by James Patton
Boh
Chapter 20
The Library
A book holds magical powers, but their influence is not easily measured. After a good book, I tilted against many windmills, but I underestimated my windmills.
-from Boh, Audio Roll 0376
Now that she was alone and the darkness was gone, she saw that all this took place inside of a library. Shelves covered every wall, and every shelf was packed full of books. A table near the middle of the room had food and water waiting. Off to the side was a sitting area and couches haphazardly circled a large fireplace.
The encounter with the queen may not have been part of her Trial, but she noticed one additional message.
Trial Bonus: Defy a Matriarch
- Willpower +2, Willpower is now [Still Assessing].
After clearing away the message, she was drawn to the fire. She lost track of time while she stared into its depths. The amount of trauma she suffered for the last few hours stuck with her, and she could not shake it off. The part that bothered her most was that she forgot this was a game and she could have logged off at any time. It bothered her how readily she accepted this as her reality.
Despite the fire’s heat, she felt chilled. However, feeling sorry for herself was not going to achieve her ultimate goal, and so she went to the shelves and started pulling books down.
Boh knew she was compartmentalizing, but she would not let the incident cripple her. There were better ways to focus her energy, and she put it all into finding information.
Hours slipped by while she read, cried, snacked, and napped in no particular order. The food was surprisingly good and never depleted, so she kept eating.
The pile of books on the table grew by the hour.
She found paper and took down notes as she went, looking for anything that would help her against the Dark Queen. The first thing she learned was that the bond was undetectable unless a sentient being had a Primary ability that could sense it, or if she was in the presence of a god. Both of which were rare.
Her real breakthrough came when she realized the dragon known as Night Terror was also the Dark Queen, and her name was Vasia. It was the Shroud that gave it away.
The rest of the notes consisted of anything that would help her kill Vasia. She meant every word, next time she saw the Dark Queen, one of them would die and she did not intend on it being her.
She had no idea how long she was at it, but she was sitting at one of the tables with books piled up around her. The only thing that could have made it better was some music. Engrossed in a massive tome, she did not hear anyone entering the room.
“You are taking quite a long time.” A deep, gravelly voice said from behind her. It was not a booming voice but had the soothing sound of the sea and the firmness of a mountain.
She held in her yelp, but could not stop herself from flinching like a wounded animal. She almost knocked over her books and chair with her knee-jerk reaction and prepared to flee.
Midnight finally made his appearance. His head was tilted and looking at her as if seeing something in her that he should not. She was ashamed and afraid he could see she was damaged, tainted by the encounter with Vasia.
“Relax child. I mean you no harm.” He said softly but lowered his body and head to look at her more closely. It helped set her at ease seeing him in a prone position, and her tensed muscles relaxed.
Damn her! Damn that evil evil bitch for tainting something good. She growled internally, hating that her fight or flight instinct had gone for flight and not fight.
“Are all females this way? I admit I’ve never seen a female Champion, but I never believed your sex to be weak. Am I wrong in this assumption?”
“I am not weak.” Anger rose up in her.
“Good. Now that we got that out of the way.” He chuckled, and she recognized he was trying to get their easy banter back.
“Is my trial over?”
“No. However, no one has ever taken this long in the library either. I came to see if everything was ok.”
She felt a twinge of irritation. She wanted to yell at him, to berate him, to tear his damned head off. Where was he when she needed him?
Breathing heavily through her flared nostrils, she tried to gain control of her temper. This dragon did nothing to her and did not deserve her wrath. Not to mention she would not make herself dependent on anyone again.
Vasia stole something from her, and she intended to get it back. The old her would have told Midnight the truth and begged for his help in righting this wrong. The new her was too proud and felt shame over the event. She would take care of her own problems.
The dragon’s brow squeezed together as it kept watching her, and when he shifted, she moved involuntarily. Finally, she saw his face relax, but the way his body tensed indicated he was not done trying to figure out what was wrong.
“The History of the Talons is not a light read, have you gained any knowledge from it?” Midnight asked and pointed towards the tome in front of her. She was surprised at the change of topic.
“It is confusing, but I get the gist. If I am not mistaken, a Talon essentially a kingdom. Each Talon is protected by talon, an old relic of great power. Monarchs rule over these lands, usually by a dragon and two-leg together.”
“The relic belongs to the World Wyrm, and the last time he was woken there was a catastrophic event called the Sundering. It is why we have the World Wyrm’s Talons, because they protected us from the fallout of that time.”
“The Usurper War was fought over Seventh Talon, but this book does not mention what happened to that Talon. It is strangely silent on the subject. I assume the actual the city was destroyed?”
“This is your Trial, and no one can force this information out of you. But I will ask, can you keep a secret?”
“I can.”
“It is dangerous to know what I’m about to say, so remember your promise. Usurper Wars was more than just over Seventh Talon, it was over another Talon, the Eighth Talon that Osric was rumored to have found. During the Sundering it was believed that all sixteen talons were taken from the World Wyrm, freely given to protect those it deemed worthy. Of those sixteen only seven were known about, the other nine remained a mystery. Until it was discovered that the Dragon Spire also contained a Talon. This was the Eighth Talon and guarded closely by Osric.”
“And Atagon had him killed thinking the Talon was still in the tower, so he had to choose which to save, the Tower or the Seventh Talon.”
“You really do have a sharp mind, and yes. They dumped his body into a deep abyss and those that did it disappeared shortly after. No one knows where Osric died, but it is suspected he had the Talon on him when he was killed. Our current King of the Spire took the throne but failed his main objective.”
“I thought the King of the Spire was supposed to stay out of conflicts.”
“That is a new rule. The Talons all decided that the King would have a standing army at his beck and call, but his primary role is to ensure the World Wyrm remains asleep. He watches over the Talons and makes sure they are keeping their wars civil. Many people call him the Usurper King, which he accepts, but if you hear anyone call him Betrayer, run away. They are Osric fanatics and associating with them never ends well.”
“The Usurper War mentions alliances with Drakes and Wyverns, but during my testing they said the dragons do not honor the old pacts, what does that mean?”
“Ahh. Young dragons are impetuous and prone to do things without much thought. They live to eat and fight and not much else. We had alliances once, but we also fought a common enemy then.”
“What enemy?”
“Osric. He despised two-legs. The current King calls him the King No More, and they were once friends. Osric was brought down by his inner circle.”
She gathered as much from her confrontation with the Vasia and Malinite, and she pieced enough together to know that Vasia was Osric’s mate.
“I was told to tell you that Maisa, a pixie, is
at Osprey Harbor. Richard sends his regards and says he could use some cigars.”
“How did a pixie get to the island?” Midnight questioned, but his head lifted up, and he was alert now.
“Richard said he would find out, but it was not significant. She was working with the Mayor.” She said refusing to let her assault shape her opinion of all dragons. She walked over to the massive dragon and wondered if he was an Elder because he was much larger than the dragon she claimed.
“Are you part of my testing?”
“I play a role, but I am more of a conduit. The gods will use me to assess you, and I help you find your place in our world.”
“How many times have you mentored someone?”
“Honestly? Not as much as you would think, Champions are rare. I do not understand how you get here, and it is not my place to ask. Your kind just shows up, and as emissaries for the king, we are asked to assist when you do. It is not for me to say how that works.”
“Thank you.”
“Before I forget, we can ditch those starter clothes. Here is your Dragonrider starting gear.” Midnight told her and placed a bag on the ground before her. It was an old style messenger bag, but inside was a set of goggles, a blue scarf, riding leathers, a bomber jacket, and military boots.
The scarf had weighted ends, and the material felt like the fabric used in sports clothes. Turning away from the dragon, she took off the threadbare shirt and tossed it away while she buttoned up the white shirt.
“Just touch it and think about equipping it. Or continue stripping. I’m not into your kind, but a show is a show.”
“Pig.” She snapped and then did it his way. The leather pants appeared on her, and the threadbare pants fell to the ground at her feet. She did it with socks, boots, jacket, and goggles.
Laced up military boots appeared on her feet, but they had some armoring to them. Crisscrossed belts replaced the ones she already had. They spread across her hips, and there were now two empty holsters. The belts were slotted to hold spare bullets and ammunition clips. The strap across her chest connected to a messenger bag against her side, and she shifted it back behind her. She was starting to feel like a bad ass.
Her outfit made her look like a World War I fighter pilot. The ones that flew in the biplanes, like Von Richthofen, the Red Baron.
The dragon snorted, and a dark mist rushed out of his nostrils.
“What?”
“I can tell you like the look, but it looks ridiculous. How are those pants even comfortable?”
“Are you saying I got a big ass?” She asked with an arched brow, which freaked her out because she stole that look from her avatar.
“I’m not a foolish two-leg, no way am I answering that.”
“Ass.”
“Just don’t want to get punched by an angry elf?” Midnight shook his massive head at her amused.
“Call me ‘Angry Elf’ one more time.”
The dragon’s eyebrow raised slowly, and she could swear it was smiling. Before he could say anything, the book in her hand closed with a loud clap, and she raised her eyes to him. She pointed a finger at him, daring him to speak. In retrospect, her five-foot-ten-inch height standing with finger pointing and admonishing a dragon that was way bigger than her would have been a funny sight.
“You got all kinds of spit and fire in you today. Truce? Afterall, once you choose a book, you will get to ride your first dragon. No rush.”
“Fine, but any more backtalk and I’ll kick your ass.” She still stood her ground and stared the dragon down.
“If it is any consolation, I think you would make a great Dragonrider.” He told her placatingly. “You have the sass for it. Now about that book…?” Midnight asked, and laid his head down all the way to the floor. His eyes slowly closed. “Take your time and make sure you choose well. Just wake me when you have it.” The voice faded away softly as the dragon started to snore softly.
Boh
Chapter 21
Last Remnant
I was not sure what time I woke up, but my father was up and talking to people in the other room. That was unusual considering he rarely let people come over.
The door was open, so I walked in an found them installing a Virtual Reality pod in our living room. He smiled at me and told me I was already signed up. I read the panel over his shoulder. It read: Hello, MsBoheme13.
-from Boh’s Journal, November 21st, N138
“Must be nice to just fall asleep on the spot like that.” She muttered and continued to read more books.
There were so many books, papers, and tomes that she could spend four lifetimes here and never make a decision. The shelves were tall, and she had to climb some of them to reach the top books. While doing so, she felt the shelf sway, and before she could hop down, it shifted and threw her off.
She landed awkwardly amidst the dust floating down around her as several books fell off the shelf. She looked up to see she broke anything and the spine of a book collided with her face. She rubbed absently at her face as she bent to pick up the book.
It was thick and small compared to some of the books, but she hesitated to call it a tome. The leather cover and binding was of better quality than most of the books. She turned the spine towards her and read Elemental Shielding Mastery.
Flipping through a few pages, she realized there was a lot of information on Affinities too. She picked up the other books and put them back on the shelf barely glancing at them. Then sat at the table and hours later she perused her notes.
Elemental Shielding Notes:
- Elemental Shields are an Innate Skill and a form of protection for all sentient beings.
- The shield will block elemental damage, but a portion of the damage transfers to your Feedback.
- The blocking of damage is considered a casting, and your shield will be visible temporarily.
- Understanding Elemental Shields requires the understanding of Affinities.
Elemental Affinity Notes:
- An Affinity is your compatibility with an element and will raise and lower depending on actions you take.
- Reaching 100% Affinity in an element will reduce opposing elements permanently.
- Light and Dark are opposing elements. Water, Air, Fire, and Earth are all opposing elements. Choose your Affinities well.
- Your Affinity affects your spells and most importantly your Shield.
- If a Fireball spell is cast at you, and your Fire Affinity is 65%, then 65% of the spell damage will be absorbed by your shield, and the remaining 35% will strike your Feedback.
The percentages made sense now, and the balance of her Affinities felt strong. That balance was mostly due to her race. The book explained a lot more, but what she found interesting was the number of spell modifications for her Elemental Shielding.
It was by far the most versatile spell in her arsenal, and the things this writer said he could do were nothing short of amazing. She hoped she could learn half of these abilities in time, and he mentioned how to gain them.
She flipped through the book some more until she landed on how to change her Affinities.
Affinities can change through contact with the chosen element. Swimming in lava might raise your Fire Affinity faster than casting spells, but it will also decrease your Water Affinity. And— you might die.
Spells are the safest way to increase Affinities, because, unless explicitly stated, they only raise your Affinity. Do not believe the nonsense about element stones, and wearing them on your body. Stones belong to the Earth element. There is no easy solution to balancing Affinities because it takes time and work.
The entire book would take days to read through, but she caught a few notices and decided to add those to her notes too. The main advice was that the Shield did not block non-elemental damage.
“Tough choice.” Midnight said after seeing her with the history book and the book on shielding in her hand. Her knuckles went white as she clenched the books and pinched her lips together to con
tain her startled yelp.
“How does the choosing work? Other than the relic, I have not seen anything that explains how these Trials are working.”
“That is how it is supposed to work. People make choices based on things that appeal to them, and then the gods weigh in.”
“You mean God? The white dragon?”
“Interesting.” Midnight’s eyes narrowed and remained hooded as he watched her. “The white dragon’s name is called Rune, be sure to address him accordingly. Not because he cares, but because dragons do. But yes, Rune is one of those that weigh in, but his duties prevent him from interfering too much. It is usually the lesser deities that resolve your Trial.”
“Then I choose both of these books,” she said grinning.
“You must choose one,” Midnight said.
“Where does it say that?” She asked. “You just said I make choices that appeal to me, and then the gods weigh in.”
“Well I am not sure there is a hard rule saying you cannot take two, but no one has ever done so.” Midnight huffed when he realized she was not budging, but part of her knew he was just doing it for show. The dragon flew out one of the entry portals but shouted over his shoulder. “Why do you have to be so stubborn? Stay here! I will be back.”
After he left, she spotted a device between two bookshelves and walked over to it. Next to it was a box of cylinders, she picked one up, and a message appeared.
You discovered Ursurper War History, Audio Roll 3122.
Interesting. The audio roll clipped into the slot on the device next to it, but she saw no way to turn it on. She was checking all the sides when Midnight returned.
“That glass orb on top. Put your hand on it and pretend like you are drawing energy for a spell.”
The orb was cold under her hand, and she thought about pulling up energy as she did with Sparkles. The cylinder started turning, and a tinny sound sputtered out.
“The fall of Osric went too smoothly in my opinion. The fiercest dragon in our history did not even fight back while his allies and best friend destroyed him? Something is not right, and why is Vasia still alive even though her children were killed without mercy? I do not believe Atagon personally delivered the final blow. I do believe that Osric laughed until is final breath.