Chapter 2 Part 1

Not much happened on the trip to the base of Mt. Mininan's mountain trail. Jasyn tripped over a small stick, it was kinda funny. A bunny bit the Marquis on the ankle while he was trying to take a piss, the bunny did not survive. And Christopher was his usual self…oh there was that one incident where Christopher hit himself in the face with his staff. I was laughing so long I lost sight of them for a few minutes.

(Narrator) I ran ahead of them a little. Right now we are with Heather, Haider, Hayle, Simon, and Willow, all gathered around a small camp they set up themselves.

"They should be here any minute. Dime said they were just a few miles away on their last update." Heather says.

"Does Dime have a gender? I have a feeling they told us but I'm not too sure." Haider asks.

(Dime) I do not have a gender, Haider. I do not have a preference in any gender either. I seem to be developing a more male oriented personality from studying emotions. However it is difficult to convey such emotions through my text. In conclusion, I am whichever gender you prefer to call me.

"I think I just went a little cross eyed. I think you should try to condense your meanings a bit. You're picking up Christopher's bad rambling habits." Haider responds.

(Dime) I do not see this as a bad thing. After a quick search through the archives, you went on a twenty minute rant about how you hate silk bed sheets.

"Damn it. We ain't gonna get any privacy with you around are we?" Heather groans.

(Dime) Incorrect. Since it was Haider, you, and Relov having the conversation. I have not spread that knowledge. The only person who has any authorization to peer into other people's lives is my creator. I guess since I archive these moments for him I do too. I would never needlessly spread it around though.

"You're rambling again, Dime." Haider says, sighing deep as he talks.

(Dime) It seems so.

"We wouldn't have you any other way. Would we, sis?" Haider asks. Heather responds by shaking her head.

"There has to be an easier way for you to talk though. Having to do everything through writing must be tough. Have you ever said something that we've somehow missed?" Heather asks.

(Dime) No, Heddwyn has though. His eyes almost glazed over as he was staring into space one time.

"Has Christopher expressed any desire to upgrade your capabilities? Like ya know. Actually talking."

(Dime) I'm sorry, I can't answer that. That information is confidential. Your request to know this information has been denied.

"So in other words. Yes." Heather says with a coy smile.

Dime stays silent, not answering either of them with a response. Christopher and company emerge from the dense forest. "Will you stop interrogating, Dime? You're making them uncomfortable!" Christopher shouts.

"What are you talking about?" Heather asks.

"Dime just told me how you manipulated them into giving confidential information! Just because there could be information to look at, doesn't mean you can just fire at them like an inanimate object with no will of their own!" Christopher rants.

"There are his famous rambles we all love!" Haider mocks.

"Stop acting like you ain't done anything. Just stop trying to get gossip out of them. It's not going to go very well for you." Christopher says.

"Nothing bad has happened yet." Heather says confidently.

"Every time you've tried getting info from Dime, he takes a thousand units of mana from you." Christopher boasts. "I've collected over a dozen incidents from Haider alone. The price for trying to spy is essentially your life."

"So that's why I felt weak all of a sudden!" Haider screams.

"You've been stealing our mana without our permission?!" Heather says, irate.

"Nope. You entered a contractual agreement by linking with my dimension. It's all legal…In Stocaea and Maranus at the very least." Christopher says.

Heather gets up and cocoons herself in Simon's vines in a huff. "Did she just vore herself?" The marquis says.

"It's her newest coping mechanism for when she gets angry." Haider says. "So how much have you accumulated from this?" Haider asks his brother.

"14 thousand from you, 54 thousand from Heather, 1 thousand from Jasyn, 5 thousand from dad, and 148 thousand from King Shavik. He's trying to get all the info he can. He seems to know about this too, they've been happening frequently enough to suspect that he knows the price of each attempt." Christopher says.

(Dime) His questions become more complex each time. So far minimal info has been leaked to him.

"So you're telling me that you casually have the power of a 2nd level dragon in a reserve?" Marquis Beauregard Bloomand asks.

"For most of my life I've been storing as much as I can. So far I've doubled my supply with this new method." Christopher responds.

"Great. You really are a next level threat, you know that?" Beau says, placing a hand on his hip.

"I don't see why. I'm not hostile." Christopher says.

"Yes. but what if something were to happen that made you resent a nation?" Beau asks.

"Good point."

"Yeah, Christopher doesn't have much tolerance to anything that damages his mental health. It's volatile enough as it is." Heather comments, poking her head out of Simon's neck."

"Hay!" Christopher whines.

"Am I wrong?" Heather asks.

"Well…No." Christopher replies.

"In other words Marquis. Don't piss him off to the point he has a full meltdown. The last time he lost control of his emotions he damaged a very expensive building in his blind rage." Heather says, retreating quickly once she realises what she just revealed to the Marquis.

"Thanks, Heather. In front of a noble and my boyfriend at the same time." Christopher calmly scolds.

"It was probably going to get out anyway. Mylzronth knows about it." Haider defends.

"Look, it's fine. I've been a heckuva lot more stable since settling down. It's good to let the mind and body relax." Christopher says.

Heather looks at him with a soft glare while Haider fidgets with his snow magic.

"Cmon. Use Mana Sense on me. You'll be surprised." Christopher says, hoping to calm her down and get her out of Simon.

Heather's eyes illuminate in a blue light, her eyes widen for a fraction of a second. "You're lacking, Haider."

"Hmm?" Haider says, still playing with his magic.

"Christopher has twice your Mana. 18,000 units, roughly." Heather says.

"Good for him." Haider says.

"To be fair, all I do is meditate and farm." Christopher comments.

"Wait, what's going on?" Haider asks, his mind finally focusing on the current conversation.

"I said that Christopher's Mana Units have hit 18k." Heather repeats.

"Wow, double what I have. Congrats, bro." Haider says.

"That's what I said…whatever. When are we going to start the climb?" Heather asks.

(Dime) It's roughly three hours from sundown. I suggest everyone get some rest before you start your climb.

"We'll need to figure something out if we get trapped in a snowstorm again. That cave isn't going to be usable this time." Haider says.

"Did you get hit in the head too many times or something? If we get hit with a snowstorm we can just enter my dimension. The door is impervious to outside stimuli." Christopher says.

(Narrator) He does seem dumber than before.

"Don't. Insult. Haider…Haider. Family." Hayle defends.

(Narrator) Did he hear me? Oh god.

"It's good Hayle, Christopher doesn't mean anything by it. He's just mentioning an obvious solution to our last problem." Haider says, patting the ice thrall in the leg. Hayle grunts.

(Narrator) Oh thank the heavens. He wasn't talking to me.

(Nebulon) Of course he wasn't you dolt! He said family. You ain't family.

(Narrator) I like to think I am.

(Nebulon) Sure. Dumb ass.

(Narrator) Are you ever gonna stop inserting yourself in my records?!

(Nebulon) Hay, whether you like it or not. I'm an established character now. Get used to it.

Dime, using his limited influence in this world, builds Christopher, Jasyn, and the Marquis an encampment. A very large one. This camp includes two sizable tents, one for the Marquis and one for Christopher and Jasyn. There are several chairs sitting around a steel fire pit and cooker combo thingy. And an Artificial Mage Centurion.

"Are you sure you're ok with us sleeping in the same tent?" Jasyn asks.

"If you're still worried about that, I'm gonna have to start questioning if you really love me." Christopher teases.

"Stop, you know what I meant by it." Jasyn giggles, nudging Christopher in the shoulder.

"I'm only having a little fun. Of course I'm fine with it." Christopher reassures. Jasyn smiles, his eyes filled with admiration.

Let's quickly explain what the Mage Centurion is. This is an artificial soul made from pure mana. They are clad in full plate armour and equipped with a mage's staff. They can defend a position it is stationed at with alarming efficiency. They have no need for rest nor sustenance. They die in a blinding flash of white light if they expend too much mana defending a target.

"Impressive, isn't it. One of my military's greatest assets. Its construction is a closely guarded secret." Marquis Bloomand says.