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(Vol 5) Chapter 35: Riverboat Handoff
🕑 Added 2024-06-02 15:14:53 +0000 UTCYou have gained 1 exp in [Magineer] through spell acquisition thanks to [Comprehension: Accelerator].
Nice! Hopefully I can snag a few more this way, too.
Designing the spell took up most of the available time, though she certainly had other things that needed doing. Hopefully she’d get lucky once Ash was safe, and run out of bonfires to put out for a while. She could reeeeally use that.
Gotta remember to future-vision-up Orsy sometime soon, too. Hmm, will he get a super-buff or a new advanced class? It’s gonna be lit lit lit, whatever the case!
Sammy popped back over to the birds once they were close — in fact, their great height made for quite a sight below in the night, even with their night vision not quite as good as hers. A gleaming wide river wound through fertile, farm-rich plains, with frequent villages and towers on the riverbanks. The wilderness was very intermittent in these parts.
As she understood it, the lands were quite a breadbasket for the Borderlands in general, or so it had been for at least a thousand years. Agatha had pointed out a slow withering of the old system the Dominion used to keep control, and most places were quite capable of independence if necessary.
Once upon a time, certain key crops were illegal to grow past the ‘dividing line’ of the territories. It had eventually become irrelevant due to adaptation and engineering over generations, and then inevitably phased out. Borderland crops in many cases became delicacies imported north to great fame and profit.
Another mechanism by which their power has faded and their control weakened. By all appearances, they’ll never be able to take Caneboro permanently.
At a well-scouted, planned stretch of wilderness, the birds swooped down to the riverboat, where they were received and given treats by the captain to keep up appearances — just in case. They were taken below decks into the dark and then into a warded little alcove of the small cargo hold. Meanwhile, Sammy pinged the super-relaxed Ash within the maze realm to get ready to leave finally.
Ironically, she seems entirely adjusted all of a sudden. Eh. Being out will be better for her adjustment regardless.
In the gloom of a cramped and isolated room meant for valuables to be locked behind, a young woman in soft leathers waited patiently sitting on a box — a long-time Follower and Devout named Audrey. Behind a closed door, Porthos shapeshifted back to human form and produced his mirror.
Sammy took control of it to float it in the air, as Porthos changed back to a bird and flew to the captain’s shoulders, who then departed after a little bow to the mirror. Nearby Audrey was another mirror, which Sammy floated up to face her and display her full image.
Audrey stood quickly, eyes widening in wonder at seeing the goddess directly. She planted her feet, raised her chin, and said proudly, “I am ready to do my part — and with pleasure, Your Majesty! It is an honor to serve you in whatever capacity you require.”
Sammy smiled at her. “That’s great to hear. It’s going to be a little odd, but hopefully pleasant as well. First, let me go ahead and officially, uh…”
She utilized [Mirror Other] through the mirror, to copy Audrey’s appearance to herself as accurately as possible. In a flash, she became the young woman’s twin.
Audrey gasped and then tittered slightly. “It’s just like a mirror now, but instead of here, I’m sitting on a th-...uh, forgive me, Your Majesty.”
Sammy smiled and waved her hand dismissively. “It’s fine, Audrey. Illusions are funny like that. And you can wish for a throne but I wouldn’t recommend this one. It’s a ton of work to sit in it. But anyhow… are you ready to hop in?”
Standing straight and steeling herself once more, Audrey nodded firmly. “Maze me at your pleasure, Goddess!”
“Alright. On the count of three… one… two… threeeee!” Sammy Mazed Audrey on the final drawn-out syllable, and decided on a whim to stick her on a throne in a grand hall, decked out as fine as any queen. She wore a purple dress, robe, and was decked in bejeweled regalia, with a sizable, golden crown.
While the shock was still registering, a herald blew a little trumpet in the hall and stomped his foot. “All hail Queen Audrey!”
A horde of ‘subjects’ within the hall stomped their feet in concert and called, “All hail Queen Audrey!”
Audrey’s hands were clasped over her mouth, eyes wide with shock. She whispered, “Your Majesty… you didn’t have to-... this is…” She trailed off, shaking her head, as she began looking down at herself more carefully to see the fine details.
Sammy made a voice from above whisper back, “It’s alright, girl! What’s a little dream exploration everyone’s had at one time or another? Live it for a while at the most idyllic! Now, what do you want to do the most?”
Audrey seemed to contemplate this, then hesitate. Finally, she whispered dreamily, “Clothes. I-I’d like to try on… all sorts of fancy clothes… but that’s probably too silly and complicated, so-”
Two well-dressed women approached the throne and curtsied. One smiled and said prettily, “Would Her Majesty like to abscond to private and begin trying on dresses for the coming ball?”
Audrey’s eyes widened even more, and unable to get words out, she just nodded rapidly.
Smirking to herself, Sammy weaved some hours of enjoyment to play out for the young lady, finding it none-too-difficult to relate and generate things, likely fine to leave to her subconscious for the most part. Moreover, her ability to build such things rapidly was within the jurisdiction of [Pneumamancer], even if it wasn’t directly tied to the ability.
When she thought about it, that was perhaps the same reason she’d convinced Beltrand all was ‘real’ for hours on end even while unable to dedicate time to it.
After this, she switched over to Ash’s realm, where she was sitting on the cabin’s back porch deck, finishing up putting on her boots with a towel on her head.
“Oh, you dunked your head?” Sammy asked when she saw the towel.
“Hmm?” Ash finished up typing laces as she looked up at the sky quizzically. “Oh. Yes, I couldn’t resist. I made use of the soap as well.” She sighed. “It was wonderful. What was in it?”
Sammy had to think about it because she’d pulled the idea from the ether. “Lavender, frankincense, and something maybe like milk that doesn’t actually exist. Yeah, people don’t usually bathe in a hot tub, but who needs rules here? Also, I should’ve anticipated you’d wash your hair and included some shampoo.”
Ash squinted her eyes. “Shampoo?”
“Er, it’s uh, specialized hair soap. Goo-like, liquid.”
To this, Ash made a face. “I tried liquid soap once. Eugh! It’s so gross. No, thank you.”
“Welp, never mind then. Perhaps I’ll invent a ‘shampoo bar’ for Calrenazzod.”
“Your Majesty, thank you for this treat.” She waved her hand behind her to indicate the hot tub. “I am more refreshed than I’ve been in months. I feel like a fool for being afraid of this place now. I’d… Well, despite the power dynamics involved, I’d strongly consider returning in the future.”
“You’re welcome, and that is a strong possibility, Ash. I’m glad you found our-... my space likable.” It was more than ‘glad,’ actually — she felt a deep satisfaction in housing her within the Maze. It was the same for Audrey. The physicality felt different — more real and… intrinsically pleasing. “But let’s get you out, hmm? I have your disguise ready. Are you good to go?”
“Yes.” She stood and dusted her hands off. “I have all that I came here with on me. Ready when you are.”
Sammy spat Ash out of a mirror once more, largely looking as she had from within it — all but for the towel. This disappeared during the transition, leaving her moist and messy hair to drop down from its previously suspended placement. Being so bright where she came from and the room being very dark, Sammy increased the light via her mirror, ebbing with a soft glow.
Ash was a bit startled when she turned around and saw someone else in the mirror. But she recovered quickly, shaking a finger at the image. “That’s my disguise.”
“Indeed,” Sammy replied while grinning with the lips of Audrey.
Ash drew closer to the mirror, studying the image within it carefully. “It’s convincing. I don’t think I’d see anything untoward myself unless I had reason to suspect — or familiarity with the subject.”
“High praise. I guess that’s an endorsement of the plan?”
“Certainly.” Ash pulled a small tie from a pouch and began doing her hair up into a rough but tight bun, all by practiced feel.
“You’re just going to do that now, without brushing or drying your hair? And so tight?”
Ash’s eyes flickered in confusion. “Yes. Why?”
Sammy frowned at her. Wasn’t it obvious? “It’s bad for your hair. You should do it very loosely while wet, and preferably use a clip.”
Ash’s hands slowed as she stared into the mirror like she was looking at an alien. “I… apologize? I wasn’t raised… well, however you were. A more… rough background? And even rougher after the background, I fear, though in a different way.”
Sammy blinked and suddenly felt embarrassed. Why did I say all that?! “Right — right! No, I should apologize, I didn’t even-... er, you should go ahead and do that, yeah, we’re in a hurry and all anyway, heh…”
Ash nodded slowly and began finishing up, eyes cast downward. She was kind enough to break the awkward silence, as she cleared her throat and said, “I know there is much I haven’t told you and much you deserve to know. May I still reserve this for when we are safely out of this territory?”
“Yes! Of course. No need to discuss it aloud. That does bring up a point I probably should’ve raised before now. It would be… handy if I could actually reach you mentally. Is that at all possible with this block of yours?”
Ash froze at this question. After a moment, she whispered, “So you can communicate telepathically?”
“Hypothetically. I might’ve answered your prayer more quickly that way if you had been available. Anyway, it takes some getting used to, but like I said, it really simplifies communication.”
“I’m familiar with it. What you were blocked from is detection and targeting. My self does not register the mind being where it is supposed to be. Targeting quote ‘me’ — Ash — or whatever name known, you might as well be trying to telesend to a rock.”
“Incredible. So there is no way around it?”
“Certain difficult means might be feasible forcibly, but even I am not sure. Perhaps one unlikely source could more easily. Beyond that… one would have to know a certain code, a certain special name that I’ve… hijacked. A name that is itself ostensibly dead. If someone knew it, not only would they bypass it as an exception, they’d do so permanently and without any possibility of resistance. That’s the, ah, sacrifice I had to make.”
Wow. This girl really is amazing if she did something like this. Whatever it was, I’m burning to know the details because it sounds like a custom, grandiose spell!
“I see. I understand, then.”
Something in Sammy’s tone — though she didn’t intend anything — must’ve registered to Ash. She stared into the mirror and her face twitched, almost turning into a wince, perhaps as something born of guilt. Finally, she sighed and her eyes dropped.
Reaching into a satchel, Ash pulled out some sort of stylus and a small notebook. “Trust is a trade and you deserve recompense, but please value this. Reveal it to none other. Can you read Gherazian Runic, by chance? I wouldn’t write it in simple characters even if I could…”
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