Magistrate Nafir El-shareef – Right hand and court wizard to the emperor of Alocia

Feeling like he’d lost somehow Nafir left the inn. Vlad was certainly different to deal with from his usual, that was for certain. Even the man’s raven’s had, had that malicious gleam of intelligence in their eyes as the two had stared him down during their conversation. The fact the man could speak so calmly even with his injury made Nafir sure that torture would only serve to piss the man off rather than actually get anything constructive out of it.

The Dark elf worried the magistrate though, he’d been too eager to jump to the option of ending the boy that had taken his eye. Not that he could really blame the man, especially with the pain he was sure he’d been in during that event.

He was just glad he’d managed to put a stop to the situation before it got even uglier. He’d planed to step in sooner but a merchant had barreled into him trying to get a better look and messed up his concentration. Though he could near instantly cast spells it did take time to gather any useful amount of mana at times, especially in crowds as the mana was siphoned into the people around you as well.

The Melivica families young scion most likely earned the family an enemy not easily dealt with as they usually do. Assassination would just give the man the excuse to escalate things beyond normal. Nafir was sure the face of the capital might take a drastic shift if Vlad was given the excuse to go all out against the family. The man looked like he needed something to vent onto. He couldn’t help but smile a little.

He hurried his stride as he walked the streets of Veta on his way to the palace. He was sure he’d found someone that could suit his plans and just might help bring about the changes he wished for. Then again for this Vlad to be of any use to him, he’d need to have his soul healed.

Someone with the deathless title was very hard to kill or had someway to come back to life but he dreaded someone like that becoming the host to a void born. The creatures manifested around or inside those with souls so tattered they couldn’t work as souls anymore, named as such due to the eldritch and esoteric powers the things had and their drive to end anything living around them.

If such a thing manifested in a body that would come back if killed or a body that would spawn such things continuously was a scary thing to face. Just in case he’d start research on dealing with someone like this Vlad. As long as his soul was healed everything should be all right.

Rubbing his chin as he finally made it over to the palace he began to think on the other two he suspected to be reincarnators like he suspected Vlad to be. He seemed far too… knowing of the world around him. The first was the woman… or whatever he should call her. The newest cleric in the service of one of the gods of light, a lesser one known as Fovtavious, the god of medicine and the home hearth. He’d figured out through a few choice divination's and his information network that the one they knew as Camille Vannier had been known by the name Theodore Dutoti.

It had come to his attention when he interviewed another such reincarnator that had been chosen by a deity and apparently they got to change their bodies and even races at will. The world they came from certainly did seem a very strange and confusing one if men became women when given the chance.

He shook his head, that was a rabbit hole of thinking he didn’t want to get stuck in again. Then there was the other that was actually now running up to him. The blonde woman had a smile on her lips as her tomboyish good looks were only added to as she dressed like a man. Much to the head maids dismay as he knew she was rather adamant of trying to get miss Selma Helland into a dress.

Last time he saw the head maid he could swear she had prayed to the gods of light and made a vow to get Selma into a dress one of these days. He wished the maid luck, Selma was a willful young woman that was for certain.

Selma was the second type of visitor to Imerith from other worlds, the type summoned instead of reincarnated though both types were named the same by those in charge. According to her it might be easier to summon a person from her world with a talent for or able to choose a certain class simply due to the sheer number of people they had available.

“Magistrate Nafir.” She said with a smile as she greeted him on the hallway.

“Miss Helland, how are you this evening?” He said with a kindly smile and the two bowed respectfully to one another.

“I’m doing rather… well.” She started slowing down her speech as she looked at Nafir with a confused look, as if unable to put her finger on it. “Why do you feel so… cold?” She asked then and Nafir blinked?

“Cold?” He asked now about as confused as she was.

“Yeah it’s like a blanket over you this, cold feeling. Like a fire recently gone out.” She stated and Nafir noted the pale blue now coming into the white sclera of her eyes. He knew she was under the influence of her class, the oracle was such a rare class that they’d had to summon a wielder of it to their world. Even after two months the girl had shown a talent for languages and learned theirs in a month and had been living in the palace for those two months since her summoning.

“The void, tamed and redeemed at lights fall as the daughter takes the fathers place.” Her words echoed a little as they left Selma’s throat but Nafir’s brows furrowed and tried their damnedest to join between his eyes. This was a strangely worded oracle, usually they came in a poem like verse or two nothing as vague as this.

All of a sudden her head jerked back and light shone from her eyes, Nafir quickly lunged forwards and grabbed Selma by the abdomen and upper back to stop her from falling backwards in a heap. Her hands shot out and gripped his shoulders tightly, digging into him with strength he was certain she didn’t or shouldn’t possess.

“At First Lights fall the son of the void will die,

A daughter will rise instead as rightful heir.

The gods will curse and scream and wail from on high,

Their cries unanswered like many a prayer.

With steel and fire, they’ll march from the north,

their eyes aglow with power and lips dripping words most foul.

From the north they shall come son and daughter both,

Only at the wolf’s and its masters death shall they finally howl.”

At the end of her words she fell limp in his arms. He stared at her and a growing unease made itself known in his gut. If he took anything from this impromptu prophecy of Selma then Wolfsgard would die but did it have a master? Who in the world could call themselves a master of such an empire, Selma’s words didn’t make him think this master referred to was the high empress currently in power.

But what had caused this prophetic attack to happen to Selma. Nafir remembered the little girl with Vlad, and the man’s son. Did this mean he would have something to do with it? Or his children? But then who was the son of the void? The only being even known as anything connected to the void was the Void strider and he was the god of the passed dead and keeper of the veil between the realms.

A god hadn’t had a child in recorded history for at least six millennia and that child hadn’t even made it to godhood itself despite the advantages it had, had as a godborn. Then he remembered the brackets to Vlad’s race, he was godborn but didn’t seem to realize it. Nafir knew troubled times were ahead and he hoped that Alocia wouldn’t be involved in what had just been predicted to come. He didn’t try any more to decipher the prophecy as many didn’t come true or did in strange and unexpected ways. This one’s violent arrival however worried him.

Verona Winterway – minor goddess of shadows and vampires.

“Hey, heyheyheyhey… ack… HEY!” She watched as he yelled and as he barely got out of the way from the glowing claws headed for his neck. “O’Malley! How is this supposed to be training?!” He complained and Verona could understand his sentiment.

The idea was to keep training Vlad’s martial arts as his break from the latest cram session on magic. What it turned out to be was O’Malley having fun restraining himself down to the level of a ghoul at level 100 or so and didn’t use more than three skills. She was actually a little impressed Vlad managed to dodge with any real efficiency really. That still only left the man room to spout a few words at a time, he couldn’t dream of trying to counter attack given the pressure O’Malley was giving him.

“So it seems we might be right about him.” The soft ethereal voice Verona had learned to think of as motherly over the centuries sounded in her ear and she looked to the side. Raising an eyebrow in question as she saw the strange doting look on the skeletal lich. “He is… well him… right?” She asked looking over to Vlad and then back to Verona again.

“I don’t think so… there’s something similar in him but not ol’Void.” Verona replied as she made a bit more scrutiny of Vlad with more senses than just sight. “He kinda reminds me of It, to be honest.” She said as she then turned to look over at Németh who looked to be in thought.

“Like a miniature It?” She asked back in curiosity.

Verona shook her head then nodded before frowning. “I don’t know, like a bud about to sprout something like that?” She tried and smiled as Németh got a look of understanding. The vampire queen still marveled at how Németh used bone crafting to give her skull so many expressions and so effortlessly too, well she was at the current pinnacle of the skill.

“I think I understand but I just see him when I look at Vlad. You know?” She then answered as she looked nostalgic.

“Not really, you knew him the best and longest right? You are the consort after all. We just came along from your adventures.” Verona replied with a smile.

“Hmm yes… well if you took the strangeness out of the boy his mannerisms would be the spiting image, he carries himself like him.” She said looking a bit longingly into the distance.

“Ah, the mind issues he has you mean?” Verona shot with a smug little smile.

“Mmh yes... yes I suppose if you put it like that.” Németh replied sounding like a thoughtful grandmother listening to their grown child fondly.

Verona clenched her right jaw and breathed in. This was the part she didn’t like about Németh. The old bone hag always had this way about her that made her seem like she knew something vital that everyone else might need to know. Only not telling anyone instead and using it to lord it over her head. “Yeah, if he managed to become a god we’d most likely be inviting more trouble than he’s worth. Even if he killed off the entire pantheon of light.” She said, saying the pantheons name in a sarcastic tone.

“I would like it if the two of you refrain from any mention of ‘It’ while he can hear you.” The soft booming and the deep thrum under the voice from behind her made Verona smile a little.

“Ah Grandmaster Zalruk, you bless us with your presence.” She said bowing a little and waving as if inviting him to sit at a specific spot between the two women.

“Now there is no need for such a tone with me.” Zalruk half grumbled as he sat down in the indicated spot and shook his head. Then with a tap of his chitinous finger a slight distortion in the air in front of them for a split second heralded the privacy barrier he’d erected.

“His education hasn’t reached that point yet, so why are you so openly speaking of It anyway?.” He then asked in a not so amused tone of voice.

“I don’t know, something just made me think of It. We haven’t heard from It in what? six? seven centuries now? Just makes me wonder a bit.” Verona said, sighing a bit as she rubbed at the growing stiffness in her right shoulder.

“Well we do owe It for the information.” Németh added as her nervous tick of rubbing her thumb over her index and middle fingers came over her right hand. “It appeared just about a decade after we lost lord Void, radiating the same power he had. Then It tells us of this kid even giving a date almost a thousand years in the future before saying farewell for another three centuries.” She said and her tone began to turn a bit sour, it was clear she didn’t enjoy speaking of ‘It’.

Zalruk chuckled a little. “Well that last time was also just It saying we won’t be able to contact It for a while after all. You are just mad since It never fully manifested before us and was just a pair of eyes.” He then chided towards Németh.

“You call two pitch black eyes with event horizons for irises as a pair of eyes we need to give you some glasses.” Verona said shivering at the memory of the hazy outline of It with only those eyes able to be seen clearly, the rest to vague and ethereal. “Didn’t It seem much different than Lord Void though? Like wilder or more...” She started and was waving one hand in the air as if trying to fish for the word from the ether itself.

“Primordial.” Zalruk then said and Verona gave a slight grunt of affirmation and snapped her fingers at the larger Nerubian. He bowed his head a little at her in agreement with her statement.

“Yes… it was strange like we all know the more a god understands their domain, the stronger they usually become. Its usually what separates greater, middling and minor gods into such classifications among us. It however… It was at an understanding of the void I don’t think even lord void had achieved. I am also afraid that It was either restraining itself or just coming into Its power when we met It and I am worried about both aspects.” She then finished.

A long pause was then over the trio as they watched O’Malley start to beat the hell out of Vlad with his fists instead of claws. “I followed It.” Németh then said breaking the heavy silence that had taken hold. “I followed It after the first time, It was too strange not to.” She paused and made a sound like a worried inhale.

“It snatched up every Necrarch, arc wizard and similar souls on Imerith and then left for the heavens heading off into the void above. I think It was hoarding knowledge for itself, preparing for something I don’t think any of us can predict.” She then said as she looked over to the other two.

“Or simply haven’t thought of the possibility for yet.” Verona said with a raised finger. She could admit to herself though that the way ‘It’ had spoken to them, like It knew them better than it should, had been strange. “When last we heard from It, I did follow it a little but It went toward the eastern continent and I’m not one to travel through that damn mist.” She said grumbling a little at the end.

The mist over much of the oceans of Astarune which separated the continents burned even middling gods on contact making traversal between continents a rather dreary affair and more a hassle best avoided.

“And It didn’t get burned?” Németh asked curious.

“No it was more like the mist was attacking It but the mist didn’t even seem to bother it as It passed right through.” She answered.

“You know what? You two are giving me a migraine and unnecessary worries. Lets save the boy from O’Malley and try to get him to learn a bit more of the first rank magic or work on his mana control. Just something else than this.” Zalruk then grumbled and began to move his bulk forwards, dispelling the privacy shield and then punting the ghoul away with a swift kick. “We should get Sutekh to train you instead of that buffoon.” He then grumbled as he helped the battered man to his feet.

“Hey Zalruk… I’m wondering something about this plane we’re in or whatever this is.” Vlad piped up when he’d caught his breath and Verona had to admit that Vlad could look like such a clueless child at times it was almost cute. Then she remembered the state of the man and shook her head instead.

“It’s a realm but what’s on your mind?” Zalruk answered promptly.

“Can any item be conjured up here?” Vlad asked and now her interest was piqued, mostly due to the cunning glint in the man’s eye.

“eeeeh?...” Zalruk sounded as if he’d intended to say something right away but then thought about it for a bit. “Actually I think we can… as long as we actually know an items general shape and function...” He trailed off when he noted the giddy yet dangerous smile that crept onto Vlads lips upon hearing his answer.

Vlad turned his head in snap motion towards Verona as he clapped his hands and his smile grew wider. “Verona what did you say was the pro’s and con’s of the magic circle forming and casting method?” His tone was very jovial but Verona had been almost startled at the snap movements Vlad had done, almost like he was an animatronic from his old world or something, the hollow eye socket wasn’t helping the look.

Verona narrowed one eye at Vlad before beginning on the shortened version of the lecture they’d gone over a week prior in this particular night time. “Essentially it’ll allow for silent casting as well as more directional casting the farther you can quickly solidify your mana from. Those are the main pro’s along with a generally more power output of a spell formed that way for the same amount of mana as usual.” She paused and looked at Vlad, unnerved by how he hadn’t seemed all that fazed by it the first time but now looked eager to hear more.

“The con’s on the other hand are more. First off, not only do you need intricate knowledge of a spell circle and the spells function over all to cast it this way but the same could be applied by your enemies if they see you create the circle and have time to do anything about it.”

Németh decided to continue for her as she must have seen how Verona wasn’t fully able to concentrate as Vlad decided to practice his mana materialization, to create a cross the same shape as the pupil in his one eye in the empty socket. Verona was sure he was doing this on purpose now.

“Not only is knowledge needed, much more so than normal casting but there are two crucial skills you need to master to make any use of it. Mana manipulation and mana materialization. With those two skills working together you can not only form the spell circle but feed it enough mana to activate the spell but there's a certain point of mastery of these skills needed to be able to form them correctly.”

“Yes, and speed and control are crucial to actually make this a viable casting method by shortening the time I’ll need to form the circle by making it faster than actually saying the words to cast, correct?” Vlad chimed in and his smile looked just a bit more genuine now.

“Not only that but I’ll be able to cast two or more spells at the same time instead of the one after another of spoken casting right?”

“Yes but to cast two spells at the same time would require mental focus and coordination very rare in individuals. Not to mention you need the mana to both form the spell circle as well as activate it and the higher the spell the more mana is needed for both.” Zalruk answered then and he looked intrigued at what Vlad might be thinking.

“After all currently you’d spend your entire and I must say meager mana pool in just forming the circle for a rank six spell. If you spend it all to be able to activate a spell then I’d say you could manage a rank four spell and that’s if you spend it to the last drop.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence and pep talk.” Vlad replied in a deadpan yet highly sarcastic tone as he gave Zalruk a little annoyed glare. “What I’m proposing is something that also might have some merit to what Németh told me about how I can train mental, sense and passive type skills here and they’d translate immediately back when I wake up. Since I’m constantly going to be in a need to get skill points to actually level these abilities up unitl they reach the peak of a rank.” He said in a leading tone towards the lich.

“Ah, you mean to instead train a select skill that will translate back when you’re awake to something that makes you the pinnacle to a skill? Your going for that loop hole?” She asked a little happy at first but then confused. “That’ll take years of work to actually achieve and I’d say you need to hunt for skill points when the opportunity arises.” She then said dismissively.

“Or a few weeks.” Vlad said pointing a finger at her. “Besides I’m in a capital city now, I can’t go murdering every one left and right.”

“Except you were about to just do that to the… what were your words when you explained it? “That inbred genetically degraded and mentally deficient little cockgoblin.” After he took your eye?” She asked, maybe a little more smug than she intended.

“And I was in my right mind to make rational decisions how?” Vlad shot back in an almost angrily sarcastic mockery of her tone. “Besides I’d be doing the city a favor but that isn’t my point! My point is that with the general level of the average people of the city being at around the ten to twenty mark. I’ll plateau soon enough in my acquisition of skill points.”

He paused and then pointed at Zalruk who was about to speak. “Even if I decided to wipe out the gangs and organized crime in the city. What would be left for my own minions? So you see with the time I’ve got with training with all of you every night I’ll be able to spend much more dedicated and focused time on these very skills allowing me to make huge leaps in relatively short amount of time. A year for Morice for example will be something like what? A week is around a year for me so I’ll live a little over half a century for every year he has. Now think about what I can achieve in that long a time? When others train a skill for a year I can focus a full year of unrelenting focus the entirety of that year.”

Verona looked at Vlad incredulously, she could see his point. Spending that long a time with near hyper focus on only two skills would allow Vlad to manage something like breaking into the pinnacle and even earning himself a pinnacle evolution to the skill if he managed it properly. “You’re insane… and how the hell are you going to manage that anyway?”

Vlad looked like the cat that got the cream as he smiled impishly at her. “By learning instruments of course.” He said as his impish grin turned to a wide smile.

“Huh?” All three of the minor gods responded as they stared at him in bewildered confusion.

Amset – Captain of the Desert Jackals guild

The boat creaked underneath as he hung from the side of the mast. His muzzle bunching up into what constituted a feral grin for Anubians. “City ahoy!” He heard the musical tones of his right hand above him and looked up raising an eyebrow and a roguishly playful smile on his face.

He smiled and climped up into the crows nest with Nebit.

“Down boy.” Nebit said as she pushed down on Amset’s nose to turn his head back down to look at the city growing in the distance. The Felineid woman then looking off to the city herself. “So you think the source is right?” She asked and eyed Ameset from the corner of her eye.

“I hope so. Been a shorrrrtage of trrroll bones and we need at least the forrrelimbs to get ourrr aims done in any meaningful amount of time. Just hope Sebak and Haka can manage theirrr end in the mine. What was it we needed, casing, crrrystal and?” He asked her amused at how she rolled her eyes at him.

“You know I had to send Katesch with Pet’amen to Neogubia which is on the opposite end of the decayed rise. Should we have brought Ken’amen with us though? I’m sure he’s lonely back home.” Nebits words made Amset look at at her in horror.

“You know we’d neverrr make it into Veta properrr if we brrrought him along. He’s been content everrr since you made that expense forrr ourrr guild hall. What did you call it again? Cooling pool?” Amset said in a slight growl as he remembered Ken’amen and the big lugs... uniqueness. No, that big lug was best pointed at something with as few a things in the way as possible and watch him go to work.

“I did call it a cooling pool in the beginning before Sebak, Pet’amen and Ken’amen made it into that… swamp.” She said huffing. The feline woman certainly was a clean freak about the strangest things. Amset could understand though at least for the lizardmen in the guild, they needed a place to cool off yet still bask in the sun at the same time. Either that or something to remind them of their jungle home while staying in the desert.

Noting the pouting face Nebit had adopted while staring at Veta rising over the horizon Amset changed the subject instead. “So this info is valid rrright?” He asked as he pulled himself up into the crows nest with Nebit to watch the sand sea move under the ship as it sailed it.

“If not someone is getting neutered.” Nebit snarled as her clawed fingers made a few marks into the wood beneath.

“So how do we get the bones?” Amset asked patiently, he had no doubt Nebit would flay anyone selling her false info if she got her hands on them again.

“That's… the tricky part. We’ll have to wait for two weeks for the tournament to start.” She started trying to look innocent and not look at him at all as his eyes narrowed at her with every word.

“What?” He asked calmly.

“The grand prize is quite a sum and winner gets to fight the troll and keep it’s corpse.” She said interlacing her fingers and almost whistling as she adamantly refused eye contact.

“Wait so we have to win a tourrrnament afterrr which we have to fight the trrroll to get the bones?” He asked patiently but made sure she knew he’d hold her eyes of she dared to make eye contact with his tone alone.

“Umm no?” She answered and then he had eye contact and he held her there with his gaze. “You’ll have to win the tournament.” She then said chuckling nervously the emphasis on you made him mad.

“Arrre you kidding?” He asked, quite fed up with the feline’s antics by this point. “Afterrr nearrrly getting killed by whateverrr the hells that was back at Bozkurrrts place?” He growled pointing at the pale white scars on his side made by the things claws. The wounds it inflicted didn’t heal right, not that they healed slower or anything but the scars were more prominent somehow and it ached on occasion.

“I know but I know you had a smile on your face after a certain physicians ministrations.” She said with an evil grin.

“You leave the twin’s out of this. I’m just barrrely healed and you want me in fighting shape in two weeks? Lucky I have my equipment rrready this time.” He said angrily before snorting in annoyance at her.

Nebit blew a rasberry and flicked her finger at the underside of his jaw making him whimper a little. “Yeah right, you're the feral guard dog right?” She said with a mischievous but wide grin on her face.

Amset growled but now he didn’t dare make eye contact. “That nickname wasn’t of my choosing and you know it.” He said defensively.

“Riiiight.” She purred back but the smug tone made him know she thought she’d won.

Clearing his throat and then pointedly looked at her, or tried to anyway. The woman could get under his skin something fierce. “So what arrre the rrrequirrrrements and bans?” He asked trying to direct the conversation to something more constructive.

“You can’t be over combined level eighty before you enter the tournament, death matches are allowed but not encouraged.” She started counting by physically counting her fingers. “You can’t be bellow combined level forty to enter but it’s advised you be at least level sixty to have any chance and if you want to kill the troll you have to be eighty at least.” She finished having counted to five on her left hand by moving her fingers with her right hand.

“Those arrre strrrange rrrules...” Amset said with a frown. “They usually arrren’t that loose with level rrrequirrrements in gladiatorrrial matches and in tourrrnaments they keep it in a ten level rrrange usually. I wonderrr what they arrre looking forrr.” He mumbled to himself.

“Pardon?” Nebit asked curiously.

“They must be searrrrching forrr something with rrrules like that, rrrright? I mean I think they arrre looking forrr something orrr someone within those perrrimeterrrs. Question is what orrr who that is and why?” Amset said as he narrowed his eyes at Veta. Something was off and he didn’t like being out of the loop on information that might be vital to his job or task.

“Oh another thing, if not from a skill magic is banned in any form.” Nebit then said cheerily.

Amset smiled a little. “So this is purrrely forrr physical fighting prrrowess then?” He asked as he felt he’d have a decent chance then if he got to use a weapon he was almost more familiar with than his own tail. Then he frowned. “So why arrre we showing up two weeks before hand if this tourrrrnament isn’t forrr another two weeks?”

“Well both to help you out in fully recovering as well as check out a little side job for our… project?” Nebit said in a purring manner as she wove her hands around his shoulders and rested her chin on his shoulder. “Bozkurt's death was a blessing and a curse really. We had to delay which allowed us to realize that to open the Sand dune tombs we needed a specifically made amulet. For which we need magically infused troll bone dust to create. Though the cost to mercenary and merchant connections wasn’t… ideal.” She then said sourly after speaking in that calm almost purring manner she did when she was all business. The side he liked the best about her.

“We need to get this right Amset.” Nebit then said worriedly as she played with a lock of her hair and looked down at the slowly roiling sand sea beneath the ship. “Or we’ll have to wait another five years for a chance like this to come again.” She said adamantly. Amset only nodded, the Sand dune tomb could only be reached in the sea season as it was called due to its peculiar location.