The rest of the trip passed in mind-numbing dullness. Besides the separate bathrooms, the world consisted of the bedrooms and dining room. Morning, midday, and afternoon were spent looking out across endless plains or trees. So unremarkable was the journey that Jeremy shaving his mustache was an item of great discussion. Apparently, it was some aesthetic experiment that had reached its failed conclusion.
Thankfully, the children were well informed of their royal duty since birth, sparing Veronica and her friends from being bystanders to any heartrending conversations. That didn't stop the children from occasionally getting teary-eyed when they were left alone in one spot or another. It was on the early morning of the third day, before anyone else was awake, that the blonde bumped into Bessie as she was leaving the showers.
The poor girl had so many tears that they had soaked the collar of her white night gown, an article of clothing Veronica was also currently sporting.
"I'm sorry," The little girl sputtered out before she worked past the water scion.
Some notion that she should comfort the girl came and went. Bessie was ten years or so, old enough to understand the why of her mother's probable death but not fully accept it. Whatever words could be said, they had no doubt filled the girls' ears a hundred times over by now. With a heavy heart, Veronica walked back to her room.
On the morning of the fourth day, just minutes past breakfast, what felt like the first thing of note to happen in eternity finally arrived.
"Ooh!" Mia squealed from behind Veronica, who was at the dining table working the last bit of toast through egg. The blonde turned around just in time to peer through the wide windows to see the approaching edge of a stone mass where trees had been. Getting out of the chair took a second, a frame of time apparently too long as the outer edge of the massive stone landscape was now out of view.
When she got up to the window, the only thing left to see was an ocean of towers and flat stone roads between them. Each bore a pointy tip at its top, whereas the sides were different portions of steel, wood, stone, or glass. Here and there were some that resembled the Rodring construction of glass and steel, others could be mistaken for trees if not for their lack of leaves and occasional door. The biggest eye catcher was the roads between them, as what should be static structures were shifting for reasons not readily apparent.
After a second, Veronica realized that the 'roads' between them were actually bridges, all coming in and out of tower doors at different levels, making them impossible to individually distinguish from such a height. No matter the head turn, rise or fall, there wasn't a single angle that would grant her a view of the soil beneath it all.
"All right!" Nestel called from somewhere to the right. "We've got a few minutes left. Oswald, Bessie, get decent and let's get ready to see the sights."
"My lady," Hansel intoned respectfully from the same general direction. "Diplomatic protocol dictates-"
"These leeches have already taken more than their fair share." Nestel interrupted in a dangerous tone. "If they want to sulk about some diplomatic procedure, then they can cry to you about it."
A smile almost got past Veronica's defenses. But she decided to take the queen's advice, all the same. Her belongings were soon gathered by the maids, save the black pants, white shirt, and purple vest on her person. The red dragon bag was securely placed on the inner right side of the vest, as no amount of assurances would ever allow such a priceless treasure to be out of her presence. When she left the room, she saw her two friends wearing a similar attire, though Mia wore markedly more rugged leather shoes compared to her companions' black ones. As they came out into the dining room, the first person they saw was Palta, bearing the same clothing save a silver crown atop a black bun of hair. Maids came up from behind her with a determined look as they moved past the dining table and the trio.
"All right," Palta announced with a nod to her companions. "We're officially under the City's auspices. Just follow me and keep it polite. This is the safe zone, but that doesn't mean trouble can't be made for those looking for it. Our first few hours will be a simple tour, showing us where things are and where we shouldn't go. In the afternoon, we'll be attending a big meeting, then dinner, with proper training starting when the others arrive. As I'm sure mother has mentioned, accommodations and equipment have no price; magical resources will come out of your pocket."
Eska gave a slight nod, followed by the other two. Palta, satisfied with the response, bent her head towards the hallway. They followed her, taking a left at the four-way intersection. Waiting near the entrance were Oswald and Bessie, dutifully standing by the door leading to the first steps on unmoving ground in what felt like years. At their approach, the two kids came up and took their mother's legs in a hug, which the princess returned.
"It looks like we're the ones late," Nestel said from behind them, accentuating a slamming of her office door. Coming up to Palta, she treated her to a hug of her own, taking up what little space was left on the princess's body. The moment was only completed when Jeremy joined, taking the entire group under a wide hug, covering them in the purple fur of his cape.
"It's a bit hot to be so close," Palta said, prompting the mass of bodies to pull back.
"Come, children," Nestel announced with a sweet smile as she moved to the open door. "Your mother's got a lot of very boring things to be looking at."
The two kids reluctantly pulled away from their mother towards Nestel's open hands. They took the palms with their own and were quickly pulled along onto the stone steps outside.
Jeremy gave his daughter one last hug and kiss on the head before joining his wife and grandchildren. Palta turned her green eyes on the trio of waiting mages, then bobbed her head towards the door. A command the trio obeyed. The sun was fierce, nearly blinding them as they stepped out onto the stone platform. When the world filled in where the spots had been, Veronica found the standing wooden half-tube supporting the airship and the stone deck and stairs leading from the door. All resting on a wider disk that had a single road on the right leading towards the tower it was all presumably resting on.
Looking out ahead, her blue eyes went wide as she saw three other stone disks holding airship docks spaced out next to theirs. At the same time, she noticed several large masses in the clear blue sky.
'Impossible,' She told herself.
Flying above the tower spikes were more airships, painted every conceivable color. Between these were scions riding the backs of large beasts that distinguished themselves from the flocks of feral beasts. She couldn't say for certain, but if bets were taken, Veronica would say the flocks' varied plumage was of a magical nature.
Blue eyes then slid down, again trying to find soil among the endless web of roads and towers. And again, denied. Not even a speck of dirt could be found between bridges or their towers.
"Take as long as you need to get it all in," Palta mused from near the stairs. "Our guide was supposed to meet us here, but I only see people leaving."
The last word accompanied her look towards her parents and children taking off down the walkway, with the horse-sized otter ambling behind them.
"Should we find them?" Mia asked.
Palta shook her head slightly enough that it didn't threaten her silver crown.
"No. Royal dignity and all that. They must come to us, lest we give an appearance of lacking decorum. Expectations derived from careful dealings between nations."
Mia's brown eyes rather conspicuously went to the king and queen walking over the small exit bridge. Something that got a smile out of the princess.
"Aggrieved mothers are not beholden to expectation or social convention. A fact I will have to remind myself of in the future."
A round of smiles broke out, just in time for a maid to come out between Mia and Eska.
"Excuse me, my lady. Hansel wants me to deliver a message to the local hospitality head, making sure all the details of your accommodations are as they should be." The brunette intoned, getting a nod from the princess in return.
The trio moved to allow her passage, noting the letter in her hand as they did so. As the maid took a few steps to the right towards the bridge leading from the platform, a figure in black and gold approached from the opposite side. She was a mid-30's brunette of tan skin, wearing a shirt and pants with gold lines along the sides and a silver emblem on her right breast depicting a snake wrapped around a sword. None of which drew much attention as the tailor had somehow fixed a jaw-less human skull on her left shoulder.
"Apologies, great guests." She offered, bowing just slightly enough to send her wavy hair forward, yet not enough to show anything beyond minimal courtesy. Her green eyes were likewise lacking urgency. "There has been an upset in the schedule, something that kept me from a timely introduction. Today's big meeting for the Lost Lands has been canceled."
She put up her right hand, twisting her lips in concentration.
"That's not the right word. Moved, is."
"Oh?" Palta asked as she descended the stairs, prompting the others to follow. "Is there a change in who's coming?"
"No. Someone finally looked at the calendar and realized planning a raid into the Lost Lands before the Convene was stupid So, the events have been more or less merged."
Veronica noticed Mia give a curious look in the right corner of her eye, something the guide picked up on.
"Were you set on it being today?"
"What's the Convene?"
Both of the brunette's eyebrows raised in confusion.
"Where could you possibly be from that you wouldn't know?"
Palta gave a light cough.
"They are from the Coalition, a land on the seas past my Kingdom."
"Hmm," Their guide mused with a look back to the princess. "I'm afraid to my mental map, the world fades to nothing past your lands. Although I do remember rumors of Lola having left somewhere near the beginning of this past winter."
The duo started moving towards the road leading from the airship, bringing the trio in tow.
"Indeed, she did. Went right up to the Coalition and demanded her husband in a basket. But it appears not even the City's vaunted Exemplar of Magic could resist fate."
Veronica's hands went clammy as she saw Eska and Mia get a little pale. The brunette, contrasting with their reaction, went wide-eyed and made an 'ooh' with her dark lips.
"And what man would make her come sniffing?"
Palta got a sad smile.
"A dead one, sadly. Her trip ended in tragedy for us all." Palta offered, strain in her voice as she maintained a small smile. "Though if you have questions about him, you would do no better than these three fine women. They were actually present for most of his time alive."
"Oh?" The brunette cooed, stopping at the mid-way section of the road. "And what was so special about him?"
"He had all four affinities. That-"
A squeak escaped their guide's lips, her green eyes wide in shock.
"He was real?!" She squealed, childlike wonder in her voice. "I'd thought the rumors were based on booze and dreams. That mage actually existed? And it was a man?"
This time, she presented the question to the trio, though Eska seemed too drawn into her own thoughts to answer. Veronica took a deep breath before taking over the wind mage's role.
"Very much a man. Though his familiar's gender was not so easily-"
Palta jerked in place so sharply it sent the silver crown ajar.
"He was a scion?!" The princess demanded, red coming up her neck.
Veronica's blonde eyebrows furrowed.
"Was this not known?" She asked.
"No!" Palta growled, adjusting the crown. Behind her rested the tower sporting steel bands around its sides of smooth stone. If not for the slight color coming up the pale woman's face, Veronica might have been able to appreciate the beauty.
"Um…."
The blonde had no idea what to say, and her two friends were clearly not going to be any help. Delaying was the only tactic that came to her.
"How much do you know about what happened? With him, to him, and his misadventure at the Diamond academy?" She asked innocently enough.
"He was a quad-element mage. Had-"
A cough from the guide turned every head to her.
"Lola will be accompanying us to the Lost Lands. While the meeting is canceled, its meal is most certainly not. I think she will want to hear this story."
The princess turned to the guide, smile as carefully constructed as a dolls, and stared at her for a moment before sighing.
"Fine, a story is never as good as its first telling. I suppose it is an interesting dinner ahead of us. If you would." Palta finished, waving her arm to the tower.
As they started walking again, a spirit connection brushed against Veronica's right shoulder.
'I can't do it.' Eska shrieked inside the blonde's skull. To the world, the wind mage looked merely stiff, totally hiding the panic attack occurring within. 'I just…. Please, I can't do it,'
'Fine, it will just be Mia and me then.' Veronica offered.
The electric buzz on her shoulder withdrew as quickly as it arrived, leaving the five women to walk towards the tower in silence, both audible and mental.
For the next several hours, various bathhouses of remarkable craftsmanship were perused, dining halls of unimaginable luxury walked through, and boundaries past which death lurked repeatedly emphasized. Perhaps their bout of obscene luxury back in the Roost dulled the appeal of such things. Veronica, for her part, put the disinterest in the offered pampering more down to the breakfast that was threatening a violent exit at the slightest provocation. Something Chattox tried to help with by rubbing against her while sending concern through their connection. The bottom floors were reserved for one of the families, leaving their rooms in the middle section where only mana lamps provided light, even at midday.
Their question about what the Convene was never got answered, though none of the three cared as they rode an ornate wooden elevator down to their waiting abodes. When the glass panels opened, the guide swept her hand for the four to step out onto the ornate red rug. They stepped out onto a stone hallway, with the carpet and walls showing red, pink, and golden flowers, while mana lamp stars on the ceiling doused everything in gold light. Centuries of practice and trial had seen the architects perfect the art of using mana in their buildings, leaving not a speck of blue light to be seen by the mage's eyes. Though they did turn towards the guide when she coughed.
"The other members of the mage team have yet to arrive, leaving you the choice of rooms. I would advise you that, while they are all exquisite and well-padded, there is only so much that can be done when it comes to elevator noise and its cargo.
For those new here, clothing is strictly controlled to mark you as a person under the City's official protection. Save what is on your person; any belongings you brought will stay on your ship or in a single safe in the wardrobe. You will find dresses, pants, and every other bit imaginable inside said wardrobe. If they are lacking in any aspect, a tailor will be made available to you."
A round of nods greeted the offer. Her task complete, the brunette nodded one final time before working the dial on the panel beside her. Glass panels slid close, leaving the four to themselves.
"I've stayed here before," Palta announced, pointedly looking down the hallway. "She undersold the elevator noise. Especially during times when people are inclined to drink their problems away."
With that, she turned around and went to the right. The trio followed until they were near the stairs at the end, stopping only when Palta did to take a key from a hook on the door. Above the doors, they spotted numbers in mana crystal, one which matched the gold emblazoned on the sides of their keys. The princess worked her key into the door and twisted before turning to the girls.
"We still have that dinner and story ahead of us. I expect a good telling, but I do have to get ready for it." She finished before going inside with a smile and closing the door.
Veronica looked to the right to see a pale Eska shaking her head, brown eyes pleading at the blonde.
"I already said as much, didn't I?" The blonde offered, trying to keep irritation out of her voice.
Eska finally nodded before turning around and heading towards the next door, taking its key and jamming it into the keyhole. The second the door was open, Eska ran in and slammed it against the stone frame.
Veronica turned to Mia with a grimace.
"Just us, it seems."
The redhead nodded, looking a little pale despite the deeply tanned skin. Their tour now officially completed, Veronica took up the room next to Eska's, with Mia going into the one after hers. A grab of the key, a working of the lock, and she was in.
The room was wide, bearing a crème colored wall on the left bearing a door going only halfway towards the end of the room and a massive wooden wardrobe on the immediate right. Ahead was an open space, bearing a horizontal floor halfway through the room with a ladder on the left side leading up to a plush-looking blue bed, while below it rested a soft, white couch and a low table for drinks or resting feet.
Walking further in, she found a small desk along the left wall just beyond the initial one. Letters could be written on its smooth oak surface, but the array of cases and wide mirror on its top said this was more for fixing hair or applying the makeup provided on its sides. The place was decidedly feminine, something the two mana lamps along the left and right walls giving a soft glow emphasized.
Not wanting to be caught unprepared, Veronica perused the offered clothing in the wardrobe as her familiar lounged on the white couch, quite exhausted from his hours of letting his scion carry him around. Each piece came with a silver shield on it, no doubt the symbol the guide had spoken of earlier.
In the search for proper dress, she came across a steel safe on the bottom, complete with its own separate key resting above. It was a hard decision, but ultimately she decided that the great treasure would be safer in the metal container than waiting for someone to find it on her person. After putting her legendary red dragon bag in it and placing its key in her pocket, the task was resumed. Eventually, a blue dress with a white stripe over the breasts was selected, mostly because its color matched her element and its frilly shoulder pieces provided some protection from Chattox's claws.
Lunch was never indulged in, nor would it be kept down if it were offered. For hours, Veronica went over the events on the new bed, molding deception into painful memory. Still less painful than an executioner's axe through the neck, of course, so she pushed on with the task. When the knock at her door finally came, a mix of both dread and relief filled her.
"Eska's not feeling too good," Palta called through the door. "Something about an upset stomach."
"That's fine," Veronica called as she got up and made her way to the ladder. "She was talking about feeling off earlier."
After retrieving the clothes and stripping down to her underwear, the blue dress was fixed to just over her head when another knock came.
"Mia said she was feeling ill as well. Perhaps breakfast or lunch hid some off meat."
Again, relief and dread made themselves known, though this time there was more of the former than the latter. Mia was never of a cool temperament, and this was not a battle where more company would help. She had thought about asking her to merely remain silent, but now she need not be worried. All that remained was to see if her mother had the right measure of her abilities when it came to the art of deception.
Donning the dress and some black leather shoes, she took a second to fix any imperfections in the blonde, shoulder-length hair. Wiping off the last bit of dust that clung to her heart faced shape, she turned right and nodded to Chattox. Her white bird stretched on the wide couch before taking off with a flap to the perch of her right shoulder. The last bit was the key to the safe, which was placed inside a dress pocket on the left hip.
As ready as she could ever be, Veronica took a deep breath before heading left towards the door. Putting her palm on the door handle, she took a moment, the same tremor before a battle running through her. With a final sigh, she pulled it.
Outside, all she saw was Palta waiting near the elevator along with an assortment of about twenty women, all having a bird, dog, or rock familiar at their feet or on their rather depressed person. The princess was in a thin, black dress that hugged her frame, save the frills around the neck. Those flaps of cloth moved with her beckoning hand, though the silver crown remained still.
It took a second to lock her door and place the key in her pocket with hands on the verge of shaking. The task was eventually completed, leaving her to approach the group. When Veronica was moving through the crowd, noting the lack of talk or noise, an obvious question came to her.
"Palta, I've noticed a distinct lack of guards around you and your family since we took off." The blonde mused as she came up to the princess's side.
A shrug was the first answer.
"Someone did something….Cute, a few months back. The regulations are being sorted out, but for now, the only guards allowed are those the City provides."
"Who would bother?" A strained voice from an unseen woman behind Palta put in. "If anyone wants us dead, they'd just have to wait."
A round of sad nods in the crowd greeted the statement. Stuck between irritation at someone butting in and despair at the apparent agreement, Veronica gave a forced smile. It was a good ten minutes before they managed to get their turn in the elevator, something at least half the other denizens had already taken up.
Another pull on the knees, and they reached the floor holding the much-discussed meal. The first sign was the pungent smell of searing meats, so thick it penetrated the glass elevator doors before they opened. When they did finally slide open, spice mixed with the meat. Coming out onto a white marble floor tinged with gold, the left presented a door, while the main event was obviously to the right.
The space was about the size of a small mansion, both in width and height, though the latter was harder to judge as most of the ceiling was taken up by thick vines holding glowing mana lamps made in the shape of orbs. Fish and water spouts were attached to the six grey stone columns surrounding the main dining area. Out of the mouths of these imitations came constant streams of magical water shooting into the air about a foot before disappearing. Between these pillars and the outer windows were the familiars.
The biggest of which was a green-furred dragon resting on its stomach. It was at least six carriages long and almost twice as tall as one and shaped like a sausage, though the muscles of its chest and limbs promised strength. If these didn't give opponents pause, then the mouth of sharp teeth and wide red eyes did. Right now, it was content to lay about while some young cat and stone familiars played about its whiskers. None paid the landscape outside any attention. which was odd by the blonde's account. The endless visage of darkness punctured by both still and moving mana lamps, illuminating bridges of untold number, was rather haunting.
Having drawn her attention for several seconds, Veronica almost jumped when Palta brushed her right hand.
"To them," She whispered to the blonde, nodding further ahead.
The center of the room finally registered, its circular inner table and three outer oval tables not being able to compete with the landscape outside for mental space before now. There ornate chairs sporting gold threading and plush seats. These seemed like a pauper's rickety stool when placed under the tables themselves. Despite her inner objections, when she got within a dozen feet of the central table, she could only concede that the tables were indeed forged of mana crystal, as were the cups, utensils, and plates. An unfathomable display of luxury back at the Roost, forget the Coalition.
Fortunately, the waving of Nestel to her rightward section of the inner table kept the blonde from witlessly standing around and staring. Palta took up the right seat by her mother, with Jeremy sitting in his royal attire on the queens left. Oddly, the two children were nowhere to be seen. Given this was supposed to be a part of a rather important military operation, Veronica could easily guess the reason. Thankfully, her presumption to sit next to Palta was not rebuked.
The table was large enough, and its chairs well spaced enough, that she had a clear view of Nestel and Jeremy to her left. When a dark-skinned woman in a brown head covering and red dress came by, Veronica instantly placed her as Vestel, the soon-to-be empress of the Bodding kingdom, or perhaps empire. The two descriptions had been used before, though the subject of the painting that Nestel had shown the trio didn't display any confusion in her confident strides. Her frame made an almost concentrated effort not to do anything that might be construed as a bow as she sat in the seat opposite Veronica. Those fierce green eyes took her in for just a moment before a breath was released from the slim nose with a white stripe running down it.
More women showed up to take the outer tables, though judging by the arrangement, the center table didn't seem to be held in any more importance than the others. At least, the mana crystal plates and cups were all the same. The attendants, all men and women dressed in black with gold sashes around their hips, began filling cups. Most demanded alcohol of one description or another, though Veronica decided on simple water.
As the last few seats at the tables were taken up by stragglers, there was a rather conspicuous lack of interest in the chair to Veronica's right. When a burly redhead in a green dress with a pronounced nose and mole on the left of her lip only glanced at the chair before sitting to its right, the blonde got the idea that it had been reserved, probably by this Lola she was supposed to entertain. When another red-haired woman in a black suit and gold stripes along the sides, with a human skull on her right shoulder, came in and took the long way around to the other side of the table instead of the closer one to Veronica, the notion was confirmed.
Looking over to the left, she saw Chattox resting on one of the dragon's whiskers, floating up and down with its breathing. Biting her lips, she prepared to get up when a laugh on her right stopped her.
"It appears our familiars are well suited to one another."
The blonde's head shot toward the source out of instinct. She hadn't heard even a scrape or felt a change in the air, yet her vision said a woman was sitting to her right all the same.
The tall woman leaned on the table, with a muscular frame hiding beneath a black dress and a curtain of almost painfully white hair. If not for the friendly air in those green eyes flecked with amber, Veronica might have felt threatened. A small snort escaped the woman's sharp nose, pulling some skin around her smooth cheekbones.
"I'm sorry. Stealth is a big part of my training, and it can be hard to stop certain habits."
Whatever her initial scare, the fact that this woman was willing to be even a bit humble settled Veronica's apprehension ever so slightly. After a moment to compose herself, Veronica gave the woman a smile.
"Perhaps I should be more trained in attention to my surroundings. Lola, I presume."
A nod and a wave of long, nearly white hair was the first answer.
"Indeed. Thank you for using my name. It's nice to be a person now and then."
A pronounced scoff from Vestel across the table drew everyone's gaze. An arrogant smile was displayed without restraint, as was the ribbing in those green eyes.
"Anyone would trade you inhuman abilities for any amount of time spent 'as a person'."
Lola shrugged in response.
"Inhuman?" Veronica asked, raising her eyebrow at Lola. In the corner of her left eye, she saw the royal family idling, content to let her absorb the table's attention.
Lola coughed, ever so slightly rolling her eyes.
"I'm a plant mage, though I can use fire. Magical talent born of countless experiments and a bit of ingenuity."
The blonde raised both eyebrows, still surprised despite her experience.
"You do have metal magic, then."
Lola shook her head, strumming expertly manicured fingernails on the table of mana crystal.
"Nope," She groaned, taking up a goblet of red wine as she did so. "Can't say why the dirt and fire won't mix right, but I suppose I should be grateful for what I have."
Veronica shrugged.
"Working fire and water together produces a rather nasty scorching. Such a combination can even make clouds that boil. So, not a total loss."
"Hmm!" Lola hummed despite the goblet still being in her mouth, pointing a finger from around the crystal as she did so. She finished the chug after a moment, quickly putting the goblet down. "A nasty trick I've picked up from the Mist pirates. You've met them?"
Veronica shook her head, tightening her lips.
'Time for the pain,' She moaned to herself before taking a deep breath.
"Never," The blonde countered with a freshly sweetened smile. "It was a favored tactic of Eli's."
Confused looks greeted the name, though Lola's amber-flecked green irises went wide.
"Ah!" She squeaked. "The main event. Yes, Eli. My would-be husband."
Eyebrows raised all around. Vestel's may not have been the highest, but she was the only one who spoke up.
"The quad mage was real?!"
Veronica nodded, turning to the source of the interruption.
"As real as any of us here now. He stayed at the same academy I did, and I can thoroughly attest to the authenticity of his existence. At least, he did exist."
At this moment, a long line of servers came from the double doors opposite the side of the elevators, each bearing a tray of soups and breads. It was on inspection of their approach that Veronica realized all the other tables were now also paying attention to the conversation. Perhaps they had been since Lola had first sat down.
"See, Fletcher?" The plant/fire scion said to the redhead in a black and gold suit across the table. "It was a worthwhile trip."
An indifferent shrug, sending the human skull upward just an inch, greeted the news.
"Can I be blamed?" Fletcher protested, sniffling with a protruding nose as she dipped a spoon into a red soup. "The Coalition said it. That alone invites suspicion."
"Oh?" Veronica asked, blonde eyebrow raised.
"The Coalition," Nestel expounded from the left. "Is known for both their exaggeration and understatement."
A rough laugh from the burly redhead just past Lola drew every eye to her.
"They spew shit out of both ends. You could be standing on a hill overlooking their capital being set aflame by a dragon, and those bastards would look you right in the eyes and say 'It's all fine', even as they burned to death."
Palta gave a light hum as she brought a spoonful of white soup to her mouth.
"Present company excluded, of course."
Veronica gave her a slight smile, silently hoping the princess would never know just how wrong she was.
"But enough about that," Lola interrupted. "You were at the same academy, did you know him beyond the bed?"
Blonde eyebrows furrowed for a moment before relaxing.
"Reasonably well, as a matter of fact. Despite our divergent interests, we did seem to rub shoulders more often than most others. Even before he was revealed as a quad mage."
There were more than a few rather conspicuous looks sent Palta's way, then back to Veronica.
"Divergent interests?" Vestel asked, sounding suspicious as she placed a piece of bread into a bowl of orange soup.
"Revealed, you say?" Lola cut in, furrowing her eyebrows. "That makes it sound like it was hidden."
Veronica bobbed her head in consideration for a second.
"Because it was."
Another wave of raised eyebrows swept through the table. Even those at the outer tables who had been partially listening were now fully engaged in the conversation. If she wasn't already as nervous as she could be, the blonde might have found it unsettling as she continued.
"Officially, Eli was a crafter at Diamond Academy, and after he ran into a bit of trouble with the government, he vanished. Over the course of his time as a vagabond, he ate some troll meat, which imbued him with magical ability. Ability that reached into all four base elements. He then came back, either for training or at the cajoling of his love, Salamede."
"Officially?" Nestel probed, a silvery wave of hair cascading forward with her lean on the table. Jeremy was silent even as he mirrored his wife's interest in facial expression and body movement.
"All nonsense," Veronica answered as she brought up the goblet of cold water to her mouth. "The academy head, Tansen, sent almost every member of his staff to go looking for him. Something no one would do for a crafter student. If that wasn't enough, Eli's time as a crafter involved creations using all four of the base elements. And at such high quality that it was obvious in hindsight that he was using his own magic to perfect them."
She finished the tale with a chug of the icy water.
"So, what actually happened?" Vestel demanded, the piece of bread in soup now left to its fate.
Veronica could only shrug at the question she had spent months pondering.
"No one can say for certain, save Eli, Salamede, and Tansen. The latter may not even know the full story. He made certain insinuations when we first got our familiars, but I don't think he would have ever let Eli go through some of the things he did if he had known of his ability from the start."
This time, Nestel nodded.
"Yes, our informants said he was put through some sham of a trial. Also, he married a kelton woman."
"Don't keltons have goat heads?" The burly redhead asked with furrowed eyebrows.
"Marriage is one thing," Vestel cut in. "But to keep his ability hidden? That would only see him denied whatever scant resources the Coalition has. Did he want to become a scion under his own power?"
Veronica shook her head.
"He didn't need their resources to achieve what I'm pretty certain he was the entire time."
Eyes went wide at every table, even those beyond the one she was sitting at.
"He was a scion the entire time?" Palta demanded, black eyebrows furrowed and pink lips puckered.
The blonde shrugged, putting down her glass before stretching out her right arm.
"This was lost in a training accident. Eli was gone on one of his vacations, but he came back at the beckoning of my familiar, who had long since known and even played with his familiar. You know what?"
Her blue eyes turned to the big, green, furry dragon. Sure enough, her familiar was still going up and down the green whisker like a swing.
"Chattox, show them."
Cruel red eyes went to her, holding steady for a moment before the bird took off. He landed in the middle of the table, proud and tall. It took a moment to send out so many spirit connections, but he was soon relaying images of a black crystal sphere resting atop an ever-shifting mass of shapes tinged with every magical color. Images of forest flown through, various monsters fought, and caves explored alongside the main subject of interest, Andrew's ape familiar, and Ryan's rock familiar. Most, of course, were focused on the feats of the crystal companion.
"Incredible." Lola mused.
The others were similarly impressed, especially when the center of the show unleashed a cloud of steam and sharp rock at a large spider as he healed the fire ape.
"What are they seeing?" Someone from one of the outer tables asked.
Since this was now a dinner-wide story, Veronica decided to accept it. When the images stopped, she looked her familiar in the eyes and dipped her head towards the other tables. Chattox sent a small burst of irritation but acquiesced with a sudden jump into the air.
"Why even bother coming to the academy then?" Fletcher asked, red eyebrows furrowed.
"Perhaps to help the Kelton community, at the insistence of his wife," Veronica answered without confidence, feeling herself being genuinely drawn into the conversation as opposed to trying to survive it. "They probably had a relationship before he came to the academy. But that doesn't really make sense considering how much grief his lack of seeding brought both of them and the wider Kelton people there."
"Oh?" Lola asked, totally ignoring the red soup in front of her.
"He rode Salamede and Salamede alone, save one instance. It was a matter of great political maneuvering that he even laid with….Her name escapes me. But extracting even that one extra session took a meeting of chance, circumstance, and prodding from both his wife and the world at large."
"They really were struggling to get him to lay seed?" Nestel asked incredulously, lips puckering enough to match Jeremy's. "I thought those reports were some scheme by President Johnson."
More attendants came by, filling cups and taking away bowls. Veronica paid them no attention as she prepared her next words carefully.
"Struggle implies eventual reaching of the goal. As far as I am aware, it was that one woman and Salamede, and neither had the seed take to my knowledge. Certainly, no one's definition of success."
Chattox finished his toil at the last word, content to fly back to his green swinging perch instead of his scion. Not that anyone noticed. Everyone did turn to the snort that came out of Vestel.
"How can there be failure? Just hold him down and stroke it until the needed amount is produced."
Veronica bit her lips, trying to parse the needed words. There was no doubt that they would be taking her to task for the lack of swelling in her belly, so leading with the why of that seemed best.
"There was an attempt. Lots of restrictions on the house and threats made to his wife from the government, but the deed was to be done by my two companions and me. Not full control, but a rather coercive attempt was made."
"Finally! The good bit." The rough redhead to Lola's right cut in, a naughty grin spreading across her face. "How big was it? Could he have competed with a horse for length, girth, or both?"
Smiles broke out around all the tables. A heavy head shake from Jeremy was all the only man sitting could offer. Veronica let them have their fun for a moment before crushing it.
"We'll never know. He cut and disposed of his member before the rendezvous."
The previously bawdy redhead hiccuped, a disgusted pucker of her dark lips replacing the lewd grin. A sea of curled mouths and head jerks went around the entire room, not sparing even the servants. Jeremy, as the only sitting male, was content to merely cross his legs. This left an opening for the future Bodding empress.
"Did it…."
Vestel struggled for a second.
"Balls and stem?"
"All of it," Veronica confirmed, with a face forced into stillness as the memory resurfaced despite her best efforts to keep it down.
"Ah!" Nestel exclaimed to the left, wiping her face with a white napkin. "That's why they sent a message for a healing scion. They promised some sessions with the quad mage. A dance that died after his death was revealed."
"Sad," Veronica offered with a raise of her water glass to her mouth. "Though the government was probably a bit relieved. Bastards."
"Why would they be relieved?" Rodring's widow asked, sounding thoroughly confused as she swatted a fly out of her silvery hair with a single, graceful chop.
The blonde's eyes went wide, mouth still taking in the goblet's contents as she stared at the vines and glowing crystal balls in the ceiling.
A guard had relayed the rumor of Eli's proclamation that he had mated orcs in the swamps to her. Something that was completely dismissed until Andrew had discussed it with her, apparently having been told by another guard. When it was explained that it was to humiliate the government officials forcibly taking custody of him, she believed it. Not the confession, just that he had said as much.
Judging by Nestel's tone, that event hadn't become widely known. No doubt thanks to the tireless efforts of government agents. Efforts she was undoing. Putting the glass down, she turned to the centuries-old woman.
"What do you know of the events surrounding Eli's final days?" Veronica asked as innocently as she could manage.
A deep breath expanded the chest of Nestel's silvery dress.
"Not nearly as much as you, it seems." Rodring's widow offered, putting the conversation firmly back in the blonde's hands.
'Well, you have a shitty painting of the man in your office, don't you?!' Veronica growled in her head.
The first sound to leave her lips was a long breath.
"There was a trial about the state taking custody of Eli. And I want to emphasize, this was a rumor from two guards who were known to be present." Veronica said, pointing a finger forward to further the point. "Apparently, Eli boasted of having mated at least one orc during his outings in an attempt to humiliate his handlers."
A clanging of crystal rang out. Her padding did little to soften the blow, as evidenced by the pale faces, open mouths, and lack of breathing from the listeners, all of which reached to the outer tables and servants. For a moment, the forward motion of the world halted, with even the familiars staying still as they waited to see what had their scions so horrified. The only movement to be seen was the wine flowing over Fletcher's right hand from both a spilled cup and the frozen servant currently dumping a bottle where it had been.
"He what?" Lola whispered. If not for the total reign of silence, save for the spilling of booze, it would have never been heard. In this death of noise, it carried with the weight of a bellow.
"It was to humiliate the government officials taking control of him. Add a bit of confusion to the proceedings."
The second attempt at explanation finally penetrated. Shoulders visibly dropped, and some color came back into faces. Fletcher finally registered the wetness of her hand, sending a murderous look at the waitress furiously working a towel on the stain.
"To even pretend at such perversion," Vestel growled, "No matter the cause, is unthinkable."
A round of nods greeted the proclamation. Such a contemptuous dismissal of the circumstance pricked Veronica, drawing ire where nervous caution had been.
"No matter the cause, cornered people make desperate moves." She replied as respectfully as she could.
Perhaps feeling a conflict brewing, Lola coughed.
"And did he ever show any particular interest in the orcs? Sexual or intellectual?" She asked before putting a spoonful of red soup into her mouth.
Outrage shot through Veronica's veins, only slightly cooling at the second question. Tightening her temper as much as she could, she prepared the next words before releasing them.
"Intellectually? Not from what I've heard. However, his interest in such subjects was never brought up. As far as perverted taste goes, neither I or the students he was with on the trip have seen anything indicating such an inclination." Veronica firmly answered, keeping her lips in a thin smile.
A cough from Nestel turned everyone to her, though her light blue eyes were fixed on the blonde.
"The students on the trip? Was there a live demonstration with an orc or some such?"
'How could you not know?!' Veronica seethed internally.
Being such a foundational piece of Elis' local lore, she naturally assumed that the field trip had reached their ears. They clearly had some communication with people inside Diamond Academy, or at least its surrounding towns, as evidenced by his visage in her office. So how had this escaped their nets?
These thoughts had delayed an answer long enough that some impatience was starting to show in those light blue eyes. Taking a deep breath, Veronica sorted the events to deliver the sordid tale.
"In the Coalition, there are bits of land richer in mana than most of the surrounding areas. To get us ready for mage life, there is an expedition prepared. During which, we learn about how to deal with aggressive wildlife, both plant and animal, butchery, and how to work as a team."
The blonde took another breath, feeling herself wilt under the expectant gazes of so many, the most cutting of which belonged to Nestel.
"One day, there was an accident or an attack by an animal. Whatever happened, Eli left the camp to go help. The details thin for a bit, the most salient point being that at some point Eli was drawn away from the main group with a few other students and ran into an orc patrol.
The orcs were in a large mole tunnel that had breached into the air, fighting off some undead when Eli and his two or so fellow students came up over the tunnel's open side. One story says the orcs tried to climb the side to get at him, others that they stayed near the back. Whatever the disagreements, all of them say the students retreated, though Eli had hung back for a second or two to take in the battle. After that, the expedition was cut short, and all the higher-level student mages were sent out first. The last bit I was personally a part of."
Every human eye in the room burrowed into her, numb shock plain to see. Hanging by the double doors of the presumed kitchen was a wall of servants who were getting ready to join those already at the tables, all standing still as they stared at her. Nestel was showing that, despite having porcelain skin, there was still some color to drain. Something Palta and Jeremy displayed to even greater effect. As were the other women at the table, with Vestel getting a bit of grey in her dark skin.
"So," Lola announced on the right.
Veronica turned to see the woman resting her right elbow on the table, its hand holding up both her head and puckered lips as the white hair formed a curtain over the goblet and now-empty bowl. The slight frown and flaring, sharp nose told of strained control.
"It wasn't a….Demonstration, or practice, or anything like that. The Coalition allowed the still-learning quad scion to run into a fully armed, fully capable patrol of orcs out in the wild with no protection save his fellow students. Is that what you're saying?"
Green and amber flecked eyes scoured the blonde, clearly hoping for some indication of this being a lie or jest.
Veronica could only shrug, pleading for the sweat threatening to form at her brow to stay unrealized. Instead of trying to downplay it, she decided to drag others in with a turn towards Nestel.
"This was a widely known bit of lore back at the academy. I'm surprised to hear it never reached the Rodring kingdom, either through talks or spies."
Nestel gave her a small smile, shaking her head as pink lips were licked.
"I assure you, Veronica, that had I been made aware of this through any means, the ensuing breach in diplomatic decorum would have been a matter of gossip even among the demons."
"Pff!" Vestel scoffed from the right, looking Nestel right in the eye's with a frown. "According to her, every babe on their mother's breast knew about this. What assortment of tavern wastrels did you send with my brother to observe the quad mage?"
Palta went red in the face, only calmed down by a steadying hand from her mother.
"I sent several quite capable people, all at your HALF-brother's approval. Sadly, no amount of ability can overcome being dead. They all perished trying to capture Eli during his scuffle with the government. The Diamond Academy is out on the eastern fringe and was largely cut off from the outside world by Necrosis, so his death was only known weeks later. The mention of three women who had been close to him also came up in the inquiries; they were investigated, and were shockingly found inside our lands courtesy of a tight eye on the popular smuggling routes.
Of course, I had hoped for information on any children he left behind, but everything that our best team gathered about him was lost. Getting as close to the quad mage as we did took all our ability and best people, a feat and loss not about to be repeated. With all that, I decided to wait until after Necrosis to sniff about, the quad mage's death having rendered any urgency pointless."
Veronica nodded, hiding her incredulity at the lie as best she could. What was the point of this deception? They had gotten enough information out to have a shoddy painting of the man. Putting it down to avoiding embarrassment, the blonde decided to hold her tongue.
"Alright," Lola announced in a heavy tone that drew every gaze from every table. "We started this story near the end and have been jumping back and forth on it since. How about our new friend Veronica tell it from beginning to end? Perhaps with a meal to go with the tale?"
The last bit saw her fix the wall of stunned servants with a severe gaze. Having been provided a proverbial kick to the pants, the sea of black and gold churned as the servers and cooks went about their forgotten tasks.
Veronica nodded, taking a deep breath as she ordered all her interactions with the quad mage into a single story. One both too long and too short. The goblet of cold water was fully drained, then the story started in earnest.
The beginning was Eli's first day at the academy. Barely a sentence or two more. When the carriage ride with him towards the arena came up, Veronica fell into a groove. Weaving facts, rumors, and personal experience into a single whole. Fortunately, the only bit of deception needed was near the very end, leaving the rest to flow out of her like a long release of breath she didn't even know she was holding in, stopped only by the occasional bite of steak from her plate. When she got to Agatha secretly mixing her tea with Yook root, the reaction was one of universal sympathy.
The last bit, where she and her friends secretly left out of fear of being dragged into Eli's troubles, drew the greatest attention. Most, however, were left disappointed when the carriage they were hiding in had its wheel break, forcing the girls to escape on foot.
"A tale of legend, I'd say." Lola mused, drinking wine over a plate of white pasta mixed with some kind of blue chicken.
Vestel started strumming her left hand's fingers on the table, a puckered lip and piercing green eyes showing some inner thoughts being formed. Everyone looked at her with expectation, making her draw in a breath.
"It's a horror story that involved a lot of people thinking Eli was seeding orcs." She mused, her right hand circling a spoon through a bowl of green pasta.
Veronica gave her as polite a smile as she could manage, the delicious smell from the steak in front of her hiding any distaste she might have felt.
"A confession made to embarrass the government." The blonde said.
"Yes, that one time." Fletcher cut in, sticking the knife that had been working a slab of beef into the air. "But it wasn't just one time, was it?"
The next point she emphasized by moving the knife's tip in a circle.
"It kept coming up. Again and again, someone comes along saying, 'I think this man is fucking orcs.'. And all those weeks when he was who knows where? I'm not saying it's true, but investigations have been started on far less."
Veronica's blonde eyebrows scrunched together. Surprisingly, Nestel drew everyone to her leftward position by giving a loud 'hmm' with a mouth chewing on a meat-filled pastry. When she swallowed it, Nestel gave a slight shrug.
"You said he hated criminals?"
Not understanding where she was going, Veronica nodded.
"Extremely and quite violently by all accounts."
"And these rangers, they worked with the local gangs against the orcs? At the behest of a female leader?"
"Yes," Vernoica said, feeling quite ready to hear the coming words.
"I have some notion that the rangers were simply made aware of his abilities far before Eli came to the academy, perhaps from his fighting with the gangs. Seeing as he was such an obvious prize, does it not seem possible that they were trying to get him thrown out of the academy before his abilities were revealed, thus making it easier to force his pulp out on some road or lonely tavern? Such a conception would make them timeless figures, or at least relieve them of any material lack for the rest of their lives. An opportunity that, if discovered, would be shipped out of their reach."
Veronica nodded her head. It fit as an ulterior motive, and would explain why they were so eager in every respect to 'expose' him.
"However," Nestel continued, now looking at the blonde with a small smile. "That doesn't mean there isn't the possibility that they were speaking the truth. A possibility you deny at the first of every supposition. Why are you so certain he wouldn't do such a thing when he apparently found human women so wanting?"
That caught her off guard, mostly because she couldn't articulate why the idea was so absurd to her. For a few seconds, the blonde struggled with what exactly it was that made the suggestion so ridiculous that she disposed of it immediately. Then she considered why a male mage might consider orc siring, the answer to which finally brought all the pieces together.
"I don't think he ever really cared about magic."
Most furrowed eyebrows at that, but Vestel only shook her head beneath the brown head covering.
"The Coalition's magical resources are scant, but that would only make using the power of the orcs more appealing. Especially if he wanted to take heads."
Veronica gave the waiting steak in front of her a long look before resigning herself to another explanation.
"No, I mean, he didn't really seem to care about magic itself. I'd seen him talk with mages and the mundane, sometimes in the same conversation. Accounting for any irritation he may have had with one party due to prior dealings, they were both treated equally.
He used magic, sure. But it was with the same attitude a farmer had for his hoe or a blacksmith his hammer. A tool, nothing more grand nor deserving of reverence."
An odd notion hit her, one she decided to share.
"All for mundane purposes. No one ever whispered of him going on hunts for magical resources, demand such from the academy, or setting up gardens with his plant magic to grow magical vegetables. Eli also only worked with the peasants. Whether it was fighting the undead or using his abilities to forge new docks."
Nestel nodded in understanding. The rest of the mages outside the royal family had reactions of either contempt or confusion. To Lola's right, the redhead scoffed as she rubbed some cheese sauce off her lips.
"That undead business was a disgrace." She growled. "Eli was just out of his gestation with a head filled by boyhood bravery and fresh wonder at his loins' purpose. Not a thought for injury or death, even against an enemy his elements could do little against. The adults in charge should have stepped in and laid down good sense, laws be damned. Or at least thrown their bodies in front of the carriage taking him out. Nothing but weakness from all involved."
Veronica could only nod in agreement.
"So, Vestel," Lola put in, crossing her black cloth-covered arms over her chest. "It appears I made the correct decision, though too late to matter for the Lost Lands."
Feeling quite thoroughly interrogated, the blonde decided to finally launch an inquiry of her own.
"Why do you say the Lost Lands specifically? Surely having all base and dual elements would be a massive boon anywhere."
"Obviously, it would be no matter where the mage called home," Lola said, reaching for her wine goblet. Rather than drink it, her green and amber eyes stared into the dark liquid as she continued talking. "But it would be the biggest boon in those forsaken lands. Metal mages have the safest and most mana-efficient time dealing with the demons as they can keep weapons and shields at a distance from the claws and teeth. Plant mages are needed because strengthening the grass roots presents an obstacle for the demons burrowing, something earth mages aren't quite capable of, as removing the grass and replacing so much dirt with stone would take far more mana. Healing mages….Well, their importance needs no explanation. None of which can be done by crafts as the demons' mana shuts them off like a spell."
She brought the goblet up to her lips and took a swig, emptying the glass by a third.
"There have been entire expeditions wiped out because too many mages of one element have died, even as all the others remained untouched. Having mages who can do all those jobs? That would lessen the number of mages required, freeing up space on carriages and sacks for more supplies and mana crystals. It would make cobbling together various damaged formations back together almost trivial. There are probably hundreds of ways quad element ability in the human race would make our fight easier, to say nothing of what could be done in civilized lands."
Another swig, another devastating plunder of the cups resource.
The blonde took a deep breath, forcing down the wracking sob trying to work itself up her throat.
"And have you fought in the Lost Lands before? Why is it so important?"
A smile spread across the plant and fire mage's mouth, its corners hiding behind near-white hair.
"If our defense of the Lost Lands fails, there won't be anything left in the rest of the world worth talking about."
Veronica's eyebrows raised in surprise. For the first time this dinner, Vestel gave an agreeing hum.
"False humility is not a virtue," The future empress explained as she handed off an empty plate to a servant. "No one, nowhere is doing anything more important than what we're doing here. Should my people's wall be overrun, everything, every animal, babe, and insect in this wretched world will be torn to meaty string in months. And with the demons floating over the sea, not even your Coalition would hold out for more than a year, if that."
"Oh," Veronica responded, keeping both a straight face and the contents of a churning gut down.
She had spent an evening shocking others, so perhaps this was a fair return. Finding out entirely new depths of what Eli's death meant for the world certainly added to the gnawing abyss in her soul. Something Mia and Eska would no doubt be excited to hear.
"Well," Lola said to everyone around the table, "I once had a professor choke during a demonstration about ingesting magical resources. Sounds like we both had a wild time as students, eh, Veronica?"
That drew a round of laughs from those at the table, even eliciting a chuckle from the blonde. With that bit of levity, the tension bled out of the room. More drinks were ordered, meals finally consumed, and attention split properly among all the rooms' denizens.
Veronica was still politely asked a few questions here and there, both about her time at the academy and the Roost. More than once, she had left a fellow female mage speechless at having voluntarily come to fight the demons. None were as surprised as they were when she had talked about a mage with all the elements coming into contact with orcs, but most provided a strong second place.
The fact that they were all conscripted, save Veronica, Palta, Vestel, and, surprisingly, Lola, became more apparent as the night went on. Alcohol was consumed without thought for propriety or consequence. None of the other women wanted to be there, world-ending threat be damned. Yet, they were going all the same. This manifested in empty wine glasses, overeating, and a few of the women taking a servant deemed sufficiently attractive towards the elevators.
When hair at the outer tables started getting pulled, Veronica decided that staying in the room filled with drunken, enraged scions wasn't a good idea, especially as various bits of magic were starting to come off the familiars from the roiling emotions. Something the royal family agreed with. Palta and her parents gave her one final nod before they made their way onto an elevator separate from hers, leaving to spend their night in the airship with Oswald and Bessie.
Whether it be the wine or despair, Veronica felt a little uneasy as the wooden box went down. Chattox rested on her right shoulder, giving her blonde hair some rubs with his yellow beak. No matter the state of her sobriety or over-extension of her stomach, magical strength born of that legendary status as a scion saw her through the room's door and up the ladder to the bed.
Come morning, a headache exacted its toll for last night's revelry. Overdue cleaning still needed to be performed, and by the time the blonde was at the door in a white shirt and light blue pants, the tax from last night was reduced to a faint discomfort, something Chattox on her left shoulder helped reduce. Opening the door revealed Mia leaning against the opposite wall.
The redhead was dressed in a grey shirt and brown pants, though the most noticeable feature was the guilty smile between smooth cheekbones.
"Sorry about leaving you last night. I-"
Veronica put up a hand, sending a spirit connection to Mia's right shoulder as she did so.
'It's fine. I ended up having to explain the entire story last night, and it was better to have them only interrogate one person instead of us both trying to maintain a consistent story.'
Mia got a genuine smile.
'So, when are we to be hanged?' The fire mage teased inside the blonde's skull.
'Not today. The only thing I changed was our carriage having a wheel fall off along the road, never reaching where Eli was killed. Everything else is the truth. Something I need to tell Eska.'
Veronica turned right towards the wind mage's door.
'She's up on the deck for the airships.'
Blonde eyebrows furrowed as she turned back to her friend.
'Why is she there?'
Mia took a deep breath, sending Veronica's nerves on edge.
'She's in a bad spot. Worse than ours, at least. I think we need to have an overdue talk with her.'
If Mia was saying as much, then it was worse than what even Veronica suspected.
"Let's go," Vernoica announced audibly, moving over red rug and its embroidered gold leaves towards the elevator.
The wooden box's panel and dial were worked, leaving the foggy glass doors to close, then open less than a minute later. Blue sky replaced rock ceiling though, oddly, the morning breeze wasn't any fresher for it. Traffic, both of carriage and walking variety, moved across the endless landscape of bridges and towers. It was lighter traffic here, with only the occasional cart or messenger boy attending to the needs of the airships resting at the stone disks jutting out from the wide grey circle surrounding the tower they now called home. This made it rather easy to spot the familiar figure in a black dress leaning against the stone railing directly ahead.
Veronica ordered her thoughts as she and Mia approached. When they were just out of arm's reach, Eska turned in place, brown eyes in glasses taking them in with panic that only lasted for a second. When she recognized them, her lips puckered below her sharp nose before she nodded and turned back to stare out over the endless stone. With that brief moment alone, Veronica mentally cut out the bits of last night's conversation concerning the Lost Lands. Such knowledge might very well send the wind mage over the railing in the middle of the telling.
The blonde moved to Eska's right, while Mia took up the left. Eska looked between them, not saying anything or showing any emotion. Veronica gave her an expectant raise of her eyebrows. The wind mage responded by looking away, only to find Mia giving her the same look. Rolling her brown eyes, the wind mage pulled back from the rail while still gripping it with her hands. Holding her head between her arms for a second, she let loose a long breath before Veronica finally felt an electric buzz along her right shoulder.
'How was the dinner?' Eska asked, sounding like she could barely force the words out.
'Good,' Veronica answered with an indulgent smile. 'Everyone knows the story. You know, I've been so preoccupied with how it ended that I forgot how catastrophic everything leading up to his death actually was.
The only bit that I changed was that the carriage we hid in had a wheel break, leaving us to escape before Eli was killed. Aside from that, stick to the truth. We don't want anyone noticing any contradictions. But that isn't why we're here.'
Eksa nodded as she pulled herself up. For a second longer, she stared out over the railing in silence before speaking, though her eyes never left whatever spot had gained her interest.
'I think….For the longest time since we ran away, I don't think I fully understood what we did. Yeah, we left Eli, a quad-element scion and ultimate mage, to die or be captured at the hands of the orcs. I know that fact. But recently….-'
Her lips sucked into her mouth as she curled inward.
'But now, my brain is finally starting to digest what we did. Fully process it. We left the key to humanity's future to the orcs. That….I better hope there's nothing after death because….There's just no way. No matter what I do or achieve in this life, my existence will NEVER be a net positive on the world. It's not mathematically possible.'
Veronica felt a stab of pain in her heart. Putting a hand to the wind mages shaking shoulder, she offered the only relief she could.
'I was the one who pulled you-'
The black dress was pulled down as Eska's shot up to full height. Far from comforted, red now splotched her cheekbones as teeth were bared at the water scion.
'I know! I was there!' She yelled in the spirit connection.
For a moment, they stared at each other before Eska calmed down, though only slightly enough to keep bare decorum.
'Look, Veronica, I appreciate your attempt to shield me with the 'I'm the scion so I'm responsible' attitude, but, in case you forgot, I was there. Maybe if I had fought back, tried to run ahead or struggled against you dragging me, I could accept it. But I didn't. I didn't fight the orcs or you; I ran away. And that one act will forever define-'
Out of her left vision, Veronica spotted a mass of near white and green. Turning to it revealed Lola, her hair flowing freely over armor of green scales, though not reaching her black pants.
"Glad to see the stomach aches have cleared up." She announced as she came up to the group.
Mia and Eska furrowed their eyebrows ever so slightly before remembering their excuses from last night. Eska coughed into a fist before giving a slight bow.
"Veronica was just telling us about last night's retelling. We had forgotten how harrowing it is on the first listen."
A small smile from Lola matched the indulgent look in her green and amber eyes as she walked up to the railing.
"I doubt the tenth, or even the hundredth, listen would be less hair-raising. It also produced an opportunity. This is a question I wanted to ask with all three of you here. Are you sure Eli didn't have any children? Aside from his Kelton woman?" The white-haired woman asked, leaning against the railing.
Veronica felt her stomach squeeze. This conversation had a direction that it absolutely could not be allowed to take. The blonde took a deep breath as she prepared to commandeer the discussion.
"It was just that one woman…."
"Beth." Eska said, her brown eyes scouring Veronica for the source of this breach in practice.
"Beth. We don't know her cycle at that point or her general fertility, but she's the only one who received the essential ingredient."
Lola nodded, continuing to stare at the three. Some gears turned in her head before she spoke up.
"If this had been a more convenient time, the City Council would dispatch an envoy to investigate this matter. Seeing as it isn't, Nestel will instead be held responsible for the follow-up. We're going to try and find that kelton woman, wherever Eli hid her away. And give the Coalition a thorough rebuke, while we're at it."
"Is that really needed?" Mia asked, nervously biting her lip.
White eyebrows raised, contrasting with the accompanying frown.
"By your account, the Coalition allowed the quad mage near orcs totally unprocteced. Is this true?"
The wave of vigorous nods made Lola shrug with a small smile.
"There have to be consequences for that. We of the Central continent have been content to allow your previous nation to stew in its own affairs. Of course, everything has a limit, and being so neglectful that the green menace almost realized their aims, with the one male mage that they absolutely could not be allowed near, goes well past that line."
Veronica swallowed her spit as she considered the potential consequences of the national scandal she had set off just the night before.
"And what about us?" Eska asked, crossing her arms over her chest.
"No harm will come to you from the Coalition for revealing this. Their diplomats will be much too busy dealing with kicked shins. To say nothing of the price they'd pay for interfering with those destined to fight in the Lost Lands. Besides, this was an almost universally known fact in the Diamond academy region, was it not?"
Another wave of agreeing head bobs from the trio.
"Something of this magnitude was contained by the people being trapped in their towns and cities, with only birds and river boats to send letters. Once people started traveling properly again, this was all going to come out anyway. Perhaps not the trial confession, but enough would. You merely….Expedited the information to where it was always going to end up."
Lola then put her hands on Veronica's right shoulder and Mia's left, taking in the group with a warm smile as she did so.
"After we come back, it won't matter anyway." She said, her voice radiating warmth. "Remember this, once you step out onto those lands, nothing from before is worth remembering. Whatever or whoever you were before the expedition is swept away into the past. There have been many people whose failures ceased by the demon blood they spilled."
Her words tickled Veronica's brain, filling her with comfort in every swish of the tongue. It felt like the loving encouragement of a mother and the camaraderie of a long-time friend. Looking to the right, she saw moisture in the brown eyes of her friends, the most flooded of which was Eska, who had a small tear falling down her left eye.
"Their failures were redeemed?"
Lola shook her head as she lifted her right hand off Veronica to point a finger at the wind mage.
"Redeemed implies they continued to exist. I know of several male mages who mated orcs. Not just accused or suspected of such, but committed the act without a shred of doubt. On their return to their home, now relieved of several fingers, their failure was never brought up again.
Whatever horror awaits among demons, there are those who still face it willingly, looking to rid themselves of one stain or another. Because the people who come back saved humanity. No judge, queen, or god dared hold them to task for the previous life till their dying day."
Veronica struggled to breathe, her body too busy taking in the intoxicating thought. Total and complete redemption. They were here to save the entire human race. Surely, that was enough to earn the universe's forgiveness. It had to be.
Lola put her arms around Eska, taking her into a hug. After a second, the white-haired scion pulled back, giving the other two smiles.
"When do we leave?" The redhead asked, her smile looking more sincere than it had in months.
"HA!" Lola laughed, giving her head a good throw back. "That's the spirit!"
She emphasized the last bit by giving the fire mage a lighthearted punch on the left shoulder.
"Sadly, like death, you can't say for certain when the demons will arrive until it does. We do have a general time range of a few years, at least."
"Years?" Eska demanded, sounding rather angry than near certain death was so far off.
A shrug was the first answer.
"No one tells the demons how to move. Some get lost in the hills on their way towards the big meal or get distracted by smaller squabbles. To say nothing of rain or nature creating obstacles. Besides, the mundane men need a good year or more of training. Do you think the mages require less?"
Three heads shook in answer.
"Training for mages doesn't just cover combat. Mana usage is strict, so that typically requires our mages to be well trained in how much their spells need, down to the blue speck. You guys have an advantage in that area, but there is also cultural training.
Out in the Lost Lands, victory can be determined in seconds and lost on one misunderstood word. You'll be given courses on various military terminologies and the differences between countries and associations in their use. And species. Our friends among the faeries, elves, and dwarves may need to be relayed a command by you, and you might have to translate what a Rodring captain means to a dwarven one."
"The other species are coming?" Veronica asked.
"They live on the same continent, don't they?" Lola answered, raising a left eyebrow. "Sure, they give the bare minimum and not a copper coin more, but demons find their throats as tasty as ours."
"And will we be training with them?" Eska asked.
Lola shook her head.
"They train separately and are mostly found in the forward teams, save the faeries. But I would concentrate on yourself. This isn't like anything else you've experienced. Normally, no one would dare risk a mage's life just to prepare them for the main mission."
Those green and amber eyes grew serious for the first time in the conversation.
"Of course, normally, one mage failing wouldn't get the entire team killed, save on the most dangerous of hunts. At the end of your work here in the Outsiders tower, we'll be going to a special holding pen that houses demons kept under the strictest containment. You'll be expected to fight one. Even with the best protection and special restraints to immediately stop the monster, mages were and are killed in such trials. A price paid nowhere but here."
Not having any idea about the danger did surprisingly little to calm the worry in the blonde's gut. Killing a mage under such controlled conditions wasn't possible for any beast she had previously met and such an ability spoke to a danger nothing Palta or Nestel had come close to describing. That didn't stop her next question.
"When does the training start?"
Lola sucked in her lips and bobbed her head back and forth for a second before releasing her lips with a pop.
"You are the first arrivals. There will be a good hundred mages on their way and training won't start until then. Official training will start a good week after the last batch comes in, so I want to say twelve more days or so."
"Why wait an entire week after everyone's here?" The blonde asked.
"That is the reality of our mission's contradictions. Morale and steadfastness are paramount, yet we rely on conscription for our troops. We get those who flicked the wrong nose back home, committed crimes so horrific that this is the only way of getting around an executioner's ax, or are legally obliged by treaty. Present company and Vestel excluded, no one, not even that princess Palta, wants to be here.
Immediately throwing them all on the hard end of it produces an unacceptable amount of suicides, as my former mentor so gracefully put it. So, we ease them into the oven with candies. A slow introduction is needed. Having people who actually want to be here, for any reason, is a blessing unlike any other."
A question came to the blonde's lips, one too personal to ask, so she discarded it. Lola, however, still saw the curiosity form on Veronica's face.
"It's been a lot of questions. I'll take this last one, then I've got some business to attend to." She said with an expectant look at the water scion.
"Why are you here? A mage with your abilities would have no end of prospects elsewhere. To say nothing of what wonders your children could produce in the future."
A bitter smile stole over Lola's face.
"With my ability in magic, it seems the universe demanded some form of recompense. The ability to make child is beyond my body, despite its gifts in other areas. Maybe that's why I found the need to fight demons so compelling.
Even before this disaster, I fought those monsters at the Bodding wall and the ones who drifted here over the seas. Most people put such a threat from their minds the instant the lecture is over, often treating it as an inconvenient fact rather than a dire threat. For me…. The threat stayed real after the first time I heard about it. Eradicating them would be a legacy as real as any pup, I suppose."
Veronica gave her a sympathetic smile. While her infertility wasn't real, the anguish it had inflicted was as genuine as any pain could be. Mia, however, evidently felt more curiosity than sympathy.
"And what happens if we should get with child?"
Lola tilted her head towards her, lips puckered. After a moment, she released a breath.
"Ok, for that one, I will make an exception. But after this, I really do have to get going.
You can't sex your way out of this. It might be years before it arrives, and if you do get pregnant in that time, these are the options: You will give birth, and the child will be raised by family or friends. If you survive, you will, of course, be allowed to live with them and bring a generous payment to the reunion. If you die, the child gets a yearly stipend until the age of thirty.
However, being pregnant when it might interfere with your duties means it will not be carried to its finish, and you will be fed special medicines to terminate. By force, if needed. Make sure you tell anyone thinking of such a scheme that it will do them no good."
All three bobbed their heads in agreement.
"Great," Lola said with a cheerful smile. "Now, for morning drudgery. Since you three have spines, I would be more than happy to show you some moves in the training rooms after lunch. The demons don't fight like humans and you can't deal with them like ones."
"Sure."
"Yeah."
"See you there."
"All right, let's meet up back here."
With their greetings fully and thoroughly exchanged, the two groups parted ways. Lola took off to the left towards one of the dozen or so airships while the trio made their way to the elevator. Their exit from the airship landing area had a light-hearted manner that the coming lacked. Even Eska seemed to have a looseness in her shoulders as they made their way into the wooden box.
A meal between breakfast and lunch was quickly devoured, with the wind mage eating more than what her thin frame would ever suggest was possible. When that was finished, they retrieved their weapons that had been stored in the Rodring airship. Lola took only thirty minutes or so to join them.
She took one look at Mia's sword and shield before nodding. Eska, however, was deemed to need an addition to her bow. While arrows were still used in the Lost Lands, they didn't punch through demons like they did humans. A spear was deemed sufficient, which also meant Veronica's spear and Chattox's assortment of javelins passed.
Training for demons proved different than any other. Forget humans, even their training for fighting beasts back at Diamond academy involved some semblance of mindfulness on the animals' part. To Lola's telling, demons came in a wave, with no regard for injury or prowess. The main method of dealing with them was to impale them on spears, not by the soldiers' power but by the monster's own momentum and the press of its fellows. All while slowly retreating into a pressed box and working mana crystals.
For several hours, the trio mastered sticking the butts of spears into dirt at just the right angles as Lola sent waves of indistinct water figures at them. Veronica felt they did well enough, yet their instructor found flaws in every swing, backward step, and spell. The scrutiny came to such a degree that it felt unfair, yet Veronica kept her complaints unsaid. Until the day the blonde's feet touched the Lost Lands, Lola was the only one with the experience to say what was acceptable. At the task's end, as their exhausted bodies dragged themselves into the elevator, the instructor had some praise for them.
"You did well," Lola intoned sweetly as she worked the elevator's panel. "Mia and Eska need more work with basic spear work; you two would have killed teammates several times with those swings, but as first days go, it was excellent all around."
All three were faintly happy from the praise, though their eyes were stuck on Lola sending the elevator upwards, away from the rooms. Something she picked up on.
"Candy and medicine. We'll train you hard, but we'll give just as much in the recovery."
Anticipation built with the sudden pull upward. When the wooden box stopped and glass doors slid open, they stepped into a hallway of cream-tiled walls and light blue floors. The vaguely coastal theme extended both to the side doors on the left and right and the open doorway in front of a wall directly ahead, the latter of which Lola took them towards. A feeling of wet heat and the smell of flowers filled the air. If that didn't mark the place as a public bath and spa, then their turn around the doorways corner and reveal of a large pool did.
It was big enough for a good hundred or more people, even with the large rocks in the middle. Wisps of white flowing off its surface into the air promised relaxation. Something the nude women relaxing in the three-foot deep water enjoyed to its fullest benefit. Despite the vision fulfilling men's dreams, it was a space meant only for their gender, as evidenced by even the servants bringing drinks or white towels being all women.
Any sightseeing for the mosaic ceiling depicting the towers outside or the plants of green, blue, and purple along the sides was cut short by the sharp right turn Lola took. They were taken up to a glass double door, though this one was transparent, unlike the elevators. Once through, they came into a locker room where the receptacles for weapons and clothes were made of mana crystal.
Veronica, as reluctant as she was to place the safe's key between her discarded shirt and pants in the cubby, supposed that not drawing attention to what legendary treasure might be in her safe was as important as keeping it secure. Soon, she was bare to the world, as was Eska, though Mia was still struggling to get her bra off. Lola was the worst off, with only her bottom half free. The green-scaled armor top was no doubt fantastic protection, but how to get it off was clearly an afterthought. A pleading look from the white-haired woman brought Veronica over.
"It's the hooks along the back and the mesh in the top near the neck. This thing has stood between me and death more than once, so I can't fuss at it too much."
Getting the lower half free was almost effortless; the neck section proved a proper challenge. A good dozen clips and small strings were woven between the armor's two halves, clearly meant to keep the wearer's neck from snapping back too harshly. Thoughtful, yet that made it no less frustrating to undo.
As she worked off the third string from the top, near pale skin revealed itself, as it had before, but this time two cysts presented themselves along both sides of Lola's spine. Not worthy of note, save their perfectly symmetrical and even positions beside the bone. Veronica blinked, took a deep breath, and resisted the urge to slap herself.
Stupid mental detour finished, the blonde soon freed Lola of her burden.
"All right!" Their instructor exclaimed as she shoved the armor top inside a tall locker alongside her pants and spear. "Try to be adventurous with the drinks, because whatever it is, they have it."
With that declaration, Lola turned right and out towards the glass doors. The girls followed like ducklings. They continued shadowing her, even as she went to the far end of the pool and slipped into a rocky section where the stone rose in the middle. Veronica and Mia joined her near the center while Eska stayed near the side only a few feet away.
True to Lola's word, they were repaid for their efforts double-fold. Drinks of every variety, taste, and alcohol concentration were served, massages offered in the side rooms, and a meal of meats and salads. While it might not objectively surpass what they had enjoyed in the last week of the Roost, it had the advantage of currently happening. Even Chattox was treated, as scions were apparently abundant enough that massage services for familiars were also offered. When the spa retreat finished at the end of the day, they were offered white dresses, as getting back to their rooms in the sweaty clothing would undo much of their visits point.
Their trip down the elevator stopped halfway, as Lola, being a long-time resident, called one of the upper floors home. The apparent importance of the hierarchy in the residential floors was thoroughly lost on Veronica, as they all got the same sunless landscapes outside any windows and the rooms were all the same from what she was told, but Lola getting off two levels higher was still a matter of some unexplained station. A difference in importance that didn't stop the plant/fire scion from hugging them all goodbye before her exit.
When they finally got off the elevator and into an empty hallway of red carpet and flower embellishments, Eska moved to the front of the group. Her lips were bitten, and her brown eyes were cast downward.
"Hey, about earlier. What I said….I'm…."
The words wouldn't come, yet Mia and Veronica enveloped her in a hug all the same.
"Just remember," Veronica whispered to the group. "We're going to save the world. After that, we can do anything we want, anywhere, and who's going to tell us otherwise?"
"Yeah," Mia cut in. "Apparently, we're all going to be new people after this. Hopefully, I get to be a smooth, tall, blonde healer scion with a bear familiar."
Chuckles wafted up from the huddle, with even Chattox sending some amusement through the spirit connection.
"Next time I get a haircut," Veronica teased as they all pulled back from the group hug. "I'll save some for you. Let's see how much of that dream we can make real."
Another round of chuckles, this time accompanied by a swat from Mia to the blonde, greeted the offer.
"All right," Eska said with a tired stretch. "It's been quite the day. Good night."
Veronica and Mia nodded, following Eska back to their trio of rooms. Another round of good nights, and the water scion was back in her cave, now properly feeling the multitude of drinks without the company to distract her. She still managed to check on the safe in the wardrobe.
Once it was confirmed that her space-expanded bag was still there, the last bit of night cleaning was performed in the bathroom. Feeling more refreshed than she had in months, Veronica made her way up to the bed and turned off the mana lamp. Oblivion slipped in effortlessly, its entrance smoothed with Lola's comforting words.