The Oathsworn

by Liandra Jake

  The second was a pair of matching tall archways that led to a balcony running across the mansion a half dozen stories up. The stone was carved into a intricate, swirling pattern that continued down the balcony railing, the center point sprouting out into a statue of a long flat-topped tree. The flat surface had spaces waiting for leafy plants to be placed on it.

  The third was a tall, flat tower towards the back decorated with banners of blue and orange. The sight before them was enough for the Serephs to look up from their blankets. Hunter whistled. "Damn." "I can see why Rose wanted to live here." Flake said quietly. "It wasn't like this before." Hunter replied. Erasure greeted them at the door. The Serephs didn't until Flake gave them a reassuring nod. The hallway was three stories tall, built with multiple archways to support the high ceiling.

  Erasure led them into what equated to a living room. A few sofas and a chair were placed around a large coffee table. The Serephs clustered together on one of the sofas. Erasure raised an eyebrow and gave nod of respect to fitting seven people in a 3-seater sofa. "So. These are them?" Erasure asked. Flake nodded. "They're still a little wary, as you can tell." Erasure nodded. "But as I had told you," Erasure looked away from the Serephs. "I can't allow anyone to live here if they're too-"

  Erasure was interrupted by Mysh running after a flying 'Ro and Mar. "C'mon guys It's not fair!" Mysh yelled up at them. "It's completely fair! You have to jump for it!" Mar replied, before biting into a sweet tart. He wasn't going to give up the box filled with the treats pt 'Ro and Mysh. Mar circled the room slowly, curious with the seven Serephs on the couch. The ground-bound Mysh took advantage of this, running across the room and jumping from a recliner, snagging the box. He and 'Ro quickly stuffed their cheeks before one of Erasure's maids found them.

  "No no no no!" She exclaimed, grabbing the box. "I told you these weren't for you!" Mar casually swooped and retrieved the box. "Then come get them!" The maid chased after him with 'Ro close behind. After awkward smile to the stone faced Erasure, Mysh slowly turned and began to walk away. He stopped when he saw the Serephs. He tilted his head. "Are you here for Rose?" One of the females shook her head, "N-no sweetie. We're just… just…" She broke into silent tears.

  Mysh immediately ran over. "What's wrong!? Are you upset because of the tarts!?" "No , no." She replied through tears. Erasure stood up. "Go on little one. This is no business for you." Erasure tried to push Mysh's back, but the flightless Monster resisted. "No!" Erasure pushed harder. "Yes Mysh! There's a delicate balance here that you can't understand." Mysh pushed back. Erasure fell backwards, Mysh landing on his chest. The tiles where Mysh had been standing were broken and uplifted. Mysh slowly sat up and looked to his feet. "Wow! I didn't think Walter's training would do anything!" Erasure sighed, propping himself up on his elbows. "What is he teaching you now!?" He groaned. Mysh hopped up and hurried back over to the crying Sereph.

  'For starters,' Hunter thought and would later mention to Flake. 'He's the only Pog I've seen that doesn't waddle.' Mysh looked up at the crying Sereph, taking note of the other three females on the brink of tears, only being comforted by the males holding them. Mysh climbed onto the arm of the sofa next to her. "You feel lonely don't you?" He asked quietly.

  At that, she stopped trembling, but tears were still falling down her face as she turned to him. "It's not that bad, being alone!" Mysh continued. "I can't fly like the rest of my family, but I'm not too upset about it, considering I shouldn't be alive." She stopped crying. "W-what? Why would you say something like that?" She asked.

  "My father's a Pog from Yitkin. My mother had triplets. Originally, I was still born." Mysh said simply. "Mysh-!" Flake and Hunter exclaimed. Mysh laughed quietly. "It's okay." He placed a hand on the mark on his belly. "I understand everything but how. I know it has something to do with Arend, and I know he's different far beyond anyone's understanding." She started to cry again. Mysh reached out and held her head. "There's no need to cry. Be happy!" Mysh grinned. "Be happy you're alive and can see the sunrise every morning.

  She picked Mysh up and hugged him. Mysh blushed. "Thank you sweetie. Thank you." She whispered softly. Mysh hugged her back. Rose peeked around the corner with Iode. "You're not getting jealous are you?" Iode asked quietly. Rose shook her head as Mysh sat on the female Sereph's lap. "It's just… that's the first time he's opened up to a stranger like that. It took a week for him to work up the courage to talk to the librarian about books." Iode placed a hand on her shoulder. "Let's just hope he doesn't try hitting on her. I don't think anyone could handle that." Erasure waved them over when he saw them approach.

  The Serephs were fixed on the pair as they sat next to Erasure. Iode taking up two seats with Rose perched on his leg. "Who are they?" One of the Serephs asked. "My parents of course!" Mysh exclaimed. "That's my mother, Rose, and that's my father, Iode!" The Serephs looked amazed at the prospect of a Pog and a Sereph pairing together. "You're half Sereph and half Pog?" Rose nodded, nudging Iode. "And a little bit more than that. He was human and Pendragon Orenth in him as well." Iode nodded. Mysh's ears perked up. "Pendragon?!" Rose nodded again. "Yes Mysh, because of Arend. He did for you what his father did for him, only everyone involved survives."

  Mysh wiggled his feet happily. "I can't wait to tell King!" Everyone chuckled, the Serephs only cracking a smile at Mysh's cheerfulness. Erasure smiled softly to himself as the Serephs began to converse, mostly with Rose, Iode, and especially Mysh. 'There's no doubt in my mind they should stay here. That little one's changing fast.'

  - |-|-| - Raw Skill - |-|-| -

  Panzer and Kyrel had taken on an easy Request to test the waters of their relationship. They were chaperoning a double date between middle schoolers. Part of the reward included paying for Kyrel and Panzer's dinner. With a suggestion from Hunter, the six met at Guild Rush, choosing to sit inside at a booth. Kyrel and Panzer sat at a small couple's table in the middle of the restaurant, close enough to hear their conversations.

  "No you got it all wrong! The blue was next to the red, and the purple the green!" "No way! She had a purple one?" "So dude, you catch the tournament last night?" "Of course I did! You know me!" Panzer and Kyrel rolled their eyes. With the guy sitting on one side, and the girls on the other, the date quickly devolved to a collective hang-out with two adults watching. "So much for an eventful evening." Kyrel sighed. Panzer shrugged. "At least we're getting a meal out of it." "So…" Kyrel stabbed a carrot. "What kind of books do you like?" Panzer shrugged. "I'm a fan of mystery-romances." "That's an odd match up." "Not as odd as a botanist and a Beastmaster-" "-Traveling the world looking for the Emerald Turtle?"

  A smile crept across Panzer's face. "Comics aren't really 'books.'" Kyrel said with a chuckle. "Except St. Zef and the Black Hunt." Panzer replied. Kyrel nodded quickly. "Damn thing's freaking gigantic.""The movie wasn't that bad though." Panzer said. "Considering it's only two hours long." Kyrel added. The waiter refilled their drinks. "What about hobbies?" Kyrel asked. "You can't have just taught newbies since forever."

  "Aside from collecting comic books, I've dabbled here and there in various things. True to my family name, I've got a thing for heavy artillery though." Kyrel laughed. "Korvan stuff?" Panzer shook her head. "No, I meant the stuff that uses lots and lots of gunpowder; the stuff that has enough recoil to knock you on your ass!" Panzer replied passionately. With a half-smile, Kyrel nodded. "I think I'd be totally okay with you unloading a shot or twelve."

  Panzer rolled her eyes. "I don't have that much to jiggle Kyrel. I'd much prefer to see you try to take a single shot." "Hey now! You've seen me use Aero Fìra; I'm not that bad of a shot." "Fine then." She flicked his nose." I want to see you at the shooting range at five sharp tomorrow afternoon. And bring some 'books.'" Kyrel flicked her back with a smile. "It's a date then!"

  [X]

  Corenden set down the final box into his new apartment. Upgrading from a single cramped room to a full living room, small kitchen, a bathroom with a tub, and a bedroom wasn't cheap, but
the money he won on bets would last him a while. Corenden asked Iode to come check things out and work the landlord for a possible price drop. Rusted and leaking pipes, loose shelves and doors in the kitchen, broken tile in the bathroom, and outdated fixtures dropped the price by 50 Ere a month.

  "It's got so much potential!" Berry said proudly. Corenden smiled. "Yeah, but before any of that, we have to be able to stay here long enough to realize it." Berry nudged him. "Don't worry. I know you can do it." She squeezed his arm. "With muscles like that,, finding a partner will be easy!" 'Except that everyone isn't as accepting as Arend.' Corenden thought. "I can ask Kronth about it later. We have to unpack first."

  An hour later, Corenden floated into Kronth's office through the open doors. She was surprised to see him. "Long time no see Corenden. How's Berry?" "She's enjoying the new place we moved into, but I need to firmly establish some income so we can keep it. To do that, I need a partner." Kronth nodded. "I read your notice at the entrance." "It's been a week and I got nothing. Not even a prank call." Corenden replied. "That's why I've come to you directly."

  "Well, it is tournament season. There's a few out there you qualify for." Kronth suggested. "I don't know…" Corenden said. "I don't really have the strength to survive something like that without serious injury." Kronth raised an eyebrow. "Well, don'y you know someone who can help you with that?" Corenden sighed. "I don't want to bother Arend with this. Like you said, it's tournament season." "Then why does he show up every afternoon with all his work done?" Kronth asked.

  Corenden opened his mouth and stopped, shrugging. "I guess I underestimated that team of his." "Make a point not to." Kronth replied. "It's best for all involved. He should be fiddling with things in Shifted Tilt." Corenden gave her a wave as he floated back out. As she had told him, Arend was done with his work and fiddling with the shop's equipment. Corenden surprised him with his face pressed against the window. "You have no idea how strange you look with your face flattened like that." Arend said as he opened the door for Corenden. "You should see me do that with my mouth open."

  Corenden explained his predicament to Arend. Arend thought for only a moment. "How about armor? I can make you something cheap." "I don't know…" "Well, you can't really improve yourself with another weapon. Especially if your concern is about your well being." Arend replied. Corenden nodded. "I can't deny that I'm not really built to be a high-caliber fighter, but I don't want an Exo-Suit or anything like that." "You sure? Your biggest strength is Orenth control." Arend said.

  "Yeah, but I think what you did was really cool. I don't want people to think of me as some Monster whose friend made him a bunch of stuff. At the same time, I don't want to be that Monster who lost an arm or something trying to provide for his family." Corenden replied. Arend cracked his knuckles with a smile. "Then let's get to it already!"

  Arend had taken Corenden's measurements and sketched out a rough shape as Corenden told him what he wanted from the armor. "I like the Sereph's style of armor, but I don't need something so seamless." Corenden said.. "And I have a better method to deal with the fluff." Arend said, swiping at Corenden's shaggy fur. Ignoring him, Corenden continued. "As for the materials, basic steel will suffice. I don't ha want to pay for Armormorite or Adamtinium plates, as it'll take up too much money."

  "What about color? We can make it pretty much any color at this point." Arend asked. "Nothing flashy." Corenden replied. "And I know colors like red or blue will be more expensive due to popularity, so brown or some kind of grey would be fine. Keep it cost efficient." Arend nodded. "I'll have a few pieces done by nine, come by so I can adjust what I need to." Corenden hopped up. "I really appreciate this Arend!" Arend gave a short wave as Corenden left. He made a call to Jacob to fire up the forge; He needed grey-steel in a higher quality grade.

  [X]

  Corenden dropped by at 9:10. He found Arend polishing some of his tool. Arend waved him over. "I've got a helmet and part of a chest plate." Arend presented the light, slightly metallic grey armor. Corenden took the helmet. It was a simple round design that had a protruding face to cover Corenden's muzzle. The round part that would cover his head and part of his chin was a solid round piece; the muzzle piece was welded on and made with numerous plates molded into a single piece. They were attached to a spine made from the round helmet; bent out and reinforced to prevent cleavage. Two large holes were left open for his ears to poke through.

  "It's rather, simple isn't it?" Corenden asked as he slipped it on. The front was snug and fit properly, but the rest of the helmet was too large and fell loosely on his head.. "The 'fancy' stuff comes later." Arend replied, lifting the helmet with a finger until it sat level. "I'll be adding something for your years and nose once I can get it to sit right." Corenden took it off once Arend was done marking it with a wax pencil. Arend brought up the chest plate. "It should feel a little loose. I've still got to add a layer of padding." "It's tight in the middle, but fits the rest rather well." Corenden replied, drawing a finger across his torso jest below his ribs.

  Arend nodded with a brief frown. He marked the chest plate where Corenden had mentioned. "I forgot to compensate for your fur. I guess it's thicker than I thought. I'll start working on it when I'm done with my other work tomorrow. I'll call you if I need something." Corenden let the chest plate fall into Arend's Hand. "So what will all this cost me?" Corenden asked.

  "I don't know yet. It won't be out of your price range, but you will definitely have to make payments for a while." Arend replied. Corenden sighed. Arend poked him. "Cheer up. You came to me for quality. If you wanted something cheap, then you'll have to get an Exo-suit. It's not cheap to create normal armor that can properly protect you." Corenden needed. "Yeah, I know. But since this is meant to make me money, it just seems like a real high risk."

  "I'm not going to spew some advice about risk and return, but this stuff will last far longer than anything else you could get. It'll be worth it, trust me." Clough laughed. "I'll never doubt you Arend. Don't ever worry about that."

  [X]

  Corenden cam in early two days after speaking with Arend to try on the crude form of every piece of armor; from boots to tail, gloves to wings, Arend had prepared enough equipment to cover almost every inch of Corenden's body. With the final measurements, Arend began to work on adding the final details. A few hours after lunch, Corenden was called back in for the final product. Corenden was surprised at just how much it had changed.

  The helmet was no longer a plain dome. It closer mimicked the shape of cloud's head, and a visor was added. It was made with tempered glass instead of slits in a piece of metal. The holes for the ears were now invisible due to two metal ears attached around them, with metal mesh to the front so he could still hear clearly. There was little room for him to swivel his ears, but it wasn't uncomfortable. Raised ridges ran down the back of the helmet, with two running down his jaw line and spraying across his cheeks. A thicker ridge ran down the front of the helmet, around the visor, and in two lines down his muzzle, ending right before the mesh in front of his nose.

  The chest plate wasn't a solid piece of metal anymore. Layered plates of dyed steel absorbed and scattered almost any impact at any angle. The plates were attached to a heavy leather inner padding that only breathed through the occasional gap. Ridges that matched the helmet were arranged on his chest to direct attacks away from his body or farther down his torso. The backside had a matching pattern. The boots were crafted in a smaller fashion, but built so that his feet could still have a full range of motion, down to the wiggle of one of his toes. The wing guards were built to only protect the bone frame for his wings, leaving the webbing unprotected. Arend' justification was that webbing would be easy to grow back, but a severed wing wouldn't.

  The most remarkable feature of the armor was a narrow band of white dyed steel that winded around each of the pieces. The gloves lacked it completely from his wrist to his fingers. They were the most expensive to craft out of everything because the pads for Corenden
's palms were covered in Mithril mesh that allowed him to freely use his Orenth. Corenden's adopted sword had been sharpened and fitted with a hilt meant to better accommodate his small hands.

  "How much will this cost me?" Corenden asked, waddling awkwardly in the armor. "25,000 Ere." Corenden face planted. Grumbling, he stood up. "That's going to take a while to pay off…" "We garnish a percentage of your tournament and Request money." Arend said. "Less than 10% from anything and what's left can be used to further pay if off if you want. This way you won't have to physically pay us, and we can wire it to our costs across the region. It's really convenient for everyone really." Arend explained. Corenden nodded slowly. "What about interest?" Arend laughed. "There's no interest on a favor.. Like I said, we aren't charging for labor. So when's the tournament anyway?"

  "In an hour." Corenden replied. "What." Corenden laughed. "I'm joking Arend. It's in three days. I have until then to get used to this, and I might as well do something about that cost as well." Corenden said as he marched for the door. Arend shook his head with a smile. "Good luck with that. I'll show up if I can." Corenden gave him a wave before awkwardly flying off.

  [X]

  Corenden shuffled nervously as he waited with the other participants. The tournament was a qualifier for a larger event held before the Guild Tournaments. With the sheer number of participants signed up, the tournament would last a long time. Sixteen participants in both Rank levels would move on after lasing four rounds. Corenden was the last in the overall ranking, the #256 pin stinging his pride. He as one of the three Monsters participating; the twitchy powder-blue Pog and the sleeping Wullf -a more 'tame' cousin species to Oragè's- were the only contestants standing near Corenden. #255 and #230 respectively.