Chapter 21: Ch. 21 – Tempered

We walked back to the settlement, an awkward silence hanging over the group. I was such a coward during that battle. But in my defense, I didn't have the right skills or weapons for that battle. I am a creator class, damn it. No more excuses! If I want something, I make it.

I stood tall, a grim determination on my face. This world would not hand me anything. It was unforgiving and brutal. But it also lent me skills to cope with that. I thought I was in a VR game or something when I arrived. Hell, I still could be. But if I really was here, transported to Prixa by some unknown means, I needed to do a better job of surviving on my own. There had been too many times that one of the Feka intercepted a threat just in time to save me.

When we broke into the clearing, I could tell something was up. Rhino beasts stood on two legs with twenty-foot-long halberds at the city's gates. Humans rushed here and there with bowls, gathering corn off the red-stalked plants. And the city noise was louder than usual, almost like a party.

The Fekans looked at each other, grinned, and dropped their ingredients on the ground. They ran into Dunbar, leaving me confused on the dirt path. I saw them stop, grab a couple of humans and point back at the fur pelts on the ground, most likely instructing them to deliver them to the smithy. I did the same...because why not.

I strolled into the settlement, thrilled to see all the excitement. New breeds of Feka walked this way and that, mainly of the smaller variety. They looked wealthier than the Feka who occupied Dunbar, with more jewels and accents on their fur and far fewer stripes, if they had any at all. Before I could walk through the newly repaired gates, one of the rhinos stopped me, sticking out a giant pawed foot. In a deep voice, he rumbled, "Human- report to the head of security immediately. He will find you and take you to the second level of the settlement." He stood back up, returning his gaze to the jungle.

I had never been to the second level. To my knowledge, there wasn't even a way for humans to access that part of the city. The ramp got us to level one, and word on the street was that hidden stairs somewhere took humans up to the wealthy part of town on the second level.

After I reached the first level, I went to find Romas. I walked around the smithy and found Jasper putting chairs out. "Where's Romas?" I asked.

"Nice to see you too," Jasper replied, frowning and looking up from his chair duties. "You know, it would be nice if you helped out around here." He avoided my glare and unstacked another chair.

"Jasper, come on. You know I don't work for Romas anymore. I'm trying to get stronger so I can help with the settlement. The Shadowalkers will be back; this time, they will figure out a way to the upper parts of the city. When they do, I need to help fight back."

He stopped and finally met my stare. "Yeah? Well, I thought we were friends. I needed help around here and was hoping you could be the one to help. It was stupid. I'll let you go back to your tasks, m'lord." He did a mock bow and turned away from me.

"Jasper, stop, man!" I tried.

Suddenly, he bent over and picked something up off the ground during his bow. "Here, Noah, one of your magical pellets must have fallen out of your pocket while you were sleep..." he trailed off, a shocked look on his face.

"What?" I asked, alarmed.

Suddenly the room changed. A smell filled the air, something I couldn't put my finger on. It was sweet,t but more like a flower and less like food. Jasper gasped, his pupils turning a reddish black. He looked into the air, not saying anything, almost like he was reading text. Then he enunciated, "Jasper!" and looked down at his arm. Tattoos appeared.

He blinked twice, looking at me, the pellet, then back at me again. "Noah..."

My mouth hung open, staring at the scene. I finally walked over, plucking the pellet from Jasper's hand. It was one of my fire pellets. "How in the world...what just happened? Show me your arm." He complied.

[JASPER]

[LV 1- TEMPER MAGE APPRENTICE]

[20]

[20]

"What's going on back there?" a voice from the front of the smithy yelled. It was Romas. "What the hell are you creating, Noah? It smells like mana back here!"

So that was the smell. These damn cats and their mana sense.

I turned to Jasper and whispered, "Not a word of this to anyone. I need to think." He nodded silently. I grabbed the pellet from him and shoved it into my pocket.

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I walked toward the front of the smithy. "Romas! I was looking for you. I need to get to the second level. Any idea how I do that?" I tried my best not to sound like I was hiding something, but my voice failed me when it broke, making me sound like a prepubescent teen.

Romas stared at me, narrowing his eyes. "Who said you..."

"I'll take it from here, thank you," a voice from the door called out.

Romas slowly turned toward the door. "Why is it that whenever something seems... amiss, do you always show up, Typhonius?" Romas sneered at the cat.

"I don't know what you're talking about. Regardless, I must take Noah to the third level on orders of the Monarch. Come along, boy." He turned and walked out the door before Romas or I could respond.

I looked at Romas, a sweet smile on my face. "Catch you later!" He snarled back as I left the smithy.

What the hell was that? I wished I didn't have to see the Monarch, as exciting as that was. I needed to figure out how Jasper could unlock magic after touching one of my fire pellets. He had felt my air magic daggers before with no change. He even held my dagger before, and that had been crafted. Why the sudden change?

And if he could unlock magic, could other humans use magic as well? Could that explain why the Feka couldn't tell what my dagger or pellets did? Was this human-only magic? And even then, would only specific humans interact with specific magic types? All these years, humans were considered non-magical because they were touching the Fekan items. Maybe I was special after all...

We wandered down the alleys on the first level as I pondered all this, weaving between houses and stores. Finally, Typh went to the rear of a support pillar, touching three patterns on the walls in a specific sequence. I stayed silent as I watched. Suddenly a door swung inward, allowing us access to black stone stairs. They wound up in a spiral.

He looked at me, opened his mouth to speak, but closed it. He looked straight ahead and began climbing the stairs. From the first level, I only saw the tubes as supports, and the hidden stairs surprised me. I wondered if one staircase was up and the other down because of how narrow the passageway was. I had seen the Feka climbing to the upper levels less often than the ground level.

We finally reached the top of the stairs, my lack of cardio shape catching up with me. I wheezed as a door swung out. Typh shook his head at me. "Aren't you in better shape yet?'

"I just climbed...200...stairs." I wheezed out. "That's a lot where I come from." I put my hands on my head, squeezing my eyes shut.

Typh let out a sigh and continued walking forward. Up ahead, a regal-looking minx sauntered over. She looked me up and down, appraising, as the Feka liked to do. "So this is the one, Typhonius?"

"Yes, your highness," he replied, standing tall.

"He's fatter than I thought he would be. No matter. Shall we retreat to the upper level? I would like to have a word with him."

"Of course, Monarch." Typh looked at a cougar-looking creature and nodded. The cat came over to me, rested its paw on my shoulder, and closed its eyes. The world lurched, feeling like my head was being pulled underwater.

I opened my eyes and panicked a bit. I turned and looked back, seeing the city from new heights. I was higher up than I was previously and surrounded by densely populated trees. I was on the third level of the settlement in what appeared to be an intricate garden. New types of trees surrounded me, paths twisting every which way. They had exotic flowers dotting their branches, sometimes with fruits hanging off them. Fountains were placed in clearings between the trees along the paths, shooting blue-tinged water out of their nozzles.

In the distance, the gulf surrounded the rear part of the settlement, land nowhere to be found. Fishing vessels were everywhere, bobbing up and down in the waves. To the north, the jungle sprawled as far as my eyes could see. The trees were taller than the tower, larger than I thought possible.

A moment later, the Monarch appeared beside me out of thin air. She glanced around, making eye contact with me, then smiled. "I assume that's not your first time being teleported, is it, young human?"

This was going to be a delightful conversation.

 

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