Chapter 28: Chapter 28

The city was eerily quiet at this time of night, and the only sounds that really jumped out to me were the wheels turning and the odd animal noise. Buildings around me creaked ominously in the wind as our convoy passed through the gates, and the distant cries of birds echoed around the town. It was appropriate and set the mood, to say the least.

We were all exhausted, physically and emotionally drained from our ordeal in the hills. The people who'd come out of the battle in reasonable condition spent the whole afternoon traveling, tending wounds, and cleaning up blood and other bodily fluids. Some people needed stitches, others fresh bandages and a few of us had the odd burn here and there, and I worked tirelessly. It was a few hours after sundown when people would typically turn in for bed, and our convoy made quite the ruckus as we suddenly burst onto the streets, which had been quiet mere minutes before.

Although it was late in the night, a few people in sleepwear came out in the street as we passed through, somber and emotionally drained. I spotted a pair of female brunette elves in leather armor ahead in the caravan jump up and halt, looking off to the side as they slowed down and blocked traffic in our lane.

A young human woman in a nightgown with pink hair ran out of a house and toward our convoy. The two elves stopped their advancement and looked away remorsefully as she approached them slowly, then briskly. The woman seemed to understand their body language immediately and moved forward quickly, approaching them with a frantic look.

"Eaulfenne! Fouvineaux!" the woman shouted, "W-where's my husband?" she cried, panic striking her face as she clutched her chest and looked frantically at their wagon.

The pair of elves stopped for a moment and brought their wagon to a halt. They hesitated for a moment before nodding and moving aside. The woman with pink hair hesitated for a second before approaching their wagon and climbing on board. Other drivers paid them no mind, veering around the street to let them do their thing. Lori and I rubbernecked for a second, sharing a look as she took us around them.

I watched silently from behind as we moved around them, helpless to do anything, but really, also too tired to do anything else. Instead, I sighed and slouched as I heard a wail of despair beside us.

The caravan continued on without much fanfare or discussion among the travelers. We eventually reached our destination and dismounted the wagons to allow the weary members of our party to disembark. The second Friar Dodgson had woken up, he'd pumped nearly every miracle he was allotted for the day into improving Dinah's condition while saving a couple for an emergency. She was stable now but fell into a coma and spent the entire trip back unconscious. The girl still had considerable recovery time ahead of her, and it was clear that she wasn't getting better soon. Haigha and Friar Dodgson manned the other intact wagon we had, and I could see Haigha off on the other side of the road flipping a butterfly knife as he manned the birds.

As we pulled up outside the guild hall. I looked around and noticed a group of people with foreign clothes milling about the square before the building. A fair number of guards were stationed by the front of the hall, which was understandable considering the situation we'd sprung on the guild. The foreigners wore strange robes, some that seemed similar to my own and others that seemed influenced by Indian or Persian attire. Their faces didn't look too different from those around us, and I counted seven humans and two elves among the people watching us.

I turned to face Lori and gestured toward the group of foreigners before whispering, "Who are these people?"

She shrugged and replied in a troubled whisper of her own, "Foreign adventurers I guess?"

I frowned at the idea of someone from another country here staring intently at our convoy. The timing was suspicious, too, if you asked me.

"What do you think, Chief?" she whispered as we made our way to the guild hall.

"They're not just looking around," Tarrant pointed out with narrowed eyes, "It appears that they are presently watching and observing us. Dignitaries from the Harbachian Empire from the look of it."

Lori nodded in agreement, and we continued down the street with tension rising in the air. It wasn't long before we found ourselves standing at the main entrance to the Adventurer's Guild.

As we pulled up outside the Adventurer's Guild, Tarrant led us inside the building where many others ahead of us were gathered while I floated an unconscious Dinah in on our makeshift stretcher. Looking around inside, I immediately saw the place was packed full of injured adventurers, as a few of the late workers talked frantically with the party of dwarves that'd bought rope from me. At the far end of the room sat the dwarven doctor, a stout man wearing green robes, working diligently on the injuries of three humans. His halfling assistant was helping him tend to the patients' wounds, but the patients weren't doing very well either. One of them had lost an arm, another a leg, and yet another was missing her nose entirely.

One of the dwarven adventurers pointed at me as her fingers ran over a flute on her belt. It was the dwarf woman with short brown hair and silver eyes. She was speaking to a large, elderly-looking, bald orc with a floral button-down shirt, spectacles, jade green skin, and orange shorts working at the front desk. The orc man looked at me briefly before furiously scribbling some notes down on paper. I gave a brief nod to him before looking around the crowd of adventurers, wondering if they recognized me from the encounter with the monster.

It didn't seem like anyone was staring at me, but I breathed a sigh of relief as I started making my way to the front counter.

The orc man looked up at Tarrant expectingly as we approached, and Tarrant introduced himself and told the clerk about our role in the recent incident. He nodded once, gestured for me to leave Dinah in the makeshift infirmary, and asked us to follow him. After a quick word with the dwarven medic, we left Haigha behind to watch Dinah and followed her into another hallway nearby. Suddenly, he stopped, turned to Lori and Friar Dodgson, and nodded to Tarrant.

He nodded to them in acknowledgment and stated stiffly, "I would like to speak with Ms. Liddell here, alone. And please, could one of you send someone to wake up Dr. Naufant to assist Dr. Rubybrew."

His voice had a calm, collected, imp-like, mischievous tone, even though his expression remained serious. I looked at Lori and Tarrant uncertainly, but they both gave me a slight, assuring nod.

"It's okay," Lori said while squeezing my shoulder. "Duskywind here won't bite. He's the Guildmaster here in Halton!"

Duskywind? Where did I hear that name before? Despite his highly relaxed fashion choice, the old orc nevertheless seemed very intimidating. I swallowed and turned away from my sister uncertainly before following the orc down a hallway.

He led me through several hallways until finally stopping in front of a door labeled 'private.' Opening the door, he ushered us in and closed it behind us, locking the door with a key from his pocket. The orc's gait had a certain confidence and assuredness about it, like a man who'd seen it all.

There were two chairs in front of a table, and he motioned for us to sit. There was a lamp on the table, illuminating the room dimly. A single candle stood in a holder on the other side of the desk, giving off enough light for us to see each other clearly with its soft glow. A foreboding feeling came over me, and I turned to ask what was going on but found myself speechless as I met his gaze. His expression was serious and determined.

Terrifyingly so.

"Such a terrible tragedy," he began quietly, shaking his head before turning to me.

"Anyway...to get straight to the point. Young Alice, there are rumors about you, and this incident with the Champion certainly won't be helping things. Oh no it will not indeed."

His voice was low and raspy but not angry or threatening. It held a tone of curiosity rather than hostility. Interest and concern, perhaps, but there was a tone of worry underpinning it.

"...About me?" I prompted, unsure how to respond. That was fast.

He nodded slightly, "Yes. About your abilities. You are obviously highly capable of using magic, and and your family has always been esteemed members of the guild and the very kingdom itself. But...there are always rumors, aren't there? Surrounding a situation such as yours. And even if most of them are false and baseless, sometimes people will hear things and start spreading word regardless."

"Like what exactly? Mister erm, Duskywind?" I asked cautiously, still wary of his demeanor.

Rumors were circulating about Alice?

"That you are a child possessed," he answered flatly, "That you have uncanny, unnatural insights into events and the world itself, that you have an unnatural gift for magic, of wells of mana and arcane power that might stem from demons. Or - perhaps something worse than even demons..."

My heart skipped a beat when he trailed off, leaving me uneasy. "But! I shan't put much stock into it," he continued with a twinkle in his eye. "I see only a young, talented human girl before me. You have grown up admirably, and Charles and Helen should be proud."

"Erm, how long have these rumors been circulating, Mister Duskywind? Sir?" I asked nervously. That could really prove to be problematic for me down the road.

The orc sighed softly and leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms across his stomach. "Please, Alice. We are peers now, in a matter of speaking. Call me Garth. Or just Sir if you would prefer. Even in pseudo-retirement, it's difficult for me to discard the honorifics."

He looked at me intently for a moment and then cleared his throat before speaking again, "These rumors have abounded since your time at the Royal Academy. Far before I'd come to the personal realization, I'd imagine, that you have more potential than most, if not all, of the great mages I have known. I am not sure if you remember me being there, but I attended your presentation on existing cosmological models...sitting at the back of the hall when you were only a dozen summers old. Your eloquence and depth of research even then were quite impressive."

I stared blankly at him for a few moments, stunned by what he was telling me. I'd best divert the conversation from details like a presentation I didn't remember. Finally, I managed to stammer, "...So, um, why exactly did you bring me here?"

Garth laughed lightly, shaking his head and smiling at me. "To talk to you, if you would be willing, Miss Liddell. To have a conversation, address these rumors, and to discuss your future."

"What do you mean?" I asked curiously, tension building in my chest. Was he about to chuck me directly into more danger?

"Well, first off," he said slowly, leaning forward with a mirthful smile, "I must say, is there is no need for such worry on your part with respect rumors of possession. I can assure you that multiple credible mages have examined you in passing out of curiosity and for peace of mind, and have found nothing unnatural about your aura or your abilities. You are just an incredibly gifted girl. A young woman with tremendous potential. That's all there is to it. Still, I wished to inform you that this has indeed, occurred at a few occasions."

I breathed a sigh of relief at those words but didn't feel much better after I thought about it. The fact that mages were looking at me, erm, Alice, at all with possible magic scrutiny was a bit alarming. I'd best keep an eye out for stuff like that.

"I am not entirely sure of how these rumors were started," Garth continued, leaning back in his chair again. "But I can certainly tell you that they have been completely unfounded. However, silly issues like that can be quite problematic for you, and compound with others."

"Why?" I asked curiously. "Why does something like that matter? I thought the rumors were just silly and baseless, as you said yourself."

"It matters because of the expectations you have now established, by testing your thesis now in the field," Garth replied while adjusting his spectacles. "Each and every one of seventy-two demons known to be at the Champion rank bend and distort reality itself around them. You have now presented a solution for negating and handling seventeen of the remainders that make use of dimensional refraction phenomena. Shortly past your fifteenth summer, at that. Your paper, which was merely a theoretical application of a reality pin array to combat these phenomenon, has now been tested in the field. It was a matter of much debate between academics by the time of your graduation, and I would wager that the spell you cast was a product of your own creation?"

...There's a big problem here, for sure.

I was speechless for a moment, and the orc smiled proudly at me, "If so! You, my dear, have just become the only person in history to test a practical application of a 'reality pin' with such results."

That problem, is that I have absolutely. No idea what he's talking about. This was Alice's achievement, and I have none of her memory.

Especially concerning hyper-advanced magical theory.

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The orc looked down at me thoughtfully, then asked quietly, "Do you have any further plans regarding your paper?"

"Erm, I... no," I said slowly, my mind running over what I should say or do here. Should I admit I have a problem? Do I trust this old man? "I umn, may have a couple of problems here... Sir. Especially concerning the paper."

I trailed off there, unsure of how to approach it.

My heart started racing when he chuckled quietly and leaned forward to rest his elbows on the table, propping his chin up with his gigantic fists.

"Ah! I understand," Garth said soothingly. "And yes, there are immediate issues that will crop up."

Uh oh, I had a strong feeling that he was about to jump to completely incorrect conclusions.

I was still trying to process what to say when he continued, "It may not be something we can immediately address. However, I think that if you can have an honest conversation with me about your concerns, we may be able to help you avoid some problems later on, here at the guild. There will be people looking at you soon. People who would want to see your heritage and abilities alike tested and exploited."

I nodded slowly but stayed silent as I mulled over the course of this conversation.

Garth was right, of course. If I had to be honest, he was likely one of these people himself. It felt like whichever option I went with, I'd get screwed.

Making up my mind, I decided it was better to play along and deal with the devil I know and get some information now.

"...Okay," I whispered, my eyes narrowing at the elderly. "What exactly should I know about these problems? And what's this about my heritage?"

He sighed deeply and rubbed his brow with one hand. "I can see that you do not trust me, and that is wise, young miss. I indeed ceased contact with your parents after they put their adventuring days behind them."

Garth paused for a second before pulling out a notebook from a desk drawer.

"The truth is," he began slowly, "People were already watching you due to your prodigious talents, which has been increasingly complicated by your family's broader situation. It hasn't been lost to me that interested parties were waiting outside this very building for you and your sister's arrival, even before we'd learned of your critical role in vanquishing the Knave of Hearts."

I looked at him with surprise, thinking about the foreigners I'd spotted outside. "Wait... what?! Why?"

"Your father and mother, of course," he said, reacting to the question with an annoyed huff. "The recent disappearance of Lord Charles Liddell and Lady Helena di Ellineau is of paramount importance to many interests both public and private. I am sure there are those that want you two out of the way, or pulled into this mess as well. They will certainly use any means they can to see it happen."

My eyes widened as he spoke. I've never considered myself anything more than a curiosity to people in this world and kingdom. And a burden, honestly. The idea that others would actively attempt to 'have me out of the way' or pull me into political games was rather unsettling.

"But wait, why me? I'm not important enough, right? I thought my father was just the son of a provincial lord, and my mother was a priestess?" I asked, looking for reassurance from Garth, but found none. His expression was still severe.

"I am honestly not surprised that you are clueless of the situation you are in," he sighed flatly while opening his notebook. "Charles and Helen both left behind their families and duties for the call of adventure and enterprise in their youth. The truth is, you and Lorina are of such interest to so many different parties right now, that it has become impossible to separate fact from fiction anymore. There are so many pieces in play on the board, that I need to be certain that what we know to be true and what isn't is clear. With Charles and Helen missing, I felt it my duty to step in and intervene as a guildmaster and former mentor to Charles."

He paused there and looked down at his notebook again.

"...Your father was the son of a lord, yes, but have and Lorina you ever given consideration to who your mother really is, beyond a humble priestess of the Mother Goddess?"

I hesitated before shaking my head slowly, trying to remember what little I knew about my mother's background. I honestly didn't know much, and I looked at Garth suspiciously. "Why not tell it to me straight, Sir? And please, stop playing games here. If it involves her, I believe Lori deserves to be in this conversation too."

Garth looked at me with a thoughtful look in his eyes. He was silent for a moment, then said, "This may actually affect Lorina more directly than it does you. To be perfectly upfront - your sister is earnest, and practically an ideal knight. However, she is much more suited to the battlefield, while you have navigated the political perils of academia in spite of your young age."

I frowned at his choice of words but kept quiet. The barb to Lori's mental competence wasn't lost on me.

"As a result, you have grown far more powerful and capable than your sister, despite being younger than she is. I mean this with the greatest of compliments, but power and youth is a dangerous combination indeed."

I couldn't help but smile bitterly at that statement. My face must have betrayed my thoughts because the orc shook his head sadly and added,

"...But I digress. Returning to the original point, you are also aware of the dangers involved in your position, even without knowing your mother's position, correct? You have created one miracle, and this will create ripples and attention in the world before long."

I nodded slightly. "Yes, Sir. But I didn't feel like I had any other options, so I had to take whatever risks came with it. I suppose now, I will have to prepare for the consequences. I'll be on my guard."

The orc gave me a sympathetic smile. "You're right to be wary. As a fellow scholar, I know full well the kind of pressure that comes with publishing and proving a major discovery. Not everyone will react positively, especially considering your existing, unusual reputation. Even if you did manage to publish this research under your own name, you'll find yourself facing an onslaught of criticism and questions from all sides of the academic spectrum. Your work could easily be stolen and used against you. There are quite a number pitfalls as is, even in a vacuum."

I thought hard, mulling over what I would say next. Deciding I was already utterly fucked as is, I decided to say it.

"So... what if hypothetically, I've been hit by a curse that partially wiped my memories, including years of accumulated magical knowledge? How would that affect things?" I asked cautiously.

Garth blanched visibly and stared at me intently before saying, "Well... That would make things difficult, wouldn't it? What you've done is remarkable, but it doesn't help without understanding how you arrived at your discoveries in the first place. In short, you would need to start over and relearn everything while the situation around you has become quite precarious indeed."

I winced at that and glanced around the room nervously. We were alone in his office, but I suddenly got the feeling that someone might come in at any minute. I looked back at Garth, who suddenly walked over and whispered to me.

"How bad is it?" Garth asked softly. "Are you having trouble remembering your spells? Or are you unable to cast anything at all?"

I bit my lip hard as I considered my answer. There was no way I would trust this guy, but perhaps he'd help head things off a bit, if even out of self-interest. I felt it was a good idea to fib a bit about my ability to defend myself.

"I can still use my magic, and I'm not sure when it happened or why. I can say for certain that I'm missing massive, fundamental gaps in my magical knowledge now, including what it took to create that spell," I admitted, keeping my voice low. "I don't know if I can recover my memory of it either. It feels like its being held captive somewhere inside of me and I've been re-studying from scratch."

Garth looked down at his notes before nodding thoughtfully. "That is quite problematic," he mumbled quietly, making several quick scribbles in his journal before frowning and reaching for what looked like a white-out roller. With a few short strokes, he ran over what he had just scribbled down.

"Do you recall anyone coming in recently? Anyone new showing up, asking about you or your work?" he questioned me.

I blinked at him, confused, as my head ached for a second. "No... Wait, hold on... No, nothing like that."

"Troubling," he replied quickly. "Then let us hope that this mysterious gap in your knowledge remains dormant an a non-issue for the time being. Now, what else can you tell me?"

I took a deep breath and told him everything that had happened since we set out for the trail, leaving out only a few details, such as when the Knave asked for my ring. When I finished speaking, Garth sat silently, staring at me for a moment, before finally sighing heavily and rubbing his temples.

"On top of everything going on right now, an ambush from a bloody possessed Drow," he muttered somberly, shaking his head. "And a demon attack! I thought I'd seen it all, and this is becoming more complicated by the day..."

"Sir?" I asked hesitantly, not knowing what to think of this turn of events. "Is there something wrong?"

His shoulders slumped, and he turned away from me to stare absently out the window into the night sky. After a moment, he growled and threw his hands up into the air.

"This! Is why I hate politics," he muttered angrily, then stood up abruptly. "Come along, Miss Liddell."

I followed him out of his office and into the hall. I stopped walking once we reached the main hallway, waiting patiently for him to continue.
"We shall go speak with your sister first, and try to explain the situation with your parents clearly to you both," he said quietly. "Once she understands as well, we will move forward with a plan of action."

I nodded slowly, unsure of how to respond to that.

Things just couldn't be simple, could they?

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