hear that, because no one had ever mentioned that before. ¡°I don''t think you have to worry about that this time, Mister Phelps.¡± I said. ¡°I only used the freshest ingredients for this batch.¡± ¡°You did?¡± Mack asked with a bit of a frown. I nodded several times. ¡°I always prep the ingredients for her. You know what she''s like though. If she doesn''t feel like brewing, she doesn''t.¡± Mack gave me a searching look. ¡°She did this time?¡± ¡°As soon as I added the proper ingredients, they were infused with magic right away.¡± I said, truthfully. Mack smiled and nodded. ¡°Good. Good.¡± He said. ¡°My customers will be happy about that.¡± ¡°You won''t have to use two doses this time, I''m sure of it.¡± I said. ¡°We''ll see.¡± Mack said. ¡°I heard this winter is going to be a bad one, so you need to make sure you''ve got everything you need.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± I looked at the half filled shelves of things. ¡°Maybe I better hold off on looking for a boat.¡± Mack laughed. ¡°I have a better idea. Why don''t you go over to the boat builder and tell her you want to order something for the spring?¡± ¡°I can do that?¡± I asked, surprised. ¡°You''ve been coming to this village for years and you still don''t know some of the basic things going on around here?¡± Mack asked and shook his head. ¡°Go on. I''ll load up the cart with your normal order and you can pick it up on the way back to your boat.¡± I nodded and went to the door. ¡°Make sure you''re back here by tomorrow morning with the rest of those potions.¡± Mack said.Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. ¡°Yessir. I''ll be here.¡± I said and left the shop. I went over to the boat builder and went in through the door. ¡°Hi, David!¡± The blonde girl with a ponytail said with a beaming smile from behind the counter. ¡°Hi, Shelly.¡± I said and returned her smile. Even though my face was still damaged with permanent snake bite scars and my ear was a bit mangled because of the Hag, Shelly was always nice when she saw me. She was twelve now and pretty as a picture. _______________ You''re in a slightly dangerous situation. What will you do? A) Tell the truth. B) Ignore her. C) Laugh. D) Cry. E) Pee your pants. F) Run. G) Flirt. H) Yell for help. I shouldn''t have complimented you before about giving me great choices. You''ve given me crap since then. I thought and read them over. I might be an adult now; but, she isn''t. I''m not sure what... A timer popped up and I had five seconds to choose. Ah, dammit. I''ll choose A. _______________ ¡°You''re so nice and you''re pretty as a picture.¡± I said. Shelly giggled and covered her mouth with a hand as she blushed. ¡°What did you just say to my daughter?¡± Michelle Powell asked as she came out of her office. The door had been open and she looked a little angry as she walked over to me. ¡°She''s nice and pretty.¡± I said and withdrew a little as she approached. ¡°Please, don''t hit me.¡± ¡°Hit you?¡± Michelle asked and her eyes roamed over me and saw my defensive state. She let out a sigh and crossed her arms, as if to show me that she wasn''t going to. ¡°You shouldn''t say things like that to her. She''s only twelve.¡± I blinked my eyes at her for a moment. ¡°I''m not allowed to tell her she''s pretty?¡± Shelly giggled again. Her mother glared at her and then looked at me. ¡°You''re an adult an she''s not even a teenager.¡± ¡°Um... the Hag told me it was my birthday in the spring just passed and said I was an adult.¡± I said. ¡°Yes, and?¡± Michelle looked at me with slightly hostile eyes. ¡°She didn''t tell me how old an adult was.¡± I admitted. ¡°You don''t know how old you are.¡± Michelle whispered and I shook my head. ¡°Someone is considered an adult when they turn seventeen.¡± ¡°Really?¡± I asked and lifted my hands and started counting. ¡°One, two, three, four...¡± I flipped my fingers and kept counting. ¡°...fifteen, sixteen, seventeen.¡± I looked at my hands. ¡°Wow! That''s over three hands worth!¡± Shelly giggled again. It didn''t earn a glare from her mother, though. ¡°Shelly is just over two hands worth, so until she''s over three hands worth, I don''t want you talking...¡± ¡°Mom!¡± Shelly said loudly. ¡°We''re friends! Friends talk!¡± Michelle glared at her daughter that time and received a glare back. ¡°Fine.¡± She said and looked at me. ¡°What do you want?¡± ¡°Mack told me that I can order a boat for next spring.¡± I said. ¡°How do I do that?¡± Michelle''s eyes widened. ¡°What happened to the other boat?¡± She asked. ¡°That should have lasted for years.¡± ¡°Water beast.¡± I said and didn''t explain further. ¡°I had to fix the little boat and came here in it.¡± ¡°The little boat?¡± Michelle asked and walked over to the large opening in the building that led out to the water. ¡°That thing must be wasted away by now, considering when the Hag... OH MY GOODNESS!¡± She yelled and braced herself on the edge of the wall. ¡°You came here in that?¡± ¡°I patched the holes and used the waterproof potion.¡± I said. ¡°David, you are either crazy or the luckiest young man in the world.¡± Michelle said, her face flushed white as the blood left it. ¡°I honestly don''t know how that thing is even floating!¡± I shrugged. ¡°It got me here.¡± ¡°Lemmie see!¡± Shelly ran over to the spot and ducked under her mother''s arm. ¡°HOLY COW!¡± Michelle hugged her daughter and turned around to take her away from the water. ¡°All right. I''ll build you a boat.¡± ¡°I have a couple of ideas...¡± I started to say and she waved at her office. ¡°We can discuss things inside.¡± Michelle said. ¡°Shelly, go ahead and close everything up. I have a feeling this might take a little while.¡± ¡°Okay, mom.¡± Shelly said and gave me another beaming smile, then she ran out of the front door and slammed it shut. She put out the lamp and there were several loud thumps as she shut the shutters on the windows. ¡°Right this way.¡± Michelle said and led me to her office and we sat down. She took out a piece of paper and she drew out a basic flat bottomed boat. ¡°So, what are the ideas you have?¡± ¡°I''m always worrying about tipping, especially with crates of potions in the boat.¡± I said. ¡°Is there... like... I dunno what they would be called, if anything. I was going to add flat wood pieces to the sides to make it harder to tip. I didn''t because they would catch on everything in the marsh.¡± Michelle nodded. ¡°Tipping is always a danger with such low boats with nothing underneath for weight.¡± She said. ¡°I doubt we could get away with anything too wide, especially if you want the boat itself wide for carrying the crates.¡± I nodded and she used some odd drawing things. I was completely fascinated as she changed the flat bottomed boat into something with two half ovals on the sides. ¡°It''s not a perfect solution, since if the water is rough or the cargo balance is off, it''s always going to tip.¡± Michelle said and I nodded. ¡°But in the calm waters of the marsh, I think you can jump on these things and the boat should only wobble.¡± ¡°That''s great.¡± I said as smile grew on my face. ¡°What about a covering over the middle, or maybe the back?¡± I asked. ¡°There''s lots of things in the trees that can drop on me when I travel.¡± Michelle nodded several times. ¡°I think we can add a main support here and here in the middle.¡± She said and did a quick sketch. ¡°We might be able to get away with smaller wooden poles at the four corners, angled to take the weight, and drape a nice big canvas from the main supports to them.¡± I looked at the boat and my mind liked it. It liked it a lot. ¡°I think you like it.¡± Michelle asked and I looked at her smiling face. ¡°It''s going to be damn heavy, especially with the canvas spread out.¡± ¡°Don''t worry about that.¡± I said. ¡°Is the canvas removable?¡± Michelle nodded. ¡°We can either use the eye hooks and attach them by hand or I can set up a nice pulley system.¡± ¡°For all four of them?¡± I asked, surprised. Michelle chuckled. ¡°I can even set it up so that you only need one winch to do it.¡± ¡°Wow.¡± I said and stared at her for several seconds and her face flushed a little red. ¡°Well, this is going to be an interesting build, I must say.¡± Michelle said. _______________ You have an interesting choice to make. You see what I did there? Yeah, you did. A) Ask how much it is. B) Barter right away. C) Joke. D) Compliment her. E) Try to kiss her. Considering how she reacted to me just talking to her daughter, I think I better chose C to be safe. _______________ ¡°Does interesting make it cheaper?¡± I asked as I widened my eyes and raised my eyebrows. Michelle looked at me with surprise for a moment, then she laughed. ¡°I think it will.¡± We negotiated a price, which to my eyes was quite expensive. As if she knew what I was thinking, Michelle showed me the cost of new boats that she made for other people. I didn''t even consider complaining about the deal she was giving me, even though it was going to cost me half of this shipment and all of the next shipment, assuming I kept the shipment the same size. I would need to work my ass off and probably go deeper into the marsh to get more ingredients. That meant I had to do two things. One, I needed to buy more crates and vials from Mack. Two, I needed to visit the blacksmith. There was no way my trusted knife was going to be enough with some of the other creatures that lived deep in the marsh. I thanked her and she reached out to shake my hand. I hesitated for a moment, then carefully took it and shook. She saw my hesitation and I wasn''t sure what the look was that she gave me. She held on to my hand for a bit longer than normal and she smiled at me before she let my hand go. ¡°See you in the spring.¡± Michelle said and I nodded and left her office. I walked over to the door and Shelly was nowhere to be seen. I opened the door and shut it behind me, then suddenly a blonde haired girl jumped me. I tried to jump back out of the way and hit the side of the building with a thud instead. ¡°You called me pretty.¡± Shelly said to my surprised face as she leaned against me. She looked into my eyes as she reached for my face. Her index finger touched the small snake fang hole in my cheek and she smiled as she traced around it. Her hand then went around my neck and she pulled me down to her height, then she gave me a quick kiss, right on the lips. I stared at her in shock and she giggled. ¡°You''re mine in another hand''s worth of years, David.¡± Shelly said, giggled again, then disappeared around the side of the building. I stood there, frozen, not really knowing what had just happened. W-w-why did s-he just act like the Hag? I asked myself, almost in a panic. I heard the bolts on the door lock a minute later. The sound made me jump and it shook me out of my shock. Then I ran. 021 Making Progress I ran back to the general store and Mack was just putting the cask of alcohol on the hand cart. ¡°Is that it? That''s it, right? It''s all loaded? I can leave now, right? Right?¡± Mack stared at my panicked face and very slowly reached out and touched my arm. I jerked a little and didn''t pull away, so he put his other hand on my other arm and stepped close. ¡°Take a deep breath, boy.¡± Mack said and I did. ¡°Another. Keep going.¡± I started taking deep breaths and didn''t stop. ¡°I''m not going to ask you what''s got you so spooked, since if it''s something that can scare you, I doubt I could do anything about it.¡± Mack said. ¡°Sh-Sh-Shelly.¡± I said and tried to point down the dock. ¡°No! What happened to her?¡± Mack asked and shook me a little. ¡°Speak up, boy! Tell me!¡± ¡°I... I... I... she... down by the...¡± ¡°Spit it out!¡± Mack nearly yelled and shook me again. ¡°SHE KISSED ME!¡± I yelled. Mack looked horrified for a moment, as if he expected me to say something else, then his horror turned to delight and he laughed. He laughed and laughed. He laughed so hard that tears rolled down his face and he let me go to try and wipe at them with both hands. He kept mumbling something and I couldn''t make out what it was. ¡°M-Mack, what are you saying?¡± ¡°D-don''t... s-scare me... like that.¡± Mack said between guffaws. ¡°Oh... oh, that''s... such a relief!¡± I stood there for several minutes and didn''t know what to say. ¡°Take this load down to your boat.¡± Mack said when he finally stopped laughing. ¡°I marked down what I still owe you and I''ll give you the rest when you come back in the morning.¡± I wanted to ask him what he thought was so funny about Shelly acting like the Hag, then decided he wasn''t going to understand. Even though he knew... that everyone knew... what the Hag was like, none of them had ever done anything to stop her or to help me. I nodded and took the hand cart, careful of its weak state, and rolled it down the road and over the dock to the boat. I transferred everything to the dock and then into the boat. When I had it all under the tarp, I climbed back onto the dock and brought the hand cart back. Mack always got mad if you left it where someone could break it. I ran back to the boat and untied it, picked up one of the poles and started pushing. I activated the weight enchantment to lighten the load and then I heard a whistle. I turned my head to look and Shelly hung out the window on this side of the boat builder''s house and waved to me. I quickly turned away and activated the movement enchantment with as much magic as I could and I poled as fast as I could away from there. I moved along so fast that a few of the snakes that tried to hang down from the trees and drop into the boat or onto me, missed and splashed into the water. I didn''t know how I was going so fast and I didn''t care. I had to get home as quickly as possible and then I did. I rode the boat right up onto the dry part near the hut and didn''t have to tie it on. I stopped feeding my magic into the enchantments and the boat made a thump sound. I assumed I had been on a bit of an angle or something when it dropped, so I jumped out of the boat. Instead of unloading it, I dragged the whole thing over to the hut. When I turned to open the door, I saw that it was partially off the hinges. I immediately froze still and used the technique the Hag had taught me. I took in a breath through my nose and smelled a damp wetness, like fur. I listened and heard a thick and slow breathing inside the hut. I used my eyes and let more light flow into them and saw claw marks near the door''s edges. I recognized them right away as a marsh panther. I took in another breath through my nose and I could tell it was across the hut and in the corner. My old corner. _______________ You have an intruder in your hut. What will you do? A) Fight. B) Flee. C) Burn it down. D) Wait it out. E) Be smart. F) Be stupid. There''s no choice at all there. I thought. I choose E. _______________ I let a feral grin show on my face, because there was only one way to deal with a marsh panther. I very carefully knelt and took out my trusty knife. I slowly tied it to the end of the pole, perpendicular to it, then wedged one end in the dirt and the other against the door frame at waist height. With that in place, I took two steps back, braced my shoulder, then ran and jumped through the damaged door. I smashed through it as if it was only thin wood and not the planks I had used to make it. The sound was loud as the wood splintered and I tumbled to the floor, rolled over to the cooking pot, then started rattling everything around as much as I could.Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. ¡°RRWWWWOOOOOWWWWW!!!¡± The marsh panther yelled out in fright, scared out of its wits by the sudden loud racket, and it scrambled around in circle as it tried desperately to find a way out. It saw the completely open door and darted as fast as it could to escape the cozy and frightening place. It didn''t see my knife at all as it only sought the outside, and it ran right through the eight inch blade. Or more accurately, it ran past and the blade sliced deep into the marsh panther. It let out another ear splitting howl as it bled out and collapsed just outside the door. Its own movement and momentum made it slide another foot before it came to a stop. I walked over to the doorway and waited as I used the same technique to see, listen, and smell if there was anything else. I stayed there for several minutes before deciding that the marsh cat was alone. I reached down and retrieved my knife and flicked it to get the blood off, then put it back into my thigh sheath. I walked outside and checked the large cat to see if it was really dead. It was, so I checked the nice clean slice it had from its mid-shoulder, through its side, to its hip. I wouldn''t be able to save the pelt on this side; but, at least it was a nice clean slice. Maybe I could extend the other side under the belly to this side, rather than cut it off completely? I asked myself. It would look off-center, though. I looked at the head. Maybe if I leave the head intact I might be able to sell it for more? I shrugged and picked up the dead panther and carried it into the hut. I would have to fix the door before I left. I could still feel the effects of the strength potion, so I made quick work of skinning the beast, chopping it up into usable chunks, and then using some of the expensive spices to prep and keep most of the meat. I set it over the heat, and not the fire, to smoke it. It was usually tough to chew; but, I had strong teeth and had no trouble eating it, even if it did taste more like frog than near-deer. With that thought, I prepped the large stew pot and set it to simmering, then chunked up some of it and tossed it in to let it cook with tubers, vegetables, tasty mushrooms, and a dash of fungus powder. While I let that cook, I transferred all of the supplies from the boat to the hut and put them away. Unlike what the Hag used to do, I now had cupboards for everything. I had seen Diane use one in the back of the shop and she let me look at it. I easily figured out how it worked and thanked her. She knew she had a sale with those words and so I bought several door hinges from her. I put the supplies into the cupboards they were supposed to go into, then I went outside to look for an appropriate sized tree to rebuild the door. The hinges were fine. It was just the main door part that I had pretty much smashed into splinters. I almost laughed at the devastation I had left when I slammed into the door like I had. Splinters were everywhere. Luckily, I hadn''t had anything brewing or had any ingredients out to be contaminated by foreign material... namely, fortified wood. It didn''t take me long to find a good sized tree that I could cut down and make into the wood planks I needed to replace the door. The number ten potion was a godsend and let me mould any number of wood pieces into a solid mass. It only took me half of one tree to replace the entire door. The rest I used for firewood. All things considered, it was a good day. Despite the intrusion, I found lots of meat to eat, a pelt that I could possibly sell for a good amount to help pay for the new boat, and I proved that I could use the number ten potion to fill in all of the empty spots that existed in whatever I was building. Of course, that got me to thinking. I knew that if I had enough number ten potion, it would fill in the space between whatever I had in place. I immediately thought about putting two carved stones a good distance apart and took my time to set it up. I obviously couldn''t leave the sides open, since that would let the potion flow out freely. Instead, I filled the outer area with rock that was easily found all over the place, then I filled it with the very simple potion that I had tons of. I ended up with a four foot solid block of stone when I was done. I was amazed at the versatility, even though I knew it was the best potion to ever exist. The best part? I could make several of them and then pour the potion in between and it would fill up with stone as the potion adapted the things it was touching. I tried to not get too excited over it, since that would lead me to making a mistake with it. So, I relaxed and calmed myself. I could use this to replace the run down hut with something that wouldn''t wear out over time. Solid stone. I didn''t have time currently for flights of fancy, though. I had a delivery to complete and quickly loaded up the boat with the remaining crates of potion. I dragged the very full boat back over to the waterway and activated the weight enchantment and then hopped onboard. I didn''t question my strength potion not weakening, despite having it active all day and half of the night. I poled the boat all the way back to the village. I fought off several snakes and a nest of spiders as I passed near them. Unfortunately, they had time to prepare and wait for me in ambushes, so I had a hard time fighting my way through. I kept the puttering movement enchantments going while I fought, though. Coming to a stop anywhere in the marsh in an unsafe area, meant certain death, especially if you didn''t have a built up immune system like I did. By the time I reached the village dock in the morning, I had killed two dozen spiders, eight snakes, and I didn''t even bother to count the tangling vines. There were just too many to remember. Night time was not really a good time to travel. At all. I only did it because I didn''t want Mack angry at me for not showing up when I was supposed to. Of course, I was very early in the day, so no one was around and I tied up onto the dock and transferred the potions onto the dock without anyone around. That was exactly how I liked it. I ran for the hand cart and loaded it up, then took my time to go down the dock and up the road to the general store. The door was locked, so I sighed and sat down beside the door and waited. I knew that Mack would eventually get up and open the store for his normal day''s business. I sat there and looked around the town that I could see and wondered what a normal person''s life was like. I had completely forgotten about Shelly and the incident the night before. The marsh panther had definitely put things into perspective for me, that was for sure. I sat there and watched the sun rise over the open water and realized that my life wasn''t like a normal person. I''m a man of the marsh. I thought and then smiled. I''m a marsh man. I lived and could possibly die by it. My actions could easily kill me as they could keep me alive. I took several deep breaths and gazed out at the water. I saw the telltale water beast breaks in the water and smiled. This was my home and I wouldn''t give it up for anything. Or so I thought. 022 General Store Rules I had to wait for quite a while before Mack opened up the store. ¡°By the Son''s Light, what are you doing out here?¡± Mack asked when he opened the door and saw me sitting there with the hand cart full of crates of potions. ¡°You told me to be here first thing in the morning.¡± I said and stood up. It was then I noticed that I was a little bit taller than the older man. ¡°I didn''t mean for you to wait out here in the dark.¡± Mack said with a sigh. ¡°All right, come on. Give me a hand putting out my wares before we bring the crates in.¡± I went inside and with me there to help, we restocked his shelves in half the time it normally took him. We brought in the crates of potions and stacked them in the back room in the recently vacated spaces and he helped me take the empty ones out to the hand cart. I could put three times as many in the boat when they were empty, so I asked to buy more of both the crates and the potion vials. ¡°I can''t buy more than what I normally need for the village''s normal use.¡± Mack warned me. ¡°In fact, you were right. The potions you sold me yesterday were a lot better than what the Hag normally produces. I only had to use a normal dose to get the same result as I did with two or three.¡± I nodded. ¡°I told you that fresh ingredients makes all the difference.¡± ¡°If you keep bringing me better potions, I might have to reduce my order.¡± Mack said. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. It will change how things happen from now on. A) Lie. B) Tell the truth. C) Tell him he can''t. D) Tell him you''ll sell somewhere else. E) Bargain. Well, damn. I thought and read over the choices. I think... considering the options... I''ll combine most of them and I''m going with the last one. I choose E. _______________ ¡°You can try.¡± I said and he widened his eyes in surprise. ¡°You agreed with the Hag to buy so much each time, twice a year, every year. She agreed that she would only bring her potions here and not sell anywhere else. You keep her in supplies and alcohol and money, and she keeps you and the village alive with her magic.¡± Mack''s face lost the surprise look and he frowned. ¡°She''s not going to be happy if you break your word and she said that she''s been feeling a bit adventurous.¡± I said and ducked my head, so that he couldn''t see my eyes. ¡°She never told me how far it is to the next village; but, she did say that she''s been there to do her... special errands... and the liquor was tasty.¡± Mack knew what her special errands were and he had a slightly panicked look. ¡°I''m sure that... I could probably get a better supply of ale...¡± I shook my head. ¡°She went through all three barrels of that during the winter and I paid for it.¡± I lifted my shirt and showed off my mangled side to make him wince in imagined pain. ¡°The liquor you already gave me should last her a while, though.¡± Mack let out a sigh. ¡°David, I don''t know what to tell you. Everyone that was sick is now fine. They all took the healing potions yesterday and didn''t buy any of the general health potions.¡± ¡°You know they only work for what hurt you have at the time you drink it and not constantly.¡± I said. ¡°Tell my customers that.¡± Mack grumbled. ¡°They won''t believe me.¡± I said and waved at my wounds. ¡°They don''t think I use it myself at all.¡± ¡°Hold on.¡± Mack looked at my face. ¡°You do?¡± ¡°Of course I do!¡± I said. ¡°She breaks my fingers at least once a week for not paying attention and to teach me a lesson to do things right.¡± Mack took in a sharp breath and held it. ¡°I fall and hurt myself a lot. I break my arm at least once a month and step on something sharp every other day.¡± Mack looked down at my bare feet and let out his breath. ¡°I never noticed that you don''t wear boots.¡± I barked a laugh. ¡°I''ve never had boots to wear! I only wore socks for about a week when I was younger to come to town for the first time. I always wear my best clothes when I come to town.¡± Mack wasn''t sure what to say to that. ¡°Do you have something here that I can buy that will tell me what villages are around?¡± I asked and he had a worried look on his face. ¡°Now, you don''t have to be hasty and...¡± Mack started to say when Diane came in through the front door. ¡°David!¡± Diane said a little loudly and walked right over to me. Before I knew what was happening, she wrapped her arms around me and hugged me. ¡°I haven''t seen you all summer.¡± She said and then took in a quick breath through her nose. ¡°Ugh! What is that smell?¡± She asked and let me go. ¡°Um...¡± I lifted my arm to my face and smelled my shirt. ¡°It''s marsh panther blood.¡± ¡°WHAT?!?¡± Mack and Diane yelled at the same time. I immediately covered my face with both hands and ducked into a crouch. ¡°I''m sorry! I''m sorry! I didn''t wash it off because it keeps any others that might be around away!¡± I heard Diane whisper something I couldn''t make out, then Mack''s feet moved away from me.If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. ¡°David.¡± Diane said softly as she knelt beside me. She touched my hand and I flinched away. ¡°It''s all right, David. It''s just me. Diane.¡± Her hand touched mine and slowly pulled it down away from my face. ¡°I''m not going to hit you, okay?¡± ¡°But... you yelled...¡± I started to say. ¡°Shhh.¡± Diane said and touched my other hand and pulled it down. ¡°There. Both of my hands are occupied. I can''t hit you like this, right?¡± I opened my mouth to say that the Hag could smack me up good and hold my hands easily. She must have seen it on my face, because she put my hands together and held them with both of hers. ¡°I''m not like the Hag. No one else in this village is like the Hag.¡± Diane said. I opened my mouth to tell her about Shelly and she shook her head. ¡°I know most of the villagers haven''t treated you well, just because you are the Hag''s apprentice... and because of how you look... and the smell.¡± Diane said. ¡°I''m sorry about that. I want you to know that I know differently, as does my father.¡± ¡°I can''t wash. If I do, I won''t blend into the normal marsh smells and everything will swarm me.¡± Diane looked surprised for a moment, then she sighed. ¡°The Hag told you that.¡± I nodded. ¡°It works great. I can sneak right up on near-deer and they don''t smell me, even when I''m upwind.¡± ¡°Tell me you have antlers!¡± Mack''s voice said from across the store. ¡°DAD!¡± Diane yelled and turned her head to glare at Mack. I flinched and tried to pull my hands out of hers. Unfortunately, the strength potion had worn off and I couldn''t. She was pretty strong and held on like a vice, not unlike the Hag. Diane quickly turned back to me and she had a sad face. ¡°I''m sorry. I didn''t mean to scare you.¡± ¡°Which time?¡± I asked and she sighed. ¡°All of them. The ones that have already happened and all of the ones that might happen in the future.¡± Diane said and let my hands go. ¡°I feel really bad that whatever the Hag has done to you, makes it so easy for me to scare you like that.¡± _______________ You have a slight story alteration choice here. Will you make the situation better or worse? A) Lie. B) Tell the truth. C) Confront her. D) Ignore her. E) Yell. F) Run. G) Cry. Actually, I want to know why she never helped me. I''m choosing C. _______________ ¡°Why now?¡± I asked. ¡°Wh-what?¡± Diane asked, surprised. ¡°Why now? You never said anything in all the times I''ve been in town. Why didn''t you say anything back then?¡± It was Diane''s turn to open her mouth and not know what to say. ¡°Don''t make her feel guilty for feeling sorry for you.¡± Mack said, sternly. ¡°That means you don''t, doesn''t it?¡± I asked. ¡°Dad, you''re not helping.¡± Diane said. ¡°He''s manipulating you.¡± Mack said. ¡°What''s that mean?¡± I asked, confused. ¡°It means trying to get me to do what you want by acting and telling me things to get me to do it.¡± Diane said. ¡°I know you''re not trying to do that.¡± ¡°I just want to know why.¡± I said and looked into her eyes. ¡°Why did you never help me? You knew she hurt me. You knew she beat me, tortured me, took things from me...¡± I said and lifted my hands with only three fingers and a thumb on them. Diane started to silently cry and tears rolled down her face. ¡°That''s enough.¡± Mack said and walked over to us with a mean expression on his face. ¡°I want you out of my store right now.¡± ¡°No!¡± Diane exclaimed as she reached up to stop Mack from grabbing me. ¡°Leave him be.¡± ¡°I won''t have him making my daughter cry.¡± Mack said to her and dropped his hands. ¡°I don''t care if it does break my deal with the Hag.¡± He looked at me. ¡°You aren''t welcome in my store. If the Hag wants something, you tell her that she has to come here herself and I''ll work out a new deal with her.¡± ¡°Dad!¡± Diane said. ¡°You can''t do that! He needs the supplies we sell him! He won''t survive the coming winter!¡± ¡°He should have thought of that before making you cry.¡± Mack said, his face firmly set in a grimace. ¡°I will pay you out today, because I''ve already accepted the delivery.¡± _______________ Wow, another story altering choice. Okay. I hope you''re ready for this one. A) Confront him. B) Back down and apologize. C) Accept the deal. D) Attack. E) Run. F) Kill him. Most of those would only hurt me and Diane. I want him to hurt. I thought with a smile. I''ll choose A. _______________ ¡°No.¡± I said and slowly stood up. ¡°What?¡± Mack looked confused. ¡°I''ll be taking today''s delivery back. You can pay me what you still owe me from yesterday and I''ll leave.¡± ¡°You can''t!¡± Diane exclaimed. ¡°We need those potions!¡± ¡°No, you don''t.¡± I said. ¡°Just before you came in, Mack said that he might drop the order because no one was buying the general health potions.¡± ¡°DA...¡± Diane stopped herself from yelling in time and glared at her father. ¡°Dad, you schemer!¡± ¡°What''s that mean?¡± I asked as I saw Mack''s face flush red. ¡°My idiot of a father was trying to manipulate you into dropping the price of the potions.¡± Diane said. ¡°I told him not to try it, because the Hag never negotiates down. Never. Even mentioning that she charges too much will set her off on a tirade!¡± ¡°I wouldn''t say that to her.¡± Mack said. ¡°Not like that, anyway.¡± ¡°No, but you''ll say it to David, right? What do you think the Hag would do to him if he went home with less money than he should have?¡± Diane asked, then she suddenly grabbed my hand and held it up. ¡°How many more fingers will he lose because of this? How many?¡± ¡°Toes, too.¡± I said and pointed down with my other hand. Mack didn''t say anything and he also didn''t look down, I assumed because he had seen my mangled feet earlier and didn''t need the reminder. ¡°We make ten times what we pay for them, Dad!¡± Diane said. ¡°Why do you want to get them cheaper?¡± Ten times? I asked myself, shocked. I sell them the general health potion for thirty copper. I looked at my free hand and started flipping fingers and started counting. I always included the missing finger and I counted thirty, ten times. I took me a minute to get the answer of three hundred copper. Since a hundred copper were in a silver, that was three one hundreds or three silver. ¡°You charge three silver for the general health potion?¡± I asked, still shocked. Both Diane and Mack jumped as if they had forgotten I was standing right there, even though Diane still held my hand. ¡°Oh, damn.¡± Diane said and let my hand go. ¡°Dad, I''m sorry. I didn''t mean to...¡± ¡°What? Tell the Hag''s apprentice that we''ve been ripping her off for years?¡± Mack asked. ¡°It''s a little too late for that now.¡± ¡°You always charged us full price for your items when we bought them.¡± I said, almost in a whisper. ¡°You never give deals.¡± I glanced at Diane. ¡°Even when you said we got that barrel cheap, you were still making a lot more money.¡± ¡°David, that''s... not really...¡± Diane''s words petered out. ¡°No wonder I always thought your stuff kept getting more expensive every time I came here. I worked so hard gathering all those ingredients and you barely paid anything for it. I just ordered a new boat from Michelle and I was worried, because it was going to take me half of the money from this shipment and all of it from the next one to pay for it.¡± Diane took in a sharp breath and then she blushed deeply. Mack didn''t say anything at all. ¡°I asked Mack about buying more crates and empty vials, so I could try and make enough money to buy more supplies next year, because I wouldn''t have any money left when I came here in the spring.¡± ¡°Oh, David.¡± Diane said, sorrow in her voice. ¡°Your deal with the Hag is over.¡± I said and stood up straight as I used the Hag''s technique to stay vigilant. ¡°I''ll be taking those crates of potions back now.¡± ¡°The village needs those potions.¡± Diane said. ¡°Please, David. We can pay you a good price...¡± ¡°Diane!¡± Mack said loudly. I didn''t flinch this time from his shout. ¡°Will you pay me a fair price for all the others, too?¡± Diane let out a sigh and shook her head. I nodded and walked around her and her father. I went to the back and picked up the first crate of potions and came back out. I had to load up the hand cart again as quickly as possible. If I was lucky, I could sit by the dock and sell them to anyone passing by. 023 Diane Phelps ¡°I can''t let you leave with those potions.¡± Mack said as he stepped in front of me and held his hands out to stop me from leaving. ¡°I''m sorry that I tried to trick you.¡± ¡°No, you aren''t.¡± I said. ¡°What?¡± Mack asked. ¡°Your eyes aren''t slightly closed. Your mouth isn''t in a frown. Your head isn''t slightly bowed.¡± I said and he looked surprised. ¡°Diane is sad. She''s sorry and I can tell she is. You aren''t.¡± Mach sighed. ¡°I shouldn''t have told you to order the boat and you wouldn''t have been thinking about the money.¡± ¡°I shouldn''t have given Diane the snake juice to save your life.¡± I said. ¡°David!¡± Diane gasped. ¡°You can''t mean that!¡± ¡°She crushed all my fingers because of it.¡± I told her. ¡°When she fell asleep, I stole a healing potion from her to fix the damage. When she woke up and found it gone, she hit me in the chest so hard that she broke my ribs and I almost died.¡± Diane looked horrified and Mack stared at me with wide eyes. ¡°It wasn''t worth it.¡± I said and tried to walk by him. ¡°David, be reasonable.¡± Mack said and moved to block me again. ¡°I''ll pay you half of what I sell them for.¡± ¡°No.¡± I said. ¡°I''m not welcome in your store anymore.¡± ¡°I changed my mind about that.¡± Mack said. ¡°I haven''t.¡± I said. ¡°As soon as you get these potions from me, I''m nothing to you until you need more.¡± ¡°David...¡± Diane tried to speak and then fell silent. ¡°If you didn''t feel sorry for me, you wouldn''t even look at me.¡± I accused her. Diane looked like she wanted to argue, then sighed. ¡°You won''t believe anything I say, will you?¡± ¡°If it''s the truth I will.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°I''ve always liked seeing you here.¡± Diane said. ¡°The wonder on your face when you saw something new. The happy smile when I taught you how to count to a hundred. Sneakily showing you the things that the Hag never buys when she''s not looking.¡± She stepped close to me and looked into my eyes. ¡°I enjoyed those times, David. I really did.¡± I was still using the Hag''s technique to stay vigilant and knew she wasn''t lying. ¡°I did, too.¡± I admitted. ¡°Then please. Please. Leave the potions. Just this once.¡± Diane said. ¡°I know the Hag will be very angry if you go home with them after coming all this way.¡± She said and touched my hand. ¡°You need the money and the village needs the potions. You can''t stay here all winter and try to sell them one at a time, right? You need to go home to survive the winter.¡± I looked down at her hand on mine. ¡°Did you notice all these years? I''ve never flinched or hesitated when I held your hand or touched you.¡± Diane said. ¡°Those missing fingers are not you, David. Your scars are not you. What the Hag did to you is not you.¡± ¡°I don''t understand.¡± ¡°You are you.¡± Diane said. ¡°No matter what anyone else thinks or does to you, you are you.¡± _______________ You have a choice to make. Will it be the right one? A) Be mean. B) Be nice. C) Compromise. D) Walk out. E) Smash the vials. F) Burn it down. Goddammit. I thought and tried not to sigh at the mess. All right. I need to try and fix this. I don''t like this, since they robbed me and the Hag all these years; but, I need to buy other things in the village and I need money for that. Which means that I have to choose C. _______________ I looked into Diane''s pleading eyes and let out a sigh. ¡°I''ll take Mack''s offer of half of the sale value.¡± ¡°Thank you!¡± Diane said happily and let my hand go. ¡°It''s for this batch only.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°I have to talk to the Hag and she... well, she...¡± I shook my head. ¡°I''ll try my best to stop her from coming here after you.¡± Mack let out a swear word that I had heard the Hag use a bunch of times and Diane''s face lost all of its color. They had completely forgotten about the Hag wanting revenge on them for robbing her all these years. Mack recovered first and held his hands out for the crate. I passed it to him and he put it back where I got it from. ¡°The empties are in the shed out back.¡± Mack said and came over behind the counter. ¡°I''m charging you for them this time.¡± ¡°You always charged for them.¡± I said and he gave me a look. ¡°The Hag always complains about it.¡± ¡°Dad!¡± Diane exclaimed and she glared at him. ¡°How many times have you charged them for their own bottles that they bought years ago?!?¡± ¡°Diane!¡± Mack exclaimed back and glared at her. ¡°David, you can empty the shed and take every last empty vial that''s there.¡± Diane said. ¡°I will not allow...¡± Mack started to say. ¡°You can have the ones you just delivered in the spring when the vials are empty, too.¡± Diane said. ¡°You have my word, David.¡±Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. Mack held his anger in for a few moments, then he growled about the unfairness of it all. ¡°Let me just get the ledger and...¡± ¡°It has to be actual money and not store credit.¡± I said before he could say anything else. ¡°Now wait just a minute...¡± Mack said. ¡°Dad!¡± Diane said and came around the counter. ¡°Be. Nice.¡± ¡°You know how tight things are right before winter, Diane.¡± Mack said, trying to reason with her. ¡°I''m not coming back inside the store, so your store credit means nothing.¡± I said. ¡°David, where will you get supplies?¡± Diane asked. ¡°Where''s the next village?¡± I asked. Diane opened her mouth to tell me and her father growled at her. ¡°You don''t have to go to the next village, David.¡± She said instead. ¡°I''m sure that by next spring...¡± ¡°...assuming I''m still alive.¡± I said. ¡°Y-yes, a-assuming that.¡± Diane said, her face slightly red from embarrassment. ¡°Things will be better next year. I promise.¡± I could tell that she wasn''t lying, so I nodded. ¡°Thank you, David.¡± Diane said and stepped close to give me a quick hug. She led me over to the counter and they gave me as much money as they could. It was only about three quarters of what they owed me and they explained that they needed money on-hand for people making other purchases. If they didn''t have any change, no one would buy anything. ¡°I need a few things from the blacksmith.¡± I said. ¡°Yes!¡± Diane gasped. ¡°Our store credit might not mean anything to you anymore; but, the other villagers will take it in a heartbeat!¡± She quickly wrote out the notes of how much they still owed me, then she walked around the counter and took my hand. ¡°I''ll go there with you, just so they know you aren''t trying to trick them.¡± _______________ I''m not even going to bother asking you to choose. It would be stupid to refuse after salvaging the situation like you did, especially since I didn''t think you could. A) Accept her help. You chose A! That''s a great choice. Carry on. _______________ I barely nodded and she dragged me out of the general store. We were down the street and walking normally only a few seconds later. We were still holding hands, too. I didn''t know what to say about everything that just happened, so I tried to come up with something... anything... to break the silence. ¡°Um... Diane.¡± I said and she looked at me expectantly. ¡°I''m just over three hands of fingers old.¡± ¡°You''re what?¡± Diane asked, a little confused. ¡°I''m seventeen. That''s three hands and two. Normal hands, I mean. Not mine. I always count the missing one.¡± I babbled. Diane looked surprised for a moment, then she laughed. ¡°Are you trying to ask how old I am?¡± I thought about that for a second and then shrugged. ¡°I''m... a lot more than that.¡± Diane said. ¡°I''m really...¡± She leaned in to whisper. ¡°...seven hands and three.¡± I fell silent as I quickly flicked my fingers and counted. ¡°Thirty eight turns.¡± Diane''s face flushed red. ¡°It sounds so much better your way.¡± ¡°But... I thought...¡± ¡°No, Spencer''s not my brother. He''s my son.¡± Diane said. ¡°All six foot two of him.¡± ¡°He has red hair.¡± I said. ¡°So did his father.¡± Diane said. ¡°Unfortuntately, he also has his father''s desire to join the army.¡± I wasn''t sure what to say to that. ¡°I probably shouldn''t be telling you that.¡± Diane said with a chuckle. ¡°My son is your age now and he''s already gone.¡± ¡°He left?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Fame. Glory. To see the world and then get killed for it.¡± Diane said, a little bitterly. ¡°I couldn''t convince him to stay, no matter what I said, and I cursed and spat at him when he left.¡± I jerked in her grip and she stopped walking and looked at me. ¡°I want you to forget I said that, okay? I was angry at him for abandoning me. I wanted him to stay and... and...¡± Diane let the tears flow and her face scrunched up as she fought to not cry. ¡°I regret saying what I said to him. Those were my last words to him and... I don''t want them to be... how he remembers me.¡± ¡°Did you go after him?¡± I asked. ¡°N-no. He left on the big boat yesterday.¡± Diane said. ¡°I tried to get one of the crewmen to give him a letter from me and they all refused.¡± ¡°They didn''t look like army men.¡± I said, remembering the uniform of the man I had seen in the inn''s lobby years ago. The Hag had told me that they were army and bad news. I had avoided them after that. ¡°They were only delivering recruits to the next village a few days away by boat.¡± Diane said, sadly. ¡°Even if I had a fast horse, it would still take twice that long to get there by land.¡± She sighed. ¡°I can''t even send the letter, because I don''t know where they are going to send him for training.¡± I started walking again because I wanted to get to the blacksmith. Diane held onto my hand and started walking, too. She stayed quiet and I was relieved. We went to the blacksmith and the man there was happy to take store credit from me for a few things. I bought a new wood carving set that would let me work on the wooden wards a lot easier than using my knife. I also had an idea when I had tied my knife to the end of my push pole and asked if he had anything like that. The man smiled and picked up a long pole with a short blade on the end. ¡°No, that won''t last.¡± I said and he frowned. ¡°It''s too thin and might break off.¡± ¡°I''ll have you know this is the finest iron...¡± ¡°What about that?¡± I asked and pointed to a multiple pronged thing on the wall. ¡°That''s a pitchfork, not an attack weapon.¡± The man said with a laugh. ¡°You really don''t know anything, do you?¡± I frowned at him. ¡°I want a pitchfork.¡± The man stared at me for a few seconds, then he shrugged and put the pike back and handed me the pitchfork. I bought four identical wide blade knives and he shook his head at me for wasting my money. I also bought a nice wide metal hammer. ¡°I''ve got lots of nails if you''re building something like a barn.¡± The man said. ¡°A barn?¡± I asked. ¡°Yeah. Something you make to raise animals in. Like cows and chickens.¡± ¡°You can do that here?¡± I asked, surprised. ¡°Boy, this is a farming community. Of course we can do that here. It''s all we do here.¡± ¡°I doubt the Hag would let you buy animals to raise and feed and then slaughter.¡± Diane said. ¡°Well, the slaughter part she''ll do. Not the rest, though.¡± I knew they all knew what she liked to do. I thought. I didn''t say it out loud. I wasn''t that stupid. ¡°You won''t have the money to do that this year.¡± Diane said and I had to agree. I bought a few more little things, like iron ring handles for my door and new pokers for the fire, new stirrers for my cooking pot and potion brewing, and a few other things that were old and needed replacing. I even bought a brand new knife to hang over the counter, which used up the last of the store credit. I left the blacksmith with a large burlap bag that was full of my purchases and a smile on my face. ¡°It''s nice to see that smile again.¡± Diane said and turned her head away when I looked at her. ¡°I really hope you''ll come back next spring, David. I really do.¡± ¡°I''m not going back in the store.¡± I repeated. ¡°What if my father isn''t running it anymore?¡± Diane asked. _______________ You have a crucial choice to make. You better make the right one. Never mind. You''re doing this. A) Give her an idea. Oh, look. You chose A. Have fun. _______________ ¡°What if you had your own store?¡± I asked. Diane let out a womanly shriek and stared at me. ¡°D-David, that... that''s a crazy...¡± Her voice trailed off and she was quiet as she walked me down to the dock. ¡°If I did... and I''m not saying I will... if I did open my own store, I would have to sell different things than Dad does in the general store.¡± ¡°I have a marsh panther pelt for sale.¡± I said and she gasped. ¡°You killed it?!?¡± Diane asked, shocked. ¡°You smelled the blood.¡± I said with a nod. ¡°I''m tanning it right now and it even has the head.¡± ¡°David, that... it''s so expensive. I could never afford to buy it from you.¡± Diane whispered. ¡°Do you give store credit?¡± I asked and she stopped walking. ¡°Don''t tease me, David.¡± Diane said as she glared at me and pulled me to a stop, too ¡°What''s teasing mean?¡± I asked. Diane opened her mouth to say, then she smiled. ¡°It doesn''t matter.¡± She said and touched my hand holding the bag. ¡°I am definitely looking forward to whatever else you have for me.¡± ¡°I have about sixty sets of near-deer antlers.¡± I said and her mouth dropped open in shock. ¡°Are you okay?¡± Diane took several deep breaths and looked at me with a weird look. ¡°I am going to be fine, David.¡± She said and pat my hand. ¡°With your help, I''m going to be just fine.¡± 024 Preparing For Winter Part One I put my purchases under the tarp and then used the hand cart to load up the boat with crates and crates of empty vials. It took me three trips to empty the shed out back and I had my poor little boat piled up really high with crates. It looked like it would tip over and everything would slide off if the wind picked up. I wasn''t worried about that, because I had an easy fix for it. I looked at Diane. ¡°Do you know of anyone that builds houses?¡± ¡°Lots of people around here can do that.¡± Diane said. ¡°None of them would ever go into the marsh to do it, for either you or the Hag.¡± I didn''t sigh at her speaking the truth. ¡°How do I learn it?¡± I asked. ¡°I can only fix up the hut so many times. It''s getting to be in the same shape as this boat.¡± Diane didn''t even try to think about it. ¡°It''s much too late in the season for anyone to teach you how to build a house. Even the lumberjack is done for the season.¡± ¡°Who is it?¡± I asked. ¡°He''s Michelle''s brother.¡± Diane said. ¡°She''s the boat builder.¡± ¡°Her brother gets her the lumber for the boats?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°Does he know how to build houses?¡± ¡°Like no other.¡± Diane said with a smile. ¡°If you take a walk about ten minutes out of town past the Addams farm, you''ll find a huge log house. John is probably sitting at home and missing being out in the forest.¡± _______________ You have a minor choice to make. A) Go for the walk. B) Talk to Diane. C) Leave. D) Ask something else. E) Ask her to go with you. I can''t risk leaving my things here unguarded. More people are up and starting to move around, so I better go home. I''ll choose C. _______________ I looked down at my boat full of crates and my purchases from the blacksmith and sighed. ¡°I''m sorry that I can''t offer to watch it for you. I need to get back to the store.¡± Diane said. I nodded. ¡°I better go.¡± I said and untied the ropes from the dock. ¡°Please stay alive.¡± Diane said and by the look on her face, she really meant it. She gave me a wave and walked away from me and down the dock. I watched her go up the road and enter the store before I took out a number ten potion and poured a few drops on the corners of the crates and put them back together. When I was done, instead of having all those loose crates that would move and shift whenever the boat moved, I now had one solid crate. I eased the boat out of the area and into the waterway that would eventually lead back to the hut. I activated the enchantments and the boat rose up out of the water about halfway and the speed picked up. I poled along as well, just to keep the speed up to a reasonable level. I was sure if I poured more magic into it I would go faster; but, I didn''t want to exhaust myself that way. I thought about using a strength potion to help with that, then decided against it. I was sure that I was going to need it later when I started doing what I wanted. The problem I had was that I had no clue how to do it. The only building I really knew how to build was a hut and that wouldn''t do. Not at all. Which meant that I needed something a lot better than a hut if I was going to keep living there. So far, the only one I have a lead on is Michelle''s brother, John. I wonder if he knows how to build with stone, too? I asked myself as I poled along. That would be good to know. I can make lots of stone and stone is a lot stronger than wood. I went over things in my head and kept my eyes peeled for anything that might jump out at me. I didn''t have to worry, though. I had made a massacre on the way to town in the dark and now it was bright daylight. I didn''t even see any more vines try to capture the boat. I made it home several hours later and tried to pull the boat onto the shore. I couldn''t, so I had to use my knife to start cutting apart the crates where I had melded them together. I slid each one onto the dry land and transferred them all out of the boat. It was now light enough to pull onto the shore and I took out the large burlap sack with my purchases. I brought the bag inside the hut, that was still secured with the new door, and I cleared out the spot where the marsh panther had been sleeping. I quickly put all the crates there, stacks and stacks of them, and when I had them all inside, I realized how much there was. It was from the floor to almost the ceiling and Diane said that we had bought them all years ago. I held back on getting angry about Mack ripping us off for years and then charging us over and over again for our own property. That was mean, especially since he hadn''t been paying us a fair amount for the potions in the first place. I squinted my eyes and activated the Hag''s vigilant technique to look them all over. I had been too busy retrieving them to look and see if any were broken. Mack sure was lucky that he hadn''t smashed any of them, because I would have to get back at him if he did.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. I turned around to take the stew off the heat, since it would have been going long enough now to be cooked, and my eyes saw something that they hadn''t seen before. Scratches from large claws were all along the bottom of the counter that the Hag used to work at. They were down low, next to the floor, and if I hadn''t been using the vigilant technique, I never would have seen them. I walked over to the counter and knelt to run my hand along the bottom edge of the counter. I couldn''t feel anything, so I laid down to put my ear near it. I didn''t hear anything, so there wasn''t a critter or something burrowing into the wood. I turned my face to it and pressed my nose against it and took in a quick sniff. That''s when I smelled a very small trace of a very important substance. Fungus powder. That must have been what the marsh panther was after. I took my knife out of the sheath and very carefully made a horizontal cut into it about an inch deep, then moved it over about a foot. Another two quick vertical cuts and a piece of wood dropped down. The smell of fungus powder was strong and my magic reacted to it. I took in a long and slow breath and felt it charge me up a little and I felt more powerful. I put my head down and looked under the counter and saw vials and vials of it. I was glad that I was already on the floor, because I would have collapsed to the floor if I wasn''t. I took several more long breaths and let the feeling fill me. I could tell that I needed to cut six inches from the floor and it was for the entire length of the counter. I made the proper cuts to open up the entire hidden space. I nearly fainted when I realized that I had found the Hag''s real hidden stash of fungus powder that I thought she had taken with her. She had used the number ten potion to hide the vials behind solid wood. That wasn''t the shocking part, though. It was the books. There were six books inside the hidden space and I didn''t bother pulling them out. I couldn''t read, so there was no point in looking closer. The thing was, I could feel magic from them. It was only a faint feeling; but, it was there. I might not have noticed if I hadn''t just inhaled a huge dose of fungus power. _______________ You have a decision to make. Will you make the right one? A) Stay and survive the winter. B) Leave. C) Go to the Village. D) Use the fungus powder. Dammit. I could have used combined options this time. I thought. Well, there''s only one logical choice, I think. I''ll choose C. _______________ I needed to go back to the village right away. I could visit the lumberjack and see about making a house and then I might be able to convince Diane to teach me how to read. Or find me a book to read. I wasn''t sure how that would work, though. If I couldn''t read, how would I read a book about reading? I shrugged and used a number ten potion to put the wood pieces back into place and it smoothed out as if I hadn''t just cut it up. I quickly moved around and took in deep breaths to suck up all of the faint fungus powder that had been released into the air. The last thing I wanted was another marsh panther to show up and... my thoughts stopped and then I smiled. ¡°I just discovered marsh panther bait!¡± I said with a laugh. I stood up, the smile still on my face, and opened the secret panel I had made and drank the strength potion. I stood there and let the energy fill me. It took half the time, now that I had sucked in so much fungus powder, and I closed the panel and then closed my door. I used a bit of magic and some number ten potion to seal the door, then I ran over to the boat. I slid it back into the water, hopped in, and picked up the pole. I poled the boat to get it to start in the right direction, then activated both enchantments. The boat raised almost completely out of the water and the boat shot forward twice as fast as before. I let out a chuckle and then stood there as I held the pole ready to keep the boat in the middle of the waterway. I didn''t have to, to my surprise. I had so much magical energy that the movement enchantment was doing whatever I wanted it to and not just propelling the boat forward. If I wanted to steer right, it went right. If I wanted to veer a little left, it did. It was great! The only problem was that I hadn''t brought any of the fungus powder with me. I had also forgotten the stew on the fire. Dammit! I thought and the boat came to a stop. I was in too much of a rush. I poled the boat around and used the enchantments to take me back. I went into the hut and took the stew off the fire, then decided to sit and eat. I hadn''t eaten since yesterday and half-filled a bowl for myself. I ate it and went to put it back, then I laughed and filled the bowl again. I ate it all, felt very full, and the sprinkle of fungus powder I had cooked into the stew had restored the strong magic feeling inside of me. I filled a water skin with the stew, in case it took me a while to come back, and picked up the small partially filled vial of powder that I had recently refined. It really didn''t last long, even using it sparingly. When I left the first time, I had forgotten to bring along the hand sewn bandoleer with my backup potions in it. I shook my head at my stupidity and tucked the fungus powder into one of the pockets and hung the bandoleer over my shoulder and across my chest. I need something to cover and protect it. I thought. I should ask Diane what she wears when its cold. I picked up the sewn together near-deer hides that I wore like a poncho and slipped it on over my head. It settled down and left my arms free, so I left again after putting the same magic and number ten potion measures in place on the door. I had lots of magic to waste, so I sat in the boat and didn''t even bother with the pushing pole, now that I knew I didn''t really need it until I reached the village. I sped along in the very light flat bottomed boat at a speed that neither I nor the Hag had ever seen the little boat go. I managed to keep my laughing to a low chuckle as I travelled towards the village for the second time that morning. _______________ You have a choice to make. Depending on what you choose, it could change the story. A) Visit the lumberjack first. B) Visit Diane first. C) Go to the next village. I could definitely make a several day trip easily now. I thought, then shook my head. No, I can''t read, so I know I''ll be at a disadvantage. I also can''t see Diane first, because she''ll assume something happened to the crates of empty vials if she sees me again so soon. That just leaves one option, so I''ll chose A. _______________ I decided to go and talk to the lumberjack first. I needed to know how to make a better place to live and that was my highest priority for this winter. I slowed the boat down and stood up to start poling it along. I bypassed the dock when I reached the village, because Diane had said I needed to go ten minutes outside the village and past the Addams farm. So, I moved around the edge of the harbour and entered another waterway to keep going along the settlement. 025 Knots Of Wood As I poled my flat bottomed boat down the waterway beside the Addams farm, I saw several people working in the fields. Even though I hadn''t said anything, they must have heard the boat going through the water, because two of them that were the closest stood up to look over at me. They were both women and I couldn''t tell how old they were. I was never good at that sort of thing, unless the woman looked really old or really young, then it was easy. One of them gasped and jogged over to look at me. ¡°J-J-James? Is that you?¡± _______________ You have a crucial choice to make. A) Stop the boat. B) Keep going. C) Deny it. D) Go faster. E) Lie. F) A&C. G) B&C. H) C&D. Thanks. This is much better. I thought and read the options. I don''t know these people, so I''ll go for G. _______________ ¡°My name''s Boy... I mean David.¡± I said and kept moving the boat by poling along the waterway. ¡°N-no, you... you look just like...¡± The girl stammered. ¡°Hope!¡± The other girl exclaimed and interrupted whatever she was going to say. ¡°It''s him, Linda! I know it!¡± Hope said and kept staring at me. ¡°The hair is the wrong color; but, it''s him.¡± She said and stood anxiously at the edge of the property twenty feet away. ¡°It''s him.¡± ¡°We haven''t seen James since he was two.¡± Linda said and walked over to her sister. ¡°It''s been seventeen years since then.¡± ¡°It''s not me, then.¡± I said confidently and poled at the same pace as I drifted by. ¡°I''m only seventeen.¡± ¡°When was your birthday?¡± Hope asked me. I couldn''t remember the day the Hag told me. ¡°Uh... early spring.¡± I responded. The two girls fell silent and didn''t say anything else. They also didn''t try to follow along as I moved past their field. They stared at me right up until I left their sight behind the trees at the edge of their property. They were probably still staring and I just couldn''t see it. The lumberjack''s place should be around here. I thought and poled along at a steady pace. I saw a small wooden dock sticking out of the treeline and pushed my boat over to it. A small normal boat was tied up to the other side of it and I slowed down and gently bumped into the dock and tied on. I climbed onto the dock and used the Hag''s vigilant technique to see, hear, and smell. I didn''t find anything moving around, so I walked up the dock and through the trees. I followed the short path and saw a huge house made out of trees without bark. It was massive and had rooms and things all over the place. It had angled roofs and I couldn''t tell what the roof was made of. It had windows everywhere and it had piles of wood all over the place. Some were covered in tarps, some were cut up, and some were cut into straight pieces. Pieces of bark and wood chips were everywhere. ¡°Ho, the house.¡± I said and walked over to what I thought was the door. It looked like a door. I knocked on it and waited as I used the vigilant technique to stay alert. I heard someone walking in the woods and I turned around to see a muscular guy come out of the trees with a large double headed axe over his shoulder and a rope over the other. ¡°Why are you knocking on my storage shed?¡± John asked and let the rope go. A tree on that rope dropped to the ground behind him with a thud. ¡°I thought it was the front door.¡± I said. ¡°I just came up from the dock and...¡± ¡°...you can go right back down it.¡± John said and lifted his axe from his shoulder and held it with both hands, one on the end of the handle and one near the axe head. ¡°I won''t have anything to do with that blasted old Hag.¡± ¡°I just want...¡± ¡°I don''t care what you want. That bitch cost me...¡± John shook his head. ¡°You''re her apprentice, which means you''re just as bad as her.¡± _______________ You have a choice to make. Will it be good or bad? A) Intimidate. B) Leave. C) Spit. D) Deny it. E) Fight. F) Plead. G) Beg. H) Show off. I) Cry. He thinks I''m like the Hag, so some of that won''t work, especially denying, pleading, and begging. I thought. Crying would make him laugh, I think. I need to know how to build a house, so I can''t leave. I read the options again and shook my head. Do I show off or try to intimidate him? A timer popped up and gave me ten seconds to decide. He''s a big man, I don''t think intimidation would work. I''ll chose H.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. _______________ I walked over to one of the large logs that he had piled off to the side of the house. It hadn''t been peeled of bark, so I took out my trusty knife. John took in a sharp breath and I glanced over to see him tense up and grip the handle of his axe tightly. I laughed at him. ¡°If I wanted to fight you, you would be dead already.¡± I said and picked up the end of the large log easily. The strength potion would last me another day and a half, so I had lots of extra energy to show off. I quickly ran the blade down the side of the log for about five feet. I saw him wince at the sound of the blade and smiled as I spun the log and used the knife to cut vertical slits in the bark. Each piece popped off as I cut it and cleaned off half of the log, then I switched ends by picking the huge log up. I turned it around and peeled the bark off the other end. Now that the log was bare, I looked at him. ¡°Are you making the straight pieces or chunks with these?¡± I asked. John didn''t say anything and just stared at me. I didn''t say anything and made the blade glow with my magic, even though it couldn''t really be seen in the daylight, then I proceeded to use my knife to slice up the log into the same length pieces that he had chunked up for firewood. I split them into four to make them perfect wedges, then tossed everything over near the pile. The whole thing hadn''t taken me five minutes. ¡°I need to learn how to build a house.¡± I said and looked back at the lumberjack. ¡°How did you do that with just a knife?¡± John asked. ¡°Magic.¡± I said and he frowned. ¡°Watch.¡± I said and went to one of the already peeled ones. I stuck the blade into the end and swiped it up the middle. The log split directly in two, then I cut flat pieces out of it, exactly one finger width deep. The log had been a foot wide, so I got three nice pieces from each half and the rounded parts remaining, I chunked up and threw over to the pile of firewood. ¡°Did the Hag teach you that?¡± John asked. ¡°She taught me that I can use a knife for pretty much everything.¡± I said. John stared at me for several moments. ¡°My answer is no.¡± I stood there for several moments more and didn''t move. ¡°If you don''t leave right now, I''ll see how the Hag deals with her own loss.¡± John said and stared at me with his axe still in his hands. ¡°You tell that bitch if she ever comes near me or my family again, I''ll kill her.¡± I let a tooth bearing smile appear on my face. ¡°You? Kill her? Are you joking?¡± I asked and he didn''t say anything. ¡°She killed an entire nesting brood of attacking marsh spiders. By herself. With a knife and a pole.¡± John''s face drained of some of its color and he gripped the handle of his axe so tightly that I thought I heard the wood creak. ¡°I''ll be sure to tell her your very funny joke.¡± I said and turned away to start walking towards the path to go to the dock. I both felt and heard him shift his grip on the large axe, thanks to the vigilance technique. When he threw it at me, I was more than ready. I turned and had my knife up as the axe flew towards me. Instead of dodging completely or trying to block it, I held my knife perpendicular to the approaching blade and swiped it across the axe head with an upward swing. It didn''t quite work like I thought it would. Since the axe was rotating, my slice went from the top of one side of the axe head to the bottom of the other, rather than cut it in half like I wanted it to. It was still in two pieces, though. The axe would probably still be usable, since my knife had missed most of the central handle part. The damaged axe pieces stuck into the pile of wood behind me. I walked over to them and pulled out the part still attached to the handle. ¡°I broke your little axe.¡± I said and looked at him. ¡°Do you want it back?¡± The rest of the color drained from his face and he shook his head. I smiled and used my knife to slice off the head, then sliced up the handle into small chunks. I pulled out the other piece of the axe head from the wood and did the same thing. ¡°I don''t think this wood is usable anymore.¡± I said and pat it with one hand to distract him, then used my other hand to quickly pour a number ten potion over the stack of wood. ¡°All that work you did to gather them up and clean them. Wasted.¡± John stood still and didn''t move. ¡°I have more axes.¡± ¡°You better keep all of them on you for the rest of your life.¡± I said and laughed for only a second, then I stared at him. ¡°I don''t think she''ll find your joke very funny now.¡± We stood there and didn''t move. I waited for the potion to do its work and didn''t speak until it was done, then I just walked towards the path. John didn''t move towards me and he didn''t try to pull a knife or chase after me. I walked down the path and stayed vigilant, keeping all of my senses focused. _______________ You have a choice to make. The last one didn''t work out too well. Will this one? A) Just leave. B) Cause more damage. C) Pretend to talk to the Hag. D) Kill him. E) Burn it down. That asshole tried to kill me because he was scared that his empty threat to the Hag would get back to her. I thought, angrily. I''m choosing B! _______________ When I reached the dock, instead of going to my flat bottomed boat, I used my knife to slice up the dock and severed it from the shore. I then went to each post that held it up and out of the water and sliced them off. Its own heavy weight kept it in place and I went to my boat. It was still attached to the dock, so I used a little bit of number ten potion to fuse a bit of the boat to the dock. I activated the weight enchantment with as much magic as I could and then the movement enchantment. My boat with the dock attached and the lumberjack''s boat floated out into the middle of the waterway. I brought us to a stop out there and went to his boat. It was easy to make multiple slices all along the outer hull and the boat started to sink. I cut the rope and watched the thing lower into the water. I deactivated the enchantments on my boat, then I cut up the dock into pieces, just like I had with the axe handle. I finished by cutting off the small bit still attached to my boat, activated the enchantments and looked back at the spot where the little dock used to be. The lumberjack was there with a shocked look on his face. ¡°I hope you''re a light sleeper!¡± I said loudly. ¡°No one tries to kill me and gets away with it!¡± John watched me float away in my boat without poling it along and the shocked expression never left his face. What I didn''t know was that it was because I had made a huge pile of wood into a single mass and not because I had easily destroyed his boat and his dock. I was quickly out of his sight, thanks to the trees, and I deactivated the enchantments. I wasn''t going to show off magically moving my boat to everyone. I poled myself along and back the other way and I hoped that enough time had passed for me to go looking for Diane without her asking me any questions. Maybe I can ask around and see if anyone knows how to build a house? Diane said that a lot of people know how. Maybe one of them would tell me how to do it? I passed by the Addams farm and the fields were empty of people. I had expected the girls to still be there, for some reason. I shrugged and pushed those thoughts aside as I poled along past the farm and headed back to the village. 026 Town Trouble I brought my boat around and tied it to the dock in the closest spot to the shore. I tied it on and just for the heck of it, used a touch of number ten potion to fuse the boat to the dock. It would stop anyone from potentially stealing it and I could easily cut it free when I wanted to leave. I knew that no one would want to steal it, not with it looking like it does; but, it was better to be safe than sorry. _______________ You have a choice to make. It will only change the order in which things happen. A) Go left. B) Go right. C) Go straight. Thanks for the detailed explanation to help me choose. I thought sarcastically. Since I have absolutely no information to go on, except that the general store is straight and I want to make sure that Diane doesn''t realize how quickly I came back. So, I''ll go with A. _______________ I walked to the edge of the dock and rather than walk to the general store, I went left for no particular reason. I remembered Mack saying that I had been coming to the village for years and that I still didn''t know anything about it. I had lots of time to waste, since I was waiting around for a while, and roamed around that side of town. I met several people along the way as I tried to observe the people and business in the town. Every single person avoided my gaze and walked faster to go by me. One man and woman actually made sounds of disgust as I walked near them on the road. Their daughter on the other hand, tried to wave to me. I waved at her and the woman let out a yip, scooped the little girl up, and ran by me with her clutched to her chest. ¡°Don''t even think about it.¡± The man said to me as he passed. I had no idea what he was talking about and when I turned to ask him what he meant, neither he nor the mother with the girl were on the road. I shrugged and walked on, looked in windows and tried to ask people questions. Everyone avoided me and said that they didn''t know anything. I eventually gave up and went back to the main road where the dock was and saw Michelle standing on the dock by my boat. ¡°Hi.¡± I said to her and she turned to look at me with hate in her eyes. ¡°You!¡± Michelle said and dug a bundle of papers from her pocket, balled them up, and threw them at me. ¡°If I ever see your face again, you''ll regret it!¡± ¡°What? Why?¡± I asked and looked down at the papers that had hit my chest and fell to the dock. Luckily, it wasn''t windy, so I bent down to pick them up. It was a bunch of plans for making my boat. ¡°John was just here and he told me all about what you did, you bastard!¡± Michelle spat. ¡°He tried to kill me!¡± I said as I stood and activated Vigilance. ¡°Only after you wrecked his boat and the dock!¡± Michelle nearly yelled. ¡°I did that after he threw his axe at me!¡± I said loudly back. ¡°I think I''ll believe my brother long before I''ll believe someone like you!¡± ¡°You''ll believe a liar and a killer over someone who was sold to the Hag for 2 copper?¡± I asked. ¡°That''s good to know.¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± ¡°You didn''t know that my family didn''t want me and sold me to her?¡± I asked and she didn''t say anything. ¡°Yeah, you knew. You all knew.¡± I shoved the papers under my poncho and under the bandoleer and then showed her my hands. ¡°You knew she did this to me and none of you said anything or tried to help.¡± Michelle stood there with her mouth slightly open. ¡°It took me months to learn how to walk right!¡± I said loudly and pointed to my feet. ¡°I still had to do my chores, too!¡± Michelle didn''t look down and I smiled. ¡°Look at me.¡± I said and pointed to my cheek. ¡°Do I look like I need to lie about anything?¡± Michelle did her best to not look at my cheek. ¡°I went to John''s house to ask for help and he refused without even listening to what I wanted, then said he was going to kill the Hag. I laughed at the joke and he told me to leave, then he said that he wanted to see how the Hag dealt with loss, whatever that means. When I turned to leave, he threw his axe at me! His big, double headed silver metal and wood handled axe.¡± I said. ¡°I saw it up close, too. I also left the pieces of it beside his woodpiles if you want to go look.¡± ¡°N-no.¡± Michelle said. ¡°Oh, yes. He tried to kill me because I was going to tell the Hag about his EMPTY threat!¡± I said. ¡°Isn''t that nice of your brother? Taking care of his family by killing me? He''s a great man, isn''t he?¡± ¡°You... threatened him.¡± Michelle said. ¡°Of course I did... once I was safely away in my boat.¡± I said. ¡°I sunk his boat out in the middle of the waterway, which means I had to do it after I left!¡± Michelle shook her head slightly, because she didn''t want to believe it. ¡°I''m glad I didn''t stop by your place first to pay you for the boat, because you would have kept it without building the boat, wouldn''t you?¡± I asked and she didn''t respond. ¡°Sure you would, because I''m always the guilty one, aren''t I? Who wants to trust the Hag''s apprentice, right?¡± Michelle opened her mouth to say something, then closed it. ¡°I can''t even talk to your daughter because you don''t want her talking to the stinky Marsh Man.¡± I said and saw her wide eyes. ¡°Did your brother tell you what I said to him when I was floating away?¡± Michelle stood there with a blank expression on her face. ¡°No one tries to kill me and gets away with it.¡± I said. ¡°I need to go ask Diane for something, so don''t touch my boat. I''ll be right back.¡± I turned to walk away, then stopped. ¡°I better not turn my back on you. Your family can''t be trusted.¡± I said and slowly walked backwards along the dock to the dirt. Michelle looked surprised that I walked all that way without turning around or tripping over something. She didn''t know that I was hyper-aware of everything around me, thanks to the technique the Hag taught me.Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°Thanks for giving me my boat design back, too. I''d hate for you to waste your time making something like that for someone you would never believe.¡± I said and walked backwards all the way up the road and stopped at the front door of the general store. I glanced inside and John was standing there and waving his hands around. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. Will it be the right one? A) Run. B) Stay. C) Open the door. D) Block the door. E) Be dramatic. F) Yell for help. Oh, fuck yeah! Finally! I''m choosing E! _______________ I took out my knife and with a single slice and a sound of creaking wood, I cut the door vertically in half. I tapped it with the hilt of the knife and the two halves folded in. Half fell to the floor and the other half swung freely on the hinges. ¡°Hello, John.¡± I said in my deepest voice. ¡°The Marsh Man isn''t happy to see you again so soon.¡± ¡°You see! He''s as crazy as the Hag!¡± John said loudly. ¡°I had to try to kill him!¡± ¡°First.¡± I corrected. ¡°You had to try to kill me first.¡± ¡°You see!¡± ¡°I haven''t tried yet, John.¡± I said and flipped my knife over in my hand. ¡°I told you before you tried to kill me. If I wanted you dead, you''d be dead.¡± I caught the knife by the hilt and held it out to him. ¡°Come on, John. You''ve already lied to everyone in the town already about me. Your sister even cancelled my expensive boat order because of you.¡± Diane gasped and Mack frowned. ¡°All that''s left for you to do is to try to kill me again.¡± I said and waved him forward. ¡°Come on. Draw that axe on your hip and show me how weak you really are.¡± John glared at me and took a step back from the counter and pulled the axe from his hip. It only had a single side for cutting. ¡°Remember that log I cut up for you with this?¡± I asked and waved the knife like the poisonous snakes moved in the marsh when they were about to strike. ¡°Can you guess what I''m going to do to you?¡± ¡°DAVID!¡± Diane yelled. ¡°That''s enough!¡± ¡°Is it?¡± I asked. ¡°I know Mack believed his lies.¡± I looked at the man and he gave me a blank face. ¡°I didn''t.¡± Diane said, truthfully. ¡°I knew you were going to ask him about making a house.¡± John tensed up and couldn''t stop himself and looked at her. ¡°I am calling in all monies you owe to the store.¡± Diane said and both Mack and John gasped. It was funny seeing men gasp, let me tell you. ¡°You... can''t be... serious.¡± John said, his voice full of disbelief. ¡°I am, and my father is not allowed to defer it.¡± Diane said. ¡°You''ve been getting deeper and deeper into debt with us and I''m done with it... and with you.¡± ¡°Diane...¡± Mack started to say. ¡°You attacked a boy that has never done anything to you. He''s been through hell. You know he has.¡± Diane said. ¡°He''s had to live with the Hag all these years and you dare try to kill him for your own stupidity?¡± She shook her head. ¡°I hope you have a nice time travelling to the next village to buy supplies for the winter.¡± ¡°B-but... but...¡± ¡°What''s that? You don''t have any money to pay us? Oh! That means you don''t have any to go somewhere else to buy them either.¡± Diane said with satisfaction in her voice. ¡°That''s such a terrible, terrible thing, isn''t it?¡± John looked at her and his shoulder''s slumped. ¡°What do you want me to do?¡± He asked and put the axe back into the loop on his belt. ¡°You are going to apologize to that man right there.¡± Diane said and pointed to me. ¡°You are also going to build my store next spring for free.¡± ¡°Your WHAT?!?¡± Mack yelled. ¡°I''m finally going out on my own, Dad.¡± Diane said and he looked stricken. ¡°You can drop the fake concern act. You''ve been asking me for years to find a husband and to get out of the house.¡± Both Mack and John turned their heads to look at me with shock on their faces. ¡°Not him, you idiots!¡± Diane exclaimed and both men jumped a little. ¡°I don''t need a husband to get out on my own, so I''m leaving in the spring.¡± ¡°You can''t do this.¡± Mack said. ¡°I need you here to run things.¡± Diane laughed. ¡°You haven''t needed me here for the last ten years that you let me move back in.¡± She said. ¡°I''ve saved up enough to get me through the first year, especially now that I don''t have to use up most of my savings on paying for one to be built.¡± ¡°I need supplies.¡± John said. ¡°I was depending on that money.¡± ¡°You should have thought of that before you tried to kill an innocent child.¡± Diane said. ¡°He''s the Hag''s apprentice! He''s not innocent at all!¡± John nearly shouted. ¡°Then tell me what he did to you!¡± Diane responded, hotly. ¡°Go ahead! Tell me!¡± ¡°I asked for his help.¡± I said. ¡°He hates the Hag so much that he wants her to experience losing me.¡± ¡°You are an IDIOT!¡± Diane yelled and raised her had to slap John, then thought better of it. ¡°Do you honestly think that killing him will bother her? At all?¡± She asked. ¡°You know what she''s like! She might even thank you for it while she''s slicing your throat!¡± John''s whole demeanor seemed to shrink and he didn''t try to say anything else. He was a big lumbering man and he looked both small and weak in the face of Diane''s words. ¡°I snuck away while she opened the barrel of liquor I brought her yesterday.¡± I said and Diane looked at me. ¡°I came to town to ask you how I can learn to read.¡± Diane gasped, Mack looked surprised, and John didn''t react at all. ¡°You can''t read?¡± Diane asked and I shook my head no. ¡°Then... how did you order everything all these years?¡± ¡°I said the name and pointed and you rang up the prices.¡± I said with a shrug. ¡°But...¡± Diane stopped talking when she realized that I had been in the store enough times to learn the names of everything without having to read them. ¡°I always wondered why you were so interested in seeing everything I showed you.¡± ¡°You were always nice to me, even when the Hag was right there.¡± I said. Diane smiled. ¡°All right. I''ll go dig up a few things for you and we can go somewhere to start your lesson.¡± ¡°You can''t go off with...¡± Mack started to say and Diane glared at him to shut him up. ¡°What about my door?¡± ¡°I can make you a new door.¡± John said, perking up a little. ¡°I''ll do it in trade for...¡± ¡°Give me a second to use my magic.¡± I said and grabbed the edge of the fallen piece of door and picked it up easily. I wanted this to be dramatic, so I hid the number ten potion in my hand and tapped the door piece with the handle of my knife to distract them, muttered some fake words under my breath, then ran my hand down the sliced edge of the door and added drops of the potion. I quickly turned the cut piece and held it to the piece still on the hinges for several seconds. ¡°Mending magic!¡± I said and waved my hands at it, letting the now intact door go. ¡°There. All done.¡± ¡°You''re joking!¡± Mack said and walked over to me. ¡°You cut that clean off! I saw you do it!¡± He said and looked at the door. He frowned at it and then tapped it, then he swung it several times. He shut it in my face and opened it again, repeated it several times, then stepped back. He let out a whole bunch of curses and stomped around the store for a full three minutes before he calmed down. Diane''s hand was over her mouth to keep her laugh from being too loud and she had tears in her eyes while John stared at me like I was the devil incarnate. ¡°You...¡± John started to say to me and reached for his axe when a small womanly hand slapped him across the face. He jerked and looked down at Diane in shock. ¡°That''s why you''re so angry at him, isn''t it?¡± Diane asked, her humor of a moment before, gone. ¡°You knew he could fix wood and you''re ruining his reputation.¡± ¡°No, I... he''s a demon spawn...¡± John said, weakly. ¡°No, you are.¡± Diane said. ¡°I''m cancelling my order for a new store and for the house in the back.¡± She said and John''s face drained of all its color. ¡°I said I wanted the store for free because of your mistake and would have forgiven a good portion of what you owe. I was also still going to pay you for the work on the house.¡± She shook her head. ¡°I''m done being nice, so you need to pay this store everything you owe, John. Everything.¡± ¡°I can''t!¡± John said. ¡°I already told you...¡± ¡°Your lies and sob stories won''t work on me anymore.¡± Diane said and held her head up high. ¡°You need to figure out how to make some money as a lumberjack or you''ll need to find another job.¡± She said. ¡°Either that or you can enlist in the army.¡± It was my turn to gasp. It wasn''t as funny when I did it. John looked completely defeated and walked towards the door. I still had my knife out and stepped back out of the way. ¡°You better go back around the town and tell everyone you lied!¡± Diane said loudly. ¡°I suggest starting with your sister!¡± John didn''t even look at me as he left the store and walked down the road. ¡°David, stay right there. I''ll be back with some things for you and we can go.¡± Diane said and I nodded. She went out the back door and I could hear her run to the house in behind the store and go inside. ¡°What else can you fix?¡± Mack asked me with clear greed in his eyes. I didn''t say anything and just slowly shook my head at him dramatically as I held my knife out. Mack took the hint and didn''t ask me anything else. 027 Teach Me Diane came out of the house in behind the store and instead of going through the store, she walked around it to come over to me. Her arms were full of tiny books and different things that I couldn''t make sense of. ¡°I''ve had these things in a pile in my room since Spencer was too old to use them.¡± Diane said. ¡°I always meant to get rid of them or sell them, and I never got around to it.¡± I just stared at them all and she laughed. ¡°Take some, will you? We can head over to Gail''s and I''ll grab us something to eat.¡± I took some of the bigger things she had in her arms and she thanked me, then we walked down the road to a large house that I had looked in and was told to keep moving. ¡°I''m not allowed in there.¡± I said. Diane gave me a disbelieving look for a second, then she sighed. ¡°I don''t see John going around and telling everyone the truth, either.¡± ¡°It doesn''t matter.¡± I said. ¡°No one trusts me, anyway.¡± ¡°I do.¡± Diane said. ¡°You''re special, though.¡± I said and her face went red. ¡°I''ll be right back.¡± Diane said and went inside the house. I listened and I heard a lot of loud voices. They were all speaking at once and I couldn''t make out what anyone was saying. It died down and I didn''t hear anything for several minutes, then Diane came out with an angry face and a partially filled burlap bag. ¡°She won''t make you anything, even though I told her.¡± Diane said and opened the bag for me to put the other things into it. ¡°She said she won''t make anything for me either, because I would share it with you.¡± ¡°I told you that it didn''t matter.¡± I said. ¡°I have stew with me and I bet if you told her, she would accuse you of lying.¡± ¡°You have stew?¡± Diane asked and I nodded. ¡°We can share that.¡± ¡°No, we can''t.¡± I said and she raised her eyebrows at me. ¡°It''s got stuff in it that will poison you.¡± Diane opened her mouth to laugh and she saw the serious look on my face. ¡°You''re not joking?¡± I shook my head. ¡°The Hag said it took me almost ten years to build up enough resistance to eat it without getting sick.¡± ¡°Oh, dear.¡± Diane whispered. ¡°What... what are you eating out there in the marsh?¡± ¡°Usually diamond snake, marsh frog, an occasional boar, and near-deer when I go looking for ingredients.¡± I said and pat the water skin on my hip. ¡°This has marsh panther in it.¡± ¡°You ATE it?!?¡± Diane asked loudly. ¡°Only some of it.¡± I said and she relaxed. ¡°The rest I''m smoking to save for later.¡± Diane looked a little pale and I moved beside her to let her rest against me. It took her a minute to regain her composure. ¡°Please tell me you don''t eat anything else that can kill you if you try to catch it.¡± I kept my mouth shut and she stared into my eyes and waited for me to speak. I didn''t. ¡°I think I need to sit down for a while.¡± Diane said and nodded down the road. ¡°Let''s go sit in the spot where my store would have been built.¡± We walked down the road and up the main one a short ways and there was a small field there with old stumps of trees all over it. ¡°This is it.¡± Diane said walked over to one of the larger stumps. ¡°John cleared this out years ago for my husband. I thought he was preparing a home for us to live in and instead he decided that the army was better than finding a job here.¡± ¡°He left you and Spencer.¡± I said and took out my knife and quickly sliced off the jagged part of the stump for her to sit down on. ¡°Yes, and I cursed at him so much that day.¡± Diane sat and her face crunched up as she fought to not cry. ¡°Why would he leave, David? Wasn''t I a good wife? A loving mother?¡± _______________ You have a minor choice to make. A) Agree. B) Disagree. C) Stay silent. D) Kiss her. E) It doesn''t matter. F) Tell her she''s nice. I think most of those would just invite a lot of extra stuff that neither of us needs right now. I thought and read everything again. I''m playing it safe this time and choosing C.Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! _______________ I wasn''t sure what to say, so I stayed quiet and sat on the ground in front of her. Diane looked at my blank face and nodded. ¡°No, you''re right. You wouldn''t have an opinion of him, since you''ve never met.¡± She said and looked at the bag in her hands. ¡°At least Gail gave me this to carry Spencer''s old things in.¡± I kept my mouth shut and she gave me another searching look. ¡°You know she''s just scared of you right now, don''t you?¡± Diane asked. ¡°Just now?¡± I asked and it was Diane''s turn to stay silent. We sat there for several minutes without saying anything. ¡°We need a table or something.¡± Diane said and looked around. _______________ You have another minor choice to make. A) Make a table. B) Stay on the ground. C) Sit beside her. D) Ask to go somewhere else. I think it would be good for her to see me show John up. I thought with a smile. I''ll choose A. _______________ ¡°If there''s an old piece of tree around that''s big enough, we could use that.¡± I said. ¡°I think there''s an old tree over there.¡± Diane pointed off to the back of the property. ¡°I think John said it was too big to move.¡± I smiled and ran over to the back of the property and past where the house was supposed to be and easily found the large jagged trunk. It was about four feet wide and would make a perfect table. The fallen tree wasn''t that far away and was only about thirty feet long. When I walked over and looked at the other end, it had been cut off. The saddest part was that it was a wildwood tree. He took the parts he could and left the rest. I looked at the old dark grey and weathered tree that had been there for as long as Spencer''s dad had been gone. Can you imagine how many wood coins this thing could have made? I shook my head at the utter waste and went back to the stump. I used my knife to slice at the jagged top of it and made quick work cutting away the pieces of wood. I kept them right there in a pile, because I could use them as firewood that would burn for days. I did my best to make a flat surface out of part of the trunk, since it was still attached to the roots and hadn''t died, then cut it out. With that done, I made four more slices that were the right size for legs and used drops of number ten potion to attach them to the flat piece I had already cut out. I used a bit of fortifying potion to age it and strengthen it, then carried the table across the property and over to Diane. She stared at the thing like I had just made it appear out of nothing. ¡°How in the world did you do that?¡± Diane asked, shocked. ¡°Magic.¡± I said and put the perfectly sized table in front of her. It came up to her elbows and she easily rested her arms on it and the bag of items. ¡°D-David, this... how did you...¡± Diane''s hands roamed over the aged wood that looked very strong. She finished rubbing the table top and looked at me. ¡°You need to sit right beside me to learn properly.¡± I ran back to the large stump and cut out a smaller flat piece and legs for it, attached them together, then ran back. ¡°That looks brand new and more like an end table than a chair.¡± Diane observed. ¡°I came back as soon as I made it.¡± I said and sat down beside her. ¡°What''s an end table?¡± Diane chuckled and dug into the bag for a minute, then pulled out a couple of small books. ¡°We''ll start with the very basic of basic.¡± She said and showed me a book with something written on the cover. When she opened it, the very first page had a picture of an apple on it. ¡°Apple.¡± I said and pointed. ¡°Very good.¡± Diane said and pointed to the odd shape on the other page. ¡°This is the letter A. It''s the very first letter in the alphabet. Can you say ''A''?¡± ¡°Eh.¡± I said and she smiled. ¡°If you remember this shape, like a triangle with a line through it, you will know that anything you read with a large A in the front is this letter.¡± ¡°What''s the circle with a tail?¡± I asked. ¡°That''s the small ''a''. Those you find inside words that you read.¡± ¡°This sounds hard.¡± I said with a frown. Diane laughed and pat my hand. ¡°It''s all right. It will be a little hard as you start to learn, then it will get a little harder.¡± I gave her a disbelieving look and she smiled. ¡°I''m not going to lie to you, David. You''re pretty old to start learning to read.¡± Diane said and I sighed. ¡°No, don''t get discouraged.¡± She said and took my hand and held it. ¡°When we get through the book, I''ll teach you the song for it.¡± ¡°There''s a song, too?¡± I asked, surprised. Diane laughed again. ¡°Trust me. Once you get the song in your head, you will be singing it for the rest of your life.¡± _______________ Montage mode engaged. Speeding up learning process. Done. _______________ ¡°Oh, look! The sun''s starting to go down.¡± Diane said and stretched her sore arms. ¡°I can''t believe we''ve been here all day already.¡± ¡°We didn''t eat.¡± I said and she nodded as she put everything back into the bag. ¡°I''ve got to get home and make supper for dad.¡± Diane said and stood, then she looked at the table. ¡°I don''t think we should leave this out here.¡± ¡°I''ll bring it along.¡± I said and stood, flipped the chair over on top of the table, then picked both up. ¡°You''re really strong, aren''t you?¡± Diane asked as she carried the bag and we walked over to the road. ¡°Only for another day. The boost wears off then.¡± Diane looked confused and I didn''t say anything else. We walked down the road to the store and then went behind it to the house. I put the table and chair inside for her and she said she would see me in the morning after she helped open up her father''s store. I left her there and went down the road to the dock. _______________ You have a choice to make. A) Go home. B) Float around. C) Sleep in the boat. D) Sleep on the shore. E) Go to the inn. You know what? Let''s see if Rebecca has heard John''s story about me. I''ll choose E. _______________ I looked at my flat bottomed boat and thought about tucking myself under the tarp to sleep. I realized that would be a bad idea, especially with my potions bandoleer on, so I decided to head to the inn and see if they had a room for the Marsh Man. I chuckled at myself, because I was actually getting used to calling myself that. I went inside the inn and Rebecca didn''t say anything, even when I asked for a room. ¡°I want a bath and a bed.¡± I said and she took in a sharp breath. ¡°I need new clothes for tomorrow, too.¡± ¡°It''s f-five silver.¡± Rebecca said, nervously. I pulled out the money from my pocket and put it on the counter. ¡°I''ll have the tub filled in half an hour.¡± ¡°Make it warm if you can.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Room three. On the left.¡± Rebecca said. I went over to the hallway and went to the room where I had stayed with the Hag years ago. I know she knows this is the same room that I almost died in. I thought and entered it. I looked around and couldn''t do anything, so I sat down on the chair and started singing the alphabet song under my breath. It really was a catchy tune. 028 Town Intruder It took me an hour to scrub everything off in the bath. I had brushes, thick cloths, and even rough rocks full of little holes that I used. I had honestly thought that my hair would have been the worst part to deal with and it was actually the easiest. It still took lots of soap and scrubbing, though. When I was done, I dried off with something called a towel, after Rebecca nearly screamed at me for walking around without clothes on and dripping all over her nice wood floor. After that, she gave me a full set of clothing. It took some convincing on her part to get me to put on underwear, which was like shorts, except you wore them under your pants. It didn''t make sense to me, since that gave you two things to take off to use the bathroom. She explained that normal people always wore underwear and helped me put them on right after I put them on backwards. The flap didn''t go in the front so you can pee. Go figure. I put on the brand new pants and the sweater, then Rebecca did something to my hair with a weird looking thing she called a comb. It was when she handed me socks and boots from the large bag that I was sure she was making fun of me. ¡°David, you need to wear them, in town at least.¡± Rebecca said. ¡°You don''t have to keep explaining that it''s easier for you in the marsh when you''re barefoot and you can feel what you''re stepping on without having to look down.¡± ¡°But, it is easier.¡± I said. Rebecca sighed. ¡°You said that you wanted to show Diane that you appreciate her teaching you, didn''t you?¡± She asked and I nodded. ¡°Then put on the socks and boots and try walking around in them.¡± I sat down and put the socks on and then the boots. Unlike the ones the Hag sometimes wore, these boots were mostly soft cloth and moved with my toes... or lack of toes. I stood up and walked with them. It felt a little awkward, especially since I couldn''t quite feel the floor. ¡°Whew, that''s a relief.¡± Rebecca said. ¡°I was worried you would stumble or fall.¡± I looked at her with wide eyes. ¡°You thought that and gave me them anyway?¡± ¡°Why else would I give them to you tonight and not wait until the morning?¡± Rebecca said. ¡°Take them off and keep them on the chair. Sometimes stuff crawls around looking for warm places to sleep.¡± I gave her another look with raised eyebrows. She blushed at saying something like that to someone who lived in a marsh. She left the room without another word and shut the door. I transferred the stuff from my old clothes to the bandoleer and hung it on the chair. It just looked like a belt of leather pieces, which was perfect. No one would steal a homemade belt. I tossed all of my old clothes and the leather poncho into the large burlap bag and pulled it closed. I took off my boots and my socks, covered the tops of the boots with the socks, and laid down on the bed. It was weird that I couldn''t smell the marsh, except from the bag and bandoleer that I left on the chair. I used the Hag''s vigilance technique and nothing was anywhere around, so I drifted off to sleep. I woke up the next morning and nothing was missing. My things were still where I had left them, even the stinky burlap bag, and I put on my socks and boots. I picked up the bandoleer and the ties of the burlap bag with one hand and left the room. I wasn''t surprised that Rebecca was at the counter and I walked over to her. ¡°Where can I buy something to wear over my clothes because it''s cold?¡± ¡°You mean a coat?¡± Rebecca asked and I nodded. ¡°Just head over to Tom''s place. His wife sews up some good outerwear.¡± ¡°Which one''s Tom''s place?¡± I asked and she told me. It was up a different road of town than where I went yesterday, so I was a bit relieved. ¡°Will you be back tonight?¡± Rebecca asked. ¡°I don''t know.¡± I said and left the inn. I walked back to the dock and dropped my stinky burlap bag under the tarp of the boat. I went to the right this time and found the road Rebecca told me about. Two places up was the sign with the needle on it. I didn''t knock and just went inside. ¡°Hi, there!¡± A woman''s chipper voice said. ¡°I can''t say that I''ve seen such a nice looking... young man... around....¡± Her voice trailed off when she saw my face and the snake bite damage. ¡°It''s cold out and I need a coat.¡± I said. She blinked her eyes at me for several moments, then she pointed to several piles of scraps. ¡°I already have a poncho made of leather scraps.¡± I said. ¡°I want an actual coat like yours.¡± ¡°I need to... check your size.¡± She said, almost in a whisper. ¡°I took a bath.¡± The woman sighed and came around the small counter to stand near me. She clearly took in a long sniff and then visibly relaxed. ¡°I might have something, if you don''t mind spending the Hag''s money.¡± She said and used her hands to measure my arm length and from my waist to my neck. I frowned for a second. ¡°What''s it made of?¡± ¡°Tanned cow leather stuffed tight with goose feathers.¡± She said with a smile.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. ¡°How would that work?¡± I asked, confused. ¡°Let me show you.¡± She said and led me over to a corner of her store where she worked. ¡°If the leather is thin enough, you can sew it into large pockets. You stuff in the goose feathers and sew it closed, then sew the pockets together to make the jacket.¡± ¡°That sounds like a lot of work.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Do you have one?¡± She opened up a cabinet under her table and took it out. ¡°It''s really warm when you wear it.¡± I touched it and the leather was rough. I also felt the ends of the feathers, since the leather was thin. ¡°You made this quickly.¡± ¡°How can you tell?¡± She asked with slight surprise on her face. ¡°The feathers are crooked.¡± I said and touched the sharp tips of each one. ¡°If you took your time, they would all be in the same direction. These will poke anyone that wears it.¡± The woman gave me an apologetic look. ¡°I can''t have another made for at least a week.¡± ¡°I won''t need it by then.¡± I said. ¡°What else do you have?¡± The woman looked at the coat and at me, then she sighed. ¡°If you pay for the cost of the leather...¡± I paid her a bit more than that, since I knew how hard it was to sew leather together. I also bought the largest burlap bag she had, which was pretty darn big, let me tell you. She was actually smiling when I put the coat on and I left the store with my bandoleer over my shoulder. I walked back down to the dock and walked up the main road to the general store. I looked inside and saw Diane arguing with her father. _______________ You have a choice to make. What will you do? A) Wait. B) Open the door. C) Kick the door. D) Knock. E) Cut it in half. F) Yell. G) Burn it down. You really like fire, don''t you? I asked. I want to hear what she''s saying, so I''m choosing B. _______________ I turned the handle and they didn''t hear the door opening. ¡°I can''t believe you sold that table!¡± Diane said loudly. ¡°It was in my house and I sold it.¡± Mack said. ¡°You had no right to do that!¡± ¡°What did you bring it home for if you didn''t want me to sell it?¡± Mack asked. ¡°I didn''t want someone to steal such a nice table if I left it outside, Dad!¡± Diane said. ¡°You just answered why I sold the damn thing!¡± Mack said. ¡°I got thirty silver for it!¡± ¡°That''s ALL?¡± Diane yelled. ¡°People around here aren''t rich, Diane.¡± Mack said. ¡°You pretty much gave away that expensive table for the cost of a healing potion.¡± Diane said, her voice sad. ¡°I got ten for the end table, even though it wasn''t finished.¡± Mack said. Diane sighed and rubbed her face. ¡°Give me the money, Dad.¡± ¡°I''ll give you half, since that''s what we agreed on.¡± Mack said. ¡°I did no such thing!¡± Diane exclaimed. ¡°Not with you, with the Marsh Man.¡± Mack said. ¡°Since we don''t have a standing agreement, I''ll use the last one as the rule. Half for whatever I sell them for.¡± Diane let out a growl. ¡°That was for the potions!¡± She said through gritted teeth. Mack shrugged. ¡°Take it or leave it.¡± ¡°That''s not my decision to make, Dad!¡± _______________ You have a choice to make. A) Agree. B) Yell. C) Close the door. D) Burn it down. E) Deny the offer. F) Make a new agreement. I don''t want to deal with him anymore, so I''ll choose E. _______________ ¡°Since you already sold it without either Diane''s or my permission, even though you clearly knew it was mine, Diane will take the money.¡± I said and both of them jumped and turned to stare at me. ¡°I, on the other hand, don''t want anything to do with you anymore, Mack.¡± ¡°D-D-David?¡± Diane asked, hesitatingly. ¡°Is... is that... really you?¡± ¡°I took a bath for you.¡± I said and she gasped. ¡°I bought new clothes.¡± I lifted my foot. ¡°Boots, too.¡± A huge smile grew on Diane''s face and she pushed past her father, counted out twenty silver coins from behind the counter, and came over to me. ¡°David, you didn''t have to do that.¡± Diane said. ¡°You told me how dangerous it''s going to be for you to go back to the marsh.¡± ¡°I still have my old clothes in the boat, so it shouldn''t be too bad.¡± I lied, because it was going to be bad. I didn''t want her to worry, though. ¡°Let''s get to learning.¡± Diane said and held the money out to me. ¡°That''s for Spencer''s old things.¡± I said and she took in a sharp breath. ¡°You said you wanted to sell them, right?¡± ¡°I... yes, but...¡± ¡°I''ll take them home and use them as much as I can this winter.¡± Diane looked like she was going to say no, then she put the money into her pockets and smiled at me. ¡°I''ll be right back with your things.¡± Diane said and went to the back of the store, picked up her coat, and came over to me again. She shut the door to the store and I followed her to the house behind the store. She came back out a couple of minutes later with the burlap bag and it looked a little bigger. We left there and went up the road to where her empty lot was and she sat down on the stump. I left her there and ran to the other side of the property and used the vigilance technique. I immediately detected someone in the woods nearby. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. This will change how the story progresses. A) Confront them. B) Ignore them. C) Make a table and show off. D) Gather the firewood. I''m pretty sure I know who''s there. I thought with amusement. I''ll choose D, just to piss John off. _______________ I unfolded the huge burlap bag and filled it up with all of the wood chunks I had cut off the stump the day before. It didn''t take me long, since I had left them all in a pile, and I carried the huge bag back over to Diane. ¡°I have to drop off this firewood on my boat.¡± I said loudly and she looked at me with surprise. I leaned in close and whispered. ¡°John is in the woods and is watching us.¡± Diane gasped, then she smiled. ¡°You go drop that off, then come back here and I''ll teach you something that no one will ever forget.¡± I nodded and walked over to the road, then I ran all the way down the main road to the dock. I lifted the tarp and put the burlap bag under it, then ran back up the main road to Diane''s lot. ¡°That was very fast.¡± Diane said, a little surprised. ¡°I''ve got the rest of the day for my strength boost to wear off.¡± I reminded her. Diane let out a womanly laugh and stood up. ¡°David, I am very glad to know someone like you.¡± She said and took me into a hug. I was only slightly taller than her, which gave her the option to turn her head up to look at me. She did. ¡°I don''t want you to think this means anything besides teasing John.¡± She whispered to me. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± I whispered back. ¡°This.¡± Diane said and put her arms around my neck and kissed me. There was a loud shout from the woods near the property and Diane let out a laugh in the middle of the kiss she was giving me. It was muffled, since we had our lips pressed together, and I put my arms around her and kissed her back as if she was the Hag. It was the least I could do, since I didn''t know of any other way to kiss. Diane''s laugh changed into a soft moan when my tongue probed her mouth as if I was trying to lick up as much of her saliva as I could, which was exactly what the Hag did, except it was my blood she had tried to lick up. The technique worked, even without blood to suck up, and Diane stopped pretending to kiss me and actually kissed me. It was a world of difference from her play kiss to her real kiss and we both got into it, quite heavily. 029 Fallout There was a shout of disbelief from the woods and John burst out from the tree line with his axe raised to strike me down. He had quite a ways to go before reaching me, however. I broke the kiss with Diane and stepped back from her to get her out of danger. ¡°I think John is upset.¡± Diane stared at me, as if she had never seen me before, and remained quiet. Her eyes on the other hand, were huge and she looked startled. _______________ What do you want to do now? A) Kiss her again. B) Fight John. C) Yell. D) Run. E) Tell Diane to yell. F) Show off again. Showing off seems to work well, so let''s go with that. I choose F. _______________ I grabbed the burlap sack of learning items and swung it around as John approached me, then let it go and hurled it at him. ¡°AHHHH!¡± John yelled and dropped to the ground as the bag just missed him. His axe fell out of his hand and tumbled out of his reach. I walked over to his prone form and grabbed him by the back of his shirt. I lifted him up by one hand and shook him. ¡°That''s twice you''ve tried to kill me.¡± I said and pulled my knife out of my bandoleer. ¡°DAVID!¡± Diane yelled and I looked at her, knowing what she was going to say. ¡°Don''t. Please.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± I said and let John go. He stumbled and looked unsteady, so I pushed on his shoulder and he toppled over onto the ground. He was well away from his axe, so I went to it and used my knife to cut it up. I tossed the pieces at him and he just stared at them. ¡°John, you are a horrible person.¡± Diane said and frowned at him. ¡°You... you kissed... the Marsh Man!¡± John exclaimed. ¡°Does he look like the Marsh Man?¡± Diane asked and waved at me. ¡°Look, John. Look at the young man that you are so angry at!¡± She spat. ¡°Look at what a night living in town did for him! Look at what he did for me!¡± John couldn''t quite look at me. ¡°I didn''t ask him to, John. He did it himself, because he wanted me to know that he might be the Hag''s apprentice; but, that doesn''t make him who he is.¡± Diane said. ¡°Unlike you, he can be anyone he wants to be.¡± ¡°I want to be the Marsh Man.¡± I said and Diane looked at me with surprise on her face. ¡°People hate the Hag and how she acts. I know that. We all know that.¡± I looked at their faces and nodded. ¡°They also respect her.¡± ¡°David, you... you''re mixing up respect and fear.¡± Diane said. ¡°He already fears me.¡± I said and motioned to John. ¡°He doesn''t respect me.¡± Diane looked like she wanted to argue, then sighed. ¡°No, you''re right. He''s afraid you will take all of his jobs and he won''t be needed anymore.¡± ¡°That''s stupid. I''m not a lumberjack.¡± I said. ¡°I''ve tried to tell him that and he said it doesn''t matter. Your ability to work with wood is too good.¡± ¡°You''ve seen my boat.¡± I said to her and she chuckled. ¡°It''s a mess.¡± Diane said with a smile. ¡°You were brave to come here in that thing.¡± ¡°Michelle said the same thing.¡± I said and then frowned. Diane took my hand and held it. ¡°I''m sorry that she won''t build your boat.¡± ¡°She crumpled up the plans and threw them at me.¡± I said and Diane took in a sharp breath. ¡°She''ll never build anything for you.¡± John said as he slowly got to his feet. ¡°Especially not after I tell her that you''ve corrupted Mack''s daughter.¡± ¡°So, it''s not bad enough that you''ve ruined David''s reputation in the town, now you want to ruin mine, too?¡± Diane asked as she let her anger out. ¡°You miserable piece of garbage!¡± She spat and John flinched. ¡°Just for that, you won''t be allowed in the store anymore.¡± ¡°You can''t ban me. It''s Mack''s store.¡± John said. ¡°Do you really think that my father is going to want to look at you, knowing it was you that is going to spread all those lies about me?¡± Diane asked. ¡°Well? Will he?¡± John closed his mouth and didn''t speak. ¡°You won''t be allowed in my store next year, either.¡± Diane said and she saw John flinch again. ¡°What? Did you think I wasn''t still having it built?¡± John''s eyes went right to me and Diane laughed. ¡°No, I didn''t ask him and he doesn''t know how to build it, because you were being an ass and wouldn''t help him.¡± Diane said. ¡°You are not the only lumberjack that I can find, John. You''re just the local one.¡± John took a breath and let it out. ¡°I won''t let the competition build anything in my town.¡± Diane laughed again. ¡°Your town? Really?¡± She asked. ¡°I wonder what Star would say to that.¡± ¡°Why don''t you ask her.¡± John said with a smile. Diane saw his smug face and sighed. ¡°You''ve been sleeping with her.¡±The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. ¡°A man of honor doesn''t kiss and tell.¡± John said. ¡°You just told us, you idiot.¡± Diane said. ¡°As soon as you didn''t deny it, we know you are.¡± John looked angry for a moment, then shrugged. ¡°No one else is allowed to build anything in this town except me.¡± ¡°What if you lost an arm?¡± I asked and John jerked as if I had hit him. ¡°D-David, you... shouldn''t say things like that.¡± Diane cautioned me. ¡°A foot? A hand? Maybe a thumb? What would stop you from working?¡± I asked. ¡°You sleep with the windows open at night, don''t you?¡± I asked and John''s face lost all of its color. ¡°David!¡± Diane exclaimed and gripped my hand hard. ¡°Stop that.¡± ¡°I''m just showing off.¡± I said and she relaxed. ¡°John doesn''t really believe that I can sneak into his house at night with a magic knife that can cut through logs like air. Do you, John?¡± John trembled a little and didn''t say anything. ¡°You can leave now, John.¡± Diane said. ¡°I have a lesson to teach David.¡± ¡°You are making a mistake, Diane.¡± John said. ¡°The only mistake I ever made was sleeping with you after Spencer''s father left.¡± Diane said and then she took in a sharp breath. ¡°You convinced him to go, didn''t you?¡± John smiled. ¡°Yes, and the idiot believed me that life would be better for you and Spencer if he left and joined the army for a steady paycheck.¡± Diane''s face crumpled and tears started flowing. She let my hand go and covered her mouth with both hands to hold back her sobs. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. A) Comfort Diane. B) Run. C) Show off. D) Yell. E) Kill him. F) C&B. G) D&E. H) C&E This fucker has been asking for it for a while, so screw it. Despite wanting to comfort Diane, I''m choosing E. _______________ I charged the blade with magic as I stepped forward and swung my hand with the knife across his throat, then I stepped back as if I hadn''t done anything. John looked at me with a bit of a smirk on his face and opened his mouth, I assumed to tell me that it didn''t hurt. All that came out was a gurgle and some blood. He took half a step and then his head flipped off of his body and fell to the ground. It was an eight inch long magic blade and cut through his neck as if it was nothing. Diane screamed and covered her face to hide the sight from her eyes. Several people heard her and came running, asking loudly what happened to make her scream like that, then they saw the headless body. They all looked at me with anger in their eyes. ¡°He tried to kill me again.¡± I said, truthfully. ¡°Once was enough. He earned his death the second time.¡± I could see that none of them believed me. ¡°Someone get the mayor.¡± A man''s voice said. When no one moved, he sighed and left to go and get her himself. More people gathered and Diane cried behind her hands and didn''t accept anyone''s comfort when they tried to get close. She flinched away from all the helping hands, male and female alike. The women started crying softly at the gory sight, too. After a few minutes, the mayor ran up the road towards the plot with the man right behind her. She had a determined look on her face until she pushed some of the crowd aside and saw John''s headless corpse. ¡°NO!¡± Star yelled and dropped to the ground beside him. ¡°No! No no no! Not my John!¡± ¡°He tried to...¡± I started to say. ¡°SHUT UP!¡± Star yelled at me and gave me a look of hatred that was pretty similar to the Hag''s. I was still in vigilant mode, so I didn''t react to it. I would later, though. That was a scary face. ¡°You killed a valued member of this town!¡± Star spat at me. ¡°He was a liar and tried to kill me.¡± I said. ¡°I said SHUT UP!¡± Star yelled. ¡°Twice.¡± I said and she glared at me. ¡°Someone make him shut up!¡± Star said and pointed at me. _______________ Only a minor choice this time. A) Threaten her. B) Boast. C) Run. D) Cry. E) Plead for mercy. F) Keep talking. I better do the safe thing and go with B. If they all rush me, I can''t fight them all off. I choose B. _______________ ¡°If anyone comes near me, their heads get added to the pile.¡± I said and let them all see my knife. There was a significant shadow around, because of all the people, and the glow of the blade could easily be seen. ¡°He didn''t even know I cut him until he died.¡± Several people gasped and the crowd stepped back from me. ¡°You won''t get away with this!¡± Star said and her hands gripped John''s shirt to shake him, as if she could wake him up. ¡°Get away with what?¡± I asked. ¡°He attacked me with his axe and I killed him.¡± ¡°What axe?!?¡± Star asked, incredulous. ¡°I don''t see an axe anywhere!¡± ¡°The pieces are under him.¡± I said. ¡°I cut that up, too.¡± ¡°LIAR!¡± Star yelled and Diane was still crying and didn''t say anything. ¡°You killed him! A defenseless man!¡± I caught the sight of several people as they shook their heads and some of them whispered about getting rid of me, because John had been right. Mack appeared from his store and ran over to the lot as well. ¡°Diane!¡± ¡°DAD!¡± Diane yelled and turned to her father as he hugged her. ¡°Shhh. It''s all right. David won''t hurt you again. I promise.¡± Mack said. ¡°My poor John.¡± Star lamented and tears came to her eyes. ¡°I... I love you.¡± She said and let out a single sob, then she stood. ¡°You.¡± She said to me. ¡°I am holding you until the army regiment gets here.¡± ¡°Why?¡± I asked. ¡°Because you killed a man, that''s why!¡± Star said loudly. ¡°So, it was okay with everyone if he wanted to kill me.¡± I said and a few of them looked uncomfortable. ¡°You are not a member of this town!¡± Star said with satisfaction. ¡°Yes, he is.¡± A young woman''s voice said. ¡°He used to live here, too.¡± I turned my head to look and saw Hope Addams standing there. She wasn''t crying and she wasn''t looking at anyone except me. ¡°You cleaned up really nice, James.¡± Hope said and she smiled. ¡°My name''s David.¡± I said. ¡°You can call yourself Boy again for all I care.¡± Hope said. ¡°I know who you really are.¡± ¡°HOPE!¡± Her sister Linda said and grabbed her by the arm. ¡°We have to go! We can''t be seen with him now! He just killed someone!¡± ¡°He defended himself.¡± Hope said, even though she hadn''t been there to hear me say it. ¡°You be quiet! I''m the one that says if he''s guilty or not!¡± Star said and pointed at the blonde haired girl. ¡°He''s guilty of murder!¡± ¡°What''s murder?¡± I asked. ¡°When you plan to kill someone and then kill them.¡± Hope said. _______________ You have a choice to make. A) Lie. B) Tell the truth. C) Show off. D) Run. E) Yell for help. All I can do now is hope they believe the truth. I choose B. _______________ ¡°I didn''t plan to kill him.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°When John said that he had Diane''s husband killed in the army, just so he could sleep with her, he made her cry and I cut his head off.¡± The entire crowd gasped and Diane cried harder on her father''s shoulder. ¡°No! That''s not true!¡± Star exclaimed loudly. ¡°John would never do something like that!¡± ¡°We''ll let the army sort all this out.¡± Mack said and Diane clung to him tightly. ¡°That''s what I''ve been saying!¡± Star said and pointed at me again. ¡°You men! Disarm him and take him into custody!¡± No one moved and a few looked down at the bloody head. I could see on their faces that they didn''t want their own heads next to it. ¡°I order you to grab the Marsh Man and hold him!¡± Star said and then let a slight scream out. ¡°Someone! Anyone! Tackle him!¡± She said and no one moved. ¡°By the Son''s Light, do something!¡± _______________ Another choice. Let''s see if it''s a good one. A) Leave. B) Stay. C) Give up your knife. D) Get your things and leave. E) Run. F) Scare them. I think retreat would be best. The Hag told me to never give up my knife, so I''m going with D. _______________ ¡°None of them want to die.¡± I said and held up my knife. It still glowed and everyone took a step back. I walked over to the burlap back with the reading things inside, picked it up and slung it over my shoulder, and walked back to the crowd. Star stared daggers at me as the crowd parted. Well, most of them did. Hope and Linda stood there and didn''t move as I approached. ¡°I believe you, James.¡± Hope said as I passed her. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and smiled at her, then I walked by and went down the road. No one followed me. 030 Home Sweet Home I detached my boat from the dock and hopped into it, careful of the large burlap bag of wood pieces under the tarp, and I put the bag of learning things carefully under the tarp as well. I poled the boat over to the proper waterway to go back to the hut and didn''t see anyone looking at me or following me. Once I was out of sight of the village, I stopped and stripped off all of my new clothes, even the new jacket, and tucked them under the tarp. I took out the burlap bag of my old clothes and did my best to rub them all over myself to cover up the clean smell of the soap and things, then dressed. I would have to wait until I was a lot closer to the hut before I could get my hands on the proper scents to rub on my face, arms and feet. If I did it too early, it would be the same as not doing it at all. It wouldn''t match where I wanted to go and I would be seen as an intruder by everything around. I was really glad that I had my trusty knife in my thigh sheath, because I had a feeling that I was going to need it very soon. My prediction came true less than ten minutes later when I was assaulted by no less than ten poisonous snakes. I quickly dispatched them and gathered them up for soup. I didn''t bother cleaning them, since I didn''t want to distract myself from being vigilant. I had to fight at nearly every intersection that I had to take to get back to the hut. Spiders, snakes, gripping vines, even irate boars that were so stupid to try and jump at me and charged off the banks of the waterway. I was pretty tempted to keep still or go back along the way to harvest even more beasts, especially when I saw a near-deer huff at me. I kept the boat''s movement enchantment going, though. I needed to reapply the local smell as soon as possible. I managed, barely, to fight off several near-beavers and raided their nest to get the stinkiest mud in the swamp, less than an hour from the hut. The endless creature attacks finally subsided, now that I matched the environment more closely, and I made it back to the hut without further incidents. The problem was, my wards had failed. Creatures of all kinds were crawling all over the hut and the dry area in which it stood. _______________ You have a choice to make. Will you do it or let the marsh reclaim the hut? A) Fight for what''s yours. B) Find somewhere else to live. C) Salvage what you can and leave. I am not giving up on my home, not this close to winter. I thought. I choose A. _______________ I quickly drank a number seven potion to make my brain work faster, a number six strength potion, which was going to cost me later, and a number four to heal the damage from the first two. It took a few seconds for them all to take effect, then I quickly poled the boat up onto the head of a water beast that was poised to strike when the boat was close enough. The impact made it grunt in pain from the rough treatment, then I slid the boat over it and onto the dry area. I used the Hag''s infuse technique to make the pole have a metal end and beat the hell out of the water beast that had tried to eat the boat. After only fifteen very fast and powerful hits, the carcass of the beast floated up to the surface of the water. I turned to the large spiders that were climbing over the hut. ¡°Get off my home!¡± I yelled and then proceeded to fight them and the other creatures off of my dry area of land. I stomped on the heads of five foot long marsh lizards or near-crocodiles, used my knife to decapitate the poisonous snakes, then used the pole to swat at the three foot wide marsh bats that tried to dive bomb me. Having my mind running so fast helped me avoid a lot of attacks and I retaliated with deadly force. The female near-deer scattered as soon as I started making headway into the other creatures and the lone male stared at me to make sure that I wasn''t going to follow them. I was a bit saddened by that, until I saw a small hovel of rabbits. I nearly shouted in joy at their appearance and then quickly squished all of their heads with the long pole. The near-deer trotted off without a second glance. The possums were next and it was simple to deal with the small creatures. The near-ducks were a bit evasive and I had to admit that it was impressive that they had all succeeded in making successful homes within a very short period of time. I couldn''t fault them for trying to find new places to live, except that they were taking up my place to live, and that just wasn''t okay in my book. Surprisingly, I didn''t have any trouble when the water beasts tried to come in and take my kills, including the other water beast. I beat them just as senseless as the first one and pulled them out of the water and onto the dry area. I ignored the poisonous bugs and flies that permeated the area and gathered up all of the things that I had killed. I sat down for several minutes and the only thing I could hear was the sound of water slowly lapping at the dry area. I kicked myself mentally for not renewing the wards before they failed. I knew they were getting close to the expiration date and I had forgotten to do them before going to town with the latest delivery. I really had been in a rush and forgot essential things that should have been done before leaving. I sighed and cleaned up the carcasses as best as I could, then I went to the hut and sliced open the part I had sealed. To my delight, no creatures were inside. The windows hadn''t been beaten in and nothing was moved or damaged. Even all the cupboards were still closed and nothing had tried to dig at my supplies. Of course, I still bought the same amount of supplies that I usually did, even though the Hag was not around. I was happy that Diane was freaking out about me not having enough to live on, since it meant that she actually did care about me.This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. Or did. I wouldn''t know what she really thought of me now until I went back to the village in the spring. With that slightly sad thought, I started bringing in all of the smaller things that I had killed. All the water fowl were easily cleaned and divided up properly. I needed to save some of them for later, so I took the marsh panther parts away from the smoking apparatus and replaced them with some of the fowl. I took out the largest cooking cauldron I had and threw in the rest. I added water and increased the fire by tossing in one of the wildwood pieces. I laughed as the fire doubled in size and changed to a slight blue color. That was perfect, so I cut up another wood piece and added them to the smoker. The smoke doubled and the meat started to turn right away. I nodded and went back to work after eating the stew I had in my waterskin. The smaller animals were next for me to clean and I took their pelts, removed the bones, then tossed the bad guts away and kept the good ones. With the immediate work done, I went to my blacksmith purchases and took out the woodcarving tool set. I almost drooled at them and how sharp they were, then I went to the stacks of wildwood coins I had made. I quickly carved out the proper protection runes, added the proper potion with my gland excretions to fill in the cuts, then infused it with my magic. It only took a minute and it was done. There were immediate screams of creatures that I either missed or had tried to come back onto my dry land. ¡°Take that, you monsters!¡± I said loudly and hung the coin up where the old one was on the side of the hut. I quickly did three more and hung them up, even though it was a bit of overkill. One was enough when I did it; but, the Hag always did four, so that''s what I did. I didn''t hear any more noises and nodded my head as I went outside. Now it was time to deal with the bigger creatures, including the ones in my boat. I worked all day and all night butchering the things. I had to expand my smoker to make room and I saw that my spices were almost gone. I sighed, because I wasn''t getting more anytime soon. I would have to pick and choose what I wanted to save for later and then cook whatever was left. There was no way I could just leave them around for months as I waited for the cold weather and the snow to freeze them. I shrugged and went back to work. I prepped vegetables, mushrooms, and fungus powder to add to the stew, then added a ton of meat. I didn''t even bother trying to keep a good ratio and it was going to be the meatiest stew that anyone had ever had. I started using the frying pans on another fire and sliced up the meat into smaller edible pieces and cooked them. By mid-morning, I had finally finished the gruelling task, went outside and turned the smelly burlap bag inside out to put the cleaner side inside, and stuffed my new clothes into it. I pulled the boat up to the hut and stood it up to keep the snow from building up inside of it, then I went inside the hut and pretty much collapsed onto my bed. I slept for two whole days. The strains on my muscles from all the fighting and having two strength potions working, without using a fortifying potion to maintain my muscle mass, hurt like hell when the potions wore off. My head was splitting from the number seven potion, too. I sipped a number four healing potion and let it work, little by little, just so I didn''t suffer all of the regeneration at once. I did that enough times to last me for the rest of my life. I went to the simmering stew and tried some, and it was delicious. All the different meats gave it a great flavor and a texture that I hadn''t had before. The mushrooms brought out the vegetables and the fungus powder made my magic sing. It was perfect. _______________ You have a minor choice to make. It will change how you do things in the future. A) Read. B) Clean up. C) Make potions. D) Gather ingredients. E) Fix the hut. I don''t want to do anything right now, not after all of that. I thought with a chuckle. I think I''m going to relax for a bit and see what else Diane had in that bag. I choose A. _______________ I noticed the small burlap bag next to my bed and went over to it. I picked it up and opened it, then dumped the contents out onto the bed. I didn''t want to touch the nice things inside with dirty hands, so I went to the water bucket and rinsed them off. I should have taken a sponge or even one of the rocks. I thought and dried my hands on my leather poncho. I should have taken a towel, too. I went back to my bed and looked through the things on the bed. There were a few more books than Diane had the first time and I couldn''t read them, so I put them aside and picked up one of the many wooden blocks. There was a big ''C'' on it and a cat picture on the side, so I quickly pulled all the blocks out of the pile and when I was done stacking them, I had a full alphabet in order. It was the same as the book and I smiled. I pointed to each one and sang the song, then I turned the blocks and said all the names of everything on them. I knocked them over and scrambled them up and stacked them up randomly. I sang the song again and it was a lot harder to find and point to the right letter at the right time. It took me three tries to get all the way through the song and then I laughed. I turned the blocks again to the small letter side and put them back in order and did it again. I picked them up and stacked them randomly, then sang the song again. It was a lot harder with the smaller letters, since they looked a bit different than the big ones. It took me six tries to get them all. I sat down and thought about what I was doing, then remembered that I still had another number seven potion. I looked at the blocks, then at the books, and nodded. I took out the number seven potion to make my mind work better and then drank the number four potion. It cut the returning headache off and I picked up the first book with the letters. I went through it quickly and then picked up the next book. It was a N-U-M-B-E-R-S book. ¡°Neh-oo-em-buh-eh-er-ss¡± I said. ¡°Noomberrs. Nombers. Numbers! It''s a numbers book!¡± I opened it and the very first page was O-N-E and it had an apple picture and a straight line. ¡°Owe-neh-ee.¡± I said and frowned. ¡°No, that''s not right.¡± I said and held up a finger to count. ¡°One.¡± I said and looked at the book. ¡°That''s supposed to say ''one''.¡± I shook my head at it and flipped the page and it had T-W-O and two apples with a weird marking that looked like an upside down fishhook. ¡°Two.¡± I said and counted on my finger. I did my best to remember the spelling and flipped the page. I could already count up to a hundred, thanks to Diane''s help. I just didn''t know what that was spelled like. On the opposite page was T-H-R-E-E. I kept reading and a smile stayed on my face the whole time. 031 Learning Is Fun And Hard It took me an hour to work through the numbers book. I went through it several times and memorized the numbers. It was neat to make the connection to the things written on the supplies I bought and the things in the book. I put it down and knew that I was going to remember it, even when the potion wore off later. I was tempted to take a fortifying potion and a strength potion, because I knew I was going to need it. The problem was, I wouldn''t be able to make any more until the spring. I only had one strength potion left, thanks to my mistake and the need to boost my strength. If the main ingredient wasn''t so hard to get, I would have made a lot more of them. _______________ You have an important choice to make. A) Enhance yourself. B) Save it for an emergency. C) Split the difference and get half the result. No, if I''m going to do it, it''s all or nothing. I thought. I''d rather gain a permanent smaller boost once a year than a quick and more powerful short temporary boost, so I''ll choose A. _______________ I sighed and looked at the potions in my stash, then thought it was better to give myself an overall strength enhancement instead of the temporary one I had been benefiting from. My body had recovered from the exertion and would remember the extra strength and what it had done for me, so I decided to throw caution to the wind and took the strength potion and the fortifying potion. It wasn''t intended for living things, so I couldn''t use a healing potion to negate the effects. All I could do was wait for it to finish and to bear through the pain as the potion made the strength enhancement permanent. I picked up the next book and it was a basic word book. It was torture for me to read through. Three hours later, I was only halfway through the book and my hands and feet shook as the potions settled into my muscles. My breathing was laboured and my mind was as alert as it had been after drinking the number seven potion. I could also feel every twitch and shake as if I was doing it voluntarily. I wasn''t; but, my brain was working so quickly that it felt like I was intentionally moving my limbs to cause myself pain. I kept at it and didn''t succumb to the temptation to take a number four potion to stop the process. I would only gain stiffer joints and not the extra strength if I stopped it too soon. I had to let it do its work, so I suffered through another six hours of both the muscle twitching and the book. I hated it, every second, and then it was suddenly over. I reached the end of the book, read the words ''the end'', and my muscles relaxed. I put the book down and stood up. My muscles were no longer stiff and my joints didn''t creak as much as they had. I looked at my hands and made fists with them, and I didn''t feel my knuckles crack like they had earlier that day. I smiled at the successful integration and resolved to do it again in the spring. If it could give me that slight edge in strength that I needed when fighting off the creatures in the marsh, then I had no problems with taking a day of aching pain to get it. I might skip the mind enhancing potion next time, though. That was not how I wanted to go through it every time. Not at all. Of course, now that I had gone through that, my mind was completely unfettered by distractions. I read through the short sentence book again and had no troubles with it. I turned the pages and read the three and four word sentences easily. I read them all again by flipping the pages backwards, just to make sure that I wasn''t memorizing them, and closed the book. I looked at the next book and it had a bunch of numbers on it. ¡°Mmm-ah-t-huh. Mathuh.¡± I read. ¡°What''s Mathuh?¡± I opened it up and it had a straight line, a straight line, and an upside down fishhook. I opened up the numbers book to the first page and nodded. I looked at the second book and there was an apple under the ones. There was two lines between the ones and the fishhook, so I flipped the numbers book and saw that it was a two. ¡°Oh! It''s a counting book!¡± I exclaimed. ¡°One and one is two! Those lines must mean ''and'' and those must mean ''is''.¡± I said and tapped them. ¡°Okay. I got that.¡± I flipped the page. ¡°A one and a fishhook and a squiggly line.¡± I said and flipped the numbers book page. ¡°Ah, three. It''s a three. One and two is three.¡± I flipped the page of the counting book. ¡°Hey, two fishhooks and an upside down chair. The chair is four.¡± I picked up both of my hands and counted. ¡°One and two, that''s two... and one and two, that''s two. If I count them together, that''s one, two, three, four.¡± I wiggled my fingers. ¡°Two and two is four.¡±Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Speeding up learning. Done. _______________ I had spent two days learning how to count and using the numbers on the pages. I had been lucky when I used the strength potion and the fortifying potion, because it let me keep the effects of the mind enhancing potion, too. It didn''t make me smarter, though. The Hag warned me that it doesn''t give you information or teaches you anything. All it did was make it a little easier to learn and I really needed that help. I could count with both my fingers and with numbers out loud, so I was happy with that. What I couldn''t do was figure out what the other two books were. I could look at the pictures and I read some of the sentences inside; but, I had no idea what they were or what I was supposed to learn from them. The other books were clear on showing me what things were and what I needed to learn. I packed the books up and put them away. I had learned what I could, or so I thought. When I reached for the wooden blocks to put them in the bag, I noticed that they made a neat little pile and it made the back of my mind tingle for some reason. _______________ You have a choice to make. A) Follow through. B) Ignore it. C) Gather ingredients. D) Prep for winter. E) Eat. F) Sleep. Okay, that''s a clear warning to keep going. I''m choosing A. _______________ I realized something as I looked at it. I picked up a couple of the scattered blocks and put them up on top of the others. It was then that I saw it. Not the words it made, those I ignored. It was the blocks themselves. They made a wall. My eyes went over to the side of the hut where I had left the four foot long stone block that I had made. Then it clicked. I can make it out of blocks! I thought with excitement. I don''t need to know how to build a house, I just need to know how to build with blocks! I knew that I didn''t need them that big to make the first layout, since I only needed to make the very outside of the walls, then I thought about what I needed to make. I needed a floor and I needed somewhere to put the walls. I also didn''t know how big I wanted it or in what shape. I looked at the wooden blocks and smiled. I had twenty-six of them to play with, so I had plenty of them to move around and to decide on what I wanted to make. The only problem I had was the size of the dry area, that I didn''t know the size of, and that the hut was right in the middle of it. I needed to measure it somehow. I didn''t know stuff like that and I was about to give up when I saw the burlap bag with my new clothes in it. I remembered the boat plans that Michelle had thrown at me and I ran over to the bag and dug through the clothes. I pulled out the papers that were tucked inside and sat down on the floor. I straightened them out as best as I could and looked them over. The main one that she showed me didn''t have any real markings on it, so I moved it to the bottom and looked at the next one. It looked like the side of the boat and it had numbers on it. ¡°Yes!¡± I said and took it over to the bed and laid it out. I read the numbers on it. ¡°Three fuh-ee-tuh. Feet. Three feet.¡± It said and had lines going up and down from it. ¡°High, maybe? It''s the side of the boat, so it has to be three feet high.¡± I looked along the bottom. ¡°It''s still flat and it has a two and a five together. That''s ten.¡± I said and then frowned. ¡°That can''t be right. That part on the back is three, and three of them is almost ten.¡± I put my thumb by the back of the boat drawing and it was the height of my knuckle to the tip of my thumb. I turned it and started counting how many thumbs the bottom was. It was just over eight of them, so I had to count up eight threes on my fingers. ¡°Twenty four.¡± I said and looked at the two and the five. ¡°I don''t understand. Is the two actually a twenty and the five is a five? How does that work?¡± I stood there confused for quite some time. I had to assume that a two spread out or in front of another number was twenty. Then I had another problem. I didn''t know how big a feet was. I moved that paper aside and the paper under it was a big rectangle. It had marks and numbers all over it. I found the two five on the side, so I slid the other paper over and matched them up. ¡°Oh! It''s the top of the boat!¡± I said and pulled out the sketch from underneath. ¡°Okay, yes. I see it. Those are the poles to hold the canvas and that''s the front and that''s the back.¡± I looked over the whole thing and I found a bunch of numbers and didn''t find anything useful until I looked at the bottom of the page. In very small print was a one with the ''is'' symbol and then a one and a two together with ''inches'' written after it, with a marking beside it. It took me a minute to find the same distance using my fingers and it was the same distance of my knuckle to the tip of my pointing finger. I didn''t know what the one in front of the two meant, then looked at the side drawing. The middle pole supports were one and two high. I looked at the three at the back of the boat and used my thumb to measure the pole. There were four of them. I counted out four threes on my fingers and got twelve, which was ten and two. The one in front of another number is ten. I thought, catching on. Then, a three would be... I counted on my fingers. ¡°Yes! Thirty! It fits!¡± I said out loud. I looked back at the top down boat picture and at the ''one is twelve'' markings. I used my pointy finger this time and walked along twelve times with it, which just so happened to be the length of the page. ¡°That''s a one! One feet! The page is one feet! HA HA!¡± I said, happily. Now I knew what to use for measuring. The boat was three feet, or three pages high. I had three pages and put them end to end to see how high the boat would be. It would be twenty five pages long, and I didn''t have enough room to make it on the bed that was only five pages wide. I knew I couldn''t use the pages outside, because that would ruin them, so I went to the fire and picked up a piece of firewood from the pile. With a bit of cutting and cleaning to make them flat, I made a whole bunch of sticks that were one page long. I now had a way to measure things and I couldn''t have been happier. 032 If You Built It, You Will Live With my pile of measuring sticks in hand, I went outside with my knife at the ready, and did my best to measure the dry part of the marsh that I lived on. It took a while and I didn''t have enough sticks. I went back inside and made a ton of them and then went back outside. I laid them down all along one edge and then all along the front of the hut where I usually kept the boat in the waterway, then went all the way back around in the other direction. I finished back where I started and I still had several sticks left, so I put them aside. Now was the hard part and I actually counted them. When I ended back up where I started, I was into my fifth hundred and that was way too much. I knew that. I stopped and sat down. I knew I was doing something wrong and wasn''t sure what. I had the sticks laid out and counted them... ¡°Ha.¡± I said and stood. ¡°I''ve only got one number! That''s what''s wrong!¡± I ran back into the hut and went to the bed. I looked at the top down drawing of the boat and saw that it had numbers on the bottom and on the side only. The only page of the three that didn''t have any numbers on it was the sketch, so I took that page and flipped it over. I now had a blank page and then realized I had nothing to write with. I looked around and saw the ash under the cooking fire. Since I knew it covered everything if you weren''t careful, I went to it and picked up one of the metal fire pokers. It was much too big to use, though. I would poke holes in the paper with it if I tried. I needed something smaller. I went to my wood carving tools and found one of them with the smallest head. ¡°No, it''s too sharp and I don''t want to ruin it.¡± I said and went to the bag of blacksmith things I had and took out the pitchfork. The end of one of the prongs would work well, if it wasn''t attached to the thing and I didn''t need it for my other idea. I sighed and sat down as I thought about it. My eyes landed on the wildwood tree pieces I had cut up and added to the smoker. I gasped and saw that they were blackened on the ends and they increased the smoke. I went over to the smoker and used a set of metal tongs I had bought and plucked one of the side pieces out of it and only the very tip of it was blackened and started to be ashen in color. I blew on it to try and reduce the heat and let it cool, then took it in my hand. It was a bit thick and hard to handle; but, it would do. I took that and the piece of paper outside and went back to where I started by the shallow water in the back. I marked a line on the corner of the paper and started counting the sticks from there and all the way to the front of the dry area and stopped at the waterway. I was at a hundred and fifty two. Now I was stumped. How did I write that down? I asked myself. It took me a minute to remember that a number in front of a number mean tens of that number and smiled. Ten tens were a hundred, so I wrote down a ten, then I knew fifty was a five in front of another number, and two was the last. I had 1052 on my page and smiled. ¡°I did it!¡± I made another mark on the top corner of the paper and counted the sticks along the front of the dry area and ended with ninety five. I wrote 95 on the page and kept going. I counted them all the way to the back and ended with 1086. I frowned at the number, then was surprised when I counted all the way back to where I started and it was 1030. ¡°That''s not right, is it? I must have counted wrong. The lines are straight and...¡± I stopped talking and used the vigilance technique as I looked over at the sticks. My lines were straight... but... what if the dry area wasn''t? I went back inside the hut and made another pile of sticks and went back out. I started at the side of the hut and went over to the front waterway with the sticks and then went back to the hut and added them from there to the back of the dry area. I counted them up and marked it on my paper. It was 1066, which was between the distance between the two sides and proved that the dry area wasn''t like the top down drawing of the boat. I knew it was a different shape; but, I didn''t know what shape it was. I only had the numbers and they didn''t match, which meant I needed to match them up, somehow. I knew I needed a lot more space than a boat for a place to live, so I gathered up all of the sticks and brought them back to the hut. I used them to measure the hut on the outside and found that it was twenty sticks by thirty sticks. That surprised me, because it looked the same size inside. I couldn''t measure the inside, not with all the stuff inside, and I knew I wanted a lot more room than what was in the hut. Plus, the new boat would have been half the size of the hut and two boats would take up nearly the same space with twenty four sticks by twenty five sticks. Now that I knew how much room I had in the dry area, it was time to work out what I wanted. I definitely needed a whole room for smoking meat and then another room for ingredient storage, then another room for potion storage and maybe a whole room by itself for making potions. It was always so cramped inside the hut when I had everything in it together, so I definitely needed to make rooms for everything. Since I wanted plenty of room, I decided to make each room twenty sticks wide. That was four rooms and if I put them side by side, that was eighty sticks. Since the front of the dry area was ninety-five, I wouldn''t have much room on either side, so I changed it to only three rooms across, which was sixty sticks, and that gave me lots of room on either side. I needed a kitchen, a bedroom, and also supplies storage. That added three more rooms.Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°Boy, the rooms sure are adding up.¡± I said and thought about the size of the thing on the side, and decided that I might as well add in three more rooms and would decide what to make them into later. When I was done, it was three rooms, three rooms, and three rooms, with the hut in the middle room. Once I had everything else built up around it, I could empty it and destroy it. That thought alone gave me strength. I would get to destroy the thing that the Hag kept me in and did horrible things to me all these years. Now I was really motivated to get started, so I gathered up as many rocks as I could. Once I had a huge pile of them, I had to figure out how I was going to make what I wanted. _______________ You have a choice to make. It will change how you make your new home. A) Copy the block making technique. B) Do something different. C) Carve out what you want. Hey, thanks a lot. I thought in genuine appreciation. Now I have a much better idea than just making blocks. I''ll choose C. _______________ My mind was working overtime on how I was going to make as many blocks as I could, except that I had a limited amount of rock to make such a huge stone block structure out of. My eyes went to my boat and how I had made the middle piece and carved out the shape that I wanted and then waterproofed it. ¡°THAT''S IT!¡± I yelled and jumped to my feet. I ran into the hut and grabbed the hand saw, the hatchet, and rope, then left the hut and ran off to the side of the dry area and crossed the shallow water to go deeper into the marsh. It didn''t take me long to find a nice sized tree and I quickly cut the thing down with the hatchet. I used that and the hand saw to clean off the branches and to remove the thinner top, since I wouldn''t need it, then used the rope to tie it up with a harness and hooked it over my shoulders to run back to where I lived. I easily crossed the water and stopped in front of the hut, peeled the bark off of the tree, and segmented it into thick planks five sticks long. I used the number ten potion to meld enough of them together to make it five sticks long, then melded sides onto it to make a box that was six inches deep and five sticks wide and five sticks long. I used a fortifying potion and let it sit to make it much stronger than it normally was, then added the waterproof potion. Once it was sunk it, I now had the exact size of the stone block I would need. Four of them would make half of a room wall and eight would make it ten sticks high. I quickly made four more boxes, since I had plenty of wood, and now I had enough to make four large stone blocks at a time, that wouldn''t be too heavy to move. I carefully placed various stones into them and then added the number ten potion that I had made. I filled them right up, so they were all the same, and left them to harden and for the potion to assume the properties of the stone. I went inside and ate some of the meatiest and tastiest stew that I ever had, waited for the potion to set, then went back out and dumped out the wood boxes. Since they were waterproof, the potion hadn''t stuck to it and only stuck to the stones I had placed in them. It worked perfectly, so I did it again... and again and again. I needed a lot of them, so I kept working, eating, slept when I wanted to, and kept making stone blocks. It took me a week to make all ninety six blocks for the outer walls and meld them together. I had been tempted to make window holes, then realized that I didn''t have windows to use. I didn''t want to use the ones in the hut, because I wanted to wreck that thing completely, so I made wood blocks to fit into the spaces where windows would go if I ever found any to put them in. I also put a thin layer of stone over them, so that it looked like it was solid stone on the outside. Once I had the outer walls done, I needed to make the floors. Each room took sixteen blocks to cover the floor and I had nine rooms, which turned out to be even more blocks than I needed for the walls! I chuckled at that, since it didn''t make sense to me. It took me another week and a half to make them all. The problem I had was I couldn''t do the center room or the side room, because the hut occupied them. I also didn''t have a roof. I thought about making it flat, then decided that would be a huge mistake, especially considering the creatures that lived in the marsh. They would love to have a large flat area to nest on, which was the problem I had when the wards had failed. It hadn''t taken them long to move in to try and claim it and I didn''t want to have that problem again. I just didn''t know what kind of roof to put on the thing. _______________ You have a choice to make. A) Keep working. B) Rest. C) Read. D) Gather ingredients. E) Brew potions. I sighed as I read the options. I guess that means I can''t rest if I go read. I thought and read the options again. Well, I don''t really have anything else to do, since I need to get my new home built before winter. I better choose C. _______________ I decided to delay building my home for a day and went inside the hut, since I had been working for two weeks straight, and I ate a nice meal of stew. It wasn''t drying out, even after being constantly on the fire for all this time, and I kept adding more ingredients and the occasional sprinkle of fungus powder. My eyes caught sight of the small burlap bag with the reading things in it and I decided to go over everything again. I took my time as I laid down on my bed, since I wasn''t in a rush, and I finally reached the two other books that didn''t teach me anything. Instead of putting them aside like I normally did, I decided to try and read them again. A lot of the words didn''t make sense, since I hadn''t heard them before, and I skimmed over a lot of it. I flipped the pages and looked at the pictures as I read the parts that I could. I got a little better at it, which I was happy about, then I flipped the next page and caught my breath. I saw a picture of a grey house that kind of looked like mine. It didn''t say how big it was, so I couldn''t be sure. I did my best to read that page, even though some of the words I couldn''t work through. They were long and I couldn''t even sound them out, because they sounded weird. Something on the top of the wall that looked like stone teeth had a really long name and I didn''t even bother with it. I tried to read everything else and it described the walls as eight men high. I laughed at that. ¡°That would make it so everyone would see it!¡± I said and shook my head and read more. It described the inside and it was stone and had stairs and rooms. ¡°Lots of people must live in it.¡± I said and flipped the page and read about a king, a queen, and their daughter. I thought she looked pretty and her blonde hair was a lot like Diane''s. I sighed about her having to see John die and kept reading. I came near the end of the story and my eyes locked onto the picture and the words below it. ¡°The sloped wooden roof kept the drag-on at bay long enough for the ka-night to fight it off.¡± I read out loud and looked back at the picture. The roof was a triangle, just like the letter A. ¡°I''m going to need a lot more wood.¡± 033 Working It Out It took me another week to gather enough large trees and the weather started turning colder. I noticed it and was able to ignore it, for the most part. I didn''t have to start wearing my sweater yet and kept working. I didn''t need the wood planks to be thick, since I was going to do something like what I did with making the stone blocks, only I was going to build them in place and then fill them with number ten potion. The first thing I did was build a fat letter ''A'' on the ground, using the actual size of the wall as a guide and sticks to show me the right length to make everything. I used thicker planks to make the bottom that would rest on the top of the wall, then made the long sides to join at the point, making sure they were the same length as the bottom. I added a brace across the very center, just like the picture in the book showed me. It was flipping huge and I almost laughed at the size of the thing. I used a long pole as a brace and then a rope to help me stand it up straight, then used the pole to help lift it into place. The planks were wide, so I didn''t have to worry about balancing it or anything. It sat right on the top of the ten foot wall and I smiled. I applied some number ten potion on the edges to meld it into the stone and let it sit. I had made the planks for the roof as long as possible, twenty feet, so I needed three more large and fat letter As to cover the roof. I quickly did them and put them in place, using the number ten potion to secure them, then began the arduous task of filling in all the spaces on the roof. Even with the planks already cut and stacked up, it took a long time to get them in place and melded together. I put a six inch piece of wood all along the bottom edge and sides, then added another layer of planks on top of that until I reached the peak of the roof. I left a one foot wide space there open. Then I got to brewing more number ten potion. I had used up nearly my entire stock by making the walls and had to fill in the roof. It took me another week and I managed to fill the roof up to the peak. I was really glad that it was so easy to make and took up almost no significant ingredients, except for marsh water and my own gland excretions. I had to put on my sweater and socks when I went out to fill in the front of the house under the pointed roof, while leaving thin spaces at the top between the planks for heat and smoke to escape. The weather was really getting cold and the water in the waterways slowed down to a crawl. Once it was all enclosed, I let out a sigh of relief. My home was finally done. The large and thick wooden door I had made, just like the one in the book, made a nice solid thunk sound when I closed it with the handles I had bought from the blacksmith. Now the difficult work would begin. I needed to make the internal walls and cabinets and things to hold everything that I wanted to take out of the hut and move it to the right rooms. I had plenty of wood planks, so I did the walls first and left doorways into each space, both from the middle rooms and into each other room. Each corner room had two doors and the other rooms had three doors, except for the very middle room and the front room with the door to outside, and they had four doors. Then I got to work on making shelves, cabinets, tables, and chairs. When I was done with all the prep work, that seemed to take longer than building the walls did, I started with moving out all of the crates filled with empty vials and stored them in the front room on the right side of the front door. I could spread them out and not worry about banging them or knocking them over. Of course, the room was twenty feet by twenty feet, so there was a lot of room to put them in there and I didn''t have to worry about space. I moved all of the remaining potion ingredients into the next room, to the right of the middle room. That reminded me that I hadn''t even tried to gather the ingredients for the potions that the village would need in the spring. Which meant that I needed to get moving on gathering them and hoped that I could find more ingredients, even this late in the year. I had waited a bit too long to start and that wasn''t going to be good, either for me or for the village. The spring order was huge and I had a lot of work to... my mind stopped at that thought. I remembered the last time I had been there and the mayor''s declaration that I was to be held until the army came to the village. I knew it wasn''t going to be until the spring, since no one would come to these parts with winter approaching, and that made me wonder where she would have kept me until then. Would she have fed me or let me starve like the Hag? Would she have killed me? I asked myself.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. I decided that I didn''t have to work as hard this time, even though there wasn''t really anything to do during the winter months except prepare ingredients and brew potions. I wasn''t going to endanger myself for the villagers anymore. I did feel kind of bad about Diane, and that other girl, Hope... so, I resolved to work and gather what I could when I was done moving everything. I kept working and moved everything out of the hut and into their own rooms. The smoking room at the very back corner was huge and the normal apparatus I had set up was tiny in the twenty foot by twenty foot room. I decided to make a lot more of the proper things and set everything up to smoke tons of meat to preserve them. It was going to be great, because I could smoke a lot of meat now and didn''t have to worry about storage. I made the room at the back into a huge kitchen and I made half of it into a potion making room, since having all of the heating and cooking things in the same room made sense. I would need more large brewing pots, though. If I had thought about it, I should have bought them at the blacksmiths or ordered them for the spring. I shook my head at that thought, because he would have been the same as Michelle and her reaction to the boat I wanted her to make. I didn''t sigh this time. I knew that people were mean to me because of who I was and what I looked like. It didn''t matter if I was the Hag''s actual apprentice or not. I reached up and touched my scarred face and then my ear. I had no way to fix the damage and my stupidity would always be shown to the world. I transferred all of my supplies into the cabinets and onto the shelves in the new kitchen. They didn''t take up a lot of room and made it look like I didn''t have a lot of food, when there was twice as much as I actually needed. That was the downside of all the space and I accepted it and moved on. I made the back corner room into my bedroom, since it was the furthest from the front door. I thought about not using the Hag''s old bed, then sighed. I couldn''t go all winter without a proper bed, so I moved the bed and everything from that part of the hut into my new bed room. I would need to buy replacements in the spring for everything that the Hag used to own, assuming I wasn''t assaulted as soon as I came near the dock. I would need to be ready for that. _______________ You have a choice to make. A) Gather ingredients. B) Brew potions. C) Read. D) Do your other idea. E) Relax. Considering I need to do my other idea before going out to get ingredients, I better to that first. I choose D. _______________ Having to prepare for an attack took my mind back to the idea that I had at the blacksmiths. I grabbed the bag with the remaining things in it and picked up the four foot long stone block I had made as a test. I took them into an empty room and put the stone down in the center. I took out the pitchfork and laid it down on the stone and took out the large metal hammer. I held the pitchfork down on the stone block with the curved prongs pointed down and started to hammer them. They didn''t quite want to bend, until I moved the pitchfork back and only hammered on the end. I moved it forward and straightened out all four prongs. With that done, I took out the four knives and looked at the wooden handles. I didn''t need them, so I smashed them with the hammer. They broke fairly easily, which was a surprise to me. Not only that, the round piece on the hilt and the square piece by the blade slipped right off. What was left was the blade of the knife and a flat piece of metal that used to be inside the handle. I looked at them and shrugged. It gave me a bit more metal to work with, so I used a few drops of number ten potion to meld the now straight prongs to the tops of the knives. For some reason, it took a lot longer to melt metal together. I didn''t know why, though. When I had all four of them attached, I grabbed several plank scraps and turned them sideways, melded them together to make it a nice solid block of wood that was a bit wider than the prongs of the pitchfork. I laid the knife-melded pitchfork over it and used the hammer to tap the knives in slightly to mark where to make the cuts I wanted and then flipped it over and tapped the top side into the wood to show me where the prongs were. Once I had the outline, I retrieved my wood carving tools and cut out the proper shape for it, so that the knife-melded pitchfork could settle down into the top of it and remain flush. Once I had it settled into the solid wood block, I measured the depth of the knives and then used my magic knife to cut a single slice out of the wood, exactly that deep, for the length of the prongs. I then used the wood carving tools to make the space a little thicker to help reinforce it. I added fortifying potion to make the wood strong and then added the waterproofing potion. Once it was set, I placed the knife-melded pitchfork into the mold and poured number ten potion over it and into the carved spaces underneath it. Since it was going to take a long time to set and for the potion to take on the properties of the metal, I left it there and went to go get something to eat. I just hoped it worked. I hadn''t done anything with joining metal before, so trying to make the knife blades the length of the prongs on the pitchfork might not work. I shrugged and sat down and enjoyed another bowl of meat filled stew. As long as the reinforcement on the prongs to hold the knives worked, I was fine with that. My magic knife might have made the cuts in the wood too thin for potion to get down into the point and that was fine, too. If it worked, great. If it only half worked, great. If it failed... well, I would cut it up with my knife and try again. I chuckled at the thought and went to my bedroom. I laid down on the bed and closed my eyes. It seemed like I had worked non-stop for a very long time and drifted off to sleep with a smile on my face. Tomorrow, I was going to tear up the hut. 034 Preparing For Winter Part Two I woke up the next morning and I felt rested. I wasn''t sure why today was different, then I sat up and looked around. I wasn''t in the hut! I thought with a smile and rolled off of the bed and stretched my arms. I let out a yawn and went to the kitchen to grab something to eat. I made short work of it and then went to the room where I had left the pitchfork to set the night before. It looked okay from what I could see, so I tapped the wooden block it was set in and it popped off. I lifted the pitchfork and turned it around to look at my handiwork. ¡°Well, it was close.¡± I had been right and the sharp knife point was a bit too pointed for the number ten potion to fit down into the thin groove it made. It almost did, though. What I had now was a kind of jagged edge teeth from the actual knives on the tips to the curved part of the metal fork, where it was just smooth metal from the channel I had carved with the woodcarving tools. I had been liberal with the potion and it had reinforced the top of the knives and the pitchfork perfectly. I did a quick jab with it into the wooden block and the four tips of the knives stuck in and didn''t waver from side to side, bend, or break. It was just what I wanted. A long pole with multiple strong blades on the end for distance attacks. I was tempted to extend the handle, then decided that wouldn''t make it easy to use in an area like the nearby trees, strangle vines, or any other place that had other things that would stop me from using a longer pole. The only real place I could use a long pole was in the dry area where I lived and it wouldn''t be useful anywhere else. I kept the normal length handle. _______________ You have a choice to make. Will you do what''s best for you? A) Gather ingredients. B) Read some more. C) Relax. D) Tear down the hut. E) Make potions. I really want to tear down the hut right away. I thought and read the options again and sighed. I''ve put off making health and healing potions long enough, though. I''ve got my nice weapon that will help keep me safe when I go deeper into the marsh, so I''ll choose A. _______________ Now that I had a good fending off weapon, it was time to keep my promise to Diane. She needed stock for her new store and I was going to get it for her. I prepared everything I needed to take with me, which included potions, my knife, a small ward that I hadn''t activated yet, my engraving tools and a couple extra one foot wide wood coins that already had the proper engravings. I also had my bandoleer, my new knifed-pitchfork, and enough food to last me up to a week in a pack I had made straps for. I tied several large burlap bags to it that I used for holding ingredients and slung the pack over my shoulders. I didn''t intend to come back until I had filled at least two bags, then remembered to bring the smaller bag for the mushrooms and fungus blooms. I didn''t really need to harvest the fungus, since I had so many from the Hag''s secret stash; but, I wasn''t going to skip the opportunity to gather more. I didn''t want them overgrowing and rotting, so taking enough to keep the area healthy that they grew in was my top priority. I wasn''t going to let years of hard work go to waste. I shut and locked my front door, which was a new experience for me, and hung the key over my neck. As an extra precaution, I touched the bottom and the top of the door with some number ten potion and made it solid, then I touched the door and added the magic charm that the Hag said would keep out intruders. A small glowing ''G'' floated in front of the door, which was something I hadn''t seen before, and then it sank into the door. ¡°Weird.¡± I said and walked around my large house to the back. I reached the waterway there and took a slight run and jumped it. I usually had to wade across it, since it was waist deep, until that time I had taken a strength potion to get back to the Hag quickly. I had jumped it that time, when I was so young, and I was much bigger and stronger now. The Hag made sure of that. I started to make my way through the forest and I did my best to be quiet about it. I had gotten very good at sneaking around, especially when I smelled just like where I was. I could sneak right up on things and they wouldn''t know I was there, unless they were looking for me. I carried my knifed-pitchfork at the ready and looked for something to test it on. I ignored the scattering bunnies as I passed them, even though they were some of the tastiest meat and had the softest pelts, next to the marsh panther. That thing was so soft that I was tempted to keep it for myself and make something like a blanket or a pillow out of it. Or both. It was a big panther. I had promised it to Diane, though. I had even moved the antler sets I had gathered from near-deer into my left front room to keep them out of the coming snow. I didn''t know that they were valuable and had just thrown them behind the hut and out of the way. I guess I needed to ask Diane why they were valuable. It was funny that the pelts weren''t, too. I had tons of them and sewed them into water skins to hold my gland extract. That reminded me to open the large empty water skin on my hip and I squeezed out a pile into it. It would take me a while to fill it, even doing it every hour. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Quick harvesting selected. Done. _______________Stolen novel; please report. I was gone for a week and I had filled three large sacks with ingredients and killed four near-deer with the new knifed-pitchfork. One of them had antlers and three of them didn''t. I also killed eighteen snakes and most of them were poisonous, so it cost me a number three snake juice potion. I even scared off the spiders that were starting to nest near the fungus bloom area with one of my wards. The last thing I needed was to have to fight off a nesting brood of spiders every time I went back there. Of course, that meant I would have to replace the ward every time I went back or they would overrun the place. There just didn''t seem to be an end to them, no matter how many I killed. I think I was really starting to hate spiders. I approached my house with my very heavy burden and used the vigilance technique to check everything, and everything was fine. I didn''t see, hear, or smell anything bad. I relaxed and went to the front door, glad to be home, and touched it to disperse the charm on the door. I felt it pop and fade away, which was also a new experience for me, since it hadn''t happened before. I cut the parts on the door that I had sealed with potion to release it, used my key, and went inside. I let out a relieved sigh as the door shut behind me, because I was home. This was my place and I was glad to be back. I also had work to do. I needed to make a lot more waterproofing potion to apply to the roof, and I thought about mixing in a fortifying potion, too. Why make two batches of different potions to apply when I could just mix a fortifying potion in with a brewing pot filled with waterproofing potion? I wasn''t surprised that the color of the potion changed slightly when I added in the fortifying potion as an ingredient. What did surprise me was that the entire potion looked more like fortifying potion. I took a container full and a rag outside and easily climbed onto the ten foot high end of the roof. I walked up to the very top and started applying it to the wood. It soaked in just like the waterproof and fortifying potions and the wood changed color to look aged. I kept working all through the day and finished covering the entire roof. It looked both stronger and waterproof. As a test, I scooped out a bit of water from the water barrel and threw it onto the roof. It worked like a charm and the water ran right off. It didn''t even leave little beads behind. Of course, now that I knew it worked, I looked at the single old barrel that I used for water. It had been an old ale barrel and it had been in the hut for as long as I had lived there. I decided then and there to make new ones. I didn''t know how to make then round like that, though. So, I made tall square ones. It was easy with the melding potion and the new fortifying water potion. I made six wooden boxes to hold water, quickly filled them, and put them in the kitchen and potion brewing room. I used up pretty much all of the spare wood I had, except for the firewood, and that I was definitely going to need for the winter. Diane had said it was going to be a harsh one, so I needed to be ready. Plus, I had a whole hut that could be cut up into firewood to be burned... and that''s what I did with it. I took great pleasure in slicing up the whole thing over the next few weeks as firewood, in between preparing the animals I had killed for cooking and brewing as many general health and healing potions as I could. I even found some of the rare ingredients for the strength potion. I brewed as many potions as I could with them, being very careful to only use the proper amount and not make any mistakes. I managed to get half of a cooking pot of it and that gained me fifteen potions. I had been tempted to add a fortifying potion to it; but, I was pretty sure I couldn''t survive drinking that many fortifying potions. I did not want to become a living statue and then starve to death because I couldn''t eat. The only down side to my little late in the year hunt was that I hadn''t seen any marsh panthers. Either they had moved on or I had scared them off somehow. I hoped that they were just gone to better areas to live, while the winter blasted the marsh, and they would be back in the summer when it was warmer. I finished all of my winter preparation just in time, because a cold snap hit the marsh a few days later. The water in the waterways stopped moving, as did anything inside them, and a light smattering of snow fell to blanket everything. None of it stayed on my roof. I even went out to check and to watch for a while. As a last minute thought, I brought the small boat inside and put it beside the front door. After that, I used up the last of the large stone blocks I had made and finished filling in the stone floor where the hut used to be. It used to fill the whole middle room and some of the room on the left. I decided to make that left room into my work room. I put all of my equipment in there, including the hatchet, pitchfork, stacks of one foot wide wooden coins, the wood carving tools, and several skins filled with my gland extract, as well as the six molds for making stone blocks. My eyes fell on the lone shelf and looked at the Hag''s books that I had retrieved from under the kitchen counter, before I had cut it up for firewood. _______________ You have a choice to make. It will significantly change how the story progresses. A) Burn them. B) Ignore them. C) Try to open them. D) Figure it out. E) Study them. Since I have no clue what could be in them or what that magic glow is, I think I need to figure out what''s going on with them, now that I''ve got the time. I thought as a particularly loud wind hammered the side of my house. I choose D. _______________ I picked up one of the six books and tried to open it, and it wouldn''t move. I tried reading the cover and it didn''t make any sense to me. I tried the next and the next, and none of them would open, even though there were no visible locks on them. I was very tempted to toss them into the fire when I couldn''t open them... then I sat down and thought about it. The thought of no visible locks on them, had me thinking that I might need to know a word or something to stop the feeling of magic on them. It was then that it clicked in my head. They are locked like my front door! I thought with happiness and put my hand on the book I held. I did the same thing the Hag taught me to disperse the charm on the door after locking it with magic, and I laughed when the magic popped the same way and faded. I opened the cover and it moved. I did it! Inside the book, it was the nicest and fanciest thing I had ever seen. I immediately shut it and put it on the shelf, then went to one of the barrels and rinsed off my hands. I dried them as best as I could and I even blew on them to dry them. I shook my hands and waited for nearly fifteen minutes before I could no longer feel any moisture on my hands. I went back into my work room and picked up the book I had magically unlocked and opened it again. I marvelled at the intricate swirly things on the edges of the page and turned it. The next page was just a thin, nearly see through white page, then there was another nicely detailed page. I took my time and was very careful with it. Each page had a white thin page between them and I looked at every page. I was too stunned at the artwork and pictures inside to bother reading anything. I sat there and looked at the back of the book and smiled. It was time to go through it again, because some of the pictures and drawings I had recognized. They were potion ingredients. I flipped the book over and started again. This time, I did my best to read as much of it as I could. 035 Learning To Potion Properly _______________ Montage mode engaged. Speed Learning enhanced to 85%. Potion ingredients and recipes unlocked. _______________ I read through the entire book six times, just to make sure that I was getting the ingredients right. I had even found the recipes for the ten potions that I knew and I discovered something. The ones in the book were wrong. Barely half of the actual ingredients were the same as the potions I made, which surprised the heck out of me. In fact, some of the ingredients I couldn''t pronounce, let alone find, and I had been all over a good portion of this marsh. I always avoided the more dangerous parts, though. Maybe these ingredients were there and I just never saw them before. I looked at the healing potion and wished that I had something other than a piece of charred wildwood to write with. And paper. I needed paper. There was a loud gust of wind from outside and that reminded me that I wasn''t going anywhere, let alone all the way to the village in a patched up boat at the start of winter. That meant I was going to have to make do with what I had. I did my best to copy out the recipe on half of the piece of paper that I had used to mark the size of the dry area, since the other side was only the sketch of the boat that I wasn''t going to have for the spring. On the other half of the page, I wrote down the potion I made from memory, using the words from the book and the alphabet song. When I was done, I closed the book and checked each ingredient of the book recipe and read what it did, then drew a line to the ingredient in mine that did the same thing, only it was a different ingredient. The number of ingredients was a lot smaller in mine, so I had multiple lines going from one side of the paper to the other. ¡°No wonder I don''t recognize the book ingredients! It takes two and three of them to make up one of these ingredients that I use!¡± I said and sat back as I stared at the two potions. The instructions in the book for the potion were long and complicated, where mine were simple, straightforward, and required a lot less work and time. I looked at the single ingredient in my potion recipe that was not in the book and no lines were drawn to it from the other recipe. My gland extract. Maybe that makes up for the smaller amount of ingredients? I asked myself. The Hag did say that it was a catalyst and the potions would only be marsh water soup without it. I looked at the book potion and wondered why that one would work without the gland extract and mine wouldn''t. I thought about the magic infusion and read the instructions from the book again. It was the same process, so I didn''t understand why both potions would work and do the same thing, when they were very different. I looked at the page and all the markings I had made on it. ¡°Now I know those ingredients are unnecessary.¡± I tapped the written out book recipe. ¡°I think I need to check the other recipes and find out if the ingredients for them are just as repetitive.¡± By the time I had checked the other ten recipes, the other two paper sheets of plans had the backs filled with marks of all the differences. The general health potion was ridiculously easy for me to make in comparison to the one in the book, which took four times the ingredients and twice as long to brew. I shook my head at the waterproof potion, because it had almost ten times the ingredients. ¡°What a waste.¡± I said and went through the book to look at the recipes that I didn''t know. There were three different types of health potions, five different healing potions that depended on how hurt you were, ten different poison antidotes that were too specific to bother with, and a bunch of odd ones that I didn''t think anyone would ever use. Eyesight restoration, plant killing, hair restoration, sleeping potions, wake up potions, various beauty potions, an endurance potion and a truth potion. It wasn''t until I was near the end of the book that I found three potions that made my eyes bulge. A cleaning potion that would clean anything it touched, a purification potion you added to water or poison to make it drinkable, and a regeneration potion. The last one was unthinkable. I stared at it and didn''t wonder why it took up three pages of writing for the ingredients and how to prepare and brew the thing. It was the biggest and most complicated potion I had ever seen. In fact, it had other potions as ingredients, including two of the health potions and three of the healing ones. I chuckled at that, since I could easily replace them with the simpler potions I had. I checked the whole thing over and once again wished that I had more paper to work out the differences. There were way too many for me to do it all in my head and keep it straight. I closed my eyes and also closed the book. I recognized some of the ingredients in all three potions as the ones I had used up in the strength potion and I wasn''t getting any more of them until the middle of spring. At least. ¡°Well, there''s nothing I can do about it now.¡± I said and put the book back on the shelf.If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. _______________ You have a choice to make. What do you want to do now? A) Keep reading. B) Relax. C) Make more potions. D) Sleep. E) Take a walk outside. F) Eat. G) F&A. H) B&A. I) F&B&D. J) Cook. K) Do something else. I think I''ve crammed as much as I can into my head for today, so I''ll take the triple option. I''m going with I. Eat, relax, and sleep. _______________ I decided I was a bit hungry, so I went to grab a bite to eat, went to my bedroom and relaxed on the bed as I read one of the two non-learning books, then I drifted off to sleep. The next morning, I woke up rested and refreshed. I sat up in bed and I had a huge home to spend my time in and not the cramped little hut. I had gotten into so much trouble over the years as I banged into and knocked over so many things. The problem was, I only got bigger and the space didn''t. I grew a lot more careful, though. Even now, with all this room, I still walked carefully when bringing cases of vials into the kitchen to make potions. I made potions for a day, since I didn''t want to use up all of my ingredients and do all of the work so quickly. I had a long time to go before winter was done and I was going to be very bored if I did everything at once. _______________ You have a choice to make. It will only change the order in which you do things. A) Make potions. B) Read the potions again. C) Try another book. D) Play with the melding potion. That''s a little tough to choose, especially if I''m going to do them all anyway. I thought and read the options. Okay, reading the potions again won''t do anything for me, since I don''t have paper to work on them or even a proper thing to write with. I also don''t want to do more potions right now. I looked at the other options and debated them. Playing with the number ten potion would be fun, so I better save that for when I think I''m going to be really bored. I thought with a bit of a laugh. I guess I''m going with C. _______________ I grabbed a bite to eat and washed off my hands, then went into my work room and over to the shelf. I picked up the next book and sat down on the chair and put it on the desk. It was just as fancy as the potions book and I used the locking charm dispel and the magic popped and faded away. I opened the cover and did my best to read it. It was hard going, since a lot of the words were long and I couldn''t make sense of them, even when sounding them out and trying to cross them with the words I already knew. I skipped a lot of them and made it about a third of the way through the book when I flipped a page and saw the colored drawing of an intricately carved wooden coin. I couldn''t make sense of what it did, even with the description, because it used really big words and all I could make out were ''and'', ''this'', ''to'', ''protect-ion'', and a few others. I flipped more pages and saw more wooden coin drawings with similar words, then I found the one that the Hag used and hung on the hut. It was the one that I had made much more powerful and hung on the walls. Mine didn''t look as nice and pretty as the drawings, though. I spent a lot of time trying my best to read this page, because I knew what a lot of the effects were and I mentally made the connections between the words I knew and the words on the page. I lamented not having paper and something good to write with, because this had numbers and everything mixed in, just like the potions. Once again, I did not see any mention of the extract potion that the Hag had taught me to use to fill in the grooves of the engraving. Now that I thought about it, I didn''t remember seeing the potion for it in the potion book. I glanced at the other books and wondered if it was in one of them. I sighed and went back to the engraving book and flipped more pages. It took me a while to find the movement and weight engravings, only they were a little different than what I used. I wasn''t sure why, until I read that I needed to look in another book and showed me the weird name that I couldn''t read. That was new, since the other book didn''t say anything like that. I went to the shelf and brought the other three books over and looked at the weird writing under the engraving and looked at the books. The second book was the one I was looking for, so I put the others back. When I unlocked the second book and opened the cover, I near jumped out of my chair. The very first line said that it was a teaching book! I let out an inarticulate shout and started reading. I didn''t go fast, even though I was eager to read all about carving wood with enchantments. It was so amazing that things like that worked and it used your own magic to do it. I spent the next week going over everything in the book. Then I spent a week playing with the things it taught me while reading it at the same time. The more I read it, the more I understood. I wasn''t stupid enough to use the actual wooden coins I had painstakingly made, though. I used firewood, since I was only practising carving the wood. I even started to understand some of the bigger words, once it showed me what a compound word was. My mind started automatically cutting up the longer words and let me make better sense of them, because then they became smaller words. I still couldn''t read the funny written ones, though. They didn''t make sense at all, even just trying to say the letters, one after the other. Those words I just skipped. After that, I took a break for a couple of days and cooked for a while, relaxed in bed, and made some more potions. I was about a third the way through my potion ingredients and I was only a quarter of the way though the winter. I really needed to pace myself or I was going to have nothing to do for the last month or so. I did some more reading of the potions book and it started to become easier for me to make the substitutions for actual ingredients that I had and not the odd and hard to find ones. My mind kind of filled in the blanks of the potions with the proper ingredients. After that, I started to play with the number ten potion. The first thing I did was try to make more wildwood. I still didn''t know how to make things round, so I used one of the stone block molds I had made and put a single wildwood coin into it, then filled it with number ten potion to the height of the coin. I let it sit for however long it was going to take for the potion to take on the wildwood properties, and went back to practice wood carving while I waited. I was getting really good at it, especially since I had the proper tools and the book showed me how to use them the right way to achieve the best results. It took me a lot longer to make the same engraving that I used to do quickly. On the plus side, it was much cleaner, held the imbuing potion with my gland extract much easier without spilling anything, and it took my magic easier when I reproduced the ward enchantment. I was definitely going to make them properly from now on. 036 Winter Ends The next day, I cut up the large wildwood block I had successfully made. I did my best to cut them into squares that were about the size of the round coins I normally used. I had first tried to cut out a circle and failed miserably. Even with a knife that could cut through it easily, it was difficult to make a circle. I even tried to use another coin as a guide and ended up ruining both. I reproduced the carving on the squares and to my surprise and pleasure, the ward worked and accepted my magic to activate. Needless to say, I started making a mold every day of wildwood. The down side of doing that, was that I had to use original wood in each mold. The potion grown parts did not reproduce and the potion just became like goo and made a mess. I guess you couldn''t copy a copy. I also tried to read the last three books that the Hag had left behind in her hiding spot. I couldn''t make heads or tails of them. The pictures were neat, with swirling fire, wind, water, ice, dirt, something that glinted like metal, something black, and a few other things that I didn''t recognize. All three books were filled with whatever it was and it had the same weird writing inside as the names on the covers of the books that I couldn''t read, no matter how much I tried. I gave up on them and locked them, put them back on the shelf, and went about my normal winter routine. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Daily chores and tasks streamlined. Remaining food at 57%. Carving experience 78%. Enchanting experience 53%. Potion making skill 91%. Secret mode of using number ten potion in small quantities to increase potion ingredients discovered. Spring skipped (winter extended). Initiating summer thaw. Done. _______________ Winter lasted an extra two months this time, and it was bad. Very, very bad. It was so bad that I couldn''t even venture out on my winter journey to gather more fungus blooms and mushrooms. My front door was buried with snow most of the time and I had never seen it that deep before. I realized then that I should have made an escape hatch or something on the roof. I would need more hinges and locks and door handles, though. I wasn''t going to leave something like that open all the time. At one point during the winter, while I was brewing more of the number ten potion, I had spilled some onto my potion ingredient preparation area by mistake. I was about to curse my stupidity for ruining my nice work table, when I saw that the roots I had been chopping up for the next batch had spread through the spilled potion and merged with the wood of the table. I almost lost my damn mind. It had never occurred to me to try and fill in ingredients like I did with wood, stone, and metal. That was just insanity, wasn''t it? I stared at the thing for nearly ten minutes before I started thinking again. I tried using one of the large stone molds to make more of the roots, and it was the same failure as trying to make more of a copy... except for one difference. The root I had tested it on had dissolved and spread out to about a stick wide circle, or one feet. I used some of my new wildwood and made a mold that was eight index finger tips wide and long, or eight inches. I also only made it a little thicker than the root, since I knew excess potion was just wasted. I added a root and the number ten potion to almost fill the mold, and let it sit. Since there was almost nothing in the mold, the entire thing became just like the root very quickly. I tested it and chopped it up. As far as I could tell, it had the same properties as the original root. I quickly made up another batch of number ten potion, using the newly expanded roots, and it worked. It surprised the hell out of me, because I could use a number ten potion to make more ingredients to make a number ten potion. The gains were ridiculous, considering it took almost no ingredients in the first place, and now I could make a bunch more of it, practically for free. So, I did. I made dozens of little molds with the new wildwood and used them to make copies of the roots I used. I even tried it with leaves, several sprigs, flower pedals, seeds, buds, grasses, bark shavings, fronds, and herbs. It all worked and it was amazing. Thanks to that discovery, I actually met Mack''s old order quota, even though he hadn''t ordered anything from me. I filled up the usual crates with vials of both general health potions and healing potions, in the proper quantities, and stored them in the front room. I wasn''t taking any of them into town for the first trip, because I had no idea what town was going to be like. I wasn''t risking loosing all of my work by them stealing it from me. I replaced the wards that were hung on my walls and took the special books and locked them with magic, stashed them into a new hidden space in the kitchen, and I extinguished everything that was burning or cooking in the split kitchen and potion room. All the smokers had been cold for months, too. I went outside for the first time in a while and used the vigilance technique. I didn''t see, smell, or hear anything moving, so I went back inside and prepped for my quick journey to the fungus bloom area. I needed to replace the ward there, so I wouldn''t have to worry about it while I was in town. Plus, I had missed my normal pruning trips during the winter and I was a little worried that it had either overgrown or had started to die out.This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. I packed up what I needed, grabbed my knifed-pitchfork and bandoleer of potions, and headed out after locking and sealing everything up. I only had one large sack and one small sack for ingredients, since this wasn''t a long trip. I only intended to go to the proper spot and come right back. Unfortunately for me, what I planned was not what happened. I killed a few recently awakening things along the way, namely marsh bunnies, and tied them to my pack. When I was getting close to the area where the fungus blooms were, I heard a very distinct roar. I damn near jumped out of my skin and the sound nearly deafened me, because I was listening so hard for marsh panthers. This was their normal returning time and they almost always came for the fungus blooms. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. Depending on what you choose, you may die. A) Run. B) Creep closer. C) Slink away. D) Look for another area. E) Attack. F) Yell. G) Cry. Well, damn. Those are not the best choices, no matter what one I choose. This is the only place around to have the fungus and the tasty mushrooms, so D is out. Running, attacking, and yelling would bring the monster right to me, and crying would probably do the same, if it was loud. I thought and read the last two options. I could leave and hopefully not gain the attention of the beast. Or beasts. I held in my sigh, because I didn''t know how many of them there were, and that was a scary thought. Dammit, I have to know how much danger I''m in. I choose B. _______________ I was very tempted to run for my life. Very tempted. I recognized the roar, even though I had never actually seen the beast for myself. My curiosity got the better of me and I ducked down as best as I could and crept closer. I knew I was being stupid and reckless. I knew it. I just couldn''t resist taking a look, because I had to know. I peeked out from behind a nearby tree and covered my mouth with my hand to stop my sharp intake of breath. It was a marsh dragon. All thirty feet of it. It was also laying down right in the middle of the fungus blooms. I stared at the glittering leathery scales that shimmered slightly. I couldn''t tell if it was the light coming through the trees or maybe magic, because the scales went from grey to yellow to orange to red, then back again as it moved. It has to be the light. I thought and looked at what it was eating. It had the guts of a marsh panther in its mouth and it chewed as if he couldn''t taste it or cared what it tasted like. I looked down at the large clawed feet and saw several gutted marsh panther carcasses scattered around. That was bad for the marsh panthers and really good for me, if I wanted to be stupid. _______________ I''m not even going to bother giving you a choice. You''re doing this, just so I can see what happens. A) Distract the marsh dragon and steal its kills. You son of a bitch! I exclaimed in my thoughts. If I die, I''m going to kill you! _______________ I carefully backed away, seeing as how it was quite busy picking apart its meal. I slowly made my way away from there and back quite a ways. I took off my pack and hid it under some brush, dug out my rope, and went searching. I had to divert from my normal path a lot to find what I was looking for. Hello, my beauties. I thought and smiled at the near-deer male and several females. I wasn''t worried about the marsh dragon hearing what I was about to do, because I wanted it to. In fact, I was going to make the male near-deer yell as much as possible. I tied the rope to the handle of my knifed-pitchfork and took the proper position as I poised to strike. I waited until the near-deer was turned mostly away from me, then threw the knifed-pitchfork as hard as I could... at the rear flank. If I had wanted to kill it, I would have aimed for the chest. The four reinforced knives sunk into the ass of the near-deer and it let out a startled and pained sound that cut through the fairly silent marsh. The females scattered and ran away. I held onto the rope as it tried to run to follow them. When the slack was gone from the rope, the knifed-pitchfork jerked and sliced the flesh up as it was pulled out. The near-deer collapsed to the ground and the pain sounds it made were very loud. Perfect. I thought as I quickly rolled up the rope and pulled the knifed-pitchfork back to where I was, wiped it off with a piece of cloth, and then retreated. I heard the mighty roar of the marsh dragon and smiled, because it took the bait. I wasn''t as concerned about making noise as much now, because there was lots of it with the females running away. I backtracked and went back to where I had stashed my backpack, untied the rope from my weapon and then ran towards the fungus bloom area. I took out my trusty knife and quickly sliced off the pelts from the marsh panthers that were there. I was tempted to take the heads as well, then changed my mind. Diane said the pelts were very expensive, so I made sure to get as much of them as I could. I even took the pelt from the marsh panther that had been torn in half. I could hear the dragon smashing through the trees and there was a rumble as it landed. The cries of the near-deer cut off and I looked forlornly at all of the squished mushrooms and torn up fungus blooms. I didn''t have time to try and save anything, though. I quickly sliced up the marsh panthers to try and cover up my scent, then took off running. I had made it back to my pack when I saw the shadow pass over me. I let out a sigh of relief as I tucked the pelts into the large ingredient sack and then I ran a bit more. When I thought I was far enough away, I slowed down to resume quietly walking through the marsh. I took detours, backtracked, took more detours, and muddied up my scent as much as possible. I even intentionally dunked myself in the water a few times in different spots. The large sack was waterproof, so I didn''t have to worry about spreading the panther''s blood in the water or spilling any out on the ground for the dragon to follow. I would need to be careful when I took them out, though. I had no idea how far the thing could smell, so I would wait until I came back from town before taking them out. I had gone out to find ingredients and found a marsh dragon instead. My blood was pumping and I had a huge grin on my face, because I had done all of that without relying on something that I had always relied on. My potions. 037 Back To Town I put my stuff inside my home and regretted not being able to hunt for more ingredients. I really wanted to make those last three potions. The cleaning one, the water purification one, and the regeneration one were all useful, especially to me. My hand touched my face and the snake venom damage I had lived with for years. If I could somehow get rid of that, I think I would be that much happier. I changed the content of my pack for going to town. I put in the marsh panther pelt and head that I had done before the winter, my set of clean clothing and boots, and added several water skins of stew and smoked meat. I knew that was a bit more than I actually needed; but, I was going to town and needed the extra food, just in case I wasn''t allowed to eat anything there. I also added a sealed leather bag that was full of the same stinky mud that I had used to adjust myself back to being the same smell as my environment last fall. I wasn''t going to make that mistake again. I added a few of the ingredients that I would need to make more number ten potion, just in case. I had quite a bit in my bandoleer, along with the fortifying waterproof potion, to make molds if I needed to. I had missed my birthday in the spring, which meant that I was now 18 years old from when the Hag bought me. I also missed the frog migration from their hibernation area to their mating area, so no tasty oat grubs this year. That made me sad. Of course, with the marsh dragon claiming the area where the fungus blooms were, I was pretty sure that a lot of things were going to change in the marsh over the next few months. I grabbed my bandoleer of potions to hang over my shoulder and a case of empty vials. I switched it out for half healing and half general health potions. Even if something happened to me when I got to town, I had to give them to Diane. I also took all of my money, since I intended to go to the next village after stopping at the dock and getting cleaned up. Rebecca let me do it last time and I hoped that she would let me do it again. I took the boat out through the large front door and put my pack under the tarp, along with six of the near-deer antler sets and the mixed case of potions. I went back in and grabbed my knifed-pitchfork and added it to the boat with the two partially metal covered pushing poles that I had made with experimenting with the number ten potion. I shut and locked the door, sealed it with potion, and then I removed the old enchanted wooden coins from the boat and secured the two new square enchantments for movement and for weight on the bottom of the boat, under the seats where the old ones used to be. I couldn''t wait to test them out and activated the weight one. I easily pulled the boat over to the waterway and had to smile. Before I pushed it in, I took one of the poles and probed the slightly stagnant water that was just starting to flow a little. Nothing moved or tried to bite the pole, so I slid the boat into the water. I hopped in and sat down, I held the pole at the ready, just in case, and activated the movement enchantment. The boat took off like a shot and I fell on my ass and tumbled to the back of it. The pole I was holding flew out of my hand as I tried to grab on to anything solid and I heard the plunk and splash sounds as it fell over the side. I caught myself just before I fell over the edge of the back of the boat and deactivated the enchantment. ¡°Whew.¡± I said and shook a little. In my stupidity, I had used the same amount of magic that I had used for the old movement enchantment, that I now knew was very inefficient. The new one was like a whole different experience and scale of power, which meant that I needed to be very careful with it. I had also lost one of my poles. I was glad that I had secured my stuff under the tarp, because everything would have slid into me and probably smashed. I checked my bandoleer and sighed in relief. Nothing was broken. I opened each reinforced padded pouch and checked each vial to make sure they weren''t cracked or anything. Leaks for some of them would be bad, especially the number ten potions. If there was one potion that you did not want to get on you, it was number ten. My prep table with part of a root merged with it was proof enough of that. It took me several minutes of experimentation to activate the movement enchantment with as little magic as possible. Having a large and practically straight waterway was perfect for that and I managed to get it to work as I held on tightly to the wood plank seat. I was not making that mistake again. I got the boat going and the lowest speed I had was double that of the highest speed of the old enchantment. Of course, now that I knew that, I also knew that I could intentionally add flaws into the carvings to make the enchantments less efficient and also less dangerous. The ''real'' one didn''t need much magic at all and the wind was blowing my long black hair around. It took me less than an hour to get to the village, and that was saying something. I didn''t even want to think what going faster would mean. Of course, it was still dangerous to travel through the marsh and I had to fight off a few things that threatened me, like hanging vines, aggressive spiders, and dropping snakes. The snakes were hilarious, because I had to slow down to let them drop into the boat. They would have missed, otherwise. I was tempted to leave a couple of them alive to protect the boat, then changed my mind. I didn''t want to be accused of bringing them to the village to attack people, and that was exactly how they would see it. I killed them all and left them on the tarp. The sight alone might impress people enough to leave the boat alone. I deactivated the movement and weight enchantments as I approached the opening of the waterway to the harbour and the boat slowed down and settled into the water. I realized my mistake of waiting too long to do it, when a large wave was pushed from the square bow and out into the harbour. It was much too big for a poled boat to make, even when coming to a stop, and I sighed. If anyone was out on the dock, they would easily see the wave because the water was almost completely calm. I picked up my remaining pole and eased over to the opening and peered out to see no less than six people were staring at me, one of which was a man in uniform. I silently said one of the Hag''s favorite curses and poled out into complete view. Two of the six men let out laughs at the ramshackle boat, not realizing it was actually a great boat, no matter what it looked like.The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. I ignored them as I stared at a large boat, almost like a schooner. Four of the men went back to doing whatever they were doing on different boats and I looked back at the dock. One man stared at me like he wanted to kill me and the man in uniform had a completely blank face. I poled around the edge of the harbour and went over to the dock. I thought about ignoring the dock and just going up on shore, then realized that wasn''t a good idea. My boat would be completely unprotected and anyone could get to it. ¡°You fucking bastard.¡± The older man spat at me as I bumped into the dock. ¡°You actually had the balls to come back here.¡± ¡°Mr. Powell.¡± The man in uniform said in a stern voice. ¡°Do not forget that you are here at my leisure.¡± ¡°I''ve been standing here every fucking day for a week for this little shit to show up here.¡± Mr. Powell said. ¡°He killed my boy and I want him hung at the end of the rope of justice!¡± ¡°The army does things the proper way, sir.¡± The man in uniform said. ¡°We are here now and what you want may actually happen... after a proper trial is held.¡± ¡°Ha! A trial!¡± Mr. Powell said. ¡°All you have to do is ask him! He won''t deny it!¡± I opened my mouth to admit it and the man cut me off. ¡°That''s not my job, sir.¡± The man in uniform said. ¡°I am only here to deliver him to the new garrison.¡± _______________ You have a choice to make. It will change how things play out from now on. A) Go along with it. B) Try to run. C) Fight. D) Kill them. E) Burn it down. F) Distract them. Screw it. I knew something like this would happen. At least it''s not the mayor screaming for my death. So, let''s see where it takes me. I choose A. _______________ I tied up my boat properly and discretely applied some number ten potion to merge the side of the boat to part of the dock to secure it. ¡°Where''s the new garrison?¡± I asked, as if it didn''t matter to me. It did, and I activated my vigilance technique. ¡°It''s just outside the village in a field owned by the Addams family.¡± The man in the uniform said. ¡°I know one of them.¡± I said, since I couldn''t tell if he lied. ¡°I had assumed so, since they offered the field when they discovered what was going on.¡± The man in the uniform said. ¡°No one in their right mind would give up prime farming land for someone they didn''t know.¡± ¡°Can we make a few stops?¡± I asked as I took out the pack I had and put it on. ¡°I am supposed to take you right to the garrison.¡± The man responded. ¡°I''m here to make sure that you don''t run.¡± Mr. Powell said. ¡°Why would I run?¡± I asked and picked up the knifed-pitchfork. Both men stepped back from the edge of the dock. ¡°What the hell is that?¡± Mr. Powell asked, shocked. ¡°What''s it look like?¡± I asked and waved it at him. ¡°It''s a knifed-pitchfork.¡± ¡°You... you can''t have that kind of a weapon.¡± The man in the uniform said. ¡°Who says?¡± I asked and pointed it at him. He didn''t respond and just stared at it. I moved the tarp aside and they both gasped at the six sets of near-deer antlers. ¡°Did Diane get her store built?¡± I asked and did my best to tie the antlers to my belt. I looked like I was growing antlers out of my hips when I was done. ¡°Yes, she... has a small shop... with almost nothing in it.¡± Mr. Powell said. I frowned at him. ¡°Diane''s not stupid. She would have some things in there.¡± The man''s face went a little red and he didn''t respond. I picked up the case of potions and stared at the two of them. They stepped back even further and I put the case onto the dock and put the tarp back into place and moved the snakes around to stop anyone from grabbing the tarp. I climbed up onto the dock and looked at the man in the uniform as I slid my knifed-pitchfork into the little holder on the pack on my back, just like the one John had on his belt for his axes. ¡°I assume we''re walking up the main road.¡± I said and he nodded. I picked up the case of potions and started walking. I made it to the end of the dock before they realized I wasn''t going to wait for them and they ran to catch up to me. Several people were out on the street and stared at me. I ignored them and walked up the main road. Mack saw me pass by the general store and came out. ¡°David!¡± He nearly yelled. ¡°I need those potions!¡± ¡°I don''t deal with you anymore.¡± I said and kept walking. I ignored a slight scuffle sound behind me and kept walking. When I reached the empty lot that used to be Diane''s, there was a tiny little shack there. Even to my eyes, it was pathetic, and I used to live in a hut. I knocked on the door with my foot, such as it was, and waited. The door opened and a much thinner woman than I remembered stood before me. ¡°DAVID!¡± Diane yelled and jumped out to hug me, then saw I was in no position to either receive a hug or give one. ¡°Let me take that from you.¡± She said instead and took the crate with the potions in it. ¡°I know it''s not much, since I couldn''t get an actual lumberjack to build it.¡± She said and went inside. ¡°Come in, please.¡± I nodded and stepped inside. There was almost no room inside and the walls and shelves were nearly bare. ¡°I forgot to ask why near-deer antlers were valuable.¡± I said and untied them from my waist. ¡°There are a few reasons, a few of which I don''t think you need to know.¡± Diane said, her face a little red. ¡°Let''s just say that a lot of men come looking for them and they are a potent elixir ingredient.¡± I didn''t remember seeing antlers in any of the books I had looked through, so I shrugged and gave her all six sets. ¡°This is wonderful, David.¡± Diane said and hung two of them on the wall behind the little counter. She put the others under the counter. ¡°I still have that special item.¡± I said and took the knifed-pitchfork off of my pack. I ignored Diane''s gasp at the sight of it as I leaned it against the counter and then I slid the pack off of my back. ¡°David, you... you don''t mean...¡± Diane started to say. I opened the pack and pulled out the fully cured and preserved black panther pelt with the head still attached. I heard two inarticulate shouts behind me and ignored them. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Diane whispered at the sight of the silky pelt. ¡°It came out so well that I was really tempted to keep it.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°I promised it to you, though.¡± ¡°Oh, David.¡± Diane said, her voice soft. I laid it out on the tiny counter and it was much too large and hung off the sides and the end of it. ¡°It''s beautiful.¡± Diane said to me. ¡°I hope you can sell it.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Once word spreads around that I have something like this...¡± Diane pet it. ¡°...it''s going to be bought. I guarantee it.¡± ¡°All right. See you later.¡± I said and looked at the man in the uniform. ¡°I need to get cleaned up at the inn.¡± ¡°We can take care of that at the garrison.¡± The man responded. ¡°Don''t worry, David. I told them all about what happened.¡± Diane said. ¡°This is just a formality.¡± ¡°What''s that mean?¡± I asked and picked up my knifed-pitchfork. ¡°Ma''am.¡± The man in the uniform said. ¡°You know what the garrison commander said.¡± ¡°He''s not presiding over the trial, is he?¡± Diane asked and the man shook his head. ¡°Then I will see David tomorrow and I will see him free.¡± ¡°Come with me, please.¡± The man in the uniform said. ¡°You''ve made your delivery.¡± I nodded and walked out of Diane''s shop. ¡°I''ll be there in the morning, so don''t worry!¡± Diane said as she leaned out of her door. ¡°I believe in you, David!¡± I nodded again and walked up the main road beside the man in the uniform and John''s father. 038 The Garrison It took a little while to walk to the Addams farm. You don''t realize how quickly you travel on water until you go the same distance on foot. We approached an eight foot tall wooden fence made of thin logs. They still had the bark on them and the man in the uniform pointed to what I assumed was a kind of door. When we were within fifty feet of the fence, two men stood up from behind it. I had easily noticed them, because I was still using the vigilance technique. ¡°Halt!¡± One said and aimed a crossbow at us. ¡°Who goes there?¡± The other only had a sword and was standing as if to strike, for some reason. We were much too far away for him to attack. Plus, he was halfway up the back of the wall on a platform. There was no way he was getting over the top of the wall, dropping to the ground, and charging us. ¡°Lieutenant Smith.¡± The man in the uniform said and took off his hat. He had short blonde hair that I hadn''t noticed from under the hat. ¡°I am escorting a prisoner today and the same irate father as every other day this week.¡± That made the guard with the sword chuckle and put his sword away. ¡°At least we don''t have to listen to him complaining that the prisoner didn''t show up again.¡± He waved at someone behind him. ¡°Open the gate.¡± The gate clicked when a simple latch was moved and the large door swung open. Two more men in uniforms were there and waved us inside. ¡°Doesn''t it hurt walking like that?¡± The guard asked and motioned to my bare feet. ¡°It hurt more losing the toes.¡± I said and his eyes dropped to look closely at my feet. His face paled a little and he stepped back to move out of the way. ¡°The main building is over there.¡± Lt. Smith said and pointed. I started walking over to it and the other guard jogged around and held a hand out to stop me. ¡°You can''t enter the garrison with weapons.¡± He said. ¡°You need to hand them over and...¡± _______________ You have a choice to make. Will it be a good one? A) Hand them over. B) Kill him. C) Bluff. D) Intimidate them. E) Run. F) Yell. G) Show off. I''m about to be put on trial, so let''s give them a taste of what I can do. I choose G. _______________ In an instant, I swiped the knifed-pitchfork across his chest to slice at the cloth. Unfortunately, it was a bit dull after using it so much, so it didn''t do much except tug at the cloth. Since that didn''t work, in the next instant, I stepped forward and drew my magic knife from my thigh sheath and held it at his throat. ¡°WHOA!¡± Lt. Smith said and stepped towards me. ¡°Stop.¡± I said in as deep of a voice as possible and he stopped. ¡°No one takes my things.¡± ¡°All right. Easy now. No one is taking your things.¡± Lt. Smith said and waved me away. I moved the knife away from the guard''s throat and stepped back. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Mr. Powell said. ¡°He just attacked an army soldier! Kill him! He''s right there!¡± ¡°He didn''t hurt him.¡± Lt. Smith said and gave me a searching look. ¡°He easily could have.¡± ¡°He almost ruined my uniform.¡± The soldier said, a little shaken and with a look of relief on his face. ¡°Someone almost crapped in my pants, too!¡± I had to clamp my mouth shut to stop from laughing. That was a funny joke. ¡°This way, please.¡± Lt. Smith said and waved at the building again. No one else stepped forward or tried to stop me as I walked to the building. A guard at the door opened it and the three of us went through. ¡°Visitors have to wait in the designated area.¡± Mr. Powell grumbled something and walked over to the set of chairs and sat down. Lt. Smith led me over to a woman behind a desk. She wore a uniform as well and smiled at him for a second, then her nose wrinkled up and she stared at me. ¡°I told him that I wanted a bath first.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°We need access to the bathhouse for...¡± Lt. Smith looked at me. ¡°...about half an hour. Can you let the CO know we''re here after that?¡± ¡°After?¡± She looked at Lt. Smith like he had lost his mind. ¡°Do you want him to take us in right away?¡± Lt. Smith asked. She gave me another look and then shook her head. ¡°I''ll have it cleared out if it''s not already.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Lt. Smith said and waved for us to sit. I walked over to where the chairs were and stood on the far side of them, away from the door. He gave me a look for a moment, shrugged, and sat beside Mr. Powell. She wrote something down onto a piece of paper and left the room through a side door for a second and came right back. We were there for ten minutes before a man came out the same door. ¡°Lieutenant.¡± Lt. Smith stood and waved for me to follow. I went with him and we followed the man through another room and outside. We went to the next building and inside was what I would learn was a ''bath house''. ¡°I''ll show you what to do to...¡± Lt. Smith started to say as we entered one of the rooms. ¡°I''ve taken a bath before.¡± I said and he nodded. ¡°I''ll be right outside.¡± Lt. Smith said and closed the door. I waited for a second and used a few drops of number ten potion to seal the door. I didn''t want anyone coming in and taking my stuff when I was in the bath. I quickly stripped off and grabbed the cleaning things beside the large tub. I stepped into the hot water and sighed as the temperature soaked into my skin and my bones. I scrubbed myself all over, even my hair, and I was done twenty minutes later. To my surprise, I had only heard someone try the door handle twice. I expected to hear a dull thump at least once as they tried to open the door and couldn''t.The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. I dug out my clean clothes from my pack and dressed, even in the underwear, and transferred my money into my new pants. I even put on the socks, boots, and feather stuffed jacket. I looked around and found a kind of desk with a bunch of other things on it. I picked up a couple that looked like the thing Rebecca had used to fix my hair last time and I used that, too. I was tempted to take some of everything there, then thought it would be bad if I got caught stealing while going to trial. I turned the bag that my clothes had been in, inside out, and put my old dirty clothes into it and tucked it into my pack. I took a minute to eat some of the food I had prepared and then I felt something brush against my right side. I turned my head to look that way and didn''t see anything. ¡°He felt it!¡± Someone whispered in surprise. I jumped at the wall as I pulled out my magic knife and slid it right at the spot where I heard the voice. ¡°AHHH!¡± A woman''s scream pierced the air and there were several thumps and curses. I cut a quick square out of the wall, about a stick wide, and looked at the two startled uniformed women on the floor. ¡°It''s not nice to peek on people.¡± I said in my deep voice and smiled at them with a big tooth bearing grin. I was definitely showing off for them and I hoped they appreciated it. ¡°I''M SORRY!¡± One of them women yelled. ¡°DON''T KILL ME!¡± ¡°What''s going on in...¡± Lt. Smith''s voice started to say and then there was a thump on my door. ¡°Ow! What the hell? These doors don''t have locks!¡± ¡°Try the next door.¡± I said in a normal voice. Since my head was inside the other room, he heard it from there. The door opened and he stared at the two women on the floor. ¡°Donna!¡± Lt. Smith exclaimed. ¡°Ah... I mean... Sergeant Simms. What are you doing?¡± ¡°Alex, I...¡± Donna''s face went red. ¡°I was having Annette check on the prisoner.¡± ¡°I believe that knocking and asking if he was in there would have sufficed.¡± Lt. Smith said. ¡°We didn''t... want him... to know.¡± Annette said as her adrenaline faded and she started shaking from fright. ¡°He tried to kill me!¡± ¡°Liar.¡± I said and she winced. ¡°John lied, too. He said that I tried to kill him first and he attacked me. Twice.¡± I shook my head and pulled it back through the hole. ¡°Diane said he was jealous of me taking work from him, even though I''m not a lumberjack.¡± I said and packed up my things, then hung the bandoleer over my shoulder and held the pack in my left hand. I had tucked the knifed-pitchfork into the holder and I held my magic knife in my other hand. ¡°I think he was jealous because he wanted Diane.¡± The two women on the floor stared through the hole and watched as I cut the door to the room free. I tucked the knife into the sheath in the bandoleer and opened the door. ¡°She was teasing him and he attacked. I killed him.¡± I said and walked over to Lt. Smith. ¡°You need to save that for the trial.¡± Lt. Smith said. ¡°Why? Is the truth going to change by then?¡± I asked and he gave me a startled look for a moment. ¡°The CO wants to see you.¡± Lt. Smith said after another moment and looked into the room. ¡°Simms. Williams. You, too.¡± ¡°But... the wall...¡± Donna said and motioned towards it with a worried look on her face. I assumed that they would get in trouble for damaging army property like that. I walked over and picked up the piece that I had cut out of the wall and made sure that it was facing the right way. The cuts matched, so I stood between the witnesses and the hole. I discretely added drops of number ten potion on the edges of the piece of wood and put the thing back into place. After a second, I tapped it and walked away. ¡°By the SON''S LIGHT!¡± Annette yelled. ¡°What did you do?¡± Donna asked, surprised. ¡°Magic.¡± I said. Donna looked at Annette, who shook her head. ¡°Marsh magic.¡± I said with a smile and Annette looked confused. ¡°You would understand if I showed you what it was that I did. I''m not going to, though.¡± Annette looked surprised for a second, then angry, then sad. ¡°I guess I deserved that.¡± ¡°Let''s go, everyone.¡± Lt. Smith said and waved us out of the room. Donna walked in front to lead, then it was me, Annette, and Lt. Smith. We left the bath house and went back to the main building. The woman at the desk stared at me and instinctively took in a sniff. ¡°I still have the pack.¡± I said and she stood up. She walked over to me and leaned in towards my neck to take another sniff. She smiled and nodded as she stepped back. ¡°Go on in.¡± She said and motioned to the door behind her desk. ¡°Please, leave the pack by the door on the inside of the office. The less the Commanding Officer smells it, the more likely he won''t hate you.¡± ¡°He''s just like some of the villagers.¡± I said and she took in a sharp breath. ¡°Most hate me anyway, no matter what they smell.¡± Lt. Smith stepped by me and knocked on the door, then opened it to wave me and the other two through. I stepped into the office and I carried the pack right over to the man''s desk and plunked it on the chair in front of the desk. The man behind the desk stared at me and I ignored him. I looked around his office and he had almost nothing in it. It looked like my work room, actually. It only had one shelf for books, too. ¡°So, you are the supposed killer, Marsh Man?¡± The man asked, disbelief in his voice. ¡°No.¡± I said and looked at him. ¡°I killed him, fair and square.¡± The man''s face went angry. ¡°Fair was it? Attacking an unarmed man?¡± ¡°I only cut off his head. He still had his arms.¡± I said and someone let out a muffled chuckle. ¡°This isn''t a laughing matter. A man lost his life.¡± ¡°Diane''s husband died because of John. Why wasn''t he on trial?¡± I asked. ¡°He''s dead.¡± The man replied. ¡°I only killed him last fall, so that''s not a reason.¡± I said and the man didn''t say anything. ¡°Why are you doing this?¡± ¡°The mayor begged for us to come here and intervene on her behalf when the locals proved to be cowards.¡± The CO said. ¡°Are you a coward for not wanting to die?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Are you a coward?¡± I asked and jumped over the desk and had my knife at his throat in the blink of an eye. The man didn''t flinch. ¡°Kill me and you will be dead before you leave the garrison.¡± ¡°I''ve died several times already. What''s one more?¡± I asked and pressed my thumbnail to the man''s neck as if it was the blade. Sweat beaded on his forehead and he didn''t speak. ¡°That''s enough.¡± Lt. Smith said. ¡°Okay.¡± I said and slid back across the desk and stood beside the chair. My knife was back in the sheath and no one had seen me do it. The CO reached up and touched his neck. It didn''t come back with blood and he squinted his eyes at me. ¡°Thumbnail.¡± I said and wiggled my thumb at him. ¡°The trial will be held in the morning.¡± The CO said. ¡°I hope you can state more evidence than ''it was fair'', or this is going to be a short trial.¡± He looked at Lt. Smith. ¡°Lock him up.¡± ¡°Sir, he...¡± ¡°...is a danger to everyone on this base.¡± The CO said. ¡°This little show proved that.¡± ¡°Liar.¡± I said and he looked at me with squinted eyes. ¡°You knew it was a show.¡± ¡°Strip him of his things and...¡± I flashed the knife out and slid it across the front of his desk and cut the legs off. ¡°No one takes my things.¡± I said and touched the desk with my hand and it toppled over. ¡°If anyone tries, I won''t hesitate or warn them.¡± ¡°Now see here.¡± The CO stood up. ¡°You are in army custody and...¡± I quickly stepped forward and did several thin cuts to his clothing and stepped back. ¡°...you will abide by...¡± The CO stopped taking when nearly the whole front of his uniform fell into shreds and fluttered to the floor. His hand came up and touched the undershirt he wore and it didn''t have a single mark on it. ¡°Stop showing off.¡± Lt. Smith spat at me. ¡°I could have carved your heart out, just like I do to near-deer.¡± I said and picked up my pack. ¡°Lock him up.¡± The CO said and looked at me. ¡°He can keep his things.¡± I nodded and Lt. Smith opened the office door for me. ¡°Wait here.¡± Lt. Smith said and closed the door. ¡°Sir, I''m sorry that happened.¡± I was still using Vigilance and could clearly hear them talking. ¡°So is he.¡± The CO said. ¡°I''ll be testifying at the trial tomorrow.¡± ¡°You can''t. You''re the CO.¡± Annette said. ¡°He''s going to be found guilty.¡± The CO said. ¡°The one presiding is a friend of the mayor.¡± ¡°Sir, you can''t let them preside.¡± Lt. Smith said. ¡°Nominate a new officiator.¡± ¡°Even if I wanted to, and I don''t, there''s no one in this town that would give him a fair trial.¡± The CO said. ¡°Plus, he really is a danger if these are the kinds of things he does all the time.¡± ¡°It''s their fault.¡± Lt. Smith said. ¡°They were trying to spy on him and he caught them.¡± ¡°Explain.¡± The CO said. The two women told the story about the rumors of the Marsh Man and him being covered in scars from years of abuse from the Hag. Their curiosity got the better of them and when the door wouldn''t open for them, they tried magical means and were discovered. ¡°You owe me a new uniform.¡± The CO said. The two women groaned, because that was an expense that they would not likely pay off for a while. ¡°Dismissed.¡± The CO said and Lt. Smith opened the door. ¡°You could have just asked.¡± I said to the two women and they stared at me as if that had never occurred to them. ¡°The lock up is in another building.¡± Lt. Smith said with a smile and led me out of the main building. 039 The Truth Wont Set You Free Lt. Alex Smith led me across the garrison and to a particularly small building. Everything was built with logs and I didn''t wonder why Diane couldn''t get a lumberjack to build her shack. They had all been busy building this thing. The lieutenant greeted the man at the desk inside the small building and took me through another door. Inside were rooms that were practically the same as the rooms in the bath house. He put me in the very first room by the door. ¡°I''ll be back with your meal in a few hours.¡± Lt. Smith said. ¡°I brought my own.¡± I said and opened my pack to show him a nice piece of smoked meat. ¡°It''s not wrapped up?¡± He asked, surprised. ¡°What for? It''s smoked.¡± I said and bit into it. ¡°Nothing''s going to make it go bad now.¡± Lt. Smith gave me an odd look for a moment, shrugged and started to shut the door. ¡°Don''t use your marsh magic to lock the door.¡± ¡°Why?¡± I asked. ¡°So we can check to see if you try to escape.¡± He responded. ¡°I don''t even need my knife to break out of here.¡± I said and walked over to the back wall. I pushed on it and his eyes nearly popped out of his head as the logs bent out in a curve. ¡°They used the wrong trees for the walls, probably because the bendy ones are plentiful.¡± Lt. Smith opened his mouth for a second, closed it, then sighed. ¡°I''ll let the Commander know.¡± I shrugged and he shut the door. I waited for nearly ten minutes before the door was tried again. ¡°I''m just checking.¡± The guard said and then he shut the door. _______________ You have a choice to make. A) Ignore it. B) Show off some more. C) Secure it anyway. D) Sleep. E) A&D. F) B&D. G) C&D I am definitely not going to ignore it. I thought. It''s way too dangerous to be here and not be secured. I choose G. _______________ ¡°They don''t know much about keeping someone captive.¡± I said. I took out a vial of number ten potion and poured a tiny amount on the spaces between the logs. Unlike them, I actually preferred solid walls and not letting anything crawl in. That thought made me smile, because these people must be miserable while living here. I bet almost none of them have had the general health potion that protected them from bug bites and itchiness. I thought with a chuckle. ¡°Poor city folk.¡± Another ten minutes passed and I stopped what I was doing. The door opened again and he gave me a quick look, then closed the door. ¡°And people call me stupid.¡± I said with a shake of my head. I was quite liberal with the potion on the door this time. When I was done, there wasn''t a door anymore. It was just a solid wall with a superfluous door handle and two hinges for no reason. I chuckled at the sight and checked the bed. It was just a cheap cot, so I laid down on it fully dressed. Suddenly, my vigilance technique stopped and a wave of sleepiness came over me. I kept... it up... tooo... looong. I thought lazily as my brain shut down and I fell unconscious. _______________ Administrator Warning: Over-extended Perception skill usage (Time limit exceeded at the cost to Mental Stability). Story paused. Time until recovery: 6 hours. _______________ Goddammit. I thought with a sigh at my own stupidity. I had completely forgotten that I needed to count the time while I was showing off. I should have let the skill lapse during that long walk to the garrison. Oh, hey! Did I win the bet? I asked the darkness. ¡°Yes, you claimed the pot. The extra credits have been added to your account.¡± A man''s voice said. Fucking sweet. I thought. You know, if you had like a mini-game or something during the waiting periods, getting kicked out like this wouldn''t suck so bad. ¡°Your brain needs to decompress from exertion, not continue to be stimulated.¡± The man said with a bit of humor in his voice. ¡°I can give you the sleep code if you want.¡± I thought about it for a minute. You want to take a break, huh? ¡°Hell yes.¡± The man said and laughed. ¡°You''re burning through all of our extra options pretty fast.¡± I''m not ruining the story, am I? I chose the main branch. ¡°Ha ha. No, you''re right on track. There are a lot of variables you can go through and still not change certain major events.¡± That''s a relief. I liked the original story a lot, even if it did do a few things wrong and skipped a bunch of stuff that shouldn''t have been skipped, especially without any explanation. ¡°I hear you.¡± The man said. ¡°You''ve had a better background already and your base character is much stronger, even if you are a bit reactive.¡± I laughed in my head. I''m finally getting a chance to have fun. I''m not giving up on it now. ¡°There''s fun and there''s reckless. Attacking the commander of the garrison was not a good idea.¡± He knew I wasn''t serious. ¡°Why didn''t you kill him?¡± Some other man''s voice asked. He was partially right. I wouldn''t be leaving the base if I killed him. The solders would swarm me and I would be toast. ¡°If you didn''t let them gather together...¡± I laughed. If, somehow, a trained army doesn''t make a concentrated attack on a lone assailant, everyone in the village would get me instead. ¡°I guess that''s true.¡± The second voice said. I would never be allowed back if I did somehow make it out alive... not that I think I actually am allowed back right now. I was pretty much just passing through. I was going to get cleaned up, drop the stuff off to Diane, then make the journey to the next village. ¡°That would have been the smarter move.¡± The first voice said. ¡°They were waiting for you here.¡± I was tempted to go all the way and bypass the village; but, I needed to see Diane and make sure that she didn''t hate me. I thought. She looked really thin, though. ¡°Don''t worry about that. She took a healing potion and a general health potion as soon as you were out of sight.¡± Are you going to tell me why she was so skinny? I asked. ¡°If you see her and remember, you can ask her yourself.¡± The second voice said. Ha. You''re a funny guy. You have to give me the option. I thought and they both laughed. That reminds me. Thanks for adding the few mixed options. Those were great. ¡°We remembered what you said before. So, we agreed that streamlining your choices and reducing the number of interruptions was better in some situations.¡± The first voice said. ¡°Plus, it saves us a bit of work, too.¡±A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Of course it does. I thought and laughed. ¡°I''m sending the sleep code now. Night night.¡± Thanks. I thought and then I blacked out. _______________ Administrator Warning Timer expired. Mind stabilized. Exhaustion Penalty 70%. Story resuming. _______________ I woke up to the sound of banging and yelling. ¡°Ughhh.¡± I groaned because my head felt like it was split open. I opened a number four potion and took a sip. The pain faded and I remembered overusing the vigilance technique. That was stupid of me. I thought and the banging and yelling didn''t stop, which meant it wasn''t in my head. ¡°Stop banging!¡± It stopped, as did the yelling. ¡°I command you to open this door.¡± The CO said. ¡°What door?¡± I asked and tried not to laugh. They must have heard it, because there were several curses. ¡°I thought I told you not to use your marsh magic on the door.¡± Lt. Smith said. ¡°Can I lie and say I used it on the wall?¡± I asked and he sighed loudly. ¡°Open. This. Door.¡± The commander ordered loudly. I jerked a little at the angry tone and tried to use the vigilance technique. My headache returned and I had to take another sip of potion. I picked up my pack and walked over to the wall, then made four long and careful slices through the wall where the door used to be. I had the hinges and the handle to guide my cuts. I flicked the knife at the last second and had the new door fall into the room. ¡°You are paying to fix that door.¡± The CO said. ¡°It''s only three silver for the hinges and ten for the handle.¡± I said and they looked surprised. ¡°He charged us a lot more than that.¡± Lt. Smith said. The CO looked at him. ¡°I''ll send someone over to... talk to him... right after the trial.¡± Lt. Smith winced and even I knew what that meant. ¡°Let''s go.¡± He said and waved me out of the cell. I walked by him and the commander and then had to wait for them to walk me through the guard station and out the door. We went to a different building that was pretty big. The inside was completely empty, except for a bunch of chairs, a single desk, and a whole lot of people. ¡°What took so long?¡± A woman asked as she walked away from the crowd and sat down behind the desk. I got a good look at her and I had to admit that she was a real pretty lady. That was bad. The Hag when she was at her prettiest and felt her best, was when she was also the meanest and hurt me the most. ¡°The prisoner had sealed himself inside of his cell.¡± The CO said. ¡°How did he do that?¡± The woman asked, confused. ¡°It''s a cell. It should already have held him.¡± ¡°Marsh magic.¡± The CO said with a shrug. ¡°You.¡± She spat at me and I jumped a little. ¡°Why did you delay this trial?¡± ¡°I didn''t know I was doing that.¡± I said, truthfully. ¡°You knew the trial was today.¡± She said and glared at me, then at the soldiers. ¡°They were sent to get you an hour ago.¡± ¡°I only just laid down.¡± I said. ¡°I''m still really tired.¡± ¡°Didn''t you sleep at all?¡± Lt. Smith asked me. ¡°I laid down after I sealed the door. I don''t know what happened.¡± I said and reached up to rub my face. I forgot that I still had my knife in my hand and sliced a big chunk of my hair off. ¡°AH!¡± The pretty woman at the desk yelped as my hair fell to the floor. ¡°Oops.¡± I said and looked at the clump of hair on the floor. ¡°Take that dangerous weapon off of him right now!¡± The woman exclaimed and no one moved. ¡°What is wrong with you people? You''re soldiers!¡± ¡°None of them...¡± I started to say and then yawned. ¡°...want to be the first to die...¡± ¡°They wouldn''t be the first!¡± A woman''s voice yelled. It was Star, the mayor. ¡°You killed John!¡± ¡°...for taking my stuff.¡± I finished. ¡°Can I sit down or something?¡± The pretty woman glared at me for a moment, then she nodded at the CO. He pointed and someone brought over a chair for me and put it beside the desk. I sat down on it and put the pack between my legs. I was too tired to care that I was getting my clean clothes smelly. _______________ You have a minor choice to make. A) Go to sleep. B) Eat. C) Tough it out. D) Attack. E) Run. F) Yell. G) B&C. H) D&E. I) F&E. I am sticking with it now. I thought. I better go with B, especially since I was out since yesterday. I choose B. _______________ My belly let out a rumble and I rubbed it. ¡°I guess it has been a day.¡± I said and put the knife into the sheath on my bandoleer and opened my pack. I took out a water skin and opened it. ¡°UGH!¡± The woman behind the desk grunted and covered her nose and mouth. ¡°What is THAT?!?¡± ¡°Food.¡± I said and tipped it up to drink some of the broth of the stew and then squeezed it to get some of the bigger chunks of meat out. There were some gagging sounds and a few green faces as I chewed on the greatest stew I had ever made. ¡°What are you eating?¡± Lt. Smith asked me. ¡°Um... let me think.¡± I said and my mind was pretty slow today. ¡°I think... near-deer, rabbit, marsh lizard...¡± One person turned away and let out the sound of someone throwing up. ¡°...water beast, near-duck... um... oh! Marsh bat and diamond snake.¡± I said, glad that I remembered almost everything. I knew I was missing a few things, since it was a while ago. ¡°You forgot marsh panther.¡± A woman''s voice said and several people gasped or shouted in surprise at the words. I turned my head to look and saw that the woman who spoke was Diane. _______________ You were right before, so we''re adding this superfluous choice, just for your own peace of mind. A) Ask her why she was thin. B) Compliment her. C) Ask her what she did. D) A&B. E) B&C. Thanks, guys. I appreciate it. I thought. She looks fine now, so I''ll choose E. _______________ ¡°Hi, Diane. You don''t look thin anymore.¡± I said and waved. ¡°Did you take the potions?¡± ¡°Thanks for the compliment. I think.¡± Diane laughed. ¡°Yes, I took them. I even took them in the right order. Healing first, then general health.¡± She said, then her smile faded. ¡°During the winter, I had to use the last dose of snake juice that you gave me years ago.¡± I gasped and stood. ¡°It still worked? They''re only supposed to be good for a year or two!¡± ¡°That''s why it took me a lot longer to recover than it took dad that time.¡± Diane said. ¡°I was in bed for most of the winter.¡± ¡°I''m surprised you recovered at all.¡± I said and let her see the surprise on my face. ¡°Sit down.¡± The pretty woman behind the desk said to me. ¡°This isn''t a social gathering.¡± ¡°Then what are they doing?¡± Diane asked and pointed to the group of people gathered together and talking. ¡°They... are discussing the case.¡± The woman responded. ¡°You''re a bad liar.¡± I said and sat down. ¡°I am not the one on trial here.¡± The woman said and looked at the rest of the room. ¡°Take your seats. Let''s get this over with.¡± It was the shortest trial the village had ever seen. I wasn''t asked any questions, allowed to speak for myself because it was Lt. Smith''s job, and the only witness called was the mayor and all she did was call me a cold blooded murderer. Diane had tried to shout that she was there when it happened and the pretty woman had her taken from the room for disrupting the proceedings. The mayor finished lying and left the stand. ¡°I think we all know that this... Marsh Man... is guilty.¡± The pretty woman said with an evil smile. ¡°I don''t think there''s any real reason to delay the sentencing, is there?¡± No one spoke up, because they all knew it was pointless. ¡°Well, then. I''m sure that everyone knows the penalty for murder.¡± She said, almost in a purr. ¡°Tomorrow morning, that awful man will be...¡± ¡°...drafted into the Gulf Kingdom''s army.¡± The CO said loudly. The pretty woman''s face became angry. ¡°I am the presiding judge here!¡± I winced, because my guess that she was as mean as the Hag under that prettiness had been right. ¡°I am the commanding officer of this garrison. In all cases of capital crimes, the army has reserved all rights to any prisoner that will be sentenced to death, if they have any skills that can be valuable.¡± ¡°He is a murderer and he must be hanged!¡± The woman spat. ¡°He will be conscripted by law and cannot be discharged by anyone, for any reason, unless it is by the decree of the King himself.¡± The commander said and everyone in the room gasped. ¡°My Colonel is much too busy to listen to any news from this backwater garrison, so there is no need to worry that the King will ever be hearing about any of this.¡± ¡°He''s a menace!¡± Star Mansfield exclaimed. ¡°He needs to be dealt with!¡± ¡°The army always takes care of their own.¡± The commander said with a smile. ¡°Besides, I believe you will be far too busy looking for another source of health and healing potions.¡± Complete silence met these words. ¡°I''ve been here for a month now and I must say, the Hag you allowed to enter your village was some piece of work.¡± The CO said. ¡°She should have been killed years ago, long before she gained an apprentice.¡± He looked at all of their embarrassed faces. ¡°You all contributed to this death, and now you''ve contributed to the death of this village.¡± ¡°NO!¡± Star yelled. ¡°He''s a murderer and...¡± ¡°...so are you.¡± The CO said and she gasped. ¡°How long will it take this village to survive when people start dying from bug bites and injuries that can''t be healed?¡± ¡°The Hag will...¡± ¡°...never come back here.¡± I said and the villagers looked at me with shock on their faces. ¡°That''s why I came alone in the old boat and with only one crate of potions. That''s all I was safe to bring with me.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Someone whispered. The pretty woman behind the desk sat down, a look of devastation on her face. ¡°Do you see what your shortsightedness has brought you?¡± The CO asked them. ¡°You were so determined to make the boy pay for a murder that he was fully justified in committing, that you were too blind to see that you were killing everyone else to kill him.¡± ¡°It... wasn''t justified.¡± Star said, her voice sad. ¡°Unlike you, we have some talented magic people. It only took a few tracking spells and a scryer to determine that the actual witness, Miss Diane Phelps, was entirely truthful in her recitation of the incident. I couldn''t have the defendant''s representative present that evidence, since she wasn''t allowed on the stand.¡± ¡°You... you let us...¡± ¡°Of course I did.¡± The CO said and the mayor sighed. ¡°Who would want people like you in charge of the whole village?¡± An uncomfortable silence followed his words. ¡°Yes, I know. Most of you do.¡± The CO said. ¡°It''s just unfortunate for you that you invited the army to build a garrison here.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± The pretty woman behind the desk asked. ¡°It''s quite simple, really.¡± The CO said as he stood up straight and spoke in an authoritative voice. ¡°The Gulf Kingdom hereby places this village under its protection and administration.¡± Gasps and groans came from the gathered people and a few of them were shaking their heads. ¡°What''s that mean?¡± I asked, not understanding what the CO said. ¡°It means that the army can directly interfere in how things are run in the village.¡± Lt. Smith said. ¡°That''s not really your concern anymore.¡± He waved for me to follow him. ¡°Come on. I need to get you properly situated.¡± ¡°What''s that mean?¡± I asked as I picked up my pack and walked after him. ¡°It''s easier to show you than explain.¡± Lt. Smith said and no one looked at me as I was led out of the building. 040 Army Preparation As soon as we stepped out of the building, Diane practically assaulted me. ¡°DAVID!¡± Diane yelled, which made me flinch, then she hugged me so tightly that I thought she had taken a strength potion. ¡°They let you go!¡± ¡°No, they sentenced me to hang.¡± I said and she let out a little scream. ¡°NO!¡± Hope said and she hugged me, too. ¡°Where did you come from?¡± I asked and looked around to see if there was anyone else nearby that I didn''t see. Not having vigilance sure did make me miss a lot of things. ¡°We... we can run! We can get away from here... and no one will know.¡± Diane said, haltingly, as if she was making it up as she talked. ¡°I''m sorry, I can''t allow that.¡± Lt. Alex Smith said. ¡°You''re one of the nicer ones, lieutenant! Please! You can''t let them kill him!¡± Diane pleaded. ¡°Thank you for the compliment; but, you can''t leave the garrison with the army''s latest conscription.¡± ¡°NO!¡± Diane said and tears came to her eyes. ¡°No... no, please.¡± She whispered. ¡°I lost... I lost my husband to the army. My son... my son joined and I haven''t heard from him in a year.¡± She looked into my eyes and she let out a sob. ¡°Not... not you, too.¡± I let my pack drop to the ground and put my arms around her. ¡°I haven''t been able to practice writing much, since I only had three pieces of paper and a charred piece of wildwood...¡± ¡°Oh, David!¡± Diane said and kissed me. It wasn''t a pretend kiss, either. Nope. She kissed me like she had last year when she stopped teasing John and kissed me like she was serious. I kissed her back as a pair of arms let me go. I assumed that was Hope, because Diane''s grip on me tightened somehow. ¡°Ahem.¡± Lt. Smith said. ¡°David, I need to get you sorted out to send you off to the training camp.¡± I didn''t let Diane go, because I felt something grow between us and I slid my hands down to her backside and pulled her in closer. Diane felt it as well, because she let out a little surprised yip and then she moaned into my mouth. ¡°This is not the place for a conjugal visit.¡± Lt. Smith said, a bit more sternly. Diane broke the kiss and her face was red. Her tears had stopped, too. ¡°What''s conjugal mean?¡± I asked. ¡°It''s where a man and a woman get together and have sex.¡± Hope said. ¡°H-Hope!¡± Diane exclaimed and her face was bright red now. ¡°I have orders to get him prepared and that might take a while.¡± Lt. Smith said and Diane looked like she was going to start crying again. ¡°However, he''s going to have to stay in his cell tonight.¡± Diane looked happy for a second, then she gave the lieutenant a glare. ¡°You can wait for him there.¡± Lt. Smith said. Diane nodded, then she gasped. ¡°Oh, no! What about my business?¡± She asked. ¡°If David leaves, I''ll have no one to help me.¡± ¡°Did you sell the panther pelt?¡± I asked. ¡°YES!¡± Diane yelled. ¡°For actual money, too!¡± She started to dig into her pockets, I assumed for my share of the money. ¡°Keep it.¡± I said and she caught her breath. ¡°David, you have no idea what a complete pelt is worth.¡± Diane said. ¡°I have two more at the house.¡± I said and she, Hope, and Lt. Smith took in sharp breaths. ¡°Or three? And two partials. No, maybe three or four? I can''t really remember. I''m really tired.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Diane whispered. ¡°D-David, you... oh, David.¡± ¡°I only just got them, so they aren''t tanned.¡± I said. ¡°I also have a bunch of rabbit...¡± I let her go and untied the three rabbits from my pack. ¡°I also have a ton of other pelts that are tanned... and the bunches of antlers that I couldn''t take because the boat''s too small.¡± Diane took the three rabbits and I wasn''t sure what the look on her face was. ¡°I''ll be in your cell when you come back.¡± I nodded and Lt. Smith led me to yet another building. Inside was something like a standing tub, or so he said. There were three other people there. One was a man I didn''t know and the other two were the two women that had tried to peek at me. He told me that I had to strip off completely and I gave him a look. ¡°We need to make sure you''re completely clean before giving you a new set of clothing.¡± Lt. Smith said. ¡°We also need to take your measurements and document any scars or defining marks.¡± I thought about pointing to the small hole still in my cheek and instead looked at the two women. ¡°Hi.¡± I said to them. ¡°I guess it''s not peeking if I can see you.¡± ¡°I''m sorry about that.¡± Donna said. ¡°I really did just want to see how badly she hurt you.¡± ¡°That''s okay.¡± I said and looked at the other woman, Annette. ¡°I was just showing off.¡± ¡°I... I''m sorry.¡± Annette said, her face a little red. ¡°You scared me and I... well, your knife did come through the wall at me.¡± ¡°Speaking of which...¡± Lt. Smith said. ¡°You can leave your things...¡± ¡°Right here.¡± I said and put them beside me under the tub thing.This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. ¡°They''re going to get wet and...¡± ¡°No.¡± I said. ¡°My clean clothes aren''t treated, so I need a bag for them.¡± ¡°Treated?¡± Donna asked and handed over a bag. It was a nice canvas bag and I had never seen anything like it before. ¡°I can have this?¡± I asked and ignored her question. They would see what I meant soon enough. ¡°Sure. We have lots of them.¡± Donna said and waved at the side of the room. There was a shelf there with stacks of them on it. ¡°Can I take as many as I want?¡± I asked and tried not to sound too eager. ¡°I think we have a generic gatherer keeper personality.¡± The man said and wrote on a clipboard. ¡°You don''t need more bags, not right now, anyway.¡± Donna said. ¡°Can you strip off? We really do need to write down what marks and scars you have.¡± I shrugged. ¡°I hope you have a lot of paper.¡± I said and hung my bandoleer on my pack and then took off my boots. I opened the bag and put them inside, then added the nice feather stuffed jacket and my socks. ¡°Oh, god.¡± Annette whispered. ¡°R-record that... he has two toes missing on each foot.¡± Donna said. ¡°They look like they''ve healed over, so it''s an old injury.¡± ¡°Injury?¡± I asked. ¡°When someone is hurt, they become injured.¡± She said. ¡°Oh. Then no, it''s not an injury. The Hag took them when I defied her.¡± ¡°She took your toes?¡± Annette asked, her voice a little loud. ¡°I was just a kid and it took me months to learn how to walk again.¡± I said and Annette''s face looked like Diane''s had when she was about to cry. ¡°It was years and years ago.¡± I said and held up my hands. ¡°She took my little fingers at the same time.¡± ¡°I... I didn''t even notice.¡± Donna said. ¡°Write it down.¡± Annette nodded and wrote it down. When I took off my shirt, she let out a gasp and had to look away. ¡°I''ll take over.¡± Donna said and took the clipboard, then she described each and every mark, line, bite, scratch, scrape, incision, gnaw mark, puncture, skin discoloration, and cuts that were scattered all over my body. Her voice never wavered as she did her work; but, her tears rolled down her face the entire time. She asked me what each one was from and I had to explain how I received all of the magical wounds. Annette had to leave when I told the story of the Hag saving me from the brood of spiders and eating half of my belly to recover afterwards. The man left when I got to the part where I voluntarily cut myself up for the Hag. He muttered something about a learned and developed masochistic personality as he shut the door behind him. The only two to make it through the whole thing, were Donna and Alex... and me, of course. Talking about it wasn''t nearly as bad as going through it. For me, anyway. I was told to scrub myself, even though I was already clean, then the tub was dumped over me to rinse it all off. Alex stepped forward and handed me a towel. I dried off quickly and Donna took my measurements at neck and waist. Alex handed me underwear, pants, and a shirt. They were the same grey color of their uniforms, except mine didn''t have any of those fancy decorations like theirs. Maybe the decorations mean something? I asked myself. Donna was a sergeant, Alex was a lieutenant, and the CO was a commander. Maybe the more important you are, the more you have? I looked down at my basic uniform and there wasn''t anything on it. Oh. I get it. Lt. Alex Smith gave me socks and boots. ¡°Grab your things and follow me.¡± I put my bandoleer on and picked up my completely dry pack and a slightly damp canvas bag. Donna stared at the thing as I walked past her. I would have to wait until later to treat the canvas bag with the waterproofing potion. Alex took me to another small building. ¡°Sit.¡± He said and I sat. ¡°Give him the army special.¡± The man there laughed. ¡°You know, that old joke is still funny.¡± ¡°What joke?¡± I asked. ¡°Everyone that comes in here gets the ''army special'' haircut.¡± The man said and put a little table beside the chair with several odd things on it. I recognized the thing to straighten hair, since I used that a few times. I didn''t know what the metal things were. One kind of looked like a flat bladed knife. ¡°Sit still.¡± Alex said and nodded at the other man, then left. The man got to work on me and hummed the whole time. It took a while for him to finish. ¡°Whew! You made me work for that one!¡± The man said and rubbed something on my head and quickly wiped it off with a towel. ¡°You look like a proper solder now.¡± He clapped me on the shoulder. ¡°Good luck, recruit.¡± Alex came back in just in time. ¡°Let''s go.¡± I grabbed my pack and followed him. ¡°Normally, I would put you in the barracks.¡± Alex pointed to a building far off to the side of the garrison. ¡°The CO says you can''t be mixed in with the regular troops until you''ve been trained properly.¡± ¡°Trained for what?¡± I asked. ¡°To be a soldier.¡± Alex said and led me back to the holding cells. ¡°We''ll be arranging for you to be shipped out as soon as possible.¡± ¡°I need to make a trip back home to get some things.¡± ¡°The army will give you everything you''ll need for the next...¡± Alex stopped talking for a second. ¡°...for as long as you''re in it.¡± _______________ You have a choice to make. It will be crucial for you and for Diane. A) Go anyway. B) Plead. C) Reason with him. D) Go to the CO. E) Stay silent. F) Choose any two. Ha ha. Okay, that''s sneaky. I thought. Well, I''m technically not conscripted yet. I can leave, as long as I''m back before the morning. I might get in trouble for that, though. I looked at the CO option. I doubt he would listen to me, especially since I wouldn''t really be going for myself. I really had to think about it, then decided. All right, I''ll threaten to do A and then do C and then B. Now who''s being sneaky? Ha ha! You guys are great. I thought. You can cancel that request to get that other guy permanently assigned to my account. We never put that through! As the popup disappeared, all I heard was laughter. _______________ ¡°I''m not in the army until tomorrow morning when I''m supposed to die.¡± I said and Alex gave me a surprised look. ¡°I could run right off this base to go back home and no one could stop me.¡± ¡°You can''t just... I mean, you shouldn''t test the CO.¡± Alex said. ¡°I don''t want to.¡± I said. ¡°All I want is to go back home for a quick visit, pick up the things for Diane, and then come right back.¡± ¡°You really shouldn''t.¡± ¡°I need someone to help me and I need a much bigger boat.¡± I said. ¡°Seventy sets of near-deer antlers takes up a lot of room.¡± ¡°Seventy!¡± Alex exclaimed and stopped walking in front of the building with my cell in it. ¡°And dozens and dozens of pelts, pieces of smoked meat, and a few other things.¡± I said and he didn''t say anything in response. ¡°Alex, I wouldn''t ask if it wasn''t important for Diane.¡± I said and he looked at me with slightly wide eyes. ¡°She needs those supplies, even more than I thought she did. When I saw how thin she was, I didn''t know what to think.¡± ¡°Your potions healed her.¡± Alex said. ¡°Potions only do so much. She still needs to eat and she needs money for that.¡± ¡°You can have the army send her your pay.¡± Alex said. ¡°I get paid?¡± I asked and he started to nod... then he stopped. ¡°Actually, I''d have to ask the CO. We haven''t had a conscript in our section before. I know all normal soldiers get pay...¡± ¡°Then Diane needs these supplies. She needs them to live.¡± I pleaded. ¡°I... I don''t know.¡± Alex said. _______________ You have another choice to make. Will it be the right one? A) Tell the truth. B) Lie. C) Stay silent. D) Only tell him enough to convince him. Definitely the last one. I''m too tired to successfully lie and I am never telling them that the Hag is gone. So, I choose D. _______________ It was then that I decided to tell him something important. ¡°There are thirty full crates of general health potion and twenty full crates of healing potions at the house.¡± Alex looked stunned and he stared at me with his mouth open in surprise. ¡°Each crate has thirty six potions inside and a dose of the general health potion lasts from six to eight months.¡± I said. ¡°I didn''t have a lot to do during the winter, so I made potions.¡± Alex was quiet for several minutes. ¡°That... that''s 1,800 potions.¡± He whispered and then his eyes hardened. ¡°That''s why you really want to go back. You want Diane to have the potions.¡± I nodded. ¡°We really will need a big boat.¡± Alex said. I didn''t correct the ''we'' part, because he was already convinced and I didn''t want to un-convince him. 041 A Comforting Embrace After a bit of instruction about basic army protocol, Alex took off at a fast walk, as if he needed to take care of something. I stepped inside the small building full of cells and I put my hand to my forehead, like Alex had shown me. The guard did the same gesture back. ¡°I want to know how you did what you did to the walls.¡± He said and then smiled. ¡°That can wait, though. You''ve got... well... make sure you knock on your cell first.¡± I nodded and I walked by him. They had already mounted the door to my cell, so I knocked on the door and waited. ¡°David?¡± Diane asked. ¡°Yes.¡± I responded. ¡°Come in.¡± She said, her voice the same tone it had been when she told me that she would be waiting for me. I opened the door and she was on the cot and under the blanket. ¡°I don''t think we can both sleep there. The cot''s too small.¡± Diane smiled and waved for me to shut the door. ¡°We aren''t going to be doing much sleeping.¡± When I shut the door, she slid off the blanket. She was completely naked under it and I saw that her dark blonde hair was the same between her legs. There wasn''t as much of it, which let me see a lot of her, and her armpits were bare, too. ¡°I can''t believe I''m doing this.¡± Diane said with a small shake of her head, then she looked at me. ¡°They cut off all your hair.¡± ¡°It''s the army special.¡± I said and rubbed my pretty much bald head. Diane laughed. ¡°That''s funny.¡± She said and then all of the laughter faded from her face. ¡°David, get undressed and come here.¡± ¡°You might want to close your eyes.¡± I said and put my pack down, put my bandoleer on it, then started to unbutton my shirt. ¡°No, I... I want to see.¡± Diane said. ¡°Don''t cry.¡± I told her and opened my shirt to show her all the scars and things I had. Diane caught her breath and she bit her lip, as if to stop herself from saying something. When I finished stripping off completely, she stood up and came over to me. ¡°David.¡± Diane whispered. ¡°I... I''m sorry that I never did anything...¡± ¡°You know the Hag.¡± I said. ¡°Even if you did try...¡± Diane nodded and her hand reached down and touched me. ¡°It''s not scarred.¡± ¡°She always told me that she didn''t fancy children.¡± I said and Diane gasped. ¡°Oh, David.¡± Diane said as she kissed me and pulled on me a little. When I grew hard, she was a little surprised. ¡°I''m not as full of disbelief as I was a moment ago.¡± She said, almost in a rough rasp, as she looked down at me. ¡°Do you know how...¡± I nodded and she led me over to the cot. She laid down and spread her legs for me, which revealed herself completely. My mind flashed back to my birthday a year ago and I suddenly remembered a few of the things the Hag had me do. Namely, to pretend that I was one of the magic frogs, so I knelt down and touched her thighs to move her a bit farther apart. ¡°David... what are you... BY THE SON''S LIGHT!¡± Diane yelled as I used my mouth and tongue and did my best to give her the same sensations she would get if she rubbed a magic frog between her legs. She panted, moaned, let out an occasional little yip, and she rubbed the top of my head the whole time. ¡°D-David... David... oh... please, you... you have to stop.¡± She panted. ¡°I can''t take... much more.¡± I stopped kissing her there and looked at her face. She gave me a very intense stare and she grabbed me by the face and pulled me up to hers and kissed me. This was even more serious than her serious kiss of earlier, then her hand was down and touching me. I wasn''t sure what she was doing, then I felt her guide me inside.If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°OHHHHH!¡± Diane moaned so loudly that it hurt my ears. ¡°Hurry...hurry... please.¡± She begged and moved me out and pulled me back in. Now that I knew what she wanted, that''s what I did. It took a while... a long while... and she made noises that the Hag never made. The thing was, I liked the sounds she made, even though I had never heard them before. That seemed a little weird to me, until I felt my body move almost against my will. It was like I needed to hear those sounds, because the more sounds she made, the better it felt. For the both of us. Diane''s whispers and moans to do more and to make her feel like a woman, something she hadn''t felt in years, spurned me to do more for her. She really liked it... and she screamed her pleasure as she tensed up and her body gripped me really hard. Of course, I was pretty much on the brink for a while and that pushed me over the edge, too. We collapsed onto the cot in an exhausted heap, still joined together and sweat soaked. We were also covered in... stuff. I didn''t know where it had all come from. Diane wasn''t concerned about it, because she kept softly kissing me, my damaged cheek, and my other cheek. ¡°Th-thank you.¡± Diane whispered. ¡°Oh, that was...¡± She pulled me in to a tighter hug and kissed me seriously again. We stayed like that for a few minutes, then she broke the kiss and laid her head down on the cot. ¡°I''ve never...¡± She rubbed her hand on my back. ¡°That was wonderful, David.¡± ¡°I think Lt. Alex is going to help me go into the marsh to get the rest of the potions.¡± I said. ¡°I asked him to help me bring everything back for you.¡± Diane''s body shook and I felt something wet on my belly. ¡°R-roll over.¡± I rolled us over so that I was on the bottom and she was on top. ¡°I can''t... thank you enough...¡± Diane started to say, then she started rocking forward and back. Her breasts bounced slightly and if I guessed right, each one was two handfuls. I reached up to check and she moaned loudly as I grabbed one. I did the other one and she kept moaning, so I kept checking. ¡°OHHH!¡± Diane gasped and fell forward on top of me as she twitched and shook. ¡°Oh, David.¡± She whispered. ¡°Oh, David.¡± She said, barely above a breath, then she fell asleep. I thought that was a pretty good idea, since I was pretty tired myself, and closed my eyes. _______________ Sleep mode engaged. Mind rest activated. Previous ''Exhaustion'' settings have been removed. Advancing story to next event. Done. You are now fully recovered. _______________ I woke up that evening and Diane was still sound asleep on me. I grew hard again, which didn''t usually happen, then realized I was still joined with her. ¡°Mmmm.¡± Diane moaned and moved slightly. ¡°Oh... oh...¡± She slowly opened her eyes. ¡°D-David... where...¡± She gasped and started to sit up, which pushed me inside of her more, and she moaned. ¡°We... we slept like this.¡± She looked down at where we were joined. ¡°I''ve always wanted to...¡± She smiled and looked into my eyes. ¡°You keep giving me everything I want.¡± ¡°They are sending me off for training soon.¡± Diane nodded and leaned down to kiss me, then she did to me what she had done that morning. I would learn later that it was rare for a woman to do something like that and I had it done to me twice in one day. I was pretty proud of that. ¡°I''m not tired anymore.¡± I said when she was done and she gave me a surprised look. I put her back on the bottom and showed her what I could do when I had the vigilance technique going that let me notice all the details around me. I used it on her and I made her scream and holler for a long time. When we were done, Diane fell asleep right away, because she was exhausted again. _______________ You have a choice to make. I''m not sure if it will make much difference. A) Sleep. B) Keep going. C) Take a potion. D) Get up and leave. E) Talk to the guard. I don''t need sleep, and I don''t want to keep going with Diane asleep. I also doubt that I can leave and I definitely don''t want to talk to the guard, not after all of this. I thought with a bit of amusement. I guess I''m left with only one option. I''ll choose C. _______________ I was cuddled in close to Diane and wondered what to do. I didn''t really need to sleep; but, I wasn''t getting out of the cell until morning. My eyes caught sight of my bandoleer and I smiled. I had a nice long amount of time to waste, so I carefully climbed off of the cot and put the blanket over Diane. I went to my pack and ate some of the smoked meat I had, then I took out a number seven potion for a sharper mind, a number six strength potion, a number nine fortifying potion, and the partially drunk number four healing potion. I drank the seven, then the four to stop the mental pain, then I drank the number six potion to let it seep into my body. When I felt energized, I drank the fortifying potion. I had sworn to myself to not do it like this last year when I had taken the number seven potion that expanded my mind and felt every moment of pain as the fortifying potion did its work. That was when I thought I would be staying in the marsh, though. I wasn''t now, since most of villagers wanted me dead. I accepted that I was going to feel every second of the potions seeping into my muscles and bones while the fortifying potion made part of the mind and strength potions stay permanently. I laid down on the wooden floor, still naked, and I suffered. Oh boy, did I suffer. I wasn''t sure if it was only because of the number seven potion, because the feelings were even stronger this time. I got about an hour into the muscle constriction and release agony before I remembered that I had done this less than a year ago. I had forgotten that it was a bit too soon for me to do it again and I was much too late to stop it now, so I had to ride it out. It was a very, very long night. 042 Passing On Knowledge I felt the last vestiges of the convulsions ease away and let out a long and drawn out sigh as my body finally relaxed. The funny thing was, even though it had taken nearly all night, I wasn''t tired. I was laying in a huge puddle of sweat, though. That was a rough one. I thought and looked at my hands. I made them into fists and I could feel quite a bit stronger than before. My timeline for taking the potion last year was in late fall or early winter. It was now just the start of summer, so I was about four months too early. I''ll probably have to wait that much more next year to make up for it. I started to sit up and heard several pops in my spine and one in my elbow. I sighed again because I had gained a bit of stiffness as well. I took another number four potion and sipped a little bit to clear out the worst of it as I sat back down on the floor. I would just have to be a little careful about what I do for a while. I couldn''t have my joints making that popping noise all the time. That would be really annoying. There was a knock on the door and a woman spoke. ¡°Recruit David?¡± She asked. ¡°God, that sounds so stupid.¡± She said with a huff. ¡°Can I come in?¡± ¡°Sure.¡± I said. The door opened and Annette stepped in, then she caught her breath at the sight of me. ¡°D-David!¡± Annette said, her face red. ¡°What?¡± I asked and stood up. My knees didn''t pop and I was glad for that. ¡°Oh, god.¡± She whispered and turned her head. ¡°You''re naked and you...¡± ¡°David?¡± Diane asked as she opened her eyes. They fell upon me and my erect state. ¡°Is... is it bigger?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± I looked down at myself. ¡°No?¡± Diane reached out and just as she was about to grab me, she saw Annette and jerked her hand back. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± ¡°I was ordered to retrieve Recruit David by the CO.¡± Annette said and didn''t look. ¡°I didn''t know...¡± Diane sighed and nodded. ¡°David, wipe yourself off and put your uniform back on.¡± I picked up the edge of the blanket and quickly dried off as if it was a towel, then put on my underwear, pants, socks, shirt, and boots. ¡°Will you be here when I get back?¡± ¡°I don''t think she will be allowed back in here.¡± Annette said. ¡°A... a few people complained last night about the noise.¡± Diane''s face flushed red from embarrassment. ¡°I''ll wait for you at my store, David.¡± I nodded and she waved me close. She pulled me down into another serious kiss and let me go. I put on my bandoleer and picked up my pack, then Annette led me from my cell and out to the guard. We both put our hands to our head as we passed him and he did the same, then he gave me a hand signal. We left the building and walked across the garrison. ¡°Annette? What''s this mean?¡± I asked and showed her the signal the guard did. ¡°That''s a thumbs up gesture.¡± Annette said. ¡°It means approval or good job.¡± ¡°Does everyone do it?¡± I asked and looked at it. Mine was a little different because I had a finger missing. ¡°Sometimes. It''s usually reserved for when you don''t want to say anything out loud.¡± I nodded and we went into the main building. The secretary there caught her breath and stared at me. I guess without my long messy hair, I look different. ¡°He''s expecting you.¡± The secretary said. Annette nodded to her as we walked by and then we stopped to let Annette knock on the door. I nodded to the secretary as well and she looked at my pants. I thought they might be crooked, so I reached down and felt that I was hanging off to the side. I used both hands to fix the situation and she stared at me doing it. ¡°Enter.¡± The CO barked loudly and the secretary jumped slightly and her face flushed red. Annette opened the door and we went inside. Lt. Alex and Sgt. Donna were there, as were three other people that I didn''t know. I put my pack down on the sole chair in the office, just like I had the last time I was there. ¡°As of this morning, you are the property of the Gulf Kingdom.¡± The CO said. ¡°The idiots of this village thought that killing you would get rid of their problems, not realizing that they were creating so many more.¡± He explained. ¡°They honestly thought that removing you would make everything go back to normal.¡± ¡°What does that mean?¡± I asked. ¡°Exactly.¡± The CO said. ¡°I''m glad you understand. There''s no such thing as ''back to normal''. You live, you work your ass off, and you keep on living. The circumstances may change, details that make things more difficult, people live, people die, and you keep trying your best to keep on living.¡± That part I understood. I had been through a lot to get to this point. ¡°I had intended to send you off as soon as possible to get you into basic training, then Lieutenant Smith came to see me yesterday.¡± The CO said. ¡°He had some... interesting things... to tell me.¡± I knew what he meant. ¡°Yes, there are fifty crates of potions and thirty six potions in each crate.¡± I said. ¡°He also said you made them.¡± The CO said. I nodded. ¡°All I did was read, make potions, and practice carving.¡± ¡°I want those potions.¡± The CO said. ¡°No.¡± I said and everyone in the office took in a sharp breath, except the CO. ¡°I am sending a group in to...¡± ¡°They''ll all die.¡± I said. The CO squinted his eyes and looked at Alex. ¡°I swear that he said he was going to go home to get them.¡± Alex said. ¡°He just needed a bigger boat.¡± ¡°Then what''s the problem?¡± The CO asked and looked at me. ¡°None of you are prepared for life in the marsh.¡± I said and saw a few people frown. ¡°This isn''t the marsh. This is the mainland. The marsh...¡± I shook my head. ¡°You haven''t even taken any general health potions and I doubt any of you would survive an encounter with a spider, a snake, or even a tangle vine.¡±The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°We can take care of ourselves.¡± One of the three new men said. ¡°The marsh is different. If a water beast shows up, what do you do?¡± I asked. ¡°We shoot it.¡± Another said. ¡°That''s what crossbows are for.¡± I shook my head. ¡°They are ambushers and will tip the boat before you can shoot it.¡± ¡°Then what do you do?¡± Alex asked. ¡°I either go slow and pound them with the end of a metal pole until they are dead, or run the boat over them and then pound them with a metal pole until they are dead.¡± I said and saw the disbelief on their faces. ¡°They take some prep work to eat properly, too. The spines can kill you if they prick you.¡± ¡°You weren''t joking about that?¡± Annette asked. ¡°You really eat those things?¡± ¡°I eat a lot of things to survive out in the marsh.¡± I said. ¡°The supplies I get in the village aren''t enough to live on by themselves and neither are the things out in the marsh.¡± ¡°Which is why you keep coming back here.¡± Alex said in understanding. The CO was quiet for several minutes. ¡°What would it take to get those potions?¡± ¡°Buying them from Diane.¡± I said and he gave me a surprised look. ¡°That''s all?¡± I nodded. ¡°I''m not selling them to Mack anymore, because he cheated the Hag and me for years and only gave us one in ten for the potions.¡± ¡°One in ten? What''s that?¡± The CO asked. ¡°He made ten times more than what he paid for them.¡± I said and several of the people there let out curses. ¡°Now I need to know how much he was selling them for.¡± The CO said. ¡°The general health potion is three silver and the healing potion is thirty silver.¡± I said. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Alex said and turned away with a scowl on his face. ¡°We''ve been paying him the price the kingdom sells them for.¡± I looked at the CO and he knew what I wanted to know. ¡°We pay just over three times that.¡± The CO said. I lifted my hands and flicked my fingers really quickly to count. ¡°You pay almost a gold piece for them?!?¡± I asked and missed the surprised looks on the other people from seeing me count so quickly. ¡°We pay an actual gold piece for healing potions, thirty silver for the general health potions, and anywhere from fifty to sixty silver for antidote potions.¡± Alex said. ¡°The whole damn village is ripping us off.¡± ¡°What''s an antidote?¡± I asked. ¡°You don''t know?¡± Annette gasped. ¡°How do you survive getting poisoned if you don''t have the antidote?¡± ¡°Oh! You mean venom juice.¡± I said and plucked a vial from my bandoleer. ¡°I always carry a couple of vials of both spider juice and snake juice.¡± ¡°We''ll continue this meeting later.¡± The CO said as he stood up and glared at me. ¡°Major Williams! Take him right to the infirmary!¡± ¡°Sir!¡± Annette put her hand to her forehead. ¡°Let''s go!¡± She turned on her heels and grabbed my arm, then dragged me out of the office, past a surprised secretary, and out of the man building. She broke into a jog and I did as well. We arrived at a building that looked like the others, except that there was a big red and white cross painted on the door. She didn''t even knock and dragged me inside as we passed a surprised guard that didn''t even have time to shout at us. ¡°What are you doing?¡± A woman wearing glasses asked as we burst into what I would later learn was a ''ward''. It wasn''t the same ward I made, though. It would take me a while to figure out that it was the same word and it could mean different things, depending on what you were referring to. ¡°Where''s the Hansen girl?¡± Annette asked. ¡°She''s taken a turn for the worse, I''m afraid.¡± The woman said. ¡°Even with my healing magic, I can''t slow down such a concentrated dose of death spider venom.¡± ¡°Where?¡± Annette asked again. ¡°Third curtain. Her parents are in there with her right... hey! You can''t go in there!¡± She said as Annette dragged me past her and to the third curtain. She yanked it open and a startled man and woman stared at us. Both they and the child had dark hair. ¡°N-n-no! You can''t have her!¡± The woman hugged the very sick child on the bed. ¡°I don''t care how sick she is! I won''t give her up to the Hag for any amount of gold!¡± _______________ You have a critical choice to make. A) Bluff. B) Tell the truth. C) Push her out of the way. D) Comfort her. E) Distract her. I honestly don''t care about the mother. I thought and looked at the cute little girl that had been brave and waved to me last year as she passed me on the road. I want to choose C. I really do. I read the options again and sighed. I better choose D, because I don''t want to hurt the girl. _______________ I tapped Annette''s hand on my arm and she let me go. I stepped over to the bed and I put my hand on the woman''s shoulder. ¡°You''re hurting her.¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± ¡°Get away from my wife!¡± The man said and started to walk around the bed. In the next moment, he was face down on the floor and Annette had his arm braced and had a knee on his back. I gave her a thumbs up gesture and she smiled. I turned to look at the dark haired woman. ¡°Miss, please. I am here to help her. I''ll try, anyway. I need to look at her; but, you''re crushing her and that''s not helping her get better. I''ll do what I can for her, I swear.¡± ¡°You... aren''t going to... steal my Gloria and... and do things...¡± Her eyes looked at my damaged face. ¡°Steal her? For what?¡± I asked, confused. ¡°She''s just a little girl.¡± The woman gave me an odd look for a moment and eased her hold on the girl. I eased her away from the bed and looked at the girl. Her skin was the same telltale sickly green that I had been several times in my life, which meant that she was suffering from a severe spider venom overdose. ¡°Where''s the bite?¡± I asked and the mother pointed to her leg. I checked it and I saw the space of the punctures. ¡°Whew, it''s just a small spider. Barely a foot wide.¡± I said and the parents, Annette, and the woman with glasses stared at me with wide eyes. ¡°She would have died right away if it was any bigger.¡± ¡°Oh, god!¡± The mother gasped and started crying. ¡°It''s okay. I''ll have her fixed right up.¡± I said. _______________ You have a choice to make. A) Just do it. B) Have fun. C) Be ruthless. D) Scare the parents. E) Lie and let her die. F) Steal her. Wow, those are some really dark and evil choices. I thought. You''ve got a supervisor checking on you or something, don''t you? I asked with amusement. Well, I''m not a masochist like that other army guy said. She''s just a sick little girl and I won''t hurt her, so I''m choosing B. _______________ I leaned over to look into the little girl''s eyes. ¡°Hhhhiiiii, there.¡± ¡°Hhhhhiiii.¡± The girl responded and I smiled at her. ¡°Do you remember waving to me last fall?¡± I asked her and she nodded. ¡°Well, I heard you were sick, so I came right over.¡± I took out the vial of spider juice. ¡°This is going to taste really bad.¡± The girl''s face changed to a frown. ¡°You''ll start feeling better almost right away and I''ll give you a really nice tasting one in a few minutes.¡± I said. ¡°Will you take a sip to try it?¡± The girl nodded and I popped the cork and tipped her head up to let her take a sip. ¡°Ugghhh!¡± ¡°I told you it was awful.¡± I said. ¡°How''s your belly?¡± I asked and tickled her a little there. The girl giggled and the sickly green color faded a little. ¡°Okay, another sip and then I have to look at your leg.¡± I said and she took another sip and gagged. ¡°It''s just as bad the second time, isn''t it?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°It never gets better, no matter what I add. Frogs, weeds, flies, and even worms! It never tastes any better and I don''t know why!¡± The girl giggled again. ¡°I''m going to do something to your leg, so try and not kick my face off. I only have one.¡± The girl nodded and I moved down to her leg. ¡°It tastes bad doing it this way, too.¡± I said and bent over her leg as I took out my knife. ¡°NO!¡± The father said. I ignored him and made a tiny little cut where the bite was, let my magic flow into the wound as if I was infusing a potion, then I locked my mouth over the wound and started sucking and pulling the poison back. ¡°No! Stop! You can''t drink her blood!¡± The mother exclaimed and started hitting me. I ignored her and no one stopped her. After about ten seconds, I stopped sucking and threw up on the floor. ¡°Yep, it tastes awful.¡± I looked at the girl and saw her surprised face. ¡°Feeling better?¡± The girl nodded and her face was only barely green. ¡°Just give me a second and I''ll have that good potion for you.¡± I said and took a drink of the spider juice, then put my mouth over the wound. I pushed the spider juice inside with my magic and her light green leg changed color back to normal as the potion spread out. I took out the partially drunk healing potion and my old stub knife, then made a whole bunch of tiny cuts across the small incision I had made. I rubbed some of the potion over it and the wounds closed right up. ¡°By the Son''s Light, I didn''t know you could use it topically like that.¡± The woman in glasses said. I stood up and held the potion out to the girl. ¡°Try this. It always tastes great.¡± The girl drank some of it and she took in a huge breath and let it out. ¡°Hey, it really does!¡± ¡°I''m the Marsh Man. I know my potions.¡± I said with a grin and she giggled. ¡°Did you have a general health potion yet this year?¡± I asked and she shook her head. ¡°It''s a good thing I always keep a spare.¡± The girl took the general health potion and drank it all in one gulp. ¡°That one wasn''t as good.¡± ¡°My hands were cold the last time I milked a near-beaver.¡± I said and put the empty potion vials away. ¡°You didn''t!¡± The girl giggled. ¡°I tried... it''s just too bad it was a boy.¡± I said and she burst out laughing. ¡°You... tried to milk... a boy!¡± The girl rolled around on the bed in fits of laughter. ¡°I''m the Marsh Man. I don''t know any better.¡± I said with a shrug and she kept laughing. 043 Going Back To The Office ¡°You can let me up now.¡± Gloria''s father said and Annette let him go and they stood up. ¡°Thank you.¡± Gloria''s mother said, tears still in her eyes. ¡°Thank you, Marsh Man.¡± ¡°Don''t step in that yellow puddle.¡± I said and pointed to where I threw up. ¡°You''ll get just as sick as she did.¡± ¡°I''ll clean that up.¡± The woman in glasses said. _______________ You have a choice to make. A) Let her. B) Tell the truth. C) Clean it yourself. D) Harvest it. E) Leave it. F) Choose any two. I can''t let her get sick, either. I thought. I''ll choose B and D. I can use it to make more before we leave. _______________ ¡°No, you can''t handle it right.¡± I said and looked around. ¡°I need something to suck it up with.¡± ¡°A small towel?¡± Annette offered and held one out to me. ¡°Maybe.¡± I said and knelt down, then did my best to wipe up the mess. I got most of it up and took out an empty vial, then squeezed as much of the venom out of the towel as possible. ¡°What are you doing?¡± The woman with glasses asked. ¡°Spider venom is one of the ingredients of spider juice potion. I can make a whole cooking pot full of potions with this much venom.¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± Gloria''s mother asked. ¡°You... you gave her even more venom?¡± I chuckled. ¡°No, it has a bunch of other stuff in it. The venom just makes it go through your body like actual venom does, only instead of making you sick, it makes you better because of the other stuff.¡± ¡°How?¡± She asked. ¡°Magic.¡± I said and put the vial into a different pocket in my bandoleer. ¡°I can''t leave this floor.¡± I said and took out my knife and sliced a perfect square out of the floor around the discolored area, picked it up, and wrapped it in the towel. ¡°Is there a fire nearby?¡± The woman nodded and pointed down to the other end of the building. I carried the venom soaked things there and saw a large iron stove and piles of wood. I opened the metal door and tossed in both items, opened and closed the door a few times to get the flames up high, then closed it when both things caught fire. I watched for a minute to make sure they were burning up and nodded, then went back to the third curtain. ¡°Is it really that dangerous?¡± Annette asked. ¡°You might get sick for a little while from touching it, so its better if it''s not around.¡± I said. ¡°Didn''t you just have your hands all over it?¡± The woman with the glasses asked and pointed to a small bowl with water and soap. ¡°I''ve been bitten hundreds of times.¡± I said and washed my hands as they stared at me. ¡°What? I live in the marsh. If I don''t fight them off, they''ll cover my house and claim it.¡± ¡°Then why live there?¡± Annette asked. ¡°Where else would I live?¡± I asked. ¡°Here in the village.¡± Annette said. ¡°Ha! You''re funny.¡± I said and pointed to the Hansens. ¡°Look.¡± Annette looked at them and saw their worried faces. ¡°You''re really scared of him.¡± ¡°He killed a man and walked away... like it was nothing.¡± Mr. Hansen said. _______________ You have another choice to make. A) Lie. B) Tell the truth. C) Ignore him. D) Make a joke. E) Tell him off. There''s no point in saying much of anything, except the truth. I''m going with B. _______________ ¡°It was nothing.¡± I said and he gave me a surprised look. ¡°He tried to kill me twice, killed Diane''s husband, and sent her son off to the army, just so he could sleep with her.¡± They all gave me surprised looks, except for Gloria. She laid there and just smiled at me. The woman with glasses was the first to recover. ¡°What about my floor?¡±Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. ¡°Oh! I should have something in my pack to...¡± I started to reach for my pack and remembered it wasn''t on my back. ¡°I left my pack in the CO''s office. I have to go get it.¡± I said and started to walk away. ¡°We''ll leave you alone for a while, Mr. And Mrs. Hansen.¡± The woman in glasses said as Annette followed me. ¡°I''ll be back later to check on your daughter thoroughly.¡± She closed the curtain without waiting for an answer and jogged up to walk beside me. ¡°You have to get me more of that spider venom juice and then show me how you did what you just did.¡± ¡°I can make a batch when I get back to the house.¡± I said. ¡°Or if you can get a nice cooking pot, about yay-big, on a stoked fire and half filled with water.¡± I said and held my hands out about two feet apart to show her. ¡°I was going to buy a few new ones from the blacksmith; but, it looks like I won''t need them right now.¡± ¡°You will definitely need them.¡± The woman with glasses said. ¡°I''m coming with you to see the CO.¡± I led them back to the main building and as soon as I opened the door, I smelled it. My home smell. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. Will you make the right one? A) Yell. B) Curse like the Hag. C) Burst in and get your stuff back. D) Kill them all. E) Pick two. These assholes need to be reminded about taking my stuff again! I thought, angrily. I choose A and C! _______________ ¡°YOU TOUCHED MY THINGS!¡± I yelled loudly and burst into a run as I activated the vigilance technique. The two women with me jumped from the yell and the secretary fell out of her chair as she tried to grab me on the way by. She missed me, obviously. I lifted my foot at the last second and slammed it right into the center of the door, the weakest part, and the door splintered in half. In one second, I saw all of my stuff scattered around the CO''s large desk, several different people had my things in their hands, and two of the male soldiers started to raise a sword and a crossbow at me. I crossed the office, had my knife out, and cut across the middle of the sword first and then cut the front off of the crossbow. I backhanded the man with the sword in the face before he could finish his swing and I planted my foot into the gut of the man with the broken crossbow. Both men fell to the floor, unconscious. The CO had a knife in his hand and it had cut open the sealed leather pouch that I had filled with stinky mud. I brought the hilt of my knife down onto his hand and heard the crunch sound. He dropped the knife with a yell and I put my knife through his thick shirt collar and laid it against his skin. ¡°You took my things.¡± I said in a deep voice. ¡°David! We didn''t!¡± Alex said and held his hands up. ¡°We were just...¡± ¡°My pack is empty and you have taken my things from it.¡± I said. ¡°Tell me why I shouldn''t kill you all right now.¡± ¡°You''re in the army now.¡± The CO said and looked at me, unafraid. ¡°You will be court marshalled.¡± ¡°What''s that mean?¡± I asked. ¡°Another trial for murder.¡± Alex said. ¡°Right now, it''s just insubordination.¡± ¡°Alex. That''s not helping.¡± Donna said in a hiss. ¡°Who will do it if you are all dead?¡± I asked. ¡°The next CO will.¡± The CO said. ¡°What was it you said to the mayor? Your colonel won''t listen to anything that happens in this backwater village?¡± I asked and no one said anything. ¡°Who''s going to tell them I did it if you''re all dead?¡± No one moved or said anything. ¡°Put. My. Things. Back.¡± I ordered and no one moved. ¡°DO IT!¡± Donna jumped, as did two of the skinny men holding my potion ingredients and vials of my number ten potion, along with the small wooden molds I used for making more ingredients. Annette had a worried look on her face and the woman with glasses stood there and shook her head. ¡°If you don''t put his things back, I am going to personally have the Colonel dishonorably discharge each and every one of you for conduct unbecoming an officer.¡± ¡°You have no right to dictate...¡± The CO started to say. ¡°I am the ranking medical officer in this garrison and my cousin would definitely want to hear how you are abusing your authority over a new recruit that hasn''t even taken the loyalty oath to the kingdom yet!¡± The woman with glasses spat and everyone winced. ¡°I am ordering you to put his things back... all of them... and close that damn pouch before you do. It stinks to high heaven!¡± The others started putting my things back in the wrong order. ¡°Stop! You''re going to ruin everything.¡± I said, angrily. ¡°Recruit David.¡± The woman with glasses said and frowned. ¡°Why are we calling you by your first name?¡± She shook her head. ¡°What''s your last name?¡± ¡°I don''t have one.¡± I said and that got everyone''s attention. ¡°Everyone has a last name.¡± Donna said as she put the carved wood coins down on the desk. ¡°You know my story.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Did you know that my name was ''Boy'' until I was eleven?¡± I asked and she took in a sharp breath. ¡°David isn''t even your real name.¡± Donna whispered. ¡°The Hag gave it to me.¡± I said. ¡°He''s the Marsh Man, so why not Marsh? David Marsh?¡± The woman with glasses said and I shook my head. ¡°The marsh is supposed to be named Drake''s Marsh.¡± Alex said in as calm of a voice as he could. ¡°Why not take that as a name? Drake. David Drake.¡± He looked at me. ¡°What do you think, David?¡± _______________ We finally got to your big name reveal! There''s no need for an actual choice here. I''m just adding in my personal viewpoint. A) Accept it and be happy about it. You chose A! That''s a great choice on your part. _______________ I nodded and smiled a little goofy, and the woman with glasses saw it and smiled back. ¡°It''s very nice to meet you, David Drake.¡± The woman said and walked across the office and held a hand out to me. She stood there and looked at my hand and at my face. ¡°I''m not handing over my knife.¡± I said. The woman laughed. ¡°No, this is a handshake. It''s how you greet people. You''ve done a handshake before, haven''t you?¡± I thought back over what I''ve seen and heard over the years in town. I couldn''t remember anything about a hand shake, then I remembered the story book and how the people greeted the queen. Copying the things I saw in the story book had worked for the sick girl in the ''ward'', so I did it again. I pulled the knife away from the CO''s neck and slid it into the sheath on my bandoleer, took the woman''s hand, and bent over it to kiss it. Her face turned bright red and she started breathing a bit more than normal. ¡°D-David... you... how did you know I was royalty?¡± ¡°Take him!¡± The CO said and shot to his feet to tackle me. He must have forgotten that his two main fighters are on the floor. I thought as my elbow shot out and hit him in the shoulder, which spun him around. I grabbed his arm like Annette had grabbed Mr. Hansen. I wrenched the arm up behind his back and slammed the CO down onto the floor. His head bounced and I knelt on his back with one knee... all while still holding the woman''s hand. ¡°It''s nice to meet you, too.¡± I said to the very surprised woman that wore glasses. She stared at me as if she had never seen someone do what I just did, even though Annette had done it barely ten minutes ago. Not one person moved or tried to help the now unconscious CO. 044 Town Trouble Again? ¡°David... I mean, Recruit Drake.¡± The woman with glasses said and turned her hand to shake. ¡°I''m Captain Sandra Rivers, cousin to the Colonel, Emily Rivers.¡± ¡°What''s a cousin?¡± I asked and looked at what she was doing with my hand. ¡°What are you doing?¡± ¡°This is a handshake.¡± Sandra said. ¡°You don''t know a lot of things, do you?¡± ¡°I''m the Marsh Man. I don''t know any better.¡± I repeated what I said to the girl in the ward. ¡°But, how can you...¡± Sandra shook her head. ¡°I''ll worry about how you learned what you know later.¡± ¡°The Hag taught me.¡± I said. ¡°I''ve been coming to the village twice a year for...¡± I flicked the fingers on one hand. ¡°...six years. I''m not counting this year because I didn''t buy supplies and leave twice. I always talk to Diane and she taught me how to count to a hundred years ago and last year she taught me the alphabet song so I could start reading.¡± That surprised everyone, especially Lt. Alex. Sandra nodded, as if that was an acceptable answer. ¡°You can stand up now.¡± ¡°What about him?¡± I asked and let the CO''s arm go as I stood up. ¡°I think we can hold a trial for the both of you.¡± Sandra said and several people sucked in breaths. ¡°I believe my cousin will be a little bit upset that he manipulated events to get a forced conscription admitted into our garrison.¡± No one countered her accusation. ¡°Recruit Drake, please pack your things up properly and then make a trip to the blacksmith to get the pots you need.¡± Sandra said and I started packing my pack. ¡°Lt. Smith and Sgt. Simms will go with you to help carry everything.¡± ¡°Who''s going to run the garrison?¡± Annette asked. ¡°I will be the acting CO until I can send word to the Colonel.¡± Sandra said and looked at me. ¡°You have my permission to commandeer the appropriate space you need to make me those potions. When you do, report back here to this office with them and we can discuss your future with the army.¡± ¡°What''s to stop him from just running away?¡± One of the thin men asked. Sandra glared at him. ¡°If you idiots didn''t give him so many reasons to leave, he wouldn''t try it!¡± She spat and made him flinch, then she took a deep breath and looked at me. ¡°As acting CO, I will see that you are taught what you need to know... mainly checking your reading and writing... and then I will give you a comprehensive knowledge base of what life is like in the Gulf Kingdom.¡± ¡°Captain, Drake''s Marsh isn''t actually a part of the Gulf Kingdom.¡± Annette said and we all looked at her, even me. ¡°I checked it. It''s unclaimed territory.¡± _______________ You have a choice to make. Will it be a good one? A) Stay silent. B) Yell. C) Claim it. D) Fight your way out. E) Leave. Definitely C! I choose C! _______________ ¡°I claim it in the name of David Drake!¡± I said loudly and nearly everyone jumped. ¡°It''s my marsh. I live there and I own it.¡± ¡°That''s not normally how that works.¡± Sandra said with a smile. ¡°It''s usually a king or a kingdom''s representative that claims land and takes possession of it.¡± ¡°I''ve lived there all my life and it''s mine.¡± I said. ¡°According to one of the witnesses that couldn''t testify at your trial, you were born in the village.¡± ¡°I was sold to the Hag for two copper coins.¡± I said. Sandra''s face went angry and Donna and Annette let out gasps. ¡°You were sold into slavery.¡± Donna whispered. ¡°Slavery is an abomination to civilized man.¡± Sandra said. ¡°I am ordering the Hag be brought in and she will be tried for her crimes.¡± ¡°That''s never going to happen.¡± I said. ¡°She''ll kill anyone coming for her.¡± ¡°Even you?¡± Alex asked. I shook my head. ¡°I''m not stupid enough to try and attack her.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± Sandra asked. ¡°She can move quicker than the eye can follow when she''s serious. I''d be dead before I finished the thought of attacking her.¡± Sandra and Donna exchanged looks. ¡°I''ll change my order to the Hag being a person if interest that we want to talk to.¡± Sandra said. ¡°We can still investigate her and not have to worry about her attacking.¡± I gave her a wide eyed look for a moment, then shrugged. ¡°She''ll know it if you lie.¡± ¡°Like you do?¡± Donna asked. ¡°She taught me.¡± I responded. ¡°I''ll organize a small team to go into the marsh.¡± Sandra said and looked down on the floor. ¡°Not them, since they are going to need me to tend to their injuries.¡± ¡°You''re going to get them killed.¡± I said. ¡°No, I won''t... because I''ll be sending you in as well.¡± Sandra said.This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. ¡°I can''t...¡± ¡°You will prep them and tell them what to expect, what to do, and how to act.¡± Sandra said. ¡°Unlike him...¡± She pointed to the CO on the floor. ¡°...I understand the valuable resource you represent.¡± ¡°What''s that mean?¡± I asked. ¡°It means you.¡± Sandra said with a smile. ¡°You are very important to me, to the army, and to the kingdom as a whole, because of all that special knowledge that you have up there.¡± She reached up and touched my forehead. ¡°No one else here knows as much about this area as you do.¡± ¡°The Hag...¡± I started to say. ¡°I doubt she knows more than you about the marsh.¡± Sandra said. ¡°Where to find the ingredients for the potions or where to go to avoid the dangers. That''s all you, David.¡± _______________ You have a minor choice to make concerning Captain Sandra Rivers. A) Stay silent. B) Reluctantly agree. C) Tell her she''s crazy. D) Kiss her. E) Deny it. F) Choose two. Okay. I thought and read the options again. I don''t want to get a swelled head about it, so I think I better chose E and B. _______________ ¡°No, the Hag taught me all about the marsh and the ingredients I had to find. If she hadn''t...¡± I stopped talking and thought about it. She did teach me about the marsh; but, once she told me what to look for and where to look for ingredients, I was all on my own, usually for days at a time. I was the one who hunted and harvested them, and I was the one that discovered the fungus blooms and mushrooms. ¡°I... I guess... maybe... it really was me.¡± Sandra nodded and put a hand on my shoulder. ¡°Of course it was all you. You''re wonderful.¡± She said and then waved at the pile of mud on the desk. ¡°Can you get that stinky thing out of here?¡± ¡°I need another canvas bag.¡± I said and saw Donna flinch slightly, I assumed because she had told me that I didn''t need any more than one. ¡°I''ll be back with a couple of them.¡± Donna said and left at a fast walk. ¡°Can I ask you why you are carrying it around with you?¡± Alex asked. ¡°It''s so I can go back into the swamp after taking a bath.¡± I responded and he gave me a surprised look. ¡°Soap and things smell really bad in the swamp. The last time I was here, I didn''t think to bring any and I was constantly attacked by everything, even near-deer and marsh boars.¡± I said and told them about the boar charging off of the bank and into the water to try and get me, then I told them about the snakes, spiders, tangle vines, and all of the other creatures I had to fight to get back home. ¡°Here.¡± Donna said and handed me three of the folded bags. I tucked two of them into my pack and then took out a vial of number five waterproofing potion. I poured about a quarter of the potion inside and then swirled it around. I made sure to cover it all and let it soak in, then went to the desk and carefully lifted the large leather pouch that had been cut open and slid the whole thing into the new bag. I pulled the drawstring closed and then put a single drop of number ten potion on the top to seal it. Everyone had stood there and stared at me as I worked and didn''t say anything, even when the smell of the mud was cut off. I put the new canvas bag into my pack into the proper spot and then closed it up. I sealed it with number ten potion, too. It wouldn''t stop someone from cutting my pack open; but, it would slow them down if they tried to open it normally. I wasn''t allowing that to happen again. My knifed-pitchfork was propped against the wall and I put it back into the holder on the side of the pack, then slung the pack onto my back. It wasn''t leaving my sight ever again. ¡°David, can I ask what those potions are for?¡± Sandra asked. ¡°No.¡± I responded and she gave me a surprised look. ¡°You''re being nice and I don''t want to lie to you.¡± Sandra let out a soft laugh. ¡°All right. I guess that''s fair.¡± She said and walked behind the desk and sat down. ¡°You have your orders. Please fulfill them and come see me.¡± I put my hand to my forehead and she did the same. I left her office and Alex and Donna came with me. We left the garrison and went to the blacksmith. He had six of the cooking pots that I wanted and he tried to charge me an outrageous price for them. ¡°Either buy them for that price or get out.¡± The blacksmith spat at me. ¡°They told me it was you that said I was overcharging them!¡± ¡°You were.¡± I said. ¡°Like you''re overcharging me now.¡± ¡°I''m the blacksmith here and I set my prices, not you.¡± The blacksmith said. ¡°If I want to overcharge for my work, you have no right to tell me that I can''t.¡± ¡°I do and I''ve told you this already.¡± Alex said. ¡°I''m not selling to you, I''m selling to him.¡± The blacksmith said. ¡°You''re selling to the army.¡± Alex corrected. ¡°He hasn''t even done basic training yet.¡± The blacksmith said with a cruel smile. ¡°After he does that for three months, he can come back as an army man and then you can force me to lower my prices. Until then, he can pay or he can go.¡± ¡°I''ll buy them.¡± Donna offered. ¡°I''m sorry, those particular items are reserved and aren''t for sale.¡± The blacksmith said. ¡°I also won''t sell them to anyone else until such time that I believe it appropriate.¡± Donna had an angry face and Alex looked like he was going to strangle him. _______________ You have a critical choice to make about the blacksmith. Make it a good one. A) Stay silent. B) Yell. C) Leave. D) Taunt him. E) Wreck everything. F) Choose any two. Oh, I definitely want to taunt him and leave right afterwards. Thanks, guys! I choose D and C. _______________ ¡°If the only blacksmith in the village doesn''t want to sell to the army, then we can''t make him.¡± I said. ¡°We just have to go to the next village and give them our money.¡± ¡°Ha! It''s just cooking pots. I''ll make that sale up by tomorrow.¡± The blacksmith said. ¡°Not from us you won''t.¡± Alex said and smiled at me. ¡°You''re right, David. The army can''t be bothered with such a hard person to deal with. I think we will be taking all of our future business elsewhere.¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± The blacksmith looked at us with shock on his face. ¡°But... we agreed on...¡± ¡°I''m cancelling our contract. I never thought of going somewhere else to get better pricing.¡± Alex said with a laugh. ¡°Come on, David. Let''s go see about that boat we need.¡± The three of us walked over to the door. ¡°Wait! I''ll sell them to you!¡± The blacksmith said desperately as Alex opened the door. ¡°A discount! I''ll give a discount! On everything!¡± He nearly shouted as we stepped out. ¡°Well, that went better than I thought it was going to.¡± Alex said and shut the door. ¡°Thanks for the idea to go somewhere else, David.¡± ¡°The next village was where I was going to go to get supplies after I cleaned up.¡± I said with a shrug. ¡°Then I caught you.¡± Alex said with a chuckle and pat my arm. ¡°I''m glad I did, too.¡± ¡°Why?¡± I asked as we walked down the road towards the dock. ¡°You''ve already helped us more than anyone else in the village and you let us know we were being ripped off, just like you were.¡± Alex said. ¡°Now you''re going to make up more spider juice potion, just because Sandra asked you to.¡± He let out a laugh. ¡°I just wish you had been here the very first day we came here. You could have saved us from so many problems before we made so many mistakes.¡± ¡°We did make a lot of assumptions and nearly all of them were wrong.¡± Donna said and her face went red. ¡°David, I... I''m sorry we went through your things. The CO wanted to see what you had been hiding. When we started going through everything and saw the rare ingredients you had, as well as engraving tools and the wooden plaques that were unlike the normal ones that our enchanter had seen before...¡± ¡°I''m sorry, too.¡± Alex said, his voice sincere. ¡°It was fascinating to find all that stuff inside the homemade pack of someone living in a monster infested marsh.¡± He said and we stopped outside the boat builder''s building. ¡°I never imagined one person being able to use it all.¡± ¡°I don''t understand.¡± I said. ¡°Most people dedicate themselves to only one thing. Hunting and gathering, making potions, enchanting, fighting...¡± Alex started to say. ¡°...going off topic.¡± Donna interrupted and he laughed. ¡°Sorry, dear.¡± Alex said. ¡°Anyway, people call it a profession and only do that one thing and nothing else. You''re the first person I''ve seen that can do multiple things.¡± ¡°I haven''t done everything in front of you.¡± I said and he laughed again. ¡°Just having the things on you lets me know that you know how to do it, at least a little bit.¡± Alex said and Donna coughed at him to get his attention. ¡°Right, right. We can talk more later. Let''s go inside and see about finding a boat.¡± I nodded and he opened the door for us to go inside. 045 Boat Blues ¡°Michelle was supposed to build me a big boat and she cancelled the order last fall.¡± I said. ¡°Why?¡± Donna asked and stepped inside the boat builder''s building with me right behind her. ¡°She thought I had tried to kill her brother.¡± I said and she caught her breath. ¡°After that, I did and I haven''t talked to her since.¡± ¡°Oh, damn.¡± Alex said as the door closed behind him. ¡°John Phelps. How could I have missed that connection? We need to leave before...¡± ¡°What are YOU doing here?¡± A man''s voice said loudly and the three of us turned to look at John''s father. He had been doing something to the side of a large boat and stopped to glare at me. His words got the attention of three other people and they stood up from inside the boat. Michelle was at the bow, her son Simon was at the stern, and Shelly hopped out of the main cabin. ¡°YOU!¡± Shelly yelled and jumped out of the boat. ¡°Shelly!¡± Michelle gasped and tried to catch her, and missed. ¡°You killed my uncle! I hate you! I HATE YOU!!!¡± Shelly said as she ran around her grandfather and over to me. ¡°I don''t care if you called me pretty!¡± She said and started punching me in the chest. ¡°I never, never, never want to see you again!¡± Alex and Donna looked surprised that I let Shelly get close enough to hit me. ¡°DON''T HURT HER!¡± Michelle yelled and looked like she was too nervous to jump out of the boat like her daughter had. Either that or she was too nervous about trying to attack me. _______________ You have a minor choice to make concerning the Phelps family. A) Push Shelly away. B) Yell at her. C) Comfort her. D) Kill her. E) Keep her. F) Choose two. Dammit, I didn''t think about this part of John dying. I thought in consternation. All right, what would a friend do? I know I did wrong by doing the right thing, so hurting Shelly more by choosing any of the other options would be a mistake. I''ll choose B to get her attention and then do C. _______________ I let Shelly pound on me a few more times, then I grabbed her arms. ¡°SHELLY!¡± I yelled, which startled her, and everyone froze. ¡°Shelly.¡± I said in a normal voice and she started to cry. I let her arms go and pulled her into a hug. ¡°I''m sorry. I had to kill him.¡± ¡°N-no, you... didn''t have to.¡± Shelly said between sobs and her arms went around me and held on. ¡°I did and I would do it again.¡± I said and she cried harder. ¡°I let him go for trying to kill me once, then he tried again when I was with Diane. I couldn''t let that happen.¡± ¡°He would never...¡± ¡°She was teaching me to read and he was jealous.¡± I said and Shelly gasped, as did Michelle. ¡°You... didn''t know... how to read?¡± Shelly asked and looked up at me with surprise on her face, her tears slowing to a stop. ¡°Diane taught me the alphabet song and I bought Spencer''s old books from her.¡± I said. Shelly didn''t try to push away or ask for me to let her go, so I held onto her. ¡°You were stealing his work!¡± Mr. Phelps said and walked towards me. ¡°DAD!¡± Michelle yelled and he stopped a few feet away. ¡°Don''t. He has Shelly.¡± ¡°I don''t even know what a lumberjack does, except cut down and prep trees.¡± I said and let Shelly go. I was surprised that Shelly didn''t let me go, too. ¡°How do I steal that from him? I''m only in the village twice a year and I only cut down a few trees in the marsh when I need firewood. I would never take them all the way here. That''s just stupid.¡± ¡°I''ve seen the two tables you made.¡± Mr. Phelps said. ¡°They were made by a master craftsman...¡± ¡°I just stuck wood together when making a table for Diane to teach me on.¡± I said with a shrug. ¡°Mack sold them the next day without telling me or paying me for it.¡± Alex let out a curse. ¡°Mack is a real piece of work, to use the CO''s... the old CO''s words.¡± Michelle and Mr. Phelps raised their eyebrows at his words. ¡°He''s been using your ignorance against you all these years.¡± Donna shook her head. ¡°Don''t worry, David. We''re going to make sure that you won''t be ignorant for much longer.¡± ¡°We actually came here to see if you had a suitable boat for our needs and I missed the fact that you had the same last name.¡± Alex said and bowed his head slightly. ¡°We''re sorry to cause you distress.¡± ¡°That monster killed my son and you''re sorry about causing us distress?¡± Mr. Phelps snarled at us.If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°That''s what I said.¡± Alex responded. ¡°I wouldn''t have come here if I had realized it.¡± ¡°He should be hanging from a rope right now.¡± Mr. Phelps said. ¡°He technically did, since that was his sentence for killing John Phelps. When he was supposed to die, he became a conscripted member of the army. For life.¡± ¡°NO!¡± Shelly yelled. ¡°No, he... he''s supposed to...¡± ¡°I''m being sent away and I don''t know when I''m coming back.¡± I said and Shelly''s tears started again. ¡°You don''t want to wait four more years for your uncle''s killer, do you?¡± Shelly looked conflicted. ¡°Shelly!¡± Michelle exclaimed. ¡°What did you promise him?¡± ¡°When... when I was old enough... he was mine.¡± Shelly admitted, her face red. Simon looked surprised, Michelle looked scandalized, and Mr. Phelps looked murderous. Alex and Donna on the other hand, looked impressed. ¡°As long as I''m alive, you will never be with that monster.¡± Mr. Phelps said. ¡°Let him go right now.¡± Shelly gave me a longing look and let go, then she walked back over to the boat. ¡°There is nothing here for you.¡± Mr. Phelps said and looked at me. ¡°Not for you. Not ever.¡± _______________ You have another choice to make. Will it be good for you or bad for them? A) Stay silent. B) Say something. C) Leave. D) Wreck the place. E) Burn it down. F) Choose two. I could screw them over so much if I speak. I thought with a bit of satisfaction. I just have to mention the blacksmith and Alex will cut them off from everything that the army is buying or would ever buy from them. I looked at Shelly''s sad face and decided that I didn''t want to hurt her anymore. I''ll choose A and C. _______________ I clamped my mouth shut and didn''t speak in response, because it didn''t deserve one. I gave Shelly a sad look, turned around, and walked over to the door. ¡°You know, the blacksmith said almost the same thing.¡± Alex said. ¡°Alex.¡± Donna whispered. ¡°Let''s go.¡± Alex nodded and they followed me outside. When we were partway up the road, he spoke again. ¡°David, why didn''t you say anything?¡± ¡°I didn''t want you to cut them off from the orders the army made.¡± I said and he gave me a surprised look. ¡°How did you know?¡± He asked. ¡°You''re a new garrison that''s apparently on the edge of the kingdom. There''s water access, if you''re careful; but, the boats can''t be too big or they won''t get down the channels.¡± I said. ¡°They don''t have to be flat bottomed like the one I need and they can hold more stuff and people without tipping. Of course you ordered boats.¡± ¡°I think the one they were working on was the first one.¡± Donna said. ¡°Imagine cancelling the order now? After them doing all that work?¡± Alex sighed. ¡°Yes, I suppose you''re right.¡± We walked up the main road to go back to the garrison and I had a neat idea. _______________ You have a major choice to make. This will change how things progress, for both you and the army. A) Tell them your neat idea. B) Stay silent and do it yourself later. C) Forget about it. Wow, okay. I thought and read the options again. I glanced at the two people near me, two people that even though they knew about me and saw how damaged I was, were still treating me better than nearly everyone else in the village. I think... I think I''m going to trust them. I thought with a little trepidation, because like the choice said, it will change everything. I choose A. _______________ ¡°I have a question.¡± I said as we approached the garrison. I reached out and touched their arms and came to a stop. They did as well. ¡°What happened to John''s property that''s past the Addams farm?¡± ¡°As far as I know, nothing.¡± Alex said. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Well, I noticed that the garrison is built out of all the local wood that no one else builds with.¡± I said and Alex nodded. ¡°The last time I was there, John had stacks and stacks of logs, trees, planks, and firewood.¡± ¡°How does that help us?¡± Donna asked, curious. ¡°If we can''t buy a boat, we can just build one ourselves.¡± I said. Alex gave me a surprised look. ¡°I saw the boat you came here in.¡± ¡°I''ve used it for two years and it hasn''t leaked yet.¡± I said and they both gave me surprised looks this time. ¡°It''s solid wood and it''s waterproofed.¡± ¡°That''s what you did to the canvas bag!¡± Donna said and I nodded. ¡°You have a potion that waterproofs things.¡± ¡°Is it more of your marsh magic?¡± Alex asked and I nodded. ¡°What else can you do?¡± ¡°Remember the door on my cell that wasn''t a door anymore?¡± I asked. Alex took barely a second before his mouth dropped open and he had to grab onto Donna for support. ¡°Oh, god.¡± He whispered. ¡°Oh, my god.¡± ¡°Alex! What is it?¡± Donna asked, her voice full of concern. ¡°He... he can merge things together.¡± Alex said. ¡°Oh, dear lord.¡± He shook his head. ¡°You can''t, can you? Tell me you can''t.¡± I didn''t move my head or opened my mouth. ¡°Alex?¡± Donna asked. ¡°He can put things together and they become a single thing.¡± Alex said. ¡°Two pieces of wood become one. Two more pieces added on to that become one.¡± ¡°Roofs are pointed.¡± I said and pointed to the closest building that we could see over the garrison''s walls. "The top point of my roof is 60 feet high.¡± I said and they stared at me. ¡°Wh-wh-WHAT?!?¡± Donna exclaimed. ¡°Well, I didn''t want to live in a hut anymore, so I made a house. The walls are ten feet high and then I made a roof. I didn''t know how to do it, so I made it look like it did in a story book.¡± ¡°We... we need to see that house.¡± Alex said and gave himself a shake. ¡°Let''s go see what the deceased Mr. Phelps left in his yard.¡± The three of us walked past the garrison and continued on to John''s place. It was only accessible by a small road and we went down it. The place was packed with year old wood and only three quarters of the stacks of planks were there. ¡°Donna my dear, I need you to go to the CO and ask her to assign us to the mission, then I need you to get her to claim these abandoned resources.¡± Alex said. ¡°I think Michelle the boat builder is using them.¡± I said and pointed to the planks. ¡°If she''s making boats for the army, we should leave those.¡± ¡°If we do that, what will you use?¡± Donna asked. ¡°I can use everything else.¡± I said and pointed to the merged stack of bare logs. ¡°I did that to him when he tried to kill me the first time.¡± Alex and Donna walked over to it and saw that it wasn''t a stack of fifty logs anymore. It was just one mass of bumpy wood. ¡°I can make planks myself.¡± I said and walked over to another stack of logs, took out my knife, then used my magic to charge the blade. I stuck it in and sliced the log down the length and part of the log fell off. I did it back the other way and the other side of the log fell off to leave a perfect plank. ¡°I''LL BE RIGHT BACK!¡± Donna yelled and took off at a run. I winced at the sound. ¡°She didn''t have to yell. We''re standing right here.¡± I said and rubbed my ear. ¡°You don''t like women yelling?¡± Alex asked and I shook my head. ¡°I guess that''s understandable, considering how you grew up.¡± He said and looked at the plank. ¡°You''ve done that before.¡± ¡°A lot. You wouldn''t believe how many I needed to make four sides of a triangle 60 feet by 60 feet.¡± ¡°Wait, what?¡± Alex asked. ¡°There''s only three sides to a triangle.¡± ¡°Not if you do two sides twice, six inches apart, and fill in the space with magic potion to merge them.¡± Alex stared at me with a blank face for a few seconds, then he let out a long stream of curses that would have made the Hag proud. 046 Making It Work While Alex calmed down, I started making planks. I could use the entire tree, since I was going to use potion to fill in the gaps, and the planks didn''t need to all be the same size, as long as they were close to the same thickness. I had so much practice making them that I had a dozen logs cut up by the time Alex stopped cursing. ¡°I can''t believe you''re doing that so quickly.¡± Alex said. ¡°I just keep my knife charged with magic.¡± I said and made another slice. ¡°You what?¡± Alex asked. ¡°I thought you just... the sharp knife...¡± I chuckled. ¡°Oh, it''s real sharp and if I charge it up with magic to help, it''ll cut through nearly everything. So far. I haven''t tried it on rock or stone, though. The Hag said it dulls even magic sharpened knives and I won''t risk it.¡± ¡°Do you always do what the Hag says?¡± Alex asked. I nodded several times. ¡°She''s harsh, and cruel, and mean, and she knows how to survive. She taught me everything I needed to know to live in the marsh. She also gave me potions to toughen me up and...¡± I stopped there, because even if I was going to trust him with some of the secrets I knew, I didn''t want him to know the real reason that the Hag liked eating my flesh. To make herself beautiful. ¡°...make you tastier to eat. I know.¡± Alex said and put a hand on my shoulder. ¡°I''m sorry we didn''t show up here years ago.¡± ¡°There were a few army people that came through here and the Hag told me to avoid them.¡± Alex sighed and let my shoulder go. ¡°Probably because if we knew she owned you, we would have arrested her and rescued you.¡± ¡°But the army men did know.¡± I said. ¡°One was even at the inn when I was a kid and the Hag almost killed me. He didn''t do anything and neither did the inn owner, Becky.¡± ¡°That''s... not possible.¡± Alex said. ¡°The whole village knew I was sold to the Hag.¡± Alex shook his head. ¡°They might have known; but, it was a secret that everyone was hiding from us.¡± He said. ¡°The army people here now, I mean. I''ll have someone look into the other army representatives that have been sent out here over the years.¡± I shrugged, since it didn''t really matter to me, either way. It wasn''t like they could go back and fix it. Plus, I had learned a lot from the Hag over the years. I could do so many things now because of her. Donna came jogging down the small road towards us. ¡°The CO... is sending the order... to the mayor.¡± She said and stopped beside us to catch her breath. ¡°Whew. I need to start jogging again. I shouldn''t be winded from running.¡± ¡°You need to take a general health potion.¡± I said. ¡°It helps with every day energy and keeps you healthy. We''ll also need them for the people coming to help.¡± ¡°We need to stop at the store your lady friend opened.¡± Alex said and looked at Donna with a smile. ¡°Do you feel like going for another run?¡± ¡°No, you ass.¡± Donna said with a laugh. ¡°Just so you know, the harder you work, the quicker the potion goes through your system.¡± I said and handed her a general health potion. ¡°Kids can take one a year and be fine. Adults need two, sometimes three, depending on what they are doing.¡± ¡°How often do you take them?¡± Alex asked as Donna drank the potion. ¡°Every week when I was a kid.¡± I said and they both looked at me with sad faces. ¡°I don''t need it at all now.¡± Donna handed me the empty vial. ¡°That actually tasted pretty goo... ohhhh my god.¡± She said and her whole body shivered. Her face flushed red for a second, then she took in a deep breath and let it out. ¡°Oh, my god.¡± She said and placed her hands on her cheeks and slapped them. ¡°That was a rush.¡± ¡°You were probably sick and didn''t know it.¡± I said and handed one to Alex. ¡°You better get over to the shop and get enough for the group, otherwise it''ll just be us going. That''s my last one.¡± ¡°Thank you, David.¡± Alex said and drank it. He had nearly the same reaction as Donna, except he didn''t slap his cheeks. He grabbed Donna and kissed her instead. ¡°Hmm hum mmm!¡± Donna mumbled and then Alex broke the kiss. ¡°We''re on duty!¡± She said and swatted at his head. ¡°That felt like too good of an opportunity to pass up.¡± Alex said with a grin and didn''t dodge. ¡°I haven''t felt this energized in years.¡± He nodded to me. ¡°Keep working and we''ll be back as soon as we can.¡± I nodded back and the two of them took off jogging. I kept working and making planks, because I had long ago memorized the plans for the boat I wanted made. I knew how long it was, how wide, the shapes, the positions of the posts for the canvas, and the large half oval things on the sides.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. When I thought I had enough planks for the bottom, I laid them out into the right spots and started using some number ten potion sparingly to attach them together. I would need to make up a batch to finish off the boat, both the inside and underside. I didn''t have anywhere near enough to fill the bottom with a small layer to let it set and make it a solid mass. ¡°I really need a cooking pot and a good fire to work with.¡± I said with a sigh as I bent down to start attaching the three foot high side onto the boat. ¡°How big of a pot?¡± A girl''s voice asked from right behind me. ¡°AHH!¡± I jumped nearly a foot in the air and toppled over onto my butt. I whirled around to stare at the little girl that was laughing really hard and pointing at me. ¡°That... so... funny!¡± She said and held her sides. _______________ You have a choice to make. A) Freak out. B) Yell at her. C) Laugh. D) Pretend that it didn''t happen. E) Ignore her. F) Run. That was too embarrassing to acknowledge and I don''t even have to think about it. I choose D. _______________ I was about to yell at her, then realized that it was my own fault. I hadn''t used the vigilance technique when Alex and Donna left and that had left me completely unprepared for someone else showing up. ¡°Hi, Gloria.¡± I said and ignored what just happened. ¡°How long have you been here?¡± ¡°I followed you up the road.¡± Gloria said and looked smug. ¡°Whatcha doin''?¡± ¡°Making a boat, only I need more magic potion.¡± I said and pat the ground in front of me. ¡°I can''t get my dress dirty.¡± Gloria said. ¡°Oh, right. Sorry.¡± I said and picked up a plank, cut it up into pieces to make a chair for her size, then used drops of the number ten potion to meld it into one piece. I used a bit of the combo potion of waterproofing and fortifying potion to age it and make it stronger, which also sealed it. ¡°There you go.¡± Gloria sat down on the chair as if she was at home and not in someone else''s yard. ¡°I need a cooking pot about this big.¡± I said and held my hands out to two feet. ¡°That''s a large stewing pot.¡± Gloria said and her face broke into a huge smile. ¡°Did you catch that near-beaver again?¡± I chuckled. ¡°Naw, he fought me off and went back to his den. I got some of his really stinky mud, though.¡± ¡°Ooo! Show me!¡± Gloria said excitedly. I took off my pack and pulled out the canvas bag. ¡°This is gonna smell like the potion tastes.¡± ¡°Eww!¡± Gloria said and leaned in closer instead of leaning away. I did a quick slice to open the seal and the smell instantly hit our noses and we both squinted at how strong it was. ¡°That''s really, really awful!¡± Gloria said and laughed as she tried to wave it away from her face. ¡°I told you.¡± I said with a laugh as I closed it and sealed it up. ¡°I''ll be using it when I go back home.¡± ¡°You''re leaving?¡± Gloria asked. ¡°Only for a bit. I have to get some things for Diane''s new store and then I''ll be back. I''ll be going off to army training soon...¡± I stopped for a moment and remembered what the blacksmith had said. ¡°...for three months, I think. I might be back then or I might be sent somewhere else.¡± ¡°I hope you come back.¡± Gloria said, her face sad. _______________ You have a choice to make concerning the Hansen Family. A) Give her a gift. B) Tell her you''re sorry. C) Hug and comfort her. D) Stay silent. E) Choose two. I think I know exactly what I can give to her as a gift. I thought with a smile. I choose C and then A. _______________ I eased close and put my arms around her for a second and then let go. ¡°It''s all right, Gloria. I know you''re scared of spiders now, so I''m going to give you something that keeps them away.¡± ¡°R-r-r-really?!?¡± Gloria stammered. ¡°Yep.¡± I said and pulled out one of the already engraved square plaques. I took out the special potion I used for enchanting and poured it into the grooves. I let it settle for a few seconds and then infused my magic into it. The whole thing glowed for ten seconds and then it stopped. There were several telltale squeaks from under one of the piles of logs nearby, then several spiders about eight inches across took off running and disappeared into the nearby forest. ¡°There, you see? It works.¡± I said. A very wide eyed girl looked at me with shock on her face, probably because she had been so close to spiders and hadn''t known it. I attached a short bit of rope to the ward with number ten potion, applied the fortifying waterproof potion to it to seal and protect it, then hung it on her neck. ¡°You take that home and hang it in your bedroom. For the next seven months or so, you won''t have to worry about spiders, snakes, frogs, marsh lizards, or anything else that creeps and crawls.¡± Gloria stared at me with an open mouth and didn''t say anything. ¡°I don''t think you should say where you got it or what it does to anyone. They might take it on you if you do.¡± Gloria nodded as she closed her mouth and hugged it tightly. ¡°I think you better go home before Alex and Donna come back.¡± I said. Gloria nodded again and stood up, then she started to walk away. As she approached the edge of the trees where the small road to the main road was, there were a few more different creature sounds. She turned around to look at me, her face surprised, and I gave her the thumbs up gesture. Her face broke into a huge smile and then she turned and hurriedly walked away. ¡°I should have told her to take the chair, too.¡± I said and moved it back out of the way to continue building the parts of the boat that I could. It was mostly just a large rectangle, so it was pretty simple to put together. It was the scale and the walls that would give me the most trouble. Small vials of the number ten potion would only do so much. I needed a lot more of it to make the boat be able to go in the water without sinking. Alex and Donna came back to John''s place a short while later and they were quite sad. ¡°She only had two general health and one healing potion left.¡± Donna said and showed me the wrapped packages. ¡°Then only two others can come, assuming I can get this finished.¡± I said and waved at the large box behind me. ¡°How the hell did you get it all together so quickly?¡± Alex asked. ¡°You were cutting up planks when I left not long ago!¡± I shrugged and didn''t want to tell him that I had finished a bit ago. I even had the two main poles and the four support poles ready to be added. I didn''t have any canvas or hooks for it, though. The four push poles were ready and off to the side and were just waiting for me to figure out how to make more potion. ¡°Excuse me.¡± A woman''s voice said. The three of us turned around to look at the road and saw a woman walking towards us. She wore a nice dress and she carried a huge cooking pot in her hands. ¡°My daughter said you needed a large stewing pot.¡± Mrs. Hansen said and smiled at us. 047 Boat Building ¡°Mrs. Hansen? What are you doing here?¡± Donna asked, surprised. ¡°Your daughter just got out of the infirmary!¡± ¡°The healer checked her over and she''s fine.¡± Mrs. Hansen said. ¡°In fact, she saw you three walking by our house and she wanted to thank the Marsh Man for helping her.¡± Alex looked at me with a questioning look. ¡°She left a while ago.¡± I said. ¡°She was so happy when she came into the house.¡± Mrs. Hansen said. ¡°I heard these weird sounds from under the house and when I looked outside, a snake, two huge spiders and no less than ten finger lizards were scurrying away.¡± She looked right at me. ¡°She said you cast a magic spell on her to protect her.¡± ¡°You WHAT?!?¡± Alex yelled and I winced. ¡°I... I didn''t.¡± I said and the three of them gave me intense stares. After a few moments of silence, I sighed. ¡°I gave her one of my protection wards.¡± ¡°You mean that ugly wooden thing around her neck that she won''t take off?¡± Mrs. Hansen asked. I nodded. ¡°As long as you hang it up in the house, for the next seven months or so, it''ll keep all the crawling things away.¡± I admitted and then felt a little panicked. ¡°Please! You can''t tell anyone! If the Hag knew I told you...¡± I said and touched my mangled ear. The three of them had sad faces. ¡°David.¡± Alex said and put a hand on my shoulder. ¡°Relax. We won''t say anything.¡± I looked at Donna and Mrs. Hansen and they both nodded. I sighed in relief and relaxed. ¡°It''s Gloria''s, so don''t take it on her or sell it. I''ll know it if you do.¡± ¡°You shouldn''t threaten people like that, David.¡± Donna said. ¡°He didn''t threaten her.¡± Alex responded. ¡°He just told her he''ll know it if she removes it from Gloria''s possession.¡± ¡°He implied...¡± ¡°...what? Did he say anything threatening? Did he say he''ll take revenge on her?¡± Alex asked. ¡°Tell me what he threatened her with.¡± Donna opened her mouth to speak, then she closed it. ¡°Yes, that''s right. You''re projecting your own knowledge onto him. He doesn''t understand that his words, spoken innocently, can be taken harshly.¡± Alex said. ¡°You are assuming, just like all the villagers here, that he''s going to do something bad... and you don''t have any proof that he would.¡± ¡°Alex, he...¡± ¡°...was sentenced for a crime that he didn''t commit. The old CO said so.¡± Alex said. ¡°He''s also conscripted into the army, so anything he does now reflects on us. It''s our job to make sure he behaves properly.¡± ¡°That''s what I was trying to do.¡± Donna said, her face a little angry. ¡°He can''t be saying things like that.¡± ¡°He only... only... told Gloria''s mother to let her keep the thing he gave her. He didn''t say anything else. At all. He didn''t even say it with anger, or in a heated voice, or anything else.¡± Donna frowned at him and squinted her eyes. She also stayed quiet. Alex nodded and turned to me. ¡°David, now that I''ve corrected one person''s wrong assumptions, now it''s time to correct yours.¡± He said and then explained, in pretty good detail, that even innocent statements can be turned into malice and hatred, especially if they don''t hold the person saying them in high regard. It was doubly bad in my case, since I was the Hag''s apprentice, official or not. I nodded when he was done and turned to Mrs. Hansen. ¡°I''m sorry for what I said. I didn''t mean for it to be threatening. I just don''t want Gloria scared if you take it away.¡± Mrs. Hansen smiled at me. ¡°It''s all right.¡± She said and looked at Alex. ¡°I agree with the lieutenant. I didn''t get any bad intentions from you. Although, I did wonder what you would do.¡± ¡°I would cancel the enchantment.¡± I said and the three of them looked at me in surprise. ¡°It''s my magic. I can feel it when I''m near.¡± Alex and Donna glanced at each other and then looked back at me. ¡°I can feel you a little and Mrs. Hansen a lot when I concentrate.¡± I said, without mentioning that I was using the vigilance technique, too. ¡°She took a healing potion and a general health potion.¡± ¡°H-how did you know that?¡± Mrs. Hansen asked, surprised. ¡°It takes a lot more magic to finish the healing potions.¡± I said with a shrug. Alex and Donna stepped away and leaned in close to whisper to each other. I didn''t tell them that I could clearly hear them. ¡°I''ve heard of mages feeling magic nearby.¡± Alex whispered. ¡°I haven''t heard of potions giving off enough magic to qualify.¡± Donna responded. ¡°We need to get one of the garrison''s mages to check it out.¡± Alex said. ¡°If one person can tell...¡±If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°...we might be small glowing beacons of magic, even if we''re not magic users ourselves.¡± Donna said. ¡°Which means we can probably be tracked with it.¡± Alex said with a smile. ¡°For as long as the potion lasts, anyway.¡± ¡°The magic user in question would have to stay within their range of abilities.¡± Donna added. ¡°We''ll mention it to the CO when we get back to the garrison.¡± Alex ended their conversation and looked at me and Mrs. Hansen as they stepped back over to us. ¡°Sorry for interrupting. We just had an interesting idea come up.¡± ¡°Of course you did.¡± Mrs. Hansen said with a knowing smile. ¡°How long have you been seeing each other?¡± ¡°About six months.¡± Donna said and then blushed a little. ¡°Off duty.¡± ¡°Uh huh.¡± Mrs. Hansen said and held the large stewing pot out to me. ¡°It''s a little old, since we haven''t had much need for it.¡± ¡°Do you want it back?¡± I asked and accepted it. ¡°If possible.¡± She said and gave me a searching look. ¡°Gloria said that you needed it to make more magic potion?¡± I nodded. ¡°I can''t make it in front of witnesses. It''s a secret recipe.¡± Mrs. Hansen laughed. ¡°You sound like me when I''m making my secret sugar bread.¡± ¡°You make that?¡± Alex asked, surprised. Mrs. Hansen gave him a pleased smile. ¡°I take it you''ve been to Gail''s?¡± ¡°A time or two.¡± Alex said and glanced at Donna, who''s face stayed a consistent red. ¡°Well, when I get that pot back, I''ll bring over a fresh pan of them for you.¡± ¡°I''ll be done in half an hour.¡± I said and looked at Alex and Donna. ¡°Mack has a shack out back behind the general store that''s full of crates of my empty potion bottles. Check with Diane if she took them for me or if I have to get them myself.¡± ¡°I''ll do better than that.¡± Alex said with a smile. ¡°I''ll use his hand cart by the dock to bring them here.¡± I chuckled and nodded, then the three of them left. Once they were out of sight, I looked to see that all of the firewood was gone. I put a very small amount of number ten potion into the bottom of the pot to thicken it and let it set as I cut up a plank and shredded some of it. I went over to John''s huge fire pit and built a nice fire. Once I had the fire going a few minutes later, I needed water. I checked on the pot and it needed a few more minutes to set, so I looked around for something I could use. I found a bucket behind his house and checked it. It didn''t have any holes, so I ran down to where the dock used to be and dipped the bucket in to the brim. I brought it back and checked the pot, which was nice and solid on the bottom now. I used the waterproofing potion, so nothing would stick, and placed it on the rack above the fire. He must cook near-deer whole or something. I thought at the size of the fire pit and added half a bucket of water. Or he really liked seeing big fires. I chuckled and made more planks to build a work bench for myself. It was stable and wasn''t perfect, since I was using my potion so sparingly. I wasn''t going to have that problem soon, though. I opened my pack and dug out my little mold squares and my ingredients, then added what I needed and used number ten potion to fill the molds. They were done only ten seconds later and I quickly prepped and ground up the ingredients properly. I added them in the right order and stirred it, added more water to nearly fill the pot, and let it simmer. I carefully added some of my gland extract when it was time and waited. ¡°Please tell me you''re done.¡± Alex''s voice yelled from down the road. ¡°You can come on down.¡± I said and put the molds away. ¡°I only have the magic infusion part left.¡± ¡°We were getting weird looks from people.¡± Donna said with a smile as she helped balance the overloaded hand cart. ¡°Diane came with us and Mack only cursed at her for a few minutes before he let us into the shed.¡± ¡°Now you know why I switched to helping Diane.¡± I said with a grin and she laughed. ¡°She said it was your idea to open another store.¡± Alex said. ¡°I asked her why she didn''t open her own.¡± I said with a shrug. ¡°She knows so much about what people need, so I thought she should do what she wants instead of doing nothing.¡± ¡°Mack was begging her to come back to the store with him...¡± Donna started to say. ¡°...and bring her products with her.¡± Alex finished for her. ¡°Of course he would.¡± I said with a shake of my head. ¡°He would have her work for free and make a ton of money from her.¡± ¡°She''s still living there, too.¡± Donna said. ¡°He did take care of her all winter.¡± Alex said. ¡°He''s not really a bad man.¡± I responded and checked the potion. It was ready. ¡°He''s just really focused on business and making money, pretty much above all concerns.¡± Alex said and I nodded. ¡°Did you know that more people than normal didn''t make it this winter?¡± I shook my head. ¡°You''ve been with me since I came here.¡± Alex let out a sigh. ¡°You''re right. No one would tell you anyway.¡± ¡°Nope.¡± I said and applied the waterproofing potion with a rag to the inside and outside of the bucket and let it dry, then dipped it in the simmering cooking pot and took about a quarter of it out. I went to the boat and slowly poured it into the bottom of the boat. It wasn''t enough, so I went back and got more. I ended up using nearly half of the potion to cover the entire inside with an inch of potion. ¡°How are things going?¡± Mrs. Hansen asked as she walked down the road to us with a covered pan in her hands. ¡°I didn''t take into account having to use the potion when I told you how long it was going to take.¡± I said. ¡°I''m sorry.¡± Mrs. Hansen laughed. ¡°It''s all right. Why don''t you take a break and have some sugar bread?¡± ¡°The boat has to sit for a few minutes and then I need to cover the bottom a bit.¡± I said and put the bucket down. ¡°Can I use that old table?¡± Mrs. Hansen asked. _______________ You have a choice to make. A) Agree. B) Decline. C) Show off a little. D) Take the pan. E) Laugh. F) Choose two. Definitely A and possibly C. I think I want to impress them. I thought. So, yes. I''ll choose C and then A. _______________ ¡°I didn''t have much magic potion left when I made it.¡± I said with a smile. ¡°Give me a minute.¡± Alex, Donna, and Mrs. Hansen stared, quite shocked, as I performed some marsh magic for them and made the table become a perfectly smooth surface. I made four chairs that looked identical to the child sized one I had made for Gloria, and put them around it with the child one on a raised platform on the end. ¡°Now you can use it.¡± I said as I sat down on a chair and waited for them to sit down, too. ¡°I did not see what I just saw.¡± Alex muttered. ¡°You did, dear.¡± Donna said as she pat his back and then she sat down. ¡°What was it Mr. Phelps said? A table crafted by a master?¡± Alex chuckled and shook his head and sat down, then Mrs. Hansen did as well. ¡°Who''s the little chair for?¡± Donna asked. ¡°Gloria.¡± I said and pointed. The three of them turned and saw her peeking out from behind one of the piles of logs. She still wore the ward around her neck. ¡°You were supposed to leave that at home.¡± Mrs. Hansen said. ¡°I''m never taking it off.¡± Gloria said, quite defiantly. Alex and Donna looked at each other for a moment and then back at her. ¡°You might as well come here and join us, seeing as how the Marsh Man made a place for you.¡± Mrs. Hansen said. Gloria beamed a smile at her mother and jogged over to the table, then carefully climbed up onto the chair. It put her at the same height as us and that made her smile even bigger. ¡°Fresh out of the oven.¡± Mrs. Hansen said and took the cover off of the pan and the smell filled the area around the table. ¡°I love mama''s cookie bread!¡± Gloria exclaimed. After Mrs. Hansen cut it up into large squares and served it to us, I had to agree. It was delicious. 048 Finish Your Work ¡°That was the best, mama!¡± Gloria said happily. ¡°I wholeheartedly agree.¡± Alex said. ¡°Thank you, Mrs. Hansen.¡± ¡°Please, call me Alice.¡± Mrs. Hansen said. ¡°I could never talk to you so informally, Mrs. Hansen.¡± Alex said. ¡°Perhaps after a while and we get to know each other better...¡± ¡°Alex.¡± Donna said and glared at him. ¡°What did you just explain to David?¡± Alex opened his mouth to argue, then noticed the slight blush on Mrs. Hansen''s face. ¡°It seems I have made the same mistake and it is my turn to apologize to you, Mrs. Hansen. If I implied anything untoward to you, I am deeply sorry. I only meant that if we can develop more cooperative social interactions, our friendship could grow to the point that I wouldn''t feel uncomfortable calling a married woman by her first name.¡± Mrs. Hansen''s blush didn''t fade. ¡°It''s quite all right.¡± She said and reached over to cover her daughter''s ears. ¡°I am flattered that a man such as yourself would even consider me as a friend, let alone as particularly worthy of romance.¡± ¡°You do yourself a disservice, dear lady.¡± Alex said with a smile. ¡°I''m sure that...¡± Donna quickly reached out and covered his mouth. ¡°You can keep the flattery to other women to yourself.¡± Mrs. Hansen couldn''t help but laugh at them and their interactions. She let her daughter push her hands away and stood. ¡°It was nice to sit down at the same table as nobles and not feel like I didn''t deserve to be there.¡± Alex immediately stood and bowed to her. ¡°I would welcome you and your family at my table at any time.¡± Mrs. Hansen''s blush deepened and she nodded her head at him. ¡°Please allow me to offer to pay for the sugar bread you just gave to us.¡± Alex said and reached into his pocket. I saw Mrs. Hansen''s frown and she looked about to speak. _______________ You have a choice to make. It is only minor and won''t really change much for you. It will change the interactions between the army and the Hansens. A) Tell him no. B) Stay silent. C) Offer as well. D) Say something else. I know exactly what I need to say. I thought. I choose D. _______________ ¡°Don''t insult her.¡± I said and Alex looked at me with surprise on his face. ¡°Do you always offer to pay for someone''s gift to you?¡± Donna took in a sharp breath and Alex closed his eyes for a second and looked at me with sad eyes. ¡°It seems I keep making the same mistakes as you, my friend.¡± Alex said and put a hand on my shoulder. ¡°What do you suggest I do to make up for the insult?¡± ¡°Offer to buy her more ingredients instead.¡± I said and I saw the surprise on Mrs. Hansen''s face. I knew that she was like me and would want more things to work with, then I said so. ¡°Maybe if she has more things to work with, she might make more things.¡± Alex smiled and nodded. ¡°That is a great idea, David. Thank you.¡± He said and let my shoulder go and stepped close to Mrs. Hansen as he took out several gold coins. ¡°Mrs. Hansen, I won''t ask you for a list of things to buy, since that would be like asking for the recipe.¡± He placed the gold coins in her hand. ¡°Please buy more ingredients for yourself and let your delicious sugar bread put smiling faces on even more people.¡± Mrs. Hansen looked at her hand and saw four gold coins. It took her a minute to say something and it was barely a mumble. ¡°Excuse me? What was that?¡± Alex asked. ¡°You can call me Alice.¡± Mrs. Hansen said, her voice stronger. ¡°Anyone who is generous enough to give me so much, just to make my goods to give to other people, deserves to use my first name.¡± Alex smiled at her and took her free hand. ¡°Thank you. It''s nice to meet you, Alice. My name is Alex.¡± Mrs. Hansen laughed. ¡°I already know your name.¡± ¡°Ah, proper etiquette training bites me in the ass again.¡± Alex said. ¡°My father would be so proud.¡± That made Donna laugh loudly and she had to look away to try and get her composure back. Mrs. Hansen waved at her daughter. ¡°Gloria, let''s go to the general store and see what Mack has left for us to buy, then you can come back here and get the pot.¡± ¡°We''re going to the next village, so if there''s anything he doesn''t have, let us know.¡± Donna said. ¡°Thank you, Donna.¡± Mrs. Hansen said and waved to us, then she and Gloria left. ¡°Whew.¡± Alex said and sat down. ¡°I definitely need more practice interacting with normal people.¡± Donna turned to him and gave him a look. I couldn''t tell what it was, though. ¡°You have more experience with it than I do.¡± Alex said to her. ¡°You know what my father is like.¡± Donna nodded. ¡°Why else do you think I laughed so hard when you mentioned him?¡± Alex grinned and waved for her to sit again. She did so and moved the chair over to sit next to him. _______________ You have a choice to make.Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. A) Sit quietly. B) Stare at them. C) Keep working on the boat. D) Make spider juice. E) Choose two. The spider juice! Right. I almost forgot about that when I couldn''t get a cooking pot. I glanced over at the still half filled pot. I''ll choose C and then D when I empty the pot. _______________ ¡°I''ll keep working on the boat.¡± I said and went over to it and stopped using the vigilance technique. The inside of the boat was now solid wood and I knocked on it. I was satisfied that it was thick enough, so I picked the edge up and flipped it over. I saw how uneven the bottom was, since it had been sitting on the slightly rough ground, so I added a small strip of wood around the outside edge of the bottom of the boat, then added about half of the potion that was left in the pot. It was half an inch deep on the bottom of the boat and I smiled. With the 2 inch thick plank and the inch of solid wood inside from the potion, and the half inch on the bottom, the base of the boat was half an inch thicker than the design called for. I quickly divided up the remainder of the number ten potion into empty vials and stashed them into the various pouches of my bandoleer, then gave Alex and Donna a slightly fearful look. ¡°We''ll go sit over here.¡± He said and they took two of the chairs and wet over to one of the wood piles and faced away from me. ¡°Thanks.¡± I said and got to work making the spider juice potion for the new CO. It went quickly, since I had the ingredients on me and used the number ten potion technique to increase the ingredients. It took only half the time as the number ten potion and I divided it up into vials and filled one and a half crates with them. I kept a few for myself, since we might need them on the trip, and then I made up another number ten potion. While it simmered, I went to the boat and flipped it back to the right side. I covered one of the main support poles on the bottom with number ten potion and placed it in the right spot and held it there to let it properly merge. I went around the boat and did the same with the other main support pole and then I added the four support posts to the four corners. I went back to the cooking pot and added my gland extract to the solution and let it simmer a bit more, then I infused it with magic. I knew the support posts for the canvas wouldn''t last long with only being stuck there, so I made small wood boxes around the bases and poured in some of the number ten potion to merge them right into the bottom and sides of the boat to make them solid. I divided up the rest of the potion into vials and nearly filled a crate with it. I wasn''t stupid enough to leave it like that and sealed it with potion, making the crate solid on the outside. Only my knife would be able to cut it open safely. I quickly made the oval shapes for the sides and added them, even though they added significantly to the boat''s weight. It was then that I realized my mistake. I had forgotten to apply the fortifying waterproof potion to the bottom before I had added everything else. ¡°Dammit!¡± I said and Alex and Donna came over to me. ¡°What is it?¡± Alex asked. ¡°It looks like you''re pretty much done.¡± ¡°Yeah, and I forgot to make the bottom waterproof.¡± I said and waved at it. With the balancers on it, I can''t tip the boat on it''s side to apply the potion properly.¡± Alex smiled. ¡°Then prop the whole thing up.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± I looked at him in confusion. ¡°You just need it up off the ground enough to get underneath, right?¡± Alex asked and I nodded. ¡°Then cut me off four logs this high.¡± He said and held a hand three feet high from the ground. I did that and he placed two near the back of the boat and two near the front. ¡°Can we lift it like this? It looks really heavy.¡± Donna asked. ¡°No, you are not lifting it.¡± Alex said and she huffed at him. He chuckled and looked at me. ¡°We don''t need massive strength for this, just ingenuity.¡± ¡°What''s that mean?¡± ¡°Brain smarts and figuring things out.¡± Alex said and walked over to the logs and rolled a full one over to the front of the boat, then another bigger one. He brought over a thick plank and propped it on the bigger one, put it over the smaller one, and hooked the edge on the boat. ¡°Okay, now push down.¡± I pushed down on the plank and the front of the boat lifted right up. ¡°WOW!¡± Alex laughed and rolled the smaller log in underneath, then he explained what we just did. It was amazing, because once we had a log under the boat, we easily added another and moved them to the ends. Once they were in place, we used another larger log and lifted the front of the boat up and easily placed the three foot tall logs under it, then did the same to the back. ¡°...and there we are. Easy access to the underside.¡± Alex said. ¡°Just be careful. If you knock one of the supports over, it will tip.¡± ¡°What about the spots where the supports are?¡± I asked. ¡°We move the supports slightly by raising each end again.¡± Alex said. That''s what we did. I used the rag I always used and applied the fortifying waterproof potion to the underside of the boat, moved the supports to apply it to the parts I couldn''t get, then we lowered the boat to the two logs again. ¡°Why are we leaving it on the logs?¡± I asked. ¡°We have to get it to the water.¡± Alex said. ¡°I usually just drag it.¡± I said and he laughed for several seconds. ¡°If that didn''t tear up your boat, then you''ve been very lucky.¡± Alex said. ¡°We''ll have to check your other boat''s bottom to see what it looks like.¡± I nodded and he explained that large boat builders used smooth logs to roll boats smoothly into the water while I applied the fortifying waterproof potion to the rest of the boat. When he showed me how well it worked, I was amazed. There were piles of logs in the yard, so I quickly set as many as I could out. Alex and Donna stared at me as I did and then they told me to stop at thirty. I did and asked why. ¡°Watch and learn.¡± Alex said and nodded to Donna. She rubbed her hands together and bent down, then pushed. It was easy for her. ¡°Grab the logs she passes and put them at the front of the boat.¡± I nodded enthusiastically and did as he said. We made a river of logs and Donna easily pushed the boat to the spot where the dock used to be. I took some rope out of my pack and tied it to a tree and to the corner support post, then Donna pushed the boat off of the last couple of logs and into the water. ¡°The damn heavy thing didn''t sink at least.¡± Alex said with a laugh. Donna gave him a surprised look for a second, as if that never crossed her mind, then she laughed, too. ¡°Let''s get that spider juice potion to the CO.¡± Alex said. I nodded and touched the rope to cast the locking charm on it, added a drop of potion to it, and we left the boat there. I brought all of the logs back up to stack them again. Alex and Donna carefully took the hand cart with the empty vials and crates down to the boat and I carried the crate of number ten potion with me. There was tons of room in my brand new boat and I didn''t have to stack the crates and spread them out. We went back up to John''s place and I extinguished the fire while Alex and Donna loaded the two crates of spider juice potion. I picked up the empty large stewing pot to return to Mrs. Hansen and we left the table and chairs there. Just as we were walking up the road, Mrs. Hansen and Gloria were walking down it. ¡°Perfect timing.¡± Mrs. Hansen said. ¡°I could only get the flour from Mack and only one bag. The others he has reserved.¡± ¡°Not a problem.¡± Alex said. ¡°Why don''t you give your list to David, that way I won''t be tempted to try and have Donna make it.¡± ¡°I think David understands that just knowing what''s inside something, doesn''t tell you how to make it.¡± Donna said and gave Alex a glare to make him and Mrs. Hansen laugh. ¡°Here''s your pot back.¡± I said and handed it to Mrs. Hansen. ¡°Thanks for letting me use it.¡± She looked inside and was surprised it was completely clean. ¡°You didn''t have to wash it.¡± ¡°I didn''t.¡± I said. ¡°It''s waterproof and nothing will stick to it.¡± Mrs. Hansen looked at me with wide eyes. ¡°It''s true. He just poured that potion out like it wanted to get out of the pot.¡± Alex said. ¡°I''ve never seen anything like it.¡± Mrs. Hansen nodded and took out a list and gave it to me with two of the gold coins. ¡°Please buy as much of these as you can at the next village.¡± I quickly read the list and put both it and the money in my pocket. ¡°I fixed the bottom of the pot, too.¡± I said. ¡°I also left the table and chairs in the yard. You can have them if you want them.¡± ¡°N-no, I... couldn''t possibly...¡± ¡°If you don''t want them, tell Diane where they are and she can sell them.¡± Mrs. Hansen gave me a smile. ¡°I can either take them for free now or try to buy them later when everyone else decides they want them.¡± I nodded and we left her and Gloria on the road to John''s place to go back to the garrison. 049 The Garrison Again The two guards at the gate didn''t challenge us and opened it when we were close enough. I stopped and bowed my head to the guard on the right. ¡°I''m sorry for how I treated you before. I was showing off and didn''t understand that I shouldn''t threaten people like that.¡± The surprised guard looked at Alex. ¡°Is he feeling all right?¡± Alex chuckled. ¡°I''ve been trying to enhance his interpersonal skills.¡± ¡°I''ve been trying to enhance his interpersonal skills.¡± Donna repeated with a glance at Alex. The guard laughed. ¡°That part I can understand.¡± He said and pat my shoulder. ¡°I thought you were testing my reflexes or something.¡± ¡°You weren''t afraid?¡± I asked. ¡°It happened too fast for me to be scared.¡± The guard said. ¡°I think that''s just like real combat. It''s over before you realize it.¡± ¡°What''s that old army saying?¡± Alex asked and looked at Donna. ¡°I thing it''s something like, the army is ninety five percent boredom and five percent pure terror.¡± Donna responded. ¡°You guys sure have it easy if that''s the only time you''re terrified.¡± I said and took the two crates out of the hand cart. The others exchanged looks as I walked by them and through the gate. Alex and Donna walked behind me and quickly caught up. We went to the main building and went to the CO''s office, where the secretary motioned for us to move off to the side to wait. ¡°You can''t do this to my family!¡± A man''s loud voice said through the CO''s door. ¡°I''m sorry, Mr. Phelps.¡± A woman''s voice, the CO''s, responded. ¡°We need that wood to fill the army''s order.¡± Mr. Phelps said. ¡°Do you have someone that can cut up the logs into planks for you?¡± The CO asked. ¡°No. My son is dead.¡± ¡°Are you going to hire someone to cut up the logs for you?¡± She asked. ¡°We can''t afford to waste money like that.¡± ¡°Those logs have been there since last year, some not even stripped of bark.¡± The CO said. ¡°I''ve only claimed the uncut wood. The planks already prepared are not a part of the army''s claim for the resources.¡± ¡°It''s my son''s property. You can''t just go there and take it.¡± ¡°Are you assuming ownership of the property?¡± The CO asked and there was no response. ¡°You know your son owes a lot of money, even more than the property is worth.¡± ¡°That''s why I''m here.¡± Another woman''s voice said and I immediately recognized it as Diane''s. ¡°My father, after a lot of cursing, has decided that he will accept John''s property and erase all owed debt to the store, even though that leaves us very short on available money to bring supplies in for everyone.¡± She said and sighed. ¡°We even have to ration what we have in stock to make sure that everyone in town has access to what we have to offer.¡± Mr. Phelps sighed. ¡°As you can see, we can all be reasonable here.¡± The CO said. ¡°I''ve talked to the people that scouted John''s place. The planks he made for you were from the very center of the trees, correct?¡± ¡°The choicest cuts, yes.¡± Mr. Phelps said. ¡°Usually two or three per tree.¡± ¡°Then how about we make a deal. Your family agrees to sign over the property to Diane and I will agree that for every log the army removes from the property from this point forward, we will leave at least two of the choice cut planks in its place for your business to use.¡± It was quiet for several moments. ¡°I feel like you are getting the better deal here.¡± Mr. Phelps said. ¡°We are still paying you to build the boats with what is essentially the army''s wood.¡± The CO said with a soft laugh. ¡°I could easily have let you negotiate with Diane for the property and then gone to her with the resource allocation.¡± The man sighed and it was quiet for several more moments. ¡°Thank you very much, Mr. Phelps.¡± The CO said. ¡°I''m sure that the number of planks that will be available for your family''s business will increase over the next little while.¡± ¡°What do you need so much wood for?¡± Mr. Phelps asked. ¡°Improvements, of course. This place is made from some of the worst wood available at the time, since it was such a rush to get it constructed.¡± The CO said. ¡°Some of the thinner walls can even bend out when they are leaned against.¡±The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. The door opened and Mr. Phelps stepped out. ¡°I''ll send someone over tomorrow with the final payment and to take ownership of the first boat.¡± The CO said and he nodded. He didn''t notice me and walked by the secretary and left the office. I guess I really do look a lot different. I thought. ¡°Thank you very much for your help.¡± The CO said and took Diane''s hand to shake it. ¡°He would have been arguing until he was blue in the face over that wood.¡± Diane laughed. ¡°You were the smart one to offer the center planks, whatever they are.¡± The CO laughed as well. ¡°I wouldn''t have even thought of it, if it hadn''t been for Recruit Drake''s little log carving display that Sgt. Simms told me about.¡± She said and waved the three of us into her office. ¡°David!¡± Diane exclaimed in surprise and smiled at me. ¡°Hi, Diane.¡± I said and put the crates of potion on the CO''s desk. ¡°I can''t give you any of these, since I agreed to give them to the CO.¡± Diane''s smile grew and she gave me a hug. ¡°I won''t even ask what they are.¡± ¡°You should.¡± The CO said. ¡°I''ll keep the half crate for my own medical stores and I''ll give the other crate to you on consignment.¡± ¡°Okay, now I guess I do need to ask.¡± Diane said with a chuckle. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°David calls it spider juice and we call it Death Spider Antivenom.¡± Diane gasped and covered her mouth. ¡°No, that... is it really?¡± The CO nodded and told the story about Gloria Hansen and what I did to save her from a deadly bite. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Diane whispered. ¡°I... never knew that...¡± She looked at me. ¡°Even though you''ve given me snake juice before, it never occurred to me to ask for spider juice.¡± ¡°Me, either. No one ever said anyone got bitten by them, so I assumed they were only in the swamp.¡± I said with a shrug. ¡°As long as you give it to them to drink soon after the bite, you don''t need to do the other stuff, except with the healing potion. That you should do to heal the bite and any damage the venom did inside.¡± ¡°He also didn''t know that a lot of villagers didn''t make it this winter.¡± Alex said. Diane took in a quick breath and let out a sigh. ¡°I didn''t, either. With the trial and everything...¡± ¡°Don''t worry about that.¡± The CO said and looked at me. ¡°I assume you finished the boat.¡± ¡°It''s down by the water at John''s... Diane''s place.¡± I said. ¡°I was going to get someone to buy the canvas from the boatbuilder to cover it; but, they need it for the boats they are building for you.¡± ¡°We''re going to the next village to buy the pots he needs and we can get the canvas there, then we''ll head right back to go to his place to get the rest of the things he needs to pick up.¡± Alex said. ¡°That''s three days away, both ways, just for pots and some canvas?¡± Diane said. ¡°How big is the boat?¡± I told her how big and her eyes bulged out. ¡°You''re kidding!¡± ¡°He isn''t.¡± Alex said. ¡°It''s huge and it''s solid. If it didn''t have the angled front on it, you wouldn''t be able to tell which way it was pointing.¡± Donna chuckled. ¡°It''s as close to a rectangle as I''ve ever seen and the walls are three feet high.¡± ¡°I don''t know how Michelle was going to do the winches, so the canvas is always going to be up.¡± I said. ¡°You''ll need tarps to cover your purchases, too.¡± Diane reminded me. ¡°There''s only one in Dad''s shop.¡± ¡°You definitely need more than one.¡± Alex said. ¡°Four at least, if what you said you had at your place was accurate.¡± ¡°Actually...¡± I ducked my head a little. ¡°It''s more.¡± ¡°Which part?¡± The three of them asked. ¡°I''ve got years worth of pelts, skins, antlers, and leathers there that we''ve never used.¡± I looked at Diane. ¡°You''ll never get them all in that tiny shack, even if it was empty.¡± ¡°Good god.¡± Alex whispered, because that was a huge amount of things. ¡°That''s why I wanted such a big boat.¡± I said. ¡°It would take too many trips with a smaller one.¡± ¡°All right. I have your two other members prepped and ready to go.¡± The CO said. ¡°Marine Sergeant Russell and Army Sergeant Sanders are in the barracks.¡± ¡°We''ll pick them up on the way back to the boat.¡± Alex said and looked at Diane. ¡°I hope you don''t mind if we use your property as a launching point.¡± ¡°It''s for David, so I don''t mind at all.¡± Diane said and stepped close to me. ¡°Be careful and hurry back.¡± I nodded and she gave me a quick kiss, then she stepped back. _______________ You have a choice to make. A) Tell her about Mrs. Hansen. B) Offer to buy her something. C) Choose two. I didn''t even have to think about that one. I chose A and B. _______________ ¡°Mrs. Hansen gave me money to buy some things for her to cook with. Do you want me to get you something, too?¡± Diane gave me a surprised look for a second, then she smiled. ¡°Give me a few minutes to write some things out for you and I''ll give you some money.¡± She said and the CO gave her some paper and a pencil. She wrote out a pile of things and then gave me several gold coins. ¡°You tell Steve that Diane sent you on a special mission.¡± ¡°A special mission?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°Use those words specifically or he won''t even talk to you.¡± Diane said as a warning and I nodded. ¡°If that''s all, then there''s only one thing left to do.¡± The CO said and came around her desk. ¡°David Drake, please kneel.¡± I looked at Alex and he nodded. I knelt and the CO put her hands on my shoulders. ¡°Do you swear...¡± The CO started to say and then rambled on for nearly ten minutes about king, and country, and loyalty, and honor, and about a bunch of stuff I had no clue about. When she finished, she asked me if I agreed to it all. I glanced at Diane and she nodded this time. ¡°I do.¡± I said. ¡°I, Sandra Eileen Rivers, cousin to the Colonel Ellen Rivers, niece to King Richard Edward Rivers, do hereby accept your oath of loyalty to the king and the kingdom, and your vow to protect its people.¡± The CO said and then she bent down and gave me a very light kiss on the lips. ¡°Welcome to the army, Private Drake.¡± I stayed on my knees and stared up at her, because my lips tingled a little. ¡°That wasn''t strictly necessary.¡± Alex said and glanced at Diane, who looked just as surprised as I was. ¡°We aren''t in such a formal setting that it required the full ritual.¡± ¡°I am a member of the royal family and I won''t skimp on circumstance, just because we aren''t in the army''s head office.¡± The CO said with a smile. ¡°Plus, I haven''t granted a field commission before.¡± She said and pulled on my shoulders to get me to stand. ¡°It won''t be official until you complete basic training; but, you won''t have to do this with someone you''ve never met before.¡± ¡°Um... thanks?¡± I said and she laughed. ¡°Let me just get your pins.¡± Sandra said and walked around the desk, opened a drawer, and took out three of them. She put one on each of my collars and then one on my chest pocket. ¡°Good luck and godspeed.¡± She said and put her hand to her forehead. Alex, Donna and I returned the gesture and the three of us left the office at a fast walk. I glanced down at my pocket and for some reason, I felt a little bit happy that I got my first decoration and my uniform wasn''t the empty plainness it had been only moments before. 050 Going To The Next Village The barracks were at the far side of the garrison and inside were several soldiers. ¡°Sergeants Russell and Sanders!¡± Lieutenant Alex Smith said into the room and two men stood up. ¡°You''re with me.¡± ¡°Sir.¡± The two men said and saluted. They looked nearly identical, except one had a slight blue tint to his grey uniform. Even their short brown hair was identical in color and they could have been brothers or even twins. They jogged over to us with packs on their backs and they both carried broadswords and shields as well. ¡°She opted for close combat.¡± Sergeant Donna Simms said and nodded to them. ¡°She must have heard about David telling the old CO about ranged attacks being almost useless in the marsh.¡± Alex said and the five of us left the barracks. ¡°I assume you drank the potions.¡± ¡°Sir.¡± Both men said with nods. ¡°How did you like the energy boost?¡± Alex asked with a bit of a smile. ¡°I wish I was back home with my lady, sir.¡± Sgt. Russell said. ¡°I think for the duration of this mission, we can drop the ranks and sirs.¡± Alex said. ¡°I''m Alex.¡± ¡°Roy.¡± Sgt. Russell said. ¡°Richard or Rich.¡± Sgt. Sanders said. ¡°Donna.¡± Donna said. ¡°David.¡± I said. ¡°You''re the Marsh Man?¡± Roy asked and I nodded. ¡°I don''t see any moss growing from your back...¡± Rich grinned. ¡°...or an extra arm with a knife attached...¡± ¡°...or a smell so bad that it puts hair on your chest, even if you already have hair...¡± Roy continued. ¡°Guys.¡± Donna gave them a look and the two men barked a laugh and nodded. ¡°Shutting up. Aye, ma''am.¡± They both said and saluted. ¡°We have to grab our things as well.¡± Alex said with a small smile. We went to a smaller building and Alex strapped on a sword onto his hip that looked thinner than a normal sword and Donna had a similar one. ¡°I can see you staring.¡± Alex said. ¡°It''s not a normal sword. It''s half the thickness and half the weight, which makes it ideal for quick strikes and slashes.¡± ¡°It''s also weak if you try to go blow for blow with a normal sword.¡± Donna said. ¡°It''s deflect only.¡± I looked at Alex. ¡°No direct blocking.¡± Alex said and showed me what he meant. ¡°Is that better?¡± I asked as they grabbed their packs and slung them over their shoulders. ¡°Every weapon has advantages and drawbacks. Mine is quick movement and bad at blocking.¡± Alex said and did several quick thrusts and swipes with the smaller blade after we were outside. ¡°Broadswords are great for blocking and heavy attacks and they are heavy and slow to swing.¡± Roy said and did the movements. ¡°Shields are great for blocking and they also slow you down and make you take blows that you would normally try to dodge.¡± Rich said and showed me how to use the shield. I looked at Donna to see what she was going to say. ¡°I''m not carrying my bow to show you.¡± Donna said with a chuckle. ¡°All I can say is that I can shoot well... for as long as I have arrows.¡± I nodded in understanding and we walked over to the front gate of the garrison. ¡°Try not to have too much fun while you''re away.¡± The guard joked and opened the gate. ¡°It''s just a quick in and out.¡± Alex said as we stepped through the opening. ¡°That''s what she said! Ha ha!¡± The other guard exclaimed and they laughed, as did Roy and Rich. ¡°Children.¡± Donna said with a shake of her head and walked down the road. ¡°I don''t get it.¡± I whispered to Alex as we walked behind her. Alex explained how it was a joke that referenced sex and did the motions with his hands. ¡°Ohhh.¡± I said and thought about it. ¡°Is it supposed to be quick?¡± ¡°Not if she''s lucky.¡± Roy said and he, Alex, and Rich laughed. I had to smile at that, because now I knew that Diane was lucky. I hadn''t been quick at all. ¡°Oho!¡± Roy said at my smile. ¡°I see someone''s been getting some!¡± ¡°Don''t tease him.¡± Donna said. ¡°Who''s teasing? I wanna know when he did it.¡± Roy said. ¡°Didn''t you hear that cat wailing last night?¡± Rich asked. ¡°You''re kidding!¡± Roy said and Rich shook his head. ¡°Damn, David! You lucky dog!¡± ¡°Don''t you dare ask who.¡± Donna said and Roy laughed. ¡°Who cares who it was! He must have wrecked her to make her yell like that!¡± Roy said loudly. ¡°David, you gotta tell me if she could walk straight afterwards!¡± Rich laughed and smacked his shoulder. ¡°Don''t be vulgar.¡± ¡°Hey, we can joke around. We''re going into the marsh that no other scout has ever gone in and come back alive.¡± Alex chuckled. ¡°You make that sound like they come back dead.¡± ¡°I''m sure if they came back at all, they''d be dead.¡± Roy said. ¡°Wait, that can''t happen, right?¡± ¡°Not so far.¡± Donna said and turned down the road to Diane''s place. ¡°We haven''t heard all of the local legends yet.¡± ¡°If you mention the walking dead even once, I''m submitting my resignation.¡± Roy said. ¡°Good luck with that. We''re in this for a term of service for five years.¡± Rich said. ¡°I''ve only got eight months left.¡± Roy said. ¡°I''ll ask for a desk job...¡± Rich laughed and laughed. ¡°What?¡± Roy asked. ¡°You want a desk job? On a ship!¡± Rich said and kept laughing. Roy got the joke and laughed, too. ¡°Why are they laughing?¡± I asked Alex in a whisper as we passed Diane''s new house. ¡°Normal boats rock all the time on the water and nothing would stay on the desk. Papers, pencils, cups of coffee, they would all be on the floor after a couple of minutes.¡± Alex whispered back. ¡°Oh.¡± I said and we arrived at the spot where the old dock used to be. ¡°By the Son''s Light, we''re travelling in a wooden brick!¡± Roy said with a laugh and jumped onto the balancer on the side. ¡°I love it!¡± ¡°Careful, now. It hasn''t had its maiden voyage yet.¡± Alex said and stepped onto the balancer as Roy stepped into the boat. ¡°You were right, David. These things are great to stop a boat from tipping.¡± We all climbed in and I dispelled the locking charm on the rope, sliced the melded part off, and pushed us away from the shore. _______________ You have a choice to make. Will it be the right one?Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. A) Pole the boat normally. B) Make the enchantments. C) Let the others pole the boat. D) Choose two. It''s going to take me a little while to make the enchantments, so I''ll choose C and B. _______________ ¡°You need to make a new dock for Diane.¡± Alex said and I nodded as I went to the back of the boat. ¡°I want to make her a better store, too.¡± I said and knelt to dig out the wooden squares out of my pack. I took out another protection ward and two blanks. I hadn''t made a movement or a weight one, since I hadn''t expected to get another boat so soon. ¡°Does someone want to start poling the boat along? I''m going to be busy for a while.¡± ¡°What are you doing?¡± Roy asked and picked up one of the push poles. ¡°I''ll get us going.¡± ¡°You might need Rich on the other side, since the boat''s so big.¡± I said and took several minutes to carve the weight enchantment out, added the potion, then infused it with my magic to activate it. The two men grunted as they used the poles to try and push us along. The boat was heavy, even in the water, and they were not used to using their arms in that manner. I put a drop of number ten potion on the back of the weight enchantment and stuck it to the underside of the back bench. I activated it with the smallest amount of magic I could and the boat rose up in the water nearly six inches. ¡°Hey, it''s suddenly a lot easier to push this damn thing.¡± Rich said as the boat picked up speed. ¡°You''re just getting stronger, now that you''re getting marine exercise, Army Sergeant Rich.¡± Roy joked. ¡°You do realize I have a long pole in my hands, don''t you?¡± Rich asked. ¡°I do, too.¡± Roy countered and they glared at each other, then they both laughed. ¡°Water joust when we stop to rest?¡± Rich asked. ¡°You know it.¡± Roy said, and they both went back to poling the boat along. I added the protection enchantment and added it to the underside of the bench as well. I doubted that we would need it while moving away from the marsh; but, it was better to be safe than sorry. I started working on the movement enchantment and it took me nearly fifteen minutes to carve it out. I intentionally added in little nicks and flaws to the carving, on purpose to make it less efficient, then I used the enchanting potion and infused it with my magic. ¡°This is actually nice.¡± Alex said as he sat back on the middle bench and leaned back on his pack. ¡°I can''t remember the last time we had a nice and relaxing boat ride.¡± Donna sat down next to him and put her pack behind her back as well and leaned on it. ¡°It''s been ages.¡± ¡°Well, my dear, the next three days of this is going to be like a tiny vacation for us.¡± Alex said and put his arm around her shoulders. ¡°Then we get three days to relax while coming back.¡± _______________ You have a choice to make. It could be good or bad, no matter what you decide. A) Potentially ruin their trip and use the movement enchantment. B) Ignore them. C) Go normally. Ah, dammit. Thanks. I thought sarcastically and then sighed. I''m not spending a week travelling when we can do it in just a few hours both ways, just like from my house to the village. It was then that it hit me. The Hag hadn''t lied. It really would be that long to go from the house to the village, if we didn''t have the movement enchantment. I''m glad I never questioned her about it. I thought. I''m choosing A. _______________ I felt bad about doing this as I attached the movement enchantment on the underside of the back bench, right beside the weight enchantment. ¡°I''m sorry. I can''t allow that.¡± Alex and Donna turned their heads to look at me. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Alex asked. ¡°It''ll take too long if we don''t use my magic.¡± I said and sat down on the back bench. ¡°Roy, Rich, you can stop poling.¡± I said and put the tiniest amount of magic into the enchantment that I could. ¡°Whoa!¡± Roy said and staggered slightly. ¡°What was that?¡± ¡°Marsh magic.¡± I said and he nodded. He pulled the pole in and shook it, not realizing that no water had stuck to it, and he sat down. Rich did the same and he smiled as he sat. ¡°Okay, this isn''t too bad.¡± ¡°Yeah, you better hold on.¡± I said and gripped the front of the back bench myself. ¡°Hey, wait!¡± Roy said. ¡°How are you going to steer without a pole?¡± I gave him wide eyes and he laughed. ¡°Magic. Right.¡± Roy said and looked forward. ¡°All right, Marsh Man. Show me your magic.¡± I added a bit more magic to the weight enchantment and the boat rose up to be only a few inches in the water. I started using the vigilance technique, so that I would have the best control of the boat as possible. I wouldn''t learn until much later that there were things on other boats that would allow me to steer, without having to use additional magic. ¡°Good lord.¡± Rich said. ¡°We''re almost floating.¡± No one corrected him by saying we were floating already, especially when I slowly added more magic to the movement enchantment and the boat took off. With barely any of the boat in the water, the design proved sound and didn''t slow the boat down at all as we sped along, faster than any of them had ever moved in a boat before, even the marine. The boat took the turns and only tipped slightly, just enough to keep everyone in the boat, and no one was flung out, even going so fast. Alex and Donna turned their heads back to stare at me with surprise on their faces and a little bit of fear. ¡°WOOOHOOOO!¡± Roy yelled and looked like he was having the time of his life. Water splashed his face and he would hoot and holler every time. He stayed that way for the entire three hour ride to the next village. ¡°That was GREAT!¡± He yelled as my boat lost power and slowed down. He picked up his pole and started poling without being asked. ¡°I''m really glad the CO picked me!¡± ¡°At least... someone... is happy.¡± Rich said and stood up a little shakily with the other pole. _______________ You have a minor choice to make. A) Pole yourself. B) Let Rich do it. C) Use a bit more magic. I think I''d rather play it safe and pole myself. Rich doesn''t look too good, even though he took the general health potion. I thought. I choose A. _______________ I stood up and walked over to Rich and put a hand on his shoulder as I took the pole from his weak hands. ¡°Thanks.¡± Rich said and sat down. ¡°Ugh. I feel sick.¡± Alex reached forward and pat his shoulder. ¡°Was this your first time on a fast boat?¡± Rich nodded. ¡°Even in a storm, the ship I was on barely went a quarter of that.¡± Alex laughed and leaned back. ¡°Donna and I were on this nice schooner back in the capital harbour about five years ago.¡± ¡°Don''t make it sound like we were on a date or anything.¡± Donna said and he laughed again. ¡°It was a patrol of the wrecks and I have to say, the choppy water and the high winds when you approach the sea, sure make you feel small.¡± Roy pointed to a good spot on the ten foot high dock and I widened my eyes. ¡°We can get in there. Trust me.¡± He said and I nodded, then we did our best to work our way into the spot. ¡°The run back into the harbour with the prevailing winds that day was something else.¡± Alex said. ¡°Yes, scary.¡± Donna rolled her eyes. ¡°It was exhilarating.¡± Alex chuckled and kissed her. ¡°You know I would never let anything happen to you if I can help it.¡± ¡°Exactly how would you have stopped a boat from careening into the shoals and wrecking?¡± Donna asked. ¡°I prayed hard, of course.¡± Alex said as the flat bottomed boat bumped into the very large dock that had a ton of boats and even a full ship docked to it. He stood up and slung his pack over his shoulders, then helped Donna with hers. Rich was next and he swayed a little. ¡°I think Rich just volunteered to watch the boat.¡± Roy said as he put on his pack. ¡°Good... idea.¡± Rich said and took off his pack. I tied us up and deactivated the weight enchantment to let the boat settle, then used the same tricks to secure it. ¡°Canvas and tarps first. I need to finish the boat before we can store anything else on it.¡± I said and everyone agreed. We climbed up onto the walkway and went up the stairs to the top of the dock. I had never seen a dock with stairs before and it was neat, because the top was level with the larger ships to make loading and unloading easier. Back at the village, they only used winches and ropes. ¡°Has anyone been here before?¡± Alex asked and no one raised their hands. ¡°Right. Let''s look for boat building signs as we approach the land.¡± The flurry of activity on the dock was almost mind-boggling, because the village wasn''t a village at all. It was a town with thousands of people living in it. ¡°I see one!¡± Donna said and pointed. It had a nice flag with a boat design and ''Craig''s Shipbuilders'' stitched onto it. ¡°Good eye.¡± Alex praised her, since it was nearly hidden in a sea of other flags, and we made our way down the dock and through a side street to the building. It was three times the size of Michelle''s building and inside had several boat slips and three large boats being built. A dozen people were working and one of the men saw us standing there. ¡°What cannai do fer you folks?¡± He said in an odd accent. ¡°We need a large piece of sail canvas.¡± Alex said and told him the dimensions. ¡°Ha! Barely a baby ship! Is it a foresail er something?¡± He asked and led us over to a huge roll of the fabric. ¡°Something like that.¡± Alex said and the man pulled out the right amount, gave it a look, and pulled out another couple of feet. The thing was already square, so he didn''t have any extra work to do to cut it. He whistled and two women ran over. One was a blonde and the other a brunette, and then the ends were folded over, sewn with a hem, and metal grommets were added to the four corners. ¡°You''ll be looking fer eyehooks, too.¡± He said and handed over a handful. ¡°It''s best ta replace them with the new sail. Don''t trust the old ones ta hold a new thick sail.¡± ¡°How much?¡± Alex asked. ¡°Thirty six silver.¡± The man said and saw Alex''s surprised face. ¡°Ah, I know it''s a bit expensive; but, yer not getting ready made sail anywhere else. It''s a three day wait, if''n yer lucky.¡± _______________ You have a choice to make. A) Pay without a word. B) Complain. C) Pay and complain. D) Give a bit extra for the quick service. I saw the other ships outside and the ships in here. Having sail canvas right here and done in five minutes? That''s a great service. I''ll choose D. _______________ I knew that was true, considering it was going to take Michelle part of the winter to make it for me, or so she said. I took some of my money out of my pocket and held it out as I counted it into the man''s hands. When I reached thirty six, which just so happened to be the number of potions inside a crate, I had two silver coins left. I lifted my head and saw the two women had rolled up the canvas for me and held it out. I remembered Mrs. Hansen and how happy she looked when Alex had given her that money, so I flipped the rolled canvas onto my shoulder and held my hand out to them with the two silver coins on it. Both women took in sharp breaths and looked at the man. ¡°Aye, go ahead. If''n he wants ta waste his money on trollops, let it be on his own head, not mine.¡± ¡°I prefer the term ''lady of the night''.¡± The brunette said and plucked one of the silver coins from my hand. ¡°If you''re still around tonight, come back here and we can have some fun.¡± ¡°She means have sex.¡± Roy whispered in my ear. I widened my eyes and raised my eyebrows at her as I touched my face with my other hand. ¡°Don''t worry about that none.¡± She said as the blonde took the other coin with a blush. ¡°It''ll just be something interesting to stare at when we''re in bed.¡± ¡°Okay, now I''m regretting getting here so fast.¡± Roy said and winked at her. ¡°We have to leave as soon as we get some supplies.¡± ¡°Aw, that''s too bad.¡± The brunette said with a sly smile. ¡°I wouldn''t mind having another handsome face giving us a hand.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Donna whispered and smacked Roy''s shoulder. ¡°Come on. Out. OUT.¡± ¡°Sorry, darling! Duty calls!¡± Roy laughed and led the way back out. ¡°I''ll be waiting in case you''re late leaving! For some reason! Like me!¡± The brunette waved at us and Roy waved back. ¡°She definitely smelled easy money.¡± Alex said and looked at me. ¡°What was that about?¡± ¡°I just remembered Mrs. Hansen''s happy face when you gave her that money.¡± I said. Roy laughed and Donna sighed. ¡°You need to be careful who you offer money to, especially if they are... ahem... ladies of the night.¡± ¡°What''s that mean?¡± I asked and Alex explained in a very polite way what the job really entailed. My mouth was hung open in surprise when he was done and Roy laughed pretty hard for the rest of the walk to Steve''s place. 051 Shop Till You Drop Thanks to Diane''s directions, we made it to the warehouse Steve worked after only twenty minutes of walking around to find the right street. Unfortunately, the place was huge and was about the size of the garrison inside. It took us another ten minutes and asking fifteen people where he was, before we finally found Steve in a little office near the back with the door open. Steve saw us coming and immediately put his hands up as he stood. ¡°I swear, that mage said she was bonded...¡± Roy burst out laughing and Donna hushed him. ¡°We''re not here for whatever that means.¡± Alex said and motioned to me. I stepped forward and leaned in close. ¡°Diane sent us here on a secret mission.¡± Steve gave me a wide eyed look for a second, then his face split into a huge grin. ¡°I hope she wasn''t lying when she said she had a marsh panther pelt for me.¡± ¡°It''s not tanned yet.¡± I said and didn''t mention the other pelts I had. ¡°Ha! Very funny.¡± Steve said. ¡°I''ll take the thing with fresh blood still dripping off of it if I have to.¡± He said and sat back down. ¡°I can turn exotic stuff like that over right away for a huge profit, even while giving her a fair price for it.¡± ¡°You''re a broker?¡± Alex asked. ¡°The best and brightest.¡± Steve said. ¡°I assume she gave you a list of stuff.¡± I took it out and handed it to him, along with the gold coins Diane had given me. ¡°Hmm. The list seems a little light. I guess she doesn''t have a lot of ready cash, huh?¡± Steve asked and looked at the money. _______________ You have a minor choice to make. Will you do this normally or take advantage of the situation? A) Offer more money. B) Hand over Mrs. Hansen''s list. C) Stay quiet. I know the supplies are really for Mack and for the village, so I''m not going to offer more money. I stood there and thought about it. Since the only real money Diane had came from the marsh panther pelt she sold, she must be doing it because of the house deal. I thought and read the options again. Okay, I am totally taking advantage of this deal. I choose B. _______________ ¡°If you can easily fill that list, can you fill this one, too?¡± I asked and handed over Mrs. Hansen''s baking goods list and her two gold coins. ¡°Separate orders.¡± ¡°Ooo, two clients? Did she open the specialty store she wanted?¡± Steve asked. ¡°She has near-deer antlers hanging behind her counter.¡± I said. ¡°HA!¡± Steve barked the laugh. ¡°She knows how to draw in customers, at least!¡± He said and I nodded. ¡°All right. I''ll have these done up right away and I''ll meet you out by the loading doors.¡± ¡°We''ll need a trolley cart or...¡± Alex started to say. ¡°This is not some hand-me-down run-of-the-mill shipping business. I''ll have two lorry carts loaded up with horses to pull them.¡± Steve said. ¡°I assume you''ve got a boat on the dock?¡± I nodded and told him the size. ¡°Damn, you really wanted these supplies to pole that huge thing this far from Ester''s Village?¡± Steve asked. ¡°Just for that, I''ll add in another couple bags of flour.¡± He said with a laugh and clapped me on the shoulder. ¡°I love meeting crazy people.¡± He said and left the office at a fast walk. We exchanged looks for a moment, Alex shrugged, and we followed him back outside. We walked around the building, which took a couple of minutes, and found the loading doors. Two men with horses and large carts were there and the backs of the carts were quickly filled up with the supplies I had paid for. Steve saw me staring and he nodded. ¡°We''re the best in the business.¡± He said and pointed. ¡°That''s Diane''s order.¡± He pointed to the other cart. ¡°That''s the other woman''s order.¡± ¡°Thanks.¡± I said and put the roll of sail canvas in that cart. ¡°Next time, don''t try to sneak something past me. If you have more than one order, just tell me first.¡± Steve said. ¡°I was going to try and buy them from a shop.¡± I said. Steve gave me a surprised look and shook his head. ¡°Yep, you''re crazy.¡± _______________ You have another small choice to make since he saw through your deception. This will effect your relationship with Steve and Diane. A) Apologize. B) Offer money. C) Offer something else. D) Stay silent. E) Choose two. I can''t offer money, not after that. I thought. Staying silent is probably bad, so I think I''ll choose two. A and then C. _______________ ¡°I''m sorry that I didn''t know how you did things here.¡± I said and reached into my bandoleer and pulled out a healing potion. ¡°How much do healing potions sell for around here?¡± Steve chuckled and stepped into the warehouse for a minute and then stepped out with a crate of them. ¡°I''ve got crates of them here.¡± ¡°Can I see one?¡± I asked and he opened the crate and tossed me one. I caught it and held them up to let the sunlight glint off of them. ¡°They don''t look like mine.¡± Steve stepped close and looked at them. ¡°Hey, you''re right. Yours has a deeper hue.¡± I nodded. ¡°I use different ingredients and it''s not for anything specific like the others.¡± I said and handed him the duller one, then handed him mine. Steve gave me an odd look for a moment. ¡°Are you trying to break into the potion market?¡± He asked and glanced at Alex. ¡°Only licensed mages can sell magic infused potions.¡± ¡°It''s a good thing he''s giving it to you and I don''t have to run you both in for it.¡± Alex chuckled and waved at us to board the carts with the workers. ¡°Ha.¡± Steve said as we climbed on the carts. ¡°Make sure that you tell Diane, ''mission successful''.¡± I nodded and the two drivers flicked the reins. The horses trotted away from the large warehouse and five minutes later, we were back at the dock and the workers carried everything down the stairs and onto the boat. ¡°This is a really nice boat.¡± One of the workers said when he stepped on it and it didn''t rock at all. ¡°Ugly as hell and sturdy.¡± ¡°Just like the Marsh Man.¡± Roy said with a laugh and pat my shoulder. ¡°Zip the lip and give us a hand with the sail.¡± Donna said and started to unroll the canvas as the workers finished loading the boat with the two orders clearly separated. We attached the two eye hooks to the front two posts and then tossed the canvas over the middle support posts. The next two eye hooks were attached to the rear poles and then we eased the canvas over to the poles. It didn''t quite reach, so Roy used one of the push poles to prop the front half of the canvas up to remove the slack and Rich did the same to the back.Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. That gave me enough room to hook one side and then I did the other. After a few more pokes with the push poles to get the canvas to settle with an equal amount on both sides of the main support posts, I secured it into place with some number ten potion, discretely of course. ¡°How you feeling, Rich?¡± Roy asked. ¡°Like a horse shat me out.¡± Rich said with a groan. ¡°So, normal.¡± Roy joked and then laughed. ¡°We need tarps and cooking pots.¡± I said and waved at all of the supplies that were a ridiculous amount for the money I had spent. ¡°If I wasn''t in the army, supplies like this would let me live in the marsh for years.¡± Alex and Donna gave me a look that I couldn''t read, even when I quickly used the vigilance technique. ¡°I think I saw a flag with an anvil off to the left.¡± Donna said and pointed, then the four of us left the boat and went up the stairs. ¡°There.¡± ¡°No wonder they send you out for scouting missions all the time.¡± Alex complimented and she blushed a little. We quickly went there and they had tons of the large stewing pots. They even had handles. Apparently, they weren''t that big of a seller this far away from bigger game in the thicker forests. I got five of them for the cost of one back home, and that was at the normal price and not the inflated one the blacksmith tried to charge me, too. ¡°Now we now why the blacksmith said he would sell them to us at a discount when we told him we were coming here for them.¡± Alex said and shook his head. ¡°I wonder if he made them himself or just bought them here?¡± ¡°Himself.¡± I said and stacked the pots together and tied the handles to my pack and put it back on. ¡°He doesn''t make them with handles.¡± Alex nodded and thanked the blacksmith, then had the inspiration to ask where a general store was. Luckily, it was practically next door and I bought ten tarps for the price of one back home. This new town is amazing. I thought as we left there and went back to the boat. It didn''t take us long to cover everything to make sure it wouldn''t get wet from the splashing, then we cast off and poled out from the small slip the boat was in. I had to use the weight enchantment right away, because there were so many heavy things in the boat. To my surprise, Rich took out a bedroll and tucked himself under one of the tarps between the supplies at the back of the boat. ¡°Wake me when we get there.¡± Rich said and then started snoring right away. I opened my mouth to speak as I pointed to him, and the others laughed softly. ¡°You learn to sleep whenever you can in the army.¡± Alex whispered while Donna and Roy nodded. ¡°Is this far enough?¡± Roy asked and glanced around. ¡°A little more.¡± I responded. Once we were partially obscured from the dock by another boat, I nodded and we all sat down. I used some magic in the movement enchantment and we took off. We were quickly out of sight and the sail canvas flapped in the wind. There was a bit too much slack in it and I now realized why a winch would have been better, even if I had gotten four of them and done them individually. I shrugged and used the vigilance technique to help me steer the boat and added more magic. Roy let out little whoops under his breath as he sat right at the front of the boat and enjoyed the ride all the way back to what I now knew was Ester''s Village. I had been going there for seven years and no one had told me the name. I smiled, because I hadn''t learned that the marsh I lived in was called Drake''s Marsh until I met the new CO. I looked at the others in the boat and realized that I was learning a lot from them about how things in the world worked, which was what they had promised. I liked that they kept their promise. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Skipping travel times. Reviewing interactions. Done. Continuing story. _______________ The trip went by in a blur and we stopped at Diane''s place. It was not an ideal offloading situation, so it was time for me to make a suitable dock. I had seen two different kinds now and since I could meld wood together to perfect dimensions, I decided to make one similar to the one in Ester Village. It was a good height and supplies could be easily transferred from a boat to the top of the dock at waist height. It was easy to use logs as posts and supports, since they didn''t need to be trimmed or cut, except to make the bottom flat and the right height to stay out of the water. Even making the rectangle dock went even quicker than I thought, because you needed to leave spaces for water to run through the planks when they got wet. I barely used any number ten potion and was done in what Alex had said was ''record time'', whatever that was. Alex explained that it meant I had finished before anyone else could have and I understood. We transferred all of Diane''s goods to the new dock and Roy ran up the road and across the property to get the hand cart that they had left by the garrison. He was back a couple of minutes later and we loaded it up to a ridiculous amount. A dangerous amount. ¡°No, that''s not going to work.¡± Alex said and we unloaded it. ¡°David, can you make it longer like you did to your old boat?¡± ¡°Sure.¡± I said and used my knife to slice off the front part of the hand cart off, then used freshly cut planks to extend it by eight feet and applied the fortifying waterproof potion. No one said anything for several minutes when I was done and just stared at it. ¡°Um... Donna? Go and get Diane while we load this thing.¡± Alex said and she took off at a jog. We loaded it up again and the supplies easily fit inside the huge ''hand'' cart. We put the heavy bags in the back for counterbalance, Alex said, and explained what that meant. ¡°It''s all you, now.¡± Roy said and pat my shoulder and waved at the handle. I stepped inside the opening and lifted it up easily. ¡°We''ll help push.¡± Alex said and the two men went to the back. ¡°Okay, David.¡± I started walking and there wasn''t any real resistance. I was pretty far from the wheels and didn''t really feel their impacts on the ground and it felt light. ¡°This counter balance thing is great!¡± I exclaimed and walked up the road as if I was walking normally and not pulling a twelve foot long cart full of supplies. We met Donna and Diane on the main road. ¡°David!¡± Diane said loudly when she saw me. ¡°I thought Donna was lying when she said you guys had gone and come back already!¡± She came over to me and her eyes widened. ¡°Is that Dad''s hand cart?¡± I nodded. ¡°We couldn''t get all the supplies in it, so I fixed it.¡± Diane went to the side and checked the contents. She glanced at everything and smiled. ¡°I''m glad Steve came through again.¡± ¡°Steve said to tell you, ''mission accomplished''.¡± I said and her face broke into a huge grin. ¡°He likes you!¡± Diane said and reached out to rub my arm. ¡°I''m so glad. I thought he might not like me sending someone else in my place.¡± ¡°He also said that you better have that panther pelt for him, tanned or not.¡± I said. Diane laughed. ¡°He''s a great supplier, even if he is a bit greedy to get his hands on new products.¡± I guess that''s why he was surprised by my healing potion. I thought. ¡°Let''s get this over to Dad''s store.¡± Diane said and then she gasped. ¡°D-David, I... I''m sorry. I know what you feel about what happened to you and the Hag.¡± ¡°I hope he''s going to give you the money back for all of this.¡± I said and looked at her with the vigilance technique. As if she knew I was doing it, she sighed. ¡°I have to help out because of the house.¡± I waited for a second and she didn''t apologize or say she would ask for the money. ¡°Don''t be angry. Please.¡± Diane said. ¡°It won''t take me long to pay off the rest of John''s debt to the store.¡± I nodded and we brought the supplies to the general store. I didn''t help unloading, even when Mack came out to thank me for making the run. He didn''t mention the modified cart or that it looked sturdier. After that, we left and took the hand cart back to the boat. We loaded up all of the baking supplies and I pulled the cart all the way back down the road to Mrs. Hansen''s house. I had felt my ward when we passed it earlier and knew that this was the right place. Donna knocked on the door and we waited. I felt the ward was moving and the door opened. ¡°Hiiiii!¡± Gloria said when she saw me and waved. ¡°Hiiiii!¡± I said and waved back. ¡°Is your mom home?¡± ¡°She''s in the kitchen.¡± Gloria said and turned around as she took a huge breath. ¡°MOOOOOOOM!¡± She yelled at the top of her lungs, even though we could see the kitchen was right there beside the living room. There was a sound of a metal pan clattering to the floor and a loud sigh. ¡°Gloria, you know I''m busy.¡± Mrs. Hansen said as she came out of the kitchen, her hands and forearms covered in flour with hand prints all over her nice apron. ¡°Oh! Hello.¡± She said when she saw us. ¡°Did you change your mind and didn''t go?¡± ¡°Actually, thanks to the Marsh Man''s magic, we''ve been there and come back.¡± Alex said. ¡°Wh-wh-what?!?¡± Mrs. Hansen looked at Alex, then at me, then at the large hand cart. ¡°N-no, you have to be joking.¡± She said and slowly walked through the living room and stopped at the door. ¡°It''s not possible. It''s three days by boat to get there and then three days to come back.¡± ¡°Not for David.¡± Roy said and clapped my shoulder. ¡°It sure was fun!¡± ¡°W-well, if... if this isn''t a dream, then please bring the supplies in. I''ll move them to the storage cupboard later.¡± ¡°I hope it''s more like a storage room.¡± Alex joked. We started unloading sacks and sacks of ingredients for baking. Mrs. Hansen stared, her mouth dropped open, just like mine had been after learning about ladies of the night. It took us ten minutes to get everything into her living room and the place itself looked like a storage room. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Mrs. Hansen whispered and looked over everything. ¡°H-how...¡± ¡°We met the guy that runs the best shipping business in town.¡± I said and she looked at me, her eyes wet with tears. ¡°You... why...¡± ¡°I really like your sugar bread.¡± I said with a shrug. Mrs. Hansen walked over to me and gave me a hug, which really surprised me. ¡°Thank you.¡± She said and looked up at my face. ¡°I''m sorry that you''ve lived the life you have, even though it''s turned out like this.¡± She said and reached up to touch the small snake fang hole in my cheek. ¡°This was all because Benji and Marge thought you were too sick to take care of as a baby.¡± I took in a sharp breath and she gave me a worried look. ¡°Benji and Marge?¡± Alex asked. ¡°I... I shouldn''t have...¡± Mrs. Hansen said and tried to let me go. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. A) Ask her. B) Let her go. C) Keep hold and ask. D) Yell. E) Run. F) Wreck everything. I remembered all of the things I had to go through to get to this point. Definitely C. _______________ I clamped my arms around her and she couldn''t back away. ¡°Please. Tell me who my parents are.¡± She looked up into my eyes and whatever she saw there, it made her sigh in defeat and more tears appeared. ¡°Benjamin and Margaret Addams.¡± 052 Family Values _______________ Memory enhancement mode. Playing condensed memories. Success rate of recall: 90% _______________ I stood there as the memories of all the things the Hag put me through ran through my mind. My hate for my parents built inside of me because everything that happened to me was their fault. All of it. Every bite, every cut, every hit, every cruel word, and every time the Hag feasted on me, made the hate build and grow to a size that I was surprised I wasn''t covered in flames because it burned so hot inside of me. _______________ You have another critical choice to make. This will change how the story progresses significantly. A) Do nothing. B) Thank her. C) Confront them. D) Run. E) Yell. F) Kill them all. G) Choose two. I didn''t even have to think about it. I choose D and C. _______________ I let Mrs. Hansen go and stepped back, anger clearly on my face. I didn''t say anything to her as I turned away. ¡°David!¡± Donna exclaimed and reached for me. ¡°Don''t!¡± I activated the vigilance technique, dodged her hand, and started to run. ¡°DAAAAVID!¡± Donna yelled from behind me. I poured on the speed and ran back up the road to the garrison. It was in the field across from the Addams farm and I turned away from the gates to run down the well maintained road. They would never catch me before I got there. I saw that there was a nice sized house in the field by the water. I had passed by it several times and I had no clue that it was where I had lived as a child. Several men were putting sacks of things into a cart and saw me running towards them. ¡°HEY! STOP!¡± One of them yelled when he saw the anger on my face. He picked up a pitchfork and held it threateningly towards me as the other man took a fighting stance. I almost laughed at the pathetic attempts to defend against me, since a jumping spider was faster than their reaction time and I had been handling deadly spiders since I was a child. I was an adult now and easily dodged the first feeble attack by the pitchfork, slammed my elbow into the hand that held the handle and broke both, then tackled the other man to the ground. A quick slap to his chest left him gasping for air and I stood up. ¡°S-s-stop.¡± The man with the broken hand said. I ignored him and walked over to the front door. I planted my foot into the center of the door and it splintered apart with the sound of thunder and fell to the floor of the nice living room. ¡°AHHH!¡± A woman screamed in fright and jumped up from the chair she sat in. It was Linda, Hope''s sister. An older lady, I assumed was Margaret and my mother, sat on the nice plush couch across the room and hadn''t even flinched at my entrance. ¡°What was that noise?¡± Hope asked as she ran into the room and then she gasped when she saw me. ¡°James!¡± ¡°Why?¡± I asked the older lady as I stepped into the room. ¡°Leave this instant! You can''t just break in...¡± Linda started to say. ¡°Hush, child.¡± Margaret said and stared at me. ¡°You look just like him, even with the angry face and no hair.¡± ¡°I told you he looked like Dad.¡± Hope said and walked over to the couch and stood beside her mother. ¡°Get away... from Mom!¡± A man''s voice said from behind me. ¡°I can break your other hand if you want.¡± I said without turning around and stopped walking halfway across the living room. ¡°Frank, drop the broken pitchfork. It obviously didn''t work the first time.¡± Margaret said. ¡°Come closer, James.¡± ¡°My name is David. David Drake.¡± I said and stayed where I was. ¡°No, your name is James Benjamin Addams and...¡± ¡°...you sold me to the Hag as a baby.¡± I interrupted and cut her off. ¡°Slaves don''t have names.¡± Hope had tears appear in her eyes and she wiped at them. ¡°James, I... I''m really sorry...¡± ¡°Why did you do it?¡± I asked the older lady and ignored Hope.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°We needed money to save the farm.¡± Margaret said. ¡°The animal''s water was poisoned and we were going to lose everything. You were constantly sick and we used up so much money and time trying to keep you healthy, until we found out that you had been drinking the animal''s water.¡± I remained silent as she explained. ¡°We called for help and then we made a deal with the Hag. In exchange for you, she gave us money, dug the irrigation ditches, purified the water, and then grew our crops in a month.¡± Margaret said, completely unapologetic. ¡°Our family prospered so much after you were gone. We were well fed, had lots of money from growing the best crops, and everyone was so much happier.¡± ¡°Momma?¡± A young blonde haired boy about 12 years old came into the room. ¡°What''s going on?¡± ¡°Your older brother just came for a visit.¡± Margaret said and the boy sat down on the couch. I stared at the very normal and healthy looking boy. She called me his older brother. I thought and then looked at the older lady. ¡°How sad were you that the Hag didn''t come by to buy another one?¡± Hope and Linda gasped. ¡°Shut up!¡± Frank said from behind me and swung his still working fist at me. I stepped aside and grabbed his arm, pulled it up behind his back, then shoved him to the floor. His arm snapped as his head thumped into the rug and I knelt on him. I wasn''t being as careful as I should have been. ¡°NO!¡± Linda yelled and ran over to him. ¡°Let him go!¡± I stood up and let his arm flop to the side. ¡°He''s not dead.¡± Hope stared at her older brother for a second and then stared at me. ¡°Do you hate mom so much that you would hurt your brother like that?¡± ¡°He''s not my brother.¡± I said and started unbuttoning my shirt. ¡°I''ve learned a bit about family now and how they should be treated.¡± I pulled open my shirt and let it drop to the floor. ¡°Family would never let this happen.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Linda whispered as she looked up at my damaged and scarred body. Hope cried hard and Margaret''s face became flat and didn''t show any expression. ¡°You''re really ugly.¡± The boy said. ¡°You... need a... healer.¡± Hope said through her sobs. ¡°It''s already healed as much as it ever will be.¡± I said and she covered her eyes and her body shook as she cried even harder. ¡°Well? What are you waiting for?¡± Margaret asked and looked into my eyes. ¡°Hurry up and take your revenge.¡± ¡°DAVID!¡± Donna''s voice yelled. I heard running feet and exhausted breathing as the others approached the house. ¡°Where''s... Mr. Addams?¡± Alex said as he leaned against the open doorway. ¡°Dead. He died during the winter.¡± Margaret said without looking away from me. ¡°If you wanted to kill him for what we did to you, then you''re too late.¡± She said. ¡°So, go ahead. I''m waiting. Do your worst.¡± I stared into her eyes and wondered what she was thinking. Hurry up and kill me! I can''t stand looking at your ruined body any longer! Margaret thought. I did that to you, just as much as the Hag did! Please, please, kill me! I deserve it! ¡°You can do what you want with me as long as you stop hurting your brothers and sisters.¡± ¡°They aren''t my brothers and sisters.¡± I said as I knelt down and touched the floor. Linda gasped and pulled Frank away from me. ¡°David, what are you doing?¡± Donna asked. ¡°I''m taking back what the Hag gave them for me.¡± I said and closed my eyes. I felt with my magic, which was something I had never done while using the vigilance technique before, and I pushed it out and into the ground. I felt the Hag''s blessing on the land and the water in the trenches. I used my own magic to infuse into it and then cast the dispel spell. The ground shook and the house settled down slightly and there was the sound of ground shifting outside. I felt the ground start to wither as the life giving water stopped flowing and pulled my magic back. My work of undoing the Hag''s magic was done. I stood up with my shirt and looked at Margaret. ¡°Was it worth it?¡± I asked as I put the shirt on and buttoned it. ¡°Was having years of prosperity worth torturing a child?¡± Margaret didn''t say anything and kept the same blank expression on her face. Hope shook her head several times. ¡°I lost my two year old brother and I missed him every single day since then.¡± She said and wiped at her eyes. ¡°I''ve been looking for you in town all this time and I''m sorry that I didn''t find you until last year.¡± How could she have missed me? The Hag and I were all over town for years. I thought. Wait, I was two when she bought me? I thought in surprise and then wished that I could hear what she was thinking. My heart''s been broken every day that I didn''t see your smiling and laughing face. Even when you were sick all the time, you would throw up and then just laughed it off like it was nothing. I miss you so much and I don''t hate this new you, even though you''re scary and angry now. You''re not sick anymore, even though you look like you''ve been chewed up and spat out. I miss your laugh. I want to hear you laugh like that again. I really do. Hope thought and she smiled sadly. ¡°Please, don''t hate me for losing you.¡± I opened my mouth to respond and Donna touched my shoulder. ¡°We need to go and finish the mission.¡± Donna said. I gave the older lady one last look and saw that her face was still blank, so I turned around to leave. I ignored Donna handing Linda the healing potion and walked out through the doorway. I didn''t glance around, because I knew what I was going to see if I did. I had felt the trenches collapse and the dirt churned and compacted into a hardened state, which made it practically useless as farming land. By the time I reached the main road, Roy and Rich were there with the cart. I took over and we went back to Diane''s place. I quickly cut up hundreds of planks, while leaving the choice cuts for Michelle''s boat building business, then took the filled cart to the village. I had Diane''s new store built behind her shack in only an hour, since using the potion let me make the walls as quickly as stacking them, especially with Roy''s and Rich''s help. I harvested the door and windows from the shack and put them where Diane wanted them and then built her racks, shelves, and a new counter. Once again, it was so fast because of the potion, that I now had so much of, and it made it very easy to built things from wood. I even made her a pile of tables and chairs with the extra planks that I didn''t use, so she would have more things to sell. I left her to transfer everything into the new place and promised to cut up the shack when I came back with more things for her to sell, and we left the modified hand cart by the dock and went back to Diane''s place. We climbed into my boat and I didn''t bother pretending to pole the boat. I sat down and used the movement enchantment to leave that waterway, sped around the large dock of the village, and entered the other waterway to head home. I successfully ignored the hollers of surprise from the dock, because I was far beyond caring what they thought about me now. 053 Basic Instincts I forced myself to not think about what happened and focused on staying alive for now. Being distracted in the marsh was not a good idea. I also made sure to take many twists and turns down different waterways as I could while still moving forwards and then brought us to a stop at a spot with interconnected waterways. ¡°Why are we stopping?¡± Roy asked and I heard the sadness in his voice. ¡°Forget that.¡± Rich said. ¡°Why is that boar staring at us?¡± ¡°Because we stink.¡± I said and took off the pack on my back. ¡°We smell too much like things that don''t belong here.¡± I pulled out the canvas bag and Donna visibly shivered. ¡°No, you... you can''t...¡± Donna whispered. ¡°Now you know why I brought it.¡± I said and cut it open. There was no breeze, so the smell only flowed out a little, until I dug my hand in and pulled out a handful of mud. Rich gagged and Donna had her mouth and nose covered. ¡°You can''t really expect us to...¡± Alex started to say and then he winced when I rubbed it all over my new uniform and my face, both hands, and my boots. ¡°That is never coming clean.¡± ¡°I''m not worried about being clean. I''m worried about dying.¡± I said and took out another handful. ¡°Who''s next?¡± ¡°Nope. Just nope.¡± Rich said. ¡°I did not sign up for this mission to rub shit all over myself.¡± ¡°Do you want a dragon to eat you?¡± I asked and they stared at me with their mouths open. ¡°One moved into the marsh just before I came to town.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Donna whispered. ¡°You still want to live here?¡± ¡°It''s my home.¡± I said and walked over to her. ¡°I''ll do it so that you don''t have to touch it.¡± Donna looked at Alex for a moment, who nodded. ¡°All right.¡± I started on her sleeves and moved up to rub it on her shoulders, then her hands reached up and caught my wrists before I touched her chest. ¡°Alex can do that part after you cover him.¡± Donna said. ¡°The same with my backside.¡± I raised my eyebrows at her. ¡°A woman''s sensitive parts shouldn''t be... fondled... by someone other than the man she is with.¡± Donna said. ¡°You see, when a man and a woman are intimate with each other...¡± Alex stepped forward. ¡°You can leave off the romantic commentary, dear.¡± He said and took a bit of mud from me. ¡°She just doesn''t want to be aroused by another man if he touches her there, even if he''s being professional about it.¡± ¡°Alex!¡± Donna gasped and Roy and Rich laughed. ¡°You can''t tell David only one viewpoint, or he won''t understand why he shouldn''t be offering to grope every woman he sees.¡± ¡°I can''t?¡± I asked and Roy and Rich laughed. ¡°Not now that you know not to.¡± Alex said and rubbed his hands on Donna''s chest. Her face went red and she closed her mouth to stop any sounds from escaping. He rubbed her ass next and she let out a little humming moan. ¡°Now tell him the exceptions.¡± Roy said with a grin. ¡°Don''t go there.¡± Alex cautioned him. ¡°Aww, come on! We''ve got fresh bait right there!¡± Roy said and motioned to me. ¡°Do you know how many laughs we can have if we teach him right?¡± ¡°I order you to teach him properly.¡± Alex corrected him. ¡°David needs to know how to interact with more people, not learn how to piss them off for offending them.¡± ¡°Says the rich kid that has a hard time talking to commoners.¡± Roy said with a smirk. ¡°David, may I?¡± Alex asked and held a hand out to the sack. I shrugged and handed it over, then Donna suddenly took my hand and pulled me out of the way. I stood on one of the balancers on the side of the boat with Donna, after I finished covering her uniform and hat with mud. We also watched a small mud ball fight as she explained what was going on. I thought it was an odd way to achieve doing something that had to be done to live. ¡°They are building camaraderie with each other.¡± Donna whispered. ¡°It''s difficult to create a mutually beneficial relationship with people if you don''t carry on or joke occasionally.¡± ¡°How do you know when to do it?¡± I asked. ¡°I should just say that you''ll know it when the moment comes; but, you''ve never gone out and played games with children, have you?¡± ¡°What are games?¡± I asked. Donna caught her breath and turned to stare at me. She looked even more surprised than Rich did when he was splattered in the face with a stinky mud ball. It took her a while to explain what she meant by games and what people did to play them. It was pretty confusing, since there didn''t seem to be any particular point to playing them. After a short while, we all smelled pretty much like we belonged there and the boar that had been a hundred feet away, snorted and sauntered off. ¡°I wonder if he liked seeing the fight, too?¡± Donna asked with a chuckle and that made Alex, Roy, and Rich laugh. We got moving again and I backtracked a little and took a different route. ¡°Why aren''t we being attacked?¡± Alex asked me after an hour of going deeper into the marsh. ¡°I thought you said that we would have to dodge snakes and spiders constantly?¡± ¡°We would have if I hadn''t given Gloria a protection ward.¡± I said. ¡°What? How did giving her a ward stop us from being attacked?¡± Alex asked, surprise on his face. ¡°She showed me that it worked when moving.¡± I said. ¡°It was like a big bubble around her. When she moved, creatures moved away from the bubble.¡± ¡°How did you not discover this before?¡± ¡°I always hung them up after they were activated.¡± I said with a shrug. ¡°I''ve never put one on a boat before, either.¡± ¡°You did this time.¡± Alex said and I nodded. ¡°No wonder you were attacked by creatures so much while travelling to town.¡± Donna said. ¡°We were never attacked while I was with the Hag.¡± I said and then I realized something. I remembered what Hope had said about searching for me for years and only saw me last year. It was because I wasn''t with the Hag. I thought. The Hag must have hidden me from her... from my family... to delay or stop what had happened today. I looked ahead and came to the turn to go to the house.Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. _______________ You have a minor choice to make. Will you be all business or have some fun? A) Warn them to look out for the Hag. B) Stay silent. C) Delay going back home. D) Rush in. I have to keep up the ruse, or they won''t be afraid of doing what they want with me. I choose A. _______________ ¡°We''re coming up on the waterway that leads to the house.¡± I said, almost in a whisper, and the four of them tensed up a little. ¡°If we don''t see the other boat by the house, it means the Hag is out on the water somewhere.¡± ¡°I think you could have every boat in the village out here and still not meet each other.¡± Alex said and looked at me. ¡°I have no clue how to get back to the garrison.¡± ¡°I''ve travelled these things for years, usually on foot.¡± I said and he gave me wide eyes. ¡°There''s a lot of places that a boat can''t go in the marsh; but, I still had to cross the waterways.¡± Alex nodded and looked forward, while Donna looked backwards and Roy and Rich looked off to the sides. I slowed way down and took that last turn and proceeded up the waterway to the front of the house. I wasn''t surprised when the water splashed and there was a wave away from the front of the boat. ¡°Water beast.¡± Alex said. ¡°Damn, they move fast when cornered.¡± ¡°I''ll write it down.¡± Donna said and wrote it out without looking down at the paper. ¡°Estimation of speed?¡± ¡°Fifteen clicks, maybe eighteen.¡± Alex said. ¡°We''re moving, so go for the upper estimate.¡± ¡°Done.¡± Donna said. ¡°We''re clear in the rear.¡± ¡°Sides clear.¡± Roy and Rich said. ¡°Front clear. No boat in sight.¡± Alex said and the others relaxed. ¡°Hold on.¡± I said as I slowed us down a little more. I turned the boat slightly and angled it to the dry area, added more magic to the weight enchantment and then pumped a quick burst of magic into the movement enchantment. The boat popped out of the water and slid to a stop on the dry area perfectly. ¡°Holy shit!¡± Roy nearly yelled. ¡°Do that again!¡± ¡°Roy.¡± Alex said and he sighed. ¡°Fine, fine.¡± Roy said and smacked Rich''s back. ¡°You take left and I take right.¡± ¡°Go! Go! Go!¡± Alex said and hopped out. The three of them took six steps and then stopped dead. ¡°WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!?¡± Rich yelled at the 60 foot wide house. ¡°That''s my house.¡± I said. Donna whispered to me and I nodded, then helped her out of the boat like a gentleman would. ¡°David, that thing is massive.¡± ¡°I told you it was.¡± I said. ¡°It took a long time to build.¡± ¡°How long?¡± Alex asked, genuinely curious as he stared at the roof peak that was 60 feet above the ground. ¡°Almost two months.¡± I said and Donna let out a little squeak sound. I walked over to the door and pulled out my knife. I touched the door and used the dispel spell. They all saw the glow dissipate and I cut open the parts I had sealed and used the key in the lock. The door swung open and I went back over to the boat. I grabbed it and used the weight enchantment to make it really light and dragged it over to the house. ¡°The crate storage room is the first one on the right.¡± I said and picked up a stack of five crates with empty potion bottles from the boat and went inside. ¡°Can I look around a little?¡± Donna asked as she followed me in with a crate. ¡°What''s that word Alex used when he showed me around the garrison?¡± I asked. ¡°A tour.¡± ¡°I''ll give you a tour.¡± I said and stepped out of the way as Roy and Rich came in with two creates each. Alex was right behind them with a single crate. ¡°We''ll finish taking the empty bottles into the room and start loading the potions.¡± He said. ¡°Show her everything.¡± ¡°She''s already seen everything.¡± Roy said with a chuckle and then ducked when Donna swiped at him. ¡°Ha! Missed me.¡± He said and ran outside. ¡°He''s implying me seeing you naked for the inspection.¡± Donna said as he came back in with two more crates. ¡°You were crying because I''m so mangled.¡± I said. Roy almost ran into Rich as he was coming out. ¡°Hey! Watch it.¡± Rich said. ¡°You need to work on your land legs.¡± ¡°Y-yeah.¡± Roy said and looked at me, then he went into the room to drop off the crates. ¡°Let''s drop off those pots.¡± Donna said and took my arm as if we were going for a walk, or so she said, and I led her around and told her what each room was for. She was really interested in my work room and then she gasped when I showed her my smoke room that was still half full of smoked meat of all kinds. ¡°You can''t eat most of it.¡± I said and pointed to the piles of rabbit meat and near-deer jerky. ¡°Those are okay.¡± Donna took out a canvas bag and filled it with all of the meat and jerky I had that was safe for normal people to eat. I took out a canvas bag and filled it with all the nice choice cuts of meat that I had prepared for myself. I was definitely going to need it back at the garrison. We went out to the kitchen and I took off my pack to untie the pots. I set them up on the spots that I had previously prepared and they fit perfectly. ¡°It''s too bad I''m out of ingredients.¡± I said and went to my large cooking pot. It was still half filled with meat stew, so I extinguished the fire it was on and took out my last canvas bag. ¡°David! What are you doing?¡± Donna asked. ¡°Oh! Right. I forgot to waterproof it.¡± I said and took out some waterproofing potion and treated the bag. ¡°That would have been a nice mess if I poured it in.¡± Donna chuckled and helped me tilt the pot into the bag when it was ready. ¡°You''ll have to eat it quickly because it won''t last too long without being on the heat.¡± ¡°That''s why I usually let it simmer.¡± I said and closed and sealed the bag. I tied the meat bag and the stew bag to the sides of my pack and put it back on. ¡°David? I haven''t seen a bedroom yet. Where do you sleep?¡± Donna asked. ¡°A BED!¡± I said loudly. ¡°I knew I forgot to buy something when I was in town.¡± Donna laughed and pat my arm. ¡°I''m sure you''ll have plenty of chances to pick up a bed later.¡± ¡°It''s through there.¡± I said and we went through the side door into the room. ¡°It''s huge, just like all the other rooms.¡± Donna said. ¡°There''s not much in here.¡± ¡°I don''t have much need for anything, besides what I already have.¡± I said and we went back out to the main room and then the front room. ¡°We''re just about done.¡± Alex said and passed by us with a full crate of potions. ¡°You know, I don''t even smell the mud anymore.¡± Rich said as he started to pass by us. Thanks to my vigilance technique, I heard less clinking than there was supposed to be in the crate he was carrying. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. It will affect your relationship with Rich. A) Confront him. B) Ignore it. C) Never trust him again. D) Kill him. E) Hit him. F) Choose two. I''m sure that army men aren''t supposed to be stealing. I thought. I''ll choose A and C. _______________ I reached out and grabbed Rich''s arm, then pulled him around to a stop and grabbed the crate from him. ¡°How many potions did you take?¡± I asked him, point blank. ¡°I didn''t take any!¡± Rich said. ¡°David, you can''t just accuse...¡± Donna started to say. ¡°What''s going on?¡± Alex asked as he came back in. ¡°There is at least one potion missing from this crate.¡± I said and opened it to discover that there were actually two healing potions that were missing. ¡°Rich!¡± Donna gasped. ¡°Hey, that crate was like that when I picked it up.¡± Rich said. ¡°SOLDIER!¡± Alex yelled. ¡°I order you to empty your pockets and pack immediately!¡± Rich''s face turned slightly red and he looked angry. ¡°I don''t have to submit to that illegal order. Sir.¡± ¡°It is NOT illegal to search for stolen goods. You are to follow my lawful order or you will be facing a court hearing for conduct unbecoming an officer when we get back to the garrison.¡± Alex said. ¡°Then you''re just going to have to charge me, sir.¡± Rich said. ¡°Fine.¡± Alex said. ¡°You are hereby charged with said offence under the articles of military law...¡± ¡°Sir! It was me.¡± Roy said as he came out with his own crate. He put it down and dug out two potions from his pockets. ¡°I''ll get to you in a minute.¡± Alex snapped at Roy to get him to be quiet, then he ran through the entire articles that Rich had broken, including the refusal of a superior''s order while in a hostile area. When he was done, Rich''s face had lost the anger and he looked a little sad. Then it was Roy''s turn. I had no idea that letting someone else take the blame for your crime was also covered under military law, as was theft from a fellow soldier and civilians. Of course, this was all completely new to me, so everything Alex said was giving me background on everything that a serving officer needed to know. After their dressing down, both men had their hands tied behind them and were put in the boat. Every loaded crate had to be searched and four more potions were found to be missing. Two more were in Roy''s pack and the last two were in Rich''s pack, which meant that they were both guilty. ¡°You two...¡± Donna looked at them and shook her head. ¡°How are we supposed to finish the side mission if you two idiots are confined?¡± ¡°Side mission?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes. Once we had all the products you have for Diane all loaded into the boat, we were going to offer to help gather potion ingredients for you.¡± Donna said. ¡°Why?¡± I asked. ¡°Because you''re the Marsh Man.¡± Alex said. ¡°You know where the best ingredients are and how to harvest them properly. No one at the garrison has your expertise, not even the potion maker we brought along.¡± ¡°He was surprised by what you had in your pack.¡± Donna said. ¡°We all were.¡± ¡°We can worry about it later.¡± Alex said and looked at me. ¡°We need to finish loading the boat.¡± I nodded and we went inside and I opened the door to the the left front room. ¡°Good lord.¡± Alex whispered. Half of the room was filled from floor to ceiling with skins, leathers, and pelts. The other half of the room was nearly half filled with near-deer antlers, horns from various animals like marsh lizards, and tails from anything that had a tail. ¡°Don''t just stand there.¡± Donna said and stepped into the room. ¡°It''s not going to magically move all by itself.¡± Alex nodded and stepped in to grab some things, and I went in as well. We had a lot of work to do. 054 A Slight Detour It took the three of us nearly three hours to load up the boat. When we were done, everything was covered in waterproofed tarps and secured in place. _______________ You have a minor choice to make. Will you hamper yourself or enhance your growth? A) Leave. B) Grab a few more things. C) Get something special. D) Lock up. E) Choose two. Definitely C and D. _______________ ¡°I just have to grab the marsh panther pelts.¡± I said and went back inside. I ran to my work room and grabbed the large sack with the pelts in it, then ran into the kitchen. I sliced open the hidden cupboard and took out six vials of fungus powder from my secret stash and sealed the cupboard again. As I tucked the vials into my bandoleer, I decided to refill the missing potions with the ones I had stored here. I always kept several sets of spares and stocked back up when they were empty. I was also tempted to take one of the unread books I had hidden as well. I decided not to, because it was just too risky. I still couldn''t read them, anyway. I did grab several water skins of my extract and another half dozen wooden plaques, just in case, and the two story books I had bought from Diane. I ran back out to the front of the house and put the things into the boat with the bag of panther pelts. I went back to the house and shut the door, locked it and used the locking spell as well, then applied the number ten potion to seal it. I went back to the boat and pushed it all the way back over to the water. The four people in the boat stared at me, because I wasn''t even struggling with it, even with all the extra weight in it. Before I pushed it into the waterway, I looked to see if there were any water beasts nearby. The ward on the boat was a great thing and I was tempted to just make a few to spread around to clear out an even bigger area around the house to keep the creatures at bay. I knew that was unnecessary, since I was going to be gone for at least three months doing basic training, whatever that was. I pushed the boat into the water and climbed on, then sat on the front bench and concentrated. I activated the movement enchantment and we took off. I used more magic in the weight enchantment and the boat nearly lifted completely out of the water. That was a bit draining, so I let it settle down a bit more and relaxed. I kept the nice balance and sped us back through the same twisting route I had taken to get there. ¡°We should hunt for ingredients.¡± Donna said. ¡°Do you have any more canvas sacks?¡± I asked. ¡°A few.¡± Donna said and showed me a bag full of them. ¡°I''ll stop up here.¡± I said and slowed us down. _______________ You have a minor choice to make. The options have changed because of your distrust for Rich and Roy. A) Leave Donna to guard. B) Leave Alex to guard. C) Leave them both to guard. They would only slow me down if I tried taking anyone with me. I thought. I choose C. _______________ There were sounds of several creatures scampering away and Donna and Alex stood up to come with me. ¡°The two of you need to stay here.¡± I said. ¡°But...¡± ¡°I can''t take the ward with me.¡± I said and their eyes widened. I grabbed a couple of sacks and tied them together, hung them over my shoulder, and kicked off my boots and pulled off my socks. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Alex asked. ¡°The boots will fill with water and muck.¡± I said and leapt off of the boat and onto what looked like dryer land. It was in fact bog moss and I sunk down to my knees in the soft muddy ground underneath. I easily pulled my feet out and slowly walked over to the base of a tree and the ground became firm enough to walk on without sinking. I looked back at them and saw their expectant faces, then I turned and ran. Almost as soon as I was far enough away from the ward, I had to take out my knife and kill several large spiders. A loud snort let me know a boar was about to charge me and I tossed one of the dead spiders at it. The spider exploded in a splash of gore and innards and the boar squealed in pain as it went into its eyes.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. I didn''t need the pelt, since I had so many, and I lunged at it and sliced its throat. It shook its head to get the blood out of its eyes and that drained its blood that much sooner. It dropped dead and I yanked out the two large tusks it had. I didn''t know why it was valuable, since it was just a tooth, and none of the other teeth were valuable. It didn''t make sense to me. I ran on and avoided a few other little creatures that were fleeing the ward, deftly danced around the tangling vines that tried to grab me, and made my way to one of the main areas that I gathered ingredients from. It would normally take me hours to get to this point and the boat made it possible to get here in only a few minutes. It was great, because I had learned something new again. I harvested what I could and nearly filled one of the large canvas bags. When I decided that was enough, I transferred half of the ingredients to the other bag to balance it out, then ran for another area that wasn''t too far away. Then I heard a dull roar and the sound of trees breaking. My vigilance technique let me know that it was back near the boat, so I ran as fast as I could to get back there. I didn''t even consider dropping the sacks over my shoulders, because they didn''t hamper my movements at all. I hopped over a smaller water area and slowed down when I reached the soft muddy area where I had leapt off the boat. I then saw a sight that I never thought I would see. Four people were doing their best to fight off a baby marsh dragon. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. This will change how things progress for you in the army. A) Leave them. B) Help as much as you can. C) Yell and make noise. D) Try to get to them. Ah, dammit. I thought and read the options again. There''s really only one thing I can do. I choose D. _______________ I started to wade across the soft muddy ground towards the boat. I didn''t bother asking why they had left the boat and had crossed to the other side, because the baby dragon was stuck in the soft mud. It''s two front feet were buried up to its chest and it couldn''t pull them out, even with flapping its small wings. It''s own weight was keeping it in place, as were the two large trees that had fallen on top of it. ¡°This... isn''t so... tough!¡± Rich said as he lunged forward and slid his sword under some of the harder scales on the creature''s back to stab it. ¡°Alex! Try for the eyes!¡± Donna said and dodged to the side as a wing tried to sweep her away. She plopped down into the mud and crawled away a short distance, then grabbed onto one of the many tree branches within her reach and pulled herself up and out of the mud. ¡°What do you think... I''ve been doing?¡± Alex huffed and swiped at the dragon''s face. It closed its eyes as the sword skidded over the scaly surface without doing any damage. It used a wing to swipe at Alex and it clipped his arm with the thin sword. ¡°ARGH!¡± He yelled as his arm and the sword snapped and the now broken sword tip was lodged into the crook of the wing. ¡°ALEX!¡± Donna yelled and made to jump for him. ¡°NO! Stay... there.¡± Alex cradled his broken arm and moved back. ¡°Roy... left flank.¡± I made it to the boat and climbed on. ¡°One distraction coming up.¡± Roy said and held his shield to his chest, did a short run and dropped to the ground onto the shield, and slid towards the dragon''s underside. He lifted his sword and shoved it as he used his momentum to push it all the way in. ¡°NO!¡± I yelled; but, it was too late. ¡°RROOOWWWUUUUUULLLLLLL!!!¡± The baby dragon let out a blood curdling howl of pain. ¡°RUN!¡± I yelled and the four of them looked at me. ¡°The mother! SHE''S COMING!¡± ¡°RRRROOOAAAARRRRRRRRR!¡± A deafening roar pierced the air and I winced as it pierced my ears, too. I had to keep the vigilance technique going, though. I couldn''t drive the boat safely, otherwise. The four soldiers lost all of the color in their faces and then scrambled as quickly as they could to the muddy ground. They crawled across it easily, much quicker than I could have walked across it, and they swam a bit when they reached the water. I pulled them into the boat as quickly as I could, tossed their bloody weapons as hard as I could into the mud, and started the movement enchantment. I didn''t bother trying to go slow. Oh, no. Nope, nope, nope. I used as much magic as the enchantment could hold. The boat barely skimmed the water as I took us on as straight of a course as possible. We had to be very, very far away before the mother showed up or we were going to be very, very dead. ¡°S-s-slow... down.¡± Alex said and tried to sit up. He grunted in pain and Donna helped him. ¡°Not... until we are...¡± I weaved us through a narrow passage and tried to ignore the sound of dozens of trees smashing. There was another loud roar and I took us down a different waterway. ¡°Land ahead!¡± Roy said and pointed. ¡°Not... stopping!¡± I said. I put as much magic into the weight enchantment that I could spare and the boat rose up just enough to let the front of the boat hit the moss covered outcropping without stopping us. The bottom of the boat scraped over the rocks and things and we launched into the air about a foot off of the ground. We went about fifteen feet and barely missed a tree before we hit the ground, bounced, and flew another ten feet before we hit water again. Screaming creatures scattered everywhere, too. I had to take a really sharp turn then, since it wasn''t a through path or had a deep waterway, and everyone held on for dear life as the boat nearly tipped over. ¡°I''m really glad this boat has a flat bottom!¡± Roy said as we finally straightened out. ¡°We would have wrecked on that thing!¡± ¡°David!¡± Donna said. ¡°DAVID!¡± She yelled and grabbed my arm. ¡°That''s enough!¡± ¡°Are... are you sure?¡± I asked and I felt really weak. I lost the vigilance technique and the boat sunk down into the water as my magic faded. The boat nearly came to a full stop as it dipped down into the water after going so fast, then it bobbed up and back down again. ¡°I''m... tired.¡± ¡°Pull us over to the side, David.¡± Donna said. ¡°I have to tend to Alex''s arm.¡± I nodded and my head dipped a little. I managed a tiny little bit of magic for the movement enchantment and pushed us to the side of the wider waterway. Roy hopped out and tied the boat up as I pulled out a healing potion from my bandoleer. I felt Donna take it from my hand and she let my arm go. I laid down on the bottom of the boat and closed my eyes. I was exhausted and needed to sleep. I didn''t even feel it when someone put a blanket over me. 055 Delayed Return _______________ Magic overload damage (mental strain): 25%, Exhaustion (mental strain): 95% Memories of last event have degraded to only 10% retention. Time for restructuring: 25 minutes. Sleep Mode automatically engaged. _______________ Restructuring done. Last memory recovery: 35%. Sleep Mode ended. Accelerating time... Done. _______________ I opened my eyes and I was still on my side in the boat. I lifted my head and looked around to see that we were in a part of the marsh that I hadn''t seen before. I honestly couldn''t remember where I was or how I got there. I sat up as I pushed the blanket off and only Roy was there. He wasn''t tied up, either. I immediately felt for my bandoleer and noticed several potions were missing. ¡°You...¡± I said and stood up as I used the vigilance technique. ¡°Whoa, there!¡± Roy said and held his hands up to stop me. ¡°I didn''t touch them! Alex and Donna took your healing and poison potions!¡± I could tell that he wasn''t lying; but, I didn''t trust him. ¡°Where are they?¡± ¡°They went out into the marsh that way.¡± Roy said and pointed. ¡°They said something about scouting enemy territory, which is honestly the craziest thing I ever heard.¡± ¡°Why were you left behind?¡± I asked. ¡°To protect you and the boat.¡± Roy said. I laughed. ¡°You''re funny.¡± I said and looked around. The two half sacks of ingredients were there beside my bag of panther pelts, as were the wooden plaques. I checked my pack and none of the ones I had previously carved were missing. ¡°They left without a ward?¡± ¡°None of us are magic users and we can''t activate it.¡± Roy said with a shrug. _______________ You have a choice to make. Will it be the right one? A) Stay and wait. B) Leave with the boat. C) Go after them. D) Knock Roy out. E) Choose two. Oh, that''s a simple choice. I choose D and C. _______________ ¡°They were lucky, because anyone seeing animals fleeing can follow it back to where it happened from.¡± I said and swung a wooden plaque at his forehead. There was a solid thunk sound and Roy was knocked unconscious. ¡°I can''t have you try to follow me.¡± I said and tied his hands up behind his back and packed my things. I slipped the pack back on, in case the others were farther away than I thought they were. I didn''t know how long I was unconscious, so I was starting off with no previous knowledge, no current knowledge, and no idea how far into the marsh they had gone. I noticed that the bag with meat jerky was only half full now, which meant they were planning to be gone for a while. ¡°Damn idiots.¡± I said and hopped out of the boat. I looked where Roy had said was the direction they went and nothing was disturbed. I huffed at the obvious lie and slowly walked around and checked for footprints, especially army boot prints. I found them easily, three sets, and shook my head. They weren''t even trying to cover up their tracks. I used my bare feet to wipe out the evidence of each boot print that I could see. If I was lucky, I wouldn''t be too far behind them or they would be on their way back. If I was unlucky, I might have to bring their bodies back. I''m glad I have lots of rope. I thought and moved off into the marsh. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Travel times compressing... Done. _______________ Nearly eight hours later of travelling, I was poised behind a partially fallen tree and watched a small group of oddly dressed men walking around in large circles in a huge dry area. I had no clue what they were doing and watched for nearly twenty minutes before they suddenly stopped, broke up and kind of saluted each other, then they moved off in different directions. ¡°Go! Go! Go!¡± Alex hissed under his breath and then he and Donna came out from a hidden spot nearby with and unconscious Rich carried between them. His arms were over their shoulders and they held him tightly as they crossed into the part of the marsh I was in. The funny thing was, they were dressed the same as those other people. _______________ You have a choice to make. It will be critical for your standing with the army and especially Alex and Donna.Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. A) Confront them. B) Attack them. C) Let them pass. D) Help them. E) Run. F) Choose two. That''s a bit more complicated. I thought and read the options again. I''ll choose D and A. _______________ ¡°Hand him over.¡± I whispered and stepped out from where I was hiding. ¡°David!¡± Donna gasped. ¡°Shh!¡± Alex hushed her. ¡°We have to go! They''re searching with spells now.¡± I felt something like a magic protection bubble come near and held my hand out towards it. I used the same dispel spell and the bubble popped. There was a yelp of pain and then someone cursed. The bubble didn''t come back. I turned around and bent down to let Alex and Donna hang Rich over my backpack and gave me his arms to hold to keep him in place. ¡°Stop leaving tracks. Follow me and step where I step. ¡± I said as I grabbed Rich''s wrists and stood up. I started out with a jog and kept that pace for nearly an hour. ¡°Uhhhh.¡± Rich moaned and I came to a stop. I knelt as I let his arms go and he flopped off of my pack and onto the ground on his back. ¡°David!¡± Donna whispered as she came to a stop, her breathing heavy. ¡°Be more careful with him.¡± ¡°Why?¡± I asked, not bothering to keep my voice down. We were far enough away from wherever that was to not be heard. ¡°He''s unconscious and a fellow soldier.¡± Alex said and knelt to check him. ¡°He''s waking up.¡± I said. ¡°He stole from me, just like you did.¡± ¡°David!¡± Donna gasped. ¡°We appropriated the required resources need for the mission!¡± ¡°Without waking me or telling me.¡± I said. ¡°We couldn''t wait that long.¡± Alex said. ¡°Ugh. What hit me?¡± Rich asked and rubbed his head. ¡°I''m pretty sure it was a rock about this big that was flung with magic.¡± Alex said and made a shape with his hands. ¡°Why aren''t I dead?¡± Rich asked and sat up. ¡°We applied healing potion to the wound and made you drink the rest.¡± Donna said and gave me a look. ¡°You still took it.¡± I said and she sighed. ¡°I ordered her to take them from you, so we wouldn''t have to take any from the crates.¡± Alex said. ¡°I don''t have snake juice or spider juice in the crates.¡± I said and he sighed this time. ¡°You used them all, didn''t you?¡± ¡°Yes. We didn''t know there would be so many snakes and spiders to fight.¡± Alex said. I frowned at him. ¡°You drank one after every bite, didn''t you?¡± I asked and they nodded. ¡°That was stupid. I''ve told you...¡± ¡°Now''s not the time.¡± Donna said. ¡°Rich, can you walk?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± Rich said and stood up. ¡°Let''s go.¡± Alex said and looked at me. ¡°We''ll follow your lead.¡± ¡°What''s that mean?¡± I asked. ¡°We will do what you do and follow your actions as closely as we can.¡± Alex said. ¡°You haven''t so far.¡± I said. ¡°That''s because I am the commanding officer and you have to follow my orders.¡± Alex said. ¡°Not if they get me killed.¡± I said. Alex gave me a stern look. ¡°I''ll do my best to not do that.¡± ¡°You went after that baby dragon and that was really stupid.¡± I said and his face paled. ¡°I never would have done that.¡± ¡°We didn''t know it was a baby.¡± Donna said. ¡°You don''t know a lot about the marsh.¡± I said and she sighed. ¡°We can discuss this later.¡± Alex said. ¡°David, lead the way.¡± _______________ You have a minor choice to make. Will you stay calm or act out? A) Run. B) Lead properly. C) Show off. D) Go slow to irritate them. E) Make him do it. I don''t think I want to lead them. They can take my stuff whenever they want and now I don''t have any snake juice or spider juice to save myself if we get attacked. I don''t have the ingredients to make any more, either. I thought. So, screw it. I choose A. _______________ ¡°No. I don''t want to die because you don''t know what you''re doing. You can find your own way back, since you''re in command.¡± I said and turned around. ¡°You better not get bitten by anything, because you''ll die, since you wasted all my potions.¡± Donna took in a sharp breath and I took off running at my top speed. ¡°DAVID!¡± Donna yelled. I heard her be hushed and shook my head at their stupidity. I took out my knife and did my best to kill anything deadly that came anywhere near to where their path back to the boat was. They had a long trek back to where it was and I was sure that after they spent another eight or ten hours walking, they were going to be angry at me. I couldn''t leave the dead creatures lying around either, since that would lead someone easily back to us. I stopped and took out a protection ward and used some potion to fill the spaces and activated it. From that point on, I walked. They would never catch up to me until I stopped moving, just like back at the Addams farm. That brought my thoughts back to what happened earlier and I wanted to kill them all. They dared to have a great life, all because of me, and not one of them said that they were sorry that it happened. Except for Hope. She said she was sorry I was sold and her thoughts said she missed me. No one ever said that to me before. Well, neither did she really. I shook my head and my eyes caught sight of some nice fresh ingredients. I diverted over and grabbed several handfuls, then slipped off my pack and stuffed as much of them in as I could. I needed to replace those venom juices, because needing them was practically a necessity in the marsh, even if I didn''t know where I was at the time. I went back to the main path and continued on. I mentally marked the spots I recognized as good ingredient areas, even though I wasn''t actually planning to come back this way. It was just something I automatically did, because I had done it ever since I was a little kid. I also knew that if I ever did come back this way, it was definitely a much better harvesting area than back where I lived. The problem was having to go through the dragon''s territory to get here. That was a big no-no, so I gave up on that idea. I sighed, because the dragon''s main nest was the fungus bulb site. I wasn''t getting any of them again, unless I found some other source for them. That was unlikely, since finding those had been a lucky break that the Hag and I had benefited from for years. That was definitely too much to ask for. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Travelling sped up. Resuming. _______________ I arrived back at the boat and Roy stared daggers at me and was clearly angry. I ignored him and climbed onto the boat. I was very tempted to take a canvas bag back into the marsh while we waited, then decided that was a bad idea. The last time had been near disastrous, so I took off my pack and took out the ingredients and added them to one of the half-filled canvas bags. I closed my pack and opened up the canvas bag with my stew in it. The smell was great and I sat down to wait for the others. I reached into the sack and pulled out a handful of the contents and started eating. I occasionally tilted it up enough to drink some of the broth and it was delicious, even cold. That fungus powder was great stuff. 056 Army Antics Part One The night had mostly passed by the time Alex, Donna, and Rich stumbled into the distance I could hear. Over ten hours had passed since I had arrived on the boat the evening before and I didn''t look up at them as they walked closer. I didn''t want them to know how far away I could see and hear them. ¡°I hope you can pilot the boat with your hands tied behind your back.¡± Rich said with a smile as they approached the boat. ¡°Refusing a commanding officer''s order is a crime, as you very well know.¡± ¡°I''m getting a court hearing anyway.¡± I said without looking at them. ¡°If Lt. Smith wants to tie the hands of the only person that can take us out of here, that''s just another stupid decision he''s made so far.¡± ¡°David, don''t be like this.¡± Donna said. ¡°It was very important what we just did.¡± ¡°I''m just the Marsh Man, Sergeant Simms. You know that I don''t know any better.¡± I said and kept my eyes forward. ¡°Why is Roy tied up?¡± Alex asked. ¡°I did that when I went to rescue you from your stupidity of leaving me behind, so he wouldn''t get himself killed by trying to follow me.¡± I said. ¡°You can add saving his life, and yours, to the charges.¡± Alex sighed and waved for them all to climb onto the boat. ¡°Roy, don''t attack him.¡± ¡°I''ve been here since you left and I haven''t eaten.¡± Roy said as Alex untied his hands. ¡°He has, though.¡± ¡°David, why didn''t you let him eat?¡± Donna asked. ¡°I wasn''t stopping him.¡± I said and kept looking forward. ¡°Let me hit him, just once.¡± Roy said and stood up. ¡°I''ll remove your hand if it comes anywhere near me.¡± I said and this time I did look at him. ¡°That''s the penalty for stealing.¡± Donna took in a quick breath. ¡°D-David, please understand. We didn''t steal your potions. We''ll pay for them when we get back to base and file the requisition form.¡± ¡°Do you know how expensive snake juice is?¡± I asked her and she looked confused. ¡°I didn''t think so.¡± ¡°That''s enough.¡± Alex said. ¡°David, take us out of here and back to the garrison.¡± _______________ You have a choice to make. A) Do it. B) Don''t do it. C) Fake it. D) Tell the truth. E) Take them back to the other place. Well, this is quite the mess. I thought, sadly. I better tell the truth. I choose D. _______________ ¡°I can''t.¡± I said. ¡°WHAT?!?¡± Rich yelled. ¡°You just said...¡± ¡°I don''t know where we are or what direction to go.¡± I said. ¡°I can''t remember how we got here.¡± Roy and Rich looked angry and Donna held a hand up to stop them from talking. ¡°I''ll handle this.¡± Donna said and came over to me and sat down. ¡°David, please listen to what I''m going to tell you.¡± She took out a circular thing and opened it. Inside was a disc with letters on it and it was floating in something. ¡°This is a compass. As long as you have one, you''ll always know where you''re going.¡± ¡°How?¡± I asked. ¡°That''s what I''m going to explain.¡± Donna said and told me all about the little device and how it worked, its functions, and how to use it alone and with a map. She took out a map and opened it to show me how she had used the compass to take them to where they needed to go and then again to get back. She didn''t need to reference the map to get back. ¡°Where can I get one?¡± I asked. ¡°You have to complete the scout training program.¡± Donna said. ¡°Not everyone is qualified for it, since it takes some specialized skills and discipline to...¡± ¡°I followed your tracks all the way to wherever you went, erasing them on the way, and came back.¡± I reminded her. Donna opened her mouth to respond and Alex tapped her shoulder. ¡°Show him what direction the garrison is.¡± Alex said. ¡°Right.¡± Donna said and adjusted the device to point it in the direction we needed to go, apparently SSW, or South South West, and several notches and degrees towards the left. ¡°You follow this line and keep it on this notch. When you deviate, turn when appropriate and put it back there.¡± ¡°Will that work?¡± I asked. ¡°With me to help guide you, yes.¡± Donna said. ¡°Like I said, it does take specialized skills. I''ll use the compass and you pilot the boat. I''ll tell you when we have to divert to get us back on course.¡± I looked where she had it pointed and it was ground. I turned and the waterway we were on went for a short ways and turned towards that direction. ¡°I don''t want you worrying about getting lost, so I''ll be right beside you as you drive the boat.¡±A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. ¡°All right.¡± I said as I sat down on the front bench and put my hands behind my back. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Donna asked. ¡°I''m waiting for Alex to tie my hands.¡± I said. ¡°Just drive the boat.¡± Alex said and sat down. So, I did. The dawn started to break over the horizon and Donna guided my half-speed driving. I was lucky that I didn''t have to replace the movement enchantment after all of the magic that I had shoved into the thing. I didn''t push it, especially since I was using waterways and shallow pools that I had never seen before. The hazards could be many and varied, so caution was in order for the day. That''s how long it took to get us back into familiar territory. I stopped a couple times to eat, since I couldn''t keep up my vigilance technique going for too long and also didn''t want to exhaust my magic again. I didn''t try to hop myself up with direct fungus powder, either. Getting a subtle boost from the remains of the meat stew was all I wanted to chance for now. The others got out of the boat to ''stretch their legs'', whatever that meant, and I continued on. Once I was back in waterways that I had used before, I picked up speed and Donna had a hard time keeping up with me. She would barely have the words ''turn right'' out of her mouth when I did it and sped down to the next spot and she had to give a new direction. It was a bit funny, then she devolved into just using hand signals for right, left and straight. I gave her a smile and picked up speed. When we came to the main harbour, I slowed us way down and she let out a sigh. ¡°Now my hand is sore.¡± Donna said and rubbed it. ¡°David, that was much too fast for me to keep up.¡± ¡°Was it?¡± Alex asked and she looked at him with wide eyes. ¡°You adapted and changed to hand signals. That was a lot more efficient than speaking the words, wasn''t it?¡± ¡°Yes, but...¡± ¡°You won''t have to be that good with anyone except David, so it''s okay.¡± Alex said and stood as I brought us through the harbour and over to the dock. I parked right beside my old boat, that was surprisingly still there, as were the poisonous snakes I had left on the tarp. I was glad that my little strategy had worked. Roy tied the front of the boat up to the dock and climbed out to stand there and waited. I didn''t know what for, though. He should have gone to get the large hand cart. Rich climbed out next and stood there as well. It wasn''t until Donna and Alex climbed out that they stepped back and looked ready to leave. _______________ Choice of options suspended. Due to the previous choices you have made, you are going to automatically distrust other members of the military, until they prove their worth to you. _______________ ¡°Are you going to search them again for stealing my things?¡± I asked and both men gave me angry looks. ¡°I don''t think that''s necessary.¡± Alex said. ¡°Why? They''ve proven they will take bits of anything that there are a lot of around.¡± I said and waved at the piles and piles of expensive things in my boat. ¡°I don''t want to have to count everything again, just to accuse them later and have them lie and say they didn''t take anything. Again.¡± Alex sighed. ¡°David, this is not the place to do this.¡± ¡°When should it be done? When they have a chance to hide whatever they took?¡± I asked. ¡°I don''t have to stand here and take his accusations.¡± Roy said. ¡°I want him charged with conduct unbecoming.¡± ¡°David...¡± ¡°I don''t want them helping move this to Diane''s store.¡± I said and walked over to the dock. ¡°Even if they didn''t have anything on them now, which they do, I don''t want thieves stealing from me anymore.¡± ¡°What?¡± Donna looked at me in surprised. ¡°What do they have?¡± ¡°Several of the boar tusks that I brought back to the boat are gone.¡± ¡°We threw them away.¡± Rich said. ¡°Oh, for god''s sake.¡± Alex said with a sigh. ¡°I''m registering a fine of three month''s pay for you both.¡± ¡°WHAT?!?¡± Rich and Roy yelled. ¡°You can''t do that!¡± Roy said. ¡°They aren''t worth nearly that much!¡± Rich said. ¡°I know that, you idiots!¡± Alex said with squinted eyes. ¡°You''ve done much more harm with your antics than even I thought was possible!¡± ¡°You can''t blame us for...¡± ¡°David has never called me lieutenant or Donna sergeant. He''s always used our first names and he''s always looked at us when speaking. Now, he''s distancing the only two people that have been nice to him in the army and it''s all your goddamn fault!¡± Alex said, clearly angry. ¡°How else did you think him distrusting army personnel was going to go? Hmm? Tell me!¡± Roy and Rich didn''t say anything in response. ¡°I order you to tell me what a man that has been treated unfairly for all his life, was going to act to people stealing from him! TELL ME!¡± Alex yelled. The two men clamped their mouths shut and didn''t respond. ¡°Drop your packs right now.¡± Alex said and they did. ¡°I''d ask you to empty your pockets; but, you don''t want to show the ill gotten goods and will refuse.¡± He said and waved up the road. ¡°I''m ordering you to proceed directly to the holding cells without deviation. I''ll know it if you go anywhere else.¡± ¡°Sir, you...¡± Roy started to say. ¡°Zip it!¡± Alex snapped. ¡°Once the CO finds out what you''ve done, I doubt a three month pay fine is going to be the least of what''s going to happen to you. Dis-MISSED.¡± Both men looked angry and saluted, then they jogged up the dock. Alex sighed at their retreating backs and turned to face me. ¡°David, I''m sorry about that.¡± ¡°You''re not giving me the money you''re taking from them, are you?¡± I asked. Alex sighed. ¡°No, that''s not how it works.¡± Donna touched my arm. ¡°Let''s get the cart and load it up for Diane.¡± I nodded and went to go get the large hand cart and brought it back. It could hold a lot of stuff and the three of us filled it to a good height. ¡°Someone needs to stay and watch the boat.¡± ¡°I''ll stay.¡± Donna said. ¡°We all stink right now and the less of us inside her store, the better.¡± ¡°That''s a good point.¡± Alex said. ¡°I''ll stay outside and watch the cart.¡± I nodded and pulled the cart all the way up the main road to her shack. I noticed that there wasn''t a good clear area and the shack had to be moved out of the way. I stepped over to the shack and pushed on the side of it. It didn''t move, which meant it was more stable than I thought it was, then I remembered how we had lifted the boat. I quickly ran over to the woods, chopped a six inch wide tree down, then cut off the stump to make something for me to pry up with. I used my knife to carve out a wedge on the end of the tree, cleared a good amount of branches from it, then lopped the top off. I ran back to the shack and Alex stared at me for a moment, then I put the cut stump down as a base, put the tree over it and under the bottom of the shack, and pushed down. Alex laughed as the shack tipped right up and I used a hand to push it over onto its side. ¡°Nice going.¡± I smiled and tossed the tree aside, then pulled the cart over into the now cleared area. I knocked on the shop''s door and Diane opened it. ¡°David!¡± Diane exclaimed. ¡°What...¡± I pointed. ¡°I have stuff for you to sell.¡± ¡°Oh... oh, David.¡± Diane whispered, her voice trembling slightly. ¡°We have to finish unloading the boat quickly.¡± Alex said. ¡°We need to report to the garrison.¡± ¡°I''ll help.¡± Diane said and carried some of the furs inside. ¡°Just put it anywhere and I''ll sort it out later.¡± I nodded and pilled everything just inside the door. ¡°We''ll be back with the next load in about ten minutes.¡± ¡°The... the next load?¡± Diane asked, her eyes wide. ¡°I think there''s four, maybe five more cart loads.¡± Alex said. ¡°It''s hard to tell. Both the room he had everything in and the boat we brought it in are huge.¡± Diane''s eyes went to the huge pile of things and then she stared at me. ¡°P-please, h-hurry.¡± She said, her face slightly red and she bit her bottom lip for some reason. ¡°I''ll make sure he does.¡± Alex said and led me outside, then we went back to the boat to get another load. 057 Dianes Divine Store Each time we came back with another load and dropped off more things, Diane''s face became redder and redder. When she saw the fifty full cases of potions, she let out and inarticulate moan. It was like I was charging her up or something, because her reaction when I came back with the bag that had the three full marsh panther pelts and several smaller pieces that I had salvaged, was something I had never seen before. Diane kicked Alex in the shin, pushed his chest to make him stumble outside, then she slammed and locked the door to the shop. In the next moment, she had shoved me to the floor, stripped me naked and started riding me. I pretty much stared at her and couldn''t speak as she had her way with me. I tried to tell her that I needed a bath and she told me she didn''t care and to make love to her, so I did. We both ignored the soft knocking for about half an hour, then Diane collapsed on top of me and kissed me for nearly ten minutes straight. _______________ You have a minor choice to make. It won''t have that much of an impact on either your relationship with Diane (which is solid) or with the army (which is shaky). A) Stay and do her again. B) Leave and promise to come back. I think Alex and Donna won''t want to wait any more, since the knocking hasn''t stopped. I thought with a smile. I better choose B. _______________ ¡°Diane, I need to go.¡± I said. Diane propped herself up on my chest. ¡°You know, I never really minded how you smelled.¡± ¡°Why?¡± I asked. ¡°It wasn''t your fault.¡± Diane said. ¡°The Hag smelled worse, honestly. I barely even noticed your smell most of the time.¡± She smiled and gave me a kiss. ¡°Although, we both need a bath after this.¡± I nodded and she climbed off of me. She pulled her clothes on and I did mine up and we both stood up. ¡°I promise that I''ll save your half of the money I make until I see you again.¡± Diane said. ¡°I promise that I''ll come back as soon as I can.¡± I said. Diane took in a sharp breath and tears appeared in her eyes. ¡°No, you... you don''t have to say that.¡± ¡°Why are you crying?¡± I asked. ¡°That''s what... what...¡± Diane turned away from me and wiped at her eyes. ¡°That was the last thing he said to me before he left for the army.¡± ¡°I''m not him. I''m the Marsh Man.¡± I said and she turned back to me, hope on her face. ¡°I''ve escaped a marsh dragon twice now. What''s an army going to do to me when compared to that?¡± Diane''s mouth dropped open in shock. ¡°D-d-d-dragon?¡± I nodded. ¡°It moved into the marsh a little while ago and now its had babies.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Diane whispered. ¡°This... oh, no. No, this...¡± She shook her head for a moment and then she nodded. ¡°I''m doubly glad that the garrison is here now.¡± She gave me a kiss and waved at the door. ¡°I''ll let the new mayor know about this and you can tell the CO of the garrison.¡± I nodded back and unlocked the door. ¡°You might want to hire a guard or something. A few people saw us bringing all of this in here.¡± ¡°Don''t worry about that.¡± Diane said with a smile. ¡°No one wants to make the Marsh Man angry.¡± It''s too bad that won''t work on the army. I thought and stepped outside. ¡°It''s about time.¡± Alex said and handed me my pack, the bags of ingredients, and the extra wood plaques. He wore his pack and carried a second one, as did Donna. ¡°Let''s go.¡± ¡°What about my boat?¡± I asked. ¡°It''s secured at the dock.¡± Donna said. ¡°Guarded and protected?¡± I asked and she shook her head no. ¡°Then we''ll take it to the garrison.¡± ¡°You can''t take a boat into the garrison.¡± Alex said. ¡°I didn''t say take it inside.¡± I said and walked by him. ¡°The garrison is this way.¡± Alex said. ¡°The boat is this way.¡± I said and kept walking. ¡°You can come with me or walk the whole way, it''s up to you.¡± I didn''t bother using the vigilance technique to listen to what they decided and walked down the road to the dock. A moment later, I heard them walking behind me and kept walking myself. Someone was there on the dock and looking at my boat. Someone I recognized. ¡°That''s my boat, Simon.¡± I said to the boatbuilder''s son and the guy jumped a little and turned around to stare at me. ¡°G-Grandpa!¡± Simon exclaimed. ¡°Dammit, he''s back already.¡± Mr. Phelps said and walked into view. ¡°I haven''t finished drilling enough holes in this thing to sink it.¡± ¡°Mr. Phelps!¡± Donna said loudly. ¡°Did you just admit to damaging ARMY property?!?¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± The older man asked, surprised. We all saw the large hand drill in his hands and he didn''t try to hide it. ¡°That is an army vessel, built by commission for army personnel and used on three very important missions so far.¡± Alex said in a stern voice. ¡°Do you know the penalties for damaging an army officer''s transport?¡± Mr. Phelps only stared at him and didn''t say anything. ¡°You sir, are under arrest.¡± Alex said. ¡°No! I was just...¡± ¡°Getting petty revenge against an army officer. I know.¡± Alex said. ¡°People like you are all the same. Stupid and short-sighted.¡± ¡°Now listen here, you.¡± Mr. Phelps climbed out of the boat and onto the dock. ¡°That monster killed my son and I am going to do everything I can to make sure he pays for that!¡± ¡°No, you''ll be tried as a criminal and might get a rope around your own neck.¡± Alex countered. Mr. Phelps huffed and gripped the drill. ¡°Go ahead and try to take me in.¡± He said and glanced at me and at Donna. ¡°There''s no way you can do anything with those heavy packs on.¡±This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. Alex smiled. ¡°Go ahead, David. I give you permission to subdue him. Just don''t kill him.¡± My hand shot out and backhanded Mr. Phelps across the face. He made a nice ''oof'' sound and dropped the large hand drill. I spun him around, grabbed his arm and pulled it up, then shoved him down to hit face first onto the dock. He let out a groan of pain and stopped moving when I knelt a knee on him. ¡°Grandpa!¡± Simon exclaimed. ¡°Go tell your mother what you and your grandpa were doing.¡± Donna said to him, her face angry. ¡°Tell her she can visit him at the garrison until the CO can put him on trial.¡± ¡°It might be a while, since she has a lot to deal with right now.¡± Alex said. Simon just stood there and didn''t move. ¡°Beat it!¡± Alex said and waved at him. ¡°AHH!¡± Simon yelled and took off running. ¡°I guess we can''t take the boat now.¡± Alex said. ¡°Why?¡± I asked and picked Mr. Phelps up easily and carried him into the boat. ¡°The balancers don''t just balance.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Alex looked confused. ¡°I was worried about the boat sinking, remember?¡± I asked. ¡°I made sure to make it so reliable that even if a water beast tried to eat it, it would still float and get me home.¡± ¡°That''s really smart.¡± Donna said and climbed into the boat. Alex climbed in, too. ¡°I''m sorry that I didn''t see this coming, David.¡± ¡°That''s because you don''t know any better.¡± I said and dropped Mr. Phelps onto the bottom of the boat. He grunted and I broke the lock enchantment on the rope tied to the dock, sliced the sealed part open, and untied it. I didn''t bother sitting down, because I had something else to do. I went to my small boat and cut the rope holding it and the parts I had merged to the dock. It started to sink right away, which meant Mr. Phelps did this boat first, so I grabbed it and picked the end of it up. I put the end on the side of the new boat and pulled it inside. It easily fit and Alex and Donna stared at it. I ignored them and tied Mr. Phelps up tightly and then backed the new boat out of the spot, which surprised Alex and Donna. They hadn''t known I could do that, even though I easily turned it from side to side and took corners with it. I made sure to pass by the boatbuilder''s building and waved to the three stunned people that stood there and stared at us floating by with no one poling us along. I turned the boat and went to the waterway that would take us to Diane''s new place and I stayed standing as I easily took us there. When we arrived at the dock, I pushed the old boat out and onto the shore, then tied up the new one and melded it to the dock in a couple of spots. I grabbed my things and tied them to my pack, making it both heavy and awkward, and helped Donna out of the boat like she taught me to. I carried the sack of jerky meat and the extra pack for her. She tried to protest when I picked it up and Alex reminded her about what I did with the other boat. ¡°Just because he''s strong, doesn''t mean he has to carry everything.¡± Donna countered and looked at me. ¡°Thank you for taking it for me, though. One is heavy enough.¡± ¡°We''ll send someone back for Mr. Phelps.¡± Alex said. We left the dock and walked up the little road to Diane''s place, passed it, and went up the road to the main road. We only had a short ways to walk to get back to the garrison and we were let inside. The guards saluted and we returned them as we passed by. Alex told one of them to send a guard to get Mr. Phelps from the boat and we walked towards the main building. ¡°I think we should bathe first.¡± Donna said. ¡°Absolutely not.¡± Alex said, his voice firm. ¡°We''re going right to the CO to report.¡± ¡°She might appreciate the promptness.¡± Donna said and gave him a glare. ¡°She''s not going to appreciate the smell.¡± ¡°She''s the CO. We''ve lived with it for two days. An hour won''t kill her.¡± Alex said, so we reported to the CO''s office directly. It turns out that they were both right, because Roy and Rich were there waiting for us and she asked each of us to tell our stories. The CO gave us all a mean look once everything was explained. ¡°I have to say, this was one of the worst first missions to earn a private''s trust that I have ever heard of.¡± She said and glared at Roy and Rich. ¡°Lieutenant Smith is right. Only a three month pay fine isn''t enough. You are both to remain in the stockade until the trial next week. Basic rations, too.¡± ¡°But, ma''am...¡± Both men started to speak at the same time. ¡°One more word and I won''t wait for the official trial to sentence you.¡± The CO said and both men closed their mouths. ¡°Alex, you did abuse your authority by asking them to debase themselves.¡± ¡°I only asked for them to empty their packs and pockets.¡± Alex said in his defense. ¡°It doesn''t matter. You were in command and it was your responsibility to tell them beforehand to not mess around with the new recruit.¡± ¡°I did tell them, quite firmly, in fact.¡± Alex said and told her about ordering them to teach me properly and how to act around people and other soldiers, and to not joke around so much or have me embarrass myself in front of other people. ¡°Is that true?¡± The CO asked the two men, who nodded. They couldn''t lie about it with the other two witnesses standing right there beside them. ¡°Then your antics are your own fault and the trial is going to reflect that.¡± She looked at Alex. ¡°Is there anything else?¡± Alex told her all about my insubordination, whatever that was, and she sighed. ¡°David, is it true?¡± The CO asked. ¡°What''s insubordination mean?¡± I asked and she explained what it was. ¡°You mean that he really can order me to go and kill myself and he won''t be charged with killing me, because it was an order?¡± The CO stood up and glared at me. ¡°That is not what I said.¡± ¡°Yes, it was.¡± I said. ¡°Having him choose what to do in the marsh was stupid. He doesn''t know any of the dangers, besides the stories the locals told him. He wasted all my healing and spider and snake juice potions, which they said they would pay me for, even though they don''t know how expensive they are, and he attacked a baby dragon when I was gathering ingredients that Donna asked me to gather. When I escaped from the rampaging mother with them in the boat and eventually fell unconscious, Lt. Smith and Sgt. Simms abandoned me and left me alone with a known thief, who was not restrained, for an unknown amount of time.¡± Alex closed his eyes and sighed. ¡°David, I''ve explained it several times already. We requisitioned those essential supplies from you for a very important mission.¡± ¡°While I was unconscious.¡± I said. ¡°If you were awake, I would have asked!¡± Alex said, a little loudly. ¡°No, you wouldn''t.¡± I said and he had a surprised look on his face. ¡°You would have told me to hand them over because you needed them.¡± Alex opened his mouth to say something and the CO held a hand up to stop him. ¡°I think I see the crux of the matter, so I''m going to make this very clear.¡± The CO said. ¡°Lieutenant Alex Smith, you are docked a month''s pay for taking a soldier''s private possessions for your own use.¡± ¡°Ma''am, I...¡± ¡°He''s right. You had no authority to take his things, sleeping or not. It doesn''t matter if you needed them to live. You should have waited to see if he would offer them or taken him along and asked him to help.¡± ¡°Ma''am, we couldn''t wait. We needed to get there, do reconnaissance, and get back before the mission''s time limit.¡± ¡°Get where?¡± The CO asked. ¡°The rear of the Eastern Empire.¡± Alex said and the CO gasped. ¡°N-no... we... this...¡± The CO stammered and then sat down. ¡°It can''t be. It''s just a marsh.¡± ¡°It''s actually a previously undiscovered and partially worn away flooded land bridge.¡± Donna said. ¡°I''ve mapped a safe route...¡± She started to say and looked at me to see my frown. ¡°...mostly safe route. Rich, Alex and I infiltrated a remote tent village that was a mix of soldiers, civilians, and some mages. We even brought back clothing, provisions, and artifacts to prove it.¡± ¡°Oh, my god.¡± The CO, Sandra Rivers, cousin to the Colonel, whispered and thought about it. ¡°Dammit. This... this might change everything.¡± She looked at us. ¡°I am hereby suspending all sentences and trials for the foreseeable future.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Rich and Roy said with big smiles. ¡°Don''t celebrate yet. I said suspending, not dismissing.¡± The CO said to them and they lost their happy faces. ¡°I need to send a message to the Colonel right away.¡± ¡°I''ll get the mage.¡± Donna said and turned away. ¡°No, you all need to take a bath.¡± The CO said. ¡°You stink worse than that mud Private Drake had.¡± ¡°W-w-worse?¡± Donna asked, her voice shaky. ¡°Yes. I''ll read all about it when you all file official reports.¡± The CO said. ¡°David, I know you don''t know how to do that, so after you get a bath and burn that uniform, come back here and I''ll listen to everything you have to say.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± I said and we all filed out of the CO''s office. ¡°Ha! I knew we were going to get away with it.¡± Roy said. ¡°If the war starts up again, we''ll never see the inside of a cell.¡± I reached out, quick as a flash, and grabbed his hand. ¡°Hey! Let go!¡± Roy said and turned to me. ¡°Remember what I said about thieves.¡± I said. With a flash of my knife that no one saw, his hand was now mine. ¡°ARRRGGHHH!¡± Roy yelled and dropped to his knees. ¡°What happened?!?¡± The CO ran out of her office and saw Roy''s hand was gone. ¡°Oh, god!¡± She said and cast a sealing spell. The blood stopped flowing and she looked at Alex. ¡°Explain!¡± Alex pointed to me. ¡°David? What...¡± ¡°You''ve suspended all trials and sentences.¡± I said with a smile and she took in a sharp breath. ¡°I''ll be back to see you after my bath.¡± None of them tried to speak or stopped me from leaving. 058 Army Antics Part Two _______________ You have a minor choice to make. Please don''t make it a disgusting one. You''re going a bit too far. A) Toss it. B) Keep it. C) Make stew. D) Do something fun with it. E) Give it back. F) Run. Ha ha! I know what choices you mean are too far. I have a neat idea, so I''m choosing D. _______________ I held the hand by the fingers and gave it a few squeezes to let the blood drain out, then I used a fortifying potion on it and held it in the same shape that you used when saluting, a completely flat hand with the thumb held close. I thought that was fitting, since I could use it instead of saluting myself. After a couple of minutes, the hand seemed to wither slightly and then it hardened up like petrified wood. I needed something to tie it around my neck and remembered the canvas bags had ties. I took the one that used to have my stew in it and pulled out the cord. I tied it around the wrist and would have to wait to drill a hole through it. Of course, that reminded me of Mr. Phelps. I need to ask the CO if she was keeping him until a trial is held. If not, then I would have to visit him myself. I went to the bath house and no one was there, which was great. I sealed the door and stripped off, then did my best to clean myself. I wasn''t going back to the marsh for a while and I wouldn''t have to worry about making myself match the smell until then. When I was done, I dried off with a towel and did what the CO said and burned my old uniform after taking the decorations off of it. It was then that I realized I didn''t have another uniform to change into. I hung the preserved hand around my neck and opened the door. I sealed it again and looked through all the rooms for anything that remotely looked like a uniform. I didn''t find anything, so I opened the door and stepped out. Two soldiers, one a woman and one a man, came around the corner of the building. The woman gasped and the man looked angry. ¡°YOU! Get some goddamn clothes on!¡± The man said. ¡°I need another uniform.¡± I said. ¡°You get them at the PX!¡± He said loudly. ¡°Where''s that?¡± I asked. The woman pointed. ¡°Th-third building.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said, like Alex had told me to do, and turned to walk away. ¡°Oh, god!¡± The woman gasped. ¡°What is it?¡± I asked and turned back. ¡°Your... your back.¡± The woman said, her voice sad. ¡°It''s not as bad, but...¡± ¡°The Hag said the meat''s not as tender there.¡± I ignored the look on her face and turned and walked away. I went to the third building and saw the big ''PX'' written on the door. I went inside and the woman behind the counter jumped when she saw me. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± She whispered. ¡°You''re naked and... oh, god.¡± ¡°I need a uniform.¡± I said and told her the measurements. ¡°Underwear and boots, too.¡± The woman nodded several times and put it on the counter. ¡°Rank and name?¡± It took me a second to remember what the CO said. ¡°Private Drake.¡± The woman wrote it down. ¡°It will be deducted from your pay.¡± I was pretty sure I wasn''t getting paid, so I stayed quiet and attached my decorations to the new shirt. I picked up the underwear first and put them on. The woman seemed to relax after that and I finished getting dressed. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and she smiled at me. ¡°You''re welcome.¡± She said. ¡°If you need anything else...¡± ¡°Canvas bags and a small hand drill?¡± I asked. She handed me six bags. ¡°You''ll have to go to the maintenance building to see if they have a hand drill for you.¡± ¡°Where''s that?¡± I asked. ¡°It''s on the far side of the garrison, near the back and the farthest spot away from the front gate.¡± She said. ¡°It''s to keep them as far from a breech of the gates as possible. That way, they can stay in service longer to repair things.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and left there. I thought about going back to get my things in the bath house, then decided I would only be a couple of minutes. It would take someone at least that long to cut through the door. I walked across the garrison and to the building at the back. Inside were a bunch of things. Tables, leather pieces, grommets, tools of all kinds, large square stones for some reason, axes, saws, and a bunch of other things that I didn''t know and couldn''t name. ¡°What can we do for you?¡± A man asked and came over to me. There was only one of him and I looked around. He laughed. ¡°I meant ''we'' as in the maintenance department.¡± I gave him a confused look. ¡°Never mind. What do you want?¡± ¡°I need a drill this big.¡± I said and held up my hand to shake my finger, the ring finger.Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. ¡°Whoa!¡± The man jerked back. ¡°Where did the smallest one go?¡± ¡°I don''t know for sure. I think the Hag ate it.¡± I said and the man''s face drained of color. ¡°The drill?¡± ¡°Th-this way.¡± He said and led me over to a bench with a bunch of them on it. ¡°What''s it for, anyway?¡± ¡°Drilling a hole.¡± I said and he laughed. ¡°In what?¡± He asked and I took the makeshift hand necklace off. ¡°Say, that''s a nice carving.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and untied the cord. He handed me the drill and held the hand up on the side for me. I held the drill and spun my hand around like a crank, which quickly went through the wrist of the petrified hand. ¡°Geez, you''re fast, kid.¡± The man said. ¡°Mind giving me a hand making more holes?¡± ¡°I need to go to the CO for a report.¡± I said. ¡°Ah. Well, if she doesn''t keep you too long, come right back here, will ya? I could use a hand.¡± He chuckled and gave me a salute. I held the petrified hand up in a salute and he laughed. ¡°Smart, kid. Smart.¡± I slid the cord through the hole and tied it, then hung it back over my neck. It hung down at a good distance and when I tested it to use it as a salute, it worked and there was still some slack on the cord. I left the building and went back to the bath house. There still wasn''t anyone there, so I cut open the door to the room I used, gathered my things up, and left to go back to the main building. No one was there, not even the secretary, so I used the vigilance technique and knocked on the door. ¡°Come in.¡± The CO''s voice said. It was a little shaky and I heard two people taking half a step towards the door. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. It will change your standing in the army. A) Open the door. B) Give a warning. C) Be cautious. D) Attack. E) Run. F) Smash the door. G) Yell. H) Kill them all. I) Attack if attacked. J) Choose two. K) Choose Three. L) Do nothing. Jesus. I thought. Okay, okay. I have to think about this. A timer popped up on the side with ten seconds on it. Dammit! I''ll choose three! B, C, and I! _______________ ¡°The two people that just took a half step towards the door and everyone else in the room. If you attack me, I will kill you.¡± I said as a warning and waited for a second as I slipped off my overloaded pack. They took a step back and I stepped aside and opened the door as I did so. A two foot glowing ring of something passed out the open doorway. ¡°Dammit!¡± A man''s voice said loudly. I leapt back into the doorway and saw the man in robes with a hand out, palm towards me. In the next second, I was across the room and had another hand to add to my collection and then I sliced his throat. ¡°ARG-gGglug!!¡± The man gurgled as he died. I lunged at the closest swordsman that was poised to strike. ¡°STOP!¡± The CO yelled and my knife was a quarter of an inch in the man''s chest above his heart. ¡°It wasn''t an attack! It was a binding spell!¡± ¡°How is binding me up not an attack?¡± I asked and didn''t move. ¡°I didn''t want you maiming any more of my soldiers!¡± The CO exclaimed. ¡°That''s not true.¡± I said. ¡°You want me confined and tried to attack me to do it. I warned you, over and over.¡± I turned my head to look at her. ¡°Whose fault is it that none of you are treating me fairly?¡± ¡°That''s... not true.¡± Sandra said, her voice softer than the commanding one she had just used. ¡°You aren''t following the rules.¡± ¡°What rules?¡± I asked and she looked surprised. ¡°All I''ve seen is people stealing from me and saying I should accept it. I''ve had someone I thought was teaching me the proper way to act, act so stupidly that he nearly got three people killed. If I hadn''t cleared away all the creatures on the way back to the boat, they would have died.¡± ¡°That''s why you ran ahead?¡± Sandra asked. I nodded. ¡°I can''t fight off a bunch of creatures or keep them safe with them stumbling all over the place.¡± Sandra sat down and waved at the other swordsman. ¡°You can go.¡± ¡°Ma''am! He killed Kyle! You can''t just...¡± ¡°He warned us, several times.¡± Sandra said with a sigh. ¡°It''s my responsibility for the mage''s death.¡± ¡°He was... only confining...¡± The one I had my blade in said. ¡°If you breathe too deeply, my knife will pierce your heart.¡± I said without looking at him. ¡°David, please let him go.¡± Sandra said. She stood up and walked over to us. ¡°I''ll heal his wound and you can sit down.¡± ¡°It''s a magical wound.¡± I said and pulled the knife out. The blood started to seep into the man''s shirt immediately. Sandra took in a sharp breath and cast the same sealing spell to stop the bleeding, then she cast a healing spell. I knew this because she said the names of them and then chanted for some reason. It was really odd, since the Hag never said anything and neither did I. I stepped out of the office and squeezed the blood out the hand I had taken from the mage and quickly treated it. This one I made into a fist, for no particular reason, and stuffed it into my pack. I brought my overloaded pack into the office and propped it against her desk. ¡°Head over to the medical building to rest.¡± Sandra said to the swordsman, who nodded, and he left. She turned around and looked at the dead mage. She sighed and waved to the second swordsman. ¡°Please take him to the medical building. I''ll take care of it later and perform the proper rites.¡± ¡°Ma''am.¡± The swordsman said, gave me an angry look, then picked up the mage''s body. He left, struggling slightly with the awkward weight, and Sandra walked over and closed the office door. She walked around the desk and sat down. She took in a deep breath and looked into my eyes. ¡°You have done serious harm to your fellow army members.¡± Sandra said. ¡°Harm that I can have you hanged for.¡± _______________ You have a minor choice to make. It will change how well you can repair the damage of what has happened. A) Stay silent. B) Argue. C) Remind her of everything. D) Run. E) Kill her. F) Choose two. I''m going with B and C this time. _______________ ¡°No, you can''t. You said you needed me.¡± I said. ¡°David...¡± ¡°I don''t know why, though. You have potion makers and lots of soldiers. The old CO said he was saving me from a fake trial and then said I was the property of the Gulf Kingdom and was conscripted.¡± I said. ¡°Does that mean I''m a slave again? I thought you hated slaves and slavery.¡± Sandra closed her eyes and took several deep breaths. ¡°You''re not a slave. Slavery is an abomination to civilization.¡± ¡°I can''t leave. People keep taking my things. I can only get clothes when I need them and I have to pay for them. If I do something that someone with more decorations thinks is wrong, I am punished.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°How am I not a slave?¡± ¡°Most people who join, do it for a term of service. You''re supposed to be able to go home afterwards.¡± ¡°The CO said for life or until the king grants me leave.¡± ¡°If you had it, you would go back into the marsh and disappear, wouldn''t you?¡± ¡°I don''t have to worry about people hurting me there, except the Hag. She never pretended to be my friend first, though. She was mean right from the start.¡± Sandra let out a long and drawn out breath. ¡°David, I''m sorry. This... transition... has been difficult for all of us, not just you.¡± ¡°I don''t understand.¡± I said. ¡°I''ll explain what I mean, right after you tell me everything that happened since I sent you to get those large stew pots.¡± So, I told her everything. I didn''t leave anything out, except opening my secret stash. I only said I retrieved more potions and then later I explained that they had been taken and then wasted, because they hadn''t been administered properly. I also told her how expensive the snake juice was, because the ingredients to make it only bloomed once a year and only for a week. She was shocked, to say the least. I didn''t tell her that it was the same rare ingredients that the strength potion needed, either. They didn''t know about my other potions and I was going to keep it that way, because I wasn''t going to let them take those on me, too. 059 Working Out An Understanding I continued my telling of the story and she wasn''t surprised when I confirmed the Eastern Empire''s clothing and mannerisms of the people I had seen. I saw the look of disapproval when I refused Alex''s orders, then I described all of the creatures and things I had killed on the way back and used the protection ward to drive others away. Sandra Rivers, the CO, stared at me and was quiet for several minutes. I was done talking and stayed silent as well. Several different expressions tried to show themselves on her face and she quickly blanked her face each time. ¡°David, I have to think about this. I''ll write out the report for you and then I''ll compare it to the other four I have.¡± ¡°Why?¡± I asked. ¡°It lets me build a cohesive account and fills in the other parts that you weren''t present or awake for.¡± ¡°I don''t understand.¡± I said. ¡°I know you don''t.¡± Sandra said. ¡°Come back here in an hour and I''ll be ready to explain everything to you. What the rules are, what we expect from you, and especially what you are prohibited from doing.¡± She said. ¡°You will also be accompanied by a guard at all times. Dismissed.¡± I stood up and used the petrified hand hanging around my neck to salute her. She took in a sharp breath and closed her eyes as she saluted back. I picked up my backpack and left her office. The secretary was still missing and when I stepped out of the main building, the swordsman that had glared angrily at me before was waiting for me. I walked by him and he followed me all the way to the maintenance building at the back of the garrison. I went inside and the man there greeted me warmly. ¡°Just in time.¡± The man said. ¡°You can leave your pack in the office over there. It''s much too dangerous to work around here with all of that on your back.¡± I took the pack to the office and left it on the chair. When I turned around to leave, the swordsman was right there and blocked my way. ¡°You won''t get away with what you did.¡± The man growled at me. ¡°Do you want to die, too?¡± I asked him. ¡°The CO should put you out of our misery.¡± He said. ¡°What''s that mean?¡± I asked. ¡°It means keeping you around is too dangerous. You''re more trouble than you''re worth.¡± ¡°Then contact the king and tell him to pardon me from conscription.¡± I said and his eyes widened. ¡°Now step aside or I will remove your legs.¡± ¡°That''s enough.¡± The man said and grabbed the swordsman by the shoulder, turned him around, and flung him towards the door. The swordsman barely kept his footing as he stumbled and staggered. ¡°You''re stopping the maintenance department from doing their work.¡± ¡°I''m his guard! I have to stop him from doing more harm!¡± ¡°You''re causing him to do more harm, you idiot.¡± The man said and the swordsman looked angry. ¡°Get outside and guard the damn door, since that''s something you can easily understand.¡± The swordsman gave him a stern look, did an about face, and walked over to the door and stood in front of it. The man huffed and walked over to the door and shut it. ¡°Damn young punks. Only thinking about their own feelings and not the needs of the army.¡± The man said and walked back over to me. ¡°Come over to the workbench and we can get started on those holes.¡± I nodded and followed him. We went to the bench and there were several things that needed very specific holes. One even needed ten of them for something called ''nuts and bolts''. He held the wood steady and I started using the right sized hand drill for it. _______________ You have a minor choice to make. It''s impact will affect only you. A) Ask questions. B) Work silently. That''s a really simple choice. I choose A. _______________ ¡°What did you mean about the needs of the army?¡± I asked. The man huffed. ¡°We''re languishing out here at the bumfuck end of nowhere.¡± He said and pointed to the next spot for a hole. ¡°Resources are scarce, money even scarcer, and we''re rationing what we brought with us and combining it with what we can get from the locals.¡± He chuckled. ¡°I mean, we used up prime farm land to build this monstrosity of a garrison out of wood that was plentiful and horrible.¡± ¡°You noticed?¡± I asked and he laughed. ¡°Who do you think has to walk around fixing all the damn holes and breaches every few days?¡± I gave him a confused look. ¡°Ha ha! Me! It''s me.¡± He said and pointed to a new spot. ¡°So there''s no one else working here?¡± I asked. ¡°Nope. Not enough people to keep a watch on everything, do patrols, hunt animals for food, and keep everything up and running.¡± The man said. ¡°I always say ''we'' so that it sounds like there''s someone else here.¡±A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. I nodded and finished the next hole. ¡°What are nuts and bolts?¡± The man laughed again. ¡°You keep drilling holes like that and I''ll tell you everything I know about performing maintenance.¡± I nodded and we worked for the next hour straight as he told me all about the things he did, the tools he worked with, and the things he built, maintained, and kept ready for when the army needed them. What he was building now was something called a catapult. He showed me the plans and the parts we were working on today. ¡°What''s it for?¡± I asked. ¡°Long range bombardment of the enemy.¡± The man said. ¡°It''s also something to keep the troops busy while we wait and see what the Colonel says about the marsh. They can use it for target practice and it helps them work on their cooperation when they gather materials to launch and to operate the thing.¡± ¡°I need to report to the CO again.¡± I said. ¡°Not a problem. I''ll get a couple of the lads in here to help me put the thing together, now that we''ve done all the hard work.¡± The man said and clapped my shoulder. ¡°Make sure to tell her what you did here.¡± ¡°Yes, sir.¡± I said and used the petrified hand to salute. He laughed and waved me away. I went to the office and grabbed my pack and put it on, then went to the door. I opened it and the swordsman was still standing there. The maintenance man strode over and hauled his hand back and punched him right in the back of the head. ¡°AHH!¡± The swordsman said and was pushed forward. He quickly turned around and drew his sword. ¡°Go ahead and I''ll make you eat that sword.¡± The maintenance man growled. The swordsman thought about it for a second and then sheathed his sword. ¡°Why did you punch me?¡± ¡°Because you''re in the goddamn way and making a nuisance of yourself.¡± The maintenance man said. ¡°I am giving Private Drake explicit permission to continue to hit you in a similar manner every time you block him or get in his way.¡± ¡°You can''t do that!¡± The swordsman said. ¡°Do you want him to refuse a direct order from a superior officer?¡± The maintenance man asked. The swordsman closed his mouth and didn''t respond. ¡°Carry on, Private Drake.¡± The maintenance man said and saluted. I used my own hand this time to salute. ¡°Thank you, sir.¡± He laughed and waved me away and I walked back towards the main building. The swordsman followed me and grumbled under his breath the entire time. I entered and the secretary was back in front at her desk. ¡°She''s ready to see you, Private Drake.¡± She said and waved me through. ¡°Not you.¡± The swordsman grumbled and stopped by her desk. I shut the door and took off my pack, leaned it against the desk and sat down in the chair. Sandra took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°What did you do for the last hour?¡± ¡°Worked in the maintenance department. They needed help over there.¡± I responded. Her face broke into a brief smile. ¡°You must have impressed ol'' Gary if he let you inside.¡± ¡°All I did was drill holes for an hour.¡± I said with a shrug. ¡°Wait, what?¡± Sandra looked surprised. I told her all about what I did in the building and what he was building. ¡°Are you serious? He said he''s assembling it already?¡± Sandra asked and I nodded. She was quiet for a few moments and then she nodded. ¡°All right. I''m assigning you to the maintenance department. Your main task will be to cut up all those logs at Diane''s place. You are to build a new wall, using your marsh magic, on the inside of the one we have already. I want it solid like your new boat and not flimsy like it is now.¡± ¡°I don''t know if there''s enough logs to do that.¡± I said. ¡°I assume you know how to cut trees down?¡± Sandra asked and I nodded. ¡°That saves us waiting several days for someone to come out here and do it for you. You don''t need to worry about that for now. Do the front of the garrison first and you can work backwards from there.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± ¡°That''s during the normal work hours during the day. In the evenings, you''ll report to me here for lessons in reading, culture, proper etiquette, and everything else I can think of.¡± ¡°What about basic training?¡± I asked. ¡°The next session starts in just over a week. I really should have sent you off already; but, the report on what you can do with your boat has given me some spare time to teach you what I can before sending you off.¡± Sandra said. ¡°Yes, you''ll be taking your boat. I''ll also be sending someone along to keep an eye on you to make sure you''re okay.¡± ¡°Not the guard.¡± I said. ¡°No, the specialist is staying here. I''m sending Lieutenant Smith and Sergeant Simms with you. They are in need of new training as well. They will be just as busy as you.¡± Sandra said and opened up a drawer to take out a book and put it on the desk. ¡°Right now, I''ll go over the basics of army procedure along with the rules and regulations.¡± She gave me a stern look. ¡°I want you to listen closely, all right? Once I read this, you''ll understand what you have been doing is wrong.¡± I nodded and picked up the chair and walked around the desk. I put the chair next to hers and sat down. Sandra gave me an odd look for a few seconds, shrugged a little, and pointed to the book. ¡°Let''s read it together and you can point out the words that you don''t understand.¡± I nodded and that''s what we did for the next few hours. It wasn''t that large of a book; but, I didn''t know a lot of the words or what they meant. I asked her about everything and by the time we reached the end of the book, she finally understood exactly how much education that I lacked. That was a new word for me, too. Education. ¡°Now do you understand?¡± Sandra asked me as she closed the book. ¡°Yes. It''s exactly like I thought. Anyone with more decorations can order me to kill myself and won''t get in trouble for it.¡± ¡°That''s not what I just taught you.¡± ¡°Yes, it was. Chain of command. I know how it works. The ultimate responsibility is the commanding officer, no matter what their rank is, unless they are under orders from their commanding officer, then they are responsible.¡± Sandra looked at me with a slightly sad face. ¡°David...¡± ¡°When you ordered that mage to restrain me, it was your fault he died.¡± I said. ¡°You knew I was dangerous and you put them in danger. Alex knew it was dangerous to go through the marsh with no real supplies, protection, or even enough people to survive. He did it on his own initiative, so he was responsible for anyone that was injured and might have died.¡± ¡°Rich.¡± ¡°If they didn''t have my potions on them, he would be dead. The rock was this big.¡± I said and showed her the same hand shape as Alex showed Rich. ¡°So, you understand why he took them.¡± Sandra said. ¡°Yes. It doesn''t make it right, especially since I can''t replace them.¡± ¡°You gathered a lot of ingredients.¡± Sandra said and nodded at the overloaded pack. ¡°That''s barely enough to make another series of batches of number ten potion.¡± I said. ¡°Even if I use my trick to make more, I don''t have the pots and space to make more than one batch at a time.¡± ¡°I told you to requisition the space and resources you needed.¡± Sandra said. ¡°You mean steal someone else''s space and things.¡± I said and she sighed. ¡°That''s not what I meant.¡± Sandra looked at my face and sighed again. ¡°All right. Talk to Gary. See if he can assign you some unused space to build something by the maintenance building.¡± ¡°I''ll need to go buy more pots and things.¡± I said and stood up. ¡°Stop by the purser and get an equipment stipend.¡± Sandra said and wrote out a slip. ¡°He''s in the building beside the PX.¡± I nodded and took the slip before I picked up my pack. ¡°You need quarters to store your things, too. Unfortunately, I agree with the old CO. You can''t be allowed to bunk with the other soldiers for now.¡± ¡°I''ll put a bed in the new thing I build.¡± I said. Sandra nodded. ¡°Good luck... and please, don''t kill anyone for insulting you.¡± ¡°It''s all right. Warrant Officer Gary has corrected my understanding of appropriate force response.¡± ¡°Well, that''s a relief.¡± Sandra said and saluted. ¡°Dismissed.¡± I used the petrified hand to salute and left her office. 060 Building Repertoire The swordsman stepped in front of me and blocked my way. ¡°Do you know how long I''ve been out here waiting?¡± Quick as a flash I grabbed his shoulder, turned him around, and lightly popped him in the back of the head with my fist. His head did a comical shake and he dropped to the ground, unconscious. ¡°David!¡± The CO Sandra Rivers exclaimed and came out of her office. ¡°I''m under orders from Warrant Officer Gary to apply appropriate force to stop him from blocking my way like that again.¡± I said. ¡°You hit him too hard.¡± Sandra said as she rolled him over and put a hand over the swordsman''s face. ¡°Nothing''s broken. He''s just knocked out.¡± She looked at me. ¡°You need to hold back more.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± I said. ¡°You knew he was going to do that?¡± Sandra asked. ¡°Yes.¡± I said. ¡°He''s blocked me twice before.¡± Sandra sighed. ¡°I''ll get another guard to...¡± ¡°He''s still my guard.¡± I said and grabbed the front of his uniform like it was a handle and picked him up. ¡°It works better this way.¡± Sandra and her secretary just stared at me as I carried him out of the building. Several soldiers on patrol glanced at me and didn''t comment as I walked over to the PX and past it to the next building to see the purser. ¡°Hello.¡± A short woman with short dark hair said from behind a counter when I entered. ¡°What can I do for you?¡± I put down my guard and took out the requisition slip. The woman sighed. ¡°Another equipment allotment?¡± She shook her head and dug something out from under the counter. ¡°I swear, the new CO thinks that money grows on trees.¡± ¡°Lumberjacks.¡± I said and she looked at my face, then she laughed. ¡°Okay, you got me. I guess money really does grow on trees.¡± She said and picked up a small sack and put it on the counter. ¡°Here''s ten gold coins.¡± She said and started to slide it across to me. ¡°You''ll get another ten next month if you... OUCH!¡± She jerked her hand and there was a huge splinter stuck into her palm. _______________ You have a minor choice to make. It will change your standing with the Purser. A) Do nothing. B) Help her. C) Call for help. D) Apologize. E) Run. F) Rob her (she''s distracted). I guess my standing with the army is pretty low if robbing the garrison is an option. I thought. She hasn''t done anything to me and she didn''t mention my guard, so... I''ll choose B. _______________ ¡°Let me get that.¡± I said and held a hand out to her. She gave me a disbelieving look for a second and put her hand in mine. I used the vigilance technique and could see there was more wood inside the skin than outside of it. ¡°Do you have a knife or dagger? It''s a big piece stuck in there.¡± She pulled a small knife out of a small holder behind her back and handed it to me. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and made a very small cut, which both hurt her and eased the hurt feeling, because she hissed and then sighed. I plucked the splinter out and she caught her breath at the jagged piece that had been under her skin. ¡°Just a second. I''ll apply...¡± I pat the spots where I would store my healing potions and sighed. ¡°I''m sorry. Lieutenant Smith took my healing potions.¡± ¡°You''d use a healing potion on me for a small cut?¡± She asked with a smile. ¡°Thank you, Private.¡± She said and pat my hand. ¡°For now, I''ll clean it up and get...¡± ¡°I can do that.¡± I said and bent over and licked her palm. I didn''t get it all, so I did it again. I took out a canvas bag, used my own knife to cut a small piece out of it, then wrapped it around her hand. ¡°The bleeding should stop if you hold it. I''ll run down to Diane''s store and get you a potion.¡± The woman stared at me with her mouth slightly open. ¡°I''ll be right back.¡± I said and pat her hand back, picked up my guard, and left the building at a run. I went to the gate and the guards there opened it to let me out. ¡°I''ll be right back.¡± ¡°We''ll be here.¡± One of them said. I took off down the road with the large and awkward pack on my back and the guard in my left hand. It really was a lot better having him unconscious, because I made it to Diane''s store only a couple of minutes later and she didn''t mention the swordsman, either.Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°I need some healing and general health potions.¡± I said. ¡°Of course. For some wonderful reason, I have a very large overstock of them.¡± Diane said and handed me half a dozen of each. ¡°If you''re wondering, you are that wonderful reason.¡± I dug into my pockets for money and she stopped me. ¡°You have lots of store credit for that first marsh panther pelt, remember?¡± Diane asked and gave me a kiss. ¡°So, don''t worry about it. I''ll tell you when you reach the limit of what I''m willing to give you.¡± I nodded and ran out of the store, back up the main road, and went back into the garrison. ¡°I''m coming back out. I have to go buy things.¡± ¡°Not a problem.¡± The guard said and shut the gate. I ran back to the Purser and she was still standing there with the canvas wrapped around her hand. I put the guard down and walked over to the counter. Her eyes followed me and she didn''t speak, even when I removed the canvas from her hand and took out a healing potion. I dabbed some on my fingertip and slowly rubbed it on the cut and it healed over. ¡°Take a very small sip.¡± I said as I held the vial out to her. She nodded and took a small sip, using about a quarter of it. She handed it back to me and I corked the vial and put it back into my bandoleer. ¡°There. All better.¡± I said and took the coin sack and put it into a pocket. ¡°Let me fix the counter with some marsh magic, too. You don''t want that to happen again.¡± ¡°But... you...¡± ¡°I''m assigned to the maintenance department.¡± I said and she nodded as she stepped back. After a quick application of some number ten potion and mumbling some fake magic words, the counter was completely smooth. She stared at the thing and then she gasped when I used some fortifying potion on it with the cloth rag I always used. ¡°Th-this... is... marsh magic.¡± She whispered and touched it tentatively, then she rubbed her hand over the now preserved and smooth as glass surface. ¡°Oh, this... it''s like heaven to my hands!¡± She exclaimed and then she saluted me. ¡°What''s your name, Private?¡± ¡°David Drake.¡± I said and saluted back with my normal hand. ¡°Thank you, Private Drake.¡± She smiled and ended the salute. ¡°Carry on.¡± I nodded and picked up the guard by the shirt. ¡°What''s wrong with him?¡± The Purser asked. ¡°He''s my guard and blocked me from moving freely.¡± I said. ¡°He''s doing a better guard job now.¡± She laughed and I left the small building. I ran over to the maintenance building at the back of the garrison and asked Gary about building a spot next to the maintenance building. ¡°Sure, kid. There''s a good twenty feet there of unused space. We''re next to the back wall, so leave enough room for the patrols to get behind it like this building.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and saluted. ¡°I''m off to buy proper supplies.¡± He saluted back. ¡°You can leave your pack in the office if you want. The door locks, too.¡± I gave him a skeptical look. ¡°You can use your magic on it to seal the door.¡± I nodded and dropped my pack off, since I wouldn''t be needing anything that was inside it. I sealed the door in a couple of spots and not the whole thing. ¡°I''ll see you when you return.¡± Gary said and I nodded. I left there at a run and went to the gate. ¡°I''ll be a few hours.¡± ¡°We''ll still be here.¡± The guards said and closed the gate behind me. I ran down the road to Diane''s new place and down that road, by her house, and to the dock. I put the guard down and cut the boat free from where I had used the number ten potion and lifted the end of the boat up onto the dock. I used the weight enchantment and made it light and dragged it onto the dock. It took me several minutes to find all of the holes that Mr. Phelps had drilled into it and I filled them with number ten potion to patch the holes. The dock was waterproof, so the potion only stuck to the freshly drilled holes and grew ''new'' wood. I had to cover it in the fortifying waterproof potion and let it set, then did the same with the bottom part. Once it was done, I slid it back into the water, put the guard inside, and untied the boat. I climbed on and pushed away from the dock, then I sat down and used the movement enchantment. I had to use the vigilance technique to help steer and took off at the fastest safe speed I could manage. I was back at the distant town three hours later and docked at the small dock using the pole to pretend that I was using it and not magic, and I left my guard in the boat to guard it. I tied him up and gagged him, just in case he woke up. I didn''t want him to call for help or get me in trouble. I could have carried him; but, I wanted my hands free. I walked quickly to the blacksmith I had bought the stew pots from the last time and he remembered me. ¡°They let you come here alone?¡± The blacksmith asked with a laugh. ¡°You haven''t even done basic training yet.¡± ¡°How do you know that?¡± I asked, surprised. ¡°You don''t walk like them.¡± He said with a laugh. ¡°Believe me, you''ll notice the change. It''s the marching in time that does it.¡± ¡°I''ll be careful.¡± I said and he laughed again. ¡°What can I get for you?¡± ¡°Six more pots, the racks for them over a large fire, and if you have stone bases for the fire, I''ll take those, too.¡± ¡°Going for a huge cookout, are you?¡± He asked and I nodded. ¡°I hope you''ve got a big boat. The stone bases aren''t light.¡± ¡°Can you deliver them with a cart to the dock? I can''t carry them all in one trip.¡± The blacksmith laughed again. ¡°You army guys always think you''re superhuman.¡± He said. ¡°You''ll need the tools and things for stirring and tending the fires and the pots, too.¡± I nodded and he set everything up for me. It only cost a gold coin and a few silver coins for everything, and that was a surprise, so I asked for twice as much. He stared at me with a blank expression for about ten seconds, then he laughed and laughed. ¡°I never thought I''d like an army guy! Ha ha!¡± He said and clapped me on the shoulder. ¡°Just another gold coin will do.¡± I gave him another gold coin and he gave me twice as many things. He even gave me extra bracing stones for surrounding the pits, in case I needed them, and everything was loaded into the cart. I rode the cart to the dock with the workers and I pointed out the canvas covered boat on the lower dock. ¡°You have got to be kidding.¡± One of the workers said. ¡°No.¡± I said and picked up one of the three feet by three feet square stone bases that were three inches thick, by myself, and walked down the stairs. I loaded it into the center of the back of the boat and came back up. There were a dozen of them and the workers watched me carry by myself what it took two of them to lift. What they didn''t know was that I could carry more, I just wanted to spread the weight out in the boat and only took one at a time. ¡°He''s doing the heavy lifting, so let''s move the rest.¡± One of the workers said and then there was a train of people and items being passed down the stairs and loaded onto the boat. It only took a few minutes and the cart was empty and the boat was loaded. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and they waved as the cart left. I climbed onto the boat and untied it, then used the movement enchantment and the pole to cover up I was using magic. Once I was far enough away, I put the pole down and took off at the safest speed again. I needed to get back and get to work. The army needed me. 061 A New Workshop The swordsman groaned when he woke up and realized he was bound and gagged. ¡°HMM! MHM MMM!¡± ¡°I hit you a bit too hard and knocked you out.¡± I said. ¡°I''ll do better the next time you block me.¡± He glared at me. ¡°Hmm hm.¡± He mumbled and rolled over to shake his bound hands at me, then rolled back to glare at me again. ¡°I didn''t want you attacking me as soon as you woke up.¡± I said. ¡°I''ll untie you when we get back.¡± ¡°Hm?¡± He lifted his head and looked around. I grabbed his shoulder and sat him up so he could see over the three foot tall walls of the boat. ¡°HMM!¡± ¡°Marsh magic.¡± I said, as if he asked me what was going on. He didn''t try to speak again. Two and a half hours later, I pulled the boat up to the dock. I tied the boat up and then ignored his grunt as I ran up the road. I passed Diane''s place, ran down the main road past the garrison, and down to the dock there. I grabbed the large hand cart and ran back up the road. I made it back to the dock by Diane''s place and the swordsman glared at me. His glare became a look of disbelief as I loaded up the cart with the things I bought, including the large stone bases. Those I put over the wheels for balance and then I added the crate of number ten potion that was sealed and still in the boat. I untied the swordsman after that and took off his gag. He didn''t say anything to me and stepped out of the boat. I secured the boat and stepped behind the cart''s pull handle and walked. He followed me without saying anything, then he stared with a blank expression when I stopped by Diane''s place and starting cutting up logs with my knife. I did that for an hour and he didn''t complain once. I put all the choice planks on the stack of other planks there for Michelle the boatbuilder to use and loaded the rest into the cart. Unlike them, I could use every scrap of wood for the things I did. Except for the bark. That I usually discarded or used for the fire. That reminded me that I needed firewood and thought about cutting up a few logs for it, then remembered I should probably use wildwood, so I could keep the same temperature with a magic enhanced fire that burned ten times as long. I also knew just the place to get a pile of it, too. There was a huge stump at the back of Diane''s store property and I could harvest a bunch from that. I took the cart up the road to the main one and pulled it to the garrison. The guards opened the door for me and laughed at what I had in it. They didn''t ask what I was doing with it and just waved me through. My guard stayed silent as well and followed me. I brought the cart over to the spot beside the maintenance building and parked it there. _______________ You have a major choice to make. Will it be the right one or will you fail in your chosen course? A) Build it yourself. B) Get the guard to help. C) Get Gary to help. D) Get someone else. I don''t really know anyone else and the guard definitely won''t help me. I thought and looked at the first option. I could build it myself; but, it goes so much faster with an extra pair of hands. Plus, if I''m going to be working in the maintenance department, then Gary''s going to see me use the number ten potion as we build the walls. I smiled. I''ll choose C. _______________ I walked into the maintenance building and Gary saw us. ¡°There you are.¡± Gary said and came over to me. ¡°You sure took your time going to the village to buy supplies.¡± ¡°I can''t buy supplies from the village.¡± I said and he looked surprised. ¡°You can''t? Then where did you go?¡± ¡°To the next town.¡± I said and he stared at me. ¡°How... how in the world... it''s three days by boat!¡± Gary exclaimed. ¡°Not for me.¡± I said. Gary was silent for a moment and looked at my guard. ¡°Tell me what happened.¡± ¡°I wasn''t awake for most of it.¡± The swordsman said and glanced at me. ¡°From what I saw, his boat moves on its own and doesn''t have to be poled, paddled, or used a traditional sail.¡± Gary looked like he was thinking about something. ¡°Does the CO know?¡±This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°Yes.¡± I said. ¡°She allowed me, Lt. Smith, Sgt. Simms, Marine Sgt. Russell and Sgt. Sanders to get supplies for the town.¡± ¡°Hmm. Good. Good.¡± Gary said. ¡°I''ll have to put a few things in order to prep for her decision when it comes.¡± ¡°What decision?¡± I asked. ¡°Don''t worry about it.¡± Gary said with a smile. ¡°I assume you got what you needed this time?¡± ¡°Yes. I just need a hand putting the building together to set everything up.¡± ¡°You''re in luck, because I''ve already finished everything else for today.¡± Gary said and rubbed his hands together. ¡°Let''s get to work.¡± I nodded and we went back outside. ¡°You better step back and stay out of the way. We have serious work to do here.¡± Gary said to the guard and then looked at the pile of planks in the cart. ¡°We''re gonna need nails and hammers.¡± ¡°No, we won''t.¡± I said and he gave me a disbelieving look. ¡°Help me hold the planks in place.¡± Then we got to work and started building the walls. Gary started telling me that I was doing it wrong and that I needed to build an internal structure first before making the outside of the wall, until I used some of the number ten potion to stick two of the planks together. I waved my hand over it for a split second and mumbled a word, just so he would think that he can''t use the potion by himself. It was too dangerous to let anyone else use it unsupervised. ¡°WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!?¡± Garry yelled. ¡°Marsh magic.¡± I said. ¡°I''ll be doing the same thing when I''m building the inner wall the CO ordered.¡± ¡°Kid, I''ll be right there by your side putting the thing up.¡± Gary said and tapped the two planks that were now one. ¡°You can keep doing this, can''t you?¡± I nodded. ¡°As long as I have enough potion to get the building built.¡± I said and nodded at the sealed crate in the cart. ¡°That''s full of vials?¡± Gary asked, surprised. ¡°Yes, and it can only be opened safely with my knife.¡± I said and then we went back to work. We went fast, because I was more concerned with getting it up and in place than I was with making it perfect. I could worry about that when I had more number ten potion made, which meant that I needed my place built and a roof on top of it. ¡°Kid, this is going to be really flimsy with only planks holding it up and no braces.¡± Gary said as we finished attaching the back wall on the 12 foot by 20 foot building. ¡°Only until I get the potion made.¡± I said. ¡°Then we can fill in the spaces.¡± ¡°The spaces?¡± Gary asked and then he stared as I started making the inside wall. He helped right away and in only an hour, the walls were up and ready for potion. When I explained what I was going to do with the roof, he shook his head. ¡°I think you better go for just a single angled roof. Trying to put a pitched roof on that is a waste of time.¡± Gary said. ¡°A single angle will achieve the same result.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± I said and he showed me that it was a simple matter to add a short one foot riser with vents to one wall and then it was just straight planks to the other side of the building. The planks were exactly the right length, so we completed the bottom part of the roof and then the top part after another half an hour. It went really fast with only having to lay the planks in place. I couldn''t put a wood floor in, since I needed the stone bases for the fires. I had made the building exactly four stone bases wide and just over six stone bases long. With that long rectangular design, five stone bases could go along the walls and two could go on the end in between them. That left me five feet by twelve feet for living space and a nice walkway between the two rows of pots and racks. I placed the blocking stones all along the walls and the walkway, attached them to the stone bases with potion, and then set everything into place. ¡°Good lord.¡± Gary said as he looked at the setup. ¡°How in the world are you going to keep all of this going? The firewood you''re going to need will be more than a squad can cut down in a day!¡± ¡°I don''t need normal firewood.¡± I said and he gave me a strange look. ¡°I am going to need a lot of water, though.¡± ¡°I''ll have someone gather some up...¡± Gary started to say. ¡°No, that''s okay.¡± I said and quickly made up two large square water barrels, just like the ones I had at home. I applied the last of my fortifying waterproof potion to them and put them on the hand cart. I realized then that I could take the pots and half fill them with water as well and added them back to the cart. ¡°I''ll be right back.¡± Gary stood there and stared at me as I left with the cart at a jog. My guard came right along with me. The funny thing was, he never offered to help once, not even when I was at the water and he could have filled up the other barrel with water while I filled the first one. I finished that task and filled each pot to half like I wanted. I took my time with the cart going back, now that it was heavy with water that I could easily spill if I wasn''t careful. I dropped the water off at the new building and then took the empty cart all the way back to the village. Once there, I stopped at Diane''s store and ran behind it to the back of her property to the huge wildwood stump that was there. The part that was cut down was still in the woods, its magical properties long since dissipated. I used my knife and hacked at the large stump to get nice chunks of firewood from it that would fit under the racks and give me a nice even fire. I carried piles of it back to the cart and didn''t stop until I had enough. Just like other resources that I cultivated, I didn''t take too much from the stump. As long as it stayed alive and had lots of roots and things, it would keep trying to regrow itself. It took years for them to start growing back, though. Even now, the ones I had cut down in the marsh eight years ago were only just making sprouts pop up in the center of them. I took the cart back to the garrison and to my new building to start loading the firewood under the racks to get the fires going. To my surprise, there was a nice bed tucked into the corner across from the door and a work bench next to it. ¡°You''ll want to put up a dividing wall to block the bed from the door and the heat.¡± Gary said. ¡°Unless you stay just in your underwear, because it''s going to be really hot in here.¡± I nodded and we quickly made a dividing wall. I didn''t bother trying to hide it when I used the fire lighting magic to get the wood burning. Gary would be seeing it a lot, if I was allowed to go and gather ingredients to make more potions. He didn''t even blink an eye at me when I did it... then he saw the bright blue flames of the wood and that it didn''t burn. ¡°Dammit, kid! What else are you going to surprise me with?¡± Gary asked with a chuckle. ¡°Watch.¡± I said and went to retrieve my pack from his office and the bags of ingredients I had. 062 Building And Learning I came back and went inside my new workshop with my things and Gary watched as I showed him my trick for making more ingredients. I warned him that it only worked for certain ones, because the properties they had could be copied easily. When I showed him that I could use the normal measure of ingredients for one stewing pot and could make it into ten times as much, he was stunned. ¡°It''s one of the secrets of the number ten potion.¡± I whispered. ¡°I actually discovered it by mistake when I almost attached my hand to my workbench at home after spilling some.¡± ¡°Wait, what did you say?¡± ¡°I was told it was glue and it took me years to find out that it actually merges things together.¡± I said. ¡°It''s really dangerous if you''re not careful with it.¡± ¡°But... I''ve touched...¡± I chuckled. ¡°Once it''s set, it''s set. It can''t activate again. The only time you need to be really careful is when you use too much or you''re filling in a huge area.¡± Gary nodded and watched me make all twelve large stew pots of number ten potion. It went surprisingly quick, since I had been doing it for years, and I used my gland extract from one of the water skins that I had taken from home. I infused each pot with my magic when it was ready and that definitely got Gary''s attention. He couldn''t deny that I really was performing magic then. Thanks to something Garry called a funnel, that I treated with a bit of normal waterproofing potion, we added eight of the large stew pots of potion into the walls. The roof was next and he asked me if we had to cover the spots we poured them in. I shook my head. ¡°It''ll all be solid wood in half an hour. I just have to make it waterproof after that, which means I need to make up some.¡± I pad my bandoleer. ¡°I''m pretty much out.¡± ¡°You''ll be going back to cut up some wood after that, I suppose.¡± Gary said. ¡°I''ll treat the roof and the walls first, divide the rest up into potion bottles, then do another batch of number ten potion.¡± I said and he widened his eyes. ¡°As long as it stays on the heat, it won''t activate.¡± Gary nodded. ¡°I get it. As soon as it starts to cool, never touch it.¡± ¡°Don''t touch it when it''s hot, either. You''ll burn your hands.¡± I said and he laughed. ¡°I learned that a long time ago, kid.¡± Gary said. ¡°Is there anything you need from me?¡± ¡°I need my own hand cart. I''ll be making lots of potion and need water and to carry the planks. I need to take back the one outside.¡± ¡°You can''t make it yourself?¡± Gary asked, surprised. ¡°I''ve only made that one bigger.¡± ¡°So, I can teach you some things.¡± Gary said with a smile. ¡°I don''t know a lot besides what I know.¡± I said and he laughed again. ¡°Let me know when you head out to cut more wood and I''ll show you how to make a cart from scratch.¡± Gary said. ¡° I nodded and he left my building. I made up a waterproofing potion and quickly applied it to the roof and the outside of the walls, since they were now dry, and went back inside to make another twelve batches of number ten potion. I used up one water skin of my extract and squeezed out my gland into the empty water skin. I tied it to my waist and would fill it again during the next day. I infused the pots of potion and then left the building. I sealed it up with both magic and potion, so that no one but me could get in, and went inside the maintenance building to see Gary. It took him an hour to show me that something couldn''t just be melded together and have them work. They had moving parts and needed to not be attached. Building a cart with a mixture of doing it normally and doing it with number ten potion, sure was neat to see. Even Gary was impressed with how quickly we had done it and it was twice as strong as the other one and a third the size larger. It even had four wheels, which meant that I didn''t have to worry about balancing it. I could probably fill the whole thing with an entire stack of fifty logs after I cut them up, which meant a lot less running around for me. ¡°Thanks Gary.¡± I said. He had even made the handle swing up, so that I didn''t have to worry about trying to step into it. ¡°This is great!¡± ¡°It''s not just great, it''s goddamn spectacular.¡± Gary said with a laugh. ¡°We need to stop by the CO''s office and show her.¡± I pulled the handle down and pushed the cart while Gary and my guard walked on either side of the thing. To say that Sandra was impressed, was an understatement. She ordered two more that would be made for horses. Gary told her that he expected her to do that, once he saw how well it had come out. He handed her a list of things he needed to buy and she handed it right to me.Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°I believe you know what to do with this and I''ll give you another voucher for the purser.¡± Sandra said with a smile. ¡°Wait until tomorrow morning before you head to town. It''s getting late and you and I have a lesson to get to.¡± ¡°I need to take the old cart back to the village dock.¡± I said. ¡°And eat.¡± Gary said. ¡°I don''t think I''ve seen you eat all day.¡± ¡°The mess is over that way.¡± My guard said. ¡°I have my own food that I need to eat.¡± I said. ¡°Go and get it and come to my office.¡± Sandra said and Gary and my guard stared at her. ¡°I know it''s not normal for a private to eat with a captain.¡± She said to them. ¡°However, I''m going to be his teacher for the next week and I suspect we''ll be eating a lot together.¡± ¡°As long as you''re clear with him about it.¡± Gary said. ¡°Don''t be giving him a false impression of what a CO does.¡± Sandra nodded. ¡°I''ll make it perfectly clear that I am doing this in my capacity as a member of the royal family and not the CO, both the meals and the lessons.¡± She looked at me. ¡°Make your delivery, grab your food, and come see me.¡± ¡°Ma''am.¡± I said and saluted with the petrified hand, then I turned the cart around easily and brought it over to the maintenance building and dropped it off. I took the old one and ran with it, now that it was empty. My guard couldn''t keep up with me and I waved at the guards at the gate. They laughed as I zoomed by them and down the road. I didn''t run as hard as I could, mainly because I didn''t want to sweat too much in my new uniform. I dropped the cart off at the dock and started running back. ¡°DAVID!¡± A woman''s voice yelled out to me. I came to a stop and turned to look at her waving to me. ¡°Mrs. Hansen.¡± I said and walked over to her. ¡°Gloria still has it.¡± Mrs. Hansen chuckled. ¡°Not only does she still have it, she''s been charging a silver coin once a week to walk by people''s houses every day.¡± ¡°What for?¡± I asked. Mrs. Hansen looked slightly surprised for a moment and then she smiled sweetly. ¡°She''s scaring all the creepy crawlies away for them.¡± It was my turn to look surprised. ¡°I know! She''s such a smart girl.¡± Mrs. Hansen said and walked through her living room that still looked like a store room because of all the baking supplies. ¡°It was something that Diane had mentioned when we went to the store and a few things crawled away. She gave Gloria a silver coin for helping and now she walks all over town for everyone.¡± She ducked into the kitchen and grabbed a large bag and came back over to me. ¡°What''s this?¡± I asked and took the bag from her. ¡°It''s two batches of my sugar bread that''s already cut up into squares.¡± Mrs. Hansen said. ¡°Thank you very much for all these baking supplies. I''m... I''m just... so grateful...¡± She reached up and wiped the budding tears in her eyes. ¡°I also... talked to Marge. She told me...¡± She took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°Thank you for not killing her.¡± ¡°She wanted me to.¡± I said. ¡°I know she did.¡± Mrs. Hansen said. ¡°She''s been wallowing in guilt for years over you and wanted an easy way out.¡± ¡°Only Hope tried looking for me.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°She still is, actually.¡± ¡°Why?¡± I asked. ¡°I''m sure she has her reasons, just like you would have reasons to not see her.¡± Mrs. Hansen said and looked deep into my eyes. _______________ You have a choice to make. It will change your status with the Hansen and the Addams families. A) Ignore her. B) Agree. C) Disagree. D) Shrug. E) Leave. F) Choose two. I''m not sure I''m ready to see her again so soon, so I''ll choose D and E. _______________ I shrugged and didn''t say anything. Mrs. Hansen had a nice wide smile and she stepped forward and gave me a hug. She held it for several seconds and then let me go. ¡°I''ll let her know.¡± I raised my eyebrows and she chuckled. ¡°That you didn''t say no.¡± Mrs. Hansen said and waved at the road. ¡°I believe you need to go. Someone from the garrison is coming this way.¡± ¡°He''s my guard and he''s really slow.¡± I said and she laughed. ¡°Goodbye, David.¡± Mrs. Hansen said. ¡°Goodbye.¡± I said and she slowly closed her door. I turned away from her door and started to jog. My guard turned around and started running the other way. I easily passed him and went back to the garrison. I went to my building and retrieved some of the smoked meat I had and went back to the CO''s office. I saw my guard come through the gate and waved to him, then went inside the main building. What followed was a weird meal and it was something that I had never experienced before. I had to ask what courses were if they weren''t directions, and a few other things. Sandra explained everything and she acted a lot different from when she was a healer and the CO. She seemed stronger, more confident, and more sure of herself. When I asked what the difference was, she said that it was a different kind of commanding respect than a CO would ask for. I didn''t understand, and our learning lesson started before we even finished eating. I was introduced to the ruling class, the nobility, the class system, and the different tiers of lords, ladies, counts, barons, and a whole bunch of different things. I also learned about serfs, slaves, retainers, commoners, the working class, and even more things that dealt with the people that lived in the regions that were ruled by those nobles. I also learned how they were normally treated and how much Sandra hated it. Slavery was the worst in her opinion and until that was abolished, she couldn''t do anything about changing any other aspect of society. It was a passion of hers. It was a crusade, or so she claimed. I asked what that meant and she explained. It was to lead or be a part of an energetic and organized campaign concerning a social, political, or religious issue. She said it applied to what she wanted, then she explained that it could also mean that it was an expedition by devout people to discover a holy land. I was surprised that the second definition was almost like what I wanted. I wanted to just live my life in the marsh and not have to deal with everything else. Things were so simple there and I only needed to make potions, eat, and live. That was it. I thought about what I was doing now and realized what Sandra had done. She had given me the same setup and that''s all I would be doing all week. Making potions, eating, and living. I waited until she stopped talking before I reached over and took her hand. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and bent over and kissed her hand, as royal protocol demanded. ¡°D-David, what... what was that for?¡± Sandra asked and her face went a little red. ¡°For making it easier for me to be here.¡± I said and let her hand go. ¡°That... well, I...¡± Sandra took a breath and let it out. ¡°I''m trying my best, even if I did mess things up.¡± I didn''t bother asking about Roy and she didn''t offer. We ate the rest of the meal in silence and then she went back to teaching me about things. 063 The Training Base _______________ Montage mode engaged. Repetitive daily tasks streamlined. Wood construction expertise increased by 30%. Reputation with army personnel increased to 65%. Personal knowledge gained: Your Lot In Life. Your Lot In Life is defined as your current sociopolitical position in the hierarchy of civilization. Current status: Rock Bottom / Army Man. _______________ The whole week passed by in a blur. First thing in the morning I cut logs and put the choice planks on the piles for the boatbuilder. After that, Gary and I built the inside wall of the garrison. We did it in sections and sealed the outside wall, then filled the space with the number ten potion. We went so fast that we had half of the garrison''s outside walls reinforced before we ran out of planks and I had to start harvesting logs from the forest by Diane''s house. In the evenings, I had supper with Sandra Rivers and lessons with her. Boy, oh boy, you sure don''t know how much you don''t know until someone tells you what you don''t know. The biggest take away I got from it was that I was considered even lower than a commoner. As a conscript, a criminal whose life was spared solely for army service, meant that I was everything like a slave, except for the name. Also, everything I did would be seen as the desperation of a man trying to stay alive. That part I could agree with. I would do anything to stay alive. After everything I went through to survive living with the Hag, I was pretty sure there wasn''t anything they could do to me that would be worse. The morning of my departure arrived and I was unceremoniously told that I wouldn''t need all of the things in my pack. Food, clothing, and bedding would be provided as well. I thought about arguing and decided that my pack was a bit cumbersome and I had taken to sealing it up under my bed anyways, so I left it there with my knifed-pitchfork. I took my canvas bag of smoked food and my bandoleer, recently topped up with number ten potions, and met Lt. Alex Smith and Sgt. Donna Simms at the CO''s office. She gave us our orders and told me to expedite my travel to the army base by boat with Donna guiding me. I knew what that meant and so did Donna. We left there at a jog and I was a little surprised that Gary and the purser were waiting at the gate for us. They both saluted me as I passed by them and I used my real hand to do it back. That made Gary laugh and the purser''s eyes seemed to sparkle a little, as if they were wet. I wasn''t sure why, though. I asked Alex when we were through the gate if he knew why. ¡°If I had to take a guess, I think it was because yesterday you gave her most of the money back that she allotted to you for equipment.¡± Alex said. ¡°No one''s ever done that before.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± I asked. Donna laughed. ¡°Most people don''t think they need to.¡± ¡°I didn''t spend it all, though.¡± I said and that made them both laugh. ¡°What''s funny?¡± ¡°They''ll do their best to make sure they spend it all, even on things they don''t need.¡± Alex said. ¡°How do they live wasting money like that?¡± I asked. ¡°The Hag would fillet me if I ever bought something I didn''t need.¡± ¡°I think you meant ''flay''.¡± Donna said. ¡°No, that''s if I do chores wrong.¡± I said and she gave me a strange look. ¡°Let''s get going.¡± Alex said as we approached the dock. We climbed into the boat and I disengaged it from the dock as I put magic into the weight enchantment to almost lift us completely out of the water. I turned us around and took off at my best speed and not necessarily the safest speed. Donna knew where we were going, since she had been there before, and she guided me the entire way. ¡°David, are you sure you can handle travelling this far and for this long?¡± Donna asked, concern in her voice. ¡°We''re going very far past the town, nearly five times the distance.¡± ¡°I''ll need breaks every four hours to rest, when I get near exhaustion.¡± I said and she gave me a surprised look. ¡°I can get to town, rest while buying things, then come back without having to stop.¡± ¡°No wonder the CO had no problems sending you alone.¡± Alex said, impressed. ¡°You had to rest when we went that first time.¡± I didn''t tell him I was resting my mind from using the vigilance technique, because I didn''t want a headache. The more I used it, the more I could use it, just like my gland. The gland still took an hour to fill; but, there was a little bit more in it each time I exercised it. I hadn''t made the connection until Sandra had told me what basic training was going to be like. They would teach me to use muscles a certain way to get them used to it. Since then, I had been practising my vigilance technique every day and had pushed its use to just over four hours, which was great. Going into a hostile environment meant that I was going to need it a lot more than I normally did. I also didn''t have my guard with me, despite his protests that he was needed. When Sandra informed him that he would need to go through basic training again to stay guarding me, he gave up. We travelled on with Donna''s directions, taking smaller waterways as to not alert the other boats of my particular skills. We took breaks to eat and rest every four hours and kept going. I had to say that there wasn''t much scenery to look at that was different from when I visited Ester''s Village. Trees and farmland were everywhere and there was almost no variation. We arrived at the small waterway that was near the army base that night. It had taken sixteen hours to go from the garrison to the base, and that was amazing to both Alex and Donna. It was normally a two week journey by boat or a month or more by horse and carriage. That was why they usually used a mage to send quick messages over longer distances. A physical message just wasn''t a viable option when swiftness was needed.The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Alex and I poled the boat over to the army dock and the large building that was there. After talking to the man and giving him the orders from Sandra, we were assigned a boat slip where my boat would be stored for the next three months. I quickly secured it, covered the enchantments with wood and sealed them, and unhooked the canvas top to save it from wear and tear and tied it up to the tops of the main posts. We left there and went into the army base. It was very different from the garrison, especially in the size of the thing and the number of soldiers and people walking about. It was even bigger than Ester''s Village inside the walls! I stared around at everything and followed Alex and Donna to the main building. We went inside and presented our orders the the male clerk there. He easily processed the orders for Alex and Donna, then he came to mine. His eyes seemed to bulge a little as he read all of the warnings, cautions, conditions, and requirements for me to safely attend the required basic training. ¡°You''re not shitting me, are you?¡± The man asked and looked at me, then at Alex and Donna. ¡°If anything, that understates it.¡± Alex said. ¡°You are to contact either myself or Sgt. Simms as soon as anything happens.¡± The man gave him wide eyes and read the order again. ¡°I need to talk to the base commander.¡± ¡°We''ll wait.¡± Alex said and we did. Half an hour later, the clerk came back into the room with a very tall and muscular man, a very skinny and also tall man, and the Hag. ¡°Ah!¡± I gasped and froze, quickly used the vigilance technique, and saw that it wasn''t really the Hag. She was just a woman that looked like the Hag when she was her evil and beautiful self. Her eyes were a different color, her long dark hair didn''t have the same natural curls, and she didn''t have sharp teeth. I let out the breath I had held and they all looked at me with concern. I couldn''t tell them that she looked like the Hag, since they only knew her as her old and wrinkly self. ¡°She''s beautiful.¡± I said and pointed to her. That really surprised them and the woman blushed, which was something the Hag would never do. ¡°It wasn''t the Drill Sergeant that scared you?¡± The tall man asked and I shook my head. ¡°So, beauty scares the beast.¡± ¡°Lance.¡± The woman said sternly and her blush didn''t fade. ¡°I''ve protested having someone so dangerous on my training base and was overruled by the colonel of your detachment.¡± Lance, the tall man said. ¡°I hate politics even more than I hate troublemakers, so I''m turning you over to my executive officer and washing my hands of you officially.¡± Alex opened his mouth to protest and the CO held a hand up. ¡°Good or bad, I want nothing to do with a conscript, no matter the circumstances.¡± Lance said. ¡°I''ve filed appropriate paperwork to reflect that as well. I don''t want my name mentioned anywhere in any of this.¡± He turned to the beautiful woman. ¡°He''s all yours.¡± _______________ You have a critical choice to make. Will you speak up or accept your fate? A) Protest. B) Say nothing. C) Attack. D) Run. E) Yell. F) Cry. G) Choose two. Accepting my fate isn''t what I want. I fought for years to get away from the Hag and now I''ll be stuck with a woman that looks like her? No, I don''t want that. At all. I won''t get any sympathy from them, either. Maybe if I turn on the waterworks? I thought about it and made my decision. I''ll choose A and F. _______________ ¡°You have no right to do that.¡± I said and they all looked at me. ¡°I was a slave for all my life and was treated cruelly by an evil Hag that tortured me every day.¡± I let several tears roll down my face. ¡°I won''t put myself in the same situation ever again.¡± ¡°David...¡± Donna started to say. ¡°If you give me to her, I''ll attack and kill you. I''ll kill you all.¡± I said as more tears streamed down my face. I slowly pulled my knife from my bandoleer and charged it up with magic, which made the muscular drill sergeant take a step back. The CO stared at me with a surprised look on his face. ¡°David, it''s a figure of speech.¡± Alex said and I didn''t look at him. ¡°I don''t understand.¡± I said. ¡°He said I was hers. I can''t allow that.¡± Alex put a hand on my shoulder and he sighed. ¡°David, put the knife away.¡± ¡°No.¡± I said and made a fist with my other hand. The woman that looked like the Hag moved the CO over and walked across the room to me. ¡°My name is Anna Carter. I''m the XO of this training base.¡± She said and her voice was nothing like the Hag''s. ¡°All the CO meant was that I would be assuming responsibility for you and your actions while on the base and he wouldn''t deal with you at all.¡± I stared into her eyes and she didn''t lie. ¡°You won''t own me?¡± She smiled and her face changed almost completely and became lively. ¡°No, Private. I won''t own you. I''m just going to be your commanding officer while you are here.¡± I stopped charging my knife and put it back into the bandoleer. Everyone relaxed for a second and then the CO spoke. ¡°Confiscate his weapon. I want him in chains and confined to the stockade.¡± Lance said. ¡°Threatening a superior officer is...¡± ¡°...not your concern.¡± Anna said in a stern voice as she turned to face him. ¡°I am ordering you...¡± ¡°You can''t legally do that, remember? You even filed paperwork stating you have washed your hands of him and bear no responsibility.¡± Anna said and smiled in satisfaction. ¡°You cannot order anything, at all, that will affect him or his stay here. You also can''t order others to harm him or impede him in any way.¡± ¡°Now listen here...¡± ¡°Your own words and actions have bound you, sir.¡± Anna said. ¡°Or do you wish to file more paperwork to undermine yourself and your authority even more?¡± Lance gave her a stern look and held it for nearly ten seconds. ¡°You will regret this.¡± ¡°Actually, it''s you that will regret it if you try anything, sir.¡± Anna said. ¡°I warned you that what you were doing was both unethical and went against your oath to train and help soldiers become better fighters. Now you know that you have tied your own hands, which has left you powerless on your own base, and you can''t do anything about it.¡± Lance opened his mouth and looked about to say something, then he closed his mouth and walked back to his office. He slammed his door and it rattled a few pictures and things hanging on the walls. ¡°I''m glad that unpleasantness is out of the way.¡± Anna said and turned to look at me. ¡°Your friends need to report to their respective sections and you need to come to my office. We have a few things to discuss.¡± She glanced at the drill sergeant. ¡°Come along, Will.¡± ¡°Ma''am.¡± Will said and saluted. The three of us walked across the room to another door. ¡°Good luck.¡± Alex and Donna said at the same time. ¡°We''ll stay in touch at least once a week to check on you.¡± Donna said and waved. I waved back and followed the XO and the drill sergeant into the office. The XO sat down behind her desk and motioned for me to sit. I did and she stared at me without an expression on her face for several minutes without saying anything. ¡°I want you to be completely honest with me. I know an automatic fear response when I see it.¡± Anna said. ¡°I need to know what just happened.¡± _______________ You have a choice to make. It will only affect your standing with the XO. The drill sergeant doesn''t care what you decide. A) Stay silent. B) Blubber everything. C) Tell the truth. D) Run. E) Kill them. F) Do nothing. I''m going to be stuck here for three months, assuming I can''t be expelled because I''m a conscript. I thought. So, I might as well tell the truth. I choose C. _______________ ¡°Can you keep a secret?¡± I asked and her face broke into another smile. 064 Basic Training ¡°The Hag can disguise herself.¡± I said. ¡°When I saw you...¡± ¡°No.¡± Anna said, her voice barely above a whisper and her eyes were wide. ¡°You look just like her, except your teeth aren''t sharp, your eyes are a different color, and your hair isn''t as...¡± I made motions with my hands. ¡°Wavy.¡± Anna said and I nodded. ¡°Good lord, no wonder you reacted like you did.¡± She sighed. ¡°Are you going to react like that every time you see me?¡± ¡°If I''m not paying attention.¡± I responded. ¡°I''m sorry.¡± Anna said and reached into her desk. ¡°Give me a minute.¡± I sat there and watched as she bent her head down and did something with a comb, several pins, and some kind of clasp. When she sat up, her hair was done up into a nice bun on the back of her head. It changed her look just enough that I was sure I wouldn''t freak out every time I saw her. ¡°Is that better?¡± Anna asked and I nodded. ¡°I''ll keep my hair like this from now on, so you don''t have to worry about being scared like that again.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said. ¡°Now, we need to discuss your reaction and interactions with your fellow soldiers.¡± Anna said and then gave me a rundown of everything that would happen, what might happen, and what could possibly happen. It was a lot to keep track of. ¡°Why are they allowed to do that?¡± I asked when she got to the part about playing practical jokes on each other. ¡°That doesn''t help anyone at all and it should be stopped.¡± Anna gave the drill sergeant a look and he nodded. ¡°I''ll make sure to tell them he''s off limits.¡± Will said. ¡°You need to make it an order, otherwise we''ll have more lost hands.¡± Anna cautioned him and he nodded again. ¡°Private, will you hand over your knife for...¡± ¡°Never.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°I was warned to never let it out of my sight when it was made and given to me. I will live and I will die with this blade.¡± Anna was quiet for a few moments. ¡°You are not permitted to use the blade during training, even when weapons are called for. It is much too dangerous for standard use.¡± She explained. ¡°Not only can it accept magic, which is something only high tier mages are normally allowed to possess, it can also cut through anything. If the reports about you are to be believed, that is.¡± ¡°Why are only high tier mages allowed to have weapons like it?¡± I asked and ignored the reports. ¡°They are usually the only ones that can afford them, honestly.¡± Anna said. ¡°It also takes a lot of magic to activate them.¡± ¡°I''ve been using it for seven years.¡± I said and both she and the drill sergeant took in sharp breaths. ¡°How often?¡± Anna asked in a whisper. ¡°Almost every day.¡± I said. Anna glanced at the drill sergeant and he nodded again. ¡°I''ll let the mages know.¡± Will said. ¡°All right. Your orders state that you need to be segregated from others until they gain your trust. I''m not sure how they can do that if you aren''t around, however.¡± Anna said. ¡°So, I think there needs to be a compromise. You will be assigned a bunk at the very front of the barracks. You can be the first out and the last in every day. That way, you spend the smallest amount of time with your training squad and you still get exposure to them during off-duty hours.¡± ¡°I''ll be sure to emphasize the importance of personal space to the others.¡± The drill sergeant said. Anna nodded and then smiled at me. ¡°Your first day of training starts tomorrow, so you should get to your bunk and sleep.¡± ¡°Yes, ma''am.¡± I stood and saluted with the petrified hand. Anna''s eyes followed it as I let it go. ¡°Drill sergeant, show him to his quarters.¡± ¡°Yes, Ma''am.¡± Will saluted and then his hand was on my back and I was shoved, quite hard, out her office door. ¡°Move it, recruit!¡± He barked. ¡°She didn''t salute back.¡± I said and turned to face him. ¡°Next time, give her a proper salute.¡± Will said and reached for me again. I swatted his hand away and he glared at me. ¡°Did you just strike a superior officer?¡± Will asked with a deadly voice. ¡°Did you just shove me out of the office and leave without the XO dismissing us first?¡± I asked back and he looked surprised. ¡°You just disrespected a commanding officer and disobeyed standing orders.¡± ¡°That''s enough.¡± Anna said and I saw a smile on her face. ¡°Dismissed.¡± I turned around and walked out of the main building and the drill sergeant was right behind me and took several long steps to walk beside me.Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. ¡°I think I''m just going to forget to inform everyone to leave you alone.¡± Will said and pointed. ¡°Their deaths will be your responsibility.¡± I responded and walked towards the building he pointed to. ¡°The XO ordered them warned and if you defy that order, it''s on you.¡± He didn''t speak again until we entered the barracks. There were fifteen people there already and they hopped up from their bunks and saluted. ¡°Platoon ready, Drill Sergeant!¡± One of the men yelled. ¡°At ease.¡± Will said and pointed to the bunk by the door. ¡°That''s yours. Keep it looking just like that.¡± He said and kicked up the trunk at the foot of the bed. ¡°Personal storage. Here''s the key.¡± He took it from inside the trunk and gave it to me, then he turned to the others. ¡°Now listen UP!¡± He said loudly, then he gave them the exact warnings that he told the XO he was going to. They looked from him, to me, and back to him. Some understood and others had looks of disbelief. Two of them had smiles and waiting until the drill sergeant left before speaking. ¡°You must think you''re some kind of badass, do you?¡± One of them asked and pulled out a knife. ¡°I''ll have you know that I''ve won ten fights in the arena back home.¡± ¡°Is that supposed to mean something?¡± I asked and tossed my bag of smoked meat into the trunk and locked it. I put a hand on it and used the locking spell, too. I would wait until the others went to sleep before using a couple drops of potion to seal it. ¡°Yeah, it means I''m the badass here.¡± The guy said and started to walk towards me. ¡°You''re going to go to sleep one of these nights and then you''ll realize who everyone should really be afraid of.¡± He smiled and bared his teeth as he tried to lunge and cut my arm. I was still using the vigilance technique, so I turned slightly, grabbed his fist around the knife handle, then used my own knife to sever his hand from his wrist before he could blink. ¡°AHHHH!¡± The man yelled and dropped to his knees. The drill sergeant ran back in and saw me holding the man''s hand that was still clamped around the knife. ¡°MEDIC!¡± A woman ran in and saw the man bleeding out on the floor. She cast a sealing spell on the bloody stump and looked at me with shock on her face. ¡°I''m keeping this evidence.¡± I said and put my knife back into the sheath. I squeezed out the blood from the hand to add to the pile on the floor, then I took out some fortifying potion and waved my hand over it as it dried out and became just like the one hanging from the cord around my neck, except that it still clenched onto the knife. Everyone stared at me as I opened my trunk and tossed the exidence inside, then I closed and locked the trunk again. ¡°I didn''t even see him move.¡± Someone whispered. ¡°Get him healed.¡± The drill sergeant reminded the healer. ¡°Y-yes, drill sergeant.¡± The healer said and used her spell to heal him. I was watching with the vigilance technique this time and saw the mana moving things around to reconnect everything, then the flat end of his wrist seemed to fold in on itself and became a rounded mound. I thought that was pretty neat. ¡°You''re on report.¡± Will said to me. I shrugged. ¡°It doesn''t matter, since you can''t kick me out.¡± ¡°I can keep you from advancing in rank.¡± Will threatened, clearly angry. ¡°You don''t have the authority to do that.¡± I said and his anger became surprise. ¡°I''ve read all about the army structure. You are authorized for training and issuing orders in relation to that training only.¡± Will gave me a glare and reached down to stand the other recruit up. ¡°Come with me.¡± ¡°My... my hand.¡± The man said, weakly. ¡°It''s not yours anymore.¡± Will said and led the man out of the barracks. The healer still looked shocked and didn''t move from where she knelt. Someone else came in with a bucket and water. After a bit of prompting, she stood up and the blood was washed up. She had some on the knees of her uniform and she didn''t try to clean it off. When the cleaner left, she spoke to me. ¡°Please, don''t hurt anyone else.¡± She said. Her face was a little plump, even though her body seemed very thin. Her hair was tucked up under her medical hat. ¡°Article 12, subsection 3. Bodily harm can be justified when applied for use in self defense.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°Appendix 1, clarification. Self defense is applicable when an aggressor approaches with intent to attack, either bodily or with a weapon.¡± ¡°You maimed him.¡± The healer said. ¡°I was told that I shouldn''t kill fellow soldiers when I''m attacked.¡± I said and she didn''t say anything. ¡°Where can I get another blanket?¡± Everyone pointed to the large cabinet across from the door. I walked over to it and there were piles of them inside. I took two and brought them back to my cot. ¡°What are you doing?¡± The healer asked. ¡°The drill sergeant said to leave the cot the way it is.¡± I said and spread a blanket out on the floor, slipped off my bandoleer and laid it down in the blanket, then I laid down beside it and spread the second blanket over myself. ¡°He meant you needed to make it look the same after you use it.¡± The healer said. I shrugged and pulled the blanket up to my neck. She stood there and stared at me for half an hour until the drill sergeant came back. ¡°Lights out.¡± He said and pointed over his shoulder at the healer. She nodded and left at a fast walk, then he walked over to a valve on the wall. He turned it off and each light turned off in a series until the whole place was left in the dark. He walked over to me and stared down at me for several minutes. I stared right back. He even moved from side to side like he was a snake, so I kept my eyes on him as if he was a snake about to strike. He let out a huff and that scared a couple of people. It made him smile briefly and he walked out the door and didn''t come back for four hours. I know because I counted. He came in with what I would later learn was part of a marching band with drums, cymbals, and a bugle horn. ¡°GOOD MORNING, MAGGOTS!¡± Will the drill sergeant yelled as he quickly walked over to the wall and turned on the valve. ¡°UP! UP! UP! It''s time to get up!¡± He said and the band played loudly. I stood up and put my bandoleer on. I put my blankets into the trunk and locked it again. With everyone distracted, I added a couple drops of potion as well as the magic lock spell. ¡°You have five minutes to get dressed and make yourself presentable!¡± Will said and waved at the band to stop. The three men let out sighs and jogged out of the building. ¡°I want straight uniforms! Shined shoes! Combed hair!¡± He said and then he laughed. ¡°I''ll give you a pass on the last one.¡± He kicked the bottom of a bunk where a man hadn''t reacted at all. ¡°Up, Jenkins! GET UP!¡± ¡°Ugh.¡± Jenkins groaned and sat up. ¡°What time is it?¡± ¡°It''s time to GET YOUR ASS OUT OF BED!¡± Will yelled and Jenkins jumped to his feet. ¡°That''s better! I like your hustle, Jenkins!¡± ¡°Yes, Drill Sergeant!¡± Jenkins said and quickly got dressed. I walked to the front of my bunk, like Sandra had told me to, and stood at attention. ¡°I sure hope you weak ass wussies like a nice crisp morning jog!¡± Will said loudly and everyone groaned except for me. ¡°We''ll be doing laps around the base for the next three hours until breakfast, then we''ll stop for chow. After that, it''s the obstacle course.¡± Everyone except me groaned again. ¡°Good lord, I love that sound.¡± Will said and when the five minutes were up, he ordered everyone to put their boots on, just so those that were still only half dressed could put them on. ¡°Form up! Two lines!¡± I was pretty sure that he didn''t like that I had cheated and didn''t take my clothes off. ¡°All right! Let''s go! Go! GO! GOOO!¡± He yelled and led us out of the barracks and on what would become our normal early morning run. 065 Training Is Easy _______________ Montage mode engaged. Further running tasks will be automatically time compressed. _______________ The next three hours passed by like a flash, as if I had run them in only a few moments. Out of the fifteen of us, only myself and two others stayed within arms reach of the drill sergeant. When he came to a stop near the main entrance, he called a halt and the four of us waited for the others. He pointedly didn''t look at me, probably because I wasn''t breathing heavily like the other two men or sweating like everyone else was. He didn''t ask and I didn''t tell him that jogging like that wasn''t even exercise for me. I could do that all day and never break a sweat. It took about fifteen minutes for the others to reach us and come to a stop. Several of them were bent over and had their hands on their knees as they tried to catch their breath. ¡°You can rest later, ladies.¡± The drill sergeant said. ¡°Let''s get some chow. You have 45 minutes to eat.¡± ¡°We''re... supposed to have... an hour.¡± One of the men said through his heavy breaths. ¡°You had an hour when I called a stop. It took you fifteen minutes to finish.¡± Will said. ¡°Fall IN!¡± We formed two lines and he led us over to the mess hall. I didn''t have to ask why it was called a mess, because it was a mess. He took us through the line and nearly everyone complained about the state of the ''food''. Not officially, of course. They were only complaining because they could. I didn''t shake my head at them for being stupid, either. They were getting free food and getting paid to be there. What was the point in complaining about that? Everyone stared at me, the drill sergeant included, as I ate every single scrap of food that had been given to me on the metal tray. I had learned a long time ago that if you didn''t eat, you didn''t live. I even dug the ''spoon'' into all the corners and licked it off. I was finished long before anyone else was. ¡°Damn, that was weird to see.¡± Someone said from the next table. ¡°Did you even taste it?¡± ¡°No teasing him.¡± The drill sergeant warned. ¡°This green stuff tastes like water beast.¡± A man said and spit out a wad of it. ¡°It tasted like diamond snake, actually.¡± I said and they looked at me. ¡°It was good.¡± That earned me a few surprised looks. ¡°Hurry up, people.¡± The drill sergeant said and stood up, his tray only half empty. He hadn''t touched the green stuff at all. ¡°The obstacle course awaits.¡± I stood up and followed him as he dumped out the food and put his tray on a stack of used ones. I kept my mouth shut about wasting food like that. I would remember it, though. Nearly that whole stack of trays had a lot of leftover food in them. I made it a point to show the cleaned tray to the guys behind the counter and they smiled back at me. I stood off to the side of the mess hall, right behind the drill sergeant, and waited for the others. They finished and did the same thing as the drill sergeant and threw out their mostly uneaten food. They came over to us and we left the hall and went over to the area designated as an obstacle course. It was huge. There were about thirty obstacles, assuming two or three of them weren''t merged together, because a couple of the structures looked like they didn''t normally go together. They were spread out over a large area, too. ¡°All right, ladies. LISTEN UP!¡± The drill sergeant yelled and then he told us what we had to do to cross over the whole thing. He explained in detail, twice, how to stay safe while doing it. He also said that it wasn''t timed and the whole point was to test our strength, endurance, confidence, and agility. When we finished it, he could grade our performance and would be able to change his training to best suit improving us to the point that we could do the obstacle course while being timed. ¡°As you can see, there are soldiers all along the course to help keep you safe and to remind you to not fall and kill yourselves!¡± The drill sergeant said and looked at the man standing beside me. ¡°Jenkins! You''re first up! I liked your hustle this morning, so get in there and show me what you got!¡± ¡°Yes, Drill Sergeant!¡± Jenkins said and jogged over to the first obstacle. It was a four foot wide rope ladder with ropes in the middle at one foot intervals. It made a grid pattern and Jenkins climbed up the fifteen feet with both speed and care, so he wouldn''t slip. At the top were logs that he climbed over and there was a log bridge with six inch spaces between them. He walked across the whole twenty feet, that was above a deep pool of water, and reached a thin wooden ladder. He climbed up another fifteen feet, went over the top log to a ten foot wide rope ladder and carefully climbed down thirty feet to the ground. He ran to the next obstacle that was a forty foot tall wooden tower and climbed to the top. Once there, he grabbed the rope and pulled himself up onto the rope to wrap his legs around it, then eased himself down the rope across thirty feet of distance to a spot where the soldier told him to let go. A ten foot long balance log was there for him to cross, then another and another. He came to a horizontal ladder and he grabbed the rungs as he dropped underneath it and swung himself by his hands and took his time to cross all forty feet over even more water. He reached the short platform and stepped off it to the ground. After a short jog, he was at a ten foot wide vertical wall of logs that wasn''t complete and was missing every second and third log. He struggled as he climbed up twenty feet and went over the top, then carefully climbed down the other side. After that was a two foot high platform with logs two feet apart. He didn''t walk across them, though. The soldier there told him to crawl. He did and looked really awkward doing it. After that was a ten foot long log on posts three feet off the ground and across his path. He climbed on top of it and was told to jump onto another log across from it that was about three feet away and four feet higher. He did it and climbed over that to drop seven feet to the ground. Next were a bunch of three foot tall wooden Xs that he had to hop over and not hurt himself. Next was a similar log hop to the one he did before the Xs, only this one had three logs to climb on and jump to. It had an eleven foot drop at the end and Jenkins bent over and took several deep breaths. ¡°You''re not being timed. Relax. Breathe.¡± The soldier said and pat his back. ¡°You''re doing great.¡± ¡°Thanks.¡± Jenkins said and kept going.If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. He went a short ways and met a seven foot tall wall that was angled towards him. He grabbed onto the top and pulled himself up and slid down the other side. Out of all the obstacles, that one was the easiest. He dropped to the ground and crawled under what the drill sergeant called barbed wire. There was barely two feet between the wire and the ground, so Jenkins had a hard time crawling through it. On the other side of that were three ropes hanging from a log twenty feet up and you had to swing up onto a four foot log across the path and then hop down. After that was a series of thin poles across the path that you had to step over and not use your hands. He had a bit of trouble, since the poles were three feet high. He did that for twenty feet and came to a log across the path that was six feet high. Jenkins jumped and grabbed on, pulled himself up and sat there for a few seconds before he flung his leg over and jumped down. A thick log came up from the ground at an angle that he had to walk up and then he walked onto the ten foot long one. It spun on its axis and he slid right off and fell three feet to the ground. He went back and walked up the thick log again, then he carefully walked across the spinning one and down the other side. Next was something called hurdles. He took his time again because there was forty feet of them, one every 6 feet, and he looked exhausted when he crossed them. ¡°You''re on the home stretch.¡± A soldier at the large wide ladder said. Jenkins didn''t say anything and rested for a minute. He started to climb it and I saw that it was angled backwards towards me. He struggled at the top and barely managed to get over it and climb down. He sat on the bottom rung for several minutes. After that were more balancing logs, except they were thin and more difficult to cross across the mud pits. He slipped on the very first one and fell face first into the mud. The soldier there reached in and pulled him out. ¡°You can skip this one for now.¡± Jenkins spit out some mud and wiped at his face. ¡°You should have... told me that... before I fell.¡± The soldier laughed and waved him around the obstacle. There were a few more quick step things, a see-saw that you had to be careful walking across, a rope swing across a water pit, and the last major obstacle was another barb wire crawl, only the wire was loose. Jenkins sighed loudly and started to crawl and hold the wire up at the same time to work his way under it to get to the other side. He finally managed it after an agonizing ten minutes and then he came to an area of tree stumps of different heights. He had to jump from stump to stump to get across and came to a wooden bridge. ¡°Is it a trap?¡± Jenkins asked. ¡°Is it going to tilt or roll me off or something?¡± The soldier laughed and shook his head. ¡°It''s just a bridge over the water canal that feeds the horses.¡± ¡°Thank god.¡± Jenkins said and walked across it. When he reached the rest area, he dropped to the ground on his back and didn''t move. ¡°He definitely started out really well.¡± The drill sergeant said with a chuckle, then he looked at me and the humor disappeared from his face. ¡°I let someone else go first, so I wouldn''t have to explain again what to do.¡± He waved at the course. ¡°Go ahead and show me what you got.¡± _______________ You have a critical choice to make. Will you choose wisely? A) Do the course perfectly. B) Show off. C) Cheat. D) Run the whole way. E) Fake it. F) Choose two. Oh. Oho. Hooo. I thought. Sandra warned me to not show off, so I''ll choose A and D. _______________ ¡°Yes, Drill Sergeant.¡± I said and I activated my vigilance technique as I took off running towards the first obstacle. It was a four foot wide rope ladder and I ignored the rope rungs and used the support rope to climb up with just my hands. At the top I slipped over the log there and ran across the twenty foot log bridge without pausing. I climbed the fifteen foot tall thin wooden ladder and went over the top log to the rope ladder and did the same quick climb down that I did going up, using just my hands and the support rope. I ran to the next obstacle that was a forty foot tall wooden tower and quickly climbed to the top as if it was a tree I had climbed hundreds of times. Once there, I grabbed the rope and pulled myself up onto the rope to wrap just my ankles around it, so the leather of the boots would take the punishment, then I pulled myself, hand over fist, as quickly as possible down the rope across thirty feet of distance to the spot where the soldier had told Jenkins to let go. He stared at me as I ran across the ten foot long balance log, then another and another. I came to the horizontal ladder and hopped up on top instead of going underneath and ran across it. I jumped down to the platform at the end and ran to the ten foot wide vertical wall of logs that wasn''t complete and was missing every second and third log. It proved to be no obstacle as I ascended the twenty feet easily and went over the top, then I barely touched the wall as I climbed down the other side. I ran to the two foot high platform with logs that were two feet apart and I crawled across them as if it was the most natural thing to do. The soldier there stared at me as I did it in only seconds. After that was the ten foot long logs on posts that were across the path. I used them like steps and hopped up onto the first one without stopping and hopped to the other higher one behind it. I jumped to the ground and ran to the Xs. I treated them like hurdles and passed over them easily. The triple log hop was next and I used them like steps as well. It had an eleven foot drop at the end and I didn''t even pause as I jumped off and landed on the ground and rolled into another run. I approached the seven foot tall wall and jumped as I put a hand on the top and cleared it completely. It was definitely the easiest obstacle. The barb wire obstacle was next and I lunged and flattened myself as I hit the ground and slid halfway along the distance, then I wiggled like a snake and came out the other side without even touching the barb wire once. The three hanging ropes were next and I ran, jumped and grabbed a rope, then swung up onto the log. I placed a foot onto it and then dropped to the ground in front of the series of thin poles across the path that you had to step over and not use your hands. I easily hopped over them like everything else and ran to the six foot high log that was across the path. I leapt it like I had the angled wall, since it was actually shorter. Next was the thick log that came up from the ground at an angle that I had to walk up, soldier''s orders, and I walked up it as quickly as I could, across the spinning one as if it didn''t spin, and down the other side. The hurdles were next and I crossed them as easily as everything else, since running was now allowed again. I came to the backwards angled ladder and only used my hands to climb it until I got to the top and then pulled myself up and ran down the other side. I did the thin balancing logs next and crossed each of them with only a couple of steps. The soldier there just stared at me as I passed him. I did a few more quick step things, the see-saw that I used two steps to cross, since if you only stepped on the pivot point, you didn''t have to worry about balancing it. I used the rope swing to cross the water pit and arrived at the last major obstacle, the loose barb wire crawl. I knew exactly how to cross it easily and laid down on my back, lifted the barb wire, and literally crawled the loose wire from underneath and pulled myself across the dirt to the other side in only ten seconds. I stood up and ran to the area of tree stumps and didn''t stop running as I crossed them to the bridge and ran across it. I pat my uniform a few times to knock the dust off of it, then went to the rest area with Jenkins and sat down beside him. The entire area was deathly quiet and I looked around to see that everyone was staring over at me. It wasn''t just the drill sergeant, either. A whole bunch of soldiers, men and women both, had stopped whatever they were doing to watch me. ¡°Platoon!¡± The drill sergeant said loudly. ¡°Do NOT do that.¡± He said and waved to me. ¡°That was not how this course was meant to be used.¡± ¡°Drill Sergeant.¡± A woman''s voice said into the silence. ¡°It seems you didn''t notice that he did it perfectly.¡± We all turned to see the XO standing by the corner of a nearby building. ¡°Ma''am, that''s not true. He ran through...¡± ¡°There are no rules against that.¡± Anna said and smiled. ¡°The only questionable part would be the long horizontal ladder.¡± ¡°Ma''am! I was ordered to cross it. He didn''t say how.¡± I said and that made her smile bigger. ¡°Then I retract my statement.¡± Anna said and looked at the drill sergeant. ¡°I suggest adding caution to the warnings that it''s not timed and that they don''t have to rush.¡± ¡°I''ll change it to ''don''t rush''.¡± The drill sergeant said. ¡°I didn''t rush.¡± I said and that got everyone''s attention. ¡°I can run faster than that.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Someone said. Anna gave me a look I didn''t recognize, then she nodded to the drill sergeant. ¡°Carry on, Will.¡± ¡°Ma''am.¡± The drill sergeant said and saluted her as she left the area. For the rest of the morning, I got to watch the others do their best to cross all of the obstacles. 066 Ending The Day After we ate lunch, which I cleaned the tray of and almost no one else did, I sat in the classroom and was completely bored. The drill sergeant, and the instructor soldiers that had been on the obstacle course to guide us, went over everything again and explained to each of the other soldiers how to improve themselves and their ability to traverse the course. Maybe I should have brought one of the books that I can''t read. I thought and stared out the window at the outside. ¡°Are we boring you, Recruit Drake?¡± The drill sergeant asked. _______________ You have a choice to make. It will change your relationship with the drill sergeant named Will and the instructors. A) Stay quiet. B) Answer properly. C) Be sarcastic. D) Correct him. E) Ignore him. F) Choose two. Ha ha! All right. Let''s stay within the army regulations. I''ll choose B and C. _______________ ¡°Yes, Drill Sergeant.¡± I properly responded without looking at him. ¡°My rank is Private, Drill Sergeant.¡± ¡°Well, I hope you like doing push-ups!¡± He said loudly. ¡°Get on the floor and do them for the rest of the class!¡± ¡°Yes, Drill Sergeant.¡± I said and dropped to the floor and started doing regulation push-ups that only took one second each to complete. _______________ Montage mode engaged. All further exercises will be sped up and bypassed, unless an event occurs. _______________ Two hours later, the class ended and the drill sergeant told me to stop. ¡°How many push-ups did you do, Recruit?¡± I didn''t respond as I stood up and he walked over beside my desk. ¡°Didn''t you hear me? I asked how many push-ups did you do?!?¡± ¡°Were you talking to me, Drill Sergeant? You said recruit.¡± I said and he let out a low growl. ¡°I did 7,200 of them, Drill Sergeant.¡± ¡°I sincerely doubt that, Recruit! You''re not even sweating!¡± The drill sergeant said. ¡°I think you better get on the floor and do it again!¡± ¡°It''s Private, Drill Sergeant.¡± I said. ¡°GET ON THE FLOOR! RIGHT NOW!¡± The drill sergeant yelled. ¡°Yes, Drill Sergeant.¡± I said and dropped to the floor and started again. ¡°Drill sergeant, he really did do...¡± One of the instructor soldiers started to say. ¡°Do you want to join him?¡± The drill sergeant asked and the man shook his head. ¡°Gillis! Give him a hand!¡± ¡°Sir?¡± A voice responded. ¡°Normal push-ups are apparently too easy for him.¡± The drill sergeant said. ¡°Get over here and sit on him.¡± ¡°Sir, it''s only the first day.¡± One of the other instructors said. ¡°You can''t just...¡± ¡°I''m the judge of who can handle it.¡± The drill sergeant said. ¡°Gillis. Sit.¡± I saw someone approach and stopped at the top of a push-up for them. ¡°Thank you.¡± Gillis said and then sat down. ¡°You have to turn either forwards or back.¡± I said and held the push-up. ¡°Wh-what?¡± Gillis looked down at me with wide eyes. ¡°You won''t keep your balance for long while sitting sideways and you''ll slide or fall off.¡± ¡°Oh. Okay.¡± Gillis said and turned to face the other way and I felt boots on my backside. I did one push-up to test the weight and it wasn''t even close to what I normally carried in my pack, so I kept going. I counted in my head and it passed by in only a few moments. I finished the seven thousand and two hundredth one, then did another and held it at the top for Gillis to turn and step off. I felt the deep warmth leave my back and I stood up, only to see that everyone was still there and were looking at me.Stolen story; please report. ¡°Now you''re all sweaty.¡± Gillis said and smiled at me. It reminded me of Hope''s smile the last time I saw her and I realized something. ¡°You''re a girl.¡± I said and she chuckled. ¡°I guess the bumps on my front didn''t clue you in?¡± Gillis asked. ¡°I didn''t look.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°You didn''t look.¡± She whispered. ¡°The CO in Ester''s Village didn''t tell me that I should look for women.¡± I said. ¡°Do I need to look for women?¡± Gillis lost the surprised look and shook her head. ¡°No, if you aren''t looking, that''s fine.¡± ¡°I need to dry my uniform.¡± I said. Gillis chuckled. ¡°Me, too. My butt is soaked from your back sweat.¡± ¡°You can dry them later.¡± The drill sergeant said. ¡°It''s time for food.¡± We formed up into two lines and Gillis stayed beside me as we marched out of the classroom and over to the mess hall. After we ate the evening meal, it was time for chores. I was assigned to washing the floor of the barracks and I was to have it completely cleaned by lights out. I was used to cleaning wood off to prepare it for waterproofing potion and was done barely an hour later. I reported back to the drill sergeant to ask if that was all I had to do. The drill sergeant stood up and strode by me. I followed him to the barracks and he looked at the floor. It was spotless and he looked at me. ¡°Did anyone help you?¡± ¡°Who would help me?¡± I asked and he looked angry for a second. ¡°There''s still dirty water on it.¡± The drill sergeant said and kicked the bucket of soapy water over. ¡°Do it again.¡± ¡°I don''t have to.¡± I said and the angry expression was back on his face. ¡°Are you refusing a direct order from me?¡± The drill sergeant asked. ¡°No.¡± I said and pointed at the floor. He looked down and saw the water he had intentionally spilled was flowing back by the bucket, around our feet, and out the doorway. ¡°What in god''s name is going on?¡± The drill sergeant asked, his eyes wide, as the floor remained dry and all the water was now gone. ¡°Marsh magic.¡± I said. The drill sergeant stared at the floor for a minute, stared at me for a minute, then left without a word. ¡°He really doesn''t like you.¡± Gillis said as she peeked around the corner of the barracks at me. I turned to look at her. ¡°How do you know?¡± ¡°You''re frustrating him.¡± Gillis said and walked over to me. ¡°He can''t figure out how to take the knowledge he has to apply it to you.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± I asked. ¡°The whole point of this is to break us out of our normal lives, make us struggle and better improve ourselves, so we can benefit the kingdom.¡± Gillis said. ¡°You... well, you...¡± ¡°I''m the Marsh Man.¡± I said and she gave me a look that said she knew. ¡°The things you''ve gone through in your normal life are so much worse than anything the army could do to rebuild you into a better person.¡± I thought about that for a minute. Did the Hag rebuild me and make me a better person? I asked myself and looked at Gillis. ¡°Are you a better person?¡± Gillis chuckled. ¡°We just started.¡± She said and started to walk away. ¡°Ask me again in three months when basic training is over.¡± I picked up the bucket and dumped the water out, then went inside the barracks and took out some smoked meat from my trunk. I ate it and settled the grumbling in my guts. The food they served didn''t have enough hardiness to it, in my opinion. I did know that they never served two servings, which meant that when my smoked meat ran out in a few weeks, I might have to go hunting. Over the next hour, the others finished their tasks and came back to the barracks. Nearly all of them avoided looking at me, except for Gillis. She sat down on my trunk with me and told me all about scrubbing the outside of the barracks and how her arms and legs were sore. _______________ You have a minor choice to make. It will only affect your relationship with Gillis. A) Offer advice. B) Stay silent. C) Offer help. D) Rub her arms. E) Ignore her. F) Complain. She seems to be okay, so I think I''ll give her a chance. I thought. I choose C. _______________ I reached into my bandoleer and pulled out the healing potion that I had already used some of for the purser. ¡°Take a small sip.¡± I whispered. Gillis looked at the vial and then at me. ¡°Is that...¡± I nodded. ¡°Just a sip.¡± Gillis made sure that no one else was looking and quickly took a small sip. She couldn''t stop her relieved sigh and quickly handed it back. I tucked it away and she smiled at me. ¡°Thank you.¡± Gillis whispered, then she stood up and spoke in a normal voice. ¡°I need to get to bed. It''s going to be another long run in the morning.¡± ¡°Goodnight.¡± I said and took out the two blankets from the trunk and spread them out on the floor beside my cot. I took off my bandoleer and laid it down and tucked it into the blanket, then laid down myself. People were having hushed conversations all over the barracks. ¡°He''s cheating again.¡± Someone said, loud enough for everyone to hear. ¡°Most people take their clothes off to go to bed.¡± Someone else said. ¡°You can do that too, you know.¡± Gillis said. ¡°I doubt you''ll stop your clothes from wrinkling, though.¡± ¡°How does he do it, if you know so much?¡± Someone else asked. ¡°Just don''t move.¡± I said and all the conversations died down to nothing. ¡°What was that?¡± A man''s voice asked. ¡°Pretend a marsh panther is coming after you and stay perfectly still.¡± I said. A few people whispered marsh panther a few times and conversation picked back up. ¡°Did you really have a marsh panther come after you?¡± Gillis asked. ¡°No. It broke into my hut while I was gone to the nearby village and I found it when I came back. It had wrecked the place, too.¡± Everyone in the room went deathly quiet again. ¡°What happened?¡± Gillis asked in a whisper that everyone could easily hear in the silence. ¡°I killed it with my knife, skinned it, and ate it.¡± I said. Not a single person spoke again for the rest of the evening. The drill sergeant came in and banged the door loudly. ¡°All right! Settle down in here! It''s time for... lights... out.¡± His voice trailed off when he realized that everyone was already quiet. He walked over to the valve that controlled the oil for the lamps and slowly turned it off. He gave me a stern look before he left and shut the door as quietly as he could. About an hour later, Gillis spoke again. ¡°Did you really eat it?¡± ¡°I still have some smoked panther meat in the bag in my trunk.¡± I replied. No one asked anything else. 067 The Next Day I slept well until the barracks door opened. I had almost two decades of sleeping around the Hag and needed to be ready constantly, so I was awake and up before the door finished opening. I had the blankets stored in my trunk before the drill sergeant turned on the lights and the band started playing. ¡°GOOD MORNING, LADIES!¡± The drill sergeant yelled and repeated the same procedure as the day before. ¡°It''s another lovely day for a jog, people!¡± He said and kicked and rattled beds to get people up. Only two of them didn''t manage to get completely dressed when the order to put on boots came. We marched out of the barracks and over to the track around the base. ¡°It''s the same deal as yesterday! Three hours until breakfast! When I say go, start running!¡± The drill sergeant said and turned to me. ¡°You said you can run faster yesterday, so I better see you running faster today.¡± ¡°Just for this or for the obstacle course, too?¡± I asked. ¡°Both.¡± The drill sergeant said and looked at everyone. ¡°GO GO GO!¡± I took off and ran by everyone as they stared at me. Since the drill sergeant told me to go faster than I did yesterday, I did. About a third faster. I would learn later that was pretty fast and I didn''t tell them that I could still run a lot faster. I looped everyone on my third time around the whole base, the drill sergeant included. The three hours passed by in moments and I came to a stop when the drill sergeant did. He gave me a stern look and saw that my armpits were a little sweaty. We had to wait for fifteen minutes again as everyone else finished and then we went to eat. After that was the obstacle course again and unlike the last time, I was sent through first. I ran faster and did the course even quicker, which surprised the instructors, because my feet barely touched any of the obstacles as I passed over them. What they didn''t know was that compared to all the hazards and things I needed to avoid in the marsh that could change practically every day, having the same path to use each time and no creatures to avoid or fight along the way, was downright easy. I stopped at the rest area and sat down to wait. The time seemed to pass by like a breeze and then it was time for lunch. I ate quickly and sat there to wait for everyone else. ¡°I don''t know how you can eat this slop.¡± One of the guys said and poked a white pasty substance with his spoon. ¡°It''s free. I didn''t have to hunt it down, kill it, or cook it.¡± I said and he gave me a surprised look. ¡°If I made it, it would have more meat and maybe some tubers, with some wild mushrooms and a few herbs. A bit of frog or lizard cooked in a pan goes well with grub pate on brown bread.¡± Everyone stopped eating and stared at me. A few covered their mouths and one turned a little green. ¡°Are you okay? Did a spider bite you?¡± I asked and the guy shook his head. ¡°I haven''t seen any around here, so either they are small or the brood''s too far away for scouts.¡± ¡°Are you serious?¡± Gillis asked and looked around at the floor and the ceiling. ¡°There could be a brood here?¡± ¡°No, not here. You''d be swarmed long before you saw the man sized spiders up close.¡± ¡°M-m-man s-sized!¡± Gillis stuttered, shock on her face. ¡°I thought... they were only...¡± I shrugged. ¡°They''re mostly just legs. Once you cut a few off, they only come up to your waist.¡± A few people turned away and one guy cursed for some reason. Lunch ended and we went to class. I thought it was going to be another boring review about the obstacle course until three men wearing mage robes came into the room. I activated my vigilance technique right away, just in case. ¡°I bid you welcome, Mage Griffin, Mage Francis, and Mage Hellin.¡± The drill sergeant said, quite respectfully, and the mages nodded their heads in return. ¡°We are here to do an initial testing of any latent magical abilities.¡± Mage Griffin said. ¡°I''ve also heard that there are a couple promising recruits among you.¡± The chatter started as everyone wondered if it could be them. ¡°We have small measuring crystals with us and we will come to each of you. Grip it tightly and then imagine your will going into them.¡± When I looked around, a lot of people looked confused. _______________ You have a major choice to make. It will affect the rest of the time you spend in the army. A) Stay quiet. B) Ask a question. C) Ignore them. D) Leave. E) Sigh loudly. F) Do nothing. I spent years with the Hag and she absorbed my magic as much as she could. She called herself a sorceress and she used many tricks to steal magical power from me. I thought and looked at the three men. I don''t have a good feeling about them, so I''ll choose B to see if they are like the Hag. _______________ I raised my hand to speak. ¡°How do you do that with no training?¡± The mages turned to look at me and Mage Griffin spoke. ¡°What was that?¡± ¡°How do you do what you said? None of us know what you''re talking about.¡± I said. ¡°How can you measure what we can''t do?¡± The mage chuckled. ¡°I was sure that someone like you wouldn''t have any idea what I was talking about. I''m glad that I was right.¡± ¡°Hey! That''s not fair.¡± Gillis said in my defense. ¡°All people in some capacity can exert their will on something.¡± The mage said and ignored Gillis'' comment. ¡°Either willingly or unwillingly. You just need to concentrate on the crystal as hard as you can.¡± He came over to me and took one out of his robes. It was a cylinder about five inches long. ¡°Like this.¡± I felt him infuse his magic into it as if he was creating a potion. The crystal glowed brightly for several seconds and then stopped. The magic was still inside the crystal and my guess had been right. He wasn''t testing anyone, he was gathering magic.The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. ¡°Why don''t you try it and see how much you can make it glow.¡± Mage Griffin said and held it out to me. ¡°No.¡± I said and didn''t take it. ¡°Recruit Drake.¡± The drill sergeant said and stepped close. ¡°It''s Private Drake, Drill Sergeant. My decorations say so.¡± The drill sergeant reached for my chest pocket decoration and I grabbed his wrist. ¡°Are you trying to steal my things, Drill Sergeant?¡± I asked and squeezed. Everyone herd the snap of a bone and the drill sergeant winced. He didn''t cry out, though. ¡°Remember what happens to people that steal my things.¡± The drill sergeant glared at me and didn''t say anything. ¡°Let him go, Private Drake.¡± The XO''s commanding voice ordered as she stepped into the room. ¡°Yes, ma''am.¡± I said and let him go. The drill sergeant didn''t show any signs that his wrist was broken and walked over to the door of the classroom. ¡°MEDIC!¡± A few moments later, the same healer appeared. I had met her when I cut off that guy''s hand for attacking me. Her eyes found me and she knew I was responsible. ¡°Private Drake, I want to measure your magic ability.¡± The XO said as she came over to me. ¡°How do you do that with a storage crystal?¡± I asked and both she and the mages looked surprised. ¡°It''s a measuring device.¡± The XO said. ¡°No, it stores magic.¡± I said and nodded at the mage. ¡°Have him keep doing it. If it only measures and doesn''t take, he won''t get weak when he runs out.¡± The XO looked at Mage Griffin. ¡°Go ahead, Mage Griffin. Show me your magic potential.¡± ¡°I''ve already made it glow.¡± The mage said, trying to get out of doing it. ¡°Show me.¡± The XO ordered. Mage Griffin gave me a stern look and made the crystal glow again. It was the same brightness as before. ¡°There, see? It just measures...¡± ¡°Do it again.¡± The XO said. Mage Griffin glanced at the other two mages and they shook their heads. He sighed and did it again. Then again. When he tried it for the fifth time, it only glowed half as much and he started to waver. He had to put the crystal down and braced himself on my desk to stop from falling over in exhaustion. ¡°You don''t make a lot of potions, do you?¡± I asked and picked it up. ¡°It''s barely a quarter full.¡± ¡°How... can you tell?¡± Mage Griffin asked and took several deep breaths. ¡°You wouldn''t need to steal other people''s magic if you could do it on your own.¡± I said and used the dispel spell I knew. There was a loud crack and the crystal turned black as all the stored magic was released and dissipated. I put it down on the desk and it had a huge crack all along the side of it. ¡°No.¡± Mage Griffin whispered as he stared at the broken crystal. ¡°I believe I have some very informative letters to write to my superiors about this.¡± The XO said and looked at the other two mages. ¡°I don''t suppose there is an actual device to measure someone''s magic potential, is there?¡± The two mages didn''t say anything. ¡°You three can go back to your quarters and I am hereby suspending all regular testing of my soldiers.¡± ¡°You can''t do that.¡± Mage Griffin said and stood up straight as he recovered. ¡°We need that magic to do our jobs properly.¡± ¡°You can charge the crystals yourselves during off duty hours.¡± The XO said and the three mages started to walk away. ¡°I suspect that the years of deception on behalf of the Mage Guild are going to come back to haunt you very soon.¡± The mages didn''t respond and left the classroom. The XO turned to me and picked up the cracked crystal. ¡°I can''t believe they''ve been doing this for years.¡± She said and put the crystal into her pants pocket. ¡°The Hag did it to me for 18 years.¡± I said and she took in a sharp breath. ¡°She had these crystals?¡± The XO asked. ¡°No, she drank my blood and sucked the magic out of me.¡± I said and she stared at me for several moments. ¡°So, you knew what it felt like.¡± The XO commented and I nodded. She rested her hand on my shoulder for a second and then she walked over to the drill sergeant. ¡°You and I need to have another talk, Will.¡± She said and looked angry. ¡°A long one, apparently.¡± ¡°Yes, ma''am.¡± The drill sergeant said. The XO walked by him. ¡°Now I''m wondering how many potential mages the Mage Guild have intentionally cut off from having an outstanding career by taking their magic on a regular basis.¡± She said and left the classroom with those ominous words being the last thing we all heard from her. ¡°You can''t use your wrist for an hour or so, Drill Sergeant.¡± The healer said and wrapped it in a long bandage, then gave him an arm sling. He nodded to her and she turned her head to look at me for a moment, then she left the room, too. ¡°Evening chores are moved to now. Check the list and do your jobs.¡± The drill sergeant said. ¡°Class dismissed.¡± Everyone stood and started to file out of the room. The drill sergeant''s still good hand stopped me from leaving and Gillis stopped at the door when she saw that I wasn''t with her. ¡°When you least expect it, I will break your wrist.¡± The drill sergeant said. ¡°An eye for an eye.¡± ¡°If you attack me again, I will kill you, Drill Sergeant.¡± I said. ¡°Then I''ll take your hand like I should have this time.¡± The drill sergeant glared at me and growled. ¡°Did you just threaten a superior officer?¡± ¡°No. I am reminding you that your right hand is my property and I will take it back if you use it against me.¡± ¡°You are on report, recruit!¡± The drill sergeant said. ¡°You should expect to have a formal hearing by next week.¡± ¡°Will the XO put you on report for your actions?¡± I asked and he looked surprised, then I remembered the old CO of the Ester''s Village garrison. ¡°Maybe we can have a trial together.¡± The drill sergeant glared at me and his teeth ground together. ¡°Get out of my sight.¡± He said and moved his hand from blocking the exit. ¡°That''s easy to do. Just close your eyes.¡± I said and walked out the door. Gillis started walking with me. ¡°You have to stop doing that.¡± ¡°I was warned to not casually kill anyone.¡± I said. ¡°Goading them into attacking you isn''t right, either.¡± Gillis said. It took me a second to remember what goading meant. ¡°I guess I could have told him that he has nothing to teach me and that he is too weak to be a challenge.¡± Gillis stared at me with her mouth open. ¡°No! Definitely don''t tell him that!¡± ¡°You said to goad him.¡± I said. Gillis sighed. ¡°Please, don''t make things even harder for yourself.¡± I stayed quiet, because I didn''t want to tell her that this was the easiest time I''ve ever had in my life. I also didn''t tell her that I was starting to miss the freedom I had back home. We went to the list in the barracks and Gillis was assigned to help tend to the obstacle course and I was assigned to the mess hall. ¡°It''s too bad we can''t switch.¡± Gillis said with a sigh. ¡°See you at supper.¡± I nodded to her and she walked in one direction and I walked in the other. I went into the mess hall and the people working there greeted me. ¡°Go on in the back. We''ve got bags and bags of potatoes for you to peel.¡± The mess officer said and pointed to the door to go into the kitchen. ¡°Hi, there! I''m so glad you''re early!¡± A perky young woman said as I entered. ¡°I hope you''re quick with a knife, because we have a lot of work to do.¡± She led me over to the ten large burlap bags of potatoes and several large stew pots. There were two stools and two small knives there, too. She sat on one of the stools and picked up a potato, then she started skinning it with the small knife. I watched her do it for a few seconds, to see if she was playing around like Alex, Rich and Roy were to build camaraderie. ¡°Come on, sit! Don''t be shy.¡± She said and pointed to the small knife on the other stool. ¡°You''re doing it wrong.¡± I said and picked up the knife to sit down. ¡°Says you.¡± She said and laughed. ¡°I''ve been doing this for months and...¡± I put the small knife aside and took my own out from my bandoleer and charged it. She caught her breath as I stuck the tip of my knife into the potato and let the magic pop the skin off. It fluttered to the floor and I tossed the bare potato into the closest stew pot. ¡°Sometimes the Hag doesn''t like the taste of skin and I have to remove it.¡± I said and picked up another potato, popped the skin off of it and tossed it into the pot. It took barely a second for each one and she sat there and stared at me until the pot was nearly full. ¡°Stop slacking off.¡± The mess officer said as he passed by to talk to one of the cooks. ¡°R-right.¡± The not so perky woman said and picked up a potato. She started skinning it and did her best to not look at me. She failed miserably. ¡°How are you doing that?¡± ¡°Magic.¡± I said and finished filling the pot and started on the next. ¡°You can do magic?!?¡± She asked, surprised. ¡°You shouldn''t be here in basic training! You should have been sent to one of the Mages Guild schools of learning!¡± ¡°I''m a conscript.¡± I said and she gasped. ¡°No, you... what did you...¡± ¡°Justified murder.¡± I said. ¡°The village people wanted me dead and sentenced me to die at the trial.¡± She didn''t ask me any more questions. 068 The Drill Sergeant Part One I finished off nine of the bags of potatoes before the not so perky woman was halfway through her own bag. I finished it off for her and she just stared at me. ¡°Cut them up, add water, and put them on to boil.¡± A cook said when he saw the stew pots overflowing with potatoes. ¡°You can use the water pump at the sink, since you finished so quickly.¡± I turned my head to look and saw an odd contraption. ¡°What a relief.¡± The now perky again woman said and quickly started cutting the potatoes up. ¡°Carrying water from the canal is a pain in the ass.¡± I swiped my knife several times over the potatoes I could see and as I cut them up, they easily fit into the pots instead of overflowing them. It didn''t take me long to do all the pots except for the one the perky woman was using. I waited for her to finish and we carried the pots over to the sink. She showed me how the water pump worked and it flowed out of the spout and into the first pot. ¡°I think I''ll request for you to be permanently assigned to KP duty.¡± The mess officer said as he came over to us. ¡°I know it''s supposed to be a punishment that recruits get; but, I won''t miss the chance to make all of our jobs easier.¡± He said with a smile. ¡°On the plus side, you get to work in a hot kitchen every day and eat first.¡± ¡°Sir, everyone will think he''s a troublemaker.¡± One of the cooks said. The mess officer chuckled. ¡°He is trouble. He''s been put on report twice already.¡± The drill sergeant really did report me. I thought as I carried the nearly full pot over to the racks of cooking fires. I will need to keep vigilant. I set the rest of the large stew pots onto the fires and let them boil. I didn''t know what they were doing to the potatoes, though. That wasn''t how you made stew, because that was too many potatoes and I didn''t see any meat. I was told to cut up bags of vegetables next and added them to different stew pots and put them on to boil as well. It was all very confusing and when I asked, they just laughed and didn''t explain. I did a bunch of other things, like stirring large bowls of stuff, carrying bags of things, and anything else they told me to do. When supper time arrived, I was told to dish everything out onto a tray. I did that and they gave me the tray. I ate it and put the dirty tray on the end of the counter where they are supposed to stack. ¡°Now start dishing it out for everyone as they come by.¡± The mess officer said and left. Two hours later, the entire base had eaten supper and left. Then it was time for the cleanup. I was assigned to wash the trays and I did that for an hour. ¡°All right, that''s enough.¡± The head cook said and glared at the others. ¡°What are you doing by giving him the worst jobs?¡± ¡°The mess officer said he was on report.¡± They all said almost at the same time. The head cook sighed and shook his head. ¡°You people...¡± He looked at me. ¡°Why aren''t you complaining about this?¡± ¡°Am I allowed to complain?¡± I asked and he looked surprised. ¡°The mess officer assigned me to KP duty permanently. Who do I complain to?¡± He opened his mouth for a brief moment and then closed it. ¡°Sometimes I hate the chain of command.¡± He pointed to the door. ¡°You''re dismissed for today. Report back here after class tomorrow.¡± I used the petrified hand to salute and used the vigilance technique as I stepped outside. When I went back to the barracks, I went inside and immediately saw that my trunk was gone. I turned right around and walked over to the drill sergeant''s office. He wasn''t in and when I asked, no one knew where he was. I went to the main building and asked to see the XO. ¡°She''s busy at the moment.¡± The secretary said. ¡°You can make an appointment to see her later.¡± ¡°Is the drill sergeant in there?¡± I asked and concentrated my senses in that direction. ¡°I''m not allowed to tell you that information.¡± The secretary said. ¡°As you can see, he had prohibited and dangerous meats inside.¡± The drill sergeant said. The XO''s voice sighed. ¡°How could you be this stupid, Will?¡± ¡°I have every right to confiscate property that''s a danger to the recruits.¡± The drill sergeant said. ¡°It was reported that he had dangerous animal meat in his trunk and when I investigated, the trunk was sealed with a locking spell and couldn''t be opened, which is also against regulations. I had the trunk broken open by the mages and found all of this.¡± I walked over to the XO''s door and took out my knife as I charged it up. ¡°Hey! Get away from there!¡± The secretary said loudly. ¡°That''s not what I meant.¡± The XO said as I sliced off the hinges of her door and it fell into the room with a clatter. ¡°That''s what I meant.¡± She said and motioned to me.Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. ¡°You took my things.¡± I said to the drill sergeant. ¡°Private Drake.¡± The XO said. ¡°Please, stay your hand and let me handle this.¡± I gripped my knife and the glow intensified as I looked at her desk. My meats were spread out, partially cut into, and had writing on them. ¡°What did you do to my food?!?¡± I asked, angrily. ¡°It was marked and catalogued.¡± The drill sergeant said, a smile on his face. ¡°The mages checked them to see what they were.¡± He started pointing to them. ¡°Marsh panther, water beast, near-deer, croc-lizard...¡± He went on and on as he pointed to each piece. ¡°Each and every one of them have more toxins and poisons in them than a normal person could survive. I even had the healers in the medical building take samples to try and find out exactly what kinds of poisons they have, in case one of the recruits gets sick from having it nearby.¡± The XO looked at the drill sergeant and shook her head. ¡°I knew he was frustrating you and I wanted to let you try to handle it on your own. I can see now that decision was a mistake. I hadn''t thought that you were this determined to get back at him for humiliating you.¡± ¡°He didn''t humiliate me.¡± The drill sergeant said and lost the smile. ¡°He can outrun you without even trying. He can cross the obstacle course you designed as if it didn''t exist. He can also outperform your push-up punishments. He can also break you like a twig, a man nearly three times his size, with almost no effort.¡± The drill sergeant made a fist with his hand, because I had literally done that to his wrist. ¡°I sincerely thought that you would rise to the challenge he represented. I really did.¡± The XO said. ¡°Instead, you kept messing up and caused more problems than you were solving.¡± She picked up several pieces of paper. ¡°I can''t do anything about these reports, since you went behind my back and filed them with the CO of the base, which went strictly against both my orders and his.¡± The drill sergeant kept his face blank, even though he had bypassed the proper chain of command. ¡°I can''t even refute the permanent KP duty, since you caused it to happen.¡± The XO said. ¡°What I can do is put you on report, demote you, and ship you out to the front.¡± ¡°WHAT?!?¡± The drill sergeant yelled. ¡°You see, we''ve picked up a lot of new recruits out in that very treacherous mountain area. It seems like the perfect place to establish a new training base, don''t you think?¡± The XO asked. ¡°I think sending them all the way back from there to here would be a huge mistake, so I sent a proposal to HQ to have you sent there to help alleviate the situation. Don''t worry, though. You won''t be in charge. They already have a much more capable drill sergeant in the area.¡± ¡°Ma''am, you...¡± The drill sergeant swallowed. ¡°Please, you can''t send me...¡± ¡°You''ll be serving as his XO for the next six months as you establish the new base.¡± The XO said as she handed him some papers that had his orders on them. ¡°I suggest picking up some much warmer clothing from the PX before shipping out. The schooner leaves in the morning and you have until then to get your affairs in order.¡± ¡°Ma''am.¡± The drill sergeant saluted and did an about face. The XO gave me the signal to move and I stepped aside to let the man walk by me. He didn''t even glance my way as he passed me. She gave me the signal to advance and I stepped into her office. ¡°I want to apologize for what happened, Private Drake.¡± Anna Carter, the XO said. ¡°Breaking into a subordinate''s private possession is against army regulations. Having others do it and then ruining those possessions is also against regs.¡± She sighed. ¡°Unfortunately, you saw the extent of what I can do. I wasn''t lying when I said I can''t undo the damage he''s caused to you and your career.¡± ¡°I know you aren''t lying.¡± I said. ¡°Where''s the hand with the knife?¡± ¡°The healers tried to undo whatever you did to it. They got it back to a semi-normal state and then it kind of dissolved.¡± The XO said. ¡°It''s gone, just like this spoiled meat.¡± _______________ You have a minor choice to make. It won''t change your current position in the least. It could possibly impact the training base, considering your permanent KP duty. A) Stay silent. B) Complain. C) Ask for a favor. D) Tell her the truth. E) Leave. F) Choose two. I didn''t even have to think about it. I choose D and then C. _______________ ¡°Ma''am, I needed that food. It''s why I brought it.¡± I said. ¡°I wasn''t going to share it with anyone, because it was prepared by me and for my own consumption. I also never ate it when anyone else was around.¡± ¡°Why do you need it?¡± The XO asked. ¡°I heard you''re eating everything the kitchen prepares.¡± ¡°It has nothing in it.¡± I said and she widened her eyes. ¡°They boil everything into mush and there''s nothing left. I''ve never seen a piece of meat bigger than my missing finger being served.¡± The XO sighed. ¡°You''ve been supplementing your diet.¡± I nodded. ¡°I was going to request permission to go hunting at the end of the month when my meat ran out.¡± ¡°Which just so happens to be right now, thanks to Will.¡± The XO said. ¡°Are you really prepared to go out hunting into the woods for...¡± She stopped talking when she realized who she was talking to. ¡°I should send a squad with you.¡± ¡°They''ll only get in my way.¡± I said. ¡°They can''t keep up with me, anyway.¡± The XO stared at me for several moments and didn''t say anything. ¡°I request permission to go hunting for food.¡± I said. ¡°I normally eat less than what the army feeds me, except they ruin the food.¡± ¡°Private, I really shouldn''t allow you to leave the training base.¡± The XO said and looked at the piles of ruined meat on her desk. ¡°Dispose of that and you have two hours before lights out to go hunting.¡± She said and wrote out a note for me. ¡°Show that to the gate guards when you need to leave.¡± I took the note and tucked it into my bandoleer. ¡°Don''t maim or kill any more people.¡± The XO said. ¡°When they wrong you, come directly to me. I am the top of your chain of command. Even when I appoint a new drill sergeant, do not deal with them on your own if they step out of line. I want you to come directly to me.¡± ¡°Yes, ma''am.¡± I said. ¡°Can you tell me who reported the meat, ma''am?¡± ¡°No, and I wouldn''t even if I knew. I can''t have you going after them for revenge.¡± The XO said. ¡°I do not want a vigilante roaming around this base and dealing out their own brand of justice.¡± She gave me a very pointed look and I didn''t say anything in response. ¡°Very well. You''re dismissed.¡± The XO said. ¡°Tell the secretary to call the maintenance department on your way out. My door needs fixing.¡± I used the petrified hand to salute her and left her office with the ruined meat. I passed on her words to the secretary and left the building. I had no time to waste and ran over to the PX and got some rope and several sacks, in case I found any ingredients, then asked where a fire pit was. They gave me directions and I ran to a large fire disposal pit and tossed the meat into it. I lit it on fire and let it burn, because there was no danger it was going to spread. I ran to the main gate after that and showed the guards my orders. They opened the gate for me and I took off running. I ran across the road and right into the mass of trees that were there. I was pretty sure I could find something good to eat pretty quickly, considering I wasn''t hunting in the marsh and things wouldn''t be trying to kill me. 069 A Hunting We Will Go I had to admit that it was really weird not having to dodge tangling vines, avoid poisonous snakes, kill charging boars, hope to avoid spider broods, or wade and jump over waterways and muddy areas. It was almost eerie how quiet it was in the forest. There were also no good ambush spots where I could wait for prey to pass by. Maybe if I spent a bit of time just lurking, I would be able to find a few. I smiled and slipped off my boots and socks, tied the laces and hung them around my neck to keep them up and out of the way. I dug my toes into the partially soft and loose dirt and relaxed at the familiar feeling. I crept off deeper into the forest and let my instincts take over. It didn''t take long for me to find a nice looking ram. He had a female goat next to him and I carefully crept around their grazing position. I didn''t question why there was a ram near the army base and took out my knife to charge it. The ram perked up and looked around. I froze solid and waited for him to stop looking. It took him about thirty seconds before he blew out some air through his nose and started grazing again. I smiled a predatory smile and crept closer. I got into position and waited another short while, then attacked. The goats were dead before they knew what hit them. I had both of them gutted and hanging from a tree by a rope to let them bleed out in only a couple of minutes. I almost laughed because now I had the perfect bait and I didn''t have to go looking for an ambush spot. I had made one and they would come to me. I climbed a nearby tree where I had secured the ropes and hunkered down to wait. I knew it wouldn''t be long, especially with all that fresh blood and organs in a pile. I was tempted to toss them around a little to spread the smell, then decided that I didn''t want my own smell to ruin the bait. It didn''t take long for the first wolf to show up in the underbrush. He approached cautiously, as if he sensed a trap, and he lowered himself down and crept almost on his belly to the pile of organs. He very slowly opened his mouth grabbed a bit of intestine with his teeth, then very slowly backed up. The organs sloshed a little as they toppled over and he froze at the sound. His eyes darted around and his ears flicked back and forth, then he almost sighed and backed right up into the underbrush again. I heard him chomping down and chewing on it, then he let out a little bark. Three more wolves approached and I almost laughed as they did almost the same thing. Each took a tiny piece and slunk away to eat it. I had to assume it was because they knew what it meant that they could be hunted. I didn''t attack, though. Being ganged up on by a wolf pack was not my idea of fun. No, I was waiting for something better. I could hear it approaching and waited to see how long the wolves would take before they noticed, too. One of the wolves let out a yip of surprise and burst out of the underbrush, grabbed one of the livers as he passed the pile, and took off through the trees. What followed was a loud rumbling growl and the other three wolves decided that getting out of there was better than risking death. They took off after their fellow and I stayed there and waited. The large creature wasn''t quiet as it stomped through the forest to come after the fresh kill. Even though the thing was huge, I didn''t get a good look at it until it came around the tree and walked into sight. It was an owlbear. I had never seen one with my own eyes before. Sandra the CO of the garrison had told me about the large roaming predators in the area, the most dangerous of which were owlbears. They could somehow come out of nowhere to attack wounded people and animals, gobble them up as if it had an empty stomach, then disappear as quickly as it appeared. I suspected that it had something similar to my vigilance technique and it could sneak around, practically undetected. Its fur was almost the exact shade of the bark on the trees, so until it was practically on top of you, you wouldn''t see it. It looked like a nice thick coat of fur, too. I wonder if Diane could sell an owlbear pelt? I asked myself. It trudged over to the pile of organs and sniffed it, then it opened its beak like mouth and started shovelling them in. I had a neat idea and took out my knife. I cut the rope holding the ram up in the air and it dropped from above. The owlbear roared and jumped back out of the way as it plummeted to the ground. It looked around and didn''t see anything else, except for the female goat that still hung up above it. It moved forward again and smelled the ram''s carcass, then it started to tear into it. I cut the rope holding the female and the owlbear didn''t react at all as it fell to the ground beside where it was. I poised to attack with my knife at the ready, and jumped. It didn''t react at all as I landed right in front of it and slammed my knife into the back of its skull as hard as I could and then pulled straight down. It let out a roar and stood up, which was exactly what I wanted it to do, and the knife cut through the owlbear''s skull, brain, and face. It swiped at its bisected face with its huge paws, as if trying to get whatever hurt it away to stop the pain, and it slowed down as blood flowed out of the grievous wound. I stayed perfectly still and didn''t move as it struggled against an enemy it couldn''t fight. That was when we both heard many footfalls in the woods. We both turned to look at the same time to see what was making so much noise and coming closer, and I was surprised to see five people running through the woods towards us. ¡°By the Son''s Light! It''s an owlbear!¡± One of them yelled and they spread out. Two of them pulled out crossbows and split off to the sides as they dropped to their knees and aimed. The other three drew their swords and prepared to attack.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°RAGGHHLLLLGGGHHH!¡± The owlbear tried to roar at them and coughed blood out instead. ¡°Back OFF! It''s RABID!¡± One of the swordsmen yelled, which was the dumbest thing he had ever done. The owlbear took off as if it had always been running and hadn''t just started. The man screamed for only half a second as the bear''s massive claws tore part of his chest away and it tried to bite his face off. Its beak-like mouth didn''t work right, thanks to being cut in half by me, and it only left scratches and a few scrapes. Its claws worked fine, however. A front paw pushed down on his shoulder and stepped on him, then the other paw clawed the face off. _______________ You have a choice to make. Will you be smart or stupid? A) Do nothing. B) Help. C) Yell. D) Run. E) Signal for them to leave. F) Choose two. I am absolutely not getting myself killed for these idiots. I thought. I think the owlbear''s dying anyway, so I''m choosing A. _______________ ¡°Good god.¡± One of the other fighters said and then several crossbow bolts hit it in the shoulder. The owlbear sucked up the man''s face and tried, quite fruitlessly, to chew on it with a damaged mouth. The fighter lunged forward and stabbed it right in the eye and the owlbear gurgled a roar at him and lunged itself. He was down a second later and his chest and head were stomped into paste as the owlbear seemed to take out its frustration on him. ¡°RETREAT!¡± The last swordsman yelled, which got the owlbear''s attention, to his horror. Idiots. I thought and stopped myself before I shook my head. The last thing I wanted was to get the owlbear''s attention as it was in the last few minutes of its life. Blood still gushed out of the wound I had caused it and the more it moved, the faster the blood seemed to flow. I also refrained from using hand signals, since it would definitely sense the movement. Even with the owlbear moving slower, the swordsman''s skill was no a match for its ferocity. He tried for the other eye, not realizing that it didn''t need to see him, since it could clearly hear him. He was right there next to it and the owlbear used its size advantage to full effect. The sword proved less than effective against large claws and the lower part of his arm was torn away as the owlbear got rid of the thing that had poked it. The swordsman gripped the stump of his arm where the elbow used to be and dropped to the ground. The two crossbowmen were smart and had stayed where they were instead of retreating. They also didn''t shoot, which would have gotten the owlbear''s attention. We stayed there for nearly twenty minutes as it seemed to lumber around. I think it had forgotten why it was there in the first place and it didn''t know what to do with itself, now that no one was attacking it. It let out a low whine a minute later and then keeled over onto the ground. I wasn''t stupid enough to move yet, though. I noticed one of the crossbowmen start to stand and I made the signal to hold position. He gave me an angry glare and I repeated the motion. He nodded and eased back down. I waited another ten minutes until I couldn''t hear the creature breathing anymore. I gave the caution and proceed signals, and both men slowly stood up and crept towards it. I went as well and didn''t make any noise as I approached it. One of the crossbowmen stepped on a twig and we froze. Nothing happened and I made the okay signal. The two of them let out sighs and approached carefully. One of them saw the bisected face and looked at me in surprise. ¡°Why didn''t it die?¡± He asked. I bent down to look at it, then used the hilt of my knife to poke the beak-like mouth. It moved as one, even though it was off center and was supposed to be cut in half. I checked the face and saw it was the same, partially healed. ¡°It was healing itself.¡± I said and the two men stared at me. ¡°I don''t know how, either. I sliced it from the back of the head to its chin.¡± I showed them and one of them whistled. ¡°I thought that would have killed it. I was wrong.¡± ¡°Hey, why didn''t you help?¡± The other asked. ¡°Because of what you saw.¡± I said and walked over to the swordsman that had lost his forearm. ¡°Any noise or movement attracted its attention, unless you overwhelm it or distract it with food.¡± ¡°I need... a tourniquet.¡± He said. ¡°Explain.¡± I said and he did. I cut off a small length of rope and tied it onto his arm, right above the tear, and tightened it. ¡°GAH!¡± He gasped. ¡°That''s tight enough!¡± I nodded and went to get his arm. I did the same thing to it and handed it to him. He gave me an incredulous look and didn''t comment. I handed him his sword next and he awkwardly put it in its sheath. ¡°How the hell are we going to explain what happened?¡± One of the crossbowmen asked. ¡°I mean, I saw what happened and I don''t believe it.¡± I walked over to the owlbear and got a good look at the size. It was about ten feet tall if it stood up on its back legs and it was about three people wide. I tried to roll it over and it was heavy. I knew just how to make it a lot lighter and charged my knife. ¡°What are you doing?¡± One of the crossbowmen asked as he saw the knife glow. ¡°Gutting it to make it lighter.¡± I said and sliced it from the neck to the privates, then cut it across the soft underbelly to the hips. I went over to the rope I had on the ram and untied it and brought it over to the owlbear. I tied its back paws together and tossed the rope over a thick tree branch that was nearby. I made sure it was down at the spot next to the trunk, then pulled. The owlbear lifted partially into the air and the guts spilled right out. I went over and cut them free, then pulled the carcass up into the air and tied the rope off to hold it in place. I made appropriate cuts in the neck to let the blood drain out, assuming there was any left in the thing. I went over to the female goat and checked it to see that it was fine and would make good eating. The ram was pretty mangled, so I couldn''t use most of it. I cut up the untouched parts and put them into one of the bags and then cut the female goat into appropriate sized pieces as well. I stuffed them into that bag and half into another. I hung them on my shoulder and went to the men just standing there. ¡°Are you taking the bodies back?¡± I asked and they gave me odd looks. ¡°What?¡± ¡°You just butchered those animals.¡± One of them said. ¡°How else do you cook them?¡± I asked and he looked surprised. ¡°Yes, we''re taking them back.¡± The maimed swordsman said and stood. He looked a little wobbly. One of the crossbowmen offered him a shoulder. ¡°I''ll make a stretcher.¡± I said and they stared at me as I cut down two appropriate sized trees with my knife, sliced the bark off of them, then I cut open one of my large bags. After some number ten potion, the large stretcher was done and I did my best to put the two bodies onto it. ¡°You have to take them.¡± I said to the other crossbowman. ¡°Why me?¡± He asked. ¡°I''m taking the owlbear.¡± I said and untied it, then I hefted it up and onto my shoulders as if I was giving it a piggyback ride, like I had done for Rich back home. ¡°Good god.¡± He whispered. ¡°We need to go. The wolves won''t stay away for long, not with this much free food around.¡± I said. ¡°WOLVES?!?¡± They asked, shocked. The swordsman was the first to recover. ¡°Let''s go! Go! GO!¡± He said and we left in a hurry. 070 Back To Base It took us a surprisingly long time to walk back to the training base through the woods. I hadn''t realized that I had travelled that far. I guess I was enjoying myself too much. I thought with a smile as we approached the large road in front of the base. There was no reaction at all until we left the woods. A loud whistle sounded and a bugle played a rally tune right after, then the gate opened and three half-dressed squads of fighters were out through the gates and prepared to fight while two squads of crossbowmen took up good firing positions and prepared to open fire. ¡°Run!¡± ¡°Duck!¡± ¡°Get out of the way!¡± Several of them said loudly at the same time and waved for us to move out of the way. ¡°STAND DOWN!¡± The crossbowman carrying the swordsman yelled and everyone looked at him in confusion. ¡°There''s an owlbear behind you!¡± One of them said and pointed. ¡°It''s not alive! Private Drake is carrying it!¡± He responded and there was even more confusion. ¡°It would be... a lot taller.¡± I said and managed to wave. Barely. Unlike doing push-ups with Gillis sitting on my back, an owlbear was damn heavy, and I had carried it for miles. I was nearly completely covered in sweat and my back was covered in owlbear blood. ¡°Good lord.¡± Someone said and another cursed, then they saw the two bodies on the stretcher. Everyone reacted to that, all negatively. ¡°If it wasn''t already dead, I''d kill it again.¡± The fighter in the front said. ¡°Forget that! Get a medic!¡± The crossbowman carrying the injured swordsman said. He was barely conscious and five people came over to him, picked him up, and carried him into the base. We crossed through the open gate and everyone that saw us stopped and stared. No one said anything and we reached the center of the base. We had also gathered quite the crowd around us. ¡°What the hell did you do to my men?!?¡± The CO barked at me as he and the XO approached with another woman beside them. She had bright red hair tucked under her hat and her eyes took in everything, almost as if she had the vigilance technique, too. ¡°The owlbear is dead... and can''t hear you... sir.¡± I said and panted. ¡°I was talking to you!¡± The CO said, loudly. ¡°I didn''t... do anything.¡± I said and eased the owlbear off of my shoulders and laid it on the ground. ¡°Whew, that thing was heavy.¡± ¡°You!¡± The CO pointed to the crossbowman that had his arms free. ¡°Tell me what happened.¡± ¡°We were following the target as ordered...¡± The crossbowman started to say and the XO''s nostrils flared and her hands became fists. ¡°...and he was much too fast to keep up with. We had to track him through the woods and...¡± Everyone listened as he recounted what happened. He was pretty accurate, too. A couple of the details were wrong, about who got smashed by the bear first; but, that didn''t matter anyway. They were dead and they wouldn''t care what order it was in. The CO glared at me. ¡°YOU! Why didn''t you help them? You were right there, weren''t you?¡± ¡°I wasn''t stupid enough to yell at it and get its attention.¡± I said and a few people took in sharp breaths or hissed. ¡°I was warned before coming here about the big predators. It''s not my fault your men didn''t take the same advice.¡± ¡°It IS your fault! They were following you!¡± The CO exclaimed. ¡°Actually, sir. You ordered them, so the responsibility is yours.¡± The XO said. The CO turned to glare at her. ¡°You stay out of this!¡± ¡°Private Drake is my sole responsibility, sir. Your orders confirmed it.¡± The XO said. ¡°Also, you violated your own standing orders and interfered with him, despite not having the authority to do so.¡± ¡°I did no such thing!¡± The CO spat at her. ¡°Private Drake, please recount the real version of what happened.¡± The XO calmly said and her hands were no longer clenched into fists. ¡°Yes, ma''am.¡± I said and told them exactly what I did. I left nothing out, not even enjoying the feeling of having the dirt between my toes. A lot of people looked down and saw my bare feet and they all noticed my missing toes. I also explained how much easier it was to hunt in woods that didn''t try to kill me every ten feet or so. I explained the ram and goat deaths, gutting them for transport, then hanging them up to bleed out.This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. When I came to the part about setting up an ambush for predators, the CO growled and kept quiet. I explained the wolves coming and a lot of people made surprised sounds. A few even whispered that they hadn''t heard about a wolf pack in the area. Then I told them about the owlbear showing up and what I did to distract it. ¡°That was pretty smart, actually.¡± The redheaded woman commented and the CO turned his growl onto her. ¡°I''m sorry, sir.¡± She said and saluted him, then turned to me. ¡°Please continue, Private Drake.¡± I described my attack and everyone was surprised. I couldn''t tell if it was because I attacked and lived or because the owlbear didn''t die right away. Either way, I described the others showing up and getting its attention, then deciding to not die and stayed still. ¡°So, you admit that it was your fault those men died.¡± The CO said with a gleam in his eye. ¡°No, sir.¡± I said and he snarled at me. ¡°As the XO stated, you were in command and sent them into a dangerous situation.¡± ¡°You stood there and did nothing!¡± The CO exclaimed. ¡°I was not in command.¡± I said and he looked surprised. ¡°I also warned the XO that anyone sent after me would be in danger.¡± ¡°Which I also told you about and gave you a copy in writing, along with his orders.¡± The XO said. ¡°I couldn''t have everyone on the base thinking that a soldier under my command was trying to escape every time he went near the gates and didn''t come back for hours at a time.¡± The CO glared at her. ¡°Well, I am holding him responsible for their deaths.¡± ¡°You can to whatever you want with your personal feelings, sir. Legally, you are the one that caused their deaths, despite many warnings and your own orders. In fact, I believe a case of dereliction of duty could be made for your intentional endangerment of soldiers under your command when you issued illegal orders.¡± The CO stared at her for about twenty seconds and no one spoke. He glanced around at all the witnesses and looked back at her. ¡°You are lucky that the chain of command protects you from this insubordination.¡± ¡°No, sir. You are.¡± The XO said, to his surprise. ¡°I filed papers for your removal the moment you mistreated Private Drake the first time.¡± ¡°You did WHAT?!?¡± The CO yelled. ¡°Unfortunately, I was overruled and told to let things play out and to let you hang yourself.¡± The XO said and waved at us. ¡°I''m sad that these brave men had to die to get rid of you.¡± The CO looked to the bodies and back to her. ¡°You can''t do this.¡± ¡°It''s already done.¡± The XO said and nodded to the redhead, who stepped forward and handed him a set of orders. ¡°Have fun being stationed at the front, sir.¡± The CO looked at the orders in his hand and stayed quiet. ¡°Army Command can''t stand incompetence, sir.¡± The XO said and saluted. ¡°Have a safe journey.¡± The CO didn''t look at her or return the salute. He just walked away. ¡°God, that felt good.¡± The XO said and turned to the redhead. ¡°Thank you for rushing here.¡± The redhead chuckled. ¡°As soon as the request came through for a new drill sergeant for you, I was on the fastest horse I could find.¡± The XO smiled warmly at her. ¡°Thank you.¡± She said and then looked at us. ¡°Crossbowman, take those bodies to the medical building to be dealt with properly.¡± ¡°Yes, ma''am!¡± He said and went to salute. His hands were full, so I quickly took off the petrified hand and held it to his forehead. ¡°Carry on.¡± She said and returned the salute, and the man turned and dragged the stretcher away. ¡°I can''t believe you made a stretcher that large so quickly.¡± The redhead said. ¡°I was assigned to the maintenance department at the garrison for a week and Gary taught me a lot.¡± I said and hung the hand around my neck again. ¡°A week?!?¡± She asked, surprised. ¡°He can learn fast.¡± The XO said. ¡°He also knows all the rules and regulations.¡± The redhead gave me a searching look. ¡°You''ve figured out their limitations, haven''t you?¡± I nodded. ¡°Then you are a huge bundle of trouble.¡± The redhead said. She looked serious for a moment, then she smiled. ¡°I''m looking forward to challenging you to see what you can do.¡± I looked at the XO and she nodded. ¡°Private Drake, meet your new Drill Sergeant, Nancy Travis.¡± ¡°Ma''am.¡± I said to the redhead and saluted with the petrified hand. ¡°That thing sure is handy.¡± Nancy said with a bright smile. ¡°None of that.¡± The XO said and then whispered. ¡°That''s a real hand.¡± ¡°I know.¡± Nancy said. ¡°Private, why did you bring the owlbear back?¡± ¡°I need food.¡± I said and everyone reacted. ¡°You can''t possibly...¡± ¡°That''s disgusting.¡± ¡°Is he serious?¡± ¡°I''ll be sending the pelt to Ester''s Village, too.¡± I said and everyone went quiet. ¡°Why so far?¡± Nancy asked. ¡°Diane has a specialty store there. I''m sure she can sell it.¡± I responded. ¡°I have the ram''s horns, too. I always collect the horns from things.¡± ¡°I think we can arrange something with the PX instead.¡± The XO said. ¡°We can discuss that later, though. Take your kills to the kitchen and do what you want with them.¡± ¡°Yes, ma''am.¡± I said and saluted with my real hand. The XO let a smile appear on her face for a second and returned the ''real'' salute. ¡°Wash your feet and put your boots back on, too.¡± I nodded as I bent down and hefted the owlbear up onto my back. I got it balanced and started to walk away. ¡°I''m not going to ask what you''re going to do with him.¡± The XO whispered, not realizing that I could still hear her. ¡°I''ll just warn you now. According to his old CO, his mind is... well... pretty much empty. He grew up not learning anything.¡± ¡°That... is just perfect.¡± Nancy whispered back. ¡°Getting a fresh mind to fill with knowledge is something every drill sergeant should dream of.¡± ¡°Do what you can for him. He needs proper guidance and to be instilled with a little more common sense.¡± The XO said. ¡°His version of things can seem a little off, so be careful.¡± ¡°Don''t worry about me. I know exactly how to handle someone like him.¡± Nancy said. ¡°Let''s go to my office and I''ll fill you in on everything else I know.¡± The XO said and I heard them walk away. I brought the owlbear to the mess hall and went inside. They had a room in the back for butchering, even though I hadn''t seen them using it, and I put the owlbear down. I sat down and rested for several minutes, then went to their smoked meat room and started it up. I wasn''t surprised to see piles of jerky used in army travel rations. I moved everything aside and prepped a nice area for my things. I went back over to the butchering room and carefully removed the very large pelt from the owlbear. The head was too damaged to save, so I discarded it. I hung the pelt up on the side of the room and then got to work on the carcass and carved off some nice choice cuts of meat. The thing was huge and had tons of meat on it, so I hoped it would last me for a long time. 071 In The Kitchen I finished cutting up the larger chunks for smoking and set them up properly. There was a lot of meat and it would take a while to smoke it. I went back to the kitchen and took three stew pots, treated them with waterproofing potion and partially filled them with water, then set them on the racks. I lit the fires and let the water simmer as I went back to the water spout and quickly washed off my feet. I put my socks and boots back on and then took the bags of goat meat off my neck. I knew the ram meat would be tougher, since he was more muscular, and quickly diced it up and tossed it into the three pots in equal measure. I went back to the owlbear carcass and quickly skimmed and chopped up the remains of the meat pieces from it and added it to the three pots as well. I would have to wait to see what I could do with the bones. For now, I piled them in the corner of the room and left them there. I went back to the kitchen and went to the large rack of containers. I picked each one up until I found a few spices, herbs, and things that smelled similar to what I used back home. I quickly added them to the three pots and let them slowly cook. I added little bits of firewood to the fire to keep it at a lower temperature and then took out the goat meat. The goat must have been healthy, because the meat was completely unblemished. I quickly removed the bones and set several frying pans with oil and oven pans with a little water. I walked around the kitchen and kept sniffing, looking for familiar things, and found quite a few good vegetables and even a few tubers. I chopped up a pile of vegetables and added some spices, then split them up between the oven pans and the stew pots. I set the larger lamb meat pieces into the oven pans and put them into the large oven. They looked tiny compared to the entire oven and I thought I could have fit the whole goat in there if I had a pan big enough. I made sure it was stoked for a long cook time and closed it up and left it. I checked the pots of stew and the meat was softening up nicely. I sliced up the lamb into half inch thick boneless steaks and tossed them into the frying pans. They sizzled immediately and the smell was great. My stomach rumbled loudly and I had to eat a potato raw to stave off my hunger. It didn''t really work. It kept my mouth busy, though. As I cooked, I remembered back to travelling through the woods and being disappointed that there were no potion ingredients anywhere around that huge forest. I didn''t even find any indication that any could have been there, either. It made me a little sad to discover that I couldn''t just go out into the surrounding area to get things that I needed. That meant the potions I had on me would be all I would have access to for the next three months, so I would have to keep using them sparingly. That reminded me about the fungus powder I had and I sprinkled a very tiny amount into the stew pots. Like the Hag had warned me, it was a rare and precious commodity and was sought after by magic users everywhere. I was really glad that I always kept my bandoleer on me and hadn''t left it in my trunk. My potions could have been requisitioned because they were needed by the army and then I wouldn''t be paid for them. I was still waiting on the payment from the snake juice that Alex had taken from me, which meant that the army wasn''t going to pay for it like he said. The frying lamb meat finally finished and I took the pans from the fire. I didn''t bother with a metal tray and just ate a piece right from the pan. My mouth was watering as I chewed on the soft and tender meat that had been cooked to perfection. My stomach settled down and I ate a second piece, just because I could. It was delicious. It was so good that I had forgotten to eat any vegetables with it. I left the lamb meat to cool and stirred the pots of stew and they were coming along nicely. A few hours and they would be done as well. The smoker on the other hand, was going to take a week or more for the larger chunks. I should have asked for hunting permission before, that way I would have had more meat to replace it with at the same time that my other meat ran out. I heard the door to the mess hall open and several people came in. It was the head cook and the other staff. ¡°What''s going on in here?¡± The head cook asked as they came into the kitchen and he saw the mess I had made. ¡°The XO ordered me to come to the kitchen and cook my kills.¡± I said. One of the others walked towards the pans of my fried lamb meat and I darted over to him and held my knife out to block him. ¡°Whoa! I was just gonna taste it.¡± ¡°No, you weren''t.¡± I warned him. ¡°Hey, there''s no need to be like that.¡± He said. ¡°Yes, there is. I''m tired of people stealing from me.¡± I said and he gave me a surprised look. ¡°I wasn''t...¡±Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. ¡°Back off.¡± The head cook said and put a hand on the man''s shoulder, who stepped back. The head cook looked at me. ¡°I hope you''re going to pay for those vegetables and spices you took.¡± I took out a silver coin and tossed it to him. ¡°I know how much you buy them for, so this should pay for a week''s worth of vegetables for one person.¡± ¡°How do you know that?¡± The head cook asked, surprised. ¡°I deal with the best shipping company in the area.¡± I said and sheathed my knife. ¡°I have a bunch of meat in the smoker and no one is to touch that, the stew, the pans in the oven, my fried meat, or the owlbear pelt in the butchering room.¡± The others were muttering loudly to each other and I ignored it for now. ¡°You actually cooked it?¡± The perky woman asked. ¡°I''m only really cooking the meat in the stew. The smoker just cures it for safe storage.¡± ¡°I know that. I do work in the kitchen.¡± ¡°I haven''t seen any of you working on meat.¡± I said and they all had slightly sad faces. ¡°We''ve already run out of this month''s allotment of meat rations.¡± She responded. ¡°Those roasts were delicious.¡± One of them commented. ¡°It''s too bad the CO ordered them divided up and used for just the meals served to the officers this week.¡± ¡°We were supposed to cut them up for everyone to use.¡± The perky woman said. ¡°They were too nice to waste like that, so we cut up hundreds of pork chops on the first day of basic training and we use that when we need meat for the troops.¡± ¡°Which is only at supper most times.¡± The head cook said. ¡°Private, may I have a small sliver of that fried lamb meat to taste it?¡± Without looking, I picked up a normal kitchen knife, reached back and sliced an inch wide piece off of a ten inch wide piece of lamb meat, skewered it with the knife, and held it out. ¡°Thanks.¡± He said and took the meat and popped it into his mouth. He chewed on it for several moments and then swallowed. ¡°What spices did you use?¡± I pointed to the table behind him and he turned to look. ¡°Those aren''t supposed to work together.¡± He commented and looked confused. ¡°The tastes should have contradicted each other, especially on such a tender cut of meat.¡± The others turned to look as well and were confused, too. After a few minutes, the head cook looked back at me. ¡°Can I try the stew?¡± ¡°No.¡± He didn''t give me an angry face at my refusal. ¡°Can I ask why?¡± ¡°You can''t handle it.¡± I responded and he had slightly wide eyes. ¡°I made it for me to eat and only the Hag or I can ingest it without problems.¡± ¡°What did you put in it? Poison?¡± The perky woman asked. ¡°Yes.¡± I said, referring to the fungus powder. ¡°It''s the same with the smoked meat. I can''t have people stealing it again.¡± ¡°Did you really poison it?¡± One of them asked and looked at the head cook with concern on his face. ¡°The lamb meat I fried is fine. The pieces in the oven are not.¡± ¡°The oven, too?¡± The head cook asked and opened the oven to look at all the pans of broiling meat and vegetables. ¡°How many animals...¡± ¡°A ram, a female goat, and an owlbear. There''s a lot of meat on an owlbear.¡± ¡°You used nearly everything?¡± The head cook asked as he closed the oven. ¡°I left the entrails in the woods.¡± I said. ¡°Aww, lamb liver is the best.¡± The perky woman said with a pout. ¡°The wolves took that almost right away.¡± I said and she hiccuped and then coughed. ¡°Wh-wh-WHAT?!?¡± She exclaimed. ¡°There''s a wolf pack a few miles away in the woods.¡± I said and she exchanged worried looks with the others. ¡°You told the CO, didn''t you?¡± The head cook asked. ¡°The XO and Drill Sergeant know, too.¡± I said. ¡°They''ll gather people to go hunting them tomorrow.¡± The head cook reassured the others and looked at me. ¡°I suspect you''ll be called to go, too.¡± I shook my head. ¡°I have basic training tomorrow.¡± The head cook looked surprised and then turned to wave the others away. ¡°Let''s go back to our bunks.¡± ¡°But... are you really going to let...¡± One of the men started to say. ¡°He''s under orders to cook his kills. We can''t interfere with that.¡± ¡°The smell is all over the base.¡± One of the others said. ¡°I should tell you to hold your breath.¡± The head cook said with a chuckle. ¡°We both know it''ll be hours for the stew to simmer and the roasts to cook, so I won''t. It''ll also be weeks for the smoker to finish.¡± The others sighed in defeat. As they shuffled out of the kitchen, I relaxed, because they didn''t steal my meat or demand that I hand it over, despite using their kitchen to cook it. _______________ You have a minor choice to make. It could change your relationship with the kitchen staff. A) Stay silent. B) Offer some meat. C) Scare them. D) Yell. E) Be nice. F) Be mean. G) Choose two. I sighed, because the kitchen staff didn''t really do anything bad to me. Their worst chores were things I did for the Hag for years, which was why I didn''t complain about it. It was easy. I guess I''ll give them a chance, too. I thought. I''ll choose E and B. _______________ I picked up the piece of lamb I had cut a sliver off of. ¡°Just a second.¡± I said as I cut it in three, then cut another up into three. I picked up both pans and held them out to the kitchen workers. They knew right away why there were six pieces and the five of them grabbed one each and left the slightly smaller one for the head cook. The head cook chuckled and took it. ¡°Thank you, Private.¡± ¡°Sir.¡± I said and saluted with the petrified hand. He laughed and the kitchen workers left the kitchen with delicious meat in their possession and happy expressions on their faces. I took out a canvas bag and sliced up the fried lamb into easily eaten strips, treated the bag, and cut the bag off about a foot from the bottom. I filled the much smaller bag with the lamb strips and sealed it. I was quite happy with the amount. I ignored the lights out order that came some time later, mainly because I wasn''t using any. I could easily see by all the fires I was using and spent half the night cooking the stews and the roasts. When everything was done, I extinguished most of the fires with a wave of my hand. I left a few going, so it would stay warm in the kitchen. I treated three more canvas bags with waterproofing potion and filled them with the stew from the pots and sealed them. I took the pans from the oven and put them on one of the workbenches to cool as well. After that, I found a nice spot in the corner of the kitchen, next to several bags of vegetables, and curled up into a ball on the floor and drifted off to sleep. 072 The Drill Sergeant Part Two I woke up when someone burst in through the door of the mess hall. ¡°Private Drake!¡± The new drill sergeant said loudly. ¡°Yes, Drill Sergeant!¡± I said and stood up at attention. ¡°Why were you not in your barracks?¡± Nancy asked as she entered the kitchen. ¡°I was following orders, Drill Sergeant.¡± I said and nodded at the pans. ¡°They should be cooled off enough to slice up now.¡± The drill sergeant looked at the workbench and the lamb roasts there. ¡°You waited here for them to cool off?¡± ¡°Yes, Drill Sergeant.¡± I said. ¡°I also have most of the owlbear in the smoker.¡± Nancy looked at me and she had concern on her face. ¡°You aren''t planning on staying here for as long as you''re smoking the meat, are you?¡± ¡°No, Drill Sergeant. I''ve already warned the kitchen staff that that it was poisoned.¡± ¡°Excuse me?¡± ¡°They can''t safely ingest the meat that I prepared for myself.¡± She gave me a very concerned look for several moments. ¡°So, it''s true. You did have poisonous meat in your possession.¡± ¡°There''s no regulation stating that I can''t have my own food nor treat it the way I like it.¡± I said and she sighed. ¡°Private, you can''t poison food that others have access to.¡± She said and looked at the empty pots. ¡°We''ll have to destroy everything you''ve used and...¡± ¡°Everything''s treated.¡± I said and picked up one of the pots and put a bit of water in it to show her, then dumped it out into the drain and showed her the pot again. ¡°It''s completely clean.¡± Nancy said and then shook her head. ¡°You still used poison in the kitchen.¡± ¡°It''s not poison for me.¡± I said and she sighed again and looked sad. ¡°You missed the wake up call.¡± She said and her face went back to normal. ¡°We''re about to start the morning jog.¡± I went over to the pans on the work bench and took out a treated canvas bag and quickly sliced the roasts like loaves of bread and put it with the vegetables and everything into the bag. She just stared at me as I did it and then she stared at the completely clean pans. ¡°You''re not planning on carrying all of that with you, are you?¡± ¡°Did they issue me a new trunk?¡± I asked as I hung the three bags of stew, the partial bag of lamb slices, and now the bag of lamb roasts and vegetables on my shoulders. ¡°Not yet.¡± Nancy said. ¡°We can stop by the PX after the run.¡± ¡°I don''t need to run.¡± I said and she widened her eyes. ¡°The XO told you that.¡± ¡°How do you know that she told me anything?¡± Nancy asked. ¡°She wants you to teach me.¡± I said and walked over to the butchering room. ¡°Do you know what I can do with these bones?¡± I asked as I unhooked the owlbear pelt from the wall and folded it in half to keep the almost dried bloody bottom part away from the fur. ¡°No, you''ll have to ask the head cook what they do with them.¡± I nodded and put the pelt over my shoulders. It was a heck of a lot lighter than the full bear, so I walked out of the kitchen almost completely unimpeded. Nancy followed me and waved to the other recruits. ¡°Go ahead and start without us. We''ll catch up.¡± A few of the men glared at me, so I had to assume one of them had told on me and ruined my meat. Nancy saw me looking at them and waved for me to walk in a different direction. ¡°The PX is over this way.¡± We walked over to it and went inside. The man behind the counter whistled as I walked in. ¡°By the Son''s Light! That''s the pelt of an owlbear!¡± He laughed. ¡°I can''t wait to get my hands on it and...¡± ¡°It''s not for sale.¡± I said and he looked surprised. ¡°I haven''t talked to the XO about it yet.¡± ¡°But... why else would you be here?¡± He asked and looked confused. ¡°He needs another trunk.¡± Nancy said. ¡°I want something stronger than that.¡± I said. ¡°The old drill sergeant broke my old one.¡± ¡°We have a metal lock box; but, it''s not very big and you won''t get half of your things into it.¡± He said. ¡°I doubt that you could get all of that into a standard trunk, either.¡±This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. ¡°How many metal lock boxes do you have?¡± I asked. ¡°Four.¡± The man said. ¡°They are expensive and...¡± ¡°The army garrison in Ester''s Village owes me a bunch of money for my potions, so take it from that.¡± I said. ¡°We don''t have the same budgets or share debts like that.¡± The man said. ¡°Then dock my pay.¡± I said and he looked surprised. ¡°Can you really go weeks without any money?¡± The man asked. Nancy gave me a look that I couldn''t read and then spoke to the man. ¡°He''s a conscript and doesn''t get paid.¡± ¡°Well, I would be willing to trade.¡± The man said and eyed the pelt on my shoulders. ¡°I''m sure that we can come to some sort of arrangement.¡± ¡°I need to speak to the XO first.¡± I reminded him. ¡°Of course. I''ll be here when you get back, so there''s no need to rush.¡± The man said and wrote out a note. ¡°Jake, come here for a second.¡± Nancy watched with attention as someone came from the back. ¡°Could you deliver this for me?¡± The man said and gave him the note. ¡°Sure thing.¡± Jake said and turned around. ¡°You can deliver it right here to me.¡± Nancy said and held her hand out. ¡°That''s an order.¡± ¡°Drill Sergeant, that''s a private message. You have no right to...¡± The man started to say and couldn''t grab Jake before he handed it over to her. ¡°Hmm. I see.¡± Nancy said as she read the quick note. ¡°Thank you for enlightening me to your opinion of Private Drake and his intelligence.¡± ¡°That was a private message.¡± The man said. ¡°Yes, and you should have kept it private and not said anything. To anyone.¡± Nancy said, clearly angry. ¡°Rest assured that I will be delivering this personally to the proper recipient.¡± The man looked angry himself now. ¡°I hope you mean the name on the note.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Nancy said. ¡°I mean the old CO. The man who has been dismissed from his post and sent to the front for mistreating Private Drake.¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± The man asked, very surprised. ¡°Didn''t you hear about the event last night?¡± Nancy asked. ¡°I thought it would be all over the base by now.¡± ¡°I heard about it.¡± Jake said. ¡°Nearly all of the enlisted soldiers are talking about it.¡± Nancy smiled. ¡°I suppose an officer with your family''s standing hasn''t had a chance to mingle with the soldiers on a casual basis yet to hear the news.¡± The man''s face became a blank expression. ¡°Don''t worry. I''m sure the XO, the now acting CO, won''t look unfavorably on a member of the PX that has been ripping people off.¡± The man didn''t say anything in response. ¡°You''re not even going to deny it?¡± Nancy asked, surprised. ¡°I was only making a blanket statement and had assumed it was only Private Drake.¡± She shook her head. ¡°Please expect a few visitors to check on things here in a few minutes.¡± The man nodded and Nancy led me out of the PX and over to the main building. She only waved at the secretary to be quiet as she passed and knocked on the XO''s door. ¡°Come in.¡± The XO commanded. Nancy opened the door and stepped into the office as she saluted. I did as well and Anna smiled as she returned it. ¡°It seems Private Drake is helping me root out even more hidden mistreatment.¡± Nancy said and quickly explained what happened at the PX and showed her the note. Anna looked at me with a sad smile. ¡°It seems you are a vexing problem that just keeps expanding.¡± I wasn''t sure what to say to that, so I stayed quiet. ¡°I''ll send a few trusted people over to check everything.¡± Anna said and wrote out several notes herself. ¡°I might as well have them audit the Purser Office, too.¡± Nancy nodded and took the notes to give to the secretary, without shutting the XO''s door, then she knocked on the CO''s office and delivered the note. There was a loud clatter of something and a door slamming. Nancy came back with a huge smile on her face. ¡°Message delivered.¡± Anna chuckled at her drill sergeant''s antics. ¡°You''re not supposed to enjoy antagonizing senior officers like that.¡± ¡°It''s one of the little joys I have in life.¡± Nancy said with a smile and then frowned. ¡°Now I don''t know what to do with Private Drake''s things.¡± Anna wrote out another note. ¡°Have two of the metal lock boxes delivered to the barracks and let him store his things. I''ll also issue orders to everyone that if they touch his things without his permission, they will be kicked out and their families will be disgraced publicly.¡± Nancy''s eyes widened. ¡°That''s a little harsh, isn''t it? You know there''s at least two people in his barracks that hate him.¡± ¡°Yes, and they are a liability because of it.¡± Anna said. ¡°Their anger at him is distracting them from doing their best, making them a danger to themselves and to others, even though they know it was their friend''s fault for attacking first.¡± ¡°I''ll be keeping an eye on them and I''ll stick to my plan of keeping them too tired to do anything.¡± Nancy said. Anna nodded and smiled. ¡°Would you be so kind as to do the same for Private Drake?¡± ¡°I''ve had someone working on that since yesterday.¡± Nancy said. ¡°I hope they''ll be done by the time the morning run is over.¡± ¡°I''m glad.¡± Anna said and looked at me. ¡°Can we discuss the owlbear pelt and the ram horns now?¡± I nodded. ¡°Do you know how much they are worth?¡± ¡°Yes, and I suspect that the PX officer did as well.¡± Anna said and told me the shocking price of an owlbear''s intact pelt. ¡°Obviously, I can''t allow that kind of money to be floating around the base for people to steal, so I''ll have the Purser Office set aside the proper amount of money for your use. Just go there and get it whenever you want or need money.¡± I nodded. ¡°However, don''t just take it out because you can. If you don''t use it all up by the time your three months is up, then you can withdraw all of it and head to your next assignment.¡± I nodded again and she smiled. ¡°Then I''ll leave you both to get back to work.¡± Anna said. ¡°Dismissed.¡± ¡°Ma''am.¡± Nancy and I said as one and saluted, then Anna returned it. Nancy and I left the XO''s office and went back to the PX. I didn''t have them deliver the metal boxes and took them myself. Each was about half the size of a trunk, so two of them together would be big enough to replace what I had lost. They were twice as heavy as a trunk, too. The solid metal felt nice and we brought them to the barracks. ¡°As soon as you put your things away, get back out here for your run.¡± Nancy said and stopped outside the barracks door. ¡°I want to gauge your performance, which means that I''ll be the one to decide if you actually need to run or not.¡± I nodded and took the metal boxes inside. I used my knife to cut out the sides that would be touching when they were placed side by side and used some number ten potion to stick them together. I let that sit for a minute and then used a few drops of number ten potion to stick the now large metal box to the floor. I quickly treated the inside with waterproofing potion and then put in the bags of food that I had, then folded the pelt up and barely fit it into the top of it. When I went to close it, it wouldn''t. I frowned at it and looked at it, then chuckled because I had left the top of both lids intact and hadn''t cut away what was now a divider in the middle. I sliced it off and closed the trunk and locked both locks. I slipped the keys onto my cord necklace and then used the lock spell and put several drops of number ten potion on the lid to seal it. I smiled down at the now quite secured metal box and left the barracks. ¡°All right, Private Drake. Start off running slow and I''ll keep pace to see your form and posture.¡± Nancy said. ¡°I''ll tell you if there''s corrections needed.¡± ¡°Yes, ma''am.¡± I said and we started running. 073 A Normal Day It took almost half an hour for the new drill sergeant to tell me what I was doing wrong. ¡°Your feet aren''t planting properly.¡± Nancy said and ordered me to stop. ¡°You''re causing too much impact on your legs with flopping your feet like that.¡± ¡°I''m missing two toes on each foot.¡± I reminded her. ¡°Most of the boot is flopping around.¡± ¡°Then change the boots.¡± Nancy said. ¡°If you worked for the maintenance department, you know you can cut sections of wood out and reattach it to make things fit.¡± I looked down at my boot. ¡°I can cut it apart?¡± ¡°Take out the empty section where your toes are missing and you should be fine... or, at least better than slapping your boots on the ground.¡± Nancy said. I took both boots off and sat down to look at the shape of my foot where the missing toes were. I took out my knife and charged it up, then carefully cut out the shape of my missing toes from it. I slipped the boot back on and saw that my toes were still back too far. It took me three smaller cuts and then a cut of the first piece to use number ten potion on to seal it back up to cover the hole, and my ''new'' boot was done. I quickly did the other boot and only had to make one small adjustment before I sealed it. I now had two really weirdly shaped boots and she ordered me to do some basic exercises, then we took off running again. It only took me a few seconds to notice the difference. I was getting a lot more power as I pushed with my existing toes and there wasn''t an unused part of a boot slowing my foot down. ¡°That''s better, Private. Much better.¡± Nancy said. ¡°I''ll stop at this lap and I want you to run as fast as you can. I want to see how much better you are because of your training.¡± ¡°Yes, ma''am.¡± I said. When she stopped at the spot that the old drill sergeant would stop at to wait for everyone after the morning run, I ran as hard as I could. My feet dug thin furrows as the odd-shaped toes of the boots let me propel myself that much more. I looped everyone and a few of them groaned, Gillis included. ¡°Keep going!¡± Nancy said as I passed by her. ¡°Show me what you got! Show me your sweat!¡± I kept going and looped everyone again and again. After ten minutes, I started to slow down. My breathing was heavy and it was getting harder to maintain the pace as sweat poured off of me. ¡°A little more, Drake! Don''t give up!¡± Nancy exclaimed. ¡°Two more laps!¡± I nodded and looped everyone again and then again. I slowed to a stop as I approached the drill sergeant and she gave me a toothy smile. ¡°Good work! Now I know your tolerance and your mean exercise level.¡± Nancy said. ¡°Keep walking around in a circle and don''t stop moving. You''ll tense up and might lock a few muscles if you just collapse without winding down.¡± I had that happen a few times and knew she was telling the truth, so I kept moving. I was tempted to take a sip of healing potion and decided against it. I still had a long time to go for this training deployment. ¡°All right, it''s chow time!¡± Nancy called. Since she had been stopping people for several minutes now, everyone that was left came to a stop. She had us continue to walk around in a circle for a few minutes more and then we all went to the mess hall. We ate a metal tray of something called scrambled eggs, which looked nothing like the eggs I cooked at home. There were a few other things and I couldn''t tell what they were. I ate them anyway and wasn''t surprised that I was still the only one to finish it all. After that, we left there and went to the obstacle course. Someone I hadn''t met before was there. ¡°Warrant Officer.¡± Nancy said and nodded to the older man. ¡°Is that what I think it is?¡± ¡°Yes, Ma''am.¡± He said and opened the bag. ¡°Custom made cloth pockets with inserted armor plates.¡± ¡°Wonderful.¡± Nancy said. ¡°Everyone except Private Drake, you can begin the obstacle course. As each person finishes one obstacle, the next will follow. There''s no need to wait for each of you to finish the whole thing.¡± ¡°Yes, Drill Sergeant.¡± The others said and started to go through it. ¡°Private Drake, over here.¡± Nancy said and I went over to her. ¡°Normally, I''d get you to change out of your uniform before doing something like this; but, I suspect you''re going to be sweating a lot by the time we''re done here.¡± She waved at the warrant officer. ¡°Strap him up.¡± I stood there and the man hung something like a poncho over my neck, only it was made of straps of leather and not solid. He attached a big pouch to my front and my back, then one on each of my forearms and on each of my thighs. ¡°I''m not going to ask you if those are heavy.¡± Nancy said with a smile. ¡°Just take a walk over to that building and come back.¡± I did and she nodded to the warrant officer. He strapped pockets to my upper arms and my calves. ¡°Take another walk.¡± Nancy said and smiled as I came back to her. ¡°One more plate on his back should do it, I think.¡± The warrant officer added another piece of thick metal to my back pocket and closed it.Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. ¡°That''s great. Thank you for the help, Warrant Officer.¡± Nancy said. ¡°It''s one of the oddest armoring requests I''ve ever had, so you''re welcome.¡± The man said and pat my shoulder as he passed by with the nearly empty bag. ¡°Good luck.¡± Nancy waited for him to leave before stopping the next person from starting the first obstacle. ¡°Private Drake, you next.¡± I nodded and reached for the pocket on my chest. ¡°No, leave all that on. That''s going to be a part of your uniform from now on.¡± Nancy said and waved at the first obstacle. ¡°Please proceed.¡± I nodded and jogged over to it. When I reached up for the rope ladder to pull myself up, by using the support rope like I had every time before, I couldn''t do it. A few people chuckled at me struggling. ¡°Zip it!¡± Nancy barked at them and everyone fell silent. ¡°Private Drake, you need to climb it like normal people do.¡± I moved over and did it like she said and copied how everyone else did it. All the extra weight I was carrying really slowed me down. It slowed me down a lot, actually. In fact, it even threw off my balance a little. If I hadn''t been using my vigilance technique, I might have fallen off when I reached the top. I carefully walked across the logs to the other side and then carefully climbed down. I jogged to the next obstacle and the next. I was barely able to cross them efficiently. I had to slow down even more and it was frustrating. I was sweating a lot by the end of the fifth obstacle and my breathing was heavy. I slowed down even more and paced myself as I went through all of the other obstacles. As slow as I was, I still didn''t fall off of the spinning log or the thinner balance logs that crossed the mud. I might have carried a lot of extra weight; but, I wasn''t stupid. I knew how to balance properly because of years working with a small boat. It took me longer to complete the obstacle course than Jenkins did for the first time he did the obstacle course. When I crossed the bridge, Gillis was there with a huge smile on her tired face. ¡°I can''t believe you did it on your first try while carrying enough weight to equal me!¡± ¡°It would have been easier with just you on my back.¡± I said. ¡°What? How?¡± Gillis asked, shocked. ¡°His arms and legs would be free.¡± One of the men said. ¡°Every time he moves, he''s carrying part of the weight on every limb as well as on his front and back.¡± I nodded and sat down to wait for the others. ¡°I think you can take that off now.¡± Gillis said. ¡°The drill sergeant said it''s part of my uniform now.¡± I said and she gasped. ¡°She has got to be joking!¡± Gillis said loudly. ¡°You can''t wear that all the time! It''s... it''s... inhumane!¡± ¡°What''s that mean?¡± I asked and she told me it was unfair treatment of a human being. ¡°I''m a conscript.¡± ¡°That shouldn''t matter.¡± Gillis said and stood up. ¡°I think I''m going to go and have a talk with her.¡± ¡°I wouldn''t if I were you.¡± One of the others said. ¡°She''s not someone that you want to question too much.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± Gillis asked. ¡°She''s the drill sergeant.¡± Someone else responded. ¡°Do you really want to piss off the woman that assigns the chores we have to do every day?¡± ¡°Ooo, I hope I get the barracks floors today. That''s the easiest job on the whole base.¡± A guy said. ¡°Nothing seems to stick to that floor.¡± A few of them laughed softly and I stayed quiet. I wasn''t going to tell them that it was me that did it, because I knew that they would want me to treat everything to get the same result. We all sat there and waited for everyone to finish, which happened a lot sooner than normal, since we were only one obstacle away from each other. There weren''t as many of us as there were obstacles, so we were technically all going through it at the same time. It was a lot more efficient than what the old drill sergeant had us do and it ensured that no one rushed through it, because we had to wait for the next person to finish the obstacle before we could use it. To everyone''s surprise, except for me, Nancy did the obstacle course as well. She did it almost as quickly as I did it the first time. Unlike me, she was sweating and breathing heavy when she was done. ¡°Good job, everyone.¡± Nancy said and swiped at her forehead. ¡°Let''s hit the baths and then we can talk for a bit before lunch.¡± ¡°Baths?¡± Gillis asked, confused. Nancy looked at her with surprise on her face, then she cursed. ¡°God help me, he was using a filth motivation technique.¡± She shook her head. ¡°You''re in the army, people. Cleanliness will keep you alive! When you have access to water and some spare time out in the field, you are expected to take advantage of it to clean yourself and your equipment.¡± We all looked at each other and back at her. ¡°I am so glad I arrived this early in your training.¡± Nancy said. ¡°All right! Everybody Atten-HUT!¡± We all stood and sorted into two lines as we came to attention. ¡°Listen to me and listen well.¡± She said and paced in front of us. ¡°Forget whatever your last drill sergeant taught you, assuming he taught you anything.¡± She said, almost in a growl. ¡°From now on, after you complete the obstacle course, you are to proceed directly to the bath house and use the facilities.¡± Nancy paced back and forth a few times more and then turned to face me. ¡°You have permission to remove the extra weights ONLY for bathing. All other activity, including your permanent KP duty, you need to wear your complete uniform.¡± ¡°Yes, Drill Sergeant.¡± I said and ignored the hiss from beside me. ¡°Do you object to something, Recruit Gillis?¡± Nancy asked her. ¡°No, Drill Sergeant!¡± Gillis responded. ¡°I was just surprised he has the worst job on the base permanently, Ma''am.¡± ¡°Don''t worry, when people screw up, they''ll still get KP duty. It''s a big kitchen.¡± Nancy said and glared at them. ¡°Did you all get that?¡± ¡°Yes, Drill Sergeant!¡± We all said as one. ¡°Good. Meet me in the classroom when you''re done bathing. You have twenty minutes.¡± Nancy said. ¡°Dis-MISSED!¡± We immediately vacated the waiting area and went towards the bath house set aside for us. ¡°I''m sorry about that.¡± Gillis said to me as we walked side by side. ¡°I guess it would be bad to question her as to why you have to wear it.¡± ¡°I know why.¡± I said and we entered the bath house. The others scattered and went into their own rooms while Gillis followed me into mine. ¡°Why do you have to wear it?¡± Gillis helped me take off the cloth pouches and the straps off. ¡°She''s making me wear it to make everything harder for me.¡± I said and she widened her eyes. ¡°Why would she do that?¡± ¡°She wants me to be normal.¡± I said and Gillis just stared at me. ¡°I need a new shirt. This one has blood on it.¡± I took the decorations off and put them in my pants pocket, then took off the shirt. ¡°Good lord.¡± Gillis whispered and her eyes roamed all over my chest. I took off my pants and laid them aside and then used the water pump to fill the tub. I took off my underwear and Gillis'' face turned red until I grabbed the soap and I sat down in the tub. ¡°I''ll be right back with a new uniform for you.¡± Gillis said and left. I quickly scrubbed myself all over, lathering up well, and then sloshed the water over myself to rinse off. By the time I was done with my bath, Gillis was back. I stood up and her face went red again. I grabbed a towel and dried off, then took the clothes she had brought me and dressed, modified boots and all. I added my decorations and then she helped me put on the weights. ¡°Thank you, Gillis.¡± ¡°You''re welcome.¡± Gillis said. ¡°Are you going to take a bath?¡± I asked her. ¡°Y-yes, I... probably should.¡± She said and slowly started to unbutton her shirt. ¡°I''ll be right back with a new uniform for you.¡± I said and walked to the door. ¡°Th-thanks.¡± Gillis said and I left to get her more clothing to change into. 074 Learning Lessons Part One I went to the PX and a new man was there. He was both happy and energetic as he handed me a new uniform in Gillis'' sizes and I went back to the bath house. I went inside the smaller room that I had used to bathe and Gillis splashed the water as she covered her breasts with her hands and had a surprised expression on her face. I shut the door and stood there and waited for her to finish. She stared at me for several minutes and didn''t move. ¡°We''re running out of time.¡± I said. ¡°Y-yes.¡± Gillis said and turned around in the tub as she finished washing and stood up. She didn''t move and I wondered why, then I noticed that the floor was wet where I had gotten out of the tub, so I walked over to the towels and handed her one. ¡°Th-thank you.¡± I stood there and waited until she was dried off, then I held out the clothes to her. She took the underwear and turned away again as she put it on, including the cloth that covered her breasts. She took the shirt next and relaxed when it was on, then buttoned it quickly and took the socks and pants next. ¡°Let''s go.¡± Gillis said when she was finally dressed. We picked up our old clothes and dropped them off at the laundry. The man there took one look at my slightly bloody shirt and chucked it right into the waste bin. The other pieces of clothing were marked with our names, so there was no chance to lose them, and we left there to go to the classroom. We were the last to arrive and told to sit, and then the drill sergeant went over what we did today. Nancy did her best to point out that anyone could improve when properly motivated. The whole point of the obstacle course was to build confidence in your abilities. You didn''t have to go through it fast for official records, because it was a personal improvement course. If you believed you could go through it quickly without messing it up, we were free to do so, as long as those that wanted to try had one of the instructor soldiers or herself to monitor them on their off-time. One of the guys raised their hands. ¡°But the old drill instructor said...¡± ¡°I told you to forget everything he told you.¡± Nancy said without getting angry about it. ¡°I have a completely different teaching method than his. The proper one.¡± That made a few of the recruits chuckle. ¡°Your morning runs will continue, as will the chore schedule. He wasn''t wrong with those techniques, just in their application. I''ll be changing a few things around here, namely what you''re supposed to be taught in class.¡± Nancy said. ¡°The old schedule to do the obstacle course for the entire time between breakfast and lunch is just not viable. You saw for yourselves how quickly it can be used when it''s used how it''s supposed to be.¡± A bunch of the others nodded and she looked at me. ¡°A few of you will be lacking the ability to perform at your best, and that''s the whole point. You need to know what your worst could be. A damaged arm, an injured leg, a sore chest or back.¡± Nancy said and looked at everyone. ¡°You''ll all have an opportunity to share in the experience.¡± Someone else raised their hand. ¡°How?¡± ¡°Slings, crutches, and metal plates.¡± Nancy said with a smile. ¡°It''ll be completely random and I won''t start it until you all have had at least two weeks on a proper schedule and exercise regiment.¡± ¡°You''re serious?¡± Someone asked without putting a hand up. ¡°I''ll assume that was rhetorical, since you didn''t raise your hand.¡± Nancy said. ¡°I''m sorry, Drill Sergeant.¡± Nancy waved his apology away. ¡°All right. I think we''re going to start right from the basics.¡± She said and walked over to the board. She drew a sword, a shield, a bow, a crossbow, and a little round ball of something. ¡°Can anyone tell me what these are?¡± A bunch of the recruits laughed and put their hands up. I didn''t do either. She pointed to one of them and they spoke. ¡°A sword, a shield, a bow, a crossbow, and a fireball. The basic of basics of what constitutes an army.¡± Nancy smiled. ¡°That''s both right and wrong.¡± She said and saw confusion on their faces. ¡°Private Drake, please enlighten them.¡± ¡°The sword stands for close combat or offensive forces, the shield for blocking or defensive forces, the bow is for scouts or long ranged attack forces, the crossbow is for guard patrols or short ranged forces, and the small circle with squiggles is for magic users.¡± I said. Everyone turned to look at me. ¡°Absolutely correct and directly quoted from the army manual on proper procedures and regulations.¡± Nancy said and everyone looked back at her. ¡°You see, the symbols are representations used on maps to keep track of units for deployment, issued on orders when relevant for specific units, and it''s also on all supplies and special order items for those units.¡± They all looked a little surprised by this news. ¡°I suppose I''ll have to assign reading time in the evenings now.¡± Nancy said and a few people groaned. ¡°The mind is also a muscle that you need to exercise, people!¡± She said loudly. ¡°A dumb soldier is a dead soldier!¡±Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. A few of the others turned their heads to look at me. ¡°Each of the people that just turned to look at Private Drake, you are the dumb ones.¡± Nancy said and those people whipped their heads forward to stare at her. ¡°I''m sure you''ve all heard something about him by now. There''s no such thing as a secret among the soldiers on an army base.¡± Everyone watched as she walked over to me and put a hand on my shoulder. ¡°You''re looking at the only heavy combat trained soldier on this base.¡± Nancy said and everyone except Gillis looked shocked. ¡°How else could he take down an owlbear by himself?¡± ¡°He wasn''t by himself.¡± Someone said. ¡°He was supposed to be.¡± Nancy said. ¡°The owlbear was already mostly dead when the others showed up.¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± That same guy asked. ¡°But... they...¡± ¡°Yes, even almost dead, an owlbear easily killed two trained swordsmen and maimed another.¡± Nancy said. ¡°Unlike us, it doesn''t really have a sense of self-preservation when in certain situations. It''s only goal is to remove the threat and then eat to try and heal itself.¡± I looked up at her and she looked down at me. ¡°Giving it food to attract it was both smart and stupid, especially if you didn''t know all of the facts about the large creatures.¡± Nancy said. ¡°Luckily, you damaged the mouth quickly enough that it hadn''t eaten too much and then it couldn''t eat afterwards.¡± I nodded and would remember to always aim for the mouth with my knife, if I ever met another one and managed to sneak up on it. She let my shoulder go and walked to the front of the class, to see that she had everyone''s attention. ¡°Most of you might be just soldiers. Some could specialize into swordmen, bowmen, or crossbowmen. When they get proper mage testing equipment created, some of you might even become mage apprentices.¡± Nancy said. ¡°You can worry about that in a couple of months. For now, it''s my job to give you a good strong basic understanding of the army, its procedures, and what is expected of a soldier.¡± She nodded to one of the instructor soldiers and he passed out pieces of paper and pencils. ¡°I want you to write down what I do.¡± Nancy said and starting writing on the board. We all did so, even me, because once she wrote the first sentence on the board and it concerned the very first regulation in the army handbook, she told us what it meant and also what it didn''t mean. That surprised a few people and when she looked at me, she saw that I wasn''t surprised. Nancy smiled. ¡°Let''s discuss why it works this way and not how most of you thought it did.¡± She said and sat down, then we talked about it until lunchtime. After lunch was more classroom time and more learning, she assigned reading materials for that evening, and then dismissed us to do our assigned chores. We had until supper to do them, unlike the other drill sergeant where we had to do them after we ate. I went to the kitchen and did my work without question and everyone seemed to be a little friendlier as I did. I still did the worst jobs that no one else wanted to do, though. Only this time it was me offering to do them and not them giving them to me. They were all just a little bit happier about that, too. It was a lot harder to do my work while wearing all the extra weight, and that ''sucked'', as the perky woman said. My magic worked fine, though. I peeled potatoes and vegetables like a champion, or so the perky woman explained. I ate supper first and served everyone, then helped clean up the kitchen and went back to the barracks. The trainees had the evenings to themselves, which was a huge difference than the first few days of training, that was for sure. It was our ''personal growth'' time and we were to read our assignments and we were to write a bit about it, then we could do what we wanted. I went to bed and slept, because I was really tired. Being normal sucked. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Generic repeating of events during training period streamlined. Military procedure learned: 95%. Standing in the army: Good. Camaraderie level with fellow soldiers: 60%. Camaraderie level with officers: 25%. _______________ After two months of basic training and learning skills, like how to fight properly with actual techniques and to use the strength that a normal body had, we moved on to hand-to hand combat. I sucked really badly at it. Even though I could use my vigilance technique and could tell when to dodge, when to attack, and when to counterattack, my body was so weighed down that I couldn''t move like I wanted or like my brain tried to get my body to move. I couldn''t do anything about that, so I changed tactics. I became a shield. I was covered in armor plating, so instead of trying to dodge attacks or counter them, I would only move enough to interpose a metal plate to deflect whatever came at me. I was still strong with my hands, so I would disarm my opponent after a couple of strikes by just grabbing their weapon and yanking on it. I started winning fights and Nancy had to step in to get me to stop. ¡°They won''t learn anything if you keep disarming them.¡± Nancy whispered to me. _______________ You have a choice to make. Will you continue like this or will you speak up? A) Say something. B) Stay quiet. C) Complain. D) Run. E) Yell. F) Kiss her. G) Choose two. Okay, is there something going on? What''s with the kiss option? That would get me on report faster than trying to kill her would. I thought with amusement. I ignored that and realized that the other options were almost as bad when I read them over again. I''ll choose A and C. _______________ ¡°I''m the one not learning anything.¡± I whispered back. ¡°What do you mean? You''ve already mastered blocking an opponent and...¡± ¡°It''ll only work if I handicap myself with this armor. Learning how to use something I won''t be using after training is a waste of my time.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°You can''t order me to keep wearing it when I leave, either.¡± ¡°I can have it added to your standing orders by your next CO.¡± Nancy said. ¡°As Gillis would say, it''s inhumane to force me to remain encumbered like a beast of burden.¡± Nancy sighed for a moment, as if defeated, then she chuckled. ¡°It took you long enough to admit it.¡± She said in a normal tone of voice. ¡°What?¡± I asked, surprised. ¡°Haven''t you noticed that you''ve been moving as if you didn''t have heavy armor on?¡± Nancy asked. ¡°Um... no?¡± I responded and she laughed. ¡°You''re doing the obstacle course and you''re exactly in the middle of everyone''s performance times. You''re also not completely soaked with sweat afterwards. If I hadn''t ordered mandatory baths after the workout, you wouldn''t actually need one.¡± Nancy said and lifted my arm. ¡°Look, no sweaty armpits and you''ve been sparring for nearly an hour.¡± I looked down at my clean shirt and back at her face. ¡°You''re still going to have to wear the armor, just to keep you in the same realm as the rest of the others. However, I''ll remove you from the normal fight rotation and you''ll be taking classes with different instructors for the next month.¡± ¡°That''s not fair.¡± Someone from across the room said. ¡°It was my turn to practice with him next.¡± ¡°I''m sorry that you won''t have another easy sparring session, Gillis.¡± Nancy said. ¡°Aw, dammit.¡± Gillis said and a few people laughed. 075 Learning Lessons Part Two The last month of my training passed by in a flash. The days were both the same and different from the first two months. Instead of standard fight training with the others, each week had me studying under a swordsman for weapon training, a bowman and crossbowman for ranged combat training, and a whole unit of defense men with shields of all different kinds. I was a little surprised that they didn''t assign a mage to teach me, too. On the last day, I asked Nancy why they hadn''t. ¡°Two reasons. The first one is that they don''t like you very much. To try and protect you from backlash, the acting CO didn''t tell anyone that it was you that clued us in on what the mages have been doing for years. Unfortunately, the mages that were there that day did report it back to their superiors, despite orders not to.¡± Nancy said. ¡°The second reason is that mages aren''t allowed to teach anyone that''s not also committed to work for the Mages Guild after being taught.¡± I thought about that for a minute. ¡°How would that work for solders if they found potential mages in the ranks?¡± ¡°It doesn''t. That''s why Army Command is angry at the Mages Guild for stunting the magical growth of so many soldiers that could have been mages or even extra magical additions to the armed forces. If trained properly that is, which the mages wouldn''t do, even if ordered.¡± ¡°That doesn''t make sense.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Politics can be like that most of the time. If they used common sense, then they wouldn''t have as much conflict and strife between each other.¡± Nancy said and motioned for me to follow her. ¡°Sometimes, I think they do it intentionally, just so they can have strife and conflict to complain about.¡± We left the training area and went over to the obstacle course. All of the others were there waiting for us and Gillis came over to me with a huge smile on her face. She started stripping the weight pouches off of me and Nancy didn''t say anything about it. When the strap poncho was removed, the armorer packed everything into a bag. ¡°Private Drake, if you would.¡± Nancy waved at the obstacle course. ¡°One more time, please.¡± _______________ You have a choice to make. Will you impress everyone or impress yourself? A) Do the course in the fastest time possible. B) Follow orders. C) Show off. D) Refuse. E) Laugh. Oh? No ''choose two'' option? I thought, slightly surprised. Well, since I worked my ass off the last three months to get to this point, let''s do exactly like she taught me. I choose B. _______________ I did a few stretches and everyone watched me as I limbered up, then I gave Nancy a huge smile. She looked surprised at that, then I lightly jogged over to the first obstacle and climbed the ladder part as if I still had all of that weight on me. I crossed it and climbed down the other side, and then went through every obstacle as if I was a normal person. There were no outrageous jumps, no circumventing the intention of the obstacles, and definitely no showing off. By the time I was done and jogged all the way back over to her, her smile was just as big as mine was. ¡°Very good, Private Drake. Very, very good.¡± Nancy said and everyone looked slightly confused, so she spoke to them. ¡°You all thought he was going to show you how much better he can do it, now that he''s not encumbered, didn''t you?¡± She asked and they all nodded. ¡°That wasn''t what I ordered him to do.¡± Gillis laughed and pat my shoulder. ¡°I get it! I get it!¡± ¡°Yes you do, Private Gillis.¡± Nancy said. ¡°No one has to worry about him running off when ordered to travel in a group, or worry he''ll abandon you if ordered to protect a convoy or caravan.¡± ¡°I''m so glad.¡± Gillis said and then she gasped. ¡°You just called me Private!¡± ¡°Did I?¡± Nancy asked with a wink. ¡°Does anyone else want to do the obstacle course one last time?¡± Everyone shook their heads. After doing it every day for three months, none of them wanted to repeat it just for fun. They had proved to themselves that they could do it with confidence and none of them messed up or fell in the mud anymore. ¡°Well, then. For the very last order that I''ll give you as your drill sergeant, dis-MISSED!¡± We all came to attention and saluted her. I even used my real hand and she chuckled as she saw it. She saluted us back and we all walked away. ¡°I can''t believe I passed!¡± Gillis said excitedly as we walked over to the PX and got replacement uniforms. ¡°I was a bit worried when the drill sergeant changed your combat classes; but, it all worked out.¡± We went to the bath house and used the same small room that we had used for the last three months. Gillis reached for my uniform to take the weights off and then laughed. ¡°I''m so used to helping you change that I forgot that I helped you take them off already.¡± She said and unbuttoned her own shirt. ¡°This is going to go a lot quicker without that to handle first.¡± I nodded and stripped off, making sure to take my decorations off and put them on the other shirt. She didn''t blush when I took off my underwear and she didn''t try to cover herself when she took hers off. I climbed into the tub and she deftly scrubbed me all over and rinsed me off, then we switched places and I did the same thing for her. ¡°You know, I''m really going to miss doing this.¡± Gillis said, her voice sad. ¡°I mean, I sure was skittish at first.¡± She smiled at my nod and she stood up to dry off as I handed her a towel. ¡°I tried to hide from you as much as possible the first few times, until I remembered that you didn''t even know I was a woman because you weren''t looking for them.¡± I took a towel for myself and dried off as well. ¡°It''s been so relaxing to have a friend like you here, surrounded by men that only look at me like I''m something they can conquer.¡± Gillis said with a shake of her head and pulled on her underwear. ¡°I swear, I could be any other woman and they would still look at me the same way.¡± ¡°The drill sergeant...¡± I started to say.The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Gillis laughed and put on her bra. ¡°She''d tear them a new asshole if they tried anything. Hell, they can barely speak to her because she makes them so nervous.¡± ¡°Not you?¡± I asked and pulled on my underwear. ¡°I''m much more attainable, because I''m on the same social rung as them in the army. On the bottom and nobody.¡± Gillis said and buttoned her shirt. ¡°Luckily, once I said no, they left me alone.¡± ¡°Why wouldn''t they?¡± I asked and put on my shirt. ¡°Because some people think that no means maybe and will try again later. They usually get frustrated at the constant rejection and then will force themselves on you.¡± Gillis said and pulled on her pants. ¡°It''s a constant worry and I have to stay vigilant all the time.¡± I pulled my pants on and fastened them. I knew she didn''t mean the same technique as I used, which I had trained constantly and could use for nearly eight full hours without having to rest. That was almost double what I could do when I first came here and I was quite proud of that. I also learned a lot about the army. One of which was a woman''s unenviable fight against discrimination. It was very hard for a woman to compete with men for higher positions, even if you were high in social standing outside of the army. Their own personal achievements had no bearing on their ability to fight in combat and the men that were usually in command always assumed that they knew better. It''s just too bad that they couldn''t take the XO''s and the drill sergeant''s examples as enough proof that women were just as capable as men. ¡°I''m so glad that I met someone like you.¡± Gillis said and touched my arm briefly, then she picked up our clothes. ¡°It''s so nice to be around someone who only sees another soldier when he looks at me.¡± We left the bath house and dropped the clothes off at the laundry, then we had nothing to do for the rest of the evening. Gillis suggested a walk around the base on the running track and I went along. With nothing else to do before the graduation ceremony tomorrow, it wasn''t like I had a lot of choice of other things to do. So, we went for a walk and took our time. Neither of us spoke until the evening came to an end and we reached the barracks. ¡°You know, we''re probably never going to see each other again.¡± Gillis said with a sigh. ¡°That''s true.¡± I said and opened the door for her. ¡°Doesn''t that make you sad?¡± Gillis asked as she stepped inside. ¡°Do you want me to be?¡± I asked and she let out another sigh. ¡°You''re right. I''ve spent enough time being sad about leaving friends behind.¡± Gillis said and then smiled. ¡°I''ll try to not be sad that I won''t get to see you naked again.¡± ¡°You have GOT to be kidding me!¡± One of the men said loudly and stood up. It was the same guy who was friends with the man I had taken the hand from. ¡°Out of all of us, you chose that... that... thing!¡± He said as he pointed at me. ¡°Are you crazy or are you just stupid, Gillis?¡± ¡°It''s none of your business who I choose to spend my free time with.¡± Gillis said. ¡°In fact, I''m not even going to correct your thinking. I''m going to let your tiny little brain mull over all of the things that Private Drake and I have been doing nearly every single day.¡± The man''s face went angry for a moment and then he snarled. ¡°You are nothing but a common whore.¡± He spat and Gillis gasped, as did a few of the men. ¡°I would have offered you some copper coins on the very first day if I''d known what you were really like.¡± ¡°How... how DARE you!¡± Gillis exclaimed, her face bright red. ¡°I''ve never been so insulted in all my life!¡± ¡°What are you going to do about it? Complain?¡± The guy asked. ¡°We''re all shipping out tomorrow when we get our orders. There''s literally nothing you can do to me.¡± ¡°If I was a man, I would challenge you to a duel of honor to expose your blatant lie!¡± Gillis said loudly. ¡°If you were a man, you wouldn''t be a whore.¡± He countered and Gillis gasped again. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. It will affect your standing with Gillis and the other recruits. A) Say something. B) Say nothing. C) Challenge him yourself. D) Stand in for her. E) Yell. F) Run. I was pretty much told to not get into trouble, so... I''ll choose D. _______________ ¡°Gillis challenges you and I''ll stand in for her.¡± I said and everyone reacted in some way. Most immediately said no, including the man who insulted her. ¡°D-David, you... you shouldn''t...¡± Gillis said softly. ¡°I spoke the words.¡± I said and looked at the man. ¡°Do you accept on the honor of your family name or do you surrender like the coward you are and give up your heritage?¡± ¡°Oh, no.¡± Someone else said. ¡°Oh, no. No, no, no.¡± The man stood there, shocked beyond belief. ¡°You know that you have accused a woman falsely and still spoke without regard to her family name, so you either forfeit your own to make up for it or fight me.¡± I said. ¡°You have no other choice.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light, run!¡± One of the other men said and that took him out of his shock and he ran out the back door. ¡°David, no!¡± Gillis said and missed grabbing my arm as I hopped out the front door and ran after him. I caught him by the arm barely twenty feet away from the back of the barracks. ¡°LET ME GOOOO!¡± The man yelled and gained a lot of attention. ¡°HELP! I''M BEING ATTACKED!¡± I held his arm and let him holler and yell as much as he wanted. The others from the barracks came out and Gillis stood beside me with a very sad expression on her face as a large crowd gathered around us. No one tried to make me let him go and a few minutes later, the drill sergeant showed up. ¡°Stop your goddamn yelling, you fool!¡± Nancy spat at him and he quieted down. ¡°Private Drake, tell me what''s going on.¡± I explained what happened, his accusation and calling Gillis a whore, and his defense that she couldn''t challenge him and he would have no repercussions because of it. ¡°Who told you about the dueling codes?¡± Nancy asked. I told her that it was Sandra Rivers, the CO of the garrison in Ester''s Village. Everyone looked hopeful for some reason, until Nancy spoke. ¡°Dammit, the royalty code actually does apply in this case.¡± Nancy said and looked at the man. ¡°You idiot. Being the son of a Duke gives you special exceptions to duels.¡± ¡°NO! My father...¡± ¡°...is going to hear all about it when we send you home in disgrace.¡± Nancy said. ¡°You can''t! I joined the army because he told me to!¡± The man quickly said. ¡°You''re going to be useless after Private Drake removes one of your limbs.¡± ¡°I... I... I choose the first blood rule!¡± The man said, desperately. Nancy sighed. ¡°I thought I taught you better than that.¡± ¡°Wh-what... what do you mean?¡± He asked. ¡°Any well trained weapon user can kill you before your blood starts flowing out of the wound.¡± Nancy said. ¡°A crossbow bolt or arrow to the eye, a sword to the heart, a knife across the throat, your head smashed by a shield. All fatal blows that will ensure your death before blood flows.¡± ¡°I changed my mind!¡± He said, frantically. ¡°Private Drake, let him go.¡± A woman''s stern voice ordered and I let his arm go. Everyone turned to see the XO, who was the acting CO, standing there. It had been three months and they still didn''t send anyone to take over as the CO. ¡°I have to interfere this time and force the default option for the duel.¡± The XO said. ¡°NO!¡± The man yelled. ¡°You do not have a choice here and I won''t lose two people to your stupid and idiotic comment to a fellow soldier.¡± The XO said. ¡°I also won''t stand to have someone with that opinion of women in the army, if I can help it.¡± ¡°I don''t think of all women that way! Just her!¡± There was a collective groan from the crowd. ¡°How in the world did you get through basic training?¡± Someone else asked. ¡°I kept politely refusing his advances.¡± Gillis said. ¡°At least he didn''t... attack... me...¡± Her voice trailed off, because he actually did attack her. The XO nodded to her and looked at the man in question. ¡°You''ll be shipped off tonight, without graduating from basic training, and your name will be removed from your family''s line of succession.¡± ¡°N-n-no.¡± He said, barely above a whisper. ¡°My father...¡± ¡°Is a loyal member of the Royal Ruling Class and will not be happy that his son defamed a member of the royal family by calling her a common whore.¡± The XO said. Complete and utter silence fell on everyone as the man''s face lost all color. ¡°Why don''t you introduce yourself, Private Gillis?¡± The XO asked. Gillis took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°My name is Jacqueline Emilia Gillis-Rivers, third cousin to Princess Ellen Rivers.¡± Everyone remained completely silent and barely breathed. ¡°Now that the secret''s out, you can all go back to whatever you were doing before.¡± The XO said and waved two guards forward. They took custody of the man and he went with them without resisting at all. 076 Graduation No one spoke to Gillis after the XO dismissed everyone. She looked very uncomfortable and stuck beside me as we went back inside the barracks. I sat down on my metal trunk and she sat beside me. Everyone else in the barracks gave us a very wide berth of space. ¡°Everyone just barely found out and I''m already ostracized.¡± Gillis said and gave me a look that I couldn''t read, even with my vigilance technique. ¡°Is that bad?¡± I asked. Gillis took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°Yes and no.¡± She said and leaned her shoulder against my shoulder. ¡°If I had to put it into words, it''s like... well... how people treated you in Ester''s Village.¡± I raised my eyebrows at her and she nodded. ¡°It''s the same, although the causes are different. For you, it''s being associated with the Hag and being infamous. For me, it''s being associated with the King and being famous.¡± Gillis said. ¡°That''s why I used my mother''s maiden name to enlist and not my father''s.¡± I didn''t say anything and she sighed. ¡°I don''t have to ask why you didn''t use a different name.¡± Gillis said. ¡°You want people to know who you are.¡± ¡°It didn''t work at first, even with my face like this.¡± I admitted and touched the damage on my cheek. ¡°How did that happen, anyway?¡± Gillis asked. ¡°It almost looks like a crossbow bolt wound.¡± I smiled and used my fingers to pretend they were snake fangs. ¡°Magic snake venom, direct from the source.¡± I said and poked my cheek where the damage was. Gillis gasped. ¡°No!¡± ¡°It melted a good portion of my face and throat away before the Hag could heal me.¡± I said. ¡°Your throat?¡± I told her how the fang that made the hole had squirt venom right down my throat. Gillis covered her mouth with a hand. ¡°Oh, no.¡± She whispered. ¡°What happened after that?¡± ¡°You don''t want to know.¡± I said. ¡°I... I promise to not overreact.¡± Gillis whispered, then she stood. ¡°Let''s go over to my bunk and we can get more comfortable.¡± When I didn''t get up right away, she took my hand and dragged me over to her bunk and sat down, then she laid down and pulled on my hand to get me to lay down on the bed beside her. ¡°I want to learn as much about you as I can before we never see each other again.¡± Gillis whispered. ¡°Now start talking.¡± I knew she wasn''t going to stop asking, so I spoke in a low whisper and told her everything. It took a while and when I was done telling her about killing the lumberjack, being sentenced to die, and then being with Diane as a result of that, she had pretty much cried herself out and didn''t have to wipe at her face anymore. ¡°I''m so proud of you.¡± Gillis whispered and kissed my cheek. ¡°You had all of that done to you and you didn''t become a raving lunatic.¡± I turned my head to look at her. ¡°You didn''t. You can be mean and you don''t care about maiming people; but, that''s not the same as being crazy and killing random people all the time.¡± ¡°Is that what raving lunatics do?¡± I asked, curious. Gillis chuckled. ¡°I wouldn''t know, really. I''m not one and I can only guess.¡± I nodded and looked outside. ¡°It''s just after midnight.¡± ¡°What?¡± Gillis looked as well. ¡°The drill sergeant didn''t come in to do lights out!¡± ¡°She said dismissed was the last order she was giving us.¡± I said. ¡°Then you can lay right here on my bunk and sleep properly for once.¡± Gillis stood up and took off her uniform and then slid under the edge of the blanket. ¡°I always sleep properly.¡± I said and moved so she could get more of the blanket over herself. Gillis laughed softly. ¡°Then sleep improperly tonight.¡± She said and turned onto her side to stare at me, then she closed her eyes and sighed. Her hand reached over and rested on my chest. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°For what?¡± I asked. ¡°For still treating me like I''m a normal person, even though you know who I am.¡± Gillis said. ¡°I can say the same thing.¡± I responded. Gillis laughed softly again. ¡°It''s funny, because neither of us are normal and we both have to act that way, just so we don''t draw attention to ourselves.¡± She said and let out a long and drawn out sigh. ¡°Goodnight, David.¡± ¡°Goodnight, Jacqueline.¡± I closed my eyes and the night seemed to pass by in a blur. It was suddenly the next morning and we all got up and made ourselves presentable. The graduation ceremony was being held in a huge field nearby and the whole base was there to witness it. I wasn''t sure why they were, until Gillis told me that they had the whole morning off from work to attend. Soldiers really liked taking breaks, apparently. Our names were called and as each person went up on the stage to receive their decorations, they were pledged and given a token peck on the lips. When it was my turn, the XO who was still the acting CO, just held a hand out to me and I shook it. A lot of people reacted negatively with shouts and jeers, because they thought she was snubbing me. It was mostly the soldiers because the kitchen staff had been cooking like I showed them and not how they were taught. Giving the kitchen the extra meat that I wasn''t smoking definitely made them like me a little bit more, too. The XO let my hand go and held a hand up for silence. ¡°He''s already a private and has already sworn to King and Kingdom. This is just a confirmation of his rank and not him gaining the rank.¡± ¡°What a rip off!¡± Someone shouted and a bunch of people laughed.A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. The XO named Anna Carter glared at them. ¡°All right, all right! If it''ll make you all shut up, I''ll prove that there''s no hard feelings between the private and myself.¡± There was a rousing chorus of ''yes'' in response and even more laughter. ¡°Sometimes they can be even more childish than children.¡± Anna whispered to me. ¡°Private Drake, are you okay with renewing your vow? I know you''ve already had the commencement kiss from your last CO.¡± _______________ You have a minor choice to make. It could increase your standing in the army or potentially hurt it. A) Agree. B) Say no and embarrass her. C) Kiss her like you mean it. D) Refuse. E) Choose two. There we go. I thought with amusement. I am definitely picking two. First A and then C. _______________ ¡°We have to act normal to fit in.¡± I whispered to her and she nodded in understanding. ¡°Please kneel.¡± Anna said and I did. She quickly recited the pledge and I accepted again, only this time I actually knew what it meant. She leaned down to give me a quick kiss and when our lips met, mine tingled. I stood up as I took her into my arms and really kissed her. My body seemed to act on its own, as if I remembered kissing her before, then I remembered that I practically had. She looked very much like the Hag when she wasn''t actively trying to make herself not look like the Hag, all on my account, so the reaction kiss turned into a full fledged passionate one. For the both of us. Her arms went around me and she kissed me back just as passionately. Everyone sat there in stunned silence as the XO and I made out, as the soldiers called it, in front of the entire base. It went on for several minutes, with my lips tingling the entire time, until someone made a very loud coughing sound. It was Nancy Travis, the drill sergeant. The XO jerked slightly and broke the kiss as she let me go. She took an awkward step back and smiled at me. ¡°Congratulations, Private Drake.¡± She said, with no signs of what had happened showing on her face. The drill sergeant handed her several folded papers and she handed them to me. ¡°These are your orders. Fulfill them to the best of your ability.¡± ¡°Yes, Ma''am. Thank you, Ma''am.¡± I said and saluted her with my real hand. ¡°Good luck on your new assignment, Private.¡± The XO said and waved me off the stage. As I walked back to my spot in line, the XO stepped forward on the stage again to resume her previous spot. ¡°As you all saw, I harbour no ill will against Private Drake.¡± A lot of people gave applause and she waved to cut them off. ¡°Just to be clear, no one else had better try what he just did.¡± The XO gave the recruits a stern glare and a few of them let out sighs. ¡°I am fully prepared to attack back.¡± ¡°You sure did!¡± Someone from the crowd shouted and a few people laughed. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. Will it be the right one? A) Stay silent. B) Laugh. C) Speak up. D) Explain. E) Go back on the stage. F) Choose two. I know how hard it is for her to keep her authority, so I''ll choose E and D. _______________ I turned around and went back up onto the stage. Everyone looked at me with surprise on their faces, even the XO and the drill sergeant, and I stopped beside the XO. ¡°Ma''am, I need to explain something.¡± I said and she didn''t hesitate as she nodded. I turned to the gathered soldiers. ¡°I''m just a poor orphaned slave boy from the marsh lands.¡± I said and no one reacted to that, which meant that they all knew it. ¡°Only the XO knows exactly how much she looks like the woman that raised me.¡± Gillis gasped and covered her mouth. ¡°She has actively changed her look as much as she could, according to army regulations, just so she could put my heart and my mind at ease during my time here.¡± I said and I saw a lot of understanding faces. ¡°When she agreed to give me a commencement kiss, I wanted to thank her for everything that she''s done for me. I took it a little too far and I apologize to her, to you, and to the army as a whole.¡± Everyone had sympathetic faces, even the XO and the drill sergeant. I gave the crowd a salute, turned to the XO and drill sergeant and gave them one, then walked off the stage to go back to my spot in line. ¡°Thank you for explaining, Private Drake.¡± The XO said and then glared at me. ¡°I would assign you a further punishment if you weren''t already assigned permanent KP duty.¡± That made nearly everyone laugh, I assumed to lighten the mood and to get the attention back onto her. ¡°Let''s continue on.¡± The XO said and called the next name. The ceremony continued on and no one tried to do what I did. Everyone noticed the XO tensing up for each kiss, too. It became a reason to make the scene more fun for everyone, and the event ended without incident. We all went back to the barracks to pack our things and Gillis stayed beside me. ¡°I can''t believe you kissed her like that.¡± Gillis said as she opened her trunk and filled a large canvas bag with the things she had bought in the PX during the last three months. It was a lot. ¡°I explained why.¡± I said and cut the metal box from the floor. I had packed away all of my remaining smoked meat a week ago and picked the trunk up by the handles. ¡°Yes, and I know what she did to you.¡± Gillis said. ¡°My body just reacted.¡± I said with a shrug. ¡°You''re lucky that someone interrupted before you took things too far.¡± ¡°Yes, he is.¡± The drill sergeant Nancy Travis said as she came into the barracks. ¡°That was some thank you kiss, Private Drake.¡± ¡°My lips tingled.¡± I said and she smiled and Gillis let out a groan. ¡°He''s telling the truth. His lips literally tingled.¡± The XO said as she stepped inside behind the drill sergeant. ¡°Mine did as well.¡± ¡°What does that mean?¡± Gillis asked. ¡°Well, according to the newest testing criteria from the Mages Guild, it''s a sign that someone has a trace of magic in their system.¡± The drill sergeant said. Gillis gasped and looked at the XO. ¡°You?!?¡± ¡°Yes, and it''s much too late for me.¡± The XO said. ¡°I''ve grown too old for natural magic development, thanks to those damn testing crystals that I could never light up, no matter how much I tried.¡± ¡°They drained away your potential!¡± Gillis said loudly. ¡°That''s right. I could spend the next ten years trying to learn magic and the most I''ll be able to do is cast a very dull mage light.¡± ¡°I''m so sorry.¡± Gillis said. ¡°So am I.¡± The XO said and looked at me. ¡°I didn''t think you would get any kind of reaction out of me, and you did.¡± _______________ You have a minor choice to make. It will only affect your relationship with the XO Anna Carter. A) Give her a gift. B) Stay silent. C) Kiss her again. D) Offer to have sex. E) Choose two. I''m pretty sure Diane would kill me if I did D, and since I already kissed her, I''ll choose A. _______________ ¡°Do you have one of the testing crystals?¡± I asked. ¡°Nancy, in my office. I''ve confiscated a few of them from the mages that are ignoring the order to stop using them.¡± Anna said and Nancy left at a jog I put down my trunk and held my knife up in front of the XO. ¡°I want you to do the same thing you did to the testing crystals.¡± Anna stared at the knife for only a moment, then she put her hand around mine and touched the handle as she laid a single fingertip on the back of the blade. After a few seconds, the blade glowed. She gasped as it held the charge for several seconds and then faded away. ¡°Even a little bit of magic is valuable.¡± I said to her surprised face and she nodded. Nancy came back with one of the testing crystals and handed it to me. ¡°What are you going to do with it?¡± ¡°This.¡± I said and infused my magic into it. The three women stared with their mouths slightly open as the crystal slowly filled up and grew brighter and brighter. When it was full, it was almost too bright to look at and was very warm. ¡°Good lord.¡± Anna half covered her eyes and took it from me. She slid it into a pocket and the brightness still escaped, so she closed the pocked over and buttoned it. ¡°How in the world did you...¡± ¡°I''ve been making potions on my own for about ten years.¡± I said. Two people came in right after my declaration and it was Alex and Donna. ¡°David!¡± Donna said loudly. ¡°How could you embarrass the acting CO like that?!?¡± ¡°Donna, for god''s sake.¡± Alex said. ¡°At least say hello first.¡± ¡°I''m sorry. Hello.¡± Donna said and gave me a quick hug. ¡°Now you can tell me.¡± Alex sighed and the XO chuckled. ¡°It''s all right, Staff Sergeant.¡± Anna said to Donna. ¡°I believe his explanation to the crowd has more than made up for my embarrassment.¡± ¡°You did well.¡± Alex said to me and Donna gave him a look. ¡°I meant by passing basic training.¡± ¡°Of course you did.¡± Donna said and looked at me. ¡°Well? Did you open your orders? Where are they sending you?¡± I took the orders from my pocket and unfolded them. ¡°I''m being posted at the garrison in Ester''s Village.¡± ¡°That''s wonderful!¡± Donna said happily and gave me another hug. ¡°We can ride back with you and we''ll be there by tonight.¡± ¡°Excuse me?¡± The XO Anna, the drill sergeant Nancy, and Private Gillis asked at the same time. ¡°Um... just forget I said that.¡± Donna said, her face red. ¡°David, grab your things and say goodbye.¡± I picked up the full metal trunk by the two handles again. ¡°Goodbye.¡± ¡°Goodbye.¡± Anna, Nancy, and Gillis said as I left with First Lieutenant Alex Smith and Staff Sergeant Donna Simms. 077 Back Home I led Alex and Donna to the Purser to pick up my money. ¡°You never came to visit.¡± Both Alex and Donna let out sighs. ¡°We were ordered by the old CO to not interfere.¡± Alex said. ¡°He also kept us too busy to come and see you.¡± ¡°He even went so far as to have our meals brought to us.¡± Donna said. ¡°I''m sorry, David.¡± I didn''t respond, because it didn''t matter. I had gotten through it without their help, or if the old CO''s orders were to be believed, without their interference. We entered the Purser''s office and I asked for the balance of my money. None of which I ever spent. Everything the PX bought from me as I hunted went right with the money the XO had ordered the Purser to set aside for buying the owlbear pelt and ram horns. The man behind the counter was happy to help, until he checked his records and saw what the total was. ¡°This has to be a mistake.¡± He said and opened the separate metal box. He counted out the contents, quite painstakingly, and then he gave me a surprised look. ¡°How in the world did you get this much pay?¡± ¡°I don''t get paid.¡± I said and he looked very surprised. ¡°Then where did all this money come from?¡± He asked as he tried to lift the metal box. He couldn''t move it at all. ¡°I''ll get it.¡± I said and put my metal trunk down and walked around the counter. I picked it up like it was nothing and went back to my side. I counted it as well and checked the total on the paper to make sure they weren''t stealing anything, then closed it and used some number ten potion to stick it to the top of my trunk. ¡°David, how did you get so much money?¡± Alex asked when he saw the total on the paper. ¡°Hunting.¡± I said. ¡°Some pelts are really rare around here.¡± I picked up my modified trunk and we left the purser''s office to head to the dock. A lot of soldiers along the way, waved or said hello to me, and Alex and Donna looked like they didn''t know what to do about it. We went to the large docking building and talked to the man that ran the place to let him know we were leaving with the boat in our assigned slip. He took us over to it and it was still there, untouched and unused, and Alex signed papers saying so as I checked it over. I nodded and put my trunk into it and secured it while Alex and Donna left to go and retrieve their things. I untied the canvas covering from the middle posts and hooked it into place on the four support posts at the corners to make the cloth roof. I sat down to wait for them to come back. About ten minutes later, Alex and Donna came back with their canvas bags and packed them into the middle of the boat around my metal trunk. I untied the boat from the dock and handed Alex a pole and picked one up myself. ¡°WAIT!¡± A shrill woman''s voice said as she burst through the door of the dock warehouse. ¡°Private Gillis! What''s the meaning of this?¡± The man that ran the place asked, angrily. ¡°I almost... missed them.¡± Gillis said and panted as she put her canvas bag down. ¡°I thought... they were... taking horses.¡± ¡°We already said goodbye.¡± I said and she huffed. ¡°I''ve got... my orders.¡± Gillis said and waved them. ¡°I forgot to check... after the ceremony.¡± Alex held a hand out to her and she gave them to him. He unfolded the sheets and read them. As he did that, two other people came into the dock warehouse and were also out of breath. Luckily, they were not people that had caused me problems. ¡°Us... too.¡± The two men said and dropped their canvas bags and sat on them. ¡°So much for basic training.¡± The man that ran the warehouse said with a shake of his head. ¡°You try... running full out across the whole base... with a hundred pounds in your hands.¡± One of the men said. ¡°Mine''s heavier.¡± Gillis said, a little proudly. ¡°Orders.¡± Alex said and handed Gillis hers back. The two men handed theirs over and he read them. ¡°It look like it''s legitimate.¡± He said to Donna. ¡°The three of them are assigned to the garrison.¡± ¡°David, can you grab the dock and hold us steady as they climb aboard?¡± Donna asked. ¡°I don''t have to.¡± I said and she gave me a stern look. ¡°It wasn''t an order and the boat self-balances, remember?¡± ¡°You''re kidding!¡± Gillis exclaimed and picked up her canvas bag. As she jumped into the boat, I activated the movement enchantment to hold us in place. The water barely splashed and the boat didn''t rock at all. ¡°This is great!¡± She said and carefully tucked her bag next to my metal trunk. ¡°Where did you buy this thing?¡± ¡°I didn''t buy it. I built it.¡± I said and she laughed.The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°Of course you did.¡± Gillis said and the other two men stepped into the boat and put their bags at the back of the boat. ¡°I hope you don''t mind letting me come along. I didn''t want to spend all that time travelling to the same place.¡± The two men gave her confused looks and she smiled at them briefly. Gillis nodded to me. ¡°Private Drake, if you would be so kind. Please, take us to our post.¡± ¡°It''s still going to take us fifteen hours.¡± I warned her as I activated the weight enchantment and the boat rose up and almost completely out of the water. ¡°WHOA!¡± Gillis yelled. ¡°What was THAT?!?¡± ¡°Magic.¡± I said and nodded to Alex. We poled the boat out into the waterway, careful of other moving boats, both large and small. ¡°We''re obscured.¡± Donna said. ¡°Finally.¡± Alex said and put the pole down and rubbed his arms. ¡°Damn, I''m out of shape. I can''t wait to get back to the garrison and do normal morning exercises.¡± Donna chuckled and they sat down and held on. ¡°Everyone sit and hold on, or brace yourselves at the back, or something.¡± She said. ¡°Go ahead, David.¡± I sat down about a third of the way back from the front, next to Donna, and put some magic into the movement enchantment. There were two loud thumps and low groans from the back of the boat as we took off at a quarter speed. ¡°She warned you.¡± Alex said with a chuckle. ¡°Next time, you should listen.¡± ¡°Yes, sir.¡± Both men said. ¡°This is GREAT!¡± Gillis said from behind me. ¡°Can we really get all the way to the edge of the kingdom in less than a day at this speed?¡± ¡°Now you really have to brace yourselves.¡± Donna warned. ¡°I''m ready, David.¡± ¡°Me, too.¡± I said and brought us up to half speed, then Donna used hand signals to direct me. ¡°Oh, my god.¡± Gillis whispered as the boat threw up a little water as we plowed through the turns. ¡°They''re just getting used to working together again.¡± Alex said. ¡°It''s been three months since either of them have done this.¡± Gillis gasped. ¡°They can go faster?!?¡± Donna nodded to me and I nodded back, then we went to the full speed that the imperfect enchantment allowed. The balancers on the sides acted like fish fins as we took the corners. They let the boat dig in perfectly and the boat didn''t stutter or skip roughly on the water as we zoomed through the different waterway paths to find our way back to the garrison. We stopped four hours later to let Donna rest and to eat something for lunch. Gillis just stared at me the whole time and I don''t think she even tasted the food. The two men at the back didn''t eat. We took off again, ramped up to full speed much quicker this time, and it was a bit easier with longer straightaways. We didn''t stop again until six hours later for supper. Everyone ate this time and Gillis had stopped staring. At least I thought she did. As far as I knew, she could have been staring at me the whole time that I was driving the boat. We took off again and five hours later, we arrived at the dock to Diane''s house. I secured the boat and left the canvas up, since I wasn''t sure if we were leaving it for a long time or not. We all piled out and carried our things up the small road to Diane''s place. Even though it was close to midnight, the lights were on in her house. I didn''t notice any movement inside, either. ¡°You know, we don''t have to officially report for duty until the morning.¡± Alex said and Donna took in a sharp breath. ¡°Alex, you can''t seriously...¡± ¡°David, go knock on her door and visit for a while.¡± Alex said. ¡°Just make sure you get to the base by first bugle tomorrow.¡± _______________ You have a critical choice to make. This will change your relationship with Diane significantly. A) Go to the base. B) Do as ordered. Like there''s a choice here. I haven''t seen Diane in three months, so I''m choosing B. _______________ ¡°Sir.¡± I said and put my trunk down to salute with the petrified hand, then I picked the trunk up and ran over to the front door and put the trunk down again. I knocked on the door and waited for a minute, then I knocked again and heard movement in the house. The door opened a minute later and a very tired and dishevelled Diane stood there with a shocked look on her face. ¡°D-D-David?¡± Diane stuttered, her mouth agape. ¡°I graduated and got posted to the Ester Village garrison.¡± I said. Diane''s eyes looked on the verge of tears, then they grew happy. ¡°Oh, David!¡± She exclaimed and grabbed me tightly and kissed me, hard. ¡°Wow.¡± Gillis whispered. ¡°Now that''s a kiss.¡± The others chuckled softly. ¡°Let''s go.¡± Alex whispered and they walked away. ¡°Can you come in?¡± Diane asked after she broke the kiss and saw the others behind me walking away. ¡°I don''t have to report until seven in the morning.¡± I responded. Diane''s tired face became a huge smile and she stepped back to let me inside. I picked up my trunk and carried it inside. She shut the door behind me and took my hand, then she led me to her large and new bed. ¡°I''ve kept all the lights on every night to light your way back home to me.¡± Diane whispered as she took off her night clothes. ¡°Home?¡± I asked and stripped off as well. ¡°Yes, David. Home.¡± Diane said and kissed me. ¡°I want you here with me as much as possible. Weekend passes, hunting trips for the garrison, anything at all. If you''re allowed out at night, I want you here with me.¡± She laid me down on the bed and climbed on top of me. ¡°I''ve missed you so much the last three months.¡± She kissed me again and as we joined together, she gasped. ¡°Oh, god!¡± She didn''t speak again for quite some time. ¡°David, I... every day that you didn''t come back, I... I was so worried that... something happened.¡± ¡°Something did happen.¡± I said and she caught her breath. ¡°No, nothing really bad.¡± ¡°Tell me what happened.¡± She said and gave me another kiss, then she listened to what happened during the three months I was in basic training. It passed by like a flash and she had stayed quiet the entire time. ¡°An owlbear. You fought an actual owlbear.¡± She whispered. ¡°And lived.¡± I said. ¡°The pelt was really valuable.¡± Diane huffed and then she smiled. ¡°I might be able to sell something like that for a quarter of its value.¡± ¡°I sold it to the army long ago.¡± I said and her eyes grew hard. ¡°I was going to send you the pelt, then the XO said they would buy it for a reasonable price instead.¡± ¡°Reasonable, huh?¡± Diane asked. I smiled. ¡°She caught the PX officer trying to cheat me.¡± Diane gasped. ¡°What happened?¡± ¡°The replacement gave me a good price for it.¡± I said and she relaxed. ¡°I''m glad. When you said...¡± ¡°I know.¡± I responded and she gave me a stern look, then she laughed. ¡°You tease.¡± Diane said and kissed me. ¡°I''ve got a pile of gold and silver for you, too. I''ve sold a lot of things the last three months.¡± ¡°Me, too. The metal box on top of my trunk is full of gold.¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± ¡°It''s really easy to hunt in a normal forest.¡± I said. ¡°I gathered a lot of pelts during the last three months.¡± Diane stared at me for a moment, then she laughed. ¡°You didn''t spend any of it, did you?¡± ¡°On what? The army provided all the essentials and I hunted for extra meat for myself. I had almost everything I wanted.¡± ¡°Almost?¡± Diane asked. I reached over and touched her bare breast to lightly caress it. She understood immediately and smiled at me as she pulled me on top of her. We joined together again and stayed that way for quite some time. 078 The Bugle Sounds I kissed the happily lazy and half asleep Diane and left her in bed. I picked up my trunk from beside the front door and left her place. I ran up the road to the main road, then down the main road to the garrison. I used the petrified hand as I saluted the men on guard and they opened the gate for me. I went inside and went over to my building beside the maintenance building at the back of the garrison. I unlocked it and went inside to drop off my trunk, grabbed a quick bite to eat from some of the smoked meat I had, then left and ran over to the main building. I went inside and the secretary wasn''t at her desk. I activated my vigilance technique as I went to the CO''s door and knocked. ¡°Enter.¡± A man''s voice said and I opened the door. ¡°Oh, it''s you.¡± The old CO said and waved for me to shut the door. ¡°Private David Drake reporting for duty, sir.¡± I said as I came to attention in front of the desk and saluted with the petrified hand. I could feel other people''s eyes on me and knew that we weren''t alone, even if the office seemed empty. The old CO sat there and let me hold the salute without returning it. ¡°Orders.¡± I kept the salute on purpose and took out my orders with my free hand. He read them and folded them back up. ¡°Did you know I spent nearly two months in a holding cell?¡± ¡°No, sir. I thought you would still be there and it would have been longer.¡± I responded. He gave me a stern look. ¡°What made you think that?¡± ¡°The acting CO suspended all trials and sentencing.¡± I said. The old CO nodded. ¡°She did, and then the mobilization order came through when the Colonel heard about what your little team of misfits stumbled across. She travelled here personally and saw the mess the acting CO had here.¡± I didn''t say anything, because he didn''t ask me a question. He kept the stern look and I kept the salute. ¡°Aren''t you going to ask what happened?¡± ¡°No, sir. I have assumed you didn''t claim that you started the mess in the first place, so the Colonel doesn''t have all the facts and put you back in charge.¡± His stern look vanished and was replaced by surprise, then he frowned. ¡°Are you accusing me of something, private?¡± ¡°No, sir. I don''t have enough proof to have you charged with dereliction of duty.¡± The old CO went quiet for several moments. ¡°If you were of any other rank, I would bust you down to private again.¡± He said and didn''t see any reaction from me. ¡°That doesn''t surprise you?¡± ¡°No, sir. I''ve had that said to me before. It''s just as meaningless now as it was then.¡± The old CO stood up and glared at me. ¡°My threats are not meaningless!¡± ¡°The only way you can demote me is to promote me first, sir.¡± I said. ¡°Since we both know that you are never going to do that, your threats are as empty of value as your words of praise are.¡± ¡°Why you...¡± The old CO looked angry and raised his hand in a fist. ¡°That''s enough.¡± A woman''s voice said. The old CO lowered his hand and opened it as he sighed. ¡°I let him get to me again.¡± ¡°He didn''t really try.¡± Another woman''s voice said that I recognized as the acting CO, Sandra Rivers. The side wall of the office that was supposed to be there, faded away. Sandra and another woman were there with a mage. ¡°You really do have a significant problem with him.¡± The old CO sighed again. ¡°I saved his life and he cost me my job.¡± The other woman chuckled. ¡°I''ve read the transcripts. You could have easily stepped in and stopped the proceedings at any time. Instead, you forced him to become an honor-bound conscript, one that even I can''t dislodge, despite the messages I have sent to my father.¡± ¡°I told you that he wouldn''t respond, Colonel.¡± Sandra said. The Colonel sighed. ¡°I didn''t want to believe it, Sandy.¡± She said and put a hand on her cousin''s shoulder briefly and then she looked at me and gave me a quick salute. ¡°At ease, Private Drake.¡± ¡°Yes, Colonel.¡± I said and dropped the salute I held the whole time and assumed the ''rest'' position of standing at attention. The Colonel walked over to the desk and picked up my orders. ¡°It says here that you are to resume your normal duties.¡± ¡°Yes, Colonel.¡± I said. ¡°What are they?¡± She asked. ¡°I was assigned by the acting CO Sandra Rivers to the maintenance department.¡± I said. ¡°My main task was to reinforce the garrison''s walls.¡± ¡°Which you''ve completed.¡± The Colonel said. ¡°I''ve seen the work and Chief Warrant Officer Gary Stromboli told me how quickly you performed your marsh magic to do it.¡± She put my orders down and gave me an appraising look. ¡°I noticed that you weren''t surprised when the spell ended and we were revealed. Why is that?¡±This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. ¡°I''ve lived in the marsh all my life, ma''am.¡± I said and didn''t explain further. She waited to see if I was going to continue, then she looked at the old CO. ¡°I''m sentencing you to two months in the stockade, which you''ve already served.¡± She took some folded papers out of her uniform coat. ¡°I''m sure that you want to be reassigned as soon as possible.¡± ¡°I do.¡± The old CO said and took the papers and quickly read them. ¡°Thank you, Colonel.¡± She waved his thanks away. ¡°You really did start a mess for me, so I''ll be glad to see the back of you.¡± ¡°Yes, ma''am.¡± The old CO saluted and quickly left. ¡°Mage Lukas, thank you for your help.¡± The Colonel said. The mage nodded and left the office as well. ¡°Sandy, I need to talk to Private Drake. Do you mind if I borrow your office for a while?¡± The Colonel asked. ¡°Not at all. It''s your garrison.¡± Sandy said with a smile and touched my shoulder as she passed me. ¡°Be honest.¡± She whispered and then she left and shut the door behind her. ¡°Please sit.¡± The Colonel said and waved at the chair off to the side as she sat. I pulled it back over in front of the desk and sat down. ¡°You know who I am, don''t you?¡± She asked and I nodded. ¡°Should I skip the formal introduction and get right to the heart of the matter?¡± I thought back to what Sandra had told me during our lessons on etiquette. ¡°It would depend on which voice of authority you are using.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°If you are only speaking to me as the Colonel, then you can skip it. If you are speaking to me as the crowned princess of the Gulf Kingdom, then you have to introduce yourself.¡± The Colonel sighed as she took her military hat off. ¡°Sandra taught you well.¡± She said and stood. ¡°I, Ellen Constance Marie Rivers, Crown Princess and First Daughter of His Majesty King Richard William Rivers, do hereby greet you formally, David Drake, a conscripted vassal of this kingdom.¡± She held out a hand to me just as the first bugle went off to signify the start of the official day at the garrison. ¡°It is an honor, your highness.¡± I said as I briefly stood to take her hand and kissed the back of it. ¡°Was that good enough to satisfy the information Sandra gave you?¡± Ellen asked as she sat back down, her stiff demeanor a bit more relaxed, now that she wasn''t completely restricted by military protocol. ¡°She usually served tea when we talked.¡± I said and Ellen smiled at me. ¡°I think that is an excellent idea.¡± Ellen said and had the secretary arrange it. We were served tea several minutes later and then she got down to business. ¡°David, we''re in trouble.¡± I quickly glanced around the office and didn''t see any threats, so I looked back at her. Ellen laughed. ¡°I meant the country as a whole, not just you and me.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± I said and took a sip of tea. ¡°Things between us and the Eastern Empire have been at a standstill for years, much longer than either of our countries had expected.¡± Ellen said. ¡°You see...¡± I sat there and listened to how the Eastern Empire had large fleets of ships that had suppressed the Gulf Kingdom''s military power on the water and constantly conducted raids and robberies all along the coast and on their shipping. The Gulf Kingdom had to pull most of their remaining fighting ships from the war on the sea to act as escorts for ships of goods and food for the people. It slowed the war effort to a crawl and put the country onto a completely defensive footing. She explained that normally, it wouldn''t be so bad, except in this case, the enemy was also strangling the supply lines for both the civilians and military, which was slowly killing the country. The only ground assault that was possible between the two warring parties, was over some very treacherous mountain terrain. Both sides had lost a lot of soldiers in battles there and she wanted to do something about it. With my help. She had a daring plan; one that could possibly change the entire course of the war, if it worked. She wanted to bring a brigade of troops through the marsh and establish a bridgehead to assault the Eastern Empire. She knew that it was a completely undefended area on their side of the massive marsh, thanks to Alex and Donna''s scouting mission. The small patrol we saw there were the rejects and the people that they couldn''t send into real combat, or so the Gulf Kingdom''s spies had told her. They had discovered a lot more than that, and she laid it all out for me. I sat there as she talked for nearly two hours and explained everything. She told me what she wanted and what she needed to happen, and she also told me about my very crucial role in pulling the entire thing off. It would be my job to ferry them across the marsh, protect them from the dangers, provide enough general health potions and anti-venom potions for them to survive, and then help them build the outpost. _______________ You have a critical choice to make here. It will change your standing with the army and affect your relationship with Ellen Rivers, Sandra Rivers, and Jacqueline Gillis-Rivers. A) Stay silent. B) Agree to do it. C) Refuse. D) Tell the truth. E) Try to quit. F) Run. G) Choose two. Good god, are you serious? I shook my head. I''m choosing two all right. D and C. _______________ I sat back in my chair and gave her a very pointed stare when she was done talking. ¡°You''re crazy.¡± I said and she gasped. ¡°I was barely able to keep four other people from dying the last time I took others into the marsh and we had a really fast boat. How in the world am I supposed to do the same for three thousand of them?¡± I shook my head. ¡°It''s not possible. Physically, I mean. I''m not going to mention the fact that there''s no way to make that many general health potions!¡± ¡°David, I''m sure that if the trained squads keep collecting...¡± ¡°That''s another mistake right there.¡± I said and cut her off. ¡°You can''t just gather everything and then wait for someone to make something out of them. They have to be used as soon as possible or at least preserved. The longer they sit unprepared, the less potent they are.¡± ¡°I didn''t know that.¡± Ellen said. ¡°The potion master said they would be fine.¡± I did my best to not sigh at the stupid statement. ¡°I absolutely refuse to do it.¡± I said and her eyes widened in shock. ¡°Not only didn''t you plan for how to get across the deadliest area in any kingdom safely, you also didn''t consult the only real expert the army has on surviving in the marsh. Your plan is ill-advised, poorly constructed, and will get a lot of people killed.¡± Ellen stared at me with her mouth slightly open for nearly thirty seconds, then she squinted her eyes. ¡°Did you just criticize the princess of the Gulf Kingdom and insult her intelligence?¡± ¡°Yes, I did. Someone has to.¡± I said. ¡°I told you that I''ve lived in the marsh my whole life. I am also telling you this is the most idiotic plan I have ever heard and I won''t help you.¡± ¡°Is that your final word?¡± Ellen asked and I nodded. ¡°Very well.¡± She reached for her hat and put it on, and her posture stiffened appropriately. ¡°As the Colonel of this brigade, I am ordering you to help fix this plan and to complete it to the best of your ability and by any means necessary. Even if you have to strip half of the marsh to get those ingredients, you are to do it and make those potions.¡± I stood up and saluted with the petrified hand. ¡°Ma''am! I have a question!¡± ¡°Ask it.¡± She said and didn''t return my salute. ¡°Will I be paid for my work that has nothing to do with the army, or will the army requisition it and not pay me again?¡± I asked. Colonel Ellen Rivers gave me a cold glare. ¡°My brigade always pays its debts.¡± ¡°It hasn''t so far, Ma''am.¡± I responded. ¡°You will be properly compensated in due time.¡± ¡°Yes, Ma''am. I''ll be sure to hold you to that, Ma''am.¡± ¡°You do that.¡± The Colonel handed me the many papers and maps she had shown me and I took them with my free hand. ¡°Dismissed.¡± I let the petrified hand go and hugged the mass of papers to my chest and left the office. 079 Fixing Whats Broken I came out of the office and saw that Alex, Donna, Gillis, and Gary were there. ¡°There you are. I was worried that you were going to get in trouble by not coming back this morning.¡± Donna said. ¡°I was back long before first bugle.¡± I said and their eyes went to the piles of papers in my hands. ¡°What''s all that?¡± Gary asked. ¡°It''s something I need you, First Lieutenant Smith and Staff Sergeant Simms to help me with.¡± I said and Donna sighed. ¡°David, are you really going to continue to...¡± Donna started to say. ¡°It''s the Colonel''s idiotic plan to bring a brigade of troops across the marsh.¡± I said. Donna and Gillis gasped. ¡°You''re only a private.¡± Alex said and looked into the office. ¡°You shouldn''t have been shown those classified plans, let alone be ordered to work on them.¡± ¡°He''s going to fix them, since he believes that he is the only expert we have.¡± The Colonel said, a note of satisfaction in her voice. ¡°I refused to help when she asked as the princess, so she ordered me to do it as the Colonel.¡± I said and they all looked surprised. ¡°COUSIN!¡± Gillis yelled and had an angry face. ¡°How dare you do that to him!¡± She spat. ¡°He''s been through enough in his life that...¡± ¡°Quiet!¡± The Colonel ordered and Gillis snapped her mouth shut. ¡°I am in command here, Private Gillis. If you don''t like how I run things, you can request a transfer.¡± Gillis'' eyes flashed and she scowled. ¡°You know I can''t do that.¡± She growled out. ¡°Sir.¡± The Colonel''s eyes flashed back at the insult. ¡°I believe that could be considered insubordination.¡± ¡°No, sir.¡± I said and she shifted her eyes to me. ¡°Saying Ma''am is only an honorific and isn''t in the army regulations. Sir is the proper address to a superior officer.¡± The Colonel gave me a glare and then schooled her face. ¡°If Private Gillis thinks this situation is so unfair to you, perhaps assigning her to help you will ease her conscience.¡± ¡°Ma''am, assigning two unqualified people won''t make it any better.¡± Gary said. ¡°Neither of them know anything about logistics or proper army outfitting.¡± ¡°Then I''ll take the marsh expert''s advice and assign the three of you to it as well.¡± The Colonel said. ¡°I want this plan fixed and ready to implement in a month.¡± Even the secretary gasped this time. ¡°I told her that she was crazy.¡± I said. ¡°That''s enough.¡± The Colonel growled. ¡°Get out of my sight.¡± I opened my mouth to tell her to close her eyes and Gillis took my arm. ¡°Not now.¡± Gillis whispered and moved me towards the front door. The others followed and we passed the CO as she came in. Her eyes widened at what I had in my arms and she went into her office with the Colonel. I walked around the building and sat down beside the wall and started to arrange the papers on my lap. The others came with me and saw what I was doing. Gillis sat down right beside me and touched my shoulder with hers. ¡°We''re screwed.¡± Gary said and sat down on the ground on my other side, without touching me. ¡°There''s no way we can implement that plan in a month, let alone fix it first.¡± He gave me an admiring look. ¡°You sure have some balls to tell her it was idiotic to her face.¡± ¡°It''s the truth.¡± I said. ¡°Even if we do fix it, a lot of people are going to die. There''s no getting around that.¡± ¡°I know.¡± Gary said and rubbed his face. ¡°The boatbuilder''s whole family are making flat bottomed boats as quickly as they can and there''s no way they can finish enough of them in a month to take even a third of a brigade.¡± ¡°Even if we had enough boats, it will take over three weeks to get there and that''s just one trip and only one way.¡± I said. ¡°What? Why?¡± Donna asked. ¡°I thought you could get them to move fast with your magic?¡± I chuckled. ¡°I can get one boat to move fast. One. I might be able to tie one or maybe two of them behind mine. Then I can''t go as fast because I''ll only be controlling the first boat. One sharp turn...¡± ¡°...they''ll tip or roll over.¡± Gary finished for me. ¡°There''s also not enough space on a boat for three weeks of supplies and also for supplies for when they get there, not if it has to carry troops as well.¡± He shook his head. ¡°It''s not like they can forage in the marsh for eatable food, either.¡± ¡°If David trained them...¡± Donna started to say. ¡°It took me years to learn what was good to eat and what wasn''t.¡± I said. ¡°Also, I only really know what''s safe for me to eat. I have a high tolerance for toxins, remember?¡±Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. Donna sighed and nodded. ¡°Why are we just sitting here, anyway?¡± Gillis asked. ¡°I''m listening to the Colonel''s conversation with the CO.¡± I said and the four of them stared at me. ¡°You''re what?¡± Donna asked. ¡°She''s complaining that this is her last desperate attempt to prove herself to her father.¡± I said and Gillis caught her breath. ¡°She only has a short window to act, with her older brother forcing her younger brother to push the offensive in the mountains.¡± ¡°Oh, no.¡± Gillis whispered, her voice full of sadness. ¡°She advised them against it and was ignored. She got word from Sandra about the marsh and jumped at the chance. She rushed out here, scrambled to get enough forces to make an under-strength brigade, and now she''s running out of both money and resources.¡± I repeated. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Donna said and turned away from us. ¡°When she spoke out against the war, her funding was cut down to a fraction of what it was. She has...¡± I paused and listened. ¡°...what''s rabble mean?¡± ¡°Oh, god.¡± Gillis said. ¡°She can''t really...¡± She sighed. ¡°It''s a mean term for ordinary people of low social standing with bad behavior.¡± ¡°It also means an unruly and disorderly crowd.¡± Alex said and looked at Donna. ¡°You know what that means.¡± ¡°They only gave her all of the troublemakers and people that are ostracized by the other soldiers.¡± Donna said. ¡°I''m sure going to have my work cut out for me when they start showing up.¡± ¡°They''ll start arriving in two weeks.¡± I said. ¡°A schooner is dropping off a hundred of them and enough supplies for a month. Most of the rest are coming by smaller boat or by land.¡± ¡°The garrison can only hold a thousand people comfortably.¡± Gary said. ¡°I designed it that way.¡± ¡°There''s not enough land around to expand, unless you start cutting the trees down and clear out some of the forest nearby.¡± Alex said. ¡°You can just claim the rest of the Addams farm.¡± I suggested. ¡°It''s useless anyway.¡± Alex, Donna, and Gary gave me pointed stares. ¡°Do you know what''s happened to them since you left?¡± Gary asked. ¡°No, and I don''t care.¡± I said. ¡°They deserve whatever hardship they brought upon themselves.¡± ¡°David, you can''t just...¡± Donna started to say. ¡°...what? They sold me when I was a baby. Why should I care about what happens to them?¡± I asked. ¡°They are your only family.¡± Gary said. ¡°You should at least give them a chance to apologize.¡± ¡°They''ve known I was around without the Hag for over a year now and they haven''t apologized yet.¡± I said. ¡°I even went to meet them before I went to basic training and none of them apologized.¡± ¡°You did attack them.¡± Donna said. ¡°Maybe if you apologized first...¡± ¡°They would have been dead if I attacked them.¡± I said and she sighed as she turned her head away. ¡°I have nothing to apologize for and I don''t expect an apology from them.¡± I stood up and held the papers to my chest again. ¡°Gary, I''ll need to borrow a workbench for a while. There''s no room in my place for all of this and the five of us at the same time.¡± ¡°It''s just you an me in that big building, so use whatever you want.¡± Gary said and stood up. ¡°I''ve been ordered to help, so that''s what I''m going to do.¡± ¡°The CO and Colonel are talking about me now.¡± I said. ¡°You can interrupt them with my idea for the garrison expansion by taking the rest of the farm. If you limit it to just barracks, you can get a lot of people in there.¡± ¡°That won''t work because it won''t be attached.¡± Gary said. ¡°Why? We just need to extend the walls over the road.¡± ¡°That will block off travel to the village and the dock.¡± ¡°No, I said over the road, not on it.¡± I clarified. ¡°We just need to make a bridge from one side to the other.¡± Gary looked surprised for a second, then he laughed. ¡°We can even enclose it and add ranged fire ports on the sides to help defend the road!¡± He pat me on the back and started to walk away. ¡°I''ll ask the CO about it right away!¡± ¡°Let''s go.¡± I said and walked away from the main building. I led Gillis, Alex, and Donna to the maintenance building at the back of the garrison and Gillis looked around at everything she could see. ¡°We can use this spot over here.¡± I motioned to a workbench over by the wall and they followed me over to it. It was perfect for us, because it was out of sight of the front door, unless you came all the way inside and turned around. ¡°Gillis, run to the PX and grab some tacks for the wall, a stack of paper, several pencils, and measuring instruments and straight rulers.¡± I handed her a silver coin and told her where the building was. ¡°I''ll be right back!¡± Gillis said and took off at a jog. I put the papers down and cleaned off the bench. I had waterproofed the benches in the building and made them smooth a long time ago. I handed the stack of maps and things to Donna and she started sorting them out in priority and Alex helped me divide up the others into the parts of the plans that would need to be handled first. Boy, oh boy, it was a mess. Gillis came back with a box filled with things. We quickly divided them out and Donna started putting up the maps in the right order. I grabbed a ladder for her to use more of the wall and she thanked me. ¡°I''ll get some chairs.¡± Gillis said. ¡°Stools!¡± I said and she waved as she ran out of the building again. ¡°Why didn''t you tell her that you can make them?¡± Alex asked. ¡°We''re in the maintenance department.¡± ¡°She wants to be useful.¡± I said with a shrug. Alex and Donna exchanged looks for a second and didn''t comment. We waited for Gillis to come back with four tall stools, two carried on each arm. She had an arm through the legs of one and her hand holding the leg of the second one, which meant that she didn''t struggle with them at all. She put them down and we sat down to go over everything. We had to familiarize ourselves with the whole thing in order to pick out the glaring errors. Gary was right, though. Alex picked out a few things I had missed, since he had different knowledge than I did with organizational structure. That meant Donna would be able to pick out the personnel problems better than I could and Gary would be able to pick out the mechanical problems better than me, too. Alex and Donna had filled out several pages with writing and calculations that were different from what was in the plans already. I wasn''t sure what Gillis was going to help us with until she spoke. ¡°The soldiers are not going to be happy being squeezed into the boats like fish in a barrel.¡± Gillis said and tapped a finger on the estimated boat load capacity. ¡°That''s for a regular flat bottomed boat and not for David''s expanded boat.¡± ¡°Oh, damn. I completely missed that.¡± Alex said and looked down at his calculations. ¡°That changes a few things.¡± ¡°For me, too.¡± Donna said. ¡°We can''t have them like that for three whole weeks, especially if they have to have a crew to pole the boats along as well.¡± ¡°Gillis, what else did you notice?¡± I asked and she raised her eyebrows at me. ¡°You''re a fresh set of eyes. I see what I see, Alex sees what he sees, and Donna sees what she sees. All different parts of a whole.¡± I explained. ¡°What do you see?¡± Gillis was quiet for a second and then she smiled. ¡°I can see how the people are going to react.¡± I nodded. ¡°So, don''t just sit there looking all regal with your sad face. Give us a hand with all of this garbage your cousin dumped on us.¡± Gillis laughed softly. ¡°All right, David. I''ll do my best.¡± We all got back to work and actually discussed with each other what we were doing. 080 Work Your Ass Off We worked all day on the damn thing and only stopped long enough to grab a quick meal from the mess hall for supper. Even with Gary''s help with the mechanical side, we could barely work out the logistics of having this plan work. The numbers just didn''t make sense. The amount of food available also wasn''t going to be enough. Not just for getting there, the amount of food available in the town at the moment. There were going to be too many mouths to feed. Even if we still had the Addams farm fully operational and the garrison wasn''t there, there still wouldn''t be enough food. ¡°This really is an idiotic plan.¡± Alex said. ¡°It''s not feasible. At all.¡± ¡°Don''t tell the Colonel that.¡± Gary said. ¡°I caught part of her conversation about how angry she was at Private Drake for insulting her to her face.¡± Alex and Donna stared at him and didn''t speak. ¡°It''s her plan.¡± Gillis said, correctly guessing why. ¡°She came up with it all on her own.¡± ¡°That''s the only way this makes sense.¡± I said and waved at the mess of papers. ¡°Even if there were ten of me, I can''t make enough potions for everyone in a month.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± Gillis asked. ¡°It takes proper ingredients, prepared a certain way, and usually quickly. It takes me weeks to gather what I need and I usually brew it constantly. This last winter, I preserved a lot of them instead and spread the work over the weeks that I couldn''t go outside.¡± ¡°So, even if you somehow had all of the ingredients, you couldn''t make the potions in time for them to keep their freshness unless you preserved them.¡± I picked up a piece of paper. ¡°This says that squads of people have been taking small incursions into the marsh a short ways, fighting off the things they see, and looking for ingredients that the potion master told them to gather.¡± I picked up another piece of paper. ¡°This is a list of what they have and when it was harvested.¡± I put it aside and picked up the last piece. ¡°This is the progress they''ve made into the marsh.¡± ¡°That''s all proper procedure.¡± Alex said, not understanding the problem. ¡°First, he doesn''t have a list of ingredients that I need. Second, they''ve been picking everything they come across and just leaving it in bags without prepping them or even cleaning them. Third, and the worst, they''ve stripped each area they went to and it''s no longer of any use.¡± ¡°The Colonel said to strip it if you had to.¡± Gillis said. ¡°Yes, if I had to. The problem is, everything they''ve picked up until now is useless. You have a day, maybe two, before the ingredients start to wither from not being in the marsh. The potency drops by half after the first day, then again the next day.¡± I said and tapped the first paper. ¡°The potion master didn''t do anything with them, because he didn''t know what to do with them. It was all just a waste of time.¡± ¡°How many spider potions did they use up?¡± Gillis asked. ¡°It would be easier to tell you how many are left.¡± I said with a glance at Alex and Donna, who looked guilty. Gillis understood what I meant, because she knew that they hadn''t used them properly and they were wasted. ¡°So, what do we do?¡± ¡°We go to bed.¡± I said and stood up, picked up a piece of wood that was nearby, and laid it across the desk to hold the papers in place. ¡°Gary and I have to start the new addition to the garrison tomorrow.¡± Gillis sighed and looked at Alex and Donna. ¡°Our team is going to be slanted if we can''t have the two main members.¡± ¡°We can still work on the numbers problem.¡± Donna said and stood up as well. ¡°Thanks to Gary''s modified boat capacity and David''s idea to add balancers to another flat bottomed boat the same size as his, we can have troops in one boat and supplies in the other.¡± ¡°We can''t make the boats bigger, either.¡± Gary said. ¡°I read your reports about the trip.¡± ¡°There were definitely some tight spots.¡± Donna said. ¡°David''s boat is the biggest we can have and still have it fit through some of the smaller channels and waterways.¡± ¡°So, is it agreed? David''s the only one qualified to pilot the boat, I can guide it, and we have to ferry everyone to waypoints that we have to construct on the way.¡± Donna said. ¡°Yes.¡± Alex agreed. ¡°If we don''t give breaks to the both of you along the way, you''ll be less than useless when the time comes.¡± ¡°Then the first few loads should be soldiers used to quick construction.¡± Gary said. ¡°You can take the first load to the first stop, wait for your break, then come back. Take another break, pick up the next load of people and supplies, then go back to the first spot.¡±The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°We can''t keep coming back all the way each time.¡± Donna said. Gary laughed. ¡°No, you won''t. Once you have two crews out there, they work in tandem. After your break at the first spot, take the second crew to the second spot. After a break, come back to the first and they should be done. Pick them up and go to the second, take another break, and then go the third spot.¡± ¡°You want us to leap frog them?¡± Alex asked. Gary nodded. ¡°They''ll have lots of rest during the boat rides, and since they''ll have supplies with them, we won''t have to worry about getting food out to them.¡± ¡°How long do you think we can stay out there and do that with the same crews?¡± Alex asked Donna. ¡°We?¡± Donna asked. ¡°You''re not coming along, unless you''re taking command of one of the relay stations, and I absolutely refuse to let you do that until they are manned.¡± Alex looked surprised for a few seconds, then he smiled. ¡°I love you, too.¡± He said and kissed her. Donna mumbled something, so he wrapped his arms around her and kept kissing her. Gillis turned away from them to look at Gary. ¡°Who do I report to for lodging?¡± ¡°I''ll walk you to the ladies barracks.¡± Gary said. ¡°No mixing with men at night.¡± ¡°What? But, at training camp...¡± ¡°They weren''t going to give you your own barracks for three months.¡± Gary said with a laugh. ¡°The army''s not made of money, you know.¡± Gillis nodded and left with him and I stood there to wait for Alex and Donna to finish whatever they were doing. They broke the kiss a few minutes later and Donna''s face was flushed red and she looked both happy and excited. They didn''t even look at me and left at a fast walk while holding hands. I closed the maintenance building and locked it, then went to my own. I checked my things and everything was there, so I secured the door and climbed onto my bed, fully clothed. I took a deep breath and let it out as I let the vigilance technique lapse. My whole body relaxed and I closed my eyes. I had been on edge the whole day and I wasn''t sure why I thought I needed to keep the vigilance technique going for so long. It was then that I realized I was still training it and the longer I used it, the better I got at it. I smiled and let myself fall asleep. I would wake if anything happened, since that was what I did my whole life. The next day passed like a blur. The morning and afternoon were filled with woodwork as Gary and I built the new part of the garrison and the evenings were for working on the plans. This went on, and on, and on. A week later, the outer wall of the garrison was finished, because it was the most time consuming part of the build. Gary and I started on the buildings next. It was all barracks and they were two floors each. It took us another week to finish them. It was just in time, too. The schooner arrived right on schedule and offloaded their cargo of men and a month''s supplies of food as well as army beds. We used the two horse carts and my hand cart to help offload the schooner. The crews asked us where we found such great carts that could hold so much. Gary laughed and told them that they were custom made by his maintenance department. During the second load, the captain of the boat himself came down to talk to us and wanted to order a pile of them. ¡°You want to buy how many?¡± Gary asked, completely shocked. ¡°A hundred. Those are the most well built carts I''ve ever seen.¡± The captain said. ¡°The woodwork is impeccable and I can''t see a seam anywhere.¡± ¡°They don''t get wet, either!¡± One of the crew said and splashed a bit of water on the side. It slid right off and the captain laughed. ¡°Make that two hundred!¡± The captain exclaimed. ¡°You don''t know how difficult it is for our shipping line to make deliveries at some of the stops we make.¡± ¡°But...¡± Gary started to say. ¡°We''re leaving as soon we finish offloading.¡± The captain said. ¡°Leave us one of the horse carts and the hand cart. I''ll be back in a month to pick up thirty more.¡± ¡°But...¡± Gary started to say. The captain pulled out a bag of gold and silver coins and counted out what he thought was a fair price. ¡°Is this enough for one?¡± Gary stared down at the pile of gold and could only nod. The captain doubled it and waved to the crew. They worked twice as hard to load the three carts up and he pat Gary on the back. ¡°I''ll be sending other boats with supplies and they will pick up the rest of the order over the next few months.¡± The captain said. ¡°We''ll pay you during each delivery.¡± Gary nodded. ¡°Good man!¡± The captain said and started to walk away. ¡°Carry on!¡± Gary wasn''t sure what to do with the gold in his hands. ¡°You have pockets.¡± I whispered. ¡°Right!¡± Gary said and quickly dispersed the coins into various pockets to even the load. We left and made the delivery, returned for the last and then left a horse cart, without the horse of course, and left the hand cart. The schooner untied from the dock and cast off as quick as that, then we went back to the garrison to drop off the last of the beds. ¡°I need to talk to the CO.¡± Gary said and pat my shoulder. ¡°Go on back to the maintenance building as quickly as you can, then meet me in front of the main building to let me know if they''ve finished the plans or not.¡± ¡°Sir.¡± I said and saluted with my real hand, then took off running. I went into the maintenance building and over to the pair of workbenches. The wall in front of the new one was much more streamlined with smaller and more detailed maps. The bench also had a lot less papers. They were written on both sides as well. ¡°How are the last stages coming along?¡± ¡°Almost done.¡± Gillis said. ¡°Donna, what are the final figures like?¡± ¡°If we can get every single other part of the plan to work, and I mean every single part with no mess ups, we can get 2,000 troops through the marsh in six weeks.¡± Donna said. ¡°Alex?¡± ¡°I''ve already allotted the proper command structure to handle a little bit more than that, so we''re good.¡± Alex said. ¡°I can safely say that everyone will be on their last nerve by the time they are all there.¡± Gillis said and finished writing out what they said on a piece of paper. ¡°But, they will be there and they will be safe the entire way.¡± She smiled at me. ¡°They''ll also have enough supplies for a month and be fully equipped.¡± I nodded. ¡°Gather it up and let''s go. Gary''s waiting for us.¡± We gathered everything up in the proper order and left the maintenance building. We walked over to the main building and saw Gary was there and looked a little nervous. ¡°I''m not sure we can do this.¡± Gary said. ¡°Our margins of leeway are way too thin.¡± ¡°We''re ready.¡± I said with confidence as I spoke for the others. Gary looked at all of our faces and nodded. The five of us went inside the main building to meet the CO, the Colonel, and probably our fates. For good or for bad, the plan we had come up with was the best we could do. It was either going to work perfectly as planned or it was going to doom us all to a slow and probably painful death. 081 The Colonels Response The five of us stood at attention in the ''at ease'' position and waited as both CO Sandra Rivers and Colonel Ellen Rivers read over the revised plans. We had divided it up into stages, very essential stages that needed to be completed for the next part to work, and so on and so on, with the final stage being inside a new garrison that was less than a mile from the Eastern Empire''s border. It took them a while to go through it all and they didn''t ask a single question the entire time. ¡°Is this it?¡± The Colonel asked. ¡°This is all?¡± ¡°Yes, Ma''am.¡± Gary said. We had agreed that it was better for him to speak, just so the Colonel wouldn''t start screaming at me for being honest about how stupid she was. ¡°This is going to take half as long again as the original plan and it''s a thousand people less.¡± The Colonel said, her face only slightly angry. ¡°Yes, Ma''am.¡± Gary said. ¡°Not only that, each section of the plan has to be done perfectly for the rest to work. Otherwise, it all crumbles into dust.¡± ¡°I don''t like it.¡± The CO said. ¡°Your margins for error are way too thin.¡± ¡°That''s my worry as well, Ma''am.¡± Gary said and he felt a small finger poke his side. ¡°Say it.¡± Gillis whispered. ¡°At least it has a margin for error...¡± Gary said and his face went a little red from both anger and embarrassment. ¡°...unlike the original plan.¡± Both the CO and the Colonel gave him pointed stares. ¡°This version will ensure that the most people will survive the journey. It would take even longer if we tried to enact all safety protocols.¡± Gary said. ¡°We''ve cut out a lot of normal army procedure as well. Each part has the revised regulations needed for that part of the plan.¡± ¡°Yes, we''ve read them.¡± The Colonel said and looked right at me. ¡°I assume this is your doing.¡± I glanced at the others and Alex sighed with a small nod. ¡°Yes, sir. Most of them will only hinder the troops from progressing, to the point that they will be ineffectual during a long deployment. I removed them and only quoted the essential ones needed for order.¡± ¡°Is this what you all think?¡± The Colonel asked the others. ¡°That line of thinking isn''t helping us.¡± The CO said and touched the Colonel''s arm. ¡°It doesn''t matter what they think on an individual level, since they had to agree if they submitted the plans together.¡± The Colonel glared at each of us. ¡°Do you think so little of the army?¡± ¡°You said that this is an emergency situation and we are treating it as such.¡± Gary said, resuming his duty to speak for us. ¡°If we didn''t ease regulations during this trying time, nearly everyone you send into the marsh will die.¡± The Colonel put a hand on her forehead and leaned her elbow on the desk as she sighed. ¡°It''s not enough.¡± ¡°What?¡± Gillis asked. ¡°It''s not enough. We won''t have enough people to sustain a prolonged engagement with the enemy.¡± The Colonel said. ¡°It''s also going to take too long.¡± ¡°We cut it down to the bare minimum safety standards for people.¡± Donna said. ¡°There''s no way, no physical way, to take more than that without causing unnecessary deaths.¡± ¡°That''s not what I meant.¡± The Colonel said. ¡°I gave you a month to implement the plan. As in, get it going and have it done by the end of the month.¡± I felt the others take in sharp breaths and didn''t react myself. ¡°You''ve used up two weeks of that month by coming up with this thing.¡± The Colonel waved at the piles of papers on the desk. ¡°That means, you have only three weeks left to get it done.¡± ¡°You can''t be serious!¡± Gillis asked. ¡°We barely... barely... worked out these bare bones logistics this quickly! Our estimate of six weeks is the fastest it can happen!¡± ¡°It should be spread out to eight weeks, except that we cut out two staging and resupply areas.¡± Alex said. ¡°It puts a strain on everything else; but, they aren''t quite essential to have the whole plan work.¡± The Colonel sighed. ¡°Even if I let these two weeks go, your plan is still too long. This first stage...¡± She picked up the folder and put it on top. ¡°...are you really suggesting we do what this says?¡±This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°We have a lot of troops that we can''t take with us, so why not use them?¡± Gary asked. ¡°You mean kill them.¡± The Colonel said. ¡°They''ll be in minimum danger...¡± Gary started to say. ¡°It''s not minimal danger to fight a goddamn dragon!¡± The Colonel spat. ¡°I''d say it''s three, possibly four now.¡± I corrected. ¡°One to two adults, one teenager, and probably a baby.¡± ¡°You shut up!¡± The Colonel said, angrily. ¡°You''ve already disobeyed the orders I''ve given you!¡± ¡°No, I haven''t.¡± I said and Donna touched my arm. ¡°You''re not helping by antagonizing her.¡± Donna whispered. ¡°She needs to understand that nothing she does in the marsh can happen if the dragons aren''t dealt with.¡± I said. ¡°Even if she waits for winter and the dragons slow down for a few months, travel in the marsh is impossible over long distances.¡± ¡°We put all of that in the report.¡± Donna said. ¡°She didn''t read it all the way through.¡± I said and both the Colonel and the CO looked surprised. ¡°She''s going to cut it from the plan and believe she''s going to save a week, maybe two.¡± ¡°How do you know that?¡± The CO asked. ¡°It''s the only part that anyone would assume won''t affect the rest.¡± I said. ¡°If you skip it, all you''ll do is make parts three and four impossible to complete.¡± ¡°Troop movement and ingredient gathering.¡± Gary reminded them. ¡°You read the report of what happened when Alex and his team encountered the baby dragon.¡± ¡°I also read how you got out of there.¡± The Colonel said. ¡°Just do that again.¡± ¡°I can''t.¡± I said and she squinted her eyes at me. ¡°We had barely touched what the dragons believe is their territory and that was when they found the baby.¡± Alex took in a breath and let it out. ¡°We made them expand their area.¡± ¡°It''s all immaterial.¡± The Colonel said. ¡°I can''t delay the mission to let a few squads of soldiers die in the mouths of dragons for no reason.¡± ¡°Ma''am, you don''t understand.¡± Alex said and she turned her squinted eyes to him. ¡°If the dragon followed us along the path we took over the last few months, which was almost a straight line...¡± Donna gasped. ¡°Our route goes right through their area!¡± ¡°That''s not in the report.¡± The CO said with a bit of a frown. ¡°Yes, it is.¡± I said. ¡°Third page from the back. Map addendum 2.¡± The CO opened the report and flipped to the page and read. Her eyes widened and she looked at me and then at the Colonel. ¡°He''s right. It adds the dragon''s path and potential territory expansion.¡± ¡°I said it doesn''t matter.¡± The Colonel said and plucked the report from her hand and tossed to the side of the desk. ¡°I am ordering you to skip it and to start with part two.¡± _______________ You have a critical choice to make. Will you bow to the whims of the tyrannical Colonel or tell her to shove it? A) Agree. B) Refuse. C) Laugh. D) Lie. E) Negotiate. F) Tell her she''s crazy. G) Leave. H) Choose two. Ha ha. Okay, these are great choices. I thought sarcastically. I don''t want to die and I don''t really want my friends to die, either. So, I''ll choose two. F and then B. _______________ ¡°I''m glad that I have proof that as a Colonel, you are as crazy as you are as a princess.¡± I said and everyone in the room gasped. ¡°I refuse your order. I won''t be a part of killing so many people for no reason.¡± The Colonel frowned and stood up. ¡°You are a conscript in the King''s Army and you will do what you are ordered to do!¡± ¡°As a conscript, I am supposed to be useful to the army for the rest of my life. If you send me out there, you''ll kill me long before my usefulness can be of benefit. Therefore, I refuse to allow you to deny the army my services.¡± ¡°Guards!¡± The Colonel spat and two men came into the office. ¡°Escort this man to the stockade.¡± ¡°Colonel, don''t do this.¡± Gary said. ¡°We need his skills to...¡± ¡°Do you wish to join him?¡± The Colonel asked and Gary shut up. She nodded and the two men motioned for me to leave. I walked out of the office and went right over to the building with the holding cells in it. ¡°Back again.¡± The guard there said and I saluted with the petrified hand. ¡°You still have the best room in the place available.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and walked by him. ¡°I''ll let Diane know.¡± The guard said and the two guards just stared at me as I entered the first cell. I sealed it on three sides, to save the hinges, and laid down on the cot. Now it was time for me to wait. I hadn''t told the others that this was a part of my plan. There was no way that the Colonel was ever going to approve the revised plan, until she admitted her own fault for trying to rush it through in the first place. Her plan was much different and looked to be better for everyone if it was executed. On paper, anyway. The problem was, she had assumed a lot of facts, like the travel times, the terrain, the imminent threats, and even the amount of food someone needed to cross that distance. She assumed normal walking and normal food consumption, which was the worst thing a leader could do. People needed more food when exerting themselves, which I had learned at boot camp. It was the same amount of food that I normally ate, so I didn''t really notice. Gillis on the other hand, had been cleaning her metal food tray by the end of the first month. She had started losing weight as the exercises and running became more intense and they added weights to everyone to get them to perform better. By the end of the second month, I was loading their meal trays with almost double their normal food allotment and they all cleaned it completely. Of course, making the food taste a lot better helped with that, too. I smiled as I remembered that first time the head cook tasted my spiced lamb and saw the look on his face. I wasn''t sure why I was smiling, since it was just food. It''s not like he hadn''t eaten it before and he definitely ate it after that. He ordered it, though. He said that he didn''t want to wait for me to catch another one and we cooked it up together. The kitchen staff and the officers ate really well that week. I closed my eyes and took several deep breaths as I relaxed and let the vigilance technique lapse. I expected the Colonel to set a trial date to charge me with the built up charges I had against me and I was fully prepared to face them. I chuckled for a moment and then fell asleep, sure in the fact that no matter what happened next, I was much too valuable to be hanged. 082 The Trial The next night, Diane visited and we spent some time together. She didn''t stay and left before lights out. She did tell me that she had been called to testify at my trial in two more days. I thanked her for telling me and spent the next two days waiting. It was weird not doing anything for all that time, knowing that there was so much that I could be doing. It was also cutting into the revised plan''s time, which I believed was what the Colonel was doing. When it was time, I was escorted out of my cell by two guards and brought to the same large building that had been used during my last trial. It was the Colonel behind the main desk this time and not the same judge as last time. I wasn''t sure if it was an improvement or not. The place was packed with soldiers and no civilians could be seen, not even Diane. I was seated behind the same table as before and Alex was my defender again. He nodded to me as he sat and I nodded back. ¡°Now that the defendant is here, I''ll read off the charges.¡± The Colonel said and she started to speak. It went on for several minutes as she listed everything that I had done. The problem was, she didn''t give any indication of the circumstances or conditions that the charges had occurred under, so everything sounded much worse than it really was. ¡°...and finally, dereliction of duty.¡± The Colonel said. ¡°That is the full list of charges against the accused.¡± She looked at me. ¡°How do you plead?¡± I stood up and came to attention. ¡°Innocent, with cause.¡± Quite a few people murmured at my words, because a lot of them knew I was guilty of most of them. The Colonel smiled. ¡°You do realize that you are wearing proof around your neck, don''t you?¡± ¡°This proves that the man who stole from me and got away with it, can no longer steal from me or anyone else.¡± ¡°He wasn''t going to...¡± ¡°With increased hostilities with the enemy approaching, Marine Sgt. Russell declared, in front of witnesses, never being punished.¡± I said. ¡°As the injured party, I retaliated to hinder any further attempts by him to continue to rob other soldiers and to defraud the army of even more resources.¡± The Colonel gave me a stern look for a moment, then she took a breath and let it out. ¡°Let''s get the trial started.¡± She looked at a man that I didn''t know as I sat down. ¡°Please present the case to the best of your ability.¡± ¡°Yes, Ma''am.¡± The man said and stood, then he started to talk... and talk... and talked some more. For almost an hour, we all sat there and listened to him drone on and on about the charges and their implications, if they were left to go unpunished. After a short pause, he spoke again. ¡°I would like to call the first witness.¡± I leaned in to Alex and told him to object. Alex gave me a strange look and stood. ¡°I object.¡± He said and both the Colonel and the prosecutor looked surprised, then he bent down to whisper to me. ¡°Why am I objecting?¡± ¡°He made that long opening statement and biased everyone against me. You need to counter it or let me counter it.¡± I whispered back. ¡°Please state your objection.¡± The Colonel prompted and didn''t look happy about the pause in the proceedings. Alex stood up straight and spoke. ¡°The prosecutor''s statements were both argumentative and biased against the defendant. He asked me to object and speak on his behalf.¡± The Colonel sighed. ¡°That can wait until...¡± ¡°No, he''s right.¡± Someone in the audience said and I turned to see Gillis. ¡°The prosecutor bashed David for an hour and I think he deserves a chance to defend himself.¡± ¡°There will be no comments from the gallery.¡± The Colonel said and glared at her cousin and Gillis only smiled back at her. ¡°Very well. The defendant may speak.¡± I stood up and did my best to project my voice. ¡°I have already declared my innocence of the crimes for cause and now I will state it.¡± I said and the entire place went quiet to listen. ¡°I''m the Marsh Man and I didn''t know any better.¡± A lot of people barked a laugh and a few laughed normally. A few people shouted in response and the Colonel banged the desk with her fist several times. ¡°I will have order in this court!¡± The Colonel said and half stood to make everyone quiet down. ¡°The statement you have made is insufficient of a defense.¡± She said to me and sat back down.Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. ¡°When I swore the first oath to the acting CO Sandra Rivers, I had no idea what she was talking about and was told to just agree.¡± I said and a lot of gasps responded. ¡°After I completed basic training and all of the learning lessons they had, the acting CO administered the oath again and I finally understood what everything meant and accepted the oath with the proper knowledge of the situation.¡± Everyone quieted down and all eyes turned to the Colonel. She opened her mouth slightly and then closed it. We all waited for her to speak and it took several minutes before she could. ¡°Mage Lukas.¡± The Colonel said. ¡°He speaks the truth.¡± The Mage said. ¡°So, all of the things he did, he did without the knowledge of exactly what he was doing and without the knowledge of how it impacted his pledge of honor. Not to mention the normal legality of those acts in a civilian setting.¡± The prosecutor said and turned to the Colonel. ¡°In light of his statement, nearly all charges against him are on shaky legal ground, since he was in no mental state to understand what he did was wrong.¡± The Colonel grasped onto what he said immediately, as did I. ¡°The last order I had given him, he refused with full knowledge.¡± She said and the prosecutor nodded. ¡°Then proceed with that one.¡± ¡°I can''t.¡± The prosecutor said. ¡°Excuse me?¡± The Colonel squinted her eyes at him. ¡°I''ve read the witness statements and even talked to several of the officers that were present, yourself included.¡± The prosecutor said. ¡°If the details of it came out in open court, I cannot successfully convict him of disobeying an illegal order.¡± ¡°Ex-CUSE me?¡± The Colonel said loudly. The prosecutor looked around and back to her. ¡°We really should adjourn for a short time and...¡± ¡°Explain yourself right now.¡± The Colonel ordered and he sighed. ¡°You intentionally ordered him to ignore the bare safety minimums of his revised plan and told a newly minted private to send people to their untimely and unnecessary deaths, fully knowing that he has no authority to do so and can''t legally shoulder the responsibility.¡± The prosecutor said and the entire room fell into complete silence. The Colonel''s face went slightly red and I couldn''t tell if it was from anger or embarrassment. ¡°Since there is no higher authority present or within a reasonable contact distance, I cannot in good conscience continue to prosecute this man.¡± The prosecutor said and sat down. ¡°I suggest you dismiss this case before anything else is revealed.¡± The Colonel scowled and I could hear her grinding her teeth. ¡°Because of his incompetence and delays, a member of the royal family, my younger brother Prince Matthew Rivers, is going to die in less than a month.¡± ¡°Did you tell him that?¡± The prosecutor asked. The Colonel didn''t say anything and looked guilty. ¡°Being angry at him for knowledge you didn''t convey to him is as unreasonable as sending hundreds of completely unprepared soldiers to their deaths in a hostile environment.¡± The prosecutor said and her eyes flashed anger. ¡°Transferring that anger to me isn''t going to help, either.¡± The Colonel closed her eyes for several moments and took several deep breaths to calm down. ¡°I need this plan completed as soon as possible.¡± ¡°That is not the goal of this proceeding.¡± The prosecutor said. ¡°It was the guilt or innocence of the defendant. Since he is innocent, this trial cannot continue.¡± ¡°He still committed the crimes.¡± The Colonel said. ¡°All under duress.¡± Alex chimed in. ¡°He was taken out of his normal environment, had rules and regulations he had never heard of imposed on him, and he was given no time to adjust before being put into several very dangerous situations. Two of which he rescued Sgt. Sanders, Marine Sgt. Russell, Staff Sgt. Simms, and myself from.¡± ¡°I''ve read the reports and I also believe that he contributed to put you into those situations.¡± The Colonel said. Alex let out a short sigh. ¡°Actually, I did that. If I had been firmer in my command of the mission...¡± ¡°That is immaterial.¡± The Colonel said. ¡°Private Drake''s proven record of misconduct cannot be tolerated.¡± ¡°Then have your father dismiss me.¡± I said. ¡°Don''t ask him to consider it or try to plead for him to change the situation. You only have to tell him to dismiss me and I''m gone.¡± ¡°I cannot just tell my father to do it.¡± The Colonel said. ¡°Why not? Aren''t you the princess?¡± I asked and she turned her head slightly away. ¡°I don''t belong here. My place is in the marsh where I grew up.¡± ¡°Then why haven''t you left?¡± The Colonel asked as she looked back at me. ¡°Nothing is stopping you.¡± ¡°Except for being declared an escaped conscript by the Gulf Kingdom and shot on sight.¡± I said and a lot of people took in sharp breaths. ¡°That can''t be...¡± Gillis started to say as she looked over at Mage Lukas. He nodded and Gillis didn''t continue her sentence. ¡°I''m glad that I stayed around for a while to learn everything I could from the army, because it sure was a surprise to learn the penalty for desertion in a time of war.¡± The Colonel gave me a forlorn look and sighed, because she knew that she was stuck with me and couldn''t do anything about it. ¡°Case dismissed.¡± There was no uproar, or cheering, or even shouts of surprise or disbelief like there had been the last time. Everyone just sat there and watched as the Colonel stood up and walked to the door at the side of the room. Even when she left, no one really reacted. ¡°Okay, what just happened?¡± Gillis asked into the silence. The prosecutor stood up and gathered the papers he had on his desk. ¡°I believe that Colonel Rivers just received a harsh dose of reality.¡± He said and left through the main door. A few of the people in the audience seemed to catch on to the fact that they could leave as well, then most of them stood up and started to shuffle out. I felt a hand on my shoulder and turned to see Gillis. ¡°I''m going to talk to her.¡± Gillis said. ¡°Remind her of what''s at stake.¡± I said. ¡°David, I''m sure that...¡± ¡°With her brother.¡± I clarified and her eyes widened. ¡°With him gone, her younger sister will be in line for the throne instead.¡± ¡°Oh, no.¡± Gillis said and gripped my shoulder, then she dashed out the side door to run after her cousin. ¡°Are you sure that was wise?¡± Alex asked. ¡°I''d rather have her get angry at me and tell us to start our plan instead of reverting to her own.¡± Alex blinked his eyes for a second, nodded to me, and we left the large building with the crowd. If we were lucky, she wouldn''t wait too long to tell us to mobilize. If we weren''t lucky, then it wouldn''t really matter when we started. 083 Work And A Meal ¡°David!¡± Diane exclaimed as she saw me come out of the building. She waited for a bit of a clear path and ran over to take me into a tight hug. ¡°I didn''t get to testify again!¡± She said and looked at my face. ¡°Please tell me that they aren''t going to kill you.¡± ¡°I could have told you that when you visited.¡± I said and she sighed. ¡°I didn''t know if they would still punish me with more jail time, though.¡± Diane gave me a tender kiss for several seconds. ¡°I don''t know how you can be so calm.¡± ¡°Lots of practice.¡± I said. ¡°Compared to life in the marsh, the army is a piece of cake.¡± Diane laughed softly and gave me another brief kiss. ¡°What did they give you?¡± ¡°Nothing.¡± Alex said. ¡°He was found innocent of all charges.¡± ¡°YES!¡± Diane yelled and my face was suddenly covered in a bunch of kisses. A group of soldiers were marching by with a corporal and one of the soldiers let out a surprised gasp and stopped walking. ¡°MOM!¡± Diane jumped like she had been bitten by a snake. ¡°Spencer!¡± She gasped and let me go as she whirled around to stare at the son that she hadn''t seen in well over a year. Spencer realized he had stopped walking and was now out of formation. He looked a little panicked and confused about what to do. ¡°Resume your march!¡± Alex barked. ¡°You can visit with family when you break for chow!¡± Spencer jumped just like Diane had and saluted. ¡°Yes, sir!¡± He said loudly and ran after his platoon. ¡°S-Spencer.¡± Diane whispered and I put an arm around her waist. ¡°Wh-why... why is he here?¡± Alex gave me a look and I shook my head slightly. Thankfully, he understood what I meant. ¡°We''re being heavily reinforced in case an offensive happens within the next two months.¡± ¡°An offensive? Where? We''re so far away from where the war is happening.¡± Diane said. ¡°We can''t divulge the details.¡± I said and turned her to face me. ¡°Just know that I''ll do my best to protect him and all the other soldiers that will be involved.¡± ¡°Y-y-you?¡± Diane asked, surprised. ¡°But...¡± ¡°It''s all right.¡± I said and gave her a tender kiss. ¡°If you want to help, you can visit Mrs. Hansen and see if she has any of her sweet cookie bread for him.¡± Diane''s eyes sparkled. ¡°I''ll do just that!¡± ¡°Make sure to suggest that he share it with his platoon mates.¡± I cautioned her and she nodded. ¡°I know. Jealously and envy are the bane of a close knit group of people.¡± Diane said. I smiled and gave her a brief kiss. ¡°See you later.¡± ¡°Yes, you will.¡± Diane said, her eyes hard, then she gave me a huge smile and walked off at a fast pace. ¡°She would make a great Warrant Officer.¡± Gary said as he came over to us. ¡°That command stare was something else.¡± Alex chuckled and nodded. ¡°What''s up?¡± ¡°David and I need to get those cart orders done.¡± Gary said. ¡°The Colonel''s been extra angry that I haven''t been able to make them by myself for the last three days.¡± Alex nodded. ¡°I imagine the gold is desperately needed for supplies for the brigade.¡± ¡°It''s almost paying for itself, actually.¡± Gary said. ¡°The best part is that it doesn''t affect our plans.¡± ¡°That''s a relief.¡± Alex said and nodded to me. ¡°I''ll let everyone know as soon as the Colonel makes a decision, one way or the other.¡± I nodded back and Gary and I went to the maintenance building to get to work. He already had the necessary parts for quite a few of them and I gave him a surprised look. ¡°Just because I couldn''t put them together, that didn''t mean I didn''t work on them.¡± Gary said. I pat his shoulder and we started assembling the pieces. We ran out of wood pieces fairly quickly and had to go harvest some more. Luckily, Gary had a lot of the metal moving parts around, so I wouldn''t need to make a trip to the next town for a couple of days. We stopped to eat lunch in the mess hall and saw the commotion at one of the tables. Diane was there with Spencer and his face was as red as his hair. The troops around him were laughing and carrying on as they gobbled down Mrs. Hansen''s dessert and Diane was talking softly to him. He barely spoke and only nodded occasionally. ¡°At least your idea for the dessert worked well.¡± Alex said from behind us and I turned to see him and Donna with their own food trays. ¡°Mind if we sit down?¡±This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. I shook my head and he and Donna sat across from myself and Gary. ¡°No word yet?¡± Alex shook his head and started eating. ¡°There''s no sign of Gillis or the CO, either.¡± ¡°The mages are staying quiet as well.¡± Donna said. ¡°Which is great for me, because I only have to deal with a few hundred unruly soldiers every day.¡± ¡°How many staff sergeants are in the garrison?¡± I asked. ¡°Four.¡± Donna said. ¡°When the rest of the brigade shows up over the next few weeks, we''ll have five hundred each to look after.¡± I turned to Alex. ¡°How is the setup going?¡± ¡°I''ve already earmarked the people we need for the assault on the dragon''s den... or nest... or whatever it is they use.¡± Alex said. ¡°I really wish the mages would get off their asses and tell me if they''ve tracked the dragon''s magic signature or not.¡± I sat there and thought about it for a few minutes while we ate. If they are magical creatures, then that would mean that their choice of nesting area makes sense. Just like the marsh panthers, they must have been attracted to the fungus blooms for their high magical content. I thought. If the fungus grows there and it''s perpetual summer, then the dragons won''t suffer during the winter at all. ¡°I''m sure they have to wait for the Colonel''s approval to tell you.¡± Donna said. Alex glanced at her and then sighed. ¡°I didn''t think of that.¡± ¡°That''s because personnel management is my job.¡± Donna said with a smile. I noticed Diane as she stood up and I leaned slightly to the side to watch her. She pat her son''s hand, thanked him and his platoon mates for letting her join them for lunch, and came over to my table. She carried a handbag and when she reached me, she dug into the bag and pulled out a small loaf of the sweet cookie bread. ¡°Mrs. Hansen said to thank you.¡± Diane said and bent over slightly to give me a discreet kiss. ¡°Here''s a note from her. She said if you could, the next time you go for supplies, she could use a restock.¡± She gave me the note and two gold coins. ¡°She''s burned through all that so quickly?¡± I asked. Diane nodded. ¡°She also made a lot of money, especially from the troops.¡± ¡°How''s Gloria?¡± I asked. ¡°Happy as can be and still making money.¡± Diane said with a huge smile. ¡°She''s also growing like a weed. She''s up to here on me already.¡± She put a hand level with the bottom of her chest and laughed. ¡°I don''t know if it''s from all the breads and sweets she''s eating or what!¡± Donna laughed, too. ¡°I can just imagine she''s rising as much as the dough is!¡± Diane nodded happily. ¡°I better go. I need to get back to the store.¡± She glanced around and bent down to give me another kiss and whispered. ¡°I''ll be by to visit tonight.¡± ¡°I''ll leave the door open to my shop.¡± I whispered back. Diane nodded left with a smile on her face. A few people watched her leave, both men and women. ¡°I''ve been wondering something.¡± I said and Gary, Alex and Donna turned their attention to me. ¡°When I was in basic training, there was only a couple of handfuls of women on the whole base and only one in my boot camp.¡± ¡°I know where this is going.¡± Alex said with a smirk. ¡°Donna, this is all yours.¡± ¡°Gee, thanks.¡± Donna said. ¡°Go ahead and ask, David.¡± ¡°Why are there so many women in the Colonel''s command?¡± I asked. ¡°I knew it.¡± Alex chuckled. Donna took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°It''s quite simple, really. Women aren''t as discriminated against here.¡± ¡°I don''t understand.¡± I said. Donna looked at Alex for help and he shook his head. ¡°You''re really leaving it all to me?¡± ¡°You''re the target of the conversation and you know my own view on it.¡± Alex said and didn''t bother to see if anyone was looking as he leaned in and gave her a kiss. ¡°I''ve got to get back to work.¡± I quickly cut the bread into six pieces and handed him one. ¡°Thanks.¡± Alex said and left. I gave Gary and Donna a piece each, then ate my piece as I waited for Donna to explain. Donna took her time to cut her piece up and added butter to her now multiple pieces, then she started to talk. I already knew about the class segregation of society for normal people and some of the ways in which women were lesser in some people''s eyes. That was usually done by the really rich people like lords that had both wives and mistresses and made sure that women ''knew their place'' in their households. What I hadn''t known was that there was a general acceptance by the population that women were considered inferior to men. Personally, I thought that was crazy, because I grew up with one of the strongest women I had ever known. No man, not even me, could ever compare to the Hag. I met Diane years later and she was strong and authoritative, because she helped run a store that a lot of people needed to live, myself included. I definitely did not believe that her father was a better person than her, or stronger, or even a nice person in general. That was when I realized that society believed that women were weaker, both physically and emotionally. I couldn''t really argue against the weaker physically part, since that was how a lot of women lived normal lives. They worked at home, raised kids, and took care of their families. Finding women that didn''t want to do that was as difficult as it was to find a man that wanted to do it instead. Then again, the CO, the Colonel, the XO and the drill sergeant at the training base, and even Gillis were all doing their best to have military careers. What was funny was, most of them were enlisted and weren''t what they called ''line officers''. Almost none of them could rise above commander of a large group of troops, possibly a base, and that was only if the position wasn''t already taken. On the emotion side, women did react more than men; but, they also handled it better. From my own personal experience, not including the Hag because she was pretty crazy, women steeled themselves to face hardships much more quickly than men did. They accepted it and moved on, like Diane did. She was devastated when her son left her to join the army, mainly because that was how she had lost her husband, Spencer''s father. When I mentioned opening her own shop to distract her, she was all over it. She needed something to do to keep her mind off of her son and what could potentially happen with him in danger all the time, and she threw all of her effort and strength into getting the store up and running. It was pretty admirable, now that I knew what that word meant, because she told me what she had gone through to do it. ¡°Well, ignoring all of that nonsense, I hope the Colonel decides to use our plan.¡± I said and Donna and Gary looked surprised at my words. ¡°If we do it and are even partially successful, they can''t say that she''s not fit for her post.¡± ¡°D-David... you...¡± Donna paused and looked like she wasn''t sure what to say. ¡°I have nothing against the princess, or the Colonel when she''s wearing the hat.¡± I said and stood. ¡°It''s not me that will ruin her career, assuming she wants it in the first place. It''s her hasty and ill-informed decisions that could be disastrous.¡± Donna reluctantly nodded and Gary stood up. ¡°Let''s get back to work.¡± Gary said and nodded at Donna. ¡°Ma''am.¡± ¡°See you later.¡± Donna said and looked at me. ¡°Bye, David.¡± ¡°Goodbye, Donna.¡± I said and walked away before she could comment about me using her name. 084 Work, Work, Go! Gary and I worked hard for the rest of the day and it passed by in a flash. Diane visited me that evening and we had a great time. She was quite grateful that my dessert idea had given her a perfect opportunity to talk to her son and worked out a few things, while also endearing herself and him to his platoon mates. The more that they were okay with her being around, the more time she got to spend with her son to patch things up between them. After that, a few days passed by and I had to eat the two pieces of sweet bread that I had saved for Gillis before they went bad. I made the trip to the next town to buy more mechanical parts for the carts Gary and I needed to make to fund the brigade. I also bought another load of supplies from Steve, who wore a coat that was made from one of the marsh panther pelts. ¡°Thanks so much for giving Diane the extra pelt pieces.¡± Steve said as his men filled the order. ¡°It let me make a pile of money from the main pelts and still have enough left over to reward myself with this.¡± ¡°It looks good.¡± I said. ¡°Good? It looks deadly!¡± Steve said and laughed. ¡°I have to fight the women off with a stick.¡± ¡°Really?¡± I asked and glanced around for a stick big enough to beat someone away with. ¡°Ha ha! No, my friend. This stick.¡± Steve said and motioned to between his legs. I nodded understanding. After being in the army for about four months, I should have guessed that''s what he meant. I needed to remember the drill sergeant''s lessons constantly, so I wouldn''t mess up common sense things. There sure were a lot of things to keep track of, though. ¡°I''m throwing in an extra bag of sugar and a big bag of raisins for you, just as a treat.¡± Steve said and nodded at the barrel of spices the crew were loading onto the cart. ¡°Are you sure you really need that many preservation spices?¡± ¡°I''d rather have them close at hand, rather than come all this way to get more if I end up short.¡± Steve chuckled. ¡°I hear that.¡± He said and leaned in close. ¡°If you find any more exotic animals parts, make sure to give me first shot at buying them... after Diane, of course. I''m not cutting out one of my best customers. We''ve been through too much stuff over the years to screw each other over.¡± ¡°I know. She said you were a good guy, even for a back-door dealing scoundrel.¡± ¡°Bwahahaha!¡± Steve guffawed. ¡°Ain''t she wonderful?¡± He asked and I nodded. ¡°She''s a great woman to have on your side.¡± ¡°I''m lucky to have her.¡± ¡°Damn right.¡± Steve said and looked at the cart. ¡°Looks like you''re all loaded up.¡± He took my hand and shook it. ¡°Thanks again. Anytime you need anything, you know where to go.¡± ¡°To Diane.¡± I said and he laughed. ¡°Get your ass back home to her and tell her she misses you.¡± Steve said and waved as I hopped on the cart and it took me to the dock. The boat was quickly loaded up and I used the enchantments to take off at a moderate speed after poling out to a good distance. I made it back to the garrison without incident and used a new hand cart to load everything up, leaving Mrs. Hansen''s supplies for last. I went to her place first to drop them off and she was very grateful for the delivery. I noticed that her house was much nicer and she even had a separate room built on to hold the ingredients. I showed her the bag of raisins and she wasn''t sure what to make of them. I had a small bag before and they had been eaten by the others while they were out scouting the Eastern Empire and I was unconscious. I had completely forgotten about them, especially since it hadn''t been listed on the requisitioned provisions form that Alex had submitted with the potions they had taken at the time. It still annoyed me that they had wasted so many doses during that mission and used up my whole supply. I was also surprised that the snake juice had actually worked, since they didn''t administer it properly. I had to assume that either they didn''t get that big of a dose of venom from the snakes, or the snakes themselves weren''t venomous, which would be that much more annoying for me. I pushed the thought away, because like the drill sergeant said, going over the past wrongs would only make me angrier and wouldn''t let me get past it. ¡°Go ahead and taste them.¡± I said and ate some myself. It was a huge bag, so they would last me a long time. ¡°Mmm! They''re delicious!¡± Mrs. Hansen said. ¡°What are?¡± Gloria asked as she came into the kitchen. ¡°Oh! Hi, Marsh Man!¡± ¡°Hi, Gloria.¡± I said and she came over to me and hugged me. When the protection ward touched me, I felt that it was quite a bit weaker than when I had first made it. ¡°I want to try baking a batch of my sweet cookie bread and throw some of these in when I''m mixing it up.¡± Mrs. Hansen said. ¡°Could I have some of them?¡± ¡°Do you have a small bag?¡± I asked. She nodded and went to the kitchen to get one. I knelt and looked at Gloria. ¡°Diane was right. You are growing like a weed.¡± I said and she blushed a little. ¡°Can I borrow the ward for a minute?¡± ¡°Sure.¡± Gloria said and took it off to hand to me. I put my hand on it and infused my magic into it. It glowed for nearly thirty seconds before I felt it reach its limit. ¡°There. Now it''ll work all winter and it works a lot farther out, too.¡± ¡°THANK YOU!¡± Gloria yelled and hugged me around the neck. Mrs. Hansen came back into the living room and saw her daughter trying to strangle me. It made her laugh. ¡°Gloria, let the poor man breathe.¡± ¡°S-sorry.¡± Gloria said and let me go. ¡°It''s okay.¡± I said and pat her head after I hung the ward back on her neck. ¡°If you want to know a secret...¡± I leaned close and whispered. ¡°...Diane hugs me just as tightly.¡± Gloria gave me a big smile and hugged the ward. ¡°Here''s the bag.¡± Mrs. Hansen said and I dumped about a quarter of the large bag into it to almost fill it. ¡°That''s good!¡± She said and I closed the big bag. ¡°Thank you. I''ll save you a loaf from this batch, so you can taste the difference in...¡± She stopped talking when I took the small bag from her hand and put the large bag in it. ¡°D-David, what...¡±A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ¡°I know how big your dough batches are.¡± I said and took a handful of raisins out of the small bag and gave them to Gloria. She took them without question and ate a couple, moaned like her mother had at the taste, then shoved the whole handful into her mouth. ¡°Gloria!¡± Mrs. Hansen exclaimed. Gloria had to cover her mouth to stop her laugh and probably from spitting them out. She chomped and chewed for several minutes, occasionally made swallowing sounds, and her mother and I watched her the whole time. She eventually finished them and took a deep breath. ¡°Those were good!¡± Mrs. Hansen shook her head. ¡°Get your butt into the kitchen and prep the kneading table with some flour.¡± ¡°Yes, momma.¡± Gloria said and eyed the still open bag of raisins I had in my hand. I glanced at Mrs. Hansen and she sighed. ¡°At least she didn''t choke on them or force them down. She made sure to chew them all first.¡± Mrs. Hansen said. ¡°If you want her to have another handful, she can have them.¡± ¡°THANK YOU!¡± Gloria yelled and hugged her mother tightly for exactly two seconds, dipped her hand into the bag I held and then took off running, laughing the whole way. ¡°At least she has small hands.¡± Mrs. Hansen said. ¡° Thank you, David.¡± ¡°You''re welcome.¡± I said and closed up the bag and tucked it into the large thigh pocket of my army pants. I left her house after saying goodbye and took the hand cart back to the garrison. I had arrived just in time, because as soon as I stepped into the maintenance building to greet Gary and offload the mechanical parts, Alex burst in through the door and was out of breath. ¡°David!¡± Alex gasped and bent over to try and make it easier to breathe. ¡°I am... definitely out of shape.¡± He said and stood up. ¡°The CO wants to see us right away.¡± The three of us left the building and met up with Donna on the way. We arrived at the main building and went inside. The secretary there waved us through and Alex knocked once on the door, then opened it. Inside were four people, Colonel Ellen Rivers, CO Sandra Rivers, Private Gillis, and Mage Lukas. Sandra sat behind the desk and not the Colonel. ¡°Reporting as ordered.¡± Alex said and the four of us came to attention and saluted. ¡°At ease.¡± Sandra saluted back and looked at me. ¡°I assume Private Drake just returned.¡± ¡°Yes, ma''am. I haven''t even unloaded the maintenance order from the cart.¡± I said. Sandra smiled. ¡°Good. I like hustle and priorities... especially now that you''ll be starting your plan.¡± ¡°We have the go ahead?¡± Alex asked, surprised. Sandra nodded. ¡°Despite the events that have transpired over the last three weeks and how a certain person handled those events, we''ve gone over your plans in detail over the last few days.¡± She glanced at Gillis and gave her a smile, then spread it over Gary, Alex, Donna, and myself. ¡°It''s an ingenious plan and is almost too smart to have work on the first try.¡± That didn''t sound good. I thought. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Alex asked. ¡°We can''t afford for it to fail, so we''re doubling up on everything and...¡± Sandra said. ¡°What?¡± Donna gasped and then blushed. ¡°Please forgive the interruption.¡± Sandra smiled and nodded. ¡°I expected at least one of you to react like that.¡± She said and looked at me. ¡°I even bet Jacqueline a steak dinner that it would be you.¡± ¡°I think I know why.¡± I said and looked at Mage Lukas. ¡°One of the first things we need to do is figure out how to duplicate your marsh magic on another boat.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°If we can do that and have a mage pilot the second boat, we can move everyone twice as fast.¡± Both Gillis and Donna let out short sighs. ¡°No, it''s not like that.¡± Sandra said. ¡°Instead of 2,000 troops going on the first run, only 1,500 will make the first trip. That cuts down on both the danger and the amount of people per boatload.¡± ¡°No, that''s not possible.¡± Alex said. ¡°I''ve allotted the plan to work if each piece fits perfectly. Changing the boatloads of personnel right before the mission will mess everything up.¡± ¡°You''re a logician. Figure it out.¡± The Colonel said. ¡°If it were that easy, we wouldn''t have spent two weeks working the whole damn thing out.¡± Alex said. ¡°Pardon my language.¡± ¡°I thought you would be happy that we were using your plan.¡± Sandra said and looked a little confused. ¡°I would be ecstatic if you actually used it and didn''t change anything.¡± Alex said. ¡°Even just having an extra powered boat is going to change the movement logistics to the point that we have to restructure the supplies shipped on each boat run and change who goes on which boat.¡± ¡°I''m sure it''s not that difficult to...¡± The Colonel started to say. _______________ You have a minor choice to make. It will affect your standing with all three present members of the Royal family. A) Stay silent. B) Yell. C) Tell her she''s wrong again. D) Leave. E) Laugh. F) Sigh. G) Choose two. I''m not messing around this time. I''m choosing C. _______________ ¡°You can''t always do things your way.¡± I said and interrupted her, which surprised everyone. ¡°No matter how smart you think you are, you don''t know everything.¡± ¡°How dare you!¡± The Colonel spat. ¡°Look at what happened to me when I tried to do what I wanted.¡± I said and showed my hands, then I waved at the room. ¡°I acted like I thought was right and now I''m a permanent member of the army.¡± Donna''s hand reached sideways and touched my arm briefly. ¡°It took me a long time to realize that I need to rely on others for help.¡± I took a step forward and became the only person she glared at, in the hope that she wouldn''t spread her growing anger over the others. The Colonel stepped forward as well. ¡°I don''t need you to lecture me on...¡± ¡°You have to stop whatever you think you''re doing and you have to realize the same truth that I have.¡± I interrupted again and she squinted her eyes at me. ¡°What truth is that?¡± The Colonel asked. ¡°You can''t face the world all alone.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°But... I...¡± ¡°You need to trust someone.¡± ¡°I... I don''t know if...¡± Ellen paused and reached up to take off her hat. ¡°I''m not an idiot.¡± She said and placed the hat on the CO''s desk. ¡°Isn''t an idiot someone that doesn''t know a lot of things?¡± I asked and she closed her eyes. ¡°I''m an idiot, too.¡± Ellen opened her eyes to look at me and she looked more than surprised. ¡°Y-you...¡± ¡°I learned so much since leaving the marsh.¡± I said. ¡°I bet you learned a lot since leaving the castle.¡± ¡°I... I did.¡± Ellen said and I could see in her face that she was surprised that I had compared myself to her. ¡°I know some of what Gary knows. I know some of what Alex knows. I know almost nothing about what Donna knows.¡± I said and Donna laughed under her breath. ¡°Gillis knows different stuff, too.¡± ¡°Oh, my god. David, don''t call us all idiots.¡± Gillis said and a few people laughed under their breath like Donna had. I smiled a little bit and looked at Ellen. ¡°We can all be idiots sometimes.¡± ¡°I said not to say it!¡± Gillis sighed and shook her head and nearly everyone laughed, except for Ellen and myself. ¡°How many times do you think you can get away with telling the First Princess of the Gulf Kingdom that she''s an idiot?¡± ¡°At least once more. She hasn''t sent a message to her father yet.¡± Ellen caught her breath. ¡°How do you know that?¡± ¡°You need me.¡± I said. ¡°I...¡± Ellen looked deep into my eyes and sighed. ¡°I do. I really do.¡± It was Sandra''s and Gillis'' turn to gasp. ¡°David, please. I need your help.¡± Ellen said and put her hands on my chest. ¡°If we go with your plan and only change the personnel load on the boats by adding a second double boat, the movement schedule will be reduced by half. You can have both work crews building in tandem right from the start and you won''t need to take double the breaks. The boats can stay and bring the crews to each site and not have to keep travelling.¡± I looked at Gary and he looked surprised for a moment, then he frowned. ¡°Gary.¡± ¡°It... well, if we put twice the building parts into two boats and have access to two crews right away...¡± ¡°We''ll need a few hours.¡± Alex said and looked at Donna. ¡°Do you feel like one more frantic calculation session?¡± Donna looked at me and nodded. ¡°I think if David''s in, we''re all in.¡± Everyone looked at me, even Mage Lukas, and I saw hope on all of their faces. I looked at Ellen''s face and could see that she didn''t know what I was going to say. _______________ You really should have a choice here. I mean, it''s a pivotal moment, isn''t it? Yeah, it''s so pivotal that it could derail the whole thing. So, go ahead and choose. I just hope you make the right one. A) Agree and get to work. I almost laughed when a one second timer popped up and then disappeared. It chose A as the default. _______________ ¡°I''m in.¡± Gary and Gillis did a high five, Alex and Donna clasped hands for a moment, and Ellen gave me a very happy smile, which was something that surprised everyone else in the room. ¡°Let''s get to work.¡± Ellen said and we went to the desk to start revising the plan. Ellen''s Colonel hat remained on the desk, untouched. 085 Relearn What You Have Learned It took us four hours to get the revised numbers and schedule worked out. Only a slight reshuffling of the supplies for each boat load was necessary, since we would just be loading the second double boat with what we would have loaded onto the first several hours later. We just had to add a second crew to load the barge boats while we were gone with the first ones. We weren''t going to waste all the efforts that the boatbuilder had been expending on the army''s behalf and they had a large amount of flat bottomed boats for us to use. At last count, they had just enough for our use to get us all to the new site, then the boats would be harvested for their materials and used to construct the new garrison. ¡°Oh, my god.¡± Gillis whispered as we all stared down at the new plans. ¡°I can''t believe that worked.¡± ¡°It''s still going to be tight, safety wise.¡± Gary said. ¡°However, it does give us some room to have little things happen and it won''t affect the whole too much.¡± ¡°This still hinges on getting a few mages to learn David''s marsh magic.¡± Sandra the CO said. ¡°They don''t have to learn everything about it.¡± I corrected. ¡°They only need to learn how to use it.¡± ¡°That is a fine distinction.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°How will they operate it if they don''t know how it works?¡± I smiled and pointed to Gary. ¡°Thanks to him, we''ve had the boatbuilders add in rudders to the backs of the flat bottomed boats for steering. The mages only need to use their magic to power the boats and a more experienced boat handler can steer it, rather than taxing the mages to do something they probably have no experience with.¡± Donna looked at me with surprise. ¡°That''s how you were extending your operating times in the plans! You''ll be physically turning the boat and only using your magic to propel it!¡± I nodded. ¡°I can travel all day without rest if I minimize the amount of magic I use for movement.¡± Mage Lukas took in a deep breath and let it out. ¡°What is the minimum requirement for powering the boats?¡± ¡°I need mages who can infuse at least three potions in order.¡± I said and it was his turn to look surprised. ¡°That might be a difficult order to fill.¡± Mage Lukas said and glanced at Princess Ellen. ¡°David, remember that this brigade is where I had to reinforce with the worst of the worst.¡± Ellen said. ¡°I took everyone that was willing to come, no matter how inexperienced.¡± I had to think about that. ¡°If they can do at least one, we could add a second and third mage to make sure the boat has continuous power.¡± Donna nodded when I looked at her. ¡°One of the provisions is extra slots for backup mages, in case someone gets hurt or can''t continue.¡± ¡°I''ve allotted spaces for them in the convoy command structure, too.¡± Alex said and looked at Mage Lukas. ¡°That''s only until we get to the destination, though. Once there, they''ll be back under your authority and responsibility.¡± Mage Lukas waved the comment away. ¡°I can bring two or three people with me, if all they need to do is be able to infuse a single potion.¡± ¡°How many can you do?¡± I asked. ¡°Mage Griffin at the training base could only do four.¡± Mage Lukas smiled. ¡°I''ve been working for the Royal family for fifteen years. I can do seven consecutive potion batches before I''m too weak to move.¡± ¡°You''ve had a lot of practice.¡± I said and he nodded. ¡°Do you need the backup mage?¡± Mage Lukas smiled. ¡°As Staff Sergeant Simms has smartly reasoned, I''ll take them just in case.¡± ¡°Then we should put them on both boats. An extra on the main boat and two with the cargo.¡± I said. ¡°I''m sure that I can find six capable people from the available mages.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°Assuming you don''t mind a woman or two being there.¡± ¡°I''d prefer them.¡± I said and he widened his eyes. ¡°I''ve had more pleasant experiences with women on both a professional and personal level. Men, not so much.¡± ¡°Hey, now.¡± Gary said and Alex gave me a look. ¡°You''re two out of how many men I''ve encountered, most of which have treated me harshly?¡± I asked and they exchanged looks for a second, then nodded. ¡°Steve is pretty good, too.¡± Alex sighed as he thought about it. ¡°The ratio of women treating you harshly right off the bat is definitely a lot less.¡± ¡°I think it''s because men see me as a threat and women seem to sympathize with me.¡± I glanced at the princess. ¡°Mostly.¡± Ellen sighed. ¡°David, I love my little brother dearly and I will do anything I can to take the pressure off of his shoulders. I tried desperately to get this plan enacted to achieve that, because even if the Eastern Empire diverts a fraction of their troops to fight against this offensive, the face of the entire war will change just enough to reduce the danger he''s in.¡± ¡°It''s your older brother doing this.¡± Gillian said and Ellen hissed. ¡°Yes, I know you don''t want to hear that from me again; but, it took Sandra and I three days to convince you that this plan was the best option you had and that David wasn''t denying your original plan to spite you.¡± Ellen looked from her to me. ¡°They said that; but, were you doing it to spite me?¡±This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. ¡°You mean like you putting me on trial in the middle of all this?¡± I asked. Ellen''s face went sad. ¡°I was... I wanted to force you to get to work. If I found you guilty of any of the charges, I could make you do it without questioning why it had to be done.¡± ¡°David''s right. You can''t just say ''do it because I said so''.¡± Sandra the CO said and touched her cousin''s arm. ¡°We all have to be on the same page and working towards success, or this whole thing will be for nothing.¡± Ellen nodded. ¡°I know, it''s just... I have a hard time with...¡± She glanced at me. ¡°...trusting someone.¡± ¡°It takes time and that''s not really what we have a lot of at the moment.¡± Alex said and tapped the plans. ¡°We''re going to need those mages brought up to speed as soon as possible.¡± Ellen looked at the mechanical clock and then at me. ¡°You''ve got six hours to teach them how to work the boats. We sleep tonight and then at dawn, the first mission starts.¡± ¡°Dragon hunting.¡± Everyone said as one. Ellen smiled. ¡°Alex, let the strike platoons know. Gary, get the heavy work crews to load the boats with the half-size catapults and ammunition. Donna, set priority for them to eat first thing in the morning. We don''t want hungry men traipsing around in the marsh and hoping for food.¡± ¡°I''ll alert the mess hall to precook everything and they just have to reheat it in the morning.¡± Donna said. ¡°Good thinking.¡± Ellen said. ¡°Mage Lukas, I assume you have your best mages prepped for an assault.¡± Mage Lukas nodded. ¡°Two for each strike team. One offensive and one defensive.¡± ¡°I assume they won''t crisscross with the boat operators?¡± Ellen asked. ¡°That''s why I wanted to know the minimum magic needed. The loss of them as a combatant won''t impact our fighting force at all.¡± ¡°Excellent.¡± Ellen said. ¡°Thank you all for this.¡± She said and reached down to pick up her Colonel hat and placed it on her head. ¡°Dismissed.¡± We all saluted, even Mage Lukas, and we left the office to complete our assigned tasks. I asked Mage Lukas to bring the people he thought could be used to the meeting room in the main building and I went to my building. I unsealed the hidden compartment under my bed and pulled out my old pack and dug out all of the wildwood wooden coins I had. I had already engraved them previously for use and felt that they had been expended of all magic. I took out my knife and charged it up, then carefully sliced off the previous engravings. I knew the protection, weight, and the movement enchantments off by heart and I had practised so much making them from scratch that I knew what parts were needed for each effect. I took out my carving tools and very carefully carved out a very basic movement enchantment for forward only. I also added a lot of errors, so that not only wouldn''t it accept a lot of magic, which was perfect for low magic users, it would also only go so fast. I had planned on going slow because of the tandem boats; but, if someone else was the one controlling it, I did not want them discovering the entire enchantment or what it could really do. I did the same with the weight enchantment. It wouldn''t completely lift the boat like mine did and would only negate so much of the weight, as to not slow down the movement of both boats. I made three of each and infused them to activate the enchantments, so I could add them to each of the other three boats. I would need to find a good wildwood tree in order to make them for the rest of the cargo boats that would only need the weight enchantment. I did the protection ward last and reduced the area of effect to that of what the Hag had originally used when I was a kid. It was actually more difficult for me to make it like that, because it took a lot more skill to make them not work at their full potential and it brought back a lot of bad memories, especially of them failing and having to deal with all the creatures that had sneaked in to kill us. I made a three foot wide wooden box for them and added one of each enchantment to it after fortifying them. I sealed the box with number ten potion and it looked like a normal thick piece of wood, because there was nothing remarkable about it. I did two more and added the other enchantments to them, then sealed them as well. No one could open them without damaging the enchantments, since damaging their container damaged them. I had learned that lesson when I cut up the small boat to extend it. I had to replace the enchantments because I couldn''t get the old ones to work again. I took all three boards with me and went to the main building and stepped inside. The secretary there smiled and waved slightly to me, which was a bit of a surprise, so I waved back. Her smile grew and she didn''t speak, so I entered the meeting room off to the left. Inside were seven mages, three of which were men, three of them women, and Mage Lukas. They sat around the large table and were waiting for me. ¡°Hold on, you were serious?¡± One of the men asked Mage Lukas. ¡°An army private is going to teach us magic?¡± Mage Lukas glared at him and he quieted down. ¡°No, he''s going to show us how to use it.¡± I put the three pieces of wood on the table and a few curious glances came my way and a few went right to the wood. Two of the women and one of the men looked at the wood with intense stares. Mage Lukas turned to look at the wood himself and then looked at me. ¡°That''s your marsh magic?¡± He asked, surprised. ¡°Enchantments?¡± ¡°Enchantments!¡± One of the women exclaimed and almost jumped out of her seat. ¡°I knew that''s what I felt!¡± I nodded and sat down. ¡°I''ve been using them for years; but, my knowledge is very limited. I couldn''t read for the first half of my life.¡± I said and the women looked sad and the men looked annoyed. ¡°Once I did start to learn, I still couldn''t read what the enchantments were about.¡± ¡°You learned by copying them.¡± Mage Lukas said and I nodded again. ¡°The Hag only made a few of them and those are the only ones I know.¡± ¡°I don''t see how this helps us if you only know two or three enchantments.¡± The same man said. ¡°Please be quiet while he explains.¡± Mage Lukas said and gave the man another glare. The man sighed and crossed his arms over his mage robe. ¡°The three main enchantments that I know are for movement...¡± ¡°No WAY!¡± The excited woman exclaimed and actually stood this time. ¡°Mage Henrietta.¡± Mage Lukas said sternly. ¡°I''m sorry! It''s just... I''ve only heard stories...¡± ¡°Please sit.¡± Mage Lukas motioned for her to do so. ¡°Yes, sir.¡± Mage Henrietta said and sat down. ¡°...reducing weight...¡± I said and two of the men sucked in a quick breath. ¡°...and a ward of protection from creatures of a moderate size and smaller.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Mage Lukas said and everyone looked completely shocked. ¡°Is it possible? Can he really have one of the Noble House''s secrets?¡± One of the women asked. ¡°He claims he does.¡± One of the men said. ¡°We''d have to see it work for ourselves to be sure.¡± ¡°It''s in the reports from the Eastern Empire scouting mission that First Lieutenant Smith led.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°Animals fled from them as they passed over a small land piece to get to another waterway.¡± ¡°Oh, god!¡± The excited woman said and seemed to shake a little. ¡°We get to use fabled magic!¡± ¡°If you can handle it.¡± One of the men said to her. ¡°Just watch me!¡± The excited woman said and gave me a happy smile. ¡°Please, teach us how to work your marsh magic!¡± I couldn''t deny that it was nice to have someone else that was so eager to listen to me, since I thought that having Diane was all I would ever find, then I found Gillis and she was almost as eager. Now here was a mage, of all people, and that should have been impossible. I glanced at the other faces around the table and even the skeptical man was looking interested in how it worked. ¡°The Hag only taught me about how to do it after I discovered how to do it by accident.¡± I said and that made the excited woman squeal a little. She apparently loved finding things out like that. ¡°I should probably tell you about it, then let you experience it for yourselves.¡± ¡°Please do.¡± The woman said and gave me a huge smile. 086 Lessons Learned They all listened as I described the few times I had been in the old small boat and just wished really hard that the boat wasn''t so hard to push and to go faster. The excited woman''s face was almost glowing with delight, the skeptical man''s interest had waned, and the two men that had been interested in the weight enchantment had perked right up. ¡°Are you serious right now?¡± One of them asked. ¡°You felt the weight through the enchantment?¡± ¡°Yes, except that I think it''s my perception of the weight.¡± I said. ¡°I''ve had years to think about it and as far as I can tell, when you use magic on it, it feels like a cannon ball that gets smaller.¡± ¡°That''s exactly what it''s supposed to feel like.¡± One of the two men said. ¡°You really do have a weight lowering enchantment.¡± ¡°What does the movement one feel like?¡± The excited woman asked. I thought about that for a moment. ¡°It''s like putting your hand into a slow moving stream of water.¡± ¡°If that''s true, then... to move... you would have to make the stream move faster, wouldn''t you?¡± I nodded and she let out a little squeal of delight. ¡°I don''t know how to describe the protection ward.¡± ¡°You don''t have to. Most of us felt it when you came into the room.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°It''s like a detection spell or even a very light mage shield.¡± ¡°When you came in and weren''t wearing a Noble''s chest piece with the elaborate enchantment engraved on it, we had to assume it''s on the wood you were carrying.¡± One of the men said. ¡°I don''t see any markings on the surface, which means you somehow put it inside the wood.¡± The excited woman gasped. ¡°That''s not possible! As soon as you mark up or damage the engraved surface, the enchantment weakens and then breaks!¡± I didn''t say anything and slowly slid one of the thick boards over and it stopped in front of her. Her hands reached out and she shuddered when she touched it. She closed her eyes and her hands caressed the perfectly smooth wood. ¡°What is it, Mage Henrietta?¡± One of the other two women asked. ¡°It''s not one enchantment in each piece of wood.¡± The excited woman said in a sexy voice. ¡°All three of them are in this.¡± ¡°WHAT?!?¡± Everyone else yelled, except for Mage Lukas, who only nodded confirmation. I slid the other two boards across the table and they stopped in front of the two men that were surprised by the weight enchantment. They both reached out and touched the wood and took in sharp breaths. ¡°She''s right.¡± One of them said. ¡°Weight is only one of them.¡± ¡°Don''t charge them up yet.¡± Mage Lukas warned. ¡°We don''t know what could happen if you activate a movement enchantment without it attached to anything.¡± ¡°Sir, you... you don''t understand what this means.¡± Mage Henrietta said, almost in a whisper. ¡°A movement enchantment uses magic to cause actual physical movement of an object, even if there are no other forces acting upon it.¡± She said, reverently. ¡°Something like this needs to be preserved for history''s sake!¡± ¡°We''re going to be too busy using them to worry about relegating them to the Hall of History in the capital.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°But, sir!¡± Mage Henrietta exclaimed. ¡°If you can''t handle being in the first boat, then you''ll be posted in the second boat with Mage Larson. Your only responsibility will be powering the weight enchantment.¡± Many different expressions passed over her face for several seconds, then sighed. ¡°No, you''re right. I need to calm down and see this for the opportunity that it is and not the potential for the future.¡± Mage Lukas smiled and briefly touched her hand to pat it. ¡°Once this operation is over, then you can worry about the impact this is going to have on society.¡± Mage Henrietta smiled back and nodded. Mage Lukas turned to face me. ¡°I''m not going to ask where the Hag learned such powerful enchantments.¡± ¡°That''s good, because questioning the Hag usually costs you a pound of flesh.¡± I said and he looked like he was waiting for me to laugh or something. ¡°That wasn''t a joke. She''d cut a strip off of you.¡± Everyone in the room stared at me and didn''t say anything. ¡°Let''s try getting the weight enchantments to work.¡± I said. ¡°As I described, it''s intent and need when you don''t know what to focus on. When you do know, start to do the same procedure as if you are infusing a potion... and only start. Don''t actually do it. The enchantments are already activated and you just have to power them. No power, no effect. Some power, some effect.¡± The two men that knew about the weight enchantment did it right away and the wood became light as a feather. They picked them up and easily moved them around, as if they weighed nothing. They deactivated the enchantments and the wood thumped onto the table and they slid the wood to the next two people. Mage Henrietta hugged the piece she had and wouldn''t let it go. ¡°I''ll do it! I will!¡± She said and rested her face against the smooth wood and sighed contentedly. ¡°Just ignore her for now.¡± Mage Lukas said to me and the both of us went to each person and coached them into how to work the weight enchantment. One of the women was nervous about giving her power away. ¡°It''s all right. It can only hold so much magic and negate so much weight.¡± I reassured her and she looked surprised. ¡°That''s why the minimum to work them is someone who can infuse at least one batch of potion.¡± ¡°I thought you just said that we didn''t have to infuse it.¡± ¡°You don''t have to, just initiate the procedure and hold it.¡± I said. ¡°What... what if I can''t do that?¡± ¡°Let me show you how, Mage Larson.¡± I touched her shoulder and she looked like she was going to say something, then I slid my magic through her arm and started the weight enchantment through her. ¡°Oh, my god.¡± She whispered.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. ¡°Can you feel that?¡± I asked. ¡°Sweet lord, yes.¡± Mage Larson said and gave me a look that told me that she wanted to have sex with me, because it was the same look that Diane had after I had delivered all of the new stock for her store. _______________ You have a minor choice to make. It will affect your relationship with Diane and possibly Gillis. A) Tell her to meet later. B) Tell her you''re taken. C) Kiss her. D) Fill her with magic. E) Ignore her. Oh, damn. That''s not good. I thought and read them again. Dammit, I do not want to mess up what I have with Diane, not after everything that''s happened. I read them once more and sighed. I choose B. _______________ I bent over and whispered in her ear. ¡°I''m seeing someone.¡± ¡°I don''t care.¡± Mage Larson whispered back. ¡°We can''t have sex.¡± I clarified. ¡°We''re going to be deployed for a month or more in a hostile area. You are going to need to relax at some point and we are going to be a very long way away from whoever she is.¡± Mage Larson said. ¡°I''m going to be right there with you and I am very, very willing to let you have your way with me at any time.¡± Everyone in the room turned to look at us, because for those last two sentences, she didn''t try to whisper at all. ¡°Mage Larson.¡± Mage Lukas said and she looked at him. ¡°Did I just hear what I just heard?¡± ¡°Yes, sir.¡± Mage Larson said. ¡°I''ve never felt magic like this.¡± She said and just her fingertip moved the wood around the table and she slid it over to the skeptical man. Since I was the one that had charged it, it was still active and he didn''t have to do anything to it. ¡°You don''t have to keep touching it?¡± He asked, surprised. ¡°No, once you make that mental connection with your magic, you can be anywhere in the boat and still have it work.¡± I said and went to lift my hand from Mage Larson''s shoulder. She grabbed it and closed her eyes as she tried to share her magic with me. She made my hand tingle and that was all. ¡°I''ll need to stay in contact with it, since my range is so limited.¡± Mage Larson said. ¡°It would be best if we all did. At first, anyway.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°Perhaps by the end of the mission, we will all have enough experience that we won''t have to.¡± I cut the magic to the wood and it thumped to the table. The skeptical guy did it on his second try and started to chuckle at how easy it was to lift such a thick piece of wood. After another hour, they all had the hang of it, even Mage Henrietta, once she realized that we would be going out to the boats for a practical lesson on the movement enchantment. She still didn''t let the board go, however. We left the garrison and avoided the other soldiers that were using horse and hand carts to load supplies. We went through Diane''s property to get to the dock I had built and saw the dozen large flat bottomed boats that were being loaded with those supplies. ¡°We''re really doing this in the morning.¡± The last woman said. ¡°At dawn.¡± I said and they looked at me with surprise. ¡°We get to eat breakfast first.¡± ¡°You can''t honestly...¡± The skeptical man started to say and Mage Lukas put a hand on his shoulder. ¡°I was going to inform you in a more private setting.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°This is a military operation, so we are on the military''s clock here.¡± ¡°We don''t have to fight, do we?¡± Mage Larson asked. ¡°No, you are boat pilots only and I chose you specifically for that reason.¡± Mage Lukas told her. ¡°No combat will be required.¡± ¡°That''s a relief. I failed the basic combat course at the academy.¡± Mage Larson said. ¡°How did you fail the basic one?¡± The skeptical man asked. ¡°I don''t like punching people.¡± Mage Larson said and shrugged her shoulders. ¡°Oh, geez.¡± The skeptical man sighed. ¡°I''m glad I''ll be in Mage Lukas'' boat.¡± ¡°You still have to watch the supplies.¡± I cautioned them. ¡°We''re leaving the construction teams there as well.¡± The mages looked a little surprised. ¡°What are you building?¡± Mage Henrietta asked. I looked at Mage Lukas and he sighed. ¡°If you''re approving them for this mission, then I''ll be giving them a full briefing after this.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°I''ll clear up their confusion.¡± I nodded and went to one of the empty boats and quick as a flash, applied a little number ten potion to the front bench seat and attached one of the wood pieces. I waved to Mage Henrietta to sit and she handed me the board she held and sat down. ¡°Ohhh, that''s so nice.¡± Mage Henrietta said and rubbed her butt all over it as she slid around a little. ¡°Everyone climb aboard.¡± Mage Lukas said and they all did. I went to the head of the boat and untied it, picked up the push pole, and poled out from the dock and faced us straight. ¡°I''ll handle the weight enchantment and also steer.¡± I said and went to the back of the boat. ¡°I suggest you all sit and hold on.¡± ¡°I agree. Any movement in a boat can be jarring.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°Seats, everyone.¡± They all sat and held on. ¡°Anytime you''re ready, Mage Henrietta.¡± I said with my hand on the rudder and activated the weight enchantment Mage Henrietta sat on. Everyone felt the boat rise about halfway out of the water and Mage Henrietta moaned a little as my magic grazed her. ¡°It actually works.¡± One of the two men that recognized the weight enchantment said. ¡°The entire boat and the contents are much lighter now.¡± ¡°Oh... ohhhhh!¡± Mage Henrietta moaned as I felt her magic pass by mine and enter the movement enchantment. She didn''t gradually add magic like I explained and just dumped it in. The boat jerked and then took off at its fastest speed. ¡°WHOOOOAAAA!¡± One of them men yelled and I wasn''t sure if it was happiness or terror. ¡°Ease back, Mage Henrietta.¡± Mage Lukas advised and she didn''t listen. ¡°Mage Henrietta?¡± ¡°Uhhh... uhhhh... oh, god... oh god!¡± Mage Henrietta gasped and the boat lurched again and all movement stopped. The boat slowed down and coasted for a short distance, so I used the pole to slow us down and brought us to a stop. ¡°Are you all right?¡± The skeptical man asked her. ¡°B-b-better than all right.¡± Mage Henrietta whispered and eased off of the front bench. She stumbled a little and put her hand on the skeptical man''s shoulder for balance. He gasped when I felt her magic jump to him. She made her way to me at the back of the boat and sat down on the bottom of the boat and not on the bench there. I wasn''t sure what she was doing until she slid her robes up to her knees and gave me a view between her legs. No one else could see what I saw, since they were all facing forward. She slid off her underwear and showed me that they were soaked. ¡°You did that.¡± Mage Henrietta whispered, sucked on the cloth a little, and placed them on the bottom of the boat to dry. ¡°Mage Falcon, you''re next.¡± Mage Lukas said and the skeptical guy took the bench seat. ¡°Please be more mindful of your companions than Mage Henrietta was.¡± The skeptical guy chuckled and took the seat. ¡°I''ll do my best, sir.¡± He said and it took him three tries to establish the connection properly, then the boat puttered a little bit. ¡°Remember Private Drake''s words. It''s a slow stream. Just imagine your magic is making it flow faster.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°Yes, sir.¡± The skeptical guy said and closed his eyes to concentrate. It took him two more tries, then he got it to work. We moved along at a slow speed and then went faster and faster. We peaked out and he let out a little laugh. ¡°I did it! I DID IT!¡± ¡°Excellent, excellent.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°Slow us down and we can let the others try.¡± ¡°Yes, sir!¡± Mage Falcon said and did just that. One of the other men took over and it was a similar experience, so I turned us around and we headed back towards the dock. The other man did it a little easier and then the other woman had a turn. The last to try was Mage Larson and she looked nervous. After several minutes of reassurances and coaching from Mage Lukas, she was able to get us moving at about half speed. ¡°Wonderful work!¡± Mage Lukas said in encouragement and helped her back to her seat. ¡°Now it''s my turn.¡± He said and sat down. ¡°Private Drake, I''ll do the weight one as well.¡± I cut off my magic to the enchantment and the boat sunk down into the water. ¡°That''s amazing.¡± One of the men said. ¡°I almost had the feeling that it was always lighter, you know?¡± ¡°We have to ask him what configuration he used.¡± The other man whispered. ¡°We have to compare it to our family''s secret crest. It''s definitely a lot more efficient than ours.¡± Mage Lukas had no problems using both enchantments, since all he did was power them. He took us all the way back to the dock and I steered us into the proper slip. I poled us to a stop and then tied the boat up, then helped the women disembark by offering them a hand. They each thanked me as I did and the last to leave the boat was Mage Henrietta. She thanked me as well and discreetly handed me her now dry underwear. ¡°Actions speak louder than words.¡± She whispered and walked away. No one commented that the back of her robes from the waist down were wet, since she was in a boat. What they didn''t know was that her words had a poignant meaning to me. For the entire two hour lesson out on the water, she had sat in front of me with her legs spread wide and without underwear on. The source of her wet robes was not the water as the others had assumed. It was from her constantly dripping womanhood. 087 A Dragons Breath Part One After they left, I didn''t go back to the garrison. I went out into the forest and hunted down a wildwood tree. They were a lot rarer this far from the marsh, so it took a while. I found a nice one and felled it, dragged it back to Diane''s place, then peeled the bark and sliced it into enough coins to add enchantments to all of the barge boats. I used the same trick to conceal them into a large piece of wood and each bench at the front was that much thicker. I even added a protection ward to one of each of the building supply crates that would be left in each section as we dropped the workers off for the second part of the mission, just so I wouldn''t have to do it later. I even made a small batch of replacement movement wards, just in case, and hid them on my boat. With my hidden work completed, I went to bed and relaxed as I waited for the very early morning to come. I had a feeling that it would happen before I knew it. Only a moment later, the morning arrived and I woke up rested, then went to the mess hall to eat and everyone else showed up shortly after I did. As they ate, Alex handed out a general health potion to each of the strike team members to drink and then gave them to the construction crew. When he came to the mages, he handed one to Mage Lukas and waited. The potion glowed for a second and Mage Lukas nodded, then Alex handed potions to the six mages that I had trained last night. When everyone drank it, they all reacted to it in a similar manner as Donna had when she drank it the first time, as if it was a rush, which meant that most of them had been at least a little sick. Mage Lukas reacted that way, too. ¡°I didn''t realize how tired I''ve been lately.¡± One of the mages said. ¡°That was a great potion!¡± Alex went back to the strike teams and gave them a single healing potion each, then told them to not guzzle them whenever they get hurt. That wasn''t what they were for and he explained how to properly use them for minor injuries and then if a major injury happens, to drink it all. After that was a quick briefing to make sure that everyone knew their roles, then we all went to the two prepared boats. The mission had begun. I was in my boat and had the tandem barge behind it that was attached by a very thick rope and several guide ropes. I activated the weight enchantment on mine and Mage Larson activated the weight one on the other. Both boats lifted half out of the water and I turned to nod to her. ¡°With the way I feel right now, I could do this all day!¡± Mage Larson exclaimed and several of the fighting mages laughed. It was much easier to power the enchantments now and the other two boats that were controlled by Mage Lukas and Mage Falcon rose out of the water. ¡°Let''s get to the drop off point.¡± Alex said to me and nodded to Donna, who was on the rudder. I eased us out from the dock with the pole, as did one of the construction crew on the other boat, then I eased us out into the middle of the waterway. Mage Lukas was right behind me and I made the forward motion and took off with the boat at half the speed the weaker enchantment could achieve. He kept up easily and we travelled down the waterway a short ways and then out into the harbour. To my surprise, a whole bunch of soldiers had populated the village dock and waved to us. ¡°Go get them!¡± ¡°Kill those dragons!¡± ¡°It''s the Gulf Kingdom''s marsh now!¡± ¡°YEAH!¡± We moved across the harbour and the cheers and hollers followed us the whole way. ¡°You''d swear we''d already done it.¡± Alex said to me with a laugh. ¡°Did the potions master come through?¡± I asked and Alex nodded. He held out a pouch that was similar to my bandoleer with many small padded pockets in it. ¡°The two red ones are immolation potions and cover the target in fire that will burn for two full minutes. The two orange ones are just a general fire potion that will cover a large area with normal fire. The four white ones will put out fire of any kind, which we might need if these creatures are anything like western dragons.¡± ¡°No anti-venom or anti-poison?¡± I asked as he closed it. ¡°Unfortunately, no. All we have are the healing potions and normal medical treatments.¡± Alex said. ¡°You don''t know how glad I am that we planned for that.¡± ¡°We have to hope the defensive mages can get their shield up in time.¡± I said. ¡°It''s their job. Those construction crews will be safe or we won''t deploy them.¡± I nodded, because that was the downside of going into combat with non-combatants. They were a lot more vulnerable to death than a normal fighter was, mainly because they weren''t fighting and concentrating on combat. I increased speed to the fastest that the other boat could manage and Mage Henrietta that sat on the bench beside me moaned a little. Mage Lukas kept up with me and we travelled for several hours. When we approached the drop off point that was far enough away from where I suspected the nest was, we came to a stop. Alex held up his hands and did several hand motions, then I and three others from the first boat crept out onto the marsh. We didn''t make any sound and flowed into the marsh as if we belonged there. When I found a pungent enough smell, I directed them to it. We covered ourselves to blend in, both physically and smell-wise, then continued on. I was in front and had my vigilance technique going, so I dealt with anything that was even close to threatening. The other three scouts were surprised as I easily dispatched poisonous snakes, tangling vines, and even several spiders. I had to ascend a few trees to get the spiders. I let the scouts handle the other small creatures we came across and only handled the deadly ones myself. We slowly made our way through the marsh, waded through waist deep water in spots, killed several near-crock lizards, and finally approached the spot where the fungus blooms used to grow. I say used to, because now it was a giant nest made of trees. Not sticks or branches. Nope. Full trees were bent and twisted together to make a nest. It was also full.This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. The momma dragon was there and she had three babies with her. Luckily, they were a bit too small to be much of a long range danger, since they couldn''t fly yet. Her on the other hand, could lunge a hundred feet in an instant. I made the retreat motion and we backed off, very carefully, and retraced our steps all the way back to the boats without speaking a word to each other. ¡°Good news and bad news.¡± One of the scouts said as we reported to Alex. ¡°Goddammit, there''s only one.¡± Alex assumed. ¡°Worse. It''s four and it''s only the mother and three new babies.¡± Alex closed his mouth on his response and turned his head to curse silently. I recognized the mouth movement from the Hag''s constant cursing when she was angry. ¡°Nothing on this side.¡± Someone whispered. ¡°Clear in the back.¡± ¡°Clear in the front.¡± ¡°Give the primary build crew the coordinates.¡± Alex said to one of the scouts and the man went to them. ¡°David, I''m going to need you to check the other suspected spot.¡± ¡°I''ll need another scout to get the coordinates right.¡± I said. ¡°I''ll go, just for the hell of it.¡± One of the men said. ¡°I can die happy after seeing you move like that.¡± Alex chuckled. ¡°It''s amazing, isn''t it?¡± ¡°Unbelievably.¡± The scout said and looked at me. ¡°You''re self taught, aren''t you?¡± I nodded. ¡°Survival in a hostile environment really hones your instincts.¡± ¡°I''d like to learn from you... except, I have some idea of how you got that way.¡± The scout said and nodded at my face. ¡°I''d prefer a much less deadly way to learn, thank you.¡± ¡°Me, too.¡± I said. ¡°Let''s go.¡± The scout nodded and I led him to a thinner part of the waterway, then we waded across it... after checking for water beasts, of course. I might have been away from the marsh for three months and learned a whole bunch of stuff; but, I would never forget how to stay alive. Despite it being a harsh way to learn by having the Hag beat the knowledge into me and removing flesh when I did it wrong, I was never going to forget her lessons for the rest of my life. It took us almost two hours to get to the alternate site that the mages had pinpointed as another area with a lot of magic in it. When we approached, the sight we saw was staggering. It was another nest with another female, quite a bit younger than the other, and she had two babies and a very large male hovering near them. I urgently made the retreat signal several times and we got out of there carefully and quickly. We were back at the boat an hour and a half later, much faster than the journey out, because we had to warn everyone. I waited until everyone gathered around before I spoke. ¡°We''re screwed.¡± I said and Alex looked at me with shock on his face. ¡°There''s a second nest, with a second female, and a huge male is near her and her two babies.¡± Alex lost the shocked look. ¡°We can handle two nests. That''s why we have two crews to...¡± ¡°No, you''re missing my point. I only saw one male and two nests, both with nesting mothers.¡± I said. ¡°There''s at least the first male and possibly another teenage dragon.¡± ¡°How do you know that?¡± Alex asked. ¡°None of the dragons I''ve seen have the wounds you caused to the baby.¡± I said and he cursed again. ¡°What''s the problem?¡± Mage Lukas asked and we told him the situation with the two nests. ¡°We can deal with the ones we know about and then we can deal with the missing ones.¡± ¡°I wish it was that easy.¡± Alex said. ¡°Once we open up with an attack on the nests, which have to be at the same time or it won''t work, the missing dragons could show up out of nowhere and kill us all.¡± ¡°The defensive mages...¡± ¡°...will be quickly overwhelmed if the dragons come for the catapult crews.¡± Alex said. ¡°They will easily see the trajectory of the shots we lob in on their positions, especially when flying.¡± ¡°We''ll have a few minutes, maybe. Maybe.¡± I said. ¡°If we''re lucky.¡± ¡°With two nests, the dragon''s territory definitely crosses every route we could possibly make through the marsh.¡± Alex said. ¡°David''s right, we''re screwed.¡± ¡°No, don''t give up.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°You know the prince''s life... all our lives... are dependent on this working.¡± He said. ¡°Seeing it on paper is one thing while trying to ignore the consequences of not doing this part of the plan was a mistake on Princess Ellen''s part. I admit that, as does she. It''s another thing to cancel the plan because the circumstances have changed to not be in our favor.¡± ¡°There''s nothing we can do. As soon as we open fire with the catapults, they will be attacked.¡± Alex said. ¡°Lieutenant, I am one of the strongest mages in this country and I work for the Royal family. I can perform magic and cast spells! There''s nothing in this world that mankind can''t face off against! We''ve fought wars for decades! We can''t let these giant overgrown birds defeat us!¡± Alex closed his mouth on his response and didn''t say anything. ¡°Is there anything... anything at all... that can be done to save this mission?¡± Mage Lukas asked. No one spoke for about ten seconds. It was then that I remembered what Mage Lukas said during the meeting last night about using a movement enchantment and not having it attached to anything. Boy, oh boy, did it give me a crazy idea. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. Will you speak up and tell them your crazy idea or let the entire plan fail? A) Stay silent. B) Go home. C) Speak up. D) Attack. E) Sigh and give up. F) Sit and rest. Well, damn. Okay. I think... no, I''m sure that if it works, it''ll be great. If it doesn''t... well, we were going to die during the attack anyway. So, I''ll choose C. _______________ ¡°I have an idea.¡± I said and everyone looked at me. ¡°It''s really crazy and I''m going to need to borrow a construction crew. I also need Mage Lukas and Mage Henrietta''s help.¡± ¡°YES!¡± Mage Henrietta agreed enthusiastically without even waiting to hear my idea. Mage Lukas gave her a stern look and she ignored it. ¡°He''s going to do something amazing, I just know it!¡± Mage Henrietta said, excitedly. ¡°What''s your idea, David?¡± Alex asked. I told them what had just popped into my head. A lot of the strike team laughed. The combat mages were a mix of disbelief and hope, and Alex and Donna stared at me like I was crazy, as did Mage Lukas. His warning had been to stop people from using a movement enchantment that wasn''t attached to anything, not to encourage it. Mage Henrietta smiled and walked over to me, then she wrapped her arms around my arm. ¡°I told you it was going to be amazing.¡± She said to Mage Lukas and looked at me. ¡°Even if none of the others want to help, I''ll help.¡± ¡°We''ll help, too.¡± The two mages that knew the weight enchantment said. ¡°You need to make them lighter.¡± ¡°We''re in.¡± One of the construction crews said. ¡°Just tell us what we need to do.¡± Alex looked around at everyone else and their reactions. ¡°What''s the word, mission commander?¡± I asked him. ¡°We''re screwed anyway, so go ahead.¡± Alex said and waved at the soldiers. ¡°Disconnect the first boat and unload the provisions.¡± ¡°Sir.¡± They said and my boat was disconnected and quickly emptied. ¡°I assume you can get back to your house from here?¡± Alex asked and I nodded. ¡°Then get going and hurry back.¡± ¡°Sir!¡± I said and saluted with my real hand, then I helped Mage Henrietta into the boat. The construction crew and the other two mages climbed in as well. I looked at Mage Lukas with a question on my face and he sighed. ¡°I hope I don''t regret this.¡± Mage Lukas said and climbed into the boat. ¡°Hold on everyone.¡± I said and poled us out into the right direction. ¡°David, don''t waste time.¡± Alex said from the shore and I gave him raised eyebrows. ¡°It''s just a movement enchantment that faces different directions.¡± ¡°YOU CAN DO THAT?!?¡± Mage Henrietta yelled. ¡°Apparently.¡± Mage Lukas said and rubbed his ear. ¡°Hold on, everyone.¡± I said and put the pole down and sat beside Mage Henrietta. I used the movement enchantment like I always had and finished turning the boat around in a circle, which surprised everyone. I brought us up to nearly half speed, which was twice that of the limited enchantments. Mage Lukas gave me a pointed stare, I assumed for not showing him the full enchantment, which I ignored. What I couldn''t ignore was Mage Henrietta and her constant shivering as my magic flowed through the much more powerful enchantment. Her face had a euphoric expression and she kept a death grip on my arm as we took turns and curves in the waterways without someone on the rudder to steer. 088 A Devastating Idea When I brought the boat to a stop in the waterway right in front of my house, everyone in the boat gasped at the sight, even Mage Lukas. It was either that or they could feel the protection ward. ¡°Yes, I built it.¡± I said and climbed out of the boat and dragged it up onto the dry ground without struggling. Only Mage Henrietta gasped this time. ¡°I suggest staying in the boat for a few minutes. I need to power up the protection ward.¡± ¡°It''s not already full?¡± Mage Lukas asked. ¡°No. I haven''t been back here in over four months.¡± I said and walked over to the door. I dispelled the magic on the door and the mages gasped as they felt it. I took out my knife and charged it up, which made Mage Henrietta moan, and I sliced open the sealed parts. I took out the key and unlocked it and went inside. I closed the door and touched the ward above the door frame and charged it up. I went to each of the other walls and did the same for the wards there, then went to my workshop. I gathered up the few papers I had and folded them up and stored them in a pocket of my bandoleer, then cut four planks of wood to cover the wards up. I went to my bedroom to make sure that no secrets were exposed for the others to see. I checked the other rooms and made sure that was the case there, too. When I was sure that nothing was revealed, I started up the six new cooking pots that I had and added water to them to get the waterproof potion and number ten potion started. I didn''t have any ingredients, so I only lit some of the wildwood on fire to let the water simmer. I would need about an hour in the surrounding area to get what I needed. After four months, I could just imagine that my regular harvesting spots were well overgrown by now. I opened my secret potion stash and took out the last three spider juice and snake juice potions that I had. I still had the two strength potions on me that I had from before, since I hadn''t needed them while in basic training, so I left the others in the stash and sealed it again. I grabbed several large sacks and went to my workshop to grab the handsaw, hatchet, and axe I had. I went to the front door and stepped out to see that the others had stayed in the boat like I asked. I also saw that the mages were staring at the roof of the house. ¡°I have wards all over it.¡± I explained as I locked the door again and they nodded. ¡°It goes out a hundred feet to cover the dry area completely and some of the land on the other sides of the waterways when they are fully charged.¡± ¡°We know.¡± Mage Lukas said and pointed up. ¡°We saw a dozen five foot tall spiders flee through the trees.¡± I looked up to see trails of webbing in the branches near my roof. ¡°I''m glad I didn''t have to fight all of them off.¡± I said and walked over to the boat. The people in the boat stared at me as I handed the cutting tools to the construction crew. ¡°I need trees this big around.¡± I held my hands up and made a four inch wide circle. ¡°Cut them into three foot long pieces and I''ll peel the bark off of them later.¡± ¡°You don''t expect us to go out into the marsh unprotected, do you?¡± One of the men asked. I shook my head. ¡°You''re coming with me just over there.¡± I pointed. ¡°I''m gathering ingredients and you can harvest some trees nearby at the same time.¡± ¡°Didn''t you hear the Head Mage? He said there are spiders out there!¡± One of them exclaimed. ¡°There''s always spiders out there.¡± I said and he looked surprised. ¡°There were spiders all around the boats and it didn''t bother you before.¡± ¡°There WAS?!?¡± He yelled, clearly frightened. ¡°It''s what the protection wards are for.¡± I said and he didn''t relax. ¡°You can stay here in the boat.¡± ¡°But... it''s outside.¡± The man said. ¡°The wards protect you inside or outside.¡± I said. ¡°Unless they get damaged, then they weaken and fail pretty quickly.¡± ¡°We can come with you.¡± Mage Henrietta said and stood. ¡°Please, I don''t want you to get hurt.¡± I said and she blushed a little. ¡°You''ve sullen your robes by holding onto me for the trip here as well.¡± ¡°I assumed the smell helps you blend in.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°It does.¡± I said and there was a loud snort from across the main waterway. ¡°It''s not enough to cover everyone''s smell.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Mage Lukas asked and turned to look at the noise. His face lost color as he saw three large boars were right at the edge of the waterway across from him. ¡°Excuse me for a minute.¡± I said and grabbed one of the push poles and used the skill the Hag taught me to make the end metal, then ran at the waterway. Everyone watched as I shoved the pole down into the waterway, perfectly in the middle, then used the pole to vault over the water. I let the pole go when I was about to land and drew my knife, charged it, and slammed my boot heels into the top of the middle boar''s head. It squealed in pain as I landed on it and shoved his head into the ground and cracked its skull. I rolled forward with the momentum and sliced my knife across the flank of the boar on the right, then I braced a hand on the stunned middle boar and kicked out with my foot and hit the third boar right in the butt. It squealed louder than the first one and hopped forward... right into the water. It was all thick muscle and top heavy, so it sank right to the bottom, down about ten feet or so. I finished off the stunned boar by driving my knife into the back of its skull and then sliced the throat of the one I had gutted to put it out of its misery. I took a small piece of rope out and tied their back legs together, then I pushed the pole to get it to flop back across to the other side and then jumped down into the water.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. It only took a moment to cut the drowned boar''s throat, tie it up as well, then I walked over to the side of the waterway. I held the rope in my teeth and climbed up the side of the waterway where my house was and dragged the three boars with me onto the dry land. ¡°Good... good lord.¡± Mage Henrietta whispered. I grabbed the pole and put it back into the boat and carried the three boars over to the post I had mounted by the house. I hung them up and quickly disembowelled the three of them, sliced the first boar''s throat to let them drain of blood, and washed my hands in the full rain barrel by the corner of the roof. ¡°I better go over there first and clear the place out, just in case.¡± I said to them, then ran and jumped over the smaller waterway in the direction I had indicated before and disappeared from their sight. I caught five rabbits, three ducks, had to use a sack for the eggs, and the near-deer ran as soon as it saw me coming. I only found one tangling vine, no snakes, and the spiders must have cleared out from the protection ward, because there was only some webbing in the trees. I was back at the house ten minutes later with my bounty and everyone just stared at me. I treated them like the boars, except that I saved the gizzards out of habit and cleaned the rest. I washed my hands again and went back to the boat. ¡°We need a way to cross.¡± One of the construction crew said. I took the hand saw from him and jumped back across the space and cut down several smaller trees and used some number ten potion to secure them together and then put the impromptu bridge across the smaller waterway. I even left the branches on the side going into the water to help brace it. ¡°Do you even need us?¡± The same construction crewman asked. ¡°I only have two hands.¡± I said with a shrug and handed him the saw back. ¡°Let''s go.¡± Only three of them followed me and the last guy, the scared one, stayed right beside Mage Lukas in the boat, because the man knew that Mage Lukas was the combat mage. Half an hour later, the crew had two dozen appropriate sized logs and had dragged each of them back to my house. I had filled two sacks with appropriate ingredients and could have harvested more; but, I needed to get brewing. Like Alex said, I shouldn''t waste any time. I went back to the house and picked up that little bridge and laid it beside the waterway, rather than leave it in place and then anything could cross it. I unlocked the front door and went into my kitchen and potion making area, then quickly made a fortifying waterproof potion to refill my stock of it. I made more ingredient copying squares to treat for the next phase, since I had left the others back at the garrison. Once I had them ready, I quickly prepped the ingredients to brew a number ten potion and used number ten potion to increase the yield. I added the increased ingredients to the remaining five pots and added more water, lit all of the wildwood on fire, and let the blue flames bring the potions to a boil. I went to my smoked meat room and saw that everything I had left was still there. I smelled it and checked to make sure it was still fine, then cut up a few choice cuts and ate them as I waited for the potions to brew. ¡°What are you doing?¡± A woman''s voice asked and I went out to the kitchen. ¡°Waiting for potions to brew.¡± I said. ¡°Why?¡± She asked. ¡°Everyone''s just sitting around outside and waiting.¡± ¡°We can''t do anything else for another fifteen minutes.¡± I said and ate another piece of meat. ¡°That''s an odd color.¡± She said and motioned to the meat I had in my hands. ¡°It''s water beast.¡± I said and took another bite. ¡°You really can eat those disgusting things?¡± ¡°Once it''s treated properly and then smoked or cooked.¡± I said. ¡°Then it''s just meat.¡± ¡°Can I try some?¡± ¡°No, it''s toxic.¡± I said and finished off what I had. ¡°I''ll cook up the rabbits when we get back to the strike team.¡± Mage Henrietta smiled. ¡°We''re going to be much too busy to eat then.¡± ¡°I''m going to use the boars as bait for the dragons.¡± I said and her eyes widened in surprise. ¡°I should have left the guts in them, just so it makes a bigger splash; but, they would be too heavy to launch with the catapults if I did.¡± ¡°You''re serious?¡± She asked. ¡°If it works, we can get one or maybe two fire suppression potions into the dragon to stop it from using its breath on us.¡± ¡°Oh, no.¡± Mage Henrietta sighed. ¡°Don''t worry. You''ll be far away from the assault area.¡± I said. ¡°You won''t be.¡± She said, concern on her face. ¡°I''ve faced... well, I can''t honestly tell you if it''s worse or not. I haven''t seen a pissed off dragon up close to compare them and the Hag.¡± Mage Henrietta blinked her eyes for several moments, then she came over to me. ¡°Private Drake... David... I know you''ve been through some bad things...¡± I raised my eyebrows at her and her face went sad. ¡°I really want to ask... no, to beg you... to leave all of this behind.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°I can''t. I''m a conscript.¡± I said. ¡°Not if I talk to my father and convince him that his future son-in-law needs to be released from the army to marry me and join our family.¡± It took me a minute to figure out what she was saying. ¡°You mean me?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Mage Henrietta said and her sad face became a happy one. ¡°I know you have something going on with the woman that runs the exotic shop in the village; but, that isn''t going to take you anywhere.¡± She said. ¡°You''ll still be here, in the marsh, and people will look down on you, just because of where you came from.¡± ¡°Won''t the nobles do that, too?¡± ¡°Yes, they will... but, usually not to your face.¡± She said. I had to smile at that. ¡°I''m glad you didn''t lie about it.¡± ¡°So am I.¡± Mage Henrietta said with a relieved sigh. ¡°I won''t ask you to accept right away, or even in a week or a month. We''re much too busy to discuss anything like joining our families together until after this mission.¡± ¡°It doesn''t bother you that I''m in a relationship with someone else?¡± Mage Henrietta laughed. ¡°To be honest, you can keep her and bring her along.¡± ¡°What?¡± I asked, because that was a surprise to hear. ¡°Don''t take that wrong. I expect you to be faithful and to perform your husbandly duties to the best of your ability.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°I am not a... what do the common people say? A... sex machine, I think? Anyway, I will get excited by things and I desperately want you to give me a child. Probably several, actually. However, I do not want to rut in an army cot like a common woman.¡± ¡°But... yesterday...¡± ¡°We both knew that you weren''t going to ravage me in front of everyone else.¡± Mage Henrietta said with a demure smile. ¡°That doesn''t mean I don''t want you to have me as many times as you can handle in my personal bed chamber.¡± ¡°You have a bed chamber at the garrison?¡± I asked, once again surprised. ¡°Of course I do. I could buy the garrison if I so choose.¡± She said and saw the surprised look on my face. ¡°I do this work for my family, to gain both notoriety and prestige. With your help, I could gain both very easily.¡± I opened my mouth to respond and saw that the potions needed to be infused. ¡°Pardon me for a moment.¡± I said and went to all five pots and infused the potions. ¡°Oh, god.¡± Mage Henrietta gasped as she felt my magic. ¡°I... oh, David... maybe... maybe I need to rethink my view of where we can have sex.¡± I turned to look at her and her face was bright red. ¡°Please, consider my offer.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°My body, my hand in marriage, my family''s backing, your freedom, and your woman on the side.¡± I watched her try to walk out of my kitchen in a straight line and she almost did it. Almost. 089 A Devastating Idea Realized Now that the pots of number ten potions were done, I extinguished most of the wildwood firewood to let the potions simmer and stay hot, so they wouldn''t activate. Now that I had the means, I needed the vessel, and the only way to get one was to make it. I left the kitchen and saw two members of the construction crew were looking at my work room and all of the tools and things I had in there. ¡°I know you''re not going to tell us how you did it.¡± One of them said as their hand slid over the large piece of solid stone that I had used like an anvil. ¡°How did you do this?¡± ¡°The same way I did the walls.¡± I said and he took in a sharp breath. ¡°That''s why I can''t see any tool marks? You made it as one piece?!?¡± I didn''t respond and walked by them. I saw one of the two weight mages was in my potion ingredients room and one was inside my potion storage room. I wasn''t sure what they were doing in there, though. They just stood there and had their eyes closed. Mage Lukas was in the front room and he only had eyes for the now empty room on the left, where I had stored all of those creature pelts, horns, and tails. ¡°You had a few magical creatures in here.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°I think it was the marsh panther pelts.¡± I said and he took in a sharp breath, just like the construction crew member had about the walls. ¡°Please tell me you have another.¡± Mage Lukas said with a pleading tone in his voice. ¡°The King would give you a dukedom to have it for the queen.¡± ¡°I can''t promise it, even if I do find another.¡± I said. ¡°Diane runs the shop.¡± Mage Lukas smiled and nodded understanding. I went by him and outside to gather a bunch of special trees. ¡°Hey, those are no good for building. Those are springy trees.¡± One of the two construction guys outside said. ¡°They won''t hold their shape and...¡± ¡°...that''s why I want to use them.¡± I said and cut a bunch of them down. They weren''t very wide, so I needed a lot of them for what I wanted to do. They were plentiful and grew like weeds, so I had my pile fairly quickly. I carried them over to the house and the pile of three foot long and four inch wide trees the construction crew had cut for me. I quickly peeled all of them and set them aside. I went into the house to get two of my large wooden mold squares that were five feet by five feet. No one asked me what I was doing and just watched me work. I put the two wooden squares down and everyone had left my house to see. I found the biggest around of the logs the construction crew had cut for me and made a small mark on it with my knife. I made a mark on the ground and lined them up, then rolled the three foot long log until the mark was in the same spot again and marked the ground with my knife. I took one of the foot long sticks I had and saw that it was just a little bit shorter than where the mark was, so I put my finger where the end of the stick was and slid it to touch the mark. I notched the stick for the extra bit of length, since I didn''t want to use my knuckle every time, and had added a bit for space. I didn''t want it to be a tight fit, since that would hold it too much. ¡°I can''t believe he just did that.¡± One of the construction guys whispered. ¡°What a great way to find out the distance around a cylinder.¡± I had to sacrifice one of the logs and cut it up into strips that were thick enough for marking the inside of the mold. My glowing knife amazed Mage Henrietta once more and she had to excuse herself and sit down in the boat. I used some number ten potion from a vial to attach the strips in the appropriate spots and could only get four of the right size spots across, because they were 13 inches across. I left them five feet long, since the extra length was probably going to be needed. I used some fortifying waterproofing potion to make the new spacers be just like the rest of the mold, and now I could do what I wanted. I gathered up a handful of the thin springy trees that were only an inch or so wide, which was perfect, and cut them into five foot lengths. I added them to the mold and filled up all four of the available spaces. I had to cut some on the edge to fit them in the available space, and that was fine. I picked two of them from the first space and applied some number ten potion on the rounded side to stick two of them together. It attached them together and I kept doing it with each successive piece from the first section. When I had them all together, I put it into the spot. It fit perfectly. I did this with the other four spots and put them back, and now I had a nice platform for pouring more number ten potion in to make it flat. I went over to the boat and took out one of the hidden wildwood coins I had, scraped off the engraving before anyone could see it, and put it into the center of the second large wooden mold. I went back into the house and grabbed the first pot of potion and went back outside. ¡°I''ve stood here and watched you work for quite some time and I''ve remained silent, since most of what you''re doing makes sense.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°It''s mold preparation and I assume that''s some sort of waterproofing potion. You''re also sticking things together with a glue of some kind.¡± He motioned to the big pot that was full of the stuff I had just used from vials. ¡°I have to ask what you need so much glue for if they are already stuck together?¡± ¡°Marsh magic.¡± I said and used a ladle to dole out the potion onto the four springy tree molds. Once I had enough in it that it wouldn''t splash, I poured directly from the pot to fill them up and made them level. When it dried, it would have a completely flat surface, which was exactly what I needed. I poured the rest of the pot into the other wooden square mold and let it set as well. It would make enough wildwood copy to enchant the logs.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°How long now?¡± Mage Lukas asked. ¡°It should set in half an hour.¡± Mage Lukas sighed. ¡°We''re wasting time.¡± ¡°Only because the setup takes longer than doing the actual work.¡± I walked back over to the boat and dug out two more coins and cleaned them off. I went back over to the two weight mages and handed them a pencil and the cleaned coins. ¡°Draw your secret crest on these.¡± ¡°WHAT?!?¡± Both yelled at once. ¡°You can go inside and do it if you want. I only want to see the differences.¡± I said. ¡°But... you...¡± ¡°You''re going to be carving into the pieces I give you for the logs, so I need to know.¡± I said. ¡°If it''s not like mine, you''ll need to know how to carve it properly.¡± The two men exchanged glances and took the pencils and the wood coins, then went inside. ¡°I can''t believe they are going to show you.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°They aren''t.¡± I said and he gave me a surprised look. ¡°I''ve learned that people never give away anything for free.¡± Mage Lukas didn''t say anything in response as his eyes went to Mage Henrietta. ¡°Still not free.¡± I said and he sighed. ¡°She wants you to marry her.¡± ¡°...and give her children, fame, and notoriety.¡± I said. ¡°The last two are easy, the first two...¡± I shrugged. ¡°She doesn''t understand what it would mean for her.¡± Mage Lukas kept looking at her happy expression. ¡°I''m not sure she really cares, as long as her family benefits.¡± He paused for several moments. ¡°I am also considering it.¡± ¡°She enjoys feeling strong magic.¡± I said. ¡°She should like you a lot.¡± Mage Lukas chuckled. ¡°I meant offering you a position in my family.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± ¡°Your magic weapon alone is something that only the highest members of the Mages Guild have.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°Do you understand how much magic it takes to use a weapon like that?¡± ¡°Not much. It''s really efficient.¡± I said and he chuckled. ¡°Over a long period of time, it''s an unattainable amount of magic to keep a weapon constantly charged.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°I can only keep my sword charged for a few minutes before I need to rest or take a magic potion.¡± ¡°General health or healing?¡± I asked. ¡°Healing, since the right potion can restore magic to a safe level as well.¡± That made me think of the times the Hag had healed me after feeding and I had to agree. I did feel much better after healing and didn''t realize that was why. ¡°I don''t suppose you''d share that healing potion recipe of yours?¡± Mage Lukas asked. ¡°Would you share yours?¡± I asked back. ¡°With all the proper ingredients in it? No.¡± Mage Lukas said with a smirk. ¡°I won''t give anything away for free.¡± I had to smile slightly at him for using my own words back at me. ¡°We''re done.¡± One of the weight mages said as he poked his head out through the doorway. I went inside and followed him to my work room. On the bench were two identical wooded coins a foot across, each with scribbles and words on it that I couldn''t read. ¡°What''s all this?¡± I asked and pointed to a long scribble. ¡°That''s (unintelligible words and phrases). It describes the magic infusion to change the force down to weaken it.¡± ¡°I didn''t hear a word you said.¡± I responded. ¡°What? You don''t understand (unknown word)?¡± One of them asked. ¡°I can''t even understand what word you just said.¡± The two men exchanged looks and then whispered in the same language. Even I knew that was rude to do in front of someone, so I slapped my hand on one of the wood coins to make it bang loudly. They jumped in fright and then stared at me. ¡°Using my ignorance won''t work. I''ve had that happen before and I won''t let it happen again. Just because I don''t know the name of something, doesn''t mean that I don''t recognize it.¡± I held up the coin and used a piece of cloth to wipe the pencil marks off. ¡°Copy out the real crest of your family.¡± ¡°We can''t betray our family''s code of honor.¡± One of them said. ¡°We can''t give you our most closely held secret.¡± ¡°If you don''t, you will fail in your mission to learn the modification from me.¡± I said and both men took in sharp breaths. ¡°You have another ten minutes until the potions are set to make your choice.¡± I walked out of the room and the house. I went back to the boat and picked up another wooden coin to clean it off. Mage Henrietta sat there and had watched me each time and smiled at me. ¡°No, I haven''t gone through them to look or to steal one.¡± I was a little surprised that she didn''t even peek. ¡°I did count them, though.¡± She said with a smile. ¡°You have two left. Do you really want to leave them here with me?¡± ¡°They''ve been safe near you so far.¡± I said and reached down and picked up the last two. ¡°Can you memorize one by the time we''re done?¡± I asked, almost teasingly. ¡°I can definitely try.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°If anything, I''ll remember the shape at least.¡± I handed one to her and her eyes widened. ¡°It took me six months to learn it without knowing how to make them.¡± ¡°David, you don''t have to do this.¡± Mage Henrietta said and hugged it. ¡°I''m going to need it later, if my calculations are right.¡± I said and she looked confused as I cleaned the other one off. ¡°How much do you want to bet that one of the other boats are being examined by the other mages?¡± ¡°I''m not that rich.¡± Mage Henrietta said with a warm smile. ¡°You''re also not stupid. You would never leave them to be easily exposed.¡± I nodded to her and pat the bench seat she sat on. ¡°As soon as they start cutting it open, all three enchantments will fail.¡± Mage Henrietta gasped. ¡°That''ll leave part of the strike team exposed!¡± ¡°Yes, and won''t that be an interesting scene to see when we get back with our new weapons.¡± ¡°Our?¡± Mage Henrietta asked. ¡°I suspect the other two mages aren''t going to want to help enough to be useful, so I want you to concentrate on this...¡± I pointed to a line. ¡°...this...¡± I pointed to a half groove with a curve. ¡°...and this.¡± I ran my finger along a deep double groove along the outer edge. ¡°It''s the magic channel.¡± ¡°I know.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°I''ve never seen it in this configuration before.¡± ¡°It''s very efficient.¡± I said. ¡°You have an hour to remember what you can.¡± Mage Henrietta nodded and dropped her head to trace the three things I had pointed out. I left her there and went to the piles of four inch wide logs that were going to be the ammunition. I used the bottom of one to mark out four circles, which was all I could get out of the coin, then cut it into squares. I used a single drop of number ten potion to stick them to the end of the log and then held my charged knife horizontally to the log, then rolled the log. The construction crew let out startled sounds as I made four perfectly round coins that were four inches across. I sliced them off of the log and put them aside. I did the same with the other two, so now I had twelve coins, which would be enough for both the weight and movement enchantments for six logs. I checked the molds and the ones with the springy trees were done. I picked it up and dumped it out and the four springy tree things popped out. ¡°What the... I thought you filled the mold. Why are the bottom halves still rounded sticks?¡± Mage Lukas asked. ¡°So they would stay springy.¡± I said and picked one up and a log, then put the flat side next to the log and rolled it up. It left the bumps on the outside and made a perfect five foot long tube that was smooth on the inside. ¡°By the Son''s Light!¡± One of the construction crew said loudly. I added some number ten potion to seal the side and now the log could easily slide in and out of it. ¡°Build me four small catapult brackets to mount these on.¡± ¡°YES, SIR!¡± The construction crew members yelled, then the four of them put the temporary bridge back in place and ran to get the wood they would need. 090 A Devastating Idea Implemented I made the other three tubes and then added half of a disc to partially close one end off. That would be the back and it would let someone touch the enchantment to launch it from the tube. I didn''t need to do that myself, since I could do it remotely; but, the mages couldn''t. They needed contact to do it. The construction crew came back and dragged a huge tree behind them. They stripped it of bark and branches in seconds, then started cutting it up into the pieces they would need. ¡°We''re ready.¡± One of the weight mages said from my front door. I stood and went inside to my work room and there were two coins there. One had a very elaborate drawing on it, full of unnecessary swirls and images, which told me that it was a crest of a house. As an enchantment, it would be useless. The other one, however... I picked it up and studied it. ¡°My grandfather designed the family crest with that as a base.¡± One of them said. ¡°It showed off our secret and kept it hidden at the same time, so even if people who studied enchantments exclusively, would see that it was gibberish and would think it wasn''t real.¡± ¡°Do you know where he got this design?¡± I asked, very curious, because I recognized it. It was exactly like the one that was in the enchantment book that I had hidden. It was also a mess of extra lines and more magic channels than necessary. It would take a lot of magic to charge this thing up. After years of doing it and carving it myself, I knew that the full enchantment would achieve something besides what I had been using it for. Negative weight. ¡°No. He just revealed it one day after coming back from a long trip.¡± The other mage said. ¡°Now you know the family secret.¡± I reached out and put a hand on his shoulder. ¡°I''m glad you didn''t try to lie this time.¡± ¡°You know it''s real? How?¡± ¡°I told you that I can recognize the markings, even if I can''t read the descriptions.¡± ¡°We felt the difference and the sameness in your enchantment.¡± The first man said. ¡°We know it''s more efficient. Please, please show us.¡± ¡°I''ll do better than that. I''ll show you how to carve it.¡± ¡°Thank you!¡± They gasped at the same time. ¡°You don''t know what this will mean to our family.¡± One of them said. ¡°Mother is going to faint.¡± ¡°Or ask for your hand... after she disowns our father.¡± The other joked and they both laughed. I flipped over the wooden coin and used the pencil to draw out the very simplified weight enchantment with the intentional errors I had incorporated. ¡°Do you do engravings yourselves?¡± ¡°No, our uncle does them.¡± ¡°Sharp tools are essential, as is the angle and groove left.¡± I said and deliberately showed them how to carve it with the errors. An altered magic channel only let it accept so much magic and a truncated weight reduction let it only negate about 70% of the weight. It was nearly identical to their own; just a lot of the other marks, lines, and grooves were unnecessary and I had left them out. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± One of them said. ¡°May I?¡± I nodded and he infused it like a potion to activate it. It glowed for ten seconds and the other mage took in a sharp breath. ¡°Brother! You did it!¡± He exclaimed and hugged the other man. ¡°You''ve never activated an enchantment before!¡± ¡°I''m not even tired!¡± His brother said, quite happy. ¡°I want to try it.¡± The first one said and I pointed to the workbench. A drop of number ten potion later, he channelled some magic into the enchantment and he moved the desk around as if it was weightless. ¡°That was the easy part.¡± I said and they both looked at me. ¡°Now we have to take that one foot wide coin and make it 4 inches across.¡± ¡°What? But... the tools...¡± ¡°Smaller lines, grooves, and marks.¡± I said. ¡°Scaling is the problem. It''s going to take some practice to get it right.¡± ¡°Or smaller tools.¡± One of the men said and his eyes widened. ¡°Private Drake! Cut your tools in half!¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°If we need smaller tools to carve, then make them. Your knife can cut a lot of things, so bisect your wood carving tools. You can buy new tools later, assuming you ever want to go back to making enchantments full size again.¡± It took a bit of trial and error on an old chisel to figure out the best way to do what he said, then I sliced my good engraving tools right down the middle, making twice the blades for them to use. Some number ten potion and an added piece of wood to round out the handles again for ease of gripping, and the two of them started practising on scrap wood to show me the difference. They also showed me a neat way to make things smaller. They drew lines across and up and down on the large original one that was still attached to the workbench, then drew the same number of lines onto a smaller round piece of wood. Then they copied what was between those lines onto the smaller version in the right spaces. ¡°There we go. One small enchantment.¡± One of the brothers said and handed me the piece of wood. ¡°It won''t enchant like that, though. You need stronger wood.¡± I went outside and grabbed the small four inch coins and brought them back inside. ¡°Do it on these.¡± I handed them six of them. ¡°I''ll do the movement enchantments.¡± They nodded and got to work, and so did I. I used their copying technique and made the inefficient movement enchantment to fit on the four inch wide circle of wildwood. I used my knife, since the tools were currently being used by the two brothers. I was still done before they were and infused the small enchantments. It took only a fraction of the same magic that the large one used, too.If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°They work! They took our magic!¡± The brothers said loudly. I looked at them and felt that they really had done it. ¡°Good work. Let''s go test them.¡± ¡°Yes, sir!¡± They said and gathered them up. I grabbed the movement ones and we went outside. I was quite happy to see two of the small catapult braces had been built. ¡°We can''t finish the other two until we get more rope.¡± One of the construction crew members said. ¡°We only need one to test for now.¡± I said and they cranked down the closest one. ¡°You put it on a swivel?¡± ¡°You need to aim it.¡± The man said with a smile. ¡°Thanks.¡± I said and picked up six logs and applied number ten potion to attach the weight enchantments to the end and then the movement enchantment on top of that. I slid one into the tube and activated the weight enchantment, then took a deep breath. ¡°Everyone back.¡± Mage Lukas said and they all stepped away. I concentrated and touched the movement enchantment on the bottom of the log inside the tube that was angled up at a forty-five degree angle. I slammed it full of magic and the log rattled slightly in the tube for a second and then shot out like a crossbow bolt. All of our eyes watched it go about 60 feet up into the air, curve, and fall back to the ground a fairly good distance away. ¡°That was great.¡± Mage Lukas said, not quite enthusiastically, and the construction crew laughed. ¡°What''s so funny?¡± ¡°That was a dry test to see how fast it was.¡± One of the men said as I loaded another log. ¡°Now we''ll see what it can do when properly launched.¡± ¡°I don''t know what you mean.¡± Mage Lukas said as I charged up the second log. I put my hand on the lever on the side that would release the rope under tension, then I shoved magic into the enchantment and pulled the lever. The small catapult sprang up as the movement enchantment activated and most of them couldn''t follow the thing with their eyes, because it moved so fast. ¡°WOOO-EEEE!¡± One of the construction men yelled loudly. ¡°I can''t even tell where it went! Ha ha!¡± ¡°I can follow the enchantment to get it back.¡± I said. ¡°The problem is a flat log isn''t going to do much.¡± ¡°Carve it to a point.¡± One of the construction men said. ¡°It might work.¡± ¡°Not on a dragon.¡± Another said. ¡°We''d need a metal tip and as sharp as possible.¡± ¡°We can use short swords.¡± Mage Henrietta said and we all turned to look at her. ¡°The strike team has a pile of them in the supplies as backup weapons.¡± ¡°That... that might do it.¡± I said as I thought about it. ¡°If we remove the handles and insert the tang into the top of the log...¡± ¡°...all of that force the movement and catapult launcher adds to it will go directly into the blade.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°Even a dragon couldn''t stand for long with several of them hitting it at once.¡± ¡°We only have four of them and limited ammunition.¡± Mage Henrietta said. I walked over to the other large wooden mold and tapped it. It was solid, so I tipped it up and out popped a five foot by five foot piece of wildwood that was two inches thick. ¡°I''ve been meaning to ask what you were going to do with all that glue.¡± Mage Lukas asked. ¡°Cut it up and enchant it.¡± I said and charged my knife. I cut it up into 25 one foot wide squares, then cut each square into 9 smaller squares. I did the ''attach to a log'' trick to roll them in a circle and cut off the corners to make them all round. ¡°Good god.¡± Mage Henrietta whispered as I now had 225 round wildwood coins to enchant. ¡°The setup takes longer than the actual work does.¡± Mage Lukas repeated my words with a laugh. ¡°We''ll get more logs and more construction materials!¡± The construction crew said and left again. ¡°I''ll keep an eye on them.¡± Mage Lukas said and followed them. ¡°Mage Henrietta, I need your services.¡± I said and she came over to me. I had to take one of the sets of engraving tools from the brothers to let her work on making the limited movement enchantments. Surprisingly, she got it on the first try. I gave her a knowing look and she gave me a demure smile in return. ¡°Work well.¡± I whispered and split the pile of coins, then went to gather more springy trees. Thanks to the remaining three pots of number ten potion, I could make eight more tubes per pot with enough materials. I wouldn''t have the time to do that many, so instead I reinforced the already completed ones and refilled the mold with springy trees and potion. They set by the time the construction crew came back with another large log to make the bases and another two dozen logs of the right size for ammunition. I made four more tubes and they built the bracket for the launchers. We still didn''t have ropes, so that part would have to wait until we went back to the others. I reinforced the new tubes as well, then used the fortifying waterproof potion on the catapult brackets. Everyone stared as the wood greyed slightly and became very strong. ¡°M-m-marry me.¡± Mage Henrietta moaned. ¡°Please... I need... good lord in heaven.¡± She whispered. ¡°You are a treasure beyond measure.¡± I walked over to her and touched her shoulder. ¡°Keep carving.¡± I said and shared a little bit of magic with her. ¡°Mmmm!¡± Mage Henrietta clamped her mouth closed to stop herself from being louder. ¡°You... you are wrecking my composure, David.¡± She said and looked up at me with longing. ¡°You are too good to be true.¡± _______________ You have a choice to make. It will only affect your standing with Mage Henrietta and the Henrietta family. A) Agree. B) Deny it. C) Lie. D) Tell the truth. E) Show her your magic potential. F) Choose two. Maybe she''ll get my point if she knows what I can really do. I''ll choose D and then E. _______________ ¡°I''m not good.¡± I said and leaned down to whisper in her ear to make the petrified hand dangle down in front of her face. ¡°That''s a real human hand. I caught him stealing from me and he got away with it, so I took it.¡± Mage Henrietta trembled and I smiled. ¡°I had two other hands. One is back at the garrison and the other was taken by the drill sergeant at training camp. Both men attacked me. I killed the one that was a mage.¡± She looked at me with wide eyes. ¡°I''ve also killed a man for insulting a woman and for killing her husband.¡± ¡°Diane.¡± Mage Henrietta whispered and I nodded. ¡°You took her for yourself.¡± ¡°It didn''t happen like that. She was grateful that I had come back the next season instead of staying away and I helped stock her store.¡± Mage Henrietta didn''t respond. ¡°I''m not a nice...¡± I started to say and she reached up to touch my mouth. ¡°Don''t lie.¡± Mage Henrietta said with sly smile. ¡°Diane may have gotten to you first; but, she''s just as bad as I am for wanting you for what you can do.¡± ¡°I''m covered in torture scars.¡± ¡°I don''t care what you look like. You haven''t seen me turn away from looking at your face, have you?¡± Mage Henrietta asked and I shook my head. ¡°All you''ve done was protect yourself and avenge a wrong done to a friend. I don''t see an evil person when I look at you. I see a man who''s been through hell and lived.¡± She stood up and turned to face me. ¡°You''re a man that will change things.¡± ¡°But...¡± ¡°You''ve already changed things and more change is coming.¡± Mage Henrietta whispered. ¡°I am very close to falling in love with you and we haven''t even kissed yet.¡± She said and put her arms around my neck. ¡°Wait...¡± ¡°No.¡± She said and kissed me as she pushed her magic into me. My mind kind of went on automatic with most of my face tingling and I kissed her back. She moaned as my magic went into her in return and I suddenly remembered doing the same thing with the Hag. It had felt absolutely amazing to have sex and share magic, and I knew without a doubt that Mage Henrietta knew that, too. Mage Henrietta felt the magic potential between us and broke the kiss as she looked into my eyes. ¡°Did you know that it''s rare for nobles to actually love their spouses?¡± I shook my head no. ¡°We could be one of the first.¡± Mage Henrietta said and surprised me by kissing my damaged cheek. She let go of my neck and rubbed her hands on my chest briefly. ¡°Now get to work and assemble the ammunition.¡± ¡°Yes, ma''am.¡± I said and did exactly that. I knew an order when I heard one. It took a while to get everything all set up properly and we all worked hard to finish as quickly as possible. Once we had exhausted nearly everything, I put the tools and supplies back into the house and locked and sealed it up. The crew loaded up the boat with everything and it was very crowded as they all got in. I activated the weight enchantment and easily pushed the boat off of the dry area and into the water, then hopped in myself. I activated the movement enchantment and Mage Henrietta only moaned a little and hugged my arm closely as we travelled back to where the others were waiting for us. 091 A Dragons Breath Part Two Alex and the others were very surprised when I showed up with my boat full of things, especially the large boars and other animals. He was even more surprised when I told him what we were going to do with the boars and the immolation, fire, and fire suppression potions he had. He laughed at my idea to stuff the fire suppression ones into the animals and launch them on the catapults for them to eat, then he exclaimed that it was a brilliant idea. He didn''t ask why we had been gone for so long or what we had been doing for hours, so I assumed that he was either going to ask later when we had some spare time or he was going to wait for the report. Doing either of those in the middle of a mission wasn''t something he would condone to distract the troops. It was more important to work first and they could discuss the details later. The other construction crew had already built the two large catapults from the other boat and they ran over to see what the crew I had with me had done. When they carried out the two completed weapons, everyone stared at them and didn''t know what to say. ¡°Trust us, you are going to be amazed.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°I saw it with my own eyes and I still can''t believe it.¡± ¡°I didn''t see it.¡± One of the weight mages said. ¡°It was too fast.¡± Alex gave them disbelieving looks. ¡°What are they?¡± ¡°I believe David said they were called Kracken Tubes.¡± ¡°Kracken and not dragon?¡± Alex asked and looked confused. ¡°Why in the world...¡± ¡°I''ve never seen a Kracken.¡± I said. Alex looked surprised for a second, then laughed. ¡°I get it. No one''s seen these before, either.¡± ¡°The ammunition isn''t finished and I need to requisition the short swords you brought as backup weapons.¡± I said and walked over to the piles of supplies and easily found the crates of weapons. ¡°Requisition? What do you...¡± Alex stopped talking as he thought about that. ¡°Oh.¡± I gave him a smile when he realized that I wasn''t going to pay for them. I opened the crates and brought them over to the piles of wood ammunition we had, then I got to work stripping the hilts off of the swords and cleaning the metal. I made a slice in the top of one of the three foot long logs and inserted the short sword. I applied some number ten potion and put the projectile aside to let it set, then kept working. ¡°What is he doing?¡± Alex asked Mage Lukas. ¡°He''s making a normal log into a devastating weapon.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°Just sharpening the wood into a point wouldn''t work, since it''s just wood and would probably just smash on the dragon''s scaled armor or only impact and push the dragon. It needs piercing capability with a metal tip, so Mage Henrietta came up with the short sword idea, because we didn''t have a blacksmith handy.¡± ¡°I just hope it works.¡± Alex said. ¡°I''ll give the combat mages a crash course in how to work them. By the time David''s done assembling them and the crews are done finishing the other catapult brackets as launchers, there''s nothing that we can''t face.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°This is still going to be the most dangerous mission that any of us have ever been on; but, we also have much better chances now.¡± Alex watched him walk away and crouched down to whisper. ¡°Mage Lukas is calling you David now?¡± ¡°He''s thinking of petitioning me to join his family.¡± I responded and Alex looked shocked. ¡°So is Mage Henrietta.¡± I said and nodded to her. As if she knew I had mentioned her, she turned her head to look at me with a smile. She was still talking to the other mages and she turned her head back to them to keep the conversation going as Mage Lukas joined them. ¡°What did she offer?¡± Alex asked and I told him. He looked even more shocked and he sat down to take several deep breaths. ¡°Are you going to accept?¡± ¡°I know she''s telling the truth...¡± I started to say. ¡°...you''re positive that Diane will never let it happen.¡± ¡°Yes, and Mage Henrietta made a slight mistake in her offer.¡± I said and kept working. Alex took a few minutes to think about it and couldn''t come up with anything, because he asked me. ¡°What was the mistake?¡± ¡°Just like everyone else, she thinks that I want to leave the marsh.¡± I said. Alex''s mouth dropped open in surprise and he didn''t say anything else for a while. Eventually, he pat my shoulder and stood up, then went to the construction crews to discuss the capabilities of the Kracken Tubes and how they could be best deployed for the mission. I didn''t know much about aiming or angles for firing things like this, since I barely had any practice time in basic training with bows and crossbows. We only had closed courses and didn''t venture outside or shoot at long distances. If he had asked me about it though, I would have told him to leave them in a cluster and keep the ammo nearby, then fire them all at once. If one or two against a dragon would be harmful, all eight at once would be deadly. Or should be, anyway. We wouldn''t know until the battle started. One of the construction crew men came over to me and asked what I thought about how to use the Kracken Tubes, so I told him. He commented that it would be hard to defend two catapult crews if they were clumped together.A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. I shook my head. ¡°They aren''t meant to be used to defend. They are supposed to attack. If you wait for the dragon to attack the crews first, they will already be dead before you can fire in defense.¡± The man looked surprised, nodded, and went back over to the meeting. I kept working until I ran out of short swords. I went back to the supplies and found a crate of daggers, shrugged, and went back to work. I put the weaker ammunition off to the side. Hopefully, we wouldn''t need that much and the ones with the short swords would be enough to finish off the creatures. I kept working anyway. I would rather have them and not need them than be dead for not having them. Time seemed to pass by quickly and everything was all set up. I was positioned with the non-combatants, since I wasn''t a part of the strike teams. Alex had kept his word and the boat pilots were just that when the fighting was going to start. Mage Henrietta gripped my arm tightly as we hid behind a hunting blind to keep us out of sight. No one spoke as Alex made the proper signals, then the first two catapults launched their glowing blue fiery contents. That had been one of my own ideas, to use wildwood wrapped bundles lit on fire to track where they went. Inside was a barrel full of number ten potion and huge bundles of spider webs. I watched with the others as the shots flew a really long way away. I was frankly amazed that it could shoot that far and it wasn''t even enchanted like the Kracken Tubes were. The crews cranked them down and rock bundles were added, this time with enchantments that I didn''t know because they were secret, and they were launched as well. A third launch was being prepped before we heard the explosion of the first delivery, then we heard ear-splitting howls of pain and anger from the dragons. ¡°That was an excellent shot by both teams.¡± One of the mages said with his eyes closed. ¡°Direct hits near the center of the nests and the dragons are covered in spreading webs, wood, and fire.¡± ¡°ROOOOWWWRRRRR!!!!¡± A male dragon''s battle call cut through the marsh and a few people trembled. ¡°They are trying to fight the glue.¡± The mage said. ¡°It''s getting all over them.¡± The rock bundles came down next and impacted on the nests and the dragons. ¡°The exploding rocks pissed off the male. He''s coming.¡± The mage said and opened his eyes. ¡°They''re coming!¡± He said loudly and warned the combat mages. ¡°We''re ready.¡± Mage Lukas said and nodded to the others. The defensive mages that were left to protect the catapult crews readied their shield spells and the mages on the Kracken Tubes charged the weight enchantment. According to the plan, the two strike teams should be attacking the nests right now. The third launch was their cue to attack the nesting females and to slaughter the babies. It sounded bad when described like that, and it was. However, they had to be killed. Even the army can''t fight off a dozen full grown dragons that would just keep having more babies if they remained alive. Now the Kracken Tubes had to deal with at least one angry father. The construction crew had decided that they would help on the tubes to aim and turn them where necessary. They knew how to work them best, since they built them, and could load them faster than the mages and crank them back into launch position by the time the mage was ready to charge the next projectile. A very large shadow appeared over everyone and they all looked up as one, even me. A dragon, bigger than the one I had seen before, was approaching very quickly from the direction of the sun. ¡°He''s a smart one!¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°Ready! Aim!¡± All the mages charged the movement enchantment and the projectiles rattled in the tubes. ¡°FIRE!¡± The crews pulled the levers and all eight Kracken Tubes sprang into action and launched the projectiles at an unbelievable speed. The dragon saw them coming and it didn''t matter. It couldn''t dodge such fast shots and the range was short in comparison with a normal catapult. There was one miscalculation I had made, however. There was no way to direct them once they were fired. Three of the shots missed completely as they seemed to hook the wind or something. I would learn later that it was the air that the dragon was displacing as it flew. Five of the shots managed to hit it, with three in the chest and two through its wings. It let out an ear-piercing screech of pain and flapped its huge wings to slow down. It seemed confused as to how it had gotten hurt, then eight more projectiles hit it, spread over its neck, chest, belly, and back legs. ¡°GRAAAWWWWW!¡± It yelled and seemed to hunch in on itself as it covered itself with its wings and tried to used its mouth to pull some of the projectiles out. It also was no longer flying and droped like a rock towards the ground. ¡°Keep firing!¡± Mage Lukas said and the wings were peppered with all eight shots. The dragon slammed into the waterway and bounced, flipped over, and landed on its back in a dry area next to where the Kracken Tubes were set up. It was about two hundred feet away and everyone seemed stunned that they had just taken down a dragon. ¡°ROOOAAARRRR!¡± The dragon bellowed and pulled its wings away from covering itself. The wings tore, which enraged it further, and it rolled over to stand up on its four legs. One of the projectiles was sticking out of a nostril and two were still in its neck. Half of the others had broken off and it was bleeding all over to place. ¡°Adjusted aim!¡± The crew said as one. ¡°BOAR!¡± Alex yelled and one of the full size catapults did a kind of half-launch and lobbed a potion filled boar carcass over to it. The dragon saw it coming and its eyes blazed as it opened its mouth. ¡°He''s going to do it!¡± Someone shouted and the dragon blew out a huge gout of flame at the boar coming towards it. To everyone''s surprise, the boar actually slowed down from the force of the flames and dropped to the ground in front of the dragon. ¡°Do it.¡± Mage Henrietta whispered beside me. ¡°Come on. Eat it.¡± The dragon ducked its head to smell the large boar carcass, growled, and scooped it up into its mouth. We all watched it chew and try to swallow, then it coughed. It coughed for several seconds and then closed its mouth and tipped its head up into the air. ¡°FIRE!¡± Mage Lukas said and eight more shots peppered the dragon''s front. Two of them even managed to hit it right under its chin. ¡°Die, you beast! Just die!¡± One of the crewmen said loudly. As if the dragon had heard him, it shook its head and looked right at him. It opened its mouth and pulled the two projectiles out of its chin, took a deep breath, then coughed. It coughed again and bent over, picked at its mouth with his front foot, then gave up. ¡°Raggllll!¡± It tried to roar and it looked surprised, then its eyes flared and it started to run towards us. ¡°Fire! Fire! Fire!¡± Mage Lukas said and he fired three times before the dragon hopped over the waterway. Luckily, everyone else reloaded once and scored hits on the creature''s front legs. When it landed, its front legs collapsed under the dragon''s weight and it slammed into the ground. It slid forward almost fifty feet and the combat mages and crew scrambled out of the way as it kept coming, then it came to a stop with its nose almost pressing against the front Kracken Tube. It let out a low growl as its eyes scanned around and saw all of the men around it. In the next second, Mage Lukas and the other mages showed us why they were combat mages. Lightning spells, fireball spells, shards of earth launched at high speed, and a glowing sword had pierced both of the dragon''s eyes and finally finished off the crippled creature. 092 A Dragons Breath Part Three The mages stood over the smoking corpse of the dragon for several moments before someone let out a happy cheer. ¡°WE DID IT!¡± A man yelled and then a round of cheers and hollers came from the others. ¡°Quiet, you fools!¡± I hissed at them and Mage Henrietta''s grip on my arm tightened. ¡°They can''t hear you.¡± She said, worry in her voice. ¡°If you speak louder...¡± I let out the Hag''s favorite curse and moved to leave the hunting blind. ¡°No! You can''t!¡± Mage Henrietta gasped and held on. ¡°I have to tell them to...¡± ¡°It''s too late.¡± One of the weight mages said and pointed at another dragon coming from a different direction. ¡°I''ll tell them.¡± The other weight mage said and ducked out. ¡°No!¡± I said too late as he ran out to shout and point, then he darted back in with us to hide. ¡°You''ve just killed us all.¡± I spat at him. ¡°How? We''re hiding!¡± ¡°A dragon can see us from a mile away when in the air.¡± I said with a sigh. We all turned and looked at our approaching death, because there was nothing we could do now. The mages and construction crews did their best to adjust the Kracken Tubes for the new target and they actually managed to get off a single shot. Unfortunately, unlike the large male dragon that was a nice big target, a juvenile was much slimmer and the shot grouping wasn''t nearly as close as it had been, because of the hasty repositioning. Only three projectiles struck and it was only in non-vital areas, then the dragon swooped in and opened his mouth as the mages and construction crew scattered. It didn''t roar or blow out a gout of flame breath, though. Instead, a noxious stream of green brackish smoke came out and hit one of the catapults and three of the Kracken Tubes. ¡°It''s going to be worse than I thought.¡± I whispered as the cloud settled where it had been spat and everything inside of it started to rot and dissolve. ¡°It''s acid breath.¡± Mage Henrietta whispered and I nodded. ¡°It won''t be too bad, as long as the wind doesn''t...¡± One of the weight mages whispered as the dragon, being quite a bit smarter than his father, looped around in a much tighter circle and then flapped his wings in rapid succession to make wind. It hit the acid cloud and it spread out to cover part of the second catapult and flowed towards the area that everyone else was hiding. ¡°Grab the Kracken Tubes and RUN!¡± Mage Lukas yelled at the combat mages and ran for the weapons that were undamaged. ¡°No, you fools!¡± Alex said loudly and ordered the people around him to retreat. The young dragon let out a growl and turned towards him in the air. That was when I saw the healed damage on its side. It was the baby dragon that Alex and the others had hurt and it recognized Alex''s voice giving commands. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. This will change your standing in the army and your relationships with everyone. A) Stay silent. B) Warn Alex. C) Do something. D) Do nothing. E) Retreat. F) Die. G) Accept fate. No choose two? Dammit. I thought and didn''t curse when I saw the timer pop up with five seconds on it. I am really going to regret this. I thought with a sigh. I choose C. _______________ ¡°I have to go.¡± I whispered to Mage Henrietta. ¡°You''re going to save them all, aren''t you?¡± She asked. ¡°No, I''m going to save my friends.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°You mean me.¡± She whispered and turned to give me a kiss. ¡°Do your best.¡± ¡°I have to or this will all be for nothing.¡± I said as the dragon let out another cloud of acid. Alex had been smart and had a nice barricade made for the catapult crews to hide under if they were attacked directly and the defense mages had cast a mage shield over it. The acid settled around it and melted and ate away everything around the barrier. It wasn''t going to last, though. ¡°Then go with my blessing.¡± Mage Henrietta said and her hands glowed for a second. I felt her magic all over me and smiled as I felt a thin mage shield settle into my skin. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and ducked out of the hunting blind. Even though she was watching me, I felt it when her eyes lost sight of me. I quickly drank a number seven potion, a number six, and a number four. By the time I had crawled twenty feet into the open towards the Kracken ammunition, I had to freeze still and let the feelings settle in. My mind was sharper and gave me insight, my strength doubled and power flowed through my limbs, and the healing potion took away the growing headache and stiff muscles. I felt like I could take on the whole world and crawled like a spider on all fours, just like they taught me in basic training over the log obstacle. I made it to the Kracken ammunition and charged all of the weight enchantments myself in one go. ¡°Get out of here!¡± I said loudly to the mages. On purpose. I stood up with two of the projectiles in my hands.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Stop! You''ll get the dragon''s attention!¡± Mage Lukas said as he used his sword to cut the tube out of the catapult bracket. ¡°I want it!¡± I said and readied to throw. ¡°Now RUN! HEEEEY, DRAGON! Dragon, dragon, dragon!¡± The young dragon flapped its wings and turned its head to me. ¡°Thanks for looking, sucker!¡± I said and activated the movement enchantment at its full capacity and threw the projectile as hard as I could. The dragon flapped its wings and moved its head just enough to have the projectile miss its neck. ¡°Yeah, I knew single shots wouldn''t work well.¡± I said and threw another, grabbed two more and kept driving the dragon away from where Alex was. ¡°Together.¡± Mage Lukas said and he held the tube next to me. ¡°Don''t waste ammunition.¡± I said and threw another. ¡°You saw how weak it was.¡± ¡°No, let me drive it and you throw where the dragon goes.¡± Mage Lukas said and shot. The dragon dodged back and I understood. I used one hand to load his and readied to throw my own. ¡°Go!¡± I said and Mage Lukas fired. As the dragon flapped its wings to move back, I whipped mine to where it would be in a second and clipped one of its wings and a leg. The dragon let out a roar of pain and turned to face us. ¡°I think its angry enough.¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°Keep firing!¡± We did and it had learned our trick. Instead of dodging, it dropped to the ground and made itself a much smaller target. It also covered most of itself with its wings and we couldn''t tell where its body was behind them. ¡°We''re almost out of metal ammo.¡± I warned him and the dragon chose that moment to charge. Did it understand me? I asked myself and pushed Mage Lukas out of the way as I threw the projectile I had and jumped to the other side myself. I missed, since I wasn''t really aiming and the dragon rumbled by and trampled the other ammunition and the Kracken Tubes that the mages were unable to dislodge. Luckily, they had taken my advice and had run, unlike Mage Lukas, who was still there. I was too focused on staying alive to notice where the mages went. ¡°Now what?¡± Mage Lukas said. ¡°You need to stop moving and I need to do something really stupid.¡± I said and waved my hands at the dragon as it turned around, then ran over to the partially melted second catapult. I let out several of the Hag''s curses as I kicked over a half-melted crate and the acid ate away part of my custom boot. I revealed the other stuffed boar that only had its hooves melted away and the small pouch with the two immolation potions was beside it, untouched. I tucked the two potions into my bandoleer and grabbed the boar by the legs. I ignored the smell of my skin dissolving on both my foot and my hands. ¡°Hey, stupid! Look what I have! It''s dinnertime!¡± ¡°No!¡± A woman''s voice gasped. Thankfully, the dragon only had eyes for me. Calling it stupid made it very angry... and it didn''t blow out any acid. It charged instead and I had to dodge and rolled over the broken crate. I couldn''t ignore the pain this time as the acid dissolved my shirt. ¡°ARRRGGHHH!¡± I yelled and the dragon stopped dead. It slowly turned around and looked at me. I was hunched over and the skin on my back was bubbling and sliding off. Even though the Hag had spent well over a decade fortifying me and making me tough, acid was not something she could ever prepare me enough for. It tromped over to me as if nothing else was around us and looked down at me. I looked up and shook the boar as if tempting it to eat it. It used its snout to bat the boar away and the sound of potion bottles smashing could be clearly heard. ¡°You knew, huh?¡± I asked it as it opened its mouth, almost in a smile. ¡°This is going to hurt.¡± ¡°NOOOOOO!¡± A startled scream cut through the battlefield as the dragon''s head darted forward and engulfed me. _______________ Narration break initiated. Current character play suspended as external view is implemented. Please choose which character you would like to observe from. A) Alex Smith. B) Mage Lukas. C) Mage Henrietta. D) Random mage. E) Random crewman. Observe only? Goddammit. I thought with a sigh. Well, I think Mage Lukas has the closest view, Mage Henrietta has the widest view, and Alex has the best perspective view. I thought and considered the options. This is a tough choice, since it doesn''t say if I''ll experience it or just see it from their point of view. I fell silent as I thought about it and since the narrative was on break, I took my time. A long time. All right, I can''t stay here forever while I try to choose. I thought with frustration. I''m tempted to try Mage Henrietta, just to see if she''s really genuine in her feelings for me. Unfortunately, she''s not a combat fighter and she won''t see things close to how I''d see it, so I have to go with Alex. I choose A. _______________ Alex looked upon the horror of the battlefield. Half melted men under his command had their bodies scattered around. Luckily, they had not suffered long as the acid quickly did its work. Combat mages not smart enough to run to the sides were squashed by the dragon as it trampled everything it could see. The defensive mages had tried their best to keep the barrier intact for a lot longer than their combat ratings indicated and he was very grateful for that. The dragon had spewed out another acid cloud to cover them and until it settled, they couldn''t move safely from their hiding spot. Not that they could, anyway. The whole thing had become a complete mess after his friend David had been eaten. It was a stupid and reckless plan that only an idiot would even attempt. The fire suppression potions weren''t going to work on an acid breather and he lamented the loss of his friend. All that was left of him was half of an acid burned boot and his foot that the dragon had, for some reason, chosen not to eat. The combat mages, led by Mage Lukas, did their best to recover some of the ammunition from the other dragon and also used the older male''s body as protection and to stay hidden. They tried to do David''s amazing trick of throwing the damn things or using the broken tubes, only they were worse at throwing than David was. Or had been. Alex took a deep breath and looked over to a half acid melted hunting blind that the non-combatants had been hiding behind. One of the weight mages was doing his best to cut off the melted arm of his brother before the acid spread any further. He couldn''t even send over the healers until the acid around his position settled, since they all knew it dissolved anything that touched it, thanks to David. He saw that Mage Henrietta wasn''t doing anything to help and she just stood there, motionless. The acid had missed her by only inches and she hadn''t run. She stood there and glared at the rampaging dragon with so much anger on her face that he wondered why the dragon hadn''t burst into flames. Then it did. Alex stared as the dragon opened its mouth to roar and bright red fire shot out instead of acid. That was a surprise, until he realized the roar wasn''t an angry one. It was pain! He watched with baited breath as the dragon ignored the combat mages and started wandering around, almost at random. Its wings were damaged, so it didn''t take off, either. ¡°I''m... spent.¡± One of the defensive mages managed to say and fell unconscious. The magical barrier weakened at just the wrong time, because the dragon chose that time to stumble towards them. It coughed and a gout of flame and acid came out of its mouth to partially cover them. ¡°ARRRRHHHH!¡± The other mage yelled and the barrier flickered at the magical pressure. It dropped completely a second later and the fire and acid covered the two defensive mages and three of the eight people with Alex. ¡°Run!¡± Alex ordered and the people still alive scattered. ¡°Take off your boots when you''re past the acid!¡± He said and looked down at why he couldn''t point and discovered that his arm was gone from the elbow down. In the next instant, he teetered on his legs and fell backwards to the ground. When he looked to see what happened, he saw that acid had eaten away at his ankle. The foot was gone, too. It looks like I match you now, my friend. He thought and fell unconscious before the pain hit him. 093 A Dragons Breath Resolution _______________ Chosen character can no longer witness the event. Do you wish to switch to another perspective? No, I think I''ve seen enough. I thought. Let''s skip the rest and get this over with. Narrative break truncated. Reinstating main character perspective. Resuming story. Wait, what? I''m not dead? I thought with shock. I was eaten by a goddamn dragon! _______________ It was really dark and the pressure on me was excruciating. I thought I was in hell or something, then I realized that I was stuck inside the dragon''s throat. I pushed and pulled to try and make myself as much of a nuisance as I could, then I felt twice as much pressure and was pushed forward. Forward was bad from my perspective, because I was facing downward, so I took a deep breath and then splashed into the stomach. It was half full of acid and I was surprised that it didn''t burn like the cloud the dragon spewed out. It still stung like hell, because my back and hands didn''t have any skin on them anymore, and I was pretty sure that my foot was gone, too. That meant I was bleeding and couldn''t feel it, which was really bad, and I had to do something about it fast. It was still pitch black and I couldn''t see anything. I was also jostled around a lot, which gave me a good idea which way to move. I did my best to stand up and took out one of the immolation potions, then I felt around for the best spot to smash it. I found the throat opening and prepared to duck back into the stomach acid. I shoved my hand into the opening and smashed the potion, then slid down into the bottom of the stomach until the acid covered me. The whole stomach lit up as the potion induced magical fire covered the whole place. I lifted my leg with the missing foot out of the stomach acid and held in my scream of pain as the immolating fire seared my stump. I pulled it back when I thought it was enough and waited for the fire to die down before I sat up and inspected the stump. It wasn''t too bad, so I accepted the loss and was sad that I never did get around to making a regeneration potion. If I had one, it would let me regrow my lost foot, not to mention my missing toes and fingers. I really needed to try and work on that as soon as I could. The fire was still burning near the throat and it gave off some light. I could see a little bit and took stock of what my situation was. I still had both hands, one foot, most of my uniform, and my bandoleer. I was sure that nothing else in it was going to help me this time, except for my knife, so I took it out and charged it. I did it just in time, because the fire was sucked away and I could only see by the glow of the knife. I jammed my knife into the side of the stomach and started cutting. Unlike nearly everything else I''ve tried to cut with it, the dragon''s flesh was tough and resisted the magic of the blade and my enhanced strength. It felt like I was using a normal knife while trying to cut normal meat. That was a scary proposition because I had been holding my breath this whole time, since breathing in stomach acid was not a good idea, and I cut as fast as I could. I wasn''t looking to make a huge hole, just a slice that was big enough to get me out. The problem was, the stomach was deep inside the underbelly of the dragon and it had big thick rib bones. There were a lot of things between me and the outside, namely dragon scales. I hoped beyond hope that I was close enough to the separation between the heavy armor top scales and the smaller underbelly scales. If I wasn''t... well, I was sure that I couldn''t hold my breath for that long. I blew a chance that I shouldn''t have taken when I took a very brief sniff to try and get more air. I gagged and the noxious smell inside the stomach burned the inside of my nose. I lost the air I had and clamped my mouth shut a little too late. Dragon stomach tasted as awful as it smelled. I barely stopped myself from throwing up and now I was desperate and used all of my strength to cut and chop at the dragon''s side. Blood poured into the stomach and I discovered another problem. If I didn''t get out soon, I would drown in a mix of stomach acid and blood. I felt it stumble around as I essentially attacked it from inside, so I reached through the cut I had and held on to one of its ribs. I was tempted to take another strength potion, even if I would suffer twice as much when it wore off. The problem was, I was inside a dragon. I would be ingesting a lot of whatever was inside the stomach and the benefit did not outweigh having another taste. I sawed my knife across the rib in front of me. I had cut away the surrounding flesh and the blood was up to my waist already. I needed the rib out of the way because I couldn''t fit out between them. It was much too late to change directions now. My lungs burned and my body told me that I desperately needed air. Air, air, air! I need AIR! I yelled in my head and grabbed the next rib and used the leverage to kick with my good foot at the partially cut rib. Sawing it off is taking too long! I NEED AIR! I kicked and kicked and then gave up kicking and held on and pressed as hard as I could with my foot and the stub of my leg. I pulled with my hands at the same time, imagining the rib was a lever, and applied as much pressure as I could on the edge of it... then it snapped. YESSSSS! I yelled in my head, pulled out the rib, and dug my knife into the flesh beyond it. I was too far gone mentally to care when the dragon tilted and dropped a few feet. I was so close to the surface that I felt the scales pushing out. SO CLOSE! SOOO CLOOOOSE!The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. The blood rose up to my chest and then went over my head. I closed my eyes and ignored my constantly burning nostrils. It seemed to take forever for me to not feel any resistance on my blade... and then I felt like a dam had burst and I tumbled out of the dragon in a flood of blood and stomach contents. I landed on my back and didn''t hear anything at all, then I felt water splash over me. I tried to get up and stumbled, because I had forgotten that I didn''t have a foot, and ended up on my hands and knees. I tried to wipe the acid and blood from my face, then finally opened my mouth in I couldn''t remember how long to take a breath. ¡°HUUUUUUUUUGGGHHHHHH!¡± I gasped long and hard, then I threw up for just as long. I had taken in a lot more that I thought I had with that stupid breath inside the dragon''s stomach. I took several more breaths and then I collapsed onto my side. I felt someone take my hands and drag me away from the dragon, then two healers and Mage Henrietta was there above me. They were speaking and I shook my head and pointed to my ears. Apparently, it wasn''t just quiet and I couldn''t hear anything. I felt water splash in my left ear and then my right, then one of the healers put their glowing hands on the sides of my head. Sound slowly started to come back to me, as if they were turning it up, and then I was able to hear clearly again. ¡°David! David!¡± Mage Henrietta said and reached for me. The healer shook her head and nodded at the other healer. They took out a huge pair of scissors and without touching the clothing, cut me out of my shirt, pants, and surprisingly, boot. ¡°Water!¡± They said and I was suddenly covered in water again, then I was rolled over twice and dragged away from my clothing. I was thankful it was grass and as the healers kept tending to me, I saw one of the combat mages burn my clothing. Another was burning the blood and stomach contents. ¡°David.¡± Mage Henrietta said with tears in her eyes and placed a hand on my chest. ¡°I''m so glad that you survived.¡± ¡°Alex...¡± I started to say. ¡°He''s worse off than you.¡± One of the healers said. ¡°He''s lost part of an arm and part of a leg. We''ve stabilized him and he''ll be sent back along with the other dead and wounded, just as soon as the strike teams get back.¡± ¡°Mage Lukas?¡± Mage Henrietta sighed. ¡°He sacrificed himself to save First Lieutenant Smith and the non-combatants.¡± ¡°What did he do?¡± ¡°We salvaged as much of the remaining ammo as we could and distracted it.¡± One of the combat mages said. ¡°He knew it wasn''t going to last long, so he took one of the enchanted rocks from the catapult and tied it to one of the projectiles.¡± I closed my eyes and imagined what happened. ¡°He ran up with it to hit at close range.¡± ¡°He activated the boost enchantments and shot it right on the forehead. The rock exploded and...¡± The man fell silent. I opened my eyes to look at everyone''s sad faces. ¡°Mage Lukas died killing a dragon.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°How did you do this?¡± One of the healers asked and lifted the stump of my right ankle. ¡°It looks healed.¡± ¡°Immolation potion to stop the bleeding.¡± I said. ¡°That... that''s... insane.¡± The one holding my leg said and put it down. ¡°That... the pain alone...¡± ¡°The acid was worse.¡± I said and she nodded as her eyes went to my hands. ¡°We''ll finish your hands and work on your back next.¡± She said. ¡°That''s okay. I have my...¡± I reached for my bandoleer with my free hand and it was gone. I looked at the fire where my clothes were and heard several pops. ¡°Dammit.¡± I said, because I knew that all of my potions were now gone. ¡°Does anyone have a spare healing potion?¡± Everyone shook their heads and I sighed. I held a hand out to her and she took it to work her magic. Surprisingly, I did not get a tingly feeling out of it as I watched my skin regrow. When she was done, I put my knife in my other hand and gave her that one to heal. I was rolled over and several hisses were heard as they saw what was left of my back. It took the healers a lot longer to repair the damage to my back and as I laid there on the grass and waited for them to finish, Mage Henrietta sat beside me and held my hand. She didn''t say anything and neither did I. There wasn''t much to say about everything that happened, until the strike teams came back. We wouldn''t know until then if what had happened here was worth it. The two strike teams came back with less than half of their numbers and asked for whoever was in charge. Nearly everyone turned to look at me, because I had been part of the briefing and both Alex and Mage Lukas were no longer able to listen. ¡°Go ahead and report.¡± I said and the strike team members tried to not watch my back being healed. ¡°Sir, the primary site was a complete success.¡± The leader of one team said. ¡°Once the large male left, we dispatched the mother. Unfortunately, the baby dragons were not happy when she died.¡± ¡°I never knew they could move like that.¡± Someone else said. ¡°Even with your warning about their ability to dash...¡± He shook his head. ¡°With four of them to contend with, it was a harrowing battle, even with our two assigned mages.¡± Mage Henrietta looked at them and didn''t see any mage robes. ¡°They''re dead.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± The leader said and held out a sack. ¡°These are their belongings, even the damaged items.¡± Mage Henrietta let my hand go to take the sack without speaking and the other team leader handed her a sack as well. It was much smaller and it was essentially just scrap inside. She sighed and tied both to her belt without standing up. ¡°The secondary site was as good of a success, although we lost a few more people. The extra juvenile that you warned might be there, showed up just as the third launch hit.¡± The second leader said. ¡°It took the exploding rock in the chest and was knocked backwards into the mother.¡± ¡°It could still fight, even partially covered in webs and fire.¡± One of the team members said. ¡°It was...¡± He shook his head. ¡°I''ve never seen a dying creature do so much damage.¡± Everyone else there looked around the completely wrecked mission site and looked back at him. ¡°At the time.¡± He corrected. ¡°We managed to hurt them and killed the mother and one of the babies. We didn''t think we were going to survive at all, until the defensive mage cast a shield over the dragons and the other mage staying inside with him to make the fire bigger and to keep it going.¡± ¡°Oh, no.¡± Mage Henrietta whispered. ¡°I''ve never seen a funeral pyre spell used like that before.¡± The second leader said and reached out to rest a hand on Mage Henrietta''s shoulder. ¡°Please, pass on our gratitude and our sorrow to the families of those brave mages.¡± Mage Henrietta nodded and he stepped back. ¡°Sir? What do we do now?¡± The first leader asked me. ¡°The combat mages are finishing off cleansing the area of acid, so there''s only two things left to do.¡± I said. ¡°Stay long enough to get everyone healed enough for travel, then pack up the boats and head back to the garrison.¡± ¡°Sir, I thought... aren''t we supposed to continue on and clear out the landing sites?¡± ¡°We don''t have the manpower to do that anymore.¡± I said and glanced at the healers. ¡°You''ll be healed in another fifteen minutes.¡± The healer said. I nodded and looked back at the strike teams. ¡°I''ll report that the main mission was a success and recommend reallocation of strike teams with the construction crews. We made sure that there was enough room on the boats for your men.¡± ¡°Sir.¡± The man saluted. ¡°Let''s get packing, boys.¡± They moved off, as did the few construction crew members that were left. They started gathering up what supplies that were salvageable and started piling them by the waterway. 094 Reporting As Ordered Fourteen minutes later, I asked Mage Henrietta to get one of the spare uniforms I had stashed on my boat. She knew right where to look, because it was the same spot that the wooden coins had been, and she came back to me just as the healers finished. Apparently, a lot more than my skin had been eaten away and I hadn''t even realized it. I put on the underwear first and then Mage Henrietta handed me two socks. I raised my eyebrows at her and she smiled as she slid the sock onto my stump and all the way up to my knee. She put the other one on my good foot, then handed me my pants. I slid my legs into them and pulled them on, then she helped me stand up to put my shirt on. I would need to visit the PX to buy new private decorations, too. The bodies and their effects that were recoverable were gathered up, as well as the supplies, and everything was loaded into the boats while the wounded were loaded into the main boats. This was the first time I had seen Donna and she was bandaged on her head, her arm, and her leg. She was right beside Alex and held his remaining hand. I didn''t bother trying to listen to what she was saying to him. I sighed and discovered that I had nowhere to put my knife, so I kept it in my hand and let Mage Henrietta support my weight on my right side. She hugged me close with her arm and I had my free arm over her shoulder to help me walk. We all climbed into the boats, now that they were hooked back together, and Mage Henrietta had to leave me in mine to take over powering the other tandem boat. I powered the weight enchantment for her and she only had to use the movement one, since she couldn''t use both at the same time. The weight mages went into the backup boat for her to power the weight enchantment there. Since one didn''t have an arm anymore, only one of them was fit to do it. I didn''t have anyone left for either of my boats as backups, since the skeptical guy and Mage Larson had both died in the dragon''s acid attack on the hidden area. Mage Henrietta hadn''t been forthcoming in her version of the story, either. She let the others be the only ones to speak about seeing her stand in the wreckage and in defiance of the dragon. I powered the weight enchantment and we started our journey back to the garrison. It seemed to take a lot longer, even though I was going at the agreed upon speed and Mage Henrietta didn''t seem to have any trouble keeping up. Everyone was in a somber mood as we travelled all the way back to the garrison. Not surprisingly, no one was on the village dock to wave or cheer at us when we passed it. We were back much earlier than planned and only a few civilians were there to see us as I led us around to the waterway to take us to Diane''s place and the dock there. I hopped on one foot to tie the boat up and didn''t bother trying to secure it any more than that, then I sat down on the dock and held the boat steady with the movement enchantment for everyone to disembark safely. A crewman unhooked the tandem boat and I moved it over to the dock for him to secure it. He ran to get one of the large hand carts and the sick and injured were loaded onto it at the direction of the two healers. Mage Henrietta stopped on the other side of the dock and did the same thing I did with her tandem boat, which surprised the combat mages, because she hadn''t moved a boat without touching it before. It didn''t take long for the healers to call for me to be added to the cart and I hopped over to it and climbed on. The strike teams and mobile members loaded a second cart with the remaining damaged supplies and the deceased they had recovered, then followed behind the first cart as we were taken up the small road to Diane''s place, across her property, and out to the main road. There were several shouts from the guards in front of the garrison and the gate was opened and two squads rushed out to check everything over. We were allowed to enter and told where to go, mainly the medical building, and I hopped off. ¡°You''re not going anywhere without a foot.¡± One of the healers said, angrily. ¡°I need to report.¡± I said and looked at Mage Henrietta. She came over to me and became my brace once more. ¡°Thank you.¡± Mage Henrietta only nodded and we left the irate healer by the cart as we headed to the main building and the CO''s office. We didn''t have to wait as the secretary waved us through and she stared at my missing boot. I wasn''t surprised to see the Colonel sitting behind the desk and the CO standing beside her. ¡°Private Drake reporting, Ma''am.¡± I said and saluted with my real hand. I had lost the petrified hand somewhere inside the dragon''s stomach. It had dissolved the cord that hung around my neck and I lost the key to my house, too. The Colonel frowned and briefly returned the salute. ¡°Where are my officers, Private Drake?¡± She asked in a deeper voice than normal. ¡°Alex and Donna are in the medical building being treated for severe injuries.¡± Her eyes dropped to my missing foot for a second. ¡°Why aren''t you?¡± ¡°I had to report, Ma''am.¡± I said and Sandra the CO nodded slightly. ¡°Then report.¡± The Colonel said, anger on her face. ¡°The initial mission is a complete success.¡± I said and explained about the different situation, what Mage Lukas, the construction crew, and I did to resolve the deficiency in our forces, then about what happened, right up until I was swallowed by the dragon. ¡°WHAT happened to YOU?!?¡± The Colonel yelled and shot to her feet.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. ¡°The dragon ate me in one gulp.¡± I said and looked down at my missing foot. ¡°Mostly, anyway.¡± ¡°I''ve never...¡± The CO beside her whispered. ¡°A dragon. You were eaten by a dragon... and lived.¡± ¡°So far.¡± I said and they both looked at me with surprise. ¡°I need a proper healing and probably have to get the stump cut off for that. I burned it to stop the bleeding. My back and hands were severely burned with acid as well and they said a field healing might come undone if not treated properly.¡± Both women winced and Mage Henrietta didn''t react at all, probably because she had heard the story already. The Colonel sat down and the CO beside her braced an arm on the back of the chair. ¡°Continue the report.¡± The Colonel said. I recalled the second hand information told to me by witnesses about the battle while I was inside the stomach and interspersed where I thought my own experiences inside the dragon correlated. I finished with the teams coming back, everyone cleaning up the battlefield, and bringing back what we could. Everyone stayed silent when I finished talking and the Colonel sat there as she stared at me with a mix of hatred and something I couldn''t figure out. ¡°The Royal Family''s mage retainer, a man I grew up with and cared deeply about, is dead.¡± The Colonel said, her voice hard. ¡°He died killing a dragon.¡± I said, repeating the words of the combat mages. ¡°Oh? Aren''t you going to claim it, since you cut it up from the inside?¡± The Colonel asked, snidely. ¡°I didn''t cut myself free until it had already suffered the killing blow by Mage Lukas and slumped over.¡± I said. ¡°Even then, it still took a while.¡± ¡°Moments.¡± Mage Henrietta corrected. ¡°I couldn''t breathe and it felt like it went on forever.¡± I said and her hand gripped my side tightly. The Colonel went quiet again for a minute. ¡°Is that all? No other incidents or anything?¡± ¡°No, ma''am.¡± I said. ¡°You didn''t go on to complete the clearing out mission.¡± ¡°We had insufficient people and resources to continue on.¡± I said. ¡°The plan allows for the reallocation of the strike teams to the delivery boats.¡± ¡°Which will slow down the construction.¡± The Colonel said. ¡°Only by half a day, total.¡± I said. ¡°That''s why it was an acceptable compromise.¡± The Colonel stared at me for another full minute. ¡°Very well. I''ve received your report. I''ll send for the others and get their version of events to corroborate your story.¡± She looked at Mage Henrietta. ¡°I''ll speak to you while Private Drake goes to the medical building.¡± ¡°No.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°As you can clearly see, he is in no condition to get there by himself.¡± ¡°I''ll take him.¡± The CO said and started to walk around the desk. ¡°No!¡± The Colonel snapped and the CO stopped walking. ¡°He was eaten by a dragon. Walking to the medical building shouldn''t bother him at all.¡± ¡°Ellen, don''t.¡± Sandra said. ¡°It wasn''t his fault that Mage Lukas died.¡± ¡°I. Don''t. Care.¡± The Colonel said. ¡°Private Drake, report to the medical building immediately.¡± ¡°Yes, sir.¡± I said and performed a salute with only two fingers. The Colonel''s eyes squinted. ¡°Just for that disrespectful salute, I''m tempted to order you to salute everyone you pass and not just officers.¡± ¡°Good luck enforcing that.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°He''s not required to salute officers unless they are in formal dress or wearing their full decorations. Casual uniforms do not count. Having to salute the entire garrison''s personnel is idiotic and petty.¡± ¡°This is my brigade and my men will follow my orders.¡± The Colonel said. ¡°Then I am glad your normal command rules don''t apply to mages, if this is how you react to an honorable man that''s only done his duty to the kingdom.¡± ¡°He is responsible for the deaths of nearly everyone on the mission, including your fellow mages!¡± The Colonel spat. ¡°Actually, First Lieutenant Alexander Smith is, since he is in command and knew everything that was going on. He also approved it all and set up the battlefield, because they barely consulted David at all, once they had the new weapons.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°Also, Mage Lukas approved the mage deployment personally. He gave his life, just as David tried to, to save the innocent people on the battlefield when things went wrong.¡± The Colonel sat there and several emotions crossed her face. ¡°While you sit there and digest the truth of the matter, I''ll be taking David to get treated.¡± Mage Henrietta said and turned me around. ¡°We aren''t done here.¡± The Colonel said, her voice deadly. ¡°I am.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°If you have a problem with that, you can take it up with the next highest ranking mage... oh, wait. That''s me, isn''t it?¡± She said and gave a perfectly blank smile to the Colonel, then helped me out of the office. I didn''t say anything until we left the building. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°I didn''t do it for you.¡± Mage Henrietta said and I looked at her. ¡°Well, okay. I did.¡± She blushed a little. ¡°She''s looking for a scapegoat and you''re a prime target, since you''re still conscious.¡± ¡°It was my plan.¡± I said. ¡°That was rushed and put together at the last minute.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°I''m actually surprised it worked at all.¡± ¡°You came along anyway.¡± I said. ¡°So did you.¡± She said back. ¡°I had to. I''m a conscript.¡± ¡°I had to, because I didn''t want to let you out of my sight.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°I''m sorry that our protections weren''t enough to keep everyone safe.¡± ¡°It would have been overkill if there had only been three dragons and one nest, which was the highest estimation we had. Instead, we had five dragons and six babies with two nests in two different spots.¡± I shook my head. ¡°Alex pushed on because the Gulf Kingdom needs this offensive to work.¡± ¡°Why do you care, anyway?¡± Mage Henrietta asked. ¡°Don''t you just want to go back to your marsh?¡± ¡°So, you do know.¡± I said and she chuckled. ¡°I''ve investigated you and of course I know that''s all you want.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°I didn''t once say that I wanted to take you away from here permanently, did I?¡± ¡°You said you want to take me away from here.¡± I said. ¡°Of course I did! Look what just happened!¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°Do you think it''s going to get any better around here when the war starts?¡± I closed my mouth and didn''t say anything. ¡°You''re going to have thousands of troops from both sides fighting a war on the far side of the marsh and you have to get them there. This is not a good place to be right now... or for a while to come.¡± ¡°It''s my home.¡± I said. ¡°No, it''s just what you''re used to.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°People can adapt and live anywhere, David.¡± I sighed and she helped me open the door of the medical building and took me inside. ¡°I think my offer might be looking really good right now.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°While they tend to you, please think about it.¡± I opened my mouth to speak and a healer came over to us. ¡°Right this way, Private. Mage.¡± She said and nodded to each of us, then led us over to the bed beside Alex and Donna. They were being worked on by four healers each. ¡°We can heal a lot quicker if we combine our magic.¡± Mage Henrietta gripped my hand and held it for a few seconds when I laid down on the bed. ¡°I''ll send word to Diane to come and visit.¡± I must have looked surprised, because she leaned down and gave me a brief kiss on my damaged cheek. ¡°Remember my words and my promise.¡± Mage Henrietta said and left me there to be treated. 095 Healing Time A short time later, Diane burst through the door and ran over to me. She easily dodged one of the healers that tried to intercept her and she stopped at my bedside. ¡°Oh, David.¡± Diane said and took my hand, tears in her eyes, and she looked over at my missing foot. ¡°It''s true? You were... you were really...¡± ¡°It''s mouth was almost big enough.¡± I said. Diane let out a sob and wiped at her eyes. The healers finished with Donna in the next bed and put her to sleep with a spell. They came over to me and glared at Diane. ¡°Miss, we need room to work.¡± One of them said. ¡°You don''t need his hand for that, do you?¡± Diane asked and squeezed it. I grunted and she looked at my pained face. ¡°My hands were partially dissolved from acid and they''ve only received field healing.¡± ¡°I''m so sorry!¡± Diane said and let my hand go. She looked down at her hands and saw some blood. ¡°I didn''t mean to...¡± ¡°It''s all right. Thank you for coming to see me so quickly.¡± I said. ¡°Let''s start with the hand.¡± One of the healers said and two of them stepped around Diane and held my hand tenderly as they started casting their combined spell. The other two healers took my other hand, which left no room for Diane beside my bed. ¡°I... I should go.¡± Diane said. ¡°You need to heal.¡± ¡°There''s a tub by the wall for washing.¡± The healer that tried to stop Diane before commented. ¡°Towels are beside it.¡± ¡°Th-thank you.¡± Diane said and walked over to the small tub and washed my blood off of her hands. She seemed to take a bit longer than normal to wash them off, then she stood to look at me. ¡°I''ll be back later to visit. I promise.¡± ¡°After you close the shop for the day?¡± I asked. Diane took a breath and let it out, nodded slightly, and left. Half an hour later, my hands felt fine and had even tingled, which meant they had been so damaged that I had lost a lot of feeling in them. That also meant that the same was true of my back. When I rolled over, one of the healers hissed and spoke in a whisper to someone not far away. ¡°What did you do? This is barely holding together, just like his hand.¡± ¡°We healed him just enough to make him mobile and to stop any infections. We couldn''t do more than that, not after stabilizing the other injured.¡± The medic whispered back. The healer beside me sighed. ¡°You''re lucky that he didn''t fall on his back or it would have torn open and become a lot worse.¡± She paused for a moment and her hand caressed my skin, which I could barely feel. ¡°Don''t worry, Private. We''ll have you completely healed as soon as we can.¡± ¡°If I''d known I''d get new skin after wards, I might have rolled around in the acid a bit more.¡± I said and all of the healers gasped. ¡°What? You''ve seen my chest. It looks like it''s piecemeal.¡± ¡°We reacted because you should be dead. Severe blood loss, skin, muscle and even some bone had dissolved from your back, and you want to do even more damage, just to have smooth skin afterwards?¡± The healer asked. ¡°According to the medics and their descriptions, you shouldn''t have been able to move from the excruciating pain.¡± ¡°I''ve felt worse.¡± I said and they all fell silent. ¡°We know.¡± She said and then all four sets of hands touched my back. ¡°Unlike when you received the temporary healing, we don''t need you to be awake this time.¡± ¡°Wait, I have to ask...¡± I said and realized that someone had been whispering nearby in that odd language, my head tingled for an instant, then I heard the word ''sleep'' and everything went black. _______________ You have a choice to make and it doesn''t affect the story at all. Do you want to play a little game or something to unwind or just skip to the next event in the story? I answered this before, didn''t I? I asked. That was before you took that little trip down a dragon''s gullet. That was scary as hell and awesome, by the way. We''re all very surprised that we haven''t gotten any mental strain warnings or that physical recovery time is needed. How the hell did you do that? I chuckled. I told you a long time ago that I had a plan. The more accepting I became with my situation in life, especially the harshness and the brutality, the easier it was to deal with the consequences. It was a goddamn dragon! There''s no way you planned for that! No, that was a surprise and I thought I was dead. I still didn''t panic, though. Next to the Hag, even the smart dragon was no match for her.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. Well, okay. That actually makes sense. It might be crazy to compare her and a dragon, since they are two difference species; but, she''s nastier, meaner, not as strong but more powerful when it counts, and just thinking about crossing her can get you killed. I chuckled. It took me a long time to accept it and then... life became so much easier. Everything is just mild in comparison. We can see that from your numbers. Even after all of that, your stress levels are barely above normal, your body''s almost in a completely relaxed state, and your mind is barely at 20% irritation. That''s amazing, considering how many breaks you needed before. Now here we are, wasting time and I still haven''t made a choice yet. I sat there for a minute and thought about it. I think I''ll skip the down time. I''m sure there''s not much more for me to go through before they discharge me from the army. Ah, yeah. Sure. Okay, skipping now. Good luck! Hey, wait! That didn''t sound like you agreed! _______________ I woke up and I was still on my belly. I felt a throb from my ankle and groaned a little, then I felt a warm hand touch my back. ¡°Just lay still.¡± A woman''s voice said and her hand roamed over the bare skin of my back. ¡°The healers just finished healing your calf. It needs to sit for a while before you can apply any pressure on it.¡± I had just woken up groggily, which meant that the mind enhancing potion I drank before fighting the dragon had worn off. Since it lasted a day, that meant I had been unconscious for at least that long. I turned my head on the pillow to see Gillis was sitting beside the bed. ¡°Gillis... what...¡± ¡°My cousin Ellen is an idiot.¡± Gillis said and her hand made slow circles as her fingers explored all of the new smooth skin on my back. ¡°This feels so weird, considering what it looked like before.¡± ¡°My chest is still the same.¡± I said. Gillis smiled. ¡°I heard the gossip that the healers are spreading around about you wanting to roll around in more acid to have your skin regrown there, too.¡± ¡°I didn''t say I wanted to, just that if I''d known, I would have rolled around in it at the time.¡± Gillis barked a quick laugh and then covered her mouth. ¡°Oops. I''m supposed to be quiet.¡± ¡°What time is it?¡± I asked. ¡°It''s evening the next day.¡± Gillis said. ¡°You really messed up your ankle by burning it like that and they''ve been working on it this whole time.¡± ¡°It was the only way to stop the bleeding at the time.¡± I said. ¡°How much did they cut off?¡± ¡°It was a lot.¡± Gillis said. ¡°Dragon stomach acid was not good for burns, wounds, or damage in general.¡± She said and leaned in close to whisper. ¡°You only have about four inches left below your knee.¡± ¡°That''s about twelve inches cut off.¡± I said and thought about it. ¡°I lost my foot and they took another foot from me, so I lost two feet and still have one left. I''m still a foot ahead.¡± Gillis looked surprised for a second and then covered her mouth to stifle her laugh. ¡°That''s not funny.¡± ¡°You laughed.¡± I said. ¡°Only because I know you pretty well.¡± Gillis said. ¡°The army has been more of an influence on you that I thought.¡± She closed her eyes for a moment and then sighed as she opened her eyes and looked at me with a sad expression. ¡°David, I... I''m sorry.¡± ¡°The Colonel is still blaming it all on me, isn''t she?¡± ¡°Yes, especially now. She''s already tried to launch the second part of the mission twice and Mage Henrietta refused to let her mages be put into danger without you there to protect them.¡± ¡°No one is trying to override her?¡± I asked. ¡°Which one?¡± Gillis asked back. ¡°Mage Henrietta. I know no one is even paying attention to the princess.¡± Gillis sighed and nodded. ¡°That''s exactly the problem. They think Ellen is as stupid and foolish as we do. This plan was insane before we fixed it as much as we could, and that was when we had the extra manpower to achieve it. With half the prepped strike teams dead, they''re scrambling to train up others to replace them in time for the actual scheduled launch.¡± ¡°Which is tomorrow.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°How is she going to do it without me?¡± ¡°That''s why I said she is an idiot.¡± Gillis said and the door to the room opened. ¡°My cousin has seen fit to not relieve you of duty, despite being maimed in the service of the crown and should be medically discharged, just as Alex will be.¡± ¡°I legally can''t discharge him.¡± The Colonel said and I didn''t bother turning my head to try and look at her. ¡°As a conscript, only the king can commute his life long sentence.¡± ¡°Don''t twist the rules in your favor, Ellen!¡± Gillis said, angrily. ¡°He doesn''t have to stay on active mission duty. As long as he''s on the roster and assigned desk work, he''s still in the army.¡± ¡°Now who''s twisting the rules?¡± The Colonel asked. ¡°I see he''s been healed up properly.¡± ¡°Ellen! He''s missing his leg almost to his knee!¡± Gillis spat. ¡°Yes, and that''s the perfect height for a standard size peg for walking.¡± ¡°NO!¡± Gillis gasped and stood up. ¡°You can''t make him go out into the marsh like this! He''s crippled!¡± ¡°He''s only piloting the boat and making potions. He could do that without any legs.¡± The Colonel said. ¡°ELLEN!¡± Gillis yelled and quite a few injured patients woke up and started groaning in pain. ¡°That''s several times now that you''ve broken the only rule the healing ward has, Private Gillis.¡± The Colonel said as several healers went around to cast pain easing spells and then reinforced the sleep spells previously cast. ¡°You are hereby prohibited from staying in this building or returning here for a week.¡± Gillis opened her mouth to respond hotly and the Colonel raised a hand to stop her. ¡°Don''t make me say permanently, because then you won''t receive healing.¡± The Colonel said and Gillis snapped her mouth shut. ¡°Dismissed.¡± Gillis glared at her angrily for several moments, then she turned to look down at me. ¡°I''ll see you when you get back to take the next load of supplies.¡± I nodded and lost sight of her as she walked around the bed and left the room. I heard footsteps and the Colonel stepped into view and sat down on the chair that Gillis had been in. I knew it was bad when she kept the hat on, which meant she was hiding from her emotions and she wasn''t going to listen to reason. ¡°If you don''t complete the mission on time, I''ll prove to Gillis that you can still function without both feet.¡± The Colonel said. ¡°The only reason I haven''t removed one of your hands as punishment is because it would reduce your effectiveness in making potions.¡± I laid there and didn''t respond. ¡°Do you understand?¡± The Colonel asked. ¡°I need an answer, Private.¡± I looked over her face and then into her eyes. I had made a mistake in my calculations, because I didn''t realize that the princess would make herself look as beautiful as the Hag on purpose and then threaten me in the same manner. ¡°Yes, sir.¡± I responded. ¡°Good.¡± The Colonel said and stood up. ¡°Chief Warrant Officer Gary Stromboli will be by in the morning to fit your replacement appendage. I expect you to report to the maintenance department immediately after that to get to work.¡± ¡°Yes, sir.¡± I said. She stood there and stared down at me, as if she was waiting for something, then she frowned and walked away. I wouldn''t learn until the morning that she had ordered that Diane wasn''t to be admitted to the garrison until the war was over and I wasn''t allowed to leave without an escort. 096 Back To Work The next morning arrived in an instant and Gary walked in. ¡°I''m really sorry about this, kid.¡± He said and held up a wooden peg that was attached to a short leather harness and he held a hand saw in his other hand. He told me to lay flat and pretend that I was standing, then he slipped the harness over the stub of my calf and wrapped the straps around my knee and part of my thigh. ¡°Why does my ankle still hurt?¡± I asked him. ¡°Your mind still thinks you have an ankle.¡± A healer said from nearby. I turned my head to look at her as Gary used the hand saw to trim off the bottom of the peg to the right height to match my real leg. ¡°How does that work? I don''t feel my missing fingers or toes.¡± ¡°Oh, but you did.¡± The healer said and put Donna back to sleep after checking on her and came over to me. ¡°You had a very hard time grabbing things and walking, didn''t you?¡± She asked and I nodded. ¡°That''s because your mind was used to having them be there and had a difficult time adjusting to them not being there.¡± ¡°So did I.¡± I responded. The healer picked up my hand and ran her fingers over the spot where my small finger used to be. ¡°I''ve never seen such a perfect removal. Usually there''s some indentation in the skin or a mark where it used to be, like how your leg is now.¡± She said and caressed the spot. ¡°You didn''t see how it was done?¡± I shook my head. ¡°The Hag knocked me out and I woke up after.¡± The healer sighed. ¡°It would be a valuable technique if you knew.¡± I didn''t say anything and she let my hand go. ¡°That''s it, kid.¡± Gary said as he cleaned up the bottom of the peg and rounded the sharp corner. ¡°Want to give it a try?¡± ¡°The Colonel ordered me to get to work.¡± I said and turned to put my feet on the floor. Well, foot and peg. I took a deep breath and eased myself off of the bed and slowly stood up. I started to wobble and the healer stepped close and held onto me. ¡°Easy, now. You are going to have balance problems for a while.¡± The healer said. ¡°You don''t have the automatic correcting ability that your brain learned from having two feet.¡± ¡°I''m more worried about slipping when I walk.¡± I said and looked down at the wooden floor and my wooden peg. ¡°There''s no grip on the bottom of this thing.¡± Gary and the healer both looked surprised. ¡°Do you have my uniform?¡± I asked and Gary nodded. He went over to the side of the door and picked up a canvas bag. He handed it to me and I pulled out the clothing and a pair of modified boots. They were my last pair, too. I shoved the right one back into the bag and looked at the nurse. ¡°Can you help me get changed?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± The healer said. After a lot of unsteady movements and a bit of laughter on her part when I had to sit down for her to help me put on my underwear, I was dressed and my right pant leg hung below my knee and showed that there was nothing inside of it. ¡°We might have to tie that off or remove it.¡± Gary said and looked at the loose pant leg. ¡°It''s going to get in the way a lot more than it''s going to cover up the peg.¡± He knelt down and wrapped it around the peg and used a piece of cord to tie it. ¡°I need a hand getting back to the maintenance building.¡± I said and Gary offered to become my crutch as I hung the canvas bag over my shoulder and held my knife at a non-threatening angle. ¡°Don''t push yourself too hard.¡± The healer said as I half walked and half hopped towards the door with Gary''s help. ¡°You can tell that to the Colonel if it''s an official recommendation.¡± I responded and she closed her mouth and didn''t say anything else. ¡°That''s what I thought. Thanks anyway.¡± The healer looked a little lost as I left the room with Gary giving me some support with his arm. It wasn''t as bad moving when I stepped onto the dirt, except that it was the length of my foot without a boot on. Not only was it shorter than the sole of the boot, it also dug down into the dirt a bit, which made me even more lopsided. Everyone that saw us or passed us, gave me a sorrow filled look. ¡°I guess that''s better than hatred.¡± I commented. Gary looked at me with surprise on his face, so I explained about the looks people were giving me. ¡°David, the whole base knows what you did out there. Mage Henrietta made sure of that.¡± ¡°How?¡± ¡°She gave out copies of the incident report and gave an open air briefing to the other mages in the garrison.¡± It was my turn to look surprised and he chuckled.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. ¡°Despite the whole brigade working different shifts, she somehow managed to let everyone know what happened.¡± Gary said. ¡°It''s a bit amazing, honestly. Even the Colonel needs to go to the different sections to deliver orders and Mage Henrietta never left the main compound where the mages stay.¡± ¡°What''s everyone saying?¡± I asked. ¡°There''s not really anything they can say. You saw the healer''s reaction.¡± Gary said and I nodded. ¡°They are more scared of her than they are of you.¡± Just like the Hag. I thought. We arrived at the maintenance building and Gary helped me open my building up. ¡°Have the squads gathered up what I asked for?¡± I asked as he set me down on the stool in front of my workbench. ¡°There''s a dozen canvas bags of each ingredient next door. I stored them in a cool dry place like you wanted.¡± Gary said. ¡°I also retrieved the crates of empty vials from Diane.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said. ¡°I need the sole from a discarded boot and I''ll need a water run in an hour.¡± ¡°No, you don''t. I''ve got ten barrels already set up for you behind the building.¡± Gary said and pat my shoulder. ¡°Do you need a hand prepping everything?¡± ¡°Is Gillis free?¡± ¡°No, she''s busy being the CO''s assistant.¡± ¡°The CO and not the Colonel?¡± I asked and he nodded. ¡°Why would Sandra do that?¡± ¡°She''s trying to protect Gillis by keeping her out of trouble and away from the Colonel.¡± Gary said. ¡°It''s too bad that won''t work for long.¡± I said. ¡°Can you get Mage Henrietta for me and see if she''s free?¡± Gary nodded. ¡°She should be free. I''ll send someone to go get her.¡± ¡°What time are we leaving?¡± I asked. ¡°You''ve got two hours and then a squad will pack up all of this.¡± Gary waved at my setup. ¡°Are you sure we need to take the firewood, too?¡± ¡°I''m sure there''s wildwood where we''re going; but, I can''t harvest it myself in my current state. I''ve got to make a few things before I can try and get back to fighting strength.¡± ¡°Don''t tell Mage Henrietta that.¡± Gary chuckled. ¡°She''ll scrub this mission if you tell her.¡± ¡°The Colonel won''t let her this time. It''s now or...¡± I didn''t have to finish that sentence. Gary put a hand on my shoulder for a moment, gave it a little squeeze, then left to get the ingredients. I opened my hidden stash with my knife and quickly made up another bandoleer with a proper sheath for the knife, then tucked the last few vials of number ten potion into it. I didn''t have much left over from the last batch and what I had carried on me was destroyed after the dragon battle. There was no way that I was going to be allowed to go home to get the last of my backup stock, either. I sighed and hung the practically empty bandoleer over my shoulder and across my body. Gary came back with several ingredient bags and an old boot. I nodded and cut a good portion out of the heel, the strongest part, then added some number ten potion to it and stepped on it with the peg. Gary stared at me as I did it and the potion merged the two things together. ¡°That''s still so weird to see.¡± Gary said. ¡°Darling!¡± Mage Henrietta exclaimed as she stepped into the building. ¡°I''m so glad that you sent for me.¡± ¡°I''ll bring over the other bags of ingredients.¡± Gary said and left us alone. Mage Henrietta looked down at my leg and she took in a sharp breath. ¡°They took so much!¡± ¡°The damage was extensive, apparently.¡± I said with a shrug. Mage Henrietta came over to me and put her hands on my shoulders. ¡°David, I... I''m sorry. I tried to get Diane in to see you...¡± She said and then explained about the Colonel banning non-essential personnel from the garrison while a mission was ongoing. I sighed and put my hands on hers. ¡°It''s not your fault.¡± ¡°I thought so, until the CO told me that if I hadn''t blocked the Colonel''s plans so much that she wouldn''t have denied my request.¡± Mage Henrietta said and leaned her forehead against mine. ¡°She knows how much I like you and hurting you seems to be her only goal at the moment.¡± ¡°She wants me to complete the plans on schedule.¡± I said and Mage Henrietta took in a sharp breath. ¡°We ship out in two hours and ten minutes.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± Mage Henrietta said, determination in her eyes. ¡°What do you need my help with?¡± ¡°I''m doing two pots of number ten potion and the other ten pots will be general health potions.¡± I said. ¡°Will you help me prepare the ingredients?¡± Mage Henrietta gave me wide eyes for a moment, then she let a warm smile grow and leaned in to give me a gentle kiss. ¡°Show me what to do.¡± We both got to work and time seemed to pass in an instant. We had filled eight crates of vials with number ten potion to help with the quick construction and forty crates with general health potion. Thankfully, Donna had been smart to set up the rotation of the troops and as they prepped their equipment and loaded onto the boats, they stopped by my potion building and took the potion. In only a few minutes, everything in my setup was packed up and loaded onto my boat. I was taking the second construction crew to the second site with a skirmish squad. While there, I would set up and make more potions and refill the empty vials to deliver back to the garrison. It was the only way to ensure that I was constantly working and helping the troops. None of my time was wasted. It took another trip back and forth to the garrison to drop off the next work crew and the supplies they needed at the fourth site, along with the appropriate skirmish squads to protect them if the protection ward wasn''t enough to drive off any ambitious creatures. After two more trips, I finally had enough general health potions made for the entire brigade. I delivered them and kept working by driving the boat to pick up the previous crew to drop them off at the next site. The leap frogging continued as each relay station was built and each time I stopped to wait, I would have a squad gather the ingredients for health potions and would make them up. I once tried to go and look for myself, to try and find different ingredients to make the rare strength and regeneration potions, and I was stopped by the skirmish squad. ¡°Private, you aren''t allowed to leave the protected area.¡± One of them said. ¡°You can follow me and...¡± ¡°We''re not allowed to leave, either.¡± He responded. I didn''t try to sneak past, since my peg leg was definitely not conductive to sneaking. In fact, it was actually quite noisy, even with the thick boot sole buffer on the end. I was definitely going to have to do something about that, so I started thinking about it while more potions brewed. I sat in my designated area and watched the construction crew using number ten potion to join the wood planks together and I had an idea. The peg wasn''t very good for moving well or for balance, so why don''t I make it into a copy of a foot instead? I would have to make a waterproofing potion and a number ten potion to get enough for what I wanted to do, though. I would also need the spare boot that I had left back at the garrison, which meant that I had to wait until I went back to get more supplies before I could put my plan into action. It was only a matter of time before I could make myself reasonably mobile again. 097 Relay Points It took me two more trips back to the garrison to get more supplies before I had enough time to stop at the next relay post to prep the two potions that I needed to make my foot. I made a pot of waterproofing potion, since I didn''t have any more fortifying potion left to mix into it, and a pot of number ten potion. I checked my right boot and it was clear of any dirt inside, so I treated it with the waterproofing potion. I had previously cut it and formed it to my mangled foot, so the inside was nearly the exact shape of my old foot. I poured a pile of number ten potion and then slid my peg leg into it, after detaching it from my stump. Luckily, the boot came right up to the edge of the harness, which meant I could fill it the rest of the space and it would merge the wood and the leather straps together, even better than the normal fasteners. No one asked me what I was doing. I let the healing potions brew while my new wooden foot set. I gave up on making it out of wildwood, even though it would be much stronger than the wood that Greg had used. I couldn''t order anyone to venture into the woods to find me the right tree, since most of them didn''t know what to look for and my official command power had been greatly reduced. The relay post was half built by the time my new foot had set and I had to use my knife to slice part of the back of the boot open to get the foot out. Once it was, I saw that it was a reasonably good copy of my old foot, just without the toe shapes because it was filled in flat. I had learned how to make hinges a long time ago and how to use rivets and metal fasteners to make moving parts, so I carefully cut out where the foot was attached to the ankle a third of the way in, then left a stub that went several inches up into the ankle, and cut off the other side. I quickly cut a circular hole and inserted the metal fastener to test the fit. It looked fine, so I cut out a small bit off the ankle in the back to allow a small tilt in that direction, then trimmed off a bit more than that on the front. I tried the movement and compared it to my normal foot''s movements and it was close enough for forward and back movements. I attached it permanently and filled in the hole with number ten potion to make sure it was strong enough. I did the same technique with the toe piece and the toes now moved up at a forty-five degree angle, simulating a toe''s actual movement. I added a piece of a broken crossbow''s bow part on top of the foot, because it was springy, and it would keep the foot in a flat shape until pressure was applied. I carved out the wood to set the bow piece in level, and I had a working foot. When I was done, a few of the construction crew were staring at me like I had shown them something amazing. I slid the wooden foot into the boot and used some cord to tie the boot in place. I had been tempted to use some number ten potion to seal it permanently, then decided that I would eventually want to take the boots off of my feet at some point. The new wooden foot was a bit heavier than the peg and that didn''t bother me, because now I was a lot more stable. I could walk on my own without help and I practised for the rest of the time I had before the next batch of potions was ready. I infused them and put them into the remaining empty vials. I had now used up all of the general health potion bottles and filled them with healing potions. I had made enough to give one to each soldier in the brigade and with that task complete, I only had driving the boat left to do after packing up all of the pots and potion ingredients. I also had to wait. When I relayed the previous work crew to the next build site, Gary came over to me as the men unloaded the second boat of the supplies that they needed. ¡°David, how are you doing?¡± Gary asked and sat down to rest. ¡°My ankle is still sore.¡± I said. Gary barked a laugh and pat my knee. ¡°You should pop the peg off and relax for a while.¡± ¡°I''d rather help if I can.¡± I said. ¡°David, you can barely stand, let alone...¡± Gary looked down at where my peg was supposed to be and saw the boot. ¡°What did you do?¡± ¡°I made a new foot.¡± I said and then showed him it. ¡°Good god.¡± Gary said in a low voice, barely above a whisper. ¡°How did you make it?¡± I told him what I did and he reached for it and played with it to see the range of motion. ¡°This is amazing, David. Truly amazing.¡± Gary said. ¡°How long have you been thinking about this?¡± ¡°Since this morning when you gave me the peg.¡± I responded and he looked shocked. ¡°I can''t believe...¡± Gary shook his head and smiled. ¡°All right, let''s see how well you can move on that thing.¡±The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. I put the boot back on and I walked a little lopsided, since the foot didn''t really work like a real foot and only simulated the movement. Putting the springy bow piece in it was definitely better than just having the thing flopping around every time I moved my leg. I helped where I could, as long as it didn''t require a lot of extensive movement, and Gary kept a close eye on me. With an extra set of hands, we finished a little sooner than we normally would have and loaded the boats back up with the tools and skirmish teams and went to the next site. We passed Mage Henrietta on the way and she waved to me. I waved back and continued on. We camped at the last spot when it was completed and I wasn''t surprised when one of the guards stood near my bedroll. I wasn''t allowed to sleep in the boat, as if they were afraid that I was going to run off with the thing. The idiots wouldn''t have been able to stop me at all if I was going to run. I didn''t tell them that, though. They were afraid enough already. Time passed by in a flash and by the end of the week, all fourteen relay points were built, had the limited protection wards on them, and the other mages and I started transferring the soldiers all along the route as the construction crews built the new and quite expansive garrison near enemy territory. I had left Gary there with all twelve large stew pots full of number ten potion and he used them to fill the outer wooden walls as it was being built. I brewed more potion each time I dropped off a boatload of troops, then left again to get more troops. Thanks to the relay posts, the necessary breaks between boatloads were particularly short. It kept the other mages from getting exhausted and also kept the troops from having too much travel time at once. A few of them weren''t fussy about travelling on the water, so they were always kept in the center of the boats and away from the water... and me. I never slowed my boat down and only the troops that enjoyed the water were allowed to ride with me. I still took breaks, though. I wasn''t stupid or tried to rush, because the plan was made the way it was for a reason. I couldn''t show up before my scheduled time without messing something up and I definitely couldn''t show up later, because that would make things a lot worse. Not having any antivenom for either snakes or spiders was a deep concern for me and I kept expressing this every time I had to return to the garrison to continue the troop relay to the new garrison. The CO acknowledged my concerns and the Colonel told me to get on with the mission. She didn''t do that personally, though. She was too busy to listen, even after a few soldiers were stupid and had ventured outside the protected area and were bitten. I didn''t bother rushing them back to the garrison, because there wasn''t anything anyone could do for them. The healers could only knock them out and heal the damage and the poisoned soldiers were loaded onto my boat. I went back to the garrison for the next load of troops and the sergeant on the dock that was following Donna''s pre-planned deployment, had them offloaded and brought to the medical wing. They were the first casualties of the new phase of the war and wouldn''t be the last. I left again and did the same travelling for another week. Despite the warnings, orders, and even danger signs, normal soldiers still tried to go off on their own into the marsh. By that time, the death count reached twenty and the new garrison was completed. All of the relay stations went into lock down after that, with no one in or out except for official movements, because the soldiers needed to be protected from their own stupidity. When the first thousand troops had assembled in the garrison, Colonel Rivers was there to take command. She ordered Mage Henrietta to gather up the combat mages as an adjunct to her ready fighting force, then gave out the orders to begin the attack. The army''s precious scouts, wearing protection wards, spread out to clear the way for the assault force coming behind them. It worked even better than they had hoped as the creatures fled the marsh and slammed into the enemy''s camp. Spiders, snakes, boars, near-deer, croc-lizards, and even rabbits and ducks swarmed over the completely unprepared closest tent encampment. They didn''t even have guards out on patrol like the last time and had no idea that anything was coming. It was a complete slaughter. The Colonel wasn''t finished with just one victory, though. With the new tactic to flush creatures into the enemy, her battle plan changed and she used those creatures as battering rams. The poisonous ones were the worst, because it didn''t matter if they damaged the enemy troops or not, as long as they were bitten and poisoned. The enemy tried to fight the animals and did make some progress, until the combat mages cleared away their defenses and the animals had free reign over every encampment that was encountered. More animals were gathered and herded together to keep the momentum up as more troops were delivered to the garrison. They were sent out after their fellows and the new front of the war grew and grew, until they reached the first town. After a quick scouting mission, it was determined that there was almost no military presence at all in the entire town. The regular soldiers easily overcame the resistance and spread out to entrench the troops to give them a solid foothold in the Eastern Empire. The few rich families there, which included the region''s governor, were quickly taken captive and their homes and riches were looted for the garrison. Food warehouses were soon discovered and their contents were appropriated for the troops, considering the logistics of having food brought all the way from the old garrison to the new one. It was an essential part of the plan to quickly acquire resources to establish a new supply chain in the foreign land. Everyone involved were very surprised at how easy it was to establish. By the time the next thousand troops had been delivered, the last of the brigade, the previous troops had already secured three towns, one of which had a very large shipping industry and over a dozen military ships. The combat mages, the modified catapult crews, and the skirmish teams banded together and made very short work of sinking every single ship, killed every enemy soldier in the garrison stationed there at the docks, and burned it all to the ground. The initial stage of the Colonel''s absolutely crazy and insane mission... was a complete success. 098 Defensive Measures That was how the campaign began. With her full and still under-strength brigade, Colonel Rivers did her best to assault the enemy. She sent scouts, troops, skirmish teams, even some of the heavy weapon crews with catapults armed with the same setup that was used against the dragons. It was absolutely devastating to the defending troops of the enemy, since none of them had expected an attack from their rear. The overwhelming momentum couldn''t last. With the scale of the mission being undertaken and not having the proper amount of supporting troops, which was practically none, there were too many chances that someone would escape and get away. This happened at the tenth town that was another major shipping port and military presence. The very first catapult attack had only slightly missed the farthest ship and they quickly pulled away out of range. It gave a few of the smaller ships the chance to escape as well. The fight with the large military presence after that was much harder than all the other battles combined, mainly because that one miss gave the enemy a chance to spread the warning. The Colonel had no choice but to leave a significant amount of troops in both port towns to ensure that the enemy wouldn''t bring their navy in close to deploy their own troops. She hated leaving nearly five hundred men and women behind in the two port towns to protect her forces, because it reduced her own fighting capacity by a full third. However, the biggest surprise was the townsfolk and their reactions. Not only did they not attack the Colonel''s troops when they easily could have, the people greeted passing troops as if they were grateful to see them. When the Colonel turned her army''s position into more of a holding pattern, because she couldn''t spread them out any further, their efforts at repairing the infrastructure made the locals very happy. Removing the rich and oppressive local tyrants made the local people''s lives change for the better almost overnight. The emotional burden of being oppressed by the ruling class had been removed and gave the people a sense of relief they had never felt before. They even helped the troops build defensive structures and helped secure sensitive targets. That was definitely a surprise to the Colonel, until she started interviewing the captives and learned of how the locals were treated. Just like her cousin Sandra, she couldn''t stand the caste system and slaves were on the bottom rung on the ladder. There were thousands of slaves that had been freed and the problem the soldiers had was that the slaves wouldn''t leave. They stayed were they were and kept doing their jobs as if the person who owned them was still there giving orders. I hadn''t seen all of this myself, since I was required to remain inside the latest forward base to make healing potions and number ten potions to help reinforce the walls. I had heard it all from returning soldiers and from those hurt in battle when I delivered another batch of healing potions to the medical tent. Hearing it from several different sources gave me a well rounded and practically full narration of the entire battlefront. Our biggest discovery was that the locals built things with something called sandstone. It was plentiful, easy to make into bricks if necessary, and a lot stronger than reinforced wood. The new job that Gary, the construction crews, and I had was building a thick sandstone wall inside the wooden ones in each of the defensive structures. Gary and I did one better and built it away from the wooden ones and then filled it with number ten potion. It was going to be quite the surprise for the enemy when they discovered the change, which would happen when they finished gathering together and started their counter attack. The Colonel expected it soon and had the troops prepare the best defensive line that she could with what resources she had available. It wasn''t much, considering how much the brigade had burned through to accomplish what it had in only a month. The Colonel had sent off several messages to her father, the King of the Gulf Kingdom, as well as messages to her brothers near the front and the generals involved in the war effort. She told them of her accomplishment and warned them that her offensive was stalled and she needed more troops. I had seen that part personally, because I was reinforcing the office wall with sandstone. We all knew that if they didn''t reinforce her as soon as possible, her accomplishment might become a massive defeat. ¡°You know they aren''t going to listen to you.¡± I said when the message mage left. ¡°Shut up.¡± The Colonel said and glared at me. ¡°Get back to work.¡± ¡°I haven''t stopped.¡± I said and put another brick down and used a few drops of number ten to secure it. She sat there and kept glaring at me. ¡°Why do you think they won''t listen?¡± ¡°You''re too pushy and arrogant for your position.¡± ¡°Excuse me?!?¡± She gasped and stood up. ¡°I''ve had a lot of experience now with how things work around here. You should be asking for reinforcements and not ordering them.¡± ¡°I need them now and they better send them!¡± The Colonel said, her voice deadly. ¡°If my brother...¡± ¡°We''re coming up on your deadline for that. I completed the plan and got you here well before it.¡± I said and her face lost the stern look. ¡°It''s not going to matter, though.¡± The stern look came back. ¡°If he dies, I''ll hold you responsible!¡± ¡°I''m not forcing him to be on the front lines. Your father is. Just like you''re forcing me to be here.¡± I said and she leaned away with a surprised look on her face.The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°I... I''m not... I''m just using a resource to...¡± ¡°So is your father.¡± I said and finished the wall, then waved out through the door of the office. Two construction workers came in carrying pots of potion and we poured them into the wall. It filled up quickly and I nodded. ¡°Thanks, guys.¡± ¡°This was the last retaining wall in the buildings, so we''re heading over to the mess tent.¡± One of them said. ¡°I''m sure Gary''s there waiting for us.¡± I smiled slightly and nodded. ¡°We better not keep him waiting.¡± I said and walked with my uneven gait behind them and we left the Colonel''s office. ¡°I heard that the locals offered up a couple of cows for the troops.¡± One of them said. ¡°As long as they share some after it''s cooked, of course.¡± I smiled fully this time. ¡°Free butchering and cooking by the army and all they have to do is eat it.¡± The two guys laughed and we dropped the pots off in my potion making area and went to the mess tent. ¡°Guys! Over here!¡± Gary said loudly as we entered into his view. ¡°Just finished up, did you?¡± ¡°Yeah, now it''s just the bunkers on the east side we have to reinforce.¡± One of the guys said and we sat down to eat. Gary had already filled trays for us and we all started eating. ¡°David, we can''t thank you enough for showing the cooks how to cook.¡± One of the other guys said. ¡°I only showed them some tricks.¡± I said. ¡°Delicious tricks! Ha ha!¡± Gary shoved a forkful of meat into his mouth. ¡°Ohhh, that''s so good!¡± That made all the guys laugh and we all kept eating. After the meal, we went back to work reinforcing the bunkers for the troops and then moved on to the barricades. This part was a little dangerous because we were exposed and out in the open in front of the main defensive position. None of the army scouts had reported any enemy movements in the area, so we were relatively safe. I say relatively, because it wasn''t long before I heard a whistling sound. I had trained my vigilance technique to the point that I could use it all day without detriment and I knew that was an arrow sound. ¡°Everyone get behind the barricades!¡± I said loudly and grabbed the guy beside me. I didn''t have a real foot to run with and that didn''t stop me from darting out of the way. *Thunk!* *Thunk!* *Thunk!* *Thunk!* ¡°ARRRGH!¡± Someone yelled from the next barricade. He had an arrow sticking out of his shoulder. *Thunk!* *Thunk!* *Thunk!* A horn blew nearby and I saw all of the soldiers as they scrambled to get into position. They were the first line of defense for the forward base and they readied their own arrows and crossbows. ¡°Is this really happening?¡± The crewman with me asked as a bunch of troops gathered around us. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. Will you make the right one? A) Stay still. B) Run away. C) Help. D) Yell. E) Talk. F) Stay silent. G) Choose two. Well, considering the arrows haven''t stopped, running away is not a good idea at the moment. I thought. I''ve worked with this man for quite some time now. Not answering would be impolite, so I''ll choose two. A and E. _______________ ¡°If you mean we''re under attack, yes. If you mean we''re stuck here until it''s safe, yes.¡± I responded. ¡°Oh, no.¡± The man said and pressed his back to the barricade. ¡°I need to get out of here! I can''t die!¡± ¡°Stay still.¡± I said and he looked at me with a scared face. ¡°If you leave, you die.¡± The man looked over at the other barricade and saw a soldier step out to fire his bow and arrow. He let the shot go and then took an arrow into his thigh. He let out a yell and as he fell, another soldier caught him and dragged him back behind cover. The arrow was removed, a bit of potion was poured onto the wound, and then some was drunk. I was glad to see that the new protocols for potion conservation had been disseminated to all of the troops already. The soldier stood back up, pat his friend on the shoulder, then readied another arrow. He told them how far it was to the enemy and a dozen others stepped back away from the barricade with him, aimed up, and let loose their arrows. Screams of the enemy troops and the sound of horses neighing were heard not long after, then all of the soldiers behind all of the barricades did the same thing. They knew how fast horses could run and aimed accordingly, then let loose their arrows. They kept shooting and reloading and the enemy''s arrows reduced in both frequency and numbers. It didn''t take long for the first few horses to reach the barricades, then they fell into the covered traps and both the men and the horses died. The lure had worked perfectly. The perceived weak defense and low shooting attacks on our part, drew the enemy troops into a false belief of superiority, and they paid for it with their lives. ¡°Form up!¡± A staff sergeant yelled and the troops behind the barricades formed three firing lines. One knelt, one stood, and one was behind to pass them arrows. A few seconds later, thanks to a replacement scout''s instructions, it was our side''s turn to unleash an arrow hell. The enemy never saw it coming and the first defensive battle was completely one sided. ¡°Maybe we''ll get a chance at close combat next time.¡± One of the archers commented. ¡°I hope not! I''m an archer and I suck at hand to hand.¡± Another archer said. ¡°Sir!¡± Someone said as they approached the staff sergeant at a jog. ¡°The surviving scouts claim they were ambushed and report that there''s a large amount of enemy troops amassing on a farm near the town''s border.¡± ¡°Well, you might just get your wish, archer.¡± The staff sergeant said to the man that had spoken before, then looked back at the messenger. ¡°Get over to HQ and let them know the situation. We need to mobilize to counter them.¡± ¡°Let''s fix the barricades.¡± I said to the construction man next to me. He startled a little and then sighed. He nodded and we went around to the front to remove all the arrows that had been lodged into the thick wood front of the barricade. ¡°Try to save as many as you can.¡± An archer said and we nodded as we piled the intact arrows in one spot. The broken ones we tossed into a pile to let the metal tips be harvested by the archers when they had the time. Once all the obstructions had been removed from the barricade''s front, I poured dabs of number ten potion into the holes and they formed up into a solid piece of wood again. Only a few of the arrows had made it all the way through the wood part and had broken themselves on the sandstone reinforcement. By the time all of the barricades had been repaired, a thousand troops had been assembled and they marched out of the defensive position with two catapults and two squads of mages. When they passed, a woman that I had become quite familiar with came over to me. ¡°There you are, David.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°We''re locking everything up for the battle, so we can continue your reading lessons in my chambers.¡± A few of the construction crewmen let out whistles at her words. Mage Henrietta laughed. ¡°We aren''t married yet, you dirty minded men!¡± That made the men whistle more and a few yelled encouragement to me. ¡°Go get her David! Show her that you don''t need two feet to have sex!¡± ¡°I''ve got a foot where it counts.¡± I responded and they fell silent for a second, then they all laughed. Mage Henrietta''s face flushed red as we walked towards the mage''s designated area. ¡°It''s not actually a foot long. I was just joking with the guys.¡± I told her. Mage Henrietta''s blush deepened as she gave me a searching look, then she looked down at my crotch. She was a strong lady with an iron will, because she didn''t ask me how big it actually was or even tried to grab it to see for herself. 099 Learning Is Even More Fun Mage Henrietta was breaking several Mages Guild rules by letting me see her spell books and she was violating their restricted information protocols by teaching me how to read their mage language. She said it was the least she could do for me, now that we were embroiled in actual combat at the new front lines, because her father had warned her that now was not the time for a personal impassioned plea to the king. The king had too much on his mind to worry about a single conscript on the far side of the country, apparently. That was why I knew that the king wouldn''t be listening to anything that the princess... Colonel Rivers... sent to him in demands. Everyone demanded things from him and it would be lost or overlooked in the bundles of messages that he received every day. Having inside information on the inner workings of the king''s court wasn''t really interesting in and of itself. It was their impact on me and the people around me that I had grown close to during these trying times that was important. You wouldn''t think that one person could affect everything in an entire country. I told this to Mage Henrietta and she laughed. ¡°David, you have done just that!¡± Mage Henrietta said and touched my hand as we sat at her expensive table. ¡°None of this could have been possible without you and your ideas.¡± ¡°That makes me feel guilty.¡± I said and she laughed and leaned close to press her cheek to my cheek to give me a hug. ¡°You''re going to bring an end to this war, I just know it.¡± Mage Henrietta said and leaned back only a little and didn''t let me go. ¡°Have you grasped the alphabet properly?¡± I nodded. ¡°I don''t get the suffix and prefix changes on the same words that make them mean completely different things, though. It''s completely different from what I''ve already learned.¡± Mage Henrietta nodded. ¡°Yes, unlike normal language, mage language is half code and half phonetic. Once you get the base down, it just takes practice to understand the references from the words around the coded words.¡± ¡°Why did they make it so complicated?¡± I asked. ¡°Couldn''t you teach a lot more people if it was simpler?¡± Mage Henrietta nodded. ¡°This is written in the old language and the spells that have been converted into modern speech are much easier to learn... and are a lot less powerful.¡± That was a surprise to hear, considering that neither the Hag nor myself, needed to speak any words when casting the spells we knew. As long as we knew what the spell meant to do, we could cast it... and that''s exactly what Mage Henrietta just said. If you know the context of the spell''s main words, you could understand the entire spell and the code words could be easily figured out. ¡°I see you''ve thought of something.¡± Mage Henrietta whispered. ¡°I think I understand.¡± I said and explained what I was thinking. ¡°David, that''s it exactly.¡± Mage Henrietta said, quite proudly. ¡°I''m so glad that you got it this quickly.¡± I must have looked surprised, because she laughed. ¡°It takes months and sometimes a whole year before apprentices can grasp the underlying concept to spells and their intricacies. We''ve only had a dozen sessions during this last month and you''ve already progressed this far.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°Now hug me and read this next small paragraph.¡± I nodded and put my arm around her to hold her. ¡°The guide to water... core... core...¡± I looked at the surrounding words and it clicked. ¡°...water creation... can be found in appendix twenty eight. Once learned, you can cast and combine with other water movement and... core... core...¡± I read the surrounding words. ¡°...water movement and propulsion spells to ensure that you don''t need to be near a source of water for the previously mentioned spells to work properly and at their full capacity.¡± ¡°You don''t have to keep verbalizing ''core'' when you hit a word that you don''t know; but, other than that, you did very well.¡± Mage Henrietta praised me. I wasn''t sure why that made me feel tingly inside, even though I knew she wasn''t using her magic on me. ¡°Can you help me make more number ten potion tomorrow?¡± ¡°I''m not on any official meeting roster except for the troop briefing with the mages that''s scheduled in the morning, which might be delayed or pushed up because of the battle today.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°I''ll come over to your potions area and give you a hand after that.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said. ¡°David, you''ve given me so much that the least I can do is help you prepare something so simple.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°Your copy trick is the best thing I''ve ever seen and it makes making potions, something I''ve always been quite bad at, very easy.¡± ¡°It doesn''t work on everything, because I would be copying all of the rare ingredients that I can get my hands on.¡± I cautioned her.This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. Mage Henrietta nodded. ¡°As would I, dear. As would I. Your little squares are what I meant. They are a genius invention and give you exactly the right amount to use in your potions.¡± That got my attention. ¡°You''ve tried something else with them?¡± Mage Henrietta smiled. ¡°I may have... borrowed... a recipe or two from the potion master to try them.¡± ¡°What ones?¡± I asked, a little excitedly. Mage Henrietta knew she had me hooked and cuddled close as she took out two sheets of expensive paper from one of her books and put them in front of me. ¡°I believe you mentioned a water purification potion before?¡± My eyes quickly went over it and it was nearly an exact copy of the one in the ingredient book I had at my house. A lot of the ingredients were the expensive equivalent to the very plentiful and cheap versions available in the marsh. ¡°You recognize it?¡± Mage Henrietta asked and I nodded. ¡°Then what about a magic ability boosting potion?¡± She asked and moved the top sheet aside. I took in a sharp breath and quickly read through it. It granted someone a quick boost of an additional 50% of their normal magic power. It only lasted ten minutes and could let even low powered mages cast more powerful spells for a short time. It also had a list of all the most expensive ingredients, most of which I could easily replace. ¡°Mage Henrietta, this... I can''t tell you what this means to me.¡± ¡°I''ve told you that you can call me Helena in private, especially when you thank me.¡± Mage Henrietta said with a demure smile. ¡°I haven''t accepted your offer.¡± I said. Mage Henrietta''s smile changed to a pleased one. ¡°Yes, you have. You just haven''t admitted it to yourself yet.¡± ¡°But...¡± ¡°I know you haven''t seen Diane in a long time, not since...¡± Mage Henrietta looked down at my wooden foot. ¡°I don''t know if she will be able to handle the new you.¡± ¡°It''s just a foot.¡± I said. ¡°To you and to me, since we know the foot is not you. To a woman that hates the army that took her husband and has the potential to take her son as well...¡± ¡°I don''t think she will toss me aside because of this.¡± I said. ¡°I certainly hope not. It''s only a slight impediment for you and you''re getting better at walking with it every day.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°Although, not being discharged like Alex might convince her that you''re never getting out.¡± ¡°I expect having to stay at least for another six months here at the new front.¡± Mage Henrietta reluctantly nodded. ¡°My father believes that as well.¡± ¡°He''s making you stay here?¡± I asked, surprised. ¡°Making me? No.¡± Mage Henrietta said and then lowered her voice to a whisper. ¡°I''m staying to ensure that you aren''t abused for your talents.¡± I was surprised to hear that. ¡°Mage...¡± ¡°David.¡± Mage Henrietta interrupted, her face stern. ¡°Helena.¡± I said and she shivered a little and the stern look faded. ¡°You shouldn''t keep yourself in danger just for me.¡± Mage Henrietta tightened her grip on me and turned slightly to face me. ¡°Despite growing up like you have, not knowing anything about life outside the marsh, you are the most considerate and selfless man I''ve ever met.¡± She said. ¡°I was intrigued at first by your abilities and your knowledge of enchantments and I did do a few things that were questionable...¡± I raised my eyebrows at her and she laughed under her breath. ¡°I wanted to show you my sincerity.¡± ¡°I thought it was called...¡± ¡°David.¡± Mage Henrietta interrupted. ¡°No vulgarity, please.¡± ¡°...lady parts.¡± I said with a small smile. ¡°You are definitely learning a few skewed things from the construction crews.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°I''ve never had anyone, not even the head of the Mages Guild, make me react like that.¡± ¡°You know him?¡± I asked. ¡°He gives personal interviews to approve your admittance into the guild. Not even graduating the mage academy in the capital guarantees your admittance without his approval.¡± ¡°That sounds like it''s his own kingdom.¡± I said and she looked surprised for a second, then she smiled. ¡°That''s a very good observation, because he actually does run it like his own kingdom. He even sometimes goes against the king himself on certain issues...¡± ¡°...like funding by the kingdom and magic secrets not getting out to independent mages?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°They guard secrets too much, I think.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°I think the testing crystal was just the tip of the iceberg, considering I didn''t know about it.¡± ¡°You''ve used it as well?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°I''ve apologized personally to the people I''ve used it on, too. Letters of course, not actually in person with the war going on.¡± ¡°Do you still have it?¡± ¡°I do, because it was given to me by my father and isn''t owned by the army or the Mages Guild.¡± ¡°Now that you know it''s a magic battery, have you used it to cast a spell?¡± Mage Henrietta gave me a surprised look. ¡°No, I... never thought...¡± ¡°You can charge it yourself and can cast a much stronger spell at a later time. At least, that''s what I heard the other senior mages say in the training camp.¡± I tapped the paper in front of us. ¡°If you combine this with the crystal, you can charge it up and not exhaust yourself, then use that stored power whenever you want and not only during the time limit of the potion.¡± Mage Henrietta started breathing heavily as she thought about what it meant, not only for her, but for all mages that she decided to share it with... and she wasn''t sure if she was going to share it with anyone except her father. It was too much of a power imbalance to spread around to everyone. ¡°David, I... I love you.¡± Mage Henrietta whispered. ¡°I''ve been trying to convince myself that I need to keep you at arms length and that I don''t want to pressure you into accepting my proposal...¡± I looked at her cuddled up to me and tightened my grip a little. ¡°This is me being restrained.¡± Mage Henrietta laughed softly. ¡°If you accept, I would have you in my bed immediately, my dear.¡± I wasn''t sure what to say to that. ¡°Let''s continue your reading lesson.¡± She said and folded the top piece of paper with one hand and gave it to me. ¡°Please accept this as a token of my love and my promise.¡± I took the folded paper and tucked it into my bandoleer. ¡°Thank you, Helena.¡± ¡°My dear David, it is I that needs to thank you.¡± Mage Henrietta said and looked into my eyes, then she slowly leaned in to give me a slow and tender kiss. ¡°Thank you for not pulling away or turning your head to avoid my kiss.¡± ¡°I''m allowed to do that?¡± I asked, a little confused, and she laughed. ¡°I think I love you a little bit more now.¡± Mage Henrietta said and gave me a quick kiss. ¡°The next paragraph, please.¡± I nodded and started reading again. 100 The War Comes Home The base being locked down lasted for two days and I spent a majority of that time with Mage Henrietta. We even ate together, to the consternation of some of the other mages, who were mainly the new ones that hadn''t been with us during the dragon hunt. They still had their innate hostility towards outsiders, not realizing that I was more like them with my magic than I was like a normal soldier. Mage Henrietta and the others I knew laughed it off and explained when they could. Even the weight mage that had sent his brother home for losing an arm, praised me for my work and for getting them the time they needed to get to safety during the dragon fight. That wasn''t enough for some of them, because they let my social status, namely none personally and bottom of the rung in the army, make their judgment for them. When the base finally opened up and we were allowed to go about our business again, I discovered how the battle had gone. Unfortunately, it went poorly by normal standards, even though we had won. Both forces were almost on even ground, mainly because the enemy had twice as many badly trained troops to throw at the battle and did so without concern or worry about losing those troops. The Colonel couldn''t afford many battles like that, because every single soldier she lost to bodily injury or death, was one less soldier she had to utilize from her very limited pool. She even had to reinforce the occupying forces she had stationed at the two port towns when they suffered casualties during multiple attacks from approaching enemy ships and from enemy skirmish squads. They held their positions, mainly because of my catapult ammunition. Seeing half of a ship''s crew merging with the magic fire covered webbing and the deck of the ship because of the number ten potion, made everyone panic, even our own troops. They knew to treat the prepped barrels with care and now all of the soldiers completely understood why. Word of things like that spread quickly. Mage Henrietta and I were in the middle of mixing up another series of batches of number ten potion for the barrels when the door to my area opened and the Colonel stood there with two guards. ¡°Private Drake, I''m assigning you to an urgent mission.¡± Colonel Rivers said. ¡°I''ve talked to the surviving construction crew members from the dragon battle and they told me you left important construction equipment behind. You are to retrieve that equipment and return here to begin construction of Mage Lukas'' kracken tubes.¡± ¡°They''re my kracken tubes.¡± I said. ¡°I invented them, designed them, and built them.¡± ¡°Conscripts are not allowed to claim ownership of battlefield weapons.¡± The Colonel said. ¡°Before you argue about it, neither are civilians below a certain social status.¡± ¡°Who claimed ownership of my catapult ammunition?¡± I asked, not really caring about the answer, except to maybe take revenge on them if it wasn''t someone I approved of. ¡°Chief Warrant Officer Gary Stromboli.¡± She said. ¡°He''ll be going with you to help.¡± ¡°These potions will be done in...¡± ¡°You are to leave immediately and return as soon as possible.¡± The Colonel said. ¡°No, I don''t think so.¡± I said and she squinted her eyes at me. ¡°If I leave now, all this work will be useless. I have to stay to infuse the potions or they won''t be any good.¡± ¡°You can redo them...¡± ¡°No, I won''t.¡± I said and she scowled. ¡°If you can''t value these as necessary, even knowing the troops need them, all because you want to gain an advantage in the next battle that you don''t know when it''s going to happen, I won''t bother making any more.¡± ¡°I am ordering you...¡± ¡°You can order all you want. The trip back to my house is going to take all day, because I have to go all the way back to the village first and then go in the other direction to get there. The routes aren''t connected, as you very well know. Having to wait thirty minutes for essential potions before I leave won''t make any difference to that trip.¡± We could all hear the Colonel grind her teeth as she mulled it over. ¡°When you return, you are to be held in the stockade for a week.¡± The Colonel said. ¡°You should belay that order for the immediate future, since I''ll be needed to make the potions to construct the kracken tubes.¡± I said and she growled. ¡°The more you try to hamper my David, the more you hamper yourself.¡± Mage Henrietta said, her voice filled with satisfaction. ¡°I thought you knew that by now, since he has proven his immense value, over and over.¡± The Colonel shifted her gaze to the mage. ¡°I''ll be accompanying him as well.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°I want to make sure that he doesn''t run away from his responsibilities, now that you''re finally letting him out from under your oppressive thumb.¡± The Colonel took a breath and let it out. ¡°Ensure that he returns as quickly as possible. I need those weapons.¡± ¡°Don''t worry, Colonel. I''ll make sure that he does exactly what he needs to do while on this mission.¡± The Colonel nodded, then smiled. ¡°You''ll be taking a load of the wounded back to the garrison as well, since you insist on going back to the village. Check with the CO for any messages from the capital as well.¡± ¡°I doubt a message could be lost from there to here.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°Check anyway.¡± The Colonel said and nodded to the two guards as she left. The guards stayed and waited for us to finish the batch of potions. I had exaggerated the need for the potions, just because I could. If she had taken me away, I could have used it as an excuse to stop helping her. She didn''t want that, since she desperately needed my help, and she had caved in to let me finish my work. I knew I couldn''t do that too many times because she could easily assign me to the battlefield and still leave me in a support role. We infused the potions and Mage Henrietta passed the word to the other mages that she was going to be gone for the day and I left instructions for the men to load the barrels and to pack them onto the carts to ship out to the port towns. Gary had helped me modify the pots and now they swivelled in a bracket when a lever was pulled. It poured them out into a barrel that was placed in front of the pot, which made it very easy to work with. Only half of a pot was needed for each barrel, so we could get 24 barrels out of one brewed batch of 12 pots. Having the catapult ammunition replaced was not a problem with so much efficiency and the crews appreciated getting restocked so quickly. I had already had three steak dinners given to me by the crews when they rotated back to the forward base for a rest. Gary met us at the dock and the injured had already been loaded into my boat. ¡°David, you need to stop making the Colonel angry.¡± ¡°She tried to take me away in the middle of brewing a whole batch of potions.¡± I said and stepped into the boat and reached back a hand for Mage Henrietta. Gary didn''t say anything for a moment, then he sighed. ¡°She''s under a lot of pressure.¡± ¡°We all are.¡± Mage Henrietta said and stepped into the boat. ¡°Thank you, Private.¡± ¡°Mage Henrietta, would you care to sit beside me?¡± I asked, formally. ¡°I would. Thank you.¡± She said and we sat on the front bench together. ¡°May I borrow your arm? I assume you''ll be going at a significant speed.¡± ¡°When we are out far enough from the new garrison.¡± I said. ¡°We still have to be careful of oncoming boats.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± She said and didn''t grab on. ¡°Is everyone secured?¡± I asked the two healers coming with us. ¡°Would you be so kind as to not do any sudden starts and stops?¡± One of them asked. ¡°Nearly everyone has a missing limb or two.¡±Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! ¡°Of course.¡± I said and lifted my wooden leg and knocked on it. The healer smiled and nodded as she sat down and held on. I used the weight enchantment to make the boat raise up almost completely out of the water and then eased us back away from the dock with the movement enchantment. Mage Henrietta leaned in close to whisper as I swung the boat around in a slow arc. ¡°Thank you for telling me that this has a full enchantment and not the truncated one that you made on your own.¡± I faced the boat in the right direction and slowly added magic to get us going. ¡°It could still have four different enchantments for movement.¡± I whispered back. ¡°Yes, and I know that the full one requires a lot more magic than the one you showed me.¡± She whispered. ¡°I really want to know how you made your own movement enchantment from what I assume was a complete mess.¡± ¡°Like I told the weight mages, just because I couldn''t read the writing, that didn''t mean I didn''t understand what the parts did.¡± I responded. ¡°They showed me their full weight enchantment and their family crest, too.¡± ¡°Did you fix it for them?¡± Mage Henrietta asked as she put her arms around my arm to hold on as I increased the boat''s speed. ¡°No, I only gave them the modified one I had.¡± ¡°They were happy with that?¡± She asked, surprised. ¡°Only because it was something they could use.¡± I said and she had to smile at that. ¡°I think they said that only their father was able to power the full one for a few minutes.¡± Mage Henrietta nodded. ¡°It''s a magic heavy enchantment, which is ironic, considering it''s a weight reduction enchantment.¡± I actually understood that irony and gave her a smile, which she returned and gripped my arm a little tighter. I slowed the boat down as we approached a sharp turn and eased the boat around it. A few people groaned, even from that slight movement, and the healers tended to them. I increased speed again and the gentle turns were easy to navigate without causing distress on the hurt passengers. I stopped briefly at the relay stations along they way, in case they had people changing out for guard duty or more injured. It also gave the passengers a brief reprieve from the constant boat travel. Mage Henrietta and I chatted in whispers about different things, mainly what we were going to do when we were back at the new front line. She was technically in charge of the mages and she had some say in how they were deployed; but, that was where her authority ended. Unlike Mage Lukas, she wasn''t a combat mage and didn''t have the required knowledge to command them in battle effectively, so she left that to the experienced combat mages. She knew her own limitations and she was smart to rely on people that knew knowledge that she didn''t have. She accepted their advice and their suggestions, altered her own decisions based on the knowledge available to her, and was quite efficient in what she accomplished. Colonel Rivers could have learned a lot from her if she wasn''t so stubborn and believed that she was always right. Her overconfidence was actually hurting her effectiveness, especially now that she had been forced to adopt a purely defensive posture and stopped all offensive operations. It grated on her nerves that she hadn''t received a message back from anyone that she had tried to contact, despite the urgency of her communications, and it had been a couple of days. About nine hours after we had left the new garrison, I docked my boat at the large dock in front of Diane''s place. It was odd not seeing any other boats there, considering the amount we had used and taken with us. They had mostly been harvested and used in constructing the new garrison and only a few were left for the mages to use to continue ferrying supplies and people to and from the relay stations and the two garrisons. I secured the boat and held it steady as the two healers and several soldiers helped all of the injured climb out of the boat and into a large horse cart. It was then that I saw something I wasn''t supposed to see. It was something that never should have happened and I had planned around it and had Donna confirm it with everyone under her command. Diane''s son was one of the injured from the new garrison. Spencer was missing his right hand and that seemed to be the only thing physically wrong with him. However, the look on his face showed that he was completely terrified. I didn''t curse, even though I wanted to, because Spencer wasn''t supposed to see actual combat. His position was supposed to be with his squad on rotation with the relay station guards and not anywhere near the front line of battle. Spencer''s eyes didn''t really see anyone around him as they loaded him onto the cart to deliver him to the garrison... or so I thought. Mage Henrietta and I walked behind the cart as it was pulled by the horse up the short road to Diane''s place and then the cart stopped. One of the healers knocked on Diane''s door and she answered. After a short exchange, Diane burst out crying and ran over to the cart. ¡°MY BOY! MY SWEET LITTLE BOY!¡± Diane yelled and took Spencer into her arms. He didn''t react at all to her yell or to her touch, and that made her cry all the more. The two healers asked a couple of the soldiers to help bring him into the house, since there wasn''t anything else they could do for him. Diane followed them, clearly anxious and a little frantic. When they came back out, Diane was right behind them. She strode right over to me and hauled her hand back as she approached. I whispered to Mage Henrietta to not interfere, then Diane swung her hand at me as hard as she could and slapped my face. ¡°YOU PROMISED ME!¡± Diane yelled. ¡°I did.¡± I said and didn''t bother telling her that she had struck the damaged side of my face, since I was sure she had hit me there on purpose. I also didn''t rub it, even though that had really hurt, and tears came to my eyes. ¡°He wasn''t supposed to fight!¡± Diane said and tears came to her own eyes. ¡°No, he wasn''t.¡± I said. ¡°He wasn''t supposed to be stationed at the new garrison!¡± ¡°No, he wasn''t.¡± ¡°The healers can''t fix him, they said!¡± Diane exclaimed and wiped at her face. ¡°He''s suffering battle trauma and he lost his hand.¡± ¡°I saw that.¡± ¡°Why didn''t you tell me?¡± Diane asked, her voice full of accusation. ¡°I didn''t know until a couple of minutes ago.¡± I said. ¡°You said you were going to watch him and protect him!¡± Diane exclaimed. ¡°I did, right up until I was sequestered at the forward defense base three days ago.¡± I said. ¡°He was at relay station 12 the last time I saw him. I gave him his own protection ward and two extra healing potions, which is two more than what everyone else had.¡± ¡°That. Wasn''t. Enough.¡± Diane said, angrily. ¡°He didn''t know the deployment changed.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°He''s not in command and...¡± ¡°Shut your mouth!¡± Diane spat at her. ¡°He promised that he would do everything he could to protect my son and he didn''t!¡± ¡°Yes, he did.¡± Mage Henrietta said, unperturbed my Diane''s anger. ¡°If you didn''t realize it, David''s plan was executed with the minimum of injuries and loss of life. His responsibility to the troops ended when everyone was finished deploying last week.¡± Diane looked like she was getting even angrier. ¡°Listen here, you... you...¡± ¡°Wanton woman.¡± Mage Henrietta offered. Diane looked slightly surprised, then she shook her head. ¡°David promised me, so his responsibility was to me and my son, not to the army.¡± Mage Henrietta laughed softly. ¡°You''re deluding yourself if you thought his promise was for your son''s entire stay in the army, because no one can promise that.¡± She said and waved at my foot. ¡°David sacrificed himself for the army to complete one mission and he lost a foot and almost his life. He also did everything he could, against army policy I might add, to keep your son out of harm''s way.¡± ¡°It wasn''t enough.¡± Diane said. ¡°Then take it up with the Colonel, since she was the one that has the authority to order a change to reserved troop deployments.¡± ¡°Reserved?¡± Diane asked, her anger eased and she looked confused. ¡°Of course! David arranged with Donna, the staff sergeant that helped form the plan in the first place, to make sure that your son was well protected and kept well away from the fighting. The reserves are just that, reserves. They are the very last troops that can be called to fight in the field and only when all other avenues are exhausted.¡± ¡°But... but, there''s...¡± ¡°Yes, there are a few hundred troops left that can be used instead of the reserves, except that they are here and the reserves were in the relay stations.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°The rest of the troops will be sent to the front while David, Gary, and I go on another mission to complete for the army.¡± Diane looked from her to me and back to her. ¡°How do I get a message to her?¡± ¡°She''s not accepting correspondence from anyone except family and equal or higher authority.¡± Mage Henrietta said, haughtily. ¡°You can send any inquiries to the CO and I''m sure she''ll do what she can for you.¡± Diane opened her mouth to respond, I assume because she was so easily brushed aside verbally, and looked at me. Her face went to anger, then to disbelief, then back to anger. ¡°I''m sorry he was hurt.¡± I said, before she could start yelling again. ¡°I promise to do everything I can to...¡± ¡°Your promise doesn''t mean anything to me anymore.¡± Diane said and her angry face slowly faded to only show sorrow. ¡°You don''t mean anything to me anymore.¡± ¡°There''s no need to overreact.¡± Gary said, finally speaking up. ¡°I''m sure that...¡± ¡°I want nothing to do with the army.¡± Diane said and looked at all of the injured in the cart. ¡°I would block off the road if it wasn''t in the land ownership contract that you always have access to the dock.¡± Gary sighed. ¡°I''ll have the guys build a separate road beside yours and have a fence constructed between them, so you won''t have to see anyone using it.¡± Diane nodded and gave me one last look. ¡°I''ll leave your half of my sales at the purser''s office.¡± ¡°Keep it, along with all the other money.¡± I said. ¡°I don''t need it.¡± Diane took a breath and let it out. ¡°Of course you don''t.¡± She said and walked away. We all stood there and waited until she was inside the house and had shut the door before the soldier in front with the horse started walking. We followed along and Mage Henrietta offered her arm to help me balance. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and I kept up with the others with her help to make it easier to walk. To my surprise, Mage Henrietta didn''t immediately ask me to make a decision about marrying her. I gave her several glances to look at her face and she kept it blank and showed no emotion. It wasn''t until we reached the main building in the garrison that she spoke. ¡°David, I am very sorry that I couldn''t get Diane to put the blame where it belongs.¡± Mage Henrietta said as Gary opened the door for us. ¡°So am I.¡± I said and the secretary was very surprised to see me wearing two boots. ¡°You were half right about her not being able to handle someone with an injury. If I''d known that Spencer...¡± ¡°It''s too late for that.¡± Mage Henrietta said as we sat down to wait to meet the CO. ¡°What would you have done if you did know? Offer to work harder for the Colonel to get Spencer sent back to the relay station?¡± She asked with a small smile to try and lighten the mood a little. ¡°You already work sixteen hours a day and can''t work any more.¡± I didn''t say anything in response, so she hugged my arm and stayed quiet as well. Both of our faces were sad and as Gary sat down on her other side, I saw that his face was just as sad. 101 The Next Phase We waited nearly half an hour before a staff sergeant left the CO''s office. He didn''t look happy and he kept his eyes forward as he left the main building. He also didn''t shut the door. ¡°We''ll just be a few more minutes.¡± Gillis said and stepped forward to shut the door. ¡°Do you think that was about stripping this garrison to reinforce the new one?¡± Gary asked. ¡°Either that, or the requested reinforcement from another brigade was denied.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°How do you... no, you would be someone who knows.¡± Gary said. ¡°The Colonel has been trying to get another high ranking mage sent here since Mage Lukas was lost.¡± Mage Henrietta nodded. ¡°No one is crazy enough to be sent here.¡± ¡°Why did you come here?¡± I asked. ¡°I told you. It was for my family. I gain actual battlefield experience and influence for my family.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°I didn''t think I would be the next ranking mage and have to run it if Mage Lukas died... which no one expected for such an out of the way deployment.¡± ¡°If this gamble doesn''t work...¡± Gary sighed. ¡°Never mind. It''s better to not think about the consequences of failure.¡± I stayed quiet and didn''t say anything, because there wasn''t really any downside for me if we failed. The reverse was also true, because winning wouldn''t give me any benefits or make my situation any better. My only real hope sat next to me and gripped my arm tightly. After a few silent minutes, I whispered to her. ¡°You''re doing your best with your personnel and... no one can fault you or your decisions.¡± Mage Henrietta turned her head to look into my eyes. ¡°What were you going to say during that pause?¡± ¡°That you''re doing much better than the Colonel, then I changed my mind because I didn''t want to insult you by comparing you.¡± Mage Henrietta had to cover her mouth to stop her laugh. The office door opened and Gillis waved for us to come in. The three of us did and Gillis shut the door behind us. Thankfully, they had chairs for us and I held in my sigh as we sat down and Gillis returned to the CO''s side. ¡°Report.¡± The CO Sandra Rivers said without inflection, as if she was just going through the motions of a good CO. Mage Henrietta went first, since she was a noble lady and a mage. She explained about the things she knew of and Gary went next. When it was my turn, Mage Henrietta''s grip on my arm tightened. I glanced at her face and she nodded slightly. I nodded slightly back and told everything that happened from my own perspective, including the very last thing with the Colonel intentionally endangering reserved troops before they were properly trained for front line battlefield conditions. ¡°We just dropped off Diane''s son.¡± Mage Henrietta added and told them his condition and what happened with Diane''s reaction. ¡°Oh, no.¡± Gillis whispered. ¡°David, I... I''m sure that when she calms down...¡± I slowly shook my head. Mage Henrietta had been right and Diane had thrown me aside as soon as she had a reason to. I still had the dried tears on my cheeks as proof. ¡°The Colonel ordered us to check in with you to see if there''s been any correspondence for her.¡± Mage Henrietta said, I assumed to try and divert attention away from my personal problems. ¡°There''s been nothing at all for her.¡± The CO said, then she took off her hat and ran her fingers through her hair. ¡°I really need to take a break from all of this. I''m a high ranking healer, for god''s sake! I shouldn''t be stuck behind a desk!¡± Gillis glanced at her and made a motion with her hand to signal asking for permission. Sandra nodded. ¡°Go ahead, Gillis. I''m taking twenty minutes off and nothing you say can be officially heard by me.¡± Gillis touched her cousin''s shoulder affectionately and looked at us. ¡°The Colonel might not have gotten any messages; but, I have.¡± That got all of our attention. ¡°I can honestly say that everyone is completely ignoring her.¡± Gillis said. ¡°My mother is close to the court and my father is high up in the military. Both of them say that her demands are ridiculous and insane, as are her claims that she''s established a beachhead into the Eastern Empire.¡± ¡°Oh, no!¡± Mage Henrietta gasped. ¡°You understand.¡± Sandra said and sat back in her chair. ¡°Not only are there no reinforcements coming, there''s no plans for reinforcements to ever be sent.¡± ¡°We''re screwed.¡± Gary said. ¡°We''re scraping the bottom of the barrel for people as it is. How the hell are we going to survive if we can''t get replacements for the men and women we''ve already lost?¡± ¡°Welcome to the new staff sergeant''s nightmare.¡± Sandra said and waved at the door where the unhappy man had fled. ¡°There''s only so much that can be solved with temporary field promotions.¡± ¡°We''re already patching holes in squads now.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°If we lose much more...¡±The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. ¡°...we won''t have an effective defense to stop the enemy.¡± Sandra said. ¡°The Colonel would have called me up there already if I wasn''t necessary for command here. For once, I''m glad that there''s no one here that can replace me.¡± ¡°So am I.¡± Gillis said. ¡°I meant to thank you a while ago for saving me.¡± Sandra chuckled and then she sighed. ¡°We''re in such a mess that I don''t know what we can do to get out of it.¡± She gave her cousin''s hand a pat. ¡°At least we''ll go down together.¡± _______________ You have a choice to make. It will alter your relationship with the people present to a significant degree. What will you do? A) Stay silent. B) Leave. C) Encourage them. D) Yell. E) Run. F) Offer to help. G) Choose two. We''re all kind of stuck under the Colonel''s influence with no real way to get out from it. I thought and read the options again. I know these people and they have all helped me when they didn''t have to. They could have just let me suffer alone and they didn''t. I looked at the two options that applied and chose them. I choose C and F. _______________ ¡°No, we aren''t going down.¡± I said and pat Mage Henrietta''s hand and stood up. ¡°We''ve come this far and we''ve survived, even with all the crazy things going on.¡± I said and Mage Henrietta stood up to support me. ¡°Let''s take this as far as possible.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Gillis asked. ¡°I assume you''ve sent the battle reports we''ve accumulated so far to your father and he didn''t believe them.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°What would it take to convince him that we are actually in the Eastern Empire?¡± ¡°It''s not like we can give him a first hand account. He would never come all the way out here to...¡± Gillis stopped talking. ¡°Oh, my god! That''s it!¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Sandra asked. ¡°We show him! We show him we''ve been in the Eastern Empire!¡± Gillis exclaimed. ¡°How do we do that?¡± ¡°It''s simple! We send tribute from the newly gained territory!¡± Sandra took in a sharp breath. ¡°The Colonel will never go for it.¡± ¡°Yes, she will.¡± Mage Henrietta said and her brilliant eyes fell upon Sandra. ¡°We just have to give her a valid candidate to govern it.¡± ¡°Wh-what? No, I... you can''t really think...¡± ¡°You said it yourself. No one can replace you as the commander of this garrison... except than the entire garrison is about to be shifted to the new area.¡± Mage Henrietta said with a satisfied smile. ¡°You can leave the staff sergeant here to mind the squad of soldiers that must be left behind to guard this place, while Gillis can be sent to the capital with some of the expensive items and gold that have been pilfered from the enemy.¡± ¡°M-me?¡± Gillis gasped. ¡°He''s your father and you won''t be denied entry or delayed.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°If we succeed...¡± ¡°...we could finally get the people and resources that have been denied.¡± Sandra said, her face thoughtful. ¡°I''ll be creating as many kracken tubes as I can to maintain the defense of the bases we have in enemy territory.¡± I said. ¡°I mean the Gulf Kingdom''s new territory. No, Her Highness Lady Sandra Eileen Rivers'' territory.¡± Everyone had bright and happy faces at my proclimation. ¡°She... she won''t...¡± Sandra looked at our faces and sighed. ¡°Dammit, when do we leave?¡± ¡°Right now.¡± I said. ¡°Gather your things and head to the boat. I need to stop at my old shop and get my things, too. We can arrange a few soldiers to go with Gillis and Mage Henrietta when we get back to the front.¡± ¡°Excuse me?¡± Mage Henrietta said, her voice stern. ¡°I''m not...¡± ¡°She needs your expert boat handling and the speed you can achieve in it. The faster you can get her to the capital, the faster we can get all of this resolved.¡± ¡°But... but I wanted you to...¡± ¡°The Colonel would never agree to let me go to the capital.¡± I said. ¡°You, however...¡± Mage Henrietta sighed. ¡°She''ll be more than happy to see the back of my robes.¡± ¡°You''re still going to be in danger. It''s a long boat ride to the capital.¡± I said. ¡°Don''t push yourself and make sure you don''t exhaust yourself if you''re too far away from the shore.¡± Mage Henrietta smiled sadly. ¡°You almost sound like you care about my safety.¡± I turned to face her and she looked into my eyes. ¡°There''s only one thing I can say to that.¡± Mage Henrietta, as well as Gillis, Sandra, and Gary, waited anxiously for me to speak. ¡°Helena, I accept your offer.¡± I said and Mage Henrietta gasped. ¡°Get me out of the army as soon as you can.¡± Mage Henrietta looked shocked for a moment, then she smiled happily and gave me a quick kiss. ¡°I''ll do my best. You''ll be out of this horrible mess by the end of the month. Both I and my family guarantee it.¡± After that little revelation, Gillis and Sandra went to pack their things and to get supplies, Gary went to the maintenance building to get a few tools and things he would need to help me, and Mage Henrietta helped me to my old potions workshop to get the things I had left there. I would be transferring them to my house in the marsh, where they would be relatively safe. Unlike leaving them in the middle of a practically abandoned garrison or near the front lines of a battlefield. Mage Henrietta wasn''t surprised to see me cutting open the bottom of my bed to get at my old pack. What did shock her was the chest full of gold crowns. ¡°David, what...¡± ¡°I did a lot of hunting at the training grounds. Exotic beasts are worth a lot.¡± I said and opened my pack to take out a weight enchantment coin, then used a drop of number ten potion to attach it to the chest. I activated it and then emptied out the pack of my old clothing and things that I wasn''t going to need anymore. I shoved the chest inside and put the pack on. It was a familiar feeling that I had missed and I left the empty army trunk there. I had given Diane the contents of animal parts long ago. We left to go to the boat and I wasn''t surprised to see a construction crew making the new road down to the dock and another putting up a quick fence of springy trees. Mage Henrietta walked on my side to support my walk, the side that just so happened to block my sight of Diane''s house, and we made it to the dock. We didn''t have to wait long for Gary to appear and he loaded a few things into the boat. Twenty minutes later, Gillis appeared and wore her army uniform as she carried two canvas bags and Sandra was beside her and wore civilian clothing, namely a very stylish dress of the times. There were two guards behind her and they carried a trunk between them. ¡°You could have worn the uniform until we appeared at the base.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°No, I''m making this trip as Lady Rivers, governess of a new territory, and not as CO Rivers.¡± Sandra said and climbed into the boat. The two guards put her trunk at the back and sat down with it. None of us asked why the guards were coming, since it was just assumed she needed protection wherever she went. I took us out into the waterway and Mage Henrietta gripped my arm as she leaned close. ¡°Thank you.¡± Mage Henrietta whispered to me and kissed my cheek. ¡°Thank you so much.¡± ¡°You were right.¡± I whispered back. ¡°I made the decision a while ago to leave the army and I just didn''t want to admit it.¡± ¡°You were waiting to see what Diane would say when you told her.¡± Mage Henrietta said and I nodded. ¡°Now you know.¡± ¡°I''m going to need your help when we make a stop in several specific areas to gather some special ingredients.¡± I said and it was her turn to nod. ¡°Yes, they are essential stops and you must do them to complete your mission for the Colonel.¡± Mage Henrietta agreed. ¡°I''ll do everything I can to help you, just as I promised.¡± I nodded and increased the speed of the boat. 102 Home Sweet Home It was a three and a half hour boat ride back to my house, because I needed to make sure the location was at least a little obscured in my passenger''s minds. I wasn''t going to bother trying to confuse my passengers, then remembered I didn''t really want them to know where I lived. Only Mage Henrietta didn''t react when I brought the boat to a stop in front of my place. ¡°Good lord! The descriptions didn''t do it justice!¡± Sandra Rivers exclaimed as she gazed at the 60 foot wide stone bottom and the 60 foot high pitched wooden roof. ¡°I knew it was the right decision to assign you to the maintenance department.¡± She said with satisfaction in her voice. ¡°How in the world did you build it all by yourself?¡± ¡°One piece at a time.¡± I said and used my trick to boost the boat out of the water and onto the dry area. ¡°I''m amazed every time you do that.¡± Mage Henrietta said and waited for me to climb out to hold a hand out to me before she climbed out, too. ¡°You''re lopsided and you still do the gentlemanly thing.¡± She commented as she gave my arm a squeeze and then held on to keep me steady. ¡°So gallant.¡± Gillis stared at my house as I helped her out of the boat. ¡°It''s like from a story book!¡± ¡°That''s where I got the idea.¡± I said and helped Sandra climb out. ¡°You probably could have stayed in the boat. I shouldn''t be too long with what I have to do here.¡± ¡°I''m here, so I''m coming inside and I want to see what you''ve set up for yourself with my own eyes.¡± Sandra said. ¡°The descriptions alone aren''t enough to cement it in my mind.¡± ¡°A lot of it''s empty, since the army took all my crates and vials and I gave Diane all my backlog of animal parts.¡± I said and held a hand up to dispel the door lock spell. ¡°I also lost my key inside the dragon.¡± I took out my knife and charged it, then sliced off the bolt into the door frame and also cut the number ten potion sealed parts that I had used to secure the door. ¡°It''s huge inside, too.¡± Gillis said as we all went inside. I pointed to each room that I had set aside for each task. Ingredients, crates, my work room, my storage space, the middle room that wasn''t for any purpose, the kitchen, the smoke room, and the bedroom at the back. ¡°This is absolutely amazing.¡± Gillis said as she admired the huge kitchen I had. ¡°I still have a small amount of smoked meat left.¡± I said and went into the smoker. ¡°I can''t leave it here any longer.¡± I used two canvas bags and filled them with what was left and carried them into the kitchen. ¡°I was going to make a separate space for potion brewing and decided that I didn''t really need it separated, since I would be cooking both food and potions at the same time anyway.¡± ¡°Or that was your plan until the army conscripted you.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°Now all your hard work is just sitting here, unused.¡± ¡°There''s not much he can do about that.¡± Gary said. ¡°David, did I see the right equipment in your storage area?¡± ¡°The large wooden squares I use for molds are there and in the work room. I don''t know if I can make more, because the more I have the more materials it needs to work.¡± I said. ¡°There aren''t a lot of springy trees in the Eastern Empire that I''ve seen.¡± ¡°Does it have to be springy trees?¡± Sandra asked. ¡°You could have Gary and the construction crews spend several hours trying to drill out the middle four inches of a five foot long tree trunk.¡± Gary barked a laugh. ¡°No thanks! Only you can drill holes quickly and even you can''t keep a drill that straight for that distance.¡± I nodded. ¡°That''s why making it from springy trees and number ten potion is the fastest way. It''s easily bendable into a tube and then it can be attached and hardened with more potion.¡± ¡°I''ll load them onto the boat.¡± Gary said. ¡°We should stop and harvest springy trees, too.¡± ¡°The tools are in the work room.¡± I said as he left. I went to my bedroom and the others followed me. I took the story books out of my pack and put them on the shelf with the learning books I had. ¡°Can you give us a few minutes?¡± Mage Henrietta said to Sandra and Gillis. Both women nodded and left to go look around on their own. The guards went with them.Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. ¡°David, if you''re going to hide that chest of gold, now would be the time.¡± Mage Henrietta whispered. I knelt and used my knife to cut a large section out of the wooden base of the bed. I put some number ten potion down to secure the chest to the stone floor and then used the potion to reseal the bed frame. ¡°I really should bury it under the floor; but, I can''t make a replacement blade if this one gets dull from cutting through the stone.¡± ¡°It can cut through stone?¡± Mage Henrietta asked, surprised. ¡°I haven''t tried it. I didn''t want to take the chance that it would be damaged.¡± I said and stood up. My pack only had a few miscellaneous tools and my wood engraving kit left in it. Gary had a set at the maintenance department and there was a set brought when the new garrison was built, so I hadn''t needed the one I had bought after leaving here. I had lost the split ones during the dragon fight, too. I put the two canvas bags of smoked meat into the now empty pack and slung it back onto my back. ¡°I wish we could stay here for a short time.¡± Mage Henrietta said and her hands took mine. ¡°Now that you''ve accepted the deal, you are mine and I am yours.¡± I didn''t need her to explain what she meant. She had said before that she would have taken me to bed a long time ago if I had agreed to the deal, and she had even extended her deadline, which was the end of the mission to get the troops to the new garrison. She didn''t complain when I hadn''t given her an answer and she also didn''t pressure me to hurry up and make my choice. I had made it now and she was only letting me know that she was ready. I looked at her face, looked pointedly at the bed, then back at her face. She blushed a little and I leaned in and gave her a kiss as I used my magic to make her lips tingle. She gasped into my mouth because of that and probably because it was the first kiss that I had initiated with her. She put her arms around me and her lips and tongue did their best to touch and lick every part of my mouth, inside and out, and she made my mouth tingle in return. Of course, I blocked off any attempt by her tongue to lick under mine, which could potentially activate the gland there, despite how strong I had made that muscle over the years. The last thing I would want would be to accidentally poison her by just kissing her. The best case scenario, she would black out and be immobilized like I had been when the Hag did it to me. The worst case scenario, she could die a slow and painful death. ¡°I''ve got the boat loaded with the equipment.¡± Gary''s loud voice said, as if he was intentionally trying to interrupt us. Mage Henrietta broke the kiss and her face was a deep red. I could tell that she wanted to say something and waited for her to speak, then she gave me a quick kiss and let me go. ¡°You need to get the last of your replacement potions.¡± Mage Henrietta said. I knew that wasn''t what she was going to say, so I gave her another kiss to surprise her and then walked around her to go to the kitchen. I checked to see if anyone was looking and opened up my secret potion stash. The inside was almost pathetically empty and I put the last few strength potions and fortifying potions into my bandoleer. I actually felt bad that I had run out of all of the others, when I had sworn to myself to always have spares here in case of emergencies. I didn''t have time to brew up replacements, let alone travel to gather the ingredients first and then come back to brew them. I sealed it and once again checked to see if anyone was looking, then opened my fungus powder stash and took three of the bottles, then took out the potion book I had. I didn''t have time to memorize the ingredients for the one I desperately needed, so I tucked the book into my pack. I sealed the stash up again and went out to the middle room where the others were waiting. ¡°I''m ready.¡± ¡°Are you sure that''s everything?¡± Gary asked. ¡°We''re not going to be allowed to come back if you forget anything.¡± ¡°If I could guarantee that my things wouldn''t be stolen if I took them with me, I wouldn''t have come back here at all.¡± I said and that surprised everyone. ¡°But... the equipment...¡± Gillis said. ¡°It was easier to come here than to try to make replacements.¡± I said as an explanation. ¡°It''s the ingredients that I''m going to really need, which we can pick up on the way back.¡± ¡°You mean the springy trees?¡± Gary asked and I nodded. ¡°It shouldn''t take long to gather a lot of them, because we can use the smallest trees that are about this big.¡± I held up my hand and made a one inch round hole. ¡°We also need to find a wildwood tree or we can''t get the kracken tubes to work.¡± ¡°Then let''s go.¡± Sandra said. ¡°The Colonel won''t be happy if we''re late.¡± ¡°She''s already sentenced me to a week in the stockade when I get back for not leaving right away.¡± I said as we left the house and I turned to seal it up and magically lock it. ¡°Returning before what she expects is the time for me to return isn''t going to make her any happier with me.¡± ¡°You need to stop antagonizing her.¡± Sandra said. ¡°That''s what Gary said.¡± I responded. ¡°Doesn''t that mean you should listen to your friends if they are telling you the same thing?¡± Gillis asked as she climbed into the boat. ¡°I do listen to them... to you.¡± I said and she smiled. ¡°It''s just too bad that the Colonel doesn''t do the same thing.¡± Gillis looked surprised for a second. ¡°Are you saying that you were trying to be her friend?¡± I nodded. ¡°If she would only take off her hat, she would have noticed how much I''ve done to help her.¡± I said and they all looked surprised. ¡°She''s not listening to anything I say and she even hurt me by ensuring that Diane left me.¡± ¡°David, she couldn''t have known...¡± Sandra started to say and Gillis touched her arm to interrupt her. ¡°She was there when the plans were revised. She knew exactly where Diane''s son was stationed.¡± Gillis said. ¡°I''m sorry, David. I really am.¡± ¡°Everyone''s sorry.¡± I said and helped Mage Henrietta into the boat. No one spoke after that statement and I easily pushed the boat over to the water. I climbed in and turned the boat around, then took us over to the first cross waterway and went off in the direction of where some of the best and rarest ingredients were to be found. Right next to the dragon''s first nest. 103 Back To The Front Our trip to the dragon''s nest area was surprisingly uneventful, even with stops to gather generic ingredients and springy trees. The massive battle that had happened around the nest had devastated the surrounding area and even a month later, it had barely started to recover. I wasn''t sure if it was the magical fire that made it take longer or because the dragons had changed the main area to suit their needs. Either way, I wasn''t getting any fungus blooms or delicious mushrooms for a while. The others stayed in the boat while I went on my own into the marsh. I couldn''t venture far, because I was making too much noise and I didn''t smell like I belonged there. I had a protection ward in my pack, so I wasn''t too worried, and I managed to find a very nice spot for rare ingredients. I didn''t strip the area, because that could stop them from growing there permanently, and that was not something I wanted to be the cause of. I took out the potions book and looked at the regeneration potion to make sure that I was getting the appropriate replacement ingredients for the ones in the list. I had to check it several times and read the list several times, then regretted not bringing paper and a pencil to write out the new recipe with appropriate ingredients to make it easier on myself. I closed the book and kept hunting for more things. I half filled a canvas bag and shoved into my pack. That was all I could find in the area and moved off to gather the more generic ingredients. I easily filled another canvas bag, since they were pretty plentiful, and went back to the boat. ¡°Any luck finding a panther pelt?¡± Mage Henrietta asked, hope in her voice. ¡°All that was near the nest were charred remains. Magical fire pretty much destroyed everything.¡± I said and put the sack of ingredients under the front bench and sat down. ¡°They harvested the dragon parts two weeks ago.¡± Sandra said. ¡°I can tell you that the Colonel''s brigade made enough from selling them to run for another year, even if they are reinforced to full capacity.¡± ¡°Is that right?¡± Mage Henrietta asked, clearly surprised. ¡°David and Gary made almost that much just from filling the shipping company''s orders for carts.¡± Sandra sighed. ¡°It cost a lot to bring nearly an entire brigade across half of the country.¡± ¡°Why are you telling us?¡± Gary asked. ¡°I thought that was privileged information or something.¡± ¡°I''m not the CO right now.¡± Sandra said with a shrug. ¡°The official numbers will be released at the end of the month.¡± ¡°In the capital.¡± Gillis said with a chuckle. ¡°Us lowly soldiers don''t need to know how expensive it is to transport, feed, and pay for a brigade of troops and their supplies, weapons, and clothing.¡± ¡°Don''t forget training. That''s not cheap, either.¡± Gary said and then pointed. ¡°David! There''s a nice outcropping of more springy trees.¡± I nodded and pulled over, then Gary and I climbed out of the boat and made short work of gathering piles and piles of them. We weren''t worried about ammunition, because there were lots of normal trees that had been cut down around all of the defensive bases at the new front lines. They had cleared away a safe area of a thousand feet to give our troops and mages clear lines of sight without having to worry about the enemy assaulting them through the trees. We had a lot built up now and wouldn''t need to stop again to get more. We loaded them into the boat between the second and middle benches and used the large wooden squares I made to brace them on the sides so that they wouldn''t roll or shift when I turned the boat. With them secured, I quickly made our way back to the village and went up the proper waterway to head back to the new garrison. With no need to stop at the relay stations along the way, our trip back up the same passage went almost four times as fast. I did stop at the previous places that I had mentally marked as great places for gathering tons of fresh ingredients and filled six more canvas bags. Even Mage Henrietta was surprised when I came back to the boat with the filled bags as quickly as I did. ¡°The Colonel really messed up by annoying you.¡± Mage Henrietta said as I tossed the canvas bags on top of the huge pile of them I had already gathered. ¡°You''ve collected more ingredients than all the squads put together, and they stripped whole areas to get the ones you wanted.¡± ¡°It took longer to sort through them than they took to gather them.¡± I said and sat down. ¡°It''s just all out from here. No more stops.¡± Mage Henrietta smiled sweetly and wrapped her arms around my left one and held on tightly as she leaned in close. She enjoyed the ride a lot more than she normally did, I assumed because I had told her to hold on and she didn''t have to ask, and because I really did go as quickly as the waterways would allow.The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°Just remember that you can''t go this fast when you take the boat.¡± I whispered to her. ¡°It''s too dangerous without the vigilance technique or a guide that knows the route to direct you properly.¡± ¡°I promise to only go at the normal regulated speed set in the plan, even when we hit those nice straight sections.¡± Mage Henrietta whispered back. ¡°Your warnings about magic exhaustion when it happened to you are enough to convince me that I never want to collapse from it.¡± ¡°Are you bringing your testing crystal?¡± I asked. ¡°Do you think I should?¡± ¡°I would. You might need the boost when you least expect it.¡± Mage Henrietta gave me a concerned look. ¡°You really are worried.¡± I nodded. ¡°You should have Gary pick the squad of troops to go with you. He knows the best men for guard work.¡± Mage Henrietta nodded back. ¡°I''ll have him do that before we go to visit the Colonel. Thank you for the advice.¡± We were quiet for the remainder of the trip back to the new garrison at the edge of the marsh. It was getting quite dark now and we arrived at the large dock under the bright mage lights. A horse and cart was assigned to Lady Rivers and her entourage and Gary appropriated one for the supplies. A group of workers loaded Gary''s cart up with everything from the boat while Sandra, Gillis, and Mage Henrietta boarded the other cart with Sandra''s trunk, her two guards, and Gillis'' things. Gary arranged for the squad that Gillis and Mage Henrietta would need to guard the tribute treasure that would be filled with art and sculptures from the Eastern Empire, as well as gold and silver coins, all of which were things that couldn''t be bought in the Gulf Kingdom. We split up as Sandra''s cart went off towards the command area to see the Colonel with the squad of guards walking behind them. After that, they would head to the storage area to load the cart up and then head to the mage''s designated living area to spend the night with Mage Henrietta, then help her pack in the morning. Gary and I headed to the main construction area to drop off all of the things we had, which was a significant amount, considering it had only been the two of us doing it, and then we went to our own beds to sleep. It had been a very long day and I really needed to sleep. I had been very tempted to tag along when Sandra visited the Colonel to tell her... not ask her, tell her... that she was taking over ruling of the new territory and was sending an appropriate tribute to the King. My presence would only make things difficult, especially if she thought that I had a hand in it. She would automatically blame me if I was there, assuming it was my idea, even if I had no idea that such a thing was possible or something that had to be done. I knew a lot about the structure of royal society and how things worked, thanks to Sandra''s etiquette lessons; but, the subject of foreign land ownership and tributes had never been brought up. I took off my pack and my leg, then I laid in bed and let out a long drawn out sigh as I thought about the Colonel''s reaction. Maybe Sandra will be smart and ask to deal with Ellen as the Princess of the Gulf Kingdom and not as the military Colonel in control of hostile territory. I thought and closed my eyes. What are the odds of that? The night passed by in an instant and I woke up refreshed. My ankle hurt and I stared at the wooden leg beside the bed. I couldn''t understand why I would have pain somewhere that wasn''t there anymore, even with Mage Henrietta''s explanation that it was ''phantom'' pain, because my magic was reminding me that there''s supposed to be a foot there and to hurry up and get it back. Don''t worry, foot. I''ll have you back in a few weeks, just as soon as I figure out how to properly brew a potion that I''ve never brewed before and using replacement ingredients. I thought as I strapped my wooden leg on and put on my pack. At least Mage Henrietta''s reading lessons are finally going to pay off. I left my sleeping room and stepped into the main construction area. Gary was up as well and came over to me. ¡°A quick breakfast and we can set up two more of the large mold squares as kracken tube molds, then you can get to work on the potion while I cut up the springy trees to the right length.¡± Gary said. ¡°Are you sure you can handle that all alone? You''re pretty old.¡± I said. Gary barked a laugh. ¡°Shut up, you one foot wonder.¡± He said and we left the building. ¡°If we try to get more people involved, it''ll just make it harder for us to work efficiently.¡± I nodded. Since it takes time for the potion to brew and to set, if we did it as a chain with me handling the brewing and peeling the wood, Gary could handle cutting the wood and setting the springy trees into the molds for me to pour the potion onto. With three of them going, that was twelve tubes we could make every half an hour. With the wildwood tree I felled the day before and using the last mold to expand the coins I would need to cut, the only time consuming part would be making the enchantments for the ammunition and the small catapults and their wooden brackets to hold the tubes. We sat down at breakfast with the other guys and told them what we needed for the kracken tubes as we ate. A few of the men had been there during the dragon fight and knew exactly what we needed, so they were set as leads to gather the right size logs for both the ammunition and the small catapults. When we were done eating, we all went about our tasks and started working hard to get as many made as possible. Both Gary and I weren''t surprised that we didn''t see Mage Henrietta or Gillis at breakfast, because they should have been up and gone by then. This was confirmed when someone came into the construction area and said that three squads of troops and a construction crew had been co-opted by Lady Rivers to renovate a mansion. I glanced at Gary and he gave me a thumbs up gesture, which meant it had worked. The tribute was on its way in the fastest boat possible, as was my ticket out of the army. I needed to get away from the front lines as quickly as possible, before the Colonel decided that my skills were no longer needed. That would be very, very bad. For her. 104 The Best Defense It took half an hour to brew the first batch of number ten potions, during which I had easily peeled all of the springy trees. Gary started cutting them up to the right length and using number ten potion to attach the cut pieces together. Once he laid them into the three molds, I poured in the number ten potion to make them into a flat surface on one side. I cut a coin from the wildwood log and used number ten potion to fill the last mold. It was then that I saw the problem. We would quickly outpace the creation of ammunition and there wouldn''t be enough wildwood ready to carve the enchantments into if I didn''t make more molds. I made three more molds that were five feet by five feet and treated it with waterproofing potion to prepare it. I cut three more coins off and filled them with potion to the same depth as the thickness of the piece of wildwood. I started brewing more potion in the two emptied pots, just so there would always be pots of potion to use. A construction crew came over with twelve prepared barrels for catapult ammunition and used up six of my pots of number ten potion, so I had to brew them up again. The first kracken tubes dried and we popped them out. Another crew came over to us and dropped off a cart full of the right sized logs for kracken tube ammunition and I thanked them. We used them to roll the kracken tubes into the right shape and sealed them, then handed them off to the other construction crew that was building the miniature catapults. We had it down to a very efficient system, just as Gary had suggested, and we worked diligently and consistently for the next eleven hours. We lost a combined hour for lunch and supper, which left us with ten solid hours of work. With twelve tubes completed every half an hour, that was 240 kracken tubes we had done by the end of the day. I also filled a hundred barrels of number ten potion and completely restocked all of the catapults in both port towns and the forward defensive bases. The other construction crewmen left to go back to their living areas when the normal work day ended. I didn''t stop working myself, because like Mage Henrietta said, I always worked sixteen hour days. I spent the next two hours cutting up the five foot by five foot wildwood squares into tiny four inch wide squares. There were eighty of the things, which had amazed the other guys, and each of the large squares when cut up would give me 225 small squares. By the time I was done, I had 18,000 of the damn things. I had to use the spinning trick to carve them into circles with each of them, so I spent the next two hours doing just that. I only managed to carve about five thousand of them and then I was too tired to keep going. I put my work aside into the neat stacks I had made for easy counting and then went to my bed. I felt the eyes that had been watching me fade away and I let a sigh out. I knew whoever it was would report to the Colonel that I was actually working hard and not slacking off like she thought I was doing. I had already asked for the weight mage to come and work the next day and he would start carving the weight enchantments on the small coins I had already made. I would need to take the time to make the movement enchantments as well, that way there would be some ready ammunition for the kracken tubes to be distributed to the designated areas the Colonel wanted them. The tubes themselves were already in place and the crews tending to them were desperate to have ammunition as soon as possible. I took my pack off and my wooden leg. I sat down on the bed and sighed again as I rubbed my red and inflamed stub just below the knee. I took a small sip of healing potion and rubbed a little onto the stub, then I dug into my pack and pulled out the potion book. I had a stack of paper and a pencil beside my bed and I quickly copied out the recipe from the book. I stashed the book away again and took out some of the smoked meat. I chewed on the tough water beast meat that would have been better as jerky, and went out to the potion section of my work area. I still had all twelve pots filled with number ten potion and grabbed a few scrap pieces of wood. I went back to my sleeping area and quickly made a small bench with a hidden compartment inside. I took out the sealed half filled canvas bag of rare ingredients and spent an hour properly prepping them for brewing. I wasn''t going to risk making a batch in one of the large stewing pots out in the open, because that was just asking for trouble. I would need to make a small area here inside my small sleeping area, something easily hidden from prying eyes. I looked at the wooden floor and smiled, because it was built up above the ground to stop the boards from rotting quickly. I easily used my knife to cut out an appropriate sized hole, used number ten potion to attach the boards together to make it like a hatch, then added small supports underneath to hold it in place when I covered it again. I popped one of the knots out of the wood and that created a convenient finger hold and my hidden cover was done. I laid down on the floor and gathered some small stones together and used some number ten potion to attach them and made an impromptu mold, then filled it in to make a nice base for a little fire that also wouldn''t catch the surrounding space on fire. I wasn''t stupid enough to not be mindful of fire hazards. I wanted to brew a small pot of potion and not get caught, so I made it as safe as a secret fire could be. I even added a kind of tunnel over to the spot where the actual smoke rose out of the potions area, which always had smoke coming out of it. No one should know what I was doing and it was sure going to be a surprise if it worked. Well, for those I told about it, anyway.If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. Once I had that all set up, I left my building and went to the blacksmith. The Colonel had hired one to repair all of the damaged equipment and the guy worked for a reasonable wage, which was surprising, because usually people would charge double or even triple the normal price for the army. He was a foreign citizen and his dark skin color from being out in the sun for years, made him stand out from everyone else. Unfortunately, my own tan was starting to fade from staying inside for too long. I really needed to get away from having to work my ass off for no benefit, in an environment that wasn''t helping me thrive. The guy didn''t wake up as I entered his area and I grabbed a metal rack and a small pot. It was a good thickness, so I wouldn''t have to use number ten potion to thicken it up. I also took some tending tools and then wrote down what I took, so the blacksmith wouldn''t think he was robbed, and I wrapped the note around a gold coin. That was about three times what everything was worth and I hoped he understood what the extra money meant. He was to keep quiet about it. I carefully slipped it into his shirt pocket and left it sticking out, where it could clearly be seen when he woke up. I left there and went back to my sleeping area and I was glad that no one had seen me. I had lots of wildwood pieces from making the squares into circles, so I took some into my room and started the fire. I placed the rack and small pot on the fire, added some water, and let it simmer up to the right temperature. At least, I hoped it was the right temperature. I wouldn''t really know until I finished rewriting the recipe with the ingredients I had access to. I sat down on my bed and used another piece of parchment to check the book for the ingredients in the original potion and reminded myself of what each one did. I quickly wrote out the common equivalent, some of which were duplicated because of similar properties. It also needed an equivalent healing potion, a weakened strength potion, some parts of the fortifying potion (which was a bit scary, considering how the last one went when I consumed it), and the ingredients for a general health potion. It was one of the most complicated potions I had ever encountered and there were so many steps and procedures to go through, that the chance of failure was very high. I suspected that the substitutions I had to use and compensate for, would increase that chance to a phenomenal degree, so I needed to be extra careful. I did not want to screw this up too many times, not with the very limited resources and ingredients I currently had. It took me a long time to work out the substitutions, the changes in the brewing times, and the order in which things had to be added. One step had to be removed completely, because of the redundancy of the second health potion that covered a different area than the first, both of which my single health potion could be used instead. It still required that simmering time to congeal the other ingredients together, however. To use Gary''s words, it was a pain in the ass figuring it all out. I looked at the third piece of parchment with the final form of the recipe on it and was satisfied with the result. It was still quite long and complicated, with the only difference that it contained all of the things that I had already gathered. With that monumental task done, I realized it was very late into the night, or to be more accurate, very early into the morning. I sighed and quickly extinguished the fire and that stopped the simmering pot of water that I hadn''t been able to use. I covered the secret hole and stashed everything else back into my pack. The downside of what I was doing was that I was only going to be able to work on it at night and I needed to be careful about it. I did not want to be discovered brewing secret potions because I was in enough trouble already. I laid down and closed my eyes and it was suddenly morning. I barely slept, guessed it was only about three hours, and I wasn''t as eager in my walk as I normally was when I left my sleeping area. ¡°You look terrible.¡± Gary said and I pointed to the stacks of cut small coins. ¡°Good lord.¡± He said and went over to them. ¡°David, you... why would you...¡± I leaned close to whisper. ¡°Eyes everywhere.¡± Gary looked surprised for a moment, then he sighed. ¡°She must want to make sure that you''re not stalling her on purpose.¡± ¡°If I was going to do that, I would have accepted her stockade punishment and all of the supplies we gathered would still be sitting there, unused.¡± Gary gave me a knowing look. ¡°The ingredients would be useless, just like that first batch she had gathered at the old garrison while you were training.¡± I nodded. ¡°If they aren''t prepped for storage within a day of being picked, they wilt and lose potency for every day they sit.¡± ¡°No wonder you worked so hard yesterday.¡± Gary said. ¡°I''ve never seen anyone infuse that many potions in a day. Ever.¡± ¡°I bet the Mages Guild has.¡± I said. ¡°The number of potion batches I mean, not one person doing them. Even Mage Lukas could only do seven before being exhausted.¡± Gary shook his head. ¡°I can''t even imagine the powerful spells you can cast.¡± ¡°I can only do starter spells according to Mage Henrietta. Lock, unlock, and start fire. I can also use Dispel and that confused her. She said that it was a level three mage spell and it''s only taught in the defense course in the capital during the third year.¡± Gary gave me a disbelieving look. ¡°How can you only do basic magic?¡± ¡°I never learned how.¡± I said with a shrug and leaned in close to whisper again. ¡°Mage Henrietta tried to get me to learn from the spell book she had and I couldn''t understand it at all.¡± ¡°Wait, what? You''re smart, David. How can you not understand it?¡± ¡°It''s a completely different way of thinking from how I was taught.¡± I said. ¡°I can''t explain it and neither can she, and she''s pretty smart, too.¡± Gary shook his head again. ¡°Come on. Let''s go grab something to eat and get back to work.¡± ¡°We need about 9,000 logs of the right size for ammunition.¡± I said and he took in a sharp breath. ¡°I know that sounds like a lot...¡± ¡°It''s a MASSIVE amount!¡± ¡°With 240 kracken tubes, that''s only 37 shots for each of them with some left over.¡± I said. Gary looked stunned. ¡°But... no, you''re right. Added together it''s a huge amount. Only doing up 37 for each of them and giving them those as the only ammunition they are going to get...¡± He sighed. ¡°We are going to need to cut down more trees.¡± ¡°It''s not that bad. They can be retrieved and reused if they are mostly intact.¡± I reassured him. ¡°It''s a good thing we have a blacksmith close by. He can dip the sharpened tips into molten metal and that''ll ensure a lot will survive the impact with the enemy.¡± Gary clapped my shoulder and let me use his arm as a brace. ¡°They''ll never know what hit them if they attack us again.¡± ¡°When.¡± I corrected and Gary fell silent. He knew it was coming, as did everyone that was stationed at all of the forward defense bases. 105 Another Day At Work After breakfast, the weight mage met up with me back at my designated area and we started carving the enchantments and I attached them to each of the available three foot logs that were four inches wide. They had already been sharpened and the tip dipped in metal to ensure they would last longer than just bare wood. I didn''t have the ingredients to make fortifying waterproof potions, so they were just plain wood. We had small carts set aside and as we finished a pile of 30 kracken tube ammunition, the cart would take the load to the farthest out kracken tube that was deployed, starting with the middle and working to the sides. Hopefully, that would be plenty of ammunition and they would be able to recover some after each battle, because we didn''t have any more resources to make more. Instead of giving them the full 37 like I had allocated, we kept the extra in case some of them used up more ammo than the others or they needed more replacements. It wasn''t much of a reserve and the crews complained about not really having a lot of ammo. There was nothing we could do about that, because what we had we had, and that was it. ¡°Tell them to make their shots count.¡± I informed the next crew to take a cart of ammunition. The day seemed to pass by in a flash as I worked. The weight mage had run out of mana after the first hour and needed two hours to rest and recover his magic. I kept infusing the enchantments on my own and he did them when he could. He also agreed to come back the next day to keep working, which was a surprise. I thought he would have given up after working almost ten hours straight. I switched out and cut more of the small squares into circles over the next few hours and managed to finish them all. It was almost time to quit, so I cleaned up all of the wildwood scraps and stuffed them into canvas bags to get them out of the way. I stored them near my sleeping area and let out a sigh as I walked over to my bed. I took off my pack and dropped it to the floor, then I unstrapped my wooden leg. ¡°Uhhhhh.¡± I groaned exaggeratedly and rubbed the end of my stump. ¡°I''m going to run out of healing potions if I have to keep healing my leg every day like this.¡± I took out the partially used potion from yesterday and rubbed some on my leg and took another sip. I let out another sigh and laid down on my bed. It was then that I felt the watching eyes finally look away and I relaxed. I wasn''t sure if they were going to keep watching me this late all the time, so I really had to be careful. I waited half an hour before finally digging out the potion ingredients and opening my hidden hatch to gain access to the small pot. I lit the fire and started brewing the revised recipe. I took my time and did each step carefully, right up until I reached the point where I had to add part of the fortifying potion that was about a third of the way through the recipe. The thoughts of what it could do to me if I took it too early, which would be for a second time, made me remember the last time I had done it. I also remembered the warnings that the Hag had told me about it. My body could lock up completely and I could become a living statue and unable to move... even after I starved to death. I shook my head and concentrated on the potion again, only to discover I was too late. My reverie had made me miss adding the fortifying potion at the right time and the liquid inside the pot immediately changed color and became rancid. I took it off the fire and sighed at the waste. At least I didn''t get too far into it. I thought and realized that if I started it again, I wouldn''t be able to finish it before morning. I stopped my sigh this time at ruining my first chance over sentimentality and the fear of death. I extinguished the fire and packed everything away again, closed the hidden hatch, and went to bed. Morning seemed to arrive quickly and I began another long and weary day. Gary looked at me with concern and I pointed to the finished stacks of cut coins. He didn''t comment about me overworking and we went to breakfast. After we ate, he and the other construction crewmen started cutting up the larger logs into four inch wide pieces and did their best to round and smooth them out. I saw him trying to do that and laughed. ¡°Why are you wasting so much time doing that? You have access to tons of number ten potion, don''t you?¡± Gary gave me an incredulous look for about five seconds, then he realized what I meant. ¡°David! You''re a genius!¡± He exclaimed and ran over to me, gave me a manly hug with one arm, then had the closest crew dig out one of the larger logs. I split it down the middle for them and they quickly carved out a four inch wide and three foot long curved depression on each side, with the end visible. Gary asked me to treat it with waterproofing potion and I did so, then when it was dried, he attached the two halves of the log together with a latch and hinges. He stood it up on the end and told the men to start cutting four inch wide square logs that were three feet long. One was handed to him barely a minute later and he slid it into the log. He added a little number ten potion, since the rounded sides didn''t require that much to finish them off. It was dry a few minutes later and he opened up the log to drop out a perfectly smooth projectile. The other crewmen were shocked that it had worked so easily.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. Gary laughed. ¡°Bring more big logs to carve out! We''ll have all the projectiles done by the end of the week!¡± They had nineteen more logs carved out and I treated them. They had twenty of the things now and every few minutes, had twenty projectiles made. Gary had even taken to dropping the slightly smaller logs that had already been chosen and put them into the molds to make them the right size. I had to brew more potions as they worked hard and I also carved movement enchantments onto the small wooden coins. The weight mage had returned and he was still enthusiastic about helping and he actually managed a bit more than an hour before he couldn''t infuse any more enchantments and had to rest. That was slightly better than yesterday and he was happy about it. ¡°You figured it out finally.¡± I said to him. He nodded. ¡°Training like this is the best.¡± ¡°How''s your brother?¡± I asked. ¡°He''s being treated like a king.¡± He said, a huge smile on his face. ¡°The one armed king! Ha ha!¡± We worked on until lunchtime and when we stood up to go to the mess tent, he pulled me aside for a second and offered to help me walk to the mess hall. I accepted and as we walked, he spoke. ¡°My family was really happy to get that enchantment modification, as well as you teaching both my brother and myself how to do it.¡± He whispered. ¡°We told our parents where we got it and they''ve already sent envoys to the palace and to Mage Henrietta''s Family Residence, since we''re not allowed to send envoys into the army or conduct business with army personnel.¡± ¡°You''re preparing for when I''m discharged.¡± I said and he nodded. ¡°We are going to offer you a very generous gift for helping our family so much and there might be a mage or two, namely my father and my uncle, that might seek your help in the future.¡± I raised my eyebrows at him and he chuckled. ¡°I know that they aren''t supposed to deal with non-official mages; but, your knowledge is just too valuable to ignore.¡± He whispered and let my arm go when we reached the table with Gary and the others. ¡°See you after lunch.¡± He said normally and walked over to sit with the other mages. ¡°What were you whispering about?¡± Gary asked. ¡°Potential work.¡± I said and he gave me an inquisitive look. I leaned close and whispered. ¡°Once I''m out.¡± ¡°Ah, I see.¡± Gary said. ¡°Dig in. It''s delicious again today.¡± ¡°This looks like goat.¡± I said and speared a piece of meat with my fork and bit into it. ¡°It is. One of the scout patrols found a huge gathering of them out past the last battlefield.¡± ¡°Found?¡± I asked after swallowing the great tasting meat. They had cooked it exactly like I had shown them. ¡°The shepherds were dead, as were about fifty goats. They were killed by an enemy''s badly aimed arrow launch.¡± ¡°That seems convenient.¡± One of the construction crewmen said. ¡°What are the odds that a whole section of enemy archers would miss by such a huge margin?¡± Gary stopped eating and stared at him. ¡°You''re not suggesting what I think you''re suggesting.¡± ¡°I am. They killed their own countrymen to stop them from helping us.¡± The man said and the others stared at him, too. ¡°What? It makes sense. They don''t ask us about the locals when they attack, because they don''t care if they are caught in the crossfire.¡± ¡°I don''t think that...¡± Someone else started to say. ¡°They started a large scale battle on a food producing farm that was just outside the territory we''ve claimed for the Gulf Kingdom, which completely destroyed it.¡± The man said. ¡°The worst part is that when they checked the farmhouse, it was burned out and no bodies were found.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± One of the others said. ¡°We have to warn them.¡± ¡°Who?¡± Someone asked. ¡°The locals, of course.¡± ¡°Ha! They already know their rulers are despicable. Why else do you think they love us so much?¡± The man laughed. ¡°One of the locals at the well I helped fix yesterday offered me his wife for an hour for getting them drinking water that they didn''t have to pay for.¡± That made a lot of them fall silent for several minutes, then one brave soul asked what everyone else wanted to know. ¡°Did you accept?¡± The man looked like he wasn''t going to respond, then he started to smile. The guy next to him barked a laugh, the man on his other slide slapped his back, and then they all chuckled and smiled at him. ¡°I hope you bathed her first.¡± Gary said. ¡°Damn right. I even visited a healer with her and fixed her right up beforehand.¡± The man replied. ¡°What happened?¡± Someone asked. ¡°She gave me another hour of her time, then her husband gave me two chickens for being so considerate in taking care of her.¡± The man said and everyone laughed. We all went back to work after that and continued carving enchantments, making projectiles, and finishing the ammunition for delivery. The rest of the day passed by in mere moments and we had a lot of them done. The others left like usual and this time I had to do all the work for myself. I sat there and waited for nearly thirty seconds without doing anything, because I could feel that whoever was watching me, was doing it a lot more intensely than normal. _______________ You have a choice to make. It will change your standing in the army, for good or ill. A) Do nothing. B) Attack. C) Yell. D) Run. E) Shock them. F) Go to bed. G) Work. H) Choose two. This close to getting out? There''s no way I''d attack or run. I thought. No, I think I''ll teach them a lesson. I''ll choose two. E and then G. _______________ I moved my hands below my waist as I hunched over slightly. After ten more seconds, I quickly stood as I pulled my pants down to expose myself. ¡°AHH!¡± A woman''s voice gasped and then I heard running feet. I didn''t bother trying to chase down whoever it was, because catching her wasn''t the point. I wanted her to realize that if she kept watching me, she was going to see a lot more than what she expected. I didn''t recognize the voice, either. I would remember it, though. My vigilance technique was great for that. I went back to work, even though my watcher was gone, and I kept working until midnight. I took another shot at brewing the regeneration potion and at four in the morning, just over halfway done, I put in too many drops of Strength potion. It immediately congealed and became a gelatin mass. I sighed and tossed it aside in the hole in the floor with the other failed one and called it a night. Tomorrow was another day and I would try again. I was determined to complete it as soon as possible. 106 Jobs Done The days passed by in a flash. Carving, enchanting, and making number ten potions during the day, and failed attempt after failed attempt at night trying to make the regeneration potion. I miscalculated a brew time and also had to split the health potion to get it to work. I hated diluting it; but, the recipe needed the extra water content to boil off as the ingredients mixed. It was infuriating, to say the least. It wasn''t until Friday night, right after the weight mage and I ran out of coins to carve and enchant, that my latest attempt at the potion actually finished by the morning. I completed all of the revised steps, used up nearly all of my remaining ingredients, and a bright and very clear potion sat in the pot. I had hidden several clean vials in my bandoleer and quickly filled them with the potion. Unlike every other potion I had ever made, this one absolutely could not sit on the fire and simmer. As soon as it was infused with magic, it had to be removed from the heat and bottled. Even my modified ingredients couldn''t adjust that last caveat of brewing the thing. Since the pot was only small and it had taken so long to brew, nearly eight hours on a very hot fire, I only managed to get four full vials out of it and one partial vial. I now had two very important problems. One, the kracken tube ammunition was completed and delivered, while the reserve was stored at the new garrison as a central point for distribution. That meant my skills were no longer desperately needed to get the weapon up and running. Two, I now had four and a quarter doses of the most expensive potion to ever exist and it contained something that could possibly cause me to die. As Gary would say, it was quite the pickle. It wasn''t until he explained what a pickle was and what it went through to become a pickle that I understood the reference. I tucked all five vials into my bandoleer, packed everything into my pack with several full water skins, and covered up the hidden hole. I left my sleeping area with my pack on my back and saw Gary leave his sleeping area. ¡°Hey, David. Good morning.¡± Gary said and his eyes and face were as worn and tired as mine were. ¡°I''m glad we finished the important work yesterday.¡± ¡°Speak for yourself. We can use the molds to repair any damaged projectiles by jamming the broken pieces together and filling in the spaces with potion.¡± Gary''s tired eyes went wide, then he laughed. ¡°You are a goddamn genius.¡± He said and helped me walk to get breakfast. ¡°I''ll spread the word and let the Colonel know.¡± ¡°I can tell the Colonel myself.¡± I said and he looked surprised. ¡°I''m going to take her offer of a week in the stockade. I need the break.¡± Gary laughed again. ¡°You''re crazy for encouraging her to keep you locked up, David.¡± ¡°I''m locked up anyway. I''m just not behind bars.¡± I said as we sat down to eat. ¡°Yeah, I hear you.¡± One of the soldiers nearby said. ¡°I thought this was going to be an easy army assignment and it ended up even more dangerous than on the front lines.¡± ¡°Ha! This is way past the front lines!¡± The soldier next to him said and started laughing. ¡°We''re so deep in the ass of the Eastern Empire that with just a bit more pressure from them, they''re gonna crap us right out like diarrhea! Ha ha ha!¡± A lot of the soldiers laughed at the joke, even knowing the context was them all possibly dying and the Gulf Kingdom losing the war. I finished eating and Gary helped me walk all the way to the Colonel''s command building. It had been completely reinforced and was stronger than the bunkers for construction crews when the fighting starts. We went inside and the guard there didn''t say anything to us. ¡°Good luck.¡± Gary whispered to me and left me at the door. I was tempted to joke with him and call him a coward, then knocked on the thick metal door instead. ¡°Enter.¡± The Colonel''s stern voice said and I opened the door. When she looked up to see me, her eyes instantly flashed to anger, then she sighed and her eyes faded back to indifference. ¡°What do you want?¡± ¡°I''m reporting for my sentence to the stockade.¡± I said and she lifted her head to look directly at me. ¡°I''ve completed the kracken tubes and made all of the projectiles that I had the resources for. They can also be repaired by putting them back in the molds and filled with potion, which Gary can do, so I can safely be away from my assigned post for a week.¡± The Colonel looked surprised as she stared at me. ¡°Are you seriously telling me that you want to take my assigned punishment at your own convenience?¡± ¡°No, it''s at your convenience. I told you a week ago that the punishment had to be delayed. None of the things I''ve done all week would have been started if I was in the stockade.¡± The Colonel''s face went from surprised to stern. ¡°Well, then. I hope you enjoy the next two weeks being locked up, Mr. Indispensable.¡± I refrained from correcting her on my name. ¡°Guard!¡± The Colonel said and the door opened. ¡°Escort this man to the stockade for his two week stay.¡±The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°Yes, ma''am.¡± The guard saluted and waved me out. I thought I saw the Colonel staring at my leg as I turned around to leave. I didn''t mention it and walked with my uneven gait out of the room and heard the door shut behind me. The guard escorted me and kept pace with my uneven walk. He also didn''t complain that I wasn''t walking fast, since I had been seen walking with help by pretty much everyone in the base. We arrived at the stockade and the guard told the stockade guard that I was going to be staying in my new accommodations for the next two weeks. The stockade guard nodded and entered my name without asking me what it was, then the other guard left me there in his custody. ¡°I''m really sorry about this, David.¡± The stockade guard said as he opened the door. ¡°It''s all right, Stan. Like I told Gary, I needed the break from working so hard.¡± I said and stepped inside. The stockade guard named Stan chuckled. ¡°I heard that you''ve been working day and night to get all of those neat weapons done up.¡± He said and pointed to the third door. ¡°The first two cells have a deserter and a saboteur.¡± I went to the third cell and waited for him to open the door for me. ¡°I''ve got food with me.¡± I pat the bulging pack on my back and then slipped it off. ¡°You don''t have to worry about feeding me.¡± ¡°You know I''m supposed to keep checking up on you to see if you''ve escaped.¡± Stan said with a big grin on his face. ¡°Ha. You joker.¡± I said and took out a big piece of near-deer meat from my pack. ¡°The guys already told me that they covered the walls with sandstone.¡± I sat down on the cot and groaned at the strain on my knee. ¡°Your magic knife will have trouble getting through it.¡± Stan said and watched me pull off the wooden leg. ¡°Geez, man. That looks sore.¡± ¡°It always is.¡± I said and rubbed a little bit of healing potion on it. ¡°See you tomorrow.¡± Stan nodded and shut the door. I heard the click of it shutting and didn''t hear the bolts that locked it. I waited for several minutes to see if he was going to lock it as I ate the meat. I didn''t hear the sound, even after I was done eating, so I laid down on the cot and let my stub hang over the edge. I hadn''t slept in almost two days, after staying up for two nights in a row, and I needed to sleep. I dozed off with the thoughts of my leg regrowing, only to be frozen halfway formed because I died. The day passed by while I slept and no one bothered me. I woke up after supper and ate some more meat. I hadn''t heard the lock all day and I never tested it to see if it really was left open. I was sure that if I did, I''d somehow lose the guard''s trust. I mean, I did submit to the punishment because I wanted the rest, so trying the door wouldn''t make sense, because I wanted to be here. Why would I try to leave? I laid back down on the cot after eating and thought everything over as I huddled under the thick blanket. It took me a long time and a lot of contemplation to eventually decide that I had to do it. I had to drink the potion, even if it meant I might be frozen. I couldn''t stay in jail for two whole weeks with my phantom ankle pain bothering me all the time, and no relief in sight. I did have the bright idea to take a Strength potion first, just in case, and I stripped off fully before getting back under the blanket. I put a healing potion and a general health potion on the top of my pack and downed one of the full vials of regeneration potion. _______________ Warning: Body corruption elements have been ingested. Body integrity: 82 % Health: 90% Chance of death: 23% (38% minus 15% boosted strength) If you die, you will need to start over and all progress will be lost. Do you wish to proceed? Yes / No Yes, let''s do this. I''ve come too far to fail now. _______________ What followed was one of the weirdest experiences of my life and I had had a lot of weird experiences. Minutes felt like hours and hours felt like days. Days felt like... I couldn''t describe it. I was definitely not in a proper state of mind. Time sped up and slowed down at random times. My body felt both boiling hot and ice cold at the same time. Fevers, shivers, sweats, parched mouth, dry eyes, cracking skin, greasy skin, hair growth, hair loss, burning sensations, tingling sensations, and a whole bunch of other things that I didn''t have the words for, happened to me during my time in the stockade. I cried, I moaned, I screamed, I yelled, I whimpered, I mumbled, I talked incessantly and I was unnaturally quiet. I breathed heavily, shallowly, quickly, very slowly, and even stopped at one point. That part was the scary part. I cried then. I thought the potion had killed me, not realizing that I wouldn''t have tears if I was frozen, then my whole body relaxed and I started breathing again. It took a very, very long time for whatever episode the regeneration potion had given me to come to an end. When it finally did, I opened my eyes to see a dark room. I was still in my cell and under the blanket, which was a relief. I took several deep breaths to make sure that my chest could move normally and sighed that the stiffness I was worried that I would have, wasn''t present. I turned to look at the side of my bed and my pack was still there. Filled with relief, I reached out a very shaky hand to grab the general health potion to get my strength back, then I caught my breath. I could see four fingers and a thumb on my hand. That... that''s not... I thought... the description said... I thought haphazardly, because my mind was unable to grasp the simple concept that my finger would have grown back along with my foot. I had been without the fingers for nearly ten years and had forgotten that I was supposed to have them. I reached over with a fully formed and still shaky hand as I picked up the potion, then I very carefully opened it and brought it to my lips to drink it all. I laid back down and let the energizing feeling flow through me and kept breathing deeply. I was afraid and excited about what I was going to do next. I took another deep breath and gripped the blanket, then flung it off of me. Yes! I exclaimed in my mind as I saw not only my restored foot, but the two missing toes from each were also back. I wanted to jump up and shout and yell that I was back, that I was normal once again, then realized I couldn''t. No one could know. They would all ask me what happened and how I had been fixed and how I had been miraculously given my leg back. Now I had some work to do. I could tell it was late at night and tried to stand up to find out what time of night it was by the position of the moon. I wobbled on my feet, because I now had two extra digits that I wasn''t used to at all. I smiled, because that would help me keep up the pretense that I was still missing a leg. I braced my hands on the wall and looked out the window to see the moon was way over on the side. Maybe three hours. I thought and carefully sat back down. That''s plenty of time. I looked at my wooden leg and smiled as I took out my knife from the bandoleer beside the bed, charged it up, and started peeling the wood to make a cover for my real leg. 107 Hiding the Truth It didn''t take me long to make an outer wooden shell for my foot and used number ten potion to seal it up without touching my skin. Now I had to deal with my extra toes. I couldn''t put on either boot as they were, because I had previously cut out the spot where the toes were missing to make them form fitting. That meant I only had once choice if I was going to hide that I had them back. I reached down and snapped both small toes on each foot and folded them underneath. I barely felt it in comparison to whatever it was that I had just suffered through and I pulled my pants on and slipped on both boots. I had even cut the straps that held the wooden leg on and used them around my knee, just in case anyone asked to see it. I didn''t have anything shiny to use as a mirror in my pack, so I didn''t see my face directly. I could feel it with my fingers, though. Not only was the snake venom hole in my cheek gone, the long scrape from the second fang was also gone and my ear was no longer mangled. I ran my hands over my chest and felt nothing but smooth skin. It was a very odd sensation, considering I couldn''t remember a time when I had smooth skin. I had to cover my face and my ears, so I fashioned a hood with only the center part cut out where my eyes would be. I slipped it on and it covered everything. It was a little hot, so I also had to cut out the top of the head. It went from the top of my forehead to my mouth, almost like an extra wide bandana, or even a criminal mask, and I tied it securely to keep it in place. I ignored my apprehension over being restored and hiding it from everyone, even my friends, and put my shirt on. I looked at my hands and I was sure that there wasn''t anything I could do about having my fingers back, then looked at the wood pieces from my leg. I made a brace for my hands and then made small wooden sleeves for my ''missing'' fingers. It would keep them straight and also cover them up. I made it look like I had used number ten potion to give me wooden fingers and I would have to tell everyone that I had made a terrible mistake with my number ten potion while trying to repair the damage to my face, hands, and leg. It was quite believable and would also explain all of the screaming and crying. I cleaned everything up and took out several large pieces of meat and two water skins. I was famished, now that I was paying attention to the wrenching in my guts, and I ate the meat without chewing it. I guzzled the water and sat back on the bed and took several deep breaths. I let the food settle in my stomach and wondered what day it was as I waited for dawn. Time passed by in an instant and then the door made a significant clunk, which meant that it had been locked at some point. It clicked normally after that and the cell door opened to reveal Stan, the stockade guard. He stepped into the cell and his mouth fell open in surprise. ¡°Good morning.¡± I said and he didn''t respond. ¡°How long have I been in here?¡± Stan stared at me for several silent moments and then he spoke. ¡°Eleven days.¡± ¡°Wow, my number ten experiment on skin and flesh lasted a long time.¡± I said and his eyes went to my face, then to my hands. ¡°I went through all that suffering and it didn''t work.¡± ¡°But... I saw...¡± ¡°If it doesn''t take, it turns to mush.¡± I said and lifted both feet to show that the toes of the boots were still carved out and form-fitted to my old feet. ¡°I didn''t want to cut off my fingers.¡± I touched one hand with the other and sighed. ¡°I had to make them solid.¡± Stan just stared at me and didn''t comment. ¡°My face... that was the worst.¡± I said and touched the cloth, then I sighed again. ¡°I won''t be showing it for a while.¡± Stan nodded. ¡°I just came to check on you to see if you''re okay.¡± I tried to stand up and wobbled a lot. His hands darted out to catch me and held me steady. ¡°Thanks for looking out for me.¡± I said and pat his arm. ¡°I had hoped I would be better after getting time off and it seems I''ve gotten worse.¡± ¡°You shouldn''t have done that to yourself.¡± Stan said. ¡°Everyone''s been worried about you.¡± ¡°You can tell them that what happened to me... isn''t something I want to talk about.¡± ¡°It''s embarrassing to be weak, I know.¡± Stan said and helped me sit down again. ¡°Look, you just relax and don''t even think of doing whatever it was you did again.¡± ¡°If I have my way, I will never have to go through that again.¡± I said. ¡°After everything I''ve been through in my life, once was enough for me.¡± Stan nodded and stepped back out of the room. I spoke before he shut the door. ¡°Can I ask you a question?¡± I asked and he nodded. ¡°Why did you lock the door?¡± ¡°A few people kept trying to sneak in to see you.¡± Stan said and shut the door. ¡°Who?¡± I asked loudly through the closed door. ¡°I''ve got a list.¡± Stan said with a laugh and I heard him walk away. I only had three days left of my two week sentence, and I had been in there for a day before taking the potion. That meant it took ten days for me to completely regenerate. Ten whole days. No wonder it sometimes felt like it was taking forever. I thought and sat back against the wall. Now I just had to wait to be released, hope to not be assigned to fight, and wait for Mage Henrietta to fulfill her part of the deal. I didn''t consider not completing my part of the deal, since getting married was going to be easy in comparison to living in the army. I hoped so, anyway.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. The three days passed as if they were just a breeze and on the morning of the fifteenth day, my cell door opened and both Stan and Gary were there. ¡°Good lord, David! What did you do to yourself?¡± Gary asked as he helped me stand up. ¡°I tried to replace my missing parts.¡± I said and put on my pack. It was significantly lighter with a good portion of the meat gone from it. ¡°It hurt like hell and drove me crazy for a while.¡± ¡°I know.¡± Gary said and glared at Stan. ¡°I''m just the guard. I can''t let you in without the Colonel''s permission.¡± Stan said and stepped out of the way. ¡°Yes, I asked.¡± ¡°I did, too.¡± Gary said and gave me an apologetic look. ¡°You don''t want to know what she said.¡± ¡°Now I do.¡± I said as Gary helped me walk out of the cell and down to the door. ¡°She thought that you suffering so much in jail was a just punishment.¡± Gary said. ¡°I suppose she would.¡± I said as Stan opened the other door for us. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°While you were locked up, we had another massive battle, this time it was right at the defensive barriers.¡± Gary said. ¡°Thanks, Stan. See you later.¡± Stan waved to us and we walked away from the stockade towards the mess tent. ¡°We had plenty of warning for the battle, so all of the construction crews and the civilians had been evacuated from the nearby town and the farms.¡± Gary said. ¡°The locals were shocked that we had built them shelters and I swear I had to fight off three horny women with a stick. Three!¡± I smiled like he expected me to. ¡°What was the enemy strength?¡± ¡°It was... a lot more than ours. A whole lot more.¡± Gary said, his voice low. ¡°I assume we survived.¡± I said and he laughed a little. ¡°We did much better than that. The enemy was slaughtered.¡± Gary said. ¡°The kracken tubes were a complete surprise to them... and to us, frankly... since none of us had ever seen them used against people.¡± ¡°Only dragons.¡± I said and he nodded. ¡°Did the enemy rout?¡± ¡°According to the troops I talked with afterwards, the enemy officers ran before the shooting started.¡± Gary shook his head. ¡°The enemy troops were left to fend for themselves, right up to the last man.¡± I stumbled a little and his grip on my arm tightened to hold me steady. ¡°How many?¡± ¡°Ten thousand men was the last count, according to the staff sergeant I talked to. The kracken ammunition doesn''t leave much when it hits a partially armored or unarmored person.¡± Gary said. ¡°I really miss Donna. She was so easy to talk to. These new people are real dicks and treat other enlisted soldiers like crap.¡± I nodded my head. She wasn''t as damaged as Alex was; but, dragon acid was not something that a normal person could take much of without suffering long lasting effects. She had been hurt and burned all over when she rescued Alex. After spending a lot of time with expert healers, she still had to accept a medical discharge. Both she and Alex retired to his family''s estate in the capital to take care of each other. ¡°On the plus side, the enemy is scared of us. Genuinely scared.¡± Gary said as we stepped into the mess tent. ¡°DAVID!¡± ¡°DRAKE!¡± ¡°DAVID!¡± ¡°DRAKE!¡± ¡°DAVID!¡± ¡°DRAKE!¡± The men and women chanted and slammed their hands and drinks onto their tables as they yelled each word. ¡°Hey! I said NOT to do that!¡± Gary said loudly and everyone laughed. ¡°What happened to your face?¡± Someone asked. ¡°I tried to fix the damage I had and it hurt like hell.¡± I said. ¡°Hopefully, I can do something with it later. For now, I have to keep it covered up.¡± A lot of people nodded, which meant word about my episode had spread already, perhaps all the way to the top of the command chain. ¡°We saved the place of honor for you.¡± One of the men said and waved at the middle table. On it was a tray of food, a plate of cookies, and a piece of cake. ¡°Don''t mind the extra food. Lady Rivers sent it over for you.¡± Gary said and sat me down on the chair and sat down next to me. ¡°I''m not sure why she chose cookies and cake, though.¡± ¡°She wanted to show everyone that things can be normal here, and it''s all thanks to Private Drake making those wonderful weapons.¡± A woman said and came over to me. She had a rounded face and short curly black hair. She also wore mage robes and lightly touched the clean canvas cloth on my face. ¡°I would offer you a kiss if you weren''t promised to Mage Henrietta already.¡± I glanced at the guys around me and knew that they wanted me to do it. The funny thing was, I recognized her voice. ¡°I''m not discharged yet, so I can''t be officially engaged until...¡± The woman darted forward and pressed her lips to mine, then she kissed me passionately as she knelt. She wrapped her arms around me and moaned as she really got into it. The guys around us let out whoops and hollers as she did, clapped hands, and shouted encouragement. It took the woman a couple of minutes to remember that we weren''t alone, then she broke the kiss and her face was bright red. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said, since that was the polite thing, and she nodded as she let me go. ¡°I''ll let her know that you liked the cake.¡± The woman said as she stood, then she quickly walked out of the mess tent. ¡°He didn''t eat it yet.¡± Someone said and a few people laughed. ¡°She needed the excuse to leave fast, stupid.¡± Someone else said. ¡°You saw her red face.¡± ¡°Yeah! If we had stayed quiet, I wonder how far she would have gone?¡± ¡°Oho! Imagine that!¡± Another guy said. ¡°We''d get to see...¡± ¡°That''s enough.¡± A stern voice said from across the mess tent and everyone fell silent. It was the new staff sergreant. ¡°You will refrain from speculating about what might have happened if she had looser morals.¡± ¡°But, that''s half the fun.¡± Someone said sadly and a few people laughed. The man smiled briefly and then coughed. ¡°Carry on, Private Drake.¡± ¡°I don''t have another woman near me to kiss.¡± I responded. It was quiet for about three seconds, then they all laughed. ¡°Go for it, Hisson!¡± Someone said and pat a woman''s shoulder. Her face went bright red and she ducked down as everyone hollered and shouted for her to do it. A few other women were encouraged to do it as well and they all refused. ¡°I''ll do it.¡± A very familiar woman''s voice said. ¡°Gillis!¡± I exclaimed in surprise as I turned my head to look at her, because she was at least a week early. She had a guard behind her, too. ¡°Hi, David.¡± Gillis said as she walked into the mess tent and everyone fell silent as she did, because she wasn''t wearing an army uniform like the last time we had all seen her. She wore a fancy ankle length dress with a thick crinoline, which was a stiffened understructure that was used to make a long skirt stand out. She looked like a prim and proper lady and she couldn''t kneel like the mage had. Gary offered me a hand and I stood up shakily to receive her. ¡°Congratulations.¡± Gillis said and leaned in to give me a kiss. No one hooted or hollered, because that was not something you did with someone of her stature. Fortunately for them, Gillis smiled just before our lips met and she kissed me just as enthusiastically as the mage had. In fact, she was even better at it, which was a surprise, because she never once tried to kiss me during all those times we had bathed together. Gillis broke the kiss and the place was still eerily silent. ¡°I heard about your troubles in the stockade when I stopped by the command building to drop Mage Henrietta off.¡± She said and waved at the table. ¡°May I sit and...¡± Gary was up and out of his chair faster than I had ever seen him move before. That made everyone laugh and he held it for her. ¡°Thank you, Gary.¡± Gillis said and we sat down. ¡°Please eat and you can fill me in on what happened while we were away when you''re done.¡± Gary sat down beside her and everyone started to eat. It stayed quiet and Gillis wore an amused smile the entire time, because she knew the silence was because of her and who she was. I was glad that she had finally come to grips with who she was and had accepted that was how things were always going to be for her. She was who she was and that was that. 108 Some Important Facts Gillis waited patiently as I ate and the amused smile never left her face. The silence from everyone was really odd to have inside a tent full of people eating food, too. Even the clinks of utensils on the metal trays were subdued and kept to a minimum. The meal took quite some time and then I pushed my completely empty meal tray aside and tried the cookies. I offered them to Gillis and Gary as well, since there were so few of them, and I ate the piece of cake last. It was all good and I decided to visit Sandra at her mansion to thank her, assuming I was allowed. It was hard to tell if I would be allowed to do anything once I was discharged. ¡°That was good.¡± I said and pushed back from the table. ¡°Gillis, let''s find somewhere more private and talk.¡± Gillis stood up and offered me a hand, which was the opposite of what proper protocol demanded, and she laughed softly at my surprised expression. She took my hand and helped me stand and then wrapped one of her arms around mine and held on to keep me steady. ¡°You may use me as a brace, good sir.¡± Gillis said with a grin and I sighed with a nod. ¡°How nice of you not to argue.¡± ¡°It wouldn''t help.¡± I said and walked with my odd gait beside her and everyone watched us leave. ¡°I''ll see you later, David.¡± Gary said. I didn''t respond, because I hoped that wasn''t true. Not because I didn''t want to see him later, it was because I should be discharged by then and wouldn''t be allowed to see him. My permission to be in the area would be nullified when I was no longer a private in the army. ¡°I''m dying to tell you all about what happened at the palace.¡± Gillis said and led me away from the mess tent towards the command building. ¡°I didn''t speak while you ate, because it was too much fun seeing everyone react like that.¡± ¡°I''m glad you finally realized it.¡± Gillis laughed softly. ¡°I hated people reacting like that before and now I''m enjoying it. Do you know why?¡± ¡°Is it because you''ve served your time in the army and now you think you deserve it?¡± I asked and she laughed loudly. ¡°No, silly. It was spending all of that time with you.¡± Gillis said. ¡°You might have been conscripted into the army, and yet, you didn''t conform or let it change who you were.¡± ¡°I changed.¡± I said. ¡°No, you misunderstand. You''ve grown and learned in the army and became a better you, and that was what you were looking to do the entire time. You did not change yourself to fit into the army''s ideal of what a soldier is supposed to be like.¡± Gillis said and waved at the short barricade near the command building. ¡°I was trying so hard to be a good soldier that it wasn''t until Sandra made me her assistant that I realized I was losing my sense of self. I was almost at the point that I wasn''t being myself anymore and that was scary.¡± I carefully sat down and I took out some canvas cloth to cover the sandstone for her. ¡°Thank you.¡± Gillis said and sat down as the guard took up a position behind and to the side of her. ¡°When you finally managed to complete the Colonel''s crazy plan, I knew then that I was done playing in the army. It wasn''t for me and I had made a mistake joining, so I had my father get me out.¡± ¡°Are you getting married?¡± I asked and she gave me a searching look. ¡°What if I was?¡± Gillis asked with a tone of voice that I didn''t recognize. ¡°It would be proof of a valid strategy, since that''s how I''m getting out of the army.¡± I said and she let out a sigh. ¡°No, I''m not getting married.¡± Gillis said. ¡°Can you tell me how...¡± I started to say when the door to the command building opened and two guards stepped out with Mage Henrietta held tightly between them. ¡°You''re lucky that your father forbade me from immolating you!¡± Mage Henrietta spat. ¡°How DARE you leave my fiance suffer for two weeks in the stockade!¡± ¡°It doesn''t matter now, does it?¡± The Colonel''s voice said out through the open door. ¡°Thanks to your untimely intervention, you successfully stopped Private Drake from gaining his promotion... oh, I''m sorry. It''s Mr. Drake now and he''s been dishonorably discharged for seeking means of release from his conscripted status outside of the normal chain of command!¡± ¡°That''s your fault for not contacting your father yourself, you sanctimonious and selfish bitch!¡± Mage Henrietta nearly yelled. ¡°That''s a load of horse manure! The chain of command you set up is him, to you, to the king! How was he supposed to be released after being mangled on your crazy mission if YOU are the one he has to go through to get it?!?¡± ¡°Like I said, it doesn''t matter now. He''s been listed as a coward for dereliction of duty, fined his pay that he would have gotten at the end of the year, and lost the rewards for the last battle.¡± The Colonel said and stepped out to glare at Mage Henrietta. ¡°So, I hope you''re happy with your little scheme paying off.¡± ¡°YOU''RE THE ONE ASSIGNING ALL OF THAT!¡± Mage Henrietta yelled as loudly as she could. Everyone nearby rushed over to watch the fight between two pissed off women.This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. ¡°Since all the official papers you''ve brought to me state to give him a medical discharge, I can assign any notes and conditions on it that I want.¡± The Colonel said in a deadly voice. ¡°I don''t appreciate people conspiring behind my back to take away a vital asset that''s needed to win this war!¡± Everyone was surprised to hear her admit that out loud, even Mage Henrietta. I leaned close to Gillis to whisper. ¡°Get the healers.¡± Gillis nodded and quickly strode away with a light swishing of her dress. No one noticed her leaving. The Colonel reached up and took off her hat. ¡°I desperately needed his strong work ethic and his potions. I wouldn''t have been able to do any of this without him, you know that.¡± Ellen said, her voice filled with sadness, then she took a deep breath and put the hat back on. ¡°Now that you''ve succeeded in taking him away from me, I''m punishing you by punishing him. That''s the only way to make you understand the damage you''ve done to me, to this army, and to the Gulf Kingdom.¡± That made Mage Henrietta gasp, as well as a few other people. ¡°Neither you nor him will benefit from anything the army can provide, because you''re abandoning it... and me.¡± The Colonel said, her face stern. ¡°That man will leave here with nothing.¡± I stood shakily and walked over to the Colonel. ¡°Is it true that I''m discharged?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± The Colonel said as her eyes dropped to my wobbily walk for a second. ¡°Dishonorably.¡± ¡°You can''t punish me anymore?¡± I asked and hunched slightly to the side. The Colonel looked surprised for a second and then she let her face go blank. ¡°No, you''re a civilian.¡± ¡°Good.¡± I said and drew my glowing knife, stood up straight, and sliced off her arm just below the shoulder. ¡°AHHHHH!¡± The Colonel yelled as her severed arm flopped to the ground and she gripped the shoulder stump to stem the bleeding as she fell to her knees. ¡°You know that no one steals from me and gets away with it.¡± I said and wobbily bent over to pick up her arm as the Colonel started crying heavily. ¡°MEDIC!¡± Someone yelled and there were suddenly six healers there, to everyone''s surprise. Gillis was right behind them and stopped walking when she saw me with the Colonel''s arm. ¡°David, you can''t just...¡± She said with a sigh and shook her head. ¡°I had to earn the dishonorable part of the discharge.¡± I stood up and wobbled over to Mage Henrietta. ¡°Can we leave now? I have my reward from my time in the army.¡± ¡°She''s the first princess of the kingdom!¡± One of the healers exclaimed before Mage Henrietta could respond. ¡°You need to give that back!¡± ¡°We might be able to reattach...¡± One of the other healers started to say. ¡°It''s mine now and no one takes what''s mine.¡± I said and hugged the severed arm to my chest. The extra pressure squeezed it and blood dripped out of it in a steady stream. ¡°You''ll never be able to outrun this.¡± One of the guards said, almost as an accusation. ¡°Why would I try to run?¡± I asked and he looked confused. ¡°I want you to tell everyone. Let them know. Let everyone know. No one steals from me. Not a sergeant, not a colonel, and definitely not a princess who is supposed to know better than to piss me off after everything I''ve been through and done for her.¡± No one said anything in response and the Colonel''s crying eased down to light sobs as the healers quickly worked on her shoulder stub. ¡°According to the law, I didn''t do anything wrong by punishing a thief.¡± I said and Mage Henrietta braced my arm to help me walk. ¡°Let''s go. I''m done here.¡± Mage Henrietta looked at the severed arm I clutched and she smiled. ¡°Dearest, I''m glad to hear that.¡± We walked off and the two guards that were supposed to be there to make sure Mage Henrietta didn''t do anything to the Colonel, stood there and didn''t know what to do. ¡°David!¡± Gillis said loudly. Mage Henrietta and I came to a stop and waited for her to come over. ¡°I''m sorry she did that.¡± Gillis said. ¡°You can be sorry all you want and it won''t change what she''s done.¡± Mage Henrietta said for me. ¡°Stealing his riches from that last battle? Taking his pay for a year? Punishing him for not following her orders immediately when they were not immediate orders and let him suffer in pain and anguish for two weeks without once calling for a healer or letting one in when one was called?¡± Gillis took in a sharp breath. ¡°I... I didn''t know...¡± ¡°We didn''t really get to talk yet.¡± I said and she looked sad. ¡°Ask around about it, because everyone knows that she liked that he was suffering.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°Why do you think I was so angry?¡± Gillis closed her eyes briefly and then looked at me. ¡°Can you wait for me before you leave? I have a few things that I need to take care of for the family.¡± ¡°How long?¡± I asked. ¡°A day, maybe two.¡± Gillis said. ¡°I have to visit Sandra and...¡± ¡°No, I''m sorry. I have to be gone before the princess realizes what happened.¡± I said. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Gillis asked. ¡°Now that she''s not in command anymore, because of the medical discharge that she has to take, her replacement is going to claim this war victory for themselves.¡± Gillis and Mage Henrietta stared at me like I was growing an extra head. ¡°She''s going to be very angry when it happens.¡± I said. Mage Henrietta let out a chuckle and put a hand on Gillis'' shoulder. ¡°Tell Sandra and try to make sure that doesn''t happen.¡± Gillis nodded several times and Mage Henrietta and I walked over to the mage area. She claimed that she had a few more things to pack, including her spell books, then we could leave for good. It didn''t take her long, thanks to the help of a few other mages, and they loaded up my boat. I stepped in and almost fell as I wobbled and Mage Henrietta stepped in to hold me steady. ¡°You''ve gotten worse.¡± Mage Hernietta said as she helped me sit. ¡°There''s a very good reason for that.¡± I said and the man at the dock untied the boat. I waved to him and Mage Henrietta gripped my arm as I used the movement enchantment to take us out and turned us around in the waterway, then I took off at a high speed to get out of sight from the garrison. ¡°I heard about the experiment you did.¡± Mage Henrietta said, her voice full of sadness. ¡°I''m so sorry that...¡± ¡°...it worked.¡± I said and reached up to pull off the canvas covering from my face. It was bright and sunny out, so Mage Henrietta saw my perfectly smooth and healed face. ¡°David!¡± Mage Henrietta gasped, then I pulled off the wooden coverings from my hands. She stared at my restored little fingers and then she took one of my hands in hers. ¡°David, this... it''s real?¡± I reached down and pulled off the boot on my fake wooden leg, then punched the wood covering. It cracked and I punched it several times to make it crumble away. ¡°By the Son''s Light!¡± Mage Henrietta exclaimed. ¡°You have... wait, where are the toes?¡± ¡°Hiding. They wouldn''t fit into my boot.¡± I said and bent down to straighten them. ¡°Oh, David.¡± Mage Henrietta said, sadly. ¡°You broke them to hide that it was healed?¡± I nodded and folded them back down and put the boot on. ¡°We can buy some nice boots in the village and I''ll drink a healing potion to put them right, then we need to visit my house. I''ve got some potions to brew to replenish my stocks and to pick up some of my gold, then we can go where you want to go.¡± Mage Henrietta gave me a huge smile. ¡°Home, David. We can go home.¡± I nodded and she rested her head on my shoulder as she intertwined her fingers with mine, which was something she couldn''t do before. 109 Mage Henrietta After a few choice stops along the way to gather some necessary ingredients, nowhere near the relay stations of course, we made it to Ester''s Village without incident. I still wore my army uniform and Mage Henrietta wore her mage robes, so no one really paid us much attention as I brought us to the village dock. They had seen countless soldiers and lots of mages as they passed through the village, ever since the garrison was built. Mage Henrietta still had to help me walk to the clothing and leatherworking store. We went inside and the woman behind the little counter didn''t recognize me. To be fair, I had bought her odd feather stuffed leather coat almost a year ago, so I guessed that if all she remembered of me was the hole in my cheek and my mangled ear, I could be a completely different person to her right now. ¡°You only need a functioning pair of boots for now.¡± Mage Henrietta said. ¡°We can go shopping in the capital for other clothing.¡± ¡°I should change out of these clothes.¡± I said and plucked at the army uniform I wore. ¡°Hmm? Oh, I suppose. We can buy something nice and you can stuff that into your pack with your souvenir.¡± Mage Henrietta said and walked me over to the shelf of different styles of boots. ¡°I know you want to keep the important things you''ve gained.¡± I nodded and we spent a few minutes looking for the most versatile boot, then we went to the clothing racks and Mage Henrietta rummaged through them. It took her another few minutes to find a sturdy pair of pants and a high collar shirt. ¡°I don''t think you need a tie until we get home.¡± Mage Henrietta said as she test fit the shirt over my shoulders. ¡°You know my father will demand you dress properly to visit him.¡± She said with a laugh. ¡°As if a tie will make him like you more! What nonsense!¡± I smiled slightly and she touched my cheek that used to be damaged. ¡°I don''t want you to think that you need to change for me, all right?¡± Mage Henrietta said and held up a pair of pants. ¡°I mean you as a person. The clothes are just dressing.¡± I nodded and she kissed my cheek, then she waved at the spot where I could change my clothes. ¡°I need a bath first before I change.¡± I said and she caught her breath. ¡°You didn''t even... for two weeks.¡± Mage Henrietta said with a sigh and her hand reached around me and pat the spot in my pack with the Colonel''s arm. ¡°I''m glad you took her whole arm and not just her hand.¡± ¡°She stole a lot from me.¡± I said. Mage Hentietta smiled sadly and helped me walk as we took our purchases over to the counter. ¡°Is your underwear okay? Should we get those, too? It''s a long trip to the capital.¡± I nodded and grabbed a pair for me, then she paid for everything. I was going to mention it and she whispered that I could pay her back when we got to my house, as if she knew what I was going to say. I looked at her face and she gave me a sly smile, then she kissed my cheek again. We took the clothing to the inn and Rebecca didn''t recognize me, probably because she was only really looking at the mage with me. Mage Henrietta rented a room for the night, even though we were only staying for a short while for me to bathe and to change into proper clothing. We were shown to the best room, a different one from the one I had stayed in before, and it had the tub in it. Mage Henrietta closed the door behind us and locked it, then she helped me over to the large tub and sat me down. She took her time to slowly undress me, making sure to fold the clothing to keep my decorations on the top, and her eyes roamed over my bare and freshly healed skin. I fixed my toes to face out properly and drank a healing potion to heal them. Mage Henrietta urged me to stand and her hands dropped to my underwear as her face flushed red. ¡°David, I... I''ve seen one before; but, I''ve never...¡± She looked up into my eyes and she didn''t see rejection. Her hands pulled my underwear down and she took in a sharp breath as she saw me. ¡°By the Son''s light.¡± She whispered and helped me balance as I stepped out of the underwear. ¡°I thought... well...¡± She smiled. ¡°I was worried that you would be caked with dirt or soiled.¡± ¡°I had my clothes off for most of the time I was in the stockade.¡± I clarified for her and she stood up to help me climb into the tub of water. I shivered at the chilly water, which was new for me, since I hadn''t had that reaction before. She waved her hand over the water as she whispered a few words. The water became slightly warmer than me and I relaxed. ¡°Yes, relax and let me wash you, dearest.¡± Mage Henrietta said and then proceeded to do just that. It was surprisingly similar to how Gillis had washed me and I had to wonder if all women would wash me the same way. She took her time and used her hands more than the cloth or sponge, and she had even saved my crotch for last, just like Gillis had. I was soon washed all over and she helped me dry off. Without being asked, I started to strip her off as well. Mage Henrietta didn''t say anything as I did so, not even when she was fully naked and stood before me completely exposed. Her nice breasts had been well hidden inside her mage robes and she didn''t try to hide them as I looked at them. She had a thin waist and her hips were a good width and similar to her chest size.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. Mage Henrietta was only the third woman that I had seen naked and she was quite appealing to my eyes. She must have seen that on my face, because she stepped close to me and gave me a brief kiss on the lips. Her face was only slightly red after that and she had a demure smile on her face. I helped her get into the tub and I took my time as I washed her all over. She let out little moans and an occasional squeak as I caressed her with soapy hands and a cloth. I didn''t touch the sponge, because that was too rough for her delicate skin. I had saved her crotch for last as well and by the time I was done washing her, her face was a deep red and she was breathing heavily. ¡°D-David.¡± Mage Henrietta whispered as she stood up from the tub and I picked up the towel to dry her. ¡°Please... please take me to bed.¡± ¡°I should dry you off...¡± I started to say. Mage Henrietta took the towel and tossed it onto the bed and laid down on it. ¡°Make love to me.¡± She spread her legs for me, to show me the same sight that I had seen all that time ago on the boat during that first driving lesson. She was soaked and it wasn''t from the water. I knew what to do, thanks to my experiences with the Hag and Diane, so I knelt and started kissing her there. ¡°Ohhhhh...¡± She moaned. ¡°...what.... what are you... is that your tongue?!?¡± ¡°Mm hmm.¡± I mumbled and she moaned in response. ¡°I''ve never... do all commoners... OHHH!¡± She gasped as she came unexpectedly. ¡°I don''t know.¡± I said as I climbed on top of her. ¡°I''ve only been with the Hag and Diane.¡± ¡°A scary sorceress and a domineering commoner... and now a high tier mage.¡± She responded and stared into my eyes as she felt me touch her opening. ¡°You''ve risen up in the world, David Drake.¡± I slipped inside of her and she gasped and gripped me tightly as both of our bodies started tingling when our magic started mixing together. ¡°S-s-stop... just... let me...¡± She whispered between her panting breaths. I waited for several seconds, then pushed myself all the way in. I knew she didn''t actually want me to stop, because she just needed to adjust to our bodies joining together and our magic mingling so much. ¡°AHH!¡± She gasped again and came, then her arms wrapped around me and she kissed me deeply. ¡°W-wait, I... I need to...¡± I slowly started to move in and out and she looked surprised for a second, then her face was filled with pleasure and she rocked her hips to help me. She let her body speak for itself, because it knew what it needed to feel good, and her mind went along for the ride as she felt my magic react to hers. Her deep moans and her whines of pleasure filled the room... and probably the rest of the inn. It was barely suppertime and several rooms should have been rented already. The small village was expanding, thanks to all the people coming through to either visit the soldiers or to watch them moving back and forth. The boat traffic had picked up as well for both the army and commercial trade. More people meant more things were needed, more things needed meant more money for the locals. We had sex for quite some time, because each time I was going to stop and let her rest, she asked me to keep going and her magic spiked. I wasn''t sure if it was the constant tingles we were sharing or what; but, I kept going and she kept coming. When we were done, we had missed supper and it was getting late, so we decided to stay until morning. Apparently, her decision to rent the room for the night had been a good one after all. We went back to bed and Helena didn''t mind that one little bit, because we both enjoyed the extra time together. I wouldn''t realize until later that my mind had switched her name in my head. She was no longer Mage Henrietta to me and was Helena instead. I didn''t know if it was because we had slept together or I had finally stopped trying to distance her in my head. Either way, that morning when we woke up, she had a huge smile on her face when I said good morning to her and used her first name. We had another quick bath each and dressed, both of us in new clothing, and left the inn looking like a proper couple. People definitely noticed us now, since we no longer looked like the military, and only a few people noticed me carrying my pack in my hand. I was still walking awkwardly, since my balance was still slightly off from having my toes back on both feet, and we went to the blacksmith. Helena bought a new lock set for my front door to replace the one I couldn''t use anymore, and we left to go down to the dock. As we passed the main road that went up to the old general store, I glanced up to look at Diane''s store. The lights were on and I thought I saw her walk by the window. ¡°He won''t survive it.¡± Helena said and I turned my head to look at her. ¡°You spent almost two weeks suffering to get your foot back and it was horrible for you, even after everything you went through. Spencer has only seen a battlefield and lost his hand, and he''s suffering from battlefield trauma. He will definitely die if you experiment on him.¡± ¡°It''s only a hand.¡± I said and stepped down into the boat. ¡°I had a lot more damage and...¡± ¡°There''s not as much in your brain needed to use a foot. A hand, however...¡± Helena said and took my hand to step onto the boat. ¡°Maybe if you can refine what you did, he might have a better chance.¡± I untied us and we sat down on the middle bench. ¡°It took me a week of failures to finally get it to the point I could try it, then it took me ten days of agony to recover from it.¡± I said and took us out into the harbour and over to the entrance to the waterway to get to my house in the marsh. ¡°What if we put him to sleep with a spell or a potion?¡± Helena shook her head. ¡°He''d wake up traumatized, especially if the last thing he saw and felt was the hand being removed. You know his mind is already fragile.¡± I thought about that. ¡°Maybe you''re right... or maybe he might think it was all a dream.¡± Helena looked surprised. ¡°You''d want him to believe that?¡± ¡°If it would wake him up from whatever is wrong with him.¡± I responded. Helena was quiet for the rest of the ride to the house. It wasn''t until I had the boat up onto the dry area that she spoke. ¡°I might be able to get you something when we go to the capital. It''s not something that can be bought on the open market, either.¡± I held a hand out to her and she climbed out of the boat. ¡°Thank you.¡± Helena let out a sigh and then she smiled. ¡°Let''s get those potions made and we can be on our way.¡± I nodded and we went inside to get to work. 110 Prepping For The Capital I quickly made up the potions I needed, including a small batch of snake antivenom and spider antivenom. I couldn''t make much more than the available empties that I had in my pack, so I had to be frugal in my creations. Several strength potions, fortifying potions, mental focusing potions, waterproofing potions, and number ten potions filled out the empty spots on my bandoleer and brought it up to its proper capacity. I relaxed mentally for the first time since the dragon battle and I had lost them all. I refilled the missing stocks in my potions stash as well. I made sure that Helena was busy when I took out the enchantments book to stuff into my pack with the potions book, then I sealed the hidden space again. I wasn''t sure when I would be back, so I went to each protection ward and recharged them to full effectiveness. I also did a better job hiding my chest of gold by surrounding the bed in stone. You would need to take the bed apart to get at the chest hidden underneath. After a short discussion with Helena, I decided that a third of the amount of gold I had would be enough for me to take along. I wasn''t rich by normal high class standards, since they had decades to build up money. I also couldn''t carry a large chest of gold around with me all the time. Some unscrupulous people would definitely try to take advantage of me if they thought I had a lot of gold. Helena''s suggestion of using a bank to hold it didn''t make sense to me, then she explained that it was a status thing. I had enough gold to have it be kept there and I would be treated better by the majority of society because of it... assuming they didn''t hear about my dishonorable discharge. It might get around before we even arrived at the capital, because of what I had done to the princess. Her family would not ignore a message about that. I prepared the ingredients I hadn''t used for long term storage, since I had to wait and buy more vials to hold more potions, and tied the two large canvas bags to the sides of my pack. ¡°It''s getting a bit large to wear all the time.¡± Helena said with a chuckle. ¡°We have several secured vaults at the house. I''m sure my father would let you use one of them.¡± I must have looked surprised because she laughed. ¡°Relax, it''s a personal vault. He can assign it to you and it will only open for your magic.¡± I would have to wait to see if that was true. I wasn''t going to bring along the other books unless I could find somewhere to keep them as safe as deep inside a monster infested marsh. I was actually tempted to leave my potions book as well; but, I hadn''t copied out the other potion recipes it had. With the ingredients I had left, I should be able to convert the recipes from their current versions to ones I could make, like I had with the regeneration potion. Of course, they weren''t anywhere near as complicated as that, so it wouldn''t be too difficult. Some of them looked useful, too. I closed everything up and changed the lock on the door, then cast the lock spell on the door and covered it with wood and sealed the sides to make it look like there wasn''t a door there. ¡°It''s too bad that you can''t grow things over it to cover it up.¡± Helena said and looked up with a laugh. ¡°Then again, I guess you can''t really hide something this big.¡± ¡°The wood roof should let it blend in, assuming anyone comes around.¡± I said. ¡°No one has before, except when I brought them here.¡± Helena took my hand and gave it a squeeze. ¡°I noticed how much quicker we made it here this time.¡± ¡°I was trying to hide a direct route from the others. Now that we''re alone, I could show you the quickest way.¡± Helena gave me a pleased smile. ¡°Thank you, David.¡± She said and gave me a kiss. ¡°We better go if we''re going to get something to eat to make up for missing two meals.¡± ¡°I''m sorry about that.¡± I said and gave her a hug. ¡°I sometimes forget to eat properly when I''m doing something important.¡± Helena didn''t miss the implication and her face flushed red as she blushed. She nodded acceptance and I helped her into the boat, then I took off my pack and pushed the boat into the water. I climbed in and took one last look at the place that I probably wasn''t going to see for a while. I had been tempted to reduce the protection wards on the house to let the vines and creatures cover the outside, then decided it wasn''t worth the hassle of trying to clear it up later if I let it get overrun. I had a hard enough time when it was just the Hag''s hut and I did not want to try to fight spiders and things inside the house at the top of a 60 foot high pitched roof. I used the movement enchantment to turn the boat and sped us off into the distance. We arrived at the village and I took Helena to Gail''s house and we were sat down and had a great meal. Gail didn''t recognize me at all, either. Apparently, my scars had been so prominent that no one actually saw my face around them.Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. It made Helena chuckle when I mentioned it. Her hand reached for my face and she traced out the exact shape of my old scars without saying a word, then she kissed the spot. We finished eating and had two pieces of sugar cookie bread. That gave me an idea and when we left there, I walked with Helena to Mrs. Hansen''s house. The door opened when I knocked and Mrs. Hansen took in a sharp breath when she saw us. ¡°My lord, my lady.¡± Mrs. Hansen said and gave us a curtsy. ¡°What could ever bring your august presences to my door?¡± ¡°Hi, Marsh Man!¡± Gloria said loudly and pushed past me to enter the house, then she turned to look up at me. ¡°Your face looks funny now.¡± Mrs. Hansen gasped and covered her mouth as both I and Helena laughed. ¡°I knew you were smarter than everyone else in the village, Gloria.¡± I said and let Helena''s hand go to kneel. ¡°Let me recharge that protection ward for you.¡± Gloria held it out to me and I poured a ton of magic into it to reset it. ¡°I should probably cover it to protect it.¡± I said and used my knife to cut up a scrap piece of wood and used number ten potion to fuse it together into a cover and attached it to the large wooden coin. ¡°There you go. Now you don''t have to worry about banging it or scratching it.¡± ¡°THANKS!¡± Gloria yelled and gave me a hug, then she took off into the kitchen. ¡°D-David... is... is that really you?¡± Mrs. Hansen asked, her voice unsure. ¡°I stopped by to tell you that I''m going to the capital for a while.¡± I said and stood up. ¡°I was wondering if you had a couple pans of cookie bread for me to show off when I get there.¡± Mrs. Hansen looked at Helena and then at me. ¡°I... yes, I do. If you''ll wait here...¡± I nodded and she left the front door open as she stepped backwards, then she went into the kitchen. I heard the kitchen door open soon after and Gloria ran out with a piece of cookie bread in her mouth and the protection ward slapping on her chest. ¡°That''s not a good way to keep yourself from being hurt.¡± Helena commented with a smile. ¡°Are you sure you can''t get the full enchantment down to a more reasonable size?¡± ¡°Not with my current tools.¡± I said and she understood that I meant I would be getting better tools. Mrs. Hansen came out of the kitchen ten minutes later and she had two large pans of sugar cookie bread. ¡°I''ve cut them into normal serving squares. If you have a bag...¡± I slipped off my pack and took out one of the dozens of canvas bags I had been slowly pilfering from the army during my time there. I wasn''t going to let such a huge resource remain left untapped, not when they were so useful to everyday life. I cut the bag off to the right size and transferred the squares into it, then sealed it with number ten potion. ¡°Thank you very much.¡± I said and reached into my pocket to get some money. ¡°No, thank you.¡± Mrs. Hansen said with a smile and caught my hand before I could open it to offer her the money. ¡°You can consider it payment for keeping my daughter so happy and popular.¡± I glanced at Helena and she nodded slightly, so I put my hand back in my pocket. ¡°I don''t know when I''ll be back...¡± ¡°Take me... with you!¡± A woman''s voice said loudly and the three of us turned to look. Hope ran over to the house and she was panting and out of breath as she leaned against the house. She had a pack similar to mine on her back and it looked hastily packed. Before I could open my mouth to tell her it wasn''t possible, Helena stepped forward and stared at her. ¡°What skills can you offer?¡± Helena asked, a bit sternly. ¡°We won''t have useless people in our household.¡± ¡°I... can clean.¡± Hope said. ¡°I also... high education.¡± ¡°That was not a proper sentence.¡± Helena said with a bit of a smile. ¡°I''m sorry... give me a moment.¡± ¡°Take several.¡± Helena said and stepped back to take my hand again. ¡°We are in a bit of a rush; but, we also have the fastest boat in the kingdom. We can easily make it to the next town well before nightfall.¡± Hope nodded and closed her eyes as she continued to take long and heavy breaths. It took her several minutes to calm down and to bring her breathing back to normal. Gloria had returned by then and waved at me as she went by us and into the house. I glanced at Mrs. Hansen and she blushed, which proved that she had sent Gloria for Hope. ¡°I''m well versed in both reading and writing, I know a lot of history and geography, and I know a lot of the stories and myths of the Gulf Kingdom.¡± Hope said. ¡°I know that James... I mean David... is behind in the practical knowledge that he didn''t have access to when growing up, and that basic training in the army doesn''t cover it.¡± ¡°Are you offering to be his tutor?¡± Helena asked, a little surprised. ¡°Yes, and his maid. I know you already have one and didn''t bring her.¡± ¡°How do you know that?¡± Helena asked. ¡°A lady of such high class would have at least one maid.¡± Hope said, confidently. ¡°I also assume your parents were quite upset that you came back here and didn''t bring her this time.¡± Helena smiled. ¡°They were livid that I was passing through a godforsaken marsh again and didn''t have one maid to help keep me clean and safe.¡± Hope smiled back. ¡°I''ll work hard and I''ll do my best to make sure that David gets the best education that I can give him.¡± Helena glanced at me to see what I would say to this offer. _______________ You have a minor choice to make. It will only change your circumstances slightly. It will change your relationship with Hope, no matter what you decide. A) Agree. B) Say no. C) Stay quiet. D) Let Helena decide. E) Run. F) Take her hand. G) Kill her. Okay, those last two were kind of harsh. I guess taking the colonel''s arm opened more bad options for me. I thought. Honestly, I''m not sure if I need her around. Since she never did me any harm, I''ll let Helena decide if she comes along. I choose D. _______________ I gave Helena a small shrug and sent her a tingle of magic through our clasp hands. Helena looked surprised for a second, then she gave me a very pleased smile. She knew I was leaving it up to her and that had made her very happy. ¡°You''re hired.¡± ¡°YES!¡± Hope yelled and jumped, then she realized what she did and calmed down and gave us a proper curtsy. ¡°Thank you, my lady. I am honored to be in service to the household.¡± Helena nodded in response. ¡°David, her first month''s pay.¡± She said out loud and then she whispered a few things into my ear. I nodded slightly and dug out ten gold coins to give her. ¡°You need two gold for proper outfits.¡± Hope stared at the ten gold coins in her hands and didn''t know what to say. ¡°We will meet you at the boat in half an hour.¡± Helena said. ¡°If there is any last minute business you need to take care of, now would be the time to do it.¡± Hope understood immediately and shoved the gold into her pockets. ¡°I''ll be there!¡± She exclaimed and took off running back to the Addams farmhouse where she lived. 111 Capital Run Helena and I walked back towards the dock at a leisurely pace and she held my arm in case I stumbled. ¡°Why did you tell her half an hour?¡± I asked. ¡°So she can give most of that money to her family and give them a proper goodbye.¡± Helena said. ¡°You know she left in a rush as soon as Gloria showed up to tell her you were leaving. Plus, she doesn''t have to run to the boat and exhaust herself again.¡± I gave her a questioning look and she smiled sweetly back. ¡°I don''t have to tell you that before I was sold and became who I am, she was the youngest of my older sisters.¡± Helena leaned in and kissed my cheek. ¡°No, I already know that you used to be James Addams as a baby, of the Addams family farm, the most prosperous farmers in Ester''s Village... until the garrison showed up.¡± She said and her other hand clasped our intertwined hands. ¡°You became someone else, someone who was used and abused, and then you became strong. Strong enough to live in the most harshest environment in the world.¡± I nodded and let her continue. ¡°You became David Drake and you survived everything that happened to you.¡± Helena said, her voice full of awe. ¡°You even survived being eaten by a dragon, and no one, not even the other people there that day, can dispute that you were the strongest and the bravest for what you did.¡± ¡°Mage Lukas...¡± ¡°...was a combat mage. He''s been trained to face threats and to fight to protect everyone.¡± Helena said and stopped walking at the edge of the dock. ¡°You''ve always been on your own. You''ve never had a reason to go out of your way to protect anyone except yourself. Why would you? Nearly everyone treated you horribly, even though none of what happened to you was your fault.¡± I stood there and thought about what she said. ¡°You''ve been talking to Gillis.¡± Helena smirked at me and nodded. ¡°We spent a lot of time together as we travelled. It took a lot of prodding and...¡± She blushed a little. ¡°...a little bit of begging to get her to open up about you.¡± ¡°You didn''t have to do that.¡± I said. ¡°I was going to tell you about it.¡± ¡°I know, and I want to hear it from you. I really do.¡± Helena said. ¡°I also needed something to talk about with her. We are similar in social status; but, we do not move in the same social circles, except on special occasions.¡± She reached up and touched my cheek with her free hand. ¡°Once she did open up and started talking, you were all she would talk about.¡± She laughed softly. ¡°She actually wouldn''t shut up about you, actually.¡± I gave her raised eyebrows and she nodded. ¡°I think she likes you a lot more than just friends you''ve been. She just can''t admit it to herself.¡± Helena said. ¡°She even told me that out of all the people she''s ever met, you were the only one to treat her like a person and not a member of the royal family, even after you knew who she was.¡± I knew what that meant. ¡°I need to change how I treat her in public.¡± Helena looked surprised for a moment, then she beamed a smile at me. ¡°I''m sure she''ll appreciate you giving her the proper respect that is due to a woman of her station, as long as you tell her that.¡± I nodded. ¡°The very next time I see her, I''ll tell her.¡± ¡°I''m glad to hear that.¡± Helena said and turned to face the main road. ¡°Here she comes now.¡± I turned with her to look and Gillis was walking towards the dock, wearing a different dress, and the guard behind her carried two large suitcases and had a trunk strapped to his back. Gillis had her head downcast and was mumbling to herself as she walked with purpose. ¡°I can''t believe that the garrison won''t let me borrow a boat and a mage.¡± She said and had to watch where she was walking, now that she was approaching the dock, and she started to lift her head to look forward. ¡°Now I have to charter a normal boat that''s going to take forever to get me back to... DAVID!¡± Gillis gasped when she finally lifted her head and saw me. I waited for her to get close before I gave her a bow and held a hand out to her. ¡°Lady Jacqueline Rivers.¡± I said and couldn''t read the expression on her face. Gillis took my hand and shook it as if I was a lord greeting her. ¡°Mr. Drake.¡± I glanced at Helena and she nodded, so I stepped close to Gillis and placed a quick kiss on her cheek to whisper in her ear. ¡°As your friend, I won''t disrespect you in public.¡±The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. Gillis stiffened slightly at my words, then she turned her head slightly to press her lips to my cheek. ¡°Thank you.¡± She whispered back and when I stepped away, she had a normal smile on her face. ¡°I''m so very glad to see you again, Lady Rivers.¡± Helena said and leaned in to lightly kiss her cheek. ¡°I imagine the army has left you in the lurch, just as they have to my David?¡± Gillis took a deep breath and nodded. ¡°Now I have to charter...¡± ¡°Nonsense.¡± Helena said and cut her off. ¡°Now that fate has brought us together once again for another trip to the capital, I wouldn''t dare suggest that you take another boat.¡± ¡°But...¡± Gillis looked at me with a bit of accusation. ¡°Don''t give him that look.¡± Helena laughed softly. ¡°We couldn''t wait at the base, could we? Not after what happened. I''m just glad that David''s business delayed us long enough that we could be here for you when your business was done.¡± ¡°M-me, too.¡± Gillis said. ¡°I thought... after what happened... you didn''t want anything to do with...¡± ¡°It doesn''t matter who your family is. You''ve never done anything bad to me.¡± I said to her and thought I saw a look of relief. ¡°You can load your things into the boat while Lady Henrietta and I wait for my maid.¡± Gillis smiled and nodded as she passed by us to go to the boat. ¡°Well done, dearest.¡± Helena whispered and I turned my head to look at her. She gave me a quick kiss on the lips and she smiled happily. ¡°You reassured her that you don''t hold her cousin''s actions against her and that you still consider her a friend.¡± She paused for a moment, then laughed softly. ¡°On the down side, she''s probably going to talk incessantly during the boat ride to the next town.¡± I smiled and she gave me a wink, then we looked up the main road again. After a few minutes, Hope appeared in the distance and she was walking normally. She was alone, which I hadn''t expected. I thought for sure that her sister or even her younger brother would have come with her to see her off, now that they had the time to do it. ¡°Thank you very much for the extra time, my lady.¡± Hope said and gave Helena a bow. ¡°Both my family and I appreciated it.¡± ¡°Your pack has gotten bigger.¡± Helena said with a teasing note to her voice. ¡°Mom insisted on repacking it.¡± Hope said. ¡°I was going to do it on the boat and she beat me to it.¡± Helena laughed softly. ¡°Yes, mothers can be a bit domineering.¡± ¡°Shall we go?¡± I asked and waved at the dock behind me. ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± Hope said and gave me a bow. ¡°I''m not...¡± I started to say and Helena gave my hand a squeeze. ¡°Pretense must be maintained, dearest.¡± Helena said. ¡°Even if it''s not actually true yet, as long as people believe it, to them it will be true.¡± I couldn''t argue that, since I had worked to try and give my Marsh Man reputation as much of a boost as the Hag''s. It didn''t quite work, since all I managed to do was get sentenced to death and then conscripted into the army. I nodded and both Hope and Helena gave me pleased smiles, then the three of us went to the boat and settled in for the ride to the next town. We discussed going further than that, then decided that it would be best to arrive at the town, spend a nice relaxing night in an inn, then head out in the morning. Helena was gracious enough to include Hope, Gillis, and her guard as well into the conversation. I untied us and used the movement enchantment to take us out and around the dock, passed several boats, and over to the waterway that would lead to the next town. After a relatively short distance, Helena told me to slow down for some reason. I did so as we came around a curve and past some trees, then I saw why. The entire Addams family was there and Hope stood up to shout and holler to them. ¡°MOM! I told YOU!¡± Hope pointed at me. ¡°LOOK! LOOOOOK!¡± ¡°David.¡± Helena whispered and then spoke something in my ear. I slowed the boat down even more and took out a full clear vial and the quarter filled one. I poured a quarter of the full one into the half one, corked both, and tucked the three quarter full one away. ¡°He really is healed.¡± Mrs. Addams said, her voice full of disbelief. I pulled the boat over close to the shoreline and held up the half filled vial. ¡°Frank!¡± The man without a hand glared at me and didn''t respond. ¡°Let me know if this works.¡± I said and tossed the vial at his feet into the soft grass. He stared at the vial for several seconds and looked back at me. I didn''t actually wave at him as I raised my hand and instead wiggled just my pinkie finger. His eyes nearly bulged out of his head and Hope beside me gasped. ¡°It''s really, really going to hurt.¡± I said with a big smile as the boat drifted past the spot where the Addams family stood. ¡°Of course it will.¡± Frank muttered. ¡°You might die!¡± Helena added, just in case my warning wasn''t enough. None of them seemed to react to that, though. ¡°They know that.¡± Hope said to Helena. ¡°That''s what life near the marsh is like. What it''s always been like.¡± She waved to her family. ¡°Bye, MOM! Bye, everyone! I''ll keep sending part of my pay home to you every month!¡± Mrs. Addams didn''t say anything and only waved. I could see her staring at me, as if she was trying to remember what I looked like. I had everyone sit down and moved the boat back out to the middle of the waterway and poured on the speed. It had been a while since I could let loose like this and I didn''t waste any time getting us to the next town. Surprisingly, no one complained. We arrived just before night fell and I docked at the lower dock, secured it, and we carried all of our things to the closest inn. We spent the night in rooms that were not next to each other... at Helena''s request... and we had fun together. She had been true to her word when she said after I accepted her offer, I would be in her bed. We washed up early the next morning and met the others in the lobby. Both Gillis and Hope had bright red faces when they looked at us, for some reason. Helena laughed it off and we left the inn to get back into the boat. I took us out, without regard to keeping the boat''s power hidden, since it and several other boats had been used by the military for quite some time now, and took off down the route that Helena told me to take. It wasn''t going to take us long to get to the capital at my full speed and Helena didn''t discourage me in the least. She was as eager to get me to her home as I was to get there. 112 Purchasing Power Thanks to my vigilance technique, I easily avoided all other boats in the various waterways and passageways that we had to take to get to the capital. We arrived in half the time that Helena and Gillis had taken to get there and they only gave me a searching look as I pulled up to the private dock owned by Helena''s family. ¡°You can borrow the family coach to get yourself home while David and I are shopping.¡± Helena said to Gillis as I tied up the boat and secured it to the dock. ¡°Just feed the horses and the driver before you send the coach back for us.¡± Gillis reached out a hand to take hers. ¡°Thank you.¡± Helena shook her head. ¡°No thanks are necessary. We need to go to the capital anyway.¡± ¡°I''m getting the ride pretty cheaply.¡± Gillis said with a big smile. ¡°You''ll have it back in half an hour.¡± ¡°There''s no rush.¡± Helena said and I helped her out of the boat. ¡°We''re going all over the market district.¡± Gillis nodded as I helped her out of the boat. ¡°Thank you, David.¡± ¡°You''re welcome, Jacqueline.¡± I said and she had an odd look on her face. ¡°Gillis.¡± I corrected and she smiled sweetly at me. The guard strapped on the trunk and picked up both of her large suitcases. He stepped out of the boat, without needing a hand, and followed Gillis to the stable. I put on my pack and helped Hope put hers on, then we both stepped out of the boat. We all went over to the stable and the man there quickly had the small staff bring the Henrietta Family coach out and attached two horses to it. The guard with Gillis put the trunk and the two suitcases into the cargo rack on top and tied them down. Both Hope and I declined adding our packs to it and climbed inside the coach with Helena and Gillis. It was quite large inside and I slipped off my pack and put it on the floor between my legs as I sat down between Helena and Gillis. Hope took off her pack as well and sat facing me, put her pack between her legs as well, making sure it touched mine. The guard chose to ride up front with the driver and the coachman stood on the back runner and held on. His job was to open and close the door when necessary. I was surprised there was such a demanding job, then Helena reminded me it was a status thing. It seemed like a lot of things for rich families were status things. The coach drove off and passed several smaller structures and then the main house came into view. It was a mansion that was grander than the one Lady Sandra Rivers had renovated in the Eastern Empire to become the seat of her new lands, which might mean there were a lot more lands under the Henrietta Family''s control... or they just liked big expensive things. I didn''t ask which was true. We seemed to travel for quite some time through streets that had a lot of people, horses, and carriages around, before we came to a stop in front of a street that was 100 feet wide and was full of shops, stalls, and people. Lots and lots of people. ¡°Hope, you should leave your pack in the carriage. You''ll need to carry some things for us.¡± Helena said and Hope nodded. ¡°Lift the seat and tuck it in there if you don''t want to put it on top.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Hope said, her voice full of gratitude, and stood up to lift the seat. Inside was a large space and Hope easily fit her pack into it. The carriage door opened and the coachman stood there at attention. ¡°It''s not quite normal for a woman to be wearing pants in the city, so we will be stopping to get your uniforms first.¡± Helena said and Hope nodded. ¡°After that, it''s David''s turn and we have to buy an appropriate outfit for him to meet my family.¡± I stepped out of the carriage first and held a hand back for Helena, who took it graciously and gave me a half hug with one arm as she held on with her hand. I raised my eyebrows slightly and she smiled. ¡°You''re not supposed to help your maid out in the same manner.¡± Helena whispered. ¡°Don''t worry about it too much for now. I''ve got plenty of time while we shop to fill you in on all the little details that your lessons with Sandra didn''t cover.¡± She told me to only offer my arm for Hope to use as a balance to climb down, rather than a hand like I had done for her. It was less formal and showed that I was helping without being too familiar with her in public. ¡°Lady Rivers, it was nice seeing you again.¡± Helena said with a nod. ¡°I''ll send you an invitation for supper in a few weeks.¡± Gillis smiled for a moment, then she sighed. ¡°I hope to have the family settled down by then.¡± ¡°I hope so, too.¡± Helena said with a smile. Gillis glanced at me and nodded. ¡°Goodbye, Mr. Drake.¡± ¡°Goodbye, Lady Rivers.¡± I said and nodded back. Hope, Helena and I stood there and watched the coach drive away until it took a corner and disappeared from sight. ¡°The uniform shop we use is this way.¡± Helena said and motioned off to the right. She clung to my arm and led Hope and myself where she wanted us to go. She knew exactly what to get, mainly because she had two maids and five tutors growing up.Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. Hope looked a little pale when four uniforms, two for a maid and 2 for a tutor, were taken out for her and it cost two gold coins. She paid the money and didn''t complain about how expensive it was, even though the clothing was well made. Hope took one of the traditional maid''s uniforms, a medium length black dress, a white frilly blouse, and a half-apron, and went to the change room to put it on while the clerk wrapped the others inside a nice box. Helena beamed a pleased smile at Hope when she came out a few minutes later. ¡°Wonderful! It doesn''t have to be altered.¡± She said and tugged at the edge of the skirt and on the collar of the blouse. ¡°Yes, that fits quite well.¡± She turned to look at the clerk behind the counter. ¡°This is why I always come here when I need something. Thank you for your hard work.¡± The woman''s face flushed red. ¡°Th-thank y-you, my lady. Thank you.¡± ¡°Be sure to tell your manager what I said.¡± Helena said and put a handful of silver coins onto the counter. ¡°If we need anything else, I''ll send the new maid for it.¡± ¡°Of course, Lady Henrietta. I''ll make note of both things.¡± Helena smiled at the woman and turned back to Hope. ¡°You''ll find the shoes are more comfortable than the short boots you were wearing. They are designed for extended wear.¡± ¡°My feet already feel better, my lady.¡± Hope said. Helena nodded and waved at the wrapped package. ¡°Grab your clothes and let''s go. My fiance needs a proper outfitting.¡± ¡°My lady, what about my old clothes?¡± Hope asked. I pulled out a canvas bag from my pack and handed it to her. ¡°Thank you, my lord.¡± Hope said with a sly smile, then she went back into the change room to get her old clothes. She walked over to the counter and thanked the woman, then put the box into the canvas bag. It barely fit and she tied it to make a good carry handle. The three of us left there and walked nearly the entire street away before coming to a very fancy store. Wood engravings and gold filigree were everywhere, both on the outside and on the inside. I didn''t ask how much it cost. ¡°Hello, my lady, my lord.¡± The man behind the counter said. ¡°I don''t need to ask what you need from me, do I?¡± Helena let out a fake laugh and waved her hand. ¡°It''s too difficult hiding things from you, Ferdinand.¡± The man laughed. ¡°I assume you want top to bottom?¡± ¡°You know full well that my father demands it.¡± Helena said in a teasing manner. ¡°Nothing less than the best, which is why I came here.¡± ¡°Of course, of course.¡± Ferdinand said and came around the counter. ¡°Let''s get a good look at you.¡± I stood still as the man approached and he held a hand out to me. It wasn''t to shake, however. His palm was towards me and I felt a bit of magic flow over me. ¡°Ah, I see. Will the proper adornments be all right?¡± Ferdinand asked Helena and she nodded. ¡°I''ll be right back.¡± When he disappeared into the back room, Hope turned to us to whisper. ¡°Can he actually make a whole suit in only a few minutes?¡± ¡°He''s the best magical tailor in the capital, if not the entire Gulf Kingdom.¡± Helena said, not bothering to whisper. ¡°With just a few alterations to a standard outfit of his own creation, he can make custom masterpieces to fit any body size and shape.¡± The man came out of the back room with several pieces of clothing and accessories hanging over his arms and shoulders. ¡°To the display area, please.¡± Helena led me over there and I took my pack off to stand it next to Hope and hung my bandoleer on it. Hope quickly turned away when I started to strip off my clothing. The man didn''t bat an eye at my disrobing and stopped me when I reached my underwear. Then I was unceremoniously dressed by him and by Helena. She had resisted at first, then the man had teasingly asked for her help, as if he knew that she wanted to. Ten minutes later, I was dressed in the most expensive piece of clothing I had ever seen. It was elaborately constructed with many pleats and details that were almost hidden within the shape of the fabric, not to mention the Henrietta Family''s crest on the cuffs, collar ends, and shoulders. The suit was so expensive that the man didn''t ask for actual money and only asked if it would be charged to my account at the bank. ¡°I''m buying it.¡± Helena said to the man''s surprise. ¡°We haven''t set up his account at the bank yet.¡± The man smiled, because he knew you needed to have a lot of gold to have an account at the bank. ¡°You must love him a lot to spend this much just for him to meet your family.¡± ¡°I wanted to buy him a whole wardrobe.¡± Helena said, matter of factly. The man looked shocked for a second and then he laughed. ¡°My lady, you are as delightful as always!¡± ¡°Oh, you.¡± Helena playfully swatted his hand and the man laughed again. ¡°I assume he''s wearing it out of the store?¡± ¡°Of course. We might as well show off this wonderful outfit to the bank staff.¡± Helena replied. ¡°You flatter me, my lady.¡± The man said and bowed his head. ¡°If you mention to the staff that you bought it here, perhaps I might see fit to not charge you full price.¡± Helena fake gasped. ¡°You scoundrel!¡± The man laughed again for several moments. ¡°You are such a delight.¡± He said to Helena and then he pat my shoulder. ¡°You are a very lucky man and I hope that you count your blessings.¡± I glanced at Helena and she nodded slightly, so I nodded to the man and he nodded back. ¡°It''s a pleasure doing business with you.¡± The man said and bid us a good day. Hope had already gathered up my old clothing and tucked them into my pack, so I took my pack from her and we left the shop. ¡°You can''t wear them with the suit on.¡± Helena whispered to me as we walked down the street. ¡°I know. It''s too heavy for Hope to carry with her other things.¡± I said and as we walked, the Henrietta Family coach pulled up and parked at the end of the street where it had dropped us off. ¡°Perfect timing.¡± Helena said. We walked over to it and climbed in. Hope put her purchases inside the seat with her pack and I sat down to root through my pack as the coach took us to the bank. I dug out a half filled and quite heavy canvas bag and set it aside, then carefully tucked my bandoleer into my pack. ¡°What is that?¡± Hope asked, her voice filled with curiosity. ¡°I couldn''t even lift your pack to carry it for you.¡± ¡°It''s about a third of what I own.¡± I said and opened the bag to show her the contents. Hope''s mouth dropped open and she couldn''t speak as I took out two gold coins to replace the money that she had spent to buy clothing. She clutched the coins in her hand and stared at me. ¡°Uniforms are bought out of wages and then reimbursed.¡± I said as I repeated Helena''s whispered words to me. I closed the bag up again. ¡°If you''re wondering where I got it, hunting exotic pelts for three months pays a lot.¡± ¡°Isn''t he wonderful?¡± Helena asked and reached for my arm, I assumed to hug it like usual. She sighed and took my hand instead. ¡°I have to wait until tonight to hug your arm properly. I wouldn''t dare wrinkle the suit before father sees you in it.¡± I nodded and waited for the coach to take us to the bank. We didn''t have an appointment and Helena said that was fine, mainly because I was going to deposit all of my gold into an account. They would accommodate any eccentricities of the rich, especially if it would let them have more gold. 113 The Henrietta Family Part One ¡°Oh, my god.¡± Hope whispered as she stared out the window of the carriage as we passed through the main part of the capital city. ¡°How... how did people build all of this?¡± Helena laughed softly and gripped my hand. ¡°David''s made many more impressive structures and defensive fortifications for the army. In fact, I made sure to keep a record of it all, with Gary''s help of course, just so I could show it to my father.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Hope turned from the window to look at me. I wasn''t sure what the expression was, however. ¡°You''re going to miss the best part.¡± Helena said and pointed. ¡°There''s the bank.¡± The coach stopped at a huge stone building that was the bank. It was one of the biggest structures in the city, only slightly smaller than the Mages Guild''s main building and the magic academy. The castle where the royal family lived didn''t count, since it was technically beside the city and not in it. ¡°Wowwww.¡± Hope whispered. ¡°Professional smiles and attitudes now.¡± Helena warned us and we both nodded. I tucked my pack under our seat, secured it with number ten potion, then stepped out of the open coach door. I repeated the proper way to help Helena step out and then helped Hope. The three of us went inside the large building and we didn''t immediately grab anyone''s attention, even though I carried a fairly large canvas bag. We made it nearly halfway across the expansive space inside before a pair of quickly walking shoes made their way towards us. ¡°Lady Henrietta! It''s a pleasure to see you again.¡± A thin man said as he came to a stop at a respectful distance. ¡°My servant sent for me as soon as you entered the building.¡± ¡°Ah, Carson. Thank you.¡± Helena said. ¡°I wouldn''t normally drop in without an appointment...¡± ¡°It''s fine, my lady. I always drop everything when an important client appears.¡± ¡°Even if it''s another important client?¡± Helena asked, teasingly. The man''s face flushed red slightly. ¡°I... would... ask for a brief pause.... to meet with you.¡± Helena laughed. ¡°It''s all right. I wouldn''t expect preferential treatment at the expense of another.¡± The man let out a relieved sigh and nodded. ¡°What can our illustrious institution do for you today?¡± ¡°We just came from Ferdinand''s and I wanted to show off his latest creation.¡± Helena said a little loudly and her voice carried to every part of the large open space. A lot of people turned to look at us, as was her intention, and she made me do a turn to show off the new suit. She wanted to make sure that Ferdinand would know that she was true to her word. He would hear about it from several people within the hour. The man chuckled. ¡°Although that is a noble goal, this isn''t a fashion show.¡± ¡°Isn''t it?¡± Helena countered and laughed, as did a few people nearby. They all knew that it was an unspoken rule to show off when possible. The man laughed in return. ¡°Actually, we are here for official business.¡± Helena said. ¡°My fiance would like to open an account.¡± Quite a few people took notice of her words and several inquiring glances came my way. ¡°That is wonderful news. Wonderful news.¡± The man said with a huge smile. ¡°If it wouldn''t be inconvenient for you, I could handle that personally.¡± ¡°I wouldn''t want to take you from your duties.¡± Helena said. ¡°I''m sure that another...¡± ¡°Nonsense.¡± The man waved her words away. ¡°If he comes with your recommendation, there should be no problems.¡± ¡°I appreciate that.¡± Helena said. ¡°Shall we go to your office to settle things?¡± ¡°Of course. If you would follow me?¡± The man said it like a question and then didn''t wait for an answer and walked away. We followed him to his office and sat down to discuss things. It was surprisingly simple to get an account set up under my own name and it wouldn''t be associated to the Henrietta Family until Helena and I were married. The difficult part was when he asked for the amount to be deposited. I put the half filled canvas bag on his desk with a loud thump. ¡°This.. is this...¡± The man opened the bag and he took in a sharp breath. ¡°Are you insane? How can you walk around with this much gold in a bag and not be surrounded by guards?¡± ¡°The chest was too conspicuous to carry across the country.¡± I said and he looked surprised. ¡°That''s about a third of what he has.¡± Helena said as an explanation. The man sat back in his chair and didn''t know what to say. ¡°You''re going to need quite a bit of help counting it all out and to carry it to the vault.¡± Helena prompted him. ¡°Y-yes, of course.¡± The man said. ¡°Please, excuse me for a moment.¡± He came back several minutes later with four women. They looked completely professional and were dressed in a similar outfit to the tutor ones Hope had bought earlier. The four of them quickly divided up the contents of the canvas bag between them and then started counting and stacking them. Hope was completely stunned when they were done and told us the total. Helena and I had known what it was, since we had already counted it to put it in the bag, and the man behind the desk looked very pleased.If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°I am very happy to welcome such a prestigious client to our bank.¡± The man said and reached a hand out to me to shake. ¡°Please, let me know if you need anything. I''ll do my best to provide what services I can.¡± He handed me his card with how to contact him or his secretary, and what I was to tell the shop owners when I bought things. Almost none of the nobles carried actual money on their person, unless they were leaving the capital on business. The four women that had come in to count the money, gave both Helena and Hope longing looks. I didn''t ask what it meant until we were outside and had climbed into the coach. ¡°Did you like any of them?¡± Helena asked. ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked. ¡°Were they appealing? Were they pretty? Did you want to see them naked or take them home?¡± Helena asked with an odd tone to her voice. ¡°Why would I want to take them home?¡± I asked back. ¡°Was I supposed to look at them and...¡± ¡°No, if you didn''t, then that''s fine.¡± Helena said with her normal voice and beamed a happy smile at me. ¡°New clients usually get a choice of servants from the bank workers.¡± ¡°Why would I need another one so soon?¡± I asked, confused. Hope put her hand on my knee. ¡°David, it''s not something you need to worry about. Helena and I will take care of you from now on. You don''t need anyone else.¡± ¡°Until we move.¡± Helena said and we looked at her. ¡°Once we''re married, we''ll be given our own section of the lands to govern over. There''s no way that one person can care for an entire household. We''ll need a staff of five or more, with one or two cooks and at least three maids.¡± ¡°Three?¡± Hope asked and looked a little worried. ¡°You can relax, Hope. Someone will need to be put in charge.¡± Helena said, quite diplomatically. Hope took a deep breath, then nodded. ¡°I''ll prove I''m worthy of the post by then. I''m sure of it.¡± Helena nodded back and the three of us remained silent for the ride back to the Henrietta Family''s lands. When we arrived, the carriage dropped us off at the front door and Hope and I retrieved our things from under the seats. We had barely stepped off of the coach steps when the front door of the large mansion opened and a younger version of Helena ran out to us. ¡°Helena! Why didn''t you stop in before going to town? I would have gone with you!¡± The younger version of her exclaimed. Helena laughed and took her little sister into her arms and I saw that the younger one was half a head shorter. ¡°Selena, I would have had to greet father if I did that, and I couldn''t greet father without being properly attired.¡± ¡°Properly attired? What do you mean?¡± Selena asked and her eyes roamed around and finally fell upon me. She caught her breath and stared at me with her eyes wide and unblinking. ¡°My dear little sister, this is my fiance, David.¡± Helena said as she let her sister go and turned her to face me. ¡°I would have insulted the whole family if I hadn''t dressed him first.¡± ¡°My lady.¡± I said and carefully took Selena''s hand and bent over to kiss it. ¡°It''s an honor to meet you.¡± Selena''s face turned bright red and I wasn''t sure if she was breathing. ¡°I''ve told her all about you, of course.¡± Helena said to me as she gave her sister a little squeeze to get her to start breathing again. ¡°Except for this latest development where you healed yourself, since I didn''t find that out until we were coming back here.¡± She laughed softly. ¡°I was enjoying the trip so much that I forgot to send a message ahead.¡± ¡°Yes, you conveniently forgot to tell us you were coming right back with a mongrel.¡± A male voice said, derisively. We all turned to see a well dressed man. He had a young face and yet he looked old as well. ¡°If you put a suit on a dog, it''s still a dog.¡± ¡°Marcus!¡± Selena spat. ¡°Actually, it''s a well dressed dog.¡± Hope said. ¡°I wasn''t talking to the help.¡± Marcus glared at her. ¡°You should remember to not speak unless spoken to.¡± Hope opened her mouth to respond and Helena stepped in front of her and shook her head. ¡°Even though he just spoke to you, that wasn''t an invitation to speak.¡± Helena whispered. ¡°But...¡± ¡°Pick your battles and your battlegrounds. Do not try to fight him verbally on his own terms.¡± Helena warned. ¡°He will always win if you are unprepared.¡± Hope sighed a little and nodded. ¡°I''m glad my sister was smart enough to interfere on your behalf. I rarely bother conversing with a trollop.¡± Both Selene and Helena took in sharp breaths, so I didn''t have to ask if what he said was bad. I took three steps, pulled my knife from my bandoleer inside my pack, and levelled it under his chin. ¡°Say one more bad thing against my personal maid and you''ll lose your tongue.¡± I said to him. Marcus looked deathly afraid for a second, then he smiled. ¡°You wouldn''t dare hurt me in front of my father.¡± He said and I felt a buildup of magic. ¡°If you cast a spell against me, I''ll kill you.¡± I warned him and looked over his shoulder. ¡°Grand Mage Henrietta, if you don''t make your son behave himself, I will kill him and you won''t have an heir anymore.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta only hesitated for a moment, then he reached out and put a hand on his son''s shoulder. ¡°Stop.¡± Marcus looked shocked. ¡°F-father, I... I was just...¡± ¡°You will not win a dominance game with him, despite what you have been told.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said and nodded to me. ¡°Remove your knife, please.¡± I pulled the knife back and stashed it back into the bandoleer. ¡°I received a message this morning from Lady Sandra Rivers, from the new garrison commander at the new front, and from the castle.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said and gave me a stony look. ¡°The princess has been medically discharged from the army after losing her arm.¡± Marcus looked confused. ¡°What does that have to do with...¡± ¡°That knife removed it.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said. ¡°WHAT?¡± Marcus yelled and then composed himself. ¡°I''m sorry for yelling. What do you mean, the knife did it?¡± ¡°The princess, in her Colonel persona, disrespected and robbed this man. He dealt with her as he saw fit.¡± ¡°But... she''s the first princess! How could he get away with...¡± ¡°Thieves are dealt with harshly in more rural areas.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said. ¡°It wasn''t the first time.¡± I said and the two men looked at me. ¡°I let it go the first two times, because I was a conscript and no one was going to defend me. Once I was free and became a civilian, the third time she stole my things, I could enact a proper punishment without killing her.¡± ¡°She almost died.¡± The Grand Mage Henrietta said. ¡°No, I sent for the healers as soon as she admitted her crimes.¡± I corrected and he looked surprised. ¡°I made sure that they were there as soon as her arm was removed. They started healing her immediately.¡± ¡°It''s true, father.¡± Helena said and stepped beside me. ¡°I was there and argued with the princess over her harsh treatment of David. She admitted that instead of just releasing him like she was supposed to, she removed everything he had worked hard for and earned during his time in the army, then gave him a dishonorable discharge instead of the medical discharge he should have gotten.¡± ¡°He doesn''t look medically unfit.¡± The Grand Mage Henrietta said. ¡°He healed himself while we came here to get the rest of the kingdom and the army to listen to reason.¡± Helena said. ¡°I was going to tell you all about it after we formally greeted you.¡± The Grand Mage Henrietta gave her a disbelieving look. ¡°I was!¡± Helena said, her face slightly red. ¡°I was also going to send a message and I forgot.¡± ¡°She was enjoying the trip here too much.¡± Selena said with a slightly evil smile. ¡°She was, was she?¡± Her brother Marcus said, his smile was much more predatory. ¡°Enough.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said and they fell silent. ¡°Selena, take the maid to the guest quarters and get her settled. Marcus, go get your mother. She''s at the Longshore Estate.¡± ¡°Yes, father.¡± Selena and Marcus said as one. Marcus took off at a fast walk to the stables and Selena waved at Hope to get her to follow her. When they were gone, the Grand Mage Henrietta looked at his daughter. ¡°Wait for me in the main parlour. I have some things to handle while we wait for your mother to come back.¡± ¡°Yes, father.¡± Helena said and took my hand. I had to assume I was included in her instructions, because her father didn''t say anything as she led me by him and into the house. 114 The Henrietta Family Part Two ¡°I think we should drop off your pack.¡± Helena said as we walked through the house. ¡°I can never be separated from my knife.¡± ¡°I know. I''ll give you a sheath from father''s armory. It''s designed to fit inside the suit coat.¡± I nodded and we stopped into the armory. She pointed me to a rack of them and I easily found one that would fit. ¡°It''s just a loan until we get one made.¡± Helena said. ¡°When they are made professionally to be hidden, no one can tell that you''re still carrying a deadly weapon.¡± I transferred the knife to the new sheath and Helena helped me open the suit and strapped the sheath under my armpit. It was going to be a bit of an awkward draw until I practised with it. ¡°Don''t worry about trying to be proficient with it. You can have them made to fit nearly anywhere.¡± Helena said as she saw me grab for it several times without pulling it out. ¡°My room is this way.¡± ¡°I thought I was staying in the guest room?¡± I asked. ¡°My personal vault is in my room.¡± Helena said and we quickly went there. I barely had a chance to look at the opulent interior when she guided me over to the fireplace. She reached inside of it and put her hand on something that looked like a lever for the flue. It glowed as she added her magic to it and the fireplace split in half to reveal a thick metal door. She spoke a code phrase in the mage language and put her hand on it, then there was a click and the door opened. Inside were piles of items of various quality and monetary value. Clothing, furniture, stuffed animals, dolls of various kinds, and heaps and heaps of presents. Most were either unopened or partially opened and closed again. ¡°I''ve gathered a lot of admires over the years.¡± Helena said and waved to a spot near the door that was bare of things. ¡°We can leave your pack here, so father doesn''t ask you why you''re carrying it all the time.¡± I took out a number ten potion and a strength potion, tucked them into my pants pockets, and put the pack down. ¡°Your brother is going to notice that I don''t have it.¡± ¡°I''ll warn him as soon as I see him that you still have your knife.¡± Helena promised. ¡°We need to get to the main parlour before mother arrives. I know how long it takes to come back from the Longshore Estate and we have a few minutes after that before they come to find us.¡± I nodded and we left the vault. It started to close as soon as Helena stepped out of it. By the time we made it to the door of her room, it looked just like a normal fireplace again. We left the room and went to the main parlour, then sat on a couch and waited there for nearly half an hour before the large double doors opened. She held my hand the whole time. Helena gasped as four of the house guards came in and they took up guard positions beside the couch we were on and on the opposing couch. She didn''t speak loudly or yell at her father, even though the expression on her face clearly told everyone that she wanted to. ¡°Father, why are there guards in the main parlour?¡± Helena asked, her voice strained. ¡°You''ve brought a very dangerous man into my house.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said in a normal tone as he sat down in the middle of the couch across from us. His wife Mona sat beside him and his daughter Selena sat on his other side, with his son Marcus propped against the couch arm, despite there being lots of room for him on the couch. ¡°I will have my family protected while he is here.¡± Helena''s face flushed red and she looked embarrassed. ¡°Father, he only...¡± ¡°...strikes out at anyone that provokes him. I know.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said and glanced at his son, who wore a beguiling smile when he noticed that my pack was missing. ¡°He still has his knife, Marcus.¡± Helena told him and the smile on her brother''s face disappeared. ¡°Don''t you dare even think about doing anything to his maid, either.¡± She warned. ¡°You''ll lose a lot more than just your tongue.¡± ¡°This is why there are guards in the room.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said. ¡°I''ve already told you some of what has happened to him, father.¡± Helena said. ¡°I know he looks fine now...¡± ¡°...very fine.¡± Selena whispered. ¡°...but, he went through hell. He''s still unsteady on his feet after getting his foot back.¡± Helena finished. ¡°How exactly did he do that?¡± Grand Mage Henrietta asked. ¡°Lots of experiments and about ten days of delirium and excruciating pain.¡± I responded and both Selena and her mother Mona took in sharp breaths. ¡°You aren''t allowed to speak yet.¡± Marcus spat and tensed up as if to attack. ¡°Marcus.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said, his voice firm. ¡°I''m sorry, father.¡± Marcus said and crossed his arms. After a few moments of silence, the father spoke again. ¡°What are your intentions towards my daughter?¡± Grand Mage Henrietta asked. ¡°Am I allowed to speak now?¡± I asked, without inflection in my tone, and that seemed to surprise the three people facing me. I was sure they expected hostility at how I was being treated and they didn''t realize that it didn''t mean anything to me. Grand Mage Henrietta nodded and made a motion with his hand to speak. ¡°I intend to complete my end of our agreement.¡± I said and the others looked a little confused. ¡°She arranged to have me discharged from the army and I agreed to become her husband.¡± ¡°Is that it?¡± Her mother Mona asked. ¡°Do you not love her or want to give her children?¡±Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! ¡°Mona.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said, his voice firm again. ¡°I''m sorry, dearest. I can''t approve of the marriage if my daughter has chosen a man that doesn''t understand his responsibilities.¡± Mona said. ¡°Mother!¡± Helena gasped. ¡°You are getting ahead of yourself!¡± ¡°How am I doing that?¡± Mona asked. ¡°My husband asked him a simple question...¡± ¡°...and he gave you a simple answer in return!¡± Helena said, a little exasperated, and her mother looked confused again. ¡°Ask him what being a husband means.¡± Mona rolled her eyes slightly. ¡°Very well, I''ll humor you.¡± She said and looked at me. ¡°Mr. Drake, tell me what being a husband means.¡± ¡°A husband is to be the head of a household in partnership with his wife. He is to protect his wife with his life, both physically and emotionally. He is to use all of his skills and abilities to ensure her safety and her financial stability. She must feel security, contentment, and pride from him while also having his continuous support and love.¡± I said. The three people across from me had shocked looks on their faces. ¡°Children must be provided to ensure the continuation of the family, usually at the behest of the wife, as she will be bearing them. They will be encompassed under the husband''s duties to the wife, which will expand to become duties to the family when the children are born and...¡± ¡°That''s enough.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta interrupted and I stopped talking. ¡°Do you really intend to do all of that with my daughter?¡± ¡°I already started.¡± I said. Selena and her mother Mona caught their breath. ¡°He''s opened his own account at the bank.¡± Helena said and that got all of their attention. ¡°Carson is handling it for him as well.¡± Mona leaned close to her husband to whisper in his ear. ¡°I thought you said he was lower than a commoner? How could he have the basic amount needed to deposit into the bank?¡± I clearly heard her and didn''t respond, mainly because I didn''t want them to know I could. Grand Mage Henrietta turned to whisper back. ¡°This is the first I''ve heard of it. When he was robbed of part of the loot from the battle with the weapons he made, I thought he was destitute and was trying to grab onto Helena for her money.¡± ¡°So did I.¡± Mona whispered. ¡°We need time to investigate this properly and to reevaluate him.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta nodded slightly and looked at me. ¡°We need time to discuss things for a while and we will meet again in the morning.¡± ¡°Father, what about...¡± ¡°I won''t formally greet him into the family until certain things are settled.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said in a firm tone. ¡°He will stay in the guest room until tomorrow.¡± ¡°Father, we have things we need to buy...¡± Helena started to say and he held a hand up to stop her. ¡°Unless they are essential to your survival, whatever you want to buy can wait until later.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said as he stood. ¡°The guards will be stationed outside his door as well.¡± ¡°Father...¡± ¡°I won''t have any accidents or lost appendages happening in my house.¡± He said sternly, then he held a hand out to his wife. Mona took it and he helped her stand, then they started to walk around the couch. Almost as an afterthought, Grand Mage Henrietta''s hand shot out and grabbed his son''s arm as he passed the arm of the couch and pulled him along. Marcus didn''t protest the rough handling, since you should not to talk back or complain to a Grand Mage, even if he was your father. Selena stood up and gave me an odd look, gave her sister a huge smile, and then followed her family out of the room with two of the guards. ¡°That didn''t quite go how I expected.¡± Helena said. ¡°No battle plan can survive contact with the enemy.¡± I responded. Helena looked surprised for a second, then she laughed. ¡°Yes, that''s fitting. Mage Lukas was always the best at understanding things like that.¡± She stood up and our hands were still clasped together, so I stood as well. ¡°He had a few sayings like that and I''m sure the Mages Guild has them on plaques in the main lobby for everyone to see.¡± ¡°If they don''t, you can suggest it.¡± I said and she caught her breath. ¡°David, that''s a wonderful idea!¡± Helena gushed. ¡°Thank you!¡± ¡°It was your idea.¡± I said with a shrug and she gave me a quick kiss. ¡°We better get you to the guest room before mother wonders what we''re doing in here.¡± ¡°Won''t she wonder what we''re doing in the guest room?¡± I asked as we left the main parlour with the two guards following us. Helena laughed softly. ¡°She doesn''t have to wonder, since I''m sure your declaration that you''re already performing your husbandly duties has given her all the information she requires.¡± We walked through the house and went to her room to pick up my pack and one of Helena''s maids, then we went over to the guest room. The two guards took up their stations on either side of the door and we went inside. Hope was there and she had already put her new things away as well as her old things. ¡°How did it go?¡± She asked and started unbuttoning my suit coat cuffs at the wrists without being asked. ¡°It''s hard to tell.¡± Helena said and unbuttoned the front of the coat and waved at my neck. ¡°It could be both good and bad. We won''t know until tomorrow when we have to do it again.¡± Hope nodded and went behind to unbutton the clasp holding the suit coat to the shirt collar, then she slipped off the coat to hang it up in the huge closet. ¡°I''m glad father didn''t mention that you didn''t fit in or didn''t look the part.¡± Helena said as she untied my tie. ¡°This suit was well worth the money for that alone.¡± ¡°He didn''t mention the tie.¡± I said and she laughed softly. ¡°He would only mention it if he didn''t approve, and he didn''t mention anything you''re wearing, so I''m not going to complain.¡± Helena said and handed the tie to Hope, who quickly hung it up on the available rack on the closet door. ¡°I remember bringing a boy home from the academy once and an entire stream of criticisms came from my father as he picked that boy''s entire appearance apart.¡± Hope laughed as she came back for the pants. ¡°He cried, didn''t he?¡± ¡°Like a fountain!¡± Helena exclaimed and they both laughed together. ¡°Karl couldn''t look me in the eye for a month!¡± She unbuttoned my pants and the cuffs at the ankles that held the suit in place over the stylish boots, then slipped the pants down and off of me. Hope averted her gaze slightly and took the pants, made sure they were wrinkle free, and hung them up. She came back over to me and looked off to the side of the room as Helena stood up to unbutton my shirt. ¡°You need to learn to look without looking.¡± Helena''s maid whispered to Hope. ¡°What?¡± Hope whispered back. ¡°You''re going to see your lord in various states of undress and naked as you bathe him.¡± The maid whispered. ¡°But... but...¡± ¡°Don''t worry, I''ll help you with it.¡± Helena''s maid whispered. ¡°It won''t take you long to desensitize yourself to it. Believe me.¡± She touched Hope''s arm and nodded to me. Hope nodded back and took the unbuttoned shirt that Helena just took off of me. She hung it up and came right back and did her best to not look at my nearly naked body, despite looking like she wanted to. ¡°Should I dress in the clothing I have?¡± I asked Helena and didn''t tell Hope that she could look as much as she wanted to see that I wasn''t scarred like the last time she had seen it. ¡°I suppose you have to, since father is being a bit unreasonable and won''t let us go shopping.¡± ¡°He told me to stay in the room, so it should be fine.¡± I said. ¡°We still have to eat meals with my family.¡± Helena said in a defeated tone. ¡°I can''t wear the suit?¡± I asked and pulled out the last outfit we bought in Ester''s Village. ¡°No, it''s for greetings and formal meetings. You would need a different and less elaborate suit for meals and regular wear.¡± Helena sighed. ¡°He didn''t say that we had to stay in the room, did he?¡± Hope asked and Helena and her maid gasped. ¡°Jill! You''re in charge, since you know what to do and how to get to town quietly.¡± Helena said, her voice as firm as her father''s had been. ¡°You know the best outfits for meals and where to get them.¡± Jill nodded and quickly used her hands to take measurements on me. My neck, my leg length, my waist, and my arm length. ¡°We''ll be back as soon as possible. Hope, let''s go.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Helena said to both women, who nodded and left through the room''s door. She took a deep breath and her eyes went right to me. They roamed down my body and back up to my face. ¡°It seems we''re all alone and you are only in your underwear.¡± She said sexily and turned around. ¡°Help me with this.¡± I did, and she was soon down to just wearing panties. The both of us stared at each other, then she practically threw me onto the guest bed and kissed me. It quickly led to neither of us wearing underwear and I performed one of my husbandly duties to make her scream and moan with pleasure. 115 Dressing For Success Helena and I laid in the guest bed together and she cuddled into my chest. We didn''t speak and just held each other. After some time that seemed to pass by in moments, there was a knock on the door. ¡°Give us a few minutes!¡± Helena said loudly and climbed off of the bed. ¡°I forgot they were coming back with your clothes.¡± I gave her a look and her face flushed red. ¡°It''s not my fault that when we''re together, you make me forget everything else.¡± Helena admitted and turned away from me. I climbed out of the bed and hugged her from behind. ¡°We need to get dressed.¡± Helena whispered. ¡°I should bathe before putting on new clothes.¡± ¡°Yes, that''s true.¡± Helena said and turned around to face me. ¡°We both should.¡± She gave me a kiss and ran her hands down my chest. ¡°We can wear towels for now and our maids can prepare the bath.¡± I nodded and retrieved towels for us and Helena slipped hers on around her waist. She realized what she was doing and laughed softly, then undid it and put it around her chest instead. She helped me put mine on, after giving me a few intimate touches, then she went to the room door and opened it. Jill and Hope came in carrying several packages and bags. ¡°Mission successful.¡± Jill said as she put some packages on the table at the side of the room. ¡°No one knows we''ve been gone.¡± ¡°Wonderful.¡± Helena said with a smile. ¡°We need a bath before we can dress David for supper.¡± Hope stumbled and almost dropped the packages she had. Jill was quick and caught her before she fell and put the packages on the pile. ¡°I''ll run the baths right now.¡± Jill said. ¡°Bath.¡± Helena corrected. Jill stiffened slightly, then she smiled and nodded understanding. She took Hope''s hand and brought her into the bathroom, then shut the door. I could hear them talking intensely before the water started running and they were drowned out. ¡°Hope is nervous about bathing me.¡± Helena laughed softly. ¡°Of course she is. She hasn''t been alone with you since you were kids. I''m actually a little surprised that she''s been as professional as she''s been.¡± ¡°Maybe we should let her skip the bath this time.¡± I said and Helena took my arms and put them around her. ¡°No, she offered to be a maid, knowing full well what it entailed. You know she did.¡± Helena said and I had to nod. ¡°It''s a bit soon for her to be concerned about it, considering we''ll be doing it together.¡± I thought about that. ¡°Maybe that''s why she''s reluctant and nervous? She''s afraid we''ll have sex?¡± Helena gave me a huge smile. ¡°Perhaps.¡± I had known Helena for quite some time, so I knew that look. ¡°Are you going to tease her about it?¡± Helena laughed. ¡°I''m tempted to, just because you''re so handsome. I won''t, since I want her to be able to take care of your needs when I''m not nearby and to not be embarrassed about it.¡± I leaned in and gave her a kiss. ¡°Mm, thank you.¡± Helena said. ¡°The bath should be ready in a few minutes, so why don''t we just stand here and kiss until then?¡± ¡°All right.¡± I said and kissed her, paused, then kissed her again. Helena''s face started to flush redder with each press of our lips. By the time the bathroom door opened, she looked like she was embarrassed or had been caught in a compromising position. Both Jill and Hope looked surprised at her reaction and Helena tried to wave it away. ¡°We were just kissing.¡± Helena said and held her towel tightly as she walked by the two of them into the bathroom. ¡°You saw that his arms were around me. He wasn''t...¡± She shook her head. ¡°Get the wash cloths lathered up.¡± ¡°They already are, my lady.¡± Jill said with a straight face, then she winked at Hope, who smiled. ¡°D-David.¡± Helena said and I walked over to her. ¡°Hold my towel for me.¡± I nodded and held onto the edge of her towel. She untied it and then stepped into the large tub to dip herself up to her shoulders into the bathwater and slight bubbles. I put the towel aside and moved around the tub to the other side. ¡°Hope.¡± I said and she jerked slightly, then she did the same thing for me. She held the back edge of my towel as I untied it, then I stepped into the tub. I thought I heard two soft sighs as my crotch dropped below the water''s edge. Jill and Hope approached our respective sides of the tub and picked up the lathered cloths, then they both started to wash us. It was the same as when Gillis and Helena did it, where they washed my entire body and left my crotch for last. Helena had watched me the entire time and I watched her, to see if she was washed the same by Jill. She was, and my previous guess that all women washed me the same was confirmed. Hope hesitated after lathering up the cloth one last time and she closed her eyes for a second, then she dipped her hand and the soapy cloth into the water and washed me off. She seemed to relax when she didn''t feel that I was excited, even though I was in the bath with my future wife. ¡°Ahhh, that was relaxing.¡± Helena said and started to stand up, now that the bath was over. ¡°It was.¡± I said and stood up as well. ¡°Eep!¡± Hope squeaked, because she was still kneeling beside the tub and my crotch was right at the same height as her face, which started to turn red.If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°Thank you. You washed me well.¡± I said. Helena had told me previously to praise Hope when she did a good job, and she had completely washed me and had only hesitated briefly at the end. ¡°Y-you''re welcome, my lord.¡± Hope said and I saw that she was staring intently at my thigh. ¡°Towel, please.¡± I prompted. ¡°Ah! Yes, a towel!¡± Hope jumped to her feet and retrieved a towel, then started to dry my arms and my chest, like Jill dried off Helena. After a few minutes, we were dried from head to foot and had fresh towels around us. We went out to the main part of the guest room and Helena started to open the boxes as if searching for something, while Jill left the room to retrieve something appropriate for Helena to wear. ¡°Hope, do you have any recommendations?¡± Helena asked and opened another package. ¡°These are nice, but...¡± ¡°I think Jill said the big box was the best outfit for your first supper.¡± Hope said and picked up a smaller box. ¡°With these color matched items as adornments.¡± Helena pushed the other packages aside and opened the big box, then let out a happy giggle. ¡°She''s right! She''s completely right. This will be perfect.¡± She said and took out a dark grey suit coat and pants. ¡°I don''t know how she found my father''s colors on such short notice.¡± ¡°She said something about having the woman at the shop keep several rolls of the same fabric reserved for emergencies.¡± Helena laughed. ¡°Remind me to give Jill a raise! She deserves it.¡± Jill came in through the door with several outfits and bags in her hands. Helena waited for her to get close, then gave her maid a hug and a kiss on the cheek, before telling her that she was getting a raise. ¡°You gave me a raise before you left on your tour with the military, my lady.¡± Jill said. ¡°This was nothing.¡± ¡°Nonsense.¡± Helena said. ¡°You''re letting me show off to my father, and that almost never happens!¡± ¡°My lady...¡± ¡°Hush and help us get David dressed. He must look immaculate.¡± Helena said. I was quickly dressed, even faster than I thought possible with three sets of hands helping me. I tried to help myself and three hands slapped mine to stop me. ¡°We know how to dress you best.¡± The three of them said, almost as one, then the three of them laughed. I was adorned with a red tie, red cuff links, a red belt, a red handkerchief in my front shirt pocket, and then two patches with the Henrietta Crest on them were tacked with thread onto the shoulders. ¡°Oh, that''s wonderful.¡± Helena whispered as she gazed at me. ¡°You''re next, my lady.¡± Jill said. ¡°Hope, give me a hand.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Hope said and then Helena was treated in a similar way to me as the two maids took complete control and dressed her, fixed her hair, then applied her make-up. It was subtle and made her eye color pop and gave her cheeks a slight blush. The dress showed off some of her chest and a touch of make-up was dabbed to make it seem fuller than it was. I thought that was a little odd, considering that it would show off a lot of her chest if she ever bent over, which was something she had never done in public. She was a lady in both name and demeanor when entertaining others. In private, she was as much a slave to her desires as anyone else was. She was also very good in bed. She wasn''t as wild as the Hag had been or as domineering as Diane had been. She was a good mix of both and she really enjoyed herself while making me enjoy it, too. ¡°I think we''re ready.¡± Helena said as she gazed into the mirror. I held onto her arm, as high society required of a man when escorting a lady, and she looked very pleased with the result. ¡°Let''s show my family how beneficial you can be for me, dearest.¡± I nodded and we left the guest room. The two guards looked startled as we passed them, then they followed at a few paces back. It would be unseemly to run after us. Sounds of talking could be heard when we approached the large dining room and an attendant appeared from a small room and opened the doors for us. ¡°Lady Helena Henrietta and Mr. David Drake.¡± The man announced and stepped aside to let us pass. Four very startled expressions met us as all conversation stopped. They saw that we were dressed appropriately and Helena and I stepped into the room. Grand Mage Henrietta sat at the head of the table, with his wife Mona at the place on his left, his heir and son at the place on his right, and his youngest daughter Selena at her mother''s side. Her brother Marcus was the first to recover. ¡°Dammit.¡± He whispered, clearly upset that he wouldn''t be able to make fun of me or my commoner clothing that he thought I was going to wear. ¡°You''re on the other side of the table.¡± Helena whispered to me as I brought her to her seat beside her brother. ¡°I know.¡± I whispered back and held her chair for her. Helena sat regally, as if she was a queen sitting on her throne, and I bent down to give her cheek a kiss. She didn''t comment on my forwardness in front of her family and I ignored the looks of surprise on her mother''s, sister''s and brother''s faces. I walked around the large table to my side, gave a formal bow to Grand Mage Henrietta, as was his due, then I sat without moving the chair. ¡°So, what were we discussing?¡± Helena asked, as if we hadn''t just interrupted and derailed the conversation. ¡°The Longshore Estate.¡± Mona, her mother said. ¡°I''ve been going over everything there and it''s in a sad state.¡± ¡°I knew the retainer we hired was too much of a pansy to command the staff properly.¡± Marcus spat. ¡°His mouse-like face was a dead giveaway that no one was going to listen to him.¡± ¡°He''s a great administrator and completely trustworthy.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said. ¡°I''m not arguing that. I''m arguing him being in charge.¡± Marcus said. ¡°He should be the assistant with someone strong backing him. He would be much more effective in his duties if the staff knew that they would actually be reprimanded and not just talked to in a whiny voice.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta let a quick sigh out. ¡°We can discuss family problems later.¡± He waved at the side of the room and a door opened. Six maids brought in a plate of food and a glass of water and they spread out around the table. Almost as one, they put the plates down in front of us and then stood there at our sides to wait. I quickly looked at the plates in front of everyone else and saw that they had been given actual food that looked quite appetizing. On my plate, it looked like scraps of meat, clumps of fat and grizzle that were barely cooked, and mangled and dirty vegetables, some cooked and some mush. If my guess was correct, this was what they fed their dogs, assuming they had dogs. I took another glance around and saw Helena''s red and angry face, a satisfied look on her brother''s face, a blank expression on Grand Mage Henrietta''s face, shock on Mona''s face, and a pitiful and sorrow filled face on Selena. I picked up the appropriate fork and knife from the sides of the plate and carefully cut a large chunk of grizzle in half. I put it in my mouth and confirmed that my guess about it only being half cooked had been right. I didn''t make a show of chewing it, however. That wasn''t the point. I put the knife and fork down and picked up the appropriate main dish spoon and scooped up an even mix of the mushy and raw vegetables, turned so that they could all see the dirt on the raw ones, and ate the spoonful. The crunching was quite loud while I chewed, since no one else was eating as they stared at me, completely in shock. I put the spoon down and took a drink of the clearly dirty water. ¡°N-no... don''t.¡± Selena whispered from beside me, barely above a breath. I ignored her plea and continued to eat. I used proper table etiquette the entire time and made sure to finish everything that was on my plate. When I was done, I put the used silverware on the empty plate and then pushed the plate and the completely empty glass of dirty water two inches to the left for the maid beside me to take it. The woman hesitated slightly as her hands fought to reach for it, then she relented and picked both items up. She let out a soft sob and a hiccup, clearly crying, as she turned away. ¡°Thank you for serving such a delicious meal.¡± I said in a happy voice, making sure to praise her properly. She had done a great job, after all. She jerked as if I had slapped her and she dropped the plate and glass. They smashed onto the hardwood floor and the silverware on the plate scattered across the floor with the broken shards of the shattered plate. Not one person reacted to the loud noise. The maid''s sobs didn''t get louder as she started cleaning up the mess and continued to cry. No one moved to get out of the way and none of the other maids helped her as they remained at their assigned Henrietta family member''s sides. I wasn''t sure if they weren''t allowed to help or if they were afraid to share in the responsibility if they tried to help. Either way, we all stayed where we were and waited for the maid to finish. 116 The Henrietta Family Conclusion The maid finished cleaning and her face was streaked with tears as she finally resumed her assigned post at my side. ¡°Mr. Drake, rest assured that she will no longer be working here by the end of the day.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said, his voice stern. The maid jerked slightly and I was glad that she had already taken the breakables away, because I was sure she would have dropped them again. ¡°Why? She did her job well.¡± I said. ¡°Someone had to prepare the food.¡± He responded. ¡°If you are going to fire her for doing her job, then I''ll hire her for my household.¡± I said. Grand Mage Henrietta''s face twitched slightly, I assumed because I was countering his authority in his own house. The maid let out a particularly loud hiccup and her hand briefly touched my back, out of sight of everyone. ¡°Also, wouldn''t it be one of the cooks that prepared the food to give to the maid?¡± I asked. Grand Mage Henrietta stared at me and his eyes squinted slightly. If I had to guess, I was sure that the cooks were long-time family retainers and he didn''t like having the blame shared with someone that wasn''t so easily disposed of. ¡°In any case, this is your home and I apologize for causing a disruption in the flow of the evening.¡± I said and sat back in my chair as I clasped my hands on my lap. Mona''s hand touched her husband''s hand and the Grand Mage let out a barely audible sigh. Almost as one, everyone held a hand over their plates and the plates glowed. The smell of warmed food filled the room and the glow faded as they started eating. I sat there, completely quiet, and didn''t glance around or looked at the others at the table while they ate. Time passed by in a second and Grand Mage Henrietta sat back and waved his hand. The other maids took their plates and went into the kitchen. The maid assigned to me sighed and followed them, then they came back out with an elaborately decorated and probably delicious dessert for everyone else. On my plate was a partially charred and mangled something that was covered in rancid whipped cream. It made Helena, her mother Mona, and her sister Selena gasp when they saw it. ¡°That''s enough.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said in a tone of voice without inflection and his son Marcus looked embarrassed. ¡°Is something wrong?¡± I asked and picked up the proper dessert spoon, then dug into the intentionally ruined dessert. I made sure to get some of the rancid cream on it and ate a spoonful. ¡°UGH!¡± Selena said loudly from beside me and covered her mouth. ¡°I''m going to be sick!¡± She said and shot to her feet, then she ran from the room. ¡°You don''t have to do this.¡± The maid beside me whispered so low that only I could hear her. I ignored both Selena''s outburst and the maid''s words, and kept eating. She stayed beside me and Grand Mage Henrietta''s maid stayed beside him, and every other maid had to leave the room. Neither Helena nor her mother could look at me and they also had a hand over their mouths. They took shallow breaths, probably because the rancid cream smelled so strongly. I finished the dessert and moved the empty plate two inches to the side for the maid to take. The maid put her hand on my shoulder as she leaned down to take the empty plate. ¡°Thank you. Once again, it was delicious.¡± I said and her hand gripped my shoulder tightly. ¡°My lord, I humbly accept your offer.¡± The maid whispered before she took the plate and spoon into the kitchen. About ten seconds later, she and the other maids came back and resumed their positions, except for Selena''s maid who was still absent. ¡°Should we wait for Selena?¡± Mona asked when her husband picked up his spoon to start eating. ¡°She might not be back, my lady.¡± Her assigned maid said. ¡°Her maid is attending her.¡± Mona sighed and picked up her spoon as well, then Marcus and Helena did as well. I sat there with my hands clasped on my lap and waited for them to finish eating dessert. It didn''t look like they enjoyed it very much, even though it looked quite tasty. After a few minutes, the plates were cleared and glasses of red wine were served to the others. My glass was distinctly green and not red. ¡°Remove that from my sight!¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said loudly, raising his voice for the very first time, and pointed at the glass in front of me. ¡°My family has been embarrassed enough tonight!¡± ¡°Of course, Grand Mage.¡± I said and grabbed the glass before the maid could take it. I stood up and raised my glass to offer a toast. ¡°To the Henrietta family. May their untarnished name live on forever.¡± Everyone''s mouth dropped open in shock at the intentionally formal insult, considering their name was just tarnished, and I upended the glass and drank the entire thing instead of sipping it like I was supposed to. They couldn''t fault me, however. The Grand Mage had said to get it out of his sight. Since it was a toast, they had to sip their wine in response. They all had unhappy and sour faces as they did. I sat down and put the empty glass off to the side by two inches and the maid took it. She held it tenderly, as if it was the most precious thing in the world. I covertly took out the healing potion I had and dabbed some of it onto my napkin and then dabbed my lips with the napkin.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. After sitting in silence for another minute, the Grand Mage spoke. ¡°I''m going to skip my toast this evening.¡± He said, pointedly looking at the empty glass that my new maid had in her hands, and I could see that he was afraid of having to watch me drink even more of whatever it was. By the taste alone, I was sure it was mostly bog water with some pond scum. ¡°Thank goodness.¡± His wife Mona whispered. ¡°I can''t take much more of this. Please end it, dearest.¡± The Grand Mage took his wife''s hand and gave it a light squeeze as he nodded. ¡°Thank you all for attending this meal.¡± At the exact second his words ended, the maids all stepped back from our sides. Helena jumped to her feet, her chair clattered to the floor, and her hand glowed as she slammed it into the side of her brother''s head. He flew out of his chair, did a cartwheel as he barely missed both his maid and his father''s maid, and he hit the wall. He must have had a defensive spell ready, because when he hit the wall, it glowed slightly and he bounced off as he fell to the floor. ¡°HOW DARE YOU DO THAT TO MY DAVID!!!¡± Helena yelled. ¡°It wasn''t me! I swear!¡± Marcus said as he stood up. ¡°Open your mouth again to lie about it, and I''ll do what David suggested and remove your tongue!¡± Helena spat as she stalked over to him. ¡°That''s enough.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said as he stood up to interrupt his daughter''s justified tirade. ¡°Father, he insulted my fiance, this family, and smeared our good name!¡± Helena said, quite angry. ¡°He''s always been so petty, so full of himself, and now he''s done this... this... unspeakable...¡± ¡°I will deal with him.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said. ¡°No, you won''t! You always let him get away with everything because he''s your only son!¡± Helena spat and her mother Mona took in a sharp breath. ¡°What are you going to do? Talk to him? Tell him he did a bad thing? HE ALREADY KNOWS THAT! WHY ELSE WOULD HE DO IT IF HE DIDN''T THINK HE WOULD GET AWAY WITH IT?!?¡± ¡°Calm down.¡± The Grand Mage said and magic flowed out from him. ¡°I told you I''ll take care of it.¡± ¡°Really? Are you REALLY going to do that this time?¡± Helena asked as she didn''t fight against whatever spell her father cast. ¡°Tell me father. Tell me what you''re going to do to punish him.¡± The Grand Mage stood there for several moments, then he sighed. ¡°The Longshore Estate.¡± ¡°Father! No!¡± Marcus said loudly. ¡°Quiet.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said firmly and Marcus clamped his mouth shut. ¡°I have always tried to keep you protected. You are my son, my first born, and you will inherit the family when I die.¡± He said. ¡°Unfortunately, you have let that knowledge go to your head. Forgetting everything else you''ve done up until this point in your life and only considering what you''ve done tonight... you have been irresponsible, taken unnecessary risks, and put yourself and this whole family in imminent danger from an inconceivable threat.¡± ¡°Father, it wasn''t supposed to...¡± Grand Mage Henrietta''s hand shot out and the back of it slapped his son''s face. There was no power behind it and Marcus''s head didn''t jerk from the impact. That didn''t matter, because Marcus still looked horrified and put his hand on the spot, as if it did hurt, and his eyes were wide and started to fill with tears. ¡°I''ve warned you several times not to antagonize him. I''ve even broken the law and shown you the military reports of his exploits.¡± The Grand Mage said and that made his wife gasp. ¡°He killed an owlbear by himself.¡± ¡°F-father, the report said that there was a full squad of...¡± ¡°The owlbear was already dying and they distracted it by giving it something to kill before it died.¡± The Grand Mage said. ¡°All they did was become food to give it a chance to try and regenerate.¡± ¡°Father, I...¡± ¡°It doesn''t matter what you say now. I''ve made my decision.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said. ¡°I''m giving the Longshore Estate to Helena and David as an apology for your treatment of him... and as an engagement present.¡± Helena let out a squeal of delight and then slapped a hand over her mouth. ¡°Father! You... you mean...¡± The Grand Mage nodded and turned to look at me. ¡°As head of the Henrietta Family, I apologize for your inhumane treatment at the hands of my son. Please accept my blessing of your marriage to my daughter... on one condition.¡± I stood up and walked around the table to stand next to Helena. ¡°What''s your condition?¡± ¡°We''ve never had a non-mage marry into the family and we are not going to start now.¡± The Grand Mage said. ¡°You will attend the mage academy for three years and pass the basic courses.¡± ¡°Father! I never agreed to that! You know he''s not prepared for...¡± ¡°I don''t care what he''s prepared for. If he doesn''t agree, he can leave. He already has his freedom.¡± _______________ You have a critical choice to make. Will it be the right one? Warning: This will change the course of the story, no matter what you choose. A) Break your word and leave. B) Kill him. C) Keep your promise. D) Kill Marcus. E) Choose two. Okay, that''s a nice set of choices there. I thought. Like the Grand Mage said, I could wipe out the family by killing the both of them. However, that would hurt Helena, even though she really hates her brother right now. I read the options again. She''s always supported me, so as a good husband, I need to support her. If being a mage is required to complete my end of our deal, then so be it. I choose C. _______________ ¡°It''s my job to fully support my future wife in all things.¡± I said, to the surprise of everyone. ¡°I''ll attend the mage academy for three years, pass the basic courses, and we will be married the very next day.¡± I turned to Mona, still seated at the table. ¡°I trust that three years is enough time for you to prepare a proper wedding?¡± Mona stood up and walked around the table as her face grew a very pleased smile. ¡°That''s plenty of time, David.¡± She said and held a hand out to me. I took it and bent over it to kiss the back of it, then she stepped close and took me into a hug. ¡°Mother?¡± Helena asked, a little confused. ¡°What are you doing?¡± ¡°I''m welcoming him to the family, of course.¡± Mona said and looked into my eyes. ¡°You know it requires my permission as well, don''t you?¡± ¡°Yours before your husband''s.¡± I said and her pleased smile became a sly one, because she knew what was coming. ¡°Pardon the intrusion.¡± I put my arms around her and pressed my lips to hers for several seconds, then pulled back slightly to look into her eyes. ¡°I greet you, my future mother in law, the bearer of my wife and grandmother of my future children.¡± Mona looked surprised as she put a fingertip to her lips. ¡°I didn''t taste that rancid cream.¡± ¡°I would never sully you in such a manner.¡± I said and let her go. ¡°Such things should never cross a lady''s lips, let alone her sight.¡± ¡°Or her nose.¡± Mona said with another sly smile and let me go as well. Marcus didn''t speak at my slight verbal jab. He still held a hand to his face where his father had slapped him. ¡°I believe we have an agreement.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said and held a hand out to me. I shook it for barely a moment and then offered my arm to Helena. ¡°Please excuse us. For some reason, I''m not feeling quite myself and should return to the guest room.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Mona said and pat my arm. ¡°We will see you at breakfast.¡± I nodded and turned to lead Helena from the room, then paused and looked at the maid. ¡°Come along.¡± ¡°Yes, my lord!¡± The maid said and walked around the table to follow us out of the dining room. She couldn''t hide the very happy smile on her face as the doors closed behind us. 117 Breakfast Bonuses We made it back to the guest room, surprisingly without the guards. As soon as we stepped inside, Helena turned to hold me tightly in her arms. ¡°David, I''m so sorry that happened! I never expected...¡± Helena stopped hugging me and let me go. ¡°You said you''re not feeling well, so go ahead and try to get all that up.¡± She motioned to the bathroom. ¡°I''ll have Jill go find something to settle your stomach.¡± ¡°I''m fine. I only said that to leave the room before your brother decided to ignore your father.¡± ¡°Wh-what? But... you ate...¡± I shook my head and she sighed. ¡°My lord, I am very sorry.¡± The maid behind us said as she shut the door. ¡°It was only meant as a joke. You were supposed to react and yell and holler at being fed like the dogs.¡± ¡°So, Marcus did put you up to it!¡± Helena said, angrily. ¡°He''s the young lord. Anything he says, we must do, or be fired.¡± The maid said and she wiped at her eyes. ¡°Or be fired when we do.¡± ¡°Like I told the Grand Mage, it wasn''t your fault for doing your job.¡± I said and took out ten gold coins. ¡°No, my lord. I''ve been paid this month.¡± The maid said. ¡°I won''t accept money for what happened.¡± ¡°All right, what happened?¡± Hope asked. She and Jill had sat and waited in the room for the meal to end and now she wanted to know what was going on. ¡°It was horrible.¡± Helena said, tears coming to her own eyes, then she explained what had happened. Hope''s face was quite angry by the time Helena was done speaking. ¡°I''m going to kill him!¡± ¡°No, you won''t.¡± I said. ¡°But...¡± ¡°You know he is expecting retaliation for this.¡± I said and Helena, Jill, Hope, and my new maid nodded. ¡°I want him to suffer, so we are not going to get back at him.¡± The four women stared at me with blank expressions, then Helena got it. ¡°Oh, David! That''s brilliant!¡± Helena exclaimed and gave me a kiss. ¡°He''s going to go crazy as he waits to see what we''re going to do to him over this! He''ll be jumping at shadows by the end of the week when nothing happens!¡± I nodded and she gave me another kiss, this one a bit more passionate. ¡°Wait, mom was right. I can''t taste the rancid cream, even kissing you like this.¡± Helena said, confused. ¡°I put some healing potion on my napkin.¡± I said as an explanation and she looked shocked, then she laughed. ¡°I love you so much!¡± Helena said and kissed me again, only this time she didn''t stop. I felt hands all over for several minutes as my clothes were removed, then an also naked Helena pulled me down onto the bed. I made love to her right there. When we were done sometime later, I glanced around and none of the maids were present. I still had my vigilance technique going and I hadn''t heard them leaving. ¡°Relax, they just used the secret exit.¡± Helena said, as if she knew what I was wondering. ¡°If you need them for anything, just ring the little bell.¡± ¡°We should bathe and go to bed.¡± I said. ¡°Yes, that''s a good idea. I want to hold you in my arms all night again.¡± Helena said and looked down at me. ¡°Although, a bath might not be necessary.¡± I was about to ask her what she meant and she slid over on top of me. ¡°You bravely stood up to my father, one of the most powerful members of the Grand Mages Council, and he had to back down. No one has ever done that before. No one.¡± Helena whispered and we joined together. ¡°I knew... asking you to marry me... was the right choice a long time ago.¡± She said and then moaned as I moved inside of her. ¡°I never imagined... you would exceed... all of my expectations.¡± ¡°I wasn''t sure that your father could get me out of the army.¡± I responded. ¡°He almost didn''t.¡± Helena said and let out a whine as I rolled her over onto her side. ¡°He had to... call in several... OHHHHHH!¡± She moaned as she came. I stopped for several minutes to let her recover and she kissed me softly several times. ¡°Ready?¡± ¡°Y-yes.¡± Helena said and when I started again, she whispered. ¡°I love you... I love you... I love you.¡± We spent the night together and neither of us rang the bell for the maids until the next morning. The three of them rushed in, almost frantic, and Helena laughed as she was pretty much dragged from the bed and into the bath. Unlike the night before, she took it alone and was quickly dried off and dressed in a simple and yet expensive dress that only went to her knees. It also showed off a lot more of her breasts.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. Helena saw me looking and blushed slightly. ¡°It''s just what I wear at home with my family. When we go out this afternoon to shop, we''ll both be dressed appropriately.¡± I nodded and climbed out of bed, because it was my turn in the bath. To my surprise Jill joined in, even though I had two maids trying to take care of cleaning me. Hope didn''t try to fight for the cloth when the bath was almost over and the only thing left to wash was my crotch. Jill looked a little put out when my new maid, whose name was Sara, snatched the cloth and lathered it up. ¡°I wanted to thank him for what he did for my lady.¡± ¡°I need to thank him for saving me from humiliation.¡± Sara said. ¡°I''ve never had anyone stick up for me before, so he deserves this.¡± Unlike the other times I had been washed there, she very gently stroked me with her free hand and also washed me with the cloth. I grew hard, that I would learn later was her intention, and she asked me to stand. I did, thinking that she was going to dry me off with the bath over, and all three maids gasped at the sight of my erection. Hope blushed hard and turned her head away, Jill blushed a little and licked her lips without looking away, and Sara moaned as she gave me a lick. She slipped me into her mouth a second later and then proceeded to ''thank'' me by sucking on me. I finished a few minutes later, also her intention, and she didn''t stop for several moments after that, making sure to get it all. ¡°Thank you very much for letting me do that, my lord.¡± Sara said as she licked her lips, then she used the lathered cloth to wash my crotch again. ¡°Was I allowed to refuse?¡± I asked. Sara looked surprised and glanced at Jill Jill shrugged. ¡°I was going to do it anyway, so I''ll save it for later.¡± Sara wasn''t sure how to respond. ¡°Um... well, I think...¡± ¡°Will you do it after every bath?¡± I asked, wondering if this was normal behavior for these maids, since Jill just said that she was going to do the same thing to me later. They must have had different training from wherever they learned being a maid from. Sara took in a sharp breath and then beamed a smile at me. ¡°I would like very much to do that for you, my lord.¡± I nodded and then I was quickly dried off, wrapped in a towel, and brought out to the main room. I was dressed in a similar casual outfit in the same color scheme as Helena''s dress, which pleased her to no end. I wore thin pants and a short sleeved shirt, with a tie for her father to see, and we left the maids behind in the room as we went to breakfast. It was held in a different room from the formal dining room and the room was packed with large windows that let the sunlight in and it really brightened up the place. ¡°David!¡± Mona exclaimed as we entered the room and she stood up. Her dress was surprisingly similar to Helena''s and it showed off a lot of her chest. She walked over to us, clicking her heels on the tile floor, and made her chest bounce with every step. ¡°I sincerely hope that you weren''t too sick last night.¡± ¡°He wasn''t sick at all.¡± Helena said, proudly. ¡°Wonderful!¡± Mona said and leaned in to give me a peck on the lips. ¡°Come, sit beside me, the both of you.¡± ¡°Mother...¡± ¡°Your father''s already gone.¡± Mona said with a wave of her hand. ¡°I doubt we''ll see your brother this morning... or all day if we''re lucky!¡± ¡°The second bit of news is a relief.¡± Helena said. Mona laughed as she took our hands and led us over to the much smaller and more intimate table. ¡°The cooks have outdone themselves this time.¡± She sat me in a chair, sat Helena in the one on the other side, then sat down herself between us. ¡°I''m sure it''s to make it up to you for what happened last night.¡± She said to me as she pat my arm and then left her hand there. ¡°Did he dismiss the cook that listened to my brother?¡± Helena asked. ¡°Not really.¡± Mona said and Helena looked surprised. ¡°You know we''ve had a long standing relationship with their family.¡± ¡°He transferred whomever it was.¡± Helena said, catching on right away. ¡°He wouldn''t tell me where.¡± Mona said. ¡°Either it''s a terrible post or he doesn''t want anyone to know why he was transferred.¡± ¡°I''m betting on the latter.¡± Helena said. ¡°Father won''t burn an associate family because of my brother. I bet it''s going to be seen as a promotion by the family while the cook is told the real reason.¡± Mona nodded and her hand rubbed my arm slowly. ¡°I''m sorry about all of this David. I had hoped we would meet on amicable grounds and everything would be all right, with everyone happy and no one overreacting.¡± ¡°We both hoped that and it was all for naught, mother.¡± Helena said. ¡°I never imagined Marcus would be so blatant in his actions, especially in front of father.¡± ¡°Your father is so embarrassed.¡± Mona said as her hand stopped its motion at my hand and gripped it slightly before she let it go. ¡°I''m sure that was why he went to the guild so early this morning.¡± ¡°No doubt.¡± Helena said. ¡°Is it morning already?¡± Selena asked as she came into the room. She wore a dress that showed off the same amount of cleavage as Helena''s and was half a thigh shorter. ¡°Ugh, someone turn the sun down. It''s too bright.¡± She said and mostly covered her eyes. Helena and Mona laughed nearly identical laughs, which clued me in on how similar all three of them were. Their hair color was the same, their bodies in similar shapes except for Mona''s larger breasts, and their speech and voices were nearly identical. The only real difference was that Selena was almost a head shorter than Helena and her mother. ¡°I think someone''s been into the ale stored by the stables.¡± Helena said, teasingly. ¡°I only had two glasses.¡± Selena said and plopped down onto the chair beside me, her eyes still mostly covered. ¡°Morning, mother.¡± She said and leaned in and kissed my cheek. ¡°Oh, what did you use to get your skin so soft?¡± She leaned back in and rubbed her cheek on mine. ¡°You have to loan it to me, whatever it is.¡± ¡°I think you''re getting quite enough of it as it is.¡± Mona said. Selena gasped, because her mother''s voice didn''t come from beside her, like she expected. She moved her hand away from her face and her eyes nearly popped out of her head as she saw that it was me she had kissed and then rubbed her face on. ¡°D-D-David, I... I''m... I thought...¡± Selena''s face flushed red as she blushed. ¡°Good morning.¡± I said and kissed her cheek. Selena''s face went to an even deeper red. ¡°I believe that we can eat now.¡± Mona said with a huge smile on her face and waved at the kitchen. The maids came out a second later with several dishes of great looking food, which proved that Mona had been right. They really did go all out to give me a great tasting meal this morning. I didn''t bother telling them that I had eaten things that tasted much worse than what I had for supper the night before. Water beast, for example, took time and effort to make it edible. If you messed up even one step, just like in potion making, it would ruin it. No one needed to know that and I could use it to my advantage, since they would probably keep treating me extra nice because of one badly prepared meal. 118 The Longshore Estate We ate breakfast and the women talked over trivial things, mainly things I knew nothing about. They concerned the grounds, the house, the staff problems, and finances. A lot of it had to do with the Longshore Estate and I knew that I should be listening. I tried to and a lot of it just went right over my head. My thoughts went to Hope and I guessed that she was going to have a hard time trying to teach me before the academy started, which made me wonder when that would be. I had to wait until there was a lull in the conversation before I could speak. ¡°When does the academy enrolment start?¡± I asked. ¡°Next week.¡± Mona said. ¡°Everyone knows...¡± She stopped talking and looked at Helena. ¡°Our plans need to change.¡± Helena nodded. ¡°We''ll need to push up getting the Longshore Estate in order.¡± ¡°I''ll recall a couple of the crews from the docks and have them give you a hand.¡± Mona said. ¡°Thank you, mother.¡± Helena said and touched her mother''s hand. ¡°I hope that doesn''t delay the work on the ship too much.¡± ¡°It should be fine. It''s going to be in the dry dock for months. Another two weeks won''t make any difference.¡± ¡°I''m glad to have the help.¡± Helena said. ¡°David, we need to get changed and go to town. We have some important shopping to take care of, then we need to head over to the Longshore Estate and get to work.¡± ¡°I''m coming, too!¡± Selena said and jumped to her feet, then she groaned and put a hand on her head. ¡°Owww.¡± ¡°Take a sip.¡± I said and handed her the partially used Healing potion. She looked at the dark blue color that was very unlike the healing potions she was used to, and she took a sip. She closed her eyes and sighed as her pain disappeared. ¡°Thank you.¡± I corked it and put it back in my pocket. ¡°You really made that?¡± Selena asked as I walked around the table to take Helena''s arm. ¡°I''ve lost count of how many of them he''s made for the army.¡± Helena said with a laugh as she stood. ¡°Mother, we''ll be back for lunch.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Mona said and stood as well to give her daughter a kiss on the cheek. ¡°Don''t be too hard on David while you''re shopping for him.¡± ¡°He''s going to have four.. no, five... no, six of us taking care of him.¡± Helena said as her sister Selena came over to her mother to get a kiss. ¡°We''re going semi-formal.¡± ¡°Oh, I wish I could come, too.¡± Mona said and pouted her lips a little. ¡°Just order Selena to stay home to do your duties for you.¡± Helena suggested. ¡°Now that...¡± Mona started to say. ¡°No! I''m too young to be the lady of the house! I can''t receive guests! I need more practice!¡± Selena interrupted, quite loudly. Mona took her daughter''s hand and smiled. ¡°I''m glad you''ve finally admitted you can''t do everything right.¡± ¡°That... that''s not what I said.¡± Selena whispered with a slight blush. ¡°Then go and have fun with your sister and her handsome fiance in town.¡± Mona said. ¡°Thank you!¡± Selena said and kissed her mother''s cheek, then ran off to get changed. Mona tried to hide her laugh as she turned to me. ¡°You''ll have to change again when you come back. We can''t have you working in anything except proper clothing for the job.¡± ¡°The foreman will let us know what needs to be done when we get there.¡± Helena said to me and looked at her mother. ¡°I assume that father...¡± ¡°Yes, he contacted the administrator last night.¡± Mona said. ¡°It honestly sounded like the man was relieved that someone was coming over to take charge from him.¡± Helena sighed. ¡°I hate it when Marcus is right about something.¡± Mona laughed and made shooing motions with her hands. ¡°Go on, get out of here.¡± I leaned in and kissed her cheek, like Selena and Helena had. ¡°Goodbye.¡± ¡°Oh, you.¡± Mona pat my chest. ¡°You might have to start calling me mother if you keep that up.¡± ¡°Not mother in law?¡± I asked, just to make sure. ¡°When you marry into the family, you become family.¡± Mona said and then her face seemed to loose the happiness. ¡°Mother, what is it?¡± Helena asked.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. ¡°I was thinking of telling him to treat me like his mother, and that is not what I want from him, since she was so stupid to abandon her child and he must hate her for that.¡± Mona said, her face pensive. ¡°Then I thought to tell him to treat me the same as the woman who raised him, and that is definitely not how I want him to treat me, since she did such horrible things to him.¡± ¡°Mother, maybe you should consider the best way to handle this.¡± Helena said. Mona shook her head and looked into my eyes. ¡°You don''t have a proper reference for how a mother is supposed to treat her son. I don''t know what to say to reassure you that all I want to give you is my love and understanding.¡± ¡°Even after learning what I''ve done?¡± I asked. Her hand on my chest slid up to cup the side of my face. ¡°After seeing what you did last night at supper, I understand that the things you''ve done were because of what you thought was right.¡± ¡°Even the princess? Because I did that specifically to get her out of the army.¡± I said. Mona took in a deep breath and let it out. ¡°You still have her arm?¡± ¡°It''s preserved and in Helena''s vault.¡± I lied and both Mona and Helena looked surprised. ¡°Can all mages tell when someone lies so blatantly?¡± ¡°No.¡± Mona said. ¡°Where is the arm?¡± ¡°In my pack in the guest room. It''s hidden under the bed. I wouldn''t open it, because the yellow diamond snake inside is poisonous.¡± ¡°You brought a SNAKE into the house?¡± Mona asked loudly. ¡°Grand Mage Henrietta hasn''t assigned me a vault yet and I needed a way to protect my property.¡± ¡°Then let''s take care of that right now.¡± Mona said and strode from the room. Her heels clacked very loudly as she walked with purpose and intent. Helena and I followed her to the guest room. ¡°Get your pack, David.¡± I retrieved it and Helena told the maids to get our travelling clothes ready. I followed Mona to a different room that nothing else was in and she put her hand to the wall. The entire thing glowed as she infused it with mana, then it split apart to show six personal vaults mounted into stone. Mona walked over to the one on the far right and put her hand on it. ¡°Put your hand on it and infuse it with magic.¡± I did so and she caught her breath as my magic mixed with hers inside the vault door. Her hand shook as she let go and pulled her magic back. My magic took it over completely and it clicked open. ¡°It will only work for you now, until you want to give ownership back.¡± Mona said and cupped her hand. ¡°Then we reverse the order.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and put my pack in after retrieving my knife and sheath, then I took a replacement healing potion for the nearly empty one. ¡°You''re welcome.¡± Mona said and I closed the door. ¡°Now I''ll prove that what I said is true.¡± I watched as she put her hand on it and tried to infuse her magic into it. It wouldn''t work. ¡°There.¡± Mona said, her forehead slightly sweaty as she leaned against the wall. ¡°Whew, I''m out of practice with fighting an enchantment.¡± She took a deep breath and let it out. Her chest heaved up and down again with another breath. ¡°Are you all right?¡± I asked and stepped close. ¡°I''m fine. I just wasn''t prepared for the backlash.¡± Mona said and seemed to be a little embarrassed. ¡°Most mages don''t really practice their skills regularly. They all seem to cheat in some way.¡± I commented and she looked surprised. ¡°Do you have a testing crystal like Helena does?¡± Mona nodded and looked to make sure no one was coming in the door, then she bent over to show off nearly all of her chest to me. She was quite voluptuous and unlike what I had assumed before, that they were only slightly bigger than Helena''s, they were actually nearly twice the size. Her dresses hid them well and no one could have suspected that she had such large mounds. She dug her hand between her breasts for a moment and then plucked out the testing crystal. It was nearly a quarter full and she stood up straight to hand it to me. I took it and it was very warm in my hand. ¡°That''s not a very convenient place to hide it.¡± Mona gave me a smile. ¡°I''m sure that only a very entrepreneurial man... namely my husband... was ever going to find it there.¡± I raised my eyebrows at her and her smile became a sexy one. ¡°You weren''t even going to look at my breasts until I bent over like that.¡± Mona said. ¡°It''s perfectly safe.¡± ¡°It''s also very warm.¡± I said and her sexy smile became a genuine one. ¡°Did your husband fill it?¡± ¡°It took him two days to fill it half way and I''ve used it a few times since then.¡± ¡°Do you want me to recharge it?¡± I asked. ¡°Oh, would you? I''ve been a bit stingy with casting larger spells to help the workers when they needed it. A bit more magic would be a huge help.¡± ¡°How much more?¡± I asked. ¡°I don''t want you to be exhausted while going out with my daughters, so just a couple of infusions is enough. I''m sure I can get by with that much.¡± Mona said. ¡°You''re going to need a pocket to carry it in.¡± I said and started to infuse it. ¡°Why would...¡± Mona''s words trailed off as the crystal started to fill. It glowed brighter and brighter as the level went higher and higher. ¡°D-D-David! Stop! STOP! You''ll faint from...¡± She had to avert her eyes as the crystal''s glow became brighter than a fully charged mage light. ¡°By the Son''s Light! I told you only a couple of infusions!¡± I opened my vault and took out a piece of scrap canvas bag, wrapped the fully charged crystal, then took her hand and put the wrapped bundle into it. ¡°That was only a couple of infusions.¡± Mona gripped the crystal tightly and her hand tingled. ¡°That''s why my hand tingled when giving you the vault. You were sharing your magic with me.¡± I nodded and walked towards the door. ¡°See you at lunch.¡± ¡°David.¡± Mona whispered and I turned to look at her, which surprised her, probably because she didn''t think I would have heard her. She hesitated for a second, then she very slowly bent over, made sure she kept looking at my face to see my reaction, and slid the wrapped crystal between her breasts and back into her hiding space. She slowly stood back up and it could no longer be seen. ¡°Only an entrepreneurial man will ever find it.¡± Mona whispered. I understood what she meant and left the room to go back to the guest room. ¡°There you are! I hope there wasn''t too much trouble with the vault. Father''s much more powerful and the transfer happens quickly when he does it.¡± Helena said and waved me over to the boxes of packages. ¡°Jill, Sara, Hope.¡± The three maids nodded and I was stripped of my casual clothes and dressed in a semi-formal suit with the Henrietta Family crest on the shoulders. They told me that it was powder blue, whatever that was, and the grey tie fit well with a solid black shirt. ¡°I''m ready! Let''s GO!¡± Selena yelled from the doorway, then she saw me and her face flushed red. ¡°Please, I want to get shopping as soon as possible.¡± Helena laughed. ¡°We just finished, so we''re ready to go.¡± We left the guest room with the maids and climbed into the carriage. It seemed to take no time at all to get to the main part of the city and both Hope and I stared at all of the different structures and monuments spread all over that we hadn''t seen the last time we had rushed through. When we came to a stop, I was literally dragged by six women to every single shop in the district. Two Henrietta women and four maids, two of which were mine, had the best time of their lives as they played dress-up with me as the doll. 119 Women Are Complicated Helena, Selena, and the maids spent the entire morning shopping. I spent the entire time letting them, right up until we were about to leave the shopping district. ¡°Helena.¡± I said, my voice stern. I had learned the tone from her father and it showed, because Helena and Selena jumped slightly. ¡°David! What...¡± Helena started to say and then she remembered that I wanted to shop, too. ¡°Yes, all right. Selena, go with the maids and take the packages to the coach. David and I have a couple of places left to go...¡± ¡°I''m coming, too.¡± Selena said, quite adamantly. Helena sighed. ¡°You''re going to be bored.¡± ¡°I don''t care.¡± Selena looked at me and held her ground. ¡°Go ahead and tell me that I''m not allowed to go with you.¡± I glanced at Helena and she shrugged. ¡°Helena''s right. You won''t enjoy it.¡± ¡°How do you know that?¡± Selena asked. ¡°We''re visiting a tool maker and blacksmith.¡± I said. ¡°It''s smelly and dirty there.¡± ¡°I''m not a child. I can take a little dirt.¡± Selena said and handed the bag she was carrying to her maid. ¡°Put this in the coach with the others.¡± ¡°Yes, my lady.¡± Her maid said and the other maids took that as the cue to leave. Hope gave me a warning look, nodded at Selena, and followed the other maids. ¡°Come on.¡± Helena said and took Selena''s hand. ¡°We''re going into the worker district.¡± ¡°What? I thought... well... the blacksmith shop is...¡± Selena stopped talking because she was countering her own argument. ¡°That''s just the posh storefront they use for rich clients and that''s not what David wants.¡± Helena said and took my hand as well to lead us where I wanted to go. ¡°David needs fine carving tools to be made and those you can''t buy anywhere.¡± ¡°Why does he need them?¡± ¡°To make better enchantments.¡± Helena said. ¡°It would have been so much easier to make kracken tube projectiles if we had real tools and not the ones David had to cobble together.¡± I turned my head to look at her and she met my gaze. ¡°You had a hard time using those half-blades with full handles, even if you did make them to be held easily.¡± Helena said. ¡°They worked and that''s fine. That isn''t how you''re supposed to work, however.¡± ¡°Gary said...¡± ¡°Gary is an army officer and he has frugality burned into his brain. He''s always doing the most he can with the least he has, conserving resources and making things last much longer than intended.¡± I couldn''t argue that because Gary did all of those things. That was why he was the head of the maintenance department, actually. ¡°You''re not restricted by army rules anymore, David. For that matter, you''re not restricted by the rules you had with living in the marsh, either.¡± Helena said as she stopped walking in front of a blacksmith''s shop. ¡°You are your own man, dearest.¡± I considered what she said about the rules not really applying to me. ¡°Does that mean I can have sex with your mother if she approaches me?¡± ¡°WHAAAAAAAT???!!!???¡± Helena and Selena yelled at the same time and every single person on the street stopped what they were doing to look over at us. Both women blushed from embarrassment, then Helena dragged us around the shop to the small alley. ¡°David, I need you to tell me exactly what happened between you and my mother.¡± Helena said, her voice as stern as her father''s. The expression on her face was nearly the same as it had been when she stood in defiance against the dragon. I told her everything that happened in the vault room and Helena looked shocked. ¡°Mom would never...¡± Selena whispered. ¡°...she wouldn''t...¡± Helena''s face became a blank mask, as if she was Mage Henrietta and was ordering the mages under her command. ¡°David, I absolutely forbid you from doing anything with my mother. You are to be my husband, not hers. You are not to kiss, hug, pet, touch, lick, or fondle her. In fact, I don''t even want you to look at her if she tries to show you her breasts again.¡± ¡°I didn''t see all of them.¡± I clarified.Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°Please, promise me that even if she struts around naked, you won''t look at her or let her do anything to you.¡± Helena said as her professional mask slipped and her face became sad. ¡°If father ever found out what happened...¡± ¡°Nothing happened.¡± I said. ¡°David, you just told me that...¡± ¡°All she said was that an entrepreneurial man would be able to find the crystal.¡± I said. ¡°I''m not an entrepreneurial man.¡± ¡°You''ve made a lot of gold hunting pelts.¡± Helena said. ¡°That''s not running a business, if I remember the definition properly.¡± Helena blinked her eyes for several seconds. ¡°You understood that much?¡± ¡°I''m not stupid. I just don''t know a lot.¡± I responded. ¡°She wants me to compete in business with your father. That''s never going to happen and I''m never going to look for that crystal.¡± Helena took in a deep breath and sighed. ¡°That''s such a relief.¡± ¡°I also won''t have sex with your sister, even though she''s in love with me, too.¡± ¡°WHAAAAAAAT???!!!???¡± Helena and Selena yelled at the same time, then Selena blushed deeply and Helena glared at her. ¡°Selena! What have you been doing behind my back?!?¡± Helena asked. ¡°N-nothing! I swear!¡± Selena said and held her hands up in surrender. ¡°I don''t know why he''s saying such things!¡± ¡°She''s acting exactly like Stanley''s girlfriend did at first and she loves him.¡± I said. ¡°Who''s Stanley?¡± Heather asked. ¡°He''s the stockade guard.¡± I said. ¡°I''ve spent a lot of time there and we talked sometimes.¡± ¡°David, I don''t think...¡± Helena started to say and saw that Selena''s blush hadn''t lessened or disappeared. ¡°Selena, you can''t really...¡± ¡°I expected him to be ugly from the way you described him.¡± Selena said. ¡°You kept praising him and his accomplishments, so I started thinking it would be nice to meet him, even if he was disfigured and had parts missing.¡± Helena sighed. ¡°Selena.¡± ¡°I can''t help it! Not only is he a great fighter and a military hero, he''s handsome, too!¡± Selena exclaimed. ¡°He''s also nice, stood up to father like no one else ever has, and he made our brother Marcus look like a fool!¡± She said and took several breaths. ¡°He''s awesome and you know he is.¡± ¡°Selena, he''s my fiance. I''m going to marry him.¡± Helena said in an attempt to cut the argument short. ¡°I''m a lot closer to his age than you are.¡± Selena said with satisfaction and Helena took in a sharp breath. That made me remember that I didn''t know how old she was. ¡°How old are you, Helena?¡± ¡°Not now.¡± Helena and Selena said with deadly voices without looking at me. ¡°Father and mother approved.¡± Helena said. ¡°Ha!¡± Selena barked the laugh. ¡°Father just wanted to divert attention from David challenging Marcus to a personal honor duel!¡± She said. ¡°As for mother, well, she was apparently fishing for something new to play with.¡± Helena gasped. ¡°Selena!¡± ¡°I know. I can''t believe it either. Mother''s always been with father and she''s never entertained a gentleman caller. Although, there have been a few that have tried to approach her over the years.¡± Selena glanced at me. ¡°To their regret.¡± ¡°Did your father kill them?¡± I asked. ¡°Wh-what? No, he... ruined them.¡± Selena said. ¡°Have they taken revenge yet?¡± I asked and both women fell silent. ¡°He should have killed them. They can''t plot revenge if they''re dead.¡± ¡°Their families can.¡± Helena said. ¡°If it was an honor duel, no one could object to the outcome.¡± I said. ¡°They would have refused if he did challenge them.¡± Selena said. ¡°He''s a member of the Grand Mages Council. No one would be dumb enough to accept his challenge.¡± I opened my mouth to say that I would, because I could probably kill him before he could cast a spell. Helena put her hand over my mouth. ¡°No, David. I love you and I love my father. I don''t want to lose either of you to something so stupid as a duel.¡± She moved her hand and stepped close to kiss me. ¡°If Marcus challenges you, I want you to refuse on the grounds that he can''t legally challenge you.¡± ¡°Why can''t he?¡± I asked. ¡°Mages Guild rules.¡± Helena said. ¡°Only mages are allowed to issue and accept duels of honor.¡± ¡°Are there mages that aren''t a member of the guild?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes, but...¡± Helena sighed. ¡°They are ostracized and treated badly by guild mages, even if they have a practising license in the Gulf Kingdom.¡± ¡°What is the license for?¡± I asked. ¡°You need a license to do any kind of magic inside the Gulf Kingdom.¡± ¡°It''s a good thing I don''t really know any magic.¡± I said. ¡°Um... infusing potions and enchantments count, too.¡± Helena said. ¡°Both involve the use of magic.¡± ¡°But...¡± ¡°You were in the army when you did all that.¡± ¡°I wasn''t at first.¡± I said and thought about what she said. ¡°I can break the law as long as it benefits the citizens of the kingdom?¡± ¡°...and don''t get caught.¡± Selena said. ¡°Selena!¡± Helena gasped. ¡°You told me David and the Hag worked for years selling potions. No one ever said anything to them.¡± ¡°The villagers needed those potions to live because living beside the marsh is almost as hard as living inside it.¡± I said. ¡°Aww.¡± Helena and Selena said at the same time and reached for my hand. They touched each other''s hands before touching mine, then both of them hissed under their breath and glared at each other. ¡°He''s my fiance.¡± Helena said. ¡°He''s going to be my schoolmate.¡± Selena responded. ¡°I''m going to woo him away from you and we''re going to live happily ever after with ten kids and two houses. One for us and one for the kids.¡± Helena looked surprised for several seconds, then she laughed. ¡°David, I''m going to hold you to your word, since you are doing your best to uphold our agreement. You are not to have sex with my sister, and that includes anything you may or may not have done with your new maid. Or mine.¡± ¡°Wh-wh-WHAT?!?¡± Selena yelled and looked scandalized. ¡°What is it, dear sister? Can''t you handle the competition?¡± Helena said. ¡°How will you ever woo my fiance away if you can''t tempt him with your body like you do to your school friends, hmm?¡± Selena''s face flushed red, only it was anger this time and not embarrassment. ¡°That''s a cheap shot.¡± ¡°So is threatening to steal my fiance right in front of me.¡± Helena said, smugly. ¡°Like you told mother, you don''t have enough experience to be a proper lady yet.¡± Her voice dropped low as she growled. ¡°Don''t you ever try to take what''s mine.¡± Selena took an involuntary step back as she felt Helena''s magic flare. ¡°David, let''s go inside. I''m sure the blacksmith will have what you need and can also recommend a great tool maker.¡± Helena said and took my hand, then led me out of the alley. Selena looked like she was going to say something, then she sighed and followed us. 120 Buying What You Need Helena had been right and the blacksmith she had picked not only had all of the things I wanted, he was also a tool maker himself. After buying a dozen setups for potion making, which made the man very happy, it took us nearly half an hour to tell him about the custom engraving tools that I needed. He wasn''t quite getting it, so Helena asked the blacksmith to send an assistant to go buy an enchanter''s tool kit. ¡°Yes, we are paying for it.¡± Helena said, almost exasperated, when the blacksmith was reluctant to part with extra funds, despite just making a lot money from me. The assistant left at a run and came back a few minutes later with the right tool kit, then I showed the blacksmith what I needed, the size I needed them, and how many. I didn''t want to have to come back if something broke, considering how small the tools had to be, and he agreed. He assured us that he would have a dozen of each tool done by tomorrow and that they would be delivered in the morning. The potion brewing materials were arranged to be delivered immediately to the Longshore Estate and we left there to go to the shop the assistant bought the tools from. They apparently sold kits for several professions and also ingredients of all kinds. I wanted to see what they had in stock and the quality. I already knew that they wouldn''t have the better versions of them that I could get in the marsh, considering how far away the marsh was. What I hadn''t expected was how they had prepared some of them for storage and display. Horribly. As I browsed the shelves, comparing the ingredients and their names to those in the recipes that I knew by heart, I didn''t wonder why the potions made locally were weaker and not as powerful, if this was how they prepared their more expensive stock of ingredients. ¡°I see you''re eyeing some of our more lucrative items.¡± A woman said as she came over to me. ¡°This one was freshly harvested this morning from the Mages Guild gardens.¡± ¡°They grew them?¡± I asked, surprised. ¡°Oh, yes. They cultivate them year round in a temperature controlled magical environment.¡± The woman said, proudly. ¡°I had to outbid three other shops to get my hands on the first budding crops this year.¡± Almost as if she knew what I was going to say, Helena covered my mouth and whispered to me. ¡°David, they don''t have access to countless miles of growing area and some sacrifices had to be made.¡± I nodded my head and she moved her hand. ¡°How do I learn to do it?¡± ¡°It''s a course at the academy.¡± The shop owner said. ¡°They don''t get many passing graduates, so the availability of the rarer ingredients is limited, to say the least.¡± She explained. ¡°They also apprentice at the guild; but, that way is much harder, since you need the classroom learning to fully succeed. Otherwise, you are relegated to just tending the gardens and you aren''t allowed to grow anything yourself.¡± I nodded again and understood that I would have to take the growing course if I was allowed. If I could cultivate the better ingredients on my own, I wouldn''t have to travel out into the marsh at all and just stay at home and brew potions. ¡°If you are interested in this highly sought after one, I can sell five portions to you. You can make up to five batches if you''re careful with the preparations. I''ll just need to see your license for my records.¡± ¡°Helena, how do I get a practising license?¡± I asked and the shop owner caught her breath. ¡°You don''t need it, because you''re enrolling in the academy next week.¡± Helena said. ¡°If you want some of the ingredients right now, I can buy them on my license.¡± ¡°I''m sorry, I can''t sell them to you if you aren''t brewing them yourself.¡± The woman said, firmly. ¡°I wouldn''t normally bother with the distinction, except these ingredients are both expensive and rare. I won''t have them wasted on a school student.¡± Helena sighed and touched my arm as she shook her head to tell me not to speak. ¡°David, we should go.¡± ¡°I have no problem selling the common ingredients.¡± The woman said and waved at the large bins of them, probably in the hopes of salvaging a sale after losing a quite expensive one. ¡°If he''s going to be a student next week, he''s probably going to need a lot of these for practice.¡± Helena and Selena both had to turn away from her to hide their laughs. ¡°No, thank you. I already have two large canvas bags full of properly prepared ingredients for potion making.¡± The woman stared at me and looked a bit confused. ¡°Did you prepare these yourself?¡± I asked and pointed to the expensive ingredient that she wouldn''t sell me. ¡°I did. It took me nearly...¡± ¡°You did it wrong. It''s already starting to wilt and lose its potency.¡±If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Wh-what?¡± The woman stepped close and looked into the see-through glass bin. ¡°I don''t see...¡± ¡°Although, if there was still some of the old ingredient inside, perhaps that''s contaminating it?¡± ¡°No, I... wait, I think... maybe...¡± ¡°You need to clean the container better, with magic or potion, and stop it from contaminating the ingredient. You should still refine the preparation, assuming you know someone that knows how to do it properly. You might get another day out of the contents if you''re lucky.¡± I said. ¡°I suggest you put it on sale and let your regular buyers know that you''re almost out and it needs to be used up.¡± The woman opened the container and took out a small pinch of it, smelled it, and rubbed it on her palm. Her hand glowed for a second and she sighed. ¡°How? How did you know?¡± ¡°My David has been brewing potions since he was a child.¡± Helena said, very proudly, and she took my hand as she beamed a smile at me. ¡°I''m sure the twelve potion brewing setups have been delivered to the Longshore Estate by now.¡± The shop owner''s face lost some of its color at her words. ¡°Finally!¡± Selena said with a huff and opened the door for us. ¡°I''m bored!¡± Helena laughed softly as we walked towards the open door. ¡°I knew you would be.¡± The shop owner didn''t holler for us to wait or asked me if I knew how to prep the ingredient properly. I wasn''t sure if it was because she was embarrassed about our interactions or sad about losing so much money. ¡°Don''t worry, David. If she takes your suggestions, she might be able to break even by the end of the day.¡± Helena said a little loudly as we walked by Selena and stepped outside. ¡°How did you know I was thinking that?¡± I asked as Selena closed the door behind us. ¡°I know you felt bad about the ingredients not being treated properly.¡± Helena said and kissed my cheek. ¡°Will you come back to buy things from her?¡± ¡°A lot of the other things I saw were properly prepared. The large bins might have the bottom quarter wilted, though. I should have dug through them to look.¡± ¡°I doubt she would let you do that!¡± Helena laughed. ¡°Can you imagine the look on her face if you did? She would be scandalized!¡± ¡°I''ve never seen them empty.¡± Selena commented from beside me. ¡°They''ve always been at least half full every time I''ve been in there.¡± ¡°They must be easy to grow.¡± I said. ¡°I''m sure that a lot of the common ones grow on their own and don''t need to be tended to and only harvested when it''s time.¡± Helena said. ¡°Of course, I''m just assuming this, since I''ve never bothered visiting the gardens personally.¡± ¡°Are you allowed to harvest them yourself or get ingredients from the guild?¡± I asked. Helena shook her head. ¡°No, even internally, it''s expensive. Mages expect to be paid for their work, even if it''s for other mages.¡± I remained quiet as we walked back to the shopping district to the waiting coach. We climbed aboard and drove back home to the Henrietta Family''s mansion. Helena and Selena quickly filled the maids in on what had happened at the blacksmiths and the potion ingredient shop. Not surprisingly, they didn''t mention their mother or our discussion. I would need to remember to not say anything, too. We arrived back at the mansion and split up. Selena and her maid took their purchases and went to her room. Helena and her maid took their purchases and went to her room. My two maids took their purchases and the things Helena had bought for me, and brought them and me to my room. They were all quickly opened, sorted through, and packed into the various dressers and the large closet. When that was done, Hope and Sara took out my work clothes and exchanged knowing smiles, then I was quickly stripped of my casual suit, right down to my underwear and the knife sheath. I was dressed in a pair of thick and rugged pants that the sheath was then tied to, a kind of tank top that was actually just a buttonless shirt without the arms on it and still with the collar and tie, and heavy work boots. ¡°I don''t see the Henrietta Family emblem.¡± I said when they showed me what I looked like in a mirror. ¡°We have a temporary one that we can put on your front pocket or on your back pocket.¡± Sara said. ¡°I''d suggest your back pocket, because you''ll probably be carrying a lot of things and people will probably only see you from behind.¡± I nodded and turned around to let her stitch it to the back pocket. She seemed to have a bit of trouble as she gripped and rubbed me, then she was done. ¡°There. That''s perfect, my lord.¡± Sara said with a sly smile as she pat my backside. ¡°You can bend over and not worry about popping the stitching now.¡± ¡°Geez.¡± Hope said with a shake of her head. ¡°I''m glad maids aren''t allowed to do more than what you''ve already done.¡± Sara chuckled and gave her a partial hug. ¡°It''s just a nice perk for a lord that makes you happy.¡± ¡°I''m never doing what you did in the bath.¡± Hope said. ¡°You know why.¡± Sara laughed. ¡°I''ve heard a lot of the stories about him now. He''s died a couple of times and he is definitely not who he was as a child.¡± Hope let out a sigh. ¡°He''s still my brother, no matter what happened since he was little.¡± She looked at me with pleading eyes. ¡°Please, never ever ask me to do that.¡± I stepped close and held a hand out to her. ¡°I didn''t ask Sara to do it.¡± Hope had to smile and she took my hand. ¡°You can say no, even if she wants to do it and your fiance is okay with it.¡± ¡°Why?¡± I asked, a little confused. ¡°If everyone''s okay with it, what''s the problem?¡± ¡°Ha ha! I told you he understood what it meant.¡± Sara said and put her hand on ours and gripped both. ¡°I''m really lucky to have met you. Both of you.¡± ¡°Why me?¡± Hope asked. ¡°I thought...¡± ¡°That the other maids are my friends?¡± Sara asked and Hope nodded. ¡°We''re associates and we gossip, that''s about it. They didn''t even help me clean up the mess when I dropped the plate.¡± She said and her other hand joined ours. ¡°You are the first actual friend that I''ve had in the capital since I was a kid.¡± Hope''s eyes were wide and Sara laughed again. ¡°I like that expression!¡± Sara said and let our hands go. ¡°Grab a few extra towels and the bag of supplies. We''re heading over to the Longshore Estate to prepare while David has lunch with the Henrietta Family.¡± Hope nodded and grabbed the towels and the large bag, then the three of us left the room and met Helena and her maid in the hallway. Helena was wearing pants nearly identical to mine and they fit her form very well. ¡°You should grab your bandoleer and your pack.¡± Helena said and saw my eyes looking her over. ¡°You might need more number ten potion before the new batches can be brewed.¡± I stepped close and gave her a kiss on the lips for several seconds to thank her for reminding me, then I went into the vault room. No one else was there, so I quickly opened the wall and the vault to retrieve my things. I put on the bandoleer and then the pack, closed the vault and the wall, and went back out into the hallway. The maids were already gone and Helena took my arm and hugged it as we walked to the same room where breakfast had been served. 121 Work Is Work ¡°There you are.¡± Mona gushed as we entered the breakfast room and she stood to come over to us. ¡°I was worried you were going to miss lunch and I wouldn''t see you again until supper.¡± ¡°Are you talking to the both of us or just David?¡± Helena asked, her voice slightly cooler than it was a couple of minutes ago. ¡°What? The both of you, of course.¡± Mona said and looked surprised. ¡°What brought that on?¡± ¡°David told me what happened in the vault room.¡± Helena said. Mona gasped and her surprised look started to become angry as she glanced at me. ¡°Don''t be angry at him. I asked him to tell me.¡± Helena said, diverting her mother''s attention back to her. ¡°What were you thinking, mother?¡± Mona''s face flushed red as she blushed. ¡°I... I wasn''t, really. I just... his magic was...¡± ¡°Mother, a lot of men can infuse strongly.¡± Helena said. ¡°Not like this.¡± Mona said and pat the space between her breasts. ¡°I''ve never seen anyone fill a testing crystal like that in one shot. Ever. I couldn''t help but be turned on.¡± She took a breath and let out a sigh as she put her hand on her daughter''s shoulder. ¡°I''m sorry, Helena. I didn''t think I was crossing... I mean, I did say that...¡± She stopped her ramble and shook her head. ¡°I don''t really have an excuse. I was wrong to do what I did and I won''t try anything like that again.¡± ¡°Good, because even though nothing happened, I would hate for a certain someone to find out.¡± Helena said, clearly a veiled threat. ¡°As would I.¡± Mona smiled as she squeezed Helena''s shoulder. ¡°You''ve grown into a wonderful lady.¡± Helena smiled and nodded at the compliment. ¡°Where''s your sister? If she doesn''t...¡± Mona stopped talking as Selena came into the room wearing bright white pants and a top that showed off a lot more of her cleavage than her morning dress did. ¡°That had better be what you''re wearing under a shirt, young lady.¡± Mona said sternly as she looked her fairly exposed daughter over. ¡°You are not working at the Longshore Estate looking like that.¡± ¡°Mother, this is a work outfit.¡± Selena said and did a twirl to show it off. ¡°It''s open enough to let my skin breathe and the pants...¡± ¡°Your skin is doing a lot more than breathing.¡± Helena said with a teasing tone of voice. Selena stopped her turn and glared at her sister. ¡°I won''t object to the pants, since you need them to work. You will wear a shirt when you leave the house and button it to at least three quarters mast.¡± Mona said, her voice firm. ¡°Motherrrrr, I''m trying to...¡± Selena stopped herself before she admitted to anything. ¡°Never mind.¡± ¡°Come and sit beside me.¡± Mona said and took her youngest daughter''s hand. ¡°Tell me about the shopping trip.¡± ¡°It was fun at first and got boring near the end.¡± Selena said as we all sat down and the maids brought out the food. ¡°We warned her about that before going to the blacksmiths.¡± Helena said and started to eat. ¡°Don''t jump ahead of the story before I hear the rest.¡± Mona said with a soft laugh. ¡°Go ahead, Selena. Tell me what happened after you arrived in the shopping district.¡± Selena gave Helena a victory smile and then regaled their mother about everything they did and saw while shopping. I participated in the same way I had during the actual shopping trip, by staying quiet and going along with everything. I ate silently and didn''t speak unless spoken to. My army training was applicable to certain social situations as well. Helena chimed in when she could, to give her views and thoughts, and then they both told about the shop owner with the ingredients. Mona laughed at that point, quite boisterously. ¡°Now I wish I could have gone with you.¡± She said, her face lively and happy. ¡°Lady Ginger was a complete bore this morning with your father not in attendance to keep me distracted.¡± Helena and Selena laughed as well. ¡°Now you know why I didn''t want to be left behind.¡± Selena said to me. ¡°I almost fell asleep the last time she was here and father gave me a real scolding afterwards.¡± ¡°He''s just trying to prepare you for proper etiquette training.¡± Mona said and pat her daughter''s hand. ¡°It''s a harsh course at the academy.¡± Selena sighed and nodded. ¡°I''ve heard some of the horror stories.¡± ¡°I almost ran crying from one lesson.¡± Helena said and Selena perked up. ¡°I had to make several different kinds of beverages perfectly... both with and without magic.¡± ¡°No!¡± Selena gasped and looked at her mother for confirmation, who nodded. ¡°You can''t be serious.¡± ¡°You need to know both ways, just in case a maid is sick, or did it wrong, or any number of other reasons. It''s your responsibility as a lady to maintain consistency in the house and to honor the host''s duties.¡± Mona said. ¡°I did it all blindfolded once.¡± ¡°No way!¡± Selena exclaimed. ¡°I was showing off, of course.¡± Mona said, her face a little red. ¡°It caught the eye of your father.¡± ¡°Is that how you met?¡± Helena asked. ¡°No, that came later during a particularly violent magic practice that got out of hand.¡± Mona said. ¡°He was so commanding and full of confidence that no one dared to defy him when he stepped in and put a stop to it.¡± Helena and Selena had looks of admiration on their faces and their mother blushed a bit more. ¡°I was quite lucky he was there and I thanked him personally for saving me and the other students.¡± Mona said with a huge smile. ¡°He received an award for gallantry from the director.¡±The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Why have we never heard this before now?¡± Selena asked. ¡°That''s a great story!¡± Mona chuckled. ¡°You can thank David for that.¡± ¡°What?¡± Helena and Selena asked at the same time. ¡°He''s a lot like your father was back then. He''s handsome, powerful, sure of himself, and will face adversity when necessary, no matter who it is.¡± Mona said, admiration in her voice. ¡°Mother.¡± Helena said without inflection. Mona laughed softly. ¡°It''s all right, Helena. I realized my mistake in confusing them and you don''t have to worry. I truly and deeply love your father. I always have. I won''t let anything come between us.¡± Helena only hesitated for a moment before she nodded. ¡°You should head over to the Longshore Estate and see what needs to be done.¡± Mona said and looked at me. ¡°Don''t be afraid to assume command over there. It''s going to be your place when it''s finished being renovated and it''s best to establish yourself early.¡± ¡°I''ll make sure they all know who he is, if they don''t know already.¡± Helena said and stood. She took my hand and led me from the room, then she shifted to hug my side instead. ¡°You can... touch me there... if you want to.¡± She whispered. ¡°I saw you looking before.¡± I knew what she meant and I moved my hand down from her back and gently caressed her backside through the tight pants. She moaned a little under her breath and she hugged my side tightly. We walked slowly through the house and I didn''t stop touching her until we stepped out through the front door to go to the waiting coach. By the time we sat down inside, Helena had calmed down and gave me a sexy smile and a quick kiss. Selena came out of the house a minute later and wore a shirt on over her top. It was buttoned as her mother had instructed and she climbed in to sit across from us. She made it a particular point to bend way over to try and let me see some of her cleavage. Helena let out a mocking laugh. ¡°I see what you meant to do.¡± ¡°Shut up.¡± Selena pouted as she sat and looked out the window, her face red. The coach drove over to the Longshore Estate which was several properties away. I had to assume that the Henrietta Family owned the other properties as well if they owned an estate that far away from their own. I didn''t ask how many people lived on their lands, since I didn''t know what that would mean for them. How did that even work? Did you get money from people for living there? What if they worked for you? Wouldn''t all the money just keep going away? How did you get it back or make more? My thoughts cut off as we pulled up to a mansion that was half the size of the Henrietta Family''s mansion. Work crews were spread all over. Some working with stone, some with wood, and others with tools to shape both. ¡°It''s coming along nicely.¡± Helena said as the coachman opened the door for us. I stepped out and helped her out, then gave my elbow to Selena. She caught her breath at the clear rebuke and Helena stifled her laugh. ¡°That''s what you get for trying mother''s stunt.¡± Helena said as Selena actually used my arm to brace herself and stepped out of the carriage. ¡°David, we need to find the foreman and see where we can safely install your potion setups where they won''t be disturbed.¡± I nodded and escorted her into the building. I immediately heard shouts and yells, so I directed us there. We found the administrator standing in the kitchen and he was being yelled at by two burly workmen. His shoulders were hunched down and he looked like a whipped dog. ¡°I can''t believe my top crew was sent from our prestige slot on the ship to this blasted mess!¡± One of the burly men said loudly. ¡°What''s going on? My men have been floundering around all morning with nothing to do! Who else can I yell at to be sent back to where we''re actually needed?¡± ¡°I''d like to know that, too.¡± The other burly man added. ¡°We''re high class finishing wood workers! We don''t construct things, we finish them!¡± _______________ You have a choice to make. Will you take Mona Henrietta''s advice and assume command responsibilities or will you let the administrator try to deal with them? A) Speak up and take command. B) Stay silent and watch. C) Tell Helena to talk. D) Attack them. E) Make the administrator tell you what to do. F) Choose two. If I''ve learned anything in the army, it''s that I''m done taking orders from anyone else. I thought. I''ll choose two, first A and then D to make a point. _______________ ¡°Did Lady Henrietta lie and actually send us the two worst crews from the ship?¡± I said loudly and the administrator jumped like he had been struck. The two burly men turned to look at me. ¡°Who''re you?¡± One of them asked. ¡°We are the lord and lady of this house.¡± I said with a firm voice and let Helena''s arm go. ¡°If you want to yell at someone, you can try to yell at me.¡± The two men took that as a direct challenge to their own authority. One smiled and one frowned as they both came over to me. ¡°You''re dressed as a Henrietta House worker, not a lord.¡± One of them said and made a fist. ¡°I don''t recognize...¡± I put a bit of magic in my hand and whipped my hand out to slap the side of his head where his ear was. There was an audible pop as his eardrum burst and the man yelled as he covered his bleeding ear. I knew it hurt, because the Hag had done it to me countless times to get my attention. ¡°Are you an idiot? Her daughter, who looks EXACTLY like her mother, is standing at my side.¡± I said. ¡°Do you think she would allow just any man to escort her? Do you?¡± ¡°No.¡± The man admitted. ¡°I am her fiance and you will show us and our trusted people the proper respect, or you won''t be around to repeat the mistake.¡± I said and he didn''t look surprised. ¡°I don''t mean you''ll be sent away from the house, I mean I''ll kill you and be done with you.¡± That made him look surprised. ¡°You would issue a duel over this?¡± ¡°No duel.¡± I said and pulled my knife from the sheath and charged it. ¡°I''ll just take your head and send it to your family.¡± Both men took in sharp breaths and stepped back. ¡°Now, what''s this nonsense about you not working when you came here?¡± I asked. ¡°We... there was nothing...¡± ¡°Administrator Lannin, what did you try to assign them this morning when Lady Henrietta sent them here for their desperately needed help?¡± I asked. Lannin didn''t hesitate as he flipped his handful of pages to the front. ¡°The woodworking specialists were assigned to build the main staircase in the main hall, which is a two day job that is now half a day behind because they refused to work. The general crew was assigned as a catch all crew and were to report to any job specialist that needed extra hands. I sent them to the stonemason first, to help reinforce the outer walls. They refused to move a single brick and said it was beneath them.¡± ¡°So, it seems the situation is quite different than you both claimed.¡± I said and glared at them like Helena glared at Selena when she said that she was going to steal me from her. ¡°Very well. You both will get your wish.¡± I took out the half empty healing potion and handed it to the man I had injured. ¡°Drink that to fix your ear.¡± The man took it and drank it. He took in a long breath as the potion worked almost instantly. ¡°I''m sending you both back to the ship you so desperately want to return to.¡± I said and they both smiled. ¡°I am also informing the shipwright, Lady Henrietta, and Lord Henrietta about the utter lack of work ethic that their supposedly ''best'' work crews have shown the heirs of the Henrietta Family.¡± ¡°No! Please, you can''t...¡± One of them said. ¡°Give us another chance!¡± The previously hurt one said. ¡°You had your chance. All you needed to do was work. You didn''t even have to work hard. Moving bricks? That''s nothing. Even a marsh rabbit can move rocks. Building a wooden box and adding stairs, then adding a rail? Easily done, since I''ve done it myself dozens of times.¡± I said. ¡°Neither of you tried to do anything except complain and asked to be sent away. So, I am sending you away. Without pay.¡± Both men looked defeated and dropped their heads slightly. ¡°Lannin, please arrange for the two crews to be removed from the work site, even if they protest. Call the Henrietta guards if you need them to corral the crewmen. On my authority, of course. If the guards question you, send them to me right away and I''ll deal with it personally. After that, contact the shipwright and tell him what I said, then have him send over two competent crews. If they are as bad as these, I might have to go down there myself to see how he''s really running things.¡± ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± Lannin said, a huge smile on his face. ¡°Gerald!¡± ¡°Yes, father?¡± A young man said as he darted into the kitchen through the doorway to outside. Lannin told his son, word for word what I said, then Gerald smiled the same smile as his father. ¡°Gentlemen, right this way. I''ll take you right to your lazy... ah, I mean waiting crewmen.¡± Gerald said and waved at the door that led to the outside. The two men didn''t speak and followed the young man out of the room. ¡°My lord, thank you.¡± Lannin said when the men left. ¡°I wasn''t sure what I was going to do with them and I didn''t have the authority to send them away.¡± ¡°You do now.¡± I said and the man''s back straightened slightly. ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± Lannin said with a nod. 122 How Its Done I plucked a general health potion out of my bandoleer and handed it to Lannin. ¡°Drink that.¡± Lannin didn''t hesitate as he popped the cork and upended the vial. He visibly shivered as the potion took effect and he looked significantly healthier. ¡°My lord, what was that?¡± I took the empty vial and put it in the empty spot on my bandoleer. ¡°It''s called a general health potion.¡± ¡°It''s amazing.¡± Lannin said. ¡°I almost feel a few years younger!¡± Helena laughed. ¡°I think you''ve been under a lot more stress than you''ve told mother.¡± Lannin''s face turned slightly red and he didn''t say anything. ¡°It''s all right. We''re here now. You don''t need to be stressed anymore.¡± Helena said, her voice full of reassurance. ¡°Yes, my lady.¡± Lannin responded with a nod. ¡°Have the potion setups been delivered?¡± I asked. ¡°I''ve put them into the downstairs den for now. I doubt that''s the best place for them, however. You''ll need good ventilation for all those fires and to cool the potions when they are crated.¡± Lannin said. ¡°You know this house better than anyone. Where would you suggest is the best place?¡± Helena asked. ¡°The basement room on the far side of the house. It''s right next to the main chimney for the living room''s fireplace. Running an attached pipe to it for the smoke can be done in minutes.¡± ¡°That sounds perfect. Thank you.¡± Helena said. ¡°We''ll need to borrow a work crew for a short while to move the supplies and things down there and to do some work.¡± ¡°Not a problem. We''re just coming off of lunch and haven''t started work yet.¡± Lannin said and leaned out the window. ¡°Frank! Get your men! We''ve got a loading job for the lord and lady we need to do.¡± ¡°Let''s go, lads.¡± A man''s gruff voice said and ten large men came into the kitchen. One of them looked at me and raised a hand to stop the men from proceeding. ¡°Are you Lady Henrietta''s fiance?¡± ¡°I am.¡± I said, glad to see that not everyone was as unobservant as the last two men. ¡°You sent those goofs off?¡± I nodded. ¡°I need workers to get things done, not complainers to slow us down.¡± Frank looked at my outfit. ¡°You''re planing to try and help?¡± I smiled slightly. ¡°No, I am going to help. I hope you can keep up with me, especially when I show you how to really build things.¡± Complete silence met my words for a moment, then Frank barked a laugh. ¡°No wonder she chose you.¡± He said and held a hand out for me to shake. ¡°I''m Frank and this is my crew. We''re the best and the fastest workers on this site.¡± ¡°You''re going to be even faster by the end of the day.¡± I promised as I shook his hand. ¡°I''ll need my potion making things taken down to the basement room by the main chimney at the far side of the house to get started.¡± ¡°Consider it done.¡± Frank said, then Selena, Helena and I followed him and his work crew as they lugged ten of the heavy stone bases from the den down into the basement. None of the men said anything when they saw that I carried two of them while they only carried one. I directed them to set it up like I had it back at the old garrison, with five pots on each side and a walkway between them, with the last two pots at the end between the two rows. A pipe was easily installed to go right into the chimney, so that no smoke would gather, then a return pipe from outside would bring in fresh air. I would find out later that both pipes had hidden minor wind enchantments on them to increase the flow of air. As I attached the stone bases together with number ten potion, the work crew brought the rest of the supplies down, including a hundred crates of empty vials, and I set everything up, except for the pots, because I would need to treat them first. I asked for scrap wood, as much as they had, and they didn''t question me about it. When they brought several odd piles of wood pieces and a canvas bag of much smaller pieces, I quickly scattered the smaller pieces under the setups and set them all on fire with a wave of my hand without chanting. That surprised everyone but Helena, because she had seen me do it countless times. ¡°Selena, can you ask Lannin if there are any wildwood trees on the property?¡± I asked. ¡°I''ll be right back!¡± Selena exclaimed excitedly and took off at a run. ¡°I hope she doesn''t ask him to cut them down for me.¡± I said and one of the workers laughed. ¡°Can you go and make sure that she only finds them?¡± ¡°Yes, sir.¡± The man replied and ran after her just as quickly. ¡°Frank, we''ll need four large barrels, water filled once they are in place.¡± Helena said and pointed to where they needed to go. ¡°You can add a temporary water access point to the outside right there for now. We can move it later or make it permanent, once the grounds are decided on.¡± ¡°Yes, ma''am.¡± Frank said and sent five of his workers to do it. ¡°Sir, if I may be so bold...¡± He said and motioned to the potion vial I had just emptied onto the stone floor to secure the last stone base in place.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. ¡°Yes, this is a special bonding potion.¡± I said and held up another vial of number ten potion to show him the color. ¡°It''ll bind anything to anything, your skin included. It''s quite dangerous.¡± Frank looked surprised. ¡°Sir, that could change how we build things if it bonds anything.¡± ¡°I can guarantee it.¡± I said and picked up a few of the larger pieces of scrap wood. ¡°Watch.¡± Frank and the three other workers watched in fascination as I easily bonded the scraps together and made what looked like a rickety old workbench. Once I set up small guides on the edges to hold the potion, I poured an entire vial onto the top. Because the layer of liquid was so thin, it set by the time the men came back with the barrels, barely two minutes later. I knocked on the tabletop. ¡°It''s solid.¡± Frank reached out and knocked on the wood himself, then he ran his hand over the smooth as glass surface. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± He whispered. ¡°It''s perfectly smooth.¡± I did the same technique to the two sides to reinforce the workbench, using half a vial on each side, since they were half the size of the top, and added braces for show. The workbench I would be using for potion ingredients was ready for the fortifying waterproof potion and all the men present had gaping mouths as I used a cloth to rub the potion onto the wood, then the wood seemed to age right before their eyes and hardened in mere moments. Helena passed me a ladle from the supplies and I used half a ladle of water from one of the barrels and poured it onto the bench. The water slid right off and splashed to the stone floor. It didn''t bead or anything on the tabletop. ¡°Sir, we have to start making and selling these workbenches as soon as possible.¡± Frank said, his eyes wide. ¡°I would gladly give up a week''s pay for something like this and I don''t spend money frivolously.¡± ¡°You saw how I made it.¡± I said and the man nodded. ¡°Would you still spend that much money on it?¡± ¡°I make two gold a day and three on weekends.¡± Frank said and he ran his hand over the flawless wood. ¡°That''s sixteen gold. It''s definitely worth that, especially if the scraps you use are from the expensive wood used inside the house.¡± Helena took the ladle from me and kissed my cheek. ¡°He''s a worker and is willing to pay that much. Can you imagine what a noble would pay for a flawless table like this?¡± ¡°I would have to leave that in your care, since I don''t.¡± I said and she beamed a smile at me. ¡°I''ll inform the other workers that they are not to dispose of any scraps of wood and to gather them instead.¡± Frank said. ¡°I''ll have them leave the piles just outside this basement room''s door.¡± ¡°Tell them to save the stone pieces as well.¡± I said and Frank looked shocked. ¡°You... can''t be...¡± Frank looked at the bench and then at the empty vial I put back into my bandoleer. ¡°I''ll be making ten batches of this as soon as...¡± I stopped talking when Selena came into the basement. ¡°There''s a small grove of wildwood trees at the back of the property.¡± Selena said. ¡°A grove? Do you mean that there''s a whole group of them with no underbrush or shrubbery?¡± I asked, just to be sure. ¡°A group?¡± Selena asked with a laugh. ¡°There''s a few acres of them.¡± I took in a sharp breath and put a hand over my heart, because for the first time in my life, I was shocked by something that hadn''t removed any of my body parts. I wasn''t used to that feeling at all and swayed on my feet a little. ¡°Dearest!¡± Helena gasped and hugged me tightly to hold me steady. I put my arms around her and hugged her back. ¡°I never thought...¡± I looked into her eyes. ¡°I thought I would have to struggle so hard when I came here, even more than I did in the army. I thought I would be hunting for scarce resources and maybe I would be able to get by doing odd jobs for your father or even becoming an apprentice enchanter.¡± ¡°An apprentice? You''re an expert.¡± Helena said with a laugh, I assumed to try and boost my confidence. ¡°No, I only know a few little things and how to do them well. I really need to study to do more.¡± ¡°Dearest, we''ve got the rest of our lives for you to worry about things like this.¡± ¡°But... as your husband...¡± ¡°I love you.¡± Helena said and gave me a kiss. ¡°I started with just wanting your talents for the family, then I started to get to know you and then I fell for you.¡± She said and kissed me again. ¡°I''ve told you how rare it is for a match to work out so well.¡± I nodded. ¡°Your mother and father being the only one you know of personally.¡± Helena smiled. ¡°You are more than I could have ever hoped for and I will do anything for you. Anything at all.¡± She said. ¡°If we have to somehow survive on the magic tasks I can hire myself out for, we will not be hurting for money, even if you somehow lose all the money you already have.¡± I nodded and kept her tightly held as I looked at the workmen. ¡°I need one tree from that grove. Just one. It has to be at least one foot thick and no thicker than a foot and a half. Cut it three feet from the ground and do not clean the branches off. Be very careful in bringing it back and don''t damage the bark if you can help it. Use a cart if you have to. That might make it easier to transport.¡± ¡°There''s a road.¡± Selena said. ¡°The old property owners liked to take slow rides through there.¡± ¡°I''d like to do that, too.¡± Helena offered, clearly understanding my desire to see them for myself. ¡°When the house is finished.¡± I said and she nodded. I looked at Frank. ¡°Take a horse with the cart if there''s a road. Empty one if you have to. I need that tree.¡± ¡°Yes, sir.¡± Frank said. ¡°Is there anything else?¡± ¡°I''ll be out to help once the potions are done in an hour.¡± I said, because it always took longer the first time, especially having to prep the pots and getting the first good burn from the fires. I put my hand on the workbench to put Frank''s attention on it. ¡°Then we''ll really show everyone what the Henrietta Workers can accomplish with the right tools.¡± Frank gave me a very happy smile. ¡°Yes, sir. I''ll be back with that tree in fifteen minutes or so.¡± He and the workers left and only Selena, Helena, and I were left in the basement. ¡°Selena, did Lannel assign you anything to do?¡± Helena asked. ¡°No.¡± Selena said, clearly lying. ¡°Selena.¡± Helena said and her sister sighed. ¡°He might have mentioned needing someone to go to town and ensure the next stone delivery is on time.¡± Selena said in defeat. ¡°Hmm. I should probably go myself.¡± Helena said and Selena''s face brightened. ¡°But, you did state that you needed more practice being a lady.¡± Selena opened her mouth, probably to protest, then she sighed. ¡°Fine.¡± ¡°It''s only half an hour of your time, both ways.¡± Helena said. ¡°You''re Lady Henrietta for the next hour, dear sister. Make sure you impress them properly.¡± Selena straightened her back as she assumed the proper poise. ¡°I won''t embarrass the family.¡± Helena smiled at her sister and nodded. ¡°I know you won''t. See you when you get back.¡± Selena left at a fast walk and now it was down to just Helena and myself. ¡°Finally.¡± Helena said and let me go. She whispered a quick chant as she waved her hand and the door closed and locked. ¡°I want you badly, dearest.¡± She unbuttoned her shirt and she whispered another chant as she pulled off the slightly glowing laced bodice she wore. Her breasts spilled out and she took my hands to mash them into her hot flesh. She moaned and struggled to take her pants off as I played with her chest. I diverted from my assigned task and helped her, then she did the same to me. When we were both naked, she laid down on my new work bench and we made love to each other right there. It would be the first of many times that we would ''christen'' and ''bless'' all of the new rooms in the house when they were completed. 123 Work Is Life We finished just in time and were fully dressed again when a knock came on the door. Helena seemed a little tired as she cast the unlock spell and opened the door. One of Frank''s work crew told us that the tree was outside and wouldn''t fit through the door. ¡°That''s fine, thank you.¡± I said and gave Helena my arm. I knew she would want to be near me when I saw the tree and examined it and she also wanted the support. I had been a bit enthusiastic in my lovemaking and she both loved it and regretted doing it right then. Sharing so much magic to make her tingle all over had made her a little weak and getting off had weakened her knees a lot more than she let on. ¡°I love you, dearest.¡± Helena whispered and I led her out of the basement and up the stairs to go outside. ¡°I love you, too.¡± I said back without whispering and her face turned red, even redder than when we had made love. The workers we passed gave us various looks, mostly approval and happiness and a few blank stares, with a few thumbs up gestures. One person even clapped twice before his buddy smacked him for it, which made them all laugh. We went around the back of the house to where the work crew was and the tree inside the cart was nearly fifty feet long, had nice thick branches, and was an even size for nearly the entire length of it and only tapered off for the last ten feet or so. If I only used the tree to make the full size wooden coins for enchantments, I could get about 250 of them from the trunk alone. If I used my copy technique with number ten potion in large wooden molds, each of those coins would get me 25 square coins of the same size. That was over 6,000 full size enchantments that I could make. If I made them into kracken tube size instead, only 4 inches wide, that was over 56,000 of them without using the branches or scraps from cutting it up. From a single tree. I took a shaky breath and let it out, then smiled. ¡°Excuse me for a few minutes, dearest.¡± I said to Helena and leaned her against the cart to let her hold on. I drew my knife and even in the bright sunlight, the workers around us saw the bright glow. They all stood there and watched as I carefully trimmed off each and every branch and piled them beside the cart. Some of them were perfect kracken tube size, so I put them in their own piles. I wouldn''t even have to prep them and just cut the branches into coins and enchant them. It would make the job so much easier doing it like that. I would still do it the other way, since I wanted our property protected. I would have a rampart built around the property, since it severely lacked any kind of defensive walls, and it would be wide enough for a couple of people to walk on, just like at the garrison. Barricades disguised with hedges in front of them would be strategically placed, just like they were at the front, to stagger and direct any enemy troops that tried to assault the place. I didn''t think I would get away with adding pit traps or spring traps, though. There was no way to protect a random person if they wandered into the wrong spot, so only solid defensive structures would work. I thought about this while cleaning the tree and then all of the workers gasped when I used my knife to magically peel the intact bark by slicing the side of the tree and popped the whole thing off in one slightly glowing piece. It almost blew their minds when I asked for a cart and started slicing the trunk of the tree into two inch wide coins with my knife that wasn''t physically long enough to do so. I added the coins to the new cart in stacks and kept going until I hit the forty two foot mark and the tree''s taper became too thin for a full coin. There was about eight feet left to the trunk, so I used my knife and sliced it into planks, which also shocked the workers, because they usually painstakingly cut the planks they needed by hand and with a hand saw. I put the stack of different sized planks in the hand cart with the coins and then added the branches that were perfect for kracken tube enchantments. I quickly piled the other branches over beside the house and looked at the basement. It would be too much work to add another doorway to the outside and it would also reduce the amount of security between the outside of the house and my work room, so I didn''t even suggest it. The horse and cart were returned to their normal duties and one of the men took the hand cart around the house for me and the rest of them unloaded it down into the basement and put everything into my work room. I used the planks I had made from the tree to quickly make two large molds, five feet by five feet, just like the ones I had left behind at the new garrison. I also made a bunch of the small ingredient molds that would let me increase the yield of the ingredients I had. The first potion I made was the fortifying waterproof potion, since I used up the last of it to treat the table, the ingredient mold squares, and one of the pots. There wasn''t enough to treat more than that and I needed more. Helena had been waiting for the ingredient mold squares and started quickly making more ingredients from the amount I had prepared previously and had stored in canvas bags. We started brewing potions soon after everything was treated with the fortifying waterproof potion, with ten batches of number ten potion and one batch of the general health potion. If Lannin was any indication, none of the people around here had taken it before, and Helena encouraged my generosity and my care for the workers. Happy workers were the best workers. While we waited for the potions to simmer, Helena and I started prepping the wooden coins to ensure that they weren''t wasted. If left untreated, their inherent magic capability would eventually wane, like ingredients did when left too long. I had made so many of them previously that I was doing the simple versions almost automatically and without having to think about them. Helena was about half as fast as I was at carving the simple movement enchantments, which made her quite happy, because she would giggle occasionally like the little girl named Gloria back at Ester''s Village. We had over a hundred of them done by the time the potions were finished. With lots of number ten potion available now, I added an uncut coin to the two large molds and poured in some of the number ten potion to make a five foot by five foot wood square. After that, Helena and I divided up the general health potion into vials and filled two crates of them. I wasn''t sure if that was enough for everyone, so I started another batch and Helena nodded approval. We filled two more crates of vials with number ten potion and started a batch of Healing potion. I knew for a fact that we would need them with all of the people working on the estate, and I didn''t have many vials left in my bandoleer.A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. Helena led the way as I carried the two crates of general health potion out of the basement. Rather than make a huge announcement that would disturb everyone all at once, we instead walked around to each work crew and handed them ten potions. Like Lannin, they drank them without even asking what they were or what they did. Every single person reacted in the same way, with a shiver, a deep breath, and surprise on their faces. ¡°We take care of our people.¡± Helena said to the leader of each group and told them we would be back with a healing potion for them, in case of accidents. When we talked to the third crew''s leader, he pointed to a man sitting off to the side. ¡°He dropped one of the larger stones onto his toes. I gave him ten minutes to suck it up and get back to work.¡± The gruff man said. ¡°He''ll be back in two.¡± I said and the man didn''t look surprised. Helena and I went to the man, who looked slightly afraid as we approached. ¡°We heard about your accident.¡± Helena said in a soothing tone. ¡°How is your foot?¡± ¡°I''m fine.¡± The man said and started to stand, winced, and sat back down. ¡°Relax, we''re not here to berate or punish you.¡± Helena said and held a hand out to me, so I gave her one of my healing potions. ¡°This is a strong potion, so don''t worry.¡± She said and then explained what he was supposed to do with it. The man looked surprised and took off his thick work boot and his sock, to show an indent on three of his toes and the top of his foot. He accepted the vial and poured a bit out onto his hand and rubbed it all over the damaged area. He winced and hissed at first, then the potion did its work and the cuts and scrapes closed up. ¡°Now drink the rest.¡± Helena reminded him and he did so. A minute later, the happy man wiggled his previously broken toes and laughed. ¡°Thank you my lady, my lord.¡± He said and slipped on his sock and boot. ¡°I need to get back to work. Please, excuse me.¡± He bowed slightly and went back over to the crew''s leader. He received a pat on the back and they both went back to work. Helena and I visited everyone and there were six crews of ten men, so we had just enough general health potions for them, with four left over. We gave one to Gerald, Lannin''s son, who was the gofer for the workmen. Whatever little thing they needed or messages to give to someone on the site, he did it. The two work crews from the docks hadn''t been sent over yet, so we went back down into the basement and I picked up the two crates of number ten potion. ¡°I''ll crate up the next batch of general health potions when it''s done, dearest.¡± Helena said. ¡°You can go and have fun with Frank and his men now.¡± I nodded and gave her a kiss for several seconds, then left the basement to help Frank and his crew become the fastest workers on the site. I couldn''t say in the kingdom, because the construction crews at the new garrison had a lot more practice and experience with number ten potion. They would get to that level eventually, though. We had an entire mansion to restore and it wasn''t going to do it by itself. Frank and his men had time to adjust to the miraculous bonding power of the number ten potion since seeing the workbench being made. When they started layering the new stone wall over the old crumbling stone on the house''s retaining walls, they left a two inch gap between the new and old walls as instructed and used drops of number ten potion to hold the stones in place instead of mixing up mortar. They didn''t even question it, because they knew that their new lord would show them why. They weren''t disappointed when I showed up with a full pot of number ten potion, divided off an appropriate sized section, then poured the whole pot inside. They were amazed when it was filled perfectly to the top of the two inch gap. After ten minutes, the entire thing was solid stone and had become a reinforced wall that even a top mage would have a difficult time breaking with spells. A good sledgehammer and a lot of muscle might put a dent in it as well. Might. ¡°Men, follow that example.¡± Frank said and pointed to the divided area I had made. ¡°Each pot can fill exactly that amount. We''ll have this entire wall done in three hours, thanks to this potion.¡± ¡°It''s like a fortification wall.¡± One of the men said and looked at me. ¡°You really were out on the new front?¡± ¡°I built every defensive structure they have there.¡± I said, without boasting, and the men nodded. ¡°I want this place just as secure. Six inch thick wooden walls on the inside, ten inch thick stone walls on the outside and covered in wood to hide it, and barricades and even a defensive wall around the main house and eventually the entire property.¡± The men stared at me and didn''t know what to say. ¡°I had three construction crews and we had the entire defensive front prepped and built in a month. It covered a huge area, several miles across with over a dozen large defensive structures, twice that in smaller buildings that were inside and outside the new garrison, and defense bunkers for civilians to hide in.¡± I said. ¡°What do you think we can do in a week with six crews, possibly eight if the shipwright gets off his ass and sends them over?¡± Frank laughed, as did the other men. ¡°Sir, we''ll change this whole place into the most easily defensible building in the capital.¡± ¡°Then let''s get to it.¡± I said, and we did. The retaining wall was completed exactly when Frank said it would be and I kept making potions and helping where I could while waiting for them to brew. Helena watched them and came to get me when they needed to be infused. Selena came back, significantly later than she was supposed to, with the excuse that the stone shipment had been ''lost'' and sent somewhere else, so she had to wait for another load to be made and brought it back with her. She had made her displeasure known to the man, who just laughed and told her to come back later with her brother or her husband if she had a problem. I gave Helena a look and she sighed, then agreed that we would have to talk to her brother Marcus to set a few things straight with him, then we would have to visit the place ourselves. That wouldn''t happen until supper that night, so we all worked the rest of the afternoon and partway into the evening. I checked the potions in the basement one more time to ensure they were simmering properly on reduced heat, secured the door with both magic and number ten potion, then left two Henrietta guards on the door to the basement. One grumbled that he wasn''t paid enough to work all night, so I dismissed him and asked for another guard to take his place. One offered immediately and took the other guard''s place. ¡°Now that I have two trustworthy people, this is your schedule. One of you rests for three hours and the other watches for three hours. You switch when it''s time and you''ll only be awake for six hours tonight. If you do well, you''ll get the day off tomorrow to get some proper sleep. If you like the job, you''ll only do that and nothing else.¡± ¡°Sir!¡± The two men saluted and looked happy that they wouldn''t have to stay up all night in one shot, while the other guard cursed under his breath, probably for missing out on such an easy job. ¡°No one is allowed in. Not Marcus, not his mother, and not his father. This is my estate now and you are my guards. You will guard it properly or you won''t live past tomorrow.¡± Both men looked nervous as they nodded. ¡°I''ll have supper sent over for you as well.¡± I said and left them there to head back to the Henrietta Family mansion. I had a pleased Helena on my arm and a slightly grumpy Selena beside me as we walked to the waiting coach that had just arrived. The six work crews waved and bid us a good evening as we climbed into the coach. Now all we had to do was confront Helena''s petty and annoying brother and then face another formal family meal. I knew what to expect now, so it wasn''t going to be like it had been previously. I would check with the kitchen staff to make sure that they weren''t going to pull another trick like last time, arrange for the food for the two guards, then I could go into the dining room fully prepared and without worry. 124 Family Dinner ¡°That''s a more appropriate look for you.¡± Marcus said snidely as he looked at my dirty work clothes. ¡°Marcus, so help me god, if you don''t stop with the attitude...¡± Helena started to say. ¡°You''ll what? Smack me? Tell father on me?¡± Marcus said with a fake laugh. ¡°I didn''t do anything at all at the stonemason''s.¡± Helena''s fist slammed into his cheek and Marcus spun around comically before he tumbled to the floor. ¡°Yes, Marcus. I''ll do both.¡± She said as he looked up at her with hatred in his eyes. ¡°How dare you strike me without proof!¡± Marcus exclaimed as he rubbed his face. There hadn''t been any magic used, so whatever spell he had ready to counter Helena, it apparently didn''t work on a purely physical attack. That was good to know. ¡°We didn''t tell you we had trouble with the stone delivery, you arrogant asshole!¡± Helena spat at him. Marcus'' face looked surprised and then it changed to a blank face. ¡°I''ll have father contact ALL of the other suppliers tomorrow. He''s paying for it and you cost him a lot of money and a lot of reputation today.¡± Helena said and Marcus'' face looked worried. ¡°Oh? You didn''t specifically tell the stonemason to ignore me and I quote, ''...if you have a problem with how things are handled, bring your brother or your husband back and they can deal with it''.¡± Marcus didn''t respond and Helena huffed at him. ¡°If even one more thing is out of place in our lives because of your machinations, I''ll have your hands removed. Both of them.¡± Helena said, her voice full of venom and deadly promise. ¡°I mean it. My David has been missing the old ones he''s taken from others that have stolen from him. He''ll make a nice necklace out of them and wear them proudly, while you will need a maid to take care of everything for you.¡± Marcus stood up and glared at her. ¡°Father would never let...¡± ¡°I took the entire arm of the first princess without repercussions, not even from her father, King Rivers.¡± I said. ¡°Do you think your father will object if I only take your hands?¡± ¡°That''s right.¡± Helena said, her voice filled with satisfaction at the look of fear on her brother''s face. ¡°Father only cares if you''re alive to carry on the family name. It shouldn''t matter if you''re crippled, since marriages are arranged for first born sons.¡± Marcus stayed quiet and didn''t say anything. ¡°Of course, your future wife might not be too pleased by your altered appearance.¡± Helena said with fake concern. ¡°I should probably apologize to her the next time I see her.¡± She glared at her brother and then turned to me. ¡°We need to clean up and get changed for supper.¡± I nodded and she took my arm to let me escort her back to our rooms. ¡°I''m serious, Marcus. Interfere one more time and you won''t be able to feed yourself for the rest of your life.¡± Helena said and we left his room. When we were far enough away, Helena''s eyes spouted tears. ¡°How can he be so stupid?¡± Helena asked and she wiped at her eyes. ¡°He''s been warned so many times now and he still can''t get it through his head to stop.¡± ¡°I can take just the small fingers for now. He might learn the lesson you''re trying to teach him.¡± I offered. ¡°It worked for me.¡± Helena let out a bark of laughter and kept crying. ¡°He''s not as smart as you, dearest. He''ll only hate that we''ve maimed him and won''t learn a thing.¡± ¡°You''re worried that we have to actually take his hands and he''ll only get worse?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°We''ll relay everything to your father. If he doesn''t stop his son like he promised, then removing Marcus'' hands won''t mean anything anyway.¡± Helena took a deep breath and nodded. ¡°My room.¡± She pointed at the door that we approached. ¡°I''m wearing a new dress and Jill wants it to be a surprise for you.¡± ¡°Jill does?¡± I asked and she smiled as we stopped walking. ¡°Yes, she''s taken a liking to you for some reason.¡± Helena said. I took out a piece of cloth from my pocket and I cleaned off the tear streaks on her cheeks. ¡°Thank you.¡± Helena gave me a kiss and went into her room. I dropped my pack off in the vault room and walked down the hallway to the guest room. ¡°You''re filthy!¡± Sara exclaimed when she saw me step into the room. ¡°After all the setup work Hope and I did in the main bathroom over there, you didn''t use any of it?¡± ¡°I didn''t know I was supposed to.¡± I said, truthfully. Sara laughed a little and shook her head as she looked at Hope. ¡°It looks like we''ve got a lot of work to do.¡± Hope nodded and I was quickly stripped, the dirty clothes set aside to be washed, and I was led into the bathroom and set into the waiting tub with my knife sheath tied to my wrist. I was scrubbed twice as hard as I had been previously, by both maids, and I was soon cleaned all over. When it came to the last spot, Hope politely turned away to gather the needed towels and Sara did the same rubbing and cleaning trick on my crotch.Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. I stood when told to and Hope dried off my upper body as Sara performed her bath ritual. It was over quickly, which made both Sara and Hope happy, then I was fully dried and led back into the bedroom to get changed. I was dressed in the fancy dinner suit and then I was released from their tender care. I had to wait in the hallway for several minutes for Helena to finish getting dressed, then the door opened. A vision of loveliness stood there, with her hair done up in a complicated hairdo that highlighted her face and made her eyes stand out. Her cleavage was well hidden from prying eyes, unless she stood next to you and hugged your arm, then you would get a deep down view of her breasts. I knew this because she did exactly that to show off what her maid called the ''main feature'' of the dress. With the both of us wearing proper attire, we walked through the house and stopped briefly at the kitchen. After they professed that no more jokes would ever be played, they promised to send two meals to the guards at the Longshore Estate after supper was served to the Henrietta Family. I thanked them and I led Helena to the formal dining room. Once again, we were the last to arrive, even though we had intentionally showed up early. I suspected that they knew we were going to try to be early, with the things we needed to discuss about the Longshore Estate and the interference that Marcus had caused to delay a good portion of the work. If I hadn''t introduced the men to the number ten potion and taught them how to use it safely and efficiently, the work on the house would have been delayed by more than a day. I sat Helena in her traditional spot beside her brother and went around the table to sit beside her sister, which was my spot. ¡°Grand Mage, we have things to discuss about the Longshore Estate.¡± ¡°I''ve had several messages delivered today about that.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said, his voice a bit lower than normal. ¡°Is it true you scolded able-bodied workmen and sent them away from the worksite?¡± ¡°No, Grand Mage.¡± I said and he looked surprised, because I hadn''t lied. ¡°They had been requesting to leave since they arrived that morning and refused to do any work. When I arrived, they were verbally abusing Administrator Lannin and yelling for someone to send them away. I assumed command authority and granted their request.¡± The Grand Mage gave me a pointed look. ¡°Did you try to send an unfavorable report to the shipwright that condemned their work ethic?¡± ¡°What do you mean try? It should have been delivered with the request to send competent workers.¡± I said and Mona caught her breath. ¡°We need men that want to work to get the estate done, not whiners and complainers that wouldn''t move a single brick or thought that building the grand staircase in the main hall was a task that was beneath them.¡± ¡°They did not say that.¡± Marcus added and his father held a hand up to stop him from saying anything else. ¡°So, not only did you interfere with the stonemason''s, you also sabotaged the work crews mother had reassigned from the shipyard?¡± Helena asked, her anger clear in her voice. It didn''t show on her face, however. ¡°Do you realize how much you''ve damaged our family''s public image with your vendetta against my David?¡± ¡°Helena, that''s enough.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said. ¡°Did he tell you what I threatened him with if he was caught interfering again, father?¡± Helena asked. ¡°He did, didn''t he?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said and looked at me. ¡°I will not allow you to harm my son.¡± ¡°I threatened him father, not David.¡± Helena said. ¡°Are you going to stop me from punishing him if he interferes again?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°What will his punishment be for smearing mother''s name and undermining her authority?¡± Helena asked and Mona took in a sharp breath. ¡°The shipyard is under her command and her son intentionally had the men act disrespectfully to your daughter and her fiance and delayed work on the house by half a day.¡± The Grand Mage didn''t respond. ¡°You do realize you broke your word, don''t you father?¡± Helena asked and his eyes flashed anger. ¡°Twice, actually. You said you would control your son and stop him from antagonizing David and you also said you would punish him for insulting the family and embarrassing us.¡± I waited while Helena paused and I looked at her mother and her sister to see their unhappy faces. ¡°Do you know what it was like for Selena to go to the stonemason''s and have the man there laugh at her, because Marcus told him that she didn''t have the authority to command him without him or David there?¡± Helena asked, her voice deadly. ¡°Do you know how embarrassing it was to suffer like that?¡± The Grand Mage closed his eyes for a second and let out a sigh. ¡°Helena, he''s my son.¡± ¡°He''s also an ignorant fool!¡± Helena spat and then she took a deep breath to calm down. ¡°He''s pissed me off for what he''s done and he''s angered Selena and the work crews at the job site for making them wait for hours for the load of stone bricks they should have had early this afternoon.¡± The Grand Mage saw the protest on Marcus'' face and held a hand up to stop him from speaking. ¡°That''s right, father. He''s admitted that he knew, because when David and I went to him earlier, he claimed that he didn''t have anything to do with the stonemason...¡± ¡°I told you.¡± Marcus said with satisfaction. ¡°...and we hadn''t told him why we were there yet.¡± Helena finished. ¡°Yes, you did.¡± Marcus tried to defend himself. ¡°I believe lies are not as powerful as the truth, right mother and father? How many lies does Marcus have to tell before you believe he''s the cause of nearly all the problems this family has been having the last few years?¡± Helena asked. ¡°Our name doesn''t command the respect it used to, and it''s all because of him.¡± ¡°That''s enough.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said. ¡°Marcus is my son and the sole heir to the family name.¡± Helena gave me a pleading look, which I knew was a clear bid for help, because she was losing the argument. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. This will change how the rest of the story plays out. This will affect your relationship with the Henrietta Family to a significant degree. A) Stay quiet. B) Support her. C) Speak out. D) Break your word. E) Take his hand. F) Choose two. I''m not really sure why taking his hand is a choice. I thought. Maybe because Helena said her father broke his word? I read the options again. I need to smooth things out and not make things worse with her father, so taking his hand won''t work. I also can''t stay quiet. All right. There''s only two things I need to do, so I''ll choose them. B and C. _______________ ¡°You''re wrong, Grand Mage.¡± I said and everyone looked to me. ¡°You know my origins and how I came to be.¡± The Grand Mage nodded and made a motion to continue. ¡°I didn''t have a name of my own until I was older. I also didn''t have a last name until I became a man and it was chosen for me.¡± I said, which made both Mona and Selena look sad. ¡°Lady Henrietta said at breakfast that when I marry into the family, I''ll become family, so that''s what I''m going to do.¡± Everyone looked a little confused at my statement, so I had to clarify it for them. ¡°When I marry Helena, I''ll become David Henrietta and our children will be heirs to the family.¡± Helena let out a little shriek of surprise and covered her mouth, Selena was left speechless and seemed to faint, her mother Mona gasped and waved a hand in front of her face, and Marcus sputtered and mumbled something that sounded like curses with a look of horror on his face. The best reaction of all was by Grand Mage Henrietta, who look like I had shot him with a kracken tube. Pure shock was not something that anyone else had ever seen on his face. I felt quite proud, because I hadn''t realized that a person''s name could have that much power. 125 Lessons Before Lessons No one spoke for almost ten minutes and they all stayed the way they were after my revelation, except for Selena, who recovered from her faint and stared at me. When it was time to eat, I waved a hand at the kitchen and sent out a little bit of magic. The door opened and six maids came out with plates of food. Almost as if that was a clue for the Henrietta family to start acting normally, they all slipped right into proper table etiquette and we all started eating. The meal passed by quickly and there wasn''t a lick of conversation. No one tried to say anything, not even to the maids, so I whispered my thanks to each of them as they passed me to go back into the kitchen. They all smiled and nodded and came back with dessert. Everyone ate, also silently, and the empty dessert bowls were removed and I thanked the maids again. Glasses of wine were delivered next and everyone stared with wide eyes at the red liquid in front of them. I didn''t laugh, even though it was pretty funny that the Grand Mage, whom always gave long speeches according to Helena, wouldn''t reach for the glass to give the ending toast. I took the initiative again, like I had the day before, and stood with the glass raised. ¡°To the Henrietta Family''s ensured continuation.¡± I said and took a sip of wine, which they had to respond to. The Grand Mage didn''t try to say anything, so I put the glass down. ¡°On behalf of Grand Mage Henrietta, who is a bit speechless at the moment, I thank you all for attending this meal.¡± Everyone around the table visibly relaxed, even though I was the one to formally end the meal. ¡°Dearest, help me to the sitting room.¡± Mona said and held a hand out to her husband. He took her hand and the two of them left before anyone could think about stopping them. I walked around the table and took Helena''s hand in the same manner as her father took her mother''s hand, then led her from the room as well. When we were well away from the room, Helena spoke. ¡°David, what... what were you thinking?¡± Helena asked, her voice full of disbelief. ¡°I was supporting my future wife in her decisions.¡± I said and her hands gripped mine. ¡°If Marcus continued to believe that he was the sole heir to the family, nothing we could do to him would matter. Your father said he would always intervene on his son''s behalf and I can''t allow that.¡± ¡°But... David, you... you know what it means to...¡± ¡°Marcus is the first born son and will inherit the family name; but, unless he gets married and has children before we do, our children will have the advantage in both being first born and being older than his children.¡± I explained. ¡°Assuming he actually does have children, by the time they are old enough to make a claim, our children will already run everything.¡± Helena''s eyes seemed to dance with mirth. ¡°David, that... that would make me very happy.¡± She said and then her face showed concern. ¡°What about your own name? Don''t you want to...¡± ¡°I''m proud to be David Drake and be named after the marsh where I grew up. That will always be true, no matter what name I change it to.¡± I said and she leaned close to kiss my cheek. ¡°We just have to make sure that our children are happy to be a Henrietta, without letting it go to their heads.¡± ¡°You won''t have to worry about that, dearest. There''s no way that we will make the same mistakes my parents made.¡± Helena said, her voice firm. ¡°You need to go to your room to change into casual clothes. Hope is waiting for you to begin your lessons and then I will come over to spend the night.¡± ¡°Yes, dearest.¡± I said and kissed her when we reached her room. She went inside and I went to the guest room to be undressed by my two maids. I was soon dressed in casual clothing and Hope went into the bathroom to get changed into one of the tutor uniforms that she owned. She came back out and led me over to a desk that hadn''t been there earlier and on it were several books and some blank paper. ¡°David, we have a lot to cover in a short amount of time.¡± Hope said and waved at the chair in front of the desk. ¡°I''m going to start by asking you some basic questions and then I''ll start filling in the knowledge you don''t know.¡± Sara sat on the bed and listened and watched as I was tested quite thoroughly by Hope and she was apparently happy with what I knew, because she congratulated me for picking up so much in the short time that I had since gaining access to learning materials from Diane. ¡°Now it''s time for the learning part.¡± Hope said and sat down beside me and we really got to work. There was a lot more to math than I thought there was going to be. Once I had the base system down however, which surprisingly was nearly identical to potion ingredient measurements, I blew through the questions and filled several sheets of paper on both sides as if time was going by like a breeze. ¡°That''s amazing.¡± Sara whispered. ¡°How in the world did you learn so much in the middle of a marsh?¡± ¡°Sara.¡± Hope admonished. Sara covered her mouth and she nodded as an apology for interrupting.If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Let''s move on to general reading terms and then we''ll try the generic reading primer first. If you can handle that, we''ll move on the the more advanced one.¡± Hope said and handed the first one to me. ¡°A what?¡± I asked. ¡°A reading primer. It''s like a short book that people read to prove that they can read general things, like the names of objects and things like businesses.¡± Hope said. ¡°The more advanced one covers a lot more specific things and it can be difficult to get through.¡± She touched my hand. ¡°Don''t worry, I''ll help you sound out anything that you struggle with.¡± Time passed like a flash and I did the general reader primer and most of the advanced one. I struggled a lot with the larger compound words, mostly because I hadn''t seen them written out before. I had heard a lot of them and once my brain made that connection, it was so much easier. Both Hope and Sara were impressed by my progress and told me so. Just then, a knock sound came from the door and Sara ran over to open it. ¡°I''m sorry if I''m interrupting.¡± Helena said as she peered into the room. ¡°Not at all, my lady.¡± Sara said and bowed as she stepped back to let Helena into the room. ¡°My lord just finished the advanced reading primer.¡± Helena didn''t look surprised as she entered with her maid Jill behind her. ¡°He''s been reading mage language pretty well, so that''s not a surprise.¡± ¡°WHAT?!?¡± Hope and Sara yelled at the same time. Helena laughed. ¡°Don''t look so shocked. I wasn''t going to leave my future husband ignorant of my profession. Even if he never studied to become a mage himself, I would have wanted him to be knowledgeable enough to help me when I ask for his help retrieving books or things only mages use.¡± ¡°So, I wasted my time tonight?¡± Hope asked, her voice dejected. ¡°Of course not.¡± Helena said and pat her shoulder. ¡°He didn''t do it all perfectly, did he?¡± ¡°Well, no... but...¡± ¡°Do you have a much better gauge of his skills and abilities now?¡± Helena asked. ¡°Yes, I do. I''m sure that I can help him much more effectively with...¡± Hope paused and smiled. ¡°You''re very smart, my lady.¡± Helena laughed softly. ¡°Time with my David is never wasted, Hope. It might be long, or filled with silence, or even sometimes contain fear of what might happen... especially when near or on a battlefield. All of his time is precious... and now it''s time for bed.¡± Hope, Sara, and Jill laughed softly in response. ¡°Shoo, shoo.¡± Helena waved for them to leave and the three maids did so. ¡°Change for bed, dearest. I want to hold you in my arms and bask in your love.¡± I took off my clothes and let her admire me, then slipped on the bed clothes set out for me. We climbed into bed together and Helena held me tightly for quite some time before she fell asleep. I fell asleep soon after and then it was morning. Breakfast was with only Mona and Selena again, with both Henrietta males absent, and we chatted about the work on the house and what we would do if the two requested crews actually did show up. ¡°Don''t worry about it. I had my husband cancel the work crew transfer and reinstate the complaints against the work crews from yesterday.¡± Mona said. ¡°Unfortunately, Helena was right. Even though I own the ship building business at the dock, Marcus has lessened my influence there to a significant degree.¡± Helena reached across the table to take her mother''s hand. ¡°I hate being right when it hurts the family.¡± Mona nodded and gripped her hand briefly before letting it go. ¡°You''ll be stuck with the men you have working now and that''s it.¡± ¡°Good.¡± I said. ¡°I don''t want outsiders learning what I''m teaching them.¡± ¡°But, the work...¡± ¡°Now that we''ve got the system down that''s even more efficient than what I had in the army, we''ll have the mansion done in less than a week.¡± I said. Helena nodded agreement, to her sister''s and her mother''s surprise. ¡°My David can work wonders when he''s not restricted by military procedure.¡± She gave her mother a pointed look. ¡°I hope father does what I asked him to do. Otherwise, we will cancel all of the orders and demand the money back.¡± Mona sighed and looked unhappy. ¡°Helena, you can''t just arbitrarily decide things like that on your own.¡± ¡°Mother, they listened to my brother and cost father a lot of money yesterday and us a lot of time. I have no problems with looking outside the city for new suppliers that would be more than happy to fill our orders promptly and without hassle.¡± Helena said and kept eating. ¡°If the work crews are any indication, even the lesser nobles would jump at the chance to work on the lands near the capital.¡± ¡°They would do it just for the recognition.¡± Selena said. ¡°Becca would be all over it if given a choice.¡± ¡°Becca? Really?¡± Mona asked, once again surprised. ¡°Would they do something like that?¡± ¡°Do what?¡± I asked. ¡°Her family is filled with magical artists. Sculptors, painters, musicians, dancers, and anything else related to the arts.¡± Selena said. ¡°Some do more than one thing, too.¡± I looked at Helena. ¡°Didn''t you say that you wanted the mansion to be the most noticeable?¡± ¡°I don''t want it in garish colors.¡± Helena said. ¡°We''d have to limit them to paintings and sculptures.¡± ¡°There''s the broken fountain in the gathering area in the front lot, too.¡± Selena said. ¡°I''m sure they can get it working.¡± ¡°I thought we were letting the work crew handle that?¡± Helena asked. ¡°I''m sure the Bassingers won''t even charge us if you let them make something for it.¡± Selena said with a wicked smile. ¡°I told you, Becca''s family will do a lot for just the recognition.¡± Helena glanced at me and I nodded. ¡°All right, Selena. Contact your friend and let her know that they have their chance.¡± ¡°Thanks, Helena.¡± Selena stood up, kissed her mother''s cheek, and left the room at a jog. ¡°So young and already building connections.¡± Mona said, proudly. ¡°I hope one of the boys at her school takes an interest in her.¡± Helena laughed softly. ¡°You''re wrong if you think that''s stopping her from having a boy pay her a visit.¡± ¡°She needs to be interested in someone, just like you were, hmm?¡± Mona laughed as well. ¡°I hope she settles down a lot quicker than you did.¡± ¡°Mother.¡± Helena''s face flushed red. ¡°I wasn''t admonishing you. You were more focused on your career than you were on romances and there''s nothing wrong with that.¡± Mona said. ¡°I was just worried that waiting until you were 28 to find someone was a bit too long to wait and you might not find anyone.¡± ¡°Mother!¡± Helena gasped and blushed. ¡°What?¡± Mona looked at her face and saw her glance at me. ¡°You didn''t know her age?¡± I shook my head. ¡°I''m glad that it didn''t concern you.¡± Mona said and stood. ¡°You need to get over to the Longshore Estate and get to work if your outrageous claim to have it done in a week is to be believed.¡± Helena and I kissed her cheeks on either side to make her smile, then we left to get changed for work. 126 Days Go By Fast Helena''s prediction that her father wouldn''t countermand her brother''s unreasonable conditions he had placed on the family''s orders, was confirmed by Administrator Lannin when we arrived at the Longshore Estate. She had him contact them immediately and cancelled all current orders as well as all future orders to those businesses for the Longshore Estate and for everything else that the Henrietta Family controlled as well. Helena''s mandate that the Henrietta Family would no longer deal with those businesses was spread far and wide as she had Lannin inform everyone of their unfair treatment, then she demanded their deposits and payments back for non-delivery of their product and restitution for breaking their previously established agreements. ¡°I want to see father bow down to the idiots that listened to my brother and try to reestablish good relations with them after my harsh and true words.¡± Helena said with satisfaction. ¡°If my brother thinks he can ruin my authority with those businesses, then I''ll ignore them and find new businesses to deal with.¡± With Administrator Lannin''s help, she quickly found those businesses and they were quite enthusiastic about accepting huge orders for materials. Just like her sister Selena, Helena established new working relationships that were going to benefit the family for years to come. We all got to work after that and fell into a routine. Making potions, building things, buying materials and ingredients, making more potions and rebuilding the house, the grounds, the reinforced hidden barricades, and the protective wall around the main part of the property. Thanks to the techniques I had learned and adapted to army combat, the work crews picked it up quickly and soon could work completely unsupervised. The next day, two of the work crews tackled the grand staircase in the main lobby. Thanks to number ten potion, they only had to secure the boards in place and made a huge curved staircase to go up to the top floor. It was amazing what they could do and they didn''t even have to cut the wood. The men were actually laughing as it was very easily assembled and supports were added without having to cut into the walls or the beams of the floor. The whole thing was set in place and secured, then they quickly did up a mold for making the rails and the spindles to hold it up. Using the potion saved them over a hundred hours of carving work and then they added wood stain over everything to get it the right color. Fortifying waterproof potion was added next and it aged to perfection. ¡°I really love working here.¡± Frank said as he beheld the completed grand staircase. ¡°A day. It only took us a day to make this gigantic thing.¡± ¡°Good job.¡± I said as I pat his back. ¡°Go home and rest so you can do even more tomorrow.¡± Frank laughed and nodded agreement, then everyone left to go home. ____ Montage mode engaged. Narrative recursive from first person to third. ____ Day after day, more miracles of construction happened. The house seemed to grow new parts almost organically as work crews became adept at using the number ten potion instead of traditional means of attaching things. A constant funnel of supplies came into the estate and were quickly disseminated among the spread out crews and they applied them where necessary. A few people stopped by, mostly nobles and a few normal people, inquiring about how such construction was possible. ¡°We''re the best work crews in the capital.¡± Frank boasted and went back to work. They all knew to hide the techniques and potions from outsiders, so he worked normally until the onlookers left and then he really got back to work. At night, Helena was a bit too tired to do anything except sleep after working all day. So, she bid her maid Jill to ensure that David was relieved of his tension before going to bed, if Sara hadn''t done it after the bath. Since Jill knew Sara always engaged in that particular bath ritual, she waited until David finished his lessons late in the evening and entered his room before her lady did. Jill wasn''t surprised that David didn''t object, even when she said that Helena had asked her to do it because she couldn''t do it herself. He let her please him with her mouth and then cleaned him up afterwards. She helped the others dress him for bed and then they left to let their lord and lady sleep soundly until morning. ¡°I can''t believe you do that, too.¡± Hope said to Jill as they changed for bed in the communal room that they shared as personal maids. ¡°I''m sorry if it makes you uncomfortable.¡± Jill said and stopped dressing to take Hope''s hand. ¡°He''s a great man and my lady wants nothing more than to keep him happy when she''s tired.¡± ¡°I know, it''s just...¡± Hope sighed and let her hand go to let her finish changing. ¡°At least they aren''t having sex every night.¡±If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. Jill laughed. ¡°That''s only because my lady is too tired to enjoy it. She would be all over him if they didn''t work so hard every day to get the house in order.¡± Hope shook her head. ¡°I don''t want to think about them doing that.¡± Sara laughed this time. ¡°You didn''t hear the other maids talking?¡± She asked, just as Marcus'' maid came into the room. ¡°Speaking of the devil''s helper.¡± ¡°I hate it when you call me that.¡± The woman said with a sigh and sat down. ¡°You know I hate taking care of that idiot even more than his sisters hate him.¡± ¡°Why don''t you quit?¡± Hope asked. ¡°I want to.. I really do...¡± The woman said and gave the other maids a pointed look. ¡°The other house maids are paying her a gold each to stay and not subject them to her circumstances.¡± Hope looked at her with shock on her face and then she did the math in her head. ¡°You''re getting two and a half times more money than everyone else.¡± ¡°...and that''s why I stay.¡± The woman said. ¡°I''m Kass, by the way.¡± ¡°I feel both envy and horror for you.¡± Hope said and shook the woman''s hand. Kass laughed. ¡°So does everyone else.¡± ¡°We really do.¡± Sara said. ¡°Now tell them what you told me.¡± Kass nodded and told them about how David was making a play for control of the Henrietta Family by having Helena marry him and giving birth to a child. Hope was stunned into complete silence. ¡°Isn''t it great?¡± Jill asked and looked happy. ¡°My lady will finally have more power in the family than her older brother and it''s all thanks to David.¡± ¡°Jill''s been relieving him each night her lady can''t.¡± Sara said. ¡°Oh, you lucky girl.¡± Kass said. ¡°I wouldn''t mind trying it myself.¡± ¡°Are you serious?¡± Hope asked. ¡°Have you felt his magic?¡± Kass asked and Hope shook her head. ¡°The next time you go over to the Longshore Estate to deliver lunch, wait for fifteen minutes near the main fireplace at the far side of the house. Even just in passing when he''s infusing the potions gives you a thrill.¡± ¡°No, I... I really shouldn''t.¡± Hope said. Sara touched her hands. ¡°It won''t make you horny, so relax. It''s just... I don''t know... exciting?¡± ¡°It tickles your spine.¡± Kass said with a wistful look on her face. ¡°I would definitely like a direct feeling.¡± ¡°Ha, you''re never getting it. They know you''re Marcus'' maid.¡± Sara said. ¡°That''s no reason to dislike me.¡± Kass responded. ¡°No, no. You misunderstand. They know he has access to you for the same thing.¡± Jill corrected. ¡°Oh. Yes, that''s true.¡± Kass said. ¡°I''m glad he doesn''t demand it all the time like he did when he became an adult.¡± ¡°She quit years ago.¡± Sara said, confirming what happened to his old personal maid. ¡°The Grand Mage paid her off for Marcus ordering her to... ahem...¡± ¡°Oh, that bastard.¡± Hope said, her face angry. ¡°We make sure that nothing else happens and we keep an eye out.¡± Sara said as she took Kass'' hand. ¡°It''s a relief, to tell you the truth.¡± Kass said. ¡°Come on, get changed for bed. We have an early morning tomorrow. The weekends are always extra busy.¡± Jill said and Kass changed, then they climbed into their beds and laid there for several quiet moments. ¡°Marcus is really angry about David changing his name.¡± Kass said into the silence. ¡°Did he say what he was going to do?¡± Sara asked. ¡°No, but... it won''t be good.¡± Kass said. ¡°I can''t promise to tell you as soon as he decides...¡± ¡°We don''t expect you to spy, just keep us informed about the danger.¡± Jill said. ¡°Thank you. I''ll let my lady know.¡± ¡°We''ll tell David.¡± Hope and Sara said at the same time, automatically including the other in the task. They laughed and the other two maids joined in. They soon fell asleep and morning seemed to arrive instantly. ____ Montage mode ended. Narrative returning to first person primary. ____ I woke up after having the weirdest dream and then our three maids came into the room to help Helena and myself get ready for breakfast. In the middle of that, they told us about Marcus and how angry he was over my announcement. ¡°We''ll have to double the guards on the estate.¡± Helena said right away. ¡°Both during the day and at night. I will not have him wrecking anything or sabotaging the work crews.¡± ¡°We need to warn them as well.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°If we tell them they might be approached and paid money to do something, or ordered to do something or their families will be punished, they need to know that we have their backs.¡± Helena smiled and nodded. ¡°We''ll inform them as soon as we get to the house.¡± We went to breakfast and once again, it was just her mother and sister. ¡°I think your father is avoiding me.¡± I commented to Helena as the maids brought out breakfast. ¡°No, he really had to go into work early today.¡± Mona said. ¡°Again?¡± Helena asked with a knowing smile. ¡°He''s been awfully busy every morning this week. It wouldn''t have anything to do with all the orders the Henrietta Family cancelled, would it?¡± Mona looked angry for a moment, then she sighed. ¡°I can''t believe you did that.¡± ¡°I agree with my David. We don''t have time to waste with people who don''t want to work for us fairly.¡± Helena said. ¡°We''ve made wonderful new contacts with less prominent businesses that were overjoyed with having such large product orders. In fact, because of us, they''ve been getting noticed by others that have visited the estate to inquire about how work has been progressing so quickly.¡± Mona looked both upset and pleased, which was an odd combination to see on a woman''s face. ¡°You really will be finished today, won''t you?¡± ¡°The main house is nearly done with only some finishing woodwork left to do.¡± Helena said, proudly. ¡°David and the work crews are completing the outer defensive wall today as well and Becca''s family are delivering the fountain this afternoon.¡± ¡°It''s amazing!¡± Selena gushed. ¡°Becca said her whole family came together to work on it.¡± ¡°How would that work?¡± Mona asked. ¡°I thought they had different professions.¡± Selena laughed softly. ¡°They do have different professions; but, they all have artistic talent. If Becca''s to be believed, they actually had a fist fight several times over the overall artistic vision.¡± ¡°I guess passion for your work can get out of hand sometimes.¡± Helena said and glanced at me. ¡°Or passion in general.¡± ¡°Today is a relaxing day.¡± I commented. ¡°All we really have to do is make potions and supervise.¡± Helena knew what that meant and she gave me a sly smile, because she hadn''t had me all week and eagerly looked forward to me performing my husbandly duties. We had a lot of rooms to ''christen'' in the new house to make them our own. 127 The Henrietta Longshore Estate The work day ended just after lunchtime and the house was completed. Helena had arranged a garden party of sorts for the work crews and their families, who were amazed at the transformation of the estate in only a week. While they ate and had a nice time, Helena and I made sure to visit each and every room and made love in each of them for most of the afternoon. We finished just as the fountain was delivered and we cleaned ourselves up, then with our maids to help, we dressed in our semi-formal outfits. We went out to visit with the work crews and their families, Selena and Mona, and the main house maids and butlers that I hadn''t seen up until that point were there as well. The fountain itself was concealed behind tarps and things and was on a huge modified horse drawn cart. It was quickly put into place and hooked up to the previous fountain''s water supply. The entire Bassinger family had shown up as well, even their second and third cousins, so the place became quite crowded for the unveiling. Helena let everyone talk for a while and then she whispered a few things into my ear as she handed me a glass of wine. I nodded to her before asking Frank for a step ladder, which he delivered promptly because he was waiting for me to ask, and he gave me a thumbs up gesture. I climbed up three steps and faced the crowd. ¡°If I could have everyone''s attention please.¡± I said and all the chatter quieted down as they all looked at me. ¡°This was a huge undertaking and none of it could have been possible without the dedicated work crews that have been a godsend to my future wife and myself.¡± A short round of applause greeted my words. ¡°I''d like to keep you on to make the retaining wall around the entire property; however, I know there are other jobs that some of you would like to get back to.¡± ¡°We''re not scheduled to work anywhere else for another two months!¡± Someone shouted. ¡°We''ll take your easy pay any day!¡± That made a lot of the workers and their families laugh. I raised my glass briefly and nodded. ¡°I look forward to seeing it done in record time.¡± ¡°You know it!¡± Someone else shouted and a cheer came from them. ¡°Now for the reason we''re all here.¡± I said and waved at the mansion behind me. ¡°I''d like to formally introduce you all to the recently completed and fully functional Henrietta Longshore Estate.¡± Another round of applause met my words. ¡°It''s both a residence and a workman''s paradise.¡± I said, because I had built it almost like my house, with rooms for specific things, like enchanting, smoking meat, a huge kitchen, the potion making room in the basement with a tool room beside it, a huge library that only had a few books in it at the moment, and everything else that a rich or noble family would have in a house. ¡°I wish I lived here!¡± A young woman''s voice said loudly and a few people laughed and applauded. ¡°Thank you for letting me get to my next point, young lady.¡± I said. ¡°I''m not a lady.¡± She said and blushed. ¡°We''re a new house and our staff for such a place is lacking, since the Henrietta Family had planned for people to be hired after it was completed several months from now. With it completed so soon, thanks to those work crews, we have several open positions available.¡± A dozen people raised their hands and waved to me. ¡°Cooks, maids, butlers, stable hands, a general work crew for maintenance, cleaners, gardeners, and... dearest, what was that other word?¡± I asked. ¡°Topiary maintenance.¡± Helena said. ¡°Right. Someone to trim the hedges.¡± I said and a few people laughed. ¡°If you are interested in any of the jobs available, stay after the fountain''s unveiling. My fiance and I will come and talk to you and see where your skills lie.¡± A lot of heads nodded acceptance. I raised my glass. ¡°To the Henrietta Family''s continued prosperity.¡± ¡°Here, here!¡± Most of the work crewmen said and drank their mugs of ale. I took a sip of the wine to finish the toast. ¡°Lady Bassinger, I turn this over to you.¡± ¡°Thank you, my lord.¡± A quite tall and lithe figure of a woman said as she stepped out of the pile of well dressed people that I assumed were the entire contents of the Bassinger family. Her solid black hair was shoulder length and straight as an arrow and the dress she wore hugged her thinness and showed off her long legs. I took her hand and carefully helped her ascend the three steps. Lady Bassinger held onto my hand to remain steady. ¡°When my daughter was contacted a week ago and told shocking news, that we had a commission from the eldest daughter of the Henrietta Family and her fiance, I fainted for nearly twenty minutes.¡± Almost everyone laughed and a few of her family members admitted they had, too. ¡°Of course, word quickly spread to my family members, as if they were magically connected somehow...¡± ¡°We are!¡± A man said from the back of the group and a few people laughed. ¡°...and we started to plan. It couldn''t be another statue of the king or even a member of the royal family, since that subject has been overdone enough. No, we needed inspiration and we didn''t know where to get it.¡±The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°You used magic!¡± Someone shouted. ¡°Ha ha, no my dear fellow. We had to learn who our benefactors were, so we reached out to several sources.¡± Lady Bassinger said. ¡°I have to admit that some of the stories were quite disturbing and others were concerning, while others were scary and still more were absolutely terrifying.¡± A silence descended on the gathering and she smiled. ¡°However, among all of those stories was one that not only inspired us to create, it urged and begged us to recreate it in all its glory.¡± Lady Bassinger said and waved at the tarp covered fountain. ¡°This is that masterpiece.¡± The tarps were pulled off and everyone in the crowd gasped, even the men. It was a twelve foot tall sculpture of a marsh dragon on its hind legs with its wings spread as if to take flight. It was partway through a breath attack that was aimed directly at a slightly out of scale stone Helena. She had that look of defiance on her face and everyone admired it and the rest of the sculpture. The real Helena''s face flushed red and she looked quite embarrassed. ¡°This was the perfect moment from that tragic battle. Out of all of it, through the panic, the desperation, and even the loss of Mage Lukas himself... this was what everyone remembered and comment the most about. Mage Henrietta isn''t even a combat mage, and yet after her fiance was swallowed by the dragon, this was what she looked like as she glared at the creature.¡± ¡°WHAAAAAT?!?¡± Nearly everyone yelled in surprise, except for the Bassinger family members and the Henrietta family members, since they knew I had been eaten. ¡°It seems the new Lord Henrietta isn''t a boastful man.¡± Lady Bassinger commented and smiled at me. ¡°That''s not something I need to talk about.¡± I said to her. ¡°I nearly died and threw up a lot when I finally escaped.¡± Lady Bassinger laughed softly. ¡°It was much more disgusting than I imagine it was, wasn''t it?¡± I nodded and she looked back at the crowd as she waved her free hand. The fountain started up and the water poured out of the dragon''s breath attack and onto the battlefield between it and the carved stone Helena figure. They had made it almost like an island with several depressions, just like it had been in the marsh, and it looked great. There were ''oo'' and ''ah'' sounds from the crowd, too. ¡°Thank you for letting us create such a wonderful masterpiece of work.¡± Lady Bassinger said to Helena and I as I helped her step down off of the step ladder. ¡°It will look even more impressive once it sits for a while and weathers into the proper color.¡± ¡°Come back tomorrow.¡± I said and Helena laughed softly at Lady Bassinger''s surprised face. ¡°He means that.¡± Helena whispered. ¡°It''ll be weathered and aged properly by then.¡± ¡°How?¡± Lady Bassinger asked and gripped my hand. ¡°No, I don''t want you to reveal a family secret. I have to assume it''s how you''ve acquired all that beautifully stained and aged wood on everything.¡± ¡°It is.¡± Helena whispered and then she spoke normally. ¡°Although it''s embarrassing to be put on display like this, you did an excellent job capturing the moment. It''s very lifelike.¡± Lady Bassinger nodded and didn''t let my hand go. ¡°We had two failed attempts at trying to get the breath attack to work. We had to compromise and not make a direct acid cloud attack and did it more as if it was spitting fire instead.¡± ¡°I didn''t notice the difference and I was there.¡± Helena said and glanced at the fountain to look. ¡°Most people don''t, hence the compromise.¡± Lady Bassinger said. ¡°I really do need to thank you both again. This was a... a passion for us to do... and it was both a delight and a pain in the ass.¡± That made Helena laugh a bit loudly and that gained the attention of her sister Selena and her mother Mona. They came over to us and Becca was right behind them. She looked just like her mother and was tall, had straight shoulder length black hair, and had a lithe figure. ¡°Mother''s telling you it was a pain in the ass, isn''t she?¡± Becca asked. ¡°She thanked us first.¡± I said and that made them all laugh. ¡°It was amazingly difficult and more than a few of us couldn''t handle it on our own.¡± Lady Bassinger said. ¡°If we didn''t have so many family members close by, we might not have completed it on time.¡± ¡°I can''t believe you redid the entire mansion so quickly! It''s unbelievable!¡± Becca said. ¡°You really do have the best work crews in the capital.¡± Everyone saw several carts arriving and a few workmen went over to them. The driver spoke to one of them and the workman quickly made his way around the crowd to approach me. ¡°My lord, the scrap springy trees are here as are the commissioned logs.¡± The man said. ¡°You can unload the carts where they are for now. After the party, I want them taken to the basement work room, please.¡± I told him and he looked happy. ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± The man said. As he went back to the carts, he waved his hands in signals to the other men to start working. By the time the workman arrived back at the carts to help, half of the carts were already unloaded. ¡°I thought the mansion was done?¡± Lady Bassinger asked. ¡°It is and we will be happy to bring you along at the head of the tour.¡± Helena said. ¡°The materials are just for a side project David has his mind set on, despite my assurance that he doesn''t need it.¡± Helena said, easily deflecting the older woman from asking about what the materials were actually for. Lady Bassinger had to laugh. ¡°Compromise, my dear. Sometimes it''s easier to accept a man''s ideas and let him try, rather than discourage him.¡± ¡°Oh, I would never discourage my David.¡± Helena said. ¡°I only told him it wasn''t really necessary, not that he shouldn''t do it.¡± She gave me a look. ¡°I''m not sure if there''s anything that I won''t help him do, now that I know he''s as committed to me as I am to him.¡± Lady Bassinger looked at us and she smiled a genuine smile. ¡°Are you really going to wait for three years to get married? You two are too good of a match to wait so long.¡± Helena glanced at her mother and then at Lady Bassinger. ¡°David needs to pass the basic courses at the academy to become a mage before father approves officially.¡± Lady Bassinger gave my hand a squeeze. ¡°That old fool still thinks you need to graduate as a mage to be considered magical?¡± ¡°I believe it''s the official recognition he wants and it doesn''t matter about the potency.¡± I said and the women around me stared at me with slightly opened mouths. ¡°I could perform the most outrageous magic he''s ever seen and it won''t impress him unless I''m an officially recognized mage.¡± Helena''s hand gripped mine and she reluctantly nodded in agreement. ¡°I think it''s time for the tour.¡± I nodded back and Lady Bassinger finally let my hand go to take her daughter''s hand, then we made the announcement that the tour was starting. Everyone was excited to see the interior and what we had done with the place, even Helena''s mother Mona, and the procession began as a workman opened the large and quite heavily reinforced double doors. They had weight enchantments on them for ease of access that would only be charged during the day. At night, they would ensure that no one was getting into our house by normal means. Everyone made appreciative sounds as they walked through the halls and visited the rooms, saw the furniture and the amount of work that went into restoring and refurbishing the entire place. We were barely in the second hallway when Lady Bassinger spoke. ¡°Your walls and halls are bare.¡± Lady Bassinger lamented. ¡°How could you do such a disservice to all of your hard work in making this place livable?¡± A few people laughed at her statement. ¡°We were waiting for a certain family to finish their very first commission for us, before we could gauge their talent and approached them for more.¡± Helena said, quite pointedly. Lady Bassinger''s face flushed red, then she nodded. ¡°Your challenge is accepted, Lady Henrietta.¡± ¡°After seeing what you accomplished with the fountain, I am quite happy to hear that, Lady Bassinger.¡± Helena responded with a happy smile. ¡°With appropriate compensation, of course.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Lady Bassinger said with a happy smile of her own. 128 A Party Before Supper The tour ended and everyone was surprised with the mansion, because I hadn''t lied. The entire place was move in ready and fully furnished. The rooms were opulent, even the servant''s quarters, and a lot of the people were impressed by that. Only the work crews knew that with liberal use of the number ten potion, a small amount of expensive material could be stretched well beyond the intended use and could be made into shapes that traditional woodworking just couldn''t match. We all went back outside and spent the rest of the afternoon mingling. Helena and I conducted informal employee interviews with the family and friends of the work crews, and surprisingly, we filled all of the positions in under an hour. One of them was the young woman who had spoken out earlier, too. Her mother had practically handed her over as a kitchen assistant and then volunteered herself for one of the general maid jobs. Thankfully, her husband was one of the men on Frank''s work crew, who had opted to become the main work crew for the estate and to stay on permanently. The funny thing was, Administrator Lannin wanted to stay on as the house''s manager and his son wanted to keep working for us as well. His job wouldn''t change much, except that he would be the gofer for the house staff instead. We even had a dozen guards volunteer. Helena would have them all checked, of course. We couldn''t have anyone that might be bought or coerced by her brother Marcus try to infiltrate our household. The last thing we wanted was for anyone to be hurt by him, especially us. The party broke up after that and my supplies were quickly delivered to my work room in the basement. Helena and I stood at the edge of the property and bid farewell as we thanked everyone for coming. Helena claimed that the looks on the common people''s faces as we treated them like important visitors, was worth having to stand there for an hour doing it. Since I knew for a fact that being nice to someone gained you favorability with them and made them remember you, because it was so uncommon for them to be treated that way, it was definitely worth the extra effort. The more people that liked you, the safer you were. I hadn''t realized this until my failed attempts in Ester''s Village to make people fear me. It didn''t work and it took me a while to figure out why. It was because I wasn''t a mean person. I did bad things and people hated me for that; but, that wasn''t enough to make them afraid. No amount of bad things I could do would make them be afraid and they would just try to get rid of me again if I tried. Once everyone was gone, we had a long conversation with Lady Bassinger and her family. We set some ground rules, no painting the walls or entire rooms, filling a room with art sculptures, or anything else ridiculous. We needed them to make pieces of art to highlight the spaces they would be and not take away from the aesthetics. A few of them made booing sounds and they were quickly hushed. ¡°We have a huge property here, so if... if... you make something obscure, there might be a place for it somewhere.¡± Helena said. ¡°Be aware that the commissions will be paid on how successful you are with integrating with the environment they are to be placed in.¡± ¡°Don''t worry, Lady Henrietta. I''ll make sure they know that paintings go in frames and sculptures need to remain under three feet for inside the house.¡± Lady Bassinger said. Helena nodded and then had an odd thought. ¡°Do you have any metal workers or blacksmiths?¡± Two of the men lifted their hands. ¡°I''ve been having trouble with something grand for the main lobby and the huge staircase there. Perhaps a nice chandelier of wrought iron and several mage lights to hang from the vaulted ceiling?¡± ¡°We''ll get on it right away!¡± The two men said and took off running. ¡°I didn''t mean for you to...¡± Helena stopped talking as the men disappeared from sight. ¡°Never mind.¡± Lady Bassinger laughed. ¡°You strike inspiration and you must take it before it fades.¡± She said and shook Helena''s hand, then she took mine. I bent over it and brushed my lips over the knuckles. ¡°You are a very lucky woman, Lady Henrietta.¡± Lady Bassinger said, squeezed my hand, and then left. Her family quickly followed after her and they climbed into their coaches. The mini-parade of them left the property and then Helena, Selena, Mona and I were all that was left from the huge gathering. ¡°We need to start those investigations.¡± Helena said to her mother. ¡°David, I''ll be busy for a few hours. Once everyone is checked out, we''ll let them know and send them for proper uniforms.¡± I nodded, because that would save us time to let them do it themselves, rather than us taking them to get the uniforms. ¡°I''ll be inside working on my project.¡± I said and watched as she and her mother climbed onto the Henrietta coach. ¡°Selena!¡± Mona said and Selena jumped a little. ¡°Stop bugging David and let''s go home.¡± ¡°Mother! I wasn''t...¡± Selena gave me a sorrowful look. ¡°Bye, David.¡± ¡°I''ll be over for supper.¡± I told her and she smiled, then she climbed into the coach and they left as well. I walked over to the large front doors of the mansion and opened one of them to enter, then I depowered the weight enchantment and secured the door. I walked through the now very quiet house to the basement door and went down the stairs. Everything was solid stone and no seams could be seen anywhere. I entered the basement that was my own personal work space and took in a deep breath.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. The smell of brewed and simmering potions, wildwood scraps burning with a low blue fire, and piles of wildwood squares that were stacked in the corner of the room, filled my nostrils and made me feel relaxed. I was still homesick for the marsh, because that was my space and I missed being there after being away from it for so long while in the army. I quickly did up an appropriate mold for making the tube of springy trees and let it set, then I picked up some of the piles of wildwood coins I had cut the branches into and enchanted with the appropriate enchantments. As I waited for the mold to set, I started assembling the kracken tube ammunition. It was just me, so the work went about as well as it could have. After two hours, I had twelve kracken tubes completed and enough ammunition for twenty shots each. They just had to have the tips dipped in molten metal and they would be complete. There was no rush on that part, since I had to get the tubes installed into the pre-made bunker-like outcroppings that were concealed within the house and on the grounds. Small weapon racks were already in those places and they had several sets of different kinds. Swords, bows, crossbows, maces, and axes were available for anyone that was defending the place. The kracken tube holders were already in place, so I set the tubes into them and secured them, then stacked the ammunition by the wall for convenience and to keep it out of the way. I went up to the main bedroom and the bathroom inside to have a bath. Sara and Hope were there waiting for me and I was quickly washed and Sara relieved me of my tension. I was quickly dressed appropriately for family supper and sent on my way to the main Henrietta Family''s estate. We hadn''t stocked the newly built stable, so no horses or coaches were available for me to use. I made sure that the guards were in place in key areas and started to walk. I soon discovered that a ride of a few minutes by coach turned out to be quite a long walk by foot. I walked on and took my time, because I wasn''t in a rush and I didn''t want to wrinkle the suit. Helena had paid a lot of money for it and I wouldn''t disrespect her by wearing it out before it was necessary. I was about halfway to the Henrietta Family mansion when the sun set and seemed to plunge everything into shadow. They seemed to grow around me and spread out to make everything very dark, then I felt the telltale tingle of foreign magic. I knew my eyes would be useless in the dark, so I closed them and listened instead of looking. My vigilance technique was on all the time now and I didn''t suffer any consequences, so I easily heard several footsteps rapidly approach. They were heavy, which meant they were not used to running or being careful with their weight distribution. That was beneficial to me, so I quickly ducked as I pretended to trip and dug my knife out of the sheath inside the suit coat. I braced a hand on the ground as I rolled out of the way of someone''s apparent grappling tackle. ¡°Huh? Wha...?¡± A gruff man asked, confused. ¡°How did you miss? He''s blind in the darkness.¡± Someone else asked and I felt a foot swing towards my head. I hadn''t charged my knife, because it would glow and let them know I had a weapon on me. That didn''t mean the knife wasn''t wickedly sharp, however. The magic just lets me extend the blade to cut through nearly everything. I leaned back slightly and jabbed the knife forward in the spot where my head used to be, and I felt the knife slide right through the bottom of a boot and then the foot. ¡°ARGH!¡± The man yelled and tried to pull his foot back. I twisted the knife as he did so and he yelled in agony as he dropped to the ground. The only reason he still had toes was because the boot held them on. ¡°Stop screaming! Someone will hear!¡± The gruff voice said and I felt the air move on my right side. I reacted on instinct and rolled backwards to avoid whatever attack it was, stood up and lunged with the blade of my knife held out to the side. I felt it slice into something like an arm and then it dug deep into flesh and bone. ¡°ARGGGLLLLHHH!¡± The gruff man gargled. Apparently, it was his throat that I had sliced and my knife had dug into his chest. I quickly used my free hand to feel around the man as he collapsed and found something that seemed like a blunt object. ¡°Hey, what happened? Grab him! He''s right there!¡± A third voice said. ¡°Wait, why are you holding your throat like that?¡± ¡°Because he''s dying.¡± I said and threw the blunt object as hard as I could at the source of the voice. I heard a thunk and a crunch before whoever it was fell to the ground. I carefully crept over to him and there was no other movement, except for the man cradling his foot. I checked the second man''s neck to see if there was any pulse, like the healers did with grievous injuries, and there was nothing. I picked up the blunt object and crept over to the man I had stabbed in the foot and knelt beside him. ¡°What spell or object are you using to cast the darkness?¡± ¡°Screw... you.¡± The man said. I whacked his sliced foot with the blunt object and he howled with pain, because I had gotten his hands with the hit, too. ¡°I won''t ask nicely next time.¡± ¡°S-s-s-secret box. One time... cast. Darkness on the target, dimness on everyone else.¡± ¡°How long does it last?¡± I asked. ¡°Ten... minutes.¡± The man said, clearly lying. I whacked his good foot and he started crying, because both of his hands and both of his feet were broken now. ¡°How long?¡± ¡°Five minutes! Five!¡± The man said through his sobs and tears. I quickly did the math in my head and I had about three minutes left. I kept listening and couldn''t hear anyone else approaching. ¡°How... how can you see...¡± ¡°I''m not.¡± I said. ¡°I have my eyes closed.¡± ¡°But... you acted like...¡± ¡°I don''t need my eyes to hear you.¡± I said and quickly searched him. I found some rope and tied him up, then cut some off and tied up the other two. I then tied the three of them together and the one still alive started to complain that he didn''t want to be tied up with dead bodies. I ignored him and the darkness faded, as did the little tingle. I found the small box inside one of the men''s pockets, because it was slightly smoking. Whatever magic or enchantment it was, it had destroyed itself to hide the evidence. I didn''t touch it, in case it was cursed or had evil magic on it, and grabbed the end of the rope as I started to walk. ¡°ARRGGHHH! Don''t just drag me on the ground!¡± The man said loudly. I stopped, kicked them over to put him on top, then walked on. It shouldn''t take that long to get to the Henrietta Family''s mansion, even with the extra burden. I looked down at my suit and saw all the dirt and damage it had gained from the fight. ¡°Helena''s going to be angry about this.¡± I said with a sigh. 129 Some Harsh Truth As soon as I arrived at the Henrietta Family mansion, several guards saw me and one ran off to tell them about me and what I was dragging behind me. I didn''t bother trying to approach the house, since I was pretty sure I wouldn''t be allowed to drag them inside. ¡°By the Son''s Light!¡± Helena exclaimed as she came out the front door. ¡°I''m very sorry about the suit, dearest.¡± I said and tried to wipe off some of the dirt. ¡°Oh, David.¡± Helena said and her hand touched the side of my face. She wiped off a spot and kissed it. ¡°Explain this.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said as he, his wife Mona, his heir Marcus, and his daughter Selena came out of the house. ¡°I was walking here to come to dinner...¡± I started to say. ¡°Excuse me?¡± Mona interrupted. ¡°Why were you walking?¡± ¡°We haven''t stocked the stable yet.¡± ¡°I know that part. I ordered the coach to be sent back and it was supposed to wait for you.¡± Mona said, then she, Helena, and Selena turned their heads to glare at Marcus. ¡°I sent my maid to town for my new suit.¡± Marcus said and rubbed the ash grey cloth of his arms. ¡°I ordered it last week, so you can''t be angry that the tailor finished it today and I sent her for it.¡± ¡°You sent her after the coach was supposed to go back for David!¡± Helena said. ¡°He wasn''t going to come here until supper anyway. Why have the coach sit there for hours and not be useful?¡± Marcus asked and then shrugged. ¡°It''s not my fault if the driver forgot or was too tired to go and get him after performing his proper duty for an actual family member.¡± Helena lot out a low growl. ¡°Continue.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said to me. I described what happened with the darkness, with the attack from multiple opponents, and how the fight ended. Without touching the bodies, the Grand Mage rolled them over with a bit of magic and held his hand above the pocket I indicated. A still smouldering wooden box floated out of the pocket and landed on the ground. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Mona whispered. ¡°It can''t be.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta took out a handkerchief and picked up the box and wrapped it up. ¡°What is it?¡± Helena asked. ¡°You don''t need to know that.¡± The Grand Mage said as he stood and looked at me. ¡°Did you question them before they died?¡± ¡°Hey! I''m not dead!¡± The still alive tied up man said. ¡°No, I didn''t.¡± I said and ignored him. ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°You wouldn''t believe me if I told you what happened and had killed them all.¡± I said and Mona took in a sharp breath, because she knew I hadn''t lied. ¡°I needed a witness, so here he is. Question him and find out who sent him.¡± The Grand Mage stared at me and didn''t speak or move. Mona stepped forward and touched his arm. ¡°Dearest? Ask him. He can''t lie to you.¡± The Grand Mage stood there and didn''t respond. His hand glowed for a second, then the tied up man made a gasping sound and stopped breathing. ¡°Father!¡± Helena exclaimed and knelt by the man. She felt for a pulse and couldn''t find one. ¡°You killed him!¡± ¡°He was dying from his wounds.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said without taking his eyes from mine. ¡°You keep bringing trouble to this family.¡± ¡°I brought David into this family, father.¡± Helena said and stood up to glare at him. ¡°If you are going to blame anyone...¡± ¡°He needs to blame me to cover it up.¡± I said and the women around us caught their breath. ¡°Otherwise, everyone will start asking why someone hired assassins to kill someone near the Henrietta properties and not on it.¡± ¡°David, you''re my fiance.¡± Helena said. ¡°Everyone knows...¡± ¡°It doesn''t matter. It won''t be associated with you or your family, because it''s part of my life before our agreement.¡± ¡°No, that... he can''t really...¡± Helena looked at her father. ¡°Tell me you''re not going to blame it on David.¡± ¡°I was attacked by random street thugs on my way here and I dealt with them.¡± I said. ¡°Isn''t that right, Grand Mage?¡± Grand Mage Henrietta squinted his eyes and slowly nodded. ¡°Father!¡± Helena gasped. ¡°You can''t just...¡± ¡°It''s done.¡± The Grand Mage said and waved a hand. Two guards came over and tried to haul the three bodies away. They couldn''t move them and had to go and get a hand cart. We all stood there and watched them struggle with putting the three of them into the cart, then they disappeared down the road with them.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°I can''t believe that just happened.¡± Selena said, her voice full of disbelief as she stared at the Grand Mage. ¡°My father... my loving father... is a murderer and covered up a crime my brother committed.¡± ¡°I didn''t do that.¡± Marcus said. ¡°I don''t know why father did what he did.¡± ¡°Are you really going to stand there and deny it?¡± Helena asked. ¡°I can tell when you''re lying!¡± Marcus took a step towards her and my knife was suddenly at his throat. ¡°I. Did. Not. Hire. Them.¡± He said and Helena reached out to touch my hand. ¡°He didn''t hire them.¡± Helena said and I didn''t move my hand away. ¡°Do you know who did?¡± ¡°Not really.¡± Marcus hedged and Helena let out another growl. ¡°I suspect, that''s all. I don''t have any proof.¡± ¡°Stop speaking, Marcus. You aren''t helping with speculation.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said. ¡°Remove the knife from my innocent son.¡± Helena glared at her father for the blatant lie. Grand Mage Henrietta sighed. ¡°Innocent of this.¡± He corrected and Helena nodded to me as she let my hand go. I charged my knife, flicked it to get the blood off, and tucked it away into the sheath inside my coat. ¡°Father, I have to report this.¡± Selena said, her voice sad. ¡°It''s already being reported.¡± The Grand Mage said. ¡°I only put that poor man out of his misery. His hands and feet were smashed and he was bleeding profusely from his foot. I doubt he would have lived for another ten minutes, if that.¡± ¡°We could have found out so much from him by then!¡± Helena spat. ¡°He wouldn''t have given you any useful information.¡± The Grand Mage said and looked at my suit. ¡°You are not attending supper dressed like that.¡± ¡°Father, you can''t just...¡± ¡°Helena, I need to borrow your personal maid for twenty minutes.¡± I said. ¡°I need a bath and one of my other suits that hasn''t been brought over from the guest room yet.¡± I looked at her mother, Mona. ¡°Lady Henrietta, please forgive my tardiness in attending the family meal. Circumstances prevent me from giving you the appropriate respect by showing up on time.¡± Mona glanced at her husband briefly. ¡°You are forgiven and won''t be a disruption when you do attend.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and bowed slightly. Helena couldn''t take my hand, since it was both dirty and blood covered, so she kissed my cheek in the partially cleaned spot and waved for me to enter the house. I quickly left them there and ran to her room. ¡°David!¡± Jill gasped when I darted into the room. ¡°You''re filthy and bloody!¡± ¡°I''ll explain as you give me a quick bath.¡± I said and pulled off the damaged suit. It was a lost cause, if the scrapes and tears in the fabric were any indication, so I tossed it onto the floor by the door to keep the dirt in the room to a minimum. Jill ran the bath as I put my sheathed knife beside the tub and climbed in. ¡°My lord, you should wait for...¡± ¡°No time.¡± I said and we both lathered cloths, then started scrubbing. I was dirtier than I thought I was, because the water turned brown as the tub filled up. I wasn''t used to fighting with loose dirt around and it really made a mess, especially after doing several rolls through it during a fight. I told Jill all about it and what happened afterwards with the Grand Mage. She had a grim look on her face as she rinsed me off and then helped me dry off. ¡°I''ll come right back with...¡± ¡°No time.¡± I said and wrapped the towel around my waist and grabbed my knife. I picked Jill up in a princess carry, with my arms under her back and her knees, and darted out of the bathroom, ran across Helena''s room, down the hallway, and into the guest room. Jill''s face was full of surprise as I put her down. ¡°M-m-my l-lord.¡± ¡°Dress me for supper.¡± I said and pointed to the closet. ¡°Right away, my lord.¡± Jill said and she picked out a good black suit. It wasn''t as nice as the grey suit that had been ruined and the accents had to be changed to match it appropriately. She was done in record time and had me check the mirror to prove that I looked like a proper gentleman. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said as I kissed her cheek, then I ran from the room. I slowed down as I approached the formal dining room and I didn''t knock on the door, because I needed to lessen the disruption I was going to cause. I carefully opened the door and slipped into the room, then I saw something that I hadn''t expected. Grand Mage Henrietta was not there and Marcus was. No one spoke as I walked over to Helena and gave her a kiss on the cheek. I walked around the table and did the same to her mother, whispered another apology, and sat down on the other side of Selena. She gave me a forlorn look for a moment, I assumed because I didn''t kiss her cheek as well. She sighed when I didn''t move closer and she continued to eat. I used proper table etiquette and ate much faster than them to catch up. Everyone stayed silent as we ate and the main meal part ended. The maids took our plates and brought out dessert for the five of us. We ate and they took it away and came back out with glasses of wine. Mona''s eyes were a little wide as she stared at the red liquid. Marcus picked up his glass and stood up. ¡°I''d like to make an announcement.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light, if it has anything to do with tonight...¡± Helena said, clearly angry. ¡°It doesn''t... and it does.¡± Marcus said and looked at me. ¡°I give you my word that I won''t ever have you killed or try to kill you myself. Such things are beneath me.¡± Selena snorted a laugh and clamped her mouth shut. ¡°Also, you are not deserving of a quick death. You need to suffer for what you''re doing to my family.¡± ¡°MARCUS!¡± Helena yelled. ¡°Yes, dear sister. Thanks to father''s investigations, I know exactly what he went through. I also know that it wasn''t enough to show him his place in the world.¡± ¡°So help me god, if you don''t shut up right now...¡± Helena''s hands started to glow as she chanted under her breath. ¡°He should be licking your feet, not putting his seed in your belly.¡± Marcus said and saw Helena''s face redden. ¡°I see that you agree.¡± Helena couldn''t take it anymore and stood up. ¡°SHUT UP, YOU IMBECILE!¡± She yelled into his face. ¡°I''m not blushing because I agree! I''m blushing because he DOES lick my feet! All over!¡± Marcus looked surprised and both Mona and Selena blushed. ¡°Only a real man would ever lower himself enough to lick a woman''s feet, fully give himself over to her, then make love to her so well that it''s all she can think about!¡± Helena said loudly and the house maids blushed as well. ¡°Helena, calm down.¡± Mona said. ¡°I would have come home already married to him if father didn''t have his stupid official mage restriction!¡± Helena said to her and held her glowing hands out to her brother. ¡°Go ahead, Marcus. Finish what you were going to say. Father''s not here to save you now.¡± She smiled wickedly. ¡°I want to see if your mage shield can last for more than a few seconds against my strongest spell.¡± Marcus gave her a stern look for several moments. He glanced at his mother and saw that she also had a stern face as she stared at him. It took him nearly ten seconds before he decided to speak. ¡°The Henrietta Family.¡± Marcus said and took a sip of wine. Helena''s hands stopped glowing and we all picked up our glasses and took a sip. ¡°Thank you all for attending this meal.¡± Mona said before anyone else could speak. She stood up and kept staring at her son. ¡°Marcus. You need to leave. Right now.¡± Marcus didn''t say anything as he put his glass down and strode from the room. 130 A Familys Folly Mona walked around Selena to me and took both of my hands and held them. ¡°Please, don''t kill my son over this. He doesn''t understand what it means to threaten you like that.¡± ¡°Mother, Marcus knows exactly what he''s saying.¡± Helena said as she walked around the table. ¡°He''s been threatening harm every chance he gets. With him only saying that he won''t have David killed is just one more slap in the face of our family''s honor.¡± ¡°He knows you can''t challenge him.¡± Selena said as she looked at me. ¡°He must. It''s the only explanation.¡± Helena shook her head. ¡°He''s even more ignorant that I thought he was.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Mona asked. ¡°If they can''t challenge each other, we don''t have to worry.¡± ¡°Mother.¡± Helena sighed. ¡°David doesn''t care about duelling rules. He wasn''t born a noble with the rules of conduct instilled into him since he was a child. His mind doesn''t work that way. He grew up surrounded by death and he fought constantly to stay alive every day. He can just go to Marcus and cut his throat, because that''s all of the attention and effort he deserves. He''s an annoyance and nothing more.¡± ¡°N-no, he... he''s my son and...¡± Mona closed her eyes and sighed. ¡°I''m sorry that I''ve failed as a mother.¡± ¡°No, mother. You did everything you could with what you had.¡± Helena said. ¡°It''s father''s fault. He coddled him too much. If he had treated him like he treated us, Marcus would be a much better person.¡± ¡°Your father''s a good man.¡± Mona said. ¡°No, he''s a powerful man.¡± Helena corrected. ¡°He''s done good and he''s done bad.¡± She looked at me. ¡°Like what just happened with David.¡± ¡°Your father told the truth. That man was dying.¡± Mona said. ¡°Yes, he was. The point was, he wasn''t going to live past the questioning anyway, even if we treated his wounds.¡± Helena said and Mona didn''t respond. ¡°I think we should go.¡± I said and Mona let my hands go. ¡°Did the staff check out?¡± ¡°Yes, and I''ve already sent them for new uniforms and supplies. The cooks will have breakfast ready for us in the morning.¡± Helena said and took my hand. ¡°The guards are cleared as well. We have to wait until the start of the week before we can contact the breeders for horses to put in the stables.¡± ¡°You have to handle it, since I have to register at the academy.¡± I said. Helena glanced at her sister. ¡°I really should have Selena keep an eye out for you at school.¡± ¡°I''m only in second year; but, I do have a lot of friends.¡± Selena said. ¡°I''ll make sure to let them know to keep an eye out for the older first year student.¡± Helena sighed slightly. ¡°David, I''m sorry. You''re going to be three years older, maybe more in some cases, than the other first year students.¡± ¡°They start when they are seventeen?¡± I asked. ¡°Usually, unless they have exceptional talent, then they can start as young as fifteen.¡± Helena said. ¡°You can also stay and continue your study past the required three years if you want to learn other things.¡± ¡°They don''t count as new students?¡± I asked and she shook her head. ¡°They become alumni and are usually asked to be assistants in the courses they''ve already mastered.¡± ¡°Not many choose that life.¡± Mona said. ¡°There might be a handful in the entire academy. Most leave to pursue a career and to make a name for themselves.¡± ¡°I''ll do my best to help you prepare tomorrow for what it''s going to be like there.¡± Helena said and this time she let out a long slow sigh. ¡°You need to know that a lot of them... a lot... are going to be just like my brother.¡± ¡°Do you mean personality or his behavior?¡± I asked, just to be sure. ¡°In some cases, both.¡± Helena said, her voice sad. ¡°You can''t retaliate against them, either. It''s against the school rules and you''ll be expelled.¡± ¡°No, he''ll just be punished severely.¡± Mona said. ¡°What?¡± Helena and Selena said at the same time. ¡°Your father arranged for him to enrol in the academy and he has to stay there for three years.¡± ¡°Mother, that... you can''t... he can''t be kept prisoner!¡± Helena exclaimed. ¡°He''s not a prisoner. He just can''t be thrown out for his behavior.¡± Mona said. ¡°Although, I think there was a condition about you quitting on your own and being able to leave then.¡± Helena took in a sharp breath. ¡°Mother! You can''t mean...¡± ¡°Yes, your father made sure that if David decides to quit, he''s not only giving up learning magic, he''s also breaking his word.¡± Mona gave me a sad face. ¡°You would have to leave Helena behind as well.¡±If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°No! David never agreed to this!¡± Helena said loudly. ¡°He did and his words were very specific.¡± Mona said with a sigh. ¡°My husband took those words and twisted them for his own ends, which I now realize was his way of getting rid of you before you hurt or killed my son for his stupidity.¡± ¡°Mother! You have to...¡± Helena started to say. ¡°It''s much too late for me to do anything.¡± Mona interrupted her. ¡°David''s going to spend the next three years at the mercy of people that know he''s lower in social status than a commoner, unless he quits and breaks his word to the family and to you.¡± Helena''s eyes went hard as she glared at her mother. ¡°Well, then. I sincerely hope you''re going to be happy all alone here at the mansion, mother.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Mona asked, confused. ¡°I promise you on my blood, as a high ranked mage of the guild and my father''s daughter, that I, David, and our children will never step foot inside this house.¡± Helena spat. ¡°What? No!¡± Mona gasped. ¡°Helena, please don''t say such things!¡± ¡°I''m done with my father manipulating things. I''m done with Marcus and his stupid threats. I''m done with having to defend a man that almost single handedly saved thousands of people, not to mention saving this kingdom from collapse and turning the tide in a decades long war.¡± Helena said. ¡°I will no longer subject myself and my fiance to ridicule and belittlement BY MY OWN FAMILY!¡± Mona winced at the nearly completely shrill shriek that her daughter had achieved. ¡°My father didn''t even bother coming to the new mansion when it was completed, which means he''s in complete denial about how seriously wrong things are in this family.¡± Helena looked into my eyes. ¡°David, I want you to devote our primary work crew to making those wonderful workbenches and ornate tables. We are going to make a fortune with them and we are going to refuse to sell to my family and cousins. We will also put a ban on anyone reselling to them. If anyone is caught, they and their family will be banned as well.¡± ¡°Yes, dearest.¡± I said. ¡°That includes the new health and healing potions, too.¡± Helena said. ¡°When people learn that you have a healing one that replaces all of the others and for a cheaper cost, everyone in the kingdom will want them.¡± She gave me a demure smile. ¡°You don''t have to worry about the practising license until you graduate in three years, because academy students automatically get a provisional one.¡± ¡°I can make as many potions as I want and sell them?¡± I asked, surprised. ¡°Yes, and you have a very closed market if you only sell to the students, which you shouldn''t do.¡± Helena advised. ¡°Most are going to look down on you and they don''t deserve to have access to your work, any more than my family does.¡± ¡°Hey! I''m not involved with any of this!¡± Selena said and stood. ¡°I know, Selena. You can come by and visit whenever you want. I''m sure my children would love to meet someone from my original family.¡± Mona caught her breath and tears came to her eyes. ¡°Helena, please...¡± ¡°Make sure you tell father that this is his fault.¡± Helena said. ¡°He''ll have heirs to the Henrietta Family and that he''s not allowed to see them, all because he thinks his son is worth more than his daughter.¡± ¡°Helena, that... isn''t...¡± ¡°You can''t even lie and say it''s not true.¡± Helena said and turned away from her mother. ¡°I''ll have our servants stay long enough to pack up the rest of our things and then you''ll never see us again.¡± ¡°No! Please... I''ll... I''ll speak to your father and...¡± ¡°You already said it was too late.¡± Helena said and led me to the door of the room. ¡°Tell him the same thing. Tell him... tell him that he went too far. That I could only take so much from Marcus and from him. I''ve had enough. He can sit here in his huge empty mansion, suckle my brother on his bigoted teat, and he can live the rest of his life wondering why he was so stupid to push me away without a second thought.¡± Mona had a look of deep sorrow on her face as we left the room. Helena burst into tears before we made it down the hallway. I picked her up and took her to her room and she clung to me so tightly that if I didn''t have so many fortifying potions inside of me, she would have easily strangled me. Jill was shocked at the sight of her, then I quickly explained. ¡°Yes, my lord. I''ll fulfill my lady''s wishes immediately.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and left with Helena still in my arms. When we stepped out the front door, the guards gave me stern looks at the state Helena was in. ¡°She broke emotional ties with her family over her brother''s and father''s stupidity.¡± I said as an explanation and both guards looked surprised. In any case, they didn''t stop me as I walked down to the road. The coach was still nowhere to be seen, so I carried her all the way back to our own mansion. We didn''t meet anyone on the way, considering it was dark out, and we made it to the mansion without incident. Helena was still unconsolable as I activated the weight enchantments on the front doors. I unlocked them and stepped inside with her, shut and locked them again, and left the enchantment activated. The staff would be arriving soon and they would need to get in. Hope and Sara saw us and ran ahead to the master bedroom to open it up for me. I took Helena inside and laid her down on the bed, then I thought about what I could do for her. She had taken steps to stop both her brother and her father from messing with me any more, and I wasn''t sure what I could do to thank her. No one had ever done anything like that for me before and it took me a couple of minutes to realize what she actually did. She had put herself into almost the same situation that I had with my own original family. We were both almost completely ostracized by our family, our mothers were too stubborn to not take their husband''s side, and only one family member even wanted to stay in contact. Both were our sisters, too. Then I recalled her words about her original family. If they were her original family, it meant that she and I would be making our own family. I nodded to my maids and they understood what I wanted. They quickly stripped me down to nakedness and then did the same for Helena. She continued to cry for the family she had lost; but, she didn''t fight their hands or being unclothed. I climbed onto the bed with her and hovered over her face. ¡°Let''s make babies.¡± Helena let out a loud sob, then she took in a deep breath. ¡°David, we...¡± ¡°Married or not, you can still have babies.¡± I said and felt between her legs with my hand. She was quickly ready and I slid myself inside of her. Helena gasped and gripped me tightly. ¡°D-David, I... all right.¡± She looked deep into my eyes. ¡°Concentrate. Don''t let the magic only make me feel good. You want your magic and mine to combine inside of me. When you finish, infuse it with all your might and give it to me.¡± ¡°Will that work?¡± I asked. ¡°Doing it the opposite way has been stopping me from getting pregnant, so yes. I guarantee that it will work.¡± Helena said, then we made love right there with two witnesses. It was required when conception was being formally recorded. About ten minutes later, I was done and I actually felt exhausted as I infused what I spilled into her with my magic. I felt Helena''s magic merge completely with mine and then the feeling completely disappeared. ¡°It worked!¡± Sara exclaimed happily. ¡°I''ve never felt it happen so quickly!¡± ¡°Oh, my god.¡± Hope whispered. ¡°You did it.¡± Helena was now pregnant with a baby that had both of our magics infused into it. Not a chapter... a delay. I''m running way behind today and won''t get this out on (advanced) time (about 3 hours from now at 7pm: GMT-4). It might even have to be posted at (gasp!) the normal time (8 hours from now near midnight: GMT-4). ?? I just wanted to let you all know to not expect it early.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. Also, before I forget... Advanced Warning: I''ll be leaving to go to a friend''s place for about six days starting on Thursday, so no chapters until the next Tuesday. Depending on if I get back early or not, it might even be Wednesday before I can write another. - Bokuboy 131 The New Staff Helena kept crying as she held me closely. ¡°David, we... by the Son''s Light... there... there''s no going back now.¡± She sobbed. ¡°My mother... is going to be so angry.¡± ¡°As angry as your father?¡± I asked and she took in a sharp breath. ¡°My father!¡± Helena gasped and she took several deep breaths to try to calm down. ¡°He... he''s going to...¡± ¡°...do nothing.¡± I said and she gave me wide eyes. ¡°We''re going to let the staff tell everyone and not say anything ourselves.¡± ¡°But... he''ll expect...¡± ¡°When the baby is born in...¡± I looked at Sara with a question on my face. ¡°...eight months if it''s healthy and magical. Ten months if it''s healthy and normal.¡± ¡°...eight months, we''ll send notices to the Mages Guild, the castle, and the nobility.¡± I said. Helena wiped at her face and then touched her belly. ¡°Eight months.¡± ¡°I haven''t failed an infusion since I was a child.¡± I said, my voice full of confidence. ¡°I''m actually tired right now.¡± Helena caught her breath and rested her hand on my chest. ¡°You''re tired? You''re never tired.¡± I nodded and held a handout to Hope. She handed me my bandoleer and I took out a general health potion, something I hadn''t taken in years, and drank half of it. I felt my energy surge back and gave the rest to Helena. She drank it and closed her eyes as her own energy replenished. ¡°Sara, you know the procedure.¡± Helena said and handed me the empty vial. ¡°My lady, I''ll write up the information right now!¡± Sara said and took Hope''s hand. ¡°You need to learn this, too.¡± Hope nodded and the two of them left the room. After a few minutes, Helena let out another little sob. ¡°We did it.¡± Helena whispered, her voice full of wonder as she rubbed her flat belly. ¡°I''ve fought against this for...¡± She gave me a sheepish look. ¡°I''m not against having a child with you, dearest. Not at all. I just wanted to be married first, so the baby would have our family name.¡± ¡°We''re staying as Henriettas.¡± I said and she looked surprised for only a second, then she rolled over to get close to me and gently kissed me. ¡°I love you so much.¡± Helena whispered and climbed on top of me. We made love again, this time only to make ourselves feel good, and she no longer had to worry about getting pregnant. She pretty much let herself go and exhausted herself again. I didn''t offer her a potion this time and let her fall asleep. If she wanted me to devote the main work crew to making tables and workbenches and me to brew potions to make a lot of money quickly, then I needed to get started right away. I slipped out of bed and dressed in a casual outfit that had a shirt with the Henrietta Family crest on the front pocket, and left the bedroom with my bandoleer over my shoulder. As I was going down the curved staircase in the main lobby, the front doors opened and the new house staff and guards showed up. They were dressed in the proper uniforms and carried several bags each. ¡°My lord.¡± They all said as one. ¡°I''m glad you''re all here.¡± I said and they all smiled in response. ¡°You know where your living quarters are, so get settled. Don''t fight over which rooms, since they are all identical. The kitchen staff are off in the right wing of the house near the huge kitchen and the butlers and maids are in the left wing of the house.¡± ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± The cooks and maids said as one and there was a slightly sad face mixed in there. ¡°The one exception is the kitchen helper. She can stay with her mother on the maid side, as long as she gets to the kitchen on time in the mornings.¡± ¡°Yes, my lord!¡± The young woman said a little loudly, because she was so happy. A few people laughed and her mother put a hand on her daughter''s shoulder. ¡°Thank you, my lord.¡± The mother said, gratefully. ¡°The guards are stationed in certain spots in the house and on the grounds. Some are night positions only. You need to check the map in the guard quarters for the locations and you can decide among yourselves where you want to work. I''ll be by in the morning to brief you all on the defense operations and the equipment you''ll all have access to.¡± ¡°Equipment?¡± One of the guards asked. ¡°Weapons of all kinds and light armor, as well as emplaced heavy ordinance.¡± They all stared at me with their mouths open, shocked. ¡°You can relax. It''s not going to be necessary to operate them right now, since a mage or someone with magic active are the only ones that can activate them.¡± I explained. ¡°I''m not expecting any kind of attack; but, I spent too much time on the front lines of the war to not be as prepared for everything as possible.¡±If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. They all took deep breaths and relaxed, I assumed because I had eased their fears of an imminent attack. ¡°We already have four guards on the property; but, they are from the main family and we haven''t asked them to transfer to us permanently yet. If they choose to do so, they will be senior and will get their choice of jobs first.¡± ¡°That''s fair.¡± One of the guards said. ¡°The Lady of the House''s personal maid is in overall charge of the maids for the time being, since she has the most experience. If you have any questions, go to Jill if Administrator Lannin is unavailable.¡± ¡°He really just wants to run the whole house?¡± A woman asked. ¡°He''s a great administrator and manager. He can handle any situation as long as he has backing.¡± I said. ¡°He likes you and wants to help.¡± She said with a nod. ¡°I think we all do.¡± ¡°I''m in it for the easy money.¡± A workman said with a laugh and put an arm over his wife, who was also the mother of the young woman. ¡°Oh, and a bench. Frank can''t shut up about how great it is.¡± The couple other workmen laughed at the old joke. They had chosen to live at the estate as well. ¡°I''m glad for that, because the Lady of the House has declared that the primary work crew will be making those workbenches and also ornate tables like the ones in the dining room and meeting room.¡± I said and the men let out low whistles. ¡°Yes, she wants all ten men working on them to make as many as possible for sale.¡± One of the men barked a laugh and rubbed his hands together. ¡°This is going to be fun.¡± ¡°We need to build a lot of capital as quickly as possible, so I''ll be brewing general health and healing potions for sale, too.¡± ¡°Oh, wow.¡± The young woman said. ¡°You''re allowed to sell them without a license?¡± I smiled at her. ¡°I''m starting at the academy in two days and students get a provisional license to practice.¡± ¡°That''s sneaky, my lord.¡± One of the maids said with a huge smile. ¡°It was Lady Henrietta''s idea.¡± I said. ¡°I knew she was a smart one.¡± The maid responded and a few of the others nodded. ¡°If you have any problems, Administrator Lannin''s office is next to the den. If you can''t find him, just wait for a few moments. His son is always running around and will know exactly where his father is.¡± One of the workmen chuckled. ¡°Gerald''s a good lad and he''s the best gofer I''ve ever seen.¡± A lot of them nodded in response. I was about to dismiss them when Sara and Hope came out of Lannin''s office and saw me on the stairs. They rushed over to me and Sara held the documents up. ¡°My lord! It''s done!¡± Sara exclaimed. ¡°Gerald will deliver copies to the guild and...¡± She stopped talking when she saw everyone in the lobby near the front doors. ¡°Oops.¡± The maids in front, the closest to her, saw the official documents and immediately recognized them. ¡°THE LADY IS PREGNANT!¡± One of them yelled, then pandemonium ensued. Sara and Hope were surrounded by the women and the men surrounded me. My two maids were verbally pestered with hundreds of questions and I did my best to not listen to them while I was given pats on the back, both of my hands shaken, and congratulated dozens of times. ¡°It seems you''re a powerful mage already!¡± One of the workmen said. ¡°Only a strong magic can overpower a woman mage''s defenses enough to get those little swimmers in! Ha ha!¡± I wasn''t sure what to say to that, considering Helena fully cooperated. Since she was the only mage I had sex with, I had no idea how it worked for other married couples. It was then that I remembered Helena''s words about how rare it was for two betrothed people to actually love each other. So, this is what she meant. I thought and accepted the man''s praise without saying anything. When they don''t like each other in a prearranged marriage, the man has to try and overpower the woman to let her accept his seed. He has to earn it or she won''t take it, otherwise. That made me think about the nobles and mages. They held their family secrets and their mage secrets pretty closely, fought off any outsider that tried to come in and take the secrets or one of their daughters. It was almost funny that Grand Mage Henrietta had completely ignored the fact that Helena had worked hard to get me to come to her family, instead of the other way around. He assumed I wanted whatever secrets he''s hiding. I thought as the congratulating came to an end. ¡°I knew I was going to love working here!¡± The young woman said, excitedly. ¡°A baby! We''re going to have a baby in the house!¡± ¡°In eight months.¡± Her mother said and everyone fell silent. ¡°Truly?¡± One of the other maids asked, her voice unsure. ¡°The infusion happened right away.¡± The woman said and held up the document that said so. ¡°It happened RIGHT AWAY!¡± That set everyone off again and more questions came for the maids and more congratulations came for me. I accepted them silently and nodded in return as the maids did their best to answer the questions without telling everything. In public, anyway. I was sure that as soon as I was out of sight, the questions would get much more personal. Administrator Lannin came out of his office wearing his night clothes and a robe. ¡°You all need to get to where you''re going before morning rolls around.¡± That made a few people laugh. A few of the workers pat his shoulder on the way by, making him stagger slightly, and the maids all bowed their heads as they passed him. When it was just Sara, Hope, Lannin, and myself left, Lannin came over to me. ¡°My lord, congratulations.¡± Lannin said. ¡°Thank you for choosing us all to watch your child grow up.¡± ¡°Children.¡± I corrected and Sara and Hope gasped. ¡°Helena wants a family and I''m going to give her one that she can be proud of, as is my duty.¡± ¡°My lord.¡± Lannin said with a huge smile, shook my hand briefly, and walked away. ¡°I love working here.¡± He said as he stepped into his office and closed the door. Sara and Hope walked over to me and handed me the documents. ¡°I''ll be a witness whenever you need me, my lord.¡± Sara offered, quite unabashedly. Hope blushed for a few seconds, then she looked into my eyes. ¡°I''m glad that I have a brother that can give his wife what she needs.¡± She said and took my hand to shake it. ¡°I''ll be a witness as well, since you... um... performed your duty without...¡± Her face flushed red again. ¡°You''re lucky we left the room as quickly as we did.¡± Sara said with a happy expression. ¡°There''s no way my lady would let that be all they did.¡± ¡°What? Why?¡± Hope asked. ¡°The first time was only work.¡± Sara said and shook my hand as well. ¡°Then they enjoyed it.¡± I nodded slightly and Sara let my hand go. ¡°Let''s get to our room and prep for tomorrow.¡± Sara said and took Hope''s hand. ¡°It''s the first full day that you can teach my lord as much as you can before he has to go to the academy.¡± Hope nodded and they left me on the stairs as they went up them to the personal maid quarters. I didn''t wait for them to disappear from sight before I went through the house to get to the basement door. I greeted the guards there and told them about asking them to transfer over permanently. I wasn''t surprised that they both accepted and I thanked them before I went into the basement to start work on brewing potions. I would need a lot of them if I was going to sell as much as Helena suggested I would. 132 Academy Antics Prelude I spent half the night making potions and filled fifty crates. Twenty with general health and thirty with healing potions. I used up all of the extra ingredients I had purchased, which were the common ones that were cheap, and supplemented with what I had left in my canvas bags. I ended the potion making session by filling the large stew pots with number ten potion and left. That would be all I could make for a while, until I started experimenting with the ingredients that were available. Otherwise, I would need to make a trip back to the marsh or go to a similar area that might be closer. I would have to ask around or look at maps or something. Then again, I knew where those ingredients were in the marsh and wouldn''t have to search around for them. When I sold the ones I had crated, with a few crates kept aside for myself and the house workers, I would need to take a couple of days to go back to the marsh and get more if they couldn''t be found locally. I went upstairs to go to bed and Helena was still sound asleep. I changed and climbed in with her, held her close, and went right to sleep. The morning arrived a moment later and after a very delicious breakfast, I was subjected to some very tough learning lessons. Hope was ruthless in her teaching and she made me repeat things several times to make sure I did them right. I had never seen this side of her before and I wasn''t sure I liked it. She was getting to be a bit like the Hag. When I made the same mistake three times in a row, she looked mean and angry. ¡°DAVID!¡± Hope yelled. ¡°I told you that...¡± I winced as I dropped my pencil and shrunk away from her. I covered my ears and waited for her to hit me, just like every time the Hag yelled at me like that. A second later, I felt her arms go around me. ¡°I''m sorry, David.¡± Hope whispered and rested her head on mine. ¡°I''m trying to get you to learn this as quickly as possible. You''ve got to know this before tomorrow and the more we fall behind, the angrier I am that you''re not getting it fast enough.¡± She sighed and let me go, then moved my hands from my ears. ¡°I let my anger at the situation out on you and I''m sorry.¡± ¡°I think you need a break.¡± Sara said and took my hand. ¡°A bath break.¡± Hope looked at the stack of papers we had yet to go through and looked at me. ¡°Go ahead. I''ll try to sort through this for the more important things.¡± Sara took me from the room and to the master bedroom. Jill saw us in the hallway and didn''t comment, probably because she saw something on my face. She followed us inside and then she and Sara bathed me to get me to relax. I had to admit that it worked. My automatic reaction to a woman yelling at me and making me afraid, faded from my mind as their hands rubbed me all over. It felt good and my body reacted for them. Sara gave Jill a happy smile and then she washed me down there, without having to use extra motions to get me hard. I stood up without being asked and Sara looked extra happy as she performed her after bath ritual. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and bent down to kiss her cheek. ¡°M-my lord.¡± Sara''s face flushed red. ¡°It was my pleasure.¡± Jill dried me off and gave Sara a look, as if asking for permission. ¡°It might take longer now.¡± Sara warned her. ¡°The cooks are preparing lunch.¡± Jill said and knelt in front of me. ¡°My lord.¡± She said, almost as if she was thanking me, then she performed the ritual as well. Sara had been right and it did take a bit longer; but, Jill was just as happy when I was done and she blushed as she accepted my thanks and a kiss on the cheek, too. ¡°I just love working here.¡± Sara said and quickly washed me off and dried me again. The two of them helped me change and then Sara took my hand and led me out of the bedroom and down the stairs. Jill was right behind us and Hope came out of the room we were using as a classroom. We all went into the larger dining room and it was set up differently from the normal one. A separate table was there for our maids to sit down to eat while Helena and I sat at the medium sized main table. The house maids were a bit scandalized at the setup at first, until they realized that they would all get a turn to sit down and eat with the lord and the lady of the house. The other maids and butlers came in and their table was much more crowded than the one with Helena and myself. It made the place seem more like a lively home with so many people eating together and Helena gave me a pleased smile as she ate lunch. The only other time she had seen such a meal was back at the garrison in the mess hall and she whispered that to me. I nodded in response and neither of us were going to tell them to be quieter or to behave, just like we hadn''t at the garrison. Being lively during meals was the whole point of eating together, after all. The only two maids not eating were the ones attending us, and they would switch out at supper for two others, just like they had at breakfast. Each day, everyone would get to eat at least two meals with us, and the staff were more than happy about that. I told Helena about the work I had done the night before, about using up all of the ingredients I had on hand, and my problem with needing time to experiment with local ingredients to test their validity as replacements or finding somewhere other than the marsh to get more. Otherwise, I would need to plan a trip to go there to get more.Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°I''ll try and look around for something a bit closer to the capital than the marsh on the other side of the kingdom.¡± Helena said, her voice full of amusement. ¡°Perhaps you can get some hunting in as well.¡± I hadn''t thought of that and held a hand out to her. ¡°Thank you.¡± Helena took my hand, glanced at the people at the other table, then she leaned forward and kissed me on the lips. A low whistle and several claps came from the staff and Helena blushed a little as she sat back. When the meal ended, my learning lessons began again. Hope did her best to not get frustrated with me, which I knew was a lot harder than she let on, considering the more advanced things she tried to have me do, the more I failed at them. After another hour, she sighed. ¡°This isn''t working.¡± Hope said and looked at Sara. ¡°I wouldn''t have any problems if I had more time and could give him more experience with this stuff.¡± She waved at the papers. ¡°Do you have any suggestions?¡± Sara sat there and thought about it for several minutes, then she smiled. ¡°I do.¡± She stood up and took Hope''s hand and led her from the room. I couldn''t hear them from that far away until Hope spoke loudly. ¡°You can''t be serious!¡± Hope exclaimed. ¡°I am.¡± Sara said and then I couldn''t hear anything else. A few minutes later, they both came back into the room and Hope looked a little embarrassed. ¡°David, come with me.¡± Hope said and took my hand. I went with her and Sara came with us as we went to the room that the personal maids shared. Hope let my hand go and changed out from her tutor outfit and into her nightgown, then she took my hand again and led me to her bed. Sara made motions with her hands to keep going. Hope sighed and climbed onto the bed and pat the spot beside her. I wasn''t sure what she was asking for, so she pulled on my arm and asked me to lay down beside her. A moment later, I was cuddled into her side and she held me close. ¡°Let me tell you a story.¡± Hope said with a soft voice as she stroked my head, then she started to talk... and talk... and talk. I listened intently as she did, because I was sure that there was a reason for why she was doing this. It took her a while before she finally stopped talking, then she leaned close and kissed my forehead. ¡°I love you, little brother.¡± I blinked my eyes at her and wasn''t sure what to say. ¡°I think that should do it.¡± Sara said. I had been concentrating so hard on Hope and her voice that I had completely forgotten that Sara was there. She had stayed there the entire time with us, too. She helped us up off of the bed and Hope changed back into her tutor outfit, then Sara led me back to the room we were using as a classroom. What followed were some of the easiest tests I had ever taken. Hope was pretty much stunned at my significant improvement, because all of the things I had gotten completely wrong several times before, I had gotten a hundred percent right this time. ¡°This... this is amazing.¡± Hope said and gave me a hug, then she kissed my cheek. ¡°David, you did it! You passed all of the main admittance requirements and filled out all of the materials!¡± ¡°I did?¡± I asked and looked down at the stack of papers. The whole thing was filled out and all of the basic knowledge questions needed to start the courses were all filled in. ¡°I knew it would work.¡± Sara said and hugged me, then she kissed my cheek. ¡°You did great, my lord.¡± She let me go and hugged Hope and kissed her cheek, too. ¡°You did great, too.¡± Hope''s face flushed red and she looked a little embarrassed. ¡°I don''t understand.¡± I said and looked at Hope and at Sara. ¡°How did I do it?¡± ¡°It''s quite simple, really.¡± Sara said and stepped back close to me and slid her arms around my neck. ¡°Hope needed to show you that she cared about you, so I told her the best way to do that. While she held you, she told you all of the information you needed to know and you listened, because you could feel that she wanted you to listen.¡± I must have looked surprised, because she laughed softly and pressed her lips to my cheek again. ¡°It''s not going to work with everyone, only those you have close to your heart... even if you don''t realize it.¡± Sara said and slid her arms down my chest. ¡°I think the Lady of the House is in the main garden and overlooking the installation of the new gazebo. You should go to her and tell her the good news.¡± I nodded and left the room, went down the stairs, and left the house to go out to the large garden in the back of the house. The gazebo, or a large latticed wooden structure with seating for thirty people around the inside of it, was being quickly built by three work crews. ¡°This was supposed to be their day off.¡± I said as I approached. Frank stood up from applying a floorboard and grinned at me. ¡°This is what we do on our day off.¡± ¡°You work as hard as I do?¡± I asked and he laughed, as did the others. ¡°I told them it could wait until the outer wall around the property is built, and he said that was normal work.¡± Helena said. ¡°Oh, and Gerald will be back before supper with a bag of the ingredients you want to experiment with.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and kissed her on the lips. That made a few of the guys whistle and joke about the magic still being there, despite her already being pregnant. We stood there and watched it be assembled, since all the pieces had already been cut and sized, and the number ten potion made it go so quickly that even though they had so much experience with it, they were still surprised when they put the last piece of the roof on and were done. Frank and the guys stood off to the side and stared at the thing. ¡°Four hours. We did a two day job in four hours.¡± ¡°Most of that was cutting.¡± One of the men said. ¡°We really are the fastest work crews in the capital.¡± ¡°Damn right we are.¡± Frank said. ¡°Three cheers for the Lord of the House for making it possible!¡± ¡°Hip hip hurray! Hip hip hurray! Hip hip hurray!¡± ¡°Thank you. Now get back to work.¡± I said and they all laughed. ¡°It''s not work! This is fun.¡± One of them said and they all nodded agreement as they walked away. ¡°It really is fun.¡± Frank said and clapped me on the shoulder, then left with the men. ¡°I had no doubt that you would eventually win them over.¡± Helena said and turned to lead me back to the house. ¡°I expected it and having it happen this quickly is still a surprise for me.¡± ¡°I''ve spent a lot of time with men that want to work as we built things for the army. When you make it easy for them, more gets done and they are eager for more.¡± I said. ¡°Frank and his men are a cut above, since they are more aesthetic minded than practical, unlike the construction crews.¡± ¡°Have you been inside the main parlour yet?¡± Helena asked with a knowing smile. ¡°We need to stop there on the way to Lannin''s office.¡± I nodded and we went inside the house and walked over to the large parlour. When one of the butlers opened the double doors, I saw what was inside. The room was filled from floor to ceiling with ornate tables of all kinds and sizes. They were stacked top to top and leg to leg, and you couldn''t see the walls of the room, because there were so many of them. It actually reminded me of my animal parts room back at the marsh house, it was that full. ¡°Isn''t it wonderful what sixty workmen on their day off can do?¡± Helena asked and laughed. 133 Academy Antics Part One - Assembly Hall After we left the parlour and the mass of very expensive tables that Helena would arrange the sale of, I told her the good news that Hope and I had completed all of the standard entrance and aptitude tests. Before she could congratulate me on that achievement, I told her that I had passed them all, too. ¡°Oh, David! That''s wonderful!¡± Helena gushed and kissed me. ¡°I was so worried that you wouldn''t be prepared properly, considering how rushed everything has been the last week.¡± ¡°Hope was worried about that, too.¡± I said. ¡°Of course she was. Her second priority job is to teach you what you need to know.¡± Helena said and led me to the sitting room where we could relax for a short time before supper was served. ¡°I have to say, she''s performed much better than I expected, especially with the academy preparations.¡± We sat down and cuddled on the couch, relatively alone, because an occasional maid would pass through to check if we needed anything, then she would look to see if everything was clean and leave again. When it was time, we went to the dining room and had supper. It was another boisterous meal with the staff there and the food was excellent. In fact, it tasted even better than the food served at the main Henrietta Family''s mansion. I commented on it and Helena had to agree, so she told the maids serving us to inform the cooks that they were doing an excellent job. The meal ended and Helena and I retreated to the bedroom for some personal time, then we each took a bath before going to bed. I would be reporting to the academy in the morning and she would be handling the sales and distribution of the tables and potions, so we both needed to look our best. We slept soundly and the night passed by in mere moments. I stood up and my two maids dressed me in one of my casual suits and tucked my bandoleer underneath. It added a bit of bulk to my shoulders and they told me in looked fine. My uniform was in the bag that Hope carried, because I would need to change into it when the exams were over and I reported to the academy''s main office for the results an hour later and to select my classes. ¡°You''re not allowed to bring servants until you are officially registered, so I can''t show up until this afternoon.¡± Hope said and wiped at my lapel. ¡°I''ll bring your uniform and you''ll have plenty of time to change and report to the office.¡± ¡°Good luck.¡± Helena said and kissed me goodbye. ¡°I''ll see you in two weeks when the school goes on break for the King''s birthday.¡± ¡°I can''t believe you''re only allowed one servant for the first year.¡± Sara said, clearly upset. ¡°He can have two or more in the second year when he''s allowed to upgrade to the larger rooms.¡± Helena said. ¡°Until then, Hope is the senior maid.¡± ¡°My lady, that makes me sound old.¡± Hope said and Helena smiled. ¡°I need to go.¡± I kissed Helena on the lips and left the three of them in the master bedroom. I went down the hallway and down the large grand staircase in the main lobby and the front doors opened for me. The two guards there saluted and I nodded back, then I was surprised when a carriage with Henrietta colors was waiting for me. ¡°What do you think of it?¡± Frank asked as he stepped around it. ¡°It''s the first melded carriage ever built.¡± ¡°I''m glad you''re utilizing the potion for important things.¡± I said and walked over to him. Frank laughed. ¡°This was important.¡± He said and the coachman opened the door for me. ¡°If you showed up walking, you''d stand out like a slug on a glass surface.¡± I gave him raised eyebrows and he laughed again. ¡°You don''t want any more attention than what you''re already going to get.¡± Frank said as the coachman shut the door. ¡°I assume you''ve got your knife on you?¡± I pat my chest with my right hand and he nodded. ¡°Don''t maim or kill anyone. They might not be able to kick you out; but, that doesn''t mean they can''t charge you with crimes and send you to jail.¡± Frank warned. ¡°You won''t get back to the Lady of the House quickly if they detain you and delay your graduation by making you miss time.¡± ¡°They can''t.¡± I said and he looked surprised. ¡°They have to pass me, even if I''m in jail.¡± Frank closed his mouth on his response. ¡°The problem is, most of them will know that the only way they can get rid of me, is if I quit.¡± Frank cursed and looked like he wanted to punch something. ¡°I''m sorry, my lord. They will be...¡± ¡°...very mean. I know.¡± I said. ¡°Driver.¡± ¡°Good luck!¡± Frank said and waved as we drove away. The drive was quite long and also seemed to pass by in only a few moments. The academy was clear across the large capital city and when the carriage came to a stop, quite a few people stopped what they were doing to look. I stepped out when the door opened and nodded to the man. ¡°I don''t envy you, my lord.¡± The coachman said and climbed on, then the coach was gone.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. I hadn''t brought anything with me, except writing things that were required for the tests. Everything would be delivered after Hope came with my uniform and I was assigned a living space. The curious onlookers lost interest quickly and I walked up to the main gate and stopped at the guard building there. ¡°David Drake or David Henrietta.¡± I said, in case the Grand Mage wanted to make fun of me and gave me the latter name before I officially took it. ¡°Well? Which is it?¡± The irritated man asked. ¡°Don''t you know your own name?¡± ¡°Not until I was around eleven.¡± I said and he looked surprised for a second, then he frowned. ¡°Try Drake first.¡± He glared at me for several seconds, then he looked down at his list for a few more seconds. ¡°Here it is. David Drake. Applying first year student... and you''re 20?¡± He asked, once again surprised. ¡°Are you daft? You should have graduated by now!¡± ¡°I didn''t even know there was an academy until last year.¡± I said and he looked even more surprised. ¡°You...¡± The man paused and looked at what I was wearing. ¡°That''s not an approved outfit for taking exams.¡± ¡°My good suit was ruined when I was ambushed and attacked.¡± I said, truthfully. ¡°I can''t wear the ornate one unless I''m meeting a high ranking mage or official.¡± The man gave me another once over look, sighed, and waved at the gate. A small doorway opened in the side instead of the whole thing opening up, and I stepped through. It quickly shut behind me as several other students approached the guard building. Apparently, seeing me enter first bugged them for some reason. I walked on and followed the directions that Helena had given me and went right up to the large assembly hall that the admittance tests were being held. There were a lot of people standing around in academy uniforms and talking with each other in small groups. Helena had warned me that a lot of them were going to be like her brother, so I had decided that I wasn''t going to talk to them at all. I didn''t need the trouble today. As I walked by them, at least two people from each group stared at me. I started to feel little tingles and I quickly cast Dispel. The tingling cut off and a girl close by gasped while a guy two groups over cursed loudly. That got everyone''s attention and they all turned to look at me. I ignored them and went inside. I was the first one to enter and the place was huge. When I reached the end of the long hallway, I saw that it was a giant amphitheatre and a woman sat at a desk in the middle of the open area. It was just like the large one that Hope and I had seen in the city and Helena explained that they performed plays and stories in it. When she explained people acting out the story for others to watch, and actually pay money for the privilege, it seemed like a waste of time to me. It was so much easier to just read the story, wasn''t it? ¡°Name.¡± The stern woman asked as I approached the desk. ¡°David Drake.¡± I said. The woman''s eyes hardened and she made a sour face as she checked her list and put a mark by my name. ¡°Your seat is in the third row from the top, ten seats in on the left hand side.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and she huffed. I climbed up the stairs to the right row and counted ten seats in, and went to sit down. I could feel a slight tingle as my butt approached the seat and I cast Dispel on it. I felt something snap and the seat collapsed in on itself with a loud clatter. ¡°Miss?¡± I said and stood up straight. ¡°There''s something wrong with this seat.¡± The woman huffed and got up from behind her desk, then tromped up the steps to the row below mine and went to the tenth seat. Her eyes beheld the wood pieces on the floor under the table and she took in a sharp breath. ¡°You will be paying for damaging that seat!¡± ¡°I didn''t even sit it in, as you clearly saw.¡± I said. ¡°It fell apart before I could.¡± The woman glared at me and seemed even angrier for some reason. ¡°You''ll just have to sit on the floor and take the test. There''s no other seats for you.¡± I looked around at the hundreds of seats around us. ¡°You heard what I said.¡± The woman said and walked away. I only had a few seconds to use my knife to cut the broken wood pieces into appropriate shapes, then put the knife away and used some number ten potion to fuse them into the right shapes to make a nice curved bench seat that matched the table''s shape. I didn''t need a back on the chair, because I wouldn''t be relaxing in it. It was for work and I would make both Helena and Hope proud. I sat down and the woman looked surprised that I wasn''t sitting on the floor behind the long curved table. I could see her face as she warred between her curiosity and her not caring, then her decision was made for her. A group of students came out of the hall and into the amphitheatre to be directed to their proper seats. I sat there and waited as the place seemed to quickly fill up. A lot of the students taking their seats gave me furtive looks. Although, some were curious and two of the girls gave me the same look that lady of the night had back in the city past Ester''s Village. I wonder if they do it for money, too? I asked myself. ¡°Who''s the old guy?¡± A young man asked as he sat next to one of the interested girls. ¡°I don''t know.¡± She said and kept her eyes on me. ¡°By the looks of the suit, he''s not quite upper class.¡± I didn''t volunteer that my good suit was damaged, since I was sure that someone was going to clue her in on who I was. ¡°Brenda, give up on him. He''s not worth your time.¡± Another young man said. ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°Haven''t you heard the rumors? He''s the ex-slave from the marsh battlefield.¡± The young man said without looking at me. ¡°He was dishonorably discharged from the army, too.¡± ¡°What for?¡± She asked, genuinely curious. ¡°Dereliction of duty and cowardice in the face of the enemy.¡± The young man said. ¡°No!¡± She gasped. ¡°My brother was one of the guards stationed there, so I heard it all first hand when he arrived home with a medical discharge.¡± ¡°What''s your brother''s name?¡± I asked. The young man huffed. ¡°Yeah, like I''m going to tell a conscripted convict that.¡± A few of the people sitting down let out gasps at his words. ¡°If you know so much, tell them what I was convicted of.¡± I urged him and he didn''t say anything. ¡°No? You don''t know?¡± I asked and he stayed quiet. ¡°What did you do?¡± The interested girl asked. ¡°I shouldn''t say things like that with such delicate ears listening.¡± I said. ¡°I want to know.¡± She said. ¡°I''ve heard a lot about...¡± ¡°I killed a man in self-defense.¡± I said and she took in a sharp breath. ¡°He attacked me with an axe and I beheaded him.¡± She and a bunch of others stared at me with open mouths. ¡°That''s enough chatter!¡± The stern woman said loudly and her voice carried throughout the amphitheatre. ¡°Now that you''re all here, we can get started.¡± I glanced around and saw that barely half of the seats were taken. The two seats on either side of me were vacant as well. ¡°You have three hours to write the general knowledge section and three hours to write the academy entrance exam.¡± She said and slapped a small stack of papers onto her desk. The papers disappeared briefly as exact copies appeared in front of everyone sitting down and not at every place. Her papers reappeared and she sat down. ¡°Begin.¡± The sound of pencils writing on paper filled the place as they all wrote frantically. I didn''t, though. I knew these answers, even though the questions were worded differently and some were changed from the practice tests Hope had given me. It didn''t matter as I calmly and quickly wrote out all of the answers. 134 Academy Antics Part Two - Registrars Office Thanks to Hope''s unconventional teaching method, I blew through the general knowledge paper in barely half of the allotted time and then started the academy entrance portion. These questions were more specific and also needed longer answers, so it took me nearly the entire three hours to complete it. I was still done almost two hours before the time limit and signed my name to each of the papers and not just the top one, then I numbered them. It was a habit I had picked up while practising re-writing potion recipes to keep them straight and in order after writing in the substitutions. The regeneration potion alone took fifteen pages of notes and procedures to convert and I definitely didn''t want to mess that order up. I stood with the papers in my hands, careful to not let anyone peek at my answers, and walked behind the other two people in the row to get to the aisle. I walked all the way down the steps to the bottom of the amphitheatre and the woman there glared at me the entire time. ¡°I''m finished.¡± I said and held the papers out to her. ¡°Are you really?¡± She asked. ¡°I answered every question correctly, so yes.¡± I said. She squinted her eyes at me for almost ten seconds, then she took the stack of papers. She used a small machine of some kind to puncture a small hole in the top corner of the sheets and tied it with a string. After that, she picked up her pencil and wrote a big ''65'' on the front of the test papers without even reading them, then dropped it on the side of the desk. It was my turn to squint my eyes at her and her glare intensified. ¡°I was ordered... ordered... to pass you.¡± She said, her voice angered. ¡°65 is a passing grade.¡± ¡°I want you to grade it properly.¡± I said. ¡°It is graded properly.¡± She said and her glare didn''t soften as she smiled. ¡°It doesn''t matter what you wrote on it, because you automatically passed. Why would I waste my time grading something when I obviously don''t have to?¡± I stood there and heard several mutters behind me, because they had confirmed that the rumor I couldn''t fail was true. ¡°I want it returned.¡± ¡°You don''t need...¡± She started to say. ¡°Now.¡± I said and cut her off. ¡°It is my right to receive it back after it''s graded. I would get it back when I registered at the main office anyway, because it''s supposed to take time to grade all of the papers. Since you''ve already graded it, mark it in your ledger and hand it back.¡± The woman frowned at me and looked like she wasn''t going to comply, then she marked the number 65 beside my name on the list. She picked up my exam papers and handed them to me. ¡°If you''re one of my teachers, you might as well add that to whatever tests and reports you''re going to assign me for the rest of my stay here, since you''re too lazy to do your work and don''t care if I know what I''m doing.¡± ¡°How dare you accuse...¡± ¡°Do any of the other teachers care if someone is learning what they are teaching?¡± I asked her and her frown became a scowl. ¡°If not, please inform them of what I said.¡± I turned towards the amphitheatre and waved my completed test in front of the other potential students. ¡°I would have come here years ago if I''d known that it was so easy to pass tests in what is supposed to be the most difficult mage academy in the kingdom.¡± ¡°That''s enough!¡± The woman exclaimed and stood. ¡°I will not have you defame this academy!¡± ¡°I don''t have to do that. You''re doing a great job of it for me.¡± I said without looking at her. ¡°Since I''ve already passed, would anyone like to look at my answers?¡± A few people put up their hands, even the interested girl from before. ¡°I said that''s enough!¡± The woman spat from behind me. ¡°I think I just had a better idea.¡± I said and flipped to the last page of the exam. ¡°I''ve got about two hours before I need to change and report to the registrar''s office. Why don''t I just read what I wrote, starting with the last page?¡± ¡°You can''t do that!¡± The woman nearly yelled. ¡°I''ve finished my exam and I am not under your authority anymore.¡± I said and started reading. Every single student flipped to the last page of their exams, even the guy that had told them about me. The woman behind me started spitting and sputtering as I recited what I wrote, especially when I urged the students to rewrite it in their own words, so they wouldn''t be accused of cheating. That made a few of them laugh and the interested girl gave me the same ''I want it'' look she had given me before. I stayed there for the entire time and worked backwards through the exam questions. By the time the bell rang and the exam time had expired, we were completely done of the admittance part. I closed my exam paper and tucked it into my suit coat under my bandoleer, then I turned to look at the woman''s red angry face.The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°I think there''s going to be a huge influx of new students this year, don''t you?¡± I asked and she was swamped by students trying to turn in their papers. I walked down the hallway to leave the building and heard a few people try to holler to get my attention. I ignored them and went outside to see that the groups of students wearing academy uniforms were still there, or had come back. ¡°That''s him!¡± A girl said and pointed. She had been the one to gasp when I cast Dispel. ¡°Hey, how did you do?¡± A guy near her asked. His hair was pitch black and impeccably styled. ¡°Did you get high marks? I bet you got high marks!¡± The girl said, a bit excitedly. ¡°I''m sure I passed.¡± I said, which was the truth. The guy huffed as if he had expected it and the girl looked disappointed. I walked on and no one else said anything to me. I assumed because they heard my words and misunderstood what I meant, which was what I wanted. I didn''t want to be recruited by them or join whatever groups they represented. I was sure they were from powerful families and were scouting for new talent. Since I was already taken and would become a Henrietta when I graduated, joining anything would be a waste of time and effort. I had much more important things to do, so I walked all the way back to the front gate and Hope was already there with the carriage. ¡°Please tell me you aced it!¡± Hope said loudly out the side window as the large gates opened to admit her and several other coaches and carts. ¡°I passed with a 65.¡± I said as the carriage stopped to let me on. ¡°No! That''s the bare minimum! How could it happen? You knew it all...¡± ¡°They have to pass me.¡± I said as an explanation and she understood right away. ¡°Oh, those mage bastards!¡± Hope gasped as we rode over to the main administration building. ¡°If I could, I''d strangle each and every one of them for doing this to you!¡± I touched her arm to stop her tirade and she sighed. ¡°Let''s get you changed.¡± Hope said and got to work. I was quickly changed from my suit into the academy uniform that consisted of black pants, a beige coat with the academy emblem on the front pocket, an ornate shirt that people in rural areas would laugh at if worn without the coat, and uncomfortable shoes that I had modified with number ten potion to fit properly. Helena had the suit tailored for my bandoleer, just like she had my other suit. It sat properly on my shoulders and didn''t let anyone know what I was actually wearing underneath it. My sheath and knife tucked inside as well and was quite hidden, despite being easily accessed. We stepped out of the carriage and there were already a few people there waiting in line. I heard a few people asking why it was taking so long and I whispered to Hope what I had done in the amphitheatre. She had to cover her mouth to stop her laugh. ¡°David, that was brilliant.¡± Hope whispered back. ¡°No wonder it''s taking so long if they have to mark all of those papers and pass them all.¡± She gave me a pleased smile. ¡°I bet they''ve never had this many students be accepted in a single year before.¡± ¡°We would have to go to one of the lesser academies in another city.¡± One of the guys nearby said without turning around. ¡°I hope you don''t think I owe you anything for what you did.¡± ¡°I didn''t do it for you.¡± I responded. ¡°If they aren''t going to treat me fairly, I won''t treat them fairly, either.¡± The guy started to turn and then stopped to face forward again. He whispered to his maid and she turned to look at me. ¡°What do you mean?¡± His maid asked. ¡°If they won''t teach me properly, what better way to get back at them than to force them to teach hundreds of other students instead?¡± His maid looked surprised for a moment, then she smiled at me and turned back to face forward. More people joined the line as the carriages and coaches gathered around the area. A lot of them were talking about how easy the entrance exam was. Not surprisingly, almost no one mentioned my hand in that, because they had taken my caught cheating comment to heart and were covering up my involvement. The doors eventually opened and the man at the top of the stairs looked down at us. ¡°I''m so very glad to have so many students pass the entrance exams. I''ve never seen such brilliance in so many people before... except for one of you.¡± His eyes fell on me. ¡°Just because we have to pass you, I can''t believe you didn''t even bother submitting an exam paper.¡± ¡°So, she''s a liar as well as lazy?¡± I asked and a lot of people took in sharp breaths. ¡°I wrote the exam. She marked it with a 65 and I asked for it back, as is my right.¡± I said and held up the small bundle of papers and showed him. ¡°Just in case it mysteriously disappeared or was lost before it came here to the main office.¡± The man looked angry. ¡°Are you accusing a mage of this academy...¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I said and a few of the girls gasped, especially the maids. ¡°I will have you know that...¡± ¡°...you''re all biased against me and will try your best to force me to quit? You''re wasting my time telling me something I already know.¡± I interrupted him and nearly everyone turned to look at me with surprise on their faces. ¡°Is there anything else obvious that you need to point out?¡± The man frowned at me and his glare wasn''t as good as the woman in the amphitheatre. ¡°Your insubordination is not going to win you any friends among the...¡± ¡°I''m not here to make friends. I was forced to attend the mage academy by a man who''s afraid I''ll kill his son for the son''s insults to me.¡± I let them all digest those words for a moment. ¡°I don''t want to be here any more than you want me to be here. However, I will keep my word to my fiance, because she deserves to be treated better than the way her father and brother have treated her.¡± Everyone was quiet and no one seemed to want to move or speak. The man''s frown disappeared and he waved at the doors. ¡°The first five students, go to the desks on the left. The next five go to the right. I''ll be back out to send more of you in.¡± I was the eighth person, so I went in with the others to the right with Hope waiting outside. I sat down at the middle desk and the woman there looked like she had been sucking on a sour fruit. ¡°Name.¡± ¡°David Drake.¡± I said. The woman looked at her list and put a mark by my name. ¡°You didn''t fill out an exam, so we can''t pinpoint your specialties.¡± I handed her the papers I still had in my hand. ¡°I did complete it and it was marked already.¡± Her sour expression didn''t leave her face as she took the papers. ¡°Only a 65? That''s pathetic.¡± ¡°Are you going to be lazy and ignore reading it, too?¡± I asked her. She gave me a stern expression and then sighed. ¡°Give me a few minutes.¡± I nodded and she started to read it. 135 Academy Antics Part Three - Course Corrections The people around me at the other desks in the registrar''s office came and went for nearly half an hour, then the woman flipped the last page of my exam and her face was no longer sour. ¡°She didn''t read it at all, did she?¡± The woman asked with a sigh. ¡°She barely looked at it long enough to write the score on it.¡± I said. ¡°Can''t some of you tell when someone lies? She told you all I didn''t fill one out and no one questioned her about it?¡± The woman''s face went sour again. ¡°That''s why I asked for it back. I didn''t want her to get rid of the evidence.¡± I said and held my hand out for it. The woman hesitated and looked at the score that had been officially recorded. She sighed and handed it to me, unaltered. ¡°I can''t legally change it once it''s filed.¡± ¡°I know. That''s why I told her to mark in all of my scores for her class for however long she was teaching whatever course she teaches.¡± The woman shook her head. ¡°I''ll talk to her and...¡± ¡°You''ll only get her angry at you, too.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°Unless you want to be known for helping the dishonorably discharged convicted conscript.¡± The woman seemed to think about that for a few moments, then she sighed. ¡°No, you''re right. There''s no point in speaking out when it won''t make a difference, since she''s already established the precedent.¡± She said and picked up several sheets of papers. ¡°Unfortunately, your score dictates what level of classes you''ll be able to attend.¡± ¡°I assume I have to take the core courses.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Basic Spellwork Composition and Practice, Mathematics, both practical and spell related, Basic Potions with the related lab and kitchen work, Basic Enchanting and proper tool usage, Basic Runes and their practical use, History and Geography of the Kingdom, Basic Biology and the study of creatures, and lastly Civil Construction.¡± I could understand the others, since they went almost perfectly in line with learning magic. The last one made no sense at all. ¡°Why is Civil Construction a basic course?¡± ¡°You need to learn how to build a house, any outbuildings, and anything else a family needs to live on a piece of land.¡± I sat there and assumed that she hadn''t heard about what I did in the army. ¡°You look confused.¡± She said. ¡°I was assigned to the maintenance department in the army. I''ve built two garrison stations, entire defensive structures and buildings, as well as bunkers for civilians to take shelter in.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°I need a Civil Construction course as much as you need the Basic Spellwork course.¡± ¡°You still have to pass it, since that''s part of the agreement Grand Mage Henrietta arranged for.¡± ¡°So, you know some of what''s going on and not everything.¡± I said and her face went blank. ¡°I suppose a lot of you are going to be like that? None of you know it all and assume the worst, because of who I am?¡± She didn''t say anything and I knew it was true. ¡°Well, I''ll tell the teacher the same thing I told you and maybe they''ll understand. I don''t need the course, so they can just mark 65 in it and I''ll skip that class.¡± ¡°You can''t tell me you''re going to intentionally skip a core class!¡± ¡°Unless they can teach me something I haven''t learned before, which I doubt because I''ve built buildings for three thousand people to live in comfortably with all the amenities, I won''t be wasting my time sitting in class and doing nothing.¡± I said. ¡°Unless I''m allowed to do other work in the class?¡± The woman closed her mouth and shook her head. ¡°Is that all for the core classes?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°What about the other courses?¡± ¡°What... other courses?¡± She asked and sighed, because she knew she had just blown her chance to not cause more trouble by hesitating like she had. ¡°What class teaches how to grow plants?¡± I asked. She gave me a lost look. ¡°Botany.¡± ¡°That includes potion ingredients, doesn''t it?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°I want to take that class.¡± ¡°You don''t have the minimum mark to take it.¡± She responded. ¡°I thought a pass was 65.¡± ¡°It is.¡± She said. ¡°Then what''s the minimum needed to take the course?¡± The woman didn''t want to answer and she hesitated for several seconds. ¡°It''s... 70.¡±This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. ¡°So, you''ve already failed me in one of the courses I''m actually interested in taking and I haven''t even taken it yet.¡± I said loudly and she took in a sharp breath as several other workers looked over at us. ¡°What other courses have I automatically failed because the testing teacher marked my exam unfairly with a 65?¡± The woman''s face turned red and looked down at the list on her desk. I saw a dozen other elective courses marked out, because I didn''t meet the requirement. They looked like ones usually reserved for specialization or just a student''s interest past the basic courses. I also saw that a lot of the classes had been filled already, because she had taken so long to read through my exam paper to properly assess me. ¡°Does this mean the academy has broken their arrangement with Grand Mage Henrietta?¡± I asked and she didn''t say anything, so I stood up and made sure that everyone was looking at me. ¡°He went through all the trouble to pay for me go here because he wants an officially recognized mage to marry into the Henrietta Family.¡± I said. ¡°Where''s the nearest messenger mage? I need to inform him right away that the academy is stopping me from doing that.¡± The woman''s face was beet red from embarrassment. ¡°Please, sit down. I''m sure something can be worked out with the Director of the Academy.¡± I hesitated for a moment, then sat down. ¡°I certainly hope so. The Grand Mage praises this place constantly and won''t accept his daughter''s fiance without graduating from his favorite school.¡± I said. ¡°His wife and all three of his children went here, too.¡± ¡°I''ll be right back.¡± The woman said and stood up, then walked away without looking at anyone else. ¡°That was pretty harsh of you.¡± A girl said from the next desk. ¡°It''s not her fault.¡± ¡°It was harsh and I''ll apologize if they fix it. If they stopped lying about things, they wouldn''t have so much trouble trying to cover up those lies.¡± Both the girl and the man serving her looked surprised. The woman came back with a man dressed in ornate mage robes and he had a scowl on his face. ¡°What''s this nonsense about us failing you?¡± The man spat at me. I pointed at the woman''s sheet. ¡°As you can clearly see, I''ve failed those courses, because the minimum pass grade I was given wasn''t the real minimum to take courses inside this academy.¡± ¡°Most of those classes are reserved for the elite of society.¡± The man said. ¡°So, a Henrietta isn''t an elite? That''s good to know. I''ll be sure to let the Grand Mage that sits on the Grand Mages Council what the director of the academy thinks of him and his family.¡± The man''s face turned red, only I was sure it was from anger and not embarrassment. ¡°You cannot come in here and threaten a member of this faculty!¡± ¡°I didn''t threaten you and everyone here can attest to that, assuming anyone that works here is actually honest when asked a simple question.¡± I said and a few people gasped. ¡°It''s you that''s insulted one of the greatest families in the capital, not me. If I was a recognized mage, I would have challenged you to a duel over the insult already.¡± Everyone in the room reacted in some way. Some took in sharp breaths, a few women gasped, there was a shout of some kind, and the sound of three chairs being pushed filled the air and three men stood. The Director''s angry face lost its red color and he looked slightly worried. ¡°You can''t challenge faculty members, even if you were a mage.¡± ¡°More lies?¡± I asked and the woman beside him caught her breath. ¡°You need to be more careful what you say, Director.¡± I said and stood. ¡°I might not be a member of the elite right now; but, as soon as I graduate in three years, despite all of your potential efforts to stop me, I''ll be married to the Henrietta''s eldest daughter and I''ll also be a properly accredited mage.¡± The man''s mouth opened and nothing came out. ¡°Shall I make the appointment now? Can duels be scheduled years in advance?¡± I asked and his slightly worried face became fully worried. ¡°No, I suppose you might forget by then or try to flee.¡± ¡°How dare you.¡± The man said, his angry face back. ¡°How dare you.¡± I repeated back to him and he looked surprised. ¡°Since my unfair assigned mark cannot be changed, you need to reduce the minimum requirement for those courses to ensure that the academy keeps its word and its honor.¡± ¡°Unlike the core courses where we have to pass you, you''ll be able to fail the electives.¡± The man said and he gave me a stern look as he reached forward and touched the paper. All of the courses that had been marked unavailable were no longer marked because my grade didn''t meet the minimum. ¡°I hope you noticed that most of those classes are filled already, because you took so long to try to register for them.¡± The man said with satisfaction. ¡°I don''t need most of them anyway.¡± I said and looked at the woman. ¡°Sign me up for the Botany class and Advanced Potions, since almost no one chose those two.¡± ¡°A-a-advanced Potions?¡± She asked and the girl being served at the next table let out a squeak. ¡°I assume it''s being taught by the same teacher as the basic course?¡± I asked and woman serving me nodded. ¡°Good. I can do my work in both classes and they can''t complain.¡± The director gave me a happy smile. ¡°I look forward to seeing you drop those courses within a month.¡± ¡°Drop them?¡± I asked as the woman handed me my schedule. I saw that I had an entire day with the Basic Potions class in the morning, the prep work for the rest of the morning, then Advanced Potions after lunch and lab work for the rest of the afternoon. ¡°I''ve been making potions since I was a child. I could teach the advanced potions course if I wanted to.¡± The director''s mouth dropped open in surprise, so he obviously didn''t know everything, either. I held a hand out to the woman and she took it automatically and with poise, as a lady should. ¡°I sincerely apologize for my uncouth behavior.¡± I said as I bent over her hand and brushed my lips over her knuckles. ¡°Sometimes brute force is the only way to achieve a tactical victory.¡± The woman blinked her eyes for several seconds and held onto my hand. ¡°I... I''m not sure I can forgive you. You did embarrass me, even if you did deem it necessary.¡± ¡°I don''t know if there''s anything I can do to make it up to you. I''m already betrothed.¡± I said and her face flushed red. ¡°What would you have me do?¡± ¡°You claim to have brewed potions since a young age...¡± I knew what she wanted, so I let her hand go and dug into my academy uniform. I plucked out a general health potion from my bandoleer. ¡°I have these general health potions for sale, along with a new and more powerful healing potion.¡± I said and handed it to her. ¡°If you aren''t feeling ill, that potion provides a significant energy boost instead.¡± ¡°How much?¡± The woman asked as she stared at the vial. ¡°My fiance handles the business part of things. I wasn''t allowed to sell them myself until I enrolled here at the academy.¡± The woman looked at my face as if trying to detect a lie. ¡°You''re using the provisional practising license?¡± ¡°I will be, yes.¡± I said. ¡°I made sure to have my fiance assist with all of the potions I''ve made, even though I''ve given them away until now.¡± ¡°Did... did you say... you gave them away?¡± The woman asked with wide eyes. ¡°I wasn''t allowed to sell them.¡± ¡°Do you have a healing potion to give me, too?¡± She asked, almost eagerly. I smiled and shook my head, then stepped away from her desk and left the room. 136 Academy Antics Part Four - Living Quarters ¡°What happened?¡± Hope asked as soon as I stepped out through the door of the registrar''s office. She had expected them to try something, apparently. I doubt she''ll be happy to be right. I thought. ¡°Lots of things.¡± I said and waved to the administration building next door, which was the place where they took care of every day things for the students, like living quarters, books, food, and transportation if necessary. There was only a small line up, which was understandable, considering nearly everyone else had been handled already. We stood at the end of the line and I whispered to Hope about what had happened when registering for my courses. ¡°I don''t normally advocate violence.¡± Hope whispered, her voice deadly. ¡°Are you sure you''re not allowed to challenge them without being a mage first, my lord?¡± For some reason, that made me feel better. She must have seen something on my face, because she put her back to the other students and gave me an uncharacteristic grin for a second, then put her face back to impassivity and stepped back to my side. When it was my turn to enter the building, Hope came inside with me. Servants were allowed into this building, almost as if they were proof of your status, and we approached the main desk. The man behind the counter saw me and didn''t bother trying to keep the disdain off of his face. ¡°I''ve been waiting for you.¡± He said and moved a different paper than the ones on his desk to be on top. ¡°I don''t understand how you can be so presumptuous to think that a marsh rat will ever become a proper mage. It''s ludicrous and preposterous.¡± He wrote several things onto the sheet, used some kind of ink stamp and slapped it onto the form, and handed it to me. ¡°What''s this?¡± I asked. ¡°That is an appropriate living space for a convicted criminal like yourself.¡± The man said with a sneer. ¡°You should feel right at home there.¡± I looked at the location''s description and glanced at the ones on his desk. ¡°Don''t concern yourself with where the proper students are staying. It''s bad enough you are allowed to attend normal classes without also forcing them to live with someone like you.¡± The man snapped. Hope took a step closer and smiled at him. ¡°Thank you for being the first to volunteer to duel with my lord.¡± ¡°E-excuse me?¡± The man blinked his eyes and looked at her. ¡°My lord hasn''t had an official duel yet, considering he''s not a mage; but, being a student, he is allowed to defend himself when duels are handed so blatantly to him by an accredited mage.¡± The two other men in the office stood up to look over at us, surprise clear on their faces. ¡°I don''t know what you''re saying.¡± The man said as he started to visibly sweat. ¡°You''ve grievously insulted my lord several times, any of which are deserving a proper reprisal, and in the presence of three witnesses. You obviously know that my lord has killed people before, has served time as a conscript in the army and killed hundreds of people, and is betrothed to the daughter of a prominent family.¡± Hope said. ¡°Since he cannot legally kill you for your words outside of a duel, then it''s a duel you must want for saying such things so blatantly.¡± The man sat there with his mouth open and sweat poured off of his forehead. ¡°Well? What is it?¡± Hope asked. ¡°Are you going to say the words or not?¡± The man looked at the other two men and saw no support there. He looked back at me and he ground his teeth together. ¡°I... apologize. I misspoke and did not mean...¡± He paused, as if he wasn''t sure how to continue, and his eyes darted to the other two men. He''s worried about lying with official witnesses. I thought and did my best to not show that I knew, just to see if he would try it. The man sighed and didn''t try to finish the sentence. ¡°That''s all?¡± Hope asked and looked to me for confirmation. I gave her a slight nod and she nodded back. ¡°It appears that my lord is in a forgiving mood today.¡± Hope said and stepped back. ¡°How lucky for you.¡± The man visibly relaxed and waved a hand at his own face, I assumed to try and cool off. Hope and I went to the next desk and the man there didn''t say a word and handed me a card. I read it and all it said was the word ''Bronze''. ¡°What''s this for?¡± He shook his head and pointed to the last man, who looked visibly afraid. Hope and I stopped in front of his desk and he reached down behind the desk. I wasn''t sure what he was doing, until he started putting the oldest and rattiest books I had ever seen on his desk. One even had the pages falling out. He looked embarrassed as he pushed them back inside the cover and then added what looked like a brand new book to the top, which was the rarely taken Botany course book.Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. ¡°If any of them have pages missing, intentional or otherwise, I''ll be back for another one.¡± I said in a great imitation of Grand Mage Henrietta''s stern voice. ¡°You don''t want me to come back here.¡± The man visibly jerked and his eyes widened at the implied threat. He picked up what he said was a student handbook and handed it over as well. Hope carefully put the books into the pack she carried and we left the building. We climbed into the carriage and as soon as the door shut, she laughed. ¡°Did you see that first man''s face? He had no clue that you can''t accept duels! Ha ha!¡± I nodded. ¡°That was a good move on your part. Thank you.¡± ¡°After what happened to you in the registrar''s office, I wasn''t going to stand by and let them insult you again.¡± Hope said. ¡°Pompous asses need to be kicked and kicked hard.¡± I told the driver the location of what was going to be my residence for the next three years and we rode in the carriage over to it. I had to admit that the old dorm building looked worse than the mansion before the work crews started working on it. I could only imagine what the inside was going to look like. On the plus side, it was barely the size of one of the wings on the mansion. ¡°You can''t live here, my lord.¡± The coachman said as he opened the door of the carriage. ¡°It''s not safe.¡± ¡°I doubt I have any choice.¡± I said and looked at Hope. ¡°I''ll send a note to Helena as soon as we see how much worse it is inside.¡± Hope said. ¡°Perhaps she can...¡± I shook my head. ¡°She can''t contact her father to fix this.¡± ¡°But, she''ll want to...¡± ¡°No.¡± I cut her off and walked towards the large double doors. One was half off its hinges and wouldn''t swing open, because the other door was holding it up. Hope held out her pack to me because she knew what I wanted. I opened one of the side pockets and took out several tools. I disconnected the hinge still holding the door in place and then pulled on the door as I stepped back out of the way. It creaked and then fell over to land on the cobblestone entryway with a loud bang. ¡°It''s even worse than I thought.¡± Hope said as we peered inside. A lot of the wood was rotted and cracked, smashed furniture and glassware pieces were everywhere, and the walls looked like they could collapse at any moment. The stairs I could see were in such disrepair that even I wouldn''t feel safe walking up them, and that was saying something. ¡°I don''t want to step inside.¡± Hope said and her voice was full of reluctance. I looked up at the ceiling and saw it wasn''t in much better shape than the walls and floor. Luckily, it looked to only be wood and if it did collapse, the danger wasn''t too high. If it had been stone, I wouldn''t want to step inside, either. Cloth hung in tatters from the windows and the paint was peeled off of the walls and ceilings. There were holes and scorch marks all over, which meant that it must have been used as spell practice by students, probably for years. ¡°We can''t get to your room like this, my lord.¡± The coachman said. ¡°We also can''t stay here all day. The Lady of the House needs us.¡± I stood there for a minute and thought about what to do. I knew that if I tried to go back and complain about my living assignment, they''ll give me some excuse about bureaucracy or something, just so they could cover up the mistake that other man made. ¡°Leave my things here, just in front of the door.¡± I said and he and the driver started to unload my things. I had a trunk with my normal clothing in it, two replacement uniforms in separate bags, my pack with my few valuable possessions in it, a single potion making apparatus, and a few comfort items that Helena told me to take. A thick blanket, several small paintings of her, and some of her dresses. Hope had her own things that she had brought as well. She added them to the pile and stood ready to do whatever I asked her to do. ¡°Write your note to her and tell her the deplorable state of where I was assigned to live.¡± I said and Hope took out a small folding desk and started to write. ¡°I want you to add that I request the work crews to pause in their work on the outer boundary wall to come here for two days.¡± Hope gasped and looked at me with shock on her face. ¡°My lord!¡± ¡°If we can fully repair a mansion in a week, what can we do to a building this small?¡± ¡°Don''t you need permission or something?¡± Hope asked. I held up the paper with my living arrangements on it. ¡°It says that my servants are responsible for making the place livable if the state of the rooms are not up to my standard.¡± Hope''s shock became an evil grin. ¡°They are going to regret that, my lord.¡± ¡°Yes, they are.¡± I said and pointed to the red stamp. ¡°No other students or their servants can interfere, because only I and my servants are allowed to work and live here.¡± Hope nodded and quickly wrote out my instructions, added in bringing as much supplies and equipment as they could, and that it needed to be done in two days. She folded it and handed it to the coachman. The man smiled as he hopped onto the carriage and it sped away. ¡°How long do you think it''ll take them to get here?¡± Hope asked. ¡°Three hours, and they''ll have to use up a lot of potion that I can''t make more of until this place is repaired and I get a chance to get more ingredients.¡± ¡°Have you had any luck with the replacements?¡± Hope asked. ¡°Yes, and no.¡± I said and several groups of students walked by. One of the girls in the second group looked at me, looked away, and looked back. ¡°I can almost get a number ten potion made, except that it''s weaker and takes nearly twice as long as the normal potion to set.¡± ¡°What about the coverage?¡± Hope asked. ¡°Only about two thirds.¡± I said with a sigh. ¡°I''m sure that it''s because they are forcefully grown and not allowed to absorb enough magical energy from the environment over a longer period of time.¡± ¡°Did you mention that to the store owner?¡± ¡°No, and I''m not mentioning it to the guild, either.¡± I said and smiled slightly. ¡°How can I compete with them and grow my own superior products?¡± Hope smiled back. ¡°What else are you going to do while you''re here?¡± ¡°If my grades are guaranteed for every course except the two electives I chose, I''m going to have a lot of free time to start experimenting with my new enchanting tools.¡± ¡°Didn''t you use them to make all those kracken tubes?¡± Hope asked. ¡°I was testing the new tools out and they worked great. Even the sharpener he made for me works.¡± I said. ¡°I should have done them with normal tools, though. Holding the little handles takes some getting used to.¡± ¡°Didn''t doing all those enchantments give you enough practice with them?¡± ¡°No. I''ll need another fifty to a hundred hours of using them before I''ll be able to be completely proficient with them.¡± ¡°Why so long?¡± ¡°That''s just how long I''ve needed whenever I found a new tool or piece of equipment to use.¡± I said. ¡°Oh.¡± Hope said and looked down the street the carriage had gone down. ¡°Are the work crews here yet?¡± ¡°Not for another two hours and forty minutes.¡± I said and she sighed. ¡°Do you want me to make a...¡± ¡°YES!¡± Hope yelled and then blushed. ¡°Yes, please. Thank you.¡± I quickly used some of the wood pieces nearby and made her a chair to sit down on. Then we waited. 137 Academy Antics Part Five - Transformation Part One ¡°DAVID!¡± A woman''s voice yelled nearly twenty minutes later. We turned to look and saw Selena walking towards us with a purpose. She had six girls of a similar age around her. I recognized Becca and the girl that had noticed me when she had walked by earlier. ¡°If Emily hadn''t been coming back from visiting the horses, I never would have found you.¡± Selena said as she and her friends came to a stop in front of me. She saw the pile of my things on the ground in front of the still closed door. ¡°What are you doing here? The student dorms are on the other side of the campus.¡± ¡°This is my assigned living space.¡± I said and showed her the form. ¡°NO!¡± Selena gasped, then her face went red with anger. ¡°Those... ignorant...¡± Her words drifted off into mumbles and what I assumed to be curses. ¡°It''s not safe inside.¡± The girl that had noticed me earlier said. ¡°We can''t even go in to practice anymore. It''s too dangerous because the place is going to fall apart.¡± ¡°I know.¡± I said. ¡°Then what are you still doing here?¡± Becca asked. ¡°You have to go back to the office and get assigned to the proper dorms.¡± ¡°According to the man there, this is my proper dorm. He said that a marsh rat like me should feel right at home here.¡± ¡°No!¡± Becca gasped and as her face turned red with anger, the other girls looked scandalized. ¡°That... ignorant...¡± Her voice trailed off the same as Selena''s had with mumbles and curses. ¡°What are you going to do?¡± Selena asked and waved at the place. ¡°You can''t live here.¡± ¡°Not yet I can''t.¡± I said. ¡°Then come with us. You can stay in my room until you find somewhere else to stay.¡± Selena said. ¡°You can''t! It''s against academy rules for you to let a guy sleep over!¡± One of the others said. ¡°I''m sure the dean of the building will make an exception for my future brother.¡± ¡°No, he won''t.¡± Becca said. ¡°He complains when we stay over. He''ll never let a man visit you, let alone stay over.¡± ¡°Where would he sleep? In your bed?¡± Another girl asked. Selena didn''t respond and only let her slight blush speak for her. ¡°Wow, are you trying to steal him from your sister?¡± The same girl asked and looked at me. ¡°I guess you are pretty handsome, even with the short hair.¡± ¡°It''s growing back from my time in the army.¡± I said. ¡°It was a mess before then.¡± ¡°I can imagine.¡± She said with a smile. ¡°So, are you available?¡± ¡°No, I''m Helena''s fiance.¡± ¡°You can still have fun, right? She''ll let you, won''t she?¡± ¡°No.¡± Hope said. ¡°Unless you want to become a personal servant.¡± ¡°Hell, no.¡± She snapped. ¡°I''m going to be the Lady of the House soon and...¡± ¡°Then act like one.¡± Hope said. ¡°Would a lady talk about things like that with a betrothed man?¡± The girl''s face flushed red and she didn''t respond. ¡°Why are you just standing here?¡± Becca asked. ¡°We''re waiting.¡± I said. ¡°For what?¡± ¡°I doubt you''ll stand here for the next two hours to find out.¡± I said and they all looked revolted at the thought, even Selena. ¡°It''s all right. Thank you for your concern.¡± I said and looked at each of them. ¡°Please come back to visit in two days.¡± ¡°You want us to stay away for two days?¡± One of the girls asked, clearly surprised, and looked at Selena. ¡°I thought you said he needed friends here!¡± ¡°He meant the room will be done by then.¡± Hope said. ¡°Oh. I thought he was telling us to get lost.¡± The girl said. ¡°If he was going to do that, he''d just say it.¡± Hope said. ¡°My lord doesn''t mince words. He asked you to come back, didn''t he?¡± The girl looked at me. ¡°You want us to come back?¡± ¡°I want you to see what this place looks like when I''m done with it.¡± I said. ¡°If Selena is to be believed, her group of close friends knows everyone here.¡± The girl smiled. ¡°We do.¡±Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. ¡°Then tell them.¡± I said. ¡°Tell them the insult of what I was given to live in, then come back in two days and you can tell everyone what I did with that insult.¡± The girl''s smile spread to a grin. ¡°All right. We''ll do that.¡± She turned to Selena. ¡°Let''s go to the buffet hall and see what they have on offer for today.¡± Selena looked at me. ¡°David, do you want to come along?¡± ¡°I can''t today. I need to help with the under-structure of this place.¡± I said. ¡°Classes start tomorrow, so we can eat together for lunch.¡± Selena smiled and she started to walk away. ¡°Bye!¡± Becca said and waved. I waved back and she smiled and walked after her friends. ¡°I think she likes you.¡± Hope said. ¡°So does her mother.¡± I said and Hope looked surprised. ¡°She''s also trying to bribe the workers for some of my potion.¡± Hope shook her head. ¡°She''s approaching you all wrong.¡± ¡°Yes, and she''ll figure it out soon.¡± I said. ¡°If not, our families might have to remain strictly professional and not become actual friends.¡± Hope sighed at my words. ¡°I can''t warn them, can I?¡± ¡°Even if you told Becca, I doubt she can convince her mother her current tactics are a mistake.¡± I said. ¡°Nobles have a tendency to follow a strict course and won''t deviate, unless they figure out that their attempts are failing and try something else.¡± ¡°Is that what happened between you and Helena?¡± Hope asked. ¡°She tried one way and then tried another?¡± I nodded. ¡°She tried going for what she wanted, then she changed course and gave me what I wanted instead.¡± ¡°Which gave her what she wanted.¡± Hope said and I nodded again. ¡°She''s pretty smart.¡± ¡°She''s also patient.¡± I said. ¡°She didn''t have to wait as long as she did before trying for me.¡± ¡°Would she have succeeded, though?¡± Hope asked and I shrugged. ¡°That''s why she waited. She wanted to make sure that you were going to choose her, and you did.¡± We fell silent after that and waited for the work crews to show up. To both of our surprise, ten horse drawn carts showed up and were filled with materials. The work crews were right behind them in six carriages, with Frank in the lead. ¡°We came as soon as we could.¡± Frank said and hopped down. ¡°We''ve got the crates of number ten potions spread out through the carriages.¡± ¡°That''s great.¡± I said and glanced at the carts. ¡°Please tell me there''s foundation stone in here somewhere.¡± ¡°In the sixth one.¡± Frank said. ¡°I''d be ashamed to show up to a repair job like this and not have foundation stone available!¡± I nodded and the work crews quickly unloaded it. ¡°I''ll need the two surveyors from each crew to check over the bottom of the building. As far as I can tell, it looks like it''s going to collapse if we try repairing anything besides the foundation first.¡± ¡°I agree. It''s a shambles.¡± Frank said and waved, then twelve men took off to check. He motioned for Hope to approach and he smiled at her. ¡°Madam, can you record the materials we used, what we fixed, and how long it took? Administrator Lannin isn''t in good standing with the academy for some reason.¡± ¡°He''s probably too low in magical ability and they blacklisted him as unworthy.¡± Hope said and started writing out what Frank wanted. ¡°Or he''s friends with David.¡± Frank shook his head. ¡°What else did the idiots here do?¡± ¡°I''ll tell you all about it as the surveyors work.¡± Hope said and filled him in. She was done by the time the men came back and gave us the grim news. It was actually worse than I thought. The basement had already collapsed in on itself and the only thing holding the whole structure up was six of the main posts, because the other six had crumbled from rot and pressure. Frank didn''t look discouraged at all. ¡°Well, we''ve got our work cut out for us, don''t we, lads!¡± ¡°Yeah!¡± The men responded. ¡°We''ll shore up the six supports with the foundation stones first. Once that''s done, we''ll replace the broken ones and shore them up as well.¡± Frank said. ¡°We''ll dig out and rebuild the outer wall of the dorm first.¡± ¡°We''ll get the levering braces!¡± Two of the work crews said and ran back to the last carriage. ¡°I love those things.¡± Frank said and looked at his crew. ¡°The floor''s a loss anyway, so don''t bother trying to dig down to the basement from the outside.¡± ¡°We''ll get the sledgehammers!¡± Two of the men said and went to the third carriage. ¡°This is going to be so much fun.¡± Frank said and rubbed his hands together. ¡°What do you want me to do?¡± I asked. I wasn''t stupid enough to try to go do something on my own and potentially mess up Frank''s plan. ¡°As soon as we get to the front wall, you''ll be the best for building the initial stacks. Even after all our practice, we still can''t use the potion as fast as you can without making a mess or screwing something up.¡± ¡°You need to change.¡± Hope said and dug out one of my normal outfits. ¡°Oh, damn. We''re going to need a working bathroom for the morning, too.¡± ¡°As soon as the floor''s got some cross bracing, I''ll have a crew get the main downstairs bathroom serviceable.¡± Frank said. ¡°Thank you.¡± Hope said to him and handed me my outfit, then she helped me change and tucked my folded uniform into her bag. With six crews of ten men, there was nothing that we couldn''t do. We had the front of the building braced with the levered braces to lift it about an inch from the failing foundations. We quickly reinforced the existing supports and replaced the missing ones, lowered it, then went to the back of the building and did it again. Once they were done and in place, the building was secured and we all dug down through the now smashed in lobby floor, thanks to the guys with the sledgehammers that had cleared it away for us, and we dug out the collapsed basement to the front of the building. Then the real work began. The guys worked like a hand train and passed down foundation stones in a continuous stream for me and I laid them all in place. I really was very proficient with number ten potion and the whole front wall was built in less than an hour. Unfortunately, we didn''t have tons of potion at the moment to do what I really wanted right away, so we built a second wall behind the first and left the gap empty. We also left out a single stone at the top of the wall in each section, so we could add potion at a later time. I''d use the weaker version because it didn''t matter if it took longer when reinforcing stone and filling in as bracing material to join the two walls together. We dug out the two side walls next, since they were much shorter and quicker to do, then we dug out the back wall and replaced that, too. The double wall definitely made me feel a lot better about the safety of the building. ¡°All right, people! It''s time to fix the damnable floor above our heads, now that we''ve got something to build on!¡± Frank said and the men shouted in response. ¡°We''ll worry about all the extra dirt down here later! Let''s get those floor joists and braces in place!¡± ¡°Sir!¡± The men said and it was done even quicker than he thought was possible. ¡°You people are magic!¡± Frank exclaimed and the men laughed. ¡°All right! Let''s get upstairs and start fixing the floor and the walls!¡± The men followed him, as did I, and we kept working. True to his word, Frank had one crew work on repairing the downstairs bathroom. Thanks to number ten potion, all of the broken things were mended and put back into place. They were cleaned and hooked back up, then the water was turned on. It actually worked, to everyone''s relief and surprise, because a lot of them needed the bathroom and had been holding it in. After a long line of bathroom breaks, we all got back to work. 138 Academy Antics Part Six - First Night One of the rooms downstairs looked like a parlour and was mostly undamaged, so it was quickly converted into a temporary bedroom for me, after being reinforced, of course. Hope was ecstatic over the men doing that for me and she thanked them profusely, then said they were better than the people that ran the academy, because they hadn''t given me a safe place to sleep tonight and the workmen did. A few of the men looked a little embarrassed at the praise and went back to work. One man thanked her back and said she was great, too. Hope blushed a little and nodded her thanks, then the man went back to work. ¡°You get a bath and get to sleep. You''ve got an early morning tomorrow.¡± Frank said to me. ¡°We''ll keep working for a few more hours and we''ll head to bed ourselves.¡± I was going to argue that I could still work, then saw Hope give me a pointed look. ¡°All right.¡± ¡°I''ve already got the bath full. It''s cold water, though.¡± Hope said. ¡°A small mage fire can fix that.¡± I said and slipped a couple pieces of wildwood scraps under the tub onto the tiled floor, then lit it with a wave of my hand. It burned hot for about ten seconds and I extinguished it. ¡°You did it that quickly?¡± Hope asked and put her hand in the water. ¡°You did!¡± ¡°Years of potion making lets me judge exactly how much fire I need for how much heat I need in the water.¡± I said and she helped me strip off. She bathed me thoroughly, even my private part, and then dried me off. Hope''s face was a little red as she handed me my night clothes. ¡°My lord... David, I... I''m sorry that I can''t... I can''t perform the after bath ritual.¡± ¡°I still haven''t asked anyone to do that.¡± I said and dressed. ¡°I know how much you enjoy being... relieved like that.¡± Hope said and followed me out to my temporary bedroom. ¡°Sara might not be able to stay here as a second maid; but, she can still visit occasionally, can''t she?¡± ¡°Check the handbook.¡± I said and climbed into bed. Hope opened the pack carefully, since she knew the condition of the books inside were very poor. She took out the handbook and flipped through about a quarter of it before finding the right section. ¡°It says that visitors are allowed, as long as they are approved by the dorm building''s dean.¡± Hope said. ¡°It also says only the new student buildings have deans.¡± I nodded and pat the bed beside me. Hope shook her head and backed away. ¡°There''s only one bed and you need to sleep as much as I do.¡± I said. ¡°No, I... I shouldn''t.¡± ¡°If you need me to promise to not touch you, I will.¡± I said. Hope gave me a sad look. ¡°It''s not that. It''s...¡± She sighed. ¡°I believe that a woman shouldn''t share a bed with a man that''s not her husband.¡± ¡°You must be disappointed with me.¡± I said and rolled over to face away from her. ¡°No! David, I...¡± Hope sighed. ¡°It''s my own belief. Me personally, I mean. I... I''m afraid that if I get in bed with a man, that I... well...¡± ¡°You''re afraid that you won''t say no.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°What if they don''t ask?¡± I asked her. ¡°Wh-what?¡± Hope stepped closer to the bed. ¡°I don''t ask Sara or Jill to do what they do. What if a man you get in bed with, doesn''t ask you what you want and just does it?¡± Hope took in a long breath and let it out. ¡°I don''t know.¡± ¡°You know how to fight?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes. I have two older brothers and grew up on a farm. I''ve been fighting my whole life.¡± ¡°Then do that.¡± I said and she caught her breath. ¡°If any man tries anything without your permission, fight them as hard as you can.¡± ¡°D-David, I...¡± Hope stopped talking and I heard sliding cloth for several minutes, then heard her take two steps and the bed shifted with her extra weight on it. ¡°I''m staying on top of the blanket.¡± ¡°There''s another blanket.¡± I said and pointed to the closet. ¡°You brought two.¡± ¡°Oh. Right.¡± Hope said and walked into my view. She wore a lacy nightgown that was only down to her mid thigh. She retrieved the other blanket and turned to look at me looking at her. ¡°David.¡± She whispered. ¡°What... what are you thinking about?¡±If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°I''m wondering who helps you bathe.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°Who scrubs your back and makes sure you''re cleaned all over?¡± Hope opened her mouth and no sound came out. She walked around the bed and out of my sight, then she and the extra blanket were on the bed beside me. ¡°Goodnight.¡± ¡°Goodnight.¡± I said and we both laid there in silence for quite some time after all of the other sounds in the place ended. The workmen had stopped for the night and were in bed like us. I wasn''t sure where they were sleeping. ¡°David.¡± Hope whispered. ¡°Are you... asleep?¡± I was sure that she didn''t want me to answer and didn''t respond. I was proven right a second later as her hand slid over my shoulder. I didn''t move or change my steady breathing, so she pulled herself in close to me and hugged me. She was still on top of my blanket, so she couldn''t get too close. ¡°I wish the Hag never bought you.¡± Hope whispered. ¡°I wish... I wish I had my brother back. I want to see your smile again. Your real smile.¡± She pressed her lips to my head for a moment, then she laid her forehead against the back of my head. She drifted off to sleep soon after. I didn''t wish for any of that because it wasn''t going to happen. I was who I was and that was it. I couldn''t go back to being James any more than the Hag could go back to being a normal woman. I didn''t say anything, however. Just like the princess when she was so desperate to save her little brother from the war front, you could scream at her until you were blue in the face that her expectations were unrealistic, and she would never believe you. I went to sleep, secure in the knowledge that I was who I was, and I didn''t really want for anything. I was awake a moment later and it was morning. Hope had somehow worked her way under my blanket and she was pressed tightly against my back. I was still on my side, because I never moved in my sleep. It was a side effect of taking the fortification potion too early. I didn''t say anything as I moved the blanket off of us and saw that her arm was draped over my waist. I eased it off of my hip and rolled forward, carefully dropping it to the bed, then I tucked her back under. I didn''t want to wake her and let her think that I had taken advantage of her. I stripped off and dressed myself in my uniform. It wasn''t difficult, it just took a bit more time doing it alone. I thought I had the coat sitting properly over my bandoleer; but, I couldn''t tell. There were no unbroken mirrors around. ¡°Hope? I need a hand.¡± ¡°Uhh. Just... a few more minutes.¡± Hope said and looked like she was grabbing something, then her hands seemed to pat the bed all over. Her eyes shot open and she sat up to stare at me. ¡°David!¡± ¡°Is this suit coat sitting right?¡± I asked and turned around. ¡°I can''t tell.¡± ¡°No, it isn''t.¡± Hope said and climbed out of bed. She tended to me for a couple of minutes and the suit finally felt right. ¡°There. You had a slight bunch-up of cloth near your left shoulder.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and she came around to my front to make sure that everything was straight. ¡°David, last night...¡± ¡°I slept well.¡± I said. ¡°You did?¡± Hope asked, a little surprised. ¡°It passed by before I knew it.¡± ¡°I... well, I was...¡± ¡°You slept well, too.¡± I said. ¡°I did, even though I was nervous the whole time.¡± Hope said with a smile. I didn''t correct her, because I was sure she would deny that she was relaxed. ¡°I need a cook sent over from the house, and probably an assistant for grocery runs. I also want four guards, two for day and two for night. Once people see this place is back in working order, they are going to try and wreck it.¡± Hope didn''t react to my words. ¡°They''re going to think their practice grounds are open again.¡± ¡°They are also going to think that the academy did the renovations.¡± ¡°No, I''ll make sure Frank and the men get the credit.¡± Hope promised. ¡°Do better than that.¡± I said and she raised her eyebrows. ¡°When the work is done and you have the completed list, send an appropriate bill to the director of the academy.¡± Hope stared into my eyes for several moments, then she let that evil smile appear. ¡°Yes, my lord. I''ll be sure to charge for what was actually done, using current pricing, and not just for what it cost us to have it done and for the materials.¡± I nodded. ¡°Make sure to copy the living notice form and put it under the establishment plaque next to the front door, too.¡± ¡°Your name is on it.¡± Hope said as she carefully put my books for the day and my writing things into a smaller bag with the academy logo on it. ¡°You can leave it off if you want; but, everyone''s going to know I live here by this afternoon.¡± Hope sighed. ¡°Selena''s friends.¡± ¡°They''ll be here to visit tomorrow after classes. Can you arrange an appropriate setting?¡± ¡°Of course, my lord. Try to enjoy your first day in class.¡± I gave her a pointed look. ¡°Your name really is appropriate, isn''t it?¡± Hope couldn''t help her huge smile. ¡°It really is.¡± We started hearing bangs and movement, which meant the work crews were back on the job. ¡°I need to get changed and back to work.¡± Hope said and gave me the bag. ¡°See you this afternoon.¡± I hung the bag over my shoulder as I left the parlour and shut the door behind me. I had stashed my pack under the bed and Hope promised to have a vault installed as soon as the walls were fixed and Frank built up the spot for it to be placed safely. I easily avoided the men and the dust they created as they worked, greeted them all as I passed, and left through the now repaired front door. I walked through a small tent city that seemed to act as a barrier to keep people out, and I had to nod to Frank for thinking ahead and doing that. He waved back and I walked down the road towards the main academy building. All of the core classes were being held there. Being the first day, I had Basic Spellwork Composition and Practice in the morning and Mathematics, both practical and spell related, in the afternoon. It would have been too much to ask for, to have potions the first day. I thought as I walked completely alone from the direction of my living quarters. Everyone else lived on the other side of campus in the much newer buildings and I saw the mass of them approaching from the other direction. I was immediately reminded of troops marching into the front line defensive positions to face the enemy. I smiled a huge smile, because as far as they were concerned, I was that enemy. I wouldn''t realize until later that Hope had one of her wishes granted. I had smiled just like I used to, only for a very different reason. Dealing with nobles wasn''t something I had a lot of practice with. Battles? Those I''ve had hundreds of and I survived each and every one of them. I had even faced a marsh dragon and lived. I looked at the mage academy building and it settled in my mind as it became my new battlefield. I would be fighting every minute of every hour of every day, just like I did back in the marsh. Funnily enough, I was perfectly fine with that. 139 Academy Antics Part Seven - First Day, First Class When the ''enemy'' was close enough, I lost the smile I had. I couldn''t let them see me react to them. Their faces on the other hand, showed me a full range of emotions. I was glad that I had a lot of practice in the army reading them, because a lot of them showed me anger, hatred, and indifference. The blank ones were the dangerous ones, however. You couldn''t tell what they were thinking about you, which was why my face was usually blank when not around people I knew. ¡°I can''t believe they let someone like you in.¡± A guy''s voice said as we lined up to enter the main building. ¡°I''ve had a feeling that this place has been going to the dogs lately.¡± A few people around us looked at me to wait for my response, angry or otherwise. ¡°Say hello to Marcus for me.¡± I said and the guy looked surprised. ¡°You can tell him that anything you or your friends do to me, will make me hold him responsible, since you''re his friends... or brothers of his friends.¡± ¡°Do you know who I am?¡± The guy asked, as if he was someone important. ¡°I honestly don''t care.¡± I said. ¡°No matter what your name is, you''ll be just as dead when I kill you.¡± One girl let out a little shriek of surprise. I turned my head to look at her as we continued to file into the building. ¡°I''m sorry for speaking so starkly, my lady. I didn''t mean to startle you.¡± The girl''s face flushed red. ¡°I''m not a lady yet.¡± ¡°Are you the sole female from your family here?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Then you''re the lady of your family in the academy.¡± I said and nodded my head to her, giving her a sign of respect, then I faced forward again. That little statement made a lot of people start talking, as was my intention. None of them were thinking about me threatening to kill several men, except for the man in question. His eyes were wide and he stayed quiet, even when we split off in different directions. He was a third year and a group of them gathered together. I did my best to memorize their faces before I went down the hallway that my class directions said to go down. I hoped that I wouldn''t have to bother with them after my threat. I found the classroom for Basic Spellwork and it was packed with people. It became even more packed as I and the dozen people behind me tried to enter the room. ¡°Don''t mind the lack of seats. Squeeze in, squeeze in. We''ve had a huge influx of students this year and we''re having a difficult time getting you all sorted out.¡± The man at the front of the room said. ¡°We''ve got another teacher set up in another classroom; but, she''s a woman and doesn''t have a lot of teaching experience.¡± ¡°I''ll go there.¡± I volunteered and put my hand up. ¡°And you are?¡± The man asked as he looked at me. ¡°David Drake, ex-army conscript.¡± I said and the entire group of people stared at me, even the teacher. ¡°What... what did you say?¡± ¡°I was a conscript in the army. I fought dozens of battles and then the king in his infinite wisdom, listened to a voice of reason and had me released after I lost a foot from being eaten by a dragon.¡± I said and ignored the reactions from the other students. ¡°His daughter made it a dishonorable discharge because I wouldn''t stay under her command for the rest of my life.¡± The man looked completely shocked. ¡°You didn''t know that? I thought everyone would know by now.¡± I said. ¡°Which classroom is the other teacher in?¡± ¡°Th-th-three doors down the h-h-hallway.¡± The man said and pointed with a shaky hand. ¡°I''ll mark the change on my schedule.¡± I said and did so, then carefully walked through the people behind me and stepped out of the room. I walked down the hallway three doors and inside was a classroom as large as the last one and a sole woman stood at the front. She wore the standard mage robes, except for the academy logo on the back and the front. Her pitch black hair was tied back into a ponytail and her facial features stood out in stark contrast to her sharp eyes. ¡°Oh? I see the bastard finally mentioned me.¡± The woman spat. ¡°He also said you were a woman and didn''t have a lot of teaching experience.¡± I said and walked over to sit down in the front seat. She cursed twice and then looked shocked. ¡°I apologize for that.¡± ¡°I''ve heard worse.¡± I said and she smiled. ¡°Are you going to challenge him?¡± ¡°No, because faculty need to set a better example for the students.¡± She spat. ¡°Dammit.¡± ¡°I don''t think insulting people and getting away with it is a good example.¡± ¡°That''s my view, too.¡± She said. ¡°What''s your name?¡±The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°David Drake.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°Yes, I''m the one that was sent here on Grand Mage Henrietta''s charity.¡± The woman checked my name on her list. ¡°I''ll give anyone else a few more minutes to show up before I officially start the class.¡± No sooner had she said that when twenty young women came in through the door. ¡°You see? I told you that no one else was going to be here except for him.¡± One of the girls said. ¡°This is going to be great!¡± ¡°No irritating boys!¡± One of the others said and they piled around the teacher''s desk. Their names were recorded and they all took their seats. ¡°Is that all of you?¡± The teacher asked. ¡°No one else volunteered.¡± One of them said and I recognized her voice as the girl I had called a lady. The teacher smiled and held a hand out to the door, chanted two lines of verse under her breath, and a strong wind slammed the door shut. ¡°Unless you grew up in a barn, please shut the door when you enter or leave a room.¡± ¡°How did you do that?!?¡± One of the girls exclaimed. ¡°That was a misdirected wind blast!¡± ¡°I thought they only went forward.¡± Someone else said and everyone started chatting. ¡°Welcome to Basic Spellwork Composition.¡± The woman said with a pleased smile. ¡°My name is Mage Sara Sanchita and I''ll be your teacher for this course.¡± I tried to keep my face blank and it couldn''t have worked, because she must have seen something. ¡°Yes, Mr. Drake? Is there something wrong with me teaching you?¡± ¡°No, Mage Sanchita. I was the first to volunteer to come here.¡± ¡°Then what was the look you just gave me?¡± ¡°One of my personal maids is named Sara.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°You have more than one?¡± ¡°I have two. School rules say I can only bring one for the first year, so I have my maid Hope with me.¡± The teacher let out a little sigh. ¡°I''m glad you won''t be confusing me with your maid.¡± ¡°I wouldn''t do that. Despite you both being very pretty, you look quite different.¡± The teacher''s face flushed slightly red. ¡°Drake, you can''t say things like that to a mage!¡± A girl two seats over whispered. ¡°What if she took offense?¡± ¡°It wasn''t an insult. Why would she be offended?¡± ¡°You are comparing her to a personal maid.¡± The girl sitting behind me said. ¡°I don''t understand. I like my personal maid.¡± I said. The girl beside me laughed softly, almost under her breath. ¡°You''re implying that she can be one.¡± ¡°Can''t she do what she wants?¡± I asked and looked at their surprised faces. ¡°I''ve had two mages give me personal baths and they didn''t seem to mind.¡± ¡°Did... did you bathe them back?¡± One of them asked. ¡°Yes, and I cleaned them all over.¡± I said and a few of the girls let out little moans. ¡°No wonder they didn''t mind.¡± Another whispered. ¡°How often...¡± ¡°It used to be once a day, then my personal maids took over and now it''s only once a week with my fiance.¡± I said. ¡°She a mage.¡± ¡°You''re betrothed already and you didn''t even graduate?¡± One of the girls asked, clearly shocked. ¡°Her father enrolled me so I could marry her.¡± I said. ¡°He won''t accept a non-mage into the family.¡± ¡°Is that why you''re so old?¡± The one next to me asked. ¡°I think that''s enough.¡± The teacher said, her face was back to a normal color and she looked composed. ¡°We''ve used up some of the introductory time on conversation that''s not relevant to the class material.¡± ¡°I think it''s relevant.¡± The one behind me said. ¡°He''s the only man in the room and we needed to know if he''s available.¡± ¡°I don''t see how that will affect...¡± ¡°It contributes to our state of mind. We can concentrate, knowing he''s not undressing us with his eyes or imaging making love to us.¡± A lot of the girls gasped at her words and a few let out more little moans. It sounded like the same ones that had moaned before. ¡°I''m sure that Mr. Drake won''t be doing that, will you Mr. Drake?¡± The teacher asked. ¡°Do you want me to?¡± I asked and she blushed fully this time. I turned and looked at each of the girls that were seated around me in the classroom and they all had red faces, even the one that had spoken so brazenly. ¡°No? All right, I won''t.¡± I said and faced forward. ¡°Please continue the class, Mage Sanchita.¡± It took her a few moments to compose herself again and she nodded. ¡°I know that some of you are members of more prominent families and have been doing spellwork for several years. I also know some of you are fairly weak at the practical side of things and need lots of instruction. As a solution, I''ll be pairing you up to ease the burden on me and the burden on those that are behind.¡± A few of the girls groaned, because that meant more work for them. ¡°Mr. Drake is the worst practical caster in...¡± ¡°I VOLUNTEER!¡± Three-quarters of the class yelled and their hands shot up into the air. ¡°Almost half of you don''t qualify.¡± The teacher said with a laugh. ¡°You can put your hands down for now.¡± The girls looked reluctant to do so, probably because they were worried that their enthusiasm might be forgotten. ¡°I''m glad you''re so eager to help those that need it the most.¡± The teacher said and looked at one of the girls that hadn''t raised her hand. ¡°Lorna.¡± ¡°I refuse.¡± Lorna said and crossed her arms. ¡°Unlike the rest of them, I know what he did and I won''t have anything to do with him.¡± ¡°Then why did you come to this class?¡± The teacher asked. ¡°It was better to be with all the girls in a room with one man than be the only girl in a room full of post-adolescent boys.¡± ¡°That''s why I left, too.¡± One of the others said. ¡°I can only imagine the things they are talking about right now.¡± I sat there and stayed quiet, because I didn''t want to point out the irony of her statement. ¡°Then the next strongest practitioner is you, Vanessa.¡± The teacher said. Vanessa''s face turned beet red and she slid down in her chair with a shake of her head. ¡°Why not?¡± The teacher asked and Vanessa mumbled. ¡°Speak up! I can''t hear...¡± ¡°She said she can''t talk to boys openly.¡± I repeated for her and a few of the girls gasped, because Vanessa was at the side of the room and I was in the middle. The teacher gave me a look and then looked at Vanessa. ¡°Is that what you said?¡± Vanessa sat up straight and nodded as she stared at me. ¡°Does him hearing you whisper change your decision?¡± The teacher asked, her voice hopeful. Vanessa kept looking at me and nodded again. ¡°Excellent!¡± Mage Sanchita said. ¡°Go ahead and sit next to your new partner.¡± Vanessa''s face flushed red again and she slid back down in her seat. I wasn''t someone to let anyone suffer, so I picked up my small bag of books and walked up the short stairs to her row and went over to her. I sat down at the desk next to hers and didn''t speak. I knew she wouldn''t want me to formally greet her, not with her being so shy. The teacher spent another few minutes matching the best and the worst students and put them into pairs. A good chunk of them in the middle that wouldn''t benefit from either paring up or having someone help, were left to fend for themselves. ¡°All right, open your books to page sixteen. We''re going to skip the introduction, since we''ve lost so much time today already.¡± The teacher said and turned towards the board and started to write. ¡°You all know what it feels like to generate magic; but, not all of you know how to direct that magic.¡± She said and kept writing. ¡°The unfamiliar people better write this down.¡± I took out the writing book I had for the class and started writing. 140 Academy Antics Part Eight - Lunchtime Unlike the course description, there was no practice after the writing and learning part of Basic Spellwork Composition. I whispered a question and Vanessa whispered back that we wouldn''t get to practical work until we had the basics learned. I apologized for that, because I had a very difficult time with casting the wrong way. Vanessa gave me a wide eyed look at my description, then the bell rang. I packed up my damaged book and writing things into my bag, thanked her, and left to go to lunch. I had to meet Selena for that and I wasn''t sure where I was supposed to do that. I went to the administration building that took care of things like that, the same place I was assigned living quarters, and discovered that the cafeteria was on the second floor. The place was huge, which was great, because the students were everywhere. Clusters of them were all over. Some stood, some sat, some talked, some ate, and most of them were in the midst of various combinations of those. It seemed like more of a social gathering than a meal. I supposed that I was too used to the mess hall in the army, because this seemed like a completely inefficient way to feed so many people in such a short amount of time. I would find out later that lunch ran for three hours to feed everyone and my lunch time was in the last hour. A uniformed man stood at the entryway and held a hand out to me. ¡°Card please.¡± I took out the card that the second man in the administration room had given me. The uniformed man huffed in derision. ¡°You are only allowed to eat to the food on the Bronze tables.¡± He said and pointed to the last two tables along the side of the wall. ¡°They are the dregs that have been moved down from the Silver and Gold tables.¡± I turned to look and what he said was true. As I watched, one of the cooks picked up a practically empty dish that looked like some kind of dessert from a Silver table and unceremoniously dropped it onto the first Bronze table. Those two tables had the most food dishes and were quite packed, since the other tables fed down onto it. The problem was, it was the last remains of the food that everyone else had already eaten. ¡°If you attempt to eat the food from other tables, you''ll be barred for a day, even if someone else offers you the food.¡± The uniformed man said, as if he was reading my mind about how to get around the restriction. ¡°If you are caught doing it twice, you are barred for three days.¡± ¡°What happens if I do it three times?¡± I asked, since that was the natural progression. ¡°Unfortunately, the punishment resets after that. Apparently, making someone go without food for three days is the limit to the punishment we are allowed to assign.¡± ¡°From personal experience, someone can live for up to a week without food, as long as they have access to water.¡± I told him and he looked shocked. ¡°It doesn''t have to be clean water.¡± ¡°David! There you are!¡± Selena said from the tables across the room as some of the people around her shifted to the side and gave her a view of the door. ¡°Grab some food and come over here.¡± I walked over to the closest Bronze table and it was actually worse than I thought it was going to be. It was pretty much the table where the cooks stored the dirty dishes, because almost nothing was left inside of them. If I scraped the insides of the heating pots, I was sure I''d get a scoop or two of potatoes and if I used my fingers liberally, I could scrape out some gravy for them. It would be a bit scummy, because it had been left on the heat too long with nothing in the pot. I gave up on trying to find something I could eat when the second table wasn''t any better than the first, and walked over to Selena. The look on her face was a mixture of horror and pity. ¡°I''m going to kill father.¡± Selena finally said, her face changed to anger. ¡°No one is supposed to eat from the Bronze tables!¡± Becca had a hand over her mouth and she looked sick. I took out a general health potion. ¡°Take a sip.¡± Becca did so and sighed in relief. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°What was that?¡± One of the others asked as I tucked it away. ¡°It''s a general health potion.¡± I said. ¡°Selena, you haven''t spoken to Helena yet?¡± ¡°I was busy preparing for school and haven''t had a chance to visit.¡± Selena said, sadly. ¡°I still can''t believe she cut father off like that.¡± ¡°I''ve never heard of it before.¡± Becca said. ¡°Who cuts off ties to the main family and then ensures they have an heir?¡± ¡°How did he react?¡± I asked, because I knew Helena wouldn''t.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. ¡°He wrecked the parlour.¡± Selena said. ¡°Mage Fire and Wind Storm.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± One of the girls whispered. ¡°Was the room enchanted?¡± ¡°Yes, thankfully.¡± Selena said. ¡°The whole house could have burned down if the fire suppression hadn''t activated and doused everything in water.¡± ¡°What enchantment is that?¡± I asked, almost eagerly. ¡°It can produce water? Is it magical? Does it come from a prepared water source or is it generated from the ambient magic in the area?¡± All of the girls leaned back slightly at my barrage of questions, even Selena. ¡°You''ll learn all about it in the second year of the enchanting course, Bronzie.¡± A girl at the next table said. ¡°Oh, look! They just put a half eaten pie onto the table. Hurry up and get it before someone else takes it on you!¡± ¡°Cheri, they dropped it on the floor.¡± The girl next to her said. ¡°I know! He should enjoy the extra grit.¡± Cheri said. ¡°Won''t you, Bronzie?¡± ¡°Go ahead, Bronzie.¡± A guy from the next table said. ¡°I wanna see you eat it! Ha ha!¡± ¡°Bronzie! Bronzie! Bronzie!¡± The other guys started to chant and then the whole cafeteria of people joined in. ¡°David, don''t.¡± Selena said. ¡°They just want to humiliate you.¡± ¡°I know.¡± I said. ¡°You might not want to watch this part.¡± Selena opened her mouth to speak and Becca touched her arm with a shake of her head. I nodded to her and walked over to the Bronze tables. ¡°Do it, Bronzie! Do it! Do it! Do it!¡± They all chanted. I picked up the pie plate that they all wanted me to eat. It smelled good, and I moved it up to my mouth and they chanted more. ¡°Hold on, why just the pie? You want to see me eat more, right?¡± ¡°YEAH!¡± They yelled. ¡°You asked for it.¡± I said and picked the cleanest pot. It happened to be the one with the creamed potatoes in it. I dumped the pie into it and a few people cheered. I picked up the next dish and motioned to the one with the pie, and they encouraged me to go for it. I picked up one of the large serving spoons and scraped out the yellow custard. It had partially separated and I plopped it into the pot. I picked up the next small pot, the gravy I had seen earlier, and used the same spoon to scrape it out. I added it and then picked up the next and the next. I tossed in crusty bread rolls, the last few tough pieces of roasts, and a few things that I couldn''t identify. I had the pot half filled and no one was cheering anymore. I used the large serving spoon and I stirred everything up, making sure it was all mixed together, and picked up a spoonful of it. They all had wide eyes and I turned the spoon over. The mixture slowly slid off and made a splat sound as it fell back into the pot. I picked up the pot and walked over to Selena''s table. ¡°No!¡± Selena gasped and held a hand out to me. I nodded and walked over to a table no one was using and I dug the spoon into the pot and put several servings onto one of the plates there. The entire place was completely quiet as I sat down and used the proper utensils and started to eat. Three people threw up as soon as the spoon touched my lips. Fifteen covered their mouths as I chewed. Another twenty had to turn away as I swallowed. ¡°S-s-stop.¡± A voice whispered. I turned my head and looked to see Vanessa beside one of the Silver tables. I nodded to her and took another spoonful, then another and another. When I finished what was on my plate, there was a collective sigh from nearly everyone. I assumed they all thought I was done, so I showed them that I wasn''t. I grabbed the serving spoon from the pot and put more of the horrible looking food mixture onto my plate. ¡°Oh, god!¡± Several girls exclaimed and ran from the room. I ignored them and continued to eat. I was halfway through my third helping when the mage in charge of giving out the cards for food came in. He looked shocked, probably because he hadn''t believed whomever told him about what I was doing. He walked over to me and I couldn''t tell what the expression on his face was. ¡°You''re making a scene.¡± ¡°I am only eating.¡± I said and took another spoonful and chewed. He seemed to wince each time my teeth came together. ¡°It''s making everyone else uncomfortable.¡± He said. ¡°That''s not my fault. They asked me to do this.¡± I said and took another spoonful. ¡°You should... limit yourself... to only one or two dishes.¡± The man said, clearly uncomfortable with telling me to only eat the dregs of a couple of dishes and not all of them. ¡°Compatible dishes.¡± ¡°It''s all going to mix together in my stomach anyway.¡± I said and a few more people threw up. The man looked angry. ¡°I am ordering you, as the head of the culinary department, to limit yourself to two main dishes that must be complimentary and one dessert dish to be eaten after the main dishes! If you do not, it will be the same as eating from the high class tables and you will be punished accordingly.¡± ¡°This isn''t punishment enough?¡± I asked and took another spoonful. ¡°STOP EATING THAT!¡± The man yelled and tried to swat my hand with the spoon. I let the spoon go, caught his hand with mine, and caught the spoon with my other hand in barely a second. ¡°Assault me again and I''ll remove your hand.¡± I said and squeezed it. ¡°ARGH!¡± The mage yelled and dropped to his knees. ¡°L-l-let go! Let go!¡± ¡°I know the rules here. You dared to touch a student in anger. I am fully within my rights to demand punishment from you.¡± The man''s anger was quickly replaced with fear and he kept trying to pull his hand away. I let his hand go and he jerked backwards with a yelp. ¡°You put me here in this situation.¡± I said and kept eating until my plate was empty. ¡°Imagine, the head of the culinary department giving me garbage to eat on purpose.¡± I said and stood up. ¡°How good do you feel about your prestigious department, now that you''ve seen what I''m eating?¡± The man stared at me with shock on his face. ¡°I''ll follow your demands, even though they are unnecessary.¡± I said and he didn''t respond, so I turned to the room. ¡°I wasn''t going to subject all of these lovely ladies to seeing me eat like this every day.¡± I said and saw them all relax. ¡°Please, accept my apologies for my actions. I deeply regret that you had to witness that.¡± I waited a moment to make sure they were all looking at me, then I gave them a regal bow. More than a few of them gasped in response. I straightened up and picked up the nearly empty pot and walked over to the last Bronze table. I put the pot on it and walked out of the room. The uniformed man guarding the door kept his eyes forward and didn''t look at me at all as I left. 141 Academy Antics Part Nine - Transformation Part Two Math classes were just that. Full of math. It was also just me and all the girls again, which seemed to be the basic pattern for the normal overly full classes. The teacher, being the smart man that he was, gave us a test right off the bat to gauge our real capacity for the subject of practical math. It worked like a charm and he quickly changed his first lesson from the introductory chapters to the third one. ¡°If you have any questions, now''s the time to ask them. Once I get talking, I won''t stop until the bell rings and I''ll switch subjects to spell math after the short break.¡± Mage Tanner Quintos looked at us and no one spoke. He smiled and then started to talk. He hadn''t been kidding, either. We wrote for the entire class, doing some math along the way when he directed us to as we listened to him, then the bell rang. ¡°You all did well for your first class.¡± Mage Quintos said and took a drink of water. ¡°You have five minutes before the Spellwork Composition Math class begins. Change your books and writing pages to appropriate ones, please.¡± We all did so and none of us spoke. We all knew this was going to be similar to the last math class and waited for the bell. ¡°I suggest you pair up with the spellwork partners this time. Some of you will need the assistance.¡± Mage Quintos said and I changed seats to sit beside Vanessa. I apologized again for what happened at lunch and her face flushed red. ¡°Why didn''t you demand the head of the culinary department be punished?¡± Vanessa whispered, barely above a breath. ¡°Humiliating him in front of everyone and calling him to task for making me eat at the bronze tables, seemed to be more fitting.¡± I whispered back. ¡°I don''t know how you could do that.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°I couldn''t eat after that.¡± ¡°I''m terribly sorry.¡± I whispered and took her hand briefly. ¡°You should eat more for supper to make up for it.¡± ¡°I don''t know if I can.¡± Vanessa breathed. ¡°I''ve never seen anything like that before.¡± ¡°I''d invite you over for supper to make sure you do, only I don''t know if the kitchen is ready yet.¡± Vanessa''s face flushed red again. ¡°I can''t go to your room. The dean of the dorm would never allow it.¡± ¡°There''s no dean where I''m staying. The academy made sure of that.¡± ¡°You mean... there''s no one there to protect your things?¡± ¡°Not provided by the academy, no.¡± ¡°They are really trying to get you to quit, aren''t they?¡± ¡°It''s the only way they can get rid of me.¡± I said with a little smile. ¡°Despite their efforts, I''m going to graduate from this academy in three years.¡± ¡°Are you sure? They haven''t really done a lot so far to...¡± The bell rang and the teacher gave us another test. Needless to say, I failed spectacularly and Vanessa passed with every question right. Mage Quintos gave the both of us a pointed stare. ¡°I have to say that Mage Sanchita paired you up appropriately.¡± ¡°Only because I refused to pair up with him!¡± Lorna exclaimed. ¡°Mr. Drake got the better part of that deal, since you are too self-centered to help him anyway.¡± Mage Quintos said. ¡°ExCUSE me?!?¡± Lorna gasped. ¡°It''s right in your application essay that you are here solely for your own advancement and care little for other concerns. Surely you haven''t forgotten what you wrote?¡± Lorna closed her mouth and crossed her arms. Mage Quintos smiled, the argument easily won. ¡°I''d like to apologize to the more advanced students, because I have to go over the introductory material for several classes before we can get into the meat and bones of spell composition math. If you wish, you can study on your own or even work on actual spell compositions for these classes.¡± ¡°Thank you, Mage Quintos.¡± Several people said and Vanessa whispered. ¡°Vanessa thanks you, too.¡± I said. ¡°You can hear her?¡± Mage Quintos asked and I nodded. ¡°Excellent, my boy. I suspect your skill with that will be frequently called upon during your stay here.¡± ¡°I''m sorry about that.¡± Vanessa whispered as she ducked down in her seat a little. ¡°At least my time in this class will be worth something.¡± I whispered back. Vanessa gave me a surprised look and then the teacher started to talk. I focused solely on writing and she took out her own spellwork compositions and silently worked on them. The class was long and nearly everything I wrote down, was complete gibberish for me. My base knowledge for this kind of spell casting construction was too fundamental of a shift from how I was taught. There was no intuition, no power flow, and definitely no emotional component. How in the world did they get a spell to do what you wanted when you couldn''t control it? I asked myself when the class ended. ¡°You didn''t get any of that, did you?¡± Vanessa whispered as everyone packed their things to leave. ¡°No, it''s too different from how I learned.¡± I whispered back. Vanessa looked like she wanted to ask me how I learned to use magic if I didn''t do it like everyone else, then another girl came over to us. ¡°Come on, Van. We''ve got to go.¡± The girl said and took her hand.If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°Bye.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°See you tomorrow.¡± I said and then I was all alone in the classroom. I picked up my bag and the teacher looked right at me as I went down the stairs towards him. ¡°I recognize that blank look.¡± Mage Quintos said. ¡°I suppose I should just mark you with all 65''s.¡± ¡°I think that would be best, Mage Quintos. I just can''t do it this way.¡± I said and waved at the book on his desk. ¡°I can''t even get past the first page.¡± The man gave me an incredulous look. ¡°Are you joking? You can''t even comprehend the source of magic?¡± ¡°That''s not the source I learned about growing up.¡± I said. ¡°If I had learned this years ago, I might be able to switch; but, I''ve been doing it my way for almost ten years. None of this math stuff is involved with it at all.¡± Mage Quintos sat back in his chair and stared at me with a blank look on his face. ¡°I recognize that blank look.¡± I repeated and left him there. The school day was over, so I left the class building and started walking in the opposite direction of the student dorms. Selena had been busy, because no one asked me where I was going. I did hear a few disparaging comments about living in a death trap, and that gave me several ideas. No one followed me or were waiting for me on the way, so that meant they were still unsure of how I would retaliate. ¡°My lord!¡± Frank said and waved at me then at the dorm building. ¡°What do you think?¡± I came to a stop and looked at it. Not only had it been repaired and restored, the work crews had added a lot more ornamentation and made it look even better than the main administration building. ¡°You did all of the outside first?¡± I asked and he laughed. ¡°I told you he''d understand right away!¡± One of the guys said and they all laughed. ¡°We thought about leaving it until last, until one of the academy mages came by. They didn''t say anything to us when they saw what was going on, then they turned around and left.¡± Frank said. ¡°We shifted priorities immediately and did the facade after repairing the wall structure.¡± ¡°Did the potion setups arrive?¡± I asked. ¡°I had the guys set them up in the room at the end of the hall on the second floor, to have easy access to the chimney.¡± Frank said. ¡°The kitchen''s on the ground floor below it where the chimney starts, so we had to build it all out with stone to support the stone bases on the floor above.¡± ¡°It must be the strongest part of the building now.¡± I said and he nodded. ¡°Especially when you get the potions made and fill in the reinforcements.¡± ¡°I''ll start them right after I get changed.¡± I said. ¡°How are you doing with what''s left of the number ten potions in the crates?¡± ¡°We''re conserving and only using enough to attach, since we know you''ll fill in the rest.¡± Frank said. ¡°We''ve had enough practice with it to know where we can scrimp and where it''s fully needed.¡± ¡°The stairs?¡± I asked and he nodded. ¡°The guys couldn''t help themselves when I told them to take care of it.¡± Frank said with a grin. ¡°It''s no grand staircase like at the mansion, though.¡± ¡°I''m sure the academy will be surprised at the change.¡± I said. ¡°How''s the landscaping going?¡± ¡°We have to send for hedges and shrubbery.¡± Frank said, a bit sadly. ¡°They let the kids here wreck the place completely.¡± ¡°I had a few ideas about that.¡± I said and started telling him what I wanted done on the grounds around the dorm building. Frank started chuckling when I mentioned adding traps and clear warning signs for those traps. I spent ten minutes telling him everything and he promised to get right on it while the guys worked on the inside. ¡°We''ll have it finished by tonight.¡± Frank said. ¡°Oh, and we finished the kitchen and the cook will have supper on time.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and went inside through the open front doors. The place had been cleaned up significantly, even with the walls broken open to add supports for the upper levels. They were nice thick stone and when I added potion to the set channels the workers had left for me, the entire building would be stronger than it ever was. ¡°My lord!¡± A young woman exclaimed as she stepped out of the kitchen at the end of the hallway and saw me. ¡°We started late.¡± She ducked her head and gave me a small curtsy, even holding the tray of drinks. ¡°Supper will still be on time.¡± ¡°I know. Thank you.¡± I said. ¡°Where''s my personal maid?¡± ¡°If you mean Hope, she''s outside recording everything the men have been doing.¡± The young woman said and looked at me with slightly wide eyes. ¡°Sara is upstairs getting your bath ready.¡± I nodded and turned to go up the ornately decorated and slightly curved stairs that used to be straight. ¡°My lord!¡± The kitchen helper said as she walked towards me and the front door. ¡°Thank you for sending for me. I won''t let you down.¡± I stopped walking and turned back. ¡°I know it''s more work for you, with only one cook you need to do a lot more to help.¡± ¡°I can handle it, my lord.¡± She said, confidently. ¡°You will receive a higher pay.¡± ¡°I will?¡± She asked, a bit excitedly. ¡°So will the cook. I hadn''t expected to need to eat outside of the academy and I''m sorry for the inconvenience.¡± ¡°It''s all right, my lord.¡± The young woman said with a smile. ¡°It''s only breakfast and supper.¡± I nodded to her and went up the stairs. I could easily hear running water, so I went to the door that was right next to my assigned room and opened it. Inside was a very nice bathroom and Sara was there checking the large tub. ¡°I need to undress first.¡± I said. ¡°EEP!¡± Sara jumped several inches and turned to me. ¡°My lord.¡± She said and looked at my uniform. ¡°You look very handsome.¡± ¡°Is my room done?¡± I asked and she nodded as she turned off the water. She came over to me and led me next door to my room. It had been expanded, because one room wasn''t supposed to have multiple doors entering it. There was a large bed in the bedroom part, a living room part with a couch and two armchairs, a coffee table and rugs on the floor. ¡°The vault will arrive soon.¡± Sara said and took me over to the large cabinet. She quickly stripped me of my uniform and hung it up next to the other two, then took me back to the bathroom. I was washed thoroughly and I stood to let Sara perform her bath ritual. She seemed to enjoy it a lot more than normal, even though it had only been a couple of days since the last time she had bathed me. She took me to my room and dressed me in a more casual suit and we both went downstairs to eat. They had made the dining room with the same setup as the Henrietta Longshore mansion, so the maids could eat with me. The only difference was that the kitchen helper doubled as the serving maid. She was a little uncomfortable with that at first, until I told her that I was only allowed to have one maid stay with me for the first year. ¡°That''s why only Hope is allowed to be here, despite all the maids back at the mansion.¡± She said in understanding. ¡°I would be by my lord''s side constantly if I was allowed.¡± Sara said. ¡°It''s a stupid rule.¡± ¡°It''s to stop this very thing from happening.¡± Hope said and ate some of her soup. ¡°They would need rooms and food for all of us.¡± ¡°They didn''t give you any food.¡± Sara said. ¡°That''s because they gave my lord a Bronze card.¡± Hope said, angrily. ¡°I heard from the other maids that they get a card one lower grade than their lords.¡± ¡°What? But... that would mean...¡± ¡°Maids never eat lower than Silver normally. Unfortunately, a Bronze card has never been given to a student before.¡± Hope said. ¡°They didn''t know what to do with me, since the other maids aren''t allowed to share food without being punished, so I left. I won''t be going back.¡± ¡°Show up tomorrow.¡± I said and Hope looked at me with wide eyes. ¡°I''ll make sure you eat.¡± Hope looked like she was going to protest, then she nodded instead. We finished our meal and the vault arrived. Frank had it installed in my room on the inside wall between my room and the bathroom. It had already been reinforced and I used my magic to claim it. I retrieved my pack from the downstairs parlour and the room was quickly converted back into a proper parlour. I put my pack into the vault, because of the two books I had inside of it. I couldn''t do anything with them until the work on the dorm building was completed, so I started brewing the lesser versions of number ten potions. Thankfully, my copy ingredient trick worked on the ingredients as well, so I used my gland extract to make the potions stronger and infused my magic into them. We worked well into the night redoing the interior of the dorm building and made it into the grandest dorm building to ever exist. Hope even had the foresight to contact the Bassinger Family for artwork for the walls and several statues. By the time we all bedded down for the night, the dorm building was completed and covered in protection wards. 142 Academy Antics Part Ten - Basic Potions The next morning, I was bathed by a returning Sara, because it was too late to do it the night before. She had left for the night and came right back first thing in the morning. She knew she couldn''t stay, since that was also against the rules, so she performed her ritual and quickly left after helping me get dressed. Hope and I ate breakfast and she walked me to the front door. ¡°I think Helena sent her.¡± Hope said and handed me my small pack of books for that day. ¡°She''s probably worried that you''re not getting relief like you normally do.¡± ¡°It''s not the fact that all my classes so far are full of girls?¡± I asked. ¡°That might have something to do with it. Maybe.¡± Hope laughed softly. ¡°I still can''t believe they split up like that without even trying to keep the balance.¡± I thought about that. ¡°It might last another month. Some of them will realize that they aren''t getting to spend any time with the people they like, except at lunch and supper.¡± Hope smiled. ¡°I''m sure there will be an attempt at a huge migration.¡± ¡°Only an attempt?¡± I asked. ¡°Mark my words. It''s going to be all the boys trying to get into your class and not the other way around. The girls probably love that it''s just them and I bet it''s very relaxing for them.¡± Hope said. ¡°Also, there''s no way the academy will allow a larger class to reform, not after the students already worked out how to get two classes out of the mess on their own.¡± I had to nod in agreement, because if there was one thing the academy''s administration was big on, it was not changing the status quo. ¡°Be careful taking out the basic potions book from the pack.¡± Hope reminded me and I left to go to class. The long walk passed by quickly and I approached the other students going inside the main classroom building. Unlike the looks on their faces the day before, a lot of the guys now had disgust on them and the girls had a bit of respect and interest. I wasn''t sure if it was an improvement with the guys; but, I would take it, just because the distinct change in the girls made my display at lunch worth it. Giving them the bow reserved for the royal family might have had something to do with the change, too. I wasn''t going to ask them about it, because at this point, it didn''t matter. All of them knew I used to be an army conscript by now and that their little dominance games, reminiscent of Helena''s brother Marcus, weren''t going to work on me. ¡°Good morning.¡± Vanessa whispered from off to my left. Despite everyone talking around me, I still heard her, so I turned my head to find her in the crowd of students lining up to go inside. I spotted her about ten people over and gave her a nod. She blushed a little and looked forward again. She didn''t expect me to hear her. I thought. Should I tell her that I''m listening for her specifically, because of the math teacher''s words yesterday? The lines of students filed into the building and we all split up in the gigantic lobby to go to our assigned classes. Vanessa ended up walking beside me as we went to the basic potions classroom. The normal potions teacher already had a note on the door telling the ''extra'' students to go to the other classroom, so we followed the directions and went there. ¡°I''m glad he told you where to go.¡± The woman behind the desk said as the girls and I walked inside the room. ¡°There was a note on the door.¡± One of the girls said. The woman laughed. ¡°I stand corrected. He couldn''t even bother meeting you before sending you off.¡± A few of the girls laughed, too. Unlike the other classrooms that had stairs and desks on slightly higher levels behind each other, this classroom was a wide open area with workbenches and potion making setups on each of them. There wasn''t enough for everyone, however. I counted them and it was exactly half of what we needed. ¡°Vanessa, let''s partner up again.¡± Vanessa looked shocked, as if she couldn''t believe I had asked her again. ¡°We''re partners in all the other classes.¡± I reminded her and motioned to a desk at the back of the room. I would need a bit of privacy to repair my book and she seemed okay with being as far away from the teacher as possible. ¡°I''m horrible at potions.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°If it wasn''t for you during the exam, I would have left that whole section blank.¡± ¡°You just need more practice.¡± I whispered back.The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°Is that how you got so good?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°Yes. I''ve been doing it since I was a kid.¡± ¡°Wow.¡± Vanessa breathed and sat down behind the desk. She opened her own small bag and took out a pristine copy of the basic potions book. I took Hope''s warning to heart and opened my bag, then very carefully pulled out the ratty old book that most of the pages were falling out from. ¡°I''m starting to hate the people running this place.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°That book should have been thrown out and not given to a student.¡± She slid hers over to me. ¡°You can have mine and I''ll tell them I lost it.¡± ¡°I can''t accept your generous offer.¡± I said. ¡°Remember the rules from the cafeteria.¡± Vanessa took in a sharp breath. ¡°If you get caught giving me your book, they might suspend you for a day or more.¡± I cautioned her. Vanessa sighed and took her book back. ¡°You''re going to have a hard time with that thing. It''s falling apart.¡± ¡°For now.¡± I said and carefully opened the cover. It flopped open and the spine was barely attached. The glue had either dried out or let go and that was why whole sections of pages were falling out. I quickly and efficiently flipped through the pages, careful of not mixing them up, and checked all the page numbers. Luckily, it was a fairly small book, barely two hundred pages, so I went through them all in a short time and confirmed that all of the pages were present. The bell rang and the teacher tapped her knuckles on her desk. ¡°I see that some of you have figured out that you have to pair up for this class.¡± The teacher said. ¡°The rest of you, you need to pair up for this class.¡± That made a few of the girls laugh and a few of them blushed. ¡°Go ahead and sort yourselves out. I''m not one for ceremony or pairing the best and the worst, so you can pick your friends to pair up if you want.¡± That made most of them happy and while they formed teams, I slipped my knife out of my sheath and Vanessa caught her breath at the sight of it. ¡°Shh.¡± I whispered and made it glow, which made her suck in a surprised breath. I sliced off the spine of the book and the front and back covers, because I needed access to all of the pages at the same time. I stashed my knife away and took a vial of real number ten potion out of my hidden bandoleer and held the pages steady. I carefully applied a small amount to the back of them to tack them together temporarily. I had to be careful, because I didn''t want the paper to absorb the potion. That would actually stop me from opening the book and I wanted it repaired, not solid. Vanessa stared as I applied more potion to the inside of the spine and then press it to the stack of pages. It only took seconds for it to work, so I used a minuscule amount to reattach the covers onto the spine. ¡°Now that you''ve all taken your seats, let me introduce myself. My name is Mage Greta Marks and I was drafted into this teaching job, because of all the extra students that had been admitted this year.¡± The teacher said. ¡°So, I give thanks to the sole god, to the son of the light, or to whoever else might be responsible for getting me out of the damn guild hall.¡± Not surprisingly, no one offered to tell her that it was because of me, until Vanessa stood up and waved to get the teacher''s attention and then pointed at me. ¡°Yes, what is it?¡± Mage Marks asked. ¡°Does the sole man in the room need my help?¡± Vanessa whispered something and no one but me heard her. ¡°She said that I''m responsible for you getting your dream job.¡± I said and tucked the partially used vial of number ten potion away. ¡°She is?¡± Mage Marks asked. ¡°No, me. I''m responsible.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°And you are?¡± ¡°You should know that, unless you only arrived today.¡± I said. ¡°You''re pretty full of yourself, aren''t you?¡± Mage Marks asked. Half the girls gasped, Vanessa included. She had an angry face and whispered pretty loudly. The girls at the next tables covered their mouths when they heard what she was saying. I waited until she was done talking and she was taking several breaths to calm down before I stood. ¡°I''ll skip the quite colorful language that my partner used and only tell you what she meant.¡± I said and Vanessa covered her mouth as well and tears came to her eyes. ¡°Thank you for the kind words and for coming to my defense. I have very few people that will do that for me.¡± Vanessa''s sad face became grateful and she nodded as she sat down. ¡°Vanessa said that I''ve suffered enough at the hands of the people that run this place and you have no right to judge me without knowing all the facts.¡± I said. ¡°Did you just arrive today?¡± ¡°No, I''ve been here since yesterday morning.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°I''m David Drake, the ex-army conscript that was dishonorably discharged. I''m here on Grand Mage Henrietta''s orders so I can marry his eldest daughter, Helena Henrietta.¡± Mage Marks stared at me with a look of fear and surprise on her face. ¡°Y-yes, I''ve... heard of you.¡± ¡°Before or after coming here?¡± I asked, curious. ¡°Both.¡± ¡°Did you know Mage Lukas personally?¡± I asked and every girl caught their breath, because they all knew about the dragon slayer and the inventor of the kracken tube, which was the most revolutionary weapon ever created. ¡°I did. He and my father were great friends.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°I''ve heard a lot about you from my father.¡± ¡°Just from him?¡± I asked, clearly probing for what else she knew. ¡°I was warned, quite specifically, to not confront you for any reason, Mr. Drake.¡± Mage Marks said. I let a smile appear on my face. ¡°You won''t tell me by whom, even if it was by King Rivers himself?¡± ¡°Especially if it was by his majesty.¡± Mage Marks said and looked down at the basic potions book on her desk. ¡°You are going to be very bored in this class.¡± ¡°I''ll be looking after Vanessa, since she''s my partner.¡± I said. ¡°When that doesn''t keep me busy, I would like to examine and possibly experiment with some of the ingredients I see in the bins behind you.¡± Mage Marks looked up from the book. ¡°Only Advanced Potions class members...¡± She started to say and I held up my schedule. ¡°Of course you''re taking it.¡± She said with a sigh, then she waved at the bins. ¡°Go ahead. I''ll be talking for the first half hour to give everyone a general overview.¡± ¡°Thank you, Mage Marks.¡± I said and turned to Vanessa. ¡°If you have any questions, just tell me and I''ll answer them.¡± Vanessa looked unsure, then she glanced at the teacher and saw approval on her face. ¡°Okay.¡± I walked around our table and started to walk across the classroom. ¡°I''m taking Advanced Potions, too!¡± Lorna exclaimed. Mage Marks let out a sigh. ¡°You haven''t been brewing potions for almost ten years like Mr. Drake has.¡± ¡°WHAAAAAT?!?¡± Nearly the entire class responded. While Mage Marks explained some of my history, I went to the ingredient bins and browsed in the hopes of finding something good to play with. 143 Academy Antics Part Eleven - Basic Potions Continued Mage Marks spoke about the importance of potions, their role in modern society, and the prohibitive cost when making the rare and expensive potions because failure happened so often. I half-listened to her as I looked through her ingredients and I was surprised that none of them had been prepared wrong. I expected to find one or two that I would have to salvage for her and instead all of them were prepared well. They would last quite some time before they would start to lose their potency. It raised my opinion of the teacher to a higher degree, especially since she would be teaching the advanced class as well. I was starting to feel eager to learn from her, and that wasn''t something I had felt since the Hag finally started teaching me how to brew properly. I went over my mental list of the ingredients some of my more versatile potions used and the substitutions I would need to make. Almost half of what I needed was right here in front of my eyes and there was a lot in each bin. I needed to ask her where she obtained so many rare ingredients and try to get them to supply me as well. Some of the ingredients I hadn''t heard of, which meant they were less frequently used or the potions were specialized. Then again, they could be different plants than what was in my potions list book and still have the same properties. That just brought more questions to my mind that I wanted to know the answers to. ¡°...and that''s the basic introduction to potion brewing.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°I hope some of you got something out of all that, because I won''t be repeating it. Once was enough, wasn''t it?¡± That made a few of the girls laugh and a lot of them nodded in agreement. ¡°Mr. Drake, please take your seat.¡± ¡°Yes, Mage Marks.¡± I said and walked over to her desk and whispered. ¡°I''m quite happy with your ingredient preparation. I didn''t see any mistakes and even the containers were perfectly cleaned to stop early contamination. Well done.¡± Mage Marks had her mouth slightly open and I couldn''t read the expression on her face. I walked back to the workbench I shared with Vanessa. ¡°Are we moving on to the practical side?¡± I asked. ¡°I have to admit that I haven''t brewed many basic potions and I''m looking forward to seeing what we do first.¡± ¡°You didn''t read the book already?¡± Lorna asked with a laugh. ¡°I should have known you were lazy if you arranged to get a passing grade in all your classes.¡± ¡°I haven''t had a chance to look at any books yet, because I was too busy rebuilding my life threatening living quarters for proper habitation.¡± I said and they all stared at me. ¡°Perhaps you know of it? The old student dorm on the other side of campus that was regularly used as target practice?¡± ¡°They''re making you live there?¡± One of the others asked, shocked. ¡°We were warned to never go inside because it could collapse at any second!¡± ¡°There''s no need to worry about that now.¡± I said. ¡°My work crews and I finished fixing everything last night. In fact, it''s even better than it was when it was new.¡± No one said anything in response. ¡°Well.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°Back to the lesson. The first potion we''re doing is a basic stimulant and it''s on page ten. It''s not very powerful and only gives you a slightly enhanced mind for half an hour, which is why it''s not banned from tests, since they take an hour or more to write.¡± I raised my hand to ask a question. ¡°Yes, Mr. Drake?¡± ¡°How long does it take to prepare?¡± ¡°An hour.¡± ¡°Can you stack the doses, or does it have to be drunk after it wears off?¡± ¡°You can drink two or three and it''s the same effect, so no, they don''t stack. Usually, one waits for the effect to end to take another.¡± ¡°If you drink another before the first effect runs out, does the effect continue?¡± Mage Marks looked like no one ever asked her that question before. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Is there excessive mental strain during ingestion or is there mental or physical exhaustion afterwards?¡± ¡°No, like I said, it''s not that powerful.¡± ¡°Then the boost can''t be significant. Students would be drinking it all the time to help them study.¡± Mage Marks let out a sigh. ¡°This isn''t supposed to be a debate over the merits of the potion. You can save that for this afternoon''s class.¡± ¡°I''m just trying to understand the point in this being the first potion students brew. If the potion itself is pretty much useless, why waste the ingredients making it?¡± I asked. Mage Marks took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°Practice.¡± She said. ¡°Students can make tons of mistakes with the very common ingredients, as much as necessary in fact, until they learn how to brew the simple potion properly. It saves on the more expensive ingredients and reduces the potential failures in later potions.¡± ¡°Ah, I get it now. Thank you for explaining.¡± I said and gave her a nod. ¡°I''m sorry for the delay.¡± Mage Marks looked surprised for a second and then smiled. ¡°It''s all right. Your question let me tell everyone the very reason why we''re doing this potion until they all get it right.¡± There were a few groans, one of which was from Lorna. ¡°My heart bleeds for you.¡± Mage Marks said with a chuckle. ¡°If you want to show your less capable partner how it should be done, feel free. They still have to do it themselves.¡±Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. ¡°How are we going to do that?¡± Lorna asked. ¡°You both do up half of each of the ingredients and add them when the recipe requires.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°It''s only fair and it can be fun.¡± Lorna rolled her eyes and flipped her book to page ten. I flipped to the right page and saw that Mage Marks was right. There were three very common ingredients and one not so common. The fourth one was the ingredient that barely any was required, so repeatedly making the potion wouldn''t be expensive at all. In fact, if the potency could be increased, the cost effectiveness would raise up significantly. ¡°I''ll be delivering your ingredients to your tables today, to show you how to properly retrieve them from their containers.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°Contamination is very bad for potion ingredients, so do not grab handfuls directly from the source. Use the proper utensils and clean them off afterwards.¡± ¡°They''re just common ingredients.¡± Lorna said. ¡°I can understand doing it for the more expensive ones...¡± ¡°Practice.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°If you get in the habit of always doing it the right way with the cheap ingredients, you''ll never have to worry that you''ll mess up and ruin your expensive potion ingredients.¡± She gave everyone a look to make sure that we all heard her, then she walked to each table and dished out a little bit more than the right amount for each ingredient. That allowed for some miss-cuts on the preparation, which was a good thing with untested students. Mage Marks cleaned the utensils and returned to her desk to sit on top of it. ¡°You don''t have to wait for me. Go ahead and start brewing.¡± She said and then she ignored everyone else and stared at me. I had been stared at by the best to check my technique and Mage Marks was nowhere even close to the intensity that the Hag could achieve. ¡°Vanessa, why don''t I show you how to do it using your hands?¡± ¡°Huh?!?¡± Vanessa said in almost a normal voice. ¡°I''ll put the water on and we can prep the first ingredient together.¡± I said and went to the sink, half filled the pot, and went back to the workbench. ¡°This stone base isn''t quite big enough to block all of the heat from the fire. By rights, it should be on the floor on a platform.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°So you can easily see down into the pot and make sure the potion is brewing properly. Plus, it''s easier to stir like this.¡± I said and did the proper swirling motions at waist height. ¡°The thicker potions require a lot of stirring and arm strength, too. Doing it up on the table will be difficult.¡± I waved my hand at the stacked wood under the pot and lit it on fire. ¡°AH!¡± Vanessa gasped and jumped back. ¡°Mr. Drake! How did you do that?¡± Mage Marks asked and walked over to me. ¡°It''s a basic fire starter spell.¡± I said. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°You didn''t prep a spell or chant.¡± Mage Marks said, her eyes squinted. ¡°Or did you mumble it?¡± Vanessa shook her head no, indicating that she didn''t hear me speak. ¡°I didn''t think so.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°You just... willed it to go afire.¡± ¡°I used magic.¡± I said and she raised her eyebrows. ¡°That''s how I learned to do it.¡± ¡°What else can you cast?¡± Mage Marks asked. ¡°I thought this was a potions class.¡± ¡°Just answer the question.¡± She said. ¡°Please.¡± ¡°Lock, Unlock, Fire Starter, Dispel...¡± ¡°That''s what my sister felt!¡± One of the girls said and clamped her mouth shut. ¡°...Sense Magic, and Curse Break I think. I don''t know if that''s the actual name of the spell. That''s just what I called it when I used it. I also figured out how to cast a magic shield before I left the army. After seeing all those mages cast it in battle, it seemed too useful not to try to learn it. Helena saved me from the army before I needed to use it, though.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Someone whispered and I couldn''t tell who it was. ¡°Does anyone else know you don''t need to chant to cast magic spells?¡± Mage Marks asked. ¡°Probably. All the construction workers in the army and the work crews at the house have seen me do it.¡± I said. ¡°No one here, though. It hasn''t come up yet.¡± ¡°Not even in your spellwork class?¡± She asked, surprised. ¡°It was all writing and we won''t get to practical lessons for a few weeks.¡± I explained. Mage Marks stood there for several minutes as she thought about something. ¡°Mr. Drake, keep this to yourself.¡± She said and looked at the girls in the class. ¡°Please, keep this information to yourselves as well.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Lorna asked. ¡°Because his ability is very rare.¡± Mage Marks said and looked at me. ¡°I''ve heard of it in passing; but, I''ve never met anyone that can do what you do.¡± ¡°I''ve only ever met one person myself and she trained me.¡± I said. ¡°That''s why I''m going to have so much trouble trying to learn the wrong way to do it.¡± ¡°The wrong way?¡± Mage Marks took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°It felt wrong? Was it because you have to try to figure out how to quantify and control the magic?¡± ¡°I can''t even get past the first page of the book.¡± Mage Marks stared at me for a full thirty seconds. ¡°I... I need to talk to your spellwork instructor.¡± ¡°Mage Sanchita.¡± I said. ¡°Yes, that''s good you opted for the extra class. She''s also dissatisfied with...¡± Mage Marks stopped herself from saying anything else. ¡°Leave it with me, Mr. Drake. With two minds working on it, we''ll figure out how to actually teach you our course material.¡± I shrugged, because I was passing both courses anyway. ¡°Did you know that if you use wildwood as the base for the fire, it''s much easier to control the heat created?¡± ¡°Wildwood! Are you crazy?¡± Lorna asked. ¡°Why in the world would you burn enchanting materials?¡± ¡°I just said why.¡± ¡°You actually waste precious wildwood as firewood!¡± Lorna laughed. ¡°You really are a marsh rat and don''t know the real value of things, do you?¡± ¡°That''s enough!¡± Mage Marks spat. ¡°Lorna, if one more disparaging word falls from your mouth, you''ll be suspended for a week and given zeros for the weekend tests!¡± Lorna sucked in a sharp breath. ¡°You... you can''t...¡± ¡°I''ve heard about how you keep speaking against Mr. Drake. I might not have said anything, except you managed to say something during every class you''ve had so far and this is only the second day.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°If you continue running your mouth, you''ll be running it all by yourself back at your dorm for a week. Do you understand?¡± Lorna opened her mouth and looked like she wanted to argue, then she schooled her face. ¡°Yes, Mage Marks. I understand.¡± ¡°I hope so, because my warning counts for every class you take from now on.¡± ¡°WHAT?!?¡± Lorna yelled. ¡°You need to learn to hold your tongue.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°This is not a forgiving world and you must have forgotten that the man you are currently insulting has killed people for less. In fact, he challenged the Director of the Academy himself for insulting him.¡± She saw shock on a lot of faces and nodded. ¡°So you see, even a man that has been exalted as the brightest mind of the academy...¡± Mage Marks said without even a hint of respect or conviction. ¡°...wasn''t very smart when dealing with someone that doesn''t care who you are if you cross him.¡± She looked around the class at everyone''s faces. ¡°Let this be a lesson to you all. Before you speak your mind, think about what you are actually saying and who you are saying it to.¡± A lot of the shocked faces nodded and she nodded in return. ¡°We''re quite behind in your first potion brewing, so please get to it. You should finish well before the first class break. After that, we''ll examine your potions for clarity, strength, purity, and consistency.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°Don''t forget to add several drops of blood when you infuse it.¡± I caught my breath at her words. They use their own blood for the infusions? I asked myself, shocked. When I didn''t move to start preparing the ingredients for the potion, Vanessa touched my arm. ¡°Are you going to start?¡± Vanessa asked in a whisper. I put my hand on hers and closed my eyes as I took a deep breath. I didn''t want my memories of the Hag sucking on my blood to be going through my mind while trying to brew, because it wouldn''t end well. So, I pushed those thoughts aside and opened my eyes. I pat Vanessa''s hand and then stepped behind her. ¡°Please forgive the intrusion.¡± I whispered into her ear as I put my arms around her and started to use her hands as if they were my own. 144 Academy Antics Part Twelve - Basic To Advanced Potions Vanessa was completely engrossed in what I was doing, even with my chin almost resting on her shoulder. She watched intensely as my hands used her hands expertly to prepare half of the ingredients for the potion. Surprisingly, she didn''t object to how I had pressed my body against the back of hers or how I was manipulating her appendages for her. As I finished each half of an ingredient, I stayed where I was and would let her hands go. She took the cue and did exactly what I showed her to the other half of the ingredient. I didn''t even have to provide any additional instruction as she copied my actions. ¡°How can you tell what to do with each ingredient?¡± Vanessa breathed the question out. ¡°It depends on the ingredient. If it''s really leafy or frilly, it needs to be nearly minced to dissolve properly. If it''s more like a stalk...¡± I picked up one and put it down. ¡°You need to cut with the grain to let the most amount of liquid out and to allow the thicker fibres to absorb properly into the boiling water. If it''s a more equal combination, say half leafy and some stalk, a cross grain cut is preferred, to get the most out of the entire ingredient and not just one part or the other.¡± ¡°What if it''s mostly stalk and is only leafy or grainy on the end?¡± Vanessa asked in a whisper and pointed to the uncommon ingredient. ¡°That you have to pluck the grains off and add them first, because they need time to boil before you can cut up the stalk along the length to add the juices and fibres.¡± I said. ¡°We have to wait twenty minutes before I can show you how.¡± ¡°You really do know all about this stuff.¡± Vanessa whispered, sounding quite pleased. ¡°Like the teacher said, I''ve been brewing for nearly ten years. I could make a potion this simple with my eyes closed and half asleep.¡± Vanessa laughed softly and the girls at the tables next to us looked over in surprise. ¡°Eyes on your potions, please.¡± Mage Marks said, a bit sternly. The girls averted their gazes and went back to their work. ¡°Are we going to stand here doing nothing for the next fifteen minutes?¡± Vanessa asked, her voice so low that she barely had to open her mouth to speak. We had just added the last of the common ingredients and the potion needed to simmer for the next stage when the grainy part of the uncommon ingredient would be added. It was then that I realized that I was still pressed up against her. ¡°My apologies. I''ll retreat to my side of the table and...¡± Vanessa caught my hands before I moved. ¡°I wasn''t telling you to go.¡± She whispered and her face flushed completely red. ¡°I was asking if you are going to... stay like this... with me.¡± ¡°You don''t want me to let you go?¡± I asked and she shook her head. ¡°I''ve never... I mean, I''m...¡± Vanessa took a small breath and let it out. ¡°You''re the first boy that''s ever talked to me and didn''t get upset that I can''t speak normally.¡± ¡°Why would they get upset?¡± ¡°They couldn''t really hear me, and... and they kept asking me to speak up...¡± ¡°...and that made you even quieter, because of their demanding voices.¡± I whispered and she nodded. ¡°I''m sorry they were too dumb to understand.¡± Vanessa turned her head to look at me with raised eyebrows. ¡°You would make a great scout. Being quiet and learning to talk low and listen to your environment is a tremendous asset when out in the wilderness. You could prove to be extremely useful to whatever team you joined.¡± I whispered and her face went red again. ¡°I bet you already studied the hand signal manual for the army, too.¡± Vanessa took in a sharp breath. ¡°How did you know that?¡± ¡°It was the smartest thing you could do.¡± I said and she ducked her head a little. It pressed her forehead to the side of my head and she looked like tears were coming to her eyes. ¡°Please don''t cry. It was meant as a compliment.¡± ¡°I... I know.¡± Vanessa whispered and dabbed her eyes with a cloth before anyone saw. ¡°That''s why...¡± She lifted her head from mine and glanced around to make sure that no one was looking, then she pressed her lips to my cheek. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°I have a fiance.¡± I whispered back. ¡°You don''t know how sorry I am that you do.¡± Vanessa breathed. ¡°I''d propose right this second.¡± ¡°Even knowing some of what my life has been like, especially here?¡± I asked. ¡°My family doesn''t have a stupid requirement of becoming a mage first.¡± Vanessa responded. ¡°I didn''t know it was a requirement until I had already agreed to marry Helena and met her parents.¡±Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. ¡°They shouldn''t make things so hard for you. It''s not right.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°I wish... I wish that my family was more influential. Maybe I could have...¡± I turned my head towards hers and kissed her cheek back. ¡°Thank you, Vanessa.¡± Her face flushed red again. ¡°D-David.¡± ¡°It''s almost time for the grains.¡± I whispered. Vanessa took a breath, then nodded and faced forward again. I used her hands to pluck half of the grains, careful of damaging the rest of the plant, and told her the best way to harvest the more common varieties as she did the rest for herself. We added the grains at the right time and then we had to wait another ten minutes before we could add the rest. Neither of us spoke and just stood there, with me holding her from behind and her slowly taking deep breaths and letting them out. When the time came for the stalk to be added, we split the work like we had with everything else and added the fibres and the juice. In only a few minutes, it would be time to add the catalyst. Vanessa took out something like a paring knife from her pocket and held it in her hands. I moved my hands to hold hers and used Sense Magic. She caught her breath as my magic passed through her hands and went into the knife. The blade glowed slightly, showing that it had some kind of enchantment on it. The whole class stopped what they were doing and looked over at us. ¡°Mr. Drake, what are you doing?¡± Mage Marks asked. ¡°I was seeing if the knife was enchanted. It is.¡± I said and stopped using my magic. The glow faded and Vanessa stared at the knife as if she had never seen it before. ¡°You didn''t know?¡± I asked her and she shook her head. ¡°My grandfather used this in school and passed it down to my father, and from him to me. They said it was tradition to use it.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°They didn''t tell me it was a magic blade.¡± ¡°Her family passed it down to her.¡± I said in a normal voice. ¡°Most noble families have at least one magic blade.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°I''ve read about knives that small holding some enchantments.¡± She walked over to us. ¡°I don''t suppose you''ll let me borrow...¡± ¡°No!¡± Vanessa gasped in a normal voice as she held it tightly to her chest, which pressed my hands to her chest as well. Mage Marks looked shocked at her reaction and held her hands up in surrender. ¡°I was only asking for curiosity''s sake to see what the enchantment is. I won''t make you hand it over.¡± ¡°Her family might not know it''s enchanted, or didn''t tell her to see if she would try to power it herself.¡± I said, which were the two most logical explanations of handing over a magical blade without telling her why. ¡°You''ll need to guard it and protect it.¡± One of the girls said. ¡°If anyone knows you brought a magic knife to the school...¡± ¡°I won''t let anyone take it from her.¡± I said. ¡°Vanessa, hold it in your hand as if you were going to use it.¡± She moved our hands out from her chest and held the knife only in her right hand. ¡°This is your life.¡± I said and gripped my right hand tightly over hers. ¡°You will live or you will die with this blade in your hand.¡± I repeated what the Hag had said to me when she gave me my knife and poured my magic through her hands and into the knife. ¡°DAVID! NO!¡± Mage Marks yelled and tried to grab our hands, I assumed to pull them apart. Her hands hit an invisible barrier around our hands and bounced off. ¡°You can''t...¡± The knife glowed brightly and Vanessa stared at it. The blade seemed to extend slightly, from a paring knife into a steak knife, and looked about a hundred times sharper. ¡°My hand hurts.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°It''s supposed to. The handle''s forming to your hand.¡± I whispered back and she nodded. ¡°Always have this on you and you will always have something to depend on.¡± A moment later, the glow faded and I let her hand go. She opened her hand and the handle had formed to fit her hand only. I took a Healing potion out of my bandoleer and asked her to hold the knife in her other hand. She did and I put several drops of potion on her hand and then rubbed my hands over her right one. ¡°It''s not sore anymore.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°Apparently you also know a binding spell.¡± Mage Marks said with a sigh. ¡°What potion is that?¡± ¡°It''s a healing potion.¡± I said and tucked it away. ¡°I don''t recognize the color.¡± ¡°That''s because I made it and it''s more powerful than any others for sale on the market.¡± ¡°I doubt it''s more powerful if you have to rub it on to get it to work.¡± Lorna said. ¡°Lorna, remember my warning.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°I wasn''t being mean.¡± Lorna responded. ¡°It''s obvious, isn''t it? A topical...¡± ¡°That''s just for small outside injuries. It''s meant to be drunk, except that would take too long to heal something so close to the surface.¡± I said. ¡°If one of her fingers was broken, I would have rubbed it on for the soreness and then had her drink a quarter of it to heal the bone.¡± Everyone just stared at me with wide eyes. ¡°Your potion has multiple uses?¡± Mage Marks asked, surprised. ¡°Did you combine other healing potions to combine the effects?¡± I shook my head. ¡°It''s a completely different recipe and uses different ingredients.¡± ¡°What? How did...¡± Mage Marks stopped herself before she derailed her class even more. ¡°Everyone, get back to work. If you all followed the recipe somewhat close to properly, you all should be nearing the infusion stage.¡± Vanessa put her knife in her right hand, smiled at the perfect fit of the handle, and moved to nick the tip of her index finger. I grabbed both of her hands to stop her. ¡°You can''t do that anymore. Wounds from magical weapons don''t heal properly.¡± Vanessa''s mouth dropped open in surprise. ¡°R-r-really?¡± ¡°I''ll make you a temporary sheath until you can send for one. You need to keep the knife on you at all times and a hidden sheath works the best. You''ll need to be careful where you put it, until you practice drawing it safely.¡± Vanessa blinked her eyes at me for several seconds. ¡°I''ll be fighting with it?¡± She asked, surprised. ¡°Not if you''re lucky. If you''re unlucky, it''s best to have a weapon you can depend on.¡± ¡°Do you have one?¡± Vanessa asked and I nodded. ¡°Can I see it?¡± ¡°After we infuse the potion.¡± I whispered and took out a vial of black liquid. I poured in a quarter of the vial of my gland extract and tucked it back into my bandoleer. I had switched to using vials, because carrying around a large water skin for potion classes was a bit too conspicuous. ¡°We can use our magic together.¡± Vanessa nodded and held a hand over the potion. I put my hand over hers, then folded my fingers between hers to hold on. Vanessa chanted under her breath as she performed the infusion spell and I just let my magic out to flow into her hand. Our magics swirled together and plunged into the potion. The whole pot glowed for almost ten seconds and then the glow faded. The entire class stared at us, as did the teacher, with looks of disbelief on their faces. ¡°It''s almost like you''ve never seen a potion infused before.¡± I said in a normal voice and that woke the other students up. They went back to working on their own potion infusions and Mage Marks kept staring at me. 145 Academy Antics Part Thirteen - Potions Producer ¡°We... we did it.¡± Vanessa breathed as she stared at the completed potion. ¡°On the first try. We did it.¡± Mage Marks had stood beside our table and she stared into the potion, too. She actually looked a little shocked. ¡°Mr. Drake, you... you...¡± ¡°What is it?¡± I asked, a little confused about what she was shocked about. ¡°I''m going to ignore your ease with sharing magic for now, because I desperately want to know what you used as a catalyst. That is not the right color for the finished potion.¡± Mage Marks said and went back to her desk to get an empty vial. She came back and handed it to me. ¡°Please give me a sample to examine.¡± I gave her a questioning look and she sighed. ¡°I want to use some testing spells on it to grade it. I''ll return it if you want it back.¡± I glanced at Vanessa and she shrugged. ¡°It''s for class and we did use her ingredients.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°Good point.¡± I whispered back and let her hand go, then I ladled out some of the potion to fill the vial. ¡°I don''t need it back.¡± Mage Marks took the vial. ¡°It''s not the right consistency, either.¡± She walked over to her desk, sat down, then wooden panels popped out and blocked her off completely from sight. I immediately sent out my Sense Magic feeling, just like I had back on the Addams farm, and felt several small spells be cast nearby. I couldn''t tell what they were, though. ¡°Do you think we should try it?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°If Mage Marks says it''s okay, I mean.¡± I smiled at her and poured a vial for her and one for myself. ¡°There''s no need to wait.¡± I said and upended the vial. I felt a significant mental enhancement right away and it felt somewhat familiar. It was then that I made the connection between the effect and my number seven potion for mental enhancement. This potion wasn''t anywhere near as powerful, which was probably why there was no accompanying headache. Vanessa watched me to see if I was going to suffer any ill effects, then she drank her own vial. She let out a squeak and dropped the vial. I caught it a split second later, since I was still right behind her and my body was pressed against hers. ¡°Are you all right?¡± I asked. ¡°I... I... I don''t know.¡± Vanessa said in a normal voice and looked at her hand with wide eyes. ¡°Oh, my god... aren''t fingers wonderful? They''re so versatile and can do so many things...¡± She started to list everything that fingers could do, almost in a constant stream of words, and everyone in the class stared at her. None of them had heard her normal voice before, for more than a few seconds, anyway. The wooden panels over the teacher''s desk folded away and Mage Marks stood up. ¡°This is much more powerful than the original potion. You shouldn''t consume it until...¡± She stopped talking when she heard Vanessa''s continuous list of things fingers could do. ¡°Oh, damn.¡± ¡°What''s wrong with her?¡± A girl at the next table asked. ¡°There''s nothing wrong with her.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°She just... her mind''s focused on her fingers. If she had been sitting for a test, she would be focused on that instead.¡± ¡°What does that mean?¡± ¡°It''s a mental stimulation potion. She focused on the closest thing she could find.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°It''s a good thing she didn''t look at Mr. Drake first, because he would be her focus for the next hour and a half.¡± ¡°What? I thought the potion only lasted half an hour.¡± Lorna said. ¡°It normally does.¡± Mage Marks said and looked at me. ¡°I guess we just have to wait for it to wear off.¡± ¡°No.¡± I said and took out the healing potion. I put it in Vanessa''s hand and she gasped. ¡°Oh! The color and clarity is phenomenal. The topical effects alone on my fingers made me feel so much better.¡± Vanessa said. ¡°Drink half of it.¡± I said. Vanessa opened it and drank exactly half, corked it and handed it back. ¡°Oh, my god... the... the feeling... your magic is so strong.¡± She said and closed her eyes. She took a very deep breath and let it out very slowly. She opened her eyes and took half a step away from me and turned around to face me. ¡°You''re a killer, aren''t you?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°You''ve maimed and hurt people, haven''t you?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°You''re going to keep doing that, aren''t you?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°When significantly provoked, yes.¡± I responded. ¡°It doesn''t matter who they are, does it?¡±The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°No. I even took the arm of the first princess when she robbed me of several hundred thousand gold crowns.¡± Every single person in the room let out a squeal of fright, except for Vanessa and Mage Marks. ¡°Why didn''t you kill her?¡± Vanessa asked, her focused mind unphased by my words. ¡°She wouldn''t learn from her mistakes if she was dead.¡± I said and the room fell completely silent. ¡°I also wanted her out of the army before she ruined the foothold the Gulf Kingdom had in the Eastern Empire.¡± ¡°You know that most of the army and a lot of the navy love her for what she did over there.¡± Vanessa said. ¡°The war changed when she beat back the retaliation strike from the Eastern Empire and then had the construction crews rebuild the port for the navy to establish a foothold there.¡± ¡°Did she tell everyone that it was my tens of thousands of potions that made it all possible?¡± I asked. ¡°No, but the soldiers and workers know.¡± Mage Marks offered. ¡°There''s also word that the Eastern Empire is suing for a cease fire, now that the new claimed lands there have been reinforced with several brigades and the navy sent over several of their larger vessels to enforce the peace in the local waters.¡± ¡°You mean they are bombing the other enemy ports to stop them from building more ships.¡± I said. Mage Marks nodded and looked at Vanessa. ¡°How are you feeling?¡± ¡°Thanks to David, I''m feeling fine.¡± Vanessa said, still talking in a normal voice. ¡°He''s an amazing man and I''m seriously considering petitioning to him to become his concubine if he goes through with his marriage.¡± Nearly every girl gasped. ¡°You might want to rethink that when the potion wears off.¡± Mage Marks said, wisely. Vanessa laughed normally and that surprised everyone. ¡°It''s a mental enhancement potion, not a hypnosis or love potion.¡± She turned to look into my eyes and took my hands. ¡°David, I''m never going to find someone else like you. Even Mage Marks said she''s never met anyone like you and she''s travelled all over the kingdom.¡± ¡°What will your family say if you become a concubine to someone that''s lower in social status than a commoner?¡± One of the girls at the next table asked and some of the others gave her stern looks. ¡°It''s true and you know it. Everyone''s talking about him now, especially after what he did at lunch yesterday.¡± ¡°That was disgusting.¡± Lorna said and then clamped her mouth shut when Mage Marks looked at her. ¡°I''ll have to talk to my parents and see if they are okay with me being one to the future Mage Henrietta.¡± Vanessa said with a smile. ¡°It might be odd for a mage to also be a concubine...¡± ¡°It''s not uncommon.¡± Mage Marks said and I looked at her. ¡°Some women would become adjuncts to a main family, bear children, and return to their families with heirs they never would have had.¡± ¡°Yes, that''s what I was thinking. I''m sure that after David is married for a few months and his wife becomes pregnant, he can start trying to get me pregnant, too.¡± Vanessa said. ¡°I think my mother would be overjoyed to have a grandchild in three years.¡± ¡°Helena''s pregnant right now.¡± I said and the entire room was filled with shouts of disbelief. ¡°How? How could you...¡± A startled Mage Marks started to ask. ¡°We''ve been having sex for a while. It wasn''t until we agreed to have a baby that she told me she had been actively using her magic to not get pregnant. When we cooperated and infused our magic together, she was instantly pregnant.¡± Mage Marks stood there, her mouth open in shock, and it mirrored a lot of the students. A few of the girls had odd reactions, though. One fainted and was caught by her potions partner, two of them let out moans before they could stop themselves, and quite a few of them let out squeaks of delight. Vanessa was the only one that remained calm. ¡°I''ll talk to my parents tonight about becoming your concubine after your marriage.¡± She smiled at me. ¡°Once they know you can guarantee a grandchild...¡± That sentence shook Mage Marks out of her shock. ¡°This isn''t something that should be discussed in class.¡± She said and looked at everyone else. ¡°Is everyone done infusing their potions?¡± A chorus of ''yes'' came back to her, so she went to each table and gathered a sample and wrote the names of the students on them. She went to her desk and looked at the students again. ¡°No one else is to drink David''s potion. It''s too potent without taking a proper primer first.¡± ¡°I''m fine.¡± Vanessa said. ¡°Too fine. You''ve been talking with a normal volume of voice for the last fifteen minutes.¡± ¡°I have?¡± Vanessa asked and looked to my face for confirmation. I nodded. ¡°It''s still the same voice, just louder.¡± ¡°I''m going to sound normal for more than another hour?¡± Vanessa asked and then laughed. ¡°David, you''re wonderful!¡± She said as she put her arms around my neck and kissed me briefly. ¡°Thank you!¡± Quite a few of the girls gasped at her boldness. ¡°I think there might be a bit of an intoxicating side effect to the potion, too.¡± Mage Marks said and that piqued the interest of some of the other students. ¡°No, you still can''t drink it yet.¡± ¡°Would our normal potion count as a primer?¡± Lorna asked and eyed the large pot in front of me. ¡°If brewed properly and I check it for...¡± Mage Marks couldn''t finish her sentence before Lorna drank her own potion. She took in a deep breath and we could see her eyes intensify slightly, then she walked around her workbench and came over to me. Vanessa let me go and stepped back to allow her to approach. ¡°Mr. Drake... David... I sincerely apologize for my disparaging comments before. I''ve been envious of your apparent popularity with the girls of the class, despite your background and all of the bad things we know you''ve done. Them liking you is something I couldn''t accomplish myself.¡± Lorna said. ¡°I meant getting them to like me. I couldn''t help but lash out at you for doing something I can''t.¡± I didn''t say anything and she smiled. ¡°You know it''s not the potion talking. It''s just focusing my mind on what''s in front of me.¡± I looked over at Mage Marks and she shrugged. I held a hand out and Lorna gave me her empty vial. I filled it and handed it back. She didn''t hesitate as she drank it all and then she put the vial on my workbench and braced her hands on the edge. ¡°By... the Son''s... Light.¡± Lorna said as she took several quick breaths. ¡°I need some of that healing potion, please.¡± I took out the half empty vial and gave it to her. She drank half of what was left and handed it back. It left a quarter of the original amount that was inside and I tucked it away again. ¡°Thank... ohhhh.¡± Lorna shivered as the potion went through her and combined with the other two potions. ¡°Oh, wow.¡± ¡°It''s nice, isn''t it?¡± Vanessa asked her and Lorna nodded. ¡°My mind feels so open and free right now.¡± ¡°If I wasn''t betrothed myself, I might ask to be a concubine as well.¡± Lorna said and looked at me. ¡°David, I look forward to seeing what you can do in the Advanced Potions class.¡± I looked down at the simple potion that my gland extract and magic had significantly increased the power of. ¡°We both are.¡± Lorna smiled and nodded to me, as a sign of respect, and she went back to her table. The girl who fainted came to on her own and Mage Marks made sure that she was okay, then the teacher had the wood panels pop up to give herself privacy again and went to work grading and assessing the potions of the other students. 146 Academy Antics Part Fourteen - Lunchtime Take Two I retrieved a crate of empty vials and used them to empty the potion into. Lorna took the cue and did the same for hers, as did a few others that were confident that their potions would pass the grading. Mage Marks finished testing the potions and the wood panels folded away, then she put the potions in a display rack behind her with the grades on them. It wasn''t for shaming like some of the girls whispered, though. ¡°This is the bottom of your scale and to show your improvement as you keep brewing it to make it perfectly. It''s here on display as your first officially produced potion.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°Some of you need a lot of improvement, some only need a little, and some need none at all.¡± Nearly everyone turned to look at me and then at Lorna. ¡°Mr. Drake doesn''t count.¡± Mage Marks said and then she smiled, I assumed to take the sting out of what she said. ¡°His and Vanessa''s is there only because it''s the first time they made the potion. Only Vanessa will be making it in the future.¡± ¡°Don''t worry. I''ll figure out how to improve it more.¡± I said and Vanessa nodded. ¡°Any more improvement and even a primer won''t work to ease the symptoms.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°It''ll just cause severe headaches and pain for a while.¡± ¡°I know. I have one that nearly knocked me out when I was a child because it hurt my brain so much.¡± I said and a few of the girls gasped. ¡°I''ve been meaning to tear it apart and figure out where the potion is wrong, and what better way to do that than building up from a basic version?¡± Mage Marks sighed and shook her head, probably because she knew that discouraging me wouldn''t work, then the bell rang. ¡°Go on and get out of here before you make all the women here fall for you.¡± ¡°Does that include you?¡± I asked and she caught her breath. Vanessa laughed and picked up her knife, then looked like she didn''t know what to do with it. I held my coat open and tapped a slot in my bandoleer. She smiled and easily slid her knife into the slot. ¡°Thank you.¡± Vanessa said and pat my coat. I picked up the crate of potions and we left the class. ¡°We need to get you a nice reinforced bag to take half of these with you.¡± I said. ¡°Hmm? Oh, you''re giving me half?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°We made it together. It''s only fair.¡± I said and she held a hand out to stop me from walking. Lorna was lagging behind the other students because she was struggling a little with her crate. ¡°Lorna, a word, please.¡± Vanessa said. ¡°Thank the Light.¡± Lorna said and put the crate down in the middle of the hallway. ¡°It shouldn''t be so damn heavy!¡± ¡°It''s full of liquid.¡± I said. ¡°I shouldn''t be carrying it at all.¡± Lorna said and put her hands by her mouth. ¡°Nick! NICK!¡± Another student with a number 2 on his academy suit coat appeared in the hallway from the throng of other students. ¡°You called, my future?¡± Lorna rolled her eyes and Vanessa laughed. ¡°As you can no doubt tell, this is my promised betrothal when I graduate.¡± She said to us and looked at him. ¡°I need you to carry this crate of potions for me back to my dorm room.¡± ¡°Right away.¡± Nick said and bent down to pick it up. ¡°Wait!¡± Vanessa commanded quite loudly and Nick froze as he looked at her with shock on his face. ¡°Lorna, I propose a trade.¡± Lorna looked at my crate and at hers. ¡°Oh, I see.¡± She said with a smile. ¡°One for one.¡± Vanessa laughed and shook her head. ¡°I''ll be making my own next week, so you know this is a limited time offer.¡± Lorna scrunched her face up a little. ¡°I''m not doing two for one, that''s just stupid.¡± Vanessa nodded. ¡°How about two of mine for three of yours?¡± Lorna looked at the crate. ¡°He''s giving you half?¡± Vanessa nodded. ¡°I''m willing to give up six of my sixteen for nine of your thirty-two.¡± Lorna had to think about that. ¡°I won''t be getting much out of that.¡± ¡°Nick, go into the potions classroom and grab six empty vials.¡± I said. He looked at Lorna and she nodded. He took off and was back fairly quickly with six empty ones. ¡°I''ll give you six quarter doses of my health potion as well to ease the symptoms.¡± I said. ¡°Deal!¡± Lorna agreed immediately. I put my crate down and Vanessa did the transfer. She took out six of our potion vials from the crate and replaced them with six of Lorna''s potion, then put the three extra vials carefully into her pockets. I took out the healing potion with only a quarter dose in it and poured it into one of the empty ones Nick held. I took out another healing potion and poured exactly a quarter dose into four more vials, then took out another healing potion and put a quarter dose into the last vial.If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°I''m not going to ask how you can do that so accurately without measuring.¡± Lorna said as she put the six vials of our potion and three of the quarter dose healing potions into her crate and put the last three into her pockets like Vanessa had. ¡°It took years of practice without any real measuring devices.¡± I said as an explanation. Lorna held a hand out to Vanessa to shake. ¡°It was nice doing business with you.¡± She looked at me and held her hand out again. ¡°With the both of you.¡± I shook her hand briefly and then Nick picked up the crate and they left. ¡°Do you want to go to lunch first or visit my dorm?¡± Vanessa looked surprised for a moment. ¡°You mean for you to make me a sheath and a bag for the potions and not for anything else, don''t you?¡± She asked and I nodded. ¡°Then we can go eat first.¡± I picked up the crate and we left the main class building and went to the student administration building with the giant cafeteria on the second floor. ¡°Please tell me you won''t repeat what you did yesterday.¡± Vanessa said. ¡°I really am sorry you had to see that.¡± I said. ¡°You can relax, because I have a plan for today. It might not work tomorrow, though.¡± Vanessa smiled at me. ¡°I''m so glad that I trust you already.¡± The man in uniform by the entrance looked worried when he saw me. ¡°I won''t do it again.¡± I said to him and the man let out a relieved sigh as he waved us through. Nearly everyone in the large cafeteria stopped what they were doing and turned to look at me. I wasn''t surprised that Selena didn''t wave to get my attention today. Vanessa waved to her friends and we went over to their table first and a couple of the girls covered their mouths as I approached. ¡°He''s not doing that today.¡± She said in a normal voice and the girls at the table let out startled yells. ¡°Van!¡± One exclaimed and hopped up to hug her. ¡°What happened?¡± ¡°David''s potion happened.¡± Vanessa said. ¡°It''ll only last another forty-five minutes.¡± ¡°She has more.¡± I said and put the crate down. ¡°Ten of the dark ones and six of the light ones are hers.¡± They all looked into the crate. ¡°The light one I recognize as the first potion we ever made.¡± One of them said. ¡°What''s the dark one?¡± ¡°It''s the same potion.¡± Vanessa said and they all gave her strange looks. ¡°That''s exactly what Mage Marks looked like when we infused it.¡± ¡°Woooow.¡± One of them said. ¡°I guess it''s stronger?¡± ¡°Very.¡± Vanessa said. ¡°Do NOT take any of them. Sixteen of the dark ones are David''s, and if you try to steal from him, he''ll take your hand.¡± The girls at the table started laughing. ¡°I''m not joking. He''ll sever your hand at the wrist and will wear it around his neck.¡± Vanessa said and they stopped laughing as their faces drained of color. ¡°They handle thieves much differently near the front lines.¡± She turned to me. ¡°I''m going to the silver table to grab something for lunch. Are you going to do your plan now?¡± I nodded and waved for her to proceed before me, and she smiled and nodded graciously. She went over to the first Silver table and everyone stared at me as I followed her. ¡°You can''t eat from here.¡± The cook behind the first table said. His job was to go back into the kitchen to tell them when something needed replacing and he would put the used dishes on the Bronze tables. ¡°I know.¡± I said and looked over the food. I was in the mood for a solid meal this time, so I waited for Vanessa to take what she wanted. When she nodded that she was done, I made a very big show of licking my palm and then sucked on my fingers to get some good saliva going. Everyone in the room stared at me and wondered what I was doing, so I held up my quite wet hand to show them, then I slapped it down onto a huge roast. ¡°EWWWW!¡± Nearly all of the women in the room yelled as one. I stuck my hand into a pot of mashed potatoes next and the cook standing behind the table gawked at me like I was a monster. I didn''t want to miss out on gravy, so my partially potato covered hand went in there next. ¡°Hey, that''s boiling hot. You might want to reduce the heat on the warming plate with the next pot you bring out.¡± I said and picked up a napkin to wipe off my hand, then licked my other hand, so I couldn''t be accused of tasting the food I had contaminated, and I put my fingers into the top of a nice cake that had two slices cut out of it. Everyone stared at me as I wiped off my other hand and tossed the napkin into the trash, then I walked down to the Bronze table to wait. Even Vanessa stared at me with a look of surprise on her face. ¡°You should sit down to eat.¡± I reminded her and she nodded and went to the table with her friends. A minute later, the roast, the pot of mashed potatoes, the pot of gravy, and the cake were delivered to the Bronze table, because no one else was going to eat them now. I did up a large plate and filled it with tasty meat, several scoops of mashed potatoes, and smothered it in gravy. The potatoes almost floated off of my plate. ¡°I''ll be back for the cake.¡± I said and then pointed to the roast, potatoes, and gravy. ¡°Can you bring these ruined dishes to the servant''s serving room, please? My maid won''t go hungry at lunch again today because of your department''s stupid rules.¡± I said and the cook caught his breath, as did a lot of the people that were listening. I went to Vanessa''s table and bowed slightly to her. ¡°My lady, may I join you and the other ladies at your table for lunch?¡± Vanessa didn''t even look at her friends to see what they thought about it or being called ladies. ¡°Of course, my lord.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and sat down across from her, then we started to eat. Life seemed to return to the cafeteria, now that my little show was over, and everyone went back to whatever they were doing before. ¡°You''re right David, that''s not going to work for you tomorrow. They''ll institute a rule that you won''t even be allowed to approach that part of the room.¡± Vanessa said. ¡°What will you do then?¡± I paused in eating and gave her a smile, which she hadn''t really seen before. ¡°I''ll ask for your help.¡± Vanessa caught her breath and looked at the food tables, then she smiled and nodded in understanding. We ate the main dish and then went back to the tables to get dessert and ate that, too. We finished lunch and she bid her friends farewell, as did I, and we left the building to walk to my dorm. We had plenty of time before we had to go to afternoon class, so we had a nice leisurely walk, even with me carrying a crate of potions. After a couple of minutes, Vanessa leaned in close and put her arm around mine. ¡°I hope it''s okay that I''m this bold.¡± Vanessa said. ¡°I want the last few minutes that the potion works to be the ones I remember most.¡± ¡°You have more potion.¡± I said. ¡°I''ll have to conserve it with only ten doses. Each is only an hour and a half, so I''ll need to be careful when I take them to get the most effectiveness out of them.¡± Vanessa said as we approached the old dorm building. ¡°David, is... is that...¡± She stopped talking as we came close enough for her to realize it was the old and mostly wrecked building, except that it looked newer and grander than the main academy building. ¡°Oh... my... GOD!¡± ¡°You said you wanted the last few minutes to be memorable.¡± I said and brought us to a stop. ¡°David, this... how did you...¡± ¡°I have the best work crews in the capital.¡± I said and nodded at the very ornate and expensive looking doors with my two guards beside them. The two men took the cue and opened both doors. ¡°Welcome to my dorm mansion.¡± I said and led a very surprised Vanessa inside. 147 Academy Antics Part Fifteen - Advanced Potions Part One ¡°David, this place is magnificent!¡± Vanessa exclaimed as her eyes took in everything. ¡°I can''t believe that it''s the same building!¡± ¡°Most of it isn''t.¡± I said and nodded to the stairs. We both went up and walked down the hallway to my work room next to the potions room. I explained all the work we did and Vanessa opened the door for me. She caught her breath at the tools and things I had inside. Just like my potions room, it was a slightly smaller version of the one I had back at the Henrietta Longshore mansion. I put the crate of potions down and grabbed several nice pieces of cheap leather. I kept talking and told her the extensive repairs and modifications we did to the building and Vanessa listened and watched as I cut up the leather and used some potion to merge the pieces together into a nice sized bag. I made pouches that were similar to the ones in my bandoleer, then padded them with cotton and covered the cotton with soft cloth. ¡°You''ve done this before.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°A few times.¡± I said and she covered her mouth when I applied the fortifying waterproof potion to it to harden and strengthen it. She didn''t ask me what it was, though. I plucked her vials out of the crate and easily slipped them into the pouches inside the bag. Vanessa handed me the other three she had in her pockets and I added them, then I went into my potion room to grab ten empty vials from the large rack of them. ¡°Oh, wow.¡± Vanessa said, barely above a breath. ¡°You have twelve potion setups!¡± ¡°Why make one potion when you can make multiple batches at the same time?¡± I asked and she gave me a concerned look. ¡°Most mages can''t infuse this many potions at once.¡± Vanessa said. ¡°I don''t do them all at the same time.¡± I said and she seemed to relax. ¡°I only have two hands. I do them one after the other.¡± Vanessa looked shocked and didn''t respond, so I put an arm around her and led her back into my work room. I let her go and put the ten vials down, then took out two full health potions and the one with three quarters left in it. I divided them up into quarter doses and added them to the ten vials. I added them to the bag and Vanessa stared at them. ¡°I''ll need a few days to try to get another health potion made with the ingredients available to me.¡± I said and picked up a thicker piece of leather. I used my charged knife to cut it into an appropriate shape and used number ten potion to assemble it and added a length of cord to it. ¡°I ran out of all the prime ingredients I brought with me.¡± ¡°But...¡± ¡°The potion today was an eye opener, as Gary would say.¡± I said and used the fortifying waterproof potion on it to harden and strengthen it. ¡°I''m not as concerned about making appropriate substitutions.¡± Vanessa stood still as I tried the sheath in different places on her body. At her waist on the sides, in the front, in the back, on her forearms, on her thighs, and on her calves. That left two spots, one on each side of her breasts under her armpits. It was the same draw as mine, actually. I opened my academy coat and held it open to show where my knife sheath was. ¡°This is the best place for me to keep it concealed and within easy reach.¡± Vanessa reached out and touched the sheath, then ran her hands up and under my arm and over my shoulder where it was tied. ¡°It''s not tied on the bottom?¡± ¡°I only need the sheath concealed when wearing suit coats and they hold it in place.¡± I said. ¡°I can add a cord for the waist as well.¡± Vanessa nodded and I did so. She opened up her academy coat and slipped it off of her shoulders. Her shirt was a little damp for some reason and I saw some sweat had built up, probably because of all the walking we did. Her white bra was clearly visible through the white shirt. ¡°Do you want to take a quick bath?¡± I asked. Vanessa''s face flushed red and she glanced down at herself. ¡°I''d like to; but, we need to get to class.¡± I nodded and tied the improvised sheath around her waist and then over her left shoulder for a right-hand draw. ¡°Let me know if it''s too tight.¡± I said and she didn''t say anything. ¡°Try turning side to side.¡± Vanessa did so and the sheath stayed in place without restricting her movement. ¡°That''s great.¡± I opened my own jacket and moved it to give her access to her knife. She smiled at me as she reached over and took it by the handle. She pulled it out and looked at the slightly altered knife, then she slid it into the sheath without cutting herself or the sheath. She put on her academy coat and I handed her the bag of her potions and she put it over the same shoulder. ¡°Thank you, David.¡± Vanessa whispered and her hand took mine. ¡°I mean it. Thank you.¡±The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°Do you want to see my knife?¡± I asked and she nodded. I took it out and she stared at it. I used my magic and charged it up and her face lit up with something like joy. ¡°That''s a full mage''s blade.¡± Vanessa breathed. ¡°You can extend it past the edge, can''t you?¡± ¡°To almost twice the length.¡± I said and she gasped. ¡°It can also cut through pretty much anything when charged up fully.¡± I stopped giving it magic and the glow faded. ¡°I was told that stone and rock dulls it, so I haven''t tried cutting those.¡± Vanessa stared for another few seconds and then looked at her knife. ¡°Will mine do that?¡± ¡°It depends on your intent, the magic you give it, and what you''re cutting.¡± I said and she reached for it. ¡°Don''t do it now. If you exhaust yourself, you won''t get through the rest of your classes today.¡± ¡°Yes, you''re right.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°We better go.¡± We left my dorm mansion and walked back to the school''s main building. She left to go to whatever classes she had and I went back to the same classroom where I had basic potions. It was about ten minutes before class was supposed to start, so I was early. Mage Marks was already there and she had my potion vial open and had poured a drop out onto a yellow piece of paper that wasn''t sucking it up. ¡°You won''t find out what the catalyst is that way.¡± I said. ¡°EEP!¡± Mage Marks yelped and hopped in her chair, almost knocking it over. ¡°Mister Drake!¡± ¡°No one knows what it is and it fully diffuses into the potion.¡± I said and went to the workbench I had shared with Vanessa that morning. ¡°Not even distilling it will get you what you want.¡± Mage Marks sighed. ¡°That''s what I was trying to do.¡± She said and rolled the yellow sheet slightly and poured the drop of potion back into the vial. ¡°This enchanted sheet absorbs anything abnormal in a potion.¡± ¡°Like blood?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°Even used as a catalyst for the potion, since it''s not part of the original recipe ingredients, it should show up on this paper.¡± ¡°Do you harvest mage''s blood for spells or something?¡± I asked. ¡°What makes you say that?¡± Mage Marks asked, curious. ¡°Why else would you need something exclusively used to extract blood from potions?¡± Mage Marks opened her mouth to respond, then she closed her mouth. ¡°You don''t know the real reason?¡± I asked and she didn''t respond. She''s probably afraid of answering with something stupid. I thought and took out my Advanced Potions book from my small bag, along with another writing pad and pencils. Mage Marks put the potion back onto the display rack and sat down behind her desk again. A few minutes later, Lorna came in with two young men with a 2 on their academy coats, one of which was her promised betrothed. A young woman with long black hair came into the classroom with a 3 on her academy coat and she made it halfway across the room before she stopped and glared at me. ¡°That''s my workbench!¡± She spat. ¡°Jinelle!¡± Mage Marks gasped, then her face flushed red because she used her first name automatically. ¡°This is my third year coming here, Mage Marks.¡± Jinelle said as she turned to the teacher. ¡°Please tell me that you won''t be as big of a disappointment as my last teacher was.¡± Mage Marks let out a sigh. ¡°Miss Marks, please refrain from flinging accusations before properly assessing the situation.¡± Jinelle huffed at her and looked at me. ¡°I always use that workbench. Now move.¡± ¡°Academy rules state first come first seat.¡± I said. ¡°I could care less about what the school rules say about where I can sit.¡± Jinelle said and started to gather her magic up as she mumbled. ¡°NOOO!¡± Mage Marks yelled as I slipped around the workbench, did a twisting turn as I travelled, and drew my knife in one smooth motion. I charged it and a split second later, I had swiped it across the front of the young woman''s academy coat. The lapels flopped forward and the bottom half of the bow she wore fell to the floor as the last syllable of Mage Mark''s yell ended. Jinelle was grabbed by her arms and yanked away from me and then whirled around for Mage Marks to examine her thoroughly. ¡°Thank god that the knife missed your throat.¡± Mage Marks said in relief. ¡°I wasn''t aiming for her throat.¡± I said and bent down to pick up the long lock of hair that had been behind the lapel. ¡°I hit exactly what I was aiming for.¡± Lorna gasped and covered her mouth and the two young men looked shocked. ¡°What... what is it?¡± Jinelle asked and tried to turn around to face me. Her face was drained of color. ¡°Don''t... don''t look.¡± Mage Marks said and held onto her. ¡°I''ll whip up something that will calm you down.¡± ¡°I''m... fine.¡± Jinelle said. ¡°No, you are not.¡± Mage Marks said as her own composure failed. ¡°You almost died!¡± ¡°No, I... I was just...¡± ¡°You were going to cast a spell at a man that was in the army, you stupid girl!¡± Mage Marks said loudly and Jinelle winced at the anger in her voice. ¡°You ignored what I warned you about already.¡± ¡°I''m sorry.¡± Jinelle said and seemed to be coming out of her shock. ¡°Not as sorry as you''re going to be when I tell your mother and grandmother.¡± Mage Marks said. Jinelle jerked in a similar hop to what Mage Marks did when I had startled her earlier. ¡°No! Please don''t, auntie!¡± Mage Marks shook her head. ¡°No, you just put the entire Marks family in jeopardy and didn''t even think twice about it.¡± She said. ¡°It makes me wonder what else we''ve talked about and that you''ve been disregarding.¡± Jinelle caught her breath at that, then realized her mistake of giving herself away. Mage Marks sighed. ¡°Take the workbench right there.¡± She pointed to the one in front on the left side. ¡°I''m going to have to start keeping a closer eye on you from now on.¡± ¡°But...¡± ¡°Go. Now.¡± Mage Marks said, sternly. Jinelle ducked her head and went to the first workbench and unpacked her things. ¡°Mister Drake, for assaulting a student and the only daughter of my brother and his wife, you will be required to stay after classes for the rest of the week.¡± ¡°Here with you?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°Can I brew potions?¡± I asked and my eyes darted to the bins of ingredient behind her. ¡°No, it''s punishment. You have to sit here and not do anything.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°You need to remain still and be quiet.¡± I opened my mouth to say how unfair that was and she held a hand up to stop me. ¡°One word of complaint and I''ll suspend you for the rest of the week instead.¡± Mage Marks said. I closed my mouth and she nodded. ¡°Now that the class has begun in the worst possible way, I''ll need to test you each individually to gauge your knowledge and progress.¡± Mage Marks said and walked right over to Lorna, who still looked shocked at what happened. ¡°Put it out of your mind for now.¡± She said and then began testing Lorna''s knowledge with questions that were vague in some respects and specific in others. 148 Academy Antics Part Sixteen - Advanced Potions Part Two Mage Marks wrote down several things as she talked to Lorna, then she started to brew a potion. She tested the two young men next and she looked pleased with their answers. They both had 2s on their coats as well, so I assumed they were the middle age of the school, or eighteen. Seventeen was first year, eighteen for the second, and nineteen for the third. I was twenty, so I really was the old man in the school. I glanced over at Jinelle and she had taken off her academy coat and pulled off the rest of the bow that was supposed to be around her neck. She combed her fingers through her hair and it worked until she reached the shoulder on her left side. Her fingers met nothing but air and she gasped. ¡°My HAIR!¡± Jinelle screeched. ¡°I''ll be right there!¡± Mage Marks finished the potion and took it over to Jinelle. ¡°How are you feeling?¡± ¡°He cut my hair, auntie! MY HAIR!¡± ¡°SHH! Drink this.¡± Jinelle glared at her aunt and then drank the potion. Her face lost the anger and she took several deep breaths. ¡°Now how do you feel?¡± Mage Marks asked. ¡°I''m fine. It''s just hair. It''ll grow back if I had the right potion.¡± Jinelle said. ¡°Are you going to test me, too?¡± Mage Marks nodded and quickly assessed her niece''s skills. She wrote a few key things down and then walked over to me. ¡°What do you get when you mix Aspharilla root with a distillation of Harper''s Potion?¡± I gave her a blank look. ¡°What''s Aspharilla root and Harper''s Potion?¡± Mage Marks opened her mouth and Lorna laughed. The teacher glared at her. ¡°What? That''s funny.¡± Lorna said and the two men near her had huge smiles. ¡°Who doesn''t know what Harper''s Potion is?¡± ¡°Someone who hasn''t grown up with it, obviously.¡± Mage Marks said with a shake of her head and looked back at me. ¡°Harper''s Potion was invented about thirty years ago. It''s mainly for children and is used for any sickness, colds, fevers, and the like.¡± ¡°That sounds like my general health potion, except mine works on everyone, not just children.¡± I said. ¡°What''s Aspharilla root do?¡± Mage Marks sighed. ¡°It alters the distilled Harper''s Potion to be useful for adults by boosting the strength of the potion.¡± ¡°Are the roots common?¡± I asked and glanced over at the bins. ¡°They are, as are the ingredients to Harper''s Potion.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°Is there a book or a syllabus of the ingredients that exist and their properties?¡± I asked. ¡°I can''t really answer any of your questions if I don''t know what you''re talking about.¡± Lorna started to laugh and her promised betrothed named Nick covered her mouth. Mage Marks looked a little angry. ¡°You signed up for the course and you don''t know anything about advanced potions? How am I supposed to help you refine your work if you don''t even know the ingredients?¡± ¡°I grew up with ingredients that do the same things, only they were different from what you use for the same thing.¡± I explained. ¡°You are referring to things you know about and not what I know.¡± ¡°That''s... not going to work out well.¡± Mage Marks said, a bit sadly. ¡°There are thousands of ingredients and some have five or ten different variants for potency.¡± I frowned. ¡°Why would you ever use the variants? You only need one. The one with the most potency.¡± ¡°That''s usually the most expensive to grow and...¡± ¡°It wouldn''t be if that was all you grew, instead of all the variants.¡± I said. ¡°Mass production would drop the price, increase the yield, and allow better potions to be made. If it''s too strong for certain potions, you brew it separately in a small pot and then dilute it with water to the consistency desired.¡± Mage Marks looked like she wasn''t sure how to respond to that. ¡°Is there a list of ingredients and their properties?¡± I asked again. ¡°There''s one in the school library.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°It''s several years old, however.¡± ¡°What''s a library?¡± I asked. Lorna couldn''t stop her laugh this time and neither could the two young men with her. Mage Marks sighed. ¡°Mr. Drake, it''s...¡± ¡°I''m joking. I know what a library is.¡± I said and the others stopped laughing. ¡°I assume it''s upstairs in the student administration building and above the cafeteria?¡±The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Mage Marks nodded. ¡°Just ask the librarian for what you want.¡± ¡°Can I do it after class and report back here?¡± I asked and she looked about to refuse. ¡°I invited my future sister and her friends over to my dorm after class and they are expecting me. I need to tell them I have to stay here instead.¡± Mage Marks sighed. ¡°All right, you can...¡± ¡°No, you said he was to be punished.¡± Jinelle said and smiled at me. ¡°How does letting him leave whenever he wants be punishment?¡± ¡°Jinelle, you need to listen to...¡± ¡°You know what my grandmother is going to do to me when you tell on me.¡± Jinelle said, her voice calm and collected. ¡°He deserves worse than detention.¡± Mage Marks sighed and looked at me. ¡°She''s right. My mother is not a nice woman when she thinks her family is in danger.¡± ¡°What will she do to her?¡± I asked, curious. Mage Marks closed her mouth and wouldn''t say anything. ¡°You are as bad as the people in Ester''s Village.¡± I said and her face went red. ¡°You''ll stand by and watch a child be abused, because you don''t want to get involved or be punished yourself.¡± ¡°That''s... not...¡± ¡°I hoped you were going to be a good teacher and someone that I wanted to learn from.¡± I said and rolled up the bundle of hair I had taken from Jinelle. ¡°I see now that I should get what I need from books instead.¡± ¡°Mr. Drake, you can only learn so much from books.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°I''d rather not learn about any more mistreatment of children by their parents and family members, thank you.¡± I said and tucked the hair into my bandoleer. Mage Marks sighed again. ¡°I''m not sure how I can proceed with planning your classes if we have such a fundamental difference of knowledge.¡± ¡°Then plan the classes for the others and ignore me for now.¡± I said and stood up. ¡°I need the bathroom.¡± I said before she could ask me where I was going. ¡°You can hold it until the class break.¡± Jinelle said with a smug smile. Mage Marks looked like she was going to say the same thing, so I opened my pants just enough to bring the tip out and started to pee on the floor. ¡°AHH!¡± She yelled and jumped back and out of the splash zone. ¡°STOP THAT!¡± She yelled and pointed at the door. ¡°Go! GO TO THE BATHROOM!¡± ¡°Ugh!¡± Lorna groaned and covered her nose and mouth. ¡°It stinks!¡± I stopped peeing and fixed my pants, then I walked towards Jinelle''s table to leave the classroom. She gave me a harsh look and I gave her the look Colonel Rivers gave me as she discharged me dishonorably and robbed me. Jinelle''s face drained of color and she stared at me, which meant she knew that look. ¡°This is what your grandmother looks like when she''s punishing you, isn''t it?¡± I whispered to her as I passed her. She nodded slightly and I left the room to go to the bathroom. I didn''t go to the one in that hallway or even one located in the same building. I left and went to the student administration building and went to the second floor, used the bathroom there and washed up, then went up the stairs to the library. The place was completely devoid of other people, except for the librarian. She was a very tall woman, even taller than Lady Bassinger, which was saying something. She was sitting down and was taller than I was. Her hair had a green tint to it for some reason and she had it done up in a simple bun on the back of her head. She wore a uniform that was similar to the teachers, which meant she was a mage; except, the academy emblem was slightly different. ¡°I was told that if I needed anything, I should ask you.¡± I said and stood in front of the counter. The woman lifted her head from the book she was reading and her bright green eyes glimmered in the light. ¡°Hmm. I haven''t seen you before.¡± She put her book down, then she slowly stood up... and up... and up. Her full height was nearly nine feet and her legs and arms seemed impossibly long. She braced her hands on the counter and bent over to lean in close, which also gave me a very good look down her shirt. Her breasts were quite small in comparison to the rest of her; and yet, they were quite appealing in their own right. ¡°What does a handsome man like you want with a vulnerable and lonely older woman like myself?¡± She asked in a very low and sexy voice. ¡°I''m betrothed to Helena Henrietta.¡± I said as I looked into her eyes again. ¡°Thank you for showing me your breasts. They are quite appealing.¡± The librarian let a smile grow on her face and then she leaned down farther and braced her elbows on the counter. She propped her head onto her hands and stared into my eyes for nearly thirty seconds. ¡°You truly believe that.¡± She said, surprise clear in her voice and it didn''t show on her face. ¡°I''m trying to dig through your thoughts and all I''m getting is what you''re letting me have.¡± ¡°I''ve grown up learning to hide my thoughts from the most evil and sadistic woman anyone has ever met, because a wrong thought could get me maimed or killed.¡± I said. ¡°Even the Grand Mage can''t read my thoughts now.¡± The librarian''s smile grew wider. ¡°I do love a challenge.¡± She said and sat down on her chair, only her upper body didn''t really change position, it was just a slight angle difference. ¡°What can I help you with today?¡± ¡°I need the list of ingredients commonly used, uncommonly used, a rare list if it''s available, and possibly any obscure plants and ingredients if you have them.¡± Her head tilted to the side slightly. ¡°Is that all?¡± ¡°No, I would like to have their properties as well. If possible, I don''t want all of the variants and only the most potent ones.¡± Her smile faded. ¡°You''ll miss out on a lot of recipes if you only want to buy the potent variants.¡± ¡°Not if they are prepared properly.¡± I said. ¡°I don''t want to waste time with five or ten slightly different plants when one can do the job of all of them.¡± ¡°You really believe that as well.¡± She said, her voice once again filled with surprise and nothing showed on her face. I had only known one other person that could do that and she had enchantments to change her appearance. ¡°Is this your real form?¡± I asked and the woman''s face stayed the same as she took in a hissing breath. ¡°You... you know.¡± She said and sat back in her chair to look at me with a blank face. ¡°I''ve had some experience with someone hiding who they really are.¡± She sighed. ¡°I suppose I should drop the glamour for a while and save some energy for later.¡± I stood there and waited as I felt her magic flow over herself and then it retreated inside of her. ¡°So, what do you think?¡± She asked and smiled with a very large mouth as she bared her teeth at me. Her skin was completely white and glistened in the lights and her hair was completely white as well. Her eyes were the same bright green and it seemed that her glamour was only for the face change and the skin color. ¡°Why do you cover yourself up so much?¡± I asked, genuinely curious. I had no idea what getting the answer was going to mean to me until she spoke. The woman laughed. ¡°You really don''t know?¡± She asked and I shook my head. ¡°I''m a freed slave from the Kingdom of Fata.¡± It was then that I realized how important her answer was, because that was the moment my whole world changed. I wasn''t the only previous slave at the academy. 149 Academy Antics Part Seventeen - The Library ¡°Is there anyone else like you here?¡± I asked. ¡°Slaves, I mean.¡± Her face changed to slight anger. ¡°Why do you want to know? Am I not big enough of a curiosity for you?¡± ¡°I want to know if there''s anyone else like us.¡± ¡°Like...¡± She squinted her eyes and leaned forward. ¡°You are not from Fata.¡± ¡°No, I was bought in Ester''s Village. Are all slaves from Fata pure white like you?¡± ¡°Pure.¡± She said, as if the word didn''t sit right with her. ¡°Yes, we are all permanently spelled and potioned to look this way.¡± ¡°Why?¡± I asked, curious. She huffed. ¡°Isn''t it obvious? Our white skin and hair can be easily seen no matter where we are in a crowd. We can be easily found if we try to sneak or run away.¡± ¡°Wouldn''t your height and long arms and legs do that?¡± The woman looked at her arms and sighed. ¡°I was under the care of a mage that...¡± She shook her head. ¡°You do not need to know what happened to me to make me end up this way.¡± ¡°I was bought by the Hag as a baby and grew up as her food.¡± I said and her mouth made that little ''o'' of surprise. ¡°She would fillet my chest and backside at least once a week, as well as drink my blood every few days. At least she did, until I turned ten and her experiments to change me were completed. Then I was a delicacy for her and she savoured the taste of my flesh.¡± The woman stared at me and she looked like she wasn''t going to say anything, then she spoke in a whisper. ¡°What was her favorite seasoning?¡± ¡°Terror.¡± I said and she fell quiet again. ¡°Are there any more slaves at the academy?¡± ¡°No, there''s only me.¡± She said, a bit sadly. ¡°None of the others survived when they tried to...¡± She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. ¡°They couldn''t adapt to this new way of living and succumbed to their old lives and what they had lost before becoming slaves.¡± I had to think about that. As I did, the woman''s eyes widened and I intentionally let the thoughts of my old family out for her to see and what happened the first time I had confronted them. ¡°You poor boy.¡± She said and held a hand out to me. I took it and she led me around the desk without getting up. In the next moment, I was on her lap and cuddled in her very long arms. She held onto me for several minutes as she spoke about the things her master had done to her and placed several kisses on my forehead and cheek as she did so. The mage had broken both her arms and legs and stretched them out, then healed her with both spells and potions. That had added a few inches to her height and reach. The problem was that it had succeeded. So, the mage did it again and again, once a week, until her height reached nine feet. He had to stop there, or she wouldn''t have been able to walk around the mage''s home to perform her duties. ¡°At least you confronted your family.¡± She whispered. ¡°I can''t even tell mine that I''m still alive.¡± ¡°Why?¡± I asked, and she explained that she had been conditioned to never reveal who she actually was or where she had come from. All she was allowed to say was that she was a freed slave and had to use her slave name for the rest of her life, or she would suffer immeasurable pain. Her slave name was Eludora. ¡°I was freed as a teenager during one of the battles near the shared border between the Kingdom of Fata and the Eastern Empire.¡± Eludora said. ¡°My old master was... he was a well known evil man at the time and a bunch of us were rescued when he released us and told us to run... towards the Gulf Kingdom''s soldiers.¡± ¡°You were sacrifices to let him get away.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Did they kill him anyway?¡±Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. ¡°Oh, yes. His particular brand of magic was reviled and he was hated by everyone, even by his own countrymen. He met his end when two fireballs and a ball of lightning incinerated him.¡± I knew what that meant, so I put my hand on her cheek and kissed the other. ¡°I''m sorry that he didn''t get to suffer.¡± Eludora held me tighter. ¡°How can you understand how I felt back then?¡± She asked me and turned her face to give me a tender kiss on the lips. ¡°Do we have that much in common that you can guess my state of mind twenty years ago?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I said. ¡°Can we get to work? I need to get back to class before it ends.¡± She raised her white eyebrows at me. ¡°You''re supposed to be in class?¡± ¡°I have Advanced Potions theory for the first afternoon class and then practical potion brewing for the rest of the afternoon. I also have detention and need to stay afterwards.¡± ¡°What happened?¡± Eludora asked. ¡°I can tell you about it while we work.¡± I said and she nodded. Eludora let me go and we both stood up, then she led me across the library to the right section and we started gathering what I needed. It took us nearly the whole class to compile the lists of ingredients and their properties that I wanted and we told each other all about what we went through to arrive at the academy. Neither of us were surprised at the very different paths we had taken. ¡°You were lucky to find someone to do all of that for you.¡± I said as I packed up the dozen pages we had written out. ¡°So were you.¡± Eludora smiled as she turned to give me a hug. ¡°I also feel lucky that we met.¡± I was close to six feet tall and she was nine feet tall, so my head was three feet lower than hers. I felt like a child being hugged by an adult as my cheek rested against her stomach. When I put my arms around to hug her back, the only thing I could hold onto was her backside, so I gripped it and hugged her tightly. Eludora laughed and held me for several moments, then she let me go. ¡°I think next time we hug, I might have to kneel.¡± She bent way over to look into my eyes up close. ¡°I''m very glad that you weren''t thinking dirty thoughts.¡± ¡°Like what?¡± I asked. Eludora smiled and bent over a bit more to show me her breasts. ¡°The kind of things a man and a woman do when they are all alone.¡± ¡°You mean sex? Are those thoughts dirty?¡± I asked, a little confused. ¡°I thought it was just something that two people share when they are together.¡± ¡°Yes, but...¡± Eludora put her hands on my shoulders. ¡°They are considered dirty thoughts when you think those thoughts about other women when you are already with another woman.¡± ¡°Oh. I get it.¡± I said. ¡°I wasn''t thinking those thoughts about you. We only just met and I''m betrothed.¡± Eludora leaned forward a bit to give me another quick kiss on the lips. ¡°How can you have gone through so much and still be so innocently naive?¡± ¡°I''ve only been with three women.¡± I said. ¡°Yes, that explains it.¡± She laughed. ¡°Now I feel very lucky.¡± She said and let my shoulders go. She formed her magic around herself and her hair color changed to brown with a greenish tint and her skin went back to being a normal skin tone. ¡°Please try to be more careful with how you act in class. People like us... we never come out of any conflict well, even when we win.¡± I nodded in understanding. ¡°Could you do me a favor?¡± ¡°Of course, as long as I don''t have to travel far.¡± Eludora said and I asked her to meet Selena at the main school building''s front doors and to tell her to go to my dorm without me. ¡°I''ll head over there just before last bell.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and left the library while she returned to sit behind her desk and kept reading her book. I left the building and went back to the main classroom building. I used my sneaking technique and entered the classroom silently, barely made any sound as I shut the door, then I crept across the floor as if I was in the deepest part of the marsh and was hiding from the creatures there. I made it back to my table and no one noticed me as I sat on the stool behind the desk. I glanced at the chalkboard that the teacher was writing on, and I had been right. Nearly half of the phrases written there, in both common and mage language, were phrases and ingredients that I had never heard of before. I thought about not doing anything, then decided that I had better write down what she was giving me, because once I started studying the things I had access to, I would need to learn what all of this stuff was, too. I didn''t want to be too far behind in my learning, considering I would be marked for this class and wouldn''t automatically get a pass like the core classes. After a short time, the bell rang and signified the end of the theory part of the class. ¡°I''m not surprised that he didn''t come back.¡± Jinelle said as she sat back in her chair to wait for the five minutes before the practical lesson would begin. ¡°Jerks like him think they are so special...¡± ¡°Are you talking about me?¡± I asked and they all turned to look at me. Lorna, Jinelle, and Mage Marks gasped while Nick and the other guy just looked surprised. ¡°David!¡± Lorna exclaimed, then she took a breath and let it out. ¡°How long have you been there?¡± ¡°A lot longer than you all thought I was.¡± I responded and held up my papers with the things I had written from the board. Mage Marks had a slightly red face as she saw how much I had written down, probably because she didn''t know how fast I could write. ¡°I didn''t realize you had come back.¡± ¡°I wasn''t going to stay away any longer than necessary.¡± I said. ¡°I always fulfill my obligations.¡± ¡°Yes, I heard that about you.¡± Mage Marks said and glanced at her niece. ¡°Sometimes quite brutally.¡± No one spoke after that and we sat there in silence as we waited for the bell to ring again. 150 Academy Antics Part Eighteen - The Potion Producer Again The bell rang and the practical Advanced Potions class began. ¡°I hope you all paid attention on what you wrote down, because you need to keep these rules and procedures in your mind as we brew your very first advanced potion.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°Open your books to page twenty six and have a look.¡± ¡°The cleaning potion?¡± Jinelle asked and sounded a bit incredulous. ¡°Even mom can make that!¡± Mage Marks sighed. ¡°Jinelle, please stop questioning everything I do in class. This is the first day. I need time to adjust the curriculum for each of your individual progress, now that I know what you can and can''t handle.¡± ¡°I thought I asked you to not disappoint me.¡± Jinelle said with a huff. ¡°This is a waste of time.¡± ¡°I''m so sorry that you think that my observation of your practical skills is a waste of time.¡± Mage Marks said sternly. ¡°If you want to, you can sit there and do nothing for the next three hours and I''ll make sure your future classes are at the appropriate laziness level for you.¡± Jinelle frowned and looked like she was thinking about doing just that, then she huffed again and opened her book. ¡°That''s the first smart decision you''ve made today.¡± Mage Marks commented and looked right at me. ¡°Mr. Drake, I believe you might want to sit this one out until...¡± ¡°So, not only don''t you want to teach me, you don''t want to gauge my skills?¡± I asked. ¡°What kind of teacher are you?¡± Mage Marks looked angry. ¡°The ingredients are dangerous to handle and...¡± ¡°Have you forgotten where I grew up?¡± I asked and interrupted her. ¡°I boil and grill three foot tall death spider legs as snacks and make the best water beast and diamond snake stew.¡± ¡°GUGH!¡± The young man I didn''t know covered his mouth and his face went green. Surprisingly, Lorna, Jinelle, and Nick didn''t react. ¡°He left lunch early the last two days and didn''t see what you did.¡± Lorna said as an explanation. I nodded and looked back at Mage Marks as I waited for her response. She looked very reluctant to allow me to proceed, then she sighed. I took that as permission to proceed and checked the recipe. It did look quite complicated and as I read it through completely, a few of the ingredients looked familiar. I stopped reading and closed my eyes to go over in my head why I recognized some, then smiled. There was a potion in the potions book I had brought with me that I had always intended to try, because it would have been useful to clean some of the things I had back at the marsh. It wasn''t the same recipe. In fact, it only bore a slight resemblance; but, I had studied everything in that book as I replaced the ingredients I knew about with the ones I had access to. The cleaning potion was the next one I would have done, just so I could get clean water from the marsh instead of having to skim off the scum every time I wanted to make a potion. At least, that was how I did it until I replaced the water I used with rain I caught in barrels from my roof. I didn''t even have to lug around the large square barrels I had made, because they filled themselves constantly. I opened my eyes and realized the problem I had now. Some of the ingredients I didn''t recognize and I also didn''t know the properties of them. If my prep work was off because I wasn''t handling the ingredient the way it should be handled, it could ruin the potion before I even started it. I took out my writing pad and started copying out the recipe, word for word, and marked the things I didn''t know and then wrote on a separate page the ingredients I needed to check the preparation for. The recipe didn''t say how to do the initial prep work and only said to add the ingredient at specific times. That was the downside of advanced potions. If you didn''t have the knowledge to do your work, you were going to fail... probably spectacularly. I''m glad I went to the library. I thought and slipped out the pages that the librarian and I had gathered and written out. I tucked them half under my written recipe and the ingredients to check list, then quickly referenced both to look through the list. The other students already had their potion pots on the fire and the initial water added, then they started to gather their own ingredients and started their prep work. Jinelle kept glancing over at me with a smirk occasionally, probably because she thought I was struggling. I technically was; but, only because I wasn''t stupid enough to just jump right into creating a new potion without any research beforehand. I was going to make sure that I knew what I was doing before putting the pot on to boil. It took me half an hour to find all of the ingredients, two of which were lower variants of the ones on my library list, so I substituted them and adjusted the recipe slightly. Thankfully, they only needed to be diluted to three quarter strength and could be added normally. Other than that, I had to ask Mage Marks to clarify two of the sentences in the recipe. It seemed to use terminology that I didn''t know, even though I could read a lot of the mage language. Mage Marks confirmed that it was a specific reference to something that a non-mage, or a person from a non-mage family, wouldn''t know. She explained what it was until I understood what it meant. She had been quite patient with me and I appreciated that. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and she looked slightly surprised. ¡°You are half an hour behind the others.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°It doesn''t matter. I''ll be done long before them.¡± I said and her slight surprise changed to full surprise. There were two soft feminine laughs and Mage Marks gave me a shrug and walked back to her desk. I picked up my potion pot and went to the sink and only quarter filled it, then went back to my workbench and lit the fire. No one was looking, so no one reacted to me doing it wordlessly. I picked up the pot from the next workbench and did the same thing. This time, Mage Marks stared at me intently and I assumed it was because she was wondering what I was doing. She would see soon enough.A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. I had been prepping multiple potions for nearly the entire time I had access to multiple potion setups, and that''s what I did here, only with part of the ingredients in each pot. They didn''t need to be combined until the potion was nearly done, since the brewing wasn''t necessarily dependent on having all of the other ingredients added first. Plus, I could cut down on the various simmering times by having only half the water in each pot and then combining the short simmering ingredients together and the longer simmering ones in the other. It was an old trick I had used a bunch of times when I had to rush making number ten potion. I could make a batch of it in under ten minutes with this trick and it sure came in handy in the army. I did the ingredients I had to dilute first, since they needed the most water added, then kept working. I switched between workbenches as I prepped each ingredient and added them to the appropriate pot. I had gained the attention of the others as I worked and they kept looking over at me. ¡°Eyes on your own work.¡± Mage Marks said with a stern voice. I ignored them all and continued to brew dual potions. When the time came to add them together, I did it properly and carefully. Any mistake, like the heat reducing by adding too much potion at once without increasing the heat, would ruin everything I had done up to that point. I slowly ladled the short simmering potion into the long simmering one, which worked out perfectly, because it took a while to get all of the contents of one pot into the other. When I had them successfully combined and they had simmered to perfection, I added my catalyst. I used the full vial this time, because the potion was so complicated and I wasn''t going to skimp on it. I stirred it for ten minutes and then infused it with my magic. The pot glowed a bit more brightly, because I added a lot more magic to the infusion this time. I needed it to work and I wasn''t going to only add the minimum amount of magic that it required, just like I hadn''t added the minimum catalyst. Mage Marks stood up and came right over to me with a vial and held it out to me. I couldn''t object, because the ingredients were on the expensive side. There were only a couple of the common ingredients in the recipe and the rest were uncommon. I filled the vial for her with the dark blue potion and she went back to her desk. The magic wood panels expanded and blocked her off from being seen as soon as she sat down. I used my Sense Magic ability and felt a lot of spells being cast. ¡°How did you do that?¡± Lorna asked in a whisper and I looked over at her. ¡°Practical knowledge of techniques.¡± I said back without whispering. Lorna gave me an odd look, then she went back to work. There was just under an hour left for the class and if she was lucky, she could get her own potion to the right stage for infusion. It took ten minutes before Mage Marks reappeared and the wood panels folded away. She stared down at the vial of liquid and her face looked like it was full of something. I couldn''t tell if it was disbelief, surprise, resignation, or some combination of them mixed together. After another five minutes of her staring at both the vial and the paper beside it that she had filled out, Mage Marks stood and added a much smaller rack next to the large rack of Basic Potions. She put my vial into it and we all saw that it had my name and a very distinct Grade A++ written on it in red ink. ¡°NO WAY!¡± Lorna and Jinelle gasped at the same time. ¡°How? How is that possible?¡± Nick asked. ¡°He doesn''t even know the proper rules and procedures!¡± Mage Marks turned back to look at me. ¡°Mr. Drake, I''d like to buy several vials of your potion.¡± ¡°WHAT?!?¡± Jinelle, Lorna, Nick, and the last guy exclaimed. ¡°I can only offer the normal going rate for an advanced cleaning potion, since this can''t really be graded officially by the guild until next week.¡± Mage Marks said and ignored their outburst. ¡°Is that why you want to buy them?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°Is it your own personal money or the academy?¡± Mage Marks smiled, as if she knew what I wanted to hear. ¡°The academy.¡± I went to the side of the room and grabbed a crate of empty vials, checked to see that they were clean, then I quickly filled them all up. ¡°How many do you need?¡± ¡°Six.¡± Mage Marks said as she walked over to me and moved her robes aside to show me she had a section on her belt with padded potion bottle pouches. I gave her six of them and she wrote out a note on an official piece of paper with the six potions, their current grade and quality, their tentative price each, and authorization to hand over the money to me. ¡°Present that at the faculty administration building, ground floor, first door on the right. The woman there will settle the bill.¡± Mage Marks said. I read the bill and she had authorized the payment of ten gold crowns per potion. ¡°This is going to go up, isn''t it?¡± Mage Marks hesitated briefly and then nodded. ¡°Maybe 50% more, perhaps 75%. It all depends on what they decide it''s actually worth.¡± ¡°Aren''t you going to test it yourself first?¡± I asked. ¡°No, I know it''ll work. This thing...¡± Mage Marks pet the six vials in her belt. ¡°I doubt there''s anything that it won''t clean.¡± I had to think about that for a moment. ¡°I''m going to keep 20 for myself. Do you want to buy the rest?¡± Mage Marks didn''t hesitate this time and wrote out another slip for the other ten potions and she had to go and get a half crate to carry them. ¡°Thank you, Mr. Drake.¡± I nodded and she went back to her desk to wait for the other students to finish. The others finished their potions just in time to start their infusions when the bell rang. ¡°You can stay for several minutes and finish up.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°You came in just on the bell, so I won''t dock points for going over the allotted time.¡± ¡°Thank you, Mage Marks!¡± Lorna said happily and she added several drops of her blood and then used her magic to infuse the potion. The others did the same and the small rack with just my potion in it, now had four more potions beside it. All of them were a much lighter blue than mine. Mage Marks looked at Jinelle while we all packed up our class things. ¡°I''ve changed my mind about telling your mother about what happened today.¡± Jinelle caught her breath. ¡°Th-thank you, Auntie Greta.¡± ¡°You can tell them your uniform was damaged when you laid it down near your workbench.¡± Mage Marks said and Jinelle''s face filled with relief. ¡°They will still be a little angry over that.¡± ¡°It''s okay.¡± Jinelle said and smiled briefly. ¡°You know I''ve damaged things with magic before.¡± Mage Marks smiled back. ¡°Class dismissed.¡± Jinelle, Lorna, Nick, and the last guy left with their things and Mage Marks looked at me. ¡°I''m sorry that I can''t rescind my punishment.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°However, I will lift the restriction of not doing anything and I''ll allow you to study instead of just sitting there.¡± I raised my eyebrows at her. ¡°I hate it when I have to waste time doing nothing, too.¡± Mage Marks said and sat down at her desk. ¡°I have lesson plans to prepare until suppertime.¡± She pulled out several sets of papers and blank sheets, then she started to work. I stared at her for several minutes to see if she was going to change her mind again, then I took out the things I had gotten in the library and started studying. In the back of my mind, I was almost appreciative of getting to do it now and wouldn''t have to worry about going home and trying to do it later. I glanced up after ten minutes when I felt her looking and saw that she was looking at what I was doing. A small smile appeared on her face and she dropped her head down to continue working. I did the same and kept reading. I also compared the list I had with the ingredients Mage Marks had behind her in the bins, because the more I knew about what I had access to, the more I could do. 151 Academy Antics Part Nineteen - Dorm Dinner My time in detention passed by in moments and both Mage Marks and I packed our things up at the same time. Neither of us said a word and I picked up the crate of potions, then I walked over to the door of the classroom. She arrived there before me and opened the door for me, so I stepped through and she closed it. Mage Marks chanted a quick chant under her breath and the door was magically locked. ¡°I''ll meet you here again tomorrow after classes.¡± ¡°Yes, Mage Marks.¡± I said and we parted ways. I left the building and walked all the way over to my dorm mansion. The two guards on the front door greeted me and opened the front doors for me to pass through. I nodded my thanks and went inside and up the stairs. I dropped off the crate of cleaning potions with the crate of memory enhancement potions and would transfer then over to bring back the empty crate. I was glad that there was almost an unlimited supply of both crates and vials at the academy for me to use and I wouldn''t have to buy my own, especially since every potion I made I would want to keep. I went back downstairs and I followed the muffled sounds I could hear. They led me into the parlour and I opened the door. ¡°David, this place is wonderful!¡± Selena said as soon as she saw me and stood up from where she had been sitting on the thick carpet. Her six friends were in various states of relaxation. Two of them were sprawled out on the couches, two were half-reclining at the end of each couch while holding their friend''s feet up off the couch as if they had coordinated it, and two were sitting back in the armchairs and looked half asleep. ¡°I can''t believe my mom sent over so much great stuff.¡± Becca said from one of the armchairs as she opened her eyes fully. ¡°I assume she sent over instructions on where the best place was to put them?¡± I nodded. ¡°With six work crews, the house was populated with everything she sent over in less than an hour.¡± Becca laughed. ¡°I have to tell mom that! What a great idea!¡± ¡°Sir. Madams.¡± The kitchen helper said as she ducked into the room. ¡°Supper is ready.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said to her and she blushed a little, nodded her head, and left. ¡°I think someone has a crush on you.¡± One of the girls laying down on the couch said as she sat up and put her stylish shoes back on. ¡°Is it you?¡± I asked and she looked startled for a second, then she blushed, too. ¡°Geez, David. Don''t tease her like that.¡± Selena said and walked over to me. ¡°She meant the kitchen helper.¡± ¡°I gave her a high paying job and she''s doing well at it.¡± I said as Selena took my arm. ¡°She really is.¡± One of the others said as they all stood up to follow. ¡°She''s been a great help to Hope.¡± ¡°Thank you for still letting us come over, even if you couldn''t be here.¡± Selena said, almost in a purr, as we walked to the dining room. ¡°Hope showed us all over.¡± Hope opened the dining room doors as we approached and smiled at us. ¡°They were restricted from seeing both your work room and your potion room.¡± Selena rolled her eyes. ¡°I''ve seen them at the mansion and she still wouldn''t let me look.¡± I smiled slightly at Hope and she nodded slightly back and stepped aside. ¡°My lord.¡± Sara said as she stood up from the servant''s table. ¡°I heard about your unintentional delay and I''ll have your bath drawn right after you eat.¡± ¡°There''s no rush. I have some studying to do and the bath can wait until later.¡± I said as I sat Selena on the right of the table. I sat Becca on the left and alternated back and forth between the other girls until they were all seated. I sat at the head of the table between Selena and Becca and waved at the kitchen door with a bit of magic. The food was served and Selena and her friends looked a little surprised that the help were eating in the same room as us. I ignored their reactions and made small talk as we ate the meal. Selena told me about her day in classes and how the etiquette one at the end of the day was as difficult as her mother and sister had warned her about. ¡°That''s why it''s always the last class of the afternoon.¡± Becca said with a chuckle. ¡°It''s so we can go back to the dorm and cry if we have to.¡± ¡°I didn''t wait until then and let the tears flow as I was doing it.¡± Emily said with a laugh. ¡°Look at my poor fingers from handling the silver tea service so many times!¡± She held up her hands and showed us her red and slightly inflamed fingertips. ¡°Even though it''s been hours, they''re still sore and tender.¡± I stood up and went over to her chair, pulled it out and turned it to face me, then knelt as I took out the partially drunk healing potion I had. I put a single drop on each of her fingertips and gently rubbed it in. By the time I had done all of her fingers and both thumbs, her face was bright red.The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°Th-thank y-you.¡± Emily said haltingly, as if she had a hard time speaking. I thought about making a joke and asking her if she wanted some on her red face, then decided against it. It would only have been funny if the work crews were here, because they would have gotten the joke. I stayed silent as I nodded to her and turned her chair back to face the table and then slid it back against the table to let her keep eating. I went back to my own chair and kept eating as well. ¡°That was the first time I saw the librarian out of the library.¡± Selena said, completely changing the subject. ¡°I knew she was tall; but, that was ridiculous.¡± One of the other girls said. ¡°I''m not sure why she seemed so much taller outside when we''ve seen her walking around the library and putting books on the shelves.¡± ¡°You had more references of relative height with all the students milling around.¡± I said and they all looked at me with a question on their faces. ¡°The book shelves in the library go right up to the ceiling, so even though she looked tall, it wasn''t until you saw her surrounded by normal sized people that her height really stood out.¡± ¡°How do you know that?¡± She asked. ¡°You weren''t even there.¡± ¡°I didn''t have to be to know what happened.¡± ¡°No? Then what happened next?¡± She asked, as if challenging me. ¡°She delivered my message to you, then she was swarmed by students asking about me.¡± I guessed and her eyes widened. ¡°After that, all of you were approached as well, just because they knew where you were going.¡± ¡°Wow.¡± Becca said and looked at Selena. ¡°He really did guess right.¡± ¡°David is a lot smarter than what my father told me.¡± Selena said and then caught her breath as she turned to look at me. She didn''t see any reaction from me, because I had suspected that her father had me firmly in the ''fighter'' category in his head and not the ''thinker'' category. I hadn''t corrected his misconception, either. With the way he set things up at the academy, he might not ever learn that I was actually both. ¡°Awkwaaaaard.¡± One of the girls said and laughed, then a couple of the others laughed, too. ¡°David, I''m sorry.¡± Selena said. ¡°The next time I go home, I''ll make sure to tell father all about...¡± ¡°He''s not going to believe you.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°He has all the army reports. He has his own opinions already and I doubt even your mother could change his mind.¡± We all finished eating the main meal and the kitchen helper brought in a little cart and took all of the dishes back into the kitchen. She came back out with a tray of desserts and served everyone cake, fruit and whipped cream, then disappeared again. The girls made small appreciative sounds, almost moans, as they ate the delicious food. It was soon gone and the little cart was back and the kitchen helper put new wine glasses on the table for us all. I picked up the wine glass and stood. ¡°Thank you all for attending the first formal meal at my dorm mansion.¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± Selena looked at me with surprise. ¡°I thought you already ate a couple of meals here!¡± ¡°By myself and with Hope at the other table.¡± I said. ¡°This is the first closing toast I''ve given here.¡± For some reason, all of their faces went red as they blushed. I wasn''t stupid enough to ask what was wrong, though. I took a sip of wine and they all took a sip as well, which finished the toast, and I sat down. ¡°Shall we all go back to the parlour to continue relaxing?¡± I asked and took another sip of wine. ¡°No, I... I think we should go.¡± Selena said, her face still red. ¡°We''ve taken up too much of your time already by staying here all afternoon.¡± I raised my eyebrows at her, because I hadn''t been here for any of that. ¡°Are you sure? This is a particularly nice wine.¡± Selena stood and the others did as well. ¡°Thanks for... thank you for inviting us over.¡± She said with a bow, then she walked around me and took Becca''s hand. She led her and the rest of her friends out of the dining room and the door shut behind them. ¡°She practically ran out of here.¡± Hope said with a smile. ¡°Sara, can you tell us why?¡± ¡°It''s quite simple.¡± Sara said. ¡°When our lord treated them like formal guests, it put them all on a different personal footing.¡± ¡°What? I don''t understand.¡± Hope responded. ¡°They thought they were just friends over for a meal and to visit. They didn''t expect a tour, to be treated so well, and then have a formal dinner with all the protocols.¡± Sara said. ¡°A few of them definitely didn''t observe them properly.¡± Hope laughed. ¡°Okay, I can see how that would change their behavior.¡± She said and looked at me. ¡°That''s why they blushed at the end. They were embarrassed that you were treating them like ladies and they weren''t treating you like the lord of the house, even though you clearly are and had been since you arrived here.¡± Sara laughed as well. ¡°I can''t believe that they didn''t clue in when he sat them all formally. I mean, he did it and they went along with it instead of sitting down themselves.¡± ¡°That was the first cue?¡± Hope asked and Sara shook her head. ¡°The kitchen helper going to invite them when supper was ready was the first.¡± Sara said. ¡°After that, Selena taking his arm to be escorted, being sat first on the right that''s the seat of importance for a woman, with her best friend across the table from her... she missed all the signs.¡± ¡°As did the rest of them.¡± Hope said. ¡°I wonder if they''ll be telling anyone else about this meal.¡± ¡°I wouldn''t bet on it.¡± Sara said and looked at me. ¡°My lord, we will accompany you while you study.¡± I glanced at Hope and she nodded. ¡°All right.¡± I said and we took several minutes to finish off our wine. The kitchen helper came out and she started to clean up. Hope and Sara helped as well. When I tried, I was emphatically told to sit and wait while they did the work. They quickly cleared the tables and brought everything into the kitchen. I heard them cleaning the dishes and I also heard the cook and the kitchen helper eating their own meal. Hope and Sara came out of the kitchen a few minutes later and the three of us went upstairs to my room and the large desk I had there. It was spacious and let me spread my books and papers out. ¡°You managed to find an ingredient list?¡± Sara asked, surprised. ¡°Technically.¡± I said and she gave me a questioning look. ¡°I worked with the librarian for most of the first afternoon class and we compiled several lists and other things for them. Their descriptions, preparation and properties mainly.¡± ¡°They let you out of class for that?¡± Hope asked, so I explained what had happened. Both she and Sara were switching between anger and happiness at the whole thing, until I told them what happened in the practical lesson. Most of the anger went away and they were just happy about things kind of working out. ¡°We''ll do our best to help you.¡± Hope promised and Sara nodded. I started studying and they did just that. 152 Academy Antics Part Twenty - Enchanting Teachers I studied for several hours with Sara and Hope encouraging me and helping me reference through the huge list of ingredients as I looked at the next series of potions in the book. Just like the first one, there were a few things in each recipe that I just didn''t have the mental references for. I was sure that it must have been intentional, just so that non-mages couldn''t pick up the book and start making stronger and more powerful potions without having at least some prior knowledge. After that was a nice bath that both of my maids helped me with, then Sara performed the after bath ritual that she enjoyed and I was dressed and tucked into bed. The night passed by in a flash and I was up and getting dressed by Hope. She had changed the books in my bag for the two classes I had that morning. The funny thing was, I had the entire afternoon off. I wasn''t going to question it, either. I had detention after that and would have to go to the potions classroom and spend even more time with Mage Marks. If she knew that I had the afternoon off, she might have required me to go to her classroom and stay there until suppertime, so I wasn''t going to enlighten her. After the walk to the academy''s main building, I met up with the other students. Several of the girls gave me bright smiles for some reason. I didn''t ask what had changed from the day before. ¡°Good morning, David.¡± Vanessa whispered as she moved through the crowd to walk beside me. ¡°Good morning.¡± I said in a normal voice. She smiled at me and her arm twitched to wrap around mine, as if she wanted me to escort her, then she let her hand drop. I held out my elbow for her and she beamed a smile at me, then held on tightly as we entered the building. She didn''t say anything else as we went to the assigned classroom and there was a note there as well. I wrote down the classroom change and we left there and walked down a different hallway to the new classroom. ¡°Ah, I see that the rumors weren''t too exaggerated.¡± A man''s voice said as Vanessa and I entered the classroom with twenty girls piling in behind us. The teacher wore the standard mage robes with the academy logo on them, as expected. What wasn''t expected was that he had a woman wearing mage robes sitting at the teacher''s desk behind him. I ignored his comment and led Vanessa to the desk in the same position that she usually used in other classrooms, sat her down properly, and sat beside her. The other girls settled down in their chosen seats as well. ¡°I would normally wait until the bell rings before I started talking and introduced myself; but, with all of you being so efficient and settling down so quickly, why should I make you wait?¡± The teacher asked with a chuckle. No one laughed. ¡°Well, then.¡± He said and coughed. ¡°My name is Mage Black Montgomery and I am the basic enchantment teacher for this class.¡± He stepped slightly to the side and waved at the woman, who stood. ¡°I would also like to introduce you to my beautiful wife and the love of my life, Mage Heather Montgomery.¡± The woman gave him a bit of a glare and he smiled and waved at the class. The woman sighed and looked at us. ¡°As my shamelessly and inappropriately complimenting husband has conveniently forgotten to tell you what I will be teaching, I will do so now.¡± She said and that earned a few laughs from the girls. ¡°I am the basic runes teacher and this year, I will help all of you budding mages try and make sense of both the runic language and its practical use with enchanting.¡± One of the girls raised her hand and the teacher pointed to her. ¡°I thought we had enchanting first class and runes second class.¡± ¡°That wasn''t a proper question.¡± The woman said and the girl blushed a little. ¡°I understood the implied question, however. Both the runic language and enchanting go hand in hand. Without one, the other is handicapped. You can still do both; but, both will be less than effective without the knowledge of the other.¡± Lorna put her hand up. ¡°Is that why most enchanters have dual specialization?¡± The woman smiled. ¡°Excellent question. Yes, they have to have extensive knowledge of both fields to be the most effective.¡± The man sat on the front of the teacher''s desk. ¡°I can see by your faces that only a few of you will actually choose to continue these subjects for the second year intermediate and the third year advanced courses.¡± I glanced around and saw that he was right. There were not a lot of interested faces looking back at him. I looked back at him and both he and his wife were looking right at me. Just then, the bell rang to start the class. ¡°Although, one of you seems to have already passed all of the basic courses and probably thinks this is a waste of time.¡± The man said. I put my hand up and he nodded. ¡°I have to see what you''re going to teach me first before I decide if you''re wasting my time.¡± A few of the girls gasped, Vanessa grinned, and his wife barked a laugh before she could stop herself. Her husband gave her an angry glare. ¡°What? That was a great answer.¡± His wife said. ¡°At least he''s not dismissing you immediately.¡± The man''s glare softened and he sighed as he looked back at me. ¡°We''ve been informed of your work history for the army and we know you were one of the construction workers building Mage Lukas'' kracken tubes.¡± I put my hand up again and he nodded. ¡°I was the one who invented them.¡± The man looked surprised, as did everyone else in the classroom. ¡°How dare you claim...¡± His wife started to say. ¡°It was my idea to make them to fight the marsh dragons and Mage Lukas endorsed it. He didn''t know there could be a movement enchantment still usable until I showed him. The mages at the time were all surprised the first time using my boat and the movement enchantment I used.¡±This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. She closed her mouth and didn''t say anything else. ¡°I also only made the cylindrical tubes and not the base, since the construction crews at the time could build the mini-catapults without my help. I was also the primary enchanter for nearly all of the ammunition until I trained up several mages to help me.¡± Everyone looked even more surprised at my words. ¡°My tools and magic touched every single one of the projectiles until two weeks before I was discharged.¡± I said. ¡°I was in the stockade then.¡± ¡°What for?¡± The man asked. ¡°Refusing an illegal order that could have gotten thousands of soldiers killed.¡± Vanessa gasped beside me, as did several other girls. ¡°I was only supposed to get a week in the stockade; but, the Colonel thought I was making fun of her when I finished my essential work and accepted the punishment. She gave me two weeks instead.¡± I said. ¡°It made her happy how much I suffered for those two weeks.¡± The entire class fell silent. ¡°I was a conscript in the army and wasn''t allowed to claim the invention of the kracken tubes myself, because no one would believe that something like that came from a conscript, so Mage Lukas assumed responsibility for it and they were adapted into the army''s normal weapon deployments right away.¡± It took several minutes of silence to pass before the man spoke. ¡°The kracken tubes ended the war.¡± The man said. ¡°Mage Lukas is famous for it now.¡± ¡°Oh? Did the peace accords go through?¡± I asked. ¡°No, it''s just a temporary cease fire while they work out what the reparations are going to be.¡± The woman said and gave me an intense look. ¡°How did you know they were suing for peace?¡± ¡°Mage Marks mentioned it yesterday in potions class.¡± I said and she looked at the other students, some of which nodded in agreement. ¡°We''re going off the class subject with this conversation.¡± The man said. ¡°Who can tell me what an enchantment is?¡± Several of the girls put their hands up to answer. ¡°One that''s not word for word from the book.¡± The man clarified and they all put their hands down. His eyes went right to me. ¡°Mr. Drake, if you would. Tell us what an enchantment is.¡± ¡°It''s the physical written instructions to power, direct, and form your magic to do specific tasks that don''t require your input, past powering them up initially with an infusion. Depending on the task, they can be powered by other mages to repeat those written instructions.¡± Both the man and his wife looked surprised at my answer. ¡°You haven''t read the book, have you?¡± The man asked as he crossed his arms. ¡°No, I''ve been too busy.¡± I responded. ¡°That was the best answer I''ve ever heard and I''ve heard a lot of answers.¡± The man''s wife said and wrote it down on the papers in front of her. ¡°It was both simplistic and got the point across exactly.¡± The man nodded. ¡°As Mr. Drake said, an enchantment is a specific set of written instructions that when powered, will perform a task.¡± One of the girls raised her hand and he nodded to her. ¡°What kind of tasks?¡± ¡°All kinds. There are several practical uses from wards to repelling charms, the newly rediscovered movement enchantment that the Henrietta Family have brought back into existence...¡± ¡°No!¡± Vanessa gasped, except it was only a whisper. ¡°They claimed your work!¡± ¡°I know.¡± I whispered back as the man kept describing different enchantments. ¡°It''s only the same limited one that''s on the kracken tube ammunition. Only Helena has studied the full enchantment and she gave me her word that she wouldn''t share her knowledge of it until we were married.¡± ¡°Oh, that''s a relief. I thought they robbed you.¡± Vanessa breathed and we both put our attention back on the teachers. ¡°Unfortunately, over time a lot of the old enchantments have either degraded in their teachings as they have been passed down through the mage families or have become too complicated for someone to power them properly, since the knowledge on how to do it has been lost.¡± The man said. ¡°Scholar mages have been working on them for years and are no closer to figuring them out.¡± Another girl raised her hand. ¡°If the old enchantments are being lost, how are we going to keep using them?¡± ¡°That''s where my lovely and intelligent wife comes in.¡± The man said. ¡°The runes.¡± The woman said. ¡°We''ve deciphered a lot of the older enchantments and discovered that runes play a huge part in their creation. What we can''t reproduce from the old ones, we write out in the runic language and create new enchantments.¡± ¡°We''re going to be able to make our own enchantments?¡± One of the girls asked, clearly surprised. Both of the teachers laughed. ¡°No, you''re much too young right now to create your own enchantments. You''ll need years of practice and expertise to be able to pull apart an enchantment to decipher its secrets and then recreate it to do what you want.¡± The man said. ¡°What you''ll be learning this year is the proper techniques and procedures to copy out existing enchantments and then trying to get them to work.¡± ¡°Meanwhile, I''ll be teaching you the basic runic language that will let you understand what is going on inside the simple enchantments in the book and will make it easier for you to enchant.¡± The woman said, her voice full of confidence. I put my hand up. ¡°What if you can already do that without knowing the runic language?¡± ¡°Ha! You can''t figure out what an enchantment entails until you know what...¡± ¡°I made the simple movement enchantment on the kracken tube ammunition from a more complicated one.¡± I said and everyone in the room stared at me, except for Vanessa. ¡°You made...¡± The man shook his head. ¡°Grand Mage Henrietta introduced it to the army through his daughter, Mage Henrietta.¡± ¡°I''m betrothed to her and her father wants the full enchantment from me. That''s why he''s allowing me to marry her.¡± I said. ¡°He even told her that he and his brother want to take enchanting lessons from me, so they can learn it directly from the source.¡± The man''s face seemed to drain of color and he sat back on the top of the teacher''s desk. ¡°No wonder he arranged for you to pass all of the core classes. Considering how powerful the limited one is, if the Grand Mage gets his hands on the full enchantment, he could revolutionize our whole society.¡± ¡°Not really.¡± I said and he looked at me. ¡°It can only handle so much mass. You would need multiple enchantments for anything large and also need a mage to power each of them.¡± ¡°But...¡± ¡°They would also need to concentrate and want the enchantments to do the same thing. If they aren''t in sync, they could tear a ship apart if one mage tried to go left and another tried to forward at the same time.¡± The man went quiet and no one spoke for several minutes. ¡°We''re losing essential class time.¡± The woman said and the man seemed to shake himself. ¡°Right. Let''s start from the very basic things, since most of you have no idea what we''ve been talking about the last few minutes. Myself included.¡± The man said and a few of the girls laughed uncomfortably. ¡°I''m going to first introduce you to an enchanter''s best friends. His tools.¡± I kind of tuned out the man and sat back in my chair. I knew the first few lessons in enchanting were going to be more of a review for me and had expected to at least read along; but, introducing the runes teacher at the same time and combining the two classes had thrown off my estimate. I knew nothing about the runes themselves, except that they were components in most enchantments. A few of them were unnecessary and in some cases redundant. The thing was, if there was an entire language of them, I needed to know what the language stood for and what each rune meant and could do to an enchantment. I suspected that certain combinations would vary the effects on an enchantment, so I definitely had to pay attention to the runes teacher. Almost as if she knew what I was thinking, the woman turned her head to look right at me. I felt a bit of a tingle on my skin, so I cast Dispel. She let out an ''eep'' sound and jerked slightly, which got everyone''s attention. ¡°Honey, are you all right?¡± The man asked. ¡°I thought you liked the half-swirl carving tool.¡± The woman blushed slightly and waved him away. He shrugged and went back to describing each tool and their use and I kept my eyes on the woman. She didn''t try again with whatever it was she had tried. In fact, she wouldn''t even meet my eyes for the rest of the class, even when it was her turn to speak. 153 Academy Antics Part Twenty One - Library Again I didn''t really learn much that morning, since it was just the introductory lecture for both subjects. They couldn''t skip over anything, because everyone else there had almost no experience with either enchanting or runes. Even Lorna was learning new things and she kept glancing over at me to see if I was writing anything down. I didn''t have to, not even for runes, because it was all just a description of everything I already knew about them being components in enchantments. I just didn''t know what the individual runes stood for. I could guess for some of the ones I had seen in the enchantments I had already pulled apart and decoded; but, that only told me what they did. I had no reference to their meaning or what they stood for outside the enchantments. I flipped through the runes book and once again, several phrases and references went right over my head. The rune definitions didn''t start until the second chapter, so I would have to wait until then to start asking questions. The class ended and we all packed up our things. As we all filed out of the classroom, I glanced at the female teacher. Her face went red and she avoided my gaze again. I looked at the man and he looked a little excited. I wasn''t sure if it was because he was teaching so many people his chosen craft or he got a kick out of being in a room full of women. Either way, he seemed to be enjoying it. Neither of them said anything as I left. Vanessa put a hand out to get me to stop walking, then she took out three vials from her pocket. She drank Lorna''s primer potion, our more powerful mental stimulant potion, and the quarter dose of healing potion. She took a very deep inhale of breath as she tucked the empty vials away and her eyes seemed to shimmer with happiness. ¡°Are you eating in the cafeteria today?¡± Vanessa asked in a normal and confident voice as we started walking again. ¡°I''m all ready to slobber over some chicken or a nice steak for you.¡± Lorna heard her and laughed. ¡°What lengths are you going to go to in order to become his concubine in three years?¡± Vanessa put her arm through mine. ¡°If you must know, my mother was a bit upset about losing her daughter to another family so quickly. That is, until my father explained to her why it was a much better idea to loan me out than it was to try and pair me up with some stranger and marry me off.¡± ¡°Loan you out?¡± One of the other girls asked and took Vanessa''s free hand. ¡°Van, you know how that sounds, don''t you?¡± ¡°Oh, I know. As does my father.¡± Vanessa said and looked at me. ¡°He wishes to negotiate with the Grand Mage over the terms and asked me to extend the invitation. Hopefully, it can be settled quickly and both of our families can come out of it with both profits and children.¡± ¡°Helena has broken emotional ties with the main branch of the Henrietta Family.¡± I said and a bunch of the girls around us let out gasps. ¡°She didn''t like how he was treating her decisions or how he favored her older brother.¡± ¡°I''m glad I don''t have an older brother.¡± Vanessa said. ¡°I''ve been the precious little bundle of joy for my parents all on my own and I like it that way.¡± A lot of the girls nodded agreement. ¡°What should I do, then? How are we going to come to an agreement?¡± Vanessa asked as we left the building. ¡°Contact Helena. She runs the business side of things and I handle the physical side.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°She''s very smart and can handle the negotiations on her own.¡± ¡°But...¡± Vanessa closed her mouth and sighed. ¡°I don''t know how my father will handle it.¡± ¡°Get him to bring his wife along.¡± I said and Vanessa took in a sharp breath. ¡°Between her and Helena, I''m sure favorable terms can be reached quickly.¡± ¡°That... that''s actually a good idea.¡± Vanessa said, her mind focused on the problem. ¡°Mother would very much enjoy being involved and father wouldn''t be solely under the pressure of pleading our family''s case.¡± I pat Vanessa''s hand and she let my arm go. ¡°I''m going to the library, so tell the food guard that he can relax again today.¡± Vanessa laughed. ¡°Yes, he''s been a bit of a wreck for a couple of days.¡± I nodded and waved for her to go into the student administration building with everyone else. ¡°See you tomorrow.¡± Vanessa paused briefly and leaned in to kiss my cheek. ¡°Thank you for the potions.¡± She said and let her friend lead her into the building. I waited until nearly everyone was inside, then entered the building myself. I didn''t stop at the second floor where the cafeteria was and went right up to the third floor to the library. I entered and there were several students scattered around at some of the tables. ¡°Ah, hello my friend.¡± Eludora said in a whisper when she saw me. ¡°What can my extra long and gangling limbs help you with today?¡±Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. ¡°Are there maps or specific areas where the ingredients we listed yesterday can be found?¡± I asked. Eludora gave me an odd look. ¡°You would venture to places unknown to get them?¡± ¡°If they are close by.¡± I said. ¡°How close?¡± She asked. ¡°Two days by fast boat.¡± I said. ¡°Do you know the average speed of the army''s flat bottomed boats?¡± Eludora smiled. ¡°I suppose I don''t need to ask why you think I would know such current information.¡± ¡°Does that mean you don''t know?¡± I asked and her smile became sly. ¡°How much time do we have?¡± ¡°I don''t have to report to detention until afternoon classes are over.¡± I said and her sly smile became a very happy one. ¡°I assume you brought the lists?¡± She asked as she slowly stood and I nodded. ¡°Then follow me to the maps room.¡± She waved at someone and a short man came over to the desk and took her place. ¡°Place the ''away'' sign on the desk when you have to leave when lunch is over. I will be busy.¡± ¡°Yes, Mage Eludora.¡± The man said and ducked his head slightly. Eludora led me around the counter and down several aisles to a door. It was only a small door meant for normal people, so she opened it and had to bend over to fit through. I stepped in behind her and the room was full of shelves filled with scrolls and large rolled papers. Unrolled maps littered the walls and several desks as well. ¡°I know it looks like a mess... because it is.¡± Eludora said with a deep womanly laugh. ¡°The room is much too small for its contents. Unfortunately, this is all the space that has been allocated for maps and no matter what I do, I cannot do anything with the chaos.¡± She touched the closest shelf and spoke in a sad voice. ¡°Some of them are starting to dry out and crumble, despite my best efforts. If I cannot find a solution to this storage problem, some of these maps will be lost forever.¡± I didn''t know anything about maps; but, I knew a lot about tanning and pelt storage. I had made countless wooden frames that could be easily stacked. When I started to explain about the 2 inch wide square frame that the pelt would be tacked to, to let it cure, Eludora''s eyes lit up. ¡°David, that would be wonderful if I could unroll all of these and store them flat.¡± Eludora said. ¡°What about the dryness and brittleness?¡± ¡°I don''t have enough fortifying waterproof potion to treat them all.¡± I said. ¡°I also haven''t had a chance to convert my recipe for the ingredients available. If my merge potion is any indication, it will only be about three quarters as effective and will take longer to set. It should still work.¡± Eludora let out something like a moaning sigh and her hands slid over my head and down to my neck to caress the skin there. ¡°David, you are more of a godsend than I thought you were.¡± She said and half knelt and half bent over in front of me to put her head only a few inches above mine. ¡°I agree with your friend Vanessa. If you weren''t already promised to someone else, I would be all over you.¡± ¡°Vanessa''s petitioning to be my concubine.¡± I said. Eludora''s face hadn''t changed, even though she seemed to shudder. ¡°Because of my years of forced servitude and the years of freedom afterwards, I... I would be remiss if I gave it up, just to have you bed me.¡± ¡°Vanessa wants a child without the marriage commitment.¡± I explained and her eyes widened slightly. ¡°She would marry me if it was possible, and she can''t, so she said she would settle for the next best thing. Her family seems fine with it.¡± Eludora blinked her eyes several times and she looked deep in thought. ¡°You said you are getting married the day after graduation?¡± She asked and I nodded. ¡°Then I have until then to decide if I want you to... own me.¡± ¡°Own you?¡± I asked, slightly confused. ¡°I thought a concubine was someone that was an adjunct to the marriage, so they can get pregnant with a child and then go back to their family?¡± ¡°It seems that your knowledge of what it means is a little skewed.¡± Eludora said. ¡°Allow me to enlighten you while you make me some of those frames for me to mount the larger maps.¡± ¡°I don''t have any wood.¡± I said. ¡°We will get some from the Civil Construction workshop.¡± Eludora said. ¡°Follow me.¡± I followed her out of the library and we walked a short ways across part of the academy campus. Her steps seemed to slow down halfway there and her breathing sped up. I offered her my arm and she laughed softly, then braced her hand on my shoulder. ¡°I probably... should have just... sent you alone.¡± Eludora said between her panting breaths. ¡°My stamina is... lacking.¡± We were three quarters of the way to the building she indicated and her steps faltered slightly. I thought about just letting her continue like that, then realized we had to walk all the way back and I had to carry the wood, which meant I might not be able to be her support. ¡°Please stop and rest.¡± I said and she looked down at me. Her face was unchanged, and yet, I knew under her glamour that her face would be full of regret and resignation. ¡°Allow me to help you.¡± Eludora looked around briefly and pointed to a bench about sixty feet away. ¡°I should be able to make it that far.¡± I turned to face her and held my arms out for her. She laughed at my gesture, probably thinking I was joking, then she carefully knelt on the stone walkway to look into my eyes. I let her see in my head what I wanted to do and her eyes widened again. ¡°Only your arms and legs are longer. Your torso is the same as if you were my height.¡± I said as an explanation. ¡°I will brace you properly if you can manage to hold on to me.¡± Eludora sighed and motioned with her hand, an army signal of acceptance, and then she used my outstretched arms to half-sit and half recline as she tried to put her very long arms around my neck. They were much too long to do it successfully, not without them flopping around, so she resigned herself to holding onto my shoulder as I picked her up. ¡°Can you hold up your feet? I don''t want to drag you around or possibly hurt you.¡± I said and she nodded as she lifted her feet slightly and I quickly tucked the robes around her legs and braced her properly. It took me a few moments to get the balance right, then I walked normally over to the bench. I felt Eludora''s face heat up and blood rushed to it as she blushed, thanks to my vigilance technique. I made it to the bench without stumbling, dropping her, or tripping over her long robes. I couldn''t put her down like she was, however. So, I sat down on the bench with her on my lap instead. ¡°You could have put me down or let me stand.¡± Eludora said with a whisper. ¡°I didn''t want you to kneel on the hard stone again and hurt your delicate knees more.¡± I said and dug into my academy suit coat to get at my bandoleer. I pulled out a general health potion and gave it to her. Eludora gave me a searching look in return. ¡°If I wanted to poison you, there are much easier and quicker ways.¡± I said and she chuckled. ¡°Yes, that''s true.¡± Eludora said and drank the potion. 154 Academy Antics Part Twenty Two - Maps Galore After a few moments, Eludora''s body shuddered and she took in a breath. ¡°Well, that was a nice energy boost. I think I can...¡± ¡°I''m not done.¡± I said in a stern voice and she gave me wide eyes again. ¡°Drink this.¡± I said and gave her one of my rare strength potions. ¡°I''ve never seen something like that before.¡± Eludora said. ¡°I doubt anyone''s seen it before.¡± I said and told her what it was and how expensive it was. ¡°N-no, I... I can''t accept...¡± ¡°Drink it.¡± I ordered in my best army command voice. She jerked slightly and drank it without further protest. The results were immediate. Her glamour shimmered in the daylight and seemed to change and allowed her face to show shock. Her breathing became deeper and more powerful and her grip on my shoulder tightened, while her long limbs seemed to ripple and the muscles expanded slightly. ¡°Good god.¡± Eludora whispered. ¡°No wonder they are so expensive!¡± ¡°Drink this before your body tries to reject the strength boost.¡± I said and gave her a healing potion. ¡°Why would...¡± ¡°It''s not natural and you''ve had no prep work.¡± I said. ¡°Drink it.¡± Eludora drank it just in time, because we both saw her muscles tense up and start to protest being enhanced beyond their normal capacity. She let out a groan as the healing potion slowly made its way through her and her muscles started to relax. ¡°I see what you mean.¡± Eludora said and took several deep breaths. She waited for several minutes before she turned her head to look at me. ¡°I sincerely hope this works.¡± ¡°It normally lasts for three days when I take it. You''re a bit taller than I am and also never had an enhancing potion like it.¡± I said. ¡°It could last for only two days because of your size or it could last for up to four days because of your very low normal strength level.¡± Eludora made a fist with her hand and then she used that hand to cup the side of my face. ¡°Please, tell me how many of these potions you have.¡± ¡°Three.¡± I said and she let out a sigh. ¡°The ingredients are too rare and hard to get. Otherwise, I would have brewed a full batch the last time and not only the small pot.¡± ¡°Then... I suppose I better enjoy this while it lasts.¡± Eludora said and turned her body slightly to put her feet on the ground. She took another deep breath, as if preparing to perform a difficult task, then she pushed up with her arms like she normally did as she stood up. She gasped when she stood normally and not with her regular slow pace. ¡°I''m glad it worked.¡± I said and she turned to face me with a kind of manic look in her eye. I recognized it as the look Diane had in her eye when I gave her all that stock for her store. ¡°You are very lucky you are betrothed.¡± Eludora said and bent over without having to be careful of her balance and gave me a kiss on the lips. ¡°Don''t overexert yourself. The potion will work its way out of your system quicker if you do.¡± I warned her. ¡°The general health potion should keep your energy up for about six months, unless you get sick.¡± ¡°Don''t worry, David.¡± Eludora said and held a hand down towards me. ¡°I only plan to go for a walk.¡± I took her hand and we started to do that. ¡°It''s so nice to do this and not get exhausted so quickly.¡± Eludora said as we approached the civil construction workshop. ¡°Only I will carry the wood.¡± I told her and she chuckled. ¡°My dear, we can just ask the teacher to have the students bring what we will need.¡± Eludora said. ¡°When do you think you can start making more of that waterproofing potion?¡± ¡°I can start it tonight if you can get the ingredients from Mage Marks.¡± I said. ¡°We''ll do up the list when we get back to the library and I''ll let you give it to her.¡± Eludora said. ¡°She can''t figure out what you''re making with them, can she?¡± ¡°I''ll alter the amounts so that she can''t make an educated guess.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Do you need to add in a purchasing slip?¡± I asked, then remembered the two I had. I would have to cash them in before going to detention. ¡°We take care of that in-house, so don''t worry about it.¡± Eludora said. I opened the door of the building for her and we went inside. I wasn''t surprised to find that it looked similar to the maintenance department buildings that I had worked in while in the army, since that was the militarized version. ¡°Mage Quintos! Mage QUINTOS!¡± Eludora said and waved. A very short and stubby man looked up from his workbench that was across the room and surrounded by students. His face and clothing were covered in sawdust and he had to brush some of it away from his eyes to look properly. His face split into a huge smile and he spoke to the students briefly, then he practically ran over to us. ¡°Mage Eludora, it''s a pleasure to see you out of that huge and stuffy building.¡± Mage Quintos said. ¡°I would offer to shake your hand, except I don''t want to sully such a beauty with dirt and dust.¡±This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. Eludora chuckled. ¡°Your silver tongue is as sharp as ever.¡± Mage Quintos smiled. ¡°What brought you all the way over here today?¡± ¡°I need some wood to make tanning squares.¡± I said and counted in my head what I remembered seeing on the shelves. I hadn''t seen them all, so I ended up guessing in the end. ¡°Enough for about two hundred and fifty of various sizes.¡± Mage Quintos'' mouth dropped open in surprise. ¡°Are... are you serious?¡± I nodded. ¡°I only need the wood, though. I don''t need them made. I can do that myself.¡± ¡°This isn''t a commercial woodworking shop.¡± Mage Quintos said with slightly squinted eyes. ¡°Tanning is not on the official syllabus of course materials.¡± Eludora put a hand on my shoulder. ¡°It''s for me.¡± Mage Quintos widened his eyes as he looked up at her. ¡°What would you need that many tanning apparatuses for?¡± ¡°Maps.¡± Eludora said and the man''s mouth dropped open in surprise again. ¡°Mr. Drake is helping me sort through the maps as we do research. The room is a mess and he had the brilliant idea to mount the things for easy access and we came right here to you for some wood.¡± ¡°That... couldn''t possibly... work...¡± Mage Quintos said, his voice drifting off as he clearly thought about it. ¡°Before you get any thoughts in your head about claiming the idea for yourself, I''ve already written up a missive for submission to both the Mages Guild and to the capital''s archives.¡± Eludora said. Mage Quintos let out a sigh and looked sad. ¡°Mr. Drake has already lost several of his inventions and ideas to other mages claiming them to try and further their own careers.¡± Eludora said and gripped my shoulder. ¡°Please provide the wood necessary for our request.¡± Mage Quintos nodded and went back over to the table full of students. It took them ten minutes to provide the 2 inch wide wood for use on the outer frames and the thin wooden panels for the maps to sit on. They loaded it all onto a hand cart that looked identical to the ones I had made back at the garrison for sale, except this one had tool marks and the attachments could clearly be seen. ¡°Thank you, Mage Quintos.¡± Eludora said and we left the building. I pulled the hand cart behind me and Eludora walked tall and confidently beside me. ¡°Are you really going to send those missives?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°I did write them... in my head.¡± Eludora said with a chuckle. ¡°I hope you understand what just happened.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I said. ¡°Speaking out my ideas gets them stolen and I''m left without compensation.¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± Eludora said. ¡°You need to be more careful of who you speak to so casually. If I hadn''t been there...¡± ¡°...I wouldn''t be allowed to claim the credit anyway.¡± I said. ¡°You know why.¡± Eludora sighed. ¡°If only my patron hadn''t passed away and left only daughters.¡± ¡°Why?¡± I asked. ¡°She would have helped you reestablish yourself. It was her goal in life to help former slaves.¡± ¡°What of her husband?¡± ¡°He was killed in the battle where I was rescued.¡± Eludora said. ¡°Her daughters were all married off as well and joined more prominent families. When she died, it ended both her original family name and her crusade for people like us.¡± We walked the rest of the way in silence and stopped in front of the student administration building. ¡°We will have to leave the cart here and carry...¡± Eludora started to say. ¡°Open the doors.¡± I said and she gave me an odd look. ¡°It will fit.¡± Eludora shook her head and opened the large main doors for me. I walked up the steps and the wooden wheels of the hand cart made loud thumping sounds as they hit each step, which gained me a lot of attention. She watched me keep walking up the stairs, as if I didn''t have a large cart of wood behind me, then she followed me up all three floors to the library. The large doors were already open and I rolled the cart inside. Unfortunately, that''s where it had to stop, because the aisles were much too small to get the large cart to the map room. I grabbed several of the wood frame pieces and one thin wooden panel and Eludora followed me to the map room. With her directing me to the most important ones first, I started making tanning mounts for them using my knife and number ten potion. Eludora watched me create them in moments, mount the maps to them, then apply the fortifying waterproof potion. It amazed her that they became both solid and protected. We worked for most of the afternoon, stopping occasionally as we found a map I could use and set it aside, then we spent the last of the afternoon pouring over the maps and tracing down the best spots for the ingredients I currently didn''t have access to in Mage Marks'' classroom. ¡°We can leave the cart by the door. I''ll cover it with a tarp and we can finish this later.¡± I said. ¡°David, you''ve done so much already.¡± Eludora said. ¡°I won''t leave a job half finished.¡± I said and she nodded as she pet my head. ¡°I need to get to detention.¡± ¡°Try to not irritate her before you give her the ingredients list.¡± Eludora said and gave it to me with her own note attached. ¡°How long do you think it will take to work out the revised recipe for the potion?¡± ¡°It''s actually two potions, so perhaps a few days.¡± I said. ¡°I''ll do the waterproofing one first, since that one is a bit simpler and can be used on its own if the other potion doesn''t work.¡± Eludora nodded and walked me over to the front of the library. ¡°I appreciate what you''ve done for me today.¡± She turned me towards her and took me into a hug. ¡°You aren''t bending down.¡± I commented and she chuckled, because she knew what the only thing was that I could reach with her standing up. I reached around to hug her back and gripped her backside. She stopped laughing and held me tenderly. ¡°Thank you so much, David.¡± Eludora said. ¡°You''ve even allowed me to hug you with normal strength and not the weak arm strength that I usually have.¡± ¡°Just remember to not exert yourself and it should last longer.¡± I cautioned her and she nodded as she let me go. ¡°Goodbye.¡± Eludora said and I left the library to go to detention. I also stopped at the main administration building and cashed in the two payment slips that Mage Marks had given me for the potions she bought. I arrived at the potions classroom and Mage Marks smiled at me. I handed her the note and the ingredients list and went to my regular workbench. I took out my potion book and the papers I had written out, as well as the ingredients list and proper preparation directions for them. I needed to quickly do out the reverse substitution for the ingredients from the normal ones I used in the marsh and had to adjust the potion directions accordingly. It took me nearly the entire time until supper to work out the simple waterproofing recipe. I read it over several times and nodded. It was as good as I was going to get it, without actually brewing it, which would let me refine it and fix any mistakes. I packed everything back up and sat there for several minutes as I waited for suppertime. Mage Marks had several small canvas bags ready for me with each one marked with the ingredients they contained. ¡°I''m not sure how you convinced the librarian to sign off on giving you potion ingredients on her behalf.¡± ¡°I''m using them to create potions for the library.¡± I said truthfully as I approached her desk. ¡°I''ve already made a bunch of wooden mounts for the maps she has.¡± Mage Marks looked like she was going to argue, then shrugged. ¡°The bags have cords that are long enough to tie to your belt.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and put my small pack on my back and then tied each of the ingredients to my belt at an equal distance around me for balance. ¡°See you tomorrow afternoon.¡± Mage Marks nodded and I left her classroom to go home. I had a lot of work to do. 155 Academy Antics Part Twenty Three - History Taught Right I worked hard after supper and managed to get the errors I had made in the theory part of converting the waterproofing potion worked out. I made one successful batch before needing to go to bed. I crated it up and set it aside, clearly marked as the inferior version. I had a quick bath with Sara and Hope''s help, then Sara performed the after bath ritual and I was tucked into bed. She was just as sad about leaving this time as she was each other time, and she bid us a sorrow filled farewell and left. The morning arrived and after a quick breakfast, I was off to the academy''s main class building. I had History and Geography classes in the morning and we all went to the right classroom, noted the change for the extra class, and the girls followed Vanessa and I there. ¡°I''m not one for strict procedure, so you can sit where you want, even if it''s with your friends.¡± The teacher said and that made the girls happier. ¡°My name is Mage Victoria Ridge and I am both the History and Geography teacher.¡± ¡°We have you all morning?¡± One of the girls asked, surprised. ¡°Yes, qualified teachers are a bit difficult to come by on short notice and I''ve been tasked with two subjects.¡± Mage Ridge said. ¡°Luckily for you, I am well versed in both of them.¡± ¡°You''re giving us a test, aren''t you?¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°Vanessa is asking if you''re giving us a test.¡± I said out loud to the teacher. ¡°Yes, except you don''t have to worry. Unlike the entrance exam, this will be short and easy.¡± Mage Ridge said and looked right at me. ¡°Mr. Drake. I know you have a pass in this class already. However, I expect you to participate and to perform well. If you do, perhaps that 65 you automatically get might have a few extra points on it.¡± ¡°What if I''m not interested in history?¡± I asked. ¡°Then you are doomed to repeat it, both figuratively and literally.¡± Mage Ridge said. ¡°As long as you are paying attention, provide some effort, and at least contribute to any discussions the class has, I will be satisfied that you''re not the complete waste of space that I have been warned about.¡± ¡°Have you talked to the teachers he''s had so far this week?¡± Vanessa asked in a whisper. ¡°Vanessa wants to know if you''ve discussed me with the other teachers I''ve had this week.¡± I said. Mage Ridge smiled slightly. ¡°I have. If you must know, you have mixed reviews. Their first opinions of you are...¡± She sighed. ¡°I do not like disruptions in my class. Normal interactions are fine, since that is what''s needed for information to be conveyed. I will not tolerate any outbursts or arguments that are not concerning the subjects I teach. If there are any such incidents, you will be asked to leave.¡± ¡°Even if I''m not involved?¡± I asked. ¡°Mr. Drake, you are the only male in a room full of women. Of course you are involved, even if it''s not directly.¡± Mage Ridge said. ¡°You need to understand how much you influence your classmates.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked. ¡°I won''t get into it right now, as it''s not relative to the material I am teaching today. However, next week we are going to be discussing the Grand Mages and their influence over the course of our people''s history. I''ll gladly talk to you about this then.¡± I nodded and she picked up a stack of papers. She walked around to each student and handed them a paper. She didn''t say what to do with them or when to start writing, so as soon as she handed one to me, I put it down and read it, then started filling it out. She gave Vanessa a sheet and seemed to pause as she looked down at my sheet, then she moved on. The other students seemed to take my writing as their own permission to start writing, so they started filling out the answers as well. By the time the teacher made it back to her desk, I was right behind her and passed her the sheet. She looked a little surprised as she accepted it. I ignored her reaction and went back to my seat beside Vanessa. Ten minutes later, everyone else was done and passed them to the teacher. Mage Ridge sat down and quickly graded them all. She had a smile on her face when she was done. ¡°I see that the majority of you haven''t neglected your history.¡± Mage Ridge said. ¡°I believe I''m going to have a great time teaching this class.¡± She stood up and picked up the course book. ¡°This thing is... well, to be honest... it''s so dry and lacking of emotion that it''s almost the world''s best sleeping aid.¡± Most of the girls laughed, Vanessa included. ¡°I won''t be requiring that you read a chapter ahead for each class. That would crush any passion you might develop for the course material. Instead, I''ll spend the first fifteen minutes or so of each class and I''ll summarize it for you, while also adding in the required emphasis for the events that it''s telling you about.¡± Mage Ridge said and opened the book. ¡°Believe me, you''ll be thanking me in a few weeks when we have the first official test.¡± ¡°I thought we had weekend tests to complete to prove that we were doing the work and know the material?¡± Lorna asked, confused. ¡°You mean Crunch Time on Saturdays?¡± Mage Ridge asked and she nodded. ¡°I won''t be providing a test until the end of the month. Testing students after each class doesn''t gauge their retention or extended knowledge. If you learn something new each class and are tested only on that knowledge, how does that tell me if you learned anything from any of my other classes?¡± Lorna didn''t respond, because there wasn''t really a good answer. ¡°I''ve already brought up my concerns with the other teachers and I''m sure that they are going to do the same as I am. In fact, we have a meeting with the director and will be discussing the waste of time and resources that testing every Saturday is costing the academy.¡± ¡°But, hasn''t the academy always done this?¡± One of the girls asked. ¡°Isn''t it a part of history?¡± Mage Ridge smiled. ¡°Remember what I said to Mr. Drake earlier about being doomed to repeating history?¡± The girl smiled back and nodded in understanding.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. ¡°Just because something has always been done, that doesn''t mean it should continue to be done.¡± Mage Ridge said. ¡°However, that doesn''t mean all repeated practices need to be examined. Some things should always be taught to students, even if they have previous knowledge of those subjects.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Someone else asked. ¡°Getting a fresh perspective on something you already know to be true, might just make you question exactly how true something actually is.¡± Everyone seemed to fall silent as they thought about that. ¡°I''ll skim this first chapter of the introduction of the Gulf Kingdom for a few minutes, since you all seem to grasp where you live fairly well. The second chapter I''ll need to spend several classes on, because it concerns the first war with the Eastern Empire. That''s not something anyone should skip.¡± Mage Ridge said and then she started to half-read and half-talk as she split her time between looking at the pages in the book and looking at the students. She gave us some exposition about the state of affairs in the Gulf Kingdom and then moved right into the first war with the neighbouring country that wanted to impose their values onto us and to get more people for their slave trade. By the time the history class was over, nearly all of the girls had been listening intently to Mage Ridge''s melodic voice. When the bell rang, they all seemed to jump at the scare. Mage Ridge laughed. ¡°I''m glad you''re all so interested in the subject.¡± ¡°It''s more interest in you personally.¡± I said and everyone turned their heads to look at me. ¡°They haven''t had anyone actually talk to them about things like that.¡± Mage Ridge closed her book. ¡°Please explain what you mean.¡± ¡°Do you want me to give away one of your teaching techniques so soon?¡± I asked and she smiled. ¡°Perhaps not.¡± She said. ¡°I assume you''ve been subject to something similar?¡± ¡°A much superior version, yes.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°I retained everything she taught me.¡± ¡°E-everything?¡± Mage Ridge asked, clearly surprised. ¡°How?¡± ¡°I won''t say for the same reason.¡± I responded and took out the geography book. ¡°Unfortunately, it won''t work with the next subject.¡± Mage Ridge nodded. ¡°There''s almost no way to adapt the technique to material this stark in contrast. Stats and numbers can''t be conveyed properly, because they have to be read and repeated.¡± The girls in the class seemed a little confused over what was going on. ¡°It''s all right, everyone. It''s just something Mr. Drake and I seem to have shared knowledge of.¡± ¡°Not you, too.¡± Lorna said with a sigh and a few of the girls around her covered their mouths to hide their smiles. Mage Ridge laughed softly. ¡°It''s not a bad thing to have something in common with a man you barely know. It allows a bridge to be built and the possibility of peace talks to negotiate a successful friendship. From that, you can both get to know each other better.¡± Her words seemed to make them even more confused. ¡°It seems you are a bit less versed in Common than I thought you were.¡± Mage Ridge joked. ¡°I mean, once you have a common thread of knowledge between you, it''s easy to expand your communications with each other. You can learn more about the other person by talking to them.¡± The second bell rang and she sighed. ¡°Now we have to move on to the less than ideal subject of geography. I''ll start off with a very general overview, with references to the current countries, kingdoms, and empires that exist in our world, as well as the unexplored areas. Our world has a varied ecosystem that crosses all land borders and human imposed divides.¡± The girls settled back in their chairs and listened. ¡°Unlike people, the land doesn''t care who you are or what you''re planning to do with it. It just is. It''s been here for as long as people can remember and will be here long after we forget.¡± Mage Ridge said. ¡°We''ve formed and reformed the land to suit our needs, all the while knowing that as soon as we stop our efforts, it will easily revert to not showing any signs that we were even there.¡± One of the girls raised a hand. Mage Ridge laughed. ¡°You don''t need a hand raised in my class. Just speak.¡± ¡°You''re talking about Cone Island, aren''t you?¡± The young woman asked. ¡°Yes, a perfect example. Thank you.¡± Mage Ridge said. ¡°Fifty years ago, the capital city was located on Cone Island, right in the middle of the harbour. It was the best location for a sea port that relied heavily on sea trade and imports, so it prospered... right up until the first war. The city suffered heavy losses in the opening salvo from the enemy and the city was quickly abandoned. It was levelled soon after.¡± ¡°My family and I visited there two years ago.¡± Lorna said and a few of the girls gasped. ¡°Under heavy guard and with boats at sea.¡± ¡°It looked like a completely unclaimed island, didn''t it?¡± Mage Ridge asked and Lorna nodded. ¡°I''m sure if you had landed, you would have found some of the building foundations that were embedded in the bedrock.¡± ¡°They didn''t even have a lighthouse there anymore.¡± Lorna said. ¡°There''s no need, since no warships or supply ships are allowed in the closed waters.¡± Mage Ridge said. ¡°I''m surprised your family gained permission to tour the island.¡± ¡°My father petitioned to join the survey crew.¡± Lorna said, a little proudly. ¡°He wanted me to see several different places before he would let me attend the academy.¡± ¡°You''re so lucky!¡± One of the girls said and Lorna blushed a little as she nodded. Mage Ridge smiled and walked over to the chalkboard. She drew out the general shape of the Gulf Kingdom, which resembled an upside down ''G'', and she circled a small land outcropping near the middle lip of the ''G''. ¡°That''s where the old capital used to be. Can anyone tell me where the new one is in relation to that?¡± A few of the girls said answers and Mage Ridge only smiled and didn''t move from where she stood beside the board. Her eyes found me and nodded. ¡°Using a compass as a guide and your general map outline, it''s fifteen degrees from true north to the left and approximately six inches away from the island.¡± I said. Mage Ridge turned to the board and quickly wrote out what I said, then without instruments, drew a compass, marked the fifteen degrees, then used her thumb (from knuckle to tip) to measure six inches and made a big dot. I thought it was neat that she used the same technique I did to draw plans. ¡°You learned a lot in the army, didn''t you?¡± Mage Ridge asked and turned back to the class. ¡°I learned from Staff Sergeant Donna Simms, now retired.¡± I said. ¡°You know Donna?¡± Mage Ridge asked, clearly surprised, then she gasped. ¡°Wait! You''re that David?¡± In the next moment, she was at my desk and had one of my hands in a death grip. ¡°Thank you very much for bringing them back alive after all of that.¡± Mage Ridge said, to the surprise of the other students. ¡°If you hadn''t taken command and had the more serious wounded treated first...¡± ¡°How are they?¡± I asked and didn''t try to make her let go. ¡°Miserable.¡± Mage Ridge said with a laugh. ¡°Being forced to retire when their minds are still perfectly fine has made them quite angry at army command, especially since you couldn''t be discharged with them.¡± ¡°You really do know them.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Donna''s my first cousin and I would be Mage Simms if I hadn''t been married off to the Ridge Family.¡± Mage Ridge said and pat my hand. ¡°She told me all about what went on there.¡± ¡°Do you know where they are?¡± I asked. ¡°None of the letters I sent in the army have been returned.¡± ¡°What letters? She never said...¡± Mage Ridge stopped talking and let out a sigh. ¡°I suspect the Colonel''s hand in this, the stupid idiot.¡± A few of the girls gasped and she looked around the classroom. ¡°Oh, don''t be surprised. The colonel... only first princess now... is just as human and fallible as you or I.¡± Mage Ridge said. ¡°She has emotions, temper tantrums, and a bit of a mean streak if you cross her.¡± ¡°Or thinks you crossed her.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°I''ll send Donna a message and you''ll either hear from them yourself or you''ll hear from me.¡± Mage Ridge said. ¡°I think they would both like to see you after all this time.¡± ¡°I''ll remember to not ask Alex to shake hands.¡± I said and she looked surprised for a second, then she laughed. ¡°Y-yes, he... he definitely needs to see you as soon as possible.¡± Mage Ridge said, humor on her face and in her voice. She let my hand go and walked back to the front of the class. ¡°Now back to the lesson. Can anyone tell me what this little jutting of land out into the main harbour is actually called? I mean the geography term, not the land''s actual name.¡± ¡°It''s an isthmus.¡± Lorna said. ¡°Correct. They come in all shapes and sizes...¡± Mage Ridge said and explained about different geography terms for land, soil, rocks, outcroppings, hills, mountains, valleys, plains, crevasses, and every other land feature that existed and drew them within the map she had already drawn. 156 Academy Antics Part Twenty Four - Plant Me Right Geography class ended and we all filed out of the classroom. Mage Ridge didn''t say anything except that she would see us all next week. ¡°Are you coming to lunch today?¡± Vanessa asked in a whisper. ¡°I should. I have Botany all afternoon.¡± I said and a lot of the students around us in the hallway laughed when they heard me. ¡°Did you really take botany?¡± Lorna asked and I nodded. ¡°Why would you waste your time with that? You can brew potions to make money and buy the ingredients.¡± ¡°I can save money by growing them myself.¡± Lorna laughed. ¡°Yeah, keep telling yourself that. It only saves money if you grow a lot of it, like the guild does.¡± She met Nick in the hallway and we all left the main building and went over to the student administration building and up to the second floor cafeteria. ¡°You cannot approach the other tables.¡± The uniformed man on the door said as I passed. ¡°It will count as...¡± ¡°I know.¡± I interrupted him and kept walking. ¡°Ooo, they have some stews and soups today.¡± Vanessa said a bit louder than a whisper. ¡°Want me to get one for you?¡± ¡°As long as it has lots of meat in it.¡± I said and she smiled. ¡°I''ll lick that chicken and you can add it if there''s not enough for your liking.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and she beamed a smile at me. I stopped walking by the Bronze tables and looked over the dishes piled there. I wasn''t surprised that they were just as scraped over and empty as they usually were, despite my efforts to convince the people that worked there that they shouldn''t be trying to starve me or deny me food. ¡°This soup tastes pretty goo-Oops!¡± Vanessa said in a loud whisper as her bowl slipped out of her hand and dropped into the pot of chicken soup. ¡°Dammit.¡± Her act wouldn''t have fooled anyone, so I was grateful that no one except me heard her. All they saw was her bowl disappearing into the pot. ¡°Miss, please try to be more careful.¡± The cook behind the table said. ¡°I''ll try.¡± Vanessa whispered and tried to use the ladle to dig the bowl out. ¡°No, leave it. You''ll just make a...¡± The cook sighed as the ladle slipped and flipped up and out of Vanessa''s hand to splatter onto the table over two other dishes and the chicken she was aiming for. ¡°...mess.¡± ¡°I''m sorry.¡± Vanessa whispered as she hunched over slightly and blushed. She had made more of a spectacle of herself than she had intended. She grabbed a plate and added a few things to it, then she quickly walked over to her table of friends. ¡°Wow, that was embarrassing.¡± One of her friends said and the others laughed. Vanessa nodded and her blush didn''t lessen as she started to eat. I waited for the ruined items to be brought to the Bronze tables and pretended to examine them and to scrape off the spilled soup. It didn''t bother me at all if two tastes mixed together; but, I had to make it look like she hadn''t done me a favor. So, I grabbed the pot of soup and carefully tipped it on its edge, then ladled out small bits of chicken soup, making sure to rattle the bowl that was still inside, so everyone would know I was struggling with trying to eek out a meal from it. I wasn''t, though they didn''t know that. I eventually filled my bowl and then peeled the skin off of the chicken to get at some of the meat. With my meal set, I nodded to the cook and he took the rest and the other dishes away to the servant''s serving room for Hope. I wasn''t sure if she would be there, considering I told her that she didn''t have to come. I knew she wouldn''t be eating yesterday because I had the afternoon off, so she had stayed home and eaten with the staff. I''d have to ask her later if she liked the chicken soup flavored steak today. I went to an empty table, since no one seemed to look at me as I went towards the seating area. I ate my meal in silence and did as Vanessa suggested. I broke the chicken meat up and added it to the soup. I also ate a lot of bread rolls and sucked up as much broth as I could. When I was done, I left to head towards my afternoon class. As far as I could tell, there wouldn''t be many people in this class, just like the advanced potions class. It seemed to be a joke, actually. I wasn''t sure why they would think growing their own ingredients was a joke. If they only knew how dangerous it was to get some of them, they would be grateful to have the ability to grow them at home and not have to risk their lives for them. I walked to the botany workshop that was in a separate building, like the civil construction workshop, and thought about what the students actually knew about how the ingredients were gathered. It was then that I realized that they didn''t know. They all thought the ingredients were grown in controlled areas and that no one had risked their lives to gather them in the first place. I also knew that none of them would ever be convinced of the difference, because almost none of them would be taking the Botany course to learn the truth. I sincerely doubted it would be brought up in History class or either potions classes. Mage Marks hadn''t told us about how she had gotten the ingredients or how they had been procured originally, assuming she knew. I opened the front door of the botany workshop and a thick watery mist hit me in the face. It made the places it touched tingle and I had to blink my eyes for several moments to see. ¡°Oops! I''m sorry about that!¡± A woman''s excited voice said and a distinctly female figure waved to me. ¡°This darned squirter was stuck on far spray. When I banged it to try and fix it, there you were!¡± She was not wearing the traditional mage robes and only the underclothes of light beige pants and a white shirt. Both were completely soaked through with water. It wasn''t until I walked over to her that I could see that she wasn''t wearing any undergarments and her breasts were completely bared through the thin wet cloth. They were about a handful and a half in size each and her bright pink nipples were also sticking out.The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°I hope you aren''t too upset with me at such a wet introduction.¡± The woman said with a bright smile. ¡°I''m Mage Julia King and you''ll be getting this mixture all over yourself soon enough anyways.¡± ¡°That''s okay. Everything I have on me is waterproof.¡± I said and she started to laugh, then her eyes roamed over me. Her laugh died away as she stared at my academy coat lapels and where there should have been droplets of water mixture. There were none. She reached out and touched it, to see that it was dry, then she squirted my chest with the spray. It splashed in a gush, since it was still stuck on far spray, so we were both doused with a deluge of water. She wiped off her face and then she gasped, because my academy suit was still perfectly dry. ¡°How? How is this possible?¡± ¡°A waterproofing potion.¡± I said with a shrug. My face and hair were soaked and tingled all over because of whatever was inside the water mixture. ¡°Mage King, can I ask what''s in that?¡± I asked and pointed at the squirter. ¡°Just my own little experiment.¡± Mage King said. ¡°Oh, and please call me Victoria. It''s just us and I won''t be trapping either of us into a horribly formal social dynamic for the next three years.¡± ¡°This isn''t the advanced course?¡± I asked. Victoria laughed. ¡°It is and it''s also a three year course. Or for as long as you want to stay at the academy.¡± She said. ¡°I sincerely hope you can tough it out better than my last two students.¡± ¡°What happened to them?¡± I asked. ¡°The made it through two years, then they balked when I tried to get them to help me harvest a very rare flower from the Barkilan Forrest during our last field trip.¡± ¡°Barkilan... Barkilan...¡± I mumbled, then I remembered where I heard the name. ¡°That''s beside Gravelite Mountain Valley in the eastern part of the kingdom, isn''t it? Mage Ridge mentioned it in geography class today.¡± Victoria smiled. ¡°I''m glad you were paying attention, David. Yes, that''s where it was. My students didn''t enjoy the constant bug bites or the stories about a group of large venomous snakes that guard the flower''s supposed sanctuary.¡± ¡°They didn''t even try to go in to help you?¡± I asked. ¡°No, and they refused to let me go alone.¡± Victoria sighed. ¡°The whole trip was a bust.¡± ¡°Did you know how you were going to keep it alive or to cultivate it to grow more?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes, I''ve studied it extensively. Its medicinal properties are uncharted and it could revolutionize our outdated healing potion practices.¡± ¡°I might already be doing that.¡± I said and she gave me a skeptical look, so I took out the partially used one I had used on Emily''s fingers. ¡°Oh, my.¡± She said. ¡°May I?¡± I handed it over to her and she took a sip. ¡°Mmm. Nice. Very good flavor. I assume you used either raspilla grain or an equivalent?¡± ¡°An equivalent called jungle leaf extract.¡± I said. ¡°I don''t know what the real name is, only what it was called as I was growing up.¡± ¡°Ah, I see.¡± She said and took another sip, then she corked it and handed it back. ¡°It has quite a powerful effect. How much are you charging for it?¡± ¡°You know it''s for sale?¡± I asked and tucked it away. ¡°I talked to your course assignment worker.¡± Victoria said. ¡°I must say that general health potion is going to make you a fortune, especially once all the testimonials from the army personnel arrive to give it legitimacy.¡± ¡°What testimonials?¡± I asked and she laughed. ¡°I think you need to talk to your wife... ah, future wife... a bit more.¡± ¡°I''ve sent messages through servants, because we don''t want everyone to openly know that we actually care about each other.¡± I said to her surprise. ¡°We''re both quite busy with everything as well. I''m seeing her next month when the school goes on break for the king''s birthday.¡± Victoria gave me an odd look and then she smiled. ¡°Grab the squirter over there and give me a hand. The plants are marked for their water needs. Some need a light spray every day, others need a drench once a week. You''ll get a handle on it soon and you won''t even need to read the signs before you can do what I do and stand at the end of the row to do them all in a line.¡± I nodded and we both got to work. After half an hour, each of the plants and growths in the entire building''s main area was freshly watered. ¡°Excellent work, David.¡± Victoria said. ¡°We''ll handle feeding them after we spend an hour or so in the classroom. I need to see what you know and what I need to teach you before we get into the actual coursework.¡± We left the main area and went into a small classroom at the back of the building. There were only six desks and chairs in front of her small teaching desk. She handed me a towel and dried herself off as much as she could and I did as well. I was administered a quick test and she read over my answers. ¡°So, nearly completely ignorant on how to grow things.¡± Victoria said and I nodded. ¡°Excellent.¡± I raised my eyebrows at her and she laughed. ¡°It''s easier to fill an empty cup than it is to try to force out the old liquid by pouring in new.¡± Victoria said. ¡°I assume they gave you a book?¡± I took it out to show her that it was brand new and she laughed again. ¡°I think we are a dying breed, David. We''re rare people that actually care about growing things to make things easier for everyone.¡± ¡°I want to learn to grow my own potent potion ingredients.¡± I said and she gave me a huge smile. ¡°Now that is a very good goal to have. Very good.¡± ¡°You want to go back to Barkilan Forrest to get that flower.¡± I said. ¡°As soon as possible.¡± Victoria said. ¡°How does next weekend sound? I''ll need a week to get the permits renewed and to get a travel pass for us. Oh, and you''ll need to sign a danger waiver. If you die, the school can''t be held responsible and all that nonsense.¡± ¡°Nonsense?¡± I asked. ¡°You''ll be dead and won''t care who is responsible. You also won''t be around to spend any of the settlement you might get.¡± Victoria said with a laugh. I had to smile slightly at her logic. ¡°I don''t have any plans.¡± ¡°Excellent!¡± Victoria said happily and stood up. Her breasts could still clearly be seen through her dried white shirt and they jiggled enticingly as her nipples decided to make another appearance. She saw me looking and she stepped close to look into my eyes. ¡°Tell me what you are thinking.¡± ¡°I think you don''t wear undergarments because they will get wet and would be ruined for no reason.¡± I said, honestly. It was the only explanation I could come up with. ¡°What if I told you that I like having young men stare at me while wearing see-through clothes?¡± ¡°That would be another reason. Do you want that?¡± I asked and wondered what she was thinking. ¡°No, I do not.¡± She said. Yes, I like it a lot. She thought at the same time. ¡°Are you married?¡± I asked. ¡°I was. He died in the last battle at the mountain front.¡± Victoria said, her voice sad; but, her thoughts were full of anger. The idiot accepted the young prince''s order to charge into a prepared enemy and they both were lost, along with their entire brigade! She sighed as her shoulders slumped. ¡°I regret that the kracken tubes weren''t produced in enough numbers to be brought over to the mountain front until after that battle.¡± ¡°Would it have made a difference?¡± I asked. ¡°Even at a disadvantage, they could have...¡± Victoria shook her head. ¡°They arrived when they could. If the Mages Guild wasn''t so damn slow in making them...¡± She shook her head again. ¡°It''s over now and the kingdom is in a cease fire. They should have lots of time to make more of them and get them dispersed to all the other places that need them.¡± The enemy also has time to build up their own forces. I thought with a nod. ¡°Come on. Let''s get back out there and I''ll show you what we do to feed all the little darlings that are now under your care as well as mine.¡± Victoria said and I followed her out into the main growing area and she started showing me all of the various things needed for the proper care of the plants there. I made sure to glance at her chest at random times to look at her bouncing breasts and protruding nipples, because she liked it when she caught me. I picked up a few random thoughts about her feeling both desired by a handsome young man and also feeling safe, because she knew that I would never cross that line with her. 157 Academy Antics Part Twenty Five - A Long Night The afternoon class ended and I left there with my hair slightly damp. I went right to the potions classroom and Mage Marks was already there. I didn''t ask her what other classes or students she taught, or if she ever left the room when she didn''t have to. It wasn''t really any of my business what she did. I also had another long list of ingredients, the ones being grown in the Botany workshop, and I took out my lists from the library and the Advanced Potions book, to see what they could be used for or if they were able to be used at all. I suspected some weren''t viable, just because of the artificial environment, and wouldn''t know until I tested them. Mage Marks didn''t comment at the piles of papers on my desk and she would only smile when I glanced up myself to catch her looking at me. I took out the maps next that I had copied over at the library and cross referenced them with all of the lists I had. It was a time consuming process, so for the next several hours, I worked out where a lot of the ingredients could be found. Roughly, anyway. I wouldn''t be able to pinpoint anything until Eludora and I dug out the more detailed maps of each region. I was sure that Mage Julia King... Victoria... would be delighted when I showed her my work. My detention ended and I went home to get something to eat. As soon as I was inside the mansion, I asked Hope if she bothered showing up today for lunch. Hope shook her head. ¡°I don''t want to keep taking the chance that they are going to keep finding ways to stop you from eating.¡± She said. ¡°Please, don''t keep trying to figure out ways to sneak better food from the other tables.¡± I thought about arguing that I had a few more tricks I could use, then sighed. ¡°I have to agree. They haven''t learned anything that I''ve tried to teach them. I''ll refuse to go from now on.¡± ¡°We can make you lunch, too!¡± The kitchen helper said from the closed kitchen door. Hope laughed. ¡°The walls have ears, apparently.¡± ¡°All right. I''ll come back here for lunch every day.¡± I agreed and there were two cheers from the kitchen. ¡°I think they are both enjoying showing off their acquired skills.¡± Hope said and the front door opened and Sara came in. ¡°Speaking of which...¡± ¡°My lord.¡± Sara said and handed me a sealed letter. She had a serious face on for the first time in a while, so I opened the letter without waiting until later. It was from Helena. My dearest David, The antics of the students and staff at the academy have come to my attention and I''ve already sent inquiries to both the Mages Guild and the Director of the Academy. I refused to contact my father directly over this, so I went behind his back and filed formal complaints that have been officially registered. I am both happy and nervous over this. Father won''t be pleased about his role in what''s going on at the academy coming to light. I''m not sure anyone else has the authority to change anything that''s happened; but, at least it''s all on the record now and no one can hide what happened anymore. Please be sure to send me word with Sara of any more incidents. I''ll register them as soon as I get them. My uncle has contacted me, practically out of the blue, about studying the full movement enchantment from you. I refused. We both know it''s my father trying to work his way back into my life and also trying to get your secrets before the wedding. I think he believes if you don''t have any leverage, you''ll give up on this whole endeavour. Little does he realize how tenacious you and I are. Neither of us will be letting the other go. Vanessa''s family has contacted me and we have a tentative meeting set for when the academy shuts down for the king''s birthday next month. I want you here for any negotiations that involve you, since you are as much a partner in this venture as I am. I also want to see how she acts around you to gauge her sincerity. If she truly only wants a child, I may have to refuse. When I rescued you from the army, I promised you that no one would use you again. I intend to keep that promise and I won''t allow anyone to take advantage of you. You are not a stud to be rented or loaned out to every mare that wants to breed. I know that you probably won''t object to being treated like that, especially if it gains us much more influence as a family, so I''ll do my best to balance our needs with the requirements for that need. I''ve practically sold out of both the potions and the fancy tables, with only a few crates of potion and half a dozen tables left. Our accounts at the bank have grown exponentially and I''ve had Carson visit us personally to thank us for choosing him to handle our affairs. He embodied a boot-licker persona yesterday and if I hadn''t stopped him, he might have stayed on his knees for the entire visit. It was quite amusing to the staff, I must say. Mother has had some of her house staff over practically every day to ask me to come visit. I refused, since a Henrietta always keeps their word and I won''t ever step foot back in the main family mansion. I am the lady of my own house now. If she wants to see me, she needs to swallow her judgment of you and defy my father to come here. I suspect she will cave in when the baby starts showing in my belly.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it Did you know that my father nearly destroyed the parlour when he heard I was pregnant? Oh, the delight that gave me. You were right, dearest. Having the paperwork filed and him getting the notice at the same time as the rest of the mages council was a stroke of genius. I''ve had two healers here to confirm the pregnancy, one from the Mages Guild and one from the capital. They were quite shocked that the baby would have the Henrietta name and marked it in their ledgers. It''s quite rare for a non-concubine to have a child with their own family name. You are turning society on its ear and it''s quite amusing to witness their reactions first hand. I''ll remember all of their normally stoic faces filled with shock and surprise for quite some time. I think that''s all I have to talk about for now. If anything else comes up, I''ll be sure to send it along with Sara. She''s been diligent in her duty to you and making sure that we stay in contact with each other, which is more than I could ever ask of her. I am so glad that you''re doing well, despite the actions of the academy, and it has eased my heart. As long as we persevere, nothing can stand against us. All my love, Helena. I folded the letter and tucked it into my bandoleer inside my academy coat. ¡°I think I need a quick bath before supper.¡± Sara''s eyes seemed to light up. ¡°Yes, my lord! I''ll start it right now!¡± She took off up the stairs and we heard water running almost immediately. ¡°I''ll let Sara handle it alone this time and I''ll help the kitchen helper instead.¡± Hope said with a knowing smile and walked down the hallway to go into the kitchen. I went upstairs and Sara helped me undress, making sure to keep everything properly folded. Some water splashed onto the floor when she tilted the coat up a bit and she laughed. ¡°You had Botany today and you left your coat on with all that moisture around?¡± Sara asked with a huge smile and I nodded. ¡°I''ll have Hope dig out the dirt and soil from the cracks and crevasses in the fabric later.¡± I had a very nice bath as Sara was quite diligent in cleaning me up. She scrubbed me everywhere and left her favorite place for last, which she was quite vigorous in cleaning today, then her ritual was over and she helped me dress in comfortable pants and shirt. I slipped on my bandoleer and we went down to eat supper with Hope and then it was time to study again. This time, there was a change. I now had access to a lot of information that I had written out, so I opened the vault in my room and took out the potion and ingredient book I had in my old pack. Both Hope and Sara stared at the large and very expensive looking book. Neither of them commented as I closed the vault and went to my desk and then I laid out everything that I had gathered. Hopefully, I now had exactly what I needed to complete the potions listed in the book and to actually read the words under the ingredients, since a lot of it was written in mage language. I spent the rest of the evening and a lot of the night going through the book and matching it to the lists and maps I had. I also confirmed the ingredient preparations that the book had. They almost completely matched what I had, with only a few slightly off details, like the times to dissolve if using pre-boiled water. I sat back in my chair at three in the morning and stared at the latest list that I had compiled. I had to check the front of the book several times to confirm how old the book was, because some of the ingredients in the book were so rare that they didn''t exist anymore. That was all right, because both my own experience with the ingredients in the marsh and the lists I had gained from the library and the advanced potions book, let me make the needed substitutions. The best part, it actually made the potions simpler. That made them less powerful than the original; but, I''d rather have a slightly lower powered version than none. Plus, with my catalyst and an extra powerful infusion, I could compensate for the substitutions. ¡°David... you should... go to bed.¡± Hope said, her voice barely above a whisper. She was half-asleep on the bed and looked quite comfortable. ¡°Early day... and... zzzzz...¡± I took my time and packed everything away into the vault. I wasn''t going to carry the new things around with me, because no one was going to know what I wanted to do. I tucked the blanket over Hope and left my room to go to my potion brewing room. I had some work to do for Eludora and the library. With my newly acquired knowledge, I had almost no trouble at all adapting the waterproofing potion. I didn''t start brewing it, however. I had to adapt the fortifying potion first. Thanks to my copy ingredient trick that let me save on ingredients, I wasn''t bothered by taking several tries to successfully brew the altered fortifying potion. Once it was done, I filled six of the other pots with waterproofing potion and added in a vial of fortifying potion into each about midway through the brewing process. They came out perfectly and I discovered another problem. I didn''t have many empty vials left to use. I had used up nearly all of what I had to load up the work crews that were back at the Henrietta Longshore Estate and were still building the retaining wall around the entire property. I''ll need to grab a few dozen crates from the potions classroom. I thought and looked out the window. It was starting to get light out, which meant that I had stayed up all night. I dug a general health potion out of my bandoleer and drank it. It had been a while since the last time I had one and I let the energy flow through me as I filled the empty vials in my bandoleer with the new fortifying waterproof potion. The general health potion perked me right up and I closed and locked the room, just in case. I didn''t want anyone to potentially hurt themselves if they entered the room to see what I was brewing. I had left the potions on a low wildwood flame to keep them viable. I went to my room and Hope was whimpering a little and clutched my pillow tightly. I ignored her antics and changed for school. I had basic biology and creature studies for first class and had the rest of the morning off. I also had Civil Construction all afternoon and smiled at the thought of what that was going to entail, especially if the teacher started to lecture me over the proper way to build things. I ran my hand over the row of number ten potion vials I had in my bandoleer and nodded. I''ll show him how to build properly. If he asks. I thought with amusement as I picked up my small bag with my school books and then I left my bedroom to go eat a quick breakfast. I was going to be very early for class today. 158 Academy Antics Part Twenty Six - Biologic Construction Part One Once again, a new classroom was posted on the old one and I went there, only to discover that it was dark inside and locked. I was tempted to enter anyways, then decided I didn''t want to break the academy rules so blatantly. I went back out of the building to wait for the other students and met up with Vanessa, who looked very happy. ¡°I just heard from my mother and she''s agreed to come! We have an appointment for next month with Mage Henrietta at your estate.¡± Vanessa gushed as she took my offered arm and hugged it. ¡°Thank you for suggesting she come along. She''s very happy!¡± ¡°So are you.¡± I said and she laughed softy as I led her and the other girls to the proper classroom. Mage Justin Brown looked like someone that had just graduated. He was bright eyed and eager as we all entered the room. ¡°I''m the luckiest man in the world.¡± He said and didn''t even try to lower his voice. ¡°All of you lovely young women are a sight for sore eyes.¡± ¡°Oh, yeah?¡± Lorna said and squinted her eyes at him as she walked by his desk. ¡°Say one more thing to imply that we''re only here for you to ogle at and I''ll set your stupid hairdo on fire.¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± Mage Brown tried to cover his poofy and styled hair. ¡°We''re here to learn and not be stared at.¡± Lorna said with a huff. ¡°I''d rather have someone teach us that can keep their eyes to themselves, thank you.¡± The teacher''s face flushed red and he tried to not look at her shapely figure in her academy uniform. ¡°You''ve been warned.¡± Lorna said with a mean voice and went over to sit at her chosen desk. Her opinion was shared by the other girls, even the ever-shy Vanessa, because she whispered the same sentiment to me. ¡°Ah... well... ahem.¡± Mage Brown said and dropped his hands from protecting his hair. ¡°I know it looks like I''m a lot younger than the other teachers at this school...¡± ¡°...I can still see the three on your pocket.¡± One of the girls commented. Mage Brown used a hand and pat the spot that would have had the school emblem on his academy uniform coat, except he was wearing mage robes. That made a lot of the girls giggle and laugh under their breath. He sighed and looked at us with an apologetic face. ¡°Look, I need this job. If you don''t tease me about my age, I promise that I''ll do my best to not stare too much at such beautiful and tempting creatures as yourselves.¡± Mage Brown said. Two of the girls blushed slightly, half a dozen seemed to shake their heads at his shamelessness, and the rest let out huffs. None of them openly rejected his offer, however. Mage Brown smiled. ¡°All right. Has anyone opened the book?¡± No one answered or tried to open the books on their desks. ¡°No? Well, that''s understandable. Most people think that biology of creatures is beneath them.¡± Mage Brown said. ¡°They are quite wrong about that.¡± Lorna rolled her eyes and the teacher chuckled at her reaction. ¡°How do you quickly kill a charging boar?¡± Mage Brown asked her and she didn''t respond. ¡°Anyone?¡± I raised my hand and he nodded. ¡°There are three ways. One, distract it with noise and slice its throat if you can get close enough. It''ll thrash around and bleed out in about two minutes. Two, lure it into a trap, either a man made hole of spikes or a natural trap like a trench of water. They''re heavily muscular and will drown before being able to crawl out.¡± Everyone in the class was looking at me now. ¡°Three, if you can''t avoid the direct charge path, your best defense is a spear or metal pole braced on the ground with your foot. The boar''s own momentum will let you skewer its chest. The optimal spot is three inches from the collarbone on the right hand side. It''ll go right down the inside of the rib cage and through the heart. It should die after about three minutes. If you miss the heart, the spear will keep it distracted and you can utilize option number one to slice its throat.¡± Mage Brown seemed to be at a loss for words. ¡°How many have you killed?¡± Vanessa asked in a whisper. ¡°I''ve killed a few dozen...¡± I started to say and she caught her breath. ¡°No way!¡± Lorna exclaimed. ¡°...each year for about six years.¡± I finished and even the teacher looked shocked. ¡°It''s quite tasty when stewed properly for several days. The tusks and pelts go for a good price, too.¡± Silence greeted my words and I looked around at the other students that all looked surprised. ¡°You all know I lived in the marsh my whole life. I have to hunt animals to eat properly. I couldn''t live on just the supplies I can buy at the nearby village.¡± ¡°What kinds of animals?¡± One of the girls asked.This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. ¡°All kinds. Diamond back snake, near-deer, marsh rabbit, water beast...¡± ¡°Water beast!¡± Mage Brown exclaimed. ¡°They''re pretty easy to hunt if you''re careful. If you''re not careful, the sneaky things can toss your boat and you''ll be eaten for supper and not the other way around.¡± I said, then I continued to tell them about all of the creatures I had killed in the marsh and how I did it. I wouldn''t normally talk so much; but, it was biology class on creatures. It was good to tell the others that even if they get trapped somewhere without rations, there were other food options available for them. I had used up a quarter of the class time before Mage Brown finally figured out that he should be the one teaching the class and not me. ¡°Thank you for passing on all of that information, Mr. Drake.¡± Mage Brown said. ¡°I''m sure that none of us are going to need to know how to handle a death spider brood.¡± ¡°As long as the garrisons continue to use the techniques and traps that I told them about to keep the spiders at bay and contained within the marsh, no one should have to worry.¡± I said and a few of the girls gave me worried looks. ¡°I asked Chief Warrant Officer Gary Stromboli to add it to the normal debriefing and the manuals they give out for new soldiers at the garrisons near the marsh front. They even send out patrols with mages casting flame spells to clear out the smaller nests every month.¡± The girls let out sighs of relief and Vanessa took my hand and squeezed it. ¡°Thank you, David.¡± Vanessa breathed the words. ¡°Well.¡± Mage Brown said and looked like he wasn''t sure how to continue. ¡°What''s the first creature we''re going to study?¡± I prompted. ¡°Yes, right.¡± Mage Brown said and opened the book. ¡°I think the first thing we should study is the near-beaver. It''s population locally has been suppressed, thanks to the efforts by local hunters and mages stopping their dam construction.¡± ¡°Suppressed? You mean killed, don''t you?¡± One of the girls asked. ¡°Can''t they be relocated?¡± ¡°They breed much too quickly to attempt to move them to another area. We would be just shifting their damage capabilities and not dealing with the problem.¡± Mage Brown replied. ¡°They also taste great chunked up with mushrooms and water bank tubers on skewers.¡± I said and once again gained everyone''s attention. ¡°I hope they aren''t wasting all that meat. Even smoked it would last for months.¡± Mage Brown looked to be at a loss for words. I saw his reaction and sighed. ¡°Never mind. I can see from the look on your face that they just dispose of them. What a waste.¡± Everyone was silent for several minutes and Vanessa''s hand clutched mine tightly as she gave me a sympathetic look. ¡°Yes, I... suppose.¡± Mage Brown took a breath and let it out. ¡°Anyway, the most vulnerable spot on them is their belly, since it lacks both thick fur or any hardened or calloused skin...¡± The class seemed to pass by in the blink of an eye and half the morning was gone. As I left the room, several of the girls gave me sad smiles and Vanessa gave me a hug and walked off. Even Lorna touched my arm briefly and then she went with the others. I had the rest of the morning off, so I went right over to the classroom that Mage Marks used and saw that no one was inside. I also saw that the door was locked both magically and physically, just like she did at the end of every detention. I glanced outside to see how much time I had left before lunch and held in my sigh. I didn''t want to waste my time running around looking for the teacher to get some empty potion vials from the room, so I went to the main administration building for the academy and asked the woman that sat at the front desk how I could find Mage Marks to ask her about retrieving some potion vials. The woman gave me an incredulous look. ¡°I''m not bothering her or disturbing her with your trivialities. You will have to wait for her to go to her classroom on her own.¡± ¡°Where is she now?¡± I asked, in the hopes that rewording the question would get me an answer. ¡°That''s none of your business.¡± The woman spat. ¡°I''m not telling you where she spends her off time.¡± I knew I wasn''t going to get anywhere with her, so I left and went to the library to Eludora''s delight. She was still almost giddy from having normal endurance and gave me an enthusiastic hug as soon as she saw me. ¡°I hope you''ve brought more potion to treat the maps.¡± Eludora said and then let out a little moan as I gripped her backside. ¡°I really should stop you from doing that.¡± She said in a teasing voice and then she chuckled. ¡°It''s just too bad that I don''t want you to, isn''t it?¡± ¡°I did bring more potion. I would have brought over a crate or two, except I can''t get into the potions classroom without Mage Marks being there.¡± ¡°I assume you tried looking for her?¡± ¡°I went to the administration building and asked for her. They wouldn''t tell me where she was or when she would be back.¡± Eludora sighed. ¡°I don''t know why they couldn''t just send a message to her.¡± ¡°They said that they didn''t want to interrupt her during her personal time.¡± ¡°I suppose that''s a good reason.¡± Eludora said and waved at the map room. ¡°Let''s treat the ones you''ve built already and we will have to be happy about getting that much done for now.¡± I nodded and we worked for the rest of the morning until the lunch bell rang. ¡°Thank you very much, David.¡± Eludora said and looked at the stacks of maps we already had. ¡°We might have to pull out some of the existing shelves to make a good place to set them up and keep them off the floor.¡± ¡°I think we have to wait to get one side cleared out first before we need to worry about that and to get the room we need to do it.¡± I said and waved at the piles of scrolled maps on the shelves. ¡°Doing the already flat ones is easy.¡± Eludora nodded and gripped my shoulder. ¡°You''re right. We can worry about that when we make enough room to move around in here.¡± She let my shoulder go. ¡°Go and get something to eat. I''ll see you the next time you can spare me some more time.¡± ¡°Bye, Eludora.¡± I said and went down the stairs, through the crowds going up to the cafeteria, and left the building. I quickly walked to my dorm mansion and the guards out front opened the door for me. I nodded to them and entered. ¡°My lord.¡± Hope said and bowed slightly. ¡°Lunch is ready.¡± I gave her an odd look and she laughed a little. ¡°I''m practising to make sure I don''t get rusty. If anyone else had been with you, I wouldn''t want them to think I wasn''t giving you the proper respect.¡± I understood that, so I nodded and she led me to the dining room. I sat by myself at the large table and she sat by herself at the small table. It seemed to make the place kind of empty with just us there and I think that was the point of why we were only allowed one servant for the first year. Of course, I haven''t seen what the real student dorms were like. Maybe they didn''t have the room in the smaller buildings. I finished lunch quickly and thanked the kitchen helper, told her to give my compliments to the chef, and Hope checked me over to make sure I looked and smelled okay to go back to school. I gave her another odd look and she laughed. ¡°I think Helena would hurt me if I let you out of the house and you showed up among the rich idiots smelling bad.¡± Hope said with a huge smile. ¡°They don''t need more excuses to not like you.¡± I had to agree with that and left the mansion to go to the civil construction workshop. 159 Academy Antics Part Twenty Seven - Biologic Construction Part Two I went to the classroom that was off to the side of the main construction area and wasn''t surprised to only see young men inside the room that were already seated. What was a surprise was that the math teacher was the civil construction teacher, too. I had seen him in the civil construction workshop covered with sawdust, which apparently made him unrecognizable. Even though they were both called Mage Quintos, I hadn''t made the connection that they were the same person until now. ¡°Mr. Drake, please sit anywhere you like.¡± Mage Quintos said and pointed to the only empty seat that was right at the front of the classroom. Nearly the entire class laughed at the joke. I walked over to the seat and sat down without taking out the book from my pack. ¡°This class requires you to reference the book.¡± Mage Quintos said and motioned to the other guys in the room that all had their books out. ¡°You''re only giving us an introductory lecture for the first class, unless you expect all of your students to be able to understand any instructions you give for the practical class this afternoon. Then again, I don''t know what you''re going to have us do. Maybe it''s simple enough that even someone that''s never made anything with their hands can do it?¡± The teacher gave me a bit of a glare. ¡°I''ll be the one to dictate what is taught in this class. If your work in the math courses at the beginning of the week is any indication, you''ll need to pay attention to what I teach you here in order to build a proper house for your family.¡± ¡°I built one for myself back in the marsh where I grew up, restored a mansion for my new family, and rebuilt the dorm where I live.¡± Mage Quintos chuckled. ¡°That''s different from building a real building.¡± ¡°Didn''t my course assigner tell you about my army career or where I worked for the entire time I was there?¡± I asked and he didn''t answer. ¡°I was assigned to the maintenance department under the best engineer in the army and I built two garrisons and enough support buildings and housing for three thousand troops. Twice.¡± ¡°Not by yourself, surely.¡± Mage Quintos said, his voice smug. ¡°No, even though I could.¡± I responded. ¡°They needed to be done quickly and more hands makes quicker work.¡± The teacher nodded. ¡°You still don''t have the proper knowledge to...¡± ¡°The home I built all by myself in the marsh is 60 feet wide by 60 feet long by 10 feet high at the base, made of solid stone five inches thick. The pitched wooden roof that''s a solid ten inches thick is 60 feet high at the peak.¡± I said and he stared at me. ¡°I had just started to learn basic math when I built it.¡± ¡°How did you measure everything if you didn''t know any math?¡± One of the guys asked me. ¡°I used a stick.¡± I said and was met with disbelieving looks. ¡°I played around with a boat design and figured out how to read parts of it, found out how long a foot was and made a bunch of sticks the same size, then laid them out to mark off what I wanted.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Mage Quintos whispered. ¡°It must be a shoddy death trap if all you knew was...¡± ¡°I told you. It''s completely solid. I even put bracers and support beams on the inside of the roof, just in case one of the larger creatures got past my wards and landed on it. I don''t want to go back there and have to rebuild it.¡± I said and he didn''t say anything back. ¡°What''s the task going to be after lunch?¡± ¡°Using the proper techniques to measure and cut wood pieces to the right size and then construct a basic box with a handle.¡± ¡°Can I do that now?¡± I asked and a few of the guys laughed. ¡°The practical part of the class isn''t until this afternoon.¡± Mage Quintos said. ¡°Can I leave right after I do it?¡± I asked. Mage Quintos sighed. ¡°Mr. Drake, you are trying my patience.¡± ¡°It''s a waste of time for me to sit around for most of the day to do something that I can do in about two minutes.¡± I said and the entire class burst out laughing. ¡°You''re hilarious!¡± ¡°That''s funny!¡± ¡°I''d like to see that!¡± ¡°Ha ha ha!¡± Most of the guys in the class said at the same time and kept laughing. Mage Quintos gave me a full glare this time, then he turned around and went behind his desk. He picked up a small canvas bag and a plank. ¡°I brought these with me to show the class what they would be working with today.¡± The teacher balanced the plank on his desk and dropped the canvas bag on top of it. He added a saw and a hammer, then walked over to me and handed me a piece of paper with writing on it. ¡°Here are the dimensions of the wood pieces and the assembly instructions.¡± Mage Quintos said. ¡°I''ve changed my mind and I''ll let you try, since you already know everything.¡± He waved at his desk and the supplies there. ¡°Go ahead. I''ll even be generous and give you a full three minutes. If you succeed, you won''t have to attend the practical class. If you fail, you''ll have to do twice as much work as everyone else for the next month.¡± I stood up and went to the teacher''s desk. Most of the dimensions for the pieces could be cut directly from the plank without having to measure the width. I pushed the hammer and saw aside and tied the canvas bag to my hip, then took out my magic knife and charged it. There were shouts of disbelief and shock as it glowed, then the sounds were cut off as I expertly cut out the pieces with barely a glance.The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. I took out a vial of number ten potion and dabbed it sparingly to attach the wood together into the bottom and sides of the box and let it set. I opened the canvas bag and dumped out the contents to see what was there. I dug out the two hinges and the handle and used my knife to make four small incisions on the box and the lid. I slid the hinges inside the wood with a drop of number ten potion and used a drop as I attached the handle. ¡°There. It''s built.¡± I said and complete silence greeted me. ¡°If my counting is right, that was just over two minutes.¡± Mage Quintos looked stunned. ¡°Now that it''s assembled, I can add the finishing touches.¡± I said and used some number ten potion to finish all the edges and the sides to make it smooth, then used some fortifying waterproof potion to treat the wood. It changed the wood to a nice aged look and hardened it to perfection. ¡°Three minutes was plenty of time.¡± Everyone stared at me and Mage Quintos looked like he was unable to speak. ¡°If I had another minute or two, I would have added some nice inlays or carvings, perhaps even some gold filigree.¡± I said as I picked up the finished box and then I walked over to the teacher to hand it to him. ¡°See you next week.¡± No one said a word as I walked out of the classroom. I quickly walked over to the main classroom building and went inside to check and see if Mage Marks was in her classroom. She was and it looked like she was teaching a class. I saw the number 2 on everyone''s academy coats that were hung on the back of their chairs. They had just started the class and the teacher was talking about the need of keeping the more volatile potions limited to a smaller pot, that way if anything went wrong, there wouldn''t be as much damage. I thought about sneaking in and trying to stay unnoticed, then realized that might piss Mage Marks off. I knocked when she paused in her talk and she turned her head to look at the door. She saw my face in the window and her own face seemed to turn sad. Mage Marks walked over to the door and opened it. ¡°Mr. Drake, I''m sorry about how the secretary handled your interaction this morning.¡± She apologized and it seemed to be genuine. ¡°I''ve reprimanded her for her behavior and reminded her of the proper procedure when a student comes and asks for the help of a teacher. I assure you that she won''t be repeating her mistake.¡± I reached out and took her hand, bent over it, and brushed my lips over her knuckles. ¡°Thank you.¡± Mage Marks'' face flushed red and a few of the girls in the class made ''aww'' sounds as the guys made ''ooo'' sounds. Thankfully, they were too constrained by social protocols to shout and holler like the work crews would. She would have been really embarrassed if that had happened. ¡°Please, take the crates you need.¡± Mage Marks said as she took her hand back and waved at the side of the room. ¡°I''ll only take three crates of vials and will keep reusing them, even though I need a lot more than that to store what I''ve made.¡± I said and entered the classroom. ¡°If I make anything else, can I come back and get more?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°I''m sorry that I wasn''t here. I was...¡± I held a hand up to stop her from continuing. ¡°I think part of what the secretary said was correct. I don''t have the right to know where you are when not in class. That''s your private time and I didn''t want to disturb you, which is why I didn''t press the matter or asked for someone with more authority to handle my request.¡± Everyone started mumbling and chatting in whispers. I picked up three crates of empty vials and turned back to her. ¡°Thank you, Mage Marks.¡± I said and bowed with respect, then walked over to the door and used my elbow to close the door behind me. ¡°Did that just happen?¡± One of the guys asked. ¡°I thought he was a marsh rat! How did he know how to...¡± ¡°That''s enough.¡± Mage Marks said with a very good imitation command voice. ¡°If I hear you speaking like that again, you''ll be spending the rest of the afternoon in detention. That goes for all of you.¡± There were no responses. ¡°Now, back to the lesson. As I was saying...¡± I walked away with a bit of a smile on my face, because it was a bit comforting to know that she wasn''t only enforcing that in my own class like I thought. I left the building and walked back to my dorm mansion. I went inside and up to my potion room, then filled out all three cases of vials. I still had three pots of fortifying waterproof potion and most of the pot of fortifying potion left to crate up. I left there and went all the way back to the student administration building and up to the third floor. ¡°Ah, David. Back so soon?¡± Eludora asked and then she saw what I carried. ¡°Oh, my.¡± ¡°I have three more crates worth back at the dorm.¡± I said and her face showed a lot of happiness. ¡°That''s wonderful! I''ll start working on the others while you go to class.¡± ¡°I''m off for the rest of the day, so I''m here to work.¡± I said as I put the crates on her desk and she beamed a smile at me. ¡°Is there something better than wonderful? Stupendous, maybe?¡± Eludora laughed and stood up. ¡°You''re so efficient that we might just get that side of the room cleared up today.¡± ¡°It''ll be close. The smaller ones will take more time, because of the many cuts and adjustments needed.¡± Eludora nodded. ¡°Yes, the people that did them didn''t have a single standard size that they all used and everything is a mess.¡± I thought about that for a minute. ¡°Well, we could check them all first and see what the biggest of the smaller ones are, then I can make the frames the same size as that and they''ll all stack properly.¡± Eludora looked surprised for a moment and then she laughed. ¡°You''re going to make this old lady fall in love with you.¡± ¡°You''re not old. Diane is older than you.¡± I said and she laughed a bit more. ¡°We''re both almost twice your age, and yet...¡± Eludora shook her head. ¡°No, I won''t question it. Let''s get to work and implement your fantastic idea.¡± That''s what we did. For the entire afternoon, I made exact sized frames to mount the different sized maps and treated them. As each one was completed, Eludora''s mood improved and she nearly giggled by the time we had finished one side of the room and emptied the shelves there. We had actually completed it much quicker than she thought we could, or so she said, and then she asked me to remove some of the shelves so that we could stack the treated maps on them. ¡°If we put them on their sides like books instead of stacking them, we can write on the sides like the spines of books and you can easily pull them out without potentially knocking the stacks over.¡± I said. Eludora gave me a look I couldn''t decipher. ¡°David, what other ideas do you have to make this room better?¡± ¡°Um... let me think.¡± I said and stood there for a few minutes as I considered it. ¡°If I go and get my enchanting tools, I can add weight enchantments to the larger frames to make them easier for you to handle. They would barely use any magic, since the wood isn''t nearly as heavy as a kracken tube projectile.¡± Eludora stared at me with shock on her face. ¡°Y-yes, I... I think that would be very beneficial for me.¡± She said and touched my face. ¡°Thank you, David. Thank you very much.¡± Before she could do anything else, the bell rang. ¡°If I come up with anything else, I''ll let you know.¡± I packed up what I had used and cleaned up the area, then put the wood pieces back into the hand cart by the doorway. ¡°I''ll leave the crate of empty vials here for now.¡± Eludora nodded and I left the library to go to detention. It would be my last one for the week. 160 Academy Antics Part Twenty Eight - The Weekend Visit Part One I made it to the potions classroom and Mage Marks was talking to two of the young women from the class. I stopped walking and backed out to give them privacy, which they easily noticed. They finished their conversation with the teacher and then walked by me as they left the classroom. Both girls gave me interested looks and then giggled a little as they disappeared down another corridor. I entered the classroom and went to my seat behind my usual workbench. I hadn''t brought anything potion related with me this time, because I had put it all into my vault that morning. Mage Marks gave me an odd look, one that was quite different from the one Eludora gave me before, because I just sat there and didn''t do anything. ¡°David? Aren''t you going to study?¡± ¡°I left my potion things inside the vault in my dorm mansion.¡± I said and she caught her breath. ¡°Excuse me? What did you say?¡± She asked, a bit shocked. ¡°I left them at the dorm.¡± I repeated. ¡°No, about the other thing.¡± ¡°The vault?¡± I asked and she started to nod and then she shook her head. ¡°The dorm?¡± Mage Marks nodded. ¡°Did you call it a mansion?¡± It was my turn to nod. ¡°Only I was allowed to live there, so I converted it into a mansion with all of the amenities that I would need.¡± ¡°Wait, what do you mean that only you were allowed to live there?¡± ¡°You know they assigned me to the ruined dorm building on the other side of campus, didn''t you?¡± Mage Marks sighed. ¡°Yes, I found out when I started looking into all of the things you''ve been involved in at the academy so far.¡± ¡°Since the paperwork assigned it solely to me and restricts any other student from living there, I converted it for my own use.¡± I said. ¡°If you like, you can come by to check it out.¡± Mage Marks seemed surprised by that. ¡°Are... are you inviting me over to your dorm room?¡± ¡°If you''re worried about the dorm manager, there isn''t one. It was classed as unsafe and written off as an unofficial training ground for the students, until it became too dangerous for them to use and was condemned.¡± ¡°They assigned you to live... in a condemned building.¡± Mage Marks said with a blank expression. ¡°It wasn''t even safe to step inside.¡± I said. ¡°I sent for my work crews and we started work right away.¡± ¡°We?¡± Mage Marks asked, once again surprised. ¡°I wasn''t going to let them do all the work by themselves. Plus, I''m still the fastest in laying foundation bricks. It definitely needed to be reinforced quickly.¡± Mage Marks had to think about that. ¡°You went from the ground up?¡± ¡°Basement up, actually.¡± I said. ¡°We replaced the missing supports and reinforced the existing ones, then rebuilt and replaced the walls of the basement. Once we had a solid foundation to build off of, we slowly repaired or replaced everything in the building.¡± Mage Marks looked deep in thought for several minutes. ¡°Then... yes. I believe I will accept your invitation to visit. Thank you.¡± ¡°Can you send a message to my maid, Hope? She can let the cook know that I''m having a guest over for supper.¡± Mage Marks raised her eyebrows briefly, then she nodded and left the room. She locked me in, as if she assumed that I was going to try and run off and skip detention without her in the room. That would be funny if I still disappeared on her. I thought and imagined her reaction, or overreaction. Yes, that would definitely be funny... until she assigned more detention. I dismissed the thought and sat there as I debated brewing up a quick potion while I waited for her to come back, then remembered I was only allowed to study and couldn''t do anything practical. Detention was supposed to be punishment and I let out a slight sigh. I should have brought a book or something. I thought, not even considering the biology book or the civil construction book that were in my small pack. I wasn''t going to look through them until I had to. Both subjects were much more interesting when you could do something with it, rather than read about it. After a while, the door was unlocked and a very different looking woman stepped into the classroom. It was still Mage Marks; but, she wore a very nice blue colored dress with intricately styled patterns throughout the fabric. It was similar to the one that Helena had worn during the first Henrietta Family dinner that I had been taken to. It was quite a nice dress and showed off her figure very well. The gold jewellery she wore was ornately decorated as well. Her hair was done up in a partial bun to leave her neck bare with one side of her hair done up in loose curls and it hung down over her left shoulder. I had never seen hair done like that before and it was quite eye catching. ¡°I can''t walk very fast in this footwear, so I''m ending your detention early.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°We should reach the old dorm building by the time supper is ready.¡± I understood what she meant, so I walked over to her and offered my arm to escort her. ¡°Thank you, Mr. Drake.¡± Mage Marks said graciously and took the arm to brace herself. ¡°Ahh, yes. Much better.¡± ¡°You could wear other footwear until we''re closer to our destination.¡± I suggested and she smiled. ¡°You''ve been taught about proper appearances, have you not?¡± Mage Marks asked. I waved at the door as if that was my answer and her smile stayed as I escorted her out of the room. She locked the door and we left the building. It was late, so no one was around. It made me wonder why she would go through all the trouble to dress up so nicely if no one was going to see. Just then, the door to the main administration building opened and several of the workers came out, including the one that had rebuffed me. She gasped at the sight of us and the others started muttering to each other. I no longer wondered why Mage Marks went through all the trouble. I nodded at them, as did Mage Marks, and we walked by the stunned people and continued to move at a leisurely pace on our walk. Neither of us were surprised when a few of them followed us. ¡°Oh, dear god in heaven.¡± Mage Marks whispered as we approached the old dorm building and she saw what it looked like now, especially with the well trimmed hedges and the various topiary of animals. ¡°Mr. Drake, it''s... it''s... beautiful.¡± ¡°We tried to find the room out front for a fountain and couldn''t manage it.¡± I said. ¡°It''s out back with the gazebo.¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± Mage Marks looked shocked. ¡°I''m going to be here for three years and made it both pleasant to look at and comfortably livable.¡± I said and nodded at the guards. They opened the ornate and gold filigreed front doors and I led Mage Marks up the short flight of steps. ¡°Sir, are the people behind you coming in as well?¡± One of the guards asked in a whisper. ¡°No, they are just looking at all the great work our people have done.¡± I said and both guards nodded in understanding. They shut the doors behind us and Hope was there with a huge smile on her face.If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°My lord. Lady Marks.¡± Hope said and gave us a proper curtsy. ¡°My lady, if you will come with me to the parlour to wait a short while? My lord needs to be prepared to receive you properly.¡± Mage Marks nodded as she let my arm go and then followed Hope into the very nicely decorated parlour. She took in a sharp breath at the room and Hope winked at me. ¡°Sara''s upstairs.¡± Hope whispered and shut the door. I quickly went up the stairs and Sara quickly stripped me off. I put my bandoleer into the vault and then took one of the quickest baths ever. We had to skip the ritual this time and Sara promised to do it as soon as my company left or the very next time she came over. I nodded as she dressed me into one of my best supper suits. It was a charcoal grey with a stark white shirt and black tie. I tucked the knife sheath under my arm like usual and put on the coat. The Henrietta Family logo was on the outside of the coat''s shoulders and she tucked a handkerchief of the same white color of the shirt into the front pocket. Sara brushed my hair for barely a second, since it was still fairly short, and sent me on my way with a happy smile. I went down the stairs and knocked on the parlour door before I entered. It was just common courtesy to give someone warning when you were going to interrupt them. Mage Marks looked over from her whispered conversation with Hope and her eyes widened at my very formal appearance. ¡°Please forgive my interruption. May I enter and enjoy your company as well?¡± I asked and her eyes somehow widened further. ¡°P-please.¡± Mage Marks said and set her tea cup down on the saucer in her other hand. I closed the door and walked over to sit beside her on the comfortable couch. Hope hid her smile as she did up a cup of tea for me and handed it to me. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and accepted the cup and saucer. I sat back and crossed my legs, as if I always did so, and took a sip of tea. It was almost at the perfect temperature, so I blew on it and took another sip. Perfect. ¡°I was just telling Mage Marks all about the things we had to do to fix up the dorm.¡± Hope said. ¡°You can give her a copy of the repairs list if you want.¡± I said. ¡°Perhaps the bill we submitted to the academy as well.¡± ¡°What?!?¡± Mage Marks gasped and her cup rattled a little as her hands shook on her lap. ¡°Well, under the boarding contract...¡± I started to say and then explained all about the provisions for improving the place to be suitably livable. Her mouth slowly opened as I talked, because the surprise she felt was too much for her to hold in. ¡°That... that''s... audacious.¡± Mage Marks whispered, barely above a breath. ¡°Oh, I doubt they''ll even acknowledge it, let alone admit that they owe me the money.¡± I said and smiled, which made Hope gasp and she stared at me. ¡°You see, I fully expect them to ignore what I''ve done here. If they acknowledge any aspect of what I''ve done, they''ll have to acknowledge all of it and not just the dorm.¡± Mage Marks closed her mouth and seemed to be thinking things over. There was a knock at the door and then the door opened. ¡°Sir, madam, Hope. Supper is ready.¡± The kitchen helper said and bowed, then left. I put the empty tea cup down, took the nearly empty one that Mage Marks was using and put it on the coffee table, then held a hand out to her. Mage Marks reacted automatically and accepted my offer as she stood and took my hand, then she shifted her grip expertly and wrapped her arm around mine. I escorted her to the dining room and sat her at the seat to my right, then turned to look at Hope. She subtly shook her head and sat down at the servant''s table without my help, which surprised Mage Marks. ¡°Mr. Drake...¡± Mage Marks started to say. ¡°We are eating at my table.¡± I said and sat down. ¡°Please, call me David.¡± Mage Marks took a breath to compose herself. ¡°David, can I ask why you have a servant eating in the same room?¡± ¡°I could lie and say there''s not a lot of room in the kitchen or that we don''t have a separate room for it.¡± I said with a light chuckle, which made her smile. ¡°The truth is, I have the same setup at the Henrietta Longshore Estate.¡± ¡°Why would you...¡± Mage Marks stopped herself before she finished the question. ¡°We have servers like normal, except they rotate for different meals, that way they all get to sit and share a meal with the lord and lady of the house.¡± I said and waved at the kitchen and let out a bit of magic. ¡°Helena agreed with me that they need to see that we appreciate their hard work by not hiding them away when we eat.¡± Mage Marks had taken a sharp breath at my casual use of magic, then the kitchen helper came out with a cart and served me a plate of food and a glass of wine, served Mage Marks the same, then went to Hope and gave her the same. Mage Marks glanced at Hope and back at me. ¡°You have a lot more staff at home?¡± ¡°Quite.¡± I said with a small smile and started to eat. ¡°My second maid was quite upset that she can''t live here with me.¡± Mage Marks gave me an odd look as she began eating. ¡°I suppose I can imagine why.¡± ¡°I hired her away from Grand Mage Henrietta''s mansion before she could be fired for a stupid reason.¡± I explained. ¡°She was very grateful.¡± Hope laughed softly and then coughed to try and cover it up, which made Mage Marks smile. ¡°Mage Marks, has there been any word on my boosted cleaning potion?¡± I asked. Mage Marks nodded. ¡°It''s one of the reasons I accepted your generous supper invitation.¡± She said and reached into a hidden pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper. ¡°If you are allowing me to use your first name, please call me Greta.¡± ¡°Very well.¡± I said and she put the piece of paper on the table beside my plate. ¡°What''s that?¡± ¡°An order.¡± Greta said, her voice a mixture of amusement and disbelief. ¡°A very ridiculous order.¡± I paused eating and picked up the folded piece of paper. When I read what it said, I was surprised. ¡°You''re right. That is ridiculous.¡± I said and sat back in my chair. I wanted to do it and that felt odd. ¡°What is it?¡± Hope asked. She knew better than to get up and come over to me to look for herself. ¡°An order for ten thousand vials of boosted cleaning potions from the Mages Guild.¡± I said and looked at Mage Marks with a question on my face. ¡°This bottom number...¡± ¡°...is the price they are willing to pay, not including the ingredients and vial costs.¡± Greta said and that really surprised me. ¡°If you agree, they will provide both the ingredients and the crates of empty vials.¡± ¡°Oh, wow.¡± Hope said, even though she didn''t know the amount of money they were willing to pay me, because she knew that ten thousand vials cost a lot, as did the ingredients to make that much potion. I sat there and read the note again. Something seemed off to me, because I felt like I needed to do this for the guild. I wasn''t sure why that was, however. I decided to try using Sense Magic and the note glowed slightly. Greta gasped as it did and dropped her fork. It clattered to the floor and she ignored it. ¡°No! That... why...¡± ¡°Obviously, they want me to do it.¡± I said and cast Dispel on it. The glow snapped and disappeared, as did the feeling that I needed to make all those potions. ¡°I knew there was something wrong with the ridiculous number. Ten thousand potions is too much for the Mages Guild to handle for their own personal use...¡± ¡°David!¡± Hope gasped and then blushed at her mistake. ¡°I mean, my lord.¡± ¡°What is it, Hope?¡± I asked. Hope tried to ignore Mage Marks'' smile. ¡°They were going to sell them.¡± I glanced at Mage Marks and she sighed. ¡°I''m going to wring the neck of that little...¡± Greta stopped before she uttered the threat fully. ¡°David, can I have that note back?¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I want to show it as evidence to the enchanting teachers to see if they can figure anything out from the paper, then I''m going to shove it down the Mages Guild maintenance manager''s goddamn throat.¡± Greta said, her voice full of anger. ¡°How dare they try to give you a compulsion enchantment through me! I''m so embarrassed!¡± ¡°You look angry, actually.¡± I said. ¡°When I finally burn through this anger tonight, I''ll be cuddled up in bed and hugging my pillow over them making me into a fool again.¡± Greta said through gritted teeth. ¡°I can''t believe that they... no, I do believe it. What I can''t believe is that I fell for their tricks again.¡± She shook her head. ¡°David, please forgive me for delivering this... this... piece of garbage.¡± ¡°Well, I suspect it''s them trying to get me to pay back some of the embarrassment they''ve suffered over losing their secret about the testing crystals.¡± I said and Greta sucked in a sharp breath. ¡°I''m a bit surprised that they waited this long to try something, actually.¡± Greta let out a sigh. ¡°I think... no, I''m pretty sure that...¡± She put her hand on mine and gave it a squeeze. ¡°I think that''s one of the reasons you''re having such a difficult time with some of the teachers and most of the staff at the academy. The guild lost a lot when they didn''t have access to all of that free magic.¡± ¡°It wasn''t free.¡± I corrected and her eyes widened. ¡°It cost a lot of people their magic potential.¡± Greta nodded, albeit reluctantly. ¡°The guild has already settled things with quite a few families of the people they''ve tested multiple times in the past.¡± That brought my mind right to my training XO, Anna Carter. They had tested her so many times that she couldn''t make a mage light glow for more than a few minutes. She could still make my knife glow, though. ¡°I don''t suppose you know what families?¡± I asked and she shook her head. ¡°No, I... I think... yes, I''m done.¡± Greta said, her voice firm. ¡°I''ve had enough of them and their stupid politics.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked. ¡°As long as you''re a member of the guild, I thought...¡± ¡°You thought wrong.¡± Greta said. ¡°I think you also have the wrong interpretation of what graduating the academy means as well.¡± I put the note down and reached over to cover her hand with mine. ¡°Tell me.¡± ¡°I''m sure that you believe that as soon as you graduate, you''ll be a mage in the guild.¡± Greta said and I nodded. ¡°That''s not what happens. When you graduate, you are accredited as a mage. That''s it.¡± ¡°What?¡± I asked, confused. ¡°I thought the point of graduating the mage academy was to join the guild.¡± Greta shook her head. ¡°No, David. All you''ll be is a mage when you graduate. You have to apply to be a mage with the guild. They don''t have to accept you.¡± I blinked my eyes for several moments as my thoughts tried to absorb that large chunk of vital information. It took me another minute to get my mouth to work and then I smiled. ¡°I won''t be stuck as a low member of the guild when I graduate.¡± I said and my smile grew bigger. ¡°David!¡± Hope gasped and tears came to her eyes as she saw something on my face. She stood up, a little shakily, then she walked over to me and knelt on the floor as she hugged me and cried. ¡°I saw it.¡± She whispered and pressed her lips to my cheek, then she hugged me even tighter. ¡°I saw your smile. Your real smile.¡± She breathed and her tears rolled off of my treated suit coat and fell to the floor. 161 Academy Antics Part Twenty Nine - The Weekend Visit Part Two Hope held me for several minutes, then she remembered where she was and let me go. ¡°I''m s-sorry, my lord.¡± She said and I handed her a napkin. ¡°Thank you.¡± She wiped at her face and looked at Mage Marks. ¡°My apologies, Lady Marks. That was very uncomely of me.¡± Greta gave her a knowing smile. ¡°It''s understandable. I can clearly tell that seeing a smile like that is very rare.¡± She looked at me. ¡°I''m glad that you care so much about your servants.¡± That statement made me remember how Helena''s brother Marcus... and probably a lot of the nobles... treated their servants. The problem was that there was nothing I could do to change their attitudes about that, the same as I couldn''t change their attitude towards me. The more I showed them the error of their ways, the more they despised me for it. The kitchen helper came out and cleared away our dishes and served dessert. Hope went back to her table and seemed much happier. Mage Marks also looked quite happy as she dug into the tasty treat. We ate it fairly quickly and the kitchen helper gathered the dishes up and then disappeared to come back with fresh glasses of wine. I accepted the glass and swirled it around, then stood. I gave the formal end of meal toast and Mage Marks looked only slightly surprised as I thanked her for attending. She sipped her wine in response and the meal was over. ¡°Greta, would you like to return to the parlour to finish the wine and discuss a few things?¡± I asked. Mage Marks took another sip and thought about it. ¡°I would, especially if you''ll give me that paper.¡± She said and nodded at the folded paper on the table. ¡°If we can manipulate things enough, it will come out in a spectacular display of idiocy by the Mages Guild.¡± Now it was my turn to think about that and consider the consequences. It took me several moments to make a decision and I slid the folded paper over to her. ¡°Thank you, David.¡± Mage Marks said with a wicked smile on her face and looked at the kitchen helper. ¡°Please bring the bottle.¡± ¡°Yes, Lady Marks.¡± The kitchen helper said and she followed us to the parlour. Hope didn''t come with us, even though I would be telling her about it later. I was sure that Mage Marks would be more forthcoming with only the two of us there and no others, and as soon as we sat together on one of the very comfortable couches, the parlour door closed and she spilled her secrets as if she had been waiting for a long time to do so. Mage Marks told me about her personal experiences with the guild and how at certain times, they would manipulate events and make her look less competent, as well as several other of the more competent female mages. They were intentionally held back from advancing in the hierarchy of the guild, just so they wouldn''t have any prominent posts. She was actually a very proficient potion maker and her efforts had been intentionally stymied to stop her from surpassing the male potion makers that held positions above her. Some of them hadn''t invented their own potions like she had, and yet, they could order her around as if she was an assistant and not one of their peers. It irked her to no end. ¡°That''s why you are so grateful for the teaching position.¡± I commented and swirled my wine glass. ¡°Yes, it was supposed to be my direct supervisor that was to teach the class and he panicked. He barely has more potions experience than the new graduates from the academy. He immediately singled me out to get me out of his sight.¡± Mage Marks smiled and took a sip of wine. ¡°Little did he know that I wanted to get away from his incompetence as much as he wanted me to stop pointing it out.¡± I raised my eyebrows as I took a sip of wine and she laughed softly. ¡°His family are all high ranked mages in the guild and he rode into his position on their fame and money.¡± Greta said. ¡°I really hate that they can be appointed to certain positions, rather than earn them on their own merits.¡± ¡°You are unhappy with the way they handle their internal affairs.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°You are also not powerful enough...¡± Greta''s face turned angry. ¡°...politically... to make any changes.¡± I finished and the anger fled as if it hadn''t appeared. ¡°Yes.¡± Greta said with a sigh. ¡°I can do a few things in the background, as long as it doesn''t bring too much attention to myself or to whomever I''m getting help from. If it''s too prominent...¡± ¡°They''ve reprimanded you?¡± I asked and she sighed. ¡°I don''t have a large or powerful family to support me, so there''s not much that can be accomplished inside the guild.¡± Greta said. ¡°My brother is quite a bit higher than me in the political structure and that''s only because he''s publicly disavowed his connection to me.¡± I put my glass down and took her hand as a show of support. Greta gripped my hand tightly and took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°I asked him to, just so he had a better chance at playing their game than I ever could.¡± ¡°Even though you are the better potion maker?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°Do you still talk privately?¡± ¡°No, he... he''s right. We can''t be seen cavorting about.¡± Greta said, her voice full of regret. ¡°On the plus side, he hasn''t had any children, so I haven''t been denied seeing a potential niece or nephew.¡± ¡°Not yet.¡± I said and she caught her breath. ¡°If you leave the guild, can you keep your teaching position?¡± ¡°Yes, since that''s going to be my reason for leaving the guild. I love teaching.¡± Greta said and her face softened from the grief it had been showing. ¡°I didn''t realize how much until I thought about having to leave and go back to the guild.¡±This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. ¡°Why would you have to leave the academy? Didn''t they just hire you?¡± I asked. ¡°It was just a hypothetical question I asked myself. If a bunch of students dropped out by the end of the year, what was I going to do with myself?¡± Greta asked and then she smiled. ¡°I would want to stay and teach who was left, even if it was just a handful of students that would benefit from my expertise.¡± I nodded and sat there for several minutes as we sipped the wine. I let her hand go to pour out more for us and then sat back again. We exchanged looks occasionally for several more minutes, then she seemed to come to a decision. ¡°David, I want you to fill that cleaning potion order.¡± Greta said. I didn''t say anything and motioned for her to continue. ¡°Fill it and then give them to your future wife to sell. I''ll even tell you what the guild was going to sell them for.¡± Greta said. ¡°You want us to undercut them.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°You can make a fortune from it and rub their faces in their deception.¡± Greta said. ¡°I''ll get the ingredients for you and provide the containers, since you''re a student at the academy. I''m sure you''ll need quite some time to work on them to get them ready, so until you''re ready to put them on the market, I can hold off on confronting the guild about the enchanted paper.¡± I thought about it for about thirty seconds. ¡°I don''t think they would be happy if it came out that you were getting me the ingredients, so you have to connect me with who your ingredient supplier is. I''ll get them to ship to me directly and hide your involvement.¡± Greta looked thoughtful for several seconds. ¡°If I set that up... and I''m very reluctant to do so... I want ten percent of the profits.¡± I squinted my eyes. ¡°I would be doing all the work.¡± ¡°Would you?¡± Greta asked and took a sip of wine. ¡°This is a great wine.¡± I had to examine her wording, so I took several minutes to consider them. ¡°Well?¡± Greta prompted when she couldn''t take my silence an longer. ¡°What exactly are you offering?¡± I asked. ¡°Two things.¡± Greta said smugly, as if I had already accepted her offer. ¡°I''ll prepare the ingredients for storage before having them shipped to this wonderful dorm mansion.¡± She waved at the room. ¡°Assuming you have a room big enough for the proper storage containers.¡± ¡°I definitely have the room upstairs.¡± I said. ¡°What''s the other thing?¡± ¡°I''ll have you included onto the official shipping manifest for the vials and crates for the academy.¡± Greta said and that got my attention. ¡°I''ll provide the proper order forms and all costs will be covered by the academy, since any potion created on the academy grounds by students are automatically included into the operating costs.¡± I had to smile at that. ¡°I almost thought I was taking advantage of your generosity by taking more crates than I used inside your classroom.¡± Greta laughed softly. ¡°Honestly, you were. I''m not supposed to provide extra materials outside of classroom hours, so isn''t it a good thing that you only took them while class was in session?¡± I almost laughed at her mischievous grin. ¡°Are you sure that you want ten percent of the profits and not ten percent of the sale price?¡± Greta nodded. ¡°I''m not trying to gouge you, David. We can both make money... a lot of money... and neither of us has to worry about the red tape that would normally drag down a mage trying to sell such large quantities of potions.¡± There was barely a sip of wine left in our glasses. I held mine out to her and she beamed a smile at me as she clinked our glasses together. We drank that last sip and put our glasses down. ¡°Would you like a tour of my potions room?¡± I asked as I stood and offered her a hand. Greta took my hand and stood up. ¡°I would be honored to see your potion setup.¡± She said and we left the parlour with her cuddled to my arm. ¡°I remember your words during the basic potions class and want to see how you set everything up.¡± ¡°You won''t be disappointed.¡± I said and led her up the curved main staircase to the second floor. ¡°I''m not going to ask how your work crews managed to make a sweeping staircase inside a dorm building.¡± Greta said with a laugh. ¡°You''ll just respond with magic, correct?¡± I gave her a knowing look and she laughed again. I took her down the hallway and decided to give her the full tour. I pointed out the different rooms and showed them to her. Her eyes took in everything and I could almost feel her appreciation of the ornately decorated rooms and accessories. She especially loved the large bedroom I had and then she almost drooled over the huge bathroom and the giant two person tub. I left the most important room for last and took her there. ¡°David!¡± Greta gasped when I opened the door and showed her the potions room. ¡°You have twelve setups? I thought you only had one!¡± She exclaimed and gripped my arm tightly. ¡°I brew too much to only use one.¡± I said as an explanation and she took in a sniff through her nose. ¡°What... what is...¡± She leaned over the fortifying potion and took another sniff. ¡°I know these ingredients.¡± She turned and looked at me. ¡°Is this what you were making for the library?¡± ¡°Technically.¡± I pointed at the other three full large stew pots. ¡°Those are the final product.¡± Greta dragged me over to them and looked inside. The potion was clear and looked like boiling water. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I shouldn''t really say.¡± I teased and she gave me an angry and perturbed look. ¡°It''s a waterproofing potion.¡± Greta''s mouth dropped open as she took in a sharp breath. ¡°No, this... I remember someone mentioning it...¡± ¡°I''ve used it quite liberally, both while in the army and out of it. No one else knows the recipe.¡± Greta looked like she was in deep thought and I assumed she was going over the ingredients I had asked for. ¡°Dammit, you didn''t ask for exactly what you needed, did you?¡± I gave her a wink and she sighed. ¡°That was smart. Even knowing the ingredients, I couldn''t reproduce or recreate the recipe.¡± Greta said. ¡°I knew you''d guess correctly.¡± I said and waved at the leftover ingredients. My bins were only small, however. ¡°Show me the room you''re going to convert for the ingredients.¡± Greta said and I took her to the next room. It was completely empty. ¡°Yes, if... over there and up to here, you can...¡± She mumbled as she went over how I should set up the bins. I could hear it all, even though she wasn''t speaking to me, then she nodded. ¡°I''ll contact the men that made the modifications to the bins in my classroom. They can have this made in about a week.¡± ¡°I just need the materials and clear fronts for the doors.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°I''ll have it made in a few hours.¡± Greta opened her mouth to speak and then closed it. She nodded acceptance and I led her out of the room and back down the stairs. She didn''t speak as I told Hope that I was escorting Mage Marks back to her room. We left my mansion and started to stroll casually up the street. ¡°I didn''t get to see the fountain or the gazebo.¡± Greta said and then she looked surprised. ¡°Forgive me. I said that out loud.¡± I pat her hand. ¡°I doubt that you will be able to stay away if you''re going to be working for me.¡± ¡°Working for!¡± Greta gasped and glared at me, then she saw my smile. ¡°It''s not nice to tease me.¡± ¡°I was testing your conviction.¡± I said and she raised her eyebrows. ¡°We only just agreed to work together. We haven''t discussed in what capacity.¡± Greta took a deep breath and sighed. ¡°No, you''re right.¡± She said and gave me a pleading look. ¡°It''s a partnership, all right? You''re not paying me for work. I''m benefiting from what we produce together.¡± I nodded and she closed her eyes as she leaned heavily on my arm. ¡°I think we are going to do a lot of great things together. I just know it.¡± Greta said as she relaxed against me and we continued our slow walk back to her assigned living space. She kept her eyes closed the entire time. 162 Academy Antics Part Thirty - The Weekend Visit Part Three We entered the large teacher''s residence and Greta finally opened her eyes. She directed me to her apartment on the bottom floor and seemed reluctant to let my arm go. She did so and unlocked her door, before she turned to look at me as her face flushed a little red. ¡°David, I... this was...¡± Greta stammered, as if she was having trouble with what to say. ¡°Was it more than you could have expected from an ex-army conscript and ex-slave marsh rat?¡± I offered. Greta''s face lost the slight blush as she shook her head. ¡°I was going to say from a student that shouldn''t have this kind of knowledge and experience in dealing with a lady, since you didn''t grow up in a noble household or near noble society.¡± ¡°I''ve been taught by some influential people.¡± I said. ¡°Two members of the royal family included.¡± Greta nodded, probably because she had found out a lot about my dealings in the army. ¡°Thank you for tonight. It was a very enlightening and pleasant experience.¡± ¡°I''m glad you enjoyed being hosted at my humble temporary home.¡± I said and carefully took her hand, bent over it, and gave it a proper kiss to say goodbye. ¡°I will see you next week in class.¡± Greta nodded and stepped back into her apartment. She hesitated for several moments with an odd look on her face, blushed a little, and slowly closed the door. I waited for several moments, in case she forgot to tell me something. The door didn''t open again, so I turned around and walked down the hallway to leave. I stepped outside and heard a window opening above me. ¡°David!¡± A different woman''s voice exclaimed and I turned to look. ¡°Mage Ridge.¡± I said and she leaned out the window to look down at me. ¡°I just heard back from Donna.¡± Mage Ridge said. ¡°She expects you to show up tomorrow to see her.¡± ¡°I thought I wasn''t allowed to leave the academy grounds while classes are in session.¡± I responded. ¡°You aren''t, normally.¡± Mage Ridge said with a devilish smile. ¡°I''ll be escorting you.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± I said, then remembered the botany teacher''s words about taking me next week for a field trip. It confirmed that I can leave as long as I have a teacher with me. That was good to know. ¡°What time?¡± ¡°I want to go early, just so you can spend the whole day together with your friends.¡± Mage Ridge said. ¡°You know they are both going to insist you stay and have supper.¡± I nodded. ¡°An hour after first light?¡± The shocked look she gained on her face was priceless. ¡°I said early, not after the crack of dawn!¡± Mage Ridge said and then she laughed. ¡°Dammit, you''re right. They''re still on army time, the crazy fools.¡± She crossed her arms and rested them on the window sill. ¡°All right. Be here an hour after dawn and I''ll be ready.¡± I nodded and walked away. I felt her eyes on me for quite some time and I wasn''t sure why. I ignored it and went back to my dorm mansion. I told Hope about going out for the day tomorrow and she was quite happy for me, knowing it was rare for a student to leave the grounds so soon. Sara had already gone home to the estate, so Hope helped me change for bed and she did as well. Hope climbed onto the large bed and slipped under the covers. ¡°David, thank you for not complaining about this.¡± She whispered as I climbed in beside her. Neither of us were surprised when she didn''t pretend to go back to her own room first. I held my arm out slightly and she took the invitation as she hugged it and relaxed. ¡°This has been helping me so much while I deal with being away from the rest of the family.¡± Hope said and blushed a little. ¡°You''ve been doing so well with all of the things going on and you still try to look after me, even though it''s my job to look after you.¡± ¡°You don''t have to get up with me in the morning.¡± I said and she looked like she was going to protest. ¡°I''ll wear my best suit for the greeting, bring casual clothes for any activities they might require of me, and my best meal suit to wear for supper.¡± Hope got out of bed and quickly packed a piece of luggage for me, including what I asked for and extra underwear, then she gave me a questioning look. ¡°No, I won''t be taking anything else.¡± I said and she closed it, set it beside the door, and came back to bed. ¡°I would have done that in the morning.¡± ¡°It''s my job to make your life a little bit easier.¡± Hope said and snuggled into my arm again. ¡°I think I''ll be over this homesickness in a few days.¡± ¡°Did you send them a letter recently?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes!¡± Hope said a bit excitedly. ¡°I had to tell them you entered the academy successfully.¡± ¡°You didn''t tell them anything else, did you?¡± I asked and she shook her head. ¡°They don''t need to know about everything going on.¡± Hope said. ¡°I''m not hiding it, though. It''s just... well...¡±This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. ¡°The information doesn''t help them.¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± Hope said and closed her eyes. ¡°I can just imagine that some of them are as proud of you as I am.¡± I didn''t say anything for several minutes, since I couldn''t understand why they would be proud. ¡°David.¡± Hope whispered and I turned my head to look at her and saw her staring at me. ¡°It worked. Frank has his hand back.¡± ¡°I bet he hates me a lot more now.¡± I said and Hope laughed. ¡°He really, really does.¡± Hope said. ¡°He also loves having his hand back.¡± ¡°How long did it take?¡± I asked, since it had been quite some time since I had given him the potion. ¡°He was too scared to take it right away. It wasn''t until he tried to...¡± Hope chuckled. ¡°It was eight days after that.¡± ¡°So, only a single missing appendage was a bit less than what I regrew.¡± I said and looked back up at the ceiling. ¡°I had a lot of hidden and not so hidden damage. Did Frank have some hidden injuries?¡± ¡°He''s broken his arm a few times while growing up.¡± Hope said. ¡°I was sure he broke his ankle once, too.¡± I thought about that. ¡°Yes, that would explain the change in the length of healing.¡± Hope waited for several minutes before she leaned in and kissed my cheek. ¡°Thank you for doing that.¡± ¡°I had to test if it would be enough.¡± I said and she looked surprised for a second, then she leaned back in and kissed my cheek again. ¡°Thank you for picking him over the other people you''ve maimed.¡± Hope said. I raised my eyebrows at her and she smiled. ¡°What? You didn''t think I would hear about people having their hands cut off with a magical blade?¡± Hope asked and snuggled down on my arm again. ¡°I wasn''t doubtful at all when hearing about it in the village.¡± She closed her eyes and let out a sigh. ¡°I''m glad that no one has come after you to get the arm you took from the first princess.¡± ¡°You''re not angry over that?¡± I asked. ¡°No, because you did it so you wouldn''t have to kill her. Everyone would have been very upset if you had taken her head.¡± Hope said. ¡°Now go to sleep. You have a really early day tomorrow.¡± ¡°Goodnight.¡± I said and closed my eyes. The night passed by instantly and I was up at dawn. I dressed in my new meeting suit, one that I had to buy to replace the damaged one, and I picked up my bandoleer from the vault and the luggage bag from beside the bedroom door. I looked back at the bed and Hope had my pillow clutched tightly in her arms. I had had to make the substitution to escape with my arm intact, because her grip was surprisingly strong. I left the room silently and went downstairs. The place was dark and quiet and none of my steps made any noise as I crept down to the front doors. I opened one of them and the night guards nodded to me. I nodded back and closed the door behind me, then walked at a normal pace across the campus to meet Mage Ridge. I glanced up at her apartment and the lights weren''t on. I thought about using magic to get her attention, like I did to get the kitchen helper''s attention, then decided that I needed to not treat her like the help. Nothing good would come of her thinking I was doing so, even if all I was trying to do was get her attention. I went to the door of the building and went inside, surprised that it wasn''t locked, and went up the stairs. I used Sense Magic near Mage Ridge''s apartment and her door glowed. I thought about reaching out to touch it and changed my mind. I also didn''t use Dispel on it. I examined the glow and it was almost the same as the glow my lock spell had on my door at home. She would definitely feel it if I broke the spell this close to her. I thought and reached out to knock on the wall beside the door. There was no sound or movement inside that I could detect with my vigilance technique, so I knocked a little harder. There was a cracking sound and my knuckles had left dents in the thick wood. I sighed silently and used my knife to quickly cut out the piece of wood, cleaned off the splinters, then used several drops of number ten potion to fill in the dents. I could see into the apartment through the hole and it was very nice. I couldn''t tell if it was a standard apartment and was the same as the others, or if she had it decorated on her own. I reached in through the hole and knocked normally on the back of the door. I heard a woman groan, so I put the wood piece back into place with number ten potion and sealed it in. It took several minutes before the glow around the door faded and it opened to reveal a very dishevelled and barely dressed Mage Ridge. In fact, all she had on was a pair of panties and an undershirt. ¡°What time... is it?¡± Mage Ridge asked with a yawn and still looked half asleep. ¡°Half an hour after the crack of dawn.¡± I said and she let out another yawn and groaned again. ¡°Ugghhhh. Come in.¡± Mage Ridge said and walked away from the open door. I stepped inside and closed the door, then followed her over to her bedroom. ¡°I hope you''re not getting any ideas about trying to seduce me.¡± Mage Ridge said as she went to her closet. ¡°I''m happily married and we''re meeting him at the gate.¡± ¡°Mage Ridge, you could strip off naked and...¡± I stopped talking when she pulled off her top and revealed her breasts. They were tear drop shaped and hung far apart, with very dark nipples that contrasted heavily with her light skin. Mage Ridge put on a bra and it magically pushed her breasts together to give her quite a lot of cleavage. I stared at the thing, the glow stronger than the lock on the door, and she caught me looking. ¡°Haven''t you seen breasts before?¡± Mage Ridge asked as she pulled off her panties to reveal a very large bush of hair. ¡°I have seen several sets of breasts besides the women I''ve slept with.¡± I said and motioned to her top. ¡°What spell or enchantment is on the bra?¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± Mage Ridge looked down at her cleavage and back at me. ¡°How can you tell?¡± ¡°Sense Magic.¡± I said and she smiled. ¡°So, it wasn''t my breasts you''re staring at. Good.¡± Mage Ridge said and chanted something as she held a hand over her belly. She seemed to glow for a second and nodded, then she pulled on a new pair of panties. They matched the bra and they glowed as well. A few seconds later, her backside seemed to firm up and looked more appealing. ¡°What was that?¡± I asked and motioned to her underwear. ¡°They are vanity enchantments.¡± Mage Ridge said and picked out a very stylish dress. It was red and had frills in strategic areas, as well as two slits up the bottom. She slipped the dress on and tapped the neck collar. It glowed and snapped closed, as did the back, and it seemed to suck in and form-fitted over her body. ¡°Do all women''s clothes do that?¡± I asked and she laughed. ¡°No, this is...¡± Mage Ridge paused and walked over to me. ¡°When a woman gets to a certain age, she sometimes needs reassurance that she is still beautiful.¡± ¡°Is that what the clothes are for? Reassurance?¡± I asked. ¡°They might ensure it.¡± I had to think about that while she gathered up what she wanted to take. ¡°Before you say anything, I''m wearing this for my husband and not for you.¡± Mage Ridge said and brushed her hair in front of a mirror. She added some make-up to highlight her eyes and lips, then she grabbed her bag and came over to me. ¡°I''m ready. Let''s go.¡± I held the door for her and closed it behind us. She chanted something and the glow around the door was back. Her arm was in the proper pose for me to escort her, so I assumed my role and led her down the stairs and out of the building. We went over to the academy''s gates and the night guard opened the smaller one for us. No one was there, so we stood there in silence and waited for our ride. 163 Academy Antics Part Thirty One - The Weekend Visit Part Four After a few minutes, a plain carriage rolled up the street and came to a stop in front of us. There was no carriage footman or coachman, so I opened the door and pulled the little stairs down myself. I helped Mage Ridge enter the carriage and she embraced her husband. ¡°Hello, my darling.¡± The man said as he hugged his wife and then she sat beside him. ¡°I assume this is the boy you''ve been talking about?¡± I stiffened at the dismissive tone in his voice and the emphasis on the word ''boy''. I gave my teacher an intense look and she blushed from embarrassment. ¡°He''s not a boy, Darrel. He''s twenty and will be twenty-one in the spring.¡± Mage Ridge said. The man didn''t even glance at his wife or acknowledged her words. ¡°Hurry up and climb aboard. These carriages aren''t free, you know.¡± I thought about refusing until I saw Mage Ridge''s pleading look. I held in my sigh and climbed on, pulled up the little stair, and closed the door. I held my luggage bag on my lap and I sat back on the seat opposite my teacher as the carriage pulled away. I also noticed that her husband wasn''t dressed as nicely as we were. ¡°So, how are you enjoying the free ride at the academy?¡± Darrel asked. ¡°I would kill to get the authority to send someone through to become a mage without having to do any work.¡± I ignored him and looked out the window. ¡°Hey, I''m talking to you.¡± Darrel said, his voice a little loud for the small space. ¡°Darrel, he doesn''t want to answer.¡± Mage Ridge said. ¡°It''s only polite to respond to a genuine question.¡± Darrel said. I turned my head to look at him. ¡°If most of the teachers, students, and staff weren''t just as bigoted and judgmental as you, if the food I was forced to eat at lunch wasn''t the dregs that the other students wouldn''t bother to spit on when given the chance, and if the living quarters provided to me weren''t a death trap, my current school experience would be absolutely delightful.¡± Both Mage Ridge and her husband had shocked faces, then the man''s face became angry. ¡°How dare you insult my wife like that!¡± Darrel spat. ¡°I didn''t. I said ''most'' teachers. Your wife is one of the exceptions.¡± I said. ¡°If they were all as nice and decent as her, I would have nothing to complain about.¡± The man''s anger receded slightly. ¡°I won''t have you calling my school down, either.¡± ¡°I''m not allowed to accept duels until I graduate. As soon as my duel with the Director of the Academy is over, I''ll be happy to duel you next.¡± ¡°D-David!¡± Mage Ridge gasped. ¡°What? He asked, didn''t he?¡± I responded. ¡°You are the instigator here, boy.¡± Darrel said. I shot my left hand out and backhanded him in the face. ¡°That''s twice you''ve insulted me on purpose.¡± Darrel put a hand up to cover the spot, despite me using Grand Mage Henrietta''s amount of force and I hadn''t hit him with any strength. That wasn''t the point. ¡°You are the one to start antagonizing me. I am clearly not a boy because you know that students need to be seventeen to attend the academy, making any student there legal age.¡± I turned my head to look back out the window. ¡°You should be more mindful of whom you are speaking to.¡± Neither of them spoke during the long drive to the outskirts of the city. I thought about trying to find a map of the city the next time I was in the library, that way I could mark off the places I had been. The carriage came to a stop at a moderate estate that was about half the size of mine. The mansion was about the same size and the guard at the front door opened it for us. I opened the carriage door and put the stair down, then stepped out with my bag in my hand and walked away towards the mansion''s door. Mage Ridge let out a sigh as her husband hissed a curse at me for not knowing my place. I ignored him and went to the guard. I saw him standing at attention and recognized the discipline from the army. I gave him a quick salute. ¡°The lord and lady of the house?¡± I asked. ¡°In the parlour.¡± The guard said and returned the salute. ¡°It''s nice to finally meet you in person, sir.¡± ¡°Directions?¡± I asked. ¡°Inside to the right. Second door. The maid should be there to greet you and announce you.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and entered the house. I heard Mage Ridge''s husband curse me again as I went to the right place. A very pretty maid stood in front of the door and her eyes widened as she saw me. ¡°M-my l-lord.¡± The maid stammered and gave me a curtsy. ¡°Please wait for the other guests.¡± ¡°Why?¡± I asked. ¡°They... outrank... you.¡± The maid said, hesitantly. ¡°So?¡± I asked and stepped by her and opened the door to the parlour. ¡°DAVID!¡± Donna yelled when she saw me. She hopped up from the couch that she had been on and strode over to me. She limped with each second step and I could see her form fitting dress had odd depressions on her thigh and one of her arms was wrapped in cloth. It was the same color as the dress, so it didn''t stand out too much. Her face was another story because the acid scars were quite prominent. ¡°Hi, Donna.¡± I said as she took me into a hug. I dropped my bag to put my arms carefully around her and my hands found several small depressions. ¡°You look wonderful!¡± Donna exclaimed as she eased her hold on me and looked at my face. ¡°In fact, you... you...¡± Her voice trailed off and she let me go to rub her hands over my face. Her fingers poked the spot where the snake venom hole used to be. ¡°Mage Ridge and Mage Ridge.¡± The maid announced as my teacher and her husband came in. ¡°Donna, it''s so nice to...¡± Mage Ridge stopped talking when she saw Donna''s hands run over my face and then she reached inside my stylish suit to feel around. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Mage Ridge''s husband Darrel asked.Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. ¡°She''s seeing if he''s real.¡± Alex said with a laugh. ¡°You need to check these, too.¡± I said and lifted my hands to show Donna. She gasped and grabbed them as she felt my pinkie fingers. ¡°How are you, Alex?¡± Mage Ridge asked as she went over to the couch beside the one Alex was propped up on. Her husband sat beside her. ¡°I almost rolled out of bed and fell on the floor this morning when I forgot that I didn''t have a whole arm to catch myself.¡± Alex said and waved the stump. ¡°Thankfully, Donna''s luscious body managed to stop me before I embarrassed myself.¡± ¡°Alex!¡± Donna gasped, her inspection of me finished. ¡°They didn''t need to know that!¡± ¡°Ha ha! We had fun.¡± Alex said with a teasing smile as he looked at me. ¡°It''s nice to see you again, David.¡± ¡°I want to say the same.¡± I looked at his leg cut off at the thigh and his arm cut off above the elbow. ¡°You look like crap.¡± Alex laughed. ¡°I know, right?¡± He asked and pat the couch beside him. ¡°Sit, sit!¡± Donna took my hand as I bent down to grab my bag, then she led me over to the couch and we sat on either side of him. Donna took the good side with his still intact arm and leg, so she could hold his hand. ¡°I want you to tell me all about your experiences since the last time I saw you.¡± Alex said. ¡°What about breakfast?¡± Darrel asked, impatiently. ¡°It''ll be served at the normal time.¡± Donna said, a bit icily, probably because he had interrupted me. Mage Ridge let out a little sigh and did her best to silently apologize with the expressions on her face. ¡°Go ahead, David. Tell us everything.¡± Alex prompted. ¡°No.¡± I said and he looked surprised. ¡°Mage Ridge''s husband isn''t trustworthy and I won''t give him information to use against me.¡± Mage Ridge sighed loudly this time and her husband cursed under his breath. Donna gave them both a stern look. ¡°Vicki, explain what he means.¡± ¡°That arrogant boy...¡± Darrel started to say. ¡°Quiet!¡± Donna snapped in her command voice and he clamped his mouth shut before he realized what had happened. ¡°Perhaps I don''t need much of an explanation after all.¡± She looked at her cousin. ¡°Speak the truth.¡± Mage Ridge glanced at her fuming husband and then told Donna what had happened in the carriage. It wasn''t word for word; but, it was close enough. Needless to say, the mood in the room dropped considerably. Donna walked over to the door of the parlour and left for a moment, then she and a different maid came in. ¡°Mage Ridge and Mage Ridge, if you would come this way? Breakfast will be served early.¡± ¡°Finally.¡± Darrel said and stood up. Mage Ridge stood as well and she looked at her cousin with a sad face, then followed the maid and her husband out of the room. Donna came back over to us and sat down beside me instead of Alex. ¡°Now that we have them out of the way, please tell us everything that happened after we were discharged.¡± She said and took my hand. She looked sincere and I glanced at Alex. He nodded, so I told them all about everything that happened after they were incapacitated from the dragon attack. It took a while. They listened intensely and asked pointed questions when they wanted more details. My time at the front was of keen interest for them, since they had missed everything, despite their contacts in the army that had funnelled them information. They had missed a lot more than they thought they did as I filled them in on everything. I skimmed over healing myself and moved on to being discharged, taking the colonel''s arm after she robbed me, and then going home with Helena. That was another long story with her brother''s antics, then the Grand Mage forcing me to attend the academy. Both Donna and Alex were quite upset when I told them I had a Bronze card for the cafeteria. ¡°I''ll kill them.¡± Alex spat, clearly very angry. ¡°Imagine the gall! Serving a student that garbage! UGH!¡± ¡°Easy, my love.¡± Donna reached across me to pat his thigh. ¡°You know there''s nothing we can do about it.¡± ¡°Not us, no.¡± Alex said as he swallowed his anger. ¡°I know some people...¡± Donna chuckled and gave me an amused smile. ¡°He means his father.¡± ¡°And my uncle.¡± Alex said to defend himself. ¡°They have connections.¡± ¡°Well, try to not hurt yourself as you write them a message.¡± Donna laughed. ¡°He fell off the stool last week.¡± ¡°I told you that I had to scratch my nose and lost my balance.¡± Alex said with a huff and she laughed again. ¡°You must have looked like a flopping fish out of water.¡± I commented and they both laughed. ¡°Yes! That''s exactly what he looked like!¡± Donna said and put an arm around my shoulders to hug me. ¡°We''re both very glad to see that you''re okay.¡± ¡°I''m sad that you''re both still so hurt.¡± I responded and the laughter faded from their faces. ¡°Yes, even the best healers could only mitigate the damage.¡± Alex said and looked at his wife. ¡°They had this crazy idea to cut the scarred flesh off and then tried to heal it.¡± ¡°It worked... kind of. It was much worse than this.¡± Donna said as her fingers stroked the side of her face. ¡°The damage was too extensive underneath and now I can''t feel anything from my eye to my chin.¡± We sat there and didn''t say anything for a few minutes. ¡°What if I said I could fix it; but, it would take ten days of excruciating pain to work?¡± I asked. ¡°David, you... you shouldn''t tell me such hopeless things.¡± Donna whispered and a tear came to her eye. I didn''t say anything and took off my fancy shoe and my sock. My normal foot was out for them to see and I wiggled my toes. Donna and Alex stared at my restored foot, that they both knew I had lost, and my full set of toes. ¡°It works and you will get your missing parts back. The downside is it''s a week and a half of torture and you might die from the stress.¡± I cautioned them. ¡°I''ll take it.¡± Alex said immediately. ¡°Alex!¡± Donna gasped. ¡°You know I hate being half a man.¡± Alex said. ¡°The only time I feel normal is when you joke about it and we can laugh together.¡± ¡°Alex... you... you could die.¡± ¡°Oh, we''re not going to die.¡± Alex said, his voice full of confidence. ¡°I''ll have two healers here and the rest of the house staff to look after us.¡± Donna sighed. ¡°I don''t think I can stand here and let you... wait, did you say we?¡± Alex nodded. ¡°We''re doing this together.¡± ¡°No, I... you can''t...¡± Donna turned away from him. ¡°If it was just me, you would be beside yourself listening to me screaming in pain, right?¡± Alex asked and she nodded. ¡°So would I. If we do it together, neither of us has to live through hearing the other suffer.¡± ¡°You can suffer together and share the experience.¡± I said and Alex nodded while Donna looked unsure. ¡°What do we have to do and how much is it going to cost?¡± Alex asked. ¡°You''ll need to prep a room to stay in for two weeks, get those healers and the staff ready to take care of you, and drink the potion.¡± I said. ¡°That''s it?¡± Donna asked. ¡°What about the cost?¡± ¡°You can name your first born child after me.¡± I said and they both jumped slightly. ¡°How... how did you know we want a child?¡± Donna asked, surprised. ¡°Because of what Alex said about you two having fun this morning.¡± I dug into my bandoleer and took out the full potion and the three-quarters full one. ¡°This is the regeneration potion that took a lot of work to make right.¡± ¡°You carry it around with you?!?¡± Alex gasped. ¡°It''s the only real safe place, besides a personal vault.¡± I said and he had to agree with that. I held the three-quarters full vial out to Donna and gave the full one to Alex. ¡°Don''t mix them up. Alex needs the full one to get his limbs back.¡± The two of them stared at the brightly colored liquid in the vial for several moments before the door to the parlour opened. ¡°My lord, my lady, Mr. Drake.¡± The very pretty maid said. ¡°Breakfast will be ready in ten minutes.¡± ¡°Donna, can I borrow a maid to assist me in changing?¡± I asked and stood with my luggage bag. ¡°Of course.¡± Donna nodded to the pretty maid. ¡°Show him to the guest room and help him change.¡± ¡°Yes, my lady.¡± The maid said and stepped back to allow me to pass, then she led me to the guest room to help me change. Hopefully, breakfast was going to be a normal one, now that Mage Ridge and her husband had already eaten. 164 Academy Antics Part Thirty Two - The Weekend Visit Part Five I took out a set of normal clothes that was acceptable for breakfast and the very pretty maid helped me take off the fancy and expensive meeting suit. As I shed each piece of clothing, her face became redder and redder as her blush deepened. When I was just down to my underwear, she had a difficult time breathing. I put my hands on her shoulders to get her attention and she trembled slightly as she looked into my eyes. ¡°Is it undressing a man you don''t know that''s making you nervous?¡± I asked and she nodded several times. ¡°What''s your name?¡± ¡°Tabitha. Tabitha Stone.¡± The very pretty maid said. ¡°Hi, Tabitha. My name''s David.¡± I let her shoulders go and took her hand. ¡°It''s very nice to make your acquaintance.¡± I said and brushed my lips over her knuckles. ¡°I''m a student at the mage academy and I have a fiance. You don''t have to worry about me trying to take advantage of you in this situation.¡± Tabitha took a deep breath and let it out as her blush faded a little. ¡°I... well...¡± She glanced down at my underwear and then back at my face. ¡°I thought only personal maids do that ritual.¡± I said and her face went red again. ¡°I''m Lord Smith''s personal maid and I''m forbidden from offering.¡± She said, her voice full of sadness. I knew exactly how much Sara enjoyed it, sometimes quite enthusiastically, and even Jill had shown me her propensity for it, despite being Helena''s personal maid. ¡°Perhaps I need a bit of freshening up. Is there a specific soap you like to use?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes!¡± Tabitha exclaimed. ¡°I''ll be right back!¡± She practically ran from the room to get whatever she wanted, so I walked over to the guest bathroom to put water in the tub and to wait for her. She came in two minutes later with a very large and soft sponge and a sweet smelling soap. I slipped off my underwear and stepped into the tub for her and she knelt beside the tub with a longing on her face that I hadn''t seen before. She dampened the sponge and applied the soap to it, then she carefully rubbed my private area all over. She moaned as she gently handled my bits with her soapy hands. It felt quite different from when Sara would do it, so I grew hard quickly. She rinsed me off by squeezing the sponge over me and then she took complete control as she gripped my backside and went down on me. The sounds she made were both odd and oddly compelling as she enjoyed it even more than Sara did, which I didn''t think was possible. It was then that I realized she was like a starving person that had finally gotten their first taste of real food and she was wallowing in it. I pat her head to let her know I was close, which was the proper etiquette, and she moaned loudly and gripped my backside tightly as she kept going. I finished for her and her moan almost became a purr as she easily took it all. The look of pure joy on her face was even more pronounced than Sara''s was after she had done it to me that first time. Tabitha quickly washed me off and then dried me before helping me change into the outfit I had. ¡°My lord, thank you.¡± Tabitha said, her voice filled with gratitude and her face showing happiness. ¡°We''re a little late.¡± I said as she tucked my bag into the closet for me before we left the guest room. ¡°It should be fine. Breakfast is less formal.¡± Tabitha said and almost skipped down the hallway beside me. ¡°It''s right this way, my lord.¡± She said and led me over to the right room. ¡°There you are.¡± Alex said and pointed to the chair on his left. ¡°I was a bit worried you might have gotten lost or something.¡± ¡°I just needed a bit of freshening up before changing.¡± I said and sat down on the indicated chair. ¡°You know how restrictive those fancy suits are.¡± ¡°Sometimes women have it easier than us, don''t they?¡± Alex laughed. ¡°It doesn''t make up for everything else that they have to put up with; but, at least they don''t feel like they are being choked by their suit collars for twelve hours out of the day! Ha ha!¡± Donna rolled her eyes and her cousin Mage Ridge laughed softly. She sat on her side and her husband sat beside her, the lowest in the social order, and he didn''t look too happy about it. ¡°The cooks have outdone themselves today.¡± Alex said and leaned close to me, almost conspiratorially. ¡°Before you think I''m trying to make up for the garbage the school has been making you eat, I really enjoy food. Once I knew you were coming, I had them go all out.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and he pat my shoulder with his stump. ¡°I''m also glad you came to see us.¡± Alex said and leaned back as another maid served us drinks of juice and half glasses of wine. ¡°You have no idea what it''s been like being stuck here at the estate and only having people taking care of you.¡± ¡°It hasn''t been that bad.¡± Donna said without much enthusiasm. ¡°They won''t let me do anything.¡± Alex said. ¡°I can''t even go out for a walk past the grounds.¡± ¡°We don''t want anything bad to happen to you, my lord.¡± Tabitha said as she brought me a plate of food. It smelled delicious. ¡°If you would let the guards come along...¡± Another maid said as she served Alex and Donna. ¡°I want to enjoy being out.¡± Alex said, almost pouting. ¡°Having guards along ruins being out in the first place.¡± Donna chuckled. ¡°It''s a good thing we called for the extra help or this place would still be covered in dust after all this time.¡± ¡°I didn''t want to take all of my father''s staff.¡± Alex said with a sigh. ¡°Nonsense. They have plenty of people left at the main family mansion.¡± Donna said and looked at me. ¡°Alex is a bit uncomfortable with having too many people working under him that he didn''t vet for himself.¡± ¡°Or had you check.¡± Alex said.This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. Donna laughed. ¡°I''ve done it since then, so you can stop acting so paranoid. We all want you comfortable and that''s that.¡± Alex sighed. ¡°I know, it''s just... I don''t want to be too comfortable.¡± ¡°Here we go again.¡± Mage Ridge said and she laughed. ¡°The rebellious rich teenager returns!¡± Donna joined in and the two of them laughed for several moments. ¡°I''m not that bad!¡± Alex protested and they laughed harder. ¡°He''s one of the rare ones that wants to earn his merits on his own and not because of his family.¡± Donna said. ¡°It was one of the main reasons I fell in love with him, actually.¡± ¡°Hey! You told me it was because of my looks!¡± Alex exclaimed and that set her off to laughing again. He winked at me and I understood that he was making her laugh as much as he could. The conversation became normal after that, discussing things about the kingdom and the state of affairs between us and the Eastern Empire, with speculation about what the terms were going to be that they would settle on. The biggest thing they mentioned was that the peace talks could take up to a year or longer. When the meal was over, Alex insisted on going outside without guards. Donna humored him and gave him what he wanted, except she had the guards far off to make a perimeter and not crowd around. ¡°This is more like it.¡± Alex said as he sat in the miniature hand cart that a butler pulled for him. ¡°Thank you, Donna.¡± ¡°I love you, too.¡± Donna said and kissed him, then we walked through the grounds. We took a stroll and for some reason, I felt like the odd one, because I didn''t have someone on my arm. ¡°I''ll be right back.¡± I said to their surprise, and I ran back to the mansion and went inside. Using my vigilance technique, I easily found Tabitha and asked her to walk with me. She refused at first and I told her why I needed her, so she quickly changed her mind and her clothes to accompany me. Needless to say, Alex, Donna, Mage Ridge and her husband were shocked when I came out with a maid on my arm. Only Mage Ridge''s husband mumbled about how inappropriate it was to bring a servant along. That just made me smile and he scowled at my reaction. We walked across the property and down to the street, then we went around the neighbourhood to look at the neighbours and their large houses. Some were even mansions, which meant this was another borderline area between rich people and very rich people. Alex was seeing it all for the first time, because he hadn''t been outside since coming here to recover, so he and I shared that experience. I saw several peculiar pieces of art and knew they were from the Bassinger Family. That reminded me that she had finally relented in her pursuit of my potion and accepted that some secrets had to be kept within a family. Lady Bassinger and Helena were becoming quite close, probably because the Henrietta Longshore Estate was being visited by a lot of people looking for more potions and expensive tables and they saw the extensive work the Bassingers had done. ¡°Yes, the Bassingers are getting a bunch of orders now.¡± Donna said when I mentioned the statue we could see in someone''s front yard. ¡°I''m sure you know something about that.¡± She said to me, quite pointedly. ¡°Helena and I had them make the fountain in our front yard.¡± I said. ¡°It''s quite the sight to see a stone carving of Helena standing in defiance of a twelve foot tall stone dragon.¡± Alex laughed. ¡°I have got to go over to see that!¡± ¡°School''s letting out for the king''s birthday in about three weeks.¡± I said. ¡°Why don''t you and Donna come over for a visit? I can show you around the property as well.¡± ¡°That''s a great idea!¡± Donna said. ¡°What do you think, Alex? Will we be up for it?¡± ¡°I don''t care if I am because I''m going anyway.¡± Alex said, adamantly. ¡°David, thank you for the invitation. We''ll be there.¡± I nodded and we walked on for a bit, then we turned around at an arbitrary point and went back to the estate. Tabitha had held onto my arm the entire time and hadn''t spoken much. I had asked her if she liked some of the things we saw and she would only say yes or nod, without expanding on her opinion at all. I knew she was a bit uncomfortable being surrounded by lords and ladies, even though I wasn''t one yet. We arrived back at the estate and we had an hour before lunch would be ready, so I said I needed a bath after such a long walk. ¡°That''s a great idea.¡± Donna said and looked at Alex. ¡°No protesting! David''s bathing, too.¡± Alex let out a long and exaggerated sigh and Donna and Mage Ridge laughed. ¡°You''re lucky this place is so big and has a bunch of rooms.¡± ¡°Imagine having to take turns!¡± Mage Ridge said and lightly slapped Donna''s arm. ¡°Remember when we were kids?¡± ¡°We''d make the boys wait while we played in the tub!¡± Donna said, her face full of amusement. ¡°Cold water was what they deserved for teasing us.¡± Mage Ridge said, haughtily. ¡°How right you are.¡± Donna said and leaned down to kiss Alex. ¡°Who do you want help from, my love?¡± Alex glanced at Tabitha and his face went sad. ¡°I''m sorry, I... I can''t...¡± ¡°It''s all right, my lord. I''m not insulted that you don''t want my help.¡± Tabitha said automatically, as if she had said it hundreds of times. ¡°I''m sorry he can''t bring himself to let anyone but me handle him.¡± Donna said and touched Tabitha''s shoulder briefly. ¡°Perhaps sometime in the future when...¡± ¡°Donna.¡± Alex snapped and she closed her mouth before she said anything else. ¡°If she isn''t needed, can I get her to help me?¡± I asked. Alex nodded. ¡°She''s a great maid and I''m saddened that her skills have been sorely wasted on me.¡± ¡°We''ll be in the guest room.¡± I said and led Tabitha away. She kept hold of my arm as we went through the mansion to the guest room and we stopped next to the bed. She reluctantly let my arm go and then she slowly undressed me. She took her time, knowing we had a lot of time before lunch. When I was completely naked, she took my hand and led me into the bathroom. She set the water to fill and I stepped into the tub. By the time I turned around and had sat down, she was naked and had lathered herself up. I used Sense Magic and saw that she was glowing slightly. ¡°Can you teach me that spell?¡± I asked and she nodded, then she climbed into the bath with me and used herself as a sponge. I had to admit that I had never had anyone do that before. It was surprising that it actually worked and she did wash and scrub me all over, using just her body. As she did so, she explained the magic her mother had taught her. She wouldn''t normally share her family secret so quickly; but, I had given her the opportunity to showcase her abilities twice and she felt that she owed it to me for making her so happy. Thankfully, it wasn''t cast in the traditional way with a chant and gestures. It was almost the same as my magic that was just directed and you let the magic do what you wanted. Of course, I couldn''t very well only let myself be scrubbed clean, so I washed her as well as I attempted to cast the same spell. By the time the nearly hour long bath was over and I stood up to let her perform the end of bath ritual, I had a firm grasp of what the magic did and could apply it to one part like my hand or to all of my body like she could. She made even more enthusiastic pleasure sounds as she worked on me to get me to finish and caressed my backside as she enjoyed using her skills to full effect. We climbed out of the tub and she dried me off, then she was surprised when I dried her off, too. She hadn''t expected that and seemed a bit shaken that I would bother and not just let her handle it herself. I took her hand, in the same manner as she took mine to go into the bathroom, and brought her out to the guest room. I helped her dress first and then she helped me. She put my bag back into the closet and we left the room to go have lunch. She left me at the door and started to walk away to eat with the other servants, then she came back and kissed my cheek. ¡°Thank you, my lord.¡± Tabitha said with a blush, then walked away. That was odd. She didn''t blush at all during the bath. I thought, slightly confused about her behaviour. I shrugged my shoulders and ignored it before I went into the dining room to eat lunch. 165 Academy Antics Part Thirty Three - The Weekend Visit Part Six Lunch passed by without incident. The afternoon activity that Alex wanted to do, namely going down to the dock to stare at the boats being built, was vetoed by Donna. He complained that he was allowed some leeway, thanks to me being there, and Donna smacked him in the head before informing him that I wasn''t a free pass to do whatever dangerous thing he wanted. ¡°Yes, he is!¡± Alex exclaimed and Mage Ridge laughed. ¡°Boys.¡± Donna shook her head. ¡°The most I''ll allow is a carriage ride past the docks.¡± ¡°YES!¡± Alex yelled and his lone hand shot up into the air in triumph. ¡°I said past!¡± Donna said. ¡°I know.¡± Alex said and grinned at me. ¡°Let''s get changed!¡± ¡°Full meeting dress?¡± I asked and he nodded. Donna sighed loudly as her cousin gave her a hug. ¡°Meet us at the stable in twenty minutes.¡± I nodded and went to the guest room. Tabitha must have heard, because she was there and hand my good suit ready for me to change into. I thanked her and she waved it away and quickly undressed me. She had me all done up properly and even combed my hair briefly before she nodded. ¡°You look very handsome, my lord.¡± Tabitha said and ran her hands down my arms to make sure the cuffs were buttoned in place and wouldn''t move around on me. ¡°I''ll pack your other clothes and will have your meal suit ready by the time you get back.¡± ¡°You are doing a lot for just a guest.¡± I commented. ¡°My lord, you are more than a guest.¡± Tabitha said and then looked surprised. ¡°I can''t explain why I believe that.¡± ¡°It''s probably the same reason why you can be completely naked in a bath with me without being embarrassed and then a kiss on the cheek will make you blush.¡± Tabitha''s surprise became a genuine smile. ¡°Yes, I... I think you''re right.¡± She said and leaned in to kiss my cheek. She blushed a little and then laughed softly. ¡°You''ve given me a lot to think about, my lord.¡± ¡°Nothing bad, I hope.¡± ¡°No, nothing bad.¡± Tabitha said. ¡°Except for the fact that you can''t have more than one maid at school until next year.¡± It took me a minute to realize what she meant. ¡°You want to be my maid?¡± ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± Tabitha said. ¡°As my current lord said, my skills and talents are wasted on him, as they were at his father''s estate.¡± ¡°Alex is an only child?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°No one is left for me to take care of and there''s nothing worse than that for a dedicated maid.¡± Tabitha said with a sigh. ¡°The only time off I have from school is during the king''s birthday next month, then you won''t see me again until next year.¡± ¡°I''ve been waiting five years for Alex to return from the army and accept my position officially, and he still hasn''t.¡± Tabitha said. ¡°He''s always been too private to accept help when it was offered, even from his wife. Although, he''s been getting better with that lately.¡± ¡°Losing parts of yourself humbles a person.¡± I said and she looked sad as she nodded. ¡°I have two personal maids, one that takes care of my daily needs and one that usually takes care of my bathing needs when she can.¡± ¡°The dorm monitor allows another maid to visit?¡± Tabitha asked, shocked. ¡°I thought...¡± ¡°I don''t have a dorm monitor.¡± Tabitha''s mouth made that little ''o'' of surprise and then she blushed deeply. ¡°My lord, please accept my petition to become your maid. I have no problem being third. I''ll serve your meals if it''s required and I''ll make sure you enjoy your days to their fullest.¡± ¡°What about Alex?¡± I asked. ¡°He''s been looking for an excuse to let me go to find someone else to take care of for a while. He''s too kind to cut me loose without making sure I was going to a good home.¡± ¡°I''ll ask him about it.¡± I said. Tabitha let out a squeal and then she put her arms around me and kissed me on the lips. ¡°You won''t regret this, my lord!¡± She said and grabbed my hand, went to the door, and dragged me through it. ¡°I''ll have my things packed by tonight and I''ll come back with you to your dorm.¡± ¡°You can''t stay there.¡± I said as she pulled me over to the door that led outside to the stables. ¡°There''s no rule about me keeping my things there.¡± Tabitha said and stopped at the door. ¡°I''ll keep enough in a bag to take to your mansion; but, all of my main things will be near you all the time.¡± She checked my collar and saw that it was fine. ¡°Thank you, my lord. Thank you.¡± ¡°He hasn''t agreed yet.¡± I said. ¡°Yes, he has. He just doesn''t know it yet.¡± Tabitha said and opened the door for me. ¡°You''ll barely have to mention me and he''ll hand me over without a fuss.¡± She smiled a smile full of confidence and surety. I gave her one last look and walked through the door and followed the path and the smell to the stables.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°I can''t believe you''re using the full carriage.¡± Donna said with a chuckle. ¡°We need the room.¡± Alex said as the butler helped him climb in and then the butler hung the small hand cart on the back of the carriage. ¡°Ahhh, it''s so nice to be back in this thing after so long.¡± Mage Ridge said as her husband helped her into the carriage. She sat down in the middle of the large seat and ran her hand over the plush leather. ¡°It''s been years, hasn''t it?¡± ¡°At least.¡± Donna said and climbed in with Darrel''s help. She sat down beside Alex and Darrel entered next. I nodded to the coachman and entered as well, then looked at the seating arrangements. ¡°Please sit beside me, David.¡± Mage Ridge said and pat her side. ¡°Please.¡± I glanced at her husband and he didn''t look happy, which made my decision for me. I sat down beside her, opposite Alex, and saw his amused face. ¡°I''m sorry for how things have been going so far.¡± Mage Ridge said to me as the carriage began moving. ¡°I knew there would be some conflict, just because of who my husband is; but, I never imagined he would be this... blatant... with how he felt about someone like you.¡± ¡°Someone like me?¡± ¡°He thinks you''ve had everything handed to you, including a rich wife, and that you haven''t worked your ass off.¡± Donna said with a roll of her eyes. ¡°Your very expensive clothes set him off.¡± Darrel mumbled under his breath. ¡°I bought these with my own money.¡± I said. ¡°I made more than enough hunting exotic animals to open an account at the bank.¡± Mage Ridge took in a sharp breath, her husband let out a gurgling sound as if he was choking on his own spit, and Alex and Donna laughed at their reactions. ¡°The owlbear pelt was a good portion of that, wasn''t it?¡± Alex asked and I nodded. ¡°The meat was pretty lucrative, too.¡± I said. ¡°Once I cooked it up properly. It was delicious.¡± ¡°I can imagine.¡± Mage Ridge said and gave me an odd look. ¡°You hunted an owlbear and lived.¡± ¡°I wouldn''t say hunted.¡± I said and then explained how it really happened. Alex and Donna had heard me tell this story before and they enjoyed it just as much this time. Mage Ridge''s face was drained of color when I was done and her husband wouldn''t make eye contact with anyone in the carriage. We arrived at the large dock area and the sail masts of the large ships could be easily seen over the storage warehouses and building areas. ¡°Ooo, look at that! It''s a dreadnaught!¡± Alex exclaimed and opened the window of the carriage. He was almost hanging out of it to get a better look. ¡°I think it''s a dreadnaught. Driver! Can you get us closer?¡± ¡°I''m sorry, my lord. Nothing bigger than a horse and cart are allowed past this point.¡± ¡°Dammit.¡± Alex said and let out a sigh. Donna looked at me and I motioned to the dock. She sighed loudly and spoke. ¡°Ten minutes.¡± ¡°YES!¡± Alex yelled and we were all out of the carriage and on the dock as he was propped up inside the small hand cart. We walked down the dock and his eyes took in everything. ¡°It really is a dreadnaught!¡± He said excitedly and pointed at the ship we approached. ¡°It''s huge!¡± A man''s head poked out from under the hand rail twenty feet above our heads. ¡°Hey! Is that a ship connoisseur I just heard below me?¡± ¡°I''m a medically retired and bored army captain! What else am I supposed to look at around here?¡± Alex responded and the man laughed. ¡°Good point! Look out below!¡± The man said and disappeared, a rope appeared around the hand rail, then the man leapt over the rail and gripped the rope. He slid down at half-falling speed and landed with a plunk right in front of Alex. ¡°You''re a master rigger!¡± Alex exclaimed and held his odd hand out. ¡°Sorry about shaking with the wrong hand. I misplaced my other one.¡± The master rigger laughed and took the offered hand with his own odd hand. ¡°I see you went to all the trouble to dress up just to meet me.¡± He said and looked at us all. ¡°Anyone else interested in ships?¡± Donna, Mage Ridge, and her husband shook their heads. ¡°I own a boat I designed and built myself.¡± I said and the man''s face grew a huge smile. ¡°Let''s let the land lovers go down the dock to the fried fish stall and I''ll take you and your friend on board to show you my pride and joy.¡± The master rigger said and flicked the rope with his hand and then coiled it up at his feet in a couple of seconds. ¡°Up the gangplank, of course.¡± ¡°Donna?¡± Alex asked, his voice pleading. Donna sighed and he took her hand and kissed it. ¡°Where''s the fish stall?¡± ¡°Down that way and to the right. Best fried fish you''ve ever had.¡± The master rigger said. ¡°Bring us back some!¡± Alex said as the others walked away and we followed the master rigger over to the gangplank. I helped the butler bring the hand cart onboard and then we were given an extensive tour of the ship. Work crews were all over the place as they worked on it. ¡°Over there is where the cannons will be mounted.¡± The man said when we went below deck. ¡°What?¡± Alex asked, surprised. ¡°Why are you mounting them below the main deck?¡± ¡°We''ve lost too many of the expensive things during storms when they broke free from their moorings on the deck and dropped overboard.¡± ¡°They can do that?¡± Alex asked. ¡°Apparently.¡± The master rigger said. ¡°One of the boys back at the design bureau thought mounting them behind the hull would at least stop them from dropping overboard if the ship tips up on its keel.¡± ¡°You have to weaken the hull to cut the holes, don''t you?¡± Alex asked as he looked over at the crew doing just that. ¡°We''re going to reinforce around the hole and build a cover for the front when it''s not in use.¡± The master rigger said. ¡°I bet you the enemy will be surprised when we unload a whole broadside at them and it hits their ship and not their sails!¡± ¡°The enemy?¡± I asked. ¡°The Eastern Empire.¡± The master rigger answered. ¡°I thought we were in peace talks.¡± I said. ¡°Ha. Yeah.¡± The master rigger huffed. ¡°Are you seeing the work going on around us?¡± Alex and I looked around at the work crews working hard and looked back at the master rigger. ¡°Would anyone do this much work if we expected to have peace when they''re done talking?¡± Alex opened and closed his mouth several times as he tried to come up with a logical explanation. ¡°Ha ha! You''re getting it.¡± The master rigger said and clapped Alex on the shoulder. ¡°Come on, I''ll show you the crew cabins and finish the tour at the captain''s chair by the steering wheel.¡± We followed him through the ship to look at the cabins and then we were brought up to the main deck and the large steering wheel there. Luckily, the captain was off somewhere finalizing orders or something and couldn''t say no to what happened next. Alex got to sit in the captain''s chair and played with the steering wheel as he barked out fake sea orders, much to the master rigger''s delight and the crew around us burst out in uproarious laughter. 166 Academy Antics Part Thirty Four - The Weekend Visit Conclusion Our tour ended after that and we met Donna, Mage Ridge, and Darrel back down on the dock. ¡°Did you have fun?¡± Donna asked, even though she could easily tell from her husband''s face that he had a great time. ¡°It was okay.¡± Alex said and then couldn''t keep a straight face as he laughed. ¡°It was GREAT! I got to touch the steering wheel and everything!¡± Donna bent over and kissed and hugged him. ¡°You''re welcome.¡± ¡°I''ll thank you later.¡± Alex whispered into her ear and licked it. Donna let out a giggle and then fake coughed to cover it up as she stood. We walked around the dock while Alex and I ate the pieces of fried fish Donna gave us. It was quite tasty and when we finished eating, we went back to the carriage and drove back to the estate. It was almost like Alex gave himself permission to relax, because he let out a huge yawn. ¡°I think someone needs a nap for a few hours before we eat supper.¡± Donna said, suggestively. ¡°I do. Thank you.¡± Alex said and let another yawn. ¡°I''ll be... fine for...¡± His head lilted to the side and then he started snoring. Donna laughed softly and nodded to the butler. When Alex was out of earshot, she looked at us. ¡°Free time until supper. Help yourselves to the parlour or the games room until then.¡± ¡°Thanks, Donna.¡± Mage Ridge said and she left with her husband. None of us asked where they were going. ¡°I''m going with Alex to lay down for a while.¡± Donna said. ¡°Are you all right by yourself?¡± Just then Tabitha appeared and she clamped onto my arm as if she had always been there. ¡°I retract my question.¡± Donna said with a chuckle. ¡°See you at supper.¡± I nodded and she left to follow her husband. ¡°Free time.¡± Tabitha said. ¡°Do you want a tour of the house and grounds?¡± ¡°Is there a potion or equipment room?¡± I asked and she shook her head. ¡°Then no.¡± ¡°The parlour? Do you want some tea?¡± I thought about that for a minute. ¡°If you join me.¡± ¡°Wh-what? No, I... I couldn''t...¡± ¡°Sit with me and have tea.¡± I ordered and she straightened her back and nodded. ¡°Lead the way.¡± Tabitha kept my arm and led me to the parlour, sat me down and made sure I was comfortable, then she left to prepare the tea. She came back ten minutes later with a large tea service and expertly did a cup up for me, with my chosen two sugars, and then she did the same for herself and sat across from me on the other couch. She also looked uncomfortable. ¡°Come here.¡± I said and pointed to the spot right beside me as I turned slightly and crossed my legs, then I sipped my tea. It was just the right temperature and I didn''t have to blow on it. Tabitha saw my satisfied face and smiled a little, then she stood and transferred over to sit beside me. She held her cup steady and took a sip. ¡°So, were you always a maid?¡± I asked. ¡°Since I was fifteen.¡± Tabitha said. ¡°I grew up in a noble house and learned all about my job from my mother and the other maids. I looked forward to fulfilling my chosen role my whole life.¡± She smiled as she remembered how that came about. ¡°I was so happy when Alex''s father accepted my petition to take care of his son.¡± ¡°Your mother wasn''t powerful enough to become a mage?¡± I asked and she shook her head. ¡°We were both tested several times and neither of us could make the crystal glow more than a little.¡± Tabitha said with a sigh. ¡°Still, I can do a few little things, as long as it doesn''t require chanting. I always mess up trying to remember all that crap.¡± That made me smile a little and she smiled a lot in return. ¡°What about you?¡± Tabitha asked. ¡°I''ve heard a few things when my lord and my lady are talking...¡± ¡°I grew up in a marsh, fought to survive every day, was tortured and maimed, then I was suddenly on my own when I was of age. I figured out how to live alone and then I killed someone, was convicted and sentenced to death, conscripted into the army, served my time and lost my foot when I was eaten by a dragon, saved the kingdom by ending the war with my revolutionary weaponry, then I was rescued by Helena and escaped my fate of being in the army for the rest of my life.¡± Tabitha sat there with her mouth open in shock and didn''t say anything in response. ¡°Now I''m engaged to a strong and powerful woman, have a mansion remodelled how I want it, tons of money I earned both on my own and with Helena, and I''m on my way to becoming a recognized mage.¡± I said and took another sip of tea. ¡°It''s cooling off.¡± Tabitha put her hand over it and her hand glowed, as did the cup. ¡°Show me how you did that.¡± I said and she gave me a knowing smile. She slid closer and seemed to cuddle in and she did her best to teach me another spell called Heating. That was two of them she had shown me and as we talked about more specific things, mainly little details of our lives that were interesting, I asked her what else she knew.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. She was a little sad that all she knew were little household things and nothing significant. A sweeping spell, a modification of her lathering spell for cleaning windows, and using the heating spell on a tray and warming a bunch of cups at the same time. She also knew something to push the smoke of the fire away and up the chimney when there was a bad draft. Needless to say, I asked her to teach me and I spent all of the time until supper learning important magic. Tabitha didn''t think so, not realizing that the spells could be very useful with more magic applied. It was all in what you could imagine doing with it that mattered. She seemed to enjoy teaching me, too. The door to the parlour opened and a different maid told us that supper would be served soon. We left there and went to the guest room to get me changed into my meal suit and to grab my luggage bag. Tabitha was quite efficient with her work to get me changed and she escorted me to the dining room. The seating arrangements were the same and everyone seemed to be in a better mood, as was I. Or maybe it was just me and it just seemed like they were happier. Either way, the meal passed by quickly with polite conversation and a few laughs thrown in, especially when Alex recounted his ship adventure that day. Alex was loaded into his small hand cart after the meal and the butler hauled him along in front of the rest of us to the front door. ¡°Thank you for coming to visit on such short notice.¡± He said and held his odd hand out to me. I did as the master rigger did and used my odd hand, too. ¡°Are you sure you''re okay with letting Tabitha go?¡± ¡°More than okay.¡± Alex said, his voice full of relief. ¡°I told you she was being wasted here.¡± He turned and saw her coming down the stairs with two suitcases and a butler with her trunk, so he laughed. ¡°Apparently, she wants out even more than I thought she did.¡± ¡°My lord, that''s not true.¡± Tabitha said with a red face. ¡°I''m just eager to please my new lord.¡± Alex held his hand out to her and she took it with both hands, bent over it to lightly kiss it, and did a curtsy at the same time. ¡°I release you into David Drake''s custody and employ.¡± ¡°Thank you, my lord.¡± Tabitha said and stepped back to let the others say goodbye. ¡°Thank you for bringing David over, Vicki.¡± Donna said and hugged her cousin. ¡°I doubt you''ll be allowed to do it again for a while.¡± ¡°It''s all right. I''m just visiting with my husband. David just came along for the ride.¡± Mage Ridge said, conspiratorially. ¡°What... oh, ha ha. I get it.¡± Donna said and gave her another hug. ¡°Thanks for covering the favor up.¡± Mage Ridge laughed softly and bent down to hug Alex. ¡°You hang in there.¡± She said and kissed his cheek. ¡°We all care about you.¡± ¡°Your husband''s right there.¡± Alex said and she laughed. ¡°Thank you for letting me come along.¡± Darrel said and wasn''t sure which hand to use to shake hands. ¡°I hope you weren''t too bored.¡± Alex said and grabbed one at random and shook it briefly. ¡°It wasn''t as bad as I thought it was going to be.¡± Darrel said and his wife gave him a stern look. ¡°What? That''s the truth. I''m not going to lie to the host.¡± ¡°Come on.¡± Mage Ridge said with a roll of her eyes as she slung her bag over her shoulder. She took her husband''s hand and led him outside to the waiting carriage. Tabitha and the butler followed with her bags and the door shut behind them. ¡°We''ve agreed to do it in the morning.¡± Donna said to me and took me into a hug. ¡°Thank you very much, David. Even if we die, you''ve given us so much hope that we can pass on without worry.¡± ¡°Hey, speak for yourself. I''m going to go kicking and screaming, just like my grandpa!¡± Donna laughed and let me go. ¡°I loved that old man so much.¡± ¡°We both did.¡± Alex said with a big smile and looked at me. ¡°We''ll see you next month at your place.¡± ¡°I look forward to seeing you both intact.¡± I said and gave Donna a kiss on the scarred side of her face, which surprised her, and I pat Alex on the shoulder as I passed him. I nodded to the butler and then saluted the night guard on the door before I climbed into the large carriage and sat down next to Tabitha. She looked very happy to be where she was and Mage Ridge couldn''t help but smile at her. We rode in companionable silence all the way back to the academy and the carriage stopped at the gate. To Darrel''s surprise, the large gates were opened and we rode inside and all the way across the campus to the old dorms. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Mage Ridge and her husband whispered as my dorm mansion came into view. ¡°I knew it!¡± Tabitha exclaimed and then covered her mouth. ¡°Please accept my apologies for my outburst.¡± She said in a more subdued tone. ¡°What outburst?¡± I asked as the carriage came to a stop in front of the doors. ¡°I thought you said they assigned you to live in a death trap?¡± Darrel asked, anger in his voice. ¡°They did. The building was condemned and falling apart.¡± I said as the carriage door was opened by the coachman. ¡°I fixed it.¡± I stepped down and held an elbow out to Tabitha. She almost squealed in delight as I did and the two guards on the mansion''s doors opened them. ¡°Oh, my god.¡± Tabitha whispered as she glanced inside. ¡°Can one of you give us a hand with her luggage?¡± I asked and one of the guards stepped forward. ¡°The smaller bag is the one I''m keeping with me when I leave for the Henrietta Longshore Estate.¡± Tabitha said and the guard nodded as he lifted down the other bag and the trunk. ¡°Thank you, kind sir.¡± ¡°It''s no trouble, ma''am.¡± The guard said and lifted both things easily. ¡°My lord, which room?¡± ¡°Second door at the top of the stairs.¡± I said and he nodded as he took the bags inside. ¡°It''s just a quick tour and then you have to go.¡± I said to Tabitha and she nodded. I ignored Darrel''s grumbling as we went inside and it was a very quick tour, even with greeting Hope and Sara. We were back out two minutes later and Tabitha''s face was alight with happiness as I helped her back into the carriage. ¡°I''ll be by to visit tomorrow, my lord.¡± Tabitha said. ¡°Is there any message you have for the lady of the house?¡± ¡°Tell her I''ve been to visit Alex and Donna and will have a letter for her tomorrow evening for Sara to give to her.¡± Tabitha nodded and I turned my head to Mage Ridge. ¡°I''ll see you in class, Mage Ridge.¡± I said and bowed slightly to her. I glanced at Darrel and an odd thought appeared in my head. ¡°Mage Ridge, do not take liberties with my personal maid.¡± ¡°What?¡± Darrel looked surprised. ¡°I would never...¡± ¡°You''re angry at me for being treated better than you today and you''re envious that Alex gave me a maid.¡± I said and he opened his mouth to deny it, then he let out a sigh. ¡°Tabitha, if he so much as asks you a personal question or touches you during the drive home, tell Helena right away. She''s a high ranking mage and she''ll take care of it.¡± ¡°My lord.¡± Tabitha said, her voice respectful and it had a bit of reverence in it. She knew what that meant, as did Darrel, because his face drained of color and he wouldn''t look at me or Tabitha. My point was made, so I stepped down from the carriage to let the coachman shut the door. The carriage took off and turned around to go all the way back over to the teacher''s living area to drop off Mage Ridge. I went inside my dorm mansion and the doors shut behind me. ¡°I have the bath all ready for you, my lord.¡± Sara said and was as happy about it as she always was. She took my hand and led me up the stairs to strip me off to enjoy herself and to wallow in her work. 167 Academy Antics Part Thirty Five - Back To School The next day, both Tabitha and Sara were back early in the morning. It was the last day before the school week started, so I had the entire day off to play around with ingredients and potions. After breakfast with everyone, I was given another full bath and both Sara and Tabitha giggled and laughed as they competed to see who could scrub me the best. It ended in a tie and Tabitha motioned for Sara to go ahead with her ritual. ¡°Thank you.¡± Sara said and performed spectacularly. ¡°Ooo, you have to show me how you did that.¡± Tabitha said as she leaned in close to watch. ¡°I do it like this.¡± She said and showed Sara her tongue and how she moved it. Sara eased off and the ritual became a teaching lesson and an exchange of techniques. They both had things they knew and had learned from different teachers, so I had an extra long ritual that morning that was almost as long as the bath was. I didn''t mind and neither did they. I was dried off and dressed in a casual outfit by their expert hands right afterwards. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said to the both of them. ¡°You see? I told you that he appreciates our work.¡± Sara said and pat Tabitha''s shoulder. ¡°Let''s get you settled into the communal room for personal maids.¡± ¡°That is such a great idea to bunk personal maids together.¡± Tabitha said as she left the bedroom with Sara. ¡°At the old mansion, we were all in our own rooms, even if we were taking care of the same person.¡± ¡°If you''re a normal maid back at the house, you get a lone room unless you want to share.¡± Sara said. ¡°Most of us share anyway.¡± ¡°I would, too.¡± Tabitha said. ¡°It''s much better to...¡± Their voices trailed off as they went down the stairs and out of my hearing range. I went to my vault and took out the stacks of papers I had. I was tempted to get to work on those cleaning potions and contact Mage Marks for the things I needed, then decided that it could wait. I had found a variant of the cleaning potion in my fancy book that was exclusively for cleaning wounds. The ingredients were nearly the same, except for some differences in the brew times and the effects, the amounts, and when they were added. After I made the proper substitutions for the ingredients I had available, it only took me two tries to get it worked out and I wrote out the alterations. I was sure that the healer would want this new potion if I ever brewed it. The thing was, with those alterations fresh in my mind, I had another variant on cleaning that I was thinking about. If the variant cleaning one could clean the dirt out of wounds and the normal cleaning one could clean any surface, what would happen if I combined them? I asked myself and then got to work. I spent the whole morning with my papers and lists as I worked through both recipes to see if they could be combined properly, or if I would have to brew one and then figure out where to add it like I did with the fortifying potion and the waterproofing potion. When Hope came to retrieve me for lunch, I had finally figured out a very long and complicated recipe using two pots and also a very simple one. The complicated one was guaranteed to work every time and took three times as long to brew, while the simple one took the same amount of time as the original cleaning potion and had a 70% success rate. At least, that''s what my math told me. The variation of time when to add them together was the deciding factor. If I was off by a few minutes, it would be weaker and might fail the infusion. The problem was, I didn''t have the ingredients to waste on a possible 70% success. I went to lunch and we all ate. I was still by myself at the main table and Hope, Sara, and Tabitha did their best to keep me engaged in conversation from their table. I thanked them for their efforts when the meal was over and went back up to my work room. I knew I could do better than 70%, I just knew it, so I went through my lists of ingredients again and their properties. It took me another hour before I realized the solution. ¡°I can use the general health potion as the binding agent.¡± I said and quickly went over the new recipe again. With the general health potion to hold and bind the two different cleaning potions together, I eliminated several redundant ingredients and brewing stages. It paired the whole endeavour down to a more manageable level and I smiled at the result. If I was reading the results right, then this potion would do much more than clean and would only take twice as long to brew. ¡°I have to make it.¡± I said and went into my potions room to get to work. Thanks to my ingredient copying technique, I managed to make my remaining ingredients stretch out to just enough for a single large stew pot. I worked for the rest of the day and ignored the call for supper, because I couldn''t let the potion out of my sight, not with the delicate management I had calculated. I managed to complete it an hour after I was supposed to eat and stood back and stared at it. It was a complete success on the first try. I filled a vial with it and left it to simmer on low heat to keep it viable, then went downstairs to the kitchen. I ignored the other''s words to me and went right over to the sink of soaking dirty dishes. I grabbed a glass and dipped it into the dirty water and heard a gasp. ¡°My lord, if you''re thirsty, I can get you anything you want to drink.¡± The kitchen helper said. ¡°No, this will do.¡± I said and turned around to put the glass of dark and soapy water on the counter. Hope, Sara, Tabitha, the cook, and the kitchen helper stared at me with concern on their faces. I opened the vial and let a single drop come out. As soon as it hit the water, the entire glass glowed for a second and then all of the soap, dirt, food bits, and discoloration disappeared from the water to leave it completely clear. ¡°Oh, my god.¡± Several of them whispered. ¡°You see? It''s perfectly fine water.¡± I said and took a drink. ¡°It would be better cold.¡± I said and held my hand over it and a little bit of frost formed on the glass as it glowed. ¡°My lord!¡± Tabitha exclaimed. ¡°How did you do that?!?¡± ¡°You taught me how.¡± I said and took another drink. ¡°That''s much better.¡± ¡°No, I... I taught you how to heat...¡± ¡°I just reversed it.¡± I said and she stared at me like I had two heads. ¡°It''s pretty simple. I''ll show you later.¡±The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Tabitha shook slightly and then nodded her head several times before sat down on a chair. She looked really shaken for some reason. ¡°Does anyone else want to try this?¡± I asked and held up the glass. None of them said anything, so I held my hand over it and warmed it up, then dumped it back into the sink. ¡°I... I think we need to go.¡± Sara said and pat Tabitha''s shoulder. ¡°Yes, we... we should.¡± Tabitha responded. ¡°I need to write a letter for Helena before you do.¡± I said. ¡°Can I eat while I do?¡± ¡°Of course, my lord.¡± The kitchen helper and the cook said. I went out to the dining room and I was served supper as I wrote. I finished the letter and my meal at almost the same time and handed the letter to Sara. ¡°Thank you for waiting.¡± ¡°I would wait for as long as you wanted, my lord.¡± Sara said and took Tabitha''s hand. ¡°See you tomorrow afternoon.¡± She and Tabitha left and I heard the carriage leave with them. ¡°Now you have two people that are sad that they can''t stay here to do their chosen jobs.¡± Hope said with a knowing smile. ¡°Let''s get you upstairs and changed for bed. You have school tomorrow.¡± Almost as if my mind was waiting for her to say that, I let out a yawn. Hope laughed and led me up to my bedroom and changed me out of my casual clothes. I was dressed in night clothes and tucked into bed a minute later, then I closed my eyes and the whole night passed before I knew it. I was up the next morning and Hope helped change me into my academy uniform. We had breakfast and I carried my small pack with the day''s books and my small enchanting tools with me. The morning classes were for basic spellwork composition and I was still completely lost. Even when Mage Sanchita took me aside and talked to me about what Mage Marks had told her, her instructions were just so much gibberish. I didn''t tell her that my new maid had taught me better than her, though. That would have been a bit too insulting for her to accept, even if it was the truth. Her teaching methods were too constrained by how she was taught, so I went back to my desk and pretty much just sat there for the rest of the class. Vanessa did her best to show me the things she was working on and I whispered to her a reminder that it was too different from my ingrained knowledge. Trying to memorize chants for orders to give my magic when I used it, was too much of a waste of my time when I could just will my magic to do what I wanted when casting a spell. I thanked her for trying and told her I appreciated her attempts, then I let her be to do her own work. I went home for lunch to avoid the cafeteria, much to Vanessa''s disappointment, and we met up again to go to practical mathematics class that afternoon. Mage Quintos gave me a peculiar look when I sat down at my desk next to Vanessa. ¡°No, I won''t give you the recipe for the potion I used.¡± I said to him and he seemed to deflate a little. Vanessa gave me a questioning glance and I explained in a whisper about what happened during my civil construction class last week. She laughed loudly for her, which was barely above a breath, and she leaned her head onto my shoulder. ¡°I wish I could have seen their faces when you showed them up like that.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°Why didn''t you?¡± I asked in a whisper. ¡°There wasn''t a single girl in the class.¡± ¡°We have different classes and learn different things.¡± Vanessa responded. ¡°It''s always been that way.¡± ¡°What if you want to build a house for yourself?¡± I asked. ¡°We would get someone else to do it, of course.¡± Vanessa said, as if that was the only logical answer. She also didn''t seem to want to know how to do it herself, which confused me a little. It took me a few minutes to realize the fundamental shift of knowledge between the sexes. Men were taught certain things and a lot of it overlapped that of the women. Not all of it, though. We each learned some very different and very specific things and those subjects almost never crossed. Women were taught proper etiquette and how to host parties and guests while the men were taught how to build the places where they did those things. Women were taught how to dress appropriately and to help men, while men were taught how to treat women and to give them the respect they were due, as well as how to provide for them. There were exceptions to some of that, considering how several women took it upon themselves to teach me what I needed to know to survive in noble society. I had thanked them at the time; but, I hadn''t realized how important that knowledge was. The practical math class ended and then the spellwork math class began. I was lost once more, since none of it made a lick of difference to how I cast magic and was directly applied to what I couldn''t learn from my basic spellwork class that morning. I sat back in my chair and closed my eyes to wait for the class to be over. ¡°Mr. Drake, could you answer this question?¡± Mage Quintos asked and pointed to the board. I opened my eyes and looked at it. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Come now, Mr. Drake. Surely, if you were paying attention, you could easily guess the answer.¡± Mage Quintos said, a bit of an evil gleam in his eye. ¡°I wasn''t paying attention because it''s a waste of time for me.¡± I said and a few of the girls took in sharp breaths. ¡°It''s just meaningless to me. All of it.¡± I motioned at the book on my desk. ¡°It''s pointless.¡± ¡°Even a young child can do simple math.¡± Mage Quintos said. ¡°I told you before. If I was younger, I could change and try to learn the wrong way to do it, just to get people like you off of my back. I''m twenty years old and I''ve been casting magic for far too long to change now.¡± Mage Quintos sighed. ¡°Mr. Drake, if you keep being confrontational, I''m going to have to report you to the administration building.¡± ¡°You''re the one causing this confrontation. You know full well I can''t do any of this the way you want. You''re just rubbing my face in it and making me look bad in front of the other students for your own personal satisfaction.¡± Mage Quintos frowned. ¡°Mr. Drake, this is a basic... basic... fire spell. Everyone can cast it!¡± ¡°I didn''t say I couldn''t cast it.¡± I said as I stood and waved my hand across the front of the room. I unleashed my magic and used the fire starting spell on everything inanimate that I could see, including the teacher''s desk. ¡°AHHHH!¡± Mage Quintos yelled as everything around him lit on fire instantly without me saying a word or having to cast it on each item. All of the girls in the class gasped and a few jumped as if the fire was going to come after them. I waved my hand again and extinguished the fires a second later. A few things were charred a little; but it was all just surface damage. ¡°I only said that I can''t cast it the wrong way.¡± Mage Quintos stared at me as if he had never seen me before. ¡°It looks like your secret is out.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°Lots of people can pretend to cast wordlessly.¡± I said out loud and she smiled at my cover-up. ¡°Even my new maid can heat food with a wave of her hand.¡± ¡°Get... get out.¡± Mage Quintos said as he looked around at the slightly burned things on the desk and the things behind him. ¡°I''ll be sending the bill for repairs and replacements to you.¡± ¡°I could remove the surface damage right now and repair it all for free.¡± I said as I packed my books away. ¡°Make sure you don''t overcharge me to replace it all.¡± Mage Quintos squinted his eyes at me. ¡°You know I can build a better and much more expensive desk in under ten minutes.¡± I said and bent down to whisper to Vanessa. ¡°See you tomorrow.¡± ¡°Bye, David.¡± Vanessa whispered back. I gave her cheek a kiss to make her blush and left the class with my head held high. 168 Academy Antics Part Thirty Six - Maid To Order I went right over to the library and Eludora laughed as soon as she saw me. ¡°You have to stop getting in trouble in class.¡± Eludora said and waved me over. I went around her desk and she gave me a weak hug. ¡°It lasted until last night.¡± She said in reference to the strength potion I had given her last week as she let me go. ¡°The funny thing is, it didn''t just shut off like I expected. It faded away gradually.¡± ¡°You might not have noticed it if you were asleep.¡± I said and walked over to the hand cart to get more materials and a crate of potions. ¡°You need to just sit there for now and I''ll keep working.¡± ¡°David, I can''t just...¡± Eludora started to say and I put the things down beside her desk and took her hand. ¡°I''ll figure something out. I have a few ideas; but, I can''t rush into this. I need to test a few things, work out some of the kinks, and find more replacement ingredients.¡± I said. ¡°When I do, I''m sure you''ll get that strength feeling again and for a lot longer than last time.¡± Eludora took a breath and let it out. ¡°That''s what all that ingredient searching was for? Substitutions?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I said with a nod. ¡°Unless I want to make a long trip back to the marsh to get more ingredients that I''m comfortable in using, I have to use different things with similar properties. Some ingredients have to be combined and brewed together, just to get them to a good enough concentration to work properly.¡± Eludora blinked her eyes for several seconds. ¡°I''m not a potions brewer, so I don''t really understand the struggle you''re going through.¡± She squeezed my hand. ¡°However, I appreciate hard work when I see it.¡± ¡°I just got here and haven''t started yet.¡± I said and she chuckled. ¡°David.¡± Eludora leaned over her desk and gave me a kiss on the cheek. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°You can thank me later when I come up with something for you to try.¡± ¡°Oh, I plan on thanking you, even if it doesn''t work.¡± Eludora said with a wicked smile. ¡°Now get to work. If my last count is any indication, you might just finish by suppertime.¡± ¡°Not with the other row of shelves. It has to be emptied first, removed, and then new shelves mounted to hold the redone maps.¡± I said. ¡°It''ll be another half day, maybe two.¡± ¡°You''re being extra careful, aren''t you?¡± Eludora asked, because she knew that I could rush and be done much quicker. ¡°I don''t want to ruin anything. You care too much about the maps for me to be disrespectful to them and to you.¡± She gave me a seductive smile as she let my hand go and then she gently touched the side of my face and lightly caressed it. She waved at the map room and I went to work and did as I said. I took my time and made sure that each map was properly secured and treated. I also used the same trick I did with the smaller maps. If they were of similar size, I would make frames all the same size, just for the ease of browsing. I also took the time to carve the simple weight enchantments onto the inside of the frames, which successfully hid them from sight. It would make Eludora''s job of browsing and sorting them that much easier. When I told her what I did and how much I had left to do, she took me into another embrace and lightly kissed me on the lips. The chaste kiss she gave me made my lips tingle. ¡°Thank you very much, David.¡± Eludora whispered, her voice full of appreciation. We left the library at suppertime and I helped her walk back to her living quarters. She claimed I was only escorting her, even though we both knew the truth. She didn''t want to be exhausted when she went home and my help bringing her there was both wanted and appreciated. I went back to the library and picked up the two empty crates of vials and went to my dorm mansion. Sara and Tabitha were there and I was only slightly surprised that they didn''t ask me to take a bath, considering the state I was in after doing woodworking and handling dusty old maps and scrolls. When I mentioned needing a bath before I ate, Hope laughed pretty hard as I was unceremoniously dragged by both arms out of the room by Sara and Tabitha. I was suddenly up the stairs and undressed, then tossed into the tub and tackled by two very happy women. They seemed to laugh and carry on as I was scrubbed and cleaned, almost as if they were in competition with each other, then it was Tabitha''s turn for the ritual. Sara observed professionally and nodded several times as Tabitha worked me over. She made some suggestions and pointed out a few things, which made Tabitha more enthusiastic in her work. Seeing and experiencing all of this made me wonder if all the lords and nobles experienced the same thing. When I asked about it while being dried off, I was given a lecture on the practical use of personal maids and their role in noble society. Their very important and necessary role. Apparently, it was their sole responsibility and duty to ensure the sexual welfare of their lord. Because nearly all marriages were arranged years in advance, long before men and women had even met. Nearly all of them barely liked each other as people, let alone wanted to marry them or fall in love with them. Since most of the women were quite unhappy with the thoughts of having sex on a regular basis with someone they didn''t like, and in some cases openly despised, it was the personal maid''s job to do her best to relieve the man''s tension by pleasing him with their hands and mouth. They were trained constantly to do their jobs and they took excessive pride in their abilities to do it thoroughly.Stolen story; please report. Some maids like Tabitha and Sara had gotten the worst part of the deal and were stuck with a lord that didn''t require their services. Their old lords were enamored with their wives and a personal maid''s services were wasted and unnecessary. They had been hired and brought into the household before they learned the truth of their situation, then relegated themselves to the lesser important house maid. Sara had adjusted quickly to being a normal house maid and only felt unfulfilled whenever the Grand Mage took a bath and she wasn''t allowed to help. Tabitha on the other hand, had been very firmly rebuffed and was more withdrawn from the rest of the staff than she should have been. She performed her duties as a normal house maid like she didn''t have any passion for the work, and it showed. Now, both maids had a lord that not only needed their services, I had actively asked them for their participation in baths. It made them happier than they had ever been before and they had fun and enjoyed their work. Their laughing and smiling faces as they did their job, made them strive hard to do their best for me. Their enthusiasm in their work was something that I hadn''t seen in many people. I was dried off and dressed into a suit that was suitable for eating a meal, a different one from the one I had worn that day. Both maids thanked me for letting them do their jobs without complaint, as if they had always had someone complain about it before, which I now knew they had. Every offer they had made to their previous lords were denied, some politely and some vehemently. It was disheartening for them to be constantly told to not do their jobs. They were a bit reluctant to ask for it, which was why they hadn''t insisted as soon as they saw me. Thankfully, they had rediscovered their passion for their work because of me and now they had both improved their techniques. Sara and Tabitha had very happy and fulfilled faces as they led me back downstairs to the dining room and we all had a great meal together. After the meal, Sara and Tabitha bid me a goodnight and left to go back to the Henrietta Longshore mansion. Hope waited until they were gone before she spoke. ¡°Tabitha seems to have fit right in, hasn''t she?¡± She asked and nodded her own head in understanding. ¡°It''s only been a day and she already feels like part of the staff.¡± ¡°I think it''s because she''s happy and is doing the work she has always wanted to do.¡± I said and the kitchen helper gave me a bit more wine. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°You''re welcome, my lord.¡± The kitchen helper said, her face slightly red, I assumed because of my thanks. ¡°Will you be retiring to the parlour?¡± ¡°I have a bit of work bottling up some potions and then I think I''ll go to bed early. It''s been a long day.¡± The kitchen helper nodded and corked the wine, gave me a curtsy, and went into the kitchen. ¡°She''s been doing great as well.¡± Hope said as she came over to my table and sat beside me. ¡°You definitely made a great choice to have her come here.¡± I sipped the wine. ¡°You''re doing well managing the dorm mansion, too.¡± Hope smiled and sipped her own wine. ¡°I''ve fallen into the role, that''s true.¡± ¡°Any problems?¡± I asked. ¡°None that haven''t been handled already.¡± Hope said, a bit cryptically. I raised my eyebrows and she smirked at me. ¡°A couple of students were sneaking around the grounds and were easily caught in the traps Frank and the guys set out.¡± Hope said. ¡°It was pretty funny, actually.¡± ¡°Why is that?¡± I asked and finished off the wine in my glass. ¡°It was right in front of the sign warning of the traps.¡± Hope said and laughed. That made me laugh, too. People could be so stupid. ¡°Did they say what they wanted?¡± Hope shook her head and finished off her wine. ¡°I think they were too embarrassed to admit anything to the guards as they were released from the snares.¡± ¡°It couldn''t have been good if they were sneaking around the back of the mansion like that.¡± I said and stood. ¡°Of course, I wouldn''t want them coming in the front, either.¡± Hope huffed in agreement and stood as well. ¡°I''ve already found out their names and who their friends are, so they shouldn''t come back.¡± She took my hand and we left the dining room. ¡°It took a bit of digging before I found out that they are connected to the man you maimed in the army.¡± ¡°Which one?¡± I asked and Hope laughed. ¡°It was during basic training. He tried to attack you because he thought you were an easy target.¡± I nodded as I remembered. It was the first and only incident that had happened in the barracks. Hope let my hand go and I picked up both empty crates to go upstairs to the potion room. I checked them and there wasn''t any residue inside, so I filled one crate with the new purifying cleaning potion to empty the pot and filled the other one with fortifying waterproof potion. I was sure that Mage Marks would be very interested in the new cleaning potion, considering our deal for the original version. I wasn''t sure if I wanted to sell it on the open market, however. It was quite time consuming to make, even with the relatively simple ingredients. I only had so much time during the day, so I needed to try and restrict myself before I became too engrossed in mass producing potions for sale. That wasn''t what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. No, I had other things that I could do with my time. I slipped some of each vial into my bandoleer and then followed Hope to our bedroom. That thought made me smile a little, because it was supposed to only be my bedroom. Hope hadn''t stayed anywhere else, even though she was supposed to stay in the communal room. No one else would be staying there with her until next year, so her need to have someone else in the room with her was understandable. Hope helped me change and I put my bandoleer into the vault, then we climbed into bed together. ¡°Tell me all about what happened today.¡± She whispered and hugged my arm like she did every night. She listened as I told her everything that had happened and she laughed when I got to the part about lighting everything on fire around Mage Quintos. ¡°David, that... you might have crossed a line.¡± ¡°He started it.¡± I said, and even to me that sounded defensive and petulant. ¡°I''ll apologize if he does.¡± Hope made a snorting sound and then laughed softly. ¡°I''m tempted to tell you to be a bigger man and apologize first, except we both know he''ll take it as you admitting you''re weaker and possibly afraid of him... or worse, that you''re trying to suck up to him to make him forgive you.¡± I nodded and she let out a long slow sigh. ¡°What... happened next?¡± Hope asked with a yawn. I continued my story about going to the library and working there for a while, helping Eludora back to her place, then coming back to the dorm mansion. When I was done talking, Hope was sound asleep and I couldn''t recall when she had drifted off. I smiled and closed my eyes as I drifted off to sleep, too. It really had been a long day. 169 Academy Antics Part Thirty Seven - Potions Class Mage Marks, or Greta when no one else was around, waited until Vanessa and I went to the workbench we used before she came over to me. ¡°David, here are the details you requested.¡± She said and handed me a folded piece of paper. It had the shipment schedules for crates of empty vials, the containers, and the ingredients. I wasn''t sure how she had arranged to have them delivered after school hours and I gave her a questioning look. ¡°We can talk during the break between morning classes.¡± Mage Marks said and I nodded. She went back to the front of the room and reiterated that the two students that didn''t need to pay attention for this class, namely Lorna and myself, could do self study. After that, she began to go over where the other students needed to improve their potions work. I sat down on a stool behind the workbench and Vanessa listened to Mage Marks as she made notes. ¡°She''s just telling them most of what you already told me last week while we were working.¡± Vanessa whispered and showed me her notes. ¡°You wrote everything out afterwards?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°Good for you.¡± Vanessa gave me a huge smile and seemed pleased with herself. ¡°Do you think you can handle making the potion by yourself today?¡± I asked. ¡°As long as you guide me. I''m going to try and work from memory, rather than strictly follow the instructions.¡± Vanessa breathed. ¡°I''ve seen you do that and I want to be able to do it, too.¡± I reached over and took her hand. ¡°I still need reference materials sometimes, especially if it''s an unfamiliar potion. Once I make it a bunch of times, I occasionally need a reminder for the brew times.¡± ¡°What about when you make it a hundred times?¡± Vanessa asked in a whisper. ¡°I can do it with my eyes closed.¡± I responded and she nodded. We both sat there for the rest of the class as Mage Marks went to each student to discuss their brewing techniques and to give advice and corrections. She was always encouraging and never scolded them for mistakes, even blatant ones. When the bell rang for the class break, she made a hand signal for me to approach her desk. ¡°Excuse me for a few minutes.¡± I said to Vanessa and walked over to the teacher''s desk. Mage Marks sat down and the wood panels popped up around us to block off both sight and sound from the other students. ¡°You have questions?¡± ¡°Yes, Greta.¡± I said and she smiled at my use of her first name. ¡°How did you arrange these delivery times for after classes today?¡± ¡°It was a simple matter to arrange the supplementary deliveries to be shipped to the only extra storage space I have access to.¡± Greta said and almost laughed at my raised eyebrows. ¡°It''s not really a fiction, since I will be there and prepping the ingredients for you to use and will also be keeping them in that spare room until they are used.¡± ¡°I''ll have a nice work area made for you.¡± I said and that made her smile grow. ¡°Is there anything else?¡± Greta asked. ¡°I debated a lot about showing you this.¡± I said as I pulled out the vial of purifying cleaning potion I had used a drop of and handed it to her. ¡°Have a look.¡± Mage Marks took the vial and stared at the crystal clear liquid inside. She opened the cork carefully and then took in a sniff. She blinked her eyes for several seconds and put the cork on it. ¡°Can you guess what it is?¡± I asked, knowing she was going through her memories to do just that. ¡°It has some of the cleaning potion in it.¡± Mage Marks said and then she performed several chants and spells to check it. The vial glowed bright blue for several seconds and she caught her breath. ¡°It''s... I can''t believe this. There''s no way...¡± I stood there as she seemed to lose herself in her papers and she opened the vial again to take out a single drop. It was suspended in a little bubble of magic and she chanted at it for several minutes. The class bell rang and she ignored it as she kept working on it. ¡°It is. It really is.¡± Greta said a few minutes later as the drop dissolved. ¡°How in the world did you create a purifying potion?¡± ¡°I just stumbled on it while thinking about things and playing around with the original recipe.¡± I said with a shrug. ¡°It took a long time to brew, too. Once I worked out the problems and added in a binding agent, that is.¡± ¡°I can imagine.¡± Greta said and sat back as she stared at the vial. ¡°What binding agent?¡± ¡°I don''t want to say in case it gives you crazy ideas.¡± I said and she barked a laugh. ¡°Is it any crazier than going into business with an uncredited student?¡± Greta asked with a grin. ¡°Considering the limited market, yes.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°I only have a couple crates of the original left and I haven''t brewed a replacement yet.¡± Greta sat back in her chair and thought about that. ¡°Since you''ve only had a general health potion and a healing potion for sale from your fiance...¡± She whispered and then she smiled. ¡°You used a general health potion as well as your unique catalyst as the binding agent. The healing potion has different properties and also different effects. It doesn''t flow through you or give your body an energy boost.¡± ¡°I knew I should have kept my mouth shut and not given you a clue.¡± I said and she laughed. ¡°It''s all right, David. I''m not going to steal your idea. I don''t have the recipe for the potion, remember? I can''t slot it into another potion properly without knowing it inside and out. That would just be a disaster waiting to happen.¡±This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. I nodded and she crossed her arms as she thought things over. ¡°I don''t want to make a bunch of them.¡± I waved at the purifying cleaning potion. ¡°I''m going to have my hands full and my spare time is going to disappear while making the boosted cleaning potions.¡± Greta nodded. ¡°Can I keep this? I want to run a few more tests.¡± ¡°I used it on a glass of dirty dish water and a single drop of it made it drinkable.¡± I said. ¡°Hmm. Just dishwater?¡± ¡°It was what I had close by at the time.¡± I shrugged. ¡°I''ll do a lot more testing if a drop is all that''s needed for a certain volume of water.¡± Greta said. ¡°Try it with a barrel of seawater.¡± Greta caught her breath. ¡°What? I thought...¡± ¡°I didn''t have anything bigger than a glass to test.¡± Greta stared at me for several moments before she nodded and tucked the vial into her belt. ¡°All right. I''ll do some larger scale tests as well.¡± She waved her hand at the wood panels around us and they folded away. ¡°Please return to your workbench.¡± ¡°Yes, Mage Marks.¡± I said and walked back over to sit beside Vanessa. She didn''t ask me what had been going on, though. I leaned close and whispered in her ear. ¡°I''ll fill you in if it works.¡± Vanessa gave me a very charming smile and nodded. ¡°I''m sorry about the delay.¡± Mage Marks said to the rest of the class and stood up to walk around her desk. ¡°I hope you''re all prepared to retrieve your own ingredients this time.¡± She gave the students a bit of a glare. ¡°Make sure that you use the proper procedures to reduce, and in most cases eliminate, contamination.¡± A couple of the girls gulped nervously and then Mage Marks laughed, which surprised them. ¡°It''s all right. I''m not going to stand here and let you all make too many mistakes. You can ask me, Lorna, and even David what you need to do.¡± Lorna let out a little groan and Mage Marks pointed to her. ¡°Remember that you have a partner in this class. How they perform reflects completely on your ability to impart knowledge to them.¡± Mage Marks said and Lorna groaned again. ¡°It''s not that bad. They can only get better because they are the least talented and you are the most talented. Be confident in what you know and share that confidence with them.¡± Lorna looked at the girl next to her and saw her slightly blushing and earnest face. ¡°I guess... I can try.¡± ¡°Excellent.¡± Mage Marks said and looked at me. ¡°David, are you going to...¡± ¡°Vanessa already knows how to prepare the ingredients. We''re just waiting for the water to boil and for her to retrieve what she needs from the bins.¡± I said and Mage Marks glanced at Vanessa, who nodded. ¡°Then please, have at it.¡± Mage Marks waved at the bins behind her desk. Vanessa was the first to go over and checked the dispensing utensil, used a chanted cleaning spell on it, then she picked up the container of the first ingredient. She came back to our workbench and doled out the right amount onto the circle she had drawn on a piece of paper. She turned to the teacher and whispered. ¡°Vanessa wants to know if she can dole it out to everyone or if she has to put it back and let them do it themselves.¡± I said. Mage Marks smiled and waved at the other desks. Vanessa whispered and went to the next workbench. ¡°She said thanks.¡± I repeated and the other girls took her example and ran with it. Instead of having to do the procedures with every ingredient, they only had to do it with one and then could make everyone''s task that much easier. Plus, only one student of the pair had to go. All of the ingredients were quickly handed out, without cross contamination, and they all got to work... except for Lorna and myself. We were relegated to observers and offered occasional corrections. I whispered to Vanessa any changes she needed to do and she followed them properly without me having to put my hands on the ingredients. She looked a little sad about that, though. ¡°Do you want me to help?¡± I asked and her face flushed red. ¡°I liked how you held me the last time we brewed together.¡± Vanessa whispered the admission. She didn''t blush, which meant she was sincere and was only stating a fact. I stood up and went behind her. ¡°Please forgive the intrusion.¡± I breathed into her ear and wrapped my arms around her from behind and held her gently and firmly as I rested my chin on her shoulder. I felt her shiver slightly and take a shaky breath, then she took a very deep breath and let it out. ¡°Thank you, David.¡± Vanessa whispered calmly and went back to work. I wasn''t holding her hands or directing them like I had the last time and she didn''t really need that kind of assistance. She remembered how we prepped the ingredients the last time and she had also written down the slight changes I had made. She referenced them and nodded as she cross cut the next ingredient to get the most out of it, gathered the liquid it expelled, then we waited patiently for its turn to be added to the potion. Vanessa relaxed against me as we brewed the potion and Mage Marks kept looking over at us. I saw her eyes find where my hands were, which was around Vanessa''s waist, and I kept them there the whole time. Vanessa only wanted me to hold her and to not interfere, and that was what Mage Marks wanted, too. She glanced at my face and saw that my lips weren''t moving, nodded, and observed the other students. ¡°She really doesn''t want you to help me.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°She knows I''m a powerful potion maker and doesn''t want you to skim through the course on my prowess.¡± Vanessa turned her head to look at me. ¡°But, you are sharing your prowess with me.¡± ¡°Sharing my knowledge with you is fine, since you''re doing all the work. Doing anything myself could be constituted as you cheating.¡± I whispered to her. Vanessa''s eyes widened slightly, then she nodded in understanding. ¡°Yes, it wouldn''t be fair if she''s trying to gauge my work if you did any of it.¡± ¡°You can''t use my catalyst, either.¡± ¡°What? Why not?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°Keep brewing.¡± I reminded her. Vanessa stirred the pot and poured in the liquid from the previous ingredient without looking at the pot. ¡°You''re saying that I''ll have to use my own blood and magic? We can''t share?¡± ¡°No, she wants to see you make a normal potion and not the boosted one I can produce.¡± Vanessa sighed and it came out normally and not quiet, since it was just expelling air, and Mage Marks looked over at us. ¡°I told her she can''t use my catalyst and I can''t use my magic to help her.¡± I said as an explanation. ¡°Thank you.¡± Mage Marks said and went back to observing the other students. ¡°Dammit, you were right.¡± Vanessa whispered with a pout, which made her look quite cute. ¡°Don''t worry, you can do this.¡± I whispered back and my lips lightly brushed her earlobe. ¡°Just imagine I actually am helping you and that my magic is flowing through you. I want you to put everything you can into it, just like you did the last time.¡± Vanessa blushed a little. ¡°D-David, I...¡± ¡°Yes, I felt you giving me everything.¡± I whispered and my hands tightened around her waist. ¡°I can''t wait to see what you can do on your own.¡± Vanessa blushed a bit more and she gave me a searching look, as if she doubted that I wanted to, then she made her decision and nodded. ¡°I''ll do my best.¡± She promised and looked back at the simmering potion. We stood there, essentially cuddled together in the middle of class, and waited for the next stage of the potion to add the next ingredient. 170 Academy Antics Part Thirty Eight - More Potions ¡°What did your father say when you showed him the enhanced knife?¡± I asked Vanessa as we waited on the potion. Vanessa gave me a very happy smile. ¡°He declared a family holiday.¡± ¡°He did?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°I assume your family all gathered together?¡± ¡°Oh, yes. Aunts and uncles, cousins, and both sets of grandparents. My grandfather on my father''s side was ecstatic. He couldn''t get over the change in size, either.¡± Vanessa whispered as her hands dealt with the uncommon ingredient and plucked the grains from it. She added them to the pot and let them stew. ¡°He knew it was a magic blade and kept it in the family all these years. He hadn''t had the ability to activate it, though. He said it was a rare talent to wake sleeping blades.¡± ¡°Sleeping blades?¡± I whispered and she nodded. ¡°Mage Marks is right. Most large families have a magic blade of some kind. It''s usually owned by a high ranking mage, since they are usually the only ones that can utilize a blade like that.¡± Vanessa said. ¡°There''s a lot of blades out there that are rumored to be magical and are considered ceremonial.¡± ¡°Because no one can activate them?¡± I asked and she nodded again. ¡°Does your family have one?¡± ¡°No, but...¡± Vanessa stopped talking as she cut up the stalk and then added it to the potion. Just the liquid was left and she would add it in a few minutes. ¡°You know who does.¡± I whispered. ¡°The royal family.¡± Vanessa said. ¡°It''s a short sword.¡± My eyes widened at that and she saw the surprise on my face. ¡°I can''t imagine why it hasn''t been activated after all of the powerful mages that have worked for the royal family all these years.¡± Vanessa said and added the liquid to the potion. ¡°I was sure that Mage Lucas could have done it. He was very strong.¡± ¡°I believe that his magic abilities were too combat oriented.¡± I said. ¡°He could infuse seven potions in a row and it left him drained.¡± Vanessa caught her breath and turned her head to look into my eyes. ¡°You really did know him.¡± ¡°We spent a lot of time together while working out the colonel''s insane plans to assault the Eastern Empire.¡± I whispered. ¡°We weren''t always planning and had to eat, too. We talked a lot about different things.¡± ¡°You talked with the strongest fighting mage in the kingdom like he was a normal person.¡± Vanessa whispered, reverence clear in her voice. ¡°How else was I supposed to talk to him?¡± I asked and Vanessa didn''t have an answer for me. ¡°It''s almost time for the infusion.¡± Vanessa nodded and stirred the pot, then she took out something that looked like a large needle. She pricked her index finger and tapped the tip three times to make three drops fall into the potion. She sucked on her finger for a second and then she held her hands out to the pot. ¡°I''m right here with you.¡± I breathed into her ear. ¡°Let the magic come. Let it fill you. Mine is right here waiting for it.¡± Vanessa shivered and I felt her magic swell up strongly. ¡°Now give it to that potion. Let it know you want it to be the best potion that it can be. You made it and it''s going to be great.¡± I whispered and my lips touched her earlobe again. ¡°Know it. Believe it. Do it!¡± ¡°UNNN!¡± Vanessa moaned as she used the infusion technique. The room lit up as she poured her magic into the potion and the pot glowed for nearly twenty seconds. The glow faded and Vanessa took several breaths to calm down. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Mage Marks said as she came over to us. ¡°Vanessa, are you all right?¡± ¡°I''m fine.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°She said she''s fine.¡± I repeated. ¡°Are you sure? That was a lot of magic to get a display like that.¡± Mage Marks said, concerned. Vanessa pat my arms and I let her go. She stopped leaning against me and stood up straight, her back stiff and with confidence on her face. ¡°I''m not drained, Mage Marks. At all.¡± ¡°She''s not drained, Mage Marks. At all.¡± I repeated for her. Mage Marks reached out to touch her forehead and nodded. ¡°Give me a vial for testing.¡± Vanessa used the ladle and filled a vial for her. ¡°It''s perfect.¡± ¡°She said it''s perfect.¡± I said and Mage Marks smiled. ¡°I''ll be the judge of that.¡± Mage Marks said and marked Vanessa''s name on it and went to her desk to drop it off. Unlike last time, nearly all of the others had their potions finish at nearly the same time and she couldn''t take the time right then to mark it first. She went to each workbench and gathered vials from the others, wrote on them, then she went back to her desk and the wood panels popped up to hide her from sight. It took her a while to finish, I assumed because the potions were that much better than the last time. When the wood panels folded away and disappeared, Mage Marks walked over to the little display and took three quarters of the ten vials out of the rack and replaced them, then moved my vial and Lorna''s vial into their own slots and replaced them with Vanessa''s and the other girl''s that Lorna helped.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. All of the girls, except for Lorna and Vanessa, quickly left their workbenches to check out their results. There were a lot of appreciative sounds and a few gasps. ¡°Go ahead.¡± I encouraged Vanessa. ¡°You need to see how well you did.¡± ¡°Come with me.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°I might... well...¡± ¡°I''ll hold you up in case you faint.¡± I guessed and she gave me a shy smile as she took my hand. We walked over to the group of girls and some of them eased aside to let us approach the rack. Vanessa saw her potion vial and took in a quick breath, then her knees started to give out. I easily caught her by putting my arms around her waist again and held her up. ¡°I knew it.¡± Vanessa whispered as she leaned back against me and turned her head to stare at me. ¡°I knew it.¡± Her potion had gotten a perfect grade. ¡°I told you that you had it in you.¡± I whispered back. ¡°Thank you, David.¡± Vanessa said and pressed her lips to my cheek and made it tingle. ¡°If it wasn''t for you, I wouldn''t have the first clue what to do.¡± ¡°You would have been fine.¡± I said as her arms hugged mine. ¡°I wasn''t chosen as the worst in the class for no reason.¡± Vanessa countered my words and grinned. ¡°I nearly blew up father''s arboretum once.¡± That made me chuckle and the girls around us looked at me. When they saw what looked like an intimate moment between Vanessa and myself, their faces flushed red and most of them turned away. The girl that had been interested in me wasn''t one of them. She bit her bottom lip and looked like she was imagining that it was her I held like that. ¡°All right, back to your workbenches.¡± Mage Marks said and shooed us away from the display rack. ¡°As you all saw, most of you have done very well. Only a couple of you have achieved an acceptable version.¡± ¡°I''m sorry, Mage Marks. I was... distracted.¡± The girl interested in me said as her eyes went right to me as I helped Vanessa sit down behind our workbench. Mage Marks let out a soft laugh. ¡°Yes, I''m sure we all were. A little, anyways. You just need to make sure that last ingredient is added on time and you''ll be on par with most of the class.¡± ¡°We''re doing this again next week?¡± Lorna asked. ¡°Yes. I had planned for you all to do it for all five classes this month, actually.¡± Mage Marks said and a couple of the girls sighed. ¡°Now, now. Don''t jump to conclusions. You''ve all done exceptionally well since last week and I''m going to skip over making you repeat it for the last two classes.¡± ¡°What a relief.¡± Lorna said and a few of the other girls laughed because they were relieved, too. ¡°Go ahead and crate up your potions if you''re going to keep them. If not, leave them there and I''ll dispose of them.¡± Mage Marks said and most of the girls decided that it wasn''t worth keeping. ¡°Mage Marks.¡± I said and nodded at the girls at the next work bench that were packing up to leave. ¡°What?¡± Mage Marks asked and I pointed to the large pot of potion. ¡°No, surely you can''t mean...¡± I gave her a smile and a nod. She waited until the girls left before she walked over to the next bench and took out the vial I had given her. She used a single drop and as soon as it hit the potion, the entire thing glowed for three seconds. When the glow faded, all that was left inside the pot was clear water. ¡°Good lord.¡± Mage Marks whispered and stared into the pot. ¡°Good lord.¡± ¡°What is it, David?¡± Vanessa asked as she crated up her vials. ¡°It''s just something I came up with yesterday to clean water.¡± I said and helped her with her task. ¡°I''ll help next week and you won''t have to be so careful with your remaining mental enhancement potions.¡± Vanessa hopped a little and let out a happy sound. ¡°Thank you, David!¡± She breathed and gave me a brief hug before I carried her crate out of the classroom. I brought it over to her dorm building and a very stern woman sat at a desk just inside the doorway. ¡°What''s going on here?¡± The woman asked, clearly angry. ¡°Please forgive my intrusion.¡± I said and gave her a bow. ¡°I am Vanessa''s class partner and I offered to carry this heavy crate for her from the student classrooms, as is my duty.¡± I said and the woman''s face lost some of its anger. ¡°With your permission and escort, may I bring this up to her doorway? She can slide this heavy thing into her room after that.¡± The woman gave me an appraising look. ¡°You''re not asking to enter her room?¡± ¡°No, my lady.¡± I said and ducked my head a little. ¡°I would never presume to enter the room of a woman I''m not betrothed to or isn''t already betrothed to someone else.¡± The woman''s face lost all of its anger and she stood. ¡°I will accompany you.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said with as much gratitude as I could and she smiled a little as she came over to us. ¡°What''s your name and social status, young man?¡± The woman asked. ¡°My name is David Drake and I am betrothed to Helena Henrietta.¡± I responded without hesitation. The woman gave me a very stern look at those words. ¡°So, it''s you that''s causing all the ruckus.¡± ¡°It''s more like others are causing a ruckus and I am trying to deal with it as best as I can, my lady.¡± She stared at me for several moments as if she was trying to decide if I was lying, then she nodded slightly and waved us forward. Vanessa walked up the stairs in front of me and she practically hopped up each of them. The smile on her face was as bright as the mage lights in the corners of the stairwells. She led us up to her floor and held the door for me and for the dorm manager, then she walked ahead of us to go to her room near the end of the hallway. She unlocked it with a chant and pushed the door open to show me the inside. I put the crate down exactly in front of the open doorway for her and peered into the room, then turned to the dorm manager. ¡°Thank you again for allowing me to help my fellow student.¡± I said as I took her hand and then brushed my lips over the knuckles. I let a bit of my magic out and the woman gasped as her knuckles tingled. ¡°Please allow me to escort you back downstairs.¡± The woman''s shocked face was priceless. She looked at Vanessa and then at me, then looked down at the potions. ¡°Will you be making any more of these deliveries?¡± ¡°Next week.¡± I said right away. ¡°I''m brewing potions to help her with her voice and they will be ready then.¡± ¡°That was you?¡± The woman asked and looked at Vanessa, who nodded. ¡°Well... I suppose... I can''t object if you are being so helpful.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and assumed my role and she put her arm through my elbow automatically. ¡°Vanessa, I''ll see you in class tomorrow.¡± ¡°Bye!¡± Vanessa whispered loudly. I nodded to her and then led the dorm manager down the hallway. I kept pace with her and matched her strides perfectly, opened the door to the stairs, then led her down them to the ground floor. I deposited her back beside her desk and took her hand once more. ¡°My lady.¡± I said and brushed her knuckles with my lips, made them tingle again, and let her hand go. The look on her face was once again filled with shock and I left the dorm to head back to my dorm mansion to eat lunch. I had Advanced Potions after that and I was sure that Mage Marks would have cleaned up everyone''s potions by now. A single drop to each seemed to negate any contaminant that was added to the water, which was much more powerful than I had thought it could be. I had inadvertently made an anti-potion potion. 171 Academy Antics Part Thirty Nine - Potion Teaser I ate lunch at the dorm mansion and went back to class. Mage Marks stood there at the sink and all the empty pots were around her. She had dumped their contents down the drain, rather than doing whatever it was that she usually did with them. I was pretty sure she was more stunned than anything else. ¡°Did you try drinking any of the cleaned water?¡± Mage Marks jumped a little and turned to look at me. ¡°David, I... well, I had to try it.¡± I smiled a little at that and started carrying the empty pots back over to their respective work benches. I knew which one was mine because there were no water droplets inside and put it back first. ¡°I''m down half a vial already.¡± Mage Marks said and I handed over a full one. ¡°How many of these do you have?¡± ¡°I have two more.¡± I said and she sighed. ¡°You want more?¡± ¡°Yes, of course I do!¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°My sister is a healer and I''m sure that she can...¡± ¡°I can make a wound cleaning potion.¡± I said and cut her off. She stared at me with her mouth slightly open. ¡°I don''t know if that one will be good enough, since it''s tooled for cleaning water.¡± Mage Marks took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°David, please. I want you to make me a batch of wound cleaning potion. It would greatly speed up the healing process if any wounds are completely cleaned of debris. It will also ease the casting of spells that can be used.¡± ¡°It won''t be today.¡± I said and set up my potion station. ¡°We''ve got the deliveries after school.¡± Mage Marks nodded and we put the pots back and set up the stations on the other workbenches for use. The other four students for the advanced potions class came into the room and saw us working. ¡°I''m not even going to ask.¡± Jinelle said with a shake of her head. ¡°I cleaned out the pots from the last class and David is helping me put the classroom back into working order.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°I didn''t really want to know that.¡± Jinelle said with a huff and put her bag down on her assigned workbench. She eyed mine greedily and then she sighed and sat down. ¡°Are we doing the cleaning potion again?¡± Lorna asked. ¡°We should.¡± Mage Marks said and looked at the two boys from the second year. ¡°You two need a bit more practice with your ingredient prep and your timing.¡± ¡°We were distracted last week.¡± Nick said as he sidled up next to Lorna, who gave him an exasperated look for a second and then she leaned against him. He smiled and carefully put an arm around her waist. Mage Marks glanced at me, because that was the same excuse as a girl from the basic potions class had used. ¡°I can''t argue that.¡± She said and looked at her niece and saw her slightly excited face. ¡°I know you''re just dying to suggest something for us to move on to.¡± Jinelle gave her a wicked grin. ¡°Plant annihilation!¡± Lorna laughed and her betrothed hugged her a bit tighter. Mage Marks had to laugh, too. ¡°It''s actually a specific plant, weed, or fungal growth removal potion. It''ll wither and die when the potion is applied, as well as dissolve the roots.¡± ¡°That''s what I said. It annihilates the plant completely.¡± Jinelle said. ¡°I can''t wait to try it on that nasty looking bush next to the dorm.¡± ¡°Depending on the amount you use, it might only remove the leaves and perhaps put it into dormancy as if it''s in winter.¡± Mage Marks cautioned her. ¡°If it''s a large bush, it could take several vials, if not half a crate before you notice a difference.¡± ¡°What? Really?¡± Jinelle asked, clearly not happy with the news. ¡°Yes, which is why you need to be very careful with it. You can''t just dump it on, either. If it splashes on anything else, especially something smaller or something you intended to keep, you''ll remove more than just the weeds you wanted to get rid of.¡± Jinelle huffed a little and reluctantly nodded. ¡°Now that you''re properly cautioned, let''s have some fun talking about the recipe and what it entails.¡± Mage Marks said, clearly in her element and enjoying it. ¡°It has several uncommon ingredients and only a few common ones, so you won''t be making too much of it.¡± She saw their slightly unhappy faces and chuckled. ¡°It''s just an exercise to keep your skills to an acceptable level while using different ingredients and not to produce potions professionally. There are lots of mages in the guild that can do that.¡± ¡°I thought that was what the advanced course was for? To prep us for working in the guild.¡± Lorna said. ¡°It is, and by the end of your time at the academy and you''ve stuck with this, any business or family would be happy to have you working for them, not just the guild.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°Plus, do you want to spend endless weeks on making something that just kills plants?¡± Lorna thought about that for a minute. ¡°Okay, I''ll bite. What are you planning for us to make next?¡±If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. Mage Marks gave her a teasing smile. ¡°I won''t tell you what it is... only that all of your friends will be hounding you to make it for them when they discover that you can make it.¡± Jinelle took in a sharp breath. ¡°Auntie, you can''t mean... are you really going to teach us...¡± ¡°Shh!¡± Mage Marks said and put a finger to her own lips in a ''keep quiet'' gesture. ¡°Don''t ruin the surprise.¡± ¡°Ruin it! Ruin it!¡± Lorna said excitedly and Nick, the other guy, and Jinelle laughed. ¡°Turn to page 96 in the book and take a few minutes to look over the recipe and the ingredients.¡± Mage Marks said and walked over to me, then she whispered. ¡°David, I know you''ve been studying hard, so don''t hesitate and tell me if you have troubles with any of it, especially the wording. I''ll clear it up for you right away.¡± ¡°Thank you, Greta.¡± I whispered back and began to read. I had some of my papers out and started copying it out, skipped over the parts I didn''t understand, and made notes about what to change to make it more efficient. Once again, they used some inferior ingredients and also added two redundant steps that were unnecessary, because they could be combined with the stronger ingredient. I got the teacher''s attention and she came right over to me. Her eyes widened as she saw my new notations and her eyes quickly absorbed the new procedure and the ingredient substitutions I had deemed necessary. ¡°I''ve pared it down here and here.¡± I whispered and showed her the alterations. ¡°I don''t understand these references.¡± I slid my finger over the things I didn''t understand. Mage Marks explained what they said and what they meant. I noted the meanings, even though it seemed the references were going to be different for each potion. My suspicion that it was a safety feature to stop a non-mage from using the book was confirmed when Mage Marks referred to growing up with the knowledge being instilled into her and that she wasn''t surprised I missed all of the references. After she helped me, she politely asked for a copy of the changes with a promise to put my name on it when she submitted it for review. I gave her a surprised look and she laughed softly, which surprised the other students. ¡°Just a private joke.¡± Mage Marks said and waved off their inquisitive looks and then leaned back in close to whisper. ¡°David, I told you. We''re going into business together. If this works as well as I think it will, not only will they have to update the spell book... assuming we sell them the recipe... we''ll have a lock on the improved version and will get the recognition for it.¡± ¡°You''ll need to brew it yourself.¡± I whispered back. ¡°My catalyst and magic won''t give the same results.¡± Mage Marks agreed. ¡°I''ll do it at the same time as the class and I''ll submit it to the committee at the end of class.¡± She walked over to the front of the class and turned to face us. ¡°Now, who can tell me the effects of Handel''s Root and why it is essential in potions like this that affects plants?¡± Jinelle and Lorna''s hands went up in the air and Mage Marks smiled. The writing part of the class ended with the bell and then there was a short five minute break. The practical lesson began and we all started brewing our potions. Needless to say, I received a couple of odd looks as I took a couple of different ingredients than the others and also gave some of those ingredients to Mage Marks. We brewed the new version of the same potion while the others made the normal one. When we were done a full half hour before the others, they knew something was going on. When I handed in a vial of dark green liquid that looked much thicker than the one Mage Marks had made, I saw a bit of jealously on Jinelle''s face. I knew what was wrong, so I went back to my workbench, filled another vial, and went over to her. I leaned in close to whisper and she didn''t try to lean away or looked angry. In fact, her breathing sped up a little and her eyes widened slightly. ¡°It should only take this vial to get rid of the whole bush.¡± I breathed into her ear and she shivered. I gently took her hand and placed the vial into it, closed her fingers over it, and then stepped back. She stared into my eyes to see if I was going to do anything else, so I gave her a slightly bow and went over to the stacks of empty crates and vials. I grabbed a crate and treated the vials, then I filled them. I was two vials shy of a full crate when the pot was empty, which was exactly what had been taken from it, and I sat and waited for the class to be over. Mage Marks checked her own potion first and was quite happy with the results. When she checked mine, she actually gasped and her head whipped up to stare at me. In her haste to check them, she had completely forgotten to deploy the wood panels to hide her from view. ¡°I... I need to stop being surprised by you.¡± Mage Marks said and marked my potion with an EP, or Exceeds Perfect, and marked the estimated strength of the potion when used. When she handed me a copy, I almost laughed at the rating. According to this, I could use three vials and it would remove a one foot wide tree stump. A whole tree stump! ¡°If this gets out, land developers from all over will be beating down your door looking for this.¡± Mage Marks whispered as she pat my hand and her eyes landed on the crate. ¡°Go ahead.¡± I whispered back and she took four of them to stash in her belt. ¡°I assume you''re going to do the same thing with that as you are with the purifying potion?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Mage Marks said and gave me a pleased smile before she went back to the front of the class to watch the other students finish up their potions. She gathered a vial of each and didn''t bother hiding herself as she marked them. Not surprisingly, Jinelle and Lorna had great marks and the two guys had okay marks. The teacher was more than happy with the results and added them to the display rack. Lorna didn''t want her plant killing potion and neither did the guys, so they left the class as soon as the bell rang. Jinelle took her time and ladled out hers into a crate and then she realized what was wrong. ¡°David.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°Would you be so kind as to escort my niece to her dorm and carry that crate for her?¡± ¡°Of course, Greta.¡± I said and Jinelle caught her breath. Mage Marks let out a soft laugh. ¡°It''s all right, Jinelle. I gave him permission to call me by name when in private.¡± Jinelle gave me an appraising look. ¡°I''m glad he''s not disrespecting you.¡± ¡°I don''t think he will, even if he didn''t like me.¡± Mage Marks said her look was appraising as well. ¡°You look alike.¡± I commented and both women smiled nearly identical smiles. ¡°I can''t hate being compared to my highly capable aunt.¡± Jinelle said and Mage Marks laughed. ¡°Get going, you two. I''ve got to stop at the administration building for an errand.¡± Mage Marks said and winked at me. I picked up my crate and walked over to Jinelle''s desk and put it on top of hers, then picked both up. ¡°What are you doing? I thought you''d be coming back for that!¡± Jinelle exclaimed. ¡°Why? It''s not that heavy.¡± I said with a shrug. Jinelle looked at her aunt and she shrugged, too. ¡°Never mind.¡± She said and opened the door for me. We left the classroom and walked out of the main student classroom building to head over to her dorm. 172 Academy Antics Part Forty - Potion Ingredients Galore Jinelle led me across the campus to her dorm building, which wasn''t that far away from Vanessa''s. If my guess was right, each year had their own building. First years started on one, second years moved to the next building that was bigger and could hold more people, namely the extra maids and servants, and the third building was the biggest of them all and had full staffs if the students wanted them. Jinelle opened the door of the third building and a very relaxed woman sat at the desk just inside the door. ¡°Another delivery?¡± The woman asked and came over to us. ¡°Hmm. Class potions?¡± Jinelle nodded. ¡°The bottom one is mine.¡± ¡°Let me see.¡± The dorm manager said and I put them down and switched them to put Jinelle''s crate on top. ¡°Ah, I see. Plant killer.¡± She gave us an appraising look. ¡°I''m surprised Mage Marks moved on so quickly.¡± ¡°We did too well last week.¡± Jinelle said with a pleased smile as she boasted. The dorm manager chuckled and lightly touched my shoulder as she looked at Jinelle. ¡°Do you need an escort?¡± She asked and I felt a very light tingle on my shoulder. I eased my magic there to counter the tingle and her arm stiffened up when her magic stopped affecting me and was rebuffed. ¡°No, my aunt told him to help me.¡± Jinelle said, making it clear that she didn''t invite me over. ¡°Ah, I see.¡± The dorm manager said and slowly let my shoulder go. ¡°You may proceed.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Jinelle said and she led me down the hallway and we stopped at the very first door. She opened it and there were three distinct squeals of happiness. ¡°MY LADY!¡± Three young woman yelled and the dorm manager behind us laughed as she sat down behind her desk. Jinelle was mobbed and checked over to see if she was all right. The first maid touched the part of her hair that I had severed. She clicked her tongue a couple of times and a brush appeared in her hand and she quickly used it to fluff up her hair. The second maid went behind her and massaged her shoulders. ¡°Show my guest where to put my potions.¡± Jinelle said to the third maid. ¡°Yes, my lady.¡± She said and gave a curtsy, then assumed the escort role as she carefully put her arm through my elbow and let me through the living room and into what could only be called a work room. Everything was in there from two years of work at the academy. Crates of potions, lots of enchanting tools and engravings, plants galore, stacks of books and papers all over, and a bunch of other things like sewing, knitting, and tea services of different kinds and quality. ¡°Right here on the stack.¡± The maid said and led me over there and pointed. I put the crates down and took the top one to put on the stack, then picked mine back up. She grabbed my arm and looked angry. ¡°This one''s mine.¡± I said. ¡°I carried both here, rather than making two trips.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± The maid said and let my arm go. ¡°All right. I thought you might be stealing my lady''s things.¡± ¡°If I was going to take anything, I''d take the piles of enchanting gear and drawings.¡± I said and nodded to them. ¡°My potions are stronger than any she can make.¡± ¡°That''s not true!¡± The maid gasped. ¡°These are almost the same potions.¡± I said and nodded at mine and then at the crate I put on the stack. ¡°Both brewed today.¡± The maid gave me a glare as she plucked one of my potions out and stared at it for a moment, then she picked up one of Jinelle''s. She caught her breath as she saw the much lighter green color and then held both up to compare them. She carefully opened both and took a smell of each, shivered, and corked them again. She put Jinelle''s back and looked at mine, at my crate, and at my face. ¡°It kills plants.¡± I said. ¡°I know. I... my lady...¡± ¡°If you''re going to ask to keep it, I already gave Lady Marks one to take care of the bush she hates.¡± ¡°You... you did? Why?¡± The maid asked as she put the vial of potion back. ¡°I didn''t want her to be disappointed by having to use up a bunch of her own potions, that should only be used on smaller plants, to do the same job that mine can do.¡± The maid''s face softened and she reached out to rub my arm. ¡°Thank you, my lord. My lady will be very happy when it''s gone.¡± ¡°Only if she can accept that one of my potions can do it and not get angry over it.¡± The maid gave me a smirk. ¡°You seem to know my lady''s quirks.¡± ¡°Only some.¡± I said. ¡°I''m betrothed as well.¡± The maid had a look of both sadness and happiness on her face. It was a strange look. ¡°I''ll show you out.¡± She said and tucked her arm through mine again and led me back out. Jinelle was half undressed as her maids prepared the bath for her. She let out an ''eep'' sound when she saw me and then she tried to cover her small breasts with arms that were still partially inside the half removed dress. ¡°Cover my breasts!¡± Jinelle ordered and a hand from one maid covered one and a hand from the other maid covered the other. She shook slightly as her face went beet red. ¡°You are to forget that you ever saw anything!¡± She spat at me. I put my crate of potions down and took the maid''s arm out of mine, then walked over to Jinelle. Her face stayed red and she looked very angry. ¡°I will say three things before I leave. One, you know I am betrothed and I''ll tell you that I''ve seen a few women naked besides the ones I''ve slept with. Two, you should have just ignored my presence and accepted that you gave me a rare sight that I probably won''t see again.¡± Jinelle''s anger disappeared and she looked both flattered and embarrassed. ¡°What... what''s the third?¡± ¡°You should have told the maid with me to cover my eyes with her hand if you didn''t want me to see anything, because your breasts are not the only thing that needed to be covered.¡± ¡°Wh-wh-what?!?¡± Jinelle stared at me with a look of shock on her face, then she slowly dropped her head to look down. She gasped when she saw that the panties she had thought she still wore were down around her ankles and then her eyes went to her womanhood and the little tuff of black hair above it. ¡°You... you...¡±This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. I reached out and touched her chin to lift her face. ¡°Like I said, a rare sight.¡± I said and let her see in my eyes what she wanted to see. Jinelle shivered slightly and then nodded a little. ¡°I... I won''t... have you killed for this.¡± I gave her a smile, the one I had shown Hope when I realized I wouldn''t be drafted into the mages guild, and Jinelle shivered again. I let her chin go and walked over to my crate and picked it up. The third maid took me over to the door of the room and opened it. I stepped out and she mouthed the words ''thank you'' before she shut the door. I walked down the hallway and nodded to the dorm manager as I left the building to go to my dorm mansion. The very first delivery would be arriving soon and I had to set up the large ingredient bins and to meet Mage Marks. We both had a lot of work to do tonight if the schedule she gave me was accurate. I dropped off my crate of potions in my work room and went back downstairs to receive the first delivery of the temporary containers and parts to create the appropriate storage bins... very large storage bins... and I quickly assembled them using number ten potion. I suppose I should be calling it number ten A, for altered, then shrugged. It still worked, even if it wasn''t as efficient as the real potion. Mage Marks showed up with the first ingredient delivery half an hour later and she told the men there to wait because she wanted to look at what I did to set everything up. I led her inside the dorm mansion and up to the room beside the potion room. She didn''t gasp or even show surprise that I already had them built much quicker than I had told her I could. She checked them, cast a couple of spells, and nodded. ¡°They''re waterproofed and fortified as well. There won''t be any cross contamination.¡± I reminded her. Greta gave me a smile and a nod, then we went downstairs and she allowed the ingredient delivery. There were actually two sets of containers, one for the raw ingredients and one for the processed and prepared for storage ingredients. The first was temporary and the second would be quickly filled as we worked. We were both that efficient. The only reaction she showed was happy eyes when she saw the very expensive looking and quite large workbench that I had built for her. It even had all of the tools and things she would need. She pat her belt, where I assume she had stashed her own well used tools, and that''s where they stayed. She gave me another smile and a nod, then we both got to work. The other deliveries were made over the next couple of hours and Mage Marks and I worked until suppertime. We took a break then, just long enough to enjoy a nice meal, and we went back to work. We worked for several more hours, with occasional breaks for beverages and to rest her sore muscles. I gave her a health potion and told her to take a sip when she needed to. ¡°We''re still taking breaks.¡± Greta said and took a sip. ¡°It''s not good to work for too long without pausing to check your previous work.¡± ¡°That''s how you''ve always done it?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°I was taught at an early age to make sure everything is as uniform and alike as possible. You don''t want to dip your tools into a bin to get a much needed ingredient, only to find it partially mangled or not the right amount for what you need.¡± Greta said. ¡°I''ve seen it happen at the guild and it had them alter and in some cases ruin their potions.¡± I gave her a small smile and she laughed softly. ¡°Yes, I know. We shouldn''t use them as a measuring stick.¡± Greta said. ¡°Shall we get back to it?¡± I nodded and we went back upstairs to our prep room to continue working and making the ingredients ready for storage and to ensure their potential lasted as long as possible. We worked for quite some time and it wasn''t until Greta reached for the temporary container and the utensil for dispensing the last ingredient, that we realized we were done. ¡°That''s it.¡± Greta said and let the utensil go, then she turned around on her stool and leaned her back against the large work bench. ¡°I can''t believe we did it all.¡± I turned around as well and looked to see that a third of the bins were full of the ingredients. ¡°It''s going to last a while, that''s true.¡± ¡°You do realize this is just the first shipment, don''t you? I''ve done the math and you''re going to need a lot of ingredients to make ten thousand potions.¡± Greta asked with a grin. ¡°It''s about 280 large stew pots. If I use all twelve of my setups each time, that''s just over 23 brewing sessions.¡± I said and she looked surprised for a second, then she laughed. ¡°Of course you worked it all out, too.¡± Greta said and reached out to take my hand. ¡°I''d be here to help you brew them, but...¡± ¡°...you know you''ll just be in the way.¡± I finished her sentence and she nodded as she gripped my hand. ¡°It''s getting late.¡± ¡°Yes, I need to go.¡± Greta stood up without letting my hand go. ¡°I don''t remember the last time I enjoyed just prepping ingredients like this.¡± ¡°You don''t get out much, do you?¡± I asked and she laughed again. ¡°David! That is absolutely hilarious coming from you! Ha ha!¡± Greta said as she kept laughing. ¡°Oh... oh... my face is starting to hurt from laughing and smiling so much!¡± ¡°Take a sip of healing potion.¡± I reminded her and she laughed harder. ¡°I better escort you home.¡± ¡°P-p-please.¡± Greta barely managed to say between laughs. I led her down the stairs and we left the dorm mansion. She had worn more reasonable footwear this time, since she had been working and not visiting officially, so our pace was more moderate and not as slow. The walk was soon over and we entered the building that the teachers lived in. Greta opened her door and turned to look at me. ¡°David, I have a personal question to ask you.¡± ¡°I can''t break my word to Helena.¡± I said. Greta looked both happy and sad. ¡°I was going to ask you how many women do you know that regret you''re already betrothed.¡± She said and took a step towards me as she looked into my eyes. ¡°Please add another woman to that list.¡± ¡°I thought you were already married.¡± I said and she shook her head. ¡°I refused all requests.¡± Greta said and her hands reached up to touch my uniform lapels to straighten them, even though they didn''t need straightening. ¡°None of them were suitable for my interests, let alone good enough for my family.¡± I gave her a skeptical look. ¡°I''m an ex-slave, an ex-convict, and an ex-conscript.¡± ¡°Yes, I know.¡± Greta said and ran her hands down the lapels and my chest. ¡°I agree with your fiance, however. It''s not what you''ve done before, it''s what you will do next that matters.¡± I had to think about that for several moments. ¡°Am I really that desirable?¡± I asked, which was something that I had been meaning to ask someone for quite some time. I hadn''t found anyone that was impartial to ask and the thought had left my mind for a while. ¡°Unbelievably so.¡± Greta said. ¡°You''re hard working, passionate for that work, and you are tougher and stronger than anyone I''ve ever met.¡± Her hands went up to my face and stroked the sides of my head. ¡°You''ve got a very sharp mind, even empty of some things like it is.¡± ¡°I''ve told a few people that I''m not stupid and that I just don''t know some things.¡± ¡°Me, included.¡± Greta said as we both remembered our first advanced potions class together and her reaction to me telling her all of her references were going right over my head. ¡°I can only imagine what it''s like to share magic with you.¡± I remembered Helena''s whispered words the night after I got her pregnant. ¡°Orgasmic.¡± Greta caught her breath and her hands held onto my head for several moments. I saw several emotions pass over her face, only it was too quick to make any of them out. She gave me a sad smile, one that seemed to be filled with loss. She took a deep breath and very slowly let me go as she stepped back. ¡°Goodnight, David.¡± Greta said as her professional demeanor returned. I held a hand out to her in the proper way and she gave me hers to be kissed. I bent over it and pressed my lips to her fingers and sent my magic through her hand. She gasped and I could feel her whole hand tremble at the sensations. I stopped the flow and ended the kiss at the same time. The look of shock on her face matched that of Vanessa''s dorm manager, so I knew that I had gotten my point across. I didn''t have to have sex with them to share magic. I let her hand go and walked down the hallway and left the building. I felt eyes on my back, so I turned my head slightly and waved at Mage Ridge''s upstairs apartment window. I heard a little clatter and the curtain over the window fluttered slightly, which told me she had been watching me. It didn''t bother me, especially if she was keeping an eye on me for Donna and Alex. I walked away from the building and went back to my dorm mansion. I needed to get some sleep. I had enchanting and runes all day tomorrow and I wanted a clear mind for it. I just hoped that they could hurry up and show me something that I could get my mind working around. If I''ve learned anything so far, it was that sitting in class while waiting for something to happen was getting boring. 173 Academy Antics Part Forty One - Enchanters Choice When I escorted Vanessa into the classroom, I saw that both teachers were sitting behind the desk. Nothing was written on the chalkboard behind them, which meant that there was nothing to indicate who would be teaching us first. I sat Vanessa at her desk and sat beside her and waited for everyone else to sit as well. After a few minutes, the bell rang and the female teacher named Mage Heather Montgomery stood up. ¡°Today, my husband will be teaching you the most basic enchantment to add a damage value to a weapon.¡± ¡°Ooo!¡± A few of the girls cooed and she smiled. ¡°Don''t get too excited. It''s very difficult to add enchantments to weapons after they are forged, especially when you don''t want to weaken them, or worse, ruin them for use.¡± ¡°I thought you said it was the easiest to enchant?¡± One of the girls asked with her hand up. ¡°I said it was the most basic, not the easiest.¡± The teacher said. ¡°As long as the metal is hot, you can make alterations to it to add the enchantment.¡± Another girl put her hand up. ¡°Wouldn''t that mean you have to be there for the forging?¡± ¡°Not necessarily.¡± The male teacher named Mage Black Montgomery said. ¡°That''s cryptic.¡± Lorna said and a few of the girls nodded. Black grinned at them. ¡°I''ll tell you the secret if that''ll ease your minds. You cheat, of course. You temper the blade yourself by simply heating it up, adding the enchantment, then cooling it off.¡± ¡°That seems like a lot of work for a simple enchantment.¡± One of the other girls said. ¡°Of course it does, because it is. We''re only teaching you the basics, so we''ll handle the details. All you need to worry about is the process and the contents.¡± Heather said and turned to the chalk board behind her. ¡°The first of which is the damage rune.¡± I immediately copied down the rune she drew onto the board. It was essentially an arrow that was as long as it was wide and with a squiggly line through it that joined the ends of the arrow. When turned on its side, it looked like a pyramid with water in front of it. ¡°Now, the measurements on this must be exact. The sides are equal in length and the wavy line is also the same length.¡± Heather said and drew the parts beside each other to show that they were the same length, even though it didn''t look like they were when assembled. ¡°The only exception is the middle line bisecting it. It has to be on the bottom turn of the wavy line or it won''t be the right length.¡± ¡°Wow, this is really hard.¡± One of the girls said as she tried to copy the design. ¡°How many waves are in the line?¡± ¡°Four, two high bumps on each side of the bisecting line.¡± Heather said and pointed to each. ¡°They also can''t exceed the dimensions of the rune. If they do, it won''t work.¡± ¡°I think we''re going to be at this for a while.¡± Lorna said as she looked at her paper and then back at the board. ¡°That''s why I''m teaching first today.¡± Heather said with a smile. ¡°Did any of you bring the measuring and marking tools assigned for enchanting?¡± Only half of the class raised their hands, which included Vanessa and not myself. ¡°Mr. Drake, I thought you wanted to learn all about runes and enchanting officially?¡± Heather asked and then her mouth started to move as she mumbled something. I felt her magic flow over me, so I cast Dispel and she only jerked this time and didn''t gasp. ¡°That''s twice you''ve cast a spell on me, Mage Montgomery. If you cast anything else against me, teacher or not, I''ll have no choice but to attack you back.¡± Several of the girls in the class gasped. ¡°Wh-what?¡± Black Montgomery stood up and glared at his wife. ¡°HEATHER! What are you doing?¡± ¡°N-nothing! It''s nothing! I swear!¡± Heather said and the man winced at the blatant lie. ¡°By the Son''s Light, get your ass out of this classroom!¡± Black said and grabbed her by the arm. ¡°You did this during the last class, didn''t you?¡± ¡°N-no.¡± Heather said, her head ducked slightly. Black growled at her and walked over to the door of the room as he dragged her behind him. ¡°I''m not even going to ask what you were trying to cast.¡± He said and opened the door and pushed her out. ¡°Go back to our apartment in the teacher''s residence. I''ll deal with you this afternoon.¡± ¡°No! It''s not what you think!¡± Heather exclaimed. ¡°I was only...¡± ¡°It doesn''t matter.¡± Black said and slammed the door in her face. Heather flinched back from the force and looked scandalized, then her face fell and she walked away. ¡°I''m terribly sorry about that.¡± Black said as he walked over to the desk. ¡°Mr. Drake, if you care to press charges on her for using magic against a student in blatant disregard of academy rules, I''ll file the paperwork immediately after class.¡± All of the girls in the class turned their heads to look at me. I could almost feel the weight of their gazes on me. ¡°It seems you are more capable than the administration staff here. I''m confident that I can leave it in your hands.¡± Black smiled as the girls around me seemed to relax. ¡°Thank you, Mr. Drake. I''ll be sure to impose upon my errant wife the severity of what she did here.¡± ¡°As long as you don''t hit or torture her.¡± I responded and he laughed. ¡°Oh, no. I''ve never hit my wife... or any woman for that matter.¡± Black said. ¡°A good verbal berating, a reminder of who she represents, and a reiteration of her vows to uphold the standards and values of the Montgomery Family, should do wonders for her attitude.¡± Lorna took in a sharp breath and then covered her mouth. ¡°Ah, I see one of you remembered what it means to break a solemn vow to a family.¡± Black said. Lorna nodded. ¡°She... she could be disowned and... depending on the breach, she could be stripped of her titles and social status and possibly sold to recoup any losses to the family.¡± ¡°That''s it exactly.¡± Black said. ¡°By law, it''s usually a sale back to her original family. It''s essentially a ransom to keep her.¡± He gave us all a look and his eyes settled on me. ¡°Family vows are both strong and weak in that sense. It''s why there are usually a lot of negotiation between families before a betrothal is approved and why they are usually done years in advance of the announcement.¡± ¡°It gives them time to back out.¡± I said and he nodded. ¡°Both families benefit, don''t they?¡± ¡°Usually they do.¡± Black said and sat on his desk. ¡°Not always, however.¡± ¡°Was yours?¡± I asked and he nodded. ¡°I actually like her, so that was a huge bonus right there.¡± Black said. ¡°She''s human, though. I''m sure she likes me as well; but, that doesn''t mean we get along all the time.¡± ¡°Not love?¡± Lorna asked.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°Ha! You''re a member of a high ranking family. What do you think?¡± ¡°The odds... are low.¡± Lorna admitted, albeit reluctantly. ¡°Right you are.¡± Black said and motioned to us. ¡°Out of the 20 girls in front of me, maybe one of you... possibly two of you... will actually enjoy the company of your betrothed. Love is another story.¡± ¡°Is it really that rare?¡± Vanessa asked in a whisper. ¡°Is it really that rare?¡± I asked for her. ¡°It''s not rare for people to fall in love.¡± Black said and then chuckled. ¡°Being able to marry that person with the approval of your families? It''s very rare.¡± Vanessa turned to look at me and her eyes told me what she was thinking. ¡°It''s all right. I''m sure Helena will approve.¡± I whispered to her and Vanessa relaxed. ¡°Now, shall we get back to practising drawing this rune?¡± Black said and waved at the board. ¡°If you need to use measuring tools, go ahead. Just be aware that this is only practice. When you go to draw the actual rune, it has to fit inside the enchantment I''ll be teaching in the next class and it will be significantly smaller.¡± I raised my hand and he nodded to me. ¡°Will we be practising on wood first and then on metal later?¡± Black nodded. ¡°You''ll need the practice to get the movements and the tool usage down. Wood is the best for that.¡± He smiled. ¡°Normal wood, I mean. We won''t waste wildwood on practice.¡± ¡°How will we know if the enchantment will work if it''s not wildwood?¡± One of the girls asked. ¡°I said practice. When I can see that you''ve got the enchantment ready and in a usable state, I''ll have wildwood daggers brought in for you to use. If it works on them, we''ll try it with metal daggers.¡± Blake said. ¡°For now, draw out the rune and try to get it as close to equal in all parts as you can. After you do it a few times on your own, I''ll come around to each of you to give you pointers and advice.¡± I raised my hand and he nodded to me. ¡°I''ve already drawn it at the right size.¡± Black had a disbelieving look for a second, then he remembered my boast from the last class. He walked over to me and looked down at my paper. His eyes widened at the very small and very accurate reproduction. ¡°All right.¡± He said and went back to the desk, opened a drawer, and took out a square piece of wood and several carving tools. ¡°Why don''t you practice...¡± ¡°I have my own tools.¡± I said and took out both sets I had. One was for normal carving and one was for miniature carving. When Black came over with the piece of wood for me to use, he saw the tools and he stopped walking. ¡°Where did you get those tools?¡± ¡°I had one of the blacksmiths in the city center custom make me six sets.¡± I said. ¡°My fiance knew they would be a valuable commodity, so she arranged for him to contact the mages guild and he''s sold them a hundred sets for carving the enchantments on the kracken tube ammunition.¡± ¡°I... I bought one. They''ve been very useful.¡± Black said and gave me the piece of wood. ¡°How long...¡± ¡°Give me a few seconds.¡± I said and quickly carved out the rune with the large tool and then right beside it with the smaller version. ¡°Good god.¡± Black whispered at the perfect carving. ¡°You even put the correct angle on the grooves for the best magic channelling.¡± ¡°I''ve been doing this for a long time.¡± I commented. ¡°Can you help your classmate? She will definitely need your help with instruction.¡± ¡°I was going to anyway.¡± I said and he nodded. ¡°Can you show me the entire enchantment?¡± Black looked like he was going to refuse and then he turned to look at the classroom door. He sighed at what his wife had done and went back to the desk. He opened another drawer and took out a piece of paper. He glanced at me and wrote a few things on it, then he brought it over to me without a word. He walked over to the next desk to observe the girls there. ¡°What is it?¡± Vanessa asked in a whisper. I looked at the paper and it was an enchantment, except that it wasn''t. I saw the new markings through it as well as several other runes. The note beside it said that it was his wife''s house crest and that surprised me. ¡°It''s a family crest.¡± I whispered to Vanessa and she leaned in close to look as she rested her head on my shoulder. ¡°I don''t see an enchantment.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°Is it hidden?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I whispered back and pointed. ¡°There''s the damage rune we''re learning today.¡± I traced it with my finger. ¡°This is a magic channel, this is the direction it flows, and this...¡± I kept moving my finger and talking. Vanessa listened attentively as I explained the different parts and she started to understand how intricate the full enchantment was. When I didn''t point to certain lines or markings, which were obviously runes of some kind, she asked me what they were. ¡°They are coverings to hide the real enchantment.¡± I whispered to her. ¡°What better way to hide a family secret than in plain sight?¡± ¡°But, wouldn''t all enchanters figure it out?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°If families hide their secret enchantments inside their family crests, wouldn''t everyone know what they are?¡± ¡°I''m pretty sure that most people don''t even bother looking for enchantments in such an obvious place.¡± I responded. ¡°Also, even if they did find it and decoded it by removing the mess, they wouldn''t be able to use it.¡± ¡°What? Why not?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°Most of them wouldn''t bother fixing the mistakes or rearranging it. They might not have enough magic to empower them, either. If they did, the enchantments are too complicated for anyone except a high ranking mage or someone on the mages council to activate and use.¡± ¡°Oh, wow.¡± Vanessa whispered and her hand touched mine. ¡°You know a lot about this stuff.¡± ¡°Not really. I know how to pull the parts apart and how to figure out what they do; but, I don''t know any of the meanings.¡± I whispered back. ¡°It took a lot of trial and error to work it all out and to train my mind to do it.¡± ¡°Aww.¡± Vanessa breathed as she lifted her head to look into my eyes. ¡°I had hoped that you could give me more secret knowledge like with the potion brewing and I''ll be able to do it right away.¡± I chuckled and she gave me a bright smile. ¡°I guess that''s a no, huh?¡± Vanessa whispered in a teasing tone. ¡°Unfortunately, only time and practice can get your hand steady for this kind of work. On the plus side, it''s paper and wood. You can easily draw out what you need and then can carve out what you want.¡± ¡°I guess that''s not too bad as long as you give me tips and tricks to use.¡± Vanessa whispered and I nodded. ¡°Good.¡± She squeezed my hand and moved it over to in front of her. ¡°Show me how you got it so perfect on the first try.¡± I raised my eyebrows at her and she laughed softly. ¡°Yes, I know you did a trick. That was way too fast for it being the first time you saw it. Please show me what you did.¡± Vanessa begged. I thought about denying it, then gave her a knowing smile. ¡°The tip of your thumb is always the same length.¡± I whispered to her, turned my hand over to take her thumb in my hand, then used my fingers to wiggle the top of her thumb at the knuckle. ¡°Oh. My. God.¡± Vanessa whispered as she stared at her thumb and wiggled the top on her own. ¡°Oh, my god. I have an automatic measuring device right at my fingertips.¡± ¡°Mind blowing, isn''t it?¡± I asked and she nodded several times. ¡°Let me show you how to use it.¡± ¡°Yes, please.¡± Vanessa breathed. For the rest of the first class, I showed her how to use her thumb to give her perfect measurements and by the time the bell rang, she had reproduced the rune perfectly. ¡°Very well done.¡± Black Montgomery said when he saw her paper. ¡°I''ll have no reservations about giving you carving tools to use after the short break.¡± ¡°I think I''d rather use David''s.¡± Vanessa whispered and looked at me. ¡°If that''s okay?¡± ¡°She''s going to use my tools.¡± I said and the teacher nodded. ¡°Thank you, David.¡± Vanessa said and glanced around, then she leaned in and kissed my cheek. ¡°We don''t have to wait.¡± I said and slid my piece of wood over to her. I drew a line beside my carvings and motioned to the rest of it. ¡°Draw out half a dozen of the runes and then I''ll show you how to carve them.¡± ¡°Right away.¡± Vanessa said and we did just that. Needless to say, we were done barely half an hour into the next class. I raised my hand and Black came over to us. He saw Vanessa making the final carving of the wavy line and his eyes widened. He glanced at the six of them and how much Vanessa had improved in such a short time. ¡°I really should get you to do more.¡± Black said and then he chuckled. ¡°I don''t want to watch you sit there and do nothing for the rest of the class, though. Go on and get out of here.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Vanessa said and we packed up our things. ¡°I won''t be showing the class the simple version of the enchantment until next week and that''s only if they can get their carvings to a good level.¡± Black said. ¡°It might be a short class for you then, too.¡± ¡°It will be.¡± I said and didn''t tell him that I had already figured out the basic enchantment from the family crest he had given me and I also didn''t tell him I had also improved it and made it cheaper to infuse and to activate. ¡°See you next week.¡± Vanessa and I left the classroom and she wasn''t sure what to do with herself, now that she had so much free time before lunch. ¡°You can come with me to the library.¡± I suggested. ¡°I''m working there with the librarian to fix up the map room.¡± ¡°There''s a map room?¡± Vanessa asked, clearly excited. ¡°I think Eludora is going to like you.¡± I said and escorted her over to the library. 174 Academy Antics Part Forty Two - A Nice Talk I was right and Eludora absolutely loved Vanessa. They got along great, as if they had been lifelong friends, and talked for the entire time I worked in the map room until lunchtime. ¡°David! Lunchtime.¡± Eludora said and I came out of the room. ¡°I can''t thank you enough for doing this during your time off.¡± ¡°I''ll be done of everything this afternoon.¡± I said and she smiled at me. ¡°Go ahead and take your conquest to lunch and I''ll see you back here afterwards.¡± Eludora said and Vanessa blushed deeply. ¡°My what?¡± I asked. ¡°It''s a description of a woman you''ve thoroughly charmed and wants to be solely yours, even if it''s just for a night and to get pregnant.¡± Eludora said and Vanessa''s blush became so pronounced that I thought if it had any more blood rush to it, it would make her face explode. ¡°It''s the same term as an army conquering a country. If you''re wondering, your actions are the army and Vanessa''s emotions and mind are the country.¡± I stood there and stared at her as I thought about her description. ¡°Is that what I''ve been doing?¡± I asked a minute later. ¡°I''ve just been using the knowledge I learned to make people like me and to stop them from teasing me or bullying me.¡± ¡°By people, you mean women.¡± Eludora said with a chuckle. ¡°The men seem to dislike you just on principle.¡± ¡°Women are more accepting and understanding then men. Men see me as a rival and want to prove they are better than me, usually staking their reputations and lives on it. Women might want to prove they are better as well; but, they don''t see me as a rival. They see me as competition without any real personal stakes.¡± I said and both Eludora and Vanessa looked surprised. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°David, you just summed up the entire problem between the men and women of our time.¡± Eludora said. ¡°Women like to challenge themselves while men only want to prove who''s better. Women like to win; but, we don''t have to. Men do.¡± ¡°They get angry when they are beaten as well and can only think about how to get back at the winner.¡± Vanessa whispered and Eludora nodded. ¡°David, you will never get angry at me if I somehow make a potion better than you, will you?¡± ¡°No, because that would be great and I would want to see that. I''ve never seen anyone make one better, not even the Hag.¡± I answered. Vanessa looked at Eludora''s pleased smile. ¡°I told you.¡± ¡°Yes, proof is always nice to have.¡± Eludora laughed softly. ¡°Now go on. I sent word to your dorm to expect you.¡± I left the library with Vanessa on my arm and she looked happy. ¡°Can I ask why you''re happy?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Vanessa hugged my arm tightly. ¡°I know that you won''t take advantage of me, or use me for political gain, or force me to do anything that I''m not willing to do.¡± She said and rested her head on my shoulder. ¡°Even when I sign the contracts binding me to your family as an adjunct, it''s not for your own selfish reasons or because of any ulterior motives.¡± I thought about her wording and that brought to mind me being sold by my family for two copper coins when I was a baby. ¡°I would never buy you or make you do anything.¡± ¡°I know you won''t.¡± Vanessa whispered as she lifted her head and looked at me. ¡°It''s one of the reasons I like you so much.¡± ¡°What are the other reasons?¡± I asked and she laughed softly. ¡°A girl needs to keep some secrets.¡± Vanessa whispered and lightly pressed her lips to my cheek. ¡°I''ll reveal all of myself when we share a bed together.¡± She breathed, then she gasped and covered her mouth. ¡°I can''t believe I just said that.¡± ¡°You''ve been bold, confident, and sure of yourself when I''m around. Why wouldn''t you speak your mind?¡± I asked and she didn''t have a response. We walked on and eventually ended up at my dorm mansion. As Eludora said, they were expecting us and we were served a great lunch. Vanessa made appreciative sounds as she consumed the food. When the meal was over, she sat back in the chair with a half glass of wine and stared at me with half-closed eyes. ¡°What was the potion Mage Marks used?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°It''s a heavily modified cleaning potion that cleanses water in any form.¡± I said and took a sip of wine. ¡°Thanks to my catalyst and another binding agent, a single drop should be able to clean a barrel of water, no matter how contaminated and dirty it is.¡± Vanessa''s eyes didn''t open further and she took a sip of wine. ¡°Will you be making more?¡± ¡°Not for a while. I have to make the boosted cleaning solution for sale first.¡± I said. ¡°Ten thousand vials is a lot to make and will take me a while.¡± ¡°Hmm.¡± Vanessa swirled the wine in her glass. ¡°You''re not accepting partners for that, are you?¡± ¡°No. Helena is my partner.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°I can''t offer to help brew, either.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°No. You would only get in the way.¡± I said and took another sip of wine. ¡°That''s not an insult. I''m just stating the truth.¡± Vanessa laughed softly. ¡°I know, David. I doubt there''s a dishonest bone in your body.¡± She took another sip of wine and put the glass down, nearly empty. ¡°Would you escort me back to class? I need to walk off some of that spectacular wine before my eloquence lesson.¡± ¡°Are you taking your potions?¡± I asked as we stood. ¡°Yes, I''ll take them just before going into the main building.¡± Vanessa whispered and took my arm. ¡°My mother was very happy when I told her about that particular discovery.¡±This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. I led her out of the mansion and we walked at a leisurely pace back to the academy. ¡°What are your plans for the future?¡± Vanessa laughed softly. ¡°I''m a bit too inexperienced with what I''m learning right now to make a career choice this soon. Next year, maybe? Once I settle in and figure out what I''m good at and what I enjoy, I can answer that question with assurance.¡± We walked for about thirty seconds before she spoke again. ¡°What about you?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°I''m going to finish the academy, marry Helena, and invent potions and enchantments.¡± I said without pause or hesitation. ¡°You''re going to be doing that for the rest of you life?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°What else would I do?¡± I asked. ¡°You could travel and visit other places.¡± ¡°I''ll be doing that while hunting for ingredients.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°They are all over the place. Some of the rare ones are even hidden and presumed lost.¡± ¡°Presumed?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°I think people only lost track of them or the plants changed because their environments changed over time.¡± I said, remembering the mess of the area in the marsh where the fungal blooms used to grow. The dragons had destroyed it for their nest. ¡°I''m sure they can be found again, even if they are a new ingredient with similar properties.¡± Vanessa gave me an appraising look. ¡°You''re really going to go hunting for them and not just gathering?¡± I nodded. ¡°If I can bring samples back, I''m sure I can figure out how to grow them.¡± ¡°Then you won''t have to go out looking anymore.¡± Vanessa said in understanding. ¡°Yes, exactly.¡± I said and smiled at her. ¡°You understood right away.¡± We walked on and after another thirty seconds, she spoke. ¡°Your future. Am... am I in there... somewhere?¡± Vanessa asked as she ducked her head a little. ¡°Helena told me that if all you wanted was a baby and to go on your way afterwards, she said that she might say no to the contracts.¡± I said and Vanessa took in a sharp breath. ¡°That isn''t what you want?¡± ¡°N-no, I... no. My mother definitely would. My father would be ecstatic. Me? I...¡± Vanessa took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°I''ll give them an heir because that''s what they want.¡± She said and lifted her head to look into my eyes. ¡°I''ll have to talk to your fiance to see if I can get what I want.¡± ¡°Not me?¡± I asked. ¡°You better be there for the talks.¡± Vanessa said a bit sternly, then she smiled. ¡°It''s all about you, so you have to be there. I won''t bother going if you won''t be there, too. Just like me, you have a say in what happens next.¡± She gave my arm a squeeze. ¡°You will always have a say in what happens to you.¡± That sent a thrill down my spine that was unlike anything I had felt before. We stopped walking in front of the main student classroom building as some of the students around us entered. I let her arm go before I turned her to face me. ¡°Thank you.¡± I whispered and leaned in to give her a kiss on the lips. I sent my magic into her as well and she gasped. When I broke the kiss and leaned back, shock and joy could be clearly seen on her face. ¡°D-David! Oh, David!¡± Vanessa whispered as she wrapped her arms around my neck and kissed me hard as she sent her magic into me through her lips. ¡°Geez, get a room.¡± One of the guys walking by us said and a few of the people passing by around us laughed. Vanessa broke the kiss and her face was bright red. ¡°I... I need... my potions.¡± She said and tried to dig into the custom pouch I had made for her. I gently pushed her hands aside and plucked out the three vials for her. Vanessa gave me a shy smile before she took them in order. She drank the primer, the booster, and the quarter dose of healing potion. Her whole body shivered and her eyes widened slightly, then her pupils dilated and then focused solely on me. ¡°David, I''ll meet you tomorrow morning, right here at this spot, just before class.¡± Vanessa said in a normal voice, albeit a bit more forcefully than she should have. I nodded in response and she nodded back, then she turned and followed the other students inside. ¡°What. The. Hell. Was. THAT?!?¡± A familiar female voice yelled from behind me. I turned to look and Selena was there with an angry face and her friends around her looked to have a mix of emotions. ¡°It was a kiss.¡± I said and she opened her mouth to yell again. ¡°She''s the one that''s made an appointment with Helena to become my concubine.¡± All of the girls let out sounds of shock. A squeal, several gasps, and a few inarticulate ones that I couldn''t place, came from them. ¡°Wh-wh-what? C-c-concubine? Wh-what?¡± Selena stammered. Apparently, Selena didn''t know, so I told her. ¡°Vanessa made a petition to become my concubine. The meeting''s set for the break during the king''s birthday.¡± I said. ¡°Her parents are coming over to the mansion to negotiate the terms.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light, a future mage wants to become a concubine.¡± Becca whispered. ¡°What is the world coming to?¡± ¡°War, apparently.¡± I said, not realizing her question wasn''t supposed to be answered, and they gasped. ¡°According to the master rigger at the docks, it''s not for another two years and until the peace talks fail.¡± ¡°Oh, my god.¡± Emily said and they all stood there for several moments. ¡°C-come on. We need to... get to class.¡± Becca said as she took Selena''s hand. Selena didn''t react and just stared at me as her friends helped her walk by me. I watched them go into the building through the front doors and Selena stopped and turned around to stare at me. I gave her a wave before her friends dragged her out of sight. With nothing else to do there, I went over to the student administration building and went up to the third floor to the library. ¡°I see tingling lips!¡± Eludora said with a laugh and pointed to my face. I ignored her and went to the cart. Eludora waved at the nearly empty cart of supplies. ¡°I''m going to be very happy when you can take that out of here.¡± ¡°Because it means the job''s done?¡± I asked. ¡°That''s right!¡± Eludora beamed a smile at me. ¡°I''ve already tried moving those frames and your enchantments worked like a charm.¡± I hadn''t been at the library much or known her for very long, and I already knew what that smile meant. ¡°What else do you want me to try and enchant?¡± ¡°Only a few little things.¡± Eludora said, her beaming smile becoming predatory. ¡°I''m going to need more wildwood pieces.¡± I said, instead of letting out a sigh, and got to work. I ended up having to stay right up until supper. On the plus side, I finally finished the map room and Eludora was absolutely delighted by that fact. After she pulled me onto her lap and gave me a tingling kiss, she made me promise to drop by occasionally, even if I didn''t need her help with finding anything. I went to my dorm mansion and Sara and Tabitha waited for me to ask for a bath before they pretty much tackled me, dragged me upstairs, and bathed me thoroughly. I needed to be a little more careful when I used that trigger, because if I wasn''t careful, they would probably wash me all the time and I would never get any work done. 175 Academy Antics Part Forty Three - Botany Bay Part One The next morning, I met Vanessa in the exact spot she had ordered me to meet her. Her face was a bit embarrassed and also happy as she wrapped her arm around mine. She whispered a thank you and I escorted her inside. Our first class was history of the kingdom and Mage Victoria Ridge was there waiting for us. Her eyes widened when she saw me. ¡°David! What are you doing here?¡± Mage Ridge asked. ¡°You''re supposed to meet Mage King in the botany classroom.¡± ¡°What? She didn''t tell me that.¡± I said and Mage Ridge sighed. ¡°I swear that woman gets too excited for her own good.¡± Mage Ridge said. ¡°You better run fast and get over there before she starts looking for you.¡± ¡°What about morning classes?¡± I asked as I sat Vanessa at her desk. ¡°She''s gotten permission to let you skip, since her course takes precedence.¡± Mage Ridge said and made shooing motions. ¡°Go. Go!¡± I kissed Vanessa''s cheek and she said goodbye, then I walked over to Mage Ridge. ¡°I''m sorry about having to leave.¡± I said and took her hand, kissed it and shared some magic with her, and she gasped. ¡°I couldn''t thank you properly when we went to visit Alex and Donna.¡± I said and let her hand go. ¡°Thank you for sticking up for me.¡± Mage Ridge cupped her hand and didn''t respond, so I left the classroom at a fast walk, then ran from the building. I made it to the botany workshop just as Mage King was stepping out of it. ¡°There you are!¡± She said, a bit crossly. ¡°Where have you been?¡± ¡°Mage King, I went to class normally because you didn''t tell me we were leaving today.¡± I said immediately and formally. Mage King opened her mouth to respond, then she sighed. ¡°I''m going to smack that woman.¡± ¡°What woman?¡± I asked. ¡°No, I don''t want you to retaliate for her interference.¡± Mage King said as she hefted a big pack onto her back. ¡°I also asked you to call me Victoria and to drop the formality.¡± ¡°It was the quickest way to get your attention and to make you listen.¡± I responded and then remembered her name on the course material. ¡°Why do you introduce yourself as Mage Julia King if you prefer to be called Victoria?¡± ¡°I''ll explain on the way to your dorm to let you get changed.¡± Victoria said and she started to jog over to the first year''s dorms. ¡°I''m assigned to the old dorm building.¡± I told her and she stopped to stare at me. ¡°What? Why would they do that to you?¡± ¡°The director didn''t want me interacting with the students any more than was necessary in class.¡± ¡°That bastard.¡± Victoria spat. ¡°All right. It''s a bit far; but, we can still make it to the boat on time if we hurry.¡± She said and started to run. I easily caught up to her and kept pace with her. ¡°I use Julia... my middle name... to stop the confusion.¡± Victoria said as we ran. ¡°Having two Victoria''s on the staff messes up more than the paperwork. When people call your name or only reference it, which of us would respond or have the question or correspondence given to?¡± ¡°So, you use Julia for everyone else.¡± I said. ¡°Yes, only those I intend to spend a lot of time with, or those I think deserve to be on a first name basis with, will be allowed to call me Victoria.¡± Victoria said. ¡°This year, it''s just you.¡± I turned my head to give her an intense look and she didn''t even bat an eye. ¡°You need to work on that lusting gaze, David.¡± Victoria said with a laugh. ¡°How do I do that?¡± I asked. ¡°You need to imagine having the best sex of your life and then look at a woman with those thoughts on your mind.¡± Victoria said as we came towards the dorm mansion. ¡°Sweet lord, what the hell is that?¡± ¡°It''s my dorm mansion.¡± I said and we stopped in front of the front doors. I did as she said and thought about the last time I was with Helena and we had great sex. I turned Victoria''s face away from staring at the dorm mansion and she caught her breath as she locked her eyes onto mine. She shivered a little and then she licked her lips. ¡°You... you adopted the technique so quickly.¡± Victoria whispered. ¡°I''ll be right back.¡± I said and the guards opened the doors for me as I walked through. ¡°Pack for four days!¡± Victoria said to my back. I ran up the stairs and Hope was right behind me. ¡°I packed your old pack when you told me about the trip. There''s three days of new clothes, a bed roll, and a small pillow.¡± Hope said and went to the closet of our bedroom to pull the pack out. ¡°I even stashed some smoked meat pieces and dried foods in the side pockets, just in case you can''t hunt anything right away.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said as I stripped off the academy uniform and grabbed the best casual outfit I had, pulled it on, and Hope handed me a jacket to put over the knife sheath and my bandoleer. Walking openly with either was just asking for trouble. I went to my potions room and took several extra vials of fortifying waterproof potion to shove into my pack, then added a few vials of the purifying cleaning potion. I looked at my class potions and grabbed half a dozen boosted cleaning potions and the mental enhancement potion. I added a dozen more number ten potion, just in case, and as a final precaution, grabbed a half dozen plant annihilation potions. Now I was ready. ¡°Good luck.¡± Hope said as she checked me over, then she slid her arms around me to give me a hug. ¡°Be safe and be careful. It''s not just you going out there.¡±The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°I know. It''s a pain to have someone else along.¡± I said and she laughed as she let me go. ¡°Are you taking the maps?¡± Hope asked. ¡°Yes, to be safe.¡± I said and walked over to the vault. I dug through my papers and pulled out the relevant maps as well as some of the ingredients info. Now that I had finished with the map room at the library, I had everything that they had for the area we were going to. I tucked them into the large pack and slung it onto my back before I tightened the straps to hold it in place. Hope walked me downstairs and gave me another hug. ¡°See you when you get back.¡± ¡°Let''s go.¡± Victoria said and we jogged all the way back to the front gates of the academy. A carriage was there waiting for us and we climbed aboard. ¡°To the docks!¡± ¡°How long will it take to get there?¡± I asked. ¡°A day and a half on the fastest boat available and then two hours with a horse and cart after that.¡± Victoria said. ¡°The boat is a schooner and...¡± ¡°I can get us there on my boat in about six hours, if we can have a navigator show me where to go.¡± Victoria''s mouth opened slightly in surprise. ¡°You... can''t be serious?¡± ¡°I was in the army and it''s my movement enchantments they are using.¡± I said and she looked stunned. ¡°I have several maps of the area; but, I don''t have any experience in the waters going there. I can''t go full speed without knowing some of the dangers.¡± ¡°I... okay, I... need to think about this.¡± Victoria said. She remained quiet for the whole ride to the docks. When we arrived and the coachman opened the door for us, she nodded. ¡°David, we''re taking the slow boat this time. It''ll give me time to discuss operating procedures with you, go over the maps you apparently have that I didn''t realize could be found, and talk about your role in this expedition.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± I said and stepped out and held a hand back to her. Victoria gave me a huge smile and took the offered hand, like the lady she was, and stepped out with a regal air about her. ¡°Mmm, smell that sea air.¡± She said and took in a big breath through her nose. ¡°All I can smell is bilge.¡± I said. Victoria coughed and then laughed. ¡°D-David!¡± ¡°Mage King?¡± A short man asked and we turned to look. ¡°The captain is eager to leave.¡± ¡°Lead the way.¡± Victoria said and kept hold of my hand and led me behind the short man down the dock towards the gangplank of the schooner. We climbed aboard and the flurry of activity picked up. The plank was pulled onboard and the moorings to the dock were cast off immediately. ¡°We made it just in time.¡± Victoria said with a nod. ¡°Ah, Mage King.¡± A smarmy man said as he approached. ¡°How nice of you to finally grace us with your presence.¡± ¡°I can explain, captain.¡± Victoria said. ¡°You don''t have to.¡± I said and both she and the smarmy man looked at me with wide eyes. ¡°We arrived before departure. Any perceived delays can be made up when we are out of the harbour and the full sail restrictions are lifted.¡± ¡°David, it''s only polite to explain.¡± Victoria said. ¡°If he had been polite in asking, I wouldn''t say anything.¡± I said. ¡°His tone alone was derogatory, let alone his physical behavior.¡± ¡°Excuse me?¡± The captain asked and glared at me. ¡°Mage King is a respected member of both the guild and the academy. A bow when approaching her is expected upon first meeting, as is a respectful tone and countenance. You''ve done none of that, despite her paying you a hefty sum to carry us to our destination.¡± I said and his eyes lost the glare. ¡°You are lucky it''s not enough according to the duelling rules to require reporting it or requiring actions on the guild''s part.¡± The captain took a step back before he realized it, then he sighed. ¡°You''ve made your point.¡± ¡°I hope so.¡± I said. ¡°She''s a noblewoman and a powerful mage. All the rules for both societies still apply, even if you don''t believe they do.¡± The captain nodded his head to me and looked at Mage King. ¡°Please accept my apologies, Mage King. I misspoke and I hope this won''t sour our future working relationship.¡± Victoria glanced at me and then at the captain. ¡°I accept such a gracious apology, captain. We were delayed by one of the academy secretaries not informing my assistant we were leaving today.¡± The captain looked at me from head to foot. ¡°He is truly assisting you? He does not look like one.¡± ¡°He''s helped me more than I thought possible.¡± Victoria said and squeezed my hand. ¡°If it''s all right with you, we''d like to observe the harbour until we leave.¡± The captain smiled warmly and waved at the stairs that went up to the next deck. ¡°Please, use the observation deck at the back of the ship. It will give you the best and longest view of the harbour. I''ll have a porter show you your room when you are done sightseeing.¡± ¡°Thank you, captain.¡± Victoria said and returned the smile. She led me by the captain and I nodded to him. He gave me a quick salute with two of his fingers, which I assumed was a sign of respect. Victoria and I spent the next hour watching the harbour and all of the different kinds of ships docking, moving around, and doing business. It was a very busy place, even busier than most other places, because it was the capital city of the Gulf Kingdom. Apparently, everyone did business here if they could. The porter led us down into the ship to our room when the ship left the harbour. He told us when supper would be served in the crew''s mess and left. When the door shut, Victoria undid her pack and slid it off of her shoulders. ¡°Ugghhh.¡± Victoria groaned as the pack thumped to the floor. ¡°My shoulders are killing me.¡± ¡°Why didn''t you take the pack off right away?¡± I asked as I walked over to her. She pat her shoulders and made grabbing motions with her hands, so I went behind her and started to massage them for her. ¡°Ohhhh, this was why.¡± Victoria said. ¡°It''s much more... relaxing when... a massage is needed.¡± ¡°Do you want a sip of healing potion?¡± I asked. ¡°No, thank you.¡± Victoria said and seemed to melt under my hands. She let out a little moan as I dug my thumbs into the sides of her neck. ¡°Your fiance... has taught you... well.¡± ¡°Actually, it was Lady Jacqueline Rivers.¡± I clarified and she jumped slightly, then she turned around to stare at me. ¡°You''re joking.¡± Victoria said as she put her hands on my hips. ¡°Tell me you''re joking.¡± ¡°We did basic training together for three months in the army and bathed together every night.¡± I said and put my hands back on her shoulders to keep massaging them. ¡°Oh, my.¡± Victoria whispered and closed her eyes. ¡°We... we should unpack.¡± ¡°I only have clothes, maps, and non-perishable food in my pack.¡± I said and she smiled. ¡°I need to get my dress.¡± Victoria said, only she didn''t let me go or opened her eyes. ¡°Supper isn''t until tonight.¡± I whispered. ¡°We have all day to waste before you need to get dressed up for the captain to ogle you.¡± Victoria laughed softly and opened her eyes. ¡°You''re getting better at this whole thing than I thought possible.¡± ¡°It seems to be what you want.¡± I said. ¡°Women, I mean. They know I''m safe and nothing will happen, because I''m betrothed. It makes them bolder and more sure of the outcome, no matter what they do.¡± Victoria nodded as she reached up to stop my hands, then she slid them off of her shoulders and held them tenderly. ¡°Take off your pack and we''ll sit down to talk about everything you need to know.¡± I let her hands go and undid the straps of my pack, slid it to the floor carefully, and took out the maps and things I had brought. I was sure that she would be just as excited about them as I was. 176 Academy Antics Part Forty Four - Botany Bay Part Two ¡°That looks like more than copies of a few maps.¡± Victoria said as she saw the stack of papers. ¡°We''ll have two and a half days in the area, won''t we?¡± I asked and handed her just the maps. ¡°Yes. If the ship does as well as you guessed.¡± Victoria responded and didn''t even look at the maps. ¡°Then there''s a few other things we should check out on the way back from getting that magic flower.¡± I said and showed her the papers with the ingredients that were rumored to be near there. ¡°Wh-where did you get these?¡± Victoria asked as she looked at the drawings and the descriptions, as well as the properties, preparation, and uses for them. ¡°Different places. I''ve been compiling lists and information on ingredients since I started school.¡± Victoria''s face had a beautiful smile as she quickly read the pages over, then she looked into my eyes. ¡°David, I wish I could take you to bed right now to thank you.¡± She said, almost in a purr. ¡°This is wonderful work. This could change... no, it will change our work significantly for this trip.¡± I watched as she walked over to the small desk at the side of the room and put the papers down. She put a paperweight on top of them to stop them from sliding around. That was standard onboard larger ships, apparently. ¡°Sit here and we can look these over closely.¡± Victoria said and waved for me to sit in the only chair as she pulled it out from the table. I wasn''t sure how I could look at the papers on the table from that far away, then I shrugged mentally. I was sure she would sit on the table or something and we could peruse them together. I sat down on the chair and was about to ask what she was going to do, then she stepped in front of me and bent over at the waist to look at the papers on the table. It put her very shapely ass right in my face and I got to see up close just how tight her pants actually were. They fit her everywhere and I saw every bump and curve that her tight pants highlighted. I freely admitted to myself that I had never seen a sight like it before. In fact, I had no idea that you could wear clothing that completely covered you and it could still leave nothing to the imagination. ¡°I can''t believe what I''m seeing here.¡± Victoria said and wiggled her ass a little. ¡°This is amazing.¡± ¡°I agree.¡± I said and she let out a soft laugh. ¡°I can''t help but run my hands all over what''s in front of me.¡± Victoria said. ¡°It''s almost too irresistible to be denied.¡± ¡°They are protected by a fortifying waterproof potion. You can handle them as much as you want.¡± I stated and her back arched a little and showed me a bit more of herself, as if that was possible. The only woman that had shown me more while teasing me was Helena, and she hadn''t worn panties at the time. ¡°I think... that would be wonderful.¡± Victoria whispered. ¡°Let me just... get in a better position...¡± She leaned back slightly and my nose was suddenly buried between her cheeks. ¡°Mmm, yes, I... I think this is just perfect.¡± I sat there quite stunned, with only her pants and possibly panties between my nose and her womanhood. She went over everything I had there and I listened intensely, because to do anything else besides breathing, would mean touching her inappropriately. Twenty long minutes later, she was done looking at my things and she stood up, which rubbed my nose over her and between the cheeks of her ass. She shivered at the sensation and then she took in a deep breath before she turned around to look at my calm face. ¡°Now it''s time for me to fill you in on everything else.¡± Victoria said as she unbuttoned her top and took it off. She was only wearing a small white cloth bra and her nipples were poking out through the cloth as if she wasn''t wearing anything at all. She sat on the edge of the table and gave me a smug smile. She talked for over an hour and told me all about my role in the upcoming expedition, her procedures for both the discovery of the primary plant that she wanted and its proper handling, and also what I needed to do to ensure the success of the mission. She had researched my skills and previous experience and she was going to rely heavily on me to keep her safe. ¡°I hope you understand how important this is for me.¡± Victoria said and picked up her top. She didn''t bother putting it on and stepped close to me to hang it on the back of the chair I sat in. She dangled her breasts in front of my face and if I moved my head even slightly, I would hit either breast. She was that close. ¡°I''ve seen exactly how much it means to you.¡± I said and she stood up and gave me a sexy smile. ¡°I''m very happy to hear that.¡± Victoria responded and then she stepped to the side and waved at the table. I knew what she wanted, so I stood and put the chair next to the table again. I sat down again and she moved around the table to bend over at the waist across from me to let me continue to look at her breasts. Just as with Mona when she did that in the vault room, the bra was little comfort that Victoria would not spill out and show me everything, because I could see practically all over her anyway. ¡°We''ll need to carefully plan our return to make full use of all your work.¡± Victoria said and as she shuffled the papers around, she intentionally jiggled her breasts to show them off. She really was an accomplished teaser, because I had never seen anything even remotely close to her level of expertise. Selena''s poor attempts couldn''t even compare. ¡°If we have full use of the horse and cart, we can make better time than traipsing through the forest.¡± I said. ¡°Are you sure? Some of the terrain on the maps looks quite dangerous.¡± Victoria said and dug out the two relevant maps. ¡°I''m sure this is a high ridge. I doubt there''s going to be a convenient road or even a trail for us to use.¡± ¡°Not on that side, no.¡± I said and traced my finger over the other side. ¡°If we approach from the west and not the east, the climb at the end will be cut significantly.¡± ¡°Hmm. It might add several hours to go around that far.¡± Victoria said. ¡°Then again, if this rumored plant is there, it''ll be worth it to get a sample.¡± ¡°That''s what I''m hoping for as well. If we can cultivate it and get it transplanted, we could revitalize not only the plant; but, the potions it can be used in.¡± ¡°We might not be able to reproduce the plant in its entirety.¡± Victoria said and stood up as she crossed her arms. Her breasts were pushed up and I was a little surprised that the bra held her in. ¡°Depending on if we can get the whole plant or not, we might be able to splice it into a similar plant. That way, we won''t have to worry too much about reproducing its proper growing environment if we adapt it for a different one.¡± ¡°I would prefer the first situation of getting it whole and will grudgingly accept the second.¡± I said and she laughed softly, which shook her breasts a lot more than if they were hanging down. ¡°If it''s too cost prohibitive to keep the plant alive long term to grow more of them, then splicing it to keep most of the properties will have to do.¡± ¡°That''s exactly the attitude we need to keep during this expedition. Our goal is to save these plants from extinction while also bringing their benefits to the people.¡± Victoria said, her passion on the subject clear in her voice. ¡°Both are important to me and if we are not able to do the one, we must do the other.¡± I nodded my head and she beamed a smile at me. ¡°Then let''s get to work.¡± Victoria said and grabbed some blank paper from her pack. We spent a lot of time going over everything and working out what we needed to do and what we could skimp on, then there was a knock on the door. It was close to suppertime and Victoria gathered up the papers and stashed them into her pack. She chanted over it and she gave me a questioning look. ¡°We can put our packs into the closet after we change for supper and secure them there.¡± I said. Victoria nodded and we took out our meal outfits to get changed. Her dress was only slightly revealing when she put it on. When she caught me looking, she took my arm and squeezed it. Just like Helena''s expensive dress, you could only get a good look down her top to see her breasts when she allowed you to. It was quite the ingenious design. ¡°You''re very cunning.¡± I said and Victoria laughed softly.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°You''re very accommodating.¡± Victoria countered as she let me go and brushed her dark hair and touched up her make-up. Her already slightly red lips became bright red and her eyes sparkled when she was done. We put our packs into the closet and shut the door. She chanted as she held a hand over the door and applied the lock spell and added something else. She called it an alarm spell that would give her a specific feeling if anyone tried to break her lock spell. I need to come up with something similar. I thought and used some number ten potion to seal parts of the door closed as added protection. Victoria stared at me as parts of the door formed a solid piece with the door frame. ¡°I told you that I was an accomplished potion maker.¡± I said and tucked the vial back into my bandoleer hidden under my suit coat. She gave me raised eyebrows for several seconds, then she took my arm to let me escort her. We left our room and I followed my nose to the food smell. Thankfully, I had nearly two decades ignoring horrible smells while living in the marsh, so I easily found the crew''s mess. Of course, it was pretty noisy as well with all of the crew there and eating. When we entered the room, the entire place quieted down and became deathly silent. ¡°By the Son''s Light, she gorgeous.¡± One of the crewmen whispered and nearly every head in the room nodded. ¡°On your FEET!¡± A man''s voice bellowed and every crewman shot out of their chairs and stood at attention. Victoria''s face flushed red at the honor and as we passed each table, she nodded to the men. They gave her big smiles in return and everyone''s eyes followed us all the way over to the captain''s table. ¡°Mage King, I am honored to have you at my table.¡± The captain said with aplomb and bowed. ¡°Thank you, captain.¡± Victoria said and gave him a quick curtsy, then glanced at me. ¡°David, thank you for the escort.¡± ¡°My lady.¡± I said, which meant I had to leave her there and find my own spot to sit and eat. I sat her properly, gave her a bow, and moved back across the room. The sound seemed to return all at once as all of the men sat down and started talking again. I found a spot near the back of the room and sat down at a table with three large muscular men. ¡°Aren''tcha getting something to eat, boy?¡± A big burly man at the table asked. ¡°I hope you don''t mean ''boy'' in a derogatory manner.¡± I said and the man laughed. ¡°Lookatcha! Yer as skinny as the bilge pole I use! Ha ha!¡± The man laughed and the other two men at the table laughed, too. ¡°Want to arm wrestle?¡± I asked and that made them laugh harder. ¡°If I break your arm, I''ll give you a healing potion.¡± The three men kept laughing and one pointed to the side of the room. ¡°Food... over there.¡± He said and banged the table. ¡°Funny, boy! You''re funny!¡± ¡°Ask for the seaside special!¡± Someone yelled out. I walked over to the serving window and several cooks were inside. All men. ¡°One seaside special, please.¡± One of the cooks gave me a look, saw my expensive suit, and laughed. ¡°You asked for it.¡± He walked over to a large pot and took a minute to scoop out a few things with shells to add to a large platter, what looked like a tentacle from a squid, and some broth. He went over to another pot and scooped out three fish heads and added it to the platter. The last thing he added was an almost completely intact sea snake. I knew then that what he was giving me was their version of a basic stew broth that they used to add flavor to everything. The contents weren''t supposed to be eaten directly, however. ¡°There you go. One seaside special.¡± The cook said and handed it over to me. The entire room burst out laughing and banged their tables at the joke they played on land lovers. Even the captain laughed, then he explained the joke to Victoria. She didn''t laugh and had a look of concern on her face. The look of annoyance on the captain''s face wasn''t fake, either. ¡°Thanks, it looks delicious.¡± I said and turned to walk away. This would be the third time that someone had played this joke on me, so I handled it the same way as I did the other two times. ¡°Wh-what?¡± The cook looked shocked. ¡°Hey, you''re not supposed to take it!¡± I ignored him and didn''t respond. The laughter died down as I walked over to my table and everyone''s eyes were on me as I sat down. I didn''t see a proper utensil set up, so I did the best with what I had. I picked up a fork and knife and cut into the tentacle. ¡°Boy, it was a joke.¡± The burly man across from me said. ¡°You''re not supposed to...¡± I put the piece of tentacle into my mouth and chewed it. It was actually pretty good. I quickly cut off a few more pieces and ate them. The men at the table moved slightly away as I picked up the sea snake. I cracked the neck and popped the head off, then used the knife to slice it right down the middle. The cooks had left the guts in it, which meant that they didn''t realize that they could potentially poison themselves and the crew if any of the key organs ruptured when the pot was stirred. I peeled the skin off and used my fork and knife to remove the bones from the snake and ate the meat. The three men gagged and left the table. Everyone else had quieted again and seemed to be staring at me. I had that happen each other time, too. I ignored the stares and looked at one of the shelled creatures. I quickly discerned that it could be pried open with the knife and did so. The inside was a nice pink color, well cooked for seafood, so I used the spoon to scoop it out and swallowed it whole without chewing it. I did the same with the other one, then the last shelled creature had a kind of twist to it. I couldn''t find anywhere to pry it open, so I picked it up and it was the size of my palm. I slapped my hands together and the loud crack cut through the silence of the room. Nearly everyone jumped and I hid my smile as I picked the pieces of shell out of the slug-like meat. It was very similar to a marsh slug, so I sliced it and dug out the little bits of guts and then chewed on the slug. No one said a word as I took one of the fish heads and cracked the bottom jaw off. Most people didn''t realize that there was a lot of meat on a fish head. I used the knife to carve out the two large cheek muscles that the fish used to operate the gills and then I popped out the eyes. I ate the eyes while I carved out the tongue from the bottom of the mouth. I dipped the three large pieces of meat into the tasty broth and chewed them up. I repeated this for the other two fish heads, finished off the tentacle, and used a spoon to suck up a bit more broth to wash it down. I stood up with the platter that had the remains of the meal on it and everyone''s eyes watched me walk over to the serving window. ¡°You should gut snakes before cooking them. You could have poisoned everyone if the stomach or the venom glands ruptured.¡± The three cooks stared at me and didn''t say anything. ¡°Where do I dispose of the shells and bones?¡± I asked and the cook closest to me pointed off to the side of himself at a large barrel there. ¡°I''ll leave this to you.¡± I said and put the platter on the serving window''s ledge. Now that I was done eating, I glanced around for the best spot to wait. There was a lot of room near the captain''s table; but, I knew from the look on his face that he wouldn''t want me to come over there right now. Victoria''s face was a completely blank mask, which meant she was hiding what she was feeling from everyone. I shrugged mentally and walked over to the now empty table I had eaten the meal and sat down to wait. It took several minutes before life seemed to return to the crew and the sound returned. It wasn''t as loud as it had been and I was grateful for that. A few minutes after that, two of the burly men that had sat at the table before, sat down again. ¡°Are you crazy or something?¡± One of them asked. ¡°I can''t believe you actually ate all that garbage.¡± ¡°No one believes it the first time they see it.¡± I said. ¡°This is the third time.¡± He gave me a stern look for a second, then he laughed. ¡°All right, you''ve got balls.¡± ¡°Bigger than yours. You couldn''t even stay at the table.¡± I said and he laughed harder. ¡°Arm wrestle, you said?¡± The other guy said and plunked his elbow on the table as he wiggled his fingers. ¡°What''s the wager?¡± ¡°If you win, I''ll do your job tomorrow.¡± I said and the man grinned at me. ¡°Done.¡± He said and several other crewmen gathered around to cheer him on. ¡°Aren''t you going to ask what you have to do if I win?¡± I asked. ¡°You''re not going to.¡± The man said confidently. ¡°Come on, let''s go.¡± I braced my arm the same as him and clamped my hand in his. ¡°On my mark.¡± The other man said. ¡°One. Two. Three!¡± The burly man''s grip hardened and he pushed and struggled against me. I didn''t even smile as I slowly pivoted on my elbow and put my hand down towards the table. The man''s face became worried as his efforts didn''t slow my hand at all. Just before his knuckles touched the table, the man yelped as his elbow popped and his arm lost all tension. The men around us stared at me with open mouths. I reached into my bandoleer and pulled out a healing potion and popped the cork. ¡°Drink half of this when I say.¡± The man didn''t say a word as he took it in his good hand. I reached over and turned his forearm to face the right away and tapped it back into place. ¡°Go ahead.¡± The man drank about half of the potion and he sighed as his arm twitched and healed. I popped the cork back on the potion and handed the potion to him. ¡°It''s only half as effective now, so it''ll only deal with a dislocated bone, a sprain, and maybe a couple broken fingers. Don''t trust it to heal a broken leg or anything.¡± The man stared at the potion and then at me. ¡°You''re really giving this to me?¡± He asked, clearly not believing it. ¡°It''s a high ranked potion!¡± ¡°I said I would give it to you.¡± I responded and the man''s face changed from disbelief to happiness. ¡°All right, you won. What do you want me to do?¡± The man asked. ¡°I haven''t sailed on a boat bigger than a flat bottomed skimmer thirty feet long.¡± I said. ¡°Show me how to do your job tomorrow.¡± The man laughed. ¡°Boy, I''ll show you everything you need to know about working on this ship.¡± ¡°Me, too.¡± The other man said with a nod. ¡°Yeah, you''re in good hands.¡± One of the others said. ¡°We''ll make a great shipmate out of you, even if we only have a day.¡± I nodded acceptance of the challenge and the crew sat down and continued their meal. 177 Academy Antics Part Forty Five - Botany Bay Conclusion When the meal ended, the captain made a toast. It was odd, because no one else except Victoria had a glass of wine to acknowledge the toast. They hadn''t even served ale to the crew. That really struck me as odd, mainly because at the Henrietta Family main mansion, they always stocked barrels of ale for the work crews and the house staff. Helena copied the practice and the staff loved us even more for it. Victoria stood up and made her excuse to leave, so I made my own excuse to the crewmen around me and walked over to her. She gave me a very odd look before she allowed me to assume the escort position and took my arm. We left the room and walked in silence all the way to our room. I shut the door to the cabin and in the next moment, her eyes were pouring tears down her face and she had wrapped her arms around my neck. ¡°David! I''m so sorry that you had to go through that!¡± Victoria sobbed and held me tightly. ¡°You poor, poor man!¡± She cried and wept on my shoulder. ¡°The captain told me it was... a common joke they played...¡± ¡°I''m glad they didn''t try it on you. I would have had to deal with them.¡± I said. Victoria''s crying slowed and she eased her tight hold around my neck as she leaned back to look into my eyes. ¡°You would have? Why? Why only for me and not yourself?¡± ¡°I''ve eaten much worse things than squid and shellfish.¡± I said. ¡°At least it was cooked well.¡± Victoria''s face was a mess from her crying, so I pulled out my handkerchief and wiped at her face for her. By the time I was done drying it off, she had a smile and had laughed softly. ¡°I''m supposed to be comforting you after all that.¡± Victoria said. ¡°You are still hugging me and pressing your breasts against me.¡± I reminded her and she laughed again. ¡°Oh, David. You are a delight.¡± Victoria said and her eyes went to my lips. ¡°Just a moment.¡± I said and put several drops of healing potion on my handkerchief and then I dabbed my lips and sucked a bit into my mouth to swish it around. ¡°All right. Now you won''t taste it.¡± Victoria gave me a seductive smile and then briefly touched her lips to mine. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°I think the captain would kill to have been me in that instant.¡± I said, which was exactly what she wanted to hear. Her face flushed red and she acted a little shy as she ducked her head. ¡°We should get changed for bed.¡± Victoria said and let me go. She seemed a bit reluctant to do so. We went to the closet and we opened it after deactivating all of the safety features we had used, then she went to the bed to change and I went to the table. We kept our backs to each other, just like we had to get dressed, and I put my bag back into the closet. I kept my bandoleer and my knife in its sheath with me, however. There were no personal vaults or any other safe place for me to leave them, so they had to stay with me. As a last thought, I transferred a lot of the heavy things she had in her pack to mine. Victoria didn''t object. She moved her now much lighter bag to the side of the bed and turned to show off her long night dress. It barely blocked anything from sight and as the light hit it as she turned, I could practically see through it. She had kept her panties on, at least. ¡°You wore that for me?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°Thank you.¡± Victoria blushed slightly and then climbed into bed under the blanket. She didn''t have to ask me to join her or pat the bed, since there was nowhere else for me to sleep. It was a big bed and I had no trouble sliding in beside her. She turned onto her side, her breasts moving unrestricted, and she looked at my face. ¡°You''re not going to complain that we have to share a bed?¡± Victoria asked. ¡°We''re going to be sharing a small tent for the whole weekend while sleeping on our bedrolls. Sharing a full size bed is nothing in comparison.¡± Victoria smiled and reached out to rub her hand over my short hair. ¡°Are you saying this is going to be less of a temptation than what you are expecting it to be?¡± ¡°Of course it is.¡± I said without looking at her. ¡°We''re going to be sweat covered from exertion during the day and as soon as we''re inside the enclosed space of the small tent, all I will be able to smell is you.¡± Victoria shivered at my words and she moved close. ¡°Am I really that irresistible?¡± I remembered what Mage Marks said when I asked her the same thing. ¡°Unbelievably so.¡± I responded. I couldn''t repeat what she told me past that, though. It was specific to me and wasn''t applicable to Victoria. Victoria lightly kissed my cheek and moved back. ¡°Goodnight, David.¡± ¡°Goodnight, Victoria.¡± I said back. Time seemed to pass quickly, almost in fast forward. I didn''t sleep much, thanks to my need to guard my things, and I had been sorely out of practice of sleeping lightly. I would need to make something that I would be in constant threat off at night in order to regain my edge. I was getting lax in that area. Of course, this weekend should be just the thing to kick start my brain into the proper survival gear. The morning arrived and I was up just before dawn. I left Mage King...Victoria... in the bed and changed into work clothes. I donned tight pants, a sleeveless shirt, and forwent the tie. I wasn''t going to impress the crew by looking like a noble family''s retainer. They were going to want me to work and the tie would only get in the way.A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. I left the cabin and cast Lock on the door, just in case. As I passed the crew cabins, all of the doors opened at the same time and the crew filed out and filled the hallway. ¡°Ha! There you are!¡± One of the burly men said and clapped me on the back. ¡°We thought we would have to storm your cabin and drag you out by the ankles while you were still asleep! Ha ha!¡± ¡°I couldn''t let that happen. You would have enjoyed that too much. This isn''t a pleasure cruise.¡± I said and that made them all laugh. ¡°Right you are.¡± Another man said. ¡°This is a working man''s ship. Lots to do and lots to get done.¡± ¡°Let''s do it!¡± One of them shouted as we went up on deck and they all cheered. ¡°You''re with me fer the first hour.¡± The man I arm wrestled said and we went over to the main sail rigging. ¡°Do you know what that is?¡± He asked and pointed to a rope and pulley. ¡°The main top sail''s tension rope.¡± I said and he gave me a surprised look. ¡°I had a tour on a dreadnaught by a master rigger last week.¡± The man''s smile nearly split his face. ¡°Boy, we''re gonna be good friends! Let''s get to work!¡± ¡°Sir.¡± I said and he laughed as we manhandled the ropes and deployed the top sail. There was a snag, as there usually always was with so many ropes crisscrossing each other. I didn''t wait for him to holler to someone else as I scrambled up the rope ladder to get to the top sail. I yanked on the snag and saw that the rope was frayed a little from slipping on the pulley. ¡°We''ll need a new tension rope! This one''s going to break soon!¡± I pointed to the fray and a few of the men looked up at me. ¡°Good eye, lad!¡± The man I was working with said and turned to the crew nearby. ¡°I need a rigger over here and a fifty foot rope!¡± ¡°I gotcha!¡± One of the skinny men said and hefted the rope over his shoulder and climbed the rope ladder even faster than I did. ¡°I''ll feed it to ya to put through the same pulley on the right track and you pass it down.¡± I nodded and he cut away the old rope and then threaded the new one through several pulleys and slid down the deployed sail to tie it off on the bottom cross mast. He took up some slack and tossed me the bundle. I quickly passed it through the pulley on the right track and then passed the rest down to the man I was working with. ¡°Yep, good friends!¡± The man said with a laugh and lightly slipknotted the rope over the holding post. ¡°Now git yer ass back down here and stop lazing around!¡± The rigger laughed and hopped from the sail to the rope ladder and I followed him down to the deck. What followed was a full day of how a fully crewed ship was run. I was passed around to different men on different jobs and had the full experience of what they all did. The last thing I did was scrub the deck after a day''s work. We used big brushes and a mop to clean everything. ¡°Boy.¡± The man I arm wrestled said as the ship came to a stop in the middle of a large waterway. There was no dock for us to land on. ¡°I can''t tell you how happy we all are that you didn''t complain once about how hard we worked you all day.¡± ¡°What would I complain about? I learned a lot.¡± I responded. He and the crewmen around us exchanged looks, then several hands took turns gripping my shoulder. ¡°You better get to your cabin and change.¡± I nodded and left the little gathering to do just that. I entered the cabin and Victoria stood there, her face flushed slightly red. She didn''t say anything to me, so I went to the closet and changed into what she termed was an adventuring outfit. It matched hers and I hefted my pack onto my back. I walked over to her and helped her put hers on. Since it was much lighter, she didn''t have to struggle with it at all. ¡°I was a bit worried last night when you took the heavy things from my pack.¡± Victoria whispered. ¡°I didn''t want you to think you had to carry my burdens for me. This is my expedition after all.¡± She reached over and touched the straps on my pack. ¡°I watched you working all day today.¡± ¡°I know. I could feel it.¡± I said and she smiled demurely. ¡°I''m not worried anymore about you carrying so much weight.¡± Victoria said and pat my shoulders. ¡°We need to get to the boat.¡± I led her from the cabin and up onto the deck to where the small boat was lashed to the side of the ship on pulleys and had two men in it to row. ¡°Mage King, it''s been a supreme pleasure to have you aboard my ship.¡± The captain said and gave her a bow. ¡°Are you sure you can''t stay for supper?¡± ¡°I''m afraid I can''t. We need to get moving or we''ll lose the time your fast ship has gained us.¡± Victoria complimented him and let the captain take and then kiss her hand. ¡°Thank you for delivering us promptly and safely.¡± ¡°Please continue to be safe.¡± The captain said. ¡°Are you sure that you don''t need to be picked up?¡± ¡°I''ve made arrangements with someone else for the return trip, so you don''t have to ruin your shipping schedule, captain.¡± Victoria said with a smile. ¡°Until the next time we meet.¡± ¡°I look forward to it, Mage King. I truly do.¡± The captain said and helped her into the boat with the hand he still held. I stood there until she was seated and then held my hand out to the captain in the same manner to be helped. The entire crew burst out laughing and stomped their feet on the deck like applause. The captain laughed as well and lightly slapped away my hand. ¡°You''ve adapted to the crew already, you scurvy dog!¡± I nodded and hopped into the boat without his help. ¡°Have fun, boy!¡± The man I arm wrestled said as he and another man lowered the little boat into the water. ¡°We''ll see you again some day!¡± I waved to him as the boat hit the water and the ropes were let go. The two men quickly turned the boat expertly with their oars and then rowed at the same time to give us tremendous speed. We reached the shore only a couple of minutes later, deposited without a word, and then the little boat was gone. We stood there and watched the boat get back to the ship even quicker than it had dropped us off, then it was up and out of the water and the schooner was on its way. We turned away from the water and started to walk up the bank near the water and towards a barely maintained road there. We followed it to the small town that was there and the horse and cart was waiting for us. The driver was happy that we had shown up on time and we climbed in and were off. It was a fast horse that must have been used to hauling a heavy load, because it made short work of the three hour ride to the drop off point. ¡°Miss, are you sure this is where you want to go?¡± The driver asked as Victoria paid him. ¡°It''s perfect, thank you.¡± Victoria said and handed him a few more coins. ¡°Please go to the agreed upon spot at the appropriate time.¡± ¡°Miss, I''ll camp out there the night before, just to make sure I''m there in the morning to get you.¡± The driver promised with a grin. ¡°Thank you.¡± Victoria said and took out a compass. ¡°David, we''re heading that way.¡± She said and pointed. It looked like rough ground to cross into a valley, especially wearing a pack on our backs, so I held my hand out to her. She smirked at me as she took my hand and then we started walking. Next stop, Barkilan Forest. 178 Academy Antics Part Forty Five - Valley Of The Trogs ¡°Why didn''t we take a horse and cart again?¡± Victoria asked two hours later as she wiped sweat from her forehead. Her long brown hair was plastered to her head and we paused in walking to let her tie her hair up into a ponytail. ¡°You wanted to save time by crossing this area on foot.¡± I reminded her and we started walking again before I helped her over a small stony outcropping that was more like a hilly ledge than anything else. The grassy field I thought was only a grassy field, was actually a very misshapen and partially mined rock quarry or something. The grass was a virulent strain that would grow anywhere, according to Victoria. She had taken a sample back to the guild a year ago and they were still trying to clear out the area where she had transplanted it. It made her laugh when she told me about it, because even when you tore up the dirt it was in, the damn thing still grew back. ¡°There''s rumors of troglodytes around here.¡± Victoria reminded me, needlessly. ¡°I hope they give us enough warning before they attack.¡± I refused to laugh at her comment, mainly because I didn''t want her to be angry at me for thinking how stupid that comment was. If someone was going to attack you, they usually don''t warn you first. You lose the element of surprise if you do. I had all of my senses focused on my vigilance technique and even added a bit of my magic to it, which gave it quite the boost. I knew everything within 100 feet of me was safe, half of everything 200 feet away was good, and some of everything 300 feet past that looked okay. Thankfully, it was mostly open field and no trees could be seen, except in the distance. That was the Barkilan Forest that we were looking for. According to the map, it was only ten miles across and twenty miles deep. Personal accounts that Victoria told me about said that once you were inside the edge, it was nearly triple that. She speculated that it was some kind of spacial magic that would allow such a large place to exist within the same small area. I didn''t believe that, however. I wasn''t going to deny any magical influence; but, if I knew anything about living in a marsh that seemed endless, it was that people''s perception of the distance that changed and not the distance itself. I felt and saw movement off to the right and didn''t react. I didn''t want to give away that I had sensed them. After a short time, several beings came within my 200 foot range and I could tell that they were armed with weapons. ¡°Let''s stop and rest for a few minutes.¡± I suggested. ¡°Great idea!¡± Victoria nearly shouted as she plopped down onto a grass covered rock. I handed her my water skin with a general health potion mixed in and she took a little sip, shivered slightly, then took a long swallow. ¡°Ahhhh! That''s really good.¡± Victoria said. ¡°General health mixed in?¡± I nodded and she leaned back on one of her arms and sighed. ¡°Excuse me for a few minutes.¡± ¡°Personal business?¡± Victoria asked and I nodded again. ¡°I promise not to peek.¡± I took off my pack and moved away from her and back towards a larger outcropping we had passed. ¡°This time.¡± Victoria whispered and then chuckled. She didn''t realize I could still hear her. ¡°You poor boy. I''m having so much fun teasing you with my body so mercilessly and you take it all without saying anything.¡± I heard her take another drink as I ducked down and used my best stealth technique to dart around the outcropping and crawled through the grass towards our assailants. ¡°I really wish he wasn''t betrothed and I could take things one step further.¡± Victoria said. ¡°I don''t know if I could go through with actually having sex with a student, though. Playing and perhaps a bit of naked teasing? Oh, I could definitely go for that.¡± I stopped moving and waited for the group of five extremely ugly humanoids to creep behind an outcropping of stone that was right next to where I had waited. They had knelt and were grunting and hissing in some kind of language that I didn''t understand. Two of them lifted crude spears, two others had wooden clubs with sharp stones embedded into them, and the last had a rusted sword. I crept closer and none of them noticed me. I had a neat idea and as I got close enough, I cast Mage Shield over us to stop them from running and then I pounced with my knife. I made it glow in an instant and had two heads decapitated from the club users with my forward swing and three raised arms on my back swing. The three remaining humanoids didn''t yell as they saw two of their group die and one had lost a forearm and his sword. They grunted and stared at me, almost in disbelief, which was a huge mistake in a fight. In the next second, their throats were cut and then their heads joined the other two on the ground. I quickly searched their rags of clothes and didn''t find anything. Their weapons were less than useless, even the sword. I didn''t want anyone picking them up, though. I dismissed my unnecessary mage shield and used my knife as I carefully cut the weapons up, mindful of the stones in the clubs so that I wouldn''t dull my knife. I didn''t want to bother cutting up the sword, because they could probably use the sharp pieces, so I jammed it into the rocky outcropping between two tight rocks and snapped the handle off. Unless they dig the rocks out, they''re not getting that back. I thought and looked at the bodies. I didn''t want their obvious deaths to be too obvious, so I quickly sliced them up as if they were animals. I knew that the exposed innards would bring some kind of predators quickly, so I wiped off my hands on their rags and moved back the way I came.Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°There you are.¡± Victoria said as I walked over to her. ¡°You weren''t gone too long.¡± ¡°It didn''t take as long as I thought it would.¡± I said and pulled my pack on and secured the straps. ¡°Ready to keep going?¡± Victoria stood up and put the cork on my waterskin, then she very seductively tied it back to my belt as she swayed like she was dancing. Her hands didn''t quite grope me; but, it was close. She didn''t look at my face or say anything before she turned and started walking again. Not surprisingly, I didn''t detect any more humanoids. I did get a whiff of wet and matted fur that I recognized. Marsh boar. Well, I suppose it would be forest or plains boar out here. It probably wasn''t toxic to eat for normal people, either. ¡°We need to stop and eat soon.¡± Victoria said and walked around another outcropping, rather than trying to climb down. ¡°Only having supper on the ship isn''t enough to keep us going all day, even though the meal was big.¡± After a few seconds, she caught her breath and turned her head to look at me. ¡°I''m sorry, David. I didn''t mean to remind you of that.¡± Victoria said and came to a stop. ¡°I told you before that it''s all right.¡± I said and took her hand to get her to keep walking. ¡°But...¡± Victoria took a couple of steps to steady herself and walked beside me. ¡°I can''t believe that you didn''t get sick from eating all of that.¡± ¡°If you keep talking about it, you''re not going to be hungry when we stop beside the forest.¡± I cautioned her and she sighed. She stayed quiet for the rest of the walk to the treeline and we picked the best spot to give us a great view of the place we just walked through and the forest we were going to walk through. ¡°You know, if this place wasn''t rumored to be so dangerous, I would like to stay here for a while.¡± Victoria said as she gazed over the grassy rock outcroppings. ¡°It''s beautiful here.¡± ¡°The marsh is almost the same.¡± I said and she turned her head to look at me as I doled out some food for us. ¡°It has it''s scenes that someone could paint and people would marvel over them.¡± Victoria smiled at me as she ate some of the smoked meat. ¡°You really miss living in the marsh?¡± ¡°I grew up there and only just started living on my own for the last couple years. I barely settled into a routine before I was convicted, conscripted, served at the new front, and then sent to the academy.¡± Victoria reached over to rest her hand on my lap. ¡°Don''t worry. It''ll still be there when you go back.¡± ¡°I know. I''m planning on visiting to renew the wards on my house before they expire.¡± I said and took a bite out of a nice piece of near-deer steak. Victoria opened her mouth to say something and it seemed it got caught in her throat. She shook slightly and turned her head away to look at the trees. I put my hand on hers and gave it a squeeze. ¡°You don''t have to panic. I''m not leaving the academy and I would never break my word to Helena.¡± Victoria let out a sigh and relaxed. ¡°You scared me.¡± She said and she rubbed her hand on my thigh before she turned her hand over to grab onto my hand. ¡°I just found the perfect student, one that I can fill up with all of my knowledge, and I''m not letting you go.¡± I thought about her specific wording for a minute. ¡°Why don''t you come with me?¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± Victoria turned her head back to stare at me. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°I have to go soon, probably before the king''s birthday.¡± I said. ¡°I doubt I''ll be able to go anywhere with everything Helena''s got planned.¡± ¡°But... you can''t mean...¡± ¡°I''ve given my wards as much power as possible the last time I was there. Unfortunately, as they wane, they get weaker. If I don''t renew or replace them before they get too weak, I''ll probably lose the house.¡± Victoria sat there and chewed on the meat she had in her hand and didn''t respond for quite some time. I ate my food as well and handed her a normal water skin to drink from. She took a few gulps and handed it back. I drank some as well and she sat there as I packed the things up. ¡°You do realize we could get into trouble over this.¡± Victoria said. ¡°Over what? Going on another rare plant expedition to try and recreate powerful plants?¡± I asked and she gasped. ¡°You wouldn''t believe some of the rare ingredients that exist there. Some are so rare that I can only harvest them every six months or so and then I can only make one stew pot of potions from them.¡± ¡°You... you lie.¡± Victoria whispered and I could see the anticipation on her face. ¡°You have to be lying. A bi-annual plant? I''ve never...¡± She started mumbling as she went over in her head what could cause a plant to do that, to change its behavior, and perhaps affect environmental factors to allow the lengthy growth time between blooms. ¡°Even if we somehow got it, we would need to examine the environment it came from. The magic density of the soil, the water table nearby, and even the related plants growing around it.¡± ¡°Well, you''re the expert.¡± I said and she nodded her head several times. ¡°All right.¡± Victoria said and looked into my eyes. ¡°If you promise to show me the potion you make with it...¡± I plucked out a vial of fortifying waterproof potion. ¡°This is the weaker version that I had to substitute ingredients for.¡± I said and told her what it did, then waved at my clothes and pack. ¡°It''s best used on wood to age and harden it, especially after staining. It''ll stay that way for years.¡± ¡°Sweet lord.¡± Victoria whispered. ¡°The table I bought from Helena. It''s perfect. No tool marks, glue, or anything. There''s also no abrasions, scratches, or anything even remotely like damage that a normal table would get while being delivered.¡± ¡°It almost petrifies the wood.¡± I explained. ¡°The original is much more powerful and fast acting.¡± Victoria thought about it for a few moments before she nodded. ¡°All right. I''ll keep our permits applicable and our travel passes updated, that way I won''t have to renew them when we go.¡± I gave her the same smile I had used on Jinelle, the one Hope liked seeing so much, because I was so happy to be going back home a lot sooner than I thought I was going to. With a teacher along, I could leave the school whenever I wanted. ¡°S-sweet l-lord.¡± Victoria whispered again at the sight, her voice a bit shaky. ¡°Let''s get going.¡± She said more firmly. ¡°It''s a long walk to the spot that the flower grows.¡± I nodded as I helped her stand up, then I kept hold of her hand as we entered the Barkilan Forest. 179 Academy Antics Part Forty Six - The Forest Through The Trees The forest was both familiar and strange, just like the difference I had noticed when hunting in the marsh and then hunting in a normal forest, only this difference was from the normal forest to whatever this was. I couldn''t compare it to the marsh yet, since we hadn''t been inside of it for very long. I did notice tangling vines, although they were a different color. I suspected it would have other similarities as well. As long as there were no spiders, we should be fine. The last thing I needed was to try and take on a rogue spider brood while in unfamiliar territory. I glanced around and approved of the spacing of the trees. It would stop any real rampaging or charging animal and would also give me room to manoeuvre when attacked. No sooner had I thought that, I felt more than heard movement in the trees above me, then I turned and grabbed Victoria before I leapt back about ten feet with her in my arms. A loud plop was heard and a bit of a splash as something like a melon broke open. When we looked back at the spot, a venomous pod about the size of my torso had split open and squirted paralyzing liquid out in a five foot radius. ¡°Well, one rumor was true.¡± Victoria said, her breathing a little heavy. ¡°A tentaculous trap pod really does grow in here in the trees.¡± As we stood there and watched, the broken open pod shook slightly and slowly deployed several vine like tentacles and felt around the five foot area. Almost as if it was disappointed, it let out a squelching sigh-like sound and pulled the tentacles back. It closed itself and then a hidden tentacle lifted it up from the ground. ¡°Excuse me.¡± I said and put Victoria on her feet, then I dashed around to the back of the pod and used my knife to slash at the tentacle. It let out a squeal as it was severed from its retreat and I looked way up to see a much bigger plant, or a series of plants, that were wrapped around the tree near several branches. I quickly went around the tree again and back over to Victoria. ¡°I hope there aren''t too many of them when we go deeper.¡± I said and we watched the venomous pod break open again and it tried to use its tentacles to pull itself up the tree. The problem it had was that the smaller tentacles were not as long or as strong as its support tentacle had been. ¡°Yes, if you get me out of the way of one, we could very easily land underneath another one.¡± Victoria said and observed the pod fail to crawl more than a couple of feet before it would slide back to the ground. ¡°I''d feel sorry for it if it hadn''t just tried to kill and eat us.¡± ¡°I doubt we would die right away.¡± I said. ¡°It''s only paralyzing, remember?¡± Victoria shuddered. ¡°Right. Right.¡± She said and took my hand. ¡°Don''t let go unless you have to.¡± I nodded and had to keep even more vigilant of the hidden dangers. Thankfully, we didn''t find another pod for half an hour and that meant they were spread out to give themselves larger hunting grounds. We avoided the next pod easily, now that I knew what to look for and saw its scope of attack. Two hours later, there was a distinct howl and Victoria gasped. She whispered an apology and we slowed our progress down enough that I would have a chance to defend her before we were overrun, assuming this wasn''t a lone animal and they were stalking us in a pack. ¡°The rest area the locals talked about is coming up.¡± Victoria whispered and she checked her compass. ¡°Ten degrees to the left of center and maybe another half mile.¡± I nodded and we made our way in that direction. I didn''t see or hear any more indications that we were being followed or that we were of interest to whatever howled. I assumed they were wolves of some kind, just to be safe. I just hoped they were normal wolves and not something odd like the owlbear. If it was something only reproducing the sound of a wolf to give us a false sense of what we were facing, there was no telling what it could be that was coming for us. We reached the rest area and it was a large clearing in the middle of the forest. In fact, it seemed like another one of those rock outcroppings from that valley we passed through, except it was gigantic. Rock-like steps let us go up the side of the thing and when we reached the top, it was a nice flat area that was covered in short grass, and it gave us a 360 degree view of the forest around us. It wasn''t high enough to see over the trees, though. ¡°According to the villagers, this is a safe haven. There''s six of them and they are scattered all over.¡± Victoria said and took out a piece of paper to show me our progress. ¡°Its dark, so we need to camp here tonight. If we head out at first light, we''ll get to the spot right about the time we would normally have breakfast.¡± I took out the tent from my pack and quickly set it up. ¡°I didn''t see any wildwood.¡± I said and added our bedrolls to the inside of the tent. ¡°No, this forest wouldn''t let something like that grow here.¡± Victoria said and looked at the clothes she was wearing. ¡°This might be a safe area; but, we shouldn''t bother changing, in case we have to leave in a hurry.¡± I nodded in agreement and she took four mage lights on short poles and stuck them into the ground around us in a perfect square. She spoke several chants as she held her hands out towards one. It glowed a different color and she went to each one and repeated the chant. When she was done, I felt something like a mage shield form around us.The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°Whew.¡± Victoria said and took several breaths. ¡°I need to practice that barrier spell more.¡± I didn''t comment and she carried her pack into the tent. I brought mine in as well and I had been right. The tent was small with the two of us and our gear inside. Neither of us were stupid enough to leave the gear unattended or outside of the tent. That was just asking for something to happen to it. Victoria looked at our bedrolls and saw that they opened towards each other. She didn''t say anything as she climbed into hers. I waited for her to settle down before I climbed into mine and laid down on my back. Victoria turned onto her side to look at me. ¡°David, thank you for protecting me.¡± She said as she rested her head on her pillow. ¡°You said you would be relying on my expertise.¡± I responded and she smiled. ¡°You''re not hoping I''ll be grabbed by those strangling vines and have my clothing torn off, are you?¡± Victoria asked with a chuckle. ¡°No, if I wanted to see that, I wouldn''t wait for some random encounter. I''d do it myself.¡± Victoria took in a sharp breath and then she licked her lips. ¡°You always seem to say exactly what I want to hear. How is that possible?¡± ¡°You''re enamored with the thought that you''re untouchable, except on your own terms.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°You will push the boundaries and tease as much as you can, because you know I won''t do anything to break my word to my fiance.¡± I turned my head to look at her. ¡°It gives you a tremendous amount of power over me.¡± Victoria took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°It... it really does.¡± She said softly. ¡°I have been doing a lot more than I normally would, that''s true.¡± She reached over to me and touched my face. ¡°You''re just so easy to tease and you''re acceptance of my antics makes me feel very desired... and also safe.¡± She used her thumb to lightly caress my cheek and she stared into my eyes for several minutes before she spoke again. ¡°I hope you don''t hate me for being like this.¡± Victoria whispered. ¡°I spent a good ten years with my husband and I hated every minute of it, even though I liked him. When he died, a huge weight that I felt seemed to disappear. I was my own person again. I had no more family obligations, no more guild obligations, and no restrictions on who I could talk to or associate with.¡± ¡°You had a child?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°It was the very first thing I did when we were married. I haven''t seen him in nine years.¡± I thought about that. ¡°You don''t regret giving him up to the family.¡± ¡°No, he looks just like his father and his family whisked him away to be the heir apparent for the matriarch.¡± Victoria chuckled. ¡°I wouldn''t realize until later that I was pretty much treated like a concubine, even though I was his wife.¡± ¡°Was that a bad thing?¡± I asked. ¡°Oh, no. In hindsight, I very much enjoyed fulfilling the marriage requirements as quickly as possible. It freed me up to pursue my own interests and also let me see how they all saw me and what they really thought of me.¡± ¡°I shouldn''t ask about that.¡± I said and she laughed softly. ¡°You''re the only one that''s pretended long enough to be interested in what my life was like.¡± Victoria said and her hand cupped the side of my face. ¡°I wasn''t pretending.¡± I said and she smiled. ¡°I know that far away look. You''re barely even listening.¡± Victoria said. ¡°I was imagining you dancing around naked with your hair down.¡± I said and she didn''t react. ¡°Then I imagined treating you like a personal maid and making you bathe me.¡± Victoria sucked in a quick breath and her eyes immediately dropped to where my crotch was under the blanket. ¡°You... you do realize how... insulting it is... to say that to a noblewoman.¡± She whispered and licked her lips again. ¡°Yes.¡± I said as I watched several telltale emotions cross over her face. I smiled slightly as I looked back at the top of the tent before I closed my eyes. ¡°Goodnight.¡± ¡°Goodnight.¡± Victoria responded. The night passed by agonizingly slow. I slept and also remained vigilant. I had been right that being back in an environment that was imminently hostile would reawaken my ability to essentially sleep with one eye open. It also let me feel Victoria''s hand as it very slowly touched my manhood over the blanket in the middle of the night. She didn''t rub it or tried to play with it. What she did do was rest her hand on it for a while and then she gently traced the outline. ¡°Is this... because of me?¡± Victoria moaned under her breath and then her hand was back under her own blanket. She let out little moans for quite some time after that, then her breathing evened out and she went back to sleep. Morning arrived and I was up and out of the small tent to check around the perimeter. I didn''t see or hear anything, then I took in several quick breaths through my nose. Nothing had approached the safe area since we went to bed and I relaxed. I went back inside the tent and Victoria had her eyes open and looked at me. ¡°Good morning.¡± Victoria said. ¡°Good morning.¡± I said back and motioned to my pack. ¡°Right, we should eat in here because it should keep the smell contained.¡± Victoria said and sat up. I didn''t comment about it already doing that with her own smell and pulled out some of the dried foods I had brought. She thanked me and we sat there and ate a filling and yet unsatisfying breakfast. Two drinks of water later, I packed everything up and dismantled the tent and put it away. After that, we were off in the direction she pointed, just as the sun appeared above the treetops. 180 Academy Antics Part Forty Seven - The Flower Of Temptation I dealt with several smaller creatures as we made our way to the rumored area that the flower was located. The most recent ones were like a small monkey that kept spitting at us. When their spit didn''t work because I could easily dodge it, they attacked in a mass. By mass, I meant there was about fifty of them and they tried to swarm over me. My glowing knife never let them touch me with a single claw. I did the mage shield trick again and held them within the shield, rather than protecting myself from them, and not one of them managed to get to Victoria. She had watched with a shocked face as I fought and dodged the little creatures, let out sounds of surprise as they barely missed me with their attacks, then she let out a shaky sigh as the last of them was sliced across the body and died. Victoria didn''t say anything as I dismissed my mage shield and walked over to her. ¡°We need to go. Their remains are going to attract a lot of attention.¡± I said as I put my pack back on. She took my hand with a nod and we left the area, avoided another attack from a venomous pod from the treetops, and continued on our way to our destination. As we neared where we needed to go, I noticed the telltale signs of snakes inhabiting the area. I brought us to a stop and put a finger on Victoria''s mouth to stop her from asking what was going on. She nodded in understanding and I let her hand go as I slipped off my pack. She knew what I was doing, essentially using myself as bait, and I eased forward as I intentionally nudged the places with my boot where a snake had passed. I got about twenty feet away from her when I heard a slithering sound. I dodged backwards, because the sound was much louder than it was supposed to be. This was confirmed when a twenty foot long snake, with a head the size of my fist, hissed and darted past my face. I fell onto my back and rolled over and into a crouch with my knife at the ready. The snake coiled up and hissed at me again. I held my knife up and made it glow. The snake''s eyes locked onto it and I started to sway it from side to side. The snake followed the movement and its head swayed from side to side as well. I continued this for several minutes and saw the snake''s eyelids flick. I moved forward and kept the motion up until I was within a few feet of it. I flicked my knife to the side much farther than I had previously, then darted forward and brought the knife back across the throat and sliced the head off. The head flopped to the ground and I ran back over to Victoria. The body freaked out with the head removed and it thrashed around as it pretty much wrecked the spot it was in. None of the underbrush survived its death and even a nearby tree suffered torn bark. ¡°Oh, my god.¡± Vanessa whispered as she clung to me. ¡°That... that''s the guardian snake? No one ever said they were man sized!¡± ¡°I don''t think anyone knows. That''s alive, anyway.¡± I commented and she shivered. ¡°Did they say how many were there?¡± ¡°A group... several dozen, maybe.¡± Victoria said. ¡°I thought... I thought they were just snakes. Normal snakes, I mean. There''s no way...¡± She turned to me and looked into my eyes. ¡°I changed my mind. I don''t need this flower.¡± ¡°We can''t quit now.¡± I said. ¡°We''ve come all this way.¡± ¡°David, I can''t lose you. I refuse to let you continue with this. Please, don''t go.¡± Victoria pleaded. ¡°It''s all right. I won''t take unnecessary risks.¡± I promised and she relaxed. ¡°Okay, then. Let''s head back. We''ll have lots of time to take a look for the other ingredients you researched and...¡± ¡°We can leave right after I go look at it.¡± I said. ¡°David!¡± Victoria gasped. ¡°No! Please!¡± I gave her a smile. ¡°I have a plan.¡± I nodded at the now still body of the snake. ¡°Trust me.¡± Victoria gave me an incredulous look. ¡°I''m not going to stand here and watch you eat that thing.¡± I laughed at the thought. ¡°It would take too long to cook it all, unless we made a huge fire to roast it.¡± ¡°David, this is no joking matter.¡± Victoria said, sternly. ¡°Watch and learn.¡± I said and let her go. She held on for another second, then she sighed and let me go. I went over to the snake''s body and dragged it out to its full length. Victoria stared at the thing and then she covered her mouth when I used my knife to split it and gutted it. She didn''t repeat the comment about me eating it and watched as I carefully skinned it. When I had it all off, after intentionally leaving some of the meat on the skin, I cut it up into two foot sections. ¡°This part is going to be disgusting.¡± I commented. ¡°It can''t be much worse than watching you do all that.¡± Victoria said and then she gasped when I started to tie pieces of meat to her boots. ¡°I stand corrected.¡± She said and closed her eyes. ¡°Let me know when you''re done.¡± I finished adding the improvised scent masking to her boots and covered it with a piece of skin. It couldn''t be too obvious that the snake we were impersonating was dead. I did my own feet with the same technique and then used several pieces to stick them to our packs, our thighs, and after putting on a long sleeve shirt, our arms as well.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°I''m done.¡± I said and tossed the entrails and the rest of the remains near one of the venomous pods and their assault area. It only took a couple of minutes for the evidence to be consumed and the pod retracted with a full belly. Victoria opened her eyes and tried to only breathe through her nose. ¡°Good lord, it stinks.¡± ¡°That''s the point.¡± I told her and held a hand out to her. ¡°If anything happens, don''t panic and run. You won''t get far.¡± ¡°But...¡± Victoria closed her mouth and took my hand. I led her where the snake had come from and it was the right decision. The clear path it had made brought us right to a little glade. It was eerily similar to the area inside the marsh where the fungal blooms grew. My eyes darted around the area and I easily found the snakes. There were a lot more than a dozen of them. There were hundreds of them. ¡°Oh, god.¡± Victoria whispered. ¡°Relax and copy my shuffling steps.¡± I whispered back and slid my feet forward, very slowly, as if I was a snake slithering across the ground. Victoria easily copied my movements and we gradually made our way into the clearing and to the closest group of flowers. ¡°D-David, it... it''s beautiful.¡± Victoria whispered. I ignored her and held a hand out to stop her reacting. One of the snakes moved over towards the flowers and beside us. Victoria''s breathing sped up and I covered her mouth to stop her exhales. She mumbled something and I ignored it as the snake''s large forked tongue darted out and licked the inside of the flower. The snake shivered as it sucked its tongue back in and then it took another taste. It turned lazily and slithered back over to where it was keeping warm with its fellow snakes. ¡°I hope you''re okay with how unceremoniously I''m going to do this.¡± I whispered to my botany teacher and she watched with wide eyes as I lifted my foot to touch a different flower with the toe of my boot, then I dug my foot down into the ground. Victoria mumbled loudly and I held her mouth closed as I dug out a good sized patch of soil and flowers. She gave me a murderous glare as I pried it up with my boot and I took out my knife. I couldn''t make it glow, because it would get the attention of every single snake there. That would be bad. Very, very bad. I let her mouth go to bend down, did my best to slice through the sod, then stood with the clump of sod and six flowers in my hand. I motioned with my head to leave and she got the hint. She turned around without a word and repeated our snake-like steps to take us out of the clearing. Three more large snakes crossed our paths and Victoria had been smart and stopped to let them pass. One of them flicked its tongue at her boot as it slithered by and she didn''t even flinch. We continued on and I told her we could walk normally. She did, quite quickly, and we went back to where I had killed the snake. Victoria turned around and glared at me, then she started to rant. ¡°David! That was the scariest and most horrifying thing I''ve ever done! That was insane! Completely crazy! It was... it was...¡± ¡°...completely successful.¡± I said and held out the sod that was full of roots. ¡°Hold this while I get the specimen container.¡± Victoria clamped her mouth shut and took it very tenderly. She waited to speak until I had taken off my pack and dug out the heavy container that was its own little botany heaven for a plant. ¡°I promise that I''m going to rant at you for being so reckless later.¡± Victoria said as she glared at me. I had assumed that as soon as I had strapped the snake meat to her boots and covered it in snake skin. I didn''t tell her that, though. We both carefully added the sod to the container and Victoria gave me a disbelieving look as the sod fit perfectly into the available space. ¡°Why take the chance with only a single flower? The container had the room for more.¡± I said as an explanation. ¡°You dug it up with your foot!¡± Victoria spat. ¡°The shiny trowel and spade would have gotten the attention of some, if not all of the snakes.¡± I said. ¡°Plus, as far as they are concerned, the only thing that was near their flowers was another snake.¡± ¡°All right, I can''t argue that.¡± Victoria sighed. ¡°It was pretty smart.¡± ¡°I used to carry smelly marsh mud from a near-beaver dam so that I could acclimate back into the normal marsh smells when I went back.¡± I said and she looked surprised, then she looked thoughtful. ¡°Yes, it worked.¡± ¡°I know. It would have to. You would be covering up your foreign smell by using a local smell.¡± Victoria said and looked down at herself. ¡°Just like here.¡± ¡°It won''t always work, especially depending on the creature you want to fool.¡± I said. ¡°It worked well this time because snakes taste and smell with their tongue and not their nostrils.¡± ¡°What? Then why do we have it on our packs and arms?¡± Victoria asked. ¡°In case there were any snakes hanging in the trees before the clearing, like guards or scouts to protect the main group.¡± I said and her mouth dropped open from shock. ¡°There weren''t and we made it in and out.¡± I packed the container back into my pack and strapped it on again. ¡°Let''s go.¡± We walked away from there and Victoria followed me as we made much quicker time leaving. I was familiar with the area now and could tell where the dangers were much easier now. ¡°What about what we''re wearing?¡± Victoria asked. ¡°We need to get farther away from the main nest before we can discard our protection.¡± I said. ¡°Also, a lot of the smaller creatures won''t bother trying to attack a twenty foot long poisonous snake.¡± Victoria was silent for several minutes before she said anything. ¡°Maybe we should keep it on until we leave the forest.¡± I chuckled and she gave me an odd look for a second, probably because she thought I was making fun of her, then she laughed, too. ¡°Okay, you''re right. A false sense of security isn''t worth wearing a dozen pounds of decomposing snake meat.¡± Victoria said. ¡°We''ll be eating good tonight.¡± I commented and she put a hand over her mouth and gagged. ¡°I guess only I will.¡± I corrected and we walked on in silence. Our primary task was done and now we had a lot of free time to go exploring. I glanced at Victoria''s face and it looked like she was just as happy as I was that we had succeeded. With six flowers to try and cultivate and a good chunk of soil for Victoria to examine, our minimum chance of success for transplantation had become almost guaranteed. 181 Academy Antics Part Forty Eight - The Detour We made it back to the rocky outcropping valley much quicker than we had left it and I packed the snake meat and skins into my pack. We didn''t go back the way we came through the little valley, however. We changed direction and went to where Victoria had chosen as the meeting place for the horse and cart to pick us up, which also took us into the right direction of the first plant I had found in my research. It took a while on foot to reach the new area while going over rough ground. We soon reached a road, this one much better maintained than the old one we had found near where we had been dropped off. There was another safe area several miles away and we reached it just in time for supper. Victoria ate smoked meat and several fruit that she had brought and I expertly cooked up the snake meat by boiling it first and then roasting it on an open fire and adding appropriate spices. She stared at me and her stomach rumbled as the smell of the delicious meat filled the area. I didn''t say anything as I cut off a choice piece that was several inches wide and long, speared it with a fork, and handed it to her. She glared at me, as if I was forcing her to try it, then she sighed and took the fork. She smelled it and her stomach rumbled angrily at her as her mouth watered, then she closed her eyes and took a tiny little bite from it. ¡°Oh, my GOD!¡± Victoria gasped when she tasted it and shoved the whole thing into her mouth. Juices dripped down her chin as she chewed on it and she didn''t try to wipe it away as she thoroughly enjoyed the taste of the snake meat. ¡°It''s delicious! Absolutely delicious!¡± I didn''t tell her that I cheated a little and had sprinkled a little bit of refined fungus powder into the pot while boiling it. The magic it added was significant, especially since the snake itself had grown up in a similar magic filled area. The other bit of spices I had added when roasting it was just to give a bit of a pop to the flavor. Victoria abandoned her smoked meat and sat right next to me as she silently begged me with her eyes for some of my meal. I chuckled and cut the large piece I had on my plate in half and handed her half on another plate. ¡°Thank you!¡± Victoria exclaimed and dug into the meat with enthusiasm. No wonder mages would kill for the secret to fungus powder. It makes them like rabid animals when they taste it. I thought with amusement and watched as Victoria abandoned the fork and plate as she picked the meat up with her hands and bit into it. ¡°Ohhhh, that''s so good.¡± Victoria said, almost in a moan, and kept eating. I ate my piece of snake meat and supplemented it with the smoked meat she had discarded. She didn''t notice at all because she was too wrapped up in her meal. ¡°I''m... sorry that... I doubted you.¡± Victoria said between chewing and swallowing. ¡°I never thought that snake meat could taste like this.¡± ¡°When prepared by me.¡± I corrected her assumption and she gave me a questioning look. ¡°I''ve had years of experience making less palatable things taste good enough to eat. I even taught the cooks at the basic training base a few tricks.¡± Victoria looked surprised until she took another bite of the snake meat. ¡°Okay, that''s not hard to believe. I am eating the proof, after all.¡± I nodded and we finished off the meal a short time later. I put up the tent while Victoria deployed the mage lights and erected the protective barrier. We went into the tent with our packs and then climbed into our bed rolls. She turned onto her side and looked at me as she rested her head on her pillow. ¡°David, why didn''t you bring one of your protection wards that you''ve told me about?¡± Victoria asked. ¡°I honestly thought there would be some wildwood around here. I know that the trees are scarce in normal areas; but, to have absolutely none available? It''s a surprise.¡± Victoria smiled knowingly. ¡°You''re not going to admit that you forgot?¡± ¡°No.¡± I said without looking at her. Victoria''s hand reached over and she turned my head to look at her. ¡°Did you bring your enchanting tools and equipment?¡± ¡°No.¡± I said and she laughed. It was a very pleasant sound and she didn''t try to do it softly or restrained herself. ¡°Oh, that''s... that''s funny.¡± Victoria said and caressed my face before taking her hand back. ¡°David, you are precious... and it''s nice to know that you''re not perfect.¡± ¡°I''m not?¡± I asked and that set her off to laughing again. Victoria calmed down after a few minutes. ¡°You''re close. So very close.¡± She said in a whisper and her hand moved out from under her blanket as if to grab me, then it retreated. ¡°Goodnight.¡± ¡°Goodnight.¡± I responded and looked up at the top of the tent before I closed my eyes. It was another quick and long night. Thanks to my hyper-aware state, I was both asleep and awake. Just because we were no longer completely surrounded by dangers, that didn''t mean we were safe. An hour after we bedded down, the sound of hooves clomping down the road made me wake up. The night was pretty silent, so the sound had carried pretty far, because when I slipped out of the tent silently, I couldn''t see the horse. I moved off to the side of the tent and towards the sound. I was almost a hundred feet away from the tent before the horse came into view. I relaxed slightly when I saw the driver that had delivered us to the rocky valley. The cart was moving slowly, as if not in any rush, so I quickly made my way back to the tent and stood off to the side as I waited for it to arrive. The driver smiled when he saw me and pulled the horse and cart off of the road into the safe area. ¡°Been here long?¡± ¡°A couple hours.¡± I said. ¡°Mage King is asleep already, so I''ll help you with your things and we''ll head out first thing in the morning.¡± ¡°Good lad. I appreciate the help.¡± The driver said and we quickly detached the horse, secured it to graze nearby, and had his tent set up about twenty feet away from ours. He went into his and I went back into the tent with Victoria. She stayed asleep as I climbed into my bedroll and I went back into my asleep and awake state. Unlike what some people might think, we were actually in more danger with another person and a horse nearby. They attracted attention and could bring any number of creatures out into the open. There was a lot of meat on a horse. The night passed by and I woke up as dawn broke over the horizon. I let Victoria sleep, considering the stress she had been through yesterday, and slipped outside to prepare breakfast. The driver came out of his tent when he heard me set up the pot and he dug into his cart. He brought over six eggs and several raw meat patties. ¡°Do you have a frying pan?¡± The driver asked and I switched out the pot for the frying pan. ¡°Good lad.¡± He said and proceeded to cook up the meat.If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. I offered some spices and he gave me an odd look. ¡°You do know they don''t go together, right?¡± The driver asked. ¡°I''ve heard that from cooks before.¡± I said and told him what to do with them. He still looked doubtful as he did as I said, then he added the eggs to the pan between the cooking meat patties and pretty much made it like one mass. He hummed while he cooked and flicked his wrist to flip the entire mass over. To my surprise, the yolks on the eggs didn''t break. He kept humming and added the spices I offered as if he always did it that way. ¡°What''s that great smell?¡± Victoria asked a bit groggily as she came out of our tent. ¡°Breakfast, Lady King.¡± The driver said. ¡°Or Mage King? I can never get those right.¡± Victoria chuckled and walked over to us. ¡°Either is fine, as long as you don''t combine them and call me Lady Mage King or Mage Lady King. Crossing noble titles and mage titles just doesn''t work.¡± The driver nodded and Victoria sat right beside me, like she had the night before when I shared my snake meat with her. I didn''t comment about it and neither did the driver. ¡°I hope you don''t mind using your hands for this.¡± The driver said and took the pan from the fire. ¡°Just leave it cool off for a bit before...¡± I offered plates and silverware for the food and the driver looked stunned, then he laughed. ¡°Of course you have plates and utensils. What was I thinking.¡± The driver said and doled out a meat patty and two eggs to each of us. The three of us ate breakfast quietly. I thought that the meat was actually pretty good, even if it wasn''t as good as the snake the night before. Victoria didn''t drool as much as she ate, so I whispered a promise to give her another snake meat feed for supper. She beamed a smile at me and nodded. ¡°I need to remember that spice combination.¡± The driver said to me. He had seen Victoria''s slight drool and was impressed. ¡°It works especially well on lamb meat.¡± I said as we cleaned up the area and I doused the fire with some water. ¡°Lamb? My wife is going to love it!¡± The driver said happily and went to his tent to pack it up. I did the same with our tent and put everything way. Victoria put on her pack after adding the deactivated mage lights and I put mine on, then we climbed into the cart as the driver hooked the horse up. After a short discussion with the driver, we were on our way to the next spot. Thankfully, there were no rumors of dangerous creatures guarding the area or even random roaming creatures. The driver stated that the area we were going to was quite peaceful and he could get us much closer than we thought, especially when we showed him the map. ¡°Your mage guild needs to send people back out here to explore properly.¡± The driver said with a laugh. ¡°There''s a road that was built a year ago between Jaskine Village and Kalman''s Pass.¡± He said and traced his finger between the two places. ¡°The spot you''re looking for is right there.¡± He poked the spot right smack in the middle of the new road. ¡°Oh, damn.¡± Victoria whispered. ¡°We still need to check.¡± I said and she nodded. It took us three hours to get there, much faster than we had allotted for in our schedule. When we arrived in the spot, it was exactly as Victoria feared. The cleared away area for the rest stop was right on top of the spot that the plant was supposed to be. We spent twenty minutes going off the sides of the road and into the nearby trees and through the underbrush to search for any possible outgrowth. We found nothing. ¡°Maybe we''ll have more luck at the next spot?¡± Victoria asked. She didn''t sound very convincing. ¡°Perhaps.¡± I said, just as unconvincingly. We climbed onto the cart and told the driver where we wanted to go next. The driver tried to not laugh at us and took us there anyway. There was a large house and a farm there, with no traces at all of the ingredient I wanted. In fact, the farm was so large that it crossed into the next field where the other plant was supposed to be. I asked the farmer about how the growth was in his fields and he looked very happy. ¡°We''ve got the best yields in this area here...¡± He pointed to the main field. ¡°...and over there.¡± He pointed to the other spot in the distance. ¡°I''m starting to become well known for my big cabbages!¡± Victoria and I exchanged disappointed looks and climbed back into the cart. We had wasted half of the day on a fool''s errand and I reluctantly told the driver of the last spot and showed him on the map. The driver shrugged and drove us there for two hours and came to a stop. ¡°The place you want is up there.¡± He said and pointed. It was a steep cliff. ¡°If you''re wondering, there''s no other way to get up there. It''s a cliff all the way around.¡± ¡°What is that? A hundred and fifty feet?¡± Victoria asked. I walked over to the cliff and spread my hand out as I put my hand on it. I knew the measurement of my hand from the end of my palm to the tip of my longest finger, so I counted how many hands it took to get up there. After a bit of math, considering it took five hands to make three feet, I knew how far it was. ¡°It''s 210 feet high, give or take a hand.¡± I said and both Victoria and the driver gave me odd looks. ¡°We don''t have enough rope to actually measure.¡± ¡°You are not climbing up there.¡± Victoria said, sternly. ¡°We came all this way.¡± I said and started to open the straps holding my pack. ¡°No.¡± Victoria grabbed my hands. ¡°No, David. I don''t care what the plant can do. It''s not worth saving if it costs me you.¡± ¡°I won''t fall climbing up. I''m really good at it.¡± I said. ¡°I''m actually not worried about you going up there.¡± Victoria said and I raised my eyebrows. ¡°It''s coming back down that''s the most dangerous part. You can''t see where you''re going or where you''re putting your feet. It''s much more dangerous to descend than it is to ascend.¡± ¡°I''ll be fine.¡± ¡°No, I absolutely forbid it.¡± Victoria said. ¡°If we had scaling gear and ropes to do it, I wouldn''t object. We have nothing like that. We don''t even have harnesses or bracing ropes.¡± Her hands let mine go and she cupped the sides of my face. ¡°David, please. Don''t do this. I''m begging you.¡± ¡°But... the plant...¡± ¡°If it''s up there, it''s survived this long. It can keep surviving without you risking your life to take a look.¡± Victoria said and her thumbs rubbed my cheeks. ¡°I can''t promise that we''ll come back soon; but, I will promise that I''ll get the right equipment to handle something like this the next time we come here.¡± I looked up at the cliff face and then back at Victoria''s worried face. ¡°All right. Let''s go.¡± Victoria''s worry disappeared and she beamed a smile at me. ¡°We''re going to arrive at the little harbour much sooner than I had arranged for our transport back.¡± She hooked her arm in mine and brought me over to the cart. ¡°Take us right to Nelson Harbour.¡± She said to the driver and he nodded. I helped her climb into the cart and climbed in myself. ¡°What kind of transport is it?¡± ¡°It''s a clipper ship.¡± Victoria said with a grin. ¡°It''s about half the size of the schooner and twice as fast.¡± ¡°A clipper ship?¡± ¡°They''re used as scouts at sea specifically because they are so fast. No normal ship bigger than them can catch them.¡± Victoria said, quite proudly. ¡°I can''t wait to see Cynthia again.¡± ¡°That''s the ship''s name?¡± I asked and she laughed. ¡°No, Cynthia is the captain and a good friend of mine. The ship''s name is Sprint.¡± Victoria said and started to tell me about her friend and the times she had travelled on the ship. She talked for the entire ride to the harbour that was over an hour away and she only stopped when the cart did and we climbed out. The village we were now in wasn''t much bigger than Ester''s Village. There were only a few shops, including the general store, just like back there. The people looked a lot livelier, too. ¡°Thank you.¡± Victoria said to the driver and paid him the rest of his fee. ¡°Miss, it was a pleasure.¡± The driver said. ¡°Take care now.¡± We waved as he drove off and we watched him disappear from sight. I turned to look at Victoria to ask her what we were going to do while we waited and she gave me an intense stare. ¡°You promised.¡± Victoria almost growled. I had to smile at her glare. ¡°We need to find a fire pit or a kitchen.¡± ¡°That''s not a problem.¡± Victoria said and hooked her arm in mine and led me over to the only inn. ¡°I just hope the meat tastes as good as I remember.¡± ¡°It was only yesterday.¡± I said and she laughed softly. ¡°I was warning you that it better be.¡± Victoria said with a predatory smile and brought me inside the building. 182 Academy Antics Part Forty Nine - Sprint For The Capital Part One The cook at the inn was a little put out when Victoria asked for the use of part of the kitchen for a short while, then she was upset when I used several of her pots to boil the rest of the snake meat. I couldn''t keep it raw any longer and there was no way it would last for the boat trip home for another day without being cooked first. I treated the pots with potion first, because I didn''t want the cook to be angry and claim that they were ruined or smelled bad afterwards. The cook stood off to the side to supervise, as in making sure that I didn''t steal or break anything while I cooked. Victoria had the bright idea to go to the mayor of the village to report what we had found out about the supposed guardians of the sacred flower. The only real difference she had to inform him about was the threat level the snakes posed, their size, and their number. She came back a few minutes later with a sad and disappointed look on her face. ¡°Let me guess. They aren''t going to do anything.¡± I said as she leaned against the counter. ¡°Oh, it''s better than that. They are going to put up signs to warn everyone of the giant man-eating snakes that are deep inside the Barkilan Forest.¡± I had to chuckle at that. ¡°They are going to get a lot more people killed with an invitation like that.¡± ¡°I tried to tell them that.¡± Victoria said and then shrugged. ¡°I did what I could for now, until I report my findings to the mages guild.¡± She looked at the pots on the stove. ¡°How is it coming along?¡± I took the lids off of the three pots I was using and the smell wafted out. Victoria had to wipe the drool off of her mouth, so I didn''t have to answer her question. The smell of the meat wasn''t very pervasive until I transferred the three large pieces of snake meat onto the grilling rack in the oven and added the spices to it. The pan underneath the rack caught the drippings. ¡°Oh, god.¡± Victoria moaned and clamped her mouth shut to stem the flow of drool. ¡°Why does it smell so good when you cook it like that?¡± ¡°Magic.¡± I said and she looked surprised for a second, then she laughed softly. ¡°I didn''t feel you cast anything the last time you cooked it, you teaser.¡± Victoria said and lightly tapped my arm twice, as if she was admonishing me and didn''t want to disturb me at the same time. ¡°Are you really this good of a cook?¡± ¡°I told you before that I''ve had a lot of experience making bad food taste good.¡± I said and she nodded. After fifteen minutes, I checked the oven and opened the door. A blast of very delicious smelling air blew through the kitchen almost instantly and even the cook looked surprised as she took in a big sniff. ¡°Are you sure that''s snake meat?¡± The cook asked, disbelief in her voice. ¡°Ohhh.¡± Victoria covered her mouth and nose to try and block the smell. ¡°S-stop teasing me.¡± I chuckled and closed the oven. ¡°Another ten minutes I think.¡± Victoria sat down on a nearby stool and took shallow breaths, I assumed to try and build up anticipation, so I sat down next to her. The cook seemed to give me a stern look for a moment, then she went back to her own cooking. She had supper to prepare for the people staying there and a thick stew for any people just coming to the inn to eat. When the ten minutes were up, I stood to retrieve the meat from the oven. Victoria jumped up and held onto my waist to stop herself from grabbing the meat from me. I ignored her antics and took all three pieces of roasted meat from the large oven and put them on the nearby counter on a cookie sheet. ¡°Uhhhhh.¡± Victoria moaned and had to make a sucking noise to catch her drool. ¡°Hurry! Hurry!¡± I took out two of our own plates from my pack and quickly diced up one of the meat pieces. It filled both plates and Victoria let my waist go, now that she didn''t have to restrain herself. She used a fork this time and made several appreciative sounds as she dug into the snake meat. ¡°Is it really that tasty?¡± The cook asked as she came over to us. ¡°Only for mages.¡± I whispered back, even though Victoria wasn''t listening. ¡°I wasn''t lying when I said there was magic involved. The snake grew up in a saturated area.¡± ¡°Ah, I see.¡± The cook observed Victoria and nodded. ¡°Do you mind if I try it?¡± ¡°You''ll get sick if you have no magic propensity.¡± I told her. ¡°How do you tell?¡± The cook asked. ¡°The mages guild stopped using the testing crystals.¡± ¡°It''s a simple test.¡± I said as I turned to her, then quickly kissed her and tried to make her lips tingle. I remembered the XO of the basic training base telling me that was the new quick test. The cook jerked slightly and then moaned a little. She jerked again and broke the kiss as she stepped back with a hand over her mouth. ¡°Wh-what was that for?!?¡± ¡°That was the test. You have some magic; but, it''s very weak.¡± I said, because my lips tingled in response. I picked up a fork and speared a piece of the meat. ¡°You can safely eat it.¡± The cook''s stern look was back. ¡°I''m a married woman, sir.¡± ¡°I''m betrothed as well.¡± I said and handed her the fork. ¡°Go ahead.¡± The cook didn''t lose the stern look until she took a bite. Her reaction was nearly identical to Victoria''s first time tasting it and drool rolled down her chin as she chewed on the tasty meat. I waved at my plate and stepped back to watch both women gorge themselves on what they previously believed to be ''disgusting'' snake meat. I smelled something crisping, so I walked over to the cook''s area and tended to the food that she had forgotten about. I added some spices to the large pot of stew and to the frying meat in the pans on the other stove. Sometime later, the cook looked a bit ashamed as she tugged on my sleeve. ¡°S-sir, I... I''m sorry. I ate all of your meal.¡± I flipped over the steaks and turned to her. ¡°I left it there for you, so it''s okay. I have two other pieces to eat before getting back to the capital.¡±The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. The cook looked relieved. ¡°Thank you for not being angry.¡± She reached for my hand and then changed her mind. ¡°It was delicious and I''m sorry that I doubted your cooking ability.¡± ¡°You hadn''t seen me cooking before.¡± I said and stepped away from the stove. ¡°They''re almost done and the stew is simmering on low heat.¡± The cook looked around and saw that her work had been tended to while she was busy. ¡°Sir, I... I don''t know what to say.¡± ¡°I forgive you for the kiss.¡± I said and her face went a little red. ¡°I forgive you for the kiss, even if my husband won''t.¡± The cook said, a bit sheepishly. ¡°I better go before you tell him.¡± I said, quickly understanding what she meant. I used some of the wrappings the kitchen had for things and bundled up the two large remaining pieces of snake meat. I packed the two plates and the silverware into my pack with the meat and took Victoria''s hand. ¡°I think I ate too much.¡± Victoria groaned as I pulled her out of the kitchen through the back door. She stumbled, as if she was weak, and I couldn''t move very fast with her like that. We were halfway down the street when the back door of the inn banged open. ¡°HOW DARE YOU KISS MY WIFE!¡± A very angry man yelled. ¡°We''re running.¡± I said and turned Victoria around. I picked her up in a princess carry, with my arm under her knees and my other arm between her back and the pack she wore. I expected her to scream or yell at me for doing it and she was completely quiet, so I ran as hard as I could. We quickly left him far behind and I took several detours and corners to confuse him, in case he did manage to catch up somehow. I eventually slowed down when we made it to one of the roads to take us to the dock. ¡°How are you feeling? Is your belly still sore?¡± I asked. Victoria didn''t say anything as she looked into my eyes. I couldn''t tell what she was thinking, even when I wondered what it was. That was a first, since I had heard her words before. ¡°I better keep carrying you.¡± We eventually made it to the dock and sat down as we waited there. It was about half an hour later that a sleek ship appeared at the edge of the harbour and swiftly moved through the water. Its sails furled and were tucked away as we watched and the boat still had enough momentum to cross the rest of the harbour and slowed down several hundred feet away from the dock. Different sails were deployed and the ship slowed to a crawl. Victoria waved enthusiastically and two quick horn bursts soon followed. A dinghy, barely a four person boat, was lowered off the side. One person sat in it with two oars and he slowly stroked them and came towards the dock. He deftly manoeuvred it around when he was just about to hit the end of the dock and the back of the boat lightly bumped it. ¡°Hop on. We''re a bit behind.¡± The man said. Victoria climbed in and carefully stepped around him to sit at the front of the boat. I climbed in and sat right on the back. ¡°Give me a hand.¡± The man said to me, as if he knew I wouldn''t refuse. ¡°You control them and I''ll push.¡± I said and he smiled. The pace we set with me doing the hardest part of the work was surprising to him and the people on the ship. When we were close enough, I saw the Gulf Kingdom emblem was on the prow of the ship as was the name of the ship, Sprint. ¡°Ho, the ship!¡± Victoria said happily as we approached it. ¡°Miss, they can clearly see we''re here.¡± The man said with a chuckle and held the oars still to slow our speed through the water. ¡°I always say it.¡± Victoria said with a grin and a rope ladder was lowered over the side as the little boat bumped the ship. She grabbed on when the rope ladder was close enough and she climbed up without taking her pack off. Two ropes were lowered and instead of stepping around the man, I grabbed one and tied it onto the end of the boat I was on. The man nodded and tied off the one he had on the front of the dinghy, then we climbed up the ladder. The little boat was hauled up right behind us, the rope ladder was pulled up as well, and two more of the sails on the ship were deployed. ¡°Clear to starboard!¡± Someone yelled and the ropes were pulled on the rigging to tilt the sails. The boat caught the wind and swung around to starboard, picked up speed, and then the other sails were deployed and tied off. We were going with the wind now, so the little clipper ship practically zoomed across the water. We were almost out of the harbour before the main cabin door opened and one of the prettiest ladies I had ever seen came out. She had short and straight black hair, an almost round face, pouting red lips, eyes that were slightly tilted upwards, a dainty nose, and high cheekbones. She was also only five feet tall. ¡°Cynthia!¡± Victoria exclaimed and ran to her, wrapped her arms around her, and almost picked her up as she kissed her cheek. ¡°T-T-Tori! S-stop!¡± Cynthia said in a sing-song voice. ¡°I told you not to do that in front of the crew!¡± Victoria and the crewmen around us laughed at the smaller woman''s near shout. She let the woman out of the hug and put her hands on her shoulders. ¡°It''s very nice to see you after so long.¡± Cynthia''s face flushed red. ¡°It hasn''t been that long.¡± ¡°I was there when you were deployed into the navy on this ship a year and a half ago.¡± Victoria said and slid her arms back around her to give her a warm and gentle hug. ¡°I''ve missed you.¡± Cynthia let out a sigh and tried to hug her back. ¡°Tori, you still have your pack on.¡± Victoria laughed softly. ¡°I''m sorry, just a second.¡± She said and undid the straps and put the pack down. Their hug resumed and Cynthia let out a satisfied sigh this time as she completed the hug. I was tempted to take my own pack off, just so I could hug the cute little woman myself. That was an odd thought for me to have, so I closed my eyes for a second to gather my thoughts and used Sense Magic. I opened my eyes and I was surprised that Cynthia glowed a tiny little bit. It wasn''t a spell as far as I could tell. I cast Dispel and nothing happened, which confirmed my guess. Maybe it''s an enchantment? I asked myself and the urge to hug her receded slightly. Maybe if I''m concentrating on something besides her, she''s not so alluring? Victoria let Cynthia go with one arm and brought her over to me with an arm around her waist. ¡°This is my assistant, David. David, this is Cynthia Wing, captain of the navy clipper ship, Sprint.¡± ¡°What? You only have one student this year?¡± Cynthia asked, surprised. ¡°Most of the students laughed when I told them that I was taking the Botany course. None of them understand how important retrieving and rescuing plants is.¡± I said and held a hand out to her. She took the cue and gave me her hand, so I bent over it and lightly brushed my lips over her knuckles. I couldn''t sense any enchantments, now that I was this close, and her magic didn''t jump to me. ¡°Like I told David, we''re a dying breed.¡± Victoria said, her voice momentarily sad, then she smiled. ¡°At least I''ve got one more chance to influence a young mind.¡± Cynthia smiled back and gave my hand a squeeze. I nodded and let her hand go. ¡°It''s very nice to meet a friend of Mage King''s.¡± ¡°David, it''s all right. You can call me by my name. Cynthia and I are old friends.¡± Victoria said and put a hand on my shoulder. ¡°Let''s get our things stowed and then settle in for the trip home.¡± ¡°Don''t you want to spend time with your friend?¡± I asked and let Cynthia''s hand go. ¡°I am. She''s showing us where we''re sleeping tonight.¡± Victoria said and let my shoulder go. ¡°Right this way.¡± Cynthia said and waved at the door she just came out of. ¡°We''re too small of a ship to have a porter.¡± ¡°Or an executive officer.¡± Victoria said sternly as we walked over to the door. ¡°You''re mistaking that with no one wanting to work under me.¡± Cynthia said with a grimace. ¡°There''s a huge difference.¡± It seems the navy has occasional personnel problems like the army does when a woman is put in charge. I thought and picked up Victoria''s pack before I followed them inside the ship. Maybe that happens everywhere and not just in the military? I asked myself as the door shut behind us. 183 Academy Antics Part Fifty - Sprint For The Capital Part Two The clipper ship was small inside, as were the rooms, and the captain brought us right to the back of the ship and to the biggest room. ¡°Cynthia, you can''t give us your cabin. That''s not going to sit well with me.¡± Victoria said with a frown. ¡°I''m the captain of this ship. You are on it and you are under my jurisdiction until you leave.¡± Cynthia said with a blank face, then she smirked as she glanced at me. ¡°The bed''s big enough for your antics.¡± Victoria opened her mouth to respond and then sighed. ¡°Dammit, Cynthia. I''m not sleeping with him.¡± ¡°Uh huh. How else can you explain that you both smell like each other?¡± ¡°We''ve slept and sweated in the same small tent for two whole days.¡± Victoria said. ¡°Oh, I imagine there was a lot of sweating going on.¡± Cynthia said in a teasing tone. ¡°There are fresh and clean sheets on the bed. If you want a bath, it''s over there.¡± She pointed to a door. ¡°It''s self serve, unless you want to pay one of the crew to haul the water for you.¡± Victoria looked like she was going to rant, then she sighed. ¡°That''s fine. We can handle it. Thank you.¡± ¡°I assume you already ate?¡± Cynthia asked and Victoria nodded. ¡°If you don''t mind, I''ll come back here after supper and we can have a drink.¡± ¡°I''d like that.¡± Victoria said and Cynthia left to go eat. ¡°David, I''ll convince her that we aren''t doing each other. Somehow.¡± I shrugged. ¡°I was going to mention I''m betrothed; but, she doesn''t look like she''ll believe it.¡± Victoria nodded. ¡°She''s pretty headstrong, that''s true. It''s why she makes a great captain. Her assumptions, though...¡± ¡°You should just ignore her insinuations and just enjoy your time with her.¡± Victoria gave me a sorrow filled look. ¡°David, I don''t want everyone to think...¡± ¡°They''re going to think it, anyway. You''re too sexy for them to believe that I''m not making love to you all the time.¡± I said and took off my pack. I set it off to the side and cast the lock spell on it. Victoria put her pack beside mine, cast Lock on hers, then added the alarm spell to hers. She turned to me and gave me the same warm and gentle hug that she had given Cynthia. She held me for several moments, then she let me go. ¡°Do you want to bathe first?¡± Victoria asked. ¡°That depends. Do you want to be my personal maid for the next hour?¡± I asked and she took in a sharp breath. ¡°D-David, I... oh, god.¡± Victoria shuddered as she closed her eyes and I slipped away and entered the bathroom silently and locked it. ¡°Yes, I... no, we... oh, god. I very much would like to be. We can''t do it, though. I''m your teacher and you''re my...¡± Her voice trailed off and a moment later there was a knock on the door. ¡°David!¡± She said and then the knock got louder. ¡°DAVID!¡± I smiled because I got to tease her back after all the teasing she did to me. ¡°I''m busy.¡± I filled the tub with cold water and then used the heating spell on the tub. ¡°Open this door, dammit. We need to talk!¡± ¡°I can''t hear you over the water!¡± I said and quickly pulled off my clothes and jumped into the tub. I splashed it around a bit to let her hear it, then I realized I was getting a bit spoiled with the rich life, because I actually missed having this for the last four days. I quickly lathered up and washed myself as the occasional knock sound came from the door. I even did my private area by myself, which was odd, because I hadn''t washed it myself in a long time. I stepped out of the tub and dried off, wrapped the towel around myself, and picked up my things. I opened the door and Victoria was between knocks with a surprised look on her face. Before she could say anything, I spoke. ¡°The water''s still hot.¡± I said and stepped by her. Victoria''s hand dropped as she looked down at the towel wrapped around my waist. ¡°Yes, I... I need to bathe. A lot.¡± ¡°Enjoy it. The cloth is still soapy.¡± ¡°The cloth?¡± Victoria asked, a little confused. ¡°I washed down here last.¡± I said and pat my crotch. Victoria let out an uncharacteristic little squeal, jumped into the bathroom, and slammed the door. It glowed for a second as she applied the lock spell, then I heard several splashes. The moans started soon after. I pulled out my night clothes from my pack and locked it again. I changed into them and hung the towel up to let it dry, because I could probably use it again tomorrow if we were late arriving. I climbed into bed on what was becoming ''my side'' during this expedition and I didn''t bother trying to root around or look at everything in the room. Whatever the captain had in her private cabin was just that, private. No sooner had I thought that when the captain came into the room without knocking first. She shut the door and then seemed to jerk when she saw me in the bed. Her eyes darted around the room and then landed on me again. ¡°Where''s Tori?¡± Cynthia asked. ¡°Taking a hot bath.¡± I said and pointed to the door. ¡°A hot bath? There''s no hot water to...¡± Cynthia stopped talking and walked over to the door to knock. ¡°Tori? Open up! It''s me, Thia.¡± The door''s glow disappeared and it clicked. The captain opened the door and Victoria''s moan cut through the silent cabin. Cynthia''s mouth dropped open at whatever she was seeing and she looked over at me. I shrugged, pretty much admitting that I didn''t know what she was doing. She gave me an inquisitive look for a moment before she stepped into the bathroom and closed the door. I heard cloth moving, a distinct splash of water, then some sing-song moans joined Victoria''s. She probably hasn''t had a hot bath in a while. I thought and closed my eyes. I stayed vigilant, of course. I knew exactly when the bathroom door opened and the two women came out wearing only towels. They were kind of draped over each other and they sat off to the side at the captain''s desk. They opened a bottle of strong alcohol and had several drinks as they talked normally and didn''t bother trying to be quiet with me sleeping in the bed.The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. After an hour and a half, both women stood up as if they coordinated it, pulled off the towels, and climbed into the bed with me. What followed was one of the oddest spectacles I had ever witnessed. I had no idea that two women could do the things they were doing to each other. I never looked with my eyes, though. My vigilance technique gave me all of the information I needed and I could ''see'' them in my head. When they first started, I saw them occasionally look at me to see if I was looking or if I was awake. They gave up trying to catch me after about twenty minutes and then they completely ignored me. When they were done, they cuddled with each other and Cynthia was between Victoria and where I lay. The two of them fell asleep holding each other and looked very peaceful. The morning seemed to arrive a few moments later and the large window above the bed lit the room up, because we were sailing away from the sun. I didn''t stir, though. For some reason, I knew that if I got up first, I would be in serious trouble. I wasn''t sure why, until Cynthia started to wake up. ¡°Huh, wha...¡± Cynthia opened her eyes and she gasped. She quickly sat up and stared down at my sleeping form. It took her a few moments before she realized I was still dressed. She relaxed and looked at Victoria, who was also still naked. She leaned down and kissed her several times and Victoria let out a groan, then she opened her eyes and saw Cynthia. ¡°Mmm.¡± Victoria moaned for real and then they went at it again. I have to remember as much of that as I can. I thought and laid there quietly. I don''t know if I can adapt all of it for use, though. I don''t have women''s parts to do some of it. I worked out in my head what I could ignore and discard and what I was sure would make Helena happy. She had enjoyed it when I kissed her down below and now I knew a few more things to do down there. I had learned a lot more during this trip than I thought I would. Cynthia got up and looked at herself, all sticky and damp, and she gave Victoria a very seductive look. ¡°Bath.¡± She whispered. ¡°It''ll be cold.¡± Victoria whispered back as she stood up as well. ¡°We can warm it up.¡± Cynthia whispered and they went to the bathroom. ¡°I can''t believe he slept through all of that.¡± ¡°He''s usually up long before I am.¡± Victoria said as she shut the bathroom door. ¡°Maybe he''s catching up on his sleep, now that you''re going home?¡± Cynthia asked with the sound of water pouring into the tub. ¡°Either that or he was pretending to be asleep.¡± ¡°All night?¡± Victoria laughed. ¡°I doubt anyone could pretend for that long.¡± ¡°We made a lot of noise.¡± Cynthia said and then there was a little splash. ¡°Brrrr!¡± ¡°I told you.¡± Victoria said with a laugh. ¡°Get in here and help me.¡± Cynthia groused. After another splash, their moans started again. I debated staying in bed, until I heard several other doors open and the crew going up onto the deck. I hopped out of bed, changed into my work clothes and donned my knife and bandoleer, then left the captain''s cabin. Going to work gave me the perfect excuse to get out of their way for a while. ¡°Oi! What are you doing out here so early?¡± One of the crewmen said as I stepped out onto the deck. ¡°Your mother only likes taking it once in the morning.¡± I said without missing a beat. Everyone around us stopped what they were doing and looked at me, then they all burst out laughing. ¡°Ha ha ha!¡± One of them said and clapped me on the back. ¡°Good one! I gotta remember that!¡± ¡°Hey!¡± The first guy that spoke said. ¡°He''s friends with the captain''s guest. As long as he stays out of the way, we''ll get our work done.¡± The man next to me said. ¡°Actually, I can help.¡± I said and he gave me an odd look. ¡°Do you know anything about sailing?¡± The man asked. ¡°I can do all the jobs on a schooner.¡± I said and he looked impressed. ¡°All right, get up on the main mast and show me what you got.¡± He said. I looked over the ropes tied around the place, went over to the right one and loosened it into a slip knot, then I scrambled up the rope ladder to the right spot and pulled. The rope let loose and I unfurled the middle sail. When it dropped to the right height, I grabbed the rope and tied it off on the holding post. ¡°Are you sure that''s wise? We shouldn''t let a civilian work on a navy ship, should we?¡± Another guy asked. ¡°He''s doing better than Johnson and we''ve been training him for three weeks.¡± The man that told me to try working said, then he laughed when I used the rigger''s trick to slide down the sail and landed on the deck. ¡°Boy, you''re lucky you''re not wearing anything that''ll snag on the sail. You could have ruined...¡± ¡°That''s why I''m not wearing anything like that.¡± I said. ¡°What''s next?¡± The man shook his head and pointed. ¡°Harris needs help changing out the front sail and running new ropes.¡± ¡°Sir.¡± I said and carefully walked over to the front of the boat as I avoided the other men working. I worked for the rest of the day, helping where I could, and doing jobs alone when a few of the men realized that they could relax and let me handle it. I really did know what I was doing. ¡°Damn, boy. I wish you''d enlist in the navy. I could use someone with your skills.¡± The warrant officer said. ¡°I''m enrolled in the mage academy for the next three years.¡± I said. ¡°You''re going to be a mage? Really?¡± He asked, surprised. I made a starting flame appear in my hand and he nodded. ¡°I also doubt they''d assign a fresh recruit to a scout ship.¡± I said and he had to laugh. ¡°Yeah, you got that right. Too dangerous for newbies.¡± A little bell rang and everyone that was up on the deck went below to the small crew mess. I saw Victoria was already sitting at the captain''s table and they were chatting and carrying on as they ignored the rest of the people in the room. It was now packed with navy men and to my surprise, a woman came out of the little kitchen and served the men. When she came over to the table with me and five other men, her eyes widened. ¡°Oh! You''re eating with us?¡± She asked, surprised. ¡°I''d like the seaside special.¡± I said and everyone around me gave me a shocked look, then they all burst out laughing, even the woman. ¡°Ohh... oh, you''re funny.¡± The warrant officer said and wiped a tear from his eye. ¡°Lass, if you don''t have enough ready, I''ll share mine with him.¡± Lass gave him a pleased smile. ¡°I''ll see what I can do.¡± ¡°She''s a good one.¡± The warrant officer said to me as we waited for her to come back. ¡°She''s polite and treats everyone with respect.¡± He leaned in a little. ¡°She''s damn sexy, too.¡± Lass was right there and put two plates down between us, her face red. ¡°I hope... you enjoy the meal.¡± The warrant officer looked like he was caught stealing and he looked up at her face. ¡°Lass, I...¡± Lass put a hand on his shoulder. ¡°We''re staying at the capital for three days to resupply.¡± The warrant officer''s eyes widened, then he gave her a very happy smile. ¡°I''ll make the arrangements.¡± Lass smiled back before she left to finish serving the others. ¡°Well, damn.¡± The guy next to the warrant officer said. ¡°Nice going, sir.¡± The warrant officer chuckled. ¡°We''ll see. She might hate having to stay on land all three days.¡± ¡°Treat her like a lady.¡± I said and used the proper etiquette to start eating. ¡°Noble or not, they all like it.¡± The warrant officer gave me an odd look, then he smiled again. ¡°I think I''ll do just that.¡± We fell quiet after that and ate the meal in silence. It was pretty good. 184 Academy Antics Part Fifty One - Sprint For The Capital Conclusion A short time after supper was over, the ship arrived in the capital''s harbour and it was time to leave. Victoria and I met up at the captain''s cabin and she gave me several furtive looks, as if she didn''t want me to notice. I ignored the looks of course, since that seemed to be what she wanted. We packed up our packs after checking the flowers were fine and all cozy in their temporary habitat, then we changed into more appropriate clothing and left the captain''s cabin. When we stepped out onto the deck, the crew stood in two rows with the captain beside the gangplank. The crew came to attention and gave us salutes for some reason. We walked between the rows and Cynthia gave Victoria a partial hug that was mostly blocked by the pack on her back. ¡°I hope you don''t wait so long to contact me next time.¡± Cynthia whispered and let her go. She looked like she wanted to do something else and her eyes went to the men. ¡°About face!¡± The warrant officer commanded. As the crew did a perfect turn in the other direction, I turned away as well. That was enough privacy apparently, because I heard several kisses right away. ¡°I promise I won''t wait too long.¡± Victoria said. ¡°When''s your next stop for provisions?¡± ¡°Three months and we''re staying off for a month to let the yard dogs overhaul the ship. She''s been in service for quite some time and needs a good checking.¡± Cynthia said and then chuckled. ¡°She''s starting to creak in places when she should be solid.¡± ¡°About face!¡± The warrant officer repeated and the crew turned back around, as did I. He saw me and nodded. ¡°I didn''t hear any creaking this trip.¡± I commented and he chuckled. ¡°We weren''t doing any high speed turns or putting extra stress on the masts from overworking the sails in high winds.¡± He responded. ¡°Believe me, when a boat creaks, I get worried.¡± I nodded in understanding and looked at Victoria. ¡°Do we have a coach or something waiting for us?¡± ¡°Yes, I booked it a week ago.¡± Victoria said and took Cynthia''s hand to shake it. ¡°Thank you for the ride, captain.¡± ¡°Any time, Mage King.¡± Cynthia said with a smile. ¡°Within reason and operating schedules.¡± Victoria laughed softly and gave her another brief hug. ¡°Bye, Thia.¡± ¡°Bye, Tori.¡± Cynthia said and held a hand out to me. ¡°Mr. Drake, it was a pleasure having you aboard. I wish we could have had more time to interact.¡± ¡°No, you don''t.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°It would have taken you away from spending time with your friend.¡± I briefly shook her hand and let it go. Cynthia opened her mouth to refute that, then seemed to change her mind. ¡°I would have liked to know you better because my warrant officer speaks very highly of your skills.¡± ¡°That''s because my favorite sex position is called ''Wow''.¡± I said and she looked confused. ¡°It''s when I flip his Mom upside down and do her from behind.¡± It took a second for that to sink in and then the whole crew laughed, even the warrant officer. ¡°D-David!¡± Victoria gasped and covered her mouth. I could tell that she was trying not to laugh herself. The warrant officer clapped me on the back. ¡°That was a damn good one! Where did you hear that?¡± ¡°The crew of the private schooner that dropped us off. They''ve got some good jokes.¡± I said and he nodded. ¡°Make sure you only use them on sea dogs like us, all right?¡± The warrant officer cautioned me. ¡°Normal people won''t get it.¡± I nodded in agreement and they all seemed to speak at once as they said variations of goodbye while Victoria and I walked down the gangplank to the dock. It was getting late, so there was almost no one on the dock except for the navy people that were coming to the clipper ship. They were going to offload the used crates and supplies to refill and replace them for the ship''s next outing. The carriage was waiting for us on the street and we undid our packs before we climbed inside. The carriage took off at its fastest speed and we made it back to the academy grounds fairly quickly in comparison to when we left. The guard at the gate opened the small gate for us and we climbed out of the carriage with our packs in our hands. ¡°You''re late.¡± A man''s voice said and he stepped through the gate to block us going through. I hadn''t seen him before and Victoria let out a sigh when the man crossed his arms over his mage robes. ¡°We''re not late. Our arrival is right on schedule.¡± Victoria said. ¡°If you actually read the thing I submitted.¡± ¡°Are you calling me illiterate?¡± The man asked with a scowl. ¡°No, just unobservant.¡± Victoria said. ¡°I booked off two days last week, the two days of the weekend were my personal time, and I booked off today for both myself and my assistant.¡± The man''s scowl didn''t lessen. ¡°I don''t see any plants.¡± ¡°I''m not taking the specimen out.¡± Victoria said and hugged her pack. ¡°It needs to be in a controlled environment and...¡± The man grabbed her pack and pulled it out of her hands. In the next second, the tip of my glowing knife was an inch from his eye. His scowl was gone and he looked afraid. ¡°Return Mage King''s property.¡± I said and the man''s face changed to a sneer. ¡°You''re only a student! You can''t challenge...¡± I darted it forward an inch and a smidgen and poked his eye with the tip. ¡°AHHHH!¡± The man screamed and dropped the pack as he clutched at his eye.A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. ¡°I don''t need to challenge a thief to kill them.¡± I said and kicked out with my foot. I planted it firmly on his chest and the man flew backwards through the still open gate. He hit the ground and tumbled for about fifteen feet before he came to a stop. ¡°Hey! You can''t assault academy mages on school property!¡± The guard exclaimed. ¡°I''m not on school property and neither was he.¡± I said and pointed down. We had both still been standing in the street and the guard sighed. ¡°I assume that''s why he thought he could take someone''s pack without the academy interfering, not realizing that they couldn''t interfere if we retaliated.¡± ¡°David, you... you shouldn''t have done that. You don''t know who that is.¡± Victoria said. ¡°It doesn''t matter who he is. He''s a thief and he''s lucky that I promised my fiance that I wouldn''t take anyone''s hand for stealing.¡± I said and put my pack on, then I helped Victoria put hers on. ¡°He would have taken your discovery and claimed it was his own.¡± Victoria didn''t say anything in response, probably because I was right. I whispered an apology for not allowing her to go first as I stepped through the small gate. I walked over to the man on the ground and he looked up at me with hate on his face and clear liquid coming out of his hand-covered eye. In the next instant, I was kneeling over him and had my glowing knife in front of his remaining eye. ¡°Swear an oath right now that you will never come after me, Victoria, our families, our friends, or have your friends, family, hired thugs, or anyone else come after us for what you instigated here today.¡± I said. ¡°I would rather kill you and I''ll never have to worry about you ever again; but, we''re on school grounds now and an oath will have to do.¡± ¡°I''ll... kill... you.¡± The man hissed at me, almost frothing at the mouth. ¡°You don''t want to swear a magical binding oath?¡± I asked and he very slightly shook his head. ¡°I''ll have to drag you out through the gate again to behead you.¡± ¡°No!¡± The man exclaimed as I grabbed him by his robes and then walked back towards the gate. ¡°No! Stop!¡± He pleaded and his free hand tried to beat on my hand gripping his robes. ¡°Let me go! Guard! GUARD!¡± ¡°Sir, I''m going to have to ask you to...¡± I waved my still glowing knife at him and he held his hands up and backed away, because he knew the danger it represented. The man I held was almost crying now. I stepped out through the gate and then felt resistance. I looked down and the man had grabbed the open gate to hold on. I sighed and pulled a little harder. ¡°ARGH!¡± The man yelled as his hand was easily pulled free and the gate clanged shut behind us. ¡°Here''s good enough.¡± I said and let him go. ¡°I hate to do this, because it dulls my knife.¡± I said and the man flinched. ¡°Oh? You can tell a lie from truth. Good.¡± I knelt on his chest and he had a hard time breathing. ¡°Swear the oath or die. Those are the only two choices.¡± ¡°N-no. No! I''m the...¡± ¡°I''m the Marsh Man and I don''t care who you are, thief.¡± I interrupted him and the man''s eye widened. ¡°I see you''ve heard of me.¡± I smiled and bared my teeth at him. ¡°You might not have done this if you knew it was me.¡± I put my knife back over his eye. ¡°Just so you know, I took the first princess'' arm when she stole from me.¡± The man didn''t react to my statement, so he actually did know some things about me. ¡°I beheaded a twenty foot long poisonous snake during this trip, wore it like armor for half a day, then I cooked it and ate most of it.¡± The man''s fear was clear on his face now and he whimpered a little. ¡°I wonder what you''re going to taste like on my grill.¡± I whispered. ¡°By the Son''s Light! Stop!¡± The man begged and cried. ¡°I... I''ll swear... I''ll swear the oath.¡± I got off of him and let him sit up, then made him recite the oath perfectly and had him use his magic to seal it. ¡°Remember. If you or anyone else sends anyone after us, our family or our friends, you and your whole family will lose their magic, forfeit their fortunes, and then you''ll wither and die.¡± The man took a shaky breath and nodded. ¡°Good.¡± I said and took out an empty vial and poured a quarter of healing potion inside. ¡°Show me your eye.¡± ¡°No! You already ruined it! I won''t let you take it as insurance!¡± The man exclaimed. I chuckled. ¡°You used your magic to bind yourself and your whole family to an oath. I don''t need any insurance besides that.¡± The man gave me an incredulous look for a moment, then moved his hand. His eye was still seeping, because I had caused a magical wound that would continue to seep. I darted forward and held his head like a vise, took out my old stub knife that was still sharp, and made dozens of little cuts across the little slit I had poked in his eye. He didn''t even feel it. I put a single drop of healing potion onto his eye and then let his head go. ¡°Drink this.¡± I said and handed him the bit of healing potion. He did so and after about ten seconds, his eye inflated back to the normal size and he blinked it at me. ¡°Wh-what... what did you do?¡± He asked, startled. ¡°I healed a magical wound.¡± I said. ¡°No, you... that''s not possible. You have to physically hold those kinds of wounds closed and then find some way to staunch the bleeding and...¡± I ignored him and put my knives away as I stood. He sat there, mumbling, so I walked back over to the gate. The guard gave me a smile and opened it for me again. ¡°He''ll realize where he is in about ten minutes.¡± I said and the guard nodded. ¡°David, you... oh, my god.¡± Victoria shivered. ¡°Let''s get the sample to the botany workshop.¡± I said and assumed my role to escort her. She gave me a look, as if she couldn''t believe I was being formal at a time like this, then she sighed and took my offered arm. I led her in a casual walk all the way over to the building and we went inside. ¡°We can''t remove it from the habitat until we examine the soil, the roots, and the grass around it.¡± Victoria said. ¡°I hope you have a vault in your office.¡± I said and she gave me a knowing smile and a nod. We went in there and took several minutes to transfer the habitat container from my pack to the vault. After that, I took the heavy things from my pack and put them back into hers, like the tent, the cooking things, and the tools. ¡°Thank you very much, David.¡± Victoria said in a soft voice as her arms went around me from behind. ¡°I can never express what this means to me.¡± ¡°You just did.¡± I said and her arms tightened around my waist. ¡°No, David. I mean...¡± Victoria leaned in close to whisper in my ear. ¡°...I can''t get your insult out of my head. One that any mage would challenge you over if you ever spoke it in public.¡± She let out a sigh. ¡°I really want you to treat me like a personal maid. I really, really do.¡± She let me go and I turned around to look at her face. It was flushed red and she licked her lips. ¡°I know I''ve made you build up so much sexual frustration the last five days and I''m not sorry for any of it. Not one second.¡± Victoria said. ¡°If I didn''t think your fiance would challenge me and kick my ass, I would give you a bath right now and perform the maid''s ritual, just so I could have all of that wonderful buildup for myself.¡± I stood there and waited to see if she was going to move, and she stayed still. ¡°You need to go and take care of it.¡± Victoria said. ¡°I doubt my maids will be there. It''ll have to wait until tomorrow.¡± I said. ¡°Oh... oh, god.¡± Victoria swayed slightly. She bit her lip and looked at my crotch. ¡°I''m sorry.¡± ¡°I have two personal maids, so they should be able to handle it.¡± I said and she shivered. ¡°G-go. Go. Please.¡± Victoria whispered. I took her hand and bent over to kiss it. I gave her a touch of magic and her hand clenched as she moaned. I let her hand go and looked at her face to see that she was quite embarrassed and turned on. I nodded to her and put on my pack before I left her office. I had to get to my dorm mansion and see if the maids had stayed late. Either way, I had a long bath in my near future. 185 Academy Antics Part Fifty Two - Back To Classes I went back to the dorm mansion and was surprised that both Sara and Tabitha were there, as was the carriage Frank had built for the Henrietta Longshore Estate. ¡°There you are!¡± Sara exclaimed and waved at me. ¡°We were just about to leave!¡± ¡°It is pretty late.¡± I said as the two personal maids stepped out of the carriage. ¡°As long as we''re gone before midnight, it won''t be classed as staying over.¡± Tabitha said. ¡°I checked with the student administration building staff.¡± ¡°They actually told you that?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°Then the two of you need to leave immediately.¡± ¡°WHAT?!?¡± They both exclaimed. ¡°If they offered to tell you information to let you stay, they obviously lied.¡± I said. ¡°I''m glad you waited out here in the carriage, especially if they have an established curfew. You weren''t actually inside, so it doesn''t count.¡± Both maids let out sighs and each took one of my hands. ¡°We''ll be back in the morning.¡± I helped them climb back into the carriage and told the driver to not waste any time getting to the gate, then he was to inform the guard that his passengers had been waiting for me outside of my living space and inside the carriage. ¡°Yes, my lord. It will be done.¡± The driver said and the carriage took off at its best speed. I went over to the guards on the front door and they opened the doors. ¡°Welcome back, my lord.¡± One of them said. I nodded and went inside as the doors closed behind me. I went up the stairs to my room and entered it without knocking, only to find Hope asleep in the bed. I took off my pack and dug out all of the dirty clothes to pile on the floor beside the bathroom. I put my bandoleer into my personal vault, stripped off my clothes and put them on top of the pile, then entered the bathroom. I only took a quick bath, just to remove the dust from travelling and not really to clean everything. I put the towel around my waist and went out to the room to get dressed in different night clothes from the ones I had on the trip. I climbed into bed and laid down on my back, so I could roll out of bed and be ready for anything. Hope made a little noise and her hand reached out to pat the bed. Her hand moved around a bit and soon touched my arm. Just like the venomous tentacle pod, she pulled herself over to me and wrapped her arms around my arm. Maybe I don''t have to come up with something dangerous to keep me locked into my survival mode. I thought as Hope rested her face on my shoulder and started to snore. I stayed vigilant as I dozed off and nothing happened all night. The morning quickly arrived and I was awake just after dawn. Even after going on that excursion and working hard the day before on the clipper ship, I didn''t struggle with waking up or getting out of bed. I didn''t bother changing, since my maids would probably be arriving soon. I took out the remaining food that had been in my pack, which wasn''t much after five days of snacking, and left the two large pieces of snake meat. I would have to eat them later. I looked inside my pack and there were ten of the 2 foot sections of snake skin that I had used for our disguise. I had left some of the meat on it for a reason, to stop it from drying out before I could properly treat it. I took those ten large pieces of skin to my work room and cleaned them up, then I used the treatment potion on them and set them on the tanning racks. I regretted having to cut up such a large snake skin; but, the necessity of concealment overrode my need for gathering expensive materials. As far as I knew, this was the only snake of its size to have the skin brought to the capital. That it was also imbued with magic was a huge bonus. ¡°Helena will know what''s best to do with them when they are done.¡± I said and left my work room to go downstairs. As if they had timed it, the front doors opened and Sara and Tabitha came in. ¡°Bath time?¡± I asked and they had huge smiles on their faces. They grabbed my arms and dragged me back up the stairs and into the bathroom. ¡°You washed up some?¡± Sara asked as I was stripped off and they saw the state I was in. ¡°I wanted to get the dust off before going to bed. I didn''t scrub anything.¡± ¡°Thank you, my lord.¡± Tabitha said for the both of them. I could clearly hear the appreciation in her voice and Sara nodded, then they began their work. I was washed for nearly forty-five minutes before they were done. The actual bath was only twenty minutes long and then Sara won the coin toss for going first in the ritual this time. She started to perform it and it reminded me of what Victoria had said about me being backed up and not being looked after for five days. I told them about it and Sara almost choked. She paused and looked up at me. ¡°You didn''t do anything at all while on the trip?¡± Tabitha asked, clearly surprised. ¡°You didn''t play with it or anything? What about stopping at an inn and having their house maid bathe you?¡± ¡°No, I didn''t do any of that.¡± I said. ¡°Do inns have maids for that?¡± ¡°The expensive ones do.¡± Tabitha said. ¡°Of course, you usually have to ask discreetly and bribe the owner.¡± Sara slipped me out of her mouth to speak. ¡°Not every inn has the service, so you need to be careful. Some owners might take it as an insult. They get upset if you ask for something that they can''t provide because it insults them as an inn.¡± ¡°I won''t ask.¡± I said and both women looked up at me from their kneeling positions. ¡°I know I should save it for my own personal maids. It''s your job and I won''t cause you to feel unfulfilled by letting someone else do it.¡± That had set them off with professional pride and made my bath twenty-five minutes longer as they took turns to make up for the five days they couldn''t bathe me themselves. When we left the bathroom, Hope had my academy uniform ready and I was dressed in only a couple of minutes. I put on my knife sheath and my bandoleer under the suit coat and Hope handed me my small pack with the things I needed for potions class. It was the second day of the week and I couldn''t have been happier about missing both basic spell construction and spell math the day before. Both of them were quickly becoming a supreme waste of my time.If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. I left the mansion and walked over to the main student classroom building. The other students were coming from their dorms and I stayed in the same spot that Vanessa had told me to last week. She came out of the crowd after saying goodbye to her friends and gave me a happy smile. ¡°Good morning, David.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°Did you have fun on your trip?¡± ¡°As a whole, it was a bit disappointing. Parts of it were good, other parts were just okay, and a couple parts were horrible.¡± I responded. ¡°Aww.¡± Vanessa took my arm and leaned against me. ¡°You can tell me all about it if you want to.¡± ¡°It started off well.¡± I said and escorted her to class as I told her about travelling on the schooner. We sat down together and the girls gathered around us to keep listening, too. A few of them were surprised that I did so well while working on a ship, Vanessa included. She told me that it wasn''t really something a noble person would do, unless in the official navy or they had joined the naval reserve. They would also specialize and only do one or two tasks. They couldn''t do all of them on the ship. Mage Marks didn''t say anything until the bell rang to start class. ¡°All right, it''s potion brewing time.¡± The girls that had stayed around me while I talked, went back to their seats. ¡°Only a couple more classes making this one and we''ll move on.¡± Mage Marks said and nearly all of the girls made happy sounds. ¡°You know what to do by now, so get to it.¡± ¡°I''ll get the ingredients this time.¡± I said to Vanessa and went to the bin for the first ingredient. Mage Marks gave me an inquisitive look and I whispered that I was making Vanessa the boosted version to mix with her own. She nodded and I doled out the first ingredient to everyone''s workbenches. In the next few minutes, the other ingredients were delivered by the other students and we got to work. Vanessa insisted on helping, or rather insisted on me helping her to prep the ingredients. We made quick work of it, now that we had so much practice with the simple ingredients, and all we had to do was wait to brew them in order. That was the one thing that couldn''t be rushed, unless you were using magical fire. Then you could compress the cooking and simmering times significantly. I had the original number ten potion down to a solid ten minutes, which meant I could make a whole lot of it in a short period of time, especially with the twelve setups I had at home and at the dorm mansion. In fact, I even had the weaker version down to just under twenty minutes. I couldn''t get it down more than that, because of the inferior ingredients. ¡°Can you tell me what your catalyst is?¡± Vanessa asked in a whisper. ¡°No.¡± I said and she didn''t say anything while we brewed the potion. She did give me a concerned look when it was time to add it. I ignored her look and added it, then I asked her if she wanted to help with the infusion. She started to shake her head and then she looked into my eyes. ¡°Why won''t you tell me what it is?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°It''s a secret, obviously.¡± I said. ¡°Helena doesn''t know what it is, either.¡± Vanessa''s mouth dropped open in surprise. ¡°But... I... I thought...¡± ¡°Just like you, I''m allowed to have some secrets, too.¡± I said and held my hand out to the pot of potion. I didn''t chant or anything and just used my magic to infuse the potion. It was the same color as the one we had produced with our combined magic and Vanessa stared at it, as if she couldn''t believe that it looked the same. I didn''t tell her that after a certain magic level, a potion''s color won''t change, no matter how much magic you try to add to it. It went into enhancing the effects instead. If she doesn''t figure it out on her own eventually, or if Mage Marks doesn''t inform the class, I probably will have to tell her myself. I retrieved a crate of vials and quickly portioned the finished potion out to fill the 36 vials in the crate. Vanessa looked at me expectantly and I shook my head. ¡°I haven''t made another batch of replacement healing potion yet.¡± I whispered. ¡°I''ll experiment and try to have one done by tonight and I''ll bring the crate to your dorm.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°It has to be done before nine o''clock tonight. That''s curfew and you won''t be allowed to drop anything off after that.¡± I nodded and sat down to wait for the end of the morning classes. I was right. There actually is a curfew that''s not stated in the student manual. If Sara and Tabitha had come inside the mansion when I arrived, we would have violated the rules. I sat there and thought about that. I wonder if the person that told Tabitha about the time is also the same secretary that didn''t contact me about leaving on the trip with Victoria? It was something I would have to check into, or at the very least, have someone else check into. Hope has been getting good at digging information up and I could give her the task of finding out what''s going on behind the scenes. Discreetly, of course. If anyone knows I know something''s going on, they''ll either hide further or become more brash in their efforts. I suspected the director of the academy had a hand in it, because of that first incident, and because of my threat to challenge him as soon as I graduated. I wouldn''t know for sure until some evidence is found. It''s just a feeling I have that it''s someone that has full access to the school and I only really know one person that fits the description. Then again, I don''t know a lot about the academy. I smiled slightly at that thought and the bell rang for lunchtime. I picked up the crate of potions and followed Vanessa out of the classroom and then the building. We went all the way over to her dorm building as I told her more about my trip. The stern woman at the desk saw us as soon as we stepped inside and she didn''t say a word as she came right over to me to escort me in. We went up to the top floor and over to Vanessa''s room. She opened the door and stepped inside and I put the crate down on the floor right in front of the door. ¡°I''ll be back down in a minute and you can walk me to lunch and finish your story.¡± Vanessa whispered and I nodded as she shut the door. I took the dorm manager''s arm and brought her back downstairs. She didn''t wait for me to try and take her hand as she offered it to me before we reached her desk. I knew what she wanted, so I took the offered hand and kissed the back of it as I pushed some magic through her hand and into mine. She shivered at the sensation and looked both surprised and happy. I let her hand go, gave her a quick bow, and stepped outside to wait. Vanessa came out a few minutes later and beamed a smile at me. ¡°Thanks for waiting.¡± She said in a normal voice and took my arm in the appropriate way to be escorted. I was getting a lot of practice with that role since coming to the academy. ¡°I suppose you''re going to your dorm mansion to eat.¡± Vanessa said, disappointment in her voice. ¡°I don''t want to bother causing more scenes and have to figure out how else to trick the cooks into feeding me properly.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°I really embarrassed myself by fumbling with the soup that time.¡± Vanessa said and then laughed. ¡°My friends teased me so much over that.¡± ¡°I hope it was a good teasing and not something you need my help with.¡± I responded. Vanessa gave me an odd look, then she beamed a smile at me again. ¡°Yes, it was friendly ribbing and not mean. They''ve been looking out for me for years during normal school.¡± I thought about that for a minute. ¡°What do they think of this version of you?¡± ¡°This version of me?¡± Vanessa asked and then nodded. ¡°Yes, I believe you''re right with that description. I''m not restrained by my normal composure when using that cocktail to enhance my mind.¡± She said and looked thoughtful for a moment. ¡°I don''t think they know what to do with me, to be honest. I''m still me; but, I''m so different from what I usually am with my mind opened like this.¡± ¡°Then don''t let them know you took it.¡± I said and she caught her breath. ¡°Go in there and stay quiet, barely whisper your words, and see what happens. Let your mind adapt to the situation instead of letting it dictate the situation.¡± ¡°I... I didn''t think of that.¡± Vanessa said and spent the rest of the walk over to the student administration building trying to get her voice as soft as it usually was. When she reached the right pitch and tone, I nodded. ¡°Thank you.¡± She whispered. ¡°I''ll see you in class tomorrow.¡± ¡°Have fun.¡± I said and she gave me a smile before she went inside and upstairs to the cafeteria. 186 Academy Antics Part Fifty Three - Beauty Is Only Skin Deep I ate lunch at the dorm mansion and gave one of my large pieces of snake meat to the cook to prepare for my supper. It didn''t have to be cooked again; but, she was a great cook and I knew she would do something good with it. After warning her that only I could eat the magic infused meat unless someone had a bit of magic in them, I informed Hope what I wanted her to look into. She agreed to get started on it right away and I left the mansion and went back to the classroom with Mage Marks. I was early, as I almost always was for the afternoon class, and she waved me over to her desk as soon as she saw me. ¡°David, the responses to your potions were... energetic.¡± Greta said. ¡°It has the guild in a bit of flurry.¡± ¡°Is it because of the strength or what they do?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes.¡± Greta said with a chuckle, then she sighed. ¡°I have also removed myself from the guild.¡± I reached out and put a hand on her shoulder. ¡°I''m sorry that they didn''t try to fight to keep you.¡± Greta gave me an odd look for a second and then she took several shuddering breaths as if to stop herself from crying. ¡°David, how did you...¡± She shook her head. ¡°Never mind. You''ve always been good at guessing what''s wrong.¡± She put a hand on mine. ¡°I shouldn''t have expected them to react at all, let alone think that they would beg for me to stay.¡± ¡°You''ve told me a few things about what it was like there and how relieved you were to be here at the academy. It wasn''t hard to guess that they were glad to be rid of you, considering how much you pointed out your supervisor''s flaws. He was supposed to take this job, after all.¡± Greta laughed softly. ¡°Yes, the incompetent fool would have made a mess of this place within a week.¡± ¡°What has he been doing with you out of the way?¡± I asked. ¡°Relying on others to do his work, of course.¡± Greta said and then she gave me a genuine smile. ¡°Although, I made sure that my exit gained a lot of attention and now everyone knows he was why I left.¡± ¡°Maybe they''ll start to smarten up.¡± I said and she looked surprised, then she laughed. ¡°You''re really developing an odd sense of humor.¡± Greta said and took several papers out from her desk. ¡°This is the information they''ve confirmed about your potions, including the sale values.¡± I looked at the pages and my eyes widened slightly. ¡°Are they crazy?¡± Greta laughed. ¡°I have no doubt that some of them are, considering the way the guild is run; but, that was arrived at by a committee and I submitted the potions under anonymity with my name as the go-between contact.¡± ¡°So, they don''t know it was me.¡± I said and she shook her head. ¡°Is this accurate?¡± ¡°It is, as well as unbiased. If they did know it was you, those results would be very skewed to ensure you were ripped off.¡± Greta pointed to the bottom of the top paper. ¡°As it is, they are very interested in both the recipes and placing large and exclusive orders.¡± ¡°Exclusive.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°They want to be the sole distributor.¡± ¡°More than anything.¡± Greta said with a chuckle. ¡°The guild has always had a lock on the potions market. Independents almost never get a chance to break into the business before they are quickly bought out or made to sell out.¡± That made me smile. ¡°They can''t do that with mine.¡± ¡°No, because both your infusion ability and your secret catalyst are essential components. The only way they could reproduce the potion is by having you do it for them.¡± Greta said and handed over the paper with her version of the plant killing potion on it that used my changed ingredients and techniques. ¡°Here''s what they think of my version of the same recipe.¡± I took the paper and read the review. ¡°They really are crazy to isolate you like this.¡± ¡°Yes, and they rejected my proposal to change the official recipe in the books.¡± Greta said with a sigh. ¡°I thought they would see the value in not wasting their time with a slightly inferior potion and quickly institute the new recipe. I was both short-sighted and wrong with that assumption.¡± ¡°No, they are.¡± I said and handed the paper back. ¡°They''ve been marginalizing you for quite some time and don''t realize that by pissing off one of their best potion makers, they''ve essentially ruined whatever chances they had for acquiring your future potions.¡± I gave her a smile. ¡°And mine.¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± Greta asked. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°I remember someone urging me to sell potions on my own and even arranging for me to have deliveries right to my dorm mansion.¡± I said. ¡°Wouldn''t it be a shame if we didn''t take full advantage of that?¡± ¡°What... what do you mean?¡± Greta asked as the classroom door opened and her niece came in. ¡°We can talk again during the first class break.¡± I whispered and turned to Jinelle. ¡°Good afternoon.¡± I said and slightly bowed to her. Jinelle''s face flushed slightly red and she nodded in acknowledgement. ¡°Good afternoon.¡± She didn''t look flustered or embarrassed, which was good. I would hate to have to say that seeing her naked didn''t give me any pleasure at the time. I was sure that would re-institute her threat to have me killed for seeing her without her clothes on. I went to my workbench and she went to hers, just as Lorna, Nick, and the last guy came into the classroom. We all set up for writing, because Mage Marks usually gave us a lot of notes when introducing a new potion. ¡°I know two of you are going to be very excited to have this particular potion in your skill set.¡± Mage Marks said and gave pointed looks to her niece and Lorna. Both girls looked quite eager to hear what it was. ¡°It''s a topical cream that dissolves blemishes on the skin and gives it a nice even tone as it heals the damage.¡± ¡°Ooooo!¡± Jinelle and Lorna made appreciative sounds.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. Is this a specific healing potion? I asked myself and thought about it. If it does damage to certain things and then heals it, that could be useful for any damaged skin removal. ¡°You''re not going to find this in any book, since it was a discovery that someone wouldn''t sell to the bookmakers.¡± ¡°Granny!¡± Jinelle laughed and then covered her mouth as if she had spilled a huge secret. ¡°I''m sorry, Mage Marks! It was a slip of the tongue and...¡± Mage Marks raised a hand to stop her apology as she chuckled. ¡°It''s all right. I was going to tell them it was my mother''s invention anyway.¡± Jinelle sighed in relief. ¡°Just because she wouldn''t sell the recipe for publication, that doesn''t mean she is hoarding it all for herself.¡± Mage Marks said. ¡°The family is allowed to share it with worthy individuals, as long as they agree to not make it for sale or to produce it in such numbers that it cuts into the family business.¡± Of course, I immediately raised my hand and she laughed. ¡°We''ll talk during the break about it.¡± Mage Marks said, as if she knew I was going to ask about making a much better version. ¡°For now...¡± She turned to the chalkboard and started writing. The five of us copied down what she wrote, including the warnings about the ingredients, since they had to have corrosive elements in them to work. The safety procedures to ensure no one was hurt making it took nearly twenty minutes, then she moved on to the actual recipe. I had never made a cream potion before, assuming I couldn''t count grub pate as an actual potion. My mouth watered slightly and I swallowed to stop it from escaping. It had been some time since I had some good home cooking and I was really starting to miss it. Mage Marks finished discussing the potion and the bell rang to end the first afternoon class. ¡°Okay, five minutes until you need to start.¡± Mage Marks said and then nodded to me. I stepped around my workbench and walked over to her desk. Just as I reached it, her classroom door opened and a man wearing mage robes stood there. ¡°David Drake.¡± The man said and his eyes roamed over the five students, then ended on me beside the teacher''s desk. ¡°This way, please.¡± ¡°Roland? What''s this about?¡± Mage Marks asked. ¡°It involves the Head Proctor and the Director of the Academy.¡± Roland said. ¡°Mr. Drake? They are waiting.¡± ¡°You better go, David.¡± Mage Marks said as she stepped close to me to whisper. ¡°Tell me later?¡± ¡°It depends on how this goes.¡± I whispered back and followed the man. Now that I had a chance to look at his robes closely, he had a smaller and separate emblem on his shoulder. It was the proctor badge and if what my senses were telling me was right, which surely it was, this man served in the military. We left the student classroom building and went to the main administration building. We passed by the desks of people there and one of the women stared at me intensely. I noted her appearance and remembered her from when I had invited Mage Marks over to supper and we had passed by the small group of men and women outside the administration building. Maybe seeing Mage Marks all dressed up for me was too much for her to take? I asked myself as I was led down a hallway and to another secretary. The woman gave me a very thorough looking over as we stood there and she nodded slightly. I hadn''t felt any magic, and yet, I knew she had somehow assessed my capabilities. Either that, or she could easily guess by my body movements. That meant she was a capable combat fighter in her own right and I wanted to see how I would fare against her. That thought was an odd thought for me to have and it made me wonder who she was. I also had the impression that she wanted me to test her, so I darted my hand out to her in a blur. She didn''t even flinch as my hand appeared in front of her face. She smiled at me and daintily put her hand in mine to let me kiss it. I gave her a smile back and did just that. I didn''t do the share magic trick as my lips met the back of her hand. For some reason, I had the feeling that it wouldn''t get the same result as it did from other women. Her smile became a bit wider when I had skipped her fingers to touch my full set of lips to her skin, which meant she knew that I was giving her more respect than a noble would normally get from me. ¡°You can both go in now.¡± She said and motioned to the door behind her. ¡°I won''t even ask you to hand over your sacred knife.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said as I let her hand go. Her eyes went to mine and we locked gazes. ¡°I hope you know that certain nobles can have a proxy stand in their place.¡± ¡°I assume family heads and child bearing women?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°Are you his choice?¡± Her smile grew even wider. ¡°How did you guess?¡± I bent down and leaned in to whisper. ¡°You''re much more powerful than him.¡± She raised her eyebrows at me. ¡°But, he can cast...¡± ¡°We can both kill him before he finishes his first chant.¡± I breathed and then stood up straight. ¡°It was nice meeting you, even if I have to kill you in three years.¡± The woman laughed. ¡°It doesn''t have to be a duel to the death, despite their rules. I just have to make you submit in defeat.¡± It was my turn to raise my eyebrows. ¡°All right. I''ll remember that.¡± Roland opened the door behind her and we stepped into the large office. It wasn''t as opulent as I thought it was going to be, however. It was a bit ostentatious and gaudy instead, which was worse, to be honest. ¡°Have a seat.¡± The director of the academy said and pointed to the chair across from his desk. I used Sense Magic and the chair glowed. ¡°I''ll stand.¡± The man looked angry for a second, then he smiled. ¡°I am the director of this academy and I ask you to sit and relax. Don''t be shy. I''ve already forgotten the little altercation we had that first day.¡± Roland next to me winced a little, not that I needed the visual clue. My vigilance technique easily told me that the director was lying. Even if I didn''t have that, his tells were too pronounced to be missed, even by someone not trained to detect lies. I cast Dispel on the chair and a slight glow appeared on the chair. The director''s face showed shock as I took out my knife and walked over to the chair. I ducked and reached underneath the chair to slice my knife across the wildwood enchantment to snap it. Unfortunately, the enchantment was too strong for the wooden chair and when it broke, the chair did as well. ¡°Whatever that was, you need to use a metal chair to hold the enchantment properly.¡± I said and used some number ten potion to stick several of the wood pieces together. I slyly tucked the enchantment pieces into my coat as I made a chair with no back and sat down. ¡°What do you want?¡± My words angered him. ¡°You will address me as Director or Mage Renolds.¡± ¡°You haven''t earned my respect enough for me to call you by your titles.¡± I said and Roland made some kind of noise. ¡°If I had my way, I would have kicked you out before you even stepped foot into these hallowed halls.¡± ¡°It''s a good thing that other people are in control and aren''t as shortsighted as you.¡± I responded. ¡°You dare...¡± ¡°We already have a date for our duel and I can''t agree to another one.¡± I said. ¡°Although, I would like to know if I''m allowed to issue another duel when I defeat your proxy.¡± The man''s face changed from anger to a smile. ¡°You don''t stand a chance of winning.¡± ¡°I''ve got three years to train and get stronger, since I''m still young. What is your proxy going to do?¡± I asked and heard something like a growl come from the outer office. I turned towards the door and spoke. ¡°I''m sorry that you misunderstood what I said. I wasn''t implying that you''re old. I meant that you are stuck at your current strength and can''t get any better.¡± The growl only got louder at my explanation. I wasn''t sure what to say now, since the truth wasn''t making things better. I shrugged and turned back to the director and waited for him to speak. 187 Academy Antics Part Fifty Four - A Bit Of Trouble ¡°Proctor Simmons.¡± The director said and a side door opened to admit another man. It was the man who had tried to rob Victoria and I last night. ¡°Please tell me again what happened last night.¡± The man clamped his mouth shut and shook his head. ¡°Proctor Simmons.¡± The director turned to look at the man. ¡°It''s all right. We''re here to clear the air and reveal the crimes that Mr. Drake has perpetrated on your person.¡± I looked at the man and gave him the same tooth bearing grin that I had the night before. ¡°I suppose just because you can tell lies from truth that it doesn''t stop you from omitting parts of what happened.¡± The man opened his mouth briefly and then closed it, probably because he had been so easily called out for his deception. He didn''t refute my statement, either. ¡°Go ahead and tell us what happened, sir.¡± Roland urged. ¡°You''re safe here. He can''t hurt you with us present.¡± I let out a chuckle and the three men looked at me. ¡°I can just drag all three of you off the academy grounds and kill you.¡± ¡°Ha! You admit that you threatened him!¡± The director said in triumph. ¡°He told me what you said and I wasn''t doubtful; but, I needed confirmation from a second source.¡± ¡°Did you question the guard that saw it all?¡± I asked, knowing he wouldn''t have bothered. ¡°You could have saved me the trouble of coming all the way over here to your office if all you wanted was someone to repeat what I said.¡± The director waved my comment away. ¡°I don''t need an easily bribed worker to lie to me.¡± ¡°Since everyone can lie to you and you can''t tell, that statement doesn''t surprise me.¡± I said. ¡°Would you like to hear the actual story now?¡± ¡°I have the actual story.¡± The director said and smiled. ¡°I''ve already contacted the proper authorities at the castle and they are sending someone here to arrest you.¡± ¡°Ha!¡± I said and pointed at Proctor Simmons. ¡°Thank you for all your family''s wealth and for breaking your magic sworn oath.¡± ¡°N-n-no! I didn''t!¡± The man exclaimed. ¡°He''s not a friend, a hired thug, or anything like that! He''s my boss!¡± ¡°You didn''t listen to the wording of the oath at all, did you? If anyone comes after me or my friends, you would forfeit everything and then wither and die as your magic dissolves.¡± I said and the man shuddered. ¡°I thought you were a bit too quick to agree. I didn''t realize it was because you were too stupid and thought you could get around it with semantics.¡± The man stared at me for several moments before he let out a groan. He clutched at his heart and dropped to his knees. ¡°I might be from a marsh; but, even I know a magical binding oath is not something to take lightly, especially when your life depends on it.¡± I said, mainly referring to my magic knife. ¡°S-s-stop... stop it.¡± The man pleaded. I pointed at the director. ¡°He has to stop it.¡± ¡°Wh-what? Me? Why?¡± The director asked, surprised. His eyes went to the man beside his desk that was getting paler. ¡°You''re calling people to come and get me.¡± I said with a shrug. ¡°That breaks the magic oath he swore to make up for attacking Mage King and for trying to rob the botany course of its recently acquired treasure.¡± ¡°N-no... I... just wanted...¡± The man panted and hunched over slightly. ¡°It hurts!¡± ¡°You wanted to claim the discovery for yourself, even though you knew Mage King has told everyone she was going to get it. She even had a failed attempt last year and that bugged you, didn''t it?¡± I asked and shook my head. ¡°Instead of being happy with what you have, your greed for stolen fame has brought you to this point.¡± The office door opened and the secretary stood there with two large uniformed men. ¡°Director, the men from the castle are here.¡± The secretary said. ¡°It was a false alarm! Nothing happened!¡± The director exclaimed and stood up. ¡°I rescind my request to have this student removed from the premises and punished according to the law.¡± The two large men exchanged looks and then looked back at the director. The kneeling man let out an anguished cry and crumpled to the floor. ¡°H-he-lp.¡± The man barely said. ¡°What''s wrong with him?¡± The secretary asked as she rushed into the office and knelt beside the prone form of Proctor Simmons. ¡°He broke a magical oath.¡± I said and stood. ¡°Yours?¡± She asked and I felt a wave of something come off of her. It wasn''t magic. She radiated killing intent. ¡°No, he bound himself to his word and then broke it.¡± I said and walked over to the two men. ¡°I''m not stupid enough to bind myself magically to someone I know is going to betray his word.¡± I held my hands out to them and one of them clamped shackles on my wrists. ¡°No! Don''t take him!¡± The director exclaimed. ¡°Release him this instant!¡± The two large men in uniform exchanged looks again. ¡°Just ignore him. He doesn''t understand that he can''t give you orders. He also doesn''t want to admit that he killed his employee over trying to get rid of me.¡± I said and walked between the two men and left the office. ¡°Wait!¡± The director said loudly as the two men followed me. ¡°Waaaaiiiiiit!¡± We ignored him and left the building. There was a very ornate carriage with the royal crest on it waiting for us just outside the front door and the coachman opened the carriage door for me. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said to the man and stepped inside to sit on the seat facing backwards. The two men entered and sat across from me. One watched me and one watched out the window. The carriage pulled away and we were soon out of the academy gate and on the road to the castle. ¡°How did you know we were going to ask you to sit that way?¡± The man watching me asked. ¡°It''s more difficult to move quickly or do anything while sitting backwards and fighting against the movement of the carriage.¡± I said. ¡°Plus, your partner can''t see oncoming threats if he''s looking behind the carriage and not looking forward.¡±This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. Both men smiled and nodded slightly. They remained silent after that for the entire ride to the castle. We pulled up to the large gatehouse and the door was opened, then a man came in and checked everything, even me. He didn''t take anything, though. He wrote everything down that he found, including the numbers and colors of the potions in my bandoleer and my magical knife and my stub knife. ¡°I suppose it''s too much to ask what the potions do.¡± The man said to me and I nodded. ¡°I thought so.¡± He said and looked at the two men. ¡°He''s very fast, so if he goes for the bandoleer or the knife sheath, stop him.¡± I raised my eyebrows at him and he gave me a smile. ¡°Yes, I mean kill you.¡± The man said and stepped out. ¡°Go ahead!¡± The door was shut and the carriage went through the double metal gates and through another double metal gate. I couldn''t see the castle like it was supposed to be seen, since I was sitting backwards and in the middle of the seat, which was nowhere near the windows. It was a big carriage. I did see and hear people working, talking, and walking around. It was almost like a little town inside the castle walls. The carriage came to a stop and the door opened again. Both of the uniformed men stepped out first, which was the first mistake that I had seen them make. I waited until I stepped out before I spoke. ¡°I could have killed the both of you there.¡± I said and both men gave me surprised looks. ¡°You both had your backs to me and neither of you were watching me as you got out first.¡± The two men exchanged looks. ¡°You''re lucky I''m not the criminal the director told you I was.¡± I said and walked forward. ¡°Which way am I going?¡± One of them sped up and walked in front of me. ¡°Another mistake?¡± I asked with a sigh. ¡°I could have my knife deep in your spine before you could breathe and the man behind me wouldn''t have a clue anything was wrong until you dropped to the ground, crippled.¡± Both men jerked a little as if I had slapped them and kept walking. I stopped cataloguing their mistakes that seemed to be piling up, now that we were back in what I assumed was their normal environment. No extra guards for backup, lots of places for me to duck into and escape, lots of potential hostages I could take to get them to let me go, weapons easily accessible on a dozen people we passed, and a slew of others things. It''s almost like they''ve never handled a prisoner before. I thought as we entered a side door of a building that was beside the castle. We were greeted by two other men in the same uniform and I saw a plaque on the wall that proclaimed them as The First King''s Men. We went through the building and went up some stairs, which seemed to take us higher than the roof of the building, then I realized we weren''t in that building anymore. I didn''t feel any magic, so it was just a trick of the eye as we easily transitioned from the outer building and into the castle. We walked down a long hallway and past many doors, then we stopped at one and the man in front of me knocked heavily. ¡°Come.¡± A deep baritone voice commanded and the man in front opened the door. We stepped inside the large room and there was a gasp and then a growl. ¡°YOU!¡± A familiar voice yelled. I turned my head to look over at the side of the room and saw the woman that was sitting between a taller woman and a much younger woman. ¡°Good afternoon, First Princess Ellen Rivers.¡± I said and gave her a formal bow. Even with my hands shackled together in front of me, I managed to pull it off. ¡°What''s HE doing here?!?¡± Ellen exclaimed at the well dressed burly man that sat at the front of the room in a normal chair, with a maid on either side of it. ¡°We have matters to discuss.¡± The King Richard William Rivers said in his baritone voice. ¡°Well, I''M not going to stay here for that!¡± Ellen spat and stood up. She wobbled slightly, because her missing arm unbalanced her. ¡°Daughter.¡± The woman beside her said in a stern voice and caught her hand. ¡°We wouldn''t have been called for an audience if it wasn''t important.¡± Ellen closed her mouth on her response and her teeth ground together. ¡°Fine.¡± She growled and sat back down. Her sister caught her before she toppled over and put an arm around her to hold her. ¡°Thanks, Rose.¡± She said in a much softer voice. After a few moments of silence, the king spoke. ¡°Mr. Drake, it seems that you''ve gotten into more trouble.¡± ¡°No more than usual, your highness.¡± I said with my head slightly bowed. The king smiled. ¡°I know. I have people at the academy that have been watching you.¡± ¡°Not very well.¡± I said and he gave me a surprised look. ¡°I couldn''t feel anyone looking intently.¡± The king looked at the two men that had escorted me and they shrugged. ¡°I''ll have to take your word for that.¡± ¡°You''ll be one of the few people in authority that do.¡± I responded. ¡°Is that a shot at me, you bastard?!?¡± Ellen said loudly and tried to stand again. Her mother and sister were smart and kept her seated. ¡°Ellen, if you keep interrupting, this is going to take forever.¡± Rose said in a very pleasant and slightly annoyed voice. Ellen gave her a glare, then it disappeared at the look on her little sister''s face. She sighed and Rose smiled happily at her. ¡°Thank you, Rose.¡± The king said and looked at me. ¡°I am aware of what transpired last night.¡± ¡°All of it or just the dead proctor''s story?¡± I asked. ¡°D-d-dead?¡± Ellen''s mother gasped. ¡°His broken magical oath to me should have killed him by now.¡± I said. ¡°I wonder what his family''s fortune is worth?¡± The king sighed. ¡°I suppose I am responsible for this breach.¡± ¡°No, the Director of the Academy is. He contacted the castle to report the false crime without getting the whole story.¡± I said. ¡°He''s been desperate to get rid of me since I challenged him to a duel during my first day at the academy.¡± The king nodded slightly. ¡°That would be something he would try, the stupid fool.¡± ¡°Father, why is he a fool?¡± Rose asked. ¡°It''s quite simple.¡± The king said as he gazed lovingly at his precious little girl, who looked to be about sixteen. ¡°Even if they removed Mr. Drake from the academy grounds and had him arrested, or thrown in prison, he''s still going to graduate in three years according to the deal Grand Mage Henrietta set up.¡± ¡°The grand mage...¡± Rose looked at me with wide eyes. ¡°You''re arranged to marry his daughter, aren''t you? He won''t let a non-mage join the family, so he''s making you one!¡± I nodded to her and she beamed a smile at me. She looked very happy to have figured it out so quickly. ¡°I can get rid of all of your problems.¡± The king said as his attention returned to me. ¡°No more unfair treatment by the staff and teachers of the academy. No more bullying or framing for crimes. No more living in a separate dorm.¡± ¡°I like my separate dorm.¡± I said and then thought of something. ¡°What about the food?¡± I asked and he looked confused. ¡°I was issued a Bronze card. I ate there three times before I decided to get my own food and eat it in my dorm.¡± The mother gasped, Rose looked pale, and Ellen chuckled. She was quickly stifled by her mother. The king on the other hand, looked livid. ¡°How dare they.¡± He said and sat up straight. ¡°I can overlook some things, as a normal hazing of new students. Things are supposed to be somewhat difficult for new students and it''s a character test to see how they persevere.¡± He shook his head. ¡°To deny a student the basic food requirements and then force them to eat from the dregs of the other students? That is unforgivable.¡± We all watched as the king stood up. He was a big man and very muscular. He walked across the room to me and put a hand on my shoulder. ¡°Mr. Drake... David.¡± The king said, sympathy in his voice. ¡°Even if you don''t accept what I am proposing, you won''t have to suffer eating like that again.¡± ¡°I''m not suffering it now. My cook is doing a fantastic job.¡± I said. The king sighed. ¡°Then what can I give you to convince you to agree?¡± ¡°I don''t understand.¡± I said. ¡°Agree to what?¡± ¡°I''ll get rid of all the problems and trouble you''re having at the academy, including this new thing, in exchange for doing me a favor.¡± I was sure he was pulling my leg, as Gary used to say. There was no way that the king of the whole kingdom needed me to do a favor for him. ¡°You already have my movement enchantment through the Henrietta Family and my weight enchantment through the... I actually don''t know their family name.¡± The king chuckled. ¡°It''s the Pondus family and they''ve been making a fortune with their shipping business, now that they have a functioning weight enchantment.¡± ¡°Those two enchantments let the mages guild make the kracken tube ammunition, which was my contribution to the kingdom, so I don''t know what kind of favor you could want from me now.¡± ¡°It''s not that kind of favor, even if it will actually help the kingdom just as much as your weapon did.¡± The king said and turned me to face his wife and two daughters. ¡°I want you to give my daughter her arm back.¡± 188 Academy Antics Part Fifty Five - A Royal Meeting ¡°WHAAAAAAAATT?!?¡± Ellen yelled in shock and her mother and sister let out disbelieving and inarticulate sounds, which was very unlike their normal behavior. ¡°I can''t give it back. It''s treated and preserved.¡± I said. ¡°If you try to undo it, it''ll just melt and dissolve away. Mostly.¡± The king gave me a shocked look and then he sighed in relief. ¡°No, you misunderstand. Let me explain.¡± He said and then told me about Gillis and how she had finally managed to have dinner with my fiance after all this time, then how Helena had shared my letter about helping Alex and Donna. ¡°Oh.¡± I said, finally understanding. ¡°My answer is no.¡± ¡°Excuse me?¡± The king asked, his deep baritone voice was full of disbelief. ¡°The trade''s not worth it.¡± I said. The king gave me an incredulous look. ¡°You can be sent to jail for up to ten years for assaulting a mage.¡± ¡°He was a thief, not a mage.¡± I corrected. ¡°He didn''t cast any magic when he tried to rob us.¡± ¡°No judiciary member is going to believe that.¡± The king said. ¡°I''ll specifically request one that can tell lies from truth or have someone cast the spell.¡± I said. ¡°I don''t know why you don''t do that for every supposed crime, since it would save so much time while investigating.¡± The king gave me a furtive look and I knew what that meant. ¡°I see. You can''t frame people or use scapegoats for the nobles if they have to tell the truth, just like Proctor Simmons when he refused to tell the whole story of our encounter.¡± I said. ¡°It''s too bad that all nobles aren''t forced to take a similar oath. There would be a lot less crime or a lot less nobles. Either way, the world would be better off.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Ellen''s mother said with a shake of her head. ¡°He really doesn''t hold us in high regard.¡± ¡°Grace.¡± The king admonished and she nodded. ¡°Mr. Drake, what would it take for you to do this favor for me?¡± He asked and gasps came from his wife and two daughters. _______________ The king has asked you a very important question. The rest of the story hinges on this decision, so choose wisely. A) Ask for a trade (and arm for an arm). B) Ask for all the money you are owed. C) Ask for something unreasonable. D) Ask for something stupid. E) Ask him to make you a mage. F) Choose two. G) Choose nothing (refuse the offer). Wow, okay. I thought as I read the choices over. No timer popped up, so I had some time to think it over. All right. I have a feeling that he''s going to refuse whatever I chose first, so I''m only concerned over what I really want. I''m going to be a mage automatically, so asking for that doesn''t make sense. He''ll probably throw me in the castle dungeon if I ask for an arm in exchange. Then again, if I ask for it first, he will have to refuse and my second choice will look that much more reasonable. I read over the options again and thought about it. I''m really tempted to ask for something stupid, just to reinforce their misjudgment of me. I thought as my eyes went to the first princess and saw her calculating face. No, that won''t help me. I better go with the safe option and ask for the money she stole from me, so I''ll choose two. My first choice is A, which will be refused, and then choose B. _______________ ¡°What do I want?¡± I asked and looked at his arm. ¡°If you want your daughter''s arm back, I want an arm in exchange.¡± ¡°WHAAAAAAATT?!?¡± Ellen yelled again and shot to her feet. ¡°You BASTARD! It''s not bad enough you''ve maimed me and now you want to maim my father? I''LL KILL YOU!¡± ¡°It doesn''t have to be the king''s.¡± I said and turned to look at her sister. ¡°NO!¡± The king and his wife gasped at the same time and looked shocked. Rose on the other hand, looked thoughtful. She stood up and I saw she wore a resplendent dress that showed off how womanly she was, even five years younger than me. Her chest was both modest and bold and her hips were shown to full effect. Her hair and makeup were well done and she exuded a maturity that belied her actual age of fifteen. She walked over to me and the king held his hand out to stop her. ¡°No, I refuse to allow this.¡± The king''s deep baritone voice rumbled as tears came to his eyes. ¡°Father.¡± Rose said, almost in dismissal, and she looked into my eyes. ¡°Do you truly want an arm for an arm? If you do, I will give it to make my sister whole again.¡± I reached for her with my hands and the king grabbed my arm. ¡°Don''t touch her.¡± He growled and now I knew where Ellen got her colonel persona. She was copying her father or had more of her father in her than anyone else. ¡°Father, let him go.¡± Rose commanded in a stern voice. ¡°Now.¡± The king sighed and let my arm go. I continued my movement and took her hand with both of mine, since I was still shackled. I lifted her hand to my mouth and kissed the skin on the back of it and not the fingers, as I ignored proper protocol for royalty, then I gave her a touch of my magic. I felt hers respond and she took in a sharp breath as her whole arm tingled from the briefest touch. ¡°Second Princess Rose Samantha Rivers, I do not want your arm. I knew your father would refuse any request I made first, so I asked for something he would absolutely have to refuse.¡± I said and heard several relieved sighs. ¡°I didn''t expect you to be so brave as to accept such an unreasonable request.¡± Rose beamed a smile at me. ¡°You were testing my resolve and I passed.¡± She gushed and looked at her sister. ¡°I thought you said he was a monster that could gut any creature that exists?¡± ¡°He is.¡± Ellen said, her face a mask to hide her anger. The only thing holding her back was her mother''s death grip on her remaining arm. ¡°To be fair, I gutted the dragon from the inside as I tried to save myself.¡± I said. Rose''s head snapped back to look at me. ¡°Really? You killed a dragon?¡± ¡°No, Mage Lucas did.¡± I said and I saw approval on the king''s face. ¡°I just happened to have been eaten by it a few minutes earlier.¡± ¡°Woooow.¡± Rose whispered and stared at my face.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°Rose, go back to your mother and sister.¡± Rose glanced at her father and saw his stern face, nodded and looked back at me. ¡°I want to hear about what happened with the dragon. You will attend me for a short while right after this meeting.¡± I looked down at the shackles binding my wrists and back at her. ¡°With the king''s permission.¡± ¡°Father.¡± Rose said, her voice stern. The king sighed and waved at the two uniformed men that had brought me here. One stepped forward and unlocked the shackles. The thick red marks they left behind could be clearly seen. Rose caught her breath and her free hand lightly touched the marks. ¡°I have to let your hand go to deal with them.¡± I said softly and she nodded. I waved a hand at the guards. ¡°I''m getting a healing potion from my bandoleer.¡± The two men watched me intensely as I very carefully took out a half filled vial and put several drops on one wrist and rubbed it, then I did the same to the other wrist. I corked the vial and put it back. Both men relaxed, because I hadn''t tried to give the vial to the princess or smashed it on the floor or something. ¡°Woooow.¡± Rose whispered as her hands touched the spots that I had just healed. ¡°Your healing potions really do have multiple uses.¡± ¡°You''ve bought some?¡± I asked and she motioned to her mother as she reluctantly let my hands go. ¡°Thankfully, we have very capable healers here at the castle and we haven''t had to use many of them.¡± Her mother Grace said. ¡°We bought ten crates.¡± I nodded and turned to the king when Rose sat beside her sister once more. ¡°What I really want is for you to undo the mistake your daughter did when she dishonorably discharged me from the army instead of medically discharging me like she was supposed to.¡± I said and the king''s eyes widened. ¡°I want the money, loot, and rewards that your daughter stole from me by confiscating my shares of the conquest of the Eastern Empire.¡± Complete silence filled the room and no one spoke. Barely anyone breathed. ¡°Mr. Drake, that''s a very complicated matter.¡± The king said. ¡°The orders were filed and the crimes registered appropriately. The monies, loot, and rewards have already been distributed appropriately and have become a part of the economy. For me to try and go back to dig all of that up to redistribute it...¡± ¡°Then that''s a no.¡± I said and cut off his excuses. ¡°Unfortunately.¡± The king said, his face looked like he was slightly in pain, probably because he couldn''t give me what I wanted. Silence fell again for several moments before I spoke. ¡°Is that all? Is the meeting over?¡± I asked. The king looked over at his family and sighed. ¡°Give him the marsh.¡± Ellen said. She had the same pained look on her face, only this time, I was sure it was because she was making a suggestion to help me. ¡°What?¡± The king asked. ¡°He seems to like living there, apparently.¡± Ellen said with a shrug. ¡°How can you give me something you don''t own?¡± I asked and they all looked over at me. ¡°The marsh isn''t a part of either the Gulf Kingdom or the Eastern Empire. I know. I''ve seen all of the maps.¡± The king didn''t refute it and looked thoughtful. ¡°If no one owns it, then anyone can claim it.¡± Ellen said. ¡°I claimed it a long time ago.¡± I said. ¡°I''m also the sole resident.¡± ¡°It doesn''t work that way.¡± Ellen''s mother said. ¡°You need to have a population to vote and elect a ruler before...¡± ¡°I elect myself.¡± I said. ¡°I vote for me. Oh, look. I won. I''m now the ruler of the marsh.¡± ¡°Mr. Drake, you can''t seriously think that...¡± The king started to say. ¡°Are you going to send an army in to claim it? You need to declare war against me first.¡± I said. ¡°Good luck not getting them all killed.¡± The king sighed. ¡°If you hadn''t realized it, you are standing right here and not in the marsh.¡± ¡°I built a house there and lived there all my life.¡± I responded. ¡°What right do you have to tell me I don''t own it?¡± ¡°I''m the king of this kingdom.¡± The king said, a bit sternly. ¡°Which the marsh is not a part of.¡± I said. ¡°Actually, it is now.¡± Ellen said and smiled. ¡°You helped the kingdom establish relay stations all the way through it to the new territories. All of that area is a part of the kingdom and the rest of the marsh can be annexed at any time.¡± ¡°You''re claiming the Foundation Trail documents apply here?¡± The king asked, thoughtful. ¡°They do apply. It''s the basic strategy to establish routes to new places.¡± Ellen said. ¡°You don''t even need to ask for a meeting with the other lords and ladies. It''s automatic.¡± The king smiled and nodded. ¡°Very well.¡± He said and turned to me. ¡°Mr. Drake, if you do me the favor of giving my daughter back her arm, I''ll sign over the marsh to you, in it''s entirety, minus the trade route that goes through it.¡± ¡°That''s not fair. You can''t just arbitrarily take my home by spouting words and then pretend to give it back to me if I do what you say.¡± ¡°It''s not pretend. I''ll have the appropriate land deed drawn up. It will all be quite official, I assure you.¡± The king said, smugly. ¡°Does that mean I''ll be a land owner in the kingdom?¡± I asked and he nodded. ¡°Doesn''t that make me a noble by default?¡± There was a quick intake of breath and I couldn''t tell whose it was. ¡°I assume that depending on the size of the land, an appropriate title is granted.¡± I said. ¡°Do you know how big the marsh is?¡± The king looked a little worried. ¡°No, not really.¡± ¡°It spans the distance between the Gulf Kingdom and the Eastern Empire. Its lands are vast and its waterways are numerous. Is there a title higher than Lord for an estate that spans thousands of miles?¡± ¡°No.¡± The king said with a flat voice, now that he realized what he had offered. I gave Ellen a smile and looked back at the king. ¡°Throw in that old ceremonial short sword with the land title, and you have a deal.¡± ¡°I... have to think about it.¡± ¡°Father!¡± Rose spat and the king winced, probably because she was willing to give up a precious body part for her sister and he was balking at giving me a noble title with all the land that was mine, anyway. The king let out a sigh and held his hand out for me to shake. ¡°I''ll have the appropriate papers drawn up while you speak to my daughter under guard and with direct supervision.¡± I shook his hand and walked over to Rose. ¡°My lady, please forgive my atrocious attire while in your august presence.¡± I said and bowed to her formally as I held a hand out to her. ¡°Shall we retreat to the closest parlour for us to have tea and enjoy each other''s company?¡± Rose looked absolutely delighted at the invitation. ¡°My lord, I would like that very much.¡± Both her mother and sister looked shocked as she stood and I assumed the proper escort position. Rose took my arm with enthusiasm and cuddled in, just like Vanessa did when I escorted her to class. We left the room with three people staring at our backs and the two men in uniforms that had brought me here, followed us out. ¡°Grace.¡± The king said and his wife jerked slightly. ¡°Yes, of course.¡± Grace said and stood up as she looked at Ellen. She didn''t ask her to come with us and followed behind the two men as she joined our little procession. Rose whispered where to go and we picked up several maids along the way. One was sent for tea and we entered a very opulent parlour. I led Rose over to one of the comfy looking couches and sat her down, then sat myself right beside her. Her mother Grace looked a little scandalized, then she let out a little sigh as she sat across from us in a plush chair. I started to tell the tale of the dragon battle and Rose took my hand as she shook her head. ¡°Tell it from the start.¡± Rose said. ¡°Right from when you were given the crazy mission by my sister.¡± I glanced at her mother. ¡°You might not like what you''re going to hear.¡± ¡°That''s why I didn''t bring Ellen.¡± Grace said and made a hand motion for me to proceed. I looked back at Rose and she looked both expectant and full of anticipation. ¡°All right. It all started...¡± I told the tale and didn''t stop when the maid came in to serve us tea. Rose reluctantly let my hand go as she accepted her cup and then we all sat back and relaxed as we enjoyed the tea and I spoke about what Rose wanted. Inside information about her sister and what she was like while outside the castle. Apparently, no one would tell her about the events that were happening all over with her family members and she was desperate for any information, especially when it concerned her older sister. It took a while and no one else came to the room or interrupted us. 189 Academy Antics Part Fifty Six - Tea And Story Time The queen and her daughter must have practised keeping their faces from showing too much emotion as I told them everything that happened during the dragon attacks. When I got to how I was treated afterwards by then Colonel Ellen Rivers, and what my work life was like in the army at the new front, I could hear the both of them grit their teeth. ¡°I always worked sixteen hour days.¡± I told them. ¡°I was getting to the point that my skills were no longer needed, considering we had used up all of the supplies and ingredients I had, so I went to the colonel to take the punishment she had assigned before.¡± ¡°She gave you two weeks instead.¡± Rose said, her face blank. ¡°That much I''ve gotten out of her.¡± ¡°Did she tell you that I was pretty much left alone and fended for myself?¡± I asked and she shook her head. ¡°If I hadn''t been smart and brought food and water with me, as well as the potions I managed to keep...¡± Both women looked slightly concerned as I described taking the completely untested regeneration potion that I had just successfully brewed, then the ten days of near delirium and agony as my foot grew back, as well as my lost toes and small fingers. ¡°It even healed all of the damage I had from growing up in the marsh.¡± I said and tapped my cheek where the snake venom hole used to be. ¡°I used to have a hole big enough to put your finger through.¡± Rose reached up and lightly touched the spot for a moment, then motioned for me to continue. I told them about Helena managing to get my medical discharge release confirmed by the king, which happened before I had healed myself, and then I described how Colonel Rivers had taken it as a personal betrayal. The queen sighed and shook her head. ¡°That girl...¡± She looked at me. ¡°I''m sorry that she didn''t tell you what you meant to her.¡± ¡°She did as she ranted at Helena. She said I was an integral part of saving the kingdom and that my dereliction of duty endangered the entire kingdom. She also said that I was going to be needed for years.¡± I said. Both the queen and Rose looked like they knew something and were reluctant to tell me. ¡°I did my duty and ensured all of the kracken tubes had enough ammunition, right up until I wasn''t needed, then I went to the stockade. Even if it wasn''t my duty to be in the stockade, I still served the entire two weeks. I also didn''t complain about how I was treated or about being left there. I learned later that the colonel enjoyed that I was suffering.¡± ¡°Then you took her arm.¡± Rose said in a soft voice. ¡°No, she publicly declared the made up charges that she added to the discharge papers to make me dishonorable, then she robbed me of several hundred thousand crowns worth of money, loot, and rewards for winning the battle.¡± I corrected her. ¡°Then I took her arm instead of killing her.¡± The two women fell silent for several minutes and they sat there as they thought about what I said. ¡°I''ve heard from several sources that you took her arm on purpose.¡± The queen said, slightly angry. ¡°To get her out of the army.¡± I nodded. ¡°I didn''t want her at the new front with the enemy, not in the mental state she was in at the time. She could have prolonged the war, or worse, not listened to orders to cease fire when it was called.¡± The queen lost the anger and sighed. ¡°Did you know she... we... lost her younger brother, Matthew?¡± ¡°Not at the time. I didn''t find out until recently.¡± I said. ¡°Although, I did warn her that it would be too late to make a difference that far away, even if the plan had succeeded without any hiccups or delays.¡± ¡°Then you did have hiccups.¡± Rose said. ¡°Yes. After the devastation the dragons caused in our scouting forces, we revised the plan and doubled up on the transports and the troop movements. We actually ended up finished before the due date she had originally set.¡± I said and gave Rose a sad look. ¡°It was still too late. He and his entire brigade were lost when they were ordered by your older brother to charge at the enemy''s front line that was fully prepared to receive them.¡± Rose caught her breath and the queen let out a sigh. ¡°M-mother? Is it... no, it''s true, isn''t it?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± The queen said and gave her daughter a sorrowful look and then looked at me with a glint of steel in her eyes. ¡°We were trying to protect her from that information.¡± ¡°That''s a mistake.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°With the older brother removed from the line of succession and the younger brother dead, she''s second in line for the throne.¡± ¡°How do you know that?!?¡± The queen asked, surprised. ¡°No one is going to trust the older brother after intentionally getting his brother killed.¡± I said with a shrug. ¡°You only have two daughters left. Who else would take the throne?¡± The queen opened her mouth for a moment, then she closed it with another sigh. ¡°You are a lot smarter than people give you credit for.¡± ¡°I don''t understand why they keep underestimating me. Is it solely because they can''t see past my background?¡± I asked and she didn''t respond. ¡°Did you know the reason so many people passed the entrance exam was because I talked about all of the answers on my unfairly graded test paper?¡± The queen gasped at that realization. ¡°They let you cheat?¡± Rose asked, intrigued. ¡°I didn''t cheat. I was done and before I left, I just happened to discuss the answers they didn''t mark.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± The queen gave me a searching look. ¡°You were taking the test through them.¡± ¡°Most of them had 85% to 90% as their final marks. Since I only had the time to share the hardest part of the exam...¡± ¡°You easily passed with just that section.¡± The queen whispered and sat back in her chair. ¡°You could have skipped the first part entirely and still passed.¡± ¡°I technically did.¡± I said with a smile. ¡°Several students barely made the minimum, one of which was my class partner. She passed with a 67 and told me that she only passed because of me.¡± ¡°Wooooow.¡± Rose whispered, admiration in her voice. ¡°I don''t know what her other classes are like; but, the classes she takes with me really showcase that the test is skewed a bit too much in favor of people who are close to being mages and already have lots of training.¡± I said. ¡°I helped her and gave her some proper instruction for several classes and now she can make potions twenty times better than she did at home. Her basic enchanting carving is coming along nicely, too.¡± ¡°Is that all?¡± The queen asked and seemed interested in my answer. ¡°She already knows how to cast magic normally and can construct her own spell diagrams, as well as do the advanced math.¡± I said with a shrug, without admitting my own severe deficiency in both of those areas. ¡°I''m sure she''s wasting her time in the class as much as I am, considering she does her own self-study during class.¡± ¡°She can already make the spell diagrams and she barely passed the entrance exam?¡± Rose asked, surprised. ¡°How is that possible?¡± ¡°She''s shy and normally can barely speak.¡± I said and both the queen and Rose raised their eyebrows. ¡°I''ve been helping her with that, too.¡± ¡°How?¡± Rose asked, her interest piqued as she sat up straighter. ¡°I shouldn''t say.¡± I said.Stolen novel; please report. ¡°Why?¡± The queen asked. ¡°I mentioned it to some of the other students and they seemed genuinely shocked.¡± I said and refrained from saying it was Helena''s sister and her friends. It wasn''t necessary information. The queen and Rose exchanged looks for a moment and then looked back at me. ¡°I promise to not say anything about it if you tell me what you''ve done to help her.¡± Rose said. ¡°No. I''ve decided that it''s her choice to tell people if she wants to. I''m not responsible enough with the information for it to be safe, assuming it''s not all around the academy already.¡± Rose had a gleam in her eye, similar to her mother''s. ¡°I''ll be going there next year.¡± ¡°I thought you were only fifteen.¡± I said and she smiled. ¡°My birthday''s in the middle of the school year and there''s an early admittance clause for exceptional students.¡± Rose said, pleased with herself. ¡°Thanks to mother''s help with getting me the right tutors, I''ve shown the proper propensity and potential to become a high ranking mage. I''ve already written the practice tests for entrance and I had 95%.¡± ¡°She''s specializing in casting.¡± The queen said and looked quite proud of her daughter. ¡°Unlike her sister, who was groomed from birth to have a pivotal role in the kingdom as the princess, my fourth child was given to me to raise how I wanted.¡± I thought about that. ¡°She was a spare?¡± The queen laughed and Rose looked amused. ¡°No, it was more like the rules and regulations of being the royal family were relaxed for both her and myself when she was born.¡± The queen said and gave her daughter a loving smile. ¡°I don''t think I''ve ever enjoyed being a mother so much while raising my little Rose. She was such a delightful and obedient child.¡± ¡°M-mother.¡± Rose said as her face flushed red in a blush. ¡°Unlike her brothers and older sister, who were unholy terrors that ran through the castle like little demons!¡± The queen said and then laughed. Rose leaned close to me to whisper. ¡°I ran, too. She just never caught me.¡± I gave her a smile and she smiled back before she schooled her face and looked back at her mother. ¡°We''re getting off track.¡± Rose said. ¡°We''re supposed to be listening to David tell us about his life.¡± ¡°I just did.¡± I said and she shook her head. ¡°What happened after your fiance rescued you?¡± Rose asked. ¡°I want you to tell me all about...¡± The parlour door opened and a resplendent man entered without knocking and the king and two men in uniform came in with him. ¡°Ah, there you are.¡± The king said and walked over to us with the other man. ¡°I thought you might have gone on a tour of the castle.¡± ¡°I didn''t know that was an option.¡± I said and he chuckled. ¡°This man is here to show you the documents we''ve prepared for you.¡± The king said and started to sit beside his wife, except there was no chair there. Suddenly, one of the men pulled over a chair and slid it right under the king''s bent knees and the king sat down as if the chair had always been there. The resplendent man asked one of the maids to remove the tea service after the king was served. We all accepted another cup of tea and the maid moved the tea service off to the side to another table. Another maid wiped off the table to make sure that it was clean, then the man carefully laid out several documents as he explained what they were for and what they meant. I liked what I was hearing, which meant he was leaving something out. There was no way that neither the king nor he wouldn''t put something into the documents to make me swear eternal loyalty to the crown or something stupid like rallying my territories to gather troops in times of war. The only troop would be me, which meant I would be fighting wherever they wanted to put me and not on my own terms. ¡°Do you mind if I read them?¡± I asked and the man looked surprised. ¡°It''s all very politically worded and I''m sure you don''t need to waste time by...¡± ¡°Now I have to read them.¡± I said and put my cup down. ¡°Princess Rose, I don''t know a lot of the references and terms, since I grew up without any schooling. Could you help me?¡± Rose''s eyes seemed to dance as she put her cup aside as well. ¡°I would be happy to help.¡± I could almost feel her happiness at being asked to use her knowledge. ¡°Thank you, your highness.¡± I said and then the two of us poured over the documents. We were halfway through the second document when Rose hissed and pointed out the sentence I couldn''t read. ¡°Father, please tell me you didn''t have Klaus add this in on purpose.¡± Rose said, her voice dripping with harsh bitterness. The king sighed. ¡°I knew I should have asked to move this to my office instead.¡± ¡°I would have asked her to come along.¡± I stated, matter of factly. ¡°I''m not stupid. I just don''t know a lot of things. I''ve been correcting that as much as I can lately, though.¡± The queen gave me a slight nod of approval. ¡°I''m also not dumb enough to sign whatever you put in front of me without checking it first.¡± I said and lightly touched Rose''s hand. ¡°Let''s keep checking for anything else that potentially puts me and my entire family into eternal servitude to the kingdom, or worse, consigns me to be at the king''s beck and call.¡± Rose smiled at me and nodded, then we went back to work. ¡°That''s not necessary.¡± The king said and waved at the papers. The resplendent man plucked up the two remaining sheets before Rose and I could read them. ¡°I''ll have replacements done up for you.¡± ¡°I''ll be reading them as well, father.¡± Rose said, her voice stern. ¡°Rose, my little flower, you can''t honestly think that I can hand over all of that land and political power without some reassurances?¡± The king asked. ¡°What political power?¡± I asked, confused. ¡°It''s simple, really.¡± Rose said. ¡°With each lordship granted and depending on the size of the land...¡± ¡°That''s enough.¡± The king said and stopped her from explaining. ¡°He doesn''t need to know about all of that right now.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± Rose asked. ¡°Bequeathing the title has to go before the next session of the lords. Depending on their decision...¡± ¡°Father!¡± Rose spat and stood. ¡°Don''t you DARE hide behind political fog and try to deny David''s right to be a lord by having those ignorant fools make your choice for you!¡± ¡°Rose, please calm down.¡± The queen said, soothingly. ¡°Lords are appointed BY THE KING.¡± Rose said loudly and her voice echoed off the walls. ¡°You are giving him the marsh and all of that land. Even if it''s completely useless as farmland or unable to be developed, it''s still LAND!¡± Her parents seemed a bit stunned at her being so adamant. ¡°You''ve given knights and barons large plots of lands for their contribution to the kingdom. You''ve also raised their titles officially to lords without even consulting Klaus, let alone the other lords.¡± Rose said and took a deep breath. ¡°I WILL NOT let you deny this man his RIGHTFULLY DUE REWARDS for saving us from even more WAR and taking ANOTHER sibling from me!¡± Yes, they are definitely stunned. I thought with a bit of pride at the young woman. I had been slightly premature in my previous judgment that she was more like her mother, because what I had just seen was exactly like her sister''s rant at me. At least this time, it wasn''t directed at me and was used for me instead. ¡°Klaus, write up the proper documents and leave out anything that binds Mr. Drake... no, Lord Drake to anything, including taxation. You can also remove the provision to provide a percentage of the land''s population as troops for the standing army, since no one but him lives there.¡± Rose said and saw the shock on the man''s face. ¡°Rose, you can''t just...¡± The queen started to say. ¡°It''s not like he can send just his finger to fight, mother.¡± Rose said. ¡°He would be the only viable applicant and he would be stuck for the rest of his life in the army as if he was still a conscript, because as each term of service ended, he would have to send another member of the population for service.¡± The queen took in a quick breath and looked at her husband. ¡°Is that true? No, never mind. I know the laws as well as Rose does.¡± She sighed as she thought about it. ¡°Her interpretation is correct.¡± She looked at her daughter and smiled. ¡°That was very astute of you to catch that.¡± ¡°David gave me the idea when he asked me to look for anything that would bind him for eternity to the crown.¡± Rose said. ¡°It reminded me of that clause in the land ownership contract that we read first.¡± ¡°I missed that.¡± I said and reached out to take her hand. ¡°Thank you.¡± Rose''s face flushed red and she bit her lower lip. ¡°You''re welcome.¡± She said and held my hand, then she sat back down beside me and looked at her father. ¡°Go ahead, father. Make it so.¡± The king sighed and waved acceptance at Klaus, who picked up the other documents and left. ¡°He''s going to be a while.¡± Rose said and gave me a pleading look. ¡°Please stay for supper.¡± The king groaned a little and the queen had to stifle a laugh. ¡°Your sister won''t be too happy about that.¡± I said. ¡°Oh, don''t worry. I''m going to have a few words with her while I change into proper meal attire.¡± Rose said. ¡°We have some outfits for you to choose from if you want to borrow...¡± ¡°I can send for my maids and my best suit.¡± I said and Rose smiled as I waved one of the maids over and gave her the information. ¡°Yes, my lord. Right away.¡± The maid said and left at a fast walk. ¡°Now that that''s taken care of, tell me about what being rescued by Lady Henrietta was like and what happened afterwards.¡± Rose said and she sounded genuinely interested. I glanced at the king and he gave the hand signal to proceed, so I did and started to tell Rose the story of my escape from the garrison and everything that happened afterwards. 190 Academy Antics Part Fifty Seven - Theres More To The Story Rose had been completely engrossed in my story and seemed on the edge of her seat as I told her all about meeting Helena''s family. The king, the queen, and Rose didn''t react when I told them about Marcus and the first supper meal with the family. The two men in uniform and the two remaining maids on the other hand, had their mouths covered and looked sick. I moved on to acquiring the Longshore Estate, working on it, and making it even better than it had been. After that, it was my start at the academy. That was when all three of my maids arrived. ¡°It seems I must pause my story here to get ready to enjoy your company at supper.¡± I said and Rose was disappointed. ¡°I can continue after the meal.¡± Rose became happy again and I left the parlour to head to the guest rooms. A castle maid led us there and promised to come and get me when supper was ready. We went inside and the three maids stripped my academy uniform off, careful of my bandoleer and my knife sheath like always, then Sara and Tabitha gave me a thorough bathing. Tabitha did the ritual this time and I was dried off, dressed in my best meal suit, and waited for the maid. She retrieved me and my maids whispered good luck to me as I left. I was taken to a very large dining room that sat fifty people. I didn''t have to ask the castle maid where my seat would be, since I already knew the lowest position was beside the lowest member of the family. I walked around the table and all the way up to the end. I gave the king a bow, the queen, the first princess, and then the second princess. All four of them looked surprised. I sat down beside Rose and her eyebrows rose. ¡°David, what are you doing?¡± Rose whispered the question. ¡°Even if I had signed the papers as they were, I would still only be a guest of your family.¡± I responded in a whisper. ¡°I know my social position.¡± Rose let out a little sigh and didn''t say anything else in protest of my seating choice. Supper commenced and it was pretty lavish. Five courses were served, much more than I''ve ever had in a single meal. It was good that the portions were so small, or I might have had trouble eating it all. They even had different wines served for each course. I had to admit that they complimented the flavor of the food nicely. The king did the end of meal toast after dessert was served and we all drank to it, then Rose practically jumped to her feet. ¡°Bring the wine.¡± Rose said to a maid and took my hand, then almost ran from the room with me in tow. The queen shook her head and followed us, with the same two men in uniform behind her, and Rose led us to a different parlour. This one was more suited for wine drinking apparently, and Rose urged me to continue talking. I hadn''t noticed the dress she wore until she tried to cuddle into my arm and it gave me a down the top view. I had been right and her breasts were both modest and full, because just like Helena and Greta who had worn a similar style dress, it let me see a lot more than I should when the woman chose to show me. The queen must have known, because she was giving her daughter a very pointed look. ¡°Princess Rose.¡± I said. ¡°Yes?¡± Rose asked, her face showing a mischievous smile and her manner was unreserved. I let out a small sigh. ¡°Never mind.¡± Rose''s smile became genuine. ¡°Please, continue your story.¡± I nodded and told them all about the things that happened to me at the academy the last few weeks. The queen couldn''t keep her face calm as I described everything. It took a while before I finally got to taking the trip to get the special flower for the botany workshop. Rose''s eyes almost sparkled as I told her about working on the schooner and then the adventure through the rocky valley. I also told her that Victoria still had no idea we had encountered any of the troglodytes and that only my fiance, Rose and her mother were privy to that information. That pleased both women to no end, as if having information that almost no one else had was more important to them than what the information actually was. I told them about the encounter with the twenty foot long snake and Rose let out a little squeak. I pat her hand that clutched my arm tightly, and continued on about masking our scents and then going right into the large nest of hundreds of snakes. Rose almost whimpered and looked like she was about to cry. ¡°It''s all right. The disguise worked.¡± I reassured her. ¡°We weren''t attacked and we got out of there with six samples and not just one.¡± ¡°Six!¡± The queen gasped and then composed herself. ¡°I apologize. Please continue.¡± I smiled at her and kept talking. I saw both of them visibly relax when I told them about Victoria ranting at me about how scary, crazy, and reckless it had been to do what we did. By the looks on their faces, I was sure that they both would have berated me as well and probably much more sternly, considering their reactions to just hearing about the snakes. My tale continued on the road, the stop at the inn to cook the meat, and my encounter with the cook and the subsequent chase by her husband. Both of them let out girly giggles and covered their mouths at my hasty fleeing with Victoria in my arms. It was nice to see Rose do it and oddly charming to see the queen react the same way. My eyes roamed over her figure in the stylish dress she wore and for some reason, I cast Sense Magic. I saw two glowing things, one bra and one piece of underwear, just like Mage Ridge had worn when we went to see Alex and Donna. I assumed she wore them for the same reason, that she wanted to appear appealing to men, then my gaze went to Rose. My eyes widened as I saw a similar glow of enchantment around her breasts to squeeze them and push them up. I knew that she wanted me to see them by wearing the dress and hugging my arm. I just didn''t realize that she would offer them up so much or so blatantly. I thought about reminding her that I was betrothed, then remembered Victoria''s stance on the whole thing. She was completely comfortable with me and unashamedly teased me with her body as much as she wanted, specifically because she knew I would never betray my word to Helena.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. So, I enjoyed the view for what it was, something I was allowed to look at and never touch, then continued my story about working on the clipper ship. I skipped over the part about seeing Victoria and Cynthia going at it in the tub twice and twice in the bed, because I knew it would embarrass both women if anyone knew. Technically, I wasn''t supposed to know either, so I left it out. I described the incident with Proctor Simmons and both the queen and Rose had a difficult time keeping the anger off of their faces, until I kicked the mage and then threatened him. After that, I told them I made him swear an oath that no one would come after me for what he did, and the very next day, the director sent word to the castle to have me arrested for it. It killed Simmons and the blame was solely on him and the director. ¡°And here we are.¡± I said and waved at the parlour. ¡°You know the rest.¡± ¡°No, you''ve only told us about...¡± Rose started to say and the door opened to admit the resplendent man again with the king behind him and two more uniformed men. ¡°Finally.¡± She said and let my arm go as she held a hand out for the papers. The man gave the king a questioning look and the king nodded. He handed the papers to Rose and she quickly read them over. I also read them and neither of us caught anything that would be bad for me or the citizens living in my marsh. ¡°I think it''s legitimate this time. If it''s not, or if father tries to twist something to his advantage, I''ll set him to rights and you don''t have to worry.¡± Rose said, her voice confident. ¡°Rose, please.¡± The king said with a sigh as he sat next to his wife. ¡°It''s all right, father. I won''t be watching you all the time, just when it concerns our new family friend.¡± Rose said sweetly, then she turned towards the door. ¡°Go ahead, father.¡± The king nodded and turned towards the door of the parlour. ¡°Ellen, come in. We need you for this part.¡± Nothing happened for a minute, then the door opened again and Ellen stepped into the room. She had her face blank and her countenance was reserved. Her dress was similar to the one Rose wore, except that it couldn''t be used effectively. She only had one arm and wouldn''t be able to clutch onto a man''s arm to give him the teasing view the dress was meant to allow. She had a man in uniform behind her and he carried a long box. ¡°Sit, please.¡± The king said to his first daughter. Ellen walked over to us, gave her sister an odd look, then sat down beside her. ¡°The last paper is the contract between our families.¡± The king said to me. ¡°We will provide transport, any ingredients or support you require to get those ingredients, and the facilities to brew the same potion you used on Alex and Donna. When the potion is completed and administered to my daughter Ellen, all the other documents will take effect. You will become a lord that owns the entirety of the marsh, minus the trade route, which will remain to ensure physical contact between the Gulf Kingdom and its territory in the Eastern Empire.¡± I read it over again and saw that it was just a contract. ¡°I assume you contacted Alex and Donna and know what has to happen when the potion is drunk?¡± The king nodded. ¡°I''ve got several healers and maids waiting already. As soon as you can make the potion, Ellen will receive the best care.¡± I glanced at Rose and she nodded. The resplendent man named Klaus handed me a writing instrument and I signed everything. As I wrote out my name on each one, they glowed slightly and a copy was produced. I assumed it was my own copy until a second one was created. I glanced at the resplendent man and he didn''t look surprised, so I kept signing. I reached the contract and read it again, which made Ellen growl a little. I gave her a quick smile and signed my name. After the two copies were produced, Klaus gathered up the originals and tucked them into a small bag he had behind his back. He gathered up the first copies and handed them to the queen, then he gathered up the second copies and handed them to me. ¡°It''s done.¡± The king said and nodded to the man behind Ellen. The man stepped around her and placed the long box on the coffee table. He didn''t wait for the order and opened the box to show me the contents. Inside was a ceremonial short sword that looked brand new. I gave the king a surprised look and he laughed. ¡°Yes, it''s really old and also very clean. The castle maids and butlers do an excellent job on everything, even on things I didn''t realize they took care of.¡± The king said and waved at it. ¡°You can check it to see that it''s quite real and not a replica.¡± ¡°Father?¡± Ellen said, as if it was a question. ¡°Your restoration is worth more than an old family heirloom.¡± The king said. ¡°You are more important to me than any heirloom.¡± Ellen''s face flushed red and she ducked her head. I reached out and touched the blade and only used a slight bit of magic, barely perceptible, and the part I touched glowed for a second. Even if they somehow switched them and it wasn''t the real one, it was still a magical blade and that was all I wanted. ¡°The ceremonial sheath is under the velvet.¡± The uniformed man that gave me the box said. ¡°When the sword is worn on the hip, everyone will know that you have the favor of the royal family.¡± I glanced at the king and queen and both of them nodded. ¡°Our daughter is worth all of this trouble.¡± The queen said and looked at Ellen. ¡°Even though she''s pigheaded, stubborn, extremely opinionated and prone to emotional outbursts at inappropriate times, she''s still our daughter.¡± ¡°M-m-mother!¡± Ellen gasped, her face red. I couldn''t tell if she was angry or embarrassed, though. ¡°You can have the sword now and I''ll have an expedition prepared to head to the marsh.¡± The king said. ¡°When can you go and start this for us?¡± ¡°Go? Why would I go anywhere?¡± I asked and the king''s face went blank. ¡°Are you breaking the contract already? You just signed it!¡± The queen said, surprised. ¡°You bastard! I knew you wouldn''t do it, even for all of that land and a full Lord title!¡± Ellen spat and stood up. ¡°I''m tempted to have you arrested for fraud and tossed into the castle''s deepest and darkest dungeon for fooling us like this!¡± I looked at Rose and she was the only one that didn''t react. In fact, she looked thoughtful. I reached out and briefly touched her face. ¡°Unlike them, you came to the right conclusion.¡± Rose''s face went to a deep red and she bit her bottom lip. I stood and held my hand up in a stop gesture to the uniformed men. ¡°I need to reach into my bandoleer for something. I''ll do it very slowly.¡± The men nodded and I very slowly reached into my suit coat and opened one of the many pouches. I pulled out the vial of completely clear liquid and set it down on the coffee table. Everyone in the room stared at it, as if it was something very precious. It was. ¡°One full restoration potion vial, as agreed.¡± I said and sat back down. The shocked looks on their faces was priceless. 191 Academy Antics Part Fifty Eight - A Complete Exchange ¡°You seem to be under the impression that I don''t have any left.¡± I said as I looked at their shocked faces. ¡°I had enough for four vials and a little bit left over, since the pot was very small and I didn''t have a lot of ingredients left. I used one on myself right away. I used a quarter of one to mix with the little bit and gave it to someone to test if he would grow his hand back. He did.¡± ¡°Oh, my.¡± The queen whispered and her eyes went right to her daughter''s missing arm. ¡°I used another one and the three-quarter full one on Alex and Donna respectively, which left me with just one.¡± I said and looked at Ellen. ¡°It''s up to you if you want to use it.¡± Ellen looked at her sister, who nodded. ¡°Rose told me how unreasonable I was when dealing with you.¡± ¡°You needed someone else to tell you that?¡± I asked. ¡°I thought it was pretty clear.¡± ¡°Shut up and let me speak.¡± Ellen said and I nodded slightly. ¡°You don''t know what you did to me... what your abandonment did to me.¡± She said and her face went red. ¡°You left me. You were my savior, my kingdom''s savior, and you left me right after a major battle.¡± She turned away to stare out the window. ¡°It hurt me so much that you went behind my back and ran away from me like a coward.¡± ¡°You were going to get me killed for no reason.¡± I said and she flinched. ¡°My usefulness was over. We couldn''t get more supplies and potion ingredients because of my injuries and you kept me right there at the new front. I could barely walk straight and you still had me working all day and kept me under constant observation until late at night when I went to bed, just to make sure I wasn''t slacking off.¡± Ellen''s face went red again. ¡°That wasn''t... it doesn''t matter now. What''s done is done.¡± She said and turned back to look at her father. ¡°Take the potion to the potioneers and have them pull it apart and try to recreate it.¡± I chuckled and everyone looked at me. ¡°Do you really think normal potioneers are going to be able to pull apart a one of a kind potion that''s never been brewed before? Do you really believe that they can recreate the recipe and proper procedures to make it again without knowing what the ingredients are?¡± I asked and doubt appeared on their faces. ¡°Plus, you don''t want to break the agreement. The penalties are very severe for the king if you do.¡± ¡°What?¡± Ellen asked, surprised. ¡°He''s right.¡± Rose said and gave me a thoughtful look. ¡°I assumed they put those penalties in it to ensure you would make the potion as quickly as possible. I never thought they could be applied to father as well.¡± The king sighed. ¡°Ellen, drink it.¡± ¡°What? No, I... I want to take the chance that...¡± ¡°Hold her.¡± The king ordered and two of the uniformed men took firm and gentle hold of the princess. He stood as he picked up the vial and walked over to her. ¡°This has cost me a very large political bargaining chip. I hope you appreciate it as much as David is going to appreciate what being a full Lord is going to mean.¡± ¡°N-no, I... I don''t want...¡± Ellen started to say and the king grabbed her mouth, held it open, and nodded to the man on her side without an arm. He clamped Ellen''s nose closed and the king poured in the potion and held her mouth closed. Ellen struggled with it for about ten seconds, then she swallowed it all. A moment later, the two men and the king released her. Ellen took in a deep breath and glared at her father. ¡°You bastard.¡± ¡°I love you, too.¡± The king said and cupped the side of her face. ¡°You''re strong. You''ve always been strong. Now you''ll have your full body back.¡± ¡°Don''t expect me to thank you.¡± Ellen said and then coughed as she hunched slightly in pain. ¡°You need to get her sequestered immediately.¡± I said and stood. ¡°If you''re smart, do what Donna and Alex did.¡± ¡°I was planning to.¡± The king said and nodded to the two men, who carefully picked the princess up and carried her from the room. ¡°Grace.¡± The queen stood immediately. ¡°Rose, attend me.¡± ¡°What about David?¡± Rose asked as she stood. ¡°I''ll have a maid take him to his room to change, then he can leave.¡± The king said and looked at me. ¡°I''ll give you my thanks the next time I see you.¡± I gave him a royal bow and stood up again. ¡°Your highness.¡± The king nodded to me and left the room, then the queen left. Rose turned to me and the conflict was clear on her face. ¡°The academy goes on break for a week for the king''s birthday.¡± I said and she smiled. ¡°I''ll see you then.¡± Rose said and glanced at the two men and the maid still in the room, then she leaned in to kiss my cheek. ¡°Thank you for healing my sister.¡± ¡°She might die if she''s not strong enough.¡± I said. ¡°Oh, don''t worry about that.¡± Rose said with a big smile. ¡°She''s going to fight hard to get through this, I guarantee it.¡± ¡°Why would you guarantee it?¡± I asked. ¡°Because.¡± Rose walked over to the open door and looked back at me. ¡°She can''t punch you in the face properly with only one arm.¡± She said with a laugh. ¡°Or hug you. What she wants to do to you changes every day.¡± ¡°What? Hug me?¡± I asked, confused. ¡°What for?¡± Rose laughed again. ¡°I knew you were completely clueless.¡± She said as she gave me a wave and left. ¡°My lord, right this way.¡± The maid said and I picked up the box with the ceremonial short sword in it. The two men in uniforms walked behind us as I followed the maid back to the guest rooms. They waited outside while I was quickly changed into a nice suit and the ceremonial short sword was added to the scabbard underneath and the belt was secured around my waist. The royal crest was emblazoned on the handle, the blade, and even the scabbard.If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. It was only a short sword, so it wouldn''t be too cumbersome to walk around with it on. If necessary, I could add a tie to the bottom of the scabbard and secure it to my thigh. I left it as it was for now and my maids and I were escorted through the castle and back to the apparently hidden staircase. The maid left then and the two men in uniforms led us down to the building beside the castle. ¡°There''s a carriage waiting for you.¡± One of the men said and opened the front door for us. ¡°Have a good day.¡± I nodded to him and we left the building. The plain carriage was only ten feet away and the coachman opened the door for us. I helped the maids climb in and Sara sat with Hope on the backwards facing seat. Tabitha looked very happy when I sat beside her and the carriage took off. I asked the driver to drop Sara and Tabitha off at the Henrietta Longshore Estate and he diverted his path in that direction. ¡°Please tell Helena I would have come inside to see her if I had a teacher with me. I doubt I would get away with visiting alone, even after visiting the king and his family.¡± Both Sara and Tabitha nodded in understanding, so I took out the documents to show them why I had been brought to the palace. Hope, Sara, and Tabitha all stared at them. ¡°They... they gave you the marsh.¡± Sara whispered. ¡°Oh, my god. They gave you the whole marsh.¡± ¡°I also have the full title of Lord.¡± I said and pointed to the second document. ¡°It''s not a baron title, or a count or viscount title, or anything like that.¡± I pointed to the third document. ¡°That''s a full pardon for all crimes that may have been committed by me, including the supposed crimes I was accused of today.¡± ¡°D-David.¡± Hope whispered as tears came to her eyes and the other two maids were close to crying, too. ¡°Oh, David.¡± ¡°We''re here, my lord.¡± The driver called out and the carriage came to a stop. I stepped out when the door opened and helped Sara and Tabitha climb out. ¡°Let Helena know. I''ll write her a letter tonight and I''ll give it to you tomorrow to give to her.¡± ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± Sara said, her face tearful and happy. ¡°She''ll know as soon as we step through the door.¡± That made me smile and the two maids walked very quickly to the gate. The guards there opened it for them and closed it behind them. I stepped back into the carriage and we drove off to go to the academy. I remembered this ride from the first time I took it and it was just as long and as quick as I remembered. Hope had moved from her seat to sit beside me and hugged my arm. ¡°You''re a lord.¡± Hope said. ¡°A real lord. It''s not just the honorary title people say to you when they greet you, either.¡± ¡°I was going to become one when I married Helena anyway, so it''s not that big of an event.¡± ¡°That''s almost three years away.¡± Hope said. ¡°You would be on shaky ground politically going anywhere or doing anything, since you were only a student.¡± She rested her head on my shoulder. ¡°Now? You''re an actual lord. No one can do or say anything against your upbringing.¡± ¡°Unless they''re idiots.¡± I corrected and she laughed. ¡°Okay, I have to agree with that.¡± Hope said and went quiet for the rest of the ride. We entered the academy gates and just for fun, I flashed the Lord title document at the guard. He took in a startled breath and nearly fell backwards. He even watched us as the carriage drove across the campus until we were out of his sight. ¡°He didn''t close the gate! Ha ha!¡± Hope laughed and I had to laugh a little, too. We were dropped off at the dorm mansion, which for some reason, didn''t surprise the driver at how nice it looked. I asked how much the ride was and he waved me away. I took out a gold coin and he snapped the reins on the horses to get the carriage moving without taking the money. I put the coin away and motioned to take the bag from Hope, since I was already carrying the empty sword box. Hope shook her head and we went in through the open doors that the guards held for us. ¡°Can your bath wait until morning? All of this excitement has exhausted me.¡± ¡°Oh, no. My primary maid is shirking her duties.¡± I said and did a very good impression of a chicken when I clicked my tongue at her. ¡°Whatever will I do?¡± Hope let out another laugh and then rolled her eyes. ¡°I''m still helping you change, I just don''t think I''ll last much longer than that.¡± She said and took my hand as we went up the stairs. Soon, we were both in our night clothes and tucked into bed. Hope didn''t say anything as she cuddled my arm and quickly fell asleep. The documents, the short sword, and my bandoleer were inside my personal vault and my knife was under my pillow. I closed my eyes and went into the same restful and vigilant state that let me stay alert and sleep at the same time. I had missed that feeling a lot and let myself enjoy being back at my peak. I really had let myself be too relaxed while going to classes and that wouldn''t do. Not at all. My skills would need to be honed with use, not sitting idly. That thought made me smile, especially since I had to start on those potions for Mage Marks. I thought over what I needed to do and decided. I would get up extra early and get at least two batches done, as well as the crate of healing potions for Vanessa. I had missed my chance to do it because I was at the castle and dealing with the royal family. It was well after curfew and I wouldn''t be able to deliver them, even if I had them ready. I pushed all those thoughts out of my head and rested for almost six hours and it seemed to pass by in an instant. I climbed out of bed and changed into casual clothes, then went to work. Since I had plenty of time before I had to bathe and get ready for classes, I did what Gary used to complain about and worked my ass off. I still didn''t really understand the reference, and it didn''t really matter. I had applied it properly and that''s what counted. It actually took me half as long as brewing the cleaning potions to bottle and crate them up. I was really glad for the deliveries that came right to the dorm mansion, if only for that reason. I actually managed four full brewing sessions, minus one lone pot for the healing potion at the start, and I ended up with nearly 1,700 cleaning potions in 47 crates and one crate of healing potion for Vanessa. I was going to give them all to her, because she wouldn''t get away with only drinking a quarter dose of the weaker versions. I would tell her that she should drink the whole vial instead of trying to parse them out into the three-quarter doses that she would need. It would just be a time consumer if she did and she only had the one full crate of her own potions to use with them, anyway. Hope came to get me when it was time for breakfast and I put the crate of healing potions beside the front door to take with me. We ate the delicious food and left the dining room to go upstairs for my bath. I was undressed and the water set, then she almost sighed in relief when Sara and Tabitha showed up. Both women gave her playful taps on the head, as if they were petting her, then they shooed her out of the bathroom when she finally laughed. I was bathed and dried, the ritual performed twice because of my official title, or so they claimed. I was brought out of the bathroom to be dressed and my academy uniform was applied. I retrieved my new ceremonial short sword, my bandoleer, and my documents. I needed to treat the papers to preserve them and make them last a long time. That reminded me to write a quick letter to Helena and I sat down at my desk and did so. My writing was fairly fast and concise, so I quickly finished recounting the events at the castle and gave the letter to Sara. When I stood up, my hand banged the scabbard and almost knocked it off of the table. Tabitha picked it up for me and gave it a brief hug. I mentioned adding the tie to keep the short sword close to my thigh and all three women shook their heads. ¡°It needs to be seen, my lord.¡± Sara said. ¡°No one will notice if its tucked to your leg like your old clothes and the knife sheath you had sewn into them.¡± ¡°But, that was the point. No one really paid attention to see where I had it.¡± I said. ¡°This is exactly the opposite of what you want to do.¡± Tabitha said and she and Sara put the sword''s belt around my hips. ¡°Unlike your knife, which is a formidable weapon and should be kept hidden, people need to see this weapon and the royal crest placed on it.¡± ¡°It shows that the king himself has approved of you.¡± Sara said, her voice full of pride. ¡°Hope, his enchanting things.¡± ¡°Right here.¡± Hope said and handed me the small pack with my tools and some wildwood pieces that I had cut into appropriate sizes and pre-carved to preserve their magic potential. ¡°I won''t tell you to take it easy on the teachers, not after everything that''s happened.¡± ¡°Are you sure? I don''t want to shock them. Again.¡± I said and that made all three of my maids laugh. ¡°H-have fun, my lord.¡± Sara said and the three of them walked me to the front door. I picked up the crate of healing potions and the maids waved to me as I walked towards the academy''s main campus. 192 Academy Antics Part Fifty Nine - Enchanters Delight I was a bit early, specifically because I needed to meet Vanessa before she left her dorm. I walked fast and made it to the female dorms, just as all of the girls flooded out through the doors. I stepped aside and occasionally called Vanessa''s name, in case she somehow slipped by me. Suddenly, the flow was interrupted and the girls parted to allow the dorm manager to step out from behind her desk. She walked into the group of girls in the small lobby and seemingly plucked Vanessa out of it. She walked her over to me and as soon as they were out of the way, the flow of girls started up again. ¡°I see you have another crate of potions.¡± The dorm manager said. ¡°Vanessa needs them to mix with the crate I made last week.¡± I said and looked at Vanessa. ¡°You only need about three quarters of a dose per vial of mix; but, there''s no point in trying to measure out that much each time. Just drink the whole thing when you take it.¡± ¡°Three quarters of a dose?¡± Vanessa asked in a whisper as she picked up one of the vials. ¡°You were right. This is significantly weaker than the original.¡± ¡°It''s weaker because of the weaker ingredients, and I even used my distilling technique to make two separate ingredients into a more concentrated form.¡± I said. ¡°It''s still much better than anything else available and it also still has the same multiple use characteristics.¡± ¡°Will it be a little longer in taking effect?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°Thankfully, no. It just takes more to achieve the same result.¡± ¡°That''s a relief.¡± Vanessa whispered and turned to the dorm manager. ¡°I request an escort back to my room.¡± The dorm manager smiled, because just then the last of the girls left. ¡°I assume you''re going to using these more often?¡± She waved to the stairs and put her arm through mine. ¡°Combined with the ones I still have, they should last me just over a month and a half.¡± Vanessa said as she led us up the stairs. ¡°I''m going to beg David to help me make more, if you can see to approving the potion setup for my room.¡± The dorm manager shook her head. ¡°I can''t approve a dangerous apparatus in a personal room, nor will you be allowed to light a fire inside, even if it will be a controlled and closely monitored flame.¡± Vanessa sighed and we went up to the top floor and down the hallway to her room. I put the crate down right in front of it when she opened the door. She gave me a smile as she pulled it into her room without shutting the door. She struggled a little with it as she bent over at the waist to pick it up. Her skirt seemed to be a little shorter than normal and I saw most of her thighs from behind. ¡°You shouldn''t do that.¡± I said and she let the crate go to look at me. ¡°You need to lift with your legs. You''ll hurt yourself if you lift with your back muscles.¡± ¡°Oh! I thought you... um...¡± Vanessa blushed a little. ¡°I''ll try it.¡± The dorm manager and I watched as she bent at the knees before grabbing the crate, then she stood up and grunted loudly. She took one step forward, wobbled, and plopped the crate onto her bed. It bounced a little and settled, so she knelt on the floor and pushed. The crate pulled on the blanket as it moved to the center of the bed. ¡°I''ll... worry about... making the bed again... later.¡± Vanessa panted. ¡°You need to exercise more.¡± The dorm manager said. ¡°If a crate of potions exhausts you that much, your endurance must be horrendous.¡± ¡°I did... exercise.¡± Vanessa whispered and stood up as she wiped a bit of sweat from her forehead. ¡°In fact, the instructor said I overdid it and would be weak for a couple of days.¡± ¡°Why didn''t you say anything?¡± The dorm manager said and entered her room. She fussed over Vanessa for a few moments while chanting something, then she nodded. ¡°All right, I agree. You need to relax and not strain yourself. I''ll put you down for light work and send word to your teachers to not give you too much to do.¡± ¡°N-no, that''s all right.¡± Vanessa said and waved her hands in a clear sign of denial. ¡°I''ll get by. I always do.¡± The dorm manager gave her a stern look, then she nodded. ¡°Okay, I''ll take your word for it.¡± She took Vanessa''s arm and led her over to me. ¡°Mr. Drake, please let her depend on you for today.¡± Vanessa shut and locked the door before taking my arm. ¡°It''s Lord Drake now.¡± I said and both women caught their breath. ¡°The king granted me the full title yesterday.¡± ¡°Wh-what... no, how could you meet...¡± The dorm manager mumbled. I put my hand on the hilt of the short sword to bring her attention to it. Vanessa''s eyes were huge as she looked down at it. The dorm manager held her breath as she knelt on the floor in front of me. ¡°That... that really is...¡± ¡°The castle''s ceremonial short sword.¡± I said and pulled it out enough to show the royal emblem that was emblazoned on the metal. ¡°I also have the signed document of my Lordship if you need more proof.¡± The woman''s fingertips lightly touched the scabbard and then she stood. ¡°You must have the royal family''s favor if they gifted such an ancient relic over to you.¡± ¡°I do.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°I believe I have more to tell everyone on the staff than Vanessa''s weakened state.¡± The dorm manager said. ¡°You need to walk quickly if you want to arrive in class before the bell and be careful of the woman on your arm.¡± I nodded and led Vanessa down the hallway. ¡°A lord. You''re a lord now.¡± Vanessa breathed and she trembled under the fast pace I used going down the stairs. At least, I thought it was the pace. I would have to do something about it. ¡°Yes, I am.¡± I said and dug out one of the three remaining vials of strength potion I had. ¡°Take a sip of this.¡± Vanessa didn''t even ask me what it was and drank a little bit of it. I gave her some healing potion next to settle the straining feeling of her muscles and she took in a huge breath. ¡°David, I don''t know what to say.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°I never imagined...¡± She paused as we left the dorm and I picked up the pace. ¡°I thought you had to wait to become a lord after your marriage.¡± ¡°With the size of the land that the Henrietta Longshore Estate is on, I was probably going to become a lesser lord like a baron.¡± I said and glanced at her to make sure she wasn''t straining or breathing excessively. ¡°I was granted ownership of the marsh I grew up in. Drake''s Marsh.¡± Vanessa didn''t say anything and just stared at me. We walked on and reached the main student classroom building and went inside unimpeded, because no other student was around. We had enchanting and runes this morning and we stepped into the classroom just as the bell went off. ¡°Well, it was nice of you to show up. I was getting a little worried that you were going to take my warning last week to heart about this class being a quick one for you and just staying away.¡± Mage Black Montgomery said with a chuckle. ¡°I''m glad I was wrong.¡±You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. ¡°I was delivering a crate of potions to Vanessa''s dorm and it delayed us in arriving.¡± I said and led Vanessa to her desk and sat beside her. ¡°I would send word or have word sent if I wasn''t going to attend.¡± Black nodded and waved at his wife. ¡°I''m going to allow half an hour of rune instruction by my wife to make sure that I didn''t lead some of you in the wrong direction.¡± A girl put up her hand and he nodded. ¡°Is there any trick to it? How can you get the symmetry exact without spending so much time measuring and plotting the shape?¡± ¡°Unfortunately, it takes time and practice to get the shape right. Since there are so many runes, there''s no generic trick that can assist you in prepping for the drawing.¡± Mage Heather Montgomery said. I glanced at Vanessa with a smirk on my face and she gave me a huge and brief smile in return. ¡°It''s the same with carving, I''m afraid.¡± Black said. ¡°Time, practice with the appropriate tools, and patience. Without those, nothing you do will work anywhere near as well when you add your blood to invoke the enchantment.¡± Again with the blood? I thought and looked at the teachers as I schooled my face to remain impassive and not show my surprise. They don''t use the enchantment potion? How do they evenly distribute their magic throughout the carving without it? Heather stood up and gave everyone a smile. ¡°Please take out your practice sheets from last week and I''ll come around to check your progress.¡± Another girl''s hand went up and the teacher nodded. ¡°Do you doubt your husband''s ability?¡± ¡°Wh-what? Goodness, no!¡± Heather said, quite nervously. ¡°No, I want to see your work, not his. His instructions have always been clear and precise. I would never doubt him.¡± That had a lot of the girls nod their head and Black gave us all a reassuring smile. ¡°She really does want to check how far along in the rune''s recreation you all are before I show you the enchantment that uses the rune.¡± Black said. ¡°Like I told you last week, the enchantment won''t even accept an infusion if the rune, the main ingredient of the enchantment, isn''t as perfect as you can make it.¡± I barely stopped myself from raising my hand to correct him. I knew, from years of practice, that you can be a bit sloppy and even make blatant mistakes. All you would do is ensure that the enchantment would drop in efficiency. It would still work as long as it was complete. Almost as if he knew I wanted to say something, he gave me a glance and a wink with a slow shake of his head. No one else noticed and I slowly nodded in return. Everyone brought out their work from last week and I took out the piece of wood that Vanessa and I had used and my tool sets. Heather didn''t look surprised as she saw the wood on my desk and she went around to everyone as Vanessa took out the paper sheets she had practised on. I took my lone sheet out with just the one marking on it, that I had drawn as soon as I saw the rune, just in case the teacher wanted it cleanly on paper first. Heather did want that and looked pleased with what she saw on Vanessa''s papers and then her eyes widened at my clean one. ¡°Where are your practice sheets? I need to see your progress...¡± ¡°That is my practice sheet.¡± I said and tapped the piece of wood. ¡°These two carvings are mine and those are Vanessa''s. She''s done really well.¡± Heather turned the wood around and lightly touched the carvings I had made, one the size of the example and one the size that it would be in the enchantment. She looked at Vanessa''s and her head nodded as she looked at all six of them and their progressive improvements. ¡°These are well done.¡± Heather said and put the wood down. ¡°Mr. Drake, If you would be so kind, I''d like to speak to you during the break between morning classes.¡± ¡°It''s Lord Drake now.¡± I corrected and a collective gasp came from the other girls. ¡°You... you''re kidding.¡± Heather whispered, her face worried. ¡°No, the king himself granted me the title yesterday, as well as the entirety of Drake''s Marsh between the Gulf Kingdom and the Eastern Empire.¡± ¡°Oh, my god!¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light!¡± ¡°No way!¡± ¡°That''s not possible!¡± ¡°He has to be lying!¡± The various girls in the class exclaimed at the same time. ¡°Mr. Drake... Lord Drake.¡± Black said as he addressed me. ¡°I assume you have proof for such a claim.¡± ¡°I have a copy of the signed documents.¡± I said and slowly stood. No one had noticed the short sword on my left hip, so I slowly reached for it with my right hand and drew it. The sound was distinct as the sword was released from the scabbard and I held it up. Gasps and two squeals came from the girls and Heather''s face was completely pale as she stared at the bared ceremonial sword that had the royal crest emblazoned on it. ¡°Yes, I believe that''s proof enough of the royal family''s favor.¡± Black said and the smile on his face wasn''t forced. ¡°I assume it was a recent development?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I said as I put the sword back into the scabbard and sat down. ¡°Last night after we ate supper together, in fact.¡± ¡°You even spent personal time with the whole family?¡± Heather asked, clearly surprised. ¡°Just with the king, the queen, and their two daughters... plus the guards and multiple maids when we went to the wine parlour to talk.¡± I clarified for her and Vanessa gasped. ¡°Yes, the first princess was there.¡± Complete silence fell in the classroom and they all stared at me with various emotions on their faces. Disbelief and dismay were on some, shock on a few, envy on a few, and the last was desire. It was the girl that had fancied me the first day of classes and two girls beside her. Their faces were flushed red and even from this far away, I could hear them panting a little. After a few minutes, Mage Black Montgomery cleared his throat. ¡°All right, we''ve slacked off enough for this class. Take out new paper and do your best to recreate the rune on the board.¡± His wife Heather shook slightly, as if coming out of a trance, then she started her slow circuit as she walked around the classroom to give advice to the other students as they worked. Black came over to my desk to whisper. ¡°I assume I don''t have to give you any wildwood.¡± He said and handed me the enchantment he would be teaching us in the second class of the morning. ¡°Only the daggers when you think it''s appropriate.¡± I whispered back and he smiled. ¡°Carry on.¡± Black said with a nod, nodded at Vanessa, and went back to his desk. ¡°Do two more drawings on the wood and carve them.¡± I whispered to Vanessa as I took out two small squares of wildwood. She did as I said while I cleaned the little squares of the preliminary carvings and then I examined the enchantment that Black had handed to me. It had clean lines and the rune placement was just where I had imagined it. The reserve magic channel and the circulation paths were slightly different, however. Mine was a lot more efficient and I looked at the teacher with the question on my face. He came right over to me and bent down to pretty much hide me from view of everyone, except for Vanessa right beside me. ¡°I know what you''re going to ask.¡± Black whispered with a smile. ¡°Yes, I intentionally made the enchantment weaker.¡± ¡°You''re keeping your deeper family secrets.¡± I responded and he nodded. ¡°You know I fixed this already, don''t you?¡± Black had a hard time not laughing as he took out another piece of paper. ¡°Does it look like this?¡± I glanced at the paper and saw the difference. I took the paper from him and used my pencil to add the magic reserve command on one of the magic channels and added a secondary flow path that ran counter to the one he already had that used the reserve as a power source. I handed the paper back to him and he stared at me with his mouth open. ¡°Now it''s fixed.¡± I whispered. ¡°Depending on the magic used when activating it, you can double the effect for two strikes.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Black whispered. ¡°This can give someone a bonus on a forward swing with a weapon and then on the back swing.¡± ¡°Actually, that would be the best use, since the magic would discharge within a few seconds of the first strike anyway.¡± I replied. ¡°If the wielder is careful, they can repeat it as many times as they want, even if they only have a small amount of magic.¡± ¡°With the reserve, you can even pre-charge it.¡± Black said, thinking about it. ¡°I''d say five minutes prior and no more. The channels aren''t large enough to hold the magic much longer than that.¡± I said and pointed to the enchantment. ¡°If you sell that, I want a cut of the profits.¡± Black looked surprised for a moment, then he chuckled. ¡°Oh, no. This isn''t being put out for public use. After I talk to my father, we''ll have a few test swords made up. If this works even half as efficiently as I know it will, my family will have something that no other family has.¡± ¡°I hope you won''t mind if I play with it on my own.¡± I said and he put a hand on my shoulder. ¡°As long as you don''t do the same thing and sell it. If everyone had it, no one would have that first surprise advantage in a battle.¡± Black said. ¡°Go ahead and carve one up for yourself, then do the weak one for the class. We can compare the two when they are activated.¡± I nodded and got to work as he went back to his desk. Black sat there and started writing something, then kept writing for the rest of the first morning class. 193 Academy Antics Part Sixty - Second Impressions I was done of my carvings ten minutes later, as was Vanessa. She watched as I took out a silvery potion and carefully used it to fill in the carvings. I whispered to her to use the book to block the sight from everyone and then I infused both of the enchantments. Both glowed brightly for a few seconds and then the glow faded. ¡°Do I even want to know what the heck that was?¡± Vanessa asked as she stared at the two squares. ¡°Yes, you do.¡± I whispered back and used some fortifying waterproof potion on them. As an added caution, I cut a sliver from another square and used a dab of number ten potion to cover up the more powerful enchantment. It needed to remain a secret, after all. Mage Black Montgomery stood up with a folded letter and whispered something to his wife. He glanced at me and I held up the two squares. He nodded and left the classroom at a fast walk. It took him nearly twenty-five minutes to return and he had a very old man with him. His wife Heather looked very surprised when she saw the old man and went over to them. They talked in hushed whispers, so that none of the students could hear. I easily could, since my vigilance technique was always on, and overheard them discussing my breakthrough achievement with the simple enchantment. The old man was adamant that he wanted me to marry his granddaughter, despite me already being betrothed. It was almost funny as they argued, because the granddaughter was only a child. ¡°What''s going on?¡± Vanessa asked in a whisper as she watched the confrontation. ¡°I can only see Mage Black Montgomery''s mouth and I''m not getting the whole conversation.¡± I leaned in close. ¡°The old man wants me to marry his six year old granddaughter to get me permanently bonded to his family.¡± ¡°You mean betrothed, don''t you?¡± Vanessa asked, confused. ¡°Nope.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°I know. I almost laughed when he said it.¡± Vanessa clamped her mouth shut and also looked like she was going to laugh. It was ridiculous. I couldn''t marry a child, not even with the family''s permission, and that would only be if I wasn''t already betrothed. I was, to a very prominent family, and even if they could somehow coerce Grand Mage Henrietta to remove his permission, I would still marry Helena. I gave my word and that was that. The family squabble ended abruptly and the old man let out an exaggerated sigh. Vanessa had to cover her mouth to smother her giggle, because she knew that the old man had lost the argument. The three of them came over to my desk and the old man waved a hand and said a mumbled chant to make smoky glass panels appear around us. ¡°Show me.¡± The old man demanded. ¡°I need something to break.¡± I said. After two more chants from the old man, a glass container appeared on my desk and a six inch block of ice appeared inside it. I charged up the normal one that Mage Black Montgomery had told me to make for the class and the old man let out another sigh. Vanessa giggled again and the old man raised his eyebrows at her. ¡°It''s been years since I heard a young woman giggle.¡± The old man said. ¡°Forgive me, my Lord.¡± Vanessa whispered and ducked her head. ¡°That wasn''t an admonishment.¡± The old man said and looked at me. ¡°Go ahead with the useless one and then show me the real one.¡± I gave him a slight smile and slapped the wooden square onto the ice. A distinct crack was heard and the ice split right down the middle. Heather gasped and Black looked surprised. The old man raised a single eyebrow, then he huffed and waved his hand to make the broken ice disappear. ¡°Now the new one.¡± The old man said as another block of ice appeared. ¡°Full charge?¡± I asked and the old man nodded. I picked up the ''blank'' square and poured my magic into it. The wood glowed and that surprised the three of them. I held it on the edge and brought it down to smack the ice and the ice shattered into hundreds of pieces and sprayed everywhere. Only two large chunks were left in the container, so I hit one of them to smash it and the glow faded from the wood. ¡°You don''t even need the wooden dagger?¡± Black asked and I could see his mind working. ¡°It''s the same principle.¡± I said and pointed to the corner. ¡°I just imagined this was the tip of a blade as I struck.¡± ¡°May I see it?¡± The old man asked and I handed it over. He made the ice disappear and made another block appear. He charged the wood enchantment up and did as I did, using the corner as the tip of the blade, and repeated the same result. The ice block shattered and the old man grinned as he hit a smaller chunk and the glow faded. ¡°It uses my own proprietary infusion technique and catalyst.¡± I said and the old man nodded. ¡°I know. I could feel the difference. You''ve infused your magic into the engraving itself and not the wood that the engraving is on.¡± The old man looked at the bonded square. ¡°You hid it from view?¡± ¡°Mage Black Montgomery said it was to be kept between your family and mine.¡± The old man looked at Vanessa. ¡°She''s petitioned to be my concubine.¡± I said and Mage Heather Montgomery gasped again. The old man gave me a tooth bearing grin. ¡°Good work, my boy. Good work. It''s always nice when a woman is more interested in being with you than with strictly following traditional society rules.¡± He said and handed me the wood back. ¡°Is your betrothal ironclad?¡± I chose to tell him the thought I had before. ¡°Even if Grand Mage Henrietta rescinded his offer and permission, I would marry Helena anyway. I won''t break my word.¡± ¡°Good. Good. You''re reliable.¡± The old man said and then gave me a skeptical look. ¡°Is it true? She''s already pregnant?¡± ¡°G-g-g-grandfather!¡± Heather exclaimed. ¡°It''s not possible for...¡± ¡°On our very first try.¡± I said, knowing now that it was a point of pride for mages. Heather wavered a little and nearly fainted. Her husband easily caught her and held her steady. ¡°I deeply regret that you''re already betrothed.¡± The old man lamented, his face sad. ¡°I''ll add you to the list of women that have told me the same thing.¡± I responded and the old man looked shocked. Black laughed and clapped the old man on the shoulder. ¡°I bet it''s a long list.¡± ¡°And getting longer.¡± Vanessa whispered. I put an arm around her shoulders and she leaned against me to sigh. ¡°I won''t break my word.¡± ¡°I know you won''t.¡± Vanessa whispered with a smile. ¡°I''ll have six swords commissioned immediately.¡± The old man said. ¡°I''ll do three of them.¡± ¡°I''ll be able to do two.¡± Black said and gave me a smile. ¡°Would you like to do one?¡± ¡°Normally or like this?¡± I asked and held up the covered square. ¡°Oh, definitely like that.¡± Black said. ¡°Grandfather?¡± ¡°Yes, we can do it sometime this week, if that''s agreeable.¡± The old man said. ¡°I have the entire afternoon off today.¡± I said and the old man gave me another tooth bearing grin.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. ¡°Good!¡± The old man said, happily. ¡°After lunch, we can head right over to our blacksmith. I''ll send word right now to get him started.¡± ¡°Can he make six swords and keep them near the molten stage?¡± I asked. ¡°He''ll have them made and we will join him near the forges when he tempers the metal.¡± The old man said. ¡°It is best to settle the enchantment during the final stage, so it can fully integrate with the object.¡± ¡°I see.¡± I said and considered it. ¡°Would you mind if I prepare one of your three swords? I want to know if someone else can power and infuse the same enchantment to get the same result.¡± The old man gave the two teachers a searching look. ¡°I''ve heard he can infuse several potions within minutes.¡± Black said. ¡°It''s just a rumor, though.¡± ¡°What would you say if I claimed to do four potions within that time frame?¡± I asked and the three people had shocked looks on their faces. ¡°So, nothing?¡± I asked and Vanessa giggled beside me. The old man smiled. ¡°I''ll allow you to use your own preparation technique. I haven''t tried to infuse the work of someone else before, so I am curious if it''ll work as well.¡± ¡°Do you only want this modified one or do you want the full family enchantment?¡± I asked and all three of them gave me shocked looks again. ¡°I''ll need a few hours to decipher the crest completely and to fix it. I don''t know what the other runes are for, since only three of them are connected with the damage rune.¡± The old man gave Black another questioning look. ¡°I told you how quickly he modified the real one.¡± Black said. ¡°Even if he doesn''t know what the rune components do, he can create the proper structure to string them together. I''m sure of it.¡± The old man nodded and held a hand out to him. Black handed over a piece of parchment and the old man quickly drew out the full secret family crest. Heather took in a sharp breath as he did so and she looked like she wanted to snatch it away or hide it. ¡°Show me what you can do with this.¡± The old man said and slid it back over to me. ¡°If you give me a preliminary drawing, I''ll tell you what the other runes are for.¡± ¡°Grandfather!¡± Heather gasped. ¡°We are under a tentative verbal agreement to keep our secrets.¡± The old man said. ¡°I haven''t seen anyone complete an enchantment as quickly as Black has told me, and that includes me.¡± Heather closed her mouth and nodded. She knew he was right. No one she knew could do it within moments. I took out a piece of paper and recreated the enchantment with a pencil, then below it, I drew out each component. I had been pulling enchantments apart for years and it was child''s play to mark out which was which. Heather, Black, the old man, and Vanessa watched as I easily recreated each of the components and at the very bottom of the page, I redrew each of the runes perfectly. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Heather whispered. I took another piece of paper and stared at the components. I knew some of the magic channels were a bit too long and it would cause the activation to take longer. That was not something you could suffer through in a fight. If your magic blade didn''t glow right away, you were dead. I put the first damage rune down and drew the same power line to it, then added the second rune. I had no idea what it was for, only that it took too long to light up because of where it was situated. I changed the channel to shorten it significantly and added it to the power line. With that change, the next rune needed a magic reservoir and I added it on the other side to connect it to a circular magic channel and connected it to the first. I added the final rune in the empty space in the circle, then added in the final components of a proper enchantment to complete the circle. I drew the outer boundary and then went back over everything to add in redundancy and extra connections, then added in a second magic reservoir on a separate power channel. I checked over my work and shook my head. It was a bit messy and I made a mistake on one of the power connections, so I used another piece of paper to redraw it, fixed the connection, and handed the completed enchantment to the old man. It was almost completely different from the one he had handed to me. ¡°G-g-grandfather.¡± Black whispered, his voice trembling. ¡°I know.¡± The old man said, his own voice tightly controlled. He put a finger on the original sheet where I had written out the runes. ¡°Damage.¡± He pointed to the next rune. ¡°Sharpness.¡± He pointed to the next one. ¡°Toughness.¡± He pointed to the last one. ¡°Durability.¡± ¡°Ohhh.¡± I said. Now that I knew what the runes were for, I could fix the design. I held my hand out for the paper. ¡°I need that back to fix it.¡± ¡°What?¡± Heather asked, finally getting over her stunned silence and the old man almost hugged it to keep it. I tried to not laugh at that. ¡°Durability and toughness need to be charged first or they''ll be useless. They are also on the wrong channels for power consumption.¡± I pointed to the runes and traced the lines. ¡°The two reserve magic lines need to be attached directly to the sharpness and damage runes instead. They are the ones that need the significant boost when attacking.¡± The old man almost looked lost as he handed me the paper back. I had to chuckle at his reluctance and took out another sheet, then got back to work. To their surprise, it looked completely different again, because I had to rearrange their positions and put the durability and toughness runes nearer to the outside of the circle and put the magic reservoirs on the sharpness and damage runes. I added in the finishing mark just as the class bell rang, which signified the the end of the first morning class, and handed the new completed enchantment to the old man. He took it like it was made of solid gold and would break if he wasn''t careful. I didn''t remind him that it was made of paper and that I could draw it again if he needed me to. That actually reminded me to make it the right size for enchanting and used another piece of paper to draw it smaller. None of them noticed as they stared at the new enchantment, except for Vanessa, who had put her hand on my knee to lean in and watched me closely instead. I drew it six times on the paper, duplicating it exactly, then drew it again for myself to keep and added in the notes on what the runes did. I couldn''t add in the actual percentages of what they would change on the weapon, since I had designed it to scale with the amount of magic used to activate it. ¡°You''re amazing.¡± Vanessa whispered. I tucked my paper into my writing pad and picked up the practice sheets. I put them into the glass container and used the fire starter spell to light them. With a whoosh, the papers were all consumed and only ashes were left. Heather was startled and looked at the container, then she sighed. ¡°Mr. Drake... Lord Drake.¡± She said and ducked her head. ¡°I''m sorry that I tried to cast a compulsion spell on you to get your attention.¡± Black reached up and flicked her ear with his fingers to make her flinch. ¡°Say it right.¡± Heather gave him a quick glare, then sighed again. ¡°I was trying to entice you into being attracted to me... a little... so I could keep your attention solely focused on me while in class. It usually works and keeps students diligent and working hard. It also makes them listen to me when I speak.¡± I had to think about that. ¡°Why me? I didn''t feel you cast it on anyone else.¡± ¡°You''re the only male in the class and she had no one else to cast it on.¡± Vanessa said, catching on immediately. ¡°I bet she almost exhausted herself when trying to cast it on the other classes that she teaches.¡± ¡°You were the only male.¡± Heather said. ¡°In my experience, if you don''t make men interested, their minds tend to wander and they won''t listen.¡± Her husband Black shook his head. ¡°It''s such a stupid reason to get in trouble with.¡± ¡°No one''s caught me at it until now.¡± Heather said and gave me a look. It was a mix of desire and exasperation, which was an odd combination. ¡°In order to enchant this, we''ll need to hold the tempering for quite some time.¡± The old man said. ¡°As soon as we reduce it in size and practice with it...¡± I put the paper with the six smaller copies on top of the one he held. ¡°Of course you''ve already done it.¡± The old man chuckled. ¡°How long did you work exclusively doing this?¡± ¡°It was a really long winter last year and I had nothing to do but work on enchanting while I brewed potions.¡± I said with a shrug. ¡°I only sleep for about six hours a night, so...¡± The old man laughed. ¡°You are a wonder, my boy. A wonder. Are you sure that you don''t want to marry my granddaughter?¡± ¡°Even if I wanted to, and I don''t, Helena''s pregnant and I''m doing everything I can for her and my family.¡± The old man nodded. ¡°I can honestly say that you''ll be one of the first magic couples I''ve heard of that have had a child before getting married.¡± ¡°We would have been married already if the Grand Mage hadn''t added the stipulation that I needed to become a mage first.¡± I said with a shrug. ¡°We should have married before coming to see her parents.¡± The old man laughed again. ¡°I assume you''re allowing the child to be named Henrietta?¡± ¡°It was Helena''s desire to provide an heir. She never told me why she wanted to do that, though.¡± I said. ¡°It''s probably to release the family pressure on her sister.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°Selena?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°Ah, I see. Yes, that would make sense.¡± The old man said. He didn''t seem to have any trouble hearing Vanessa. ¡°She has taken responsibility away from her sister, who can now find someone she loves, rather than wait for her parents to arrange a marriage for her.¡± ¡°I know that''s pretty rare.¡± I said. The old man laughed once more while Black and his wife exchanged looks. ¡°We need to get back to teaching the students.¡± Heather said. ¡°We''re well into the next class already.¡± Black nodded agreement. ¡°Grandfather.¡± The old man waved his hand and the glass container and the smoky glass partitions blocking us off from sight, disappeared. He had already rolled up the papers and tucked them into his mage robes. ¡°I''ll meet you after lunch at the main gate.¡± The old man said and nodded to me, to his grandson and granddaughter, then he walked out of the classroom without another word. 194 Academy Antics Part Sixty One - Academy Administration The class resumed after Black apologized for the disruption caused by his grandfather showing up. All of the girls understood and accepted the apology, because they all knew that when an elder of your family showed up, you had better give them all of your attention. I helped Vanessa with the actual class enchantment and she did really well with it, especially using my smaller and well sharpened tools. I had used the fortifying waterproof potion on them as well, so there was no chance that she would harm them, even if she made a mistake, slipped, or dropped them. We were done a long time before the end of the morning classes and I had also given her a square of wildwood to do the completed enchantment on. After a brief discussion, Black said it had to be solely Vanessa''s work that went into it and she couldn''t use my enchantment potion. They talked for several minutes and the teacher helped her add her blood to the wood and then she infused it with her magic. Black picked it up and used his magic to activate it, then smiled when it glowed. ¡°Very good. Well done, Vanessa.¡± Vanessa blushed at the praise and her hand on my knee squeezed a little. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Are you thanking me or the teacher?¡± I asked her. ¡°Both.¡± Vanessa said and her blush didn''t lessen. ¡°Both of us.¡± I said to Black and he chuckled. ¡°Keep it up, both of you.¡± Black said and wrote out a mark on a piece of paper to give to us. ¡°You can stay or go, since there''s not much more you can do after all the work you''ve already done.¡± I glanced at Vanessa and she whispered to leave. ¡°We''ll go, so as not to disrupt the class further.¡± Black nodded and moved off to consult the other students. Vanessa and I packed up our things and left the classroom. The hallways were bare of students, or any activity really, and we left the main student classroom building. ¡°I need to head over to the library. I have a new map of the marsh and I need to compare it to the general map that Eludora has.¡± I said and Vanessa agreed to come with me and clung to my arm. We were halfway to the student administration building when I heard many horse hooves rapidly approaching. I grabbed Vanessa with my free arm and twirled us around and out of the path of what I assumed was an out of control carriage. I was half wrong with that assumption. ¡°Whoa! WHOA!¡± The driver said and yanked on the reins. It was almost comical the way the team of horses reared back while all four of their hooves remained flat on the ground and skidded in the dirt for about fifteen feet before the carriage stopped. ¡°Good dodge there, young man.¡± The driver said and wiped a bit of sweat from his brow. ¡°The horses took my fast trot command as a run command.¡± ¡°What''s going on? Did we catch him?¡± A man''s deep baritone voice asked from inside the carriage. It was familiar and I turned to see the royal crest on the side of the carriage. ¡°Yes, your highness.¡± The driver said. ¡°Good.¡± The voice said and the coachman opened the carriage door and added the stairs. The king stepped out and looked to be dressed in a lot of fluffy refinery. I gave him a regal bow and Vanessa did a perfect curtsy with my arm as a brace. ¡°David! It''s so nice to see you.¡± The king said. I stood up straight and raised my eyebrows at him. The king laughed. ¡°I take my daughter''s words to heart.¡± The king said. ¡°She declared you a family friend for agreeing to do what you did. I don''t want to disappoint her.¡± ¡°Did Rose come with you?¡± I asked. ¡°No, she and her mother had several functions today.¡± The king said and waved at the carriage. ¡°Despite her incessant begging, I couldn''t pull her from her duties. Those meetings have been planned for months and she shouldn''t ignore her commitments to go traipsing off on her father''s whims.¡± The three of us climbed into the carriage and there was a beautiful young woman that was impeccably dressed sitting on the backwards facing seat with a clipboard. Vanessa and I sat beside her, which left the king to sit by himself on the forward facing seat, and the carriage trotted off at a normal pace. ¡°Why are you here, your highness?¡± I asked. ¡°It''s just a quick visit between my own appointments. Unlike my daughter, I can postpone a lunch meeting to go do what I want.¡± The king said with a chuckle. ¡°Once, anyway. My wife will be angry that I made the trade minister wait for an hour, though.¡± ¡°Not the minister himself?¡± Vanessa asked and I repeated it for the king. ¡°Ha! No, Micheal and I have been friends for decades. He knows I shuffle things around some days, just for a change of scenery.¡± The king said. ¡°We have a quick stop at the main administration building, then the student administration building, and then your dorm.¡± ¡°My dorm?¡± I asked, curious. ¡°You remember my promise to relieve you of your problems here at the academy.¡± The king said and I nodded. ¡°I''m here to fix them or remove them.¡± Vanessa''s mouth opened in shock and the king laughed. ¡°This might be a mage academy; but, it''s funded by the crown. I own all the land, the buildings, and pay the salaries of the staff and teachers.¡±If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°Does that mean the student fees all go to you?¡± I asked. ¡°Only partly. I arranged it a while ago to fold any excess money into improving the place and maintaining everything.¡± That immediately brought my thoughts to my dorm building. ¡°You might need to check where all of that money is going, your highness. I''ve seen several buildings in a semi-ruined state. The botany workshop and part of the library are two examples. I won''t mention the old dorm building that was abandoned and left to rot, since I''ve fixed that up myself to live in it.¡± ¡°My wife did mention that.¡± The king said. ¡°It''s one of the reasons why I want to visit there.¡± I nodded and the carriage came to a stop in front of the main administration building. The carriage door opened the the king stepped out first. I was a bit surprised, because there were no guards. When I stepped out and held a hand back for Vanessa, she blushed at being treated like that and not being offered an elbow. We walked behind the king as a red carpet seemed to roll out in front of us. The king ascended the stairs, the carpet rolling up them unhindered, then the doors of the building opened without anyone there. The carpet went right inside and turned to flow down the hallway. The king walked on, ignored everyone there as if they were beneath him, and he went right to the director''s office. He even ignored the secretary that didn''t even try to catch his attention. She knew better than that. The door opened without being touched and the director stood up. ¡°Who dares to...¡± He stopped mid-sentence as the red carpet rolled in and the king walked on it to stop right in front of his desk. ¡°What''s this I hear about you giving Lord Drake a hard time over his birthplace and then accusing him of a crime that he was innocent of?¡± The king asked without any pleasantries being exchanged first. The director''s voice was caught in his throat and he just opened and closed his mouth several times without speaking. ¡°I see. So, it was true. You can''t even lie to deny it because your guilt is too obvious.¡± The king said with a nod. ¡°I hope you enjoyed bullying him, since it will be the last time that you will do so. You are relieved of duty, your authority, and your responsibility to this academy and the student body as a whole.¡± The director''s face drained of all color and he started breathing heavily. ¡°You have until I leave this building to gather your personal things.¡± The king said. ¡°If you try to take anything from the academy or what''s considered Academy property, you will be prosecuted for theft of crown property.¡± The director dropped back into his seat with a look of utter defeat on his face. ¡°You still have your position in the mages guild, assuming you want to return there.¡± The king said and looked at me. ¡°David, I hope you can reconsider challenging him when you graduate. I won''t tell you not do, I will just say that killing him or his proxy won''t make you feel any satisfaction after not having to deal with him after three years.¡± ¡°I will consider your words, your highness.¡± I said and the king smiled. ¡°That''s all I ask.¡± The king said and waved Vanessa and I out of the office. He stopped by the secretary and spoke to her. ¡°If you aren''t vowed to him, you may remain.¡± The woman gave him a sad look and shook her head. ¡°Then the same conditions apply to you.¡± The king said. ¡°Please refrain from taking anything that''s not yours or doing any damage. I would regret having to send my men after you.¡± ¡°Y-yes, your highness. I understand.¡± The secretary said, her face red. We went back out to the main area and the king stopped walking for some reason. The red carpet had rolled back up behind us as we left the office, in a reverse of going there. I turned to look and saw a sneer on the cooking department head''s face. The red carpet shifted and flowed out towards the middle desk where the cooking head sat. The king walked over to the man and the cooking head caught his breath and started to visibly sweat. ¡°This academy has always been known for its exceptional food and feeding the students very well.¡± The king said, his face showing anger. ¡°I provide extra funding specifically because I don''t want the students to worry about getting enough to eat. You. Know. This.¡± The man paled and nodded. ¡°I didn''t hear you.¡± The king said. ¡°Y-yes, your highness. I know.¡± ¡°Yet, you disregarded over a hundred years of tradition and issued a Bronze Card to a student. Why?¡± The man clamped his mouth shut and didn''t respond. ¡°If you don''t answer, you will be relieved of your duties.¡± The king said. ¡°Your highness, it was necessary to...¡± ¡°...starve a student because of where he came from?¡± The king asked. ¡°He''s a convict and a conscript, your highness.¡± The man said, a bit more confidently. ¡°You are wrong. He was convicted and sentenced to death. It was commuted into a conscription to the army. He was severely injured while on duty and was given a medical discharge, which nullified his conscription.¡± The king countered. ¡°What''s your excuse now for his treatment?¡± The man couldn''t say anything and just sighed. ¡°You are relieved of your duties. Take yourself and your personal belongings from the premises before I leave this building.¡± The king said. ¡°You are not to return to the cafeteria kitchens or the teacher''s kitchens and you are not to take anything that belongs to the academy.¡± The man sighed and nodded. ¡°Do you have a recommendation of who can take over for you?¡± The king asked. ¡°Yes, Mage Jackson is my chosen successor and a spectacular...¡± ¡°He''s fired as well.¡± The king said and everyone gasped. ¡°If he''s someone you''d recommend, then I don''t want him on staff, either.¡± ¡°But, your highness! He didn''t do anything!¡± ¡°Right. He didn''t tell you that you were being unfair, did he? That starving someone was all right, because he was a charity case and didn''t need to eat with the normal students. Are those not your words?¡± The man clamped his mouth shut and didn''t say anything. ¡°I am not uncaring, however. I will remain here for ten minutes before I step outside.¡± The king said and walked back over to Vanessa and I. ¡°I suggest you hurry.¡± He said as the carpet rolled up behind him. The funny thing was, the roll never got bigger or smaller, no matter how far we walked. ¡°The next stop is the proctor''s office.¡± The king said and we went down another hallway and he didn''t knock as the door opened for him. What followed was ten minutes of him berating the academy''s police for not enforcing the rules to ensure the safety of all students, regardless of who they were. He also quickly checked to see if anyone else had the bright idea to steal from students and claimed their things as their own. Luckily for them, no one else was guilty of that particular crime. The young beautiful woman that had been completely quiet and making notes on her clipboard the entire time, finally spoke. ¡°Your highness, can I remind you to institute the patrols of the academy grounds?¡± ¡°Ah, thank you Melanie. I knew I forgot something.¡± The king said and ordered the proctors to do their jobs and reminded them of the patrols that the guards are required to do, three times a day and preferably at random times, to catch any wrongdoings. We could all see by their guilty faces that they hadn''t been doing that at all, let alone three times a day. When they were sorted out, we left there and the middle desk was empty in the main room. The king nodded to Melanie and she strode down the hallway to see if the director and his secretary were gone. She came back and smiled happily at the king. ¡°Next stop is the student administration building.¡± The king said and we climbed back into the carriage, even though the building was not that far away. 195 Academy Antics Part Sixty Two - Lunchtime Version Three By law, the king couldn''t take the short walk between the two administration buildings, not even on academy grounds. It was too exposed and he had to remain as covered and protected as possible. ¡°Your highness, why don''t you have any of The First King''s Men with you?¡± I asked and noticed that the carriage was going particularly slowly. The king gave me a sly smile and Melanie huffed, so I looked to her for an answer. ¡°Royal concubine, may I ask you the reason?¡± Melanie gasped and her face went red. The king laughed. ¡°Gillis told me how perceptive you were.¡± ¡°You wouldn''t allow just any woman to be your assistant or to handle your schedule, your highness.¡± I said and he laughed a bit more. ¡°No children yet?¡± ¡°Alas, I have very little time to devote to such pursuits, despite the times I can sneak away like this.¡± The king said. ¡°Ah, I miss privacy. I am required to have at least two guards with me at all times.¡± ¡°Surely not in the bed chamber.¡± I said and he chuckled. ¡°Thankfully, I can restrict them to waiting by the door.¡± The king said. ¡°Silencing spells?¡± I asked, curiously. I needed to figure one out for myself one of these days. The king nodded. ¡°I can''t let anyone hear the passion I can convey to whom I am with.¡± Melanie''s face burned a deeper red as she blushed harder. I reached a hand out to her in the proper way and she took it automatically, showing that she was actually quite high in the noble social structure to have the action so ingrained. I lightly brushed my lips over her knuckles and made them tingle a little. Her eyes widened at that and I smiled at her. ¡°I apologize for bringing up such a sensitive subject, my lady.¡± I said and bowed my head to her. ¡°No, that... that''s all right.¡± Melanie said and I could see her fighting to get the blush to fade. ¡°I just need more experience keeping my emotions off of my face.¡± I glanced at the king and he chuckled. ¡°It''s a new contract. Barely six months old after confirmation.¡± The king said. ¡°Ah, I see.¡± I said and let Melanie''s hand go. ¡°I''ll try to not mention how very pretty she is and embarrass her further.¡± Melanie''s face flushed red again and the king laughed. ¡°David, I think you can wait until later to help her practice.¡± ¡°Yes, your highness.¡± I said. The carriage came to a stop and we stepped out. I helped Melanie out and then Vanessa, and the three of us followed the king into the student administration building and right up the stairs to the cafeteria. What followed was something I would never forget for the rest of my life. The king was amazing. It was lunchtime and he brought out all the cooks and helpers from the kitchens for the students and also ordered the teachers to attend. It didn''t take long for them to be gathered and he verbally tore them apart over my treatment. He reminded the kitchen staff, quite needlessly, about the academy''s reputation for the best food on the continent. That made them preen a little, which was exactly what the king wanted, because in the next moment, he pointed to me and told them that no student was to ever have a Bronze card issued and that they shouldn''t have honored it, since no student in the history of the academy, had ever eaten anything below the silver table. In fact, the bronze cards weren''t supposed to exist. The Bronze tables were for dirty dishes only and not to be served from. Their only purpose was to make sure that the kitchens weren''t cluttered up with them while the staff were trying to cook. He reminded them that they all knew this, since it was the very first thing that they were ever taught when they were hired. He singled out the cooks and helpers that transferred the food to the servant''s area and gave them twice as much of a tongue lashing for trying to serve my maid with what I couldn''t eat, making her eat something that even I discarded, which was saying something. I stayed quiet and didn''t remind him about my trick to get better food, since that wouldn''t help him get his point across. He would probably just tell me that I had to resort to trickery to eat and that was another thing that the cooks should be shameful for. The entire room was completely quiet while the cooks and kitchen helpers suffered through the barrage of insults and derogatory comments from the king. More students came in and the king moved on to tell them all how upset and insulted he was. It wasn''t on my behalf, either. Oh, no. It was personal, because he had never been so embarrassed that a friend of the royal family had been treated so horrendously by what was supposed to be the kingdom''s most prestigious mage academy. Those words got a reaction from everyone, especially the teachers. With an encouraging wave from the king, I stepped forward and drew the ceremonial short sword and added a bit of magic to it. The blade glowed and everyone gasped, even Melanie. ¡°As you can see, it''s the real blade and not a fake.¡± The king said and nodded to me. I put the blade away and stepped back beside Melanie. Her eyes were wide and her mouth made that little ''o'' of surprise. As the king continued to berate the teachers and staff, I slowly reached over and closed Melanie''s mouth with my finger under her chin. She blushed a little and gave me a brief smile. ¡°So, from now on, you will all treat Lord Drake with the proper respect.¡± The king said and more gasps came from the people gathered. ¡°I also expect the rumors and insults about him to stop.¡± Complete silence met his words and he smiled. ¡°Yes, I know all about that. I know about everything that goes on inside my academy.¡± Everyone ducked their heads a little and the king huffed. ¡°I believe I''ve made my point.¡± The king said and swept from the room.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it Vanessa whispered that she was staying to eat, so I quickly kissed her cheek and said goodbye. Melanie and I followed the king from the room so that the carpet wouldn''t roll up on us or trip us. We went down the stairs and saw that the king had stopped at the first desk. He was about to speak when I touched his arm to get his attention. ¡°Your highness, please come to see where I live before you complain to the dorm director.¡± I whispered to him. ¡°Yes, you''re right. I won''t know what to say without seeing it first.¡± The king said and we left the building and climbed into the carriage. I told the driver where to go and also that it was fairly far across the campus. He trotted the horses at a good speed and we made it there in only a couple of minutes. When the king stepped out, he grabbed his own belly and laughed a full-throated laugh. ¡°D-David, you... you can''t be serious! You did this?¡± I nodded. ¡°Your highness, it was practically falling apart.¡± I said and pointed to the living arrangement agreement that was attached to the wall and protected by my fortifying waterproof potion. The king took several minutes to read it and then he laughed. ¡°Exclusive, eh? You lucky devil.¡± ¡°I think they wanted to ensure that I was as isolated as possible.¡± I said and waved to the two guards. They opened the front doors and bowed to the king. ¡°My maid Hope will have a copy of all the work we did to the place and you can have Melanie read it over while I give you both the grand tour.¡± The king nodded and we entered the building. Surprisingly, the magic carpet didn''t proceed us. He could choose to make it do that or not, which meant he only did it when he wanted to show off. Hope came down the stairs and saw us, then she gave the king a curtsy. ¡°Your highness.¡± ¡°Is she your only maid?¡± The king asked. ¡°I''m only allowed to have one stay over, per the academy rules, and she''s the more important maid that takes care of the household and staff.¡± I said. ¡°I also have two other personal maids for other things that can only visit during the day.¡± The king gave me a surprised look for a moment, then he chuckled. ¡°I''d like to meet them.¡± ¡°Hope?¡± I asked. ¡°They are waiting to have lunch with us.¡± Hope said and waved at the dining room as she stepped by us. ¡°Your highness, it''s right this way.¡± The king, Melanie, and I followed Hope to the room and as soon as the door opened, Sara and Tabitha hopped up to their feet. ¡°My lord!¡± They said together and then they blushed when they saw the king. ¡°Your highness!¡± They said as one and gave him the same deep curtsy that Hope had. ¡°It''s all right. You can relax.¡± The king said and waved away their formal behavior. ¡°David''s a friend of the family now and I''m here in that capacity and not as the ruler of the entire Gulf Kingdom.¡± The two maids exchanged confused looks and looked at me. ¡°I doubt that statement ever works, your highness.¡± I said and the king laughed. ¡°It was worth a try.¡± The king said. ¡°Hope, ask the cook to give my lunch to the king and I''ll have the meal from supper last night.¡± Hope gave me a huge smile and dashed into the kitchen. ¡°David, you don''t have to do that.¡± The king said. ¡°We need to continue on and...¡± ¡°I won''t have a friend miss lunch.¡± I said. The king gave me a smile. ¡°Are you being magnanimous, now that you can eat your meals normally and won''t have to scrape up the scraps in the cafeteria?¡± ¡°No, I''ve always made sure when I was responsible for the food that it was shared and served properly.¡± I said and he nodded. ¡°This is Sara and that''s Tabitha, my personal maids. You have to be careful when you say the word bath, because...¡± Both women let out a pleased sound and their faces lit up. The king laughed. ¡°I see. Professional pride is a true virtue.¡± Both women were quite pleased to be complimented by the king. Hope came back into the room. ¡°If you will be seated, lunch will be served.¡± ¡°Thank you, Hope.¡± The king said and went to sit on the side of the larger table. ¡°Please take the seat of honor, your highness.¡± I said and waved to the chair at the head of the table. ¡°Melanie, the seat on the right.¡± ¡°David, this is your dorm and...¡± ¡°You own the academy.¡± I responded. ¡°If anyone ever has you over for a meal, I certainly hope that they let you sit where you should sit.¡± Melanie looked very happy and nodded her head several times. The king chuckled. ¡°Very well. Thank you.¡± I sat on his left and the maids sat at the second and smaller table. The kitchen helper came out with a single plate of food and an expensive glass of wine. She served the king first, surprisingly without dropping it or spilling the wine, despite her shaking hands. The king took her hand and smiled at her. ¡°Be at ease.¡± He said and a bit of magic flowed out of him as he mumbled. The kitchen helper visibly relaxed. ¡°Y-yes, your highness.¡± She said and left to get the food cart. She came back and served Melanie first, to her surprise, and then served me, Hope, Sara, and Tabitha, in that order. The king looked at the huge slab of whitish meat on my plate. ¡°What in the world is that?¡± I sliced off a nice piece, speared it with a fork, and held it out to him. ¡°Magical snake.¡± Melanie gasped and covered her mouth and the king looked shocked. ¡°You can do magic, so you can eat it.¡± I said and he gave me a skeptical look. ¡°Trust me. You''re going to want more when you taste it, if Victoria is any indication.¡± ¡°Victoria?¡± The king asked and took the fork. ¡°Mage Julia King of the botany workshop.¡± I said and the king raised his eyebrows. ¡°She uses her middle name for all correspondence to stop the confusion with Mage Victoria Ridge of the history and geography courses.¡± ¡°Ah, I see.¡± The king said and stared at the snake. ¡°You don''t have to eat it.¡± I said and started to eat it myself. ¡°I just offered a new taste for your palate.¡± Melanie looked at the fork and offending meat warily. ¡°Your highness, you don''t have to...¡± The king chuckled. ¡°Well, I''ve eaten trail game before. How much different can it be?¡± I kept the smirk off of my face as he took a small bite. Melanie gasped and covered her mouth as her face turned a little green. The king on the other hand, made a moaning sound and quickly grabbed a napkin to catch the saliva trying to escape his mouth. ¡°Y-y-your highness?¡± Melanie asked, tentatively. ¡°That''s soooo good.¡± The king said and put the rest of the piece into his mouth. He had to hold the napkin over his mouth as he chewed, because just like Victoria, he couldn''t help the large amount of drool that he produced. ¡°Edward?¡± Melanie asked, her voice steady. ¡°David, if you would?¡± The king asked and motioned to Melanie. I nodded and used another fork to slice a piece off of the other side of the snake meat that I hadn''t touched and held it out to her. ¡°No, I couldn''t possibly...¡± ¡°Melanie.¡± The king said and she knew that tone. She took the offered fork and stared at the piece of snake meat, then she looked at the king. He nodded and she sighed as she took the smallest bite, just like Victoria had the very first time. She also had the same reaction. ¡°By the Son''s LIGHT!¡± Melanie gasped and shoved the whole piece into her mouth. ¡°MMMMM!¡± The king laughed and slapped me on the shoulder. ¡°David, thank you. I''ve never seen her react like that before. Whatever you did to this meat, it''s phenomenal.¡± I nodded and kept eating. The king did as well and Melanie made that one piece of meat last for several minutes before she swallowed. She shook herself and realized what she did, around a group of strangers, and her face went to a deep red as she blushed. The king laughed and assured her that no one was going to say anything about her reaction, which made her relax, and we all ate our lunch in silence after that. 196 Academy Antics Part Sixty Three - Forging Ahead When lunch ended, I gave the king and Melanie the tour of the place and Hope gave Melanie a copy of the repairs and the costs, she also gave her a copy of the bill that was submitted to the academy. Melanie''s face scrunched up as she read through it and she kept asking if this was real and how long it took for it to be repaired, because she didn''t believe the repair times that had been listed. ¡°My lord has the best work crews in the capital.¡± Hope said as we stepped into the large guest bedroom at the top of the stairs. ¡°We also had a lot of extra space, so we made as much use of it as possible.¡± ¡°We''ve both seen that.¡± The king said, clearly impressed. ¡°Bassinger?¡± He asked and indicated the very nice painting above the fireplace mantle. ¡°They do all of the aesthetic work for my lord.¡± Hope said with a nod. ¡°If you get the chance, you should swing by the Henrietta Longshore Estate to see the fountain they made for us.¡± ¡°I''ve already had the pleasure.¡± The king said. ¡°It was magnificent.¡± ¡°It really is.¡± Hope said and showed off the attached bathroom to the guest room. ¡°You really spared no expense.¡± Melanie said as she looked around. ¡°My lord has to stay here for three years. We needed everything to last.¡± Hope said and walked over to the guest room''s door where I had stayed. ¡°My lord, that''s all the rooms and completes the tour.¡± ¡°Thank you, Hope.¡± I said and waved for her to leave. ¡°Your highness, I need to apologize. I have an appointment with an elder for the Montgomery Family all afternoon and must leave immediately.¡± The king let out a sigh. ¡°I knew I wouldn''t be able to drag this visit on for very long.¡± ¡°I would be happy if you stayed for supper.¡± I said and he raised his eyebrows. ¡°If you can wait around for a few hours, I''ll also bring you back an enchanted sword as a new Lord''s gift to his king.¡± ¡°Your highness, I don''t think we can just remain here for so long while doing nothing.¡± Melanie said. ¡°Melanie, you are very forward in your thinking to proposition the king in such a way.¡± I said and her face flushed red at my statement. ¡°Your highness, I believe that could count as a direct request from your concubine to perform your contractual duty.¡± The king gave me a surprised look and then glanced at Melanie, whose face was bright red. ¡°David, I do believe you are correct.¡± ¡°Please, feel free to use the guest room and the other amenities as you see fit. I''ll also leave Hope at your disposal if you need her to retrieve anything for you, like extra towels, a light meal, or a bottle of wine. Or two.¡± The king gave me a smile and a nod. ¡°Make it so.¡± I bowed and shut the guest room door. ¡°Hope, one of the best wines we have. Chilled on ice, please.¡± ¡°I''ll bring it right up.¡± Hope said and we walked down the stairs. ¡°It''s been on ice for half an hour, in preparation for staying in the parlour.¡± ¡°Excellent. Thank you.¡± Hope laughed softly. ¡°I think Melanie''s the one that needs to thank you, my lord.¡± ¡°Perhaps in a few hours.¡± I responded and Hope laughed again. ¡°I''ll be back for supper. Inform the cook that the king and his concubine are staying, please.¡± ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± Hope said and we parted ways at the bottom of the stairs. I left the dorm mansion and jogged all the way back to the main gate of the academy and saw a very nice carriage with the Montgomery Family crest on the side of it. ¡°I thought you were going to miss our departure.¡± The old man said. ¡°I was entertaining the king, as you should know, Grand Mage Montgomery.¡± I said and climbed into the carriage. ¡°Mage Montgomery. Mage Montgomery.¡± I said to Black and Heather as I nodded to each of them. Black laughed. ¡°Just Black is fine when we''re not in class and no one else can claim that you''re disrespecting me.¡± ¡°Black!¡± Heather gasped and her husband laughed some more as the carriage drove away. ¡°I''m joking, of course.¡± Black said. ¡°Grandfather, what did the head blacksmith say?¡± ¡°He almost bowled me over to get to his forge after I showed him David''s work.¡± The old man scoffed and both Black and Heather laughed. ¡°I knew he would.¡± Black said with a grin. ¡°Anything new for him to create makes him very happy.¡± ¡°Are you still doing the simple enchantment on a few of the swords?¡± I asked and Black nodded. ¡°One of mine and one of the old man''s.¡± Black said. ¡°We''re going to highlight them at the next army meeting for their elite soldiers.¡± That reminded me of Anna Carter, the XO and temporary CO of the basic training base. I knew she had some magic skill, so I would do my sword with the upgraded basic enchantment and then would enchant the old man''s third sword with the full crest to give to the king. I told them my plans and the three of them gave me a surprised look, then the old man put a hand on my shoulder. ¡°I thought you would be keeping one and instead you are giving them away.¡± The old man said. ¡°If I hadn''t received the ceremonial sword, I would have.¡± I said and the old man nodded. ¡°I have a question for you.¡± Heather said and I looked at her. She had done up her make-up and looked a bit more appealing. ¡°Can we substitute any of the four runes in your new design?¡± I had to think about that for a minute and retraced the enchantment in my head. ¡°It could work.¡± ¡°I hear doubt in your voice, young man.¡± The old man said. ¡°If you used all damage runes, there''s no buildup or any protection if the sword shatters from applying so much extra damage to whatever is struck.¡± I said. ¡°Even if I restructured the enchantment, you would still have the same problem.¡± ¡°No penetrating power.¡± Black said and I nodded. ¡°Just hitting something won''t work if you can''t cut it... unless it''s a blunt force weapon like a battle hammer or a mace. The mace would be better on a chain, because it''s too short of a weapon if it''s just the ball and handle to get much swinging power behind it.¡±This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. We all started to discuss the different rune combinations and what ones would definitely need to be included and what ones could be doubled up safely without compromising the weapon''s integrity. The carriage arrived at the Montgomery Family estate and it was a very nice mansion. It also had six blacksmith workshops spread around the mansion and they were all going at full speed. ¡°We have the army and navy equipment replacement contracts.¡± The old man said proudly. ¡°How long did it take for you to claim them?¡± I asked as we stepped out of the carriage. ¡°Almost 30 years.¡± The old man said and smiled. ¡°Thanks to you, we''re going to keep them for at least that long, too.¡± I was led into the first workshop and the heat inside was almost as bad as the marsh in the middle of summer, even though it was fall and the weather was starting to get colder. ¡°I''ve almost got them ready, master!¡± The blacksmith said loudly over the hammering of the other people in the building. ¡°Good, good.¡± The old man said and led us over to the workbench we would be using for carving. ¡°These are my first attempts at the new full family crest.¡± He said and handed me three daggers. One was mangled, one was bent, and the last was only slightly off-center. ¡°Did the infusion do this?¡± I asked. ¡°That and a flaw in the forging process when they are charged. Apparently, if the blade isn''t a single piece, the enchantment can go off slightly and only apply certain aspects of the magic to certain parts.¡± I examined the mangled one and tried to charge it with some magic. The metal made a wrenching sound and twisted even more. ¡°It''s applying the damage to the blade and not enhancing it.¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± The old man said. ¡°The others aren''t as bad.¡± ¡°This might be because of your normal enchanting process.¡± I said and the old man nodded. ¡°I agree. We need to empower the enchantment so that it applies to the blade, not empower the blade to accept the enchantment.¡± The old man said. ¡°I want you to watch me carving this sword with the modified basic enchantment, so you''ll know how to handle the tools properly on red hot metal.¡± I nodded and the blacksmith brought over the first blade. It was a longsword and it had a nice four inch flat section by the hilt for enchanting. The old man got to work and used a pencil to trace the enchantment out before he used the proper carving tools and a small hammer. He worked quickly and efficiently, and his hands never went near the metal, even with the smaller version of the tools he was using. ¡°My grandson says I have you to thank for these tools.¡± The old man said as he finished carving the enchantment and waved to the blacksmith. He took the blade back and went to temper it. ¡°I was having the tools made anyway.¡± I said. ¡°It was my fiance''s idea to have the blacksmith make more to sell.¡± The old man laughed. ¡°Well, thank you anyway.¡± I nodded and we waited for the blacksmith to come back. He brought over the blade and it was significantly cooler. ¡°Go ahead, young man.¡± The old man said. ¡°Show me your technique.¡± ¡°It''s simple, really.¡± I said and took out a vial and used one of the spreading tools to fill all of the grooves in the carving without making a mess. ¡°Go ahead and infuse it.¡± ¡°What? That''s it?¡± The old man, Black, and Heather asked at the same time. ¡°What about adding your blood?¡± Heather asked. ¡°How is the enchantment going to hold your magic?¡± ¡°Try it.¡± I said to the old man. He hesitated for a moment before he held a hand over the carving and started to mumble a chant. The carving glowed and then it quickly spread to the rest of the blade. Black and Heather took in sharp breaths as the enchantment settled and the glow faded. ¡°No, there''s no way it was that simple.¡± Black said and reached for it. ¡°Whoa!¡± The blacksmith said and stopped him. ¡°It''s still really hot, even though it looks like it''s cooled of enough.¡± He picked it up with the clamp and took it back over to where he worked and dipped it in oil. It didn''t light on fire when he withdrew it and he nodded. He wiped it off and set it on the cooling rack, and a mage came over and ran his hand over it. Another worker came over and assembled the hilt for it and attached it to the blade, then the blacksmith brought the completed longsword over to them. The old man nodded to the blacksmith and he handed the blade to Black. ¡°Show me.¡± The old man said. Black smiled and charged the blade up with his magic. The whole thing glowed brightly and Black walked over to two wooden training dummies that had been set up. In a split second, he slashed through one and gave a backhand swing to the other one. Both dummies seemed to blow apart and the workers in the workshop applauded. The old man came over and inspected the dummies. There was a partial slash in the wood and then the damage part of the enchantment was applied. The old man smiled at his grandson and Black handed him the sword. The blade suddenly glowed and then the remaining parts of the closest dummy were sliced into three pieces, with the backhand swings slicing the other dummy. ¡°Yes, this is perfect.¡± The old man said and came over to me. ¡°I commend you for perfecting the proper enchantment procedure.¡± ¡°I can''t believe it''s not bound by blood.¡± Heather whispered as her hand absently touched the hilt of the blade. ¡°It only requires someone to have proficiency with charging magic weapons.¡± The old man said. ¡°That''s why I said it was perfect.¡± ¡°I have the next one ready, master.¡± The blacksmith said. ¡°David, you can do this one.¡± The old man said. I nodded and used the old man''s technique of not touching the hot metal as I carved out a significantly different enchantment than what the old man had just used. I also used up a third more space and hadn''t bothered to trace it out. The three mages and the blacksmith watched me with intensity as I quickly finished and motioned for the blacksmith to take it. ¡°What was that?¡± The old man asked. ¡°It''s the weapon I''ll be presenting to the king.¡± I said and he gave me a searching look. ¡°I integrated a protection enchantment, a set weight enchantment, and doubled the damage and magic reservoirs.¡± The old man stared at me like he hadn''t seen me before. ¡°I set it to 10 percent of the sword''s weight, so it should be as light as a stick.¡± I commented and the blacksmith brought it over to me. I used my enchantment potion and infused it myself. It took quite a bit more magic, considering it actually had three different enchantments mixed together. When it was done, the blacksmith took it, cooled it, had the hilt attached, and brought it back. ¡°You said this was for the king?¡± The blacksmith asked and I nodded. He left with it and was gone for nearly ten minutes. When he came back, he had a large scabbard for it with the royal crest on it. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said as I accepted it. ¡°I''ll be sure to tell him where I got it from.¡± ¡°That''s not necessary. The king knows our maker''s mark.¡± The blacksmith said, quite proud. I nodded and tied the belt around my waist. ¡°Let''s do the others.¡± Black said and we went back to work. He did one with the normal enchantment and one with the full enchantment, I did another with the normal enchantment, and the old man asked me to show him the modified one I did for the king. ¡°I can''t give you the full one.¡± I said and did one with just the added weight enchantment. ¡°Remember, if you sell these, not only do I get a cut, the Pondus Family gets a cut as well. It''s their weight enchantment.¡± The old man chuckled. ¡°Don''t worry. This is a family sword now. We''ll all get one eventually.¡± ¡°My lords, my lady.¡± A maid said as she poked her head into the workshop. ¡°Supper will be served in half an hour.¡± ¡°That''s my cue to leave.¡± I said. ¡°I need to get back to the king.¡± ¡°You left him at the academy?!?¡± Heather asked, shocked. ¡°He wouldn''t be interested in something like this.¡± I said and held the second sword in my hand. ¡°Can I have a ride back?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± The old man said and we went back outside. The carriage was brought around for me and I climbed inside. ¡°I''ll be by to negotiate for some of that enchantment potion. It''s really needed for the complicated enchantments, now that we know what a lesser infusion will do to your excellent designs.¡± I took out the half empty vial and handed it to him. ¡°It won''t last long.¡± The old man hugged it to his chest and I thought I saw a tear come to his eye. ¡°Let... let me know... if you''re having a boy or a girl. I''ll have an appropriate pairing arranged when it''s time.¡± ¡°Not a betrothal?¡± I asked and he shook his head. ¡°They need to at least like each other before we get to that stage.¡± The old man said. ¡°I''ll let Helena know.¡± I said. ¡°Good day to you.¡± The three mages nodded their heads and the carriage took off at its best speed to take me back to the academy. 197 Academy Antics Part Sixty Four - Meals Fit For A King I made it back to the dorm mansion in time to get a bath, to Sara''s and Tabitha''s delight, and they helped me get dressed formally. Both maids slipped away when I was dressed and I didn''t know where they had gone until the king and Melanie came into the dining room. Melanie was no longer wearing her professional assistant suit coat and black skirt. She now wore a resplendent red dress that hugged her curves and showed off exactly why she had caught the king''s eye. Her red hair was teased into a stylish mass on her right shoulder and made her stand out that much more. The left side of her neck was left bare and even if I didn''t have my vigilance technique, I would have easily seen the lip marks and impressions. ¡°King Rivers.¡± I said and bowed to him. ¡°Royal Consort.¡± I said and bowed to her as well. Melanie''s face became as red as her dress and the king laughed. ¡°Your maids certainly know what they are doing.¡± The king said and sat Melanie at his side before he sat himself. ¡°I didn''t even bother to ask where they could have gotten such a wonderful dress.¡± I sat on his other side. ¡°I try not to question the miracles they perform, your highness. I mean, look at me. I grew up in a marsh.¡± The king laughed again and lightly touched my shoulder. ¡°It''s not where you came from, it''s who you are that matters.¡± He said and looked at the beautiful woman next to him. ¡°As you can clearly see from the woman beside me, she doesn''t believe that she deserves my attention.¡± ¡°M-my k-king.¡± Melanie whispered, her face going red again. ¡°If I did have such thoughts for another man''s woman, I would envy you, your highness.¡± I said and Melanie''s face didn''t lose the blush. The king nodded and took Melanie''s hand. ¡°She keeps trying to compare herself to the queen and I have to keep reminding her that she shouldn''t. She''s a different woman, with a different upbringing, and her views on such things is also different.¡± ¡°But, she''s the queen.¡± Melanie said. ¡°Yes, and you are the royal consort.¡± The king said. ¡°Two different jobs need two different people. The queen doesn''t look at you and think that she needs to change herself to fit your personality.¡± Melanie opened her mouth to respond and then closed it. ¡°Did you know what you were signing up for when you accepted the contract?¡± I asked Melanie as I waved my hand at the kitchen with a touch of magic for them to start serving supper. ¡°She was fully briefed; but, the reality can be subtly different from the written word and the expectation.¡± The king said with a chuckle. ¡°I must say that she''s taken to her duties to maintain my very hectic schedule with both enthusiasm and expertise.¡± ¡°When I can get you to listen, your highness.¡± Melanie said with a bit of a huff and the king laughed. ¡°You see? She''s already learned to talk back when she needs to. She''s amazing.¡± The king said and the kitchen helper came out to serve him. The conversation dropped off as we were all served and we ate the meal in silence, as per protocol for a formal meal. Talking with food in your mouth was a social no-no. The three course meal was over fairly quickly and the king sat back in his chair as he gave the end of meal toast. We all drank a sip of wine and the king sighed. ¡°My compliments to the chef.¡± The king said to the kitchen helper as she cleared the dishes. ¡°Th-thank you, your highness. I''ll pass it along.¡± The kitchen helper said and went into the kitchen. A moment later, there was the sound of several pots and pans clattering around and a squeal of delight. The king laughed. ¡°I almost always get that reaction.¡± ¡°Your highness, can we retire to the parlour for a few minutes?¡± I asked. ¡°If you have another bottle of that great wine.¡± The king blatantly hinted. Hope let out a chuckle as we all stood up. ¡°We have two left.¡± ¡°Excellent!¡± The king said with a big smile and took Melanie''s arm to escort her to the parlour. Hope went to get both bottles and I went up to my bedroom to retrieve the enchanted sword. I waited for a couple of minutes to let the king settle in with a glass of wine and then walked in. ¡°What''s this?¡± The king asked as I held the sword out on both of my hands. ¡°It''s the magic sword I promised you.¡± I said and knelt in front of his chair. ¡°I, Lord Drake of Drake''s Marsh, do hereby grant thee this sword, enchanted by my own hand, for your practical use.¡± Both the king''s and Melanie''s eyes widened at my wording. ¡°Practical?¡± The king asked and I turned it for him to take the hilt. I held onto the scabbard and the king drew the longsword out. The ring of a well made metal sword filled the room and the king admired it. ¡°May I ask what it is enchanted with?¡± ¡°Of course. It would be too dangerous if you didn''t know.¡± I said and told him about the protection enchantment, the weight cancelling enchantment, and the toughness, durability, sharpness, and double damage enchantments. The king stared at the blade as if it was a national treasure. ¡°Please tell me you have somewhere I can test this.¡± ¡°My work room upstairs, your highness.¡± I said. The king practically ran from the room and Melanie laughed, then she gasped and covered her mouth. ¡°May I escort you?¡± I asked and offered her my arm. She looked like she expected me to admonish her for her outburst and then she nodded and accepted my offer. We followed the king at a sedate pace and we went up the stairs. We could already hear the sound of wood smashing because the door to the room was still open. Melanie let out another laugh as she saw the king, quite undignified and dishevelled, as he stood over the remnants of one of my workbenches. ¡°This sword... is amazing.¡± The king said between panted breaths. ¡°I''m glad you remembered which room was my work room, your highness.¡± I said and Melanie laughed softly. The king laughed as well and then bent over to catch his breath. I handed him the partially used healing vial and he took a sip. ¡°Ahh. Thank you, David.¡± ¡°If you continue testing the sword like that, you can keep the vial.¡± I said and he laughed normally. ¡°I will.¡± The king said and put the vial into a pocket of his royal robes before he slid the sword into the scabbard. Melanie tied it around his waist and he somehow stood straighter than he had before. ¡°Your highness, we need to go. The castle staff will be wondering where we''ve gone.¡± ¡°The staff?¡± The king asked, pointedly. Melanie blushed a little. ¡°I need to change as well.¡± Hope, Sara, and Tabitha appeared suddenly and led her away. The king and I barely had any time to exchange small talk and the professional looking Melanie was back with a small bag over her shoulder. ¡°Somehow, that hasn''t diminished your appeal in the least.¡± The king commented and Melanie''s face went beet red. ¡°W-we need to go.¡± Melanie managed to say through her embarrassment. ¡°Let''s.¡± The king said and they walked over to me. ¡°David, thank you for today.¡± ¡°Your highness, it is I that needs to thank you. I never expected you to come here personally to discuss my treatment with the teachers and staff.¡±Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. The king smiled and put a hand on my shoulder. ¡°The problem with delegating authority is that it also weakens that authority. If anyone lower than me showed up, no one would have paid attention.¡± ¡°It''s true.¡± Melanie said. ¡°No one can ignore his highness when he''s in the room.¡± ¡°I''m going to ignore such an easy opening to tease her.¡± The king gave me a smirk. ¡°I hope to see you at my birthday celebration.¡± ¡°I wouldn''t miss it.¡± I said and he nodded. ¡°Melanie.¡± The king said. ¡°The invitation has already been sent.¡± Melanie said with her own smirk. ¡°Of course it is.¡± The king laughed and let my shoulder go. ¡°Goodbye, David.¡± ¡°Your highness.¡± I said and bowed. ¡°Royal Consort.¡± I bowed to her, too. The king and his assistant left the room and I heard Hope bid them a good evening as well, then the front door shut and the whole event was over. Two squeals of delight could be heard and when I went out to investigate, Sara and Tabitha were hugging in the hallway. ¡°Did you see the look on the king''s face? He loved our work!¡± Tabitha asked. ¡°He loved Melanie, too.¡± Sara said with a grin. ¡°He couldn''t keep his hands off of her.¡± ¡°It''s so nice when a plan comes together.¡± Hope said as she came up the stairs. ¡°My lord, that was a brilliant idea to give the king some alone time.¡± ¡°It was the easiest way to thank him for coming all the way over here personally.¡± I said. ¡°I need to change.¡± ¡°Leave it to us.¡± Sara said and Tabitha nodded. Hope followed us into the bedroom and I was quickly changed into normal clothes as they discussed the evening. ¡°What was in the bag you gave Melanie?¡± I asked. ¡°It was the dress and the other piece of snake meat.¡± Hope said. ¡°Melanie''s going to surprise him later with it.¡± I chuckled. ¡°He might give me another title for that.¡± That made the three maids laugh. ¡°I have some potions to make.¡± I said. ¡°We''ll clean up.¡± Hope said and I left the bedroom to go to the potion brewing room. I had a lot of work to do and I started everything up right away. It didn''t take me long to brew up the first part, since that was the simple part. It took a while to finish the rest of the recipe and the first batch was done after an hour. I crated up all twelve large stew pots into twelve cases and I only had 23 more brewing sessions to reach my goal of 10,000 cleaning potions. I also wanted to make up for the five days I had been away and should have been brewing, so I worked for five more hours and crated everything up. That left me with only 18 more to do and I went to bed quite happy. The next day was History and Geography with Mage Ridge and she was in a happy mood. Her classes passed by the entire morning before I knew it and it was time for lunch. Vanessa wouldn''t let me go to the dorm mansion and took me to the cafeteria. I wouldn''t realize why until we stepped into the room. There was a partition around the two Bronze tables, cutting them off from view, and a well dressed blonde haired woman was waiting for me. ¡°Lord Drake, I humbly apologize for my predecessor''s egregious treatment of you.¡± The good looking woman said and bowed to me. ¡°It wasn''t your fault; but, I accept your sincere apology.¡± I said. The woman''s tense face relaxed and she stood up straight to smile at me. ¡°I''m very glad. Thank you.¡± She said. ¡°My name is Robin Lee Jackson.¡± It''s nice to meet you, Ms. Jackson.¡± I said. ¡°The king tore up my Bronze card, so I don''t know where I''m supposed to eat.¡± ¡°That''s why I''m here.¡± Robin said and pulled out a Gold card. ¡°You can eat from the gold or the silver tables. Whatever strikes your fancy.¡± ¡°And my maid?¡± I asked and accepted the card. ¡°Right after you take a portion, a portion will be sent down to the servant''s dining room.¡± Robin said with a smile. ¡°I also have something else for you.¡± I raised my eyebrows at her and she waved at the door. A mage came in and walked over to me to hand me an official document. I opened it and read what it said silently. ¡°No way.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°That can''t be true.¡± ¡°The single maid restriction has been lifted for you.¡± Robin smiled, knowing what that meant. ¡°The new director took it upon herself to send word to your dorm mansion to inform the staff there as soon as the paperwork came through.¡± I folded the paper up and tucked it into my bandoleer. ¡°Thank you for letting me know.¡± ¡°My lord, it was my pleasure.¡± Robin said with a huge smile and then she waved at the tables of food. ¡°Please, help yourself to whatever you see.¡± _______________ You have a minor choice to make. It won''t really impact much, except for those within hearing distance. A) Tease her. B) Say nothing. C) Nod acceptance. D) Kiss her. E) Invite her to eat. F) Choose two. Things have been going really well for me, so let''s have a bit of fun. I thought. I''ll choose two, A and E. _______________ ¡°You''re lucky you waved at the table when you said that.¡± I responded and the woman''s face flushed red as she blushed. ¡°Would you care to join me for lunch? Vanessa usually sits with her friends every day and there''s no room for me.¡± Robin paused and looked like she was seriously thinking about it, then she nodded. ¡°Vanessa, I''ll see you tomorrow.¡± I said and Vanessa gave my cheek a kiss before she walked over to her friends and they started to talk furiously. Robin took my arm and I led her over to the Gold table. There were some very nicely prepared meals and after I chose two for us to share, we went to a table by ourselves and sat. She chanted under her breath as she held onto a necklace and a slight mist surrounded the table to obscure us from view. ¡°Did you mean what you said?¡± Robin asked as she started to eat. ¡°Within the limits of a betrothal contract.¡± I said and tried the succulent meat on my plate. Robin took in a sharp breath and gave me a very sexy look. ¡°You do realize that I''m not a mage?¡± ¡°I''ve heard that becoming a concubine as a mage is a social mistake.¡± I said. She looked surprised and then turned her head to look at a very blurry Vanessa. ¡°She''s already submitted an application?¡± ¡°Weeks ago.¡± I said. ¡°We''re negotiating officially during the break for the king''s birthday.¡± ¡°She''s quite bold to accept such a thing.¡± Robin said and turned back to the table to keep eating. ¡°It was her idea.¡± I said and Robin choked. I reached over and pat her back several times to help. ¡°Th-thank you, my lord.¡± Robin said. We finished the meal and she sat back in the chair to look at me, as if she was trying to decide if she wanted to buy what I was selling. ¡°What''s the enchantment in the necklace?¡± I asked. ¡°Fog of Obscurity.¡± Robin said. ¡°May I see it?¡± ¡°I can''t take it off. The enchantment will end prematurely if I do.¡± I smiled a little and she laughed softly, knowing what I was asking of her. She leaned across the table and gave me a very nice view down her shirt and the necklace dangled close to her chest. I carefully put my hand behind the necklace and almost brushed the skin of her breasts. It made her catch her breath that i was that close. I pulled the necklace closer and examined the picture on the front of the metal pendant. ¡°Is this a family crest?¡± ¡°It is.¡± Robin said, proudly. ¡°You can power a crest and you''re not a mage?¡± I asked. Robin sighed. ¡°My parents were... eager... to have me tested for magic early.¡± ¡°I''m sorry.¡± I said. ¡°So were they.¡± Robin said. ¡°I barely did one infusion when I was six.¡± I knew what that meant. ¡°Wow, you were powerful.¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± Robin asked, shocked. ¡°You were only six and could make the absorption crystal light up to one notch. That''s amazing.¡± I said and her shocked look remained. ¡°The reason I''m sorry is because the testing stunted your magical growth so early.¡± Robin closed her eyes and seemed to deflate. ¡°I knew the rumors were true.¡± ¡°It shouldn''t be rumors. I was the one that exposed the testing crystals as a ploy by the guild to keep a tighter control on the creation of mages.¡± I reached over and took her hand. ¡°It''s too late to worry about what could have happened, though. All you can do is go forward.¡± ¡°But, my life could have been so different.¡± Robin said. ¡°Mine, too. I could still be back in the marsh. Or dead.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°I almost died a few times. Instead, here I am and now I own the marsh instead of just living in it.¡± Robin took a deep breath and nodded. I let the pendant go and smiled. ¡°Thank you for having a meal with me, even though we just met.¡± Robin smiled back. ¡°I suspect we''re going to see each other a lot more, now that you can eat here as much as you want.¡± I chuckled. ¡°I''m not greedy. I''ll eat what I need to fill me and that''s it. I never waste food.¡± ¡°I''m glad. I hate seeing food wasted, too.¡± Robin said and she cancelled the enchantment. The fog faded and the sound of the room returned. ¡°It was nice meeting you, my lord.¡± I stood up and took her hand, brushed my lips over her knuckles to make them tingle, and she stared at me. ¡°See you tomorrow.¡± ¡°Y-yes, yes you will.¡± Robin said and walked towards the kitchens. Her hips swayed in her skirt and the cloth was taught across her cheeks. That was surprising, considering it had been loose cloth barely a second before. Almost as if she knew I was looking, she turned to smile at me. I didn''t tell her it was curiosity over what she did and not the sight of her backside behind tighter cloth. I left the cafeteria and debated getting changed before going to my botany class. I decided it was better to change, especially if we were going to be digging into the soil like I suspected. I ran home and successfully avoided three very happy maids with a promise to celebrate properly after school. I changed into casual clothing that was more suitable for working with plants, and ran over to the botany class. I was sure that Victoria would have several surprises waiting for me. 198 Academy Antics Part Sixty Five - Classes Continue I was right about Victoria having surprises for me, because she had two of the samples successfully transplanted into a secluded area in a back room. It was warded against theft and unauthorized entry and she was absolutely ecstatic that the transplanting had worked so far. She had used up one plant and its roots to refine it and determined the exact properties it contained. Once she had done that and took two days to examine the soil content and the inherent magic component, she was able to reproduce the growing conditions in a limited capacity. Victoria also used up one of the flowers by trying to unsuccessfully splice it into several other similar plants. She had taken dozens of cuttings from different parts to try and get it to graft to another, and none of them were successful. It took her an hour to describe it all to me and she showed me her notes on her progress and what direction she had yet to try. After the debriefing, we tended to all of the other plants and things in the workshop by feeding and watering them, adding extra magic where needed, then she took me to the back and she showed me how she made her magic charged watering solution. It was a potion. I asked for the recipe and we spent half an hour going over it. We discussed what it needed to do and she said that it had worked for her for years. I pointed out that one drop of blood for a huge stew pot was not a lot of catalyst and told her what the hag told me. ¡°If you don''t have the proper catalyst, all we''re really making is a watered down ingredient soup.¡± I said. I had to change the statement slightly, since we weren''t using marsh bog water. Victoria laughed. ¡°That''s funny!¡± ¡°It''s also true.¡± I said. ¡°If you''re okay with it, can we work on improving it?¡± Victoria looked at the time and saw that we had a bit of time left before class ended. ¡°All right. Show me what you would change to fix it.¡± I shook my head. ¡°It doesn''t need to be fixed. We''re improving and boosting the effects. It already works, so we''re just making it better.¡± ¡°You don''t have to stroke my ego, David.¡± Victoria said with a smirk. ¡°If you''re going to stroke something, I''d enjoy it more if it was my ass.¡± I gave her a searching look. ¡°I think you might faint if I actually did grab you like that.¡± ¡°Maybe.¡± Victoria grinned at me. ¡°Go grab your lists and we can try to ''improve'' my weak potion.¡± I nodded and ran back to the dorm mansion to get my notes and things, then ran back to the workshop. It took us until the bell rang and for school to be over before we finished the improvements. ¡°I never would have thought to use the grass from around the flowers.¡± Victoria said as she stared at the complete recipe. ¡°It''s like a free magic ingredient injection that doesn''t have any drawbacks.¡± I said. ¡°It''s not poisonous, have any adverse effects, or changes the potion in any way, except by adding extra magic.¡± ¡°We need more of this grass.¡± Victoria said. ¡°You''ll only get more if the transplants stay viable.¡± I said. ¡°If you can, try to cultivate some of the grass in the same area, just not right on the flowers. We don''t want the grass to overrun the flower or absorb the nutrients the flower needs.¡± ¡°Why do you think it didn''t do that in the clearing?¡± Victoria asked as I packed up. ¡°There were more flowers and the grass was competing for light.¡± I said. ¡°Here in a small environment, the grass would easily take over without the competition, especially with your water potion.¡± ¡°All right. I''ll try to get a nice patch growing independently of the samples.¡± Victoria said. ¡°What are you going to do with the other two flowers?¡± I asked. ¡°Reserves. They seem to be okay staying in the little habitat by themselves, so I''ll maintain them there until the transplants are stable for at least two weeks. Once they are, I''ll add the reserves to them in a different spot. Next class, we can try to harvest some of the seeds and pollination from the flowers to try and get some bulbs to grow, independent of the normal insemination cycle.¡± ¡°I doubt you''ll get more out of them than a single bloom, unless you noticed something in your data that I didn''t.¡± I commented and she shook her head. ¡°Then be prepared for the experiment to fail.¡± ¡°You''re telling me to stop trying to force them to have sex, aren''t you?¡± Victoria said with a soft laugh. ¡°Let it happen naturally first, then see where to go from there.¡± I said and picked up the water barrel. ¡°I''ll try to do up some new water potion for you and I''ll drop it off to you tomorrow.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Victoria said. ¡°Are you still planning on your quick trip back to the marsh?¡± ¡°Next weekend, since it''s the last one before the break.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°I''ll have everything ready.¡± Victoria said. ¡°We''re leaving on this day next week, just like when we did for the last field trip.¡± I had to smile at that. ¡°Five days. We''re going to have five whole days in the marsh.¡± Victoria grinned at me. ¡°I knew that would make you happy.¡± I nodded. ¡°I''ve got tons of canvas bags to fill with ingredients, too.¡± She laughed and waved as I left the botany workshop. I ran back to the dorm mansion and said the magic words as soon as I stepped through the front doors. ¡°I need a bath.¡± Sara and Tabitha seemed to appear from nowhere and grabbed me, then they dragged me up the stairs to the bathroom. I was stripped and bathed to the best of their ability, so I thanked them for doing such a great job every time. They gushed at the praise and kissed my cheeks before they dressed me in more casual clothing. I had a few hours before supper, so I brewed three batches of cleaning potion, minus a pot each time of water potion. It would take a few more pots to fill the barrel, so after I ate supper, I went back to work. It actually took four more pots to fill the barrel and I sealed it to bring over to the botany workshop in the morning. I managed one more batch of cleaning potions before midnight and had to go to bed. At the pace I set, I would be done of the order tomorrow and could send them to Helena for sale. I dozed off with the knowledge that I had the entire afternoon off the next day, if the civil construction teacher had another easy project to do, assuming he had moved on from what they were doing two weeks ago.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. The night passed by in an instant and I was up and dressed, made two more batches of potion, ate breakfast, and Hope, Sara, and Tabitha dressed me in my academy uniform with the ceremonial sword. ¡°Did you send off the package?¡± I asked Hope. ¡°Yes, and it''s sealed and has ensured delivery. If anyone but your old XO tries to open it, they are going to get a surprise.¡± I smiled and nodded. I grabbed my already packed small pack with the books for creature biology and civil construction, writing pads, my notes, writing instruments, and measuring devices. I left the dorm mansion with the barrel, careful of it, since it was full of water potion, and went to the botany workshop. Victoria was already there and accepted the barrel with a smile and a wet shirt with no bra. I let her see me staring and left before she could tease me any further. I walked over to where I usually met Vanessa before classes in the morning and she came out from her group of friends. She smiled at me and took my offered arm, much to the chagrin of Selena and her friends. They couldn''t say anything, though. A verbal contract had already been established and they couldn''t protest it, unless things went too far between Vanessa and I. I could tell that Selena was waiting for that and I didn''t bother telling her that I would never do that. I gave my word to Helena, and even if the contracts were signed in two weeks, it wouldn''t be in effect until graduation. My marriage to Helena had to happen first. I mentioned it to Vanessa as we walked to class and she expressed her desires and her wants, and also that she would never breach my vow. She was a lady of her word as well. That''s why she wanted the heir right away to satisfy her family, then she would concentrate on her own happiness. Her education came first, however. ¡°Although, I won''t dissuade my handsome potential contract holder from treating me like a lady as much as he can.¡± Vanessa whispered softly. ¡°Cuddles and cheek kisses can abound as much as he likes and I won''t say no.¡± I had to chuckle at that and she beamed a smile at me. ¡°You took the potions.¡± ¡°I did.¡± Vanessa breathed. ¡°You were right. I saw what my friends were really like and they all care very much for me.¡± She hugged my arm tightly and gave my cheek a kiss before we sat down in class. ¡°It made my heart race and I blushed at the sincerity and love they have for me.¡± I put my chair next to hers and put my arm over her shoulders to whisper. ¡°I''m glad you know that they really are your friends.¡± ¡°So am I.¡± Vanessa whispered and the bell rang to start class. ¡°Today we''re taking a look at the near-deer.¡± Mage Justin Brown said. I clamped my mouth shut and did my best to not say anything. Vanessa noticed and laughed softly as she leaned into me. ¡°We should have asked what the subject was before the bell. You can''t really leave now.¡± ¡°I still could.¡± I whispered and she had to cover her mouth to muffle her laugh. ¡°All right, you convinced me not to make a scene. I''ll stay right here.¡± Vanessa winked at me and relaxed against me as she listened and took notes while I held her. We stayed that way for the entire class. The bell rang and ended the first morning class, so I walked Vanessa to her next class and went to the civil construction classroom. It was the writing and instruction portion now and I wanted to see what the teacher was making. It was a standing cabinet. It was also fairly big and had some scroll work on the doors. The handles were wood as well, which was a nice touch to have instead of metal. The latch and hinges were still metal and there were shelves inside. I heard the teacher come into the classroom and I also heard him sigh. ¡°Mr. Drake... Lord Drake.¡± Mage Tanner Quintos said. ¡°We''re going to be doing the cabinet for the next three weeks.¡± ¡°No, only two.¡± I said and turned to him. ¡°You''re forgetting the break for the king''s birthday.¡± Mage Quintos sighed again. ¡°Damn, you''re right. I did forget that.¡± ¡°You covered the hinges and handle parts with the storage box. You can skip them, even if the hinges and handles are larger. They do the same job.¡± Mage Quintos looked at the cabinet. ¡°What of the detail work?¡± ¡°You just answered your own question. It''s detail work. It can be added after the cabinet itself is made.¡± The teacher looked thoughtful for a moment and then nodded. ¡°Yes. Yes, you''re right. I can focus on just the construction for the next two weeks and have the students build it before we go on break. We can do the finishing class after we come back.¡± I nodded and he smiled. ¡°I''m not even going to ask if you can do this.¡± Mage Quintos said. ¡°I''ll mark you in for the next classes, both for the late morning and for the afternoon workshop.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and walked back towards the door as the rest of the students came into the classroom. ¡°Oh, look. He''s skipping again.¡± One of them said as I passed. ¡°He''s pretty lucky he can do that now. This stuff''s pretty boring.¡± The guy next to him said. ¡°I''m dropping this class as soon as I can.¡± ¡°Why? Who''s going to make your house for you?¡± ¡°Someone I hire.¡± The other guy said with a laugh. I left the classroom and went back to the dorm mansion. I got to work all afternoon and some of the evening until suppertime, had a great meal with the maids, then only had to do two more batches and I was done. I crated up the potions and sent for the Henrietta Longshore carriage, the extra cart, and two guards. It was an hour before curfew when they arrived and I couldn''t go along myself, so I helped load up the carriage and the cart with everything, covered it all to protect it, and let the guards do their jobs. I sent them to Helena for sale and I also put the ten treated snakeskin pieces into the carriage for her as well. I was sure she would be able to do something nice with them. I went back inside the dorm mansion and mentioned a bath, was dragged up the stairs and bathed again, then I was dressed in my night clothes and tucked into bed. ¡°I''m definitely getting spoiled.¡± The three maids laughed and Sara and Tabitha left the room to go back to their own. Hope gave me a forlorn look and walked over to the door. ¡°Are you over your homesickness yet?¡± I asked and she took a deep breath. ¡°A-almost.¡± Hope said. ¡°A few more nights might help.¡± I said and she closed the door. She went over to the closet and changed her clothes, without telling me to look away, and she climbed into bed beside me to cuddle my arm. ¡°David.¡± Hope whispered. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°It''s Vanessa''s fault.¡± I said and she gave me a questioning look, so I explained about what she said today. Hope couldn''t help herself and laughed. ¡°She''s pretty bold to tell you all that.¡± She said and I nodded. ¡°It reminded me of you when you asked for what you needed.¡± I said and wiggled the arm Hope clung to. ¡°I know you gave up your life in the village to come here to be my maid.¡± ¡°I did and I''m not sorry.¡± Hope said and I turned my head to look at her. ¡°It was the best decision I''ve ever made. I get to spend a lot of time with you every day, even more than we would have if we both lived back at the village.¡± She said. ¡°I wouldn''t give that up for anything.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± I asked. ¡°You''re my long lost brother and I love you.¡± Hope said, her face a little red. ¡°I finally have you back in my life after all these years and I''m never letting you go.¡± I turned my head and looked up at the ceiling. ¡°Twenty gold crowns a month helps too, doesn''t it?¡± Hope laughed softly and I felt her lips press to my cheek. ¡°I didn''t know how much I''d be paid when I accepted the job.¡± She said and then caught her breath. ¡°Did you just say twenty gold crowns?¡± ¡°You''ve got a much bigger staff to handle now. You need more money to cover everything.¡± ¡°D-David, you... you didn''t have to.¡± Hope said, quite bashful. ¡°Oh, all right. I''m cutting your pay to five gold crowns.¡± I joked. ¡°David!¡± Hope gasped and her grip on my arm was like a vise. I chuckled and the grip loosened. ¡°Don''t tease me like that.¡± Hope said and a moment later, her lips were back on my cheek and they stayed there for several seconds. ¡°Thank you. Thank you very much.¡± ¡°I''ll give you the slip to take over to the bank tomorrow.¡± I said as Hope rested her head on my shoulder. We were soon asleep and the night passed by before we knew it. 199 Academy Antics Part Sixty Six - An Early Morning Meeting The weekend was here, so I went to Mage Marks first thing in the morning. She answered her apartment door wearing just a thin dress slip and rubbed her sleep filled eyes. ¡°What... who...¡± Greta sighed and blinked several times before recognition could be seen on her face. ¡°David!¡± She gasped, grabbed my arm, and yanked me inside before she shut the door. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± ¡°I was coming over to discuss what other potions and things we could make together.¡± ¡°What... why would...¡± Greta walked away and I saw that her dress slip was bundled up in the back. I clearly saw her tiny panties and her ass jiggled as she walked over to her kitchen. Greta chanted at her tea kettle to make it whistle before she spoke. ¡°Oh! That''s what you wanted to talk about during class last week before the Proctor took you.¡± She said in realization and poured out a cup of tea for herself, glanced at me, and poured another. She brought them over to the living room and put them on the coffee table. ¡°Sit, please.¡± I walked over to her as she sat on the couch and I sat down next to her. ¡°I''m sorry for just showing up.¡± Greta looked at the time and sighed. ¡°No, it''s all right. I shouldn''t have snapped at you. I was out late last night trying to find a cheaper supplier for some of the uncommon and rare ingredients for my classes, hopefully ones that don''t go through the guild at some point.¡± ¡°It''s that difficult?¡± I asked and she nodded as she took a sip of tea. ¡°Ugh, I forgot the sugar and milk.¡± Greta said and stood up to walk by me. The front of her slip was bundled up as well now and I saw a lot of her as she went to the stand beside the couch to get the supplies. She came back and bent over in front of me, almost like Victoria had when she was wearing pants. ¡°What would you like?¡± ¡°There isn''t much for me not to like.¡± I said, since I could see pretty much all of her. Wearing just small panties left nothing to the imagination and I had thought Victoria was a master of teasing. Greta chuckled. ¡°I''ll guess, then.¡± She added two sugar cubes and a dab of milk and stirred it with a spoon. The shaking transferred into a little shake of her ass and I had to admit that was a neat trick. ¡°Here you go.¡± She said as she picked up the cup and saucer to hand them to me. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said as I accepted the cup, then watched as she did the same to her own cup, shook her ass at me again, then she sat down and let out a satisfied sigh as she took a long sip. ¡°Much better.¡± Greta said and licked her lips as she sat back to relax on the couch. ¡°I really enjoy mornings like this.¡± ¡°I can honestly say that I haven''t had many mornings like this.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°You''re still young. I bet you were up at the crack of dawn today.¡± Greta said as she took another sip of tea, not realizing that I meant seeing a woman I wasn''t sleeping with practically naked. ¡°Half past the crack, actually.¡± I said and she laughed. ¡°You''re not even tired, are you?¡± Greta asked and I shook my head. ¡°Well, I suppose I can''t lounge around in bed all day, either.¡± ¡°You could if you wanted to. You''re a grown woman.¡± I said and she smirked at me. ¡°I''m tempted to joke with you and ask if you would really join me in bed for the whole day...¡± Greta started to say. ¡°If I wasn''t betrothed, we could do whatever you wanted.¡± I said and took a sip of tea. ¡°This is good.¡± Greta''s cup was frozen halfway to her mouth and she stared at me with wide eyes. ¡°I finished the cleaning potions last night and sent them to Helena for sale.¡± I said and that shook her out of her stunned silence. ¡°Already? You only just got back from the field trip and then you went to the castle with the king.¡± Greta said and finally took another sip of tea. ¡°I had most of the day off yesterday.¡± I said. ¡°Ah, your superfluous civil construction class.¡± Greta said and smiled. ¡°How nice is it to be able to miss class and not miss anything being taught?¡± ¡°It''s all right so far. I had to sit through biology in the morning, though.¡± ¡°I hope you refrained from taking over the class this time.¡± Greta said, her smile became mischievous. ¡°I clamped my mouth shut and made Vanessa laugh.¡± I responded and she laughed. ¡°She''s a good influence on you, David.¡± Greta said and took another sip. I nodded. ¡°I hope the contract negotiations go through and are successful. I really want to help her with her family.¡± ¡°She''s definitely going above and beyond to do this for them.¡± Greta said and crossed her legs, which seemed to be a whole lot sexier with her nearly naked. ¡°What does Helena think about it?¡± I sat back and relaxed as I told her about Helena''s letter and her view on Vanessa''s petition. ¡°I see. I like that she''s looking out for your concerns and not only considering how this will benefit your growing family.¡± Greta took a sip of tea to finish off her cup. ¡°Would you like more tea?¡± ¡°Please.¡± I said and handed her my nearly empty cup. She got up and refilled our cups, then did the same sugar and milk routine and stirred them, shaking her ass at me again. I didn''t comment, since Victoria didn''t want me to point out the obvious, either. It would ruin some of her fun if I did.If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Now, what was it we were going to discuss?¡± Greta asked as she sat beside me again. ¡°I haven''t had a chance to look at the notes for the beauty creme in detail; but, from what I saw during class...¡± Greta nodded. ¡°After I thought about your cryptic comment about discussing it, I knew you''d have a few tweaks for it, at least.¡± ¡°I''ve never made a cream before. How did the rest of the class do?¡± ¡°Jinelle got it right away, of course.¡± Greta said with a chuckle. ¡°Lorna almost did it on her second try.¡± ¡°Her second?¡± I asked, curious. ¡°She stayed after class to try again. Her first attempt was dismal and she didn''t want it on her record.¡± I raised my eyebrows at her and she chuckled. ¡°David, I''m not some taskmaster that forces people to be perfect the first time or accepts their first attempt as the pinnacle of their talent.¡± Greta said and crossed her legs again. ¡°We both have been doing this for too long to assume something that stupid.¡± I nodded at that. It took time and practice to get good at handling the ingredients, the prep work, and controlling the heat of the fire. ¡°When are you switching wildwood for the firewood?¡± Greta gave me a knowing smile. ¡°I''ve gotten permission from the new director to switch it out for the advanced potions class.¡± ¡°So, just five of the potion stations.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°I assume it''s a trial basis?¡± ¡°If we can produce better potions with your suggestion, I''ll be able to expand it to the third year potions class. If they can get a handle on the change and controlling the flames, I can go to the second years.¡± ¡°I suppose that means you don''t have access to a lot of wildwood.¡± Greta shook her head. ¡°Getting it for enchanting material is fine.¡± She said and then chuckled. ¡°Telling the suppliers that you want to use it for firewood almost gave them heart attacks.¡± I had to chuckle, too. ¡°You made a mistake with my suggestion. The wildwood pieces I use are actually scraps and leftovers from cutting coins for making wards and enchantments.¡± ¡°I see. Yes, that makes more sense and isn''t a waste of enchantable wildwood.¡± Greta said. ¡°I''ll contact the suppliers later and correct the order.¡± ¡°You should cancel the order completely, actually.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°Let it sit for a day or two, then contact them again. Or better yet, have Mage Black Montgomery contact them. What you have to ask for is the scraps and pieces they normally discard, so you can get them for very little cost. If you offer to haul it away for them, they might just give it to you for free.¡± Greta''s surprised face changed to thoughtfulness as she contemplated my words. ¡°David, you have a beautiful mind inside that desirable body.¡± I took a sip of tea. ¡°Can I return that compliment and not insult you, considering the circumstances?¡± Greta looked confused. ¡°Considering the...¡± She looked down at herself and noticed she was wearing just a dress slip. Her face started to flush red as she let her embarrassment overwhelm her. I put my cup and saucer down and took hers to put it down, then I took her hand with both of mine. ¡°Please, don''t be embarrassed. I didn''t mean to draw attention to your attire like that.¡± ¡°D-David, I don''t normally walk around my apartment half naked.¡± Greta said. ¡°You don''t?¡± I asked and she glared at me. ¡°You seem very confident and sure of yourself. In fact, you seemed to have a lot more grace and poise this morning.¡± Greta gave me a surprised look. ¡°I''ve never seen you relax so much or cross your legs before.¡± I pointed out. ¡°You also didn''t object when I sat beside you and then sat there again yourself when you had two chances to change where you sat. If that''s not having confidence in yourself, then I don''t know what it is.¡± Greta lost the surprise and once again looked thoughtful. ¡°You don''t mind that I''ve been walking around like this? You don''t think it''s disrespectful?¡± ¡°If anyone else had been here, perhaps.¡± I said. ¡°With just yourself and I? It''s been quite enjoyable.¡± ¡°Really, now.¡± Greta huffed. ¡°You''re taking my confession as being a woman that regrets your betrothal a bit far, don''t you think?¡± ¡°It would be more prudent to respond that I''ve adopted a ''look and don''t touch'' policy when it comes to other women than my fiance.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°I don''t even touch my maids after the bath and they perform the after bath ritual.¡± Greta''s mouth dropped open slightly at that revelation. ¡°You don''t?¡± I shook my head. ¡°I''m not their chosen partner and can''t be, not in that capacity. It wouldn''t be fair to them if I take advantage of them while they are performing their duties to their lord. It''s not right.¡± Greta''s hand held mine and she sat there quietly for several minutes. ¡°David.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± I asked. ¡°You can compliment me in any way you wish and I won''t take it as an insult, even though we aren''t together.¡± Greta said. I tilted my head slightly as I thought about that. ¡°You''re saying that I can possibly insult, or offer a potential insult, if I am too descriptive in my compliments to women.¡± ¡°Specific women, either noble or mage... especially if they are both.¡± Greta said. ¡°If they are betrothed or married, as long as you have the husband''s permission, it should be okay, as long as you''re not intentionally trying to coerce or entice them away from that husband.¡± I nodded in understanding and decided to test her offer. ¡°Greta, you look very beautiful. Your skills at making tea are unparalleled and I would like to see such a wonderful sight every morning. I have thoroughly enjoyed spending time with you like this and I thank you for allowing me to see how desirable you can be without even trying.¡± Greta''s face was bright red when I was done talking and her hand gripped mine tightly. ¡°D-David...¡± ¡°You promised to not be insulted.¡± I reminded her and she smiled demurely. ¡°I''m... not insulted.¡± Greta whispered and took a deep breath, then another. It made me glance down at her chest and I saw that her nipples had made an appearance. ¡°In fact, I... um...¡± She stopped talking and sat there in silence again for a few minutes. I watched her face and her nipples, only to see the latter reduce in prominence and almost disappear. ¡°I think I need to get changed.¡± Greta said. ¡°I think you should take a nice relaxing bath first.¡± I said. ¡°I can''t offer to help, though. Helena said I can only help her or the maids.¡± Greta caught her breath as her nipples made a very quick return. ¡°Y-yes, all right. If you can wait here, I''ll... um... be a while.¡± I nodded and let her hand go. Greta stood up and looked down at me and I looked up at her. Her hands reached down and my eyes followed them, then she plucked at her dress slip and the thin cloth flopped out and down to cover her front. She must have liked that I was paying attention, because she smiled at me when I looked back up at her face. She walked by me and I saw that the slip wasn''t that long in the first place and she took her time as she crossed the living room to go into the bathroom. She stared at me as she very slowly closed the bathroom door and then I heard running water. I reached for my tea and used the heating spell on the cup before I took a sip. If Victoria''s time in the tub after teasing me was any indication, Greta was going to be a while. 200 Academy Antics Part Sixty Seven - The Marks Family Greta came out of the bathroom an hour later and her face was flushed and she looked both happy and embarrassed. I didn''t comment as I watched her walk by me with just a towel on, then she walked back after getting her clothes. She went back into the bathroom and twenty minutes later, she was dressed in a normal outfit and mage robes. She sat down beside me and I handed her a fresh cup of tea. ¡°Thank you.¡± We enjoyed the tea and talked about the potions that would make the biggest impact, and we decided that the medical cleaning potion would be the first one we needed to do, with the first twelve crates being donated by the Marks and Henrietta families. ¡°It''s the best way to get us known to the community as a whole. Once they start using them and see how well they do, they''re going to want a lot of them for distribution to every city hospital and medical ward in the country.¡± Greta informed me and I nodded. By giving the first batch out for free, it would create the demand that they didn''t know they had. ¡°What about the beauty cream?¡± I asked. ¡°We''ll need to stop by the classroom and we can grab a small crate of the containers. A stew pot makes about twenty containers this big.¡± Greta made a circle with her fingers. ¡°Depending on how much we change and how powerful it becomes, my mother is going to want them all for herself.¡± I smiled. ¡°None for sale?¡± Greta laughed and shook her head. ¡°She might give some out to her friends. Maybe. It depends.¡± ¡°I assume she uses her own cream constantly.¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°Then we can try to work in a stabilizing agent to prolong the effect.¡± ¡°Oh! That''s a great idea.¡± Greta said. ¡°Not for resale, though. Marketing means more sales, so making it last longer will actually hurt sales.¡± ¡°I don''t deal with that side of things because I promised Helena that I wouldn''t become an entrepreneur.¡± I said and Greta nodded. I didn''t give the reason for that, however. After another ten minutes or so of discussion, we left her apartment and stepped outside. A few of the other teachers saw us and I put my hand on the hilt of the ceremonial sword to give it some magic. No one said anything about me being inside Greta''s apartment and we left there to go to the classroom. ¡°I hope you know that you can''t do that all the time.¡± Greta said and motioned to the still slightly glowing short sword on my hip. The scabbard only blocked some of the glow. ¡°Why not?¡± I asked and she laughed softly. ¡°It will lose its effectiveness if overly used.¡± Greta warned me. We went into the main student classroom building and retrieved the crates of round containers and enough ingredients to work with. I also told her the replacements we might need after we worked on changing the recipe. We now had enough to make four batches, two slightly boosted ones that would use the original recipe and have my catalyst and magic, and the other two would be the modified recipe. With a hand cart full of the things we had gathered, we left there and went to my dorm mansion to get to work. With Greta''s help preparing the ingredients for the medical cleaning potion, we had twelve stew pots brewed and simmering fairly quickly. While we waited for them to be ready for the catalyst and infusions, we worked on modifying the cream recipe. Having someone else to bounce ideas off of, especially someone with as much potions experience as Greta had, was an enjoyable time. I brought out my lists and papers with the details I had been gathering on all of the ingredients I could get access to, and her eyes lit up at all of the work I had done in such a short time. ¡°David, you don''t know how happy it makes me that you didn''t give up trying to make potions at the academy, just because you didn''t understand the references and certain phrases the notes and recipes use.¡± Greta said and took my hand briefly. ¡°Seeing all of this and knowing how much you''ve worked on trying to fix that lack of knowledge, well... it... it makes me proud.¡± She admitted. ¡°I''m sorry for overreacting that first day in class.¡± ¡°It''s all right. I knew you were blinded by your own lack of knowledge.¡± I said. Greta glared at me, then she sighed. ¡°All right, yes. I deserved that.¡± She paused for a moment. ¡°I''m just glad we both moved past those mistakes.¡± ¡°Me too, because I wouldn''t have seen you in those cute little panties this morning, otherwise.¡± ¡°David!¡± Greta gasped and her hand went over her mouth. ¡°You...¡± ¡°I did tell you that you were beautiful at the time.¡± I said. Greta gave me another slight glare, then she chuckled. ¡°You''re going to keep throwing that back at me, aren''t you?¡± ¡°When you least expect it.¡± I responded. She laughed softly. ¡°What am I going to do with you?¡± ¡°Work with me and make tons of money?¡± I asked. ¡°I suppose that''s a good enough motivation.¡± Greta said and we both went back to work. We had to stop when the potions needed the catalyst and infusions, and Greta stared at me as I did all twelve of them in a row, one after the other. She didn''t comment, even when we finalized the new beauty cream recipe and started bottling up the medical cleaning potion. ¡°My lord, my lady. Lunch is ready.¡± Hope said after she opened the door to the potion room to peek in. ¡°We''ll be right down.¡± I said and she left. We finished bottling up that crate of vials and went downstairs to the dining room to eat. It was an amicable and entertaining lunch as we discussed the best way to brew the creams. We eventually decided to make the normal one first and finish it before collaborating on producing the new recipe. Doing them at the same time like I wanted would be too much for Greta to keep track of, especially since the new recipe hadn''t been tested before. The best thing about having her there was that she knew how to modify the brew times for the replacement ingredients a lot better than I could, since she had much more experience with them in different potions. A lot of my notes had annotations now, thanks to her impressive knowledge. Of course, I tried to thank her for that and she just blushed a little and waved my words away. ¡°Despite starting out as teacher and student, we''re colleagues now. If we don''t share the practical knowledge we have, we won''t mesh as well together while working together.¡± Greta said. ¡°Although, trying to impart everything we know all at once won''t work. It takes time to get to know one another.¡± ¡°That sounds like we''re building a relationship.¡± I said and she laughed softly. ¡°We are.¡± Greta said. ¡°It might not be an intimate one; but, it''s still a relationship. It involves trust, respect, friendship, and understanding. All of which are essential components to a relationship.¡± I nodded in understanding, because it brought to mind all of the interactions I''ve had with everyone I''ve known. Even all the way back to Ester''s Village and the people that I knew there and could call friends, Greta was right. They were indeed relationships. That was probably why the one I had with Diane changed so easily to become an intimate one, because there was already trust, respect, understanding, and friendship. It also made me realize that when one of those things is removed, even by accident, the relationship crumbles and can''t survive. With Diane it had been trust. She trusted me with her son''s safety and when that was gone, our relationship dissolved almost immediately. Our lunch finished, we went back upstairs to finish crating up the rest of the medical cleaning potions and then started brewing the easily made normal cream recipe. When I used my catalyst and infused each of the twelve pots, the white color of the cream became pearly white and almost glittered in the light. Greta examined it after we divided it all up into the containers and it settled enough to be used. ¡°Good god, David.¡± She said, her voice full of amazement. ¡°This is...¡± She chuckled. ¡°Watch.¡± I watched as she used a bit of the cream on her hand and the two or three little freckles on her skin shimmered a little and then vanished. ¡°It''s supposed to take ten minutes to do that.¡± Greta said with a chuckle. ¡°I can''t wait to brew the new one.¡± I waved at the clean pots and she nodded enthusiastically. We made another batch of normal cream and crated it, then started to brew the modified recipe. With the two of us to work and monitor the progress of it, while also watching for any mistakes, we successfully brewed it in a single pot on the third try. We took notes of the changes and the altered procedure, fixed the original recipe, then dumped the failed ones. We made the other eleven pots of that batch and then another twelve to fill the remaining crates, then we packed everything into the hand cart, except for two crates of each cream that we kept for ourselves. I also put the medical cleaning potions on the top for easier access. ¡°I''ll get a carriage and we can deliver the cleaning potions to my sister.¡± Greta said. ¡°She''s going to be very grateful to have them.¡± ¡°You said before that it will make a healer''s work so much easier.¡± ¡°It really will and it''ll save so much precious time.¡± Greta said. ¡°Remember when you were hurt in the dragon attack and the field healers spent so much time trying to clean your wounds before trying to heal you?¡± She asked and I nodded. ¡°With this potion, they just pour it in and it cleans the wounds for them, then they can get right to healing.¡± ¡°Then I''m glad we decided to make this one first.¡± I said and she smiled. ¡°I am, too.¡± Greta said. ¡°Of course, mother might kidnap you when she sees the modified recipe for her beauty cream... or kill you. It''s a toss up how she''ll react for how much we changed her life''s work.¡± I smiled and almost laughed at that. ¡°Different knowledge bases causes different thinking.¡± ¡°Oh, I know. You''ve proven that to me several times already.¡± Greta said and led me back over to the main administration building while I pulled the hand cart filled with crates. It didn''t take long to send a message for a carriage and her family one quickly showed up. I loaded the luggage rack with the crates of medical cleaning potions on one side and the crates of creams on the other, then hung the hand cart on the back of the carriage. Greta and I climbed into the carriage and we both sat facing forward as the carriage took us to where her sister worked. Unlike most professions, healers didn''t get the weekends off and worked odd hours. They were paid well for their time as compensation, too. The carriage came to a stop and the multi-storey building I saw was almost blindingly white. ¡°Before you comment, it''s an enchantment.¡± Greta whispered to me before the coachman opened the door for us. I stepped out first and held a hand back for her, which she took graciously and managed to not blush at me not rebuffing her publicly. I unhooked the hand cart and filled it with the medical cleaning potions and distributed the weight of the remaining crates with the creams in them. The coachman saw what I did and nodded in approval. Now I had a problem and I leaned close to Greta to whisper. ¡°I can''t take the hand cart and escort you properly at the same time.¡± Greta looked surprised for a moment, then she smiled. ¡°That''s easily handled.¡± She said and looked at the coachman as she plucked one of the vials out of the top crate. ¡°Please guard the cart until we return with a worker to collect it.¡± ¡°Yes, my lady.¡± The coachman said and stood at attention. ¡°I''ll try to request a guard be sent out to help.¡± Greta said and the man looked a little relieved. I assumed the escort role and she took my arm as I led her into the building. The place seemed to have lots of people inside and a few were waiting in line. Greta guided me to a side door and no one stopped us until we went through it and a guard held a hand out to us. ¡°Only staff and...¡± The guard started to say. ¡°I''m Mage Marks and I''m hear to visit my sister, Healer Mage Marks. I''ve brought a very expensive potion donation for the hospital and we need it handled immediately.¡± Greta said. The guard''s eyes widened and he went back to his desk. He checked his list and nodded. ¡°Greta Marks?¡± He asked and she nodded. ¡°What''s your niece''s name?¡± ¡°Jinelle Linette Marks, named after my mother and her mother, respectively.¡± Greta responded. The guard nodded. ¡°I assume you know where to go?¡± Greta laughed softly. ¡°Yes, and she''s kind of expecting me.¡± The guard waved for us to continue on. ¡°If you could send a guard out to the carriage to assist the coachman to protect the hand cart, the hospital would appreciate it.¡± ¡°Of course. If you''re donating it to us, it''s our responsibility to ensure its safety.¡± The guard said. ¡°Thank you.¡± Greta said and we passed through the door and walked down the hallway. ¡°I doubt she''s in her office.¡± She informed me and led me around a corner and down another hallway. We passed multiple doors and came to a stop at a large set of double doors. ¡°This is the long term care ward for injured people.¡± I opened the door for her and it looked surprisingly like the ward at the garrison with two dozen beds. Apparently, it was a standard design and they used it all over, just so anyone going to other buildings would feel the familiarity of the place and could work much better without the distraction of getting used to a new environment. ¡°I''m glad you like the taste.¡± A woman''s voice said as the man on the bed made a gagging sound. ¡°You''re... torturing me... on purpose.¡± The man complained with tears in his eyes as the woman corked an empty vial. The woman laughed and pat his shoulder. ¡°If I was going to torture you on purpose, I would be tickling your nose with a feather.¡± The man looked horrified and moved his arms... or tried to. All he had were two stumps. The woman laughed again and gently scratched the man''s nose as he let out a long sigh. ¡°Even just the suggestion was enough to make it itch, hmm?¡± The man smiled and waited until she was done before he spoke. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°I''ll be back to visit again tomorrow.¡± The woman said and turned to see us. She took in a quick breath of surprise and then recovered quickly. ¡°Greta!¡± ¡°Linette.¡± Greta said. ¡°Can I have a few words in private before you keep doing your patient visits?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Linette said and walked over to us. ¡°We can go to my office.¡± Greta nodded and we followed her out of the ward. Linette took us on a merry journey down more hallways and past many more doors to get to her office. She waved at the chairs in front of her desk and slipped off her healers robes before she sat down. ¡°What did you want to talk to me about?¡± Linette asked. ¡°Lord David Drake and I would like to make a significant potion donation to you and the hospital.¡± Greta said and Linette''s eyes widened. ¡°I don''t want you jumping to conclusions, so I''ll tell you what potion it is.¡± Linette chuckled and she sounded like Greta. ¡°I have to assume it''s not a pain reliever or a calming potion with that kind of an explanation.¡± ¡°It''s a medical cleaning solution for wounds that works in seconds.¡± Greta said. ¡°WHAT?!?¡± Linette gasped. ¡°It''s true.¡± Greta said. ¡°A few drops is all it takes.¡± ¡°No, that... there''s no way...¡± Linette started to mumble and Greta put the vial on her desk. She snatched it up and her mumbles became chants. The bottle glowed for about twenty seconds and she stared at it as if it was going to bite her. ¡°I told you.¡± Greta said with satisfaction. ¡°Greta, this... you don''t know what this means...¡± ¡°Oh, but I do. When David mentioned he could make it after he showed me a much more powerful cleaning solution that actually decontaminates water...¡± ¡°WHAT?!?¡± Linette gasped. ¡°We didn''t make any of that. It''s a bit too time consuming and we couldn''t have made what we have if we tried.¡± Greta said and pointed at the vial in her sister''s hand. ¡°We have twenty crates of 36 vials of that for you.¡±Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. Linette''s mouth dropped open at her words. ¡°No, you... are you serious?¡± Greta nodded. ¡°I told you I know how important this can be to healers and it was the very first thing we made.¡± Linette hugged the vial. ¡°And you''re giving it to the hospital.¡± ¡°And we''re giving it to the hospital, free of charge.¡± Greta said. ¡°We won''t even ask you to pay the base cost of the ingredients or for the crates and vials.¡± Linette stared at her and didn''t know what to say. ¡°David already loaded the cart with them, so we just have to go out the front door and...¡± ¡°LET''S GO!¡± Linette yelled and shot to her feet. The vial she had in her hand disappeared into a pocket and she ran around the desk and grabbed Greta''s hand. Greta laughed as her sister pretty much dragged her out of the office. I easily kept up with them and Linette stopped at a random door and poked her head inside a small break room. Six healers were there drinking tea. ¡°I need several hands to handle expensive potions!¡± Linette exclaimed. Two of the men and one woman stood up. ¡°It sounds important.¡± The woman said. ¡°It''s wound cleaning solution.¡± Linette said, satisfaction in her voice. The woman let out a squeal and the other people stood as well. ¡°LET''S GO!¡± Greta laughed again as we left the room with six followers that were just as excited as Linette to get the potion. We went outside and the healers almost drooled over the hand cart full of crates. The guard and the coachman were unsure what to do about all the people running their hands over the crates. ¡°Don''t just admire them! Get them inside!¡± Linette said loudly and the healers did just that. She led them inside with the cart and they were gone for nearly ten minutes. ¡°Do you think they forgot about us?¡± I asked. Greta gave me a pleased smile. ¡°Oh, no. Linette is going to come back and...¡± The front door opened and a very happy Linette came out, her strides purposeful, and the healer with her brought out the hand cart. They came right over to us and Linette gave her sister a hug while I hung the cart on the back of the carriage. ¡°Thank you, Greta.¡± Linette said, almost teary-eyed. ¡°You have someone else to thank, too.¡± Greta reminded her. ¡°Just remember that you''re still married.¡± Linette laughed as she let her out of the hug. ¡°You know he hasn''t touched me since Jinelle was born.¡± ¡°Oh, I know.¡± Greta said with a smirk and Linette laughed again. ¡°If I didn''t like you so much, I might hate you.¡± Linette grinned at her and as she turned to me, her face became humble. ¡°Lord Drake, on behalf of myself, the hospital, and all of the patients that potion is going to help... thank you.¡± ¡°You''re welco-mmm.¡± I said as she kissed me and wrapped her arms around me. ¡°Linette!¡± Greta gasped. Linette broke the kiss and looked into my eyes. ¡°Just because I''m married, that doesn''t mean I can''t kiss a man that deserves it.¡± She said, her voice full of seduction. ¡°I was trying to warn you not to do that, dammit!¡± Greta said, sternly. ¡°He''s betrothed!¡± ¡°So?¡± Linette asked and she slowly let me go and her hands ran across my nice suit. ¡°You have taste, money, and can make potions. The only way you could be more desirable is if you knew what you were doing in bed.¡± ¡°I do.¡± I admitted and Greta caught her breath. Linette laughed demurely and her hands reached up to touch my cheeks. ¡°Then you deserve a follow up chaste kiss for your honesty.¡± She said and leaned in to lightly press her lips to mine. ¡°Thank you, Lord Drake.¡± ¡°Linette.¡± Greta almost spat and her sister gave her a wicked smile. ¡°Don''t be angry at me for doing something you don''t have the guts to do.¡± Linette said. ¡°That... that''s beside the point! I''m not married!¡± Greta responded. ¡°Neither is Lord Drake. Not yet, anyway.¡± Linette said. ¡°Plus, I''m sure he knows and understands that I won''t ever break my vow.¡± I nodded, because I wouldn''t break mine, either. ¡°I''m going to visit the director to let him know about this donation.¡± Linette said and started to walk away. ¡°It''s from the Marks Family and the Henrietta Longshore family.¡± Greta said. Linette turned to her with surprise. ¡°Henrietta Longshore?¡± ¡°It''s a main branch offshoot.¡± Greta said. ¡°Helena Henrietta broke relations with her father.¡± Linette gave me a searching look as if she knew it was because of me, so I nodded. She nodded back and went inside the building. ¡°That woman...¡± Greta shook her head and sighed. ¡°Driver, the Marks Estate, please.¡± We climbed inside and the carriage was off. It took a little while to get to the Marks Estate and it was getting close to lunch. She gave my suit a look that I recognized and I tapped on the carriage. The little window out the front opened. ¡°Driver! The high shopping district, please.¡± I said and he nodded. The carriage changed directions at the next street. Greta''s look changed to a thoughtful one. ¡°We won''t have time for...¡± ¡°It''s all right. You''ll see.¡± I said and the carriage arrived at the district fairly quickly. I stepped out and held a hand back for her. She looked a little surprised at my offer, then took my hand and came with me. I walked right over to the most expensive shop and went inside. ¡°Ah! Lord Drake!¡± Ferdinand said as soon as he saw me. ¡°I assume this is an emergency?¡± ¡°You assume correctly. We are to meet the matriarch of the Marks Family, possibly for lunch.¡± I said. ¡°Uninvited.¡± I added, just in case. Ferdinand chuckled. ¡°I certainly hope you bring her something spectacular as an apology.¡± ¡°According to Mage Marks, she could either love me or kill me for it.¡± I responded. Ferdinand laughed. ¡°Oh, that''s highly appropriate for Lady Marks!¡± He came around the counter to us. ¡°Shall I mix meeting and meal styles?¡± ¡°Whatever you think appropriate.¡± I said. ¡°I am in your hands.¡± Ferdinand''s happy smile became a grin. ¡°You should be careful with what you say, my lord.¡± I smiled back. ¡°I know what I said.¡± Ferdinand laughed again and waved at the back dressing area. ¡°Right this way, please.¡± He said and clapped his hands. Two young women appeared and came with us. Greta wasn''t sure what she should do, so she let me lead her along to the area and then she stared as I was stripped down to my underwear by the two women. Ferdinand began his work and none of us were amazed when he produced an appropriate looking suit outfit in only ten minutes and the two women dressed me quickly and added the proper accessories. The suit even covered my bandoleer and the knife sheath. ¡°Who do you recommend to help Mage Marks?¡± I asked as Ferdinand rubbed his hands over the suit in several places to make sure it hung well and then a few places that he wanted to touch. ¡°Oh, Sally is the best for quick transformations. She''s two shops over.¡± Ferdinand said and stepped back. ¡°You look dashing, my lord. Simply dashing.¡± ¡°Thank you. You do good work.¡± I said and looked myself over in the full length mirror, then I turned to the two helpers. ¡°Thank you, ladies.¡± The two young women blushed and giggled as they handed me a nice bag with my old clothes in them. I handed them a gold coin each and they let out little squeals of delight. ¡°Ferdinand, you know my account at the bank.¡± I said and he nodded. ¡°Please, be gentle.¡± Ferdinand chuckled. ¡°Of course, my lord.¡± He said and led Greta and myself out to the front of the shop. ¡°Have a great day.¡± I escorted a silent Greta to the shop and Sally took one look at her and rushed over. ¡°We need to fix you right away!¡± Sally said and took a surprised Greta away. Two young women appeared at her clap and the four of them disappeared into the back. I was tempted to go as well, then decided that Greta needed to not be distracted. It took them almost twenty minutes to finish and the results were astonishing. Greta came out and looked even better than the king''s concubine had after being done up by my maids, and that was saying something. The dark blue dress that showed a bit of her cleavage made it look like her skin was almost glowing and the slight blush on her face seemed to be permanent. ¡°Well?¡± Sally prompted me. ¡°What do you think?¡± ¡°Absolutely delightful.¡± I said and admired all of the little accessories. Greta''s face went redder as her blush seemed to flow down her exposed neck. Her brown hair was done up into a complicated and simple hairdo. I walked over to the counter to give Sally my account info at the bank. ¡°Lord Drake, I can pay for...¡± ¡°Nonsense.¡± I waved her offer away. ¡°We''re partnering in this venture, so consider it an investment.¡± Sally beamed a smile at me. ¡°Such gallantry.¡± She said and tucked the information into her pocket. ¡°Thank you for your business, Lord Drake.¡± ¡°I''ll be sure to tell everyone where I found such a great outfit for a woman.¡± I responded and Sally looked quite pleased. I went over to the young women, took the bag with Greta''s old clothes in it, and handed each of them a gold coin. They squealed like the two women had at Ferdinand''s shop and I walked over to Greta and offered her my arm. ¡°Shall we?¡± Greta nodded and we left the shop to go back to the waiting carriage. The coachman looked shocked at our altered appearance as he held the door for us. We climbed in and I put the bags under the front seat. The drive to the Marks Estate took another twenty minutes and we arrived just before lunch was to be served. I grabbed the bags and then took one of each cream container before we went to the front door. A butler was just inside the front door of the mansion and Greta told him to send word that we were there and would like to meet with her mother, even if it meant lunch first. The man didn''t even bat an eye at our outfits and left without comment. ¡°He''s not happy.¡± Greta said and hung the two bags of our clothes beside the door. ¡°I just hope he doesn''t rile mother up before she comes to see us.¡± ¡°I''ll handle it if he did.¡± I said and Greta gave me a disbelieving look. ¡°I remember what Jinelle said.¡± Greta took in a sharp breath and then closed her mouth on her response when a woman''s shout cut through the air. ¡°She DEMANDS to see me immediately?!?¡± A shrill voice exclaimed. After a few moments, loud shoes clapped against the floor as the woman approached. She was quite tall, a few inches taller than Greta and myself, and her face showed anger. When she was close enough, I let Greta go and stepped forward. The woman''s face lost a bit of anger and gained some confusion. ¡°Lady Marks, I am Lord Drake.¡± I said and her eyes widened, then she took in the very expensive suit I was wearing. ¡°I made a breakthrough with your beauty cream and needed to see you right away.¡± The irate woman''s face lost all the anger and her eyes went to Greta. ¡°Is this true?¡± ¡°I would never show up unannounced if it wasn''t important, mother.¡± Greta said. Lady Marks nodded. ¡°When did this happen?¡± She asked and looked back at me. ¡°Just this morning. Your daughter and I worked on it for quite some time to figure it out. Once we brewed it, we had to bring it to you.¡± Her eyes went back to Greta and saw the expensive dress and accessories she wore. She looked like she understood the significance of her daughter dressing so well. ¡°You dressed up for me.¡± ¡°We both did.¡± Greta said. ¡°In fact, it was Lord Drake''s idea and we just came from the shopping district.¡± Almost against her will, Lady Marks'' hand reached out and touched the lapel of my suit. Her hand slid over to the shoulder and then over the Henrietta crest attached there. She had a little smile on her face and took her hand back. ¡°Ferdinand''s.¡± Lady Marks whispered with a small smile. I nodded. ¡°I had this made especially for you.¡± Lady Marks looked very pleased at that statement. ¡°You are taxing my staff today.¡± ¡°I apologize for that.¡± I said and ducked my head slightly. ¡°We would like to join you at the table, at your convenience. Food is not required, since we came to talk, or we can wait in the parlour for you to finish your meal.¡± Lady Marks looked thoughtful. ¡°Bannon, send word to the cooks. A light lunch for three and I will accept a half hour delay as appropriate.¡± ¡°Yes, my lady.¡± The butler said and quickly walked away. ¡°He still isn''t happy.¡± Greta commented and her mother smiled briefly. ¡°You did interrupt the start of my lunch.¡± Lady Marks said, a bit sternly. ¡°Did they serve the wine?¡± Greta asked and her mother didn''t respond. ¡°May I escort you, my lady?¡± I asked and offered Lady Marks my arm. Lady Marks glanced at her daughter. ¡°I haven''t had a need to take a man''s offered arm in years.¡± ¡°I''m still not going to agree to a betrothal unless the man has at least some interest in my work, mother.¡± Greta said as she took my arm instead. Lady Marks smirked and looked at me. ¡°I assume someone was intelligent and snapped you up at the first opportunity.¡± ¡°It was more like the sixth opportunity.¡± I responded and she laughed softly. ¡°Please, do tell me about it.¡± Lady Marks said as she walked back towards the small dining room. ¡°I do so love hearing about a bit of relationship drama.¡± So, I told her about being involved with Diane and meeting Mage Henrietta during the mission planning for setting up the garrison in the new territories and for taking out the dragons along the way. Both she and Greta listened intensely as I did and both asked questions when appropriate and I would clarify things for them. I ended the story with Helena coming to the new garrison and rescuing me from the colonel. Lady Marks was silent as lunch was served to her first, Greta next on her right, then myself on her left. ¡°She changed a medical discharge to dishonorable for cowardice in facing the enemy?¡± She asked when the maids stepped back from the table. ¡°She thought I was running away from the enemy and I was actually running away from her decisions.¡± I said and took a sip of wine. It wasn''t as nice as the wine at the dorm mansion. Lady Marks smiled. ¡°You do know the army and the navy love her.¡± ¡°Because of me.¡± I said. ¡°It''s one of the reasons why she didn''t want to let me go.¡± Lady Marks nodded and our conversation paused as we ate. The silence wasn''t strained, even though neither Lady Marks nor Greta mentioned the cream, which was the whole point in showing up like we had. Lunch soon ended and the dishes were cleared, then Lady Marks stood. ¡°Come with me.¡± Greta stood immediately and I followed suit, then escorted her behind her mother as the older woman swept through the mansion to take us to her brewing center. When we arrived there, it was an eclectic mix of ingredient bins, work benches, preparation tools, potion stations in different spots, and two assistants. The young women looked up in surprise from their workbench and the ingredients they were preparing. ¡°As you can see, we''re constantly working to try and improve the recipe.¡± Lady Marks said and motioned towards the two workers. ¡°We haven''t had any luck improving it.¡± One of the young women said. ¡°In fact, the more we change, the less effective it gets, even with better ingredients.¡± ¡°As Greta knows, I don''t allow just anyone in here.¡± Lady Marks said and turned to me. ¡°None of us have heard of you before, Lord Drake.¡± ¡°Are you sure? My fiance has sold all of the general health potions and healing potions I made.¡± I said. ¡°That was you?!?¡± The two young women gasped as one. ¡°Wait, what?¡± Lady Marks turned to them. ¡°Explain.¡± It only took a few minutes for them to tell her about the miracle potions that had blasted across the capital and had all of the potion makers in an uproar, especially since they couldn''t discover how to break apart the potions into components or even find any infusion of blood in them. Lady Marks was quiet as she digested the information, then she turned back to me and held a hand out. I put the container of boosted cream into her hand and she opened it. She took in a gasp at the slight change in the color and then applied a small dab of it to the back of her hand. Several spots and a blemish dissolved and disappeared in ten seconds. The two young women came over to her and examined her hand to check on the results, then they checked the cream itself. One pulled out the same paper that Mage Marks had used and after a couple of spells and a dab of cream, nothing appeared on the blood trace paper. ¡°How is that possible?¡± Lady Marks asked. ¡°Mother.¡± Greta said and the older woman looked at her. ¡°That''s just your normal recipe that''s been boosted by David''s techniques and magic.¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± Lady Marks stared at her daughter and looked confused. ¡°David.¡± Greta said and I handed over the modified cream. Lady Marks opened it and the glistening consistency made her own eyes sparkle. ¡°Oh... oh, my.¡± The two assistants abandoned the boosted cream and went to work on the new one. Their movements became frantic as they fussed out a few things about it; but, it was all just from surface testing. ¡°Use it on your legs, mother.¡± Greta prompted. Lady Marks whirled to her. ¡°Excuse me? What did you say?¡± ¡°Don''t get angry at me revealing your secret, mother. You should trust me instead.¡± Greta said, satisfaction in her voice. ¡°T-trust you.¡± Lady Marks said, as if she didn''t believe the word held any weight. ¡°Yes, mother. Let David see what the culmination of our combined work can do.¡± Lady Marks gave me a pointed glare. ¡°I can''t turn around to give you privacy if I have to observe.¡± I responded. She held the glare for a moment more, then she sighed with a nod. Her two assistants acted like maids and stripped her clothing to show off an aged body that had nice and tight skin on the arms, neck, face, and upper chest... and the rest was the same as any older person''s body would look like after sixty years of life. I used Sense Magic and saw that both her bra and underwear were glowing, just like Mage Ridge''s had. She said it was to make herself look and feel younger and desirable, so I gave Lady Marks the same look to make her feel it as well. Lady Marks blushed for the first time in years at my gaze and she handed the cream to her assistants. ¡°You, concentrate on the visible veins and the age spots. You, concentrate on the wrinkles.¡± ¡°Yes, my lady.¡± The two young women said and each took a palm full of cream. They started to apply it and slathered it over the older woman''s legs from the thigh down, massaging it in, then switched legs and added more cream. ¡°Nothing''s happening.¡± One of the assistants said as the two of them knelt on the floor to watch. ¡°You are covering up a much larger area than the back of a hand.¡± Greta informed them. ¡°Give it time to...¡± She stopped talking when Lady Marks'' legs started to glow. The legs shivered and the two assistants reached for Lady Marks to hold her steady, then they caught their breath as the woman''s aged legs seemed to shrink slightly and the normal skin color returned to make them look both healthy and young. No veins, no age spots, and no wrinkles marred the smooth surface. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Lady Marks whispered and her own hands roamed over her thighs and felt the soft and supple skin. She looked up at me. ¡°You have to feel this.¡± I glanced at Greta and she shrugged, so I walked over and knelt between the two assistants. ¡°Please excuse the intrusion.¡± I said and put my hands onto her knees. I gently and firmly rubbed my hands up both of her thighs and felt as much skin as possible. The cream was so strong that I could feel it seeping into the muscles and enhancing them like it did for the skin. Lady Marks let out a low moan as I massaged the muscles to determine the extent of the effect and I saw her underwear grow damp and then become wet. I stopped moving my hands and slid them back down her thighs before I stood. She was breathing a little faster as she stared at my mouth. ¡°Are you feeling any adverse effects?¡± One of the assistants asked and that seemed to snap Lady Marks out of whatever fantasy she had been imagining. ¡°N-no, not... not from the cream.¡± Lady Marks said, her face showing desire. The assistant looked confused for a second and then noticed her lady''s damp underwear. ¡°Oh.¡± ¡°We''ll let you get dressed.¡± Greta said and took my hand to lead me from the room. ¡°Before you ask, we have ten crates of the boosted cream and ten crates of the modified recipe on the carriage.¡± ¡°Ten crates of each?!?¡± Lady Marks exclaimed, shocked. ¡°I thought you said you had the breakthrough this morning!¡± ¡°We did.¡± Greta said with a grin and closed the door before her mother could holler at her to bring me back. ¡°You enjoyed that.¡± I said and she laughed. ¡°It''s difficult to get anything over on my mother, so surprising her twice in one day is a rush.¡± ¡°Three times. I doubt she planned on being aroused.¡± I said and Greta laughed again. ¡°That poor woman.¡± Greta said and I refrained from reminding her that she was in the same position. We went downstairs and waited by the front door for her mother to recover and to come and get the crates. If her reaction was any indication, she was going to fall all over herself to get them. 201 Academy Antics Part Sixty Seven - An Appropriate Trade Lady Marks was changed into a strapless dress ten minutes later and came down the stairs with two very happy assistants behind her. The reason they were happy, was because the older woman''s skin looked both youthful and healthy. In fact, she looked just like her daughter, Linette. ¡°Good god.¡± Greta whispered and it carried through the spacious lobby. Lady Marks laughed at her daughter''s shocked face. ¡°It''s spectacular, isn''t it?¡± She asked and ran her hand up one of her now smooth arms. ¡°I look almost twenty years younger.¡± ¡°We''ve run diagnostic spells and checks on her, and everything checks out. There''s no adverse effects, even though it''s working under the skin, too.¡± One of the assistants said. ¡°We''ll need to observe for another two hours at ten minute intervals to get a baseline for sustainability.¡± The other assistant said. ¡°The normal cream needs to be applied once a day and...¡± ¡°By our numbers and tests, the boosted cream can be applied and lasts for a week before new spots and blemishes grow.¡± Greta said and went to the bags she hung up, rifled through hers, and took out several sheets of paper that she had in her pockets. ¡°You can see for yourself.¡± ¡°A week? Are you sure?¡± Lady Marks asked and took the papers from her. The two assistants read them over her shoulder and they were nodding at the numbers. ¡°I see. Yes, I agree. Six or seven days per application.¡± She looked at Greta with a stern face. ¡°You cannot sell this.¡± Greta glanced at me briefly and gave me a knowing smile before she looked back at her mother. ¡°David knows about your strict product policy and we kept two crates each for our own use or as gifts. The rest we brought to you.¡± Lady Marks nodded. ¡°All right, I can agree to that, as long as you tell them where you got the recipe.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Greta said. Lady Marks looked back at the papers and frowned. ¡°There''s no data on the modified skin cream.¡± ¡°That''s because we didn''t test it at all.¡± Greta said and the two assistants took in sharp breaths. ¡°David and I agreed to leave that honor to you and your assistants.¡± Lady Marks smiled slightly, then she frowned again. ¡°All right, what do you want?¡± Greta glanced at me again and I nodded. She took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°On behalf of the family, I formally request that you cease and desist all stringent and harmful disciplinary acts you perform on said members and their children.¡± The two assistants gasped and Lady Marks looked very angry. ¡°You dare dictate to me how to run my family?¡± Lady Marks nearly shouted. I put a hand on Greta''s shoulder and pushed a bit of magic into her. Greta jerked slightly and shuddered, then she took a deep breath and looked her mother in the eye. ¡°Your methods only worked when I was younger because I was too afraid of you to speak up about how cruel you were to me.¡± She said and Lady Marks looked surprised. ¡°It wasn''t until I saw how afraid Jinelle was of you that I realized how abusive you''ve been to everyone in the family and not just your children.¡± ¡°What? No, you''re wrong. She''s not afraid of me.¡± Lady Marks shook her head. ¡°She''s my precious little Jinny and I love her.¡± ¡°Mother, I wouldn''t lie about something this important.¡± Greta said. ¡°Even when I mentioned telling you about a mistake she made, gave her trembles, because she knew your punishment would be severe.¡± ¡°I... I have to keep discipline.¡± Lady Marks said. ¡°I''m strict for a reason. Any mistake could be disastrous when dealing with volatile ingredients and potions.¡± ¡°I''m not telling you to stop being strict. I''m telling you to not overdo it.¡± Greta said. ¡°You''ve taken it as a habit to always give out harsh punishments for every single wrongdoing and every mistake, no matter the circumstances or situation. You never take into account any other factors and always assume the worst.¡± Lady Marks didn''t say anything in response and looked too surprised to try. ¡°I want you to think it over for several days and try to remember everything you''ve done to me, to Linette, and especially to Jinelle. Weigh it properly in your mind and ask yourself if you ever, even once, didn''t give out the worst punishment.¡± Greta said. ¡°I''ll come back next weekend and if I like what I hear, David has agreed to hand over the recipe for the new cream for a 20% share in the sales.¡± Lady Marks still looked surprised and her eyes went from her daughter to me. ¡°Greta gets 20% as well.¡± I said. ¡°That leaves 60% for you and you can do whatever you want with it.¡± Lady Marks'' surprise changed to a blank face. ¡°You know I can just not sell it and you get nothing.¡± ¡°Neither will you.¡± I responded. ¡°Trading for gifts is still considered selling, because bartering is an accepted trading custom. Whatever you trade for, we get 40% of it.¡± Lady Mark''s face went from blank to a frown again. ¡°I won''t ask how you would get 40% of an item.¡± I smiled. ¡°You sell it and split the money. If you trade for a favor, whatever benefit you get from it, we still get 40%.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± Lady Marks said and smiled wickedly. ¡°What if it''s the services of a concubine?¡± ¡°The value of a concubine can be easily determined and you would need to pay us 40% of that value.¡± I responded and she looked surprised again. ¡°I''m already in negotiations for one and will soon have first hand experience with it. You won''t be able to cheat us by trading for something that you personally might think is cheap or worthless.¡± Lady Marks didn''t say anything for several moments as her face looked thoughtful, then she spoke. ¡°You''ve thought this out completely, haven''t you?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I responded. ¡°It''s one of the downsides of being under the constant threat of imminent death.¡± They all looked surprised this time, even Greta. ¡°You mean back in the marsh, don''t you?¡± Greta asked. ¡°There, too.¡± I said and she fell silent as she contemplated my meaning. Lady Marks looked at her assistants. ¡°Go ahead and gather the offered cream.¡± She said and waved at the door. I went to it and opened the door for them. ¡°After you.¡± The two assistants gave me smiles as they walked past and I unhooked the hand cart from the carriage and then filled it with the crates. They led me over to the service entrance and the large door there and we went inside.If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°We''ll have to carry them up to the lab crate by crate.¡± One of the young women said. ¡°That won''t be necessary.¡± I said and she gave me a look, then she stopped breathing as I walked up the stairs normally and dragged the cart behind me as if it wasn''t there. ¡°Open the door at the top, please.¡± ¡°Y-yes, of course.¡± The other young woman said and walked up the stairs ahead of me and held the door. I took the cart through and down the hallway to the lab. I stood there and waited for them to tell me where else to go and they opened the door. I went inside and they pointed to a storage room that was full of crates. ¡°It''s a good thing they''re marked.¡± I said and unloaded the crates, making sure to pile the boosted cream in one spot and the modified cream in the one next to it. ¡°Thank you, my lord.¡± One of the assistants said. ¡°It was nothing.¡± I said and started to walk away. ¡°We mean making the changed creams.¡± They both said. ¡°Our lady will be very happy about it.¡± I knew that tone of voice and realized that they weren''t covered under Greta''s plea to stop the abuse of her family. ¡°I''m sorry that Greta''s request was so carefully worded.¡± Both young women looked surprised for a second, then they both smiled. ¡°It''s going to change her whole outlook, even if we aren''t specifically mentioned.¡± One of them said. ¡°Thank you for prompting her to say something.¡± ¡°I hope you benefit from it.¡± I said and they nodded, then they led me back out and down the stairs to put the hand cart back on the carriage. We went back inside and saw Greta and her mother were in a deep whispering conversation. The three of us stood there and tried to be as unobtrusive as possible as we waited for it to be over. Lady Marks nodded slightly and Greta stepped back, gave her mother a bow, and walked over to me. ¡°David, let''s go.¡± Greta said as she grabbed our two bags and we left without so much as a goodbye. ¡°Can I ask why we rushed out?¡± I asked as we sat beside each other and the carriage took off to bring us back to the academy. ¡°Mother was... a bit enthusiastic about... letting someone try out her replenished body. For experimental purposes, of course.¡± Greta said and didn''t explain further. She gave me a knowing look, glanced down at my crotch, then pointedly looked out the window. I wasn''t born yesterday and knew what she meant. I gently took her hand and brought it to my mouth, then kissed the back of it and not the fingers. I pulsed my magic through her hand and she shivered. ¡°Thank you for looking out for my safety.¡± I said, sincerely. Greta turned back to look at me. ¡°David, I only...¡± ¡°It''s easy to protect me from my enemies. It''s much harder to protect me from your family and potential friends.¡± I said and she raised her eyebrows at me. ¡°You know she''s going to burn through that small supply fairly quickly, especially when she shows the other family matrons what it can do.¡± ¡°Not many of them are without spouses.¡± Greta whispered as she was starting to understand what it meant to give older women a cream that gave them bodies that were twenty years younger. ¡°It won''t matter if they are married or not. They fulfilled their marriage contracts years ago.¡± I responded. Greta nodded. ¡°A lot of the behind the scenes affairs are probably going to become a lot more public.¡± ¡°If they aren''t careful.¡± I said. ¡°Then again, I know a lot of the arranged marriages are loveless and even have animosity and hatred between spouses. You know they both will have had affairs with people they like over the years.¡± Greta sighed. ¡°Mother has entertained a few guests over the years, even when father was alive.¡± I held her hand for the entire ride back to the academy. Our reworked beauty cream was going to shake things up a little over the next little while. We dropped the hand cart back at the main classroom building and then went to the teacher''s apartment building. We climbed out with our bags and I walked Greta to her apartment. A few of the other teachers were there and had wide eyes as they saw our expensive outfits. ¡°If you want to wait for a bit, I can carefully bundle this outfit up for you.¡± Greta said at her door as she unlocked and opened it. ¡°I bought it for you.¡± I said and stepped inside slightly to get us out of sight. ¡°I doubt any other woman could wear it as well.¡± Greta''s face flushed red and she took a deep breath. ¡°Thank you for today. You didn''t have to...¡± ¡°We only did what was necessary and important.¡± I interrupted. ¡°It didn''t seem so important when we started this morning.¡± Greta laughed softly. ¡°After seeing my sister''s and my mother''s faces after our donations, though...¡± ¡°I think they are both going to contact you very soon.¡± I said. ¡°You don''t think they are both going to wait for my visit next week?¡± Greta asked. I shook my head. ¡°Maybe three days and that''s only because it''s the weekend.¡± Greta laughed again. ¡°Yes, I suppose you''re right.¡± ¡°I''ll bring your crates over later.¡± I said and took her hand again to kiss it. ¡°Good day, Greta.¡± Greta smiled as I made her hand tingle, then she stepped close and kissed my cheek to make it tingle. ¡°I''ve had a great day so far and there''s only one thing that could make it better.¡± She said and eased me back out through the door. ¡°Since neither of us wants to disappoint your fiance, this is as good as the day will ever be.¡± I nodded in understanding and she slowly shut the door. I left there and felt several sets of eyes on me. I stepped out of the building and the carriage was gone, so I walked across the campus to the library. Eludora squealed loudly when she saw me and waved for me to come over to her. ¡°David!¡± She exclaimed and took me into a gentle hug. ¡°You look absolutely adorable.¡± ¡°Is it fair to call a man adorable?¡± I asked and she laughed. ¡°You''re all dressed up and you came to the library to visit me.¡± Eludora said, teasingly. ¡°Of course, that''s adorable.¡± ¡°Is no one else here?¡± I asked and glanced around. ¡°Some students were here earlier and left for lunch. They haven''t come back yet.¡± Eludora said and then smiled at me as her hands roamed over my expensive suit. ¡°Now, tell me why you came here looking so adorable.¡± ¡°The king gave me the marsh and made me a full lord.¡± I said. ¡°That much I know already. It''s all anyone''s talking about.¡± Eludora said. ¡°What else is there?¡± I smiled slightly and took out the documents from my bandoleer and unrolled them, then pulled out the new map of the places that had been scouted at the relay stations and the estimated boundaries of the marsh. ¡°Ooo, a new map!¡± Eludora said and her fingers traced the trade route and she mumbled to herself as she examined the markings and the annotations for different features along the entire route. She tapped the map of the new territories and smiled. ¡°Please tell me you can help me put this onto a full size one.¡± ¡°I''ll even build the frame and enchant it for you tomorrow.¡± I said and her hand reached up and rubbed the side of my face. ¡°Thank you.¡± Eludora said. ¡°Let''s go to the map room and get started.¡± I helped her walk there, so she wasn''t supporting her entire weight on her legs, and we used up several hours making as big of a map as possible on the large sheet of thick paper she had. Using the annotations, she drew in what they described, since there was a lot of room on the much larger map now. The details she could add were amazing and she did it all from memory. ¡°Ah, finally.¡± Eludora said with a satisfied sigh when she marked the date and the source of the map. ¡°We''re finished and it''s ready for mounting.¡± ¡°I''ll bring the supplies to do it tomorrow.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Are you closing the library after supper?¡± ¡°No, we always stay open late on the weekends, in case the students need anything.¡± Eludora said. ¡°May I offer to escort you to get something to eat before I go to the dorm mansion?¡± I asked. ¡°So gallant.¡± Eludora said and nodded, so I let her lean on me and took her to where the teacher''s ate their meals. After that, I went to the dorm mansion and saw my three maid''s surprised expressions at my outfit. ¡°I think Helena''s going to love that new style.¡± Hope said. ¡°Meeting and meal?¡± ¡°It was a last minute construction by Ferdinand.¡± Hope smiled. ¡°Then she is definitely going to love it.¡± I nodded and went to my bedroom to change into casual clothes. After seeing Eludora, it had reminded me that I had some potion concocting to do. 202 Academy Antics Part Sixty Eight - A Brief Encounter I needed to work out how to get Eludora to strengthen up without causing her the wracking pain that usually accompanied such things. It was going to be problematic, to say the least. I had some idea about her constitution and that was a big help; but, it was something else that was going to be trouble. Her weakened body had a difficult time with just the normal strength potion, so giving her a full dose of anything else was going to be dangerous, let alone the entire series that I took to achieve the permanent strengthening condition that only imparted about a third to half of the full boost. That was definitely not going to work for her or for anyone else not trained and raised by the Hag. I had been too young to understand what she was doing to me at the time by giving me different potions and things and I never asked. Now that I had years of experience, I knew she had conditioned my body to the point that I could survive the permanent minor boosts as well as the full boosts when the potions were drunk normally. I remembered the difficult time Vanessa and Lorna had taking just the basic boosted mental enhancement without having a primer of the normal version and some healing potion afterwards, which meant I had a lot of work ahead of me if I was going to figure out how to help Eludora. Even knowing the potions and all of the components I needed, they would have to be handled properly and brewed correctly to be a much weaker strain while also maintaining enough potency to be effective. It could also turn toxic, poison her, or even kill her because she was so physically weak. I needed to be very careful about how I approached it. It couldn''t be a magic cure that worked overnight. That wasn''t possible. It took time to... and that was when I realized I needed to do the same thing that the Hag did to me. It had to be a slow progression. Eludora would need very small incremental doses over a longer period of time to achieve a high enough result that a normal boost addition wouldn''t be detrimental to her. With a solid plan in my mind, I started to write. Supper seemed to arrive in an instant and I had stacks upon stacks of pages with potions, revisions, alterations, reductions, combinations, reversal of order and application, and then one that was complete insanity. I laughed as I looked at the last page and crumpled it up, lit it on fire with magic and tossed the ashes in the trash. I went downstairs to supper and enjoyed a great meal, had a quick discussion with the maids, then went back up the stairs to retrieve Greta''s potion crates. I left the dorm mansion at a slow walk, since I wasn''t in a rush, and made my way all the way over to the building with the residences of the teachers. A female teacher I never met before opened the door for me when I approached. ¡°Thank you, my lady.¡± I said as I passed her and ducked my head, since my arms were full. The woman nodded back and I felt her eyes on my back as I went to Greta''s apartment. I put the crates down and knocked on the door. A few moments later, Greta was there and wore a shirt and pants, as if she was preparing to wear her mage robes. ¡°I was wondering when your ''later'' was going to happen.¡± Greta said with a smile and ushered me into her apartment. ¡°I didn''t want to monopolize you for the entire day.¡± I said and carried in the crates. Greta chuckled. ¡°It''s almost working out that way.¡± ¡°Are you going anywhere?¡± I asked and put the crates down where she told me to. ¡°I have another meeting...¡± ¡°Do you want an escort?¡± I asked and she looked surprised at my offer. ¡°If you are trying to find a source of ingredients outside the guild, they can''t be completely legal, can they?¡± Greta opened her mouth to respond and then sighed. ¡°How did you know?¡± ¡°I was told that the guild members ostracize anyone that''s not a member of the guild. Are they giving you troubles, now that you''ve left?¡± Greta sighed again and waved at the couch we had sat on that morning. I went over to it and sat down, not leaving her much room, and she chuckled as she resumed her spot right beside me. ¡°David, the world isn''t black and white. It''s not a direct split between bad people and good people...¡± Greta started to say. I pointed at myself. ¡°Grey.¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± Greta asked, surprised. ¡°I''ve done bad and I''ve done good. If bad is black and good is white, then I''m grey.¡± I explained. ¡°Your mother is grey with some black mixed in. Your sister is very white. You are white with a bit of grey mixed in.¡± Greta blinked her eyes at me and she didn''t say anything. ¡°If you are meeting with the black side, you need me to come along.¡± I said. ¡°If anything happens, I''ll deal with it.¡± ¡°David, I... you really shouldn''t be involved with...¡± ¡°We''re in business together and I want to protect my investment.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°I''ll need to leave the ceremonial sword at the dorm mansion, though.¡± Greta gave me an odd look, then she sighed. ¡°All right. You have ten minutes to get ready.¡± ¡°I need a set of your spare robes with no academy symbols.¡± I said and stood. ¡°Take them in a bag and I''ll put them on in the carriage.¡± Greta nodded and I left her apartment. I walked at a normal pace until I was out of sight of the teachers in the area and then ran. I made it back to the dorm mansion a minute later and was up the stairs in my bedroom a moment after that. I opened my personal vault and put in the ceremonial sword and my lord documents, then debated unloading some of the extra potions in my bandoleer. I kept them and sealed the vault, then dressed in basic pants and a shirt, with my bandoleer and knife sheath clearly seen. I had to add a basic suit coat to cover them, then went down the stairs.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. ¡°What''s going on?¡± Hope asked as she saw me. ¡°A quick run with Greta to try and secure new potion ingredient deliveries.¡± I said and darted out through the doors and ran. I was back at the teacher''s building two minutes later and saw Greta standing there with a bag. I slowed down so she would see me and the relief on her face was evident for only a second. She schooled her face and walked over to me, then we both walked towards the academy''s front gate. A plain carriage was there waiting for us and Greta told the guard I was accompanying her to observe the negotiations. The guard marked it down and we climbed onto the carriage. Greta told the driver the address to go to and we were off. We drove on for about twenty minutes before we entered a less reputable part of the city, according to Greta. After another ten minutes, the carriage came to a stop in front of an abandoned building. ¡°Miss, are you sure this is the right address?¡± The driver asked. ¡°Yes, it''s just a convenient meeting place for the parties involved.¡± Greta said and I helped her out of the carriage. I cast Sense Magic and didn''t see or feel anything, so I escorted her inside and knew I had been right to come along. There were three men standing in the large room and two were hiding in the corner. The men had frowns on their faces, too. ¡°I thought we agreed to no witnesses?¡± The man in the middle asked. ¡°He''s not a witness, he''s my business partner.¡± Greta said, clearly catching on to the menacing atmosphere. The man glanced over to the corner and back at us. ¡°Another mage.¡± ¡°It''s not a problem.¡± A voice said from the corner and after a few moments of mumbling, a Dispel spell was cast and the wave passed over us. ¡°They won''t have any precast protections now.¡± The three men gained feral smiles and one even rubbed his hands together. ¡°This is going to be fun.¡± The middle man said. ¡°David.¡± Greta said and tried to let my arm go. ¡°It''s all right. These idiots don''t know who they''re messing with.¡± I said as I raised my hand. ¡°What? Did you think I''m going to just stand here and let you chant a spell?¡± The middle man sneered. I smiled as I snapped my fingers for dramatic effect and cast the fire lighting spell on every piece of clothing that all five men wore. ¡°AHHHHHH!¡± All of them yelled and started to freak out as they frantically tried to beat out the flames. Well, four of them did, anyway. ¡°No one threatens my friends.¡± I said and heard someone muttering. ¡°Greta, excuse me for a moment.¡± Greta let my arm go and I disappeared from her sight as I ran over to the corner of the room. I pulled out my knife and sliced open the bottom of the man''s chin and severed his tongue. He choked and stared at me as his clothing burned. Unlike the others, he wasn''t trying to beat the flames out, since he knew it was magical fire and it was pointless. I cast lock on the doors of the room and no one could leave, then calmly walked back over to Greta. ¡°How long do you want them to burn?¡± I asked her and her smile turned feral. ¡°Until they learn their lesson.¡± Greta said, her voice full of satisfaction. The four men were screaming as hard as their smoke filled lungs would allow them and the lone mage couldn''t voice his pain, except with gurgles. Their clothing was suspiciously flammable, which probably meant that they were going to destroy them after whatever they were going to do to Greta, probably in a vain attempt to stop anyone from identifying them. The flames were starting to die down, as were their screams, so I cast the spell on their hair. Their heads, faces, armpits, chests, and crotches all lit on fire and the unholy screams filled the building. ¡°I''m honestly surprised that no one''s come to see what all the screaming is about.¡± Greta said. I cast Sense Magic again and found out why. ¡°They have silence and barrier spells around the building that must have activated after we entered.¡± Greta took in a sharp breath. ¡°They didn''t intend for me to leave.¡± ¡°Not alive.¡± I said and she looked pissed. The men had all collapsed, shocked beyond reason at the turn of events, and were whimpering at the severe burns they were covered with. ¡°I want to know why.¡± Greta said, her voice commanding. The three men in front of us winced and one glanced over at the mage in the corner. I led Greta over to the man that couldn''t speak and she shook her head. ¡°I can''t ask him any questions like this.¡± Greta said. ¡°Yes, you can.¡± I said and knelt on one knee. ¡°Nod your head for yes and shake your head for no.¡± I said and took my knife out again to make it glow. ¡°Do you understand?¡± The man blinked and didn''t move, so I moved the glowing knife down to his knee. He nodded several times and I pulled the knife back. ¡°Why did you do this?¡± Greta asked. The man looked confused at the question. ¡°Only yes or no answers will work.¡± I prompted her. ¡°Oh, right.¡± Greta said, her face slightly red. ¡°You came here to kill me?¡± She asked and he nodded. ¡°Were you going to do more than that?¡± The man looked nervous and I move the knife towards his thigh and he nodded again. ¡°Was it your idea?¡± Greta almost growled and he shook his head. ¡°Do you know who''s it was?¡± The man nodded and didn''t move. ¡°Write it.¡± I said and pointed at the ashes on the floor that used to be his clothing. The man shook his head and I lowered the knife. He kept shaking his head and I eased the knife into his thigh. He let out a groan of pain and his blood welled up around the blade. He moved a shaky hand to the ashes and rubbed his hand into it, so I lifted the knife. He sighed and wrote out the last name I didn''t know. ¡°That bastard!¡± Greta gasped. ¡°So, you know him?¡± I asked. ¡°He''s my old supervisor.¡± Greta spat. ¡°I suppose you would be my replacement if you got rid of me.¡± The man nodded weakly and took several breaths. ¡°David.¡± Greta said and nodded to him. ¡°He''s already dying.¡± I said and stood. ¡°He can''t feel the blood escaping the magical wounds.¡± The man looked down at his burned thigh and there wasn''t a lot of blood, so he looked confused. ¡°You''re swallowing a lot, aren''t you?¡± I asked and he nodded. ¡°Touch the top of your throat.¡± The man reached up with a hand and his fingers slid right into the ''T'' slice that I had made to sever his tongue. The only reason he hadn''t spit it out was because he seemed to be under the delusion that he could keep it if it stayed in his mouth. ¡°You''ve been swallowing a lot of your own blood the last few minutes.¡± I said. ¡°Look at your hand.¡± The man shook his head and didn''t want to look. ¡°In any case, you have a few minutes left. Was your ambition worth your life?¡± I asked and the man didn''t respond as he stared at me. Neither Greta nor I said anything else as we watched the life slowly leave the man''s eyes. 203 Academy Antics Part Sixty Nine - A New Perspective ¡°I... I never thought...¡± Greta started to say. ¡°I''m sorry that you had to see this.¡± I said and knelt to search through the dead mage''s possessions. I had only burned off his clothes and hair, so anything not flammable in his pockets should have survived. There were a few gold and silver coins, which I pocketed, and a ring on his middle finger. I slipped it off the charred hand and felt Greta''s hand on my shoulder. ¡°Do you have to loot them?¡± Greta asked, her voice sad. ¡°No.¡± I said and cast Sense Magic. The ring glowed slightly for barely an instant. ¡°I''m gathering their remaining possessions as evidence.¡± Greta caught her breath. ¡°D-David, you... you can''t really...¡± ¡°I didn''t see any constables in this area, so we''ll have to go over to the next to find someone.¡± I said and checked the man next to the dead mage. He was unconscious because the pain was too much for him. I slid my knife across his throat and let him bleed out. He didn''t have anything on him, not even identification, so I went over to the three men at the back of the room. ¡°N-no... please...¡± The man in the middle whispered and trembled. He didn''t even try to crawl away. ¡°We can''t afford for you to get your friends to come after us, since you know who we are.¡± I said and quicker than he could blink, sliced his throat. He didn''t even gurgle. I did this to the other two men while telling them it was easier to get rid of them than to deal with the consequences of keeping them alive. I wasn''t surprised when one nodded, since they were going to do the same to us. I checked their surviving possessions and found a low quality dagger, more silver coins that were probably payment from the mage, and charred pieces of paper. I cast Sense Magic again and nothing showed up, so I stood and looked at Greta as I took out a vial of cleaning solution and put a few drops on my hands to magically remove the dirt and grime from touching the bodies. ¡°David, we... are you sure that...¡± Greta stopped talking as I assumed the escort role. She took my offered arm and we walked out of the abandoned building. I only dispelled the barrier and lock on the door we approached and left the rest, also as proof, and climbed into the waiting carriage. ¡°Drive over four streets until you see a constable, please.¡± I said to the driver and he nodded. ¡°This is going to cause so much trouble.¡± Greta whispered. ¡°I know.¡± I said and she gave me a sad look. ¡°Not for us, though.¡± ¡°What? Why? Didn''t we just...¡± ¡°Who conspires to kill a woman using five men and one of them was even a mage?¡± I asked and her eyes widened. ¡°Gary would say that''s overkill. I didn''t understand what he meant by the term until now.¡± Greta shook slightly, so I put my arm over her shoulders and hugged her close. She started to cry, which was perfect, because the carriage stopped and the door opened. ¡°You were looking for me?¡± A man in a constable uniform asked. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Skipping recap. Accelerating time. Done. Resuming story. _______________ Things seemed to pass by like smoke as I recounted the story, the constable''s shock and request to see the scene, then his shock again at the truth. We were ordered to stay and then he was gone for half an hour before he was back with six more constables, two of them women, and a mage. Thankfully, it wasn''t a guild mage and he worked exclusively for the constables. The investigation lasted well into the night and I held Greta the entire time as the two women constables reassured her that the bad men wouldn''t get her or do unspeakable things to her. I showed them the ring, the dagger, and the money as well as refusing to hand it over, in case it miraculously disappeared. They understood, since it was the Mages Guild, and having the ring protected was of the upmost importance. They also wrote out the description and details for it. The two women constables came with us in the carriage back to the academy and helped me get Greta settled in her apartment in the teacher''s building. After that, I took off the borrowed robes and put my jacket back on, then I was led out to the carriage and we left the academy. I was brought to the constable station and interrogated for several hours by three different constables, including one of the women, while the mage that had checked the crime scene gazed at me intensely. I said exactly what happened, since there was no point in lying about anything. After repeating myself a dozen times, my story never wavering or details changing, they reluctantly decided that I wouldn''t be charged with five counts of murder. ¡°Why not?¡± I asked and they looked surprised. ¡°I did kill them.¡± The female constable gave me an incredulous look. ¡°Do you want to be charged for their murders?¡± ¡°No, since it was self defense and a preventative measure. I didn''t want them or their friends coming after us.¡± I said. ¡°The last time that happened, I was tried and convicted, sentenced to death, and conscripted into the army.¡± The woman, the two male constables, and the mage stared at me. ¡°You... why would they...¡± The woman whispered. ¡°The villagers wanted to get rid of me.¡± I said with a shrug. ¡°I assumed the Mages Guild would do the same thing.¡± ¡°You assumed that and you still came with us and cooperated?¡± The woman asked and I nodded. She was quiet for several moments before she spoke. ¡°Lord Drake, you are either crazy or the bravest man I''ve ever met.¡± ¡°I grew up in Drake''s Marsh and fought to survive every day.¡± The woman''s concerned look changed to amusement. ¡°A bit of both, then.¡± She said and her eyes drifted down my body, even though I was sitting down behind the desk. ¡°I''m betrothed.¡± I cautioned her and she laughed. ¡°You nobles and your customs.¡± She said and looked at the mage. ¡°Anything else?¡± The man shook his head. ¡°He''s been completely truthful all night and hasn''t left out details, intentional or otherwise, or tried to deceive us in any way.¡± ¡°I''m glad.¡± She said. ¡°Now that it''s morning, I think I need a nice little breakfast to keep me going.¡± ¡°I''ll go start on filing the paperwork.¡± The male constable said as he gathered up the sheets and sheets of transcript and pat the female constable on the shoulder as he stood. ¡°Grab us something on your way back, will you?¡±If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°Sure thing.¡± She said and stood up to show the man and the mage out of the room, then she did this odd stretching move and it pushed her chest against her own shirt to strain it. Her chest was quite large, surprisingly. ¡°Lord Drake, would you care to join me for an early breakfast before I take you back to the academy?¡± ¡°Anything''s better than prison.¡± I said and she laughed. ¡°Why did you have to be betrothed?¡± She asked and handed me my suit coat as she put her own on. ¡°It was the quickest way to get me out of the army.¡± I said and slipped the coat on. ¡°You gave up your freedom to get out of a situation where you had no freedom?¡± She asked, surprised. ¡°I have lots of freedom.¡± I said and followed her out of the little room. ¡°Even if I hadn''t been required to attend the academy, I would still only have a few rules that I would have to live by.¡± She gave me an incredulous look as we walked through the station. ¡°You make it sound like you always had that.¡± ¡°I did.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°I can explain while we eat.¡± ¡°I''m not sure I''m looking forward to hearing it.¡± She said and that made me smile, because I was sure she wouldn''t be if she knew. We left the building and went down the street a short ways to go into a small business. ¡°Constable Wilson!¡± A young man said, happily. ¡°Good morning!¡± ¡°I wish it was.¡± She said back. ¡°I''ve been up all night investigating.¡± ¡°Oh, no.¡± The young man said, his face sad. ¡°I hope it wasn''t too hard on you.¡± Constable Wilson gave him a weak smile. ¡°Two breakfast specials to eat in and two to go when we leave, please.¡± The young man nodded. ¡°That''ll be 8 silver coins.¡± I plucked the money from my pocket and gave it to him before the constable could. ¡°Lord Drake, you didn''t have to do that.¡± Constable Wilson said. ¡°You''re right. I should buy breakfast for the whole station after all the work you did last night.¡± I said and the young man behind the counter looked both shocked and happy. I took out a gold coin and handed it to him. ¡°Send over whatever that''ll buy and keep the eight silver I already gave you for yourself.¡± ¡°Yessir!¡± The young man said with a grin. Constable Wilson chuckled and led me over to a small table. ¡°Let me guess. You''re a new noble and don''t accept that it''s against the normal social rules that nobles aren''t really supposed to be nice to commoners?¡± We took off our suit coats and sat down. ¡°Technically, I only have the full Lord title. I don''t know if that alone elevates my social status from less than a commoner or not.¡± I admitted. ¡°Wait, what do you mean that you''re less than a commoner?¡± Constable Wilson asked. ¡°I''m an ex-convict and ex-conscript. There''s no actual word for how much lower than a commoner I am.¡± Constable Wilson stared at me and looked like she didn''t know what to say. ¡°Here''s your breakfast!¡± The young man said and delivered two heaping plates of food. ¡°Enjoy!¡± I nodded to him and when he left, I looked at the still stunned constable and started to eat as I told her about how I lived in the marsh under the Hag and her simple rules. Constable Wilson started to eat automatically as she listened to my story and I was a little surprised when she didn''t choke or spit out her food when I described some of the torture I suffered. The meal stretched on as we paced our eating to my story progress. By the time I was done explaining the rules I lived by, we had finished eating. She dabbed her mouth with a napkin and gave me a look that seemed to speak volumes. I wasn''t sure what she was trying to say, however. ¡°Lord Drake...¡± ¡°David.¡± I corrected. Constable Wilson smiled. ¡°David, you''ve lived an... interesting life.¡± ¡°So far.¡± I said and stood. ¡°How are we getting back to the academy?¡± ¡°We have horses.¡± Constable Wilson said and stood as well. I helped her put on her coat and put my own on, then we left the little business after making sure the meals were being sent over to the station as they were cooked. I followed her back to the station and around the back to a small stable. ¡°I''ve never ridden a horse before.¡± ¡°You''re just a passenger, so that''s okay.¡± Constable Wilson said and saddled up one of the horses, added the rest of the appropriate equipment for riding, and led the horse out to the street. ¡°You mount like this.¡± She said and put a foot in the stirrup and pulled herself up onto the saddle as she swung her leg over it. I waited for her to clear the stirrup and used it the same as her, then climbed on behind her. She had leaned forward for me to have enough room and balance to do the same motion and I sat on the saddle behind her. She let out a little noise and I recognized it as something a woman did when she was touched down below, so I looked over her shoulder to see that she had been pushed up against the knob-like wood protrusion from the saddle. ¡°My apologies.¡± I said and reached down to her hips and lifted her up slightly. She let out a little ''eep'' sound and then sighed a bit as I rested her almost on my lap and held her tightly. It freed up a lot of room for her and she slipped her feet into the stirrups. She flicked the reins and the horse began to trot. ¡°Are you sure you''re betrothal can''t be circumvented?¡± Constable Wilson asked as we trotted through the streets and avoided the morning crowds. ¡°In what way?¡± I asked. ¡°I can feel most of you from practically sitting on your lap and I''d love to feel the rest.¡± She said without a trace of shame or embarrassment. ¡°Is it because I''m a lord?¡± I asked. ¡°No. Yes. It''s a bunch of things.¡± Constable Wilson said. ¡°Your calmness. Your ruthlessness. Your efficiency. Your eloquence.¡± She glanced at my face and back at the road. ¡°I can''t help but be turned on at how you handled those thugs and saved the woman you were escorting from a fate worse than death and also from her death.¡± ¡°Was it that surprising what I did?¡± I asked, trying to understand what she meant. ¡°You didn''t cower and let them do what they wanted, you didn''t hand her over to save yourself, and you didn''t run or abandoned her.¡± Constable Wilson said, her voice had a bit of reverence in it. ¡°Who would do shameful things like that?¡± I asked. ¡°A lot more people than you think.¡± Constable Wilson said. ¡°You''re even more desirable to me now, since none of those options occurred to you.¡± ¡°They were just people and not really a challenge.¡± I said as we entered the main road to go back to the academy. ¡°If one of them was a marsh dragon, however...¡± Constable Wilson laughed. ¡°A dragon? I would have peed my pants and dropped to the ground and waited to be eaten.¡± I understood then why my actions seemed so impressive to her. She had no other frame of reference to compare it to. Her background didn''t allow her to see anything like major battles or fights against large creatures. It brought my thoughts to Helena and her actions when faced with a rampaging marsh dragon. She didn''t cower, didn''t give anyone over to it, and she didn''t run. She had stood in defiance of it and that made all the difference to both the situation and to me. I felt my heart beat a little faster and made a decision. ¡°Can we stop at the Henrietta Longshore Estate first?¡± Constable Wilson glanced at me and saw my determined face. ¡°It''s because of me, isn''t it?¡± ¡°In a roundabout way, yes.¡± I said and she diverted the horse. We rode across half of the city to where I wanted to go and the guards at the gate opened it when they saw her uniform. She slowed the horse down from the run she had it in and trotted up to the mansion. I hopped off before the horse came to a stop and walked over to the doors. ¡°My lord!¡± The two guards said and opened the doors. ¡°Where''s Lady Henrietta?¡± I asked as I walked through them and saw the butler just inside the door. ¡°The parlour.¡± He said and pointed. I walked over to the door, knocked, and went inside. ¡°DAVID!¡± Helena yelled in surprise. ¡°Please accept my apologies for interrupting.¡± I said to Lady Bassinger and a woman I didn''t know. ¡°I need to be with the woman I love right now.¡± ¡°D-David?¡± Helena said, almost as a question. ¡°You are an amazing woman and I am very lucky to have met you.¡± I said to her and helped her stand. ¡°D-David.¡± Helena whispered as she blushed. ¡°Excuse Lady Henrietta for the next hour. At least.¡± I said to the two surprised guests and led Helena from the room. 204 Academy Antics Part Seventy - A Slight Time Skip _______________ Shared narrative initiated. Switching to third person perspective. Done. _______________ Helena was in heaven and her mind and body seemed to float inside a cloud of magic and pleasure. She had experienced her fiance''s prowess several times before coming home to the capital city and then only a few times before he had to leave for the academy. She also assumed that she had experienced everything he had to offer, and she was completely wrong. The things he did with his tongue between her legs had made her finish several times before he had even moved on to some of the best sex of her life. His ability to make her body tingle and writhe with his magic and his magnificent manhood, smashed her sex-deprived state into tiny little pieces. Helena hadn''t realized just how much she had missed his attention when it was absent and now she knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that she would do anything to keep feeling this desire and fulfillment that he so willingly provided for her. No, offered to me. No, gifted to me. Helena''s mind thought lazily as she stared at the man she loved. ¡°It''s been an hour.¡± David whispered to her. Tears came to Helena''s eyes because she didn''t want to stop. She couldn''t let it stop. She reached feebly for him and her arms wouldn''t work right, because she was too relaxed and weak after his wonderful attention. ¡°We can stay here for another half an hour, then I need to get to class.¡± David whispered and wrapped his arms around her to hold her. Helena''s tears slowed down and she tried to cling to him, only to sigh contentedly and lightly kissed his bare chest instead. They laid in bed together for another twenty minutes before her weak words broke the silence. ¡°I''m so sorry that I can''t stay there with you.¡± Helena whispered. ¡°I know there are so many others that want you, my love. I''m sorry that I can''t be there to warn them that they can be treated like a lady by you; but, they can never be treated like a wife.¡± ¡°Not even Selena?¡± David clearly joked and Helena weakly laughed. ¡°I know she doesn''t approve of your actions with Vanessa.¡± Helena said. ¡°Her letter was... quite detailed.¡± ¡°I hope you''re not worried.¡± David said and kissed her. ¡°I am showing Vanessa the respect she deserves for reducing her social status to become a concubine.¡± ¡°Even if it doesn''t work out?¡± Helena asked. ¡°Especially if it doesn''t.¡± David said. ¡°I don''t want her to feel that she wasted her time if our families can''t come to a mutually beneficial agreement next week.¡± ¡°If it does work out?¡± Helena looked at the man she deeply loved. ¡°I''ll continue to treat her appropriately and with the utmost respect, as is due her station.¡± David responded. ¡°I won''t take advantage of her unique position, even though she wants me to.¡± Helena smiled. ¡°She told you that?¡± David nodded. ¡°I believe her words were to give her as many cuddles and kisses as I wanted and she would never say no.¡± Helena laughed softly and her breasts jiggled. ¡°I can''t believe the teachers let you get away with doing that in classes.¡± ¡°It''s only in the ones I am either terrible in or outstanding in.¡± David said and she reached up to touch his face. ¡°So, nearly all the time?¡± Helena asked and David smiled as he kissed her. ¡°I''ve only ever really kissed her once, which is the one Selena saw.¡± David said. Helena nodded. ¡°I assumed as much, since you don''t do things like that lightly.¡± ¡°I''ve also never touched her inappropriately, seen her naked, or asked for her to.¡± David clarified. ¡°Mmm hmm.¡± Helena gave him a searching look. ¡°How do you like Mage King''s teaching approach?¡± ¡°It''s novelty would keep anyone''s interest.¡± David said and gave her the same searching look back. ¡°Ask me if I do it on purpose to keep her interested in teaching me.¡± Helena laughed. ¡°I knew you would.¡± She said and kissed him. ¡°We don''t have time to do anything else.¡± David said and they made out for several minutes. ¡°I have to go.¡± Helena reluctantly opened her arms and let her love slide out of them. She watched him stand up and then he was suddenly gone and water splashed, then he was back and slipped his clothes on expertly as if he didn''t need a maid''s help. Her eyes widened at him and he gave her a big smile, the same happy one that Hope enjoyed so much. ¡°Proof of my love.¡± David said and she blushed. ¡°See you next week.¡± ¡°I''ve had your boat delivered to the academy''s waterway for your trip on the weekend.¡± Helena said as he walked towards the door. ¡°Thank you.¡± David ran back over to her and gave her another kiss. ¡°I''ll bring you back something nice.¡± Helena touched his face. ¡°Just you, my love. All I need is you.¡± David kissed her again and left the room before she delayed him again. _______________ Shared narrative ended. Reverting to primary first person perspective. Done. _______________You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. I walked out of the mansion and saw that Constable Wilson was standing in front of the fountain display with a look of both admiration and horror. ¡°That''s my fiance, Helena Henrietta.¡± I said and pointed to the carved stone statue of Helena. ¡°Now I know why you made me wait out here for so long.¡± Constable Wilson said. ¡°It was my comment about meeting a dragon, wasn''t it?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I admitted. ¡°It cemented in my mind the value I had already placed on her, because I realized I hadn''t told her that and came here to correct that mistake.¡± Constable Wilson chuckled and waved at the horse. ¡°I''m sure we can get back to the academy in time to let you get ready for class.¡± We walked over to it and she untied it from the post, climbed on, and I climbed on behind her. She slid forward and caught her breath. ¡°I can''t move back. I''m right against the back of the saddle.¡± I said and lifted her up slightly to let her resume her seat that was partially on my crotch and the tops of my thighs. ¡°I know. You can have two people ride it; but, it''s not designed for two people.¡± ¡°Do they make two person saddles?¡± I asked, curious. Constable Wilson chuckled. ¡°Not specifically, and it''s usually just a longer and flatter saddle. You lose a lot of normal control and stability. You also need to ride differently without the saddle horn to rely on.¡± ¡°That''s what it''s called?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°What''s it for?¡± ¡°Ropes and a handhold, mostly.¡± Constable Wilson said as we trotted over to the gates. ¡°It''s pretty versatile, even so.¡± The gates opened for us and as we turned to go down the road at a gallop, I felt someone''s eyes on me. I turned my head and waved at Helena in the upstairs bedroom window. She was already dressed and Jill was fixing her hair. She waved back and then the mansion was out of sight as the horse picked up speed. The time passed by quickly and we were at the academy. The guard noted the constable and my delivery as he let us through, and the horse galloped across the campus to my dorm mansion. ¡°Good god.¡± Constable Wilson said as she brought the horse to a stop. ¡°How many students live here?¡± ¡°Just me.¡± I said and climbed off. ¡°Thank you for everything, Constable Wilson.¡± I took out two gold coins and held them out to her. She stared at the money like it was going to bite her. ¡°It''s not a bribe.¡± I said and her eyebrows raised. ¡°A bribe would need to be applied before getting me out of everything.¡± ¡°So, a pay-off then?¡± Constable Wilson asked with a smirk. ¡°You let me make love to my fiance that I haven''t seen since school started.¡± I said and she gasped. ¡°I''d give you more if I had more on me.¡± ¡°That... but...¡± She mumbled. ¡°I''ll have my maid get me more later.¡± I said and put the coins in her hand. ¡°Thank you, Constable.¡± Constable Wilson let out a sigh as she slipped the money into a pocket. ¡°Good day, Lord Drake.¡± ¡°Good day.¡± I said and didn''t wait to watch her leave. I walked inside the mansion through the opened front doors that the guards held for me. ¡°I need a quick bath!¡± I said a bit loudly and there were two squeals of delight from the dining room. ¡°We''ll have you cleaned and dressed in no time, my lord.¡± Sara said as she and Tabitha came over to me and we went up the stairs to do just that. Tabitha pouted when we had to skip the ritual because of the time constraints, so I promised her we could do another bath, a full one this time, when I came back after school. I went to class and met Vanessa in front of the building, then escorted her inside. It was the first day of the week, so it was a wasted day of spell construction and math that I mostly didn''t understand. Vanessa didn''t mind, since she enjoyed having my arm over her shoulders for the whole day. I had an extra long bath after school as I promised, and both Sara and Tabitha took a turn doing the ritual. Sara went first, because Tabitha wanted to go for a lot longer, and she did. She really enjoyed her work, even more than Sara did, and I didn''t think that was possible. I worked on Eludora''s potion regimen for the rest of the evening, even after supper, and went to bed a little bit closer to getting things worked out. It was potions day the next day and I showed up early to talk to Greta. She greeted me with a sad expression and I walked right over to her to hug her. She waved her hand to deploy the wood panels to block us from sight and she burst out crying. ¡°I know. I know.¡± I whispered to her and rubbed her back as she sobbed on my shoulder. We stayed like that for nearly twenty minutes until the class bell rang. It took a minute for Greta to compose herself and she gave me an almost lost look. I wiped at her face and whispered that she didn''t have to worry about the supervisor ever again. Greta opened her mouth to say something, then shook her head and waved at the panels. ¡°Lord Drake, please resume your seat.¡± ¡°Yes, Mage Marks.¡± I said and went over to the workbench that Vanessa and I used. Class resumed and we worked all morning. Vanessa and I went to lunch and I had to sit by myself again. It was difficult to join an already existing group, even if you knew them, and no one really wanted to approach a newly minted lord that nearly all of them had made fun of before the king himself told them to stop. I went to advanced potions that afternoon and Jinelle looked positively radiant. She actually went over to Greta and gave her aunt a hug as she thanked her for whatever she said to Lady Marks. The other three students came into the class and Greta set the creme as today''s task as she gave me an apologetic look. I walked over to her desk and gave her a container of the creme for my mark. ¡°I''m going to do some self study.¡± ¡°Help yourself.¡± Greta said and motioned at the ingredient bins behind her. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and did just that. I grabbed some of the more common ingredients that I could use as substitutions for the smaller and more versatile potions that would be needed for Eludora''s treatment. Working things out on paper was great for giving me a base to work with; but, it wasn''t until you started brewing it that the real problems could be discovered and corrections could be made. I worked tirelessly all afternoon and even stayed after class, because Lorna had been so very close to completing the creme and wanted to try again. I had to admire her tenacity and her work ethic. She wasn''t going to accept anything less than a completed product to be satisfied. We had to stop when suppertime arrived and Lorna thanked Mage Marks as she passed in a container of the completed creme. Nick came back to the class to carry her case for her and they both left. ¡°I want to thank you as well.¡± I said and used a drop of cleansing solution to change the failed potion into plain water. ¡°I''m very close to a breakthrough.¡± Greta gave me an odd look. ¡°Yes, you can ask.¡± I said with a smile. Greta chuckled. ¡°All right, what the heck are you doing? I''ve watched you all class and I can''t figure out what you''re doing!¡± I waved her over and she took in a sharp breath when she saw my notes. ¡°D-David, is... is this real?¡± Greta asked and moved the top notes aside to look at the rest. ¡°A rehabilitation potion?¡± ¡°It''s multiple stages of a rehabilitation potion.¡± I corrected her. ¡°If I can crack the first and most minor stage, even if it''s a partial success, the rest will be easy to build up.¡± Greta''s hand touched the papers and she looked at my face. ¡°You really are a genius.¡± I shook my head. ¡°Remember what I said about having a different perspective on things.¡± ¡°It''s not just a different perspective, David. It''s more like you can see through problems.¡± Greta said and looked at the papers again. ¡°I''m not doing anything for supper...¡± I chuckled. ¡°All right, grab my small pack with my books and I''ll take the crates and my notes.¡± Greta nodded and followed me back to my dorm mansion. She was apparently quite willing to help me with it and for some reason, I was actually looking forward to collaborating with her again, just like we did on the modified creme. 205 Academy Antics Part Seventy One - Working Things Out After we ate supper, Greta and I retreated to my potions room and we got to work. She helped me pour over the papers I had and we talked about the merits of everything I was using, then we discussed the procedures I was using. We started with my most recent failure and she pointed out that one of the ingredients had to be uncommon and needed a significant magic infusion or something similar to work. ¡°The mana grass.¡± I said, making the connection right away. ¡°The what?¡± Greta asked, confused. I explained about the grass that grew around the rare flowers that Victoria and I had retrieved during the last field trip. ¡°Oh, my.¡± Greta whispered and fell silent for several minutes. I let her think about it and waited to see if she came to the same conclusion as I did. ¡°I was wrong. You can keep the common ingredient I mentioned if you combine it with the grass first.¡± Greta said as she looked into my eyes. ¡°I''d suggest powdering them together and brewing them in a small pot to refine it.¡± I smiled and nodded, because she did realize the same thing as I did. ¡°We can make it become an uncommon ingredient and it should fit perfectly.¡± ¡°Can we get some of this grass?¡± Greta asked. ¡°It depends on if Mage King managed to cultivate some. If she hasn''t, I have another idea to help.¡± ¡°I see a glint in your eyes.¡± Greta said with a wicked smile. ¡°You''ve got a twisted thought stuck in your head, don''t you?¡± ¡°Perhaps.¡± I said and she laughed softly. ¡°All right, let''s go visit and see what she''s managed to do with it.¡± Greta said and we left the dorm mansion to head over to the botany workshop. ¡°You''re not going to tell me your idea unless you have to, are you?¡± ¡°If it''s not necessary, then it''s pointless. If it''s needed, you''ll hear it at the same time as Victoria does.¡± I said. ¡°Just be ready for her to freak out and call me crazy.¡± Greta almost snorted as she laughed again. ¡°I can''t wait.¡± I smiled slightly and we fell silent until we entered the botany workshop. ¡°Mage King! I''m here!¡± ¡°DAVID!¡± Victoria yelled and opened a side door to the small area she had transplanted the flowers. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± ¡°To ask for a favor and to see your progress on the mana grass.¡± Victoria started to smile when I said favor and then then sighed when I said grass. ¡°I''m sorry.¡± I knew what that meant. ¡°You can''t cultivate it.¡± Victoria shook her head. ¡°I''ve tried to duplicate the exact conditions of their natural environment and not a single blade has grown. I don''t know why, since it should overwhelm and outgrow other plants.¡± ¡°Have you tried to put some near one of the flowers?¡± I asked. ¡°Of course. I''ve also tried putting them in test areas all over with some of the more prolific plants we have here, and nothing''s happened.¡± ¡°Well, it looks like we''ll need your idea after all, so let''s hear it.¡± Greta said to me. ¡°What idea?¡± Victoria asked. I stayed quiet for several moments and made them wait for it. Greta reached out and poked my chest twice. ¡°Stop. Stalling.¡± I gave her a smile and looked at Victoria. ¡°Remember the pervasive grass that grows everywhere that we saw in the rocky valley?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Victoria said. ¡°I told you that it''s a nightmare to deal with.¡± ¡°I remember you also telling me that you brought a sample to the guild and they are still trying to remove it from their growing areas.¡± Victoria nodded. ¡°I''m still being pestered over that mistake and it''s been a year already.¡± ¡°That was you?¡± Greta asked with an accusing glare. ¡°Yes, and I''m sorry.¡± Victoria sighed. ¡°I hadn''t done the proper controlled containment transplant into a small enclosed area first before introducing it to the regular fields.¡± ¡°I was assigned a week''s punishment and ordered to try and remove it.¡± Greta said, then she gasped. I knew she just thought of her supervisor, so I took her into a hug. She clung to me and tears came to her eyes. She didn''t start crying and sobbing, though. Victoria saw this and remained quiet. She gave me a questioning look and I nodded slightly, acknowledging that I would tell her later. ¡°All right, so what''s your idea?¡±A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ¡°I want you to go to the guild and get some of that grass, preferably with a nice clump of soil, so we can see the seeds and propagation impact.¡± I said. ¡°What? Why?¡± Victoria asked. ¡°I want to cross the mana grass with it and splice them together to get the best of both.¡± Both women jerked a little, as if I had slapped them. ¡°D-David, that... that''s crazy!¡± Victoria exclaimed. ¡°You don''t know how virulent that grass is!¡± ¡°I have an idea, especially seeing it grow on those rock outcroppings with no soil around, except for what it created itself over time.¡± I said. ¡°But... but...¡± ¡°It''s the best solution for both of our problems. I get mana grass for potions and you get to grow it.¡± Victoria gave me one last pleading look and then she sighed. ¡°I think... no, I''m sure that I can convince an old colleague to get me some.¡± ¡°Why would you have to do something like that? Don''t they throw out tons of it all the time?¡± I asked and both women stared at me in surprise. ¡°We just have to grab some from wherever they dump it.¡± ¡°Good god.¡± Greta whispered. ¡°I still think you''re a genius.¡± ¡°Different perspectives.¡± I reminded her. ¡°It''s too late to go out tonight, so it''ll have to wait until after school tomorrow.¡± Both women nodded agreement and didn''t argue at all. ¡°For now, can I get a couple of blades of grass? We need to test a few things.¡± Victoria nodded and left to get them for us. She was back a few moments later with a little container and it had three blades of grass in it. ¡°That''s the most I''m comfortable with parting with until we can get them growing.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and gave the container to Greta before I took Victoria into a hug. ¡°David, what...¡± Victoria started to say, then she took a deep breath and let it out as she hugged me back. ¡°...never mind.¡± I held it for ten seconds, then let her go. ¡°I''m sorry if you thought I''d make you go to the Mages Guild for anything.¡± Victoria smiled. ¡°It was my fault for assuming the worst when you asked for a favor.¡± ¡°We''ll see you tomorrow afternoon.¡± Greta said and she and I left the botany workshop to go back to the dorm mansion. We worked on the best way to refine a blade of grass, considering it had some moisture on and in it. The first blade we dried off and then dried out over a flame, then ground down into a fine powder. The second one we chopped up into very fine pieces and distilled it in boiling water to try and get the main essence out of it. When the water was boiled away, we ground that up as well. The last blade we pressed between two weights and squeezed it, then left it to dry naturally overnight. We would have to wait until tomorrow to figure out which of the three methods was the best to use to get the most utility out of the mana grass. Greta stepped back from the workbench, her face and clothes sweaty, and with a happy look on her face. ¡°It''s so nice to work with someone that knows what they''re doing.¡± ¡°I kind of had a clue that you might be enjoying yourself, since you couldn''t keep the smile off of your face all evening.¡± I said and she laughed softly. ¡°I wish we never had to stop.¡± Greta said with a grin. ¡°Unfortunately, even experts need to wait for things to finish.¡± ¡°The last blade of grass should be ready to be ground up by tomorrow afternoon when we come back.¡± I said and led her from the room. ¡°If you want to refresh yourself before going home...¡± ¡°Thank you for the offer.¡± Greta shook her head. ¡°I''ll need to take a bath later, since I''m already sweating in these clothes. Walking back to my apartment first is the smarter thing to do.¡± ¡°I''ll escort you.¡± I said and she didn''t refuse. I took her back to her apartment and she clung a little tightly to my arm. When we were close enough to her place, I spoke. ¡°Don''t worry.¡± ¡°David, you don''t understand.¡± Greta whispered. ¡°I do.¡± I whispered back. ¡°I''ll be taking care of it tomorrow.¡± Greta stiffened and her grip tightened even more. ¡°That... that''s why you want to...¡± ¡°It''s a good excuse to leave the academy and it won''t arouse suspicion.¡± I whispered. ¡°You''ve seen my normal treatment for criminals.¡± Greta didn''t say anything and we entered the building. She unlocked her door and led me inside slightly, then she turned to look into my eyes. ¡°David, I... you...¡± ¡°It''s best if they don''t exist, then you never have to worry about them.¡± I said and kissed her cheek. ¡°I''ll see you tomorrow after school.¡± ¡°You have the afternoon off.¡± Greta responded. ¡°I can keep myself busy until then.¡± I said with a smile. ¡°Goodnight.¡± Greta said and let my arm out of the death grip she had it in. I didn''t move or speak and she didn''t say anything as we stared at each other. She nodded slightly and shut the apartment door, then she went to her bathroom to take her bath. She was in there for half an hour and came out wearing just a towel. She walked by me and went to her bedroom to get changed into her nightgown. Greta came back out and she looked ready for bed. ¡°I''m ready.¡± I nodded and raised my hands to cast Sense Magic and then Dispel. Greta shivered as both waves of magic washed over her and then she relaxed when nothing glowed and there was no reaction from anyone after a breaking spell. ¡°I''ll have something for you when we meet tomorrow.¡± I said and turned around to open the door. ¡°Goodnight.¡± Greta stared at me and looked a little lost. ¡°I''ll lock the door.¡± I said and she took a deep breath. ¡°Thank you.¡± Greta said and I cast the strongest lock spell I could on the door. It glowed for ten seconds and I could hear her sigh in relief from inside the apartment. I left the building and went to her windows to cast the spell on them, then I walked back to the dorm mansion. I had some work to do, so I went right up the stairs to my bedroom and opened my personal vault. I took out the second book that I hadn''t tried to read before now, even though I had brought it with me for that purpose, and went to my desk. The Versatility of Enchantments and their Practical Application. I read on the cover for the very first time, because it was written in mage language and had been complete gibberish before. I had all night to find something to give Greta some peace of mind and I opened the cover and flipped the first page to get to the contents. I skimmed over it and nothing jumped out at me, then I read the small text at the bottom of the page. Find examples and variants on pages 86 through 165. Glossary of terms are in Appendix II. Rune Translations can be found in the Fundamental Book of Runes by A.Kimmel. I immediately flipped to page 86 and started reading. 206 Academy Antics Part Seventy Two - Discovery I found the protection wards a few pages after I started reading. Apparently, it was one of the most basic enchantments, only surpassed in easiness by the ''well feeling'' enchantments of the previous pages. The basic protection enchantment was nowhere near as complicated as the protection ward that I normally used, and it also listed the runes and components. It was neat being able to actually read the descriptions of the magic channels and things without having to guess what it was and reproducing it, in the faint hope that it worked. It made me realize that all my previous hard work had been as close to right as it could have been, with my only lacking knowledge being the runes themselves. _______________ Understanding of Enchantments has increased from 96% to 100%. You no longer wonder why things are the way they are. Your knowledge alone tells you how things work. Chance of learning new enchantments and reproducing them with a glance: 65% - 85% Chance of learning new enchantments and reproducing them after studying briefly: 90% - 100% (Chance numbers increase with more Rune knowledge learned) New spell learned: Detect Enchantment. This spell lets you find and examine an enchantment within your area of effect (vigilance technique). Must focus for at least three seconds to be effective. The longer the time spent, the more knowledge gained. Does not reveal rune details until more Rune knowledge is gained. _______________ I blinked my eyes as the enchantment diagram seemed to jump off of the page. My mind wrapped around it and I could see it as an actual carving with all the proper grooves in the wood. I flipped the page and the same thing happened to that enchantment diagram. I looked at the next page and that was the normal version of my own enchantment. I saw all the places it lacked, where I had added in the runes for different effects, mainly making the creatures uncomfortable and repelling them from the area. If they were too close, it actually caused them pain before repelling them. I hadn''t realized how all encompassing my modified one was and how versatile it could be. I just had to figure out how to change it for Greta. I went through the rest of the examples and my mind expanded as I saw the basic enchantments for dozens of things with four to six variants each. I found the fire suppression enchantment and it did have a water producing rune as well as an air rune and a push rune, which was very similar to the repelling rune. I can definitely use that. I thought and wrote it down, as well as drawing out the way it was attached to the fire enchantment. It would need to keep similar components if I folded it into the protection enchantment, just to ensure it worked. I kept reading and there were enchantments for a lot of things. There were enchantments for cooking pans to produce heat without a fire and cooling enchantments to counter it if needed. It had trap wards that produced ghostly chains to bind an animal when hunting for an easy kill, a proximity ward that produces a loud sound when crossed, and one that creates a magical arrow that shoots a signal flare. There were several others that were surprising, like the element wall enchantment. When activated, it produced a wall made of the element rune you engraved it with. It was only a short activation, barely thirty seconds; but, thirty seconds of having an earth or stone wall between you and a rampaging creature, was thirty seconds longer to live. The concealment enchantments were neat, too. You could hide anything from a window and trap door to an entire normal door and no one would know that whatever you hid even existed. It would definitely be useful if you were hiding out or wanted to hide something like a personal vault. Right after that one was the blocking enchantment. It blocked itself from being detected with spells or other enchantments. The best thing about it, was that the components were easily modified, just like the sword enchantment I had changed for the Montgomery family. It wouldn''t take much to fold it into every other enchantment, except for the initial infusion. It would take nearly twice as much magic to complete and that wasn''t as high of a price as I expected. The weapon enchantments were next and they were the basic of basic, even simpler than the one Black Montgomery was teaching in class. In fact, if I was careful enough, I would need even smaller tools to carve it. The simplicity would allow me to carve it into the base of a dagger, which was barely an inch across, or a fourth the size of the small enchantments I used for the kracken tubes. Of course, there were more runes that could be substituted for the weapons, besides damage, sharpness, toughness, and durability. Unfortunately, it was a list and not the runes themselves, then it said to check the rune book by A.Kimmel. I hope that''s one of the books back home in my stash. I thought and saw the three books I had left there in my head. The funny thing was, I couldn''t ''see'' the titles of the books to read them. I chuckled and flipped back to the basic protection enchantments and took my time as I went through them. Once I had spent a bit of time actually studying them, I found a very specific rune that was almost hidden in the fourth variant. It was a very significant find, because it was the rune that was going to help me significantly. It was the ''man'' rune. I almost laughed as I pulled some papers over and started to copy down the basic protection ward and changed the creature rune into the man rune. It was a complete enchantment like that; but, I wasn''t one to half-ass anything, so I drew out my full protection ward and started to combine the two. It was a time consuming process, considering the normal protection rune was meant for a wide area. I wasn''t daunted by that, though. I could work for hours on end without a break and I did so this time. I had all night to figure things out in order to get it to work for what I wanted it to do, so that''s what I did. By the time morning rolled around and the crack of dawn showed through my window, I had not one but three enchantments ready for carving. I had to admit that it was some of my best work as I admired them. I would be able to get by with my normal smaller tools for now, as long as I kept the size to the four inch wide circle restriction. I would have to wait until this afternoon to carve them, though. I packed everything away and went to my bedroom to see Hope sprawled across my bed and her arms spread out, as if she was a spider waiting for a fly to land anywhere on her web. I put the book and papers into the vault and went to the bathroom. I considered waking Sara and Tabitha, then decided that I would let them ''find'' me in the tub to watch their reactions. I stripped off and climbed in to rest and relax for nearly half an hour before Hope woke up. She dressed in her maid uniform and looked into the bathroom, saw me in the tub, and laughed.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. ¡°They are either going to scream in anger or delight.¡± Hope warned me and left to go get them. I heard two loud yells and running feet, then I had to clamp my mouth shut to stop my laugh at two maids as they made indignant faces at me, as if I had wronged them. ¡°My lord! You need to wake us!¡± Sara exclaimed. ¡°It was early and...¡± I started to say. ¡°You can bother us, even if it''s the middle of the night!¡± Tabitha said, adamantly. ¡°We will always... always... be here to help you, my lord.¡± ¡°I didn''t want to bother...¡± I started again. ¡°It''s our job, my lord.¡± Sara interrupted and nodded at Tabitha to get her to start working. ¡°Day or night, awake or asleep, alone or together.¡± She said and knelt to help wash me. ¡°The king himself complimented our work ethic, so you can''t tell us that we can''t do our jobs when we so desperately want to.¡± I reached up and cupped the side of her face. ¡°I would never tell you not to.¡± Sara blushed a little. ¡°Thank you, my lord.¡± I let her face go and cupped Tabitha''s face next. ¡°I only wanted to see your reactions when you caught me in the tub.¡± Tabitha blushed a little as well and then smiled. ¡°We can tell that you didn''t wash.¡± ¡°I''ve just been soaking here and waiting for you.¡± I said and let her face go, then both maids got to work. It was both a thorough bath and a calm one, with the maids enjoying the gentle scrubbing and with me letting them do whatever they wanted, letting my body be moved around like a posing mannequin. That reaction had been the perfect thing for their moods, because they had happy faces the entire time as they worked. I was stood up when I was clean and both maids took a turn doing the ritual. They were quite into it and showed me with their eyes and their motions how sincere they were. They maintained eye contact, even when I finished, and then lightly scrubbed me there to clean up the residue. I was dried off, led into the bedroom, and dressed in my academy uniform. I looked impeccable, especially with the ceremonial sword on my hip. I thanked them both for the excellent job they did and we went downstairs to eat breakfast. Hope handed me my things for the enchanting class and I left to go and meet Vanessa. She looked happy and I assumed the escort position to lead her into the school and to the right classroom. Both teachers gave me warm smiles when they saw me and I nodded in return. ¡°I''ve got a box full of hand carved wildwood daggers for everyone to practice with during the next class this morning.¡± Mage Black Montgomery said after the bell rang. ¡°For this class, we''re working on just a normal piece of wood.¡± ¡°I can''t do it right.¡± One of the young women said and a few others nodded their heads. ¡°I can''t get the curves right on the rune, let alone making the outside of the enchantment.¡± Mage Heather Montgomery stood. ¡°It''s all right. You don''t have to worry about it.¡± ¡°But, we have to pass this class.¡± The student responded, dejected. Heather laughed softly. ¡°These exercises are only to test your propensity for the craft. We won''t make you rely solely on redrawing the rune or even the enchantment by hand each and every time.¡± ¡°You don''t?¡± The young woman asked, surprised. ¡°Of course not. Unlike some of the other subjects, I doubt five of you in this whole class of twenty students are even interested in the subject.¡± She looked over at me. ¡°Maybe one or two of you will actually continue on to complete the course without dropping it at the first of the term, where everyone has the option to do so.¡± ¡°Oh, that''s a relief.¡± One of the other girls said. ¡°I hate using those tools.¡± ¡°Me, too. My hand cramps after ten minutes while trying to hold them.¡± The girl next to her said. ¡°If you can''t manage to redraw the enchantment onto the spare pieces of wood to try carving, I''ll come around and stamp the wood for you.¡± Black said and took out something that looked like a cattle branding iron. ¡°I had one of the blacksmiths make this up for me.¡± Nearly the whole class made appreciative sounds when he pushed magic into it and the end glowed red as it heated up. He turned and took the piece of wood that his wife handed to him and he lightly touched the wood in several places. When he deactivated the branding iron and showed us the wood, it had three perfect representations of the enchantment on the wood. ¡°I''ll do the same to the daggers if you need me to.¡± Black said and everyone nodded. He gave the board to the girl that spoke first and she thanked him. Heather gave Vanessa a board and a wooden dagger, neither marked, and passed me a dagger, too. ¡°Just the normal enchantment with the one rune, please.¡± ¡°Can you wait for a minute?¡± I asked and she nodded. I took out my tools and quickly carved out the basic structure, then changed tools and went back to add in the right grooves, depressions, and magic reservoir. I used my potion and the tool to spread it, used the warm spell to dry it instantly, and infused it to make it glow. I handed her the completed dagger and Heather stared at the thing like it was a real weapon. ¡°Yes, you definitely don''t need to stay for the rest of the class.¡± Heather whispered and took the wooden dagger to her desk. ¡°Are you leaving?¡± Vanessa asked in a whisper. ¡°No, you still need my help.¡± I whispered back and nodded at the wood as I slid my tools over to her. ¡°Draw the enchantment three times and do what I just did to carve them out. Once that''s done, you can try the dagger.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± Vanessa whispered and got to work. When she turned around, Heather looked a little surprised that I hadn''t left. She didn''t comment on it, though. The rest of the morning class seemed to pass by in mere moments and Vanessa was extremely happy that she had completed the dagger and managed to infuse it, even without my potion to act as a focus for the enchantment. ¡°Very good.¡± Black said and accepted the wooden dagger from her. ¡°Watch.¡± He said and flipped it over in his hand, poured a bit of magic into it to activate it, then threw it at a target across the room. The dagger thumped into the soft wood target and stuck there. ¡°Heather?¡± Heather walked over to the target and looked at the dagger. ¡°Almost an inch and a half.¡± ¡°Nice! That''s almost a thirty percent damage increase.¡± Black said, quite pleased as he turned back to look at a surprised Vanessa. ¡°Well done.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Vanessa whispered and didn''t blush. She waited for the teacher to look away and turned to give me a kiss on the cheek. ¡°Thank you.¡± Black went around to everyone''s desks and made sure they finished the enchantments, then he threw each dagger at the large target. Heather kept calling out the depths and he would praise them all, even if they only managed a five percent damage increase. All of them were happy when the bell rang and quickly packed their things up before leaving. They chatted about how great the lesson was as they left. Once they were gone, Heather handed Black my dagger. He walked over to me and winked, then he charged the dagger before he whipped it at the target. It made a solid thump sound as the handle guard hit the target, because the wooden blade has slid right through without any resistance. ¡°Heather?¡± Black asked with a grin. ¡°One hundred percent.¡± Heather responded. ¡°That''s not really a fully accurate measurement, either.¡± Black chuckled. ¡°I think it''s about 110 to 120 percent, myself. It took a bit more magic than all of the others to charge; but, I would expect nothing less from David.¡± Vanessa stared at me. ¡°That... that''s more than double damage!¡± ¡°If you use my potion, yours would jump to 65% or maybe even 70%.¡± I said with a shrug and stood. ¡°I''ll walk you to lunch before I head to my dorm.¡± Vanessa nodded and we left class. I dropped her off and went to my dorm to eat and got to work. I had enchantments to carve and test, then I had to meet Greta and Victoria at the botany workshop. We had an appointment at the Mages Guild and they weren''t going to know what hit them. 207 Academy Antics Part Seventy Three - Visitation Rights Part One It only took me two tries to make a full size enchantment for each of the three enchantments that I had created the night before. That wasn''t going to be sufficient, however. I needed to make them much smaller, so I worked for several hours to reduce them down to the four inch size and successfully carved them and infused them. I covered one with a sliver of wood to hide the enchantment and put it on a thin cord to hang over the neck. I didn''t activate it, because I didn''t want to hurt myself or make myself flee the room. I chuckled as I wrote Greta''s name on the edge and then I treated it with fortifying waterproof potion before I tucked it into my suit coat pocket that I had hung on the chair behind me. I did the same to the second one and wrote Victoria''s name on it, since it did something different than the one for Greta, and tucked it into my other pocket. The last one I covered and hung over my own neck, and it also did something different. I wasn''t going to be smug about it, however. They were untested and I could only hope they worked as well as I had designed them to. I put on the coat and left the dorm mansion after informing Hope of where I was going. I walked at a quick pace to get to the botany workshop and Greta was already there waiting for me. She gave me a warm smile and looked around to see if anyone else was around, then she let out a sigh and hugged me. ¡°I''m sorry that I''ve been so emotional whenever I see you.¡± Greta apologized. ¡°It''s the shock of everything that happened... or could have happened... that''s got me so worked up.¡± ¡°It''s not your fault. You''re not a combat mage.¡± I said and she eased her hold on me to look into my eyes. ¡°Most mages aren''t combat mages.¡± Greta said. ¡°It takes a certain mentality to face danger constantly and...¡± She stopped talking when she realized who she was talking to. ¡°I wish I had some of your bravery.¡± I reached into my suit coat pocket and took out the four inch wide circle. ¡°Ask and you shall receive.¡± ¡°What''s this?¡± Greta asked. ¡°Peace of mind.¡± I said and hung it on her neck. ¡°It''s just a piece of blank wood.¡± Greta said and her fingers caressed it. ¡°It''s very nice.¡± I chuckled and leaned close to whisper in her ear to tell her what it was and what it could do when she activated it with her magic. Her arms went around me again and she held on tightly as I spoke to her. After thirty seconds, Greta took a deep shuddering breath and let it out as she let me go. ¡°David, thank you.¡± ¡°I want you to be careful when you activate it to test it, since it''ll work on all men and not just those you want it to work on.¡± I cautioned her. ¡°I... I know.¡± Greta said and lightly touched the finished wood. ¡°I won''t activate it if you''re within the short range.¡± ¡°You will if you''re under threat of attack.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°Don''t hesitate because I''m near. You do it as soon as you have to.¡± ¡°But... what about...¡± ¡°Your safety comes first. Even if I''m right beside you, activate it and we can worry about the after effects later.¡± Greta closed her eyes for a moment and sighed. ¡°I don''t want to cause you pain if you''re next to me; but, I promise that I won''t hesitate if I''m in danger.¡± I nodded and waved at the botany workshop. We went inside and walked over to Victoria''s office. ¡°Perfect timing.¡± Victoria said and handed us guild mage robes. ¡°We''re going to a guild controlled area and they are going to be very watchful for anyone that isn''t wearing their colors or belongs to one of their departments.¡± I looked at the plant cultivation logo and nodded. We put the robes into small bags to change into them later and I handed Victoria the enchantment medallion that I had made for her. Greta gave me an odd look and I shook my head, because I knew that she was wondering if it was the same as hers. I explained out loud what the enchantment did and Victoria''s eyes nearly bulged out of her head. ¡°Wait, wait, wait! This makes ALL men ignore us? All men?¡± I nodded. ¡°If they get too close, they''ll either decide to walk around us or they''ll be pushed away.¡± Victoria looked like she was going to be sick. ¡°Wh-why would you do this to me?¡± I almost laughed at her reaction. ¡°We''re not going there to show you off or to flirt. We''re going there to get samples of virulent grass and we''re going to be under a lot of scrutiny.¡±This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°I know that, I just...¡± ¡°You wanted to use your charms.¡± Greta said and she nodded. ¡°If things get crazy or if we''re discovered, I want you both to use twice as much magic to activate the wood medallions.¡± ¡°What? Why?¡± Victoria asked. ¡°It''ll fill the large magic reserves I added to them and activate the concealment enchantment. As long as we move slowly after that, no one will find us.¡± I said. ¡°David, this is great and all; but, they are going to check us before we''re allowed into the compound.¡± Greta said. ¡°They''re going to find out we have these enchantments.¡± ¡°Not if they have a built in passive blocking enchantment.¡± I said and both women stared at me. ¡°David, there''s no such thing.¡± Greta said. ¡°If we had some way to block enchantments from being detected, the large families would be enchanting everything they owned with their family enchantments and would probably buy off many other families to get their enchanting secrets, too.¡± ¡°Who says someone hasn''t done that already?¡± I asked and they both looked surprised. ¡°They wouldn''t tell anyone, would they? That would defeat the whole purpose.¡± Greta and Victoria exchanged looks and then chucked. ¡°You''re right, we wouldn''t know if anyone''s already done that.¡± Victoria said. ¡°We better get going.¡± Greta said and we left the botany workshop to go to the academy''s front gates. We boarded an unmarked carriage and rode to the Mages Guild. It was a compound that was similar in size as the mage academy and we had the carriage drop us off down the street. It stayed there and we moved off into an alley to change into the guild robes. Once we were disguised, we went over to the closest checkpoint to enter the Mages Guild grounds. ¡°Sign in, please.¡± The guard standing there said. He held a hand out to us as he mumbled several spells. We signed in with barely legible fake names and nothing appeared to be wrong to the guard, so he opened the gate for us and we entered. ¡°I can''t believe that worked.¡± Victoria whispered. ¡°I thought the enchantments would have at least glowed a little.¡± ¡°He didn''t even ask if we had anything on us.¡± Greta said with a shake of her head. ¡°David, you have your knife on you, don''t you?¡± I pat my left side where the sheath hung under my armpit. ¡°I really want to complain to the Grand Mages Council about making entrance to the grounds stricter.¡± Greta said with a chuckle. ¡°If I was still a member, I''d be pissed that someone could get in so easily.¡± ¡°Neither of us are members anymore, so screw them.¡± Victoria said. ¡°They didn''t realize the talent they''ve been ignoring and forced us to leave, so it makes sense that they would ignore threats to their own security.¡± ¡°Unfortunately for them.¡± I said and noticed a large group of mages in the distance. ¡°We should split up and go to the dumping area from different directions.¡± ¡°I want to argue that; but, you''re right. It''ll look odd with all three of us from the same department going together.¡± Greta said. ¡°It would leave any department short if three or more people left at once.¡± ¡°All right. I''ll go that way.¡± Victoria said. ¡°Activate the main enchantment as you move off. The amount of women we can see is minuscule and you''ll pretty much disappear.¡± ¡°David, stop torturing me.¡± Victoria said with a smile and walked away. ¡°Greta, go that way and do the same thing when you take the corner.¡± I said and pointed. ¡°David.¡± Greta whispered and her hand reached out and rested on my chest. ¡°Don''t... don''t get caught.¡± I gave her a smile and put my hand on hers as I pushed a bit of magic through it. ¡°How can you share like that?¡± Greta asked. ¡°I learned a different way to use magic, of course.¡± I said and let her hand go as I stepped back. ¡°See you soon.¡± ¡°I better.¡± Greta said and walked off. I waited until she took the corner and then walked towards the main guild building. I ducked into an alcove and activated the full enchantment I wore. My body shimmered and then faded as I pretty much disappeared. I used my stealth technique and crept along to go inside when someone opened the door and I made my way over to the first desk. The men I could see were all looking away from where I was creeping and the two women in sight were simply ignoring me, since I looked like the scenery behind me. I went around the closest desk and the woman that sat there didn''t notice me. I looked over her desk and her desk blotter just happened to be a full map of the facility. I held in my laugh, because she had written directions on it to get to those places, and I easily found the potions department and read the directions. I was tempted to kiss her for helping me so much and decided that I didn''t need to scare the woman with a phantom kiss on the cheek, even if it would be funny to see her reaction. I shook my head and pushed that thought out of my head. I''m definitely spending too much time around women that tease me to get a reaction, because I''m doing it now, too. I left the lobby and followed the directions to get to the department. It was a huge growing area inside and the smell was just as prevalent as it was in the botany department. I found the office easily and looked around before using Sense Magic. Nothing appeared, so I opened the door very quietly and peeked inside. The secretary didn''t notice, so I pushed the door with my hand and stepped back. The secretary jerked when she noticed the door and quickly came over to look outside the office. I slipped inside past her and went to the inner office door. I opened it slightly and the man inside was looking down at his desk. I slipped in through the door and slowly closed it. I cast the lock spell on it and then walked over to the man. This part was going to be fun. 208 Academy Antics Part Seventy Four - Visitation Rights Part Two The supervisor trembled a little and frowned as he instinctively leaned away from me and the enchantment I wore. He stood up and moved away from his desk and went to the corner of the room with an unsure look on his face. I smiled and moved back over to the door and he sighed and went back to his desk to sit down and started to work again. I did this once more and the man had a perplexed look on his face as he repeated the same action to retreat to the corner and then came back to the desk. I cast Sense Magic again and saw a slight glow around the whole office, so I cast Detect Enchantment as I focused on the walls. I found the enchantment and concentrated on it for almost thirty seconds to memorize what it was. I then absorbed half of the magic from the enchantment I wore and dropped the concealment part. ¡°What''s the enchantment on the office do?¡± I asked and the man jerked up and out of his chair. ¡°Who said that?¡± He asked, then he frowned. ¡°How did you get in without me seeing you?¡± He looked around and still couldn''t see me. ¡°Magic, obviously.¡± I said. ¡°What''s the enchantment on the office?¡± ¡°It''s for security. If anyone crosses it, the guards are alerted and will be here within seconds.¡± The man said with a feral smile. ¡°Well, that was a lie.¡± I said. I had been inside the office for a while and nothing had happened. The man lost the feral smile. ¡°What do you want?¡± I took out the ring that his apprentice used and cast Detect Enchantment on it. I spent another thirty seconds memorizing the enchantment, whatever it was, then put the slightly charred ring on the edge of the man''s desk. He took in a sharp breath as the ring seemed to magically appear. ¡°No!¡± ¡°Yes. The constables will be here shortly to ask you about him.¡± I said and he sighed. ¡°He wasn''t supposed to tell you anything.¡± The man said and gazed at the ring as if it betrayed him. ¡°I wonder if we''ll share the same holding cell.¡± ¡°No, you won''t.¡± I said and he chuckled. ¡°No, I suppose my crimes are much more heinous than his.¡± The man said and sat back. ¡°So, what are you? A spirit? A vengeful wraith?¡± I chuckled. ¡°I''m much more than that.¡± I said and walked over to him. He stood and walked to the corner of the room. ¡°No... what... what is...¡± I walked over to him and he started twitching, because he couldn''t get any farther away. ¡°S-stop... please...¡± He begged and I reached for him. ¡°ARRRHHH!¡± He yelled in pain. I was surprised when no one came into the office. ¡°It''s a silence enchantment.¡± ¡°STOP! PLEASE!¡± The man begged loudly, then I grabbed him with both hands. ¡°UUUGGGHHHH!¡± The man fell unconscious from the pain after about ten seconds, so I deactivated the enchantment and then knelt with him. I took out my enchanting tools and opened up his robes. ¡°You''re not going to like this. At all.¡± I whispered to him and marked off a one foot round area, then I started to carve a very special enchantment into his chest. I used some fortifying waterproof potion and rubbed it into the wounds to solidify them and stopped the bleeding, then I added my enchantment potion to fill in the grooves. I used the warming spell to dry it instantly and then I infused it with almost twice the magic required. I wanted it to be a very powerful enchantment and knew the more magic I used now, the more effective the enchantment would be with very little magic to activate it. The best part was that since it was carved into his chest, he powered the enchantment himself. The more he tried to use his magic, the longer the enchantment''s effects would last. Since I didn''t want to reveal what I had done, I carefully skinned his back with a normal knife to harvest the skin and used some healing potion to heal it. I flipped him over and used dabs of number ten potion to carefully attach the harvested skin over the enchantment and covered it up. With the addition of more rubbed on healing potion, it sealed the edges and looked almost like it was supposed to.If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. That''s good enough. I thought and put the man''s robes back in place and sat him in his chair behind the desk. I quickly searched the desk and found three more rings inside that looked identical to the charred one on the desk. I took one and put it on the desk, out of sight from where the man sat and easily seen from the doorway, then closed the drawer. It was a bit overkill to have such obvious evidence in the open and I did it anyway. I moved around the desk and picked up the charred ring to put it back in my pocket, and reactivated the full enchantment on my neck. I faded away from sight and slightly opened the office door. The secretary was working away at her desk while writing something, so I slipped out and silently shut the door. I needed a distraction, so I tapped a knuckle on the closed door. The secretary''s head whipped around to stare at the door and looked surprised. I crept by her and she didn''t notice as she stood and opened the inner office door. I opened the outer office door and left as silently as I had entered. I had been very tempted to stay and watch the effect of what I did, then decided I didn''t need to experience it personally. I walked back out of the department and made my way all the way out of the building and followed Victoria''s directions to go to the dumping ground. I kept the concealment up the whole time, just in case, and arrived there a few minutes later. I cast Sense Magic and the whole thing glowed with different brightness all over the place. I chuckled at the scene of Victoria desperately grabbing several things and Greta holding a bunch of things in her arms. I let the concealment part of my enchantment lapse and walked over to them. ¡°Having fun?¡± ¡°David! Hold these!¡± Victoria gasped and tried to hand me several clumps of moss. ¡°I''d rather use a bag, thank you.¡± I said and pulled out a folded canvas bag, since I had expected to need it for the grass. ¡°I could kiss you!¡± Victoria exclaimed and shoved them into the large bag. ¡°Oh, what the hell.¡± She said and darted in to kiss me on the lips. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°I suppose I shouldn''t tell you I have two more tucked into my bandoleer.¡± I said and her mouth dropped open. ¡°Give me that one.¡± Greta said and I handed her the bag I held and she put her armful of things into it, carefully of course. She didn''t want Victoria to be angry at her if she damaged anything more than it already was. I took out another bag and Victoria kept handing us things. ¡°Where''s the grass?¡± ¡°It has to be kept separate.¡± Victoria said and kicked a sod out of the way. ¡°No! What are they thinking?¡± She dropped to her knees and ran her hands over a multi-colored clover patch. ¡°Why would they tear up something like this?¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Greta asked before I could. ¡°It''s a plant based magic channel. I had them planted between high magic areas and low magic areas, to help with distribution and to ease the application of the enhanced watering solutions.¡± ¡°I didn''t see any of that at the botany workshop.¡± I said. ¡°That''s because I couldn''t take any when I left the guild and they wouldn''t let me come back to take samples, unless I apologized for making a mistake in abandoning them.¡± Victoria said. ¡°I refused to kiss their asses for how they treated me and left this place with nothing I''d gathered.¡± ¡°Don''t you still report to them?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes, because any discovery has to be reported officially.¡± Victoria said and cleared out a huge patch of the clovers. ¡°I''ll need that other bag.¡± I put the half-filled one down and took out the last one I had on me. She was gentle as she rolled up the clovers and the sod they were in like a scroll, which was neat to see, and she slid the whole thing into the canvas bag. She could only get a few more things into it, because the bag was almost full, so she added them and closed it. ¡°We need to come back later and get more of this stuff.¡± Victoria said and we filled the first two bags with whatever she wanted. ¡°I hate leaving it like this, though.¡± ¡°We''ve got plenty of time, now that we know the enchantments work.¡± I said and she nodded. The last thing we grabbed was the clump of grass we came for, which she held in her hands and wouldn''t let us touch, and I carried the three heavy bags behind her as she led us back out of the facility. ¡°Full enchantments.¡± I whispered before we reached the gates and I stopped walking to let them get way ahead of me. The three of us were completely concealed and we only had to wait a couple of minutes before the gate was opened for other mages and we easily slipped out. As we walked away, we saw several horses with constables on them and a carriage with their crest on it. We didn''t say anything until we reached the alley where we had started and deactivated the enchantments to reveal ourselves. ¡°That was close.¡± Victoria said and took off her guild robes to put her academy robes back on. ¡°They might have locked the place down with us inside if we hadn''t left when we did.¡± I glanced at Greta and she looked very sad. I put the bags of plants and sod down to take her into a hug. ¡°I didn''t kill him.¡± Greta stiffened in my arms. ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°He admitted he was behind it.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°I thought of a much better plan and did that instead.¡± ¡°What...¡± Greta stopped herself before she asked. ¡°Tell me later. We have work to do.¡± I nodded and we changed, took our ill gotten gains, and went to the carriage. We rode back to the academy with a very happy Victoria, a pensive and worried Greta, and an amused me. I just couldn''t get the thought out of my head of what was going to happen to that poor supervisor when they took him to the station and he tried to cast any magic or someone cast it on him, because he was going to become the center of attention when that happened. 209 Academy Antics Part Seventy Five - Some More Brewing The carriage dropped us off and we entered the academy. The guard didn''t even look our way as we passed through the small gate. We walked all the way over to the botany department and Victoria''s happy mood actually improved as she chose several workbenches to spread out the things she had rescued from the dump site. The very first thing she did was put the virulent grass sample into its own separate habitat, like we had used for the flowers when we rescued them. Once it was secured, she opened the first of the three large canvas bags. She was taking her time as she reached into the first bag and carefully dug out the sample closest to the opening. I chuckled at her over-care for something that had been dumped like garbage and we''d stuffed into a bag to carry back here. I used my magic knife to slice all three bags open onto each of the workbenches and the contents seemed to expand, now that the canvas wasn''t holding them in. Victoria gasped for a second, then realized I had made her task that much easier. ¡°Thank you, David. I''ll replace the bags as soon as I can.¡± ¡°You don''t have to. I''ve got hundreds more.¡± I said and both she and Greta stared at me. ¡°I took handfuls of them every time I went to the bath or storage areas at the garrison.¡± ¡°The... the whole time you were in the army?¡± Greta asked, surprised. ¡°They were free and I wasn''t going to ignore the opportunity. They are just too useful to not take some of them whenever I could.¡± Victoria was the first to laugh. ¡°You are amazing, David. Truly amazing.¡± She pulled off the wooden medallion and handed it to me. ¡°Thank you for loaning that to me.¡± I raised my eyebrows at her, then remembered with her personality that she thought it was a burden to not be seen by men. ¡°I''ll give it back the next time we need to go get more samples.¡± I said as I accepted it from her and then I tucked it into a pocket. ¡°How long will it take to sort all of this?¡± ¡°I''ll have it done by noon tomorrow and we can work on splicing the magic and virulent grasses together during the afternoon class.¡± Victoria said. ¡°We''ll leave you to it.¡± Greta said, completely understanding that Victoria probably wouldn''t sleep at all tonight as she indulged in her chosen craft. She led me out of the building and we went across the campus to my dorm mansion. ¡°Would you like to stay for supper?¡± I asked. ¡°If it''s not too much trouble.¡± Greta said. ¡°We can brew longer if I don''t have to leave almost right after we start.¡± I nodded and the guards opened the doors for us. ¡°Hope, Greta''s staying for supper. Can you let the cook know?¡± ¡°She''s already made extra, so it''s not a problem.¡± Hope said with a knowing smile. Greta nodded her appreciation and we went up the stairs to my ingredient preparation room. ¡°You were right, David. The pressed one is dry enough to grind now.¡± We did that and Greta cast several spells to determine which of the three drying methods preserved the most of the potential of the magical grass. Surprisingly, the last one with pressing and natural drying was the best and highest grade of ingredient. ¡°Now we know for sure that naturally drying it conserves the most magic.¡± Greta said and looked at the other two small piles of powder. ¡°If we combine them, it might just be enough for one stew pot.¡± ¡°Should we?¡± I asked and thought about it. ¡°You know that when we splice the grass together, it''ll take more because it''ll be weaker.¡± Greta nodded. ¡°We''ll have to wait and experiment to figure out the concentration, then adjust the recipe accordingly when we do.¡± ¡°It shouldn''t impact the recipe that much or the other ingredients, since we''re only using it to enhance one of the common ingredients.¡± I said. ¡°We''re brewing it separately anyway and then we can measure out the same amount to use in the actual brewing of the potion each time. It shouldn''t matter about the mass of grass added, as long as we have enough of the prime ingredient when it''s done.¡± ¡°Hmm. I see what you''re saying. It won''t change the recipe as a whole, because we''re changing the ingredient before it''s added and not while it''s added.¡± Greta said and I nodded. ¡°We can''t use your copy trick until we complete the upgraded ingredient, since that''s what we need enough of to add to the recipe.¡± ¡°Agreed.¡± I said and we got to work with a small pot. Thanks to all of our previous preparation, we were done barely ten minutes later and had a very nice mass of the now uncommon ingredient. ¡°There''s no way it was that easy.¡± Greta said with a huff. ¡°After all of our speculation, calculations, discussions, and caution... and it sucked together perfectly on the first try? How did that happen?¡± I had to laugh at her indignation. ¡°Sometimes it just works out.¡± Greta laughed softly. ¡°All right, let''s get everything we need to the potion room and brew up the recipe you''ve come up with.¡± ¡°You helped me refine it.¡± I said and she waved my comment away. ¡°Greta...¡± ¡°I''ll only accept praise if it works.¡± Greta said, adamantly. ¡°You know all the hard work is meaningless if the potion doesn''t complete after infusion.¡± I nodded and we brought everything to the first large stew pot and then we had to stop because Hope called us for supper. ¡°Ah, dammit.¡± Greta groused and I chuckled at her mean expression. ¡°We''ll be uninterrupted all evening, so we should eat while we can.¡± ¡°Good point.¡± Greta said and I escorted her to the dining room. We quickly ate, barely speaking a word, and went right back up to the potion brewing room and started brewing the very first recipe for the rehabilitation potion. We both had memorized the many stages and I still took out the recipe for reference, just in case. For the next three hours, we worked, and sweated, and performed each and every step carefully. We had only prepped enough ingredients for this one batch, because it was the first test and a proof of concept. If it worked, we could move on and try to construct the next recipe in the series, thanks to using this one as a base. I had already worked a lot of things out on paper and Greta''s input was invaluable, so I would need her help to continue on and refine what I had already done. I told her so as she handed me an ingredient and she laughed before she smacked my arm. ¡°Keep your mind on the potion in front of you.¡± Greta admonished me. ¡°You can''t afford to be distracted right now.¡± ¡°You just hit me. How is that not a distraction?¡± I asked, teasingly. Greta snorted and pointed at the pot. ¡°Brew, dammit!¡± I chuckled and did as she said. We kept working and it took another hour and a half for the potion to reach the infusion stage after a long cooling stage. I had added my catalyst before the cooling stage. ¡°This almost goes against brewing rules, you know.¡± Greta said and put her hand near the side of the pot. ¡°It''s almost down to room temperature.¡± ¡°It''s an essential step to let the extra magic from the grass to fully integrate with the potion before infusion.¡± I said and she moved her hand away as I increased the heat of the fire to bring the potion back to a boil. ¡°I know it''s odd and that''s why this will work so well. It''s not normally done.¡±This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. Greta nodded and watched as I poured my magic into the pot. Her eyes widened as it kept going and her breath sped up slightly. ¡°D-David...¡± ¡°Almost.¡± I said, because I could feel that it needed a little bit more before it reached saturation. I hit the point that it wouldn''t take any more and sighed as I stopped adding my magic. ¡°David, that was... how could it take that much?¡± Greta asked, clearly uneasy. ¡°The rehabilitation part needs lots of magic to activate.¡± I said and gave her a smile. ¡°You could have done it.¡± Greta shook her head. ¡°I''d be exhausted afterwards if I tried to do that much in one infusion.¡± She looked at the slightly glowing pot. ¡°Now we have to wait for it to cool again to bottle it.¡± ¡°We can''t rush it, either.¡± I said and extinguished the flames. ¡°Unlike nearly every other potion, it has to be close to activation before it can be bottled.¡± ¡°I''m very tempted to document all of this.¡± Greta said and then laughed bitterly. ¡°It''s just too bad that they won''t take it seriously at the review board.¡± ¡°It''s just too far from the accepted normal procedures.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Too bad for them.¡± Greta gave me a questioning look. ¡°You and I are going to overwhelm their entire setup with what we can do.¡± Greta blinked her eyes several times. ¡°We are?¡± She asked and then she gasped. ¡°We are!¡± I smiled. ¡°We already started. Helena said she''s already sold 3,600 cleaning potions already.¡± ¡°What? How did she do that?¡± Greta asked, clearly shocked. ¡°Sara told me she met with her mother at a lunch date near the docks and told her about the potion.¡± Greta frowned a little. ¡°I thought you weren''t selling to them.¡± ¡°We aren''t until they apologize for their behavior.¡± I said. ¡°The man that owns the dock was at the next table and overheard them. He made a scene as he begged on his knees for a dozen cases, which brought the restaurant owner out and he heard what she was selling...¡± Greta laughed at the situation. ¡°How out of hand did it get?¡± ¡°The dock owner arranged to buy 20 crates, the restaurant owner bought 50, and half a dozen other people bought several cases each.¡± Greta looked quite happy at the news. ¡°It must have been hectic and crazy at your mansion!¡± ¡°It took about half a day for them all to come and get them.¡± I said. ¡°Word''s spread, though.¡± ¡°I can imagine how quickly, especially when they use them.¡± Greta said. ¡°I assume she''s selling them at a reasonable price.¡± ¡°She''s also telling everyone there''s only 9,000.¡± I said and Greta covered her mouth to stop her loud laugh. ¡°She''s keeping a thousand of them as a reserve.¡± ¡°She''s a smart woman.¡± Greta said. ¡°Which reminds me, mother''s sent me a marriage proposal for you.¡± I had to chuckle at that. ¡°Even if it wasn''t invalidated by my previous betrothal, I don''t think I could agree to marry her.¡± Greta smirked at me. ¡°Are you sure? She''s got a younger body because of you and she''s adamant that you need to try it out for yourself. First, anyway.¡± I shook my head. ¡°I doubt your mother would agree to anything Helena would insist upon, considering Helena''s stance on me not being used or abused for my skills.¡± ¡°That''s what I told her.¡± Greta said. ¡°She doesn''t believe me.¡± ¡°I''ll write up a letter in the morning and politely decline.¡± I said. ¡°I''ll send Sara to Helena with it and she''ll add her own refusal, I''m sure.¡± ¡°I''m very sure she will.¡± Greta chuckled and then her face turned sombre. ¡°David, I... I''ve been reluctant to ask about this...¡± ¡°Do you want to know what I did to the supervisor?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°Well, I came across a very neat enchantment while I was researching. It was a very basic one that gave ''well feelings''.¡± Greta thought about it. ¡°That almost sounds like something that could be used in hospital wards.¡± I nodded. ¡°I think so, too.¡± ¡°What does that have to do with anything?¡± Greta asked. ¡°Well...¡± I pointed to the wood medallion around her neck. ¡°Imagine if that enchantment was reversed and attracted people and not pushed them away. What if instead of pain the closer they got to you, the feelings of enjoyment increased instead?¡± Greta''s mouth dropped open as she gasped. ¡°No! You didn''t!¡± ¡°I doubled the magic channels, reversed the flow, gave it a double infusion of magic, and also added in the block and wellness feeling.¡± I said. ¡°After the mage there cast his interrogation spells on him, I''m pretty sure that the supervisor is having quite a good time right now in the men''s holding cells.¡± Greta stared at me for several seconds before she burst out laughing and had tears rolling down her cheeks at laughing so hard. I took her into a hug and she gripped me hard as her laughter softened and disappeared, leaving just the tears. I wiped at her face and then let her go to check the potion. It was still too hot. ¡°What did your sister do with the wound cleaning potion?¡± ¡°Once she tested it on the next patient that came into the hospital, the other healers nearly lost their minds.¡± Greta said with a laugh. ¡°She initially refused to part with more than a few crates, then relented under pressure from the director of the hospital and sent all but two crates to other facilities.¡± ¡°How distraught is she?¡± I asked with a smile. ¡°She''s devastated.¡± Greta grinned at me. ¡°How much longer should we let her suffer?¡± ¡°How late do you want to go to bed tonight?¡± I asked her and her face flushed red. I took her hand and held it tenderly. ¡°I misspoke. I meant what time do you want to return home to sleep. I''m leaving tomorrow afternoon for the trip back to the marsh and then the break for the king''s birthday is next week.¡± Greta took in a sharp breath. ¡°This... this is the last time we can brew together until the academy starts up again?¡± I nodded. ¡°Helena has the whole week filled with activities that as the lord of the mansion, I must attend, not to mention the king''s birthday party.¡± Greta took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°If it''s not too much trouble, I''ll stay in one of the guest rooms tonight.¡± ¡°Do you want one of the maids to retrieve your nighttime things?¡± I asked. ¡°If I can borrow something from them to wear, I''ll be fine.¡± Greta said. ¡°That shouldn''t be a problem.¡± I said and the potion was cool enough now. We quickly filled 36 vials with it and packed most of them into a crate. Greta took one and did her diagnostic spells on it. After a few minutes, she gave me a satisfied smile. ¡°It''s complete.¡± ¡°Any idea what the effects are going to be?¡± I asked. Greta shook her head. ¡°Eludora is a very unique existence. We won''t be able to determine how much of an impact it''ll have on her until she takes it.¡± I thought about that. ¡°We''ll have to have a healer with us tomorrow morning to monitor her both before and after she takes one, then we can gauge how often Eludora can take it safely without straining her body or causing her distress.¡± ¡°Her endurance is very low and we''ve already worked the potion down to its weakest strength. If I had to guess, she''ll be restricted to once a week for a month, then maybe once every four days for the next month.¡± Greta said. ¡°That''s assuming the effects are beneficial to her.¡± I nodded. ¡°She might only be able to drink half the potion if she has any adverse reactions to it.¡± ¡°Well, I can arrange for the healer when I contact my sister in the morning, assuming we can brew up a few batches of wound cleaning potion for her.¡± Greta said and I nodded. ¡°Good, then let''s get to work.¡± We did so and brewed three sessions to make 36 crates and almost 1,400 vials of potion. ¡°Th-thank... you... David.¡± Greta said with a yawn between her words. ¡°My sister will...¡± ¡°It''s time for bed.¡± Hope said as she came into the room. Greta nodded slowly as her sleepy eyes blinked several times and she turned to me, clearly exhausted. ¡°Good... night.¡± She said and then she absently kissed me before I knew it and then staggered over to Hope, who caught her dead weight. Hope chuckled at the scene before she essentially carried Greta out of the potions room to the guest room. I shook my head and cleaned everything up, then transferred the crates down to the bottom of the stairs in the lobby for easy loading. I left the crate for Eludora upstairs, because that one wasn''t going to be known or for sale. I was sure that there wasn''t a huge market for it, considering there wouldn''t be anyone that had slaves that would want to buy a potion to restore them to proper health. Weaker slaves were easier to control. I went up to change for bed and Hope was already there and had a huge smile on her face. ¡°She was asleep before you made it to the room, wasn''t she?¡± Hope nodded. ¡°I needed Sara''s help to get her changed.¡± ¡°Did you apologize to them because I don''t have time for the b-word?¡± I asked and she looked like she was going to laugh. ¡°The b-word?¡± Hope asked and her eyes seemed to sparkle as she spoke. ¡°You know.¡± I said and nodded at the bathroom as I changed. ¡°Oh, come on. Say it.¡± Hope said with a huge grin. ¡°I dare you.¡± ¡°Don''t you want to sleep?¡± I asked her and held out my arm. Hope looked at my arm, at my smiling face, then at my arm again. ¡°You can let them have fun in the morning.¡± She finally decided and I climbed into bed. I went to sleep almost right away as Hope cuddled my arm. Apparently, I was exhausted as well. 210 Academy Antics Part Seventy Six - Testing What Works I was woken up the next morning by two anxious looking maids. ¡°My lord, it''s getting late.¡± Sara said as I opened my eyes. ¡°If you don''t hurry, you''ll miss the first morning class.¡± ¡°It''s just history of the kingdom.¡± I grumbled and closed my eyes. I hadn''t felt like this in the morning for a long time. The two maids shook me awake again and I sighed. ¡°I need a bath.¡± I whispered. Sara and Tabitha let out ''eep'' sounds, then I lost a bit of time until I felt cool water poured over my face. ¡°Right, just a second.¡± I said and touched the tub to use the warming spell. ¡°That''s better.¡± I said and drifted off to sleep as they kept washing me. I was gently woken up when it was over and stood. ¡°My lord, how...¡± Sara asked as she looked at my erection. ¡°I might be tired from lack of sleep for two nights in a row; but, I won''t disappoint you or perform less than what''s expected of me.¡± I said. Both Sara and Tabitha had adoration on their faces as they peered up at me. ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± Sara said and performed the ritual diligently. Needless to say, I woke up fairly quickly as she worked. When she was done, we were out of time, because of the delivery that morning. I was dried off and dressed as I promised Tabitha a quick bath at lunchtime to prepare for my trip back to the marsh. ¡°Thank you, my lord.¡± Tabitha said, gratefully. I was led out of the bedroom and over to the guest room. ¡°Good morning, Greta.¡± Greta promptly stood, already dressed, and she looked as tired as I did. ¡°Good morning, David.¡± ¡°Shall we go?¡± I asked and assumed the escort position. ¡°My sister''s probably already at the medical building waiting for us.¡± Greta said with a smile as she took my elbow and put her arm through. ¡°I have the testing vial for Eludora as well.¡± I nodded and we walked down the stairs to the first floor to see that the guards were loading a hand cart for us. ¡°Thank you, gentlemen.¡± I said, sincerely. ¡°By rights, we should have a workman or two here and a horse and cart for deliveries.¡± One of the guards suggested. ¡°Hauling all of this on your own every time isn''t something a lord should be doing.¡± The hand cart was loaded and I had to let Greta''s arm go to take the cart. She looked a little sad at that, then she schooled her face and we walked at a fast pace to take everything over to the medical building. It wasn''t very big, since it was rare for a lot of students to be sick or injured at the same time. We weren''t surprised to see a medical carriage with two horses drawing it and several healers were inside. ¡°There he is!¡± A familiar woman''s voice said loudly and the door opened and five people stepped out. Linette was almost jumping up and down as Greta and I came to a stop beside the carriage. ¡°By the Son''s Light, you are a godsend!¡± ¡°I think she''s a little excited.¡± Greta joked and Linette laughed. ¡°Get these loaded up and be careful!¡± Linette said to the others and she went back to the carriage door. ¡°My lady, please allow me to help you.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Eludora said and carefully stepped out of the carriage on spindly legs. ¡°Linette was kind enough to pick me up at my residence and then explained what in the world was going on so suddenly.¡± She said in an accusing tone as Linette helped her balance. ¡°I had no idea you hadn''t talked to her first.¡± Linette said. ¡°I was so happy to tell her the news!¡± ¡°Don''t get too excited.¡± Greta cautioned her. ¡°We don''t know if it''ll work like we think.¡± ¡°Even a minor improvement will be more than I ever expected.¡± Eludora said as Linette helped her walked to the building. ¡°I am not getting younger each day!¡± She chuckled. ¡°As I progress in years, my condition is degrading steadily.¡± ¡°That''s what David is worried about.¡± Greta said and we followed them inside. ¡°Your condition is already at a less than favorable state as it is and he doesn''t want it to get worse.¡± ¡°We''ll try a sip of the potion first, to see if that causes any changes in her.¡± Linette said and then greeted the healers there as she requested a room. It was granted immediately and we went there. ¡°I hope you''re okay with disrobing.¡± ¡°I assume you need to see... all of me... for an accurate assessment?¡± Eludora asked. ¡°It will greatly help if we can see and measure everything, including your muscle density and the fat content of your flesh.¡± Linette said, quite clinically. ¡°Then I agree.¡± Eludora said and two women healers came in and helped her remove her robes and clothing. She gave me a searching look before she took off her bra to reveal her small breasts and then she pulled off her panties to reveal that she was completely devoid of hair. ¡°Can you drop your glamour?¡± Linette asked after the two healers left, so that it was only her, Greta, myself, and Eludora in the room. ¡°I''ll lock the door, so no one will see.¡± Eludora gave me a pointed stare and then sighed. ¡°No one outside of a select few were supposed to know.¡± ¡°He didn''t reveal anything.¡± Linette said. ¡°I''m an experienced healer and one of my passive skills is to detect any concealment on a person.¡± Eludora blinked her eyes at her as she sat down on the bed. ¡°How... no, I suppose there''s no need for you to lie about such things.¡± She said and her normal visage flickered and faded to reveal her real skin color and appearance. Linette reached out to touch her hand briefly. ¡°I''m very sorry that they did this to you.¡± Eludora nodded and looked at me again. ¡°Please, don''t judge my body when I lay down.¡± ¡°I don''t understand.¡± I said. Eludora briefly touched her small breasts, then she laid down to put as much of herself on the bed and most of her calves and both feet hung off the end of the bed. When I looked at her chest, it had pretty much disappeared.This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. I walked over to her to look closely. ¡°Where did they go?¡± I asked, confused. Eludora laughed at my confused face and her chest jiggled a little bit. ¡°Oh. I see. They are still there, they are just spread out to make it seem like they are missing.¡± I said and nodded my head. ¡°I almost thought you used another glamour to try and hide them from me seeing them.¡± Eludora held up a hand for me and I took it. ¡°I wouldn''t hide anything from you, someone who has been through much worse than I.¡± She said and let my hand go. ¡°I just didn''t want you to be disappointed that they weren''t perky and stayed pointed out like when I am upright.¡± I raised my eyebrows at her and she chuckled again, shaking her small and spread out breasts. ¡°I am sorry for assuming something so vain about you, David.¡± Eludora said. ¡°All right, I have everything ready.¡± Linette said and I stepped back for her to do her work as she performed a bunch of spells and then wrote down the results. ¡°Greta, a sip.¡± Greta took out the vial and popped the cork to let Eludora take a sip. Eludora let her tip it up for her and then hit her hand and dumped it all down her throat. ¡°No!¡± Greta gasped. ¡°You weren''t supposed to take it all! It''s too dangerous!¡± ¡°I must take the risk.¡± Eludora said and closed her eyes. ¡°I have suffered enough with this distorted body and I want it to end.¡± ¡°Taking too much could kill you, dammit!¡± Greta said, sternly. ¡°We were supposed to work out the proper dosage for you today!¡± ¡°Even if it causes me severe pain, I will take it religiously.¡± Eludora said and kept her eyes closed. ¡°Ohhhhh, I... I feel... uggghhhhhhh...¡± We watched carefully as Linette performed several more spells and monitored Eludora''s condition. ¡°She''s under a lot of stress.¡± Linette whispered and wrote the results down. ¡°We need to calm her down, somehow!¡± I walked over to Eludora and saw her pained face and she trembled. ¡°Eludora.¡± She opened her eyes and looked at me with tear filled eyes and smiled. ¡°Don''t worry, David... I can... do this.¡± ¡°Can I touch you?¡± I asked. Eludora didn''t hesitate as she nodded right away. I reached out with both hands to touch her breasts and she let out a satisfied sigh and closed her eyes again. I moved my hands around and felt the much different shape of them in this position for several moments before her nipples popped out. I focused on them and Eludora''s breathing sped up. ¡°I... I can''t believe...¡± Linette whispered as she cast the spells again and saw the results easing down and evening out. ¡°It''s working.¡± ¡°He''s confusing her brain''s pain response with pleasure.¡± Greta whispered back, amazed. ¡°I''ve never thought to distract someone like that.¡± Linette whispered. The two of them watched as I played with her chest and flicked Eludora''s nipples. ¡°S-s-suck them.¡± Eludora whispered through gritted teeth and then winced. ¡°P-please!¡± I glanced at Linette, who estimated another ten minutes for the pain to subside. ¡°I''ll message... Helena myself.¡± Eludora breathed and gave me a pleading look. ¡°I need... hurry...¡± I nodded and bent over to suckle on her left breast. She moaned immediately and then writhed on the bed, despite being in pain. ¡°OHHHH!¡± Eludora suddenly yelled and an arcing squirt came out from between her legs and landed between her knees. It soaked the bed in a wide spot, because there was so much. Her whole body trembled for about ten seconds, then she let out a very satisfied sigh and stared at me sucking on her breasts. ¡°I want to hug you so... OWWW!¡± There was a snapping sound as her right hand cramped up and we saw the jagged bone of her wrist. ¡°I''ve got it.¡± Linette said and cast a relaxing spell on the constricting muscle. Eludora groaned as the pain lessened. ¡°We can''t give you a healing potion until the other''s gone through your system.¡± Linette said. ¡°Otherwise, all of this will be undone.¡± ¡°I... know.¡± Eludora said and looked at me. ¡°More, David. I can feel... ughhh... cramps... more cramps are...¡± I didn''t wait for her to explain or to cry out in pain. I reached down between her legs and started to play with her as I moved to her other breast and suckled and licked it. ¡°Oh, god!¡± Eludora gasped and she came again. My hand was in the way this time, so it splashed right there and soaked the bed in a wider area. ¡°Oh, god... ohgod ohgod ohgod...¡± Greta and Linette stood there, completely shocked at what was going on in front of them. Eludora came several times as I worked on her. The cramps came and went without Eludora noticing them at all. ¡°Arm again.¡± I said and went back to kissing her chest. Linette went to the arm and cast the relaxing spell on the muscles there again. ¡°Thigh.¡± I said and she helped. ¡°Neck.¡± Linette went to each place I mentioned and did the same thing. She had been wrong about the time estimate, though. It took almost half an hour before Eludora''s body stopped tensing and trying to hurt itself as the muscles constricted and cramped. By the end, Eludora had tears streaming down her face and she had a broken wrist, a fractured femur (thigh bone), collar bone, and a dislocated shoulder. ¡°Oh, god.¡± Eludora groaned. ¡°It''s all right now. The crisis has passed.¡± Linette said. ¡°I''ll have you healed up...¡± ¡°I''m not crying over that!¡± Eludora spat angrily at her, then she sighed and looked at me. ¡°I need you, David. I need your strong muscular body to hug me while you''re inside of me.¡± I reached out and pet her sweat soaked head. ¡°Even if I was allowed, you wouldn''t survive the first few minutes.¡± Eludora opened her mouth and bawled as more tears streamed out of her eyes. I stood there and comforted her as much as I could. She cried for nearly ten minutes before she started to calm down and Linette was there to help her. Eludora was healed and was also exhausted, so she couldn''t tell us if anything was changed or if she felt any different. ¡°We''ll let you rest for a few hours and we''ll come back at lunch to check on you.¡± Linette said. Eludora didn''t say anything as she closed her eyes and almost immediately fell asleep. The three of us left the room and Linette let out a sigh. ¡°That was one of the worst things I''ve ever witnessed.¡± Linette said. I did not enlighten her to how much suffering I go through or for how many hours I go through it. ¡°We''ll have to dilute it again to at least a quarter strength.¡± Greta said. ¡°We just need a strong dissolution solution to combine it with.¡± ¡°Victoria''s enhanced watering potion.¡± I said and both women looked at me with shocked faces. ¡°You want to combine a rehabilitation potion with plant food.¡± Linette said, her voice without inflection. ¡°I can easily remove the growth enhancers and fertilizing components.¡± I said. ¡°It''ll just be a refreshing drink when I''m done.¡± Greta looked thoughtful, then she nodded. ¡°Let''s stop by your first class and let the teacher know you''ve got important work to do for me.¡± ¡°For you?¡± I asked. ¡°Advanced potions class.¡± Greta said with a smile. ¡°You''re so far along in the self study part that you need the ''advanced'' advanced course. It''s all practical work, too.¡± I must have looked surprised, because both she and her sister laughed. ¡°If we can get that drink done quickly, dilute one of the vials into four doses with it, we can be back here in plenty of time to check on Eludora and her progress.¡± Greta said and took my arm to lead me down the hallway. ¡°I''ll stay here and monitor her.¡± Linette said. ¡°Thanks, Linette.¡± Greta said with a wave. ¡°I expect more potions!¡± Linette said loudly. ¡°We just gave you 1,400 of them!¡± Greta said loudly back. ¡°I want more!¡± Linette exclaimed and Greta laughed as we left the medical building. 211 Academy Antics Part Seventy Seven - Eludoras Anguish Mage Victoria Ridge didn''t object at all and wished us good luck because she liked Eludora. We met Vanessa in the compound outside and she promised to loan me her notes for both classes. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and kissed her cheek to make her blush, then Greta and I left to go to my dorm mansion. It took almost no time for us to modify the water recipe and we brewed up two pots of it. I retrieved the crate of rehabilitation potions and used a small pot to combine one vial of rehab potion and three vials of water solution, successfully combined them after a few minutes of boiling and stirring, then poured them into four vials to create the diluted rehabilitation potion. ¡°I had expected that Eludora could take up to a third of the original or maybe even a half.¡± Greta said with some disappointment in her voice. ¡°Splitting it this much?¡± She shook her head. ¡°I only hope she doesn''t react at all and what we just did to her doesn''t have other complications.¡± ¡°I couldn''t feel anything except her muscles being affected.¡± I commented as we kept making the diluted rehab potion. ¡°I have to admit that was quite the nice distraction technique you used.¡± Greta said, her face slightly red. ¡°I felt very bad doing it.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°Why?¡± Greta asked, genuinely curious. ¡°You saw how much emotional pain she was in at the end.¡± I said and kept working. ¡°I don''t think she will feel the same kind of friendship for me now as she did before and I already regret losing what we had.¡± Greta took a breath and let it out. ¡°She was... quite upset when you refused her.¡± ¡°Even doing what I did was a danger, because she was still moving her arms and legs slightly.¡± I said. ¡°Imagine if she was hugging me the whole time like she said she wanted to?¡± Greta fell silent and I could see by her face that she was sure there would have been a couple more broken bones than what Eludora had already suffered. ¡°I wasn''t lying when I told her that she wouldn''t survive having sex.¡± I continued and bottled up the last of the diluted rehabilitation potion. We used up 18 vials of the original and it expanded to 72 vials of the diluted version. We crated them and I picked the two crates up to carry back to the medical building. ¡°Not just sex with you?¡± Greta finally asked as we left the potions room. ¡°No.¡± I said and didn''t explain further. We both stayed quiet as we left the dorm mansion and walked all the way back to the medical building. We met with Linette at the front desk and she was discussing something with several healers. She excused herself from them and came over to us. ¡°You''re back sooner than I thought.¡± Linette said. ¡°How did it go?¡± ¡°Easily.¡± Greta said. ¡°It took longer to crate them up.¡± Linette smiled and led us back to Eludora''s room. ¡°How many did you manage to create?¡± ¡°We only diluted 18 of them to quarter doses. We were going to do more, until David pointed out that if these weren''t enough to get her to a good stage of development, it would still take her a long time to get through them all, even if we gave them to her once a day.¡± Greta said. ¡°I agree. If what we saw is the norm for the potion, then cutting the hour long result to only fifteen minutes is still something I doubt she''ll want to go through more than once a week.¡± Linette opened the door to Eludora''s room. ¡°You''re awake already?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Eludora said and her eyes never left mine. ¡°I wish to be removed from this sweat soaked bed.¡± None of us missed her not mentioning the other reason the bed was soaked. ¡°Greta, give her the robe to wear and help her to the chair while David and I change the bedding.¡± Greta went to the bed and helped Eludora sit up, put the robe on her, then took her to the small chair at the side of the room. We didn''t comment that she looked like an adult sitting on a child-sized chair. Her nearly nine feet of height was a detriment and none of us wanted to draw attention to it. Linette and I removed the bedding, dried the mattress with magic after I applied some cleaning solution to it, then we flipped the mattress over to the ''cleaner'' side and put a new sheet and a thin blanket on it. Eludora stood up from the chair and Greta helped her over to the bed. She laid down with a sigh and managed to look at Linette for a moment. ¡°Please tell me this was worth it.¡± Linette prepped for a couple of minutes, then she performed several spells on her. She wrote down the results and checked them with the initial ones she had done before the procedure. I saw the confused look on her face and had to ask. ¡°It''s both good and bad, isn''t it?¡± Linette nodded. ¡°There was a slight increase in both muscle mass and bone strength. Unfortunately, the bone strength was completely undone by the muscles contracting so much and weakening them, not to mention breaking so many.¡± Eludora let out a sob and closed her eyes. ¡°So, it... it was a failure.¡± ¡°It was your fault.¡± I said and the three women gasped and looked at me. ¡°We had a strict protocol in place and you ignored it for your own selfish reasons. It caused you unnecessary pain and anguish, as well as our friendship.¡± Eludora had tears in her eyes. ¡°D-David, no... don''t cut me adrift over this.¡±This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°I''m sorry that I did what I did, because it helped you and hurt you, just like the procedure did.¡± I said. ¡°You can''t look at me now without lust in your eyes. Your kind and accepting look is lost to me now and I''m going to miss it.¡± Eludora averted her gaze. ¡°I... I can try to...¡± ¡°No, you can''t help it.¡± I said and stepped close to the bed and she looked back at me and her need was as clear on her face as her nose was. I reached out and wiped at her tears. ¡°I''m very sorry, Eludora.¡± Eludora closed her mouth and sadness joined with her need. ¡°We''ll need to wait for...¡± ¡°Give her one now.¡± I said and Linette and Greta took in sharp breaths. ¡°David, what...¡± ¡°I want her to know that she doesn''t need me to handle her discomfort.¡± I said without looking away from her. ¡°I''m leaving for the marsh after helping Victoria with cross breeding some grass and next week is the king''s birthday.¡± ¡°You''re going to be gone until classes resume.¡± Eludora whispered and I nodded. ¡°Healer, please administer the new dose.¡± Linette thought about refusing, especially after all the work she did to put Eludora back together. Instead, she let out a little growl and went to the crates to get a vial of the diluted rehabilitation potion. She came back over to the bed and gave her patient the vial. Eludora drank it and kept her eyes on me. ¡°David, I... I''m sorry.¡± She said. ¡°I didn''t think... uggghhhh.¡± I stayed beside her and Linette performed the spells to monitor her condition. Eludora''s muscles still contracted and tensed, only the intensity was much less than it was from the first dose. She was under a lot less stress as well. It lasted just over thirteen minutes and Eludora only had sweat on her forehead. Linette waited for ten more minutes before performing the spells again and she nodded as she wrote the results down. ¡°Yes, that was a much more productive session.¡± She showed Greta, Eludora, and myself the numbers. It was a very small increase in muscle mass and bone density. It was so small that if her spells hadn''t been looking for them specifically, they would have missed the difference. ¡°This is a much more manageable effect.¡± Linette said, quite satisfied with the result. ¡°It will take longer, since you can''t double up on the doses.¡± She warned Eludora. ¡°You''ll need to rest naturally between them, since you have a life to live and can''t be staying in a medical ward all the time.¡± ¡°How often?¡± Eludora asked, clearly exhausted. ¡°I would recommend one every two days, taken at night, to let your body adjust to the previous dose for a day.¡± ¡°We didn''t do that this time.¡± Eludora said. ¡°I healed you extensively and let you rest for several hours.¡± Linette said as she pat Eludora''s arm. ¡°I can''t do that for you every day, even if you have an unlimited amount of money to pour down the drain to keep me as a personal healer.¡± ¡°What if I did?¡± Eludora asked and Linette laughed softly. ¡°You can hire a healer and have them treat you constantly; but, you know your natural progress will stagnate after a short time.¡± Linette said. ¡°That''s why I haven''t given you any healing potions or used any spells on you. Your body needs time to get used to it before being made to change even more.¡± Eludora let out a sigh and nodded. ¡°Should I come here for my doses?¡± ¡°I''d like for you to. It ensures your safety and also controls how much you can take at once.¡± Linette said and then she sighed. ¡°However, the condition we''re trying to treat you for prevents you from excessively moving and travelling this far from the teacher''s residences would hinder your progress even more.¡± ¡°Do you have a personal vault?¡± I asked and Eludora shook her head. ¡°If you have one installed, it could be set to make you use up most of your magic ability to open it.¡± ¡°That''s brilliant!¡± Greta gasped. ¡°She''ll be reluctant to open it more than necessary and it will act as a natural deterrent for her to take more than she''s supposed to.¡± ¡°I could leave them out.¡± Eludora said, trying to think her way around it. ¡°No, you don''t want these left around. They are too precious to be left unattended or unprotected.¡± Linette said. ¡°Your very life depends on them and you can''t be nonchalant with their treatment, not after what you''ve gone through already.¡± Eludora took a breath and let out a sigh. ¡°I''ll have one delivered this afternoon.¡± ¡°We''ll bring over the vials as soon as you contact us.¡± Greta said and nodded at her sister. ¡°I booked off for the whole day because I expected this to take much longer.¡± Linette admitted. ¡°I''ll be willing to stay around for as long as necessary to set things up.¡± Eludora looked at the two women and nodded. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°I have to go.¡± I said and Eludora held a hand out to me. I took it and she pulled me close. ¡°David, I want to stay friends. I really do.¡± Eludora said as her face flushed red. ¡°I wish we could.¡± I said and glanced down at her chest. A moment later, two protrusions slowly grew and her breath sped up slightly. ¡°You can''t help but react to me now.¡± ¡°David, I...¡± Eludora whispered. ¡°I can''t stop it. It felt so good and...¡± ¡°I know and I''m sorry.¡± I said and bent down to lightly kiss her on the lips. ¡°Goodbye, Eludora.¡± ¡°N-no... I won''t... I can''t say that.¡± Eludora shook her head. ¡°I''ll get stronger and I''ll do my best to get better. I promise.¡± She said, determination in her voice. ¡°I''ll be worthy to be with you some day.¡± I nodded and let her hand go. She held on for a moment and then let me go as well. I walked out of the room and left her behind. Greta came out behind me. ¡°David, are you sure you have to do this?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I said. ¡°She can''t be herself if all she can think about is having sex with me.¡± Greta took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°You do realize that all women don''t always react like that.¡± ¡°I know that.¡± I said and turned to face her. ¡°You''re handling it well and keep it contained.¡± Greta took in a sharp breath. ¡°D-David... I...¡± ¡°It''s not debilitating in your case, because your passion for potion brewing can override everything else you are doing. I admire you for that, mainly because I know that if I gave you even a hint that you can do what you want with me, we''d be naked on the floor right now.¡± Greta stopped breathing and I assumed that scene was playing through her mind. ¡°I''ll do up the rest of the diluted rehabilitation potion and have it delivered here before I go to the botany workshop after lunch. The small increments it allows in Eludora''s progress means she''s going to be on them for a long time.¡± Greta nodded and stood there as I left the medical building. I had a bit of work to do, lunch to eat, a promised bath to take, and I also needed to dig out my adventurer clothing that Victoria bought for our last trip. It was going to be the first time going back to the marsh in a long time and I was more than a little excited about going back home. 212 Academy Antics Part Seventy Eight - Back to the Marsh I did up the rest of the diluted rehabilitation potions and sent them to Greta. I went to the dining room to have a quick lunch and to spend time with the kitchen helper and the cook, who were quite surprised by my invitation to come out and eat with the maids and myself. I also informed them that they could stay here or go to the Henrietta Longshore Mansion as soon as I left for my trip to the marsh. ¡°We''d like to stay; but, if you aren''t here to take care of, we would lose our passion for the work.¡± Sara said and everyone nodded, even Hope. ¡°We''d rather be back among the many than be without you for the entire break, my lord.¡± The cook said and the kitchen helper nodded. ¡°Your pay won''t change.¡± I said. ¡°It''s only a few days for the trip and then next week and weekend for the break. That''s not enough to warrant you losing pay, even if I''m not using your services for the entire time.¡± The maids and the cook exchanged confused looks, then Tabitha spoke. ¡°We do all we do for you, my lord. I thought we made that clear.¡± Tabitha said. ¡°It''s not worth doing if it''s not for you.¡± The kitchen helper said and then blushed when I looked at her. ¡°M-my l-lord, I... I shouldn''t say such things...¡± I took her hand and she blushed harder. ¡°Thank you for your dedication.¡± ¡°Y-you''re welcome, my lord.¡± She said and ducked her head slightly. ¡°Thank you all.¡± I said and looked at Hope. ¡°Prepare to close up the dorm mansion while we''re all away. I''ll prepare some appropriate wards and repelling enchantments, as well as the fire suppression enchantments for inside and outside.¡± Hope gasped. ¡°You don''t think...¡± ¡°Just in case.¡± I said with a smile and then I held up my wine. ¡°Thank you all for attending this meal with me.¡± They all picked up their wine glasses and took a sip at my toast, as did I. ¡°Sara, my adventuring clothes. Hope, my pack with the extra meats and edibles. Tabitha, I need a bath.¡± ¡°Yes, my lord!¡± The three of them said as one and went about their tasks, as did I. Time seemed to fly by and everything was done. I was also dressed appropriately and packed, ready to go. The staff stood in a line, almost like a greeting line in reverse. As I walked towards the front door to leave, I said goodbye to each of them and gave them a kiss on the cheek. The cook, the kitchen helper, Tabitha, Sara, and then Hope. She was beside the front door and blushed when my lips touched her skin, as did everyone else. ¡°My lord.¡± Hope said, her voice a little shaky. ¡°Are you sure that you don''t want to come?¡± I asked and she shook her head. ¡°If I stop at the village and see anyone, do you have a message for them?¡± ¡°No, I send letters all the time.¡± Hope said and then she leaned forward and kissed my cheek back. ¡°If you see Linda, give her that for me. If you see mother, give her this.¡± She hugged me tightly for a moment and let her go. ¡°I don''t think they''ll let me.¡± I said and Hope gave me a sad smile. ¡°I''ll try.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Hope said and opened the door. ¡°Have a safe trip!¡± The kitchen helper nearly yelled and waved her arm at me. ¡°We''ll see you back at the mansion after your trip.¡± Sara said and Tabitha nodded. I left there with my pack on my back and walked at a fast pace to the botany workshop. Victoria was there and she was packing the last of the items she wanted to bring. ¡°Are you sure I can do this?¡± She asked and looked uncomfortable. ¡°I''m hoping beyond hope that some of the area has recovered enough for the rare ingredients to grow.¡± I said. ¡°If we can harvest them and bring some back for re-plantation and cultivation, I won''t have to travel halfway across the kingdom to get them again.¡± Victoria nodded and closed her pack. ¡°All right, let''s get to work on splicing the grasses together.¡± For the next two hours, we worked and tried eight different splicing techniques, including cross pollinating the seeds between grasses. Magic assisting spells were also employed to ensure some success; but, time alone would tell if any of the attempts were successful. ¡°Well, that''s it.¡± Victoria said and wiped at her sweaty brow before she closed the room with the splice samples. ¡°Now we hope that the virulent grass doesn''t overwhelm the magic grass. If they can somehow work together, the result should be exactly what we are looking for.¡± I nodded and waited while she cleaned herself up a bit and changed for travel. She came back wearing her own adventure outfit and her pack on her back. She didn''t bring the tent or cookware this time, since we could stay in my house for the few days we would be there. ¡°Let''s go.¡± Victoria said and we left the botany workshop, locked it with a key and several spells, and walked over to the waterway access on the academy grounds. It was a medium sized dock and had several nice boats on it... and mine was off to the side and tied to a wooden peg on the riverbank. The sail canvas on the top wasn''t deployed, so it just looked like a big rectangle with posts sticking up at the corners and in the middle. ¡°Hey, what'' going on here?¡± Victoria asked the man standing several feet in front of a small white shack as she pointed to my boat that we couldn''t step onto. ¡°Some butler delivered that thing here last week for some reason.¡± The man scoffed. ¡°It doesn''t deserve to be looked after, let alone be attached to the dock with the proper boats.¡± Victoria stepped close to the man and got right into his face. ¡°I''m sure that the butler told you what the boat was for, didn''t he?¡± She asked and the man wasn''t intimidated at all. ¡°He said some student was going to need it.¡± The man said. ¡°So what? It''s still not a proper boat.¡± ¡°Did he tell you a name?¡± Victoria asked, unwilling to let it go. ¡°Probably. I don''t remember.¡± The man shrugged.This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. ¡°How did you get this job being so stupid?¡± Victoria asked. ¡°Excuse me.¡± The man said and squinted his eyes. ¡°Did you just call me stupid?¡± ¡°Yes, because you are an idiot!¡± Victoria said. ¡°You know I''m a teacher here and I''m asking you some very easy questions, and yet you are completely ignorant! How is that possible?¡± ¡°I don''t have to stand here listening to this.¡± The man said and turned away. ¡°If you take one more step to avoid this confrontation, you better keep walking, because you can kiss this job goodbye!¡± Victoria exclaimed. The man turned back to her. ¡°Go ahead and try to have me fired. I haven''t done anything wrong.¡± ¡°Neither I nor my assistant can board the damn boat safely, you idiot!¡± Victoria spat and waved at the boat that was free floating in the water at the end of the tether rope about ten feet away from the riverbank. ¡°How is that NOT wrong?¡± ¡°I am not required to tie every piece of trash that''s brought to me to the dock. If you want to risk your life riding in that thing, you can figure out how to get on it on your own. I''m not going to help you kill yourself by drowning in something that''s barely above the waterline.¡± The man said and turned away and walked back over to his little shack to lean against it. ¡°David, I''ll be right back.¡± Victoria said as she took off her pack and handed it to me. ¡°Leave the boat where it is, to.¡± I nodded to her and watched as she left at a fast jog. ¡°You''re in trouble now.¡± I said to him. ¡°I don''t think so.¡± The man said and crossed his arms. ¡°I''ve had this job for over ten years and there''s no way that any of the teachers can get me fired, no matter what lies they tell.¡± ¡°Well, you sure have some surprises coming in your future.¡± I said and stood there and waited. Luckily, school was still in session and she shouldn''t have to look far. I also knew that whoever she went to get, it would be a little while for them to come back, since they wouldn''t be in as big of a rush to get here. Twenty minutes later, a very happy Victoria came back with a handsome woman beside her. It was someone I hadn''t met before and she wore mage robes with the academy logo on the chest, except it was made of gold and not the normal thread of the emblem. ¡°David, I''d like to introduce you to the newly appointed Director of the Academy, Mage Pavinca Chasma.¡± Victoria said, smugly. ¡°Lord Drake, I am very sorry for the actions and in-actions of a former staff member of this academy.¡± Mage Chasma said and bowed to me. The man caught his breath and stared at the woman, shock on his face. ¡°It''s very nice to finally meet the person chosen by King Rivers to run his academy.¡± I said and held a hand out to her. She took it as a lady should and I bent over to lightly kiss the knuckles. I didn''t make her fingers tingle, though. Now was not the time for that, since she had serious business to handle. Mage Chasma smiled at me, as if she knew I had held back, and turned to the still shocked man. ¡°My lady, I''m sorry. I didn''t know that...¡± ¡°Your job, as it always has been, is to handle every single boat and water craft that appears here for the students and teachers to use. They are to be housed properly when needed and are to be easily accessible, since the safety of the people using these craft is supposed to be your utmost priority.¡± Mage Chasma said in a berating tone. ¡°You have never had the authority to refuse service to anyone, let alone someone with a full Lord title.¡± ¡°My lady, I didn''t know...¡± ¡°It doesn''t matter what you did or did not know about the people you are supposed to serve. All should be treated well, since your treatment of them reflects on this academy as a whole.¡± Mage Chasma said. ¡°Thankfully, you no longer have to worry about such things.¡± ¡°No! This is my life! I''ve been here for...¡± ¡°Ten years. I checked the records, which was why I wasn''t here right away to deal with you. There have been several incidents of a similar fashion from you when concerning a few of the freshmen students that you thought weren''t good enough to grace what you mistakenly believed is your dock.¡± The man didn''t respond, since he knew that it was pointless. ¡°This is the academy''s dock, fully owned by the king, as is everything else within these grounds.¡± Mage Chasma said and motioned to me. ¡°Lord Drake is someone that the king has publicly declared as a friend of the royal family.¡± The man''s face paled at her words. ¡°How do you think the king would react if he heard of his friend''s treatment?¡± The man ducked his head and shook it, unable or unwilling to say anything. ¡°You are dismissed. Take your things and leave by tonight.¡± Mage Chasma said. ¡°I will repeat the king''s warning as well. If you take anything that is considered academy property, hence the king''s property, the royal guards will be visiting you soon after.¡± The man nodded and went into the shack. It only took a few minutes for him to come out with a small bag. ¡°The guard will be checking it on your way out.¡± Mage Chasma said. The man nodded again and walked away. Mage Chasma turned back to me and smiled. ¡°I''m sorry that you had to witness that unpleasantness, Lord Drake.¡± ¡°With the way you handled it, it wasn''t unpleasant to watch at all.¡± I said and held a hand out to her again. Her smile grew a little as she took it and I kissed the back of it instead of the knuckles and sent a pulse of magic through it to make it tingle. Mage Chasma giggled like a little girl and then coughed into her hand to cover it up. ¡°I''m glad to have been of some help, my lord.¡± ¡°I told you he could do that, Pavinca.¡± Victoria said with a grin. ¡°Thank you for this. Really.¡± ¡°I''ve been going over all of the paperwork ever since I was appointed and this was near the bottom of the stack. It''s going to take me weeks to root out all the misbehaving people that have let their positions get to their heads.¡± ¡°I don''t envy you.¡± Victoria said and looked at me. ¡°David, can you get the boat?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± I said and walked over to the peg. I untied the rope and pulled the boat to the shore, activated the weight enchantment to raise it almost out of the water, then pulled it out to rest it on the land. ¡°He didn''t even struggle with it.¡± Victoria and Mage Chasma whispered at the same time. The two of them watched me as I took off my pack and as I properly deployed the large canvas sail to the four poles and it covered the whole boat. ¡°That''s an ingenious design for low hanging hazards or things dropped from above.¡± Mage Chasma commented. ¡°It''s to catch dive-bombing snakes and death spiders, mostly.¡± I said and they stared at me. ¡°The tangling vines aren''t fast enough to catch the boat unless I slow down.¡± ¡°Slow down?¡± Mage Chasma asked. ¡°This is the prototype that David built for the army''s bog skiffs.¡± Victoria said, proudly. Mage Chasma gasped. ¡°Lord Drake made them?¡± Victoria nodded. ¡°It''s a true wonder and I can''t wait to ride in it!¡± Mage Chasma looked like she wanted to as well. ¡°Lord Drake, can I make a request?¡± ¡°If you have a small clipper ship and two spare mages to run it, I can enchant it for you.¡± I said, understanding what she wanted right away. ¡°I''ll have it ready for after the king''s birthday.¡± Mage Chasma said with a huge smile. I held a hand out to Victoria. ¡°Your exciting ride awaits.¡± Victoria blushed at the double meaning, gave the other woman a knowing look, and took my hand. I helped her into the boat, stowed her pack to protect it from the water, and stepped out. ¡°What are you do... oohhh!¡± Victoria said and gripped the bench seat she was on as I easily pushed the boat off of the riverbank and into the water. I hopped on easily and didn''t bother with the poles as I activated the movement enchantment. I saw Mage Chasma''s eyes bulge as the boat turned around by itself, so I waved at her as I sat beside Victoria. She waved back, clearly stunned. I poured on the speed and Victoria let out a whoop of surprise that quickly turned to delight. She gripped my arm tightly and enjoyed it as I sped down the waterway to get to the main exit into the harbour. Drake''s Marsh, here we come! I thought with a smile. 213 Academy Antics Part Seventy Nine - A Brief Discussion We hadn''t left the academy until late in the afternoon, so there wasn''t a lot of time for travelling before we had to stop for a light supper. Victoria had a huge smile on her face and had a difficult time eating. Her hair was windswept and she didn''t try to tame it at all. She explained that she hadn''t tied her hair up into a ponytail just for that reason, so she could feel the wind in her hair. It was also one of the reasons she liked visiting her good friend Captain Cynthia Wing on her scout ship, because it was so fast. I was smart and didn''t try to mention any of the other reasons. When we were done eating, we took off at my best speed, because we would run out of daylight soon and we would have to stay at an inn overnight. Victoria said she was fine with sleeping in the boat and I reminded her that staying on the open water in anything smaller than a full sized ship was as dangerous as sleeping in the woods without wards up. We made it to a good sized town when it was full dark and I pretended the boat needed to be poled in towards the dock. I secured it with ropes and number ten potion, and we carried our packs with us. I paid the tiny fee for docking for the night and we found the closest inn. It was only ten silver for the both of us to stay for the night, breakfast included, and Victoria insisted that we only needed one room, as long as there were two beds. The innkeeper laughed at her. ¡°You''re a funny lady! Just for that, it''s only 8 silver and I''ll give you adjoining rooms.¡± Victoria laughed and nodded, so we had a discount and went to our rooms. She took the better one, or so she said, even though they looked close to identical. She checked the door that was between the rooms and liked that it was actually a double set of doors. ¡°It''s like a grand suite and they converted the living room into a room for you.¡± Victoria said with approval as she looked around. ¡°Yes, this will do.¡± I gave her a searching look and she laughed. ¡°Shall we go over the assault plan for the marsh? We have a bit of time before we need to go to bed.¡± Victoria said. ¡°Then again, we could just cuddle for a bit and relax.¡± ¡°You''re a bit more excited than usual.¡± I said as I took off my coat and put my pack beside the bed. ¡°I need to burn off some of this energy or I won''t sleep much tonight.¡± Victoria admitted. I took her hand and walked over to the fireplace on her side of the rooms and waved a hand over it to light it on fire. I had years of practice with controlling the heat, so I made it toasty warm immediately and dragged one of the nice rugs over in front of it. I tossed a couple of pillows down onto it for us to relax on and took her pack and coat to put it beside her bed. ¡°Let''s do both.¡± I said and pat the pillow beside me as I laid down in front of the fire. ¡°Are you trying to seduce me, my lord?¡± Victoria asked, her huge smile becoming a smirk as she laid down next to me and then she turned onto her side to face me. ¡°If I was going to do that, you would already be naked on the bed with me buried deep inside you.¡± I said without hesitation. Victoria laughed. ¡°I am not that easily conquered, David.¡± ¡°I know. I would have started hours ago with teasing you while we rode in the boat and you were having so much fun, caressing your sumptuous body in random places to drive you wild, and teasing you by not actually touching the parts you wanted to be touched.¡± Victoria blinked her eyes at me. ¡°D-David, what... why are you telling me this?¡± ¡°So you can keep trusting me like you always have.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°I won''t take advantage of your vulnerable nature, when I easily could, because I don''t want to disrespect you any more than you want to disrespect my fiance.¡± Victoria stared at me for several moments in silence, then she let out a long sigh and moved closer. She took my arm and cuddled it in a very similar manner as Hope did, then she gave me sorrow filled eyes. ¡°I do trust you.¡± Victoria whispered. ¡°Unlike every other man that I''ve tried to tease, you''re the only one that I''ve gone so very far with. I wouldn''t have done a quarter of the things to another man that I''ve done to you.¡± ¡°Even a quarter must have made them want you very much.¡± I commented and she nodded. ¡°Just a hint that I might be interested, made them pursue me for months afterwards.¡± Victoria said and snuggled her head down onto my shoulder. ¡°I know I''m not the prettiest woman you''ve met...¡± ¡°You don''t have to be gorgeous to be sexy.¡± I interrupted and her hold on my arm tightened slightly. ¡°David, you really do understand.¡± Victoria whispered. ¡°Just being around you makes me feel so sexy.¡± ¡°I couldn''t tell.¡± I joked. ¡°Good god, that lie almost hurt my brain!¡± Victoria laughed for a moment and then she sighed as she rubbed her cheek on my shoulder. ¡°The risky things I''m tempted to do around you, sometimes makes me giddy enough that I laugh at random times as I imagine your reaction.¡± ¡°Giving me an erection isn''t enough?¡± I asked and she laughed again. ¡°It''s not that.¡± She said and I huffed. ¡°Okay, it''s not just that.¡± She said with a chuckle. ¡°It''s the look in your eyes. Your intense gaze as you intentionally look at what I''m showing you or teasing you with. That gives me a thrill that I just can''t get from anyone else.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± I asked. ¡°They all... all... try something. All of them.¡± Victoria said. ¡°Each time I do something, I always feel a grab, an intentional mistaken caress with them saying ''oops, my hand slipped'', them tripping and falling on me, or making me fall onto them when they pull me close.¡± I reached over with my free hand and lightly touched her cheek. ¡°I''m sorry that they didn''t understand.¡± ¡°So am I.¡± Victoria said and closed her eyes. We laid there in silence for several minutes like that before she spoke again. ¡°If we were in a relationship, you''d still let me do what I''ve been doing, wouldn''t you?¡± ¡°Yes. It''s what you want.¡± I answered. ¡°I''d still make you scream in pleasure at night, however.¡±Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. Victoria barked a laugh and then sighed. ¡°You are very good at adapting to different environments.¡± ¡°I''ve grown up learning that ability. Adapt, change, survive.¡± I said to her. ¡°I would have permanently died a long time ago if I hadn''t.¡± Victoria was quiet for another minute. ¡°What happened at Ester''s Village?¡± ¡°Looking back at it, it was my own fault. I was trying to emulate the Hag and not adapt to the situation like I was supposed to.¡± I said and she lifted her head from my shoulder to look at my face. ¡°Given another few days, I might have become a full village citizen again and none of the rest of it would have happened.¡± Victoria took in a sharp breath. ¡°David, you... you wouldn''t have come to the capital.¡± ¡°I doubt I would have gone to the next town, let alone come here.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°I didn''t know anything but the marsh and some of the village back then. I had no clue about anything else.¡± ¡°Oh, my.¡± Victoria whispered, then she leaned down and kissed my cheek. ¡°I know what you went through to get here was horrible; but, I''m glad you did it and that you made it here.¡± She said and laid back down. ¡°I can''t imagine what my life would be like without you in it.¡± ¡°The same as it was before you met me.¡± I said and she didn''t respond. ¡°Without me showing up...¡± ¡°I don''t want to think about that.¡± Victoria said and hugged my arm tightly. ¡°Tell me about what to expect in the marsh.¡± ¡°You don''t have to expect anything.¡± I said and she chuckled. ¡°Tell me another joke.¡± Victoria said, amusement in her voice. ¡°I''ll give you a protection ward when we reach the village, the same ones I have on my house.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Victoria asked. ¡°Yes, and I''ve made it the same size as the concealing repellent medallions.¡± ¡°That''s convenient.¡± Victoria said. ¡°I don''t think I could walk around for long with that big one foot wide wooden coin hanging around my neck. It would be bouncing everywhere when I move.¡± ¡°You''d have to hug it to your chest a lot.¡± I said, remembering that Gloria did that when she ran with the one I had given her. She was the little girl in Ester''s Village that was bitten by a death spider and was now afraid of them. ¡°I''d never be able to pick anything up with two hands.¡± Victoria laughed softly. ¡°At least the smaller one I can tuck into my shirt or sweater.¡± We fell silent again and neither of us broke that silence for a long time. We laid there and basked in the warmth of the fire. The only sounds around us were the crackling of the wood pieces in the fireplace. It really was relaxing and I closed my eyes and drifted off to sleep before I realized it. The morning arrived and we were cuddled up on the floor together. Victoria was no longer holding my arm because she was hugging me and had her head resting right in front of mine. We were both on our sides facing each other and her leg was over me, which couldn''t have been a comfortable position for her to sleep in. I realized that her arm under me was tucked into the space between my neck and the pillow, which meant I hadn''t been putting pressure on it all night. That was a relief. ¡°Victoria.¡± I said and she didn''t move. She was sound asleep and looked quite peaceful. I thought about moving my hands that were suspiciously placed, now that I was becoming fully aware of my body. One was firmly gripping her breast and the other had a firm hold on her ass. When I tried to move them, she let out a groan and I felt her hands grip me. I felt one of her hands grip my shoulder tightly and then I discovered where her other hand was. It was firmly gripping my erection. I glanced down to see that my pants were undone and her hand was buried inside. Her pants were loose as well, so my hand was only blocked from touching the skin of her ass directly by her underwear. It was not a fair trade in the least, if I was going to consider it a trade and not a blatant misuse of my trust. I almost laughed at that thought. I had been so worried about Victoria trusting me after what happened between Eludora and myself, that I didn''t even consider the fact that she might take advantage of that. ¡°Victoria, let go.¡± I said, firmly. ¡°Mmm.¡± Victoria moaned and her hand moved... except it didn''t let me go and moved back, then she did it again and again. ¡°You''re not my maid.¡± I said, clearly trying to shock her out of her half-awake fantasy. ¡°Yes... yes...¡± Victoria mumbled and her hand sped up. ¡°Your maid... mmm... want to see...¡± ¡°Victoria!¡± I exclaimed and she ducked her head. ¡°Too... loud.¡± Victoria said and then she mumbled something and I felt magic roll over me as her hand moved more. ¡°Stop!¡± I said and she didn''t react, so I moved my hand from her ass to try and grab her hand, except there wasn''t enough room between us for me to do that. ¡°You''re not supposed to do this!¡± ¡°Forbidden... so tempting...¡± Victoria mumbled as if she didn''t hear me. ¡°Want... so bad...¡± I thought about pushing her away, except we were so intertwined that she would definitely be hurt if I tried. I also couldn''t move back for the same reason. Her arm was under my neck and around my shoulders and she held on tightly to keep me close. I tried to cast Dispel to break whatever she cast, only I couldn''t concentrate with her jerking on me like she was. ¡°One more time... before he wakes...¡± Victoria mumbled and that made me blink my eyes. One more time? I asked myself and then I felt it build. If I didn''t do something, I was going to finish and it was going to make a huge mess on the both of us because we were pressed so close together. I twitched down there and suddenly she had somehow let my shoulder go and moved down to my waist. Her moving hand was quickly replaced with her mouth and she sucked so hard that it was a shock. The change in sensations was so jarring that I couldn''t hold back and I released it into her mouth. ¡°MMMMMM!¡± Victoria moaned loudly as I spilled myself into her sucking mouth, as if she was my maid, and she kept going. ¡°Stop!¡± I said and she didn''t react. She must have... cast a silence spell... on just herself. With my hands free, I could grab her and stop her... except she had my quite delicate manhood firmly in her mouth. I touched her head to stop her movement and I felt her teeth graze me. I immediately let her go, knowing the threat was real. I might have had a tougher body than a normal person, thanks to all the things the Hag did to me over the years; but, even I wasn''t going to bet that I could get her off of me before she bit me. Also, the head on the shaft would act like a stopper for her teeth if I pulled, which would guarantee that I would be disfigured and in a lot of pain. I wasn''t going to do that, since I had suffered enough as it was this morning, so I let her do what she wanted. When I finished again a short time later, Victoria made a loud swallowing sound and moaned happily as she sat up... then she saw my blank and wide awake face. ¡°D-David! I... I...¡± ¡°You can''t hear me.¡± I said and she widened her eyes, clearly not hearing me, and I felt a slight bit of magic from her. ¡°Oh, god.¡± Victoria said and covered her mouth. ¡°What... what have I done?¡± ¡°Something I''ve been begging you to stop doing.¡± I said and stood up. ¡°I hope you enjoyed it.¡± Tears came to her eyes and she started to shake her head. ¡°I was asleep and... I thought it was a dream and...¡± ¡°I tried stopping you and you blocked me from doing that.¡± I said with no inflection in my voice. ¡°David, I... I''m sorry! Just... just pretend I was a maid! Yes! I was your maid and...¡± ¡°That justification won''t work.¡± I said and walked away from her to go into my room. ¡°David!¡± Victoria gasped. ¡°You can find your own way back to the capital from here.¡± I said and closed the doors before locking them with the spell. I ignored the knocks on the door and went to wash off, adjusted my pants and put them back into place, then put on my coat and my pack. I left the room and quickly left the inn, ignored the free breakfast, and jogged to the dock. I set the boat free and ignored the pole as I used the enchantments right away. Several people on the dock stared at me as the boat took off at its fastest speed and I ignored the shouts of surprise. I had a marsh to get back to and a few more things to handle, one of which was going to be painful, I was sure. I had to tell Helena what had happened. 214 Academy Antics Part Eighty - The Marsh Is Full Part One I wasted no time stopping to eat or anything, since I could eat while controlling the boat, and drove all the way back to Ester''s village. I arrived just after noon and the army dock I had built was twice as big as before and there were quite a few ships there. I counted ten of them and they were all military. I slowed down when approaching the area, only to see that most of the bank was dug away and the dock extended into the land to make it easier to unload the boats right onto the ground. I eased around them, careful of other ships and smaller boats, and I didn''t recognize anyone there. I felt a little bad about that, since I had gone through a lot with the soldiers from the garrison. I entered the main harbour for the village and it was almost completely different from before. The dock was now a tall double dock, just like they had at the next town, and you could offload on the bottom near the water on the old dock or offload on the upper dock that was at the height of the ship''s deck. It was also really busy and I looked at all of the small craft moving around with business emblems on them. I searched around and found a spot on the lower dock and thought about docking, then looked at the two ships on either side of the slip. I shook my head at the danger of my boat being crushed by them and them not noticing. I took my boat over to the far side and looked for a good spot to leave it on the bank. I saw the boatbuilder''s warehouse had expanded and several people were working outside. ¡°Hey, you can''t put that there!¡± A guy said when I put the end of my boat next to the shoreline. ¡°Why not?¡± I asked and stood. ¡°That''s our access way.¡± He responded. ¡°For what?¡± I asked. ¡°It doesn''t matter what it''s for. Your... whatever that is... is blocking nearly thirty feet of water.¡± ¡°I''m not staying long.¡± I said. ¡°I don''t care. Now move it or lose it.¡± He said, a bit angrily. ¡°Do you own the land right here?¡± I asked and pointed to the land beside the water. ¡°No, of course not. That''s town land and...¡± ¡°How can you claim the water that''s in front of it?¡± I asked. The man frowned at me. ¡°We just do.¡± ¡°That''s a stupid reason.¡± I said and he looked angry. ¡°What if I claim it and call it mine? Is my claim any less than yours?¡± ¡°This business has been here since the village was founded and we''ve always used this water!¡± He exclaimed and the other guys working on an upside down hull came over. ¡°I''ve used the water all the way to the capital and back. With your reasoning, I can claim it and it''s all mine now.¡± I said. ¡°Are you an idiot or something?¡± The guy asked and clenched his hands into fists. ¡°Hey, Simon. Let him use the space. It''s not worth getting into a fight over.¡± One of the men behind him said. ¡°No, he can''t. If we have to move a boat out and turn around, we''ll smash that little thing to bits.¡± Simon said and managed to not shout. ¡°It''s in the way and it needs to go.¡± The man turned to me. ¡°Can you find somewhere else to dock?¡± ¡°The docks are nearly full and the only spot left that I can fit is too dangerous to use, for the same reason he just said. I don''t want to lose my boat.¡± ¡°Then go somewhere else!¡± Simon spat and I recognized the tone of voice. ¡°Phelps. You''re Simon Phelps.¡± I said. ¡°Yeah, so what?¡± Simon asked, aggressively. I smiled and picked up the front tie rope on my boat and jumped several feet from the boat and onto the land. Both he and the man looked surprised, because my boat hadn''t moved or drifted away from the shore. ¡°What are you doing?¡± The man asked, concerned. ¡°Docking my boat.¡± I said and pulled on the rope. ¡°Get it out of here now or you are going to regret it!¡± Simon nearly yelled at me. ¡°I will?¡± I asked and then gave him a huge grin. ¡°Are you willing to lose another family member by trying to destroy my boat again?¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± Simon asked, his anger becoming confusion. ¡°I believe your grandfather tried to sink both of my boats by drilling holes in them last year.¡± I reminded him. ¡°Have you forgotten it so quickly? You were there helping him.¡± Simon''s confusion became full blown fear and he took a step back. ¡°You! Stay away from me!¡± ¡°It''s not good enough that I''m getting out of your water?¡± I asked and easily pulled my large boat out of the water and onto the shore. All of the men stared at me as I put stakes down and tied the boat to them at both ends to dock it on dry land. ¡°There, are you happy?¡± Simon didn''t say anything and took several more steps away. I jumped towards him with a growl. ¡°BOO!¡±Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. ¡°AHH! Help! Somebody HELP!¡± Simone yelled and ran. I burst out laughing and the men working with Simon gave me odd looks. ¡°I tried to be a scary and intimidating boogeyman last year and I ended up being seen as a comedic waste of space.¡± I said as an explanation. ¡°I killed someone in self defence, was wrongly convicted for it, and sentenced to death. The army conscripted me right away and a bunch of things happened, and now I''m out of the army and enrolled in a mage academy.¡± ¡°You''re a mage?¡± One of them asked. ¡°Where''s your robes?¡± ¡°I''m a student, not a mage. Not yet, anyway.¡± I said. ¡°Otherwise, I''d be married.¡± Now the men looked very confused. ¡°Never mind.¡± I said and held my hand over the boat and applied the lock spell to the ropes, which surprised them. I started to walk away and stopped to look back at them. ¡°By the way, if anyone tries to steal or damage my boat, I''ll come back and kill them.¡± I saw the glint in one of their eyes and walked back over to where they stood. The man schooled his face and tried to hide the greed there; but, I had already seen it and it was much too late to hide it now. ¡°Just to make sure, I''m going to cast some Marsh Magic on it and you''re going to severely hurt yourselves if you go near it.¡± The man smiled slightly and I knew he didn''t believe me. I went over to the boat and dug out Victoria''s copy of the ''men ignore me'' pendants. I put my pack on and hung the enchantment on the steering wheel before I walked away and activated it at the strongest setting. The men let out yelps at the sensations and their eyes seemed to glaze over as they lost sight of my boat. Even I felt a bit repulsed by it; but, I was controlling the enchantment and it wasn''t as debilitating to me because I could use it from much farther away. I walked over to the dock and thought about using my own copy of the enchantment, then I saw what the village looked like and forgot about hiding. It was no longer the little village that I remembered. No, it looked more like the next town that was much bigger, had more stores, and more people. There was even an army recruitment office and a mages guild office, which was surprising. I thought about entering them, then decided I didn''t want to experience whatever they were offering and kept walking up the main road. I saw the general store was now called Mack''s General Goodies and several people were standing near the door and a bunch were inside. I walked a bit farther and saw Diane''s Specialty Store, which was packed full of people and a bunch were gathered in front of the door waiting to get inside. I thought about going in to ask how her son Spencer was and if he was still suffering battle trauma, then I decided that neither of us wanted to see the other so soon. Plus, I didn''t have any regeneration potion left to offer her for her son''s missing hand that he had lost in the war. She blamed me for it, even though I wasn''t responsible. I walked on and almost no one paid me any attention. Wearing adventuring clothing that made me look like a city person playing in the woods, pretty much made me invisible on its own. My pack also made people look away in disinterest, since I looked like I was only passing through. I was, so it worked out perfectly. I went all the way up the main road until I felt a very familiar ward. I smiled when I saw a young girl, who looked a bit bigger than the last time I saw her, as she walked down the road towards me. I came to a stop and gave her the same wave she always gave me and she caught her breath. ¡°Hi, Gloria.¡± I said when she was close enough to see my face. ¡°MARSH MAN!¡± Gloria yelled and ran towards me. I bent down slightly and opened my arms for her as she jumped and hugged me. ¡°I haven''t seen you in soooo long!¡± Gloria exclaimed and squeezed. ¡°Where were you?¡± ¡°I was in the capital city going to magic school.¡± I replied. ¡°You''re going to be a mage?!?¡± Gloria gasped. ¡°Yep!¡± I said and let her go. ¡°I see you''re still wearing my ward.¡± Gloria gave me a sad smile. ¡°It''s gotten a lot weaker since last month.¡± ¡°I know. That''s why I''m here.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°You came here... all the way from the capital... just for me?¡± Gloria asked, clearly shocked. ¡°Really? You really did?¡± ¡°Of course I did! I had to stop in here on my way back to my house to renew the wards there, too.¡± ¡°Wow.¡± Gloria said and she had adoration in her eyes. ¡°Wow.¡± ¡°Where were you headed?¡± I asked as she handed me the old ward that was a wooden coin a foot across. ¡°Mom sent me to Diane''s place to pick up her order.¡± ¡°All by yourself?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°I knew you looked a lot bigger than the last time I saw you.¡± Gloria beamed a smile at me and nodded. ¡°She sends me all the time on errands now!¡± ¡°I''m so happy for you.¡± I said and took off my pack as I knelt. ¡°Hmm. Okay, this old thing will still work... but...¡± ¡°But what?¡± Gloria asked and looked down at the fortified piece of wood. ¡°It''s outdated.¡± I said and she looked at my face. ¡°What''s that mean?¡± Gloria asked, which made me smile, because I always used to say that. ¡°It means I''ve made much better ones.¡± I said and opened my pack to dig out one of the new pendants I had made. Gloria''s face lit up at the small four inch wide medallion and I charged it up to full capacity. We both heard several squeaks and chuckled at the fleeing animals that we couldn''t see. ¡°It''s got a much bigger range and it''ll last for almost a whole year.¡± I said and hung it over her neck. ¡°Thank you, Marsh Man.¡± Gloria said and stared at the bright and shiny blank wood coin. ¡°I''ll take this old one back to your place and let your mom hang it up.¡± I said and she nodded as I slipped it into my pack. ¡°You''re getting some of mom''s famous cookie bread, aren''t you?¡± Gloria asked and I nodded. ¡°I can''t resist it, just like you.¡± I said and she giggled. ¡°It''s too delicious to ignore, isn''t it?¡± She asked and I nodded again. ¡°She might have some left in the shop if you don''t mind eating the corner pieces.¡± ¡°I guess with all the people around now, she''s pretty busy.¡± ¡°She is!¡± Gloria said. ¡°Daddy''s pretty happy about it, too.¡± I chuckled. ¡°Did he give up his job to stay home and help?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Gloria said with a huge smile. ¡°He also sneaks kisses from mom when he thinks I''m not looking.¡± ¡°No!¡± I fake gasped and she giggled. ¡°It''s true! He does!¡± Gloria said happily and wiggled her finger for me to get closer, so I leaned in for her to whisper. ¡°I even saw his hand print on her butt after they hugged!¡± ¡°Oh, that''s sneaky!¡± I whispered back and she nodded several times. ¡°Daddy''s bad.¡± Gloria giggled and stepped back. ¡°I gotta go. Mom needs her stuff a sap, whatever that means.¡± ¡°It''s a-s-a-p, or as soon as possible.¡± I chuckled and stood. ¡°I heard that a lot in the army. A lot.¡± I reached out and rubbed the top of her head that was nearing the top of my chest. ¡°I''ll see you later.¡± ¡°Bye!¡± Gloria said and continued on her way. She looked very happy to not have a big piece of wood around her neck. I walked on down the road to go to Mrs. Hansen''s place, because I wasn''t lying. I really did want some of her cookie bread. That stuff was delicious. 215 Academy Antics Part Eighty One - The Marsh Is Full Part Two I went down the street with the full intention to knock on Mrs. Hansen''s front door, then I noticed the nice little shop she had next to her house. There were a couple of people waiting to get inside and I took a closer look at her house. There wasn''t a light on anywhere in the house, which meant no one was home, so I went to stand at the end of the line. The man and woman in front of me gave me a quick glance and then promptly ignored me. The door to the shop opened and a woman came out with a small bag and a happy expression. ¡°Finally.¡± The woman in front of me said and she and the man beside her entered. I grabbed the door before it shut and saw that the inside of the shop was packed. There were a couple small tables and there were four chairs around them. They were full, as well as all along the walls as people stood beside shelves that were like mini-tables that had plates of various sweets on them. I thought that was an ingenious use of space and it kept the crowd away from the middle of the room. No one took notice of me standing there in the doorway until there was a squeal of delight. I was quite surprised when two young women walked over to me, with one carrying the plates of sweets they were sharing. The other young woman was someone I never thought I would see again, Shelly Phelps. She came to a stop in front of me and stared at my face. ¡°Hi, Shelly.¡± I said. ¡°It... it really is you.¡± Shelly whispered, her eyes wide. ¡°What happened to your snake venom scars?¡± ¡°I healed them.¡± I said and both she and the young woman next to her gasped. ¡°I thought... diamond snake venom...¡± She started to say. ¡°Yes, they were magical wounds.¡± I confirmed and she took several quick breaths. ¡°M-m-marsh Man.¡± Shelly whispered. ¡°I''m... I''m 14 now.¡± She looked into my eyes. ¡°Only three more turns left.¡± I tilted my head slightly and gave her a questioning look, which made her blush. ¡°We... we promised... (mumbles)... when I was of age... do you remember?¡± Shelly asked haltingly and her friend took in a sharp breath. ¡°I thought that was forbidden by your family.¡± I commented and her blush faded slightly. ¡°I don''t care what they think.¡± Shelly said. ¡°What about your unc-¡± I stopped talking when she put a hand over my mouth. ¡°I''m not a kid anymore. I know... I''ve heard...¡± Shelly''s blush came back. ¡°I know what my uncle was like now, and I understand and... I... I forgive you.¡± I smiled, because she had sworn that she would never forgive me the last time she saw me, and she felt it with her hand. She didn''t move it, as if she wanted to keep the smile all for herself, because no one else could see it. I stopped smiling as I reached up to take her hand and she looked like she expected me to push it... and possibly her... away. Instead, I turned the hand over and lightly kissed the back of it, as if she was a high class lady that was deserving respect. There were several gasps, a lot of muttered conversations, and a very shocked look on Shelly''s face. Her friend looked ready to faint. ¡°If your decision hasn''t changed in three years, I''ll come back here for you.¡± I stated firmly. Shelly''s hand started shaking slightly and I let it go, so she could hide it from sight if she wanted to. She did and hugged it to her budding chest. ¡°I can''t wait.¡± ¡°W-we should go.¡± Her friend said and gave me an odd look. ¡°Are you really the Marsh Man?¡± ¡°For the last little while, I''ve only acted that way towards my enemies.¡± I said with a small smile and looked back at Shelly. ¡°Please, call me David.¡± ¡°D-David.¡± Shelly whispered, as if she had trouble with me having a normal name and had to come to grips with it. I stepped aside and Shelly''s friend took her hand and led her by me. Since someone else had left the shop, I assumed I could enter without protest, so I did. I had everyone''s attention now, most of them women, and I ignored it like I always did and walked over to the counter as I took off my pack. A woman I hadn''t seen before was there behind the counter. ¡°What can I do for you?¡± She asked with a fake smile that I could easily see through. I couldn''t tell if it was because of me being the Marsh Man or because of my interaction with Shelly. ¡°I want a loaf of cookie bread, with raisins if it''s available.¡± I said and put my pack down in front of the counter. ¡°I''m sorry, we don''t have either the main recipe or the variant right now.¡± The woman said and the smile didn''t falter. ¡°Can I interest you in some scones or perhaps some oatmeal or molasses cookies?¡± ¡°No. I''m only here for the cookie bread.¡± I said and she lost the fake smile. ¡°I''d like to speak to Mrs. Hansen, please.¡± ¡°I''m sorry, she''s busy.¡± The woman said. ¡°I know she''s busy.¡± I said and motioned at the people in the crowded shop around us. ¡°Go in the back and tell her that David Drake is here to see her.¡± ¡°I can''t leave the counter.¡± The woman said, a bit smug at her easy refusal of my request. ¡°I wasn''t asking.¡± I said and pointed behind her. ¡°Either you go in there and tell her, or I will.¡± ¡°How dare you order me!¡± The woman spat. ¡°Who do you think you are, a lord or something?¡± I let a smile appear on my face that bared my teeth. ¡°That''s exactly who I am.¡± Gasps and even louder mutters came from the people around us. ¡°No, you... you just said that...¡± ¡°I am Lord Drake of the entirety of Drake''s Marsh, declared by King Rivers himself.¡± I said and complete silence fell in the shop. ¡°I have the paperwork if you need confirmation.¡± ¡°He''s telling the truth.¡± A woman''s voice said from off to the side. I turned to look for the source and saw a decent looking woman that wore an army uniform and had the rank of Sergeant. I quickly gave her a proper salute, which she returned automatically, because mine had been so crisp.The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°You were in the service?¡± She asked, clearly shocked. ¡°I was stationed at this garrison and established the new front before my dishonorable discharge.¡± I said and her face went completely blank. ¡°Before you judge, it was for medical reasons and the CO at the time was angry that I was leaving and changed it to dereliction of duty and cowardice.¡± The woman took in a sharp breath, clearly understanding who I was with that claim, and her eyes went to my hands and down to what should have been my missing foot. ¡°I fixed them.¡± I said and her eyes darted back to my face. ¡°You... how...¡± ¡°It''s a secret.¡± I said and put my finger to my lips. ¡°Shh.¡± That made her smile for a second and then she frowned. ¡°You have to tell...¡± ¡°The king himself knows.¡± I said and she clamped her mouth shut on whatever she was going to say. ¡°That''s right, there''s no higher authority for me to report it to.¡± I continued and she nodded. I turned back to the woman behind the counter. ¡°You didn''t go in the back yet.¡± The woman''s mouth seemed to tighten and her lips almost disappeared. ¡°Go. Now.¡± I commanded and she gave me a defiant look. ¡°I hope she doesn''t dock your pay when I tell her how long you''ve made me wait.¡± She glared at me for another couple of seconds, then she turned around and went into the back. ¡°Sir, you know most people don''t like being ordered like that.¡± The female sergeant said. ¡°I was only a private, despite being eligible for promotion when I left the service.¡± I said and glanced at her to see her surprise. ¡°I learned to properly salute from some very influential people.¡± She smiled and nodded. ¡°She wasn''t going to go, no matter how politely I asked or begged. I thought about offering money, then thought she would just take it and say she couldn''t do it.¡± I said as an explanation. ¡°How could you tell that?¡± The man next to her asked. He was dressed as a civilian. ¡°People are sometimes very easy to read.¡± I said and glanced at him. ¡°I won''t reveal who you are to prove it.¡± Both the man and the woman looked surprised. There was an inarticulate shout, several pans hitting the floor, a yelled name that I assumed was the woman behind the counter''s name, and then two sets of quickly walking feet. Mrs. Hansen came out of the back, half covered in flour, and she had a beaming smile that was almost exactly like her daughter''s. ¡°David! It''s so nice of you to stop by after so long!¡± She said and walked around the counter to give me a hug, then stopped when she realized she would cover me in flour. ¡°It won''t stick.¡± I said and she let out a little laugh as she took that last step and wrapped her arms around me. Mr. Hansen came around the counter as well to pat my shoulder. A puff of flour floated to the floor and he laughed. ¡°Damn, this stuff gets everywhere.¡± ¡°Gloria''s been getting depressed lately.¡± Mrs. Hansen said and let me go. I looked down to see the flour on my coat, so I pat it in several places and the flour slid right off. ¡°She''s really happy right now, because of why I came here.¡± I said and she looked confused. ¡°I replaced the ward I gave her with a new one.¡± ¡°Yes, that''ll do it.¡± Mrs. Hansen said as she gave me huge smile. ¡°Is that why you came here? To tell me that?¡± ¡°No, I came for some cookie bread.¡± I said and she looked a bit sad. ¡°We''re working on another batch right now. Can you stay for a while and...¡± ¡°No, I need to send a message to the capital and then go into my marsh.¡± I said and she sighed. I leaned in close and whispered. ¡°Gloria told me the secret was to ask for the corner pieces that no one wants.¡± Mrs. Hansen''s sad expression instantly became happy and she whispered to her husband. ¡°Honey, please get the scraps from the last few batches for our good friend David.¡± ¡°Yes, dear.¡± Mr. Hansen said and left at a fast walk. He gave the woman behind the counter a stern look. She winced a little as he passed by her and went into the back. ¡°We won''t dock her pay for delaying us in coming out to see you.¡± Mrs. Hansen said to me. ¡°Instead, we firmly expressed our displeasure at her not conveying the message right away. What if it had been something about Gloria being hurt or missing? She would have stopped us from hearing about it until we weren''t busy, and that''s not something we will stand for.¡± ¡°That''s why I ordered her to go. I knew she wouldn''t listen, otherwise.¡± I said. Mrs. Hansen nodded. ¡°She''s a good worker, too. If she does this again, we won''t just dock her pay, we''ll fire her.¡± She looked around the crowded shop. ¡°There''s lots of people that would want to work for us now.¡± I saw several interested looks and knew she was right. Mr. Hansen came out of the back with a large canvas bag that was stuffed full. ¡°Is it true that you''re really a lord?¡± He asked as he handed the bag to me. ¡°The king granted me the entire marsh and bestowed the full Lord title onto me.¡± I said and tied the canvas bag to the top of my pack to secure it like a bedroll. I reached into my pocket to get some money. ¡°How much for the...¡± ¡°We can''t sell them, so there''s no charge.¡± Mrs. Hansen said as she waved away the money in my hand. ¡°You can consider it a gift for making Gloria happy.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and put the money away. ¡°I have the old ward in my pack. Do you want it put up in here?¡± ¡°Is the house close enough to get coverage, too?¡± Mrs. Hansen asked. ¡°Just about.¡± I said as I picked up my pack and she nodded. ¡°In the kitchen, please.¡± Mrs. Hansen said and then everyone watched with envy as I was led into the back of the shop by the shop owners. I put my pack down and took out the ward and charged it up, then I hung it above the door to the front of the shop. I used a bit of number ten potion to stick it to the wall and stop anyone from stealing it, then Mrs. Hansen hugged me again. ¡°Thank you very much, David.¡± Mrs. Hansen said and let me go. ¡°Any time you''re passing by, feel free to come in for a visit.¡± ¡°It''s all because of you that we''re this prosperous.¡± Mr. Hansen said. ¡°Those first few outrageous first ingredient deliveries let us build up a huge clientele and then more people heard about it as visitors passed through. It''s been a booming business for months!¡± ¡°I''m glad.¡± I said. ¡°I need to go.¡± ¡°You be careful out there.¡± Mrs. Hansen said as her voice became serious. ¡°I know people might not recognize you right away; but, some of us do. If word gets around that you''re back...¡± ¡°It''s only for three days and I have to meet my fiance in the capital.¡± I said and she gasped. ¡°You''re getting MARRIED?!?¡± Mrs. Hansen asked, shocked. ¡°When I graduate from the mage academy in three years.¡± I said and the both of them looked shocked. ¡°MOOOOOOM!¡± Gloria yelled as she opened the back door. ¡°I have the stuff you ordered!¡± ¡°Thank you, Gloria.¡± Mrs. Hansen said without correcting the girl''s loud yell indoors. I knew she had been doing it since she was younger and gave her a wave. She beamed a smile at me and ran over to give me a tight hug. ¡°I haven''t seen you in forever!¡± Gloria said and giggled, which made her parents laugh, because they knew she saw me on the road outside not long ago. ¡°We need to get that sorted.¡± Mr. Hansen said. ¡°David, we''ll see you the next time you come by.¡± I nodded and both he and his wife walked over to the door. Gloria giggled and pointed at her mother''s butt. I looked and saw two perfect hand prints made of flour on the dark fabric of her skirt. ¡°That''s sneaky!¡± I whispered. ¡°Daddy''s still bad!¡± Gloria giggled and hugged me tighter. ¡°I need to go.¡± I said and she let me go. ¡°I''ll stop in again in three days.¡± ¡°Kay.¡± Gloria said. ¡°Bye!¡± ¡°Goodbye.¡± I said and put my pack on, then I decided it was safer to leave out the back. I bid her parents goodbye as I passed them, then I was walking down the road towards the mages guild building. I was going to have to face whatever was inside to send a message to Helena, because I knew for sure that I wasn''t getting into the garrison to the mage contingent there. After I sent her a message, I only had a quick ride to go before I was back at my old house. I chuckled at that thought and my pace picked up. I had some important things to do while I was here and I only had three days to do it. The best part about it, was that if I was careful about how I did it, this was going to be so much fun. 216 Academy Antics Part Eighty Two - The Marsh Is Full Part Three The mages guild building was just a small building with only two floors, and was barely bigger than the general store inside. There were three mages present when I entered and they ignored me completely until I stepped close to the counter. One of them came over and looked at my outfit. ¡°What can the mages guild do for you?¡± He managed to sound both disinterested in my answer and unwilling to help me, which I thought was telling. ¡°How much is it for a commoner to send a message to the capital?¡± I asked. The mage reflexively looked down at my outfit again before he answered. ¡°It''s much more than you can afford.¡± ¡°I see.¡± I said. ¡°How much is it for a magic student to send a message?¡± The mage almost smiled and stopped before it fully formed. ¡°If the person could somehow prove that they were a student at an academy, they will receive a discount of 25%.¡± I managed to not sigh at his subtle refusal to quote what that price was. ¡°How much for a business owner? The mayor? A baron of a territory? A fiance of a noble lady?¡± The mage let out a sigh at my questions. ¡°I shouldn''t need to repeat myself.¡± He said. ¡°You can''t afford it, so I don''t need to tell you all those different prices.¡± ¡°Are the costs more or less than the commoner one?¡± I asked, just for clarification. ¡°The more you ask, the less I am going to answer.¡± The mage said and stepped away from the counter. ¡°You''re just wasting my time.¡± He turned and went back over to the other two to sit down. I looked at one of the men''s faces and then at the other. Neither of them made eye contact with me, which meant they weren''t going to offer me any help. ¡°Are there any other mages here that can do it?¡± I asked. ¡°If you don''t leave right now, I''ll call the guard and have you thrown out.¡± The one that had refused to serve me huffed. ¡°What guard? There''s only the three of you in this building.¡± I said and he glanced at me and looked away again. He took something out of his pocket and injected some of his magic into it. I immediately used Detect Enchantment and concentrated on the thing. The mage held it for about twenty seconds and then put it away. _______________ You have learned the incomplete enchantment ''Warning Beacon''. When engraved on two identical items (coins, blocks, pendants, etc.) and infused at the same time, it will create a connection between the two items. When the holder infuses their magic into one, the other can emit either sound or light (depending on the rune used). Light and Sound runes not learned (insufficient rune knowledge). _______________ Oh, that could be useful. I thought. There''s no range listed, either. I wonder if it''s unlimited? I felt someone enter my extreme vigilance range and nodded. The guard they called must be coming from the garrison, so I turned around and leaned against the counter to wait. A very tall man entered the mage building and he immediately saw me. ¡°I assume this is the problem?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I said before the mages could speak. ¡°These poor excuses of representatives for the Mages Guild refused to render any services to me, based solely on my appearance.¡± The guard leaned to the side a bit to look at the mages. ¡°Is this true?¡± ¡°You can clearly see that he can''t afford even the cheapest price.¡± The one that talked to me before said. The guard looked at me and he saw the adventuring clothing, then I turned to show him the botany course patch on the shoulder of my coat. ¡°Since you''re dressed like that, I have to assume that you''re going into the marsh.¡± ¡°I came all the way here from the capital to do that.¡± I said. ¡°I''ll be gathering ingredients and...¡± ¡°You can''t do that.¡± One of the mages said. ¡°Excuse me?¡± I asked and turned to face him with squinted eyes. ¡°The Mages Guild has claimed the resources of the nearby areas in and around the entire route from here to the Eastern Empire, which covers most of the explored areas of the marsh.¡± The mage on the left said. ¡°If you want anything of ours, you''ll have to petition the senior mage at the garrison.¡± ¡°Those resources are NOT yours to claim.¡± I said and drew my knife as I charged it. ¡°That''s MY marsh! I OWN it and everything in it! You are STEALING MY THINGS!¡± All three mages stood and looked in fear at my glowing knife, almost as if they could see the one foot magical extension that my eight inch knife now had. ¡°Sir, please calm down.¡± The guard said from behind me in a calm voice. ¡°I''m sure we can talk...¡± ¡°You will bring me to the senior mage immediately!¡± I spat as I swung my knife down on the counter. It split exactly in half instantly and I kicked one half to send it tumbling across the room. The three mages jumped out of the way just in time as it slammed into the table they were at. The table was crushed, as were the two chairs behind it, then the counter embedded itself into the now partially smashed wooden wall. ¡°I''m tempted to bring the three of you along, just so the senior mage has someone to vent at when I kick you all out of MY marsh!¡± I said, angrily. The three mages looked completely terrified. I stopped infusing my knife and slipped it into the sheath under my armpit as I turned back to the startled guard. ¡°Lead the way.¡± ¡°Yes, sir.¡± The guard said and opened the door to leave. ¡°If any of you send messages to anyone, I''ll find you and kill you.¡± I said and stopped in the doorway, then I turned back as I waved my hand at the walls. I lit the whole room on fire and the mages yelled and hollered as they ran to the center of the room to get away from the all encompassing flames. ¡°You''ve killed us all!¡± One of them exclaimed. I glanced at the guard that was staring at the fire with a blank expression. ¡°How easily they panic.¡± I said and pointed to the fire suppression enchantments around the room. The guard looked and saw them just as they activated and sprayed water all over everything. It soaked everything in the room, including the three mages. The three men looked like drowned rats and we left them there like that. ¡°Was that necessary?¡± The guard asked. ¡°No; but, it felt good.¡± I said and he gave me a questioning look. ¡°Sometimes they need reminding that they aren''t the top of the social ladder, even if they think they are.¡±This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. The guard looked forward and didn''t respond. ¡°I honestly don''t care if they look down on me, since that''s their own shortcoming. However, I won''t stand for people stealing from me. If need be, I''ll go to every mage that''s done so and I''ll take one of their hands as compensation.¡± ¡°That I know is unnecessary.¡± The guard said. I managed to not laugh. Barely. He led me all the way up the road to the garrison that contained about the original capacity of a thousand soldiers. I didn''t comment about it and I was led to the mage contingent of the base. According to the guard, there were twenty mages stationed there, all men. The guard brought me to a nice building and knocked on the door. ¡°I''ve brought the disturbance.¡± There was a huff inside and the door opened to reveal the shortest full grown woman that I had ever seen. She was completely proportioned as if she was six feet tall, except that she was only four feet tall. ¡°I don''t see why those fools reported...¡± Her voice trailed off as she glanced at my coat and the edge of the bandoleer, then she mumbled something and her eyes widened. ¡°What happened?¡± The guard explained everything for the next few minutes. ¡°Is that so?¡± She asked and looked at me. ¡°Please explain your actions against members of the Mages Guild.¡± ¡°I was acting against admitted thieves.¡± I said and she took in a sharp breath. ¡°So, you know of me.¡± ¡°I was... briefed about you, yes.¡± She said and looked slightly uncomfortable. ¡°You meant warned.¡± I corrected and she didn''t deny it. ¡°They were right to warn you.¡± She took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°Please, come inside and we can discuss things.¡± ¡°There''s nothing to discuss. You will cease and desist all ingredient gathering operations within my personal property, stop your incursions onto my lands, then you will compensate me for everything that''s been taken and destroyed.¡± ¡°We can return...¡± ¡°No.¡± I cut her off. ¡°I know what you do to gather and collect things within the marsh without consequences. You strip whole areas, not caring if it grows back, because it''s just a marsh.¡± She let out a sigh. ¡°We didn''t know you owned it.¡± ¡°I am the sole resident and I even have a house built here. You were warned about me growing up here. I even warned the guild and the garrison a long time ago to stop their ingredient gathering activities around the village and in the marsh.¡± I said. ¡°What part of that are you going to claim you didn''t know?¡± She didn''t say anything in response, which meant she knew it all. ¡°I need to send a message... no, two messages to the capital. One personal and the other... I suppose that''s going to be personal as well.¡± I said. ¡°I went to the mage guild building in the village for the personal one and their treatment of me was atrocious.¡± The short woman let out another sigh. ¡°Are you sure you want to request this?¡± ¡°It''s not a request. If you don''t comply to my order to evacuate my lands, I will be forced to take matters into my own hands.¡± Her face went angry. ¡°Don''t you dare start going around to start your hobby on my mages! They''ll fight back and...¡± ¡°They aren''t mages right now. They are thieves and they are also poor combatants, even the strong ones. The combat mages might last a minute or two, until I close the distance.¡± ¡°You have no right to...¡± ¡°I am Lord Drake of Drake''s Marsh, granted the marsh in its entirety and given the full Lord title by the king.¡± I said and pulled out the protected document to show her, even though she should know it already. ¡°I am ordering you to get your people off of my lands right now, or I will remove them by any means necessary.¡± The woman clamped her mouth shut on whatever she was going to say. She glared at me for nearly a full minute before she stepped back and waved me inside. ¡°The communication mages are in the side office. I''ll send the order through them and have them contact everyone in the marsh.¡± ¡°No, contact everyone here, in the marsh, and in the Eastern Empire. I want all harvesting to stop.¡± I corrected her. ¡°You can''t stop us along the trade route.¡± She said, surety in her voice. ¡°You''ve already stripped them.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°I''m not stupid. As soon as you had available troops and mages to spread out through the relay stations, you''ve been going deeper and deeper into the marsh all along the route.¡± She sighed and reluctantly nodded. ¡°I hope your guild has a lot of available money on hand.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°Unlike you, I know how much those ingredients are worth, even the ones your people trampled and ignored while getting the ones you recognized.¡± The guard came with us and he looked like he was out of his depth as he followed us to the communications office. ¡°Ma''am, we''ve received an urgent message from the outpost in town. They''ve been attacked and the place was destroyed by fire.¡± ¡°So, they were thieves and liars.¡± I commented and she gave me a brief glare. ¡°I promised to go back there and kill them if they sent a message to anyone, then I started a fire on the walls under the fire suppression wards to get their attention. The fire was extinguished right away with water as it soaked them and everything else in the room.¡± She lost the glare. ¡°I can''t let you kill them for that.¡± ¡°I didn''t ask for your permission.¡± I said and her glare came back. ¡°I always keep my word.¡± She walked over to the mage that spoke and started to whisper to him. ¡°Send word back and tell them to take what they can and run. We''ll recover them when he leaves and...¡± I walked over to her as I pulled out my knife and charged it. I picked her up by the neck of her robes and she let out a startled yell. I slammed her against the wall to knock the air out of her lungs and held her there. None of the mages or the guard moved, I assumed because they were too shocked. ¡°How many times do I have to tell everyone that I hate people stealing from me?¡± I asked with a calm voice and eased the magically extended knife towards her heart. The robes parted for the nearly invisible blade extension and she took in a huge breath. ¡°S-s-s-stop!¡± She gasped. ¡°Please!¡± ¡°Those men''s lives are mine. They forfeited them and I will claim them. If you want to trade places with them, I can''t accept that. However, if you keep them from me, I''ll kill you first for stealing them from me and then I''ll hunt them down and kill them.¡± I said and nodded at the man she had whispered to. ¡°Cancel your order telling them to run.¡± ¡°You... wouldn''t dare... kill me.¡± The woman said. ¡°I am a prominent...¡± ¡°I''m a full Lord and I''m marrying into Grand Mage Henrietta''s family to give him an heir. Do you really think he''s going to say one single thing to me if I dispatch thieves that are stationed way out here in Ester''s Village?¡± She looked defiant for a few moments, then she sighed. ¡°Let me go. I''ll cooperate with you.¡± ¡°You can''t! He''s a criminal and...¡± One of the mages started to say. ¡°I was cleared of all charges by a military court.¡± I said and the mage shut up. I looked at the short woman I held against the wall. She had struggled at first, until she realized I wasn''t choking her. ¡°You will be charged with these crimes.¡± ¡°That''s fine. If you can get any court in the kingdom to agree to have me charged after they hear how much money and resources you''ve stolen from me, I''ll face any punishment they see fit to enact.¡± The woman looked surprised for a second, then she sighed with a nod. I eased her down to the floor and let her go. She gave me a pointed stare as she straightened her robes, only to pull open the spot my knife had sliced in her clothing above her heart. Her face flushed red and she covered the spot with a hand. ¡°Cancel my orders and send this instead.¡± She said and recited exactly what I had asked her to do. The four mages stared at her with dumbfounded expressions, probably because they couldn''t believe what they were hearing. ¡°Just do it!¡± She exclaimed and then they did. Within minutes, every relay station was sent notes with the details of their ''retreat'' from the lands owned by Lord Drake, while also not destroying anything else. If they did, they would suffer the loss of at least one hand for stealing and possibly death for disobeying the order. Nearly all of them responded with disbelief and that it was some kind of joke. Some even refused to relay the order, let alone obey it. She was livid with them and had the sender tell them again that they would be severely punished if they didn''t comply. The Lord of the land was coming to visit them personally if they didn''t leave right away. ¡°Tell them that if they see me, all I''ll bring them is death.¡± I said and everyone in the room looked at me. ¡°In ten minutes, I''ll declare the Mages Guild an enemy of Lord Drake, a personal family friend to the royal family. May the heavens above have mercy on you all if you think I won''t kill you all for what you''ve done.¡± Complete silence greeted my words, then the woman in charge quickly motivated the senders to hurry up and send the messages. The more they were warned, the higher the chance that she and the others in the room were going to live during the next ten minutes. 217 Academy Antics Part Eighty Three - The Marsh Is Full Part Four At the nine minute mark, the senior mage had sweat running down her forehead. ¡°Hurry!¡± She gasped and trembled as she kept ordering her people to keep sending messages and begging for confirmation that the retreat was actually happening. If they didn''t start pulling their people out of the marsh, she was going to be dead in the next minute. The sound of several footfalls came from outside the room and the door opened to reveal a group of soldiers led by a mage. ¡°What''s going on here?¡± The man said to the senior mage, anger in his voice. ¡°Why would you give the ridiculous order to remove my men from their assigned tasks?¡± ¡°I gave that order.¡± I said and walked over to him. ¡°You''re stealing my ingredients.¡± ¡°We are doing no such thing.¡± The man said. ¡°The marsh is unclaimed and...¡± ¡°King Rivers granted me the marsh in its entirety and made me a full Lord.¡± I interrupted him. ¡°I want you and all your thieves off of my land immediately, or you will all be dealt with as thieves.¡± ¡°Ha. I sincerely doubt that.¡± The man said and I pulled out the document. He tried to reach for it and I tucked it away again. ¡°Let me examine that!¡± ¡°I''m not stupid. I won''t let you try to destroy it.¡± I said and he looked embarrassed. ¡°Thirty seconds.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± The senior mage in charge shuddered as she looked at the four communication mages. ¡°Please... please tell us that you''re pulling the mages out.¡± After ten seconds, one of them spoke. ¡°The Eastern Empire deployment confirms orders.¡± ¡°Relay stations 5, 6, 8, and 10 confirm orders.¡± Another said. ¡°I''ve got 3, 7 and 9.¡± Another said. The last shook his head and looked at the man with the soldiers. ¡°I''ll give the order, dammit.¡± He said. ¡°It''s much too late for that.¡± I said and my knife slashed across his throat. He let out a gurgle sound and then his head flopped off to land on the floor as his body collapsed. The mages in the room were shocked speechless, as were the soldiers. ¡°Are you deployed under his orders or the garrison?¡± I asked the soldiers. ¡°H-his.¡± One of them admitted and I sliced him from neck to groin as I stepped by him, then quickly dispatched the other five soldiers that were the mage''s personal guards. They tried to fight against me; but, I was trained to fight with all their fighting styles while wearing heavy metal plates. Without them encumbering me, I moved like lightning and slaughtered them. I searched them all and took their money and valuables, then went back inside the room and searched the mage. I took his charging crystal and the scrolls he had in his pockets. ¡°Wh-what are you doing?¡± The senior mage asked, her face a mask of complete shock. ¡°Looting the bodies of thieves to try and recover some of my lost revenue.¡± I said and stood up. ¡°You can clean these bodies up while I go and clear out stations one and two.¡± ¡°Wh-what? What?¡± She asked. ¡°There were only two stations that didn''t confirm the order.¡± I said and walked over to one of the senders. ¡°I think I''ll send my personal messages now.¡± The man stared at me blankly and didn''t speak. ¡°It''s all right. Your boss was smart and we''re not enemies.¡± I said as I put a hand on his shoulder. ¡°Make contact with the capital and send this message to Mage Helena Henrietta at the Henrietta Longshore Estate.¡± The man shook slightly and then took a deep breath. ¡°I''m ready to send the message.¡± I dictated the message with as much formality as possible while I explained to my fiance what happened between Mage Victoria Julia King and myself. I accepted full responsibility for the incident and would accept whatever punishment she deemed fit. ¡°Good god.¡± The senior mage whispered. ¡°She took advantage of your trust.¡± ¡°And my body.¡± I said. ¡°Luckily, she only did that and hadn''t mounted me, which would have annulled my contract and caused me severe penalties.¡± She looked shocked that anyone would even think that, let alone do it. ¡°Now for my second message.¡± I said and the sender nodded. ¡°Send it to the castle, addressed to Richard, I mean His Majesty King Rivers, and it isn''t to be delivered to anyone else.¡± They all looked surprised at my words. ¡°I told you I was a close personal friend of the royal family.¡± I reminded them. ¡°This is what I want it to say.¡± The sender and everyone else listened as I told him exactly what had happened and what was happening, and what I was going to do. The people in the room were completely silent when I was done and the sender was shivering uncontrollably. ¡°It... it''s sent.¡± He said and closed his eyes. ¡°By the Son''s Light, it''s sent.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said. ¡°I don''t expect a reply to either of those messages for a few hours. I''ll be done dealing with this long before then.¡± I walked over to the senior mage. ¡°I need something that will let me come back in here to get the messages.¡± She took out a badge that looked like a city identification pass. I put it on the strap of my pack, which I had worn during all of that, and no one said anything as I left. I calmly walked to the garrison''s front gate, which they opened for me, and I ran down the road. I hadn''t seen the deployment plans in the communication room, so I had to rely on my own memories of where the relay stations were. If my guess was correct, the soldiers sent as guards would be claiming independence of the mages by the time I showed up, reverting them to the garrison''s order structure. Word play wouldn''t save them this time. I ran down to the boat builder''s building and no one was there. My boat was untouched, to their good fortune, and I quickly undocked it and put it into the water. I was away without bothering to use the pole, since speed was the priority right now. I was out of the harbour and went along the army''s route to the Eastern Empire... and my eyes widened at the devastation they had caused to my marsh.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. They had dredged out the waterways and widened them while making them much deeper for some of the real ships to pass through, which drained the surrounding marsh lands and dried them out. I could see various trees, moss, underbrush, and other growths all along the edges of the water look dry and crumpled, because they had been pushed back and up away from the water that they needed to live. My anger grew as I progressed to the first station and the movement enchantment in the boat stuttered. I took several calming breaths and did my best to run the enchantment without overloading it and ignored as much of the surroundings as I could. It was difficult, considering it was all along the entire route. I didn''t bother trying to dock the boat when I reached the first relay station and ran it right up onto the dry land without stopping. I deactivated the enchantments as I hopped out of the boat when it stopped and several soldiers there looked shocked. ¡°Where are the mages?¡± One of them pointed to a much nicer looking building next to the relay station and I raised my hand and lit it on fire all over. There were no fire suppression enchantments on the outside, so the whole thing lit up and stayed on fire without any interference. After a couple of minutes, the door burst open and four mages came out. They were coughing and trying to catch their breath, so I easily killed three of them before they even knew what was happening. The last one I grabbed by the back of the neck. ¡°Where are the others?¡± I asked. ¡°In... in the... woods.¡± ¡°Guards?¡± I asked. ¡°With... them.¡± He said. ¡°Thanks.¡± I said and shoved my knife in his back to sever his spinal chord. ¡°I''ll let you live for a few minutes.¡± The man yelled in pain and I let him go to flop to the ground. ¡°Hey! What are you doing?¡± One of the soldiers asked. ¡°I''m dealing with thieves destroying and robbing my lands.¡± I said and took several sniffs. I now understood why the local animals had such an easy time finding me when I left and bathed away the marsh smell. People stink in comparison to the homey smell in the marsh. I took off running into the trees and even with my pack and boots on, I handled myself fairly well. I thought about leaving them in the boat; but, that just invited people to try to open it to see what was inside. I easily fell into my old rhythms and flowed through the trees, the tangle vines, and the underbrush as if it wasn''t there. I leapt what little water hazards were there and the impact of them draining water into their bigger canal could be felt for quite a long ways into the marsh. I found their trail and followed it at my best speed, which was significant. I quickly came up to them to find a dozen soldiers standing guard over four mages that were taking turns gathering ingredients and using a flame spell to keep several small spiders at bay. ¡°Idiots!¡± I said as I approached, which got everyone''s attention. I didn''t slow down, however. I had two guards killed and three of them crippled in seconds before I diverted to slice off the arms of the mages picking my ingredients. I killed the two guards off to the side and then dodged the four crossbow bolts shot at me. ¡°You need to kill the smaller spiders before they call for help!¡± I said and the two mages casting fire at the squealing spiders gave me startled looks. ¡°We have to run!¡± One of them said and tried to run. ¡°It''s much too late for that.¡± I said and ran after him to cut his Achilles tendon on his ankle. ¡°I can hear the brood coming.¡± There were only five guards left, so I picked up the mage and threw him at them. It was enough of a distraction and gave me the time I needed to disable them and their weapons. ¡°Help! Save us!¡± The armless mages said as one. ¡°I came here to kill you, only to find out that you''ve already killed yourselves.¡± I said and looked up. ¡°I really wish I could tell them that I left you here for them.¡± ¡°No! You have to... help...¡± One of the soldiers tried to plead, so I walked over and picked him up, stabbed him needlessly several times and cut his throat, then threw him as hard as I could up into the trees and the approaching brood of spiders. ¡°I hope they got the hint.¡± I said and took off running. I didn''t want to be anywhere near the spiders being encumbered like I was and I did my best to leave a false trail several times, backtracked a little, and went back to the relay station. The soldiers stood there and watched the burning mages building without expressions. ¡°What did you do?¡± A healer asked as she knelt and examined the mage that was still alive. ¡°I severed his spine with a magic knife.¡± I said and picked the man up. ¡°ARGH!¡± He yelled and I quickly checked him for valuables. ¡°Stop! That man''s severely injured!¡± The healer said, indignantly. He didn''t have any valuables, so I tossed him inside the burning building. ¡°NO!¡± The healer gasped. ¡°I said I''d let him live a while longer. It''s been a little while.¡± I said and walked over to the three bodies and searched them, found a couple gold coins and another ring with the same enchantment as the charred one I had, and tossed the bodies into the burning building. Just for insurance, I lit the inside on fire as well and locked the door. ¡°You''re a monster!¡± The healer exclaimed. ¡°No, I''m the Marsh Man and you people are damaging my lands and robbing me of its resources. I''m just dealing with thieves that refused to take their superior''s orders to cease and desist their activities.¡± I said as I walked by her and she looked surprised. ¡°Excuse me, I have another station to visit.¡± ¡°Wait! I''ll go with you!¡± She said and followed me. ¡°Why? I''m killing them all. They won''t need healing.¡± I said and she looked both confused and determined. ¡°I want to try and convince you to be lenient.¡± She replied. ¡°I am being lenient. I''m not killing everyone, just the ones that refused to listen.¡± ¡°What... what about... me?¡± She asked. ¡°Would you have...¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I said and she gasped. ¡°You''ve had healing potions and things made right here, haven''t you?¡± She opened her mouth to probably say she didn''t make them and that I couldn''t prove that the mages made them right there, then she sighed. I activated the enchantments in the boat and easily pushed it back into the water. ¡°I still want to come.¡± She said. ¡°In case anyone innocent is hurt.¡± I looked at her sincere face and held a hand out to her. She looked surprised again and took the offered hand as I helped her into the boat. ¡°You''ll need to hold on.¡± I sat down with her and she took that to mean holding onto me, and she tensed up as the boat took off at full speed. She closed her eyes and her breath sped up as she tried to calm down. ¡°It''s just speed. It''s just speed.¡± The healer mumbled. ¡°I wouldn''t normally go this fast with others in the boat.¡± I said as an explanation. ¡°I''m trying to get to the relay stations before they can mobilize against me or convince the military soldiers to defy the orders as well.¡± ¡°They... why would they...¡± ¡°They might believe it''ll stop me from killing them.¡± I said and I saw the realization on her face. ¡°It won''t.¡± She said, sadly. ¡°No. All it''ll do is kill more of them, because I always keep my word.¡± She fell silent and her arms around mine tightened. ¡°How can you kill so callously?¡± ¡°It might seem that way.¡± I said and she opened her eyes to look at my face. ¡°It''s a stupid waste of life to die for a few plants. I learned that recently from...¡± I stopped talking, because it brought Victoria up in my mind. After everything we had been through, she did something to me that she thought was bad for other people to do to her. If it had been the other way around and it was me that did something like that to her, I was sure that she would have been as angry at me as I was at her. ¡°Then why?¡± The healer asked. ¡°I told you. My word. It''s all I have to give. If I don''t keep it, what''s left?¡± The healer took a deep breath and let it out without responding and stayed quiet for the entire ride to the second station. 218 Academy Antics Part Eighty Four - The Marsh Is Full Part Five It only took me an hour to reach the next station and I felt several pairs of eyes on me. They knew I was coming and I was sure that they were going to be prepared for me. ¡°Have you ever charged an enchantment before?¡± I asked and the healer shook her head. I took off my pack and dug out the wooden pendant that Victoria had worn previously. ¡°It''s not necessary to know exactly what it does for it to work. It has two levels, one for repulsing men when you charge it a little and the next for concealing yourself from sight when its charged a lot.¡± ¡°Excuse me?¡± The healer asked and looked at the simple wooden coin in my hand. ¡°It does what?¡± ¡°The second station has been warned that I was coming and they are waiting for me. You are in danger and I can''t allow that.¡± The healer gave me an odd look as she took it. ¡°Will this repulse you as well?¡± ¡°Yes, since I''m a man.¡± I said and brought the boat to a stop in the middle of the canal. ¡°Please wait until I dive into the water before you use a bit of healing magic on the pendant.¡± She watched me with wide eyes as I stripped off my adventuring outfit and tucked it into my pack. I put it at the back of the boat and sealed it with number ten potion while also securing the pack to the boat. I still wore my underwear, bandoleer, and knife sheath. ¡°What are you going to do?¡± She asked me, concern in her voice. ¡°I''m going to hope that they didn''t convince the station commander to help.¡± I said and used the pole to probe the water within twenty feet. Nothing moved, so it was relatively safe. I would still need to be careful once I was in the water. ¡°You can''t just leave me here.¡± She said, worried. ¡°How will I get back?¡± ¡°I''ll take you when I''m done, of course.¡± I said and dove into the water. I went deep to see how far down the canal was and it was quite deep. Luckily, it was freshly churned and I grabbed handfuls of the dirt and grime to rub on my body and face. It felt like I was finally home now and I swam back to the surface. ¡°AHH!¡± The healer gasped and jumped back from the edge of the boat. ¡°It''s just me. I''m covered in dirt and mud.¡± I said and she let out a sigh as she covered her heart with a hand. ¡°Go ahead and heal the pendant.¡± ¡°Are you sure it''ll work?¡± She asked. ¡°Just focus on a minor injury.¡± I said and she put her hand on it to make it glow. I felt the desire to get away from her and nodded. I swam over to the side of the canal and climbed out as I made sure that I was still covered and that the water hadn''t washed anything off. I waved to her and she waved back, then I slipped into the underbrush and disappeared from her sight. I activated my own pendant and made my way to the first set of eyes that had lost sight of me. I found the scout hunkered down beside a felled tree beside the canal a hundred feet away from where my boat was. I pulled my knife and didn''t charge it as I jumped on him and slit his throat while I covered his mouth to stop his screams. I stayed there for a couple of minutes before I felt his blood stop pumping and searched him. I gained a compass, some silver coins, a little spyglass that extended to show farther distances, and one of the beacon things that the mage in the sending station had. I crushed it to stop it from working or making a noise and shoved the scout''s body under some debris. I moved on and followed his trail back to another scout. He was kind of in the open, so I needed to be careful. I went around him to make sure that no one was within either sight or hearing, then I crept up on him from behind. He looked around as he felt the pendant''s power that made him want to move away. Just like the last scout, he successfully ignored that feeling, so it was easy to pounce on him and dispatch him. I brought him over to the other scout''s body and left it there, partially concealed, and continued on. It didn''t take long for me to find the ambush site that wasn''t very far from the second relay station. They had two dozen crossbowmen prepped and ready to fire in two rows of twelve, with backup weapons ready with another shot at their feet. A dozen mages waited behind them to take their own shots when appropriate or given an opportunity. It was a standard skirmishing line and I almost laughed at their perfect execution of the flawed strategy. Something like that only worked well when confronting another group of enemies of at least five or more, which was not the case this time. Against a lone target, it would have been more effective if they had set up crossing fields of fire to cut off any dodging or escape, then fired the crossbows in a staggered pattern to keep me pinned and not moving while the mages converged and finished me off. At least, that''s what my old instructor would have ordered. She was a smart one and I had learned a lot of things from her, two of the main ones were to keep discipline and to never exceed the scope of your orders. My current orders were to remove the thieves from my lands, so that''s what I was going to do. I used Sense Magic and nearly everyone lit up slightly, which meant they all had some kind of defensive magic around them. My direct attack might not work, so I would have to try diversion and separation instead. I had to concentrate and move a little closer for it to work, so I was very careful and slunk through the underbrush until I had them all within the short range of my vigilance technique. It took me a minute before I could focus on all of the crossbows and started using the heating spell on them. They weren''t designed for it, so it took a few more minutes before they became warmer than they should have been normally. ¡°Hey, the wood on my weapon is warm.¡± One of the men commented. ¡°Mine seems warmer, too.¡± Another said and they all started to check their crossbows. I switched spells and cast Lather on their hands and nearly all of them let out startled yells as they fumbled their weapons from the magic soap. Most dropped them and two of them went off. They missed the people around them, though.Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. ¡°What the hell are you doing?¡± One of the mages looked at the chaos of the soldiers trying, and failing, to pick their weapons back up. ¡°Get those weapons under control!¡± I turned and cast the fire starting spell on several of the dry trees and grasses near the canal and that got everyone''s attention. ¡°He''s here!¡± One of the other mages said and they started to chant. I held in my laugh as I used the smoke manipulation spell that Tabitha showed me for moving the chimney smoke out of the room and up the chimney to create a draft for the fire to burn higher. I quickly moved the smoke over to the soldiers and mages, which made them cough and choke. Their spoken spells were useless now and I cast the lather spells on their open mouths. The results were hilarious and quite effective. Most of them gagged, some threw up as they swallowed involuntarily, and nearly all of them completely forgot what they were there for as they tried to stop whatever was going on instead. It was easy pickings for me as I held my breath and took out all of the mages first. They were a priority, since they were the easiest to deal with. Once they were all dead and bleeding on the ground, I moved on to the soldiers. They were a bit more difficult because of their better training in close combat and the armor they wore. Even visually and physically impaired like they were, their close combat reflexes were far superior to that of mages. Also, my pendant made them want to avoid me, so they were a bit harder to dispatch than they should have been. Being ignored was worth the extra bit of running I had to do to catch them all. With them all dead and no feeling of eyes looking at me or around me, I extinguished the flames I had started and pushed the smoke away. I checked all of the bodies and the soldiers didn''t have anything except a combat dagger each and their crossbows, which were now heat warped because of my spell. They would never fire straight again. The mages gave me two surprises, because two of them had magic weapons on them. One was a foot long blade that didn''t have any markings on it whatsoever and the other was a split dagger. It was the normal shape of a dagger, except that it had about half an inch missing in the middle, all the way down the spine of the metal, which was something I had never seen before. I looked down at my underwear, which was all I had on besides my bandoleer and knife sheath, and sighed. I couldn''t tie the foot long blade to my waist and there wasn''t an extra tie for me to put it on my thigh. I quickly tried to look for something else to use and let out another sigh, because there was nothing to easily tie it off with. I chose a mage robe and cut a piece of fabric off, tied it around the whole scabbard and then tied the cloth around my chest on the opposite side of my bandoleer. With it secured, I slipped the split dagger into the slot in my bandoleer that my knife used to occupy and moved on. I quickly came across the second relay station and there wasn''t anyone around. I had to assume that most of them I had already killed, so I went to the mage guild building first. After a quick search that gave me nothing, I broke the fire suppression enchantments and then lit the place on fire. I walked over to the main building and entered it, to see a terrified woman staring at me as she huddled behind her desk. ¡°Is the station commander in?¡± I asked, even though I knew they were, and she shook her head. ¡°Lying won''t help.¡± I walked by her and stepped to the side of the door and opened it. A crossbow bolt shot out through the space and made a thump sound as it stuck into the wall. ¡°That could have been your secretary.¡± I said and there was no response. I made a ''shh'' gesture to the secretary and ducked to almost lay down, then I crawled as close to the floor as possible and slid into the next room. There wasn''t another shot, so I crawled across the office and peered around the edge of the desk''s leg. A man knelt behind the desk with another loaded crossbow aimed at the door. I moved a bit closer and he edged away from me. I smiled and leapt up from my crawling position and backhanded the crossbow out of his hand. He let out a yelp of pain and jumped back from the desk, only to have his eyes not show him anything. ¡°What''s going on?¡± The man asked and drew a knife. ¡°You listened to the wrong people.¡± I whispered and grabbed his hand. ¡°ARRHHHHHH!¡± He yelled as the enchantment took full effect and I held on to let him fall unconscious. When his screaming stopped, I sat him in his chair and searched him for valuables before I searched the desk for information. Inside the top drawer of the desk were two written messages. One stating my ultimatum to retreat or suffer and the other was a bribe from the mage at the station to have me killed by accident. I chuckled and treated both notes with fortifying waterproof potion after I found a dagger on him and a sword at the side of the room, then I used both. I used the dagger to pin my warning note to his chest on the left side, which made his breathing stagger as the blade pierced his lung. I then used the sword to pin the bribe note through his heart. Neither note absorbed any of the blood and weren''t ruined, except for the cut the blades did. I walked out of the office and both smelled and saw that the secretary had peed on the floor. ¡°Did you recommend that he take the bribe?¡± I asked and she shook her head. ¡°What did you tell him to do?¡± She didn''t say anything and I took a step towards her. ¡°AH! I said to ignore it! It was a joke! No one can own public land! It''s all unclaimed!¡± She said loudly and then covered her head to wait for me to do something to her. ¡°Where are the valuables?¡± I asked. ¡°I don''t know what you mean.¡± She said immediately. ¡°Each relay station has a strong box installed for army pay. It''s delivered every month for their salaries.¡± ¡°You can''t take that! It''s army property and...¡± ¡°Where?¡± I asked and took another step towards her. ¡°It''s under the commander''s desk!¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and walked back into the office and took out my knife. I charged it up and sliced the top and front of the desk in half. The two pieces fell to the sides and I looked at the trap door under the commander''s feet. I opened it and inside was the strong box. ¡°You can''t open it. The sides are reinforced heavy metal and the lock can''t be picked.¡± The secretary said with a bit of satisfaction. ¡°I don''t know where he kept the key, either.¡± I used my knife to lop off the two visible hinges and the box now opened the other way. I pulled with my hands to bend the lock, which was the only thing holding the top on, and I took out two large sacks of money and a file folder. Inside the folder were the plans to expand the route even more to claim even more of the lands, which pissed me off. I was going to have to do something to stop all of them and not just the ones disobeying my order. My eyes dropped to my wooden medallion and I had to smile. It''s going to cost them a lot of lives to complete this plan. I thought and tied the money bags to my bandoleer before I walked out of the office. ¡°W-wait!¡± The secretary said and I stopped beside her. ¡°What are you going to do now?¡± ¡°I''m going to protect my lands from you.¡± I said with a tooth bearing smile. ¡°You really should have listened to my warning.¡± My hand flashed out with my charged knife and I severed her head to give her a quicker death than bleeding out would. ¡°The senior mage gave you my information and you knew it wasn''t a joke.¡± I said to her dead eyes that were still staring up at me. I broke the fire suppression enchantments and lit the place on fire. I checked her desk on a whim and found a dozen canvas bags, several knives, and a bag of raisins. I took everything and left the building as I set the outside on fire, too. 219 Academy Antics Part Eighty Five - The Marsh Is Full Part Six I stood there for several minutes and watched the main building burn. I had to use my fire suppression a few times to make sure the commander of the station''s body was still mostly intact in his chair. I didn''t bother using a mage shield to protect him, since I didn''t want to give people the wrong impression. I wanted them to know that he was inside while it burned and not placed there afterwards. It only took a few minutes more for the dried wood to burn down enough that the roof was gone and most of the walls were a charred ruin. I extinguished the fire completely and went over to the side of the building to turn the man''s chair to face the canal and any boat that approached. That was the whole point of doing this after all. I went back over to the ambush site and quickly gathered up the daggers from the soldiers, now that I had bags to carry them. I tied them over my shoulders and looked at the three dozen mangled bodies. I shrugged my shoulders and just left them there, sure in the fact that something would probably come and eat them. That reminded me that I should probably replace the expired protection ward I let burn in the fire. I shook my head at their stupidity for not sending requests to have the wards recharged. Of course, that was assuming anyone reminded them that they needed it or that they existed in the first place. They were listed in the deployment plans, under the safety features, so maybe the new people had no idea that they needed them. I walked over to the water canal and the nice boat launch ramp they had made. I saw my boat in the distance and waved to it before hopping into one of the mages guild built skiffs. It felt so weird when I used the movement enchantment and it was barely operable. They can''t be using experienced enchanters to make them. I thought and used the rudder to steer the boat. I rode it near my boat and came to a stop. ¡°Please deactivate the pendant.¡± ¡°How do I do that?¡± The healer asked. ¡°Stop feeding it magic and it should fade. You can also use a bit of magic to deactivate it by concentrating on stopping the effect.¡± The healer suddenly appeared in front of me and I moved the boat I was in over to her. ¡°You can see me now?¡± ¡°Yes, and I''m also not forced to move away from you.¡± I said and tied the new boat to mine as I climbed in. I went to my pack and took out a small protection ward and charged it up. ¡°What are you doing?¡± The healer asked. ¡°I forgot that the wards for the relay stations are either expired or expiring soon.¡± I said and moved my boat over to the relay station and slid it partway up the launching ramp. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± The healer gasped as she saw the burned wrecks of buildings. She followed me out of the boat and I heard her sigh as she saw the lone body sitting in a chair facing the water with a sword sticking out of his chest. ¡°Don''t feel bad for him. He took a bribe from the mages to have me killed.¡± I said and pointed to the notes pinned to the man''s chest. I used a drop of number ten potion to stick the small ward on the underside of the chair and nodded. The body should be safe for however long it takes for the army to send someone to check why he''s not answering any mage messages. ¡°Why?¡± The healer asked. ¡°The most logical solution would be greed. It might not have cost him anything if he got away with it.¡± I said and waved in the direction of the ambush site. She gave me a curious look and then followed me over to the spot. ¡°Oh, no.¡± I explained what they had waiting for me and that I had dealt with them appropriately. She didn''t cry or anything, either. ¡°You''ve seen a lot of this.¡± ¡°Yes, and...¡± She stopped talking and looked at my face. ¡°I didn''t think I''d see it this far from the front.¡± ¡°If you''re assigned here for the next month, you''re going to see a lot more than this.¡± ¡°No! I thought this was it! Aren''t you done?¡± The healer asked, almost desperate. ¡°I''m done with stopping the thieves. Now I''ll be trying to fix all the damage they''ve caused to my marsh.¡± ¡°You can''t kill them all for that! It was done long before you came here!¡± ¡°I don''t have to kill them personally, since the wards that are protecting them from the creatures in the marsh are going to fail very soon. All I have to do is wait and the marsh will take care of them for me.¡±The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. The healer looked shocked at my words. ¡°You... you''re going to let them die? Aren''t you going to warn them or something?¡± I waved back at the relay station. ¡°I''ll drop you off at the first relay station and you can do whatever you want.¡± ¡°No, take me to the town. I can''t call anyone from the relay station. You killed all of the mages there.¡± I smiled slightly and nodded as I led her back to my boat. ¡°Are you taking the army''s boat, too?¡± She asked as she climbed in. ¡°No, it''s a very poorly made substitute for the real thing.¡± I said and untied it from the back of my boat and then used my magic knife to slice it up into pieces before tossing them aside. It didn''t even have a weight enchantment, so the mages guild were really cutting corners making them for the army. The healer stared at my knife and didn''t comment about how easily I had dismantled the skiff. I pushed my boat backwards down the ramp and hopped in, then sat down and took off at a moderate speed. The healer has tensed up at first, then relaxed because I wasn''t going too fast for her to handle. ¡°Are you really going to let me warn everyone?¡± The healer asked in a soft voice. ¡°Why wouldn''t I?¡± ¡°Well, won''t they try to charge the wards or have them replaced?¡± ¡°It honestly doesn''t matter.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°Hundreds of people are going to lose their lives, no matter what you tell them.¡± ¡°What? Why?¡± ¡°I''ve lived in the marsh nearly my whole life. I know for a fact that it can kill me without warning, even though it seems like I can survive anything.¡± I said and she nodded slightly. ¡°So, what does that mean for everyone else?¡± ¡°Unlike nearly everyone else, I respect the danger it represents.¡± I said. ¡°You''ll see why when we reach the first relay station.¡± The healer blinked her eyes a few times and then her eyes widened. ¡°What did you do?¡± ¡°Me? Nothing. I ran as soon as I could.¡± I said and she didn''t believe me. ¡°We''ll be there in two hours and you''ll know what I mean.¡± The healer didn''t say anything about the doubled time to return and stayed quiet for the whole ride back to the first relay station. When we reached it and I slowed us down, she gasped at the sight and shot to her feet. ¡°No! What''s going on? That shouldn''t happen! The mages...¡± ¡°...have been stupid by annoying them and not killing them, probably for quite some time.¡± I said. A full brood of death spiders had overrun the station. All of the boats were gone and webbing was everywhere, as were several wrapped bodies. The main building was partially torn down and several of the five foot tall spiders were posed on it as they spun their webs to make a formal nest. ¡°That happened even quicker than I thought it would.¡± I said and managed to not shiver as dozens of large spider eyes caught sight of me and made my vigilance technique waver from it. The healer turned her head to glare at me. ¡°You led them back to the station!¡± ¡°No, I didn''t. I did my best to muddle my trail after I ran from them. I''m not stupid enough to lead spiders directly to where I''m going. The big ones are fast when moving in a straight line.¡± She lost the glare and plopped down onto the seat beside me. ¡°Then how?¡± ¡°I''d say the commander of the station sent someone to look for the bodies of the mages and the soldiers they had as guards. Unfortunately, they probably did what you accused me of and ran right back to the station after discovering the brood.¡± I said as I added power to the movement enchantment and the boat moved on. We were soon out of sight and I relaxed as all of those eyes lost sight of me. ¡°The jumping spiders are the worst, because you can''t tell which ones will do it until they are already jumping on you.¡± The healer shivered and she involuntarily grabbed onto my arm and held on. ¡°All... all those people.¡± ¡°Don''t worry. Most of them got away.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°You didn''t notice that all of the boats were gone?¡± The healer took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°They retreated to the garrison.¡± ¡°If they were smart and followed proper procedure.¡± I said and she nodded. She fell silent again and held my arm all the way back to Ester''s Village. I pulled up to the dock and once again, there was barely enough room for me to fit. She let my arm go and stood, took another deep breath as if she was steeling herself for a confrontation, and stepped out of the boat. ¡°Good luck getting them to listen.¡± I said and she stiffened for a moment, then she walked on down the dock. ¡°She didn''t even say goodbye.¡± I joked and pulled back out, turned the boat around, and left the harbour at a slow speed. I entered the waterway that would eventually lead me back to my house and I picked up speed when I was out of sight of the dock and all of the people there. Even though I hadn''t been there in a long time, I remembered where to go and sped all the way back to arrive at a very familiar sight. A water beast was in the waterway in front of my house. I chuckled as I cut the weight enchantment and rammed into the thing at full speed. The loud thump was quite satisfying and I brought the boat to a stop. I turned around to look and the water beast was floating upside down in the water. I didn''t even have to beat it with the metal pole to finish it off, so I brought the boat over to it and grabbed it by the tail, then took the boat and the water beast onto the dry land beside the waterway. I walked over to the house and saw that some mosses and grasses had grown up around it in thick clumps and felt that the protection wards were quite weak. I looked up and I didn''t see any webs, which was a relief. I quickly gutted the water beast and hung it up to bleed it out, unlocked the door to my house, and went inside. I was finally home. 220 Academy Antics Part Eighty Six - The Marsh Is Full Part Seven I recharged the wards to full capacity and debated on if I should replace them, then shrugged. I could probably get another couple months out of the newer ones and that was a bit of an iffy proposition. I could spend half an hour making new ones to get a full year out of them or I could keep the existing ones and get 8 to 10 months out of it. Since there were frequent breaks during the school year, wasting time doing something that wasn''t strictly necessary was just that, wasting time. I dropped off the sacks of weapons in my work room and added water to the stew pots in my potions room and went back out to the boat. I had actual work to do and hoped that the local flora had recovered since the last time I had been there. I was always careful to never over-harvest an area to let it regrow naturally, since they were resources that I had constantly needed. I retrieved my pack from the boat and went back inside and detached the canvas sack with the pieces of cookie bread in them. I opened it and shoved a piece into my mouth with a sigh and chewed on it. It was good even without being covered in butter. I looked around and my home was almost devoid of any resources, which was disconcerting, because I was so used to having access to a bunch of ingredients at the dorm mansion. I chuckled and looked at the empty space in my potions room where I could easily build my own containers for ingredients. I wouldn''t have time to do that, gather them and prep them for storage, and brew. I only had three full days before I needed to go back and that wasn''t a lot of time for what I needed to do. My original plans had to change, now that I had proof that the army and mages guild were going to expand the route a lot wider than what the plans originally called for. In fact, the widened and dredged one they now had was already a violation of the agreement between the king and myself. The problem was, it happened before I had signed the papers and there wasn''t much I could do to put things back. What I could do was stop them from expanding any farther, so that''s what I was going to do. I checked the water in the pots and it was simmering nicely, ready for ingredients. I grabbed two large canvas bags and for the first time in a while, left my bandoleer. It would only get in the way. I also didn''t bother getting dressed. I left with the sacks and dove into the marsh as if I had never left. I was back in my element and it seemed to welcome me back. The tangling vines barely brushed me, like a caress, and the snakes didn''t pay me any attention. I killed any spider I came across, because I wasn''t stupid, and quickly found a nice ingredient gathering area. I half-filled a canvas bag and hung it over my shoulder, counterbalanced with a rock, and moved on. I went to where the better and rarer ingredients were, and I arrived much sooner than I ever had before. My army training with all that extra weight, had increased my unencumbered speed to a ridiculous level, even for me. I wasn''t untouchable, especially for the ambush predators like the marsh boar, that waited until I was in mid-stride before charging at me. I almost laughed at its angry face when I barely dodged the tusk it tried to gore me with. ¡°Yeah, that was close.¡± I commented and it huffed at me and pawed at the ground with its hoof. ¡°Look, I don''t want to kill you right now, even though I don''t really have a lot of food with me.¡± It let out a roar and charged anyway, as if I had been taunting it. I jumped and grabbed a branch to get out of the way and the boar''s tusk clipped the tree. It half-stuck and half-severed the tree. I actually did laugh as the tree toppled over and I had to jump free before it slammed into the ground. I turned around and the boar was trapped in the crease that his tusk had made and the tree folded over. ¡°I''m tempted to let you go.¡± I said and it squealed at me. ¡°No? All right.¡± I said and sliced its throat and then slid the knife down its belly to gut it. The boar barely flinched at the movement and then the light slowly left its eyes as it bled out in seconds. I cut the tree and set the boar''s tusk free, then cut the tusks off and shoved them into bag with the counterbalance rock. I skinned the boar and tied it up with a normal vine. Feeding a tangle vine was not a good idea, unless you wanted to be completely covered in less than an hour. It was one of the only plants that I knew of in the marsh that subsisted on the blood and flesh of living creatures. I couldn''t tell you how it did that, considering I''ve never found a mouth of any kind on them. I went over to the next gathering area and smiled as I looked at the rare ingredient. It was one of the main ones for the strength potion and I gathered up as much as I could. It had definitely overgrown and I wasn''t worried about taking too much this time, since it would be the last time I would be there until next summer. There was no way I''d be back here during the winter break, since moving through the marsh in winter was a death sentence. I sliced up the boar meat and added it to the bag with the rock, which I removed, now that I had the meat to act as a counterweight. I rolled the pelt up and put it in another bag and tied it around my waist. With everything secured, I moved on to the next best area to get the rest of the ingredients for the strength potion. It took me nearly an hour to get them all, along with a few other choice ingredients, and I headed back to the house to start brewing. I picked up the spider carcasses on the way and would create more death spider antivenom as well. It was always good to have it on hand, just in case.If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. I didn''t find any diamond snake, which meant I had missed their migration to the warmer parts of the marsh. It was fall and coming up on winter, so they would be hunkering down and not moving around as much. The lazy ones would still be out lurking for that last big meal, though. I chuckled at the thought, because that''s what I was doing. I was lurking around to get one last meal of ingredients and potions before going home for the winter. I quickly had three different potions brewing not long after getting back to the house. A strength potion, a fortifying potion, and spider juice potion. I had two pots of each going and nodded at their progress. While they were going, I went to my work room and remembered that I had used up the wildwood coins I had stored here for the kracken tubes. I''ll need to go looking for a wildwood tree. I thought and went back to the potions room. I hadn''t passed one yet and would have to deviate from what I wanted to do to find one. Then again, if my guess was right, it might be very profitable if I checked a certain area. It was where I had found one the last time, too. I finished the potions and bottled them up, put the crates by the door for easy access, and grabbed some rope and my bandoleer. It was time for a special trip and I took off through the marsh at my best speed. It felt exhilarating to let loose like this and none of the animals that I came across knew what hit them as I dispatched them as easily as I had the soldiers and mages. I would gather them up on the way back. It took me several hours to reach the spot that I had been wanting to check out for a while now, since the last time I had been there, it was a burned out husk with nothing left in it. I slowed down as I neared the area, because my vigilance technique told me that something was there. I couldn''t tell how many, because they overlapped for some reason, so I peeked out from the underbrush to look at the old fungus bloom area. Marsh panthers! I thought, my eyes wide. What in the world is going on? How are there so many? A dozen marsh panthers were sprawled out in the area, some on top of each other asleep, two more of them were mating and making a lot of growling and snarling sounds, and another one seemed to be strolling around. I knew he was a patrol guard, since he was constantly looking around as he strolled. I didn''t know if he was the oldest or just the strongest, since I didn''t really have a lot of other panthers to compare it to. I was also in a heap load of danger. I couldn''t move fast, because they would all notice immediately and I would be swarmed. Even with a magic knife and being strong and quick, I wouldn''t survive having fifteen marsh panthers tearing me apart. I very carefully slunk backwards and crawled out from my hiding place to make a very tactful retreat. I had a crazy idea to draw one towards me by using some of the pure fungus powder I had, then dismissed it, because they had great senses of smell. I would draw nearly all of them to me if they smelled it as soon as I poured a little out as a lure. I knew it would, because despite all the panthers scattered all over the place, I didn''t see one fungus bloom or a tasty mushroom. That made me sad and I hid my feelings as I muddied my trail and scent, to stop them from following me directly. I heard a branch break and froze still, crouched down on the ground, and couldn''t detect anything with my vigilance technique. Either it was something new that I hadn''t met before or it was something that had learned how to avoid being detected. The last part would be scary, because it would mean I might have been followed this whole time and not known anything was there. I stayed still and turned my head to rest my ear on the ground. I heard rustling grass with the ear sticking up and light thumps from my other ear on the ground as something with padded feet approached my position. I took a long and very deep breath and pretended that I was going deep underwater for the Hag. My heartbeat slowed down and I didn''t breathe at all as whatever it was came closer. I barely managed to not choke as a bright white panther stepped into view. It was nearly a size and a half bigger than the others and magic seemed to flow off of it in waves. I immediately locked my body up to stop my trembling as it sauntered over to me. It didn''t deviate or change where it was looking, which meant it knew I was there. I didn''t move, even knowing it knew I was there, because it could kill me before I tried to escape. I held my breath and waited to see what it was going to do. It walked over to me and bent its neck down to put its head to my spread out hand. It took several sniffs and let out a bit of a growl. I still didn''t react, even though that was clearly an ''I don''t like you'' growl. It moved up to my arm and smelled the caked on mud and drying dirt. It let out a huff and moved on up to my shoulder to do the same thing. It stopped when it reached my bandoleer. It let out a growl and darted forward to bite it. Its teeth sliced into my shoulder and I still didn''t react. The bandoleer snapped it its mouth and the white panther worried it and spat it out. My eyes looked at the potion vial it just had in its mouth and I cursed mentally that the number ten potion hadn''t broken open. It would have made this so much easier if it had. I might have even lived. I could see the blood on the panther''s muzzle and it licked its face automatically, then it froze. The tongue darted out and licked even more of the blood and it let out a purr. Uh oh. I thought as its eyes went to my bleeding shoulder. It moved forward and gave my shoulder a long and slow lick, then it coughed and spit out the dirt and mud. It did it again and the purr intensified. Before I knew it, the panther had laid down on top of my back, had its front paws on my upper arms and its back paws braced on my calves, and it was lapping at the slow flow of blood from the four tooth wounds on my shoulder. Its rumbling purr shook my whole body and I was completely trapped with no way to fight against whatever the thing wanted to do with me. It had me pinned completely and I was going to have to take a breath soon. I hoped so, anyway. The damn thing was a few hundred pounds at least and I wasn''t sure my lungs would be strong enough to work under the weight. I also had no clue what I was going to do. 221 Academy Antics Intermission - The Marsh Panther _______________ Story paused. You have a critical choice to make. Since it won''t affect the story as a whole, no matter what you choose, this critical choice is only applicable to the current situation. System Notification: Quick Save Backup initiated. Cost: 250 credits will be deducted from your account. Do you wish to initiate the Save Point feature? Yes / No _______________ That depends. How many times can I use it? I asked. Just like everything else that''s offered, the first time is free. Each additional use will cost +50 credits. WHAT?!? Are you kidding me? It''s just a save feature! Why does it cost that much more each time? Hey, I don''t make the rules. You can only use it once to try it and see what happens, like a trial. If you don''t like the outcome, it costs to reset. It''s not like we''re all just sitting here and waiting for you to make choices, because we streamlined your story based on previous choices, remember? I sighed and looked at the option. I suppose it''s only applicable to this point and no other? You got it. This instance is outside of the main storyline and could be beneficial when you return here; but, only while you are in the marsh. As soon as you leave, it''s scrubbed and the save point is lost. So, I won''t get another one when I come back? I asked, a little concerned at the waste of credits. Ha, you''re funny. Just a second and I''ll check. It doesn''t hurt to ask, right? I waited for quite some time before the narrator reappeared. All right, apparently once the feature is unlocked for an area, you get the choice each time you enter the area to create a save point. Before you bug me and ask, the area is specifically within half a mile of that magic patch of land. You need to go there each time to initiate the save feature. So, I need to risk my life to try and save it, huh? That''s pretty stupid. I can tell you that if you had successfully lured them away, you could have expanded the area before the feature activated. It''s too late now and it''s locked to a specific size. I suppose I can''t ask you what I can do to get out of this, can I? If I was allowed to help, I would have sent you a message to stop screwing around in the most dangerous places in the marsh, you idiot. You had marsh panthers there before, dragons there that killed the panthers, and then you removed the dragons! What did you think was going to happen when the army removed the largest predators in the marsh? You''re right. I am an idiot. I thought and he chuckled. I didn''t even consider the vacuum of power that would be left if the dragons weren''t suppressing everything else. Yeah, and now you''re pretty much a tasty kitty treat. If the thing wasn''t so big and powerful, you might actually enjoy being mauled like you are. Are you kidding me? I''m waiting for it to decide to make more blood appear, or worse, decide that my flesh is tastier than the blood! You let the hag do it for years. I could negotiate with the Hag! I could cooperate and make life easier for myself, too. What the hell am I going to do with this thing crushing me? I''m not allowed to offer advice, only advise you on what choices you have. I sighed. All right, fine. I''ll pay the credits to activate the save feature. I know I''m going to need it... and it''s going to cost me. There was a light chuckling laugh and then a ding sounded. _______________ Save Point feature installed. Save point created. Warning: Save Point has been created while you are in mortal danger. Do you want to keep this point or create another when the danger has passed? Only one point can be created per instance. Dammit, I have no choice, since getting out of this is the whole point of having the save point in the first place. I sighed. I''m keeping it. Save point confirmed. Story resuming. _______________ The quite heavy panther was enjoying itself immensely as it licked up my blood. Since it was a magical wound, the blood constantly dribbled out. Several options went through my mind and I pondered over them as I slowly became more desperate for breath. I also had my bandoleer right there by my hand.Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. The least I could do would be to drink a healing potion and hope that the skin underneath would grow enough to stem the bleeding. The problem with that was the blood might stop flowing and that could upset the happy creature that was tasting me. I could also do a few other things, and those were just as iffy and might piss the panther off. It could kill me as soon as I move, so I needed to be very, very careful. The creature was still purring, so I had a little bit of leeway. Hopefully. _______________ You have a choice to make. Will it be the right one that will let you live or will it be a bloody end for you and a tasty treat for the panther? A) Take a breath. B) Take a Healing potion. C) Throw a #10 potion. D) Take a Strength potion. E) Use a plant killer potion. F) Use a mental enhancement potion. G) Cast Fire Starter. H) Cast Shield. I) Cast Heating. J) Cast Lather. K) Do something stupid. L) Do something very stupid. M) Choose two. What. The. Hell. I thought and read all of the options again. What am I supposed to do with all of that crap? I only have one free save, dammit! What''s with all the options?!? Unlike the streamlined ones, this specifically wants you to choose what you do. If it was just ''cast spell'', there''s too many variables to calculate. If it was just ''drink potion'', it''s the same. Your choice needs to be specific. I let out a stream of curses that would have made the Hag proud. I knew this was going to cost me a ton of credits! I just knew it! Well, you can always roll the dice and hope the default works out for you. The default? What do you... I stopped thinking as a ten second timer popped up. Son of a bitch! Sorry, buddy. Good luck. Fuck you, too. I thought, angrily. I''ll choose two. D and A! _______________ I moved my hand slightly and the panther on my back didn''t react. I wiggled my fingers and slowly pulled the bandoleer through my hand to get to the right pocket. I popped it open and plucked out a Strength potion. The panther had my upper arms pinned near my body, so I still had some movement with my lower arms. I needed to be careful, though. If I moved too fast or made too much noise, I would be dead before I knew it. I very carefully bent my arm at the elbow and my hand with the potion bottle reached my shoulder. Unfortunately, it was the same shoulder that the panther was happily lapping at. I didn''t try to move again for several minutes, then very carefully lifted my head from the puddle and moved it to the lip of the vial. The panther didn''t react, so I slowly pulled the cork and tipped the vial into my mouth. My lungs were screaming for air by this point and I had to let the potion do its work before I acted. Rushing would only get me killed quicker. I felt strength fill me and I opened my mouth slightly as I took in a long slow breath. The panther didn''t react, even though my back raised slightly from my expanding lungs. I moved my other arm up to my left shoulder and tensed my fingers. I was only going to have one chance at this and I needed to make it count. I could only get a little leverage, thanks to the way the panther rested on my calves and upper arms; but, it also gave me a near perfect opportunity to do a barrel roll, because it was completely on top of me and wasn''t touching the ground. I waited for another moment before I felt the tongue touch my skin, which meant its head was bent down to drink, and acted. Quick as a flash, I pulled my right arm in underneath my body and pushed on the ground with my left, because the panther was leaning on my right shoulder, and I ignored the flesh tearing sound as it deployed its claws and tried to grab on to me in three spots as it toppled over onto the ground. _______________ You have a choice to make. Hope for the best, plan for the worst. A) Run. B). Fight. C) Beg. D) Give up and die. E) Get your bandoleer. F) Choose two. I ignored the five second timer that popped up. I''m choosing A and B! _______________ I scrambled away as fast as I could and it wasn''t going to be quick enough. I knew this, since panthers were pretty damn fast. I wasn''t trying to flee, though. No, I was buying enough time to draw my knife from the sheath. I wasn''t able to reach it while pinned and charged it up as I skidded to a stop and turned to face the deadly threat. My left upper arm and both calves were shredded, so I was losing a lot of blood as it charged me. I leapt to the side in a dodge as it leapt to tackle me and I twisted in mid-air to get my knife to nick its hind quarters. It let out a roar and licked the spot I had cut, barely six inches long, and it growled at me. ¡°Yeah, there''s more where that came from!¡± I said loudly and ran at it. It almost looked surprised as I leapt at it and it was the panther''s turn to dodge me. It was smarter than I gave it credit for as it almost leapt in place while I tried to slash at it. I barely touched one of its paws with the knife, even extended by magic like it was, then it landed and swiped at my back in one smooth motion. I felt the claws dig in a lot more than they should have, since I should have been outside its reach, and I grunted at the pain. When I turned to look at it, I saw the slight glow on the claws and the holes in the ground at its feet that were several inches away from the actual claws. Oh, no. I thought and looked down at the ground between my feet. It wasn''t drops of blood I was seeing, it was almost a steady stream. It''s already killed me. I gave the creature a squinted glare, then calmly walked over to it. It stood there, defiant of my approach, as if it knew I couldn''t do anything to it. I smiled and held my hand out in a stop gesture to distract it, then I wiggled my fingers at it and raised my hand. It''s head followed the movement and I sliced up with my knife through its jaw and right into its brain. It didn''t even know it was dead as it seemed to sit down and then it toppled over. I ignored it and walked over to my bandoleer and drank healing potion after healing potion. I also tried to pour some number ten potion down my back to somehow knit the skin together. It was no use. I felt myself waver and fell to my knees as I looked down at my still glowing knife. Well, the Hag was right. I really am going to live or die with this blade in my hand. I thought and then I heard over a dozen creatures approach. I looked around and saw the black panthers from the clearing surround me. ¡°So, who wants to be next?¡± They all let out a roar and charged me at the same time. I wasn''t going to die with them tearing into me, eating me alive, so I did the only thing I could do in that situation. I plunged my knife into my own forehead and ended it. 222 Academy Antics Intermission - Lets Try That Again _______________ Wow, that was hardcore, buddy. You''ve got balls on you. Big brass balls. I thought I heard a blacksmith say that brass was soft and malleable? I asked and there was the sound of laughter in my ears. Good point. Anyways, you majorly offed yourself with those choices. We''ve started taking bets as to how often you''re going to mess this up, so we can''t influence your choices. That''s just great. I thought. You better put me down for three. You can''t bet, since you can easily rig it to how you want it to go. How am I supposed to... oh, I get it. I can discover the right answer and then keep going to pad the result. Bingo. You get one free restoration to the save point. Try and not kill yourself this time, all right? That was gruesome. Good luck. _______________ Resetting story to save point. Restoring options. Done. Resuming story. _______________ The quite heavy panther was enjoying itself immensely as it licked up my blood. Since it was a magical wound, the blood constantly dribbled out. Several options went through my mind and I pondered over them as I slowly became more desperate for breath. I also had my bandoleer right there by my hand. The least I could do would be to drink a healing potion and hope that the skin underneath would grow enough to stem the bleeding. The problem with that was the blood might stop flowing and that could upset the happy creature that was tasting me. I could also do a few other things, and those were just as iffy and might piss the panther off. It could kill me as soon as I move, so I needed to be very, very careful. The creature was still purring, so I had a little bit of leeway. Hopefully. _______________ You have a choice to make. Will it be the right one that will let you live or will it be a bloody end for you and a tasty treat for the panther? A) Take a breath. B) Take a Healing potion. C) Throw a #10 potion. D) Take a Strength potion. E) Use a plant killer potion. F) Use a mental enhancement potion. G) Cast Fire Starter. H) Cast Shield. I) Cast Heating. J) Cast Lather. K) Do something stupid. L) Do something very stupid. M) Choose two. They suck just as much the second time. I thought and read all of the options again. What am I supposed to do now? I''ve used up my one free save and from now on, it''s going to cost me each time. I sighed. What should I pick now? The ten second timer popped up and I held in my sigh. Let''s try distracting it and catching my breath. I''ll choose two. G and A. _______________ I moved my hand slightly and the panther on my back didn''t react. I wiggled my fingers and nothing else happened. The panther had my upper arms pinned near my body, so I still had some movement with my lower arms. I needed to be careful, though. If I moved too fast or made too much noise, I would be dead before I knew it. I very carefully bent my arm at the elbow and then slowly moved my hand along until it reached my shoulder, casting Fire Starter all along the same movement path. Unfortunately, it was the same shoulder that the panther was happily lapping at. The whoosh of fire startled it and I felt all four paws dig into my arms and calves, then it pushed off from me and jumped away from the fire. My left arm and left leg snapped at the elbow and knee, pretty much crippling me; but, now I could easily lift my head and took a breath. I didn''t try to move again for several minutes, then carefully moved to the side and away from the puddle to rest my head. The panther didn''t react and I knew that rushing would only get me killed quicker. I was severely hurt, so I slowly reached for the bandoleer. As an afterthought, I used the smoke manipulation spell and filled the space with enough smoke that it covered myself from sight. I relaxed a little and managed to grab a healing potion. I drank it and my broken joints popped back into place. I looked at my upper arms and they were still bleeding, so I drank another one. The bleeding slowed to a stop and I rolled over to see if I could see anything. I pushed the smoke away and into the surrounding trees and underbrush, sure that there was something besides the panther there, and heard coughing sounds. I realized then that my vigilance technique wasn''t active and used it again. Fifteen presences were surrounding me and I still couldn''t find the white panther. I used Sense Magic and a bright pulse appeared about thirty feet away. I moved the smoke away from there and the white panther was staring at me with murder in its eyes. I swiped my hand over the area and lit the whole place on fire to stop them from charging me. There were several roars and the presences I felt quickly retreated and I kept watching the spot with the white panther. It had only taken two steps back from the fire and growled at me. ¡°There''s more where that came from.¡± I said and held both hands up. I lit the trees around me on fire, the underbrush, the vines, and everything else I could see. It let out a howl and jumped back as a burning vine dropped from the tree above it and almost hit it. Smoke filled the space and I used the spell to hold it off from choking me. I felt the panthers try to cross the fire line I had made and they failed several times, which was a relief... until I couldn''t see the white panther anymore. It had taken off and now I didn''t know where it was. I whirled around when I felt the panthers gather together into a clump, then I cursed as no less than six trees that were closely clumped together, toppled as one and stamped out the fire on that side of me. Before I could even think about lighting it up again, two black panthers were through the gap and jumped at me. I had my knife out and ducked as one passed right over me and I sliced its underbelly. The other panther hooked my leg as it passed and slashed my thigh open, which was a horrendous wound, and I dropped to one knee to grip it and fought it off by slicing its paw off. I took a breath and fumbled for my bandoleer and another healing potion, since the wound wasn''t made by magically enhanced claws, then I realized my mistake. They were just a distraction.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. I looked up just in time to see the large white panther''s open jaws in front of my face and then everything went black. _______________ You did a bit better that time. We all appreciate not seeing more self mutilation. What am I supposed to do? Those were my best two options. I thought. I can''t advise you on what to choose to succeed, let alone survive. It''s not a matter of the betting, either. Your supervisor''s looking over your shoulder again? Worse, it''s the boss. She''s asking why you''ve been spending so much time playing through one of the shorter novels we have on the site. Ha! You can tell her that I''ve been having a great time playing out all the little bits and pieces that I never got to read about in the original. I never realized just how much they skipped over until I started living through it, you know? We''re writing it all, so yeah. We know. Now she does, too. That doesn''t sound good for me, does it? There was no answer for a minute, then another popup appeared. _______________ All narrator interactions have been temporarily suspended. Reloading queue accelerated. Time between resets reduced to ten seconds. Do you wish to start the story over or reload from the save point (cost: 50 credits)? Reload save point. I thought. _______________ Resetting story to save point. Restoring options. Done. Resuming story. _______________ The quite heavy panther was enjoying itself immensely as it licked up my blood. Since it was a magical wound, the blood constantly dribbled out. Several options went through my mind and I pondered over them as I slowly became more desperate for breath. I also had my bandoleer right there by my hand. The least I could do would be to drink a healing potion and hope that the skin underneath would grow enough to stem the bleeding. The problem with that was the blood might stop flowing and that could upset the happy creature that was tasting me. I could also do a few other things, and those were just as iffy and might piss the panther off. It could kill me as soon as I move, so I needed to be very, very careful. The creature was still purring, so I had a little bit of leeway. Hopefully. _______________ You have a choice to make. Will it be the right one that will let you live or will it be a bloody end for you and a tasty treat for the panther? A) Take a breath. B) Take a Healing potion. C) Throw a #10 potion. D) Take a Strength potion. E) Use a plant killer potion. F) Use a mental enhancement potion. G) Cast Fire Starter. H) Cast Shield. I) Cast Heating. J) Cast Lather. K) Do something stupid. L) Do something very stupid. M) Choose two. What should I pick now? A five second timer popped up and I held in my sigh again. Let''s try the number ten potion and casting Lather. I''ll choose two. C and J. _______________ I moved my hand slightly and the panther on my back didn''t react. I wiggled my fingers and slowly pulled the bandoleer through my hand to get to the right pocket. I popped it open and plucked out a number ten potion. The panther had my upper arms pinned near my body, so I still had some movement with my lower arms. I needed to be careful, though. If I moved too fast or made too much noise, I would be dead before I knew it. I very carefully bent my arm at the elbow and my hand with the potion bottle reached my shoulder. Unfortunately, it was the same shoulder that the panther was happily lapping at. I didn''t try to move again for several minutes, then very carefully lifted my head from the puddle and moved it to the lip of the vial. The panther didn''t react, so I slowly pulled the cork and prepared to throw it. My lungs were screaming for air by this point and I had to let the potion do its work before I acted. Rushing would only get me killed quicker. I flipped my hand and flicked my fingers to toss the number ten potion up and onto the panther''s face. It didn''t really react until I cast Lather into its mouth. It roared and coughed, and spit, and shook its head... which was the worst thing to have happen. A pile of still liquid number ten potion slid off of it and brought parts of the panther with it. It hit the side of my face and parts of my back, then I felt it melding our faces together. No! I thought and tried to roll away, only I was still pinned. After a few minutes of useless struggling, I felt a hard tugging on my face. The panther let out a roar as the potion set and then stood up, which took half of my face, my right eye, and my whole jawbone with it. I tried to grab a healing potion and the other panthers appeared because of the white panther''s roar. In the next moment, I was swarmed and torn apart. _______________ Do you wish to start the story over or reload from the save point (cost: 100 credits)? Reload save point. I thought. _______________ Resetting story to save point. Restoring options. Done. Resuming story. _______________ The quite heavy panther was enjoying itself immensely as it licked up my blood... ...and so it went. I died, and died, and died again. I tried several different options, even one of the stupid ones, and it was just me pleading to the thing until it got tired of my talking and bit my head off to shut me up. _______________ Do you wish to start the story over or reload from the save point (cost: 450 credits)? Reload save point. I thought. If it doesn''t work this time... _______________ Resetting story to save point. Restoring options. Done. Resuming story. _______________ It gave me the same little story blurb about the panther loving the taste of my blood and then the choices popped up again. _______________ You have a choice to make. Will it be the right one that will let you live or will it be a bloody end for you and a tasty treat for the panther? A) Take a breath. B) Take a Healing potion. C) Throw a #10 potion. D) Take a Strength potion. E) Use a plant killer potion. F) Use a mental enhancement potion. G) Cast Fire Starter. H) Cast Shield. I) Cast Heating. J) Cast Lather. K) Do something stupid. L) Do something very stupid. M) Choose two. I read the options again from the popup and shook my head. Screw it. I''m doing the really stupid one. A five second timer popped up and I ignored it. I don''t need two options. I''m picking L. _______________ Out of all the options I had previously picked, this one was definitely the stupidest. 223 Academy Antics Part Eighty Seven - The Marsh Is Full Part Eight I moved my hand slightly and the panther on my back didn''t react. I wiggled my fingers and slowly pulled the bandoleer through my hand to get to the right pocket. I definitely felt very stupid for what I was about to do as I popped the pocket open and plucked out a vial of the most powerful magical ingredient I had ever encountered. The panther had my upper arms pinned near my body, so I still had some movement with my lower arms. I needed to be careful, though. If I moved too fast or made too much noise, I would be dead before I knew it. I very carefully bent my arm at the elbow and my hand with the filled vial reached my shoulder. Unfortunately, it was the same shoulder that the panther was happily lapping my blood from. I didn''t try to move again for several minutes, then very carefully lifted my head from the puddle and moved it to the lip of the vial. The panther didn''t react, so I slowly pulled the cork with my teeth and then froze as the panther stopped mid-lick and all its muscles tensed up. My lungs were screaming for air by this point and I had to wait for the smell from the vial do its work before I acted. Rushing would only get me killed quicker. I very carefully tipped a few sprinkles of refined fungus powder out onto the ground and replaced the cork. I moved both my face and my hand with the vial away from the spot and waited. The panther on my back let out a rumbling growl beside my ear and I stopped moving from the clear warning. It shifted its weight and stepped off my upper arms to lean down past my head to sniff at the ground. I saw a visible shiver ripple across the white fur and then the panther''s tongue darted out to touch the sprinkles. The purr it let out was so loud that I had to ignore the pain it caused in my ear. There must have been some magic to the panther''s voice, because it shouldn''t be able to do that. Thankfully, with most of its weight off of my body, I took a very long and shallow breath to slowly draw air into my lungs. It was greatly needed and my mind and body stopped protesting the lack of air that I had subjected it to. The white panther''s tongue licked the ground again and it didn''t get as big of rush and the purr lessened. It stopped with the third lick and it let out a low growl. I stayed still, even when it used a paw and swiped my hand with the vial tightly gripped in it. I hissed a little as the claws stuck out a little and it swiped at my hand again. I still didn''t let go, despite the furrows it slashed in the back of my hand. The white panther moved its muzzle towards my face and bared its teeth as it growled. I didn''t react, so it nudged my head with its own. I remained passive and let it hit me a couple of times. Its growl increased and it snapped its teeth right in front of my eyes, a clear threat. ¡°You need to get off of me. I can''t move.¡± I said and then felt a large paw on the side of my head and then felt the panther put most of its weight on my head as it growled again. It also pushed my face partially back into the puddle. I held in my groan of pain at the pressure it was exerting and then it eased off and disappeared. It swiped at my hand again and I hissed at the repeated damage. The blood flowed out and the panther licked it, since it was right there. It didn''t purr, which was a huge improvement in my eyes. Thanks to it tasting something so much better than my blood, I was sure that me being eaten was definitely off of the creature''s mind now. I lifted my head slightly, now that the paw wasn''t holding my head down. ¡°Back off.¡± I said and it growled. ¡°I can''t open it again with only one hand.¡± I lied and it didn''t detect it, which was a huge relief. It moved down to open its mouth, I assumed to take it, so I moved my hand to cover it completely. It growled and placed its mouth onto my hand and slowly closed it to put pressure on my fingers. ¡°If you take my hand, I can''t give you any more. If you eat it and the bottle, you won''t taste it at all and it''ll be a complete waste.¡± The panther growled and closed its jaws slightly to let me feel the sharp teeth. It did not like me denying it what it wanted. At all. I heard a finger snap and felt one of the bottom teeth dislodge one of the little bones in my wrist. ¡°That''s not helping.¡± I said in a stern voice and the growl went louder. ¡°Let. Me. Go.¡± I ordered and it growled a little more, then it opened its mouth and lifted its head to look at my face. ¡°Move over.¡± It glared at me, as if I was beneath it. I had seen similar looks on the people in the village when I was younger and also from the students in the academy, so I was used to it and didn''t react. It huffed and then stepped off of my calves as it moved to stand right beside my body. I groaned in relief before I could stop myself, because all of that weight was gone from holding me down. The creature growled at me and I rolled onto my side and held my good hand up in a clear surrender gesture. ¡°I know that''s annoying. I couldn''t help it.¡± I said and took a deep breath for the first time in a while. ¡°Good god, that hurt.¡± I tenderly touched my very damaged and bleeding hand. The white panther growled and lifted a paw. ¡°Yes, just a second.¡± I said, a bit angrily, then I sighed and looked around for something flat. I saw a nice rock near my bandoleer and pointed to it, then did my best to crawl and not make any sudden moves. If it thought I was leaving, I would be dead and that would be that. I wiped at the rock for a second with my good hand, reached for my bandoleer and tied it around my waist, and used the cleaning solution to pour a few drops onto the rock. It was cleaned instantly and I used some number ten potion to raise the sides slightly and made a bowl. The creature growled at me and I did my best to not sigh or roll my eyes at it, because I was sure that would earn me a swat with its claws. It''s magically charged claws, now that I got a good look at them.Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°I''m making it better, all right?¡± I asked and it didn''t react. I used some of the puddle water and added it to the rock bowl, then cleaned it with a drop of solution. I used the heating spell and the water warmed up significantly, so I popped the cork on the vial of fungus powder and sprinkled a little bit in. The white panther growled and I chuckled. ¡°I''m not wasting it, trust me.¡± I said and had a neat idea. I added a few drops of my catalyst to it, just for that extra kick, and added a touch of my magic. That got a lot of attention and I felt more than saw fifteen presences approach at a run. I wasn''t the only one, because the white panther''s hackles rose and it let out a low warning growl as its tail stiffened and puffed out. I somehow knew that it wasn''t directed at me. The black panthers appeared in front of us and a few of them were pacing back and forth. They knew something good was near them and now that they were close enough, they could smell my fresh blood. One of them let out a probing growl and the white panther turned to glare at them and counter-growled. The black panther huffed and paced a bit more. The white panther turned to glare at me and I understood. I was running out of time and I better deliver something good. I wished I had some meat to add to my impromptu fungus broth and refrained from adding any of my own. I glanced around to see if there was anything, and saw a few tubers and tiny mushrooms at the base of one of the trees. I pointed and the panthers all looked over at it. With them slightly distracted, I used the wound cleaning solution on my hand and felt a cool relief from the burning. I drank a healing potion and the bleeding stopped and the bones popped back into place. All of the claw and teeth wounds were still there, however. Magical wounds were very hard to heal. I picked up the odd-shaped bowl and walked over to the tree, then prepped the ingredients and the mushrooms to add to the bowl that was simmering nicely. It was kind of funny that I was making a vegetable stew in the middle of the marsh and surrounded by lethal predators. I didn''t laugh, just in case the sound set them all off and made them ignore the white panther to chew on me instead. I heard a rustling sound nearby and turned to look at the very unfortunate near-rabbit that just so happened to hop into view. _______________ You have a choice to make. Will it be beneficial or a hindrance? A) Wait. B) Attack the panthers. C) Run. D) Kill the rabbit. E) Yell. F) Climb the tree. G) Die. Yeah, okay. I thought with a chuckle. I''m barely hurt right now, so I''m way ahead where I thought I could be. I looked at the options and smiled. I did say that I wished I had some meat for the broth, so I''ll choose D. _______________ I had my knife out cutting ingredients already, so I charged it instantly and threw it at the unsuspecting near-rabbit. It let out a squeal as it was pinned to the ground and I dashed over to it and quickly snapped its neck to kill it. None of the panthers reacted at all, which was surprising. None of them tried to steal the kill, either. I brought the carcass back over to the tree and then gutted and skinned it expertly. As I did so, I inadvertently garnered a lot more attention. Well, the entrails and bloody near-rabbit did, actually. I looked at the white panther and motioned to the entrails and then the black panthers. It let out a huff, which was pretty much it saying it didn''t care, so I gathered them up and tossed the entrails at the black panthers. After a short tussle between a couple of them, one of the females had a bloody muzzle and was licking its chops. I nodded at her and used some more number ten potion to the bowl to make it deeper, then cut one of the vines around the tree to get more liquid. All of the panthers watched me, as if I was the most fascinating thing in the world, and I guessed that I was. They probably hadn''t seen anyone like me before, not for long and still alive, anyway. I''m their food cooking food for them. I thought with a chuckle. Yep, this is pretty much the stupidest thing I''ve ever done. I quickly set up a little fire and put the rabbit on a spit, then lit the fire. Nearly all the panthers let out startled yelps and growls, which made me laugh. I clamped my mouth shut, in case my laugh did piss them off, and increased the heat of the fire and also the heat of the rabbit. It was thoroughly cooked a very short time later, so I stripped it down into nice chunks, treated it with a quick rub of fungus powder, and added the meat to the deep bowl made of rock. I placed it on the fire and stirred the thick stew with a stick, cleaned of course, and let it simmer. The smell was making me hungry, and that was saying something, considering the situation I was in. I glanced around and saw that some of the panthers were literally drooling, especially the female that had eaten the entrails. I couldn''t give it to them, because I was actually buying myself time with the big one that seemed to be in charge. The white panther stood nearby as if guarding me. When the stew was done, I slowly stood and extinguished the flames, used the cooling charm on the deep rock bowl and not the stew, and picked it up. I walked over to the white panther and knelt as I placed the large bowl of specially prepared near-rabbit stew with fungus powder and magic infusion in front of it. ¡°Your highness.¡± I said, without traces of a sarcastic tone in my voice. I knew who was running the place and I wasn''t going to call that into question, not when it could easily kill me. I slowly backed away and ducked my head in clear submission. The white panther let out a little huff and slowly bent down to the edge of the bowl. Its eyes bored into mine and I didn''t divert my gaze, because that would be a death sentence as well. You never, ever take your eyes off of a predator when its locked onto you, unless you are running for your life. The creature''s tongue darted out of its barely opened mouth and it lapped at the broth. Its body stiffened as soon as its tongue touched the liquid and then it purred very loudly when the broth entered its mouth. In the next second, its muzzle was buried into the deep rock bowl. Broth and ingredients splashed out of the sides as it desperately tried to eat as much of the meat as it could. I refrained from telling it to take its time, mainly because I didn''t want to get its attention while it was in a feeding frenzy. Its magic flared and all four sets of claws dug into the ground as it tried to somehow get deeper into the bowl, as if that could get the food into its mouth faster. I didn''t laugh, though. I did not want its attention right now. After a couple minutes, the white panther shivered and its fur rippled, then it lifted its head to look right at me. I didn''t move, or breathe, or show any inclination to do either. It squinted its eyes at me for a few seconds, then it let out a huff and turned away. The other panthers were suddenly there and a rolling fight broke out over the bits and pieces that had been splashed out of the bowl. A few had been smart and lapped at the spilled broth, which gave them a bit of an upper hand, then they fought for the extra chunks, too. I was not going to miss this opportunity and carefully backed up away from the scuffle, reached the thick underbrush nearby, and then slunk away. Once I had crawled far enough away from the area, I ran. I ran and ran and ran. 224 Academy Antics Part Eighty Eight - The Marsh Conclusion After nearly an hour, I slowed down and tried to catch my breath. I had zigzagged, backtracked, muddied up my tracks, disguised my scent, and did everything I could to make sure that nothing could easily follow me. I came to a stop and realized that I was almost three quarters of the way back to the house and slumped against a tree to rest, because I hadn''t run like that since basic training. I waited a few minutes before I used Sense Magic and the only thing around me that glowed slightly, was the tree in front of me. I chuckled at so easily finding a wildwood tree and cut it down and cleaned it of the smaller branches. I tied it up in a harness for easy dragging, then walked the rest of the way back to the house. I didn''t have the energy to jump any of the waterways after a run like that and used the tree to cross them instead. I laid it down, walked across it, and picked it up again. I continued on and made it back to the house an hour later, dropped the tree beside the front door and went inside. I glanced at the wounds on my hand and sighed, because they were magical and couldn''t be healed by normal means. There also wasn''t enough flat skin around it for me to do the cross cut trick and apply healing potion to heal them, either. The damage was too extensive. I sighed and went to my bedroom and climbed onto the bed, not bothering to clean myself of the dirt, dried blood and mud. I laid on my back and fell asleep right away. The day and night passed before I knew it and I woke up the next day. I groaned at the stiffness in my muscles from over-exerting myself and sat up in bed. I knew right away I had lost an entire day and cursed under my breath, because I didn''t have anything to show for it, except for the felled tree and a slightly mangled hand. I was glad the broken finger and dislodged bone in my wrist were only pressure wounds and not magical wounds. They had healed with the healing potion and I wasn''t crippled. The furrows that the panther''s claws had made in the flesh and skin were already getting stiff and I opened and closed my fist to test the movement. If I was careful, I shouldn''t be too hampered by the damage. I sighed and went to grab my pack, took out my enchanting tools, and went to my work room. I set up for some extensive enchanting and then went outside. I quickly cut up all of the tree into coins, not caring to keep to the one foot wide restriction I used to have. I knew that I could make them any size between the normal size and four inches, so I managed to get a lot of two inch thick wooden coins out of a forty foot long tree. I didn''t really have a lot of time left to get to carving, barely a full day, because on the last day I was going to have to deploy them. However, I had lots of time to use my number ten potion trick to make more wildwood while I carved. I was going to need a lot of enchantments to do what I wanted. I set up all of my potion stations for number ten potions and started carving. The first enchantments I made were the ''men keep away and ignore'' enchantments. They didn''t need the full suite of camouflage or pain, so I easily switched them out for extended time and magic reservoirs and blew through them like nothing. When the potions were done twenty minutes later, I used the large molds and a single uncut wildwood coin with the potion to create a five foot by five foot wildwood panel that was two inches thick. Each coin gave me 25 square wildwood pieces for enchanting and I had three molds, so every twenty minutes, I had another 75 things to enchant. It was awesome. I could use the potion to increase the ingredients I had to make potion and used the potion to increase the wildwood I had available, and I enchanted for half the day without break. I stopped for lunch and divided up some of the water beast for prepping and cooking, the rest for the smoker. I wasn''t sure when I was going to be back, so it was more make-work than anything else. I finished by the time the food was ready and ate my fill, then switched the enchantments I was making. I had enough of one and switched to the one that I had made for the supervisor mage. I changed the men rune for the creature rune and also altered the pleasure bonus and magic reserves. I didn''t want them swarming the canal banks and becoming easy targets. I wanted them to be right nearby for when people tried to get past the ''keep away'' enchantments, because I wasn''t stupid. I knew they would somehow figure it out and I wanted them to be discouraged from doing so. They would know how dangerous the marsh was, because I was going to force it on them. I worked for the rest of the day making the ''creature lure'' enchantments and piled both of them into my boat. I had so many of them that I had to start bundling them together in tarps and then piled the tarps on top of each other. I was a bit too tired to leave right away, so I went inside the house and went to bed after eating a bit more fried water beast. I slept for several hours and then got up, grabbed two cases of number ten potion, since I was going to be using a lot of it, and left the house. I pushed the boat back into the waterway and quickly made my way all the way back to the village and slowed down when I got to the harbour. I watched the docks as I slowly passed them and entered the canal that the army used for travel. Once I was out of sight, I sped up to get half a mile away and stopped beside the widened wall of the canal. I climbed up and went fifty feet into the trees and attached the ''keep away'' enchantment on one side of the tree and the ''creature lure'' on the other side of the tree. I chuckled at the combination and made my way back to the boat. I activated both and shivered as I felt the need to get away from the side of the canal. When I was ten feet away from the bank, it lessened and I smiled. I went to the other side of the bank and did the same thing. When it was set up on that side as well, I rode my boat nearly two hundred feet away and did both sides of the canal again.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. I worked on and on, never stopping, for the rest of the night and for half of the day. I had to be very careful while around the relay stations, using my camouflage enchantment, and set up those wards behind and around them. Unlike the canal, they would have to move around and patrol within their grounds, so I allowed that. They would have to stop if ordered to go any farther than that, though. I caught a couple fish and cooked them up for lunch, ate them, and kept working. I had plenty of the enchantments and in some areas where there were great patches of ingredients, I doubled up on the ''keep away'' enchantments and kept going. I spent the rest of the day and part of the night placing the enchantments and reaching all the way to the Eastern Kingdom. Unfortunately, the new garrison was well into the marsh, so I couldn''t get too close to it. I dropped off a dozen enchantments all over the trees and even in the underbrush, then beat it out of there. I hopped back into my boat and took off at my best speed. The best part about them making the canal was that it cut the normal travel time down significantly, because the route was practically a straight line between relay stations. I also didn''t attack any of the ships travelling along the route, since I didn''t know which ones were carrying my stolen ingredients. I eyed them warily, knowing they were shipping lots of things that could include my things, and sighed when I made it back to the village harbour. I crept over to the waterway to go back to the house and took off at my fastest speed. I made it home and hopped out of the boat, looked around the place, and sighed that all of the fun and things I had planned to do, were ruined by the tasks I had to do. It pissed me off and I pushed those thoughts away and loaded the crates of things I was taking with me. I had lots of number ten potions, a crate each of Strength, Fortifying, Death Spider Anti-Venom, and Mental Enhancement. They were all the full power versions, too. I also fixed my bandoleer and refilled the used potions, entered my stash and took out the three books and added them to my pack with the other two, and sealed everything back up. I also thought about digging out my chest of gold crowns to take back with me, then decided that I didn''t need to. There was tons of money in my bank account, thanks to all the potions Helena sold and I wouldn''t need to bring more. I looked at my appearance that I hadn''t even considered fixing for the whole time I was there, and went to the washing up barrel. I did my best to clean up and then used some cleaning solution to finish the job and dressed in my adventuring outfit again. I locked the house, sealed it with potion, and climbed back into the boat. I gave my house one last look, a longing look, and drove the boat away at a moderate speed. Now that I was on my way home, I wasn''t in as big of a rush as I should have been. I still had lots of canvas bags to fill with ingredients, so I made a few pit stops to gather up what I could. I didn''t venture far, since I was clean and didn''t smell like the marsh anymore. I passed the village two hours later and no one paid me any attention, since it was getting late. I sped up when I entered the other waterway to go to the next town and made it there three hours later. I docked the boat into a private slip, which I paid well for, and sealed my crates and ingredient bags under a tarp. I went to the closest inn and bought a room for the night, changed for bed, and slept until morning. I went back to my boat, which was unmolested, and left the dock at my slowest speed. No one batted an eye at me and when I was out of sight, I sped up to full. I drove the boat for a long time to take me all the way back to the capital. I knew the way now and didn''t have to slow down at all. I used the enchantment to camouflage myself a few times as well, especially when passing army boats and any that had family crests. I made it back to the capital that evening before it got dark and drove the boat over to the Henrietta Longshore Estate. All of the larger estates had water access somewhere on their properties and ours was on the far side of the wildwood tree grove. ¡°Welcome back, my lord!¡± An enthusiastic man exclaimed. ¡°If you''ll wait a moment, the workers will get you a cart for your things.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and stepped out of the boat. ¡°I see the outside wall on the property is finally complete.¡± ¡°Yes, sir! They finished it just the other day.¡± The boat tender said and tied the boat up securely. ¡°They''re all enjoying their time off until the next job, sir.¡± ¡°We sure are.¡± A worker said and brought over a hand cart and a crew of four men. ¡°A nice relaxing vacation is needed after all of that.¡± He waved at the eight foot tall wall that was three feet thick. ¡°Do you really want an enclosed walkway behind it like the walls around the mansion, my lord?¡± ¡°Yes, but it''s not a priority. Enjoy a few weeks off, maybe take another little job or two, then you can come back and be well paid again.¡± I said and the workers laughed. They quickly moved my things from the boat to the cart and I walked beside them as we went through the grove of trees. They commented that the horses were all asleep and they couldn''t bring one. I chuckled and said that I didn''t have access to a horse for years and used to do it all by hand anyway. They nodded, most hearing the stories of my origin and where I came from, and they seemed to be a bit in awe of me. Surprisingly, none of them mentioned my damaged hand. My eyes fell upon the back of the mansion and a smile grew on my face when even from this far away, I heard my name be yelled by a very familiar voice. I felt the telltale shiver of magic flow over me from a powerful spell, then my eyes widened as a figure burst out of the back door of the mansion and ran towards me at the speed of a horse. ¡°Gentlemen, step aside if you please.¡± I said and the workers scattered, knowing what was coming. ¡°DAVID!¡± Helena yelled desperately, the glow of magic around her, and I cast Dispel as she leapt at me. Her speed cut drastically and I opened my arms to catch her. She cast something else that slowed her speed drastically again, then she landed like a feather in my arms and hugged me tightly. ¡°David.¡± Helena whispered as she stared into my eyes. ¡°Helena.¡± I whispered and stared right back. Then we kissed passionately. 225 Academy Antics Part Eighty Nine - The Talk Helena and I stayed there making out and the men around us were both looking and not looking at us. They all had approval on their faces, too. Eventually, Helena let out a sigh into my mouth and broke the kiss without letting me go. Her face wasn''t completely flushed red, which meant she was restraining herself. ¡°We need to talk.¡± Helena said, her voice promising that it was going to be a long one. ¡°Of course. I expected nothing less.¡± I said and eased my hold on her, then assumed the escort position and she clung to my arm as if she never wanted to let it go. ¡°Gentlemen.¡± ¡°My lord.¡± The workers said and we all walked calmly back to the mansion. I grabbed my pack from the cart and told them to unload the bags of ingredients and crates of potion into the potion room in the basement, then handed each of them a gold crown. They tried to refuse for a moment, until Helena gave them a stern look. They accepted the coin and practically ran into the back door with the items. ¡°That was handy. Even I can''t get them to do that.¡± I commented and Helena laughed softly. ¡°That''s because they adore you and are reluctant to accept anything like extra money or praise from you.¡± Helena said and leaned against me. ¡°However, I command them to move and they do.¡± ¡°Like I said, handy.¡± I repeated and she smiled slyly at me as we entered the back door. ¡°I need a b-word after travelling all day and I have to drop my pack into the vault.¡± Helena''s eyes almost danced at me not saying the magic word. ¡°So, it''s true what Hope said.¡± ¡°I understand the power of the word now, after gaining a second personal maid.¡± Helena looked like she was fighting not to laugh. ¡°I should step back and see the impact.¡± ¡°It''s a bit terrifying if you''re not ready for it.¡± I said and she laughed. ¡°All right.¡± Helena let my arm go and took exactly two steps away. ¡°Let''s see it.¡± ¡°I need a bath.¡± I said and almost quick as a flash, two very excited women had appeared at my sides and gripped my arms as if I was going to try and run away. ¡°My lord, we''ll have you set to rights as soon as possible.¡± Sara said, assuredly. ¡°It will have to be quick, since supper will be served soon.¡± Tabitha said and the two of them dragged me out of the room without waiting to see if I was going to move my feet. Helena''s unrestrained laughter followed us all the way to the stairs and then I was brought to the main bedroom''s very large bathroom and stripped. My pack was placed within my reach and I was placed into the large tub. I was scrubbed quite thoroughly from head to foot and then asked to stand. I had another double ritual, this time with Tabitha first and Sara second. I wasn''t sure how they worked out who got to do what normally and I didn''t question it. If they handled any problems they have, without my input, that was all for the better. I was dried off and then dressed in my best meal suit. I detached the canvas sack from the top of my pack and handed the sack to Sara. ¡°It''s cookie bread. Please distribute it to the staff and workers while leaving some for the meeting tomorrow.¡± Sara''s eyes widened and she nodded before leaving on her important task. I put the pack into the personal vault without taking anything out and then Tabitha led me down to the large dining room. Helena was already there and sat to the right of the main chair at the table. She was impeccably dressed and I walked over to her to give her a kiss and sat down myself. We enjoyed a nice meal of good food; but, it was a bit lacking in richness and flavor to what I was used to at the dorm mansion. I didn''t comment on it, because I didn''t want to cause any animosity within the kitchen staff. Plus, it was Helena''s staff as well. If she was happy with it, then that was good enough for me. Wine was served and I brought the meal to a formal end as I stood and gave a toast. A light round of applause responded. Before I could ask what the point of that was, the head butler stood up. ¡°Welcome back, my lord.¡± The butler said and bowed. The rest of the staff at the staff table stood and they bowed and curtsied, too. ¡°It has been long since you''ve graced us for a meal.¡± ¡°I''m sure my absence hasn''t been that pronounced.¡± I said and all of them had sad looks. ¡°David, we''ve all missed having you here.¡± Helena said, sincerely. ¡°Things are always much more lively with you around.¡± I glanced at her and then at all of the staff, who all nodded. ¡°I''ll promise to not skip any meals while I''m here at home.¡± I said and raised my wine glass for another toast. The staff scrambled a little and picked theirs up and raised them. ¡°Here, here.¡± We all drank and Helena stood as she put her wine glass down. ¡°We should retire to the parlour.¡± Helena said and I escorted her to the parlour and nodded at Hope. She brought the wine and followed us to the parlour and set it up. When she left, I touched the side of the bottle and chilled it instantly. Helena gave me a questioning look. ¡°It''s just the inverse of the heating spell you use on your plate all the time.¡± I explained and her eyes widened. ¡°I can show you how I did it if you want.¡± ¡°Maybe later.¡± Helena said, despite the flicker of interest in her eyes. ¡°Please sit. We have much to discuss.¡± I poured a bit of wine into new glasses and set them on the table without handing one to her, and sat down right next to her on the couch. I turned to her and took her hands, then I took a very deep breath and let it out.If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°I, as Lord Drake and your betrothed fiance, do hereby formally request the punishment you see fit to give me for my disgrace and the shame I''ve brought to you.¡± Helena took a deep breath herself. ¡°David, I don''t hold you responsible, so there''s no punishment to be issued on your behalf.¡± ¡°Helena, I did put myself into several questionable situations and...¡± ¡°...I completely trust you.¡± Helena said. ¡°Not only have you never lied to me, you''ve also never hidden anything that you''ve done or had done to you. You''ve even told me about all the the things you went through with the Hag, which is something I never expected you to do.¡± ¡°Mage King wasn''t a maid and she did the ritual.¡± I said and ducked my head a little. ¡°It wasn''t even after a bath.¡± ¡°That wasn''t your fault.¡± Helena said. ¡°You said in your message what happened and I don''t blame you at all.¡± ¡°I don''t know how I can make it up to you if you don''t blame me.¡± I said, dejectedly. Helena let my hands go and she cupped the sides of my face to make me look at her. ¡°You didn''t know she was going to do that, did you?¡± ¡°Well, no... but...¡± ¡°I want you to tell me exactly what she said.¡± Helena said. I repeated, word for word, what I had heard Mage King say that morning, including her words ''one more time before he wakes''. Helena nodded. ¡°Yes, that''s exactly what the investigators reported.¡± ¡°Investigators?¡± I asked. Helena had a smug smile on her face. ¡°As soon as your message was delivered to me and I read the contents, I contacted the academy immediately. The administration was less than pleased to hear that a teacher had taken liberties with a student.¡± ¡°I don''t understand.¡± I said. ¡°Let me explain.¡± Helena said and then enlightened me as to what a liaison between a teacher and student meant for both the parties involved, as well as how badly it reflected on both the teacher and the institution that had hired them. I questioned the fact that we were adults and Helena laughed. ¡°You could have been old enough to be her father and it would still look bad. She took advantage of her position over you to do what she wanted, regardless of your thoughts and feelings, both of which she was well aware of. She also knew that you were betrothed to me, as does the entire academy. She can''t claim ignorance like she tried to tell you.¡± I fell silent at her words and had to think about that. ¡°She also didn''t apologize for the act, only that she was caught at it.¡± Helena said and my eyes widened. ¡°I knew you would miss that distinction.¡± ¡°I only heard her say that she was sorry.¡± I admitted and Helena gave me a quick kiss. ¡°I know, and that''s why I said she took advantage of your trust.¡± Helena said and lightly kissed me again. ¡°I am so very sorry this happened to you. It broke my promise to you.¡± I shook my head in denial. ¡°I promised to protect you from anyone trying to take advantage of you, and I failed.¡± Helena said and she ducked her head a little. ¡°No, that''s not applicable in this, not with the way things came about.¡± I said and she looked into my eyes. ¡°You would have to be by my side constantly to prevent anything happening in that context, and I didn''t expect it to happen. We even had separate rooms and...¡± ¡°No, don''t try to justify it.¡± Helena said and kissed me again. She held it for several seconds before breaking it. ¡°Mage King did wrong and I''ll deal with it.¡± ¡°You will?¡± I asked, a bit surprised. ¡°When she showed up at the academy a day after leaving and without her student that was in her care and under her authority, it garnered a lot of attention.¡± Helena said and smiled wickedly. ¡°A lot of her actions over the last few years are being called into question because of it.¡± ¡°Am I in trouble?¡± I asked and she shook her head. ¡°How?¡± ¡°Once you were away from the academy and that incident happened, the rules about escorting became superfluous, since no one in their right minds would expect you to stay with her after that.¡± Helena said and her hands ran through my growing hair. ¡°Will you get this cut again?¡± ¡°If you want.¡± I said and she raised her eyebrows at me. ¡°I could have a shaggy mane or be completely bald for all I care.¡± Helena chuckled and covered her mouth with a hand. ¡°I can''t imagine you bald. I can''t.¡± I had to smile and didn''t remind her that I practically was bald after getting my hair cut in the army. Of course, we all were back then. It helped with making us all look more uniform and fit together as a unit. After a few moments, Helena gave me a concerned look. ¡°I''m tempted to challenge her to a duel.¡± ¡°She won''t accept.¡± I said immediately and she looked surprised. ¡°You would kill her right away, even if she chose the first blood rules or one hit each.¡± Helena''s eyes went predatory and she smiled evilly. ¡°That was my hope.¡± I reached up and ran my hand through her hair. ¡°You worked out the flaws in the rules as well?¡± Helena chuckled. ¡°Oh, yes. Nothing makes my mind work overtime like having to defend you, David.¡± I leaned forward and kissed her. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°No, David. Thank you.¡± Helena said, sincerely. ¡°I know I''ve pretty much thrown myself at you and I was very happy that you caught me.¡± ¡°Just like at the back of the house today?¡± I asked and that made her laugh. ¡°Very much so.¡± Helena said and snuggled in to me. ¡°How did you do that?¡± ¡°Dispel on whatever speed spell you used.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°I did feel a familiar wave of magic.¡± Helena said and relaxed. ¡°Pass me the wine, please.¡± I passed her a glass and took mine, then the two of us reclined slightly and held each other as we sipped. ¡°Helena.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± Helena asked. ¡°I love you.¡± I said and she turned her head to face me. ¡°I love you, too. With all my heart.¡± Helena responded. I gave her a quick kiss, then another. We took another sip of wine and sat there for nearly half an hour before she spoke. ¡°I''ve made you wait long enough, I think.¡± Helena said. I raised my eyebrows at her and she smiled evilly. ¡°All right, I''ve made myself wait long enough.¡± Helena corrected. ¡°I need you to make love to me.¡± I took her wine glass and placed it with mine on the table, cast the lock spell on the parlour door from across the room. That surprised her almost as much as me stripping her off without pause and did exactly as she asked, right there on the couch. Her opinion that we should only have sex in a bed, changed significantly that night. 226 Academy Antics Part Ninety - The Meetings Part One Helena and I retired to bed around midnight and she cuddled me the entire night. Unlike my sister when she dominated my arm and ensured I couldn''t escape, Helena had wrapped herself around me as if she was the blanket that was protecting me from the night''s chill. When I awoke in the morning, for the first time in a while, I didn''t want to get up. I was comfortable, had a wonderful woman in my arms, and I could feel her magic humming in tune with mine. It was a sensation that I hadn''t felt before, not to this extent. When I opened my eyes to look at her, her eyes snapped open as well. ¡°Good morning.¡± Helena whispered and lightly kissed me. ¡°Good morning.¡± I whispered back. ¡°I don''t want to get up.¡± Helena admitted, echoing my thoughts. ¡°What time is the first meeting?¡± ¡°Not until ten. We expect the negotiations to last for an hour and a half, a break for lunch, then finalizing the paperwork and signing the contracts.¡± I raised my eyebrows at her and she smiled. ¡°Remember what I told you before when you were still dating Diane and I made my offer.¡± ¡°Vanessa won''t be a ''woman on the side'', though. She''ll be an adjunct to you and to our family.¡± I said. ¡°Yes, she will. When she gives birth, we can exercise the option to renegotiate the terms, because she''ll have completed her family''s obligation.¡± Helena said. ¡°It all depends on if she''s happy or not by then.¡± I nodded. I knew that Vanessa wanted to get her family off of her back right away, which was why they were eager for the concubine contract to be signed so quickly. Word of me impregnating Helena on the first official try had made it to Vanessa''s family and they had asked for Helena to move their appointment from the middle of the week to today. ¡°We have about three hours before we need to get ready, if we skip breakfast.¡± ¡°I can''t.¡± Helena said and sat up, and her hand ran over the little bump she had in her belly. ¡°I can''t skip any meals and need to eat as well as possible.¡± I touched the spot and I felt a little tremble of magic. ¡°That wasn''t yours.¡± I said and she shook her head. I leaned down to put my ear against her belly. Using my vigilance technique, I heard Helena''s heartbeat and a second heartbeat. ¡°There''s really someone in there.¡± Helena chuckled. ¡°I''ve refused mother''s offer to have it checked for gender, too.¡± ¡°You already know it''s a boy. Why refuse?¡± I asked and she laughed softly. ¡°I want my father and brother to stew over if it''ll actually be a boy or not.¡± Helena said, her voice filled with venom. ¡°They treated you badly and are still slighting you, with what''s happening in the marsh.¡± ¡°You already know about it?¡± I asked. ¡°You mean the illegal dredging and straightening of the waterways, draining the surrounding marsh into it to fill what''s become a canal, and then widening the thing? Yes, I know all about it.¡± Helena said, her face angry. It only took me a moment to connect the pieces together. ¡°Your mother boasted about it.¡± ¡°Yes. It''s my father''s grand plan to quadruple the mages guild''s production of potions and to increase the trade between the guild and the new territories in the Eastern Empire.¡± ¡°Then I need to tell you about what I did while I was there.¡± I said and her hand picked my damaged one up to hold it. ¡°Tooth and claw marks from a large predator. Bear or boar?¡± She asked. ¡°Giant panther about this big.¡± I said and held my hand out off the side of the bed to show how tall it was. ¡°It was two to three hundred pounds, maybe more.¡± ¡°Oh, god.¡± Helena whispered. ¡°The marks on the back of your shoulder.¡± ¡°Teeth marks when it bit off my bandoleer.¡± I said and then told her about the whole encounter. She remained quiet until I told her that wasn''t what I was talking about when I said I needed to tell her something. ¡°What else could there be?¡± Helena asked. ¡°I had an idea when I was out killing the thieves that wouldn''t withdraw.¡± I said and then explained about making all the wards and distributing them all along the route, around the relay stations, and the garrison near the Eastern Empire. ¡°Oh, dear.¡± Helena laid down and looked up at the ceiling. ¡°How many do you think will die before they get the hint?¡± ¡°A few hundred, maybe close to a thousand.¡± I responded and she let out a sigh. ¡°I left a healer there to warn them.¡± ¡°Not about the wards, surely.¡± Helena said and I shook my head. ¡°No, only you and I know they exist.¡± ¡°You modified and overcharged them, didn''t you?¡± ¡°They''ll last a year or maybe a month longer.¡± I said. ¡°I made a lot of wildwood to work with.¡± ¡°In two days. You did it all in two days.¡± Helena said, her voice full of disbelief. ¡°You did the whole trade route in wards, on both sides, in only two days.¡± ¡°I could have done more if I hadn''t encountered the panthers and lost most of a day and that night.¡±This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. Helena turned her face to me and looked surprised. ¡°You can''t possibly...¡± ¡°I only gathered a dozen bags of ingredients on the way back here to the capital and I only made a dozen crates of potions at the house while I was there engraving, with one crate each of Strength, Fortifying, Mental Enhancement, and Spider Anti-venom. The rest are full strength number ten potions.¡± ¡°For sale or use?¡± ¡°Use.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°They''re in the basement and I need to go down there to prep the ingredients for storage.¡± ¡°Then we better get up.¡± Helena said and pet my head on her belly for a few minutes without moving. ¡°Helena?¡± I asked. ¡°Soon.¡± Helena said and we stayed there for another half an hour before finally getting up. ¡°Bath!¡± She said and three delighted women came into the bedroom to gather us up and take us to the bathroom. We washed up together in the tub, thanks to Sara''s, Tabitha''s, and Jill''s enthusiastic movements, then Sara and Tabitha agreed to allow Jill to go first. ¡°Are you sure? This is their first bath together in so long.¡± Jill said and both of the other maids nodded. ¡°We''ll critique your performance, so do your best.¡± Sara said and Tabitha nodded again. Jill had a determined look on her face and then really did do her best to perform the ritual. The other two gave hints and some corrections and watched attentively. Even Helena watched with satisfaction as her maid performed very well. I was a bit surprised she would bother watching, considering that it had been why Mage King had been the subject of both of our ire. However, she later explained that she did the same thing I did and had split the acts in her mind. They were separate instances, because they weren''t the same or done with the same dedication and devotion as the maids. I heartily agreed. Jill finished up and Sara and Tabitha lightly applauded and then pat her shoulders to tell her that she did a great job. ¡°Thank you.¡± She said to them and looked up at me. ¡°And thank you, my lord.¡± I reached down and cupped the side of her face. ¡°You don''t get to practice anywhere near as much as Sara and Tabitha do. I finished quickly, so you can be assured and confident in your skills.¡± Jill blushed a little and nodded. ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± ¡°We''ll go to breakfast first, so casual dress until an hour before the meeting.¡± Helena said and we were dried off and led out to the bedroom to be properly dressed. We all went downstairs and ate breakfast, then I went down into the basement to my potions room and parsed out all of the ingredients I had gathered and then prepped them for proper storage. I finished up and packed them away into containers just before Hope came downstairs to get me. ¡°It''s time, my lord.¡± Hope said and I followed her all the way back up to the bedroom to get changed into my best suit for greeting important people. Helena was already there and being dressed in a gown that was both conservative and daring. Her hair was done up in a fancy hairdo with a bit of lace and what looked like a diamond hairpin. We were ready in plenty of time and brought down to the parlour... the same one we had sex in the night before. Helena''s face flushed a little red as we sat on the very couch that she had been bent over and had yelled my name in pleasure on. About twenty minutes later, I heard several people enter the main lobby of the mansion and nodded to Helena. We both stood up and waited for the door to open. When it did, a very well dressed woman in a gown that was stylish and practical, that also showed off her cleavage to great effect, dragged a man into the room by his arm. She stood him up straight and fussed over his appearance. ¡°My lord, my lady.¡± Hope said and bowed to us. ¡°May I present Baron Sellwafer and his wife, Baroness Sellwafer.¡± Helena had to cover her mouth to stop her laugh at the frightened look on the man and the frustrated look on the woman. ¡°As lady of this house, I greet thee and welcome you into our home''s embrace.¡± Baroness Sellwafer looked absolutely pleased by Helena''s words and her husband was white as a sheet. ¡°I told you that they are above such concerns.¡± She whispered to her husband and left him by the door to walk over to us with a hand out. ¡°It''s so nice to finally meet you in person.¡± She said and shook Helena''s hand and then held a hand out to me. ¡°Lord Drake.¡± ¡°Baroness Sellwafer.¡± I said and bent over her hand to lightly brush my lips over her knuckles as I held her hand tenderly. ¡°You are as lovely in appearance as your daughter.¡± She laughed at my words and glanced at Helena. ¡°He''s pouring on the charm for me, isn''t he? Vanessa didn''t say that he does this to everyone.¡± Helena nodded. ¡°If you earn a slightly higher opinion in his eyes, he''ll kiss the back of your hand instead and perhaps give you a touch of magic.¡± ¡°Oh, my.¡± Baroness Sellwafer said and smiled at me. ¡°I''ll refrain from asking how to earn that. Half the fun is the discovery.¡± I smiled and waved to the couch opposite the one Helena were just sitting on. ¡°Please, sit and relax. Would you like wine or tea?¡± ¡°Tea, please. It''s a little early for wine.¡± She said and glanced down at Helena''s slightly larger belly. ¡°I assume you have protective spells in place?¡± ¡°Cast the very next day.¡± Helena said with a beaming smile. ¡°Nothing is going to harm our child.¡± The Baroness nodded. ¡°We would do the same when it happens.¡± She turned to her husband and barked at him. ¡°Get over here!¡± ¡°Y-yes, d-dear.¡± The man said, almost snivelling, and nervously walked over to her side. They sat down together and Helena and I sat as well. ¡°Your husband seems to be a little nervous.¡± Helena commented as Hope served us all tea. ¡°Yes, he was all for this whole thing, pushing as much as possible, and even making you change the appointment to today... then he heard about the sudden rise in your fiance''s standing and becoming a full Lord and not the honorary lord title he has as a Baron.¡± Baroness Sellwafer said and chuckled. ¡°Now he''s a nervous wreck and can''t string two words together without stuttering.¡± ¡°It was surprising to find out my fiance became a lord without having to marry me first.¡± Helena said and gave me a loving look. ¡°However, the king himself granted an enormous piece of land to my David, thousands of acres of it, and then didn''t require any checks or balances when granting the title.¡± Both the Baron and his wife gasped at that. ¡°Yes, I know.¡± Helena said and looked back at them with a knowing smile. ¡°It''s going to be quite the adjustment for us to deal with all of the ramifications.¡± ¡°No doubt.¡± Baroness Sellwafer said. ¡°I can only imagine the ripples this is going to cause with the other nobles.¡± She glanced at her husband. ¡°As you can see.¡± Helena laughed softly and the Baroness joined her for several moments. ¡°So, shall we get down to the negotiations?¡± Helena asked. ¡°I assume you brought the contracts for us to fill out.¡± ¡°Yes, of course.¡± Baroness Sellwafer said and waved her hand at the door. There was a knock and a young man came in with Vanessa on his arm. She was dressed even more lavishly than her mother was and her face was bright red... probably because her chest was on display just as much as her mother''s was. The man sat Vanessa on the chair between the couches, placed there purposefully, and then he handed the relevant papers to the Baroness. The man gave me a look, as if he was warning me about hurting her, and left. ¡°Don''t mind him. He''s her slightly overprotective brother and he doesn''t approve of his younger sister being sold off.¡± The Baroness said with a laugh. ¡°As if I would ever do that!¡± Helena nodded. ¡°Then let''s start the discussion and get all the little bits worked out and out of the way first.¡± She said and the other woman nodded, looking quite happy with that decision. And so, the talks about Vanessa''s future began. 227 Academy Antics Part Ninety One - The Meetings Part Two Helena had been right and it did take nearly an hour and a half to work out the contract to the satisfaction of both families. Vanessa had stayed quiet for a lot of it, until Helena brought her right into the conversation when it came to the finances that she would have access to. ¡°I''m only going to be a concubine.¡± Vanessa protested. ¡°I shouldn''t have access to your family''s money.¡± Helena laughed. ¡°You have been listening to all of this so far, haven''t you?¡± ¡°Yes, but...¡± ¡°Even though we are only including David''s personal fortune at the moment, since we can''t officially tie our shared fortunes together until we are married, you get ten percent of it.¡± ¡°I want to argue the percentage, except we''re offering a substantial dowry for your acceptance of the contract and both amounts should nearly equal out.¡± Baroness Sellwafer said. ¡°That benefits both of our families, because neither of us will be losing any real money.¡± Helena got a wicked gleam in her eye. ¡°Obviously, you haven''t checked the actual numbers.¡± She said and flipped several pages of her own papers she had prepared for the meeting. ¡°On page six, you''ll see David''s current shared holdings, their worth, and his account balance at the bank.¡± ¡°He''s a newly minted Lord, I''m sure that it''s not that significant.¡± The Baroness said and flipped to the page. She read the relevant section and almost choked. Her husband kind of blanked out, too. ¡°Ten percent of that can easily open Vanessa''s own account at the bank, which I''ve already put in place.¡± Helena said. ¡°As soon as you sign the contract, it goes into trust and the bank will control it until it comes into effect with my marriage and the initiation of the contract''s full aspect, in which Vanessa needs to meet her obligations.¡± ¡°But... how... this isn''t...¡± The Baroness sputtered and Vanessa''s face flushed red as she blushed. I could tell that neither of them suspected just how much money I had been making with the furniture and potion orders. ¡°Before you say anything else, this is David''s own money and I only contributed in selling his products.¡± Helena said. ¡°By the way, David.¡± I turned my head to look at her. ¡°We have another hundred orders for both cabinets and dressers.¡± ¡°There''s plenty of the potion in the basement and I''ll brew up some more if needed this week while I restock you with healing and general health potions.¡± I said with a slight smile. ¡°When the workers come back from their time off, let Frank loose on them. You''ll have the orders filled in a day, maybe two.¡± Helena chuckled. ¡°He really loves your full powered potion. They all do.¡± I nodded. ¡°It makes things so much easier and they can do some amazing things with their detailing that they couldn''t do with normal woodworking tools.¡± ¡°It really is amazing.¡± Helena said to the Baroness. ¡°You haven''t seen anything until you''ve seen 60 professional men constructing expensive looking furniture while practically laughing their asses off at how easy it is.¡± ¡°I would like to see that, actually.¡± The Baroness said with a smile. ¡°D-David, this... are you sure...¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°Helena worked out all the details for this, not me.¡± I said and Vanessa''s eyes widened. ¡°She''s the one looking out for my safety and to make sure I''m not being taken advantage of.¡± ¡°I would never!¡± Vanessa gasped and then covered her mouth. ¡°I''m sorry!¡± Helena reached across me and took Vanessa''s hand. ¡°Don''t be. I would have said the same thing. My indignation would match yours, you see.¡± ¡°Lady Henrietta...¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°No, none of that. Even if we don''t sign the contracts after lunch, from now on you are to call me Helena.¡± Helena said with a welcoming smile. ¡°If you don''t sign, I''m going to feel so very sad that you''ll have to stop your cuddling in class.¡± Vanessa caught her breath and blushed very hard. ¡°Yes, I know. David doesn''t keep things from me.¡± Helena said and gave her hand a squeeze before letting it go. ¡°It''s one of the reasons I''ve been open to accepting a concubine contract from you.¡± ¡°It... it is?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°Yes, when I first met David, we were...¡± Helena chuckled. ¡°I can''t reveal military secrets. Needless to say, I was very excited by the things he showed me and my reaction was quite profound.¡± ¡°No comment.¡± I said, not wanting to reveal that Helena had revealed herself to me. Helena leaned against me with a laugh. ¡°Just before I left his presence, I whispered to him that actions speak louder than words.¡± Vanessa looked from her to me, and back to her. ¡°You did?¡± ¡°Yes. I know by your actions that you genuinely care for him and I can''t in good conscience not do what I can to ensure that neither of you are taken advantage of.¡± Helena said, matter of factly. ¡°I am very glad to hear that.¡± The Baroness said. ¡°This last stipulation... are you sure this is what you want?¡± Helena nodded. ¡°Once the main parts of the contract have been fulfilled, Vanessa can renegotiate on her own terms, rather than that of our families, since both obligations on our behalf will be completed.¡± ¡°Vanessa? What do you think?¡± The Baroness asked her daughter. ¡°I... I think...¡± ¡°It''s time we changed for lunch.¡± I said and nodded at the door just as Hope knocked. ¡°My lords, my ladies.¡± Hope said as she opened the door. ¡°Lunch will be served in half an hour.¡±Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. The Baroness looked a little surprised. ¡°We didn''t bring...¡± ¡°All has been arranged.¡± Helena said and stood with me on her arm. ¡°Hope, take them to the guest rooms.¡± ¡°Yes, my lady.¡± Hope said. ¡°If you will follow me, you can change to less formal attire and then I''ll lead you to the dining room.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± The Baroness said and stood, as did her husband and Vanessa. ¡°Thank you.¡± We watched Hope lead the three guests to the rooms and we followed at a good distance, so we wouldn''t disturb them. Jill, Sara, and Tabitha were waiting for us and we were quickly stripped to dress in clothing more suited for eating and then we went back down to the dining room. The seating was arranged to put me at the head, Helena on my right and Vanessa on my left. We didn''t sit down until the guests came in. I sat Helena down and then took Vanessa''s hand and sat her down, then took the Baroness to sit her beside Helena, putting her higher in social standing than her husband. I then had to decide where to put him. _______________ You have a choice to make. It will affect your future interactions with the Sellwafer family as a whole. A) Sit him with Vanessa. B) Sit him with his wife. C) Ask him. D) Ask his wife. E) Ask Helena. I nearly laughed at the choices, because it made me realize the importance of getting to choose people''s seating at meals. The only one who really knows his worth is his wife, so I choose D. _______________ I leaned down and whispered a quick question into the ear of the Baroness, which made her laugh out loud. She turned her head and whispered back. Her answer made me smile, then she changed her mind and whispered again. I nodded and invited her husband to sit on Vanessa''s left, which still left him with more respect than he would have gotten by sitting on the far side of his wife. It also would have unbalanced the seating at the table, emphasizing him being ostracized and pretty much demoted in standing, just like I had chosen while attending meals with the Henrietta Family. The man looked pleased and the meal proceeded with a lot less formality than they were used to, because I could tell they were slightly awkward in their movements and their conversation. I nodded to Helena and she took the hint. ¡°You are our honored guests, so please relax. We only go full formal for supper.¡± Helena said and the three guests visibly relaxed, now that they had permission. The conversation flowed much better after that and I felt Vanessa tap on my left hand. ¡°Can you explain that?¡± Vanessa asked and pointed to my damaged right hand. ¡°I had hoped to save that for after lunch as we unwind in the parlour.¡± I said and she squinted her eyes at me. ¡°You better tell her.¡± Helena said with a soft laugh. ¡°She might not be happy to wait like I was.¡± ¡°I''ll only talk about that incident and save the lead up for later.¡± I said and everyone nodded. ¡°Well, I went back to the marsh at the end of last week and had the brilliant idea to check out one of the dragon''s nesting areas to see if it had grown back with them dead.¡± ¡°No!¡± Vanessa gasped and gripped my hand. ¡°Don''t tell me they came back!¡± ¡°Luckily, no. I don''t think we''ll see any more of them for a while, if ever.¡± I said and she let out a relieved sigh. ¡°It was a large group of black panthers.¡± The Baroness and her daughter took in sharp breaths. ¡°H-how large?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°Fifteen.¡± I said and she looked faint. I put my arm over her shoulder to hold her steady. ¡°Maybe I should save it for later like I planned.¡± ¡°No, I... I can take it.¡± Vanessa said, her voice firm. ¡°That was just a shock. I''m fine.¡± I glanced at her mother and Helena, who both nodded. ¡°All right. I saw them in the clearing, didn''t want anything to do with them at all, and tried to sneak away. That''s when the head panther, a larger white one, found me.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± The Baroness whispered. ¡°I''ve never even heard of a white variant!¡± ¡°It was a size and a half bigger than a normal panther and was a few hundred pounds. At least.¡± I explained and then I told them about the encounter from beginning to end. When I was done, the three guests sat there silently, completely stunned. ¡°Amazing, isn''t it?¡± Helena asked. ¡°He has a life and death encounter practically every time he enters that area of the marsh.¡± That shook the Baroness out of her shock. ¡°I certainly hope you''ve banned him from ever going back there!¡± ¡°I can''t do that, not that I ever would. He owns the marsh.¡± Helena said and took my damaged hand. ¡°I will ask him with all sincerity to never go back to that specific area again. I don''t care if it holds the secrets to magic itself. You''ve almost died the last two times you''ve been there and that''s more than enough for me to handle.¡± I leaned close and kissed her. ¡°I promise to not go there again. I barely escaped as it was.¡± ¡°I''ve already sent a message to the healer you''ve given those donations to.¡± Helena said with a smile. ¡°She''ll be here tomorrow to check you over and to let you know the options you have for trying to fix it.¡± ¡°I better make more potions tonight to bribe her... I mean for her fee.¡± I said, which almost made her laugh. ¡°She did mention that you owe her more potions.¡± Helena''s smile grew wide. ¡°I don''t think she realizes how much money you''ve saved her and the healers by giving the potions away.¡± ¡°I think she suspects, even if it''s not the real cost.¡± I said and Helena nodded. ¡°How is Eludora?¡± Helena took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°I''m sorry to say that you were right. She isn''t thinking of you as a friend at all now and is only determined to get better to be worthy of being with you.¡± ¡°I was afraid of that.¡± I said and sighed. ¡°Well, you were the only person she had ever allowed to touch her like that.¡± Helena said. ¡°It was bound to cause some unforeseen circumstances.¡± ¡°Like obsession.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°I told her that I regretted doing that to her, even if it did keep her stabilized and saved her life.¡± ¡°She knows that, since both Greta and her sister remind her of that all the time. It''s just too bad that you''re the only thing she can concentrate on.¡± ¡°What about her recovery?¡± I asked. ¡°It''s actually progressing at a good pace. Those potions you made are working wonders for her.¡± Helena said. ¡°She''s getting stronger every day.¡± ¡°At least losing her friendship over this wasn''t a total waste.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°When is she going to resume her post at the library?¡± ¡°They''re hoping for the end of the break for the king''s birthday. If she gets herself back to her old self enough to continue working, they''ll consider it a success and go from there.¡± I nodded and we finished off the meal. After that, we went back to the parlour and relaxed as we discussed the finalizing of the contract and filling out the final details, including clauses for termination, injury, loss of life (either theirs or the baby''s), and compensation for loss of work during the contract''s run and during the pregnancy. Once we had it all worked out and on paper, I signed it, Helena signed it, the Baroness and her husband signed it, and then it was Vanessa''s turn. She stared at Helena for several moments, who nodded enthusiastically, then with a shaky hand signed her name as well. All five of us touched the paper with our fingertips and injected a little bit of magic into the paper to confirm our consent. It glowed gold for ten seconds and then it was done. Administrator Lannin came in and made several copies of the official document and gave one to Vanessa, her parents, one to us, and had two left for the guild and for the castle. We all stood as the man left and we were all smiling at each other. Helena was the first to break the silence and let a huge smile appear on her face as she opened her arms. ¡°Congratulations, Vanessa Elizabeth Sellwafer-Henrietta. Welcome to the family.¡± Vanessa suddenly burst out crying and dove into her arms to hug her tightly. 228 Academy Antics Part Ninety Two - The Meetings Part Three After a few minutes, Vanessa calmed down and let Helena go. ¡°I''m sorry. I don''t know why I reacted like that.¡± ¡°I''d say it''s a mixture of both relief and happiness.¡± Helena said as she reached up and wiped at Vanessa''s face. ¡°Becoming legitimized so soon in a contract almost never happens.¡± The Baroness nodded. ¡°I was surprised you added that stipulation to the clauses.¡± ¡°I can''t let her languish in obscurity until David graduates.¡± Helena said with a bit of a laugh as I handed her a handkerchief to assist the cleaning up of Vanessa''s face. ¡°David, hand me the box in the drawer of the writing desk.¡± I walked over to the desk and opened the drawer, retrieved the small box, and walked back over to her. ¡°Open it and say the words.¡± Helena ordered and I opened it. It had a piece of paper inside and I read the note. I tucked it into my pocket without anyone seeing and lifted out the first of three white gold bands. ¡°I, Lord Drake, do hereby complete the contract''s stipulation of physical representation and pledge to fulfill my duties to the best of my ability.¡± I said and slipped the ring onto my ring finger. I took out the next one and slipped it onto Helena''s finger. I took out the last one and Vanessa''s hand shook as I gently took it and added the last ring to her finger. I turned my hand over to hold hers, with the rings touching, and Helena put hers on top, also touching the rings. I infused the rings with my magic and both Helena and Vanessa gasped as their hands tingled and the rings glowed brightly. ¡°I promise to assist you in all things, offering up my material wealth, my magic, my knowledge, and my whole being to do so.¡± The rings shimmered as they reached saturation and I stopped adding magic to them. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± The Baroness said as the glow from the rings didn''t quite completely fade. ¡°How can you have so much to share? Aren''t you exhausted?¡± ¡°No, I''ve been infusing potions for years.¡± I said without explaining that I could charge a mage''s storage crystal without becoming tired at all, which probably would have shocked her even more than these rings did. ¡°With that out of the way, we can sit and talk like normal people.¡± Helena said and waved at the couches for everyone to sit. The Baroness gave her a disbelieving look for a second and then nodded. Helena moved down slightly as she stayed on my right, pointed where she wanted me to sit, then had Vanessa sit on my left. The young woman blushed as Helena pushed her into my side and I put my arm over her shoulders. ¡°I told you that I would be sad if you couldn''t cuddle, remember? We''ve signed the contracts, so you have my official permission.¡± Helena said as she sat and I put my arm over her shoulders, too. ¡°However, do not take extra liberties with him. I won''t stand for him being used like that.¡± Vanessa gasped and looked flustered. ¡°No! I would never... I mean, I would love to...¡± Both Helena and the Baroness nodded in understanding and Vanessa composed herself. ¡°I would never cross social boundaries in such a manner. He can hold me and hug me as much as he wants; but, it''s not proper to do anything even remotely sexual until the contract is in full force after your wedding.¡± Vanessa said, her voice firm. ¡°However, I do reserve the right to let him kiss me properly and in appropriate places.¡± ¡°I assume you meant buildings and things and not just parts of your body with that last statement.¡± Helena said and then laughed softly as Vanessa''s face went to a deep red. ¡°You don''t have to be embarrassed. I know you''ve only shared a single real kiss in all this time and only on the lips.¡± Vanessa nodded. ¡°That was a special occasion and your sister Selena witnessed it.¡± ¡°She was positively livid after she recovered from the shock from seeing it.¡± Helena said and gave the Baroness a knowing smile. ¡°I don''t have to tell you what an overly possessive younger sister is like.¡± ¡°Highly jealous and covets everything you have?¡± The Baroness let out a laugh. ¡°No, I know all about that.¡± She glanced at her husband. ¡°Some men are not as reserved or restrained as your David is.¡± The Baron clamped his mouth shut and didn''t rise to the bait. ¡°I sincerely hope it was well before the marriage.¡± Helena said and the Baroness nodded. ¡°It also lessened my sister''s options when it came out.¡± The Baroness explained. ¡°She''s married and has three children now and completely denies it ever happened and protests that she''s always been as good as gold.¡± Helena laughed and the Baroness joined her. Even I knew that it was ironic when someone so bad claimed to always have been good. ¡°So, did you consider our offer?¡± Helena asked. ¡°We have, and I admit that opening a business together where we provide the workers and you provide the materials, is quite the venture.¡± The Baroness said. ¡°This contract was to benefit both of our families, so ensuring that we both make money from this is the only real way to make sure everyone is happy until the contract''s completion.¡± Helena said. ¡°What are your thoughts on the range of products?¡± ¡°Delighted!¡± The Baroness said with a grin. ¡°Everything from fancy plates and tables to clipper ships! It''s an astounding and completely shocking business to propose, let alone have the means to start.¡± ¡°We''ve had the means to start it for a while, it''s just been too hectic getting everything settled and done here at the mansion to consider diverting our efforts to do anything else until now.¡± ¡°I saw that the property wall has been completed.¡± I said and Helena nodded. ¡°I asked the work crews to add the passage and walkway when they come back from vacation.¡± ¡°I''ve become quite good at making the potion, even if I''m not anywhere as prolific as you are with it.¡± Helena said and leaned her head on my shoulder. ¡°It''s going to be a key factor in this new business.¡± ¡°Your ideas for how to use my knowledge, brings more to our union than I thought it would.¡± I said and she reached up to her shoulder to take my hand and hold it. ¡°I couldn''t be happier about that.¡± ¡°I know.¡± Helena lifted her head and gave me a quick kiss. ¡°I should tell you that the first thing we''re going to have built is a ship.¡± ¡°I assume you''re having the Sellwafers buy a building down at the docks and registering everything?¡± ¡°I have to. I can''t be caught openly in competition with one of my old family''s businesses.¡± Helena said. ¡°Mother''s bragging about the guild pilfering your ingredients has spurred me on to get this going as soon as possible.¡± ¡°We have a piece of property already and it only needs to be fixed up a little. We''ve also registered the business under our family name like you wanted, with the both of you as silent partners and investors.¡± The Baroness said with satisfaction in her voice. ¡°We just need you to start sending through the materials and provide some trainers to teach our work crews how to do what you do.¡±This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°That''s already arranged and you''ll see both first thing in the morning. All of the suppliers we had for this mansion and the dorm mansion are more than eager to keep making so much money from us.¡± Helena said, happily. ¡°Frank will be teaching your crews and David will be there to supervise.¡± ¡°Lord Drake?¡± The Baroness asked, surprised. ¡°I thought...¡± ¡°Yes, I have his schedule full for this week.¡± Helena said with a chuckle. ¡°He''s accepted it without protest and I admit that having him be so compliant to my wishes is a bit intoxicating.¡± ¡°I imagine it would be.¡± The Baroness agreed. ¡°I won''t deny him seeing or helping to build his ship tomorrow.¡± Helena said. ¡°Wait, what? His ship?¡± The Baroness asked, clearly surprised. ¡°Yes, his flat bottomed boat is wonderful and can take him places, except it is limited in both capacity and versatility. David needs a real ship to use with a proper hold to secure his things without worry.¡± ¡°But... well, I suppose... he does have a lot of land and no real way to travel there consistently and safely.¡± The Baroness said. ¡°All right. As long as you can keep it parked in the main harbour when you aren''t using it, to advertise the business for us, then handing it over without payment isn''t a problem.¡± Helena laughed softly. ¡°I''ll use Vanessa''s words here and say that I would never cross social boundaries in such a manner. You''ll be paid as if we were a client, since our involvement as your backers can''t be so blatantly obvious.¡± The Baroness gave me a questioning look and I nodded. She had to smile. ¡°All right, that''s even more acceptable and it will give the public solid proof of our products as well.¡± ¡°I expect the money for the ship to be folded right back into the business. You can worry about sharing the profits when the orders start rolling in.¡± Helena said and the Baroness and the Baron nodded. ¡°Then we can sit here and relax for another hour before David needs to get to work. He has ingredients to take care of and potions to brew.¡± Everyone nodded and we shared polite conversation, a bit of gossip, and some light business planning. Nothing serious, since that could be handled later. This time together was just for our two families becoming acquainted with each other in a less formal setting. When the hour ended, both Vanessa and Helena were reluctant to let me go. I gave them each a quick kiss, bid the Baroness and her husband a good day, and left the parlour. I went upstairs and changed into more appropriate clothing for potion brewing and went down into the basement to handle the ingredients. I had a dozen bags of them that were tightly packed while also keeping the ingredients protected from damage. I prepped most of them for storage while also brewing up a batch of wound cleaning solution. When they were done and bottled up into twelve crates of 36 vials each, I started on the full power healing potions and kept working on the ingredients. I bottled the potion and made another batch, then another. I switched to general health potions and made two batches of them, since they weren''t in as high of a demand. Using my number ten potion copying trick, I really stretched the common ingredients I had harvested from the marsh and then switched to making number ten potion. Helena was going to need a lot of it for the initial startup for the business and I didn''t want there to be any lapse in either the quality of the work or the amount of work produced. I stopped working when Hope came down to remind me about supper and I followed her up the stairs to the bedroom. Sara and Tabitha were waiting there and I hadn''t even had to say the magic word before I was stripped and dunked into the water. I was scrubbed gently, since they had a bit of time to do it, and then they both did the ritual when the bath was done. I thanked them for their work and I was dried off and dressed in another meal suit and led to the dining room. I was only a little surprised when I saw that Vanessa and her parents were still there. I saw a glint of steel in Vanessa''s eyes and a bit of anger on her face. I walked right over to her and gave her a passionate kiss, right on the lips, and it wiped away the look in her eyes and the anger. ¡°I''ll explain what happened with Mage King after we eat.¡± I said and she nodded. I kissed Helena next and I started the formal meal. We all ate the food and barely spoke at all the entire time. I gave the closing toast and they drank in response, then the Baroness let out a relieved sigh. ¡°Please tell me supper is not always this tense.¡± The Baroness said. ¡°Oh, no. Usually it''s a very nice and relaxing meal. We even talk!¡± Helena said and that made the other woman smile. ¡°I wasn''t going to leave Vanessa ignorant of certain things, however.¡± ¡°I cannot believe she did that.¡± Vanessa said, the glint of steel back in her eyes. ¡°That was... it was...¡± ¡°The claim to see her as a maid and ignore what happened is what made me angry.¡± Helena said, her face a mask. ¡°If she had the fortitude to accept it as a mistake and owned up to it, I might have accepted it and moved on. As it is now...¡± ¡°What is the academy going to do to her?¡± The Baroness asked. ¡°We won''t know until David goes back after the break.¡± Helena said. ¡°Anything they decide won''t be implemented until then.¡± She turned her head to look at Vanessa. ¡°I implore you to not say anything, unless it''s brought up in the general assembly that they might call in the morning the first day back.¡± Vanessa let out a sigh and nodded. ¡°I can keep my composure if they don''t bring attention to it.¡± ¡°David''s her only student right now, so her student and academy exposure is limited.¡± Helena reminded her. ¡°She also doesn''t leave her botany workshop very much.¡± ¡°Is that your subtle hint that no one will miss her?¡± The Baroness asked with an evil smile. Helena gave her a stern look, then laughed. ¡°I hadn''t intended it that way. I meant that having everyone know she used David like that wouldn''t impact her and only David will need to deal with the aftermath.¡± ¡°That''s true.¡± Vanessa said and took my hand. ¡°I''m not sure that letting people know how vulnerable you were is a good idea. Some might take it the wrong way.¡± She glanced at Helena, who nodded. ¡°Selena won''t be told unless it''s mentioned in the general assembly. If it is, David will let me know and I''ll handle it.¡± Helena said and the others around the table nodded. ¡°David, do you have much work left to do?¡± ¡°Not really. I can leave the potions simmering and bottle them later tonight or first thing in the morning.¡± I said and she smiled at me. ¡°Let''s retire to the parlour again and relax. I need my own cuddle time.¡± Helena admitted, which made the Baroness chuckle. ¡°I think that''s our cue to leave.¡± The Baroness said and stood. ¡°Thank you both for a wonderful day.¡± ¡°It''s been fruitful.¡± The Baron said and stood as well. ¡°I look forward to seeing you tomorrow.¡± ¡°It''s been a pleasure.¡± Helena said and stood with Vanessa and myself. ¡°Hope.¡± ¡°I have your things and will see you out.¡± Hope said and held up three expensive bags. I led Vanessa around the table to her mother and shook the Baron''s hand. ¡°Thank you for accepting and I''ll see you in the morning.¡± I let his hand go and took the hand of his wife. ¡°My lady, it was a pleasure to meet you.¡± I bent over her hand and kissed the back of it, then sent a touch of magic through it. The Baroness shivered slightly and beamed a smile at me, because she had earned the real greeting from me. ¡°My lord, the pleasure was all mine. Thank you for accepting my daughter and the terms of the contract without stipulating that she needed to be subservient to you.¡± ¡°I could have done that?¡± I asked her, showing surprise on my face, and she looked shocked. Helena laughed and lightly slapped my hand to make me let go. ¡°Stop teasing her by pretending to be the ignorant young man you used to be.¡± I smiled briefly and turned to Vanessa. ¡°Thank you for agreeing to becoming a part of this family.¡± I said and kissed the back of her hand. ¡°I look forward to seeing everyone''s faces after the official announcement tomorrow.¡± Vanessa''s face flushed a little red, then she put an arm around me and kissed me. ¡°I can''t wait, either.¡± Helena and I walked them over to Hope, who handed them their bags with their meeting clothing in them, and I closed the dining room''s door. ¡°She looked very happy.¡± Helena said. ¡°Which one?¡± I asked and Helena laughed as she took my hand and then led me out of the room and took me to the parlour. ¡°Both, I suppose.¡± Helena said as she locked the door behind us and looked into my eyes. ¡°You were wonderful today.¡± ¡°I could say the same thing.¡± I responded and lightly kissed her. ¡°David...¡± Helena whispered. ¡°Yes, my dear. Of course I will.¡± I said and Helena''s face flushed red. I led her over to the couch and very slowly stripped her off, kissing her all down her front as I did so. ¡°Oh, David!¡± Helena gasped as I kissed her womanhood. ¡°I still don''t know... how you can... do that and... OHHHHH!¡± ¡°That''s why.¡± I said as she melted in my arms. I picked her up and carefully laid her down on the couch, gave her several kisses, then I stood and stripped off for her. Helena stared at me as I did so and her eyes looked at my erection with lust and need. ¡°I love you.¡± ¡°I love you, too.¡± I said and then showed her just how much for the rest of the evening. 229 Academy Antics Part Ninety Three - The Meetings Part Four Helena and I managed to get to our real bed later that night and slept for the remainder of it. I woke up very early and finished my work in the potions room by making some waterproofing potion after I bottled up the last of the potions I brewed the day before, then met Helena for a bath and breakfast. She made sure I was dressed appropriately for going to work as a supervisor at the Sellwafer''s business at the docks and kissed me goodbye. ¡°Make sure that you are back here for lunch. You have the consultation with Linette to look after your hand directly afterwards.¡± Helena reminded me. ¡°Of course.¡± I said and kissed her again. ¡°I left 60 cases of potions, 36 of healing and 24 of general health for you in the storage room beside the potions room.¡± ¡°That''s wonderful, darling.¡± Helena said with a chuckle. ¡°You made them while prepping the ingredients?¡± I nodded. ¡°I also made a ton of full strength number ten potions as well. Having ingredients directly from the marsh made it go so much faster.¡± ¡°I suppose you''re taking a bunch with you today?¡± Helena asked. ¡°Yes, separate batches. I''ve left a lot for the work crews to make what you want and I''ll be taking a good amount to the business.¡± ¡°You''ve made things so much easier already and you''ve only been home for a full day.¡± Helena said and gave me a long slow kiss. ¡°Now go and have fun with Frank. I know he misses you almost as much as I do.¡± ¡°Yes, dear.¡± I said and stepped out through the front door to see Frank having a work crew load crates of number ten potion on a horse and cart already. ¡°You knew which stack to take?¡± ¡°You left them opposite the healing and general health potions, which we all know you only make for Lady Henrietta.¡± Frank said. ¡°We''re going to have so much fun teaching newbies how to really make things today.¡± ¡°Are you okay with such a drastic change in construction?¡± I asked and Frank laughed. ¡°My lord, all I''ve been doing is playing with your potion and figuring out what can be done with it, ever since you showed it to me that first day.¡± Frank said. ¡°Making the main sweeping staircase without having to cut a single piece of wood to fit has made me literally hate having to make things the normal way!¡± I chuckled and the men finished loading the cart with the crates of waterproofing potion. I counted the crates and Frank had taken the right stack without trying to take more from the other stack. He knew I could make more quickly, especially if he noticed all the remaining prepped ingredients I had left in the prep room. We climbed up onto the cart and two of the men came with us. I didn''t question it and the horse and cart drove off to take us to our destination. When we arrived, the building looked a little run down and not very nice for what it was going to be. ¡°Okay, men. The first lesson we''ll show them will be a lesson in presentation.¡± Frank said and the other two men nodded with determination. ¡°I''ll send the driver back for certain supplies and then we''ll show them what we can do to spruce up the place.¡± ¡°Yessir.¡± The two men said and grinned. ¡°This should be fun.¡± One of them said as we climbed off of the cart. I went to the front door and opened it. The door was a bit loose on its hinges and swung freely. ¡°Hello! How may I help you?¡± A young redheaded woman asked from behind a counter. She looked to be about my age and she had a bright smile plastered onto her face. She would probably get a lot of sales just from that alone without anyone even looking at how well she was dressed. The problem was that the inside of the front room was nearly completely bare, except for a few display pieces. ¡°The next lesson will be to never open for business without a proper stock of products built up first.¡± Frank grumbled as he and the men brought in two crates of potions each. ¡°We''re here to teach the work crews how to make everything.¡± I said. ¡°You''re Lord Drake!¡± The woman gasped and ran around the counter to come over to me as the men stacked up the crates of potions by the wall. ¡°It''s so nice to meet you!¡± She said and held a hand out for me to take. I did and barely brushed my lips on her knuckles before letting her hand go. ¡°The men have been waiting anxiously with the Lord and Lady in the back!¡± She almost gushed. ¡°Lead the way.¡± I said as Frank instructed one of the men to stay by the front door to wait for the supplies. The woman quickly walked back across the room and around the counter to the door there, then opened it and stepped through. Frank, one of the men, and I followed her down a short hallway into a large open room. It was quite similar to that of the boatbuilder''s warehouse back in Ester''s Village. A large portion of the back of the room was actually a set of folding doors that took up most of the wall. ¡°Lord Drake! Good morning!¡± The Baroness said as she stood from behind the desk she sat behind. ¡°My husband and some men are checking the other side of the bay doors to make sure they are safe to open and not have them fall apart.¡±Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°I assume you bought the place sight unseen?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°It was a steal, considering the prime placement near the main thoroughfare.¡± The Baroness said with a grin. ¡°It''s going to need some work, obviously.¡± ¡°That''s what the first lesson is going to be about.¡± I said and waved at Frank. ¡°Meet the man responsible for the restoration to both the Henrietta Longshore Estate and my dorm mansion.¡± ¡°Before my lord tells you some fancy title that I never use, you can call me Frank.¡± Frank said and took the woman''s hand and lightly kissed her fingers. ¡°I''ve already sent for some supplies to redo the front of the building to make it more presentable.¡± ¡°That''s wonderful! I was thinking of hiring someone to handle that while we were learning.¡± The Baroness said. ¡°It''s the perfect learning opportunity for your work crews, since there''s nothing like practical learning.¡± Frank said with a smile. ¡°While we wait for the cart to come back, I''ll be telling you all how to handle the potion that''s going to change your lives and also give you sufficient warnings about how to properly handle it and to give it the proper respect it''s due.¡± ¡°We can handle using some fancy glue.¡± One of the men said and a few of them chuckled. ¡°I thought that as well, until someone spilled some and glued their fingers together into a solid mass.¡± ¡°Just pull them apart.¡± The man said with a shrug. ¡°It''s pretty simple.¡± ¡°Most people think that, except this is more of a melding glue. It sticks things together by merging them.¡± Frank said. ¡°The man''s hand became a flipper.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°No way!¡± ¡°You''re joking!¡± ¡°It took the healers three days to cut his fingers apart and then they had to carve out the skin around the knuckles, just so he could bend his fingers properly.¡± Frank said and the entire room went silent. ¡°He might have been fine if he hadn''t tried to scoop up the spilled potion with his bare hand.¡± He had everyone''s attention now and nodded. ¡°So, first lesson. If you spill any of it, leave it. It can be removed or fixed after it sets. If it''s just a little, it''ll set almost immediately and can be dealt with then. If it''s a lot, depending on where it''s spilled, whatever it is might need to be replaced after it sets.¡± Frank warned them. ¡°This is non-negotiable. When you start working with this stuff, you''ll sign a waver saying that the owners and the makers of the potion are not responsible for any damages caused by the misuse of the potion.¡± ¡°Are you serious?¡± One of the men asked. ¡°We''re responsible for ourselves if we get hurt?¡± Frank laughed. ¡°No, it''s just to stop people from challenging them to a duel, being arrested for bodily harm that wasn''t their fault, or having the Mages Guild come to deal with whatever happens. All medical care will be handled and paid for at no cost to the injured party. If there''s a loss of a limb, compensation will be paid and a much easier job will be assigned, so you can still provide for your families and live your life.¡± ¡°I''m out.¡± One of the men said and stood. ¡°If it''s that dangerous, then I don''t want anything to do with it.¡± He looked at the men around him. ¡°Let''s go, guys.¡± Three of them stood as well and four others didn''t move. ¡°Come on.¡± The man said and the four men didn''t move. ¡°It''s your life to throw away.¡± He said and he led the three men past Frank and myself. I had a feeling and followed them out to the main room. The man in the lead saw the many crates of potions and went over to them. I dashed around and grabbed his wrist before he could touch one of the crates. ¡°Don''t touch.¡± ¡°Hey, let go!¡± The man said and tried to pull his hand away. It didn''t work and he looked angry. ¡°Let me go right now or you''re going to regret it.¡± ¡°If you leave without trying to steal my things, I won''t take your hand to make sure you can''t steal.¡± I responded and reached into my suit coat and pulled out my knife. The man looked both angry and amused. ¡°Ha, as if you could take my hand with a...¡± His words cut off when I made the knife glow brightly with magic and all four of the men paled at the sight. ¡°What did you say?¡± I asked and moved the knife to his wrist. ¡°I''m leaving! I''m leaving!¡± The man said, panicking. ¡°I only wanted to see what the potion was, that''s all!¡± I moved the knife away from his wrist and pointed to the front door with it as I let the man''s hand go. ¡°Go. Now.¡± The four men scrambled out the door and ran away. The man on the door chuckled. ¡°I''ll put the word out to make sure they don''t come back later to cause trouble.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and held out a handful of gold crowns. ¡°In case you need incentives to convince the locals.¡± The worker took the money. ¡°They''ll need it at first, until this place gets running. Once they see the things it''ll offer so cheaply...¡± He chuckled. ¡°They''ll fight to keep it here all on their own.¡± I nodded to him and went to the hallway and saw the redheaded young woman with a surprised look on her face. I let the glow on the knife fade and tucked it back into the sheath and nodded to her as well, which made her smile a little, and I went back to the back room to keep listening to Frank''s warnings and cautions about using the potions. The Baron and the few men he had taken with him returned and said that the doors were not safe to open without either breaking where they stood or falling off into the water, which would definitely get them in trouble with the harbour master of the nearby dock and probably with any passing boat, since the folding doors were huge. Once they all understood the dangers, Frank moved on with the lesson and the workers were shocked to hear how versatile the potion was. He was giving examples of using it on wood, which would be their main construction material, then he mentioned building walls and reinforcing floors with it. They were amazed when he said he made solid stone walls with it as well. Just then, the door opened and the man that waited by the front door for the supplies came in. ¡°The cart''s here.¡± ¡°Excellent!¡± Frank said. ¡°All right, everyone. Follow me. It''s time for your first practical lesson in the potion''s use.¡± We cleared out the back room and followed Frank out to the front of the building. Even the young redheaded woman came out to watch. The two workmen that Frank and I had brought set up tarps on stands to cover us from being seen by people on the street and from the nearby buildings. With us hidden, Frank and the two men gave the new work crews their first taste of using what was essentially a magic potion. All of them, even the Baroness and her husband, stared with opened mouths as Frank and the two workers used the supplies to quickly transform the bare storefront into one of the fanciest looking buildings in the city. I could see in everyone''s eyes as the implications crossed their minds and I nodded. They were going to work their asses off to use this potion as much as they could. 230 Academy Antics Part Ninety Four - The Meetings Part Five By the time the morning was over, the entire front of the building had been transformed. Even the front door had been redone and the hinges were replaced. I also provided some cleaning potion to clear off the windows to make them almost shine in the reflected sunlight. After some wood staining and coloring of certain parts to make them stand out, waterproofing potion was applied to seal it. ¡°It looks like something the king himself would commission.¡± The Baroness said as she stared at the thing. ¡°Frank and his assistants will stay here to keep teaching your men for the rest of the day. They''ll need practice to use the potion themselves.¡± I said as Frank handed me a list of supplies and the Baroness looked very happy. I took her hand and kissed the back of it with a touch of magic. ¡°If you have any questions or concerns that Frank can''t answer or deal with, send word to Helena and she''ll handle it.¡± ¡°Thank you, Lord Drake.¡± The Baroness said, blushing slightly. I bid everyone a good day and rode the horse and cart back to the mansion, then handed off the new list of supplies to Administrator Lannin. He quickly arranged for the cart to be filled again and I went inside. ¡°I see you didn''t bother getting yourself dirty.¡± Hope said with a crooked smile. ¡°Now you won''t have to change for lunch.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and she led me to the dining room. Helena was there and I walked over to give her a quick kiss and a greeting. Greta and Linette were there as well and they both took in sharp breaths as they saw my hand. ¡°What did you do?!?¡± The two women asked at the same time, clearly incredulous. ¡°I assume you didn''t tell them?¡± I asked Helena and she laughed softly. ¡°I wanted them to see it for themselves.¡± Helena said, her voice full of amusement. ¡°Let me see!¡± Linette demanded and I turned to hold my hand out to her. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± ¡°How bad is it?¡± Greta asked, her face sad. ¡°It''s... it''s down into the muscle and tendons.¡± Linette said and looked up at me. ¡°I don''t know how you still have full use of your hand with it damaged like this.¡± That sounded a bit concerning to me. ¡°What are you saying?¡± ¡°David...¡± Linette took a breath and sighed. ¡°Most people would be screaming in constant pain from an injury like this.¡± I glanced down at it and back at her face. ¡°It doesn''t hurt.¡± ¡°Sweet merciful lord.¡± Greta whispered and touched her sister''s shoulder. ¡°Remember what you read about his military career.¡± ¡°You mean his career of injuries.¡± Linette said with a sad face and shook her head. ¡°I refuse to believe that he would voluntarily roll around in a pool of acid, just so he could grow normal skin back when he was healed.¡± ¡°Will that work this time?¡± I asked and I heard gasps from all around me. Even Helena and Hope had reacted the same way. ¡°David! You can''t seriously think that dissolving most of your hand away is a good thing!¡± Greta spat. ¡°Well, I know trying to cut the damage away isn''t going to work, since the claws dug such deep furrows. There''s no way to remove all of the damaged flesh with a knife to let it grow back properly.¡± ¡°Oh, god.¡± Hope whispered. ¡°Will it work?¡± Helena asked, surprising the others. ¡°No.¡± Linette said with a scowl and looked back up at me again. ¡°For the same reason. I would have to be very selective in the application and hope that I can somehow root out all of the damaged areas, some of which I can''t physically see, then pray that a healing spell and perhaps a healing potion will fix all of the damage.¡± ¡°I knew it was a mess. I just didn''t know how much.¡± I said and they sighed. ¡°Before you ask, even dipping the entire back of your hand might not get it all and there''s no guarantee that healing spells and potions will return that much of your working appendage.¡± Linette said. ¡°It might be magic what we do; but, it''s not foolproof, as you''ve seen from the difference between field healing and full healing.¡± I nodded at that. I still remembered Diane gripping my hand hard after the field healing from the acid damage and my hand being squishy and dripping blood because of it. ¡°I''ll have to keep it like this for a while until I can fix it.¡± I said and she looked at me like I was crazy. ¡°David, you can''t just fix it.¡± Linette said. ¡°What about my shoulder? Can I just have it cut off and regrow it? The teeth wounds aren''t that deep.¡±This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. ¡°Not your whole shoulder!¡± Linette gasped and Greta let out a squeak and a sad groan. ¡°The wounds really aren''t that deep.¡± Helena said. ¡°Let''s sit down for lunch and you can take a look at it afterwards.¡± ¡°All right.¡± Linette said and we did just that. We shared some polite conversation as I shared the incident about the panthers and then we had some not so polite conversation about my stupidity over going back to the marsh like I had. I tried to explain that it was a dangerous spot and not the marsh as a whole, and neither Linette nor Greta wanted to hear it. The whole place was bad for me and the less time I spent there, the better. I exchanged looks with Helena and she shrugged as she briefly took my hand. She knew that I liked it there and she also knew we weren''t going to convince the other two women of its importance in some of the potions I could make. We finished eating and we went upstairs to my work room for Linette to give my back a look. She hissed when she saw the small wounds on my shoulder and examined them. ¡°You said a large white panther licked it several times?¡± Linette asked and I nodded. ¡°I think I can tell. It''s a lot rougher here on your skin than in other spots. If you hadn''t distracted it like you did, your skin and flesh would have soon broken apart and been torn off by its tongue.¡± ¡°It''s that bad?¡± I asked and felt Linette trace out the places that she could feel felt different. ¡°It is, except it''s not as bad as it could be. You were lucky it enjoyed tasting your blood so much at the time. If it had decided to take a bite instead...¡± ¡°I know.¡± I said and her hand slid over the top of my shoulder to lightly grip it, then she reached over to touch the same spot on my other shoulder. ¡°The teeth marks are deep in only the one spot each, so I feel confident that I can remove the damage, since it''s so easily accessible. I should be able to heal it up after an hour.¡± ¡°Why so long?¡± I asked. ¡°I''m a professional and I never rush. I always try to ensure the best results for the patient.¡± Linette said. ¡°All right. Do it.¡± I said and Helena sat beside me to take my left hand. Greta sat in front of me with a worried look on her face. She didn''t say anything, though. ¡°Are you sure you don''t want to be asleep for this? I usually knock people out when I work on them like this.¡± Linette asked me and I nodded. ¡°I wish I had something that I could pour over the place to numb the pain.¡± ¡°Give me a few days and I''ll have something for you.¡± I said and the three of them gasped. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Do you really know a potion recipe for that?¡± Greta asked, clearly surprised. ¡°No.¡± I said and she let out a sigh. ¡°You shouldn''t tease...¡± ¡°I have to reference the old recipe I do have and then substitute local ingredients to hopefully reproduce the effect, change the preparation times and the brew times for the altered ingredients, assuming some aren''t redundant, then test brew it to work out the kinks.¡± I clarified. ¡°That''s why I asked for a few days. I would need time to work it out on paper first, then to fix it physically to get the recipe right for proper brewing.¡± Greta opened her mouth to respond, closed it, then opened it again and sighed. ¡°I''m not going to ask where you''re getting these recipes.¡± ¡°I get them from the Hag''s old potions book.¡± I admitted and Helena gasped. Greta just stared at me and didn''t say anything. I could see her mind working, though. ¡°I have to change and alter them for use with modern ingredients, which takes time. I mean, I went through a bunch of the recipes I already know a couple of years ago and found a bunch of the ingredients in the recipes have two and three different types of herbs and plants that have the same effect. Most I haven''t heard of, even now after all of my ingredient searching at the academy, so I have to substitute ingredients that I do know and change the recipes to work.¡± ¡°Good lord.¡± Greta whispered. ¡°How old is the book?¡± ¡°It''s dated for a hundred years ago, now that I know how to read it. It''s written in mage language.¡± I said and I heard several gasps. ¡°I assume it''s written that way to stop people from stealing the secrets, just like some of the school books are to stop non-mages from understanding the references.¡± ¡°David, that''s not why we''re shocked.¡± Helena said and hugged my hand. ¡°It''s that you did what you did with the recipes long before you could actually read the book.¡± ¡°Why? I did the same with the old enchantments book.¡± I said and the three women gave me blank faces. ¡°I worked with the enchantments for a long time to pull them apart and to figure out each component and what they did. I couldn''t figure out the runes, though. Not that I knew they were runes at the time.¡± I chuckled. ¡°I''ve been so busy that I still haven''t had the chance to go through my school rune book to see what else is there and what I can do with them.¡± No one said anything for a while and I turned my head to look at Linette. ¡°I don''t feel you removing the wounds.¡± ¡°Oh! Right.¡± Linette said and her hand steadied on my shoulder as she reached for what I would learn later was a razor used for skin scraping. ¡°Please hold still while I work.¡± ¡°I''m closing my eyes now.¡± Greta said and did that. There was a sound of the small razor sliding across the rough skin around the wounds and she winced. Helena didn''t react at all as she smiled at me and held my hand. It took an hour for Linette to finish working and removing all of the damaged areas from my shoulder. She had used a sealing spell to stop the blood from flowing as she worked to cut the flesh away, similar to the one the healer at basic training had used to stop the bleeding of the man''s hand I had removed. She got to work actually healing me and that took another hour. I didn''t question her, especially since she had explained earlier that she always took her time to ensure the best possible results with her patients. I was glad that I could feel the magic tingling me right away, which meant I hadn''t lost feeling in the area or that the damage wasn''t permanent, which was always a worry. I glanced down at my hand and knew that if I was going to fix it, I had two choices. I could do my best to rework the fifteen pages of the regeneration potion recipe to use the much weaker local ingredients, or I could go back to the marsh and hunt down the ingredients that I would need. That wasn''t really much of a choice, really. I didn''t let my feelings show or sighed out loud to let the women around me know that I had already decided that I was going back to the marsh. I needed my hand at full functionality and it was a bit too obvious of a wound to cover up without also drawing attention to it. I needed to make more regeneration potion anyway, because I had a feeling that I was going to need it soon and nothing good ever came from me ignoring those feelings. 231 Academy Antics Part Ninety Five - The Meetings Conclusion When Linette was done, both Helena and Greta went around to my back and admired her work. ¡°Well done, Linette.¡± Greta said and I felt her hand touch the skin. ¡°Very well done.¡± ¡°It''s like it never existed.¡± Helena said and touched it next. ¡°It''s not tender like his other healing was at the garrison.¡± ¡°That''s because I healed it from the bottom up and not from the skin down.¡± Linette said, a bit proudly. ¡°I told you she was a smart one.¡± Greta said to Helena. ¡°I believe you and it''s nice to have proof, especially since it''s on my David.¡± Helena said and she kissed my cheek. ¡°Go ahead and get dressed, David. We''ll retire to the parlour and wait for you.¡± I stood and started to put my shirt and things on as they left. I knew they wanted a bit of time to converse, since me getting dressed only took a few moments, so I took my time putting my clothes on and wasted as much time as I could before I left my work room. I walked slowly, almost lackadaisically, and I saw that Hope was in the lobby. She saw me at the top of the stairs sauntering around and let out a laugh. ¡°What in the world are you doing?¡± Hope asked, amused. ¡°Wasting time and letting Helena, Greta, and Linette talk about me.¡± I said and she nodded understanding. ¡°Well, you better wait right there and I''ll come up to get you.¡± Hope said with a huge smile and then did a hop onto the first stair, did a half twirl and grabbed the hand rail, and stepped onto the next step. She took two long strides across that same step, did a little flourish with her arms in a half bow, then stepped up to the next step. I had to hold in my laugh as she did a much better job of wasting time coming up the stairs using her dance moves. ¡°Master.¡± I said and gave her a bow when she reached the top. Hope laughed and took my arm. ¡°I think we''ll do a wedding march on the way down. One step at a time and then pause to wave to the adoring public.¡± We did just that and a couple members of the mansion staff stopped when passing by to watch us. A few of the maids were giggling at our antics and then they applauded when we reached the bottom. ¡°Thank you for coming!¡± Hope said and shook their hands, which made them laugh more, then she turned and grinned at me. ¡°Do you think that''s long enough?¡± ¡°More than enough.¡± I said and she led me to the parlour where the three women were sitting close together and conversing in low tones. ¡°Ahem.¡± Greta and Linette jerked and looked up in surprise while Helena let out a soft laugh. ¡°What have you decided?¡± I asked and they looked surprised as I walked over to sit in the chair in front of the couch the three women were on. ¡°I gave you enough time to discuss it.¡± Greta and Linette exchanged looks and then looked back at me. ¡°We want to see your potions book.¡± ¡°Why? I told you they all need to be reworked for current use.¡± I asked and that seemed to stump them. ¡°David, it''s lost knowledge.¡± Greta finally said. ¡°The innovations you''ve already proved that it can contain is enough to make us want to see it.¡± ¡°You''re wrong. The innovations were mine.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°The potion recipes can''t be brewed or recreated as they are. Most of their main ingredients don''t exist anymore. Believe me, I''ve checked. Even the places they were rumored to be are difficult to find intact. My last trip with Mage King proved that.¡± ¡°But...¡± Greta started to say. ¡°I won''t deny that it could cause you to have an innovation if you read some of it; but, the book itself is more of a catalogue of ingredients listing their properties and uses with potion recipes every dozen pages or so. They are common recipes from back then, as far as I can tell.¡± ¡°C-c-common recipes?!?¡± Greta exclaimed and Linette gasped. ¡°I also don''t know where the book came from.¡± I said with a shrug. ¡°It could be from here, the Eastern Empire, or anywhere else.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Helena said. ¡°Not only is it ancient knowledge, it could also be forbidden knowledge.¡± That caught my interest. ¡°Forbidden?¡± I asked, a little confused. ¡°If it''s from another country, depending on the content and the country, the knowledge allowed to be brought into the Gulf Kingdom could be restricted or banned outright.¡± Helena explained. ¡°I don''t suppose the book has anything written in it about where it was made, does it?¡± I shook my head. ¡°It only has the publication date and the author''s name.¡± Greta gave Helena a knowing look. ¡°Do you think we can track down the name and see where the book came from?¡± Helena sat back and looked deep in thought. ¡°I suppose. It might take some doing, considering our standing with the Mages Guild.¡± ¡°What do you mean ''our''?¡± I asked her and Helena blushed a little. ¡°I couldn''t very well maintain my association with an organization that was pillaging my future husband''s lands of its precious resources.¡± Helena said. ¡°As soon as I received your message from Ester''s Village, I sent my own message to both my father personally and to the guild impersonally.¡±You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. ¡°So, we''re cut off from any resources we could have gotten from them.¡± I said, catching on right away. ¡°No, we just can''t do it ourselves.¡± Greta corrected. ¡°There are ways...¡± ¡°It doesn''t matter. What''s done is done.¡± I said and cut her off. ¡°You can check with Eludora and see if she can place the name of the author, even if it''s just the source of the surname.¡± ¡°I''ll ask her as soon as we go and check with her this afternoon.¡± Linette promised. ¡°Can we see the book to get the name?¡± She asked, her voice full of expectation. I glanced at Helena and she whispered a ''please''. ¡°I''ll be right back.¡± Greta let out an excited sound and then clamped her mouth shut. Helena looked happy and Linette looked predatory. I ignored all three reactions and left the parlour to go back up the stairs to the bedroom and to the personal vault. I opened it and took out my pack. I pulled out the potions book and also the enchantment book. I also looked at the other three books. For the very first time since I had found them, I could actually read the covers. The Versatility of Enchantments and their Practical Application Encyclopedia of Ingredients with Practical Potions and Elixirs Fundamental Book of Runes Basic Spell Casting and Invocation Using Elemental Forces and Their Effect on Material Composition Magical Theory and the History of Magic Now that I had a lot of experience with a magic academy, my mind immediately decided that it knew what the books were and where they came from. They were school books. Very fancy and quite expensive looking school books. I chuckled and put the three other books back in the pack and locked it back in the vault. I carried the enchantment and potions book down to the parlour and all three women had wide eyes and surprised faces as they saw the nearly pristine white covers of the books with gold embossing and gold filigree on the edges and around the titles. ¡°Oh, my god.¡± Helena whispered as I put the large book of enchantments into her hands and Greta almost squealed in delight as I put the potions book into hers. Both women stared at the books as if to memorize the covers. ¡°It''s beautiful.¡± Greta said and ran her hands over the embossed cover. ¡°It looks brand new.¡± ¡°I didn''t know if the Hag treated them or not, so I did when I discovered the potions to do so.¡± I said and sat across from them again. ¡°They''ll remain in perfect condition for a long time to come.¡± ¡°I don''t know if I want to open it.¡± Helena said and looked at my face. ¡°How many times did you?¡± ¡°I''ve lost count.¡± I said with a shrug. ¡°I always washed up before touching any of my books, even the second hand children books I bought from Diane to learn to read.¡± Helena held a hand out to me and I took it, gave it a brief kiss and a bit of magic, then nodded. She beamed a smile at me and opened it. It made a creak sound as if it had never been opened and it startled her a little. She gave me a questioning look as if I had lied to her about using it a lot. ¡°It sounds like that every time.¡± I said and she nodded slightly and began to read. Linette was practically on Greta''s lap as they both looked through the ingredients and potions book. They were whispering about all of the different ingredients and the properties they had, pointing when they wanted to emphasize something, and kept reading. Hope brought in tea for us and only I took a cup. ¡°We''re having a large supper gathering tonight, so try to keep this down to an hour or two.¡± She said with a chuckle as I nodded and the others ignored her. She knew they were going to be there for a while if I didn''t remind them about the meal and that they needed to get ready. ¡°I''ll let Sara and Tabitha know to be ready for you.¡± It was my turn to chuckle at her teasing smile and she left us alone. I let it go on for almost the full two hours and they had only gotten a quarter of the way through the books. ¡°Helena, my dear.¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± Helena said without looking up. ¡°Hope said we have a bunch of guests coming over for supper tonight.¡± I reminded her and she jumped. ¡°I completely forgot!¡± Helena gasped and clapped the book shut. ¡°Jill! Help me!¡± The parlour door opened and an amused maid came in with two other maids behind her. ¡°We have everything ready, my lady.¡± Jill said and took the book from her and handed it to me. Helena sighed in relief and followed them out of the room. ¡°Greta.¡± I said, a bit sternly, because she hadn''t paid any attention at all to what had happened right beside her. ¡°Huh? What?¡± Greta tore her gaze from the book she had and blinked her eyes. ¡°David? What is it?¡± ¡°You need to get ready for supper.¡± I said and stood as I held a hand out for the book. Greta gave Linette a sad look, who also looked sad and then she nodded. She closed the book and handed it to me and four maids came into the room and led them away. I stood and walked towards the door and wasn''t surprised that Sara and Tabitha were there waiting for me. ¡°My vault first.¡± I said and they nodded as I led them there and I locked the books back up. I was then taken into the large bathroom and plunked into the second tub to be thoroughly scrubbed and cleaned. Both women hummed a little tune I didn''t know as they worked and I was washed up completely before Helena was. I stood to let Sara perform the ritual and Helena''s other maids stopped their work to watch. I saw their inquiring looks and heard their brief whispered words of encouragement. Sara did her best to perform her duty to perfection and I finished in record time, according to Tabitha. The looks of approval on the faces of the other maids pleased Sara and she accepted their praise humbly while also saying that Tabitha was just as good as her in performing her personal maid duties. ¡°He''s not left wanting? Are you sure?¡± One of the maids asked, clearly surprised, and continued to wash Helena. ¡°Oh, no. My lord is always quite satisfied, especially when we both take a turn after a bath.¡± Sara explained and that made a couple of them gasp. ¡°They do good work.¡± I said and both Sara and Tabitha blushed a little at the praise. I stood there and waited for Helena to be finished and dried off, then we went into the bedroom and were dressed in the fanciest meal outfits we had that were also color coordinated. When we were all set and I even had the ceremonial sword strapped on my hip, the maids let out a collective ''aww'' sound at our appearance. ¡°I assume we meet your approval?¡± Helena asked and that made the maids laugh. ¡°If my lady wasn''t so beautiful and my lord wasn''t so handsome, I would say that you both looked adorable.¡± Jill said with a beaming smile, which made Helena laugh. ¡°You can still see my baby bump.¡± Helena said and rubbed it through the fabric of her slightly expanded and expensive dress. ¡°It needs to be highlighted, especially today. We have a lot of important guests.¡± Jill said and waved at the door. ¡°Allow me to lead you to the lobby to greet them.¡± ¡°Please do.¡± Helena said and Jill took us out of the room and down the stairs to stand us in the right position. Administrator Lannin joined us, as did Hope and the head butler, and our receiving line was complete. Now we just had to wait for our guests to arrive. 232 Academy Antics Part Ninety Six - The Long Awaited Gathering I was actually impressed with the guest list. Alex and Donna were the first to arrive and they both hugged me and whispered their eternal thanks. Alex''s father and Donna''s parents were there as well and also thanked me for what I did. Their cousins couldn''t make it and they went to the dining room. Next were Helena''s mother Mona and Helena''s sister Selena. Both were dressed to show off and it was impressive the amount of cleavage I could see. Neither of them brought dates, which was fine by me. I did my best to not comment about them being invited and Helena gave my cheek a quick kiss as she whispered that she was rubbing their faces in my circle of friends. I smiled and nodded, then greeted Lady Bassinger and her daughter, Becca with a kiss on the cheek for the mother and a kiss on the hand for the daughter. They gave their regrets that the king had requested a fountain of his own and the rest of the family were busy working on it. Carson, our bank accounts manager, arrived next and Helena greeted him with a hug and his wife with a kiss on the cheek. I shook his hand and asked in a whisper if it was okay to compliment his wife. ¡°Of course. She loves attention.¡± Carson whispered back and then I looked at his wife. She was a gorgeous blonde with hair so wavy that it looked fake. I cast Sense Magic and her hair glowed, as did her dress. I dismissed the spell and smiled at her as I took her hand. ¡°It''s so lovely to meet the intelligent woman that keeps Carson working so diligently on keeping our money safe and growing.¡± I said and she blushed a little as I kissed her knuckles. ¡°I never imagined that your brains would be outstripped by your beauty.¡± ¡°Oh, my.¡± She blushed deeply and locked eyes with me for a moment, then moved on. Helena gave me a crooked smile. ¡°Yes, I asked for her husband''s permission first.¡± I whispered to her and she chuckled. Ferdinand, his wife, and his two daughters were next. They were the two young women that had been in the shop that day I bought the new suit for Greta''s mother. Helena kissed his cheek and his wife''s cheek and shook the two young women''s hands. ¡°You''re not wearing the new suit.¡± Ferdinand commented as he shook my hand. ¡°I told Lady Marks I bought it specifically for her.¡± I said and he nodded. He knew I would insult her if I wore it for anyone else. I greeted the wife with a cheek kiss and she was dressed as impeccably as her husband. I kissed the hands of the two young women and they both giggled as if they were younger than they actually were. ¡°They''re just happy a lord bothered to kiss their hands and didn''t just shake them and moved on.¡± Hope whispered from beside me. ¡°I''ll remember that.¡± I whispered back. Next to arrive were Lady Marks and her granddaughter, Jinelle. I only took their hands and kissed the knuckles, ensuring that neither of them got the wrong idea or assumed I was trying to proposition them or gave them an opening to try and push for something more. Lady Marks looked amused at my antics. ¡°Where are my daughters? They said they would meet us here.¡± ¡°Mother.¡± Greta said as she came down the stairs. She looked great in a fancy dress that offset her skin color well. Her sister was right behind her and wore a white dress that was similar to healer''s robes, except it was more form fitting. I didn''t doubt for a second that she had various potions tucked about her person for emergencies. ¡°You look wonderful, mother.¡± Linette said and gave her mother a hug, then hugged her daughter. ¡°I see a bit of cleavage, Jinelle.¡± ¡°Mother!¡± Jinelle gasped and blushed a little. Linette laughed. ¡°I''m just teasing. Perhaps you''ll meet a nice man tonight.¡± ¡°M-mother!¡± Jinelle exclaimed and took her grandmother''s hand and pulled her towards the dining room. Linette laughed and followed. ¡°This looks like it''s shaping up to be a big affair.¡± Greta commented and gave Helena a brief hug. ¡°The biggest.¡± Helena said and I took Greta''s hand to kiss the back of it and gave her a touch of magic. ¡°You look good enough to brew your own beauty potion.¡± I said and Greta laughed. ¡°We did that already, you joker.¡± Greta said and shook Hope''s hand next, then the butler''s and Administrator Lannin''s before she went to the dining room. The Montgomery Family were next and the old man commented to Helena that if she tired of me, to let him know. He had a granddaughter that I could marry instead. Helena laughed, because she knew the girl was only six. I shook his hand and he winked at me as he passed. Black was next and he lightly kissed Helena''s knuckles before taking my hand and shaking it. ¡°The army loves the new enchantment.¡± He said to me as a greeting. ¡°How many swords did you get out of the vial I gave you?¡± ¡°Sixteen.¡± Black said with a chuckle. ¡°The old man was really stingy with it and barely laced the carvings.¡± I nodded and pulled a vial out of my bandoleer. ¡°You''ll probably get about fifty more out of this.¡± Before Black could say thank you for it, the old man appeared and plucked it right out of his hand and disappeared again. ¡°Hey!¡± ¡°I''ll send over something nice as thanks.¡± The old man''s voice said from the dining room. ¡°It''s not going to be my daughter!¡± Black said and quickly shook the other three people''s hands in the receiving line and ran after him. ¡°He''s been insufferable since you visited.¡± Heather said and I lightly brushed my lips over her knuckles as I took her offered hand. ¡°Or obsessed. It''s hard to tell.¡± She laughed softly and moved on. The next person to arrive was someone I hadn''t expected and I saluted her as soon as she stepped through the door. ¡°At ease.¡± Anna Carter said and returned my salute. She was my former XO and CO at the basic training base and she looked so much like the Hag that it made me nervous. At the moment, her hair was pulled back away from her face and tied up in a weaving fancy braid. She also wore a very revealing dress that hugged her curves all over without actually showing much skin at all.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. ¡°It''s so nice of you to come.¡± Helena said with a huge smile and gave her a brief hug. ¡°I accepted the ex-private''s bribe, so I felt obligated to.¡± Anna joked and Helena laughed. ¡°I told her that you could charge a blade and I wanted to give you something as proof.¡± I said and took her hand. I glanced at her face and she chuckled. ¡°Go ahead and let me feel it.¡± Anna said and I placed a kiss on the back of her hand and pulsed my magic through it. Her whole body shivered and then she laughed. ¡°How in the world can you do that with me being barely magic sensitive?¡± ¡°He''s been practising.¡± Helena said and I let Anna''s hand go. ¡°He''s also been using his magic every day.¡± ¡°I hope that''s not what caused the damage.¡± Anna asked and lightly touched the back of my right hand. ¡°No, it was a marsh panther.¡± I said and she shook her head. ¡°I don''t want to know.¡± Anna said and shook Hope''s hand before moving on. Right behind her was my training officer Nancy Travis. ¡°Before you ask, the answer is yes. I''m still sticking with her wherever she goes.¡± I chuckled as I took her hand and gave her a knowing glance. ¡°I won''t feel a thing because I''m a complete null, magic-wise.¡± Nancy said and I kissed the back of her hand without doing anything else. ¡°You didn''t even try? Now I''m disappointed.¡± She joked and moved on. My eyes widened when a very well dressed Gillis appeared and gave Helena a hug. ¡°Thank you for inviting me.¡± Gillis said and her guard stepped around us and waited for her. ¡°I wouldn''t think of not asking you to come over, not after promising to bring you here to admire the place.¡± Helena said and Gillis smiled happily. ¡°David, it''s been a while.¡± Gillis said and I took her hand. ¡°I, Lord Drake, greet you, Princess Jacqueline Emilia Gillis-Rivers, to my humble home.¡± I said and placed a kiss on the back of her hand. I held it for several seconds, then I stood up straight and saw her completely blank face. She hadn''t expected me to be completely formal with my greeting when she had been so casual. I smiled slightly and then shook her hand several times. ¡°Hi, Gillis. Long time, no see.¡± Gillis glanced at Helena with raised eyebrows. ¡°I didn''t expect that, either.¡± Helena admitted with a soft laugh. ¡°Is there any chance Sandra can come?¡± ¡°Unfortunately, no. She''s tied up in the Eastern Empire running the new territories.¡± Gillis said and then looked back at me. ¡°We never thought they would make her the permanent Baroness after she claimed the land.¡± ¡°It was a significant tribute.¡± I said and she had to nod. It definitely got everyone''s attention. ¡°I couldn''t get her to come, or even her deputy.¡± Gillis said and then she smiled crookedly. ¡°However, I did stop by a certain place last week and let someone else know where I was going today. Of course, word carried farther than I intended and I have to do something important right now.¡± We watched as Gillis turned to the doorway and did a perfect curtsy, then she held it without moving. ¡°I am pleased to announce her majesty Queen Samantha Grace Rivers and her youngest daughter, Princess Rose Samantha Rivers.¡± Gillis said and stayed where she was until the queen came into the room. We all bowed with respect and she waved her hand to stop us. ¡°You know we''re not here on official business.¡± The queen said and motioned for Gillis to stop. ¡°I know you deserve respect for dropping everything to come here.¡± Gillis said and stood up straight. ¡°It''s going to be the social upheaval of the year.¡± The queen laughed demurely and turned to Helena. ¡°I apologize for just showing up.¡± ¡°There''s no need for an apology, your majesty.¡± Helena said and took her hand to bend over it. ¡°My home is always open to you and your family. David is an openly declared friend of your family and I would never tell you that you can''t drop in whenever you feel like it.¡± The queen laughed softly again and reached a hand back to her daughter. ¡°Rose.¡± ¡°Yes, mother.¡± Rose said and she stepped into the room wearing a similar dress to her mother''s, only it was less refined and had more frills and an extra ribbon or two, as if whoever dressed her made sure that she intentionally looked younger than she actually was. Helena greeted her as I took the queen''s hand. ¡°Your highness.¡± I said and bent over her hand to kiss the back of it. ¡°You look absolutely ravishing.¡± The queen laughed softly and took her hand back. ¡°You might actually mean that if you said it to my daughter.¡± I raised my eyebrows to her. ¡°I wouldn''t say it if I didn''t mean it, unless I am making a joke, which I would never do when it concerns a woman''s beauty.¡± ¡°It''s true.¡± Helena said and handed me Rose''s hand. ¡°He has no reason to lie.¡± ¡°Of course he doesn''t.¡± The queen said and waited for her daughter. ¡°Lord Drake.¡± Rose said to me and her face was flushed a little red. _______________ You have a choice to make. It could be critical, depending on the choice you make. A) Tell the truth. B) Lie and look good. C) Compliment her. D) Stay silent. E) Choose two. I''ll choose two. A and C. _______________ ¡°Princess Rose Rivers, you need a better stylist or someone that will dress you for you and not for your mother.¡± I said and several gasps came from those around us. ¡°You''re much too pretty to dress so young. You should stop hiding behind your mother''s expectations and let your beauty shine as much as your bright eyes.¡± Rose''s mouth made that little ''o'' of surprise as I bent over and kissed the back of her hand and sent a huge pulse of magic through it and up her arm. ¡°Ohh.¡± She started to moan and then caught herself. ¡°Stop, Lord Drake.¡± I did and let her hand go. ¡°Thank you for coming to my humble home. Supper will be served soon. If you will proceed to the dining room, you and your mother will have the seats directly on my left at the table.¡± Rose blinked her eyes at me for a moment, then she smiled. ¡°I accept your gracious invitation.¡± I bowed my head and she went to her mother, who had a shocked look on her face. Rose took her hand and led her into the dining room to take their seats. ¡°David, what the hell was that?¡± Gillis asked. ¡°Proof.¡± I said and looked out the front door. Someone else was coming and I smiled as Gary Stromboli showed up. ¡°Chief, it''s nice of you to come all this way.¡± ¡°I wouldn''t miss this for the world.¡± Gary said and hugged Helena, shook my hand and clapped me on the shoulder, and then shook Hope''s, the butler''s, and Lannin''s hands before going into the dining room. Vanessa and her parents came in next and we all greeted them normally, except I kissed Vanessa on the lips instead of the cheek. She blushed a little and led her parents into the dining room. ¡°I think that was everyone that responded to the invitation.¡± Hope said and Lannin checked the list. ¡°Yes, that''s everyone.¡± Lannin said. I turned to Helena and gave her a kiss. ¡°Are you ready for this?¡± ¡°I was going to ask you the same thing.¡± Helena said with a smile. ¡°Let''s have some fun and show your mother all of the people that she could be associating with if your father wasn''t such a pain in the ass for us.¡± Helena laughed softly and kissed me. ¡°That does sound like fun.¡± I escorted her into the packed dining room and we smiled warmly at the large crowd of people waiting for us. 233 Academy Antics Part Ninety Seven - Meals For a King Redone The tables in the room had been changed out. Instead of the smaller one for Helena and myself to enjoy an intimate dinner on and the larger one for the staff where they could all gather, it was one long single table that went down one side of the room and made an ''L'' shape across the bottom of it. With all of the guests and Helena and myself in the room, there were 33 people waiting to eat. It was the most people that we''ve had at a single table. I knew the cooks were up to the task, especially when I had specifically ordered my cook and the kitchen helper to set the menu and to arrange the dishes to my liking. I sat Helena on my right at the only place left unoccupied and I stood at the head of the table. My eyes roamed around the people sitting there as they looked back at me expectantly. Vanessa was on Helena''s right and her parents were next. On my left was a quite amused Queen Rivers and beside her sat her daughter, Rose. On their left were Alex and Donna, also clearly amused. I was glad that such a large gathering had more relaxed seating than a smaller gathering would have, because about halfway down the table near the bend in the ''L'' shape, were Helena''s mother and Selena. Neither of them looked happy with being sat so far away from us and I glanced at Helena to see her fighting not to laugh. I lightly touched her shoulder and picked up my wine glass. ¡°I want to thank you all for taking time out of your busy schedules to grace us with your presences here tonight. It means a lot to both I and my future wife that we have so many reliable and dependable people in our lives.¡± ¡°Here, here!¡± Gary said and raised his glass. ¡°I''m not finished yet.¡± I said. ¡°Eh, it''s good enough.¡± Gary said and a few people laughed. I smiled. ¡°As I was saying, this had only started out as a small dinner for very close friends that I hadn''t seen in a while, then I had a particularly boisterous run-in with King Rivers and the royal family...¡± Rose laughed softly and then covered her mouth. ¡°...and one thing led to another. I''ll skip over the sensitive parts that are technically state secrets now, thanks to the documents I signed at the time.¡± Alex and Donna had smirks on their faces, because they had taken the regeneration potion before then. ¡°After that, the guest list expanded out to include everyone that we wanted to let know that I was officially granted ownership of the marsh where I grew up in. Because the amount of land is quite significant... thousands of square miles worth in fact... I was also granted a full Lord title because of it.¡± A few people looked shocked at my words, namely Mona and Selena, Gary, Anna, Nancy, and a few others that hadn''t seen me in a while. A few people clapped, and the rest looked like they already knew. ¡°This meal is a celebration of that, of good friends that will come when called, even for something so simple as a meal with me, and for the king''s birthday.¡± I said and raised my glass high as my hand gave Helena''s shoulder a squeeze. ¡°I dedicate this opening toast to all of you. I wouldn''t be here right now if it wasn''t for your help at the most opportune times. So, thank you for everything you''ve done for me.¡± They all raised their glasses and took a sip. The only two that hesitated slightly were Mona and Selena and they gave me sad looks as they took a sip. I hid my smile as I sipped and then waved my hand at the kitchen door and let out a bit of magic. That surprised a few people there, then the entire kitchen staff came out and started serving the first course of the meal. Light conversation started as people ate their salads. ¡°That was quite the speech.¡± The queen whispered. ¡°It was the truth.¡± I whispered back. ¡°Each and every person here has helped me at specific junctions in my life. If it wasn''t for their help or influence, my life would be so much different right now.¡± ¡°Even us?¡± Rose asked. ¡°Especially you.¡± I responded and she smiled and blushed at the same time. ¡°How did I help?¡± The queen asked a minute later. ¡°You raised a very intelligent daughter. If it wasn''t for your hand in that, I would have been subject to the whims of the kingdom''s standard contracts because Rose wouldn''t have pointed them out for me.¡± The queen gave me a searching look and then looked at her daughter. ¡°You really meant it when you said I''ve been intentionally dressing her down.¡± ¡°I did. You want to keep her as your beautiful little girl for as long as possible, so it''s understandable.¡± I explained. ¡°I would suggest keeping that aspect of her for your personal and private family time, since when out in public, you don''t want people to see her as immature or not influential. She''s the second princess.¡± The queen blushed a little. ¡°I was given full command to raise her how I wanted without the royal family''s restrictions on raising a future ruler.¡± ¡°Mother.¡± Rose whispered. ¡°You did a great job.¡± ¡°You did, considering she''ll be a better ruler than Ellen.¡± I said and both of them gasped. ¡°David, you can''t say things like that.¡± Helen cautioned me. ¡°Why not? It''s the truth.¡± I said. ¡°It''s treason.¡± Rose whispered. ¡°You can''t speak ill of the next ruler.¡± ¡°She''s going to be the next ruler?¡± I asked, surprised. The queen sighed. ¡°Yes. My husband, in his naivety, has recused our eldest son for incompetence and sent him off to pasture.¡±Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. ¡°What''s that mean?¡± I asked. ¡°He''s ruling over the kingdom''s farmland that''s a very safe distance away from everything, let alone the war front.¡± Rose said. ¡°Oh, so my prediction that you''d be next in line was right.¡± I said and both women widened their eyes at me. ¡°It''s true.¡± Donna said. ¡°He guessed that way back before we started on the plans to take out the dragons and move the war to the Eastern Empire.¡± ¡°R-really?¡± Rose asked and gave me a penetrating stare. Gillis leaned in close. ¡°I was there. His words about you being next gave me the courage to talk to Ellen about the unfairness of her plans.¡± ¡°She never told me that.¡± Rose said. ¡°I doubt she tells a lot of people much of anything, considering how she was raised.¡± I said and they all looked at me again. ¡°She was raised to be a great military leader, to command forces to their deaths and achieve victory for the kingdom. I''ve had extensive experience with her command abilities and she doesn''t really consider people''s personal feelings when making her decisions.¡± The queen looked a little upset and Rose put a hand on hers. ¡°He''s right. The only people she really cares about are us.¡± Rose admitted. ¡°That''s why my argument worked.¡± Gillis said and the queen reluctantly nodded. ¡°That''s all water under the bridge, as Gary would say.¡± I said and they all looked back at me. ¡°We''re all here now and all we can do is move forward...¡± I sat back and waved my hand at the kitchen door with more magic. ¡°...to the next course of the meal.¡± Helena laughed softly, Gillis chuckled, Vanessa laughed and had to cover her mouth to stop it, which meant she had taken her potions, and Rose gave her mother a huge smile. ¡°All right.¡± The queen said and smiled back. ¡°The past is past and we''ve established bonds of friendship and understanding because of it.¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± Rose said as the kitchen staff replaced the empty salad bowls with a light soup. ¡°We came here to celebrate with David and his family, so let''s do just that.¡± ¡°We will... right after I say something.¡± The queen said and leaned in close to whisper to me. ¡°Thank you for your help with the king and Melanie.¡± ¡°Did it work?¡± I asked back in a whisper. ¡°She''s been much more relaxed around me and she''s stopped trying to copy everything I do.¡± The queen whispered back. ¡°That''s not what I meant.¡± I whispered and stared into her eyes. ¡°Did it work?¡± The queen''s face flushed red as she blushed, then she leaned in very close to put her mouth next to my ear. ¡°We can''t announce it until next month until after the king''s birthday.¡± She breathed. ¡°Yes, she''s pregnant.¡± ¡°I''m glad you''re so happy to have another child to raise.¡± The queen lightly kissed my cheek. ¡°I really am. Thank you.¡± She leaned back and started eating her soup. Rose gave me a knowing smile and started eating, too. Helena and Vanessa gave me pointed looks and I slightly shook my head as I mouthed the word ''later''. The meal progressed and we shared polite conversation, then Vanessa''s parents brought up the new business. Well, that topic ran all the way around the table and everyone started talking about it. It dominated the conversation for the rest of the meal because it was all so new and exciting. The only two people not enjoying it were Mona and Selena, because both of them knew that the business was going to severely cut into their family''s profits. When the subject of the first large scale product being produced was a ship that was a quarter size smaller than a clipper ship, Mona''s face was both shocked and embarrassed. Nothing smaller than a clipper ship had ever been built before, because current construction methods and the wood used made it so that a clipper ship was the very smallest full scale ship that people could make. Ships could be made much larger than that and take that much longer to make; but, clipper ships were the quickest. Three months was the estimate for a clipper ship, not counting the furnishings and details. Each larger scale ship would add a month or more. It was a bottleneck that even adding more workers couldn''t overcome, because it had to be done a certain way and that was that. ¡°We''ll be done at the end of the week.¡± Baroness Sellwafer said and complete silence fell in the room as all other conversations stopped. ¡°The new construction methods and materials that Lord Drake''s construction crews use have revolutionized our production.¡± ¡°You can''t possibly build a ship''s hull in a week.¡± Mona said from down the table. ¡°It''s not physically possible. I admit that I haven''t seen David''s crews and their construction prowess firsthand and only the results...¡± ¡°Mother, they rebuilt the dorm mansion in a week.¡± Helena reminded her and looked at her sister. ¡°You saw it before and after, Selena. How big is the building?¡± Selena opened her mouth and then closed it. I could tell that she didn''t want to admit that a ship could easily fit inside if there were no floors or internal walls. ¡°A ship is much smaller.¡± Helena said and looked at the Baroness. ¡°I assume you meant the entire ship will be done and not just the hull.¡± The Baroness smiled. ¡°Even the full masts and sails with all the rigging. The men are so excited about the progress they are making.¡± ¡°Will it be done by the weekend?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°I''ll come by to pay for it and pick it up.¡± ¡°You ordered it?¡± Mona asked, shocked. ¡°I wanted to own the first one ever produced.¡± I said with a shrug. ¡°It''s a test of concept because it''ll be the first ever solid wood ship using the new construction methods. Since I can''t build it myself, I commissioned the Sellwafers to do it for me.¡± ¡°I definitely want one if it works.¡± Alex said and everyone looked at him. ¡°I''ve been on David''s boats before. If it''s as solid as them, I want one.¡± ¡°Of course you do.¡± Donna said with a roll of her eyes. ¡°Who are you going to get to sail it for you?¡± ¡°I''ll figure something out later.¡± Alex said smugly and she laughed. ¡°I would want one as well.¡± Rose said and the queen gave her a surprised look. ¡°Father''s been wanting a little runabout to tour the harbour for years.¡± ¡°He has been eyeing that decommissioned dreadnought for a while.¡± The queen said. ¡°All right. If you think he''ll like it, we can get one for him as a birthday present.¡± Rose beamed a smile at her. ¡°Thank you, mother.¡± She looked at the Baroness. ¡°As soon as David takes his out on the water to test it, the royal family wants the next one you make.¡± The Baroness was surprised and recovered quickly. ¡°O-of course, princess. Our humble establishment would be honoured to provide the same ship for you.¡± ¡°Wonderful.¡± Rose said and reached across the table to shake her hand and seal the deal. ¡°I''ll come by with David on the weekend to see the thing for myself.¡± ¡°Why don''t we all go?¡± Lady Marks suggested and a lot of heads nodded in agreement. ¡°We are all staying here for the king''s birthday anyway, so we might as well stick around and witness the next wonder that Lord Drake is involved in.¡± ¡°I think that''s a great idea.¡± Lady Bassinger said. ¡°I can''t wait to see it for myself.¡± ¡°It''s going to be another event, isn''t it?¡± Greta asked with a chuckle and her sister laughed. ¡°It always is.¡± Helena said and took my hand. ¡°I wouldn''t have it any other way.¡± I turned to her and gave her a kiss, which made a few people say ''aw''. The meal continued on after that, each course more delicious than the last. 234 Academy Antics Part Ninety Eight - Mingling For Fun And Profit The meal ended and I gave the closing toast after I stood again. ¡°Once again, I thank you all for coming here on this day to gather together and share food with both friends and family.¡± I looked around at everyone''s happy faces. ¡°I would also like to officially announce the newest member of my family, Vanessa Elizabeth Sellwafer-Henrietta.¡± A lot of gasps and mutterings responded and Mona looked completely shocked. Selena only looked surprised, which meant that she hadn''t told her mother about the contract negotiations. I could see a lot of people were shocked that a budding mage would willingly sign a concubine contract. ¡°Helena and I signed the contracts with her mother and father, ensuring that we all would get what we needed, and everything is properly registered.¡± I said and gave a pointed look to Vanessa. ¡°Both I and my future wife welcome you with open arms and we hope that we can live up to your expectations.¡± Vanessa''s face was flushed red as she stood and smiled. ¡°You''ve already exceeded them, My Lord.¡± Her words made a lot of them talk quite loudly. ¡°Good for you!¡± Gary said and I smiled. ¡°I know you all are assuming we''ve had sex already.¡± I said and both Mona and Selena didn''t look surprised this time. ¡°I swear on the royal ceremonial sword that I have neither taken her maidenhood nor have I done anything to sully her virtue.¡± ¡°We have kissed once properly and twice in greeting.¡± Vanessa admitted. ¡°David has been more of a gentleman than any other man I have ever met.¡± That made a lot of people widen their eyes. ¡°Not so good for you, then.¡± Gary said and a few people laughed, mainly the army people. ¡°We aren''t planning on breaking the terms of the contract.¡± I said and that got everyone''s attention. ¡°You added that into the contract?¡± The queen asked, clearly shocked. ¡°It''s one of the stipulations, yes.¡± I said and looked back at Vanessa. ¡°As a proper lady, she won''t be required to submit to that clause in the contract until after the marriage ceremony.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light!¡± Mona said, quite loudly. ¡°You shared your title with her!¡± ¡°As I have with Lady Helena.¡± I said and she caught her breath. ¡°Our son will also be Lord Henrietta.¡± There was complete silence for three seconds until that sunk in, then there was an immediate uproar and everyone except Mona, Selena, and the queen jumped from their seats to swarm me at the head of the table to congratulate us. Even with my vigilance technique, I couldn''t make out the individual words as everyone talked at once and patted my shoulders and my back, shook my hand, and gave me brief hugs. The fervour died down after a couple of minutes and they returned to their seats. ¡°Congratulations, Lord Drake.¡± The queen said. ¡°Thank you, your majesty.¡± I said and waved my glass of wine around to everyone to finish my toast. ¡°To love, to life, and to heirs.¡± ¡°To heirs.¡± Everyone responded and took a sip as I did, which finished the meal, and a few people let out relieved sighs. ¡°I''m so stuffed!¡± Jinelle said a bit loudly and nearly everyone laughed. ¡°Hey! Everything was delicious! I couldn''t help eat it all!¡± ¡°We''re laughing with you, dear granddaughter.¡± Lady Marks said with a compassionate smile. ¡°I actually can''t remember the last time that so much great food has crossed my plate in one night.¡± ¡°It really was great.¡± Rose said with a smile. ¡°Father did tell us that your cook was talented, only we didn''t quite believe him.¡± ¡°We assumed he was biased with the extra special meat you served.¡± The queen said with a chuckle. ¡°I am relieved that we were wrong.¡± ¡°Did you try some of it?¡± I asked and she shook her head. ¡°Perhaps next time.¡± ¡°Don''t you dare think about going all that way to get more.¡± Rose said, then she blushed. ¡°Um, I mean... you shouldn''t put yourself in unnecessary danger.¡± A few people laughed softly and she blushed a little more. ¡°Shall we retire to the parlour and relax? I need to recline on a nice couch right now.¡± Helena said. ¡°Of course, dear.¡± I said and helped her stand to assume the escort position. ¡°Vanessa.¡± ¡°My Lord.¡± Vanessa said and walked around us to take my other arm. I walked the two of them out of the room and the others followed us as they talked animatedly about everything. Hope opened the door to the parlour and there were already drinks of various kinds set out, including tea, water, and various juices. There were several maids there to inform people of the different choices as well. The queen''s guards were also doing their jobs well. They were both present and unobtrusive as they guarded both the queen and the princess from certain out of the way spots. Gillis had arrived with a guard and he was doing his job by being easily seen as her shadow. I was sure that was the point, to show that she had physical protection and to distract everyone from noticing the rest of the guards. ¡°Right here, David.¡± Helena said and motioned to her favorite couch, so I eased her down onto it and she reclined slightly. ¡°Plop Vanessa here beside me and go mingle.¡± ¡°Are you sure?¡± I asked and Vanessa sat where Helena indicated.This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. ¡°Yes, Vanessa and I haven''t had much time to interact without you as a buffer.¡± Helena said and saw Vanessa''s slight blush. ¡°I''m sure we''ll get along well, considering we share views on you and how to treat you.¡± ¡°I''d like to talk to you as well.¡± Vanessa said. ¡°Is this the best time? There are so many guests...¡± Helena chuckled. ¡°David will keep them at bay for us, won''t you, my love?¡± ¡°Whatever you want.¡± I said and bent down to kiss her. ¡°Don''t hurry back.¡± Helena said and Vanessa laughed softly. I kissed her next and then went over to the main group of guests after a quick whispered word to Hope. She left and quickly came back with Jill, Sara, and Tabitha to set up a kind of perimeter around Helena''s chosen couch. ¡°That was a great meal.¡± Gary said as I stood next to him. ¡°I''m glad being out of the army has been so good to you.¡± I had to laugh a little at that and my former XO Anna Carter and Drill Sergeant Nancy Travis looked confused. ¡°David had it bad after being hurt in the dragon mission.¡± Alex said. ¡°Listen to who''s talking.¡± Donna sighed. ¡°You lost an arm and a leg, you brave fool.¡± Alex laughed. ¡°Yeah, it got me out of the service quicker than I thought it would.¡± He put his arm around his wife. ¡°You weren''t much better with all that spray damage.¡± ¡°Oh, it was horrible.¡± Donna said and a few tears came to her eyes. ¡°I didn''t even want to look in the mirror anymore.¡± Alex hugged her tightly and she wiped at her eyes. ¡°Then almost out of the blue, David showed up and did his marsh magic.¡± Donna said and smiled, even though the tears didn''t stop. ¡°By the Son''s Light, it was the worst pain I''ve ever felt since the day I received the injuries in the first place.¡± ¡°It really is.¡± A voice said and we all turned to look at Rose. ¡°My sister cursed David...¡± ¡°Ahem.¡± The queen said and then pretended to cough. Rose rolled her eyes. ¡°Lord Drake''s name has never been said so loudly or with such hatred.¡± Alex nodded. ¡°I was right there, quite delirious, and I have to admit that I was yelling his name as well.¡± He looked at me fondly. ¡°I wasn''t cursing him, though. He was giving me Donna back and I''d suffer through anything to have that.¡± ¡°Me, too.¡± Donna said and kissed Alex. ¡°Getting you back was worth it.¡± ¡°I really want to know what you did.¡± Linette said as she walked over to us with her daughter, mother, and sister. ¡°Is it really a state secret?¡± I nodded. ¡°I can''t reveal anything until a certain condition is fulfilled.¡± Linette sighed. ¡°You don''t know how long...¡± ¡°It''s up to the royal family.¡± I said and nodded to the queen. ¡°I won''t break the contract that I signed in good faith.¡± ¡°Thank you, Lord Drake.¡± The queen said. ¡°I''m sure that... well...¡± ¡°We''re working on it.¡± Rose said with a sly smile. I had to chuckle. ¡°Good luck.¡± ¡°Your highness, have you received my gift?¡± Lady Marks asked as she gave me a wink. ¡°I have and it''s wonderful.¡± The queen said and glanced around, then she pulled up the sleeve of her dress. ¡°Richard couldn''t keep his hands off of me last night.¡± Lady Marks laughed. ¡°I assume you''ll want another container. Or two.¡± The queen''s eyes almost sparkled. ¡°I''ll invite you over for a girls only family dinner as a thank you.¡± ¡°Ooo.¡± Both Jinelle and Rose said at the same time, which made the older ladies laugh softly. ¡°That sounds wonderful.¡± Lady Marks said. ¡°David, have you made anything else to stun us with?¡± ¡°There''s no such thing as a stun potion.¡± I said and that made everyone laugh. ¡°You''re so funny.¡± Rose said and looked at Jinelle. ¡°Let''s go raid the drinks table.¡± ¡°No alcohol!¡± The queen and Linette said at the same time as the girls ran off laughing. ¡°She might almost be finished at the academy; but, she acts like such a little girl sometimes.¡± Linette said with a shake of her head. That explains a couple of things. I thought. ¡°Rose can be rambunctious at times as well.¡± The queen said and glanced at me. ¡°I should start reining her in very soon.¡± ¡°I think you can let her be young for a bit longer, since she won''t be starting at the academy until next year.¡± Greta said. ¡°I''ll keep an eye on her when she starts school, as will Jinelle.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± The queen said. ¡°Hey, David! I just noticed!¡± Gary said as he looked at the glass I was holding in my hand. ¡°What the hell happened? You got your little finger back!¡± I pointed it out at the queen. ¡°State secret.¡± Gary looked at the queen and she nodded. ¡°Well, damn. I know it''s going to be a good story and I won''t get to hear it.¡± I put a hand on his shoulder. ¡°If it makes you feel better about this, I don''t use a wooden leg anymore.¡± ¡°No? Then what...¡± Gary stopped talking and bent over to touch my leg. ¡°Good god, it''s real! It''s a real leg!¡± The people around us laughed at his startled reaction. ¡°My fiance ordered me to mingle, so I need to keep doing that.¡± I said as Gary stood up. ¡°David, what the hell did you do?¡± Gary asked. ¡°Something I need to do again, I believe.¡± I said and touched the back of my damaged hand. ¡°Ladies and gentlemen, please excuse me. I see my next target.¡± A few of them turned to look and saw the Montgomery Family. ¡°Miss Carter, would you accompany me? I''m sure that the old man would like to hear your views on using the sword I sent you.¡± ¡°I''d be honored.¡± Anna said and took my arm. ¡°Excuse us.¡± ¡°Me, too.¡± Nancy said and followed us. ¡°How far he''s come.¡± Alex said with a smile. ¡°We''d be very interested in hearing about some of your adventures together.¡± Lady Marks said. ¡°Chief Stromboli can assist with that, too.¡± Donna said and the older man nodded. I tuned them out as I brought Anna over to see the old man, Black, and Heather. ¡°Ah, the illustrious host.¡± The old man said with a bright smile. ¡°Who is this? Another conquest?¡± ¡°Hardly.¡± Anna said with a bit of a laugh. ¡°I''m his old training XO.¡± ¡°Oh! You were the one he sent his sword to.¡± The old man said and Black and Heather perked up at that. ¡°How does it feel? How long can you hold the charge before it dissipates? Do you pre-charge it or do it just before attacking?¡± ¡°Grandfather, let her breathe and answer.¡± Black said with a laugh. ¡°We rarely get independent input for our enchantments.¡± ¡°I wouldn''t quite call me independent.¡± Anna said, amused. ¡°I suppose I''m not your normal clientele.¡± ¡°Yes, yes, exactly.¡± The old man said. ¡°New eyes gives new view.¡± Thus began a lively discussion on the merits of the new enchantments over the old ones. 235 Academy Antics Part Ninety Nine - Evening Festivities The discussion was enlightening, mainly because of Anna''s experience with both the old enchantments that were on weapons used by the basic troops and her experience with the new enchantment. Her praise at its ease of use was well received by the old man, especially since she said that some of the men that could use them found the old ones tended to bend or warp after several uses. The old man gave me a pointed look. ¡°Yes, we''ve recently discovered that when a proper enchantment is given to a weapon, it shouldn''t adversely affect the metal, unlike the normal enchantments.¡± ¡°It''s the magic overload.¡± Black said. ¡°If less is used for infusion, the effect is less on the metal, weakening the enchantment and letting the weapon last longer. With the new enchantment technique David showed us, it''s the enchantment that gets empowered and not the weapon.¡± Anna gave me an appraising look. ¡°I assume you''re keeping this knowledge very limited.¡± ¡°Only in the fact that I haven''t told the Montgomerys the best usage.¡± I said with a bit of a smirk. ¡°All right, spill it.¡± The old man said. ¡°I already owe you for the vial of potion. I might as well owe you for the information, too.¡± ¡°It''ll help the military, too.¡± I said and Anna gripped my arm slightly tighter. ¡°If my former XO would like to propose the idea to the right people...¡± ¡°All right, now I''ll say the same thing.¡± Anna said. ¡°Spill it.¡± I had to chuckle at that. ¡°You don''t need to reserve the weapons only for people that can charge them.¡± The three Montomerys, Anna, and Nancy gave me blank looks. ¡°All you need is a half-decent mage, not even a powerful one, assigned to whatever unit you want to give the weapons to. They could charge the swords up for everyone during the minute right before a battle or a skirmish, and the whole unit can get one or two strikes out of them before they become normal swords.¡± ¡°How much?¡± Anna asked and turned her body to look at me as her grip lessened on my arm just enough to not stop her from facing me. ¡°As long as the unit retreats a short distance or rotates new people in, the mage can charge all the weapons again fairly quickly and keep the whole unit going.¡± I said. ¡°No, David. How much to get that potion for the Montgomerys.¡± I thought about that for a minute, then smiled. ¡°I want an official commission for my ship.¡± Nancy whistled and the Montgomerys were surprised into silence. ¡°David, that... you can''t... you want a military registry for a civilian ship?¡± Anna asked, just to be sure. I nodded. ¡°I don''t want to be classed as a pirate if weapons are found on board.¡± No one missed the implications of that. ¡°David...¡± Anna looked like she was almost in pain. ¡°If my armament idea works, I''ll also share it with the military.¡± I said and she took in a sharp breath. ¡°Why don''t you bring a few choice people down to the docks when I pick up my ship.¡± Anna sighed. ¡°You''re going to do it anyway, aren''t you?¡± ¡°Frank already has them mounted in the hull and the ship isn''t even finished yet.¡± I said. Nancy laughed. ¡°All right, we''ll get the word to the right people that there''s going to be a demonstration that day.¡± ¡°Nancy, we shouldn''t encourage...¡± Anna started to say and her friend pat her arm to stop her. ¡°Like you said, it''s going to happen anyway.¡± Nancy said and looked at me. ¡°I don''t suppose you can give us a preview of what you have planned.¡± ¡°It won''t work until the ship is done on the weekend.¡± I said with a shrug. ¡°I won''t even be able to check it myself until I go there to pick it up and then install the enchantments.¡± ¡°What are you putting on it?¡± Black asked immediately. ¡°A few things.¡± I said, a bit cryptically. ¡°Army skiff basics?¡± Anna asked and shook her head. ¡°No, I suppose an enchantment that can move a skiff won''t work for a full ship.¡± I glanced at the old man and he had a knowing smile on his face. ¡°Fire suppression enchantments, creature protection, a weight enchantment, and a few other things that I have to look up to see if they will work.¡± ¡°I didn''t hear you mention a movement enchantment.¡± Nancy said and then her eyes widened slightly. ¡°Don''t tell me you have a different one!¡± I diverted my eyes from hers and didn''t say anything in response. ¡°I knew you handicapped the movement enchantments on purpose.¡± Black said with a chuckle. ¡°How far would the kracken tubes fire if you didn''t handicap them?¡± ¡°According to my tests, about three times farther.¡± I said and they all sucked in sharp breaths. ¡°Good lord.¡± Anna whispered. ¡°How? How did you test...¡± ¡°This mansion is very well protected.¡± I said and they all looked shocked. ¡°I''m very well versed in military defensive structures.¡± ¡°You didn''t just rebuild this place, you made it a fortress.¡± Anna said with admiration in her voice. ¡°I did the same at the dorm mansion, only on a lesser scale.¡± I said. ¡°There''s only two hidden kracken tubes and a dozen personnel traps on the surrounding lands.¡± ¡°Damn.¡± Anna said and then chuckled. ¡°If you have that at the academy, I really don''t want to know how many you have here.¡± ¡°I also have weapon caches stashed in key areas.¡± I said with a small smile. Nancy barked a laugh. ¡°Ha! If I wasn''t such a stickler for propriety...¡± ¡°I should add you to the list, then?¡± I asked and she looked confused, so I explained about the list of women that were disappointed about my betrothal. She laughed pretty hard and Anna looked amused as she laughed softly. Heather looked a little embarrassed, probably because of the enticement spell she had tried to cast on me.This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. The old man looked pleased. ¡°You should add my granddaughter to the list, young man. Believe me, I''ll make sure she''s thoroughly informed about you when she''s older.¡± Black chuckled and then sighed. ¡°Grandfather, you''re incorrigible.¡± ¡°That''s why your grandmother married me.¡± The old man said with a cackle. ¡°She was a spitfire!¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light, don''t get him started on that.¡± Heather said and took his arm. ¡°Come on, take me over to admire the queen. If you''re with me, maybe she won''t glower at us standing nearby.¡± The old man laughed and took her away. ¡°I better go, too.¡± Black said. ¡°I''ll remind them about the king''s new sword to give them an excuse to talk to her without the old man embarrassing my wife.¡± ¡°If you stick around after this, I''ll mix up a batch of enchanting potion for you.¡± ¡°A batch of...¡± Black stopped talking for a moment as he realized what I said. ¡°A crate. You''re going to give us a crate of 36 vials.¡± ¡°If you keep being stingy with it, that''s 1,800 swords you can make and enchant for the military.¡± ¡°Sweet merciful god.¡± Black whispered and he just kind of wandered off without saying anything else. Anna and Nancy watched him for a few moments, only to see the stunned man lean against the wall with a blank look on his face. He had completely forgotten to go with his wife to remind her about the king''s sword. ¡°What just happened?¡± Nancy asked. ¡°He''s counting how much money his family is going to make over the next month or so.¡± I said. ¡°Thank you, David. I really appreciate this.¡± Anna said as she turned back to face me again. ¡°I''ll do what I can to get you that commission to carry weapons.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said. ¡°Are they keeping you at the training base as the XO?¡± ¡°Yes, and still no promotion.¡± Nancy sighed. ¡°She''s still the ''acting'' CO, however.¡± ¡°I''m already doing the job, why would they promote me?¡± Anna asked with a chuckle. ¡°Free labour is free labour.¡± ¡°I hope you''re using your status to benefit yourself as much as you can.¡± I said and she gave me a look. ¡°David, I''m trying to help the army, not undermine it.¡± Anna said. ¡°You can still use your position as the acting CO to make sweeping changes to the unspoken policies of the military.¡± I said and she looked thoughtful. ¡°If the people in command are abusing your work ethic for the good of the army, it''s only fair that you do the same to make everyone''s treatment better.¡± Nancy stepped close and nodded to me. ¡°I''m glad someone else has a clear head on their shoulders.¡± ¡°Nancy, please.¡± Anna said with a sigh. ¡°Now''s not the time for a crusade.¡± ¡°All crusades start somewhere.¡± Nancy said with a grin. ¡°I better get her out of here before she commits me to any actions that I won''t be proud of in the morning.¡± Anna said, which made Nancy laugh. ¡°Thank you both for coming.¡± I said and lifted Anna''s hand to kiss the back of it. I made it tingle for her and she shook her head. I took Nancy''s hand and gave it a kiss as well, then made her gasp as I silently used the cooling charm for a second and then the heating charm for a second on her hand. The quick temperature change caused it to tingle, almost as if she had felt pure magic instead. ¡°How did you do that?¡± Nancy asked as she rubbed her hand to try and get the tingling to stop. ¡°I just simulated winter and summer on your hand to make the skin tingle.¡± I said with a smile and put a few drops of healing potion on the back of her hand to rub it into the skin, then caressed it all over with both of my hands. Nancy let out a satisfied sigh as the feelings faded. ¡°How did you know how to get that kind of a reaction?¡± Anna asked. ¡°I just recreated something I''d do back in the marsh during winter. When I go outside to work in the cold to get firewood, I''d have to almost stick my hands into the fireplace to warm them up again when I was done.¡± ¡°Now I don''t feel disappointed at your attempt to make me feel it.¡± Nancy said, in reference to my lack of attempt previously. ¡°It was nice to see you again, Lord Drake.¡± ¡°Aren''t you staying here for the week like some of the others?¡± I asked. ¡°We''ve made arrangements at the nearby army barracks.¡± Anna said and let my arm go to shake my hand. ¡°We''ll see you again on the weekend.¡± ¡°All right. I''ll see you both then.¡± I said and the two women walked away. I could swear I saw Nancy''s hips sway a lot more than I had previously. ¡°I''d tell you to stop staring, only I know you''re not staring like other people do.¡± Gillis said with a grin. I turned to her and accepted a hug. ¡°I''m sure she did that for my benefit, so I had to look.¡± ¡°Okay, maybe you are staring like other people do.¡± Gillis said with a laugh. ¡°I''m glad Helen trusts you so much.¡± ¡°Says the woman I bathed with for almost three months.¡± I responded and she let out a snort. ¡°That was the best three months of my life. By the end, I was so relaxed around you that I had no problem with being naked or seeing you naked.¡± Gillis said, wistfully. ¡°It was an amazing experience.¡± ¡°Was it because I was nearly completely ignorant of your womanly wiles or that I never had an erection from seeing your perky breasts every single day?¡± I asked blatantly and she laughed pretty hard. ¡°B-both!¡± Gillis said and had to use a napkin to dab at her eyes to stop the tears. ¡°Oh, oh, that''s funny.¡± ¡°I''m glad my flaccid state amused you.¡± I said and she kept laughing. ¡°Do you want to sit down?¡± ¡°Please.¡± Gillis said and took my arm and I brought her over to another couch. ¡°A drink, please.¡± I nodded and went to get two of them, since my own wine glass was long empty. I handed her a glass and sat down next to her. ¡°How have you been?¡± ¡°I''ve been all right.¡± Gillis said. ¡°My father''s forgiven me for my foolishness already.¡± I had to laugh at that. ¡°He wouldn''t let you stay as Sandra''s aide.¡± ¡°No, the bastard.¡± Gillis said with a huge smile. ¡°He wants me to stay in the capital for a while.¡± ¡°A while?¡± I asked, hearing the firmness in her voice. ¡°He said that after my last little foray into the wilderness as a pawn of the army, I''m grounded until I''m fifty.¡± Gillis said with a haughty air, then she laughed and leaned against my shoulder to rest her head on it. ¡°I agreed, of course. I love him.¡± She let out a sigh. ¡°He accepted my decision to join the army, foolish as it was, and let me try to find another way to live my life. I never expected that he was right and that I was wasting my time.¡± ¡°He wasn''t.¡± I said and she lifted her head to look at me. ¡°If you hadn''t tried to do things your own way, you never would have accepted the way things were at home. You would have been resentful and probably angry at him for holding you back.¡± Gillis blinked her eyes for several seconds. ¡°I... well...¡± ¡°Instead, he let you make your choices, let you realize that you made a mistake, then helped you get out of the army.¡± I said and she put her head back on my shoulder. ¡°By the way, you didn''t waste your time.¡± ¡°If I only look at my time in the army, it was a waste.¡± Gillis said and held a hand up. ¡°You''re forgetting what I said during the opening toast.¡± I took the hand and held it tenderly. ¡°If it wasn''t for you being there during basic training, I would have had a very different experience.¡± ¡°Will the Drill Sergeant was such a jerk.¡± Gillis said. ¡°He wouldn''t stop picking on you.¡± ¡°He was apparently upset that he couldn''t break me.¡± I said. Gillis let out a little laugh. ¡°Boy, were his expectations too high! You were swallowed by a goddamn dragon and it still didn''t break you!¡± I chuckled. ¡°It would take a lot more than that to make me give up.¡± ¡°I know.¡± Gillis said and let out a long and drawn out sigh. ¡°Well, I''ve taken up a lot of your time. You need to go visit a few more people before going back to your wife.¡± ¡°You''re not moving or letting my hand go.¡± I commented and she laughed softly. I glanced around and saw the people around us were having polite conversation and seemed to be fully engaged. ¡°It looks like I have a few minutes more to spare if you want to just sit here.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Gillis said in a whisper. 236 Academy Antics Part One Hundred - The End Of The Night Neither Gillis nor I said anything else and just relaxed inside our own little bubble of silence. Unfortunately, I had been right with my estimation of only a few minutes to spare as someone broke away from one of the talking groups and came over to us. ¡°Sorry for intruding.¡± Lady Bassinger said as she approached the couch that Gillis and I were relaxing on. ¡°I was wondering if you needed my expertise for your new ship.¡± ¡°Do you have anyone with experience making a bow spirit?¡± I asked and her face lit up. ¡°Oh, yes. My uncle is an expert.¡± Lady Bassinger said. ¡°I''m sure he would love to create something for you.¡± ¡°Not just me.¡± I said with a smile and turned to look at Vanessa''s mother. She seemed to sense my attention and I waved her over. She excused herself from talking to Donna''s parents and came over. ¡°Lord Drake.¡± The Baroness said with a lot of affection in her voice. ¡°I can''t thank you enough for what you said at the dinner table. We already have six orders for ships, all tentative on the first successful launch, of course.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± I said and motioned for her and Lady Bassinger to sit in the two chairs in front of the couch. ¡°Lady Bassinger and her family are well known for their various artistic talents and I just found out that her uncle can create bow spirits.¡± The Baroness gave Lady Bassinger an appraising look. ¡°That could enhance the ships we make and also increase the aesthetic value.¡± ¡°That was my thought as well.¡± Lady Bassinger. ¡°I doubt we could get away with doing too much on the inside...¡± ¡°Of course you can.¡± The Baroness said and waved her comment away. ¡°Especially with the king''s ship order and some of David''s potions. We can permanently attach any paintings to the walls or vases to the tables that will be attached to the deck.¡± ¡°Oh, that sounds wonderful.¡± Lady Bassinger said. ¡°What are your thoughts on...¡± I turned to Gillis and saw her sly smile. ¡°Sneaky.¡± She whispered to me. ¡°It''ll buy us a few more minutes, then you do have to go.¡± I nodded and we sat there without saying anything as the two ladies in front of us were talking animatedly about all of the different things that the royal family would want for the interior. When it was time, I gave Gillis a kiss on the cheek and let her hand go as I stood. ¡°If you will excuse me, I need to rescue my fiance from her own need to socialize.¡± That made the three women laugh and I left them to go over to the couch that Helena was still slightly reclined on. She was holding Vanessa''s hand and the both of them were in a deep conversation with Ferdinand and his wife about updating Vanessa''s entire wardrobe to reflect her new status. I glanced around and saw his two daughters had joined Princess Rose and Jinelle at the drink tables. I heard one of them giggle and saw one of them slip a drink off of the alcohol table and poured a little bit into each of their drinks. I didn''t bother trying to stop them or brought attention to it, since they were having a lot more fun about it than normal people would. ¡°Ah, David.¡± Ferdinand said as he saw me. ¡°Would you have an opinion about...¡± ¡°I much prefer to leave the fashion to the experts.¡± I said and he chuckled as I looked at Helena. ¡°My love, you''re quite tired. You should head to bed and Vanessa and I will keep hosting until the required time.¡± Helena let out a sigh and looked at Vanessa. ¡°I suppose I should. It has been a long day.¡± ¡°You''ve lasted this long.¡± Vanessa said and her free hand reached over to lightly touch Helena''s belly bulge. ¡°You have someone else to look after now.¡± Helena let her hand go and touched the one on her belly with both of hers. ¡°I think we both do.¡± Vanessa blushed a little and nodded as she took her hand back. ¡°Take me to our bedroom.¡± Helena said and took my hand. I helped her stand and she bid a good night to the people around her, then we began a circuit around the room to inform everyone she was leaving for the night. Everything went fine until we reached three particular people. Mona, Selena, and Becca. ¡°I can''t believe you did that to us!¡± Selena spat in a hushed whisper. ¡°Did what?¡± Helena asked and had a confused look on her face. I knew she was faking it, though. We both knew what Selena meant. ¡°Sitting us near the end of the goddamn table, that''s what!¡± Selena hissed. ¡°It was more towards the middle, actually.¡± Helena countered. ¡°Helena.¡± Mona said, her eyes showing anger. ¡°How could you insult us like that? I''m your mother and Selena''s your sister. We should have sat at the head of the table.¡± ¡°Oh? Did you think you''re more important than the queen of the kingdom and her daughter?¡± Helena asked and Mona caught her breath, then blushed. ¡°No, we... well...¡± ¡°Mother, the last time we spoke, you bragged about how father is pillaging the marsh of all the ingredients he can.¡± Helena said. ¡°Well, yes. It was open and unclaimed land at the time. There are thousands of miles of it and it was an untapped resource that the guild couldn''t ignore. Now that David''s been given ownership, all of the land is still a part of the kingdom and the guild has all rights to harvest what it needs for the use of the kingdom.¡± Mona explained. ¡°There''s plenty of ingredients for everyone to benefit.¡± Helena''s face went rigid. ¡°Obviously, father has not told you about David''s ultimatum about stealing his land''s resources.¡±This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. ¡°No, he told me.¡± Mona said. ¡°He knows David can''t enforce such a stupid thing over the entire trade route. It''s just a marsh.¡± She waved a dismissive hand. ¡°The canal is also being expanded and that will allow even easier access.¡± ¡°I''ve already started enforcing it.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°Did he tell you that I wiped out two relay stations and three mage contingents already?¡± Mona looked surprised and didn''t respond. ¡°I''ll take that as a no.¡± I said. ¡°Helena told me it was Grand Mage Henrietta''s plan to rob me, so I know who to charge for theft and perhaps treason for ignoring my orders.¡± ¡°Treason is when you go against the rulers of a nation.¡± Selena said. ¡°David is a friend of the royal family, as you''ve no doubt witnessed, since the queen herself showed up.¡± Helena responded. ¡°She can stop in whenever she likes, like good friends tend to do.¡± Mona looked a bit embarrassed and Selena''s face went right to anger. ¡°You have no right to accuse...¡± Selena started to say. ¡°I''ve seen mother exactly once since I left the main family mansion.¡± Helena said with a glare at her sister. ¡°I had assumed that you would have been by at least once since you started at the academy; but, you''ve been too busy with your own life to care about me or your growing nephew.¡± ¡°That''s not true!¡± Selena gasped. ¡°I didn''t know...¡± ¡°What? That I was pregnant? It was announced and you saw father''s reaction to it. You''ve known all this time why I left. I even asked you to watch over David at the academy and guess what? Who left him completely alone after stopping by for one formal supper with her friends? Who, Selena?¡± Selena''s face went red. ¡°He... he... embarrassed us.¡± Helena chuckled. ¡°Just because he acted like a gentleman and none of you acted like ladies?¡± Selena turned her head and didn''t say anything. ¡°I wondered why you stopped coming around or even looked at me when I saw you in the cafeteria.¡± I said and Selena blushed even more. ¡°I apologize if being treated well embarrassed you and your friends. I thought that I was supposed to treat you all like ladies.¡± Helena squeezed my arm. ¡°You were supposed to, David. They embarrassed themselves by not acting properly or giving you the proper respect as a host.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± I said and Selena wouldn''t look at me. ¡°I guess it doesn''t matter now.¡± ¡°Not after the insult tonight.¡± Mona said. ¡°The seating arrangements in large gatherings are more relaxed.¡± Helena said before I could. ¡°It''s the people with the most influence in our lives that get priority seating.¡± Mona sucked in a sharp breath and Selena clenched her fists. Her blush didn''t fade, though. ¡°David, would you tell them what you did to enforce your orders to stop the mage guild from robbing your lands?¡± Helena asked. ¡°I''m sure it''s going to be a surprise.¡± ¡°Are you sure? I can''t really claim deniability if I admit it.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°I set up enchantments all along the route to make people ignore the marsh on either side of the canal and then I added creature lures behind them. I wanted to make sure that anyone who was stupid enough to try to pass the enchantments wouldn''t last long.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Mona said and she wavered on her feet. ¡°Do... do you know what you''ve done?¡± ¡°I''m protecting my land by using the local inhabitants.¡± I said as Selena steadied her mother. ¡°You''re such a fool.¡± Mona said. ¡°Mother!¡± Helena gasped. ¡°Quiet!¡± Mona spat at her and glared at me. ¡°You used creature lures to bring them towards the canal.¡± ¡°Yes, to stop anyone from going past the wards.¡± I said, not knowing where she was going with it. ¡°I didn''t hear anything about you protecting anyone that''s already in the canal from those creatures.¡± Mona said, her voice deadly and her face angry. It took a minute for her words to sink in. ¡°Oh.¡± ¡°Yes, you''ve made the entire canal a death trap for anyone passing through it and not just for mages trying to gather cheap ingredients.¡± Mona said, her voice angry. ¡°If you will excuse me, I need to inform my husband right away. Perhaps he can stop the shipments to and from the Eastern Empire before anyone is slaughtered.¡± ¡°I''ll handle that.¡± A strict female voice said and we turned to look. The queen glared at Mona, who didn''t say anything else. ¡°It seems there has been a lot more underhanded things going on at the Mages Guild than my husband suspected.¡± Mona turned her head away and the queen looked at me. ¡°Lord Drake, get to work. I need those creature protection enchantments as soon as possible.¡± The queen ordered. ¡°Yes, your majesty.¡± I said and bowed. ¡°As soon as I''m done making them, I''ll leave right away to correct my mistake.¡± The queen smiled sadly. ¡°I hope we can both get our work done in time.¡± ¡°I''ll start immediately.¡± I said and led Helena out of the parlour as the queen, Rose, and their guards followed us. I took Helena up to the bedroom and the queen''s entourage left the mansion. ¡°David.¡± Helena said as Jill took her from me to change her. ¡°I''ll be done by the morning and will leave then.¡± I reassured her and she nodded. I left the bedroom and went downstairs into the workman''s quarters, requested a wildwood tree, then went into the basement to get to work. I could brew the enchantment potions and number ten potions that I would need while the men retrieved the tree. I set up a bunch of the copy molds as well. Unlike the limited resources I had at the house in the marsh, I could make tons of copies at once. ¡°Do you need some help?¡± Vanessa asked and I turned to see her, the old man, Black, and Heather. ¡°Normally I''d say no.¡± I said and held a hand out to her. She beamed a smile at me and walked over to take my hand. ¡°The four of you will need a slight lesson on how to enchant them.¡± ¡°We''ll keep it secret.¡± The old man promised and they stepped into the room as well. ¡°Let me just make up another workbench for you to work on.¡± I said and they watched as I did it in less than a minute, then used number ten potion to smooth out the surface. ¡°I''m not going to ask.¡± Black said with a chuckle. ¡°Show us the design and we''ll practice on scrap wood.¡± I quickly did so and they gave me odd looks. Heather''s was the most obvious and she looked pretty turned on. ¡°I''ll add you to the list, too.¡± Heather blushed slightly, then she laughed. Black joined in and the old man swatted him. ¡°Get to work.¡± The old man said and that''s what we did. I watched them practice and they got it on the second try. Vanessa took two more to get it and that was all the time we had. The tree was delivered and the four of them stared in shock as I popped the bark off with just a touch of my knife and some magic. I quickly sliced up a bunch of coins and added them to the molds, then poured in number ten potion to fill them. ¡°That''s amazing.¡± Vanessa whispered when I popped the first five foot by five foot square out, then I sliced it up into small four inch squares. ¡°I didn''t think I could like you any more than I already do.¡± The old man said to me as he picked up the next mold and dumped out the huge chunk of wildwood that had ''grown'' from a single coin of wood. ¡°Get carving, old man.¡± Black said with a laugh and handed him a dozen small squares to work on. ¡°Don''t skimp on the potion.¡± I warned them as I started handing over vials of it. ¡°The enchantments have to last a year or more.¡± ¡°A year!¡± Heather gasped, completely shocked. The old man let out a cackling laugh. ¡°Yes, I do like you a lot more!¡± He said and clapped me on the back, then we all got to work. 237 Academy Antics Part One Hundred And One - A Morning Of Toil With the five of us working, we were done only four hours later, instead of the nearly all night session I had planned. I piled the enchantments into many canvas sacks and workers took them out to my boat that was waiting for me. ¡°I want to come to.¡± Vanessa said. ¡°No, I''m sorry.¡± I said and took her hands in mine. ¡°Just like I did it the last time, this is going to be quick and dirty. If what Mona said is true and creatures have overrun the canal, then I won''t risk taking you with me.¡± ¡°You have the enchantments.¡± Vanessa responded. ¡°Yes, and if any death spider broods have made web constructs over the canal, the protection enchantment won''t stop them from dropping down onto the boat.¡± I said. ¡°What? But... I thought...¡± ¡°I know. Most people make that mistake.¡± I said. ¡°Creatures dropping from trees and overhanging branches are still a severe danger when travelling in a boat, which is why I covered my boat in a canvas sail. It''ll give me several more seconds to react and for the enchantments to drive them off before they can attack and kill me.¡± Vanessa closed her mouth and wasn''t sure what to say. ¡°Believe me, I''m not looking forward to this, since I might have to wade through them to plant the enchantments properly.¡± ¡°We can''t offer to go, either.¡± Black said, his face sad. ¡°We don''t have the experience in that environment that David does.¡± ¡°No one really does.¡± I said and kissed Vanessa''s hands, then filled two cases of vials with the last two pots of the enchantment potion and handed them to the old man. ¡°Thank you for the help.¡± The old man, Black, and Heather looked stunned. ¡°I should be there by daybreak instead of tomorrow night, thanks to you.¡± I said and turned back to Vanessa. ¡°Tell Helena that I''ll see her and you soon.¡± ¡°David.¡± Vanessa whispered and I gave her a kiss. She put her arms around my neck and kissed me back for several moments. ¡°Please, be safe.¡± ¡°I''ll try.¡± I said and left the basement. ¡°The boat''s loaded and waiting, Lord Drake.¡± One of the workers said and motioned to the horse and cart. We climbed on and I was driven through the wildwood grove to the private dock. I hopped into the boat, pushed off from the dock, and the men watched as I took off at a reasonable speed. Once I was in a safer part of the waterway, I increased my speed and settled back for the long journey back to the marsh. The time seemed to pass quickly and I wasn''t sure if it was the urgency or what, because I reached the harbour of Ester''s Village just as dawn broke over the horizon. Then my real work began. Luckily, I didn''t see any sign of creatures or anything close to the canal''s entrance, so I quickly deployed the enchantments right by the canal, so that the area of effect just barely crossed the start of the creature lure enchantment and the beginning of the ignore me enchantment. It created a ''dead zone'' between the water''s edge and the creature lure enchantment where nothing would gather, neither man nor beast. My luck wasn''t so good after working for half an hour. I reached the first relay station where spiders had been creating a nest in the ruined building the last time I had been there. The nest had expanded and had somehow spanned across the canal in a high arch. I wasn''t sure how they could have managed to cross the thing, let alone build a web bridge between trees on either side. I brought my boat to a stop well away from it and observed it for about ten minutes. I tried to look at it objectively, until I saw dark shadows moving inside the damn thing. It wasn''t a bridge. It was a tunnel. Of course, I immediately thought about how to fix things and chuckled as I tossed one of the activated protection enchantments well over to the right side of the web construct. I heard several squeals and waited for a few moments to let them get far enough away from the enchantment, then lit several fires to encourage them to gather into the center. I saw more movement inside the tunnel and I quickly started fires on the left side of the tunnel and trapped a large amount of spiders inside. I couldn''t tell how big they were, though. Once they were trapped on either side. I lit fires all along the entire length from the top down, so the web would stay taught as long as possible and burned as many spiders as possible before the construct gave out and dozens of spiders of various sizes dropped down into the canal. I saw and heard a lot of noise come from the large nest and concentrated on it as I cast multiple fire starting spells all around it. I wasn''t stupid enough to try and set the enchantments around the old relay station until I was sure that I wouldn''t be swarmed by death spiders. It took me nearly an hour with constant fire starting spells to get the nest really burning down to its core. A very large queen spider burst out at that point and roared, almost like a marsh panther, and I saw two of its legs were burned off and part of its carapace was charred as well. I took a trick from what I did to the thugs that tried to hurt Greta and cast several fire starting spells on the giant spider''s hair. It was covered in the bristle-like hairs and apparently, they were quite flammable.Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. It roared and squealed as it was engulfed in flames and it ran around, as if it didn''t know what to do, so I threw one of the enchantments behind it to try and get it moving in a certain direction. It took the not so subtle hint and ran right where I wanted it to go. Right into the canal with the other drowned spiders. It did not know how to swim and it wasn''t buoyant at all, being as big as it was, so it quickly sank down into the quite deep canal. I watched as it struggled and tried to crawl along the churned up bottom, only it couldn''t move fast enough through water. It would drown eventually; but, I wasn''t going to take any chances. I moved my boat over above it and picked up one of the poles with the metal end on it. I used the Hag''s spell to give the pole a strong metal end and then shoved it down into the water and into the queen spider''s back, over and over. I did this for about ten minutes, then sighed and pulled the pole back up and into the boat. The end was covered in globs of stuff. I almost threw up at the smell, which was saying something, so I didn''t bother trying to clean the pole off. I might need it again for something, so I stuck it to the outside of the boat with number ten potion and let the gory end of the pole stay under the water. I had another pole handy if I needed it, too. With the main threat dealt with, I made sure that all of the webs and things nearby were all thoroughly burned away and then I extinguished the fires. I went over to the old relay station and set up the protection enchantments near the creature lures and moved on. I worked hard for the next three hours while fighting various creatures that were caught between the two enchantments, one a lure for them and the other one was protection from them. Luckily, it was late in the season and the snakes hadn''t made an appearance. A lot of other creatures did, though. Near-beavers, near-deer, marsh lizards, wild boars and their female counterparts, ducks, rabbits, frogs, and every other creature that I had encountered in the marsh. It was a bit weird to encounter them all so closely together and all along the canal. It was almost like a shooting gallery, if I had thought to bring along a crossbow or even a bow. I hadn''t even brought a kracken tube, which was a bit shortsighted of me, considering the queen spider I had already engaged in battle. A kracken tube would have been a big help, especially if I had bothered to make a few smaller versions of the catapult ammunition that were barrels with enchanted fire and number ten potion. ¡°There he is!¡± A man''s voice yelled and I turned to look. It was an army skiff with several army soldiers and three mages on it. ¡°This is all your fault!¡± One of the mages said and held his hands towards me to cast a spell as he started to chant. He wasn''t within a spell''s range yet; but, he would be when he was done chanting. I stopped my boat''s forward movement and started backing up at the same speed they were travelling at. That surprised everyone on the boat, especially the casting mage, who cancelled the spell that wasn''t going to reach me. ¡°No! Get back here!¡± One of the others said. ¡°Okay.¡± I said and switched to forward speed again and went as fast at the boat could go. ¡°Look out!¡± One of the soldiers exclaimed and he turned the rudder of his skiff to try and avoid my charge. I pulled my knife out and charged it, then I swiftly turned my boat to put myself alongside theirs and then swiped my magically extended blade at the three mages. Two hands and a leg fell into the water and the three mages fell to the bottom of the skiff, screaming in pain. ¡°Don''t attack me.¡± I said and the soldiers on the skiff just stared at me and my glowing knife. ¡°You seemed to have made it this far, so I''ll let you live.¡± I looked at the soldiers. ¡°I''d suggest tourniquets and healing potions if you have them. If not, an immolation potion would work in a pinch.¡± The soldiers didn''t say anything, so I disengaged my boat from theirs and continued on my quest to deploy the enchantments. I kept working hard and I also kept an eye out for more boats and skiffs, especially along the relay stations. Most of them were well guarded, so I avoided them and put the protection enchantments in the woods around them instead of on them. When lunchtime arrived, I was in the Eastern Empire and doing my best to fight off a large herd of near-deer that were stampeding through the new territories. Not surprisingly, none of the soldiers bothered doing anything except protecting those around them and their defensive positions. None of the locals even looked at me as I fought off several of the creatures right in front of them. I couldn''t really blame them, since no one would volunteer to fight when there was someone like me already doing it successfully without being hurt. I definitely received a good work out and gained a lot of both meat and near-deer antlers by the time I slaughtered the last of them. I used some rope and tied them up, then dragged them all back to the docks. No one commented or even asked me for anything as I piled the carcasses into my boat. I had gutted them already and left it all in a huge pile near the docks with a sign on it that said ''free food / fish bait''. When I left the dock, dozens of locals were swarming over the pile and were grabbing what they thought were the best parts. I set up the protective enchantments that were necessary in the area and as I passed by the garrison, the commander and several other people stood outside the gate and watched me with squinted eyes. I didn''t bother waving or saluting, because I wasn''t sure what side they were on, mine or the guild''s. At this point, I was sure which would be better in the long run. For their survival, anyway. I chuckled at that thought and sped back through the route I took to get there, then made occasional stops at certain areas to gather up some very rare ingredients that I had used before. I didn''t have any room left in the boat and had to store the canvas bags on top of the canvas sail cover. I used a tarp over them as well, just to keep any potential moisture away from the bags. I was annoyed that I had to go well past a few of the creature lures to do it, since the Mages Guild had stripped nearly everything within two hundred feet of the canal''s edge. I had quite a good harvest despite that, since the marsh was vast and I hoped that it could recover, now that I had pretty much removed any foreign invaders that were wrecking the place. I stopped for lunch and cut up a bit of near-deer meat, made a little fire right there in my boat on a canvas bag and using a piece of wildwood, and cooked it up for myself. It was delicious, thanks to a light sprinkle of fungus powder and hunger, because I hadn''t eaten since the night before. My impromptu meal done, I drove the boat all the way back to Ester''s Village. I thought about stopping in and decided against it. I had lots of cookie bread back at the mansion and wouldn''t need any more for a while. My thoughts flashed back to the last time I had been there and gone home, less than a week ago, and I shook my head. I was not taking the chance to go back into the marsh to that specific area. Not now that I knew what awaited me there. Even if I prepared some of the meat I had in the boat and gave it to them, I sincerely doubted that I would survive a second encounter. I left Ester''s Village behind as I crossed the harbour and sped along the waterway towards the capital. 238 Academy Antics Part One Hundred And Two - The Kings Birthday Prelude I arrived home that night and docked the boat. No one was there to greet me and there was no hand cart, so I picked up as many ingredient bags as I could and walked all the way back to the mansion. One of the staff saw me coming and ran into the house, probably to let everyone know I was back. No one came out to greet me, and I found that odd. I went in the back way and dropped off the bags of ingredients I had, then I went up the stairs. ¡°Hello?¡± I asked and heard the distinct sound of metal armor clanging. The parlour door opened and six armored men stepped out with swords drawn. I noticed the royal emblem on their shoulders and let out a sigh. ¡°Lord Drake, you are being placed under arrest.¡± One of them said and the men took a ready stance. ¡°Where''s my family?¡± I asked. ¡°They''re fine.¡± The man said and I didn''t relax. ¡°I want to see that for myself, thank you.¡± I said and took a step forward. ¡°You are in no position to...¡± The man started to say and I lunged and pushed them all aside as if they were nothing. Metal clanged as the armored men bounced off the walls and fell to the floor. I walked into the parlour and saw that the household staff, Helena, and Vanessa were being held at bay by another six armored men. ¡°Is there any particular reason you''re holding them?¡± I asked the men, who took a fighting stance instead a of a ready stance. ¡°It was to make you more compliant.¡± One of them said and gripped his sword. ¡°Angering me does not make me compliant.¡± I said. ¡°David, don''t.¡± Helena said. ¡°If you attack...¡± ¡°I want to know why they think taking hostages is the right thing to do.¡± I said and pointedly didn''t draw my knife, even though I easily could have. ¡°We''re stopping them from helping you escape.¡± One of the other men said. His tense muscles shook slightly as he tried to keep his stance. ¡°I could have escaped long before coming into this room.¡± I said and he looked unsure. ¡°In fact, I can easily walk back out.¡± One of the others changed his stance and started to swing his sword towards Helena, I assumed to threaten her, so I lit everything on him on fire. ¡°AHHHH!¡± The man screamed as his hair and his clothing pretty much immolated inside of his armor. He dropped his sword and fell to his knees as he tried, and failed, to pat out the fire with metal covered hands. ¡°Don''t you dare swing a sword at my pregnant fiance.¡± I said in a deadly voice. The five remaining swordsmen charged up their blades, preparing for a fight. I had easily detected the enchantments and cancelled them. The glows faded and the men let out startled sounds. The man that was on fire, fainted from the pain. ¡°So, does anyone else want to threaten my family in front of me?¡± I asked. ¡°You have to come with us.¡± The lead man said and tried to charge his blade. It didn''t work. ¡°Your blades need to be enchanted again.¡± I said and he looked surprised. ¡°Now, before you make me kill you all for your stupidity, you will walk out of this house and wait for me outside.¡± ¡°Now listen here...¡± The lead man started to say. I was across the room with my charged knife out, sliced his armor chest plate off, and held my knife over his heart. ¡°What were you saying?¡± ¡°David!¡± Helena gasped. ¡°I haven''t attacked yet.¡± I said and looked into the man''s eyes. ¡°What were you saying?¡± The man swallowed audibly and sweat beaded on his forehead. ¡°We were... going to wait outside.¡± ¡°Sir! He''s supposed to be under...¡± I instantly twisted around and turned my knife as I slammed the hilt into that man''s forehead to knock him out. He dropped to the floor as I turned back around and put the knife back at the lead man''s heart. Barely a second had passed. ¡°Yes, we were just leaving.¡± The lead man said and made a hand signal for retreat. The two unconscious men were picked up and carried out to the recovered men in the hallway and they all went out the front door. ¡°Excuse me.¡± He said and stepped back, then walked around me and followed the men out. ¡°David, you shouldn''t have done that.¡± Helena said with a sigh. ¡°They handled my arrest poorly.¡± I said and walked over to her as I put my knife away. ¡°What happened?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°I finished my task.¡± I said and knelt in front of them. ¡°I did notice the looks the soldiers in the Eastern Empire garrison gave me when I passed by them. I should have known that something was going on.¡±If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Helena took my hand and gave it a squeeze. ¡°David, please don''t make any more of a fuss. Go with them and comply with any order that doesn''t compromise your personal safety.¡± ¡°Yes, dear.¡± I said and gave her a kiss for several seconds. ¡°Can you send the workers to the boat? I have thirty seven gutted near-deer carcasses and another dozen canvas bags of ingredients to bring back here.¡± ¡°I''ll handle it.¡± Hope said. ¡°Call Greta and get her to prep them for me and then implore her to not use anything.¡± I said and Helena looked surprised, until I subtly pointed out my right hand. ¡°Of course. It will be done.¡± Helena said. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and gave her another kiss. ¡°I''ll be back as soon as I can.¡± ¡°D-David.¡± Vanessa whispered and I turned to her. ¡°They usually won''t let you go until there''s a trial.¡± ¡°I''m a Lord. They can''t hold me like I''m no one. Not anymore.¡± I said and gave her a kiss, then I stood. The two of them watched me walk calmly out of the room. I walked out of the mansion''s front doors, that I had to open myself because the guards were dead. ¡°I''ll be adding their unnecessary deaths to your charges.¡± I said and took both men''s Henrietta Longshore badges. ¡°You didn''t die in vain.¡± I said and closed their blank eyes. None of the king''s soldiers said anything as I walked over to the carriage with bars on the window. I climbed in and sat on the bare wooden bench and stayed quiet myself. I looked over at the front door of the mansion and saw several of the staff standing there with Helena, Vanessa, and Hope. I gave them a wave just as the carriage pulled away and they waved back. It took almost no time to get to the castle and I was let out and brought into a different building than the one I had been in before. The burned man and the unconscious man were taken elsewhere. ¡°Why isn''t the prisoner shackled?¡± A fancily dressed man asked when we entered the lobby of the jailhouse. ¡°No one wanted to be the first to die.¡± I said and the man looked surprised. ¡°I''m joking. They didn''t threaten to put them on me, so I didn''t have to refuse.¡± The jailer looked at the lead man and saw his armor chest plate was missing. ¡°I see.¡± He said and looked at me. ¡°You need to hand over your belongings and...¡± ¡°No.¡± I said and he raised his eyebrows. ¡°I''m only humoring you, so handing over my things is pointless.¡± The jailer looked at the lead man, who shook his head, and sighed. ¡°Follow me.¡± ¡°So, what''s going to happen?¡± I asked as the man led us down a hallway. ¡°You are to be held until the trial.¡± The jailer said and waved at one of the cells. ¡°When''s the trial?¡± I asked. ¡°Next week.¡± ¡°That''s not going to work for me.¡± I said and stood there without entering the cell. ¡°I have things to do.¡± ¡°You are in our custody...¡± ¡°What part of ''humoring you'' didn''t you understand? I can walk right back out of here if I wanted to.¡± I said and he looked surprised. ¡°Send word to the king and Princess Rose. Let them know I''ve arrived and no one has told me what''s going on.¡± ¡°You''re a prisoner and...¡± The jailer stopped talking when the King''s men all took a step back. ¡°I am Lord Drake and I am ordering you to listen.¡± I said. ¡°Send word right away. If I don''t hear anything favorably from them, then I won''t bother staying here.¡± ¡°Very well.¡± The jailer said and pointed to the door. ¡°Have a seat and I''ll send a message as soon as possible to...¡± I felt the lie and grabbed the man by the throat and picked him up. ¡°Lie to me again and I''ll hope that your replacement will do such a simple task.¡± I said and squeezed a little. The jailer choked and none of the King''s men moved to rescue him. ¡°Can''t... kill... me.¡± ¡°Who said I would kill you?¡± I asked and he looked worried. I let the man go and he coughed for several moments. ¡°Make your choice.¡± The jailer rubbed his throat. ¡°I''ll send word after I go back to my desk.¡± I nodded and stepped into the cell. The jailer quickly closed the cell door made of iron bars and smiled. ¡°I only go to my desk in the mornings.¡± He said and put a bit of magic into the door. It glowed and I felt the enchantments activate all around me. ¡°Good luck trying to escape now, you arrogant and insufferable man!¡± I glanced at the lead man of the King''s men. ¡°You should prepare to take the cell next to mine tomorrow.¡± The lead man looked uncomfortable and walked away after ordering his men to follow. ¡°Why would he have to do that?¡± The jailer asked. ¡°He killed two of my guards when they wouldn''t admit him and his men to my mansion.¡± I said and sat down on a stark wooden bench. ¡°I don''t see a bed.¡± ¡°You can sleep on the floor.¡± The jailer said with a satisfied smile and walked away. ¡°I don''t think so.¡± I said when he was far enough away to not hear me. I took out my knife and charged it, then sliced the wooden bench in half down the length to split it in two halves. I used some number ten potion to secure one half to the wall and then took out a folded canvas bag. I sliced it down the length to open it up, then used some potion to attach the long edge to the secured side of the bench. I attached the other long edge to the free standing half of the bench as well and then moved it out to make the canvas taut. I used some potion to secure the legs to the floor and now I had a nice improvised cot. I laid down on it and closed my eyes as the mage lights in the place winked out. Now that I was completely alone, I could use my abilities to concentrate on the enchantments around me and to learn their secrets. I regretted not getting an opportunity to read through the rune book before now as I learned of the five enchantments around me. One was on the door, one was on the floor, one was on the ceiling, one was on the window, and one was on the walls. Collectively, they combined to stop all offensive magic from being cast past them. It was a great system, as far as I was concerned. I wouldn''t be able to damage anything with magic while inside and smiled, because I quickly thought that it would be great to enchant on the outside of something instead. I didn''t learn the individual runes or their meanings, only the full enchantments. If my guess was correct, they created an artificial mage shield, which had a similar effect. Now I wondered what the limit was or if my brand of magic would actually work, since it didn''t work the same as the magic they all knew and assumed I had. I wasn''t going to test it now, though. There was no need to let that secret out if anyone was listening or watching, either with normal eyes or magically. I was sure I''d feel it if anyone was looking at me, since the enchantments didn''t stop my vigilance technique, so I relaxed and memorized the six enchantments before I drifted off to sleep. Tomorrow was going to be another full and eventful day. 239 Academy Antics Part One Hundred And Three - The Kings Birthday Part One The morning arrived and I stayed on my makeshift bed without getting up. I also didn''t bother trying to cancel the enchantments on the cell. There wasn''t much point to doing that, considering Helena told me to not cause a fuss. When the normal operating time for the jailhouse came around, I wasn''t surprised when I heard several people come into the hallway with the cells. ¡°I can''t believe they managed to push that through without informing us!¡± A distinct woman''s voice said and I smiled when Melanie''s face appeared in front of my cell. ¡°Lord Drake, I am terribly sorry about what happened yesterday.¡± She turned and glared at the jailer. ¡°Deactivate the enchantments and open the door.¡± The jailer sighed and did as she asked, then stepped back. ¡°You are very lucky that you have someone to take the blame for your incompetence.¡± Melanie spat at him and he didn''t say anything in response. ¡°Lord Drake, please come with me to handle a few things.¡± ¡°Of course, my lady. I would never say no to the king''s royal consort.¡± I said and got up from my improvised cot, which the jailer now noticed. His face looked angry, until I pulled out my knife and cut the cot apart. He looked sick as I disassembled the cot and then attached the bench back together, then I put it back where it was supposed to go. ¡°I need you to tell me exactly what happened.¡± Melanie said and motioned for me to walk with her and the two guards. I told her everything, from beginning to end, by the time we finished our walk and entered an ornate room. There were a dozen people inside on chairs and they chatted in whispers while a man that looked important sat behind a very large desk and quietly observed the room. Melanie nodded to the guards by the door and walked over to the man behind the desk. ¡°Judge Advocate, please accept my testimony on behalf of the accused.¡± ¡°You may proceed.¡± The man said. ¡°Lord Drake''s family was assaulted by two squads of the First King''s Men. Two of his own guards were killed to gain entry to his family''s home, where they took his family and the staff of the mansion prisoner.¡± ¡°That does seem a bit excessive to get him to come out.¡± The Judge Advocate said. ¡°You misunderstand.¡± Melanie said, her face angry. ¡°Lord Drake wasn''t at home at the time and they knew this.¡± The man looked surprised and looked at me. ¡°I assume you have proof.¡± ¡°Lord Drake told me everything, even his own complicity in the accusation he was being arrested for.¡± Melanie said and that really surprised the man. ¡°He didn''t lie.¡± ¡°Hmm.¡± The Judge Advocate said and sat back in his chair. ¡°Do we know who pushed through the order to have him arrested?¡± ¡°It was the Grand Mages Council.¡± Melanie said. ¡°Not only that, Lord Drake was not informed of the charges or informed of his rights.¡± The Judge Advocate was not happy to hear that part. ¡°Bring the King''s Men involved here.¡± He said to the guards on the door. ¡°I will hear their side of this while Lord Drake tells me his side of their encounter that caused two injuries to them.¡± The guards left and I told the judge what happened, word for word, and he commended me on my restraint. That made me feel a bit better about what happened, until the King''s Men were brought in and one was bandaged from head to toe and the other had his head wrapped. ¡°I object to this blatant abuse to garner sympathy.¡± Melanie said and walked over to the bandaged man, then slapped his shoulder. The man didn''t react and the the Judge Advocate frowned. ¡°Remove the two fakers. I know the flame injuries were severe and I also know they have been healed.¡± The man said and waved for the guards to take the two men away. ¡°Now, Squad Head, tell me your tale.¡± The man did, about how I had aggressively knocked half of his men aside, threatened him with death several times, and then about gracefully retreating before the conflict escalated. ¡°That was almost painful to hear.¡± Melanie said and rubbed the side of her head. ¡°The half-truths alone have given me a headache.¡± She looked at the Judge Advocate. ¡°If it would please you, I have discovered this man''s providence and will submit it as evidence.¡± ¡°No!¡± The lead man exclaimed and then he realized what he just did. ¡°I see.¡± The Judge Advocate said. ¡°As the queen stated, the Mages Guild have much more going on behind the scenes than any of us have suspected.¡± ¡°Yes, they do.¡± Melanie said. I raised my hand and that got everyone''s attention. ¡°I still don''t know what I''ve been charged with.¡± The Judge Advocate looked surprised and looked at Melanie, who blushed a little.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°I was in a rush to get this dealt with that I didn''t get a chance to inform him properly.¡± Melanie said and turned to me. ¡°You have been charged with 67 murders, the destruction of a clipper ship and two army skiffs, bodily harm on 178 others, including maiming and loss of limb, and the loss of an expensive cargo of marsh panther pelts.¡± I barked a laugh and she looked shocked. ¡°I''m not laughing at the injuries and deaths, it''s the lie about the shipment of marsh panther pelts. I''ve been in a spot where there were multiple panthers and I barely got out of there with my life.¡± I held up my right hand and showed the damage. ¡°There''s no way that whatever shipping company made that claim actually had a shipment of pelts.¡± ¡°How do you know that for sure?¡± The Judge Advocate asked. ¡°I''m the one that usually provides them.¡± I said and he let out a little laugh. ¡°All right. I see that this is going to take much more investigation to get to the bottom of, so I see no reason to keep you locked up until we can discern the actual facts about this case before bringing it to the king''s bench for a decision.¡± ¡°I believe that would be wise for all parties concerned.¡± Melanie said and bowed slightly to the man. ¡°Thank you for handling this so quickly.¡± ¡°You have never wasted my time during all the other times you have brought me things, Royal Consort. I didn''t doubt that this time would be any different.¡± Melanie blushed a little. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Lord Drake, since you''ve conducted yourself with honor and didn''t kill anyone, even when they threatened your family and you easily could have, I see no reason to release you with an escort.¡± ¡°I don''t understand.¡± I said, because the wording seemed a little weird to me. ¡°It means you can go without being guarded.¡± Melanie explained for me. ¡°Oh. Thank you.¡± I said and bowed slightly to the man like she had. ¡°Your spokesperson will contact you when the actual trial will be held. Next week is probably not going to work, considering the evidence tampering and false statements.¡± The Judge Advocate said and waved us away in dismissal. ¡°Have a good day.¡± Melanie took my arm and I escorted her out of the room past the disgruntled King''s Men. ¡°Squad Head, as for the two quite unnecessary deaths you caused...¡± The Judge Advocate''s words were cut off as the door shut behind us and a sound dampening enchantment went into effect. ¡°Thank you very much.¡± I said in a whisper to her when we were out of the room. ¡°I''m glad you were smart to send word to both Richard and Rose about what happened. I might not have gotten here in time, otherwise.¡± ¡°I asked the jailer to contact them last night and he tried to lie about it, so I forced him to promise to do it this morning.¡± I said and she let out a sigh. ¡°I''m glad he kept his word, late though it was.¡± Melanie nodded and led me out of the building to a waiting carriage. ¡°This will take you back home to get ready.¡± She said and smiled. ¡°We expect you at the castle in two hours.¡± ¡°Am I to make it a show?¡± I asked and she grinned. ¡°Very well. See you then.¡± ¡°I''ll let Richard and Rose know.¡± Melanie said and I was off at the carriage''s fastest speed to go back home. The time seemed to pass instantly and I stepped into the mansion to a very loud welcome home greeting. After a kiss from Helena and Vanessa, who both looked like they didn''t get a lot of sleep the night before, I was swarmed by the staff and congratulated on being released. ¡°We don''t have much time to get you ready.¡± Hope said and shooed everyone away from me, except for Helena and Vanessa, which made everyone laugh. ¡°David, the magic words, please.¡± Helena chuckled and Vanessa looked a little confused. ¡°I need a bath.¡± I said a bit loudly, then heard two squeals of delight and Sara and Tabitha were there by my side and grabbed my arms. Vanessa, Helena, and Hope watched me be dragged up the stairs. ¡°We need to get ready, too.¡± Helena said and Jill was there with two other maids, then another maid appeared and nodded to Vanessa. They followed us up the stairs and then split off to separate rooms to get ready and changed for the king''s birthday celebration. The three of us had different fancy clothes to wear for the event, mainly because everyone else would have new outfits as well. I was sure that we were going to stand out with me being there with two women on my arms instead of just one. ¡°I can''t believe you''re doing this for me.¡± Vanessa said in a whisper as we gathered in the main bedroom. ¡°Being a Lady isn''t really something we are going to discourage.¡± Helena said with a soft laugh. ¡°You have just as much right to the title as I do now.¡± Vanessa blushed a little and nodded. ¡°I can see why she caught your attention, David.¡± Helena said and lightly ran her hand through Vanessa''s well styled hair. They wore matching dresses, only Helena''s was a bit bolder with the extra padding around her belly and showing off a little more cleavage. ¡°You seem to be a bit more revealing today.¡± I commented and looked down at her chest. Helena laughed softly again. ¡°My breasts are expanding at an accelerated rate and neither I nor Ferdinand expected today to be a bloated day.¡± ¡°How much bigger are they going to get?¡± I asked, curious. ¡°Big enough.¡± Helena said, demurely. ¡°The carriage is out front.¡± Hope said from downstairs. ¡°I assume you want to be fashionably early.¡± ¡°Yes, I want everyone that arrives to see us beside the king and his family.¡± Helena said, her face going from happy to slight anger. ¡°No one does what they did to my David.¡± ¡°I don''t think there''s anything you can do against the Grand Mages Council.¡± Vanessa said as we walked down the stairs towards the front door. ¡°They''ve been in power for far too long to be brought down by a little scandal.¡± ¡°I know the other things have been passed over and hidden; but, accusing him of murdering their people and destroying a ship?¡± Helena shook her head. ¡°It''s deplorable.¡± ¡°That''s why we''re bringing our own guards.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Yes, let them try to tell us that we can''t.¡± Helena said adamantly and we left the mansion to climb into the Henrietta Longshore carriage. Six mounted guards came with us and we rode in style to the castle. We had a very important birthday to get to. 240 Academy Antics Part One Hundred And Four - The Kings Birthday Part Two ¡°Lord Drake, Lady Henrietta, and Lady Sellwafer-Henrietta.¡± A court attendant said as I led Helena and Vanessa into the gigantic ballroom. Almost no one was there and our guards spread out and as we strode across the room towards the king and his family. Most of his family, anyway. Both his eldest son and eldest daughter were absent. ¡°David!¡± King Rivers said, warmly. ¡°You actually managed to convince Vanessa to sign, hmm?¡± ¡°If I remember correctly, he didn''t have to do much convincing.¡± Helena said with a soft laugh, which made the king laugh as well. Vanessa blushed. ¡°Helena...¡± ¡°It''s nice to see you getting along so well.¡± The queen said and gave me her hand. I bent over it to kiss it, then did the same to Melanie and to Princess Rose. ¡°I don''t see Gillis.¡± ¡°She''s still trying to get Sandra prepped for today.¡± Princess Rose said with a chuckle. ¡°It was a long trip from the Eastern Empire.¡± ¡°She managed to get away?¡± Helena asked as the king bent over her hand and then Vanessa''s. ¡°Ordered, more like.¡± Melanie said with a knowing smile. ¡°We couldn''t get her here in time for David''s gathering and I''m sorry about that.¡± ¡°It''s all right.¡± I said. ¡°Mage Ridge and her husband didn''t show up, either.¡± ¡°Neither did the people we invited from Ester''s village.¡± Helena said. ¡°Either they were too busy or the trip was a bit too much for them to handle.¡± ¡°I doubt the Hansens could take the week off, especially considering their business would be busy this week, precisely because of the king''s birthday.¡± I said. ¡°I probably should have stopped in when I was there.¡± ¡°Well, if they were busy, I''m sure you stopping in would have been just as big of a disruption.¡± Helena said. ¡°If word of what happened was spread around...¡± ¡°Yes, thank you for reminding me of that.¡± The king said and gave me a sad look. ¡°I apologize for the guild''s mishandling of that and sending it to the Judge Advocate without consulting the King''s Bench first. They''ve been stepping on more toes politically the last little while than even I thought was possible.¡± ¡°What are you going to do about it?¡± I asked. ¡°At the moment, I''ve sent an independent group of investigators into their midst to ferret out exactly what they''ve been doing, starting with my own people that were supposed to uphold the law and not act out of pettiness and on orders from someone other than myself.¡± The king said. ¡°I told him right away what the King''s Men did after being sent to get you.¡± Melanie said. ¡°You might be happy to know the Squad Head was sentenced to ten years for murdering your guards and for kidnapping, coercion, and hostage taking.¡± ¡°What of the rest of the men?¡± ¡°Six months for following illegal orders and all of them have been fired and stripped of their titles.¡± Melanie said. ¡°There was no way for them to defend themselves after acting so blatantly against the precepts of the First King''s Men to uphold the peace of the kingdom and not act like common thugs.¡± ¡°That''s good to hear.¡± Helena said, a pleased smile on her face. ¡°I can''t tell you how scared I was about what they would do to us if we didn''t comply. We''ve all heard what could have happened to Greta.¡± Several nods were given at her statement. The queen reached out to take Helena''s hand. ¡°I''m terribly sorry about you being in a situation like that while in your condition.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Helena said and her free hand rubbed her belly. ¡°Our son sure kicked up a storm while we waited for David to show up.¡± ¡°He really did.¡± Vanessa confirmed. ¡°Of course, as soon as David was near, he suddenly stopped.¡± ¡°He didn''t want to cause a distraction.¡± Helena said and looked at me. ¡°He knew we were safe.¡± I smiled and put an arm around her waist and gave her a half hug. ¡°Let''s move over a little, so you can all see the door and the people coming in.¡± The king said with a mischievous grin. ¡°I''m sure their reactions to seeing David out and about is going to be quite amusing.¡± The queen laughed softly. ¡°You''re not supposed to openly oppose your opponents, my king.¡± ¡°I doubt laughing at their shocked faces can be classed as opposition.¡± The king said, smugly. ¡°Yes, keep telling yourself that, father.¡± Princess Rose said, her own face split with a huge smile. ¡°Vanessa, on this side, please. David, over there with my father. Helena, my mother is desperate to know what made you pick that cut of dress. It''s very daring.¡± Helena laughed as she looked at me. ¡°It was unintentional, because my breasts have grown a bit more than Ferdinand or I could account for.¡± ¡°Ah, yes. I remember those feelings.¡± The queen said and almost hugged Helena to get her closer. ¡°I envy you once more.¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± Helena asked, surprised. ¡°Why would you envy me?¡± The queen glanced at me and then at Melanie. ¡°To be young and so in love that nothing else matters, is quite the euphoric feeling. It almost makes you feel invincible, doesn''t it?¡± Helena blushed a little. ¡°I... well...¡± ¡°You don''t have to say anything.¡± The queen said and lightly put her arm over her shoulder. ¡°Melanie is quite enough proof of that.¡± ¡°Your highness.¡± Melanie ducked her head a little and blushed. ¡°I''ve read the transcripts of the hearing this morning.¡± The queen said, amused. ¡°You stormed in there and told them how things were going to go. That must have felt very empowering.¡± ¡°It... it was.¡± Melanie said, her blush fading. ¡°Having the truth on your side definitely helped.¡± Princess Rose said. ¡°That could have gone so badly.¡± ¡°Oh, I know.¡± Melanie said and her eyes caught mine. ¡°You don''t know how relieved I was that you hadn''t tried to break the enchantments or tried to escape, even though no one told you what was going on.¡±This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. ¡°Helena told me to follow their demands and to not make a fuss if it didn''t concern my life, so I didn''t.¡± I said and they all looked at Helena with respect. ¡°I''ve never doubted her word.¡± ¡°You are a very rare man and I have always wanted what was best for you.¡± Helena said with affection. ¡°I think we can all appreciate your diligence.¡± The queen said and more nods were seen. ¡°Ooo, here''s the next arrival.¡± Princess Rose whispered as she saw movement over at the large double doors. ¡°Knight Jackson and Mrs. Jackson.¡± The announcer said as they stepped in. ¡°Aww, no one of importance.¡± Princess Rose said, disappointed. Everyone let out a low chuckle at her sad face. ¡°Don''t worry, we''ll see some good reactions soon. I guarantee it.¡± Melanie promised. ¡°If I remember the arrival times from the last event correctly, then...¡± ¡°Grand Mage Henrietta, Lady Henrietta, Heir Henrietta, Selena Henrietta.¡± The court attendant said as four people stepped into the large room. Their reactions were exactly what we had all been anticipating. Shock, surprise, revulsion, and even a little horror on Marcus'' part. The Grand Mage schooled his face fairly quickly; but, his wife wasn''t able to keep the anger off of her face as they strode across the room towards us. ¡°This should be spectacular.¡± Melanie whispered. ¡°It''s too bad we don''t have much of an audience to witness it.¡± ¡°Happy Birthday, your majesty.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said and bowed to the king. ¡°Thank you.¡± King Rivers said without any inflection in his voice. ¡°It''s so nice to get out and celebrate such an occasion.¡± Mona said as she tried to stop herself from looking at me and frowning. ¡°I''m sure you have had more than ample opportunities to socialize this week.¡± The queen said and Mona closed her mouth on what she was going to say. ¡°I suppose you think that David''s supper invitation doesn''t count because of what happened.¡± Mona didn''t respond and Selena nodded, giving their intentions away immediately. ¡°Unlike you, we understand that people can make mistakes, even people we consider too powerful for their own good.¡± The queen said and nodded at the Grand Mage. ¡°As I''m sure the Grand Mage can attest to.¡± ¡°I don''t think I understand what you are implying.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said. ¡°I wasn''t implying anything. We all know you''ve made several terrible mistakes when it comes to your future son-in-law. I believe we''re up to four now. Or is it six? I think I lost count.¡± The queen said and looked at Melanie. ¡°How many is it, my dear?¡± ¡°Six.¡± Melanie said. ¡°This latest one to have his fiance held hostage to arrest him was the worst one he''s done so far.¡± She shook her head. ¡°Imagine, having his own family heir threatened with death.¡± ¡°I did no such thing!¡± The Grand Mage nearly shouted. ¡°Did you or did you not order two squads of the king''s men to invade a Lord''s house to hold his family and house staff hostage to make Lord Drake compliant?¡± Melanie asked and he didn''t say anything. ¡°That is a simple yes or no answer, Grand Mage.¡± The Grand Mage stayed silent. ¡°It''s difficult to lie right in front of the king, isn''t it?¡± I asked and he looked at me. ¡°You have no right to talk to me after what you''ve done.¡± The Grand Mage said. ¡°If by ''what I''ve done'' is remove thieves from my lands, then you are a hypocrite.¡± I said and everyone looked surprised. ¡°Wouldn''t you stop thieves from entering your mansion and stealing your food? Stealing your furniture? Stealing the artwork?¡± I asked. ¡°Wouldn''t you try to stop them from wrecking the place?¡± The Grand Mage looked slightly angry and didn''t say anything. ¡°Of course you would. You would feel wronged and upset if anyone thought they could come onto your lands and cause trouble.¡± Helena said, her voice full of satisfaction. ¡°I believe you would do everything in your power to stop those people as quickly as possible and then you would demand retribution and compensation.¡± She gave her father a glare. ¡°Wouldn''t you, father?¡± The Grand Mage looked like he was trapped, because he couldn''t defend his actions without contradicting himself. If he was fine with robbing me, then he had to be fine with people robbing him. ¡°I assume you''ve received the inquiries I''ve sent.¡± Melanie said and he winced a little. ¡°I''ll take that as a yes.¡± She smiled. ¡°You had better turn over every single record of every single plant and herb you stole from Lord Drake''s marsh. If you don''t, we will have to add the estimation to all of the other estimations we''ve made concerning the damage and ruin you have brought to the marsh.¡± ¡°It''s not ruined!¡± Mona exclaimed before she could stop herself. ¡°Both I and the experts would beg to differ.¡± Melanie said and Mona''s eyes went to me. ¡°No, we haven''t consulted with Lord Drake yet, seeing as he had been somewhat busy the last few days.¡± ¡°What did the experts say?¡± Princess Rose prompted. ¡°The people I''ve consulted are land experts and water construction specialists.¡± Melanie said with an air of authority. ¡°They all agreed that dredging a marsh waterway meant for a skiff into a wide and deep canal for ships, which drains the surrounding lands, has a very detrimental effect on the environment. I believe they said that unless the balance is restored, the lands within half a mile or more will wither and die from lack of required moisture.¡± ¡°You exaggerate too much! It''s only several hundred feet!¡± Mona said and then winced as her husband gripped her arm to get her to shut up. ¡°So, you knew it would wither the lands around it.¡± The king said, his voice grave. ¡°That is... disappointing.¡± ¡°Your majesty, it''s not that bad.¡± The Grand Mage said. ¡°No, it''s much worse, since I know for a fact that you''ve left all of the waterways attached to the canal instead of blocking them off like you were supposed to.¡± ¡°The canal needs the continuous water supply to maintain the trade route.¡± The Grand Mage said. The king sighed and fought to not rub his face in frustration, then he did so, which surprised everyone. ¡°Even in this unofficial setting, you''ve openly admitted to intentionally breaking my agreement with Lord Drake.¡± The Grand Mage looked shocked. ¡°The trade route is for the kingdom and its our responsibility to maintain it, not Lord Drake''s. Only the lands near the route can be claimed for the kingdom''s use, namely the relay stations for the safety of the boats passing through. By contract, we are allowed to clear cut one hundred feet from the canal''s edge on either side for clear lines of sight to the woods.¡± ¡°He already expanded the canal to almost twice it''s agreed upon size.¡± I added, helpfully. ¡°Everyone knows that boats need to pass each other on the route.¡± The Grand Mage said. ¡°Boats, yes. That is in the agreement.¡± Melanie said and the Grand Mage nodded. ¡°However, full size ships are regulated to one way, because of the dangers travelling along the new route. It was never intended for two full sized ships to be able to pass each other.¡± ¡°The agreement is worded...¡± The Grand Mage started to say. ¡°Enough.¡± The king said and cut him off. ¡°You intentionally misread it and then expanded the canal, against the approved plans, all because you wanted access to more of the marsh and its supposed plentiful ingredients.¡± ¡°We''ve gathered more in one week than we''ve harvested in a year at the guild.¡± The Grand Mage said and looked satisfied at the shocked looks of the royal family. ¡°You idiot.¡± I said and he looked at me, anger on his face. ¡°You just admitted to the yield you stole from me for the entire time the mages guild have had access to my lands and not just during the time that the agreement has been in effect.¡± ¡°I''ll be bringing this new evidence to the Judge Advocate as soon as I...¡± Melanie''s words were cut off when the court attendant announced the latest arrivals. ¡°Judge Advocate Lord Miller, Lady Miller, Heir Miller, Josh Miller, Lana Miller.¡± ¡°...see him.¡± Melanie smiled a predatory smile. ¡°My king, my queen, princess, my lord, ladies. If you will excuse me, I believe I need to have an urgent conversation with Lord Miller.¡± We all nodded and ignored the worried face of Mona and the angry faces of both Marcus and Selena. Melanie quickly walked over to the family that had just entered the room and engaged them in deep conversation. The Grand Mage looked about to protest his treatment and stayed quiet when the king pointed off to the left at the far side of the room. ¡°I believe your will find appropriate company over there for the rest of the day.¡± The king said. Grand Mage Henrietta couldn''t help but sigh. ¡°Yes, your majesty.¡± He said and led his disgruntled family to the indicated spot that would be well away from the main gathering. None of the new guests arriving missed the intentional snub. 241 Academy Antics Part One Hundred And Five - The Kings Birthday Part Three Seeing the looks on people''s faces, especially the mages from the Mages Guild that all thought I was incarcerated, was worth being put on display by the king and his family. He denied it at first, then admitted that I was the perfect hammer for him to use to smash their stranglehold on both the economy and the population''s opinion. They had been slowly gaining more momentum over the years and had made themselves indispensable to the kingdom and also dictated where they would be used, rather than be commanded by the actual needs of the kingdom. They had started to tie the king''s hand in how he was ruling his own nation and he was tired of it. I didn''t bother protesting his plan, mainly because it was a good plan. If it worked to get the Mages Guild back under his control and in line with the interests of the rest of the kingdom, then I was glad to help. I didn''t have to do anything myself, however. Just me being as an example of what the guild was capable of doing to a citizen of the kingdom was all that he and Melanie needed. The king''s birthday gathering became the top socialite event of the year, because everyone that was anyone was there to socialize. Not surprisingly, almost no one was sent over to the left side in the far corner to join Grand Mage Henrietta and his family in being snubbed. To say they were not happy at the situation was a severe understatement. Just like the celebration supper at my mansion that Helena had invited them to, that only Mona and Selena had shown up for, they were being pushed socially off to the side as inconsequential. Helena did her best to not gloat at that fact, because she knew it would anger her family to the point that they would do something, probably something really stupid, like leave the festivities early. I could tell that was exactly what Marcus was insisting on as he whispered angrily to his father about how unfair it was that they had to stand there and take being insulted. The Grand Mage didn''t say anything in response, probably because he knew that if he left, it would be a clear breach between the guild and the kingdom. He didn''t want to lose the political game in a clear defeat like that. Unfortunately, the rest of the Grand Mages Council eventually arrived and made their way over to Grand Mage Henrietta, instead of letting them take the king''s displeasure all alone. Absolutely everyone noticed this, even someone politically stupid like myself, and the talk in the great ballroom shifted to the clear division between the Royal Family and the Mages Guild. I even heard the Grand Mage try to tell them to mingle and none of them listened, determined to give him their support. I was sure that I heard him sigh again and felt eyes looking at me. When I turned to look, Marcus looked furious and his face was almost pulsing red from blood pressure. His mother Mona was trying to calm him down, fruitlessly as it turned out, and he didn''t speak at all as he ignored her. When all of the guests had finally arrived, the king made an impassioned speech about the security of the kingdom, his happiness at the ceasefire that had been declared, and how the economy had been booming since then. He thanked them all for their participation in making it all possible and it was met with applause. ¡°Let''s dance!¡± King Rivers said loudly and the music started up as he led the queen to the middle of the room and started the waltz. I was quick to join him with Helena on my arm and that prompted a flood of people to get as close to dancing with the king and queen as they could. The king knew it would be that way, which was why he usually did this first, before they all sat down to eat. He switched out the queen for Melanie and I changed Helena for Vanessa. Both women blushed as we did so, and we assured them that they had just as much right to be there on our arms as we had to be on theirs. The queen and Helena leaned in close and conversed in hushed whispers as they observed everyone around us as the men tried to copy the king and myself. The funny part was that their current dance partners didn''t want to be tossed aside and wanted to stay on the dance floor next to the king. It was amusing, especially to the king, when there was a lot of stuttering steps as couples tried to stop dancing and keep dancing at the same time. The king made sure to swing Melanie around a bit more than he normally would have, just so he could see up close the struggles of those around them. She didn''t mind that at all. ¡°You''re a good man.¡± Vanessa whispered to me as she hugged me close. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. This will change how Vanessa sees you and your future relationship. Will you choose properly or will you let things develop differently? Good luck. A) Tell a lie. B) Tell the truth. C) Say nothing. D) Stop dancing. E) Walk away. F) Choose two. I don''t see a ''keep dancing'' option, which means unless I choose to stop, I''ll keep going. I thought and read the options again. I think I''ll go with a single option this time. I''ll choose B. _______________ ¡°No, I''m just a man. Good or bad? That''s not something I ever considered, now that I know what they mean and can look at my actions with proper objectivity.¡± I admitted and she looked surprised. ¡°David, what do you mean?¡± ¡°In my mind, what I did, all of it, was right by me. If I didn''t do what I had to do, I wouldn''t have survived. Was that bad? Not to me. I lived. I made it, even through some of the worst things that anyone could ever go through.¡± Vanessa looked sad and gave my cheek a kiss. ¡°You don''t have to...¡± ¡°I am not a nice person by society''s normal rules. I''ve maimed, I''ve killed, and I''ve caused the deaths of others. I live by my own rules, most of which I learned from the harshest person anyone could ever meet.¡± I said and she stared into my eyes. ¡°I know some of my values are wrong and I don''t care. Do you want to know why?¡±If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Vanessa was quiet for a few moments, then she nodded. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°If everyone tried to live through what I went through, they wouldn''t have survived.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°I think that''s what the Hag meant when I was a child and she said that I had potential. She didn''t mean my magic abilities. It was my willingness to do whatever it took to survive, no matter how painful, how horrible, or how disgusting.¡± ¡°D-David...¡± Vanessa whispered and looked to be on the verge of tears. ¡°She was right.¡± I said. ¡°Up until now, I would do anything to survive. I''ll fight, I''ll maim, and I''ll kill, all because I want to survive.¡± ¡°You''ll do anything?¡± Vanessa whispered as a tear from each eye rolled down her cheeks. ¡°What if...¡± ¡°No, don''t think that. You misunderstand what I''m saying.¡± I said and lightly kissed her. ¡°I said ''up until now''.¡± Vanessa blinked her eyes and gave me a blank stare. ¡°You can''t mean...¡± ¡°No, I''m not giving up fighting for my life.¡± I said and she let out a sigh of relief. ¡°I''m trying to tell you that now I have something else to fight for besides my own survival.¡± Vanessa caught her breath. ¡°You mean...¡± ¡°My new family. My wife, my son, and my consort.¡± I said and her tears overflowed as she kissed me. The song ended a minute later and I took her over to Helena. She didn''t comment about the state Vanessa was in and held her at her side while I took Gillis out onto the dance floor. She was dressed in new finery like I was and she enjoyed getting to finally dance with me. ¡°That makes it sound like you''ve been waiting for this for a while.¡± I said and she laughed softly. ¡°I wasn''t really; but, I always hoped I would, if that makes sense.¡± Gillis said. ¡°Getting to dance is ingrained in noble training for girls.¡± She grinned. ¡°How often do we get to dance with people we care about?¡± ¡°How many parties with dancing have you gone to?¡± I asked and she chuckled. ¡°Not as many as I''d like.¡± Gillis admitted. ¡°If you had been there, I would have enjoyed them a lot more and I would have deeply regretted not going to more.¡± ¡°This is my first one.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°How are you dancing so well?¡± Gillis asked, surprised. ¡°I''m not dancing. I''m using the techniques I learned in the marsh to move around silently. I can easily avoid your feet and lead you where I need you to go.¡± I said and she looked speechless. The song ended and I brought her back over to Helena, who looked very pleased as Vanessa stood beside her and held her in a tight embrace as Vanessa rested her head on Helena''s shoulder. ¡°Me next.¡± Princess Rose said and smirked at Sandra, her cousin and baroness of the new territories. ¡°Fine. I''ll wait to talk to him for one more song.¡± Sandra said. ¡°Two more.¡± Rose said with a smirk and winked at me, then led me back onto the dance floor as the next song started. ¡°You don''t know how happy you''ve made my family, David.¡± ¡°I can guess.¡± I said and danced her around the dance floor to the king''s side and he was dancing with Lady Marks, Greta''s mother. ¡°My father loves the sword you gave him.¡± Rose said. ¡°He uses it every day, trying to get more strikes out of it than even he thought was possible for him to manage.¡± I had to smile as I remembered the state he had left my work room in after I first gave it to him. ¡°I assume he''s gone through a lot of training dummies?¡± Rose laughed softly. ¡°We have a standing order for ten new ones to be made every week.¡± I thought about that for a minute. ¡°He''s making sure to lop the limbs off before going for the torso.¡± ¡°Yes, he is.¡± Rose said, then she looked confused. ¡°Wait, how did you know that?¡± ¡°He''s making them last as long as possible. If he didn''t, I think the standing order would be daily, not weekly.¡± I said and her eyes widened again. ¡°You''ve seen him use the sword.¡± ¡°I... yes, I...¡± Rose stopped talking and looked like she was deep in thought. ¡°Now that you mention it, he really did concentrate on maiming the dummies before he went for the guaranteed kill shots.¡± ¡°A quick maiming can disable an opponent and take him out of the fight, and it takes only a fraction of the strength and energy than it would if going for a hard killing blow right away.¡± I explained and she nodded. ¡°You can finish them off later or let them live with the injury, which would be a constant lesson to them.¡± Rose smiled. ¡°That''s why you''ve maimed people. Instead of killing them, which would make you look excessively cruel and murderous, you taught them and everyone that sees them that going against you is costly.¡± ¡°In some cases, it costs more than others.¡± I said and Rose sighed. ¡°Will she be here tonight?¡± ¡°She told me not to tell you.¡± Rose said and looked sad. ¡°Ah, so she is showing up to surprise me.¡± I said and Rose caught her breath. ¡°Telling me you can''t say, means she is. If she wasn''t coming, you would have just said so.¡± ¡°Oh, damn.¡± Rose said with a shake of her head. ¡°I knew that you were too smart to hide anything from.¡± I intentionally ducked my head as I looked down at her dress and the peek-a-boo cut that showed off her breasts. You could only see it when hugged closely together, because that was what the design was meant for. Intimacy. When I straightened up and looked back at her face, it was bright red and she had her lips set into a cute pout. ¡°Thank you.¡± I whispered. Rose lost the pout as she smiled demurely. Her blush didn''t fade in the least. When the song ended, I didn''t bother trying to go back to Helena and turned to the king. ¡°Your majesty.¡± I said and handed Rose to him as I took Lady Marks from him. ¡°Oh, very smooth.¡± King Rivers said with a chuckle as he accepted his daughter as his new dance partner. ¡°You wanted to see another stuttering dance from everyone else, too?¡± I smiled and Lady Marks laughed as she hugged me close. ¡°You are just full of surprises.¡± Lady Marks said and the four of us watched as dozens of couples around us did the same little unsure moves as the men stopped dancing to go get someone else and the socializing women wanted to keep dancing near the king. It was just as funny watching the indecision this time as it was the first time. 242 Academy Antics Part One Hundred And Six - The Kings Birthday Part Four ¡°Are you sure you won''t bend your promise a little?¡± Lady Marks asked me, her eyes filled with devilish delight. ¡°I haven''t felt this sexy in years and it''s all because of you.¡± She discreetly waved at the people around us and I glanced to see that nearly all of the men were looking at us, or more specifically her. ¡°I don''t want to fight off the competition.¡± I whispered and she laughed softly, so she wouldn''t draw even more attention to herself. ¡°I''m surprised you would consider anyone else competition.¡± Lady Marks said and her hand on my back caressed the cloth. ¡°Is this another suit from Ferdinand?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± I replied and she nodded approval. ¡°The suit I had custom made to greet you has a place of honor in my wardrobe, in case it''s ever needed again.¡± Lady Marks smiled. ¡°Only for me, hmm?¡± I nodded. ¡°Like I told Ferdinand, I would never insult you by wearing it for anyone else except you.¡± Lady Marks looked quite pleased. ¡°Would you care to come over for a late supper tomorrow night?¡± ¡°Not tonight?¡± I asked and she shook her head. ¡°Society demands I remain to mingle here until the late evening at least.¡± Lady Marks said. ¡°I assume you are under no such restriction?¡± ¡°We can''t have Helena put through too much, not to mention this is the first time Vanessa''s been out in high society.¡± ¡°Ah, yes. I knew I hadn''t seen her in the upper circles.¡± Lady Marks said. ¡°How is she adjusting?¡± ¡°As well as can be expected.¡± I said with a light shrug. ¡°She''s known the rules and seen others, especially at school. It''s a bit different when you have to use them yourself, however.¡± Lady Marks chuckled. ¡°You''ve adapted quite well, considering your upbringing.¡± ¡°I needed to adapt as quickly as possible to survive.¡± I said and she raised her eyebrows at me. ¡°I think I overheard someone saying that it was like sending a fish into a pond of water beasts.¡± Lady Marks burst out laughing at that. It got a lot of people''s attention and she didn''t try to dissuade them from looking at her. ¡°Oh... oh, that...¡± She started to reach up to wipe at her eyes and I quickly took out a handkerchief to dab at her eyes. ¡°Thank you, David.¡± ¡°Now you really do have everyone''s attention.¡± I whispered and she smirked at me. ¡°I doubt I''ll get another chance to dance with you tonight.¡± ¡°Oh, you.¡± Lady Marks responded with a slight blush and lightly swatted my shoulder. ¡°You can blush on command?¡± I whispered and she winked at me. ¡°A lady needs some secrets.¡± Lady Marks breathed. ¡°Like how good your hands felt on my thighs.¡± ¡°That wasn''t a secret.¡± I whispered and the tempo of the song changed and slowed down. Our bodies slid together and we wrapped both arms around each other as we held on. ¡°No, it wasn''t.¡± Lady Marks looked into my eyes. ¡°I honor your vow, David. I do.¡± She looked a little unsure. ¡°I need to know...¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°If I wasn''t betrothed, my hands wouldn''t have stopped at the top of your thighs. I would have explored every inch of your body to ensure that the creme worked as well as I thought it would.¡± Lady Marks took a shaky breath. ¡°D-David, you... you need to make me more creme.¡± ¡°Are there addictive side effects?¡± I asked and she shook her head. ¡°No, my assistants and I have gone over it extensively, even breaking it down with various potions and acids to see if the properties would be harmful in any way. Nothing has appeared or can, in any way, cause negative effects.¡± Lady Marks said. ¡°We can''t even detect any noticeable difference between the skin and muscle before application and after the effect has worn off.¡± ¡°No stretching or excessive wrinkling?¡± I asked and she shook her head. ¡°Hmm. That means the added magical ingredient sustained the current state of the skin while it was being transformed.¡± ¡°That''s my view as well. It''s almost like suspended animation or a stasis spell.¡± Lady Marks said. ¡°In a creme?¡± I asked and then chuckled. ¡°Well, I suppose it could be the same as the numbing potion, except it freezes you in place instead of making you lose the feeling.¡± ¡°Now that is an intriguing concept.¡± A woman''s voice said and we stopped dancing. ¡°Ah, Greta. What are you doing interrupting my dance with Lord Drake?¡± Lady Marks asked. ¡°Taking my turn.¡± Greta said with a smile and motioned at the other couples around us. ¡°You''ve been here for three songs already.¡± ¡°What?¡± Lady Marks blinked her eyes and saw that the people around us had changed. ¡°I see.¡±Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°I guess I was wrong about not getting another dance with you tonight.¡± I commented and she laughed softly. ¡°Lord Drake, I suppose I must hand you over to my obstinately single daughter.¡± Lady Marks said and looked quite reluctant to let me go. I stepped back from her as I took her hand and bent over it to kiss the back of it. I made it tingle to get her to blush for real, then let her go and took Greta''s hand. Greta rolled her eyes at her mother, which made the older woman laugh as she walked away. ¡°I think she''s letting your creme go to her head.¡± ¡°That''s all right. It works on hair, too.¡± I said and she laughed softly, similar to her mother''s laugh. Greta hugged in close as the music started again. ¡°Now, what were you discussing with mother before I so conveniently interrupted her pawing at you?¡± I had to chuckle at that. ¡°Just a strange idea I had about pulling the creme recipe apart... again... to figure out how to duplicate the stasis part that it causes in the skin and muscles it alters to look younger.¡± ¡°Ah, yes. I was wondering when they would finally get around to testing it fully.¡± Greta said. ¡°She''s been locked up in her potions room at the mansion during the few times I tried to visit.¡± ¡°You gave her the recipe?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°She kept her bargain, then.¡± Greta gave me a happy smile. ¡°It''s like having my old mother back.¡± ¡°Well, she does look younger...¡± Greta laughed softly again. ¡°It''s the attitude change, although her being so happy has helped a lot, too.¡± ¡°She wants me to make more creme.¡± I said and Greta nodded. ¡°You knew?¡± ¡°She''s been doing what we suspected and giving out free samples to those that she knows would be interested.¡± Greta informed me. ¡°I suspect she''s going to be swimming in orders soon.¡± ¡°Not to mention gold.¡± I said and she chuckled. ¡°Yes, she can''t dodge our standing agreement for much longer.¡± Greta said, amused. ¡°We''ll be getting some significant deposits into our accounts over the next few days.¡± ¡°She asked me to supper tomorrow night.¡± ¡°Of course she did and it''s probably only you, not Helena and Vanessa as well.¡± Greta laughed. ¡°You''ll be making the creme tonight, won''t you?¡± ¡°Now that we''ve successfully brewed it consistently for two batches and worked out the kinks for the ingredients, I''ll get up early in the morning and make several batches.¡± ¡°Mother''s going to be very pleased to hear that.¡± Greta said. ¡°Just be careful that she''s not too pleased, all right? She''s not one for backing down.¡± ¡°I''ll be careful.¡± I said. ¡°I learned my lesson with Mage King.¡± Greta sighed. ¡°I haven''t seen her outside of the academy, so I can''t tell what she''s going to do when classes start up again.¡± ¡°You tried going and talking to her?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°She wouldn''t see you.¡± ¡°No, and I doubt she''s seeing anyone. I can''t even get the academy''s director to go and see her.¡± ¡°They know each other personally.¡± I said and Greta looked surprised. ¡°If I had to guess, I would say that the director is probably as angry at her as Helena is.¡± ¡°Oh. Well.¡± Greta looked at a loss for words. ¡°I''m sure things will be okay when I go back to her class.¡± ¡°Excuse me?¡± Greta blinked her eyes at me for several seconds. ¡°What did you say?¡± ¡°I''m going back to her class.¡± I said and she looked shocked. ¡°David, you... why would you... that''s not an environment for...¡± ¡°If she doesn''t give me an apology as soon as she sees me, an actual apology and not an excuse like some of the old teachers did to me, I''ll drop the class and try to work on learning it on my own. If she does apologize, I''ll stay and learn what I can from her.¡± I said. ¡°She had a lapse in judgment that cost her my trust and friendship; but, that doesn''t mean she''s not a good teacher.¡± Greta looked into my eyes and let out a sigh. ¡°You shouldn''t be acting so reasonable.¡± I chuckled. ¡°I need her knowledge to do what I want to do. If I can''t get it from her, I''ll need to start searching for an alternate source that''s also not a part of the guild.¡± Greta nodded. ¡°Okay, that I understand. Why make it all difficult, right?¡± ¡°Yes. I''ll try to work it out while also maintaining my distance.¡± Greta gave me a skeptical look for a moment, then she caught her breath when she caught on to what I meant. ¡°You''re going to ask her to dress appropriately!¡± I smiled and nodded. ¡°She''s definitely not going to like that.¡± Greta said, her amused smile back. ¡°I hope she agrees, just so I can see how miserable she''s going to be.¡± That made me laugh and then the music ended. It didn''t start back up, though. I kept an arm lightly wrapped around Greta''s waist as I looked to see what was going on. Just then, the large double doors opened up with a distinct double bang, as if they had been kicked open and slammed into the walls, and everyone turned to look at them. Shouts of surprise, shock, and disbelief rolled around the stunned crowd at the sight. The First Princess of the Gulf Kingdom had made her first public appearance since losing her arm. That wasn''t really the stunning part for everyone else, though. No, it was that she had two arms. The two fully formed and functioning arms swung angrily as Ellen stomped her way into the room with two guards behind her. They split off and joined the innocuous ones along the walls and watched along with everyone else as she strode across the room towards her target. Me. Greta tried to step in front of me to protect me or something and I moved her off to the side as I let her go. The crowd was deathly silent as they watched the princess'' progress across the room and the woman''s heels clacked very loudly on the floor. Unlike what Greta was whispering to me about getting ready to fight off the upcoming assault, I didn''t change my stance or even looked like I was preparing to do anything. First Princess Ellen Constance Marie Rivers fought to keep the anger off of her face as she stopped right in front of me. She looked like she was struggling with something, something that looked quite painful. I didn''t say anything and everyone seemed to be holding their breath as the tension grew in the room to an almost oppressive level. ¡°Lord Drake!¡± Ellen almost spat at me, her eyes smouldering and her teeth grinding together. I waited for what she wanted to say to me, after everything that had happened between us, because I knew better than to say anything and possibly interrupt her. I knew whatever it was, it should be both shocking and profound. ¡°May I have this dance?¡± Ellen asked in a normal voice as her face flushed red. 243 Academy Antics Part One Hundred And Seven - The Kings Birthday Conclusion Okay, that''s a surprise. I thought as the woman I fully expected to try and tackle me or tear my eyes out, stood in front of me with her hand slightly extended in a silent plea to accept her offer. ¡°I would be honored, First Princess.¡± I said and took her offered hand. I bowed with a flourish, as if I was greeting the king, which made her blush a little again. I eased her close and assumed a proper dance pose as we waited for the music to start up again. ¡°You actually accepted.¡± Ellen whispered and her blush faded. It was hard to tell if she was surprised or not because she was trying to hide what she was feeling. The music started up and I started dancing with her. Not a single person moved to try and dance with us, not even her father who was a dozen feet away and held a shocked Rose in his arms. ¡°Like I told you before, our deal at that point was done. I took my due and you suffered for your crimes.¡± I whispered back, just so no one else would hear our conversation. ¡°Wait.¡± Ellen whispered just before I swung her out into a fancy twirl, using her replaced arm, then I pulled her back in and she twirled back and ended with my arm tightly wrapped around her in a hug. The music tempo shifted to a slower pace and I had to hold her like that. ¡°Yes Princess?¡± I asked and lightly swayed side to side as I held her tenderly. ¡°How can you not hate me?¡± Ellen asked. ¡°I''ve done horrible things to you and...¡± ¡°Lots of people have done horrible things to me.¡± I responded and this time she did look surprised. ¡°If I hated them all and killed them, there would be a lot of mangled bodies floating around.¡± Ellen opened her mouth and closed it. She looked into my eyes and sighed. ¡°You know, you never did thank me for trying my best to save your little brother.¡± I goaded her and her face went instantly to anger. ¡°How dare you bring up...¡± Ellen stopped herself and looked surprised again. She fell silent and didn''t say anything. ¡°I was severely hurt in that scuffle and it didn''t matter at all to you, because you were solely focused on making as big of a spectacle as you could in the Eastern Empire. I provided that in all its horrible glory.¡± Ellen ducked her head a little. ¡°The potion barrels.¡± ¡°Yes, the very ones you were going to stop me from making when you told me to retrieve the tools necessary to make kracken tubes.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°No enemy ship approached after they were delivered to the docks, did they?¡± ¡°No, and it definitely caused a huge stir in the enemy''s navy.¡± Ellen said. ¡°It''s just too bad you didn''t make any for use on land.¡± ¡°Why couldn''t they be used on land?¡± I asked and her eyebrows raised up. ¡°We did that when we fought against the dragons.¡± ¡°I... well, I...¡± ¡°Yes, it was more important to concentrate on cutting off the enemy''s navy ships.¡± I said and her eyebrows didn''t lower. ¡°I wasn''t arguing with you. I''ve only ever argued with you twice. Once when you were being stupid and the other time was when you were being stupid.¡± Ellen''s face flushed red. ¡°I''m not berating you about it, so don''t be embarrassed.¡± I said and she took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°Why are you saying all of this?¡± Ellen asked. ¡°We''re having a polite conversation about tactics.¡± I said and the music picked up. I went to let her go to unwrap my arms from being wrapped tightly around her and she held on instead. ¡°If you let me go because the tempo changed, isn''t that a tactical retreat?¡± Ellen asked. I had to smile at that. ¡°Perhaps a cease fire and a more relaxed position instead?¡± ¡°Agreed.¡± Ellen said and both of our arms eased off a little, then we settled into a more comfortable hold that wasn''t too restrictive and would give us both the opportunity to either get closer or move slightly further away. ¡°Yes, this is much better.¡± Our steps increased to look like we were actually moving to the music and not dancing to something else. The only difference was that we held onto each other and everyone else were practically dancing separately. I hadn''t noticed when they had started dancing and ignoring us, either. ¡°That was quite the entrance.¡± I commented. ¡°I wanted to get your attention.¡± Ellen admitted. ¡°No matter where I was in the room?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°It worked.¡± ¡°You didn''t retreat or let Gillis take the heat for you.¡± Ellen said and the music slowed down to a very slow dance. We moved close together, much closer than either of us thought possible, and I felt her body from my knee all the way up to my shoulder. ¡°I''ve always fought my own battles, since I never had anyone else to depend on.¡± I said as an explanation and her arm snaked from my shoulder and down under my arm to hold me close. ¡°Me, too.¡± Ellen said. ¡°I''ve been raised to fight, to survive, and to make the hard decisions. It''s always on my head, because no one else is responsible for me or my actions.¡± ¡°Not even your father, the king?¡± I asked. Ellen let out a huff. ¡°I surpassed his tactical knowledge when I was sixteen. He had to hire special tutors to give me more extensive knowledge.¡± I had to think about that. ¡°Why did he assign you to the Fifth Regiment?¡±The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. Ellen chuckled. ¡°He didn''t assign me to anything. I created the Fifth Regiment all on my own.¡± That was surprising and I raised my eyebrows. ¡°Yes, it was my brain child. I knew that unless I personally did something drastic with the wasted resources that the army was squandering...¡± ¡°Women.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Is that why the army council ignored everything you did or said?¡± ¡°Yes. They thought I was trying to undermine their authority.¡± ¡°You were.¡± I said and she chuckled. ¡°You really were?¡± ¡°It didn''t start that way; but, once the idea was put out there, everyone started to act like I was, even when I wasn''t doing anything.¡± ¡°Ah, I see. It''s better to do what they expect than to do what they don''t expect right away.¡± ¡°Exactly. I knew that if I did what they thought I was going to, they would become complacent and would accept it as ''normal''.¡± Ellen had a big smile on her face. ¡°When I turned everything around and threw it all in their faces... oh, boy... they were pissed.¡± ¡°The Eastern Empire.¡± I said. ¡°Yes, and that was thanks to you.¡± Ellen said and her face flushed red. ¡°I know I handled that whole business badly and if given the chance again, do you know what I would do differently?¡± I didn''t even have to think about that one. ¡°Nothing.¡± ¡°Right. If I changed anything, even accepting your plan alterations earlier than I had, everything would have been different.¡± Ellen said. ¡°You know that, don''t you?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I said and she looked pleased. ¡°We wouldn''t have been rushed to make critical changes or changed the soldier loads, the building schedules, or the supplies allocated.¡± Ellen nodded. ¡°Everything happened just the right away, even with the delay for your trial.¡± ¡°It let the others think over the plans without pressure, just like I did.¡± ¡°What we did...¡± Ellen''s face stayed red. ¡°We, David. You and me. What we did changed the course of the war. We changed it.¡± ¡°You know it''s starting up again next year.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°I''ve been in contact with the advisers to both the Gulf Kingdom and the Eastern Empire. Both are finding faults in all the little things during the negotiations. It''s stalling the talks and dragging things on as we both build up our forces for the next battle.¡± ¡°You''re still involved?¡± I asked. Ellen shook her head. ¡°Not as part of the military. Once I''m out, I''m out... just like you, Alex, and Donna. That doesn''t mean I can''t contribute to the planning stages, so I do as much as I can.¡± ¡°You''re not going to fix my discharge orders, are you? I prefer being free.¡± ¡°What I did didn''t screw you over like I thought it would.¡± Ellen said and looked a little sheepish. ¡°Are you sure? Losing a few hundred thousand crowns made me feel pretty screwed over.¡± Ellen laughed softly at that. ¡°As if losing money mattered to you, besides the insult it bore.¡± I gave her a knowing look. ¡°So, you did understand.¡± ¡°Of course I did. I''m not stupid.¡± Ellen said, a bit snappishly, then she sighed and rested her head on my shoulder as we danced to the music that was still playing. ¡°David, I... what I said to you... I really did feel like you betrayed me. I really did.¡± ¡°I know, and that''s why I got you out of there as quickly as possible.¡± I said and she held me a little closer, if that was possible. Thankfully, I couldn''t quite feel her ample breasts through the suit coat. ¡°You were emotionally compromised on two fronts, because of your brother and because of me. You were in no state to command anyone after your outburst at Helena, let alone handle the clean-up at the new front and the subsequent battles.¡± ¡°I hate that you knew that.¡± Ellen said and I felt a tear drop on my neck. ¡°I tried so hard not to react...¡± ¡°I''m sorry that I was the only one you could depend on to help you when you need it.¡± Ellen didn''t say anything and I felt the tears drop continually as she silently cried. She didn''t sob, or wail, or hiccup, or make any other sign that she was crying her eyes out. This lasted for several minutes and she took several shuddering breaths as she composed herself for a few minutes more. She stayed quiet and we danced for several more songs, not really doing much besides holding each other and swaying with an occasional step, which showed that we weren''t completely stationary. ¡°Th-thank you.¡± Ellen said as she lifted her head to look into my eyes. ¡°I mean it. Thank you.¡± ¡°I want to ask for clarification on what you''re thanking me for; but, I don''t want to piss you off before I wipe your tears away.¡± I said and held up a clean handkerchief. She nodded slightly and I dabbed at her eyes to wipe away the tears and then lightly stroked her cheeks with the soft cloth to clear up the ones that fell when she had looked up. Ellen glanced around and saw that no one was looking at us. She smiled slightly and looked back at me. ¡°I was thanking you for everything.¡± She whispered, gave my cheek a kiss, and let me go. I caught her hand and pulled her back in close to whisper in her ear. ¡°When the king opens his present from me, take the box and open the bottom.¡± ¡°What? Why?¡± Ellen asked, a little confused. ¡°Because you earned it.¡± I said and let her go, then I walked over to where Helena still stood with Vanessa. ¡°One more dance with Vanessa and we can go.¡± ¡°That sounds good.¡± Helena said with a nod. ¡°I''ll wait here and...¡± ¡°I meant we.¡± I said and took both of their hands. They looked surprised and followed me as I walked backwards for a dozen steps and avoided people that were already dancing. ¡°How are you doing that?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°I''m the Marsh Man.¡± I said and stopped in a small clear area, then I tucked Helena under one arm and Vanessa under the other. The two women used one arm each to hug my waist and then used their free arms to hug each other. The music started up and I led them on a merry dance, which made them laugh, because even with two competing sets of feet, I still managed to not step on them or have them step on mine. I also told them everything I discussed with the first princess. I didn''t stop dancing until the story was over. ¡°Let''s go home.¡± I said and both women nodded. I turned to wave at the king and the queen, who were at the front of the room again, and the king was opening presents. I chuckled as I saw him reach for the medium sized box that Helena had sent over earlier. Inside was a heavily modified protection enchantment medallion that also had the concealment enchantment on it, with instructions. Just as I led my wife and my concubine out of the ballroom, there was a short excited shriek from across the room. We turned to see First Princess Ellen clutching her preserved lost arm to her chest with tears on her face. ¡°I think that means the state secret you signed is going to be made officially public.¡± Helena said with a smile as she hugged my side. ¡°I wouldn''t have told her about the gift if she hadn''t shown up.¡± I said. Vanessa gave me an odd look, then she laughed softly. ¡°I can just imagine the staff just throwing out the box without checking it completely first.¡± Helena joined in on her laugh and I walked the both of them out of the building and into the Henrietta Longshore carriage. We rode home in a great mood and agreed that was the best ending to the evening that we could have had. 244 Academy Antics Part One Hundred And Eight - Winding Down ¡°This is your bedroom for now.¡± Hope said as she led Vanessa, Helena and myself into the room beside the main bedroom. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Vanessa asked as she looked around at the opulence and looked unsure of what to say about it. ¡°Well, soon Lord Drake won''t be able to sleep in the same bed as my lady.¡± Hope said with a twinkle in her eye. Vanessa blushed a little and wouldn''t look at us. ¡°We were going to put another bed into the main bedroom for you; but, the staff would have to change too much of it around to accommodate two large beds.¡± Helena explained with a shrug. ¡°This was the best compromise.¡± ¡°The adjoining doors to the main bedroom are there.¡± Hope said and pointed to the two large and innocuous doors that looked more like the wall than anything else. Vanessa walked over to open them and saw that most of the wall would disappear if she folded them back. ¡°You... you didn''t have to...¡± Helena laughed softly. ¡°I told you what I had agreed to when I made my proposal to David.¡± ¡°Yes, but... this is...¡± Vanessa ducked her head a little. ¡°No, don''t mistake that with what we''ve agreed to.¡± I said and Vanessa lifted her head to look at me. ¡°I wasn''t planning on signing anything if Diane had agreed to come along. She really would have been ''the woman on the side''. Known by Helena and the staff and completely unacknowledged officially.¡± Vanessa started to say how unfair that would have been and Helena walked over to her and ran a hand through her styled hair. ¡°H-Helena...¡± ¡°We would never have done that to you.¡± Helena said and moved her hand down to lightly touch her cheek. ¡°Why else did you think we brought you to the king''s birthday on our arms?¡± ¡°To show me off?¡± Vanessa guessed and both Helena and I nodded. ¡°Um... wow.¡± Helena laughed softly. ¡°It was the best way to let everyone know.¡± ¡°Even the first princess knew that this was the best time to show everyone what had happened.¡± I said and it was Vanessa''s turn to nod. ¡°I''m glad you understand.¡± ¡°I do.¡± Vanessa said and looked from me to Helena. ¡°I can''t thank you enough for what you''ve done.¡± ¡°Agreeing to the terms and not asking for anything outrageous when the negotiations started, was enough to convince both David and I that you were serious.¡± Helena said and took her hand. ¡°My father wanted to ask for half of your potion business.¡± Vanessa said with a bit of a blush. I laughed. ¡°I''m glad you convinced him not to, or we wouldn''t have worked out the other business.¡± ¡°I know.¡± Vanessa said. ¡°He tried to convince mother that I was worth at least that...¡± ¡°David meant that you were worth a lot more than only half of the potion business.¡± Helena said and waved at the bed. ¡°That''s why we''re only backing the new business venture and only getting a small share of the profits, even though we could have done it all on our own.¡± Vanessa sat down on the bed, her eyes wide as she stared at Helena. ¡°You did that for me?¡± Helena sat down next to her. ¡°Of course we did! We''re not heartless nobles that are only out for the next big score. We told you right away that we wanted both of our families to benefit from this union.¡± Vanessa put an arm around her waist and gave her half a hug. ¡°You''re too good to me.¡± ¡°Just wait until David makes that creme for Lady Marks in the morning.¡± Helena said with amusement. ¡°Your account at the bank is going to become significantly larger than it already is.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°I thought you said...¡± ¡°It''s all in the details.¡± Helena said. ¡°David, please sit while I explain.¡± ¡°We need to get you to bed. It''s been a very long day.¡± I said and sat down next to her. ¡°Yes, dearest.¡± Helena said and gave me a kiss, then she turned her head to look at Vanessa. ¡°Once the contracts were signed, you automatically get a percentage of any money that the family makes while you are a part of it.¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± Vanessa asked, shocked. ¡°But... but...¡± ¡°No, not your family. You personally. Anything that''s made, traded, or sold, is partly yours.¡± Helena said. ¡°We would never leave you without any income.¡± Vanessa looked at her face and then at me. ¡°You knew this?¡± ¡°A Lady has a certain role to play in society and needs the associated monies necessary to maintain their appearance and their presence.¡± I quoted from my lessons about the nobility. ¡°Helena and I knew you wouldn''t accept it if we just handed part of our wealth over to you.¡± ¡°Of course I wouldn''t! I didn''t earn it and...¡± Vanessa started to speak hotly. I reached across Helena and put a finger on Vanessa''s lips to stop her. ¡°That''s why we are doing it this way.¡± I moved my finger and cupped the side of her face. ¡°You helped me immensely the other day with all the engraving you did and you knew there was no monetary gain from it.¡±This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°Well, yes. You needed help to get the enchantments done and...¡± ¡°You''ve already proven that what Helena and I chose to do was right.¡± I said and let her face go. ¡°But, the contracts aren''t in full effect. How can I benefit so much from them?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°It''s the same as your family.¡± Helena said with a smile. ¡°There was no way that they were going to settle for anything less than what they believed you were worth in their eyes.¡± ¡°You gave them an exclusive business that''s going to make them rich!¡± Vanessa said, almost as an accusation. ¡°Yes, we did.¡± Helena said and put her arm over the other woman''s shoulders. ¡°What does that tell you about how much David and I think you''re worth?¡± Vanessa opened her mouth to respond, then she blushed deeply and ducked her head. ¡°Exactly.¡± Helena said and tugged on her shoulders a little, which gave Vanessa the prompt to rest her head against hers. ¡°Tomorrow, you''re going to be interviewing the maids to pick one out for yourself.¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± Vanessa moved her head back to stare at her. ¡°What?¡± Helena chuckled. ¡°It should be more for a lady; but, you''re only allowed one at the academy.¡± Vanessa blinked her eyes. ¡°I... well, I... a maid? My own maid?¡± ¡°You''re going to need the help.¡± I said and she gave me a surprised look. ¡°It saves so much time getting ready that it''s not funny.¡± ¡°It''s true.¡± Hope said from the doorway. ¡°Speaking of which, you all need help getting undressed and changed for bed.¡± Helena chuckled. ¡°Yes, yes. Let the little scampers loose.¡± Hope turned to the hallway and let out a low whistle. Jill and two maids came in for Helena with Sara and Tabitha right behind them. ¡°Hope, can you take care of Vanessa until she picks a maid tomorrow?¡± I asked as Sara and Tabitha took my hands and led me into the main bedroom through the large double doors. ¡°She''ll be well taken care of.¡± Hope promised. I was brought into the large bathroom and stripped of my clothing and items, then I was dunked into the bath. ¡°I didn''t ask for...¡± ¡°You''ve been dancing for hours, my lord.¡± Sara said and splashed some water over my chest. ¡°Asking in some cases is not necessary.¡± ¡°Lay back and let us work.¡± Tabitha ordered and I could only nod and let them do what they wanted. Helena was brought in and while she was naked, her baby bump was quite a bit more prominent. ¡°It''s beautiful, isn''t it?¡± Jill asked as her hand lightly rubbed it before Helena was carefully lowered into the tub next to mine. ¡°Our lord''s and lady''s child is going to be so handsome!¡± Helena laughed softly. ¡°We have several months of me expanding before that reality comes to pass.¡± ¡°We all will love you that much more, my lady.¡± One of the other maids said and started washing her. The bath went on for a bit longer than normal, because the maids wanted us to soak and relax for a while. Neither Helena nor I discouraged them or asked to be removed from the water before they were ready to let us go. ¡°We really shouldn''t let you indulge yourselves like this.¡± Helena said jokingly as she was carefully helped out of the tub and dried off. ¡°You can''t help it because you know we love you.¡± Jill said and made Helena laugh. ¡°It''s so true.¡± Sara said as she observed Tabitha doing the ritual to me. ¡°I don''t think any of us ever expected to get so much enjoyment out of our lives.¡± She looked up at my face. ¡°I hope you know that we appreciate that you both are willing to do what you do for us.¡± ¡°What we do for you?¡± I asked and then had to close my eyes briefly as Tabitha received her reward and moaned loudly. ¡°You don''t fuss, or object, or tell us to restrain ourselves when we show up to take care of you.¡± Sara said and touched Tabitha''s shoulder. She moved over and Sara took her position to do the ritual as well. ¡°It''s so nice to not get any resistance to our work or even see a bit of reluctance on your faces when we do everything we can for you.¡± Tabitha said and the other maids nodded their heads. ¡°We''ve been telling everyone we know how these are the best jobs we''ve ever had.¡± ¡°I think that means Vanessa won''t have any trouble finding a maid tomorrow.¡± Helena said and the maids around her laughed softly. ¡°They are eagerly lining up for the chance to personally serve, my lady.¡± One of the other maids said. ¡°Being chosen for a newly minted lady is a great honor.¡± Another maid said and led them out of the bathroom. ¡°She might have a difficult choice, actually.¡± Helena looked happy about that as she was dressed into her nightgown. It was light, and airy, and practically see through. Her breasts were left unhindered by a bra and her panties were little more than a triangle of cloth to cover her. She turned to me with a huge smile on her face, as if she knew I had been staring at her, then I had to grip Sara''s head as I finished the ritual and stared into Helena''s eyes. ¡°Was my choice of nighttime attire effective, my love?¡± Helena asked with a laugh. ¡°See for yourself.¡± I said as Sara moved aside, licking her lips, and I was still rock hard. ¡°Oh, my.¡± Jill said. ¡°I think some privacy is needed.¡± Tabitha cleaned me off and dried me, then she and the other maids made a hasty retreat. ¡°They didn''t even dress you, David.¡± Helena said as I walked towards her, completely naked. ¡°They knew it was a waste of time.¡± I said and took her hand. ¡°My love, our bed awaits.¡± ¡°You have to be careful.¡± Helena said and lightly touched her baby bump. ¡°I''ll kiss and hug it as much as you want me to.¡± I said and laid her down on the bed, then slipped off her soaked panties and made out with her glistening womanhood. Apparently, I wasn''t the only one who was turned on and she moaned and writhed as I made her orgasm several times. ¡°D-D-David!¡± Helena gasped as I quickly rolled her onto her side and entered her from behind. ¡°OHHHH!¡± She moaned as she had another orgasm, just from me entering her. I went slowly as we made love over the next hour and her passionate moans filled the room. I rubbed her belly and massaged her breasts, kissed her neck and bit her earlobe, and kept the same slow pace until the both of us were on the brink of something spectacular. ¡°D-D-do it! Do it!¡± Helena begged and I let my magic join with hers, then I thrust into her one last time and made us both come at the same time. ¡°OH, GOD!¡± We laid there for several minutes and enjoyed just laying there together, joined like we were. ¡°I... I never want to lose this feeling.¡± Helena whispered and held onto my arms that were wrapped around her. ¡°I love you.¡± ¡°I love you, too.¡± I whispered back and gave her a kiss. After another few minutes of silence, Helena spoke. ¡°If I wasn''t already pregnant, I definitely would be now.¡± ¡°That would be two for two of inseminations for me.¡± I joked and she laughed softly. We drifted off to sleep with me inside of her because we didn''t want the night to end. It always does, though. The best part about that was there would be another night for us to enjoy tomorrow. 245 Academy Antics Part One Hundred And Nine - More Prep Work The next morning was an early one for me, like always, and I was out of the bed and washed before anyone else was up. I quickly made up three full batches of the enhanced beauty creme, or 36 crates of it, and packed it up to send to Lady Marks. When I was finished, it was time for a normal morning that everyone could share in. I went back into the bedroom and Helena was just waking up herself. ¡°Good morning.¡± I whispered to her and gave her a kiss. ¡°Mmm. Good morning.¡± Helena said back and rolled onto her back. ¡°We have another full day ahead.¡± I had to smile at that. ¡°You didn''t have to fill up all of our time together with activities.¡± ¡°We''ve missed doing so much while you were at the academy and I wanted to show you off.¡± Helena said and sat up as Jill, two other maids, and Sara and Tabitha came into the room. ¡°You two definitely need another bath after last night.¡± Jill said with a smile. I didn''t bother saying that I had already washed and let the maids take us into the large bathroom to do their work. I was sure they would notice I didn''t take a full bath, since it was their job to notice those kinds of things. We were washed and dried, then dressed in casual clothes for breakfast. We went downstairs and met Vanessa and Hope just inside the dining room. As soon as she saw us, Vanessa''s face went bright red and she looked embarrassed. ¡°Good morning.¡± I said. Vanessa glanced at Helena and I saw a slight nod, so she looked back at me and her embarrassment seemed to morph into need. Her arms reached up and wrapped around my neck and then Vanessa kissed me passionately. I only had one arm free to hug her back with, since I was escorting Helena with the other one. Vanessa broke the kiss and looked quite happy. ¡°G-good morning.¡± Hope let out a chuckle at what she just saw. ¡°Breakfast will be ready in a few minutes.¡± ¡°I hope you slept well last night.¡± Helena said as she let my arm go and took Vanessa''s. ¡°Well... it was a new bed and...¡± Vanessa''s blush didn''t fade as she glanced at me. ¡°I did fall asleep eventually.¡± I was tempted to mention that the large double doors to Vanessa''s room next door to the main bedroom had been open the entire time that Helena and I had been having sex, then thought if I pointed it out, everyone would know that Vanessa had a direct view of everything that we had done. ¡°So did I.¡± Helena said and led Vanessa over to the small round table that had replaced the large square one we had used for the dinner party. ¡°This week long break isn''t even over yet and I already can''t wait for the next one for the Solstice.¡± Vanessa sat where Helena pointed, directly across from her. ¡°Can I stay over then as well?¡± I sat down between them. ¡°What do you mean stay over?¡± I asked, a little confused. ¡°You live here.¡± Vanessa''s mouth made that little ''o'' of surprise and Helena laughed softly. ¡°When we said that was your bedroom, we didn''t mean only while you are here. It''s your bedroom.¡± Helena clarified. ¡°The maid interviews will happen for an hour after breakfast and if you can''t choose, we can have one or more of them perform their duties during the day for you to choose by tonight.¡± Vanessa blinked her eyes. ¡°You''re letting me move in?¡± ¡°Of course we are.¡± Helena took her hand and held it. ¡°If you read over the contracts again, it doesn''t say anything about you having to wait until you graduate for the living arrangements to change.¡± Conversation stopped when the kitchen door opened and breakfast was served. ¡°We can have someone sent over to gather your things from the Sellwafer estate or have you escorted yourself and you can pack up what you want and bring it back.¡± I said and started eating the food on my plate. ¡°You really...¡± Vanessa let a smile grow on her face. ¡°Thank you. Thank you both.¡± Helena chuckled. ¡°I know what it''s like to be under constant scrutiny by family members. So, as long as you know that you don''t have to accept living here right away...¡± Vanessa gave her a disbelieving look. ¡°I want to live here right now!¡± Helena laughed and let her hand go. ¡°We''re both glad for that.¡± She said and nodded to me. ¡°We are not going to stop you from visiting whoever you want, either.¡± I said and Vanessa looked surprised. ¡°If you invite people over, check with the head maid.¡± I pointed to Hope. ¡°She''ll arrange whatever you need.¡± ¡°The same will apply when you go back to the academy.¡± Helena said and Vanessa looked shocked. ¡°Yes, you''ll be moving in there as well. With your chosen maid.¡± ¡°But... but...¡± Vanessa looked from her to me. ¡°I remember you asking your dorm monitor about having your own potion setup.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°Now you''ll have access to twelve of them, unless you want to set up your own on a separate bench.¡± Vanessa looked like she couldn''t make herself say anything, like the words were caught in her throat. ¡°I''ve been a bit worried about David being there with only one maid, then the king came through and had the academy allow Sara and Hope to stay there as well.¡± Helena said and started eating, too. ¡°Having you be there as well will be such a weight off of my shoulders.¡± She looked at me. ¡°I know you don''t really feel alone or lonely most of the time, especially when you''re busy...¡±Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. ¡°I do.¡± I said and several sharp intakes of breath responded to my words. ¡°I didn''t at first, since we were just getting to know each other. I miss having you in my bed and loving you whenever I can.¡± Helena''s face flushed red and she ducked her head a little. ¡°D-David, I... I do, too.¡± ¡°We should arrange with Greta to either bring me here on the weekends or to bring you to the dorm mansion.¡± I said and Vanessa and Helena stared at me. ¡°What? As long as a teacher is chaperoning, a student can leave the academy whenever they want.¡± ¡°But... that...¡± Vanessa looked at Helena briefly and then at me. ¡°How did you discover that?¡± ¡°When Mage Ridge brought me to visit Alex and Donna and then when Mage King took me on two trips during class days.¡± I said. ¡°They didn''t need special forms to sign or anything.¡± ¡°Oh, my.¡± Helena said and sat back in her chair. Her eyes went to me, to Vanessa, and back to me. ¡°I think we need to talk to Greta and arrange a few things.¡± ¡°I''m sure she''ll be happy to, especially after tonight.¡± I said and Helena chuckled. ¡°Her mother will practically beg her to help you.¡± Helena said, amused. ¡°I assume you''ve made some progress on the creme?¡± ¡°I have 36 crates ready to deliver before tonight.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Are you sure you don''t want to come as well?¡± ¡°I''m sure that Lady Marks wouldn''t look too favorably on me if I showed up on your arm.¡± Helena said with a laugh. ¡°How in the world can she flirt and try to convince you to do more work for her if I was there?¡± ¡°With a lot of difficulty?¡± I asked and she laughed some more. ¡°Greta might slip in to visit tonight, since she overheard her mother and I talking.¡± Helena nodded. ¡°I know she''ll have your back during any negotiations.¡± ¡°She always does, even at her own detriment.¡± I said and Helena''s hand found mine and gave it a light squeeze. ¡°Her mother has really relaxed her attitude since Greta confronted her.¡± ¡°If her granddaughter is any indication, Lady Marks is almost a different woman.¡± Helena said and picked up a glass of juice to take a sip. ¡°I overheard Princess Rose telling the queen.¡± ¡°That was an odd friendship to see.¡± Vanessa said. ¡°How did they meet? Jinelle and the princess, I mean, not the queen and Lady Marks.¡± ¡°I think it was developed over time, especially since the queen raised Rose how she wanted, without all of the restrictions her first three children were subjected to by royal decree.¡± I said as an explanation. ¡°Okay, that makes sense.¡± Helena said and leaned back a little to relax. ¡°The queen would have brought Princess Rose along socially and not as an adjunct to the crown.¡± ¡°Could she really make that distinction?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°I mean, does she tell people that this is the princess and to ignore her social standing or something?¡± Helena laughed and waved the question away. ¡°No, she would go out for lunch with the other ladies, or meet up for a bit of shopping, or any number of occasions that didn''t require her in any official capacity. With Rose along, they would just assume she was there without official capacity as well.¡± ¡°That would create a nice environment for the princess to meet and be friendly with other young women without putting any social strain on either of them.¡± Vanessa said in agreement. ¡°The queen was quite intelligent to do it, too. Being friends with the people you''ll be dealing with professionally later would make any negotiations that much easier for both parties.¡± Helena said. ¡°Having their daughters learn that for the future and copying them automatically, because they saw how it was done...¡± I nodded. ¡°It''s definitely going to benefit the kingdom in the long run.¡± ¡°Less conflicts of interest?¡± Vanessa asked and both Helena and I nodded. ¡°That would be good.¡± ¡°Yes, and now that you''re done eating...¡± Helena turned to Hope. ¡°If you would be so kind to bring Vanessa to the parlour and unleash the wolves for her to choose from.¡± Hope barked a laugh and stood. ¡°Yes, my lady.¡± She said and came over to take Vanessa''s hand. ¡°Don''t worry, I''ll be right there to help you.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Vanessa said and turned to me. ¡°Are you coming with us? You need to approve of her as well.¡± ¡°I have a bit of work to do before we leave for the activities Helena has filled our day with.¡± I said and stood. ¡°When you narrow it down to a few choices, Hope can come and get me in my work room.¡± ¡°All right.¡± Vanessa said and stood as well. ¡°Helena, I''ll see you in an hour.¡± ¡°We do have some outfit coordinating to do.¡± Helena said and stood. ¡°Jill, let''s get some things laid out for us to pick through.¡± ¡°Yes, my lady.¡± Jill said and we all left the dining room to do our chosen tasks. I went to my work room and started to decipher the enchantments on the cell that I had been held in. I knew it couldn''t work like that for practical purposes, since there were six different enchantments that combined to make the effect. I pulled the enchantments apart and drew out their individual components, which left me with a pile of undecipherable runes that I couldn''t make heads or tails of. I chuckled and shook my head, then went to the main bedroom and gave Helena a kiss. She didn''t ask me what it was for, so I hugged her and gave her another kiss, then went to the vault. I opened it and took out my academy book of runes and the old and very fancy book of runes I had stored there. ¡°I know that look.¡± Helena said with a chuckle. ¡°There''s only half an hour left, all right?¡± She said as a warning with a smile on her face. I gave her another kiss as I passed by her. ¡°Hope''s coming to get me, so I won''t be too wrapped up in this.¡± Helena nodded and I went back to my work room. I had the runes written out and I had no idea what they were called, so I started with the academy book and read through the index to see if it would give me an abbreviated listing. It did, except it was just the names. I tried to reference through the names I guessed at and didn''t find anything even close to the runes, so I snapped it closed. My only hope was the old book that I had gotten from the Hag and I did the same thing. I read through the index and it was also only with names. They were different from the academy book and also included some of the descriptions of what they did. It was much easier to find the names of the ones I thought they would be and flipped through the book to start checking them out. I almost laughed when I checked the third name I had guessed and found the rune that was almost identical. The one on the enchantment had two lines missing from the one in the book, though. On the plus side, I had found one of the necessary runes. I flipped back through the book to the start of the chapter and it was all about defensive runes used in different enchantments on armor and buildings. Perfect. I thought and started to read the chapter. ¡°David, it''s time to check Vanessa''s choices.¡± Hope said a moment later as she poked her head into the room. ¡°You caught me at the best time.¡± I said and put a bookmark into the book. ¡°I just found what I wanted and had only started reading through it.¡± Hope smiled. ¡°You can go right back to it when you get the chance.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I said and picked both books up and went back to the vault and dropped them off, then followed Hope to the parlour. 246 Academy Antics Part One Hundred And Ten - First Day Off ¡°My lord!¡± Three maids said as one and gave me a proper curtsy when I stepped into the parlour. ¡°Vanessa, are you happy with them?¡± Hope asked. ¡°We''ve talked about certain things and discussed what''s to be done and what I want to handle myself.¡± Vanessa said. ¡°These three are the most amenable to my requests.¡± ¡°So, no distinguishing factors right now?¡± I asked and Vanessa shook her head. ¡°All right, then. For now, the three of you have the job.¡± Three screeches of delight met my words and Hope clamped her mouth shut to stop her laugh. ¡°Get your lady changed and ready to head out with myself and Lady Henrietta.¡± I said and the three maids nodded, helped a stunned speechless Vanessa stand, then led her from the room. ¡°That was a bit much.¡± Hope said and led me out of the room behind them. ¡°Helena said to give them a day to try and work out who would be best as a single maid. Even if she picks one, the other two can still stay here under her command while she''s at the academy.¡± ¡°Ah, just like you were at first.¡± Hope said in understanding and I nodded. We entered the main bedroom and Sara and Tabitha stripped me of my clothing, gave me a quick wash in case I needed it, then they dressed me in my finest ''going out'' suit. I also had my knife sheath and bandoleer tucked underneath the coat and out of sight. ¡°Very nice choice, girls.¡± Helena said with approval as she came out of the bathroom with her hair done up in a complicated hairdo. She was quickly dressed in a blue dress to compliment the dark blue of my suit and she let out little laughs as Jill tried to stuff her breasts into the seemingly smaller compartment in the dress meant to hold them. She was mostly successful. ¡°I''d suggest losing the extra support to fit in the dress better, only you''ll be sore by this afternoon.¡± Jill said with a sigh. ¡°I will just have to accept the heaving breasts.¡± Helena said with a huge smile. ¡°David will protect my virtue if anyone dares to comment on it.¡± ¡°Do you have any of that enchanted underwear that Mage Ridge, Lady Marks, and the queen uses?¡± I asked and every single woman in the room let out gasps of shock. They also looked scandalized. ¡°David! How... how did you know... a woman''s deepest secret that...¡± Helena looked away from me. ¡°I mean... no, I don''t have any; but, my mother does. It''s how she can keep her breasts from flopping all over the place when she walks.¡± ¡°You were going to buy some today?¡± I asked and both she and Jill nodded. ¡°How do you know about them?¡± Jill asked. ¡°I''ve seen underwear glow when I used my Sense Magic spell and also my Detect Enchantment spell.¡± I said and a few of them sighed. ¡°I wasn''t supposed to mention it?¡± ¡°It''s not that, it''s because...¡± Helena started to say and paused for a moment. ¡°It''s embarrassing for a woman to lose confidence in her body.¡± I walked over to her and lifted my hands to her face, cupped her cheeks, and gave her a light kiss. ¡°I sincerely hope that after last night, you are not losing confidence in your body.¡± Helena looked into my eyes and tried not to moan as I lowered my hands and lightly caressed her breasts. They really were heaving up from her dress and I was sure that I could undo all of Jill''s work to get Helena situated properly if I wanted to. I bent over to kiss both breasts and Helena did moan as I did so. ¡°D-David.¡± Helena whispered and I looked up to give her another kiss. ¡°We''ll stop there first to get some alterations done before we go anywhere else.¡± I said, firmly. Helena smiled warmly. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°I''m ready.¡± Vanessa said and she came into the room with a near identical dress to Helena''s, only it was a softer blue and didn''t show off as much cleavage. ¡°Then we can go.¡± I said and led both women out of the bedroom and down the stairs to climb into the waiting carriage. It had already had the crates of creme loaded onto it and we left the mansion behind at a fast trot. When we arrived at the city proper, we stopped at the special shop to buy new underwear for Helena. I struck up a conversation with the woman that ran the place and wrung a promise out of her to show me some of her work if I signed a contract that I wouldn''t disclose her secrets. I agreed to do so later, probably tomorrow, and she looked happy when I offered to show her some enchantments, too. The day turned out to be a complete success. With multiple breaks along the way for Helena to rest, we went to all of the activities that she had crammed into our day. She let out little laughs every time either I or Vanessa hovered over her and made her rest, or walk slower, or in one case I offered to carry her around. ¡°You''re both so sweet.¡± Helena said and cupped my face with one hand and cupped Vanessa''s face with the other. We made it back to the mansion in the late afternoon, just before suppertime, and dropped off our purchases. I went upstairs and took a quick bath with Sara and Tabitha''s help, then changed into the suit that I had commissioned for Lady Marks.If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°No wonder Lady Marks is so happy with you.¡± Vanessa said when I entered the parlour to say goodbye. Helena let out a laugh. ¡°She definitely appreciates the compliment that a man would spend that much on a suit to look good, just for her.¡± ¡°On the plus side, I do not want to get into her underwear.¡± Helena looked like she was holding her laughs in. ¡°The poor woman is driving herself nuts trying to figure out why you don''t find her attractive enough to break your promise to me.¡± I nodded and gave her a kiss and then turned to Vanessa. ¡°I never break my word.¡± Vanessa looked into my eyes and I knew she was remembering me reassuring her that Helena would accept the contracts. She nodded to me and gave me a chaste kiss. ¡°Vanessa?¡± Helena asked and looked concerned. ¡°I don''t want to kiss him and possibly get him aroused before going to see another woman.¡± Vanessa said, her face red. ¡°Now that is a good point.¡± Helena said and smiled at me. ¡°Don''t have too much fun.¡± ¡°I''ll only tease her a little by offering to apply some creme for her.¡± I said and that made Helena laugh. ¡°I am so glad you accepted my offer.¡± Helena said and gave me another kiss. ¡°See you tonight.¡± I left the mansion and rode in the carriage to Lady Marks'' estate. What followed was a meal filled with innuendo, compliments, halfhearted attempts at flirting, and an embarrassed Greta when she insisted that she had to watch me apply creme all along her mother''s bare back. When I asked her what she was embarrassed about, she opened up her dress and laid down next to her mother on the padded bench before she asked me to do her back, too. Her mother laughed at the shameless display, even though she had just done the same thing, and Greta enjoyed it just as much as her mother did. I didn''t stop at her back, though. I scooted her dress up and did her thighs and calves as well, both front and back, then did her arms and the back and sides of her neck. ¡°I can''t do the front.¡± I said and handed her the partially used jar of creme. ¡°I have to leave it to you.¡± ¡°Th-thank you, David.¡± Greta said, her face flushed red. ¡°That was... I really enjoyed...¡± ¡°I couldn''t let just your back look twenty years younger.¡± I said and she caught her breath. ¡°I completely forgot this was the enhanced creme!¡± Greta exclaimed and sat up, showing me her breasts, then she ran over to the side of the room to the full length mirror to stare at her legs and then she turned to look at her back. ¡°Oh, my GOD! I''m gorgeous!¡± Both Lady Marks and I laughed at her. ¡°Shut up, you two.¡± Greta griped and kept admiring herself. ¡°I''ll leave you two alone to compare notes.¡± I said and bent over to give Lady Marks a kiss on the cheek. ¡°Goodnight.¡± ¡°Goodnight, David.¡± Lady Marks said. ¡°Until next time.¡± ¡°I''ll see you both at the docks at the end of the weekend.¡± I said and left her there. I glanced once more and saw Greta applying the creme to her belly and then her chest. She moaned as the skin tightened up and her breasts perked up with her nipples poking out prominently. I closed the door to the room and left the mansion. I had some work I needed to do to protect the people that I cared for the most. I made it home and everyone was in bed already, so I quietly undressed and hung up the suit in the closet, slipped on some casual clothes, and went to my work room. It had been surprisingly easy to have the Montgomery family deliver a metal forge to be set up in the basement. I didn''t have any formal training and they said that I didn''t really need it, because all I was doing was heating the metal and engraving it. I had commissioned a dozen metal medallions and I knew that I had a bit of research to do before I could successfully do what I wanted to do. I stoked the forge and got it going, because it was going to take a while to get it up to the proper heat, then I went back upstairs to get my book and papers. I started to read through the chapter and quickly found similar runes to the ones that were in the split enchantments that covered the cells I had been held in. I wasn''t sure why they were slightly different with a missing bit of squiggle on one, two lines from another, a little circle from a third. When I found them all and copied them out and figured out what they did, I almost laughed. My guess about it being a physical mage shield had been right on the money. I had to assume that over time, the original enchantment had been too large and complicated for a single mage to enchant, so they had broken it up into six different ones. When combined in the right order and at equal distance apart, it made a coherent enchantment that linked them all together. The funny thing was, the book did not have a full enchantment that combined all six runes together. I''ve got my work cut out for me. I thought with a smile and took everything down into the basement. I slipped the first medallion into the forge to get it hot. While that happened, I did my best to combine the six runes into the same enchantment. I had already done it with four for the Montgomerys and the full sword enchantment they had, so I knew that if I took out the redundancy I had built into that and added in the two extra runes, while adding them in the proper order to charge them all to make them effective, it should work. I took out the first medallion and just before I made another man repellent chameleon enchantment on it, I went to the reference book and looked up what the ''woman'' and ''person'' runes were. I chuckled as they were nearly identical to the ''man'' rune and changed the enchantment. I knew if I imbued it that it would be all I could do with it, so I did it. I took another small medallion and carved the new mage shield enchantment on one side of it. With my enchantment potion, I imbued both medallions and they glowed brightly. I held the mage shield in my hands and gave it some magic to make it pop a shield around me. It was like a rounded tube around me and I smiled, because it was under my feet as well. With two separate enchantments to work with, I used some number ten potion and fused them together, face to face. I had to see if they would work both separately and together when needed. They set together flush and you couldn''t tell that it was two medallions in one. Perfect. I thought and attached a chain to hang it on my neck to test it. I could feel the two different enchantments waiting for my magic and I put some into the chameleon enchantment. I faded away and was hidden, which meant the person repellent enchantment would work as well. I deactivated it and then held my breath as I used the mage shield enchantment. The same tube shape popped up and covered me, so I was happy. I deactivated it and then added magic to both enchantments at the same time. The medallion glowed and as the mage shield popped up around me, both the shield and I faded from sight. I did a little dance and deactivated both enchantments, then got back to work. I had five more of them to make and then I had to test them. Somehow. I would have to worry about that later. I needed to get these done and get to bed. Helena had a nice relaxing day planned for tomorrow and I wasn''t going to disappoint her. I left my medallion on as I worked, letting its solid weight on my chest remind me that I was about to give the best protection that innovation could create to the people I cared about most in this world. 247 Academy Antics Part One Hundred And Eleven - Pleasure Cruise Part One I went to bed after completing all six medallions and brought them in a box to the bedroom. I would have to send off another commission to the Montgomery family blacksmiths for more of the blank medallions to be made, now that I had enough for my immediate concerns. There were others that it could be given to, with the only real limitation being that they needed to have someone nearby to activate them. I put the box beside the bed and stripped off, glanced at the still open doors to Vanessa''s bedroom, and climbed naked into bed. I wasn''t surprised to find Helena was naked as well and cuddled into her to spoon her from behind. ¡°Mmm.¡± Helena moaned softly as she felt my erection press between the cheeks of her ass. ¡°You''re awake?¡± I asked in a whisper. ¡°I''ve been waiting for you.¡± Helena whispered back and shifted herself up a little to rub against me. ¡°It seems that I''ve developed a need to feel you inside of me during the night, my love.¡± I kissed the back of her neck, because she had left her hair done up in the hairdo, and I reached down to adjust myself to slide into her. She moaned inarticulately as we made love for the second night in a row, my movements slow, as to not cause her body or the growing baby any distress. It drove her a little crazy, because she begged me with whispers to go faster and to do her harder. We both knew it couldn''t happen, so her desire and frustration grew in equal measure. When she came, it was both a physical and an emotional release. I hugged Helena close and whispered to her that after she has the baby, I would be able to ravage her as hard and as much as she wanted. She came again from that, so she kissed me passionately and told me to keep going. I did. We eventually drifted off to sleep, cuddled together with me still inside of her, just like she wanted. It felt like the morning arrived moments later and I didn''t have anything pressing to do, so I stayed in bed with Helena until the maids showed up to wake us and wash us before breakfast. It was handled with time to spare and Vanessa met us as we came out of the bathroom, freshly dried and still naked. ¡°We didn''t coordinate our outfits for today.¡± Vanessa said and did her best to not stare at us, even though she stood there in only her panties. Her three maids let out giggles and whispered about how cute her shyness was. ¡°Jill, what did you decide on?¡± Helena asked as she sat on a chair, her poise pronounced, even without any clothes on. ¡°After talking to your other two maids, we chose light and airy with a bit of color.¡± Jill said and pulled something like a summer dress out of the closet. ¡°I cannot wear a summer dress in late fall.¡± Helena said. ¡°I''ve added layers inside to...¡± ¡°My legs would be frozen on the ship.¡± Helena protested and then looked thoughtful. ¡°Unless you''re planning on stockings or thicker leg coverings?¡± Jill smiled knowingly and pulled out exactly what Helena asked for. ¡°Only an inch or so at the top of your thighs will be exposed and that will be covered by the dress.¡± Helena nodded and looked at Vanessa''s maids. ¡°Can you find something appropriate for your lady in the things we bought yesterday or do you need to raid my closet?¡± ¡°Both.¡± All three maids said and made Jill laugh. ¡°I''ll give you a hand.¡± Jill said and handed Helena a very pretty pair of panties. ¡°We won''t put on the new bra until you''re about to be dressed.¡± Helena nodded as she put the panties on and sat down again. ¡°David, a nice travel suit in dark green, perhaps?¡± I nodded and Sara and Tabitha made short work of setting it out for me and getting me dressed. ¡°It really is a lot quicker with help.¡± Vanessa said and then she felt it for herself as she was dressed into a similar manner as Helena''s outfit was going to be. ¡°Will they stay up?¡± She asked and touched the tops of the thick stockings. ¡°I haven''t worn these before and...¡± ¡°There''s a trick to it.¡± One of her maids said and quickly put a garter belt around her waist and attached the stockings to it. ¡°It''ll be hidden under the dress as well.¡± ¡°How have I not heard of anything like this?¡± Vanessa asked as her hands rubbed over the new articles of clothing. ¡°I mean, I know I''ve only just started etiquette training...¡± Helena chuckled and the maids all had knowing looks. ¡°Second year would have you introduced to the finer details of drawing a man''s attention.¡± ¡°Even if you''re already taken?¡± Vanessa asked, surprised. ¡°Just because you have a love interest, that doesn''t mean you don''t have to learn how to get their attention.¡± Jill advised. ¡°Or keep it.¡± Helena corrected and glanced at me. ¡°As you can see, someone is already trying to imagine removing it from us.¡± I blinked my eyes and turned from staring at Vanessa''s legs to look at Helena, who also had them on. ¡°I''ve never seen such things before.¡± I said and knelt on the floor in front of Helena. I touched the cloth on her thighs and rubbed my hands over them. ¡°It''s so soft and yet I can still feel the skin of your legs through them.¡± Helena moaned a little and Jill was there to pull her underwear out of the way before it got wet. ¡°D-David.¡± I looked up and saw her flushed face and her dripping womanhood. I knew it was because of me, so I leaned in and licked and kissed it. She gripped my head with both her hands and moaned loudly as I took care of her condition, then she almost screamed as she came. Her body shivered and shook as the pleasure went through her. ¡°My lord.¡± Jill whispered. I stopped what I was doing before moving away and nodded. Jill cleaned Helena up and sat her down on the chair to rest while Sara cleaned my face, mouth, and chin off for me. I glanced around the room as I sat on the bed to wait and saw that every single woman had a red face and were doing their best to not look at me and to stare at me at the same time. It was pretty interesting to see eight women act that way, actually. ¡°B-breakfast is ready.¡± Hope''s shaky voice said into the room. Her face was red as well and didn''t look at me at all. ¡°We''ll be down as soon as my lady can stand up without assistance and we can get her dress on her.¡± Jill said with a blush. ¡°It''s going to be a few minutes.¡± Helena said with a lazy smile. ¡°David, you can go ahead.¡± ¡°All right.¡± I said and stood, went to her and gave her a kiss on the lips, and picked up the box beside the bed before I left the room. I wasn''t surprised that none of them moved to follow me as the bedroom door shut behind me, leaving me all alone in the hallway.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. ¡°My lady! You''re so lucky!¡± One of the maids gasped. I couldn''t tell which one it was, so it was probably one of the new ones. When a heated discussion started, laughs and giggles soon followed, so I went down the stairs to wait in the dining room. I figured they were going to be a while and drank some tea and nibbled at some toasted bread. It took twenty minutes for them to show up and they all had normal expressions on their faces, even Vanessa. She and Helena sat on either side of me and gave my cheeks a kiss, then the rest of the staff came into the large dining room and breakfast was served. It was a quick meal and then it was time for Helena''s planned relaxing ship ride for us. She had booked passage for us and our maids on a passenger ship, had everything we needed packed, and we were off to the docks. We had the biggest cabin they had onboard to stay in with the adjoining one for the maids, and we were quickly unpacked for the two day long leisurely trip. After that, we all went up on the deck as the ship sailed out of the harbour and Helena and Vanessa leaned their heads on my shoulders as they hugged my arms. We didn''t speak as we watched the other ships be left behind, then I felt a kiss on both of my cheeks, just like that morning. We spent the day walking around the deck of the ship, out of the way of the working men, and observed the countryside as we passed it. We talked, cuddled, sat for a while and relaxed on the top deck for an hour, had lunch in the mess hall, lounged around for several more hours, and then went to our cabin. Unlike at home, there was only one large main cabin for the three of us to share. Vanessa looked a little nervous about it until Helena reassured her that she wasn''t going to beg me to have sex. To both of our surprise, Vanessa had a different opinion as to why she was nervous. ¡°If you want to make love to the man you love, I don''t want you to stop on my account.¡± Vanessa said to Helena, quite boldly. ¡°Although we didn''t share the same bed the last two nights, I did watch you both. I wanted to see...¡± Helena''s eyes widened slightly and Vanessa blushed. ¡°Not that... well, not only that.¡± Vanessa admitted. ¡°I wanted to know if you really did love each other or if it was all a front to present to the public like my parents do.¡± Helena opened her mouth to speak, then closed it, her face unsure how to respond. ¡°I''ve only had sex with three women and I''ve only said I loved them to one of them.¡± I said and both women looked at me. ¡°Can you guess which one?¡± ¡°D-David.¡± Helena whispered, her eyes tearing up. ¡°Only me? It''s just me?¡± I nodded. ¡°You''ve done so much for me and accepted me for everything I was, even my murderous killing sprees than no one knows about.¡± Vanessa snorted and then laughed. ¡°If no one knows about them, how would Helena know about them?¡± ¡°So easily caught in a lie.¡± Helena chuckled and hugged me. ¡°Yes, David. I know how ruthless you are. Even if you had killed the several people that you only maimed, I wouldn''t have thought less of you.¡± ¡°You could have killed so many students when you started at the academy.¡± Vanessa said and hugged both me and Helena. ¡°You didn''t. In fact, you didn''t maim anyone, not even those that could have been.¡± ¡°You''ve accepted it, too?¡± Helena asked Vanessa, who nodded. ¡°He only does what''s necessary to keep himself safe... and now to keep us safe.¡± Vanessa said and looked at me with adoration and love. I could tell, because it was similar to how Helena looked at me. ¡°I can''t think of anyone else willing to do what he does to do it, which was why I petitioned him.¡± She gave me a quick kiss. ¡°I''m so happy that you love each other enough that I could add myself into this without causing a rift or upset.¡± ¡°I''m sure that we would have been good friends if we had met anywhere else.¡± Helena said. ¡°Even with me so young?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°We live a long time, so yes. I''m sure we would have eventually crossed paths.¡± Helena assured her. ¡°How are your potions holding up?¡± Vanessa looked a little embarrassed. ¡°I''ll be out by the end of the week.¡± ¡°You''ve been taking them constantly?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°When we get back home, we''ll spend the day stocking you up and you won''t have to worry about running out for a while.¡± ¡°But... but...¡± ¡°Yes, we''ll teach you the proper recipes to do it on your own. I''ll even give you my own catalyst to ensure you have the best potions.¡± I said and tears came to her eyes. ¡°Th-thank you.¡± Vanessa said and kissed my cheek, then kissed Helena''s cheek. ¡°Thank you both.¡± ¡°We''re family now.¡± Helena said and used her hand to dab a handkerchief to Vanessa''s damp eyes. ¡°We do everything we can for family.¡± ¡°Speaking of which.¡± I said and let them go to retrieve the box. ¡°I made these for you.¡± Both women gasped when I handed them a gold medallion each. I told them what it did and how to activate them. ¡°Wh-when did you... oh, my god!¡± Helena gasped when the mage shield popped into existence around her. ¡°How did you do this?¡± ¡°Remember the containment enchantments in the cells I told you about?¡± I asked and her mouth dropped open. ¡°I reversed it.¡± ¡°You did NOT change a prisoner confinement enchantment into a physical mage shield!¡± Helena said loudly. ¡°You can''t be more amazing, David! You can''t!¡± Vanessa laughed and reached out to touch it. ¡°I think he has to be.¡± She rubbed her hand over the energy barrier. ¡°I''ve never seen one this thick before, not even from combat mages.¡± ¡°It''s because it''s confined to a smaller space.¡± I said and explained what I had done to change the normal dome shape to make it fit closer to a person. ¡°He''s even more amazing now, isn''t he?¡± Vanessa asked as the shield disappeared. ¡°I can''t really answer that.¡± Helena said, her face going red and she put her hands down onto her dress below her pelvic bone. ¡°David, I need Jill and...¡± ¡°We won''t need the maids.¡± I said and led Helena over to the bed, then I very carefully took off her dress, her enchanted bra, and pulled off her panties while leaving the garter belt intact and the stockings in place. I looked at Vanessa and she already had her own dress and underwear off, which left her with just the garters and stockings on. Without a word, she crawled onto the large bed and then pulled Helena onto it with her. She sat at the headboard and held Helena in her arms in front of her, so I crawled up onto the bed to kiss Helena between her legs. She moaned and writhed as I pleasured her, then she suddenly pushed my head away from her and rolled onto her side and lifted her leg to present herself to me. I didn''t need any more prompting than that and I was naked and inside of her before she could ask me to do it. Helena hollered her pleasure into Vanessa''s shoulder and hugged the younger woman. At one point she had even bit into the flesh and left teeth marks. Vanessa didn''t notice, because all she did was stare into my eyes the entire time. Our faces were practically in front of each other, because I was having sex with the woman she held in her arms. I moved in and out of my fiance and stared right back at Vanessa. Helena let out a particularly loud and pleasure filled moan, which made Vanessa look very happy. In the next moment, Vanessa moved her head forward slightly to kiss me. We stayed that way, our lips locked passionately, as I kept going and made love to my fiance. None of us were sure how long it took for me to finally finish and none of us really cared. The three of us laid in the bed, cuddled together, and none of us wanted this time to end. ¡°I can''t wait to be next.¡± Vanessa whispered, the potions having worn off a while ago. ¡°I hope that... that we can...¡± ¡°As soon as the contracts are in full effect, right after David and I say ''I do'', our bed will become our bed.¡± Helena said as she leaned over me to look into Vanessa''s eyes. ¡°Then... then this... tonight was...¡± Vanessa didn''t want to say anything else, just in case she was wrong. ¡°To show you what was to come, even though you didn''t have sex.¡± Helena said and turned her head slightly to give me a kiss, then she looked back at Vanessa. ¡°As soon as I am unable to fulfill my wifely duties...¡± She rubbed her belly and smiled happily. ¡°...you will need to stand in my stead.¡± ¡°Wh-what? But... but isn''t... the contract...¡± ¡°You really do need to read the whole thing, my dear.¡± Helena said and turned her head towards her to give her a feather light kiss on the lips. ¡°We have clauses and sub-clauses for everything.¡± Vanessa laid there, a stunned look on her face, and Helena chuckled. ¡°Goodnight.¡± Helena said and touched her cheek, touched mine, then she settled down and cuddled into my side. ¡°Goodnight, my love.¡± I whispered and turned my head to look at Vanessa. ¡°Goodnight.¡± That seemed to shake Vanessa out of her stunned state. ¡°Y-yes, goodnight.¡± She said and gave me a kiss, then she settled down as well and went right to sleep. 248 Academy Antics Part One Hundred And Twelve - Give Me A Hand The night passed quickly and the ship had turned to head back. It took a circuitous route to get us back to the capital city''s harbour and the scenery was just different enough to keep our interest. We had been so eager to go to bed the night before that we had missed supper, so we ate a hearty breakfast in the maid''s cabin to make up for it. Our maids were giggling as Vanessa tried to feed me a strip of fried meat and I licked her fingers. ¡°Don''t tease her too much, my love.¡± Helena said to me, clearly amused. ¡°You know the rules.¡± ¡°I do.¡± I said and handed her a piece of meat, then ate it and licked her fingers, too. Helena laughed and shook her head. ¡°I shouldn''t be letting you have so much fun. Poor Vanessa''s expectations are going to be so high...¡± ¡°I said at our first friendly gathering meal that David has already met and exceeded them.¡± Vanessa said, unabashedly. ¡°I just need to get used to him passing them even more.¡± ¡°Too true.¡± Helena said and gave me a kiss. ¡°You''re wearing a medallion.¡± ¡°I need to protect the people I care about the most.¡± I said. ¡°I''ll send off another commission when we get back home for more blanks to be made.¡± ¡°Well, if you have three left, then that must mean Hope, Sara, and Tabitha.¡± Helena said and the three women let out surprised sounds. ¡°My thoughts are so easily read.¡± I said and left the room to get the box. When I came back, the three of them were standing together and waiting for me. ¡°Hope, since you haven''t shown any propensity for magic, you need to be near someone that does for this to be activated.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± Hope said as she accepted it and hung it around her neck. ¡°It''s so pretty.¡± ¡°It''s blank.¡± I chuckled and handed the next one to Sara. ¡°You are under the same restriction.¡± ¡°I''m never not by Tabitha''s side.¡± Sara said, a bit proudly. I nodded and gave the last one to Tabitha. After a short explanation of them and their functions, Tabitha tried hers and then activated Sara''s and Hope''s for them. ¡°I don''t even feel drained!¡± Tabitha exclaimed, happily. ¡°That''s the benefit of metal over wildwood.¡± I said. ¡°It takes much less magic to activate.¡± ¡°You''re going to be handing them out to everyone, aren''t you?¡± Helena asked, her smile huge. ¡°No, just those I deem fit for them.¡± I said and that made both Helena and Vanessa laugh. ¡°Almost everyone he knows.¡± They said as one and then laughed again. I didn''t comment to counter their statement and that set them off. I shrugged and kept eating the meal, then we spent the rest of the day lounging and relaxing all over the ship. The ship docked at the main platform and we all left the ship happier than we were when we entered it. It was evening, so we went back to the mansion and let the maids unpack as we soaked in the bath. Vanessa was in Helena''s normal tub and Helena was in mine. Vanessa tried to wash herself as she watched us wash each other. She was mostly successful with both tasks. ¡°Shall we give her a hand? Or four?¡± Helena asked me. ¡°Of course, my love.¡± I said and we stood up. Vanessa''s face was bright red as Helena and I gently washed her all over, even though she had washed most of herself already. She had only experienced two baths with maids doing the work, so having the two people she was contracted to give her a bath, gave her a sense of rightness that she hadn''t expected. When she told us that, Helena reached up to cup the side of her face. ¡°It''s because you know we care about you.¡± Helena said and Vanessa nodded. ¡°I''m glad that we don''t have to let you get used to us touching you before we can touch you like you want us to.¡± Vanessa blushed and ducked her head a little. ¡°I''m glad you''re not jealous of me.¡± Helena chuckled. ¡°I''m not that vain. I know there are younger and prettier women that exist.¡± ¡°Somewhere.¡± I said and she laughed as she lightly slapped my cheek to put suds on it. ¡°Yes, somewhere.¡± Helena rolled her eyes at me before we rinsed Vanessa off. We all stood and dried each other off before going into the main bedroom. We were dressed in our night clothes by the maids and Vanessa looked a little sad as she went to her bedroom. ¡°We''re always leaving the doors open, so we''re all right here with each other.¡± Helena reminded her and Vanessa smiled with a nod as she climbed into bed. Helena and I climbed into bed and snuggled close. ¡°Thank you for making me relax the last two days.¡± I said. Helena gave me a quick kiss. ¡°You''re welcome.¡± She said and kissed me again, then we made out for several minutes. ¡°Goodnight.¡± ¡°Goodnight.¡± I said back. ¡°Goodnight, Vanessa.¡± ¡°Goodnight.¡± Vanessa responded. After a short while, Helena drifted off to sleep. I waited until Vanessa drifted off as well and slipped out of bed. I opened my vault and took out the stack of fifteen pages I had for a specific recipe and crept downstairs to go into my potions room. I needed to start making something that I knew was going to take all night to complete. The last two days of relaxing would let me stay up all night, with no detrimental effects, so I got to work. Unlike the last time I prepared it, I wasn''t working with a small pot or a limited fire. I had a full stew pot for my preparations and I revelled in having so much more to work with. I began prepping the ingredients and started brewing. I wasn''t tired at all as the night quickly wore on and I tended the potion that was slowly taking shape. It really did take all night, just like the last time, only I didn''t have four and a half vials when I was done. I now had a full crate of 36 vials of regeneration potion and didn''t know what to do with it all. I had been so eager to finally brew an entire pot''s worth that I completely missed the fact that I had no real use for it, except for my hand. I counted the days until I had to go back to the academy and hoped that if I only used a quarter of the dose that it would be over in a quarter of the time, or just over two days. My decision made, I took the crate and carried it up the stairs. No one was awake, so no one saw me bring it into the bedroom.If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. I couldn''t put the crate into the vault, since it wasn''t that big of a vault, not with my five books in it, so I found some cloth and quickly sewed up little pouches similar to my bandoleer. I put 30 of the vials into it and tucked them into the vault before I put the others into my bandoleer and left one out. I had to wait for Helena to wake up before telling her about what I was going to do. She wasn''t very happy with losing me for two days, then she took my hand and rubbed her fingers over the damage that the panther''s claws had made. ¡°All right. I''ll get Linette over here after breakfast and she can monitor you.¡± Helena said, reluctantly. ¡°It''s necessary. I need full functionality of my hand.¡± ¡°You''ve been doing well so far.¡± Helena sighed. ¡°I know that''s not good enough, so I''ll hope you''re right about the smaller dose not taking as long.¡± ¡°I can''t take the chance that an even smaller dose than a quarter will work.¡± I cautioned her. ¡°It could partially heal it or not even get that far through my body.¡± ¡°You can''t apply it topically?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°It might just fortify it in place like the healing potions do, since it''s a magical wound.¡± ¡°I see. It has to be internal and uses your own body to heal itself.¡± Helena said and I nodded. Linette showed up after breakfast and we set up in one of the guest rooms. She promised to not take the remainder of the vial for experiments, as long as I promised to give her a vial for use on another patient. When she told me who it was, namely the man I had seen with no arms at the medical building, I only agreed if she didn''t take samples before giving it to him. ¡°You really don''t want me testing it, do you?¡± Linette asked, a bit angry. ¡°It''s a waste of time.¡± I said and drank a quarter of a vial and corked it. I cast the lock charm on it and laid it on the bedside table. ¡°Potion masters from the guild and the castle can''t pull my potions apart. What makes you think a bunch of healers can?¡± Linette sighed. ¡°You can''t keep this a secret. The whole kingdom knows it exists now.¡± ¡°It got out officially?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°Do they know where the potion came from?¡± ¡°Not... really.¡± Linette said, hesitatingly. ¡°They know you''re involved and only those that know you''re the one responsible for all of the stronger healing and health potions going around, knows that you could have made it.¡± ¡°I made the cleaning potions, too.¡± I reminded her needlessly. Linette chuckled and shook her head. ¡°How long does it take for the thing to kick...¡± ¡°Ughhhhhh.¡± I groaned as a wave of pain flowed through me. ¡°That soon.¡± Linette said and then I was kind of out of it for a while. When I came back to myself, just over two days had passed. I woke up and I wasn''t sweat covered, or was laying in a sweat soaked bed or clothing. I moved my hands around to pat myself in several places and a woman''s soft laugh made me stop and look at her. ¡°I owe Helena a gold coin.¡± Linette said, amusement in her voice. ¡°She told me you''d check to see if you were clean or not.¡± ¡°You let the maids bathe me?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°I could have hurt them.¡± Linette shook her head. ¡°We bound your arms and legs to stop you from thrashing around before they gave you a sponge bath.¡± Her eyes went to my crotch and then went back to my face. ¡°Your personal maids are a beacon to their profession.¡± ¡°Did they take turns at the same time or only did one ritual per bath?¡± I asked. ¡°Turns.¡± Linette said, her face red. ¡°It was... admirable.¡± I raised my eyebrows at her and she turned her face away. ¡°I saw my father with his maid once.¡± Linette said. ¡°She was... well...¡± ¡°He was sleeping with her.¡± I said and she nodded, her gaze still averted. ¡°I won''t degrade my maids like that. They are too good at their jobs to ruin their reputations of professionalism.¡± Linette turned back to me then. ¡°You understand it.¡± I nodded. ¡°I even told them that I respect their work and that they were free to find people to be with, because I would never try to change their jobs from professional to debauchery. I won''t even touch them sexually when they bathe me naked.¡± ¡°You are a very strong man.¡± Linette said, admiration in her voice. ¡°How many times did I scream like a little girl while I was out of it?¡± I asked, to counter her current thoughts. Linette chuckled. ¡°A few times.¡± I looked at my right hand and smiled at the smooth skin that was there. ¡°I assume you documented everything.¡± ¡°I did, and it was thoroughly fascinating.¡± Linette said and moved over to sit on the bed as she took my hand. ¡°Watching it pull apart and regrow was an experience I''ve never had before.¡± ¡°Wait until you give the vial to that man and watch his arms regrow. You might want to restrain him completely, since he''ll have to suffer for the full ten days.¡± ¡°I will. I''ll also give him pain relieving potions to help.¡± ¡°You did that for me?¡± I asked. ¡°Only once. By the end of the first day, nearly all of your muscles were locked up and you looked like you were going to break apart. I administered the potion during a particularly less violent episode and you relaxed almost immediately.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said. ¡°I''ll need to remember that if it ever happens again.¡± Linette gave me a pointed look. ¡°Helena''s forbidden you from maiming yourself for at least a year. She''s already lost the last two days with you and doesn''t want to lose any more.¡± I nodded. ¡°I''ll do my best to keep her happy.¡± ¡°Make sure that you do.¡± Linette said and waved a hand over me as she chanted under her breath. She nodded at whatever she discovered, wrote it down, and gave me a smile. ¡°All right, David. You''re fine, so get out of bed and go kiss your fiance.¡± ¡°Yes, ma''am.¡± I said and gave her a military salute with my healed right hand. She waved me away and I climbed off of the bed and grabbed the vial that was still there. ¡°I''ll get one for you to take.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Linette said. I left the guest room and went to the main bedroom to see that Helena was there with Vanessa. They sat side by side with an arm around each other on the bed. ¡°David!¡± Helena gasped. ¡°Linette said I was fine.¡± I said and held up my hand to show them. ¡°Come here.¡± Helena ordered and I did so. She pulled me into a hug and then kissed me passionately. ¡°I''m so sorry that you had to go through that, my love.¡± ¡°So was Linette. She didn''t like me screaming like a little girl.¡± Vanessa laughed softly. ¡°The poor woman. How terrible for her.¡± Helena laughed, too. ¡°Get her a vial and let''s get changed. We''re picking up your boat in a little while.¡± ¡°It''s ready?¡± I asked and she nodded. I went to the vault and opened it, changed the partially used vial for a full one, and closed the vault. I walked back to the guest room where Linette was packing up her things and gave the vial to her. ¡°Remember, if he doesn''t have magic, there''s a real possibility that he could die.¡± ¡°I have Alex and Donna''s records.¡± Linette said. ¡°I know exactly what to expect for both a partial healing...¡± She touched my hand. ¡°...and for a full restoration.¡± ¡°I''m glad to hear that." I said with a nod. "Thank you for staying with me these last two days.¡± ¡°I wouldn''t trust anyone else with your welfare, not after everything that''s happened between us.¡± I raised my eyebrows at her and she laughed. ¡°I do not want to lose access to your potions.¡± Linette said with a stern expression that was marred by her sly smile. I smiled back and left her to go back to the main bedroom. I had to get changed and then I had to prepare a few things to bring along to the docks. My ship was going to need a few upgrades before I took it out onto the water. 249 Academy Antics Part One Hundred And Thirteen - Pleasure Cruise Part Two I told Helena I would be another half an hour as I prepped what I needed for the ship. She didn''t even bat an eye at me delaying us to go and get the ship. ¡°We all know you''re going to do your best to give that ship whatever you want to make it better.¡± Helena chuckled. ¡°You''ve been planning this ever since that time you visited the docks and had a tour of that ship.¡± ¡°You know me so well.¡± I said and kissed her, gave Vanessa a kiss, and went to my work room. Since I didn''t have to worry about making the enchantments smaller to conceal them on the large ship, with all that room to work with, I made full sized one foot wide coins for them. I also had to go back to my vault to get my old papers. I hadn''t made the original full movement enchantment for a long time now and I needed the reminder on what to add back into the stripped down version I was so used to making. Of course, I didn''t stop there. I also dug out the full weight enchantment that was the Pondus Family Crest. I quickly fixed it and made one of them as well. I was sure that one would be enough; but, I had to make sure and made two instead. In the long run, it could be used as a backup if the first was ever damaged for some reason. I made another movement enchantment for the same reason, then I looked at the old protection enchantment I had. Now that I knew so many different things, especially the concealment enchantment that I had integrated into it... I had a bit of math and a little redesigning to do. I almost laughed as I easily made the alterations and constructed a ward that protected the ship from both creatures and people. I knew the concealment wouldn''t work for a ship that big, though. I was going to have to split it up and put it around the ship to cover the entire thing. My hand touched the medallion I wore and a huge smile blossomed on my face. I knew exactly how many pieces I would use. Six. I combined the concealment enchantments into the six smaller enchantments that the cell had, modified to fix them, of course. The problem I had was that they needed to be on the outside of the ship to work, which meant that I had to conceal them. I ran up the stairs, passed a surprised Hope, and looked around the mansion for something to hide the obvious coins. It didn''t take me long to find some nice wood scroll work on a small coffee table. I grabbed it and ran downstairs to Hope and asked her who made it. ¡°Frank and the men made it. It''s one of our best sellers.¡± Hope said. I chuckled and used my knife to carve out the perfect sized coin. ¡°I need five more of these made right away.¡± Hope didn''t question me at all and took the coin to the workman''s wing of the mansion. I went back downstairs and finished my carvings and used the enchantment potions to infuse them with my magic. I wasn''t going to shortchange myself and made backups, just in case, then piled my work into a crate and carried it up to the front doors of the mansion. I left it by the doors and ran up the stairs to change into the meeting suit that Helena wanted me to wear. I was quickly checked by Sara and Tabitha, who shook their heads, then I was dunked into a bath and quickly scrubbed. There wasn''t time for both of them to perform the ritual, so Sara did it and Tabitha promised to perform it right after we picked up the boat and I had the first test run. I tried to argue that I wouldn''t be bathing that soon and she said the spray of the water from such a small ship was going to soak me through before I knew it. I couldn''t argue with her logic, so I agreed and that made Helena laugh softly. ¡°You are such a good man, David.¡± Helena said and kissed me. Vanessa, Helena, Hope, Sara, Tabitha, Jill, and I left the mansion and made our way to the docks in the family carriage. We would have taken more maids to see the thing; but, the carriage wasn''t that large to fit so many people inside. Administrator Lannin promised to bring the others in another carriage and would meet us there. His son Gerald wanted to see the new ship launched, too. When we arrived at the docks, it was near pandemonium. People were everywhere and slowed our progress to get to the Sellwafer''s business. ¡°I don''t need to ask what''s going on, do I?¡± Helena asked, amusement on her face as she looked out at the people. ¡°I''d say the queen is here at least.¡± I commented and looked at where we were going to have to park. ¡°I see two royal carriages.¡± ¡°Two?¡± Helena leaned over me to look out the other window. ¡°Oh, my.¡± ¡°He came?¡± Vanessa asked, surprised. ¡°Apparently.¡± I said as the carriage stopped and the coachman opened the door for me to step out. ¡°There are guards scattered all over.¡± ¡°Well, that makes sense. It''s not like this is a private launch. A lot of people would have heard of it.¡± Helena said and took my offered hand as she stepped down. ¡°It''s hard for the royal family''s protectors to stay unobtrusive with so many potential enemies around.¡± I held a hand back to Vanessa and helped her down. ¡°He would have been smart to cordon off the area before arriving.¡± I said and helped the maids out as well. I only offered my elbow, because they wouldn''t accept my hand when I tried. ¡°Now he''s in the middle of a nightmare.¡± ¡°Oh? Not you?¡± Hope asked as she moved behind me. ¡°I could kill everyone around us long before anyone could harm you.¡± I said and we almost immediately had a ten foot wide clear area around us. Helena and Vanessa covered their mouths to hide their laughs and I led everyone through the now parting crowd that didn''t try to stop us as we walked down the docks. The coachman carried the crate for me, since both of my arms were busy. We made it to the business without incident and went inside. I didn''t comment on the dock workers keeping watch and making sure that no one overstepped their allowed area. ¡°Lord Drake!¡± The same young woman gasped when I stepped through the door. ¡°The ship is beautiful!¡± ¡°I''m sure it is.¡± I said and heard the door be locked behind us. ¡°Take us through, please.¡± ¡°Of course!¡± The young woman said a bit loudly and led us into the back. ¡°Ah, there you are.¡± The Baroness said, her face happy. ¡°It was a right pain in the backside to keep so many people from barging in here.¡± ¡°The men have taken to security well.¡± I said and her happy face beamed a smile. ¡°They really have. No one has tried to rob us or anything and even the vandals leave us alone.¡± The Baroness said and gave me her hand. ¡°I have you to thank for that, don''t I?¡± ¡°Perhaps.¡± I said with a knowing smile and kissed her hand. I had arranged the first bit of money to make it into the right hands, thanks to one of Frank''s workers. With them to help, word had quickly spread that more money would come if they kept the place safe. No one was disappointed by the arrangement.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. ¡°Then please, come and look at the very first masterpiece our company has created.¡± The Baroness said and looked at my arms, both of which were occupied, and she laughed softly. She made a hand wave and her husband seemed to appear out of nowhere and he escorted the Baroness. I thought it was telling that neither she nor her husband had greeted Vanessa or Helena. Since we weren''t in a more formal setting, I couldn''t call them on it; but, both Helena and Vanessa had suffered the slight rebuff and I knew that they wouldn''t forget it, just like I wouldn''t. Then we saw the small clipper ship. It was a work of beauty. The ornate state of the outside, made of a dark wood, gave it the polished look of riches beyond anyone had ever seen on a ship before. The details were stunning, the scroll work prominent, and the carvings stood out as intended to draw the eye along the smooth lines of the ship. ¡°Lady Bassinger really went all out.¡± The Baroness said with a laugh. ¡°The bow spirit is so lifelike that I thought someone had petrified a beautiful woman and suspended her from the front of the ship.¡± I walked around the ship to look and saw that she was right. I didn''t recognize the woman, which meant it was either an exclusive model or just someone that Lady Bassinger''s uncle made up. Either way, she was showing off a lot of cleavage in the thin dress the figure wore. If she wasn''t made of wood, she would have been highly erotic. ¡°Good god.¡± Vanessa whispered and her face went a little red. ¡°It''s amazing, isn''t it? Everyone will be looking at it!¡± The Baroness said, quite proudly. Yes, and not for the reasons you think. I thought. At least I now knew where I was going to attach one of the shield enchantments. The bow spirit was going to gain a medallion around her neck to protect her modesty and to cover her exposed breasts. ¡°Is the crew ready?¡± I asked and the baroness nodded. ¡°They''re waiting in a boat in the harbour, just off from the launch site. They''ll board then and have the main mast set into place and the sails rigged in twenty minutes.¡± I nodded and looked at the women with me. ¡°Ladies and maids, please go with the baroness to wait while I check this over for myself.¡± ¡°I hope you are going to take us on the maiden sail.¡± Helena said. ¡°You and Vanessa will be the first to ride on her.¡± I promised. ¡°I''ll pick you up by the platform.¡± Helena gave me a kiss and nodded to Vanessa, who kissed me as well. They left me there, alone with the crate of my work, and I looked at the ship. In my head, I chose the right spots for the outside enchantments and then got to work. I would need the one on the bow, one on the stern, and then two on each side, an equal distance apart from the others. I knew there couldn''t be any variance in it, considering the way the cell had been constructed, and it took me ten minutes to get them into the right positions. I could feel them with my vigilance technique and when they were in the right spots, I used number ten potion to secure them. I went to the rudder that was near the back of the ship and saw that it wasn''t a rudder at all, it was a large steering wheel instead. I almost laughed, because it complicated what a simple stick could do. I marked it mentally in my head and went below deck. Not surprisingly, it was the captain''s cabin that was directly under the steering mechanism. The back of the ship had windows in it as well and I shrugged at the unnecessary visual. The best part about the cabin was that there was a lot of room inside and I easily mounted two enchantments, one each of movement and weight, right onto the ceiling. If you weren''t looking for it specifically, you wouldn''t even notice the two extra wood protrusions from the ceiling. I went to the middle of the ship and mounted the other two, far enough away from the two I would be using that I could still use them and also to protect them from being damaged if the ones at the back of the ship were somehow lost. With my work done, I left the ship and went outside to nod at the baroness. She looked very happy and she cast some kind of spell to make her voice carry as several workmen came over to me. We set up the ship''s launch as the baroness talked about how this was a revolutionary ship, the smallest and fastest of its kind, and how she was very proud to have had a hand in building the future of the Gulf Kingdom. ¡°She''s definitely getting full of herself.¡± One of the men commented as he tied off the rigging to open the massive doors. ¡°I''m half-hoping the ship sinks, just so she''ll shut up about it.¡± The other men laughed, as did I. None of them questioned why I was laughing with them. ¡°All right, she''s done talking. Heave HO!¡± One of the others said and four of them pushed open the huge doors and two grabbed onto the rigging to yank on the ropes to fold the doors back and not let them flow freely. There were appreciative sounds from the gathered crowd as they caught sight of the ship and then the work crew pulled out the stoppers holding the ship in the dock. I quickly climbed up and went to the large steering wheel and grabbed on. If I wasn''t careful, the ship could tip to the side or even capsize if it hit the water wrong. The work crews grabbed the guide ropes on the front of the ship and pulled. Nothing happened, so I activated the weight enchantment. The men pulling hard on the ropes fell down as the boat shot forward and the ropes went slack. There were several screams mixed in with the cheers as the ship slid out as if it was on grease and splashed into the water. It wasn''t the slow and graceful exit that any of them had expected from a ship launch and that was kind of the point. I held the rudder steady and eased the weight back and the boat bobbed down a lot into the water. The ship was drifting a bit too far, thanks to the quick water insert, so I activated the movement enchantment and brought the ship to a stop. Every single person that saw it instantly became quiet, even the men in the little boat that were supposed to climb aboard to finish the ship''s assembly. The only people still talking were the ones from my family. ¡°I knew he could get it to work.¡± Helena said confidently and waved to me. ¡°David! Hurry up and pick us up!¡± I chuckled and moved the ship to the side about ten feet for the men to climb up. ¡°You heard the lady. Let''s go. She needs to ride this thing as soon as possible.¡± ¡°Yessir!¡± The men said and scrambled up the side of the ship where we had left a rigging net for them. It took twenty minutes to get the ship to be seaworthy, just as the baroness said, and the men departed back to their little boat. I brought the ship around, to everyone''s surprise except Helena''s, and eased the ship next to the docking platform. I used the weight enchantment and the ship sank down to be at the same height as the platform, which really shocked everyone. ¡°My Lady. My Lady. My maids. Your ride awaits.¡± I said and waved at the ship. ¡°Thank you, Lord Drake. How gracious of you.¡± Helena said and accepted my hand as she stepped onto the deck without using a gangplank or even stairs, since they weren''t needed. ¡°I think you need to talk to the Pondus Family after this.¡± ¡°Are they here?¡± I asked and she pointed off to the side of the platform. I turned to look and saw six people, the two brothers I had dealt with, two older men, and two women. They all had shock on their faces. ¡°I''ll give them the third ride, after the king and his family.¡± ¡°Good choice.¡± Helena said, laughter in her voice. I helped Vanessa and the maids on, made sure they had good places to sit and hang on, then I moved the ship away from the platform and raised the ship until it was almost all the way out of the water. ¡°Get ready, here we go.¡± I cautioned them and they did so, then I added my magic to the movement enchantment. The ship responded a bit sluggishly and I chuckled. ¡°What is it?¡± Helena asked. ¡°I''m too used to only using enough magic to run my other boat with the weaker enchantment.¡± Helena laughed. ¡°You didn''t leave any flaws in at all, did you?¡± ¡°No.¡± I said with a smile. ¡°Then let yourself have some fun, my love.¡± Helena said and blew me a kiss. ¡°You know how much I love to feel your magic.¡± ¡°I do.¡± I said and took a calming breath, then let myself go and my magic poured out. Helena shivered, Vanessa looked surprised, and Tabitha looked stunned. ¡°You better hold on tightly.¡± There were nods all around and then I put that magic into the movement enchantment. ¡°Oh, my GOD!¡± Helena gasped and had an orgasm, because the ship took off as if it was only a flat bottomed boat and not a keeled clipper ship. ¡°YES! YEEEESSSSSS!¡± She yelled as she revelled in both the speed of the full movement enchantment and my magic. It reminded me of the first time she had been in a boat with me and I smiled. Her actions really did speak louder than words, since she had sat in front of me without her underwear on and she let me see how much she enjoyed it. It was nice to know that she still enjoyed the simple things in life. 250 Academy Antics Part One Hundred And Fourteen - Pleasure Cruise Conclusion After twenty minutes of doing some pretty neat turns and dips in the water, mainly because the keel of the ship allowed me much sharper turns and more control over the use of the ship than a flat bottomed boat did, I brought the little clipper ship back to the docks. Most of the people there were shocked at the water aerobatics that shouldn''t have been physically possible with a ship like that. ¡°I can''t wait to get one of these things!¡± The king said loudly and then kissed the queen passionately. ¡°Thank you so much for the gift!¡± The queen was rendered speechless by his very public display of affection and couldn''t respond. The king laughed and eyed my ship with eyes full of longing and envy. ¡°We''ll need about half an hour to check everything over, my lord.¡± One of the workmen said to me. ¡°I''ll be below deck.¡± I said and took Helena''s hand and glanced at Tabitha before looking at the king. ¡°My king, your family will have the next ride.¡± ¡°You''re taking me out on it?!?¡± The king asked in nearly a shout. ¡°Of course.¡± I said with a slightly bow. ¡°You need experience with it before getting your own.¡± ¡°You''re a great friend.¡± The king said and hugged his wife. ¡°Did you hear that, darling? We''re going next!¡± The queen could only nod and both Ellen and Rose looked nervous and hopeful at the same time. I almost laughed at their apprehension and took Helena and Tabitha below deck as Vanessa and the rest of the maids stepped off onto the docking platform. I raised the ship up to the full height to make the work crew''s job easier and entered the captain''s cabin. Tabitha smiled at me as she closed the door to give Helena and I some privacy, then I was suddenly dragged from the door to the bed and my pants were off before I knew it. Helena mounted me and moaned loudly, because she had been ready for me for nearly the entire ride. ¡°Oh, David!¡± She gasped and moved her hips on her own without my help. She had a great time pleasuring herself with my body while also being careful of her baby bump. ¡°I wish... we could have... after that... first time... OHHHH!¡± I watched as her whole body shivered and gently held her as she tried to recover from the wave of pleasure she just had. ¡°Now it''s my turn.¡± ¡°Ohhh, yesssss. Yes, my David.¡± Helena moaned and I made love to her until there was a knock on the door. ¡°Sir, we''re done. There''s nothing wrong. No structural damage, no twisting of the keel runner or wrenching of the masts.¡± A man''s voice said. ¡°Do you want the sails deployed for this run?¡± ¡°Just the main sail.¡± I said and gripped Helena''s breasts to make her cry out. ¡°We can test the reinforcement of the main mast this time.¡± ¡°Yessir. Ten minutes.¡± The man responded. ¡°Plenty of time. I''ll be up then.¡± I said and then made Helena moan as I shared my magic with her. She writhed beside me and her hands gripped my arms tightly as I pleasured her. I finished just in time and she let out a long and satisfied moan. ¡°D-David... my god, David.¡± Helena said, her voice shaky and then she laughed. ¡°You can stay here for this run.¡± I said and kissed her. ¡°I''ll need something to hold on to.¡± Helena said, her voice teasing. I chuckled and stood to offer myself and she laughed and stroked me a few times with her hand. ¡°My love, if I thought you could use the ship from down here, I would accept immediately.¡± Helena said and looked up at my face. ¡°I love you.¡± ¡°I love you, too.¡± I said and slid out of her hand. Tabitha came in then and took me into the bathroom to give me a quick cleaning, performed the ritual like she promised, even though I didn''t get the full bath. I put on my pants and left the cabin before Tabitha promised to keep an eye on Helena and locked the door. I heard a whispered ''thank you'' and went up onto the deck. There were a few whistles from the work men, envious looks from a bunch of other men, and a lot of blushing women looking at me from the viewing platform. I walked over to the royal family. ¡°Your majesty, your majesty, your highness and your highness.¡± I said to the king, the queen, Ellen, and Rose. ¡°The next ride is ready.¡± ¡°You''re testing the sail?¡± The king asked and ignored the blushes of his wife and daughters, mainly because he didn''t want to acknowledge that they knew what I had been doing to Helena in the ship. ¡°It''s the set protocol. One trip without sails, one with the main sail, and one with all the sails deployed.¡± I said and helped them onto the ship. They knew to hold on as I sat them down in the places where seats were mounted to the deck, since this ship was meant for relaxing, and Rose held onto my hand a bit longer than she had to. I gave her a smile and her face flushed a little more red before she let me go. ¡°I assume you tested the rudder fully?¡± The king asked and looked around the small deck with enthusiasm. ¡°Both alone and in conjunction with the movement enchantment.¡± I said and went to the large steering wheel. ¡°That was when the ship did the full circle movement.¡± The king laughed. ¡°I''ve never seen a ship turn so quickly or in such a small space! It was amazing!¡± The queen chuckled. ¡°You are not going to do that when you get your ship, my king.¡± ¡°But, dear...¡± The king whined and she laughed as both Ellen and Rose shook their heads. ¡°David, if you would.¡± The queen said and nodded forward. ¡°As you command.¡± I said and let my magic flow out to launch the ship forward. There was a muffled moan from below and I had to clamp my mouth shut to not laugh. Both Rose and Ellen turned to look at me, their faces had both surprise and longing on them. Neither of them commented, however. I put the ship through similar moves, simulating rough water and high waves, which absolutely delighted the king and didn''t seem to bother the queen or her daughters. I kept my eyes on the main mast as it groaned and swayed through each turn, just in case. The reinforcement held, even as the sail caught the actual wind and pulled on the ship to tip it nearly thirty degrees off of center. I easily recovered with the rudder and the movement enchantment to right the ship and the king laughed. ¡°Good one, David! You''re a natural at this!¡± The king said and held his wife tightly as I kept putting the ship through its paces. I eventually brought the ship back to the dock and lowered it into the water to let the king and his family off. ¡°Wonderful. Wonderful!¡± The king exclaimed and shook my hand. ¡°Well done. I can''t wait to have my own ship to do the same things.¡± ¡°I''ll be by to modify it appropriately when the time comes, my king.¡± I said. ¡°Excellent.¡± The king said and led his family off onto the platform. Ellen didn''t look at me and Rose looked like she wanted to say something, then she bit her bottom lip and blushed before following her sister. The work crew came on and started checking things over right away. I raised the ship back up and went below deck to a very ready Helena, who yelled her pleasure as I took her from behind. ¡°You really liked it when I recovered the ship like I did.¡± ¡°OH, YES!¡± Helena yelled and had another orgasm. ¡°Oh, god... oh, god...¡± She whispered and panted to try and catch her breath. ¡°David, I... I think I need to get off...¡± ¡°You''ve gotten off a lot so far.¡± I joked and she laughed. ¡°I meant off the ship. I don''t think... I can''t take much more of this.¡± Helena said and kissed me. ¡°It''s too much pleasure for me to handle right now.¡± I nodded in understanding and just laid there for the next little while until the knock on the door came. ¡°Sir, everything checked out again. No damage. We''re putting all of the sails up, too.¡± ¡°Thank you. I''ll be up after a quick bath.¡± I said and then I was in the bathroom being washed and had the ritual performed. I had wondered where Tabitha had gone while I was in bed with Helena and now I had my answer. She had waited in the bathroom for us. We both helped Helena get cleaned up and dressed, then we brought her up on deck and she wasn''t blushing as she beamed a smile at everyone on the platform. Helena knew that they had all heard her, considering they were just on the other side of the hull from the bedroom, and she wasn''t embarrassed at all. I handed her off to Vanessa and the maids, who looked composed and collected. They nodded to me as they huddled around Helena to keep her away from everyone around them. I walked around the platform and stopped in front of the Pondus family. ¡°We need to talk.¡± I said and waved at the ship. ¡°If you would like, you can accompany me on the next run.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± The two brothers almost yelped and then let out a laugh as the two older men gave them a glare. ¡°Sorry, father.¡± The brother without an arm said. One of the older men sighed. ¡°No, it''s understandable.¡± He said and looked back at me. ¡°Lord Drake, we would be honored to ride with you.¡± ¡°Please, right this way.¡± I said and only one of the women took the older man''s arm, leaving the other woman without an escort, because it didn''t look like the other older man was going to offer. ¡°I assume you are a sister or daughter?¡± She nodded. ¡°Daughter.¡± ¡°May I escort you? I''m betrothed and my fiance is right over there.¡± I indicated where Helena was and she smiled with another nod. I assumed the position and led them over to the ship and helped them get on, sat them down in the right spots, and then brought the ship up and almost out of the water. ¡°How are you making the ship go up and down so much?¡± One of the brothers asked. ¡°I''ll answer when we''re away from the docks.¡± I said and he nodded. I didn''t zoom out this time, because the sails were billowed out backwards, and only moved at a normal pace until I could turn the ship and have the sails catch the wind from the other direction. I poured on the speed then and started to answer their questions. ¡°I''ve added the full weight enchantment hidden in your family crest.¡± I said and the two old men whipped their heads around to stare at me, the two women gasped, and the two brothers laughed. ¡°We knew you''d figure out how to get it to work.¡± The one without an arm said. ¡°You were smart enough to get the stripped down version to work so well, after all.¡± ¡°We never did thank you enough for that.¡± The other brother said. ¡°You''ve helped our family out so much...¡± ¡°...which will be completely undone, thanks to this ship.¡± The old man that hadn''t escorted a woman said. ¡°They are special order and have only a small cargo hold compared to a normal ship.¡± I said as an explanation. ¡°I think the navy will order a few, just to get even faster scouts onto the water.¡± ¡°Are you going to steal our enchantment for that, too?¡± The old man asked, grumpily. ¡°GRANDPA!¡± The two brothers yelled. ¡°He didn''t steal it.¡± The daughter said and gave my eyes a look. ¡°I''ve talked with my brothers extensively. I know you figured out how to make it for everyone to use the enchantment and not just the strongest mages in our family.¡± ¡°You understand I was going to figure it out on my own eventually?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°Can you use the enchantment in its current form?¡± ¡°I can.¡± She said, quite proudly. ¡°Come here.¡± I said and she looked around. ¡°I''ve got us on a steady course for now. I''m letting the sails work to test them.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± She let her handhold go and walked over to me. She looked at the large steering wheel with a bit of confusion. ¡°What did you want to show me? I can''t see the enchantment.¡± I pointed at my feet. ¡°It''s right below us.¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± She looked shocked. ¡°You''re not touching it to get it to work?¡± ¡°I''m technically touching it by touching something it is attached to.¡± I said and she looked even more shocked. ¡°Yes, it works.¡± ¡°But... but how...¡±If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°Take the wheel and stand like I did with your feet a foot apart.¡± I said stepped to the side. She gave me a wide-eyed look and then put her hands on the steering wheel to assume the spot that I had been standing in. ¡°Your left foot is standing on the weight enchantment and your right foot is standing on the movement enchantment.¡± I explained and she caught her breath. ¡°Ignore the movement one for now and concentrate on the weight one.¡± She nodded and closed her eyes. I tried not to laugh at her steering the boat with her eyes closed and waited to feel her magic as I cast Sense Magic. I felt a wisp of magic swirl out of her and it was almost like a tentacle as it started to poke around her hands and tapped several parts of the wheel. ¡°Don''t freak out about this.¡± I whispered to her and used my own magic to reach out and touched hers. ¡°OH!¡± She gasped as her magic latched onto mine. I guided it down and through the deck to touch the weight enchantment. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± She whispered as her magic found the enchantment and it glowed. ¡°How... good god, how...¡± ¡°It takes practice.¡± I said and let her magic go, then it started to retreat. ¡°No, don''t back off. Concentrate and feel the enchantment. Let your magic fill it.¡± She struggled with it for nearly ten minutes before she gasped and the weight enchantment powered up. She then made the ship rise up to the lip of the water and then she let it sink all the way down until the deck was almost even with the water. ¡°There you go.¡± I said and she opened her eyes to stare at me. ¡°You have to tell me how I''m doing this!¡± She exclaimed. ¡°I fixed it, obviously.¡± I said and she stared at me. ¡°Bring us up to just below the waterline.¡± She did that and her family stared at her like they had stared at me. ¡°Please, tell me.¡± ¡°It won''t mean much unless you''re an experienced enchanter.¡± I said with a shrug. ¡°In layman''s terms, I cut out all of the extra stuff that wasn''t necessary and streamlined the magic channels. It''s still taxing to use for extended periods of time if you don''t have a lot of magic; but, even your brothers can use it.¡± She caught her breath and looked over at her brother that was missing an arm. ¡°Even... even...¡± ¡°Oh, don''t worry about that. I''ll have him fixed right up in two weeks.¡± I said. ¡°WHAT?!?¡± The brothers yelled. ¡°It''s not a state secret anymore, right?¡± I said and wiggled my little fingers at them. ¡°You saw the first princess at the king''s birthday party, didn''t you?¡± ¡°We did... but... you can''t mean...¡± The one missing an arm said and looked at the empty space where his arm used to be. ¡°Lord Drake.¡± The older man with the woman on his arm said. ¡°Name your price, even if it''s the hand of my daughter.¡± ¡°Father!¡± The woman at the wheel exclaimed and she lost her concentration. The ship sank down to sit in the water where its normal weight would put it. ¡°If I was even a little less loyal to my family, I would accept that offer.¡± I said. The woman blushed at the compliment and her mother looked pleased. ¡°Have you received any monies from the Montgomery Family yet?¡± I asked and they looked surprised. ¡°How did you know that?¡± The other older man asked. ¡°I arranged for them to have access to a modified weight enchantment for use in weapons and told them to ensure that you were compensated properly if it was used.¡± They all looked stunned. ¡°Why would you...¡± The father shook his head. ¡°Do you want another concubine?¡± ¡°FATHER!¡± The woman yelled and the man looked a little embarrassed. He didn''t retract the offer, though. I reached out and rested a hand on her shoulder. She saw the look in my eyes and relaxed as she took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°Lady Vanessa was a special circumstance and Lady Helena and I modified the contracts to suit our needs.¡± I said as I let the daughter''s shoulder go and the man nodded. ¡°Putting your daughter''s body and virtue aside, I''m sure that we can work out a suitable business arrangement that will benefit everyone.¡± ¡°You can''t have my wife. It took me almost a year of negotiations for me to claim her in the first place.¡± The man said with a twinkle in his eye. ¡°I am going to kill you when we get home.¡± His wife whispered to him and he didn''t look sorry at all. ¡°We all have our own worthy companions to protect.¡± I said and the woman gave me a surprised look. ¡°I might not be interested; but, that doesn''t mean I don''t appreciate the offer.¡± ¡°L-lord Drake.¡± The woman said and ducked her head slightly. ¡°I''ll drop you all off after the rest of the tests and you can negotiate with Lady Helena over what can be done.¡± I said and they all nodded. It didn''t take long for me to finish the last few tests for movement with the sails and brought the ship back to the docks. I stepped off with them and we had a nice little discussion with Helena while the ship was checked over for the third time. It was quickly agreed by all for me to hand over the full enchantment with directions for a very small share in their shipping business. It was funny to see them actually try to argue over giving us more of a share. Helena stopped them by saying that we didn''t want more than that, because we had already been using the enchantments since we got them. I pulled out a piece of paper with the full enchantment on it, quickly wrote out the directions for tool grooves and markings, and handed it over. ¡°You''re not going to wait for the contract?¡± The older man without an escort asked. ¡°Your nephews were generous enough to share the enchantment with me. It''s only fair that I be generous in sharing it back.¡± ¡°You are a very strange man.¡± The man responded. ¡°You have no idea.¡± I said and reached into my bandoleer to pluck out a vial of clear liquid. I took the hand of the brother without an arm and placed the vial in his hand. ¡°You''ll be in agony for ten days when you take it, so make sure you have healers and around the clock supervision. If you want the details, you can contact Healer Linette Marks at the main medical building of the capital.¡± ¡°I can''t believe she''s not here.¡± Hope said and looked around. ¡°Maybe she couldn''t get through the crowds?¡± ¡°That''s more than likely.¡± Vanessa said. ¡°I don''t see Lady Marks, either.¡± ¡°Since they probably took a carriage like we did, then that would explain none of them being here.¡± I said and looked around myself. ¡°No Greta or Jinelle, either.¡± ¡°HEY! HEEEEY!¡± A man''s voice yelled and I turned to look at the platform on the other side of the launching dock. ¡°Oh, there''s Gary, Anna, and Nancy.¡± I said and waved back. ¡°You want a ride?¡± ¡°HELL YES!¡± Gary yelled back and several people laughed. ¡°I''ll be right over.¡± I said and turned back to the people around me. ¡°You can''t just give me this.¡± The brother without an arm said. ¡°You can''t. It''s not right.¡± I put a hand on his shoulder. ¡°You lost an arm during that first excursion. It''s only fair that I give you an arm back.¡± The brother sighed and nodded. ¡°I''m going to pledge to...¡± ¡°No.¡± I cut him off and he looked surprised. ¡°Stay with your family. Find a nice young woman, get married, have babies.¡± ¡°But... you...¡± ¡°That''s what I''m doing.¡± I said and kissed Helena. ¡°I''ll be back in half an hour. You know Gary''s going to want the full ride.¡± Helena laughed softly. ¡°You should take a few others as well. It looks like a few of the army and navy personnel are there with them.¡± ¡°That''s a great idea.¡± I said and gave her another kiss, stepped back onto the ship, and slid it sideways over to the other platform. ¡°I don''t even care how you did that.¡± Gary said with a laugh and jumped onboard. ¡°I''ll pull the sails.¡± I smiled as my guess was confirmed. He wanted to go all out. ¡°Anna? Nancy? Do you want to come along? There''s plenty of room.¡± My old XO Anna looked pleased. ¡°Do you mind if...¡± ¡°Not at all.¡± I said and nodded to the two men behind her. ¡°Anyone else?¡± The two men exchanged looks and then shook their heads. ¡°Then climb aboard and grab a seat.¡± I said and went to help Gary pull in the sails and secured them. ¡°This is going to be fun.¡± Gary said and tied off the rigging rope on the front sail and then sat right there behind the bow spirit. ¡°Come on! Let''s get this baby moving!¡± Anna and Nancy laughed at the man''s antics and the two military men kept their faces blank. I put magic into the movement enchantment and set us off out into the harbour. Unlike the three other times, I wasn''t testing it, so Gary started making suggestions on what to do. I followed them, just to see if the ship could do them, then Anna and Nancy got into it as well. After a short time, the two military men added their own suggestions and I complied to the best of the ship''s ability, which was considerable, since its agility and versatility was pretty high. ¡°Buzz that ship.¡± One of the men said and pointed to a ship coming into the harbour. ¡°What''s that mean?¡± I asked. ¡°He means to pass by quickly like an insect to annoy them.¡± Anna clarified for me. ¡°Ah. I see.¡± I said. ¡°As long as I won''t get in trouble for it.¡± ¡°We''ll cover for you.¡± The other man said. ¡°Get us as close as you can before breaking off.¡± I raised my eyebrows at him and my old drill instructor Nancy chuckled. ¡°Simulate a hit and run tactic.¡± Nancy said and I nodded. I poured on the speed and headed straight for the much larger ship. ¡°We said buzz it, not ram it!¡± One of the men exclaimed as we sped towards our own imminent destruction, then he gasped as I slid the ship twenty feet to the side and brought us to a dead stop. I pulled a lever beside the steering wheel and the hidden ports on that side of the ship opened up, I made a kaboom sound with my mouth, then closed the ports and sped off on a perpendicular course. ¡°Sweet lord.¡± The army man said and seemed to collapse in his seat. ¡°I want it.¡± The navy man said, a slightly maniacal gleam in his eye. ¡°Even if it only works a few times, it could change the course of naval warfare.¡± ¡°David, do it again!¡± Gary said. ¡°I could almost touch the side of that ship!¡± Anna chuckled and shook her head. ¡°Perhaps just shadowing it and then sending word to tell the other captain and crew that you were testing your ship.¡± ¡°Yes, ma''am.¡± I said and whipped us around, much to Gary''s delight, and brought us all the way back to the much larger ship. The crew of said ship looked pretty angry at us. ¡°I''m sorry, fellas!¡± I said and pointed to the navy guy. ¡°That guy says he''ll buy you all the first round of ales at the tavern!¡± The crew of the ship let out yells and hollers of appreciation while the navy man let out a sigh. ¡°Yes, I''ll do it.¡± The man said with a grumble. ¡°YOU!¡± A particular voice yelled from above us and I looked to see Marcus standing on the main deck. ¡°Get away from me! GET AWAY FROM ME BEFORE THEY...¡± *KABOOOOOOM!* A second later, eight cannonballs slammed into the side of the large ship and Marcus disappeared in a splash of blood as one of the balls pulverized him. I turned around and there was nothing there. *KABOOOOOOM!* Eight more cannonballs slammed into the weakened side of the big ship and some went right through. Men''s screams joined the noise of wood splintering and the big ship rolled over onto its side, then flipped over in the water. ¡°DAVID! GO!¡± Anna yelled and I poured magic into the movement enchantment. My ship darted out of the way just as another loud boom happened and the cannonballs smashed into the bottom of the capsized ship where my ship had just been. Then the enchantments died. ¡°Uh oh.¡± Gary said as the ship started to slow down and sink into the water. I cast Sense Magic and to my utter shock, an entire ship was about three hundred feet away from us. It was about twice the size of a schooner and dwarfed us in size alone, not to mention weapon-wise. ¡°They''re invisible.¡± I said and my mind quickly ran through the possibilities. I turned my head to scan for any other ships and saw two of them much closer to the docks. I wasn''t sure why I could still see them so far outside my detection range; but, I didn''t question it. ¡°Brace for impact!¡± I said and pulled the lever to open the hidden weapons ports and activated the giant kracken tubes. Four of them blew out of the side of my ship and crossed the distance instantly. They exploded when they hit the side of the much larger ship and tore apart the entire side of it. Men screamed and jumped from the ship as the thing seemed to shimmer. After a few seconds, whatever was keeping them invisible failed and the sinking ship appeared for everyone to see. Anna, Nancy, Gary, and the two military men stared at the sudden appearance of the ship from nowhere. ¡°There''s two more!¡± I said and activated the other two enchantments that I had installed as backups. The two I had been using were dead and would have to be replaced. ¡°HOLD ON!¡± I activated the shield enchantments and the ship was covered in a tube shape from fore to aft. ¡°WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!?¡± The navy man asked. ¡°Mage shield.¡± I said and then activated the chameleon part. We shimmered and faded away, only we were moving too fast to be completely invisible to the outside. The others were stunned and I didn''t have time to explain. I darted down below deck and quickly reloaded the four expended tubes, then ran back up onto the deck. ¡°How can you leave the deck like that?¡± The army man asked, his tone full of fear. ¡°I don''t have a crew onboard to reload the kracken tubes.¡± I said. ¡°Hold on. We''ve going to pass between them.¡± ¡°You''re going to kill us!¡± The army man exclaimed and stood. He was tackled by Gary, who nodded to me. ¡°Do what you have to, David.¡± Anna said and drew her sword. It was the one I gave her and I nodded. Nancy stood and drew her sword as well, then she slit her dress and then Anna''s to allow their legs to move freely. ¡°I''ll get one, maybe both.¡± I said and growled, because the first ship just fired into the ships in the dock, which shredded them. ¡°I''ll get that one first!¡± I turned the ship sideways while continuing the forward motion, much to everyone''s surprise, then fired the two kracken tubes in the middle. They crossed the distance almost instantly and exploded. The large ship rocked from the explosions and lurched to the side. It threw off their next shot and all of the cannonballs splashed into the water by the docks. I turned us back to face the right way and brought us to a matching speed to the other ship. I unloaded all four tubes into it and blew it into pieces. I had apparently hit their gunpowder reserve for the cannons and the flaming wreckage slowly sank into the water. ¡°Oh, shit!¡± Gary said and pointed. The ship I had hit with only two of the tubes, because I couldn''t hit the back of it with all four, had turned with the momentum of my attack. *KABOOOOOOM!* Eight cannonballs shot out and I couldn''t dodge them, because they were spread out. ¡°Dammit!¡± I said and dropped the boat as much as I could. Only four of the balls slammed into the mage shield around us and the barrier glowed brightly from the impacts and it started to flicker. I turned the ship and fired the last two kracken tubes I had and they hit the ship dead on... and there was no explosion. Both projectiles were jammed into the side of the ship and nothing else happened. My blood ran cold when I heard the sound of sadistic laughter and my body shivered. My control of the enchantments disappeared as the enchantments died, then the mage shield and our concealment enchantments disappeared as well. I closed my eyes as the ship came to a stop and it lightly bumped into the enemy ship. ¡°I was going to ask you for more entertainment; but, I can clearly see that you''ve already done your worst.¡± A very familiar woman''s voice said with amusement. ¡°Take them and toss them overboard!¡± I heard the sounds of a dozen thumps and then a lot of sword clashes and scuffling. A few moments later, there were several splashes and lots of men jeering at such an easy win. I cringed when the laugh came again and then I heard a thump and several footsteps. I took a deep breath and opened my eyes, because I couldn''t pretend that it wasn''t happening anymore. ¡°Hello, David.¡± The Hag said and gave me a happily sadistic smile. 251 Academy Antics Conclusion I stared at the beautiful horror in front of me, or more accurately the remembered horror, and my mind tried to get over the fact that she had just so suddenly showed up out of nowhere. She had disappeared without a trace a couple years ago after my birthday and I had almost completely blocked out her existence in my mind. I still lived by what I had learned from her, since to do otherwise would have been very stupid on my part. ¡°Oh? No hello back to your old lover?¡± The Hag let out a laugh. ¡°I''m truly hurt.¡± My vigilance technique screamed at me and I dodged backwards and fell to the deck on instinct alone. The Hag''s hand seemed to just appear where my chest had just been and she made a fist. ¡°Hmm. You felt that coming, didn''t you?¡± I didn''t answer and she grinned at me. My vigilance technique screamed at me again and I rolled to the side and then kicked out with all my strength, just like my drill instructor had taught me in training. There was a snap of bone and a grunt as my feet connected with her elbow and her forearm. Her lower arm flopped loosely with an odd bend in it and she laughed. ¡°I see, I see.¡± The Hag said and looked pleased. She reached down with her other hand and pulled her broken arm straight and slipped a potion out of her belt and drank it. ¡°It seems you have been even busier than my spies have told me.¡± I must have had a shocked look on my face because she laughed. ¡°David, David, David.¡± The Hag shook her head. ¡°You should have learned by now that the technique only warns you when someone is observing you directly.¡± She looked down at me and squinted her eyes. ¡°What are you wearing?¡± I didn''t answer and a flash of anger came over her face. My instincts told me to jump, so I did and her kick missed my knee. I flipped up onto my feet just in time to have a fist slam into my face. I felt my cheek break and my jaw come loose. I wasn''t stupid, though. I had learned to roll with any hits and I absorbed much less damage as I turned around from the force of it and made a fist to backhand her. My knuckles slammed into her nose, breaking it and both of her cheeks, almost caving her face in, and her head snapped backwards. I pulled my foot back to kick her in the stomach and as I swung my foot, she let out a quick laugh and caught my ankle just before impact. She squeezed her hand and snapped it, then she threw it to the side. I twirled around with the force of it and jumped to use the same foot to kick the side of her face. Two horrible snaps sounded, one for her eye socket and one for the heel of my foot. Her eye had popped out and my foot was bent in half. I half-stood and half-hopped there on one foot as she bent over slightly to push her eye back into the socket. I took out my own healing potion and pushed my broken foot down onto the deck to flatten it out before I drank the potion. ¡°You''ve gotten stronger.¡± The Hag said, only this time her voice wasn''t happy. She drank another potion and all of her damage healed. ¡°You would never have thought to raise a hand to me before.¡± I was tempted to tell her that I had been through a lot since she had abandoned me. I stayed quiet instead, because that seemed to be exactly what she didn''t want. ¡°Are you going to ask me why I''m here?¡± The Hag asked and stood up straight to look at me. ¡°No? Well, it''s all because of you.¡± ¡°What?¡± I asked and then cursed myself silently as an amused smile appeared on her face. ¡°Yes, David. It''s you. I came here because of you.¡± The Hag said and didn''t make any threatening moves or tried to come closer. ¡°You''ve done so much damage to my carefully laid plans as you tore into the Mages Guild and made the king investigate everything they''ve been doing behind his back.¡± I opened my mouth to ask why and clamped my mouth shut to stop myself. The Hag noticed anyway. ¡°I''ve been undermining the confidence in the royal family for years and gaining loyalty to the guild in their stead. I had nearly the entire upper class and most of the rabble to believe that the mages guild could do no wrong. They were actually doing wrong, only no one knew that, until you came along and started messing everything up by bringing attention to it all.¡± ¡°Why did you do it?¡± I asked, unable to control myself. ¡°It''s simple, really. I hate this kingdom and I want to tear it apart and burn it to the ground.¡± The Hag said with a smirk. ¡°They made my life hell, tortured me, sent me to prison, and then exiled me. I want to make them pay for everything and they are going to.¡± I had to frown at that. ¡°That''s not like you at all.¡± The Hag glared at me for a moment, then she burst out laughing. ¡°Ha ha! You''re right! You really know me well!¡± She said and laughed for several moments, then she turned to her ship. ¡°Have you got the rudder fixed yet?¡± ¡°Yes, mistress!¡± All of the men on the ship said at the same time. ¡°Then resume your duty!¡± ¡°Yes, mistress!¡± They all said as one again and then the ship turned very slowly back towards the docks. I could tell that they had the movement enchantments spread out over the ship and they barely managed to move it. ¡°The truth is, these pompous assholes pissed me off with their arrogance. What right did they have to come to MY country and liberate MY slaves?¡± The Hag asked and her face was angry. ¡°They weren''t even at war with us and they dared to cross the border and destroyed decades of hard work.¡± I immediately thought back to the stories that Eludora the librarian had told me about her rescue and the Gulf Kingdom soldiers stumbling across them and then rescuing them. ¡°You''re from the Kingdom of Fala.¡± I said and her eyes snapped to my eyes. ¡°How did you know that?¡± The Hag asked with squinted eyes and I felt some magic flow over me. I tried to resist and my mouth worked without my consent. ¡°I''ve learned a lot since you abandoned me. I also met someone that was rescued.¡± The Hag lost the angered expression and smiled. ¡°I''m glad you''ve met some of your brethren.¡±This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. I blinked my eyes at her and then my vigilance technique screamed at me to move. The problem was, it didn''t let me know where it was safe to go. I couldn''t move as I felt a dozen stabs in my back, arms and legs from behind. The impact pushed me forward and I stumbled to fall to the deck on my knees. I didn''t cry out from the impact and the Hag smiled at me. ¡°Yes, David. That''s exactly where you need to be. On your knees and worshipping me.¡± The Hag said and opened her hand. I felt whatever those things were as they were pulled out of my body and they dropped to the deck with the sound of wood on wood. I reached into my bandoleer for a potion and her hand darted out to grab my wrist. I almost avoided it and she grabbed my forearm instead. She pulled my arm away from the bandoleer and grinned as my blood pooled on the deck. ¡°I need you weak, David.¡± The Hag said and then I heard the cannons on the other ship open fire. There were screams of pain and yells of panic as ships, buildings, and the docks were destroyed, as if the first attacks hadn''t been enough to get them to run. ¡°Don''t worry. I''m not going to kill them all.¡± The Hag let out a soft chuckle. ¡°I''m only here to restart the war between the Gulf Kingdom and the Eastern Empire.¡± ¡°Why?¡± I asked. ¡°I told you. It''s simple revenge.¡± The Hag said. ¡°I had to flee my own country when the experiments were discovered and I hid out in the only place I knew that no one would ever come looking for me.¡± ¡°The marsh.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°I was well fortified by then and easily survived the harsh environment. It took me a long time to adapt to the conditions, however.¡± The Hag reached into my coat and touched the handle of my magic knife. It pulsed with magic and it pushed her hand away. ¡°David, you are such a good and obedient boy.¡± I was surprised to hear tenderness in her voice. The Hag knelt in front of me and her free hand reached out and cupped the side of my face. ¡°You are my greatest achievement. The perfect specimen. You were the only one to willingly accept my teachings in all of their horrible glory, no matter how harsh or harmful they were.¡± ¡°I... I did that so you would treat me better.¡± I admitted. The Hag smiled a real smile, which was a little unnerving. ¡°I know, David. I know.¡± She reached down poked the spot over my heart. I grunted as the rib cracked and she kept the same smile on her face as she used her nails to tear my expensive shirt open and then cut into the perfect skin. ¡°It''s such a shame that you removed all of my work.¡± I grit my teeth as she dug her fingers into the skin and then pulled part of my pectoral muscle aside. She snapped off the rib she had broken and slipped it into her mouth and sucked on it. ¡°Oooohhh, my.¡± The Hag said with a shiver, her face lit with delight. ¡°You are so delicious.¡± I watched as she tossed my rib aside and then her hand reached into my chest. I felt her hand grip my heart and felt immense pressure in my chest as she gripped and squeezed. I didn''t say anything, though. ¡°My boy. My handsome boy.¡± The Hag whispered and pulled her hand back out as the blood pool around me grew even more. Her hand was soaked in blood and she started to lick it clean. She shivered again and her mouth formed into a pleased smile as she kept going. ¡°I think that''s enough for you to not resist too much.¡± I couldn''t do anything, weak from so much blood loss, and I didn''t even feel it when she had let my arm go. The Hag took out a potion from her belt and I didn''t recognize it. That worried me for about three seconds, because then it was tipped into my mouth and she clamped my mouth and nose closed to make me swallow. ¡°Shh.¡± The Hag whispered and pulled me onto her lap and hugged me. ¡°You''re back home now. You''re safe. I won''t let anyone else hurt you.¡± She said and kissed me. ¡°Only me, David. Only I am allowed to hurt you.¡± A fog settled over my mind and I tried to fight against it. My magic faltered, even when I finally remembered the medallion I wore and tried to activate it. Nothing worked. I moved my mouth to speak and nothing came out. I stared up at the Hag''s happy face and she smiled down at me. ¡°You''re mine. No matter what you''ve been telling yourself all this time, you''ve always been mine.¡± The Hag whispered and I felt her magic wash over me. My eyes fluttered and I tried to fight the feeling, then everything went black. _______________ Story mode temporarily suspended. Performing diagnostics. Mental stability at 85% and dropping. Learning capacity at 75% and dropping. Personality completion at 93%. Physical damage at 56% and is stable. Blood loss at 85%. Magic capacity at 78%. Magic Level at 5% and stable. Restructuring healing priorities. Enacting recovery procedures. Critical failure of main character averted. Adding supplementary diagnostics. Magic system initialization failure. Physical block is in place. Attempting removal... ... ...removal unsuccessful. Retrying... ... ...unsuccessful. A failure has been detected in the diagnostics. The maintenance department will work to fix this problem as soon as possible. Do you wish to continue this story or do you want to abort? All current progress will be saved if you wish to return at a later time. Are you kidding me? You give me a huge plot twist and you expect me to abandon the story just when it was getting really exciting again? Are you crazy? I thought, angry at being asked something so stupid. Get me back in there before I miss anything else! Story mode reinstated. Initializing time skip during unconsciousness. Done. _______________ I slowly opened my eyes and I was laying down. I couldn''t see anything, however. I blinked several times, as if that would make the darkness go away, and I felt movement under my head. I reached for what I was on and I felt a nice thigh. I froze, remembering that I had fallen asleep on the Hag''s lap. ¡°Please, don''t let it be true.¡± I whispered. ¡°Shh.¡± A woman''s voice that I didn''t recognize hushed me and I felt her hand start to pet my head. ¡°You''ve been unconscious for three days.¡± She whispered. ¡°Three days?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes. You were taken from the capital and tossed into this sealed space with me.¡± The woman whispered and then she sighed. ¡°The Hag told me to take care of you, or else.¡± ¡°But... why would...¡± I started to talk normally and sit up. ¡°Hush.¡± The woman said and held me down. ¡°You aren''t allowed to move yet.¡± A thrill of fear went through me at her words. ¡°Why is it so dark?¡± ¡°There''s no light in here.¡± The woman responded. ¡°I can''t see anything, either.¡± ¡°Why can''t I move?¡± I asked, wanting confirmation, even though I didn''t really want it. ¡°She... she...¡± The woman sighed again. ¡°She took all of your toes and two fingers from each hand.¡± I shivered at the thought and didn''t want to try to check. I really didn''t want to know. ¡°It''s going to be all right.¡± The woman whispered and hugged me tightly. ¡°I''ll take care of you. I promise.¡± ¡°But... the Hag...¡± ¡°If you don''t tell her that I enjoy caring for you, I won''t either.¡± The woman said and laid down. She pulled me in close and hugged me from behind. ¡°You should go back to sleep. The food won''t be served again until tomorrow afternoon.¡± It was my turn to sigh. I knew that routine. One meal every two days kept the body weak and alive. There was almost no way for anyone to gather the strength to escape that way. ¡°You''re a slave.¡± I whispered and her arms tightened around me. ¡°So are you.¡± She whispered back. I closed my eyes and took her advice. I felt very weak and I knew it would take more than a few days of rest to get myself back to normal. I still needed sleep to try and recover some of my health, so that''s what I did. I drifted off to sleep and hoped that things wouldn''t be as bleak in the morning. 252 A Pirate’s Life For Me: Prequel (New!) When I woke up, I remembered being captured by the Hag and shoved into a dark place with another slave. I lightly touched the damaged skin around my heart and was a little surprised that the Hag hadn''t removed the skin and grew new flesh for me instead. Perhaps it was an extra punishment? I thought to myself. If it is, then she''s only hurting herself. She knows that scar tissue ruins the taste of the meat. ¡°What time...¡± ¡°Quiet.¡± The woman holding me whispered. ¡°It''s almost time for food.¡± Right. No talking during meals. I reminded myself. The hatch opened without warning and the light blinded me. I let out a groan of pain and turned my head away from the source, only to feet a foot bury itself into my gut with a force that was excessive for my crime. ¡°Dirty filth! You will be silent or your tongue will be removed!¡± A male voice nearly yelled. I wasn''t going to apologize, since that would be me speaking without permission. The foot was removed and I didn''t groan in pain or make any sound at all. I thought I heard a sound of satisfaction and then two clunks. ¡°You will eat quickly or you won''t eat at all.¡± Another male voice said and no other sound came, which meant the two men were standing right there to make sure we both did what they wanted. I kept my eyes closed and tapped the floor of the container with my hands to find the closest dish of gruel. I found one and pulled it to myself and then opened my mouth to guzzle it and tipped it up to drink it. I knew from experience that it would be watery and not have a lot of substance in it. It was funny what the mind remembers when it was in a stressful environment. I thought I heard another sound of satisfaction when I put the bowl back where I had found it without opening my eyes. I had even used my fingertips to stop the thunk it would have made against the wood. A few moments later, the second bowl was put down and I felt the woman''s arms go around me and pulled me back towards her and turned my body away from the harsh light. There was a quick scraping sound as the bowls were picked up and then the door was closed. ¡°Shh.¡± The woman whispered in my ear and held me tightly to stop me from moving. We waited like that for half an hour before her hold on me eased. ¡°They listen to see if we obeyed.¡± I nodded and opened my eyes. It was still pitch black where we were and corrected my mistake of a nod. ¡°Thanks for telling me. I would have messed things up.¡± ¡°I''m to take care of you, remember?¡± The woman said and her hand found my face and she lightly caressed it. ¡°You are very handsome.¡± ¡°I''m betrothed.¡± I responded, which made her laugh. ¡°If she wasn''t killed during the raid, then she will think that you are dead.¡± The woman responded. ¡°They use dead bodies made to look like us when they capture us.¡± ¡°No, Helena won''t believe that.¡± I whispered. ¡°She''ll know I''m really alive. She will.¡± ¡°You sound like you''re trying to convince yourself.¡± The woman said and then she sighed. ¡°Don''t worry, young man. I''m much too old for you to court, even if neither of us will find someone else to enjoy our bodies.¡± ¡°Why did they take you?¡± I asked, a bit surprised for her to admit she was too old. ¡°Ransom. When my family didn''t pay...¡± ¡°...they delivered your ''body''.¡± I finished for her. ¡°They also probably killed them and burned the house down, too.¡± The woman said, sadly. ¡°I''m sure that...¡± ¡°They are emulating the Eastern Empire.¡± She reminded me and I had to sigh. ¡°I''m sorry.¡± ¡°There''s no need to be sorry. We are all in the same boat.¡± She said and then laughed softly. ¡°I think I just made a joke.¡± I had to smile. ¡°I think so.¡± I said and moved to sit up against the wall. Somehow, she helped me do it and then sat beside me to hold me steady with her arms around me. ¡°The rocking of the boat in the swells of the sea can be steep sometimes.¡± ¡°It depends if they have enough time to turn into the waves.¡± I said back and didn''t fight against her embrace. ¡°They don''t care. It''s us that suffer for it, not them.¡± I had to agree with that. There was no way that they were up on deck when the waves swelled and splashed the deck. They were above such things. ¡°Do you know how long...¡± ¡°Another two weeks.¡± She said and her head snuggled into the space between my shoulder and neck. She took in several sniffs and let out a long sigh. ¡°I will miss this smell when we are removed from here.¡± ¡°I stink.¡± ¡°It''s a nice stink.¡± She responded. After a moment, we both let out a soft laugh. The both of us were sweaty after several days of being locked inside the dark container and there was nowhere to wash up, so we were both quite ripe. By the time the two weeks ended, we would be in quite the state. After that, time seemed to both stand still and pass quickly. All we knew for the next two weeks were darkness and meals every two days. She held me whenever the door was closed and only released me to let me drink the gruel. I didn''t give the guards any trouble, because I kept my eyes closed when the door was open. I wasn''t going to make the same mistake again. The searing pain wasn''t worth it. I felt the ship come to a stop and knew that this was it. Wherever this was, I was going to be treated like every common slave. I had accepted that fact and would play the part. I knew that I would eventually get a chance to escape, as I almost always did when in situations like this. The only problem I had was the fact that I no longer had any toes. Unlike what some people think, toes were essential for the body to use as balance stabilizers. Not just for walking, either. The container''s door started to open and I snapped my eyes closed. ¡°Get out, slaves!¡± The man''s voice barked. I crawled out of the container and didn''t bother standing up. I knew I couldn''t, not with my feet like they were. I felt the woman''s hands on my sides to try and urge me to stand. I shook my head and didn''t speak. I felt something go around my neck and click into place, which meant I had just been collared. ¡°STAND UP!¡± The man said and I felt a whip smack into my back. When I didn''t move to get up, the whip cracked again. ¡°I can''t stand. I have no toes.¡± I said and felt the whip for a third time. I didn''t cry out, though. I took a moment to try and open my eyes slightly. It was harsh, seeing light for the first time in weeks; but, I managed to keep my eyes opened slightly. They would adjust eventually. ¡°Hold.¡± Another man''s voice said and I heard the whip spool onto the deck of the ship. ¡°He''s right. He doesn''t have any toes.¡± The other man cursed in his native language. ¡°We can''t have him walk if he can''t stand! How are we supposed to train him properly?!?¡± ¡°Mistress ordered me to care for him.¡± The woman that had been in the crate with me said. She sounded very reluctant, even though we both knew that she would do it willingly. The whip cracked again and she whimpered. ¡°You will be quiet unless spoken to!¡± The angry man said. The other man let out a sigh. ¡°If the Hag bids it, then it must be true. Slaves don''t speak out on their own unless they have to or were ordered to.¡± Several more curses were heard, then the angry man stalked off. The other man and the woman stood there and waited while I stayed on my hands and knees on the deck. My eyes were sore and getting used to being used again. The headache wasn''t too bad. ¡°Put him in this.¡± The angry man said as he came back over to us. I saw in my peripheral vision two other slaves pulling a hand cart that looked like the old one that Mack used at the old General Store. ¡°You''re responsible for him.¡± I didn''t fight the hands that grabbed me and lifted me to dump me into the cart. I held in the grunt of pain as my back hit something, probably a crate of supplies, and the woman''s hand touched my forehead. ¡°Get that thing off my ship.¡± The angry man said and stalked off again. ¡°Follow me.¡± The other man said. The woman, the slave pushing the cart with me in it, and the slave carrying another crate, followed the man down the gangplank. He didn''t slow down or even bother trying to keep us in sight. He knew that we wouldn''t get far, not with all the guards around. The collars on our necks were a dead giveaway and no one would help slaves, unless they were either crazy or wanted slaves themselves. ¡°Welcome to the Kingdom of Fata.¡± The man said and waved at the crowded docks and then pointed to the road that led out of the area. We followed him and a carriage was there waiting for us. It was empty, so he sent the slave that carried the crate to get the driver and footman from the inn nearby. He dropped off the crate on the luggage rack before he ran to do the man''s bidding. It didn''t take long for the men to return and the slave took up his position beside the cart. The carriage was quickly prepared for departure and then I was unceremoniously dumped onto the luggage rack with the other crate. ¡°Don''t fall off.¡± The man ordered and nodded to the footman, who tied one of my wrists to the rack. The older woman gave me a sad look and I finally got to see her face. She had age lines by her eyes and her mouth, which meant that she really was quite a bit older than any woman I had met before, except maybe for my mother. Her hair was greying and her cheeks were a little saggy; but, her eyes were a bright blue and I saw the intelligence contained within. The man, the older woman, and the two slaves entered the carriage and the driver flicked the reins to get the horses going. Needless to say, the ride was not a pleasant one. It was an older carriage and completely solid, so every dip, bump, and rock in the road shifted me in the luggage rack. I was tempted to dump the crates and make more room for myself, then decided that I didn''t want to make things even worse for myself. I was going to have a hard enough time just trying to live without having animosity between myself and everyone else. The ride to the man''s home took a while. By the time we came to a stop, I was battered and bruised, sore from holding on for so long, and stiff from trying to keep myself from moving too much or falling off. The carriage was emptied in reverse and I was dumped back on top of another cart, this one a bit bigger and it needed both male slaves to handle it. ¡°Clean them up at the stables.¡± The man said and the slaves were sent off with the horses. Let me tell you, being treated the same as a horse was quite the upgrade from being treated as a slave. We were stripped, harshly washed and scrubbed, then dried off and given grey outfits of pants and a sleeveless shirt that pulled on over your head. There were no buttons on anything. ¡°The servants enter the house from the back.¡± The man who drove the carriage said and pointed to the door. No one made a move to force us to go, which was a surprise. We didn''t protest or go anywhere else, though. Not that I could. I was put back in the cart and we went over to the house. The door opened before we got there and a very stern woman glared at us. ¡°You''ll have to carry the useless one. The cart is not entering the house.¡± She spat at us. The two male slaves exchanged looks and the older woman slave looked down. ¡°Do I have to explain how to empty the cart, you idiots?¡± The stern woman said angrily, then she sighed. ¡°Prop the cripple against the wall. The woman, hold him there. The two males, grab the crates and bring them into the pantry, drop them off, then come back here to carry the cripple to the servant''s quarters and leave him there.¡± I was manhandled as the stern woman''s orders were executed, quite quickly, and then I saw several other slaves as I was brought to the servant''s quarters and dumped onto a cheap bed. There was a bit of a problem with the slaves I saw. They were all albinos. Both their hair and their skin were completely white. I had no idea where they had gotten so many of them and captured them as slaves. I was going to find out how that was possible soon. It wasn''t voluntarily, though. I was going to be shown how it was possible and I wasn''t going to like it one bit. 253 A Pirate’s Life For Me Bokuboy I was right. I didn''t like finding out how they had so many albino slaves. No, I didn''t. ¡°Get in!¡± An angry man said and hit my back with an oar. It was with enough force that I flipped over and landed inside a large vat of white potion. I splashed around and tried to get my footing, only to remember I had no toes and fingers missing from my hands. After a minute of me floundering around and almost drowning, the slave woman in charge of my welfare stepped in and helped me keep my head above the water. ¡°Dunk him again!¡± The angry man spat and held the oar in a threatening manner. ¡°Hold your breath, sweet prince.¡± The slave woman whispered and I did so. She held me under for a full minute before she pulled me up again. I pretended to spit and sputter, for the angry man''s satisfaction, and she dunked me again. Half an hour later, I was sat on the floor next to the vat and a very elderly man in weird mage robes walked down the line of freshly dyed albino white slaves and cast several spells on them. It changed their eye color and then the glow of the spells seemed to settle and the dye became skin pigments. When he came to me, he huffed and whispered under his breath about lazy slaves and then cast the same spells. Of course, I countered the one for my eyes, because Helena loved my eyes, and I let the ones for my skin and hair settle to become my new skin and hair color. Bright white. He didn''t even notice I still had my normal eye color and moved on. ¡°All right, you lot! You''re going back to the slave quarters and you''ll stay there until we come for you!¡± The angry man spat at us. He pointed to me and two of the new albino slaves picked me up and carried me out of the place and took me into the basement. I could tell what was coming by the tools and things on the walls, so I didn''t bother trying to fight. It wasn''t the slaves fault I was there. ¡°Drink this.¡± The angry man said as he passed me a potion vial and I drank it. He waited for a few minutes and I didn''t react. He frowned slightly and gave me another. When I still didn''t react ten minutes later, he gave me another, then ordered me strapped face down onto a table. Pain. Excruciating pain. I had felt it before and I knew I would feel it again, especially here as a slave. The thing was, after suffering through my regeneration potion and ten days of pure and unadulterated agony, being tortured for not doing what I was told was practically a vacation from real pain. ¡°What is your name, slave?¡± The angry man asked me for the twentieth time. ¡°David Drake.¡± I responded and his face became even angrier. ¡°WRONG!¡± He lifted the whip again and slashed it across my back ten more times. ¡°What is your name?¡± ¡°You''re right. It should be David Henrietta, even if I haven''t signed the marriage contracts yet.¡± I said. ¡°GRRRR!¡± The man growled and used the whip ten more times. I almost laughed as he took out his frustrations on me, because we had been at this for over an hour, and each time I changed the name I responded with. Boy, Freak, Marsh Boy, Marsh Man, Murderer of Men, Student Drake, Conscript Drake, Private Drake, War Hero. And every version of David and any last name that I could think of. The last two I used seemed to really piss him off, though. ¡°That''s enough.¡± A woman''s stern voice said and the whipping stopped. ¡°Healing potion.¡± The slave woman chosen to take care of me stepped forward, her face soaked with tears, and she poured a very inferior potion down my throat. All it did was close my wounds and didn''t heal anything. ¡°You seem to not feel anything.¡± The stern woman said. When I didn''t respond, the whip slashed my back again. ¡°Speak, slave! Answer your mistress!¡± The angry man spat. ¡°She didn''t ask me a question.¡± I said. ¡°Also, slaves can''t speak without permission.¡± ¡°GRRRR!¡± The angry man growled again and ten more lashes went across my back. ¡°Enough!¡± The stern woman said and the lashes stopped. ¡°You are only making this worse for yourself.¡± She said. ¡°Why are you not feeling this torture?¡± ¡°I am feeling it. It''s just so inconsequential compared to being eaten by a dragon and cutting my way out of its stomach, that I can easily ignore it.¡± ¡°LIAR!¡± The angry man yelled and slashed me again. ¡°I said ENOUGH!¡± The stern woman said and there was a slap of a hand on flesh. ¡°M-m-mistress! I''m sorry!¡± The angry man said, apologetically. The sound of his knees hitting the stone floor was loud in the silence. ¡°I was only correcting the slave''s mistake!¡± ¡°No, you are frustrated that your poor techniques are not working on someone that supposedly has gone through more pain than you can cause him.¡± The stern woman said. ¡°Why is the mental breaking potion not working on him?¡± ¡°I don''t know, Mistress. I''ve given him three times the normal dosage.¡± The angry man said. ¡°He should have been highly suggestible an hour ago.¡± ¡°Slave, do you know why you are not responding to our mind breaking potion?¡± She asked. ¡°Of course I do.¡± I said and didn''t say anything else. ¡°You WILL answer the MISTRESS!¡± The angry man said and I heard him get to his feet. ¡°I did answer her.¡± I said and the woman sighed. ¡°Must I ask you every little thing to get you to talk?¡± ¡°Talk? We''re not talking. You''re interrogating me. One question, one answer. Slaves are not allowed to volunteer anything or to speak out of turn, as you very well know.¡± I said and the angry man growled. ¡°If we were sitting in a parlour and enjoying a nice cup of tea, that would be talking.¡± The slave woman let out a surprised squeak and quickly retreated to the wall and ducked her head. ¡°See? Even noises are forbidden.¡± I said. ¡°I don''t know why you want to keep doing this. I''m a slave. I''m collared and hobbled already. What else do you want to do to me and what purpose does it serve?¡± ¡°Tell me why you can resist the mind breaking potion.¡± The stern woman ordered and I could hear the stress in her voice. ¡°I''ve nothing left to break.¡± I said and she gasped. ¡°The Hag thoroughly tortured me for over a decade and made me her disciple. There is literally nothing you can do to make me any more broken.¡± ¡°That... that can''t be true.¡± The stern woman whispered. ¡°I was a conscript in the army and my first drill sergeant was fired because he couldn''t break me like he did the other recruits to make them into proper soldiers. He kept trying and he kept failing, and it made his completely irrational anger at me blind him from his own illegal actions. He also tried, unsuccessfully, to get me kicked out.¡± Complete silence met my words. ¡°It''s going to take me weeks to learn to walk again with my toes missing and to hold things properly with two less fingers on my hands.¡± I said and didn''t bother trying to lift my head up to look at her face. ¡°You''re just wasting your time trying to break me, because there''s nothing else you can do to hurt me more than the Hag already has.¡± ¡°I''ll take your tongue!¡± The angry man spat and I heard a knife be pulled from a sheath. ¡°The Hag won''t let you.¡± I said and the blade stopped by my face. ¡°You''re already in severe trouble for marking up her favorite food. She hates the taste of scar tissue and your pathetic healing potions have ensured my back is completely marred.¡± The angry man and the stern woman took in sharp breaths. ¡°Yes, that''s right.¡± I said and let satisfaction into my voice. ¡°I don''t even have to plan my revenge on you, because she is going to be so angry at you both for ruining her once perfectly smooth dinner.¡± ¡°N-no.¡± The stern woman whispered and I heard her take a step back. ¡°She also hates the taste of anything ruining her meat.¡± I said. ¡°The potions and permeation spells you''ve used to make me an albino has surely soured my tasty flesh. If there''s one thing she will never forgive, it''s spoiling her dinner.¡± ¡°G-g-get the healers!¡± The stern woman''s shaking voice ordered and several sets of feet left the room. ¡°It''s much too late for that.¡± I said with a chuckle. ¡°I can feel that there''s not even an inch of clear skin on my back for them to heal over. My muscles and tendons are all torn and stiff, thanks to those same inferior healing potions you only use on slaves.¡± ¡°Oh, no.¡± The stern woman whispered and I heard her back hit the wall. Her breathing started to speed up and I could almost feel her panicking. Her feet shuffled towards the door before I spoke again. ¡°Don''t try to run.¡± I warned her. ¡°The Hag will find you and make things that much worse for you if you make her chase you. Believe me, I know.¡± ¡°How?¡± The stern woman asked. ¡°That''s how I lost some fingers and toes the first time.¡± The stern woman started to sob just as the healers came into the basement work room. ¡°By the Hag''s grace!¡± One of the women exclaimed. ¡°WHAT have you DONE?!?¡± ¡°She''s killed us all.¡± Another healer said and she stepped into my view as she knelt. ¡°Will you tell the Hag we are not responsible for this?¡± ¡°Sure.¡± I said and she looked relieved. ¡°She''s not going to believe that, though.¡± The healers gasped. ¡°You were supposed to ensure my health and safety. The minced meat that is now my back will let her know I was not kept healthy or safe at all.¡± ¡°We weren''t here for that!¡± One of the healers exclaimed. ¡°It''s not my fault you weren''t checking on the slaves like you''re supposed to.¡± I said. ¡°We can try to do something with it.¡± The one looking at me said. ¡°It''s healed with potions like it is. I doubt I can move more than half of my normal movement. If you think you can undo the damage without causing even more damage, go ahead.¡± None of them said anything. ¡°I''ll give you the same warning as I did the stern woman in charge of this place.¡± I said and repeated the one about not running, because the Hag will only make their punishments worse. There was a quick scuffle and the door opened as the angry man tried to make a run for it. He was quickly subdued by the guards and tied up. ¡°If the Hag chooses to punish you for what you''ve done, you must stay.¡± One of the guards said. ¡°What do we do now?¡± One of the healers asked. ¡°Mistress, please calm down.¡± ¡°No, I... I won''t. I''m not responsible for this.¡± The stern woman said. ¡°You are the Mistress here.¡± One of the guards said. ¡°All here are under your command.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± The stern woman said and her breathing evened out. ¡°Yes, you are.¡± She said. ¡°Scrape his back of as many scars and ruined flesh as possible, clean the wounds, and heal him as much as you can.¡± ¡°Mistress! We can''t do that! His back is...¡± ¡°He will be healed as much as possible before he is sent to the docks. Put him on the first available ship, no matter who owns it.¡± The stern woman said and all of the healers gasped. ¡°I won''t have him anywhere near this place when the Hag returns.¡± ¡°Mistress, she will know that...¡± The words were cut off as a hand slapped flesh. ¡°The new slave escaped and we don''t know how his back was damaged.¡± The stern woman said. ¡°I don''t care if you cripple him even more than he already is. Heal the damage and get him out of here tonight.¡± I heard footsteps walk across the room and then stop. ¡°None of you are to speak to the Hag. Ever.¡± The stern woman said and left the room. ¡°You heard the Mistress. Get to work.¡± One of the guards said and the door shut. ¡°I''m terribly sorry about this.¡± The healer kneeling in front of my face said. ¡°You''re going to make it worse if you do anything.¡± I said. ¡°Yes.¡± She said with a sigh. ¡°But, we have our orders.¡± ¡°Which are easily accomplished. Use a knife to scrape the top off of one of the skin ridges and heal it. Orders fulfilled.¡± The healers caught their breath. ¡°We still can''t tell the Hag what happened.¡± The healer in front of me said. ¡°No, you can''t.¡± I said and she looked sad. ¡°Write her a note instead.¡± ¡°By the Hag''s grace!¡± The healer exclaimed. ¡°You can inform her without actually speaking to her and you don''t even have to sign it.¡± I told them and I could almost hear their eager nods. ¡°Make sure she knows I wouldn''t be stupid enough to run.¡± The healer nodded and her hand reached out to touch my face. ¡°Tell her what I look like and what they did to make me so horrible to her taste.¡± I said and she nodded again. ¡°This will hurt.¡± She said. ¡°More than getting it done in the first place?¡± I asked and she sighed. ¡°No? Then go ahead.¡± She stood up and pulled out her knife, then she stepped close and leaned over me to reach my back. She either didn''t realize she was pressing her womanhood into my face and was ignoring it, or she was doing it on purpose. ¡°I''m betrothed.¡± I mumbled and she laughed softly. ¡°You''re a slave and you''re being sent out onto the open seas. If you''re lucky, the ship they dump you on will be a cargo ship. If you''re not lucky...¡± ¡°...I don''t want to know.¡± I said. ¡°You won''t enjoy it, no matter where you end up.¡± Another healer said as she took several strips of scarred skin from my back. I didn''t really feel it, which meant the nerves were pretty damaged. ¡°Can I get my sea legs back quicker if I don''t have sea toes?¡± I asked and the healer leaning over me laughed softly, because I could feel it through her body. ¡°How can you joke at a time like this?¡± She asked and leaned back with three long strips of scarred skin in her hand. There was no blood, which meant the skin would be dying soon anyway and would probably get infected and make me sick. ¡°I would rather make love to my future wife. However, I am currently indisposed. I only have my mouth available at the moment.¡± The woman blushed deeply and looked down at where she was intentionally pressing herself against my face. The only thing between my lips and her womanhood was her healers robes and her panties. ¡°You need to focus. We must have evidence that we tried.¡± One of the other healers said. The healer staring at me nodded and then smiled as she leaned back over me. Half an hour later, their healing magic washed over me and I felt the wounds settle like my new skin color had. My back felt like there was a thick pad covering it and I tried to move some of the muscles, only to have nothing happen. ¡°Relax and try to stay still. If you move too soon, the damage may become worse.¡± The one against my face said, then she stepped back. She added the last of the removed skin to the pile the others had removed and then the two guards came in to get me. I was untied from the torture table and then flipped over to be placed in a cart with a blanket underneath me. One guard took the handles to push me and the other guard took the tray of flesh strips. When the slave assigned to take care of me stepped forward to follow us, the other guard stopped her. ¡°I must go. The Hag ordered me to take care of him.¡± ¡°The Mistress ordered you to remain.¡± The guard said. ¡°She wants me dead then.¡± The slave woman said. ¡°Yes.¡± The guard said and waved the guard pushing the cart forward. I glanced back and saw the healer that had pressed herself against me take her hand and started to whisper to her. The slave''s eyes widened and she nodded several times. I was strapped to the back of a horse behind the guard and we were soon at the docks. True to the stern woman''s orders, we stopped at the the very first ship we came across. The guard offered me as a slave for the very cheap price of free, because of my lack of toes and need to learn how to walk and use my hands again. ¡°Toss him into the hold.¡± The very dirty man said and opened the top hatch. ¡°If he doesn''t learn how to walk by the end of the week, he''ll be flayed and used for bait.¡± The guards exchanged scared looks and then eased me down into hold instead of actually throwing me. ¡°I don''t know what you''re scared for. He''s not your problem anymore.¡± The dirt man said and slammed the hold closed. ¡°Fresh meat.¡± A gruff male voice said and several albino slaves stepped into the moonlight rays coming through the tiny port holes. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. This will determine the course of the story from this point forward, for good or ill. Will you make the right one? A) Be afraid. B) Scream. C) Fight. D) Kill one of them. E) Play possum. F) Choose two. Oh, thank god! I thought I was going to be left to languish. I thought, happily. I''ll choose two. E and D. _______________ ¡°Stay back! Please!¡± I said and pretended to be afraid as I shivered. ¡°I taste horrible!¡± A few of the slaves laughed. ¡°We''ll decide how good you taste, fresh meat.¡± The gruff voice said and walked over to me, knelt as he grabbed my arm, and then smiled to reveal jagged and broken teeth. I wasn''t stupid enough to waste an opportunity like that, so I used my free hand and the two fingers there to jam them into the man''s eyes. Both popped from the pressure and the man howled in pain. He let my arm go and cupped his face, which is exactly what I wanted. I grabbed onto his collar and pulled him down on top of my knee and dug my face into the side of his neck as his momentum rolled us over in a classic army move to give me the advantage. I bit down hard into the man''s jugular vein and tore my mouth away with a large part of his neck with it. Blood gushed out and covered my face and bare chest and I braced my hand on his throat to sit up. The man tried to scream, only my fingers were crushing his windpipe. We were both weakened by our slightly starved states, since we were slaves; but, my weakened state was quite a bit more powerful than his. I still had my thumbs on my hands thankfully, so I easily dug it into the skin on his neck and squeezed. He choked and laid there, his hands fruitlessly trying to pull my hand away. He died of both blood loss and choking to death a minute later and I turned to look at the other slaves. I made a show of chewing on the chunk of the man''s flesh in my mouth and pretended to swallow it as I pushed it into my cheek. ¡°Who''s next?¡± I asked and grinned at them like the Hag used to smile. Every single slave whimpered and shuffled back out of sight. I looked down at the man I just killed and his clothing was in better shape than the worn pants I had on, even with the blood on them. I wasn''t going to take them, though. The blood would cake and harden in a short time and they would be harder to move in than my own. Instead, I needed to make sure that the other slaves didn''t get any ideas about me. I bent down to the mangled neck and hid my face from view as I spit out the chewed chunk of flesh and then made growling and chewing sounds. There were a few more whimpers and the sound of someone almost throwing up. Whoever it was, caught it before it escaped and swallowed it again. They couldn''t afford to lose food so recklessly. I stayed there and pretended to eat while tearing up pieces of the body with my hands and burning them away. Thanks to the spells I knew, none of the slaves had any idea I was doing that. When I was done making a show of it, I crawled over to sit beside the wall of the hold. Most of the man''s face and neck were now gone and I made satisfying sounds before I pretended to swallow loudly. With my persona firmly established, I closed my eyes and used my vigilance technique to stay aware, even though I knew that none of them were going to approach me. 254 Ship’s Ahoy! Bokuboy During the night, the ship set sail to an unknown destination. In the morning, the door of the hold opened and the dirty man came in. He looked around and didn''t take note of the dead body. ¡°All right, you lot. Up and out! You''ve got work to do!¡± The dirty man said and the slaves all stood and shuffled out. He walked over to the body and chuckled. ¡°You didn''t last long, did you fresh meat?¡± ¡°Longer than he did.¡± I said and the dirty man jumped back and stared at the body. ¡°What the hell?!? The dead talked!¡± ¡°No, I did.¡± I said and the dirty man''s eyes moved over to the wall where I sat. ¡°You!¡± The dirty man exclaimed. ¡°You should be dead!¡± ¡°Many many times.¡± I said and gave him the same smile the Hag used. The man shivered at the sight of my grin and the dried blood on my face as he stepped back. ¡°S-stay away!¡± I held in my laugh at his reaction and just stared at the man until he slowly backed all the way to the door of the hold. ¡°Get me food soon or you won''t like what happens next.¡± The man let out a yelp and jumped out of the hold before he slammed the door closed. I did my best Hag cackle impression and heard the man squeak in terror and then heard his feet run across the wood floor and up the stairs to the deck. I would probably only have half an hour to myself before some of the crew showed up, maybe even the captain, and I closed my eyes to keep examining my magic. The limited amount I had used it the night before seemed to be all I could do. It''s like I''m back to when I first started doing it on my own. I thought and opened my eyes to look at my hand. A small flame appeared there and it was much smaller and less intense than I had been used to. I doubted I could light much on fire right now, let alone an entire room like I used to. I think if given enough time, I might be able to increase it with a lot of practice. I looked around the hold and the only thing there was the body. It must have been specifically for just the slaves, since it wasn''t the size of the entire ship. With nothing else to do, I braced myself against the wall and very carefully pushed up with the heels of my feet to a leaning position. I looked down at the stubs of my feet and I knew that trying to walk without any toes to balance, was going to be as difficult as learning to walk with a peg leg. I held in my sigh and turned to put my shoulder against the wall and took a tentative step. It was shaky, since the wood floor hadn''t been cleaned in a long time. The grime from unwashed bodies and dried sea water had caked all over the place. I took another step and winced as my other foot tried to push off with toes I didn''t have. I actually sighed this time and took another step while I concentrated on not doing that. I took my time and very slowly made it to the end of the wall. I took a laboured breath and turned around, then slowly made my way back to where I was sitting before. I had been tempted to walk all the way around, just to prove that I could, then remembered the crew would be showing up soon. I sat down again and rubbed my foot stubs. With no soft fleshy pads called toes to use to gain momentum, it was only skin covered bone that was the last part of my foot that touched the floor as I walked. The door to the hold opened and six burly crew came in. The group split apart and three went to the left and three went to the right. Each drew swords and held them at the ready. A man stepped in and he looked a lot like the captain that had picked Victoria and I up for our botany excursion. He was smarmy and dressed like a pirate, which also told me what kind of ship I was on. ¡°I hear that you threatened one of my crew.¡± The captain said, his voice deadly. I didn''t respond and his face went to anger. ¡°Speak, slave!¡± The captain spat. ¡°I didn''t have to threaten him. He ran like a scared little near-rabbit when he realized the fresh meat ate the old meat.¡± I said and waved at the body in front of me. ¡°What did you say to him?¡± ¡°I asked for good food or he wouldn''t like what happened next.¡± I said, not bothering to lie. ¡°You won''t have any food at all until you make up for killing one of my slaves.¡± The captain said. I barked a laugh. ¡°Yes, starve me and lose two free workers for no reason.¡± I said and he looked even angrier. ¡°You set things up for the slaves to deal with any fresh meat coming onto the ship. You shouldn''t be surprised when one fought back. It was bound to happen sometime.¡± The captain''s face didn''t lose the anger. ¡°I should put you in shackles and hang you from the mainsail!¡± I shrugged. ¡°You''re the captain and you''re already down one slave that probably worked less than the others because he seemed to be in charge. He was a bit fatter, too.¡± I licked my lips and made a smacking sound. ¡°I bet your other slaves have been slower and harder to control with him eating the majority of the food you toss in here.¡± One of the six men reached out a hand and tapped the captain''s shoulder. The captain turned to him and they had a whispered conversation about it being true and that they were thinking about getting rid of the other slave soon for exactly those reasons. Unproductive slaves were bad slaves. I didn''t tell them that I could easily hear them talking and kept a blank look on my face. ¡°You will take over the dead slave''s duties tomorrow.¡± The captain said, an angry expression still on his face. ¡°If he was a scout in the crows nest or a helper in the galley, I can do that.¡± The captain''s face somehow got angrier, which was a neat trick. ¡°You are a slave and will DO WHAT I SAY!¡± I didn''t react and pointed at my cropped feet. ¡°Didn''t your near-rabbit tell you I need to relearn how to walk with no toes and to use these?¡± I asked and held up my hands with only two fingers and a thumb on each. The captain cursed and turned around to draw his sword and sliced at the wall. The sword left a deep furrow and his heavy breathing could easily be heard in the quiet. ¡°How... long?¡± ¡°Two weeks, if I''m given good food to get my strength up. Three or more if I have to fight for gruel.¡± The captain cursed again and turned back to glare at me. ¡°You seem sure of those answers.¡± ¡°It''s not the first time I''ve lost fingers and toes.¡± I said. ¡°If I had an old pair of boots, I might be able to modify them and tie them to my stubs.¡± ¡°You dare ask for clothes?!?¡± The captain spat. ¡°Boots aren''t really clothing and I didn''t ask for a new tunic or new pants.¡± I said and waved at my bloody pants. ¡°I could use them right now; but, I''d rather earn them.¡± The captain looked surprised, as did his men. ¡°Explain.¡± I almost smiled and managed to hide it behind a cough. ¡°I have experience sailing a ship.¡± ¡°Which job did you do?¡± The man that touched the captain''s shoulder asked. ¡°Depending on the position, I could recommend to the captain to increase your food allotment.¡± I actually smiled this time. ¡°All of them.¡± The men were still for a moment, then they all laughed. Even the captain smiled with his angry face, which was weird to see. ¡°You''re pumping bilge! No one can do every job! Ha hahaha!¡± One of the other men exclaimed. ¡°The best speed direction for the ship is broad reach when in medium to high waves. Runs can only be done with smaller waves.¡± I said and the laughing lessened. ¡°I was brought onto the ship on my back in a hand cart and I saw the rigging. The mizzenmast topgallant sail rigging is cross-threaded with the mizzen topsail on the left side. One good hard turn to the right in a heavy wind and the ropes will shear and it will drop both sails.¡± They all fell quiet at my words and they exchanged looks with each other and then with the captain. After a minute of complete silence, the man that asked me what job I did stepped forward. ¡°What do you suggest to fix the problem?¡± He asked, as if it was a test. ¡°If you''ve got the ropes and replacement pulleys, run a new rig up with new ropes for the topgallant, replace the old ones, then cut the old ones free to leave the shared pulley only for use on the top sail. Once ropes are worn, it''s safer to replace them than to hope that they won''t catch on a well-used pulley.¡± The man looked surprised and turned to the captain. They had another whispered conversation that I easily heard and the man said he wouldn''t have thought of adding another pulley to ease the strain for both sails. He would have only replaced the ropes. The captain listened and his angry face faded to apathetic. ¡°How did you get this knowledge?¡± ¡°I worked on a schooner and a clipper ship.¡± I said. I didn''t add that they were only for short trips, though. I wouldn''t expand on that, even if asked. ¡°You''ve gotten around as a slave if you''ve been on two ships.¡± The captain said and then scowled. ¡°Why did they kick you off?¡± ¡°I only became a slave recently.¡± I said without adding that it was the Hag that caught me. ¡°Both crews that I worked with wanted me to sign on permanently because of my expertise.¡± That sentence shocked them and all six of the crewmen crowded the captain and they had a heated whispered conversation. If they could get my help, the ship''s efficiency could only get better, especially with the deadbeat already dealt with. I kept my face blank as they talked about trying to force me to do it, as if that was possible. I slightly shook my head as the captain tried to order them to make me help, since I was a slave. I let it go on, just to see if they would come to the right decision. ¡°Enough!¡± The captain said and waved them to part and he glared at me. ¡°You are a slave on my ship. You will work as I deem necessary or you will be beaten to within an inch of your life and won''t eat.¡± _______________ You have a choice to make. Will you comply with your owner''s commands or will you take your life into your hands and hope for the best? A) Give in. B) Spit on him. C) Laugh. D) Go to sleep. E) Refuse. F) Counter offer. G) Choose two. Oh, I think I''ll choose two. C and F. Let''s see how he likes ultimatums. _______________ I barked a laugh, similar to the Hag''s cackle, and the crewmen looked surprised. ¡°If you think you can beat the knowledge out of me to benefit you, go right ahead and try it. You''ll find out how quickly this ship can go to hell.¡± The captain still had his sword in his hand and he gripped it as he took two steps towards me. He raised it in a threatening manner as if to strike me and I looked into his eyes calmly. I didn''t flinch, twitch, or even made any kind of noise. The crewmen''s surprised looks stayed on their faces as the captain stopped walking and held the ineffectual sword as if it would still work. I slowly pushed myself up to stand, careful of my footing, and kept my eyes locked onto the captain''s eyes before I slowly turned around to show my back. The hisses and curses from the men filled the hold. They all knew what had to happen for my back to be that mangled. ¡°You can''t see my face now. Go ahead and strike me down like you desperately want to.¡± I said and stood there while I waited. It was deathly quiet as we all waited for the captain''s decision. There was an inarticulate shout and the sword swung at me... and then it made a thunk sound as it dug into the wall of the hull beside my neck. I didn''t move, flinch, or even look at the blade, even with it that close. I also felt the small stirring of magic within it. At the moment, it was as threatening to me as the captain was, which was not at all. He knew he needed me and all the posturing was just for show. ¡°You aren''t afraid of me at all.¡± The captain said, angrily. I didn''t say anything in response and he cursed. ¡°Speak, slave!¡± The captain spat. ¡°You don''t want me to answer.¡± I said and carefully braced myself as I turned back around. I didn''t want to slip and slice my neck open on the sword. ¡°Your anger blinds you. If I tell you why I''m not afraid, you''ll be insulted and will take it out on me, even though it''s the truth and it''s not my fault.¡± The captain bared his teeth at me. ¡°I think you can stay in this hold for a week without food and we''ll see how cooperative you''ll be then.¡± _______________ You have another choice to make. Will you accept your fate or will you change it? A) Accept the punishment. B) Bluff. C) Threaten. D) Do nothing. E) Laugh. F) Choose two. I''ve gotten this far with some posturing, so let''s go all the way. I choose B and C. _______________ ¡°The other slaves stay here, so I''ll have lots of food to pick from. It might not taste good because of the white dye; but, it''s still edible.¡± I said as I let my blank face fade and then I grinned like the Hag. ¡°Or maybe I''ll wait for one of the crew to deliver food to the other slaves and I can get some healthier fresh meat.¡± The crewmen took a step back, as did the captain, which left his sword out of his reach and well within mine. ¡°You seem to be under the impression that I am trapped on this ship and can''t go anywhere.¡± I said and changed my face back to a blank one without expression. ¡°You''re wrong. It''s you that''s trapped on this ship with me and it''s you that has nowhere to run.¡± ¡°Men.¡± The captain said and took another step back and the crewmen took fighting stances. I smiled and used my right hand to take hold of the captain''s sword that was embedded in the wall. I made it glow, which made everyone gasp, and I eased it out of the wall as if it hadn''t been stuck there. ¡°Ah, a proper blade for a proper lord.¡± I said and the men''s eyes widened. ¡°I told you. I only recently became a slave. My city was attacked and I was taken prisoner, maimed, and then changed into this.¡± I waved at myself. ¡°That''s why I need a couple of weeks to learn to walk properly again.¡± The men formed up as the captain retreated behind them. I lifted the blade and it was a little awkward, since I didn''t have enough fingers on one hand to hold it steady. ¡°Well? Are you attacking me or what?¡± The men glanced at the captain and back at me, waiting for the order. _______________ You''re really getting a lot of choices this time. So, here''s another. Do you want to keep up the farce or take the severe beating and possible death you''ve guaranteed yourself with the last two choices? A) Surrender. B) Attack. C) Throw the sword. D) Use magic. E) Do something stupid. F) Choose two. I chuckled at the comment and the choices. I''ve succeeded where I should have failed when choosing that option, so I have to do it again. I choose E. _______________ I could see the captain debating the order and I saw in his eyes that he was going to order them to attack me, probably in the hopes that at least one of them would live long enough to do me in. I couldn''t let that happen, so I gave them a much better option. ¡°Kill the captain and I''ll make this the best pirate ship on the ocean.¡± I said and the men looked startled, as did the captain. ¡°I''ll make you rich, too.¡± ¡°How?¡± One of the men asked and the captain cursed. ¡°I''m already rich from making potions and selling expensive furniture. I even had my own ship built.¡± I said. ¡°Being a pirate is just another business of acquiring goods and selling them to the highest bidder.¡± The men looked thoughtful. ¡°Attack! Kill him!¡± The captain said and then he punched the closest crewman to grab the man''s sword. Robbing your own crew was not done on a ship, especially a pirate ship, so the men turned and ran him through just as he gained the sword. The sword dropped from his hand and he looked down at the five swords impaling him. ¡°Good job, men.¡± I said and hobbled over to the captain as he dropped to his knees. ¡°It seems your ship is now ours, captain.¡± ¡°Wh-why... how...¡± ¡°Simple greed. They know I can do what I claim.¡± I said and swished the glowing sword across his neck. The captain''s head flopped backwards from his body and the crewmen gave startled shouts. ¡°You see? A proper blade.¡± I said and let the glow fade. ¡°Before I do anything else, I was joking about eating you. It was the best way to unnerve you.¡± The men gave each other looks and then looked back at me. ¡°So, who wants to kill the dirty near-rabbit that accepted me onto the ship before we raid the captain''s stash?¡± I asked with a feral smile. The crewmen gave me feral smiles back. 255 Becoming An Entrepreneur ¡°You can''t do this!¡± The dirty man that had me tossed into the ship''s hold exclaimed as five crewmen dragged him and his new bundle up onto the deck of the ship. The sixth crewman helped me stay steady as I followed. ¡°I''m pretty sure I can.¡± I said as I nodded to the side of the ship. I grabbed onto a guide rope and the sixth crewman went to the others. ¡°NO!¡± The dirty man yelled as the six crewmen lifted him and the naked body of the captain up and over their heads. They were tied together back-to-back to make sure the dirty man couldn''t swim for it. ¡°It''s all right. The water beasts will take care of you, assuming the leviathans don''t swallow you first.¡± I said and the crewmen tossed the screaming man overboard. The slaves working on the ship actually cheered, which was a surprise. I knew the dirty man was a horrible person and no one would miss him; but, to have anyone cheer that he was gone was a surprise. ¡°All right, men. The captain''s cabin awaits our assault!¡± I said and pointed back into the ship. ¡°YEAH!¡± The men yelled and scrambled back down into the ship to be the first to get to the cabin. I laughed at them punching and fighting as they disappeared from sight. So easily distracted. I thought and waved at the closest slave. ¡°Give me a hand following them.¡± The slave looked terrified as he shakily came over to me and held an arm out. ¡°Thanks.¡± I said and we went down into the ship and saw the crewmen banging on the captain''s door, then they broke it down and flooded into the cabin. They shouted and hollered as they ''found'' things that they wanted and started to ransack the place. ¡°Go back up on the deck and back to work, please.¡± I said to the slave and he quickly abandoned me and ran. I laughed again and hobbled into the cabin to lean against the wall as the crewmen piled the captain''s things onto the table. I used Sense Magic and it only lit up a few feet in front of me, so I needed to hobble around the cabin to find any hidden places or items that I wanted to keep for myself. ¡°I don''t see his chest.¡± The crewman that asked me about the jobs I knew said. ¡°That''s because it''s hidden.¡± I said and the men stopped moving and looked at me. ¡°Yes, I can tell where.¡± ¡°Where?¡± They all asked at the same time. I waved at the table. ¡°Finish gathering everything first. We don''t want to miss anything.¡± I hobbled over to it and sat down in the lone chair. I cast Sense Magic and one of the things on the table, an emblem of some kind, glowed slightly. I used my Sense Enchantment ability and only got half of whatever it was. I could see what it was supposed to do, though. It was a key. I let my eyes roam around the cabin, which was a lot easier with the room practically stripped, and I found the spot for it above the captain''s bed. I hadn''t sensed it on my trip around because the bed kept me too far away from it. ¡°That''s everything.¡± One of the men said and dropped a golden candlestick onto the pile of items. ¡°All right. We can either sell all of this or you can split this up however you want.¡± The men quickly picked through the pile to grab the things they had previously claimed and the pile became significantly smaller. ¡°Drop your things back in your own cabins and then bag the rest of this up. We''ll sell the rest to split later.¡± I said and they ran from the room to stash their new possessions. I sat there and waited for them to come back with a large sack and put the remaining things into it. I stood up and walked over to the bed and sat down on it, then laid back and rolled over to the head of the bed and sat up again. It was much easier to do on a soft bed. I held up the emblem and used Sense Enchantment again to find where to place the emblem. I gained the other half of the enchantment and I made the emblem glow. It jumped out of my hand and sucked together with the other half and there was a click. The wood panel popped open on a hinge and dropped down to show off a good-sized space behind it. Inside was a nice chest and a bunch of papers. ¡°Gentlemen, if you would.¡± I said and moved out of the way as the men jumped onto the bed and grabbed the chest. It took three of them to lift the thing out and carry it to the table. ¡°It''s really the captain''s chest.¡± One of the men whispered. ¡°It needs a key.¡± I said and nodded to the man in charge of stripping the captain of his clothes. ¡°Search his old pockets.¡± The man dug out the captain''s clothes and rifled through them until he let out a shout. He pulled out a little metal key and handed it over. I took it and used the key in the lock after sensing that there was no traps or anything. It clicked open and I slowly lifted the top of the chest. The men let out low whistles as the contents were revealed. Gold and silver coins were piled inside. ¡°He''s either been gathering this for a long time or he''s been lying about how much your cargoes sell for.¡± I said and the men let out curses and grumbles. ¡°Well, it doesn''t matter now.¡± I looked at the man that was in charge of jobs. ¡°Want to give me a hand counting all of this? I''m not as fast as I used to be.¡± I held up my hands and he chuckled. ¡°Are you really splitting this up with us?¡± One of the men asked. ¡°It''s not like I need any personally.¡± I said and the men exchanged looks. ¡°I''ll take a share, just because this ship is going to need a few things.¡± ¡°You''re not keeping it?¡± One asked, surprised. ¡°What for? I don''t need it.¡± I said and that really surprised them. ¡°I''d rather buy us more food stocks, better ropes, some replacement equipment, a forge if it''s small enough, and maybe a potion setup and some ingredients.¡± The men''s mouths dropped open and stared at me like I grew a second head on my shoulders. ¡°I know I have to wait for us to reach the next port for most of that, since there''s nothing even close to that on this ship.¡± I said and then smiled. ¡°Then again, maybe we''ll get lucky and come across a ship with some of what I want.¡± That made the men grin in response. We got to work counting out the gold and silver coins. When we were done half an hour later and divided everything up into seven piles, the men stared at more gold than any of them had ever seen in their lives. ¡°Don''t go tossing that gold around at the next port. Use the silver coins.¡± I warned them. ¡°If we can buy a nice suit for this man...¡± I pat the man assigning jobs. ¡°...we can send him to whatever bank or lender they have to exchange some gold for more silver.¡± ¡°I''ve never done that before.¡± The man admitted. I chuckled. ¡°You don''t have to. I''ll come along and I''ll handle it. I can play the slave role pretty well when I have to.¡± That made the men chuckle, too. ¡°Go ahead and add that to your own stashes and meet back here. We have a few things to discuss about tactics and how you assault ships when you board them.¡± I said and the men each took out loot sacks and added their money to them and left. ¡°Bring chairs!¡± It took a couple of minutes before the first man back was the one that helped me count. ¡°Well, you''ve already made us richer.¡± I smiled and waved at the spot next to me. ¡°When are you changing the rigging on the mizzenmast?¡± He put the chair down and sat down. ¡°Right after this meeting. I won''t trust the slaves to do it and I''ll need at least two other sets of hands.¡± ¡°I''ll help.¡± One of the other men said and sat down across the table. ¡°Huh. I didn''t think I''d ever sit at this table.¡± His hand rubbed the surface. ¡°The captain''s table.¡± ¡°It''s our table now.¡± I reminded him and he looked startled, as did the others coming in with chairs. ¡°There''s no more captain to demand things from you. This is going to become a working man''s ship.¡± That made the men quite happy and they all sat down with smiles on their faces. ¡°This is the first thing I plan to do.¡± I said and started to fill them in on my ideas. _______________ Montage Mode engaged. Skipping miscellaneous details. Speeding up time. Done. _______________ I stood on the deck of the target ship a week later and smiled as I sliced through the arm and sword of the enemy captain. He was from the Eastern Empire, which was fitting, and I stabbed him through the heart. He dropped to the deck and I looked around. The crew and several of the more promising slaves had joined in the assault. Getting their own swords had shocked them at first, until I pointed out that they were on a working man''s ship now and things were going to be different. The only slaves were the ones already too broken to be trusted with their own welfare and they were given the easiest jobs on the ship. Everyone ate a lot better, though. That had been the very first change I made. ¡°This ship is ours! Good work, men!¡± I shouted and the crewmen and slaves cheered. ¡°All right, check the hold for more slaves. If there''s anyone you think is good enough, make the offer.¡± ¡°Yessir!¡± The men said and then scrambled to the ship''s entrance and went down inside. ¡°You... won''t get away... with this.¡± A man''s weak voice said. ¡°Pirate.¡± I hobble-walked over to one of the fallen men and knelt. ¡°Are you going to stop me?¡± ¡°The kingdom... will hear of this.¡± The man said. ¡°You''re assuming there''s going to be a ship left for them to find.¡± I said and the man looked surprised. ¡°I''m not stupid like a normal pirate.¡± I pointed at my temple. ¡°I have a purpose and I will fulfill it.¡± ¡°B-bastard.¡± The man spat and laid back. ¡°If it wasn''t for the Eastern Empire, I would be happy and content living in my marsh, completely unaware of the world and how horrible a lot of it is.¡± I said and stood. ¡°Unfortunately, fate seems to want me out here dealing with it, so that''s what I''m going to do.¡± ¡°One man... can''t make... a difference.¡± The man said, his voice barely above a whisper. I grinned like the Hag. ¡°Of course I can. I''m the Marsh Man.¡± I said and cackled a laugh. ¡°I created the Kracken Tubes!¡± The man''s face showed surprise... and stayed that way as the life left his eyes. I hobble-walked towards the ship''s cabins to start my search and continuously cast Sense Magic and Sense Enchantment. I needed the practice and also wanted to see if this ship had anything of real value. The sounds of battle reached my ears and after a minute, the crewmen and slaves cheered. It took me another minute to reach them and saw a mage in Eastern Empire robes on the floor. ¡°I... got him.¡± One of the slaves said, his arm bloody and burned. ¡°You did.¡± I said and knelt. I put my hand right on the charred flesh and the slave hissed. ¡°You still have feeling, so it''s not so bad.¡± I let his arm go and searched the mage''s robes. I pulled out several potions and scrolls. I opened each potion and smelled them. ¡°Here we go. It''s not too strong, though.¡± ¡°What... is it?¡± The slave asked. ¡°Minor Healing Potion.¡± I said and had him drink the whole thing. Unlike mine, applying it topically wouldn''t do anything except waste it. ¡°What are the others?¡± One of the crewmen asked. ¡°I think I smelled fireweed, so they could be immolation potions.¡± I said. I remembered the smell from using those potions when fighting the dragons. ¡°Don''t ransack the cabins yet. If this mage has anything in his, it could be dangerous for anyone to search.¡± ¡°You heard him. Search out any crew that weren''t up on the deck and get rid of them.¡± One of the crewmen said. ¡°The water beasts are going to be well fed today!¡± ¡°YEAH!¡± The others yelled and split up to search the rest of the ship. ¡°How is the arm?¡± I asked the hurt slave as I stood. ¡°Not too bad.¡± The slave said and rubbed his hand over it to flake some of the charred skin off. ¡°I''ll have these scars for the rest of my life.¡± I smiled and pat his shoulder. ¡°You rescued other slaves. There are worse reasons to be scarred.¡± The slave chuckled and stood up. ¡°Good point. We came across him trying to cast a fire spell at the slave hold.¡± I nodded and we both worked to get the cage door opened. It required brute force because the idiot mage had broken off the key in the lock. I was tempted to use my sword, then decided I needed to keep it for as long as possible. With no way to repair it, I had to limit how much I used it and what I used it on. I didn''t bind it, however. I didn''t have enough magic strength to power the binding spell. We eventually pried the door enough that the lock popped and the slaves inside were terrified. We didn''t say anything and just left the door open and walked away. I was going to make the offer to join our crew and decided that they needed time to adjust being freed first. ¡°How? How do you have weapons?¡± One of the bolder women asked. ¡°How else can we raid ships and kill slavers?¡± The slave with me asked back. That seemed to shock them completely. ¡°Do any of you know which cabin belonged to the mage?¡± I asked and one of the younger women raised a hand. ¡°Dear lady, please allow me to escort you there.¡± It was neat to see an albino blush. ¡°I-I-I''m no l-lady.¡± ¡°Are you the only woman from your family here?¡± I asked, the same as I had a young woman back at the academy. She nodded, the same as the student did, so my response was the same. ¡°Then you are the lady of your family here.¡± She didn''t lose the blush as I held my hand out to her. ¡°Please excuse my missing fingers. I lost them as punishment for defying my first owner.¡± I said. The young woman''s hand took mine and she held on tightly, probably tighter than she would if I had a whole hand. She had a look on her face as if she would hurt the one that hurt me. ¡°Thank you.¡± I whispered to her as she stepped out of the cell. I braced my arm for her to take and then hobble-walked down the hallway. ¡°Why are you walking funny?¡± She asked as her blush faded. ¡°I lost all my toes as well.¡± I said and she gasped. ¡°I rigged up a pair of boots to simulate toes and it kind of worked. It''s still awkward to walk with nothing to really push off with.¡± She looked down at my feet and then she blushed again. ¡°What is it?¡± I asked. ¡°You... you should learn to walk like a proper lady.¡± She whispered. I brought her to a stop and turned her to look into her eyes. ¡°Explain.¡± ¡°A lady... she... her shoes...¡± The young woman stammered at my intense look, took a deep breath, and then explained it properly. They practically walked on the fronts of their feet, because their shoes didn''t allow the normal toe push movement that a boot would. I blinked my eyes at how I had been trying to simulate a normal foot and all I needed to do was change the footwear I wore. I barked a laugh at the simplicity. ¡°Help me find a good pair of replacement shoes and show me this walk.¡± I said and the young woman smiled at me with a nod. What followed was the oddest lesson I had ever experienced. 256 Becoming A Seller Besides having several pairs of women''s shoes and some other clothing, the Mage had almost nothing else in his cabin. The scrolls he had on him were the extent of his possessions. There were no secret stashes or anything, which meant he was here with no resources. No mage was that stupid. They always had something on them... and then I remembered how the Eastern Empire treated their troops before going into battle. Horribly. I hid my sigh of disappointment. I had hoped for some potion ingredients, maybe an enchanting tool or two, or even a spell book or something. Instead, I had three scrolls with spells that I couldn''t use. They were chants and used the wrong method for casting magic. The immolation potions were only good for lighting an area on fire, too. ¡°Sir, we''ve checked everything, right down to the deck boards, and there''s nothing of value besides the old cannons we''ve already stripped from the deck and the beds and things from the cabins.¡± One of the crewmen said through the open door of the Mage''s cabin I was in. ¡°Either these people already dropped off their expensive items or they didn''t have any in the first place.¡± I said and stood. I was four inches taller, thanks to the new shoes, and the man had to look up at my face. ¡°Gather the slaves up and strip the sails. Harvest any good ropes and any food stores that are edible.¡± ¡°Yessir. I''ll spread the word.¡± ¡°Any sails not good enough, bundle onto the deck and have the slaves gather the bodies to add on top of them.¡± The crewman smiled and jogged away. I took a tentative step and realized that having to keep my center of balance above my feet and keeping my back straight at the same time, was weird for me. I was so used to being ready to fight and tackle with a lower center of gravity that it was throwing off my automatic reactions. I would have to train for a while to get used to this new stance and attempt to adapt my abilities for my new reality. It sure was a heck of a lot easier to walk, though. I clack-clacked across the floor to the doorway and the young woman slave waited there and had a smile on her face. ¡°You''re doing very well after only an hour of practice, Master.¡± She said, proudly. I didn''t bother correcting her address, because she was one of the slaves that had already been too broken by her treatment to accept being anything else except a slave. I had asked her how old she was and she said ''old enough'' before she blushed and ducked her head. I did not ask the follow up question to discover if anyone else had asked her that and took advantage of her. I doubted that she would want to remember it if they did. I walked by her and she took up a position directly behind me and to the right, the primary slave position, and I let her. She was the first to help me in my new sea life, besides the older woman slave that had taken care of me when I first became a slave. She wasn''t my personal slave, though. I stepped out of the ship and onto the top deck and nodded. The men and slaves had worked together with the rescued slaves and my orders were being carried out with efficiency. It was almost like the slaves were eager to be rid of their old masters. I smiled, because I was of a similar mindset. It took them fifteen minutes before they had the bodies stripped and piled onto several worn sails that wouldn''t last long. ¡°Retreat to the ship.¡± I said and everyone hopped across to the deck of the pirate ship and I walked over with my slave right behind me. I turned and looked at the deck of the enemy ship. ¡°Enjoy the depths, you bastards.¡± I said and tossed the immolation potion at the pile of bodies on the sails. The vial smashed open, as it was designed to, and the whole thing was instantly covered in bright orange fire. It quickly spread to the dry deck and moved as if alive as it went to the masts and crawled up them as if eager for more air. ¡°Cut it loose.¡± I ordered and the hooks and ropes holding our ships together were removed and poles were used to push us and the ship apart. ¡°Take us away from here.¡± ¡°Yessir!¡± The crewmen and slaves said and deployed several sails to catch the breeze and we slowly moved away from the well-burning ship. ¡°I doubt that thing has seen a good storm, it''s so dry.¡± One of the crewmen said as the flames surged over the sides of the ship and started burning the hull. ¡°I''ve never seen a ship go up so quickly!¡± I held up another immolation potion and smiled. ¡°Maybe two more.¡± ¡°HA!¡± The crewman barked and secured the tie for the sail he was deploying and walked off to make sure that the others were secured. ¡°They like you.¡± My slave whispered and then gasped. ¡°I''m sorry!¡± I turned to her and put a hand on her shoulder, only to see and feel her flinch from my touch. ¡°Slave rules are relaxed when not in mixed company.¡± She looked at my face and slowly nodded. ¡°We''ll be spending a lot of time together, so get used to speaking when you want to.¡± I said and let her shoulder go. ¡°And yes, they like that I''m as ruthless as them and not as restrictive as the old captain.¡± ¡°What happened to him?¡± She asked. ¡°He pissed me off and I decapitated him with his own sword.¡± I said and pat the sword on my hip. She gasped and covered her mouth with a hand, then her eyes seemed to glaze a little as she smiled. ¡°I knew you were the perfect choice as a Master.¡± I almost sighed as her conditioning kicked in and she praised me for being a good master for her. ¡°Don''t worry, we''ll work on it.¡± ¡°On what, Master?¡± She asked. ¡°The unwavering devotion you have for me, even though we just met.¡± I said. ¡°But, you deserve it. You rescued us from the bad masters before they could... before they...¡± Her face flushed red and she ducked her head. I knew she wouldn''t want to remember anything like that. I thought and touched her shoulder again. I was glad that she only flinched a little. ¡°If anyone tries that on you, I''ll flay them alive and let you remove their manhood to shove down their throat.¡± My slave blinked her eyes as she stood there, stunned at my words. ¡°This is a working man''s ship. We do have slaves; but, they still have to agree to things like that.¡± I said and pointed to the man in charge of jobs. ¡°Jensen likes Molly and they came to me to approve of their coupling.¡± ¡°You... oh, my.¡± My slave whispered and blushed deeply. ¡°Molly wouldn''t even look at the men on the other ship.¡± ¡°This crew treated the ship''s slaves as slave workers and nothing more. The captain was the one that made any females they acquired do things for him. After he broke them mentally, they were of no more use to him and they were disposed of.¡± ¡°No!¡± She exclaimed and then covered her mouth again. ¡°I''m sorry!¡± ¡°It''s all right. You''ll learn to not react like that eventually.¡± I said and let her shoulder go. ¡°For now, I suspect the other five crewmen will be paying attention to the other women they rescued, now that Jensen''s taken a woman to his bed.¡± ¡°Will he discard her, too?¡± My slave asked. ¡°No. If they aren''t compatible, they will split and go their separate ways. No one should be angry about it if it happens.¡± I said. ¡°Like normal people.¡± ¡°We... we''re normal people?¡± She asked in a whisper. ¡°Just because we used to be slaves, it doesn''t mean we''re not normal.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°Come on. I need to tour the deck and then bring the slaves to their new quarters.¡± My slave nodded and followed me as I click-clacked across the wooden deck. Slaves and crewmen turned to look at me walking normally, or rather walking without hobbling, and didn''t comment about me wearing women''s shoes. At least they were black and didn''t stand out from the pants I had acquired from the Mage''s possessions. I would need to find a nice pair of boots like Helen wore when we eventually reached port, just to give me a bit more stability than these flimsy shoes did. I checked everything and the new sails were already being put up to replace our own worn sails. The ropes we gained were also a better quality than we were used to and the crewmen were almost giddy with happiness as they ran them for the main sail and replaced the older ropes. They were still good, so they were stored for use on the smaller sails that were under less strain. I complimented them for their fine work and then led the remaining slaves down into the hold to where I used to stay. The slave hold was much different now. It was clean and had bunks along the sides of the walls for them to sleep on. There were tables and chairs as well. ¡°The door is never closed. I would have removed it entirely, except if we are ever damaged in this section, we need it to block any flooding water and to keep the ship afloat.¡± I explained and the slaves stared at me like I was speaking another language. ¡°Actual food will be served twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening. If anyone has cooking experience, let me know. I need some help in the galley to make food for so many people.¡± ¡°YOU COOK?!?¡± A slave woman yelled, her shock too evident to conceal. She let out a squeak of horror and covered her face to wait for the beating. ¡°I do cook and quite well. I used to be able to control multiple pots on the heat before I lost more fingers and all of my toes. I physically can''t move like I used to. Not yet, at least. I''m working on it.¡± The slaves kept staring at me for not beating the errant slave. ¡°There are no beatings for speaking out of turn.¡± I told them, which shocked them. ¡°Pick a bed to sleep in and try to relax. Baths will be provided soon and you can all get cleaned up as well as get new clothes.¡± ¡°Who... who are you?¡± A slave man''s voice tentatively asked. ¡°I''m the Marsh Man.¡± I said and turned away to leave. ¡°He''s Lord Drake of Drake''s Marsh, the largest land mass in the Gulf Kingdom!¡± My slave said, her voice full of pride. All of the slaves gasped at her declaration and seemed to lose strength as they collapsed on chairs, beds, and a few went to the floor. ¡°It''s not true.¡± ¡°It can''t be.¡± Several of them whispered at the same time. I left the slave hold and went to the designated bath room I had made. It was just a huge wooden tub that had a rope and pulley near a port hole that opened. I quickly used it to bring up the bucket and pulled it through the port hole and dumped it into the tub. I soon had it full and dipped my hand into it. I used the Cleaning and Lathering spells I had learned from my maid Tabitha to make it bubble and then used the Heating spell for several minutes to make the water hot. I even used the Sweep spell to gather as much salt from the bottom of the tub to dump it back out through the port hole. ¡°When was the last time you had a bath?¡± I asked my slave and she looked ashamed. ¡°Never mind. Please strip and enter the bath. I will bathe you and show you how to do it properly.¡± She nodded and easily lifted the large tunic over her head to reveal that she was thinner than I assumed she was and her breasts hadn''t quite developed properly, because of her near starved state. Her hands covered them and she blushed. ¡°It''s all right. When we get some of the supplies I need, I can fix those for you.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°I know the best healer and I can brew my own healing potions.¡± She took a breath and let it out, then stopped covering her breasts. She entered the tub with my help, as if she was a lady, and she sat down with more grace than a slave should have had. I suspected that she was a child when kidnapped and her parents never paid the ransom, knowing they weren''t getting her back even if they did. I took my time and used the Lather spell on my hands and I carefully scrubbed her all over. Her face was bright red as I touched her tender places and her eyes were locked onto my face the whole time. I suspected she was expecting to see lust or enjoyment on my face. I didn''t tell her that I had the best blank face in the world, because I had hidden behind it often enough while growing up with the Hag. ¡°You''re clean.¡± I said and stood up to grab a towel for her. ¡°M-Master.¡± She whispered and caught my hand. ¡°Why? Why didn''t you...¡± ¡°I''m betrothed and I will never take advantage of you.¡± I said and gave her a reassuring smile. ¡°You never have to worry around me.¡± She gave me a smile back and nodded. ¡°Please call me Hanna.¡± I opened my mouth to ask what her real name was, then decided her conditioning was too deep for her to fight against, much like my own was with the Hag. I still used her lessons nearly every day. ¡°I would be honored to call you Hanna, dear lady.¡± I said and took her hand to kiss the back of it and not the fingers. She blushed furiously at the attention and completely forgot the fact that I had just felt her body all over and she hadn''t blushed nearly as hard. I helped her step out of the tub and then dried her off, then gave her new pants and tunic to wear. There were tons of them in the ship''s storage, for some reason, because they never gave them out. It was a stupid practice to make slaves wallow in their own filth and not keep them clean and healthy. A happy slave was a slave that would do anything for you. I knew that from personal experience. ¡°Would you like to learn how to cook?¡± I asked. ¡°YES!¡± Hanna exclaimed, slapped her hands over her mouth, and mumbled. ¡°I''m sorry!¡± I couldn''t stop my laugh and moved her hands out of the way. ¡°Do not do that with a knife in your hand.¡± Hanna''s eyes widened at the implication. I nodded. ¡°Now you know why I''m trying to get you to stop doing that. Anything in your hand at the time will be in your face if you keep reacting like that.¡± Hanna nodded several times and I led her across the room to the door. We stepped out and a crewman and a slave were there cleaning the floors. ¡°Any requests for supper tonight, gentlemen?¡± I asked. ¡°The seaside special!¡± Both the slave and the crewman said at the same time, then they both laughed. ¡°Coming right up.¡± I joked right back, which made them laugh more. ¡°Tell the new slaves the bath is ready. Pile their old clothes in the corner and the new clothes are in the cupboard.¡± ¡°Yessir!¡± The slave said and pat the crewman on the shoulder, and ran down the hallway to let the slaves know. I took Hanna to the galley and started to cook for a ship that was nearly completely full of people. 257 Becoming An Owner The woman slave that had yelled before entered the galley with her head ducked down. ¡°M-Master, I... I can help.¡± ¡°You can start chopping the potatoes to add to the stew.¡± I pointed to the large stock pot. ¡°We''re limited to fish and whatever the crew gained from the other ship.¡± ¡°It won''t be much.¡± She whispered as she took over the job I hadn''t gotten to yet. ¡°I know. They didn''t have any gold or anything, not even the captain.¡± I said and she caught her breath. ¡°You can speak freely here in the galley. We can''t work together if you stay quiet all the time.¡± ¡°Yes, Master.¡± The woman said and started peeling potatoes and chopping them up into chunks to add to the stew. ¡°I haven''t added the fish yet, because it would turn to mush long before the vegetables are done cooking.¡± I said and ladled in some of the broth from the seaside special pot. ¡°Let me know if you need anything and when you''re done of this task. I''ll give you something else to do.¡± She gave me an odd look. ¡°We don''t have the resources to let you cook for real, not until we make port next week.¡± I said and her face showed surprise. ¡°I''m having a hard time myself with what we have available.¡± She nodded and went back to work. ¡°It smells good in here already.¡± I nodded back and went over to the main cutting table. ¡°Hanna, hand me another cleaned near-trout.¡± ¡°How did you catch so much, Master?¡± Hanna asked and handed over the gutted fish with the scales scraped off. It was about two feet long and had a lot of meat to harvest. ¡°Years of practice.¡± I said and used the boning knife to quickly remove the fillets, tongue, and cheeks from the fish. ¡°You learn a lot of survival skills growing up in the marsh.¡± ¡°Can you tell me about it, Master?¡± Hanna asked and started gutting another fish. I thought about it and then nodded. ¡°I''m going to leave some things out, since I don''t want you scared.¡± Hanna smiled at me and nodded. ¡°I was very young when I was bought as a slave. I didn''t remember anything about my old family before then and...¡± I started to tell them my tale. I left out some of the horrible things that happened, to save the both of them from having the horrors in their heads. _______________ Montage Mode engaged. Skipping miscellaneous details. Speeding up time. Done. _______________ ¡°This is the most delicious fish I''ve ever tasted!¡± One of the crewmen exclaimed during supper that evening and the other crewmen and the previous slaves laughed. None of the new rescued ones did, though. ¡°Master, what''s so funny?¡± Hanna asked me in a whisper. ¡°He says that for every meal.¡± I whispered back and smiled as she clamped her mouth shut to not laugh too loudly. It really was funny once you were in on it. We all ate and I could tell that the slaves were shocked that they were allowed to sit at actual tables and used real bowls and even spoons to eat. Bits of conversation happened around the room and the new slaves looked uncomfortable with that. They would get used to it quickly, just like the other slaves did. The biggest change was the seating arrangements. There was no captain''s table, crew tables, or slave tables. People sat where they wanted and that was that. Of course, wherever I sat, the slaves had declared that as the Master''s table. It was a joke at first, because I looked like a slave. Now I had my own slave with me and the joke had become fact. When I was done eating, I stayed where I was until my slave was done as well. She was shocked that I would do that and tried to rush. I put my hand on hers and whispered that I always waited for my people to finish eating, especially my maids. She nodded several times and kept eating until she was full. ¡°I think I need a bath and a good scrubbing.¡± I said as I stood. One of the slave women twitched a little and then she licked her lips. I recognized the signs and knew she had been a personal maid at some point. They had too much pride in their work for the slave conditioning to completely destroy it. I nodded at my slave and she followed me over to the table with five slaves sitting around it. ¡°My slave doesn''t have a lot of experience with bathing and as you can see, my hands would make me doing it alone take longer than normal.¡± I said as I looked at the slave woman that had twitched. ¡°May I ask you for assistance and to accompany us to the bath room?¡± ¡°YES!¡± The slave woman yelled and shot to her feet. She clapped both hands over her mouth and mumbled. ¡°I''m so sorry!¡± I chuckled and a few of the crewmen laughed. ¡°It''s all right. We all know when someone is enthusiastic and enjoys their work.¡± I said and waved at the dining room''s door. ¡°If this works out, I may require your services on a more permanent basis.¡± The slave woman shivered and closed her eyes as she bit her lip. She nodded several times and walked around the table to take my arm, as if I was escorting her, and we left the dining room with loud talking behind us and one shout of ''go for it, Marsh Man!''. I didn''t bother trying to correct their misunderstanding. Personal maids were insulted when you tried to treat their jobs as an invitation for sex. That was not their mentality. It was a service that was essential in polite society and their standing was quite a lot higher than a common person and it was even above other maids. I took both slaves to the bath room and had them both wait as I emptied the tub and refilled it, then did as I did that afternoon to make a nice bubbly bath for myself. As soon as it was ready, the slave woman took over and started to undress me. ¡°Do as I do, if you are serious about being Master''s slave.¡± The slave woman whispered to Hanna. Hanna''s face changed to a determined one and she copied the older woman''s motions and studied what she was doing. Both of them made hissing pain sounds when they saw my mangled back. ¡°It''s all right. I can barely feel it.¡± I said and then they took off my pants and underwear. ¡°M-M-Master.¡± The slave woman stammered and almost purred as she knelt. Her hand ran up my thigh and then she took my hand to put on her shoulder as a brace. I lifted each foot and she slipped off the socks I wore. The two women made more hissing pain sounds at my missing toes. I ignored it this time and stepped into the tub and carefully sat down. ¡°Master, if you would.¡± The slave woman said and held her hands out for me. I cast the lather spell on them and they were covered in soap. Hanna held her hands out as well and I did the same for her. The slave woman told her to go to the other side of the tub and then they both proceeded to give me a thorough scrubbing. ¡°Do all maids do this?¡± Hanna asked. ¡°Yes and no.¡± The slave woman said. ¡°They have the ability to, and also have the training, just in case they are ever picked as a personal maid. Most are content with just the basic duties and some even enjoy running the household without ever petitioning for a personal maid position.¡± ¡°Not you?¡± Hanna asked as her hands roamed over my chest. ¡°No, I have always wanted...¡± She stopped talking and her eyes glazed over for a moment. ¡°I will serve Master in any capacity he desires.¡± I felt anger for the first time in a while. Whoever broke her as a slave had corrupted her values as a professional maid. That was unforgivable. ¡°Do you know who captured you as a slave?¡± ¡°The captain you slayed.¡± The slave woman said. I leaned back and relaxed. ¡°At least I don''t have to hunt him down now.¡± She gave me a happy smile. ¡°Thank you, Master.¡± I nodded and they moved down my body and past my mid-section to my legs, as all bathing maids did. They always saved the crotch area for last. When they reached my mangled feet, both Hanna and the slave woman rubbed them tenderly and gave me sympathetic looks. They rinsed my feet off and then moved back to my crotch. ¡°This part is not for you. Not until you choose to be a maid.¡± The slave woman said and saw Hanna''s disappointment. ¡°It''s all right. You can still watch.¡± ¡°But... he... when it was my bath...¡± The slave woman laughed softly and pat her shoulder. ¡°That has a much different meaning than what I''m going to do. Much, much different. Being curious about a man and wanting to touch him is one thing, ensuring his personal satisfaction as a way of life is another.¡± Hanna nodded in understanding and watched as the slave woman washed me down there, both in front and in back, then I was asked to stand. ¡°He needs your shoulder to brace himself, Hanna.¡± The slave woman said. Hanna complied and stood up to let me use her as a crutch. I slowly stood up, a little wobbly, and put my hand on her shoulder. I was still a bit too shaky like that, being still inside the tub, and slipped my arm over her shoulders. The slave woman nodded and reached for me to stroke it a few times. When I sprang out to full mast almost immediately, she gasped and looked up at my face. ¡°It''s been a long time since I''ve enjoyed the proper services.¡± I explained. The slave woman''s face became completely determined. ¡°I understand, my lord.¡± She said and then slipped me into her mouth. She moaned immediately at the feeling and she performed the after bath ritual to the best of her ability. She wasn''t as skilled as my personal maids, however. I started to whisper suggestions to her and her eyes showed surprise. ¡°Mmm hmm.¡± The slave woman hummed and did as I asked, changing her technique to accommodate what I was telling her. ¡°It''s going to be a lot.¡± I warned her, which made her moan more and speed up her movements. I tapped the slave woman''s head a few moments later and she tilted her head up as she pulled back until just the tip was still inside her mouth. She kept sucking and stared into my eyes, as if begging for it. I didn''t disappoint her. The slave woman let out a long and very pleased moan as I unloaded a month and a half''s worth of denied services into her mouth and down her throat. She kept swallowing and I kept going for nearly thirty seconds before my twitching eased and I started to grow soft. She slipped me out of her mouth and saw some was still on the tip, so she licked and sucked on it for another few moments, then she kissed it and washed it off again. Hanna stared down at her and she looked like she was completely stunned. I was sure that she had never seen anything like it before and she wasn''t sure what to do with the information she just gained. ¡°As you can see, neither my lord nor I are sexually aroused and...¡± The slave woman''s eyes glazed over slightly and then she smiled. ¡°If my master wishes to partake of my body, it is his for his pleasure.¡± ¡°Ignore that last part.¡± I whispered to Hanna, which startled her. ¡°Personal maids are professionals. They also have lives outside of pleasing their lord. I''m sure that one of my personal maids is seeing one of the house guards.¡± ¡°Wh-wh-what?¡± Hanna asked, shocked. ¡°Their jobs don''t interfere in their lives. It''s just a job.¡± I said and pat the slave woman''s head. ¡°Thank you for your service. It was satisfying and I feel relieved.¡± The slave woman shook her head sightly and smiled genuinely. ¡°It was my pleasure, my lord.¡± I nodded and stepped out of the tub, still using Hanna as a crutch, and the slave woman dried me off and dressed me in new clothes, including the same black shoes. ¡°I''m sorry that there''s no underwear for women on board.¡± Both of them looked surprised again. ¡°We''ll pick some up at the next port, assuming we don''t come across another ship to raid that would have some.¡± I said and they nodded. ¡°I''m going to my cabin now.¡± They nodded again and we left the bath room and we went down the hallway to the old captain''s room. The crew had drawn lots to see who would get the bigger cabin and I somehow ended up with it. I was sure that if I asked, they had rigged the draw to give it to me. I opened the door and stepped inside... and Hanna followed me. I opened my mouth to tell her to go to the slave compartment, then realized she couldn''t. It would be seen as me snubbing her as not worthy. ¡°Go get some proper bedding.¡± I said instead. Both women let out squeals of delight, slapped their hands over their mouths and gasped at their mistake, then ran away. I shook my head at them and walked over to the bed. It was actually quite large and nice, so I wasn''t going to be restricted as I tried to get comfortable. I stripped off the tunic and pants I just had put on and hd partially climbed into bed when I heard scuffling sounds behind me. When I turned to look, two crewmen were dragging a bunk into the cabin. I didn''t ask what they were doing, since it was obvious, and let them attach it to the bulkhead securely without saying anything. ¡°Thank you.¡± The slave woman whispered with her head hanging down. ¡°Buck up! Yer the Marsh Man''s maid now!¡± One of them said and the two men left as she blushed. Hanna walked in as well, carrying a blanket, and looked a little lost. I held in my sigh, because she had the same look on her face that my sister Hope had when she missed home and needed to cuddle. I lifted the edge of the thin blanket on the bed and she let out another squeal and was by me and in the bed in barely a second, her own blanket already discarded. The slave woman laughed at her, gasped and blushed again, then did up the bunk to sleep on using Hanna''s blanket. She climbed onto the bunk and faced the wall as she slid under the blanket. I climbed into the old captain''s bed and slid under the blanket as well. Hanna blushed as she tried to both look at me and not look at me. I didn''t say anything and offered my arm for her to cuddle. She latched onto it like a squid catching its prey and then she was fast asleep and breathing deeply. ¡°Ann.¡± The slave woman whispered. ¡°You can call me Ann.¡± ¡°I think I''ll be sweating with two people under my blanket, so I''m going to need a bath in the morning, Ann.¡± I whispered and she moaned. ¡°Goodnight.¡± ¡°G-goodnight, my lord.¡± Ann whispered back. ¡°A very good night.¡± 258 Acquisitions Part One Bokuboy I woke up in the morning and Ann was almost a different person as she followed me into the bathroom. She was enthusiastic about it and I was scrubbed clean in record time before she performed the after bath ritual. She was getting better with it and I finished quickly for her, which made her moan. Hanna still looked shocked at seeing it. We left there and went to the galley to make breakfast. The options available were pathetic and we had to do the best we could with what we had. Luckily, Hanna had searched all the cupboards and found a single bag of rough granulated cane sugar. ¡°This is going to make all the difference.¡± I praised her and she blushed as she helped us prepare breakfast. Several slaves had chosen to be servers for the meals and came in when Hanna called for them. The blank looks on their faces as they saw what was in the bowls told me everything I needed to know. ¡°Trust me.¡± I said and they looked surprised. ¡°Serve it and see what happens.¡± The three slaves, one thin older man and two thin older women, started to ferry the bowls into the dining room. Ann filled the bowls and Hanna put them onto the counter for easy access for the servers. I was almost useless for both tasks, since they required constant movement, and stood to the side to make sure that everyone was served before I went to the dining room with my own bowl, carried by Hanna. ¡°You''re already feeding us gruel?¡± One of the male slaves asked, his voice a little loud. ¡°I thought you said we would be fed real food twice a day!¡± I sat Hanna and Ann down at a table and walked over to him. ¡°If you take more than a glance at it, you''ll see that it''s not gruel. It''s porridge.¡± ¡°It''s the same thing!¡± The slave said and picked the bowl up to show me, as if I couldn''t see it. ¡°You can''t drink it. It''s not watered down. You need a spoon to eat it and...¡± ¡°I don''t care if I have to use my fingers! I''m not eating this and I demand you make something else!¡± Half of the room stood up at his words and the original six crewmen looked murderous. ¡°I think someone is thinking that they are better than the rest of us.¡± A slave man at the same table said. ¡°I just don''t want to eat slave food!¡± The complaining slave exclaimed and dropped the bowl. No one missed that it didn''t slosh out or moved much at all. ¡°I can''t force you to eat what everyone else does.¡± I said and took his bowl. ¡°You''ll have to wait until supper tonight for anything else.¡± ¡°I knew you would break your word! You''re no better than...¡± _______________ You have a critical choice to make. Will you make the right one?¡± A) Laugh. B) Spit in the food. C) Hit him. D) Kill him. E) Throw the bowl. F) Eat it. G) Choose two. I''m not messing around, not on a pirate ship where any of them could kill me at any time. I choose D. _______________ I shot my hand out and jabbed my two fingers into the man''s throat. ¡°I have never broken my word.¡± The slave man grabbed his throat as he choked. He couldn''t breathe, because I had just collapsed his windpipe. ¡°You insult my honor frivolously and expect no retribution?¡± I asked and he struggled to breathe. ¡°You''ll be dead in three minutes from suffocation.¡± No one said anything as the man kept trying to claw at his throat to breathe. ¡°I provided a meal for you to eat, as I promised. You chose not to eat it.¡± His hands slowed down and his face started to turn red from exertion. ¡°I am not a slave cook that will make you whatever you want. We have limited food stores and we are making due with what we have.¡± I said as he slumped a little. His eyes turned slightly red as the blood vessels expanded from blood pressure. ¡°If you had bothered to taste it, you wouldn''t have made the mistake of pissing me off.¡± I said and stood there and watched as the life slowly left his eyes. His hands dropped to his sides and the body leaned back in the chair to rest there. ¡°Could I bother two of the crew to carry him out and toss him over the side? You can split his bowl.¡± Two of the men walked by me and grabbed the dead slave''s arms and carried the body out of the room. ¡°I''m sorry about that.¡± I said and turned to look at everyone in the room. ¡°I''ve stressed that our food is low, even with the extra provisions from the other ship. If you choose to not eat, that''s on you. If you insult someone''s honor on this ship, expect to be dealt with appropriately.¡± The two crewmen came back into the room and I handed them the bowl. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and they nodded and went back to their table. ¡°We used up the last of the sugar in the lone pot of porridge we could make from the remaining oats, instead of watering them down to make them last longer. I refuse to make food that even slaves shouldn''t eat.¡± There were a lot of sounds of approval from that. ¡°There''s enough porridge for breakfast tomorrow and then we''ll have to find something else for the next two days to keep us fed before we land at port.¡± I walked over to my table and sat down. ¡°Go ahead and taste it. You''ll be surprised at the magic Hanna and Ann can do in the kitchen with my help.¡± Everyone picked up their spoons and they all looked shocked and made appreciative sounds. ¡°He really screwed up.¡± One of the slaves at the dead slave''s table said. ¡°I would be proud to serve this to my fam-HURK!¡± He yelped and dropped his spoon as he gripped the sides of his head. His body started to shake and tremble, too. ¡°Think of us as your family! Think of US as FAMILY!¡± The woman beside him shouted and the man''s shaking slowed down before he took several deep breaths. ¡°Good. Good.¡± She said and rubbed his arm. ¡°I assume if any of you try to remember your old lives, you''re in extreme pain?¡± I asked and all of the salves nodded. ¡°I don''t know how to fix that.¡± Several of the slaves laughed. ¡°We don''t expect you to.¡± One of the slave men said. ¡°You''re in the same situation as us and...¡± ¡°No, he can remember it all and can talk about it.¡± Hanna said. ¡°He couldn''t be broken and made to adopt a new identity.¡± Everyone stared at me, as if I was something they had never seen before. ¡°I was already broken.¡± I said as an explanation and nearly all of them nodded. We all ate breakfast and no one mentioned the dead slave, even when it came to going to work on the ship. Luckily, the slave had been lazy and hadn''t been assigned anything to do. He had pretended to be too broken to work independently at a normal job, like Hanna and Ann. They had a hard time functioning properly without being near their master constantly. I went up onto the deck with most of everyone else, to check things out, and to make sure there was nothing that needed to be fixed or replaced. I didn''t find anything and went back down below to do up the supply list we would need. I sincerely hoped that they would have potion ingredients or would know where I could get some. My hands were twitching in anticipation, because I had seen dozens of places where my number ten potion would make a huge difference. The same could be said for my healing potion and general health potion, too. Some of the slaves were not in good shape and they needed it even more than I did. I looked down at my thinning body from being nearly starved for weeks and sighed. ¡°It''s all right, Master.¡± Hanna said. ¡°Everyone knows how important food is.¡± I nodded and went back to the supplies list. I knew I would need a lot of work to get back into shape and the sooner I made the much needed potions, the better. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Skipping miscellaneous details. Speeding up time. Done. _______________ ¡°Now that''s a beautiful sight.¡± One of the slaves said from the crow''s nest four days later. ¡°Land HO!¡± ¡°Finally! I''m sick of delicious fish!¡± A crewman exclaimed, which made everyone laugh. ¡°Just for that comment, we''re having fish once a week.¡± I said and everyone laughed at his shocked expression. ¡°I''m joking. We''ll grab as much meat as we can or we''ll find somewhere where we can hunt it for ourselves.¡± ¡°Oh, thank the father!¡± The man said and sighed in relief, making the others laugh even more. ¡°You all know your roles.¡± I said and everyone nodded, even the newly rescued slaves. My slave wasn''t too happy about me becoming Jensen''s slave for the day, even if it was only a ruse. His woman Molly wasn''t too happy about it, either. They both had to stay onboard the ship while we completed my assigned tasks. ¡°Bring us in to the nearest dock and use the trick I taught you for reversing the sails to catch the wind to slow us.¡± That made the crewmen grin feral smiles at being able to show off some of the imparted skills I had given them. I would have helped, except for my physical condition. Everyone was happy that I really did know what I was doing, though. We already had people to fill every job and a backup in case the first worker was sick or wanted the day off. It was much more people than a ship would normally carry, which was why we went through our food stores so quickly. With everyone eating full portions, the normal food for only the crewmen didn''t last long and we had to supplement fish to even things out. Some of them were sick of fish, even the slaves, despite it being real food and not the gruel they were used to. They knew not to complain after the last slave that had. The ship we were on rode on the waves across the large bay, making a few people and a couple of boats, panic. The crew laughed at them and banked the ship as they switched the sails to catch the wind, then the ship changed from accelerating to slowing down at the same rate. The scrambling boats and their passengers stared at us as we coasted by them. We slowed right down to nearly a standstill and slid right into the closest berth for large ships as the sails furled up and were tied off. Hooked lines were set and the ship was secured, to the people on the dock''s surprise. ¡°Who''s the stevedore?¡± Jensen asked and one of the longshoremen pointed to the stunned man beside him. ¡°What''s the docking fee for a week?¡± The man shook himself and smiled. ¡°It''s a silver a day, no matter how long you stay.¡± Jensen glanced at me and I nodded slightly. ¡°I assume we pay daily?¡± The stevedore nodded. ¡°We send a runner every morning, in case someone takes off in the middle of the night.¡± Jensen barked a laugh and handed him a silver coin. ¡°You get your fee for the day, no matter what.¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± The stevedore said. ¡°If they leave early, we get an empty berth to rent to someone else. It also stops people from staying longer than they are paying for.¡± Jensen nodded and looked at the other ships. ¡°I need food and provisions. Ropes and things. And a few miscellaneous items. Since you''re the stevedore, you should know where to go.¡± ¡°What''s your own cargo?¡± The man asked. ¡°We already dropped it off at the last port. We hit a calamity out on the water and were delayed reaching here by a week. We''re practically wrung dry.¡± Both the stevedore and the longshoreman winced. ¡°Yes, we''re lucky to reach here at all for our week off.¡± Jensen said. ¡°You don''t know how relieved we all are to be here finally.¡± ¡°YEAH!¡± The other five crewmen shouted. ¡°You have a lot of slaves working openly.¡± The stevedore said and looked at me. ¡°Clean ones.¡± Jensen laughed. ¡°Water''s free on the open sea, which reminds me. We need a few more large pots to boil off some sea water for drinking.¡± The stevedore smiled and started to tell Jensen where to go to get what he needed. Some of it was on ships, some at the market stalls, and a few were in the nearby town. Jensen pulled out another silver coin and shook the man''s hand. ¡°Thanks for your help.¡± The stevedore''s smile widened as he accepted the handshake and pocketed the coin. ¡°Let the lads know if you need a hand loading up.¡± ¡°I may just do that.¡± Jensen said and stepped off the ship. I did as well and my shoes clacked on the wood of the dock. The stevedore and the longshoreman looked down at my feet and saw the women''s shoes. ¡°They''re better than two peg legs.¡± Jensen said and both men''s eyes widened, especially when we kept walking and I didn''t stumble or waver as we went down the dock. ¡°Nice excuse.¡± I whispered and he laughed. ¡°You''re handling this task well.¡± ¡°I better. Most of the ship''s company would wring my neck if anything happened to you.¡± Jensen said. ¡°Hanna, Ann, and Molly aren''t most of the ship''s company.¡± I responded and he laughed some more. ¡°We''re going right to the bank to get better spending money for the men.¡± ¡°Right. First task in sight.¡± Jensen said and we stepped off the wooden dock onto the dirt road. We went towards the nicest building in town and the clear sign there that said ''Free Bank of Madripor Island''. ¡°At least my shoes don''t make noise in the dirt.¡± I commented and we both had smiles on our faces as we entered the bank. It took almost no time to change out the gold coins we had for bags and bags of silver coins. We only got ninety-five silver coins for each gold coin, because of the bank''s fee for converting them, and we left with a guard we hired for the day with a silver coin. We went back to the ship with our bags of money, making nearly everyone in port stare at us, especially the crews of the other ships. Jensen promised them all that we would be visiting to see what they had for sale, which made them all happy. Little did they realize that we were actually going to scout them out to find out the best cargoes to steal later. We did have two more immolation potions left to use, after all. 259 Acquisitions Part Two Bokuboy The port town, the ships, and the market stalls had a surprisingly large amount of what we needed. We had some gold to spare, so it only took a lot of legwork and carrying everything back to the ship to fill part of the ship''s hold for the crew''s use. We were all down in the hold, except for the guard we left up on the deck, as each of the six original crewmen exchanged a gold coin with me for 100 silver coins for spending money. I wasn''t going to charge them the five silver for the exchange, because it was bad enough that I had to pay for it first. The slaves gave us sad faces when the crew gained so much coin and they had none. ¡°Crewmen!¡± I nearly shouted and everyone came to attention, even the women. ¡°What kind of ship is this?¡± ¡°A working man''s ship!¡± They all responded. I nodded. ¡°How much does a working man earn?¡± ¡°Two gold coins a week!¡± They responded. ¡°These six men were wronged by the last captain and they got a share of his loot.¡± I said. ¡°So did you!¡± The six men said. ¡°I took it for the ship.¡± I said and waved at the stores behind us. ¡°It''s going to take me a few days to prepare some of this for long term, so I''ll need that smoking room set up as soon as possible.¡± ¡°Yessir!¡± ¡°Now, I''ve not had the extra funds to pay any of you for the time I''ve been in charge. That''s going to change soon.¡± I said with a feral smile. ¡°Jensen and I found several nice ships with viable cargo and many abused and overworked slaves...¡± ¡°YES!¡± Everyone shouted. ¡°One of them isn''t leaving for about two weeks and our time here was set for a week. It should give us enough time to set up an ambush far enough away from here to not get caught or let this port know we were responsible.¡± ¡°YES!¡± ¡°We can take their slaves and cargo and make a ton of gold finishing their deliveries at the next three ports.¡± I said and the crew cheered. ¡°For now, I have enough silver left for each former slave to take ten coins each. Go into town in pairs or more with at least one man to accompany you. The guard we hired is available as well.¡± The women exchanged nervous looks. ¡°Yes, when others see clean women slaves, they may get ideas. I want to discourage them as much as possible and avoid any confrontation. If anyone tries anything, the men have permission to run them though, then you yell your heads off to get as much attention as possible.¡± The men gave each other feral looks. ¡°That is not permission to set anyone up or to murder indiscriminately. We can''t run quickly with the wind low, so no antagonizing the locals or the members of the other ships. At least, until we get on the open seas. Then it''s okay.¡± That made a lot of them laugh. ¡°Be smart. Be cunning. Get what you want and come right back.¡± I cautioned them and then pat the sword on my hip. ¡°We will deal with any incidents as they happen.¡± ¡°Yessir.¡± They responded in a normal tone of voice. ¡°Good.¡± I said and smiled. ¡°Go have some fun and don''t get caught.¡± The crewmen barked laughs and five of them left while Jensen kissed Molly. He waited there as she got her ten silver and then he nodded at Hanna and Ann. They both blushed slightly and accepted the ten silver from me and the four of them left the hold to go do some personal shopping. I was tempted to go with them. Instead, I grabbed the closest skinned boar and dragged it to the galley. I had a lot of butchering to get through if the meat was going to last us for a while. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Skipping miscellaneous details. Speeding up time. Done. _______________ A week later, I had everything butchered, smoked what needed to be smoked, and had sent a few men out to hunt. They brought back several near-deer and had even found a wildwood tree for me. I didn''t tell them what I needed it for, though. My description of what it looked like and where it might be found, was enough for them to get it. ¡°Set sail!¡± I ordered and the ship unhooked from the dock. Poles pushed the dock away and we barely caught some wind. It was enough to get us moving, so I wasn''t going to complain. We eased out of the bay that the port was in and the wind picked up. The crew pulled down the sails and we started moving faster. ¡°I can''t believe you spent two entire gold coins for those weird tools.¡± Hanna whispered to me as we watched the port town shrink behind the ship. I smiled at her coming so far in so short a time. She could almost speak to me without squealing in fright each time or covering her mouth, as long as she whispered. It reminded me of Vanessa and it made me like Hanna a little bit more each day. I knew I was making a social association, as Gillis would call it, and I didn''t care. ¡°You''ll see why once we''re well away from prying eyes or anyone that might detect it.¡± I said, a little cryptically. It was the same reason why I hadn''t tried to brew any potions. If anyone in the port town knew I could do it, I would be attacked and kidnapped. A slave that could brew potions was so rare that they were highly valuable, even more than a mage was. At least, that''s what the man at the ingredient shop told me when I bought a bunch of seemingly random ingredients for my ''master''. Because he freely gave me that information, I told him how to prep some of his ingredients to make them last twice as long. The man had stared at me in disbelief and I had to say that I watched my ''master'' do it for years and they did it a certain way. When I showed him how to do it properly, he shouted about my master being a genius and handed me a huge sack of his cheapest ingredients for free. When I asked about buying proper containers for the ingredients, the man hugged me and gave me a great deal on them. Needless to say, I now had a single potions setup in the captain''s cabin, ready for assembly. It would be dangerous to brew more than one on the open waters, so I needed to wait for a calm time or a good headwind to let the ship cut through the waves. Number ten potion would be made first, since it was needed to secure the potions setup to the stone slab I had bought and that also needed to be secured to the floor. I really missed my bandoleer of ready-made potions. Ann stood on my other side and she had a huge smile on her face. She had somehow found, had made, or stole a common maid outfit. She hadn''t stopped smiling since she came onto the ship two days ago and hadn''t left my side since then. ¡°Let''s get below deck to start making the best meal the crew has ever tasted.¡± I said and all three of us click-clacked across the deck. We were all wearing women''s shoes now and that seemed to please Ann even more. Thanks to the wildwood tree that the crewmen hadn''t cleaned off, I had lots of scrap wildwood pieces for the ovens, the open fires for pots, and for my potion setup. I would have to quickly use my copy trick as soon as I could get some revised number ten potion made. Wildwood was just too handy as a heat source to not make as much of it as I could. With the food stocks on the ship topped up, and in some cases overflowing with the freshly caught meat, making enough food for everyone was as easy as it was in the army. Extra hands that knew what they were doing was a blessing as well. Ann copied me and we discussed seasonings as we made two large boar roasts, using the hind quarters, and she was amazed that my odd spice combination actually worked. ¡°It''s best for lamb, because the meat is so tender.¡± I told her. ¡°There weren''t any sheep on the island at all.¡± Ann said. ¡°You told us to ask what meats were available to buy or hunt and that wasn''t one of them.¡± ¡°They are missing a good resource for wool and milk.¡± I said and waved a hand over the wildwood to light it on fire. They didn''t squeak in surprise at the sight of me not chanting anymore. ¡°We can let that cook for a few hours, thanks to the pan covers you bought.¡± Ann blushed and nodded. ¡°It was an impulse when I saw them in the marketplace.¡± ¡°I''ll pay you from the ship''s cut when we get more money.¡± I said. Ann shook her head. ¡°I bought them because I wanted to use them, not just for the ship.¡± I gave her a pointed look and she didn''t back down or ducked her head. ¡°Okay.¡± Ann sighed in relief and smiled. ¡°What are you thinking for dessert?¡± ¡°D-d-dessert?¡± Hanna asked in a shaky voice. ¡°Of course. Why else did you think our lord bought all those baking things?¡± Ann asked. ¡°I think we should keep it simple and make a sponge cake with crushed strawberry sauce.¡± I said. ¡°I wished they had cream at the port for us to whip up!¡± Ann said and then sighed. ¡°Oh, well.¡± I didn''t tell her about the simple recipe using whipped egg whites and slowly adding sugar to it. I would surprise her with it after the cake was made. Plus, lighting the thing on fire to caramelize the sugar was always fun. An hour later, the cake was done and left to cool. I was tempted to use the cooling spell I invented and decided not to. We had to wait for the meat to cook anyway. We came back into the galley when it was time and checked the roasts. They were almost done and we cooked up a pot of potatoes, a smaller pot of vegetables, and threw in a few other greens to the water. By the time the potatoes were cooked, the meat was ready as well. We took them out of the large oven and put them on actual platters. I quickly cut them up into thick slices and then used the drippings from the pans to make gravy. Both Ann and Hanna stared at me as I did so. Apparently, that was not how they normally made gravy. After I told them that it was tastier this way, they helped and we soon had a huge pot of nice and thick gravy for the potatoes and meat. ¡°Now we have to decide if we serve it like this and let them get what they want, or portion it out and make sure everyone gets the same amount.¡± Hanna said. ¡°We don''t want any of it going to waste, so I think we should make it like a buffet and people can take what they want.¡± I suggested, because it worked at the academy. Most dishes were empty before being discarded for fresh ones. ¡°We can worry about rationing when we''re down to half stores and we''re not near any ports.¡± Both women nodded and we had one of the crewmen bring in an extra table to the dining room. He didn''t ask us what we were doing and sat down to wait like the rest of them. We brought out each platter of meat that was already sliced up and the smell made most of their mouths water. I had to stand there and hold my hands out to stop everyone from rushing the new table to get the meat. Hanna brought out the giant pot of potatoes and they all stared at it. Ann brought out the smaller pots of vegetables and greens and arrayed them around the table for easy access. Hanna came back with the big pot of gravy and nearly everyone stood up at the strong smell it gave off. She looked amused as she put it down and Ann added appropriate sized spoons to each thing and then large forks to the sliced meat platters. Hanna came back in carrying an armful of plates and added them to the table on the far end. Everyone immediately got the hint and quickly shuffled around the room to stand in a line. They had all eaten at a buffet before, apparently. ¡°I''ll be right back with more plates.¡± Ann said and she left to get the rest of them. The crew and slaves gave me pleading looks, so I smiled and nodded. ¡°Yeah!¡± The guy at the front of the line said and grabbed a plate, two slices of roast, three scoops of potatoes, a small bit of greens, and then covered his entire plate with gravy. It made the people behind him laugh as he carefully walked back to his table and tried to not spill anything. ¡°You don''t have to take it all at once.¡± I commented and they all laughed. ¡°As long as everyone gets some first, you can come back and get more if you want.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light!¡± The first crewman exclaimed and then his face was buried into his plate as he shoved as much as he could into his mouth. ¡°I think he might like it a little.¡± One of the crewmen joked and everyone laughed again. They all took their plates and served themselves before going back to their tables to eat. Most of them had the same reaction as the first crewman and pretty much shovelled the food into their mouths. In fact, they were all done eating before I served myself and went to sit down. ¡°I was the last, so go ahead.¡± I said and waved at the buffet table. Nearly everyone stood and went back for seconds. ¡°My lord, you should warn them to save room for dessert.¡± Ann reminded me. They all froze at her words and turned to look at us. ¡°There goes the surprise.¡± I said with a smile to make her blush. ¡°It''s true? You made dessert? A real dessert?¡± One of the women slaves asked, clearly surprised. ¡°We''ll get it ready after I eat.¡± I said and that seemed to make then flounder about eating more food. ¡°You don''t have to eat the dessert right away. It can be saved for later.¡± I said and that made their decision for them. They served themselves again and sat down to continue eating. When I and my slave and maid were done, we left the room to prepare the cake. It was a big slab cake and it was cut into the right number of pieces for everyone to have one, then Ann crushed the strawberries and added some sugar to make it into more of a sauce. She dribbled it over the many small plates of cake pieces and smiled when she was done. ¡°All right, I think we should get the servers in here and...¡± Ann started to say. ¡°Not yet. It''s not done.¡± I said and grabbed a bunch of eggs. I quickly separated the yolks from the whites, like my cook used to do, and set the yolks aside for breakfast the next day. I poured some sugar into the mortar and pestle I would be using for making potions and hadn''t thought of buying more than one. I crunched the sugar up and made it almost into a fine powder. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Ann asked, her curiosity piqued. ¡°Making a fluffy topping.¡± I said and grabbed the whisk. I didn''t really need all my fingers for this part, thankfully. The handle was small enough that two was enough and I started to whip the whites as fast as I could. As they became a frothy mass, I slowly added some of the ground up sugar and kept whipping. ¡°I''ll do that, my lord.¡± Ann said and took over slowly pouring the sugar into the large bowl. She stopped when I told her to and I whipped the mixture up until it nearly filled the bowl. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Watch.¡± I said and used a big spoon to add large amounts to each piece of cake. ¡°My lord, you can''t serve uncooked eggs like that. You could make people sick if... AHHH!¡± I chuckled at her as I used my light flame spell on each of the pieces of cake to crisp up the topping. ¡°The cook during basic training did this in the oven for the officers, because he had a lot of time to prepare it beforehand and did other tasks while waiting. I can''t wait for the thing to cool off after baking it, so I''m cheating.¡± Ann and Hanna stared as I did each and every piece of cake. ¡°Now you can get the servers.¡± I said and the both of them left at a jog. Needless to say, the very first dessert ever served on a pirate ship, was a huge success. No one saved it for later. 260 Acquisitions Conclusion Bokuboy A week later, our trap was set and we waited patiently as the ship we had targeted slowly floated into the area we had set aside to assault it. Our cannons unloaded as one and each was braced and targeted. The other ship''s masts disintegrated and the rudder was destroyed after the first shots. The second shots disabled the rest of the ship and a white flag was quickly raised. ¡°YEAAAHHHH!¡± My crew yelled at the completely one-sided battle and the resounding success. As we carefully approached, a few of the target''s crewmen chose to ignore their own surrender and started firing at us. Another barrage from us silenced them and wiped out most of the crew. That was fortuitous, because it saved us from having to dispatch them or dropping them off somewhere. The slaves watched us with fear and trepidation as we docked together, until I stepped out into view. My better clothing, my maid behind me, and my own slave on my other side, made them pay attention. ¡°Ladies and gentlemen, I believe your lives are about to improve significantly.¡± I said as the slaves on my ship cheered and swarmed over to the target and greeted the new slaves enthusiastically. The crew swarmed past the impromptu gathering on the deck and entered the ship to dispatch any holdouts that were lying in wait for us. They didn''t succeed in holding off my men, not with healing potions available and a feeling of recklessness it gave them. I had tried to curb their antics, only to learn that they enjoyed the confidence the healing potions gave them. The risk was worth the reward to them, because a short time later, the ship was ours... as were the slaves it carried and the precious cargo contained in the holds. The crew cheered even more as the ship was quickly stripped and loaded into our holds. It''s stores, sails, and remaining weapons and ammo were also salvaged. One immolation potion later, the wreck was burning down to the keel. ¡°Let''s get out of here.¡± I ordered and the crew cheered as we made our way out of there. The other ship we had scouted wasn''t leaving the other port for another two weeks because their ship needed repairs. We had plenty of time to reach the next port, sell off most of our ill-gotten gains, and come back to the very good ambush spot to catch the next ship. The best part about the business was that ships changed crews a lot on the open seas and no one questioned why we were selling another ship''s cargo. The ship we were on was almost a completely new ship. Thanks to liberal uses of number ten potion, the hull was solid and quite a bit thicker. I couldn''t make any fortifying potion, because the ingredients were apparently very expensive in other areas. So, I could only make waterproofing potions and treated everything on the ship. The crew were amazed at the things I did, as if I was performing miracles. The food that I, Hanna and Ann made every day, made them happier than they had ever been. That they were still pirates and I never tried to make them not be pirates, raised their opinions of me that much more. The problem we were having now, was sleeping arrangements. The ship was only rated for so many people and there was only so much room on the ship... or so they assumed. Thanks to my extensive construction experience and also having access to ship construction plans, the next port we landed at lost a significant amount of trees and lumber. Some we bought, some we stole, and some we cut down ourselves. It was when I told everyone what I planned to do to the ship when we were back out of sight, that someone spoke up. ¡°You can''t be doing that.¡± One of the slaves said and pointed to my hasty drawings. ¡°Why not?¡± I asked with a smile, because I didn''t have to explain before someone pointed it out. The dining room was crowded with everyone there and they all looked curious. ¡°There''s no way the ship can support its own weight if you add side rooms and then extend the back area where the captain''s cabin is.¡± The slave man said. ¡°You also can''t cut into the hull. As soon as we take a hard turn, the keel will twist and bend like a snake and we''ll be at the bottom of the ocean before you can say leviathan.¡± ¡°I''ll only be adding a door in the hull between the ribs.¡± I said and drew out what I meant. ¡°With my magic potion, the new additions will actually become part of the hull and strengthen it.¡± ¡°The ship will be twice as wide and it won''t perform like it used to.¡± The slave man said. ¡°What do you think is going to happen when we hit a hard cross wind in a storm and this extra wide top-heavy bitch decides that it likes tipping over more than it likes staying upright?¡± I chuckled, because I had based the new design on my old flat bottomed boat. The new sections would actually make the ship more stable, not less, by displacing more water when it lowers down into the water. Especially if I stopped using magic on the weight enchantments I had placed in strategic places. In shipwright terms, I was changing something similar to a galleon ship into a frigate without using a dry-dock. That just wasn''t done and it made the ship expert we rescued nervous. The crew members on the other hand, were looking forward to having more room. ¡°This thing is barely going to rock, let alone tip over.¡± I said. ¡°We''re increasing the main mast and the mizzenmast by another sail each to handle the extra mass. Don''t worry, though. After I work my magic on the ship, this bitch will be just as fast as it is now.¡± ¡°I''ll believe it when I see it.¡± The slave man said and crossed his arms. ¡°Well, we''ll be out of the main shipping lanes tomorrow. I was tempted to find a nice cove or something to do it, only there''s no way we''re going anywhere near land of any kind in these waters without having a port of call for protection.¡± I said and nearly everyone nodded. ¡°You never know what kind of trouble you''ll find if you try docking in a virgin cove.¡± Jensen said. ¡°We''ve all heard stories of lost crew, damaged ships from invisible shallow shoals of rocks, and creatures that make water beasts look like near-rabbits in comparison.¡± Everyone nodded again. It was common knowledge by frequent travellers that the oceans were dangerous and held things hidden until it was too late to do anything about it. Even the smaller clipper ships had extra cannons on board for emergencies. As for us, we had four cannons on each side with two backups, thanks to the last two raids. They were mounted below the top deck and inside the hull with the firing ports hidden behind hinged doors, so no one seeing the bare top deck knew that we were armed. The cannons would be moved into the expanded space and would free up nearly the entire under-deck for rooms and storage. The amount of ammo we had was ridiculous as well. In fact, we sold some to the stevedore at the last port because we needed the room for extra bunks. He thought we were getting rid of them because we didn''t have any use for them. None of us corrected him. ¡°We''ll find a nice calm area and I''ll start working to show you what to do. With my lost fingers and toes, I can''t help as much as I want to.¡± I said and they nodded. ¡°Is everyone liking the new tables and chairs in the dining room?¡± ¡°I licked one of the tables this morning!¡± One of the crewmen exclaimed. ¡°That''s because you spilled your scrambled eggs on it and your tongue should be all splinters! Ha!¡± The slave next to him said and clapped him on the back. ¡°If I hadn''t felt how smooth they are myself, I wouldn''t believe it.¡± I smiled and thought about mentioning something to them, then decided not to. If I told them I could make the tables look expensive and they could be sold for a handful of gold coins and not several handfuls of silver coins, that would be all I would be doing. Pirates would never pass up such easy money. ¡°I''m still shocked you''re actually paying us wages, even after sharing the spoils with us.¡± One of the other crewmen said. His buddy whacked him on the side of the head with his hand. ¡°OW! What was that for?¡± He asked and rubbed the spot. ¡°He already told us why. This is a working man''s ship.¡± The other man said. ¡°Even the former slaves get paid for their work cleaning and keeping things maintained for us, so we can concentrate on the more important jobs that we used to ignore to do the cleaning and maintaining.¡± ¡°I know that.¡± The man said. ¡°Who''s paying him, though?¡± That question made everyone turn their heads to look at me. ¡°I told you. I''m rich. I have been for years before becoming a slave.¡± I said with a shrug. ¡°The only reason I needed money now was because this ship needed fixing up and I wanted better food for everyone.¡± ¡°Which means you''re doing all of this for free.¡± Jensen said. ¡°Why won''t you take any money?¡± ¡°Like I said, once I bought the things I needed, I didn''t need anything else.¡± I said. ¡°Plus, I promised to make this the best pirate ship if you killed the old captain. Are we the best pirate ship yet?¡± ¡°No!¡± Everyone said, loudly. ¡°Then we''ll keep working and upgrading this old bitch to make anyone that sees it, tremble in awe while in port. While out on the open seas and it''s attacking, they''ll tremble in fear.¡± That made everyone grin and nod. It was a pirate''s dream to cause both of those feelings. ¡°While we wait for a calm sea, who wants another sword fighting lesson?¡± I asked and nearly everyone put up their hands, even the women. ¡°Then grab your chosen swords and meet me up on the deck. If you have armor pieces to wear, do so. The more practice you have wearing it while fighting, the better.¡± ¡°Yessir!¡± Several of the men, crew and slaves alike, said. I left the crowded dining room and was followed by a bunch of others. There wasn''t a lot to do on a ship while travelling, so any break of the monotony was a welcome one. I had bought several things for the crewmen to use for entertainment, or so the merchant said, and put them into a small room near the captain''s cabin. Everyone was free to use them and a few did so. I even bought piles of old books for cheap and fixed them with potions before putting them on a long shelf for anyone to borrow. The shelf was almost always empty and I suspected that it was the women reading them. The men didn''t seem like the kind of people to sit for several hours to read, not even the former slave men. ¡°All right! You know the basic stance!¡± I shouted and the large group of people changed how they stood and held their swords out as if to attack. ¡°Switch!¡± I said and they changed to a defensive stance. I walked over to a younger woman and moved her free arm to support her sword arm. ¡°You need to get used to the heavier weight before you can fight effectively.¡± ¡°Y-y-yessir.¡± She said and blushed. ¡°I''ll fix the blade for you when we come across a cheap forge.¡± I said, thinking I needed to reheat the blade to enchant it. I had tried several times to buy a forge at every port we landed and they were all ridiculously expensive and the investment wasn''t worth it. ¡°You still won''t use a smaller blade?¡± She shook her head. ¡°I promised my father when he was dying that I would use this type of sword to get my revenge.¡± ¡°Then you need to practice the strengthening drills. If you can''t hold the blade steady with one hand, you need to change blades or let me alter it.¡± I said. She gave me an odd look, then stopped the pose and held out the blade. ¡°Show me, please.¡± A few of the crewmen chuckled. ¡°What is it?¡± She asked. ¡°You asked him to show off.¡± Jensen said with a grin. ¡°You''ll need both hands on the hilt for this.¡± She blinked for a moment and then saw me draw my sword. She gasped when it glowed and she gripped the hilt of her own sword with both hands to hold it up and defend herself, despite it being awkward. I took a step forward and swiped my sword twice along the length of hers before she could blink. Two thin half-inch slivers of metal dropped to the deck that were the same length as her sword. The crew burst out laughing at her shocked look, because she saw that her sword was now blunt on both sides. ¡°Now the weight is more manageable for you.¡± I said and sheathed my sword as the glow faded. ¡°Attack Stance!¡± She did it quickly and then her eyes widened because her hand didn''t shake. ¡°Defense Stance!¡± I ordered and she switched. She had to catch her breath, because once again, she didn''t have to struggle with the blade and her free hand was posed to strike a punch. ¡°Much better.¡± I said and used my hand to try and bat her sword out of the way several times. She braced and stopped me from knocking her off-center for more than a split second and returned to the ready to strike pose. I nodded and stepped back. ¡°Now you can see what an appropriate blade can do to help you fight.¡± She nodded and stopped holding the stance as I walked back to stand in front of the group. ¡°We''re doing full forward lunges today.¡± I said and saw a few people grin. ¡°Before you think you can just throw everything you have into it, you need to maintain balance and can''t over-extend yourself. Off-balance means sloppy. What does sloppy get you?¡± ¡°DEAD!¡± They all shouted. ¡°That''s right. Just because you know how to fight, that doesn''t mean you''ll always win. Being prepared is better than losing your hand or your head, which is what everyone you fight will not be aiming for.¡± That made a few people laugh. The young woman I just fixed her sword for, raised a hand. ¡°Why do you say that?¡± ¡°Most people fighting with swords will do one of two things. Always.¡± I said and everyone listened. ¡°They will slash your sword arm to try and disable you or they will try for a torso shot, usually the chest and the heart.¡± ¡°Unless you''re fighting another pirate or someone without a lot of experience.¡± Jensen said. ¡°They just slash all over to try and hurt you.¡± ¡°The useless ones do.¡± I said and a few of the men frowned. ¡°None of you are useless anymore. I''ve seen to that.¡± The men exchanged looks and looked back at me. ¡°A few more weeks training with me and you''ll be a force that can''t be stopped in a normal sword fight. You''ll be on par with a regiment''s training by then.¡± I said and several of them nodded. ¡°After that, it''s just practice and hoping you don''t meet someone with more experience than you.¡± ¡°How do you know?¡± Someone asked. ¡°They way they carry themselves.¡± I said and waved at myself. ¡°Confidence, arrogance, and sure of themselves. They are dangerous and fighting them one-on-one is not a good idea. If you meet someone like that, run.¡± That made a lot of the people there chuckle. ¡°Yes, I''m including myself in that, thanks to my maid and slave buying me these great boots.¡± I said and lifted one of my feet to show off a solid and thick sole with no visible heel, because it was inside the boot. I hadn''t felt so solid and balanced in months. ¡°I hope you''re planning on thanking them!¡± A woman''s voice shouted from the back of the group. ¡°I had three baths yesterday. Before breakfast.¡± I said and that made everyone laugh. ¡°Back to the lesson. As long as you block the shots to your sword arm, which some of you have by wearing armor pieces under your tops, and avoid the body shots that need to be heavy to damage you, you will be unstoppable.¡± They all nodded. ¡°Sheath your blades and take stance three.¡± I ordered and they all did so, with their legs apart and one foot forward and one back, shoulder length apart. ¡°If you''re right handed, your left foot should be back.¡± Three of them changed and posed properly. ¡°Good. Hold that.¡± I said and walked around. ¡°When I say, take exactly one step forward with the back foot the same distance forward from your other foot.¡± I waited for a moment and spoke. ¡°STEP!¡± They all did so. Some were successful right away and most messed up. ¡°Stance three!¡± I said, loudly. They all did so and waited. ¡°STEP!¡± I shouted and they did it again. A lot more got it and smiled. I repeated it three more times and they all were smiling. ¡°Good. Good! You''re thinking about your balance! I want you to keep practising that on your own. I want you to be so comfortable with it that when I shout ''step'' at random times, you''re going to do it!¡± ¡°Yessir!¡± They responded. ¡°For now, I''ll show you the right sword hold to start with and where it will end when you step.¡± I said and nodded at my maid. She brought out a wooden training dummy and stood it up five feet away from me. I took stance three with my sword held down to the right. ¡°STEP!¡± I shouted and took the exact step and shoved the sword forward with all my might at the same time. Everyone made surprised and startled sounds as my non-glowing sword ran right through the three foot tree trunk torso like it was a hot knife through butter. ¡°That''s with three months of basic army training and three weeks of specialized training.¡± I said and pulled the sword out. ¡°How long did I say we have to train from now on?¡± ¡°Three weeks!¡± Some of them responded. ¡°Exactly.¡± I said with a smile. ¡°I''ve already given you the basics and you all did spectacularly. Now it''s time to make all of that hard work pay off for you.¡± ¡°YESSIR!¡± They yelled and started to do the step lunge without me prompting them. ¡°I think... I love you.¡± Someone whispered. They were too far away for me to tell who it was, with all of the shouts of ''Step'' and ''Haa'' coming from everyone practising. I noticed that several of the more experienced people were doing it easily, so I took them aside and told then to use their blades. I had the maid bring out more training dummies and they grinned as they got to practice the full move. As more people achieved the right balance and did the move flawlessly a bunch of times, they earned their own training dummy and advanced to the full lesson. 261 The Frigging Frigate It took two weeks to make the alterations and additions to the ship, while I trained the crew to really fight, and I also brewed number ten potion constantly. Either luck was on our side with the calm waters, or it was unseasonably warm and the winds were not going to be of much use for a while. The crew thought it was a mix of both, especially when we extended the masts and the extra sails being added didn''t even rock the ship. One of the biggest alterations we made was adding a bigger deck onto the front of the ship and then mounted two cannons under it, one on each side of the bow spirit. We also added two cannons to the back of the ship. We could now fire at a ship we were chasing or at a ship that was chasing us. To say that the crew was extremely happy at the new capability of the ship, was an understatement. It was a good thing that I already had a full and unaltered movement enchantment installed. It wasn''t going to do much on such a large ship, especially with me trying my best to increase my magic use and could only use one enchantment at a time. With a ship this big, at least three movement enchantments would be needed and as far as I knew, I was the only person on the ship that could run an enchantment. That thought made me pause, because I knew a very simple test to find someone that has the potential. The problem was, a lord going around kissing random people wasn''t going to go over well with the crew. At least, that''s what I thought. When I mentioned the test that mages could use to find potential recruits, every single woman on the ship came together and formed a line. ¡°If I didn''t know you were an honest bastard, I''d seriously consider castrating you for kissing my woman.¡± Jensen said to me. Molly was the first woman in the line and she was blushing slightly. She could easily hear him and she ducked her head a little. ¡°It''s just a peck to see if their lips tingle.¡± I reminded him. ¡°Yeah, you''re a right bastard.¡± Jensen said with a grin and the men around us laughed. ¡°With my luck, she''s going to make your whole face tingle.¡± I gave him a smile and pat his shoulder. ¡°If she does, I''ll give her a crash course in what I know, then this ship will have two people that can make it better.¡± Jensen nodded and stepped back. I waved Molly forward and she blushed a bit more. ¡°Please excuse the intrusion.¡± I said and leaned forward to lightly touch my lips to hers and added a bit of magic. Her whole face seemed to light up and my lips almost vibrated at her responding magic. ¡°By the Son''s Light!¡± Jensen gasped. I held in my laugh at his reaction and stepped back. ¡°Molly, please step to the side and I''ll talk to you more later.¡± Molly nodded her head and went with her man over to the side of the ship. When they were far enough away, she grabbed him tightly and kissed him hard. The crew gave appreciative noises and shouts, then the two of them went inside the ship. ¡°I guess I''ll talk to her much later.¡± I said and that made a lot of the men laugh. My maid was next and Ann gave me a happy and sad look. ¡°I am not your lord right now. I''m testing for magic.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Please excuse the intrusion.¡± I said and lightly brushed her lips with mine and added magic... only to get nothing. ¡°Whew. What a relief.¡± Ann said and took her place behind me. That make some of the women laugh, because they all knew that she took her maid duties very seriously. If she had to split her work to also learn magic, her maid job would suffer. My slave Hanna was next and after a brief kiss, her lips only slightly tingled. ¡°Were you tested with crystals before?¡± I asked as I had her step aside. Hanna nodded. ¡°When I was a little girl.¡± I nodded back and turned to the next woman in the line. I kissed her and there was nothing. The line advanced and I only found one other woman that had a partial tingle and it was the young woman that refused to use a different sword. That meant my idea to give her an enchanted weapon had been the correct one. ¡°Why aren''t you testing the men?¡± The last woman in the line asked after I kissed her. ¡°Biology and social rules.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°I love my betrothed and she is the beautiful woman that rescued me. I won''t betray her trust by breaking a social taboo.¡± ¡°You''re not our type, either!¡± The men shouted and they all laughed. With two new students to learn from me, I had my work cut out for me. Of course, I wasn''t going to teach them the academy way. No, my way was what was needed, especially with the movement and weight enchantments that I had installed on the ship and would install the multiples that were really needed. I also thought about reproducing Kracken Tubes, now that I had potential recruits that could launch them with me. I pushed that idea aside, because I would need them for moving the ship. Well, to power the enchantments that I would use to move the ship. They would need a lot more practice with magic to be trusted to run the enchantments on their own. If given enough time, I''ll have them at that point and our smaller boats will skim across the open seas to assault the more dangerous targets. Namely, the Eastern Empire''s warships and the Kingdom Of Fata''s ships, if we could find them. The thought made me smile and the crew responded in kind. They recognized my feral smile, because they had their own. ¡°You just had a great idea.¡± One of the men said. ¡°Yes, I did.¡± I said and looked over at the piles of wood that we hadn''t used. ¡°Who wants to help me build an assault craft to assault military ships?¡± Nearly every hand shot up into their air, because they all had their own reasons to hate navy personnel. They also knew that the navy ships always had slaves to be rescued and sometimes pay for their crews. We got to work and at one point Jensen reappeared with a huge smile on his face. He gave me a pointed look and then whispered that he didn''t mind me kick-starting his wife every few days if she was going to react like that with him afterwards. That made me smile and I agreed, as long as he was always right there to benefit from it. Half an hour later, we had the keel and hull constructed, to everyone''s surprise. Even seeing the ship''s attachments being built, it didn''t quite hit home that what we were doing was more magic than anything they had ever seen before. I added the protection, weight, and movement enchantments, altered to be weaker and concealed, of course. I also made four small Kracken Tubes, square unfortunately, since we had limited ammunition and I didn''t have any springy trees. They were less efficient and that was okay, since we would be up close and personal to the ships we were going to attack and the longer range wasn''t needed. Instead of adding the metal heads that we didn''t have the metal for anyway, I left the heads flat and added the reverse of the fire suppression enchantment and made it create fire instead, just like my firestarter spell. Anything it hit would burst into flames and no one believed me... until the first test run an hour after that. One of the crew had found a big piece of driftwood from the crow''s nest and I declared that it was an enemy ship for us to assault. The crew cheered and we hooked up the pulleys to our new assault boat and hefted it over the side. Once it was in the water, I was lowered down into it and three others climbed down into the boat with me. It had oars and they were unnecessary. ¡°Get your weapons ready and hold on!¡± I said and they did so, then I poured my magic into the movement enchantment. ¡°WOOOHOOOO!¡± The three men yelled in delight as the boat took off and the crew behind us cheered loudly. I swerved us to the left and to the right, simulating cannonballs being shot at us and telling them so, and the men with me and the crew on the ship kept cheering. I touched the Kracken Tube at the front of the ship and activated the enchantments as I hit the mini-catapult release. Everyone immediately fell silent when the rectangle missile shot out like a rocket and slammed right into the side of the driftwood... and then exploded as fire engulfed the now mangled driftwood. ¡°YYEEAAAHHHH!¡± Everyone cheered. I brought the assault boat over to let the men slam their swords into the burning driftwood, then I swung us around and took us back to the ship. As we approached the ship, I saw writing on the bow. ¡°Who put that on the side of our ship?¡± I asked and pointed. The cheering died down and one of the slave men tentatively put up his hand, as if he expected to be chastised. ¡°Good work! Now we don''t have to come up with the name!¡± I shouted and they all cheered again. I brought us to the side of the ship, the boat was reattached, and the men crawled up as I rode the boat up. ¡°Give me another week and then it will be time to start making ourselves known.¡± ¡°Take two!¡± One of the crew said and they all nodded. ¡°Are you sure?¡± I asked. ¡°You''ve been working day and night, sir.¡± Jensen said as he and Molly held each other on the deck. ¡°Take a day off. Or two.¡± Everyone around us nodded. ¡°What am I going to do with a day off?¡± I asked. ¡°BATH!¡± They yelled. Ann was suddenly there in front of me with a huge smile on her face, grabbed my hand, and dragged me away. The crew laughed as I was easily manhandled by the older woman and then Hanna was there to help her. They were still laughing when the door to the ship slammed shut and I was taken to the bath room. I actually did take the two days off from working on the ship and spent the time working with Molly, Hanna, and the young woman with the sword named Gella. The first thing I did was have them push their will into my sword. Molly made it glow as much as I could and Hanna and Gella only made it softly glow. I told them I would teach them what I could in the short time we had. They had promised to work hard, and we did so. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Skipping details. Speeding up time. Done. _______________ Molly took to enchanting like a near-duck to water. She had carved her first enchantment successfully on the second day and even charged it up using my enchanting potion. Neither Hanna nor Gella had the fine hand work experience to handle the enchanting tools and could only empower the enchantments. I didn''t tell them that they were lacking, though. No, I told them that finding someone like them was like finding a needle in a haystack and that finding someone like Molly was like that same needle in a haystack that was a mile wide. The three of them were shocked by my words and stared at me. ¡°You''re also getting paid more.¡± I said and that made them catch their breath. ¡°You are each doing two jobs and this is a working man''s ship.¡± The three of them exchanged smiles, almost feral as the ones the men had when they were about to assault an enemy ship. I thought they were going to attack me and instead they attacked the work in front of them. They worked harder than they had before and Molly had a second enchantment done that night while Hanna and Gella powered everything to try and get their magic to a higher level. For the next two weeks, I continued to teach them magic during the evenings after they did their normal jobs during the day. I also kept training the crew to keep fighting like the elite soldiers in the Gulf Kingdom and we built another assault boat for the other side of the ship to balance it out. Molly was the driver and Jensen assigned himself to her group to ensure that nothing happened to her. She loved him all the more because of that. * A week later, everyone in the latest port stared with open mouths as the very large and wide frigate floated into the bay. No one had ever seen anything like it before and the crew around me, preened proudly. I never asked where they got the paint and wood stains to make the ship look so nice. A couple of the slaves had been work crew members and had taken to using my number ten potion like Frank and his crew back at the Henrietta Longshore estate. Scrollwork and designs were all over everything to make it look like gold filigree on a black background. One of the women slaves even sewed up a couple of flags for us. One was for using in port and was bright and colorful. The other was pitch black and had a skull and crossed swords under it that we used on the open waters when being pirates. We didn''t call our ship The Frigging Frigate for no reason. We couldn''t dock normally, so we had to use the smaller boats as ferries for both crewmen and supplies. The looks of envy we received was exactly what the crew had wanted and their opinion of me was raised even more. We were becoming that which I promised, the best pirate ship on the ocean, and only needed to find more targets to prove our worth. I used my vigilance technique and roamed my eyes over the ships that were in the bay and I found one that we had been looking for. A warship from the Eastern Empire. I nodded at Jensen and then at the ship, then we both showed identical feral smiles on our faces as we started to plan. 262 The Best Ship On The Seas The plan was simple. Lure the Empire Navy ship out into open waters, use the assault boat to soften it up, follow up with the cannons on the ship with the enemy crew distracted, then board and clear the place. Everything should have gone fine... except that we didn''t know that the enemy ship was carrying an entire group of mages. Eight of them. They started chanting and casting fireball spells and lightning spells. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. Will you risk your life to prove you really do want to make the ship the best pirate ship on the open seas or will you prove that you''re a coward for the rest of your days? A) Attack. B) Use a Kracken Tube. C) Flee. D) Rally the crew. E) Do something stupid. F) Choose two. Oh, it''s like that now? I thought. Okay, I have only one real response to that, so I think I''ll enhance my standing with the crew. I''ll choose two, C and E. _______________ I was nowhere near strong enough yet to cast dispel spells as many times as I wanted. I couldn''t even cast two in a row without a slight rest in between. So, there was only one logical solution. ¡°Where are you going?¡± One of my three man crew asked as I whipped the boat around a fireball and turned us away from the enemy. ¡°You''ll see in a minute.¡± I said and sped us back to our ship. ¡°They are coming to bear on us!¡± One of the others said. ¡°In a few minutes, that won''t matter.¡± I said and started to evade the cannonballs being shot at us. We made it out of their range just as the full broadside came to bear on us, which was exactly what I wanted. ¡°Pull us up!¡± I ordered and came to a stop by the ship. The ropes descended and we tied them on to the assault boat, then we were lifted up and pulled onto the deck. ¡°What happened? Are you turning coward?¡± One of the newest rescued slaves asked. My hand shot out and whacked him on the side of the head and dropped him to the deck, unconscious. ¡°Shut up! I need Molly, Gella and Hanna here NOW!¡± I shouted and everyone jerked at my command voice. It carried a bit farther than they thought and the three women came out from below deck at a jog. ¡°Ladies, I need you to power the other three movement wards, Hanna and Gella on the sides and Molly, you on the back.¡± ¡°Yessir!¡± They said and went inside the ship to their assigned stations. I felt the enchantments power up and I took over the main full one. I almost shivered at the borrowed power and let it fill me up. My body remembered this strength and my feral smile like the Hag''s came out. ¡°Secure the deck! Pull the sails! Then get below or hold on!¡± I ordered. The men quickly did so. Most stayed up to watch when they were done. ¡°Here we go!¡± The men all gasped as I turned the ship on my own and then they let out ''ooo'' sounds as I brought us up to cruising speed. With the sails closed, I had nothing holding the ship back, so I poured on the speed. ¡°WHAT are you DOING?!?¡± Jensen yelled. ¡°I''m showing you all what a reinforced bow spirit is really meant for!¡± I shouted back and took aim. Cannons fired at us and I easily shifted the boat slightly and let the cannonballs glance off the hull. The enemy mages saw the ship coming for them and they literally started screaming, because their piddly little spells wouldn''t do anything to save them or stop the ship. Some were smart and jumped. The others ran. ¡°Hold ON!¡± I shouted and slid us to the exact center of the other ship''s side and then dropped the weight enchantment I had been practising with. I had completely forgotten I was playing with it until now. It was a neat time to discover I could use two enchantments, because our ship dipped down at the last second and the tree-thick spear at the front of the ship pierced the side of the enemy ship. *KRA-CRASSHHHH!* Wood splintered and buckled as our ships slammed together... and then our ship kept going. It crushed the side of the enemy ship and pushed the other ship apart, thanks to the wide front wedge shape, and the bow spirit split the other side of the ship and our bow cracked the other ship in half. I ended using the movement enchantment and activated the weight one, to stop pushing down on the enemy ship that was only held together by the keel. In fact, my ship was mostly held out of the water and our main deck was about five feet above the enemy deck. ¡°Grab your weapons and let''s go! Take out any remaining mages first!¡± I shouted and pulled my sword as I ran to the side of the ship and leapt over it to land on the enemy deck. I had chosen the harder side, because that was where I saw two of the mages going. They were collapsed on the deck, terror on their faces, and I grinned at them. ¡°NOOO!¡± One of them yelled and held up his hands to cast lightning at me. I dispelled it and he started crying until I ran him through with my glowing sword. He looked almost happy at the glow and then I yanked it out the side of his chest and through his heart to decapitate the other mage. I didn''t pause to make sure he was dead and moved on to the crewmen starting to regain their feet after the impact of having a ship bigger than theirs smashing into and through their ship. The other crew and slaves from my ship were soon there and we made short work of the men that still had some fight left in them. We weren''t surprised that they were the navy men that wouldn''t give up and kept sending slaves and crewmen after us while their ship started sinking. We saved the slaves, thanks to my skin color matching them, and they changed sides immediately. ¡°We have secrets that they can''t have!¡± The captain shouted at the men around him. ¡°Rush them and give me time to destroy everything!¡± ¡°Thanks for telling us.¡± I said and cut open the door, kicked it in, and threw my sword at the captain. ¡°GAH!¡± The captain grabbed his chest as the sword ran him through, even without me touching it. He fell backwards and the sword embedded him into the floor. ¡°Anyone else want to keep fighting?¡± I asked. The five remaining navy men exchanged looks, drew their swords, and took fighting stances. ¡°Idiots.¡± I said and waved my hand over them. I could only light on fire one small item of clothing each on them and they yelled and started to dance around to put it out. ¡°Take them out.¡± ¡°YEAH!¡± Their former slaves rushed into the compartment and hacked them apart with their own discarded swords. I turned to the men from my ship. ¡°Standard protocols. Basic search of the holds and general areas. Don''t enter the cabins until I clear them of magic. We don''t know where the mages stayed or if there''s one or more still here.¡± ¡°Yessir!¡± The men said and split up as I turned back to the slaves. ¡°Don''t bother looting yet. We''re splitting everything anyway.¡± I warned them as two of the slaves started to strip the captain. I walked over to them and made the blade glow without touching it. They gasped and jumped back as I grabbed the handle and pulled it out. The captain was dead and I shoved the sword through his neck to decapitate him anyways. ¡°Everyone up on deck. If you carry the bodies up before stripping them for the nicer clothes, we''ll have a nice bonfire.¡± I said and they let out appreciative sounds and grabbed a body each. I went along the cabins in the ship and one had a protective ward around it. It felt familiar and different, which meant it was one of the derivatives from the old enchantment book I had back at the Henrietta Longshore Estate. I used Dispel on it and it snapped apart. Once it did, I felt two people were inside. ¡°If you don''t attack, I promise you that I will let you live.¡± ¡°You give your word?¡± One of the men asked. ¡°As long as you do not trick me, I swear that I will not strike you down.¡± I said. After a minute, the door slowly opened. Inside was an older man and a young woman. Both had white skin like me, which meant they were slaves. When they saw my face, the young woman started crying. She dropped to her knees and hugged herself. ¡°Finally.... finally... my prayers... finally...¡± ¡°We were owned by the Mages.¡± The older man said and knelt by the young woman. ¡°We did our best to keep them happy.¡± He said and hugged the slave girl. ¡°Any way we could.¡± I stepped into the room and I could feel several enchantments and concealing spells. I could also feel something from both slaves. I reached for the young girl and touched her forehead as I shared my magic with her. She gasped and looked up at me with shock on her face. ¡°You! YOU!¡± ¡°Yes. Me, too.¡± I said and let my magic flow through her. She shivered as her own magic flowed around mine, as if tasting it, then she latched onto it like it was a lifeline. ¡°Oohhhh, master... master... please... fix it!¡± I followed her thoughts and found something inside her chest. It was attached to her with magic and it was a physical block on her magic. I had never encountered anything like it before and then I realized what it was. ¡°The Hag.¡± I said. ¡°Y-yes, she... she...¡± The young girl shivered. ¡°I bet you tasted better than I did.¡± I said and she caught her breath. ¡°How did you know?¡± She asked. I sheathed my sword and tapped my hand on my own chest. ¡°Guess what I have here?¡± She gasped and her eyes widened. ¡°But... but... your magic! How... you''re so strong!¡± I couldn''t stop my chuckle and let her forehead go. ¡°This? It''s barely ten percent of my capacity.¡± I didn''t bother telling them that it had taken me months to get it to this point. Both the older man and the young woman caught their breath. ¡°Open your mouths.¡± I ordered and both of them did so without question. I reached into the young woman''s mouth first and probed the gland under her tongue. It was minuscule, barely enough for a single small pot of number ten potion. I checked the older man and his was a bit smaller. They both closed their mouths to stare at me, as if I had found their deepest and darkest secret. I smiled at them and took out a water skin, then bent low to give them an up close view as I opened my mouth. I lifted my tongue and then used the muscle to squeeze my gland and the huge amount of extract squirted out into the water skin. It was the only thing that hadn''t regressed when the Hag did whatever it was she did to me. ¡°You''re him.¡± The older man whispered. ¡°You''re really him.¡± ¡°Master, the slave rescuer.¡± The young woman said. ¡°Please, can you help us?¡± I reached for the older man''s forehead and my magic went right to the thing lodged into his heart. His magic avoided mine completely, which wasn''t a surprise. ¡°I''ll need time.¡± ¡°We are yours forever, Master.¡± The young woman pledged. The older man sighed. ¡°She has not survived her ordeals completely intact.¡± ¡°It''s all right.¡± I said and let his head go and touched hers again. ¡°We''ll work on it while I train you.¡± ¡°T-t-train?¡± She asked, as if it was a very confusing concept. ¡°You are strong with magic and I suspect the Hag knew this.¡± I said. ¡°What was once hers is now mine. Her marsh lands, her marsh home, her techniques and recipes that I''ve improved, and now her former slaves.¡± ¡°What is your name, young man?¡± The older man asked. ¡°You can call me David for now.¡± I said. The older man gave me a critical look. ¡°What other names do you have?¡± ¡°There''s too many to mention right now.¡± Jensen said from behind me. ¡°David, we''ve got everything but the cabins secured.¡± I nodded. ¡°I want the two of you to stay here until I return.¡± ¡°NO!¡± The young woman gasped and grabbed onto me. ¡°I''m only checking the insides of the cabins for hidden places like the ones in here.¡± I said. ¡°Let him go, Farra.¡± The older man commanded. Farra flinched and then resolve filled her eyes as she resisted the order. ¡°I am never letting him go.¡± The older man sighed in resignation. ¡°I''ll escort her properly.¡± I said and held my arm at the right position. She let out a squeal of delight, something that startled the older man immensely, then she was on my arm and her bent spine seemed to straighten out. She looked proud and gave me a smile that would light up a darkened room. In fact, she actually was lighting up the room slightly. ¡°This way, my lady.¡± I said and waved at the doorway. She nodded and we left the cabin the mages used and went around the other cabins to discover their secrets. She quickly picked up the spells I was using to detect spells and enchantments and she started to assist me with them. She couldn''t cast them herself yet and instead shared her magic with me to make the spells expand in area. Farra was quite happy when we found three hidden caches of items and gold coins with her help. The captain''s cabin actually had the ledger and a fairly large chest of coin for pays... for this ship and three others. It was delivering it to the next port of call for distribution, which meant we now had three new targets of the Empire and a schedule for their routes. Once we had that, I handed it over to Jensen and I took Farra back to the cabin the mages stayed in. It took the both of us nearly half an hour to detect, dispel, and unlock everything. Once we did, the treasure of gold we had found in the captain''s cabin, paled in comparison. It wasn''t gold, though. No, it was something that was much more valuable to me than gold could ever be. We had found ten books filled with magic spells, practical enchantments, and potion recipes. I quickly cut open a canvas bag I had made and wrapped the books up, sealed them so that only I could open it without damaging the contents, and gave Farra and the older man a normal smile. ¡°Let''s get you to the ship and started on your new lives.¡± I said. The both of them gave me happy smiles in return. 263 The Best Pirate Ship On The Seas Bokuboy Our campaign continued on and the crew members were more than happy with our progress. With each successive Eastern Empire navy ship we found, we gained more shipping routes and maps, which I stuck to the wall in the captain''s cabin. We also cleared out and stole any ship''s cargo we wanted, thanks to the Eastern Empire having records of their manifests for supply purposes. Knowing what bases were going to get what, definitely helped me make a huge dent in the Eastern Empire''s supply train. They also had no clue that we were stripping their resources from right under their noses. My crew and I were also become insanely rich. I tried to refuse them declaring me the captain and accepting my shares of the loot, only for everyone to pretty much ignore my wishes and called me captain anyway. I now had my own chest of gold stashed behind the captain''s bed. My bed. Each new set of slaves would have a troublemaker or two, which I didn''t have to deal with. As soon as someone started to question my decisions too adamantly, they were told to shut up or to get off the ship, because they weren''t slaves anymore and could leave whenever they wanted. The stupid ones chose to be dropped off and the crew agreed... immediately. The water beasts that seemed to be following us, were well fed. I started naming them as a joke and the crew would occasionally toss some of the fish from obtained cargoes over the side of the ship to feed their favorite ones. No one wanted to eat fish anymore and no one had to. We also found several cooks among the new slaves and they took to our version of meals as if they had never cooked before and were dying to learn how. The quality and amount of food we produced was staggering, if we didn''t have twice the normal ship''s compliment. Everyone was still busy, though. The ship was huge, thanks to the modifications, and everyone loved that we were more warship than anything else. The navy ships gave us more cannons than we knew what to do with, so we would occasionally stop somewhere and let one or two slaves spread the rumors that we had a salvaged cannon for sale. The crew stifled laughs as our ship was discreetly visited by no less than ten different cargo ship crew members that wanted the extra protection for their cargoes. Of course we agreed, and we even installed the new cannons for them under their main decks. The ships with cargoes we wanted, we would still secure them properly and wouldn''t install little flaws in the cannon barrels so that the cannonballs wouldn''t fit properly. We didn''t want the cargoes stolen by anyone else but us. Most of them never fired a shot when we approached them on the open waters and liberated their cargo and slaves. Farra took to magic like Molly did and she loved being able to cast spells. She couldn''t enchant worth a damn, though. She had no aptitude for the tools at all, just like Gella and Hanna. The older man was too old to handle the tools and he was too weak for casting spells, so he relegated himself to powering enchantments when necessary and brewing potions. He had his gland up to making one pot of number ten potion every day, which was a significant improvement. After showing him how to manually milk the thing every hour, he had enough at the end of the day for his own batch of potion. He laughed almost maniacally as he infused the thing himself. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Skipping miscellaneous details. Speeding up time. Done. _______________ Time seemed to pass like water as we worked, raided, ate, fixed and improved the ship, stopped for rests, and eventually we made our pirate ship the best ship on the open seas. A month went by before we knew it and everyone was dressed in expensive clothing, even the former slaves. One of the women had been a maid for a very rich person and she had the brilliant suggestion to use something called ''concealer'' to cover up the women''s bright white skin. It couldn''t do anything for the eyes or hair; but, with liberal application, their faces and hands could be changed to a more natural skin color. They all jumped at the chance and bought out every bit of the substance from any marketplace we visited. They also bought out any other make-up, just because they could. Needless to say, by the time the next month ended, every woman on the ship had a man to escort her. Some came to me for official permission and became couples like Jensen and Molly while others simply enjoyed each other''s company. I had no idea that commoners had different social standards than higher class people, so I spent several weeks in lessons with several of the people I was teaching magic to and listened to them explain the differences. I was shocked. Completely and utterly shocked. I didn''t know that being a couple didn''t always mean a permanent commitment. I had always been told that you had to be loyal to who you were with and had no clue that I could have left any relationship at any time. It would have been a mind-blowing revelation if I hadn''t had that one experience with Diane. She had tossed me aside for not taking care of her son and freed me to go with Helena. It never occurred to me that I wasn''t tied to Diane at all. We didn''t even have a verbal agreement to stay together. Once she had acquired all of the stock for her store from me, I was no longer needed, except for sex. I could see that now, thanks to my experience as a pirate and all of the cargoes we had gained during these long months at sea. If we had left the ships alone after robbing them, their usefulness would have been reduced to nothing. ¡°Master? Are you okay?¡± Hanna asked in a normal voice as she entered the captain''s cabin. She had gradually stopped whispering and I missed her quiet voice. I would never tell her that, though. ¡°I''m fine.¡± I said and stared at my wall of coastline maps that I had painstakingly stitched together. ¡°I''m missing one piece of information.¡± Hanna walked over to the wall and pointed. ¡°This one.¡± I nodded at the empty space where it should have shown where the land mass ended and would let us pass through to the right area to get back to the Gulf Kingdom. No one in the area had been anywhere near there and it was bothering me that one last piece of information kept evading me. Either that, or it didn''t exist on a ship. ¡°That''s it!¡± I almost shouted and walked over to the map myself. I traced my finger down the various paths the Eastern Empire''s ships travelled and stopped at the very first port on the improvised map. ¡°Here. We need to go here if I want to get home.¡± ¡°Why there?¡± Hanna asked. ¡°It''s the only place that there could be an enemy base that will have land maps for where I want to go.¡± I said and my finger was about an inch away from hers on the map. ¡°It will take at least two weeks to get there.¡± Hanna said. ¡°I know.¡± I said and walked back to the bed and sat down. ¡°I''ll need to call an all crew meeting.¡± Hanna laughed softly and walked over to me. ¡°Master, just tell them we are going and we will go.¡± I shook my head. ¡°That''s not how this ship works.¡± Hanna''s hand touched my head and she ran her fingers through my long white hair. ¡°It does. You just won''t admit it to yourself.¡± I shook my head again. ¡°I won''t take their choices away, just because I completed my word to them.¡± Hanna put her other hand into my hair and looked into my eyes. ¡°Master... My Lord... you are too good of a man to give up the treasure that this ship has become.¡± ¡°You''re wrong.¡± I said and stood, which dragged her fingers out of my hair and down my chest. ¡°It''s the people on the ship that are willing to work together that''s the treasure. The ship is just a tool for them to use.¡± Hanna looked up into my eyes and smiled. ¡°I will tell them so as I call them together.¡± ¡°There''s too many for the dining room now, so we have to go up on the deck.¡± I said. ¡°Wait for ten minutes and ascend to the rear deck and the steering wheel.¡± Hanna said and left. I counted in my head and then left my cabin to go down the hallway. It seemed eerily silent as I walked through the empty ship and went up onto the main deck. There was a shuffling of feet and everyone there saluted me in the pirate''s version. A rude finger gesture pressed to the side of their forehead. They held it until I went up the short stairs to the rear deck. I returned the salute with a flourish and they all laughed. ¡°I called you here for a reason...¡± ¡°WE''RE WITH YOU, SIR!¡± They all responded. I shook my head. ¡°I completed my word. This is the best and most feared pirate ship in these waters. Even warships try to avoid it...¡± ¡°THEY ALWAYS FAIL BECAUSE OF YOU, SIR!¡± I gave them all a glare. ¡°It''s deep into the Eastern Empire''s territory and...¡± ¡°WE''LL KICK THEIR ASSES!¡± ¡°At least let me finish speaking!¡± I shouted back, and they all laughed. ¡°I was going to ask you help me build my own assault craft and...¡± ¡°YOU''RE NOT GETTING AWAY FROM US THAT EASILY, SIR!¡± ¡°Goddammit! I''m trying to give you all a choice!¡± ¡°WE CHOOSE YOU, SIR!¡± I stopped talking and tried to not sigh. I glanced to my right and saw Hanna standing there with a smile on her face. Beside her, Gella stood with a smile on her face, too. ¡°Gella! I know you want to stay here and...¡± ¡°You''ve allowed me to revenge my father by letting me take down over a dozen Eastern Empire ships and burning them to the keels.¡± Gella said and pulled a sword from the scabbard on her hip. She lit it up and held it out proudly. Her arm no longer shook from the weight of the full sword, thanks to the borrowed forge at one of the port stops. ¡°I''ve personally killed tens more than I ever thought possible. For that, and for my father''s eternal gratitude, I swore this sword to you, My Lord.¡± I looked around and saw similar looks on everyone''s faces. ¡°It''s going to be extremely dangerous!¡± ¡°THEN FIX THAT!¡± They yelled back. I turned my head to look at the older man and Farra, only to see that they had big smiles on their faces. ¡°Yes, my lord. We told them.¡± The older man admitted. I actually sighed this time. ¡°I don''t know if we can power it enough to work.¡± ¡°We can.¡± Farra said and put a hand over her heart. ¡°We''ve felt your control, My Lord.¡± ¡°We will do it!¡± Gella, Hanna, and Molly said together. I gave each of them a pointed look, then closed my eyes. ¡°Meet me in the work room.¡± ¡°YES!¡± The crew yelled and started hooting and hollering as I and the other magic users went below deck to make the six-part compound enchantment that I had discovered inside the King''s jail cell and then fixed. Adding in the concealment and protective enchantments wouldn''t be hard at all. Powering it all and the movement enchantments at the same time was going to be difficult, though. Three hours later, we were done and installed the enchantments in the exact spots on the outside of the ship to get them to work. After a warning that it might not work, even with me controlling it, we all took our assigned positions. I was at the head and Molly was at the back, the anchors of the enchantment, and the other four were on the sides, two each. The old man and Gella on one side and Hanna and Farra on the other, their powers split evenly with one weak and one strong. ¡°Is everyone ready?¡± I asked and they responded with yes. ¡°Charge them up!¡± I poured my magic into the enchantment hanging on the bow spirit''s chest and I felt connections form between mine and Molly''s first, then smaller connections to the other four. I concentrated on those connections and pulled as much as I could to make them as strong as mine and Molly''s. Four gasps came from behind me and I could feel their magic desperately trying to merge the enchantments together to join their magic with mine. There was a small popping sound, as if something broke, and I felt an immense pressure inside my chest. ¡°GAH!¡± I gasped and dropped to my knees. I felt the magic surge through whatever the thing attached to my heart was and my whole body tingled. I looked down and blood started to soak my white shirt. I ignored the pain and kept concentrating. The magic swirled inside of me, as if begging to be used, so I did so. I shoved it back into the enchantment that was a single one in six parts. There was a crack like lightning and several screams came from behind me... then the entire ship started to shimmer as a slightly blue bubble formed around the ship. The screams stopped as everything started to slowly fade, the people included. After several long moments, all that could be seen was the depression in the water. A moment later, that shimmered as well and an illusion of water filled the spot. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Several voices said at the same time. ¡°I think... it worked.¡± I said, my voice laboured. ¡°My lord? What''s wrong?¡± Hanna''s concerned voice asked. ¡°I feel... what is that?¡± ¡°I think... I broke... something.¡± I said and put a hand to my heart. I pulled open my shirt and there was a gold coin sized hole there. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. Will it be the right one? A) Do nothing. B) Yell. C) Scream in pain. D) Cast a spell. E) Do something stupid. F) Choose two. I see the same option again. I thought with a chuckle. You know I can''t resist it when it appears, right? No one answered me this time and I laughed. All right, I''ll choose two. I''ll do C first and then I''ll do E. _______________ I let out a loud scream of pain that I had been holding in since the enchantment made the final connection, then the enchantment stopped working. The magic didn''t leave me, however. I had five other magic users and their magic flowing through my veins. It gave me the monumentally stupid idea to do something about the magic blocker on my now damaged heart. ¡°NOOO!¡± Farra yelled as she felt my resolve. ¡°I have to!¡± I shouted back and hooked two fingers into the hole, and pulled. I tore part of my pectoral muscle apart and exposed the missing rib that was supposed to cover and protect my heart. I reached in and felt around as my blood gushed out of the wound. ¡°STOP! STOOOOOOOP!¡± Farra yelled as the rest of the crew started to realize something was very wrong. ¡°It''s... our only... chance!¡± I said and gripped the metallic thing, then pulled with all my strength. I felt my heart start to come out with it and used my other hand to grab it and held it steady. The sound of squelching flesh and blood was loud on the deck of the ship. No one tried to come near me, though. I pulled as hard as I could and after several seconds, something gave. A sucking sound later, the device separated from my damaged heart muscle and more blood than I thought I had in me flowed out onto the deck. ¡°H-h-help me.¡± I whispered and let the device go to clatter to the deck, then I fell backwards onto the deck, too. Above me were many faces I had come to know. They were all crying heavily. ¡°Potion in heart.¡± I whispered and looked at the older man. ¡°...put fixed heart back... potions to...¡± I took one more breath before everything went black. Bokuboy 264 Wake Up! Bokuboy _______________ Story mode temporarily suspended. Performing diagnostics. Mental stability at 60% and stable. Learning capacity at 70% and stable. Personality completion at 98%. Physical damage at 70% and is unstable. Blood loss at 90%. Magic capacity at 124%. Magic Burn at 40%. Magic Level at 12% and dropping. Restructuring healing priorities. Enacting recovery procedures. Critical failure of main character averted. Adding supplementary diagnostics. Magic system initialization... paused. Excessive damage detected. Physical block was removed. Attempting healing... ... ...healing unsuccessful. Retrying... ... ...partial success. Mental stability at 90% and stable. Learning capacity at 95% and stable. Physical damage at 40% and is stable. Blood loss at 60%. Magic capacity at 124%. Magic Burn at 20%. Magic Level at 36% and slowly rising. A previous diagnostic failure has been repaired. Physical Status returned to ''Weakened''. Time to fully recover: One week, three days. Do you wish to pause this story while your body heals or do you want to abort? All current progress will be saved if you wish to return at a later time. I just ripped half of my heart out of my chest and I''m not giving up now, not after everything else I''ve been through. I thought. Can I spend some credits for a faster recovery out of the story? That option has not been unlocked. If you wish for access, several side quests are available. No, that''s all right. I had a few too many of those already. I thought with a laugh. I am not risking meeting something like that giant marsh panther again! Story mode reinstated. Initializing time skip of one week during unconsciousness. Done. _______________ I slowly opened my eyes and everything was dark. Thankfully, it wasn''t pitch dark like the last time I had been unconscious after being seriously hurt. I felt weak and groaned at the empty feeling in my stomach. ¡°MASTER!¡± Several voices yelled and it echoed several times in the dark room. The mage lights were ignited and the room lit up to show me my maid, my slave, my sworn sword, and my apprentice were standing around my bed in a clear vigil. ¡°The rumors... of my death... weren''t as exaggerated... as they were the last time I died.¡± I said. All four of them burst out crying and tried to hug me at the same time. It was both weird and oddly nice. I had no idea why, though... and then I felt it. Tiny strings of connection were there between four of us. Magic tingled along my nerves where they touched bare skin to mine. Almost as if they could feel it as well, their hands lightly touched and caressed my hands, neck, and arms. It was when Farra''s hands moved the blanket covering my chest and ran her hand over the spot on my heart that I felt the tough skin. I looked down at it and easily saw that someone had used number ten potion to seal my chest back up. Badly. It was a mess. ¡°Someone... explain.¡± I said and let my head fall back to the bed. I was exhausted. ¡°Food. I need food, too.¡± ¡°You need to drink a healing potion first, Master.¡± Hanna said and handed me one. ¡°No matter what we tried, even gruel, you couldn''t keep it inside your stomach.¡± I tried to lift the vial and my arm gave out. ¡°Oh, Master.¡± Hanna whispered and uncorked it for me and slowly poured it into my mouth. I swallowed carefully and when it was gone, I closed my eyes and let it flow through my body. I let my magic take hold of it in my stomach and swirled the effects through my body. I hadn''t done that in months and it felt like I had only just done it yesterday. ¡°Ohhhh.¡± Hanna, Farra, and Gella moaned and their hands held onto me as they closed their eyes, too. Their magic joined mine and it went along for the ride as my magic filled my body and spread the healing potion. My body seemed to expand and reinflate in certain areas that had become sallow after a week of no food or movement. ¡°How... how are you doing that, Master?¡± Falla asked, reverence in her voice. ¡°Years of practice.¡± I said. The thing was, I didn''t feel any stronger. I was just as weak as I was before the potion. *Grumble!* The four women''s eyes snapped open and stared down at me. ¡°I said... I needed food.¡± I responded. Hanna was the first to chuckle and it set the others off. The four of them started laughing and their tears continued as they did so. Their hands rubbed my bare chest freely for several minutes, then Ann took a deep breath. ¡°Garret!¡± Ann nearly shouted. A crewman entered the room and he carried a large washing basin for her. She pointed to the nightstand and he placed it there, gave me a salute that I returned, and left. I looked at Ann and she looked a little sad. I assumed it was because I couldn''t move to get to the bath room. ¡°Sponge... bath.¡± I said and her face changed to happiness. ¡°Strip him.¡± Ann ordered. I was almost instantly completely naked with a thick towel placed underneath me, so the bath wouldn''t get the bed wet. To my surprise, none of the others left the room as Ann washed me all over. They even helped turn me over to let Ann scrub my back. It took a while, because of all the mangled grooves from the excessive whipping I had been through. When I was flipped back over, there were a few more tears on their faces... until Ann washed my crotch and then made me erect with her practised rubbing. She took me into her mouth to perform the ritual and it was the first time that I had it done while laying down. It was both weird and much more pleasurable. I had been so used to standing for it that it never occurred to me to do it any other way. The other women stared at her expertly handling me and I tapped Ann''s head to warn her. She moaned at making me finish so quickly and sped up her movements. She would have to be very careful with gravity working against her this time instead of allowing her to easily take it. She stopped moving and sucked hard on me as I finished for her. Her moan was very loud in the silent cabin as she took it all and enjoyed it. Only Hanna''s face wasn''t red from embarrassment when Ann sat up with a huge smile on her face. I was washed down there a bit more and then dried all over. ¡°My lord, do you wish to remain thus or do you require clothes?¡± Ann asked. ¡°I''m still weak and staying in bed, so dirtying more clothes isn''t necessary.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Perhaps underwear, just so I am not rubbing against the blanket.¡± Hanna passed a pair over and the others helped as Ann applied the underwear to me. A couple of them let out sighs. I couldn''t tell if it was from relief or sadness, though. A blanket soon covered me up to my waist. ¡°I will be back with some easily digestible food for you, my lord.¡± Ann said and left the room. I looked at Farra. ¡°I asked for an explanation.¡± I paused and took a breath. ¡°What did the old man... do to me?¡± ¡°He... he did as you asked.¡± Farra said and turned her head away slightly. ¡°He poured a healing potion directly into your heart. It didn''t work.¡± She turned back to look at my face. ¡°He waited for the potion to go through you before he tried another... and then used number ten to seal your heart back up and then squeezed it to get it beating again.¡± Oh, damn. I thought. No wonder I''m weak right now. The Hag had squeezed my heart to make me weak enough to add that device and blocked most of my magic. If the old man squeezed it again to get it started, then I might be okay. He was nowhere near as strong as the Hag and it wouldn''t have damaged me. ¡°The bleeding slowed down and then he was glad that your heart closed over fully. Since it worked for that, he put your torn muscles and skin back together and used more number ten potion.¡± Farra said. ¡°Not at the... same time.¡± I said. ¡°Please, not at the same time.¡± Farra smiled a little. ¡°No, he knitted the muscles together first and I held them for him to add several drops. Then we put drops along the edge of the skin and flesh only, then carefully laid it back into place.¡± ¡°Then... what''s this?¡± I asked as I slowly rubbed my hand across the rough and slightly mangled skin over my heart and part of my pectoral muscle. ¡°An accident. We hit a hard wave and the small amount left in the vial spilled out and splashed onto your chest.¡± Farra said and then sighed. ¡°He tried to scoop it up.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± I said and stopped rubbing. The rough and mangled skin wasn''t actually mine. It was the bottoms of the old man''s fingers. ¡°Did he lose much when someone cut him free?¡± ¡°It was nothing that a healing potion couldn''t fix.¡± A man''s voice said as he entered the room. ¡°It was my own potion, too!¡± I smiled at his happiness, because he was proud that he had healed himself. I remembered feeling like that the first time I successfully brewed my own healing potion. ¡°Show me.¡± I said and he came over and flipped his hands over to show me the underside of his fingers. I nodded at the healed skin and he grinned at me. ¡°I''m sorry that I ignored the main rule for handling the number ten potion.¡± The old man said. ¡°Unfortunately, your chest was not a flat surface for it to remain on and I couldn''t let it splash down your side and merge you to the deck.¡± ¡°I appreciate... the forethought... and the sacrifice.¡± I said. The old man chuckled. ¡°I had Gella cut me free as soon as it set a couple of seconds later. I''m glad she is so handy with blades. I doubt anyone else on this ship could have only cut the skin between us and then cleaned us up as much as possible without hurting us further.¡± I held a hand up and Gella took it instantly. ¡°Good work.¡± ¡°I am your sworn sword, my lord.¡± Gella said and hugged my hand to her chest, getting a much stronger tingling feeling from me because of it. ¡°It is my job to see that you do not come to harm if I can help it.¡± I nodded and she reluctantly let my hand go. Ann came in with a bowl full of broth and several pieces of bread on a tray. ¡°I should ask you all to leave...¡± ¡°We''re not going anywhere.¡± The three women said, quite adamant. Ann laughed softly and put the tray on my lap. ¡°You haven''t left his side all week, so I wasn''t going to ask.¡± She sat down at my side and helped to prop me up into a sitting position with pillows. ¡°Do not try to eat too much at once, my lord.¡± ¡°You don''t have to worry about that.¡± I said and smiled. ¡°You''re feeding me.¡± The others let out gasps and Ann smiled happily. ¡°Of course, my lord. Thank you for the privilege.¡± Ann said and tore up a piece of bread and dipped it into the broth. After a second, she used a napkin under it to carefully put it into my mouth to take a bite. The other women watched attentively as Ann fed me for nearly ten minutes. When the bread was gone, she put a hand on my belly. ¡°How are you feeling, my lord?¡± Ann asked. ¡°I want to say full.¡± I said and she chuckled. ¡°I''ll let you try to take several drinks of the broth if you promise to only do that and not try to take it all.¡± I nodded and she lifted the bowl to my lips. I took several swallows and then stopped. I felt the excess liquid settle around the previous bread I had eaten and that was a really weird experience for me. Bloated, they called it. I chuckled and held my hands out to the women around me, because I knew how to get rid of that feeling. ¡°A hand with a bit of magic, please.¡± I said and Hanna, Gella, and Farra grabbed my arms and looked very happy. I swirled my magic through my arms and theirs responded in kind, then I used magic as I scooped out the nutrients and things from inside my stomach, dissolving the food there, and pushed it out to infuse it with my body all over. ¡°Ohhh.¡± The three women moaned. My stomach growled a moment later and I smiled at Ann. ¡°I need more bread and broth, Ann.¡± Ann blinked her eyes at me for a moment, then she laughed and tipped the last of the broth into my mouth. ¡°I''ll be right back.¡± She stood and looked at the three women around me. ¡°Perhaps taking turns feeding you will keep them busy.¡± Hanna let out a little squeal and Gella and Farra looked quite happy to help. ¡°I''ll carry the tray.¡± The old man said and picked it up. He had been there the whole time and he wasn''t sure what was going on. He felt the swirling magic and his hadn''t reacted at all. I wasn''t going to tell him that he would have to want his magic to form the connection in the first place. Since neither he nor I did that during my stupid attempt to save myself from magical slavery, there was no danger to him being caught up in what was happening to the others. The question was, did Molly have the same reaction to me? Did she have the need to keep touching me and was that why she wasn''t here? Or was she in the same situation with the old man and nothing formed between us? Not that I wanted there to be. If it happened, I would deal with it when I was better. I just hoped that Jensen didn''t try to kill me if that connection was actually there. ¡°Bring me the device and your notes on it after I eat.¡± I told him and he nodded. I knew that he had studied it during the time I was unconscious, because both he and Farra had them on their hearts and he wanted them removed as soon as possible. He did not want to do it like I did, though. Ann came back alone with more food and Hanna fed me first. I did the dispersal trick to dissolve the food and get it into my body, instead of letting my body absorb it naturally. The three women moaned again and then it was Gella''s turn to feed me. I did the trick again and then Farra fed me. This one I left, because I didn''t want to feel hungry again. The women looked at me expectantly and I chuckled. ¡°I''m sorry. I don''t want to... feel hungry again.¡± I said as an explanation. Farra looked sad at not being able to share like that again after feeding me. ¡°I can still share a bit of magic.¡± I said and she caught her breath. ¡°No, I don''t need a reason to.¡± ¡°M-Master.¡± Farra whispered and gave the other two a questioning look. ¡°Go ahead.¡± Hanna said and Gella nodded. ¡°Thank you.¡± Farra said and stripped down to her underthings and then climbed into bed with me. ¡°What are you doing?¡± I asked as Farra unabashedly cuddled into my side. She put my arm over her shoulders as she laid her head on my chest, right over my heart. ¡°We''ve been taking turns doing that all week as we let your magic flow over us.¡± Hanna said. ¡°It''s... we''ve never felt so comforted before.¡± ¡°I haven''t heard it was even possible.¡± Gella said. ¡°We thought it was a side effect of what you did to yourself by nearly tearing your heart out. Then you surprised us as you casually shared your magic with us as if you''ve always done it.¡± ¡°I have always done it, once I learned it was possible.¡± I said and the three women exchanged glances. ¡°If you''re wondering, yes, I can get you pregnant on the first try.¡± Farra moaned as she hugged me tightly and I felt a dampness on my thigh. Gella shivered slightly and gave me a longing look. Her hand gripped the hilt of her sword tightly. Hanna just looked stunned. ¡°I''m betrothed.¡± I reminded them. ¡°We know.¡± They said as one and Ann laughed. ¡°I never knew that you could become even more desirable, my lord.¡± Ann said. ¡°Lady Helena must have so much trouble dealing with all the contract offers!¡± ¡°I let her handle the entrepreneur part of our business.¡± I said and that made her laugh more. The old man came into the cabin and he had a small stack of papers and the device. ¡°Master.¡± ¡°Pull over a chair.¡± I said as he handed me the papers and then he, Hanna, Gella, and Ann sat down. I started reading the notes and realized that I had been extremely lucky to have not died. The device was a physical replacement for a heart. It served the same functions, except it ran on magic and not blood or muscle. It limited personal magic use and stored it instead. ¡°It is a wonder and a horror.¡± The old man said and I nodded in agreement. That thing I felt break and let go inside of my chest, while engaging the concealment enchantment, was a magical storage crystal that were used as ''testing'' crystals by the Mages Guild. The discharge had cracked the crystal and blew a hole right through my chest as the magic was released. A wonder and a horror indeed. I thought and stared at the thing. 265 Back In The Groove I examined the thing that came out of my chest and had an odd thought. I used Detect Enchantment on it and was surprised by the result after thirty seconds of staring at it, because I had assumed it had to be working to get the enchantments from an enchanted item. _______________ You have learned the enchantment ''Magic Siphon''. This enchantment pulls latent magic from the target. You have learned the enchantment ''Energy Storage''. This enchantment funnels magic from a source and into a storage medium. You have learned the enchantment for ''Blood Pump''. This allows a device of suitable construction and placement to continue blood flow as if the target had a working heart. You have learned the runes for ''Focus'', ''Extract'', ''Pull'', and ''Push''. _______________ Oh. Oh, boy. I thought and put the thing down on my lap. Removing it like I had shouldn''t have worked. I really should have been dead. I went over the things I went through and the only reason I could come up with was that I had been treating myself with strength and fortifying potions every year. It must have hardened my heart muscle enough to let number ten potion actually work to seal it, instead of making it a solid mass of muscle. ¡°What are your thoughts?¡± The older man asked me. ¡°It''s not an attachment for a heart that only impedes magic.¡± I said and he leaned forward. ¡°It''s a complete replacement for the heart and siphons off your magic.¡± He reeled back as if slapped and Farra started to cry. ¡°It''s all right.¡± I said and reached for her face to rub the tears away and my arm gave out just as I touched her skin. Farra grabbed it and placed it on her face with a sigh as my magic flowed through it. ¡°Master, you need to rest.¡± Hanna said. ¡°I know.¡± I said and nodded at the device on my lap. ¡°Put that and your notes in a safe place.¡± I said to the older man. ¡°When I''m better, we can work on altering or disabling the magic portions of it.¡± The older man nodded and took the device and the papers. He left with a thoughtful look on his face and Ann gave the other women in the room a calculating look. ¡°We won''t crowd him.¡± Hanna promised and Gella nodded in agreement. ¡°Try to not disturb him as he sleeps.¡± Ann said and stood. ¡°Only wear light clothing and leave him half covered like he is now. He has to recover. Boiling under a blanket with the three of you won''t help him much.¡± ¡°We know.¡± The three women said as one as Hanna and Gella went to the other bed to lay down. Ann smiled. ¡°I''ll be back later to check on you.¡± ¡°Wait.¡± I said and she looked at me. ¡°Where do you sleep?¡± Ann smiled. ¡°Garret.¡± I blinked my eyes at her for a moment, then I smiled. ¡°Good for you.¡± Ann laughed softly. ¡°He protected me from one of the newer slaves that knew what my outfit meant.¡± I frowned slightly. ¡°The next words out of your mouth had better be that Laughter had a good meal.¡± Ann walked over to me and lightly caressed my face. ¡°Garret took his arms and legs and fed them to Laughter first, so that it could make the food last longer.¡± I smiled because Laughter was the name of Ann''s favorite water beast. ¡°Give Garret an extra pay this week for disposing of the trash.¡± ¡°I already did, my lord.¡± Ann said with a huge smile. ¡°Goodnight.¡± ¡°Goodnight.¡± I said and she left. I took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°Sleep, Master.¡± Farra said and I nodded. She turned onto her back briefly as she moved my hand from her face and slid it down her body to rest it on her abdomen. I did not miss the feeling of her firm breast against my palm. ¡°Farra.¡± I whispered. ¡°I know.¡± Farra said and turned back onto her side to face me, with my hand on her hip. ¡°We''ve heard of Mage King and her deplorable behavior.¡± ¡°We all want to show you that a woman can be seductive and let you touch her, without it becoming something that would break your vow.¡± Hanna said. ¡°We all agreed that of all the men on this ship... or any that we''ve ever met... that you are above all of them and deserve to be treated as such.¡± Gella said. ¡°As soon as we get to a suitable port with an administrative building...¡± ¡°SHH!¡± Hanna said and clapped her hand over Gella mouth. ¡°It''s supposed to be a surprise!¡± I thought about lifting my head to look at her, then closed my eyes instead. ¡°I''m sure it will be.¡± Farra slid her hand up to my chest and cupped my other pectoral muscle as she rubbed her cheek on the rough patch of skin on my chest. ¡°Goodnight, Master.¡± ¡°Goodnight.¡± I said and drifted off to sleep. I didn''t wake up for nearly ten hours, which would have been a real problem if I wasn''t so weakened and didn''t have work to do. Everything was being handled, thanks to my diligence in training my replacements for when I left the ship. I didn''t realize that the people on the ship didn''t want me to leave and would stay with me. I opened my eyes and Hanna was tucked under my left arm. My magic swirled through her unfettered and her face had a huge smile on it, even with her asleep. My other thigh was also soaked. My blanket was nowhere to be seen and Hanna still had her underwear on. It was also so wet that it was see-through. I couldn''t decide if having her pressed against my leg was good because I couldn''t see it, or bad because I was about to see it when she woke up and freaked out about it. I knew she was going to wake up because I was starting to ease my magic away from her to contain it. ¡°Uggghhh.¡± Hanna groaned as her magic tried to keep hold of mine. ¡°It''s time to get up.¡± I whispered. ¡°Farra can feed you first this time.¡± Hanna said in a normal voice. ¡°Yes! Right away!¡± Farra said as she sat up in the other bed. She looked half-asleep and tried to jump out of bed, only to stumble and almost fell. She slipped on her pants and tunic, or tried to, and had one arm in the neck hole of the tunic and half of her head sticking out one of the arm holes. She stood with only one leg in her pants and stumbled towards the door. ¡°Gella, grab her.¡± Hanna said with a laugh and Gella''s hand snagged the younger woman''s tunic and pulled her back to the bed. Farra fell backwards over her and as soon as her head hit the pillow, she was asleep again with Gella trapped below her. Hanna laughed again and got up from the bed, went over to the other one, and pulled Farra off of Gella. ¡°Thank you.¡± Gella said and sat up. ¡°How can she be so heavy? She''s only tiny.¡± ¡°It''s all muscle.¡± I said and Hanna and Gella looked over at me. ¡°Muscle is heavier than fat.¡± I had learned that years ago when dealing with the male boars in the marsh. It''s why they sank when they fell or jumped into deep water. ¡°She doesn''t look muscular.¡± Hanna commented as she walked back over to me, letting me see all of her. She had a bush of dark hair between her legs and it didn''t quite cover all of her, which was neat. I hadn''t seen one like that before. I didn''t ask her how she did that, though. ¡°Women don''t develop muscles the same way as men do.¡± I said and tried to sit up on my own. I felt a little stronger today and thought I could get the pillow braced in time. I didn''t and fell back, panting. ¡°Master! Don''t push yourself!¡± Hanna admonished me and eased me up into a sitting position and Gella was there to brace me up with pillows. I rested and looked at the two of them. Hanna wasn''t trying to hide her obvious show and Gella was in a similar state. When I glanced down, it was just a thick bush of hair and nothing could be seen. Gella reached out to touch my face. ¡°Only Farra doesn''t have a woman''s full compliment down there.¡± ¡°She''s underdeveloped like Hanna, only down there and not in the chest?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°I really need to find the right ingredients for brewing the potions I need to fix that.¡± ¡°You won''t be worrying about that for a few more days.¡± Hanna said with a blush. I thought it was odd that she was okay with letting me see her bottom practically naked, and yet, she covered her chest, even with her top securely in place. ¡°I will fix it. I gave my word.¡± Hanna took a deep breath and sighed as she nodded. ¡°I need a sponge bath.¡± I said. Ann was suddenly in the cabin, as if she had been waiting for me to ask. Garret came in a minute later with a wash basin. He saluted, I returned it, and he left. ¡°I am so glad that he understands my devotion to duty.¡± Ann said and admired her man''s back. ¡°He''s as devoted to his own sense of duty.¡± I said. Ann and the other two took off my underwear and I saw that I hadn''t been used or abused. The underwear was clean as well. She gave me a thorough sponge bath and then performed the ritual. She enjoyed it just as much this time as she did the first time. She gave me a pleased smile and woke Farra up to take her to the kitchen to get me breakfast. I was fed in turns again and I used my magic trick to spread the nutrients through my body. Hanna, Gella, and Farra enjoyed it and didn''t feel disappointed that I didn''t do it after Hanna fed me last. They knew lunch and supper would be a similar experience and they would feel my voluntary sharing a lot more. Now I had a problem. I was weakened and couldn''t move very much. I was also bored. I had been constantly moving and doing things since I had regained my mobility and now I was stuck with not being able to do anything. When I mentioned this, a furious discussion happened between the four women about what to do. ¡°I''ll get a book!¡± Hanna exclaimed and grabbed the one she had already read and ran from the room. She came back with a smile on her face and held up a smaller book. ¡°The Princess and the Dragon Slayer.¡± My eyes widened at the cover and the very accurate depiction of myself in my old mangled skin and Princess Ellen. She wasn''t wearing her army uniform and had a fluffy pink dress on. ¡°Ellen wouldn''t be caught dead in that.¡± I said and the women laughed. ¡°We knew you would say that.¡± Hanna said and had Gella ease me back onto the bed to lay down, then she, Gella, and Farra carefully climbed onto the bed. ¡°Chapter One, The Bargain.¡± ¡°I''ll be back for lunch.¡± Ann said with a happy smile and left the cabin. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Skipping miscellaneous details. Speeding up recovery time. Done. _______________ On the morning of the fourth day, I woke up with Gella firmly planted to my side and my thighs were soaked again, just like every night. They must drink lots of water when I''m not looking. I thought and then laughed at the thought, because they hadn''t left my side at all until I slept and they took turns without leaving the room. I found out that they took baths then, too. They didn''t want to cuddle with me while feeling unclean. ¡°Master?¡± Gella asked as she sat up and looked at my face. She caught her breath and then she smiled. ¡°You''re feeling better!¡± I nodded and she let out a yell of delight, which woke the other two women on the other bed. ¡°Wh-what...¡± Farra mumbled. ¡°What''s going on?¡± Hanna asked and sat up, then she saw me. ¡°MASTER! YOU''RE BETTER!¡± Farra jumped out of the bed and stumbled, just like she did before, then lunged at me. I easily caught her and she snuggled down onto my chest as she pressed her cheek to the rough skin over my heart. Her tears flowed freely and I hugged her tightly. ¡°It''s all right now. I feel fine.¡± I said to her and she let out a sob. ¡°Were you scared I would stay weak?¡± Farra nodded without lifting her head. ¡°I would have told you if I was going to be.¡± I said and she took several deep breaths. ¡°Master, how... how would you know?¡± Farra asked and lifted her head to look into my eyes. ¡°I''ve had a lot of time with my body in various states of damage. My heart being this damaged was debilitating; but, the rest of me was fine. Once my heart adjusted to the repairs...¡± ¡°You''re really fine?¡± Hanna asked, unsure. ¡°I''ll prove it when I can move from the bed.¡± I said and no one moved, then Hanna moved over to me and climbed onto the bed to rest on both Gella and myself. She hugged me and rested there without saying anything. ¡°Please.¡± Farra whispered. I knew what she wanted and glanced at Gella''s and Hanna''s faces. They wanted the same thing, so I put my arms around them as much as possible and closed my eyes. I brought up my magic, my completely unfettered and unrestricted magic, and let it flow out. Instead of the steady stream that it used to be, a river gushed out and swirled through them. They moaned as their magic was swept up in the flow and they shivered as their bodies enjoyed the sensation so much that they soaked my thighs even more. And the bed. I couldn''t keep it going, not and have them retain their senses and not ravage me like Helena always did when I shared with her. So, I eased it off and left their own magic churning with need as the flow reversed and my magic retreated back into me. ¡°B-b-bath!¡± The three of them said as one and Ann opened the cabin door. ¡°I didn''t hear the word sponge!¡± Ann said, both excited and happy. ¡°Get the bath room ready.¡± I said and let the women in my bed go. ¡°I need a full dress uniform, too.¡± ¡°Yes, my lord. It will be done.¡± Ann said and left with an extra sway to her hips. 266 Making A Show Of It Bokuboy I stood on the rear deck of the ship that could survive a lot being done to it. Like me. I wore a mockery of the Gulf Kingdom''s navy uniform with epaulettes on my shoulders that were twice as big, a hat twice as high, and huge buttons on the coat. The crew below on the main deck were snickering and chuckling at me and I hadn''t even spoken yet. ¡°As you can all see, I have been reborn as the outrageous embodiment of arrogance!¡± I shouted and they all laughed. ¡°We''ve done the Gulf Kingdom''s job even better than they ever could!¡± ¡°YEAH!¡± The crew cheered. ¡°We''ve beaten the scum of the Eastern Empire back and ruined their shipping!¡± ¡°YEAH!¡± ¡°We''ve liberated their slaves!¡± ¡°YEAH!¡± ¡°We''ve stolen their food and made it edible AND delicious!¡± ¡°YEAH!¡± ¡°We''re richer than most nobles and we kick them in the balls!¡± ¡°YEAH! Iron Balls! IRON BALLS!¡± ¡°What?¡± I asked, confused. ¡°That''s your Pirate Name. Captain Iron Balls.¡± Jensen said with a grin. ¡°Are you kidding me?¡± I asked him. ¡°Nope! We voted on it the day after you tore your own heart out. If anyone in this world deserves a name like that, after everything you''ve done, it''s you.¡± I gave him a glare and he grinned even more. ¡°I''m stuck with that name now, aren''t I?¡± ¡°YES!¡± The crew yelled. ¡°Dammit.¡± I said and they all laughed. ¡°All right. Fine.¡± ¡°YEEEAAAHHHH!¡± The crew cheered. ¡°I think it''s time we get the information we need to get to our new lives.¡± I said and they all nodded. ¡°We have one place left to explore, a place we''re apparently heading towards anyway.¡± The crew laughed some more. ¡°It''s going to be dangerous and it''s going to be scary... for the enemy!¡± The crew cheered. ¡°I''ll have armor pieces ready for anyone that wants them by tomorrow.¡± I said and they all looked surprised. ¡°I''m back to my old self.¡± I held the palm of my hand out towards the water and cast the very first spell in the spell books we found. ¡°Fireball.¡± A two foot wide ball of fire appeared in front of my palm and then shot off like a cannonball. It hit the water a hundred feet away and exploded. The splash and steam blew up twenty feet into the air before dissipating. The entire crew was silent for several seconds, then a deafening roar of cheers followed. ¡°We have another week before we get there, so keep up with your training and I''ll learn more spells.¡± I said and they all nodded. ¡°We''re all with you, sir!¡± One of the men shouted and everyone cheered. ¡°Good! Now let''s get breakfast!¡± I shouted and they started to disperse. Some gathered and talked, others went to do their duties that were delayed because of my speech, and I walked over to Hanna, Gella, Farra, Molly, and the older man. He still hadn''t told me his chosen name. ¡°Any progress?¡± I asked them. ¡°Some.¡± Molly said and she smiled at her man as he approached. ¡°Jensen, love.¡± ¡°Molly.¡± Jensen said and gave her a kiss. As soon as he did so, Molly''s hand lit up and a little fireball hovered there. ¡°I see.¡± I said. ¡°You''re using your love as a catalyst.¡± ¡°No, it is a catalyst.¡± Molly said and tossed the fireball over the side of the ship and the splash was only about five feet wide. ¡°I just can''t concentrate without him by my side.¡± I held my hand out to her and she shook her head. ¡°Molly, trust me.¡± Molly gave Jensen a pleading look and he smiled. ¡°He wouldn''t risk it.¡± Jensen said. ¡°He has to sleep sometime.¡± Molly laughed softly and nodded as she took my hand. I let my magic out and shared it with her. It made her gasp and she started sweating immediately. She did not fawn over me or felt pleasure... because there was no connection there between us. I stopped sharing and she gave Jensen a particular greedy look with her magic over-charged. ¡°You''re up, my friend.¡± I said and clapped him on the back. ¡°I''ll have breakfast delivered in half an hour.¡± ¡°Yessir!¡± Jensen said and he and Molly quickly walked down to the main deck and entered the ship. ¡°That''s a relief.¡± The older man said. ¡°She has been worried about that.¡± ¡°I know.¡± I said and looked at the others. ¡°Who wants to sit at the captain''s table?¡± ¡°ME!¡± Farra, Hanna, Gella, and Ann said at the same time. ¡°Allow me to escort you.¡± I said and waved at the main deck. Farra and Gella took my arms as Ann and Hanna took up their positions behind us. After breakfast, I went to the work room and set up the molds for armor pieces and used bits of metal and number ten potion to make the armor pieces. I made enough for everyone, even if they didn''t want them. They would be available if they want them and that was the point. The girls sewed the leather into the right shapes for straps and holders as well, then we used number ten potion to attach them together. We stopped for lunch and then continued on. Chest pieces, hip and thigh pieces, and even larger back pieces. Nothing was restrictive and it could easily be worn under clothing. We ate supper and kept working until we had full sets for everyone. When we went to bed that night, I wasn''t surprised that they wanted to continue the same rotation of cuddle time as when I was unconscious and hurt. I didn''t have to warn them about abusing my good nature, because they abhorred Mage King abusing her position as much as everyone else did. It was relaxing to know that there were other women that were as concerned about me as Helena was. My thoughts went to her and how much time I had been away. It was nearly five months already. I hoped that she had escaped from the Hag''s faked Eastern Empire attack and that I would still have a home to go back to. ¡°Don''t worry, Master.¡± Hanna said when she saw my face. ¡°She''ll be there waiting. I know it.¡± ¡°I hope she is.¡± I said and then sighed. ¡°The question is, will she be alone?¡± Hanna hugged me under the blanket and snuggled down to rest her head onto my chest. ¡°If she is smart, all she will have with her is Vanessa and your son.¡± She whispered. ¡°If she is not smart, you need to kill her husband to claim your rightful place.¡± I nodded at her words, because they were true. If Helena survived and stayed true to her word, she will wait diligently for me even if my body was somehow produced for her. If someone else dared to step into my role and took what was mine... my vengeance on them, their families, and the Mages Guild will be terrible to behold. For them. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Skipping miscellaneous details. Speeding up time. Prep work for crew complete. Potions created and stored. Enchantments completed. Done. _______________ We knew the shipping schedules by heart as we entered the large port that the Eastern Empire used as a beachhead into the continent. We were using the main concealment enchantment to hide the ship and floated into the harbour completely unopposed. I also installed Blocking enchantments on everything to stop what the Hag had done to my ship. We would not be losing our movement or weight enchantments or lose access to the new things I had made. Heavy Kracken Tubes. Thanks to learning the ''Push'' rune, I no longer needed a miniature catapult to launch the ammunition at a high speed. They could be launched right from the deck of a ship with the push rune enchanted at the bottom of the launch tube. It could also launch full-sized logs with no trouble. With a pulley system and the logs piled right beside the thing, it could be loaded by two men and I, Gella, Farra, or Molly could launch them. Which meant that we had four of the massive things ready to fire as we entered the harbour. We each picked an Eastern Empire ship to target and let the first volley go. The logs had metal tips with overcharged Fire enchantments on the ends, so they tore through the hulls of the ships with only one shot. The explosions and fires they caused would have made everyone cheer if I hadn''t included the silence enchantment in the concealment one. I learned my lesson with the marsh panthers about making noise, even when not being seen. Our next shots took out the guards, the two shacks, and the patrolling army platoon. You haven''t seen a massacre until you''ve seen twenty men be mulched by a single shipboard weapon. We kept firing as our ship slowly drifted into the middle of the harbour. The scene was reminiscent of when I was kidnapped, except we were not firing on civilians. Only army and navy targets were hit and when we ran out of ones close to the water, we tilted the tubes up and took aim at the garrison and other army buildings. Thanks to my extensive knowledge of building army bases, we easily targeted the right buildings and pretty much wiped out the entire place in only twenty minutes. We were also almost out of ammunition for the Heavy Kracken Tubes. That was okay, though. We had plenty for the eight cannons on each side of the ship and I turned the ship to face the broadside towards the port town. I moved the ship sideways to bring us closer to the docks as I let the concealment part of the enchantment lapse, then I walked up onto the bow spirit and spoke loudly, thanks to another weird spell called Amplify. ¡°NO CIVILIANS WILL BE HURT IF YOU DO NOT ATTACK US!¡± I said. Almost immediately, dozens of crossbow bolts and arrows flew from various buildings towards us. The crossbow bolts were a waste of ammo because they couldn''t reach us. The arrows were easily deflected by the Mage Shield around the ship. ¡°I ONLY GIVE ONE WARNING.¡± I said. ¡°FIRE!¡± Eight enchanted and flaming cannonballs soared through the air, each aimed at one of the buildings that had fired on us. Each were hit on the top floors and the buildings immediately went afire. A second later, they exploded. The next shots took out more targets and soon there was nothing that wasn''t burning. No one else shot at us. I brought the ship, still broadside, all the way to the docks. There was a mostly empty berth with the burning remains of a navy ship in it, so I chose to shove our ship there. The sounds of crunching wood was loud as our ship crushed the wreckage, then I dropped the weight enchantment and the ship settled down to put the deck at level with the upper dock. We were hooked on and a crew of our trusted slaves were left behind as I and the rest of the crew stepped off of the deck as one. We formed into a marching formation and carried bags of swords on our backs. As we marched through the port town, we tossed a sword at any slave we saw. ¡°You know what to do with that.¡± I commanded and they always nodded, picked up the sword, and disappeared into whatever house they were near. By the time we reached the garrison, I had nearly two hundred slaves behind me. I pushed aside the mangled metal gates and we all walked through the opening and into the garrison. ¡°FIRE!¡± A man''s voice commanded and dozens of arrows and crossbow bolts flew at us... and bounced off of Hanna''s, Farra''s, Gella''s, and my own personal shields. My medallions were really great and the shocked looks on the enemy''s faces was priceless. ¡°Show these vermin that we are no longer their slaves.¡± I said and the entire group behind me yelled and stormed the place. The enemy died shortly after. There were a lot of hurt slaves, though. Liberal use of potions and kind words had them praising us for saving them all. ¡°We didn''t save you.¡± Gella said and smiled. ¡°We only liberated you and gave you a weapon. You saved yourselves.¡± The other slaves looked confused for several moments, then one of them got it. ¡°We''re free! FREEEE!¡± I ignored the celebration and entered the main building of the garrison. We had already killed the CO and I suspected that the XO was here somewhere if he wasn''t already dead. I concentrated on my vigilance technique and felt someone inside the main office. ¡°If you are a slave, open the door and be free.¡± I said and felt movement. ¡°If you''re an army man, surrender and be treated humanely.¡± ¡°Not by slaves!¡± The man shouted and kicked the door open as he fired his crossbow at my chest. His mouth dropped open when it bounced off. ¡°Death it is.¡± I said and swiped my glowing sword across his neck. His body fell to the floor and I stepped over it to go inside the office. I quickly searched it and smiled as I found what I wanted in the large top drawer of the desk. I pulled out the papers and maps that showed the rest of the continent and where they were getting the supplies shipped in from. Jensen came into the room with Molly on his arm. ¡°Sir, we have the PX payrolls.¡± I smiled and rolled up the papers I had and stood. ¡°Give each of the new slaves ten gold and tell them that there are commercial ships that we didn''t burn to the sea.¡± Jensen barked a laugh. ¡°We''re going to have another ship following us if we tell them that!¡± I walked over to him and put a hand on his shoulder. ¡°More hands make easier work.¡± Jensen nodded and we left the main office as several of our crew came in with canvas sacks to fill with loot. Nothing of value would be left behind and then it would all be burned to the ground, thanks to the Immolation potion recipe that I fixed and made as easy to brew as number ten potion. When we were done, nothing of the town would be left. I only give one warning. If they don''t listen, that was their choice. 267 A Forgotten Stop During the walk back through the town towards the docks, I recognized a few things. I thought that odd, then pulled out the maps and looked at them again. ¡°My lord, what is it?¡± Hanna asked. ¡°There''s one more stop I need to make.¡± I said and rolled the maps and papers back up. ¡°Jensen, take these and put them in my cabin. We''ll work out what to do next when I come back.¡± ¡°Sir, you need to bring someone with you.¡± Jensen said. ¡°Gella and Farra will come with me.¡± I said and nodded at them, then looked at Hanna. ¡°I might be bringing another slave into the room.¡± ¡°Yes, master.¡± Hanna said and she walked on with the others. ¡°We need horses.¡± I said and Gella led me over to the place where there were horses. It was one of the few buildings that we hadn''t burned down to the ground, because no one had attacked us from there. The slaves handed over their three best horses and told us to keep them. ¡°They won''t like going by ship.¡± I said and handed the slave a gold coin. ¡°I need another horse and we''ll be back in a couple of hours.¡± ¡°Yessir! Right away, sir!¡± The slave said and the fourth horse was tied to my saddle and we rode out of there at a fast trot. When we reached the open road, we sped up to a full run. About forty-five minutes later, we arrived at the place that I had been converted into a slave. I had Farra and Gella use their enchanted necklaces and I hopped off of the horse. The guard at the gate didn''t recognize me and I didn''t really expect him to, because I wasn''t being hauled around on a cart. ¡°State your business, slave.¡± ¡°I''m here to kill you all.¡± I said and my sword swished across his chest. ¡°No one defies the Hag and gets away with it. I''m proof of that.¡± The guard died with surprise on his face. We walked by him and entered the main house. Gella killed the second guard there and shocked the slaves. After that, it was easy to find the mistress of the house when the slaves were given swords to kill her for torturing them. Her screams brought us to her parlour and two of the slaves had her arms pinned and the third was slowly pushing a blade into her belly. ¡°I came back for you.¡± I said and she screamed again. ¡°Where''s the one that took care of me?¡± The woman shook her head. ¡°Rotate the blade.¡± I said and the female slave grinned at me and twisted the blade. The woman screamed and blood flowed out of her belly. ¡°Where?¡± I asked. ¡°St-stock... stockade.¡± The woman said with a whimper. ¡°Please, let me go. I didn''t mean to harm...¡± ¡°Make her like you before she dies.¡± I said and tossed them a healing potion. The slaves cheered as I walked away to go to the stockade. I found the older woman that took care of me with her head and hands secured through the wood with shackles. She was also completely naked. I slashed my sword through the shackles and nodded to Farrah. She held the woman as I cut up the stockade and then handed her to me. I gave Gella a look and she nodded before running off. ¡°Y-you... you... how...¡± The older woman whispered as she weakly clung to me. ¡°The guards made the mistake of giving a crippled slave to pirates.¡± I said with a smile. ¡°I took over after barely a day.¡± The older woman laughed and then started crying. Farra wrapped a blanket around her, because there were no clothes around to give her. I reached up and touched her forehead and shared my magic with her. I was looking for the heart device and didn''t find any, so she wasn''t one of the Hag''s main experiments. She did have a trickle of magic in her that responded to mine, though. I dropped my hand back down to hug her. ¡°I''ve been working hard to get back home and stopped here for the information I needed.¡± I explained to her as she rested against me. ¡°I almost didn''t realize that this was where I was converted into a slave. Once I did...¡± ¡°You came for revenge.¡± The older woman said. ¡°No, I came for you.¡± I said and she cried harder. ¡°It''s my turn to take care of you now.¡± We stood there and held each other as I waited for Gella to return. She came back dragging a whipped man that was crying his eyes out. When he saw me, he wet his pants. Gella dropped him at my feet and stood beside me. ¡°He was whipping a slave when I caught him.¡± I nodded and held a hand out towards the crying man. The older woman clinging to me put her hand in front of mine and held it, as if she knew what I was going to do. ¡°Please, he''s not worth lighting on fire.¡± I smiled. ¡°No, dear lady. He''s too good to die like that.¡± ¡°Oh, thank the father.¡± She said and let my hand go. ¡°He needs to feel what it''s like to be flayed alive instead.¡± I said and cast the latest spell I had learned. ¡°Wind Shear.¡± The crying man screamed as his skin and clothing were shredded with hundreds of little wind blades. His blood splashed over the ground and he rolled around, hugging himself, as if to try and stop the pain. All he did was make his blood flow out faster. ¡°Let''s go.¡± I said and Farra, Gella, the older woman and I went over to the horses. She was too weak to ride alone, so the slaves of the house helped put her on my horse with me. They thanked me for freeing them. ¡°W-wait.¡± The older woman whispered from behind me. ¡°The... the healer''s letter. It''s in... my bed.¡± ¡°Where are the healers?¡± I asked and the slaves pointed to a burned out building. ¡°I see.¡± ¡°No proof.¡± The older woman said and started crying again. ¡°It''s all right.¡± I said and pat her arms around my waist. ¡°I doubt she would have paused long enough from killing everyone to read it, anyway.¡± The older woman nodded and we trotted out of the place to head back towards town. We saw several slaves running towards the next house and enter it, then a man''s yell to get out was interrupted by his scream. ¡°They''re learning.¡± Gella said and the slaves came out with a young albino boy between them. They waved at us and I waved back. ¡°Word will spread.¡± I said and picked up speed. I couldn''t run all out with a passenger, so we stayed at a fast trot and continued on into the town. ¡°You wrecked everything?¡± The older woman whispered the question an hour and a half later when she saw the burned out buildings. ¡°I told them not to attack us.¡± I said and went to the stable to the slave that gave us the horses. ¡°Come with us to retrieve the horses.¡± ¡°Yessir!¡± He said and untied the one on my saddle and rode behind us. We reached the docks and saw that the other ships were being stripped by a hundred slaves to pile everything into one of the bigger ships. The funny thing was, the crews of those ships were too terrified to stop them. Unlike the crew of my pirate ship, most crewmen didn''t have a lot of fighting experience and couldn''t handle a mass of troops. ¡°Thanks for the horses.¡± I said as Gella helped the older woman down from behind me. I hopped off to clomp my boots onto the wooden dock, which surprised the older woman. I handed over the reins of the three horses and the slave nodded and rode away. ¡°I can take her from here, Master.¡± Gella said. I shook my head and she handed the older woman to me. ¡°I always accept my responsibilities.¡± She nodded and we walked slowly down the docks towards our ship. The older woman gasped when she saw the ship up close. She didn''t say anything, though. We were helped onto the deck by several of the crew and none of them asked what had taken so long. They either guessed or had someone follow us. ¡°Prepare for departure.¡± I said to Jensen as I passed him to go inside the ship. ¡°We''ve had a formal request to wait from the other ship.¡± Jensen said and pointed to the partially loaded ship that the slaves were commandeering. ¡°Really? A formal request?¡± I asked and he grinned. ¡°Was it at least on a piece of paper?¡± ¡°No, a cloth napkin!¡± Jensen said with a laugh. ¡°Good enough.¡± I said and he nodded. I went inside the ship and brought the older woman to the bath room. When she saw the place, she started shaking. ¡°It''s all right. I know what I''m doing.¡± ¡°No, it... I haven''t...¡± ¡°Did it discourage any men from taking you at the stockade?¡± I asked. The older woman gave me a harsh look. ¡°How could you ask something like that?¡± ¡°It''s a valid strategy. It worked for me until I made a woman so horny that she jumped me and then had to take a bath afterwards.¡± She blinked her eyes at me for a moment and then nodded. ¡°I was too soiled for them to enjoy themselves. One came close and all he did was rub it with his hand, then threw up at the stench.¡± She said, as if to shock me. ¡°Good. They didn''t deserve to have you like that or to force you to feel good while using you.¡± I said and she stared at me. ¡°Yes, I know the difference.¡± She let out a sigh and I sat her on a chair as I prepped the water for her with lots of bubbles. She didn''t question me as to where the bubbles came from or how I made the water hot almost instantly. ¡°I''m still too weak to bathe.¡± The older woman said, sadly. ¡°I promised to take care of you.¡± I said and slowly pulled off the blanket she hadn''t let go since Farra gave it to her. I picked her up and she started to protest at dirtying my clothing. ¡°It''s a costume I wear to make the crew laugh.¡± ¡°Wait, it''s not a real uniform?¡± The older woman asked as she settled down in the water. ¡°Ohhh, thank you.¡± I chuckled. ¡°I guess it would look real for anyone not seeing it up close.¡± ¡°I thought you robbed a Gulf Kingdom ship or something.¡± The older woman said and laid back as much as she could in the tub. ¡°If this is a dream, I don''t want to wake up.¡± ¡°I haven''t started bathing you yet.¡± I said and she smiled. What followed was a thorough scrubbing that had the older woman so embarrassed and blushing at the end that she wouldn''t even look at me. I dried her off and put underwear on her, then a very nice pair of pants that were better than the old mistress'' clothing and a stylish tunic that made her blush even more. ¡°It''s all right to enjoy the bath.¡± I said to her and helped her to walk down the hallway to the captain''s cabin. ¡°It wasn''t the bath.¡± She said without looking at me. ¡°I enjoyed you touching me so tenderly.¡± ¡°I have a personal maid and she does the ritual after every bath.¡± I told her and she stumbled. I held her up and didn''t let her fall. ¡°How are you so steady on your feet? You don''t have any toes.¡± She asked to distract me. ¡°My slave and maid bought me these great boots.¡± I said and showed her before sitting her down on my large bed. ¡°I want you to relax and I''ll bring you some food to eat.¡± The older woman looked slightly panicked. ¡°I.. I can''t eat...¡± ¡°It''s all right. I''ll take care of everything.¡± I said and helped her recline on the bed. ¡°You won''t be weak for long and then you can decide what to do with the rest of your life.¡± ¡°The... the rest of my life?¡± She asked, unsure. ¡°You''re free now, so you can do whatever you want.¡± I said. ¡°I''ll be right back with some potions for you and some broth and bread.¡± The older woman nodded with a thoughtful look on her face. I left and gathered what I needed and somehow also gathered Farra, Gella, and Hanna. It was almost like they knew I was going to be using my nutrition dispersion trick and wanted to participate. They followed me back into the captain''s cabin and introduced themselves and their roles. Hanna, my slave. Gella, my sworn sword. Farra, my apprentice. ¡°I''m his personal maid, Ann.¡± Ann said as she entered the room as well. ¡°My lord, do not do as many feedings as you did on yourself for every meal. She''s not as robust as you are.¡± ¡°Just two then.¡± I suggested and she nodded. The older woman was giving us all furtive looks. ¡°Can I ask you your name?¡± I asked as I placed the tray on her lap and then handed her the healing potion first before the general health potion. She drank both before answering. ¡°I... I... don''t have one.¡± ¡°Nana.¡± Hanna said immediately and we all looked at her. ¡°What? She looks like my moth... my-hurk!¡± ¡°SHE IS!¡± The other slaves yelled immediately and rushed to her side to hug her. ¡°She is! She''s your mother now! She''ll take care of you!¡± Hanna''s red face and laboured breathing slowed down and she started to nod. She nodded for nearly ten seconds before stopping. ¡°Th-thank you.¡± I watched as the older woman''s hand reached out and took Hanna''s. ¡°I''ve always wanted a daughter.¡± She said with a smile. ¡°Nana!¡± Hanna exclaimed as tears came to her eyes and she leaned down to hug the older woman as if she really was her mother. ¡°You can feed her first.¡± I said and moved to let Hanna sit where I was on the bed. ¡°Thank you, Master.¡± Hanna said and wiped at her face, then she sat down and carefully fed her new mother. The ones that wanted to share in the flow of magic touched her arms when Hanna was done and I used my trick to make her digest the food and spread the nutrients out. Nana gave me a shocked look for barely a second before her stomach grumbled and she blushed. The others laughed and told her that my stomach rumbled a lot louder than that. ¡°I can do this one.¡± Ann said and she fed Nana the meal she would digest normally and left with the tray. ¡°Sleep if you can.¡± I said. ¡°I''ll be back later to check on you.¡± I glanced at Hanna. ¡°Although, I may have been replaced in taking care of you.¡± Nana nodded and held her arms out to Hanna, who took the invitation and climbed onto the bed to lay down with her. We left them there to bond over old losses and new happiness. 268 The Journey Home Part One Bokuboy The other ship was prepared by suppertime and we slowly left the harbour behind. A lot more slaves than I assumed had stayed behind, as if they thought ship life wouldn''t be good for them. Little did they realize that it would be better than anything they could have back where they used to be slaves. The crew tried to tell them and they wouldn''t believe it. We gained a few of the more prolific slaves that decided to make a life for themselves wherever we ended up and a lot of slaves that just wanted to be away from the horrors they had experienced. Well, perceived horrors. None of them had gone through what I had, not even the excessive whipping by the slave trainer. Most accepted their new fate after only a whip or two. I didn''t hold it against them, since none of them were me. Like I had told Vanessa, anyone else but me would have given up years ago and died. We set sail and I assumed that it would take the same amount of time as the ship that had brought me to the new land. I couldn''t have been more wrong. None of the people I had access to had ever sailed that way before and our supposed two week trip ended up taking a month. The crews and passengers of both ships were grateful for my protection enchantments, because we met a plethora of sea monsters along the way. We were lucky that only one or two were strong enough to fight the pain and approached the ships, because the ones that did were the leviathans that Jensen had warned us about. The cannons and Heavy Kracken Tubes took care of them eventually and we only lost three days to repairs. The worst part about it was that we couldn''t use all of that meat. I tried several tricks and I couldn''t get the meat to be edible, not even for just the magic users or myself. So, we fed it to the water beasts that kept following us. They didn''t complain about the free food and even seemed to like it. When we reached what I thought was familiar waters, I felt something in the pit of my stomach. I had no idea what it meant, because I was eating well and was as healthy as I could be with a mangled back and fingers and toes missing. I felt a hand on my arm and turned my head to look at Gella, my sworn sword. ¡°You''re nervous.¡± Gella whispered. ¡°What''s nervous mean?¡± I asked. Gella blinked her eyes at me several times, then sighed. ¡°I guess you wouldn''t have felt it after what you''ve been through.¡± She said and explained that normal people become almost scared at the prospects of what they were going to encounter. ¡°I''m not scared.¡± I said. ¡°No, you aren''t up here.¡± Gella said and tapped my temple. ¡°You are here.¡± She moved down and tapped my heart. ¡°Your body is reacting to a false fear that what you are expecting won''t be there.¡± ¡°I don''t understand.¡± I said. ¡°You will.¡± Gella whispered. ¡°If what you want is there, you''ll feel relief and that fake fear will fade. If it''s not, that fake fear might become sadness or anger.¡± I opened my mouth to respond when Jensen''s voice called out from the crow''s nest. ¡°Sir! We''re being approached by a Gulf Kingdom''s scout clipper!¡± Jensen shouted and pointed. ¡°All stop!¡± I shouted and the crew prepared for my order. They knew I could stop the ship instantly and made sure to secure everything in case I had to. I glanced at Farra. ¡°Let the other ship know to slow down.¡± Farra nodded and ran to the back of the rear deck and held a hand up to shoot off a series of small fireballs. It was a specific sequence that told the other ship to pull sail and to let the ship drift. They were far enough behind us, on purpose, to escape if the Gulf Kingdom became hostile. We were pirates, after all. I eased the ship to a slow stop and then lowered it down into the water. If the clipper ship became hostile, the cannons would make short work of them. I walked over to the side of the ship and turned it slightly to bring the hidden cannons onto the target faster. I didn''t do it all at once and pretended that the ship was drifting slowly in the waves. We all waited silently as the clipper ship grew from the small thing it had been in the distance, then we saw the sails be pulled up. Since it was a fast ship, they did it much earlier than they normally would. The ship also turned across the back of our ship and then turned out to bring its own meagre cannons to bear from its broadside. The crew of my ship chuckled at the shocked looks on the clipper ship crew''s faces as they came close enough to realize the size of our ship and that it was populated by albino slaves. The clipper came to a stop, several hundred feet away and everyone stared at each other across the distance. I used the amplify spell on myself and waved. ¡°Ho, the Gulf Kingdom clipper ship! We seek entry and escort for rescued slaves!¡± The crew of the clipper jerked as if slapped and they started talking furiously. One of them disappeared and went inside the ship. I was using my vigilance technique constantly again, now that I was feeling more like myself, and my eyes widened as a woman I recognized stepped out onto the clipper ship''s deck. She wore an actual Gulf Kingdom''s uniform and not the costume I did. ¡°Good day, Lady Ming.¡± I said and bowed to her with a regal bow that was solely for the royal family. She wasn''t a member; but, she would recognize the gesture. I thought I heard her curse loudly and ignored it. ¡°It''s been a long time since last we met on Tori''s ingredient trip.¡± The little woman''s figure seemed to stop around on the deck and I definitely heard her curing. She started barking orders at the crew and they started moving around quickly. ¡°Please hold.¡± I said and they all stopped and looked at me. ¡°Instead of risking your ship, which I know you do not want to do, I can come over to you. We have boats for that.¡± I waved at the crew and one of the assault boats was loaded onto the pulleys and lowered into the water. With the ship so low, it didn''t have far to go. Lady Ming looked conflicted and talked to several of the men. She nodded and turned to me to give the signals for two men and myself, and no weapons were allowed. I made the signs for agreement and that I would be over promptly. She looked surprised and the men around her laughed at my ridiculousness. I ended the amplify spell and looked at the women beside me as I handed my sword to Hanna. ¡°Gella, Farra. You''re with me.¡± Both women smiled and nodded at me before Gella gave Hanna her sword and we walked over to the side of the ship. We hopped over the railing and dropped down ten feet to land in the boat. It didn''t shake at all and the looks of shock on the clipper ship''s crew were almost funny, until we sat down and I used the movement enchantments to launch the boat out like a cannonball straight towards them. Some of the men screamed in fright and Lady Ming looked cross. She didn''t like that I was approaching exactly like I told her, promptly. I brought us to a stop ten feet away and looked up at her angry face. ¡°Permission to come aboard?¡± Lady Ming looked at the Kracken Tubes on my assault boat. ¡°I think you''re close enough as you are.¡± ¡°They''re not loaded.¡± I said and put my hand inside one of the tubes to prove it and then turned it to show her that it was empty. ¡°I assumed that I wouldn''t be needing them.¡± I looked into her eyes. ¡°I won''t, will I?¡± Lady Ming looked like she was going to tell me that I did. ¡°You''re supposed to be dead.¡± ¡°Anyone who knew me would know I wouldn''t let that stop me from coming back.¡± I said and her angry look changed to surprise. ¡°You''ve died before.¡± Lady Ming whispered. ¡°Several times.¡± I said and the two women with me nodded. ¡°That... witch... tore out your heart.¡± Lady Ming said. She must have heard that from someone that was there. I thought and held my hands up in surrender, then slowly pulled open my uniform coat and shirt. ¡°By the Son''s Light!¡± One of the crewmen gasped at the mangled skin over my heart. Lady Ming looked sick. ¡°You... you''re really you.¡± ¡°I always have been.¡± I said and quickly buttoned my shirt up. I''ve had a lot of practice with only two fingers on each hand and a thumb. ¡°Do you realize how long...¡± ¡°About six months.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°I came back as soon as I could.¡± ¡°How?¡± She asked and looked at the frigate I had come from. ¡°I can see that you were made a slave...¡± ¡°It doesn''t matter.¡± I said. ¡°Will you escort me back into friendly waters?¡± Lady Ming sighed. ¡°Mister Drake...¡± ¡°Lord Drake.¡± I corrected. She gave me a brief glare. ¡°I can''t abandon my post. The Gulf Kingdom and the Eastern Empire are at war and...¡± ¡°I know. I was there when it started.¡± I said and pointed back at my ship. ¡°I''ve also destroyed eighteen navy ships of all sizes, six pirate ships, thirty two Eastern Empire merchant ships, and burned their main shipping port to the ground and freed all of the slaves there. Hundreds of them.¡± Lady Ming stared at me with her mouth open, clearly shocked. ¡°Would you like a tour of my ship, The Frigging Frigate?¡± I asked and bowed slightly as I waved at it. ¡°You want to take me over in that?¡± Lady Ming asked and looked at the assault boat warily. ¡°No, we can tow you over.¡± I said and looked at the man beside her. ¡°Give me the front guide rope.¡± ¡°Captain?¡± He asked the woman beside him. Lady Ming nodded and gave me an odd look. I smiled at her and moved my boat around and caught the rope thrown from the front of her clipper. I made a show of tying the rope onto the back of my boat while Farra attached a weight enchantment to the bow of the clipper. When she nodded to me, I moved the boat out to remove the slack from the guide rope. ¡°Brace yourselves. I''ll bring you up alongside.¡± I said and the crew scrambled to grab onto something. I activated the weight enchantment on the clipper and then used the movement enchantment on my boat to pull the much larger ship as if it was just a barge. ¡°Someone get on the rudder and keep us stable!¡± Lady Ming spat and the wobbling ship straightened out a moment later. I pulled them in a wide arc and then slowed us down to make sure I didn''t ram the clipper into my ship. Not that it would hurt it, just because it would unnecessarily shake the people on my ship. When we came close enough, boarding hooks were deployed and grabbed onto the clipper. ¡°HEY!¡± Lady Ming yelled. ¡°It''s all right. Any damage is easily fixed. You have my word.¡± I said and untied the guide rope to toss back onto the clipper. I tied on the pulley ropes to the assault boat and we were pulled up onto the deck. ¡°What kind of ship is this?¡± One of the clipper crew asked. He looked nervous, now that I knew what it meant. ¡°It''s my ship.¡± I said and Hanna handed me my sword back. ¡°Heavily modified and reinforced with eight cannons on each broadside with two more at the bow and two more at the stern.¡± I said. ¡°Below deck.¡± The crewmen stared with wide eyes and Lady Ming looked like she didn''t want to step onto my ship. ¡°Do you have a mage onboard?¡± I asked and she shook her head. ¡°How do you send messages?¡± ¡°We go back to the closest port.¡± Lady Ming said, as if reluctant to admit it. ¡°They still underestimate you, even in a time of war?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°I assume you''re the only ship out this far.¡± Lady Ming nodded again. ¡°There have been raids on both sides, damaging infrastructure and ship building capabilities.¡± ¡°They can''t spare anyone else for an early warning that they may never get.¡± I said and she sighed. ¡°If the Eastern Empire catch you out here alone, you won''t survive.¡± Lady Ming scowled. ¡°You think I don''t know that my clipper is out-classed?¡± ¡°I meant you personally.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°They don''t treat captured women well.¡± Gella, Farra, and Hanna shook their heads several times. Lady Ming''s face paled. ¡°Yes, exactly.¡± I said and held my arm out to her in the escort pose. ¡°I invite you and your men onto my ship. Guest rules apply. Anyone caught harming my people or stealing, will be dealt with appropriately.¡± ¡°I punish my crew.¡± Lady Ming said as her hand hesitated from accepting my arm. ¡°You don''t value my things or my people like I do. You are not a fair judge if they commit a crime that you believe isn''t a crime.¡± Lady Ming gave me a stern glare for a moment, then she sighed and looked at her men. ¡°Foreign lands.¡± Her crew looked startled. ¡°Captain, you can''t think...¡± One of them started to say. ¡°This man took the first princess'' arm when she robbed him. What do you think he''s taught a ship full of freed slaves?¡± Lady Ming asked and the men all looked sick. ¡°Keep your hands to yourselves or lose them.¡± I beamed a smile at her and it was her turn to look startled. ¡°My lady, the Heavy Kracken Tubes await your inspection.¡± ¡°Y-yes, of course.¡± Lady Ming said and took my arm and intertwined hers with it. ¡°Why are you so much taller?¡± ¡°The Hag took my toes.¡± I said and she looked down at my feet, only to gasp. ¡°It''s much easier to walk like this.¡± ¡°You''re wearing women''s boots.¡± Lady Ming whispered as I walked almost exactly like her and led her across the deck to the closest heavy weapon. ¡°How... how can you...¡± She shook her head. ¡°What am I even asking?¡± I chuckled at her confused look, because I knew she liked women and not men. I must be a vexing thing for her with my current behaviour and walking style. My boots are nicer than hers, too. I pat the thick tube in front of us. ¡°As you can see, no miniature catapult is needed. It also launches full logs.¡± Lady Ming ignored it and looked up at me. ¡°Why are you wearing that ridiculous uniform?¡± ¡°To make the crew laugh and to show the Eastern Empire who was wrecking their things.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°What better way to make them nervous than to show up in a huge ship that they assume is the Gulf Kingdom''s?¡± Lady Ming couldn''t stop her smile. ¡°You were hiding in plain sight.¡± I smiled back. ¡°If they knew I was a slave, they wouldn''t have reacted like they did. Most only saw the uniform and didn''t bother looking at my face.¡± I waved at the crew around us. ¡°They also saw how many slaves I had.¡± Lady Ming caught her breath. ¡°By the Son''s Light, their own belief system helped you defeat them.¡± ¡°Yes, the more slaves, the higher my influence. With a ship full of them listening to my orders, I was almost a lord in their eyes and I don''t even own any land there.¡± Lady Ming laughed. ¡°I can''t wait to get back to port to report this.¡± ¡°Does that mean I get my escort for myself and another ship of slaves?¡± ¡°You have another ship?!?¡± Lady Ming asked, surprised. I turned and pointed to show her. In the distance was a large ship just floating there. ¡°I didn''t even notice.¡± Lady Ming whispered. ¡°Well, I was putting on a good show for you.¡± Her arm tightened on mine. ¡°I suppose you did. And succeeded.¡± I nodded. ¡°Shall I show you the dining room next? It''s almost time for lunch.¡± ¡°I think that would be fine, Lord Drake. Just fine.¡± Lady Ming said and I took her down into the ship. 269 The Journey Home Part Two Bokuboy After eating lunch, I brought Lady Ming through the ship to show off the different rooms, pointedly showing her that there were no slave holds and only state rooms. She was shocked when we stepped out through the original hull into the port cannon room. She stared at the wall full of cannonballs, each in their own little holder for easy loading. ¡°There... there must be a hundred of them.¡± Lady Ming commented. ¡°A hundred and sixty, actually. Twenty shots for each of the eight cannons.¡± I said and she took several deep breaths. ¡°It''s the same on the other side of the ship.¡± ¡°H-how... how...¡± ¡°We raided the enemy ships.¡± I said. ¡°We actually sold off more cannons than this and the cannonballs are pretty lucrative, even when not enchanted.¡± ¡°What?!?¡± Lady Ming gasped. ¡°You enchant them?!?¡± ¡°When you''ve got a couple of magic users that need to practice the craft, you make due with what''s available.¡± I walked her over to the wall and picked up the cannonball. ¡°It''s enchanted with Fire and Explosion.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Lady Ming whispered. ¡°Now I wish that I did have a mage onboard.¡± ¡°He would be extremely envious of what I''ve done.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°He wouldn''t accept these as valid weapons, because it wasn''t made by the Guild.¡± ¡°He would if I ordered him.¡± Lady Ming said. I shook my head. ¡°No, they have their own rules. I learned that a long time ago when I was conscripted into the army. They wouldn''t be allowed to use them.¡± ¡°They are using your original Kracken Tubes.¡± Lady Ming said. ¡°That''s because they believe Mage Lukas created them, despite the proof I did. Conscripts aren''t allowed to claim things like that.¡± ¡°The Mages Guild is making a fortune creating them.¡± Lady Ming said. ¡°They are in such high demand that there''s a waiting list to get them.¡± ¡°The ones they make are substandard and weak.¡± I said and then smiled. ¡°I didn''t give them the full enchantments.¡± Lady Ming caught her breath. ¡°That''s your proof! You can fix them because you made them!¡± ¡°I also have copies of the army reports that it was all mine as well.¡± I informed her and she gave me wide eyes. ¡°I''ll be releasing them as soon as I get back home.¡± I brought her back up onto the deck, only to see two of her crew bound and gagged and surrounded by slaves with swords. Pointing outwards. ¡°Release them this instant!¡± Lady Ming ordered. No one moved, not even her own crew members. ¡°What happened?¡± I asked. ¡°They were caught in the work rooms stealing.¡± One of my crewmen said and brought over a bag with different potions, labelled properly for use, that were kept exclusively in the work room for emergencies. They also had several of the large enchantment practice coins. They didn''t realize that the wood was plain wood and couldn''t be activated. Lady Ming let my arm go and stalked over to the two accused men. ¡°Explain yourselves right now!¡± The two men didn''t say anything. ¡°I am ordering you to tell me why you were so stupid to abuse this man''s hospitality!¡± Lady Ming spat at them. ¡°We ate at his table as guests and you dare steal from him?!?¡± The two men still said nothing. Lady Ming stepped back and looked at me. ¡°Do what you want with them.¡± ¡°Take their hands. If they want to steal your livelihoods, you can have theirs in return.¡± I said. ¡°NO!¡± The two men exclaimed and tried to struggle. ¡°You should have thought about the clear warnings both Lord Drake and I gave you.¡± Lady Ming said. ¡°At least you''ll still have your lives.¡± ¡°Only if they are healed.¡± I said and she gasped. ¡°L-lord Drake, please.¡± Lady Ming pleaded. ¡°If they tell me why, they will be healed and won''t bleed out.¡± I clarified for her. ¡°We... we were paid.¡± One of them admitted. ¡°Anything that could help the kingdom, we were to get. By any means.¡± ¡°By who?¡± Lady Ming asked and they shook their heads. ¡°Lord Drake, is that enough?¡± ¡°Crew?¡± I asked and shouts rang out. ¡°Yes, Lady Ming, it was enough.¡± I said and walked over to the two men. ¡°I hope your unnecessary greed was worth the loss of your hands.¡± A crewman brought over a thick chopping block and the two men had their hands secured to it. ¡°Wh-what... what are you doing?¡± Lady Ming asked. ¡°Taking their hands.¡± I said and nodded at Galla. Galla stepped forward and pulled out her sword. She made it glow and Lady Ming''s entire crew took a step back. She smiled at them and then swiped her sword across the two men''s wrists. They screamed at the sudden loss, more from shock than pain, and I knelt to grab their arms. They jerked back and stared at the stumps of their wrists. I cast the field spell called Seal Wounds and all four of the wrists were sealed with a slight glow. I then took each arm and cast Heal Grievous Wound. The stumps reformed into perfectly curved smooth forms as if the hands had never existed at all. ¡°By the Father''s Grace.¡± One of the clipper''s crewmen said. I stood up and looked at the rest of Lady Ming''s crew. ¡°Do I need to search you all to see if anyone else stole anything?¡± All of the men held up their hands and shook their heads. ¡°None of them took anything, my lord.¡± Hanna said. ¡°They were all discreetly watched.¡± The crewmen let out a collective sigh of relief. ¡°Good.¡± I said and walked over to Lady Ming. ¡°I thank you for the visit, despite how it ended.¡± I took her hand and bent over to kiss it. ¡°I''ll let your ship lead us into the kingdom''s waters.¡± Lady Ming nodded and the two men without hands were brought onto her ship. The funny thing was, I didn''t recognize any of the workers. As if she knew what I was going to say, she sighed. ¡°My men were spread out all over to make up for the losses. They are training new crewmen on over half of the kingdom''s ships.¡± ¡°I''m sorry.¡± I said. ¡°Things have been hard for everyone.¡± Lady Ming said and straightened her hat. ¡°Unhook the ship!¡± Five of my crewmen hopped over with some number ten potion and unhooked the boarding hooks, then repaired the damage as if it never happened. The clipper''s crew were shocked by that. They had expected us to pay for repairs back at the port. ¡°Push them off.¡± I ordered and bracing poles hit the side of the clipper and pushed us apart. I waved at Lady Ming to get her attenton. ¡°One last thing before you give your orders.¡± ¡°Yes, Lord Drake?¡± Lady Ming asked. ¡°All your men had to do was ask and I would have handed over whatever they wanted.¡± I said. ¡°No!¡± She gasped. ¡°You... why did you...¡± ¡°Thieves are thieves, no matter the reason.¡± I said. ¡°Polite thieves get a lot more when they ask nicely.¡± Lady Ming sighed and nodded. She knew what I meant about the army taking my things without paying me for them. ¡°Unfurl the sails and let''s go.¡± It took them half an hour to get out far enough head of us before we could move safely. We brought the other ship up to us as well and we made a good speed towards what was going to be the first port we had ever visited in another kingdom. We just hoped they didn''t react badly to how heavily armed we were. If they did, well, it wouldn''t be the first time I''ve wrecked ships. ¡°You know what to do.¡± I said to the crew and they prepped for a counter-attack and set traps on everything. If anyone tried to take us or the ships, they would regret it. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Skipping miscellaneous details. Speeding up time. Done. _______________ I brought both ships to a stop long before going anywhere near the port. Lady Ming''s clipper ship, Swift, had been challenged by a schooner and a cannonball was shot across her bow. Her ship heaved to as ordered, or in normal terms had surrendered to friendly forces. Her ship was being checked over completely for something. It took a while. Someone on her ship took out two large flags and started waving them in a pattern at us. I had no clue what the heck they were doing and asked around. None of the crew or slaves had any idea, either. ¡°Fly the main flag and not the pirate flag. We don''t want them to know what''s coming.¡± I said and that made a few of the crew laugh. One of the crew waved our ship''s flag back and tried to show that we had no idea what was going on. We all saw the man with the flags on the clipper ship, throw them down in disgust. ¡°What will they do now?¡± Jensen asked as the man disappeared from sight. ¡°They will probably try to send one of their navy ships to us.¡± I said. ¡°Not Lady Ming''s?¡± ¡°No, she knows me. If they won''t listen to her warning them about us, they won''t want her coming back here to warn us away.¡± ¡°So, what you told her is actually coming true? They''re going to try and take our ships and us?¡± One of the slaves asked. ¡°Try, yes. Succeed, no.¡± I said and that made everyone smile. ¡°We''ll burn them to the keel before we let any of our people be taken.¡± ¡°One of the ships are moving.¡± One of the other crewmen said and pointed. ¡°Oh, damn. It''s a dreadnought.¡± ¡°A show of force by them.¡± I said and then smiled. ¡°Perhaps one of our own in exchange when they turn towards us?¡± ¡°Sir! Permission to load a blank log!¡± One of the forward weapons crewmen shouted. ¡°Farra, charge it up for the eager man.¡± I said and the man let out a shout of happiness. Ten minutes later, the very large dreadnought turned towards us when it had enough speed. ¡°I want their main mast, if you please.¡± I said and the crew had feral smiles as they took aim. Farra launched the log when the crew said to and the sharpened log shot out of the Heavy Kracken Tube at full force and flew a very, very long distance. We could actually hear the shouts of the dreadnought''s crew as the shot came towards them. The sharpened log hit the dead center of the large main mast, that must have been a huge tree while alive, and our shot jammed into it and snapped the thing right off. The top two sails of the mast folded up as the support disappeared and the whole thing tumbled down onto the main sail and tore it to shreds. The large ship slowed down significantly with the main propelling sail gone and the ship started to turn, as if to dodge our follow-up shots. We didn''t fire any, because that wasn''t the point. All we did was show them that we could take them out a long time before they could get close enough to take us out, no matter how much firepower they had or tried to threaten us with. ¡°Load up the assault boat.¡± I said and it was done in moments. ¡°I know Gella wants to come...¡± ¡°I will as well.¡± Farra said, confidently. ¡°I wouldn''t be your apprentice if I was a coward.¡± I didn''t remind her what she was like under the tender care of the Eastern Empire''s mages, because that required a different kind of courage. I nodded to her and glanced at Hanna. She shook her head to refuse, so I glanced at Molly. ¡°No, my lord.¡± Molly said and put an arm around Jensen. ¡°I''ve been feeling sick for several weeks.¡± I held a hand out to her and she took it with her free one. I sent a bit of magic into her to search for something and her belly glowed slightly. ¡°Congratulations.¡± ¡°She really is?¡± Jensen asked, surprised. ¡°I told you.¡± Molly said and rubbed her still flat belly. ¡°I just had a feeling that it wasn''t seasickness.¡± ¡°Then it''s just us three again.¡± I said and we hopped into the assault boat, sat down, and I moved us at a normal rowing pace. Unlike Lady Ming, I wasn''t going to show them my full capabilities until they made me. It took twenty minutes for us to get close enough to the dreadnought. It had a broadside to us and two of the cannons fired on us. There was a female''s shout of ''No!'' before I moved the assault boat exactly ten feet backwards and both cannonballs missed us and splashed into the water harmlessly. ¡°Light them up.¡± I said and brought us to a stop, just out of the ship''s range. Farra and Gella smiled and aimed two of the normal Kracken Tubes at the dreadnought''s other masts. Two shots later and both masts had exploded and all of the sails on the ship were burning. People were screaming, crewmen were scrambling and trying to put the fires out, and two people were barking orders. One wanted to keep attacking us and one wanted the fires out first. I waited patiently as they argued and the crew worked hard to put the fires out. They eventually pulled the burning sails down to cut them free and tossed them into the water. When the crew on the ship started to relax, I heard both people giving orders to bring us into range and to get the mages up on the deck to operate the Kracken Tubes. I cast the amplify spell on myself. ¡°If you think I''ll just sit here and let you fire on me, you are even dumber than you were to try and attack me in the first place.¡± That made them all stiffen and a man wearing an admiral''s uniform and one wearing a captain''s uniform came over to the side of the ship to glare at me. ¡°You fired on a sovereign ship of the Gulf Kingdom!¡± The admiral spat. ¡°You were aggressively coming to me with a heavy warship to commandeer my ship! Of course I''ll fire on you, you idiot!¡± I spat back and he looked surprised that I had figured it out. ¡°Captain Ming already warned you about what would happen if you did, and you didn''t listen to her!¡± The admiral looked angry. ¡°A woman''s opinion...¡± ¡°...is worth more than a hundred closed-minded men like you!¡± I spat back. ¡°Either you give up trying to steal from me, or I''ll sink every ship in this port and send word to the capital that you''ve declared war on behalf of the Gulf Kingdom on a friend of the royal family, Lord Drake of Drake''s Marsh!¡± The admiral smiled evilly. ¡°Lord Drake is dead! His house and lands have been seeded to the head of the Henrietta Family.¡± ¡°Besides that being illegal, I''m going to kill Grand Mage Henrietta and the rest of the Mages Council anyways, so that doesn''t concern me.¡± I said and the man''s face paled. ¡°Any other threats or empty words before I kill you?¡± The group of mages came up onto the main deck of the ship and ran over to the Kracken Tubes. The admiral saw this and smiled. ¡°It seems your bravado has cost you, slave.¡± ¡°I''m sorry that you''re wrong.¡± I said and held my hand up towards the Kracken Tubes. ¡°Immolate.¡± The six tubes were immediately covered in bright white fire, which made the mages touching them also go up in flames. The men screamed and died as the Kracken Tubes burned down to ashes in only a few moments. The admiral''s face went white at the sight and looked back at me. ¡°Goodbye.¡± I said and nodded. Farra fired a Kracken Tube and hit him right in the chest and it lodged there as he was launched backwards, like he weighed nothing. It was thanks to the weight enchantment on the projectile that his body was now a part of, and his body flew through the air several hundred feet before it arced downwards and made a splash in the water. The ammo exploded from hitting the water a second later and the fire was extinguished almost right away. It left a large circle of blood in the water that was quickly sucked up by a water beast. ¡°Any more orders to attack me, captain?¡± I asked the man standing there wetting his pants. ¡°L-let Lady Ming go.¡± The captain said. There was a sound of shackles being opened and a woman''s inarticulate yell before Lady Ming ran over to the side of the ship, then she punched the captain in the face and right over the side of the ship. ¡°YOU BASTARD!¡± Lady Ming yelled and we all watched as the man tumbled down the twenty or so feet into the water. She waited for him to come to the surface before she spoke again. ¡°I told you! I warned you! Now the admiral is dead, your ship is ruined, and you''ve severely weakened an already weak part of the kingdom''s defence!¡± She shouted, angrily. ¡°For what? FOR WHAT?!?¡± The captain didn''t respond and swam over to the rope ladder the crew had tossed down for him. He climbed up and then flinched as Lady Ming stalked over to him. ¡°I''ll be sending my own missive with Lord Drake''s about your behaviour! Imagine! Attacking a ship full of slaves seeking refuge! How stupid are you?¡± She asked and slapped his face. When he didn''t respond, she slapped him again. ¡°Tell ME! How did you get this job if you''re THIS STUPID?¡± The man cowered and wouldn''t speak. ¡°I guess it doesn''t matter now. After they court-marshal you for losing your ship to friendly fire in a time of war, I doubt you''ll live long at the end of the rope they''ll hang you from.¡± Lady Ming said and pushed him out of the way and turned to me. ¡°Lord Drake, can I ask a favor? Please return me to my ship. I need to get to port to send those messages.¡± ¡°Of course, Captain Ming.¡± I said and zoomed my assault boat over to the side of the dreadnought and came to a perfect stop, which shocked the crew of the dreadnought. ¡°You can jump instead of climbing down.¡± Lady Ming gave me an odd look for a moment, then shrugged and jumped down the twenty feet. I cast the Slow spell on her and she giggled as her momentum was reduced to a float and she landed softly right beside me. ¡°I''m not going to ask how you did that.¡± Lady Ming said and sat down to take my arm. ¡°It''s a spell called ''Slow''. It works on a lot of things.¡± I said and we took off like a shot and I zoomed us around the dreadnought and over to her clipper ship. ¡°Get those traitors off my ship.¡± Lady Ming ordered her crew. ¡°Yes, ma''am!¡± They said and the six inspectors were quickly tossed over. ¡°I can tow you in.¡± I offered. ¡°No, Lord Drake. I believe they may try to take you again if you aren''t protecting your ships.¡± Lady Ming said. ¡°I''ll be escorting you all the way back to the capital, now that I know what my status really means in the navy.¡± That made me think of something that Princess Rivers said to me before about utilizing women being marginalized. ¡°Perhaps you can suggest to the First Princess that the Fifth Regiment needs a naval division. As the first officer commissioned, your rank should be jumped up to Admiral automatically.¡± Lady Ming gave me a very sexy look, something she had given Mage King when they were in bed together. ¡°David, if I was ever to give myself over to someone to have a child, would you agree?¡± ¡°You used my first name.¡± I said and she smiled. ¡°More personal talk deserves a more personal address.¡± Lady Ming said. ¡°Depending on the state of my estate when I return there, I can bring the subject up to my betrothed.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Have a nice trip into town, Cynthia.¡± Lady Ming stood and put a hand on my shoulder, before she grabbed a rope and was pulled up onto the clipper ship. ¡°Is there anything specific you want in your message to the capital?¡± ¡°Tell them...¡± I started to say. ¡°The Marsh Man is coming for his due.¡± Farra said and interrupted me. ¡°And he will have it.¡± Gella added. I glanced at the two women briefly, then I looked back at Lady Ming before I nodded. It was a better message than what I was going to send, anyway. 270 Port Of Call Three days of challenges by navy ships and threats by me for them to get out of the way or die, with two ships refusing and being burned to the keels because of the mage contingents onboard, we finally reached the capital''s waters. There were also two flotillas of warships waiting for us, or so Lady Ming told me. It was ten ships, five smaller ones and five slightly larger ones. Some of the ships had apparently just launched, because they were not in the right form or had full crews. Her flag man worked furiously to let them know who we were and to NEVER fire upon us, or they will be destroyed. They were to also acknowledge the order to allow us to pass and to arrest any mages and sympathetic captains, by order of the royal family. Of course, there had to be at least one ship that wasn''t going to send the return signals and they started to send signals to the other ships, or yelled, since they were so close. They weren''t going to listen to a slave''s order and prepared to fight back, not realizing there wasn''t a fight for them to fight. ¡°Light the offender up.¡± I ordered. My crew let out whoops of happiness and loaded up four of the heavy logs with full enchantments. They aimed and shot off their ammo that streaked across the large harbour, making a lot of people on the ships scream in terror. The projectiles hit dead center of each mast and lit the sails on fire and exploded. The other ships scrambled to put out the spreading fire and their own flag people were sending the signals to cease fire. Like before, we didn''t have to fire anything else, because our point had been made. We were well outside the other ship''s range of fire and none of them could touch us. After half an hour, the ship we fired on was smouldering and the captain was tied up with the group of mages. The other ships followed suit with their own mages and had them up on their decks and tied up. Some only had one or two mages to charge and fire the Kracken Tubes and they were not happy to be treated like criminals. Lady Ming''s flag guy sent signals to tell the other ships that if they left the mages free, they could continue a war that I was going to finish. ¡°All right, pull the sails and hold on.¡± I said and the crew complied. Lady Ming waved to me and I waved back, then I brought my ship up and almost completely out of the water and moved it towards the ships guarding the harbour. The crews of the other ships all stared at us as my ship seemed to be moving without sails. I brought us right into the middle between the two groups of five ships and someone shouted in triumph. I glanced to the right and saw a mage struggle and pull off burning ropes, get a manic grin on his face, and jumped at a Kracken Tube pointed right at my ship... only for nothing to happen because I had already cancelled the enchantments on the projectile. He tried again to charge the thing and nothing happened. The crew of that ship quickly tackled him and beat him bloody, then tossed him overboard. They didn''t blink as a water beast swallowed him whole. ¡°Thanks, Laughter!¡± Ann said and waved at her favorite water beast before it disappeared under the water. ¡°I really should stop you from feeding him so much. He''s getting fat.¡± I commented. Ann gave me a happy smile and went back behind me. ¡°Garret only catches fish for him now.¡± A few of the crew and slaves around us laughed. Most of them did that, too. I brought the ship right up to the dock and there were a lot of angry faces on the dock workers and army men. ¡°Do anything against me, my ship, or my people, and you''ll be fed to our pet water beasts like that mage was.¡± Most of the angry faces changed to fear and they backed off. ¡°You have no right to threaten us.¡± One of the army men said. He wore Lieutenant markings. ¡°I am Lord Drake of Drake''s Marsh and friend of the royal family. I could gut you right here for insulting me and NO ONE would say anything to me about it.¡± I said and nodded to the crew to secure the ship as I stepped off. Gella and Farra came with me and the army men didn''t step back to give us room. I wasn''t having that and activated the enchantment around my neck. The entire group of twelve men were pushed away by the enchantment and tumbled to a stop fifteen feet away. ¡°What... what was that?¡± The lieutenant asked. ¡°A warning.¡± I said and walked towards him. The enchantment kept pushing them away and they kept tumbling away at the exact distance, unable to get to their feet. ¡°Stop! STOP!¡± The lieutenant said loudly and I stopped walking. ¡°On your FEET!¡± I commanded and the group of men jumped to their feet and came to attention. The lieutenant gave me a stern look before he stood as well. ¡°I assume you were ordered to escort me somewhere?¡± ¡°Yes, to the military garrison.¡± The lieutenant said. ¡°Who gave you that order?¡± I asked. ¡°My CO.¡± ¡°Do they outrank the royal family?¡± I asked and his face paled. ¡°No? Good.¡± I turned to my ship. ¡°If anyone tries to board you, kill them.¡± ¡°You can''t order them to do that!¡± The lieutenant spat. ¡°It''s my private property and I won''t have anyone steal what''s mine.¡± I said and saw the truth on his face. They were going to raid my things again. ¡°On second thought, kill anyone that approaches the ship without me with them. Military or civilian, it doesn''t matter. They''ll stop trying eventually.¡± ¡°No, you can''t...¡± ¡°I would kill you right now if I thought it would make any difference.¡± I told him and he backed up a step. ¡°Claiming that you''re only following orders might save you from being court-marshalled; but, it won''t save you from me or my people.¡± I took a step towards him and the troops were pushed back again. Most of them just stumbled this time. ¡°We''ve sailed halfway around the world, through the most dangerous waters both known and unknown, and a few pitiful men in uniforms mean less than nothing to us.¡± I said and glared at him. ¡°Go back to your CO and tell him that if he tries anything, I''ll burn the garrison to the ground, just like I did to the ship that tried to attack me.¡± The lieutenant didn''t move, so I leapt forward five feet. ¡°AHH!¡± He yelled and was pushed and tumbled five feet farther away. His men didn''t say anything as they picked themselves up and stood back up. ¡°Go. Now.¡± I said and he nodded before ordering his squad of men to retreat. I waited until they were gone before I ended the enchantment and looked at Gella and Farra. ¡°Let''s find a carriage we can buy.¡± ¡°Not borrow?¡± Gella asked as we walked down the dock. We ignored the stares. ¡°I doubt anyone would refuse a Gulf Kingdom Captain.¡± I said and plucked at the fake uniform I wore. Gella and Farra laughed softly. We walked up the dock and found a business almost right at the end of it. The man working behind the counter frowned as we entered the building. ¡°I don''t like having their kind in here.¡± He said and nodded at the two women with me. ¡°What? Paying customers?¡± I asked and pulled off the oversized captain''s hat to reveal my long white hair in a ponytail. The man''s face didn''t change. ¡°Get out, slave! I don''t serve your kind!¡± I smiled at him and put my hat back on. ¡°It looks like we''ll be taking a carriage for free after all, Gella.¡± ¡°You won''t be getting anything in the capital! Your kind are as welcome here as a plague!¡± ¡°A plague? Very well.¡± I said and snapped my fingers. The entire room lit on fire and the man screamed as his clothing went aflame. He started running around and I activated the push enchantment. He was flung across the room and slammed into the counter. He was knocked senseless enough that he didn''t realize he was burning up for several minutes. ¡°Ha ha, the fire suppressing enchantments are fakes.¡± I said and snapped my fingers again. The fire went out instantly and the man groaned in relief. I walked over to the counter and took out one of the release sheets and signed it in a scribble for a carriage, two horses, and a driver. ¡°It was nice not doing business with you.¡± We left there and went to the side where the paddock for the horses was. I handed the sheet to the man there and he barked orders for the items requested. The carriage was delivered and I helped Gella and Farra inside. It made them blush that I offered them my hand and not my elbow. ¡°Hey, there''s no return date on this.¡± The man said. ¡°No, there isn''t.¡± I said and handed the driver a gold coin. ¡°The royal palace.¡± ¡°Yessir!¡± The driver said and I shut the door to sit down. We took off at a fast trot until we reached a street wide enough and then the driver brought the horses up to a heavy jog. The ride to the palace went faster than I remembered, then realized I hadn''t approached from this direction before. It was either from the Henrietta Longshore Estate or from the Mage Academy. The driver slowed down as we approached the main palace gates, then came to a stop. ¡°Any weapons must be handed over for inspection and seizure.¡± A gruff man''s voice called. I held in my sigh and stepped out of the carriage to look, only to see one of the men that had held my family hostage to arrest me last fall. Apparently, he had been rehired, despite being dismissed. He saw my outfit and huffed. ¡°Slaves are to be strip searched and...¡± I whipped my glowing sword out and sliced it across his chest. His armor fell to the ground with a clunk and he looked down to see the cut had gone right through the armor and his chest. He looked at me and let out a strangled sound. ¡°I told you the last time we met that I won''t let you harm my people.¡± I said and his eyes widened as he looked at my face. ¡°Stealing from them is harm, so your life is mine.¡± ¡°Hey!¡± One of the other guards exclaimed and walked over to me while drawing his sword. I slid my sword into the chest of the dying guard to pierce his heart and then looked at the other guard. ¡°You were there, too.¡± I said and he let out a yelp, dropped his sword, and ran. ¡°Gella.¡± I said and she leaned out the window of the carriage and a dagger was flung through the air and pierced the man in the back of the neck. He dropped like a pile of rocks and slid on his face to a stop. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Anytime, my lord.¡± Gella said and ducked back inside the carriage. I turned to look at the remaining guard, who looked stunned. ¡°Either open the gate or send word to the royal family that Lord Drake, their close family friend, is here.¡± He stared at me for several moments before he hopped up like I lit him on fire and ran inside the guard shack. He was out the other side in a flash and ran up to the castle, rather than taking the horse tied there for the purpose. ¡°He''s going to be a little while.¡± I said and Gella and Farra laughed softly. I went to the guard that tried to flee and pulled out the knife in his neck, wiped it off on his underclothes, and went back to the carriage. The driver didn''t say anything to me and only shook his head. I nodded to him and climbed into the carriage to sit down and wait for the inevitable response. It was either going to be positive or it was going to be very negative. Either way, I was ready for it. My new bandoleer was well made and fully stocked with both old and new potions. I handed Gella her knife back and she smiled demurely. Some time later, we all heard the clangs of metal on metal as the response came towards the main gate. The driver wasn''t worried, because they were almost always spared and were usually too inconsequential to matter in a fight, anyway. I stepped out of the carriage as the group of armored horsemen approached. I helped both Farra and Gella out, like ladies, and they took up positions beside and slightly behind me. They didn''t want to interfere with my movements if I had to fight. We walked over to the middle of the road and far enough from the gate that it wouldn''t hit us if it opened. The group of nine armored horses came to a stop ten feet from the other side of the gate and the men stared at me. I stood there, completely relaxed and non-threatening, and took their visual inspection. ¡°Are you really him?¡± The armored man in the lead asked. I slipped off my hat and hooked it on my hip, then took the tie out of my hair and shook my head out to fluff the hair out. ¡°I''m the Marsh Man.¡± ¡°Lord Drake of Drake''s Marsh.¡± Farra added. ¡°Ex-convict, ex-conscript, mage student, vanquisher of criminals, and destroyer of the Eastern Empire''s morale dozens of times.¡± Gella added with a smile. The armored man stared at us for several minutes before he nodded and waved at the gate. The guard that had run to get them, hoped off of one of the horses and ran over to the gate to open it. ¡°Lord Drake, Queen Ellen has been waiting for your return.¡± The armored man said. ¡°Queen Ellen?¡± I asked, slightly confused. That could only mean... ¡°King Richard is dead.¡± The armored man said, sadly. ¡°Return to your carriage and follow us to the castle. The queen does not like to be kept waiting.¡± I knew that for a fact and I quickly ushered Gella and Farra into the carriage. The driver followed the armored horses at a fast trot and we made our way up to the castle and to a meeting that I was suddenly not looking forward to. 271 Home Sweet Home Part One Bokuboy I wasn''t brought to a private chamber when we entered the castle. We were led to the throne room and Ellen sat on the throne, her crown gleamed in the sunlight. Behind her with very sad expressions on their faces, sat two women. On one side was the old queen, Samantha Rivers, on the other side was Melanie, the king''s concubine and royal consort. She was also quite pregnant. ¡°Lord Drake, my queen.¡± The lead horseman said and bowed deeply. ¡°He doesn''t look like Lord Drake.¡± Queen Ellen said. ¡°He looks like a fool''s copy of a ship''s captain.¡± ¡°That was the point.¡± I said and didn''t bother bowing. ¡°Remove it at once.¡± Ellen said. ¡°I refuse to disrobe in front of the Queen Mother and the Royal Consort.¡± I said. ¡°They are delicate enough in their conditions without having to suffer through pains of desire and lust as well.¡± Ellen frowned at my words and both the queen mother and Melanie showed small smiles. ¡°I came directly here from the harbour, despite my desire to return home.¡± I continued. ¡°I assumed that the ruler of these lands could tell me what was going on.¡± ¡°We are losing the war.¡± Ellen said. ¡°A third of my people are loyal to the Mages Guild and won''t follow proper orders from their superiors if it conflicts with something the guild orders. The rest don''t want to be killed if they defy them.¡± ¡°Then kill them or dismiss them. They are as bad as the disloyal ones and will only make things worse.¡± I said and she sucked in a sharp breath. ¡°You killed two of the King''s Men.¡± ¡°I did.¡± I admitted. ¡°They were trying to steal from me and assault myself, my sworn sword, and my apprentice.¡± Ellen''s eyes went to the two women with me. ¡°Slaves.¡± ¡°Former slaves, as Lady Ming''s message clearly told you, since you haven''t reacted to my albino appearance.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°What happened after I was kidnapped?¡± ¡°You mean killed.¡± Ellen said. ¡°No one that knows me would ever think I was dead.¡± I said and she had an odd look in her eye. ¡°Yes, like that. You knew I would be back somehow.¡± Ellen tried to frown at me, then she sighed and rubbed her face with a hand. ¡°Lord Drake... David...¡± ¡°I know the Mages Council illegally seeded my lands to the Grand Mage.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°I need a note from you to take to the bank. I''ll be stripping the Grand Mage of his belongings and businesses to put in my own account.¡± ¡°You don''t have an account anymore.¡± Ellen said. ¡°When you died, they kept the money.¡± ¡°That''s also illegal, since I signed papers to hold it in trust for my son.¡± I said. Ellen looked sad and tried to turn away from me. ¡°What is it?¡± I asked. ¡°You... you need to go home.¡± Ellen said. ¡°Go home.¡± ¡°I need missives for the bank or I will tear it down and take all the gold it has, after I kill Carson and his family for robbing me.¡± Ellen nodded to Melanie and she waved for a court scribe. She dictated the missives and added the royal seal, then the scribe gave them to me. ¡°Good luck making them honor those.¡± ¡°They will or they die. Either way, I''m getting everything I''m owed.¡± I said and turned to walk away, then stopped and looked back at her. ¡°Do you want to win this war?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Ellen said. ¡°There''s just not a lot to fight for with the mages claiming half of the kingdom for themselves.¡± ¡°I''m killing the council after I kill the Grand Mage and destroying the guild.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°You can''t challenge them to mage duels until you graduate.¡± Melanie said. ¡°I don''t waste time duelling thieves. I just kill them.¡± I said and walked towards the doors of the throne room. ¡°You should send word to the garrison to not try to steal anything from my ship at the dock. I warned the lieutenant trying to do just that, that I would burn the garrison to the ground.¡± ¡°It will be done.¡± Ellen said. ¡°Good, because once I deal with the thieves, I need to fix myself and all of the slaves I''ve saved and brought here with me.¡± ¡°WAIT!¡± The queen mother shouted and I stopped to look at her. ¡°The... the mages... they took...¡± ¡°If she''s still alive, I''ll bring her back. If she''s not, I''m killing them all anyway.¡± I said and she nodded. We left at a fast walk and left the castle. We entered the carriage and I told the driver to take us to the bank. Gella and Farra quickly covered my face and hands in the concealer to give me a normal looking skin tone, just so we could avoid the whole ''slaves get nothing'' problem, then I tucked my hair under my hat and put it on. We stopped at the bank and I stepped out of the carriage and brought Gella and Farra with me. I entered the bank and only a couple of people inside paid me any attention. I walked right over to the back of the bank and entered the hallway there. I opened Carson''s office door and entered without knocking, which was the height of rudeness. ¡°You can''t just come in here, whoever you are!¡± Carson spat. I glanced at the man sitting there and he wore mage robes. I grabbed him by the neck and snapped it, then tossed his body aside. ¡°It seems you''re free to talk now.¡± Carson''s face paled at my casual murder in front of him. ¡°You... you killed...¡± ¡°He was a mage and stole from me.¡± I said and sat down in the chair. ¡°Where is my money?¡± ¡°What do you mean ''your money''?¡± Carson asked. ¡°Who are you?¡± I reached across his desk and grabbed him by his expensive shirt collar. ¡°Take a close look at my face, Carson.¡± I said and pulled him across the desk. ¡°Do you recognize Lord Drake now?¡± Carson choked and tried to pry my hand from his collar. I shoved him back across the desk and he fell to the floor. ¡°Where is MY money?¡± ¡°G-gone.¡± Carson said. ¡°The mages took it.¡± ¡°After giving you a cut.¡± I said and he looked guilty. ¡°That''s good for you, because now you can transfer ALL of my money back into my account and you can take a cut of the fees from the Mages Guild.¡± ¡°I need authorization from...¡± I put the two missives from the queen on his desk, opened them, and showed them to him without handing them over. ¡°Sealed and delivered, so do it immediately.¡± ¡°Y-yes, of course.¡± He said and stood. ¡°Where are you going?¡± I asked, as if I didn''t know. ¡°I need to consult with the bank owners and...¡± ¡°I''ll escort you, just to make sure you are actually doing that and getting my money.¡± I said and stood as well. His face paled again. ¡°You weren''t going to do that, were you?¡± He didn''t say anything. I pointed to his desk. ¡°Get to work right now or your replacement will be making a lot of money over your dead body.¡± Carson looked at the two women beside me and they glared at him. He sat down and did up the paperwork. He transferred all the stolen funds from the Mages Guild accounts and into my reactivated one. It was done magically, so as he was writing out the amount for his fee, I cut his hand off. I crushed his voice box to stop his screaming and then changed the total that the guild owed me to account for all the ingredients they stole from me, too. I searched through Carson''s files to get his account info and used his severed hand as I added it to where his fee was and I also added in a negative symbol, which meant that his account total went into my vault as well. I checked the papers for Grand Mage Henrietta and they only handed over a thousand gold crowns as a fee for renting my lands. I chuckled and added six zeroes to that, defaulting the account and emptying it into mine, and the businesses he owned reverted to my ownership until the debt was paid. ¡°There. That''s more like it.¡± I said and cast a sealing spell on his wrist. ¡°Where are the withdrawal slips?¡± He pointed to the top drawer and I took one out and used his severed hand to fill one out, easily copying his writing. There were several loud shouts when the transfers were approved and then a train of young women came in carrying sacks of gold. Sacks and sacks and sacks of gold. It went on for quite some time and soon Carson''s office floor was covered with bags of gold crowns. When they left, I looked at Carson. ¡°Where''s the contract you broke about leaving my money in trust?¡± Carson shook his head, which meant he destroyed it. ¡°Well, I''m killing you and your family anyway, so I guess it doesn''t matter.¡± I said and his eyes widened as I sliced my sword across his face and cut the top of his head off. I pushed him off of the desk and he fell backwards. I pulled out several larger sacks and added the smaller gold sacks to them. I had nowhere near enough for it all, so I sent Farra and Gella out to get more. They came back with a large chest and we filled it up with the small coin bags and still had some left. I tied them onto my belt and when I moved, I jingled a lot. It made the girls smile, so I left it and hung the large sacks of gold over my shoulders and picked up the trunk. I felt burdened like I did when carrying the owlbear, which meant it was a bit too much for me to walk well with. ¡°I need to make two trips.¡± I said and they nodded. Gella stayed with the trunk as Farra and I left with the sacks over my shoulders. I put them in the carriage and Farra stayed with them as I went back into the bank to get the trunk. No one noticed Carson was dead until we were at the front door. ¡°STOP!¡± One of the female workers yelled and I put the trunk down. ¡°Yes? What do you want?¡± ¡°Carson is dead!¡± She exclaimed. ¡°Yes, because I killed him.¡± I said and everyone in the bank gasped or made shocked noises. ¡°He robbed me of my fortune and robbed this bank of their appropriate fees, broke several contracts, one of which was to keep money in a trust, and let the Mages Guild steal from everyone else that uses this bank.¡± That made a lot of people look uncomfortable. ¡°Be glad I''m only withdrawing my money and that I don''t hold the entire bank responsible.¡± I said and picked up my trunk. ¡°Is there anything else?¡± ¡°The... mage.¡± She said. ¡°Also a thief. I''ll be killing a lot more of them soon.¡± I said and Gella nodded as we left a room full of stunned people behind us. I put the trunk into the back with us and helped Gella inside before I climbed in myself. ¡°The Henrietta Longshore Estate.¡± I said and the driver snapped the reins to get the horses moving. The drive seemed to take both a long time and it was over quickly. The estate was a wreck. The retaining walls I had around it were beaten, battered, scorched and broken. The grounds were burned and weren''t growing back. The topiary hedges were only twigs, despite it being summer. The magnificent fountain was smashed and in pieces. The entire place was ruined. We rode up to the house and it wasn''t much better off. Windows were smashed, walls broken, and the doors were barely hanging on the hinges. Part of the roof had fallen in and it was in almost the same shape as my old dorm mansion used to be in before it was fixed. ¡°Wait here.¡± I said and hopped out of the carriage and ran inside the house. It was just as bad as the outside. The place was a shambles and didn''t look safe to be in. I used my vigilance technique and found two people inside. One was in the downstairs office, so I went there first. I opened the door and an emaciated man sat behind the desk. Administrator Lannin didn''t even look at me. ¡°Another fake has come to claim nothing.¡± ¡°I don''t have to claim what''s mine.¡± I said. Lannin laughed. ¡°You try telling the mages that.¡± ¡°I plan to, since I already took all their money.¡± I said and he finally looked up at me. ¡°You lie.¡± Lannin said. I untied one of the small bags of gold and tossed it onto the ruined desk. ¡°Courtesy of the Mages Guild.¡± Lannin opened the bag and gasped at the 500 gold crowns inside. ¡°It''s real.¡± He said and pulled out a handful. ¡°With this, I can get...¡± He stopped talking and looked around. ¡°Oh, right. Frank and the others were fired.¡± ¡°By who?¡± I asked. ¡°Lord Henrietta.¡± Lannin said and let the gold fall back into the bag. ¡°Everything''s gone.¡± He said and sat back in his chair, the lost look back in his eyes. ¡°My poor Gerald.¡± I knew what he meant, his son was dead, so I left him there and went up the stairs. They were sturdy, despite looking weak, and I went into my bedroom. I did not find who I wanted to. ¡°Hello, Greta.¡± I said. ¡°DAVID!¡± Greta gasped and sat up. She turned to see me and tears came to her eyes. ¡°Oh, David!¡± ¡°Where is she?¡± I asked. ¡°She... she was...¡± Greta shook her head and her tears flowed out. ¡°They took her just after winter broke.¡± ¡°Who?¡± I asked, knowing the answer. It was the only logical one. ¡°Her mother and father.¡± Greta said and started sobbing. ¡°I tried to fight them and the guards held me off.¡± ¡°Your enchantment?¡± I asked and nodded at the thing on her neck. ¡°Dead. It stopped working when the Hag made it to the docks and tried to take Helena.¡± I had to smile a little. ¡°The one I gave her worked.¡± ¡°Yes, and the Hag was so angry that she couldn''t take what was yours, so she ordered the mages to do it for her.¡± Greta said and wiped at her face. ¡°Most listened to her and they attacked everything you owned.¡± ¡°The dorm mansion?¡± I asked. ¡°Burned to the ground.¡± Greta said. ¡°They didn''t get to take your things, though. The magic protections you had in place stopped them. Until they burned it, then they couldn''t get inside to get them.¡± ¡°Good.¡± I said and walked over to the wall and used my magic sense to check if the safe was still there. It was. I used magic on it to open it and was glad to see that everything was still inside. My old bandoleer, the five books, the regeneration potions I had made, stacks of important papers and recipes, and the child things I had bought from Diane. ¡°David, they... you don''t know what they...¡± ¡°It doesn''t matter now.¡± I said and closed the safe. I could leave the things there, since it was still a safe place. ¡°I''m going to kill them all.¡± Greta gave me an odd look, then she nodded. ¡°They won''t accept duels.¡± ¡°I won''t be asking.¡± I said and looked around. ¡°Why are you here?¡± ¡°I come here every day to wait for you.¡± Greta said and stood. ¡°Someone had to.¡± ¡°Where''s Hope and my maids?¡± Greta looked reluctant and then sighed. ¡°Hope went home. With no money coming in and the house wrecked, she couldn''t stay here.¡± ¡°My maids?¡± I asked. ¡°I don''t know. After they killed all your guards...¡± Greta sighed again. ¡°I only found out that much because I was late coming here the day they raided here. Otherwise...¡± ¡°You might have been killed, too.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Stay here and I''ll come back for you when I''m done.¡± ¡°David, I... if you need help...¡± ¡°You''ve done enough.¡± I said and reached for her face. Greta sighed and leaned into my hand. Her hand took mine from her face and she placed something in my hand. ¡°Charge this and throw it at Grand Mage Henrietta''s door.¡± I examined it and gained the enchantment for Overload. The enchantment didn''t do anything else except store magic. When it was full, it disrupted anything that had a lesser charge. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and pocketed it. ¡°I was going to use it myself soon to find out what happened to her.¡± Greta said. I nodded and walked out of the bedroom and went down the stairs. I didn''t bother looking in the basement at my potions room or my work room. I knew it was either wrecked or looted. I was just glad that I never left anything written out for someone to steal. ¡°The Henrietta Estate.¡± I said as soon as I exited the house and pointed where the driver needed to go, then entered the carriage. ¡°Making them pay seems like it won''t fix anything.¡± Gella said. ¡°You figured that out, have you?¡± I asked and she smiled. ¡°After killing all those soldiers and navy men, I had my revenge. Only, I didn''t really. My father''s still dead and my life is still ruined.¡± ¡°I know. All we can do is make others feel the same way.¡± I said and she nodded as she took one of my hands. Farra took my other hand and gripped it tightly. They both knew what this was going to mean to me and I didn''t realize that I needed their support. With them there to share my pain, it wasn''t as bad. My life was ruined, just like theirs were. The things I had lost, and I might lose more still, would be with me for a long time. 272 Home Sweet Home Part Two ¡°Move along.¡± The two guards at the front of the Henrietta Estate said to the driver when he stopped on the road in front of the gate. A second later, they were pressed against the gate and their own bodies were crushing them. ¡°So that''s what happens if you push only a person and nothing else.¡± I said and stepped out of the carriage. The men groaned in pain, unable to scream as their lungs had been squeezed and they couldn''t breathe. ¡°Did you kill my guards?¡± The men didn''t respond, not that they would if they could. No one but me actually admits to killing people, even if they did it. I stepped forward and they were crushed even more inside their armor. I kept walking and the bodies burst and blood flowed out and poured down to the ground. ¡°It doesn''t affect anything not attached to the body. Good to know.¡± I said and ended the enchantment. The two suits of armor dropped to the ground and I used my magic to open the gate. Touching anything directly might be bad, even if I technically owned the place now. I walked up to the house with Gella walking twenty feet behind me. If anything attacked us, I wanted to be the first target and it would give her a chance to flank and attack back. Farra had stayed with the gold in the carriage. Just because we paid the driver, it didn''t mean he wouldn''t run off with free gold when given the chance. I even left the gold sacks I had tied on my belt. Two more guards at the mansion''s doors took aggressive stances as we approached and drew their swords. Gella threw a knife at the one on the right and he deflected it with his sword. ¡°They are better than normal, my lord.¡± Gella said. ¡°They''ll still die.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Why don''t you knock and announce your presence, my lord?¡± Gella suggested. I had to smile. ¡°What a good idea.¡± I said and raised my hand toward the guards. ¡°Booming Sound.¡± Three loud booms sounded and the pressure waves hit the guards. Their eyes burst and their ears leaked blood. They let out screams and dropped to their knees to grip their faces, not that it would help them. Gella ran over, swiped her sword at them, and their heads fell from their bodies. She ran back to me and waited. I took out the thing Greta gave me and charged it up. The metal glowed brightly, much brighter than it should have, and I threw it at the front door. It hit a magical barrier and another boom sounded that shook the whole mansion and probably scared everyone inside. The barrier shattered and every ward protection on the building fell. I walked over to the front door and the thing Greta gave me was blackened and dead. I picked it up and used Minor Mend on it, only for nothing to happen. I tossed it aside and opened the front door. Ten fireballs hit my chest and exploded against my mage shield. I flicked my hand at the mages in the lobby. ¡°Immolation.¡± They all screamed as they were covered in the white fire and burned to ash in only moments. I walked into the house and felt three people were left inside. That couldn''t be good, not if the Grand Mage was actually home. I walked over to the parlour where Helena and I first sat with her parents. I entered and Mona was there with a little bundle in her arms. She sat on the nice couch and she was cooing at the baby. ¡°Where''s the Grand Mage?¡± I asked. ¡°At work.¡± Mona said without looking up. ¡°Who''s a good boy! You are!¡± She said to the bundle. It giggled as a baby should and a bright glow came from inside. ¡°Another one! You''re so precious!¡± I watched as she took out a filled magic storage crystal from inside the bundle. ¡°Damon is such a good boy!¡± Mona said and put the crystal down on the coffee table and added it to the pile that was there. ¡°You are going to lead this family into the next generation of prosperity!¡± I walked over to her and she finally looked up at me. ¡°Where''s Helena?¡± Mona frowned at me. ¡°Who are you supposed to be?¡± I reached down and grabbed the shoulder of the arm not holding the baby, and squeezed. ¡°AHHH!¡± Mona screamed as I broke her shoulder. ¡°Where?¡± ¡°She... she''s dead. She died when she gave birth to the new Henrietta Heir.¡± Mona said, tears in her eyes. She looked at the charged crystals on the coffee table. ¡°I''ll hold him while you try to use them.¡± I said and held my hands out for my son. Mona looked conflicted, then she held the baby up for me. I took the bundle and cradled it to my chest, then Mona lunged to grab the crystals. I overcharged them and that ended their containment enchantments. All six of them snapped and the discharge blew out the bottoms as six beams of magical energy tore through Mona''s chest and stomach. Mona didn''t scream at the pain and only looked confused. ¡°You''ve ruined the heir by stunting his magical growth.¡± I commented. Mona slumped backwards onto the couch and her eyes went to my face. ¡°He... prodigy.¡± ¡°He could have been so much more than that.¡± I said and opened the bundle, only to see a rail thin little body and eyes without pupils. With Helena supposedly dying of childbirth, and not murdered as I believed, the baby didn''t get the magic infusions from Helena or her breast milk nutrients that he needed. I used Sense Magic on him and he was so full of magic boosting potions that he was barely more than a storage battery himself. I cast Empower on him and nothing happened, which meant there was nothing left inside of him. I tried to just share magic with him and not even a trickle would go inside of him. I shook my head and placed the bundle back in Mona''s dying arms. ¡°You''re right, he''s more your heir than mine now.¡± I said. Mona smiled as she slowly bled out through the six holes in her body. ¡°Knew you... understand.¡± I walked away to let them both die in peace. Gella didn''t say anything to me and followed me up the stairs to Helena''s room. Her personal maid was there and Jill looked like her face was permanently stuck looking terrified. I knelt in front of her and lightly touched her hand. Jill looked at my face and her expression didn''t change. ¡°D-David... are you... here to kill me?¡± ¡°I came here for Helena.¡± I said and tears flowed out of her eyes without her crying. ¡°They killed her.¡± Jill said. ¡°She wouldn''t let them take her baby and tried to fight.¡± ¡°So did you.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°What happened?¡± ¡°The mages... they...¡± ¡°Was it quick?¡± I asked. ¡°Y-yes, they...¡± Jill took a deep breath. ¡°She had to take the amulet off to give birth.¡± ¡°Why did you stay?¡± I asked. ¡°The baby.¡± Jill said. ¡°Helena said to protect him and...¡± More tears flowed out and she still didn''t cry or make noises. ¡°I don''t know why he kept getting thinner, no matter how much we fed him or used potions to keep his strength up.¡± ¡°It''s because he needed Helena''s magic.¡± I said and she caught her breath. ¡°Without it for this long, he was going to die anyway.¡± ¡°Wh-what do you mean anyway?¡± ¡°Mona has been siphoning off as much magic with crystals as she could while he was dying.¡± ¡°No! She... she wouldn''t...¡± Jill tried to protest and the words died on her lips. ¡°He''s already too far gone for me to do anything to help him and I have full regeneration potions.¡± I said and she finally let out a wail of anguish and wrapped her arms around my neck to hug me. If I wasn''t so resilient, I might have choked or been strangled. It took ten minutes before she finished crying and let me go. When she looked at her damp arms and saw the concealer there, her eyes went to my now bare neck. My very white bare neck. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Jill whispered. Her hands reached for my face and I stopped her by taking her hands in mine. ¡°You don''t need to see what I went through.¡± I said. Jill nodded slightly and then her eyes widened and looked down at our clasped hands and my missing fingers. ¡°Oh, no.¡± ¡°Do you want to come with me when I leave?¡± I asked. Jill looked hopeful and then shook her head. ¡°I don''t deserve to be saved with Helena dead.¡± ¡°No one deserves to be saved.¡± I said and stood. ¡°It just happens and we have to live with what happened to us.¡± Jill opened her mouth to respond and I touched her chin to stop her. ¡°Greta is waiting at the Longshore Estate. Go there and wait for me.¡± Jill nodded and looked around the room. ¡°Take anything you want. I own it all.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°I stopped at the bank first and they gave me everything I was owed, including everything the Henrietta family owns.¡± Jill sighed and nodded again. ¡°I''ll pack everything up and head over as soon as I''m done.¡± I walked over to the door of the bedroom and looked back at her. ¡°Where are my personal maids?¡± ¡°They left with Hope.¡± Jill said. ¡°They said that being around her would keep them closer to you.¡± I nodded and left the bedroom. Gella walked beside me and we went down the stairs and outside. A group of guards were there and prepared to fight. ¡°You''re all fired and removed from the family''s protective magic.¡± I said and there was a little snap sound. Their slightly glowing swords winked out and they seemed to slump a little. ¡°Gella, have fun.¡± ¡°Thank you, my lord.¡± Gella said and attacked with her glowing sword. The guards had no idea how to handle a woman that could actually fight better than them and they each fell to her blade as they tried to counter her attacks. Even when the last two attacked as one, Gella avoided them with a step back and then used the power thrust to impale one and then she punched the other with her free hand that suddenly put a knife in the other guard''s face. ¡°Well done.¡± I praised her as she wiped her weapons off on their clothing. We left the bodies of the guards where they lay and walked back to the carriage. I didn''t bother locking the gates after we went through them and climbed inside the carriage. Jill wouldn''t be able to leave if I locked the house or the gate. Farra didn''t say anything about us not returning with either Helena or the baby. ¡°The Mages Guild.¡± I told the driver and we drove off towards the fated battle that was going to be as pointless as my visit to the Henrietta Estate had been. Killing the Grand Mage wasn''t going to accomplish much and I wasn''t even going to be happy about it. It was a long time in coming and none of it would have happened if Helena hadn''t forbidden me from killing him and her brother. Now that she was dead, our deal was over, as were all the promises we made to each other. I seriously considered staying at the mage academy, though. Now that I could cast magic like a normal mage, even if it was different from them, I could become an accredited mage in the Gulf Kingdom. I chuckled at the thought. ¡°What is it?¡± Gella asked. ¡°The mage academy.¡± I said. Farra and Gella smiled. They knew I didn''t actually have to attend for the next two years and would become a mage anyway, thanks to Grand Mage Henrietta''s interference. It was funny that no one tried to change it or alter the rules for it at all, even though they all knew it was in place. They all just accepted it as fact and moved on. We arrived at the Mages Guild and I asked the driver to stop just down the road, because I didn''t want to put him in danger. Farra seriously debated coming with us, then sighed. ¡°I''ll work it out soon without killing you, I promise.¡± I said and she nodded. Until the storage crystal inside of her was full, she couldn''t use all of her magic potential. The thing was, we also knew that if the crystal wasn''t removed or discharged safely, it would blow out when it was full while the enchanted device tried to add more magic to it. The hole in the chest could be easily fixed. It was the device no longer having a power source and not working that was the problem. It was her heart and if it stopped working, she would die. On the plus side, I could easily detect that she was barely a quarter full and it took a long time for normal mages to charge up a storage crystal. Gella and I left the carriage and used our enchanted necklaces to disappear from being seen. We walked up the road and entered through the gatehouse. I used Detect Enchantment on the thing and nothing was there except fire suppression and an alert ward. I shook my head at the stupidity and disabled both before we killed the guards. We entered the grounds and every mage we came across, we murdered. As far as I was concerned, they were all guilty of compliance, even if they didn''t commit the acts themselves, which most did. The good ones were usually ostracized and either left on personal business, like the extra teachers at the academy, or quit like Greta and Mage King. We roamed the grounds and checked each person, some with blades against their throats and some were just asked. Anyone who lied, died immediately. The others were asked if they knew of crimes and then killed. For once, I didn''t hate being right that they were all compliant. When everyone outside was dealt with, we entered the front of the building and dispatched the guards and the mages in the lobby. I disabled the enchantments as well, except for the structural reinforcement one. That one I studied and remembered. It could be useful, especially if used on ships, because they wouldn''t have to rely on the magic intensive mage shield. ¡°Let''s go up each floor and remove the people without damaging anything.¡± I said and Gella nodded. We both knew the value of loot that could be used for the betterment of our people. Bokuboy 273 The Mages Guild: Showdown Bokuboy Gella and I went up each floor and did the same as we did outside. Each mage or worker was interrogated and then killed. We stashed the bodies in an office on each floor, usually the department head''s office. The worst part about the whole thing, were the secretaries. They knew everything going on and still didn''t do anything about it or reported it to the king or the constables. Some even did the crimes on their boss'' behalf. They all died, too. Neither Gella nor I were surprised that the corruption was so prevalent in the guild with the Hag giving them free reign over wrecking the kingdom. Why they would do that, didn''t matter to me. Only that they did and it cost me my wife, my child, and everything I had built in the capital. We reached the levels with the botany department and the potion making department. They also had a huge storage area. They had spells all over the thing and I looked at the papers on the dead department head''s desk. I found an enchantment written out, with the wrong channels for power and charging on it. It was a stasis enchantment, which was a shock to me. My ingredients will never go bad! I thought and quickly searched through the other papers. ¡°My lord.¡± Gella said and stepped into the office to drop off another body. ¡°Yes, right. The rest of this can wait.¡± I said and tucked the paper into my bandoleer. I had already memorized it and fixed it in my head; but, it didn''t hurt to take it now and not have to come back and search for it later. We left the floor and went up to the next. No one was there, which was only a little surprising, until we reached the top floor. It was a huge room with a very high ceiling for some reason, and there were 60 mages there. They all wore battle robes and they all had worried looks on their faces. Among them was the man I had come for. I nodded to Gella and we stepped out and let our concealment enchantments end before we stepped back inside. I cast Detect Enchantment and they all glowed with various protections, shields, and deflection enchantments. I stood there and concentrated on the ones I wanted to keep, since redundant ones wouldn''t help me much. I also saw a concealed area off to the right. I looked over that way and the mages saw me do so. Some of them looked worried, too. ¡°I wonder who you''ve kidnapped?¡± I asked and nodded at Gella. She drew a knife and squinted her eyes at the area, smiled, and then threw the knife as hard as she could. Several of the mages shouted in defiance and tried to cast spells at it, only to miss as the knife passed them and sunk into a large enchanted coin that had been hidden by the concealing enchantment. The enchantment broke and the magic dissipated. It showed a row of steel bars like a set of holding cells in the prison, only these held some very prominent people. One of which I was told to look for. ¡°Your Highness, Princess Rose Samantha Rivers.¡± I said and bowed to her with the royal version. ¡°I''m glad to see that you''re alive. Your mother told me you would be here and I said I would return you to her.¡± ¡°They wouldn''t hurt their bargaining chip against the royal family.¡± Rose said and glared at the mages. ¡°I actually came willingly, just so they wouldn''t murder Melanie and my half-brother.¡± ¡°Are you sure?¡± I asked. ¡°The Grand Mage killed his own daughter to steal her son, only to kill him as well with neglect and malnourishment by both food and magic.¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± Several of the prisoners asked, shocked. ¡°You said she died in childbirth!¡± One of the other nobles exclaimed. ¡°Release me and I will help you in this fight.¡± Rose said angrily and her hands started to glow. ¡°You? Fight?¡± One of the mages huffed. ¡°You can barely cast two fireballs without weakening yourself!¡± ¡°Quiet.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said and looked at me. ¡°What did you say about my heir, Damon Henrietta?¡± ¡°Your wife dosed him with magic boosting potions and then drained his magic and his short life completely.¡± I said. ¡°Six storage crystals worth.¡± That made nearly all of the mages gasp and some of them looked at the Grand Mage in fear. ¡°No, she... she said she would protect him with her life.¡± Grand Mage Henrietta said. ¡°She did.¡± I said and that made the mages gasp again as Grand Mage Henrietta''s magic flared and a familiar shaped mage shield formed around him. It was Helena''s enchanted amulet. ¡°You are not an accredited mage. You cannot issue challenges to us.¡± One of the mages said. ¡°I don''t bother challenging thieves.¡± I said and most of them relaxed, until I drew my sword and made it glow. ¡°I just kill them.¡± ¡°You''ll never win a magic fight with just a sword!¡± One of the mages said and started to chant. I nodded at Gella and we took off running to either side of the group of mages. It made them block their own lines of fire and they tried to move and get clear to fire their prepared spells. We didn''t let them as we started to cut them down like trees in a forest. They screamed when they could and a few of the mages didn''t bother trying to clear their line of fire and shot off their spells. Fireballs, Lightning, Ice Shards, Rocks, and a few other things flew over and through the mages in front of them. Gella started laughing at them killing their own men and helped them along by kicking and pushing other mages into the others, then she cut them down to end their suffering. I dodged the spells near me or didn''t move as the spells hit in front of me. I then lunged and killed, swiped my sword to the sides and killed two more mages, then advanced. The Grand Mage stood there and cast boosting spells at the other mages around him and I cast dispel for each one, even though I was fighting other mages on my way to him. He saw that his help wasn''t helping and waved at the wall behind me. It opened up and thirty more mages came out with glowing knives, swords, and staffs. I turned to them and cast Disable Enchantment at them to make all of their weapons stop glowing. They were so shocked by this that they stared down at their magic not working on their family heirlooms and stolen army swords. I cast Immolation on their backs and turned back to fight forward again, killing more mages as I kept my eyes on the Grand Mage. His eyes met mine and he looked angry. ¡°I call upon the council! Help me in my time of need!¡± A large glowing circle appeared around him with intricate designs and six smaller circles spread out around him. The council members started to rise out of the circles, as if from the floor. ¡°I don''t want that spell bad enough to let you live.¡± I said and cast as strong of a Dispel as I could. The six council members screamed at the top of their lungs as the spell cracked and the circle sputtered. It flickered and then went out, ending the spell... and leaving the tops of their bodies here and their bottom halves wherever they were before. They fell over, quite dead, and the Grand Mage''s mouth was locked in a snarl as he looked at the people he had depended on be killed so easily. Gella and I finished dispatching the mages and ignored the screams from behind us as the flanking mages died from the very slow immolation I had set upon them. We stopped just outside where that large circle had appeared and the half bodies laying there. ¡°You can''t touch me.¡± The Grand Mage said and touched the amulet. ¡°Your own magic protects me.¡± ¡°You''re right. I can''t touch you.¡± I said. ¡°Why did you do it?¡± ¡°You wouldn''t understand.¡± The Grand Mage said. ¡°I don''t need to understand.¡± I said. ¡°You killed Helena because she wouldn''t let you take the baby, then the baby started dying right away because you killed his mother.¡± ¡°That shouldn''t have happened.¡± The Grand Mage said. ¡°Helena should have accepted that my heir would be raised by me.¡± ¡°Like Marcus was?¡± I asked and he didn''t answer. ¡°That worked out so well, didn''t it?¡± ¡°You killed him.¡± The Grand Mage said, angrily. ¡°No, his jealousy of me killed him. He was so worried about me giving you an heir first that he arranged for the Hag to come here and do his dirty work for him.¡± I said and saw in the Grand Mage''s eyes that it was true. ¡°She killed him for his impertinence with a cannonball right to the face.¡± The Grand Mage scowled at me. ¡°I was going to kill him after that first insult, except Helena asked me not to.¡± I said and then I smiled like the Hag. ¡°Guess what happened when she died?¡± The Grand Mage''s face changed to a blank one. ¡°My promises to her, including all of the contracts she negotiated, were negated. None of them can be fulfilled because of your ignorance and hunger for power.¡± I said. ¡°By the way, I own everything you own now. You defaulted in paying me for my services and ingredients.¡± The Grand Mage looked at me with a look I had never seen before. ¡°I came from the bank and I also had the money the Mages Guild stole from me reversed, as well as adding in the cost of decades of Mage Guild profits that you made from robbing my marsh. It was ever so nice of you to tell me how much you and the guild stole from me.¡± The Grand Mage sighed. ¡°It doesn''t matter now. You have nothing left here.¡± ¡°You''re wrong. It''s you that has nothing. No home, no wife, and no children.¡± He caught his breath. ¡°NO!¡± ¡°I''ll be paying Selene a visit at the academy after I deliver the princess to her mother at the castle.¡± ¡°No, she''s my last hope! Her and her betrothed!¡± The Grand Mage exclaimed and looked at the amulet he wore. ¡°I''ll give you this back and surrender myself! Please, just spare her!¡± ¡°Why? You broke your word and killed your own child and a baby. Why does your other child get to live when mine didn''t?¡± I asked and he didn''t say anything in response. ¡°Right, she doesn''t deserve to live any more than you do.¡± I said and held my hand out towards the floor at his feet. ¡°You can''t cast magic at me.¡± The Grand Mage said. ¡°I know.¡± I said and concentrated. ¡°Mould Earth.¡± Most of the nobles scoffed at me and the Grand Mage smiled. ¡°There''s no dirt inside this room. If we were down on the botany floors, it might have worked.¡± Princess Rose said, sadly. ¡°You mages are so stupid.¡± I said and Gella nodded. ¡°You all forgot that metal comes from the earth.¡± There was a groan from beneath the Grand Mage''s feet, then a column of metal slightly wider than the shield formed and raised him up into the air. The floor seemed to flow like water and he went up and up, with a shocked look on his face, then the shield of the amulet hit the ceiling. ¡°There''s not enough metal to make the column that big.¡± Rose commented. ¡°There is, because it''s hollow.¡± I said and opened up the bottom of the metal tube. I pulled out a piece of wildwood and carved the enchantments it would need, added the enchantment potion and charged it up, then closed it and stepped back. I opened the top of the tube and the Grand Mage fell thirty feet with a loud scream, then thumped inside the tube. He groaned and started cursing. ¡°I''ll kill you!¡± Grand Mage Henrietta shouted. ¡°You obviously have no clue that you''re inside the world''s largest Kracken Tube.¡± I said and everyone in the room gasped. ¡°I wonder if he''ll make it through the ceiling?¡± Gella asked. ¡°Let''s find out.¡± I said and activated the enchantments. ¡°AHHHHHH!¡± The Grand Mage yelled as he was shot up through the tube at full force that could launch a full tree over two miles. The shield amulet he wore hit the ceiling that had the structural reinforcement enchantment still on it and stopped dead. The Grand Mage didn''t. The chain snapped and he slammed head first into the top of that impenetrable shield, instantly becoming mush. His blood gushed out of the fleshy mass and both it and the mass dropped as the shield dropped back into the tube. ¡°Do it again.¡± Gella said. ¡°Let''s see if the structural enchantment can take the strain.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± I said and launched the thing again. It wasn''t as good of a show this time, because the inside of the shield was already just a mush pile and blood. It still had the same weight, so I closed the top of the tube and left it there. ¡°Well, that''s enough proof for me.¡± I said and Gella nodded. ¡°How long with the shield last?¡± Gella asked as we walked over to the princess. She had a maid and a guard with her. All three of them looked sick. ¡°Once activated, the person activating it has to end it.¡± I said with a smile. Gella laughed and used her sword to cut the hinges off of the cell door. I pulled it open, wrenching the lock free and tossed the door to the side. ¡°By the Son''s Light, David.¡± Rose whispered with tears in her eyes as she stepped close to me and hugged me. ¡°Your son. I''m so sorry.¡± ¡°I don''t have time to be sad.¡± I said and pat her back, then handed her to her maid. ¡°Gella.¡± ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± Gella said and ran along the cell doors to cut all the hinges off. I walked along and pulled the doors off and tossed them aside. ¡°I am declaring all Guild Mages as rogues. They will be arrested and interrogated by me or my people. If any are guilty, they will be executed.¡± ¡°D-David! You can''t do that!¡± Rose said. ¡°I did and will have the queen sign off on it. She wants them gone as much as I do.¡± I said and waved the nobles and their families towards the center of the room. ¡°Is anyone hurt? Maimed?¡± Most of them shook their heads, except for a young boy. I knelt and looked at him. ¡°What seems to be biting your ass?¡± The nobles gasped and the boy laughed. ¡°My arm hurts.¡± He said and held it out. I nodded. ¡°Minor Heal.¡± The boy''s arm glowed for a moment and he grinned. ¡°Thanks, mister!¡± ¡°Lord Drake.¡± Gella said and the boy looked surprised. ¡°It''s all right. My friends call me David.¡± I said and stood. ¡°What do your enemies call you?¡± One of the nobles asked. ¡°The Marsh Man.¡± Gella said right away. I nodded to her and pointed to the doors. ¡°The stairs are that way. Enjoy the freedom I''ve never had.¡± They all gave me sad looks and thanked me as they left. They all had relieved faces, too. ¡°Your Highness, it''s time to go.¡± I said and waved her forward as I offered my arm as an escort. ¡°Why did you not make me leave first?¡± Rose asked as her maid walked behind her and the guard was off to the side. Gella was on my side and slightly behind. ¡°I knew you wanted to talk to me without the others hearing.¡± I said. Rose nodded. ¡°What happened, David? What''s been going on?¡± ¡°I can''t tell you that, since I only just arrived here.¡± I said. ¡°Your sister said that the guild tried to claim half the country.¡± ¡°I meant with you.¡± Rose said and her arm tightened in mine. ¡°You are supposed to be dead.¡± ¡°It''s too long of a story to tell on the ride to the castle.¡± I said and entered the stairwell. ¡°You knew I wasn''t dead, even with the fake body.¡± Rose blushed a little and nodded as we walked down the stairs at a slow pace. She leaned a little on me and gave me a very nice view down her dress. Her breasts had grown and her bright pink nipples were quite pronounced. ¡°You know I am no longer betrothed.¡± I said to her. ¡°Yes, I do.¡± Rose said, her voice a bit deeper and huskier than usual. ¡°Watching you fight, even in women''s footwear, was quite the sight.¡± She said and gave me a sultry look. ¡°You reminded me of my father.¡± ¡°I don''t have any toes and need the boots.¡± I said and she gasped and stumbled. I easily held her steady and she sighed. ¡°You didn''t notice my lack of fingers, either.¡± Rose looked at my arm and she sighed again. ¡°Oh, David.¡± ¡°It''s all right. I''ll be fixing myself up soon.¡± I said and we continued down the stairs. I cast locking charms on all the doors we passed, as well as alarm spells. This building was full of secrets and I was going to take as many of them as possible, including the growing plants and their secrets. My crew and the other slaves needed somewhere to live and take care of, too. ¡°You made more regeneration potion?¡± Rose asked, surprised. ¡°Before I was kidnapped and made a slave.¡± I said and she gasped again. ¡°I told you it was a long story.¡± Rose nodded and we walked the rest of the way down to the ground floor in silence. No one else was there when we left and I locked the doors and nodded at Gella. She went back and sealed them as well, then joined us at the carriage that had driven up. ¡°The royal palace again.¡± I said to the driver and then helped Rose into the carriage with my hand, then did the same for Gella. The look of shock on Rose''s face was priceless. I would have enjoyed it if I wasn''t so focused on getting things done. There was still a few things to do before I could retreat for the ten days to fix myself. I would need to relearn how to walk and move again with my toes back. In a few weeks, I would be back to my old self. I had no clue what to do after that, though. I stayed quiet and thought about it during the ride back to the castle as Gella and Farra introduced themselves to the princess. 274 The Mage Academy: Shakedown The guard at the castle didn''t even look inside the carriage as we approached. He just opened the gate for us and waved us through. Two armored horsemen were there and they took up positions on either side of us as an escort, as if they knew I had the princess with me. It made me wonder if they would have done the same if Rose had been dead and I was only bringing her body back. We arrived at the castle doors and I stepped out first and handed Rose out, then Gella, then offered my elbow to Rose''s maid. I wasn''t sure why she blushed when I did so. Farra stayed with the gold again and I would give her a bag of it when we left to go back to the ship. The guard stepped out and followed us all inside the castle. There was a little flurry of activity as we walked through the hallways back to the throne room. As soon as the doors were opened and before the man there announced our arrival, the queen mother''s voice rang out and cut him off. ¡°ROSIE!¡± Samantha Rivers yelled and she ran, quite undignified for a lady, across the throne room. I backed off to give her room and she engulfed her daughter in a bear hug that nearly smothered her. ¡°I''m... fine!¡± Rose''s muffled voice said from somewhere within the queen mother''s embrace. ¡°You are. You are. You are.¡± Samantha said, repeatedly. ¡°Mother.¡± Ellen''s voice snapped. ¡°Shut up for once!¡± Samantha spat at her older daughter and eased her hold on her younger daughter. ¡°I''ve had enough of your attitude!¡± ¡°My attitude is keeping this kingdom from imploding!¡± Ellen said and stood up. ¡°No, the nobles were just too afraid to wait for the king''s son to be born before making a decision on who should rule.¡± Samantha said. ¡°The vote wasn''t unanimous, in case you were wondering.¡± Ellen glared at her for a few moments, then she sighed. ¡°Fine. Go ahead and have your little reunion.¡± Melanie stood up and started to waddle towards us, so I ran over to her and offered my arm. ¡°Thank you, Lord Drake.¡± I led her over to the queen mother and Rose, then stepped back as they hugged together and the tears started flowing. Their emotional gathering was a bit premature, considering how many mages were still out and around. I walked over to the throne and nodded at Ellen. ¡°I need you to do something for me and the kingdom.¡± Ellen gave me a stern look at my wording, until I told her about my declaration with the noble hostages that I had rescued. ¡°I can honestly say that I never expected that.¡± ¡°It saves me from having to hunt them all down if you have them arrested and brought here to the capital for me and my people to interrogate.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°Yes, I was going to.¡± ¡°Perhaps we can compromise.¡± Ellen said and smiled wickedly. ¡°What if we issue an order, on behalf of Grand Mage Henrietta, to return to the guild and regroup and decide what to do with the country as well as the arrest order?¡± I thought about that for a minute. ¡°If they are rogues by the crown and are openly rebelling, they would come back on their own to go to the guild. The ones that are more innocent, might turn themselves in to the army. The not so innocent ones might run.¡± ¡°In any of those cases, we almost completely remove the mage threat from gathering their forces in another area and trying to assault or take over any of my towns or cities.¡± Ellen said. I nodded agreement. ¡°Melanie is almost done having Rose rub her belly.¡± Ellen raised her eyebrows at me and I didn''t tell her that I could hear them taking. The queen mother, Melanie, and Rose walked back to the throne and Melanie sat in her place, the queen mother sat in hers, and Rose didn''t protest as her mother pulled her onto her lap. ¡°Melanie, we have a couple of things for you to prepare for us.¡± Ellen said and filled her in. As she talked, Melanie''s face became feral, as did the queen mother''s. Rose just seemed to accept that it was going to happen. Soon, the documents were prepared and no one asked how Melanie could fake a document that supposedly came from the guild. It had the proper seals and everything. As if she knew what we were thinking, Melanie smiled at us. ¡°Who do you think taught them how to properly prepare their correspondence?¡± Ellen barked a laugh, the queen mother giggled, and Rose sighed. ¡°Send them off, one discreetly and the other officially.¡± Ellen said. Melanie nodded and did so. She gave me a copy of them as well. Ellen gave me a look I''ve seen before, one I didn''t like. ¡°David, we need to talk about...¡± ¡°I have to visit the Mage Academy first to handle some business, then I have to go get Greta and Jill from the gutted Henrietta Longshore mansion.¡± I said and interrupted her. ¡°I think that can wait until...¡± Ellen started to say. ¡°You''re being stupid again.¡± I interrupted her again and she glared at me. ¡°I am in no condition right now to do anything to help you with my life here destroyed, that no one tried to stop, after I was kidnapped.¡± ¡°You''re handling it all very well.¡± Ellen said with squinted eyes. ¡°I''m trying very hard to not kill you all for bringing me here in the first place!¡± I spat at her and my magic flared. ¡°Your stupid society rules and your stupid mage rules and your really stupid behavior annoys me so much that I just want to burn it all down and never have to think about any of this ever again!¡± The entire throne room, the common people''s seats, the curtains, and the walls, all burst into flames. Melanie, Samantha, and Rose all screamed in fright and Ellen stared at me, probably because I hadn''t spoken a chant to make all of that fire appear. Gella was at my side instantly and put a calming hand on my face. ¡°My lord. Not yet.¡± I looked into her calm eyes and took a deep breath. The fire stopped flaring and then it all went out at once. ¡°I should have you thrown in prison for assaulting the royal family!¡± Ellen spat at me. ¡°I''d kill you all right after you gave that order, then no one will be around to fill your illegal orders and you won''t be here to enjoy abusing your power again.¡± I said and took Gella''s hand before I walked away. ¡°You are to come right back here when...¡± Ellen started to order me. ¡°I''m moving my people into the mage guild building that I''ve claimed by right of conquest.¡± I said and kept walking. ¡°If you need me for anything, keep it to yourself for the next month. I''m busy.¡± Ellen shot to her feet. ¡°LORD DRAKE!¡± ¡°FUCK OFF!¡± I yelled back and turned to face her, to see shocked looks on everyone''s faces. ¡°I think I said that curse right. Sailors are hard to understand when they''re drunk.¡± ¡°Yes, my lord. You said that perfectly.¡± Gella said with a huge smile on her face. ¡°Let''s go and finish up your tasks.¡± I nodded and we left the smouldering throne room and four stunned women behind. None of the guards followed us as we left the castle and climbed into the carriage again. Farra laughed pretty hard when Gella filled her in on what happened inside the castle on the ride to the academy. Even the driver that was listening in had laughed, too. We arrived at the mage academy and the guard there refused to admit us, even though I was a student. I stepped out of the carriage and walked over to him. I pulled my sword and pressed it to his neck before I asked him several questions. He spoke truthfully and admitted he didn''t commit any crimes and wasn''t involved with any, not even the one that almost happened to me and Mage King. ¡°Good man.¡± I said and reached into the carriage and grabbed a handful of gold crowns to give to him. ¡°Sorry for the interrogation. It''s by royal decree.¡± Gella unrolled the parchment to show him and the guard''s eyes nearly popped out of his head. ¡°J-just give me a moment to get the gate for you, s-sir.¡± The guard said and ran inside, then opened the gate to let us through. I hopped into the carriage and we drove across the campus to the main administration building. As soon as we stepped inside, I cast that area locking spell those criminals did to capture Greta. All the doors locked with my magic and we walked over to the main desk. As luck would have it, the woman I was mainly looking for was there. ¡°Hello again.¡± I said and reached across the desk to grab her by the neck. She let out choking sounds and tried to pry my fingers from her neck. ¡°By royal decree, I am allowed to arrest and interrogate every mage in the kingdom.¡± Her eyes widened as Gella showed off the official document. ¡°If you haven''t committed any crimes, you''ll be released and left alone.¡± I said and half of the people in the room relaxed. ¡°The ones that have, will be executed.¡± The guilty ones let out cries and jumped to their feet and ran for it. Gella easily caught them with the doors locked and cut them down. No one else moved and they looked terrified. ¡°That was surprisingly efficient.¡± I said and looked at the woman struggling in my grip. ¡°Do I need to question you to make you admit what you''ve done?¡± The woman closed her eyes and shook her head. ¡°I didn''t think so.¡± I said and removed her head. No one reacted. ¡°Now, with that unpleasantness out of the way...¡± ¡°What''s going on out here?¡± The Director of the Academy, Mage Pavinca Chasma asked as she came out of the hallway that led to her office. Gella showed her the document and the woman sighed. ¡°I knew this was coming as soon as I heard you were back.¡± Pavinca said and looked at me. ¡°You can do the job I''ve been too bogged down in paperwork to do.¡± Her words surprised everyone still alive in the room. ¡°You''ll have more paperwork to replace the people you''re going to lose.¡± I warned her. ¡°No, once they''re dead, I chuck everything concerning them.¡± Pavinca said and looked at the bodies on the floor. ¡°Door locking spell?¡± ¡°Areus Securus.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°I can cast actual magic, now that I have the proper books to learn from.¡± ¡°Then I''ll leave you to it.¡± Pavinca said. ¡°I''ll be waiting for your interview in my office.¡± She said and went back down the hallway. Gella laughed softly and we went through everyone else there. Luckily, they had been correct in not running, since they all passed. We went to the director''s office and the secretary there passed as well. We knocked and entered Pavinca''s office and her interview went exactly as I suspected. She thanked me for being thorough and then gave me passes to be in the halls and to interrupt classes. Gella laughed again and accepted them gratefully. We thanked the director and left to go do her job. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Skipping miscellaneous details. Speeding up time. Done. _______________ We only had to kill six of the eighteen normal teachers, three members of the cleaning staff and one from the cooking staff, and two of the overflow teachers that included Greta''s replacement for her basic potions class. I had saved that class for last, because of a certain someone that should be there. Selene had not been in her class. I also avoided the library. When I entered the alternate potions classroom, a very distinct whispered voice let out a muffled scream. I turned to see Vanessa passed out in her seat, so I left her there and proceed to interrogate and then execute the teacher. That shocked the girls in the class, even after Gella had shown them the official document. I went to Vanessa''s desk and packed her things, handed them to Gella, and picked Vanessa up. ¡°You can''t kidnap her!¡± Lorna exclaimed as she stood. ¡°Why can''t I kidnap my own concubine? She gave herself to me and she''s mine, isn''t she?¡± I asked and Lorna closed her mouth. ¡°Do you want to take her to the next class like this?¡± Lorna shook her head and I carried Vanessa out of the main school building. We went to the first year dorm and the lady that monitored the students was there. She looked at me for only a moment, took a sharp breath in, and fainted as well. ¡°You would think they hadn''t known you''ve come back from the dead before.¡± Gella said and tied the woman up, just in case she woke up before we returned. We took Vanessa and her things up the stairs to her dorm room and I broke the dorm rules and entered her room without her permission and without official supervision, assuming Gella didn''t count. She wouldn''t, since she was completely biased for me doing whatever I wanted. I laid Vanessa on her bed before Gella and I sat down to wait for her to wake up. We had a few things to talk about before I left to go get my crew and the freed slaves. 275 Clearing The Air It took nearly twenty minutes for Vanessa to wake up. ¡°Ugh. What''s going... wait, why am I in bed? I was just in class and saw... I thought I saw...¡± Vanessa''s whispered words were loud in the silence as she blinked her eyes. ¡°You did see me.¡± I said from beside the bed. Vanessa gasped and sat up to stare at me. ¡°DAVID!¡± I nodded and her eyes roamed over me, then she sucked in a sharp breath. ¡°You noticed.¡± Vanessa''s hand reached out and touched the smeared concealer on my neck. ¡°You''re a slave.¡± ¡°Was. Several times now.¡± I said. ¡°The last only gave me the proper skin and hair color.¡± I took off the overlarge captain''s hat and Vanessa caught her breath at my hair. ¡°David... I...¡± Vanessa let her hand drop. ¡°I don''t know what to say.¡± ¡°Tell me what happened after the Hag took me.¡± I said. Vanessa nodded and for the next hour, she told me that the docks had been wrecked by the Eastern Empire''s cannon fire and several of the businesses there. Not the one her parents owned, though. It became a key resource in rebuilding and getting replacement things, as long as Helena kept making the number ten potion. The problem was, the winter quickly approached and it was a bit harsh. Helena had lost her drive to work, mainly because of me being missing and her being hampered with a huge belly. She did what she could on the days she got out of bed. My maids had helped Jill take care of everything and they got through the winter just fine. Vanessa told me about her parents picking her up one day after winter ended as a surprise to show her the renovations they had done back at their house. That was the day before the attack on the Henrietta Longshore mansion. Her parents wouldn''t let her go back, even when she tried to sneak away. They told her that new branch of the Henrietta family was being erased by the Mages Guild and nothing good would come from associating with them anymore. Vanessa was crying by this point and she didn''t reach for me or for a napkin to wipe at her face. Vanessa told me about how the Grand Mage had rescued his daughter from a degenerate criminal and took her home to raise her right and to marry her off to a proper mage. She smiled then, because as soon as the new husband had shown up and proposed properly, she had burned his face off. That had put an end to the Grand Mage''s initial plan, because he couldn''t keep trying to get her to marry someone if she was just going to kill them the first chance she had. She couldn''t be watched constantly or have a mage nearby to cast dispel at all hours of the day and night. He could have if he wanted them to see his daughter naked taking baths and changing. He didn''t want that. No one commented at all about the destruction of the Henrietta Longshore Estate, as if it didn''t happen. The men were fired and forced to take jobs that were far below their skills, some in other cities and towns, because the Grand Mage blacklisted them from any lucrative positions. Anyone of a lower social standard that had helped me, were treated as such. When Helena gave birth, all of the nobles celebrated. The Grand Mage, the ruler of the Mages Council that controlled the Mages Guild, had a new heir. His son''s murder was placed at my feet, despite me not being involved in that way, and my son being adopted by his grandfather and grandmother was a fitting reward for them. They lost a son and gained a son. That''s when the lie of Helena dying from childbirth had started. Vanessa had heard the rumors and also talked to my maids, secretly of course, and found out the real reason. They had fled after Helena''s murder and she didn''t know where they went, in case someone came to her to try and get their location. As if what they already did to my staff wasn''t harsh enough. ¡°And now you''re here. Back. Back from the dead.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°You knew I wasn''t dead.¡± I said back. Vanessa nodded. ¡°No one could keep you from coming back to your family.¡± She said and then she ducked her head. ¡°David, it... it''s been over six months. A lot has changed since then. A lot.¡± I stayed quiet and let her speak. ¡°After you were gone, I... I realized that my life was moving on.¡± Vanessa whispered. ¡°It was odd, because of all the people that started to come around to visit me, as if we had been friends for years. Once you weren''t around, my Lady title that I got from you, even if it no longer counted, made me really popular.¡± I nodded and motioned for her to keep going. ¡°Seeing you today was a shock. I didn''t expect... out of the blue...¡± Vanessa sighed. ¡°You broke my heart when you left. I felt lost and set adrift. I tried to be there for Helena, since she felt the same way, and we helped each other so much. After she died, I... there was nothing left. No reason to fight against my parents anymore.¡± I wasn''t liking this talk. ¡°What did you think I would do? Sit alone at home and wait for the day that you might come home? Would you return only with me here and not Helena?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°My mind gave me wounds that I don''t know if I can heal. Was it me? Was it my fascination with you that ruined everything?¡± I didn''t comment and she wouldn''t look at me. ¡°I never once looked at another man like I looked at you. With you gone, even though I knew...¡± Vanessa shook her head and reached over to her nightstand to pull something out of the drawer. ¡°This happened when Helena died.¡± I looked at her outstretched hand. The ring I had given her was cracked and no magic at all was in it. ¡°Our contracts are null and void.¡± Vanessa whispered and her hand dropped to her lap as the ring rolled onto the bed. ¡°My future with you... my life... my spirit... is as broken as this ring.¡± ¡°Vanessa...¡± I said and she held a hand up to stop me. ¡°My parents have arranged another pairing for me.¡± Vanessa said with a sad look. ¡°They signed the preliminary documents already and I''ll be formally meeting my new betrothed next week.¡± ¡°What''s his name?¡± Gella asked in a whisper. ¡°Gallen Hishmanger.¡± Vanessa responded, then caught her breath. ¡°You won''t be meeting him.¡± Gella said and stood. ¡°No one takes what my lord claimed as his.¡± ¡°You can''t!¡± Vanessa exclaimed, even in a whisper it sounded harsh. I picked up the ring she dropped and held it in my hand. ¡°It''s too bad that everything can''t be fixed so easily.¡± I said and cast Minor Mend on the ring. It repaired and glowed with my magic. Vanessa stared at it and then gasped when I crushed it. I dropped the mangled metal to the bed and stood. ¡°I''m sorry that you thought so little of me that I would cast you aside if Helena wasn''t here.¡± ¡°D-David, I... I''m a Lady and... you were gone...¡± Vanessa sighed. ¡°There are things that happen, that no matter how much time passes, it can''t erase them.¡± ¡°I know. The Hag showed me that.¡± I said and walked to the door. ¡°You''re doing it, too.¡± ¡°Good luck being all alone with all of your new friends around you.¡± Gella said as a parting shot while we left the room. We went downstairs and the lady minding the dorm gave us a surprised look, then Gella interrogated her. She passed and we untied her. ¡°I will be having you charged for...¡± ¡°Nothing.¡± Gella said and showed her the official document and the passes the director of the academy gave us. ¡°Have a good day.¡± We left the dorm room and went back to the administration building. A quick search gave us the location of Vanessa''s new betrothed and we went to the classroom and arrested him, then left with him. In a stroke of brilliance, Gella suggested we go to Selene''s dorm room with him. I smiled at the idea and we went there instead of killing him right away. We showed the documents to the dorm manager and she failed the interrogation. With her dead, no one complained when we went upstairs to Selene''s room. Gella held the man off to the side and I knocked on Selene''s door. I had already determined that she was inside with someone else, thanks to my vigilance technique. The door opened and it was a man I didn''t recognize. His clothing was rumpled and his hair was messy. ¡°What is it? I''m spending registered time with my betrothed.¡± The man said. Both I and Gella smiled at the happy news that we didn''t have to hunt him down. I ran him through with my sword and then pushed him off. His body fell backwards, lifeless, and Selene screamed. I stepped into the dorm room and saw that she was on the bed in just her underwear. ¡°YOU KILLED HIM!¡± Selene yelled. ¡°I know.¡± I said and walked over to her. When I was closer, she gasped and her face drained of color. ¡°D-David! You''re alive!¡± Selene exclaimed. ¡°No, not really.¡± I said and shoved my sword through her chest. ¡°Your father sends his regards.¡± Selene died with a shocked look on her face. ¡°Please don''t kill me!¡± Vanessa''s betrothed shouted as Gella dragged him into the room. ¡°Did you take liberties with Vanessa?¡± I asked him and his eyes went to Selene''s body. ¡°I see.¡± Gella let the guy go as I took his head. The body and the head fell to the floor and his blood joined with the other man''s. No one seemed to adhere to contracts, so I didn''t feel bad about enforcing the clauses for inappropriate touching that both men violated. I knew I was justifying it in my head, only because I could. I honestly didn''t care about it anymore. ¡°Let''s go. We need to visit Vanessa''s parents for breaking the contracts.¡± I said and Gella nodded. We quickly left there and went back to the carriage in front of the main administration building. Gella went inside briefly to hand the director the list of dead bodies. When she came back out, I felt someone looking at me and looked up at the library windows. Eludora was there and pressed against the window as she stared down at me. ¡°DAVID!¡± I nodded to her and told the driver to head to the docks as I climbed into the carriage. I had forgotten to put my captain''s hat back on and Eludora had recognized me. I put it on and we rode the carriage back to the capital''s main docks. I had him detour to the business the Sellwafers owned and I climbed out of the carriage. The guard at the door saw me and he frowned. ¡°Attack me and die.¡± I said and walked over to the front door. He started to step in front of me, so I swiped my sword across his neck and his body fell to the ground. I opened the door and the same sales girl was there behind the desk. She looked terrified. ¡°The Sellwafers.¡± The girl shook her head as Gella entered the business behind me. ¡°If you are involved in their crimes, I''m going to kill you.¡± I said and she peed herself. ¡°Where?¡± ¡°Th-the b-back office.¡± The girl said. I knew where that was and walked by her and entered the back work area. No one turned to look at me and I saw them using my number ten potion. I went to the office and entered without knocking. ¡°Just put the plans for the expansion on the desk.¡± Baroness Sellwafer said and waved at the large desk in front of her. She was writing something and didn''t look up. ¡°Dear, it could be the delivery from Lady Bassinger.¡± Baron Sellwafer said, also without looking up from his small desk off to the side of the room. Baroness Sellwafer sighed and stopped writing. ¡°It better be. I am in the middle of writing to...¡± She stopped talking when she saw me standing there. ¡°Can I help you, captain?¡± Her question made her husband look up as well. ¡°I''m just here to inform you that you breached the contracts you signed in good faith with the Henrietta Longshore Family.¡± I said and both of them gasped. ¡°The penalties are to be applied immediately and all loans are to be paid, materials paid for, royalties for using patented potions, and all profits will be handed back to them.¡± It took Baroness Sellwafer a few moments to compose herself. ¡°The branch family is dead. Those contract penalties no longer apply.¡± She said, her confidence returning. ¡°You refuse to pay your debts?¡± I asked and drew my sword. ¡°NO! We''re saying there are none! Everything is handled! No one is alive from that family and any obligations are voided!¡± The Baron said. ¡°You''re wrong.¡± I said and pulled my hat off. ¡°I, Lord Drake, am not dead.¡± The Baron let out a girly scream and fainted. The Baroness looked on the verge of doing the same. ¡°You intentionally blocked my betrothed from having our third protect her, didn''t protect her yourselves when called upon, and then abandoned the family in their time of need.¡± I said and her face paled. ¡°You also set my Lady Concubine up to be married again, without my permission, and in clear violation of the agreements.¡± ¡°You... you were dead and...¡± ¡°...and she has been sullied by that betrothal.¡± I added and she gasped. ¡°Yes, you allowed my concubine to be touched by another hand when mine wasn''t allowed to do so.¡± ¡°My... my lord, I... I don''t know what to say.¡± Baroness Sellwafer said. ¡°You don''t have to say anything. I know what you think of me, Helena breaking from the main family, and Vanessa willingly becoming a concubine and not a proper wife.¡± ¡°She deserved better!¡± The Baroness exclaimed. ¡°So, being rich, cared for, and loved for the rest of her life wasn''t good enough for her?¡± I asked and she snapped her mouth closed. ¡°I wish someone had told me that making her a Lady right away was a mistake.¡± The Baroness didn''t say anything in response. ¡°I will be going to the bank and everything you own will be mine in an hour. Also, everything Vanessa owns. If that''s not enough to pay off your debts, your entire family will become my serfs until you work it all off.¡± ¡°NO!¡± Baroness Sellwafer yelled. ¡°You brought this on yourself.¡± I said and sheathed my sword as I walked over to her. ¡°Let... let me pack my things! I''ll go then!¡± Baroness Sellwafer said as I grabbed her by the back of her dress and pulled her up to stand. ¡°Those are my things.¡± I said and looked at her dress. ¡°You can keep what you''re wearing until we reach the ship. I''ll have appropriate slave garb provided when you''re informed of your new duties.¡± ¡°NO! NOOOOO!¡± Baroness Sellwafer yelled as I carried her over to her still unconscious husband. I grabbed him as I heard a scuffle outside the office. I walked over to the door and dragged my two captives behind me. The door opened and Gella stood there with two large men on the floor at her feet. ¡°They assumed you were killing them. I didn''t kill them.¡± Gella said. ¡°You should have.¡± I said and the other workers gasped. ¡°Your old bosses breached the contracts that established this business. I own it and their family now.¡± Most of the heads nodded. They knew breaching a contract meant heavy penalties. They also looked worried. ¡°No, I''m not shutting you down. I need to get that money back.¡± I said and they all sighed in relief. ¡°Inform these two of the new boss.¡± Gella said and kicked them. ¡°If they don''t like it, tell them they''re fired. If they still don''t leave, tell them I''ll be back tomorrow to kill them.¡± The workers nodded and none of them tried to stop me from dragging their old bosses out of the back room. The girl behind the counter let out a little scream and covered her mouth. ¡°It''s okay. They''re my serfs now.¡± I said and kept walking. ¡°That''s worse than death for them.¡± The girl commented. ¡°I know.¡± I said and dragged the crying Baroness out of the shop. Her husband was still unconscious. Gella and I loaded them into the carriage and Farra tied them up to stop them from trying to steal the piles and piles of gold crowns in the carriage. The Baroness cried harder when Farra told her that it was the riches stolen from my supposedly dead branch family. She knew the pile was about to get much higher because of her. 276 A Place To Stay Bokuboy The carriage arrived back at the docks and I had the driver take us right down to the ship. I ignored the dozen bodies in military uniforms that were scattered around the dock in front of the ship as I stepped out of the carriage. I handed out Gella and Farra, which made Baroness Sellwafer pale. I reached in and dragged her and her still unconscious husband out of the carriage and over to the ship. ¡°Jensen! Get a slave or two and take these two serfs below, strip them, give them appropriate clothing, and shackle them.¡± I said and he barked a couple of orders. ¡°They are my serfs and they won''t be touched.¡± ¡°We all know the rules, sir.¡± Jensen said and ignored the sobbing from the woman. Two women slaves came over and saw the two rich people that were now serfs and smiled as they grabbed them and dragged them into the ship. ¡°Farra, get me the ninth mage book.¡± I said and she nodded and ran after the slaves. ¡°I need six volunteers to help me move my riches onto the ship and down into my cabin.¡± Not surprisingly, I had a dozen volunteer. ¡°You''re hired. Unload the carriage and you get a gold crown each.¡± ¡°YESSIR!¡± The men said and went to the carriage, then they let out whistles of appreciation. ¡°You weren''t kiddin'', sir! You''re loaded!¡± One of them said as he and another man carried one of the large sacks. ¡°I''ve got two thirds full of a large chest of gold back home, too.¡± I told them and they laughed. ¡°No wonder he felt bad about taking his cut! Ha ha!¡± The other guy said and unloaded the carriage to put the sacks of gold onto the deck of the ship and then they picked up the large chest and added it to the pile. A few of the smaller sacks had broken open inside the carriage and one of the men took out a sack and filled it to get it all and added it to the pile. ¡°I may have more coming, too.¡± I said and the men gave me surprised looks, then they laughed and laughed. I went to the driver of the carriage. ¡°Do you know where I can get a good sturdy skiff with wheels?¡± ¡°No, sir. You''d have to make something like that.¡± The driver said and pointed down the docks. ¡°You can get parts over there for the wheels and things. I don''t know where you''ll get the wood.¡± ¡°We''ve got lots of wood.¡± I said and handed him another handful of gold crowns. ¡°I''ll be taking a trip to the bank after I get the ship handled and then back to the Henrietta Longshore estate.¡± ¡°Yessir, I''ll be your driver for a month with this.¡± The driver said, happily. ¡°I''ll wait up by the end to get out of everyone''s way.¡± I nodded and went inside the ship to meet up with Farra, Jensen, and my new serfs. I took the book and opened it to the proper page and put a hand on Baroness Sellwafer''s forehead. ¡°Debt.¡± The woman gasped when her forehead tingled and then nothing else seemed to happen. What we saw was something different. She now had a number tattoo on her forehead. As she worked, the number would go down. The more she did, the faster the numbers would drop. I cast the same spell on the Baron and an identical number appeared on his forehead, which meant the harder the pair worked, the quicker the number would drop on both their foreheads. I nodded at the two women slaves and they grinned as they proceeded to slap the man''s face a bunch of times to wake him up. He woke with a start and felt three more slaps before the slaves stopped. They did that on purpose and I nodded at them again. The two women giggled and picked the man up to stand him on his feet. ¡°These two slaves will show you your duties on the ship. The more you work, the quicker your debt will be paid off.¡± I explained. ¡°The less you work or if you work poorly, the longer you will be serfs.¡± ¡°Can''t you just sell me back to my family?¡± Baroness Sellwafer asked. ¡°They can''t afford you.¡± I said and she sighed. ¡°Get them situated into a cabin and they can bunk together.¡± The two women slaves nodded and grabbed the serfs by the arm and walked them out of the room. I gave the book back to Farra and she left to put it back in my cabin. ¡°Jensen, get a good a work crew and gather enough wood to make a platform wide enough to hold the keel of the ship.¡± Jensen''s eyes widened and then he grinned. ¡°Yessir.¡± We went back up on deck and I went down the dock to the store that the driver told me about. They had exactly what I needed and I bought them. I loaded up a hand cart with the parts and went back down the dock to the ship. ¡°The best spot is over on the side where they launch ships.¡± Jensen said and pointed. I nodded and we all went down the docks and around to where the new ships were pushed off into the water. We got to work and made a wide platform, just under the width of a street, with wheels. I attached both the structural enhancement enchantment and the weight enchantment, then told them to keep the wood braces ready to apply when needed. ¡°Sir, are you really going to do this?¡± One of the men asked. ¡°I can''t leave it here to be raided or stolen.¡± I said and went back down the docks to the ship. ¡°Unhook us!¡± The crew complied immediately and Farra, Gella, Hanna, Molly, and the old man took up their positions. We powered up the enchantments and I moved the ship out from the dock sideways, shocking everyone watching us, then I raised the ship almost completely out of the water. The crowd gasped at us and I turned the ship to point right at the launch site. ¡°He''s really going to do it! HAHAHAHA!¡± The crew waiting for us laughed. I ran the ship right up the side of the launch site and onto the waiting platform as if it was my old flat bottomed boat. The men quickly attached the support beams to the platform and the sides of the ship to keep it upright. I activated the weight enchantment on the platform and let the one on the ship go. The ship settled and didn''t tip over, thanks to the braces. ¡°That actually worked!¡± Jensen yelled up at me. ¡°Get me a team of horses!¡± I said and tossed down a small sack of gold. He and a few crewmen ran off to do so, because they wanted to see if it would work. ¡°My lord, you''re amazing.¡± Hanna said as she came over to my side. ¡°As my slave, you have to say that.¡± I said and she smiled. ¡°No, my lord. As your slave I have to follow your orders. I don''t have to compliment you or tell you I like you.¡± Hanna said and blushed. ¡°Um... forget I said that last part.¡± ¡°Is that why you haven''t chosen to become a maid?¡± Gella asked her as Jensen and the crew came back with a six horse team to hook up to the wheeled platform. ¡°I don''t have the dedication needed.¡± Hanna said and her blush didn''t fade. ¡°I can''t put my feelings aside like that and serve a lord and also have a man in my life.¡± She glanced across the deck and saw Ann wave to her. ¡°I admire Ann so much and I can''t do her job like she can. I just can''t.¡± The horses were hooked up and Jensen went to the carriage driver to get him to take control. He had them hook the back of the carriage to the team of horses and then they were off. Everyone at the docks and on the streets stared as our ship, the size of a frigate, was pulled out of the launch area as if it weighed almost nothing and then it was pulled through the streets towards the Mages Guild. The crew were having a great time waving at all the people staring at them and hollered that they were a land ship now and nothing could stop them. We soon arrived at the Mages Guild and I had to go down to open the gates for the carriage. I stood there and watched a huge ship drive by me and my mind whirled over the implications it could have. I think I just made a new weapon for the war. I thought and closed the gate. I went over to the ship and the crew quickly made a large set of steps for everyone on the ship to get down. I gave them orders to claim the bottom two floors for crew quarters and to clean the place up for their use. No one was to go higher than that until I came back. We would take inventory and see where we could go from there. Farra, Gella and I took the carriage back out and down to the bank to handle the Sellwafer''s contract breaches. When we entered the bank, everyone froze. ¡°I need the Sellwafer''s account manager.¡± I said and a woman let out a startled squeak. I walked over to her and she was shivering in fear. ¡°My apologies for bothering you.¡± I said and bowed deeply, then stood up. I explained the situation about them breaching their business contracts and exclusive contracts with the Henrietta Longshore family and how I was claiming the penalties for defaulting on them. The woman''s face was angry. ¡°I can''t believe they would tell you those lies!¡± I gave her a surprised look and it was her turn to explain. ¡°Even if the branch is dead, which it clearly wasn''t at the time with the Henrietta heir, the contracts would default to the bank and held in trust for the son.¡± The woman said. ¡°His shares would be phenomenal when he comes of age.¡± I didn''t tell her that he was dead. ¡°Would you care to remain in charge of the account? The business is still making lots of money, even if they have to pay me so much in penalties.¡± The woman''s eyes widened. ¡°You... you aren''t going to kill me?¡± ¡°Why would I? I killed Carson because he robbed me and my family and profited from it. You are actually upset that the Sellwafers were robbing me. I don''t kill unless it''s necessary.¡± The woman sighed. ¡°I think... yes, I can stay in charge, assuming you''re not going to empty the account like you did to yours.¡± ¡°I can do you one better.¡± I said and handed her a piece of paper that had the Mages Guild account info on it. ¡°I own this now. Fold it into my personal account and only start making payments from the Sellwafer account into mine.¡± The woman took the paper and gasped. ¡°You... you really...¡± ¡°Yes, I killed the Grand Mage, the Mages Council, and about a hundred and fifty mages at the guild building, which I''ve already claimed and my crew is renovating now.¡± The woman stared at me with her mouth hanging open. ¡°What''s your name?¡± Gella asked. ¡°Evette.¡± The woman answered. ¡°Welcome to the crew, Evette. Be good to my lord and he will reward you handsomely.¡± Gella said. Evette looked at the paper and then at the Sellwafer account and I assumed she was quickly calculating how many payments she would be transferring into my personal account. It made her smile widely. ¡°Yes, I see.¡± Evette said. ¡°Thank you for choosing to accept me as your account manager, my lord.¡± I nodded to her and left the bank. I had to get back to the Henrietta Longshore estate and pick up Greta and Jill. I had left them alone there for a while now and hadn''t intended to do all this running around when I left them there. The driver took the carriage there and we went right up to the front doors. Jill was there with several bags of things and three bundles of cloth. ¡°When the Grand Mage died, his vaults opened.¡± She said and passed me the largest bundle. ¡°That''s several artifacts and the deeds for the businesses they used to own.¡± I passed the bundle into the carriage to Farra. She put it under the seat. ¡°That one is really heavy and is full of gold and precious gemstones.¡± Jill said and pointed. I carried it into the carriage myself and added it to the seat storage. Jill didn''t mention the last bundle and told me to put the luggage on the top rack of the carriage. She picked up the bundle and entered the carriage to sit beside Farra. ¡°What''s that?¡± Farra asked. ¡°Something Lady Helena made me promise to take care of.¡± Jill said. I finished putting the luggage on the rack and then went into the mansion. I went to Administrator Lannin''s office and he was no longer there. The bag of gold was, so I grabbed it and went up the stairs to my old bedroom. ¡°I wasn''t dreaming!¡± Greta gasped and shot to her feet. ¡°I wish I was.¡± I said and went to the safe. I emptied it and hung my old bandoleer over my shoulders and then secured the pouches of regeneration potion in my old backpack. I added the books, potion recipes, and the child things, then left the vault open to show everyone that it was empty. ¡°Are you coming with me?¡± I asked her. ¡°Yes, David.¡± Greta said and walked over to me. ¡°Out of everyone I''ve ever met, you''re the only one who accepted me for who I was. You never made demands or forced me to do anything I didn''t want to do.¡± ¡°Greta...¡± ¡°You let me find my passion for potions again.¡± Greta said and took my arm. ¡°Teaching was a joy with you in the class. Your insights and your ideas sparked hundreds of my own and I''ve never felt so compelled to create and to enjoy my craft.¡± ¡°Then I left.¡± I said and started to walk out of the room with her on my arm. ¡°Yes, and what a devastating blow that was.¡± Greta said. ¡°Almost immediately, the Mages Guild made their move and started taking over what they could. Almost no one resisted, except those that knew what it meant.¡± ¡°They were killed first.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Ellen has had a hard time keeping the kingdom together.¡± ¡°Unbelievably so.¡± Greta said as we went down the stairs. ¡°At least King Richard enacted the repairs to the marsh canal before he was murdered.¡± ¡°They fixed it?¡± I asked. ¡°They stopped the constant drainage and the water in the canal is maintained by the sea it''s attached to and not the marsh.¡± ¡°I knew that would work and drying the marsh out was on purpose.¡± I said. ¡°The mages wanted to cover up just how much they stripped the place.¡± Greta said as we exited the mansion. ¡°The Grand Mage told me how much they made with my ingredients, so I took it from him and the guild. Now I own everything they did.¡± Greta caught her breath and stared at me as we stopped walking beside the carriage. ¡°You did it? You killed them?¡± ¡°Everyone in the guild building that my crew is renovating.¡± I said and she smiled. ¡°How would you like to run the place for me?¡± ¡°M-me?¡± Greta asked, surprised. ¡°You''re the only one I would trust in my stead.¡± I said and held up my free hand to show off my missing fingers. ¡°Ah, I see.¡± Greta said and nodded. ¡°I would be honored to help you make that building work for you instead of against you.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said. ¡°I''ll also contact my sister to come and oversee your recovery.¡± Greta said. ¡°Will she come?¡± I asked. Greta nodded. ¡°She''s been screaming for more healing and wound cleaning potions.¡± ¡°You ran out of ingredients.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°With the guild not letting anyone not approved by the guild to buy more ingredients, I had to leave the academy and I haven''t made anything in almost two months.¡± Greta said. ¡°The botany floors are undamaged.¡± I said and Greta beamed a smile at me. ¡°The potion making areas are also intact. The office is full of bodies, though.¡± Greta laughed. ¡°You even cleaned up while massacring them? You wonderful man!¡± I had to smile at her enthusiasm. I didn''t question why she was so happy about all of her former coworkers being killed, mainly because she was dealing with all the death and destruction in her own way. Either that, or she expected it and I was doing it much faster than she expected me to. We climbed into the carriage and went back to the the old Mages Guild building, to make sure things were going to plan. 277 Some Cleaning Up To Do When we arrived at the old guild building, Greta burst out laughing at the frigate ship parked beside it. ¡°D-David! By the Son''s Light!¡± Greta said, tears streaming down her face. ¡°You... only you would...¡± ¡°I couldn''t let the army or the navy try to steal it.¡± I said and she nodded as she wiped at her face. I handed her a cloth and she thanked me and wiped at her face with it. I stepped out and helped her down first, then Gella and Farra. Greta didn''t even blink her eyes at me doing that for slaves. ¡°Gella, Farra, we can wait for formal greetings later.¡± She said and nodded at the two women, who nodded back. ¡°Let''s get inside and see what we can do with the place.¡± ¡°I think we should eat first.¡± I said and gave Jill my elbow to help her down. She clutched the bundle to her chest and didn''t let it go as she accepted my help. ¡°Good idea. I haven''t eaten all day.¡± Greta said and looked up at the ship. ¡°What a sight that is!¡± I told the carriage driver to take a break with us and we all went up into the ship. We were just in time for supper to be served and no one asked about Greta or Jill. We ate the food without anyone bothering us, not even Jensen, and I knew he wanted to know what was going on. ¡°My lord, I... can I stay here for now?¡± Jill asked, nervously. ¡°Kelly, take Jill to my cabin and send some men to unload the carriage and bring everything to my cabin as well.¡± I said. The slave woman near our table stood up and left the dining room with Jill and the bundle she wouldn''t let go. I turned my head and looked at Jensen. ¡°Walk with us.¡± I said as I stood and then I left the dining room with Gella, Farra, and Greta behind me. ¡°Group One!¡± Jensen said and eight men and three slaves stood, along with Molly, and they came with us as we left the ship and entered the old guild building. It was almost completely different with barricades lined across the front of the lobby and a dividing wall behind that with doors all over the place. ¡°We''ve almost got the suites built to your standards, sir.¡± One of the men said and ran over to the closest door behind the barricades. He opened it and showed off the inside. ¡°This place is so big that we''ll have them all done by the end of the week. No one will need to stay on the ship by then.¡± ¡°Good job.¡± I said and motioned to the barricades. ¡°Basic protection.¡± Several of the men said and went behind it, then lifted swords and crossbows. ¡°Anyone that we don''t want tries to enter here are going to be in for a surprise.¡± Jensen said, proudly. I smiled and nodded. They are already doing a better job protecting the place than the mages did. I thought. ¡°I''ll set up some proper wards as soon as I get Greta set up in her office.¡± ¡°Yessir.¡± The men said and saluted. Four of them came with us and the slaves as we went to the stairs and went up to the next floor. This one had been even easier to convert, since it already had the divisions done. It was modifying it to suit the crew''s needs that would take time. We went up several more floors to reach the botany department and potion making department. It was in good condition, even with the occasional blood stains. Greta whispered a chant and waved her hands over the stains and the blood was washed away into the water overflow drains located all over both floors of the botany department. ¡°The bodies are in the botany head''s office.¡± I said and the men went to it. One found a hand cart for moving ingredients around and they piled the bodies onto it. They took them to the stairs and dumped the cart. We all ignored the cascade of thumps that followed. ¡°I''ll use the potion department head''s office.¡± Greta said and led us over to it. ¡°No one was here?¡± She asked when there was no blood inside. ¡°Most of the more powerful mages were called up to the top floor. It was mostly the underlings and secretaries left on each floor.¡± I said and Gella nodded. ¡°Convenient for me.¡± Gella said and went behind the desk. ¡°We''re going to have access to a lot of potion recipes now.¡± She said and started searching. ¡°I can''t help convert them to make them better until I''m better.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Try to find a list of ingredients already being stored and see what the states of them are.¡± ¡°I know what ones you have as a priority.¡± Greta said and nodded at the slaves. I smiled slightly at her guessing right. ¡°We need to get together later to come up with a way to fix this.¡± I said and pointed to my own neck. ¡°I have a few ideas about it and we can probably extract some of the original potion from the damaged skin on my back.¡± Greta caught her breath and walked over to me. ¡°May I see it?¡± I turned around and took off the captain''s coat. Greta pulled my shirt out of my pants and lifted it before she sucked in a sharp breath. ¡°Oh, David.¡± She whispered and her hands lightly touched my back. Or I thought so. There wasn''t much feeling back there and she could be slapping me hard and I wouldn''t be able to tell the difference. She let my shirt go and tucked it back into my pants for me. I turned around and put the captain''s coat back on. ¡°The slaves are at your disposal, as is Farra. If you start brewing anything, tell her to get the old man. He can brew potions at the second year level.¡± Greta let a smile appear on her face. ¡°You''ve been passing your knowledge on.¡± ¡°Once I found a good student.¡± ¡°Good. Letting your knowledge disappear would be a shame beyond everything else that''s happened.¡± Greta said and reached up to cup the sides of my face. ¡°When you come back from clearing out the garrison, you''re joining me here for a silent vigil.¡± I opened my mouth to protest and she kissed me to stop me from speaking. Greta broke the kiss and squinted her eyes at me. ¡°It''s not an order. You know I would never say such a thing to you.¡± She let my face go and smiled. ¡°I am asking you as your friend to come here and spend an appropriate amount of time with me in contemplation. After everything that''s happened, we need to rest and mourn what we''ve lost in our lives.¡± _______________ You have a minor choice to make. It will change your relationship with Mage Marks, no matter what you choose. A) Refuse. B) Kiss her. C) Ignore her request. D) Agree. E) Kill her. F) Claim her. G) Choose two. That''s some weird choices, considering what Greta''s done for me. I thought. Well, she''s showing me compassion, so I should show her some in return. I''ll choose two, D and B. _______________ ¡°All right.¡± I said and Greta let out a sigh of relief, then I put my arms around her and kissed her. ¡°MmmHMM!¡± Greta moaned before her arms went around me and she kissed me back. It was quite different from kissing Helena or Diane, so this was a slightly new experience for me. After a couple of minutes, Greta came back to her senses and broke the kiss as she covered her mouth with a hand. ¡°D-D-David!¡± ¡°You should invite Jill.¡± I said and walked out of what was now her office. Gella came with me and she shook her head at me. ¡°My lord, you give her the wrong idea.¡± ¡°I distracted her from her grief.¡± I said. ¡°And your own.¡± Gella said. I didn''t respond and she didn''t expect me to. We left the botany floor and went down the stairs. We had been long enough with Greta that the cart of bodies was already on the ground floor with two other carts of bodies. ¡°Keep up the good work.¡± I said and tossed each man a gold coin. ¡°Yessir!¡± The men said and saluted. Gella waited while I made several protection wards and mounted them above the front doors. We left the building when I was done and the driver was already there waiting with the carriage. ¡°Where to, my lord?¡± ¡°The army garrison.¡± I said and I handed Gella inside before climbing in myself. We were there in almost no time at all and we stepped out to see the gate was crushed. I gave Gella a look and she nodded. We drew our swords as we ran inside and saw several bodies wearing military uniforms scattered about. Neither of us missed the hoof prints and we ran towards the main area where we could hear the sounds of battle. The armored horsemen from the castle that we had met earlier were squaring off with an army platoon. Fifty men had been whittled down to only thirty and two of the twelve horsemen were dead. The lieutenant that had tried to assault my ship was commanding them, so I motioned for Gella to flank from the right. I ran to the left and our glowing swords cut the soldiers down. The armored horsemen accepted the advantage and smashed through the center of the formation and trampled the lieutenant. Gella and I cut the last of the army men down and sheathed our swords. The head of the horsemen trotted over to us. ¡°Thank you, my lord.¡± ¡°I was coming to kill them anyway.¡± I said and he smiled. ¡°You''re here delivering my orders from the queen?¡± ¡°Yes, my lord. We were denied entry and destroyed the gate.¡± The man said. ¡°We took out the mages first, because they were the most dangerous, then we were caught in close combat with the soldiers.¡± ¡°Are there many soldiers left here?¡± I asked and looked around. It was pretty deserted for an army base in the capital. ¡°Only the essentials. Most have been sent to the various battles around the borders.¡± The man said. ¡°Other nearby countries have taken advantage of the war starting again to attack us.¡± I ignored that and pointed. ¡°The CO should be in there.¡± ¡°Men!¡± The armored horseman shouted and he trotted his horse over to the building. He dismounted and the rest followed him. He turned his horse around and slapped its hind-quarters. ¡°NNEEIIIGGHHH!¡± The horse yelled and kicked backwards with both feet. The door shattered and several screams came from inside. Not all of them were women. The armored men stormed inside and after a minute and several sword clashes, one came back out. ¡°Sir!¡± He saluted the head horseman. ¡°CO and XO secured.¡± The head horseman nodded to me and we entered the building. Several people were dead, two secretaries restrained, and the doors to the two offices opened with two men held at sword point. ¡°You were foolish to ignore the queen''s orders, Denash.¡± The head horseman said. ¡°I told her and I''m also telling you. I won''t risk my men by defying the Mages Council.¡± Denash spat. ¡°What council?¡± The head horseman asked and tossed the scroll of orders onto the man''s desk. ¡°If you had taken your head out of a magic user''s ass for only a second, you would have read that before ignoring it.¡± Denash huffed and didn''t pick it up. ¡°The supposed queen can take that worthless piece of paper and put it with the rest of her illegal orders.¡± The head horseman sighed. ¡°I knew using reason with you wouldn''t work.¡± He said and picked up the paper and unrolled it. ¡°By Royal Order of the Queen, Her Highness Ellen Rivers, all mages are declared rogues to be placed under arrest and returned to the capital for questioning. Any who refuse this lawful order will be killed immediately and without questioning for innocence.¡± Denash''s face drained of all color. ¡°Yes, you idiot. You ordered your men to die at our hands because you wanted to save them from dying at the hand of mages.¡± The head horseman said. ¡°Your incompetence has cost the capital it''s ready force for keeping the peace.¡± He nodded at the horseman with the sword. ¡°Remove his head.¡± ¡°NO!¡± Denash gasped and then his head was on the floor. The head horseman looked at the XO, who looked guilty. ¡°You facilitated his stupidity and sent orders to refuse the queen''s order to the other garrisons on behalf of the mages, didn''t you?¡± The man nodded and didn''t try to lie. ¡°I would ask you to send another, except they won''t believe it.¡± The head horseman said and the XO shook his head. ¡°I would arrest you and let you stand trial for all the men you have killed.¡± He nodded at the other horseman. ¡°I was ordered to remove anyone helping the illegal mages.¡± The XO''s head was on the floor to join the CO''s in death. ¡°Clean up this place as much as you can. If anyone else refuses our orders, remove them.¡± The head horseman said and his group of remaining horsemen spread out through the base to do as ordered. He turned to look at me. ¡°After she finished screaming at me, the Queen said you were going to be right.¡± I nodded and left the building with Gella beside me. Removing the headaches before they ruined everything was the right decision. Only those loyal to the country and not the mages would be useful in the future. We climbed into the carriage and I told the driver to take us to the docks. ¡°My lord?¡± Gella asked. ¡°We need to bring in Lady Ming and the other ship of slaves.¡± I said and she nodded. Leaving them out there unprotected could be a disaster waiting to happen, especially if any enemy ships appear. Or other friendly ships. They didn''t seem too keen on foreign ships being in their waters or near the capital. We arrived at the docks and the spot I had made by crushing the other ship was still there. The bodies weren''t, which meant they had been left there for me before. When I ignored them and didn''t claim them for looting, they were removed and looted by someone else. I stepped out of the carriage and walked over to the closest ship and held up a gold coin. ¡°I need a flag message sent to the clipper ship in the harbour.¡± ¡°Sure.¡± A man near the side of the ship said and held a hand out for the coin. ¡°Cheat me and you lose the hand.¡± I said and he immediately pulled the hand back and walked away. ¡°FLAG MAN!¡± I yelled and one of the men stood up to look at me. ¡°Want to make a gold crown?¡± ¡°Hell yeah!¡± He said and ran over to me with his flags. ¡°Tell the clipper ship on the edge of the harbour to come in and dock.¡± I said and waved the coin. ¡°Cheat me and you lose a hand.¡± The man laughed. ¡°Like I''d want to lose my job for a single coin!¡± He walked over to the front edge of his ship and started to flip the flags in what I assume was the right signals. A couple of other ships helped and the clipper had the flag man signal back confirmation. ¡°They''re on the way.¡± He said as he walked back over to me. I pulled out another coin and gave him both. ¡°Thank you, sir!¡± The man said and saluted before he went back to his other duties. I walked over to the empty dock spot and held a hand up. ¡°Minor Fireball Barrage.¡± Three fireballs a foot wide shot out of my hand and flew several hundred feet into the air. I ignored the surprised yells and did it again with three fireballs and then shot a single one. It was the signal to the slave ship to dock because it was safe to do so. The fireballs landed harmlessly in the water and everyone relaxed. I stood there and waited to see who would arrive first. The fast clipper that had to go slow through the traffic or the large heavy ship that wouldn''t slow down until they were near the dock. Gella stepped out to wait with me with her hand on the hilt of her sword. ¡°You know when I fix you, you''re going to be too strong for normal opponents.¡± I commented. Gella smiled at me. ¡°I''m too strong for them now. If you somehow fix me, I might be too strong for strong opponents.¡± ¡°I can make you stronger than that.¡± I said. ¡°Much stronger.¡± ¡°My lord.¡± Gella said and leaned against me briefly, then straightened up. ¡°I am your sworn sword.¡± ¡°You will become one of the sharpest swords I''ve ever made.¡± I said and felt Gella''s hand take mine. 278 Hell Is A State Of Mind Bokuboy It was a tie between the two ships. The clipper had been even more hampered by the traffic in the harbour than I thought it would be. It bumped into the dock and the entire crew looked frustrated, especially Lady Ming. She looked down the dock to where I was standing and saw the large slave ship had hooked on and pulled itself in to secure to the dock. Lady Ming still wore her captain''s uniform as she stepped off of the ship onto the dock and the head slave did the same in front of me. ¡°Thank you for helping us come here to a new land.¡± The slave said and bowed deeply to me. ¡°You''ll have to forgive the mess of it. I haven''t had much time to clean up around here.¡± I said. Gella barked a laugh, because of all the things I had done. Lady Ming''s frown changed to a smile as she walked over to me. ¡°What do we do now?¡± The slave asked. ¡°We are still slaves and...¡± ¡°Gella, run to the driver and get him to hire a dozen carriages.¡± I handed her a handful of gold coins. ¡°We''ll take everyone back to the old guild building.¡± Gella nodded before she quickly ran to do as I asked. ¡°They really are all your slaves?¡± Lady Ming asked. ¡°No, just slaves. For now.¡± I said and both she and the slaves nearby that heard me looked surprised. ¡°I''m preparing a proper potion regiment for them to take for rehabilitation.¡± ¡°THANK YOU!¡± The slaves on the ship yelled out. ¡°It''s only a physical restoration.¡± I warned them. ¡°I have no idea how to fix the conditioning.¡± ¡°That''s good enough for us.¡± One of the other slaves said as she stepped off of the ship. ¡°We can find our way quicker to recovery when we are no longer bound by our frail bodies.¡± I nodded and waved at the ship. ¡°Gather up your things, or the things you claimed back from where we came from, and come back up here.¡± A burly man and a thin man walked over to us. Both were quite scared and also determined. ¡°Sir.¡± The thin one said to get my attention. ¡°You''ve docked... ah... three ships now.¡± ¡°What''s the fee?¡± I asked. The thin man looked over the side of the dock and the crushed ship I had removed to make room. He swallowed audibly and looked back at me. ¡°It''s a bit more than normal, because of the war and the hard times on normal shipping.¡± ¡°Then you''re making things worse by charging more for services that they can barely pay for already.¡± I said and he looked shocked. ¡°They will stop coming to the capital and deliver to one of the smaller ports, just because it''s cheaper to drop their cargo there and ship it by horse and carriage.¡± Lady Ming laughed and nodded. ¡°It''s why the navy ships dock in the harbour when they go off-patrol. They can''t keep paying the high docking fee all the time, just to get to the shore for a few days of shore leave.¡± The thin man sighed. ¡°It costs money to run things and...¡± ¡°How many people do you have on staff?¡± I asked. ¡°Ten for the main dock and three each for the side docks.¡± The thin man said. ¡°We run and maintain everything and charge fees to keep everything in top shape for ships to safely dock.¡± I thought about that. ¡°You increased the fees after the attack six months ago.¡± The thin man nodded. ¡°There was much to be fixed and replaced. Even the fabled magic of the Sellwafer''s business wasn''t up to the task of repairing much of it.¡± ¡°It was my magic, actually. They were just renting it.¡± I said and he looked surprised. ¡°I own it now. And them. And their mansion.¡± He looked about to faint. ¡°I''ll pay the new fee this time, if you agree to leave guards here on this ship to stop anyone from trying to claim it.¡± I said and he looked conflicted. ¡°If the navy tries, warn them the ship belongs to the Marsh Man. If they don''t know that name, tell them that Lord Drake will have them killed for their impertinence.¡± I said and he nodded. Gella ran back to us with the carriages behind her. ¡°My lord.¡± ¡°Thank you, Gella.¡± I said and gave the thin man a handful of gold coins. He sputtered at the gold crowns in his hands. I looked at the big man beside him. ¡°Two guards with swords, one at each end of the ship. Even if an admiral shows up with papers, warn him. If he still doesn''t listen, kill him.¡± The big man smiled. ¡°You really have been cleaning up around here.¡± ¡°Only the useless ones that make things worse.¡± I said and that made him smile wider. I turned to the slaves. ¡°If you''re ready, start loading up the carriages with your loot.¡± ¡°L-l-loot?!?¡± The thin man asked, shocked. ¡°Of course. Slaves don''t own anything normally.¡± I said as if he was stupid. ¡°They needed supplies to survive the trip across the world to get here.¡± ¡°But... but...¡± ¡°No crimes were committed here in the Gulf Kingdom or in its waters by them, so save your fancy speech about right and wrong. It''s unnecessary.¡± The thin man sighed. ¡°I''ll have the guards here in half an hour.¡± The big man beside him nodded. ¡°It''s a working man''s ship they are guarding.¡± I said and the big man smiled again. He knew what that meant. Two gold crowns of extra pay. I suspected that he would be taking one of those positions. ¡°If you need swords, we''ll send some back with the carriages.¡± Gella said. The big man grinned and gave her a salute. She nodded back. It took the slaves almost an hour for them to load everything onto the carriages. I had been right and the big guy was one of the guards. I handed him and his partner two gold crowns each, making them very happy. The slaves packed everything on the ship and then packed themselves inside the carriages until they couldn''t move. Some even climbed onto the top rack and clung there. I didn''t bother telling them that we could make more than one trip and held an arm out to Lady Ming. She took it gracefully and I led her back to my own rented carriage with Gella behind us. I handed Lady Ming inside and then did the same for Gella, making Lady Ming laugh, and I climbed in myself as I told the driver to lead everyone back to the guild building. ¡°We should rename it, now that it''s ours.¡± Gella said. I thought about my crew and then thought about all of the slaves we were about to house inside it. _______________ You have a minor choice to make. It won''t really affect anything, except for the people living there or visiting. Will your name inspire them or make everyone laugh? A) Pick something inappropriate. B) Pick something funny. C) Pick something uplifting. D) Pick something horrible. E) Pick something appropriate. F) Pick a curse word. Okay, that''s a lot of choices. I thought and then went over everything that''s happened. Most of them would make everyone laugh with or at us, and I don''t want that. I doubt anyone wants something uplifting, not with their lives ruined like mine. I nodded. It should be appropriate, so I''ll choose E. _______________ I knew the perfect name for the place when it was finished. ¡°Sanctuary.¡± Gella looked surprised for a moment, as if she expected me to say something else, then she smiled. ¡°Yes, my lord. Sanctuary it will be. I will let everyone know.¡± ¡°As will I.¡± Lady Ming said. ¡°If I can borrow the carriage to head to the castle, I''ll let the queen herself know.¡± I glanced at her. ¡°Ellen accepted your proposal?¡± ¡°You mean your proposal.¡± Lady Ming said with a knowing smile. ¡°You didn''t tell her that.¡± I said and she laughed softly as she shook her head no. ¡°I knew you were smarter than that.¡± Lady Ming gripped my arm tightly. ¡°I''ll inform her when she grants me my commission and somehow finds me some ships to assign to the new naval division of the Fifth Regiment.¡± ¡°How much does a ship cost to build?¡± I asked. ¡°Depending on the size, a lot of gold crowns.¡± Lady Ming said. ¡°I expect to wait a few months before I''ll have anything besides my clipper ship available.¡± ¡°The new slaves have a ship at the docks that they aren''t going to need anymore.¡± I said and she caught her breath. ¡°I won''t be involved with the sale, so the money should be given to them without trouble.¡± ¡°The queen will save over half the cost of building if she just buys that ship outright.¡± Lady Ming said, happily. ¡°I''ll mention the ship and that buying it is the best option, since stealing it for the navy won''t work because it''s under Lord Drake''s protection.¡± Her informing the queen of that, made me smile. ¡°I''m sure that there are crewmen that want to get back onto a proper ship, too.¡± ¡°Some of them are even on my clipper ship, The Sprint.¡± Lady Ming said with a laugh. ¡°My coxswain would kill to get his hands on a proper mainsail rigging to play with it.¡± We arrived at the old guild building that was now named Sanctuary and Lady Ming laughed as hard as Greta did when she saw the frigate parked beside the building. I handed her a napkin and she used it to dry her eyes. ¡°Thank you, Lord Drake. I haven''t laughed like that in a long time.¡± Lady Ming said. I stepped out of the carriage and handed Gella out to stand beside me. ¡°Driver, take Lady Ming to the castle. You''re off for the rest of the night if she doesn''t need to go anywhere else to rent a room or something.¡± ¡°Can I return here?¡± Lady Ming asked. ¡°I could use a nice safe place to rest and not have to worry about rogue mages.¡± ¡°They''ve been ordered to return here by the Grand Mage, so you''re still in danger.¡± I said and she sighed exaggeratedly. ¡°You just ruined my perfect excuse to come back here and seduce you.¡± Lady Ming said with a demure smile. ¡°I suppose I will have to find alternate lodgings for now.¡± ¡°That would be for the best. I can''t impregnate you if you''re going back out on the waters anyway.¡± Lady Ming laughed and nodded. ¡°I assume that Lady Helena was open to the idea of a brief contract?¡± ¡°Lady Helena is dead, as is my son and the rest of the Henrietta family.¡± I said and closed the carriage door on Lady Ming''s shocked face. The carriage turned around and Lady Ming''s head came out the window. ¡°DAVID! I''m so sorry!¡± ¡°So is everyone else.¡± I said and waved to her as the carriage left through the gates. Gella didn''t comment at my brashness and we went inside the building. The barricades looked stronger and we went up the stairs to the main botany floor. Greta''s office was empty, which meant she was in the potion making area taking stock and brewing. We found her prepping ingredients and waited for her to finish a batch before I spoke. ¡°I''m back.¡± I said and Greta jumped as if slapped on the butt. ¡°I''m glad you accepted.¡± Greta said and quickly added the ingredients to the six pots of potions she had going at the same time. She chanted at them and reduced the heat, to let the potion cool, which meant she was almost done making the main slave rehabilitation potion. ¡°We have to wait for this to finish before we can get to what we need to do.¡± Greta said. ¡°Yes, the living are more important than the dead.¡± Gella said. ¡°I''ve learned that lesson the hard way.¡± Greta sighed and nodded. ¡°The dead deserve their own special time and we need to give it to them.¡± When the potions were done, I infused them for Greta and she thanked me. We bottled them up and would split them and dilute them into proper doses tomorrow. We had a lot of slaves to treat, myself included, and our work was only just beginning. Gella left to get anyone that wanted to participate and Greta asked me to strip off my coat and shirt to let her take some of my back''s scar tissue. She harvested what she thought was a good amount for us to distill out the skin altering potion and showed me the amount. Her face was a little pale from cutting me up, though. ¡°I would rather more, in case we mess up.¡± I said and she sighed. ¡°I would do it myself if I could reach.¡± ¡°It''s not that. It''s that you''re not even reacting.¡± Greta said. ¡°I can barely feel you touching me there, so it''s okay.¡± I said. Greta sighed. ¡°You know that''s not the point.¡± ¡°It is.¡± I said and took her hand. ¡°I would slice off some of my thigh instead; but, I know you would hate seeing that and I would feel it cut from there.¡± Greta nodded and kept working on my back to get more scar tissue to work with until we had double the amount. It would give us three or perhaps four chances to try different distilling techniques to refine the potion. Once we did, we could pull it apart and find the counter-agents to hopefully reverse the white pigmentation. It might also work on their hair, too. That was when it hit me. My words during the king''s birthday to her and our discussion about her mother''s recipe. I sat up straight to stare at her face. ¡°Greta. Your mother''s modified skin creme.¡± Greta gasped and stared back at my face. ¡°It has similar properties, especially the versatility and stasis parts!¡± I nodded. ¡°We need to brew it up and then pull it apart, or get your mother''s notes on it. With that as a base and a successful distillation of the pigmentation potion...¡± ¡°...we can change all of the slaves back to a normal skin color, their own skin color, with a liberal application of a heavily modified creme.¡± Greta said and her hand went to my head to pet it. ¡°It will even work on hair.¡± I nodded and nearly everyone I had brought with me to the guild building arrived on the botany floor behind Gella. I slipped my shirt on and stood up from the chair I was sitting on. ¡°We can use one of the conference halls on the upper floors.¡± Greta suggested. We all followed her up several flights of stairs and entered a large conference room. I went to the front of the room with Greta, Gella, Farra, the old man, Hanna, Ann, and Jill with her wrapped bundle. Everyone else sat in the available seats. We all easily fit inside the huge room and the talking was only a low murmur. Greta let it go on for several minutes, then she stood and rapped her knuckles on the desk in front of us. ¡°You all know why we are here.¡± Everyone fell silent and nodded. ¡°I know the proper rites and the words. I do not have the authority to...¡± ¡°Everyone who wants Mage Marks to have the authority, since she runs Sanctuary, speak now.¡± I interrupted. ¡°Yes!¡± Every single person there shouted. Greta gave me a nod and then looked at the gathered crowd. ¡°We usually need a symbol for everyone to focus on...¡± ¡°I have it.¡± Jill interrupted, her voice loud and strained, as she placed the wrapped bundle she hadn''t let go until now on the desk in front of Greta. ¡°My Lady Helena... entrusted me with... this final duty.¡± She said as tears rolled down her cheeks and she fought to not cry. ¡°I will see it fulfilled.¡± Greta''s face lost all its color as Jill opened the bundle to reveal the contents. ¡°NO!¡± Everyone in the conference room gasped and shot to their feet. ¡°My... my beautiful little lord... Lord Damon Drake-Henrietta.¡± Jill said and sobbed as she lightly stroked the dead baby''s head. ¡°Mage Marks, please... perform the last rites and save his little soul.¡± Every woman in the room was openly crying now. The men all looked like they were going to kill everyone responsible. Greta wiped at her face and then used those tears to make the appropriate symbols on the baby''s forehead as she loudly chanted in Mage language. The wet tears glowed as she infused them and it sunk into the skin. She turned to Jill and touched her cheek to get more tears and repeated the process, chanting a different verse, then she turned to me. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. All future choices will depend on this decision. Will you make the right one or will you make the wrong one? A) Leave. B) Hug her. C) Kiss her hand. D) Submit. E) Refuse to submit. F) Infuse it yourself. I don''t know what the best choice is. I thought and read the options again. It was difficult enough to function before. If I let myself feel anything, I don''t know if I''ll survive. A timer popped up with ten seconds on it. Dammit, I can''t... I can''t choose! I need more time to... Time expired. The default option of D has been chosen. _______________ Greta''s hand reached for my face and I grabbed it before she could touch my skin. I looked up at her sad face and saw in her what I needed to see in myself. I searched inside and there it was. A dam. A huge dam of emotions that I had been holding back. For all of my life, I had fought to live. I fought so hard all this time and I had thought I made it. I had beaten the Hag and made a life for myself. Then she showed up and destroyed everything. I didn''t really care about the material things, as they were so easily replaced. I could have everything restored in under a month and I didn''t care about that. It was the people. Friends, family, maids, workers, slaves, and relationships that I had built without knowing I was. People I liked and liked me back. People who cared at the time. People who I cared about. It was all there inside my head. The whole thing was there and had culminated into a single defining point in my life. My son. I looked down at his frail body and regretted that I hadn''t met him when he was born. I only saw the empty shell that was already dying and I didn''t want that to be my last sight of him. My only sight of him. I knew that Helena wouldn''t want that to be my last sight of him, either. She loved me too much to hurt me like that. I felt something well up inside of me. It was a pressure so great that I thought my heart would explode from it. My body trembled and shook as I suffered. I suffered so much because of it that a lot of people were shouting in concern and fear. I ignored them and watched as that dam inside me cracked. It didn''t let go from the strain like I thought it would, though. It just barely held on. I took a long shaky breath and looked back up at Greta as I let her hand go. A single tear escaped my control and it glowed brightly. Greta gasped as she used her fingertip to catch it before it fell. She put it on the baby''s forehead and spoke the last verse of the rites of passage. When she tried to infuse it, her magic was sucked in and almost drained her completely. Greta collapsed from magical exhaustion and I caught her as the glowing tear seeped into the baby''s forehead. Nothing happened for several moments and Greta tried to catch her breath to say the last lines to close the ritual. That she couldn''t speak, turned out to be good, because the baby''s body started to glow a soft golden color. We all stared at the body and waited to see what was going on, because by their surprised expressions, no one had ever seen anything like it. The glow moved up and out of the baby''s body to float above it, then the glow expanded a little and formed into something that shocked everyone, myself included. A perfectly formed golden glowing baby floated there for a moment before it giggled happily. Half of the people in the conference room fainted, men and women alike. The others just stared at the baby with wide eyes and their hearts pounding in their chests. ¡°Damon.¡± I whispered and reached out for him. The baby''s tiny little hand reached for mine. When we touched, for a split second, his hand gripped my finger as if his hand was real. He faded slightly after that and started to rise up towards the ceiling. ¡°NOOOO! Don''t go!¡± Jill shouted and reached up for him. ¡°My little LORRRRRD!¡± The golden baby giggled and seemed to wave before he faded away. 279 One Last Gift ¡°What... what just happened?¡± Gella asked. My sworn sword was just as confused as everyone else. I wasn''t, though. I clearly saw my son and had touched his spirit... something that I never thought was possible, not that I even had thoughts in that direction. Life was life and that was it. If you wasted it, you were dead and that was that. ¡°D-David.¡± Greta whispered from my lap. ¡°Third pouch from my shoulder.¡± I whispered back. Greta''s shaking hands dug at the pocket and took out a general health potion to give herself a boost. She drank it and waited for it to flush through her system. ¡°You can let me go, now.¡± I did so and she stood on slightly shaky legs. ¡°Do you need another one?¡± ¡°No. That''s not from exhaustion.¡± Greta said and touched the body''s forehead and said the closing lines of the ritual. I wasn''t surprised that nothing else happened. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Someone in the crowd said loudly. ¡°The Son''s Light.¡± Someone else said. Then they all started waking the ones who fainted and the phrase spread around. Soon, they were all saying it like prayers and were looking at me like I had done some kind of miracle. It wasn''t me, though. I looked up near the ceiling where Damon had faded away. ¡°Thank you, Helena.¡± Jill let out a sob and wrapped her arms around me and cried hard. She had lost both her Lady and her new Lord, and she was seemingly set adrift without anyone to care for. With the rest of the Henrietta family dead, she didn''t even have a home to return to. ¡°You can stay here for now.¡± I said to her and her grip tightened. ¡°My lord.¡± Ann said from a few seats down. ¡°I think... with what I''ve just seen...¡± ¡°I free you of any responsibility towards me, if you believed I am holding you to a solemn vow that you didn''t make.¡± I said, giving both her and her man the excuses they wanted. Gellen jumped to his feet and ran over to her. ¡°We can start right away!¡± Ann beamed a smile at him and turned to me. ¡°Thank you, my lord.¡± ¡°Your service has been exemplary and I have been glad to allow you to ply your trade to the best of your ability.¡± I said and nodded to her. ¡°I can only hope that raising a child will let you be happy in your new life in a new land.¡± ¡°I am already happy, my lord.¡± Ann said and looked at her man. ¡°We both are.¡± Gellen said. ¡°We want to share that happiness with our children.¡± ¡°Ch-children? As in more than one?¡± Ann asked, surprised. ¡°We are rich, my wife. Why should we only have one child under the Son''s Blessing?¡± Ann let out a happy noise and jumped into his arms to kiss him. Jensen stood up with Molly and came over to us. ¡°Sir.¡± ¡°Greta needs someone to maintain order here at the Sanctuary.¡± I said and nodded to her. ¡°I don''t see why your previous job can''t transfer directly over from the ship to here.¡± Jensen gave his wife a hug. ¡°Thank you, sir.¡± With them as an example, I was swamped by couples looking for my permission, as if they actually needed it. ¡°I''ll send someone to bring a church member here to perform any ceremonies you need.¡± Greta said. ¡°After what we just saw, you and Lord Drake are all the authority we will ever need.¡± Jensen said and everyone nodded. ¡°If that''s true, then...¡± Greta looked at me and back at him. ¡°Tomorrow morning, gather everyone that wants to marry and come back here.¡± ¡°Yes, ma''am.¡± A lot of people said and then they started to leave. They talked loudly about what went on and also promised to come together in defense of this place. Their new home. A few even mentioned forming a permanent fighting unit in case I needed one. ¡°I think it''s time for bed.¡± Hanna said and stood. ¡°My lord, Farra, Gella. Our suite awaits us.¡± ¡°That''s a good idea.¡± Greta said. ¡°Jensen?¡± ¡°Yours is right beside David''s on the second floor at the end of the hall. We didn''t want to disrupt anything here on this floor, even if you''re going to be here all the time.¡± Greta nodded. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°It was no trouble and we did them first.¡± Jensen said. ¡°Priorities, you know.¡± Greta smiled and we all left to go to our rooms. Jill clung to me and wouldn''t let me go, so we walked a little awkwardly as we followed the others. Her crying slowed down and she only let out little whines occasionally. The slaves from the second ship had to stay on The Frigging Frigate for now, until the third floor could be changed out for them to have their own living spaces. There was lots to do and everyone would be kept busy, especially with so many men and women getting together to start families. When we arrived on the second floor in my room, it was nearly identical to the captain''s cabin on the ship. It also had a side room with a bathroom and another side room with all of my gold coins in it. They had even brought over my captain''s chest with my share of the loot in it. I thought about ordering a magical safe to be delivered, then realized the ones that made them were the ones that I had killed. ¡°Remind me to search through the upper floors for the plans to make magical safes.¡± I said out loud. ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± The women with me said. ¡°Jill, I need a bath.¡± I said and she gasped, then she cried some more. ¡°I''ll help.¡± Hanna said and the three of us went into the bathroom. They stripped me off and Jill let out a sob at my completely white skin. I needed their help to step into the tub, because of my missing toes. Jill''s eyes were a constant streams of tears as she helped me and then washed me completely, with Hanna''s help. When it was over, I couldn''t stand in the normal way for Jill to perform the ritual properly. Hanna instructed her on Ann''s modification to both please me and herself while also completing the ritual. Jill looked both intrigued and relieved that she wouldn''t fail in her new duties. It turned out that she preferred the new way with me laying down, because it gave her much more control over everything and made it easier on her. She didn''t have to hold me steady or help me keep my balance if I was standing, so she was quite enthusiastic and performed the ritual perfectly. When she slipped her mouth off of me and swallowed, Jill gave me a happy smile through her tears. ¡°Thank you, my lord. I know that my lady would be pleased that I could do this for you.¡± Jill said. ¡°She would be. You did very well.¡± I said and cupped the side of her face. ¡°My sleeping arrangements have been altered while I''ve been away.¡± Jill looked at the three women nearby and realized that they hadn''t looked away or looked embarrassed. ¡°You sleep in the bed with him, don''t you?¡± ¡°My lord shares his magic willingly and without expectation.¡± Farra said. ¡°We take turns cuddling, as to not overwhelm ourselves.¡± ¡°We can defer to you for first shift tonight.¡± Gella said and stripped off. ¡°We need baths and won''t sully our lord if it''s not necessary.¡± Farra was right behind her and they went to the bathroom. ¡°I''ll help.¡± Hanna said and followed them. Jill waited for them to close the bathroom door before she spoke. ¡°My lord, you know I don''t have magic.¡± ¡°It''s not required.¡± I said and climbed into bed and under the light blanket wearing just underwear. ¡°They just enjoy sleeping more with me sharing.¡± Jill nodded and stood to strip off. I watched her as she did so and she was blushing pretty hard when she walked over to one of her bags and took out a pair of panties and a half nightgown. She slipped both on and came over to the bed. ¡°My lord, I... I must confess something.¡± Jill said and climbed onto the bed to sit beside me. ¡°I want to lie to you. I want to tell you that My Lady also charged me with performing her wifely duties on her behalf.¡± She said and didn''t look at me. ¡°She didn''t. She only told me to take care of my little lord and not you.¡± ¡°I know.¡± I said and she turned her head to look at me. ¡°He was the most important thing to her, even more important than me.¡± ¡°M-my lord, that... that...¡± ¡°You don''t have to lie. If I had been here, I would have told you the same thing. If anything happened to me, you were to look after him as best as you could.¡± I said and the tears started to flow out of her eyes again. ¡°Helena chose well to pick you for such an important task.¡± ¡°MY LORD!¡± Jill yelled and dove for me to hug me. She cried for nearly ten minutes before she calmed down. I held her tightly the whole time. _______________ You have a minor choice to make. It will only affect your relationship with Jill. A) Believe the lie. B) Believe the truth. C) Kick her out of bed. D) Ask for another bath. E) Perform husbandly duties. F) Let her perform wifely duties. G) Let out your frustration on her. Obviously, she thinks husband and wife duties are different, so I think that''s out. I don''t want to give her the wrong impression by making her think I''m replacing Helena. I thought. A and F are similar and also apparently different options, so A''s out. I already believe the truth, so that''s out as well. I read the options again and sighed. I can''t kick her out of bed right after inviting her and another bath can''t happen with the others in there. That leaves only one option. I''ll choose G. _______________ ¡°There''s only one thing wrong with your thinking.¡± I whispered to her and she opened her damp eyes to look at me. ¡°You''re trying to justify things by keeping them inside your frame of mind as a personal maid.¡± Jill blinked her eyes at me and looked confused. ¡°You are not my personal maid, despite doing that duty occasionally both before and again tonight.¡± I said and she gasped. ¡°My... my lord, you... you can''t mean...¡± Jill tried to say and she blushed deeply. ¡°I have been very frustrated and I just realized that I haven''t had sex in about eight months.¡± I said and rolled her over as I peeled her nightie off. When I moved down to reach for her panties, they were already soaked. ¡°I see you understand.¡± ¡°Y-yes, my lord.¡± Jill whispered and didn''t try to cover herself as I pulled her panties off. ¡°I accept this token gift from you. In return, you can alleviate your frustration as much as you want tonight.¡± ¡°I intend to.¡± I said and spread her legs to kiss her there. She came immediately and moaned very loudly. When I tried to lick her, she had that thing between her legs that told me she hadn''t had sex before. I stopped licking and looked up at her face. ¡°Please, take my maidenhood. Let me gift to you what Helena wished she could have given to you herself.¡± I didn''t detect a lie, so I nodded and went back to work. ¡°Ohhhhh!¡± Jill moaned and writhed on the bed as she felt things she hadn''t felt before. It was only a short time later that she begged me to hurry up and claim her gift, because she couldn''t wait any longer. I climbed up to place myself at her opening and had a feeling I needed to cast a spell, so I cast the Minor Healing spell on her as I pushed through that blockage and slid right inside of her without resistance. ¡°OHHHH!¡± Jill nearly screamed in pleasure and then moaned some more as I moved in and out of her. Farra, Gella, and Hanna eventually came out of the bathroom and sat on the bed to watch as I thoroughly took Jill''s maidenhood and made her feel every bit of my frustration from my time away. Her constantly whispering ''thank you'' let me know that she appreciated my diligence and attention to detail. When I reached my limit, I pulled out of her and rolled onto my back. ¡°Bath ritual!¡± Jill sprung up and dove onto my throbbing erection with her mouth and performed the ritual perfectly. She moaned as she swallowed all of what I had to offer her, then she cleaned me up with her tongue. She looked pleased with herself and laid down beside me to cuddle into my side, sated and happy. It took her several minutes before she gasped and her grip on my arm tightened. ¡°My lord! What was that at the end?¡± Jill asked as she sat up. ¡°Why did you say that?¡± ¡°I wanted to make sure you knew that I wasn''t taking advantage of you.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°What better way to make sure we didn''t have an accident by having you do the ritual?¡± Jill opened her mouth to respond, then she closed it and thought about it. ¡°I didn''t even think about it. You could have impregnated me just then and I wouldn''t have had the ability to say no.¡± She looked down at my waning manhood and back at my face. ¡°We''re never doing this again. It''s too dangerous.¡± ¡°I know. Helena wouldn''t allow it, either.¡± I said and Jill nodded, then she laid back down and cuddled into my side. ¡°I''m going to treasure this moment for the rest of my life.¡± Jill said. ¡°Me, too.¡± Hanna said, blushing slightly. ¡°I will as well.¡± Farra said without blushing. ¡°I can''t wait until you fix us.¡± Gella said and smiled. ¡°I claim the next shift.¡± ¡°Damn!¡± Hanna and Farra said at the same time, then the three of the laughed softly. Each bent over to kiss my cheek and made it tingle, then they went to the big bed at the side of the room. They were soon asleep, as was Jill. I laid there and went over everything that needed to be done before I could recuse myself for the ten days to get back to normal. If I was efficient, I could get the first regiment of slave rehab potions distributed by tomorrow afternoon and then brew up the healing and wound cleaning potions to bribe Greta''s sister, Linette. Having an experienced healer stay here to care for me for ten days was worth the price. The last time I was all alone and suffered greatly. Hopefully, it wouldn''t be as bad as last time. I wasn''t regrowing an entire lower leg this time. I was fixing my back, though. It was a huge area and if it was as damaged as Greta''s worried face had told me, then maybe this might be worse than last time. 280 Back To Normality Bokuboy In the morning, fifteen couples were married by Greta and myself. She even did up little pieces of paper she called wedding certificates and put their names on them. Everyone celebrated and pretty much had scheduled a party all morning. Greta and I left almost right after the ceremony and went to the potions room. We successfully diluted the rehab potions down to the proper doses and increased our supply significantly. It would do them all for two months and allow them to fully recover from the physical hardships of being a slave. Unlike them, I would wait until later to take a full normal vial and drink it. After that, we worked on making the potions for Linette. We worked for the rest of the morning and finished just as Linette showed up. When she saw the stacks of crates we made for her, she nearly fainted and I had to hold her up. ¡°If I wasn''t unhappily married and locked into a contract, I would take you to bed.¡± Linette said and turned in my arms to face me before she kissed me deeply. ¡°Linette!¡± Greta gasped. ¡°What? I did that the last time, too.¡± Linette said with a soft laugh. ¡°I shouldn''t have invited you, then.¡± Greta said. ¡°David just learned that...¡± ¡°You don''t have to tell me that!¡± Linette spat and cut her off, shocking Greta, then she looked into my eyes. ¡°I cannot express my deep sorrow over what happened. I secretly came to check on things when I was able to.¡± She sighed and rested her head on my shoulder. ¡°I couldn''t do anything for him, even with the last of the potions I had access to.¡± ¡°It''s all right now.¡± I said and rubbed her back. ¡°He''s gone on to a better place.¡± Linette lifted her head to look at my face again. ¡°It would be nice to believe that.¡± Greta couldn''t stop her smile. ¡°David, you lay down and take the rehabilitation potion while I tell my sister about what happened last night.¡± I nodded and let Linette go, grabbed an undiluted potion, and went to the bed we had set up for easy observation. I was going to need it soon to take my regeneration potion. ¡°Can you put me to sleep?¡± ¡°Easily.¡± Greta said as I took the potion. ¡°I''ll wake you up when our estimate of the time you need expires.¡± I stripped off my clothing down to my underwear and then drank the potion. ¡°David!¡± Linette gasped. ¡°That was undiluted! You''re going to kill yourself with such a high dose!¡± ¡°No, I''m much stronger than everyone else.¡± I said and nodded at Greta. Then everything went black. _______________ You are now unconscious by magical means. Performing diagnostics. Mental stability at 90% and stable. Learning capacity at 95% and stable. Personality completion at 100%. Physical damage at 30% and stable. Blood loss at 20%. Heart damaged and working at 75% efficiency. Magic capacity at 134%. Magic Burn at 5%. Magic Level at 76% and stable. Warning: A new substance has entered your system and has initiated the minor repair function. Working... working... analysis done. Performing diagnostics. Mental stability at 95% and stable. Learning capacity at 100%. Personality completion at 100%. Physical damage at 20% and stable. Blood loss at 15%. Heart damaged and working at 80% efficiency. Magic capacity at 140%. Magic Burn at 2%. Magic Level at 82% and stable. Substance has been assimilated and can no longer affect you. Physical status returned to ''normal''. Skipping unconscious state. Done. _______________ I woke up with a start and looked at Greta. She was not wearing the same outfit as before. ¡°How long?¡± ¡°Two days.¡± Greta said with a smile. ¡°You just kept twitching and ran over the estimate.¡± ¡°I suspect it worked hard to try and counter the excess damage you''ve suffered.¡± Linette said and cast several diagnostic spells at me. ¡°You... well, I...¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Greta asked. ¡°He''s significantly healthier and stronger magically than he was when he took the potion.¡± Linette said and gave me a look. ¡°I can''t recommend taking another dose. It might put you in unimaginable pain and you won''t gain anything from it.¡± ¡°I know.¡± I said and sat up. I was covered in sweat and smelled pretty musky. ¡°I need a bath!¡± Jill was there after a moment and Hanna was right behind her. ¡°We haven''t found another personal maid yet, my lord.¡± ¡°I doubt you''ll have anyone agree to come here after everyone realizes what I''ve done.¡± I said and stood as I put my boots on. I felt a lot better and I looked down at my body and the returned muscles. They had expanded out a bit and I had lost the thin and scrawny look of a slave. ¡°My... my lord.¡± Hanna whispered, her face red. ¡°I''m glad it worked.¡± I said and pat my chest. It had actual definition on it now and you couldn''t see my ribs anymore. ¡°When do we start taking our doses?¡± Gella asked as she entered the room. ¡°Now that David is up and proved that the newest batch isn''t going to kill you all, we can start bringing in those that don''t have a lot of duties.¡± Linette said. ¡°Was that really a worry?¡± Greta asked. ¡°You saw what happened to Eludora when she tried to rush with the quarter dose.¡± Linette reminded us and we nodded. ¡°We''ll pick the biggest and strongest slaves first. If they can take the quarter dose without harsh effects, we''ll distribute the doses liberally. If they suffer too much, I''ll have to get you to split the doses.¡± ¡°I believe they''ll be fine.¡± I said and picked up my clothes to hand to Hanna. ¡°None of the slaves I''ve seen were in Eludora''s reduced physical state.¡± Linette and Greta nodded to me. ¡°I''ll come back here after my bath and we can get to work on distilling the pigment potion.¡± I said to Greta and then left with Hanna, Jill and Gella with me. ¡°Where''s Farra?¡± ¡°Working with the old man. We need a lot of number ten potion to get the third floor converted properly.¡± Gella said. ¡°That and they want to play with some to see what else they can make.¡± I nodded. ¡°It''s too bad we can''t find Frank and his men.¡± ¡°I asked a few of the less recognizable slaves and two crew members to go around the city and ask questions about that.¡± Hanna said. ¡°As far as anyone can determine, they moved away.¡± ¡°What about their families?¡± I asked as we entered our room. ¡°Some stayed and some left. No one knows where and the ones still here won''t talk about it.¡± Hanna said. ¡°I think you know why.¡± I nodded and went to the bathroom to fill the tub with water. ¡°They made sure that the mages couldn''t track them down.¡± Jill and Hanna bathed me and dried me off, then I laid down and Jill blushed. ¡°You don''t have to do this.¡± I said. Jill took a deep breath and her face changed back to normal. ¡°Until we can find you a real personal maid or return you to the ones that have gone, I will do my duty for Helena, my lord.¡± I nodded and Jill nodded back, then she did her duty and performed the ritual. Once again, she did it perfectly and moaned when I finished for her. She swallowed it all and cleaned me up, then looked at my face with pride clear on her face. ¡°I do not want to mount you, my lord.¡± Jill said and reached under her skirt. A moment later, she pulled her hand out to show me dry fingers. I nodded again and stood as Jill washed her hands and then she and Hanna dressed me. I returned to the potions room and Linette had already left. She had the crates of potions delivered to the medical ward over the last two days and now she had to get back to work. ¡°Linette said she''ll come back as soon as you tell her you''re taking the regeneration potion.¡± Greta said. ¡°Good. I don''t want to suffer like the last time.¡± I said and we settled down at the main work station. We had to work out what we were going to do to get the potion out of my flesh samples. It took us several hours and having supper brought up to us, before we figured out that we needed to dilute the flesh and break it apart. That was going to be a lengthy process to get it down into a liquid form without burning off or ruining the pigment. It had been a good idea of mine to take more flesh than Greta thought we would need, because we messed up the first attempt and the mixture lost the white color completely. We took what we learned and broke it down, analyzed the processes, and figured out where we went wrong. It was the light in the room. Mage light, to be exact. It screwed up the distilling process by adding unnecessary ambient magic. I sat Greta down on a chair and told her not to move before I turned off the lights. Greta let out a surprised sound and then laughed softly. ¡°It''s pitch black in here! How can you see anything?¡± ¡°I haven''t needed my eyes to see anything around me since I was a child.¡± I said and repeated the process with the next batch of skin harvested from my back. With no ambient magic for the skin to absorb, hence not activating the pigment potion, the sample dissolved into the concoction we had come up with to break it down. Of course, this was only the first step. It had to be separated carefully, each stage siphoning off more and more of the physical matter to only leave the liquid behind. There was almost no blood, considering how the skin got that way, and I continued to work for nearly an hour as I slowly boiled the water away to leave only a small amount of pigmentation potion. I turned on the lights and Greta jumped like she had been slapped. ¡°Did you fall asleep?¡± ¡°N-no.¡± Greta lied and winced, then she rolled her eyes at me. ¡°It was only a nap.¡± I picked up the single vial of pigment potion to show her and she gasped. ¡°You completed it? I thought you were just separating it!¡± Greta said, almost as accusation. ¡°I did separate it. Out of that huge pot, this is what''s left.¡± I pointed off to the side and Greta saw the sludge I had ladled out into the other pot. ¡°Once it was down to just liquids, refining it to this was simple.¡± Greta nodded and we got to work again. She cast a dozen spells, telling me what they were, then she grabbed some of that special parchment that was spelled to extract the infused blood from the potion. It was only a small piece, just to see if there was actually blood in it or if they had cheated somehow. It only took a minute for the parchment to change and a drop of blood formed in the middle of it. ¡°We''ll need to filter it out.¡± Greta said and showed me the process to do that, using more of that parchment. It was interesting to see her get quite a bit of blood out of that small vial. Whoever they were using to make the potion was either horrible at judging how much blood to add, or they didn''t care if the person donating the blood died. I suspected the latter. Once we had the blood out and reversed the infusion, the ingredients almost separated themselves. With our extensive potion making experience, we easily tracked the processes backwards and analyzed the effects of each ingredient. When we were done an hour later, not only did we have the recipe for making the pigmentation potion, we also had the counter options written out. ¡°This really will work best with mother''s creme recipe.¡± Greta said and went to her bag beside the work bench. ¡°Here are her notes on the breakdown.¡± ¡°So, you didn''t only sit at my bedside for two days and stared at my chest as it expanded?¡± I asked and accepted the notes. Greta huffed a laugh and shook her head. ¡°You''re not tricking me with that attitude, mister.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked. ¡°I''ll only sleep with you if we are under contract and I know that you are never going to enter another one.¡± I opened my mouth to respond and she put a hand over my mouth. ¡°I am not a commoner and my beliefs, and personal practises, are different from theirs.¡± Greta said. ¡°Despite my very real desire to pleasure myself with you, I cannot subject you to that kind of restriction.¡± I nodded and she moved her hand. I immediately thought about Lady Ming and Mage King when they met on the clipper ship. They hadn''t had any male equipment among them and they seemed to have pleasured themselves just fine. ¡°We don''t have to have sex for you to feel pleasure.¡± I said and Greta''s eyes went wide. ¡°We can just rub ourselves on each other and I can lick you out down there.¡± I nodded to her waist. ¡°D-David, I... no, we can''t.¡± Greta said and shook her head. ¡°If we do that, I would beg you... beg you on hands and knees... to take me and make me yours.¡± She reached up to cup the side of my face. ¡°I lo... I care about you too much to have my mother force you into a contract after that.¡± ¡°Lady Marks would make me, wouldn''t she?¡± ¡°Yes, and she would destroy our relationship with that one piece of paper.¡± Greta said and let my face go. ¡°I would rather be your friend for the rest of my life than trap you like that again.¡± I nodded, because it really had turned into a trap that the Hag had sprung on me and then wrecked everything. I felt hatred build up inside of me at the thought of her and that emotional dam inside me cracked a little more. I made a fist with my hand and my magic flared for a moment. ¡°David!¡± Greta said and I didn''t respond. ¡°DAVID!¡± ¡°WHAT?!?¡± I yelled and she looked startled, then she cupped both sides of my face. ¡°Calm down. Whatever you were thinking about just now, push it aside. You''re shaking the equipment and we have work to do.¡± Greta said and she looked into my eyes, then she sighed and leaned in to kiss me softly. My anger seemed to flee at the kiss and Greta''s magic flowed into me. Mine responded and flowed out into her, making her moan. She broke the kiss and little sparks passed between our lips until she was about an inch away. ¡°Oh... oh, my.¡± Greta whispered and covered her mouth with a hand. ¡°I need to... get to bed. Yes, I''m tired. It''s been a long day and it will take us quite a while to work the new counter agents into my mother''s recipe. A few days, at least.¡± She said and walked over towards the door. ¡°Testing and redoing the recipe for more testing after that could take weeks.¡± ¡°Perhaps more. Everyone is different and took different amounts of pigment potion to be changed into this.¡± I said and waved at myself. ¡°I know I took nearly twenty minutes and several full dunks into a large vat of it.¡± Greta''s face paled at that. ¡°You... you mean...¡± ¡°They tried to drown me to get me to change? Yes.¡± I said and she looked sad. After a moment, Greta straightened her back and nodded. ¡°We''ll work at it and we''re going to make sure that everyone you''ve rescued that''s been subjected to that awful potion, will have it removed.¡± She said and then smiled. ¡°Especially you.¡± I thought about that and smiled myself. ¡°Just my skin. I think I prefer the long white hair.¡± Greta looked at my ponytail for a moment, then she nodded and left with her head held high and a determined look on her face. I went over to the work desk and picked up the inventory of ingredients that were ready for me to use and I thought about the potions I knew. With an entire guild''s worth of ingredients, most of which were stolen from me, I wouldn''t have to go back to the marsh until I ran out of the rare ingredients. That thought reminded me about my strength and fortifying potions. I quickly checked through the inventory and found substitutes that were weaker and also not as effective. That meant I needed some of that magic quick growing grass that I had helped cultivate. It also meant that I needed to go and visit a certain someone to get some of it. My botany teacher, Mage King. 281 Setting Things Up Bokuboy I went to bed that night and had a discussion with myself about how I was going to handle Mage King. The last time I saw her, she had my manhood in her mouth and had used it several times without my permission. At the time, it was a severe breach of my word to Helena and the contracts we intended to sign. It was fortunate that we had waited to actually sign the official documents, because I could have been adapted by the Henrietta Family as a slave. The thought of being their slave made me laugh in my head, because I didn''t want to wake Hanna. She was draped over my chest at the moment and the peaceful look on her face as my magic flowed through her, made me not want to disturb her. She had at one point tried to suckle on my nipple for some reason. She seemed to still be asleep and it only lasted for a short while, then she sighed and started snoring. I had to assume that she was reliving something from when she spent nights with Nana. I would ask about it if I thought it would make any difference. It wasn''t like she was responsible if she was half-asleep or could control her urges. It was then that I realized what had happened, or started happening that way, with Mage King. She really did have a dream where she could do what she wanted with me and then suddenly had me there to do it to. If I hadn''t been promised to Helena, I might have even enjoyed it. Mage King''s justification afterwards was insulting, however. It was to me, to Helena, and to personal maids, because they never took liberties while doing their duty. I went to sleep with a plan in my mind and rested for most of the night. With my vigilance technique going all the time again, I felt it when Gella replaced Hanna at my side. I also felt her magic swirl through me as my own responded. She gave my chest several light kisses, making the muscle tingle, then her soft hair acted like a pillow as she tucked herself under my arm and went right to sleep. Farra came to the bed eventually and she whispered to Gella to stay where she was, then tucked herself under my other arm. With my body back to normal, or as normal as being damaged was, they both let my magic flow over them and went to sleep. In the morning, Jill showed up and gave me a bath unasked, and did the ritual. She looked pleased with herself, probably from regaining confidence in her abilities, and dressed me in a suit and not my captain''s uniform. ¡°It''s time you showed the others what you can do, my lord.¡± Jill said. ¡°No, not yet.¡± I said and put my boots on. ¡°After I take my break to heal and regenerate myself, then I will. I''ll show them all what it means to anger me.¡± My magic flared out and Gella, Farra, and Hanna shivered and gave me happy and longing looks. They couldn''t wait to see me restored, either. We left my room and I went up to the potions area set aside for testing. Linette was already there with four new slave patients wanting their first dose of rehab potion. ¡°You''re early! Good.¡± Linette said. ¡°I''ll need your observation skills, just like you did with Eludora.¡± My eyes went to the four men and then back to her. Linette laughed and touched my arm. ¡°I only meant holding them down if they start to seizure and I can heal them where you indicate, because you can tell before I can where it''s happening.¡± I nodded and we got to work. We dosed the first man and he didn''t react at all. Linette made notes for the time the potion would go through his system and nodded after casting several diagnostic spells. ¡°I''m happy to say that he''s not even getting small muscle spasms. That''s good, because it means he can take doses frequently and will be finished quicker.¡± ¡°Thanks, doc.¡± The man said. ¡°Just lay there until we''re done of the others, all right? In case there''s residual effects.¡± Linette said and he nodded. We went to the next man and he reacted strongly. It wasn''t bone breaking strong like Eludora, though. ¡°I''ll have to recommend a half dose or a diluted one. You''re going to have to take it a lot longer than the others.¡± ¡°Of course I do.¡± The man said, sadly. ¡°You''re more damaged than others and need more time to recover, that''s all.¡± Linette reassured him. ¡°Believe me, I''ve seen some of the slaves on the ship when getting you four. There are going to be more people like you than like my first patient.¡± The man nodded and we moved on to the next man. He was only slightly twitchy for the potion''s duration and he sighed when Linette said he could take the normal doses at a spaced out interval. The last man was the same, even though his twitches were less frequent. ¡°I think I''ve got a good example of everyone''s reactions.¡± Linette said and turned to me. ¡°I''d like to try four women next.¡± ¡°That''s what my buddy said!¡± One of the men said and the four patients burst out laughing. Linette blushed from embarrassment and looked mortified. ¡°Men, jokes like that are only for crewmen and not for everyone.¡± I said, even though I had a smile on my face. ¡°They don''t get it.¡± ¡°Sorry, sir.¡± The man said and looked at Linette. ¡°I apologize, Lady Marks.¡± ¡°No, I... I''m sorry for not laughing, too.¡± Linette said. ¡°I was just shocked and became embarrassed. It was a good play on words.¡± I nodded. ¡°How are you all feeling?¡± ¡°Good.¡± ¡°No change.¡± ¡°A bit tingly.¡± ¡°Not much.¡± They said at the same time. The tingly one was the man that needed a reduced dose. Linette smiled. ¡°David.¡± ¡°I''ll take a quarter of the supply and dilute it.¡± I looked at the men. ¡°Send in four women that aren''t busy.¡± ¡°Yessir.¡± They said and got up, dressed, and left at a fast walk. I got to work while we waited for the women to come in. When they did, they looked hesitant until they saw me. They rushed in and looked at me with awe on their faces. ¡°Are you really going to fix us?¡± One of them asked. ¡°Yes. It''s just going to take some time and probably a lot of potions.¡± I said and then smiled. ¡°I mean drinking them and not dunking in them.¡± The women laughed and went over to the four beds. They all looked right at me as they stripped off down to their panties and I knew that they were okay with me looking. I didn''t, because I was being a gentleman. ¡°My lord?¡± One of them asked and I turned to look at her. She hadn''t put on the hospital gown and had taken off her panties as well. ¡°Thank you for accepting us and for escorting us all the way to this land.¡± I made a point to look down at her body, like she wanted me to, and looked back up to her face. ¡°Thank you for the privilege of seeing such beauty.¡± The woman blushed and her hands moved to cover herself, then she blushed even more and didn''t. ¡°I can''t take a slave to my bed.¡± I told her and she nodded several times, as if I had confirmed her assumption. ¡°However, when you''re all better after the potion treatment, I''ll give you... and all of you... a special gift. At that point, if you wish to and haven''t found another to do so, I will bed you once to satisfy your curiosity.¡± She gasped and the other three women let out giggles. ¡°How... how long...¡± ¡°If you can take the full dose, almost two months.¡± Linette said after giving me a weird look. ¡°If you need the diluted version, it will be close to four months.¡± ¡°The summer or the fall.¡± The woman said and then nodded. ¡°My lord, I would be honored to share myself at that time, so I am no longer tainted by the slave brands.¡± I walked over to her and she looked surprised that I would approach her. ¡°That''s not why.¡± I said and cupped the sides of her face like Greta did to mine the night before. ¡°It''s because at this time, you''re considered my slave. I won''t take advantage of you or let you think it''s because I believe I own you that I''m bedding you.¡± ¡°My... my lord, I...¡± She let a tear come out of her eyes. ¡°You really would take me as a woman right now if you didn''t think you owned me?¡± I nodded. ¡°I''ve had it done to me and I won''t do the same to anyone else.¡± I stepped close and gave her a light kiss to prove it, then stepped back. ¡°Don''t let my offer stand between you and finding someone to love, because it will just be sex between us.¡± ¡°I... I understand, my lord.¡± The woman said and then smiled. ¡°I really do.¡± ¡°Good.¡± I said. ¡°Now put the hospital gown on and stop making my eyes feast upon your nakedness.¡± The woman blushed and reached for the thin cloth, then she turned away and slipped it on, letting me see all of the back of her naked, too. ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± She said and tied it in the back. It didn''t hide her shapely ass at all. ¡°That''s not quite working.¡± I commented. ¡°It will have to do, my lord.¡± The woman said and laid down on the last bed. ¡°I''m ready to start my journey, Lady Marks.¡± Linette handed the woman a vial and she drank it down. She cast several spells on her and nodded. After a moment, nothing happened. ¡°You''re approved for the normal dosage.¡± ¡°Thank you, Lady Marks.¡± The woman said and laid back to wait for the others. Her eyes went to me and she smiled. ¡°The summer. I''ll be ready, my lord.¡± I nodded and went with Linette to the next woman. She only twitched a little and was approved for the normal dose as well. The last two didn''t react at all and Linette let out a sigh of relief. ¡°Stay here for a few minutes and rest, then you can change and send in more people.¡± Linette said and nodded to me as she wrote down their names and they dosage schedules. I went back to work and prepared the diluted doses. We both worked all morning and neither of us saw Greta, which meant she was either avoiding me or she was making potions with the old man and Farra. I would find out that afternoon when we were scheduled to keep working on the pigment potion creme. We took a break for lunch, which Linette was more than happy to join me for, then Linette had to leave. ¡°I''ll come with you.¡± I said and she looked surprised, then Gella was there and handed me my sword. ¡°I need to visit the academy and go somewhere I hadn''t planned on going until I returned to school.¡± ¡°My lord, are you attending again?¡± Gella asked. ¡°I wasn''t planning to so soon.¡± I said. ¡°I have work to do and...¡± ¡°The school year will be ending soon. If you are there to take the exams and tests, they will have to acknowledge you actually grading to the next level and not passing because of the deal.¡± Gella said. I gave her a pointed look and she grinned at me. ¡°I talked to Greta this morning before she left. She received an offer to return to teach, now that the mages guild is no longer stopping her from getting ingredients.¡± ¡°So that''s where she is.¡± I said. ¡°She didn''t tell you?¡± Linette asked, surprised. ¡°No.¡± I said and I waved at the front door. ¡°Now I have three reasons to go to the academy.¡± We left the building and the carriage was there waiting for us. I handed in Linette and then Gella, then climbed in myself. ¡°I''ll be by each morning until we dose all of your people.¡± Linette said. ¡°Once I know their reactions, they can self dose or come to you for them.¡± ¡°To me.¡± I said. ¡°You know some will want to rush it.¡± ¡°That they can''t do. If someone tries, tell them about Eludora''s reaction. None of them want to get worse by pushing too far too fast.¡± Linette cautioned me. ¡°If they still try, you can reduce them to the half-doses.¡± I nodded. If they wanted to double up on doses to have it happen faster, giving them the half-doses would solve the problem without them actually realizing it. We dropped Linette off at the hospital and the carriage took Gella and myself to the academy. I really hadn''t planned on going back there, then realized what I was wearing. ¡°Driver, the garment district, please.¡± I said and we changed course. ¡°Oh! The uniform.¡± Gella said in understanding. I nodded and refused when Gella asked me if I wanted to wear some concealer. She gave me a curious look, then shrugged and sat back for the remainder of the ride. The garment district was slightly busy and no one paid two slaves any attention at all. We entered the shop that sold the mage academy uniforms and the woman behind the counter sighed when she saw us. ¡°I have no orders for you to pick up.¡± The woman said. ¡°We''re here to buy an academy uniform.¡± I said and pointed at myself. ¡°My lord is as big as me and sent me for a fitting and to bring the uniform to him as soon as possible.¡± The woman sighed again. ¡°Of course he did.¡± She waved at the dressing station at the side of the room. ¡°Disrobe and I''ll be right over with something as quickly as I can.¡± Gella hid her smile at the woman''s upcoming reaction as we went over to the spot and she helped me undress. ¡°Do you want to face her or let her see your back first?¡± She asked in a whisper. ¡°I can see in the mirror, so back first.¡± I said and Gella laughed under her breath and pulled off my shirt just as the woman came out of the back. ¡°AHHH!¡± The woman yelled and dropped the things in her hands as she covered her face. ¡°By the Father''s Grace!¡± She exclaimed and started crying. ¡°This is what happens to slaves that disobey.¡± I said. The woman stood there for several minutes before she uncovered her face and looked at me with her eyes partially covered. She let out a whimper, then she slowly bent down to pick up the things she dropped. She walked over as if I was going to attack her and then she set her things down on a nearby table that was used for that purpose. ¡°It''s... it hideous.¡± She whispered. ¡°How can you even move like that?¡± ¡°I can''t really feel it anymore.¡± I said and she reached for it, only to pause. ¡°Go ahead. You need to touch me to get the right measurements.¡± The woman''s hands touched me only with her fingertips at first, then she put her whole hands on my back and rubbed it. She ran her fingers through some of the furrows and even pinched me a few times, as if to test it. ¡°Fascinating, isn''t it?¡± Gella asked. ¡°If it didn''t make him lose some of his agility, I would ask him to keep it, just so everyone would know what he''s been through.¡± ¡°Wh-what... what do you mean, keep it?¡± The woman asked. ¡°We''re going to fix it in a couple of weeks.¡± Gella said. ¡°I don''t know if I want to feel smooth skin while hugging him, though. I''ve gotten used to it like this.¡± I touched Gella''s face and she gave me a smile. ¡°Yes, well... I... I better get to work.¡± The woman said and did just that. At random times, she would let her hand touch my back and she would lightly caress it, like it was something exotic. Her tears would return then, too. Half an hour later, I was wearing a first year mage academy uniform and it looked good on me. ¡°It''s a waste of money to buy this, considering the year is almost over.¡± The woman said. ¡°Then I''ll order two more for the second year.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Keep my measurements on file, please.¡± I handed her a gold coin. ¡°How much for the uniforms?¡± ¡°Three gold crowns each.¡± She said and stared at the coin in her hand. ¡°Are you really giving me this?¡± I added nine more coins to her hands. ¡°File the measurements under Lord Drake and someone will come by to pick them up when they''re ready. There''s no rush.¡± The woman nodded and hugged the money. ¡°I''ll have them ready in a few days.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and slipped one of my boots back on. ¡°Why are you wearing women''s boots?¡± The woman asked, curious. ¡°I don''t have any toes.¡± I said and she gasped as she looked down at the socks on my feet. ¡°That''s just some padding to brace my foot.¡± I said and flipped my sword around and plunked it right on the part where my toes should have been. The dull wood sound from the floor made the woman jump. I put on the other boot and stood. ¡°I''m going to miss the extra height when I get my toes back.¡± Gella laughed softly and picked up my clothes. ¡°You can get men''s boots with thicker heels, my lord.¡± ¡°I can?¡± I asked as we walked out of the shop. We both ignored the woman''s startled shout. ¡°Or you can make them. You are a mage that can use marsh magic, my lord.¡± Gella said with a smirk. I couldn''t stop my smile and nodded. I handed her into the carriage and entered myself. ¡°The academy.¡± I told the driver and the carriage took off. We sat back for the relatively short ride and didn''t speak. I was going to be a little late for the first afternoon class, then realized I would need to go to the administration building to tell the director that I was back as a student. I wonder what she''s going to say, if anything? I asked myself. Mage Chasma seemed quite accepting the last time I was there and I hoped that attitude continued. Word of what I''ve done to the guild should have spread by now and there might be a lot of unhappy students that wanted a piece of me. The thought made me smile and I saw a matching one on Gella''s face. Unlike me, she didn''t have to warn them that they were about to die if they insulted me. ¡°Perhaps just a face slash the first time they open their mouths?¡± I asked. ¡°If you wish for me to waste time, I will do so, my lord.¡± Gella said and her smile didn''t change. 282 Academy Antics Take Two Bokuboy The guard at the gate waved us through without stopping us and I tossed him a gold coin. He fumbled with it for a moment, almost dropping it, then he smiled as he pocketed it. Gella shook her head at me and her smile didn''t lessen. ¡°I know.¡± I said and she chuckled. ¡°I said I know.¡± Gella laughed out loud. ¡°He''s going to expect payment whenever you pass by! Ha ha!¡± I had to smile at her laughing. ¡°Is it because he was so easily trained or that I didn''t do it before?¡± ¡°Both!¡± Gella said and kept laughing. We came to a stop at the main building and went inside. No one stopped us and we walked down the side hallway towards the director''s office. ¡°We don''t have an appointment...¡± I started to say. ¡°She''s been expecting you since this morning.¡± The secretary said with a smile. ¡°Go on in.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and held a hand out to her. ¡°Really?¡± She asked, surprised. I nodded and she took my hand, then I bent over it and kissed the back of it as I pushed my magic through it. ¡°Ohhh.¡± She moaned and closed her eyes briefly, then she opened her eyes and beamed a smile at me. ¡°Thank you, my lord.¡± I nodded again and let her hand go as Gella opened the office door for me. ¡°I actually felt you flirting with my secretary...¡± Mage Chasma said and her secretary gave her the same beaming smile. ¡°...and she''s unrepentant for taking a lord''s attention, however briefly.¡± ¡°Why would I say no?¡± The secretary asked. ¡°The rest of your afternoon is free of appointments.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Mage Chasma said and Gella and I stepped into her office and shut the door. ¡°Did she tell you I expected you here this morning?¡± ¡°Yes, and I don''t know why.¡± I said as we all sat down. ¡°I only found out at lunch that Greta was offered her old job back.¡± ¡°She didn''t tell you?¡± Mage Chasma asked and I shook my head. ¡°That''s strange. I asked her to.¡± ¡°Perhaps I can offer an explanation.¡± I said and told them what happened last night between Greta and myself. Mage Chasma nodded. ¡°She would want a little time away from you after that, if only to get her own thoughts together.¡± ¡°I haven''t felt that electric jolt before.¡± I said. ¡°It''s not something I''ve heard of myself.¡± Mage Chasma said and glanced at Gella. ¡°Perhaps taking a sample size of partners to see if it''s Greta''s involvement or just your own magic strength?¡± ¡°Are you actually curious or are you just angling to kiss my lord to feel it yourself?¡± Gella asked. Mage Chasma smiled at the blunt question. ¡°A bit of both, actually. I''ve felt his flirting before.¡± ¡°I''m glad you were honest about it.¡± Gella said and turned towards me. ¡°My lord, please recreate what happened last night.¡± I stood and let the thoughts of the Hag float around in my head, then made a fist with my hand and my magic swirled around me. It shook a lot of things in the office and Gella stood to cup the sides of my face. ¡°My lord, calm down.¡± Gella repeated and I let the magic slow, then she leaned in and kissed me. Our magic swirled together, almost violently, because she was full of repressed anger as well. Several things in the office fell over and broke, then the desk started to vibrate. Gella broke the kiss and slowly moved back as sparks of lightning danced between our lips. ¡°Oh, dear.¡± Mage Chasma whispered as the magic stopped churning and everything stopped shaking. ¡°That was... quite volatile.¡± She stood up and walked around the desk. ¡°My lord, please try that again.¡± I did so and my magic shook things a little, then Mage Chasma wrapped her arms around me as she kissed me and poured her magic into me. Unlike mine or Gella''s violent magic, her magic seemed warm and comforting. Mine swirled with hers and combined, only for nothing to shake at all as it flowed around us. Mage Chasma broke the kiss and moved back slightly, then we heard a loud snap of thunder as a thick bolt of lightning passed between our lips. ¡°OHHH!¡± She moaned and sat against her desk, then she blushed deeply as she put a hand over her womanhood and the growing wet spot there. ¡°I shouldn''t have worn pants today.¡± We were all quiet for several moments, then Gella laughed. ¡°My... my lord!¡± She said and then caught her breath and spoke normally. ¡°You can bring out the best in those around you.¡± I thought about that and nodded. ¡°Greta''s passion, your ruthlessness, and Mage Chasma''s comforting warmth.¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± Gella said. ¡°It almost felt like standing in a warm bath just before the kiss ended.¡± ¡°It felt like a violent storm when you kissed.¡± Mage Chasma said. ¡°And please call me Pavinca. After a kiss like that, I can''t help but call you David.¡± She gave me a searching look. ¡°I hope that''s okay?¡± ¡°It''s my name.¡± I said and she smiled at me. ¡°By the way, I''m returning to school.¡± Pavinca chuckled and handed me the papers on her desk. ¡°Here are your exclusion papers. Being captured and turned into a slave can grant you a lot of leeway.¡± ¡°I''ll be writing the exams.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°I expected nothing less.¡± Pavinca said. ¡°I do expect you to fail in the spell composition and math portions for the same, considering you have a completely different magic skill set.¡± ¡°I can fake it enough in the practical portions to pass.¡± I said. Pavinca laughed softly. ¡°All right, I''ll let your marks stand if they go over the minimum you are required to have.¡± ¡°That''s better than the entrance exam I took where I was given the minimum and that was it.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°You better get to class.¡± Pavinca said and looked at Gella. ¡°I hope you kept the passes and permission slips I gave you.¡± ¡°I did.¡± Gella said and took them out to show her. ¡°Keep them on you and you are allowed to go with David to his classes.¡± Pavinca said. ¡°With you as a guard, perhaps the reactions will be less prevalent.¡± Both Gella and I gave her disbelieving looks and she laughed softly. ¡°Just try not to kill them right away, please?¡± Pavinca asked. We nodded and left her office. The secretary waved at us as we walked down the hallway and then she gasped. ¡°My lord!¡± We stopped walking and looked back at her. ¡°You need to get a new living assignment, your books replaced, and have your Royal cafeteria card re-issued.¡± The secretary said. ¡°You can come back here after class for them.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said to her and we left the hallway and the building. ¡°I doubt they will give you a room, my lord.¡± Gella said as we went to the carriage. ¡°You''re assuming the one assigning them will bow to pressure from the dead mages and their families?¡± ¡°Or is from one themselves.¡± Gella said. ¡°Driver, we''re staying until school ends. Pick us up a little after then, please.¡± ¡°Yes, ma''am.¡± The driver said and drove off with the carriage. ¡°I have Advanced Potions class right now.¡± I told her and waved towards the main building used for classes. We walked there and entered. It was only part way into the first class of the afternoon, so no students were in the hallways as we went to the right classroom. Gella knocked and opened the door before I could and whispered about not letting me slip inside without anyone noticing, because that wasn''t the point of returning to school. ¡°What is...¡± Greta started to ask as she turned towards the door, then she saw me. ¡°DAVID!¡± ¡°Mage Marks.¡± I said and nodded to her and walked over to the desks, only to see a shocked looking Jinelle at my old potions position. I went to her old one and ignored the three angry faces on the other students. Lorna, her betrothed, and the other young blond man, apparently had family I had killed. ¡°What... what are you doing here?¡± Greta asked, nervously. ¡°Resuming classes just before exams.¡± I said and looked at the chalk board and saw that it was just a review day. ¡°I suppose I didn''t have to come if this is the last class before the exams that are apparently happening next week.¡± I gave her a blank look. ¡°Thank you for letting me know you returned to work.¡± Greta blushed and turned her head away. ¡°I just... I needed some time to...¡± ¡°If you''re working, that means you''re not helping me with the modifications we planned to do for the next few weeks.¡± I said and she sucked in a sharp breath. ¡°David, I... I didn''t think...¡± ¡°No, you reacted to something that could happen to anyone.¡± I said and stepped out from behind the potion workstation. ¡°If I could call upon Jinelle to help me demonstrate?¡± ¡°M-m-me?¡± Jinelle asked. ¡°H-h-her?¡± Gretta said at the same time. ¡°It will only take a moment.¡± I said and walked over to the young woman. ¡°I only ask for a brief kiss, Lady Marks.¡± Jinelle stared at me. Her eyes went from my white skin, to my long white hair, and to my bright blue eyes. ¡°What happened to you?¡± She asked. ¡°You''re supposed to be dead.¡± ¡°You didn''t believe that.¡± I said and stepped close to her as she shook her head. ¡°I was kidnapped and made into a slave, became a pirate and took over the ship, wrecked the Eastern Empire''s shipping routes, and then returned here to find my entire life destroyed by the Mages Guild.¡± Jinelle let out a sob and tears started to flow out of her eyes. ¡°No, your mother, grandmother, and aunt were not involved. I dealt with the confessed criminals in short order and will deal with the rest when they come to the capital to return to the guild.¡± I let my anger out and my magic surged out, rattling everything in the classroom. ¡°D-David.¡± Jinelle whispered. I cupped the sides of her face and wiped at her tears with my thumbs. ¡°May I kiss you?¡± Jinelle nodded and I pressed my lips to hers. ¡°MMMM!¡± She moaned loudly as she pushed her magic out and into me. Her magic surged out harder than any others I had done this with and it swirled with mine and mixed together. Vials nearby shattered as our combined magic lashed out and pushed everything away by about a foot, then a strong wind picked up and blew everyone''s hair around. I broke the kiss and moved back exactly an inch. The sound of thunder was very loud in the classroom as a bolt of lightning nearly an inch thick snapped between our lips. ¡°OHHHHH, GOD!¡± Jinelle moaned loudly as the magic entered her and her legs gave out. I caught her before she fell and scooped her up into a princess carry as she cuddled into my chest. ¡°Iloveyou, Iloveyou, Iloveyou...¡± Jinelle whispered, over and over. ¡°What the HELL was that?!?¡± Lorna asked as the wind died down. ¡°A successful experiment and solid proof of concept.¡± I said and looked at Greta, who''s face was pale, because she now knew she had overreacted to what happened. ¡°I''ll take her back to her room to let her rest, since this class isn''t necessary.¡± Gella opened the classroom door for me and I left with Jinelle in my arms. No one said anything until the door shut behind me. ¡°How can he come back to class like nothing happened?¡± A male voice asked. ¡°He''s killed hundreds of people!¡± ¡°He''s killed a lot more than that before coming to the academy the first time.¡± Greta responded. ¡°Why is this any different?¡± ¡°He killed our family!¡± The other male said. ¡°A criminal, by confession, that was dispatched by order of the Royal Family.¡± Greta said. ¡°Are you going to join the guild in notoriety and continue their criminal activities?¡± ¡°No, but...¡± ¡°So, you think your family is better than others and their crimes can be forgiven, is that it?¡± Greta asked. No one responded. ¡°If you didn''t notice, he killed both men and women at the guild. No one was above being served justice, not even the exalted Mages Council and the Grand Mage himself.¡± Greta said and I felt a surge of magic from her. ¡°They did horrible things to that man and his family! They robbed him of his fortune, his lands, and killed his future wife and his baby! What right do you have to say that your brother deserved to live after killing a baby! WHAT RIGHT?!?¡± No one spoke again. ¡°Exactly. You have no right. So shut up and accept that your family was involved in horrendous crimes and promise that you will never seek retribution over it. If you try, he will kill you all, as he has proven by wiping out the rest of the Henrietta family and that banker''s family.¡± I nodded to Gella and we walked away from the still silent classroom. It didn''t take us long for us to arrive at the dorm building that housed Jinelle''s year of classmates. We entered and the dorm monitor saw us and nodded. She escorted us to her room and allowed me to bring Jinelle inside and lay her on the bed, under her close watchful eyes. Her three maids came out of their room and stared at me with their mouths hanging open. ¡°Please.¡± Jinelle whispered when I tried to let her go. ¡°Accept me.¡± ¡°I won''t be signing any more contracts.¡± I said and tears came to her eyes again. ¡°I am sorry, dear Lady. You know I cannot.¡± Jinelle nodded and then she put her hands on the sides of my face. ¡°A... a kiss goodbye.¡± I glanced at the dorm monitor and she sighed. I nodded to her and looked back at Jinelle as I let my magic out. ¡°Ohhh...¡± Jinelle moaned as her magic surged forth without her trying to push it, then she pulled me down into a passionate kiss as our magic merged and sent out another push. Gella caught the dorm monitor before she fell and the shocked looked on her face made Gella laugh. I broke the kiss and moved back, the crack of thunder and the snap of lightning happened again, then Jinelle and her three maids made similar moaning sounds. ¡°You must be glad you''re wearing a skirt.¡± I said. ¡°Yessssss.¡± Jinelle said and looked at me with half lidded eyes. ¡°I... I do love you, David.¡± ¡°I know.¡± I said and gave her a light kiss and stood. ¡°Enjoy your life while you can.¡± Jinelle smiled sadly. ¡°I understand.¡± I nodded to her and to her dorm monitor, then Gella and I left. Now that I had some free time with the rest of the afternoon off, and having dealt with two of the three reasons I came back to the academy, it was time to deal with the last reason. Gella walked beside me as we walked across the campus grounds towards the botany workshop. ¡°I was wondering why you left visiting her until last.¡± ¡°It''s going to be painful for Mage King because of what I''m about to do to her.¡± I said and Gella smiled. ¡°I have an idea.¡± Gella said. ¡°Perhaps.¡± I said and we fell silent as we walked the rest of the way to a fateful meeting that could be both therapeutic and disastrous. 283 Botany Business Gella and I entered the familiar damp environment and it wasn''t as lively as before. Everything was just as maintained; but, there was an air of sadness that permeated everything as well. We walked through the main growing areas towards the office. I noticed several sectioned off areas that had foot tall grass growing in them and nothing else. So, the cultivation worked. I thought and knocked on the office door. ¡°Go away, Pavinca! I told you that I never want to eat with the bastards that killed David''s family!¡± Victoria''s voice said loudly. I nodded at Gella and she stepped away and cast a hiding spell on herself. I opened the office door and Victoria sat at her desk with her head in her hands. Her hair was dishevelled and her face was without make-up, which was almost a sin according to most nobles. She still wore a thin blouse that didn''t hide the black bra she wore underneath and I suspected that she was also wearing tight pants. Victoria heard me enter and sighed. ¡°Pavinca, I thought I told you...¡± She said as she raised her head and then she gasped loudly. ¡°D-D-David!¡± ¡°Mostly, Mage King.¡± I said and waved at her with my hand to show off the missing fingers. Victoria took in a deep breath and then her eyes rolled into the back of her head and it made a loud thunk sound as it dropped to the desk. ¡°That''s going to hurt when she wakes up.¡± Gella whispered as she walked by me and picked Victoria''s head up, cast Minor Healing on her, and put the woman''s head back down on her cheek and not the forehead. ¡°Do you want me to wait outside?¡± I thought about it and shrugged. Victoria wasn''t going to see her right away anyway, so she didn''t have to leave. Gella sat down at the side of the office and I sat down on the chair in front of the desk. We waited about ten minutes before Victoria took in a sharp breath and blinked her eyes. She didn''t lift her head as she looked at me. ¡°You''re really here.¡± Victoria whispered. ¡°Changed, obviously.¡± I said and she didn''t respond. ¡°If you can''t tell by the skin color...¡± ¡°...you were a slave and only just came back.¡± Victoria said. ¡°Cynthia, I mean Lady Ming was here and tried to tell me something important a couple of days ago. Something about the guild being wiped out...¡± ¡°That was me.¡± I said. ¡°I also took over the building and their account at the bank.¡± Victoria sat up and her eyes were wide. ¡°You... took over... the guild building.¡± ¡°We''ve got the bottom three floors converted for living spaces for myself, my pirate crew, and nearly 200 slaves that I liberated and brought with me.¡± Victoria''s mouth opened and closed several times without any sound coming out of it. ¡°I also killed the Grand Mage, his wife, and his daughter, along with the mages council.¡± ¡°Your... your son...¡± Victoria whispered. ¡°Drained of magic and his life.¡± I said and tears came to her eyes. ¡°It''s all right. He''s gone to a better place.¡± Victoria nodded and slowly stood. ¡°D-David, I...¡± She walked around the desk and sat on the edge of it in front of me. ¡°I''m sorry. I''m so sorry.¡± She said and wiped at her face. ¡°After everything that''s happened, I... I know what I''m going to say won''t mean much.¡± I sat there and didn''t say anything. ¡°I apologize for what I did to you that night. I broke your trust and I can''t ever make that up to you.¡± Victoria said. ¡°Whatever gratification I had from it wasn''t worth losing your friendship. It was a horrible thing for me to do to you and I''m sorry. I''m sorry that I ruined everything.¡± I nodded and I put my hands on her thighs. I slid them up and down a little and she closed her eyes. ¡°You always wear tight pants, don''t you?¡± ¡°Yes. It makes the men that can''t have me, desire me even more, because they can see what they can''t have.¡± Victoria said. ¡°Why isn''t your top wet?¡± I asked and slid my hands up her sides. ¡°I changed it after I fed the plants.¡± Victoria said and caught her breath when my hands slid up across the sides of her bra. ¡°D-David, what...¡± ¡°I had intended to come back to the academy and demand that you wear appropriate teacher attire.¡± I said and brought my hands up to cup the sides of her face. ¡°N-no...¡± Victoria whispered. ¡°Please... don''t...¡± ¡°I changed my mind.¡± I said and sat back down. ¡°I want you to keep flirting shamelessly.¡± ¡°David, I...¡± ¡°Show me what you can really do, like when we consulted on the trip.¡± I said. ¡°Remember back in our cabin on that first ship and we went over the maps?¡± Victoria remembered what she did and nodded. She stood up and opened up a couple of buttons on her blouse and went back around her desk. She picked up a few papers and then slipped off her top before she bent over to show off her cleavage. ¡°These are the growth potential estimates for the new magic grass.¡± Victoria said and shuffled the papers to make her breasts jiggle. ¡°It''s adapted so well that it''s even more virulent than the original grass.¡± ¡°I''m going to need a lot of it.¡± I said. ¡°You must have seen the relevant sections coming in here.¡± Victoria asked and I nodded. She walked back around the desk with the papers and put them down in front of me. ¡°I''ll help you harvest it and you can take as much as you want.¡± ¡°What would happen if it ever got out?¡± I asked and motioned to the papers. Victoria gave me a sad smile and stepped right in front of me, then she bent over to show me the results as she put her ass right in my face. Unlike the last time, I didn''t keep my hands to myself. I ran them up her thighs and pushed my nose right between her cheeks as I gripped her hips. ¡°D-David, please... don''t...¡± ¡°I''m only doing what you did.¡± I said and slid a hand between her legs and started rubbing her. ¡°No, I... I don''t want...¡± I unhooked her pants and pulled them off of her hips, then slid them down over her ass. Her tiny little panties were hooked by the cloth and slid right off of her, leaving her completely exposed. ¡°David... I... that''s enough.¡± Victoria whispered and I could hear her silently crying. ¡°Please... you''ve never... never crossed...¡± ¡°I know.¡± I said and slipped my tongue into her. Victoria moaned and sobbed at the same time. She braced her arms on the desk and cried as I kissed and licked her with all of the skills that I had learned from the women I''ve met, even Lady Ming. She must have recognized it when I suckled on her nub and then lightly bit it, because she let out a particularly loud sob and dropped her head onto her arms and cried hard. Victoria now knew that I had seen her have sex with the captain of the clipper ship and hadn''t said anything about it to her or anyone else. I wouldn''t have learned about that particular action otherwise. I kept working until she had an orgasm. She had cried herself out as well when I was done. Apparently, it took a long time for a woman to get off if she wasn''t into having sex at the time. I wiped her off and sat back to look at her. Victoria turned slightly to look at my face to see that I hadn''t enjoyed it, either. She took a shaky breath and stood up, then took a minute to get her panties pulled up, as if she didn''t want to touch herself after what I just did. She sighed sadly as she pulled her pants up, then she cringed as the cloth tried to tuck in between her lower lips. ¡°It doesn''t feel good afterwards when someone uses you, does it?¡± I asked and she shook her head. ¡°Now you know how I felt when you were done with me.¡± ¡°David, I... I really am sorry. I was weak and... and horny... and... you were so handsome and let me do what I wanted to tease you. You never complained, even when I took things a lot further than I ever had before. You accepted it for what it was and I... I fell in love with you because of it.¡± Victoria said. ¡°When we were there in the most romantic spot I''ve ever been and we were on a journey that was going to make me a very happy woman... that you were going to make me a very happy woman...¡± ¡°You couldn''t resist trying out something that you''ve only dreamed about.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°I''ve had some experience with that recently.¡± ¡°You have?¡± Victoria asked and wiped at her face. ¡°Not my own.¡± I said and glanced at Gella, who pretended to walk into the room just then. ¡°Hanna.¡± ¡°I''ve had her do that to me, too. I didn''t stop her.¡± Gella said and stood beside me. ¡°I didn''t, either. She eventually gave up when she didn''t get any milk.¡± I said and Gella laughed softly. ¡°Milk? What do you...¡± Victoria started to ask and I pointed at her breasts, then tapped my own chest. ¡°Oh.¡± She said and then her eyes widened. ¡°Oh!¡± Gella laughed a bit more. ¡°I doubt my lord felt it was as pleasurable as I did.¡± I shrugged. ¡°It wasn''t arousing or bothered me, so I let it happen. Hanna didn''t even notice.¡± ¡°You didn''t say anything to her?¡± Gella asked. ¡°No, it wouldn''t have made any difference.¡± I said and looked at Victoria. ¡°She was half asleep when it happened and I accepted that she didn''t have much of a conscious choice.¡± Victoria took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°David, I hope you can forgive me eventually...¡± ¡°I just did.¡± I said and nodded at her womanhood. ¡°I wouldn''t have done that to you if I didn''t.¡± Victoria looked surprised. ¡°I... I thought... you were punishing me!¡± ¡°I was.¡± I said and stood up. ¡°I couldn''t let you suffer with being compared to a maid without trying it myself.¡± Victoria just stared at me with her mouth open and didn''t say anything. ¡°My lord, did you just create a bath ritual for a woman?¡± Gella asked, surprised. ¡°Yes, and no one but us can ever know about it.¡± I said. ¡°My lord...¡± Gella whispered. ¡°Only them.¡± I said and she nodded. I looked at Victoria. ¡°I trust you won''t say anything, Victoria.¡± ¡°No, I won''t mention you reducing yourself to a man-servant or that... David!¡± Victoria gasped. ¡°You just used my first name!¡± I nodded. Victoria leaned forward and hugged me tightly as her tears started again. ¡°David, I... Oh, David!¡± I hugged her back and let her cry herself out again. I nodded to Gella and she retrieved Victoria''s blouse. ¡°Thank you.¡± Victoria said and put it on, making sure to shake her breasts at me before she buttoned the blouse up and tucked it into her pants. ¡°Let''s get to work.¡± We went back out to the main growing area and to one of the sectioned off spots, then carefully trimmed the one foot long blades of grass off near the base. We also cleaned them of seeds before putting them into a clean storage bag. We gathered a hundred of them and sealed the bag before I could remove it from the section. It was too dangerous to let out. ¡°I hope you can visit the Sanctuary on the weekend and reclaim a lot of those plants and things that the guild threw out.¡± I said. Victoria let out a sound of happiness and hugged me again. ¡°I will! I WILL!¡± ¡°We also have lots of room for expansion on the next floor, now that the building is empty.¡± I said and she grabbed my face and kissed me for several seconds. The funny thing was, neither her magic nor mine reacted. She didn''t realize that was a possibility, though. ¡°I''ll bring some of my better plants from here that need a lot more room, including that flower we rescued.¡± Victoria said. ¡°Your idea about saturating the area with magic to let it bloom and pollinate, worked beautifully!¡± I hadn''t told her about the magic saturated area in the marsh where the fungus blooms and mushrooms used to grow or that they only grew there and nowhere else. Ambient magic was a key component for a lot of the rarer plants and ingredients. ¡°I''ve got a dozen more of them growing now.¡± Victoria said, proudly. ¡°It''s going to be a few months before the new growths are ready for pollination and expansion, though.¡± ¡°Keep at it. When we have enough to start harvesting without impacting the original plants and their growth, I can adapt them into the healing and health potion recipes.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°My lord, we should go to the administration building to get your replacement things.¡± Gella said. ¡°You''re right. School is almost over.¡± I said and handed her the bag of magic grass. ¡°I''ll see you in two days for class, Victoria.¡± Victoria took in a sharp breath. ¡°You''re coming back to class?!?¡± ¡°How else would I take the exams?¡± I asked. Victoria let out another sound of happiness and hugged me tightly. ¡°I look forward to you destroying every other test result my students have ever made!¡± Gella laughed softly and peeled the older woman off of me, then we left the botany building. ¡°She seems to have forgotten what you did to her.¡± ¡°No, she hasn''t.¡± I said and Gella gave me a questioning look. ¡°She''s nervous about giving me any opportunity now. She didn''t rub up against me with her breasts when we hugged or tried to let my hands and arms caress her ass as we worked. Her blouse is buttoned up to the collar, too.¡± Gella looked thoughtful and nodded. ¡°I did notice a lack of closeness, even when she kissed you.¡± ¡°She''ll get past what just happened eventually and will start flirting again.¡± I said. ¡°She''s used to being free with her affection and won''t fight the urges for long.¡± ¡°I noticed she didn''t once mention contracts or that she wanted one with you.¡± Gella said as we walked over to the administration building. ¡°She hated the one she had with her ex-husband and their family. She won''t trap herself in another one any more than I would.¡± ¡°She also didn''t say anything about getting together despite that.¡± Gella pointed out. ¡°That''s because she is as ingrained with the noble mentality as everyone else is in the nobility.¡± I said. ¡°She believes she is degrading herself by pretending to be a personal maid, without realizing that they enjoy their work, are very well paid, and are cared for by their chosen families.¡± Gella nodded. ¡°That was why you mentioned it.¡± I nodded back. ¡°It won''t change her viewpoint much; but, knowing I would do the same is going to make her think about it. A lot.¡± Gella laughed and opened the door to the building. ¡°I wonder why nobles never thought about doing those kinds of things with each other?¡± ¡°It''s a commoner thing, apparently.¡± I said and we entered the building. ¡°Having a relationship with someone without a contract to back it up is almost completely against their beliefs.¡± I was quickly sorted out and given new books, my royal cafeteria card, and my class schedule that included the exams, their classroom locations, and the practical areas for spell casting and potion making. When I went to the dorm manager for the academy, he gave me a blank face and no assignment. I stood there for exactly sixty seconds before I nodded at Gella. Her sword was out of the sheath and across the man''s cheek and back in the sheath before he could blink. ¡°AHH!¡± The man screamed and shot to his feet. ¡°Your SLAVE just assaulted me!¡± ¡°No, she was teaching you a lesson about disrespecting a Lord of the Kingdom and a friend of the royal family.¡± I said. ¡°Now do your job or go find someone that will.¡± The man glared at me, clearly a slave myself, and then he looked at Gella and started to whisper. I whipped my own sword out and made it glow as I shoved it through the man''s nose vertically. It bisected his mouth, his tongue, and his nose up to between his eyes. I pulled it up and it slid out through the top of his head with a bit of a blood splatter in his hair, then the body dropped to the floor. ¡°I''ll get the director.¡± The man that had handed me my food card said and ran for the hallway. 284 Enchanting Stories Part One Bokuboy Mage Pavinca Chasma arrived and sighed at the body on the floor. ¡°By the Father''s Grace, I did warn him not to antagonize you, my lord.¡± ¡°Technically, he didn''t do anything.¡± One of the other men said. Pavinca waved his comment away. ¡°Staying silent and not doing his job is just as bad as him insulting Lord Drake to his face.¡± She walked over to the desk and looked down at the dorm assignments. ¡°He even managed to fill up the dorm rooms with occupants.¡± I stood there without speaking and saw Gella nod slightly at me. ¡°My lord, if you will return here tomorrow afternoon, I''m sure I''ll be able to get through this mess and see which assignments are real and which are fabrications.¡± Pavinca said and looked down at the body. ¡°I know some have to be fake, because he would have told you that there were no free rooms.¡± ¡°I understand. Thank you, Director Chasma.¡± I said. ¡°At least you took my advice.¡± Pavinca said. ¡°A cheek slash was a good choice as a warning.¡± I nodded to her and we left with my things. The carriage rolled up to stop near us and we entered it. The driver took us back out through the gate and I tossed a gold coin to the eager guard. Gella held in her laugh about it until we were far enough away. We didn''t say anything for the ride back to the Sanctuary and I dismissed the driver for the rest of the day. We brought my things into my room and dropped them off, then we went searching for those plans for making safes. I wasn''t in a rush to start working on the skin creme, thanks to Greta leaving me to do it by myself, and wanted to distract myself with something. It took us three hours before we found the right office and we stopped for supper. After that, it took another two hours to dig out the plans. Of course, it wasn''t that simple. It used their magic to do some of the steps and it would take me a while to work out how to restructure it for my own magic. It was late, so we returned to my room for a bath and to go to bed. Gella, Farra, and Hanna had all taken their full doses of rehab potions and didn''t bother trying to take shifts this time as the three of them cuddled up to me. Farra and Gella tucked themselves under my arms and Hanna laid down mostly on my chest. When my magic flowed out, slightly tempered by my memory of Pavinca''s calming magic. The three of them relaxed and our magic swirled together and let them drift off to sleep in comfort. I wasn''t sure why I wasn''t protesting their presence more. Was it because they weren''t demanding? They just did what they wanted, like I do, and I can''t fault them for it? Or maybe I wanted them to do it? Was I also too ingrained in the noble ideals to accept that a woman would just want me for who I was and not for what I could provide for them? Were any of them actually doing that? I drifted off to sleep with those questions floating around in my head and the night seemed to pass instantly and the morning arrived. Not surprisingly, I was still wrapped in their arms and I had a bit of drool on my chest from the three different mouths that rested there. What was funny was that I hadn''t felt it, even with my vigilance technique going. I then realized that I didn''t class their affection as an attack and had ignored it. They weren''t a threat to me and my mind let them do it without informing me. It was an odd thing for my brain to do. Jill arrived and woke us all up to give me a bath, did the ritual proudly, and dressed me in my academy uniform. Gella was dressed in a more appropriate outfit for attending school with me and we both wore our swords. I actually wore two of them. One on my right hip for actual fighting and the other was the royal family''s short sword. It''s political power had waned since I had been gone, though. Most people might not recognize that it was real or care if it was. Things had degraded a lot around here. Gella and I climbed into the carriage and rode to the mage academy. The guard caught the coin as we passed through the opened gate and closed the gate behind us. Gella just smiled at the training going so well. The carriage dropped us off near the main classroom building, because a lot of the students hadn''t gone in yet. A few of them gave me murderous glares as I stepped out and told the driver to come back after lunch. Some students glared because it was me and they recognized me and some because I looked like a slave with white skin and hair. Most looked afraid, which was amusing, because I had given up a long time ago on trying to make people afraid of the Marsh Man and now they were. Who knew that all you needed to do was kill a bunch of high profile magic users to gain a reputation as dangerous? The doors to the building opened and we all shuffled in. Not a single person talked, not even Vanessa, who was only a few people away from me and surrounded by her friends. They weren''t her old friends, though. That made me think about her using the potions around her real friends and discovering that they were genuine, and now she had surrounded herself with others that weren''t. What a waste. I thought and walked down the hallways towards the enchanting classroom. I sat in a different seat and Gella sat beside me. That had been a smart move on my part, because Vanessa sat beside another girl from the class. She also had a set of the small enchanting tools. Black and Heather Montgomery had been talking in whispers about what enchantments to remind everyone about and what runes to bring to their attention. When the bell rang, they stopped talking and turned to look at the class. Black''s face paled and Heather let out a little shriek of fright when they saw me. ¡°I already apologized for the interrogation.¡± I said, not bothering to pretend it didn''t happen. ¡°I could have let Gella do it; but, I thought you would prefer it if it was me.¡± They both looked at Gella, who wore a wicked grin on her face. ¡°Good point.¡± Black said. ¡°This is a review day for the exams next week. Were going to go over the more important enchantments and the associated runes that you''ll be tested on.¡± ¡°Would it be possible to get a syllabus of what you did while I was captured and made a slave?¡± I asked and Heather let out another little shriek. ¡°You would have to discuss that with one of the other students...¡± ¡°So, no.¡± I said and didn''t have to look around to see all of the girls nodding. My vigilance technique told me all I needed to know. I would get no help from my classmates in any of the subjects. I had an ace in the hole, as Gary would say. I just had to decide when to use it. ¡°Yes, well... as I was saying...¡± Black said and started to give us a rundown of the enchantments and things we needed to know. He only said the names and didn''t draw them out, which was bad for me. I didn''t have the originals to mess around with. Some of the enchantments I hadn''t used before, so I would need to use my ace at the end of morning classes. Enchanting class ended and after the short break, Heather started the runes class. Once again, she only talked about the runes and their uses without drawing them out for me. It was frustrating, because writing it down made no sense without the proper reference materials. I flipped through the book and found about half of them, which meant she was only basing the course on the book and not relying solely on it. A few minutes before class ended, I slowly stood up. ¡°Thank you for that informative and completely useless review.¡± I said to the teachers. ¡°You''ve successfully scrambled all of that into everyone''s heads all morning and now they will have trouble associating what you said to the proper runes and enchantments.¡± ¡°Not you, you arrogant...¡± Heather started to say and Black put a hand over her mouth. ¡°I stopped listening and writing as soon as you didn''t show the enchantments you were discussing. How you can think anyone would be able to go back and apply your words later to the right enchantment is beyond me. Even the Hag only showed me one enchantment at a time and told me what it did. She didn''t blab for hours and not show me what she was talking about.¡± ¡°Then you are going to fail this course.¡± Black said. ¡°No, I won''t.¡± I said and turned to Vanessa. ¡°Miss Sellwafer.¡± ¡°That''s LADY Sellwafer-Henrietta!¡± The girl beside her exclaimed. I let a smile show on my face. ¡°The Henrietta family is dead and the contracts giving her that title were broken by her family. She knows this.¡± I said and looked at Vanessa''s sad face. ¡°As my serf...¡± The entire classroom gasped, even the two teachers. ¡°...all of your things are mine.¡± I said and ignored their reaction. ¡°I will escort you to your room to get copies of everything I''ve missed for the last six months.¡± Vanessa shook her head in denial. ¡°Your parents are already working at the Sanctuary. They''re cleaning up all the blood from the mages I killed.¡± I said and she started crying. ¡°On the plus side, their debt to me was greatly reduced with the acquisition of their lucrative business and their ancestral home, as well as the monies granted to you in the contracts.¡± ¡°No!¡± Vanessa shouted and it came out as a normal voice. I walked over to her and she leaned away. ¡°I''m not going to threaten you. I don''t hurt what''s mine.¡± I said and she kept crying. I touched her forehead tenderly and she closed her eyes and leaned into it. ¡°Debt.¡± I said and cast the spell. Her forehead glowed and she jerked back as if slapped. ¡°It''s true!¡± The girl beside her said and stood up to move away. ¡°You''re his serf! That spell wouldn''t work, otherwise!¡± Everyone looked to see the numbers tattooed on her forehead and watched in fascination as the number slowly trickled down. Just then the bell rang and everyone jumped in fright, except for myself and Gella. I stood there and waited for Vanessa to pack up before I took her arm and stopped her from running away. ¡°No, everyone will see what you cost me.¡± I said and walked down the stairs to the main floor of the class. ¡°Drake.¡± Black said and I stopped walking. Gella put her sword against Black''s face instantly. ¡°That''s Lord Drake.¡± Black glared at her and then at me. ¡°Grandfather died because of you, as did half of our blacksmiths.¡± ¡°Why?¡± I asked. ¡°He fought against the mages that came for your secrets.¡± Heather said. ¡°He also ordered anyone that could wield a blade to help him.¡± I thought about that. ¡°Then he was an honorable man and his offer of his granddaughter was an honest one and not a joke like I thought.¡± ¡°You are NOT taking my daughter!¡± Black spat. ¡°Is she seven yet?¡± I asked and he made a growling sound. ¡°I don''t plan on accepting the old man''s offer, even though he fought for me, unlike almost everyone else.¡± I said and their faces changed to impassive. ¡°You see, it wouldn''t have taken much to defy the mages. They almost never move in large groups. They are too arrogant for that. Like you.¡± Black let out a sigh and shook his head. ¡°I couldn''t hurt my standing with the guild, even if that ended up being the result anyway.¡± ¡°So, you let your grandfather die unaided by you and want to blame me. That''s fine.¡± I said. ¡°I''ve killed more people than live in this city. What''s one more body to add to the total?¡± Black''s face paled and his eyes went to Gella''s sword. ¡°You are very lucky that you haven''t insulted my lord yet.¡± Gella said and put the sword away. She hadn''t even left a mark on his face. I didn''t bid them a good day as I turned and walked out of the classroom with Vanessa''s arm still held firmly. Her tears started again when her friends scoffed at her forehead and walked away. We passed by her old friends on the way out of the building and two of them were sad and two of them had smiles and nodded to me. I nodded back and smiled in return and that made their smiles wider. I came to a stop when I had a neat idea. ¡°I''m getting copies of Vanessa''s work over the last six months and I don''t have a lot of time to copy it myself.¡± I said and they looked intrigued. ¡°I''ll give you ten gold crowns each for an hour''s work writing out her notes for me.¡± ¡°What about lunch?¡± One of them asked. ¡°Would you like to dine this evening inside the old mage''s guild building with hundreds of slaves and pirates that wrecked the Eastern Empire''s merchant shipping and sank eighteen of their navy ships?¡± I asked and all four of them perked right up. ¡°We can skip lunch once.¡± One of them said and the four of them came with us to Vanessa''s dorm room. The dorm monitor looked at Vanessa''s forehead and sighed as she waved at the stairs. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and tossed her a gold coin. She looked surprised for a moment, then looked back at Vanessa''s forehead. She nodded and pocketed the coin and knew it was to keep watching over Vanessa. It only took the four enthusiastic girls three quarters of an hour to copy out all of Vanessa''s notes for the subjects I would be writing the exams for. I didn''t bother with spell composition or spell math. I was relying on the practicals for those, since the math one was tied into the spell casting practical. I handed each of the girls ten gold coins and they had expectant looks on their faces. Gella laughed softly and mimed taking their hands for me. I nodded to her in thanks and then took each young woman''s hand and lightly kissed it as I pushed my magic through it. Each of them made an appreciative sound and blushed, even though I looked like a slave. ¡°Thank you very much for your help today and I look forward to having you over this evening.¡± I said and waved at the door. ¡°I''ll send the carriage for you when school is out.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Thanks.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± They said at the same time and left. ¡°You... you ruined things again.¡± Vanessa''s soft voice whispered. ¡°I know.¡± I said and touched her shoulder. ¡°When exams finish and you go home for the summer holiday, you are to report to the Sanctuary and you''ll be shown what your duties will be.¡± ¡°What... what if... I fail the exams?¡± Vanessa asked. ¡°It doesn''t matter. As my serf, you are mine no matter what you do, until after your family pays off the debt.¡± I said and Gella followed me to the door. ¡°Do you still want to be a mage? A potions brewer? An enchanter? With the tricks I taught you, you can be anything you want. That was why I helped you.¡± Vanessa didn''t say anything and just sat there with tears in her eyes. ¡°It''s up to you if you want to flunk out for no reason.¡± ¡°I''m a pariah!¡± Vanessa exclaimed. ¡°You always were. Only the circumstances have changed.¡± I said and smiled at her surprised face. ¡°See you in class tomorrow.¡± Gella barked a laugh as we went down the stairs. ¡°She''s finally realizing the massive mistakes she''s made.¡± ¡°Giving herself to someone else was the worst thing for her, I believe.¡± I said and nodded to the dorm monitor as we passed her. ¡°She knew after she did that, there was no going back to how things were, even if I never returned.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Gella asked as we entered the carriage waiting for us. ¡°Helena was still alive when she did it.¡± I said and Gella sucked in a sharp breath. ¡°It''s the only explanation as to why she gave up so quickly when Helena was taken by her family. She didn''t fight against it or her family''s manipulations because she had already chosen to move on.¡± Gella shook her head. ¡°Stupid nobles.¡± I nodded and sat back to enjoy the ride back to the Sanctuary. I had a grand supper to prepare for and would give those young women a show that they would never forget. I had forgotten something myself and wouldn''t remember until later that I was supposed to go to the administration building for a dorm assignment. 285 Enchanting Stories Part Two Bokuboy On the plus side, here''s 3,100 words for you to enjoy. After helping to prepare the feast and the banquet hall, I sent word with the carriage driver to apologize to Director Chasma for not showing up today for my dorm assignment. The driver picked up the four young women from the academy and I greeted them at the main doors of the Sanctuary wearing my best suit. Ferdinand always did great work. ¡°Thank you all for coming.¡± I said and kissed their hands and gave them a bit of magic. ¡°That''s not a real ship out there, is it?¡± One of them asked. They were dressed up as well and looked great. ¡°It''s fully functional.¡± Jensen said from behind me. ¡°We brought it here from the harbour so that it wouldn''t be raided by the army or stolen by the navy.¡± He chuckled. ¡°They would do questionable things to get their hands on the Heavy Kracken Tubes, not to mention the enchanted cannonballs.¡± The four women''s mouths opened in surprise. ¡°You enchanted cannonballs?!?¡± One finally exclaimed. ¡°Well, we needed something to practice on.¡± I said and waved them inside. ¡°I only have two arms to escort you inside. Would you like to wait here while I...¡± ¡°We can go as a group.¡± One of them said and took my arm. Another took my other arm, then the other two girls took the free arms of those two girls. ¡°That works.¡± I said and led them inside and up the stairs to the fourth floor. ¡°This place looks completely different from the tour we had during etiquette class.¡± The one on my left arm commented. ¡°We''ve changed the lower floors into living quarters for everyone staying at the Sanctuary.¡± I said and two slaves opened the doors. ¡°By the Son''s Light!¡± The girls exclaimed as we entered the elaborately decorated banquet hall. ¡°Our lord went all out for his very first guests in his new home.¡± Gella said and bowed slightly. ¡°Since there are four of you, please do not be insulted if he sits two of you on either side of him at the head of the table. He wanted you all close enough to listen to his tales and changed the proper seating for you.¡± The young women blushed slightly and looked at me. I nodded and they smiled happily at me. I took them over to the huge table that already had over a hundred people sitting at it and talking animatedly. ¡°As you are or do you wish to switch?¡± I asked them. ¡°This is fine.¡± They said and I sat each down personally. Their smiles didn''t lessen at all at the personal attention. I waved my hand and let out some magic and they caught their breath, because we were nowhere near the kitchen door. A hundred slaves and two serfs entered the banquet hall with dishes of food for everyone. We were all served quickly and then given glasses of wine. The four girls couldn''t stop staring at the previous Baroness Sellwafer as she served me. I assumed that they had all been over to their place to visit Vannesa at some point and thought it odd to see the high class woman acting like a servant. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and nodded to her. ¡°You''re welcome, my lord.¡± She said with a blank face and bowed slightly, then quickly left. ¡°She just earned two gold crowns?¡± The young woman on my right asked. ¡°Showing me respect in front of my guests when she doesn''t respect me at all, shows that she''s making an effort to pay off her debt.¡± I said. ¡°It''s a really interesting and intricate spell.¡± The four young women exchanged looks and nodded, then dug out two gold crowns each to put on the table in front of me. ¡°Can we add this to Vanessa''s debt payment?¡± The one on the left asked. I smiled warmly at her and she blushed. ¡°Of course you can.¡± I said and scooped the money up to hand off to Gella. ¡°I knew you were true friends to her, even if she let her Lady title go to her head.¡± The four of them nodded and then sighed. ¡°We were pushed aside when those other girls started to come around. It was slow at first and we didn''t really mind a new face or two. Then...¡± ¡°We were soon replaced and she didn''t hang around with us anymore.¡± One of the others said. ¡°That really hurt our feelings.¡± I reached over and took her hand. ¡°I know, and I''m sorry that even though she knew that you were her real friends, she ended up ignoring you anyway.¡± ¡°She knew?¡± The one on the far right asked, her face slightly angry. ¡°She knew and tossed us aside anyway?¡± ¡°Unfortunately.¡± I said. ¡°I was in the same boat, if you''ll excuse the comparison.¡± Their faces went sad and they ducked their heads. ¡°It''s all right.¡± I said and lightly touched each of their hands and shared a little magic with them. ¡°I may have lost everything I had here, including my future family...¡± I said and my magic flared out to rattle everything on the table. Gella nodded at Farra and she stood and walked over to me and gave my cheek a kiss. ¡°My lord, calm down. It''s not time yet.¡± I nodded and my magic settled. She kissed my cheek again and went back to her seat to sit down. ¡°As I was saying.¡± I said and lifted my wine glass. ¡°I brought a whole new life and a large group of friends back with me.¡± ¡°Hell YEAH!¡± The crewmen and the slaves said as one and we all took a sip of wine. The servers had come back with their own plates of food and wine and had joined us at the huge table. The four young women looked around and were surprised to see that. ¡°I used to have separate tables for the help, just to respect the tradition.¡± I said and they nodded slightly. ¡°I''ve changed my priorities since then.¡± Their eyes went to my white skin and long white hair, then nodded again. ¡°Let''s eat.¡± I said and we all dug into the delicious food. When we were all sated, I made the end of meal toast and thanked the young women for gracing us with their loveliness. The four of them blushed when everyone cheered and upended their wine. ¡°Now for the show!¡± One of the crewmen shouted and two dozen of them jumped up and ran from the room. ¡°What''s going on?¡± The one on my right asked. ¡°I was only going to tell you stories about our adventures and a few people had a much better idea.¡± I said and nodded at the door. The young women turned to look just as the men brought in sets and props for what they were going to do. ¡°Are... are they building a theatre stage?¡± The one on my left asked. ¡°They are.¡± I said and it was built, secured, and covered in a large curtain in only a few minutes. We all heard the banging and things behind it and only a few of us noticed some of the women sneak off to get the costumes. Ten minutes later, we were all treated to a live re-enactment of my capture, being changed into a slave, dumped onto a pirate ship, taking said ship over, and then making it the best pirate ship on the open waters. The crew and slaves cheered as each enemy ship was taken out and more slaves were rescued. The four women beside me had wide eyes and stared at the whole thing. The play was surprisingly accurate, even down to my oversized costume to make fun of the Gulf Kingdom as I took down the enemy navy ships. The fireballs were balls of red paper and the Kracken Tube ammunition were small wooden sticks. It was really quite entertaining to watch their interpretation of everything, especially when we assaulted the port town to get the information to sail back to the Gulf Kingdom. One detail bothered me a little. ¡°I did not ride into town on four white unicorns!¡± I said loudly. ¡°SHHH!¡± Everyone hushed me, even the four young women with me. I smiled and sat back to let it play out. The defenders attacking us after the warning not to, burning a lot of the town down, rescuing Nana (who played herself), then liberating the slaves and sailing for our destination and fighting dozens of sea monsters along the way. When the show was over, we all stood to applaud the people that had put it on and made everything for the players. My claps weren''t as loud, without all my fingers to make the right sounds, and I clapped anyway. The players bowed and waved to us, their adoring fans, and made their exit. ¡°Are they leaving it like that?¡± One of the young women asked as we sat again. ¡°If they want to. That was a good show.¡± I said and had a neat idea. ¡°Jensen!¡± ¡°Yessir?¡± Jensen asked from ten feet down the table. ¡°I wonder if anyone else would be interested in buying tickets to see such a great show?¡± Jensen laughed and looked at Molly, who nodded enthusiastically. ¡°My lord, I think something can be arranged, especially since we already have all the set pieces and props.¡± I nodded. ¡°Let them know, will you? Having their own income will bring their spirits up.¡± ¡°Their own income, my lord?¡± The young woman on my far left asked. ¡°Everyone here works. Either tending the fields for potion ingredients, cleaning up, cooking, brewing potions, helping with errands, building furniture, buying and growing food...¡± I said and those around us nodded. ¡°...we all contribute and we all earn the money the Sanctuary brings in from sales of properly prepared products.¡± The young women looked around at all of the people and back at me. ¡°You pay everyone?¡± One of the young women asked. ¡°Yes. They all earn a fair wage. It''s how the Sellwafers are making such good progress on their own debt.¡± I said and the girls nodded. ¡°If you would like to retire to the parlour, we can talk for a bit and share a little more wine before I have to return you to the academy for curfew.¡± The girls gave me slightly excited faces and I led them from the banquet hall to the normal-sized parlour that had been built nearby. Despite being nobles, they didn''t have closer gatherings than meetings at the old Mages Guild. After asking them where they would like to sit, they pointed to the large couch and told me to sit. I did so and the two that had been sad at Vanessa''s predicament tucked themselves into my arms and their dresses opened just enough to give me perfect views down at their cleavage. ¡°Lord Drake, thank you for still taking care of Vanessa, even though you don''t have to.¡± The dark haired one on my right said. She took a deep breath and let me see how endowed she was. She also had dark pink nipples and they were quite wide and pointy. ¡°You all know that I am no longer betrothed.¡± I said and they nodded. ¡°Then I thank you for the privilege you are granting me this night.¡± They all blushed and nodded again. ¡°My lord.¡± The blonde on my left said to get my attention. Her breasts were smaller and a lot perkier. Her bright pink nipples were also sticking out like fingertips. ¡°Is it true that you refused to take a cut of the profits for months, even though you were the captain?¡± I smiled at her and she beamed a smile back at me. ¡°I told them at the time that there was no captain and that I didn''t need the money because I was already rich.¡± That made them laugh and their breasts jiggled enticingly. It made me look and that pleased them. ¡°How did they eventually convince you?¡± The one on my right asked. ¡°They didn''t. A chest of gold was shoved at me and they told me that I was the captain now. They also said that I better do a good job at it or I''d be fed to the water beasts.¡± They laughed a little and then frowned slightly. ¡°But...¡± ¡°At the time, they didn''t know that I ate water beast for breakfast and it was the water beasts that would be in trouble if they tossed me overboard.¡± I explained and that set them off laughing hard. We talked for a short time and the two girls switched out for the other two and I saw two more sets of very nice breasts. One had dark brown nipples and black hair and the other had light brown hair and her nipples didn''t exist. I spent a bit more time looking down her dress than I should have and she was blushing deeply when I finally looked at her face. ¡°My apologies, dear lady.¡± I said and leaned in to kiss her cheek and gave her a bit of magic. ¡°I was merely curious.¡± ¡°Th-that''s all right.¡± She said. ¡°They... um...¡± ¡°You need to play with them or suck on them to make them appear and pop out.¡± The other girl said. ¡°So, they are special and need special attention.¡± I said in understanding, which made the young woman blush harder. ¡°Thank you for letting me see such treasures.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± She whispered and put a hand over her eyes. ¡°Why are you complimenting me so?¡± ¡°Do you not deserve it for allowing me to see them?¡± I asked and turned slightly to face her and the other girl let my arm go. I reached up and cupped the side of her red face and she moved her hand to look at me. ¡°Did someone tell you otherwise?¡± She took a breath and sighed. ¡°I... I''ve lost a contract because...¡± ¡°...the guy was an ass and didn''t like that her breasts didn''t stand at attention for him.¡± The blonde spat and then huffed. ¡°As if it mattered. We barely even like the dunces our families set us up with for political gain. Why would we have to make them happy, too? That''s asking for too much from us.¡± The other two girls nodded. ¡°You''re not under contract?¡± I asked. ¡°N-no, I... I''m not... but...¡± She blushed. ¡°My lord, I... I''m not like Vanessa. I can''t just... without...¡± ¡°I never slept with her.¡± I said and the four of them gasped. ¡°You thought she did.¡± ¡°You gave her so much! We just assumed...¡± ¡°She would have been pregnant immediately if we had.¡± I reminded them. ¡°Oh! We forgot about that!¡± The blonde said. ¡°Dammit! We thought that was why she was so eager for a new betrothal after you were gone. We didn''t think...¡± ¡°My lord... what... what are you suggesting?¡± The light brown haired girl whispered. ¡°I refuse to form any contracts after everything that''s happened.¡± I said and they all nodded. I glanced at the others. ¡°I assume you three are under contracts?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± They said as one. They even sounded sad. I turned back to the light brown haired one. ¡°I would like to experience your nipples for myself on a casual basis with no requirements to wed you afterwards.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± She whispered and her blush went from her forehead to her neck. ¡°My lord...¡± ¡°I know it''s more commoner thinking.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°However, letting you not be chosen as a wife because your nipples are different, is just as bad as people judging me for my skin color.¡± ¡°We... we didn''t judge you.¡± She whispered and bit her lip. ¡°I know. Anyone that can want to be friends with Vanessa after everything, even to pay off some of her debt, are good people.¡± I said. ¡°May I explore your glorious mounds as a commoner would, so you do not mentally assume I am initiating a contract?¡± Her eyes went to her friends and she blushed at their nods. They wanted her to be happy with her breasts. She looked at my face and nodded slightly. I smiled warmly at her and put my arms around her to open up the back of her dress. I had it undone in moments and then I folded the front down to expose her chest. ¡°Magnificent.¡± I said and dug my hands right in there and kneaded the flesh. I leaned down and started to suckle on the spot her nipple should be on her left breast. ¡°OhhhhHHHH!¡± She moaned and her nipple popped right out for me. It was only short and yet it was wide, as if it had been inside out. I was sure she had an orgasm, too. I dove for her other nipple and it reacted in almost the same way, so I played with them for several minutes, until she shuddered and let out another loud moan and she stared into my eyes as if begging me to take her. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and leaned in to kiss her cheek and gave her a touch of magic. I did up her dress as I did so and you couldn''t tell that I had just given her two orgasms, except for the lustful look on her face. ¡°I better get you back to the academy.¡± I said and stood. I had to help her up and she clung to me with a happy smile. I walked the four of them out to the carriage and handed them inside, leaving the light brown haired girl for last. ¡°My... my lord.¡± She whispered. ¡°Yes, if I wasn''t adverse to the horrible things, I would accept your contract.¡± I said and she took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°Thank you, my lord.¡± She said, more confidently. ¡°I will take solace in that... and what you did.¡± ¡°They''re still out, aren''t they?¡± I asked. She smiled and nodded. ¡°They will be for a while, I think.¡± She said and I handed her into the carriage. ¡°We will let everyone know about the new show coming soon.¡± One of the others said. I nodded and waved the carriage forward. ¡°You''re so lucky! I wish that was me!¡± One of the girls said. ¡°Me, too!¡± ¡°Me, three! That was... oh, that was...¡± ¡°It was.¡± The light brown haired girl said and leaned out the window to wave to me. I waved back and she went back inside the carriage as it left through the guarded gate. 286 A Bit Of Clarification The next morning, I had History and Geography and I wanted to talk to the teacher again. Mage Victoria Ridge had been quite willing to be interviewed by me the first time, after she hugged me tightly and expressed her deep sorrow about Helena and my son. She even gave my cheek a lingering kiss, which would have upset her husband if he had been there. Her husband had disappeared when I had arrived back at the capital and she claimed that she didn''t know where he went. I was sure that she was half-lying, as if that was a thing. I didn''t doubt my vigilance technique, though. When I asked her about it, she laughed softly and said it was actually a half-truth. She didn''t know for sure where he was and only suspected. She wouldn''t say where, however. When I arrived at the academy, I gave the guard at the gate a gold coin and he closed the gate behind the carriage. When we stopped near the large group of students waiting to enter the academy''s main classroom building, the driver spoke. ¡°Remember, sir. Go right to the administration building when lunch begins.¡± The driver said as I stepped out and reached a hand back for Gella to step out of the carriage. ¡°Gella, remind me to do that.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°I suppose I won''t need you until tomorrow afternoon.¡± ¡°Yessir. See you then.¡± The driver said and quickly left. ¡°My lord.¡± Gella whispered. ¡°You seem to be drawing a lot of attention to yourself this morning.¡± I glanced around and saw what she meant. More than half of the young women around us were giving me quite pointed stares. I noticed Vanessa''s old friends that I had hosted last night. Three of them nodded while the light brown haired girl lightly touched the spot over her heart. She briefly kissed the tops of her fingers and then blew a kiss at me as she blushed. ¡°I think that was a significant gesture.¡± Gella whispered and I nodded as the bell rang and we all shuffled into the building. I went to the alternate classroom where Mage Ridge was and I stepped into the doorway to see that she was sitting primly on the chair behind her desk. ¡°David!¡± Victoria gasped and then blushed as the girls behind me made sounds of disapproval. I stopped walking and they all bunched up to try and not walk into me, since I was now blocking the doorway. I turned around and looked at them all. ¡°What right do you have to criticize my friend for calling me by name when every single one of you refused to help me yesterday when I asked for it?¡± They all looked embarrassed and wouldn''t look at me. ¡°Exactly. You don''t have any right at all.¡± I said and they blushed. ¡°You should keep your opinions to yourselves. No one of importance is going to want to hear them.¡± Lorna looked angry, and yet, she didn''t say anything or looked at me. I turned back to the classroom and entered it with Gella beside me. I walked over to the teacher and she looked embarrassed and proud. ¡°Victoria, thank you for cooperating as much as you did during your interview.¡± Victoria shook her head. ¡°You are under royal command to find the mage traitors that are fighting against the crown. Without you here to clean out the enemies within our midst, I was afraid that the kingdom would soon fall.¡± ¡°It still could.¡± I warned her and the girls in the classroom gasped. ¡°There are army and navy elements that are too deep in with the mages to not rebel when given the chance.¡± Victoria sighed at the implications. ¡°What are you going to do about it?¡± ¡°Me? Nothing.¡± I said and that made the girls gasp again. I turned to look at them. ¡°Excuse me? What is it? Do you want me to do something about the state of your country when you all clearly hate me.¡± The girls all looked embarrassed again. ¡°So it''s all right to make my lord fight for you all and save you from the evil mages and the Eastern Empire; but, he asks for a little help from you to study for exams that he was unprepared for, BECAUSE HE WAS CAPTURED AND MADE A SLAVE!¡± Gella yelled. ¡°You all refused his simple request. Was that fair to him?¡± The girls didn''t respond, not even Vanessa. ¡°No, because you don''t care at all about what he''s been through, do you?¡± Gella asked, accusingly. ¡°I''ll use Mage Mark''s words here. He lost his fortune, his lands, his wife and his son, and NONE OF YOU CARE.¡± She spat. ¡°You only care that he came back here and killed the mages responsible for it all.¡± After a moment of silence, Mage Ridge spoke. ¡°Please sit and I can begin class.¡± ¡°I only have one more thing to say.¡± Gella said and her magic flared out. ¡°My lord liberated hundreds of slaves and destroyed most of the Eastern Empire''s shipping routes. He even came back here to clean up your country''s mess and all you can see is the single deaths of criminals in your families and the families of your friends. You are all so short-sighted that I want to pluck all your eyes out and force you to look farther than your own pitiful little lives!¡± I put a hand on Gella''s shoulder and our magic swirled together. A strong wind blew out from us and it ruffled everyone''s papers. A couple of the girls let out surprised sounds and looked afraid. Lorna still looked angry and I didn''t care why. ¡°I don''t think yelling at them or berating them will make them see the error of their ways after all this time.¡± I said and Gella nodded as she pulled her magic back and reined in her emotions. I removed my hand from her shoulder and she sighed slightly when my magic retreated from her. ¡°I apologize for the disruption.¡± I said to Victoria and sat down near the front of the class. Gella sat beside me and Victoria started the review. Thanks to Vanessa''s notes, I easily followed along with the review and marked the relevant sections to study. ¡°That went faster than I thought it would.¡± Victoria said when she finished and there was still an hour left before lunch. ¡°Class is dismissed.¡± I quickly packed up and gave my things to Gella to put in her slim backpack before I went to the teacher''s desk. ¡°Victoria, can I have a word?¡± Victoria opened her mouth to respond and then she sighed. ¡°I can''t tell you, David. I''m sorry.¡± ¡°Contract vow?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°Then I won''t worry you further. I''m sorry you''re caught up in this.¡± ¡°As am I.¡± Victoria said and watched several girls walk by before she spoke again. ¡°Alex and Donna have been asking about you.¡± ¡°I won''t be contacting them until I fix myself.¡± I said and showed my hands with missing fingers. ¡°That won''t be until after the exams and I prove I deserve to grade with the others.¡± Victoria looked surprised at my statement. ¡°But, David... you... we all know that...¡± ¡°It won''t mean the same if it''s my friends that tell people I''m a better mage than the Grand Mage.¡± I said and ignored the scoffs from the girls walking by. ¡°They''ll see for themselves during the practicals.¡± ¡°I doubt that.¡± Lorna said and quickly walked by to leave the room. ¡°You should go and see the director before lunch starts.¡± Victoria said. ¡°You know as well?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°Then I better go. See you next week.¡± ¡°How do you know I''ll be here?¡± Victoria asked. ¡°You want to see me get the highest scores on the exams as much as Gella does.¡± I said and Victoria laughed softly with a nod. I walked out of the classroom with Gella beside me and I heard my name be called. I ignored it, because I recognized the voice as Lorna''s. ¡°David!¡± Lorna said loudly. ¡°DAVID!¡± She yelled, then she sighed harshly. ¡°Lord Drake!¡± Gella and I stopped walking immediately and I turned to look at her. She was there with her betrothed and he looked like he was fighting to not show anger. Gella stepped back and to the side to get out of the way. Lorna started to smile and stopped herself. ¡°You think you''re the only one that''s lost someone?¡± Lorna asked. ¡°No. I''m just the one doing something about it.¡± I responded. ¡°If your loss was because I killed them, then I am not sorry. I only killed confessed criminals when it came to the mages.¡± ¡°Oh? And who was there to confirm their confessions?¡± ¡°I was.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°I can tell when someone lies, just like the more powerful mages... and the ones not lying to themselves.¡± ¡°That''s not how it''s supposed to work.¡± Her betrothed said. ¡°You''re supposed to have an independent witness and...¡± ¡°...the mages never did that.¡± I finished for him and he shut up. ¡°They can''t have witnesses to their crimes, after all.¡± ¡°So, you admit that you''ve committed crimes!¡± Lorna exclaimed, as if she just achieved a great victory. ¡°Of course.¡± I said and stepped close to her. ¡°Murder, theft, murder, theft, and a lot of murders and a lot more theft.¡± I said and smiled at her like the Hag smiled. ¡°I was a pirate on the open seas. I''ve killed hundreds of people personally, thousands of people with my weapons, and I''ve beheaded dozens.¡± Lorna''s face paled at my words. ¡°I''ve never denied I''ve done these things. Why do you think me admitting what I''ve already admitted would mean anything?¡± ¡°Because she brought me here.¡± A man''s voice said as he ended an enchantment and came into view. ¡°You are her father, I presume.¡± I said and he nodded. ¡°You''ve saved me some time hunting you down for an interrogation.¡± ¡°I wasn''t involved with what happened to you.¡± The man said and it rang true. ¡°I believe you.¡± I said and he relaxed. ¡°Now we have other questions for you.¡± I said and Gella''s sword was at his throat and his enchanted necklace was in her hand. ¡°How dare you!¡± The man spat. ¡°If you''re innocent, you have nothing to worry about.¡± I said and nodded at an empty classroom. ¡°Your daughter is free to witness it, as is her betrothed.¡± The man looked nervous now. ¡°Would you rather she not hear this?¡± I asked and he looked even more nervous. ¡°F-father?¡± Lorna asked, her voice shaky. The man sighed. ¡°I suppose it doesn''t matter now. She won''t stop asking until she finds out anyway.¡± ¡°Please, right this way.¡± Gella said and I opened the door for her and waved in Lorna and her betrothed. We all went in and what followed was a very interesting interview. Lorna had a much different look than anger on her face when her father was done talking. ¡°I''m glad you were honest.¡± I said and stood up from the seat I was on. ¡°You''re free to go.¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± Lorna asked, surprised. ¡°But... but, he just admitted...¡± ¡°That''s not my goal.¡± I said and waved at Gella to leave. ¡°I''m to root out the ones that contributed to what happened to me and were involved in the sedition to undermine the crown''s authority.¡± I said and looked at Lorna''s father. ¡°He wasn''t involved in either thing, either by choice or unknowingly.¡± ¡°But... but...¡± ¡°You''re welcome.¡± I said and looked at her betrothed. ¡°Do you understand now?¡± The young man with dark hair sighed and nodded. ¡°My brother...¡± ¡°He''s gone and you no longer have to worry about him corrupting you or making you do things that you know are wrong.¡± I said and opened the door to the classroom. ¡°Take the lesson to heart and become a mage that the kingdom can be proud of.¡± He nodded again and we left the three of them there. ¡°We still have time before lunch, my lord.¡± Gella said. ¡°If we jog.¡± I smiled and we ran down the hallway, out through the doors of the main classroom building, and over to the administration building. When we entered, the newly appointed guard pointed down the director''s hallway. I nodded to him and went down that way with Gella behind me. ¡°My lord. She is expecting you.¡± The secretary said as she held a hand out to me. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and kissed her hand and gave her a touch of magic. She beamed a smile at me as Gella opened the director''s door. ¡°Finally.¡± Pavinca said as I entered her office. ¡°I apologize for the delays.¡± I said and reached for her hand. She allowed it and I gave her a bit more magic than the secretary as I kissed the back of her hand. Pavinca shivered with pleasure and smiled warmly at me. ¡°You''ll be happy to know I found a nice dorm room for you and your servants.¡± ¡°Is it only for the two weeks of exams and then I''ll need another assignment?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°Then I won''t bother bringing more than just clothes to change into.¡± ¡°You only have creature biology first thing in the morning and civil construction in the afternoon.¡± Pavinca said. ¡°Did you get replacement teachers for them both?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes, and it was pretty difficult, considering they knew you would be taking the classes.¡± ¡°Have they been interviewed yet?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°Then there''s no problem.¡± Pavinca sighed. ¡°You''re going to have trouble on the written exam for...¡± ¡°I have notes for the biology class and the civil construction class is a waste of my time. My potion eliminates almost all of the calculations, even the measurements.¡± Pavinca sat back in her chair and gave me a peculiar look, then she smiled. ¡°You really believe that.¡± ¡°Yes. I had a work crew build a grand staircase and they didn''t have to cut a single piece of wood besides the basic plank size.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°It''s a ruined mess right now.¡± ¡°Like the rest of your estate.¡± Pavinca said with a nod. ¡°All right. You''ve convinced me to be there for your practical exams. I''ll make sure that they mark you fairly, even if you blow the written part.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and stood. ¡°Perhaps another magic demonstration?¡± Pavinca asked with a light blush just before the bell rang. ¡°I need to get to lunch.¡± I said and she sighed softly as she offered me her hand. I repeated the greeting and the magic touch, then left the office with my dorm room assignment and an almost laughing Gella behind me. Apparently, the older woman almost begging me for a kiss was funny to her. 287 Settling Back In Bokuboy Lunch was an interesting affair. Since I had a special food card, I could eat what I wanted from the gold and silver tables and even request anything from the cooks. I wasn''t going to be a bastard about it, though. I choose several nice dishes and filled my plate before handing it to Gella. She gave me raised eyebrows before accepting it and I filled another plate. When we sat down at a table by ourselves, Robin Jackson, the head cook, brought out their best wine. ¡°Please join us.¡± I said and she blushed. ¡°Of... of course, my lord. Thank you for the invitation.¡± Robin said and went to the gold table to gather similar food to my own, so she could also share in the wine, and came back. I held out her chair for her, making her blush again, and sat down to continue eating. ¡°You know I''m supposed to be guarding you.¡± Gella whispered as she ate. ¡°I''m only in danger of being verbally assaulted.¡± I said without turning to look at the girls staring at me. ¡°My lord.¡± Robin said. ¡°I''ve heard... an odd rumor about you.¡± Gella laughed softly and didn''t say anything before she kept eating. ¡°Does it concern a certain young woman that visited my current living space?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°I don''t know what the entire rumor states; but, I can confirm that I did avail myself of her bountiful breasts and reassured her that they functioned quite well, despite her own opinion of them.¡± Robin''s face flushed to a deep red and she ducked her head and took several sips of wine. We stayed quiet for the rest of the meal, only exchanging the occasional look. Robin would blush each time she met my eyes and that didn''t seem to be stopping anytime soon. I picked up the glass of wine. ¡°Thank you for joining me for lunch, Miss Jackson.¡± Robin blushed as she raised her own glass. ¡°R-Robin. You can call me Robin.¡± ¡°I can''t presume to use your first name.¡± I said and emptied the wine glass. ¡°My lord, I would be honored.¡± Robin said. ¡°It doesn''t bother you that I''ve killed so many and my skin and hair are whiter than paper?¡± Robin shook her head. ¡°You are Lord Drake, no matter what happened to you or what you''ve done.¡± I smiled and stood as I took her hand. ¡°If only everyone was as accommodating as you, I would have had a much better time here in the capital, Robin.¡± ¡°Th-thank you, my lord. I...¡± Robin said and then gasped as I kissed her hand and shared some magic with her. Her necklace lit up as it became fully charged and then it activated, covering us in a very thick and obscuring fog and blocked any outside sounds. ¡°My LORD!¡± ¡°Interesting.¡± I said and let her hand go to look around. ¡°It''s almost thick enough to touch.¡± Gella said and took out a dagger to swipe at the fog. It split slightly and then filled back in. ¡°It actually is thick enough to touch.¡± I reached out and tried to put my fingers into it and felt resistance. ¡°It''s actually become a full barrier and not just the misty fog it''s supposed to be.¡± Robin stood and walked forward to try touching it herself and the fog barrier moved with her, centered on her necklace. ¡°I can''t try that myself.¡± ¡°Sometimes we can''t all have what we want.¡± Gella said and stood. ¡°My lord, you have Botany next.¡± I nodded and reached for Robin''s necklace. She didn''t try to avoid my hand and I smiled as I touched the necklace with a finger. I pulled my magic back from it and the fog barrier started to fade away as the enchantment deactivated. ¡°It''s never done that before.¡± Robin said. ¡°It might not have been fully charged before.¡± I said. ¡°I''ll see if I can fix that for you.¡± Robin looked surprised. ¡°My lord?¡± ¡°I can tell your necklace enchantment has several inherent errors stopping it from working fully like it just did. My magic essentially overcharged it and forced it to work at full capacity.¡± I touched it again and spoke. ¡°Minor Repair.¡± A lot of people in the cafeteria gasped when her necklace glowed and changed from its current condition to a pristine one. ¡°There. I believe it should work fine now.¡± I said. Robin just stared at the necklace as if she had never seen it before. ¡°Have a good day.¡± I said. Robin nodded without looking up at me and I left her at the table. Gella followed me out of the room and down the stairs. ¡°They are all talking about you now.¡± I shrugged and kept walking. The whispered comments didn''t really bother me because I had learned a long time ago to ignore them, even with my vigilance technique going constantly. We made it to the botany building and went inside. I hadn''t treated my new uniform with waterproofing potion yet, so I took off the uniform jacket and Gella tucked it into her backpack. She pulled out a pair of normal pants for me and I stripped my uniform pants off and put them on. I also gave her my two swords to strap to her hips. I kept my bandoleer on and we walked through the building''s growing area to Victoria''s office and knocked on her door. ¡°Just a minute!¡± Victoria said. A few moments later, she opened the door. She wore a thick apron over her thin blouse and loose pants. Gella had to turn away to hide her laugh at such an obvious attempt at covering up. ¡°I hope you''re ready for an extensive review!¡± Victoria said, a bit more excitedly than she normally would. I nodded and entered her office. Gella came in as well and shut the door. Over the rest of the afternoon, Victoria told me exactly what was going to be on the exam and gave me several pages of notes to read over on procedures and replanting techniques. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said as Gella tucked the notes into the backpack. ¡°I''ll read through everything tonight in my dorm room.¡± ¡°Oh? They gave you an assignment this close to exams?¡± Victoria asked. ¡°It will be easier to have me this close to the academy for the next two weeks, just so I''m not wasting so much time travelling from here to the Sanctuary several times a day.¡± ¡°That does make sense.¡± Victoria said. ¡°It''s going to severely cut down on his work at the Sanctuary.¡± Gella said. ¡°We can''t hold it against him, though. He''s done so much for us already.¡± I sighed slightly. ¡°If Greta hadn''t decided to run away and go back to work without telling me...¡± ¡°She didn''t!¡± Victoria gasped. ¡°It set my lord on this path and now he must see it through. Everything he had planned has been delayed for nearly three weeks, until he passes into the next year of the academy.¡± Gella said. ¡°Do you want me to talk to her?¡± Victoria asked with steel in her voice. ¡°No, I''ve already told her how she messed up my testing schedule.¡± I said and looked at Gella. ¡°With the delay, I should... hopefully... be done with my special project by the time nearly everyone is done taking their rehabilitation potions.¡± Gella touched my arm. ¡°I told you that we didn''t hold the delay against you, my lord.¡± She said and let my arm go. ¡°We should get to the dorms before someone gets it into their head to wreck it or something.¡± That made me sigh again, because I hadn''t thought of that myself. ¡°All right.¡± I turned and took Victoria''s hand. ¡°I''ll see you on the weekend when you visit.¡± Victoria stiffened slightly as I bent over and lightly kissed it. She relaxed when I didn''t share my magic with her. ¡°See you then, David.¡± I let her hand go and Gella and I left her office. When we reached the other side of the botany building, before we left, I changed back into my academy uniform. We made our way over to the first year dorms for the men and went inside. ¡°What are you... oh.¡± The woman at the desk there sighed. ¡°Room assignment, please.¡± I handed over the official papers and she checked them, glanced at Gella, then at me. ¡°Only the one?¡± The woman asked. ¡°I have two, possibly three more that will stay with me, now that I''m allowed more than the one.¡± I said. ¡°Of course you''re going to abuse the privilege.¡± The woman said and signed the papers. ¡°When the others show up, show them to me before taking them to your room, so I know who is allowed to enter.¡± I nodded and she told me how to get to my room before leading us there. I followed her to the top floor and my room was the last one on the left. When I entered it, it looked like a grand suite from one of the more expensive inns. The dorm monitor left us there to return to her duties. ¡°This will do.¡± Gella said at seeing the large space inside. ¡°At least the director knows your worth, my lord.¡± I ignored her comment and went to the bedroom to see that it was nearly as big as the room back at the Sanctuary. ¡°Send word to the others and get them to bring a bed... in pieces... for easy transport. We can bring enough clothing when we return on Monday for the two weeks we''ll be staying here.¡± ¡°Right away, my lord.¡± Gella said as she took off the backpack, then she left the room. I took off the uniform jacket before I went to work clearing an appropriate space for the spare bed. I also made sure there was enough room in the closet for all of our clothes. I was satisfied that it would be enough and didn''t try to modify it or add extra shelves. ¡°They are on their way, my lord.¡± Gella said as she entered the room and shut the door behind her. ¡°Rough estimate of their arrival?¡± I asked. ¡°Half an hour.¡± Gella said. I walked over to the small kitchen and looked at the food stocks and available beverages. The director must have wanted to please me, because it was filled with all kinds of food, wines, and teas. I went to work and made a meal for the four of us, with a bit extra in case Jill came over as well. It was up to her if she wanted to continue with her assumed duties. She knew she didn''t have to do them and each time she did, her confidence grew and she seemed quite pleased with herself. I wasn''t going to stop her or refuse her if she needed to fulfill her own needs. I would be worse than the lords that refused their own personal maids if I did. That thought brought my mind to Tabitha, Alex''s old personal maid. He had let her languish in depression for years as she worked for him as a normal maid without allowing her to use her skills. I imagined that she was at least being fed back in Ester''s Village, since she had a significant savings to take with her. Of course, all my maids did, Hope included. I wonder if they found a house to live in or if they were all piled inside the Addams'' farmhouse. I thought to myself and kept working in the kitchen. When half an hour had passed, I set the pot of stew on a low heat before Gella and I went downstairs to await the arrival of my slave, my apprentice, and possibly Jill. A few minutes later, the carriage arrived with a large bundle in the top luggage rack and I stepped to the door of the carriage to open it. ¡°My lord.¡± Hanna said and took my hand to step out. Farra was next and she smiled at me as I handed her out as well. ¡°Jill couldn''t decide to come until the last moment.¡± Hanna laughed softly and nodded. I reached back and held a hand out to Jill, who gasped at the treatment. I wagged my hand at her and she sighed as she took it and stepped out of the carriage like a proper lady. ¡°We brought small bags with some essentials.¡± Jill said. ¡°Please tell me there''s a private bath in the room.¡± ¡°There is.¡± I said and she relaxed. She might be proud of doing the bath ritual for me; but, that didn''t mean she wanted other people besides our own to see her doing it. The driver helped me unload the luggage rack and the women took their bags inside as I pulled the bed mattress off of the top of the carriage. ¡°Pick us up after school tomorrow to take us back to the Sanctuary for the weekend.¡± I said. ¡°Yessir.¡± The driver said and climbed back onto his seat and drove off. I carried the wood bundle inside the dorm building and saw Hanna, Farra, and Jill sign in with the dorm monitor. ¡°Are this many really necessary?¡± She asked, a little put out. ¡°Personal slave. Apprentice. Temporary personal maid. Sworn sword.¡± I said as I pointed to Hanna, Farra, Jill, and then Gella. The woman''s eyes widened and then she nodded. All of them were accepted visitors and guests of dorm students. ¡°I brought an extra bed, just so you know.¡± I said and followed the women up the stairs. ¡°At least you are acting appropriately.¡± She said and sat back down, forgoing escorting us this time. I dropped off the wood pieces and went back downstairs to grab the mattress. The dorm monitor nodded to me as I passed her again and I nodded back before going back up the stairs. It was a little difficult carrying it with only four fingers and two thumbs, while also walking in women''s boots. I managed it safely and brought the mattress into the bedroom. Hanna already had the stew set out onto the table for us and I sat down with everyone to enjoy the meal. They talked about how things were progressing at the Sanctuary and about how they had already arrested a dozen mages that had tried to return to the guild. ¡°Eight of them had to be put down.¡± Farra said with a shake of her head. ¡°The other four protested the executions and tried to fight. Two of them lost their lives and the other two are being sent to the medical building with Linette to be treated.¡± ¡°I assume they were all shown copies of the royal commands?¡± I asked and Farra nodded. ¡°Then I''ll congratulate everyone when we return there tomorrow afternoon.¡± ¡°You don''t need to thank us for protecting our new home, my lord.¡± Farra said. ¡°We were all quite happy that our security was too strong for them to overcome.¡± ¡°Unlike theirs.¡± Gella said with a feral grin, then she and Farra laughed. We finished eating and Hanna cleaned up as Gella handed me the papers and things Victoria gave us earlier. I sat down on the couch to read them over and both Gella and Farra snuggled into my sides. I was about to ask them what they were doing, until Hanna moved my legs apart and settled down onto a cushion to rest her head on my lap. ¡°Did you take your potions?¡± I asked and the three of them jerked slightly. ¡°I''ll get them.¡± Jill said with a soft laugh and brought over one of the bags that had several vials of the rehabilitation potion in them. She handed one to each of them and tucked the empty vials back into the bag. She sat down on the chair beside the couch and gave me an odd look. ¡°I know Helena would approve. I haven''t taken advantage of them.¡± I said. Jill smiled with a nod and the three young women around me cuddled back into me as I started reading my assigned homework. 288 Botanical Reunification Bokuboy After my little study session, we all changed for bed. I wasn''t surprised that Hanna, Gella, and Farra all joined me in my bed while Jill slept in the spare bed by herself. I didn''t bother protesting or asking them to continue with their previous rotation schedule and taking turns, because I knew that as they recovered from their slave conditioning that their personalities and their physical reactions were changing. I was sure they would also say that they needed my magic as an excuse to do so, anyway. Fighting that reasoning would only lead to madness, so I allowed them to cuddle in and let my magic flow over them. The thing was, I knew without a doubt that I was still hindered, both physically and mentally. I had the notion in my head that I wasn''t complete, even though I felt magically powerful. The ease at which I picked up new spells was ridiculous in my own opinion. I was especially glad that I didn''t have to do that odd spell calculating thing that the academy tried to beat into my head. The academy''s approach to spell casting was fundamentally different than my own; and yet, the results were fundamentally the same. As an example, we both cast fireball spells. They gather power by chanting and making calculations in their heads, then release the magic and let the math guide it to the right size and to the target destination. I merely use the magic within me, change it to what I want, and let it go. No incantation, no calculations, and no encumbering time between the thought of the spell and casting it. Needless to say, my version of the spell was much more powerful and devastating, since I wasn''t inflicting an inherent flaw into the output like a normal mage would. I let my thoughts wander and tried to let sleep take me. I usually only needed a short time for rest and had forgone that while my new entourage recovers. That they enjoyed feeling my magic flowing over them was just a bonus, or so Hanna claimed. It was the closeness and intimacy that she enjoyed the most. What surprised me was that I wasn''t fighting against it. It wasn''t like I had been with a lot of women, three to be exact, or planned to be with more. I was soured completely on having a noble type of relationship after everything that had happened, which everyone understood. What I needed was more experience with the commoner way of doing things. The only one I had done anything with was Diane, and that had pretty much just been transactions of goods for sex. The both of us had been much too busy for anything else at the time, so I had almost no idea what an actual relationship entailed. Descriptions were not going to be enough for practicality, despite the use of comparison with what I had already experienced. My last thought before drifting off to sleep was that I couldn''t have that kind of relationship with any of the women currently sleeping in my bed. Each had their own obligations to me, tied by both magic and oaths, and none of them would be able to have a normal relationship outside of those tasks. The next morning had me bathed enthusiastically by Jill, her happy humming was continuous as she scrubbed me, then I stood for the ritual. Her humming didn''t cease as she happily did her duty, which elicited a very quick response from me. Her face almost glowed as she swallowed and then cleaned me up, then she thanked me for rewarding her so soon. Gella and I dressed for classes, prepped my smaller backpack, and left for the main class building. We arrived at the secondary classroom for Basic Biology, the Study of Creatures, and saw an older man with greying hair. ¡°You actually showed up.¡± The older man said, surprised. ¡°Mage Sacristos.¡± I said and walked over to shake the stunned man''s hand. ¡°I apologize again for the interrogation, even if it was sanctioned and necessary.¡± The older man blinked his eyes and let my hand go. ¡°Do you really expect me to treat you civilly after you killed most of my colleagues?¡± ¡°Honestly, I don''t care.¡± I said and that stunned him even more. ¡°If you insult me, Gella will remove your hand, or possibly your head. It depends on if she''s in a good mood today.¡± Mage Sacristos looked at Gella''s face and shivered when he saw a slight scowl. He didn''t say anything else, so I sat down on one of the front seats with Gella beside me. Gella handed me Victoria''s notes for the course as the rest of the girls in the class arrived. Most of them ignored me as if I didn''t exist, including Vanessa. Only three of the other girls glanced my way. Two of them were the same ones that had expressed an interest in me the first day I had arrived at the academy and the third one was Lorna. I couldn''t figure out the emotions she showed on her face, though. ¡°I hope you''re all ready for an in-depth review.¡± Mage Sacristos said and then started talking. Both Gella and I followed along and marked the relevant points in Vanessa''s notes. Thankfully, there wasn''t much about the course that I didn''t know, except for some of what they called ''outrageous'' animals. That meant I would have no trouble with the exam, even if I didn''t actually study. Of course, I had a lot of personal experience with most of the animals mentioned, including their behavior that wasn''t covered, so I had even more to contribute to the exams than the normal course work entailed. Like the other students, the teacher ignored me completely and I was fine with that. We dropped off our things at the dorm room and went to lunch. I wasn''t surprised when the head cook joined us again, with another bottle of wine, and we shared polite conversation about our plans for the summer break as we ate. Robin planned to test new dishes for the coming year and to travel a little to smaller towns to find recipes to use. I immediately thought about the sweet cookie bread from Ester''s Village that Gloria''s mother made, then decided it wasn''t something that her family would share or sell. It was much too popular for them to give up and it made too much money. ¡°What do you plan to do?¡± Robin asked as she took a sip of wine between bites of delicious steak. ¡°I''m going to finish my work on restoring the slaves I liberated, create new weapons for war, then destroy all the mage holdouts that continue to defy me on my own land.¡± I said and smiled as Robin almost choked on her wine. I reached over and lightly touched her hand. ¡°Minor Heal.¡± Robin gasped as her airway cleared instantly and she glowed slightly. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Everyone in the cafeteria stopped talking and looked over at us. ¡°What... how...¡± Robin reached for her neck and rubbed the spot where she had felt the wine go down the wrong way. ¡°I know a lot of spells now.¡± I said and she gave me an odd look. ¡°No, I can''t really demonstrate beyond what you''ve already seen.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Robin asked. I smiled. ¡°Most of them are too destructive.¡± Robin opened her mouth briefly and then closed it, shrugged, and continued to eat. My words had travelled around the room in the silence and conversations soon picked up again with a new topic. Me. We finished our meal and Gella and I went to the Civil Construction classroom without notes. I had thought about skipping it, then chose to attend and let the teacher know I would be there for the exams. The man was just as shocked as Mage Sacristos was when I entered the classroom. Unlike him, this teacher stuttered and stumbled through his exam preparation review. I really should have skipped it, since it didn''t help me at all, so I sat there conversing with Gella in whispers for the entire class. We left when class ended to go back to the dorm. We gathered the others just in time as the carriage arrived to pick us up. I handed them into the carriage to sit down and entered myself. I tossed the guard a gold coin as we passed the gate leaving the academy and Gella couldn''t stop her laugh. ¡°Welcome home!¡± The guards at the main gate of Sanctuary exclaimed and waved us through. The ride had been a relatively short one with everyone talking to each other about their day. ¡°It''s so nice to be back here.¡± Hanna said as I handed her down from the carriage. ¡°You''re just happy there''s someone else to cook.¡± Farra teased and Hanna smiled at her. We all went inside and split up as we went about various tasks. I had a lot of work to catch up on and headed right for the potions rooms and my workbench there. My notes on the rejuvenation creme were safely hidden inside my desk, secured with number ten potion, and I took them out to review them. It was definitely going to be a lot of work, more trial and error with testing, and a lot of tweaking the ingredients. The best part was that the blades of magical grass I had set out for drying naturally were ready. It was going to significantly increase the potency of everything I made, especially the creme when used as a binding agent. With those thoughts in mind, I got to work. _______________ Montage Mode engaged. Skipping miscellaneous details. Speeding up time. Done. _______________ ¡°My lord, it''s time for bed.¡± Hanna said in a soft voice from the doorway. ¡°What time is it?¡± I asked and quickly cleaned up what I had been doing and put everything on the stasis enchanted shelf above the workbench. ¡°It''s nearing on mid night.¡± Hanna said and yawned, quite unladylike, then she blushed deeply. I walked over to her and smiled as I gave her a hug. ¡°You could have gone to bed without me.¡± ¡°We tried.¡± Hanna said and we walked with an arm around each other down the stairs. ¡°We can''t sleep without you near.¡± ¡°When did you discover this?¡± I asked, curious. ¡°A while...¡± *yawn* ¡°...ago.¡± Hanna said and blushed again. ¡°Then you should have come for me sooner. I doubt you''ll get a full night''s rest now.¡± Hanna leaned into me and sighed. We went to the second floor and down to our rooms. We were met with the smell of food and a tray of it for me. ¡°You missed supper, my lord.¡± Jill said and pointed to the bed. I chuckled a little and stripped off, then climbed into bed between Gella and Ferra. Jill put the tray on my lap and Hanna looked lost. ¡°On the left until he eats, silly girl.¡± Jill said and had Hanna climb onto the bed behind Gella. Hanna blushed again and did as she was told. She watched me eat, as if each bite I took was very important. When I was done, Jill whisked the tray away and Hanna took its place, almost before I could blink. That made the others laugh and we all settled down in the bed to go to sleep. None of them closed their eyes until my magic flowed over them. The early morning came before we knew it and the three young women were groggy as Jill served us breakfast. ¡°I want you back in bed.¡± I said when breakfast was done. ¡°But... you have work to do.¡± Hanna said, almost with a pout. ¡°I didn''t say I would be joining you.¡± I responded and she frowned. ¡°Yes, I remember what you told me last night. I have a plan.¡± ¡°I suppose it doesn''t hurt to try it, whatever it is.¡± Farra said and yawned. Unlike Hanna, she didn''t blush from doing it. She didn''t grow up with a Lady around, so her sensibilities were much more practical. The three of them went back to the bed and laid down with Hanna in the middle. ¡°Promise that you won''t go anywhere without me.¡± Gella said. ¡°I''m not leaving the compound until Monday.¡± I promised and she nodded. ¡°Close your eyes.¡± They did so and I held my hands out above them. I let my magic flow out and into them, making them sigh, then I touched each of them on the forehead. They drifted off to sleep almost immediately. ¡°That was sneaky, my lord.¡± Jill said with a smile on her face. ¡°How long will the Sleep spell last?¡± ¡°Another four hours. Plenty of time for a normal day when they wake up.¡± I said. ¡°How about a bath?¡± Jill''s smile became a grin as she led me into the large bathroom. * ¡°This place is fantastic!¡± Mage Victoria Julia King, the botany teacher, said as she looked around the updated grounds and all of the security features that had been installed. ¡°I''m glad you like the changes.¡± I commented and escorted her inside the main building. Jensen assigned a work crew to bring up the large cart full of the things that Victoria wanted to transplant into the expanded Sanctuary growing fields. Pulleys had already been set up and an opening had been made in one of the walls for all of the transplanted dirt and soil to be brought inside. The workers had been tempted to make a ramp instead, then decided it was easier and quicker with ropes and pulleys. ¡°Are you serious?¡± Victoria asked as we entered the floor above the other two growing areas. ¡°This is all mine?¡± ¡°All fresh and cleaned virgin dirt and soil.¡± I said and her eyes almost sparkled. ¡°We left some of the wall dividers, so you can section things off a little easier if you want.¡± ¡°David, I... this is...¡± Victoria looked around at all of the open space. ¡°I don''t know what to say.¡± Just then, a large portion of the wall opened up and Victoria gasped as her overloaded cart was slipped in through the opening and then the wall closed again. ¡°How in the world did you do that?!?¡± Victoria asked, shocked. ¡°Well, we had to get tons of dirt in here somehow.¡± I said and she looked at me like I was crazy. ¡°I was not going to have them bring it up in buckets.¡± ¡°I... well... yes, I suppose that would be a daunting task to do again.¡± Victoria said, almost in a whisper. I chuckled and she blushed a little. ¡°It would also take a very long time.¡± Victoria nodded and went over to her cart. ¡°I brought a live sample of the magic grass inside a sealed botanical sample container. We should get that set up first and cut it off from the rest of the area.¡± I nodded and we dug through a bunch of other things to get to the sample container. It took me fifteen minutes to segregate a nice sized section of the floor, several offices worth, and then planted the sod and all into the damp soil. Victoria wanted to help it along and did several scrapings to get seeds and then pushed them into the soil around the transplanted grass. ¡°Give it about a week before you try harvesting anything.¡± Victoria cautioned me. ¡°I''m only in the experimental phase of my brewing, so it might be several weeks if not more before I need any more.¡± I said. ¡°I haven''t had much spare time to experiment with using the grass with the normal potion recipes I make.¡± ¡°That''s good.¡± Victoria said and laughed softly at my stern face. ¡°I meant not needing it right away, David. It grows fast; but, it needs time to take root, too.¡± I nodded and we went back out to the cart to start sorting her plants and things for where she wanted them to go for the best coverage and growth potential. We worked until noon and took a break for lunch. ¡°That was fun!¡± Victoria said after she had washed up and joined me at the dinner table with Gella, Farra, Hanna and Jill. ¡°I see you''re wearing reasonable clothing, too.¡± Gella commented with a smirk on her face, making the others laugh. ¡°Hardy-har-har.¡± Victoria said in a haughty voice. ¡°I''ll have you know I used to wear this all the time.¡± ¡°There''s no way you wore pants that baggy and fully buttoned shirts.¡± Farra said. ¡°I have trouble wearing my apprentice outfit when working around potions and they were designed to be comfortable and airy around the open fire.¡± Victoria opened her mouth to respond, then sighed. Hanna reached over and took her hand. ¡°It''s okay if you''re not comfortable. Things like that take time to get over. My lord was despondent for weeks after what you did.¡± Victoria''s face flushed red from embarrassment and she turned her head away as she tried to take her hand back. Hanna wouldn''t let it go, though. ¡°Yes, he told us.¡± Gella said. ¡°I also told them what he did in return.¡± Victoria''s face went redder and she ducked her head. ¡°Wh-why?¡± ¡°So we would all know it''s been resolved.¡± Jill said, even though she looked like she didn''t want it resolved. It had hurt Helena a lot to have it happen and it had strained her relationship with me. ¡°Or, at least as much as it could be, considering the circumstances.¡± Victoria''s flushed face slowly lost the reddish tint and she looked at everyone''s faces before her eyes settled on mine. She looked both sorry and repentant, so I smiled and started eating without saying anything. As far as I was concerned, it was over and done with. ¡°What did it feel like?¡± Hanna asked, almost eager for the answer. Victoria''s face flushed red again and she shook her head. ¡°A lady never tells.¡± Gella said and took another spoonful of soup. ¡°Aww.¡± Hanna said and pouted as she let Victoria''s hand go to continue eating. Farra laughed softly kept eating as well. ¡°Don''t be so hasty for things you''re not really ready for.¡± ¡°How do I know when I''m ready?¡± Hanna asked, her spoon stopped halfway to her mouth. ¡°Oh, you''ll know.¡± Gella said with a knowing smile. We all fell into a companionable silence as we ate our food. When we were done, Victoria practically begged me to put off working on the creme to help her go out to the discard area where the other plants and things were discarded by the mages guild previously. She wanted to get them back inside and cultivating again. They were her life''s work, after all. I thought about it as she looked at me with hope in her eyes. I didn''t move until she seemed to come to a decision. Victoria reached up and very slowly unbuttoned the top three buttons of her billowing shirt and then took in a deep breath as she stared into my eyes. That showed off an impressive amount of cleavage, which meant she was pushing them up for all they were worth. ¡°All right, let''s get to work.¡± I said in defeat. ¡°YES! I still got it!¡± Victoria shouted as she ran around the table, gave me a tight hug, then she grabbed my arm and dragged me away from the table with the laughter of the others filling the air as we left the dining room. 289 Botanical Exploitation Bokuboy Victoria and I worked tirelessly as we gathered up the best parts of the plant discards to transplant up to the third floor of the growing area. I wasn''t surprised when she eventually became overheated and took off her shirt. She gave me plenty of views at her breasts in just her push-up bra as she kept bending over towards me, even when she didn''t have to. I also saw her slight smirk each time that she caught me looking at her jiggling breasts. Her demeanor relaxed as the time ground on and she somehow managed to make her baggy pants bunch up on her thighs. It let the cloth highlight her toned ass and she made sure to straddle a few of the growing areas, trying to not step on the plants, and gave me good shots of both her front and her backside at different times. By the time supper was being served, Victoria was almost back to her old self around me. She was still careful around the crewmen and the liberated slaves, though. She didn''t know them and wasn''t going to give them the same opportunities that she gave me. ¡°I can''t believe this was even more fun than this morning was!¡± Victoria said happily as she gave me a hug, then she pulled on her shirt. She only buttoned one button near the middle and then took a minute to shake out her pants to loosen the bundled up cloth. She sighed wistfully as the tightness around her lower parts was eased and she wrapped her arms around mine for me to escort her. I ignored the press of her breasts against my own bare skin. I was wearing the traditional sleeveless work shirt and she took full advantage of that. ¡°Tell me that you didn''t enjoy that.¡± Victoria challenged. ¡°I didn''t enjoy that.¡± I said with a straight face and it made her pout at me. ¡°You told me to say that.¡± Victoria laughed a little loudly and swatted my forearm, then hugged my arm tightly. ¡°Be honest, you scoundrel.¡± ¡°It needed to be done and you enjoyed it.¡± I said and she smiled warmly at me. ¡°I also put to practical use the notes you gave me a few days ago.¡± Victoria''s smile grew and she grinned. ¡°You really did read them over! I just realized I didn''t have to help you along like I usually do!¡± I nodded and she leaned in to give my bare arm a full rubbing between her breasts. ¡°You''re getting soil and dirt all over your creamy white and soft breasts.¡± Victoria laughed and nodded. ¡°Sometimes it''s worth it.¡± ¡°Only sometimes?¡± I asked and she wiggled her eyebrows. ¡°Ah, I see.¡± ¡°Yes, you did.¡± Victoria said and leaned in to kiss my cheek. ¡°Thank you, David.¡± We went inside and cleaned up before going to the dining room and eating another meal with the others. Victoria talked boisterously about all the work we had done and how everything looked like it was going to remain intact after the transplantation. It was always chancy when moving plants, especially with the way they had been previously handled by the guild. ¡°I can''t wait to get the right spells and enchantments in place.¡± Victoria said and gave me a pointed look. ¡°I hope you''ve raided the old offices for the right spells and enchantments.¡± I gave her a knowing smile and she laughed. ¡°Of course you did.¡± Victoria said, happily. ¡°When can we get started on that?¡± ¡°I need to reference the books we brought back with us.¡± I said. Farra nodded. ¡°I''ll bring them up to you after we eat and you can grab the right tools.¡± ¡°Should we get a crew as well?¡± I asked. Victoria thought about it and shook her head. ¡°No, with the way we''ve set things up, each section is going to need slightly different things. One with more heat, one with more light, one with moisture retention, and a few with air flow spells.¡± ¡°We already ran the pipes across the ceiling for watering the whole floor.¡± I said and Victoria looked surprised. ¡°We did it for the other two floors as well.¡± ¡°With individual settings?¡± Victoria asked and I nodded. ¡°You can also activate them individually with switches and dials on the walls.¡± ¡°Oh, my.¡± Victoria whispered and waved a hand at her own face, as if she needed more air. ¡°We came up with the idea when making the expanded spaces on the frigate.¡± I said. ¡°Once everyone found out that we could get water into an individual room like we did for the captain''s cabin for a private bath, they all wanted it.¡± Farra said. ¡°There''s only so many times that someone can use a pulley and buckets to fill a tub before they''re sick of it.¡± That comment made Gella and Hanna laugh as they nodded. ¡°There were a lot more baths and much happier people after that.¡± I said and everyone nodded. ¡°My lord made the rounds to heat the water for everyone, too.¡± Hanna said, clearly amused. Victoria''s smile became a smirk as she looked at me. ¡°Oh? Did no one else have the ability?¡± I sighed and didn''t say anything. ¡°No one else could do it as quickly.¡± Hanna said. ¡°We eventually had to schedule half an hour in the evening as a ship-wide bath time, just so he wasn''t running all over the ship to different rooms all day!¡± Victoria laughed, as did the others. ¡°You poor thing! Taking care of others when you didn''t have to.¡± ¡°I did have to. They chose to follow me, even though they didn''t have to.¡± I commented. ¡°Our lives changed and improved so much when we did choose to... and we would do it again.¡± Gella said as Farra and Hanna nodded. ¡°If it wasn''t for you...¡± ¡°None of us would be here.¡± Farra said, her voice soft. Gella reached over and hugged her, then Hanna was there and the three of them held each other. I put my hand on Gella''s shoulder and let my magic flow through her and into the other two. The three of them sighed and held the embrace for several moments before letting go. Victoria''s face was completely blank when I looked at her. ¡°Are you all right?¡± I asked and stopped sharing my magic. ¡°I''m... fine. Just fine.¡± Victoria said, her voice as soft as Farra''s. ¡°Shall we get back to work?¡± I asked and Victoria nodded. We left the dining room and split up to get what we needed, then we met up in the floor with the new plants and transplants. Farra stayed and helped as Victoria told us what needed to go where and to what degree. We worked for several hours and several crewmen brought me more wildwood pieces when I needed them. We finished late at night. Victoria was exhausted as she looked over the finished expanse of the entire floor growing area. ¡°By the Father''s Grace, David.¡± She whispered and took my dirty hand with her own. ¡°How did we do the entire floor in only a single day?¡± ¡°Magic.¡± I responded. Victoria blinked her eyes at me for several seconds, then she huffed and barked a laugh. ¡°Of course! It all makes sense now!¡± She said, sarcastically. ¡°It should. That''s a great reason.¡± I said and she laughed. ¡°If I didn''t love you so much, I''d smack you upside the head.¡± Victoria said and then she looked surprised. She schooled her face and took several deep breaths. ¡°Do you have a spare room? I don''t want to travel back to the academy this late.¡± I nodded and led her and Farra back down the the floor we were staying on and showed Victoria a room not far from mine. ¡°Breakfast is whenever you get up.¡± Victoria chuckled and entered the room, then stopped walking to look back at me. ¡°Are you taking a bath?¡± ¡°I am. I can no longer stand going to bed without cleaning up first.¡± Victoria smiled demurely, then her hands went down to lightly brush over her womanhood. ¡°I''m taking a bath as well.¡± I smiled and nodded, reached for her door, and shut her inside the room and myself and Farra in the hallway. ¡°Well, it didn''t take her long to start seeing it for what it could possibly be.¡± Farra said and took my hand to bring me to my room. ¡°Jill! Double bath!¡± ¡°You''re lucky the tub is big enough.¡± Jill said and opened the bathroom door for us. ¡°We could get Hanna in if she doesn''t mind sitting on our laps.¡± Farra said and suddenly a naked Hanna was there with us. That made Jill laugh as she stripped me off. ¡°Well? Don''t just stand there! Grab a sponge and soap!¡± Hanna and Farra both helped and I was soon scrubbed down completely and had the ritual performed. Jill and I scrubbed down Farra first, since she was much dirtier, and then we washed Hanna. They were both rinsed off and then we settled down in the tub to relax. ¡°Where''s Gella?¡± I asked as Hanna settled down on my lap. ¡°She''s training some of the new guards.¡± Jill said. ¡°You''ve got another twenty minutes to soak.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and held her hand briefly. ¡°That''s not a subtle hint for another ritual when you get out, is it?¡± Jill asked, teasingly. ¡°Only if you want more practice.¡± I responded. Jill thought about it and nodded. ¡°I''ll be back when it''s time.¡± ¡°This is really nice.¡± Hanna whispered and snuggled to my chest. ¡°I agree.¡± Farra said and her hand pet Hanna''s drying hair. ¡°When was the last time we got to just sit and relax like this?¡± ¡°I don''t remember. It''s been a while.¡± Hanna said and then her lips found my neck. ¡°Thank you for this, my lord.¡± I lightly stroked her back. ¡°I can make a bigger tub.¡± They were quiet for a moment. ¡°No, I think I prefer it this way.¡± Farra said and leaned against me to hug me with one arm. Hanna nodded and her lips gave my neck several light kisses before she sighed in contentment and closed her eyes. I kept the water hot and the three of us soaked there for the rest of the time and didn''t speak until the bathroom door opened and a sweat-soaked Gella came in. Gella stripped off her clothes as she walked towards the tub and then slid in behind Farra. Farra laughed softly as Gella propped her up on her lap and then made her take the same position as Hanna on my lap. ¡°Do you want me to kiss your neck, too?¡± Farra asked with a huge smile. ¡°You need to wash it first.¡± Gella said and laid back against me, then closed her eyes. ¡°Ohhh, this feels so nice. Thanks for keeping it hot for me.¡± Farra chuckled and lathered up a sponge to give Gella a quick once over to get the majority of the sweat off and then cuddled in and kissed her neck. ¡°I thought Jill was supposed to come in.¡± ¡°I told her to wait and let me join you.¡± Gella said without opening her eyes. ¡°Oh, and she warned us to take our potions when we get out of the tub.¡± ¡°So, in an hour.¡± Farra said and Gella''s soft laugh shook her slightly. ¡°Hanna''s already asleep.¡± I whispered and the other two looked to see her happy sleeping face. ¡°You''re not even using magic.¡± Gella whispered. I shook my head and we all rested and relaxed. _______________ Montage Mode engaged. Skipping miscellaneous details. Speeding up time. Done. _______________ I was up early the next morning and went to the potions room to get back to work. Farra joined me at lunch to get me to eat and then she helped with some of the preparation work. It was a very complicated recipe and was going to take a lot of work to get even the initial sample for testing, let alone a working creme for people to use. Farra was a little lost and had to call in the old man to help. He looked over my notes and proclaimed me a genius, which made me laugh. I wasn''t any smarter than someone that had a lot of practice with potions. I just had years more experience than he did. We kept working on just the parts we could do, including preparing some of the dried grass into the binding agent I would need for several of the weaker ingredients. I was happy that Victoria had brought over some for me to transplant, because I had to use quite a bit for just this initial step. At least I didn''t have to go far to get more ingredients. Farra would happily run down to the floor below to the storage area and retrieve anything that I wanted. She knew how important this project was and wanted to help as much as she could, even though potions were not her specialty. ¡°There you are.¡± Victoria said as she entered the room. ¡°Oh, are you busy?¡± ¡°Just doing some preliminary mixing.¡± I said and cleaned off my hands before leaving my workbench and going over to her. ¡°What can I do for you?¡± ¡°I was just... um...¡± Victoria looked a little guilty. ¡°I don''t want to take you away from anything.¡± I waved at Farra and the old man. They both nodded and kept working. I already told them I would need several sets of updated and modified ingredients before we could make the full creme. It was the easiest part for them to handle and I left them to it. ¡°Do you want to take a walk around the discard area to see what you might have missed?¡± I asked and Victoria''s face brightened up. ¡°How did you know I wanted to do that?¡± Victoria asked and took my arm to escort her. ¡°You''re forcing yourself to stay here a lot longer than you should.¡± I said and she blushed. ¡°I wasn''t complaining. You''ve got things to do back in the botany building at the academy.¡± Victoria sighed and nodded as we walked down the stairs. ¡°I do need to check on things and to make sure everything''s fed and watered.¡± ¡°You''ve done a lot of good work here this weekend.¡± I said and she smiled. ¡°I honestly thought it would take a week, maybe more.¡± Victoria admitted and then she blushed again. ¡°I''m a little sad that it didn''t, actually.¡± I smiled. ¡°Well, considering there''s only two botanists currently available, having you over to consult occasionally would be the smartest thing for me to do.¡± ¡°Consulting?¡± Victoria asked and then she beamed a smile at me. ¡°What a wonderful idea!¡± ¡°You''ll be paid an appropriate fee, of course.¡± I said. ¡°David, you''ve already done so much for me by letting me bring all of my work back inside...¡± ¡°Which you will be paid for.¡± I said and she opened her mouth to protest. I put a finger on her lips to stop her and her eyes widened. ¡°I''m paying everyone else that''s working here. Why wouldn''t I pay you, too?¡± ¡°Hmm mm mmm hm!¡± Victoria said through clamped lips. ¡°What did I do? That''s a sealing spell.¡± I said and moved my finger. Her lips stayed sealed and she looked at me with angry eyes and her eyebrows bent downwards menacingly. ¡°HMM. HMM. HM!¡± Victoria spat. ¡°How else am I going to make you accept your due?¡± I asked and she glared at me. ¡°Just say yes, take the gold crowns, and update things in the botany building.¡± Victoria gave me a cold gaze for several seconds, then she sighed and nodded. I smiled and reached for her lips. I saw her ready to bark at me, so I dropped my hand and kept walking. ¡°HMM! HM!¡± Victoria said. ¡°Promise to not be angry or to argue. I''m trying to help you.¡± Victoria rolled her eyes. ¡°Hmm.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± I said and tapped her lips with a fingertip. ¡°I should kill you for that!¡± Victoria spat. ¡°Here we are at the fields. Did you get that plant?¡± I asked and pointed. ¡°You''re not going to get away with distracting...¡± Victoria stopped talking and looked at the little sprig of a plant. ¡°How did I miss that?!?¡± She exclaimed and let my arm go as she dove for the thing. ¡°Hand me my tools!¡± ¡°They''re on your belt.¡± I said and knelt beside her. ¡°Just do it!¡± Victoria said as her hands gently carved the dirt around the thing with her fingers. I handed her a little trowel and a tiny rake after unhooking them from her belt. ¡°Oh, you poor little thing. Momma''s going to take good care of you.¡± Victoria said and carefully dug around to find the roots with the rake and then used the trowel to pry up the thing from the loosened dirt. ¡°I''ll grab a small hand cart.¡± I said and she nodded. We continued to work for quite some time and found several little things that she had missed the first few times through the discard fields. She was going to take some of them back to the academy to nurse them back to health, including that first sprig one. She really did care a lot about her plants. 290 Examination Exultation Part One Bokuboy I had someone tell me that someone is stealing my Superboy in MHA story, word for word on webnovel! If anyone out there is a member of that, please go on there and report them for theft! https://www.webnovel.com/book/my-hero-academia-strength_21091121006413305 Author to report: https://www.webnovel.com/profile/4318502250?appId=10 They are also selling my work on Patreon! Any members there, please go there and report him for theft as well! Thank you all so much! After Victoria left, I had another shared bath. I wasn''t surprised when no one complained or that we were in the same positions, with Hanna on my lap and Farra on Gella''s. With all of us there at the same time, the scrubbing went very fast, since more hands made faster work. Jill performed the ritual diligently, which the others watched with both appreciation and a little jealousy. At least, Hanna stated as much. She regretted not accepting Ann''s offer to teach her everything that a personal maid did, even if she knew that she didn''t have the discipline to only do certain parts and not take things further. That made Jill laugh as she licked up a bit of the mess from my enthusiastic expulsion. ¡°Hanna, just because personal maids are allowed to do this after a bath, that doesn''t mean we''re allowed to do it all the time or when we are requested to not do it.¡± Hanna pouted and the others laughed at her reaction and hugged her. ¡°It''s all right, little one.¡± Gella said and kissed her cheek. ¡°Hey! I''m only two years younger than you!¡± That made them laugh again. ¡°It''s the experiences we refer to.¡± Farra said. ¡°We are also very glad that you haven''t had them.¡± Gella nodded, as did Jill and myself. ¡°You don''t need to rush, Hanna. Time alone will help you.¡± Jill said and wiped me off. ¡°Now sit down on our lord and enjoy your soak before bed.¡± Hanna smiled and nodded, then sat right on my lap and cuddled in. I was still hard, so she rested her thigh right on me and wiggled her butt a little. A moment later, she sighed and kissed my neck, then closed her eyes. We were all quiet for several minutes to let her drift off to sleep, which she did. I cast Sleep on her, just in case, to keep her that way as the others and I talked. ¡°What are the plans for the two weeks I''m taking exams?¡± I asked. ¡°We''re working more on the general use potions and healing potions.¡± Farra said. ¡°The old man is adamant that we have enough stock to supply a good portion of the kingdom before we announce that we have them for sale.¡± I nodded. ¡°By then, the regular sellers for the old Mages Guild are going to be running out.¡± ¡°Most have already, I think.¡± Jill said and we all looked at her sitting on a chair beside the tub. ¡°During the attempted takeover, they stopped supplying the people that they thought would oppose them.¡± I thought about that. ¡°Is there any way to get that information so we know who to sell to and who to blacklist?¡± ¡°I don''t know. We aren''t really on good standing with anyone in the kingdom, let alone the main military force.¡± Gella said. ¡°Don''t you know some people in the military?¡± ¡°I could try and contact Gary.¡± I said as I thought about it. ¡°I don''t think I can call Alex or Donna, though. Like the current queen, once you''re out for whatever reason, you''re out.¡± ¡°You''re dishonorably discharged, too.¡± Jill said. ¡°It won''t be easy.¡± ¡°Maybe a call to the castle?¡± Gella suggested. ¡°What''s the old king''s concubine''s name again?¡± ¡°Melanie. She''s still the court''s main scribe and paper pusher. If there is an official document being used anywhere, she''s had her hand on it.¡± I said. ¡°You should send her a missive or go visit her. If anyone would know who the mages guild blacklisted, it would be her.¡± Jill responded. ¡°If I have to visit her, it won''t be this week or next.¡± I said. ¡°If it''s just a letter, she might not get it, unless it''s personally delivered.¡± ¡°You think they are screening her mail?¡± Gella asked. ¡°I think they are screening everyone''s mail.¡± I said and Jill nodded. ¡°It''s very difficult to seek out sedition and collusion without a lot of evidence.¡± ¡°Not for us.¡± Gella said with a wicked grin, making Jill and Farra giggle. I had to smile at that. ¡°Not everyone can get royal approval to interrogate any mage they meet.¡± ¡°Specifically for what we are looking for. That they admit other crimes is immaterial to our purposes.¡± Gella said. ¡°That''s a bit too bad, though. Some of them needed killing and we couldn''t do it legally.¡± I chuckled and Jill and Farra nodded. ¡°It''s a distinction that they were very grateful for.¡± Gella said. ¡°Some even offered us bribes for leaving them alive and not telling anyone what they said.¡± ¡°Is that why we had that huge influx of gold crowns to the account?¡± Jill asked and we nodded. ¡°Well, that''s wonderful! The more we fleece the idiots, the less influence they will have.¡± ¡°Our thoughts exactly.¡± Gella said. ¡°The furniture the crews are making are selling well, too.¡± ¡°How is that going?¡± I asked. ¡°We''re getting a new bed tomorrow.¡± Farra said with a demure smile. ¡°The wardrobes won''t be ready until next week.¡± ¡°We don''t have that much room.¡± Jill warned. ¡°That''s okay. One of the work crews is opening up the next room for us.¡± Farra said and then slapped a hand over her mouth. ¡°Dammit, I didn''t mean to say that!¡± Gella laughed and hugged her. ¡°You''re too comfortable to lie convincingly, aren''t you?¡± Farra sighed and leaned back against her to cuddle in. ¡°Yes.¡± Jill smiled and pat her arm. ¡°It''s all right. We would have found out as soon as they started working anyway.¡± ¡°It was supposed to be a surprise when our lord returned for the weekend between exams.¡± Farra said. ¡°I''ll still be surprised.¡± I said and she smiled at me. ¡°I won''t know what it looks like until I see it.¡± ¡°I guess that will have to do.¡± Jill said and ran her hand through my hair. ¡°You''re never going to get this cut, are you?¡± ¡°No.¡± I said. Jill, Gella, and Farra smiled happily as the three of them did the same thing and combed my long white hair with their fingers. They hadn''t seen long hair on a man in a long time and apparently didn''t want to lose the opportunity. After another half an hour, we all dried off and dressed slightly before we went to bed. Hanna was still asleep, thanks to the Sleep spell, and we tucked her into bed as we climbed in ourselves. It was the perfect time for me to study, so Gella grabbed my notes for the different courses and we read them for quite some time before calling it a night and going to sleep. The morning came and breakfast was a quick affair, then Gella, Hanna, Farra, and Jill came with me in the carriage to the academy. The guard grinned as he caught the gold coin I tossed to him on the way by and Gella laughed. I don''t think she is ever going to not find that funny. The first exam being held in the main auditorium was Basic Spellwork Composition. It was to be held all morning and then the practicals were held in the afternoon. I knew nothing about the useless math needed for spell creation, since it didn''t apply to my magic at all. I had even discovered several spells and used them unknowingly, just because I had willed my magic to do what I wanted. The first time had been when I reversed the Hag''s blessing on the Addams farmland. I had used magic to detect the magic around me and then ended the blessing, which were two spells called Detect and Dispel. I had used them a lot after that, not really knowing they were actually spells and not just an ability I had. Gella and I sat with all of the students taking the course, which included the normal class and the class of all girls, making the auditorium fairly packed. The funny thing was, Gella was handed an exam sheet as well and no one checked if she was an actual student or not. We exchanged mischievous looks and smiled at each other, then went to work and filled in all the answers with as much nonsense as we could. We even made things up and made it sound convincing in the essay answers, just because we could and thought it was funny. When lunch arrived, we went to the cafeteria and ate with Robin, the head cook. The wine was great and she asked us how we did on the exam. That made Gella and I laugh for several minutes before we calmed down enough to tell her what we did. She looked incredulous for a moment, then laughed, too. We went to a different building for the practical portion of the exam and each of us were called up in alphabetical order to perform certain spells in the exam list. The first few students performed fairly well, considering they were being taught the wrong way to do it and were limiting themselves. ¡°Drake, David.¡± A woman''s voice called and Gella pat my shoulder. I walked over to the range where we were to target our spells. ¡°I should warn you...¡± ¡°Yes, yes. You''re powerful. Blah, blah, blah. Every noble idiot tells me the same thing.¡± The woman said and waved at the large target twenty feet away. ¡°The first spell is Fireball. Try your best to reach it and also hit as close to the center as possible.¡± ¡°But, it''s only twenty feet away.¡± I said and she laughed. ¡°Of course it is. Any farther than that, without more age and training, it will exhaust most mages.¡± I thought about that. ¡°How about you?¡± The woman smiled and held out her hand. ¡°By the Light of the Son, blessed be the Father, burn up my target with righteousness! Fireball!¡± A six inch fireball formed at her palm and shot across the twenty feet to hit the target in the direct center and blew apart. I used Detect Enchantment and copied the enchantment that dispersed both heat and damage over the target. It also had a measuring component that showed the magic used and where it hit. It showed ''Center Target'' and ''10%''. ¡°That''s a handy enchantment.¡± I commented and the woman nodded. ¡°It works well, doesn''t it? I haven''t had to replace it since I made it ten years ago.¡± I looked back at her and over her face and hands. ¡°Do you mind if I ask how old you are?¡± The woman smiled at me with amusement on her face. ¡°I''m good friends with Lady Marks.¡± ¡°Are you married?¡± I asked and she laughed softly. ¡°I''ve been tempted not to be married only once before.¡± The woman said cryptically and waved at the target. ¡°Please use Fireball at the target.¡± I shook my head and held a hand out to Gella, who handed me a blank wildwood coin. ¡°I need to add some reinforcement before I can.¡± The woman sighed. ¡°You''re holding up the testing of the rest of your classmates.¡± ¡°I''ll only be a few minutes.¡± I said and walked over to the target as I used a carving tool to etch out similar runes and added them to a protective enchantment to block all damage that passes the target. I infused it and stuck it to the wall, then covered it with a thin film of wood. I didn''t want anyone stealing my ideas. I activated it, making everyone in the place gasp when a blue wall of magic covered the wall. ¡°What... what...¡± The woman muttered. ¡°Trust me. It needs it.¡± I said and stood beside her and turned around. I didn''t chant or anything as I raised my hand. I said the name of the spell, even though I didn''t have to. ¡°Micro Fireball.¡± A one foot wide fireball appeared in front of my palm and shot across the distance instantly, then blew a hole through the center of the target before it blew apart and took the target with it. Luckily, I had added the measuring enchantments to the wall protections. The words ''Center Target'' and ''0.1%'' appeared floating above where the target used to be. Everyone''s mouths dropped open and stared at the smouldering remains of the target. ¡°You might need a few minutes to make another target as a replacement.¡± I said and the woman didn''t react. She was still staring at the words floating in the air. Gella had already looked around and found other targets, so she went over to the storage area and brought one back to me. I checked it and nodded, then added my enchantment potion and infused it. The woman next to me shivered and turned to look at me, her eyes still wide and staring. ¡°This should last a bit longer.¡± I said and went back across the room and stood it in the same spot, then went back to stand beside Gella. ¡°Go ahead and mark me.¡± The woman shivered again and then remembered she was holding a clipboard. She wrote my results down and read them, looked back at the target, then shook her head. ¡°Drake, Gella.¡± The woman said as she read the next name on her list. That surprised me, so I looked at Gella and she saw my expression. ¡°Oh, damn.¡± Gella whispered and blushed. ¡°You''ll be explaining this later.¡± I whispered and she nodded before she stepped up to the right spot. ¡°Fireball.¡± Gella said without chanting or building up power like a normal mage. A six inch fireball formed at her palm and shot across the distance to hit the center of the target. The words ''Center Target'' and ''5%'' appeared above it, which made everyone suck in a sharp breath. The woman marked down the surprising results and spoke the next name after Gella returned to my side. We stood there and watched as the rest of the students performed the basic fireball spell, then she went through the names again and we had to cast Water Creation to fill a large container as much as possible. She did it this way to give the other students time to recover from using 20% to 30% of their magic between spells. ¡°Drake, David.¡± The woman said as she dumped out the quarter inch of water from the last student. ¡°Is there a mark or a measurement that''s bigger than this container?¡± I asked and she stared at me. ¡°No? All right.¡± I held my hand above the container and smiled. ¡°Bath Time.¡± A gush of water appeared and filled the large container in a few seconds, then bubbles and suds appeared and the room filled with the smells of lavender and massage oils. A few of the high class girls let out moans and then blushed, apparently they really liked their baths. The best part was the woman marking the test. Her moan had been the loudest and her face burned bright red. ¡°F-f-full marks.¡± The woman stammered and marked the sheet on the clipboard. She looked down at the large container and sighed. The expression on her face was full of regret as she hung the clipboard back on her hip and then tipped the container over to empty it into the storm drain. ¡°Aww.¡± Several of the girls said in disappointment and then blushed again. The woman straightened the large container and called Gella over. ¡°I suppose you can do the same thing.¡± ¡°No. I can''t figure out the bubbles or how he adds the oil.¡± Gella said and held her hand out above the container. ¡°Water Spout.¡± A gush of water that was a third the size of mine appeared and it took several minutes to fill the container. ¡°Full marks.¡± The woman said and dumped out the water. ¡°Can you teach me that spell?¡± Gella shook her head. ¡°I learned a different way to do it than normal mages.¡± The woman sighed and waved her back to my side before calling the next name. This routine continued on for the rest of the afternoon and the spells ranged from offensive to defensive, some were practical for cleaning, and some were for temporary protection of items. All in all, Gella and I crushed it and passed with the top marks in the exam. Unofficially, of course. The woman couldn''t give us our real marks until all of the exams were done and graded. 291 Examination Exultation Part Two Bokuboy We went back to the dorm room and met with the others to tell them about the day''s events. They had a good laugh at our written exam antics and then kept laughing as we described how we completely destroyed the educational curve of practical magic exam by a very wide margin. We ate supper together and then I studied my acquired notes for the basic potions class, as did Gella. Since no one questioned her being there, we decided to see how far we could take the ruse. After we had a quick bath and Jill performed the ritual, we were piled into bed and Gella finally told me what was up with her last name. ¡°It was supposed to be a surprise for your birthday after the exams.¡± Gella admitted while Hanna and Farra blushed. ¡°We visited the kingdom''s administration building and had our last names legally changed to Drake.¡± ¡°It was surprisingly easy, considering we were previous slaves and you technically still own us.¡± Farra said, which made the other two nod. ¡°It took longer for us to register our official roles.¡± Gella laughed softly. ¡°They accepted Hanna''s role immediately as your personal slave and only started to fight against mine as your sworn sword until Farra said she wanted to be declared your apprentice.¡± ¡°Oh, boy! Did they react to that!¡± Farra said with a laugh. ¡°It was like she let off a fireball in the hall and everyone was freaking out.¡± Gella said with a shake of her head. ¡°It was a bit pathetic, really.¡± ¡°Did they make you perform tests?¡± I asked. ¡°I had to perform a bunch of magic spells to their satisfaction.¡± Farra said. ¡°It actually sounds like what you did for your spell casting practical exam.¡± ¡°I assume you passed with high marks.¡± I said and she nodded happily. ¡°Good.¡± ¡°I''m officially licensed to help you with spell casting, potions, and enchanting.¡± Farra said, quite proud. ¡°You''re terrible at enchanting, though.¡± Gella said with a bark of laughter. ¡°Hey, they don''t know that!¡± Farra said and they both laughed. ¡°The documents are all sealed with the official Gulf Kingdom seal.¡± Jill said. ¡°What about Gella?¡± I asked. ¡°I had to fight one of the King''s Men.¡± Gella said with a predatory smile. ¡°How many seconds did he last?¡± I asked with my own matching smile. ¡°Eight, and that was because I had to allow him to attack first to prove my defenses were sufficient.¡± I had to chuckle at that. ¡°I assume they allowed a magic use license.¡± ¡°They had to. I froze the ground with his feet and then cut his blade in two with my enchanted one.¡± Gella said, her voice full of pride like Farra''s was. ¡°They were almost falling over themselves to get us out of there after that.¡± ¡°Did you let him go?¡± I asked, knowing what her answer was. ¡°Technically.¡± Gella said with a grin. ¡°I told him to use the pommel of his sword to shatter his boots and walk away.¡± ¡°HA!¡± I barked and that set them off as we all laughed. ¡°I have her documents and Hanna''s as well. Everything is completely legal and registered.¡± Jill said. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and reached over to take her hand briefly, then laid back down to let the others cuddle in. ¡°Goodnight.¡± ¡°Goodnight.¡± They said and we all went to sleep. The morning quickly arrived and Gella and I were cleaned up and dressed, then we went to the written part of the basic potions exam. Greta, or Mage Marks as she needed to be called in class, looked sad as she saw me enter the auditorium with the other students. ¡°We''re doing it seriously this time.¡± I whispered to Gella and she nodded in response. ¡°You have all morning to complete this written part and I suggest that all of you do your best to use as much of that time to complete as many answers as you can.¡± Greta said as she walked around and placed the exam papers face down on the occupied desks, even Gella''s. ¡°Are there any questions?¡± I raised my hand and she sighed. ¡°If we finish long before the time limit, do we stay here and relax or do we leave and relax?¡± Greta gave me a sad look. ¡°The rules state that you must remain until the time is up, which is why I said to use as much time as you can to answer as much as possible on the exam.¡± ¡°We''re not allowed to work on anything else to use up the time, are we?¡± I asked and she shook her head. ¡°Thank you for the answer.¡± Greta looked around at everyone as she returned to the front of the room. ¡°Anyone else?¡± She asked and no one moved or said anything. ¡°Then flip your exam papers over and start writing.¡± I did so and almost laughed at the first question about the reason for the procedure of using clean equipment to gather prepared ingredients from containers. I quickly filled out the answer and moved on... and on... and on. Instead of taking the entire morning and going over my answers, I was done just over two hours later. My ability to write concisely and consistently was put to excellent use and I had every single answer written out and correct. I flipped my exam papers back over and sat back to relax. I was very tempted to cross my hands behind my head and recline before I saw Greta''s searching eyes locking onto me. I decided against antagonizing her and crossed my arms over my abdomen and closed my eyes instead. I didn''t want to be a disruption to her first exam given at the Mage Academy. An hour later, Gella was done and she actually reviewed her answers before she copied my leaning pose and crossed arms. She didn''t close her eyes, though. She couldn''t protect me if she wasn''t still alert. I didn''t really need her to do protect me, because of my vigilance technique and my own skills; but, I wasn''t going to refuse her service after she had devoted herself to me. Greta didn''t comment and stayed quiet as everyone else in the auditorium continued to write for the full exam time. When lunchtime arrived, Greta walked up and down the aisles and gathered up the exam papers. She didn''t say anything as she took mine and then took Gella''s with only a flicker of her eyes at the name on her paper. I thought about commenting on it and chose to stay quiet. She hadn''t told me she was coming back to work, so I wasn''t under any obligation to give her any new information. As if she sensed that, she gave me a questioning look. I just smiled and shrugged, stood up, and led Gella from the room. We ate with Robin again and she seemed to have accepted that we would continue to eat together every day. We also polished off each bottle of wine with our meals. When I offered to compensate her for it, she shook her head and said it was all covered under the royal meal card. I raised my eyebrows at her and she professed that she wasn''t bringing me their most expensive wines, even though she could. That made Gella laugh and I had to smile. Gella and I went back to the practicals auditorium and a single potion setup was ready for each student from the main class and for the class set aside just for the girls that I had attended for the first half of the year. ¡°Please brew the potion on the board.¡± Greta said and flipped over the chalkboard to show off one of the basic potions from just after I had been kidnapped. She gave me a sad smile and sat down to watch over everyone else. I wasn''t sure why she was sad, then I read over the potion. Oh. It''s flawed. She switched one of the main ingredients and we''re supposed to switch it back. I thought, then I contemplated how I would improve it. I looked down at the small ingredient cabinet provided to each table and saw that there wasn''t much I could change... and then I smiled. If I changed out two of the ingredients instead of just one and altered the brew time and the liquid saturation for the drying time for the powdered and pulverized root it required, I could increase not only the potency, I could also increase the yield from half a crate of vials to just over three quarters of a crate. Everyone else was already working on their potion and I used the scrap paper and wrote out the altered recipe. My setup wasn''t near anyone else, because they didn''t want anyone cheating, so no one saw me changing out the ingredients and altering the recipe. Greta was still diligently watching the other students, especially the ones that she hadn''t taught, so she completely missed me using different amounts of ingredients and brewing times. Thankfully, because of the alterations and the greater yield, my potion didn''t finish until nearly everyone else had finished their own. No one noticed as I carefully filled up the available vials and didn''t stop until my crate was over three quarters filled, not even Greta. It wasn''t until she came around with a hand cart and several helpers that she saw what I did. ¡°David!¡± Greta gasped and then blushed as everyone turned to look at me. ¡°I mean, Lord Drake, what did you do?¡± ¡°I completed the assignment.¡± I said and picked up one of the filled vials. The potion was much darker than any other student''s potion and there was also more. ¡°I know it doesn''t really count if I improved the recipe. I just couldn''t help myself.¡± Greta carefully took the vial from me and popped the cork, then smelled it. ¡°Oh. Oh, my.¡± ¡°If I had access to different alternate ingredients, I could have done a lot more to improve it.¡± I admitted and her two helpers looked shocked. ¡°Can you give me your exam notes?¡± Greta asked. I shook my head and crumpled up the spare sheets. ¡°It''s just scrap paper. I''m not allowed to submit them as part of the exam.¡± Greta caught her breath as they burned up and the ashes floated to the floor. ¡°David...¡± ¡°I didn''t make the rules.¡± I said and stepped back to let the assistants take the crate of potions. Greta sighed and put the vial in the crate that was marked with my name and moved on to the next table. I waited for Gella''s to be collected before we left the auditorium and went back to the dorms. ¡°I wonder what she''s going to do for the advanced class?¡± Gella shrugged. ¡°We couldn''t get the notes from the others, even when we sent a message to Linette''s daughter Jinelle.¡± ¡°Do you think she refused because she is angry at me?¡± I asked. ¡°Definitely. You had to go and die on her before she could kill you for seeing her naked and not offering her a contract when you returned and were no longer under one yourself.¡± Gella said with a laugh. ¡°You bastard!¡± I shook my head at her sense of humor. ¡°Maybe she didn''t get the letter or Lady Marks wouldn''t give anyone else access to me if she couldn''t have it?¡± Gella looked thoughful. ¡°Actually, I think you''re right. I was just guessing.¡± I smiled. ¡°Let''s stop off at her dorm and see if she is accepting visitors.¡± Gella nodded and we went to Jinelle''s dorm. The dorm monitor escorted us to her door and knocked. ¡°Young Miss.¡± The woman said. ¡°Lord Drake has chosen to grace you with his presence.¡± Gella had to cover her mouth to stop her laugh and she stared at my face to see if I was going to react to that fairly formal introduction. ¡°Grandmother had forbidden any contact with the Henrietta Family.¡± A voice said from inside. ¡°Tell her the contracts were voided with Helena''s death at the hands of her father, including the concubine contracts with Vanessa and the Sellwafer Family.¡± I said. The dorm monitor gave me a calculating look and then repeated what I said. A second later, the door to the room was torn open and Jinelle''s small body flung itself out through the opening. I caught her and she cried and cried on my shoulder as she told me all about how she mourned my passing, how her grandmother was trying to pawn her off to a wealthy family, and how disappointed she was that I hadn''t rescued her when I came back from the dead. I gave Gella a pointed look and she still had her mouth covered to stop her laugh from escaping. Her guess had been nearly completely true. ¡°You... you have to... talk to her.¡± Jinelle said between sobs. ¡°I can''t marry... a forty-three year old man... no matter how rich he is!¡± I rubbed her back and didn''t say anything. It took Jinelle several minutes to calm down and then she gasped. She let me go as if I was a hot pot and her eyes were wide. ¡°David, I... I mean, Lord Drake!¡± She said. ¡°Please, forgive me for...¡± I reached out and took her hand and bent over to kiss it as I gave her a bit of magic and then cast Calmness on her. ¡°Relax, Young Miss. I will talk to your grandmother for you.¡± Jinelle''s face flushed red and she ducked her head. ¡°Lord Drake, you... will you.. accept...¡± ¡°No. I refuse to ever be locked into a marriage contract again.¡± I said. Jinelle''s eyes let out a few more tears before she sighed and looked at my face. ¡°I understand.¡± ¡°Only your limited view of it.¡± Gella commented and Jinelle glanced at her. ¡°She means that I''m not against just a normal relationship and not anything official.¡± I clarified for her. Both Jinelle and the dorm monitor gasped and covered their mouths in shock. ¡°Yes, that''s the reaction I meant.¡± Gella said with a smile. ¡°Is it really so terrible to spend time with someone and not have to marry them?¡± ¡°You... you can''t mean... there''s no way that mother... or grandmother... or auntie... would want me to... um... do that, without a guarantee that I won''t be discarded afterwards.¡± Jinelle said. ¡°That''s the whole point of having a contract. Safety.¡± I didn''t raise my eyebrows at that, even though I wanted to. I stood there without saying anything as I let her figure out how wrong that statement was on her own. After a few minutes, Jinelle gasped again and covered her mouth, then she started crying again. I held my hand out to her and she looked at it and at my face, then shook her head. ¡°Can I copy your notes for the advanced potions class and the list of potions done during the time I was missing?¡± Jinelle shook her head for a moment, then she sighed. ¡°I... I shouldn''t. Auntie said you needed to get by on your own merits.¡± That was a surprise to hear and Jinelle must have seen something on my face. ¡°Mom has been saying you''ve helped her save hundreds of lives since you came back.¡± Jinelle said. ¡°If you were me, what would you choose?¡± Gella put a hand on my arm to stop me from talking. ¡°I''ll answer that.¡± She said and stepped forward. ¡°That''s not a fair question. My lord wouldn''t have accepted the restrictions in the first place, let alone chose to keep them later when asked.¡± Jinelle looked surprised. ¡°But... why would...¡± ¡°You are supposed to be your own woman and growing into your own abilities. You''re graduating this year and letting your mother, or grandmother, dictate who you can and can''t associate with, is hurting you more than anyone can tell you.¡± Gella said. ¡°If I had been you, I would have sought out my lord as soon as he came back and asked for help, then offered my help in return.¡± Jinelle looked at Gella''s arm patch and saw the new Drake Family crest that happened to be the same as the frigate flag on the ship. She also saw the alteration to show Gella''s status. ¡°You''re his sworn sword.¡± Gella nodded. ¡°He rescued me, helped me get revenge for the death of my father and a lot more besides that, and I swore to help him for the rest of my life when it was done.¡± ¡°I can''t do that.¡± Jinelle said. Gella laughed. ¡°Our situations are different, as our circumstances are different. You need help and he needs help. He will talk to your grandmother about abusing her position to pawn you off to one of her friend''s families and you can give him copies of your notes for the exam tomorrow.¡± Jinelle thought about that before she started to smile. ¡°There''s too much to copy on such short notice, so how about we compromise? We can study together and we''ll both get the review we need, then you can go to my grandmother and fix things for me.¡± I glanced at Gella and she shrugged. ¡°I think we have a deal.¡± I said and held my hand out to her. Jinelle nodded and took my hand and shook it. ¡°Give me a hand carrying it. There really is a lot.¡± ¡°Where are your maids?¡± I asked and we entered her rooms. ¡°Recalled to the mansion. I''m being punished for not following the family''s tradition of sucking up to the potential betrothal.¡± Jinelle spat before she sighed. ¡°Please forgive my outburst.¡± ¡°Do you want him dead?¡± Gella asked as she picked up a large bundle of papers that Jinelle pointed to. ¡°Only if it comes to that.¡± Jinelle said and flipped through several other papers. ¡°Where was that... oh! Here it is.¡± She pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to me. ¡°Read off the numbers by the names.¡± I did so and Jinelle went through several stacks of potion crates as she gathered them together. She piled them into an empty crate in the order on the paper and pointed at it. ¡°Carry that and this.¡± Jinelle said and put an even bigger bundle of papers onto the crate. ¡°These are the notes on the potions.¡± ¡°What are these?¡± Gella asked and held up the bundle she had in her hands. ¡°The recipes.¡± Jinelle said, to our surprise. ¡°Yes, they did a lot while you were gone. It is the Advanced Potions class.¡± I nodded and we left the storage room. Jinelle grabbed a wrap to put over her shoulders and then led us out of her rooms and out of the dorm building. We had some serious studying to do. 292 Study Break – Adult Bokuboy Jinelle looked very surprised when she entered our dorm rooms. None of us commented on her looking around or about her giving pointed and barely concealed looks at Hanna. She was the youngest one there and did get a lot of attention from being so cute, probably because of her thinner frame and her happy expression. ¡°I see you brought a lot of materials.¡± Jill said and waved at the small table we ate meals on. ¡°I''ll grab a footstool for the crate.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and waited for Jill to bring it from the living area and put the crate down on it. ¡°We will try to not be too noisy as we make supper.¡± Hanna said and gave me a hug from behind, then she and Jill went to the kitchen. ¡°When did you move in here?¡± Jinelle asked as she sat at the table. ¡°Just before the weekend.¡± Gella said. ¡°It''s just too much travelling for us to commute from the Sanctuary and back every day.¡± Jinelle looked at her, then at Farra, then her eyes went to the kitchen to look at Hanna and Jill. I held up a hand to get her attention and then started pointing at them in the same order she looked at them. ¡°Sworn Sword, Apprentice, Personal Slave, and Temporary Personal Maid.¡± Jinelle''s eyes had widened as I successfully justified having more than just a personal maid that all first year cadets are allowed. I didn''t mention the previous king lifting that restriction for me, though. That wasn''t information she needed to have, since it made no difference to my current situation. ¡°We should go over the recipes and ingredients first.¡± I suggested and Gella nodded. ¡°If we familiarize ourselves with those, the notes on each will make more sense, instead of trying to only read the notes and then associating them with the recipes.¡± Jinelle gave us furtive looks as she looked at the large stack of notes, knowing the larger stack was going to take a lot more time to get through. ¡°We can just skim the notes when we learn the major ingredients and their reactions in the recipes.¡± Gella said to her to try and convince her. ¡°Also, any that have very reactive effects we can focus on, because you know that Mage Marks is going to want us to know about them.¡± Jinelle sighed and nodded in agreement. ¡°Huddle up.¡± I said and moved my chair close to Jinelle''s and then Gella moved over to my other side. Jinelle blushed as I put an arm over her shoulders to pull her in close and she missed Gella ducking under my other arm. ¡°I''ll flip the pages when necessary.¡± Gella offered and we started to discuss the first recipe. Farra handed Jinelle the first potion bottle and sat across from us to absorb as much of our discussion as possible without actually reading the notes. I was tempted to get her to start transcribing the notes and to write down our words, then decided against it. It was more important for us to study as much as possible and as quickly as possible. I could always copy Jinelle''s notes after the exam, anyway. We talked for quite some time and went over the qualities of the potions and their component ingredients. Jinelle dug through her notes for each one and we added them to the discussion. Getting other people''s opinions on what the best part of a potion was, was a new experience for me. It also let us learn the potions inside and out as well. Farra also offered her own views, using her experiences on the ship and at the Sanctuary working with myself and the old man as examples. We stopped when supper was served and Jinelle blushed when she realized that she was inadvertently sitting where my wife would sit when at a larger table. The others didn''t tease her about it and she eventually relaxed and enjoyed the meal and the conversation. I watched her and saw that she was carefully watching everyone''s interactions, as if memorizing them. It''s almost like she''s never had a normal meal with other people. I thought, then I realized that she probably hadn''t. This might have been the very first friendly meal that she had ever had, with no social obligations or requirements on her part, for her to perform or be wary of. ¡°That was delicious, Hanna and Jill. Thank you.¡± Gella said and leaned back from the table. ¡°I''m glad your stomach appreciates how hard we work while you''re off keeping our lord company.¡± Jill said with a smile. Gella laughed and pat her slightly distended belly. ¡°I''m so glad that the rehabilitation potions are working so well. I don''t remember the last time I had an actual appetite.¡± ¡°I know! It feels... weird.¡± Hanna said and her hand pat her own belly. ¡°I''m even eating snacks now.¡± Farra and Gella fake gasped and stared at her, to make her blush, then they laughed and hugged her. ¡°We''re just kidding, Hanna. We''re really happy that you''re feeling so much better.¡± Farra said and kissed her cheek. ¡°I''m not up to eating more yet, so you''re farther along than I am. I''m so proud!¡± Hanna blushed even more and also looked a little proud. ¡°Lets clean up and get back to studying.¡± I said and stood. Jinelle sat there, quite surprised, as she watched us all clean up the plates and wash them. We took turns washing ourselves up in the bathroom and came back to see here still sitting there with her mouth slightly open and her eyes fixed on us. I took the initiative and helped her stand and then took her to the bathroom, washed her face and hands to clean her up, then dried her off and brought her back to the table that Gella and Farra had put the potions notes back on. ¡°L-L-Lord D-Drake...¡± Jinelle whispered, her face red. ¡°We''re in private and I''ve had you tucked under my arm for the last few hours, so David''s fine.¡± I said and sat her down as I would if she was a lady. Jinelle''s blush deepened and she looked at my face to see if I was being sincere. ¡°I mean it. It''s just public social protocol that requires formality with others around.¡± I said. ¡°I even called the new Queen by her given name when she wasn''t being a bitch.¡± ¡°It only happened twice.¡± Gella said with a laugh, which set the others off and we all laughed, even Jinelle. She knew what Ellen was like after spending time with Princess Rose while growing up. I put my arm back over Jinelle''s shoulders. ¡°What is it you want to say?¡± Gella tucked herself under my other arm to resume our previous positions. ¡°How... how can you... act so...¡± Jinelle''s voice drifted off. ¡°I''ve spent more time as less than a commoner than I have as a Lord.¡± I said. ¡°After being exposed to both lifestyles, I can honestly say that I don''t know which I would choose if I had to pick to go back to them.¡± Jinelle blinked her eyes at me. ¡°What do you mean? You''re Lord Drake. You can''t choose to become...¡± I chuckled and the others around us laughed softly. ¡°Jinelle, I''ve been a pirate for most of the time I''ve been away. I didn''t choose that life. My life just became it when I was in that situation.¡± Jinelle looked confused. Gella pat my arm and leaned around me. ¡°He means that as he moves into a new area, his life changes to suit that area.¡± She said as an explanation. ¡°He was a baby and had a normal life. He was taken to the marsh and became someone who could survive there. Years later, he was taken back to the village. Before he could adapt without the Hag being there, people blamed him for her crimes and sentenced him to death.¡± Jinelle gasped and covered her mouth. ¡°No!¡± ¡°The army conscripted him and he adapted to their way of life to survive. He did, right up until Colonel Rivers tried to get him killed. He couldn''t stay and arranged to be rescued by Helena.¡± Gella said and her hand moved to caress my chest. ¡°She saved him before he was completely mangled and then he was brought here. He adapted quickly, thanks to eloquence lessons from a cousin to the royal family. He didn''t know everything, though.¡± ¡°Then I went to the academy and my life changed again.¡± I added. ¡°Ridicule, derision, ignorance, and irrational anger at me was my daily life. I adapted and refused to let them dictate what my living conditions were going to be like.¡± ¡°Just as he was finally getting acceptance from the community as a whole, he was attacked and kidnapped.¡± Farra said. ¡°He was made a slave and mangled again, nearly crippling him and making him weak in his body.¡± She reached over and caressed my face briefly. ¡°His spirit, though... nothing could ever get him down. He adapted and thrived and made the best of his situation, like he always does.¡± ¡°Then he came back here and saw what happened.¡± Hanna said as she put her arms around me from behind and hugged me. ¡°His spirit... his spirit was... damaged.¡± ¡°Lady Helena.¡± Jinelle whispered. ¡°She was his only reason for coming back here.¡± Hanna said and kissed my cheek. ¡°She was his world, as was his son.¡± I felt my magic respond as my anger rose. Everyone around me shivered and reached for me, even Jinelle. I felt their magic respond and mine flowed out and into them. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. Do you want to change the nature of your relationships with the women in your life or do you want to maintain your distance and remain mostly unaffected by their emotions? A) Push them away. B) Embrace them. C) Let your magic decide. D) Do nothing. What the hell is this? I asked. There''s almost no reason for this to happen right now! You are obviously unaffected by their emotions, so you have no clue that they all love you in their own way. So, I think I''ll take this very important decision and let magic decide. Oh, look. You have chosen C. Congratulations! Let''s see what happens. Good luck! We''re all rooting for you! _______________ ¡°Ohhhhh.¡± Jinelle moaned and cuddled into me to kiss my neck. Her magic burst out of her and was like pouring oil on a fire as it entered me and joined with mine. Jill quickly grabbed the papers from the table and ran from the room. She didn''t have to have magic herself to realize what was going on. She knew a magic convergence when she saw one. I turned my head to Jinelle to tell her to stop, because I didn''t want my anger enhanced. She lifted her head to meet my eyes and I saw understanding there, then she moved forward slightly and our lips connected. Our magic surged at the same time and Hanna, Gella, and Farra moaned loudly as our magic smashed through them and swirled around inside them, adding to the feeling and the pressure. My hands seemed to move on their own as I dug into Gella''s top and grabbed her breast with one hand and then I dug through Jinelle''s clothing with my other hand and grabbed her breast, too. ¡°OHHHHH!¡± The four of them moaned loudly as Jinelle had an orgasm just from that and shared the feeling with everyone, including me. I felt someone''s hand on my pants and then they were opened and gone. Someone''s mouth was on my manhood and I was too busy kissing Jinelle to look down. It wasn''t a ritual because no one was thinking about a bath. At all. It also felt very different while kneading someone''s breasts and kissing them. We somehow went from sitting at the table to laying on the bed, with my mouth buried deep into Jinelle''s womanhood and her screaming my name. My hands were occupied as I played with Gella between her legs on one side and Farra on the other. Thanks to only having two fingers on each hand, they were the perfect size to pleasure both women. That meant Hanna was the one with her mouth wrapped around my manhood and she was very enthusiastic about it. Her hands were dug into my butt cheeks and she shoved me hard into her mouth and down her throat, letting her magic pleasure the both of us, just like mine was flowing over everyone and making everything feel ten times better than it normally did. When I blew my load, Hanna moaned loudly and had an orgasm as well, which she shared with everyone. Apparently, she really liked having me pour myself down her throat and her magic responded to that. I pulled out of her mouth and crawled up onto the bed to look down at Jinelle. Her eyes were bright and tear filled, her body tingling all over with our combined magic, and she reached up to pull me down and wrapped her legs around me. It just so happened to position me perfectly and I slid right into her opening. ¡°AH!¡± Jinelle gasped as I tore her open, meaning it was her very first time, then our combined magic healed her instantly and she had an orgasm from feeling all of me inside of her. Her eyes were frantic as she stared at me, then she smashed her lips against mine and kissed me as she hugged me tightly. ¡°MMMMM!¡± ¡°Ohhhh!¡± Gella beside us moaned, then Farra let out a low scream as she soaked my fingers. Hanna crawled up over me and pulled my head up and broke the deep kiss Jinelle had on me, then she pushed her dripping womanhood into my face. ¡°Love me, my lord! LOVE ME!¡± I was pretty far gone by this point and pulled my hands away from Gella and Farra, braced myself, and did my best to give Hanna a thorough licking. She moaned and came all over my face, dripping onto Jinelle''s face, whom didn''t seem to mind or care. Hanna collapsed at the headboard of the bed and barely managed to not lay down on Jinelle''s head. ¡°David!¡± Jinelle exclaimed and my attention went back to her. ¡°Give it to me! Fix my family!¡± I wasn''t sure what had come over me as I growled and drove myself at a furious pace inside of her. Her screams of pleasure echoed through the dorm room as I had my way with her, then our magic seemed to coalesce together and I let my next load go inside of her. ¡°BY THE SON''S LIGHT!¡± Jinelle yelled and came as the magic infused into her and her womb, implanting my very fertile seed inside of her. My mind started to clear as the magic ebbed from the intensity, then Gella''s hands grabbed my hair and pulled. I was wrenched from inside Jinelle and Gella wrapped her legs around me and plunged my unwavering erection into her depths. ¡°MY LOOORRRRRRD!¡± Gella yelled and kissed me passionately. She wouldn''t let me go, even as my mind seemed to snap out of whatever magic induced haze it had been in. Unfortunately, I was the only one thinking rationally at that point and Gella refused to let me talk and assisted my movements inside of her with her arms and legs. ¡°Gella... Gella, I... you have to...¡± I tried to say and she gripped me tightly and did the same as Jinelle as she smashed her lips back against mine to shut me up. There was no magic building up between us after using up so much with Jinelle, and Gella didn''t care. Not that she was thinking too much about what was going on. She had me inside of her, something she had dreamed about ever since I had rescued her, and now I had given her exactly what she wanted. She didn''t care how it had happened and wasn''t going to let me stop now. Gella''s magic swirled around me and held me as tightly as her arms and legs did, then she screamed as an orgasm hit her and I spilled myself inside of her as a result. There was no magic infusion, so we were both sure that no child was going to result from our coupling. The magic seemed to be an essential component and all Gella wanted was to be with me like that in that moment. She let me go, well sated, then I was roughly grabbed and rolled over onto my back. ¡°Farra!¡± I gasped as she hovered over me, her eyes glowing with her magic, then she plunged herself down onto me. ¡°MY LOOORRRRRRD!¡± Farra yelled, eerily similar to Gella, then she laid down and kissed me passionately as her hips kept moving. I felt smaller hands touch my face and broke the kiss to look, only to see Jinelle as she smiled at me through half-closed eyes. Her lips found mine and she let her gentle magic flow out into me. Farra groaned as she felt it and her movements sped up. I somehow knew that she didn''t want to let this opportunity pass her by and I knew that if she stopped or tried to let me speak, the magic would break apart and we would all lose out, because it would be over. I was sure that last thought wasn''t my thought and Jinelle broke the kiss to smile at me again, then she rolled over onto her side and away from me. I was about to ask what she was doing, then Hanna was there and she sat on my face. I felt her magic spike and knew she wanted me to keep going, so I did my best to lick and kiss her between her legs. She moaned as much as Farra, then I felt pressure build up inside of me again. Farra felt my manhood twitch inside of her and her magic tried to build and join with mine. I was sure that she was trying for an infusion, only she was at half a crystal''s worth of power and that was nowhere near enough for what she wanted. It drained back down to a quarter as she desperately tried, then she collapsed on top of me and my shot inside of her was wasted. According to her, anyway. ¡°Move!¡± Hanna ordered and pushed Farra''s shoulder. Farra looked at her with tears in her eyes. ¡°We''ll try again after we figure out how to fix you.¡± Hanna said. Farra nodded as she slipped off of me to lay beside Gella. ¡°My lord, I love you. I am yours, body and soul.¡± Hanna said, almost in a chant, then she moved around to look into my eyes. ¡°Hanna, the magic...¡± I tried to say. ¡°I''m not doing it for the magic, my lord.¡± Hanna said and positioned me at her opening. She took several deep breaths and then held her breath as she sat down. ¡°AHHH-huh?¡± My magic had swirled up and her scream stopped, because she was healed. Hanna''s slightly pained face was full of astonishment, then she copied Farra as she moved up and down on me. Her breasts were starting to fill out from the emaciated distortion they had been, so I reached up and carefully cupped them. ¡°OHHH!¡± Hanna gasped and came all over my belly. ¡°You touched them! YOU TOUCHED THEM!¡± I pinched her nipples lightly and she moaned, then she laid down on me and kissed me tenderly and lovingly. ¡°I''ve wanted... to kiss you... like this... for... ever.¡± She breathed into my mouth and rocked her hips to keep herself pleasured as she enjoyed herself by kissing me like she always dreamed. It took nearly three times as long for her to make me shoot a load inside of her and her body seemed to shut down when I did. She collapsed on top of me and fell asleep right away. ¡°The poor thing exhausted herself.¡± Jill said and Hanna was lifted off of me and tucked into the other bed. Farra and Gella were there, too. ¡°You came back.¡± I said. I didn''t comment on not seeing her move the other two women. Apparently, my vigilance technique wasn''t working for anything except whatever I was touching. ¡°Of course I came back.¡± Jill said and bent over me. ¡°I wasn''t going to let anything bad happen to anyone under my care.¡± I blinked my eyes at her for several moments, not really understanding what she meant. ¡°My lord, my Lady would never allow you to abuse those under our care.¡± Jill said and looked down at my very well used member that was still quite erect. Her hand reached out and she gripped it before she stroked it. ¡°May I have a turn, my lord? You seem to be energized by magic itself.¡± I looked down at myself and had to agree. Whatever was going on tonight, my manhood was not quite done. ¡°As long as you realize that nothing else will happen.¡± Jill smiled and climbed on top of me. I only just then noticed that she was completely naked. She didn''t say anything until she sat down on top of me and let out a pained sound. My magic responded and immediately healed her. Jill was fairly old when compared to the others, which was why she had fit so well into a more motherly role for us all. I never imagined that she could be even tighter than when she had given me her maidenhood. ¡°Jill...¡± ¡°You''re welcome, my lord.¡± Jill said and motioned to the bed. ¡°I prefer to be on the bottom.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± I said and easily rolled us over to gently lay her onto the bed, then proceeded to have sex with her. The others were sound asleep, which left Jill and I by ourselves. The only noises in the room were our breathing, our sex sounds, and Jill''s moans. ¡°My... my lord.¡± Jill whispered and her hands cupped the sides of my face. ¡°Even if we never do this again, I am so glad that I got to share one more thing with my Lady.¡± That made me think about our interactions. ¡°You''ve performed the ritual for her; and yet, you''ve never kissed me for her.¡± Jill''s smile almost lit up the room. ¡°As you wish, my lord.¡± She said and pulled me close and kissed me even gentler and softer than Hanna had. This lasted for our entire love making session and Jill cried out in pleasure as she accepted my latest shot. She whispered her thanks for allowing her to feel the same things that Helena had, then she rolled over and fell asleep. I moved off of her and sat up to look at the room, only to see everyone was asleep. I looked down at myself and I was still hard, which surprised me, then a soft moan drew my attention. I moved to the other side of Jill where Jinelle lay on her side to see her hand was buried deep between her legs. ¡°Jinelle?¡± I asked and she opened her eyes to look at me. ¡°That... that wasn''t a dream?¡± Jinelle asked and blinked her eyes at me, then she looked down at me. ¡°That definitely wasn''t a dream.¡± I moved towards her and she rolled onto her back. ¡°It''s still hard.¡± ¡°I can feel the magic still.¡± Jinelle said and moved her hand out of the way to expose herself. ¡°I thought it was only... only my fantasy.¡± I slipped into her and hugged her tightly. She moaned and kissed me tenderly, then she rocked her hips to help me continue to make love to her. ¡°My family... they are going to... be so angry at you.¡± Jinelle whispered and bit my ear. ¡°It''s not witnessed or registered.¡± I whispered back and she gasped at the realization that no one would know who the father was, then her body gripped onto my member and squeezed it like a vise. I couldn''t hold on with her reacting like that and spilled myself once more into her. ¡°Ohhhh, David. Thank you.¡± Jinelle said and kept kissing me. Her relief was almost physical at the thought that she could have a child and that would keep her away from any marriage contracts. We stayed coupled together and kept moving with our bodies for quite some time before either of us felt the magic start to fade completely between us. We had pleasured ourselves more times than either of us could count and remained joined together as we fell asleep. Not surprisingly, we all woke up fairly early the next morning. No one said a thing as we all had separate baths because Jinelle was there. Jill had her work cut out for her by taking care of all of us, Jinelle included, whom went first. We studied for the remaining time that morning before getting dressed and heading over to the testing auditorium. We had an exam to write and an advanced potions practical to do our best in. 293 Examination Exultation Part Three Jinelle, Gella, and I entered the auditorium for the written portion of the exam and sat near each other. Since everyone seemed to be ignoring me, none of them noticed that Jinelle had been quite close to my side as we walked in. ¡°Good luck.¡± Jinelle whispered. ¡°Thank you.¡± I whispered back. A moment later, she had an odd look on her face. ¡°You don''t need it. You know the content better than I do.¡± I responded and she smiled. ¡°All right, quiet down.¡± A man said a bit loudly and Greta gave him a pointed look. ¡°This is the Advanced Potions exam and you will be thoroughly tested.¡± ¡°I''m pretty sure they know that. This is the exam.¡± Greta said softly and a few of the students laughed and tried to cover it up with coughing or clearing their throats. The man ignored her. ¡°My assistant...¡± A small fireball hit the back of his head and exploded, singed his hair, and pushed his head forward. ¡°My colleague will pass out the exam papers.¡± The man corrected. Greta walked around to distribute the papers to everyone''s desks and placed them face down. ¡°Nice one, Auntie.¡± Jinelle whispered as Greta passed her. Greta smiled at her and then put papers on my desk and Gella''s before she moved on. ¡°I sincerely doubt that any of you will successfully complete this exam in the short time you have.¡± The man said when Greta came back to the front of the room and the desk he leaned against. ¡°I can only hope that you''ll do enough on them to give me some idea of what you''re capable of.¡± I couldn''t let that comment go and raised my hand. The man''s eyes went to me and he frowned. ¡°Yes, Inquisitor Drake? You have a question?¡± I didn''t correct him on my title. ¡°Are you marking all the papers or just the ones of the students you taught?¡± ¡°All of them.¡± The man said with squinted eyes. ¡°I assume that Mage Marks will be consulting you for the ones you didn''t teach personally?¡± I asked and the man frowned. ¡°Are you questioning my integrity?¡± The man almost spat. ¡°No, your competence.¡± I said and everyone in the room gasped while Greta groaned and rubbed her face. The man looked indignant. ¡°I will have you know that I...¡± ¡°...have pushed the difficult to teach students onto another more capable teacher and you have no experience at all with dealing with us.¡± I finished for him, which made him even angrier. ¡°Your limited view of a person''s growth and knowledge can''t account for the students she''s looked after and shepherded into the best potions students in the school.¡± ¡°You cannot claim that she did any such thing!¡± The man spat. I smiled and pointed to Jinelle. ¡°When she started the class, she was abusive, self-entitled, and thought she could cast magic in a potion ingredient filled classroom.¡± I said and his face paled. I pointed to Lorna. ¡°She absolutely refused to work with anyone at all, except for her betrothed. His father bought his entry into the class to keep her subdued and calm enough to listen to the teacher.¡± ¡°Hey!¡± Lorna gasped. I smiled at her and then pointed at myself. ¡°I''ve been making potions since I was a child. Unfortunately, I also knew everything by different names and didn''t know any of the references in the books or in the examples. I also brew things differently and used different ingredients to achieve the same results.¡± ¡°Better results.¡± Greta said. ¡°Only after we started figuring out how to get your knowledge into my head.¡± I said. ¡°You were the one working your ass off in the library and getting the ingredient lists and properties to compare to your own knowledge.¡± Greta said. ¡°You were understanding enough to let me figure things out and then you adapted your teaching technique to accommodate my eccentricities.¡± I added. Greta laughed softly. ¡°Only rich people call them that.¡± ¡°I''m still rich, so that''s okay.¡± I responded and she laughed. ¡°You are delaying the exam!¡± The man almost shouted. ¡°I''m sorry that you can''t wait to mark me unfairly.¡± I said and waved at the rest of the room. ¡°Perhaps you should talk to Director Pavinca Chasma before taking your anger out on me for what I did to the old mages guild?¡± The man snapped his mouth shut and glared at me. ¡°I am a professional.¡± ¡°That''s good, because whatever mark you''ve already decided I''m going to have on this exam, will be ignored when Mage Marks and the director review it on my behalf and fix it to reflect reality.¡± The man stood up and pointed at the clock. ¡°You all have until noon to disappoint me!¡± ¡°I''ve already succeeded in that, so this exam should be easy.¡± I said and flipped my exam papers over as I ignored the man''s mutterings about making me pay for my crimes. I read the first question about the best binding agents for potions and their importance for opposing ingredients to be used. I smiled and started to write. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Skipping miscellaneous details. Speeding up time. Done. _______________ I flipped my exam papers over with an hour left to the morning and the man glared at me. I gave him a little wave and then reclined back as much as I could and put my arms behind my head to relax. I heard a soft laugh from beside me and didn''t turn to smile at Jinelle. She clearly liked that I was openly disrespecting the man that tried to slight her aunt. Greta didn''t quite hide her smile at me, considering that I almost did the same thing in her exam yesterday. I stayed there in my chair and didn''t speak or make any noise, because I didn''t want to disrupt the other students. It wasn''t their fault that the man had no impulse control and would do everything he could to screw me over in the only course that the marks had to be given fairly for actual work, unlike the core subjects where I automatically earned a 65 and could increase my score from there. I wasn''t counting the Botany course, because Victoria already knew that I knew all about what to do and the procedures that she had imparted to me. I proved that over the last weekend when we worked on the third floor of the growing area, which was growing in even better than she had told me to expect. The custom enchantments and lighting requirements really made a huge difference. Jinelle let out a sigh and flipped her papers over with twenty minutes to spare and she rested back in a similar posture to me, only she let it look as demure and classy as possible, because of her training as a Lady. I glanced at her and saw that she looked quite nice wearing the academy uniform like that and my eyes went to her thighs. Her skirt had ridden up after she had leaned back and she showed off a dangerous amount of leg. I looked back up at her face and she blushed as she winked at me. I held in my laugh and she saw that, so she smiled and looked back towards the front of the room. I did as well and saw Greta''s shocked expression. I smiled at her and resisted the urge to wave. Just as the bell rang, Gella flipped her papers over and sat back. ¡°Finished!¡± Her voice cut through the very quiet room like a knife and made several people jump. I felt someone come up from behind me and leaned away from that side as the academy director picked up my exam papers. She flipped through them as she walked to the front of the room. She made the papers glow slightly and then held a hand out to the man. He glared at her for a second, then he handed over the exam score sheet. There was a 65 marked beside my name, technically a fail, because I used to need a 70. He didn''t know that the previous director had reduced the qualifications to the basic mark for me to enter the course. ¡°You''re fired.¡± Pavinca said to the man, who shot to his feet. ¡°What for?¡± The man asked, incensed. ¡°You intentionally tried to fail a student without actually reading his work.¡± Pavinca said and tapped the mark. ¡°Fortunately for you, a passing mark on a final exam can be altered by me.¡± ¡°Wh-what? Passing?¡± The man asked, confused. ¡°Yes, the previous director lowered the passing grade so that Lord Drake could take the course.¡± A collective sigh of relief came from most of the students. The man''s face changed from confusion to anger. ¡°Good luck finding another teacher for this course!¡± Pavinca pointed at Greta. ¡°Oh, look. There''s one.¡± The man''s face flushed red. ¡°You... you...¡± ¡°I''m sure that with you gone and the graduating students, the four remaining students she taught will easily fit into the new class.¡± Pavinca said. ¡°Clear out your desk and only take what you personally own. If you try to rob the school, you will be dealt with as if you were a commoner.¡± Everyone gasped at that and the man''s face lost all of its color. ¡°The guard will be checking you when you leave.¡± Pavinca said and waved at the door. ¡°Good luck finding another job after everyone finds out you tried to fail Lord Drake after he spared your life.¡± The man didn''t say anything and walked passed her and ignored everyone as he left the room. ¡°Mage Marks, please gather up the other exam papers.¡± Pavinca said and sat down behind the desk as she looked over my exam papers. She was absently nodding her head as she read my answers while Greta quickly gathered up the other exam papers. Pavinca put mine on top of the stack and bundled them together, then stood. ¡°See you all this afternoon for the practicals.¡± The auditorium cleared out and Gella, Jinelle, and I were the last to leave. I wasn''t surprised when neither the director nor Greta tried to stop me or talk to me. ¡°That was interesting.¡± Gella said as we walked over to the cafeteria. ¡°More like embarrassing.¡± Jinelle said. ¡°If he had been even a little cautious, he could have marked the sheet after we left for lunch and no one would have known.¡± ¡°He was too confident in his opinion and righteousness to think logically.¡± I said and held the door for them to enter the building. ¡°Thank you.¡± Gella and Jinelle said as they passed me and started walking up the stairs to the cafeteria. ¡°You think he would have been grateful and not spiteful.¡± Gella said. ¡°Most of them can''t see past their own self-importance to realize they should be grateful that I didn''t just kill them all indiscriminately.¡± I said and Gella laughed. ¡°Would you really do that?¡± Jinelle asked. ¡°No; but, I could have. I was fully justified, especially for the ones that knew what happened and did nothing to stop it or to help me.¡± I said and nodded at the guard on the open door of the cafeteria. ¡°Most had their own sedition involved that was separate from the conspiracy that the Hag had set up, so they died as well.¡± Jinelle sighed and we walked over to the gold table to get our meals. Robin came out and saw Jinelle was with us, so she sent for a second bottle of wine and joined us at what had become our regular table. ¡°Do I even want to ask how this developed?¡± Robin asked as she glanced at Jinelle. ¡°Intense study session for advanced potions. Once we got together, it took nearly all night to finish up.¡± I said and Jinelle blushed deeply. ¡°We did some last minute studying this morning as well, so I expect to go to sleep right after the potions practical this afternoon.¡± Gella nodded. ¡°We really jammed a lot into ourselves last night.¡± She said and started eating the piece of roast boar that she had on her plate. ¡°Hanna was still exhausted when we left after breakfast this morning and I''m sure Farra''s taking the day off from doing anything except copying Jinelle''s notes.¡± ¡°Jill had to do a lot of work this morning, too.¡± I said and took a bite of the large piece of the near-deer steak that I had cut off. ¡°She''s going to be tired as well.¡± ¡°Then it''s your turn to cook supper tonight, my lord.¡± Gella said with a smile. I nodded and kept eating, while taking an occasional sip of wine. ¡°How did you all do on the exam?¡± Robin asked. ¡°With Mage Marks and Director Chasma marking them, I''d say we''re going to pass with abnormal scores.¡± I said, which made Gella laugh and Jinelle look affronted. Robin looked amused by that. ¡°I''m sure that abnormal means unexpected in that context.¡± I nodded and Jinelle relaxed and kept eating. ¡°I missed the last six months of the course and I''m sure that she''s going to be shocked by what I wrote.¡± ¡°I think that applies to me, too.¡± Gella said. ¡°I never realized that talking about potions with someone as knowledgeable as Jinelle and my lord would give me so much more information than just reading the notes did.¡± Jinelle blushed at the compliment. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°It was a unique way to study so much content in the shortest amount of time possible.¡± I said and looked at Gella. ¡°They''re going to have separate setups, so please be careful how you separate and store the ingredients they are going to provide to you.¡± Gella looked thoughtful. ¡°Do you think they are going to make us brew again? We did that yesterday.¡± I thought about what the exam covered and nodded. ¡°I believe they are, except they are only going to give us the ingredients.¡± Jinelle gasped and Gella looked worried. ¡°Yes, I think that''s what''s going to happen. It''s the best test, just to see what we can come up with.¡± I said and pushed my nearly empty plate out of the way. ¡°There will be tricky ingredients that could go in several potions that were covered and some that weren''t in any potion we''ve done so far.¡± ¡°What... what do we do?¡± Jinelle asked in a whisper. I took her hand and shared some magic with her. ¡°We do what we can. Write down the ingredients in preparation order, then try to recall what recipes its similar to.¡± Gella caught her breath. ¡°That''s ingenious, my lord!¡± I smiled. ¡°Just looking at the ingredients won''t help, since you and I didn''t make the potions before. We have to compare the information to make an accurate guess.¡± ¡°What if... what if I can''t guess?¡± Jinelle asked and gripped my hand tightly. ¡°Then look over the ingredients and make whatever potion you want.¡± I said and her jaw dropped open. ¡°We''re advanced potions students. If we can''t make a potion from a bunch of ingredients by now, we should drop the class from embarrassment.¡± Jinelle got a particular look on her face before she blushed. I knew what that look meant, since she had given me the same one last night before we had sex, so I reached over and touched Robin''s necklace. The enchantment activated and the obscuring fog covered us and surrounded the table. Jinelle let out a happy sound and dove at me to kiss me soundly. Robin stared at us making out in front of her and didn''t know what to say. ¡°That really is a great idea.¡± Gella said. ¡°Even if all you make is a basic recipe, you still did it without having them provide that recipe.¡± Robin nodded in understanding and then Jinelle broke the kiss. ¡°You are brilliant, David.¡± Jinelle said and licked her lips as she sat back. ¡°Just brilliant.¡± Gella laughed softly and pointed to Robin. ¡°He''s not that brilliant with a witness around.¡± Jinelle blushed deeply and ducked her head. ¡°It''s all right.¡± I said and pat her hand. ¡°Robin''s a friend and doesn''t mind keeping a secret.¡± ¡°Of course not.¡± Robin said with confidence. ¡°The last thing I would ever do is betray your trust.¡± I heard the truth in her words and smiled as I tapped her necklace to end the enchantment. ¡°I''ll make you something to keep you safe in exchange.¡± Robin looked at Gella''s neck and saw the very nice pendant she wore and nodded. ¡°Let''s get to the testing auditorium.¡± I said and stood with my nearly empty wine glass. ¡°Thank you for sharing this meal with me.¡± The others stood as well and drank to my toast, then Gella, Jinelle, and I left the cafeteria. 294 Examination Exultation Part Four Bokuboy My prediction about what the exam would be, turned out to be correct, because we were all given large containers with various ingredients inside. They were separated and only partially prepared with several of them in their own divided area to signify their importance. They were marked with their names as well. ¡°You have what you have in front of you.¡± Greta said with a stern voice. ¡°Most of you should know what potions are viable with what you have in those containers. I want you to try your best to recreate one of those potions.¡± ¡°You''re kidding!¡± A young man''s voice exclaimed. ¡°You are advanced potions students. Some of you are even graduating this year.¡± Greta said and looked at her niece. ¡°We don''t expect perfection, or in some cases...¡± Her eyes went to me, because she knew I had no experience with the ingredients in front of me. ¡°...a viable or usable potion.¡± ¡°This exam is the worst!¡± The same male voice said. ¡°Just do what you can and you will be marked fairly.¡± Greta said to everyone. ¡°This is to gauge your ability to adapt, remember important facts, and to possibly brew necessary potions in an emergency or if you lose the recipe.¡± Jinelle caught her breath and I guessed that she realized what the potion was. ¡°You have been granted an extra hour after the scheduled end time, just in case you need it.¡± Greta said and sat down beside Pavinca at the desk. ¡°Good luck everyone.¡± Pavinca gave me an encouraging smile and a slight nod. I understood that I was to do my best with what I had in front of me, so I quickly wrote out the ingredients and added the properties of the ones I could remember. I didn''t have a lot of experience with these ingredients, so I only remembered most of them. The others I could guess at, considering their groupings, then remembered my own advice. Some of the ingredients could have been added to mess up the recipe and a student''s expectations, so I had to work with what I had. I had a fantastic memory, thanks to all of my experiences, and went over inside my head the recipes we had studied last night and this morning. That line of thinking took me right to having sex with everyone and the pained sounds from three of them. My mind went right to the potion that eased pain like my healing magic did last night. The recipe formed in my head and I knew what to do and how to brew it. I glanced at the clock and saw that Greta was right. I would need most of that extra hour to have a usable pain relief potion by the end of the exam. I wasn''t going to be happy with that, though. No, I was going to do something that was going to shock her. She knew I was an expert potion maker and yet didn''t give me the proper review instructions or any reading material. I would show her that I didn''t need them and she would understand exactly how much she had messed up with me. I quickly went over my list of ingredients and compared them to several of the other recipes from last night, then I paused. No, these won''t work. She won''t be surprised if I make a potion she knows. I thought and then smiled as I recalled several of the recipes that I hadn''t converted yet to the Gulf Kingdom standard. I raised my hand and Greta stood. ¡°Yes, Lord Drake?¡± ¡°I need more paper to write on and another pot to cook in, please.¡± I said in as sweet of a voice as I could, just to unnerve her. It worked, because she flinched at the tone. ¡°You need to use what''s in front of you.¡± Greta said, her voice sad. ¡°I''ll give him some extra paper, since it shouldn''t affect brewing whatever potion he''s chosen.¡± Pavinca said and grabbed a handful to bring over to me. ¡°We don''t want you asking him what he needs them for. You''re biased enough as it is.¡± Greta sighed and sat back down. Pavinca came over to me and held the papers out to me without speaking. ¡°Thank you, Director Chasma.¡± I said and accepted the papers with a slightly bow. I didn''t touch her hand or shared magic with her. Pavinca nodded and went back to her desk with a slightly disappointed look on her face. Now it''s time for the real work to begin. I thought and wrote out the old recipe I had discovered in my old potions book I kept from the Hag. It was complicated and also easy, if you had the right ingredients. I didn''t have them; but, I did know the proper conversions and equivalents. After replacing the original ingredients on another sheet with current ingredients that had the same properties, I went through the recipe and removed any redundant ingredients and brewing steps. This took me another sheet to properly rework the brewing steps to achieve the best results, then I compared the reworked recipe with the ingredient list I had made for the ingredients I had right there. I almost laughed out loud when they almost perfectly matched what I had without having to use any of the ingredients I wasn''t sure of. After one more recipe rewriting to fix the slightly off ingredients, I set out to distill several of the ingredients to condense them. This did not go unnoticed by either the students around me or the two women watching over us. No one knew what I was doing until I had refined three different ingredients and prepared them separately. Of course, knowing what I was doing was a lot different than knowing why, especially since none of the recipes taught in the class had needed distilled ingredients. ¡°Eyes on your own work!¡± Pavinca said loudly and that surprised a few of the students enough to make them go back to their own potions. I held in my laugh again, because Greta had nearly jumped out of her chair at Pavinca''s shout. She had been concentrating on me and my potion while she ignored everyone else. I continued my work and set everything up properly, with all of my ingredients ready, then I started to brew. I was a master at this and my movements had both flair and purpose. I had wanted to give Greta a show and I made sure to do that. I would pour a liquid from a foot above the pot, I would lob chopped ingredients halfway across the workbench to land perfectly in the potion without a splash, and then would gently sprinkle in the leafy ingredients as if it was a fine spice. Needless to say, Greta was enraptured, despite Pavinca''s many elbow pokes and whispered admonishments. I couldn''t stop my smile as I discreetly added my catalyst and infused my magic into the potion, set the cooking pot to a very high heat to bring the potion to a very boisterous boil, and stepped away to a safe distance. Nearly everyone in the room looked over at the loud bubbling potion and watched as both small and large bubbles rose out of the pot and popped, dropping their liquid back into it. ¡°Lord Drake, you are endangering your fellow students by distracting them.¡± Pavinca warned me. ¡°My apologies. It should be over in three... two... one.¡± I said and a large bubble, nearly the entire size of the top of the pot, rose up and looked completely clear. It actually showed a perfect reflection of the room we were in. A second later, a loud popping sound cut through the silence and the liquid making up the bubble dropped back into the pot. I cut the heat immediately by pulling the potion from the fire. Rather than waiting for the natural cooling process, which would take most of the day because of the boiling technique, I used my cooling spell to suck the excessive heat from it. The potion changed colors from a mirror-like surface to a deep silver, then I stirred it with a clean utensil. The deep silver changed to a bright silver that almost glowed. ¡°There, it''s done.¡± I said and looked at the single vial provided as I quickly rolled up all of my papers and tucked them into my bandoleer. ¡°I need six crates of empty vials, please.¡± ¡°WHAT?¡± Nearly everyone in the room said at the same time, including Greta and Pavinca. ¡°They can only hold a single dose, which is a small amount of this potion.¡± I said as an explanation and then ladled out a tiny bit into the vial and held it up. It was only one sixth full. ¡°It has to be exact or you can get poisoned and quite sick.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Greta asked as she stood up. ¡°Don''t answer that, Lord Drake.¡± Pavinca said and walked over to the door to ask for someone to bring in more cases of empty vials. ¡°It''s our job to figure it out.¡± I didn''t say anything until a hand cart with six cases of vials was left by my workbench. ¡°What if you''ve never seen it before or used it? How would you figure it out?¡± That made everyone gasp, even the guys. Pavinca and Greta stared at me with wide eyes and didn''t answer, so I spent the next twenty minutes filling vials with single doses. When I was done, there was one vial unused because I had the testing one on the workbench already. I cast lock on the crates and felt it settle into the vials as well. No one was going to open them except me. I held up the single dose vial and looked at Pavinca. ¡°Do I pass this in now or do I have to wait for the scheduled time to end?¡± Both Pavinca and Greta looked at the clock and were surprised that there was over an hour and a half left of the regular exam time, not counting the extra hour Greta had scheduled. ¡°I''ll get you a chair.¡± Pavinca said and went to the door again. She came back a minute later with a chair and I sat down on it. Her eyes went to my hand and the vial with a minuscule amount of silver substance in it. ¡°Dammit, I have to check.¡± I chuckled as she took it from my hand and she went back to the desk at the front of the room. I knew they wouldn''t figure it out, not with the changes I had made to the recipe, and trying to extract my catalyst to break it down wouldn''t work, either. I sat there and waited, doing nothing but watching Pavinca and Greta argue in whispers and casting spells at the vial. Neither of them had ever seen anything like it before and had no clue what it did or what it could be used for. Of course, they were also working on the false assumption that because I had used most of the available ingredients, that it was close to, or a stronger variant of, one of the potions brewed in class. The normal exam time came to an end and Pavinca and Greta had to stop their testing to go to each student and examine their potions and their progress. Nearly half of the students filled a vial for testing and were provided chairs to sit in for the remaining hour of the time extension. No one was surprised when the two women had easily discerned the potions created, or failed to be created in two cases, and each were marked down on a piece of paper to be properly judged later. They went back to examining mine and I could see that they were unable to pull it apart or even figure out what it did. Greta even left to get a mouse to test it on, which made me laugh when the mouse squeaked for a minute straight after receiving a single drop. Nothing else happened to it, though. The extended exam time came to an end and Pavinca and Greta went back to work gathering up the samples from the other students and assessing their work and progress. Everything was recorded and documented and brought back to the desk at the front of the room. The samples were placed into a crate and marked with the names of the students and a number, which was added to the assessment sheets. ¡°All right.¡± Pavinca said as she stood. ¡°Thank you all for doing your best. We should have the results ready in a few days.¡± ¡°We have to wait until the start of next week?¡± A young woman asked. ¡°I''m sure that if we only had a few of you to get through, it would happen sooner.¡± Greta said. ¡°You all did a lot of work and it''s going to take time to give you all a proper assessment and not just the rush we had to do today.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± The young woman said. ¡°We also have to test the potions for their viability.¡± Pavinca said. ¡°Don''t worry if you need the information for the weekend to give to your family. Give your name to Greta and she will make a note to try and do yours first.¡± A bunch of people''s hands went up and she laughed. ¡°No, only necessary families qualify.¡± Pavinca said and looked at Jinelle. ¡°Anyone with potions backgrounds get priority.¡± Most of the hands went down and only a few were left. ¡°Come up and give us your names and we''ll try to have them done before the weekend.¡± Greta said and Jinelle was one of the first to give her full name and who to contact. No one was surprised that she asked them to tell Lady Marks first and not her mother. I didn''t bother trying to get them to work on mine. I knew they couldn''t fathom what I did or what I had made, thanks to how I did it and making a show of it. Gella came over to my side and smiled widely at me. ¡°My lord.¡± I could see that she was trying very hard to not laugh. ¡°Go ahead. I did it like that on purpose.¡± Gella let her restraint go and burst out laughing as she leaned against me. She almost had tears in her eyes as she laughed and laughed. The other students gave us odd looks and some even laughed themselves as they left. ¡°I''m not even going to ask what''s so funny.¡± Jinelle said as she came over to us. ¡°That was quite the display, Lord Drake.¡± ¡°That was the point.¡± I said and her eyebrows raised, then she laughed softly. ¡°I see.¡± Jinelle said and nodded to Gella, who was calming down. ¡°There are some battles that even a sworn sword cannot fight for you.¡± Gella nodded enthusiastically. ¡°I know! It was hilarious! I could never do that and pull it off!¡± I nodded as well. ¡°I needed to make sure that Greta... Mage Marks... knew that she was in the wrong for how she treated me on my return to her class.¡± Jinelle looked a little sad at my correction. ¡°My aunt isn''t the best with dealing with things like this.¡± She said. ¡°When you were taken, she lost a lot of her will to live her life. She changed and... not really for the better.¡± ¡°She didn''t seem to be that different.¡± Gella said. ¡°She has a good front, the same as my grandmother and mother. They don''t let a lot of their emotions out when they can help it.¡± ¡°She tried to repress it when I saved her from being murdered.¡± I said and Jinelle let out a startled sound. ¡°She didn''t tell you that her old boss tried to have her killed?¡± Jinelle shook her head. ¡°After that, I gave her a medallion to protect her and to repel men if she chose.¡± ¡°She''s used that a few times.¡± Jinelle said with a sigh. ¡°She''s become a very desirable woman with the Mages Guild being gone and all of their political pressure removed.¡± ¡°Your grandmother again?¡± I asked and Jinelle shook her head. ¡°Greta doesn''t have to provide an heir for the family, thanks to my mother having me.¡± Jinelle said and looked at me. ¡°She''s free to choose whoever she wants... and she doesn''t want to.¡± I knew what she meant. ¡°No, I won''t be tied up and restrained with a contract. I''ll destroy everything if it ever happens again.¡± I said and she looked a little sick. ¡°Mage Marks knows this.¡± ¡°Oh. That explains it.¡± Jinelle said. ¡°Explains what?¡± I asked. ¡°She''s hurting you in retaliation for hurting her feelings.¡± Gella said, understanding it right away. ¡°You won''t marry her and she desperately wanted you to, now that you''re miraculously alive and back. Since she can''t have you, she''s fighting her instincts to help you by running only a short distance away.¡± I looked over at the woman leaning close to Pavinca as they examined my potion some more. ¡°I could take that easily, since I am used to people ignoring me. It''s the fact that she''s hurting my chances and delaying my attempts at helping my people that bothers me.¡± Jinelle touched my arm. ¡°Lord Drake, don''t hold it against her. She''s just vulnerable and scared.¡± ¡°So is everyone else.¡± I said and put my hands on the handle of the hand cart. ¡°Let''s go, Gella.¡± ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± Gella said and took up her guard position and walked ahead to open the door for me. ¡°Lord Drake!¡± Pavinca''s voice shouted when I reached the door. I stopped walking and turned to look at her. Pavinca strode across the room with Greta beside her. ¡°It''s against our normal protocol for me to ask what you made; but, since we haven''t seen it before and can''t figure out what it does, I would like to look at your scrap papers.¡± ¡°No.¡± I said and both she and Greta looked surprised. ¡°I won''t give you the recipe.¡± ¡°That''s not... Lord Drake, we can''t assess your brewing technique properly if we don''t know what you did.¡± I smiled slightly and pointed at Greta. ¡°She watched me the entire time and knows exactly what I did to brew it. Ask her, or better yet, give her the potion and then ask her.¡± Jinelle gasped at my words and both Greta and Pavinca''s face showed surprise. ¡°It''s a recall potion to give you perfect memory recall?¡± Greta asked. I shook my head. ¡°Is it against protocol for me to offer what the potion is?¡± Pavinca opened her mouth to answer and Greta touched her arm. She sighed and looked at me. ¡°No.¡± ¡°It''s a truth serum I call ''Absolute Truth''. One dose and you cannot tell a lie for half an hour.¡± Pavinca''s face lost all of its color and her mouth dropped open. Greta put a hand on her heart and started breathing heavily as if she ran a great distance. Jinelle swayed slightly and looked like she was going to faint. Gella just laughed and laughed. 295 Examination Exultation Part Five Jinelle went to her aunt and leaned against her, since the both of them needed the support. Pavinca just stared at me. I motioned for Gella to start walking again and they didn''t stop us from leaving with crates full of what they thought was a very scary and very powerful resource. Since no one else except us knew what it actually was, there was no danger of anyone coming to my dorm to steal it. I hid it in a side room after carrying it all up the stairs to our room. The dorm monitor only watched us with mild interest as we made a couple of trips with them. She didn''t even ask me what it was. When I passed her with the last crate, I stopped and took out a handful of gold crowns to hand to her. ¡°Thank you for your discretion.¡± I said and she smiled warmly at me. I took the last crate up to the room while Gella brought the empty hand cart back to the testing auditorium, since we didn''t know where it actually came from. When she came back to the room, she stated that they were loading the extra chairs onto it. The next morning were the combined exams for Basic Enchanting and Runes with the practicals in the afternoon. I was going to have a very easy time with the practicals, since I could carve enchantments blindfolded. The written exams were going to be a lot more difficult, since I didn''t have any experience with the runes and enchantments that the teachers had used for the last six months. I quickly went to the table and Gella dug out Vanessa''s copied notes for the class. She spread them out for me and we went through them to sort by importance, power requirements, and effects. We grouped similar and complimentary runes and enchantments together, just to make it a less daunting task than it actually was. The best part was that there weren''t a lot of singular use runes for us to learn and most needed to be grouped. I wasn''t surprised when Hanna nestled on a pillow on the floor between my legs. She had become a little clingy after last night and did her best to not annoy me with it. I appreciated that, so I would occasionally pet her hair as I studied with Gella and discussed the merits of each enchantment. I was happy to use the same learning technique that we had discovered while studying for the Advanced Potions exam, as was Gella. We stopped briefly to eat supper and then continued to study. Farra brought us scrap pieces of wood to practice carving on, as well as extra papers for us to practice drawing the different enchantments. By the time we were ready to go to bed, Gella was quite confident that she could handle anything put in front of her. I was sure that since it was the basic course, they wouldn''t give us anything too difficult, since most of the students wouldn''t be continuing the class next year. There wasn''t a lot of interest from the other girls in the class I attended, not even from Vanessa. She only did well because of me. When I was gone, her interest had waned. She was back to being the worst in the class, so I blamed her new friends for discouraging her. Gella and Farra pat Hanna''s head and went to the spare bed with Jill, making Hanna quite happy. She didn''t comment on getting to spend the night with me and climbed into my bed with only a nightgown on. I stripped off and climbed in as well. ¡°We''re going to sleep.¡± ¡°I know, my lord.¡± Hanna said and snuggled into my side, kissed my neck, and pretended to go right to sleep. I relaxed my body and closed my eyes, waiting for her to make a move. Half an hour later, her hand lightly stroked me under the blanket. She didn''t try to move down or to do more than that, though. I wasn''t sure what she was doing, since I hadn''t had anyone do that to me before. When my body couldn''t fight off the gentle stimulation, her grip changed and her other hand caught everything I let out. Without a pause, Hanna lifted the hand to her mouth and drank it all down, licked off her palm like it was the tastiest thing she had ever eaten, then wiped her hands on her nightgown and actually went to sleep. I opened my eyes and looked at her, then turned my head to look at the others. Gella had a smile on her face and Farra was fighting to not laugh at my expression. Jill shrugged her shoulders at me, because she apparently didn''t know that was going to happen. I sighed and closed my eyes again, then went to sleep. Tomorrow was going to be a day for several people to remember, namely the two teachers, especially if they let us enchant whatever we wanted for the practical exam. I doubted they would let me bring my own items, so I would have to make due with whatever they had. If it was insufficient for the purpose, I would have to speak up and say so. The next morning came early and Jill gave us a shared bath that we all shared the scrubbing. I seemed to have used up a lot more time scrubbing the others, probably by design. They seemed to be sneaking around and getting me to do more when it came to them. I didn''t mind, since we did have some great sex the other night. Gella and I dressed properly and went to the testing auditorium for the written exam. Once again, no one seemed to want to look at me and avoided me. I thought that was normal, until I saw some of the guilty faces. I glanced at Gella and she nodded before moving off to discreetly talk to the teachers. When she came back, she whispered that some of them felt bad about abandoning me and the rest thought I shouldn''t be there. I nodded slightly and we were ordered to go to our seats and prepare for the exam. Most of the students took out measuring instruments and things to help them, which Gella and I didn''t. We didn''t need them and a lot of the students saw our lack of helpful items. Some smiled in satisfaction, mostly the guys, and the rest looked sad. I didn''t correct their mistake in thinking I was lacking preparedness as Mage Heather Montgomery walked around to deposit the exam papers face down onto everyone''s desk. Black sat on the desk at the front of the room and didn''t speak until his wife came back to stand beside him. ¡°Some of you are going to have an easy time with this exam, especially those that actually followed along with their notes.¡± Black said and Heather nodded. ¡°Some of you are going to be out of your depth.¡± I smiled slightly when he avoided my gaze and Heather looked right at me. In a sudden bout of inspiration, I smiled fully and winked at her. She immediately blushed and turned her head away. ¡°You may begin.¡± Black said and we all flipped the papers over. I read the first question about the damage rune and why to add its use in an enchantment, and to state where. I had to clamp my mouth shut to not laugh out loud, because even as a child, I could have answered this question. Just for fun, I wrote out the answers and also added the rune drawing and beside that I added the same basic enchantment drawing we used in class for the wooden dagger. I moved on to the next question and the next, embellishing as much as I could and added in both the rune drawings it referred to and also any classroom enchantments that the runes used. Because of that, it took me nearly as long as everyone else to finish the exam. Both Black and Heather looked satisfied that I had seemed to struggle more than everyone else with how much I was writing, until the exam time ended and Heather came around to gather up the exam papers. She smirked at me as she picked mine up, then she flipped it over to give it a quick glance, probably to see how badly I had done. She gasped at what she saw and dropped the other papers. ¡°Heather!¡± Black shouted and strode over to her. ¡°Pick those up right now and...¡± Heather turned my papers around and showed them to him. Black stumbled and kicked the other papers as he stared at it. ¡°Professors!¡± A woman''s voice cut through the auditorium and they both jumped. ¡°Get back to work!¡± ¡°Y-yes, Director.¡± They said and gathered up the spilled exam papers, then Heather continued around the room to gather the rest. I turned to look at Pavinca and she nodded at me. I nodded back and waited for the professors to return to the desk at the front of the room. ¡°We should have the results of your exams after the weekend.¡± Black said. ¡°You''re dismissed.¡± Pavinca walked by me and over to the desk at the front. She held out a hand and Heather didn''t have to ask what she wanted. My exam papers were handed over and Pavinca nodded and made them glow. ¡°I expect a fair marking, or you''ll be joining Mage Kimond in looking for a job.¡± Pavinca said with a flat voice. ¡°You better not mess with his practical exam after lunch.¡± Both Black and Heather looked guilty. ¡°Should I fire you now for tampering with a student''s exam?¡± Pavinca pointedly asked them. Both of them shook their heads. ¡°Then stop whatever you were planning before it happens.¡± Pavinca said and handed them my exam papers. ¡°I''ll be watching you.¡± They both nodded and she walked over to me. ¡°It seems I really did need to keep an eye on things where you''re concerned.¡± Pavinca said. ¡°Was there any reason why you wouldn''t?¡± I asked. Pavinca huffed and waved at the door. ¡°Go and eat. I''m sure Robin is missing you already.¡± ¡°Yes, director.¡± Gella said as she smiled and took my arm to lead me there. I didn''t protest or tried to take my arm back, even when we were entering the cafeteria. Not surprisingly, a few people whispered comments about it. What wasn''t surprising was that neither Robin nor Jinelle reacted to it. They also had plates of food ready for us. ¡°I suppose you''re going to be eating with my lord from now on?¡± Gella asked as I sat her down as if she was a lady. ¡°You mean until tomorrow and the three days next week? Yes.¡± Jinelle said with a smile. ¡°How sad are you that you only shared one class with him this year?¡± Robin asked. ¡°After the intense way we studied? Very sad.¡± Jinelle admitted and blushed a little. ¡°I won''t intentionally fail just to stay around the academy to try and repeat that, though.¡± Robin chuckled and poured out some wine for everyone. ¡°I know I missed him when he disappeared.¡± ¡°Is that because you have to eat with the staff when he''s not here?¡± Gella boldly asked. Robin laughed. ¡°No, he''s just nice to be around.¡± Gella and Jinelle exchanged knowing looks, because they knew it wasn''t always nice around me. My reputation as the Marsh Man was quite prolific after my return and clearing out most of the Mages Guild. We shared polite conversation after that and ate our food, drank wine, and enjoyed the short time we had before it was time to return to the testing auditorium and the enchanting practicals. We entered the building and the desk setup hadn''t been changed, which was odd. You had a much harder time enchanting on a desk used for writing, which was why you always used a workbench instead. It also gave you a more stable place to work. ¡°Take your seats, everyone.¡± Black said and the students did. He could clearly see that they were uncomfortable. ¡°There''s a reason you''re still at your writing desks.¡± ¡°We''re not working on anything here, are we?¡± A young woman asked. ¡°No, you''ll come up here to the workbench behind the screen to do your work.¡± Black said. ¡°Are you joking?¡± A young man asked. ¡°That''s going to take forever if we have to do them in a line!¡± Black looked at his wife and she sighed and shook her head. ¡°I thought I told you to fix things.¡± Pavina''s voice said from nearby. ¡°This doesn''t look fixed.¡± Black winced and Heather dropped her head into her hands. ¡°What scheme were you going to do to Lord Drake?¡± Pavinca asked as she came out of the corner and walked over to the desk at the front of the room. ¡°A trap? A hidden spell? An enchantment you''ll only activate when he''s behind the screen and blame on his experimentation?¡± Black''s face showed the truth, even though he never said anything. Heather just started crying. ¡°I didn''t want to do it! He ordered me! He said he would ransom me back to my family if I helped!¡± ¡°You wanted out of your marriage contract?¡± Pavinca asked and she nodded. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I''ve crossed Lord Drake several times already. I didn''t want to die for trying to kill him.¡± Heather said. ¡°Shut up!¡± Black spat and turned towards her, one of his hands were glowing slightly with a preparing spell. ¡°They have no evidence if you stay quie-UGGLLHH!¡± Gella sheathed her sword as she stood up from behind him. No one but me had seen her dash forward and swipe her glowing sword across the man''s neck. Her elbow tapped his back and his head flopped off and landed on the floor with a thud. His body followed a second later. ¡°Contract ended.¡± Gella said and walked back to her desk. ¡°Appropriate compensation will be expected for Lord Drake''s services.¡± Heather looked at her husband''s blank stare and then at me. ¡°I will send over a dozen swords and two dozen knives.¡± ¡°And a forge.¡± I said. ¡°I''ll pay for the forge and to have it set up.¡± Heather smiled slightly and nodded. With her husband dead, she wouldn''t need to be ransomed back to her family. She now controlled the Montgomery Family on her own and her daughter was the family heir. The grandfather was also dead, so Heather was technically the only adult left with only younger cousins that couldn''t really lay claim to the family business. ¡°I have to delay the start of the exam for an hour.¡± Pavinca said and a few of the students groaned. ¡°I need that long to get the proper setups brought in and to check over what the exam was supposed to entail and not what is already set up here.¡± ¡°My lord, let''s go for a walk.¡± Gella said and stood, took my arm, and led me from the room. Her move gave the others a reason to leave and the room quickly emptied behind us. 296 Examination Exultation Part Six Bokuboy For some reason, Gella led me around to the main administration building during our walk. ¡°Lunch is over, Gella. The cafeteria is closed.¡± I said and she gave me a sly smile, then dragged me up the stairs. I didn''t clue in to where she was bringing me until we went past the floor that the cafeteria was on and the library doors opened. A very tall Eludora stood there, still near her nine feet of height. To my surprise, she had normal shaped arms and legs, with the proper muscles and appropriate strength to move her large frame around. ¡°My dearest.¡± Eludora whispered and her arms went around me as she knelt to look into my eyes. ¡°Eludora.¡± I responded and didn''t hug her back. ¡°Idiot.¡± Gella said and slapped the back of my head. That motion pushed my head forward and my lips met Eludora''s. She moaned as a substantial amount of her magic poured out of her like a river. My magic responded in kind and swirled together with hers. Her hands tore off my uniform coat and shirt, which made buttons fly, and her hands rubbed my skin as her glamour spell faded. Her white skin and long white hair were revealed and she kept kissing me as she slipped out of her own simple dress. I tried to protest and it came out as a mumbled moan, which encouraged her. She pushed me down to the floor right there and I felt a soft and thick blanket under me and not the rough carpet of the library. I glanced up to see Gella smirk as she closed the backpack she carried for me. I tried to glare at her and instead of being intimidated, she blushed. I held in my sigh as Eludora moved down to pull my pants off and she moaned as my prominent erection was revealed. Her mouth slipped over me and she started sucking. She was as inexperienced as Jinelle was, since neither of them had ever seen a personal maid take care of someone. Gella knelt beside her and started whispering in her ear. My body responded to Eludora''s altered technique and she looked immensely pleased when I couldn''t control it and poured myself into her mouth. She slurped it all up and swallowed, moaned as she felt it go down her throat, then she gave me that look. It was the look of ''you''re getting sex and you''re going to like it''. I doubted I would be allowed to leave at this point, considering Gella had engineered this whole encounter, so I didn''t try to roll away as Eludora moved up to mount me. ¡°Please accept my maidenhood as you have the others that are devoted to you.¡± Eludora said, almost like a ritual, then she sat down on top of me and my erection pierced her womanhood. ¡°AHHH-huh?¡± I almost laughed at her surprise that my magic healed her instantly. Gella wasn''t restrained at all and did laugh. ¡°Hanna reacted the same way!¡± ¡°What... why...¡± Eludora looked at her and then down at me. ¡°My lord healed you, so you can enjoy him right away.¡± Gella encouraged her. Eludora''s smile was bright as she started rocking and making my erection move in and out of her. Her smile slowly faded and was replaced with pleasure. She moaned and licked her lips as she did her best to do all the work. She knew I was against this the last time we had seen each other, so she didn''t want me to worry that I had to do anything to return her unrequited love. Gella must have assumed this was the case and gave me a stern look. ¡°My lord.¡± I sighed and sat up, making Eludora gasp as my face was buried into her breasts. She wrapped her arms around me and cooed that she was so happy. With her in the right position now, I rolled over and put Eludora on the floor on her back while still inside of her. ¡°OHHHH!¡± Eludora moaned loudly when my erection went a whole lot deeper than her previous movements had allowed. Her own long legs as she knelt over me, had prevented me from completely entering her. She kept her long arms around my back and just their weight alone held me close to her. She kissed me continuously while I moved in and out of her, giving her the pleasure that she had so desperately wanted during her first recovery treatment. She couldn''t do anything with her long legs, though. Her thighs alone were several feet long and wrapping them around me was not going to work, so she kept her knees bent and spread her legs very far apart instead. This gave me a lot of room to work, so I used it effectively and made her scream my name. Our magic was flowing around us like a deep ocean, mixing together and not causing any kind of damage to our surroundings or to Gella, whom was watching closely for any intruders. She didn''t want anyone interrupting my passionate reunion with Eludora. ¡°Give... give it to me, David! I want it!¡± Eludora shouted as she orgasmed and her magic pushed me to do the same. I wasn''t going to give her a child, though. I left my magic out of it as I blew the load that she wanted into her. The magic around us ebbed and started to flow back into her. She was panting heavily and she held me tenderly as she thought it was over. She kissed me and closed her eyes. ¡°Don''t go to sleep yet.¡± Gella warned her. Eludora opened her eyes to look at her. ¡°What? I was... trying to bask...¡± ¡°He''s not done.¡± Gella said with a soft laugh. Eludora gasped when my magic cleaned her all over, then I moved down to put my face between her legs. ¡°David? What are you doing?¡± ¡°My lord is going to show you a more commoner way of doing things.¡± Gella said with a huge grin. ¡°What do you meaaaaaooohhhhhh!¡± Eludora moaned as I used my mouth, tongue, and magic to please her. She had never heard of such a thing before and experiencing it was almost too much for her. ¡°Pause, my lord.¡± Gella said to me and checked Eludora''s breathing. ¡°She almost passed out like Hanna did after the first time.¡± I lifted my head to look at the euphoric look on Eludora''s face. ¡°Do you need me to stop?¡± ¡°Nnnoooo.¡± Eludora slurred, her tongue not quite working right. ¡°Keeeeeep gooooinng.¡± I raised my eyebrows at Gella, who shrugged. ¡°All right.¡± I said and went back to work. Eludora moaned and her hands played with her own breasts absently, as if she needed to do something with her hands. ¡°Grab his hair. It feels wonderful if you pull his face in tighter.¡± Gella suggest to her. Eludora giggled and her large hands gripped my long hair, then she pulled hard and jammed my face against her womanhood. ¡°OHHHH!¡± I had to close my eyes when I felt my face get soaked. I didn''t say anything, mainly because Eludora had tears in her eyes as she played with my hair. I kept working on her, using my fingers and tongue, and she had several more orgasms before she sighed and relaxed, letting my hair go. ¡°My lord, she needs a break.¡± Gella said and I moved away from Eludora''s sensitive area. ¡°Like Jinelle, she needs to recover a bit before she can go again.¡± ¡°We only have another twenty minutes of the hour left. We can''t stay.¡± I said. Gella looked down at Eludora. ¡°We can''t really leave her like this.¡± ¡°Put out the ''Library Temporarily Closed'' sign on the door and I''ll take her and the blanket into the storage room.¡± I said and Gella did that while I picked up the large form of the librarian. She didn''t react or even try to hug me as I carried her into the back room. I was surprised to see a bed there, which meant that she didn''t leave the library anymore, despite having an apartment in the teacher''s building. Gella entered and saw the bed I had put Eludora on. ¡°Leave a note and tell her you''ll see her again in a couple of hours.¡± I gave her a questioning look. ¡°She''s going to need you again, just like Jinelle did after her first time.¡± I couldn''t argue that, so I left the note on a piece of paper that I placed on her chest. As soon as she woke up, she would either feel it or see it. We left there and stopped at a bathroom to clean up and make sure that I looked presentable. My shirt was a loss, so Gella used some number ten potion to seal it where the buttons were supposed to be. We left the building and returned to the auditorium. There were groups of students standing around outside and waiting to go inside, so we joined them and waited as well. ¡°What''s it like to murder someone in front of so many witnesses and still get away with it?¡± A young man''s voice asked with a sneer. ¡°It''s the same as doing it in private where I also kill any witnesses.¡± Gella drew her sword and the young man''s face showed fear. ¡°Do you want to find out if that''s true?¡± He shook his head vigorously and stepped back, then seemed to run away. He didn''t go far and stopped at the edge of the small crowd of students. Gella laughed and sheathed her sword again. ¡°Cowards always run when faced with the truth.¡± ¡°I prefer to call it a tactical retreat.¡± I commented and Gella laughed. Everyone around us gave us strange looks, which we ignored. At the hour mark, the auditorium doors opened and Pavinca was there with a dozen workmen. ¡°Thank you, gentlemen.¡± Pavinca said and the men walked out the doors and off to the left. ¡°We''re ready for you all now.¡± We all filed into the building and saw the difference. Smaller workbenches were provided, half the size of an actual workbench, which was perfect for the task at hand. ¡°As you can see, this setup will work much better than desks and individual tests.¡± Heather said from the front of the room. ¡°After discussing things with Director Chasma, I''ve changed the exam to give each of you several options for enchanting. This course was supposed to encourage you into the field, not discourage you from pursuing it as a job or even as a hobby.¡± ¡°Yeah, that didn''t happen.¡± A young man''s voice said. Heather sighed. ¡°I know and I''m sorry. I couldn''t go against my husband.¡± She looked around the room and then looked right at me. ¡°Some of you know why.¡± I knew she was referring to when she tried to charm me and was caught by her husband. He made her renew her loyalty oaths to him and his family, which restricted what she could openly do against him. ¡°So, you''re saying that if you hadn''t been caught breaking the law and school rules by trying to magically ensnare Lord Drake, you could have made every male in the course fall for you and be better enchanters?¡± Gella asked. Her voice was fairly loud and it echoed slightly in the auditorium. Heather''s face flushed to a deep red and everyone knew that was exactly what she had meant, because she didn''t deny it, not with Director Chasma right there beside her. ¡°Just get on with it.¡± Pavinca said and then sighed. ¡°You''re fired after the exams are graded. I can''t have someone influencing the students like that.¡± ¡°I haven''t since...¡± Heather started to deny. ¡°Before that! How many men have been compromised, all because you wanted them to become enchanters?¡± Pavinca asked. ¡°How many are dead now because they could be so easily influenced by magic?¡± Heather couldn''t answer that and stayed quiet as she pushed a hand cart filled with things made of wildwood. Four inch coins, six inch square blocks, daggers, short swords, and even shields. ¡°Please choose something that you would want to have yourself. Protection for others, offense, defense, passive enchantments, or whatever you want. When you choose, I''ll give you the basic design and you can use whatever runes you want to complete it.¡± Heather said and went to each student to give them a chance to take what they wanted. When she reached me, she wouldn''t look at my face. I took one of the six inch square blocks and knew exactly what enchantment I was going to put on it, slightly modified, of course. I would need six separate and equal pieces, so I had a question to ask. ¡°Can we divide this up how we want? I don''t want to fail if I do it and it''s not accepted.¡± Heather looked at the wooden cube and back at my face. ¡°Divide how?¡± I smiled and slid my sword out, made it glow, and sliced the cube into six pieces, each an inch long, making six equal squares. Heather stared at the perfect cuts. ¡°Are... are you... only submitting one of them?¡± ¡°No, I''m using them all and I''ll reform the cube.¡± I said, surprising everyone except Gella. She knew exactly what I was going to do with it. ¡°I''ll allow an exemption, just to see what you come up with.¡± Pavinca said from the desk at the front of the room. I nodded and Heather moved on to give items out to the rest of the students. ¡°The carving kits are in the drawer of the bench.¡± Heather said. ¡°Take them out only when you want your exam to start.¡± ¡°When do we know we can start?¡± Someone asked. ¡°I''m giving each of you a basic enchantment drawing first.¡± Heather said and took out a stack of papers. ¡°Use the runes you want and complete the enchantment on your chosen item. When you''re confident that you can safely carve them, take out the tools and the official exam will start for you.¡± I checked the desk and the drawer for enchantments, spells, and cursed items. I cast Dispel on everything, just in case, and opened the drawer to do the same thing to the cloth bundle of carving tools. Once I checked that they were fine, I started to work. I skimmed a very thin sliver of wood from each wood piece to use as a veneer to cover the enchantments when I was done carving them. I quickly carved out the very first enchantment of the six I had perfected, then added in a slightly larger power distribution path. I flipped it over to hide it until I was ready to add my enchanting potion, and carved the next square, adding a slightly altered magic path. I did the next square and added a smaller reservoir for power than it should have. This guaranteed that it wouldn''t last when combined with the other slight alterations. This was only for the exam and wouldn''t be kept, so I needed to make it inherently flawed and to fail after only a few minutes of use. It was surprisingly easy to finish. I used my enchanting potion and infused each of the blocks separately. I used some number ten potion and added the veneers to cover the enchantments up to stop anyone from stealing the design, then I used more number ten potion to stick the enchanted pieces together and made a cube with the center empty. I raised my hand and both Mage Heather Montgomery and Director Pavinca Chasma looked at me. ¡°You have a question?¡± Pavinca asked. ¡°What do I do when I''m done?¡± I asked, shocking everyone and made Gella laugh. ¡°It''s barely been half an hour!¡± Heather exclaimed. ¡°You didn''t even use any sheets to draw out...¡± ¡°I only needed sheets in class because you demanded to see my work.¡± I said and she looked stunned. ¡°Do you want to come and get this or should I bring it to you?¡± ¡°I''ll get it.¡± Pavinca said and walked over to me. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I thought you weren''t allowed to ask?¡± I asked as I handed the cube over. ¡°That only counts with the higher class levels. This is the basic first year course.¡± Pavinca said and looked at the seven inch cube in her hands. ¡°Why is it an inch bigger?¡± ¡°It''s hollow.¡± I said. ¡°Don''t activate it until you want to examine it.¡± She must have heard something in my voice and looked back at my face. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Do it from six feet away. That''s the safe distance.¡± I said and she looked worried. ¡°It won''t activate until you want it to. Just add magic to start it like all enchantments.¡± Pavinca nodded and started to walk back to her desk. She stopped and looked back at me. ¡°You didn''t say what it was.¡± ¡°No, I didn''t.¡± I said and smiled slightly. Pavinca huffed and walked back to the desk and put the thing on the center of it. She and Heather moved some papers and things off of the desk and stepped back to the safe distance, then took another step back. ¡°This should be fun.¡± Gella whispered from beside me. Pavinca nodded to Heather, who used some magic to activate the enchanted cube. A solid and slightly blue circular sphere of magic snapped into being around the desk. It was exactly five feet out from the cube. The sound of the magical barrier severing the wood floor was loud in the silence of the auditorium. Luckily, the solid stone floor under the wood stopped the desk from falling, since the barrier also cut through the stone. ¡°By the Son''s Light!¡± Heather gasped. ¡°That... that''s a perfect mage shield.¡± Pavinca said and reached out to touch it. ¡°NO!¡± Heather said and grabbed her hand. ¡°It''s solid! You know what a mage shield does to any attack!¡± ¡°Touching it...¡± ¡°It doesn''t know you''re only touching it! Anything hitting it will be damaged!¡± Heather said and let her hand go. ¡°I never thought... how did he...¡± ¡°I don''t know.¡± Pavinca said and looked at me. ¡°Lord Drake...¡± ¡°It only lasts a few minutes, so you need to take whatever measurements you need for my exam.¡± I said and she nodded. Both of them got to work and used several detection and measuring spells. When they were done, the perfect sphere flickered slightly. ¡°DUCK!¡± Heather yelled and dove away to hide behind the previous screen they had for the individual tests. Pavinca was right behind her and they both looked out at the desk from safety. The shield sputtered and the wood cube started smoking, then the sphere snapped like the sound of glass breaking and the wooden cube exploded and sent burning wood shards out about ten feet. It was nothing but ashes several moments later. ¡°F-full marks.¡± Heather said and pulled out the papers she had on her desk. ¡°Even lasting as long as it did, an artificial and independent mage shield actually working, is an amazing piece of enchanting work.¡± ¡°You can leave if you want.¡± Pavinca said. ¡°Making you stand there for the next four hours or so is unnecessary.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and turned to walk over to the door after whispering ''library'' to Gella, who smiled. ¡°Lord Drake.¡± Heather said in a normal voice and not a shout, so I stopped walking and turned to look at her. ¡°Are you making more of them?¡± ¡°Not for the military.¡± I said and left. 297 Examination Exultation Part Seven I went back to the library and went to the back room. Locked doors made no difference to me and I opened them without a key and entered the storage room. Eludora was still asleep, so I crossed the small room to the bed and sat down beside her prone form. It took her another hour before she woke up and she gasped and opened her eyes. ¡°It wasn''t a dream!¡± Eludora exclaimed, eerily similar to Jinelle''s proclamation after she had napped when we had our first time. ¡°No, it wasn''t.¡± I said. Eludora''s hands reached up to tug on my shirt. ¡°No buttons?¡± She asked and then her eyes widened. ¡°I tore them off!¡± I nodded and she pulled my coat off before lifting my shirt. ¡°Allow me.¡± I said and pulled my shirt off in two pieces. ¡°It''s useless as it is, anyway.¡± Eludora moaned a little at my show of strength. ¡°David... please... I need...¡± ¡°That''s why I came back after my exam.¡± I said and the smile on her face lit up the room. Eludora moved the blanket and I climbed in on top of her. She moaned loudly as I entered her once more and her arms wrapped around me to hold me tightly. She started kissing me tenderly, as she had before, and we had sex like that for several more hours. She didn''t mind that at all, even being unable to do any other actual sexual positions because of her very long limbs. ¡°My lord?¡± Gella asked as she entered the room and saw Eludora trying her hardest to cuddle up on my chest, only she was much too big for anything like that and most of her legs hung off of the bed. Gella couldn''t stop her giggle when she saw that. ¡°I''m jealous of you.¡± Eludora said with a sigh and sat up to pull her legs back onto the bed. ¡°I can''t cuddle him like I desire to.¡± Gella walked over to us and smiled. ¡°Just switch roles. He''s tiny compared to you, so let him cuddle up on your chest instead.¡± Eludora gave her a brilliant smile and pulled me onto her chest as she laid down without even asking me, not that I had a chance to say no. ¡°Yes! This is much, much better! Thank you!¡± ¡°Yes, thank you.¡± I said sarcastically, with my head shoved between Eludora''s breasts. Gella laughed. ¡°We need to get back to the dorm, my lord. You have the Math exam in the morning to study for and the History and Geography exam in the afternoon.¡± Eludora sighed and stroked my head. ¡°David, don''t go.¡± ¡°You know I must.¡± I said and sat up. She didn''t stop petting me, though. ¡°If you leave, I... I''m afraid that you will never come back.¡± Eludora said, her voice sad. I gave her a pointed look and she blushed. ¡°Yes, you''re back from the dead. I know.¡± Eludora whispered. ¡°Will I see you again next week?¡± ¡°If you want.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Then I will see you on Tuesday afternoon when I have the Civil Construction practicals.¡± Eludora smiled brightly. ¡°I''ll expect you after class!¡± ¡°No, I''ll be here about twenty minutes after the exam starts.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°I would be quicker if I had my original number ten potion. Whatever they assign me, I''ll finish it long before any of the other students.¡± Eludora nodded. ¡°I will expect you then.¡± I bent over her hand and kissed it as I shared some magic with her. ¡°OHHH!¡± Eludora gasped and a wet spot formed on the blanket. ¡°Oh, damn.¡± Gella laughed and helped me dress in my pants and then used my suit coat to cover my bare chest. ¡°Bye, Eludora.¡± ¡°Goodbye, my friend.¡± Eludora said and waved. We left the library, locked the doors behind us, and went back to the dorm. ¡°There you are.¡± Jill said and took a sniff. ¡°I see.¡± She pointed to the bathroom. ¡°I''ll be right in.¡± I went into the bathroom and stripped out of my academy uniform, what was left of it, anyway. I set up the bath and Jill and Hanna came in. To my surprise, Hanna didn''t try anything as she and Jill scrubbed me all over. She also watched intensely as Jill performed the ritual. ¡°Now soak for a while and relax. I''ll have Farra bring in your reading.¡± Jill said and I nodded before reclining. Hanna, not missing the opportunity, sat in front of me on my lap. ¡°My lord, you''re still hard.¡± Before I could say that it would wane on its own, she moved up slightly and positioned me at her opening, then she sat down with a contented sigh. ¡°Hanna.¡± I said, not really knowing what I was going to say. It didn''t really matter, because she leaned back against me, rested her head on my shoulder, and closed her eyes. She didn''t wiggle her hips, rubbed herself where we were joined together, or tried to piston me into her. She could have, and didn''t. I wouldn''t realize until much later that she did it exactly like that, just so I wouldn''t protest. I would also admit that it was a smart move on her part, since I knew she wasn''t trying to take advantage of me or our newly changed relationship. ¡°The notes.¡± Farra said as she handed them to me, then she stripped off. ¡°Gella! I need my bath partner to relax!¡± Gella laughed. A moment later, she entered the room. ¡°I swear that sometimes you''re as clingy as Hanna!¡± Farra gave her a wicked grin and helped her undress in seconds, making Gella laugh some more. I didn''t comment that Gella seemed to be laughing a lot more lately, even though she was supposed to be the stoic one. The two young women entered the bath and washed up, careful of splashing me, then they settled down with Gella on the bottom and Farra cuddled up on her lap. We stayed there for quite some time, with Gella reading the notes after me. Unlike the other times we studied, talking about math wasn''t going to help. It was all calculations and physical work, so no verbal help was going to make much difference. It was all personal achievement and nothing that could be memorized, except the techniques used to do those calculations. ¡°Supper!¡± Jill called. We all got out of the bath, dried off and put on robes, then went out to the kitchen to eat. After supper, it was History and Geography study time. Luckily, this could be talked about and discussed, so we all had a great time talking and looking over the facts and dates. Even the geography of the country and surrounding areas was interesting when put into the context of going to visit the interesting places that were mentioned in the notes. We crawled into bed and I wasn''t surprised that it was only Gella this time. Neither of us commented about that and cuddled together to share magic. Gella didn''t try to manipulate me into having sex or tried to get me to play with her. She had no problems with me doing so, however. Apparently, once that avenue was open, it was always open. The night passed by quickly and the morning arrived. Breakfast was a quick affair for Gella and I, then we dressed and went to the testing auditorium. It was just as crowded as the other written exams were for the core subjects. We found seats near each other, even if it didn''t make any difference. A mage I didn''t know by name, handed out the exam papers. The stack seemed a little thicker than any other exams I had taken before. When I looked around, I saw that Gella''s and a few others that were nearby, their stacks were half the same thickness. I immediately put up my hand and the man ignored me. I held in my sigh and stood up as I waved my arm to get the ignorant man''s attention. The man sighed, almost with a growl, and looked at me before he snarked. ¡°Yes? What is it?¡± ¡°Unless I give you leave to do so, you must address me as Lord Drake, you peon.¡± I said. The man''s nostrils flared and he looked very angry. ¡°Why are my exam papers twice as thick as all the others?¡± I asked and waved my arm around towards the other students. ¡°You were away from the academy for quite some time.¡± The man''s anger faded and he smiled. ¡°More testing material is required for... people... like you.¡± ¡°Ignore my title again and my sworn sword will remove your hands.¡± I said and the man''s angry face returned. ¡°Now, you will give me the standard test, or you will be removed and replaced with a competent teacher.¡± The man laughed. ¡°Despite your fake title claim, you do not have the authority to question me or my methods.¡± ¡°Actually, I do. You see, I was granted more land than anyone else in the kingdom and am personal friends with the royal family...¡± ¡°The illegal family that claim to be running the country, while mages did their best to hold things together.¡± ¡°Your words are traitorous, as they were during your interview.¡± ¡°It''s just too bad that I didn''t commit any crimes of sedition against the kingdom, isn''t it?¡± The man said, smugly. ¡°Your writ of dispensation from the supposed crown doesn''t allow you to kill for crimes that you''re not investigating.¡± I reached down and tapped the papers on my desk. ¡°Unfortunately for you, this tactic won''t work.¡± ¡°I believe it will. You will be unable to complete it in the allotted time, making it ineligible to be marked, therefore you get the default failure for not completing the work.¡± I smiled. ¡°That''s where you are wrong. I was given the default passing mark for every core course offered, meaning you physically cannot reduce it beyond that. I can spit on these papers and pass them in, and still get a 65 for a passing mark.¡± The man smiled. ¡°You should read the revised deal that was made instead of making assumptions.¡± ¡°Lord Drake.¡± Pavinca said as she stepped out of the corner of the room, surprising no one that she was hidden there. ¡°This man''s assumptions are quite incorrect.¡± The man whirled to her. ¡°You are only the director! I am in charge for this course now and...¡± Pavinca waved a hand over the man and whispered an incantation. The man froze mid-word with his mouth open. She gave me a pointed look and then pulled out the vial of truth serum I had given her to test. ¡°I assume Greta is here as well?¡± I asked. ¡°I am, too.¡± Linette said as she and her sister came out of the same corner and into view. ¡°If this works, it could revolutionize the medical field.¡± Pavinca chuckled and poured the vial down the man''s throat. He was frozen in some kind of paralysis, so he couldn''t spit it out or stop himself from letting it go down into his stomach. He glowed slightly and then his eyes glazed over. Pavinca released the spell and looked at the man. ¡°Tell us your real motivation for this farce?¡± ¡°I want to discredit the fool by giving him work that even the third year academy students would be unable to do. He''s so ignorant of the way things are, he is easily tricked.¡± The man said, then realized what he said. He snapped his mouth closed and shook his head. ¡°Tell me why you are trying this?¡± Pavinca asked. The man tried to keep his mouth closed, and couldn''t. ¡°I''ll become the new Grand Mage when he''s gone. There''s only so many of us left and taking over will be laughably simple, unlike trying to work through the guild like before.¡± Pavinca, Greta, and Linette laughed. ¡°You''re delusional. There is no Grand Mage or Mages Guild anymore. The post was abolished and the organization was disbanded by royal decree.¡± Pavinca said. ¡°I should know. I signed the petition for it.¡± The man glared at her. ¡°As did we.¡± Linette said and waved at herself and her sister, Greta. ¡°As did all of the healers across the country, the independent mages, and everyone that the old guild marginalized or removed.¡± ¡°That''s why you were removed from the ranks!¡± The man spat. ¡°You wouldn''t listen, follow orders properly, and don''t deserve to be among your betters!¡± Pavinca shook her head. ¡°You''re the one that doesn''t deserve to be among your betters. You''re fired and under arrest for inciting sedition among the students.¡± ¡°I only told my students that those willing to work for me will be greatly rewarded. We won''t try to take over again until we have enough manpower and trick the royal family into believing we want to be in their good graces. Once they are removed, the mages will take their rightful place as the leaders of this nation. That''s years away, so for now, I can only gather like-minded people.¡± ¡°You really are an idiot.¡± I said. ¡°Gella.¡± ¡°My lord.¡± Gella said, seemed to disappear, then the man''s head was detached from his body. She knocked it off and the body fell to the floor. ¡°Planning sedition counts under our writ of dispensation.¡± ¡°He must have only come up with the plan after your interrogation.¡± Pavinca said with a sigh. ¡°That''s the problem with ideas. Once it''s planted, it takes root and grows, no matter how much it''s pruned.¡± Gella said and walked back to her desk. ¡°You need to dig it out and remove it completely, for it to work and remain weed free.¡± Pavinca went to the desk at the front of the room and used a levitation spell to move the body out of the way. She hid it behind the desk and picked up a normal exam paper. She brought it over to me and reached for the stack on my desk. ¡°Leave it.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°I''ll need something to do while I wait for the exam time to end.¡± Pavinca gave me a searching look, then she shrugged and put my new exam paper face down on top of the other stack. ¡°Good luck, Lord Drake.¡± ¡°Thank you, Director Chasma.¡± I said and bowed my head slightly. Pavinca smile at me and then nodded to Greta and Linette, who rushed over to the body to examine it. They knelt behind the desk and furious whispers were exchanged. Pavinca moved back to the desk and sat on the front of it, then looked at everyone. ¡°You have until lunch to write this exam. Since there''s no physical practical for this, your entire mark will be composed from this exam.¡± Pavinca said and we all heard a young woman''s nervous peep. ¡°It''s all right. Believe me, I checked this exam personally. Just answer as much as you can and with the best answers you can come up with. You will be judged fairly.¡± ¡°That''s a relief!¡± A young man said into the silence. Pavinca laughed softly. ¡°Despite what everyone thinks, getting the wrong answers can actually help you. As long as you show the work, even the wrong result can give you insight into what to do next time. It''s what exams are for, to show you the knowledge that you do have and what you need to learn next.¡± Nearly everyone nodded. ¡°Then flip your papers and get to work. If you need more scrap paper than what''s provided, raise a hand and some will be brought to you.¡± Pavinca said. ¡°Good luck.¡± I sat down and flipped the exam over, read a very simple calculation question, and got to work. Needless to say, I blew through it fairly quickly. Pavinca had been right. As long as you show the work for the calculations, when you made a mistake and checked the results, it was pretty easy to find out where you went wrong and helped you to fix it. I finished the exam and flipped over the large stack of papers. The top question was a word problem, something that I hadn''t read before. I had to use a scrap piece of paper to write out numerically what the question was asking. I checked it twice to make sure that was the right interpretation, then proceeded to solve the numerical problem. When I did solve it to my satisfaction, I copied out my work onto the actual exam and went to the next question. It made the work go twice as long, slowing me down significantly; but, I was getting through it. If the man was still alive, I was sure that he would have been shocked that I was doing so well. 298 Examination Exultation Part Eight Bokuboy I ran the exam time out as I copied over the final answer onto my extra exam paper. ¡°Time''s up!¡± Pavinca said loudly. Everyone stopped writing except for me. ¡°Lord Drake, that means you as well.¡± ¡°This isn''t my class exam. I finished that three hours ago.¡± I said and wrote out the final result. Complete silence met my answer, except for a short giggle from the desk beside me. ¡°Done.¡± I said and flipped the second and much larger stack of exam papers over on top of the first. ¡°I''m sure a lot of it is wrong, since I had no idea what a lot of the word problems were asking me to do.¡± I said as Pavinca slowly walked over to me. ¡°I wrote out the problems first to see what was wanted in them, which made it take twice as long as normal.¡± ¡°Lord Drake, did you... did you really complete...¡± I held up my extra scrap papers that looked like they were full of formulas and equations. ¡°I even circled each part of the word problems to show where I came up with the numerical values for the problems, just so you''ll know where I was coming from.¡± Pavinca picked up the thick stack of papers and her eyes widened as she saw the spaces between the word problems were full of calculations. ¡°You really did do it all.¡± ¡°I might even pass it, if your words about just doing the work counts.¡± I said with a smile. ¡°I had to guess on some of them what the problems actually wanted me to solve. Those were tricky.¡± ¡°I... I''m sure that...¡± Pavinca flipped through the pages and her eyes scanned over everything. ¡°Lord Drake...¡± ¡°Here''s the real exam.¡± I said and pointed to the smaller stack. ¡°That one was easy. No trick questions or wording that doubled back on itself or repeated the same functions.¡± Pavinca tucked the thick stack of papers under her arm and picked up my actual class exam. She didn''t have to flip through it to see that it was just as detailed as the much harder exam was. ¡°How...¡± ¡°I didn''t have to work it out for long or had to copy it over.¡± I said with a shrug as I tucked my scrap papers into my bandoleer. ¡°You wouldn''t believe the calculations needed to run a ship, rig the sails properly, adjust the ballast and balance of the hull, and then figure out where to put the cargo for the best efficiency for stacking, ship speed, and unloading.¡± Pavinca stood there and stared at me for several long moments, then she took a deep breath and let it out. She didn''t comment as she turned around and walked back to the desk to drop off both of my papers. She put them in separate places, I assume to keep from mixing them up, as if that was possible. After that, Pavinca went around to everyone''s desk and collected their papers before going back to the desk and added them to my normal exam. ¡°We will have your results sometime during the next week. Anyone that believes that they need them before then, you''re wrong. There''s almost no job that requires math results so quickly.¡± A young man''s hand shot up into the air. ¡°No, family requirements don''t count this time. They can wait for the full report card at the end of next week.¡± Pavinca said and the hand dropped almost as quickly as it was raised. ¡°Be back here after lunch for your History and Geography exam.¡± We all stood as one and Gella slipped by my side as we filed out of the room. A lot of the students were giving me odd looks. As usual, I ignored them and Gella held her laugh in until we were outside and had some modicum of privacy. ¡°Ha ha ha! Did you see their faces after what you said?¡± Gella asked and kept looking around discreetly for threats. ¡°I almost burst out laughing right there!¡± I couldn''t stop my smile. ¡°You did it on purpose!¡± Gella accused when she saw my smile. ¡°Well done, my lord! Well done.¡± I didn''t say anything and she kept laughing under her breath as we went to the cafeteria. We weren''t surprised to see Jinelle and Robin sitting at our table and they also had the food and wine ready for us. ¡°I''m not going to ask how you are getting here before us.¡± Gella said as I sat her down like a lady. ¡°A woman needs to keep some secrets.¡± Jinelle said with a sly smile and gave me a pointed look. ¡°We''re going back to the Sanctuary after the exam this afternoon, so our dorm room will be empty.¡± I said and she looked a little sad. ¡°I believe Linette will be coming over tomorrow for lunch to pick up the next shipment of healing, general health, and wound cleaning potions.¡± Jinelle''s face lit up with a huge smile. ¡°That is very nice to hear, Lord Drake.¡± Gella covered her mouth to stop her laugh and coughed instead. Robin didn''t bother and chuckled softly before she took a sip of wine. ¡°How are the potions stocks coming along, by the way?¡± ¡°We''re almost done having enough ready for general sale.¡± Gella said, answering before I could. ¡°It''s going to be a huge boon to our resources and to everyone that we''re allowed to sell to in the kingdom.¡± That made Robin and Jinelle perk up and they both gave me questioning looks. ¡°The Mages Guild cut off a lot of untrustworthy sellers and suppliers when they tried to take over, essentially starving them out of business.¡± I said and started to eat. ¡°I need to visit the castle first thing tomorrow morning to see if I can get a list of the businesses that the guild trusted afterwards.¡± ¡°You''re going to do the same thing.¡± Jinelle whispered, worry clear on her face. Gella caught on right away. ¡°Please don''t tell us...¡± Jinelle sighed. ¡°My grandmother needed certain ingredients that only the guild provided.¡± I shook my head. ¡°I should have known that she would do that, considering how vain she is about her appearance.¡± ¡°Lord Drake, please.¡± Jinelle said, her voice pleading. ¡°Don''t cut her off without talking to her first.¡± I remembered my promise about fixing things for her and had to nod. ¡°I''ll tell her after making sure that you''re taken care of.¡± ¡°That''s not what I had in mind for a compromise.¡± Jinelle said with a sigh. ¡°I know.¡± I said. Conversation died out after that and we ate the rest of the meal in silence. No one asked about the exams Gella and I just took, which meant that they would find out later about what happened, or not at all. Gella and I went back to our testing auditorium and resumed our seats. Mage Victoria King was there, dressed impeccably, and she looked both stunning and depressed. When her eyes locked onto mine, she flinched. I didn''t need to ask her about it to know that her husband was back. The question was if he was at her teacher''s apartment here on the academy campus or back at their small manor house. ¡°Now that everyone is seated, I can explain what this exam will be like. It''s in two parts. The first part is the history of the kingdom and it relatively long. The second half is shorter and concerns the geography of the kingdom and any notable features in other places.¡± Gella gave me a smirking smile, because that was exactly what we had discussed last night. ¡°I will deliver your papers when appropriate and you will not talk or discuss anything with anyone, not even myself when I deliver the geography section.¡± Victoria said and delivered the history exam to all the desks, placing them face down. When she reached the front of the room, she pointed to the clock. ¡°You have three and a half hours for this section, maximum. That leaves an hour and a half for the geography section. You can finish either at any time and I will come to you and switch the exams or just take them at your request. You can leave after that, so you won''t be a constant distraction by just sitting there for hours.¡± I smiled slightly at that comment, because I did do that for the first few exams. Also, if I leave early, I can check her apartment and see if her guilty husband would be there. I glanced over to Gella and she nodded slightly, so she knew what I intended to do. ¡°You may begin.¡± Victoria King said and we all flipped our papers over. When was the Gulf Kingdom first formed into a monarchy? I read on the paper and chuckled as I easily filled in the date and then added in a notation that it was a democracy for sixty years before that and almost came to ruin from mismanagement. I laughed softly as I easily continued on and kept adding in extra notes that were relevant to each of the shorter answers, just because I could. After two hours and a few more notes on previous questions, I raised my hand. Victoria came right over to me and bent over to rest her elbows on my desk, essentially blocking me from view of three quarters of the auditorium. I was slightly disappointed that she was giving the rest of the room a view of her backside, then noticed she wore a very heavy and thick skirt under her mage robes. My eyes roamed back up, catching a very large view of her cleavage that couldn''t be seen at all if she stood up, then my eyes locked onto hers. ¡°I''m done of the history section.¡± I whispered to her, as if we were in bed together and I was sharing a deep and personal secret with her. It was a little trick that I picked up from Eludora. She absolutely loved it when I spoke like that and I had used it quite a few times the previous day on her. Victoria''s face flushed to a deep red. ¡°L-L-Lord D-Drake.¡± She whispered back. She didn''t try to cover up her chest, even though she knew I could clearly see most of her breasts. ¡°May I... see it?¡± I let my smile show at her flirting back at me and I slipped my hand below the desk. Victoria caught her breath at the blatant move, then I used my other hand and passed her the exam papers. Her eyes roamed over me, like mine had over her when she first leaned over, then she looked at the exam papers. Her eyes widened at the first answer that I had left and written in the space between it and the next question. She looked at me with surprise on her face. ¡°May I have the next part, Victoria?¡± I asked in a breathy whisper. Victoria closed her eyes and stood up, her breasts now concealed from view. She opened her robes slightly to briefly show me that her nipples were poking out, then she adjusted her robes and took my history exam papers to the desk and came back with the geography one. ¡°I hope you are not always this quick.¡± Victoria whispered as she placed the exam papers face down on the desk. I raised my eyebrows at the sexual implication, then smiled as I wiggled my finger to get her to lean over again. She looked like she was going to refuse, then she shrugged slightly and bent over to resume her blocking position. ¡°I spent about four hours with Eludora yesterday and she didn''t complain about me taking my time.¡± I whispered. Victoria''s mouth dropped open and she seemed to have stopped breathing. I pat her hand on my desk and gave her a jolt of magic, which shook her out of her shock. She gave me a very odd look, one that I couldn''t decipher. She stood up and went back to her desk without saying anything. She also didn''t do anything at her desk except stare at me. She didn''t read my exam over, she didn''t look around for anyone cheating, and she didn''t bother to monitor people talking and whispering. I went to work on my geography exam and it was even simpler than the history one. So, I did the same thing as I did with the history one. I embellished and added in facts and figures that the normal answer didn''t really need past the basic answer. It was just extra trivia for anyone that was well read in the subject and for me to show off. Someone put up their hand at the same time I did. Victoria didn''t react at all. Pavinca had to come out of her hidden corner to essentially wake the woman up. ¡°I''ll get Lord Drake''s and you get the other one.¡± ¡°Y-yes, Director.¡± Victoria said, her face flushed red from embarrassment. She walked quickly over to the student and exchanged papers without a word and then went back to the desk. ¡°You can''t help but cause trouble, can you?¡± Pavinca asked me in a whisper. ¡°Did you hear what we discussed?¡± I asked and handed her the geography exam papers. Pavinca opened her mouth to respond and then closed it. ¡°It''s not a secret.¡± I said and she sighed and motioned for me to speak. ¡°Yes, I really did stay with Eludora for quite some time yesterday.¡± ¡°David, you... you really shouldn''t. She... she''s been obsessed with you...¡± ¡°I know.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°She also can''t move on if she keeps her feelings and desires contained.¡± ¡°David, that''s not how love works.¡± Pavinca said. ¡°Of course not. She locked herself in the library since her rehabilitation started and she barely leaves the place, even though she easily can now.¡± I said and she sighed. ¡°I''ll send her an invite to visit the Sanctuary on Sunday. If she refuses, we''ll know it will take more than that to get her to start living her life. If she does accept...¡± ¡°...she''ll start seeing that there''s more to life than just you and the library.¡± Pavinca said. ¡°All right. I won''t forbid you from having a relationship with her on academy grounds.¡± I chuckled and stood up. ¡°I helped His Royal Highness King Richard get the Royal Companion pregnant on academy grounds, Director. I sincerely doubt that you could stop me from seeing anyone on campus, let alone anyone on the staff.¡± Pavinca looked slightly angry about that, until I touched her arm and shared my magic with her. ¡°I wasn''t challenging your authority over the academy. I was informing you that you don''t have the authority to tell consenting adults who they can and can''t have sex with.¡± I said and let her go. Pavinca looked surprised that she could still feel my magic as I walked away. ¡°Lord Drake.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± I asked and looked back at her as I walked on. ¡°How are you doing that?¡± Pavinca asked and lightly touched her still tingling arm. ¡°I discovered that I don''t have to keep touching people to be able to do that.¡± I said with a smile and then pulled my magic back with a jerk, taking the extra warmth with it. Pavinca shivered and clutched her arm tightly. ¡°You... are a dangerous man.¡± ¡°In more ways than anyone could ever suspect.¡± I said and closed the auditorium door behind myself as I left. I thought about visiting the library again, then shrugged. I promised her most of the day on Tuesday for the construction practical, so showing up before then might mess up whatever she was doing. I ran over to the teacher''s apartment building on the campus and quickly checked Mage King''s residence. Unfortunately, her husband was not there or had been for quite some time, which meant he must be at their home. I would have to wait until tomorrow night to check and see. I went back to my dorm room and heard a squeal of delight as I opened the door. A moment later, I was dragged inside by an excited Hanna. ¡°Do I want to ask?¡± Jill laughed and Farra had a huge smile on her face. They knew something was going to happen. ¡°They''re completely full again!¡± Hanna said and pulled off her top to show off her reformed breasts. ¡°Look! They''re even pointed in the right direction!¡± I knelt in front of her to get a closer look. ¡°You''re right. Even during the bath last night, they were still slightly oblong.¡± ¡°I KNOW!¡± Hanna said and grabbed my head and pulled my face into her chest. ¡°They feel right, too!¡± I mumbled congratulations into Hanna''s perky flesh and that set Jill and Farra to laughing. ¡°Thank you!¡± Hanna said, then she turned her torso slightly and one of her erect nipples went into my mouth. ¡°MMMM!¡± ¡°You do realize that you are supposed to be the personal slave, right?¡± Jill asked Hanna. ¡°Not right now!¡± Hanna exclaimed and then moaned as I suckled on her. ¡°Ohhhh... more, my lord! More!¡± I complied, much to her delight. It seemed that she was extremely happy to have her chest restored to what it was before she had been starved and converted into a slave. We ended up in bed together and she was very happy about that, especially when I was done and she swallowed it all with a huge smile on her face. She was suddenly sleepy and tried to fight against it. ¡°You need a bath!¡± Jill said to her, then fed her a general health potion to keep her energy up. Farra carried Hanna into the bathroom and I followed, because I needed to be clean for when the carriage came for us to take us back to the Sanctuary. I had work to get back to. 299 Weekend Interlude Bokuboy Gella arrived, said she did great on both exams, and we went out to wait for the carriage. It picked us up and delivered us back to the Sanctuary in short order. Once there, I spent several hours with Jensen and Molly, going over everything that went on and needed to be done. I approved of the changes and authorized the extra money expenditures. We had supper with everyone, greeting them all like old friends, even the slaves from the other ship. Most had fulfilling roles to do and were kept busy, mostly on their own initiative. A lot of them had no idea that they could ever be good at anything, since they had been raised as slaves since they were children. Those slaves took a long time to find out what they liked to do. Once they did, though... they did it with such enthusiasm that the older slaves had to curtail them and make sure that they didn''t overdo things. It made a lot of the others laugh when they learned how much they had to be stopped from working, even at night when the slaves would sneak into the workshops and would continue working. ¡°I hope you forget to check some evenings.¡± I whispered to Jensen, who chuckled and nodded. ¡°We don''t force them to behave, only restrict how hard they try to keep working. We don''t want them losing interest or overloading them with too much of one thing.¡± Jensen said. I nodded in agreement. I would have gone a little crazy if all I had to do was enchantments during the long marsh winter months. Doing too much would have made me sick of doing them and I wouldn''t have been as proficient with them as I am. The difference between an interest and an obsession was a small one, apparently. I worked that evening in the potions area that was set aside for my creme work and I spent the entire time there until two hours to midnight. Farra came and retrieved me this time after working herself with the old man on the more generic potions. We went to our room to meet the others, had a nice communal bath, then I climbed into bed with Farra. Once again, I didn''t question why they were no longer piling in with me and were back to taking turns. I just cuddled in with my apprentice and promised that I would spend much more time with her when the exams were over. That made her quite happy to hear, since our time working together had been severely reduced after coming back here to the Gulf Kingdom. ¡°My lord... can you...¡± Farra whispered into my ear. ¡°You know we can''t have that kind of a relationship.¡± I whispered back. ¡°Our binding is as master and apprentice and...¡± ¡°...I can accept it as a lesson, my lord.¡± Farra said. ¡°No man would accept me after... after they knew...¡± I understood that they believed she was damaged and couldn''t accept their affection, not realizing that was exactly what she needed. The sex was secondary for her, since she had that for a long time before I rescued her from the Empire''s mages. It was the caring and attention that she was starved for. She had been used for far too long to only want sex from someone. I gave her a soft and tender kiss, then a sly smile. Farra looked a little surprised by that, then I slipped down under the blanket. Her moan as I gave her the male version of the ritual made her orgasm a whole bunch of times. I wasn''t sure why she was so responsive and didn''t question it. I kissed my way back up her body and her eyes looked frantic as she pulled me into a kiss and then wrapped her legs around me and shoved my erection right inside. ¡°OHHHH!¡± Farra moaned loudly and then panted and moaned as I had sex with her. Like Eludora, she constantly kissed me and held me close as she melted in the affection she was receiving. She seemed to enjoy that more than the actual sex, which was both odd and satisfying. I no longer wondered why she liked to kiss and cuddle with Gella in the bath so much. She just enjoyed the intimacy and didn''t require much sex at all. Gella must have known about that and indulged her, because she never complained that she was always the holder when in the bath. We all eventually fell asleep and the morning arrived before we knew it. Another bath for us all and then we dressed in our best clothing. A missive had been sent the night before to Melanie and asked for an early morning appointment. No details were given, however. Not over an open message. It couldn''t get out that we were going to blacklist certain people and businesses from buying our potions and superior ingredients. The ride to the castle was fairly quick and the others had to wait while I was brought alone into a side chamber and not the main throne room. That was a relief, since it meant that Queen Ellen wouldn''t be present in the little meeting. ¡°Lord Drake.¡± Melanie said and started to stand up from behind her desk. ¡°No, please remain seated.¡± I said and strode across the room to her, helped her regain her seat, then fluffed her pillow to ease the strain on her back. ¡°How did you know I needed that?¡± Melanie asked, surprised. ¡°I spent a lot of time with Helena when at the old estate.¡± I said and bent over to take her hand, then shared some magic with her as I kissed the back of it. ¡°OHH!¡± Melanie gasped, had an orgasm, her belly bulged slightly as the baby kicked several times, then she peed herself. ¡°I''m terribly sorry.¡± I said and pushed her chair back and knelt to examine the extent of my mistake. ¡°Attendant!¡± I said loudly. A young woman ran into the room and saw where I was. ¡°My Lady? What...¡± ¡°I need cleaning supplies, a replacement skirt, a more comfortable chair, and a new pillow for her back.¡± I ordered and cut her off. The young woman nodded before she ran out the door again. ¡°D-David...¡± Melanie whispered, her face red. ¡°I forgot how responsive to magic a baby is.¡± I said and placed a hand on her belly. I sent out a calming wave of magic and the agitated baby settled down and stopped making a fuss. Melanie sighed in relief and then squeaked in surprise when I lifted her slightly and pulled her skirt off. When I pulled her panties off and used my fingers to open her red hair covered womanhood slightly, she yelled her indignation. ¡°DAVID!¡± ¡°I don''t see any tearing or blood, so the kick to your bladder wasn''t very damaging.¡± I said and slipped a finger inside of her to check for any damage that couldn''t be seen. ¡°OHHH!¡± Melanie moaned loudly and came all over my hand. She reached down and grabbed my wrist, as if to stop me, then she looked into my eyes and moved my hand in and out as if it was a penis. She had the same frantic look on her face that Farra had last night after I licked her down there, so I added another finger for her to help her. She really liked that and moaned her pleasure for several minutes. By the time the young attendant returned with the supplies we needed, Melanie was thoroughly embarrassed, fully relieved of sexual tension, and mortified that she had used my hand like that. She didn''t say anything at all as I cleaned her up, with the attendant''s vigilant eyes right there to make sure I did things properly and didn''t take advantage of her. We stood her up and cleaned up her backside of any wetness or drippings, did her thighs as well, then dressed her properly and replaced the chair. Melanie sat down and sighed with relief as she settled into the plushier chair. The attendant added the pillow to her back and Melanie was once again her poised and composed self. Or so it appeared. Her eyes were locked onto my face and she dared me to say anything to her about what happened. ¡°Helena required me to do much more than that while she was pregnant, Lady Melanie.¡± I said after the attendant left and she blushed again. ¡°By more, I mean we barely left the bed when we were together. Not even to eat.¡± Melanie blinked her eyes for several moments. ¡°David, did you just say...¡± ¡°She needed constant sex to feel satisfied. Being denied my presence for so long while I was at the academy, made her desire to never let me out of her sight.¡± Melanie thought about that. ¡°The day you were taken...¡± ¡°Every break we took to check over the ship between testing runs, I was inside the ship and inside of Helena.¡± I said. Melanie shivered at the thought, then she smiled. ¡°Richard was almost the same. He said I was more desirable and couldn''t stop wanting to be with me, even with the extra bump in the way.¡± I nodded. ¡°I can''t say if it was the magic we shared or our bodies felt more connected the more we were together. Either way, we both benefited from it.¡± ¡°I really did.¡± Melanie said and then blushed again. ¡°Thank you for your assistance.¡± ¡°I would offer more if you wouldn''t feel insulted that another man would do such a thing to you in this state.¡± I said and she coughed and blushed so hard that she looked like she might faint. Melanie took several minutes to recover. ¡°I really should have a bath as my attendant suggested.¡± That made me think of last night. ¡°Perhaps an after bath ritual would help you relax?¡± Melanie gasped and looked at me with anger on her face. ¡°How DARE you suggest such a thing! I am the ROYAL CONCUBINE and soon to be KING MOTHER!¡± I held up my hands in surrender. ¡°You misunderstand. I meant for you to receive it, Lady Melanie.¡± Her anger disappeared instantly and her face changed to a brilliant red that I didn''t think was possible for a human to achieve. ¡°Is... is that why... you wanted such an early meeting?¡± I smiled. ¡°Despite that being a valid reason, I only just thought of it. The reason I am here is to get a list of the businesses in collusion with the Mages Guild when they blacklisted people and businesses during their attempted take-over.¡± ¡°Is that all?¡± Melanie asked and turned in her chair to the filing cabinet shelves behind her. She went through a dozen folders and pulled out several sheets, copied them over quicker than I could have with all my fingers, and handed it to me. ¡°Give me a minute to get the ones they ruined and pushed out of business.¡± I nodded and she took several minutes to do so. I had several sheets of paper by the end and a very large list of potential clients, assuming they were still around and not killed or run off by the mages. ¡°Is there anything else?¡± Melanie asked. ¡°Yes.¡± I said and opened up several pouches on my bandoleer and handed her ten vials of single dose potions. ¡°What''s this?¡± Melanie asked and picked one up. ¡°I know you can tell when someone is lying. The only drawback to that skill is that they can keep quiet.¡± I said and pointed to the tiny amount in the vial. ¡°One dose is enough to force anyone to speak the truth for half an hour. If you give them more than that within a six hour time frame, it can cause sickness and in some cases death if given too much.¡± Melanie''s face showed shock, just like Pavinca''s face had when I told her what it was. ¡°I thought that was enough of a repayment for this favor.¡± I said and held up the papers that I tucked into my bandoleer. ¡°David, I... this is... I don''t know what to say.¡± Melanie said and looked at the ten vials. ¡°I only have just over 200 doses left, so don''t use those ten doses all up at once.¡± I said with a smile. Melanie barked a laugh. ¡°I can''t even fathom how much you could charge for these.¡± ¡°That''s why they aren''t for sale.¡± I said and stood to take her hand. ¡°Thank you for your help and for allowing me to drop in practically unannounced.¡± Melanie nodded and let me kiss her hand, despite what happened the last time. She almost looked disappointed that I didn''t share any magic with her. ¡°David...¡± ¡°My Lady?¡± The attendant asked as she stepped into the room. ¡°Your bath is ready.¡± I helped Melanie stand and her belly was quite prominent. ¡°Thank you, David.¡± Melanie said and I helped her waddle over to the door to her attendant. We stepped out into the hallway and the attendant took her hand from me. ¡°David...¡± ¡°You need a demonstration?¡± I asked and she blushed as she nodded. ¡°Do you have any male attendants?¡± ¡°No, Richard forbid it.¡± Melanie said with a fond smile. ¡°Not even butlers are allowed near me.¡± I chuckled and nodded. ¡°Lead the way, attendant.¡± The young woman looked at me and then at Melanie. ¡°My Lady?¡± ¡°Lord Drake has offered a special service to the Royal Concubine.¡± Melanie said. ¡°Yes, My Lady.¡± The attendant said and led her to Melanie''s quarters and the very large bathroom there. ¡°Lord Drake, if you could wait outside while My Lady prepares...¡± ¡°It''s part of the service.¡± I said and saw Melanie''s blush, then I carefully took off all of her clothes, being specifically gentle when dealing with her delicate areas and not touching or caressing them. The attendant watched me with intensity as I did so, with slight approval on her face as I worked, then I carefully helped Melanie into the bath. She watched as I diligently washed Melanie, gentle and caring, making sure that she was clean all over, even in certain areas that most people only barely washed and didn''t ensure were completely clean. ¡°My Lady, you are bathed.¡± I said formally. ¡°As you are in a delicate condition, I suggest laying down for this part.¡± Melanie blushed and accepted my help out of the bath, then I dried her off completely, took a clean towel, and brought her into the bedroom. I put the towel down and had her sit on the edge of the bed. The attendant opened her mouth to speak, then paused as I eased Melanie back to rest on a pillow. ¡°Lord Drake, what...¡± I moved Melanie''s legs apart and looked at Melanie''s face. She was quite unsure of what was going to happen, so I gave her a warm smile and then leaned in to gently kiss her between the legs. ¡°OHHH!¡± Melanie gasped and came. ¡°Well, that didn''t take long.¡± I said and licked her. She gasped and came again. ¡°It''s a good thing this ritual has a time limit or it would have been over already.¡± The attendant stood there with complete shock on her face as I performed the Ritual of Release on a woman. Melanie on the other hand, squirmed, moaned, and gasped as she panted from having me do the ritual to her. When the ten minutes were up, she looked very satisfied and very pleased. I went back to the bathroom and brought out the cleaning things to finish washing her up and cleaned up the mess she had made. ¡°Lord Drake.¡± The attendant whispered when I was done. ¡°How... I can''t believe...¡± ¡°I know.¡± I said and stood up to help her dress Melanie into another set of work clothes. ¡°Please don''t tell anyone that I created it.¡± The attendant blinked her eyes at me. ¡°You... you...¡± ¡°Everyone believes that I only make potions and weapons of mass destruction.¡± I said and looked at Melanie''s flushed face. ¡°Lady Melanie, thank you for allowing me to see such grace and beauty.¡± Melanie blushed and shook her head. ¡°You debased yourself to give me the relief that I haven''t felt since Richard was killed.¡± She said and leaned forward to kiss my cheek. ¡°It is I that must thank you for doing such a thing for me, even if I am an adjunct to the royal family and am technically superior to you in social rank.¡± I had to smile at her qualification. ¡°I doubt I can return to do it again before your child is born.¡± Melanie''s mouth dropped open in shock, as did the attendant. ¡°Only another couple of weeks.¡± I said and touched her belly. ¡°He''s eager to see what you look like.¡± ¡°HE?!?¡± Melanie and the attendant exclaimed as one. ¡°Hmm? Didn''t you know?¡± I asked. ¡°I thought you said it was a boy the last time I saw you?¡± ¡°I said I hoped it was a boy!¡± Melanie said and then put a hand on mine that was still on her belly. ¡°I''m having a boy. The king''s son. Richard''s son.¡± I nodded. ¡°I''ll walk you back to your office.¡± Melanie nodded and the three of us went back to her office, then she gasped and looked at me. ¡°I need to tell Stephanie! She''ll be so happy!¡± We changed direction and went to the throne room instead. I stayed outside, so I wouldn''t distract anyone from the good news. I listened as the Queen Mother yelled in happiness and hugged Melanie and Princess Rose said congratulations as well. I didn''t hear Queen Ellen''s voice, so I peeked inside the room and saw her frown. I took out a piece of paper and wrote a note on it, then folded it up and cast a small wind spell at her as I let the note go. It zoomed across the room and slapped her right on the face. ¡°HEY!¡± Ellen yelled and grabbed it. She ran to the door to get to me and I ran off to the side and cast several spells to hide from both sight and smell. She growled something about skinning whoever did that and opened the now crumpled paper. She read it and had a thoughtful look on her face, nodded, and went back inside. ¡°You''re welcome.¡± I said and left the castle. My suggestion that she could help raise a strong king for the next 20 years was easily accepted. She could create someone that was unlike her useless older brother and partially ineffectual father. Someone who could rule properly. Someone like herself. 300 A Weekend Excursion Bokuboy We went back to the Sanctuary and poured over the lists that Melanie had provided. It was extensive and showed a lot of businesses had only partially supported the mages and some openly defied them. Those were either shut down or the owners were killed outright, ruining their families and the businesses. The people at the academy hating me on sight when I first came back, made a lot more sense now. My supposed death had set off the whole coup and the take-over of the country by the mages. It didn''t matter if I was actually responsible or not. I was the cause and that was all they cared about. Of course, knowing I was not responsible and that going against me would only bring ruin and death, stopped nearly all of them from coming after me for revenge. Nearly. We sent copies of the lists to the distributors and sellers of the potions and ingredients. They were former slaves on the lower floors that were good at accounting and keeping track of those things. Jinelle had been right and Lady Marks was on the collaboration list, as were several of her friends, one of which was the older man that Jinelle had been promised to. That put her being sold off in a whole new light and it would change the tactics I would use to bring the older woman to heel. At lunch, we all sat down and discussed things. There was so much to do and so little time in the day to do them. I also had to search for Mage Ridge''s husband at her estate, or his estate, depending on who he left in charge when he fled. Gella was as eager as I was to find the man. He had always had a bad attitude when it came to me and I was sure that he ran because he was guilty. ¡°Good afternoon!¡± Linette said loudly when she entered the dining room. Jinelle was right behind her. ¡°Healer Marks!¡± Most of the people in the room shouted in answer. Linette laughed. ¡°It''s nice to finally be back. I''ll have the clinic set up after lunch to give you all a good check-up.¡± Sounds of agreement and happy faces came from them all. ¡°It''s so nice to have patients that appreciate my hard work.¡± Linette said as she sat down across from me to join us for lunch. Jinelle sat beside her and nodded at me and the others at the table. ¡°Did you pick up the crates set aside for you?¡± Farra asked. ¡°They are loading them onto the carriage as we speak and they''ll come back for me after they are delivered.¡± Linette said. ¡°Are you sure that you can afford to sell so much to us for so little?¡± Farra nodded. ¡°It''s part of our business plan. Essential services get a major discount.¡± ¡°That''s so nice of you.¡± Linette said and smiled at the slave that served her meal. ¡°Thank you, Kemma.¡± The woman smiled brightly and lightly touched her shoulder, then served Jinelle. ¡°If you need a drink refill, wave to Hintel.¡± She said and pointed to the side of the room at a man with several bottles of wine, a barrel of ale, and a few stronger spirits. His group of friends were getting really good at distilling. ¡°Did he get that nice stout to ferment properly?¡± Linette asked. Kemma smiled. ¡°I''ll have a glass brought over.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Linette said. ¡°How was your morning, Lord Drake?¡± Jinelle asked. ¡°Full.¡± I responded. ¡°You can call me David here. We''re not out in public.¡± Jinelle smiled and nodded slightly. ¡°We went to the castle and my lord visited Melanie.¡± Gella said. ¡°It was quite the wait.¡± ¡°That was my fault. I shared some magic when we greeted each other and her baby fussed inside of her pretty hard.¡± I explained about what happened and her needing a bath. I left off the ritual part, though. That was a secret that only a few people knew. ¡°I thought it was funny.¡± Farra said with a smile. ¡°I''m glad she wasn''t hurt.¡± Hanna said. ¡°I''ve seen some active babies still in the bellies and it''s not good for the mothers sometimes.¡± ¡°She was fine, thankfully. She has a good attendant.¡± I said. ¡°Also, she''s having a boy in a couple of weeks.¡± Linette and Jinelle gasped in shock. Gella laughed and pat their hands. ¡°Yes, a new prince will be born soon, ensuring the main branch of the royal family continues on with the same name.¡± ¡°Security around the castle will increase appropriately.¡± I warned them. ¡°If you''re going to visit, I suggest doing it soon.¡± I looked at Linette''s thoughtful face. ¡°I''m not sure if she had a personal healer or just has access to the ones assigned to the castle.¡± ¡°I''ll check when I leave here after supper tonight.¡± Linette promised. ¡°What are you going to do?¡± ¡°I have more work in my potions room to handle. I''m quite far behind in my experimentation and brewing tests.¡± ¡°Perhaps I could help?¡± Jinelle offered. We all looked at her with curiosity on our faces, which made her blush. ¡°It shouldn''t take me too long to get caught up to your progress.¡± Jinelle said. ¡°You have to agree to not disclose what you learn to anyone, especially your family.¡± I said and glanced at Gella. ¡°Bring a standard contract to the brewing room after lunch.¡± Gella nodded. Jinelle looked a little worried about that. ¡°It''s not going to bind my magic or make me lose it, if I let something slip, will it?¡± Gella let a smile show on her face. ¡°You can''t let something slip. That''s the point of the contract. We don''t want you using the techniques and procedures you will learn here for anyone else except us.¡± Jinelle now looked even more worried. Gella laughed softly. ¡°If you don''t want to sign it, you won''t be allowed into the private area that my lord works in. Your offer of help will be just that, an offer. We have lots of other potions being made constantly and someone with your expertise could easily remember the recipes and use them.¡± ¡°I would never...¡± Jinelle started to protest. ¡°Even if it would help your grandmother? Your aunt? Give them better health and a more stable beautifying creme?¡± Gella interrupted and Jinelle closed her mouth. ¡°We can put that off until after we eat.¡± I said and they all nodded. Lunch was great and Linette enjoyed the stout so much that she ordered her own barrel, at a discount. She did provide an essential service to the Sanctuary, after all. It was only fair that she be rewarded for that. She thanked us for the consideration and left to go down to the main floor to set up the clinic. Jinelle refused to sign away her rights with a contract, so she spent the afternoon touring the place and seeing what went on at the Sanctuary. She told me at supper that she was shocked with what we had done to the place. What she had known about the guild and what we were doing now, were two completely different things, even if some of the things we offered were similar. We made the mage guild''s efforts seem paltry in comparison and our business models made them look like idiots by doubling and tripling profits in the same markets by doing only half the same amount work. ¡°You''re doing so much here.¡± Jinelle said as she ate. ¡°Isn''t it great?¡± Linette asked and took another sip of stout. ¡°If I wasn''t so needed where I am, I would seriously consider working here full time.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Jinelle asked. ¡°I thought you were happy being a healer for the capital''s hospital?¡± Linette laughed. ¡°Of course I''m happy where I am. I didn''t say I wasn''t.¡± She said and Jinelle looked confused. ¡°I can see what''s going on here. They are making their own society within our society. It''s like the guild only it''s not as excluding or restricting. There''s no strict conduct guidelines and everyone is encouraged to do what they enjoy. I can''t help but admire that and want to be a part of it.¡± ¡°Which is why we keep inviting you back.¡± I said and raised a glass of wine to her. Linette smiled happily. ¡°Thank you, David.¡± We all drank to that and the meal ended. ¡°I need to go.¡± Linette said and stood. ¡°I''ll be back in two weeks for another clinic.¡± I stood and walked around the table. ¡°Make sure you let Farra and the old man know what potions you need more of, so they can keep you stocked up.¡± Linette smiled. ¡°I''m very glad that you''re so accommodating, David.¡± She said and gave her daughter a look that clearly said to not react, then she pulled me into a kiss. Since I no longer had any restrictions on myself, I kissed her properly and not how she expected. She moaned a little in pleasure and hugged me tightly. A few people let out whistles and shouted encouragement, which made Jinelle blush and Gella, Hanna, and Farra laugh. ¡°M-m-mom!¡± Jinelle gasped. Linette broke the kiss with a sigh and looked into my eyes. ¡°You are very lucky that I''m married.¡± ¡°So are you! Ha ha ha!¡± Gella laughed and everyone in the room joined in. ¡°Oh, be quiet.¡± Linette said and waved her hands to try and hush everyone, then she laughed, too. ¡°I better go before I start blushing.¡± ¡°I''ll walk you out.¡± I said and took her arm. ¡°Jinelle, let''s go.¡± ¡°Actually, she needs to stay for a while to help me compose some documents for your mother.¡± I said and Linette looked interested as I led her to the door. ¡°It concerns her creme and the ingredients the Mages Guild provided for her.¡± Linette nodded. ¡°She was quite desperate for them, that''s true. Are you still making them?¡± ¡°We are. We also have a few new things that could change or enhance it some more. The details still need to be worked out.¡± ¡°She will be delighted to hear that.¡± Linette said and we descended the stairs. ¡°When will you be visiting?¡± ¡°I''d say in an hour or so. It depends on what Jinelle has to say about her contributions to your mother''s work.¡± Linette nodded and let me guide her out of the building and into a waiting carriage. ¡°I''ll see you later, David.¡± ¡°I hope so. My people need your expertise, especially in these last few stages of the potion.¡± Linette smiled. ¡°Until next time.¡± I nodded and watched the carriage leave. I went back inside and Jinelle stood on the stairs with an accusing look on her face. I walked over to her and took her arm before leading her back up the stairs to the floor my room was on. I wasn''t surprised to feel Gella hiding in the shadows and keeping watch over us. I took Jinelle into my room and she caught her breath at the sight. ¡°They modelled it after the captain''s cabin on the ship.¡± I said and brought her into the bedroom. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Jinelle asked and let my arm go to cross hers under her chest. ¡°I''m going to give you what you came here for.¡± I said and started to strip off. ¡°David, you... you...¡± Jinelle looked away from me. ¡°You kissed my mother.¡± ¡°Before she left me here to attend the academy, I kissed your aunt, too.¡± Jinelle caught her breath and shook her head. ¡°Why? Why tell me that?¡± ¡°I haven''t had sex with either of them.¡± I said and put my hands on her shoulders from behind. I turned her to face me and the look on her face was a mix of anger and sadness. ¡°I''ve kissed Pavinca as well.¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light, David!¡± Jinelle exclaimed. ¡°It was a magic sharing experiment.¡± I said. ¡°I didn''t have sex with her.¡± ¡°That... that''s not the point!¡± ¡°Then what is?¡± I asked and opened up the top buttons on her dress. Jinelle glared at me. ¡°You can''t go around kissing women like that.¡± ¡°I don''t. That was the first time I actually kissed her back. She kissed me twice before to thank me for the potion donations. That was months before I was kidnapped and made a slave.¡± Jinelle looked into my eyes and sighed as she uncrossed her arms. Her dress dropped to the floor and she didn''t say anything when I bent down and took off her underwear. ¡°I don''t want you kissing her.¡± ¡°I will avoid it or tell her not to.¡± I said and picked her up. Jinelle let out a startled squeak, then she held onto me while I carried her to the large bed. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Skipping time. Done. _______________ ¡°How... how can you do that?¡± Jinelle asked in a whisper two hours later. ¡°My resistance to your charm fails every time.¡± ¡°It''s because I saw you naked and didn''t tell anyone else about it, not even my retainers or my betrothed.¡± I said and she caught her breath. ¡°It''s true. That was between us and you said to not tell anyone. No one knows about it, not even now.¡± I didn''t tell her that Gella was waiting outside the room. ¡°You really didn''t brag about it?¡± Jinelle asked. ¡°Why would I? It wouldn''t help you or make you feel better about what happened.¡± Jinelle took a deep breath and let it out. ¡°Are you really doing up documents for my grandmother?¡± ¡°Yes. She needs to know, officially, the reasons I won''t be providing the ingredients anymore.¡± I said. ¡°I also have documents for your signature to remove you from her influence.¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± Jinelle gasped. ¡°They are forms for you to sign, claiming coercion with the mages guild to corrupt you by selling you to one of their main conspirators.¡± Jinelle stared at me like I had stabbed her. ¡°We found the man''s name on the trusted list from the Mages Guild. He fully cooperated in helping them try to take over. My writ of dispensation does not cover non-mages, so I am hurting him in the only ways available to me. Denying what he wants and ruining him by public opinion.¡± Jinelle didn''t react and barely blinked at all. ¡°We should bathe and get those forms signed. We can get dressed and surprise your grandmother by showing up fashionably later than she expected.¡± That made her flinch and frown. ¡°You told mom a time and intentionally ignored it?¡± ¡°It''s a test. A relatively minor one, compared to some of the ones that Gella and I use for other mages.¡± I said and climbed out of bed. ¡°Linette knows your mother cooperated with the guild and still informs her of things. By law, that''s collusion.¡± Jinelle sighed and laid back. ¡°I am guilty of that as well.¡± ¡°So is your aunt, Mage Marks.¡± I said and waited for several moments to see if she would get out of bed, then reached down to pick her up in a princess carry. ¡°David!¡± Jinelle gasped. ¡°I told you. We need a bath and to get ready.¡± I said and took her to the bathroom. I quickly set it up, to her surprise, and then bathed her and myself. I was efficient with it and didn''t play at all, then dried her off and myself. ¡°I can''t wear...¡± Jinelle started to say. ¡°I have your things ready, my lord.¡± Jill''s voice said from the bedroom. I took Jinelle''s arm and led her out to the bedroom, as if escorting her to an event. Jill saw this and covered her laugh with a hand. She didn''t comment and helped us get dressed in two fancy outfits. Jinelle was reluctantly happy to have such a nice dress, by the expression on her face. ¡°The documents are on the dining room table, my lord.¡± Jill said and pat my chest to let me know I was immaculate. ¡°Do you want your hair in a ponytail?¡± ¡°No. I want Lady Marks see what she will be missing because of her mistakes.¡± Jinelle sighed and followed me to deal with the paperwork. It didn''t take long and she looked sad to have to do such a thing to her family. She would essentially be breaking confidence, like Helena did to her family, except Lady Marks would still be responsible for taking care of her monetarily and was required to return Jinelle''s maids. ¡°At least I''ll still be a Marks.¡± Jinelle whispered and signed the last document. Copies appeared next to them. ¡°If you choose to be.¡± I said and rolled up the copies to take with us. ¡°You can marry who you want and take their name, change yours, or have them change theirs.¡± Jinelle gave me a longing look and shook her head. ¡°Once it''s known that I''m pregnant...¡± ¡°It''s a safety measure.¡± Jill said and took the originals. ¡°It almost worked for Helena. If her father wasn''t such a controlling bastard...¡± ¡°Enough.¡± I said and Jill closed her mouth. I took her hand and put it to my chest to hold it tenderly. ¡°You did what you could. It''s over and done with. Most of them are dead now, except for those not willing to come back to the capital. I will be hunting them down after I fix myself and build better weapons to do so.¡± Jill nodded and turned the hand to lift it up and cupped the cheek of my face. She nodded and didn''t say anything before she let me go and stepped back. ¡°Jinelle.¡± I said and she took her place at my side. I led her from the room and Gella slid in behind us to guard us. She also wore her small backpack and had her weapons out in the open, showing everyone that she was in guard mode. We went down the stairs and out of the building to the waiting carriage. The driver already knew where we were going, so we left at a fast trot. The drive was quiet and long, which made Jinelle fidget after a while. I touched her hand and shared magic with her to calm her down. She gave me a sad smile and hugged my hand. I didn''t try to convince her that everything was going to be all right, because things were going to change for her after tonight. The butler at the Marks estate looked perturbed at our arrival, which was the point, and he left to announce it. Lady Marks stalked into the lobby to glare at us and also ranted at being kept from other duties while she waited for us. I didn''t say anything, or pointed out the expensive clothes we wore to meet her, and pulled out copies of the forms that Jinelle had signed. What followed was a rant of epic proportions. She berated the young woman for being so stupid, for giving her virtue to a commoner, and for ruining the family name. ¡°No, you did that.¡± I said. ¡°You!¡± Lady Marks spat and pointed. ¡°This matter does not concern you!¡± ¡°Actually, it does.¡± I said and pulled out the papers concerning the Mages Guild and her cooperation with them. It also highlighted her trying to sell Jinelle to cement the relationship. Lady Marks looked shocked, then she snarled and tore the papers up. ¡°Those were your copies to read over and to see where your fault lies.¡± I said and she cursed at me and paced back and forth in the lobby. ¡°It doesn''t matter what you say, Lady Marks. You are at fault for this situation. Your actions contributed to the defiling of your granddaughter, just so she could get away from you and your corrupting influence.¡± ¡°She was the price for a business alliance!¡± Lady Marks spat. ¡°Which is now ruined because of your plots and schemes.¡± I said and she looked even angrier than she had been. ¡°Your own stores of ingredients could have lasted you quite some time before you needed replacements, if you only used them for yourself and a few gifts for friends.¡± Lady Marks turned away from me and didn''t say anything. ¡°Ah, I see.¡± I said and smiled. ¡°Lady Jinelle Marks has a nice ring to it, doesn''t it?¡± Jinelle gasped and Lady Marks turned red from both anger and embarrassment. ¡°It seems my idea of her setting up a new home for you was premature, Jinelle. This mansion should serve your purposes well.¡± ¡°Wh-what?¡± Jinelle looked from me to her grandmother. ¡°Lady Marks breached her contract with me. I have received no monies concerning the updated creme I created since I had been removed from the Kingdom forcefully. I also didn''t receive any after returning to the Gulf Kingdom and I know for a fact that both Greta and Linette have told her that I was back.¡± ¡°You... you can''t...¡± Lady Marks whispered. ¡°I''ll be ruined.¡± Jinelle gasped again and looked at me with horror on her face. ¡°She means physically. She has lots of money to cover the penalties for breach of contract and this mansion is only one of her properties.¡± I said and Lady Marks looked startled. ¡°I have a very attentive account manager at the bank. She was quite thorough in looking over everything. I believe she must be sorely missing the remuneration she should have received from your accounts.¡± Lady Marks sighed and rubbed her face with her hands. ¡°I''ll have it sent as soon as...¡± ¡°No, I let it go this long, because I had so many other things to take care of. It''s been long enough.¡± I said and smiled. ¡°Pack your personal belongings and vacate the premises. The new Lady Marks wishes to move back into her home.¡± Lady Marks tried to give me a hate filled look, then sighed and nodded. ¡°Grandmother.¡± Jinelle whispered. ¡°I think I am going to retire.¡± Lady Marks said and looked down at her smooth skin. ¡°Perhaps to the country plantation and far away from the public eye.¡± The butler appeared and glared at us, then he led a sad old woman away and up the stairs. Jinelle looked at me when they were out of sight. ¡°David, you... why...¡± ¡°She doesn''t want to suffer the humiliation if it gets out that she helped the Mages Guild in their plot, just so she could remain looking younger. Not for power, or prestige, or even political gain. She helped to try and overthrow an entire country for a pretty sight whenever she looked in the mirror.¡± Jinelle sighed and nodded. We stayed there for over an hour as Lady Marks packed up her things and left with several carriages of clothing, equipment, and experiments. I hadn''t tried to deny her taking most of her workshop or research, since she would see it and know that it caused her ruination as much as it made her beautiful. Her two assistants looked lost and spoke as one. ¡°What do we do now?¡± I gave Jinelle a pointed look and she couldn''t stop her smile. ¡°Who said you had to leave?¡± Jinelle asked them. ¡°There''s lots for us to do here in a large potions lab.¡± The two young women gave her a surprised look for a second, let out yells of delight, and hugged her tightly. ¡°We''re going to have so much fun!¡± One of them said and took her hand. ¡°Your grandmother wouldn''t let us experiment with anything except her cremes and lotions!¡± ¡°We have so many ideas that we''ve been hiding, it''s not funny!¡± The other one said and ran ahead to open the door to the downstairs storage area. ¡°We can show you, now that we''re allowed to!¡± Jinelle looked happy as she was led away. I looked up at a noise I heard and saw three anxious female faces on the stairs. ¡°Your lady needs you to take care of her now, more than she ever has before.¡± The three of them let out squeals of delight and ran down the stairs, past me, and followed their young lady into the lab''s storage area and the assistant''s living space. I waited until it was quiet before I left the mansion. Gella handed me a change of clothes from her backpack when I entered the carriage and it drove off to our destination. I quickly changed with her help and donned my own weapons for battle. We arrived down the street from Mage Ridge''s estate and the carriage dropped us off. Gella and I slipped onto the grounds easily and I cast several spells to help us stay hidden. We weren''t surprised to find several traps, damaging enchantments, and mages patrolling the grounds. Unlike the other interrogations, giving them a dose of truth serum made them confess immediately. We killed them and moved on towards the house. It took us ten minutes to disable the wards and enchantments keeping us out, then we slipped inside and I cast the containment spell that blocked the doors and windows with magic to stop anyone from leaving or escaping before we found them. Then the slaughter began. Fifteen mages were staying there and had blueprints of the castle, the Mages Academy, and the Mages Guild. The last one wasn''t even close to what it looked like now, not after all the changes we had made to it. That didn''t matter at the moment as Gella decapitated men and women alike that attacked us and I cast various high damage spells to dismember and kill the others. We crept through the large manor and disposed of anyone that was an enemy. If they didn''t attack, we dosed them and then killed them. They had gathered under Mage Ridge''s husband to try and retake the guild. Idiots. ¡°I know you''re there!¡± A man''s voice shouted into the hallway from what was the main bedroom. ¡°If you don''t show yourself, I''ll kill her!¡± Gella and I exchanged looks. She nodded and faded away and I dropped my stealth and obscure spells to walk into view. ¡°I knew it was you!¡± Her husband spat at me. He had a knife at Mage Ridge''s throat. ¡°Of course you did. I''ve been asking all over for you.¡± I said and slid my sword back into the sheath. ¡°It was very stupid of you to come back once you got away.¡± The man shook his head. ¡°I had to come back. I ran out of money and...¡± ¡°You had all these mages around and you ran out of money?¡± I asked, confused. ¡°What were you doing? Sitting around and eating all the time?¡± The man didn''t respond. ¡°You can do magic. You shouldn''t need money at all. I lived for twenty years and never had any money at all until just before I left the marsh.¡± ¡°Well, not everyone is an idiot that likes to wallow in filth and muck.¡± Mage Ridge gasped and started crying. ¡°Shut up!¡± The man spat and gripped her hair tightly to hold her still. He looked at me and smiled. ¡°You are going to stand there and I am going to kill you. If you don''t, my loving wife loses her life.¡± I used Detect Enchantment and found several things, so I stayed quiet and studied them. ¡°Do you agree?¡± The man asked and shook Victoria''s head to make her cry out. ¡°Answer me!¡± ¡°I won''t move from this spot.¡± I said and stood up straight. I gained the enchantments and used Disable Enchantment on all of them. Luckily, he didn''t notice the slight glow on the knife he held had faded away. ¡°I''m going to enjoy this.¡± He said and let her hair go and started chanting under his breath. He didn''t move the knife from her neck as he did so. He pointed his free hand at me. ¡°Ray of Death!¡± ¡°NOOO!¡± Victoria yelled and closed her eyes as the ray of black light hit me. ¡°No! He didn''t deserve to die like that.¡± I looked down at my chest and back at the man. ¡°Was that supposed to do something?¡± Victoria gasped and opened her eyes. She was shocked that I was still alive. I did not enlighten them that my amulet protected me, just like Gella''s protected her. ¡°How?¡± The man asked. ¡°I cast it properly! I killed six villagers on the way here to make sure! It should have worked! IT SHOULD HAVE WORKED!¡± ¡°Gella.¡± I said and her sword pierced the back of the man''s head and came out of his mouth. He choked on the blade and dropped his knife as he tried to somehow grab the blade. It was still glowing, so when he gripped it to pull, it sliced into his fingers and blood spurted everywhere. Gella pulled the blade out and the man dropped to his knees, then fell backwards. ¡°Severed spine and nerves.¡± She said and ended the glow of the blade before she wiped it off. ¡°You... you didn''t even question him.¡± Victoria whispered as she looked down at her dying husband. ¡°We don''t have to if they attack us first.¡± Gella said. ¡°He also cast an evil spell, Ray of Death. He wasn''t going to live long after being sentenced for the people he killed, anyway.¡± ¡°But... what about...¡± ¡°He was the last one here.¡± I said and walked over to her. ¡°Are you okay? Do you need a healer?¡± Victoria shook her head and tried to move, then her legs gave out. I caught her and she grabbed onto me and kissed me. I had to admit that was a sound tactic to ambush someone that wasn''t expecting it. ¡°Thank you, David.¡± Victoria said, her face flushed red, and she let me go and stood on her own again. ¡°There was nothing to it.¡± I said and Gella nodded. ¡°We''ve had tougher times assaulting a rival pirate ship.¡± Gella said. ¡°I kind of miss those days. Everything was so much simpler.¡± ¡°You finally realized the allure of the marsh.¡± I said and she gave me a sly smile. ¡°Should we clean up in here?¡± Gella asked and waved at the man''s body. ¡°No, I... I''ll... actually, I don''t know what to do now.¡± Victoria said with a shake of her head. ¡°I''m no longer married and I don''t have to abide by his decisions.¡± ¡°We''ll loot them for whatever valuables they have and gather the bodies in the front hall. Call a disposal crew and they can take care of it.¡± Gella said. Victoria nodded. ¡°You won''t find much if they came here looking for money.¡± ¡°There''s more value in items and enchantments a person can carry than the money they have on them.¡± I said, wisely. Victoria grabbed my arm as I turned to leave. ¡°David, I... I''m not married anymore.¡± Gella gave her a look, looked at me, and shrugged. She picked up the body and left the room. ¡°Mage Ridge...¡± ¡°Please, call me Vicky.¡± Victoria said, her face red. ¡°I haven''t heard someone call me that since the academy.¡± I raised my eyebrows at her and she gave me a longing look back. ¡°I won''t be tied down with contracts or forced to...¡± Vicky pulled off her dress and laid down on the bed to present herself to me. ¡°Just once, I want another man to take me. I''ve only been with my husband and I want to know what it''s like with someone else.¡± I looked at her and she was soaked down there. ¡°Are you sure?¡± ¡°I''ve wanted you ever since we met and I found out who you were.¡± Vicky said and pulled off her underwear. ¡°I could never say anything because of my vows and oaths.¡± I pulled off my clothing and she drooled a little at my sculpted form, even if it was all white skin. She waved me forward and I slid into her with almost no resistance. She moaned and coaxed me into having my way with her, wanting me to show her how I made a woman my own. I obliged and she screamed my name and her pleasure throughout the house. Only Gella was alive to hear her. When I didn''t finish quickly like her husband, Vicky had no idea what to do with me. She seemed at a loss as I kept going, making her orgasm over and over, unlike her husband that was just killed. When I approached the end of my own pleasure, she was quite enamoured of me. I pulled out and sprayed myself all over her belly and she moaned at the amount that I released. ¡°Soooo.... much... just... just for me.¡± Vicky cooed and rubbed her hands through it. ¡°It''s so warm.¡± I stood up and used several cleaning spells to wash myself and dressed. ¡°David... thank you.¡± Vicky said and lifted her hands to stare at the dripping liquid. ¡°This... thank you.¡± I nodded and turned to leave the room. I ignored the slight slurping sound and the soft moan behind me. I found Gella beside the bodies and a small bag of enchanted items and weapons. ¡°Did you have fun, my lord?¡± Gella asked as she slung the bag over her shoulder. ¡°I thought you were supposed to protect me from threats.¡± I said instead of answering. Gella looked surprised. ¡°My... my lord, I... I thought...¡± ¡°I didn''t ask you what you thought. I asked you what you swore to do for me and why you aren''t doing that.¡± I said and her surprise turned to shock. ¡°In fact, you even brought me to Eludora, despite my wish to stay away from her to let her get over her infatuation.¡± Gella looked at a loss of what to say to defend herself. ¡°I can let what happened with the others go, because we all live together and things can happen sometimes. With Eludora and now Mage Ridge, your services have been lacking and I''ve been left to fend for myself.¡± Gella still looked too stunned to respond. ¡°Do you need some time to think about what it is you want to do with your life, if you are having trouble upholding your obligation to me?¡± I asked and she didn''t say anything. ¡°We should go back to the Sanctuary. I have more work to catch up on before Eludora shows up tomorrow and uses up even more of my time.¡± I walked out the front door of the manor and over to the same spot that we had snuck onto the grounds. I entered the carriage and sat there for nearly twenty minutes before a very embarrassed Gella entered and sat down across from me. She wouldn''t meet my eyes at all. ¡°Driver! Home, please.¡± I said and looked out the side window. ¡°Yessir.¡± The driver said and we took off at a fast trot. 301 Eludora’s Happiness I wasn''t surprised that Gella avoided me when back at the Sanctuary and Jill was the one that joined me in bed. She didn''t do anything but cuddle, so I didn''t object. Eludora actually showed up early the next day with the invitation clutched in her hand. She also had the Director of the Academy with her while they waited at the front gate for me to come and get them. ¡°Good morning, Eludora, Pavinca.¡± I said and took each of their hands and kissed the backs of them, and gave them a touch of magic. ¡°I know why Eludora is here.¡± I said and looked at her to see her deep blush. ¡°May I inquire as to why Pavinca is here?¡± ¡°I had to convince her to come and then escorted her to make sure she did.¡± Pavinca said, proud of herself. I sighed and closed my eyes. ¡°You shouldn''t have.¡± Eludora looked sad. ¡°D-David, don''t... don''t you want me here?¡± I looked at her as I took both of her hands and smiled warmly at her, which made her blush again. ¡°I did want you to come... if you did it on your own. Having someone bring you after convincing you, means you didn''t overcome your fear of leaving the library. You are no closer to bettering yourself than you were six months ago when I was taken away.¡± Eludora sighed. ¡°I... I understand.¡± She let my hands go. ¡°Pavinca, we should go.¡± Pavinca looked shocked and dismayed. ¡°David, you can''t do this. She really did want to come...¡± ¡°I know she did. If she had asked you for help, that would be a good thing. I told you that she needed to make the decision herself to come here. Instead, you made her agree and then brought her here. Despite what you may think, that did not help her. It would be the same as if I took her here myself, or if Gella retrieved her for me. None of which would be her choice. Her. Choice.¡± Pavinca looked a little angry. ¡°Fine! I''ll take her back to the academy. I''m sorry that your expectations didn''t reflect reality!¡± I gave her a blank look for several moments and she didn''t look less angry. ¡°Now that you''re here, no matter the reason, why don''t you tour the place? I''m sure that you''ve been wanting to for a while.¡± ¡°I''ve seen it when it was still the Mages Guild.¡± Pavinca said, her arms crossed and unhappy. I looked up at Eludora''s face. ¡°Since the director doesn''t want to, would you like a tour?¡± ¡°Will you give it?¡± Eludora asked, hope in her voice. ¡°If you wish.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Pavinca, you can return to the academy. I''ll see Eludora gets back safely when she''s done here.¡± Pavinca looked angry again. ¡°Are you dismissing me?¡± I turned to look at her. ¡°You came here uninvited, forced a scared and nervous individual to accompany you to give you a reason to be here, and you think me asking you to leave is dismissing you?¡± Pavinca''s face flushed red from embarrassment. ¡°I... well, I...¡± ¡°You didn''t think, I know. Most of you don''t.¡± I said. ¡°I can''t really blame you for feeling self-important. You are the director of the academy and you have had to exercise your powers a lot since I came back. I shouldn''t have expected you to keep your nose out of my personal business, even if I specifically told you to.¡± ¡°Excuse me? When did you tell me that?¡± Pavinca challenged. ¡°I told you during the last exam that you had no authority over adults having a relationship, staff or not. I''m not sure how you could forget that. Everyone around us heard the same thing.¡± Pavinca opened her mouth to respond, then she closed it. ¡°Yes, you ignored my words, even my warning that Eludora had to choose on her own to come here. You thought you were just helping things along, no matter what the other people felt or the consequences of your actions, be they good or bad.¡± I said and she looked guilty. ¡°I said you can return to the academy, not that you must or had to. You seem to be searching for a reason to be angry with me. Can I ask why? Or is it just because of the problems I''ve solved since coming here?¡± ¡°You''ve caused the problems!¡± Pavinca said, trying to convince herself. ¡°No, I''ve revealed them, just by my presence. If I wasn''t around, how quickly would the academy had devolved back into the pool of corruption that the guild had perverted it into? How many more individuals set upon overthrowing the country would be here still?¡± Pavinca didn''t say anything and I didn''t expect her to. ¡°You''re welcome.¡± I said and held an arm out for Eludora to take. ¡°If you will excuse me, I have a tour to give and a beautiful woman to thoroughly impress with everything my people have done here.¡± ¡°Wait.¡± Pavinca said and took a breath and let it out. ¡°Can I come along?¡± ¡°Perhaps next time. Contact us first to let us adjust the meals and seating arrangements appropriately. Also, certain times are not the best for visitors, especially with all the work that''s going on here.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Jensen is the manager here, in case you didn''t know who you were imposing upon.¡± ¡°David, you... you are being cruel to a friend.¡± Eludora said. ¡°I know.¡± I said and nodded to Pavinca. ¡°Sometimes it takes a bit of cruelty for friends to see that some of their actions are not helpful to keep the friendship intact.¡± ¡°She did a lot to help you.¡± Eludora said. ¡°She did. She also believes that she can do anything she wants where I am concerned. I normally wouldn''t object to that, since it''s usually harmless flirting or covering up the messes I make. Stepping on your toes and telling you that it''s good for you, isn''t helpful. Guiding you and assisting you is commendable, if she did it for your benefit. She wants her best librarian back and thinks giving you to me will accomplish that faster than letting you recover on your own.¡± Eludora blushed and looked down at Pavinca, who was also blushing. ¡°She means well.¡± ¡°We all do.¡± I said. ¡°We all make mistakes, too. Even I do.¡± ¡°I... I know. If I hadn''t rushed that first dose...¡± Eludora whispered. ¡°Things could have been different.¡± ¡°All we can do is try to move on when things like that happen.¡± I said. ¡°I''ve been repressing my feelings about losing Helena and my son for weeks now. I expect to blow up within a month or so when I can''t fight it anymore. I plan to be well away from here when it happens.¡± Pavinca caught her breath and looked embarrassed for some reason. Eludora turned to hug me and bent over slightly to embrace me tightly. ¡°I will do what I can to help.¡± ¡°All of my friends are.¡± I said and she smiled. ¡°Gella has been laughing constantly, Farra has been a cuddling machine, and Hanna has been asserting self-control and self-decision well past that of a personal slave.¡± ¡°She has?¡± Eludora asked as we walked towards the Sanctuary. ¡°Can you tell me what she''s done?¡± ¡°I don''t think that''s a conversation to have in public.¡± I said with a knowing smile and Eludora blushed and laughed. The guards on the door opened it for us and we entered. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Skipping miscellaneous details. Speeding up time. Done. _______________ ¡°This place is amazing.¡± Eludora said as I sat her down in the dining room at a specially made chair and table, so she wasn''t all hunched over trying to sit in a normal sized chair. ¡°I feel like a kid sitting on this thing.¡± Hanna said from a similar chair across the table. ¡°I think we all do.¡± Farra said. ¡°At least Kemma doesn''t have to use the step stool to reach the table.¡± Eludora blushed as she looked around. ¡°David, why... why did you...¡± ¡°I wanted them to know what it''s like when your height restriction is applied to them instead.¡± I said and climbed up onto my chair beside her. ¡°I must admit that Hanna is right. I do feel younger while sitting on such a large chair. It''s quite odd.¡± Hanna giggled and Gella nodded. She still looked uncomfortable and wouldn''t meet my eyes. Eludora noticed this and gave me a searching look. ¡°I''ll explain later.¡± I whispered to her. Lunch was served, as was a nice wine and Eludora had a much bigger plate and glass than everyone else. She enjoyed the larger portions and, to her, normal sized utensils and dishware. ¡°You went to so much trouble for me.¡± Eludora said when the meal was done. ¡°Thank you, David.¡± ¡°The day isn''t over.¡± I said. ¡°We will relax for a short while and then it will be time for your gift.¡± Eludora looked surprised. ¡°But... what... what for? Why did you get me a gift?¡± ¡°I''ve had it prepared for quite some time. I had planned for it to be a gift when I finished my exams and you wouldn''t see me for the summer.¡± Eludora sighed. ¡°You really are leaving?¡± I took her hand. ¡°I have work to do after I fix myself. I''m bringing some of my people with me, since they agreed to help.¡± ¡°You''re going back there, aren''t you?¡± Eludora asked. ¡°It''s my land, so yes.¡± I said. ¡°I just wonder how it has fared and if the protective enchantments will still be working by the time I reach there.¡± ¡°We will find out when it is time to do so.¡± Farra said. ¡°Until then, we have a lot of work to do.¡± I nodded. My experiments with the creme were progressing slowly. Not having Greta to assist with her expertise, really had slowed me down to a crawl, especially with all the distractions I now had. We sat there for half an hour and talked about the things going on at the Sanctuary and what we planned to do for expansions. ¡°Linette is right. This place is becoming something worth being involved in.¡± Eludora said. ¡°That was the point.¡± I said and we all climbed off of our chairs. Eludora just had to stand up. ¡°We were our own little community on the ship that just seemed to get bigger and bigger as we moved.¡± Farra said. ¡°It was amazing seeing so many people work together to create the best ship and crew on the open waters.¡± ¡°Then we gained a shipload of slaves when we decided to come here.¡± Hanna said. ¡°It was an experience trying to keep them safe, fight monsters, and feed everyone.¡± ¡°Why? Aren''t there lots of fish in the oceans?¡± Eludora asked. Nearly everyone shivered and made gagging noises. ¡°After we were stuck out for weeks while working on the ship, all we had was fish to eat. If I never see another fish for as long as I live, I''ll die happy.¡± Farra said. ¡°I spoiled them with real food before that.¡± I clarified. Eludora smiled and nodded in understanding. ¡°Let''s go to the parlour for this.¡± Farra suggested and we all went there. ¡°Gella, can you go and get the package?¡± Gella nodded and quickly left. ¡°Please explain what happened with her, David.¡± Eludora said. I told her what had happened yesterday and what I said, and about Gella''s stunned silence. Eludora sighed. ¡°Your cruel treatment does not work for some things, David. She doubts her abilities now.¡± I shook my head. ¡°No, she doubts her conviction. Why was she not protecting me from physical threats if that was her job?¡± ¡°She is having a crisis of conscience.¡± Eludora said. ¡°You need to remind her that you are confident in her skills to protect you.¡± ¡°Doesn''t my manhood count as part of my body? Why is she so willing to let others use me as much as they want?¡± I asked. ¡°As I told her, I''ve been fending for myself and failing. I don''t know why they seem to ignore their own social rules when certain restrictions are lifted from them.¡± ¡°Like husbands and contracts.¡± Eludora said. ¡°Have they all tried something with you?¡± ¡°In some form or another.¡± I said. ¡°Even married women attempt things, no matter their age. I am getting annoyed at the whole thing and no one seems to care about how I feel about these things.¡± Gella came into the room with a hand cart when I said that. Her face flushed red as she put the cart in front of Eludora. ¡°We all hope you like this gift.¡± Eludora reached out and took her hand. ¡°Thank you, Gella.¡± She said and glanced at me and back at her. ¡°For everything.¡± Gella looked guilty about that. ¡°No, don''t think that way.¡± Eludora said. ¡°You gave me something that I''ve desired for a very long time. I never imagined it would happen. Now that it has, I feel nothing but grateful to you.¡± ¡°I think... that is the point my lord is trying to make.¡± Gella said, sadly. ¡°I didn''t even think about asking him if he would want to do it. I just brought him to you and left him there, abandoning him, and putting him into a situation that he didn''t ask for or knew how to deal with.¡± ¡°He could have said no, or left, or done something else.¡± Eludora said. ¡°Could he? Did anyone tell him he could do those things? Or did he assume that he had to go through with it, because I put him there and he didn''t have a choice?¡± Gella asked her. It was Eludora''s turn to look sad. ¡°I didn''t think of that. I assumed...¡± ¡°You all do that.¡± I said and everyone looked at me. ¡°Everyone assumes things about me and no one ever seems to ask me my opinion anymore. They just do things and ignore my reactions, my comments, and my needs.¡± That made them all look guilty, because they had all done exactly that at some point. ¡°You can open the gift now.¡± I said and Eludora looked like she didn''t want to. ¡°You don''t feel like it, do you?¡± Eludora shook her head. ¡°Then don''t.¡± I said and stood. ¡°We assumed that you wanted a gift from all of us, so we worked hard to make it for you. It took time, effort, and consideration to complete it. When you do decide to open it, you should know that we wanted you to have it and we know how much you are going to love and appreciate it.¡± They all watched as I walked over to the door of the parlour and didn''t say anything. I stopped and turned back to look at them. ¡°Eludora, tell them what I said about friends helping each other. Perhaps you all might understand the difference between selfishness and selflessness.¡± ¡°D-David.¡± Eludora said. ¡°Aren''t you being selfish right now?¡± ¡°I am, and I don''t blame any of you for it.¡± I said and met everyone''s eyes, even Gella''s. ¡°I don''t.¡± ¡°My lord, I... I just...¡± Gella stammered. ¡°I have some work to do for a few hours. If you could have Jill show Eludora to the bath around then, I will meet her there and take care of things.¡± ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± Gella said. I nodded and left the room. I had some work to catch up on. 302 Examination Exultation Part Nine Bokuboy Those few hours working had passed like smoke and I went down to my rooms. The work crew had added the second room to our space and gave us much more room. They even made a much larger bed for our use. It was almost like they knew Eludora would be sharing it this weekend. It didn''t bother me that they knew most of my business, since it let them anticipate some of my needs. The tub was the same size and Jill and Eludora sat there waiting for me. I nodded to them and stripped off, then bathed Eludora and myself, with Jill''s help, because there was a lot of Eludora''s nine foot tall frame to get clean. When we were done, Jill looked reluctant. I actually sighed out loud, which surprised them. ¡°You are taking my words the wrong way and applying them to things they need not be applied to.¡± I said and looked up at Eludora''s face. ¡°Did you tell them what I told you about how they are helping me?¡± ¡°Yes, I... I said...¡± ¡°Gella laughs a lot, Farra is a cuddle machine, and Hanna is self-asserting past her slave programming.¡± I said and looked back at Jill. ¡°Did you hear anything about baths or rituals in that?¡± ¡°N-no, my lord. I... I just...¡± Jill suddenly looked sad. ¡°Yes, you assumed I didn''t want that, even though you know I appreciate your diligence and your ability to perform the duty without actually being my official personal maid. You assumed wrongly, which seems to be a symptom that you all suffer from.¡± I said and stepped out of the bath and started to dry myself off. Jill took several deep breaths and was quite troubled that she had failed to perform the after bath ritual for the first time since she had started doing it. It was a point of pride for personal maids that their lords allowed them to do it for them, especially when their wives couldn''t satisfy them. I dried Eludora off and her eyes kept going to Jill, who looked like she didn''t know what to do with herself. ¡°David, your words...¡± ¡°She is once again assuming wrongly. I can''t do anything to counter her thinking and she needs to work it out for herself.¡± I said and led her out of the bathroom and into the bedroom. ¡°David, you... you don''t have to do this.¡± Eludora said, weakly. ¡°Now you are lying to me and to yourself.¡± I said and laid her down on the large bed. She looked surprised that she was completely supported and the mattress wasn''t digging in where her arms or legs would normally hang over the edges. ¡°David.¡± Eludora whispered and looked up at me with longing and sadness on her face. I ignored the sadness part and joined with her like she really wanted and we had sex for quite some time. I wasn''t surprised that the others stayed out of the bedroom and gave us privacy. When we were done, Eludora was lost in her pleasure and held me to her chest and stroked my hair like I was her favorite pet. I was only slightly annoyed by the treatment, since I had to assume she had to do that without the ability to hold me normally with her very long arms. She eventually fell asleep and I didn''t try to get away or tried to sleep myself. I wasn''t comfortable or felt tired, which wasn''t a good thing for me. I had an exam first thing in the morning and I hadn''t reread the copied notes for the class. For the first time in as long as I could remember, the night passed as slowly as if it crawled by on broken legs. It was almost torture that I had to suffer through the entire thing and didn''t sleep at all. I think my annoyance kept me irritated and my mind couldn''t relax. Not being able to move hadn''t helped to improve that feeling. Early morning eventually arrived and I didn''t bother trying to be considerate of her feelings when I moved Eludora''s arms off of me and climbed out of bed. I didn''t glance back as I went to the bathroom and took a bath by myself. I dried off and dressed in my academy uniform and went to the kitchen, only to see Gella asleep sitting there with her head resting on the notes. They were slightly stained and a little crumpled from her sleep movements. I ignored them and quickly made breakfast for everyone. I didn''t bother trying to look for the others, since it didn''t matter at the moment. I finished and set the table. ¡°Gella, get up.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Gella jumped and looked around, then saw me all dressed and holding a plate of food. ¡°My lord.¡± I put the plate in front of her, on the scattered papers, and sat down across from her. ¡°BREAKFAST!¡± Three yells of surprise came from the living room and one came from the bedroom. I didn''t speak again as Jill, Farra, and Hanna came into the kitchen and Eludora wore a large robe and entered as well. I ate quickly, because I would be in a rush if Eludora was going to be bathed. ¡°Jill, Eludora needs a bath before we leave for the academy.¡± I said and Jill nodded. ¡°That''s all right. I can get one later.¡± Eludora said and then blushed when Jill looked crestfallen. ¡°That''s not an aspersion to your skills, I just need to be back at the Library before the students arrive for exams.¡± ¡°Do you need help getting dressed?¡± Jill asked. ¡°Please.¡± Eludora said and they went into the bathroom to retrieve her clothing from the previous day. ¡°Gella, you need to get dressed quickly. We''re leaving even earlier than I planned, apparently.¡± ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± Gella said and stood, handed me her plate, then she gasped when she noticed the papers she had pretty much ruined. ¡°Oh, no.¡± She said and looked at me. ¡°My lord, I''m sorry.¡± ¡°Did you do it on purpose?¡± I asked and she shook her head. ¡°Then go get dressed.¡± ¡°But... you can''t study...¡± ¡°It doesn''t matter. I can''t fail it.¡± I said and Gella looked guilty. ¡°Go. Now.¡± Gella nodded and jogged into the bedroom to get her things. ¡°My lord, you seem angry.¡± Hanna said. ¡°That''s because I am angry.¡± I said and my magic seeped out and swirled around me. ¡°I haven''t slept since early yesterday morning and I couldn''t study last night because Eludora held me like a pet and wouldn''t let go. I am irritated because I couldn''t get away until this morning when I decided that I could ignore how she felt about me escaping from her embrace.¡± ¡°My lord, please calm down.¡± Farra whispered as my magic seemed to bite along her skin and she shivered. ¡°She could have told me that she needed to be there early yesterday, instead of waiting until now. I don''t have time to study, even if the notes weren''t ruined, because we need to leave immediately for the academy.¡± I said and I closed my eyes and pulled my magic in. It was a bit difficult, because it was unfocused and I wanted to lash out at something. ¡°My lord!¡± Jensen gasped as he entered the room. ¡°We have a group of mages attacking the gates!¡± ¡°Perfect.¡± I said and stopped fighting my magic. It swirled out and I turned my head to look in the direction of the main gates. I walked over to the wall of the kitchen and held my hands out. ¡°Wind Shear!¡± A huge pulse of magic shot out of me and blew out the entire wall, destroyed the oven and part of the pantry, and tossed debris out across half of the field in front of the building. The battle at the gates seemed to stop as everyone turned to look at the source of the explosion. ¡°You DARE come here when I''m irritated?¡± I asked and looked at the large group of mages. I could see that some were academy students and didn''t care. They were a convenient target and I needed to vent. ¡°Everyone back!¡± The Sanctuary Squad leader said and the defenders ran towards the ship parked beside the building. ¡°There''s the usurper!¡± One of the mages shouted. ¡°FIREBALL!¡± I yelled and held out my hands towards them. I didn''t have to shout, though. I just wanted them to know what was coming. A huge fireball ten feet across formed in front of me. ¡°Shields!¡± Another mage yelled. ¡°That won''t help you.¡± I said and launched the flaming inferno that was filled and fuelled by my anger. It crossed the distance quickly and crushed the shields they had erected, then it exploded and sent them all flying away and on fire. Their screams sounded like music to my ears and my vigilance technique told me who was still alive. ¡°Lightning Bolt! Lightning Bolt! Lightning Bolt!¡± I repeated several times and a dozen bolts of overcharged electricity shot out of my hands and hit each mage. The screams stopped as each mage blew up from my magic and soon no one was left on the enemy''s side. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Someone whispered. I stood there, glaring at the devastation I had caused, and took several deep breaths. I could feel my magic was still swirling around, only it wasn''t debilitating or distracting. It was a comforting embrace, something I hadn''t really felt in a while, and I pulled my hands back and let my arms fall to my sides. I didn''t pull my magic back in, either. I let it settle and it calmed down and flowed back into me. ¡°Jensen, apologize to the work crews for me. Double their pay and buy the best materials to replace the wall. If the protective enchantments on the Sanctuary are compromised when you have Molly check them, send word to me at the academy after supper. I''ll make replacements this evening and send them along.¡± ¡°Yessir.¡± Jensen said and saluted as if I was still the captain of the pirate ship. I turned to look at the others and saw their stunned faces. ¡°Let''s go. Eludora will be late if anything else delays us.¡± They all nodded and followed me out of the room and down the stairs. The carriage was waiting for us at the front door and I helped them all into the carriage before shutting the door. ¡°My lord?¡± Gella asked. ¡°I''m riding up front with the driver in case of an ambush.¡± I said and did just that. ¡°I''ll try and stay out of the way.¡± I said to the man. The driver laughed. ¡°I just saw you decimate a prepared group of mages like they were bugs and you''re going to protect us from any more that appear. You could dance on my back and I wouldn''t say anything about it!¡± That made me smile. ¡°I wear soft soled shoes.¡± The driver laughed and laughed as we drove out of the compound. My guess had been right and two ambushes had been set up on the shortest route to the academy. They knew we needed to get there as quickly as possible and were prepared for us if we somehow escaped the attack on the Sanctuary. What they hadn''t planned on was us arriving this quickly. A few Mage Fires and Lightning Bolts took care of the startled mages. The guard at the academy looked worried until he saw me on the front of the carriage. ¡°My lord! You''re okay!¡± He said with relief and opened the gate. ¡°I sent the fastest horse in the stable to warn the Sanctuary when I saw some graduating students sneaking out.¡± I looked at the driver and he nodded. ¡°That''s how your men had your defenses ready for the attack.¡± I pulled out a handful of gold coins and handed them to the guard. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°I didn''t do it for the gold, my lord.¡± The guard said and tried to hand it back. ¡°You''re cleaning up the mess the guild made of everything. You''re making things better and it''s more than anyone else is doing, even the royal family.¡± I pat his full hands. ¡°Keep it as a reward. You gave us the time we needed to take care of them.¡± The guard smiled and nodded as we drove by. The driver dropped Eludora off at the library building first and I helped her out of the carriage. Several students were there waiting, too. ¡°Thank you, David.¡± Eludora said. ¡°I''m sorry that...¡± ¡°It''s not your fault. It''s not really anyone''s fault but my own.¡± I said and she looked sad. ¡°Go inside and be the best Librarian this academy has ever seen.¡± Eludora nodded and easily reached up to the roof rack and pulled out the wrapped present we had given her the night before. She hugged it and nodded to me and then said goodbye to the women in the carriage. I stood on the door step of the carriage and the driver took us to the dorm building. There was some time before the exam was going to start, so there was no point in standing around outside. I thanked the man and helped everyone out, then led them inside the building. We greeted the dorm monitor as we passed her and she nodded in return. When we entered the dorm room, Hanna, Jill, Farra, and Gella all started to talk at once. I held a hand up and they stopped talking. I didn''t say a word and sat down on the couch, then took several deep breaths and let them out. It stopped me from lashing out, which seemed to be a particular problem this morning. I pointed at Jill. ¡°Speak.¡± ¡°My lord, I''m sorry about this morning. I didn''t intend to...¡± ¡°I know. You have a decision to make and you are unable to resolve what I said with what you think I want.¡± I said and pointed at Gella. ¡°You are the same.¡± I pointed at Farra. ¡°You are the same.¡± I pointed at Hanna. ¡°You are the same.¡± The four of them stood there and stared at me. I stood up and looked at each of them in turn. ¡°I have not asked you to do anything, you have all offered your services. I have not asked you to change to suit my needs, yet you have done so anyway, even though I have not been asked what those needs are.¡± That made them flush red with embarrassment. ¡°The only one of you that I have spoken to about their lack of behaviour is Gella, yet you all have reacted as if I have scolded you like children and you fear what else I am going to say.¡± That made them even more embarrassed and they looked away from me. ¡°You are mostly grown women. Start acting like it.¡± I said. ¡°If I come back here after my exams today and you are still acting this way, I will send you all back to the Sanctuary and you can wait there until the exams end in three days and I return there.¡± Their stunned looks told me that my point had been made. ¡°Gella, let''s go.¡± I said and walked towards the door. ¡°Don''t speak to me unless it is a normal conversation and not about any of this.¡± Gella''s mouth closed and she nodded as we left. I wasn''t surprised that she stayed quiet, because I could almost hear her thoughts and feel her desire to apologize and to promise to do better. I didn''t want to hear any of that, though. Actions speak louder than words. She knows this, because it was the first thing that I taught her when she became my sworn sword. I didn''t want a promise. I wanted her to actually do better. Otherwise there was no point. We waited outside the testing auditorium for a while and the other students soon gathered around to wait as well. Gella still hadn''t spoken when the doors opened and we filed in to our seats to take the Basic Biology and Creature Studies exam. The new teacher handed out the exam papers and we all got to work. I was grateful for my own personal experiences with animals over the years and I quickly filled out what I could. There were a few facts and figures that I didn''t now, since I only skimmed over the notes for the class, so I had to leave those questions blank. I couldn''t fake answers for those. When I was done, I flipped the exam over and had to sit there for the remaining time. The man gave me a searching look and I shrugged, showing him that I answered what I could. He nodded in understanding and watched everyone else continue writing. Gella finished just before the time expired and the teacher gathered the exams up. ¡°See you back here for the practical exam this afternoon.¡± The man said and dismissed us. I walked out of the room with Gella slightly behind me and went to the cafeteria. Robin was there and Jinelle wasn''t. I glanced around and didn''t see her, which meant her stating she would be there last week was either a lie or she was doing something else right now. ¡°How was the exam?¡± Robin asked as I sat. Gella stayed standing behind me and to the right. ¡°Do I want to know?¡± Robin asked me as she motioned to Gella. ¡°Just her overreaction and another wrong assumption to a statement that I made.¡± I said and I felt Gella stiffen and heard her take in a sharp breath. Robin looked confused. ¡°Is she your friend or not?¡± ¡°She can''t decide.¡± I said and Gella sighed. ¡°I asked for her help in an area she was ignoring and she keeps thinking I''m trying to trick her or forcing her to change or give up her oaths and promises to me.¡± ¡°My lord!¡± Gella gasped. ¡°I said to not talk to me about it. You are to only speak to me if we are going to have a normal conversation.¡± I warned her again and she clamped her mouth shut. ¡°Restricting her like that isn''t going to help.¡± Robin said. ¡°It stops her repeating herself or annoying me by saying things I don''t want to hear.¡± I said. Robin looked surprised. ¡°Someone got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning.¡± ¡°I did and that is part of the problem.¡± I said and Gella made a noise. ¡°I''ve not slept, am annoyed and irritated, and more mages attacked my people this morning. I am very close to letting my anger and frustration out again and I don''t want to do that.¡± ¡°Then I won''t speak of it or ask about it anymore.¡± Robin said. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and we ate in silence. Gella and I went back to the testing auditorium when lunch was over and there were a dozen pens with various animals in them. ¡°Welcome to the practical exams for Basic Biology. You will go to each pen, identify the creatures inside, and write out their main parts and their primary usage.¡± The teacher said. I raised a hand. ¡°Can we butcher and skin one for the choice cuts of meats and receive extra marks?¡± Everyone in the room stared at me. ¡°You don''t even know what they are yet!¡± A young man''s voice exclaimed into the silence. ¡°I''ve killed and eaten lots of things that I didn''t know the names of.¡± I said. ¡°Um... no. No, you can''t do that.¡± The teacher said. ¡°Can I write it on the exam and get more points?¡± I asked. The teacher sighed. ¡°No, Lord Drake. Knowing how to butcher an animal won''t help you here.¡± ¡°It helped me plenty in the real world.¡± I said. ¡°This is an examination, not real life.¡± The man said. ¡°For everyone that''s not planning on making a meal, please take a stack of papers and proceed to any of the pens and mark down the pen number and fill in the information. They do not need to be done in order. This is a knowledge test, not an organization test.¡± I joined the line to grab some papers and went to a pen in the middle of the room. I noticed that Gella was beside me as well. We didn''t talk as we worked, moved at random to each pen, then recorded the information we knew about the creatures, their species, traits, and useful parts. Not being able to show off my expertise was a disappointment. I handed in my papers when I was done and didn''t bother talking to the man. Gella was right behind me as I left the testing area. We returned to the dorm room and I could easily tell that my words had either been ignored or they were trying too hard to act like they used to. It was forced, even Farra''s cuddling with Hanna and Gella. I didn''t say anything until supper was over. ¡°Thank you all for being here.¡± I said and stood up from the dining room table. ¡°Please return to the Sanctuary and I will see you in three days.¡± ¡°WHAT?!?¡± The four of them yelled. ¡°Jill is so tense that her hands are shaking! Hanna''s attitude is supposed to be comforting and is so abrasive right now that I don''t want to be in the same room with her! Farra''s fake affection is making my senses scream and making those she pretends to cuddle wince! Gella...¡± I looked at her as my magic flared. ¡°Your stiffness and inattentiveness to your surroundings has me wanting to attack you, just so you will react normally!¡± The four of them wilted at my near shout. ¡°I am ORDERING YOU to return to the Sanctuary and to STAY THERE! I need some peace and quiet and I need some time to figure out why you are INTENTIONALLY trying to anger me! I am tired of saying it, over and over, so I am ORDERING YOU to LISTEN TO WHAT I AM TELLING YOU!¡± I shouted as my magic lashed out at them. They gasped as my magic and my orders filled them. ¡°Gather your things and have the guard at the gate call for the carriage and an escort to protect you.¡± I said and sat back down to put my head in my hands. ¡°I did not want to do things like this.¡± ¡°My lord...¡± One of them started to say. ¡°STOP RESISTING AND DO AS I ORDERED! RIGHT NOW!¡± I yelled again without looking at them. I heard them run to get their things, listened to them pack everything hastily, then they crossed the room and left at a run. The door slammed and I felt the emotional dam inside of me crack nearly all of the way across. I could feel the web of breaks grow and threaten to weaken it, several weeks before my previous estimation. I couldn''t let that happen, so I spent the rest of the night trying my best to rein in my feelings and letting my magic calm me as much as possible. Thankfully, Jensen did not send word that the wards were damaged and I didn''t have to make replacements or stop looking after my own well being. 303 Examination Exultation Conclusion I couldn''t remember when I fell asleep. I opened my eyes and it was still dark out. I checked the clock and it was morning, which meant that I slept and didn''t remember it. At least my body rested, even if my brain didn''t. I got up and stripped off, had a quick bath and dried myself, and dressed again. I made a small breakfast and ate it, locked the dorm room, and left the building. I went to the testing auditorium and waited for it to open for students and I wasn''t surprised when no one from the construction class mentioned Gella not being there. We were let in and presented with the exam, which I looked at like it was a foreign language. I hadn''t bothered trying to learn how to do it the normal way, since my way was so much more efficient. Still, over the years in the army, I did learn a few things from Gary while learning how to adapt it to using the number ten potion. I went through the word problems like I did for the advanced math exam. I wrote out what I thought it was asking, then solved that problem. Some were simple and asked for when load bearing weights needed supports. I answered always, even if the load is very light, because you never knew when the building would be attacked and it needed as much reinforcement as possible. I finished the exam well before the time limit and the teacher took it from me and told me to leave. I shrugged and walked away. I didn''t see Pavinca appear behind the teacher''s desk to talk to the man. I went to the cafeteria long before I needed to and Robin was busy cooking for everyone. I ate a small meal and left, not bothering to wait until lunch started to see if Jinelle would be there. I looked at the time and I had a lot of time before the construction practical, so I went up the stairs to the library. I barely had the door opened a crack and I heard crying and another voice. One I recognized. ¡°It''s all right, Eludora.¡± Victoria Julia King, the Botany teacher, said. ¡°He told you that it was something they knew you would appreciate.¡± ¡°It... it''s not that.¡± Eludora said. ¡°It was the circumstances. After what happened... for him to give me such valuable treasures...¡± Victoria sighed. ¡°They are just maps, Eludora. I''m sure that you can ask other boat captains and...¡± ¡°Not like these.¡± Eludora said. ¡°He made them with his own hand. He constructed them from many smaller maps and put them together to make a whole. He travelled these waters and these ports. He mapped these out, his route to come back to me, and then gave them to me as a gift.¡± ¡°Eludora...¡± ¡°...and I ruined it.¡± Eludora cried. ¡°I was so desperate to have him, to prove that I could be woman enough now that I''m healed, I didn''t consider if he wanted to be more than friends. I didn''t ask him if he wanted to be more. I didn''t even ask if we were still friends before he brought me back here.¡± ¡°I''m sure he''s still your friend.¡± Victoria said. ¡°You don''t understand.¡± Eludora sobbed. ¡°You don''t. You can''t.¡± ¡°You''re wrong.¡± Victoria whispered. ¡°I''m still friends with him and I had my own encounters with David. In fact, I...¡± I closed the door quietly and walked back down the stairs. I didn''t need to relive that part of my life. It was bad enough I went through it once. I left the building and wandered around. I didn''t have a destination to get to for quite some time, so I subconsciously started to mimic an academy patrol route. I didn''t realize I was doing it until I was half-way around the campus perimeter and stood behind where my old dorm mansion used to be. It hadn''t been cleaned up at all and I felt anger fill me again. The mages had taken everything from me. My homes, my wife, my son... my son... my son was in a better place now... but... but... he... he should have been here. ¡°He should have been here!¡± I shouted and my magic blew out of me and gripped onto whatever it was in the basement and the collapsed stonework. ¡°MOULD EARTH!¡± A massive crunch was heard and then a solid column of dirt shot up from the ground, larger than the mansion used to be, and started to coalesce into shape. Spurts of metal shot out of the ground. They were all different colors and swirled together to cover the formed stones and dirt before they solidified on it. More metal came out of the ground and filled in the spots that needed it, reinforced where it needed to... ...and then it was done. I felt drained as I dropped to the ground on my knees. I looked at what my magic had created and I smiled a real smile, the one my sister Hope liked to see so much. In front of me was a 200 foot tall metal, dirt, and stone statue of myself with my arms raised and my giant son seemed to float between my hands. It was a trick to hide supports from certain points of view and it was perfect. Everyone could see now that I would always be reaching for the boy I would never see again. I knelt there and stared at it for quite some time, until I felt a nudge from my magic. I didn''t question it and carefully stood up, walked around the giant statue, and promised myself that I would brew up several pots of number ten potion to make the whole thing solid. I walked away, my heart a little lighter and the dam inside me had a few more cracks in it. I didn''t care at the moment. All I cared about was that I finally let some of my emotions out. I stumbled slightly, then ignored my fatigue and drank a general health potion. I felt energy flow through me and smiled as my back straightened. I walked all the way back to the testing auditorium and stopped to wait with the other students. We were let in right away and we entered into a cleared out space with piles and piles of wood, tools, instruments, papers, and workbenches. ¡°You have until suppertime to design and build me a shed. Looks count, so make sure you put some artistic flair into it. Have fun with it and show me what you can do. There''s lots of wood, so you can''t complain that there''s not enough to complete the project.¡± I raised a hand and the man waved for me to speak. ¡°Do you have different or higher quality wood for the detail work, or are we staining it or painting it to give it the appropriate colors?¡± The man looked thoughtful. ¡°I only want a completed work, not necessarily finished to such a degree.¡± ¡°You just told me to show you what I can do. I can''t do that without the proper materials or supplies.¡± I said and the man sighed. ¡°So, do you only want enough for me to pass the class? I can do that in about six minutes.¡± ¡°Go ahead.¡± The man said. ¡°We can all wait for you to impress us.¡± ¡°You won''t be impressed about how easy it is with the right tools.¡± I commented and he looked a little angry. At least he did until I made three walls in about a minute and formed them into perfectly flat pieces of solid wood. He stood there and stared with an open mouth because I didn''t cut any wood at all and stuck the three walls together perfectly, made braces and filled them with number ten, then attached the roof. I made the door in fifteen seconds, used number ten to attach the hinges and a simple door handle, then I hung the door. I stepped back and opened and closed the door to the perfectly made shed. ¡°Make that three minutes. I forgot how many corners I can cut without needing outside reinforcements from attacks.¡± The teacher walked over to it and ran a hand over the perfectly smooth surface and where he was sure what used to be separate pieces of wood were joined together only a couple of minutes ago. ¡°How?¡± ¡°Marsh magic.¡± I said. ¡°Am I done now? Do I pass?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± He said and looked at the shed as a whole. ¡°How much for this?¡± ¡°Do I get to keep it?¡± I asked and he nodded. ¡°Then it''s not for sale.¡± The man sighed and stood back. ¡°I suppose I shouldn''t have doubted your skills and you''re holding it against me.¡± ¡°What? No, I wouldn''t sell you something like this. It''s garbage.¡± I said and waved a hand at the thing and it was engulfed in bright blue flames. Several of the other students yelled in fright and the teacher stepped back, even though he didn''t feel any heat from it. When it was a pile of ash, I dismissed the flames. ¡°If you want a nice shed build with all the appropriate detail work, contact Jensen at the Sanctuary. He can have one delivered by this evening.¡± I said and walked towards the door. ¡°Even the newest slave that just discovered he likes making things from wood, can do what I just did.¡± The teacher didn''t respond as I left. I wonder if he even read any of the reports about me in the class? I asked myself and went to the library. I was quite a bit earlier than I had told Eludora and I wasn''t sure me being there early would be accepted, especially after what I witnessed earlier. I entered the Library and no one was around, so I assumed that Eludora was in the back storage room on her bed, waiting for me. I locked the door and walked over to the room, opened the door, and stepped inside before I heard some very distinct moaning. I stopped walking just as Victoria''s head lifted up from between Eudora''s legs. Both women froze and stared at me with shock and surprise on their faces. ¡°I finished early and I see that you haven''t.¡± I commented. ¡°D-David, this... this isn''t what... it looks like.¡± Victoria said. Eludora''s fluids dripped from her chin and hers soaked over Eludora''s face. ¡°You''re just pretending to be a personal maid, then?¡± I asked and both women blushed. ¡°I was just comforting a friend.¡± Victoria said. ¡°You were? Then why lie about it?¡± I asked and she didn''t answer. I turned around and walked away. ¡°David, wait!¡± Victoria exclaimed and tried to crawl off of Eludora. ¡°I''ll see you tomorrow for the Botany exams.¡± I said and shut the door. I locked it to delay her, as if she needed it after she spends time getting dressed. I was out of the library and down the stairs before anyone could appear to come after me. I went back to my dorm building, greeted the dorm monitor, and went up the stairs to my dorm room. I made a meal and ate it, then went to bed. I suddenly felt tired and didn''t bother trying to fight the feeling. I was glad that I never needed a clock to wake me up in the mornings, because I didn''t wake up until then. I had slept for over 18 hours straight and I felt like a new man. I was full of energy and made breakfast, ate it, and went back to the testing auditorium. A blushing Victoria was there and a single desk was in front of the teacher''s desk. That was appropriate, considering I was her only student. She put a single piece of paper in front of me, face down, and went back to her seat. I flipped the paper over and on it was a single question. Two weeks ago, did you use all of the techniques I taught you about this year without assistance? I read in my head and didn''t glance up at her as I wrote the simple answer. Yes. I flipped the paper over and Victoria stood up and walked over to me, took the paper, and nodded as she read the answer. She went back to the desk and signed it, marked it with 100%, and placed it on the side of the desk where I could clearly see it. ¡°You already took the practical exam, so you''re done.¡± Victoria said. ¡°Your report card with all of your marks on it, will be sent on Friday to the Sanctuary.¡± I nodded and stood. ¡°David, about yesterday...¡± ¡°Did that affect what you did here today?¡± I asked. ¡°No. I planned this since we planted and replanted the entire floor of the Sanctuary.¡± ¡°Then it doesn''t matter what happened yesterday.¡± I said and walked away. ¡°David! She loves you!¡± ¡°No, I was just the first person that she allowed to touch her sexually.¡± I corrected. ¡°Now, you have as well.¡± ¡°David, she was upset and she needed...¡± ¡°See you next year.¡± I interrupted and left the auditorium before she could keep talking. I wasn''t sure if anyone else had any other exams and I wasn''t going to stick around until lunchtime to see if they did. I wasted a ton of time yesterday and I wasn''t going to do it again today. Instead of leaving, I went to the main classroom building and went down to the advanced potions classroom. It was locked, so I unlocked it and entered, locked it again, and quickly started all five of the cooking pots. It didn''t take me long to make five full batches of number ten potion and I filled five crates with it. I did it again, then left to go find a hand cart or something similar. I found one in the maintenance room and brought it back to the classroom and loaded the ten crates into it. I locked the door behind me and walked with a purpose all the way to where the 200 foot tall statue was. It took me four hours to apply the potion to the whole thing. Luckily, the moulded metal clothing on the statue had lots of handholds for me to use and I wasn''t impeded from covering the whole thing to thicken and protect it. Of course, that thought made me realize it could be shot or blasted away, which meant I needed to make a very large enchanted amulet for giant me. I left the statue and brought the hand cart back to the maintenance room, then searched around for some wildwood. The only real place I had seen any was in the enchanting classroom, so I went there and inside were the carving examples from the various classes we had all year. I unlocked the door and went over to my display. I picked up the two squares that still had a little bit of a charge in them and left at a run. I made it back to the statue and climbed up to where an amulet would be on my giant''s chest, close to the neck, and used a touch of number ten to attach the squares and then scraped off the old damage enchantments. I used more number ten potion to form a barrier and then covered it with waterproofing potion and filled it with number ten to copy the wildwood pieces, essentially making a huge medallion. I quickly edited a modified protection enchantment, added in a repulsing ward, damage if too close, ignore if too close, push creatures and people away, fireproof, and strengthening and reinforcement enchantments like the Sanctuary and the ship had. I filled the carvings with my enchantment potion and then infused it. It took a full minute to do so, and that was a lot. I quickly climbed down from it and stepped just far enough away to not be affected by the negative effects, then activated the enchantment. I was pushed back six feet and smiled up at the thing. Only those deserving to see it would see it, and they would know and see my pain. I walked away from the monument to my son and felt satisfied that at least some record of what happened would still exist when I was gone. 304 Working For The Future I didn''t bother sending for a carriage or waited for the driver to come and get me at the end of the day. I gave the guard a gold coin as I walked through the smaller personal side gate and then strode down the road. I was tired of standing around and waiting for things. I had enough of that and walked on and on, not really paying attention to where I was going or my surroundings. I knew I would end up at the Sanctuary eventually, so I let my feet carry me and I walked. Most people don''t realize the value of walking. It gave you a true measure of how far away things actually were. It put things into perspective and let you know that in the world, one person was almost insignificant. Well, a normal person. I felt a laugh bubble up inside of me and I stopped it before it fully formed. Even before I was sold as a baby to the Hag, according to my sister, I was constantly sick and laughed about it. That wasn''t normal. Or, better to say it was normal for me, because my life went on from that and became tougher, harder, and I became tougher and harder because of it. I actually felt grateful to the Hag for everything she did for me and to me. If it wasn''t for her constantly trying to tear me down and destroy me, I wouldn''t have fought so hard to live. It was just too bad that her last attempt to get me out of the way and getting the mages to kill my family, actually worked in breaking me. I could feel the dam crack as I walked. I didn''t know why it continued to crumble. I was dealing with things as they happened and I thought I was doing so well. The monument alone let me vent so much; and yet, I could feel even more emotions trying to break free. I stopped walking and closed my eyes as I felt my churning magic while it stormed against the weakened barrier inside of me. The cracks spread and the pressure didn''t change. I thought that was odd, because I should be feeling more emotions right now, not less. I was calm and the magic seemed to think that was a good thing. ¡°HEY! Get out of the way!¡± A man''s harsh voice shouted. ¡°We''re coming through!¡± My vigilance technique told me there were three mages inside the carriage and the driver was nervous. I turned without opening my eyes and held a hand out to him and cast Barrier. The horses slammed into it nose first and their necks snapped as the weight of the carriage crushed them into the barrier. The driver flipped over and flew through the air past me and landed with a thud. I opened my eyes and walked over to the carriage and the three people inside were on the floor, quite hurt from the sudden stop. I dosed them with truth serum and asked what crimes they did. After a minute, I used my sword to remove their heads and set the carriage on fire. I thought about butchering the horses for their meat, then changed my mind and tossed them onto the fire. ¡°Uhhh.¡± The driver groaned. I walked over to him and dosed him with truth serum as well. When he was done talking, I left him alive and put some number ten potion on his back and tossed him into the fire with the horses. He screamed and screamed as the fire raged and I watched without emotion. When he was down to just wheezing for breath, I cast fireball and it blew the carriage up and pushed the debris and remains off of the road. I couldn''t leave the road blocked like that. It hadn''t even occurred to me to loot them first. I shrugged. I didn''t need the money and I knew a lot of the protective and offensive enchantments and potions that the mages used, anyway. I walked on and let my magic guide me. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Skipping time. Done. _______________ It was the middle of the night before I arrived at the Sanctuary. I had found four more mages hiding out in different spots, made them confess, then killed them and the people hiding and protecting them. I also burned their hiding places down to the ground. It was very cathartic and calming. ¡°Welcome back, my lord.¡± One of the guards at the gate said and opened it for me. He didn''t comment about my slightly blackened clothing, the extra blood splatters, or the slight smile on my face. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and handed him a handful of gold. ¡°Get your woman something nice from the shops in the high end district.¡± ¡°Yessir! Thank you, sir!¡± He said gratefully. The other guard hadn''t asked where I was or why I was gone so long, so I gave him a handful of gold as well and told him the same thing. Both men were happy and I walked into the compound as the gate closed behind me. ¡°He''s the best captain and boss we''ve ever had.¡± One of the men said from behind us. ¡°He''s strong, ruthless when he needs to be, doesn''t mind letting us have fun, and he doesn''t let anyone walk over him. Not other pirates, not mages, and not even the royal family of a whole kingdom.¡± ¡°Yeah, if I was a woman, I''d offer myself up to him, just to let him have his way with me. He deserves it!¡± The other man said. ¡°HA! You''d be an ugly ass woman!¡± The first guard said with a bark of laughter. ¡°I''d have a great ass, though!¡± The second responded, then the both of them laughed and laughed. I had to smile at their conversation. For some reason, even as a joke, it was ringing true within me. It was then that slave''s offer came back to me. She had been sincere in her pledge. She didn''t want a relationship and she didn''t want to monopolize my time. She just wanted to thank me. I turned away from entering the main building and went to the ship. I wasn''t sure why I was, I just felt that I needed to go there. I climbed the stairs someone had made for easily getting to the deck and I greeted a few people there. I was greeted warmly back and I entered the ship''s lower deck. I walked to the fourth cabin and knocked on the door. The door opened almost immediately and there she was, barely wearing a slip of silk. ¡°My lord!¡± ¡°I''ve decided your generous offer was too sincere to deny for another month.¡± I said and she clutched at her chest with both hands. ¡°May I enter your cabin and fulfill your request?¡± ¡°P-please d-do, m-my l-lord. Please do.¡± She said and stepped back to let me pass. I entered and she closed the door. She followed me to her bed and I glanced around at her suite. ¡°You haven''t found anyone?¡± I asked. ¡°No, my lord.¡± She responded. ¡°I am only trying a little. My confidence is lacking, even as my body is restored.¡± She pulled off the slip and showed me that her body was a bit fuller than it had been. ¡°You are much more curvy than before.¡± She blushed. ¡°You remembered?¡± ¡°I thanked you for letting me see you then.¡± I said and stepped close to look into her eyes. ¡°I never forget a promise, even if events and disasters destroy my chances to complete them.¡± ¡°My lord, I... I am so glad that... you accepted.¡± She whispered. ¡°I was willing to wait for my fuly returned body for you.¡± I looked over her face and saw she looked like the middle country''s people. ¡°How would you like to have tanned skin again and your pitch black hair once more?¡± She gasped. ¡°My lord! You can''t... you... can you really reverse this travesty? I feel so inadequate before you!¡± ¡°There''s no need to feel less than yourself.¡± I said and leaned in to kiss her. ¡°MMMM!¡± She moaned and seemed to melt in my arms. When I broke the kiss, she looked down at my slightly ruined clothing. ¡°Battle has always suited you, my lord.¡± She said with pride, then slowly undressed me. Her hands were dirty and had blood on them, and she didn''t care. She knelt to pull my underwear off and I let her. She smiled brightly at my prominent erection and licked it from the base to the tip. ¡°Mmm, delicious.¡± I raised my eyebrows at her and she laughed. ¡°Letting a strong man have me, pleases me more than just the sex, my lord.¡± She said and slipped her mouth over me. She wasn''t performing the bath ritual, either. Her technique wasn''t like that at all. She seemed to play with it, tease it, kissed and licked it all over, swirled her tongue around the tip, and she would sometimes have a very happy expression on her face and meet my eyes. The oddest thing was that she didn''t finish me off. ¡°Now that you are thoroughly hard, you may claim your reward, my lord.¡± She said and stood up, walked over to the bed, and locked her knees with her legs slightly spread apart, before she bent over at the waist and braced her hands on the bed. I had seen similar things before and enjoyed the sight; and yet, this one made my manhood throb. I needed to enter it right now. I walked over to her and wasn''t surprised that she had positioned herself at the perfect height for me to do so. I didn''t deny the invitation and positioned myself at her opening, then grabbed her hips and thrust into her hard. ¡°OHH!¡± She gasped and liquid dripped out onto my thighs. ¡°My... my lord... so powerful!¡± ¡°Do you want more like that?¡± I asked. She shivered and looked back at me over her shoulder. ¡°Y-yes, please.¡± ¡°Magic or no?¡± I asked and pulled nearly all the way out. ¡°You can share... even distracted... like this?¡± She asked with awe. I smiled at her and my magic flowed out and covered her, then it entered her as forcefully as I did when I shoved myself back into her. ¡°MY LOOOOORRRRD!¡± She screamed and shook and shivered as her body gave itself over to the pleasure. Her magic was unlike any that I had felt before. It was like a starving animal that hadn''t been fed food before. It swallowed my magic like she had swallowed my manhood earlier. It was deep inside of her and wasn''t consumed, which meant it wasn''t going to hurt me and only be pleasurable. I suspected she was tested for magic as a child and it damaged her and crippled her magic to the point that she only reacted to the strongest magic being used around or on her. Or in her, in this case. She collapsed onto the bed and rolled over to stare at me. ¡°My... my... lord.¡± She whispered. ¡°I felt... I felt...¡± ¡°Normal.¡± I whispered back and she nodded. ¡°I will try to make sure you keep feeling that for the rest of the night.¡± She gave me a brilliant smile that was so bright that it would make every other woman in the world jealous. I laid down on top of her and entered her again, making her yell her pleasure and my magic entered her and let her continue to feel as if she was a real mage and sharing magic like she should always have been able to. We continued to have sex, magical and powerful sex, as I promised. I stayed there in her bed for the rest of the night. She told me the things she wanted, how she wanted them, and I learned more about what a ''normal'' sex life was like for the common people when they enjoyed themselves. I had been missing out on a lot more than I had suspected. We dressed in a normal set of clothing, one of which she had to get for me from the storage on the ship, and we went to breakfast in the ship''s galley. No one commented about me being there or the woman talking to me like I was her best friend and telling me all about how commoners went on things called ''dates'' to do various things. She told me of taking walks for fun, tours of gardens, going to shows, going shopping for nothing specific (as that wasn''t the point), boat rides of the harbour, eating out for meals, and even just going home to spend time with their date. It was quite the revelation for me. I had known I was not getting the whole picture from my limited exposure before. Now I knew that there was such a fundamental difference between what the noble class thought of as appropriate and what the common people thought was acceptable. By the time breakfast was over, my view of the world was so different from what it had been the day before, that I completely forgot about the emotional turmoil I was suffering through. My struggle with my own emotions seemed to pale when compared to what normal people had to deal with every day. I stood up suddenly at the realization and looked down at her slightly startled face. ¡°May I know your name?¡± ¡°Laura.¡± She whispered. ¡°Laura, I have important work to do. I will be busy for endless hours most days for the next three weeks.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°However, I now know that I cannot live without living. If it would be possible, I want to experience these ''dates'' with you. Meals out, walks for fun, and the others.¡± The entire room was deathly quiet. ¡°My... my lord, I... I would be honored to accept.¡± ¡°No, we are going to date, so I am only David. No lord title, no pompousness or circumstance. Just me, just you. Just us.¡± Laura blushed. ¡°Of c-course, my l... D-David.¡± ¡°Come retrieve me from the potions lab on the sixth floor at suppertime. We will start a date then.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°What do I wear?¡± Laura looked shocked for a moment, then she smiled. ¡°A shirt and pants. Not work clothes. If all you have are fancy suits and expensive clothes, leave off everything but the shirt and pants.¡± ¡°What about underwear?¡± I asked. Laura blushed. ¡°Yes, wear underwear. Your... ahem... needs the comfort and protection.¡± I nodded to her and took her hand to kiss it, then realized my mistake. ¡°I need more practice being normal.¡± I said and bent down to kiss her passionately. ¡°See you tonight.¡± ¡°Y-y-yes, my lord... I mean, David.¡± Laura said and blushed again. I nodded to her and walked out of the dining room. The shouts of congratulations and cheers for Laura''s good fortune followed me all the way down the hallway and up onto the deck. I didn''t suspect that there was that strong of an echo effect inside the ship. I left the ship and entered the Sanctuary, greeted the guards there, and went up to the potions lab set aside for my work. I needed to buckle down and get this restoring creme done. The problem was that it took time for experiments, revisions, and restructuring to get the right components to combine into a working product. It couldn''t be rushed and steps couldn''t be skipped, because the danger it wouldn''t work was too high. Just like when I worked on my regeneration potion, slow and steady experimentation was the key. I was really glad to have harvested lots of my old scarred skin for these experiments, the most dangerous part. I wouldn''t accept volunteers for this, even if they were desperate to be cured. Some of the corrosive elements needed to be handled delicately and any mistake could scar or burn away the skin. I would not take that chance. 305 All Work And Some Play I worked diligently and consistently until lunchtime and went down to the dining room. I wasn''t surprised when several people stopped me to talk and then complimented me on finally ''going commoner''. It made a few of the others laugh and two of the women at the table wished they had thought of asking me first. ¡°Perhaps if these dates work as well as Laura claims they should, I will learn enough to share that experience.¡± I said and the two women blushed deeply and nodded. ¡°As long as you don''t already have significant others.¡± I looked at the faces of the four men at the table. ¡°I''ve already learned to never step on another man''s toes or try to claim their prize.¡± Two of the men nodded, looking happy. ¡°Enjoy your meal.¡± I said and walked over to my regular table. Hanna, Jill, Gella, and Farra sat there, looking embarrassed and uncomfortable. As I approached, the old man intercepted me. ¡°My lord, if I may have a word.¡± I nodded and we walked off to the side. ¡°Your words have stung your charges deeply and has made them question themselves and their actions.¡± The old man said. ¡°When they arrived here in disgrace, they told me what happened.¡± ¡°Disgrace?¡± I asked and looked over at them. Their heads hung low. ¡°They feel that they have failed you, my lord.¡± ¡°Obviously, they didn''t tell you the truth.¡± I said. ¡°This will take some time. Sit with me for the meal.¡± The old man sighed. ¡°My lord, if you don''t sit with them now, they will continue to think you do not favor them.¡± ¡°That''s fine. I don''t right now.¡± I said and he looked surprised. ¡°They are misbehaving and irritating me to the point that I had to yell at them to stop and then ordered them to return here with their things.¡± The old man looked to be at a loss for words. I put a hand on his shoulder and walked over to a free table at the side of the room. I had the old man sit down and food was immediately served to the both of us. I thanked the server and then told the old man everything that had been going on. Gella''s actions and inactions as the main sticking point. Sleeping with the women she wasn''t protecting me from, then me asking her why she was so casual with letting me do things like that, when she knew I wasn''t supposed to. The old man looked stunned as I told him that the others took my words to Gella personally and then changed their behavior, even after both I and Eludora tried to explain it to them. The situation was just getting worse and worse. ¡°Until they learn that I want them to be what they were supposed to be, and not this mess of fakeness and irritation, I do not want to be around them.¡± I said and finished eating. ¡°I''m struggling enough as it is with my anger and hatred without having to deal with this as well.¡± I stood up. ¡°Perhaps if you tell them to stop their ridiculous behavior, my orders to do so might actually work.¡± The old man just stared at me and didn''t say a word. ¡°I don''t want to have to kill them for angering me.¡± I said and stared into the old man''s eyes as my magic flowed out like a searing heat and swirled around us. ¡°I do not need more fuel for my anger.¡± The old man shivered and rubbed his arms. ¡°I... I understand, my lord.¡± ¡°I hope so.¡± I said and my magic flowed back inside of me, still swirling. ¡°It would hurt me to lose them, even more than they are hurting me right now.¡± The old man nodded and I walked away from the table. I didn''t look over to where the women sat and left the cafeteria to go back to my work. I stopped outside the doors and remembered my date, so I went back inside and over to the kitchen. I was immediately met by the head cook. ¡°If it wouldn''t be too much trouble, I need a private area set aside for a date. The food can be the same as everyone else. I just want more privacy.¡± ¡°Of course, my lord.¡± The woman said with a huge smile. ¡°A partition with a sound dampening enchantment will be put around the table you just used.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said. ¡°The server...¡± ¡°We already have three volunteers to be at your call, my lord.¡± The woman said and nodded at the women standing off to the side. ¡°You already knew.¡± I said and she smiled. ¡°We have wine and ale for the meal, because stronger spirits too soon on a date could be disastrous.¡± The woman said. ¡°Do you have any preference?¡± ¡°No. It''s just wine. You can send a server to ask Laura what she prefers.¡± ¡°That is a fine suggestion, my lord.¡± The woman said. ¡°It will be done.¡± I nodded and walked away as I ignored the quickly whispered conversation behind me about making the table and partition the most romantic setting they could. I worked for the next five hours, only doing the experiments that could be done within that short amount of time, and I was satisfied at some of the results. I set them aside and marked everything down, then a knock came at the door. I looked down at myself and the mess I was. I completely forgot that I should have allowed the time to get changed first. I walked over to the door and opened it. Before me was a vision of loveliness. She had her hair pulled back on the sides, leaving her ears exposed and her neck bare. Her hair flowed down the back and was quite appealing. I wasn''t sure why, since I normally didn''t care about such things. She wore a form-fitting dress that looked tailor-made for her and I wondered if she went into the city to buy it. Laura saw my eyes roam over her and she blushed a little. ¡°I made it, my lord. I mean David.¡± I blinked my eyes at her and then smiled. ¡°You do very good work.¡± Laura blushed at the praise. ¡°Th-thank you, David. I have a talent for it and...¡± ¡°I hope Jensen has been giving you everything you need to play and have fun with it.¡± I said. ¡°More than that, my... David.¡± Laura said with a bright smile. ¡°I''ve never had access to so many fabrics or tools at my disposal before, even after we raided that textile shipment!¡± I nodded at her and stepped out of the potions lab. ¡°That was an easy one to acquire. I preferred the slaver ship.¡± Laura laughed softly. ¡°Yes, you would. The guards were twice your size and angrier than bees guarding their honey!¡± I smiled, because that was a great time. ¡°We need to stop off at my room for me to change. I forgot to bring clothing with me.¡± ¡°That''s not a problem. I knew you would and expected it.¡± Laura said and we walked down the stairs. ¡°Your work takes precedence. It''s too important to delay any more than necessary.¡± ¡°The last two weeks set me back significantly, especially since this last weekend I didn''t get to work on it at all.¡± I said. ¡°I did make some good progress today.¡± ¡°I''m glad.¡± Laura said. ¡°I can''t wait to look in a mirror and recognize my own face again.¡± ¡°I don''t use mirrors.¡± I said and she laughed softly. ¡°Yes, that would save you from being reminded how your life has changed how you look.¡± Laura said as we entered the floor my room was on. ¡°I am still surprised at how you have adapted your skills to use only two fingers on each hand.¡± ¡°I didn''t really have a choice. It was either adapt or die. I won''t die, so I adapted.¡± I said and held the door of my room open for her. ¡°I''m very happy about that... even if I''m not sure I like that you are more graceful wearing women''s footwear than I am.¡± Laura said and then laughed. ¡°That''s not something I thought I would say to my date!¡± I smiled and directed her to sit on the couch in the living room. ¡°I''ll wash up and be right out wearing appropriate clothing.¡± Laura nodded and sat down to wait. I went into the bedroom and stripped off the clothing I wore and went to the bathroom. I washed up quickly using the cleaning spells and dried off, then went back into the bedroom and grabbed one of the basic suits worn for meals. I took everything off of the hanger and dug out just the pants and the shirt. I grabbed a pair of underwear from the drawer for such things and then dressed. I went out to the living room and Laura smiled at me as she stood. ¡°Let me just fix that for you.¡± Laura said and unbuttoned the collar button on the shirt and the next button. She smoothed her hands down my chest and admired the fabric. ¡°Yes, that''s very nice.¡± I caught her hands before they went lower and she let out a little giggle. ¡°Our food awaits.¡± ¡°Yes, my... David.¡± Laura said. ¡°I''m sorry that I''m having trouble calling you by name.¡± ¡°It''s part of the slave programming.¡± I said and led her out of my room. ¡°It''s something that magic and potions can''t fix like scars and broken bones.¡± Laura sighed. ¡°I regret ever being one; and yet, if I wasn''t one...¡± She smiled. ¡°...I never would have been rescued by you.¡± I nodded. ¡°Most people never have to experience such things and don''t realize how their lives are so different from ours.¡± Laura nodded back and we walked, side by side, down to the cafeteria. As soon as we entered, a server came over to us and led us over to the partitioned area. Laura gave me a pointed look. ¡°I asked for a bit of privacy. They came up with the partition on their own.¡± I said and we entered it. All other sounds died away and Laura looked around. ¡°It''s enchanted.¡± I said. ¡°Oh. That''s quite handy.¡± Laura said and sat. ¡°I suspect it''s a test. If our date works out well, I suspect a dozen more of these will cover the wall tables by next weekend.¡± I said and the server chuckled. ¡°Make that by tomorrow.¡± ¡°Yes, my lord. It already has the others buzzing about the versatility.¡± The server said. ¡°I''ll be right back with your food and drinks.¡± ¡°We''ve barely started our first date and it''s already changing everyone''s lives.¡± I commented. Laura laughed softly. ¡°It''s definitely changing mine. After you left this morning, all anyone could do was ask me to tell them what happened to let you ask me out.¡± ¡°I thought I heard congratulations and praise, too.¡± I said and she blushed. ¡°I didn''t say that to embarrass you.¡± ¡°I''m not embarrassed, my... David.¡± Laura said. ¡°It felt so nice to have people talk to me about something other than work. Most of the other women just want to talk about clothing, dresses, and what they would like to see.¡± ¡°I hope you are ignoring them.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°You don''t want to have your passion become a chore. You will resent having to do it and you will lose your desire for it. That would be a shame.¡± Laura gave me another pointed look. ¡°David, you... how are you so wise?¡± ¡°The basics were beaten into me as a child and then I learned to apply that knowledge at the feet of various people as I ventured into the world.¡± ¡°At... at their feet.¡± Laura whispered. ¡°Yes, I was less than a slave and less than a commoner for most of my life. My conscription into the army actually raised my social status.¡± I said, to her surprise. ¡°It also led me to becoming a noble by association and then one in my own right. Becoming a slave actually freed me from the binds I hadn''t known that nobility had placed upon me.¡± Laura sat there and stared at me. ¡°Your food, my lord.¡± The server said as she entered the partitioned space and placed the plates and glasses on the table. ¡°Do you want me to wait here or to come back at twenty minute intervals?¡± ¡°Intervals, please.¡± I said. She nodded and left. Laura took a breath and let it out. ¡°My lo... David, I didn''t realize you have been so... so...¡± ¡°I didn''t know I was until I knew I was.¡± I said and she looked at me like she didn''t know what I was saying. ¡°As I gained knowledge, my mind realized the differences as my situations changed. However, my old friend Gillis said something interesting to me once. I took in the information given and adapted to where I needed to fit in. However, I was still me. No matter what was going on or what was happening, I was still me.¡± Laura once again stared at me without speaking. ¡°Shall we eat? If the food gets cold, I can heat it again.¡± I said and she nodded. We ate the meal and drank the wine. Laura smiled slightly after every sip and her eyes went to mine. I didn''t bother to confirm that I had suggested they ask what her favorite was. The server came back and refilled the glasses after she left desserts for us. She took the empty main plates before she left. We ate the dessert and sat there, not really talking or needing to, as we sipped the wine to finish off our glasses. The server came back and looked at us and guessed correctly. ¡°Thank you for eating here tonight. I hope you enjoyed the food.¡± ¡°Give our compliments to the chef.¡± I said. ¡°And Hintel.¡± Laura said, her face slightly red from alcohol. ¡°It was as delightful as it was last month.¡± The server smiled. ¡°He''ll love hearing that. Thank you.¡± I started to offer my arm for Laura to take, shook my head, and took her hand instead. Laura smiled and we walked out of the partitioned area. A few people noticed us and no one said anything, not even the women that were supposedly mine. In fact, they avoided looking at me completely. I looked around for the old man and he was near the center of the room. I stopped walking and glared at him. He flinched and ducked his head. Apparently, he had failed in telling them what I wanted them to know. I quickly debated in my head to yell at him as my magic flowed out of me, swirling faster than it had been. Laura gasped and gripped my hand tighter as the magic flowed through her. I turned to look at her and she had wide eyes as her other hand was moving through the magic flow. I could almost feel her fingers as she seemed to find one of the stronger currents of magic and put her hand right into it. Her hand glowed slightly and she moaned a little, then she realized where we were and blushed deeply. ¡°D-David...¡± Laura whispered. I nodded and didn''t bother trying to pull my magic in as I led her from the room with our hands clamped together like a vise. Her hand was still moving slightly up and down as my magic swirled around us. I didn''t take her back to my room, as that wasn''t somewhere I wanted to bring her. Other people had been in that bed, and for much different reasons. I brought her up the long set of stairs, my magic never waning or my pace wavering, and we arrived at the top floor where the Grand Mage''s remains still stood. The magical barrier was still intact and Laura stared at the blood soaked thing. ¡°Yes, it''s the Grand Mage. It will remain until he turns off the barrier.¡± I said and Laura barked a laugh. ¡°You understand.¡± ¡°He will be trapped forever by Helena''s protection.¡± Laura said, her smile bright. My magic swirled thicker and she moaned loudly. I brought her over to where the Mages Council''s items were displayed and had been deconstructed. It showed the things they stole from other mages and it was a fitting memorial to the old ways. Laura didn''t bother trying to be gentle with me and tore my shirt and pants off, then she pulled her dress off and made a little bed for us on the display. She pushed me down on top of it and went down on me with her mouth, not that she needed to. I was already quite hard and ready. After a few moments of her playing with me, she climbed on top of me and showed me what a woman could do with her body when she wanted to pleasure herself with a man''s help. It was very educational. Also, the sight of her shapely ass as she rode me while facing the other way and jammed my manhood into her as hard as she could, felt absolutely incredible. 306 Innovations Invite Destruction Part One Bokuboy I walked a blushing Laura back to the ship. She had claimed that she wouldn''t normally do that on a date. She just couldn''t help herself with my magic flowing through her and me making her feel so good. I understood and told her that I hadn''t planned on bedding her on our first date, either. She smiled warmly at me and her blush didn''t lessen, even when I kissed her goodnight at her door. ¡°Goodnight, David.¡± Laura said. ¡°And... thank you. I enjoyed our first date.¡± ¡°Do you want me to wait the two days to ask for another date or can I ask now and set it for two days?¡± Laura softly laughed and kissed me again. ¡°Another date in a couple of days sounds perfect.¡± ¡°Goodnight.¡± I said and left. It was still fairly early in the evening, despite the sex and the long walk to the top of the Sanctuary and back down. With nothing else to do, I went back to the potions lab and chose several experiments that would only take several hours to complete. When they were done, I cleaned up and went down to my room. When I entered, I was surprised when there was another bed set in the room for the women''s closets, dressers, and clothing. It was occupied by Gella and Farra while the second bed in the main bedroom had Jill and Hanna in it. None of them said anything to me and pretended to be asleep while I entered the bathroom and stripped off and bathed myself. I put on a pair of loose underwear before climbing into bed. Alone. I didn''t bother trying to stop my magic from flowing out and swirling around. I ignored the sounds from Hanna, Gella and Farra, just like they were ignoring me. I closed my eyes and maintained my vigilance technique as I also rested and got some much needed sleep. I wasn''t surprised that no one joined me in bed to share my magic, after the old man warned them. I woke up in the morning and climbed out of bed, put on a working outfit, and left the room. I went to the cafeteria to eat and had breakfast with a group of workers that were building a large woodworking shop behind the Sanctuary. We talked about it and I told them a few things that Gary had at the barracks in the maintenance department, then a few things that the Sellwafers had at the docks. They agreed they were great ideas and changed a few things they planned and adjusted the size of the available space and where things would go. It would be more efficient and give them more room to work. I also suggested that I would need some room for some experiments. The workers smiled knowingly and agreed that I would have full command of the workers when I was there. I tried to protest that and they informed me that whatever I was doing, would change their lives. They would be stopping their work and would watch me anyways. I couldn''t argue that, so I didn''t. I went to work back in the potions lab and spent nearly all day and the evening working. I couldn''t leave in the middle of my tests and brewing parts, or re-brewing as required. A nice woman, the server from my date the day before, brought me meals without being asked. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said when she put supper on the side of my workbench. ¡°You''re welcome, my lord.¡± The woman said. ¡°We all know your work is more important than eating with the rest of us.¡± I turned away from the bubbling skin of my latest test on the enchanted wildwood and looked at her. ¡°You''re wrong. I just can''t leave the room unattended at critical stages.¡± The woman blushed and ducked her head slightly. ¡°I''m sorry, my lord. I misunderstood. I''ll spread the truth when I go back downstairs.¡± I gave her a pointed look and her blush intensified. A hissing sound came from behind me and I leapt at her and brought her down to the floor, rolled over as not to squish her, and took her out of the blast zone. The pop was quite loud as my experiment exploded and threw little bits of skin all over the place. ¡°As you just experienced, even a moment of inattention can be disastrous.¡± I said. ¡°I''m... I''m so sorry, my lord!¡± The woman said and huddled in on herself, as if waiting to be punished. ¡°No, this wasn''t your fault.¡± I said and rubbed her back. ¡°Even if I was watching it, I couldn''t reach the reactive agent to cancel it before it exploded, anyway.¡± The woman was silently crying and I didn''t try to get up off of the floor with her acting like this. We laid there for several minutes as I held and comforted her. She eventually calmed down and then she realized where she was and who she was doing it with. ¡°M-m-my l-lord! I... I... I...¡± I looked into her startled eyes and leaned in and lightly kissed her. Her startled expression disappeared and her lips moved with mine. She didn''t try to go any further than that, though. She broke the kiss and looked into my eyes for several moments before she spoke. ¡°My lord, thank you for...¡± She smiled and blushed a little. ¡°...calming me down.¡± ¡°I would like to say the same.¡± I said as I let her go and then stood up. Her eyes immediately went to my crotch and she blushed deeply. I helped her stand up and she met my eyes again. ¡°My lord...¡± ¡°I''ve only been on one date so far. What are the rules for others?¡± The woman seemed to shiver slightly. ¡°I want to lie and say that you can date as many women as you like at the same time.¡± I gave her a happy smile and she caught her breath. ¡°What is the truth?¡± ¡°Unless the woman agrees beforehand to see other people, she believes that she is the only one that you are dating.¡± She admitted. I thought about that and nodded. ¡°That seems a fair exchange.¡± ¡°You can also stop dating at any time if either of you are unhappy with the other, or if you just don''t like spending time with them, or even if you''re bored or like someone else. It''s a little complicated.¡± I nodded again. ¡°Thank you for telling me.¡± ¡°You''re welcome.¡± She said and looked at the plate of food she had brought to me. ¡°Your food is getting cold... and it has some of that stuff in it.¡± I looked myself and saw that she was right. ¡°I don''t feel like dying today.¡± I said and disposed of it and the failed experiment. I set things aside for cleaning and then waved at the door. ¡°Shall we go? I need to eat and I suddenly have the spare time to do so safely.¡± The woman laughed softly and nodded as she led me out of the room. Not surprisingly, my appearance made a slight stir in the conversations of the other cafeteria patrons. She served me another plate and I ate at another table, this one filled with women workers that were part of the field tenders for both vegetables and potions ingredients. ¡°You have done wonderful work, my lord.¡± One of them said as she ate. ¡°I''ve never had plants grow so well. I even enjoy being wet by unnatural rains!¡± That made the other women laugh and agree. ¡°Do you wear white blouses and let others see?¡± I asked, curious if Victoria''s ways were common. ¡°Oh, goodness no! That''s shameful to do in public.¡± One of the others said. ¡°Unless... you know...¡± ¡°You''re in private or with someone you really like.¡± Another whispered. ¡°Giving them a peek of what you have and to entice them to work harder at trying to see it for real.¡± ¡°Yes, they have to earn it.¡± The third woman said. ¡°Laziness does not make me want to have them in my bed.¡± The others nodded and kept eating. It was an interesting view and I learned a lot about how just little things could lead to much bigger things. It also explained how Victoria went from teasing to trying to fulfill her fantasy. She had so many men take only a subtle hint and assume she wanted sex and then I came along and didn''t react at all. I had pretty much driven her crazy with lust, because I wasn''t reacting like I was supposed to, even if she said she didn''t want me to act that way. It was like she needed me to and then she did what she did, as if to force me to act the way she wanted me to. I still didn''t and fled, then I was taken away. When I returned, she understood why I was the way I was... and why she cried so much when I acted like a normal man around her. ¡°Thank you for letting me join you for supper.¡± I said and stood up. I reached for the closest woman''s hand and stopped myself before I did and made her blush with embarrassment. ¡°I''m sorry. I''m still trying to get myself to act normal.¡± I bent over to kiss her cheek. She blushed even more after that and then all of them blushed as I walked around the table to kiss each of their cheeks and thanked them for their company. As I was walking away, they made a few comments that I would remember for quite some time. ¡°He isn''t afraid to completely devote himself to whatever he does. I love that about him.¡± One of them whispered. ¡°Our lord is definitely worth following, even if he doesn''t want us to.¡± ¡°That''s why we follow him.¡± Another of them responded. ¡°If he was full of himself and actually wanted followers, we would probably run away from him, screaming.¡± The others laughed. I went back to work and did so into the late evening. I returned to my room and the sleeping situation hadn''t changed, so I ignored them as well and bathed by myself and went to bed. I barely heard their whimpering as my magic swirled around us. The next morning, I sat at the breakfast table in my room as I looked over the report card from the academy. It had been delivered by courier and I was surprised that I had at least 80% in everything, even with the couple of exams that I wrote ridiculous answers to. I also had several results of 100% with bonus marks. ¡°My lord.¡± Jill''s voice said and I looked up from my papers. ¡°I think... it''s time for me to... move on.¡± I folded up my marks and sat back in the chair to stare at her. She stood there like she was ready to be kicked or something, which made my anger flare. I held my magic in check, however. I wouldn''t need it for this. ¡°So, after completely ignoring me and my needs for four days, denied me baths, food, and satisfaction, you have finally gathered up the courage to abandon me completely.¡± I said and she wilted under my completely normal tone of voice. ¡°Why are you bothering to tell me?¡± Jill looked stricken. ¡°My lord, I... I was...¡± ¡°What? Letting me down easy while pretending that I don''t exist? How would that help me get over you leaving?¡± I asked and she didn''t answer. ¡°I was actually expecting you to sneak off and never speak to me at all, considering the way you''ve been avoiding me.¡± Jill started to have tears roll down her cheeks. ¡°My lord...¡± ¡°Did you want to see how much you leaving would hurt me and decided to tell me on the day I successfully passed my exams? Why would you choose to ruin this day for me? Is my pain over everything else not enough anymore and you needed to hurt me even more and make it all worse?¡± ¡°N-n-no, my lord! I thought... I thought...¡± ¡°You couldn''t have said it yesterday? Or waited until tomorrow? You just had to do it today?¡± I asked and she just stood there and cried. ¡°I couldn''t have just one day that wasn''t filled with anguish?¡± ¡°My lord!¡± Several female voices said as one. I pulled out a piece of paper and wrote on it before handing it to her. ¡°Here is a withdrawal slip for five thousand gold crowns. Helena thanks you for your service and she hopes that you can find some other family to take care of.¡± Jill looked at the paper in her hand and shook her head. ¡°Is it not enough?¡± I asked and took the paper back, then scratched out the five and changed it and signed the change as authorized. ¡°There. Ten thousand should make you happy enough.¡± Jill sobbed, clutched the paper in her hands, and ran from the room. ¡°My lord!¡± Hanna, Gella, and Farra gasped. ¡°Don''t you dare tell me this is my fault.¡± I spat at them and they winced. ¡°I warned you and warned you and warned you.¡± ¡°N-no, don''t.¡± Hanna whispered. ¡°Please don''t.¡± ¡°Farra, I have found that you cannot follow my rules and act accordingly. I hereby dismiss you as my apprentice, as I have taught you all that you are willing to learn from me.¡± ¡°NO!¡± Farra gasped and clutched at her chest. ¡°Don''t worry. I''ll work on fixing and replacing that mechanical heart as soon as I can. The old man needs you more than you believed I did, anyway.¡± I said and looked at Hanna. ¡°No, my lord! I beg you!¡± Hanna pleaded and dropped to her knees, tears in her eyes. ¡°You started to show great promise and made strides to become your own person. I was proud of you for that.¡± I said and she cried. ¡°I dismiss you as a personal slave and you will be assigned a new room. Work with everyone and see what jobs you might like. If you don''t find anything, don''t worry about it. We can always use watchers for the children and tenders for the flower gardens.¡± Gella stood there, still as a statue. ¡°Gella, your skills are formidable. I promised to make you more powerful and I did so. No normal swordsman can stand up to your blade.¡± I said and walked over to her and handed her the results of her own exams. She had passed as well. ¡°My lord, I... I don''t want...¡± She stammered and read the results. I ignored her surprise, because I knew she would pass. ¡°I promote you from my personal guard to Guard Captain of the Sanctuary. I can no longer keep you to myself and many others will benefit from your skills from now on.¡± ¡°No, please.¡± Gella whispered. ¡°New quarters will be assigned and an appropriate uniform constructed. Please report to the guard post and let them know you are reporting for duty early.¡± Gella opened her mouth to speak, realized what I said, and she left without another word. I stepped over to Hanna and Farra, whom were clutching onto each other. ¡°Being abandoned by the people you care about isn''t much better than being dead, is it?¡± I asked them and they cried harder. ¡°Now you know how I feel. I hope you find someone to help you deal with it like I thought you were doing for me.¡± They cried loudly as I walked away from them and left the room. 307 Innovations Invite Destruction Part Two Bokuboy I worked for half the day and stopped when a plate of food was delivered... by Laura. ¡°My lo... David.¡± Laura said and wouldn''t look at me. ¡°I heard what happened this morning.¡± I ignored her for several minutes while I cleaned up and set some things aside into the stasis area to keep them. Nothing was critical; but, I also couldn''t leave it sit without recording the results. ¡°Do you all know the whole story or just that several women left my rooms crying and telling everyone how unreasonable I am?¡± Laura looked down instead of away. ¡°David, you were quite cruel to them to send them away.¡± ¡°That''s where you''re wrong.¡± I said and she stiffened slightly. ¡°You see, I had always planned for them do to this and had the options in place for when it happened... at some time in the future.¡± Laura lifted her head to look at my sad face. ¡°I have been training them all to rely on themselves and to be strong. Gella had been the most successful and took to my teachings quickly. She really was devoted to me and wanted to learn everything I could teach her. The problem, as you know, is she failed to protect me as she swore. Her view that my body could be used by anyone she doesn''t see as a physical threat, was wrong.¡± Laura looked shocked by this, probably because of how we had already had sex several times and only been on one date. ¡°I tried to correct her thinking by asking her why she would allow me to be assaulted in such a way and ask herself if her vow to me didn''t mean fully protecting me.¡± I said. ¡°She immediately started to avoid me and acted differently with me instead of doing as I asked. It isn''t difficult to go over a vow made in earnest. The wording wasn''t very difficult.¡± ¡°My lord...¡± Laura whispered. ¡°I only wanted her to fully protect me. That''s all. She eventually refused to do even her basic job for the last three days and left me completely alone and unprotected, so I had no choice to give her the promotion she was going to earn on her own.¡± ¡°Farra?¡± Laura asked. ¡°My apprentice also avoided me, even though I told her that we would be spending much more time together when my exams were over. She knew I wanted to give her the time she deserved to have after we arrived back at the capital and I was too busy until now to do so. She also avoided me, despite her excessive cuddle needs, and left me alone. Since she didn''t want to spend time with me, I dismissed her.¡± ¡°And Hanna?¡± Laura prompted. ¡°She had been asserting her own independence and fighting her slave training. She was starting to take control of her life and I was proud of her. I even told her so. Unfortunately, because of what I told Gella, she immediately went into a subservient role to Gella, Farra, and Jill. Since I could no longer help her, I dismissed her to become her own woman much earlier than she was prepared for.¡± ¡°I... I don''t want to know about Jill.¡± Laura whispered. ¡°I warned them and then ordered them to stop their behavior, to go back to the way they were, and they were too fixated on what Gella was going through to bother listening to me or consider how they were hurting me. I sent them back here to think over what they''ve done and all that accomplished was to make Jill decide she didn''t want to be here with us anymore.¡± ¡°But... I thought...¡± ¡°She''s not my maid and never was. She was a friend that decided on what should have been a happy day for me, where I passed the mage academy exams, to abandon me and by extension, her other friends. I gave her more money than she would ever need and she ran off crying, because I told her how much she hurt me by leaving. It was her choice to leave, not mine.¡± Laura looked stunned by all of that. ¡°You make sure that everyone knows the truth. The real reasons my previous retainers are all in new positions that they would have eventually earned anyway.¡± I said and started to eat. I didn''t bother sitting down or even speaking again until I was done with the food. Laura was still there. ¡°Are you still available for our date this evening?¡± I asked her as I handed her the plate. Laura looked quite sad. ¡°I don''t feel like having another date so soon, my lor... David.¡± I looked into her eyes and knew she was telling the truth. ¡°Very well. Thank you for the meal.¡± I said and walked back over to my workbench and pulled out the things I had placed in stasis and continued to write down my observations. Laura stood there for several minutes more before she sighed and left. I worked through the afternoon and the same server from my first date showed up at suppertime. I had planned for it, so I nodded to her and followed her down to eat. She didn''t mention anything about my situation and I didn''t, either. When we entered the cafeteria, conversations died down and heads seemed to swivel across the room. My vigilance technique told me that they were looking from me to Farra and Hanna, who still had tear-streaked faces. Gella was not in the room and I didn''t ask where she was. I ignored them all and sat down to eat a meal, which the server brought to me promptly. Halfway through the dish of food, a guard entered the cafeteria and looked around. He saw me and walked right over. I knew what was coming and let him approach without stopping him. Everyone would need to hear this, anyway. ¡°My lord.¡± The man said and pulled out a scabbard and a sword from off his back. ¡°I was ordered to deliver this to you.¡± I stood up and gave him a blank look. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Excuse me?¡± The man asked. ¡°Why were you ordered to bring it to me?¡± I asked. ¡°The Captain of the Guard ordered it.¡± ¡°Where is she now?¡± I asked, even if I didn''t need to know. The man started to sweat a little, because he still held the sword out and it was heavy. ¡°She... left.¡± A ripple of surprise went through everyone around us. ¡°So, not only did she abandon me, she abandoned her assigned post, broke her vows to always protect us, and then was stupid enough to leave behind her bound sword and leave herself unprotected.¡± I said, loudly. The man looked embarrassed and tired. His arms looked sore as he struggled to hold the weapon up. I took it from him and popped it out, then slid the large sword out. ¡°You all know the importance of keeping your bound weapon with you at all times. It decides if you live or die.¡± Nearly everyone in the cafeteria nodded. ¡°Are you going after her?¡± Someone asked. ¡°Why would I?¡± I asked back and silence met my question. ¡°Gella chose to leave this behind, even though she knows that no one else can use it. She seems to have chosen to let fate kill her if she gave up her only defense against it.¡± Everyone watched as I held the sword by the hilt and the tip, then I used a bit of magic to cancel the enchantment and snapped the blade in half. Everyone gasped, especially Farra and Hanna. ¡°I want these mounted over the front doors of the Sanctuary.¡± I said and handed the two pieces of the sword back to the guard. ¡°If she ever returns, assuming some noble doesn''t snatch her up as his personal sex slave, she will see that her fate has always been with the family she left behind.¡± The guard nodded and hugged the broken blades to his chest and quickly retreated. I sat back down and continued to eat. I didn''t listen to the conversations around us and ignored Farra standing up and leaving Hanna alone at their table. I knew what she was going to do, look for Gella, and it was as pointless as Gella leaving her sword behind because Gella was trying to make a statement that she was leaving everything behind. What she actually said was that she was looking for a way to die. I finished eating and returned to work. I had a lot of time this evening to get to it, now that I didn''t have a date or worried about being in bed for someone later. It was a little freeing to have my time back to myself and I dove into my experiments with enthusiasm. I had almost fallen into the same trap that I had warned Laura about. I was starting to think that this was a chore to get done, when it was supposed to be a passion. I wanted my skin color back. Me. My skin. I needed it to look normal and I would do it. That others would benefit would only be a bonus. Once I realized that, a few of the web-like cracks on the dam inside me seemed to fade. I let a small smile appear on my face and worked on through the night. I sipped a general health potion and kept my energy up, because to lag now wouldn''t be good. I went to the cafeteria to eat breakfast without bothering to bathe or change my clothes first. A few people commented about it and I simply said I worked all night and ate. They saw my slight smile and no one told me to take a break or to get some rest. That suited me fine, because I was fine. I had pulled several all night working sessions before I was so pampered and I only needed a few hours or so to sleep a night. I arranged food delivery for lunch and supper, because I had a very time consuming experiment to perform, then I went back to work. The same server brought me my meals and I thanked her as I ate absently and continued to brew and prepare ingredients and potions to be combined and refined for use in the restoration creme. Days flowed into a week, then another and another. Time and sleep seemed to combine into an odd configuration as I pretty much stayed in the potions lab as I worked constantly. It reminded me of my last few weeks in the army and brewing up the regeneration potion. I chuckled at that thought, because my work ethic during that time had been truly tested. Sixteen hour days brewing for the army, four hours brewing for myself, and four hours of sleep. It was a trying time and I had made it. I completed an impossible task... two impossible tasks... and then I was restored and free. I was soon going have that feeling again. I looked down at the tiny pot of creme that I had finally managed to create. Blood, sweat, and tears went into it. Literally. As well as a lot of my magic. Like the restoration potion, it was a masterpiece. I stepped back from the workbench and closed my eyes, the cracks in the dam inside of me were still prominent. I didn''t question why it hadn''t let go yet, even without Laura''s dates to keep my magic under control. I opened my eyes and smiled at the creme, then I dug my fingers into it and started lathering it on. It needed a thick layer to seep in and penetrate as deeply as the liquid potion had as slaves were soaked in it. I did my forehead, ears, face, neck, chest and on down, farther and farther. I even used a stick and a sponge to get it on my back and the places I couldn''t really reach. My hair was in a ponytail and had been treated with waterproofing potion, so even if I touched it by mistake, it wouldn''t be ruined. Thanks to my vigilance technique, I knew I had covered everything, except the bottom of my feet. That would have to wait until the rest was done. I remained standing for the next six hours as the creme did its work. I didn''t need a mirror to tell me that it had worked. I could feel it as my skin absorbed all of the creme in the precisely measured dose that it had been in. One jar of creme for one person. I had left nothing to chance and ensured my success. When it was done, I sat down and applied the last of the creme to the soles of my feet. I had been tempted to leave them completely white, as a joke and a reminder, then remembered that was what my hair was for. White hair was a distinctive mark of a slave and I was going to show it off wherever I went. By the next morning, I looked mostly like my old self. I walked into the cafeteria and about fifteen dishes of various kinds were dropped and smashed on the floor. A lot of startled screams, shouts of disbelief, and creative curses came from all around. I sat down at a table and waited. And waited. And waited a little more as I smelled something burning. I stood up and saw that everyone was still staring at me, so I walked over to the cafeteria''s serving window and glared at the cooks. ¡°Breakfast. Now.¡± I said. My command voice shocked them enough that they started tending to the food that they were starting to burn from inattention. Some of it was abandoned and discarded into the troughs for the animals and more food was prepared. I sat back down to wait and wasn''t surprised when I was served first. I nodded to the woman, who wasn''t the same server as before, and started eating. It was hot and good, so I finished it off quickly and left the cafeteria. I went down to the ground floor and the guard station there. ¡°Send word to Linette at the main medical building. I need either her or a trusted colleague to tend to me for the next ten days, starting tomorrow.¡± I said and one of them wrote it out. ¡°They will be paid in either coin or potions, whichever they prefer.¡± The man nodded and I walked back up the stairs. I had a new recipe to practice with and since I had Farra and the old man prepare a lot of the steps that I didn''t have to experiment with to get to work, I had a ton of ready-made components that only needed to be added when the time was right. I commandeered an entire section of cooking pots to create what I needed. No one objected when they showed up to work that day. They knew that whatever I was working on needed to be done as soon as possible. They also hoped that it was whatever I had done to myself to fix my skin. When I told them that it was and it would be ready tomorrow, they cheered and left to tell everyone. I worked for the rest of the day and prepared enough cooking pots to fill enough of the creme jars for every slave that was there in the Sanctuary, and about fifty extra. I wasn''t sure why I did so many extras, only that I had a feeling that there were people like Eludora that would need one and a half jars for complete coverage. I loaded my bandoleer with a couple of them, just because I could, and a knock came from the door to the potions area. I walked over and opened it, only to see Linette as she stood there with her daughter Jinelle. ¡°I only called for a doctor and not a potions mage.¡± I said and Jinelle blushed. ¡°David, don''t be cruel.¡± Linette said. ¡°I distinctly remember someone promising to spend several meals with me at the academy during exams and then said person not showing up or sending word about it.¡± I said and Jinelle''s blush intensified. ¡°She had a good reason...¡± Linette started to say. ¡°I didn''t ask what it was, because it doesn''t matter.¡± I interrupted and she looked slightly angry. ¡°The courtesy of letting me know at the time and not having me worry about the new Lady being kidnapped, killed, and robbed, is what''s important.¡± Both women were now blushing with embarrassment. ¡°At least you''re alive.¡± I said to Jinelle. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± ¡°I... I came to explain.¡± Jinelle whispered. ¡°Why? It''s been about four weeks since then. After nearly a month and I haven''t heard or seen you, why bother coming now?¡± ¡°I... well, I... I heard about...¡± ¡°Stop!¡± I commanded and she looked shocked. ¡°That is none of your business and I would thank you to never speak of it to me or to anyone else.¡± ¡°David! You can''t just...¡± Linette started to say. ¡°Shut. Up.¡± I commanded and my magic swirled around me and lashed out at them. They screamed as they jumped back as if burned. I looked at their bare arms and saw red marks start to form on them. ¡°What was that?!?¡± Linette asked as she looked down at her sore arms that were turning red. ¡°Magic burn.¡± I said with a flat voice. ¡°It appears that I won''t be requiring your services, Healer Marks.¡± ¡°David, you can''t just...¡± ¡°If you cannot keep your nose out of my private affairs, I doubt you can be near me if you react like that to my magic protecting me.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°Will you spare another qualified healer for my use?¡± Linette didn''t respond and looked angry. ¡°Then your medical facility will no longer benefit from the Sanctuary''s special services.¡± ¡°No!¡± Linette gasped. ¡°We need those...¡± ¡°You will buy them like a normal customer, when said potions and cremes are available.¡± I said. ¡°I will look for and hire someone here to monitor me for the time I require.¡± Both Linette and her daughter looked shocked. ¡°Is there anything else?¡± I asked and they didn''t say anything. ¡°Then have yourselves a good evening. You can see yourselves out.¡± ¡°W-wait.¡± Jinelle whispered. ¡°We... we need to talk...¡± She looked at her mother. ¡°...about things.¡± ¡°That won''t be necessary.¡± I said and gathered magic at my fingertip, then tapped her belly. ¡°Problem solved.¡± ¡°NO!¡± Both women gasped. ¡°You never said that you wanted to be pregnant. You just wanted out of the situation you were in and I did that. It was the fastest way. You''re welcome.¡± I said and closed the door on their shocked faces. I had cremes to finish crating up for the other slaves. 308 Innovations Invite Destruction Conclusion Bokuboy I had most of the cremes packed up when I heard Linette shout. ¡°By the Father''s Grace! You''re okay!¡± I sighed at the distraction when the talking stayed loud after that, so I walked back over to the door and opened it. ¡°Why are you still here?¡± Linette and Jinelle turned to me with anger on their faces. ¡°We thought you killed the baby!¡± I gave them a blank look. ¡°Why would I do that? None of this is her fault.¡± Both women gasped and then looked down at Jinelle''s baby. ¡°Then... what did you do?¡± Linette asked. ¡°She''s a girl?¡± Jinelle asked at the same time. ¡°I just took my magic back.¡± I said and they both gasped again and stared at me. ¡°Everything my magic touched seems to be destroying itself, so I took it from her to save her from the same fate.¡± Neither woman said anything. ¡°I still have work to do.¡± I said and closed the door, then went back to packing the creme into jars and then crates. Thankfully, the talking stopped or they left. Either way, it was quiet again and I finished packing the cremes into crates. I would have to bring them downstairs in the morning. Most of the people at the Sanctuary were already in bed. I thought that was a good point and secured the crates, to stop anyone from taking them, and left the potions lab. Linette and Jinelle were gone, so I didn''t run into them. I went down to my room and had a bath, left off all my clothes, and climbed into bed. It still felt weird not having anyone to siphon off my magic. I woke up about five hours later and made breakfast for myself. It was way too early for the cafeteria to be open and I had to go upstairs and bring the crates of potion down anyway. I left my room and went downstairs to the storage room and retrieved a hand cart. Instead of using the stairs, I used the pulley system we installed to gain access to the growing floors on the outside. It was shortsighted of the mages to not have done it themselves. I hooked the hand cart to the pulleys and secured it at the height of the doorway to the floor below the potions lab. It was the highest and newest growing floor, so it would take no time at all to get the crates loaded inside. One of the guards asked me what I was doing and I told him. He made a squealing noise for some reason and ran off to who knew where. I shrugged and went inside and all the way up to the potions lab and transferred all the crates down to the top growing floor. No one was around, so no one interfered when I opened the outside door and pulled the hand cart inside. I filled the hand cart, careful of the balance and weight distribution, then hung it back on the ropes and pulleys. I closed the door and walked all the way down to the ground floor and went outside, only to see a dozen men and women waiting anxiously. ¡°It''ll be right down.¡± I said and went to the pulleys. When two of them ran over to help, I stopped them. ¡°I''ve got it. You didn''t pack the cart and don''t know the weight distribution.¡± The two men nodded and stepped back. The very last thing they wanted to do was to piss off the boss. I undid the secured ends of the ropes and then slowly lowered the hand cart. A dozen more people showed up and they all looked anxious. ¡°Don''t grab it and run. I need to explain how to work it and the proper dosage and coverage procedures.¡± ¡°Yessir.¡± All of the men said. ¡°You''ll all be back to normal by the end of the day.¡± I said and they cheered. When the hand cart touched down, they untied it for me and then stepped back to let me take the handle. I nodded to them and everyone followed me inside to the large cafeteria. A couple of the workmen set up a simple table for me and I placed the hand cart behind it and a crate on top before I sat down to wait. ¡°My lord?¡± One of the men asked. ¡°I''m waiting for everyone to come for breakfast and I''ll start the lecture.¡± I said. ¡°By the Son''s Light, go get EVERYONE!¡± Someone yelled and I was left there all alone. It took twenty minutes and the entire cafeteria was packed. Everyone except the original ship''s crew was there. Molly told me that Jensen had them as guards for the Sanctuary today, because they knew I was going to help the slaves recover. ¡°I''m glad I put him in charge.¡± I said and then picked up a jar of creme. ¡°This is an exactly measured dose to return your complete skin back to its original color. There is enough for your hair as well if you have short hair. However, if you only apply it to your scalp, your hair will grow out to the original color, which is why the dose is meant to cover the skin.¡± ¡°That makes so much sense.¡± One of the women said. ¡°I suppose I can wait for...¡± ¡°I made fifty extra jars, because I know a lot of you have much longer hair and would need more than just a single jar to restore it all. I''ve kept some for later, since I know of at least one slave that will need a couple of jars. However, you won''t need an entire jar just for hair. A handful of creme applied liberally is enough, even for some waist length hair.¡± ¡°That''s a relief!¡± Someone said. ¡°I recommend saving your hair for last and then sharing a jar among you until it''s empty and then using another for the next few women.¡± I said and they all nodded. ¡°This took a long time and a lot of expensive ingredients to produce. It is not to be wasted.¡± ¡°Never!¡± Nearly everyone shouted. ¡°I will need a volunteer to show how to apply it.¡± I said and nearly every single woman put their hand up, except for one of them. I wasn''t surprised that Laura didn''t want me touching her after she decided to not date me anymore. A few of the women around her gave her slightly angry looks and she looked guilty. ¡°People don''t have to keep dating if one of them doesn''t want to.¡± I said and Laura blushed from embarrassment. I pointed to another woman. ¡°Do you have a man?¡± ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± ¡°Good! Both of you come up here.¡± I said and that surprised a few people. ¡°It takes six hours after application for the creme to settle and to do its work. Only do the parts of yourself that you are not going to use or lay on for those six hours, then do the rest or have someone else do it for you and flip over.¡± ¡°Why can''t we do it all at once?¡± The woman asked as she brought her man over to me. ¡°I did that and had to stand up without moving for the first six hours, then sat down to do my feet.¡± I explained and most of the women gasped and the men groaned. ¡°Exactly. I want you to do your own fronts and lay down to rest for the first six hours, then have someone else, your man or a friend, finish off your backs and then rest for the rest of the day. Or night, like I did.¡± ¡°We all have the day off, sir.¡± The man said and everyone nodded. ¡°That''s great. Let me show you with your own hands how to apply the creme.¡± I said and did that with his own hands on his bare chest. ¡°This is the thickness it has to be. If you still have creme left in the jar above half when you finish the front, you may have missed a spot or not applied enough creme to somewhere. Usually your armpits and your belly button.¡± A few of the women giggled as they looked at the man demonstrating it and his belly button was untouched. He shrugged and swished the creme inside and pretty much filled the hole. ¡°That''s good. The original potion soaked into your skin and changed it to only grow with the white pigment. This creme removes that effect and dissolves the old potion''s properties, restoring your body back to the way it used to produce normal skin.¡± I said and everyone nodded. ¡°Ma''am, if you can help me demonstrate for the other women.¡± ¡°Of course, my lord.¡± She said and blushed as she went to pull off her top. ¡°Leave that in place, please.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°Your man is going to do your back and appropriate areas.¡± I said and held out a hospital gown that opens in the back. ¡°Oh! Okay.¡± She said and ducked behind the hand cart and crates to change, then came back out. The man knew what to do after a little coaching and she moaned as his strong hands worked the creme into her bare back, shoulders, the backs of her arms, and the backs of her legs. He blocked everyone''s sight as he covered her backside with creme and she let out a significant moan. There were hollers and catcalls, which made the woman blush and the man smile with pride. ¡°Are there any questions?¡± I asked and no one spoke up. ¡°Then come on up and get a jar each. Pair off if possible, or go back to your rooms and do your fronts and then pair off to do the backs.¡± ¡°How did you do yours?¡± A female voice asked. ¡°Time, patience, and a sponge on a stick. That''s why I recommended having someone else do it. You can''t tell a sponge to not be so rough.¡± I answered and a few people chuckled. After everyone had a jar in their hands, they started to leave. I was only slightly surprised that Hanna wasn''t there and had not taken a jar, or that Farra was not there, either. I had seen and calculated how many extra jars were needed for the long hair on those that had it and put that many aside, with a couple extra for excitable hands. Since I had nothing else to do, I went to Jensen and asked to see the job records for everyone. I needed to find someone to take care of me for the ten days I would be out of commission and he looked worried. ¡°I''m sorry, Jensen. I have to do this.¡± I said. ¡°No one can know you''re not going to be around to defend us.¡± Jensen said and I sighed. ¡°People already know.¡± He guessed and I nodded. ¡°I''ll double the guard starting tomorrow and have both response teams of guards prepped and ready.¡± I nodded again and we went over anyone that had a propensity for healing during the times that Linette had been here, especially anyone she had as an apprentice or helper. It took us several hours to make up a short list. I would have to wait until tomorrow to ask them, since they would be too busy being restored today. ¡°I think I''ll go back to the academy and pack up my things. I left in a rush the last time and forgot everything.¡± I said and pat his shoulder. ¡°I will only be out of commission for ten days when I start regeneration.¡± ¡°A lot can happen in ten days.¡± Jensen said with a sigh. ¡°A lot can happen in one day.¡± I countered and he smiled. ¡°If you are too worried about things, move the gates to other spots and then create a fake gate that''s just a huge trap.¡± Jensen stared at me with his mouth slightly open. ¡°It worked in the Eastern Empire. We lured an entire army into attacking a completely fabricated defensive structure and wiped them out.¡± I said and walked out of his office to let him stew on that information for a while. I found the carriage and the driver nearby, who was having a nice nap. ¡°I''m sorry to bother you.¡± The driver didn''t jump and only opened his eyes. ¡°I wasn''t asleep.¡± ¡°I know.¡± I said and he smiled. ¡°Let''s go get breakfast at a nice cafe I know near the police station and then you can take me over to the academy to get my things.¡± ¡°You''re a month late for that.¡± The driver said and hopped up from his bedroll, rolled it up, and tossed it into the space behind his seat. ¡°Will they bother keeping your things?¡± ¡°They better hope they did.¡± I said and the driver laughed. The horses were hooked up and we were soon off into the city. The guy at the cafe was surprised when I ordered enough breakfasts for myself, the driver, and the entire police station staff, then he laughed and pointed at my face. ¡°I thought I recognized you! You''re that married mage guy that Dana has a crush on. You''re the only guy who ever ordered a pile of breakfasts like that and gave me so much money for it!¡± The only person he could be referencing was the constable woman that had taken me back to Helena after Greta had been ambushed by criminals and I killed them all. ¡°The next time you see her, tell her I wasn''t married, just betrothed, and she''s been dead for quite some time now.¡± I said and paid for the food with the same amount as last time and even gave him the same tip. ¡°Damn, you''re a great guy!¡± The man said and served us our breakfasts. He soon had a pile of plates ready and left to go to the police station to deliver the first batch. Two minutes later, the door to the police station slammed open and a woman I recognized ran across the road, ignoring the horses and carts going through at the time, and she almost skidded to a stop beside my table. Being a police offer like she was, her eyes went to my bright white hair and then to my missing fingers. ¡°I want to ask you what happened; but, I''ve been waiting to see you again since that day.¡± Dana said and pulled me into a passionate kiss. The driver laughed and kept eating. Dana broke the kiss and she was breathing heavily. ¡°Hello, Constable Wilson.¡± I said and she blushed. ¡°It''s Dana.¡± Dana said and held a hand out to me. ¡°I''m so glad the rumors of your death were exaggerated.¡± ¡°So am I.¡± I said and shook her hand, then waved at the chair beside me. ¡°Have a seat.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Dana said and sat. ¡°Now you can tell me what the hell happened to you.¡± The driver laughed. ¡°I''ll be in the carriage.¡± I nodded to him and he left us alone. ¡°Do you have the time to...¡± ¡°I have nothing more important right now, so start talking.¡± Dana said. I smiled slightly and then did so. It took a long while. Dana had breakfast and by the time I was done, we both had lunch. ¡°So, you''ve completely destroyed your current support structure and you essentially have no one left to depend on.¡± Dana said. ¡°You''re also about to go on a rampage to devastate anyone that gets in your way, if even one more person betrays you in the slightest.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I agreed. ¡°You said a good romp from that ex-slave helped you keep control?¡± ¡°That and her explaining about commoner dating and how to act properly.¡± I corrected. Dana smiled and stood. ¡°Then you better hold onto your pants, because you''re going to really enjoy this.¡± ¡°Enjoy what?¡± I asked and stood as well. ¡°I can''t say until we''re there.¡± Dana said and pointed at the carriage. ¡°Stay right there and I''ll be back in a few minutes. I''m taking a few days off of work to help you.¡± I reached into my pocket and pulled out a handful of gold crowns. ¡°Do you need a bribe for your captain?¡± Dana stared at the gold for a moment, then she laughed. ¡°Only if I want him to laugh his ass off.¡± She said and started to walk away. ¡°On second thought.¡± She came back and took two coins. ¡°I want to see him fall off his chair from laughing so hard.¡± Five minutes later, a man''s uproariously loud laugh rang through the street. A minute after that, a very happy Dana came out of the station and climbed into the carriage. ¡°Now we can go.¡± Dana said with a satisfied smile on her face. 309 Helping Hands Dana told the driver and address and he took us there. It was a fenced in compound with repelling enchantments on the walls. I could feel them as we passed by them to arrive at the gate. We came to a stop and Dana jumped out and walked over to the gatehouse. A guard was there and she had a short conversation with him. He barked a laugh and then told her to wait, and ran inside. ¡°We only need to wait for a couple of minutes.¡± Dana said and waved me to join her, which I did. ¡°Driver, we''ll need a ride at suppertime from here.¡± ¡°Yes, ma''am.¡± The driver said and took off. ¡°He''s an agreeable fellow.¡± Dana said. ¡°He is available for my people to use at a working man''s Sanctuary. He is paid very well, even if he never leaves the compound.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°He gets two gold coins a week, or more if making deliveries.¡± ¡°He just delivered us.¡± Dana said. ¡°He''s not done for the day.¡± I countered and she smiled. ¡°Welcome, welcome!¡± A well dressed man said as he approached the guardhouse with the guard. ¡°I would accept any offer for assistance that the police are offering.¡± ¡°That''s why we''re here.¡± Dana said and took my hand. ¡°I hope you don''t mind me supervising.¡± The man smiled. ¡°Not at all, Constable! I welcome the scrutiny... and perhaps a word to the chief about the budget.¡± ¡°I already made him fall on his ass by giving him two gold coins as a bribe to let me off work for three days. I don''t think he can handle it if I keep talking to him about money!¡± Dana said and they both laughed. ¡°Too true!¡± The man said. ¡°If you will follow me, your associate can get started.¡± ¡°Lead the way.¡± Dana said and we followed the man through the gatehouse and into the large building. It was a fairly long walk to get to where were going. ¡°Is this considered a date?¡± I asked her. Dana looked surprised for a moment, then she grinned. ¡°I believe so. It can be our first, if you follow through at the end.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked. ¡°I rarely get time off and it''s even rarer that I have the opportunity to share it with a man like yourself.¡± Dana said. ¡°I don''t have the time for you to romance me and make me all giddy from hearing your voice before I take you to bed.¡± I raised my eyebrows at her and she laughed. ¡°You nobles really need to relax with all the protocols and social niceties dragging you down.¡± ¡°I thought women liked being treated like a Lady?¡± ¡°We do... I do... when it''s not going to interfere with our fun.¡± Dana said. ¡°There is a time and a place for you to treat me with more respect and I fully expect that... later.¡± I understood and stayed quiet until we reached our destination. ¡°Here they are, the worst of the worst criminals in the country. They have been sentenced to death and even the army won''t take them.¡± The well dressed man said and waved at the large cell that was filled with men of all kinds. ¡°Murderers, cannibals, rapists of men, women, and children, and people so violent that they killed their own cell mates to stay in prison.¡± I felt like a bucket of cold water had been dumped on me. If I had a painting of myself as the Marsh Man before I cleaned myself up, it would be nearly identical to every single man inside the cell. Long dirty hair, horrible smells, wearing rags, and bare feet. ¡°We''ve tried rehabilitation, both physical and magic, and even given them multiple chances to change their behavior.¡± The man said. ¡°They''ve all refused, so we piled them all together in there, with the hopes that they would kill each other before the executioner could visit and handle them for us in a few months.¡± Dana let my hand go and turned me to look into my eyes. ¡°David.¡± She whispered. ¡°They are not you. They are what you could have been if you weren''t smart enough to accept yourself for who you are.¡± I blinked my eyes at her. ¡°But, Dana... I used to look just like that.¡± Dana reached up and put her arms around my neck. ¡°You kill, you maim, you injure and scare people.¡± She whispered and then kissed me. ¡°What you''ve never done was enjoy it.¡± I sucked in a sharp breath and my mind suddenly replayed all of the people I''ve personally killed. It was like watching my life flow in front of my eyes. Even the last few mages that my magic had let me track down, I watched die without emotion. It didn''t mean anything, because they had to die to keep myself safe. It has always been that way. Keeping others safe was just a bonus. ¡°I can see it in your eyes. Calculation, expectation, and ruthlessness... but, not enjoyment.¡± Dana said. ¡°I want you to prove it to yourself. Here. Now.¡± She whispered. ¡°These men are what you would be like if you enjoyed hurting people and felt happy about it.¡± ¡°They... they are not... me.¡± I said. ¡°No, David. They are not you.¡± Dana said and let me go. ¡°So, show me. Show me your magic and remove these stains from the world for me.¡± ¡°Do you want to see how...¡± ¡°No, the method doesn''t matter.¡± Dana said and waved at the cell. ¡°Only the result.¡± I kept my eyes on her and pointed my palm at the cell. ¡°Incinerate Maximus.¡± *WHHOOOOOOOOOFFFF!* Dana kept her eyes on me while the well dressed man near us started cursing about the damage to his nice prison. ¡°How long?¡± ¡°Now.¡± I said and dropped my hand. Dana turned to look and the cell was empty, except for thirty small piles of ash. ¡°They didn''t scream.¡± ¡°No time and I used up all of the air in their lungs.¡± I said and looked at the well dressed man. ¡°I reinforced the cell with Mould Earth. It just needs a rinse to get the soot off of the stone.¡± The man stopped cursing at his horrible luck and then smiled at me. ¡°Excellent! Thank you!¡± ¡°It really was excellent.¡± Dana said. ¡°I expected to be here until suppertime dealing with them all and didn''t expect them to die instantly or at the same time.¡± ¡°Well! Let''s give you both the full tour. I seem to have the afternoon free as well.¡± The well dressed man said. ¡°We can head back this way and we can stop by the kitchens first.¡± _______________ Montage mode engaged. Skipping time. Done. _______________ ¡°Thank you both for joining me for a meal after the tour. It was quite enjoyable having two intelligent people to talk to.¡± The well dressed man said and walked us out to the guard house. ¡°I bet you say that to all the temporary executioners.¡± Dana joked and the man laughed. ¡°I suggest you keep her, young man!¡± The man said to me. ¡°She is a treasure!¡± ¡°She is as against a slave contract as I am.¡± I said and the man laughed again. ¡°Constable! You keep him, too!¡± The man said and the guard opened the gatehouse for us. ¡°Have a great day, the both of you.¡± ¡°You, too.¡± Dana said and we stepped out and there was the carriage waiting for us. ¡°The academy.¡± I said and we climbed in. I didn''t try to hand Dana into the carriage like she was a lady, either. Now was not the time for such things. It was a nice ride and Dana had her hand in mine. ¡°I''m sorry that I can''t share magic with you, David.¡± Dana said in a soft voice. ¡°I''m glad.¡± I said and she turned to look at me with surprise on her face. ¡°Every person close to me that my magic has touched, seems to be destroying themselves. I don''t know if it is a curse the Hag placed upon me as a baby or if it is one I''ve perpetuated on myself.¡± Dana pulled herself onto my lap and looked into my eyes. ¡°David, you can''t blame your magic like that. It is powerful, yes. Can it kill? Yes.¡± She gave me a soft and tender kiss. ¡°Does it have a mind of its own? That depends on if you believe magic was given to you or if it grew from you.¡± I thought about her words and really thought about it. The Hag had taken me and fed from me for years. It hadn''t stunted my magic growth like the crystals do, probably because she had forcibly taken it from me and I wasn''t giving it up willingly and pushing it out. When she left so suddenly, I was weak, terribly weak. It took a long time for my magic to grow back. Oh. My magic grew back. My. Magic. Grew. Back. It was me and I am it. I am magic. I thought and a smile grew on my face. It was the same smile that Hope always enjoyed seeing on my face. ¡°I am magic.¡± Dana caught her breath and stared at my face, then she pulled me into a passionate kiss. We kept kissing until the carriage came to a stop at the academy gates. I pulled out a gold coin and tossed it to the guard without looking. ¡°Thank you, sir!¡± The guard said and let us through. The carriage stopped at my dorm and I climbed out with a giddy Dana holding my hand. We entered the building and the dorm monitor was there, to my surprise. ¡°You finally came for your things.¡± She said, a little angry. I reached into my pocket and pulled out a handful of gold coins and put them on her desk, then added another handful. ¡°I forgot to pack before leaving to fix my skin.¡± She looked stunned at both my skin and the pile of gold coins on her desk. ¡°Thank you for staying and protecting my things. I hope this is enough for your time.¡± I said. ¡°Y-y-yes, my lord. This... this is more than enough. Thank you.¡± ¡°I hope you are in charge of my dorm next year. You have been nothing but accommodating and I appreciate that.¡± The woman blushed. ¡°Thank you, my lord. I hope to keep watch on you next year as well.¡± I nodded and took Dana up to my dorm room and it hadn''t been touched. It was a little dusty with no one living there or maintaining it for a month. That was all right, since I didn''t have much left inside anyway. I gathered up the books and all of my class notes, both mine and the copies from Vanessa and Jinelle, and packed up my clothing and other things that I had there. Dana helped and we carried everything down to the carriage and loaded it onto the luggage rack. I even took the spare bed that wasn''t supposed to be in the room. I checked the food stores in the kitchen and looked at Dana, who chuckled and then smiled. ¡°I won''t turn down free food.¡± Dana said. So, we packed that up as well. ¡°I have one more stop to make.¡± I said and told the driver to take us to the library. We rode over there and I stepped out. It was mostly deserted, except for the between year staff that took care of the place. I entered the administration building, went up the stairs past the cafeteria, and went to the library. I opened the door, that surprisingly wasn''t locked, and saw Victoria King there talking to Eludora. ¡°David!¡± Eludora gasped when she saw me, then she saw me. ¡°By the Son''s Light!¡± ¡°Yes, I finished it.¡± I said and walked over to the main desk. Victoria stood there with a shocked look on her face and didn''t speak. ¡°Here are two jars. Your height and longer limbs require more than the regular sized person that would only need one jar.¡± I said and put them on the table and then explained how to work it and how much to apply. ¡°It works on your hair, too. I suggest you do one side, preferably the front first, then get a friend to help you with the rest after it sets.¡± ¡°David...¡± Eludora started to say. ¡°I''m going to be busy for the next ten days.¡± I said and wiggled my fingers on my hand, to show her I was going to fix myself. ¡°Goodbye.¡± ¡°Good... bye.¡± Eludora whispered. I walked out of the library and Victoria still stood there, stunned. I went down the stairs and dropped the books off inside the administration building on the proper desk, marked the papers there that they were returned, and left. ¡°That was fast.¡± Dana said. ¡°She wanted to ask me to help her with the creme and I stopped her before she could and left.¡± Dana nodded. ¡°You don''t have to cater to her whims anymore. She knows she isn''t stuck where she is. If she chooses to ignore trying to get a life of her own, that''s not your problem. It''s also not your job to hold her hand and try to make her do it, either.¡± I reached over and took her hand, and she laughed softly. ¡°Good point.¡± Dana said. ¡°Driver, 128 Crescent Street on the West Side, please.¡± ¡°Yes, ma''am.¡± The driver said and we left the academy to go where Dana said to go. It took a little while, considering the traffic, and we came to a stop beside a nice little home that was tightly packed in with similar homes on either side of it. I unloaded the boxes of food from the dorm to stack by the door. ¡°You can come back in the morning.¡± Dana said and reached into my pockets, dug out several gold coins, and handed them over. ¡°Have fun tonight. Your lord is going to.¡± The driver laughed and accepted the coins. ¡°Goodnight, ma''am.¡± ¡°Goodnight.¡± Dana said and didn''t watch the driver leave and went to her front door to open it. ¡°Welcome to my little home.¡± I brought the boxes of food in and closed the door behind myself before I looked around with both my eyes and my vigilance technique. ¡°You don''t have any enchanted protections?¡± Dana laughed. ¡°Who can afford things like that?¡± ¡°I lived in a marsh for most of my life. I learned to make them myself.¡± I said. ¡°I want to hear all about that, David. I really do.¡± Dana said and pulled off her coat, then she looked right into my eyes. ¡°Right now, I need you to show me what you know about the right way to make love.¡± ¡°The right way?¡± I asked. ¡°Our way. The commoner way.¡± Dana said and started to take off her clothes. ¡°If I''m still conscious after that, you can tell me about your childhood.¡± ¡°Our way?¡± I asked and started to strip off as well. ¡°You weren''t always a noble. You earned it. You were just a regular commoner like me until you became something else. Something people shouldn''t cross.¡± ¡°The Marsh Man.¡± I said and she turned to smile at me. ¡°Yes, the Marsh Man. Someone to respect, someone to fear if they anger him, someone to run from if they cross him.¡± Dana said and pulled off her bra and underwear. ¡°No one ever escapes from you for long, do they?¡± I pulled off my underwear and she gasped and then licked her lips. ¡°No. I always find them.¡± ¡°Just like me. I always find my prey.¡± Dana said and walked over to me and looked into my eyes. ¡°Well, I''ve found you and you''ve found me. What are you going to do about it?¡± I thought about that for a moment, then made my decision. I picked her up and hugged her, checked I was in the right position, then pulled her down and pushed up with my hips at the same time. ¡°OHH! BY THE SON''S LIGHT!¡± Dana yelled as I penetrated her, then she had her legs and arms wrapped around me and kissed me unlike anyone else ever had. Our hips moved as we had sex right there in the middle of her living room, standing up, and her moans grew louder as we kept going. She let out a scream of pleasure and kissed me so hard that I thought she was going to suck my tongue out. Dana broke the kiss and her breathing was laboured and heavy. ¡°Keep... keep going. Don''t stop. Don''t... don''t ever stop.¡± I nodded and walked with her to her bedroom and we stayed there for the rest of the night. 310 To Yuma Bokuboy By the next morning, Dana had a full overview of my life. She also laughed pretty hard. ¡°You... you... poor bastard! Ha ha ha!¡± Dana laughed and laughed. I laid there and she pat my chest as she fought to get herself back under control. ¡°I''ve never heard... such a sad... and pathetic turn of events! Ever! I''m so sorry! Bwahahaha!¡± Dana rolled off of me and sat up, her laughing didn''t stop. ¡°Come on... need bath... get clean.¡± I got out of bed and followed her jiggling and laughing self into her small bathroom. Her tub was tiny and she had some kind of lever thing on the wall. She pulled it and water poured into the tub. ¡°It''s cold... but fresh.¡± Dana said and tossed in some soapy things. I held my hand over the thing and heated it up as she swirled the soaps around with a long stick to make bubbles, then she hopped right in. ¡°OH! What the...¡± Dana looked at me and smiled. ¡°If I didn''t already like you like crazy before, I would have fallen for you right now.¡± I held up my hands and used the soap and lather spell to cover them. Dana make an appreciative sound and moved over to let me climb in as well. ¡°Make sure you get me all over. I haven''t had a good scrubbing in weeks.¡± ¡°What about a hot bath?¡± I asked and started to wash her. ¡°I can''t remember.¡± Dana said and moaned as I dug my hands into her back. ¡°It''s too bad you have to leave and get yourself fixed this morning. I would have enjoyed you being here.¡± ¡°You''re not going to come over and take care of me?¡± I asked. ¡°Ha! I don''t know the first thing about doing that, except to call a healer I know.¡± Dana said. ¡°Actually, I think that''s a good idea. If the healer you know won''t do it and won''t assign anyone for you, you have to find one yourself.¡± ¡°I have a list of assistants and helpers she used while there.¡± I said. ¡°That''s perfect. You can''t expect just one person to monitor you for ten whole days.¡± Dana said. ¡°Give them shifts and enough sleep and food to keep themselves and you going. The healer I know will just be the supervisor and watch over everything.¡± ¡°You seem to know a lot about these things.¡± I said and started rubbing her breasts. ¡°Mmmmm.... I have... experience delegating.¡± Dana said and leaned back against me. ¡°Have to... as a constable. I can''t handle everything, so I hand things off to others. If it doesn''t get done, it''s on them, not me.¡± ¡°Even if you delegated it?¡± I asked and moved down to her abdomen. She had a bit of extra flesh there and I rubbed it hard for her and she moaned loudly. ¡°Even if. By the way, you''re making me want you again.¡± Dana said. ¡°Not that it''s hard to do. I''ve been wanting you since the first time we met and you broke the academy''s stupid rules to cross the city to be with the woman you were with.¡± ¡°I''ve been leaving when I want since I went back to do my exams.¡± I said and moved onto her thighs. ¡°You skipped a very important part.¡± Dana said in a teasing voice. ¡°No, I didn''t.¡± I said and moved down her legs and did her calves and then her feet. I gave her a particular look, one that she knew meant that she was going to like what came next. Dana chuckled and moved up to sit on the side of the tub and spread her legs. ¡°You saved the best for last, did you? Good man.¡± I rubbed, licked, and kissed her there, making her moan and pant as I played with her. I had only been doing it for a couple of minutes before she pushed me off and then sat down on top of me. We had sex right there in the water and it went fairly quickly. She really wanted it and I didn''t disappoint her. When I was ready to finish, she hopped off and reached down under the water and looked into my eyes as she jerked me. ¡°I can''t have you dripping out of me all day.¡± Dana whispered and kissed me as my shot plopped out of the water and made a little splash as it entered again. She laughed a little and quickly washed off her hand. ¡°Now we need to empty the water to...¡± I waved my hand and all of the contaminants sucked together and I tossed the palm sized mix of dirt, soap, and my expulsion, into the garbage can at the side of the room beside the toilet. ¡°Now that''s handy.¡± Dana said and then spent the next ten minutes scrubbing me down and kept asking me to lather her hands for her. ¡°I am definitely going to miss seeing you for the next ten days.¡± ¡°I won''t be much good for dating.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°After that, I have some work to do.¡± Dana laughed. ¡°You''re trying to brush me of already?¡± ¡°No. I''m saying our dates have to be in the late evenings and the weekends.¡± Dana stopped scrubbing me and looked at my face. ¡°You''re serious?¡± ¡°You don''t want to?¡± I asked. ¡°Hell yes, I do!¡± Dana said and kissed me. ¡°I just thought you were going to be too busy to pay attention to anything else but your work.¡± ¡°No, I learned that lesson. I can''t keep working and ignore living.¡± Dana smiled. ¡°I''m glad you figured that out. That''s half the battle.¡± ¡°What''s the other half?¡± I asked as she started rinsing me off. ¡°Figuring out that who you''re dating also has a life and might not always be available when you are.¡± Dana said. ¡°It''s not them deciding to not be with you, it''s them being busy and missing you as much as you miss them.¡± ¡°But...¡± ¡°You can''t expect them to change to suit your needs and make them ignore their own lives.¡± Dana cautioned me. ¡°I''ve never done that.¡± I said. ¡°Even with my previous retainers, I literally ordered them to not do that and to be themselves.¡± Dana laughed. ¡°If I ever meet them, I''ll give them a piece of my mind about how stupid they are.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°They had the perfect life with you. They each had an aspect of you all to themselves and they didn''t protect that, and you, like they should have. They thought that as long no one else tried to take their places, it was okay for others to have you, too.¡± Dana shook her head. ¡°Like you didn''t have enough problems already! You can''t handle all those emotional and physical relationships without guidance.¡± ¡°And you can?¡± I asked as I dried her off. ¡°Hell, no! I told you I can''t really build up a relationship like a normal person. Helping you trim down the people trying to take a piece of you? That I can help with.¡± Dana said and dried me off. ¡°As a police officer, it''s my job to enforce the law. Rules and regulations give my life order and sense. I impart that to anyone that will listen.¡± ¡°I''m listening.¡± I said and she gave me a kiss. ¡°You''re already halfway to being a peace officer anyway, so why not?¡± Dana said and led me into the living room and gathered up our clothing. ¡°Get dressed and I''ll start explaining about what I meant. I''ll even come along on the drive back to your Sanctuary and your driver can drop me off afterwards.¡± ¡°What about the healer you know?¡± I asked started to put my clothes on. ¡°Oh, right.¡± Dana said and walked across the room and picked up a piece of paper. She wrote out a note and walked over to hand it to me. ¡°I''ll come along to her place and you can give her that.¡± I didn''t look at the note. ¡°Why can''t you do it?¡± Dana laughed again as she dressed in casual clothes. ¡°I''m not your mother! Do your own chores, you brat! Ha ha!¡± I couldn''t stop my smile. ¡°Now that''s good to see.¡± Dana said. ¡°I better see more of that in a couple of weeks.¡± I nodded and we sat down as she started to tell me about her training to become a constable. We left her house when we heard a carriage pull up and she only stopped talking about it briefly to tell the driver where to go. It was enlightening, to say the least. A set rules for conduct that were much broader than the army, and yet, it had flexibility and purpose that the army ones did not. Rules to govern troops were not enough to govern an entire society. When she was done talking, I realized why Queen Ellen has been almost eager to grant me the rights to hunt down and remove the mages that were responsible for Helena''s death, my persecution, and sedition against the country and the royal family. It was an extremely limited focus and it was like using a sharpened blade to kill someone and not a Kracken Tube that would destroy them. The carriage came to a stop and I hopped out to go meet the healer. Dana caught my arm and gave me a significant look. ¡°Aren''t you going to read the note?¡± ¡°Why? It''s not mine.¡± I responded. Dana huffed and let my arm go. ¡°It seems I also need to tell you that being a little suspicious is okay.¡± ¡°Do you want me to read it?¡± I asked. ¡°I want you to decide if you want to read it. It''s about you and you know it is, so is it worth knowing what knowledge I am passing about you to the healer, or do you want to remain ignorant about it?¡± I stood there and thought about it. ¡°Are you saying I am too trusting when I meet someone?¡± ¡°No, when you''re intimate or close to them first and don''t suspect them of any wrongdoing.¡± Dana said. ¡°You have to be more vigilant than that.¡± ¡°My vigilance technique tells me that I can trust you and you haven''t lied to me.¡± I said. Dana opened her mouth to say something, then she huffed. ¡°I wish I could learn that. It would make police work so much easier if I could tell when someone is lying.¡± I couldn''t stop my smile and she knew I knew something. ¡°You can give me something similar, can''t you?¡± Dana asked. I plucked out four vials from my bandoleer. ¡°Truth serum. Each is a single dose, which is why they are mostly empty. Any more than that can cause sickness and perhaps death.¡± ¡°Oh. Oh, god.¡± Dana whispered. ¡°Each can make someone spit out the truth for half an hour. They physically can''t stop themselves from answering.¡± Dana hugged the vials and gave me a stare so intense that I almost felt a shiver down my spine. ¡°Go get Bertha.¡± She said, almost angrily. ¡°After that, we really need to discuss you giving things like these potions away like they are nothing.¡± ¡°You don''t want them?¡± I asked. ¡°I want them more than anything, possibly more than I want you.¡± Dana said and closed her eyes and sighed. ¡°So will every other constable in the city. No, in the country.¡± ¡°I know they''re valuable...¡± ¡°No, you don''t.¡± Dana said and opened her eyes to look at me. ¡°If anyone important knew that you can make this, you''ll be taken and locked into a cell for the rest of your life.¡± I thought that wording was odd. ¡°I won''t be forced to make it for them?¡± Dana barked a laugh. ¡°No! They''ll want you to never make it ever again!¡± ¡°Oh.¡± I said and stepped out of the carriage. I looked down at the note and back at her face, only to see no expression. _______________ You have a minor choice to make. Will you make the right one? It will only affect your relationship with Dana and the healer, Bertha. A) Read it. B) Don''t read it. C) Burn it. There''s not really a choice. I thought. After what Dana just said, I can''t take the chance. I choose A. _______________ I opened the note and read it. Bertha, do whatever this man asks you to do. Just agree and go along with it. You must do the task! Do not betray his trust! He will also pay you well. Dana. Dana reached out and touched my cheek. ¡°I think that was the smartest thing you''ve ever done.¡± She said and sat back. ¡°You''re not trying to manipulate me.¡± I said and folded the note up. ¡°No. I don''t have to.¡± Dana said. ¡°We really are more alike that I suspected. We grew up in the worst part of town. Fought to live. Fought to survive. We grew up knowing hunger, we''re good friends with pain, and we''ve killed all kinds of animals when we had to.¡± I reached into the carriage and took her hand. I bent over it and kissed it. Dana laughed. ¡°That was a great time to do that.¡± ¡°I know.¡± I said and let her hand go. ¡°We survived our childhoods and started to live our lives. We both ended up here at the capital. I just happened to choose law and order to keep myself out of trouble while you still lived by personal honor. I am really surprised they let you get away with it.¡± I smiled and repeated what I said back in Ester''s Village when they found me over the lumberjack''s body. ¡°No one wanted to be the first to die.¡± Dana barked a laugh. ¡°All right, get going. Bertha''s not getting any younger.¡± I nodded and closed the carriage door before walking over to the house that was similar to Dana''s. I knocked and an older lady opened the door. ¡°Yes? Can I help you?¡± I held out the folded note and she gasped at my missing fingers. Bertha took the note and read it. She looked at my face and back at the note, then at my hands. ¡°I need someone to monitor me for ten days while I use the same regeneration potion that restored the Queen''s arm.¡± I said and her eyes went back to my hands. ¡°Surely, it wouldn''t take a whole dose to...¡± ¡°All my toes are gone, as well as about a third of my heart.¡± I said and she caught her breath. ¡°That explains the boots.¡± Bertha said and looked at my face. ¡°Will it just be me?¡± ¡°No. I have a list of helpers and assistants. I will also provide food, lodging, and pay you for your time with either gold crowns, potions, or potions ingredients.¡± ¡°So, a more supervisory role?¡± Bertha asked and I nodded. ¡°I assume we are to maintain your health, feed you, and clean you?¡± I nodded again. Bertha read the note again. ¡°All right. Wait here while I pack.¡± I nodded. ¡°Can I bring someone with me?¡± Bertha asked. ¡°Who?¡± I asked. ¡°My son.¡± ¡°Why?¡± I asked. ¡°I don''t want to leave him alone for ten days.¡± I shrugged. ¡°As long as he doesn''t commit crimes or assaults the others where we will be going, he can stay in your room with you.¡± Bertha smiled and turned to look inside the house. ¡°Jackson! Come and meet my new boss for the next two weeks!¡± A man came out of the living room with a confident strut. ¡°Mother, I don''t need to meet... YOU!¡± I didn''t recognize him, so I didn''t immediately draw my sword. I should have, because he grabbed something from his pocket and threw it at me. I couldn''t deflect it, so I lunged into the house and tackled Bertha to the floor as whatever it was landed where I was just standing and blew up. I felt fire lick up the back of my legs and start to melt my boots. I kicked them off as I rolled to the side and then drew my sword. It glowed and I shoved it through the man''s chest and then I threw the blade as hard as I could. The shluck sound it made as it sliced through the man''s upper chest and through the right side of his head to bisect his right eye, was drowned out by the screaming. The sword embedded itself into the ceiling and I realized that I still felt like my legs were on fire, so I tore off my pants and wrapped them around my legs to smother the barely seen flames as I cast cooling spells to counter the searing heat. ¡°What happened in here?¡± Dana asked as she ran in and then knelt to check me over. ¡°Bertha''s son attacked me and threw some kind of fire bomb. It looks like a variant of the things the Eastern Empire''s mages use.¡± I said. ¡°Bertha, you didn''t tell me that your son was a mage.¡± Dana said with a low tone of voice. Bertha didn''t say anything as she cried over her son''s body. ¡°I''m taking you in for questioning, Bertha.¡± Dana said as she stood. ¡°For what? I didn''t do anything!¡± Bertha exclaimed and then pointed at me. ¡°My son is dead because of him!¡± Dana gave me a glance as she pulled out one of the vials I gave her. ¡°I suppose this can''t wait until we reach the station.¡± Bertha looked surprised as she wiped at her own eyes to clean up her tears, then Dana cuffed her and poured the dose down her throat. ¡°Tell me everything your son has done illegally and who his friends are.¡± Dana said as she took out several pieces of paper, then she started to write as Bertha told her everything she knew of her son''s illegal actions and who helped him. Dana would have never suspected that the company buying up land to create a continental railway, was just a front for the Eastern Empire''s infiltration to take over the country, one town at a time. 311 My Old New Self Bokuboy ¡°David, it looks like I''m going to be busy while you''re going to be busy.¡± Dana said as she tucked the papers with the details into her pocket. ¡°So much for my time off.¡± ¡°You still have two days left from the bribe. Save them for when I''m myself again.¡± I said. Dana softly laughed and put a gag over Bertha''s mouth. She was telling us about her secret ingredient for her pies. It was a potion she bought while visiting the new lands in the Eastern Empire. ¡°You don''t let anything bother you, do you?¡± Dana asked. ¡°I''ve survived being attacked before.¡± I said and looked down at my slightly burned legs. ¡°This won''t matter after I regenerate.¡± ¡°It''s no wonder why you were always put out where the most danger is while in the army. Your confidence alone would make the soldiers around you feel safe in the face of the enemy.¡± Dana said and stepped outside. ¡°Driver! I need a hand carrying a couple people and a body!¡± ¡°I have a tarp.¡± The driver said and brought it in. ¡°Hey, boss. You''re looking a little more cooked than usual.¡± ¡°I need help walking because the attack ruined my nice boots.¡± I said and both Dana and the driver looked down at my feet without toes. ¡°They were the only things my retainers bought for me.¡± Dana put a hand on my shoulder. ¡°David, I''m sorry.¡± ¡°It''s a pair of boots that they bought on the other side of the world. They are irreplaceable.¡± ¡°Just like your retainers were.¡± Dana said and gave me a kiss. ¡°Just like you are.¡± I looked up at her as she stood straight again. ¡°Me?¡± ¡°I would rather lose the boots than lose you.¡± Dana said and helped the driver wrap the tarp around the body. ¡°You also saved the only witness to what happened here and what''s going to happen to the kingdom. If you hadn''t, no one would ever know about it.¡± I didn''t say anything and watched her and the driver pick up the body. ¡°You could have jumped backwards and saved yourself and let her die. You didn''t.¡± Dana said. ¡°We''ll be right back for you and Bertha.¡± I nodded and sat there as I waited. I didn''t try to stand, not with my legs damaged and without my toes. I could have done it and struggled; but, there would be no point. Help was right there and they wanted to help me. I also tore my ruined pants apart and wrapped my feet up to protect them. Dana and the driver came back in and both of them helped me stand up. I had them steady me and then I jumped up to grab the hilt of my sword. It slid out of the ceiling easily and I sheathed it. ¡°We need people like you at the station. A weapon like that...¡± Dana shook her head. ¡°No, that''s why it''s usually limited to just mages. We''d be robbed if people knew we had weapons like that.¡± I nodded and draped my arm over the driver''s shoulders for balance as Dana pulled Bertha to her feet and the four of us walked out of the house to the carriage. I climbed in and sat down, then Dana shoved Bertha in and made her sit facing us. She was still babbling about something through the gag. ¡°The police station.¡± Dana said and we were off. The next three hours were a whirlwind of questions, answers, interrogations, glasses of ale, and meticulously going over Bertha''s written confession. ¡°You two just happened to stumble over this garbage?¡± The chief asked when we were done. ¡°Kind of.¡± Dana said and explained about me needing a healer to monitor me. ¡°And you had no idea that her son was a mage?¡± The chief asked. ¡°No. We only talked about him in passing when she was working for us to look after me when I was hurt or the guys on shift. She really talked a lot about enjoying healing and baking.¡± ¡°She uses a potion she bought in the Eastern Empire.¡± I offered and the chief looked at me with wide eyes. ¡°It''s her secret ingredient, apparently.¡± ¡°That... is concerning.¡± The chief said. ¡°The traffic between the Gulf Kingdom and the Eastern Empire has been steady as the war settles down again.¡± Dana said. ¡°More people are visiting the new territory and seeing what life is like there.¡± ¡°It''s horrible for the common people.¡± I said and they both looked surprised. ¡°They thanked us for saving them when we made the beachhead near the end of hostilities the last time.¡± ¡°But... that''s not in any reports...¡± The chief started to say. ¡°Who sends the reports and relays them for the army?¡± I asked. ¡°Those stupid sons of bitches! I hate mages!¡± The chief spat. ¡°Welcome to my world.¡± I said and Dana laughed. The chief gave us a stern look and then laughed, too. ¡°Get him out of here to fix himself. Take Vernon with you. If he doesn''t want to go, send his wife.¡± Dana looked shocked. ¡°But... captain...¡± ¡°Yes, we''ll be short a healer for the next two weeks.¡± The chief said. ¡°I''ll see if they will send over another for us, just in case.¡± ¡°Don''t tell them it''s for me.¡± I said and Dana nodded. ¡°He''s had horrible luck with healers lately.¡± ¡°And nearly everything else.¡± I added. ¡°I''ll pay for the healers.¡± The chief looked at Dana and she nodded as she handed over the folded note she had written for Bertha. He read it and looked at us again, then nodded. ¡°All right, you take care of that.¡± Dana let me put an arm over her shoulders and I leaned on her as we stood and then left the office. ¡°I''m glad you''re not self-conscious about letting me help you like this in public.¡± ¡°Why would I be?¡± ¡°Because most men are pigheaded and want to prove that they are big strong stubborn men and can do everything themselves.¡± Dana said with a soft laugh. ¡°They think that showing any kind of weakness to others would damage their reputation and make people think that they are less of a man.¡± ¡°I''m missing all of my toes and half of my fingers. I am less of a man than I was.¡± I said. Dana burst out laughing and everyone looked over at us. No one commented about it, though. We left the station with the woman healer and the driver had two meals waiting for us. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said as I sat down in the back. ¡°I had a bunch of extra money on me for some reason.¡± The driver said and smiled. Dana covered her laugh with a cough and started eating. The healer sat there and waited patiently. We were soon done and the driver took me to the bank. I made a withdrawal for some personal funds and Dana''s eyes nearly popped out of he head when she saw the amount written on the balance sheet. ¡°That''s a mistake, isn''t it?¡± Dana asked. ¡°It probably would be more if it wasn''t only for my personal account. The business ones have about five times that amount in them.¡± I said and smiled at the account manager. ¡°Thank you for your help.¡± ¡°It''s always a pleasure to help you, my lord.¡± The account manager said. ¡°Helping you helps myself.¡± I nodded and picked up the bag of gold to split up into smaller bags and tied them around my belt and my bandoleer. ¡°Did you like the case of cremes I sent over?¡± The now looking younger woman reached up and rubbed her cheek. ¡°My lord, it''s wonderful. I''ve been complimented every time someone sees me, even my long time friends.¡± ¡°Did you give any away or did you tell them where you got it?¡± I asked as Dana stood and I used her as a crutch. ¡°A bit of both. You are going to have a lot of orders when you release it officially.¡± ¡°Send word to Jensen when you run out. You never have to pay for it.¡± ¡°Th-thank you, my lord. Thank you.¡± She said and smiled brightly. ¡°I won''t abuse that privilege.¡± I started to walk away and stopped. I turned back and looked at her. ¡°I should tell you a secret about it.¡± The account manager perked up and looked interested. ¡°What is it, my lord?¡± ¡°It doesn''t only work on your face, neck, and hands.¡± I said and she looked confused. ¡°Apply it to your breasts and thighs tonight and you''ll understand.¡± The woman gasped and covered her mouth with both of her hands. ¡°Have a good day.¡± I said and almost right after the door to the office closed, there was a girly squeal from behind it. ¡°I don''t think she''s going to wait for tonight, David.¡± Dana said. ¡°It was just a suggestion.¡± I said and Dana laughed softly as we walked out of the bank. We rode the carriage all the way back to the Sanctuary and brought the healer to where she would be stationed. She chose to take the bed in the side room where my retainers had their cabinets. They were all empty now and the healer was quite happy with all the space. She unpacked her overnight bag and then took the list of helpers from me. ¡°The manager''s name is Jensen, correct?¡± The healer asked as I put the gold bags into the magic safe. ¡°Yes. He can find them for you. Assign them in shifts and rest when you can. You''ll be supervising and ensuring I''m fed, healthy, and cleaned when necessary.¡± I said and stripped off to get in bed. The healer smiled. ¡°This is going to be a lot easier than I thought it was going to be.¡± ¡°And more lucrative.¡± Dana said. ¡°David is paying you for your time, not the chief.¡± The healer smiled a bright smile, similar to the account manager''s. ¡°That is good news.¡± ¡°I better go.¡± Dana said and hugged me. ¡°Be safe and try to not die as you regrow yourself.¡± ¡°I''ve died before. It''s not a worry for me.¡± I said and the healer laughed. ¡°I think I''m going to enjoy this job for once.¡± The healer said. ¡°Now kiss her like you''re never going to see her again and she can pine over you for the next two weeks.¡± I gave her a look and then looked at Dana. I pushed up from the bed and wobbled slightly, then I moved my feet apart slightly and she looked surprised. I took two steps over to her and put my arms around her. She looked into my eyes and then I kissed her like I wanted to kiss Helena when I returned from being kidnapped. Dana seemed to lose her strength as she held onto me, almost desperately. The kiss went on for several minutes as we moved our mouths and tongues in a little dance. We broke it at the same time and Dana looked very happy. ¡°Take two of the dark green potions, two of the blue potions, and one of the dark red.¡± I said and pointed at my bandoleer. ¡°What are they for?¡± ¡°The dark green smash and create a slightly poisonous fog for about twenty feet. It will fill a room instantly.¡± I said. ¡°The blues are healing potions.¡± ¡°And the dark red?¡± Dana asked. ¡°Immolation potion. Smash it inside a building. Nothing escapes alive and the building burns down.¡± Both Dana and the healer gasped. ¡°I always carry one, just in case I come across a very dangerous creature or a bunch of mages I can''t openly fight without civilian casualties. One potion and the problem is solved.¡± Dana blinked her eyes at me. ¡°You... you...¡± ¡°I''ve fought dragons and large groups of mages. It''s come in handy.¡± I said. ¡°Of course, I''ve improved the recipe to make it much more powerful than the ones I used before.¡± ¡°I think I might leave that one.¡± Dana whispered. ¡°If you''re worried about breaking them, stop at the fourth floor and they''ll give you a belt pouch for the vials. It''s padded like my bandoleer to carry potions.¡± I let her go and walked over to the bed, slipped off my underwear, and sat down. ¡°Be careful hunting.¡± ¡°I... I will.¡± Dana said and her eyes went to my crotch. ¡°I''ll be back to my restored self in ten days.¡± I said and laid down and pulled the thin sheet over myself. I picked up the clear vial of regeneration potion, flashes of the last time going through my mind, and I opened it and downed it. ¡°I''m going to start yelling soon.¡± ¡°I know. I just... I shouldn''t leave just yet.¡± Dana whispered. I felt the cramps start and I grunted as my stomach contracted and the muscles in my abdomen tensed. It spread out from there, fairly quickly, and my body started twitching and cramping. I grit my teeth at the pain and then it really started working. ¡°GAHHH!¡± I shouted as my hands curled up into fists and the finger bones snapped because there were no supporting fingers beside them. ¡°Dana! You better go!¡± The healer said and rushed to the bed as she pried my hands open and then strapped my fingers down straight. She knew she couldn''t let my hands heal into broken fists. Dana gave me one last look before she heard something else snap and I yelled again. She sighed and left at a normal pace. She didn''t run and I didn''t expect her to. She was too sensible for that. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Delirious state skipped. Mental faculties normal. Down time: 10 days. You are now unconscious by magical means. Performing diagnostics. Mental stability at 35%. Learning capacity at 80%. Personality completion at 100%. Physical damage at 20% and stable. Blood loss at 15%. Heart damaged and working at 80% efficiency. Magic capacity at 140%. Magic Burn at 25%. Magic Level at 115% and unstable. Warning: A restoration potion has entered your system and has initiated the major repair function. Working... working... applying effects... done. Mental stability patched at 80%. Learning capacity at 100%. Personality completion at 100%. No physical damage present. Blood restored. Heart healed and working at 110% efficiency. Magic capacity at 200%. Magic Burn -1% (Immunity). Magic Level at 150% and stable. Warning: Emotional State is fluctuating and affects your Mental Stability. Do you wish to take a break for a while and relax? No, I think I need to do a few things before I let myself go and wreck something completely. I thought. Physical status changed to ''Enhanced''. Skipping unconscious state. Done. _______________ I slowly came out of my oddly restful state and opened my eyes. I looked around and the room was a mess, as if a storm had hit it. I also felt very strong and powerful as I sat up. ¡°Finally!¡± The healer exclaimed. ¡°I regret accepting this job!¡± I looked at her and she looked like she had been through a storm, too. ¡°I knew you were powerful with all the things you''ve done and what your people have been telling me.¡± The healer said and waved at the room. ¡°Even with the warnings, I never thought there would be a constant magic maelstrom around you!¡± I found her wording odd, so I held a hand out towards her and my magic flowed over to her instantly and she shivered and moaned as it easily merged with hers and made her feel very good. ¡°S-s-stop... by the Son''s light... I don''t... ohhhh!¡± She moaned and shivered again as she had an orgasm. ¡°Thank you for not abandoning me if you felt like that constantly.¡± I said and let my magic caress her as I pulled it back. ¡°I wouldn''t do that.¡± She whispered and hugged herself. ¡°I''ve never felt... not even from other healers.¡± She said and looked at me. ¡°You are a very dangerous man.¡± ¡°I''m also physically whole once more.¡± I said and kicked off the sheet above me and stood up on my completely restored feet. I wiggled my toes and flexed my fingers as I smiled. Unlike the other times I had restored myself, I wasn''t unbalanced or felt off with my returned toes and digits. I also felt my magic swirling around inside of me and it was just waiting to be used. The healer''s eyes went to my crotch and she blushed, because I was hard and erect. ¡°I think I need to go, now that you''re... um... up... and awake.¡± ¡°And coherent.¡± I said and walked over to her. Her blush intensified and she looked up at my face. ¡°Do you want gold, potions, or potion ingredients?¡± I asked. ¡°Gold, please.¡± She whispered. I nodded and walked across the room and opened the safe. I took one of the smaller gold bags and closed the safe before I walked over to her and handed it to her. ¡°Thank you for your hard work. I''ve never felt this clean or well fed after a regeneration session before.¡± ¡°You''re welcome.¡± She said and opened the bag. She gasped and looked back up at my face. ¡°My lord!¡± ¡°If you want to call me that, you can.¡± I said and walked over to my closet. I checked over the clothing and decided I had work to do, so I put on a work outfit, sleeveless shirt and tough pants, and dressed up and put on real boots. I wasn''t sure why she looked more turned on now than she did when I was naked. ¡°Would you like help packing, or do you want to stay for the evening?¡± ¡°How did you know it''s evening?¡± She asked, a little surprised. ¡°I can feel the day waning.¡± I said and closed my eyes. My vigilance technique wasn''t a technique anymore. It was a full part of my senses. I knew she wanted another magic dose, even if she said she didn''t. I knew there were fifteen people on this floor and that four of them needed a bath. I also knew that one of them was pregnant and was quite happy about it. ¡°I think I will stay tonight and then leave in the morning.¡± The healer said. ¡°I''ll be back around midnight.¡± I said and went to the door. ¡°Where are you going?¡± She asked. ¡°I have weapons of mass destruction to construct and a war to win.¡± I said and left the room and her shocked face behind me. I went down the stairs and into the storage room to pick up a large wildwood log and left the Sanctuary to go to the large woodworking shop that had been built behind it. ¡°BOSS!¡± The men yelled when I entered. None of them said anything about the huge log I carried on my shoulder. ¡°I''ve been lax in working the last few days.¡± I said and dropped the log onto a workbench as they laughed. ¡°Who wants to help me have some fun building things to wreck the Eastern Empire?¡± ¡°When do we start?!?¡± They practically shouted in response. ¡°Right now.¡± I said and they cheered. I knew they were the right crew to ask for help. 312 If You Build It, You Will Conquer It took us two hours to design what I envisioned. I recalled how my little ship was so easy to handle and wanted that kind of versatility. I also wanted the weaponry on it. It was a single person operation, even if it did take a bit of time to stop driving and reload the ammunition. We fixed that problem and put the driver inside and had the weapons arrayed around the chair in easy reach. The next problem was that the movement enchantments I used were only good in low resistance areas, namely water. I remembered launching various boats out of the water and still moving, though. So, we changed the keel and the flat bottom design to have multiple wheels. They were on swivels, so when the movement enchantment took me right, the wheels would turn and let me go right. We set up the weapons to have two each in front, on the sides, and on the back. But, that wasn''t enough firepower for most attacks. We designed a square box that could hold nine normal Kracken Tubes and their ammunition and mounted it on a pulley system. The driver could load the nine of them in a few seconds, hit the release to shove the thing up to the roof, then shoot all nine. Once we figured that part out, we scrapped the other weapons positions and replaced them with boxes. Why have two large shots in a direction when you could have nine? The problem would be ammunition, so we cut the size of the ammo down to half-size and only 2 feet long. It would mean more enchanting work on the ends, just for the different kinds of effects I wanted. It also meant less penetrating power. ¡°Why not add a single full size one to the top? It''ll only be a one shot until you reload it from outside; but, you''ll have a nice penetrating shot and you can pick up the ammo as you pass. Or make new ones.¡± One of the men suggested. ¡°That''s a good point.¡± I said. ¡°We can add a small cabinet and fill it with enchanted coins that are ready for use on new ammo. It''ll save on reloading time later, too.¡± ¡°If you''re doing that, why load by hand at all?¡± Another man asked. ¡°If you made a feed system like the logs at the lumber mill has, you can pull a lever and have four logs drop into the shooting thing at a time, then have at it.¡± ¡°Show me.¡± I said and he did. I looked at the drawing and actually laughed. ¡°You just made what should be fun, into a party!¡± ¡°Thank you, sir.¡± ¡°Let''s change the design again and incorporate this and change out the standing box launchers into four barrels instead. It should free up a lot of room for more ammo reserves and I won''t even have to get out of my chair to rain destruction down on everything.¡± The men cheered and we worked for another hour making corrections and adjustments for the new feed system. We had to strengthen the wheels and put them on tension bars, like a carriage with three split axles, and that would make the ride a lot smoother than the solid design we had before. Six independent wheels might have meant more breakdowns, if we hadn''t decided on coating the wheels with metal and thick leather straps wrapped around them like a sword hilt. When the design was done, we all stood back and stared at the thing. It was a monstrosity. An angled box to deflect direct hits all over, four port holes for weapons on the front, sides, and back, the nine shot launcher that only dropped down to be refilled, and two long barrelled Kracken Tubes on the top on either side of the nine shot launcher. The only weak points were the windows in the front, sides and rear for me to see and shoot. I would be covering them with enchantments, so no one was going to see them anyway. As far as anyone outside would be concerned, it was going to be a large weapon platform coming at them. Assuming they even realized what it was before they died. ¡°We can make the wheels and the main body before midnight and we can finish the rest tomorrow.¡± I said and they agreed. We got to work and a few of them hummed as they created the parts of the very first mobile weapon of war to be constructed for only war. It had no other use than to take the fight to the enemy. At midnight, we packed up and covered the work with tarps to protect them, then left notes to not to use the parts we set aside and needed. I bid the men goodnight and went inside the Sanctuary. I wasn''t the only one around doing things late at night as a few people greeted me and I waved, to show off my returned fingers. They smiled and waved back enthusiastically, wished me a good night, and went on their way. I went back to my rooms and the healer sat there on her bed in the side room. She watched me intensely as I stripped off and I went into the bathroom. I wasn''t surprised when she followed me and kept watching me while I bathed myself all over, then I stood up. She made a little sound that I didn''t recognize and her hand twitched. I ignored that reaction, assuming she had witnessed a personal maid at some point, an dried myself off. She stepped back and let me pass without delaying me, and she could have. Then she followed me back to my bedroom and to the bed. I climbed in and she looked a little lost as she stood there. ¡°You''re married, aren''t you?¡± I asked her. ¡°Yes, unfortunately. He''s a bastard and doesn''t touch me anymore. I gave him two children, just because I wanted to have someone pleasure me at least a little. I regretted it both times.¡± She admitted. ¡°I love my children and they are all I live for.¡± ¡°I''m starting to really hate contracts.¡± I said and my magic flowed out. ¡°Ohh... that... how can...¡± She stopped talking and looked hopeful. ¡°My lord, can I... will you...¡± I held a hand out to her and she practically jumped across the room and landed on the bed. She crushed my hand to her breasts and my magic flowed out and filled her up as it merged with hers. ¡°OHHH!¡± She yelled and had a very strong orgasm. She rolled onto her back and didn''t try to climb under the blanket with me. She did keep a death grip on my hand, though. ¡°That wasn''t enough?¡± I asked and she shook her head. ¡°If you try to harm me, the gentleness will become hurtful.¡± ¡°Of course. I won''t break my vows.¡± She promised and moved my hand over her breasts. ¡°I''m just ensuring your hands still work after you broke the bones and then regrew the missing fingers. It''s going to be a very enlightening report to the medical staff.¡± I gave her a look and she smiled as she rubbed my hand over her nipples to make them pop out. ¡°Your hands only need another hour or so of testing, my lord.¡± She said and closed her eyes as she pretty much used my hand as it if was hers. ¡°I really shouldn''t be doing this.¡± She whispered. ¡°No, you shouldn''t.¡± I said. ¡°Do you want more magic?¡± ¡°By the Son''s Light, yes.¡± She whispered and then moaned as I filled her up again. I actually felt her surprise when I kept my magic there and it didn''t retreat or grow weak. She moaned and clutched onto my hand as if it was the most precious thing in the world. She stayed like that all night. In the morning, I had to carefully pull my hand out of her grip. The blankets were soaked from her reactions and I was glad she hadn''t tried anything except pleasing herself. In that respect, she was much more accomplished than Victoria and her teasing behaviour. This woman made sure she got off and didn''t try to take things past holding hands. That she moved my hand over her own chest and I didn''t participate in that, except by not pulling away, had given her the thrills that years of married life had apparently denied her. That made me think about all of those poor women stuck in loveless marriages and how repressed their sexual urges were and how jealous they must have been that their men had personal maids to take care of them. It was no wonder why when I appeared in their lives, they couldn''t help themselves. Their own society rules had denied them from enjoying themselves until they completed their family obligations, then they were locked into a contract until either the husband dies or his family shuns her and disgraces her. There wasn''t anything I could do for the majority of them, mainly because I was much too late to stop their contracts or to nullify them like I did for Jinelle. Now that I was thinking about her, I needed to apologize for how I treated her. I hadn''t been myself mentally and I had lashed out without considering the consequences. I would debate later if I should return my magic to the child, though. My view on it destroying everything it touches was still a valid one. It would be a heated argument, even with only myself as the sole arguer. I also still had to find and confront the cause of all of this mess, too. I felt a twinge from my magic and it gave me a distinct feeling of where to go. I couldn''t leave yet, not with more work to be done. I dressed in work clothes again and left my rooms to head down to the woodworking shop. The crew was back there and they greeted me with enthusiasm. I thanked them for ignoring breakfast for now and they said they ordered meals to be brought out in a few hours. I clapped them on the back and we got to work. The meals were brought out and dispersed, a few of the men kissed their women, and we all sat down and ate. The meal went quickly, since we were all eager to get the thing built and tested. We went back to work and made everything that it would need. We made the parts, the ammo, the mechanisms, the offensive and defensive enchantments, the metal armor pieces for the outside, the protections, the weight cancelling enchantment, and anything else we could slap onto the thing, including the six part mage shield. It was much more powerful than it should have been, because I was, too. In fact, all of the enchantments made the thing glow slightly when we were done. ¡°By the Father''s Grace.¡± Someone whispered. ¡°It''s finished.¡± ¡°Yes, it is.¡± I said as lunch was brought out to us. ¡°What in the hell is that thing?¡± Dana''s voice asked as she entered the workshop. I turned to look at her and she looked ''a little worse for wear'', as Gary would say. ¡°You look terrible.¡± Dana huffed and walked over to me. ¡°You look even better than you did before.¡± I reached up with my full hand and cupped the side of her face. ¡°I''m almost completely restored.¡± ¡°Only almost?¡± Dana asked. ¡°It only helped me regress my mental state to be more stable. It didn''t fix my emotional problems, just the physical ones.¡± I said. Dana nodded. ¡°Feeling better does help, so that''s not a surprise. I don''t know what to do to fix your emotional problems, though.¡± ¡°I do. It''s living long enough to get to her that''s going to be a problem.¡± I said. ¡°She knows I''m coming for her and will be ready.¡± Dana nodded again. ¡°Until you can confront her, I''ll repeat my question. What the hell is that?¡± I turned back to show her. ¡°This is the first mobile weapon platform in the fight against the enemy.¡± ¡°Did... did you say the first?¡± Dana asked, a little nervous. ¡°We''ve automated as much of it as possible.¡± One of the men said. ¡°One man can load everything and one magic user can drive and fire everything.¡± He looked at me. ¡°Our lord can do it all easily, which is why we made this one a little smaller than the full sized ones.¡± ¡°It''s ten feet wide, twelve feet long, and eight feet high!¡± Dana exclaimed. ¡°It''s as big as a carriage and a horse combined!¡± ¡°It doesn''t need a horse, thanks to our lord giving it the full movement enchantment that everyone has been raving about.¡± Another man said. ¡°My lord, are you going to test it out?¡± ¡°Perhaps.¡± I turned and looked at Dana again. ¡°Tell me about the Eastern Empire scheme and how the police are dealing with it.¡± Dana sighed. ¡°I really shouldn''t.¡± ¡°Now you have to.¡± I said and pulled her into my arms to kiss her. Dana hugged me tightly and kissed me back, then she broke the kiss and shook her head. ¡°You can''t bribe me with your body like that.¡± ¡°Do you want to come along and watch me wreck the army garrison in the next town?¡± I asked and she gasped. ¡°I doubt they''ve changed their minds about not supporting the mages guild, even with it gone.¡± ¡°You... you really...¡± Dana looked at the armored box in front of her. ¡°Will it work?¡± ¡°Have you seen the army boats on the water?¡± I asked instead. ¡°Yes, and they are quite fast.¡± Dana responded. ¡°Quadruple that and we''re also moving on land.¡± I said and pointed at the independent reinforced metal and leather coated wheels that were hidden underneath the armored skirt. ¡°Oh... that... you could...¡± Dana shook her head. ¡°They would never react in time.¡± ¡°No, and I can stay well outside their own range and light them up on fire or blow them up.¡± ¡°Your immolation potion.¡± Dana whispered. I blinked my eyes at her, then I smiled. ¡°Boys! My very smart girlfriend has just given us a new ammo type! Potion tipped projectiles!¡± The boys cheered and quickly started to make some and sent a runner into the Sanctuary to gather up several crates of them. ¡°That... you really didn''t think...¡± ¡°We''re sometimes too busy to think about more than what''s in front of us.¡± One of the men said as he and the others worked like machines to make dozens of hollow-tipped projectiles with a little hole in them for the potion vial to be inserted. They were quickly added into one of the feeding racks and the crates were deposited beside where the driver sat. ¡°That really is a great idea, Dana. Thank you.¡± I said and kissed her. ¡°Mmm.¡± Dana moaned a little. ¡°David, are we really...¡± ¡°You took the two days off starting now, didn''t you?¡± I asked and she nodded. ¡°Then we''ll make a date out of it, only we''ll do it in the next town. After we wreck the traitors.¡± ¡°YEAH!¡± The workmen yelled and cheered. ¡°My lady, allow me to assist you.¡± I said and took her hand and opened the small side door behind the driver''s seat. Dana smiled as she accepted my help and I handed her into the vehicle. ¡°What do you call this thing, anyway?¡± ¡°I thought Mobile Weapon Platform was fine, then the guys put that thing in here.¡± I said and pointed to the back at a very large metal circular thing. ¡°What is it?¡± Dana asked as she sat on the crates. ¡°A tank full of number ten potion.¡± I said and she gave me a surprised look. ¡°Can you guess what they call this thing now?¡± Dana laughed at the simplicity. ¡°The Tank!¡± I nodded and sat down in the driver''s seat. ¡°Hold on, this is going to be weird at first.¡± Dana grabbed onto my shoulders and I activated the enchantments. Cheers came from outside and I waved at them through the front window, then I turned the tank towards the large bay doors. I drove us towards it and activated the forward ''push'' enchantment and it slammed the doors open, made the men cheer again, and I zoomed out and around the Sanctuary. Clapping and more cheering came from the people there and the guards on the new gate opened it for us to leave. I activated the ''ignore us'' enchantment and a horse and carriage passing by us didn''t even notice as we came out and turned down the road at a faster speed than a carriage could manage. ¡°I think I''m falling in love with you.¡± Dana whispered as the tank increased speed. ¡°I haven''t fired any of the weapons yet.¡± I said. ¡°I think you''ve fired your own enough to qualify.¡± Dana joked and then she laughed. I couldn''t stop my smile and nodded as I drove on and out of the capital city. 313 The Start of Suppression The first warning shot got their attention by blowing out the front gate. The second shot blew up the hastily abandoned guard station. The third shot made a statement as the group of mages that had arrived were incinerated where they stood. No fourth shot was needed. A white flag was flown from the top of the main administration building and I took that as a sign that they were surrendering. Dana caught my arm before I took us inside. ¡°David, what did I say about being suspicious of things that could concern you?¡± It had been eleven days ago and the last bit of knowledge that she had imparted to me. ¡°You''re right.¡± I said and activated the protective enchantments on the tank, obscuring it and making people ignore it. I quickly drove us through the destroyed gate and dozens of screams came from the ranked soldiers that were prepared to attack us as soon as we came through the opening. I brought us into the middle of the base and then activated all of the weapons around the sides. Sixteen shots of half-size Kracken Tubes flew out of the launchers and lit buildings, carts, soldiers, and horses on fire. I felt a little bad about the horses as I quickly reloaded with the log rolling mechanism and showed Dana how easy it was. The main administration building was fairly undamaged, so I turned the tank to face it and shot one of the long barrel Kracken Tubes from the tank''s roof. It slammed through the front doors and went right into the CO''s office, since they were all constructed the same, and then it exploded. The back of the building disappeared in the fireball and that fire caught several other buildings on fire before the building itself collapsed and burned as well. ¡°By the Son''s Light.¡± Dana whispered. I drove around the base and the solders were pushed around and squished by the enchantments, making me shooting them a superfluous act. I saved myself the ammo and kept driving. It was almost like a game as I hunted down the last few soldiers and took them out. Dana didn''t ask me why I did that, because she knew that the normal soldiers would continue fighting without countermanding orders. I drove over to the PX and hopped out of the tank. Dana didn''t try to stop me. I entered the burning building and it was empty, so I cast cooling charms and water spells to put out the fire. I went behind the counter and cancelled the enchantments on the large safe with the money inside, then used my sword to slice the hinges off of the door. I carried the sacks and sacks of gold crowns back to the tank and loaded them inside. Dana''s eyes were wide as I did this, her face a little sour at me looting the place, and I took her hand to distract her and then kissed her deeply. ¡°Mmmm.¡± Dana moaned and then she gasped and broke the kiss. ¡°David!¡± ¡°I''m returning it to the Queen. It''s already stolen money that''s rightfully the kingdom''s.¡± I said and she looked both happy and relieved. ¡°I have a couple more stops and then we can go.¡± Dana nodded and watched as I picked through the base to gather any money or enchanted weapons, especially from the mages contingent. I wasn''t surprised that I found some magic books and I took them as well. ¡°We''re going to run out of room in here if you take any more.¡± Dana said. ¡°This is the last of it.¡± I said and put the sack of books on her lap. ¡°The townspeople can have everything else.¡± ¡°The townspeople?¡± Dana asked as I deactivated the protective enchantments and slowly drove us out of the base. Swarms of people were already looting the soldiers of their things. Weapons, boots, money, and anything else that they could take that might be valuable. ¡°Oh. I see.¡± ¡°Don''t forget, the mages didn''t care about the normal people.¡± I said and stopped to open the side door. ¡°Hey! The mess hall kitchen and pantry are untouched!¡± ¡°YAAYYYY!¡± The people cheered and a surge of them ran into the base. I closed the door and drove us out of the town and back towards the capital. ¡°That was very nice of you.¡± Dana said. ¡°I just remembered what the base would have requisitioned from the locals to keep the soldiers fed.¡± I said and she put a hand on my shoulder. ¡°Most smaller towns can''t support even a small garrison, which is why they are almost never deployed there.¡± ¡°The larger the town, the bigger the garrison needed.¡± Dana said. ¡°The more mouths to feed, bodies to dress, and soldiers to move around. It all adds up.¡± I said and she leaned forward to kiss my cheek. ¡°When they went independent and couldn''t bring in anything from the surrounding areas, I bet the people here were becoming quite desperate for relief.¡± ¡°You''ve been thinking about this for a long time, haven''t you?¡± Dana asked. ¡°Ever since I became a conscript and was forced to create another garrison inside hostile territory and then ordered to move them there through the marsh.¡± I said. ¡°Ester''s Village couldn''t support the troops of the garrison before it was reinforced. After it was, they pretty much stripped the farms to feed themselves.¡± ¡°Oh, no.¡± Dana whispered. ¡°Gary was in charge of the food shipments and because of my number ten potion and his knowledge, we made the garrison enough money to buy the food the men needed to live and to keep them living in the new garrison.¡± I said. ¡°Once the war was put on hold, the garrison in the village was reinforced again and the people prospered.¡± ¡°They were at a sustainable level by then.¡± Dana guessed and I nodded. ¡°The constant visitors would help a lot, too.¡± ¡°Anything people not from there found, became a novelty. Food, products, and services. New things have always made people go places to see it and to buy it, according to Helena.¡± ¡°That was why she was in charge of the business side of things?¡± Dana asked. ¡°No, her mother propositioned me and said only an entrepreneur would gain access to her body.¡± I said and Dana caught her breath. ¡°I told Helena that I would never be one.¡± Dana was quiet for some time as we drove back to the capital. ¡°That''s why you always have someone else take over any of the money making deals. You promised her you wouldn''t do it and you never have.¡± I nodded and glanced back at her. ¡°I knew you would understand.¡± ¡°I do.¡± Dana whispered. ¡°More than you think I do.¡± ¡°I doubt that.¡± I said and she looked surprised. I looked back at the road, even if I could tell where we were going when I wasn''t looking. ¡°You see, while my mental faculties were failing, I completely trusted my magic to take me where I needed to go and I followed it without question.¡± Dana didn''t say anything. ¡°It brought me back to you.¡± I said. ¡°David, that... sounds...¡± ¡°Crazy.¡± I said. ¡°I know it''s true, because I haven''t considered going anywhere near the part of the city where the police station was, until I had already fixed my slave skin. It just popped into my head that I needed to go eat at the same cafe we ate at before.¡± ¡°David.¡± Dana whispered. ¡°I know. Magic doesn''t work on you.¡± I said and then smiled. ¡°That doesn''t mean it doesn''t work on me to find me someone that could help me through the mess I was becoming. Still am becoming.¡± Dana pushed the sack of books off of her lap and hugged me from behind as much as she could. ¡°Can you feel it getting worse?¡± ¡°Yes, and no.¡± I said and she kissed my cheek, then my neck. ¡°It''s hard to keep track of your mental state if your mental state helps you keep track.¡± Dana sighed and nodded. ¡°Then you need to deal with the army traitors as soon as possible before you hunt her down.¡± ¡°I won''t ask you to come along.¡± I said and she turned my head to kiss me on the lips. ¡°I would offer to go along if I thought I could help you more than I already am.¡± Dana said. ¡°I haven''t had the time to figure out how to empower a blade for more than five minutes for others.¡± Dana caught her breath. ¡°You teasing bastard!¡± I barked a laugh, which she hadn''t heard from me before. Dana kissed me again before turning my head to face forward again. ¡°Keep your eyes on the road, even though I know you don''t need to. It''s just unnerving when you''re not looking where we''re going.¡± ¡°I know.¡± I said and we entered the city. It was midday, so we gained a lot of attention. It was mostly positive and with a few screams, which were also positive in their own way. What was funny was I didn''t have any of the protective enchantments active, so it was just their own fears of independently moving armored boxes that made them react. I drove to the castle and the guards at the gate pissed themselves. ¡°Get out and wave to the terrified armored men.¡± Dana ordered me and I kissed her, handed her the sack of books back because it was in front of the side door, and I stepped out to wave. The guards visibly relaxed and then looked down at themselves. ¡°I''m sorry about that. There''s no internal way for me to contact people on the outside. Safely, anyway.¡± ¡°I... I''ll go and announce your arrival, my lord.¡± One of them said and took off running. ¡°We''re going to be a while. He forgot his horse again.¡± I commented as I entered the tank and Dana laughed. We sat there and once again, the armored horsemen showed up. The difference this time was nearly all of them had some kind of shaking fit. I hopped back out and waved, to show I saw them. ¡°I told you.¡± The guard said and opened the gate for me. ¡°We will escort you.¡± The head horsemen said. ¡°I''ll drive slow enough to not tire the horses too much.¡± I said and he looked shocked. ¡°I see no horses on your armored carriage! Is it some type of new magic?¡± I had to stop my laugh before it escaped. I seemed to want to laugh a lot lately. ¡°I meant yours.¡± ¡°Oh. Then you may proceed.¡± I climbed back inside the tank and drove it at a trotting pace. ¡°If they only knew how fast you can really go in this thing.¡± Dana said. ¡°I suspect the Queen will be trying to order me to take one of them along when I ask for a list of the rebelling army bases.¡± I said. ¡°I just hope Melanie either had the baby already or is about to. We might not get the lists properly if she hasn''t prepared them beforehand.¡± Dana gasped. ¡°The new prince is about to be born?!?¡± ¡°Yes, if she didn''t have him already.¡± I said and came to a stop near the castle''s front doors. The retainers and people keeping the castle and grounds maintained, stared at the tank like it was going to explode. ¡°Stay inside. I''m activating the minor protections to stop anyone from entering.¡± Dana nodded and I stepped out, then I started to pull out the sacks of gold I had acquired at the garrison. The armored horsemen stared at me as I unloaded a lot of gold crowns and then shut the door. ¡°I need a hand cart or most of your help carrying these inside.¡± I said and waved at the many sacks. ¡°Get a cart!¡± The head horseman said as he dismounted and one of his men ran off. ¡°Take the horses back to the stable.¡± Another man took his reins and the rest rode away. ¡°What is that... thing?¡± The head horseman asked me. ¡°It''s called a tank.¡± I said, not bothering to explain about what it should have been called. The man didn''t say anything else as we waited for the hand cart. The other man came back with it at a walking pace and the head horseman gave him a stern look, which informed him that he should have run back with the thing. The man dropped it off and quickly walked away. I loaded the hand cart up with the sacks of gold crowns and ignored the head horseman''s disappointed sigh at his man''s antics. I finished and stepped behind the handle before we walked away from the tank. When we were far enough away, I activated the protective enchantments and heard two manly yells and we looked back to see two armored men being pushed away from the tank. ¡°Did you order that or can I kill them immediately for trying to steal my property?¡± I asked him. The head horseman sighed. He knew that no matter what he answered, he would have to deal with losing his men, so he avoided answering. ¡°We need to go see the queen.¡± I nodded and as soon as he started to lead me away, I cast Stealth and Obscure on the two men to silence and hide them, then I cast Incinerate and followed the head horseman inside the castle. 314 The Truth Revealed We entered the throne room and Ellen was completely alone. When she saw me, she squinted her eyes. ¡°Lord Drake, your majesty.¡± The head horseman said. ¡°Leave us.¡± Queen Ellen snapped at him. I watched the man practically run from the room and couldn''t stop my smile. Ellen easily saw this. ¡°You may approach my royal personage, Lord Drake.¡± I walked over to her, as if she wasn''t the queen, and saw a small frown form on her face. ¡°Good afternoon, Queen Ellen.¡± ¡°You have terrified a good portion of this city''s populace, Lord Drake.¡± I turned the hand cart around and opened one of the bags. ¡°It was their own reaction to my new method of war and nothing I did, your highness.¡± Ellen perked up and saw a lot of gold was in the cart. ¡°What is this? A tribute?¡± ¡°I hardly think you deserve any tribute from me.¡± I said and she let out a low growl. ¡°You already took several hundred thousand gold crowns from me to punish me, not counting costing me the land deeds in the new territories and any future funds they would have made.¡± Ellen''s face changed and she lost the anger. ¡°Then what is it?¡± ¡°I liberated this from the garrison in the next town that was under mage control.¡± I said and as an example, dumped out the hand cart to have the open bag spill out the contents and then the multitude of other bags rolled out to pile onto the floor. ¡°You liberated it.¡± Ellen said in a soft voice. ¡°Yes, I did it personally with that thing that so terrified your populace.¡± Ellen''s eyes roamed over the gold that seemed like more than a garrison should have. ¡°If you''re wondering, yes, this is the normal amount that a garrison should have in their PX for the soldiers.¡± ¡°How do you know that?¡± ¡°I was good friends with the PX clerk at the training base and she bought practically everything I brought to her, including any requests she had.¡± I said. ¡°She was partial to near-deer meat and said I cooked it better than her own mother.¡± Ellen''s eyes twitched from the gold to me. ¡°So, you were romancing other women even back then?¡± ¡°No. If I was going to do that, I would have bedded your cousin, Gillis. She would have had first rights as the woman that took care of me for nearly my entire training.¡± Ellen looked shocked. ¡°She would never lay with someone like you!¡± I let my smile appear. ¡°Perhaps not at the time. I was uncooth and quite brazen in my actions. At the end of training, she was a good friend of mine. Now I''m just ruthless and efficient with the perfect balance of noble and commoner knowledge.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Ellen asked. ¡°I can see the flaws in both.¡± I said and didn''t explain further. ¡°I came here to get the list of other bases and garrisons that are still under mage rule. I''m leaving the capital to hunt the remaining rogue mages down. Having a list will make my hunt more efficient.¡± ¡°You are out of luck.¡± Ellen said and then sighed. ¡°Melanie is sequestered to have the baby.¡± ¡°Is that why they left you all alone?¡± I asked and her anger returned. ¡°They didn''t leave me!¡± Ellen spat. ¡°Oh, I see. You chose to not go with them to see the baby''s birth, even if the kingdom can survive without you sitting right there for a day or two.¡± ¡°I will not abandon my country!¡± Ellen shouted. ¡°Just your friends and family, then?¡± I asked and she shot to her feet. ¡°GET OUT!¡± ¡°No. I came for a list and I''ll get one.¡± I said and turned towards the throne room''s door. ¡°GUARDS!¡± Ellen yelled and six men entered the room. ¡°You gentlemen have a choice. Help the irrational queen try to remove me from the castle, or remind her that without friends and family, the country she is fighting for is worthless.¡± The men looked unsure. ¡°Remove him or kill him!¡± Ellen spat. ¡°As you can see, she is beset with stupidity once more. I am the one man that can do as she wants, save the kingdom she claims to love, and yet she has let her own self-importance dictate her actions.¡± I said and the men seemed to nod. ¡°It didn''t work the last time and she lost more than her command when I was done. If she chooses to do so again, I won''t bother saving anything before I leave the kingdom for good.¡± ¡°YOU CAN''T LEAVE!¡± Ellen yelled. ¡°I FORBID IT!¡± I turned back to see her shaking in rage. ¡°I own the land, seeded to me by your father, who was a good man. Because of him, you have your arm back and are now Queen, instead of your incompetent older brother.¡± I said and she didn''t react. I looked at her and my vigilance told me the truth. ¡°You don''t want to give up your power, even though I told you to raise the boy up to be your replacement.¡± Ellen seemed to deflate and sat down on the throne. ¡°The nobles and the advisors are already prepared to declare him the crowned prince the day after he''s born and Melanie will be Queen Regent.¡± ¡°Ha.¡± I said and then felt laughter bubble up inside of me. ¡°HA HA HA!¡± Ellen was so shocked at hearing me laugh that she was speechless. ¡°You''ve already lost it all! That''s so fitting!¡± I said and she didn''t tell me to shut up or yelled at me. ¡°Don''t you see? I wasn''t the cause of your fall this time and you can''t blame me for it! It was all you! All you! Ha hahaha!¡± The men stood there and looked uncomfortable, not knowing what to do. ¡°If you want my advice, create a post called High Admiral of the Fifth Regiment or something, make it permanent and hereditary, and lord over it like you''ve always wanted, because it will be outside the normal military channels. Then you can find some idiot to hold in your iron grip and force him to give you children.¡± I said and walked out through the throne room''s doors. No one said anything or tried to stop me as I walked over to Melanie''s office. I unlocked it and entered, only to see several folders sitting on this side of the desk. I went over to it and a note was written on top of it. ''David, here are the lists of army outposts, bases, garrisons, and the mage contingents assigned to them. Happy hunting. All my love, Queen Regent Melanie.'' ¡°Ha! Of course she knew.¡± I said and took the note and the file folders. I left her office and walked down several hallways before reaching the main castle doors. I was a little surprised that there wasn''t a squad or two of guards to block me from leaving. Not that they could. I was leaving and that was that. A dozen soldiers were standing twenty feet away from the tank and were talking furiously. I ignored them and went right up to the tank. ¡°Hey! How are you doing that?¡± One of the men shouted. ¡°We can''t get near the thing!¡± ¡°That''s because it''s mine.¡± I said and opened the side door. ¡°If you don''t want to be squished, I suggest moving to the side and not block the road.¡± ¡°You can''t tell us what to do!¡± He spat. ¡°I warned you.¡± I said and entered the tank. ¡°Well, it''s kind of reassuring to know that the nobles really are idiots.¡± Dana said and accepted the file folders from me. ¡°How''s the Royal Consort?¡± ¡°Having the Crown Prince as we speak.¡± I said and she gasped. ¡°She''s the Queen Regent now, too.¡± Dana looked both shocked and pleased. ¡°Ellen''s not happy about that.¡± I said and turned the tank around on the spot. The men blocking the way made disbelieving sounds. ¡°Do you think they''ll move?¡± Dana asked. ¡°It''s too late for that.¡± I said and shot us forward to crush them instantly. ¡°They made their choice.¡± Dana gave me an odd look. ¡°You don''t feel bad about that?¡± ¡°I warned them to move. They chose not to. Choices have consequences.¡± I said. ¡°If they weren''t prepared to put their lives on the line every time a choice is made, they weren''t making the right choices anyway.¡± Dana looked thoughtful, then she tapped my chin. ¡°I said it''s unnerving to not look at the road.¡± ¡°I''m waiting for a kiss.¡± I said and activated the ignore and obscuring enchantments on the tank. Dana let out a single laugh and kissed me. ¡°Let''s go back to the Sanctuary and unload this thing, go over these lists, and map out a route for you to follow.¡± ¡°I''ll need to pick up more truth potion, too.¡± I said and she sucked in a breath. ¡°Not all the mages feel the same way as the dissidents.¡± ¡°You''re not going to just kill them all indiscriminately?¡± ¡°Only the obviously attacking ones. I have the authority to defend myself and interrogate mages for sedition.¡± I said and drove us through the streets and avoided the horses, carriages and people. ¡°With Melanie''s approval for my hunt, I don''t have to be gentle about it. Not that I was before. I was a right bastard, as commoners usually say.¡± Dana laughed. ¡°I suppose you let the power go to your head.¡± ¡°No, I just didn''t bother with being considerate of anyone else but myself and Gella.¡± I corrected. ¡°If I was going to let the power to go to my head, I wouldn''t have bothered to interrogate anyone at all and just killed them, guilty or not. It would have been much quicker.¡± Dana had to think about that. ¡°You''re right. You could have abused your position as a Royal Inquisitor and just killed anyone that you deemed a risk.¡± ¡°I knew you would understand. I really like that about you.¡± I said and she blushed a little. ¡°I won''t be leaving for a couple of days. I need to prepare supplies and things if I''m going to travel around the country without having to come all the way back here each time to resupply.¡± Dana thought about that. ¡°What if you set up relay visits?¡± ¡°What are they?¡± I asked. ¡°You do up carriages or carts with the supplies you need and send them to the places near where you will be at when you need them.¡± Dana said as I drove us inside the Sanctuary. ¡°They can go there and wait for you to arrive, resupply you, and come back here to do it again.¡± I thought about that and it was a good idea. It would need a little changing to be viable, though. ¡°Let''s discuss that while we work on the lists and the maps.¡± Dana nodded and I came to a stop just outside the Sanctuary''s main doors. I opened the side door and called for a work crew to unload the tank of the loot. The enchanted weapons, sack of books, and other enchanted valuables were quickly removed from the tank and taken inside. They knew exactly what to do with them to reproduce them for the Sanctuary''s use. I helped Dana climb out of the tank and she brought the file folders with her as we entered the place. I gave her a quick tour of the lower levels and we stopped in the cafeteria to eat. I was greeted by nearly everyone and Dana looked happy about that. We ate a nice meal and drank a little wine, then we went into one of the many meeting rooms and started to work. I sent for Jensen and he came with several other people to help set everything up for Dana''s idea. It took us several hours to work out where the garrisons and army outposts were on the maps we had available. Instead of having one huge map with only dots or numbers for the places to visit first, we used pieces of paper and drew out single sections to give me as many details as possible. That took up a lot of time as well and supper was delivered for us. We stopped working for a while and enjoyed the light conversation and the food. Dana''s face seemed to have a smile permanently on it the entire time. ¡°I think we should call it a night, David.¡± Jensen said. ¡°We can let the details settle in our heads and then get back to work in the morning.¡± ¡°Afternoon.¡± I corrected and he smiled and nodded. ¡°I won''t take you and the others from your jobs for much longer.¡± ¡°My lord, you don''t have to worry about things like that. We all know it''s important for you to complete your promise and we all agreed to help you as much as we can.¡± One of the men said and the others nodded. ¡°We also know when to give you space when you need it.¡± Another said and clapped the other men on the backs. ¡°Let''s go, guys.¡± ¡°Goodnight.¡± Jensen said to us and left with the others. ¡°They don''t mince words, do they?¡± Dana asked. ¡°There''s no need to.¡± I said and led her out of the meeting room, locked it, and brought her up to my floor and the room there. The healer was gone and had left a note, saying she was grateful for the payment and for the non-vow breaking fun. ¡°Do I need to ask about that?¡± Dana asked. ¡°I gave her magical orgasms that she''s never had before.¡± I said and Dana made an odd face. ¡°I meant I used magic to let her own magic get her off. I didn''t have sex with her, although she did rub the back of my hand on her nightgown covered breasts.¡± Dana''s odd look didn''t fade. ¡°She didn''t try anything else?¡± ¡°No. It goes against her vows, even if she hates her husband and gave him two children.¡± I said and she seemed to relax. ¡°It was just proof to me how the messed up the noble lifestyle is perpetuating unhappiness and anger. Almost none of the marriages are happy ones and nearly all the children grow up with corrupted values and skewed viewpoints.¡± Dana sighed. ¡°I should have known you would discover how desirable you are to a woman that hasn''t seen or felt genuine affection in a long time.¡± I pulled her into a hug and looked into her eyes. ¡°You are in the same physical category as them.¡± ¡°I know.¡± Dana whispered. ¡°Unlike them, I can do something about yours.¡± I said and started to undress her. ¡°David...¡± ¡°No, I''m not doing it because you need it.¡± I said and she smiled a little as I knelt and pulled her pants off. ¡°I''m doing it because I do.¡± Dana smiled brightly and then grabbed my hair as I licked her womanhood. She was wet right away and moaned, then she pulled me over to the bed and wrapped her legs around my neck. 315 The Hunt Is On Bokuboy After making myself feel good, and made Dana''s voice hoarse from yelling my name over and over, we both slept for a good amount of time. In the morning, I made breakfast and served it in bed, which Dana apparently really liked, if her quite enthusiastic oral sex afterwards was any indication. I was pretty sure she was joking when she said she wanted more milk for her tea. She never takes milk in her tea. I gave her a tour of the rest of the Sanctuary, including the potions labs. For some reason, she said she wanted to have sex in there, so I obliged and gave her what she wanted. I also asked her if she used the potions I gave her and she sighed and wouldn''t say what happened. I thought about dosing her with truth serum and decided against it. If she couldn''t tell me because it was work related, I wouldn''t force her. We met in the cafeteria for lunch and the others were there waiting for us, fully prepared to get back to work. So, we took the food back to the meeting room and did just that. We worked right up until suppertime as we refined the plans and the route I would take. My modification of Dana''s plan for resource visits in certain areas, to have multiples in different areas instead of only having one travelling all the time, was readily accepted. Dana stayed over again and claimed that she had access to me for another day and she wasn''t going to waste it. So, we went to bed again that night and had a lot of fun. I hadn''t really had that before, since it was usually something I did to make a woman feel pleasure. Dana showed me how important it was that I enjoyed it too, and I appreciated that. The next day, we set up the supplies and the carriages with beds inside, with armed guards, just in case. It was nearly a full day''s work, considering how much territory I planned to cover as quickly as possible. I also made up another batch of truth serum to show Dana how easy it was and the ingredients it used. She cursed at me for telling her and then she tore off my clothes and had her way with me. Dana also promised that she wouldn''t give the recipe to anyone else. Not that I cared about that. It was a preventative measure, because no one could take me away and lock me up, if other people knew how to make it as well. We slept in bed again that night and Dana seemed a little desperate in the morning as we had sex once more. The bath afterwards was just as sex filled. ¡°This might be the last time I see you.¡± Dana said as she dressed. ¡°I''ll eventually come back for you, if that''s what you want.¡± I said and she looked sad. ¡°David, it''s not that I want you to. Do you want to?¡± Dana asked. ¡°I''m not coming back to stay at the capital. I want to go home.¡± I said and she sighed. ¡°You won''t leave your life here, either.¡± ¡°No, I worked too hard to...¡± Dana stopped talking and looked at me. ¡°Oh. I see.¡± I finished dressing and walked over to her to hug her. ¡°I''ll come back in the late fall for the academy.¡± Dana shook her head. ¡°No, that''s not the same thing as coming back for me, David. I can''t really put my life on hold and hope that you''ll somehow make it back here without being hurt during this quest of yours, only to not have you come back for months because you choose not to.¡± I thought about that. ¡°I also don''t want to put my return to my life on hold and come right back here. I''ve spent too much time here, done too much here, to have this place be anything but hard on me.¡± Dana huffed. ¡°One good girlfriend wasn''t enough to counter all the horror and death you''ve been through?¡± ¡°Counter? No.¡± I said and gave her a long and tender kiss for several moments. ¡°Get me through the worst of my breakdown so far? Yes.¡± ¡°So far.¡± Dana whispered. ¡°I fully expect to lose it when I''m close enough to Ester''s Village. Either just before I get there or just after. It all depends on if I sense her there.¡± Dana nodded. ¡°You know she''s there. You told me before that she was waiting for you.¡± ¡°I won''t be holding back against her anymore. I''ve always been afraid of her, always fearful of what she would do if I defied her.¡± I said and gave her another tender kiss. ¡°Now I know. She took it all away from me. My wife. My son. My life.¡± ¡°David, she... your life...¡± ¡°Now I''m going to take everything away from her.¡± I interrupted. ¡°She wanted to set the mages guild up to wreck the Gulf Kingdom and rule. I''m taking that away from her. Mages will no longer have the ear of the royal family, because I have it. Mages will no longer have power to dictate conditions when they are there, because everyone doubts their choices now. They can''t even have their own gathering places, because I fixed that.¡± ¡°You really are exterminating them.¡± Dana said. ¡°Only the bad ones. The corrupted, the greedy, the ones that believe they are entitled to lord it over the common people and some of the nobles. The ones the Hag has ensnared in her scheme to bring the Gulf Kingdom down.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°The others, if they are smart, will accept the way things are going to be. If not, they will go the same way as Mage King''s husband. No dissent is allowed and I will hunt them down.¡± Dana gave me one last kiss and stepped away. ¡°Then you better get started.¡± ¡°You, too.¡± I said and she turned her head to look away. ¡°Pick up a case or two more of the green potions and a case of the immolation potion on your way out.¡± I said and went to the safe as I took out the multiple small bags of gold I had left there and attached them to my belt. I also put on both the royal ceremonial sword and my own, both for easy draws from their sheaths. ¡°David, I... the case of truth serum is enough. I told you to not give away something so valuable.¡± I stepped close to her again and gave her a big smile, Hope''s favorite smile, and she caught her breath. ¡°You are under the assumption that I think those potions have any value besides their use.¡± ¡°By... by the Father''s Grace.¡± Dana whispered. ¡°You... you really...¡± ¡°I''ve been able to tell when someone lies to me since I was a child.¡± I said and gave her a quick kiss before I walked to my room''s door. ¡°That potion is less valuable to me than air.¡± Dana stared at me and I waved at her, then I left the room and went down the stairs. ¡°Everything is prepared, my lord.¡± Jensen said. ¡°Thank you, my friend.¡± I said and took his hand to shake it. ¡°Have fun with everything, love your wife and your upcoming children, and be good to our people.¡± Jensen chuckled. ¡°Don''t be a stranger, my lord. We''ll see you again when you come back to attend the academy next year.¡± I nodded and let his hand go. ¡°Goodbye, Jensen.¡± ¡°Goodbye, David.¡± Jensen said. A loud chorus of goodbyes and shouts followed and I turned to look at all the people on the ship and gathered around it. Everyone had come out to see me off. ¡°I''m going to miss hearing you all laugh at me when I make stupid mistakes!¡± I said and they all laughed. ¡°Good luck!¡± ¡°Kick their asses!¡± ¡°Burn it all!¡± ¡°Make them pay!¡± ¡°YEAH!¡± ¡°They won''t know what hit them.¡± I said and they all cheered. ¡°Goodbye.¡± ¡°GOODBYE, MY LORD!¡± They all yelled, one a little louder than the others. I looked for her and saw Hanna being hugged by an older lady that I hadn''t seen in months. Nana stood there looking sad as she held the younger woman tenderly. I thought about saying something to her, maybe apologize to her for Hanna ignoring her while she was spending so much time with me. Then I realized that wasn''t my fault. It wasn''t my job to make sure other people around me maintained their friendships or relationships. I nodded to her and she nodded back. ¡°Jensen, send a message to Jinelle for me. I would go myself if I thought she would let me leave afterwards.¡± Jensen laughed. ¡°Of course, my lord. What''s the message?¡± ¡°I sincerely apologize for my behaviour. Please find it in your heart, that''s behind your delicious and perfect breasts, to forgive me.¡± Jensen looked surprised. ¡°David, are you sure that...¡± ¡°Word for word, please. She''ll accept the message if she knows it''s really from me.¡± I said and he nodded as he wrote it down. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Good luck, my lord.¡± Jensen said. I climbed into the tank to more cheers and drove off towards the relocated gates and out into the street. I activated the stealth and hiding enchantments, even though it was still early and no one was really out on the streets. I didn''t want to cause another panic or slow my progress out of the city. What followed was several weeks of the oddest military campaigns that anyone had ever seen. It was an internal one against our own military. One warning was given to surrender, then everyone that didn''t, was slaughtered. The mages were first, of course. They were the most dangerous. If they were powerful enough, they could potentially disable some of the enchantments on the tank. I wouldn''t allow that, though. I layered them on top of each other, putting innocuous ones at the very forefront. The fire suppression and magic detect ones. Ten layers of them, in fact. It was laughable as they tried to use spellfire to overpower the tank''s enchantments, as if they could get through the fully charged mage shield enchantment buried under the others. As I travelled on to each new site of battle, I gathered up the valuables and stashed them in large sacks attached to the back of the tank. When they were full and I needed a resupply as well, I would divert my course and meet one of the many resupply carriages and exchange the loot for food and ammunition. I also had to stop a few times and administer truth serum before slaughtering the mages. A few of them had given up after attacking and I needed to check if they were really repentant or just pretending. I was never surprised when they were just pretending to try and save their own lives to attack me later when I relaxed. I always told them I never relax when I''m working and then beheaded them. I continued on and on, doing the dirty work of cleaning up the army''s messes and the corruption from the mages. I hadn''t known how easy it was to just bribe people to do what you want. If I had known that years ago, and had money, I could have paid off the villagers and made them accept me without any fuss. That thought made me chuckle. I wouldn''t have been attacked, killed someone, or been sentenced to death and given to the army. I wouldn''t have learned how to kill people in so many ways or earned a lot of money doing what I did anyway while hunting for food, namely harvesting the parts for use later. My life had changed so much and it was getting fuller and fuller. I hadn''t realized it at the time. It wasn''t until it was all gone that I saw what I had lost. What the Hag took from me. My anger flared and I was glad that I was out in the open and interrogating several mages when it happened. I didn''t even have to direct it as it lashed out at the mages and they screamed as they suffered magic burn. Having too much magic shoved through you wasn''t a pleasant experience and their skin cooked and blistered. A moment later, their magic blew and their bodies exploded. I was glad that I had my medallion on, because having six people around you blow up, was a little messy. On the plus side, the nearby army outpost that had been monitoring me and waiting their turn to be assaulted and interrogated, surrendered immediately. I only had to kill the command structure and the officers ordering the men. Also a few of the soldiers. They had grand plans for taking over and that wasn''t going to be allowed. I got rid of their friends, too. Plotting revenge on me and then taking over wasn''t a good idea, either. I didn''t loot the outpost and distributed the officer''s pay to the troops, which made them happy. I kept track and documented everything, because I knew that Melanie would want as much paperwork as I could make for her during this hunt. I was okay with that, because even someone like me needed time to stop, eat, look around the town, and take a break. Dana had taught me the benefit of that. I remembered her from the day I had left and grew hard for her. I wasn''t going to be able to work like that, so I went to the local inn. The man behind the counter looked a little high class, so I approached cautiously. ¡°Excuse me, I wish to rent a room for the evening... and perhaps, if it is agreeable and available... acquire the services of a personal maid or a lady of the night.¡± The man looked affronted for a moment. ¡°Sir! I assure you that we do not offer those kinds of services...¡± He leaned in close to whisper so the others in the lobby couldn''t hear. ¡°...for no less than fifty silver. The room included.¡± I put a gold coin on the counter and he snatched it up. ¡°A bath would not be remiss.¡± The man smiled and stood up straight as he handed me a key. ¡°The second room on the right. I''ll have the wench prepare the tub for you.¡± He said and walked over to a door. ¡°Wench! Second room! We need a bath run!¡± I turned and waited, my hearing easily picking up their whispered conversation. ¡°He''s paid a gold for you tonight, so make sure you don''t mess this up again. Give him a good time and maybe he''ll tip you a few silver.¡± ¡°Can''t I just knock him out and tell him I did him?¡± The woman''s voice asked. ¡°That only works on the drunks, you idiot.¡± ¡°Oh, yeah. Sorry boss.¡± The man chuckled. ¡°He looks like he has money and is used to it, so you might not have to do more than suck on him a little before he blows.¡± ¡°Ha! I can charge him extra if he wants to keep going.¡± ¡°That''s the spirit.¡± The man said. ¡°Put on the nice maid dress and get up to the room. I''ll send him up in a few minutes and you can give him a little show.¡± ¡°That''s a great idea, boss! He might even blow from just seeing my panties when I''m bent over!¡± The man laughed. ¡°Get going, you!¡± ¡°Yessir!¡± The woman said and went out another door. The man walked back over to me and smiled. ¡°Sir, it''ll just be a couple of minutes and you can go on up.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and put another gold coin on the counter. The man stared at it and then looked at my face. ¡°I reward prompt service.¡± I said and walked over to the window. I counted in my head for three minutes as I looked out at nothing in particular, then I turned and nodded to the man before I went up the stairs to the room. As I knew would happen, I entered the room and the maid was bent over the side of the tub. Her too short maid outfit didn''t give her any cloth at all to provide modesty and it barely attempted to hide her backside. They did look like nice panties, though. ¡°Is that a glimpse of heaven I see?¡± I asked as I shut the door and locked it. She made a little ''eep'' sound from being startled, then she fought to not turn and look at me. ¡°My... my lord, you... you have... caught me in a precarious position.¡± ¡°Would you like to stay in that position?¡± I asked and she moaned a little. I hadn''t even touched her yet. ¡°No, that would be uncomfortable for you.¡± I said and walked over to the tub. She turned her head slightly, leaving her ass hanging out, and looked up at my face. She sucked in a sharp breath and licked her lips. ¡°My... my lord. I think... wherever you want me, I would be happy.¡± I smiled one of Hope''s smiles and she seemed to lose strength and sat down on the floor to stare at me. ¡°I need a bath before I can do anything else.¡± I said and started to strip. I watched her as I did so. She was drooling a little as I pulled off each piece of clothing until I was down to just my underwear. ¡°Since you''re already down there, can you get my underwear off for me?¡± ¡°Y-y-yes, m-my l-lord.¡± She stammered and her slightly shaking hands took hold of them and she slowly pulled them down. Her face was a little apprehensive until she saw me hanging there and she moaned. I stepped out of the underwear and into the tub. ¡°You may use the cloth. Lather it up and begin.¡± She bit her lip and did as I asked, then she spent an inordinate amount of time caressing my muscles and not really washing me. I refrained from laughing at her actions as I washed myself around her roaming hands to get myself actually clean. I was done long before she was and she seemed to be happy just rubbing her hands over my arms and chest. ¡°Thank you for the bath.¡± I said and she jumped a little. ¡°It''s over?¡± She asked, disappointed. I didn''t say anything and stood up to put my crotch right in front of her face. ¡°You may dry me and perform the ritual.¡± She moaned and had to wipe off her mouth, then she used a towel to barely dry me off before she abandoned the towel. Her hands and mouth were on me instantly and she quickly got me hard. She moaned loudly and really got into sucking on me. In fact, her enthusiasm made her actions almost frantic, as if she needed to get me off as soon as possible. I didn''t fight the feeling as I approached orgasm and tapped the top of her head. ¡°Here it comes.¡± ¡°Mi moh.¡± She mumbled and kept sucking and moving her head. I let myself go and she moaned loudly as I poured myself into her mouth. She swallowed several times, not stopping her movements or sucking action, and she kept going. I gave her a questioning look and she mumbled something, then closed her eyes and ignored me. I didn''t mind if she wanted me to shoot again. I grabbed a towel and dried myself off. After she sucked me off the second time, she seemed to relent her hold on me and slid her mouth off with a smacking sound. ¡°I guess you''re satisfied now.¡± She said, clearly disappointed. ¡°Whatever gave you that idea?¡± I asked and she looked up at my face. ¡°I paid for the whole night, not just for a bath.¡± ¡°The... the... the night. The whole night.¡± She whispered, awe on her face. ¡°I''ve never done anything halfway.¡± I said and reached down and picked her up. She let out an ''eep'' sound and then she clung to my neck like a death spider. I took her over to the bed and laid her down on it. ¡°Please lay back and relax. It''s your turn for the bath ritual.¡± ¡°OHHH!¡± She gasped and soaked her panties. I laid down between her legs and pulled her panties off. ¡°A noble is going down on me! I can''t believe it!¡± She exclaimed, then she moaned when I buried my tongue deep inside of her. Ten minutes later, she said almost the same thing as I buried my manhood deep inside of her. ¡°A noble is having sex with me! I can''t believe it!¡± She exclaimed, then she moaned continuously for the rest of the night. 316 Home Is Where the Heart Is In the morning, I went to sleep for several hours. I wasn''t really in a rush with my schedule, thanks to not letting any mages live to pass on messages. I never did learn that spell, not that I really had anyone to send a message to, or anyone that would want to hear from me, not after everything that had happened. I woke up and the maid was draped over me with a smile on her face. She was asleep until she made a little moan sound when she felt my morning erection pressed against her. She wiggled her hips a little to grant me access, then she really moaned as I slipped inside of her. She didn''t open her eyes or lift up to ride me, either. She just kept moving her hips and rocked me in and out of her. ¡°Mmm... mmm... soooo gooood.¡± She moaned and held onto me as she made herself feel good. For the first time, I didn''t mind this happening. I understood that she was just availing herself of an available sexual experience. Her body pretty much overriding her mind as she worked herself to orgasm using my conveniently placed erection. ¡°Ohhhhh!¡± She moaned and clenched up very tightly, squeezing me hard, so I let it go and poured into her. ¡°OHHH!¡± She moaned again and her body shook as it received double the pleasure she was actually seeking. After a few minutes, I whispered to her. ¡°I think I need another bath.¡± ¡°Mmm.... bath ritual... bath...¡± Her eyes snapped open and she lifted her head to stare at me. ¡°My... my lord? Did we just...¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I said and she blushed. ¡°Don''t worry, I''ll compensate you for the extra time.¡± ¡°N-n-no, I... this was...¡± ¡°It''s always best when someone enjoys their work.¡± I said and she blushed again. ¡°Are you sated yet? Do you want another go?¡± ¡°You... why...¡± I rolled her over without pulling out and she stared up at me. ¡°There''s some time before I need to eat.¡± Her smile came back and she nodded, so we had sex again. She didn''t know my name, so it was all ''my lord'' and ''a noble'' as she yelled out her pleasure once more. We both had a bath after that and she moaned almost as much while I scrubbed her all over as she did while having sex, which was saying something. She confessed to me that was the first time she meant it when she moaned and usually had to fake both it and having an orgasm. I felt bad about that, so I took her to bed again and we exchanged bath rituals at the same time. She absolutely loved that. We cleaned up again and dressed in our clothing, which she was a little embarrassed about with the tiny maid outfit. It barely fit and she wasn''t in the teasing mood anymore after our passionate time together. I stepped close to her and held out a gold coin. ¡°For your extra time and to give to your boss.¡± She took the coin and smiled. ¡°Thank you, my lord. We appreciate your patronage.¡± I took out another gold coin and gave it to her. ¡°A tip for services well rendered.¡± She blushed and took the coin. ¡°My lord, I... well, I...¡± I could tell what she wanted, so I smiled. ¡°If you wish it.¡± I said and put my arms around her, then I gave her a slow and tender kiss for several minutes. When I was done, she was blushing pretty hard. ¡°M-m-my l-lord, I... that was... I''ve never...¡± She ducked her head a little. ¡°Why did you do that? Men don''t kiss wenches like me.¡± ¡°You haven''t met any real men before.¡± I said and she looked surprised. ¡°I need to go. Would you like a goodbye kiss?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± She exclaimed and pulled me in to kiss me enthusiastically. We stood there for nearly fifteen minutes before she broke the kiss on her own. Her face was beet red and she looked embarrassed. ¡°You didn''t have to stop so soon.¡± I said and gave her another brief kiss. ¡°Goodbye.¡± ¡°G-g-goodbye, my lord.¡± She said and watched me walk out of the room. She followed me discreetly, as if eager to keep me in sight. I went to the front desk and checked out. ¡°I gave her another gold for the extra time I spent in the room and enjoying the services.¡± The man smiled. ¡°I''m glad you enjoyed yourself, sir.¡± ¡°So was she.¡± I said and he laughed. ¡°I also tipped her. Please allow her to keep it.¡± ¡°Of course, my lord. I don''t hoard her fees. She just isn''t one for finances and paying for food and things, so I take care of her and she takes care of the occasional customer.¡± I nodded and took out two more gold coins. ¡°Then surprise her with a few new outfits to reward her for doing such good work.¡± ¡°Of course, my lord! Thank you!¡± The man said and accepted the coins. ¡°I appreciate taking care of our people.¡± I said and gave him another coin. ¡°Have a good day.¡± ¡°You too, sir. You too.¡± The man said and I walked out the front door. I stopped walking just outside the door after using Stealth and Obscure spells. I didn''t need great hearing to hear the maid scramble into the lobby. ¡°He didn''t just do that! He didn''t!¡± She exclaimed. ¡°I heard a lot of what he didn''t do last night.¡± The man said and laughed. ¡°I couldn''t help it! He acted like a noble and he did things he shouldn''t even know about!¡± ¡°He really did.¡± The man said. ¡°You have a gold for me?¡± ¡°Yes, he... he tipped me a gold, too.¡± ¡°I know. He asked me to let you keep it.¡± The man said. ¡°What are you going to do with it?¡± ¡°You''re closing up the inn for the afternoon and we''re going SHOPPING!¡± She yelled. The man laughed. ¡°Well, according to him, you''ve earned it.¡± ¡°YAY!¡± She yelled and the door beside me was locked. I nodded and moved off to go to where I had parked and hidden the tank. I had to get back on the road and deal with the rest of the country''s mage infection. I was at the point now that I didn''t regret having to remove the army contingents associated with the mages. The soldiers knew what they were doing was wrong and were doing it anyway. Their job was to protect the people, not oppress them. I entered the tank and drove out of the town, with no one the wiser about it or its purpose. It was a shock every time I showed up at a site and I let that shock and awe dictate the events and how they unfolded, usually with a lot of destruction and death. I chuckled and poured on the speed. I hadn''t had to repair the tank and I had been in dozens of battles with it and fought hundreds of people. It really was a wonderful invention. _______________ Montage mode engaged. Skipping miscellaneous details. Speeding up time. Done. _______________ Nearly a month later, I slowed down the tank as I approached the road that went to Ester''s Village. This was it. My triumphant return to where it all began. I almost laughed as I felt my emotions bubble up and I suppressed it. Now was not the time for levity. I let the mood in me settle, then rolled forward at a normal carriage pace. I left the ignore and stealth enchantments on, just in case. As the army garrison came into view, it looked untouched. That could mean one of two things. Either they were still there and safe, or the Hag didn''t make a mess when she killed them all. I slowed down and rolled under the observation walkway that was over the road. Two soldiers were on it and they looked fine. The two guards on the main gate also looked fine, so my guess about the Hag might not be accurate. They could be replacements. I brought the tank to a stop and remembered something that I could do to easily check what the local situation was like. I backed the tank up for a short ways and then turned it down the driveway to a particular farmhouse. One that I really didn''t want to see again. The Addams farmhouse was exactly like it had been the last time I had seen it. There were fewer outbuildings and barns, probably because their farm no longer produced anything viable for growth and they had to either slaughter or sell their grazing animals. They also weren''t farming anymore with most of their best fields being taken up by the army garrison. I knew this was not going to help me keep my emotions in check and I came to a stop a short distance away from the house. I sat there and let my vigilance tell me what was going on. There were several people in the house and they were just sitting around and not doing anything. That wasn''t my problem, though. They made their choices in life and this is where it brought them. I ignored the irony of that thought and stepped out of the tank. I tied my hair back into a ponytail and left my swords on the back of the driver''s seat. I didn''t need them here, because no one was stupid enough to attack me. They knew what would happen if they did. I walked over to the front door of the house and knocked, even though I was tempted to just barge in like I did the last time I was here. The door opened and a very shocked woman shrieked before she stood there and stared at me. ¡°Hello, Tabitha.¡± I said and she didn''t respond or move. ¡°I see the wedding ring on your finger.¡± She took a step back and hugged the hand with the ring to her chest as tears came to her eyes. ¡°It''s quite odd for a personal maid to marry one of her lord''s disowned brothers, isn''t it?¡± I asked and she started shaking her head. ¡°Where is my other personal maid, Sara?¡± I asked and she didn''t respond. ¡°I suppose she married the older brother, too.¡± Tabitha took another step back and then another. Her mouth was clamped shut and she looked like she didn''t want to admit to anything. ¡°Darling, what is it?¡± A man''s voice asked when he came into view. ¡°Where''s Hope?¡± I asked Frank. ¡°She''s tutoring some kids in the village like she does every week.¡± The man said and looked at me as he put a possessive arm around Tabitha. ¡°Who are you?¡± ¡°I''m someone that certain people gave up on and abandoned as soon as possible.¡± I said. Tabitha let out a sob and closed her eyes as more tears flowed. ¡°Hey what''s wrong?¡± Frank asked her and she shook her head. ¡°Tell Sara that she is a disgrace as a personal maid, as are you, and you both are dismissed from my service permanently.¡± I said and Tabitha cried harder. ¡°You can''t say things like that to them!¡± Frank said. ¡°I''m their lord and I can. They know this. It''s why it hurts them so much.¡± I said and looked at him as if he was a bug that needed to be squashed. ¡°Attack me and I will take more than your hand this time.¡± Frank''s face drained of color. ¡°N-no, you... you''re dead. They said you were dead!¡± ¡°They say a lot of things.¡± I said. ¡°Also, I''ve died several times already. What''s one more?¡± Frank had nothing to say to that. I turned away and walked back over to the tank. I heard a door open and the whispered conversation. I came to a stop and turned back to look at the still open front door. ¡°My lord!¡± Sara exclaimed. ¡°Please, don''t go!¡± ¡°I''m not your lord anymore.¡± I said and nodded at her hand. ¡°You made your choice.¡± ¡°No! I can... we can go back...¡± ¡°No, we can''t.¡± I said. ¡°How is the commoner way of life suiting you?¡± Sara opened her mouth to say, then she blushed and closed it. ¡°That well? I''m not surprised.¡± I said and turned back towards the tank to open the side door. I could feel the cracks in the dam inside of me getting wider. ¡°My lord! Wait!¡± Sara shouted. I turned back to face her with anger on my face, which shocked her. ¡°What do you want to say?¡± I spat at her and she flinched. ¡°That you''re sorry for leaving me? That you''re sorry for forsaking your vows to me? That you''re sorry for abandoning my family when it needed you the most and allowing it to be destroyed?¡± Sara started crying and Thomas was there to hold her. ¡°You shut your mouth! She thought you died that day!¡± Thomas said. I let out a roar of rage as my magic swirled around me. ¡°AFTER YOU LEFT, THEY KILLED MY WIFE!¡± I yelled and my magic slashed out from me and tore the roof off of the barn. ¡°THEY KILLED MY SON!¡± I yelled and my magic wrapped around the barn and I pulled on it. The barn collapsed into scraps of wood with a deafening crash. ¡°YOU LEFT ME! YOU LEFT ME ALONE AND I HAVE NO FAMILY ANYMORE!¡± I yelled and a huge crack in the dam inside of me broke open. ¡°RRRRAAARRRRRHHHHHH!¡± As I let out another roar of anger, I pushed with all of my might at the house in front of me. It was completely obliterated in an instant. The debris was thrown across the field and into the waterway behind it. The five people inside the house were so shocked at suddenly not being inside a house that they pissed themselves and collapsed to their knees, my previous mother included. My hair tie had come undone and my long white hair floated around me like a halo as my magic flowed around me like water. I was breathing heavily as well, like I had run a dozen miles at my full speed. I stood there for several minutes with my eyes closed to try and calm down. I didn''t want to do this. This wasn''t why I had come here. I needed to know about the Hag and if she had made an appearance. That thought allowed me to rein in my anger. I couldn''t lose it completely yet. I had to keep myself together for when I really needed it. My hair settled down into a flowing mass and I opened my eyes. Five people were trembling in fear where the house used to be. ¡°I am Lord Drake of Drake''s Marsh. My Marsh.¡± I said, my voice unwavering. ¡°I order you to tell me what''s been happening here in the village the last few months.¡± They did. Apparently, blowing up the house around them worked even better than truth serum. 317 The End Is Nigh Bokuboy I was a little disappointed to hear that nothing had happened. The people of the village had barely noticed that anything had changed. Some of them didn''t even realize that the mages had tried to take over and almost caused a civil war. They had been safe in their own little corner of the country and none of them had suffered at all. In fact, they had prospered even more, because of the increased tourism to the Eastern Empire. That had made me angry again and I struggled to not crush them completely. I shouted at them and I raged at how stupid they were, how lucky they were that in their betrayal of me, they found each other and then betrayed me again by getting married. ¡°You knew I hated them! Instead of keeping your vows, you went right to them and let them comfort you! You let them touch you! You let them have you!¡± I shouted. ¡°How do you think that makes me feel? HOW DO YOU THINK THAT MAKES ME FEEL?!?¡± My magic tore huge swaths in the dry ground around where the house and barn used to be. I unconsciously used Mould Earth and made copies of Helena and myself in different poses, holding each other, kissing, and then the both of us mangled, me crippled, and the baby in its near-death state. They were soon covered in metal and all those earth, stone, and metal statues surrounded my betrayers. ¡°I hope you can enjoy your nice, quiet, and happy lives as you gaze upon the results of your actions.¡± I spat at them and climbed into my tank. I made it appear for them, just to hear their terrified screams, and I drove off up the driveway. I hid it again before reaching the road and drove over to the garrison. It wasn''t one of the places on Melanie''s lists; but, I had to check, considering the way they acted the last time I was here. Also, I remember the last commanding officer''s words about no one caring about what happened all the way out here. I parked the tank just off the road and put on my swords, then left the tank and walked over to the front gate. ¡°Halt! Who goes there?¡± One of the guards asked. ¡°I am Lord Drake of Drake''s Marsh.¡± I said and his eyes widened. ¡°I request entry to speak to the mage contingent stationed here.¡± ¡°The mages aren''t accepting visitors at this time.¡± He responded. ¡°That''s not what I asked you.¡± I said in a deadly voice. ¡°Open the gate or I will open it for you.¡± ¡°Sir, I am going to have to ask you to step away and leave.¡± The solder said and his partner took aim with a crossbow, as did the two on the overhead bridge. ¡°You can''t threaten the army like that.¡± ¡°It wasn''t a threat.¡± I said as my magic surged. I waved my hand at the gate and my magic smashed it into splinters. ¡°If you support the mages against the royal family and their duly appointed Royal Inquisitor, you will die as a conspirator.¡± ¡°Open fir...¡± My snapping fingers interrupted his order and all four men burst into flames and then exploded as my magic lashed at them like it had at the gate. The overhead bridge to the other half of the garrison shattered and the men''s remains fell into the wreckage and lit the dried wood on fire. I walked inside the garrison through the hole the destroyed gate left and several soldiers were scrambling around. ¡°Attack me and die.¡± I warned them and they didn''t listen. They ran at me with swords and shields, so I melted them and left the men screaming in pain and dying. I walked on and other soldiers were smart enough to not attack me. A few ran into the administration building as I approached the center of the garrison, probably to warn them. It didn''t matter. I wasn''t really here for them. Not yet, anyway. I always took the mages out first. ¡°Halt, murderer!¡± A voice rang out behind me and I stopped to turn and look. ¡°So, the disgraced commander stuck his tail between his legs and accepted assignment back at the post he committed so many crimes at?¡± I asked the very man that conscripted me. ¡°That explains the soldiers reactions to me.¡± ¡°You''re not going to be conscripted this time.¡± The commander said and motioned to the large group of soldiers behind him and they all hefted crossbows to aim at me. ¡°What were my words to you the last time you threatened me?¡± I asked and he looked confused. ¡°Who is going to report what I''ve done if no one is left alive?¡± The soldiers behind him screamed for about two seconds as the bright blue fire immolated them and turned them, their clothing, their armor, and their weapons into ash. ¡°Well? What''s your answer?¡± I asked and walked over to him. ¡°I''m going to kill them all now, because of you and your decisions. How does that make you feel?¡± The man braced to attack and I laughed. ¡°What are you laughing at?¡± ¡°You don''t care about them.¡± I said and waved at the men gathering around us. ¡°You honestly don''t care that you''ve sentenced them to death, even though you''re responsible for it.¡± ¡°They''re soldiers. They signed away their lives when they joined up.¡± The CO said. I gave him one of Hope''s favorite smiles. ¡°So. Did. You.¡± He caught his breath and then he no longer had arms and legs as his torso dropped to the ground. ¡°You didn''t even feel that, did you?¡± I asked and sheathed my sword. I waved my hand over his shoulders and hips to heal the holes, sealing them and keeping him alive. I also sealed where his manhood used to be. I couldn''t let the man breed or ever feel sexual relief again. ¡°I was going to kill you, just so I would never have to deal with you again.¡± I said and looked down at him. ¡°Instead, I''m going to do something much, much worse to you.¡± ¡°There''s nothing you can do to me that I can''t take!¡± The man spat. I bent over him and gave him another very happy smile. ¡°How about the same thing I went through, only you won''t be able to speak.¡± He looked confused, so I took out a knife and pried open his mouth, quickly cut out his tongue and sealed it with drops of number ten potion, then used several drops more to close his mouth permanently. ¡°I think spending the rest of your life as a crippled slave that can''t do anything, is quite fitting, don''t you?¡± I asked him. He wiggled his torso and yelled at me, only it was all mumbles. ¡°I told you that there are worse things than death.¡± I said and stood up, only to see nearly a hundred men aiming weapons at me. I grinned at them like the Hag. ¡°Who''s next?¡± The soldiers exchanged looks for a second, then almost as one, dropped their weapons and ran. ¡°Please, don''t kill them.¡± A woman''s voice said from off to the side. I turned to see a very pretty red-haired woman wearing mage robes. ¡°You are just the person I wanted to see.¡± She looked surprised for a moment, then she sighed. ¡°They wouldn''t let you in because of me.¡± ¡°Technically.¡± I said and walked over to her. ¡°As you saw, my old CO corrupted their view of me and they were going to stop me anyway.¡± ¡°Did he corrupt their view?¡± She asked and tensed as I came to a stop in front of her. ¡°Before I lost everything, he was completely wrong. His assumptions and bias colored everything he did against me. I didn''t know any better, and yet, he treated me as if I already knew all his rules and regulations. He was an idiot.¡± I chuckled. ¡°He still is, actually.¡± ¡°And now?¡± She asked, her body still tense. ¡°I have nothing left to lose. I have no need to follow the rules. Obey laws. Not kill people that annoy me or stop me from my duty.¡± ¡°What is your duty?¡± She asked. ¡°Royal Inquisitor.¡± I said and she gasped. ¡°My job is to hunt down mages and weed out sedition against the Gulf Kingdom.¡± The CO mumbled and stopped trying to struggle and get away. He knew he was screwed now. ¡°I assume you''re going to interrogate me and my mages?¡± She asked. ¡°Not going to. Have to.¡± I corrected. ¡°Every mage I meet has to be questioned.¡± ¡°That... why would they issue a writ of dispensation for that?¡± ¡°It was to keep me from killing everyone and burning the capital city to the ground.¡± I said and she gasped again. ¡°Yes, I can do it.¡± She stared as I waved my hand and all the buildings around us lit on fire. ¡°You didn''t chant.¡± ¡°I''ve never needed to.¡± I said and waved my hand again to stop the fire. ¡°Do you want to do this here or in the mage''s quarters?¡± ¡°The others will be gathered there by now to wait for my signal.¡± She said and gave me a searching look. ¡°I hope you don''t just kill us all.¡± ¡°Only the guilty ones.¡± I said and she sighed. ¡°You are quite beautiful. I hope you aren''t one of them.¡± She seemed startled by that comment. ¡°Why would you say that just before an interrogation?¡± ¡°To disarm you and make you think you can be nice to me and get leniency.¡± I explained and she looked even more startled. ¡°My comment is still the truth, only used judiciously.¡± ¡°I... I don''t... how do I even respond to that?¡± She asked. ¡°Lead the way, please. I''m running out of time before I lose my self-control completely.¡± She looked at the crippled CO and back to my face. ¡°That wasn''t losing it?¡± ¡°No. I wanted to turn him inside out instead and still keep him alive. It would be quite the challenge.¡± Her mouth dropped open and she stared at me. I waved her towards the mage''s quarters. ¡°After you.¡± She closed her mouth and nodded before she led me there. Twelve other mages were gathered together and two of them started to chant right away when they saw me. Two slight pushes with magic caved their faces in and crushed their brains. Their bodies dropped to the floor and everyone stared at them. ¡°Any more surprise attacks?¡± I asked and they all shook their heads. ¡°Then take one of these new calming potions and we can get started.¡± ¡°I refuse to drink anything that...¡± One of the men started to say. ¡°It wasn''t a request.¡± I said and cast the sealing spell on the quarters to close the windows and doors in a magical barrier. ¡°Head mage, if you would. As proof.¡± She gave me an odd look, then drank the truth serum. ¡°I can''t believe you did that to a human being.¡± ¡°He''s still technically human.¡± I said. She huffed. ¡°What kind of life will he have without a penis? He''s even going to disappoint the maids taking care of him.¡± ¡°He''s going to be a slave in another country, so that doesn''t matter.¡± I said. ¡°Tell me about your involvement with the Grand Mage, the Henrietta family, and any plans to join the mages guild in overthrowing the legitimate ruling body.¡± She calmly talked for the whole thirty minutes and then the potion wore off and she had a look of horror on her face. ¡°I am glad that you were not involved in any of that.¡± I said and took her hand, bent over it, and kissed it as I shared magic with her. I had forgotten how almost out of control it was now and it filled her and merged with her magic completely. ¡°OHHHH!¡± She moaned loudly and had several orgasms. Her hand gripped mine so tightly that she almost broke my fingers. Her eyes, when they cleared of the pleasure a minute later, stared at me very intensely. ¡°I won''t sign any contracts.¡± I whispered to her and let her hand go. ¡°Who''s next?¡± Three of the women put up their hands immediately. The fourth woman blushed and looked down. ¡°Married?¡± I asked and the three nodded, while the fourth shook her head. ¡°I won''t share magic with you if you don''t want me to.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°I''ll save you for last.¡± She blushed and nodded again. I held a hand out to the closest of the three women and she practically jumped on me and guzzled the truth potion. Like the redhead, she wasn''t involved and didn''t know anyone that was. When I shared my magic with her, she came so much that she messed up her robes. She didn''t care about that at all. ¡°I''ll pay you... anything you want... to come home with me.¡± She whispered. ¡°The price to have me around is much too high.¡± I said and kissed her hand again to give her a bit more magic and made her orgasm again. I held my hand out to the next woman and she wasn''t as enthusiastic as the last one. She was also innocent and only came twice when I shared magic with her. The third woman was innocent of knowing anything about Helena and the Grand Mage''s plans. She did know several mages that were discussing the conspiracy and she had been asked to participate and refused, which was why she had been assigned out here, well away from the main areas and possibly the first to die in the next conflict. The men she knew were also dead. I had killed them already. I shared magic with her and she came only once. It was a very hard one, though. She collapsed into my arms and then she fell unconscious with a huge smile on her face. ¡°The poor thing.¡± The redhead whispered. ¡°I agree.¡± I said and handed her off to the redhead to take care of. I turned to look at the last woman and held out my hand. ¡°Dear lady, if you would be so kind.¡± She tentatively took my offered hand and came close to take the truth serum. She was also innocent and didn''t know anything. She also said she was a virgin and wasn''t allowed to share magic with anyone. ¡°I won''t do so, as I promised.¡± I said and kissed her hand. ¡°Thank you for allowing me to talk to you.¡± She nodded and went to sit with the other women. The men''s questioning didn''t go as smoothly. A couple of them were reluctant to take the potion and had to be forced. They were all innocent of the crimes I wanted them for; but, they had done quite a few other things, including adultery, breaking their marriage contracts, thievery, and one even committed murder. The redhead did not look happy at all. ¡°Are you going to kill them?¡± By her tone, I was sure she was asking me to hurry up and do it. ¡°My writ doesn''t allow me to kill anyone innocent of the crimes I''m asking about.¡± I said and she looked disappointed. ¡°I''ll have to do it the old fashioned way.¡± The redhead said. ¡°You three are suspended from active duty. You three...¡± She glared at the three men. ¡°Are under arrest. You''ll be turned over to the proper authorities as soon as possible.¡± The men looked mutinous and exchanged looks. As soon as they turned back to glare at her and one started muttering, my glowing blade was across their necks. ¡°I am allowed to stop crimes from being committed during my interrogations.¡± I said and sheathed my sword as the three heads rolled off of the bodies and the bodies dropped to the floor. The three women looked shocked, because they hadn''t seen me move. The redhead looked satisfied. ¡°Thank you for saving me three headaches, Lord Drake.¡± ¡°You''re welcome.¡± I said and bowed to her and the other women. ¡°If you will excuse me, I have an emotional breakdown to attend.¡± They watched me walk out before they spoke. ¡°Did he just... how did he stay here and...¡± ¡°Maybe he was distracting himself?¡± ¡°He definitely distracted me.¡± ¡°I wish I could have helped him.¡± I ignored the rest of their conversation and left them in the mage''s quarters. I had a garrison to loot and a CO to convert into a slave and then package him up to send off. 318 The End Is Here Bokuboy I had to admit having fun brewing up a slave potion and rolling the torso of the CO in it. I taunted him about how the only hole he had left was the one that the slavers were absolutely going to love, and he was mumbling like crazy. I laughed and laughed at him and then cut a hole in his mouth to insert a feeding tube. I wrapped him up and packaged him with the tube attached to the hole in the side of the wooden crate, then I dropped him off at the new shipping business. ¡°Destination?¡± The man behind the counter asked. ¡°Somewhere in the middle country. It has to be fed, though.¡± I said as I pointed to the feeding hole. The man looked surprised. ¡°Just somewhere?¡± He asked, a little confused. ¡°Yes, it doesn''t matter where. I''m releasing it back to the wilds it probably came from.¡± I said and put three gold coins on the counter. ¡°Just make sure it is out of the country as soon as possible. It can be vicious.¡± ¡°YESSIR! I''ll have him put directly on the next ship!¡± The man said and scooped up the coins. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and left the office. I smelled Mrs. Hansen''s sweet cookie bread and debated going to get some, just for a taste of home, and decided that I wasn''t stable enough to do so. I had to get going before I did something else destructive. I went back to the tank and drove on down the main street of the village, only to see two odd things. One was Diane''s shop was closed up and there was a small building beside it with a bell in a little tower. I brought the tank to a stop and stepped out, then walked over to look inside Diane''s shop. The shelves were completely bare and looked dusty. I had a suspicious idea, thanks to Dana''s words to me about thinking about what concerned me. I made an educated guess that she sold her stock of items and potions to Mack and stayed home to take care of her son. I felt my magic swirl around me as my anger at her for selling my things to Mack, when I swore that he would never buy my things again after stealing from me. I closed my eyes and tried to pull it back in temporarily, then I heard several sets of shoes approaching. ¡°School was great today!¡± A very familiar voice said and my magic receded as I turned to see Shelly Phelps, the boat maker''s daughter, walking out of the new building with four other girls around her. ¡°That''s because you like the new teacher so much.¡± One of the others said. ¡°I can''t help it. She''s so smart!¡± Shelly said and ran a hand through her long blonde hair. ¡°I want to learn as much as I can from Hope, just like David did!¡± Hope. I thought and the dam inside me trembled and cracked a little more. ¡°Ugh! Don''t bring him up again! He''s not going to come back here and save you from working at your family''s business.¡± A dark haired girl said. She wants me to save her? I asked myself as the dam inside me stilled. ¡°Yeah! It''s lucrative and people are always going to need boats.¡± Another girl said. ¡°I wouldn''t mind doing it if it wasn''t so hard!¡± Shelly said. ¡°Having to remember all those tools and techniques and things! The sanding and smoothing is the worst and takes forever!¡± ¡°Hard work takes time.¡± The dark haired girl said. ¡°What will your David think if he comes back and sees that you don''t want to work hard?¡± For some reason, I felt I had to step out into view. ¡°She doesn''t have to work if she doesn''t want to.¡± All five girls stopped walking and their mouths dropped open when they saw me. ¡°Hi, Shelly.¡± I said. ¡°D-David?¡± Shelly asked and she blushed. ¡°Is that... is it really you?¡± I walked over to her and all five of the girls started breathing heavily. One looked like she was going to faint and another was staring at my long white hair drifting in the wind like it was the most fascinating thing in the world. ¡°I''m back home until the fall; but, I have something to do first. I can''t save you until that''s done.¡± ¡°You really came back for her? Really really?¡± The dark haired girl asked, shocked. ¡°I told you he would.¡± Shelly whispered and I nodded. ¡°You have a Lord for a boyfriend.¡± One of the others said and the one about to faint clung onto her. Shelly blushed. ¡°Not... not yet. He hasn''t asked...¡± ¡°I can''t until my task is done.¡± I said and reached out to touch her cheek. Shelly let out a sigh and rubbed her face on my hand. ¡°David, I... I really like you.¡± ¡°I know.¡± I whispered and stepped close. Shelly caught her breath and stared into my eyes. ¡°David, what... what are you...¡± I leaned down and gave her a tender kiss on the lips. The dam inside me almost froze solid, which made me smile. ¡°Thank you. I needed some emotional reinforcement for what I have to do.¡± Shelly''s face was beet red and she put her hands on my chest. ¡°Do you... need any more?¡± I gave her the smile that Hope liked so much and all five girls gasped. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said and gave her another kiss. She took control this time and I felt her tongue assault mine as she wrapped her arms around me. I wasn''t going to lose this fight, so I kissed her back in earnest. She moaned, probably because it was her first time kissing someone for real and she was giving it all she had. ¡°DAVID!¡± Hope''s voice yelled. I broke the kiss and Shelly made a sound of disappointment. ¡°Excuse me. I have an appointment to get to.¡± Shelly and the girls nodded. I walked away from them and they all started whispering and asking Shelly what it was like. I ignored them and went over to the school. Hope stood there and her eyes took all of me in. ¡°David? It''s really you?¡± ¡°I was kidnapped, made a slave, maimed, given to pirates, took over, then destroyed the Eastern Empire''s shipping.¡± I said and the girls behind me let out surprised sounds. ¡°I fought to come back here and then I fixed myself.¡± ¡°That''s why your hair is white?¡± Hope asked. ¡°I kept it so I never forget.¡± I said and squinted my eyes at her. ¡°Do you want to talk out here or in private? Just so you know, I''m going to be yelling at you a lot for what you''ve done and will probably destroy whatever is around me.¡± Hope sighed. ¡°David, I couldn''t stay. There was nothing for me there with you gone, so I left.¡± ¡°And took my maids with you.¡± I said. ¡°Yes, and they were lost without you. My brothers...¡± ¡°Took them, I know.¡± I said and her eyes widened. ¡°No, they aren''t dead. I destroyed their house of ill repute instead.¡± ¡°No! That was... the family... house.¡± Hope''s voice trailed off to a whisper. ¡°Yes, the family that sold me and never searched for me, or wanted me back when they knew who I was.¡± I said and she looked sad. ¡°Now they''ve taken my personal maids from me and defiled them.¡± ¡°That''s not... they needed comfort...¡± ¡°Yes, their betrayal of their vows hit them hard, so they married my first betrayers. How fitting that was!¡± I shouted and my magic swirled around me. ¡°And I can tell that YOU ENCOURAGED IT!¡± ¡°They needed someone after you died, you asshole!¡± Hope shouted back. ¡°THEY KNEW I DIDN''T DIE! THEY WOULDN''T HAVE FELT BAD ABOUT BREAKING THEIR VOWS IF I WAS DEAD, YOU MORON!¡± All of the color drained from Hope''s face. ¡°Yes, you finally understand. If I was dead, their vows would have ended. They would have no reaction at all to dating or being with someone else, or performing the ritual on them, if their vows were not intact.¡± I said and she staggered as her strength left her. ¡°Now you, the last person in the world that I thought would ever betray me, abandoned me and my chosen family.¡± Hope leaned against the door frame of the school and cried. ¡°No, I... would never...¡± ¡°You know all about the vows and the connections they have with their lords and ladies.¡± I said and she nodded. ¡°Yet, you ignored all the signs on purpose and let my maids be taken, just because they were convenient and would make fine wives for your brothers.¡± ¡°They are your brothers, too.¡± Hope whispered. ¡°I. HAVE. NO. FAMILY.¡± I said in a deadly voice and my magic flared out. Hope gasped as she glowed and then a gossamer thread formed between us. My magic severed it and Hope shivered. ¡°No! No, you... you can''t... family...¡± ¡°My wife and son are dead because you weren''t there to warn them or protect them, as you swore to do when you became our maid.¡± I whispered and Hope looked devastated. I spoke in a normal voice. ¡°I call you and the others who have done so, Oathbreakers and Betrayers of My Family. Let magic itself mark you forevermore to show everyone the truth.¡± Hope cried as my magic flowed out and markings formed on the skin of her forehead, on her cheeks, and on the backs of her hands. I felt my magic go out and out, farther and farther, and mark others. I felt my magic stretch and reach a distance I had never felt before. It almost didn''t feel like my magic anymore as I felt it mark several others, one of which screamed in pain as her entire body was covered in markings. The magic faded and I stood there with a crying Hope in front of me, the words in magic on her face and hands telling me her crimes. ¡°David, what''s going on?¡± Shelly asked and gasped when she saw Hope. ¡°No! She... why would she...¡± ¡°It doesn''t matter why anymore.¡± I said and felt my magic tug me hard. ¡°I need to go. She''s waiting for me.¡± ¡°Who?¡± Shelly asked, a little sad. I smiled and cupped the side of her face. ¡°The Hag.¡± Shelly gasped, as did the other girls and Hope. ¡°It''s why I came back here. She''s been waiting and calling for me. I can''t make her wait anymore, not after that.¡± I nodded at Hope. ¡°David, she... she''s going to kill you.¡± Hope whispered. ¡°I''ve died before.¡± I said and looked into Shelly''s eyes. ¡°Once more?¡± Shelly nodded and wrapped her arms around me to kiss me. It lasted for several moments, then she broke it. ¡°You promised to come back for me.¡± I smiled. ¡°I''ll do my best to keep that promise.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± Shelly said and gave me another quick kiss. ¡°Good luck.¡± ¡°I have you to come back to. I don''t need luck.¡± I said and she blushed and looked happy. ¡°Tell Diane she owes me all the money from her business, because she broke the contract.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± Shelly said. I ran over to the road and came to a stop. ¡°Don''t be scared by this.¡± ¡°By wha... BY THE SON''S LIGHT!¡± Shelly yelled, as did her friends, when the tank appeared. ¡°The time for hiding is over.¡± I said and climbed inside. I took off at my best speed and the yells of ''no horses'' rang around me. I drove the tank down the main street and onto the large dock. The crewmen yelled and shouted as they pointed to me. Some even yelled that I was going to kill myself. I laughed and drove right off the end of the pier. Their shouts were music to my ears as the tank splashed into the water and then it bobbed up and I kept moving. Those shouts made me laugh more as I drove the now water-bound tank around the ships in the harbour and into the waterway that would take me right to where I had built my home. Right to where the Hag was waiting for me. 319 The Hag The closer I came to the location of my home, the more I felt her. It was like bugs crawling on my skin and it brought my mind right back to being a child and her feeding from me. I activated the tank''s protections and it pushed away everything trying to attack it. For some reason, it also pushed away the Hag''s feeling. I smiled and knew that she was casting an effect on me, or the area, to unnerve me. Now that I knew it was there, I let my vigilance ignore it. The bugs on my skin feeling disappeared. I drove the tank on and several water beasts were smashed and run over. I couldn''t stop to harvest them, either. I had one final appointment to get to and feasting on a delicacy would have to wait. I drove the tank at full speed through the waterways and arrived where it seemed that I was always meant to be. I didn''t slow down as I rotated the tank and drove it right up onto the bank. I could feel the Hag was waiting for me inside my house. I could also see the front door was smashed off of the hinges. I wasn''t someone to waste an opportunity for a free shot, so I shot the two long Kracken Tubes in through the door. I didn''t activate them, though. I just used the penetrating shots. Wrecking my own home wouldn''t help me in this fight. I heard the Hag scream and I hopped out of the tank, made it be ignored and obscured, and ran inside the house. I followed the screams and came to a stop at the back of the house near the kitchen and the smoked meat room. The Hag''s shoulder was pinned to the wall with a four foot long log. The other had just missed her and she was using it to try and pull herself off of the one pinning her. ¡°I can''t believe that actually worked.¡± I said and her eyes went right to me. ¡°GET HIM!¡± The Hag yelled. I felt ten people materialize from above me and drop down to attack with knives and short swords. I held my hand out and my magic deactivated their enchanted weapons, then my sword flashed and ten hands with weapons fell to the floor. The ten young men screamed and clutched their hands as they dropped to the floor as well. None of them had seen me move. ¡°So, you''ve ascended.¡± The Hag said, her voice full of pride. ¡°I''ve worked so hard to try and make the perfect man.¡± ¡°You''re not arrogant or anything.¡± I commented and she laughed. ¡°Why shouldn''t I be? You are my perfect specimen.¡± The Hag said and pulled on the log holding her. ¡°Two decades of hard work on my part has made you into exactly what I want you to be. No one can touch you now.¡± ¡°You made me into a pathetic creature that has had everything ripped away from him.¡± I said and my magic swirled out. The men bleeding around me cried out and tried to move away. ¡°Yes, yes! Nothing can contaminate my work! Only I can be with you! Only I am allowed to hurt you!¡± ¡°You killed my wife.¡± I said and five of the men burst into blue flames and started screaming. ¡°You killed my SON!¡± I yelled and the other five shrivelled up and then exploded. ¡°He lived past birth?¡± The Hag asked, surprised. ¡°I never expected... I thought... if he lived, he would have drained the cow that birthed him within an hour.¡± The dam inside of me shattered and all of the emotions inside of me came pouring out. I dropped to the floor and held my hand over my face as my body seemed to rage against itself. Everything that''s happened in my life passed before my eyes. The Hag''s treatment of me, the village and their treatment of me, the army and their treatment of me, the capital and their treatment of me, the slavers and their treatment of me... I saw it all. Then... the images changed. Diane''s kind face as she taught me to read. Alex as he taught me the army essentials. Donna as we learned to work together. Sandra, the temporary CO as she taught me etiquette. Gillis as she took care of me in training camp. Anna, the woman that looked like the Hag, making herself less attractive for my sake. The cooks in the mess hall. Gary teaching me everything about maintenance. That wasn''t all. The young girl Gloria being my friend, even though everyone else in town detested me. Her mother making me cookie bread. Steven the distributor as he laughed and filled out the orders. The woman at the PX that was nice to me after I healed her splinter. The work crews in the new territories helping me build the barricades. The thankful people we saved there. Stanley, the nice guard in the jail. Then there was Helena''s heartfelt promise to rescue me from the army. That was the key. She didn''t have to do that. She didn''t have to help me at all. I would have given her everything anyway. She put herself in danger, just for me. She ran everything, so I wouldn''t have to worry. She gave up her birth family and even sacrificed her life to try and save our son. She did it all. Now there was Shelly. Perfectly innocent Shelly. Through it all, from the very beginning, she liked me. Smelly, dirty, scarred, me. She talked to me and was nice to me, even way back then. She even kissed me, long before I understood what that meant. What it could mean. What it really meant. My magic slowly receded and I opened my eyes. The Hag was almost at the end of the log and I slowly stood and looked at her. The betrayal marks were on her forehead and hands. ¡°Are you done breaking down?¡± The Hag asked. ¡°Finish pulling me off of this thing and we can create the next generation of magic users.¡± ¡°Create?¡± I asked as I let the thought roll around in my mind. ¡°Yes. There are dozens of young children in the village. Now that I know the method with you worked, we can start making an army to take over the world!¡± ¡°That is a wonderful idea.¡± I said and she smiled that terrible smile, the one she always used before she drank my blood or filleted me. ¡°I just need to do something first.¡± ¡°Yes, get me off of this thing.¡± The Hag said, then she gasped and blocked my sword strike to her heart with her own blade. ¡°What are you doing, you fool?!?¡± ¡°I thought I would get rid of the competition.¡± I said and swiped at her foot, then at her free hand. The Hag dodged as much as she could while pinned to the wall. ¡°Competition?¡± ¡°You told me the secret! I don''t need you anymore, you old Hag!¡± I spat at her and gauged her range of motion. It was fairly short. The pivot point being the log she was almost off of. Perfect. ¡°David.¡± The Hag said in a deep voice laced with magic. ¡°You will always need me.¡± I felt her magic flow over me and into me. It started to merge with my own, then it stopped. My magic was much too strong for it and it grabbed on as hers tried to retreat. ¡°What... what are you doing?¡± The Hag asked. ¡°I had always thought that you were too strong to fight. Both physically and magically. I have always thought that, because I never had anyone to compare you to.¡± I said and stepped forward. ¡°Now I do. Strength isn''t just physical. Or magical.¡± The Hag huffed. ¡°If you don''t have those, what do you have? Nothing!¡± ¡°Strength of character.¡± I said and my blade flashed across the log and split it in two. The Hag had a look of triumph on her face for a second as she was freed... and then she looked down to see the thin line across her chest. ¡°What... how...¡± ¡°I used the pivot point to strike and not at you.¡± I said. ¡°You can''t dodge what isn''t aimed at you.¡± ¡°I... I taught you... that.¡± The Hag whispered as her breath seemed to leave her. ¡°Yes, you did.¡± I said and plunged my hand into her chest and pulled out her still beating heart. _______________ You have a critical choice to make. Will you fulfill your destiny? A) Do what you must. B) Spit in destiny''s eye. After everything that''s happened, I''m definitely choosing B. _______________ ¡°My instincts are telling me to consume this. Drink your heart''s blood and swallow all of your magic.¡± I said and another look of triumph passed over the Hag''s face. ¡°It''s just too bad that you''ve trained me to forge my own way in the world.¡± ¡°NO!¡± The Hag yelled. I crushed her heart and used Immolation on it as I dropped it to the floor and stepped on it. ¡°NOOO! NOOOOOOO!¡± The Hag screamed and screamed as her heart and then her body ignited in bright blue flames. I stood there and watched without emotion as she slowly withered and the decades and decades of magic that she had gathered and stolen was released. I activated my medallion and none of it touched me. Not the flames at my feet. Not the evil magic swirling around. Not the emotions being released, either. ¡°You really shouldn''t keep things inside like that. It could damage the people around you.¡± I commented. The blue flames flared, as if angry, then they were snuffed out and only two small piles of ashes were left. I knew exactly what to do with them. I gathered up the separate piles and made a batch of number ten potion. I didn''t bother infusing it, though. I just mixed it up and put some into a little clay jug with the Hag''s heart ashes. It went solid a moment later as it copied the jug''s properties. I poured the rest of the potion into a larger jug and mixed in her body''s ashes. It also went completely solid. I climbed up to the top of my house to set the little jug in the corner of the roof and walked over to the other end of the house and put the larger jug there. I had been tempted to cook her ashes into meat and feed her to the panthers, then thought better of it. There could be no chance of her ever coming back. Making her ashes into ceramic was fitting, because she would always exist where she deserved to be. Exiled to the marsh. I went to my stash and gathered up the remaining vials of fungus powder. There were only 16 left and that was all that was left in the world, as far as I knew. There would be no way to scour the marsh to look for any other outcroppings of them or the mushrooms. The panthers could be anywhere near the magic heavy areas. Then I had a neat idea. I had the fungus powder. I also knew a lot about growing, splicing, and breeding plants now. If I could harness even a fraction of the powder into a similar or viable plant, distilling it back down into a similar powdered state would be easy. Getting it to work would be the problem. As I made a new pouch to hold the precious vials, I had another neat idea. I had access to a virulent strain of magic grass that grew faster than anything else in existence. It would take some work and might use up a lot of the powder; but, if it was at all possible, I could get it all back within six months. I smiled and packed that up, then went over everything. Instead of hauling the potion setups back to town, I would just buy more. I kicked one of the piles of ash of the Hag''s men as I passed and chuckled. I gathered them up and made another number ten potion, dumped all of the ashes in with their ten severed hands. I didn''t bother infusing it this time either and let their own innate magic activate the potion. I dropped the ruined metal pot outside the front door and looked at the door, then looked up at the webs closing in on the roof. ¡°You can have it now.¡± I said and deactivated the protective enchantments. ¡°Enjoy the nice coziness inside.¡± There was a little chittering from the webs as I walked over to the tank and packed my things inside, turned it around, and drove away into the waterway. I had a girl to save from her controlling family and a new house to build right next to the town. No, not a house. I''ve done that already. I thought and glanced down to see that old storybook. On the front was a picture of a castle. Yes, that would be more fitting. Much more fitting. The Marsh Man''s Castle. I thought with a laugh and drove on. Shelly should really like it, too. Who needs to take over the world when I can build my own little world right here? Bokuboy 320 Epilogue Thank you for playing Bookworld Online! Your main storyline for The Marsh Man has been completed and the results have been saved. We hope you enjoyed this story and that the twists and turns weren''t too much for you. (They were for us!) You may continue from this point or restart from the beginning and see what the other choices can do for your gaming experience or choose a branching storyline. What will you choose next time? Will it all work out? Will you destroy everything? It''s all up to you! _______________ ¡°Jesus Christ.¡± I said in surprise as the David Drake personality blocks were lifted once more and I came back to myself. I cursed like a sailor for a good ten minutes before I calmed down enough to speak clearly again. ¡°That was the most screwed up and mind bending twisted heap of... of... I don''t know what to call that! How could you write something like that? Are you guys insane?!?¡± _______________ Personal inquiry detected. Response generating. Displaying. We have dedicated writers, system administrators, and programmers that spend hundreds of hours working on how to generate the best visual and emotional experiences for you. _______________ ¡°The best experiences? Are you fucking nuts? I was eaten! Blown up! Lit on fire! Eaten by a fucking dragon! Burned with acid!¡± I spat. ¡°Let''s not forget being mutilated multiple times and having my family killed!¡± I took several deep breaths to calm down again. ¡°What do you have to say for yourselves?¡± _______________ You seemed to have an adverse reaction to this novelization. It has been noted in the Archives. Do you wish to play The Marsh Man again? _______________ ¡°NO! Abso-fucking-lutely NOT!¡± I yelled. ¡°Who would ever play that? Good god, I think I''ve been traumatized for life.¡± _______________ No abnormal brain activity has been detected. Would you like to speak to our on-staff psychologist? _______________ ¡°No, I... well, maybe.¡± I said, unsure. ¡°That was... it was... how could anyone still be normal at the end of that? How did David cope so well?¡± _______________ You helped him with the choices you made. That was the whole point of the story. Without you, things might have turned out quite a bit differently. Would it have been for the better? Only replaying it would tell you that. _______________ ¡°I''m never trying that again.¡± I said and sighed. ¡°In fact, I think I need a break. A nice long break. What''s the psychologist''s name?¡± _______________ Hagitha Marsh. She''s the best in the business and designed most of the questions for The Marsh Man. _______________ ¡°Oh, fuck me.¡± I groaned as the Hag''s cackle floated through my VR capsule.