Chapter 183: A Shift in Perspective

Chapter 183: A Shift in Perspective

Mercury started at Alice after she brokered the news to him. He blinked a few times, then took a deep breath.

"What, exactly, does this mean?" he asked after a few moments of consideration.

Alice gave a crooked smile. "It means, for now, that you'll be challenged. Now, of course, you haven't usurped gluttony itself, luckily for you. Because if you had, that would have caused much more trouble. Though the current holder of <Gluttony > certainly must be aware of your position."

For a moment, Mercury was tempted to ask after the owner of gluttony, then bit his tongue. Nope. Not necessary. There were more pressing concerns. "What does this mean for me, in the next few hours?" he asked.

"You'll be asked to attend a party. People will try to mess with you. Probe you, see where the edge of your patience and power lies," she explained.

Slowly, Mercury nodded. "How long will I be gone?"

Alice bit her lip. "Time can get strange. It may be a day for you and a chapter for us. It could be the other way around."

For a moment, Mercury's mind went wild with ideas. If the time passed so much faster there, he could train. So much training.

Then he snapped back to the moment. He sighed. "Right. So, essentially, all I know is that trouble is coming. Can I take anyone along?"

She hesitated. "If… if you trust me, I could come along."

"Not Zyl?"

Alice shook her head. "Not anyone you mind seeing hurt. Fae are dangerous. Varied. Strange and impulsive."

The mopaaw nodded. "I see."

"You will," Alice said with a shrug. "And if you permit it, I would try to keep you safe. Which, granted, does not mean much."

"Because you are weak?"

She shook her head again. "Because it is not my realm."

"I thought you were fae?"

"It's a rather long story," Alice sighed.

Mercury dropped the topic. "Fine, then," he said. "I suppose I will be informing Zyl that trouble has once again found me. It was nice to have a season go by quietly, really, but I suppose it was never meant to last."

[Attempting generation of new Skill, <Trouble Magnet>. Generation failed. The dum-dum seems to already have this effect upon them.]

Had… Appy tried to make a joke?

[Correct. An attempt to improve the individual's mood was made.]

He smiled for a moment. 'Right. I'll have you along for the ride, Appy. Thank you.'

[The dum-dum is welcome. :)]

For another moment, Mercury's eyes hung on the emoji, then he smiled back at his invisible, always reliable companion. Appy was, indeed, quite incredible.

Despite the mildly strange nature of their communication and their also mildly strange relationship, he was glad to have her. He just hoped she was also still okay with her existence. Maybe he should try to level the Skill a little more to help her out? It was improving rather slowly.

[I am a highly advanced Skill. Mastery required for additional levels is high. Mastery is also being procured by individual actions performed by me, the intelligence. Even the tasks I put myself to when not assisting the dum-dum generate further mastery.]

Right, that was nice then. It seemed like her way of saying that she'd take care of levelling herself up. Then he had a few more requests to make.

'Appy, in case of any detected influence on my mind, alert me immediately. Regardless of what commands I give within the next two pages, keep <Unbroken > and <Unrestrained > active. If mental manipulation is detected, please manipulate <Training Weights> to improve my Skills as quickly as possible without exposing me to danger,' he thought at his friend.

[Command received. I will keep you safe.]

'Thank you.'

Alice was still looking at him, as he silently walked next to her, staring intently. But he was done with Appy for now. She'd have his back, he knew that much. "So, Alice, why tell me all this?" he asked.

The woman regarded him for a while, then gave a sad smile. "Because you deserve to know. We have common friends. The wind would hate for you to become a caged bird. And the rain… I don't know if the rain would ever speak to me again if I simply let you walk into this trap."

"Is that all?" Mercury asked. "Because we share friends."

"No, I told you because I'm kind," Alice answered, entirely serious.

They spent the rest of the walk in silence.

After maybe a dozen minutes, Mercury was back at his house. Zyl was inside, currently cooking for the both of them. The dragon had taken to that, enjoying the use of his own flame on kitchenware.

"Hey Zyl," Mercury started.

"Oh, Mercury! You're back already? How did your lessons go?" his boyfriend asked with a smile.

The mopaaw grimaced. "Well, the lessons went fine. Then I took a walk, met Alice over there, and now I have been informed that I will soon be invited to meet the fae courts."

Zyl's smile froze on his face. It slowly faded. "... Ah." He let out a huff of air, as if it was the only thing he could do. Then he frowned. "So, you'll be dealing with trouble, then?"

Mercury nodded. "Seems like it. Then again, when am I not?" he joked.

No one laughed. Zyl gave him a mirthless frown, then schooled his expression to a neutral one with a deep breath. "Okay. How can I help?"

"I don't think you can," Mercury said honestly. "I might need food with me?"

Alice nodded. "Yes. Some fae food would be entirely unsuitable for consumption. Substances which may be delicious to them may be severely hallucinogenic to you."

"Okay. Yes. I can do that." A determined expression settled onto Zyl's face. "I'll make you the best damn lunchboxes anyone has ever had."

Mercury smiled. "I don't doubt it for a moment."

With a quick hug, Mercury was off to tell Yasashiku the news.

"You WHAT?!" the old smith yelled, and Mercury once again worried about him having a heart attack.

His worries were unfounded. Instead, the old man had to hold back from smacking Mercury with a hammer. Mercury was the one holding him back. With many ghostly arms.

Granted, the smith probably wasn't using all his force to fight them.

Still, his eyes were slightly red with anger. "I swear, when will you settle into a proper apprenticeship?! You keep getting caught up in things! Smithing needs time and practice. It's an art. An art! I can't-"

"I'm sorry," Mercury said. He meant it, too. "I wish I could learn properly. I feel I have gotten better. I can hammer properly these days. Maybe even hear the metal's wishes a bit."

Yasashiku huffed. "Hmpf! Metal's wishes, he says. When my damn apprentice can't even keep practicing!" He threw his hands into the air. "I swear, if you weren't so unreasonably talented, I would've stopped teaching you the first time you went off into a parallel dimension!"

Mercury smiled. "Unreasonably talented, eh?"

The smith flushed. "Gah! Just… go! Take this and go! And make sure you return ready to learn!" With a quick flick, Yasashiku tossed Mercury a thing of metal, then quickly headed off into the smithy before the mopaaw had a chance to comprehend what he was given. Then he identified it.

[<Tiny Pandora>: A box that holds so much more than it seems. Your master has gifted you your own workshop. Once, he sealed his own smithy in pandora, taking it with him to find you. Now, a smaller one is given to you. Learn. Ply your trade. Make him proud.]

[Note: May be placed inside your log to expand the space with the beginning rudimentary equipment a blacksmith may need!]

Mercury froze. His face burst into a smile. Without hesitation, he took the box, and placed it inside his log, letting the effect take hold as instantly, it unfolded. The walls on the inside of his log changed, as a new area was carved from that. The uneven bark floor was replaced by one of dark, glossy wood.

It shone with a slight metallic gleam, and Mercury knew that the wood would not burn. There was a forge. Bellows attached to it. A small smeltery and a casting station to make rudimentary shapes of the metal. An anvil made from black metal that radiated faint bits of mana.

Everything he could need. And it was beautiful.

Mercury took a deep breath of the space he was gifted. His own workshop didn't smell like that of Yasashiku. The floor was not yet coated in coal dust and steel shrapnel. It was not yet broken in, so to speak. But it was, nonetheless, beautiful.

Slowly, the mopaaw exited the log again, carefully placing it back into his inventory. He still had the Blanket of Dreams in there, and he would most likely be using it more often. Now, with little pandora added to the log, the outside had turned ever so slightly darker, and Mercury felt that he could cause it to become slightly larger or smaller if he wanted to.

For now, though, he left the log unchanged, and simply stored it back in his inventory. There were a few more stops.

His other friends took the news with a little less fanfare. Avery laughed, and told him to be back, while Marcel groaned about not even knowing how to file a fae appearing in Stormbraver, but they'd figure it out. They wished him luck.

Lucia and Iris were more surprised at the news than even Avery had been, but quickly wished him safe travels, and that he'd return quickly. Funny. They had such faith that he would return; they didn't even doubt the possibility.

Yvette was… scared. Terrified by the idea of other wandering arches finding her, and turning her life back into chaos. But Mercury also saw it light a fire in her eyes.

"I won't lose this. Never again," she said, under her breath.

Mercury nodded. "We won't. We'll protect it."

She looked at him, then nodded. "Right. I'm with you all the way, then. Never expected it when I taught you how to first use mana, but… we're partners, now. We'll beat back the arches, and liv freely, alright?"

Yvette extended her hand as she spoke, gritting her teeth, and Mercury shook it. Something was changing in the woman, something profound, but he couldn't provoke it. She would figure it out, surely. The system responded to desire, after all, and Yvette wanted nothing more than to be free to participate in society.

The mages' guild seemed alright with the news, too. Elliot said a sad goodbye, Gilah didn't know whether to laugh or be stunned, and Esmeralda asked him to please bargain for magical secrets if they had any. He smirked, and said he'd do his best.

After just a few more stops, he went back to his house. To Zyl.

The dragon gave him a sad smile, a long hug, and then placed two dozen lunch boxes in his log, where they would stay until Mercury needed to eat them. It was more than enough food to last him a page. With his Skills, he could make it last much longer than that.

Then, they spent some time together, cuddling and enjoying a few more minutes before they were separated for an indeterminate amount of time.

Eventually, after half an hour, which was far too short by Mercury's standards, the knock on the front door came, as surely as a noose being tied. With a somber sigh, Mercury went to open the door to his house.

- - - - - -

Tirador had been assigned a gathering job.

It was a strange mix of emotions he felt at it. Humiliating? Yes, certainly, absolutely. That was the intent of it, too. Go to the plane of the mortals, grab a mopaaw, drag him in front of the courts so they could hear him.

Yet, at the same time, being an envoy was… strangely exciting! Being the first fae to see the new subject of the courts? What an experience!

Perhaps, the best way to describe his feelings was to consider this a novel adventure. One he had low expectations and high hopes for.

The world he had to trudge through, though? That was horrible. A city with roads carved from dead stone, with walls at their edges to keep out what? The wind? Bah. It wouldn't stop the damn local wind spirit if they put in even half an ounce of effort.

Seeing such lowly human construction was despicable, but he bore with it. The smell on the streets was full of that of creatures. Humans and some half-kin moved about everywhere. Carrying, building, making. He frowned.

They were so busy and few of them seemed truly happy with what they were doing. Still, the atmosphere was hopeful, he could appreciate that much at leat. Hope was rare in the courts.

Swiftly with only a few steps, he had made his way to the house of the mark. It was a building made from wood, which was good, though the wood was dead, which was a disappointment. Unless?

Tirador listened closely, and the wood whispered. Oh! How strange. How whimsical! Wooden planks that spoke?! He almost hopped on his feet and clapped right then, but a moment after he remembered the severity of his vision, schooled his face, and knocked.

Then he turned and saw the Hero next to the door. His lips twisted into a frown of disapproval. What was she doing here? And she was paying him no mind at all? How rude of her, a fae of his status was surely due at least some attention, even with his latest blunder-

His thoughts were interrupted as the door opened. His frown froze upon his face.

He blinked.

In front of him was a mopaaw, yes, that much was true. But… he should not have truly expected a normal mopaaw.

Really, he hadn't. Tirandor was expecting something strange, but the creature in front of him was beyond curious.

Its eyes deep like murky pools, and the night sky in its fur. How delightful!

Briefly, he wanted nothing but to tear it apart and see how it ticked inside.

"Uhm, hello?" Mercury asked.

His eyes went wider. That was a nice voice, indeed. But it had called him from his reverie, and he stopped drooling for a moment. He reached out with his mind to speak in enchanting tones, as was common, yet felt as if he had touched a wall of burning steel.

The creature in front of him narrowed its eyes, displeased. "What was that about?"

Tirandor looked at it, then to the Hero, and almost considered reaching out again, when he saw the creature bare its fangs. It was furious. What bravery and spirit! He wanted to see it crushed.

"Speak with your mouth," Alice advised. "The shape you take is not pointless."

"Ah," he said, a brief breath carving through his lungs. He hadn't been breathing at all until now. His guise was poor, then. "A- Aaaaaa." Hmm. His tongue, also, was not behaving as it should.

"Dear fae," Mercury said. Were they dear? Perhaps, they must be if he said so. "Your arms should not be long enough to reach the floor. You should not have a crown of sharp bones on your head. Why is your skin that of a human yet your skull that of a bear?"

"AAaaaa!" Tiranor vocalised. Air blew through his lungs, out his mouth, this strange shape not supporting speech properly. What a blunder~

He laughed, deep inside, keeping the chuckle muted on the outside. Instead, he morphed, using his <Guise > to properly appear like an elf.

"Ah, ah," he tested his voice. Yes, much better. No longer bestial and horrible. "Mmh. Yes. I can work with this," he mused to himself, enjoying the honeyed sound as he spoke. "My name is Tiranor. May I have yours?"

He decided to play a small trick, just as an introduction.

Mercury gave him a long glance. "No. I can tell you what you may call me, though."

Tiranor grinned wide, flashing too-sharp teeth. "Oh, I would quite like that."

"Fine. Call me Mercury."

"Mercury," he tested the sound, rolling it across his tongue. Yes, that was a fine name for someone of such… hm. He did not know how to put what the creature had about itself. How strange. His smile grew even wider, too wide perhaps. "Yes. That will do quite nicely."

Then, he stood in silence, and observed.

"I am told you are to take me to the fae courts."

"Indeed, I am," Tiranor sighed with difficulty. He was hoping to be roped into a pay, a back and forth, to stake all his existence on a slip of the tongue. "Right to business?"

"Right to business," the Hero told him.

"Will she be coming?" he asked, keeping only half the disgust from his voice.

Mercury nodded at him. "She will."

"Hm," Tiranor said. "The courts will be displeased."

"Let them," Alice hummed, in that sing-songy voice of hers. Tiranor hated it. Such too-perfect mimickry. It was her clinging to the heritage she had before becoming a fae, and frankly, it was pathetic. Half the fun of mimickry was leaving little flaws for others to figure you out, wasn't it?

He huffed. "Fine, then. If you would have her as your retainer, she may come." A small trap.

Before the mopaaw could step into his little test, the Hero answered. "I will be coming of my own volition, simply as yet another fae, with allegiances, of course. Mercury will still get a retainer, and the Hospitality of the First Visit."

The way those words rang out in the air seemed new to the creature, Tiranor noted. It was not used to fae speak. What a wonderful little plaything it was. Briefly, he reached out again with his mind-

The thread broke before it even got close.

"Hey," the thing hissed, those miles-deep eyes now focused on him. "Do that again and I do the same to you."

Oh. Oh! "Wonderful!" Tiranor whispered breathlessly. Then he laughed, his mouth splitting open, to bark out his humor in a bear's tone. Then, he gathered himself, schooling his expression and burying the emotions of delight. Indeed, a worthwhile trip. "Forgive my attempts, it was simply-"

"No," Mercury said.

"Pardon?"

"You aren't forgiven," he said.

Tiranor blinked. He frowned. "I see," he said, as if testing the words.

"Do the courts await me eagerly, or do they wish to be kept waiting for longer by your testing and probing?"

My oh my. The creature had some skill, then. Tiranor stifled a grin, licking his lips instead. What wonderful words it spoke. This Mercury. Yes, he would make quite the impression on the courts, surely.

"Indeed, they wish to wait no longer," Tiranor said. "Would you like to go there?"

"I do not believe what I like matters."

"Would you like to face the consequences of not going?" Tiranor asked, his eyes wild with desire.

The creature sighed. "Get it over with. Open a door there and let me make my entrance on my own terms."

Out of the corner of his eyes, Tiranor saw the Hero smile. It was a practiced bit of talk then, and the mopaaw had been forewarned. He was almost disappointed. Perhaps he had attributed too much of the thing's fun to the creature itself, and too little to its tutor?

"Certainly," he said out loud, keeping his thoughts to himself. Hopefully, the thing would entertain the courts further.

With a gentle motion, he beckoned the creature out of its own house, then closed the door. A moment later, he opened the door again, though this time it led not inside the house, but somewhere else entirely.

Behind the doorway, there was a wide ballroom, wooden floors that were brimming with life, leaves sprouting every few steps. Fae danced across those floors, their guises shifting as the sport demanded.

Bloodsports were kept in a corner, where the red liquid was spilled readily and in great amounts, while the feasting was kept to another corner, lest one of the monsters in disguise there got too ravenous and consumed another's head.

Most wouldn't mind, but their human (and adjacent) "guests" were oh so very fragile~.

Tiranor saw the grimace form on the mopaaw's face with great delight. Introducing a new one to the pleasures of the fae was always such fun. There were only two options, after all, to bend to the whims of his masters, to thrive in this community by knowing when you'd let others walk over you…

Or to break.

With a sadistic glint, Tiranor hoped, as always, that this new guest would break. With a wide sweep of his too-long hands, with black, too-long nails, he indicated the doorway. "Welcome," he announced, "to the fae courts!"