by Jez Cajiao
Jana was a slender female with a collection of long blades in place of the spears-and-daggers combination that Bane and Flux both favored. Jana nodded to me, then Ame, and finally to Cai and Barrett, before stepping off to one side.
“Uh, you’ve got bodyguards? And where’s Bane?” asked Barrett quietly, only to jump when Bane spoke from behind him.
“It was decided that Jax required protection; as I already owed him my life, I volunteered.” The big Mer said quietly, and I grinned at Barrett, enjoying seeing him jerk in shock.
“Good at that, isn’t he?” I grinned, as Ame continued. If she’d had eyes, I had no doubt they would have held a coolly reproving look.
“Next are Hel and Katerin, both hunters and warriors as well. Byat is a carver of weapons and armor. Lastly, we have brought Amoth and her mate, Esse, Amoth is a farmer, most skilled at establishing new populations of fish, and Esse is an herbalist. We are all the most skilled in our trades in the waters of our homes, it is true, but we will adapt.” Ame said firmly.
I inspected the group, finding that they were clearly separated into two categories, younger and older, many in the older group having obvious infirmities or injuries. The warriors all had injuries, except for the three I’d originally fought with. Hel was missing both arms on the right side, Jana stood with an obviously deformed left foot, and Katerin was twisted and hunched over, her breaths coming in quiet gasps.
“Oracle, are you ready?” I asked, and she nodded, a brilliant smile on her face, growing to her full humanoid size. She reached out and took my hand. Drawing a deep breath in, she spoke to Ame and the others.
“We’re going to heal you all one by one over the next few days, but as you saw earlier, it takes a lot of mana, and we may have to do it several times to heal you as far as we can. Who is the most injured among you?” The group looked at each other and then parted for Amoth, who stood in the middle of the group, leaning heavily on her mate, Esse. She limped forward slowly, her skin a pale grey with dark lines marking her veins. Her tendrils hung mostly limp and flaccid, her steps faltering and obviously pained.
I instantly felt guilty, thinking I should have gone to them as soon as my mana regenerated and healed another then, but I also knew that it was important to do this right. I needed them to accept that I was in charge and associate the Tower with their new lives. As much as I hated playing games like this, I knew it was necessary.
Just like this was, as I held Oracle’s hand in my own, feeling her cool fingers gripping mine as she cast ‘Battlefield Triage’ over Amoth. The expanding rings of healing magic slowly flooded the elderly Mer’s body, scanning and finding the most damaged areas, gradually healing them, purging infection from her, and repairing and replacing cells that had begun to die in ever-increasing numbers.
When we were finally done, Amoth slumped to the floor, only to be caught by her mate. Oracle and I almost collapsed as well, the mana drain and resulting migraine of using our entire pool in one go leaving us shaken and weak. Oracle didn’t need to breathe, I knew this, but I also felt her drawing in mana as fast as she could, while I pulled in shuddering gasps of air. I felt a hand take my right one, my arm being pulled across shoulders that helped to steady me, and I grinned weakly at Barrett.
“Thanks, man,” I whispered, allowing myself a few seconds to recover before straightening and stepping away. He stepped back as well, but I saw the way that he, Cai, and Bane were all close by, ready to step in and help if I needed them. I also saw the way the other people on the floor had appeared as well; they stood in a loose ring around us, ready to help and step in if I needed them.
I looked over at Esse, holding Amoth in his arms. Amoth’s tendrils waved freely, if clearly in exhaustion. I saw the way the Mer all clustered around, helping each other to stand. They all reached out and stroked their companion, celebrating in her newfound health. Not one of them appeared jealous of the gift; all simply wished to share their happiness.
I looked from face to face, reading body language as best I could. Glancing from sentient being to sentient being, I could see no boundaries, no distrust between any of them.
My eyes traveled from Cai, a humanoid panther, to Flux, a Mer, a creature clearly adapted to live in the water, to the dwarves, humans, elves, and other species who stood around.
There was even the goddamn pacifist giant fucking ewok-looking dude, whose species I couldn’t even remember... They were all obvious in their pleasure, seeing one of their people being healed. Seeing more coming to join our community.
I looked about, and I saw our family growing.
Chapter Thirteen
I got Ame’s attention and drew her aside, asking Cai and Barrett to get the rest of the people settled. I emphasized that the Mer would all need unfettered access to water, and I made a mental note to ensure that their quarters were figured out as a matter of urgency. They’d need the water to rest, after all.
“That was a good thing done there, Lord Jax,” Ame said to me quietly. When she continued, there was no heat in her voice, even if she did rebuke me, “Despite you waiting until others could see it all…” I paused before answering her, knowing I was being judged on every word.
“I waited until my mana refilled, but then decided it was better to wait until everyone was here safely, and we could do this properly. I wanted your people to understand that they are part of this community. We will gather everyone together in a few minutes, once the ships have docked, and I’ll take the Oath from you all. Once that’s done, you, Cai, and I will be going to the Hall of Memories."
"I’ll grant you one Spellbook, and one Skillbook. One could be healing-based, but I’m going to give you the choice now, and some time to think about it. If you really want to learn healing, I’d be over the friggin’ moon to give you some healing texts and spells, but I also need a Runecrafter, Ame. Hell, I need everything. Flux explained some of what a Runecrafter can do, and I truly do need that. My people need that badly. I’ll give you access to a healing spell, and you can use that to learn, the same way I did, and I’ll give you a Skillbook for Runecrafting, one that can increase your level of ability hugely. Or…I’ll give you a single Memory Crystal, one from a Master Enchanter. I know that if you don’t have the skill, you can lose a lot of the knowledge, but from what I can see, Enchanting and Runecrafting are two sides of the same coin. I think your knowledge will fill in most of the gaps there, and you’d keep more than you’d lose. Take some time to think about it.”
There was a long pause as she considered my words.
“The spell you used on me, and my companions; you learned this from a Spellbook?” she asked me finally, and I shook my head.
“No, Oracle and I created the spell together, using knowledge of my past and Oracle’s memories of the ancient world, along with a basic healing spell. If you are to learn to help as a healer, you’ll have to experiment and teach yourself as much as you will have to teach others to discover Runecraft. I’ll need you to train others up as you promised, and you’ll need to explain your Runecrafting skill to me as well.”
Ame was silent for a long time, and just as I was about to leave her to her thoughts, she spoke again.
“I have decided, Lord Jax. I will take the spell and Skillbooks; I will seek ways to augment my own knowledge with the knowledge of healing magics. I will become the healer you and our people need. I will heal any that need me, but I will also teach others my skill. The two skills will complement each other, do not fear. Runecrafting is the art of making a spell into a solid form. A Runecrafter is rare; I know of no others in the land now, although my kind rarely have magical skills. A properly created Rune can be powered and repowered over and over. If you could teach me your healing spell, and I was to create a fully functional Rune for it, any with mana could power it. The possibilities of Runecrafting are matched only by your wits and ability. My manapool is just over four hundred, and I regularly used the entire pool. I say this, not to show off, but so that you understand that I
recognize the signs of mana exhaustion in you. You will rest after this is done, yes?”
“What spells do you know? To make them into Runes, I mean, you have to know them as spells, right?” I asked excitedly, nodding to acknowledge her query.
“No,” she said flatly, shaking her head. “I was never taught specific spells; I learned to Runecraft from my grandmother, as she learned from her mother. I have experimented with my own Runes; some worked, some nearly killed me, but I have a greater knowledge of Runes than even my grandmother’s notes speak of,” Ame said proudly.
“Okay, soooo, how many?” I asked, and she faltered slightly.
“Eleven.” She sounded unsure whether it was a great achievement or not.
“I created three of my own; I also managed to make eight of my grandmother’s creations work.”
“Okay. So, these…eleven. What can you do with them?” I asked, trying to keep my face straight. I’d hoped for more, but…
“The Runes are used in groupings, depending on their use, and can form many different spells. I am versed in ‘Add’, ‘Grow’, ‘Heat’, ‘Mana’, ‘Shield’, ‘Shock’, ‘Slow’, ‘Strength’, ‘Track’, ‘Trigger’, and ‘Weaken’. I have created Runes that create shock or heat damage when weapons harm their targets, increase the strength of the wielder of a particular Rune, and many more.”
“Magical symbols, basically, then?” I whispered, recognizing the concept. “What about size? Does it matter?” I asked, my brain roaring ahead.
“Well, of course! It takes more mana, and the Runes need to be the appropriate size for the intended usage, why?” Ame asked.
“But that’s it? What about the Runes themselves; do they need to be made of anything in particular?” I demanded, moving on quickly, and ignoring her question.
“It depends on the use. Different Runes require different reagents, or they use much more mana. Runes can also burn out or fracture.”
“What about healing; would healing damage done to a Rune remove it, or repair it?” I muttered, asking myself more than Ame.
“Healing? You can’t heal a Rune. It’s not alive!” she snorted, then gripped my chin, turning my head to make me face her and pay attention. “You’ve thought of something, haven’t you?”
“Oh, yeah; I’m thinking of a new way to use your Runes and wondering if trying it will kill me.”
“Explain!” she snapped, and I pulled my head free of her hand, shaking it in negation.
“No; at least, not yet. I want to think about this, and we can experiment to see if it works before I let anyone else know about it. You will keep this discussion to yourself, Ame; understand?” I said, glaring at her.
“I…very well. I will keep this between us, but if you want my help to use my life’s work, you’ll explain this to me, and soon!” she said firmly, receiving an affirmative nod in reply.
“I’m fine with that. Runes don’t need a spoken trigger, right? Just mana?” When I got a confused nod in response, I grinned. “Excellent!” I sought Oracle and found her standing a few feet away. She was watching me, still full sized. Gliding over to me, she exchanged parting pleasantries with Ame and put her arm through mine casually, guiding us out to the balcony and leading me to the furthest side from everyone, where we could speak freely. Just as she opened her mouth, she narrowed her eyes and pointed to one side, speaking as I followed her finger.
“Get your ass back inside, Bane. This is private time, understand?” Bane straightened up and strolled away quickly with an apologetic nod of his head. “We need to talk, but you need to sort that out as well. I agree you need a bodyguard, but they need to know when we need privacy.” I grinned at her, and before I realized it, I’d leaned in and kissed her, feeling her soft lips against mine. There was a second of hesitation before Oracle responded, having been clearly caught off guard.
She wrapped her arms around me, returning my kiss with a fervor that left me breathless when we finally broke away. I grinned as I gazed into her eyes, and then let my vision travel downward, well aware that she didn’t need to breathe, so the hurried rise and fall of her spectacular chest was done for one reason, and one reason alone.
To draw my eyes and show me what she wanted me to look at.
I coughed, looking back up at her eyes after a minute of admiring, a minute in which her top slowly but noticeably shrank in size, her exposed cleavage deepening, until I’d been forced to look away. My brain, as ever, was short circuited by the combination of her beauty, her kiss, and her very willing demeanor, so it took a frantic wracking of my brain to remember where I was and what we were doing.
“Soooo, I take it that wasn’t why you wanted the privacy?” I asked and got a grin in return.
“Well, it wasn’t, but now?” she replied, and I laughed in spite of myself.
“Okay, come on then; what did you want to talk about? I heard some of what you were saying, and I can sense your surface thoughts, Jax…” she said, growing suddenly serious.
“How many of my thoughts?” I asked, thinking back to what had just been in my mind while I enjoyed the view. My question drew a throaty laugh from Oracle, and she patted my cheek.
“Oh, I felt those thoughts, and the mental images…” She looked down first at her cleavage and then at the floor, before eyeing where ‘Mr. Happy’ was barely constrained by my pants. “That I can definitely, and very happily, do… but that’s not why I brought you out here.” She shook her head, becoming all serious as I tried to bring my mind back under control.
“No, Jax… I meant the other thoughts. I don’t know if they’re possible, but there’s only one way you can be sure. You’ll need to speak to Jenae, and for the love of all that is light, don’t experiment with it until we know.” I grinned at her and she smiled back, leaning in for another kiss. We stood there blissfully, enjoying the feeling of each other’s bodies pressed together, the sweet heat of our melding lips, the scent of her filling my mind, until Seneschal spoke, interrupting the moment.
“I hate to interrupt, Jax, but you need to either behave yourself, or accept that Oren and his crew will see far more of Oracle’s form than you seemed to want her showing. He’s coming in to land now.”
I blinked, pulling back from the kiss, and straightened up, removing my hands from Oracle, and feeling her hands disengage from me, regretfully. I tried to straighten myself, while her clothing blurred slightly, and she suddenly appeared pristine again.
“That is so not fair,” I whispered to her, turning away to rearrange myself out of anyone’s sight.
“You started it,” she whispered back. “Besides, we can always continue this later…alone.”
She shrank back down and flew out to buzz around the warship as it approached the huge hanger that was being created for it.
“That sounds good to me.” I muttered to myself. Conscious she couldn’t hear me, but also conscious of the line I was crossing. Going from teasing and her willing offer, to actually taking her up on it, was a very big, irrevocable step. Once it was taken, well… I’d had issues with it, mainly because I knew that, with the bond we had, it was for life, and if things changed between us, it could be an exceedingly long problem.
The other side of it, though, was… it could be amazing. Not just the sex, which I had to admit, even if only to myself, I desperately wanted. The companionship was also great; since I’d come here, I’d built relationships like I’d never imagined in my old life. I wanted Oracle, and I knew she wanted me. The last issue was the bond. I still needed time to get used to the fact that Oracle was permanently bonded to me. She had to obey me, and that left a bad taste in my mouth. I didn’t believe that she acted the way she did because she felt she had to, but I had to know.
I’d ask her outright later, and then, if it truly was something that she wanted, and she actually had grown to understand what she was asking for, as I suspected she had, then hell yes. I’d try to break her with it. “They don’t call me ‘Tripod’ for nothing,” I muttered to myse
lf, finding I still had a smile plastered across my face as I watched Oren slowly glide the ship inside the Tower.
The mast had lowered somehow, and the ship fit in through the widened opening with a few meters to spare on either side. I was certain Jory was sweating like crazy, maneuvering such a huge thing into such a small gap. Then I grinned again at the obvious innuendo, and the fact my brain was still wired up that way from the kisses. I laughed and waved to Oracle as she led the way for Decin’s ship, ‘Freedom’.
I watched as she gestured imperiously for him to slow, then stop, hovering in place as Oren and Jory turned the ‘Agamemnon’s Pride’ inside the cavernous bay. They slowly backed her into the central berth that had been laid out for her. There wasn’t a full scaffolding in place for the ship: hell, there was barely an outline to reference the various berths, but still, Jory managed it, landing with a quiet thump when the engines powered down.
As soon as Oracle saw that the warship was in and settled, she gestured to Decin, and began to slowly lead him inside as well.
His ship was considerably smaller, and slid in easily, twisting around and settling in the second berth with a light touch.
I walked inside, a smile on my face as I admired the two beautiful ships. They were a little battered, a little beaten, but they’d soon be a lot more than they had been.
Especially with our very own Runecrafter to help.
I reached out to all three wisps at once, half expecting an argument over the Servitor to still be raging between Heph and Seneschal.
“You all there?”
“I am,” Seneschal’s smooth, refined voice confirmed.
“Aye, laddie, I be here.” Heph sounded gruff as ever, but at least he wasn’t yelling.
“Of course!” Oracle chimed in cheerfully.
“Great; it’s time to get started on the next stage of the plan. I’ve had plenty of time to think over the last few days, as well as asking questions of our people. I’m going to take Ame, Oracle, and Cai to the Hall of Memories as soon as we’ve completed the swearing in, and then I want to get people moving. I’d like you all in the Command Center in a couple of hours; we’ve got an operation to plan, repairs to make, and a fight to win.