When their progress was reported during their regularly scheduled supply delivery, an elderly gentleman in a dark yellow shirt came with the following supply run. Corrin escorted the man into the main structure and displayed that the doors were opening. The man seemed nice, but he did not stay. He left with the supply wagon drivers to go back to civilization.

The adults spent a lot of time at every doorway after finding the illusion “open” symbol. In addition to the doors inside the main structure, they found out that they could open the medium-sized structure as well as four of the smaller structures. It took them too long in her opinion to try the other buildings.

When it was discovered that the smaller buildings were barracks, she was excited thinking that they would move into those well-furnished buildings. It took her asking why they hadn’t moved yet for her to understand their thinking.

“Absolutely not! We will not tarnish those ancient buildings with our existence. Those buildings are to stay pristine for further research.” is what her father said when she asked.

She had forgotten that the buildings were all ancient. With the enchantments on the buildings, they look like they were built yesterday. All of the furniture and sheets inside the buildings were in pristine condition. The archaeologist in her was appalled at her even considering living inside such a historic find.

A larger than normal supply caravan showed up two months after the older gentleman left. There were at least a hundred people who had just shown up at their doorstep. Many of the people in the group were wearing the yellow of researchers, but there were also other colors mixed throughout the caravan.

There was a group of fifteen people wearing green. In this case, green represented both builders and cooks. This group came expecting to have to build housing and then have someone to cook for all of the people they brought with them. Not everyone was paired off in marriage. There were some women in green, but the majority were men.

Less represented, but still present, were other colors. Purple was for the farmers, and foresters that came along. There was also a married pair in orange who would be taking over watching the children while the adults are working.

Unfortunately, also accompanying the party was a Noble in a yellow robe. He had the same expression and attitude of every Noble she had met so far, full of themselves and not wanting to be there. Several servants were brought to attend to the Noble.

When the Noble saw our housing conditions, he started to throw a fit. He had no doubt expected to evict us and live in our homes. “I can not live in this run-down shack! There isn't even a proper roof on this place! How ridiculous!” He looked to be on the verge of having an existential crisis when the older man in dark yellow from before appeared at his side.

“Sir, we have recently been able to uncover the means to open some of the doors in the other structures. I believe one of the smaller buildings would be more to your liking, it was once a barracks but I am sure a nicer set of rooms can be located for you.” The old man was all but begging near the end.

Violet knew that the old man did not see the barracks himself but read a report that was submitted about them. She was saddened that the pristine buildings were going to be contaminated with everyone moving in them.

Quite a few changes happened with the newcomers, Corrin was told that he was a grunt and no longer in charge of anything. He seemed to have been expecting such an outcome because she didn't notice him being upset over the prospect. Having a Noble to cater to would no doubt complicate things quite a bit.

Thankfully, it was decided that everyone would move into the same barracks to lessen the impact of them staying there. There were enough rooms within the barracks that every family was able to have separate rooms. Each section off of the main entryway was for a different color. Eight sections were put to use in the barracks. White was delegated to the servants rather than separating the children from their parents. The section with larger rooms and the reception desk at the front was delegated to Black for the Noble’s use.

Contrary to what she thought of a barracks, there weren't rows and rows of bunk beds all placed in the same room. Each doorway off the main room led to a hallway lined with quite a few rooms. The rooms each had a bed and a tall dresser in an eight-foot by eight-foot area. Violet was assigned a room located next to the room her parents were assigned.

She was quite happy to have her own room with a real bed. While the bed she was using was not overly uncomfortable, the bed in her new room was like sleeping on a cloud. It was not the box spring mattress she had on Earth, it was closer to memory foam. The foam-like material adjusted to her body heat so she would never be too warm or too cool at night.

Next to the door on the inside of the room, there was a small touchscreen to control the level of lighting in her room. It looked like the signal indicator on a cell phone, full bars meant having the light on bright but one bar was like having a nightlight on. She could not find a way to turn the light completely off.

To further defile the barracks that they moved into, an enterprising individual in blue clothing hammered nameplates next to each door. Each nameplate held a paper with the name of the individual that was assigned to that room.

The next day, the Noble was in a terrible mood. He looked like he had not gotten any rest the previous night. Looking around the gathering hall, she estimated well over three-quarters of the people here were also having problems with barrier sickness. A man and a woman wearing red were making their rounds to check on people. It looked like they were unaffected by the sickness but they explained to the group that it is well known that barrier sickness does exist and if left untreated, they would eventually die from it. The only known treatment for barrier sickness was leaving the area.

A caravan with supplies and new people would arrive in a week. All those affected by the sickness would be able to leave with that caravan. Hearing this upset Violet, the pair of Nobles that sent her initial group here knew about such sickness and sent them here anyway. She hoped that the two groups that left were not punished for leaving early but she didn't have high hopes of it.

After breakfast was over, all of the children were rounded up and taken to a room that was set up as a classroom. Usually, children follow their parents to their jobs and learn from them while at the workplace. It was decided that children should not be inside such important buildings and so teachers were brought with them to occupy the children while the parents were at work.

This was terrible news for Violet. She was very close to unlocking another aspect. The doors to the Noble area were guarded at night so sneaking out was all but impossible now. Thankfully she had practiced her Disguise Self aspect well enough that her mark was hidden even while she was asleep.

[Magic]

Type

%

Aspect

Illusion

15%

Illusion

96%

Disguise Self

Illusion

38%

Decoy

Her Decoy aspect was a lot of fun to play with. She could duplicate herself quite convincingly. The main drawback that she found so far was that while her decoy could interact with objects to touch and move things, if she tried to touch the decoy, her hand would go right through it as if it wasn’t there. As she gained synchronization with the ability, she was also able to see through her decoy’s eyes. She hadn't been able to make it speak yet, but she could feel that the ability is not too far out of reach.

Another thing she learned about her Decoy aspect is that she didn't need to make a copy of herself. She was able to make the decoy become another person or even an animal if she tried hard enough. The decoys that were not of herself took more mana to control so she would be more limited on using that variant.

With her overall synchronization at 15%, she felt she was just one or two percent off from one of her aspects bumping it up to 16% and the ability for her to gain another aspect. She had already decided she wanted Cloaking for her next aspect. There were quite a few more people around that her usual sneaking would not be enough anymore.

By the end of the week, Violet was no closer to gaining access to the secret mural room. She had not been allowed to go anywhere near the main structure since all of the people arrived. Sneaking out proved to be impossible, there was a guard stationed outside the Noble’s door at all hours. She at one point used one of her decoys shaped like someone who wasn't here to test if the guard would catch her or not. As soon as she opened the door and stuck the decoy’s head out of the doorway, the guard immediately started moving toward her open door. She had quickly ducked her head back in and dissipated the decoy before the guard could see her closer.

That following day there was a general announcement that nobody was allowed out after curfew and punishment would be handed out for all those caught after hours. She did not try that stunt again.

All but fifteen people left with the caravan that arrived. Thankfully the Noble was included in that number. Unfortunately, a new Noble arrived with the caravan. She made a point of keeping her head down and staying away from any Noble that came. Those people who were able to tolerate the barrier were forced to move forward in their respective halls so that there were no empty rooms between inhabited ones. You could tell how long someone had been there based on the location of their room.

It took four months before a Noble came that was able to tolerate the barrier sickness. He was a younger man in black silken robes that had silver thread embroidery. We were to refer to him as Noble Cadmael Tennyson or Noble Tennyson for short. If I had one word to describe this noble, it would be a peacock. His black hair was always expertly styled and glued in place. He also wore black and green eyeliner to make his green eyes stand out.

After so long of having the freedom to just go outside and run around, Violet felt like a prisoner. Her every move was monitored and every minute of her day was planned out for her. The only time she was allowed to see the sky was when it was time to run laps around the building they were in. Thankfully Sky and Jade were both still with her and they stuck together.

Sky had a habit of sneaking out at night and coming to her room. They spent quite a few hours talking about hopes and dreams or complaining about all the new rules. Tonight, she had lost her patience and was down about not being able to reach her secret room. To make herself feel better, she decided that she was going to tell Sky about her magic.

“Sky, do you know what all of the symbols mean?”

“Mom says each symbol stands for a type of magic, but we aren't supposed to talk about it. She even has a poem to remember them all by. Do you want to hear it?”

“Yes please! I’ve never heard it before.” She truly hadn't heard it before. While her mother liked to sing a lot, they were usually songs about people or the weather.

“The symbols and colors of magic are mighty

Black swirl brings mystery with illusion

Red diamond bring passion with fire

Orange square brings the strength of the earth

Yellow triangle brings a breeze to the air

Green leaf brings growth and nature

Blue teardrop brings flowing water

Purple star brings curiosities of space and time

White heart brings us health with healing

Remember well and always be amazed”

“Honestly I think she made it up herself. I’ve read better poetry in the books they make us read in class.”

Laughing she replied with “Yeah, that was pretty bad. But it helps me understand what each symbol means at least.”

“Do you know what it means if someone has a symbol like that on their skin?”

“I’ve never seen anyone that has a symbol like that. They probably painted it on themselves to make themselves feel special or something.” He replied.

“I heard my mom talking to dad and she said that where I was born, there was a baby with a green leaf on his shoulder. A noble came and took the baby and mother away.” She didn't think he would believe that she remembered this happening.

“The first time I fell into that secret room we visited, a symbol showed up on my belly.”

“Nope! I’ve seen your tummy and there is nothing on it! I’m not falling for that.” He laughed at me thinking I was trying to trick him.

“No Sky, it's the truth! The magic I got was the black swirl of illusion and the first aspect I unlocked was Disguise Self.” Dropping her illusion, she showed him the swirl symbol on her belly.

“Violet, you can't just gain magic because you fell in a room with a fancy mural. I didn't get magic when I fell in there.”

She had expected the problem with revealing her magic was going to be convincing him that he needed to hide it. Letting out a sigh, she said “Ok don't freak out with what you see next.”

Using her Decoy aspect, she created a doll-sized version of herself next to him.

He of course freaked out, jumping up and running toward the door. Thankfully he did not yell or make any noise when he saw my decoy doll.

“No wait! I did that. The aspect I gained when you fell in the room with me was Decoy. It allows me to create a puppet that I can control.”

She then changed the puppet to one that looked like him. This got his interest. He slowly got closer to her doll. She made the doll wave at him and he waved back.

“THAT IS SO COOL!”

“Shhhh! Don't wake anyone up!”

“Oh sorry!” He then started talking a mile a minute asking her to make her decoys into different people and when he discovered she could make animals he was beside himself.