Thera 2.07

“As one of the oldest practices in the world, alchemy has been explored and studied through and through, yet there are many things we still know nothing about the subject,” Professor Junia said as he paced before the class. “For example, the roots of an Augur Tree are potent and full of magic— the perfect ingredients for an [Alchemist]’s brew. But when they are used in alchemy, they lose all their magical properties and fail to create anything of use.”

As per usual, her class was incredibly dull to sit through. Luna wished Professor Junia simply stuck to the topic at hand— that being history— rather than going on long tangents about the intricacies of every topic discussed. Anyway, that wasn’t the reason why Luna couldn’t focus in today’s class.

There were other things weighing on the girl’s mind. She shifted in her seat, glancing over at Marcus seated across the classroom from her, while Professor Junia continued, unfazed by the bored class.

“However, the fact that there are many secrets to alchemy still undiscovered doesn’t mean it is a practice without purpose. We know that most items rich in mana can be used by [Alchemists] in concocting their potions and elixirs. Dragon Scale is, after all, one of the most valuable materials for a reason with an extensive black market demand…”

Luna sighed wistfully. She had already resolved herself. After this class was over, she would surely confess to him. The girl didn’t even register Professor Junia’s subsequent words.

“The same could, of course, be said of Dryad Leaves and Mystic Shells…”

* * *

“Another… Mystic Turtle?” Thera’s mind reeled as she floated before the doorway of the shell-like home. Renatus and the other little Lophis peered curiously at her. Viviane noticed her reaction too.

But Wilmorn didn’t wait for her. The Gnome was already inside, calling out to the Vanima Testudine, “You comin’?”

“I—” She exchanged a glance with Viviane.

The Mermaid pursed her lips. “Sorry, he’s always like this. But trust me, he means well… usually.”

After a moment’s deliberation, Thera decided to risk it and follow after the Gnome. Viviane pulled the main door open— since Wilmorn had exited through a small door at its base— letting the baby Mystic Turtle in. Thera was still cautious, of course; she wasn’t sure what the Gnome had in mind, but her curiosity pushed her forward.

There were other Mystic Turtles here in this underwater city. In Nephleus. They could be… her siblings.

Thera hadn’t been close to her brothers and sisters the same way she’d been with Mors. In fact, she’d barely known them, having been around them for the first few moments of her life and never seeing them again. Yet, there was a sense of kinship she felt— one born from instinct but still strongly resounding in her soul nonetheless.

“Sorry for the mess,” Wilmorn called out as he scooped up a handful of vials and bottles. All of them corked, to prevent mixing with the ocean water. There were apparatuses set up to transfer the liquid from one potion to another for, presumably, concocting some form of mixture.

The baby Mystic Turtle vaguely understood how moving things through a medium worked, but her mind wasn’t focused on that for now. Instead, she swam into the center of the laboratory, nearly knocking over a cauldron with a spell circle glowing overlaid on it.

“I wasn’t prepared for guests—”

“You said that another Mystic Turtle lived here, didn’t you?” Thera interrupted him, halting before the little Gnome.

He scratched his scruffy beard and shook his head. “Why, I did say something quite like that, but that ain’t exactly true.”

“How so?” She peered at him with narrowed eyes.

“First,” he said as he raised a hand and she waited, “do you want something to eat?”

Thera blinked. He gestured at a platter of foodstuff laid out— bits of amber-colored meat, cut up and stacked on top of each other. There were scales peeled off and left in a jar at the side.

Wilmorn beamed. “Fish, freshly cut.”

“That’s—” Thera’s eyes widened in horror. Fish? She glanced back at Renatus and the other little Lophis. Could that be why he brought her here? To butcher them?

Renatus was blind to her shock. He swam forward eagerly, mouth opening wide and bobbing, ready to dig into the food. The Vanima Testudine quickly yanked him back.

“Gnah!” he yelped.

She huddled over the dozen small fish protectively, eyeing the Gnome as her body shone gold. “Don’t you dare touch them.”

“Touch… them?” Wilmorn gave her a puzzled look.

Thera’s eyes flashed. She didn’t trust the Gnome. And this only exacerbated her animosity. Viviane realized this. The Mermaid saw how badly things could go, and finally intervened.

* * *

“Master, what are you doing?” Viviane asked as she hurriedly swam in between Thera and Wilmorn.

The Gnome cocked his head, replying simply, “Ain’t it common courtesy to offer guests food?”

“But you can’t just… ugh.” The Mermaid threw her hands up exasperatedly and glanced back.

The turtle was protectively hovering over the small fish gathered around her. Even if Viviane had just met them, she could tell that Thera would die for the little babies. And, well, as a Mystic Turtle, it was more likely that everything around her would be the one doing the dying.

Viviane shook her head and faced the Gnome. “Master, Thera is clearly anxious and afraid. You can’t just be your usual carefree self around her, alright? Try to be respectful of her boundaries and how she’s feeling. You can’t serve her fish with them around.” She emphatically pointed at the yellow fish hiding behind Thera.

Wilmorn scratched his cheeks, still confused. “But they aren’t the same type of fish…”

The Mermaid folded her arms across her chest. “Master, please.”

“Alright, alright.” The Gnome rolled his eyes and put away the laid out dishes. “I guess we’ll have crab for dinner.”

“Good.” Viviane spun around and paused. She looked on at the Mystic Turtle, edging back towards the door. The Mermaid spoke coaxingly. “It’s alright, Thera. We won’t harm you. My master— uh, Wilmorn— was just playing a practical joke.”

“It wasn’t a practical joke,” he grumbled.

“Shush, you.” She glared back at him. Then she turned to the turtle once again, wearing a soft face. “Come back, please?”

This was Viviane’s one chance to meet and speak with a Mystic Turtle. She couldn’t let her eccentric master ruin this. Surely, everyone in Nephleus would want to get a chance just to even see one.

Thera apprehensively lowered her flippers. The golden aura coalescing around her dimmed, but didn’t entirely vanish. “Renatus, protect the others if anything happens,” she whispered as though no one could hear her.

Viviane exchanged a glance with her master. The Gnome snorted, and she shrugged.

“What is this about my brothers and sisters?” the turtle eventually asked.

“Straight to the point, huh?” Viviane twiddled her fingers before sighing. “To be honest, I don’t really know much of the details. I do know that about a year ago, a small group of Mystic Turtles were rumored to have shown up in the Gulf of Nephlene. I didn’t see them myself, but I know my master met one of them.”

“Yes, and she quite liked eating fish, thank you very much.” The Gnome huffed as he returned from shelving the food.

Thera’s eyes narrowed, and Viviane groaned. The Mermaid faced Wilmorn pleadingly. “Please just get to the point, master.”

“Mm, yes. Well, your ‘sister’ was just like you,” he said as he settled down into a small seat atop one of the many desks. “Round, wearing a shell, with flippers… and a turtle…

“Master…”

“Now, see, that’s what you call a joke.” Wilmorn snorted, and Viviane just buried her head in her hands.

Why was her master like this? Sometimes, she really wished he was able to read social cues better. But high-leveled individuals were always oddballs, from the Mermaid’s limited experience with them. She just hoped this wasn’t too off-putting for the baby Mystic Turtle.

* * *

“Come on, it was funny, wasn’t it?” Wilmorn faced Thera.

She just gave him a blank stare. “What?”

This whole situation had been so confusing for her. The baby Mystic Turtle had gone through a whole range of emotions from utterly bewilderment to sheer terror to hesitant relief. Right now, she wasn’t even sure what she was feeling anymore.

“Oh, nevermind.” The Gnome waved a hand dismissively. “Anyway, since you’re that eager, I’ll get to the point: I spoke with your sister a year ago.”

Thera lowered her guard as she edged forward, listening attentively to the Gnome. Wilmorn made an oval shape with his hands and continued.

“She was smaller than you by quite a bit. And while she was curious, she never dared venture to the city. She asked a few questions, and so did I. That was the gist of our meeting.”

The Vanima Testudine blinked. “Was that it?”

“Well, if you want, I can tell you about what we spoke about, but I am getting old, so my memory isn’t as good as what it used to be.” Wilmorn shook his head. “But, mostly, from what I can remember, it seemed like she was searching for her siblings, just like you.”

“Searching for…” Thera mulled over the words for a moment. It took a while for the implication to settle it, and when it did, her eyes went round. “You mean there are even more of my siblings out there?”

“According to your sister? There are at least a dozen more of your kin out there.” The Gnome’s eyes glinted as he spoke.

The baby Mystic Turtle’s mind reeled. Did that many of her siblings survive that slaughter? She remembered looking back towards the sandy beach and seeing a few dotted specks reaching the water. But she didn’t think to (and wasn’t able to) count back then.

Raising her head, Thera barraged Wilmorn with questions. “Where is she now? What was her name? Did she manage to find the others?” she asked frantically.

“Calm down, calm down. One question at a time.” The little man backed up, nearly falling off his chair.

Viviane caught him and straightened his seat. She hadn’t said much, but she had been intently listening in on the conversation. Wilmorn massaged his temples as he answered Thera’s questions.

“Your sister… she didn’t have a name. So I gave her one. A Gnomish name, but it seemed fitting.”

“What was it?” Thera tilted her head. Renatus peered over her shoulder, accompanied by Vigil. The pair of Lophis eavesdropped on the conversation out of curiosity.

“Anya,” he said, smiling. “Named after the famed inventor, Anya Adrielle, who dared to build a machine that could soar the skies. Who ventured to where even the Elder Dragons could not reach, beyond the clouds and for the stars.”

A crowd was now gathered just behind Thera’s neck. Dux had joined Vigil, which emboldened Filius and Gnav. They listened in awe to the Gnome’s short speech, before the Vanima Testudine gently pushed the huddled fish back.

“Anya… and where did she go?” Thera asked, straight to the point.

Wilmorn gave her an apologetic look. “That, I do not know.”

The baby Mystic Turtle deflated. “Oh.”

“Neither do I know whether Anya managed to reunite with her other brothers and sisters. I never managed to meet the other four Mystic Turtles she was traveling with. They simply vanished one day, and that’s the end of that story.” He stared past Thera, eyes glazing over. “I do sometimes wonder where they went… but alas, the life of an immortal is not any of my business. I make and sell potions, that’s all.”

The Gnome tapped on one of the nearby vials. It toppled over, much to Viviane’s chagrin.

“Master! You’ve got to be more careful! If any of these potions break—”

“Yeah, yeah. We’ll have to pay a [Mage] to cast a decontamination spell over the house again. You’ve told me this a dozen times, Vi.”

“That’s only because you’ve done this a hundred times, master!”

Thera didn’t listen to their bickering. Instead, she thought of her siblings. There were five of them out there. One which she knew the name of. Anya. And they were still alive.

“I apologize if I can’t be of more help to you, Thera.” Wilmorn’s voice broke the baby Mystic Turtle out of her thoughts. Viviane drew back, still nervous around the Mystic Turtle. “If you’re here to find your siblings, they’re not here.”

“I… understand.” Thera closed her eyes, feeling slightly upset. Shaking her head, she looked up and continued, “But that’s not why I’m here.”

The Gnome raised a brow. “Then why did you come to Nephleus?”

“Safety,” she replied simply. “I’m here for sanctuary. For them.” She brought a flipper over the little Lophis gathered on her back.

“Ah.” Wilmorn sank back into his seat, making a sound of understanding.

Thera nodded. “I was told that these underwater cities were safe. That they weren’t dangerous like the depths of the sea.”

“If sanctuary is what you seek,” said the Gnome, “then certainly you can find it here. But be aware that staying in a city comes with its own… complications.”

The baby Mystic Turtle frowned, once again left bewildered by the Gnome. But she got an answer soon enough. A loud banging came from the doorway as trumpets blared out.

“What is going on?” Thera warily backed up.

“Good timing,” Wilmorn answered with a chuckle. “The first of your complications has shown up.”

A deep voice called out from the outside. “Open up in his majesty’s name. King Marius requests an audience with the Mystic Turtle!”