[←Chapter 54] [Cover Art] [My Links] [Index] [Discord] [Subreddit] [Chapter 56→]
The silence that hung over the tent was absolute, with only the slight wind in the bows breaking it up. Naia sat with the faintest of smiles tugging at his lips.
“And what, exactly, is that meant to imply?” he said, the smile coming out in full.
“Plainly, then - it’s foolhardy to send your most valuable assets into the fire with an under equipped force,” said Efrain, his patience with this game already up.
“Yes, it must,” Naia said, “alas, the mystery of the church is not to be readily questioned, especially if one wants to reach a position of understanding it.”
‘It was an open secret among those in higher society’ Efrain translated.
“Then why you?” he said, “you hardly seem like an uninformed man.”
“Allow me to divulge a little secret, Efrain, though it must not go outside this tent,” said Naia, “originally, the crusade was to be lead by a lesser noble’s son, who, I unfortunately must say, is not in the favour of society at the moment.”
‘It was doomed from the start so they elected to kill two birds with one stone.’
“And yet, here we are,” said Efrain.
“Indeed. Me and mine saw it for the honour it was. Frankly I was shocked that nobody else did.”
“I see. A lapse of judgement among nobles? I’d never thought I’d see the day.”
“Far be it from me to speak ill of the administrators of our great society. Their duties keep them quite busy. As for my superiors, how could they not take notice? The church was asking for armed men, afterall.”
“And out of all the people they could’ve sent, they sent the young commander with ‘unorthodox’ recruits.”
“Why, they thought it was a great way to prove myself, as did I.”
“It must be hard,” said Efrain, “getting such a difficult job assigned to you.”
“I do what I must, though, I must admit this has had its fair share of headaches. Wonderful surprises too.”
Efrain stopped for a moment, to consider the conclusion that all of this pointed to. It was something so large, so at odds with everything he understood about the church, that it seemed almost impossible. But he had to be sure, absolutely sure that they were on the same page.
He put up his hand onto the table, and felt magic return to him. It was stronger, more definite than before, almost… wilder. Pushing that sensation aside, he remembered crowded inns and temples, the clamour of people, all fading into the background. The air around the pair shimmered ever so slightly, and Naia blinked.
“What did you just do?” he said, looking around.
“Nothing major. Stay in close, or it’ll break. Our conversation will be just a little less intelligible for prying ears.”
“Ah. Useful,” said the captain, nodding in appreciation.
“Hardly,” Efrain said, “anyone with any knowhow could break this with ease. I hope you don’t have another secret mage hiding in your retinue who’d listen in.”
“I’d be surprised,” said Naia.
“Very well,” Efrain said, leaning forward and preparing to drop the axe, “so, why is the church so eager to get rid of its oh-so-special Bequeathed?”
The silence returned once more, slightly distorted through the muffling charm Efrain had cast.
“You’re certain that this,” Naia said, waving around them, “is intact?”
“Quite. Answer the question, commander,” he said, “perhaps they’re not as valuable as I was led to believe.”
Naia sat for a few moments, mulling over the blunt truth, then took a deep breath.
“They are valuable. Incredibly so. They are living, breathing symbols of the faith, but that’s not all.”
Efrain nodded, waiting for the captain to continue.
“If half the stories of their battle prowess is true, then they are golden military assets. Though they haven’t been used as such for a very long time.”
“Ah,” Efrain said, as the pieces began to fall into place, “so that’s why they sent you.”
“I may or may not have been selected for this reason,” he said, the smile more dry than knowing.
“And if anything went wrong, if the precious Bequeathed came back with all these strange ideas about the church, they could blame the unorthodoxy of the commander.”
Something twisted in Naia’s smile - Efrain had touched on something painful.
“Precisely,” he said, “although I would like to believe that they chose me because they knew I’d avoid doing things so crudely.”
“So, they want you to… what, drive a wedge between the Bequeathed and the church? Subtly, of course.”
“You know, I was planning to tell you this all after you agreed to join me,” Naia said flatly.
“Ha!” Efrain said, “age and experience, young man.”
“Clearly,” Naia said, spreading his arms in defeat, “so, I stand before you, uncloaked. What do you think?”
“I think that there would be at least one member of the church disguised in your retinue, no?”
Naia’s smile grew cold and thin at the mention.
“The man wouldn’t listen to reason. We counselled him to stick with our company, but he had other, more pious ideas about wandering in the wild forest.”
Efrain nodded - he hadn’t really expected anything else.
“And what about the paladins, do they suspect anything?” he said, sitting back.
“Lillian is of high birth. I don’t doubt she hasn’t heard something that might make her suspicious. Niche might’ve but he’s… well stupid would be a disservice to both of them. Niche is certainly more naive than Lillian. As for Sphernt, she’s vanished, but, of course, you wouldn’t know her.”
“Another paladin?” Efrain groaned, trying to drive home the exasperation to cover him.
“Indeed, and far less pleasant than the others,” Naia laughed, “I know, a charming prospect. She was bullheaded, refused to listen or wait, so I sent her on ahead. As far as I know she’s buried under a snowdrift somewhere. We were going to search for her, but Aya’s finding threw everything into disarray, even her fraternity dropped it.”
Efrain almost let out an audible sigh of relief, but he managed to catch himself at the last moment.
“Well, in any case that makes your ultimate job easier, if you so choose to join me,” Naia said.
“Hold up,” said Efrain, “let me guess. You can’t act because questioning the authority of the church would compromise your personal position, as well as make the children suspicious. Given that I am potentially the most unorthodox person you could employ, you would use me to get to the children, and then foist the blame on me if anything went wrong.”
“Phrased it better than I could,” Naia said.
“Well, I can certainly see the appeal,” Efrain said dryly, “but what makes you think I would agree to that? Say, hypothetically, I went all the way to the silver city with you. You suddenly blame me for corrupting the children, then its my head.”
“A fair point, but consider - I am so close to being outcast that I need you, and if the children spoke out in your defence, they might well eclipse my influence. In addition, who would it reflect badly on if I did so? That would only worsen my position by leaps and bounds.”
“Fine,” Efrain said, “so what role did you have for me?”
“Oh that? Simple. You’ve been doing it already by most accounts,” Naia said, “teach them magic.”
Efrain stopped to consider it for a moment - no doubt he’d been briefed in full after the church incident. The fact that Naia hadn’t executed the mage for that alone spoke volumes to his intentions.
“And if, if, I were to take you up on this offer, well, first off, how far would this arrangement go? Secondly, how would I get around the paladins? I imagine they’ll be hostile.”
“That would be your job. From the sound of it, you’ve already got Aya on your side. Arrange meetings, teach her subtly - I’m sure someone of your ‘age and experience’ could figure something out. As for how long, if you have no desire to come to Angorrah, why not until we set sail? That should give you ample time.”
“And what’s in it for me, then?” he said, “Seems that I’m taking an awful lot of risk for simple promises.”
“What, a prospective general as a friend is not enough?” laughed Naia.
“Prospective. I’m not inclined to weigh reward on the whims of other unknown people,” Efrain snorted.
“A reasonable concern, though it’s only a week or two of work for a potential lifetime of benefits.”
“Granted. And what are you to say if I did not find the prospect of using children as pieces appealing?”
Naia arched an eyebrow at this, but the smile remained.
“This is the world we live in. In a way, if they should happen to throw their lot in with us, as it were, they’ll be getting a better life. The army is not quick to dispose of such valuable tools, unlike the more capricious elements of the church. They would not have to live by scripture and ceremony.”
“By throwing them at enemies, until they’re spent?” Efrain said.
The silence in the tent took on another character, something colder and heavier.
“You’ve said your knowledge of Angorrah was out-of-date. Do you know what they did to bring the merchant cities of the coast in line?”
Efrain shook his head.
“It’s quite simple. The palaces of Ennen’alla? Smokey marble with brass accents. Beautiful, beautiful buildings. Angorrah chose them to be their examples - now they’re little more than ruins and dust. From the other cities, rather than go to war, they offered up noble children as wards. I’m sure you can imagine; Hundreds, thousands of days, living under suspended sentences? A sword hanging over your head, waiting, begging to fall, based on the slightest provocation you have no control over.”
“This is supposed to be a positive comparison?”
“The Bequeathed, whether or not they and their guardians realise it, are living under the exact same sentence. Welcoming them back into the church might delay it for a time. The military is ruthless, I won’t deny, but it’s interested in service. Which is better? That the children are a pawn of the faith, used in political games across the continent, liable to be sent to a bitter end based on whim? Or, they live a tough but honoured life, and, in time, might rise to see the power and freedom to dictate their own destiny through generalship?”
“I can see why they sent you, commander,” Efrain said, “you’ve got quite the tongue.”
“I offer simple truths in pretty prose, that’s all,” Naia said, “if you want to look out for their wellbeing, then it might be best you align with me anyways. As for other rewards, I’m a commander, which comes with privileges. If you want gold or valuables, I can probably get them with time. Access to influence, knowledge? Those are easy enough, with the right friends, which I’ve made a point of making. All this potential for a few days of work, Efrain.”
The cloth rustled slightly in the breeze.
“And I’ll be free to go, alive, unharmed, not immediately killed for knowing your secret?” Efrain said.
“Guaranteed.”
Efrain examined the man’s face in depth, noting the lines that gave away his age. The dark hair with just a hint of blue mingling with the black, although whether that was dye or somehow natural he could barely guess. It was a dangerous gambit, predicated on the word of a man who by his own confession was willing to murder and scheme to get what he wanted. Still, he couldn’t deny the sway of the promise - a general of Angorrah who owed him a personal favour, that would be a very potent tool indeed.
This was again, assuming the man kept any kind of faith, which Efrain had mixed evidence to show for it. Still, if he was only going as far as the port, that would be fairly safe, or so he hoped. Maybe perhaps, if he could gain some trust with the paladins, play them off eachother…
This was getting too complicated for his taste, and the dangers of a company of soldiers around him didn’t sweeten things. Still, there was also the commandment of the River, and he was interested in the children and their talents. If Naia spoke the truth of its word, then there could be very good reasons for him to work with the commander. Then again, it’d also warned Innie of his death should he pursue this course, maybe this offer was that threat recast.
“Well?” said Naia.
There was nothing for it, Efrain surmised, at least until Karkos.
“It’s a deal. I’ll do what I can, until you sail,” Efrain said, holding out his hand and shaking it with Naia in the Karkosian fashion.
“Good. I would lay out the mission and your role, but you’ve guessed all you need to know already. This all stays between us and no one else, not even my captains. On pain of death, Efrain.”
“Understood, commander,” said Efrain, fully conscious of the irony.
“As for a method of approach,” Naia said, “the paladins have taken charge of much of the children’s education. However, I’m sure I could come up with an excuse to educate them on something. Maths, perhaps, or military history. We might be able to arrange them to have time away from the paladins.”
“So you want me to teach them the arts,” Efrain said, “and so doing, shake the foundations of the church.”
“More or less,” Naia chuckled, “you should return and recover your strength. Your companion was quite worried.”
“Oh really?” Efrain said, dispelling the charm, and leaving the tent.
He walked back to the circle of waggons he’d found himself in not twenty minutes ago, reflecting on the conversation he’d had. When he made it back to the one he’d slept in, he heard the sounds of voices within the canvas. Peaking in, he found Aya sitting before Innie, chatting away.
“I see you two have become good friends,” he said as he clambered in.
“Oh!” she said, “friends? I don’t know. Maybe not friends.”
“Stop teasing her and sit down Efrain,” Innie said.
“Fine, fine,” Efrain said, lowering himself onto the wooden slats.
“Now, as I was saying dear, “ Innie continued, “the talent of ‘seeing’ magic is much more about feeling it than actually using your eyes. You could use your ears, or nose, or tongue for that matter. It’s about the communication, much less about how you receive it.”
“You mean people can taste magic?” Aya giggled with a note of awe.
“Taste, and hear, and smell. More attuned beasts use their nose, like with everything. Humans tend to use their eyes, hence they tend to ‘see’ magic. Well, with some exceptions.”
Innie turned judgemental eyes to Efrain.
“I was a beginner,” Efrain said, “besides, I quickly grew out of it.”
“Why?” Aya said, “what is he talking about?”
“This one,” Innie said with relish, “started smelling when I first taught him.”
“That’s true?” Aya said, eyes wide, but with an amused smile creeping onto her face, “what does magic smell like?”
“Alright, you’ve had your fun,” said Efrain, “it can smell like many things. It depends on the magic, it depends on the wielder. I ran into a fire wyrm once and everything smelled like burnt flesh for days after. Magic stinks for better or worse.”
“That was about the time you switched over to seeing. I guess you learned your lesson,” Innie said.
“But that’s not all magic can convey. Sensory information is but a pittance. More complex things, emotions, moods, entire concepts can be compressed into magic. The language we spoke to the trees in the pourjava’s hollow? You can express much more with magic, much faster, than with mere language alone.”
“The language you spoke in the-”
“Tematek, a kind of template, a mould which magic creatures developed various dialects from. Most magical creatures with the intellect to speak a language will speak Tematek or some variant of it.”
“So does that mean we’re speaking it right now?” she said, the whites of her eyes shining in the dim light.
“No, I speak human tongues as well,” said Innie, “the process of learning Tematek is a long one. You’ll simply learn how to see this way.”
“Could I learn it?”
Oh, this is too easy, Efrain thought, hearing Naia's voice echo about ‘opportunities’ falling into laps.
“You certainly could. It would be as hard as learning any other language however. And there’s the fact your paladin guardians are rather… possessive of you.”
“Well, they’re not here right now, I checked,” she said, and Efrain thought he saw a glimmer of pride at the deception, “they’re sleeping. Niche tried to keep watch but sleep caught up.”
“So, you’re saying you want to go behind the back of the church’s representatives to practise magic. The penalty for which could be death,” he said flatly, “that’s an impressive commitment.”
“That’s all they’ve said for the past few days,” she said without pause, “‘magic is dangerous’, ‘mages aren’t to be trusted’, ‘the Lost this’. Maybe they’re right.”
“And yet here you are.”
She nodded.
“They took me away from my home, my family. I don’t know anyone here, I don’t know what they’re planning for me. If I trusted you, would I be going on more than trusting them?”
Efrain chuckled.
“No, I suppose not,” he said, “although I think I do have one advantage.”
“What?”
“Your mother asked me to take care of you, if I could,” Efrain said, “I met her, before I ran into your group.”
To the girl’s credit, she held her expression, though the explosion of shock in her eyes were unmistakable, as well as the quiver in her jaw.
“You-you did? Is she- is she alright?”
Efrain paused. Maybe it was an old kindness that stirred below lost memories. Maybe it was mere self-interest, to pursue a relationship by putting the girl at ease.
“I’m sure she’s fine,” he lied, “but, we’d best get started, before your minders get up.”
[←Chapter 54] [Cover Art] [My Links] [Index] [Discord] [Subreddit] [Chapter 56→]

PM ONLY PLS Timestamp https://imgur.com/a/0HBM8JJ ALL OBO Getting out of the hobby
GMK Dots R2 Light - BNIB $105 Shipped
has a very slight tear in the plastic wrap nothing scratched. plastic was pulled
GMK Maestro Novelty - BNIB $65 Shipped
IFK Delight Base - BNIB $130 Shipped
MilkWay PBT Lilith - $85 Shipped
mounted and used for a couple weeks but no wear or damage
Mint Ikki68 Aurora - $115 Shipped
EVERYTHING EXCEPT THE FR4 PLATE HAS NOT BEEN USED
Mint colored Polycarbonate Ikki68 Aurora case
Mint colored Aluminum Plate
fr4 plate USED
Wired PCB
Silicone Dampening Pad between PCB and Case and Plate and PCB
Dark gray padded storage case
Mint colored Coiled USB A to USB C cable
Silicone Gaskets
Poron Gaskets
Wuque Studio Branded logo Chip
Blank Logo chip
Spare screws, diodes, sockets, and rubber feet
Magnetic Keyboard Badge (MOUNTED ALREADY)
[Ikki68 R2] Aurora x Zen Pond - $170 Shipped OBO
Ikki68 Aurora x GMK Zen Pond case ( E-white Alu top and blue PC bottom).
ALUMINIUM plate
FR4 plate
Silicone dampening pad between PCB & plate
Silicone dampening pad between PCB & case
Silicon Gaskets Set
Poron Gaskets Set
Keyboard storage case
Coiled USB cable
6x 2u + 1x 6.25u set of color matched stabilizers.
Extra screws, diodes, sockets, keyboard feet, hex screwdriver

Selling my sets for below mentioned price in items.
Feel free to add me/discuss.
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Sold over 1000 TI6/TI7/TI8/TI9/TI10/Nemestice/Aghanim's/Diretide 2022 Collector's
Proof of gifting Caches Sets?
Check comments on my profile & check their inventory for my sets gifted by me.
Buyer always goes first or we can use middleman from this Sub.
Also, why would scam ? I got like 800+ cache sets to sell.
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Diretide 2022 Collector's Cache

Set name	Hero	Quantity	$$
Shadowleaf Insurgent	Hoodwink	20+	$15
Scarlet Subversion	Riki	20+	$15
Whippersnapper	Snapfire	20+	$10
Hounds of Obsession	Chen	20+	$10
Seadog's Stash	Clockwork	20+	$10
Starlorn Adjudicator	Dawnbreaker	20+	$15
Spoils of the Shadowveil	Spectre	20+	$15
Chines of the Inquisitor	Faceless Void	20+	$10
Trophies of the Hallowed Hunt	Ursa	20+	$10
Crimson Dawn	Phoenix	20+	$10
Forgotten Station	Terrorblade	20+	$15
Dirge Amplifier	Undying	20+	$15
Champion of the Fire Lotus	Monkey King	20+	$10
Deathstitch Shaman	Witch Doctor	20+	$10
Blue Horizons	Marci	20+	$30
Angel of Vex	Invoker	20+	$35
Dark Behemoth	Primal Beast	20+	$50

Aghanim's 2021 Collector's Cache

Set name	Hero	Quantity	$$
Silverwurm Sacrifice	Dragon Knight	22	$20
Scales of the Shadow Walker	Phantom Lancer	23	$15
Perception of the First Light	Dawnbreaker	22	$15
Apex Automated	Clockwerk	22	$15
Test of the Basilisk Lord	Razor	25	$10
Secrets of the Frost Singularity	Ancient Apparition	23	$8
Perils of the Red Banks	Chen	22	$10
The Chained Scribe	Grimstroke	24	$10
Widow of the Undermount Gloom	Broodmother	23	$10
Forgotten Fate	Mars	22	$5
March of the Crackerjack Mage	Rubick	24	$10
Cosmic Concoctioneers	Alchemist	23	$20
Days of the Demon	Axe	22	$10
Blightfall	Abaddon	23	$15
Pyrexae Polymorph Perfected	Ogre Magi	25	$35
Wrath of the Celestial Sentinel	Chaos Knight	8	$60

Nemestice Collector's Cache 2021

Set name	Hero	Quantity	$$
Twilight Hex	Dark Willow	23	15$
Litany of the Damned	Doom	24	15$
Astral Terminus	Enigma	23	10$
Caerulean Star	Enchantress	22	8$
Arcane Inverter	Gyrocopter	22	20$
Creed of the Skullhound	Lycan	22	25$
Desert Bloom	Nature's Prophet	23	20$
Silence of the Starweaver	Oracle	23	10$
Eyriebound Imperator	Skywrath Mage	23	10$
Anthozoan Assault	Tiny	23	25$
Defender of the Brumal Crest	Winter Wyvern	10	10$
Red Sands Marauder	Shadow Shaman	23	20$
Footfalls of the Sporefathers	Witch Doctor	12	60$

Collector's Cache I 2020

Set name	Hero	Quantity	$$
Ravenous Abyss	Underlord	20+	$15
Apocalypse Unbound	AA	20+	$10
Beholden of the Banished Ones	Warlock	20+	$10
Fury of the Righteous Storm	Disruptor	20+	$5
Lineage of the Stormlords	Juggernaut	20+	$35
Silent Slayer	Silencer	20+	$10
Mindless Slaughter	Pudge	20+	$20
Heartless Hunt	Bounty	20+	$10
Herald of the Ember Eye	Grimstroke	20+	$10
Fissured Flight	Jakiro	20+	$5
Flashpoint Proselyte	Husker	20+	$15
Signs of the Allfather	Nature prophet	20+	$15
Glory of the Elderflame	Lina	20+	$25
Lineage of the Stormlords	Juggernaut	6	$35
Origin of the Dark Oath	Night Stalker	6	$25
Songs of Starfall Glen	Enchantress	20+	$5
Ancient Inheritance	Tiny	20+	$30
Forsworn Legacy	mars	20+	$50

Collector's Cache II 2020

Set name	Hero	Quantity	$$
Evolution of the Infinite	Enigma	20+	$6
Beast of the Crimson Ring	bristle back	20+	$10
Clearcut Cavalier	Timber	20+	$6
The King Of Thieves	Keeper of light	20+	$10
Horror from the Deep	Tide	20+	$20
Ire of the Ancient Gaoler	Arc warden	20+	$25
Talons of the Endless Storm	chaos knight	20+	$15
Carousal of the Mystic Masquerade	Rubick	20+	$6
Crown of Calaphas	Shadow demon	20+	$10
Wrath of the Fallen	doom	20+	$20
Blacksail Cannoneer	Sniper	20+	$10
Secrets of the Celestial 📷	Skywrath mage	20+	$5
Blaze of Oblivion	Phoenix	20+	$6
Steward of the Forbidden Chamber	Templar Assassin	20+	$25
Claszureme Incursion	Void	20+	70$

Collector's Cache 2019

Set name	Hero	Quantity	$$
Paean of the Ink Dragon	Grimstroke	18	10$
Scorched Amber	Dragon Knight	20	20$
Allure of the Faeshade Flower	Dark Willow	1 M*	25$
The Arts of Mortal Deception	Enigma	21	10$
Poacher's Bane	Tidehunter	20	10$
Soul of the Brightshroud	Death Prophet	21	10$
Curse of the Creeping Vine	Undying	21	20$
Appetites of the Lizard King	Slark	18	25$
Riddle of the Hierophant	Oracle	20	10$
Defender of Ruin	Disruptor	22	25$

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Collector's Cache II 2019

Set name	Hero	Quantity	$$
Sight of the Kha-Ren Faithful	Drow Ranger	31	15$
Tribal Pathways	Warlock	30	10$
Directive of the Sunbound	Clockwerk	31	10$
Endless Night	Abaddon	30	10$
Dapper Disguise	Pudge	27	15$
Fury of the Bloodforge	Bloodseeker	30	10$
Automaton Antiquity	Broodmother	31	10$
Grim Destiny	Wraith King	29	10$
Distinguished Expeditionary	Tusk	30	10$
Verdant Predator	Venomancer	31	10$
Prized Acquisitions	Batrider	31	5$
Fowl Omen	Necrophos	34	30$

The International 2018 Collector's Cache I

Set name	Hero	Quantity	$$
Trail of the Sanguine Spectrum	Bloodseeker	20	8$
Insights of the Sapphire Shroud	Dark Seer	18	4$
Pillar of the Fractured Citadel	Spirit Breaker	21	$5
The Murid Divine	Necrophos	22	15$
Molokau Stalker	Venomancer	21	$10
Morbific Provision	Witch Doctor	22	10$
Raptures of the Abyssal Kin	Queen of Pain	20	15$
Grasp of the Riven Exile	Weaver	20	5$

The International 2018 Collector's Cache II

Set name	Hero	Quantity	$$
Pitmouse Fraternity	Meepo	37	10$
Fires of the Volcanic Guard	Ember Spirit	37	10$
Shackles of the Enduring Conscript	Axe	37	6$
Shimmer of the Anointed	Nyx Assassin	29	5$
Loaded Prospects	Brewmaster	39	15$
Ire of Molten Rebirth	Phoenix	36	10$
Pattern of the Silken Queen	Broodmother	26	5$
The Rat King	Chen	28	10$
Raiments of the Obsidian Forge	Underlord	22	20$

The International 2017 Collector's Cache

Set name	Hero	Quantity	$$
Rumrunner's Carronade	Brew master	20	15$
Abyssal Vortex	Enigma	27	10$
Samareen Sacrifice	Huskar	22	10$
Spoils of the Vodou Rover	Witch Doctor	27	10$
Shadowforce Gale	Luna	24	10$
Mechalodon Interdictor	Gyrocopter	27	10$
Cunning Corsair	Riki	24	20$

The International 2016 Collector's Cache

Set name	Hero	Quantity	$$
Nightsilver's Resolve	luna	2 M* dtygod*	20$
Oni Knight the Dark Conqueror	Chaos Knight	2 dtygod* dopey*	20$

I am no longer entertaining joy riders so I prefer you give $3 in items when u add me as deposit.
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Treasure Nr. & Year	Rare & Retro Sets	Hero	Price	Stock	Reserved
Diretide 1. 2022	Dark Behemoth	Primal Beast	40💲	6
Diretide 1. 2022	Blue Horizons	Marci	15💲	14	1
Diretide 2. 2022	Brands of the Reaper	AntiMage	25💲	2
Aghanim's. 2021	Wrath of the Celestial Sentinel	Chaos Knight	50💲	1
Aghanim's. 2021	Pyrexae Polymorph Perfected	Ogre Magi	30💲	1
Cache 1. 2019	Gothic Whisper	Phantom Assassin	95💲	1
Cache 2. 2019	Cinder Sensei	Ember Spirit	145💲	4
Cache 1. 2019	Defender of Ruin	Disruptor	20💲	3
Cache 2. 2019	Fowl Omen	Necrophos	15💲	5
Cache 2. 2018	Cruelties of the Spiral Bore	Magnus	50💲	2
Cache 2. 2018	The Rat King	Chen	8💲	2
Collection 2022	Charms of the Firefiend	Batrider	1💲	1	1

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Diretide Cache 2. 2022	Hero	Price	Stock	Reserved
Darkbrews Transgression	Alchemist	8💲	2
Withering Pain	Clinkz	8💲	2
Dawn of Darkness Foretold	Doom	8💲	2
Sacred Chamber Guardian	Huskar	8💲	2
Bird of Prey	Legion Commander	8💲	2	1
Feasts of Forever	Night Stalker	8💲	2
Freebot Fortunes	Ogre Magi	8💲	2
Transcendent Path	Oracle	10💲	1
Darkfeather Factioneer	Phantom Assassin	10💲	1
Cursed Cryptbreaker	Pudge	15💲	1
Grand Suppressor	Silencer	8💲	3
War Rig Eradicators	Techie	8💲	1
Acrimonies of Obsession	Vengeful Spirit	8💲	3

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Diretide Cache 1. 2022	Hero	Price	Stock	Reserved
Hounds of Obsession	Chen	8💲	13
Seadog's stash	Clockwerk	8💲	12
Starlorn Adjudicator	Dawnbreaker	8💲	10
Chines of the Inquisitor	Faceless Void	8💲	13	1
Shadowleaf Insurgent	Hoodwink	10💲	10
Champion of the Fire Lotus	Monkey King	8💲	14
Crimson Dawn	Phoenix	8💲	13
Scarlet Subversion	Riki	8💲	13	1
Whippersnapper	Snapfire	10💲	10
Spoils of the shadow veil	Spectre	8💲	12	1
Forgotten Station	Terrorblade	8💲	11
Dirge Amplifier	Undying	8💲	12
Trophies of the Hallowed Hunt	Ursa	8💲	13	2
Deathstitch Shaman	Witch Doctor	8💲	12

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Aghanim's Cache 2021	Hero	Price	Stock	Reserved
Blightfall	Abaddon	12💲	3
Cosmic Concoctioneers	Alchemist	16💲	1	1
Secrets of the Frost Singularity	Ancient Apparition	12💲	2
Days of the Demon	Axe	15💲	1
Widow of the Undermount Gloom	Broodmother	10💲	2
Perils of the Red Banks	Chen	12💲	4
Apex Automated	Clockwerk	25💲	1
Perception of the First Light	Dawnbreaker	25💲	2	1
Silverwurm Sacrifice	Dragon Knight	20💲	1	1
The Chained Scribe	Grimstroke	10💲	2
Forgotten Fate	Mars	15💲	2
Scales of the Shadow Walker	Phantom Lancer	8💲	3
Test of the Basilisk Lord	Razor	10💲	1
March of the Crackerjack Mage	Rubick	10💲	1

​

Cache 2. 2019	Hero	Price	Stock	Reserved
Endless Night	Abbadon	15💲	1
Prized Acquisitions	Batrider	10💲	2
Fury of the Bloodforge	BloodSeeker	10💲	4
Automaton Antiquity	BroodMother	12💲	3
Directive of the Sunbound	Clockwerk	12💲	2
Sight of the Kha-Ren Faithful	Drow Ranger	20💲	3	1
Souls Tyrant	Shadow Fiend	25💲	4
Distinguished Expeditionary	Tusk	10💲	1
Verdant Predator	Venomancer	10💲	2
Tribal Pathways⠀	Warlock	10💲	4

​

Cache 1. 2019	Hero	Price	Stock	Reserved
Echoes of the Everblack	Abaddon	16💲	2
Priest of the Proudsilver Clan	Chen	10💲	2
Allure of the Fadeshade Flower	Dark Willow	20💲	2
Forbidden Medicines	Dazzle	10💲	2
Soul of the Brightshroud	Death Prophet	15💲	1
Scorched Amber	Dragon Knight	20💲	1
Glimmer of Sacred Hunt	Drow Ranger	45💲	1
The Arts of Mortal Deception	Enigma	12💲	2
Pursuit of the Ember Demons	Huskar	20💲	2
Riddle of the Hierophant	Oracle	8💲	1
Appetites of the Lizard King	Slark	20💲	1
Poacher's Bane	Tidehunter	18💲	2
Curse of the Creeping Vine	Undying	12💲	3

Genuine Weather balls can be traded without delay

Genuine Weather	Price	Stock	reserved
Ash	7💲	6
Snow	4💲	11
Rain	4💲	11
Moonbeam	4💲	10
Aurora	3💲	25
Harvest	3💲	13
Spring	3💲	11
Pestilence	2💲	11
Sirocco	2💲	11
Total	32💲	6	1

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Fourth and final part at the same time tomorrow.
Series Page - Read 10 weeks ahead on Patreon - Read the story so far on Royal Road
*
Chapter Twelve - The Blacksmith's Boy (Part Three)
Clouds. Black, moving, twisting like rope. His head ached. His blood was hot as flame. Fire flashed in the clouds, and the old stormtower gleamed. The Old Man stared back at him from the gloom, eyes carving at his skin. You could have warned me. He taunted him. Smoke bled around his shoulders, and his skin melted away. Cal tried to look away, but it was too late. The fire was on him, and the sky filled his eyes with black water, smothering his breath.
*
He gasped, pain searing down his spine, and choked on his own breath, spluttering.
‘Get him up.’
‘I’ve got him.’
Lokk’s voice. Cal felt a hand curling underneath one of his arms, lifting his aching jaw off the floorboards. Pain shot down his back again, and he cried out, eyes spinning. Then there was another hand beneath him, and he was lifted groaning away from the floor. They lowered him carefully into a chair, and he fell against it, skin stinging, panting through gritted teeth.
‘What happened to him?’
‘Had a wolf at ‘im, by the looks of it!’
‘Don’t be a fool! No wolves in these woods.’
‘Believe in magic, but not in wolves?’
Cal groaned again.
‘Shut it, all of you!’
Cal blinked again, and the Innkeep’s rosy cheeks coalesced into the air before his eyes, looking down at him worriedly. Lokk was at his shoulder, wide-eyed, his mop of lank hair hanging loosely over his forehead. Someone had put the door to, and it was suddenly very quiet. Cal took a breath.
‘What happened, boy?’ The Innkeep asked him. Beyond his shoul-ders, Cal could see the faces of a half-dozen patrons, blinking back at him with wide eyes. All except Old Godry, who looked mildly irritated. Outside, the storm wailed helplessly against the thatching, and thunder rumbled against the hills, more distant, now. Cal held his breath, craning his ears. But the footsteps were gone. He swallowed.
‘There were…’ He hesitated, glancing towards the door. ‘I… fell.’
‘Down half the Teeth by the looks of it!’ Lokk pointed at his arms. ‘What were you doing out in this?’
Cal blinked, looking down. His arms were crisscrossed with dozens of bloody cuts, and his shirt was hanging off him in strings. He frowned, shrugging, and then winced as fire raced over his skin, and fell back against the chair, gasping.
‘Thought… Thought I had time to get back.’
‘Damned fool.’ Carel told him, appearing beside her father. She had a pail of steaming water under one arm, and a bundle of rags in the oth-er. ‘Got to clean those before they rot.’
‘I’m fi-’
‘That’s enough talking.’ The Innkeep told him. ‘Or I’ll want coin for the cloth.’
Cal thought better of arguing.
‘Saw a fair few mugs go over.’ The Innkeep turned towards the rest of the room, smiling reassuringly. ‘I’ll fetch a new barrel. This one’s on the house.’
A few grumbles of approval from the assembled regulars. They were all watching him. He could feel their eyes on him, prying, poking. Sen-sible boys know better than to go wandering in a storm. They’d always thought the Blacksmith’s stray was cracked. Same as his master. Godry seemed to have let his irritation go at the promise of free ale, but Cal spotted the butcher’s brute of a son, Petr, sneering back at him over the rim of his mug. He lowered his eyes. They thought him mad. Maybe they were right. Behind his eyes, the shadows were still chasing him through endless trees, clawing at his heels. But the door stayed closed, and there was no sound beyond it but the storm. Maybe he was losing his mind.
‘Quite the show, that was.’ Lokk grinned as his father went off to find the barrel. Carel rolled her eyes, pulling up another chair and set-ting about dampening the cloth. ‘Barely seen you in weeks, then you show up all bloody an’ panting like a wolf that’s got in with the chick-ens? You always knew how to make an entrance.’
Cal grunted. He didn’t feel like explaining himself. Wasn’t sure he could, even if he did.
‘Scared off the new folk, too.’ Lokk nodded towards an empty table in the far corner of the room, scattered with discarded mugs.
Cal blinked. ‘What?’
‘Had some of Solen’s new hands in tonight.’ Lokk told him offhand-edly, scratching his chin. ‘Quiet lot. Must have given them quite the fright. Saw themselves out sharpish.’
‘What did… hnngg.’ Cal clamped his teeth together with a groan as Carel pressed one of the rags against his bloody forearm.
‘Stay still.’ She told him, wiping the cloth slowly across his skin. It felt like someone was stripping his flesh with a wood plane. Cal clenched his jaw, forcing himself not to yelp. Lokk lounged idly against the bar beside him, sweeping his loose hair back from his forehead un-tidily.
‘Interrupted Godry, too.’ His friend went on, clearly unperturbed by his suffering. ‘Old goat hates being interrupted.’
Cal grunted again. The little clump of patrons seemed to have lost interest in him, now, turning back to their mugs as the Innkeep moved deftly through the tables, a little cask under his arm. Petr and his father were sitting glowering at no one in particular. Forley and his young wife Priss looked taken aback, and not the least bit shaken, by the un-expected turn of events the evening had taken, but the dour-faced min-ers beside them (whose names Cal did not know) seemed to have paid Cal’s entrance no heed at all. Old Godry was sitting patiently, firelight knotting over his scarred cheeks, waiting for his cue. Soon their mugs were full again, and the foolishness of the Blacksmith’s stray was quite forgotten. The Innkeep set the empty cask down somewhere behind the bar, and went off to find another barrel. Cal gritted his teeth as Carel went on with her work, eyes watering, and watched the villagers blur indifferently by the fire.
‘You weren’t finished, Godry.’ Albin, the butcher began, taking a long swig from his mug. ‘’bout to tell us how the wizard farted out his storm to save the savages.’
Cal saw Forley roll his eyes. ‘You know damned well where we were! Tell us about Arolf!’
Albin scowled, opening his mouth to retort, but Godry regained his composure in time to step in.
‘Aerolf, Forley.’ He corrected patiently.
‘Aerolf, then.’ The young shepherd agreed, rolling his eyes. ‘What happened next?’
‘Well, like I was saying, old King Talor’s already met his end, but them Northmen weren’t done yet. That beast Aerolf most of all.’ Godry began, lowering his voice and eyeing his audience conspiratorially. ‘He had a score to settle, see. This weren’t the kind of man to let a woman run from him, you understand.’
‘Serves him right.’ Albin grumbled. ‘Couldn’t keep her in his bed, even with a sword on her.’
The two miners snorted in agreement, and Petr just kept scowling. Cal flinched as Carel drew her rag over a particularly deep cut. He caught her eye reproachfully, and she smiled slyly.
‘Oops.’
She was very close, he realised, and he could feel the heat of her against his cut-thread skin. Another night, he might even have enjoyed it.
‘So there they was, dead King and all. Could of had the throne for hisself, right then.’ The old miner continued gravely. ‘But he was more animal than man. Mad as a beast, they say, big as a bear, covered head to toe in blood, cut up like an old buck. And this beast had a taste for blood.’
The little circle of villagers leaned a little closer in their seats, eye-ing Godry eagerly. Cal realised he was listening along with them.
‘So off he goes, bloody magic blade in hand.’ Godry held out his hand like a blade, scowling at them over the fire. ‘He finds that place where old King Talor locked up his pretty young daughter. And what’d’you think he does when he finds it?’
‘Kills her.’ Forley whispered.
‘That’s right, boy.’ Godry nodded, dropping his arm. ‘Heard it said he clawed the tower door open with his bare hands. Dragged her out in-to that garden, butchered her right there in the grass, threw her off that big rock of theirs like an old ham. This weren’t a man you run from. If he couldn’t have her, no one could.’
‘How’d they kill him, then?’ Albin asked, frowning.
‘Well, see now. Northmen ain’t the only one with monsters.’ Godry said craftily, raising one patchwork brow. ‘Dekar’s a sharp one. He’d realised what was afoot, by now. Rallied the King’s Men, drove the scum back out of the King’s hall. Weren’t a man amongst them left standing, save the ones in the garden. But for Aerolf and them, he saved his best killer.’
‘The Bloodless.’ Forley murmured.
‘The Bloodless.’ Godry agreed. ‘Biggest woman you’ve ever seen. Big as a wagon, skin like blue snow. They say there’s nought but ice in them veins, and if you cut her, she don’t bleed.’
‘And I’ve got rocks for balls.’ Albin snorted.
‘Might as well, for all the good they do you.’ Godry snapped back at him. ‘But the Bloodless finds the traitor. Right there in that garden, all covered in the Princess’s blood. Cuts Aerolf down, throws him from the walls after her, him and his magic sword. Almost killed that Stonesplitter dog, too, whilst she were at it. Weren’t no easy thing though; gets her head cut open like a peach for its trouble. Should’ve died, right there. Would’ve, if not for those… other types Dekar had took up with.’
‘‘Least the traitor was dead.’
‘Aye, that he was. That Heartspire’s taller than a mountain. Say there weren’t nothing left of him but mulch, once he got to the bottom. Him and the princess both.’
‘Makers have mercy.’ Forley murmured, making the sign of the Nine over his breast. Even Albin took another mouthful of ale.
‘Weren’t no mercy. A beast don’t deserve none.’ Godry said sober-ly, following Forley and drawing a circle over his chest. ‘If he couldn’t ‘ave her, no one could.’
Cal barely heard them. He felt drained, as though the cuts had bled the weight from his bones. He floated just above his chair in a haze, and the roomed blurred and swayed as if through shallow water. Carel went about her work quietly, carefully, and the pain of it washed over him in raw waves, until the pail of water at her feet was stained an ugly pink.
‘Dekar had a plan though!’ Forley whispered excitedly, his rever-ence forgotten. ‘Tell ‘em, Godry!’
‘That he did, Forley.’ Godry smiled, his scarred face contorting gro-tesquely. ‘See, that Dekar’s sharp as a carving knife. Took up Taylor’s magic sword, led the King’s Men himself. But that weren’t all. Had some of his men kept back, from down West. Big men. Hard men. Came on the Northmen camp in the dead of night. Surrounded ‘em.’
‘Weren’t just any men, I hears it.’ Albin grumbled.
‘Here we go!’ Forley snorted.
‘Said it yourself, Godry. Dekar took up with them religious types.’ Albin shot back, frowning indignantly. ‘Everyone knows it.’
‘Religious? Masks don’t keep the Makers.’ Forley spat. ‘Ain’t noth-ing but bandits dressed up like monks.’
Cal blinked.
‘Brothers ain’t got no Gods save the Darkness.’ Priss murmured qui-etly. ‘You say Nine, I say eight.’
‘All the same.’ Albin was saying, folding his arms over his mug. ‘Brothers are useful, and good old Dekar didn’t sniff at them like you do.’
‘That’s enough, Alb.’ Godry interrupted. ‘He’s still our King, even all the way out here.’
Cal opened his mouth, straightening in his seat, but Carel pushed him back down again tutting.
‘Sit still.’
‘But-’
‘Hardly our King anymore, anyways.’ Albin spat. ‘Not like it used to be. Valia’s for the lowlanders.’
‘You sounds like a Northman.’ Forley scowled.
‘Or one of the Elahi.’ Priss added. Albin bristled, and Godry jumped in just in time.
‘Doesn’t matter. All Dekar’s hard men never got to the Northmen camp.’ The grizzled old smelter went on. ‘Seems old Isandur weren’t done yet.
Cal gritted his teeth. His head ached, and his mouth tasted like smoke.
Albin spat at his feet, sneering. ‘Isandur my arse.’
‘Let him be, Alb.’ Forley told him.
There was a moment of uncomfortable silence as the butcher and his son fixed Forley with their most angry of looks. Then Godry cleared his throat noisily, and Petr shoved himself to his feet and stalked off to-wards the bar, snatching up their empty mugs as he went.
‘But Isandur is a crafty one, and no mistake. Showed up just in time, as always. What he wanted from it, no man can say. Them Chosen are scheming sorts, what ones is left. Us mortals couldn’t guess what they’s thinkin’.’ He paused, nodding knowingly. ‘Storm-tamers, they call ‘em. He spoke the words, and the sky opened. Biggest storm you’ve ever seen. Caught Dekar’s men as they came. Scattered ‘em like wheat in a gale.’
Petr aimed a crooked smile at Carel as he passed, and she lowered her eyes. Cal barely noticed. He no longer heard Godry. The room around him seemed very far away. Was he awake? Or was he dream-ing?
‘Northerners took the chance. Fled faster than the wind what chased them. Them that were still on the rock, them what murdered and killed our King?’ Godry went on, shaking his head sadly. ‘Them he called the wind itself for, and carried them away before Dekar could get at them. Aerolf’s brother, among them. King of the North, he goes by now. Couple of other Northmen, too. Stonesplitter cut almost in half by the Bloodless’ blade.’
Albin spat on the floor, and the miners scowled. No right-minded Valian liked this part, magic or not. Cal ground his teeth.
‘That Chosen bastard let the King get his throat slit, then shows up to save his killers.’ Albin cursed.
‘Makers know why. Not been seen since.’ Godry agreed. ‘Back they went, anyway, back to the rest of the savages as they fled like dogs. Storm was so heavy, river banks burst behind them, flooded half the valley.’
Cal’s heart was pounding in his ears, and his skull was ringing. Out-side, the wind whined over the thatching, howling at the broken clouds.
‘Don’t matter how many men Dekar had. Or how many Brothers. Ain’t no one swimming in mail.’
Cal forced his eyes shut. Black Ones. A storm. Falling.
‘Cal?’
He opened his eyes, blinking into the firelight, and found Carel look-ing down at him worriedly.
‘Does it hurt?’ She was asking softly.
‘What… no, I’m fine.’ He told her, blinking again. ‘I need to…’
‘Stay here.’ She told him, lifting up the bloody pail. ‘I need more cloth.’
She turned on her heel and disappeared. Cal’s head spun.
‘… already scared off the new folk with all these tall stories.’ Albin was saying. ‘Storm’s just a storm. Forge boy knows.’
Cal blinked, lurching unsteadily to his feet. Asking questions, the Innkeep had said. His vision blurred unsteadily, and the room stared back at him, wobbling like a top.
‘Cal, you need to sit down.’ Lokk told him, putting a hand on his shoulder.
Cal blinked. His eyes stopped spinning, and the ache in his head had vanished. The wind had moved on overhead, and the air was thick with smoke and heat. The little group of patrons were eyeing him curiously. All save the butcher.
‘Listen to him boy, before you hurt yourself.’ Albin sneered back at him.
‘Come on, Cal. Ignore him.’ Lokk murmured in his ear.
Cal swallowed, meeting the swarthy butcher’s eye for a moment. Then he let himself be steered backward, slumping into his seat like an empty sack.
‘Must have lost more blood than I thought.’ Lokk told him, pulling up a chair beside him and tutting. ‘Want to pick a fight with Albin as well as that storm?’
‘What?’ Cal mumbled, blinking. The butcher had gone back to his drink, and the other villagers had gone with him, grumbling amongst themselves about the practicalities of storm-tamers and treacherous, magical old men. He took a breath. ‘I wasn’t. I-’
‘Sure looked like you were. You know Alb. Just his way. Didn’t mean anything by it.’
‘Lokk, when did the new folk leave?’
‘What? Oh… I told you. Right after you turned up. Spooked ‘em good, you did, all bloody like a fresh ham…’
‘Where did they go?’
‘How should I know? Had my hands full peeling you off the floor. Why d’you care, anyway?’
‘Lokk, I need to…’
‘Oh, no you don’t! You aren’t going anywhere. Need to rest.’ His friend told him, pinning him to his chair by his shoulders. ‘Look like you fell down half the Teeth face first.’
‘I…’ Cal began, lowering his voice. His head was clearing, and the room was no longer spinning like a leaf. Beside the fire, the other pa-trons were still bickering emptily. The storm had passed, and the ache of it was clearing from his battered skull. ‘I didn’t just fall. Something was chasing me.’
‘What are you talking about? You crack your head, too?’
‘Lokk, listen. There were…’
‘Let go!’
They both looked up at the sudden commotion from beside the bar. Carel had just made it out from behind it with a fresh pail of steaming water before Petr had cornered her, bulky shoulders blocking the way forward like a stubborn bullock. He had one meaty hand curled around Carel’s wrist, and she had her eyes fixed on the floor. Cal was on his feet before Lokk could say anything.
‘Let go of her.’
The big youth let go of Carel’s wrist, and the pail fell abruptly back to her side, spilling steaming water across the floor. She looked at it distantly, frowning.
‘Or what, you little shit?’ The butcher’s son grumbled throatily, turning slowly around to facing Cal, glaring down at him with rheumy-eyes. His words had the imprecise edge of drink to them, and his breath smelled of sour ale. ‘Gonna throw yourself down a fucking hill at me?’
‘Just leave her be, Petr.’ Lokk added from Cal’s shoulder.
‘Mind your own business.’ The big youth snorted, still glaring at Cal darkly. ‘Sit down before you hurt yourself, stray.’
He began to turn back to Carel. Lokk put a hand on Cal’s shoulder, and Cal ignored him.
‘Leave her be.’ He said again.
‘Or what?’ Petr snarled back, lurching around again, wiping spittle from the corner of his mouth. ‘Going to bleed on me?’
‘It’s fine, Cal. No harm done.’ Carel said quietly from beside the bar, eyes still on the ground. ‘Sit down, let me finish with your cuts.’
‘You heard her. Be a good little foundling and sit down like she says.’
Cal swallowed. Petr was nearly a head taller than he was, and his arms were thick, corded with miner’s work. But there would be no avoiding it now, and he didn’t have the patience to let it be, that night. The big youth was drunk, and spoiling for a fight. Cal glanced back over his shoulder, but the other patrons were bickering loudly beside the fire, oblivious, or indifferent, or both. The Innkeep was still in the back somewhere, tapping a new barrel. Strike first. Strike hard. Cal shifted his feet slightly, readying himself. His head had cleared, and his pain was far away. The moment of calm was on him. A blink in time. The room faded away, vibrating with stillness. There was only his breath. In, and out. He waited.
‘Nothing to say? Suppose a dead whore can’t teach her cunt son any manners.’
Cal moved quickly, uncoiling like a bowstring. He burst forward off his hind leg, bunching his fist towards Petr’s slab of a jaw. The butch-er’s son had no chance to react. How could he? Cal moved with the ease of a seasoned brawler, hard limbs whipping like clubs. Lokk’s arm slipped from his shoulder. He was already halfway across the distance between them before Petr could even blink.
His boot splashed, skidded, slid. The water. Cal blinked, lost bal-ance, and slid wildly into Petr’s chest. His head thudded into the other boy, and he staggered back, confused, dazed. Petr blinked down at him, cogs turning slowly in his ale-slowed mind. Then a broad grin spread across the big youth’s jaw.
‘Should’ve listened, stray.’

Fourth and final part at the same time tomorrow.
Previous Chapter - Read 10 weeks ahead on Patreon - Read the story so far on Royal Road
*
Chapter Twelve - The Blacksmith's Boy (Part Three)
​
Clouds. Black, moving, twisting like rope. His head ached. His blood was hot as flame. Fire flashed in the clouds, and the old stormtower gleamed. The Old Man stared back at him from the gloom, eyes carving at his skin. You could have warned me. He taunted him. Smoke bled around his shoulders, and his skin melted away. Cal tried to look away, but it was too late. The fire was on him, and the sky filled his eyes with black water, smothering his breath.
*
He gasped, pain searing down his spine, and choked on his own breath, spluttering.
‘Get him up.’
‘I’ve got him.’
Lokk’s voice. Cal felt a hand curling underneath one of his arms, lifting his aching jaw off the floorboards. Pain shot down his back again, and he cried out, eyes spinning. Then there was another hand beneath him, and he was lifted groaning away from the floor. They lowered him carefully into a chair, and he fell against it, skin stinging, panting through gritted teeth.
‘What happened to him?’
‘Had a wolf at ‘im, by the looks of it!’
‘Don’t be a fool! No wolves in these woods.’
‘Believe in magic, but not in wolves?’
Cal groaned again.
‘Shut it, all of you!’
Cal blinked again, and the Innkeep’s rosy cheeks coalesced into the air before his eyes, looking down at him worriedly. Lokk was at his shoulder, wide-eyed, his mop of lank hair hanging loosely over his forehead. Someone had put the door to, and it was suddenly very quiet. Cal took a breath.
‘What happened, boy?’ The Innkeep asked him. Beyond his shoulders, Cal could see the faces of a half-dozen patrons, blinking back at him with wide eyes. All except Old Godry, who looked mildly irritated. Outside, the storm wailed helplessly against the thatching, and thunder rumbled against the hills, more distant, now. Cal held his breath, craning his ears. But the footsteps were gone. He swallowed.
‘There were…’ He hesitated, glancing towards the door. ‘I… fell.’
‘Down half the Teeth by the looks of it!’ Lokk pointed at his arms. ‘What were you doing out in this?’
Cal blinked, looking down. His arms were crisscrossed with dozens of bloody cuts, and his shirt was hanging off him in strings. He frowned, shrugging, and then winced as fire raced over his skin, and fell back against the chair, gasping.
‘Thought… Thought I had time to get back.’
‘Damned fool.’ Carel told him, appearing beside her father. She had a pail of steaming water under one arm, and a bundle of rags in the other. ‘Got to clean those before they rot.’
‘I’m fi-’
‘That’s enough talking.’ The Innkeep told him. ‘Or I’ll want coin for the cloth.’
Cal thought better of arguing.
‘Saw a fair few mugs go over.’ The Innkeep turned towards the rest of the room, smiling reassuringly. ‘I’ll fetch a new barrel. This one’s on the house.’
A few grumbles of approval from the assembled regulars. They were all watching him. He could feel their eyes on him, prying, poking. Sensible boys know better than to go wandering in a storm. They’d always thought the Blacksmith’s stray was cracked. Same as his master. Godry seemed to have let his irritation go at the promise of free ale, but Cal spotted the butcher’s brute of a son, Petr, sneering back at him over the rim of his mug. He lowered his eyes. They thought him mad. Maybe they were right. Behind his eyes, the shadows were still chasing him through endless trees, clawing at his heels. But the door stayed closed, and there was no sound beyond it but the storm. Maybe he was losing his mind.
‘Quite the show, that was.’ Lokk grinned as his father went off to find the barrel. Carel rolled her eyes, pulling up another chair and setting about dampening the cloth. ‘Barely seen you in weeks, then you show up all bloody an’ panting like a wolf that’s got in with the chickens? You always knew how to make an entrance.’
Cal grunted. He didn’t feel like explaining himself. Wasn’t sure he could, even if he did.
‘Scared off the new folk, too.’ Lokk nodded towards an empty table in the far corner of the room, scattered with discarded mugs.
Cal blinked. ‘What?’
‘Had some of Solen’s new hands in tonight.’ Lokk told him offhandedly, scratching his chin. ‘Quiet lot. Must have given them quite the fright. Saw themselves out sharpish.’
‘What did… hnngg.’ Cal clamped his teeth together with a groan as Carel pressed one of the rags against his bloody forearm.
‘Stay still.’ She told him, wiping the cloth slowly across his skin. It felt like someone was stripping his flesh with a wood plane. Cal clenched his jaw, forcing himself not to yelp. Lokk lounged idly against the bar beside him, sweeping his loose hair back from his forehead untidily.
‘Interrupted Godry, too.’ His friend went on, clearly unperturbed by his suffering. ‘Old goat hates being interrupted.’
Cal grunted again. The little clump of patrons seemed to have lost interest in him, now, turning back to their mugs as the Innkeep moved deftly through the tables, a little cask under his arm. Petr and his father were sitting glowering at no one in particular. Forley and his young wife Priss looked taken aback, and not the least bit shaken, by the unexpected turn of events the evening had taken, but the dour-faced miners beside them (whose names Cal did not know) seemed to have paid Cal’s entrance no heed at all. Old Godry was sitting patiently, firelight knotting over his scarred cheeks, waiting for his cue. Soon their mugs were full again, and the foolishness of the Blacksmith’s stray was quite forgotten. The Innkeep set the empty cask down somewhere behind the bar, and went off to find another barrel. Cal gritted his teeth as Carel went on with her work, eyes watering, and watched the villagers blur indifferently by the fire.
‘You weren’t finished, Godry.’ Albin, the butcher began, taking a long swig from his mug. ‘’bout to tell us how the wizard farted out his storm to save the savages.’
Cal saw Forley roll his eyes. ‘You know damned well where we were! Tell us about Arolf!’
Albin scowled, opening his mouth to retort, but Godry regained his composure in time to step in.
‘Aerolf, Forley.’ He corrected patiently.
‘Aerolf, then.’ The young shepherd agreed, rolling his eyes. ‘What happened next?’
‘Well, like I was saying, old King Talor’s already met his end, but them Northmen weren’t done yet. That beast Aerolf most of all.’ Godry began, lowering his voice and eyeing his audience conspiratorially. ‘He had a score to settle, see. This weren’t the kind of man to let a woman run from him, you understand.’
‘Serves him right.’ Albin grumbled. ‘Couldn’t keep her in his bed, even with a sword on her.’
The two miners snorted in agreement, and Petr just kept scowling. Cal flinched as Carel drew her rag over a particularly deep cut. He caught her eye reproachfully, and she smiled slyly.
‘Oops.’
She was very close, he realised, and he could feel the heat of her against his cut-thread skin. Another night, he might even have enjoyed it.
‘So there they was, dead King and all. Could of had the throne for hisself, right then.’ The old miner continued gravely. ‘But he was more animal than man. Mad as a beast, they say, big as a bear, covered head to toe in blood, cut up like an old buck. And this beast had a taste for blood.’
The little circle of villagers leaned a little closer in their seats, eyeing Godry eagerly. Cal realised he was listening along with them.
‘So off he goes, bloody magic blade in hand.’ Godry held out his hand like a blade, scowling at them over the fire. ‘He finds that place where old King Talor locked up his pretty young daughter. And what’d’you think he does when he finds it?’
‘Kills her.’ Forley whispered.
‘That’s right, boy.’ Godry nodded, dropping his arm. ‘Heard it said he clawed the tower door open with his bare hands. Dragged her out into that garden, butchered her right there in the grass, threw her off that big rock of theirs like an old ham. This weren’t a man you run from. If he couldn’t have her, no one could.’
‘How’d they kill him, then?’ Albin asked, frowning.
‘Well, see now. Northmen ain’t the only one with monsters.’ Godry said craftily, raising one patchwork brow. ‘Dekar’s a sharp one. He’d realised what was afoot, by now. Rallied the King’s Men, drove the scum back out of the King’s hall. Weren’t a man amongst them left standing, save the ones in the garden. But for Aerolf and them, he saved his best killer.’
‘The Bloodless.’ Forley murmured.
‘The Bloodless.’ Godry agreed. ‘Biggest woman you’ve ever seen. Big as a wagon, skin like blue snow. They say there’s nought but ice in them veins, and if you cut her, she don’t bleed.’
‘And I’ve got rocks for balls.’ Albin snorted.
‘Might as well, for all the good they do you.’ Godry snapped back at him. ‘But the Bloodless finds the traitor. Right there in that garden, all covered in the Princess’s blood. Cuts Aerolf down, throws him from the walls after her, him and his magic sword. Almost killed that Stonesplitter dog, too, whilst she were at it. Weren’t no easy thing though; gets her head cut open like a peach for its trouble. Should’ve died, right there. Would’ve, if not for those… other types Dekar had took up with.’
‘‘Least the traitor was dead.’
‘Aye, that he was. That Heartspire’s taller than a mountain. Say there weren’t nothing left of him but mulch, once he got to the bottom. Him and the princess both.’
‘Makers have mercy.’ Forley murmured, making the sign of the Nine over his breast. Even Albin took another mouthful of ale.
‘Weren’t no mercy. A beast don’t deserve none.’ Godry said soberly, following Forley and drawing a circle over his chest. ‘If he couldn’t ‘ave her, no one could.’
Cal barely heard them. He felt drained, as though the cuts had bled the weight from his bones. He floated just above his chair in a haze, and the roomed blurred and swayed as if through shallow water. Carel went about her work quietly, carefully, and the pain of it washed over him in raw waves, until the pail of water at her feet was stained an ugly pink.
‘Dekar had a plan though!’ Forley whispered excitedly, his reverence forgotten. ‘Tell ‘em, Godry!’
‘That he did, Forley.’ Godry smiled, his scarred face contorting grotesquely. ‘See, that Dekar’s sharp as a carving knife. Took up Taylor’s magic sword, led the King’s Men himself. But that weren’t all. Had some of his men kept back, from down West. Big men. Hard men. Came on the Northmen camp in the dead of night. Surrounded ‘em.’
‘Weren’t just any men, I hears it.’ Albin grumbled.
‘Here we go!’ Forley snorted.
‘Said it yourself, Godry. Dekar took up with them religious types.’ Albin shot back, frowning indignantly. ‘Everyone knows it.’
‘Religious? Masks don’t keep the Makers.’ Forley spat. ‘Ain’t nothing but bandits dressed up like monks.’
Cal blinked.
*‘*Brothers ain’t got no Gods save the Darkness.’ Priss murmured quietly. ‘You say Nine, I say eight.’
‘All the same.’ Albin was saying, folding his arms over his mug. ‘Brothers are useful, and good old Dekar didn’t sniff at them like you do.’
‘That’s enough, Alb.’ Godry interrupted. ‘He’s still our King, even all the way out here.’
Cal opened his mouth, straightening in his seat, but Carel pushed him back down again tutting.
‘Sit still.’
‘But-’
‘Hardly our King anymore, anyways.’ Albin spat. ‘Not like it used to be. Valia’s for the lowlanders.’
‘You sounds like a Northman.’ Forley scowled.
‘Or one of the Elahi.’ Priss added. Albin bristled, and Godry jumped in just in time.
‘Doesn’t matter. All Dekar’s hard men never got to the Northmen camp.’ The grizzled old smelter went on. ‘Seems old Isandur weren’t done yet.
Cal gritted his teeth. His head ached, and his mouth tasted like smoke.
Albin spat at his feet, sneering. ‘Isandur my arse.’
‘Let him be, Alb.’ Forley told him.
There was a moment of uncomfortable silence as the butcher and his son fixed Forley with their most angry of looks. Then Godry cleared his throat noisily, and Petr shoved himself to his feet and stalked off towards the bar, snatching up their empty mugs as he went.
‘But Isandur is a crafty one, and no mistake. Showed up just in time, as always. What he wanted from it, no man can say. Them Chosen are scheming sorts, what ones is left. Us mortals couldn’t guess what they’s thinkin’.’ He paused, nodding knowingly. ‘Storm-tamers, they call ‘em. He spoke the words, and the sky opened. Biggest storm you’ve ever seen. Caught Dekar’s men as they came. Scattered ‘em like wheat in a gale.’
Petr aimed a crooked smile at Carel as he passed, and she lowered her eyes. Cal barely noticed. He no longer heard Godry. The room around him seemed very far away. Was he awake? Or was he dreaming?
‘Northerners took the chance. Fled faster than the wind what chased them. Them that were still on the rock, them what murdered and killed our King?’ Godry went on, shaking his head sadly. ‘Them he called the wind itself for, and carried them away before Dekar could get at them. Aerolf’s brother, among them. King of the North, he goes by now. Couple of other Northmen, too. Stonesplitter cut almost in half by the Bloodless’ blade.’
Albin spat on the floor, and the miners scowled. No right-minded Valian liked this part, magic or not. Cal ground his teeth.
‘That Chosen bastard let the King get his throat slit, then shows up to save his killers.’ Albin cursed.
‘Makers know why. Not been seen since.’ Godry agreed. ‘Back they went, anyway, back to the rest of the savages as they fled like dogs. Storm was so heavy, river banks burst behind them, flooded half the valley.’
Cal’s heart was pounding in his ears, and his skull was ringing. Outside, the wind whined over the thatching, howling at the broken clouds.
‘Don’t matter how many men Dekar had. Or how many Brothers. Ain’t no one swimming in mail.’
Cal forced his eyes shut. Black Ones. A storm. Falling.
‘Cal?’
He opened his eyes, blinking into the firelight, and found Carel looking down at him worriedly.
‘Does it hurt?’ She was asking softly.
‘What… no, I’m fine.’ He told her, blinking again. ‘I need to…’
‘Stay here.’ She told him, lifting up the bloody pail. ‘I need more cloth.’
She turned on her heel and disappeared. Cal’s head spun.
‘… already scared off the new folk with all these tall stories.’ Albin was saying. ‘Storm’s just a storm. Forge boy knows.’
Cal blinked, lurching unsteadily to his feet. Asking questions, the Innkeep had said. His vision blurred unsteadily, and the room stared back at him, wobbling like a top.
‘Cal, you need to sit down.’ Lokk told him, putting a hand on his shoulder.
Cal blinked. His eyes stopped spinning, and the ache in his head had vanished. The wind had moved on overhead, and the air was thick with smoke and heat. The little group of patrons were eyeing him curiously. All save the butcher.
‘Listen to him boy, before you hurt yourself.’ Albin sneered back at him.
‘Come on, Cal. Ignore him.’ Lokk murmured in his ear.
Cal swallowed, meeting the swarthy butcher’s eye for a moment. Then he let himself be steered backward, slumping into his seat like an empty sack.
‘Must have lost more blood than I thought.’ Lokk told him, pulling up a chair beside him and tutting. ‘Want to pick a fight with Albin as well as that storm?’
‘What?’ Cal mumbled, blinking. The butcher had gone back to his drink, and the other villagers had gone with him, grumbling amongst themselves about the practicalities of storm-tamers and treacherous, magical old men. He took a breath. ‘I wasn’t. I-’
‘Sure looked like you were. You know Alb. Just his way. Didn’t mean anything by it.’
‘Lokk, when did the new folk leave?’
‘What? Oh… I told you. Right after you turned up. Spooked ‘em good, you did, all bloody like a fresh ham…’
‘Where did they go?’
‘How should I know? Had my hands full peeling you off the floor. Why d’you care, anyway?’
‘Lokk, I need to…’
‘Oh, no you don’t! You aren’t going anywhere. Need to rest.’ His friend told him, pinning him to his chair by his shoulders. ‘Look like you fell down half the Teeth face first.’
‘I…’ Cal began, lowering his voice. His head was clearing, and the room was no longer spinning like a leaf. Beside the fire, the other patrons were still bickering emptily. The storm had passed, and the ache of it was clearing from his battered skull. ‘I didn’t just fall. Something was chasing me.’
‘What are you talking about? You crack your head, too?’
‘Lokk, listen. There were…’
‘Let go!’
They both looked up at the sudden commotion from beside the bar. Carel had just made it out from behind it with a fresh pail of steaming water before Petr had cornered her, bulky shoulders blocking the way forward like a stubborn bullock. He had one meaty hand curled around Carel’s wrist, and she had her eyes fixed on the floor. Cal was on his feet before Lokk could say anything.
‘Let go of her.’
The big youth let go of Carel’s wrist, and the pail fell abruptly back to her side, spilling steaming water across the floor. She looked at it distantly, frowning.
‘Or what, you little shit?’ The butcher’s son grumbled throatily, turning slowly around to facing Cal, glaring down at him with rheumy-eyes. His words had the imprecise edge of drink to them, and his breath smelled of sour ale. ‘Gonna throw yourself down a fucking hill at me?’
‘Just leave her be, Petr.’ Lokk added from Cal’s shoulder.
‘Mind your own business.’ The big youth snorted, still glaring at Cal darkly. ‘Sit down before you hurt yourself, stray.’
He began to turn back to Carel. Lokk put a hand on Cal’s shoulder, and Cal ignored him.
‘Leave her be.’ He said again.
‘Or what?’ Petr snarled back, lurching around again, wiping spittle from the corner of his mouth. ‘Going to bleed on me?’
‘It’s fine, Cal. No harm done.’ Carel said quietly from beside the bar, eyes still on the ground. ‘Sit down, let me finish with your cuts.’
‘You heard her. Be a good little foundling and sit down like she says.’
Cal swallowed. Petr was nearly a head taller than he was, and his arms were thick, corded with miner’s work. But there would be no avoiding it now, and he didn’t have the patience to let it be, that night. The big youth was drunk, and spoiling for a fight. Cal glanced back over his shoulder, but the other patrons were bickering loudly beside the fire, oblivious, or indifferent, or both. The Innkeep was still in the back somewhere, tapping a new barrel. Strike first. Strike hard. Cal shifted his feet slightly, readying himself. His head had cleared, and his pain was far away. The moment of calm was on him. A blink in time. The room faded away, vibrating with stillness. There was only his breath. In, and out. He waited.
‘Nothing to say? Suppose a dead whore can’t teach her cunt son any manners.’
Cal moved quickly, uncoiling like a bowstring. He burst forward off his hind leg, bunching his fist towards Petr’s slab of a jaw. The butcher’s son had no chance to react. How could he? Cal moved with the ease of a seasoned brawler, hard limbs whipping like clubs. Lokk’s arm slipped from his shoulder. He was already halfway across the distance between them before Petr could even blink.
His boot splashed, skidded, slid. The water. Cal blinked, lost balance, and slid wildly into Petr’s chest. His head thudded into the other boy, and he staggered back, confused, dazed. Petr blinked down at him, cogs turning slowly in his ale-slowed mind. Then a broad grin spread across the big youth’s jaw.
‘Should’ve listened, stray.’

Hey guys about a month ago I made a post sharing my Toxrill deck that I've been playing. I have made a number of changes to it as I've realized some short comings and the meta seems to have shifted. This version of the deck is weaker to control decks which I don't mind as they are a lot less common than creature decks are right now. Toxrill by its nature is better against creature decks compared to control decks although if Cavern of souls existed in historic brawl things would be a little bit better.
Some of the new cards in my deck are
Snapcaster mage
Sheoldred// The True Scriptures
Invasion of Fiora
Realmbreaker
Pull From Tomorrow
Snapcaster is just a good card and works with well with many of the spells I have in here.
Sheoldred- I've been playing a Sheoldred deck and really liking Sheoldred herself as she can just be a huge win condition on her own or she can draw out removal so that one of my other finishers can get the job done. Sheoldred also works really well with Realmbreaker
Invasion of Fiora- I had very much discounted the battles as not being very good until I started playing with them. Invasion of Fiora is very good against creatures decks and the creature side is really good against decks that are looking to put +1/+1 counters on creatures like Atraxa.
Realmbreaker- Never that much of this card until I started playing Sheoldred and saw how far ahead it go me in the SHeoldred deck- Anytime I did get it down on turn 3 and got a 2-3 activations out of it I felt like I couldn't lose. I'm excited to try this out as it gives me land ramp in a deck that otherwise wouldn't have it.
Pull From Tomorrow- This card is just great at refilling your hand and being slightly easier to cast compared to Blue Sun's Zenith.
Previous suggestions
Somebody had suggested Howling mine and I did consider it as it's a consistent draw engine but ultimately I didn't put it in because I don't get to utilize it first. If my opponents get their 2 draws and then kill it then it was a waste of my turn. Faerie mastermind is just a better version and has worked out much better comparativel.
Cards I'm considering
Gadwick, the Wizened- Gadwick has a similar problem to Blue Sun's Zenith in that it's triple blue which isn't the end of the world and doesn't make it that much more difficult to cast. Outside of the card draw I do love the board control I would get from his second ability.
Academy Loremaster- This card seems great for me as I'm hardly ever casting spells on my own turn anyway. If my opponent takes advantage of the draw it slows them down significantly and that definitely works to my favour.
Archmage's Charm- I don't like the triple blue but I do like the effects. I probably won't put this in but I am considering it
As Foretold- This just gives me a ton of flexibility that I don't always have. Also makes casting my win conditions on my own turn much easier so that I can leave mana up for my opponents turn
Nezahal- is a hard creature to deal with and is a draw engine and is also good against control decks.
Hullbreaker Horror- great against creature decks and control decks if it resolves.
I get a lot of concessions once people realize what kind of game it's going to be but unlike other control decks I can end the game very quickly with big alpha strikes from Toxrill and some slugs or from one of my other big creatures.
When I do get to play the game out my biggest hinderance can be lands and sometimes just not having enough cards. I do win a fair amount more than I lose.
Good matchups are creature decks for the most part. I play so much one for one removal and counterspells that it can be hard for them to get going if they don't have a lightning fast start. I do have a hard time against decks that stack +1/+1 counters on creatures if they can get going as it makes Toxrill's life a lot harder.
let me know what you think give me some suggestions always open to new ideas or cards I may have missed.
https://www.moxfield.com/decks/Mq_MoT4fnkyvxiHgBq7fdQ

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Hello dear reader,
I have already explained some of my predicaments once in a comment but as I continue to write my own problems and childhood experiences from different perspectives, I would like to explore a new one that: life accidentally taught me the wrong things.
First the basics: I have a minor spastic diplegia called by a hole in my brain and it was very well treated when I was 10. Before that I walked a bit strangely in a way that would make me fall quite frequently. It linked going on a walk and coming home with boody knees as a statistical certainty. It wouldn't happen all the time but often enough to avoid risks by avoiding needless walks... I did walk to school every day, but I wouldn't walk "for fun" because it was potentially not fun.
I got a revolutionary surgery at 10. I was told later that my recovery was so good that I replaced the before/after video (at least for a while). So far so good uh? Well already at that age my oldest brother was a bit of a bully. We did fun things together but he could turn a bit violent at times especially towards my other brother. He recently explained to me that he add trouble asserting himself among his friends and expressed his desire for strength on us instead.
My mother is a narcissist up to a certain degree. She never allowed us to make choices at an early age. She could ask the question if I want more potatoes but they would be on the plate before being able to answer yes or no. She also may have learned this narcissistic behaviour from my grandmother who was still trying to rule over her even after her marriage. Important thing she wanted to take care of things at home. She say that she was overwhelmed by the responsabilties but failed to make us help her, in a sense she taught us the opposite.
As for my father he had frequent business travels and preferred to raise his voice a bit and then go back to his journal. He never really liked to take care of little kids and now he is at least realising the damage his lack of presence in the household as a counterpoint to mom has done to all of us.
So at age 10 I got the surgery, spent a summer in hospital and reeducation went to a hospital school for a while to avoid stairs (a fall could have been problematic) and then when I came back to school I stayed in class during some pauses once again to avoid children running around and playing football (soccer). When I was told to finally come back to the courtyard, during the spring of my last primary school year something strange happened. I extracted a year ago a forgotten memory from that time but once extracted it came back as a very vivid memory. A girl asking me "did you see the pussy of [best early childhood friend name]" (it works in my mothertongue too). I was still prepubescent and had a vague idea that it was partially "forbidden" even if I didn't know what it was. But loving double entendres, I responded jokingly: of course she had black hairs, green eyes and her name is [name of that cat]. Sadly they didn't seem to get the hint of irony Telling this story to somebody else I was told that it sounded very innocent for a women who was in my modern point of view as cuntish as hers was bleeding. Why? Because for the first time the group laughed at me rather than with me. And connecting the dots, I managed to understand why. I was quite close with my childhood friends, we met in preschool so at that stage we knew each other for basically all our lives. But there is more, I had the habit of holding hands of people I held dear for the very obvious reason explained above: walking was a statistical risk of coming home with bleedy knees and the post surgery times made it pretty clear that falls had to be avoided. Therefore you can imagine what went through the mind of girls whose brained was rewired by hormones at the sight of two boys holding hands. Last year I managed to tell the situation for what it was: homophobia even if I am not homosexual. The problem is that in that context I lost a friend and in a way a link with the rest of my classmates.
Arriving in secondary school I finished to lose my childhood friend (it was gradual, he changed I didn't). During that year I continued to miss days of school to check the evolution and more importantly: twice during the year a part from the class blocked me the entrance to the classroom from the inside: showing me clearly that I was one in the crowd. The second time they got spotted by an adult and got shouted at a little bit, the message was clear though. Recently when my oldest brother learned about these and asked why I didn't asked him to protect me, I reminded him that he liked to play the exact same kind of games at home when he wanted to annoy me... despite him being 5 years older. So from my point of view it was normal, expected to be annoyed and not expecting a strong response.
Later that year I bonded with a boy who became my best friend. He was bullied in the other class, we had gym together. This person is the only person ever who truly managed to make a gym course bearable if not enjoyable. He would run by my side giving my advices instead of running ahead and letting me be dead last (which was expected considering the handicap from birth). I am not sure why but I never noticed that he was bullied by his classmates. Maybe because I was not in that classroom and also because it got reduced after we bonded near the end of the academic year. Of course his mother was furious at the situation and asked the school to do something. He could have drowned once during a swimming lesson. But that would have meant kicking out multiple students, that's not good. One kid leaving, that's normal.
As for the situation at home I recently realised through discussions that our mother was obsessed with good grades and didn't care about anything else while our father was not present enough. More importantly he liked to watch documentaries in the evening and would encourage me to watch documentaries and other cultural programs. There, there was positive reinforcement.
So regarding lessons: you can voice your opinons but it doesn't matter. Other people will annoy you and it will have barely any consequence for them. You have different interests than most of the hostile crowd. Taking initiatives is a risk of breaking things.
Quite logically I went to school attended courses and went home, (almost) never taking times to socialize with people who were, for all intents and purposes, strangers. I took refuge in legos, TV, video games, comic reading those kind of things. In the years following the surgery (we are in 2001-3) I had a lot of kinesitherapy, almost every day of the week.
One day I snapped. I couldn't take it anymore. I resisted going to the kinesitherapy and told crying to my mother: "I don't want to go, I want to die". A sentence that should have ringed all the alarms. But in a move that will not necessarily suprise you at this stage, she just pushed me towards the car and probably told me to stop crying. And then it was not really mentioned ever again. I now consider this moment a key point: it sealed my emotions for 18-20 years. The lesson learned: compaining is useless, showing emotions is useless.
From all of that I got what I am pretty sure is a massive rejection trauma, it looks like depression but the duration, the probable causes and all of that fit almost 100% with Dr. K. episode on trauma.
Ah a key point I forgot to mention is that I was good enough in school, just good enough to not necessary learn to work hard. On the contrary to learned to focus on what I liked, especially as I was always last in gym and you can see bad grades as a kind of rejection.
I learned to not take initiative, not complain, focus on the things I liked and not care about my surrounding which was kinda potentially hostile. The result once you finish university is that you don't want anything. You don't really have ambitions because you almost failed your memoir as trauma crippled your ability to start things (if the lack of abilities to make choices didn't do that already). You check some job offers they all demand multiple years of experience so rejection is expected. It's the same as at school. You expect rejection so why bother. You may get help, but you don't seek help unless you are directly told that you may get help by somebody already in charge of that, otherwise you are not seeking it. Again because rejection is expected.
The ultimate consequence are years spent doing things on my own. Things that have impressed quite a few people over the internet. It almost gave me a career. But even then for other reasons outside of my control I experienced rejection. Projects got planned but failed to materialize for stupid reasons outside of my control. Other opportunities were not taken thanks to trauma. It's only when I went back to the "maybe let's consider suicide" that my best friend noticed and urged me to get a psychologist and opened the vault of emotions.
I have 26 days left to find a new place to move in. I have retraining plans for this summer but I need a place to sleep to get things done. I also want to get rid of that stupid emotional burden, while I should embrace it and move forward.
This is not a fully satisfying conclusion but I am done with writing this thing for now. I have to unlearn the toxic lessons of my childhood and finally become the smart adult I was supposed to become. Instead I am still a wounded child who specialize in knowing things the job market doesn't want.
This letter is dedicated to all those people who made relevant remarks but were unable to notice the large size of the problem, just like blind people touching an elephant.
Thank you for reading.

If anyone else is like me then when playing Final Fantasy VIII, they LOVE to assign specific GFs to specific characters, they feel that they fit best with. Over the years and through multiple times playing this game, I’ve always come back to doing this and given it a LOT more thought than I care to admit, to see if I was wrong about any or if one meshes up better with another character. As such, I figured I’d finally publish my list for anyone who either wants to use it or who wants to challenge my perspective and thinks I’m wrong about one of them. This will run a bit long, but it’s meant to be fun and comprehensive, so enjoy how much I’ve nerded out on this game for your benefit, lol.
Quezacotl – I associate Zell with ThundeWind, mainly due to the second GF I decided to give him and his energetic personality. In my opinion, the first 3 GFs should be divided amongst the first 3 characters, and everyone should have at least 1 by the end of disk 1. The next 2 are much stronger fits, which explain why this one is assigned to Zell as his first GF, along with his other GF below. If I had to connect it to something else though, I’d point out how Quezacotl’s wings and body look tattooed like Zell’s face and how if someone is going to goof off slightlyduring battle to turn enemies into collectable trading cards, it’s definitely going to be Zell.
Shiva – Many would say Squall because of his personality, but I disagree which I’ll explain further below. I associate Quistis with Ice/Water, and Shiva even kind of looks like her with the yellow pigtails. Seeing as how it’s obtained from the computer in her classroom or gifted to Squall for the exam by her, it should go back to her as her first GF. Since she’s also Squall’s support during the exam when obtaining Ifrit, it makes perfect sense she would have the trump card as his support and teacher, in the event he got in trouble. It’s refine ability also pairs well with another GF we’ll give to her further down, due to the fact it refines both Ice and Water magic and groups them together.
Ifrit – Many people want to pair this with Zell, but I think that’s wrong. It’s basically a flaming lion with horns. Who better to give it to than to Squall? After all a lion is his motif, it was the first part of his SeeD exam and the first GF he obtained on his own, that wasn’t given to him. I also personally associate Squall with the element of Fire. After all, he uses it in Kingdom Hearts which came out shortly after this, one of his swords is called the Flame Saber and pretty much every promotional image of the Gunblade or Greiver symbol has it on fire. Sure, Squall’s personality might by icy, but if you pay attention, he’s a mirror of Seifer. They use the same weapon, so preferring the same magic type, makes perfect sense. It also serves as an excellent juxtaposition against Edea’s Ice. In addition, Ifrit’s compatibility item Red Fang, is needed for Squall’s Gunblade, Twin Lance. Also, to obtain Rinoa’s card, Squall also must lose Ifrit to General Caraway and to get it back, he has to beat the only other Headmaster we meet, Martine: fitting for both the leader of our party and Rinoa’s love interest and Knight. Finally, it has the ability to refine ammo, which even though we don’t use it in game, would be necessary for Squall’s Gunblade.
Siren – I initially had the hardest time with this one and Carbnucle, as one had to go to Rinoa and the other to Selphie, both because it fits thematically and for balancing issues as I want everyone to have at least 1 GF by the end of the first disk. Despite the angelic appearance, and the fact it’s a musician and singer like Rinoa’s mother, I chose to give this one to Selphie as her first GF. In the game, Selphie shows more musical interest than Rinoa does, and the GF is obtained in Dollet, shortly after meeting Selphie and as part of her field exam. As such, I felt it should appropriately go to her. Finally, its ability to refine life magic fits in well with Selphie’s White Mage role in the game.
Brothers - Irvine seems like an Earth elemental sort of person to me and the Brothers are found right next to Galbadia Garden, shortly after acquiring Irvine. Seeing as how the tomb is also a requirement for the assassination mission, other Galbadia students failed to conquer it, and how the motto of Galbadia Garden is "Keep on Rockin'", it seems only fitting for him to claim them as his first GF. In addition, their attack is called Brotherly Love which fits in with Irvine being the only character to remember his family from the orphanage. They also perform a move called Mad Cow Special during their boss battle, which aligns with Irvine being a Cowboy. Finally, to obtain Irvine's Triple Triad card, you must lose Brothers first, and if you refine the card, you gain Dino Bones which are necessary for Irvine’s ultimate weapon, while also being Brother's compatibility item. In other countries this GF is also named Taurus, after the zodiac sign of the bull, something cowboys are known for riding.
Diablos – This GF is a gift from Cid, and as such I think it pairs best with Squall, as a gift from one SeeD Commander and Sorceress’s Knight to another. Diablos also specializes in time refinement magic, which I feel aligns perfectly with both his sister, Ellone’s abilities, and that his is destined to fight against Ultimicia who is trying to enact Time Compression. It’s also the only GF you can obtain as Laguna which kind of adds in a generational aspect to it. Finally, I think the concept of the magic lamp makes for a really cool Bootstrap Paradox. Perhaps Squall lost it at the end of the game and Edea gave it to Cid, to give back to him.
Carbnucle – As I said I initially had trouble with this and Siren for Rinoa and Selphie. Ultimately though, I decided to give this to Rinoa as I feel it fits better than Siren. Carbnucle is obtained in Deiling City, her hometown from the Iguions sent to kill her by Edea. As such, I feel it’s only appropriate that she get this as her first GF, as it has the ability to protect her from magic, through Reflect. Seeing as how it also came from Edea and Rinoa end up being a sorceress, this seemed to fit well as her other GF. In addition it has the ability to refine recovery medicine and it’s card is held by the Card Club Member, the Queen Heart, matching with her last name.
Leviathan - As mentioned above, I matched Quistis with the element of Ice/Water. Leviathan is held in Balamb Garden by Norg, one of her former bosses. To me that says it should go to another faculty member of Balamb Garden, so either Squall or Quistis. Squall in my opinion has much better GFs that align with him, but even without that fact, Quistis is still a stronger candidate. After all, it pairs perfectly with Shiva above, as Shiva refines water magic, not Leviathan. This GF is also responsible for support magic and GF Recovery medicine which seems fitting for your former teacher, making sure both you and your GFs stay healthy. In addition, the Levithan card is held in the training grounds by the Card Club member immediately following her, Joker, and if you refine it, you get Doc's Codes which pairs well with the fact she gained the Card Club Master King position from Dr. Kadowaki.
Pandemona - As I said at the start, I associate Zell with ThundeWind. Pandemona is obtained in Balamb Town, Zell's hometown where he is idolized and seen as a bit of a hero. It's drawn from Seifer's sidekicks on the disciplinary committee that Zell is always getting in trouble with and as such, it seems poetic to me that your sidekick gets to stand up to his bullies, save his hometown, and steal their GF in the process. Finally, the Pandemona Card is also held by hotel owner involved in Zell's Love Quest with the Library Girl, as that’s their “love spot” in the compatibility quiz and where she awards him with a Combat King magazine.
Cerberus - Cerberus is found in Galbadia Garden during the Battle of the Gardens. From what we can tell they had likely started experimenting with GFs. As such, if it's going to go to someone in our party, it should likely go to the only person from said Garden, Irvine. Giving Irvine Cerberus, also mirrors the only other non-SeeD member Rinoa, having both a dog and the only other non-combat GF, Carbnucle. Finally, the Cerberus card modifies into Lightweight, an item drop from another GF related monster, we'll be assigning to Irvine further down, helping tie his GF choices together.
Alexander - Rinoa best fits with the element of Holy in my opinion. After all, she has angel wings on her back, as part of her limit break, and even her on ultimate weapon. She's also constantly surrounded by white feathers and shooting stars throughout the game and in promotional images. Not to mention this Gf is acquired as Ultimicia is defeated in Edea and transfers her powers and consciousness into Rinoa, so it seems only right that the GF should be transferred as well. Besides it's a robotic castle that looks like a knight and I'm sure Squall wouldn't mind the extra help. Alexander can also take transform other spells into the most powerful forms of magic and naturally learns revive, which is fitting for our new sorceress. Finally, the Alexander card is also held by Piet up at the Lunar Base where Rinoa is possessed, unleashes Adel, and shortly after also obtains Adel’s powers, tying further into the fact it should go to a sorceress.
Doomtrain – This one should be obvious. There’s one person in the game who constantly talks about trains and their love for them and that’s, Selphie. A demonic train who inflicts your enemies with poison and every negative status effect imaginable is right up her alley. If we also divide the elements of the game, Poison is left for Selphie, which is fitting as she’d easily be the one most likely to kill you with it. Plus, Doomtrain’s refine ability allows you to refine forbidden medicine which also fits in with Selphie’s White Mage role. To add in a nod to Selphie’s other GF’s the ring is also obtained under a statue of a girl holding a harp like Siren and the Doomtrain card is obtained from the pub owner in Timber, the same exact location, another GF related card below is found.
Bahamut - Known as the Great GFs according to Squall. This is the King of GFs and as such I feel it’s only proper that it should go to him. After all, his father played Zefer in the movie, The Sorceress’s Knight, and before you face Bahamut, he throws multiple Ruby Dragons at you, so in a way it’s a bit poetic that Squall should obtain the dragon GF, while being Rinoa’s Knight. In addition, Ultimicia also has Tiamat as her ultimate monster before Greiver is pulled from Squall's mind, so it seems only fitting Squall should have its counterpart. The fact you can also obtain the highest magic in the game from him through his refine ability and that he serves as the test to make your way to Eden, only cements this choice further. Finally, his move Megaflare matches up somewhat with Ifrit, as in games where Flare has an element, it's fire.
Cactuar - Cactuar has no clear ties to any of the characters at first glance, however a cactus fits in with Irvine’s whole cowboy & western motif if you think about it. I also noticed at the start of its summon animation, when it jumps in front of the stylized sun, that image of the rays is nearly identical to the circular pendant Irvine wears, and if we look at the bottom of his necklace, it resembles the 3 quills on Cactuar's head. His name is also taken from the word pretender in other languages, which I feel aligns with Irvine, pretending to not know the others until later in the game. Finally, it attacks by shooting 10,000 needles, something fitting for the only person with a gun.
Tonberry - Tonberry at first glance doesn't display any obvious ties to our characters, however if we dig a little deeper, we can see a connection. If we go to Trabia Garden, a cadet mentions the Tonberry GF in his sleep. We also know that as a child, another member of Trabia Garden, Selphie, obtained a GF during an outdoor training session, that she found inside a monster, after defeating it. If we happen to find a secret Timber Mechanics magazine, it adds an entry on the computer which shows a younger Selphie taking a trip to the Centra Ruins as a child. If we connect the dots, this leads me to believe that IF it's one of the GFs we encounter in the game, Selphie's childhood GF was likely Tonberry. In addition Tonberry has numerous shopping related abilities such as, Sell High, Familiar, Haggle, and Call Shop, that all pair thematically well with Selphie’s other GF, Doomtrain, and his Junk Shop ability, tying everything together. Tonberry King even attacks you with Junk while you’re battling him. Plus when it comes down to it, who else do you realistically get cute and borderline psycho killer vibes from? Finally, while you obtain the Doomtrain card from the pub owner in Timber, you can get the Tonberry Card from the drunken drifter nearby, further tying them together.
Eden - The ultimate GF. The only 2 people it could logically go to is either Squall or Rinoa. Of those, I think Squall is a better fit as you obtain it from the 2nd most powerful monster in the game, and if you miss it, it's obtained from Tiamat, Bahamut's counterpart. It's also a mobile garden after all, and who better to go to than our protagonist and the creator of both Garden and SeeDs. Eden also contains a few angel wing motifs throughout its design which adds in a nod to Rinoa and nice thematic imagery with Squall being her knight. Finally, it has an attack called Eternal Breath which alludes to time, and the fact both Squall and his archenemy Ultimicia are bound to it. It's refine ability also allows you to teach all other GFs abilities which is appropriately fitting for the Garden Commander.
Additional Notes – Some may ask why Irvine and Selphie got 3 and everyone else except for Squall got 2. This is mainly due to Cactuar and Tonberry as there’s really no one they pair better with in my opinion than Irvine and Selphie. If you want an in-universe reason though to keep with the theme, I feel because Trabia and Galbadia are not as experienced with GFs, Squall may want to help get them up to speed. This does not need to be done for Rinoa cause by this time she’s a Sorceress. I think it also works well as those 2 are our B couple in the game. It could also be cause the other 3 have been using GFs longer, so by giving it to them, it could help Squall, Zell, and Quistis slightly combat the effects of memory loss.
Rinoa and Irvine got the support GFs cause they’re not SeeD and cause I saw Squall wanting them to practice before they were allowed more powerful summons. The exception to this was Brothers and only because necessity demanded it with Irvine being involved with the assassination mission against the Sorceress. It was also nice to be able to give Irvine a dog, since Rinoa already had one.
ThundeWind and Ice/Water are paired up in this game with Quezacotl and Shiva, so I did the same with Zell and Quistis. I feel these fits well as they’re the original Balamb SeeDs along with Squall, while Selphie is technically a transfer. This means the Final Fantasy trifecta starting elements of Fire, Thunder, and Ice are divided amongst the original Balamb Members.
So that’s everything. If I messed up on something, missed something I could’ve added, or someone else fits better with a specific GF, feel free to comment below and give me your analysis.

Since there's been a lot of people reserving the sets, then giving up after, I'll take the payment in advance.
Keep in mind that for this deal you will need to have Steam Mobile Authenticator and wait for 30 days, so I can gift them to you.
Just as I did the years past, I will NOT GO FIRST and also there might still be a limitation to gift only 8 bundles per day.
If you don't agree, please don't add me.
http://steamcommunity.com/id/hugaum/

Hero	2016's Collector's Cache Set	Price
Luna	Nightsilver's Resolve	$10

Hero	2018's Collector's Cache Set I	Price
2 Bloodseeker	Trail of the Sanguine Spectrum	$6
3 Dark Seer	Insights of the Sapphire Shroud	$2
2 Spirit Breaker	Pillar of the Fractured Citadel	$5
3 Wraith King	Stonemarch Sovereign	$15
2 Necrophos	The Murid Divine	$5
3 Techies	Primer of the Sapper's Guile	$7
2 Venomancer	Molokau Stalker	$5
3 Witch Doctor	Morbific Provision	$10
2 Queen of Pain	Raptures of the Abyssal Kin	$6
2 Invoker	Fate Meridian	$15
3 Weaver	Grasp of the Riven Exile	$4
Phantom Assassin	Visions of the Lifted Veil	$15
Warlock	Dread Compact	$50

Hero	2018's Collector's Cache Set II	Price
3 Ember Spirit	Fires of the Volcanic Guard	$6
2 Axe	Shackles of the Enduring Conscript	$6
2 Nyx Assassin	Shimmer of the Anointed	$3
3 Brewmaster	Loaded Prospects	$6
2 Phoenix	Ire of Molten Rebirth	$6
2 Broodmother	Pattern of the Silken Queen	$2
Doom	Dread Ascendance	$15
Chen	The Rat King	$1

Hero	2019's Collector's Cache Set I	Price
Dragon Knight	Scorched Amber	$12
Tidehunter	Poacher's Bane	$6
Undying	Curse of the Creeping Vine	$10
Slark	Appetites of the Lizard King	$15
Dazzle	Forbidden Medicine	$12

Hero	2019's Collector's Cache Set II	Price
4 Drow Ranger	Sight of the Kha-Ren Faithful	$8
4 Warlock	Tribal Pathways	$7
3 Clockwerk	Directive of the Sunbound	$6
Abaddon	Endless Night	$10
3 Pudge	Dapper Disguise	$12
4 Bloodseeker	Fury of the Bloodforge	$6
4 Broodmother	Automaton Antiquity	$5
3 Pangolier	Tales of the Windward Rogue	$15
4 Wraith King	Grim Destiny	$8
3 Tusk	Distinguished Expeditionary	$5
4 Venomancer	Verdant Predator	$4
4 Batrider	Prized Acquisitions	$4
3 Necrophos	Fowl Omen	$20

Hero	2020's Collector's Cache Set I	Price
Juggernaut	Lineage of the Stormlords	$30
Pudge	Mindless Slaughter	$12
Jakiro	Fissured Flight	$7
Nature's Prophet	Signs of the Allfather	$15
Lina	Glory of the Elderflame	$15
Enchantress	Songs of Starfall Glen	$5
Tiny	Ancient Inheritance	$25

Hero	2020's Collector's Cache Set II	Price
2 Enigma	Evolution of the Infinite	$6
Bristleback	Beast of the Crimson Ring	$6
Timbersaw	Clearcut Cavalier	$7
2 Keeper of the Light	The King Of Thieves	$5
Tidehunter	Horror from the Deep	$10
2 Chaos Knight	Talons of the Endless Storm	$10
2 Rubick	Carousal of the Mystic Masquerade	$6
2 Shadow Demon	Crown of Calaphas	$12
2 Doom	Wrath of the Fallen	$15
2 Sniper	Blacksail Cannoneer	$7
2 Skywrath Mage	Secrets of the Celestial	$5
2 Phoenix	Blaze of Oblivion	$7
4 Templar Assassin	Steward of the Forbidden Chamber	$15
Faceless Void	Claszureme Incursion	$70

Hero	2022's Diretide Collector's Cache I	Price
Terrorblade	Forgotten Station	$15
Monkey King	Champion of the Fire Lotus	$10
Undying	Dirge Amplifier	$10
Chen	Hounds of Obsession	$10
Snapfire	Whippersnapper	$10
Hoodwink	Shadowleaf Insurgent	$15
Phoenix	Crimson Dawn	$10
Witch Doctor	Deathstitch Shaman	$10
Clockwerk	Seadog's Stash	$10
Invoker	Angel of Vex	$30
Marci	Blue Horizons	$30

Hero	2022's Diretide Collector's Cache II	Price
Ogre Magi	Freeboot Fortunes	$10
Night Stalker	Feasts of Forever	$10
Silencer	Grand Suppressor	$10
Vengeful Spirit	Acrimonies of Obsession	$10
Oracle	Transcendent Path	$10
Doom	Dawn of a Darkness Foretold	$10
Legion Commander	Bird of Prey	$10
2 Anti-Mage	Brands of the Reaper	$20

Selling bundled and unbundled cache sets. Prices are not negotiable.
Please leave a comment on my steam profile on which set you are interested in buying.
Payment methods I accept are CSGO items or TF2 keys.
Pay before month cooldown to reserve a set. Buyer goes first.
Prices are subject to change.
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https://steamcommunity.com/id/Trunga/
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Diretide 2022 Collector's Cache

Bundled Set Name	Hero	Quantity	Price (USD)
Shadowleaf Insurgent	Hoodwink	2	$7.5
Scarlet Subversion	Riki	5	$5
Whippersnapper	Snapfire	3	$7.5
Hounds of Obsession	Chen	2	$5
Seadog's Stash	Clockwerk	5	$7.5
Starlorn Adjudicator	Dawnbreaker	4	$7.5
Spoils of the Shadowveil	Spectre	5	$5
Chines of the Inquisitor	Faceless Void	5	$5
Trophies of the Hallowed Hunt	Ursa	5	$5
Crimson Dawn	Phoenix	5	$10
Forgotten Station	Terrorblade	5	$5
Dirge Amplifier	Undying	5	$7.5
Champion of the Fire Lotus	Monkey King	3	$5
Deathstitch Shaman	Witch Doctor	4	$5
Blue Horizons	Marci	5	$20
Angel of Vex	Invoker	5	$20
Dark Behemoth	Primal Beast	2	$30

Diretide 2022 Collector's Cache II

Bundled Set Name	Hero	Quantity	Price (USD)
Withering Pain	Clinkz	1	$5
Acrimonies of Obsession	Vengeful Spirit	1	$5
Unbundled Set Name	Hero	Quantity	Price (USD)
Grand Suppressor	Silencer	1	$5
Darkbrew's Transgression	Alchemist	1	$5
Transcendent Path	Oracle	1	$5
The Wilding Tiger	Brewmaster	1	$7.5
Dawn of a Darkness Foretold	Doom	1	$5
Cursed Cryptbreaker	Pudge	1	$5
Feasts of Forever	Night Stalker	1	$7.5
Darkfeather Factioneer	Phantom Assassin	1	$5
Withering Pain	Clinkz	1	$5
Freeboot Fortunes	Ogre Magi	1	$7.5
Acrimonies of Obsession	Vengeful Spirit	1	$5
Sacred Chamber Guardian	Huskar	1	$5
War Rig Eradicators	Techies	1	$5
Grudges of the Gallows Tree	Treant Protector	1	$7.5
Brands of the Reaper	Anti-Mage	1	$7.5

Ageless Heirlooms 2022

Bundled Set Name	Hero	Quantity	Price (USD)
Howls of the Northmarch	Anti-Mage	4	$2.5
Faction of the Feather	Templar Assassin	4	$2.5
Melange of the Firelord	Chaos Knight	4	$2.5
Heinous Exultation	Razor	4	$2.5
Tangled Tropics	Monkey King	4	$2.5
Fury of the Thunderhawk	Zeus	4	$2.5
Oaths of the Beloved	Death Prophet	4	$2.5
Twilights Legions	Night Stalker	3	$5
Jewels of Anamnessa	Medusa	1	$10

The Battle Pass Collection 2022

Bundled Set Name	Hero	Quantity	Price (USD)
Hides of Hostility	Huskar	4	$2.5
Heat of the Sixth Hell	Doom	4	$2.5
Nefarious Fixations	Lion	4	$2.5
Distinguished Forgemaster	Clockwerk	4	$2.5
Volcanic Sanctuary	Broodmother	3	$2.5
Obsidian Atrocity	Lifestealer	4	$2.5
Charms of the Firefiend	Batrider	3	$5
Molten Bore	Mars	1	$10

Aghanim's 2021 Collector's Cache

Unbundled Set Name	Hero	Quantity	Price (USD)
Scales of the Shadow Walker	Phantom Lancer	1	$7.5
Perception of the First Light	Dawnbreaker	1	$7.5
Apex Automated	Clockwerk	1	$15
Secrets of the Frost Singularity	Ancient Apparition	1	$10
Perils of the Red Banks	Chen	1	$7.5
The Chained Scribe	Grimstroke	1	$7.5
Widow of the Undermount Gloom	Broodmother	1	$7.5
Forgotten Fate	Mars	1	$10
March of the Crackerjack Mage	Rubick	1	$10
Cosmic Concoctioneers	Alchemist	1	$10
Pyrexae Polymorph Perfected	Ogre Magi	1	$15

​

Nemestic Collector's Cache 2021

Unbundled Set Name	Hero	Quantity	Price (USD)
Silence of the Starweaver	Oracle	1	$7.5

The International 10 Collector's Cache

The International 10 Collector's Cache II

Unbundled Set Name	Hero	Quantity	Price (USD)
Evolution of the Infinite	Enigma	1	$7.5
Beast of the Crimson Ring	Bristleback	1	$10
Clearcut Cavalier	Timbersaw	1	$10
The King of Thieves	Keeper of the Light	1	$7.5
Horror from the Deep	Tidehunter	1	$10
Talons of the Endless Storm	Chaos Knight	1	$7.5
Carousal of the Mystic Masquerade	Rubick	1	$7.5
Crown of Calaphas	Shadow Demon	1	$10
Wrath of the Fallen	Doom	1	$10
Blacksail Cannoneer	Sniper	1	$10
Secrets of the Celestial	Skywrath Mage	1	$7.5
Blaze of Oblivion	Phoenix	1	$7.5
Master of the Searing Path	Ember Spirit	1	$15
Steward of the Forbidden Chamber	Templar Assassin	1	$20
Claszureme Incursion	Faceless Void	1	$30

Hello all,
Just completed 4 days of in-person visits in New York City (Manhattan NYC) shopping for an engagement ring and thought I'd share my experience (as many of your posts helped me). Please know I am not an expert so just sharing my personal experience.
I met with 6 companies and learned a lot. In addition I also shopped at numerous online retailers. All the companies showed me eye-clean sparkly looking mined diamonds. However, I learned the industry does not provide enough information for us to truly make an informed decision to compare and contrast the diamonds and to ensure we're getting good value for the diamond we end up purchasing. The reality is, most consumers don't seem to care. They buy based on carat size, setting type, price, and sparkle. For those that care more, internet research discusses the 4 C's (usually described in a report from a grading company like GIA or similar). But sadly, this report does not provide all the information required to identify a sparkly mined diamond.
They allow you to compare and contrast in a controlled setting (in-store with fancy lighting), against a few other diamonds (also controlled). If you have a favorite diamond from one store and want to contrast it against another (or against one online), you are unable to do so. Only seeing diamonds side by side, without the controlled lighting, would we be able to truly see the possible difference in color tint and sparkle.
However, there are add'l reports and tools that allow you to ascertain how sparkly your diamond will perform - but almost none of the stores provide these reports. Some of the online retailers do - but they only provide some, not all, of these reports.
Finally, because consumers only care about carat size, setting type, price, and sparkle the cutters (who cut the raw diamonds) are incentivized not to create perfect sparkly cuts without inclusions, but to keep as much of the raw material as possible, which results in many of these diamonds have inclusions, clouds, and angles that do not optimize the sparkle of the diamond (but do leave them a higher carat size) which is what consumers (and retailers want). Retailers want this because they know 2 things... they can charge more for larger stones, and they can sell stones that aren't perfect to consumers since they don't provide us with enough info to make an informed decision. The result is what I found when shopping. Almost every retailer trots out diamonds that appear sparkly and pretty - but have significant flaws (which are not generally noticeable to the naked eye - but do reduce the shine nonetheless and would be more apparent if shown side by side in natural light).
At a bare minimum, the reports one should look at are GIA Report, Holloway Cut Report, and the Gemex Light Performance Report. Most retailers do not provide these reports unless asked. One must ask, if the diamonds they are showing rank as good on these reports, why would they withhold this information? It seems obvious to me they withhold it because the diamonds we are shown do not rank well on the reports. And without data, one is left to choose a diamond solely based on their "eye" and budget, which will not get you the highest quality diamond at the price you can afford.
When in store, optimally, you also want to do 3 things.
1- Look at the diamond through an (Idealscope) hearts and arrows viewer to make sure the hearts and arrows are clean and present (one can be purchased for ~$15 if you want to bring your own). But, imo, any retailer who doesn't have one sitting there for you to use, is obviously showing you diamonds that will not pass this visual inspection.
2- Use an ASET Scope or other light scope viewer to identify how much "bleed" the diamond has. That is, how much light is refracted back to the eye - vs how much light passes through the diamond (and not back to the eye). This will help you ascertain the brilliance/sparkle of the diamond. You can buy/bring your own, but again, any retailer not offering this knows the diamonds they are showing you won't allow their diamond to grade high.
3- Look at the diamonds side by side, over something white, in natural light (put your hand over the bright lights the store has). See from the top if the sparkle differs and see from the side if you can see a yellow looking tint. This may prove difficult if you cannot sufficiently block their bright light and use natural light (which is how you'll be looking at the diamond through your life when it's on your finger).
If you use all the tools above you'll be more equipped to make an informed decision. Now, sadly, after doing all the above, I'm still not 100% confident I received the best diamond at the best price. I am however, more confident I received an excellent cut, sparkly diamond, in the largest size for my budget. In fact of the 24+ diamonds I saw, only 3 passed the tests above - and odds are I would've ended up with one of those rather than the one I bought. So at the very least I ended up with one of the 3 and put the odds in my favor that I wasn't as ripped off as I would've been.
Another thing to consider is your setting. Setting prices (for the exact same setting) were all over the place (from a low of $850 to a high of $3,600). Again, these were for near identical settings. This is another trick... a store may appear to be giving you a deal on a diamond - but once you include the setting price - you end up not saving at all (or vice versa).
On to the reviews. Budget was $20k all in, incl setting, taxes, and shipping/insurance. Round brilliant natural mined diamond. Setting 14k yellow gold 4 prong pave, and thus my color grade to optimize size was ~I (for a round brilliant cut excellent stone any of the near colorless options (G-J) will look white next to yellow gold so figured no need to pay more for a colorless grade). Based on my budget, stones I was shown were in the 1.8-2.2 carat range.
Lauren B Jewelry:
(i) Showed 4 eye clean diamonds within my budget. Did not provide any reports alongside the diamonds. However, upon request, did provide the GIA reports. Did not offer any add'l reports and did not provide me with a hearts/arrows ideal-scope or ASET viewer in store.
(ii) Setting price was $2,100 (14k)
My take: Excellent friendly in-store service. Diamonds shown were the lowest quality of any I saw during my visit (as it appears to stay within my budget and size request they had to drop down to SI level) GIA reports and loupe confirmed a variety of inclusions and clouds. Settings were some of the most beautiful however and were priced on the lower end of the setting prices I received.
Jangmi Jewelry:
(i) Showed me 3 eye clean diamonds with GIA reports provided without asking. Showed me stones through hearts and arrows viewer without asking. Provided Holloway Cut reports after meeting upon request. Claimed Gemex reports are redundant and not required once someone has seen the HCA Cut report.
(ii) Setting price quoted at $2,800 (14k, but quote includes adding pave to prongs which may have increased price slightly).
My take: Friendly service, although English was 2nd language. Diamonds were priced competitively however GIA and Holloway showed only average stones (with the better GIA report having a worse Holloway score and the worse GIA report having a better Holloway score). They had a hearts and arrows viewer in-store and the stones did have them (to my untrained eye). However. without a Gemex and ASET viewer it was impossible for me to truly identify the sparkle/brilliance of their stones. It is ultimately possible the stones are above average, however, I was not provided the tools to corroborate this.
Soho Gem:
(i) Showed me 5 eye clean diamonds with GIA reports alongside (without asking). Would not provide Holloway Cut or Gemex reports but did offer to have me come back to the store to view the diamonds through their ASET viewer as well as through an Ideal-Scope. This was not offered to me while I was in-store.
(ii) Setting quoted at $3,400 (18k). 18k increased setting price slightly as well as pave around basket.
My take: Friendly in-store service. The specs of the diamond I liked the most were similar to the stone I ultimately chose. It is possible had I been willing to trek back to the store to see the stones through the ASET viewer and Ideal-Scope the stone may have proved excellent in terms of light leakage and hearts and arrows. But without the add'l HCA and Gemex reports, I'd have lacked the information to truly make an informed decision. Further their diamond was $1,300 higher - so it seemed a waste to go through the effort only to see a diamond that matched the specs of the diamond I bought. Plus their setting was significantly more expensive (even when taking 18k into consideration) and they required a 50% deposit to begin.
Ring Concierge:
(i) Showed me 3 eye clean diamonds. Included GIA reports but would not offer add'l reports calling them "unnecessary as GIA certified diamonds with a cut grade of triple excellent... will have maximum brilliance". She claimed any add'l reports function as a "sales/marketing technique".
(ii) Setting quoted at $3,600 (14k). They do however offer the thinnest band at 1.5mm which no other retailer would build (thinnest anyone else would go was 1.8mm).
My take: Friendly in-store service. However, setting prices were the highest of any retailer and when a customer asks for reports on physics/facts only to be told these are sales/marketing techniques, my antenna go way up. She knows (or should know) that not all of GIA's excellent cut diamonds are optimal in terms of brilliance/fire/scintillation and light leakage. Alongside their high setting prices this store was a hard pass. But ahhh, those beautiful settings.
Frank Darling:
(i) created a 4 diamond flight for me to see in store.
My take: Prior to the meeting I called to ask if they would provide any of the reports described herein and they said they do not provide any of the reports, or ASET or hearts/diamond viewers, so I cancelled the meeting. No point in wasting everyone's time if I will not be provided with enough data to make an informed decision.
I.D. Jewelers (Yekutiel Davidov):
(i) showed me 1 stone in-store (and had another queued up for the following day). Provided GIA report alongside the stone and walked me through minimum specs of the GIA report (i.e., showed me how to weed out certain stones immediately, such as what depth % is optimal, what fluorescence is acceptable, etc). Provided Holloway Cut Report and Gemex report via request.
(ii) Setting quoted at $850-$1,100 depending on 14k or 18k gold preference.
My take: Super friendly and knowledgeable service. The diamond graded very well on all 3 reports but the diamond price was on the higher side. However, with the lowest setting price of all the retailers, the total net price was the same as almost all the others and within budget. Only required $1k down. Ultimately was my 2nd favorite diamond. Would've been great to see the diamond through an ASET or Light Scope Viewer but decided not to as I found another slightly larger diamond that passed all the tests.
David S Diamonds:
(i) showed me 2 in-store diamonds. Provided all the reports and viewers described herein. Also provided training as to why I needed all the reports and viewers (full disclosure - this is the store that explained why I needed all the reports and viewers described herein). So obviously he'd provide everything.
(ii) Setting quoted at $950 (14k).
My take: Very friendly and patient in-store service generous with their time. Provided training on how to buy a diamond and implored me to go back out and to the retailers and shop with my new knowledge (before buying). Showed me a diamond I ultimately bought (2.03 carat, J, VVS2, GIA certified, excellent Gemex scores, excellent under light scope, clean hearts and arrows). Saved me ~$2,200-$3,500 vs the other stores with excellent confidence that the stone I bought is as good as it can get within my budget and specs.
James Allen:
Also shopped online at James Allen and even looked at the "competitor" diamonds that the Holloway Report showed once I ran that report. James Allen's True Hearts competitive diamond (with similar specs and grades) was over $5,000 more than the diamond I purchased. And this from the "low cost" online retailer without a storefront.
Other retailers: Kamni, R&R Jewelry and NYC Wholesale Diamonds could not accommodate in-person meetings the week I was in town so I couldn't asses them.
To sum up, if someone wanted me to recommend them a place to start, I'd start with David S Diamonds to get the learning he provides. Then once you have a diamond and price you like from him - go to Yekutiel at I.D. Jewelers and see if he can source something similar at a similar (or better) price. This way you'll have a few options to choose from. You can also double check either of the diamonds you found vs James Allen (or Blue Nile) once you pull the Holloway Cut Report (or have David So or Yekutiel Davidov provide you the Rapport pricing for the diamonds they are showing). This may give you some confidence that you're getting a decent value/price.
If I had to start this process over again, I would not visit any of the diamond stores that have storefronts and significant overhead - I discovered many of them are Instagram stores - selling much lower quality diamonds for the same price because they are popular among the IG crowd . Further, from my limited experience, their settings are way overpriced in comparison and their deposit policies (generally 50% down) are absurd. After all they haven't given you the diamond yet... all you should be required to pay for is the setting.
Finally, please know I am not a diamond expert, and am just a noob who is sharing their learnings over a very small period and very small sample size. I'm simply sharing what I learned and if it helps someone, great. If not - feel free to ignore.

What are some headcanons you have about Rain World?
I like to think Hunter bleeds blue, because of the rot. that's the one which inspired the post, anyway. and the lizards have skin on their bodies except where it's neon glowy. i also see all slugcats having short, dense fur like a seal, except rivulet's is especially oily, and saint is in a symbiotic relationship with a species (or a few specie!) of moss/lichen which hitches a ride to avoid being eaten by herbivores and also helps keep him warm
also:
saint - male
rivulet - female
artificer - female
spearmaster - non-binary, can't reproduce, no reproductive organs
gourmand - male
survivor - male
monk - male
hunter - male
please share your hcs :)

"Where the hell is that ass," the woman grumbled. In her right hand, she twisted an old-fashioned coin through her fing"Where the hell is that ass," the woman grumbled. In her right hand, she twisted an old-fashioned coin through her fingers while her other ran through her shimmering hair.
"Nice trick," commented the man next to her, "I've rarely seen such old money." The woman snorted. "Save it. In this neighborhood, every other business is still paid in cash." She turned her head and eyed the guy like a predator eyes its prey. Gaunt, with worn clothes and burned-out smile, the stranger sat next to her, a green-and-blue drink in front of him. Not her target. She relaxed a little.
Anzio took big sip. The bounty hunter was better trained than expected, but didn't see through him yet. Still, the plan needed to be changed.
Unobtrusively, he tapped his left wrist three times. Now two of the three dots next to the woman's photo were red in his augmented eye. "Seren, another round," he said aloud. The robot behind the counter immediately began swirling the bottles around in his half-dozen arms.
"If you're going to hit on me, you're going to have to come up with a better line. I'm here on business, after all," the woman said, pulling up one corner of her mouth in a slightly demanding manner. Anzio laughed softly. "I don't have a better one. My name is Ley." "Not your real name," the bounty hunter grinned. Anzio resisted the urge to look elsewhere.
She could conceal her weapon, but not the predatory look.
"Hardly," he said instead, possibly a little too quickly. The bounty hunter's gaze hardened a shade. "But," he followed up emphatically slowly. "... I would also like to know your false name."
"Xola," the woman replied slowly. She flipped the coin up one last time, then put it in a pocket. "I'm looking for someone."
"Anyone in particular?" echoed Anzio playfully. He knew exactly who she was looking for.
"Yes." the woman replied, picking up her glass. She hadn't drunk from it in minutes.
Anzio relaxed his muscles, ready to pounce. If she drew her gun, his chances would be extremely slim. But in this dive, she would hardly dare. Everyone here was armed, guests and staff alike. And ready to draw.
"Unless I'm your target, I'd lay off the predator look," Anzio joked. Brutal honesty was deceiving more often than one would think.
The bounty hunter smiled faintly. "Maybe you're my target."
Anzio tilted his head.
"But not in the way you think," the woman followed up, now smiling ambiguously.
"What happened to your business now, anyway?" gasped Anzio as the woman broke away from his lips for once. "Fuck business," the bounty hunter replied, breathing heavily and fiddling with his shirt.
"Good," Anzio said with a change in tone. The woman looked up, just in time to see the tiny injection device in his left hand.
With a tiny prick, she was injected with the nerve agent. In less than sixty seconds she died, in the hands of her target.

Thanks again to u/TheManwithaNoPlan in all their help in co-writing this story! They are a fountain of inspiration!
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Memory transcript: Sharnet, Venlil Journalist. Date: [Standardized human time] September 19th, 2136
I had been correct. When Tagleb had described Unzekep’s behavior, I had thought she couldn’t possibly be one of the Overseers. Too descriptive. Too many features that stood out to be remembered. But I had to see. I needed to see what she was like.
I didn’t want to treat her like a monster. Like everyone else.
Unzekep was curled up in a ball on the ground, her sobs echoing off the enclosing walls. They clashed with the constant hum of the pumps, each dampening the other slightly. Her colors kept shifting between the gray of the walls and her natural green, as if she was barely trying to hide.
She just continued to sob. “I don’t want to go. P-please… I don’t… please…”
My legs started walking. On their own. Closer. I’m kneeling next to her. She’s hurting. I…
I gently placed my paw on her back. She shrinks back at the touch, but I keep my paw in place as she cries. “It’s okay,” I say, trying to be heard over the pumps, “we mean you no harm. We wish to h…” The facility said they helped. “We wish to keep you away from the monsters of the facility.”
Her chest shuttered as one eye peered out at me. “Y-you… you hate me. Fear me. Everyone… everyone does…”
“I am not everyone,” I reply. “Come, please, let’s get out of this room so we can hear each other. We only wish to talk.”
Unzekep began rising to her feet, but it still felt off. Her movements brought to mind the Venlil I had seen in the Arxur fear videos. The movement of someone who believed that they were being sent to their death and had given up all hope of its avoidance. Vekna stood by as I led her out of the room, unsure of how to act in the face of this situation.
The scaffolding outside the room groaned from the stresses put upon it by those far above as we walked out. The distant sounds of reactors whirring and people talking replaced the constant hum of the turbines as the backdrop to our situation. I saw Vekna take a small sigh of relief as she closed the door behind us. I saw how she had started to tense up the longer we were in there, this was more for her than Unzekep. Speaking of, the Harchen was still curled up in a defensive stance. “So…why do you bring me out? Are you…going to throw things at me?” She looked down, staring at a small discarded wrench set against the wall. “Please… don’t do hard.”
“We are not going to do that.” She was so scared of us. Like she was standing before an Arxur. “You were in Dawn Creek. The correctional facility there.”
Her colors shifted in fear again. “They-they tossed out! I didn’t- it wasn’t an escape! I’m not- not bad. I’m good! I promise! I-I…” I could see her eyes start to wet again. “Please…I’m sorry…”
Vekna, who had been behind me, knelt forward, keeping her paws to herself. “We know, we know. We’re not going to send you back there, or anywhere else. It’s okay, we’re friends.” I could hear something in her voice I couldn’t quite discern. Sadness? Anger? Both?
Unzekep looked up at her, at us, and she finally started to uncurl. “You’re…friends? Why?” The very fact she asked that at all sent a pang of sympathy through my heart. Is she really so isolated out here that she has to ask why someone wants to be friends with her?
I shook my head to focus. “Because the people who ran that place were evil. They tortured people, and we want to make sure that they don’t do such things to anyone else.”
Unzekep looked at me in confusion, her complexion only slightly changing to a bluish tint. “People don’t call it torture. It’s treatments. Bad treatments. They didn’t help change color. That’s how you spot me, right? The dots.” She ran a hand over her temple, right where the splotches were.
I nodded. “Yes, we did. You did a good job hiding otherwise, though.”
“Thanks. I learned how to ca…cam…hide very well. Sometimes I could make the guards miss me, but then I got in trouble for my next treatment.” I saw her shudder at the memories of that. Why did we ever think this was a good idea? “They had me take stuff. Said… it would make me hide better. Didn’t. It- it made me worse.”
So she was drugged. I guess my theory about the Harchen drug was somewhat correct. “Yes. The people there lied. They lied a lot…” I leaned forward, trying to keep my voice comforting, “do you remember a giant Venlil?”
Her tail flicked in worry as Vekna looked over to me in confusion. “They said.. it was dangerous. That it was going to destroy everything. But… they said they were throwing us out because of it.”
“They were lying again,” I told her, “they were throwing you out to hide themselves. The overseers feared we would find out that they were torturing people, so they ran.” I gestured to me and Vekna. “We are looking for them. We want to make sure they never hurt anyone again. Please, can you help us?”
A new flash of fear flows across her body as she shrinks back. “I- I can’t! They- they’ll know. They will hurt me. Find me and hurt me.” She shivers to herself despite the warmer air down here. Is this the kind of pain Tarlim was hiding all along? By the stars…
Vekna stepped in, her voice similarly soothing. “Why do you think that? You’re a long ways away from Dawn Creek. Do you think that someone from there is here?” She looked between us for a moment before she took on a yellow underhue in confirmation. I had to stop myself from celebrating then and there. After three misses, I was starting to think that this was nothing more than another ruse. At least we’re not doing this for nothing! I leaned in a little closer, causing the Harchen to focus on me. “Do you know who they are? What they look like? Where they might be?” Unzekep whined at my inquiries and covered her ear holes. “Please, not so loud. You’re hurting my ears.” I immediately retracted, doing my best to lower my volume. I flicked my ears in the affirmative, but she didn’t stop. Confused, I flicked them again, but she just continued to look at me as if I was going to restart my questions as soon as she took her hands away. Vekna stepped in and spoke. “She won’t be as loud anymore.” At that, Unzekep finally took her hands away. Difficulty with nonverbal cues. Of course they’d lock her up for that. “Okay. I…saw their back. I don’t know where they are. I know that they did something bad in the caves. They left when I came. Someone else was there, a Venlil. Shocked. It looked like what they did to me, but worse. More sloppy.”
That piqued my interest. Perhaps that’s the reason she spends most of her time down here? I had to ask. “Is that why you stay down here in the bowels of the reactors? In the tunnels under the city?”
She tapped her fingers together. “They… are safe. No eyes. No people who…less people who hurt me. I can hide. I have a house on the top, but… they are top, too. I can hide better down here.”
She looked to be getting scared again at the memory, so I took a soothing tone again. “Thank you. Please, can you tell me where you saw them? What caves?”
She fidgeted with her tail, which had curled around to her front. “Up in the mountains. Old iron mines that ran out a long time ago. Nobody but me ever went up there…and them now.” She clenched her tail. “I don’t go up there anymore.”
Iron mines. We had a location. A place that our target likely frequented. “Thank you. You have helped us so much by telling us that.” I bowed to her, “I promise, we will take them away from this place. You won’t have to hide anymore.”
She didn’t seem to calm down much at that, though. Instead, she looked…sad. “I do have to, I always have to….” She sighed. “People see me. Hate me. They… they will try to send me to another… they will hurt me again. Zap me… here.” She pointed to the spots on her head. The ones that never change their color.
I wanted to say she was wrong. I wanted to reassure her that things would be fine once the heads were captured. But so many would fear her. So many would… wait… “How did you get here?”
Unzekep looked at me in confusion, her color shifting bluish.
“When you were tossed out,” I explain, “you moved here. You had a house. You must have had people who helped you. Who don’t fear you.”
“My… my mom.” Her tail curled around her legs as she sat on the ground. “She found me. She’s in the gov…gover…she has power, covered for me all she could. She…she put me in at first, but when these showed up,” she pointed to her dead spots, “she tried to get me out. Didn’t work, but then they threw us out. It was…a long, long walk.”
Vekna gasped at that. “Wait, you mean to say you walked here? All the way from Dawn Creek? Why didn’t you take a…oh. No money, right?”
Unzekep shifted her underhue in confirmation. “No, no money. When I got here, I was so tired. But…now I have a job. And people usually don’t bother me. Not unless its-”
“Oy!” A voice echoed in the tunnels, “what are you lazy brahkasses doing?”
I looked over my shoulder at the source of the noise. A lanky off-white Venlil woman, most certainly past her prime, walked out of the cargo elevator and approached us. Upon seeing her, Unzekep tried her best to camouflage against the surface, but it wasn’t working all too well. “And quit with the color changing, you speh-licking lizard! I can still see your spots a [mile] away! What are you doing off the job, your shift isn’t over yet!”
I heard Unzekep whimper and shrink away towards the door. “Please, I’m sorry, they came! I was just-”
“You were just not working! Herd, you must love giving me excuses, huh?” To my horror, she picked up the unattended wrench in her paw and held it menacingly. Wait…Unzekep thought that…no. No no no, please let me be wrong.
Vekna stood to try and stop her, most likely coming to the same conclusion I had. “Ma’am, please, we only wanted-”
“Wanted to be rid of this useless Freak!” The woman interrupted, waving the wrench like a pointer, “about time someone got sent to deal with her!”
I flick my ears up in surprise. “Deal with her?” No, please no.
Unzekep was desperately trying to get back into the room but the door was jammed shut. She pulled on the handle as the other worker drew nearer. “Yeah. Chief engineers deal with problems, but this one’s my favorite!” Then, before either of us could react, she pulled her arm back and chucked the heavy metal wrench at Unzekep. It hit her squarely between her shoulders, and she flashed a myriad of different colors in an instant as she cried out in agony.
Wrong! No!
What followed was unrestrained chaos. I was next to the Harchen, seeing if her injury was severe. Before the same second was up, Vekna stepped up to the “chief engineer” and punched her squarely in the jaw. The poor imitation of a Venlil staggered to the side, stopping herself on the balcony as orange blood dripped from her, no, its mouth. “Wha-”
Vekna didn’t hesitate, grabbing it by the collar of its uniform and landing another square hit against its jaw, baring her teeth at the enemy. “What the sprak is wrong with you? Throwing a wrench at her like that? What did she ever do to you!?”
I barely heard her words. The world was orange. It wasn’t nearly orange enough. I got up, and moved over to where Vekna was holding it. I placed a paw on her shoulder as I glared at it. She looked back at me, and soon let it go, leaving it to me. I wasted no time, slamming an open paw against its snout and knocking it over the ledge of the catwalk. I heard gasps behind me, I didn’t care. I grabbed it by its scruff over the chasm. I heard it try to cry out like a Venlil. Not convincing.
I shook. Shook hard. I heard a clunk. Less resistance. The railing had decoupled. The thing was now hanging over the steep drop with nothing to hold it back from falling. Nothing but my grip on its scruff. It was screaming. Pleading. Sobbing. Orange. Now it’s real.
I shook its scruff, feeling one of its feet slip and scramble to find purchase again on the scaffold floor. “Do you feel powerful?” I am shouting. “Do you feel Safe?? Beating people with tools? Forcing them to work alone?! Look down there! Look!!” I used my other hand to grab its head and force it to turn one eye to the drain pit and the small layer of water far beneath. “If someone were to fall down there, how long would it take for them to be rescued? Huh? How Long?? HOW SPEHKING LONG?!”
It was crying. It wasn’t enough. “ANSWER ME!!!”
My vocal chords hurt. I didn’t care. So much orange. All around me orange. I felt something on my shoulder. A voice spoke from behind me. “Sharnet! That’s enou-”
My paw moved before I could think, releasing from its head and smacking the source of the voice away. Now I could focus, I could make it feel what Unzekep felt, what Tarlim felt, what Vekna…
A whine.
I looked back. Vekna was on the ground, an eye shut and orange on the ground.
Wrong orange. Her orange. Oh… oh Stars…
I was hanging a woman over the edge of a meltwater drain pit. She was bleeding. She was crying and shaking. My paw was all that stood between her and death. I quickly pulled her back to safety, tossing her to the ground as I rushed over to Vekna. “Vekna! Are you-” She shrunk away from me, a terrified look in her one open eye. No, no no no no. Please, no! I lowered my paws to the ground to show that I wasn’t a threat. She calmed down a little, rubbing at the side of her snout. “Sharnet, what was that? What happened?”
I had been about to kill somebody. That’s what happened. I had promised to be better, but I just took everything out in someone again. I… I… “I’m sorry…”
“You…” it was the woman again, “you were- you were going to…”
I had been. I wanted to. Stars, I STILL wanted to! How long had Unzekep been tormented by her? How many wrenches had been thrown?? What injuries did she have that this creature caused?? I- I- I Can’t!!! I can’t let them get away with it! I can’t let them take this out on Unzekep! I am a monster, but I will NOT let another monster hurt someone innocent! Not…Not like they did to Tarlim!!
“Do you even know who we are?” I am panting from the adrenaline, “Why we’re here?”
The woman just stuttered, crawling backwards as I stomped towards her. “I- I don’t - I-”
“We were sent here to look at the safety of this place,” I interrupted, “And you know what we found? A worker all alone on a job that requires more! Insufficient lighting!” I pointed to the broken scaffolding that I had hung her off, “railing that falls apart when leaned on! Deep pits with their emergency ladders missing! And You!” I pointed a claw right at her snout. A threat to the herd being signaled. “A-A puddle of Speh who beats their coworkers with metal wrenches!!” I leaned over her cowering form, teeth bared, claws braced. “Unless you leave the Harchen alone, and grovel before the safety board, I will make you WISH. I. Had. Let. Go.”
“Yes! Yes!” She sobbed, “By Solgalick, I promise! Don’t hurt me!”
I am a monster. So I play the part. “Then Leave!!”
I watch the white form scramble down the path out of sight, the scaffolding rattling as she runs practically on all fours. I don’t regret seeing her disappear. I turned back to Unzekep. She looked at me fearfully. As she should. “They shouldn’t bother you again,” I panted, “we will… find the overseer. You… you will be able to go up top soon. I promise.”
She looked up at me, her tail curled beneath her legs in fear. “Th… thank you. N-nobody ever p-protected me before.”
She is thankful. How can she be thankful? I am a monster. The only thing that made me different was I was attacking another monster. How can she do more than just fear me? “Is… is where she hit you… okay?”
“It… it hurts,” she whined, “but… less than last time.”
So she would be okay. I wanted to stay and help her. Get her somewhere to treat the bruises but… but I would just hurt her. I was still so angry, so upset. I would just take it out on her. I-I have to leave. They aren’t safe around me. Go!
I stood, eyeing the still open cargo elevator. “Good. I’m sorry, I must leave.” I began walking towards the elevator, my legs wobbling as the adrenaline began to fade. My paw found the buttons on their own, and I pressed the one to take us to the top. Faster. Please. I need to get away from them. I don’t want to hurt them. I-
“Sharnet!”
I jolted. My fur flared out. It was Vekna. She was in here with me. She was panting. One of her eyes was partially closed. My doing. “Hey, wait up! I need to get back up to the surface, too!”
I didn’t say anything. I didn’t want to say anything. I don’t deserve to speak. I pressed myself into the wall, slumping against it as we ascended. Vekna panted, occasionally putting a paw over her eye and wincing. My doing. She looked at me and tried to put on a smile. “Well, that was a close shear, huh? I-I mean, when I…and then you…and then we…hah, I’m tired.”
I moved so I stood in the corner opposite of her. “You could sit as this takes us to the surface.” My voice felt monotone. I couldn’t gain the energy to emote. “It… a wrench… threw a wrench…”
I saw Vekna’s expression darken. “Yeah, she…she did. I don’t get why. It just seems so… unnecessary. So… cruel.”
“It is,” I stated. “They have to do it. They have to hurt others.”
I saw a veil of sadness fall over her body. “But why? Why do people… have to?”
The cargo elevator came to a stop. The door opened to the bare concrete floor of a power plant. I sighed as I exited. “Because we are monsters.”
​
[First-[Prev]-[Next]

PART SIXTY-FOUR
[Previous Part] [Beginning]
“What the fuck is that shit?!”
“The more important question is how?” Thalien cut in, staring at me in utter disbelief. “You’re well aware of what chain-lightning looks like.”
“But it’s not supposed to do that hand-to-hand bullshit,” Shay-Lee argued. “That shit goes from hand to whatever the fuck you want dead.” As she spoke, she pointed to her palm and flicked her finger outwards at an imaginary target. “Not bouncing between your fucking hands like a goddess-damned rubber ball in motion!”
“It’s the Acropolis,” Lanna said, and although her tone was to answer her husband, her expression asked me to confirm it and fill in the specifics.
“No, it’s me actually. But I’m more than just doing it. I see the source of the magic,” I explained. “It’s floating in the air all the time, like specks of dust, waiting to do whatever the mage or sorcerer requests of them.”
“That’s why you asked me what I saw,” Thalien said thoughtfully.
I nodded. “I wondered if all mages saw it like that, but you said no. Emphatically no,” I reminded him. “From what you said, you merely gesture or speak, and the magic happens … which is true for a given definition.”
“What do these dust dots look like?”
“As I explained to Tarq, they’re like a pinhole-sized dot, not unlike the grains of the Acropolis key, only smaller. Much, much smaller. And just like the key grains, they connect to others to create different patterns, like a deck of cards. If you divide it into four, you have the houses. If you only want the sevens, only four stick together. On their sides, they’re three inches long and barely visible. From above, they become two inches. Just by that explanation alone, the combinations are endless, but when you’re really describing something that can change shape like we’ve seen the key do, there are no limits to their capabilities.”
I gestured to my hand. “When Milo healed this, I watched the dust dots gather along the injury and pull it back together, somehow fusing the two sides to make it whole.”
“And how long have you known this?”
“Since the night we got to Tetorli. I scryed Polly by myself on that lookout and asked her how many other Shadow Emperors wielded the power that had been bestowed on me.”
“And you screamed most emphatically, ‘none’,” Milo said on my behalf. I nodded again resolutely.
“So what exactly are your limitations, magically speaking?” Lanna asked.
“I’m not sure I have any. Not only that, but I don’t need to incant or gesture or have ingredients to make things happen. I’m directly … linked … to the magic via this.” I rubbed my left shoulder.
“And Harmony already said that thing probably can’t be neutralised, even if it was cut off you…” Shay-Lee commented, scowling at my shoulder like it was the source of all her problems. In her head, it probably was.
“Those two days I was unconscious, it wasn’t because of the cold. Or at least, not totally,” I amended, because falling over half-frozen had undoubtedly been part of the issue at the time. “This…” —I rubbed my shoulder— “…is now everywhere. I felt it spread out inside me. Bonding with me. Honestly, I don’t think the brand itself matters anymore, except to let the people know who I am.” My hand moved to the back of my neck and up to scratch across the top of my scalp, indicating it had somehow travelled into my head … and through my limbs, all the way to my toes. “I’m not going to try and do anything I haven’t seen done or can’t envision happening because that is a disastrous line of thought.”
“What other things can you do, Uncle Em?”
I wasn’t interested in doing a show-and-tell, but if a couple more examples were enough to keep them happy, I stuck with the ones I knew. Curling my right hand into a cup, I formed a snowball-sized fireball. Ironically, I didn’t feel the heat because more dots had lined my hand like a protective glove.
It was amazing how much I had folded into the word ‘magic’ when common sense was right there in front of me. Fire was fire, and when it was said aloud, magic fire that didn’t burn the caster was just stupid.
I heard a gasp that was not part of our party and clenched my fist to extinguish it as everyone swung towards the sound. With a wall of trees at our back and Felipe and Gimweren’s people in front and on either side of us settling in for the night, there was no reason for anyone to be back there. At least, I had assumed so, given I’d put up a sound blister to keep this conversation private.
That meant our observer was right up against the protective barrier, just as Felipe had been last night. Except no one was there. It wasn’t snowing so hard that we couldn’t see three feet into the darkness, but by the time we snatched up our weapons and reached the protective wall, our visitor was long gone.
A dwarf couldn’t move that quietly, nor could they do so without leaving a trail in the fresh powder, which made our unwanted visitor a snow half-orc. We’d be tracking one lone snow half-orc with countless numbers of them around us while it was snowing.
Oh, this is going to be fun … not.
Thalien dismissed the protective dome that would’ve dumped the better part of a foot of snow on top of our camp (not to mention ruin my meal prep) if I didn’t throw another one up six inches inside his. The difference being mine was more like a cave, complete with an opening we could all rush through.
Only Thalien seemed to notice. Or maybe he was the only one who truly understood what I’d done. Magic in his eyes was uncompromising. Specific gestures and specific words moved a specific number of dust dots into a specific formation that couldn’t be modified. In contrast, I mentally commanded the individual dust dots to form whatever pattern I saw fit, including a protective barrier with an open doorway.
“Milo,” I called, for we wouldn’t get very far if we didn’t know what direction to head.
Milo was already pushing past Tarq, searching the ground. He quickly surmised the same thing I had and held out his hand, palm down. I’d seen him do this trick dozens of times before, but with my new insight, I saw the dots gather into designated sections on the ground and condense into six-inch footprints that turned a pale blue for everyone to see.
“It’s a kid,” I said before Milo could make the announcement, tossing my weapons belt back inside the campsite (since I hadn’t buckled it into place yet) and charging after our pint-sized runaway—a snow half-orc. Felipe would have a fit if he knew one of the kids had followed us after all, though it did beg the question of how they’d evaded two hundred snow half-orc warriors plus however many Felipe had following us from the shadows.
The frantic pace of their footsteps … the way they bounced off a tree, went down onto one knee, and scrambled up to run once more was proof of their panic. I wouldn’t add to that fear by drawing a sword on him. Worst case, I still had a dagger and a zot-shot tucked into my boots.
Tarq and I ran at full speed, assuming we were leaving Milo and the others to trail behind us (except Thalien and Lanna, who almost always remained with the camp due to the amount of magical gear we all carried. That stuff was expensive).
However, it was times like this that I was forced to remember I was approaching sixty, and we had kids less than half my age with us. Liab charged between us on all fours, running half as fast as us again and in my peripheral vision, I caught sight of our resident half-elf thief converging through the snow on our right.
Less than a minute later, I heard the thump of someone impacting the snow, followed quickly by Liab’s sharp, breathy grunts of victory. As we ran up on the scene, Liab was sitting on the ground with one of his long arms around the shoulders of our runaway child, his other hand cupped securely over his mouth. He had the boy sitting on the ground before him with his legs hooked over the kid’s thighs to keep them secured.
Shay-Lee was kneeling beside them, her dagger out but folded back along her wrist and forearm. Any wrong move on the boy’s part would have that dagger finding a new sheath in his throat. To my surprise, Harmony was on the other side of Liab, rubbing her hand across the child’s head while her other hand pulled a blanket from the shoulder tote she was almost ever without. Another reminder that the younger women were faster than Tarq and me when they wanted to be. I made a mental note to lecture them both about taking unnecessary risks, given we still knew nothing about this child and how danger came in all forms. There was a reason Tarq and I went first, followed closely by Milo.
Straight away, something felt wrong. The child’s deflation as he realised there was no escape was to be expected, but something else was way off. Back at Tetorli, the kids were playful and curious, only to be chased by their elders with smirks and snowballs. More stringent discipline was sometimes necessary, but this boy’s reaction was another level of defeat.
If I had to hazard a guess, I’d say he was ten, maybe eleven. I declared him male since he only wore a loincloth, though truthfully, it was hard to tell at that age. I wasn’t a specialist in the age development of half-orcs.
Apart from the loincloth, something else that struck me as odd. As soon as he saw me, his gaze went to my covered wrists and then dropped to the ground between us. His shoulders also curled forward as much as Liab would let them. I got the distinct impression he would roll all the way forward with his brow to the ground if he were released, and that was definitely not the way of the snow half-orcs.
And then it hit me.
The boy’s head had been shaved, and very short white bristles, more common amongst my soldiers, barely penetrated his pale grey scalp. Even the youngest child at Tetorli wore their hair long with some manner of weight tied into the end to familiarise them with the handy weapon they’d use as they got older.
Which meant the boy wasn’t from Tetorli or any other native snow half-orc settlement… and we were less than a day’s march from Cerro Nexo, only hours from Jinis Ridge.
I really didn’t like the picture I was putting together in my head.
The poor kid trembled when I came forward, took the blanket hem and lifted it to cover his head … and stopped with a wordless gasp when I saw the back of his head had been branded with a series of letters and numbers that went all the way into his skull. It wasn’t a square brand and had been rolled across the contours to go from ear to ear. And it was old.
Fuck me.
My stomach fell into my feet, and I felt all the blood drain from my face.
“What the fuck is that?” Shay-Lee demanded, which galvanized me into moving.
I took complete control of the blanket from Harmony and quickly covered his upper body, telling her to grab out a second one. We wouldn’t get back to camp without being discovered, but I wanted to limit the spread of this knowledge. Our saving grace was the camp was in the middle of being set up, and most eyes were busy doing other things.
Regular half-orcs were known for fits of rage that would make them both deadly and loud, and I had no idea how the snow half-orcs, their intelligent brethren, would handle this. I needed to be smart. I needed my army to stay smart and not get swept up in blind fury. I needed to return this boy to our campsite and bring Felipe in on our discovery. I would also need to change the arrangement of my protective barrier to hide the chief’s reaction from his people, who would be watching.
To quote our thief … shit just got real.
Tarq took Shay-Lee’s place and slid his hands between the boy’s shoulders and Liab’s chest. “Sit still, lad,” he said quietly, then lifted him just enough from Liab that Harmony could wrap his lower half in the second blanket, completely hiding him from view. Cradled in Tarq’s large arms, the boy’s general shape would only come across as humanoid, including an adult dwarf or a young human, which was just what I’d hoped for. Harmony stayed at their side with her hand on the blanket near the boy’s head, her presence keeping him calm.
And to ensure we didn’t have any curious observers, the rest of us formed a loose, defensive circle around them, with me at the front and Milo in the rear, and we made our way back to the campsite.
I knew snow half-orcs preferred the cold of the elements, but in this instance, he would just have to deal with the human conditions. I modified the dome to give it a milky pigmentation that would blend in with the snow but not allow anyone else to spy on us; at the same time, I closed the opening to give us complete privacy. There was little doubt word would get back to Felipe, but I wanted to question the boy while ensuring he had something to eat before I brought in the snow half-orc chief. Felipe was going to be emotional enough as it was without making things worse.
“The fact that you can change its composition after the spell’s conclusion defies all logic,” Thalien said, lifting his eyes to the structure around us.
I understood how it looked from his viewpoint. Magic cast was then set in place. Another spell could replace it only if more powerful magic were cast or the original was dispelled. Whereas for me, it was a matter of having the amassed dust dots make a quarter turn to the left, no different than barking out the same command to an assembled army.
“This is not the norm,” I reminded him. “We’re presently at war, which has changed our dynamics temporarily. Very temporarily. Once we’re out the other side of this, should we be permitted to live with what we know, it will still be your job to create nightly cover when the weather turns against us and mine to cook dinner for you and Lanna. Just as it always has been.”
I wasn’t sure if he believed me; honestly, we had more pressing issues anyway. I had Shay-Lee gather up my comforter and ball it on the ground at the farthest point from the fire against the tree line, and I had Tarq deposit him on it while I fossicked through my bag for my canteen and some beef jerky that would give the kid a much-needed dose of protein.
The boy never moved as Harmony gently tugged the blanket from his head. “You’re safe now,” she crooned as his eyes met hers briefly, then jerked away to the floor. Unfortunately, when I stepped in front of him and squatted down, he gasped and curled into the tightest possible ball with his face pressed into his knees, covering his head with both hands (but not the brand, leading me to assume he’d been taught never to hide his identity) and proceeded to wet himself. The acrid stench meant he was severely dehydrated, but that too was the least of our worries.
I sighed and silently passed Harmony the food and the drink, then shuffled back a few feet without rising to give her room to work.
He’d been nervous around Harmony, but the sight of me terrified him. I sat on the ground beside the fire and crossed my legs, giving him time to settle. It amused me immensely to watch Lanna’s nose screw up as she approached them from Harmony’s side to not frighten the boy any more than he already was. With a few mumbled words, she cast her cleansing spell that took care of the comforter and the blankets (and knowing Lanna, the boy himself). Then, she moved around in front of the boy and knelt, leaning forward to peek through a gap in his arms. “What’s your name, honey?”
“SHO-8-1-4-3,” the boy barely whispered.
The same letter and number combination burned into his head—literally. I closed my eyes and breathed out slowly, refusing to call him that. My brain immediately started playing with the combination, shifting emphasis and accents. Until he selected a new name for himself, we needed to call him one that brushed up against his designation for the sake of familiarity but still sounded like a name. I opened my eyes and used a stick to write it out on the ground. By turning the 8 into a B, and the 1 into an I, it became …
“…Shobi,” I said, lifting my eyes to everyone. My friends were looking at me. The boy hadn’t moved. “SHO-8-1-4-3, from now on, we’ll call you Shobi. Nod if you understand.”
It made me sick to fall back on this mentality of barking orders at a frightened kid and watching his head wiggle forward and back under his hands, but soft words of comfort wouldn’t cut it. The boy would never believe them from me. I reminded him too much of what he had escaped from, and humans hadn’t been kind to him in that place. Augustus Morales, you need to survive long enough for me to get my hands on you. Then, and only then, will you be made to pay in full for all this.
“Alright, Shobi. I need you to eat the food and drink the water my friend is trying to give you, and to do that, you need to sit up. So, sit up.” I barely infused my words with command, but Shobi shot up so fast his head and shoulders knocked against Lanna and Harmony, who were both bowed over him, trying to coax him out. He still wouldn’t look at me, but he searched for the supplies, shoving the first jerky stick so far down his throat that he gagged.
Harmony tightened her grip on the rest and gently fed them to him in small, bite-sized pieces, intermittent with swigs of water. Thalien passed Lanna a short length of fabric which she wrapped around Shobi’s head like a bandana, covering his slave brand. He gasped and tensed, his hand reaching to drag the material away. Harmony did her patented shushing croon that took much of the fight from him. “It’s going to be okay, sweetie,” she whispered, feeding him another piece of jerky.
I watched their interaction, and knowing he was in safe hands, I twisted away from him and stood up to avoid frightening him. “Where are you going?” Tarq asked, also rising. I glanced over my shoulder to answer my friend but found the way the boy was staring at Tarq like he’d lost his mind much more interesting. It wasn’t hard to guess that he wasn’t used to an alternate race speaking that way to a human in authority.
“Word of our young friend would have reached Chief Felipe by now.” I used the honorific for the child’s sake, and sadly, he made no reaction to the title of his people’s leader. I wondered if he knew what chief even meant. “He might want to keep the boy close, or he might want to send him back to Tetorli with some of the fighters to keep him safe.”
“I’m coming with you.”
“Tarq …”
“You’re about to tell the snow half-orc chief that our enemies have been enslaving his people without his knowledge or yours long enough to have a man-child with no clue of his heritage. If you think I’m not going to stand between you and him while he rages, you have clearly forgotten who you’re dealing with.”
I raked my fingers through my short hair and sighed. “Very well.”
Unfortunately, Felipe took it about as well as I had expected.
* * *
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FULL INDEX OF WE PLAN, GODS LAUGH TO DATE CAN BE FOUND HERE!!

PART SIXTY-FOUR
[Previous Part] [Beginning]
“What the fuck is that shit?!”
“The more important question is how?” Thalien cut in, staring at me in utter disbelief. “You’re well aware of what chain-lightning looks like.”
“But it’s not supposed to do that hand-to-hand bullshit,” Shay-Lee argued. “That shit goes from hand to whatever the fuck you want dead.” As she spoke, she pointed to her palm and flicked her finger outwards at an imaginary target. “Not bouncing between your fucking hands like a goddess-damned rubber ball in motion!”
“It’s the Acropolis,” Lanna said, and although her tone was to answer her husband, her expression asked me to confirm it and fill in the specifics.
“No, it’s me actually. But I’m more than just doing it. I see the source of the magic,” I explained. “It’s floating in the air all the time, like specks of dust, waiting to do whatever the mage or sorcerer requests of them.”
“That’s why you asked me what I saw,” Thalien said thoughtfully.
I nodded. “I wondered if all mages saw it like that, but you said no. Emphatically no,” I reminded him. “From what you said, you merely gesture or speak, and the magic happens … which is true for a given definition.”
“What do these dust dots look like?”
“As I explained to Tarq, they’re like a pinhole-sized dot, not unlike the grains of the Acropolis key, only smaller. Much, much smaller. And just like the key grains, they connect to others to create different patterns, like a deck of cards. If you divide it into four, you have the houses. If you only want the sevens, only four stick together. On their sides, they’re three inches long and barely visible. From above, they become two inches. Just by that explanation alone, the combinations are endless, but when you’re really describing something that can change shape like we’ve seen the key do, there are no limits to their capabilities.”
I gestured to my hand. “When Milo healed this, I watched the dust dots gather along the injury and pull it back together, somehow fusing the two sides to make it whole.”
“And how long have you known this?”
“Since the night we got to Tetorli. I scryed Polly by myself on that lookout and asked her how many other Shadow Emperors wielded the power that had been bestowed on me.”
“And you screamed most emphatically, ‘none’,” Milo said on my behalf. I nodded again resolutely.
“So what exactly are your limitations, magically speaking?” Lanna asked.
“I’m not sure I have any. Not only that, but I don’t need to incant or gesture or have ingredients to make things happen. I’m directly … linked … to the magic via this.” I rubbed my left shoulder.
“And Harmony already said that thing probably can’t be neutralised, even if it was cut off you…” Shay-Lee commented, scowling at my shoulder like it was the source of all her problems. In her head, it probably was.
“Those two days I was unconscious, it wasn’t because of the cold. Or at least, not totally,” I amended, because falling over half-frozen had undoubtedly been part of the issue at the time. “This…” —I rubbed my shoulder— “…is now everywhere. I felt it spread out inside me. Bonding with me. Honestly, I don’t think the brand itself matters anymore, except to let the people know who I am.” My hand moved to the back of my neck and up to scratch across the top of my scalp, indicating it had somehow travelled into my head … and through my limbs, all the way to my toes. “I’m not going to try and do anything I haven’t seen done or can’t envision happening because that is a disastrous line of thought.”
“What other things can you do, Uncle Em?”
I wasn’t interested in doing a show-and-tell, but if a couple more examples were enough to keep them happy, I stuck with the ones I knew. Curling my right hand into a cup, I formed a snowball-sized fireball. Ironically, I didn’t feel the heat because more dots had lined my hand like a protective glove.
It was amazing how much I had folded into the word ‘magic’ when common sense was right there in front of me. Fire was fire, and when it was said aloud, magic fire that didn’t burn the caster was just stupid.
I heard a gasp that was not part of our party and clenched my fist to extinguish it as everyone swung towards the sound. With a wall of trees at our back and Felipe and Gimweren’s people in front and on either side of us settling in for the night, there was no reason for anyone to be back there. At least, I had assumed so, given I’d put up a sound blister to keep this conversation private.
That meant our observer was right up against the protective barrier, just as Felipe had been last night. Except no one was there. It wasn’t snowing so hard that we couldn’t see three feet into the darkness, but by the time we snatched up our weapons and reached the protective wall, our visitor was long gone.
A dwarf couldn’t move that quietly, nor could they do so without leaving a trail in the fresh powder, which made our unwanted visitor a snow half-orc. We’d be tracking one lone snow half-orc with countless numbers of them around us while it was snowing.
Oh, this is going to be fun … not.
Thalien dismissed the protective dome that would’ve dumped the better part of a foot of snow on top of our camp (not to mention ruin my meal prep) if I didn’t throw another one up six inches inside his. The difference being mine was more like a cave, complete with an opening we could all rush through.
Only Thalien seemed to notice. Or maybe he was the only one who truly understood what I’d done. Magic in his eyes was uncompromising. Specific gestures and specific words moved a specific number of dust dots into a specific formation that couldn’t be modified. In contrast, I mentally commanded the individual dust dots to form whatever pattern I saw fit, including a protective barrier with an open doorway.
“Milo,” I called, for we wouldn’t get very far if we didn’t know what direction to head.
Milo was already pushing past Tarq, searching the ground. He quickly surmised the same thing I had and held out his hand, palm down. I’d seen him do this trick dozens of times before, but with my new insight, I saw the dots gather into designated sections on the ground and condense into six-inch footprints that turned a pale blue for everyone to see.
“It’s a kid,” I said before Milo could make the announcement, tossing my weapons belt back inside the campsite (since I hadn’t buckled it into place yet) and charging after our pint-sized runaway—a snow half-orc. Felipe would have a fit if he knew one of the kids had followed us after all, though it did beg the question of how they’d evaded two hundred snow half-orc warriors plus however many Felipe had following us from the shadows.
The frantic pace of their footsteps … the way they bounced off a tree, went down onto one knee, and scrambled up to run once more was proof of their panic. I wouldn’t add to that fear by drawing a sword on him. Worst case, I still had a dagger and a zot-shot tucked into my boots.
Tarq and I ran at full speed, assuming we were leaving Milo and the others to trail behind us (except Thalien and Lanna, who almost always remained with the camp due to the amount of magical gear we all carried. That stuff was expensive).
However, it was times like this that I was forced to remember I was approaching sixty, and we had kids less than half my age with us. Liab charged between us on all fours, running half as fast as us again and in my peripheral vision, I caught sight of our resident half-elf thief converging through the snow on our right.
Less than a minute later, I heard the thump of someone impacting the snow, followed quickly by Liab’s sharp, breathy grunts of victory. As we ran up on the scene, Liab was sitting on the ground with one of his long arms around the shoulders of our runaway child, his other hand cupped securely over his mouth. He had the boy sitting on the ground before him with his legs hooked over the kid’s thighs to keep them secured.
Shay-Lee was kneeling beside them, her dagger out but folded back along her wrist and forearm. Any wrong move on the boy’s part would have that dagger finding a new sheath in his throat. To my surprise, Harmony was on the other side of Liab, rubbing her hand across the child’s head while her other hand pulled a blanket from the shoulder tote she was almost ever without. Another reminder that the younger women were faster than Tarq and me when they wanted to be. I made a mental note to lecture them both about taking unnecessary risks, given we still knew nothing about this child and how danger came in all forms. There was a reason Tarq and I went first, followed closely by Milo.
Straight away, something felt wrong. The child’s deflation as he realised there was no escape was to be expected, but something else was way off. Back at Tetorli, the kids were playful and curious, only to be chased by their elders with smirks and snowballs. More stringent discipline was sometimes necessary, but this boy’s reaction was another level of defeat.
If I had to hazard a guess, I’d say he was ten, maybe eleven. I declared him male since he only wore a loincloth, though truthfully, it was hard to tell at that age. I wasn’t a specialist in the age development of half-orcs.
Apart from the loincloth, something else that struck me as odd. As soon as he saw me, his gaze went to my covered wrists and then dropped to the ground between us. His shoulders also curled forward as much as Liab would let them. I got the distinct impression he would roll all the way forward with his brow to the ground if he were released, and that was definitely not the way of the snow half-orcs.
And then it hit me.
The boy’s head had been shaved, and very short white bristles, more common amongst my soldiers, barely penetrated his pale grey scalp. Even the youngest child at Tetorli wore their hair long with some manner of weight tied into the end to familiarise them with the handy weapon they’d use as they got older.
Which meant the boy wasn’t from Tetorli or any other native snow half-orc settlement… and we were less than a day’s march from Cerro Nexo, only hours from Jinis Ridge.
I really didn’t like the picture I was putting together in my head.
The poor kid trembled when I came forward, took the blanket hem and lifted it to cover his head … and stopped with a wordless gasp when I saw the back of his head had been branded with a series of letters and numbers that went all the way into his skull. It wasn’t a square brand and had been rolled across the contours to go from ear to ear. And it was old.
Fuck me.
My stomach fell into my feet, and I felt all the blood drain from my face.
“What the fuck is that?” Shay-Lee demanded, which galvanized me into moving.
I took complete control of the blanket from Harmony and quickly covered his upper body, telling her to grab out a second one. We wouldn’t get back to camp without being discovered, but I wanted to limit the spread of this knowledge. Our saving grace was the camp was in the middle of being set up, and most eyes were busy doing other things.
Regular half-orcs were known for fits of rage that would make them both deadly and loud, and I had no idea how the snow half-orcs, their intelligent brethren, would handle this. I needed to be smart. I needed my army to stay smart and not get swept up in blind fury. I needed to return this boy to our campsite and bring Felipe in on our discovery. I would also need to change the arrangement of my protective barrier to hide the chief’s reaction from his people, who would be watching.
To quote our thief … shit just got real.
Tarq took Shay-Lee’s place and slid his hands between the boy’s shoulders and Liab’s chest. “Sit still, lad,” he said quietly, then lifted him just enough from Liab that Harmony could wrap his lower half in the second blanket, completely hiding him from view. Cradled in Tarq’s large arms, the boy’s general shape would only come across as humanoid, including an adult dwarf or a young human, which was just what I’d hoped for. Harmony stayed at their side with her hand on the blanket near the boy’s head, her presence keeping him calm.
And to ensure we didn’t have any curious observers, the rest of us formed a loose, defensive circle around them, with me at the front and Milo in the rear, and we made our way back to the campsite.
I knew snow half-orcs preferred the cold of the elements, but in this instance, he would just have to deal with the human conditions. I modified the dome to give it a milky pigmentation that would blend in with the snow but not allow anyone else to spy on us; at the same time, I closed the opening to give us complete privacy. There was little doubt word would get back to Felipe, but I wanted to question the boy while ensuring he had something to eat before I brought in the snow half-orc chief. Felipe was going to be emotional enough as it was without making things worse.
“The fact that you can change its composition after the spell’s conclusion defies all logic,” Thalien said, lifting his eyes to the structure around us.
I understood how it looked from his viewpoint. Magic cast was then set in place. Another spell could replace it only if more powerful magic were cast or the original was dispelled. Whereas for me, it was a matter of having the amassed dust dots make a quarter turn to the left, no different than barking out the same command to an assembled army.
“This is not the norm,” I reminded him. “We’re presently at war, which has changed our dynamics temporarily. Very temporarily. Once we’re out the other side of this, should we be permitted to live with what we know, it will still be your job to create nightly cover when the weather turns against us and mine to cook dinner for you and Lanna. Just as it always has been.”
I wasn’t sure if he believed me; honestly, we had more pressing issues anyway. I had Shay-Lee gather up my comforter and ball it on the ground at the farthest point from the fire against the tree line, and I had Tarq deposit him on it while I fossicked through my bag for my canteen and some beef jerky that would give the kid a much-needed dose of protein.
The boy never moved as Harmony gently tugged the blanket from his head. “You’re safe now,” she crooned as his eyes met hers briefly, then jerked away to the floor. Unfortunately, when I stepped in front of him and squatted down, he gasped and curled into the tightest possible ball with his face pressed into his knees, covering his head with both hands (but not the brand, leading me to assume he’d been taught never to hide his identity) and proceeded to wet himself. The acrid stench meant he was severely dehydrated, but that too was the least of our worries.
I sighed and silently passed Harmony the food and the drink, then shuffled back a few feet without rising to give her room to work.
He’d been nervous around Harmony, but the sight of me terrified him. I sat on the ground beside the fire and crossed my legs, giving him time to settle. It amused me immensely to watch Lanna’s nose screw up as she approached them from Harmony’s side to not frighten the boy any more than he already was. With a few mumbled words, she cast her cleansing spell that took care of the comforter and the blankets (and knowing Lanna, the boy himself). Then, she moved around in front of the boy and knelt, leaning forward to peek through a gap in his arms. “What’s your name, honey?”
“SHO-8-1-4-3,” the boy barely whispered.
The same letter and number combination burned into his head—literally. I closed my eyes and breathed out slowly, refusing to call him that. My brain immediately started playing with the combination, shifting emphasis and accents. Until he selected a new name for himself, we needed to call him one that brushed up against his designation for the sake of familiarity but still sounded like a name. I opened my eyes and used a stick to write it out on the ground. By turning the 8 into a B, and the 1 into an I, it became …
“…Shobi,” I said, lifting my eyes to everyone. My friends were looking at me. The boy hadn’t moved. “SHO-8-1-4-3, from now on, we’ll call you Shobi. Nod if you understand.”
It made me sick to fall back on this mentality of barking orders at a frightened kid and watching his head wiggle forward and back under his hands, but soft words of comfort wouldn’t cut it. The boy would never believe them from me. I reminded him too much of what he had escaped from, and humans hadn’t been kind to him in that place. Augustus Morales, you need to survive long enough for me to get my hands on you. Then, and only then, will you be made to pay in full for all this.
“Alright, Shobi. I need you to eat the food and drink the water my friend is trying to give you, and to do that, you need to sit up. So, sit up.” I barely infused my words with command, but Shobi shot up so fast his head and shoulders knocked against Lanna and Harmony, who were both bowed over him, trying to coax him out. He still wouldn’t look at me, but he searched for the supplies, shoving the first jerky stick so far down his throat that he gagged.
Harmony tightened her grip on the rest and gently fed them to him in small, bite-sized pieces, intermittent with swigs of water. Thalien passed Lanna a short length of fabric which she wrapped around Shobi’s head like a bandana, covering his slave brand. He gasped and tensed, his hand reaching to drag the material away. Harmony did her patented shushing croon that took much of the fight from him. “It’s going to be okay, sweetie,” she whispered, feeding him another piece of jerky.
I watched their interaction, and knowing he was in safe hands, I twisted away from him and stood up to avoid frightening him. “Where are you going?” Tarq asked, also rising. I glanced over my shoulder to answer my friend but found the way the boy was staring at Tarq like he’d lost his mind much more interesting. It wasn’t hard to guess that he wasn’t used to an alternate race speaking that way to a human in authority.
“Word of our young friend would have reached Chief Felipe by now.” I used the honorific for the child’s sake, and sadly, he made no reaction to the title of his people’s leader. I wondered if he knew what chief even meant. “He might want to keep the boy close, or he might want to send him back to Tetorli with some of the fighters to keep him safe.”
“I’m coming with you.”
“Tarq …”
“You’re about to tell the snow half-orc chief that our enemies have been enslaving his people without his knowledge or yours long enough to have a man-child with no clue of his heritage. If you think I’m not going to stand between you and him while he rages, you have clearly forgotten who you’re dealing with.”
I raked my fingers through my short hair and sighed. “Very well.”
Unfortunately, Felipe took it about as well as I had expected.
* * *
((All comments welcome. Good or bad, I'd love to hear your thoughts 🥰🤗 ))
For more of my work including WPs: Angel466 or an index of previous WPS here.
FULL INDEX OF WE PLAN, GODS LAUGH TO DATE CAN BE FOUND HERE!!

yearsssss ago i used to use manic panic and yes it would bleed in the shower but that's expected with any fashion tone. i died a wig red (i mixed 2) and it bleeds so badly that if i sweat it stains my back. then my actual hair is voodoo blue and again everythingggg stains. if my hand is slightly damp my hand is blue. i can't even put product in without it turning blue. it used to be a tried and true brand for me but idk not anymore.

Round 1 match 1
Deep down in the underworld of crime there is a tournament that is set by the gods themselves. We then cut to an arena filled with both the audience and blood stains on the floor of the arena. Then we see a man in a tux with slick back golden hair . This man smiled, his gold eyes shined as the light hit them. You see this man wasn't mortal, though he was divine. This man was known as the Roman god Mercury. As soon as Mercury held up his microphone he spoke, his voice enchanted the audience.
Mercury: Hello mortals! Is everyone ready to see some people kill one another in the name of their gods?
The crowd cheered and Mercury smiled at these mortals who were ready to watch their own kind kill one another.
Mercury: All right well, let's start with the rules. There aren't any. That's right. Anything goes in these fights. It just makes it more fun.
Just then Mercury held up something. Then it shot up a beam of energy which spread to form a hologram screen showing 16
fighters. The crowd watched in amazement as it showed clips of each fighter.
Mercury: Now let's honor these soon-to-be dead men. First thing, though, is we need to start the first match. Now fighting in the blue corner is this man who once was the greatest magician there ever was but lost his title to a younger fellow. Now known as the dazzling magician and blessed by Sun Wukong, the great sage equal to heaven. This man is none other u/AdLegitimate1637 .
Just then, out of the left hallway walked out a man with gray hair and dressed like a ringmaster. He smiled at the crowd while waving. Once he got into the arena, a cane fell from above and Ad caught it and twirled it around.
Ad: Who's ready to be amazed?
The crowd cheered as Mercury ready himself for u/AdLegitimate1637 opponent.
Mercury: Okay, everyone calm down. Now fighting in the red corner is this man. In a twist sort of fate, this man rose from just being a humble street performer to the greatest magician of this era.
As Mercury spoke, Ad realized who he was talking about and the old man's smile faded and his eyes filled with rage.
Mercury: Behold the man who was blessed by Loki the trickster god u/PleasantPhotograph66 .
Just then a young man with long red hair walked out. He wore flashy clothing that shined in the light. As the man got onto the stage he pulled out glasses that just like his clothes shined in the light. As both fighters gazed upon one another, Pleasant smiled and spoke.
Pleasant: It's been a long time, old man. I wonder you ever approve of your shitty magic tricks.
Ad didn't speak a word but just waited for Mercury to speak that one word so this match could start.
Mercury: Now FIGHT!
Just then Ad slammed the bottom of his can on the ground and from that smoke rose and once it cleared, two canons appeared. Pleasant saw this and once the canons fired he tapped two times on his glasses and from that his body twisted and his bones snapped as he turned into a dove and dodged the cannonballs easily.
Ad: Now that might just make me sick.
As the dove landed, it's body twisted and its bones broke as it formed back into Pleasant. Many people in the audience almost threw up just from watching this act. Then Ad once more slammed the ground with his cane but this time from the smoke eight floating swords formed behind Ad in a circle shape. All pleasant did was tap his glasses three times and then his body started to transform into a cheetah and he rushed at Ad.
Ad: Die you idiot.
Just then, the floating swords flew straight at Pleasant, but still in his cheetah form, he barely dodged each blade only but on the last one he quickly turned, slamming onto the ground. Sadly, though, the last sword stuck into his eyes, cutting it. As Pleasant transformed back, his glasses still in perfect condition, ager filled the young magician.
Pleasant: I'll kill you. YOU PEASE OF SHIT!!
Just then, Pleasant started to run straight at Ad and his arms started to twist and turn as they formed into a blade and shield. Instead of metal for these, the material was his own flesh and bones. Just then, as Pleasant was inches away from Ad, the old mage raised the top of his cane and shouted.
Ad: blessed art: the storm of magic!
Just then, the top of Ad cane started to be covered by electricity and as these two mages made contact, an explosion of bright light formed, blinding the crowd. When the light died down, we saw both fighters on the ground breathing heavily. Ad was badly burnt by the electricity and Pleasant's left hand was fully destroyed. As both fighters struggled to get back up, Ad smiled.
Ad: It's time for the closing if we shall.
Just then, as Pleasant stood back up, he saw two boxes that were the size of humans. Pleasant knew this was the forbidden sword box. A trick where they use real swords instead of trick ones only the best magician could survive.
Pleasant: So that's how you want it to end. Then so be it. We are entertainers first and killers second.
Ad nodded as he looked into the crowd.
Ad: Now everyone, if you throw be so kind, once me and my opponent go into these boxes and once they are mixed, you may choose which box will have the sword stab thrown, killing the fighter.
The crowd was confused for a quick second, but that changed to excitement. Once both fighters got into each box, they both smiled.
Both: The show must go on!
Just then, the box closed and mixed and they started to mix where the crowd couldn't tell which was which. Then they stopped moving and floating swords formed, floating above both boxes. Mercury just smiled.
[Backstory] It's no lie that these two once knew one another. A long time ago when Ad was a the greatest magician he did his act all around the world. Then one day Pleasant showed up his story is that he rose from a street performer to the out doing Ad but that was a lie. The truth is Pleasant was a rich kid who bought his way to the top. Once Ad respected the fellow mage and was happy to step down but when he learn of pleasant truth he was disgusted. Now in a cruel sabotage pleasant rig Ad trick to cause it to be a disaster which cause him not just his job but also his granddaughter. Now armed with sorrow Ad realized his last goal is to honor his God a bring him to victory and Pleasant well loki just offered him more money. [Backstory]
Mercury: Now, audience, which box shall we stab into?
The audience cheered as they shouted which box they wished to stab. But after a good 5 minutes it was decided the box on the right would be stabbed, killing its carrier. As the blade stabbed into the box you could hear the dying screams of the human who was in the box.
Mercury: Now that sounded like that hurt. Now let's see the results.
Then, as the box doors open, we see Ad walk out of the unharmed box, but sadly, as the other box opens, we see Pleasant's dead blades stabbing through his dead body. As the audience stared at Pleasant's bloody body, a blade stuck out of his face and his other good eye ball falling out of his skull. His body was also twisted like he tried to transform into something.
Mercury: It's decided the victor of the first match is u/AdLegitimate1637 and the next match will be fought by these two.
Then as the hologram screen showing two new fighters these are u/MUI-Tojo and u/Kinsey916
We cut to a room with a door only described as holy but in it was a full white room with 16 people. They were the gods who were sponsoring these mortals.
Sun Wukong: Man Loki, your guy sucks.
Loki: It wasn't that he sucked, he was just an idiot.
But then the gods argued, then they froze as a pair of hands landed on both their shoulders and this god was known as Chaos.
Chaos: That's enough. Both fighters put up a good show that was their main goal more than anything else. True, they needed to kill one another, but it isn't wrong to make it entertaining like that.
That's the end of chapter 1. Hope you all had fun reading this. also if you wish to join you still can. We have 8 spots still open.