Chương 119: Arc 2 - Chapter 61

With the vote settled, Fritz gave out his next orders.

"We'll rest up, get all of you healed, and make sure you have at least one activation of your defensive Treasures," he stated.

"Rosie, your ring will also need to be filled," he added.

"The tactical value is too great not to use." Those with such Treasures approached and the very last of their gold was spent.

"There it all goes," Bert bemoaned.

"We'll be rewarded heavily at the top, especially since this will be a Golden Climb. And as long as this isn't your fourth time here, you'll get the Silver Climb chests," Lauren said.

"So don't complain so much, I hear the reward is quite generous."

"How generous?" Toby asked.

"Well, bronze gives out fifteen gold triads, Silver rewards thirty and Gold are said to hand out sixty. That, and the seeds, which can be very lucrative," Lauren explained. Fritz almost frowned, sixty triads was thirty less than what they had received from their Golden Chests in the Sunken Spire.

"Seeds? Like from aberrant beasts?" Toby asked.

"Yes, but these come pre-refined with the choice of an Ability. The better the quality the more choices you can pick from to store within the Seed," Lauren said.

"Though I've heard Bronze Seeds don't even give you a choice, just give you something random. Usually related to the Spire in question."

"Do you get these same rewards if you Climb the same spire over and over?" Cal asked, seemingly wondering if he could make a fortune on seeds.

"No, repeat climbs only give the bronze reward. Without the Seeds," Lauren said.

"I'm surprised you don't know all about this. It should be common knowledge for Climbers."

"We weren't all set to be climbers," Jane said.

"Didn't have that hope, or even the comfort of that hope."

"And it's easy to miss these things when you're focused on survival," Toby added. Lauren considered this and nodded once.

"Anything else we should know about the precipice Well?" Fritz asked. Lauren shrugged.

"There are the Awards, but I don't know much about them. I think one of them gives benefits to swimming, that would be the bronze one. As for Silver and Gold, we'll just have to find out."

"What are Awards?" Jane asked, quirking her head. Lauren looked like she was going to chide them on their lack of knowledge again, but seemed to think better of it and explained, "They're like Abilities. Passives mostly."

"Will it be a choice like the others?" Cal asked.

"No, you just get them all. Though there are only three slots, one for each ranking, Gold, Silver and Bronze."

"What happens if you already have Awards?" Bert asked, as innocently as he could. Fritz could see Lauren suppress an eye-roll at the almost admission.

"If one already has Awards, say from Climbing another, perhaps secret, Spire," Lauren began sweetly.

"Hah, as if something like that exists," Bert blurted.

"Right, Cal."

"Right," Cal hedged. This lie might have worked if the team didn't already know him so well and have their own suspicions, as it was it just served to make him, and by extension Fritz, look more guilty of hiding such a secret. Lauren ignored them both and continued in that same saccharine tone, "If someone had such Awards, you would still receive them and have the chance to swap them out immediately. If not they're added to your store of Awards and become inactive."

"Are they stuck like that? Can you change them up if you wanted to?" Bert asked.

"You can swap them out. Though you need a Well and there's a refresh period of nine days between each," Lauren said.

"For someone that claims not to know much about Awards, you do seem to know a lot," Fritz noted.

"Thank you," Lauren replied.

"No. Thank you," Bert said.

"So if you keep Climbing different Spires you'll eventually hoard a bunch of useless inactive Awards?" Fritz asked.

"Not useless, they're used for Ability Ascension. Like seeds can be," Lauren explained.

"Though we're far away from that, you need to Evolve an Ability to its limit before you Ascend it." This was news to Fritz, and he wondered at the implications, even if, as she had said, they were far from such things. Did he make a mistake using his Golden Seed as he did? It didn't really matter, what was done was done. Though it still felt frustrating to not have all this information that Lauren seemed to take for granted.

Not for the first time, he despaired, knowing that, if his father had lived, these truths, and more secrets besides, would have been his.

"What does that all mean though?" Rosie asked, scratching at a small patch of scales on her neck.

"You get a bunch of free passives," Cal summarised.

"Ah, that's good!" Rosie said.

"Yes," Lauren agreed.

"It is good."

"Can't wait to see what our first Awards will be," Bert said, fooling no one, save, perhaps, Cal and Rosie. Inwardly, Fritz sighed, he'd have to draw an oath from each of them regarding those secrets. Even if they could simply go back on it, it might give them pause. He knew it would, were it him.

"I wonder what it would give us, are they always the same for each team?" Cal asked.

"Everyone on the same team will get the same Awards. The Bronze Award is always the same as well. As for the Gold and Silver ones, I heard that there's some small variation depending on what Floors and trials you triumphed over," Lauren provided.

"Maybe we'll get a fire one, due to the hidden door," George added.

"Unlikely to be fire," Lauren said with some disappointment.

"Though you may be right in that we could get some odder Awards than the usual."

"All thanks to our expert Scout," Bert proclaimed.

"And his heroic companion."

"Don't thank me all at once," Fritz said.

"In fact leave all the worship I'm due for the precipice. I'll be happy to hear it then."

"So beneficent," Lauren said blandly.

"What?" Rosie asked.

"Nevermind," Lauren sighed.

"Jane, your Lifewell should be all filled up by now, can you heal the team's lingering wounds?"

"Sure," she readily agreed. Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. Soon what injuries remained on he and Bert were healed with that pale, green thread. Then Jane aided the others, soothing the minor cuts and scrapes that hadn't been closed by the Well and they had been bearing with little complaint. They really were shaping up, hardened by the Climb, just as he was. When the healing was done and there was nothing left to address, the team took their rest.

Occupying themselves with whatever distraction they could find. Lauren and Jane struck up a stilted conversation. Fritz could tell Jane was intimidated by the striking woman, suspicious of her intentions, but she soon lowered her guard at a nudge from Toby. In minutes they were chatting amiably, about this and that, small gossip and tales of the streets seemed to intrigue Lauren when it was told from Jane's perspective. Fritz wasn't sure how he felt about this development.

It was good that Lauren might find a friend. He had a notion that she was lonely, as sometimes an ephemeral, cold breeze would blow around her. But did that friend have to be Jane? That could end messily. However, he quickly noticed a friendship that had the potential to be even messier. Bert and Rosie were sitting together and talking about some nonsense. Fritz could see faint, red sparks flitting between them. He frowned. That wasn't love or even affection, just lust.

It was said that there was no accounting for taste, but that didn't apply to Bert, for he had none to speak of. Fritz had half a mind to interfere and split the two wanton wretches up, when he spotted something else in the corner of his eye. He spun on the darting shadow and found... nothing. Again, he frowned.

"What's wrong?" Toby asked.

"Thought I saw something," Fritz said.

"What did you see?"

"It's gone," Fritz said. He shook his head.

"It doesn't matter." Toby shrugged.

"If you say so." Fritz sat and quickly found himself bored. He glanced around the room and discovered that none of the conversations going on were interesting. Looking for a distraction, he started rooting around in his pack. He pulled out the red gem from the library. He'd seen something in it before and now he wanted to take the time to intensely investigate it. Thankfully, no one interrupted him as he studied its fine, fascinating facets, both inside and out.

There was something to the lines, the angles and the shapes within. He felt like he was missing something, some crucial secret that when discovered would reveal all the knowledge hidden away in the gem's scattered scarlet depths. There was a puzzle there, one he could solve, given time. Hours passed and Fritz grew frustrated that the secret eluded him, he had only grasped it had something to do with light. Perhaps it needed a certain kind, like moonlight or firelight, or maybe the shining light of the sun.

All kinds of illumination he had no clear path to. Fritz heard a whisper right behind him. He turned to the speaker and found nobody there. Fritz frowned and put the gem away, the long period of focus had strained his eyes and his patience. He wished there was some space to move. He needed to pace. He always thought better while on his feet. Fritz stood and stretched, glancing around the room only to see similar restlessness suffusing Bert, Cal and Rosie.

They tapped feet and fingers, looked around aimlessly and sighed long weary sighs.

"Is it time for food yet?" Bert asked.

"Sure," Cal said sullenly.

"What's got you down?" Fritz asked. Cal shrugged and Fritz waited for him to speak.

"Feels like we're wasting time," he eventually said.

"We need the rest," Fritz said, even if he felt the same.

"We need to be at our best before we take on the last Floor."

"I know, just a feelin', it's probably wrong," he replied, pulling out his pan and waving at Lauren. The fire mage approached and heated the iron of the pan.

"It might be the spite," she posited.

"Can it do that?" Fritz asked.

"I don't know," she admitted.

"Though it wouldn't surprise me if it could mess with your emotions. If it can shroud Senses why not cloud our minds and spirits? We should ignore it, and Fritz is right, we need the rest, my legs are still killing me." Before Bert or Cal could make the ill-conceived offer of a massage, Fritz spoke up, "I think you have the truth of it, Lauren. We've barely been in this Well room a day and we're already itching to get out." She nodded.

"I just wish we had something to do," Bert complained.

"A game of dice or poker would keep our minds off it, even if we played for no stakes."

"I have some cards," Toby piped up.

"Why didn't you say so!?" Bert cried.

"Bring those beauties here." Toby obliged and soon most of the team had set up in a circle and cards were being dealt. Only two of them abstained. Lauren claimed she didn't know the rules and would watch and learn for now, while George said he didn't hold with gambling, that it was a path to ruin. Bert suggested it was because he always lost, which the man didn't gainsay. They decided to distribute the pearls Larry's crew had gathered and use them in place of coin or chips.

Swiftly, through skilful play and dastardly deceptions, Fritz began to gather a sizeable pile of the gleaming pearls. He bragged and boasted even as they accused him of cheating with his Senses, which he denied, though he was sure his Awareness was lending him an undeniable edge. Even through the spite's shrouding, he could see sparks and streams of near-invisible emotions hover around the others.

Excitement glowed, disappointment dripped and giddy anxiety bubbled as they played their hands and bluffed boisterously or benignly. Soon Lauren joined in the game, and Fritz was forced to split his share with her, mostly to allay the annoyance he'd attracted from all his wins. He gained the pearls back quickly though, as his only true opponent was Toby. The sneaky bastard could always tell when Fritz was bluffing or had a good hand.

He must have been cheating with his Sanguine Sight, spying on Fritz's very heart and its treacherous, rapid beat. Fritz began to think of the game as practice for hiding his reactions, slight as they may be. If he was ever going to face another member of the Guides Guild he would have to sand away all those tells and still any tics. Poker was as good a way as any to hone those instincts and daring deceptions. Especially when he saw that it wasn't just he and Toby abusing their Abilities for advantage.

The whole team was cheating in one way or another. The most obvious was Rosie, she would close her eyes and rely on her Awareness to judge whether to play her hand. Jane and Bert were employing their sleight-of-hand skills, empowered by enhanced Attributes, secreting cards on their person. Cal did something similar, depositing aces and face cards into his Personal Pack when he thought no one was watching.

Even Lauren was attempting to gain an advantage using her Heat Sense, though she didn't seem to have much luck with it. Fritz let the cheating pass, only speaking up when it was too egregious, too obvious and could be caught by a Scout with any modicum of ability. If he was training, they would be too. The hours passed, they ate, relaxed and rested as they needed. Eventually, it was time to move on, they had recuperated as much as was reasonable and the restlessness had reached a peak that had them all on edge.

The talking had taken on a dark tone and the various games of poker had nearly sprawled into full-blown fights. The already cramped quarters seemed to feel smaller and smaller, picking and poking at their resentments. When Cal and Toby had almost come to blows over some stupid argument about whether eels were fish or snakes, Fritz had called them to pack up and prepare to move out. When the team was distracted he fell into his Sanctum and quickly aligned his three Attributes. One to Perception, Focus and Awareness.

In six minutes the team stood before the eel Door, prepared as much as they could be.

"This is the last Floor," Fritz said.

"We only have to endure the spite for this very last stretch. We want to be through here as swift as may be. That means taking as few fights as is feasible."

"Yeah, we don't want to be stalled by snakes," Toby seethed.

"They're not snakes- " Cal began before Fritz cut them off.

"Silence!" He ordered. Toby glowered and Fritz continued, "This is serious, leave the petty squabble behind. Toby keep your mouth closed or we leave you two here. Got it!?" Toby nodded darkly. Only one more floor, Fritz told himself. He thought he heard a whisper and he spun on his team, glaring at their grim faces.

"What was that?" He asked.

"No one said anything," Lauren said. Fritz frowned. He'd been noticing these whispers and his team jumping at shadows, they seemed to be getting worse and he could only attribute them to the spite. Unless his team really were plotting against him. He shook his head, that was paranoia, and not his own, it felt different, somehow wrong. Fritz turned and faced the brown, almost muddy, sand ramp, then he led his team forward. His boots sank into the wet sand and squelched as he ascended.

Toby followed close behind, though his steps barely made a sound. When Fritz surfaced into the floor proper he was somewhat surprised by what he saw. They stood on a small island of dark sand amidst a shallow, still, muddy sea. Surrounding them on all sides there were pale, wiry trees, with tall, splayed roots that almost resembled hands, digging their fingers into the silt and salty water below. Branches creaked in the warm wind, and their yellow leaves rustled with their subtle swaying.

It was quiet, oppressively so, and even though he was finally free of the Well room's suffocating smallness, he felt that this forest's heavy air was only marginally better. The rest of the team appeared, staring around in mute disapproval.

"Mangroves," Lauren whispered, though in the silence of the forest it sounded like a hammer striking an anvil. Fritz winced, but turned and asked, "What's that?"

"A kind of forest, as you can see," she said softly.

"Grows by the sea. It's said that there were mangroves on the west shore of Rain City before the sea rose, drowning them."

"Really?" Fritz asked.

"A hundred years ago," she replied with a shrug.

"Do mangroves also grow mangoes," Bert asked quietly, licking his lips in anticipation.

"No," Lauren said.

"Or maybe. Who knows what the Spire has concocted for us." Fritz scented the air, and could definitely smell the sour pang of citrus, it came mostly from his left. He turned to face the smell, and through the skein of shadows cast by the overhanging branches, he could see bright scarlet and pink fruits in the distance, hanging off some far away trees.

"Over there," Fritz pointed.

"Fruit."

"Forget the fruit, where's the way out?" Jane hissed.

"Right, of course," Fritz said, realising he'd been distracted by his explorer's spirit. He pulsed his Awareness and felt... nothing. It was like he was in an impenetrable fog as far as his Senses were concerned. Fritz reached for the Door Dowsers tucked into his belt and pulled one free, then he activated it. He let the wand turn him in a sluggish circle until it pointed the way. His Awareness and Door Sense barely reacted, revealing nothing more than the direction of the Stairway.

Fritz knew it to be the spite stifling and smothering him, but he didn't despair, they had a way forward and he had two more dowsers. Once he had the facing, he checked his compass and found its metal needle spinning erratically. He sighed and put it away, it would be of no use on this Floor. And although it irked him to have to rely on the dowsers, he tried not to show that or his dawning doubt.

"This way," Fritz declared, hearing some sighs of relief.

"Good to know, I was worried that the spite would stop the dowsers from working," Lauren admitted. He was glad she felt that way, but he himself was more than merely worried about the dowser's lethargic response.

"Nothing can stop us," Fritz proclaimed.

"Now let's grab some of those tasty-looking fruits and set off towards the Stairway." He led them forward, striding into the muddy water, the shallow sea almost came up to his waist and he soon tripped on a buried root. He caught himself easily, Grace allowing his slip to look almost intentional. He smiled back to his team and put together his three-piece staff, which he used to prod the murky waters ahead of himself. He was surprised at the thing's usefulness.

When he had first taken the item he had thought it to be merely a prop, a falsehood to deceive his fellow Climbers so they would not suspect him and his Senses. He had intended to sell it on the outside, but now, experiencing its unexpected utility he knew he'd hang onto it. Fritz gripped the reassuringly solid metal and continued forward. Sloshing rather than striding they made their way through the mangroves, stopping before the tree bearing fruit.

Bert climbed it and began throwing down the strange bumpy red things. The team caught them but didn't dare eat one until Bert bit into one.

"Hmm," Bert hummed thoughtfully. They waited to see if there were any ill effects and for the man's judgement.

"Not poison. But weird," he admitted, taking another pensive bite. Without further encouragement, the team tasted their own fruits. They had a thick, sweet rind, chewy like dried meat, and the flesh below was sour and stringy. The syrupy juice stung Fritz's lips slightly and left the sensation of a light tingle coating his mouth.

"Oh!" Rosie said.

"I like this!" She chomped down on the fruit forcefully, then there was a crack and crunch. Rosie winced, and Fritz hoped what he had heard breaking wasn't her teeth. It wasn't. The woman spat out a two-inch stone into her hand, then kept spitting.

"Ah yuck, that's foul! Ah ouch, it hurts!" She cried and began to rinse her mouth with her waterflask. After some seconds, she stopped swishing and spitting.

"All better," she croaked,"I guess you shouldn't try and chew the seeds," Toby observed. Lauren wiped her lips with a handkerchief of sirensilk, and seemingly on a whim, pulled out her magic lens. She peered down at the fruit, and a flash of slight surprise lit her face.

"Definitely don't, the seeds have mana within," Lauren said.

"More than those lobster eyes."

"Are you saying they're magic fruits?" Bert asked.

"That is what I'm saying," Lauren said.

"Lucky us!" Bert cried.

"Lucky, lucky us, a food that rewards you for eating it, this must be paradise!"

"Yes, yes. Very lucky," Lauren said, still studying the fruit. Fritz thought he saw some shadow dart through the water and he spun to face it. There in the kicked-up silt was... nothing... again. Just the spite playing tricks on him. Or so he thought until he heard Toby yell.

"Watch out!"