Chương 256: The violent party at hand

"Uuuuurggghh…"

"Any complaints, brother of mine?" Scythe asked as Grain crashed down onto the bed in the small dormitory-like room the pair now shared: their new home in the guildhall of Convergence. While small, it also felt like a sanctuary from the city itself that felt humongous and chaotic to the pair, far beyond what they had ever witnessed. But at that particular moment, Grain's complaints were a lot smaller in scope.

"I didn't remember how sore my legs could become…"

"You've been up and walking for what? Two weeks? Given essences worth more than half of our hometown put together and a new lease on life? And you're complaining?"

"Well… No. Of course not. It's just. My thighs… Owwie.." Seeing the glint of humor in his brother's eyes, Scythe couldn't help but sigh and shake his head while allowing his admittedly also quite sore body to lay down on his own bed and find a moment of rest.

"Weren't our bodies supposed to be beyond this now that we have essences?" Grain asked after a brief silence.

"Well, they're recovering a bit quicker now, but you'll have to wait a bit until you really notice. Have to get all the awakening stones to really start improving, remember?"

"Yeah, that's true. I wonder what we'll be able to earn for ourselves. That really is quite exciting," Grain said, rolling over as he spoke with renewed vigor.

"One step at a time, brother dear. First we'll have to endure more training. Who'd have thought that an acolyte of Warrior would be so harsh a trainer?"

"Who's complaining now, Brother dear?" Grain countered sweetly, earning himself a pillow thrown across the room.

"You're not the one getting most of his attention. I have the shield essence, remember?"

"Oh no! I can conjure a super magical glowing shield which will only grow stronger along with me. And now I have to learn how to use it."

"Through the not so gentle ministrations of a bronze-ranker," Scythe retorted in turn at his brother's sarcasm. They kept trading light barbs back and forth for a while before falling silent again. This time it lasted for several minutes, and Scythe thought that Grain might have fallen asleep before that notion was dispelled by his next words.

"Scythe?"

"Hmm?"

"Thank you."

"Huh?"

"Thank you. For coming with me. For looking out for me. You've done it for so long now, and nobody would have held it against you if you wanted to go off and try your own thing now that I can walk again. But you're here. With me. In a new city far from home. With awesome magical powers that are… honestly a bit frightening too. So thanks." As the words spilled out of Grain, Scythe felt his chest tighten slightly at his brother's rare moment of grounded earnestness.

So he suppressed his first instinct - making a sarcastic comment that someone had to look after Grain so that he didn't go do something stupid - and instead rolled over to look at his brother.

"We're in this together, Grain. Legs or not, I'd still want to protect you. And now… Well, we can just both protect each other, no? You can be our gateway to the world, and I'll be the boundary to keep the bad parts away."

"I… Yes. I like the sound of that."

"So, how are our newest pair of members doing, little Kite?" Walker asked as he found the younger man seated in meditation in the garden behind the guildhall, having just emerged from a nearby tree.

"Well, Uncle, you've no doubt felt their struggle and determination. Don't think I haven't felt your aura sweep by every once in a while."

"Heh. It's dangerous to have the younger generation surpass you, as it's glaring evidence that I'm not as subtle as I think I am."

"Perhaps I should suggest to Spring that the two of you should schedule some more time in meditation?"

"Perish the thought. Our schedules are jam-packed enough as they are now that we have more regular meetings with the local branch directors and city lords where we can't just send you instead."

"Well, as to your question then," Kite said with a chuckle, "both Grain and Scythe have been working hard."

"Even the portal boy won't go the way of cores then?"

"No, especially not after his legs have been restored."

"Shame. Given the cost of those essences, I might have slept easier if he took less risks. But I suppose it's for the best too. That magic will be part of him forever, and anyone should be allowed to decide on their own if they wish to truly climb towards the heavens."

"Indeed. We wouldn't want to stymie Grain's growth either," Kite agreed.

"His aura is so vibrant now. Hopefully the truths of the world won't leave it too badly bruised. We'll see where his awakening stones lead him, but from what we've seen so far I suspect a lot of spells and potential."

"His brother agreeing to the boundary confluence was fitting too, both poetically and functionally. Earth, shield, balance… It speaks well of his character to go for those. Still planning to make sure that they have a proper team?"

"If they don't object. I'd say that we should try and pair them up with at least two others," Kite mused.

"Perhaps even someone with the vessel confluence? Someone to ferry the group around while Grain widens his available set of portal destinations."

"Hmm, I believe Spring mentioned one among the latest batch of members. Let's have them take on some contracts together once the two are trained up a bit and have gotten their badges. See if they'll mesh well. That just leaves something more offensive or a healer. Preferably both, although that isn't the most common path."

"Let us give it time then. If we leave them room to grow, Fortune will hopefully provide," Kite said, smiling before his features took on a slightly chagrined expression.

"But let's also have at least a bronze-ranker watching over them in the early days, no? Fortune has been kind to us so far, but she does like to help those who help themselves. And those who prepare for any eventuality."

"Oh heavens! Kite! I can see it all the way from here!" Dragonfly shouted, pointing off into the distance while leaning precariously from the side of the ship pulled by Glint above the treetops.

"Many hands make light work. Add some magic into the mix… Well, the results speak for themselves," Kite agreed, following the gaze of his intended. They were at the final stretch before reaching their family compound, Grain and Scythe left behind in Convergence to continue their training under the watchful eyes of their instructors before taking on the mantle of adventurers.

While part of Kite wanted to stay close and watch over the pair, he knew that they had to be allowed to grow on their own much as he himself had done. But given that the guild now comprised a good majority of the sectless essence-users of the northern part of the kingdom, they would not want for company either.

Thus, it was time for him and Dragonfly to start looking more towards their own paths, projects and duties, leaving it to Fortune's providence to reveal whether the guild's investments would bear fruit in time. One such project had just come into view, and the changes in a mere few weeks proved quite drastic. In this case, said project was their home. Or, more specifically, what used to be the guest house Dragonfly had been given and where Kite had spent most of his time.

That house was now thoroughly transformed; its bottom floor expanded all the way back towards the nearby cliff before rising up its face like a tower of wood and lacquer halfway merged into the stone. Two floors had turned to ten, capped by what was to be the pair's bedroom at the very top with a panoramic view over the whole compound and its surrounding lands.

"To think that our story began in my little cabin outside Master Force's house back in Gilded… And now we have this! Oh, I can't wait to see the sunrise from up there in the mornings!" The work was equally impressive from up close too, revealed once the party had landed and disembarked, with the fine woods being carefully worked into carved designs featuring different kinds of living beings; from birds - kites prominent among them - down to thick-shelled beetles and graceful dragonflies.

"You certainly didn't lie when you told us that the extensions would be… well, extensive," Auntie Crow noted wryly, her, Dove and little Raven having joined the group as they started inspecting their new abode.

"Some of the locals like calling our compound 'The Aviary', and this perch will just keep reinforcing that notion. And you surely seem to have paid the construction crew well enough, given that they worked like they were possessed to have it ready in time. Dove here even supplied them with several batches of stamina and mana pills."

"Well, I'd say it's high time to take a proper look from above, then," Kite replied with a wide smile.

"One should at least appreciate hard work, even when commissioned." The bottom floor, being the most sprawling one, housed an impressive entry hall branching off into several smaller sets of rooms for guests. One of those was already occupied, with Sprite's possessions waiting for her, and the others allowed them to house even more guests in comfort. From the entry hall, a set of winding and impressively carved wooden stairs let one ascend the height of the tower, with most other floors being a single room.

From sitting rooms to a meditation chamber to more bedrooms to an armory; the building was still only sparsely furnished while waiting for more deliveries, but the interiors still clearly displayed the purpose of each room. And finally, at the top extending just above the cliff, the bedroom awaited them.

Tall and wide windows let one see far in each of the four directions, one huge bed occupying most of the floor along with several of Kite's and Dragonfly's more personal possessions, with the floral arrangement Kite had brought back from Vitesse set tastefully on a small table.

"I took the liberty of starting with the arrays of this floor and working my way downward. It just felt… prudent," Auntie Crow noted with a raised eyebrow, both Dragonfly and Auntie Dove blushing to varying degrees at her insinuations.

"It will be some time before I've finished the whole building and worked it into the infrastructure of the rest of the compound, but that is at least only a matter of patience. And I would even dare call that a virtue of mine."

"Again, I must thank you, dear Auntie," he said, draping his arm around Dragonfly's shoulders.

"Together, we keep building quite the foundation for our future. Fortune preserve us, but I believe that we might need it more than we know in the years to come."

"Adventurer. You seem to be feeling a bit tired, and that's saying something for a silver-ranker," Anasta Temren noted as Kite entered her office in Heavenward.

"Director," Kite greeted, smiling a bit wanly at being so readily seen through.

"A day spent posturing and trying to discern all the angles the people around you are aiming for tends to do that. I honestly did not expect a spot in the Grand Proving to come with so much politicking."

"Which only goes to show that you didn't know what you got yourself or your guild into with such a public stunt," Anasta remarked before her voice softened ever so slightly.

"But honestly, few do. Life will always find a way to surprise us, as a deed that was right in the moment makes unexpected ripples in the pond that is society. A piece of advice from someone who has been in your shoes, as I was when I first arrived here; when thrown into the deep end, you are always bound to suffer a few bites and nibbles. Look past them and towards the island you aim to build for yourself and do so with decisive determination, and you shall do fine in the long term."

"I thank you for sharing your wisdom, Branch Director. Hopefully, it shall sustain me through this winter," Kite replied.

"And while I may not have my lingering injury as a reason to avoid duels anymore, to clash in the rings and arenas is honestly way more relaxing." This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

"And in that, adventurer, I envy you. It would be nice to drag some of the more frustrating players of the city into the arena and settle things, but most of the gold-rankers here are too savvy to let me. But I digress, as that was not why I called you here," Anasta finished, putting the badge of an auxiliary adventurer on the table and sliding it towards Kite.

"Oh? It's done then," Kite noted, picking it up and inspecting the token.

"It is. It won't carry her signature and therefore no tracking. Any kind of real scrutiny from the Adventure Society will have the disguise crumble like cobwebs before the flame, but it should help your… asset to have some kind of face legitimacy while moving around the capital, as well as help my people identify her. Those in the know have already been informed and won't pry deeper into this Bright Day and her goings on."

"Wait, Bright Day?" Kite asked, catching the name.

"She needed a name on the roster, so I took the liberty. It felt nondescript enough. Do you disapprove?"

"No, director," Kite chuckled as he stowed the badge.

"Bright Day will do just nicely. You can just call it a… study of contrasts."

"Good, then our business has concluded, at least for now," the branch director said, rising.

"What awaits you now? More soirées and other chances to be measured by the affluent and powerful of the capital?"

"Fortune be praised, I actually have the call of duty to serve as an excuse. Gauntlet sent word of a contract yesterday, so Glint and I will portal out this evening. Something about an ongoing investigation nearing its end, so it is time for us door-kickers to be called to action. And hopefully, a little favor of mine has been cashed in to provide me with another opportunity."" Gaze of Glorious Destruction!"

Rezzek reveled in the feeling of channeling his god's powers, the mana coursing through his body turned into an act of worship as it coalesced in his eyes before shooting out as a pair of annihilating beams. They didn't stay as coherent lines though, instead disintegrating into a wider, roiling cloud of pure havoc which Rezzek swept around the great cavern that was one of seven chambers of their hidden bastion.

Everywhere his gaze passed, misguided adventurers - blind to the inevitable glory that was Destruction - raised their feeble protections or evaded the disintegrations. The latter were the wiser, as Rezzek's spell was very, very good at breaking through defenses. But that was of no matter, as his brothers and sisters were already launching annihilating prayers of their own in defense of the ritual at the bastion's forge, so it was only a matter of time before- Rezzek's spell shattered.

"Wha-" It was only belatedly that he managed to process what had happened, as while he had been busy with his act of destructive worship, a stalagmite as wide as a cottage had suddenly exploded to his left to reveal another of the adventurers shooting towards Rezzek like an arrow freshly released from the string.

One swing of his chiming staff was all it took to cause the Glorious Gaze of Destruction to fizzle and die, but there was no time to further address that heretical indignance as four more arms materialized from the man's back; curving blades striking.

"Grand Repulsion! Damning Halo!"" Ward!" To Rezzek's frustration, his first spell failed to properly shove the man back and create some space, earning him three slashes in quick succession that oddly left only a stinging chill rather than the painful tearing of flesh.

His Damning Halo - a more close-ranged destructive expression of his sin essence - did elicit a response though as the light of Rezzek's judgment that burst from him was met with translucent barriers that quickly begun cracking, and he was just about to follow it up when one of the biggest pieces of shattered stalagmite suddenly crashed into his side like a runaway cart.

It took him only a moment of stunned inaction to shake off the impact though, the stone already disintegrating from a touch spell before it could even hit the cave wall, and Rezzek righted himself in the air upon fiery wings.

A glance from his higher perch revealed many things that were quickly computed by his peak silver-ranked mind: the telekineticist who had no doubt thrown that last boulder now doing the same towards several of Rezzek's brothers and sisters, the many-armed, armored man charging in pursuit upon conjured squares of force and - perhaps most concerningly - the battle in the cavern not going as well for his people as Rezzek had previously thought. Thus, it was time to bring out the big blessings.

Friendly fire was only to be considered a mild inconvenience in Destruction's eyes after all, so Rezzek was sure that he would be forgiven.

"Stoke thy smoldering hearts and accept the burning arrows of incandescence. Heart-seeking firestorm!" As a celestine, having inherited his family's bright citrine hair and eyes, Rezzek's blessings from his essences and awakening stones leaned towards the special abilities common to his race. This had held especially true for the powers awakened from his divine essence of Destruction, with all of the powers acting to support the damaging spells and powers from his other essences.

Some were passive while others, often saved for his most potent spells, came to life just at a time like this, and the fireball that gathered above Rezzek's head rapidly grew in intensity and vicious killing intent as the burning sphere seemed to awaken an almost sentient hunger to sear and devour.

Thus, he couldn't help but grin with fervent, devout glee as he let go of the spell while the adventurer with the spirit arms had yet to reach him, ignoring the odd stinging blows that somehow appeared in the very air around him to strike. Then the sphere burst into hundreds of fiery tendrils, each locking onto the aura of one of those below. Rezzek tried to exclude his people, but the pressure of the moment only allowed for so much.

Still, it would be worth it when the chain of detonations that would soon follow started painting the cave with-"Dissolve the patterns of power! Wall!" The adventurer once again proved himself a supreme heretic as some kind of half-seen wave caused a wide swathe of the flaming tendrils to dissolve. It was a blow to the spell's efficiency, sure, but not enough to put a stop to the destructive momentum that would follow.

At least it did not look that way until the shorter, single-word spell caused dozens of rectangular barriers to form around the room and started moving. Some converged on the exposed flanks of the adventurers while others flew to intercept incoming tendrils of destructive fire, weakening those they could not block outright.

What would have been a crescendo of explosions as flaming power detonated inside those present was instead left as a sparse, uneven rhythm where most of those hit were Rezzek's own people whom the adventurer had not been kind enough to protect.

"No, no, noooooooooo!" Rezzek howled, sending more flames of judgment towards his foe while his enhanced eyes darted around for a plan. This heretic had to fall, his presence simply negating too much of Destruction's great work. He could not be allowed to reach the main ritual chamber or the nucleus of annihilation they were creating might be at risk.

But as their furious melee continued, neither the incendiary powers of Rezzek's fire essence, the castigations of his sin essence nor the enhanced perceptions of his eye essence could pierce his foe's defences even when boosted by the blessing of Rezzek's god. And as the battle in the cavern kept deteriorating, there was in the end only one viable option.

"The great work must continue!" Rezzek shouted as his body lit up with mana to once again drive off the pesky adventurer. But this time it was not a desperate defense, but a decoy.

"Let the hand of Destruction judge us all!" Then, with another burst of mana, he activated the explosives set all along the roof of the cavern. In the roar of falling stone that followed, Rezzek thought that he could hear the glorious laughter of his god.

"We really have to stop meeting like this," Amica Steiner noted with a note of clear sarcasm, as only darkness and crushing masses of stone surrounded them until Kite reached in and produced a glow crystal.

"On the other hand, we are proving old hands at this by now," Kite countered, conjuring the barriers of Leyline warding to form an almost-cylinder around them in the space kept free from debris by Amica's telekinesis.

"Yours or mine?"

"We took yours last time, so I'll pick up the bill today," Amica said, reaching into a spatial bag and producing a conical contraption the size of a small barrel. It had several moving, circular segments along its sides, and Kite withdrew a few of the panels in the roof of their little nook of safety among the rubble to let Amica place the artifact and activate it by feeding it a few spirit coins.

What turned out to be a drill lit up as lines of power were sent outward from the rotating discs that started carving a tunnel upwards through the rubble while a special dimensional storage at the drill's base gobbled up the clattering rocks and the like which fell into the obsidian-like passage created as the beams glassed the surrounding materials into rigid solidity.

Kite had a similar artifact stored away in his own bags, the pair having commissioned them together after the third time a contract with Gauntlet left them buried alive in the aftermath of a detonated ritual or a too enthusiastic gold-ranked battle.

"So, what´s new? Been a few months since our last contract together," Amica noted, pulling out a pair of comfortable chairs while Kite had already produced a tea kettle and cups, filling it with the latest blend he had procured.

"Well, do I have a tale for you this time," Kite noted.

"And I am most pleased that Sir Ilmaril managed to get us onto the same contract too, as I have something I wanted to ask of you. Two things, actually; an invitation and an opportunity, even if the latter might also be me asking for a favor. So we'd best start with your end of things, as my telling might be quite lengthy."

"Me? Nothing too fancy. I've been portaled all over the place, and Sir Ilmaril has hinted that they might even be considering having me build a team as an inner member of the task group," Amica said with feigned indifference.

"What? That is amazing! My congratulations!" Kite said, impressed. While it was certainly possible, most of the inner members of the task group were elites born and raised close to the Adventure Society as an organization.

"Then you must really have exerted yourself to show such excellence."

"Well, a girl can be dedicated when she puts her mind to it. And as my mind is in a much better place these days, it turns out that there were a lot of untapped resources," Amica replied, accepting the compliments with smug grace.

"Just for that, I'll have you know that you would be one of my top picks for such a team, even though I suspect that you have too much going on at home for such a commitment."

"While true, I am still honored by the sentiment," Kite said while pouring her some tea. Around them, their little chamber was slowly being lifted upwards through Amica's telekinesis and Kite controlling his barrier in the wake of the drill above.

"So? Out with it then? What new plots have you gotten tangled up with in that kingdom of yours? You can't just leave me hanging like this after dropping such a massive hint."

"Hah, my apologies. Well, you remember the gates left behind by one of the previous rulers of Hua-Xi?"

"One of the things that left you with those tattoos of yours?"

"Indeed. Well, it turned out that they weren't as unassailable as one might suspect…" Kite began, proceeding to tell Amica the whole story of the hunt that had led up to them finding the infiltrated gate and having accepted Gleam's call to action, the adventures and clashes inside as well as the aftermath which left him meeting both the Queen of Jade and Sky as well as the current King of Hua-Xi.

"-so with something major seemingly planned for the Grand Proving, Branch Director Temren offered for me to lead one of the groups that will be trying to stop said plan from reaching fruition and drag as many of Discord's followers, allies and plots into the light as possible. And while it won't be as impressive as leading a team of Gauntlet's inner circle, I would still like to offer you a spot. Your skills, aura strength and path - sorry, powers - would make you ideal."

"Huh…" Amica said, trying to take it all in as she processed the story and its implications.

"That does sound like something quite up my alley. You can count me- wait… there's more to this, isn't there?" she asked, apparently having picked up on Kite bracing himself to tell her of an important detail to this particular contract.

"Well…" Kite began, trying to find the right words.

"There is one matter of which you need to be aware, one which might be enough to make you reconsider. Remember Dancer on the Broken River? The acolyte of Pain who joined us in the defenses against the three sects trying to push the guild out of Convergence?"

"The one with the chains? Yes, I- Wait… She's coming too, isn't she?" Amica asked, voice shifting to an exasperated groan as she put the pieces together.

"Yes," Kite confirmed, earning himself a sigh.

"But… why? Heck, scratch that, I do get it from what you've told me but still… She's worshipping Pain, Kite. Pain! Torturing, delights in agony, fosters sadistic freaks who like to…" The outburst faded in front of what was no doubt a most horrible memory, but Kite was impressed when he saw Amica put the palms of her hands together before instantly collecting her shuddering aura. It wasn't the rigid shove of suppressed emotions either, but more like a rippling pond suddenly just turning still.

He let her sit there in silence for a while, before she eventually opened her eyes after brushing away a loose strand of strawberry blonde hair.

"I'd like to say I know you well enough by now, Kite, so I'll try and give you the benefit of the doubt. Can you tell me more, at least?"

"Of course," Kite said, happy to see Amica returning to her tea.

"River has always been a bit of a terrifying presence, removed from social convention, sympathy and most other things that make for a pleasant interaction. But her aura strength and zeal in hunting down the agents of Discord is so far without peer. That isn't the only thing though… It's… I can't put my finger on it exactly, but she seems to have changed a bit too, especially since our time spent inside the gate.

And while I believe that we will never see eye to eye in regards to many things, I feel that it is another reason to include her in this. Although I suppose that pales in comparison to Soaring Soul's verdict on the matter, which was quite the terrifying experience for River, I assure you."

"Wait? That diamond-ranker? Oh right, you said that everyone from within the gate got invited. What did she say?"

"Well, her examination felt about as gentle as a tidal wave, but her verdict was clear; River does not hold duplicity or falsehood in her heart and actions. She is what she seems in her dedication to this cause. That in and of itself was probably what convinced the branch director to agree to at least overlook her presence."

"But now you've told me. Wouldn't it mean trouble if I started leaking it?"

"Well… Will you?"

"... No… No, I won't," Amica said with a sigh before shooting Kite a glare.

"How could I when you look so bloody earnest and trusting? Bah! Fine! I'll still come."

"Even with River being present?"

"Even with this River being present," Amica said, finishing her tea.

"Look, I don't trust her or her ilk. But I do trust you, Kite. You showed patience with me when I was at my worst in some regard, so I'll be sure to make some effort in showing the same to this important cause of yours."

"Thank you, Amica," Kite said, relieved.

"Truly. Having you there will be a great boon."

"I have said that I wanted to visit this kingdom of yours, have I not? Might as well take the chance."

"Well, in regards to that, there might be an opportunity for you even earlier than that. How would you feel about attending a wedding?"

"Wait, your wedding? You and Dragonfly?"

"Indeed. As I said, we made quite an important decision before leaping into that storm."

"Hah! Now that's romantic! Gods, I need to get out more. But on the other hand, the contracts with Gauntlet are perhaps the best places to eventually meet someone who'd leap into a murderous storm with me."

"Shall I take that as a yes?"

"Well, of course! I'm looking forward to it! Trust me, I'm great at parties!"

"Oh I have no doubt," Kite agreed, smiling.

"But as it seems that we're reaching the surface soon where I can still feel some lingering conflict, perhaps it would be best to work out the details later and focus more on the more violent party at hand?"