Millennial Mage

Tala, Rane, Lyn, and Terry entered the Archon compound, and Tala immediately felt a difference.

It was subtle, likely something that she only noticed because of her heightened mage-sight.

The power within the building was held on a much shorter leash, as it were. Even the little magic in the air was all claimed by various spell-forms, in one way or another.

Honestly, it felt like Makinaven, but where that city had had a single, unified overlord, this felt like a patchwork of authorities overlapping one another.

Huh, there is no free-floating power at all. The city usually had at least a little. There must be incredibly efficient collectors within this complex.

She rubbed her temples briefly, vainly attempting to dispel her headache. At this point, she’d suspect mental shenanigans, but Alat had remained silent. No use worrying about it, I suppose.

The overall sensation was like having her clothing pulled tight across her skin, but it was external power tightening around her own, internal power.

She bolstered her aura, just at the boundary of her own skin, and felt a lessening of the pressure within herself, though it meant that it was concentrated on the edges of her power. It’s even trying to strip power from my aura. These scripts must have been laid and activated by truly powerful Archons.

She rubbed her forehead against the still present headache and took a deep drink of water.

When they entered the entry atrium, Tala suddenly remembered the round disk given to her by an Archon, after the fight with the syphon. “Oh! Right, my token.”

She pulled out the token that she’d been given, ostensibly for her contributions towards finding and removing the creature. She’d not actually looked closely at it, and now that she did, she had a moment’s hesitation.

It was a thing of beauty.

A stylized golden skull was inset into wood. The skull wasn’t actually gold as the image was slightly translucent, somehow, but it represented the color well enough.

Around the outside were twisting, interweaving lines that looked like inscriptions, but weren’t. Just decoration, or is it some sort of script? She could look into it later, if she had time.

For now, though, she was standing in the Archon Complex atrium, staring at a small wooden coin.

She cleared her throat and continued forward, ignoring the inquiring looks from her companions. Well, not Terry. Terry’s content to sleep, for now.

Feeling a bit hesitant as she wasn’t quite sure this was exactly where she was supposed to take it, she walked up to the central desk and cleared her throat. “I believe that I was told to bring this here?” She held up the circular item.

The young man behind the counter looked up. “Oh, certainly, Mistress.” He held out his hand, and Tala placed the token into it.

Lyn patted Tala on her shoulder. “Yeah, I cashed mine in at my inscriptionist after lunch. Took most of the afternoon, but I’m all refreshed, now.” She gave a half smile. “Best part about that token was it got me out of the afternoon of work to have the inscription done.”

Tala smiled at her friend briefly before returning her attention to the Mage behind the counter

He placed the token on a small, empowered circle that was clearly intended for the purpose. He read something on his slate and nodded. “Oh, I see. You assisted with one of the last syphons.”

Tala managed to keep her astonishment off of her face and out of her tone. One of the last? How often does this happen? She supposed that if they didn’t kill anyone, they could be pretty prevalent and be little more than a nuisance. “Yeah.” She tried to act casually, but the assistant’s small smile said that she’d given away something of her surprise. “Has the reward been set?”

“Yes. It says here that you are to be given the choice between three gold and the syphon’s alteration fascia.”

Tala blinked, all pretense at understanding utterly forgotten. “Excuse me, but its what?”

“Its alteration fascia.”

When Tala simply returned a blank look, the assistant sighed, manipulated his slate and began to read from what seemed to be a prepared information packet.

“Syphons use a mix of dimensional, material, and illusion magics to create their perceived form, both interior and exterior. Its alteration fascia are the tendrils, nodes, and interconnected networks, which contain and transport that power throughout its form.”

“How would such a thing even be harvested?” Tala imagined trying to remove a creature’s circulatory system, intact. That sounds tedious to the extreme, not to mention finicky beyond belief.

“With great precision, care, and precisely modulated spell-forms. There are several specialists within the city who are masters of dressing arcanous kills and extracting the useful bits whole and in working order.”

“Hunter’s Guild?”

“Most of them are, yes.”

“Huh. So, why is it being offered to me? Not that I’m not grateful, of course.” Tala held up her hands placatingly.

“Of course, of course. All the Archons that participated in the slaying of this creature in an official capacity have already merged their dimensional storages with one or more syphon alteration fascia, so they have a lesser claim. Syphons are true magical creatures, not the result of founts, so they are both prolific and seemingly unending. The law requires that such harvests be offered to participating Mages before they are sold off by the city, though that basically never actually happens. If you do not claim this as a reward, it will be offered to the Mage with the next fewest such, merged with their bound items.” The young man looked up from where he’d clearly been reading from a script. “Do you have a preference?”

Tala was still dumbfounded. “What is something like that worth?”

He got a hesitant look on his face. “Well, that should not factor in as you would be barred from selling the harvest if you accept it as your payout. It is intended as an incentive to find and fight such creatures, not as a source of income.”

Tala waved that away dismissively. “Yes, of course, I’ve no plans to sell it, if I accept. What about for curiosity sake?”

He frowned, looking back down. He took another minute to search through information on his slate before grunting in seeming success. “Here it is: The last time one was offered on the open market was some three hundred thirteen years ago. It sold for two hundred and thirteen gold, seven silver, and six copper.” He laughed. “That’s a funny coincidence. Some hundred and sixteen years ago, it sold for some hundred and sixteen gold, plus change.”

“Huh, yeah. Funny.” TWO HUNDRED GOLD?!? She hesitated. Maybe I should sell it… No. This was clearly a valuable resource, and they wouldn’t let her sell it anyways. “Yes, I’d like the fascia, and how can I be authorized to hunt more of these?”

“If you mean as a private citizen, there is no authorization required. We encourage such, in fact.”

“What if I wanted to be called in to assist in taking down ones found by others?”

The young Mage put on a pained smile. “Unfortunately, slots for exterminating such creatures in an official capacity are highly coveted and only available to the city lord’s personal guard.” He glanced down, then added, “Oh! My apologies, the item I found, which was for the sale, was the fascia of an Elder syphon, this one was two stages higher when it was engaged.”

Tala’s eye twitched. Worth more that two hundred gold… The city lord’s guards get to hunt these and claim the harvests…I could always still take that position… She had drastically underestimated that offer of employment. No, stay strong, Tala. You don’t want to be trapped here… It was obviously tempting, nonetheless.

“As I said, you are still encouraged to engage any syphon you find within the city, as a private citizen.” He straightened a bit, seeming to return to the script. “As you have selected the fascia for your reward, you will receive no further compensation for your participation in the removal of a clear and present detriment to the citizenry of Bandfast. Is that understood and acceptable?” He slid a slate across the counter to Tala, and she read it, reading through its contents.

“That is acceptable.” She placed her thumb on the stone and pulsed her aura through the identifying magics, confirming the agreement.

“Thank you, Mistress. I will go get that for you, now.” He stood up and walked to the center of the round reception desk. In the floor in the center of the space that was surrounded by the circular desk, Material Guide scripts activated, moving the stone aside with a touch of magic, coming from inscriptions set around the Mage’s ankles. Below the new opening door was a spiral staircase leading down, presumably into a storeroom.

It only took a few minutes for him to return carrying a large, iron-clad box with obvious effort.

Tala could see further inscriptions running throughout his muscular-skeletal system, strengthening and stabilizing him, and he was having difficulty even so.

One of the other attendants stepped forward and helped hoist it up, onto the counter, where they set it with a boom that echoed through the large room.

“There you are. Per the agreement, please do not open this, except in the presence of a Constructionist Archon, in order for them to assist you in the merging of it with your dimensional storage.”

“Understood. Thank you.” Tala grabbed the box and hefted it free of the counter.

The young man’s eyes widened at the apparent ease with which she lifted it.

It was heavy. Likely close to four hundred pounds all told, but Tala was much stronger than the average human.

“Thank you.” Her voice was slightly strained, and that seemed to allow the Mage to recover some of his pride.

“You are most welcome, Mistress. Is there anything else we can do to assist?”

Tala briefly considered asking them to keep the box for her, until after she was done in the library, but she couldn’t bring herself to make the poor man carry it back downstairs. “Not at the moment. Thank you.” Terry shifted on her shoulder but was otherwise not disrupted.

She turned around to see Rane and Lyn giving her bemused looks.

“What?”

Rane shook his head, and Lyn grinned before responding, “It’s just very you.”

Tala shrugged, causing the iron chest to bob up and down. “Well, I can’t fit this in Kit, so I’ve got to carry it. I’ll drop by the Constructionists after.” Ignore the headache, Tala; it’s not that bad.

“Fair enough.”

“To the library?” Rane asked.

“To the library!”

The hallway of monsters passed in a flash, and Tala didn’t allow herself to focus on the arcanous depictions.

The iron chest was irritatingly bulky, but otherwise Tala didn’t really mind carrying it.

When they entered the library proper, Ingrit was waiting for them, along with the other two assistants who had previously helped Rane and Tala.

They bowed in greeting, and Ingrit spoke to Tala, who was in front. “Do you each required an assistant, or will one be sufficient?”

Tala glanced to her companions. “I think they’re just here because I am, so just one?”

Her companions shrugged, and Rane responded. “That sounds fine.”

The other two assistants briefly addressed their respective Archon before departing, back to their other duties.

Tala turned to Ingrit. “How do you do that?”

Ingrit cocked an eyebrow. “You are scanned at multiple points as you head this way, giving us ample time to meet you, here.”

“Ahh, that makes sense.” I guess…

Ingrit glanced at the iron box. “Do you wish a secure place to leave that, until you depart?”

“That would be kind of you.”

Ingrit walked over to one wall and pushed lightly with her fingers and more strongly with her magic. There was a soft click and the panel opened, revealing an empty space, just larger than the iron box. “Here you are.”

Is that always there, or is it a dimensional storage? Did she size it precisely, or did she simply choose one that was the right size already? She could ask, but that’s not really why she was here. So, Tala shrugged and placed the iron box within. “Thank you.”

After Ingrit pushed the compartment closed, once again, she smiled. “Shall we find a private place to chat?”

“Yes, thank you.”

Five minutes later the four humans, plus Terry, were sitting around a table in a small alcove. Though, in truth, Terry was simply sprawled on his seat, content in his seeming sleep. A copper inscription had been activated to grant them privacy, and Tala was able to sense the weight of a deeply powerful will behind the working. Ingrit is even more powerful than I’d have guessed.

“Now, Mistress Tala, what can I do for you?”

“Well, I have one serious inquiry, one mild curiosity, and one somewhat involved discussion.”

“Let’s start with the passing curiosity, then hit the inquiry and finish on the discussion, shall we? That way we ensure everything gets covered.”

Tala nodded. “That sounds great. Thank you.” And it gives me time to think on how exactly to bring up the culinary guild, its research, and its fear of Mages… She really should have been thinking about it before, but she’d never taken the time. “So, do arcanous herd animals behave like mundane ones? Meaning do they generally leave the weakest to be taken down by predators?”

Ingrit shrugged, clearly oblivious to Tala’s frantic, mental scrambling. “Our studies have shown no differences in that regard, save when the predator is human. Arcanous animals, almost universally, treat humanity differently, usually with violent intent.”

Tala grunted. “That’s what I would have guessed. Thank you.” Rust, that was too quick. Think, Tala! Should I test the waters? Should I just dump it all in her lap? No, I promised to obfuscate…

“Absolutely. And the inquiry?”

Inquiry? Oh! “Are there any ending berry groves nearby?”

“Of course. There’s a rather large one some twenty miles from the city’s southeastern, outer defenses.”

“Can I get a map?” So, I have to be circumspect… Can she access anything I have access to, by default? Does she already have access to the Culinary Guild’s records, but doesn’t know it?

Ingrit shrugged. “Certainly, if you explain why you want it.”

Explain what? Rane and Lyn were looking at her curiously as well. Oh! Ending berry use, right.Have I never explained my use of ending berries to them? “Well, I drink ending-berry juice, and I’m almost out.”

Lyn closed her eyes and leaned back. Her lips moved but no sound came out as she clearly was speaking to herself.

Rane looked thoughtful for a moment, then seemed almost to shrug. Clearly the information didn’t faze him.

Ingrit was taking a long breath. “Mistress Tala. I assume you know how dangerous those trees are.”

“I do.” If I didn’t, I’d be dead. She hesitated at that. If she were dead, she’d have first hand knowledge of how dangerous they were. So, all told, that was a fairly stupid question. Ingrit’s not stupid, though… It was possible she assumed that Tala had purchased the juice from someone else? That’s as likely as anything, I suppose.

“And you know that the berries, and the juice, would effectively be a mildly crippling agent for virtually any other Mage, any Inscribed, or anything naturally Magical?”

“I do.” Well, I didn’t “know,” but that is close enough to a pithier wording of what Grediv told me, so same difference.

“Will you make a statement of intent to never give, sell, or in any way voluntarily pass on the berries, juice, or any other harvest from the trees?”

Tala grimaced. She could make good money selling parts. “Is that absolutely necessary?”

“If the trees weren’t such a pivotal part of humanity’s history, we’d have wiped them out centuries ago. They are dangerous in the extreme, every part of them. Yes, it is absolutely necessary to have such a commitment, if I am going to provide locations to you.”

“I could just hunt them down on my own.”

“You could, but you would receive no assistance from the Archive in that endeavor.”

She sighed. “Fine. I want the things for my own use anyways.”

“Alright. I’ll ensure that you have clearance to access ending-berry grove locations in the future. That is generally restricted information for the reasons just explained, but you’d qualify for a dispensation.”

“Thank you.”

“You can sign the statement of intent and pick up the map at the front desk on your way out.” She smiled. “Now, what was the last item that you wished for us to discuss?”

Last item? She blinked, pulling herself out of musings about ending trees and their harvest. Oh! Right…

“Mistress Tala? Is everything alright?” Ingrit looked genuinely concerned.

“Oh, yes. I am just ordering my thoughts.” Start simple. Yeah. That’s the way to go. “Do you automatically have access to all the parts of the Archive that I do?”

Ingrit gave her a curious look. “In a sense. If you make an inquiry, I can query the Archive as if I were you, and then I am granted access to anything that you would be able to see.”

“Why is that better than me querying it myself?”

She grinned. “That is an excellent question. You could run all these queries yourself, Mistress.”

When Tala reddened, Ingrit let out a small chuckle.

“But I offer insight and the quick compilation of the results into coherent answers. I can also alter your access, as with the ending tree locations. That query would have simply returned that you were unauthorized to access the information.”

“Alight.” Tala nodded. Here it goes. She smiled broadly. “Alright! The non-Mage, human consumption of arcanous harvests. What can you tell me about it?”

Ingrit sighed. “Mistress Tala. You know the answer to this question. You’ve even asked it of me before.” Then, she hesitated. “Something’s changed though, hasn’t it.” It wasn’t a question.

Tala nodded. “Please, humor me.”

Ingrit shook her head, then glanced up and to the left. Her eyes widened ever so slightly. If Tala hadn’t had her enhanced senses, she’d have missed it entirely, and even so, it was a subtle thing.

Tala grinned, and she looked over to her friends, only to see confusion on their faces.

Rane cocked his head to one side. “What’s this about?”

Tala gestured to Ingrit. “Wait and see.”

The Archivist Archon’s eyes were flicking back and forth as she was clearly processing a lot of information. “I can tell you a lot, it seems. In general, any non-elementally aligned harvest can be used to enhance the same biological processes in a mundane. The enhancement is temporary, but seems to last longer with each successive use. There are a long list of specific harvests I could direct you to enhance various things from healing to reaction time. Do you want a list?” Her voice had an almost unbelieving quality to it.

“That isn’t necessary. Thank you. If I were to inform you I was going to research further, would that be an issue?”

“Not at all.”

“What if I told you that someone with my new access, a mundane, was going to do this research?”

Ingrit hesitated, clearly inquiring. “No issue whatsoever.”

Tala let out a happy little laugh. “I knew it.”

“Mistress Tala, what is this about?”

She hesitated, then shook her head. “No. I need to check with…someone first.”

Ingrit frowned and Tala hurried to continue.

“I’ll do my best to come back, tomorrow, though!”

“This is going to create a headache for me…isn’t it.” Again, it wasn’t a question.

“I deeply hope not. My intention is to mend fences and soothe headaches.”

Ingrit huffed a little laugh and couldn’t keep a small smile off her face. “Do you have anything else for me, or that you needed from me? Or was this the only puzzle you needed to put upon me?”

Tala smiled apologetically. “I will try to be back, tomorrow.”

“Very well, Mistress.” She then turned to regard the other two. “Did you both really just come to sit there and listen?”

Rane scratched his temple, grimacing. “Seems I had a lot to learn, so yeah.” He glanced to Tala. “Can we get the full story?”

Lyn nodded her agreement. “Yes, please. I would greatly like to know what is going on.”

Ingrit frowned just a bit but nodded. “Very well, then. I will leave you to it. This booth is yours for the next hour.”

“Thank you for your assistance.”

Ingrit smiled brightly. “You are most welcome, Mistress Tala.”

Without another word, the woman departed.

Tala turned back to find her friends regarding her with undisguised intensity. She felt herself start to shrink back from the gazes but steeled herself. “Alright, alright. So, it all started with some chicken soup.”