Technomagica 2 : 2. Great-Aunt Delta (Patreon)

[Cassandra Alana Skyisle]

It’s not easy being the last Sentinel of Skyisle. My parents left me when I was but sixteen, told me that they must undertake the journey to the cursed Valley of Death to attempt to reclaim our legacy before the breath of [Decay] stole more levels from the villagers of Skyisle. Mom and dad made me swear a Vow to Ishira, that I would watch this house and protect Skyisle and then pass the Sentinel’s torch onto my oldest child.

They had not returned.

Years after, I met Georgi in Agamemnon and had twins. 

Destiny, my daughter was born first. Her arrival was prophesied by Ishira Archpriestess Giovashi. The priestess told me that my daughter was destined to bring doom to Skyisle. Every night I prayed to Ishira that Destiny’s fortune would change, that she wasn’t doomed to become a monster, that perhaps her diligent brother could save her, help her tread away from the wrong path.

Dante, my son was born second. He would not wake, would not take a breath when he came into the world. It took midwife Tamara almost all of her magic to get Dante’s heart to start.

Both of my children are… strange in their own ways. Perhaps the blood of Alania, the power of the  Sentinel Legacy made them unique.

It is hard to deal with rebellious teenage twins, because they constantly take each other's side.

Destiny constantly insists that she can fly. Dante is too clever for his own good.

They both somehow unlocked their System, graduated at 12 from the Church, which was an impossible feat.

Dante now bears a vile, silver pin of Equality on his lapel. A year ago, he somehow gained a position from Overseer Ignatius as the temporary Administrator of Skyisle. It was a feat even more impossible than learning enough mathematics to unlock your System at twelve! I hope and pray that he will not stray from Ishira and Skyisle and will not start to worship Goddess Equality.

Destiny and I constantly butt heads over the smallest thing. Such is the fate of being a mother.

Dante is kind and cooperative, but he is also incredibly odd in his own way. He didn’t inherit my Agromancy skill unlike Destiny who already shows great progress in Agromancy knowledge and love of plants. It was only thanks to the fact that she wishes to become an Agromancer that our strained relationship has already started to mend.

The oddest thing occurred two weeks ago, when I received a rather unexpected letter in the mail. The address of origin was written on the envelope with bold, precise letters that looked like they were burned onto the page. I suspect that it was the job of an incredibly skilled fire mage or perhaps some kind of an artifact.

I showed the letter to my husband, Georgi. He seemed quite excited by it… unlike me.

I was concerned, could not believe that it was real.

The letter was from the “Office of Vladislav Alexandrovich Kerenski, Emerald City Academia, the city of Oz” and featured a distinctive, regal-looking logo burned onto the paper.

Its contents were even more bizarre than the strange address. It stipulated that Oz Archmage Vladislav Alexandrovich Kerenski was a research partner of Delta Alana Skyisle, a female archmage who left Skyisle hundreds of years ago. It also stated that Lady Alana wished to return to her native land and that she was coming to visit us in a few weeks time and that eventually Archmage Kerenski would visit us too!

The bewildering letter made my head spin and my heart pulse in worry, so I focused on my Argromancy work and put it out of my mind. 

As far as I knew, there was no Lady Alana who left Skyisle, but then again… if she was centuries old maybe my parents simply didn’t tell me about her.

I was busy watering the plants in the living room when the doorbell jingled loudly.

“Now who could it be? Maybe Millizen wants to start me working on her farm earlier?” I muttered as I walked to the door and opened it.

A tall, lanky, dangerous-looking wizard loomed in the doorway. He wore a long, dark, spotted robe. A gray-blue scarf was wrapped around his entire face, mirror goggles covering up the eyes. A large, black, witch-style hat loomed at the top of his head. His insides buzzed ominously.

I gulped, retreating backwards and nearly tripped over the coffee table.

“Georgi!” I barked towards the workshop.

“What?” He yelled back.

“We have a visitor!” I yelled.

The lanky wizard simply stood in the doorway, not saying anything.

“A visitor? Be there in a min,” Georgi rumbled, emerging from his woodworking shop connected to our house. His thick, leather boots thumped towards the front entrance of our house. He tensed up when he saw the strange, silent, buzzing wizard.

I immediately started to weave the [Paralyze Parasite] spell inside my hand, in case this mysterious wizard was a danger to me and my family.

My Agromancy spells could theoretically knock a human out, if I poured enough mana into them.

Strangers didn’t show up in Skyisle out of the blue, our valley was cut off from the rest of the world by the Valley of Death and glacier-covered cliffs. The only way in was via an Imperial Skyship and the ship came on a specific schedule once a month.

There was something funky going on under the coat of the silent mage. The entire surface of it bulged and rippled constantly.

I aimed [Paralyze Parasite] at the stranger.

Thick, round goggles glinted back at me. I could not see his face or expression under the thick scarf. If he was here to hurt us, I wouldn't go out without a fight.

Seconds dragged on, my heart thumping faster and faster.

A gloved hand slowly pulled a piece of paper from within the depths of the robe, without crossing the threshold of our home.

I peered at the scarf-covered face, not understanding what was going on.

Georgi took a step forward and grabbed the note from the gloved hand.

I cast a silent, area-wide [Identify] spell. My Agromancy senses told me that there were constantly moving… living things beneath the cloak. What the hell was this monstrosity?! I started to panic as I sensed nothing but insects beneath the coat.

My hands reached into my pocket where I kept a few dangerous vials. I couldn't pick which poison or spell to use! I didn't even know if this THING was human!

Georgi wasn't afraid, he couldn’t detect insects with his magic. He looked at the paper presented to him by the overdressed wizard at an angle I couldn't see. 

He started to read the words on the note out loud.

“Greetings my dear Georgi and Cassandra,

I am Delta Alana Skyisle, the Great and Powerful Wizard of Oz. I was born in Skyisle village 242 years ago and had traveled to the far reaches of the world to the Emerald City where I had presided until I received the prophecy about your children. I am your great-great-great-great-aunt. Please permit me to enter your home so that I may bless your future heroes!"

Georgi’s eyebrows went up and up, nearly escaping from his face. I’ve never seen him this befuddled. Neither of us had expected the absolute absurdity of this note.

____________________________________________________

[Dante Alan Skyisle]

Controlling a person made entirely from ants and covered by bees wasn’t the easiest thing to do.

I smirked mentally as our parents read the note.

The Wizard of Oz novel by L. Frank Baum was adapted into Russian by Alexander Volkov in 1939. Volkov was a Physics and Mathematics teacher and he didn't just translate the original, he expanded it to an entire generation-long series. It was one of my favorite books when I was a kid in the USSR. The second book by Volkov about the Emerald City was published in 1963. It featured a girl from Kansas and her uncle utilizing rationality and modern technology against an evil warlord. I enjoyed reading it as an adult in the 1960s.

Being reborn in Skyisle and seeing how vibrant the mountain valley looked for the first time reminded me of the American musical fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. In it, Ellie who lived in black-and-white Kansas mundanity saw Oz for the first time in over-saturated color. This was because the 1939 film used 'Three-strip Technicolor', a groundbreaking technological innovation of its time.

The lanky insect mech, masquerading as Archmage Delta handed dad another note.

“Do not be surprised!” Georgi read. “I am here to help and guide your children - Destiny and Dante. I Vow to be their vigilant instructor and protector. Their birth was prophesied long ago by the Future-Seers of the Academia of Oz. I know of their high Stats, know that they unlocked their System at 12. Your children are indeed future heroes destined to save the world!”

“...my son and daughter… are heroes?” Mom blinked at the insect-person.

“Also, what’s that buzzing? Are you buzzing?” Dad asked.

“She… is covered in insects,” our mom whispered to him. “I can sense them. Bees and ants, I think.”

I handed dad another piece of paper printed out by the bee printer within the insect mech.

Georgi read it out loud for Cassandra.

“One of my core skills is control of insects. Long ago, I had taken a sacred Vow of silence to Goddess Ishira, giving up my beautiful singing voice to increase my Wizard powers. There are indeed a few hundred bees and ants in my coat, but they are quite harmless to you. Do not be afraid. I am in full control of them.”

A fat, incredibly fuzzy yellow and black striped bumble-bee emerged from the oversized coat pocket. It looked chunky and adorable. It was the first fire-bee Delta and I modified it in a month-long experiment to create an immortal insect using [Green-Vitality] crystals harvested from the Mystic-Willow-Oak tree in the abandoned tower. My sister gave the bee a name - Ogonek.

Ogonek looked at me and my parents and then crawled back into the fake wizard’s pocket wiggling its tiny, adorable bee bottom.

Mom giggled nervously. The insect mech handed dad another note.

“Did you know that there’s a wasp nest in your attic? I will put a nest of my insects in your attic to protect your son. They will kill the wasp infestation. I do not require a room. I will be traveling often to Agamemnon on further Archmage business. I will teleport into your attic whenever I am needed. Please assign me as a Guest into the house Wards, so that I may enter and do magic inside your home,” Dad read.

“Well, aren’t you demanding?” He muttered, squinting at the insect mech.

Mom gave him ‘the look’.

“Yeah, I know. I was going to deal with that wasp nest... but I keep putting it off.” Georgi made an apologetic face at Cassandra.

“Can we trust… this Delta of Oz?” Mom asked him, still looking quite concerned.

Delta and I rushed through the living room to the front door. My parents looked at us and then back at the insect mech.

“Archmage Delta, I presume?” I bowed. “It’s a pleasure to meet you in person!”

“Likewise!” Delta chimed beside me.

The insect mech bowed back at us.

“You… how? What?” My mom sent us a questioning look.

“We saw the letter from the Emerald City, mom!” I explained with a grin.

My sister nodded.

“Archmage... Delta is clearly not an Equalizer,” Dad commented as he looked back at us.

There was immense pride in his eyes. He had bought our beautifully-wrapped up lie about us being born heroes. Georgi wanted his children to be special.

We were indeed special, just not in the way he presumed.

I was no hero. The local deity that called itself the Omniscience didn’t start my Novazem life narrative with the premise of “You’re a hero that this world needs”.

In fact, he didn’t tell me anything in regards to a mission and shoved me into an unborn girl’s body that already had a soul in it. Heroes didn’t start up with that sort of dark predicate! If it wasn’t for my quick thinking separating myself from the body of my sister and dividing us in half with magic, my far larger soul would likely completely absorb and dissolve Delta’s!

“Be warned - the house ward will know if your Alana name is fake,” Dad sternly told the insect mech. He reached out and touched the control rune keystone that was embedded into the right side of the door frame. The keystone flashed in acknowledgement of his command.

“Scan and add... Delta Alana Skyisle and her insects as a temporary Guest into the house ward!” Dad spoke into the keystone rune.

"Put your hand onto the glowing Keystone outside for the ward to add you," he ordered.

The insect mech did as instructed.

The rune on the wall flashed once again, acknowledging the order. 

Archmage Delta nodded and stepped through the door. The ward had accepted the fake human, authorized the insects to enter.

“So you are our… long lost 4-times-great-aunt?” Mom spoke as she watched the fake Archmage with squinted eyes. Dad had returned to her side.

I noted that mom was hitting the insect mech with sneaky [Identify] spells.

“Can we trust her? I’m only identifying the bees on her,” she whispered to dad.

As she did, I intercepted one of Cassandra's [Identify] spells and changed it to detect a female human under the layer of bees. When mom received the false information, she relaxed ever so slightly.

Archmage Delta handed dad another piece of paper from her coat.

“I am indeed your Great-aunt,” he read the words. “But, you can just call me Lady Alana… or Great-Aunt Delta! I don’t mind. I know every brick in this house. I helped renovate this lovely cottage with my grandfather Miller Alan Skyisle for Anatolia Alana Skyisle 202 years ago. There’s a metal plaque embedded within the central brick inside the fireplace, underneath the mantel.”

“What, really?” Georgi commented.

“Yep,” I nodded. “I saw it when I was cleaning under there… Great-Aunt Delta speaks the truth! I believe her!”

"Me too," Delta nodded.

Dad went up to the fireplace and looked underneath it.

“Oh… there is a very small, soot-covered plaque here within the central brick. I didn’t even know about this!” He yelled back at us, wiping the plaque with his sleeve.

“This hearth is dedicated to Anatolia Alana Skyisle by Miller Alan Skyisle, year 7847. Long may it keep you warm. By Ishira! That’s exactly two hundred and two years ago!” Dad read.

He was totally convinced now. If Archmage Delta asked him to spin in a circle and touch his nose for the greater good of the Alan family, he probably would.

“This home is yours once again, Elder! Thank you for bringing us the good news about our children! We were… indeed very worried about their high stats!” Dad’s voice trembled as he spoke. There were sparks of tears in his eyes. “I’ll add you as Family member to the house Ward!”

The insect mech nodded per my instructions.

“Welcome back to the family, Great-aunt Delta!” Mom said.

I exhaled. Mom was rather overprotective of me. Our ruse had worked well, quelling Cassandra's worries.

The insect mech cautiously stepped towards us and bowed, offering me a gloved hand.

I lifted my hand towards the glove and grabbed it, shaking it.

“Welcome back to the family, Great-Aunt!” I smiled. “I accept being an apprentice of the Archmage of Oz and hope to learn much magic from you!”

“Likewise!” Delta clapped her hands beside me. “Thank you for coming to take care of us, Elder! You gotta be like... the oldest person in Skyisle! Wowza! Does this make you the Eldest Elder in the Village?”

I made the insect mech nod its scarf-wrapped head.

My sister smashed into me with an all-encompassing hug with a loud squee. I didn’t resist it.

“We’re gonna be heroes, brother,” she cried out, holding onto me tightly. 

As I hugged her back, I realized that even though the hug was just something Delta and I had orchestrated as part of our play... it still felt nice.

In the USSR, my grandparents had died in the great war with the German Reich and my parents had been tempered by war and their losses - they had never shown me affection, which was probably why I had dedicated my life to making viruses and not towards building relationships.

While we could not reveal the truth about us to our parents about our Alanian Elder project, I knew in my heart that my twin was someone that I could trust absolutely.

I didn't have to lie to Delta about my origins or passions or my dreams - didn't have to deceive her. She already knew absolutely everything about who I was, since about a third of her soul was filled with wisps of my memories.

“This is sooooo… friggin’ awesome!” She muttered.

“Yep,” I told my twin sister as I hugged her back fiercely. “Absolutely! We’ll work hard under her tutelage… and become great Archmagi just like Great-Aunt Delta and Academic Kerenski!”

The figure made from ants and bees wrapped in winter clothes nodded signifying agreement. 

I made the insect mech bend down to our level and embrace us both. We hugged our fake Aunt back with wide smiles on our faces.

Mom finally became convinced that our ancient Great-Aunt had returned to Skyisle. I saw that she had let go of the [Paralysis] spell that she was tensely holding with her left hand out of Archmage Delta’s theoretical line of sight.

The imaginary curtain of our little theater production fell.