148 (Patreon)

The ring of Holorulo’s clan mountains stood dominant upon the land; the largest geological feature of anything for a thousand kilometers in any direction. From far away, they looked like squat white pillars decked in gold.

It was all a bit gaudy, if Erick was being honest. Golden pagodas adorned each clan mountain like gold coins stacked high. Smaller golden accents adorned the sides of those white pillars, here and there, giving glimpses into the living spaces beyond. The space between the mountains was a ceremonial land of overlarge buildings in the same color schemes, and it was all way too gaudy.

And also rather desolate.

Millions of people lived in Holorulo, with most of them living inside the clan mountains and some living outside on the rural land below, but Erick had trouble seeing any people who didn’t want to be seen.

Well.

He didn’t have trouble. His mana sense had gotten decently better since his experience with that soul spear. Erick’s range still wasn’t what it had been, but he was up to 45 meters. And with that range, he could see the servant passageways down below this top level, where the golden pagodas of the clan mountain reached high into the sky, atop a land of white.

Erick and his team left their appointed pagoda behind, and stepped out onto a land of quiet excess.

Wind gently blew across chimes that hung from the corners of curled roofs, while small bridges connected each pagoda’s land to each other, and gentle streams of water burbled around the artificial mountain plateau. There was an artificial lake off-center of the clan mountaintop, where fish congregated, and noble children fed them while under the watchful eyes of their guardians; mostly guards, though maybe that one person was a noble, for they had dressed the part.

Erick’s own clothes were a set of his own making, using threads from his daughter. All of the clothes the four of them wore were those that he had made, himself. While everyone else’s clothes were in colors except for red, Erick was back to wearing white. Ophiel sat upon his shoulder, in his normal, winged and eyed form. Yggdrasil’s [Scry] eye sat on his other shoulder, simply watching.

But there wasn’t a whole lot to see.

The buildings were gold and ostentatious, and the entire land was an immense work of beauty and a showcase of power. But as for the people? Erick didn’t know much about them. All he truly knew is that almost the entire population stayed hidden at all times. Only the nobles and their people walked out in the open, upon this pristine land.

And it was pristine. A lot of people had spent a lot of time getting this place back into shape.

A year ago, Erick would have faulted the people here for forcing laborers into repairing their grand structures when so many people had recently experienced personal loss, but magic was a thing, and Erick knew better. Repairing this place was probably as arduous as holding active a [Mend Structure Aura] and flying around using a different aura. The only hard thing to replace in a location like this would have been the spellworks here and there, and indeed, many of those were still down. Erick saw wardlights missing everywhere he looked; metal sconces devoid of their usual golden fire. Half of the lights that were still active were out of position, glowing outside of their appropriate sconces. This was likely due to those wardlights either getting pushed out of position by large magics, or by their sconces getting destroyed out from underneath them.

There was no one to fault over anything, here. Everyone wanted to get back to normalcy, and so, people had worked toward that goal; the commoners most of all.

While most of the casualties suffered in the recent war were suffered by nobility, with every single clan losing between half, and in some cases, 95% of their people, the nobility still controlled much of the resource distribution, mainly in the transportation of goods to inner-city markets. Because of that, food was vanishing from markets all around the Highlands. The commoners were picking up the slack and making their own connections to each other and to distant markets, of course, but the system in place had been disrupted, with many moving parts simply missing in action. Everyone was having a difficult time, but when the nobility was happy, then the commoners were happy.

Or at least that’s what Erick overheard through Ophiel, repeated here and there, mostly by the commoners. He also heard a lot of problems regarding the lack of good food.

The nobility still had decent food, though.

‘Decent’. Not ‘great’.

Terror Peaks had targeted Alaralti hard, killing much of the usual food distribution at its source.

While Erick and his people walked toward the appointed meeting, Erick thought, and watched the land around him. Half of his sight was given over to Ophiel, to watch him fly everywhere, and look at everything from a higher perspective.

The Void Wall around Holorulo was almost up again, but that didn’t matter right now, as there were no Singers to sing in Holorulo. Terror Peaks had targeted the Void Temples hard. Even with all of the Singers’ defenses, and denials of magic, they still couldn’t stop high-tier spellwork that well. Eralis and Alaralti still had Singers, but the public wasn’t allowed in Holorulo anyway, so that mattered less than those other two locations.

The natives to this land could trust each other to not harm each other with spellwork, but they did not trust the unruly barbarian tribes to adhere to the same rules. It was always a culture clash when the barbarians came to town, and adventurers from overoceans were the worst of them all!

Eralis needed to get their Void Song up and running, though, but the other two could do without for a little while. There were problems to getting that done, though.

The Alluvial District of Eralis, which included many of the people who would be rebuilding that Void Wall, was still heavily damaged.

Star Song’s clan mountain was mostly intact, but the mountain right next door that belonged to their branch family of Diligent Scribe was half gone. The potion houses of both clans were wiped off the face of Veird. Terror Peaks had targeted Diligent Scribe rather hard, for Diligent Scribe’s participation in the creation of chelation theory. The schoolhouses of Eralis would be hurting for a while, as many of those teachers had been targeted, too, in an effort to prevent the ideals of Songli from spreading to kids.

A lot of tragedies like that had happened while Erick wasn’t watching. He still felt small every time he found out another event had happened outside of his sight.

Luckily, though, the four Alchemists who got Intelligence survived without a scratch, and even managed to rescue Tadashi, but Wabi, Tadashi’s brother, was killed in the battle. Tadashi was alive, but injured. He pulled through. He was missing his lower legs, but he was naturally healing.

Xue apparently had a great showing as a Blood Mage. He tainted red soldiers with fast-acting disease that he then triggered, draining afflicted soldiers of Health. Without the protection of Health, the Blood Mage exploded those soldiers into fine mists, which spread that disease upon other red soldiers.

Erick wondered how Tadashi and Xue were doing. He had spoken to both, but not very much. They were both hurting after losing their loved ones; Tadashi’s brother and Xue’s wife.

Erick sighed.

Then he put on a stronger face, and strode forward, across a wide, white bridge, to stand before his destination. The golden pagoda stretched upward, looking like it was ten stories tall, but there were only five levels inside.

Ten soldiers in white armor with white spears lined both sides of the five-step staircase leading inward, to an archway. Their gazes and chests had been turned toward the exterior world until Erick came close. Then they all looked to him, the sounds of their boots and the butts of their spears stomping upon the staircase as they turned, as a single unit, to face the new person in their presence.

Scion Caina stood at the stop of the staircase, in the open archway, wearing official white armor with gold accents to denote her station as a Scion. Her father had survived the war; Caina was still a Scion. Her brother, Ored, was dead, though. She would have to learn how to be a future matriarch without her brother to lean on.

She seemed lost, but she was able to hide most of that.

Erick stepped to the bottom of the stairs, and looked up.

Caina looked down.

A world of protocol separated them.

Caina seemed to find her lines, as she said, “Greetings, Archmage Erick Flatt.”

Erick said, “Greetings, Scion Caina Small Scare. I thank you for the invitation to this land.”

Caina paused, as though judging her own actions, and then, deeming them acceptable, she stepped backward, into the building, saying, “Please come inside. We have much to discuss.” She said to the soldiers, “Rest.”

The ten soldiers on the steps, who had been standing at attention, relaxed as a unit, turning away to face the exterior once again, the sound of their stomping feet and spear butts striking stone the loudest sound at the moment.

Erick walked up the stairs. His people followed.

Caina led the way across a mostly empty golden room, to a double grand staircase that curled upward, in a double helix. The only furniture in this large first floor were scattered tables that would be suitable for any large social gathering, but which held nothing of note.

Erick followed Caina up to the second floor, which was much the same as the first, except for a few crucial differences. The tables up here held a few scattered maps, while nearly thirty people were hard at work discussing and deciding various needs, and how to implement those decisions across the whole of the Highlands. Several people were actively relaying those decisions to others, outside the room; the proof of that evident in the dozen tendrils of thought swirling around their heads.

Though Erick knew most everyone here, by virtue of his open ears and myriad of senses, and the Intelligence needed to piece it all together, five of the people in this room mattered more to Songli than the rest.

Matriarch Lingxing Void Song, a demi, with white skin and violet eyes, who wore the lush golden robes of a Singer.

Matriarch Tipanri Severing Crescent, a dragonkin, with white scales and red eyes, who wore conservative golden robes. She had small white horns, which was different than most dragonkin in the world, but which was common to half of the dragonkin of the Highlands.

Patriarch Hangzi Devouring Nightmare, a demi of white skin, hair, and horns, who wore golden robes in a warrior’s cut.

Sister Kaffi, who was not the pale skinned, red eyed demi woman she appeared to be. She was likely the most dangerous one here, but that was just a guess. Erick had no real idea of her true capabilities, and though he had seen most of the other people in this room here and there, for some reason or another, he still guessed that Sister Kaffi was still the most dangerous person here.

… Those people in the corners, doing nothing, might be more dangerous. Erick recognized one of them as the gold fire woman, and another as the black ooze man.

And then there was Elder Arilitilo, the purple skinned woman who saved Erick’s life, and who allowed him to get back in the fight against Terror Peaks. She looked ragged, but well dressed, and terribly proper. Apparently, those soul spears had been used on lots of people. Most didn’t survive, but half of those who did survive had been treated by Ari. She’d been outed as a Soul Mage, and now she had to deal with the consequences, which apparently meant a higher station and more work. She was still a part of Star Song, though, as far as Erick knew.

Erick suspected only the heads of the High Clans were going to speak to him, though, for as he ascended the stairs, Lingxing, Tipanri, and Hangzi, were already standing together, beside a single table, waiting for him to fully appear.

The room had been a susurrus of small sounds until Erick ascended, but now, as he stepped forward, all was silent.

The heads of the High Clans faced Erick.

Hangzi stepped forward, and bowed, going for the full 90 degree deference. Lingxing and Tipanri followed his example, the cuffs of their robes dragging on the ground at their action. And then, as one, everyone else in the room took a knee. Some went all the way to the ground, kowtowing. The gold fire woman kowtowed. Caina kowtowed.

Erick had an emotional reaction, but he kept up decorum. He wouldn’t debase these people’s culture by asking them to raise their heads, either. This was a big deal for them. Massive.

A moment passed in silence.

Then Ophiel chirped three times in happy violins, and that broke the spell.

Hangzi, Lingxing, and Tipanri rose first, followed by the rest of the people in the room.

Hangzi stepped forward, and said, “The Songli Highlands thanks Archmage Erick Flatt for his service in this trying time, for the surety of attempting a peaceful resolution, and for the actions taken when peace was no longer an option. You have proven yourself an ally to this land, and we will always welcome you.” He stepped back.

Tipanri stepped forward. “The Songli Highlands will be a long time recovering from the ignoble attacks perpetrated by Terror Peaks, but it is thanks to you that we have cut short their planned trials of terror. It is thanks to you that Alaralti is able to restore much of the provisions of grain and otherwise which Terror Peaks tried to eliminate. The Highlands will always welcome you.” She stepped back.

Lingxing stepped forward. “The Songli Highlands would welcome you as a member of our land, if you didn’t already have obligations elsewhere. But if ever you should change your mind, please consider this land that you have helped to save. You’ve already done so much for us, so we would like to do whatever we can for you. Is there anything you wish for that we could provide?” She did not step back; she waited for an answer.

A moment passed, with Erick unable to speak for the lump in his throat. And then a second moment passed, and the lump lessened.

Erick had an answer for Lingxing, so he gave it, “I wish to ensure that proper chelation is refined to the point where it can be administered without risk of death. I wish for something kind and generous to be done with the remaining people of Terror Peaks, because there are still children over there, and they are just children… Even if some of them have proven to be as violent as the adults. And I wish for proper answers as to why this war happened at all, and where those soul spears came from. Terror Peaks was heavily prepared to desecrate proper war protocols, with many allies willing to follow them to their deaths, but none of the people I captured have given satisfactory answers as to why they enacted this war.”

As he spoke, Erick watched the reactions of those in the room, but the only major reaction he saw was one of quiet contemplation. There might have been a few people with guarded looks, but as for what was beyond those guarded looks, Erick could not say.

Lingxing, maybe because she was the eldest here and because she was the one to ask, answered, “Chelation will be created; of that there is no doubt. The children and elders of Terror Peaks will be accounted for, but as for what that accounting will look like, only Phagar knows that future. We had tried carers and missionaries for those children who refused to [Teleport] to Songli, but those missions failed when those children killed our missionaries. We are trying a new plan of dropping off supplies for known groups of kids, which seems to be working for now, but there will undoubtedly be changes with that plan as our understanding of the problem improves.

“But we will not leave the true threat of Terror Peaks to regrow, ever again, so, unfortunately, some hard lines might need to be taken for some extreme cases.

“For Terror Peaks will regrow if we allow half-measures. They were zealots, all of them. The reasons for this war might be what we have told you already, Erick, but which we are not sure you have heard: Terror Peaks was becoming socially unstable. In enacting war with us, they sought to cull themselves to a more manageable population, and to drag the rest of Nelboor to war with us, if they could. This war was an opportunity for them to better control their own people, but when they struck at us, and you were here as well, they struck at two dragons when they meant to strike at one.

“Nelboor and Veird is better off for them being scoured so thoroughly. We are all better off for the justice that your own Imaging has allowed Songli to enact across our little part of the world, and we will not allow such opportunity to disappear.

“As for the soul spears: We have some of these soul spears, as they were used against us as well as they were used against you. We seek to discover where these came from, as well. Whatever might have happened, Patriarch Xangu escaped to the Underworld with the answers we all desire to have. We have already sent enforcers to find the man, but the Underworld is vast. We can only hope they find Xangu before he resurfaces with a second army at his back.”

Erick took in her words, and he diplomatically said, “I thank you for your words, and look forward to accompanying actions. And you are right; I do not accept that answer for this war. But I will talk to you in private about this, if I may.”

Lingxing graciously said, “We will always appreciate your company. Call on Void Song in your darkest days, or in your brightest joys, and we will be there.”

Tipanri said, “Severing Crescent will always welcome you into our halls, either here in Holorulo, or in our residences and fields of Alaralti.”

Hangzi said, “Devouring Nightmare recognizes Archmage Erick Flatt as a valued friend. We three High Clans would like to call upon you and yours for a private dinner in a few days, here in Holorulo, where we can discuss details of minor and major importance to the realm.”

Erick said, “I accept your invitation.” He said, “I was in the middle of… Something, when I collapsed. Is there anything that you would wish for me to continue? I believe I was raining on some lands of Alaralti.”

Tipanri smiled softly, then said, “You have been of great help, but we are past the worst of it. We can take it from here, Archmage Flatt.”

Erick got the distinct impression that he was being dismissed. So he took the offered out, and after a nod from him and a returning nod from Lingxing, Tipanri, and Hangzi, he turned around and headed back down the ramp. Behind him, people started talking to each other once again, though some of those in that room never stopped; they had just kept it quiet with their words being those of the telepathic kind.

Also! Erick didn’t buy for one second that Terror Peaks had done this war as an extension of a ‘population control’ thing.

That was just too far-fetched, but it was an idea that seemed to be gaining traction. None of the higher-ups had openly spouted that claim until just now. Until Lingxing’s words in that room, the only ones to really speak of that horrific reasoning had been the underlings, and some middle-manager types here and there.

Lotta loremasters claimed that Terror Peaks used this war to control the population of its citizens, though, so maybe that’s where this line of thinking was coming from. It didn’t make much sense to Erick.

Anyway.

It was time to go back to bed. Time to take another nap.

On the way out, crossing the bridge back to his rooms, he asked, “Do you guys believe that this was a ‘population control’ thing?”

Teressa said, “The majority of the red army expected to get away, I think, so Lingxing’s words were… True, but only in a certain sense.”

Poi hummed, noncommittal but also disappointed in some way.

Jane said, “But they knew dad could find them. Didn’t they?”

Poi spoke up, “That’s easy to explain. They were delusional. They believed what they wanted to believe. They didn’t believe what they had been told that Erick could do.”

“But a whole society that believed incorrectly?” Erick asked.

And the second he asked, he thought of climate change deniers and the people in power who empowered those incorrect beliefs.

Poi added to Erick’s little revelation, saying, “You’re asking me to distill the movements of an entire society down to a series of easy-to-understand events.”

“Okay. Well. Yes; that question was unfair of me.”

“I can do it, though.” Poi said, “This war was because the people in charge made it happen.”

Teressa laughed, once; it was not a happy laugh. Erick shared her sentiment. Jane just frowned.

Erick said, “There’s probably a dozen reasons for war, and the people in charge of Terror Peaks probably used all of them to get this to happen, as well as twisting truths in to lies. But maybe someday, someone will write a history book about this and I can find out all about it, then. Rozeta gives out points for history books, right?”

Teressa’s face bunched up.

Poi said, “Yes. But that’s a whole thing.”

Erick waved him off, “I’m tired right now. We can talk about that later.”

Jane asked, “Are you going to write down anything? A primary source for those historians?”

“… Oh.” Erick said, “Maybe I should.”

- - - -

Erick did not write.

He remade the spellwork around the room, and then crashed and didn’t wake up for dinner.

In his dreams, he was a butcher, and the meat was people.

- - - -

Erick woke drenched in sweat and breathing hard. Ophiel twittered on the headboard, his many eyes looking down at Erick, as his body softly glowed like a nightlight in the darkened room. Erick sighed, blinking long. Then he sat up and gazed across the room, to the other nightlight; the water clock sitting in the corner. The clock was an ostentatious work of swirling metal, with two pools for water, several connected chambers that were out of sight, and a [Gravity Ward] that kept the water moving properly. Erick liked the simpler ones, but this one looked like it kept good time.

Daylight was hours away, but he was awake now.

A [Cleanse] got rid of the smell of his night sweat, but not the wetness. Erick got up and left the damp behind, and then he discarded his shirt and pants, and just stood there, naked, allowing himself to air dry, taking his time to get redressed. He looked down at his stomach, and noticed that he had lost more weight. With a glance through Ophiel’s eyes, he saw himself.

Ah. He was pretty damn skinny at the moment.

He was starting to like how he looked, but that was before Shadow’s Feast… Before all this shit. He wasn’t muscular like he had been when he was Jane’s age, but he was getting there. Stats seemed to help guide the body into certain shapes, but if you didn’t work and grow into your Strength, usually through exercise and fighting of some sort, then that Strength didn’t really show.

Erick had let himself get skinny, and it had happened when he wasn’t watching. This last week of bad food had drained him, but it had only been the latest in a long line of improper self care.

Ha. ‘Self care’. When there was a war on. What sort of messed up outlook was that? There were people out there right now that could use any care at all, and here he was—

Erick went to his clothes and put on something simple, and then he glanced around through the light, and with his mana sense, to see who was awake. No one was awake. Poi and Teressa were asleep in their rooms. Jane was asleep on the couch in the living room, having passed out while reading.

Erick worked through the paranoia that rapidly came with witnessing such a situation. Four days ago, he had also seen everyone in the household asleep at the same time. He had almost had a meltdown at being the only one awake. He didn’t wake anyone back then, either. He just checked them to ensure they were okay.

A subtle [Cleanse] on everyone didn’t disturb their sleep, via erasing the poisons that could have put them to sleep. No one had any magic active on them that wasn’t supposed to be there. Ophiels were watching over everyone and Ophiel seemed perfectly at ease. The spellwork defenses had never been breached.

Everyone was perfectly fine.

Erick worked through his paranoia, and discarded it.

Then he went into the living room, passing by sleeping Jane, and then to the kitchen. It was a tiny kitchen, meant more for the convenience of the guards and servants of the people staying in the room, than for the actual person of interest staying here. There was still room enough to cook something, though. But what to make? Mmm…

Oh! And since it was so early!

Ohh!

Erick decided he wanted deep fried donuts.

Or. No! Cronuts. And with magic, it would be easy to laminate the butter into the dough. He had tried once, and failed, but he could try again. Ohhhh! This was going to be good. Erick smiled, and started fishing out some supplies from the cold stora—

Erick collapsed to his knees, then laid himself out upon the cold floor, tears streaming.

There weren’t any supplies to make donuts.

- - - -

Jane startled awake when something made noise in the kitchen. She glanced over through the shadows—

Jane bolted upright and rushed over, softly saying, “Dad. Dad. What’s wrong? What’s wrong?” She touched his shoulder as he sobbed, and then he seemed to realize there was another person there, so he shut down his sobbing. And then he looked up, and saw Jane.

Her father blinked out tears, and pushed away, getting up as he said, “I’m good. It’s—” He snorted a laugh, and gestured at the cold box like it had offended him. “There’s no—” He turned away, saying, “I’m fine. I was just having a moment.”

Jane let him have his moment, but her heart ached to see him like this. So she asked, “Did you come in here for dinner? I had them make you some fried boneless chicken and rice and that sauce I heard you liked.” She went to the storage, and yup, her father’s dinner was still sitting down there under [Cold Preservation Ward]s. Not much else was in there, though; some wines, some smaller deserts— “Oh. Did you want to make breakfast?”

Erick sobbed once, but said nothing. He was still facing away.

“Hard to get anything around here without talking to a servant first.” Jane went to him and hugged him from behind. His bones unexpectedly poked her when she laid her head upon his shoulder. She adjusted, and tried a light joke, “You can’t be skipping meals, dad. You’re wasting away to skin and bones.”

Her father cried at that, and Jane had no idea why.

And then Jane felt water in her own eyes, and a terrible hole opened up in her own heart. She cried a little, too. She couldn’t really help him through this. All she could do was be there for him. She said, “I’m sorry.”

Erick kept turned away.

After minutes, her father stopped sobbing. Jane had already stopped a while ago.

Jane let him go, and stepped back, asking, “What did you want for breakfast?”

Erick breathed in, deep, and sighed. He turned to her, red-faced, and with a sad smile. “I just wanted to make some cronuts.”

Jane laughed once, loud, then again, softer. Erick smiled.

Jane said, “Well we need a fuck-ton more stuff than what’s in that larder, don’t we.”

Erick shook his head, saying, “I’ll have some of that chicken and rice, first, though. It looks good.”

“It was good!” Jane said, “They got some good cooks here. Probably Cooks, and all of them with Perfect Meal, too.” She tapped him on the chest, saying, “And the last time you tried to make those funky donuts you started a fire!”

Erick laughed. “That was back on Earth! I haven’t tried to make any desserts that complicated here on Veird. Not yet, anyway.”

Jane gestured to the left of the door to their suite, saying, “We got appointed servants just that way, and down a hidden staircase. They’ll get you anything you want.”

Erick wiped his face and cast a [Cleanse], then said, “I think I shall.”

Jane went to the larder again, and pulled out Erick’s dinner, saying, “Then I’ll heat this up for you.”

Erick smiled as he walked out of the kitchen, saying, “Thank you.”

“Love you, dad.”

“I love you, too.”

Jane watched her father head toward the door. While he did that, she placed his dishes on the living room table, under a [Heat Ward]. And then she waited for him to come back.

A minute wait turned to two.

Oh gods. Could he have run away?

Jane felt a spike of panic and went to go find—

Her father came walking up the stairs that lead into the clan mountain, waving to the people down below, saying, “No need to rush yourself, but thank you.”

The four people down below, each of them wearing very nice peasant clothing, were bowing to him with equal parts reverence and fear. Jane supposed that was okay. With a twist of light, her father activated the mechanics of the stairwell, and shut it behind him, waving one last time.

Jane smirked, saying, “Your food is hot.”

“Oh yeah. Thank you.” Erick said, “They just wanted to thank me a bit more than I was ready for.”

“You deserve to be thanked, but what about your cronut ingredients?”

Erick happily announced, “We’ll have supplies in the hour. But for now, that fried chicken and rice.”

Jane smiled.

- - - -

The supplies for the cronuts arrived within the hour, a bit before sunup, just in time for Erick to get to work. Making dough was easy enough; he had been making it from scratch with dried yeast packets, wrapped in paper, since his second month of Veird. Making sweet dough was as easy as adding sugar and a few other ingredients. When that was done, he allowed the dough to proof once, getting some of the rest of his supplies ready in the meantime, then he went back to the dough to turn it into pastry.

Kiri had made pastry dough once, and the girls at ‘And Dessert!’ had some good pastry selections, but mostly, pastries were not a normal thing. Erick had only done this once before, but that had not turned out well. This time would be better.

Erick rolled out the dough into a nice square, then layered cold butter on the square, keeping everything nice and chilled inside a [Cold Ward]. Dough folded over dough, then hard light rolled it out again. Erick turned the dough, added more butter, and folded it over itself, into the center, then rolled it out again. He turned the dough, folded without extra butter this time, and rolled it out again.

He rolled out the dough until it was a 2 centimeter thickness sheet, about 60 centimeters by 60 centimeters wide. Then he left it in the [Cold Ward], and went to the oil.

A [Heat Ward] went around the vat of cooking oil to kickstart the heat, while a twist of the knob on the stove turned on [Prestidigitation] flames, to lick at the bottom of the vat to bring it up to proper frying temperature.

On the other side of the kitchen, Erick had a sugar and cinnamon station ready for the hot cronuts. He was surprised that cinnamon was available here, but apparently Lingxing liked all of Erick’s inventions, and all of them were growing here and there in various gardens and such, with some more popular than others. Cinnamon was slightly popular, but nowhere near the level of tarip or the various fruits that people usually used to flavor their desserts.

As the first rays of morning sunlight streamed in from the eastern windows, brightening the rooms with golden light, Erick cut the first cronut out of the pastry sheet, and dumped the first donut into the hot oil. It sizzled up and filled the air with the smell of baked goods.

And then it fell apart, the layers stripped from each other—

“No no no!” Erick said, “Shit! How the fuck—”

He fished out the separated cronut from the bubbling oil.

“Oh.” Erick looked to his cronuts. “You need to proof again, outside of the cold.” Erick canceled the [Cold Ward] and turned off the [Heat Ward] on the oil, but he left the stove at a low simmer. “You can stay a little hot, while I cut out these guys.”

Erick cut out all the cronuts he wanted, and then he sliced up the remains into appropriately sized pieces. All of those went onto metal trays to wait in the warmth of the room, to proof again.

Half an hour later, the sun was up and the pastry had doubled in size. They looked much better after another proofing, and this time, when they went into the oil, they fluffed up; perfect.

The hot pastries all went for a cinnamon sugar coating, but only half of them got glazed.

Erick held one in front of him, imagining how good it was. And then he took a bite.

Crunchy! Chewy! Flaky, too! It was fried bread and sugar and cinnamon; what was not to like?

According to the rest of the judges, they were pretty great, just as he knew they would be.

Jane ate her third one, saying, “Pretty good, dad.”

Teressa was on her fifth, saying, “These are great.”

“That’s a lot of sugar.” Poi said, “You always have way too much sugar in your breakfast foods, Erick. I enjoy some cactus syrup on my pancakes as well as the next guy, but this? This is pure sugar.”

“Don’t forget the butter and oil, Poi,” Teressa said.

Erick laughed. “And that’s what makes it breakfast!”

Erick had the flashing realization that he shouldn’t be having fun right now. He should be sorry for the people he killed. He should be working with Ophiel to fix the problems out there. How could he have wasted precious hours to make these stupid fucking cronuts? He could have been out there, saving more lives! Healing more people with Ophiel!

And then the problems of vulnerability seeped into the forefront.

He had been thinking a lot about the vulnerability of all of that. To solve this, he could turn himself to light and make himself small like Ophiel, and hunker down with [Animadversion], while Ophiel went out and expanded to full sunform, to touch people with [Greater Treat Wounds] as he moved and helped to restore buildings. Erick could be growing more crops for people, right this minute.

But—

Ah. Fuck.

Yggdrasil…

Yggdrasil couldn’t make himself small. A soul spear attack on Ophiel would be a soul spear attack on Yggdrasil as well. Dammit.

Well. He could still help people the hard way.

But instead he was eating a breakfast that had taken him three hours to make.

The pastry felt like nothing inside his mouth, but he chewed and swallowed anyway, as he tried to make the dark thoughts go away.

He knew enough about what was happening to recognize the symptoms of PTSD; he had helped some veterans get through some of this stuff back home, though admittedly, he mostly helped those people by moving them on to other social workers who could help them better than Erick could.

Erick grabbed one of the donut holes, and ate half of it, as he listened to the conversation happening all around him, and tried not to think about how everyone here could be dead at any random time. Someone could just [Teleport] in nearby and [Ward Destruction] all of his defenses and...

For the first time, Erick thought that Melemizargo’s [Teleport Lock] was a good idea.

[Teleport] should not be in the Open Script.

If only the monsters weren’t so dangerous, and the people weren’t so distant from each other, and society wasn’t so fragile, and…

If people didn’t have [Teleport], then this war never would have happened.

[Gate] should be harder to get, too. 10 points? Bah! Terrible. Too easy!

But on the flip side…

Without [Teleport] being in the Open Script, you’d have people trying to go to war in the traditional manner, but then some competent caster on one side would be able to assassinate whoever they want, because they’re the only ones with [Teleport]. And archmages like Erick, or Syllea or— Or especially Tenebrae! If an archmage went bad— Tenebrae would be practically unassailable by the common man. He's up there in a flying, hiding castle! Impossible to find, for who’s gonna go looking for that thing? It’d take a month of searching the mountains west of the Firemaw, and even if you got close to his castle, you’d never know it, for Tenebrae would just move the castle.

Hmm.

There was no easy answer to this [Teleport]ing war problem, was there? If you take [Teleport] away, you remove the ability for nations to connect with one another, and to fight the monsters where they need to be fought, and to escape when someone comes committing war against them.

So that’s not gonna work.

The Void Song of the Singers of Songli was a great sidestep to that issue, by simply multiplying the mana cost of [Teleport] from 250 per person, to something like 100,000 mana per person, to deny the use of the spell inside the city. Erick wasn’t exactly sure of the cost, for he had not done experiments under the Void Song himself and what he had overheard was hearsay, but he had gathered that the cost was high up there.

But then the Singers had been targeted and killed, and the Void Song went down, and then everything went to shit.

But sidestepping the issue of everyone-having-[Teleport] was a good solution; the Singers just hadn’t done enough.

Erick circled back to an old idea. His [Renew] spell.

He added another idea to it, though.

[Anti-Teleport Ward]. It would be like the rune warding that people put up to prevent [Teleport]s in a large area, but instead of requiring runes and clunky mana oils, he’d make the spell itself, and then link it to a [Renew] spell…

Which he had a new idea for.

His new idea came from a spell he had just made.

--

Draining Void, instant, close range, 500 mana

Drain WIL Health and Mana per second from every target in a large area. Lasts 24 hours. Lasts longer based on resources drained.

--

[Draining Void] drained Health and Mana, with the duration for the spell increasing based on resources drained. How large of an increase? Erick wasn’t sure. He’d need to do some experiments on that one.

But a better experiment would be to make one of these that just drained mana, and then used that mana to maintain other connected spellwork.

But...

Was this possible?

It was magic, so it was probably possible.

This would be an easy way to keep a [Gate] running, too. No need to enchant the spell into a physical gate, either, which was great, because Erick was rather terrible at enchanting. He could just cast the [Gate] itself, and then link it to a mana-draining [Ward] which would keep the [Gate] open and active—

Maybe not always open and active.

The [Gate] would likely need to enter a period of dormancy, sometimes, but then it would open when enough resources had been drained from the people wishing to operate the [Gate].

Would that work? Did [Gate] have a dormant part of the spell?

Erick had seen a copy of the spell in Tenebrae’s notes, and it was one of those spells that said little, but meant a lot. It was something like: ‘1000 mana, connect two places.’ Very simple description.

Erick pondered as he ate breakfast.

… Was this a valid idea?

Erick had another cronut, and this time it tasted better.

It was much easier to think of magic than it was to deal with death and destruction.

Ignoring his trauma was likely not a healthy coping mechanism, but oh well! He had too much shit to do to talk to a proper therapist!

Poi looked over to him, and frowned a little.

Erick pushed the pile of cronuts at the Mind Mage, saying, “You put on a brave front, but I can tell you love these.”

Poi reluctantly took another.

- - - -

Erick was feeling mentally terrible and likely a bit unstable, no doubt about that, but he was ready and willing to put his mind beyond the problems of right now. Best way to get over a problem was to make more for yourself, right?

Er.

No.

That wasn’t right.

Erick was just looking to expand his magical horizons. That’s it. He went with that one, and sent out a message to Ari, ‘Hello. I wa—’

Instant rejection, for a dozen points of False Damage. Erick had barely made it through the first three words. He felt like the denial of telepathy would have hurt a lot more if he wasn’t so well defended from all sorts of damage. Maybe she was busy? Erick went to go find Poi in the next room, and ask him about all that.

After a moment of checking, Poi said, “She’s with a client. She’s clearing that up and will be able to speak afterward about the soul spears and Raidu. Maybe an hour.”

Erick smiled. “Excellent.” And then, because he was curious, he asked, “How do you know all that when all I got was a straight-up denial?”

“Mind Mage secrets,” Poi said, with his own smile.

“Bah!” Erick added, “And oh yeah. That reminds me. I’m thinking of asking Hangzi and the rest to let me into their books on magic. How do you think that would go over?”

“They’ll politely deny an open-ended request, but if you had something specific, they might approve.”

“That’s what I figured, too.”

- - - -

Ari showed up at Erick’s rooms wearing soft yellow robes, fit for a lady of Holorulo’s Court; which she was, now, apparently.

Erick welcomed her into his temporary house, wearing comfortable clothes. He felt a bit embarrassed about that, actually, but it was whatever. He received her in the sunroom, facing south. Beyond the large windows, the beauty of Holorulo’s rural land stretched out to the green horizon.

Erick poured Ari tea, saying, “Thank you for coming, Ari. I know you must be rather busy.”

“Thank you for the invitation.” Ari sipped her tea, then said, “Good blend.”

“I got it from a store that is now gone. Oh, the store is still there; someone [Mend]ed it back to wholeness. But the people are gone.”

“As it is everywhere. Those whom Terror Peaks did not kill are still affected by the pain of all the rest, for that dead nation also targeted our markets and our storage houses.” Ari said, “A cruel attack.”

Erick had a moment of profound melancholy, but he pushed it away as he sipped his own tea. He did not remove the emotion from his face fast enough to go unnoticed, though.

Ari asked, “I don’t mean to be forward, but I must know if you are experiencing any side effects of the healing. You shouldn’t be, and while I ask for your forgiveness for gazing upon your soul, you seem to be intact. Unfortunately, untoward soul issues do happen even when we don’t expect them to happen.”

Erick gently smiled for Ari’s concern, but it was misplaced. “Thank you for looking out for me, but I seem fine. Just some problems with killing people, leaving mental scars. I don’t appreciate the necessity of it, but I understand the need.”

Ari arched an eyebrow. “You didn’t call me here to see about your soul?”

“Ah. No? No, I did not.” Erick said, “I asked after you to discuss a few different magics. The soul spear, for one. A few other smaller, or perhaps larger magics; I’m unsure at the moment.” He added, “And to ask you what you saw and what you think has happened to the people I Blessed. I understand you’re overseeing much of that.”

Ari nodded, and set down her tea cup. “Let us tackle the last concern, first, as it is the easiest for me to discuss.” She said, “The people you Blessed have been tattooed to remove their Mana and Health, but other than that, they are under watch in a decently nice temporary prison. They’re being questioned, of course. Some people wish that we would question them with more extreme means, but your request for them had been honored. We are showing them leniency, to allow them to be better than who they were.

“Many of them have renounced who they were. Some have not. The assassin who had been wrapped around the soul spear, Beniza Wounder, has been extremely vocal about renouncing who she was. Her story is similar to most. Beniza claims to have had the part of her that saw other people as people broken and removed from her soul, and now that part is intact again, she sees that she has done wrong.”

Erick frowned. Unsure, he asked, “They did that to their people? Removed parts of their souls?”

Ari shook her head. “Know that Beniza believes what she is saying, but I do not. It is easier for her to believe that something had been magically done to her to make her an assassin, than to instead believe the truth; that she had been groomed from a young age using perfectly mundane techniques to kill the parts of her that see other people as people, in order to turn her into who she is.” Ari said, “She still believes in Terror Peaks. She still believes in the mother who raised her and subjected her to life inside of a tank, where her brothers and sisters physically cut her down so that their mother could build them up again. But under your Blessing she has gained ire for the failures of Terror Peak’s middle clansmen; the people who decided that they needed to go to war. If we let her go, she would likely try to seek out Patriarch Xangu and Elders and otherwise, to form back up into their cell-based society, whereupon she would try to undo the damage that the middle clansmen did to their society.

“And then the cycle of Terror Peaks falling back to war would repeat in 40 years.

“Though the specifics are different, this is how Terror Peaks operates. We have no reason to believe that allowing her or any of them to do as they wish, will actually end up doing good in the long run.”

Erick frowned. “The Blessing didn’t do anything for her, then?”

“She repents for every person she has ever killed, but she has no sympathy at all for monsters. Beniza thoroughly believes in the idea of Terror Peaks.” Ari said, “Most of those you Blessed are the same, with the most notable exception being Raidu. His self-execution was far beyond the norm.”

Erick asked, “How did Raidu get that block on his soul, anyway?” He asked, “Have you encountered any soul magics like it upon anyone else?”

Ari frowned a tiny bit. “I don’t mean to be rude, but how much do you know of Soul Magic? Your Blessing is a work of art, and you managed to come back to yourself with a simple ease that most people are not capable of achieving, but this question… ‘Get that block on his soul’. The answer is that he was prepared against you, specifically. He said ‘no’.” Ari said, “But I managed to tap his soul in a certain way, to break loose his concentration, thus allowing your Blessing to take hold.”

“A simple ‘no’, huh.” Erick said, “A part of me considered that it might have been a divine protection from a Converter Angel.” Erick said, “Though I made the Blessing, it was Koyabez who helped put it into the Crystal Star, so I figured it was a similar divine source that might have blocked it.”

“Ah. I see.” Ari said, “When you sent out those images of what the Conversion looked like, I was one of the people to scan and root out that problem over here. We only had a few people affected, though, thankfully, and rather minimally, at that.” She said, “The High Clans sent a formal desist request to the angels, and the next day, all of those people so affected were suddenly freed. None of them remembered being affected.”

Erick sat up straight. “The Converter Angel removed their conversion? And because you asked?” He said, “Pardon my ignorance, but that seems suspect.”

Ari smiled, then said, “This surprises you, but it should not. Songli is a society that firmly believes in neutrality in the Quiet War.” She lost her smile, then shrugged, and said, “We’re always dealing with some complicated Quiet War angle, but when those factors become apparent, a quick missive to the Angelic Host or the Demon King usually clears up any large-scale nonsense. On the smaller scale, something untoward is always happening with some angel or some demon here or there.

“But almost all of us have parents or grandparents on one side or another of that Grand War and none of us wish for a civil war of any kind. Events of that sort that seem to lead in those directions are quickly quashed.” She frowned. “But now that Koyabez’s temples are destroyed… and all those priests are gone.” Her face scrunched. “We’ll have to keep an official eye on that situation more than we usually would.”

Erick was surprised. He said as much, “That’s… very unexpected.”

Ari said, “But back to Raidu’s protection:”

Erick nodded, and listened.

Ari continued, “It is possible that he had had some divine protections, but I do not believe he had any. But! There are certain things upon the soul that are easy to see when it comes to detecting Soul Magic, and others that are near impossible.” Ari asked, “How much do you know of the soul? Of blessings and curses?”

Erick realized that this could be a very large talk, but he also didn’t want to reveal everything he knew, so he said, “The main thing is the mind-body-soul trinity. Memories are contained in the mind, which is in the body, but the body is also in the physical, which is in the manasphere as the soul, and the soul also contains the memories. Or maybe just a copy of the memories? I’m not too clear on that. Apparently, there’s a mind-body-aura-soul philosophy over here, but I’m still not sure what that’s about.” Erick said, “As for magics and Status and Stats: All of that is contained inside the soul, which then influences the physical and the mana.

“All of the soul is made of soulstuff, which until recently I had no idea that any parts of the soul were truly separate from any others. I thought it was one big messy soup.

“This soulstuff can be tainted or heightened or whatever you want to call it, in order to create curses and blessings.

“It is this act of self creation, inside the soul of the caster, which makes a blessing or a curse, which is then shared with others in order to bless or curse them.”

Erick finished, and Ari blinked.

She said, “That is perhaps the most succinct description of the bless/curse process that I have ever heard. People usually try to obfuscate these things so that lay people don’t hurt themselves trying something beyond their station.”

“I’m the only layperson here.”

Ari nodded, then said, “We will stay away from the mind-body-aura-soul versus the mind-body-soul discussion, and focus on the soul itself. The soul is what you are, at your core. This core is widely believed to contain two densities. The exterior soul, the Shroud, is rather unimportant to this discussion, as it is the part of you that has yet to become the real you. Soul spells must punch through this layer in order to affect the inner soul, but in the end, the Shroud doesn’t really matter.

“The Shroud does matter in one specific case: By disrupting the Shroud, and then destroying the physical mind, and then healing the physical mind, one can make a person forget recent events. This might have repercussions for this discussion, or it might not.

“I will explain.

“The inner soul is where your long-term self is contained. This is where you have correctly stated that the souls and stats are stored, along with long term memories and otherwise. But you are slightly incorrect in stating that memories are stored in the soul. What is going on there, is that the mana in your body remembers itself based on the mind.

“This is why some people —not many!— can sometimes lose their heads, and if they’re healed fast enough, and well enough, their heads can come back, and they’re fine. This is because the memory in the mana did not have a chance to dissipate.

“Think of it as a [Mend] replacing a broken teacup, and since that teacup is back, it can once again be filled with tea and enjoyed, which will then continue adding into the mana history of the item. In time, it will be as though the break never happened. But if you break that teacup as it is holding tea, like breaking the short-term Shroud of the soul, that tea, that Shroud, will go away, and never come back. It is lost to the memory of the item.

“I see you understand. And yes, it is a large concept, but also the simplest way to destroy the short term memories of a person.

“And now, back to Raidu’s unusual resistance to your Blessing.

“… And before we get to that, we must discuss curses and Curses; both the kind cast by Hedge Witches and the big ones, cast by those such as the Shade who was the Witch.”

In the other room, Teressa perked up.

Ari continued, “Most of the soul is hidden from the viewer, as you have no doubt figured out. One of the main hidden things is the mana pool of a person, but all together, the soul is 95% hidden from mortals. Gods have easier access, but we are not gods.

“Anyway. In that 5% of visibility, small curses are easy to see upon the soul.

“Small curses are restrictions and crushing force and sequestering and dimming. You can spot smaller curses all throughout all levels of the soul, both the inner soul, and the outer soul, but short-term combat curses mostly linger in the outer soul, where they seep in and attempt to poison the inner soul.

“If a small curse is left alone for long enough, sometimes they can become major Curses, but this usually only happens when someone doesn’t realize they have been cursed. Curse slimes are particularly good at this level of cursing.

“Thankfully, I heard that those have mostly been eradicated, so we’re all happy about that.

“Anyway. Most Curses I end up removing start off as curses; as bunching and squeezing of the soul. Unnatural eddies that betray blocks in the soul.

“That’s how to spot a curse, and a Curse. The deeper it is, the larger the effect, the easier the Curse is to see.

“And now we get to Blessings.

“Blessings are magnifications. They are empowerment. They are brightenings. Smaller blessings are easy to see, for they are like someone has taken a lens to the soul, to make a small part bigger, or to make it more pronounced. Some blessings deepen the density of a specific part of the soul. Small blessings, when left alone and helped along by the person so affected, can sometimes transform into larger Blessings.

“And then there are the Blessings that start off large.

“Your Blessing of Empathy is a large Blessing, and it creates a magnification upon the entire soul. Your Blessing works from the Inner soul to even affect the Shroud, pointing the soul in a direction of growth and connection with other people. And then there is the secondary effect. When someone so Blessed does harm, it is as though their whole soul lights up. Those internal connections made to others in the mind of the Blessed soul are magnified to an overwhelming point.

“And now for Raidu’s unusual reaction:

“I watched as that man basically Cursed himself, strangling the footholds of the Blessing you gave him, until I undid his self-Curse with minor blessings, whereupon your Blessing took hold like a detonation of white light upon his red soul.” Ari said, “Your Blessing soaked into the man, becoming a part of him, to then fade into the background of red that was Raidu. And then it magnified. His entire soul lit up like a red beacon. He was still in the act of committing harm with his words, which were already out there, and he couldn’t stop what he had done, so he took his own life to end the pain. That is what I believe happened.” Ari said, “I saw no other magnifications upon his soul. If anything, he had been cursed slightly, though it is hard to tell the difference between a curse and a denial of outside interference, sometimes.

“Both Blessings and Curses can be denied if the will is strong enough, but usually some of that magic sticks even if a person resists it. Strangely enough, smaller curses and large Blessings both usually get through that resistance. This is the only reason why I think it might be slightly possible that Raidu was cursed to resist your Blessing, as your Blessing was well known even all the way over here on the other side of Veird.”

Erick tried to reconcile Ari’s words against what he already knew. It all sounded correct. And that part about the memories and the body! That answered so many questions about how orcols were able to lose their heads sometimes!

But it opened up a lot more.

Was Erick his soul, which seemed like a recording in the mana, or was he his body, which was… well, his body. And his body had already been destroyed by that soul spear.

Was Erick still Erick?

… Teressa was still Teressa. So…

Erick was still Erick.

He gave a small sigh of relief. No existential crisis today, thank you very much!

Erick came back to himself, and moved right along, asking, “I heard about a Court Necromancer that would summon the souls of the dead for final farewells and questioning. Could we call Raidu back for questioning?”

Ari said, “He was already summoned back into his own corpse by Patriarch Hangzi of Devouring Nightmare.”

Erick had wondered if they had done that. But since Ari didn’t lead with that, and based on what she hadn’t yet explained...

Erick concluded, “He has no memory of anything important.”

No one knew anything important, it seemed. Not a single assassin of the entire group had given Erick any answers, but then again, he hadn’t really questioned any of them himself… Maybe he should.

Ari nodded. “Even though Raidu has been summoned into his own body, he is missing memories that he should have had, thus my earlier explanation of the mind-body-soul connection. This phenomenon is rather normal in specific instances for many of the normal returned, as questioning the normal dead about such things as ‘what did you eat last week on firstday?’ will almost always result in confusion. But certain things he should know, such as the reasons for the war. And yet, he does not know anything besides the broad strokes. He doesn’t even know why he said all of those words he said when you confronted him in the sky over Terror Peaks. One thing that he should know, for sure, is why he was calling you a Wizard. As you can imagine, we did ask him that, specifically.”

Erick frowned, and said, “When he was alive, he told me that the creation of new Basic Tier spellwork was Wizardry.”

“Which is fundamentally wrong, and he even knows this, as we questioned him about this, also specifically. Something has been done to him, and he doesn’t know what. The most telling proof that something was done, is that Raidu is missing the conviction he had in life to stop your Blessing from working.” Ari said, “And so, right now, he is fully immersed in his Blessing. He knows he caused the destruction of his society, which is normally against monsters, by foolishly going up against the man who killed the biggest monsters in this world, and he has no idea why he would do such a thing.

“He is baffled at his own actions.

“Which… is not a phenomenon that I am unfamiliar with.

“This ‘objectivity of death’ is a known phenomenon, which makes ghosts baffled at their actions in life, but your Blessing has made that objectivity highly apparent. And so, he repents the pain he caused and is working with us to figure out what happened, but it is difficult with his missing memories. Added to that, simply being summoned is… inordinately painful for ghosts like him. Most summonings of normal people are cut short, for the return to life brings pain far beyond the physical, but Raidu’s pain is… much more than physical.”

She had said the word ‘normal’ way too many times for it to not mean something. It caught Erick off guard at first, but it shouldn’t have. Humans could become angels after they died, if they died pledged to Celes, while incani naturally became demons upon death, their souls automatically transferring to Hell. Humans could actually go to any afterlife. Though Erick had stayed away from much of that theology of Veird, it was hard to not pick up on some stray facts here and there.

Erick still wasn’t sure what happened to demis, though. From the various funerals he had surreptitiously witnessed, he imagined that they could go either way, depending on the person. Or depending on the family which had gone before.

But as for Raidu… Erick had assumed him as some angel, or something, and angels were certainly not ‘normal summons’.

Erick asked, “So Raidu did not ascend to become an angel? He was a normal person?”

Ari paused, then said, “Ah. I see the misunderstanding.” She elaborated, “Terror Peaks, historically, has never sided with the angels, because the war against the monsters was much more important to them than the Forever War. This did not stop Terror Peaks from being racist against anyone non-human; you no doubt saw their cities were full of humans and little else. Even with such a population, though, last I heard, they had ties to both Hell and Celes. Humans can go either way upon death, after all.”

Erick listened, feeling that Ari wasn’t quite getting what he was putting down.

He said, “This is my worry, Ari: Terror Peaks was just the start of a larger war. A war where everyone will fight. A world war. A Converter Angel was already summoned to Veird, but now that her network has been destroyed, she’s hanging out on Celes, waiting for the right moment to come back.” Erick said, “The Celestial Host is planning for the long term, and I fear that this action by Terror Peaks is just one of the opening moves.”

Ari went from listening, to quiet dread, to acceptance.

She said, “I believe they already did much of their questioning in that particular direction, but I will have them try again. Give me a moment.”

Erick nodded.

Ari sent out a tendril of thought.

After a minute, and a few facial expressions, she disconnected from her call, and said, “They had to [Stasis] Raidu’s ghost in order to halt soul degradation, but your direction of questioning has been added to the docket.”

“Thank you.”

Half of him wanted to know how they would question a ghost. The other half didn’t care. That man had been a bad faith actor in life, and he was likely a bad faith actor in death.

Erick asked, “Can ghosts lie? Truthstones shouldn’t work on the mindless dead, should they?” Erick looked to Poi, standing in the corner.

Poi shook his head; no.

“There are Soul Magic ways of telling truth from lies, but it is right to be concerned, if we are indeed walking through angelic plots.” Ari said, “Since you have brought up this idea of him being an angelic actor, we won’t be allowing his soul to return to the mana. When he dies, we will sunder his soul as befits a man of his nature. Before that ultimate End, we will inform him as much, to see how he reacts to knowing he won’t go on to whatever End he has planned.”

For a brief moment, Erick was appalled.

Sundering?

But.

Even the Headmaster wouldn’t sunder a soul. He called it the worst punishment that was possible to inflict on a person. But also, sundering souls was what gods did to make mana; apparently it was painless for them to do it…

Erick had a lot of sudden, overwhelming emotions about the sundering of Raidu’s soul. Mostly, recoiling dread. But also perverse joy.

He ignored those emotions, for now.

Erick moved on, asking, “Have you been able to discover anything about the soul spear?”

Ari seemed glad for the change of topic, possibly because she was worried over how he would react to hearing about the proposed sundering of Raidu.

She moved right alongside Erick, saying, “Those spears are [Duplicate]d in some way, as you suspected.” Ari said, “We’ve taken apart two of them and all but confirmed that hypothesis. I don’t want to alarm you, but when this fact was discovered, the Headmaster was informed, as necessitated by treaties we already have with Oceanside. The Headmaster is sending out Elites to uncover whatever happened there.”

Who would the Headmaster send? Someone Erick knew?

Erick said, “I suspect that the spear’s base object is either [Duplicate]d and then each one was enchanted individually, which is the medium-worrying idea, or maybe there was an artifact in Ar’Kendrithyst that copied artifacts completely, which is the high-grade worry.”

Ari startled, slightly, betraying a great, new worry. She calmly asked, “There are artifacts like that?”

“I have no idea, but the Armory was cleared out. All of the artifacts are gone.” Erick said, “I would be surprised if none of them turned up even all the way over here, in Songli. This nation is one of the most populous in the world, and that means a lot of people come through this way.”

Ari focused. “If there are such artifacts here, then I am not aware of them. We’ve— Star Song has captured a great many magical items out of Ar’Kendrithyst, mostly after they’ve caused problems here or there inside Eralis— None of them were artifacts, though. Just major magical items. This is not a new problem. If there are actual artifacts… We haven’t captured anything like that, at all.” She frowned. “Not to my knowledge.”

Erick said, “It hasn’t been that long since Last Shadow’s Feast. I have expected to run across one of those myriad artifacts, and maybe this is one of them, but I suspect most such artifacts to be sequestered in hiding holes until needed.”

“It’s entirely possible that some smaller clans or even individuals have found Ar’Kendrithyst artifacts and are hoarding them for themselves, but it is more likely that they were given over to High Clans for favors and prestige. But now that the war has killed so many… If any one of the Clans has captured any such artifacts, then they are likely lost; stuffed away in hiding holes that no one will ever know are there until decades later during remodels.” Ari paused, then said, “It’s possible that Terror Peaks somehow acquired one such artifact.” She added, “A lot more likely than angel interference, too.”

Erick had thought that they had gotten somewhere with Raidu being angelically aligned, so he asked, “Why do you say that?”

“This has to do with the Compact of Demogal, signed 550 years ago by the High Clans before they formed Songli. One of the tenets of that compact was to forgo clan-level partnerships with either the angels or demons. It still happens, of course, for both sides still entice mortals with power and life after death, but that action happens on an individual basis. Usually.” Ari said, “The compact is simple words on paper, though, so that means about as much as people want it to mean. Terror Peaks usually adheres well to this particular compact. It was only three years ago that they demonstrated this adherence. Terror Peaks fought against an angel-aligned clan known as Steel Edge, who had been killing primarily-incani clans over on their side of the Tribulations.” She shook her head. “The more I think of it, the less I believe that Raidu has anything to do with angels, and more to do with some odd artifact. Possibly even an artifact that copies the soul spear, as you have hypothesized.”

Erick frowned. “Are you sure there’s no angelic interference?”

“All I can tell you is that I have seen no angelic interference upon Raidu’s soul.” Ari said, “Erick. In Nelboor, the Quiet War does not happen between nations. Nations work to quash such happenings.”

And now they had arrived at the crux of the matter.

Erick said, “But that was before Particle Magic, before the creation of a potential World Tree, which will potentially open up new worlds.”

“As you have said…” Ari said, “I am not sure that Hell or Celes would want all-out war, though. They do tend to pull back from all-out war when it looks to go that way.”

And now they were going around in circles.

Erick moved on, “Thank you for listening to my concerns. I hope Raidu’s answers are satisfactory to us all.”

Ari nodded.

“Moving on: Does Songli have any hints to understanding [Gate]?”

“You would have to speak to the High Clans about that.” Ari said, “It was always the Patriarch’s responsibility to direct those who asked about that ancient magic. I do know that the sculpture in front of Star Song— Well. It’s gone now; destroyed in the fighting. But that was a clue. Unfortunately, Zalindi has already gone to his final End and I am not…” Ari said, “I no longer have many duties with Star Song. Perhaps Patriarch Mirizo would know more.”

Erick felt his heart go out to the woman, for she had been outed as a Soul Mage because of him. Not directly; no. But somehow, someway, Ari had been outed as a Soul Mage, and now she was here in Holorulo, in Court dress. And, it was not hard to see that she wasn’t exactly happy.

Ari asked, “Is there anything else you would like to ask?”

There were a few things. For starters: Did she need help with something? He hadn’t expected this practical interrogation when he asked her to come over, but maybe he should have?

“There is one thing.” Erick said, “I’ve been working on this spell for a while. It doesn’t have a name, but I’m calling it [Renew]. It’s to be a Basic Tier spell that anyone can purchase, that will allow them to renew and reinvigorate any ongoing magic. The goal is to allow laypeople to [Renew] the ongoing magical effects that others can cast; to allow a normal guard to upkeep the [Grand Shield] that an archmage can cast upon a city, for instance.”

Ari asked, “Do you mean, like a City Shield?”

Erick smiled. “Yes! Exactly like that.” He added, “City Shields are the normal magical items, but the artifact is known as the Tears of Aloeth; they’re Old Cosmology artifacts. City Shields were the New Cosmology creation. Apparently they’re not that good, but I haven’t seen any, so I don’t really know.”

“We have some City Shields. Back in Eralis.” Ari said, “Here, too, no doubt.”

“You do?” Erick smiled wide. “I need to see one.”

“This is easily accomplished; I can direct you to a Border Clan, or you can ask after one here, in Holorulo. They might even be able to sell you one to experiment upon, if you wish. They’re not very useful, but Border Clans use them sometimes against monster waves.” She said, “They’re terrible at stopping people, though.”

“Ah! This is great. First good news I’ve had all week, it seems.” Erick asked, “But let us talk a little about expanding that functionality to more than just a simple shield. Let us speak of a [Renew], a new Basic Spell that would work for anyone to restore any ongoing magic.”

Ari went silent for a moment, thinking, then she said, “Everyone’s individual spellwork is different; everyone’s soul casts a little bit differently. This is only the first problem with this [Renew] spell. Even City Shields collapse if people don’t attempt to harmonize their mana to the same colors.”

Erick smiled, then said, “This is all new information for me, so let us talk about it for a while.”

Ari seemed to relax a little; becoming less stiff under Erick’s enthusiasm, perhaps.

She began, “Well. Spells work off of parts of the soul, which is different for everyone, which...”

They spoke of souls and magic.

A few hours later, and just as Ari was starting to smile and Erick was able to tell a terrible joke that elicited a laugh, Hangzi called upon Erick for an evening meal in a few hours. When that happened, Ari turned cold again. She decided to return to her duties as a Soul Mage of Songli. Though she had never said so, Erick saw that Ari was not happy here in Holorulo.

Erick saw her off, saying, “If you need help with your new life, or whatever may come, just send to me, and I’ll be there.” He looked to her, the seriousness of his words evident in his eyes. “I mean it, Ari. Ask, and I’ll be there. You deserve this much and more. Thank you for saving my life.”

Ari smiled, a sad expression, then she discarded that emotion, and said, “Thank you, Archmage Flatt. Perhaps we can share another pot of tea and discuss magic again, some other time.”

“I would like that.”

As Erick watched Ari blip away in red light, he had a sad moment.

It was the way in which Ari had said ‘Archmage Flatt’, and not ‘Erick’.

Ahh. Dammit.

Erick missed ‘Ezekiel’. That was a simpler time, for sure.

- - - -

The dining room was fifty meters long and half that wide, while the ceiling hung a good thirty meters above, and dangled with white stone chandeliers. The main dining table, at ten meters long and two wide, sat to the side, atop a wide platform. Smaller tables were scattered around the rest of the large gathering space, with much of the structure of the room reminding Erick of the gathering he had attended back when they announced Tadashi’s antirhine treatment. Those smaller U-shaped tables were also situated upon platforms, with walking aisles open between each of them. The chairs here were not simple drums this time; they were ornate carvings of airy stone.

Everything was white stone and gold leaf, with nuance given over to yellow in the fabrics of the chair cushions and in the drapery upon the entrances and windows. Gold and white fires glowed everywhere, providing soft light and no shadows.

Everyone in the room, of which there were at least a hundred, wore either white, or white with gold trim, or full-on gold, though the latter was reserved for three people in particular: Matriarch Lingxing, Matriarch Tipanri, and Patriarch Hangzi. Each of them sat at the main table, each separated from the next by two meters, each facing the main gathering down below.

Erick sat to the side of the main table, at what some back on Earth would consider the ‘head’, but which was here just a place of honor. He wore his best white robes, and so did his people, but Teressa, Poi, and Jane, were each seated down below, at the first table near the main one.

He wondered, briefly, how a ‘small dinner of no consequence’, ended up like this formal affair, back when he arrived in this space, lightstepping down into the stone garden just beyond the archway. Most people arrived from that direction.

Back when he arrived, the room had been empty, and it seemed like it truly had been a small dinner, done in a huge room. But after small introductions, with Erick seated for three minutes and the first meal served, others had started to arrive.

And people kept arriving.

Erick barely knew any of them for most of them had to be from Holorulo. Every single person came in and bowed to the main table, and then took their spot at the various other tables, according to some arcane methodology, for sure. Mostly, people of high standing went to the front, near the main table, but then Scion Caina went all the way to the back of the room, and Erick lost his understanding of the seating arrangement.

Hangzi, seated only a few meters away and closest to Erick, spoke softly, and his voice carried to the whole of the table; there was an enchantment upon the white stone to ensure they could hear each other, but others could not hear them. “A large change from your first experience at one of these gatherings, I assume.” He gave a wan smile as he sipped his rice wine, and picked at his first dish; a small bowl of fried wontons, stuffed with cheese and meat. The young man’s voice was full of false cheer, masking itself as real. Hangzi was hurting, for sure, but he was putting on a good show.

Erick had his own small bowl of the same appetizers. With one wonton on a fork, as he answered, “You are correct. I’m not quite sure what I was expecting from the invitation, but a gathering was not it.”

Hangzi kept his sad smile, as he said, “There’s no better way to get over tragedy than with shared meals and kingdom rebuilding.”

“Ah.” Erick said, “I haven’t gotten the chance to give my condolences, but I do so now. I have heard your father was a great man, and that he and Yorza both gave their lives saving others.”

“They did.” Hangzi’s demeanor solidified into strength. “Thank you for your words, and for your actions these last ten days. From your attempt to end the war before it began, to what you did for us all afterward. It would be correct to say that much of Songli remains strong because of your actions.”

Tipanri, seated next to Hangzi, spoke, and her voice also carried across the table, “You have done much for us, Archmage Flatt. If there is something you need in return, just ask, and we will attempt to make it happen.” She added, “Aside from what you already asked of us, that is.”

Erick asked, “How is Tadashi and his treatment progressing?”

Hangzi answered, “He has suffered injuries that will take months to heal, but he has survived the worst of it, though he will not regain his lower legs until chelation is understood and implemented upon him.”

Erick almost shivered. Long term disability was practically unheard of on Veird. He said, “I’m sure they’ll figure it out soon enough.”

Lingxing was seated furthest away from Erick, but her words carried as easy as a normal conversation, “We recognize the necessity of this new alchemy, and so Eralis will be devoting a few more resources Star Song’s way to ensure that they develop and solidify chelation. Repair and restructuring take precedence, but chelation is a close second.” She added, “Alchemist Tadashi is doing well, last I heard.”

That was good to hear, but Erick still offered, “If you need more help with anything else I was doing, I could still help.”

Lingxing said, “We appreciate what you’ve done, Archmage Flatt, but Songli is a strong nation. We can support ourselves at this point.”

They always could support themselves, anyway. Erick had only helped because he needed to. He said, “Then I am glad I could help while I could.”

Hangzi said, “I could still use that mana sense blocker for Warzi.”

Tipanri and Lingxing glanced at Hangzi, who in turn gave them no mind.

Erick smiled, and said, “Thank you for that reminder! I had almost forgotten. I haven’t gotten a chance to do that yet, but it is a good experiment for me now, because of a few other facts I heard. It is my understanding that you have City Shields here. Could I get a look at one? I’m thinking I could have one of those sustain other magics. A mana sense shield for Warzi should be applicable.” He added, offhand, “Theoretically.”

Hangzi said, “It will be done. We can also provide you with rooms suitable to your needs, if you are interested in staying in Holorulo for a while.”

“I am interested in that.” Erick said, “Not sure how long I would be here, but I still have some aura control training to undertake from Sister Kaffi of Void Song, and that plan hasn’t changed. Though everything seems to have changed, hasn’t it.”

Lingxing said, “The only constant in life is change.”

Erick nodded, “Very true.”

Food came out on white stone carts, upon gold leaf plates. All in all, it was a nicer dinner than most, and the company was as proper as needed. While Erick and the heads of Songli spoke over small things at the main table, under spells that hid their own discussions from the rest of the room, people at other tables spoke of both small and large things; everything from commoners that stepped up in the time of need who were thus marked for advancement to clans, to reconstruction efforts and monetary flows, to missing people, to found bodies and funeral timings.

Erick had expected an interruption of a [Gate] and bombs to appear the entire time he ate nice food and sipped on watered-down rice wine. He had expected assassination attempts, just because this was a gathering of many, many high ranking people. But Songli seemed to expect that, too. No one was truly happy at the gathering; the mood of the party was somber and apprehensive, and for all that was spoken, the conversations were guarded.

But the food was good, and nothing happened, and many people talked of deals and trade and of better times, with people who would never be there ever again. Erick listened to it all, absorbing the names of people he never met. He also heard of districts in towns that were gone, and of Border Clans who were wiped out, and of how Songli had not been prepared for this war, at all.

That was a sobering idea.

In the matter of a few hours, Erick’s entire notion that Terror Peaks was ‘always going to lose’ had been shattered. Terror Peaks would have won.

Songli had only survived because of him. Millions of lives, saved, because of his actions.

Several people came up during the gathering to speak of these truths to Erick, himself, to tell him of lives he had saved, and of how Ophiel had flown through the sky, delivering light to break the shadows of Terror Peaks.

Already, people were talking of Terror Peaks like they had been invaded by Shadow; their ideals twisted to horrible ends. It was a new idea that a few people floated out there, but which many upheld.

Erick watched, almost detached from himself, as the narrative was built and reinforced by people speaking ‘This is what we say about them’ and ‘This is how we say it’. The number of people using those actual phrases were minimal; those particular phrases were merely trotted out to gauge where to go next. When the next direction was decided, other voices took up the narrative, adding their own thread to the weave, to see toward their own needs.

The night wound down with the first of many desserts, and then others leaving, passing by the head table as they did so to give their farewells, and final words to the heads of Songli, and Erick. Erick and the heads of Songli remained, watching it all happen. And then Lingxing and Tipanri left, as well, giving Erick small words of thanks and offers to further talk, whenever Erick desired.

Soon, Erick and his people, and Hangzi and his people, were the only ones left. This was by design, for Hangzi had asked Erick if he could stay till the end with him. Erick had agreed, and now, they were relatively alone. Even the musicians had vanished, though they had only come in after some noble had wondered where the music was, Erick barely paid attention to them until they were gone. Now, silence stretched in the massive room.

Hangzi leaned back in his chair, and broke that silence, “It was simpler when you were some unknown Scion from the middle of nowhere.”

“I would have preferred that.” Erick said, “And then other people went and had other ideas.”

“Yes. They did.” Hangzi said, “You didn’t know any of those people in the gathering, did you?”

Ah. Here’s where the twist came. Erick had recognized something happening all night, but now, Hangzi was speaking openly of whatever it was they had been doing.

Erick said, “I recognized Caina Small Scare, and Gerella White Wood, and a few others. But not many of them; no. I didn’t even understand the seating arrangement.”

Hangzi smiled, a small expression, then said, “The Court is rather good about being circumspect when they wish, for you don’t get to be part of the Court until you can prove yourself skilled at politics. Usually. It’s an appointment, you see, and many of the nominators are dead and won’t be replaced for months, so we had to go with what we had. We had talked of the small all night, but I had promised you we would talk of the large, as well, and this was it: Tonight was actually a Judgment. Of you.”

Erick felt a sadness creep upon him. With reluctance, he asked, “Did I pass?”

“Yes, but not for the reasons you might think. Tonight was a complicated affair.” Hangzi said, “We don’t have half the pieces to this recent war, for it came out of nowhere for many of us. Less than twenty days from start to finish, with the count starting at the posting of that Quest to retrieve Tadashi.

“But there are a few facts that lead to certain awful conclusions, and we needed to judge based on those conclusions, to determine where Songli would go from here.

“Fact one: the Court here used to be filled with Reformists and Traditionalists and Moderates. The Reformists, for the most part, already approved of Archmage Flatt, and when they found out you were Ezekiel, they approved even more. After what you have done for us to help end this war before it could get truly bad, every single Reformist truly believes in you.

“Fact two: The assassins of Terror Peaks overly targeted the Traditionalists, your main detractors. Even if it was a fluke, we used to have three hundred people in the Court, with 45% of them being Traditionalists. Now, we’re down to 130, with 20% Traditionalists, and with the stronger Traditionalist voices silenced forever.

“Fact three: Queen and Goldie are active in Nelboor. Raidu never lied about that. They’re not active here, though. Songli is just their plaything.

“Fact four: Though you have acted with perfect aplomb, from the outcomes of this war, Queen and Goldie have set you up to win.

“Fact five: When you spoke to the Rain Mage, Shendeng, you seemed distraught that Goldie was giving out notes on pillows, but you also spoke like you could find her if you wished.

“Thus, leading us to believe that you are either an unwitting pawn of the Shades, or you control them now, or any one of a hundred such ideas.

“Thus, tonight’s judgment.” Hangzi said, “You came out justified in your actions, of course, for that is all we can truly judge, but you still needed to be judged. But on a personal note: I am glad that Warzi might finally be freed of his mana sense problem, but it would have been nice if you did not come here while on your Worldly Path. I miss my father; he was much better at this than I am, though I suppose I will have to learn by doing.”

Hangzi’s words were a rapid-fire series of punches to Erick’s chest. Mentioning the Worldly Path and then his father was a sucker punch to the jaw.

Erick wanted to be kind in his response, for Hangzi was hurting, but to be kind in the face of this series of accusations was to be weak. Oh! How he wanted to be kind! How he wanted to speak to Hangzi like the man could be a friend! How he wished that none of this war had happened. That no one had died. That so many things had gone differently.

But the world had turned as it had turned.

Erick softly asked, “Should I have based my choice to come here upon facts I did not know? Upon the plots of others, of which I had no capability of understanding?”

For two incandescent seconds, Hangzi raged behind his perfect mask, and then he calmed. “Of course not. After thinking on it for a while, I understood that the Worldly Path was not responsible for what happened to Songli. Even with your toppling of Ar’Kendrithyst, you are not responsible for what the rest of the world does with our newfound freedom.” He paused. “... It took me a while to get there.” He added, “I’m still not truly there, for it is true that Queen and Goldie are out there, and that they are using us as the Shades have always done. They are manipulating us for war. And you let them live.”

What could Erick say to that?

He could say that because of Goldie and Queen’s actions, Songli is now positioned to prosper more than any other nation of Nelboor? That those two Shades each have Divine Quests that recognize their own drive to repent? That the Blessing upon them works exactly as intended? And that Hangzi knows this, since he has Raidu under his control, and he knows that the Blessing of Empathy is uniquely powerful, and capable of making someone truly repent who they were?

No. There was no argument here that would work against Hangzi’s trauma. It was time to turn back to kindness.

Erick said, “I’m sorry for your loss. I’ll be working on that magic for Warzi starting tomorrow. I’m going to go back to doing magic for a while, actually. If there’s any other spellwork I can do for you, please don’t hesitate to ask.”

Hangzi did not hesitate. “Can you resurrect the dead? [True Resurrection]?”

Erick paused. He could theoretically talk to Messalina and—

Hangzi noticed the pause, and the thoughts, and he recoiled from himself, as he said, “I shouldn’t have asked you that. I don’t know what came over me. I—”

“The Lifebinder could do it,” Erick interrupted. “Though it might be too late. I have no idea how that works.”

Hangzi looked away. Then, resolute, he turned back toward Erick. “I will not be pursuing that option at this time, or ever. Thank you for your consideration.” He stood.

Erick stood with him.

Hangzi said, “I will inform Warzi that he can expect assistance with his mana sense in a timely manner.” He added, “Raidu’s soul will be sundered in three days. If you wish to speak to him before then, please make an appointment through Devouring Nightmare. Otherwise, your questions are already on the docket. Personally, I suspect that the angels are not involved. I suspect there is a hidden artifact somewhere. But as of right now, and according to what you have told Elder Arilitilo, I also suspect that a world war is coming.

“If, in the future of your Worldly Path, you get the chance to be brutal in the oppression of an enemy state, I suggest you be brutal, so that millions are spared from an improperly handled [First Strike].” He added, “I have seen recordings of what you did to the ballooning spider hordes. I am sure you have stronger spells, or that you can make them. Two hundred thousand dead terrorists is better than two hundred thousand dead terrorists and four-point-three million civilians.”

Erick felt stunned, but his mouth still worked, somewhat; he spoke reflexively, “You are correct, of course.”

“I know I am.” Hangzi said, “But it is good to hear you say it. Good night, Archmage Flatt.”

Hangzi walked away.

In moments, Erick was alone in the room… Except for the servants and his own people.

Stepping down off of the high platform, he walked to his people.

Jane had a soft, yet determined look upon her face. She had overheard Hangzi’s words, too. Thankfully, she didn’t say anything. As for the other two, Poi and Teressa both seemed like simple observers to what had happened. No one said anything until they got back to the rooms.

No one said anything to him before bed, either.

Jane did give him a nice hug, though.

- - - -

Erick needed a kinder way to walk this Worldly Path.

That was the background thought racing through his mind when a formal invitation arrived at his doorstep, held reverently in the hand of a Holorulo courier. Erick sent the man off with a small ‘thank you’, but his heart wasn’t in it, for he had already mana sensed the letter’s contents and read the words therein.

Sikali’s funeral was in a few hours. Erick and his people had been invited. Shortly afterward, the wakes for everyone in Star Song would be held at the same time, on Star Song’s clan mountain in Eralis.

Hours later, dressed in white and under the bright sky, Erick stood in the background of a gathering of twenty four, all of them standing around a short flight of stairs leading into a bright hallway down below. Xue stood by the stairs, holding Sikali’s urn, filled with her powdered bones and intact skull. It was a work of metal art, with flowers and vines and Sikali’s name engraved upon it, in red and black and gold and white. With tears running down his face, Xue handed Sikali’s urn to the man who stood one step down the staircase; the keeper of bones. The keeper then bowed, and took the urn down the small flight of stairs. Sikali’s bones would find their final rest in the mausoleum of Star Song, along with many others.

Xue bowed, his eyes to the ground as his wife’s urn vanished down the bright hallway. And then he stepped away, and a woman came forward, holding a different urn to hand off to another keeper of bones.

Many people in the gathering of Enforcers held similar urns. Xue had just been the one to go first.

Erick let his own small tears flow. This was entirely too sad.

He needed a kinder way to walk this Path…

One that wasn’t murdering the opposition before they could get a chance to murder the people he cared about.

- - - -

All across Songli, funerals were underway. Some were joyous events, celebrating the life of those who had gone before. Some went unnoticed, except by the single remaining child of the murdered parents, and the mausoleum keeper who took the urns of those who were gone forever. Some funerals were affairs with too many people talking to each other, networking over the fall of business owners, attempting to bring their companies or storefronts or markets back from the brink of annihilation, or figuring out what to do now that they were the only ones left in their border city able to provide blacksmith services, or construction spells.

For many, there were no individual funerals. There were only mass interments by overworked priests into newly-made mausoleums, while a few remaining survivors watched, many of them with glazed-over eyes.

And then there were the outliers.

People who partied hard, with alcohol and drugs and wanton sex, looking for joy wherever they could find it. The bordellos around Eralis were filled with such people.

If Sikali had lived, she and Xue would be doing that, right now, and trying to get others to open up about their sadness.

But Sikali had not lived.

Xue looked upon the [Viewing Screen] of one of their favorite courtesan houses, and lamented. After a battle, when her blood was up, was always a fun time. But that would never happen again. Xue glanced once more at the screen, then willed it away to sit in silence with his rice wine. Sikali didn’t get her own wake; in a little while, a wake was to be held at Star Song for everyone who died.

He was an Elder of Enforcement, now, and so, he needed to be there.

Riri was the Elder of Lore.

Arilitilo was off in Holorulo, outed as a Soul Mage, which was unfortunate. Xue would have liked to have her around for guidance and to help hold the place together, but Holorulo called upon her, and they would not be denied. With Zalindi dead, and Mirizo ascended to Patriarch, Star Song would be more than fine going forward. After all, Mirizo was a vicious political animal with the appropriate amount of leanings toward nicety when needed—

A knock came at his door.

Xue allowed him to enter. It was the new Captain of Capture Squad Four, Enforcer Peroit, the man who Mirizo tagged to take over Sikali’s position. The two of them had already had it out days ago, after Xue became an Elder, with Peroit barely surviving the fight. Now, the man who had come for his wife’s position as captain was falsely contrite, and playing the part of a dutiful clansman.

Peroit said something about the wake starting soon. Xue acknowledged him, and told him to go clean something. Peroit walked away, his mask slipping, betraying his deep anger as he shut the door.

Fuck him!

Xue was about to call him back and tell him to clean the floor with his tongue! But then the anger flowed out of him.

He took Sikali’s position as captain…

… A few more days. A few more days of treating him like shit, then Xue would allow the man to do his job properly. Peroit was a good captain, but…

This was hard.

Xue got out of his chair. He finished off his rice wine and delighted in the burn as it went down his throat. It was time to be political.

Getting to the party was easy enough; down three hallways and up a flight of stairs.

Seeing the people there was harder. The wine helped to dull his senses, but he couldn’t help but feel the eyes upon him. He couldn’t help but understand the expressions of those who turned his way, and saw him walk out upon the courtyard. There was pity. Sadness. Rage from some newly risen clansmen, for some reason, though not directed at him, specifically; he was just the proper target at the moment. Xue would need to look into that.

… Ah.

It was time to get over it all, and to become the center of power that was needed in this trying time.

And then he spied Ezeki— Erick. He saw Archmage Erick Flatt, and saw the man’s sorrow.

Xue wasn’t the only one that needed to get a fucking grip. Erick looked like he was about to break, and that was disrespectful to all that he had done, and all the lives of those he had saved. Calling him the savior of Songli would not be going too far, and though he had likely heard those words of praise from others…

Erick had once helped Xue to come to terms with his paranoia, to manage who he was, and who he was going to be.

Xue would do the same.

- - - -

Erick watched as people gave speeches about the dead.

When people came to him, to thank him for saving their life or the lives of people they knew, he welcomed them with as much warmth as he could. Others saw him, and could barely hold their rage in check. Erick had not managed to save everyone. Clearly, some people here thought this war had been Erick’s fault.

And then Xue appeared out from a hallway, and much of the ire directed Erick’s way, went to Xue.

Xue locked eyes with Erick… And then he glanced to Erick’s left, and briefly looked to Jane. It was Erick’s understanding that they had worked together recently, on various things… Erick wasn’t entirely sure about all of that. Jane hadn’t shared much. But then Xue turned back to Erick, and walked directly toward him.

Ah.

Here it comes.

The vilification.

Erick felt himself sweat, as he tried to keep a cool demeanor. He felt the eyes of others upon him, watching as Xue walked his way. No one else had dared to speak out loud of Erick’s failures, and of his presence which caused all this, and of how he could have ended this war before it truly began if only he had pressed that button—

Xue stood before Erick, saying, “I want to talk.”

Erick felt himself nodding. “Sure.”

Xue went back down the hallway he had arrived from. Erick followed. Poi followed behind Erick, but Teressa and Jane stayed at the wake, for Jane was talking to Mirizo about plans and people and Erick didn’t want to interrupt that.

Along the way, the trio of them came across a man walking in the hallways, wearing the white and black of a clan Enforcer and casting [Cleanse] in the hallways. The man saw Xue, and there was hate in that look, but it was well hidden.

In an easy voice, Xue told the man, “Ignore this task, Captain Peroit. The initiates can do this, later. Sorry for foisting my anger out on you; I was being petty and you had nothing to do with Sikali’s death.” He stared at the man in the eyes, and said, “Believe me; I checked.”

Peroit’s hidden anger quailed to hidden fear; the man stood straight and then bowed.

Xue said, “Dismissed.”

Peroit walked away, to the wake.

Xue and Erick soon reached a set of rooms on the northside of Star Song’s mountain; a minor gathering location, or perhaps a bar of some sort. The rooms were empty, though. The place looked high class, especially the large windows and the plush furniture, and the bookshelf-like wall with a half-dozen alcohol bottles that were gently illuminated from below by wardlights. There was space for a hundred bottles, but there were only six, here; this place had probably been trashed in the fighting.

With barely any hesitation, Xue grabbed one of the bottles off of the second-to-top shelf. It was mostly full. Another grab netted a pair of glass tumblers from the lower shelves. Xue poured the two of them drinks, then handed him one.

Xue said, “To better times ahead.” And then he downed the drink.

Erick downed his own, afterward. Xue refilled the cups, and gestured to the seats nearby. He took one; Erick took the other.

Xue started off with, “Looks like you’re the paranoid one, now. I saw how you eyed that drink, thinking it might be poisoned.” It was meant to be a dark joke, some gallows humor.

Erick appreciated it for what it tried to be, and not for how accurate it was. The two of them had talked in passing in the last few days, but nothing substantial; nothing beyond the ‘this is happening over here, who is doing something about that’.

Now, here, Erick said what he had failed to say for the last week. “I’m sorry about Sikali. I didn’t hear about it till afterward. That time was… It was quick and terrible and many things happened outside of my sight.”

Xue froze, then wiped away a quick tear, then downed his drink and then refilled it again, saying, “It happened outside of my sight as well. I didn’t hear about it till three hours after the fact. When I heard, I was arms deep in the guts of some initiate, trying to heal out the decay spells that someone had cast into him. That kid survived. Many didn’t.” He said, “Thank you for coming to the funeral, and the wake.”

Erick nodded, and downed his drink, feeling the burn as it went down.

Xue refilled his glass, saying, “So it looks like you’re having some trouble dealing with the aftermath of the war.”

Erick reflectively recoiled. “Aren’t you?”

“Yeah. I am. But your world was much simpler than this one, and now you have power you never expected to have. I bet a dozen people have already yelled at you for not doing something larger, and sooner.”

“… That is not incorrect.”

“You once gave me some good advice, to not jump at shadows and thus make them real by jumping. To separate out those who were truly out to get me, from those who were just being who they were.” Xue said, “I’m going to give you some advice now, from one man who grew up powerless but who gained power through a knack for magic that many others never possessed. The scale is different, obviously, but the fact remains: People have to look out for themselves. You can’t save everyone.”

Erick felt like he had been seen through, and he probably had.

But the immediate feeling after that overwhelmed the first.

Erick asked, “But what if you could.”

Xue paused, then laughed once. He shook his head, and said, “I suppose I should say ‘you shouldn’t save everyone’. The only truth in this life is violence and death. If people cannot handle the first, they will arrive at the second well before they are ready.”

Erick frowned. “Then why does Songli have the Void Song? And all that suppression?”

“The lands outside of the main three cities have no Void Song.” Xue said, “I feel like you have gotten the wrong impression of Songli, Erick. You see us as people to be saved. You see this Worldly Path you’re on as some—” Xue paused, as he saw Erick’s expression.

Erick softly asked, “You knew?”

Xue said, “The Worldly Path does not make wars happen. This war was always going to happen. As soon as that alchemist stumbled upon the cure for the Elixir, which you had already known as chelation, this was the destined outcome.” Xue added, “Maybe, the only reason your Path brought you here, was to prevent a full-scale annihilation, or to help us figure out chelation before it was gone forever. We’re still uncovering most of the reasons and preparations for the war… But Terror Peaks had prepared well. We could have lost half of our people, with the rest broken and divided amongst the invading clans who plotted right alongside Terror Peaks. It would have been like leviathans feasting on the corpse of a whale turtle; everyone taking their pieces and running.

“But now, Songli will expand.

“The pirates of the Highland Ocean are gone. The warlord clans to the north have been brought to heel. Terror Peaks, that ancient enemy, is gone.” Xue said, “Those northern warlords are actually talking of incorporating a new city, at the headwaters of the Wanzhi River. It’s been in the works for a long while, but now that Songli has proven itself as strong and our enemies are laid low or eradicated, we might have a fourth main city added to the Highlands.” Xue said, “If your involvement here has done anything, it has done that.”

That was nice to hear, but a part of Erick could not let go of one question. He stared at the clear liquid in his glass tumbler, and sloshed it back and forth. Then he downed it all, and stared at Xue. Xue waited.

Erick asked, “If you could have pressed a button and eradicated Terror Peaks 15 days ago, would you have pressed that button?”

Xue’s face went a little slack. He breathed out, and thought. He downed his drink, then refilled it, then refilled Erick’s as he said, “You once told me to never attribute to malice what is explainable by ignorance, but the continuation of that, is that sometimes the malice is malice. The danger is real. On small scales, this is fine. This is life. But you also proved to me that first strikes are sometimes in error. I was so paranoid about you… and then you went and said all what you said.

“I think it is right that you allowed Terror Peaks to prove who they were… to you.

“We all knew what was going to happen, and we told you, and if it were up to some of the people in charge around here then they would have ‘pressed that button’, as you say.

“But still. Peace must be given a chance. Prosperity cannot happen without people judging in compassion and fairness. War leads to war, as all of Nelboor can attest; it is only through breaking this cycle that prosperity can flow.” Xue asked the air, “Did you make a mistake?” He answered, “No. There were no mistakes. You are not responsible for the actions of others.

“But above all else: Deciding the fates of other nations— Especially nations that are not your own! Deciding the fates of nations with a wave of your hand is nothing more than tyranny. If you go down that path, someone will find something worse to use against you than that soul spear.” Xue said, “If you had eradicated Terror Peaks on your own, Songli would have needed to oust you, for in such an action, we would have suddenly found that Terror Peaks had become a martyr, and all of their allied forces would rally under a new banner, for sure.”

Erick sipped his drink, and felt fractionally better for the decisions he had made. “Thank you, Xue.”

Xue smiled, and said, “At least I don’t have to give you the brutality speech! I have to give that one to new clansmen all the time.”

“Ah?” Erick asked, “What’s that one?”

“A kilogram of brutality when it is necessary will buy you a megagram of easy days later.” Xue explained, offhandedly, “It’s something you have to tell the young ones who’ve gained a modicum of power and wealth and yet those young ones are still getting bullied by childhood evils that have grown up right alongside them. I always tell them, to let the bullies prove themselves as wrong, and then you put them down. Hard. And then no one will stand up against you again.”

“… Ah. Yeah.” Erick said, “Took my daughter and a lot of various forces a long time to get me to understand that. But now I worry about going too far.”

“You’re walking a difficult line; swords on one side and the Abyss on the other.” Xue said, “I don’t envy you, but I do thank you for coming here. You’re a lot easier to talk to when I’ve had some drinks in me, too.”

Erick startled, then laughed. He asked, “Did you think I was a dragon, or what, back when you saw me look at that sculpture out front?”

Xue lightly shook his head as he dropped his volume, “That was the worst-case scenario. No one really knew what that sculpture meant, but we all knew it had something to do with dragons.” He said, “I didn’t find out it meant the Worldly Path until after I became an Elder, and even then… Zalindi was supposed to tell you something about that, but he’s gone. Not coming back, either.”

“I’m pretty sure I know what it means, anyway.”

“Oh? What?”

“To seek out the dragons.”

“To seek them out!” With a pointed look, Xue said, “There is a saying: When the dragon is buying drinks at the bar, calmly make your way to the exit, and pity the bartender.”

Erick laughed. “They can’t be worse than Shades.”

“Power wise? They are on the same level. The problem is that while Shades can work together, which makes them much worse, dragons can’t ever find another of their kind or they go into homicidal rages, so the switch to violence upon being found out is… Always a large switch.”

“I’ve heard that.”

“Have you ever seen a dragon fight, though?”

“No.”

That black dragon and the Flare Couatl didn’t really count, did it?

Xue noticed, but did not press, as he said, “I heard Eidolon had a dragon fight back when something happened in the Toxic Jungle and that event spilled into the city. Luckily, the dragons moved outside of the city rather fast. A good hundred square kilometers of forest, razed to ash and lava. I heard that the dragons were totally normal traders, too, until they met, and one thing led to another, and then— Boom! A dragon fight.”

Erick frowned, and nodded.

“We do have…” Xue looked to be internally debating something. He decided to go for it. He said, “We have some dragon that kills all the rest that try to start a fight. Once a year, maybe twice, there’s always some dragon turning to their true form somewhere in Songli, right alongside another doing the same. Half the time the fight just ends— no one is sure why. The other half the time, when they actually fight, a third dragon shows. A long red dragon. Decisively ends the other two before they can do much, then they go back into hiding, all within ten or less seconds.” He said, “The Void Song works on them, too, so we can keep much of the damage contained to small areas, thank Rozeta.”

Erick focused. “And the Headmaster hasn’t come out here and made something of that? Try to kill the red dragon?”

“Nope! No idea why, either. Don’t think anyone ever asked him, for fear of what might happen.” Xue said, “But he has to know, right?”

Erick decided, “Of course he does.”

Erick also decided that he would never raise that topic with the Headmaster, or with the elites he was sending to see about that soul spear.

The conversation moved on to easier topics, like rebuilding and Blood Magic, and fashion. And oh wow, did Xue have opinions and ideas about fashion. Erick smiled at the mundanity of the conversation. He needed this, and he felt that Xue did, too, especially when, drunkenly, Xue told him as much.