It had been three weeks since her dad’s rescue worked. Lannah was so mad at him. He hadn’t told her that only she was being rescued and that they didn’t know where she had been. That was partly her fault. She hadn’t told her dad that they had entered into the contract so that they would live.

It might not have made much of a difference, though. Her dad hired an ether-walker to track her down. They weren’t cheap as they were rare. Add to how rare they were trying to find one that could track mana signatures through the ether, and you ended up with a few years’ worth of profits spent to pull just her out.

Pull her out, and the guy did. It was an odd and scary experience to be feeding someone soup and then get thrown over a shoulder and ripped into the ether. She shuttered a little, thinking about the ether. It was a disturbing place. Many people visit it without knowing it; it is the place between sleep and wakefulness with a touch of green and a whole lot of odd.

Most people, and she was most, couldn’t move in the ether. However, ether-walkers could. Her dad’s people called them dreamwalkers, and it was her cousin that was hired to get her back. If it had been anyone else, then it would have cost so much more.

Ether-walking comes with risks, and each time you dipped into the ether, the beings that lived in it got closer. They almost didn’t get out but right when they were about to be pounced on, something else knocked the horror aside, and they slipped out. Folmer wouldn’t be able to walk the ether again for a few years. It took that long for his scent to vanish and for the monsters to stop seeking him.

Now they were walking to her home in Essex. Above her floated the capital Cloudia the flying fortress city that ruled over the kingdom. It was there that the rocs had roosted until the first king and his band of brothers gained the cliffs and fought the rocs in the nests. Even now, hundreds of years later, rocs still return, trying to roost on Cloudia’s cliffs.

The city was, as it always was, a pulse of life. Nothing like it could be found in any town. Cities were where the races met and traded. Music was always in the air and cries from those who were trying to hawk their goods at everyone who passed by. There was a safety here among the masses that she missed.

As they walked up to her dad’s store, Gormer’s emporium, her sister came running out.

Saralyn, her blond-haired sister, yelled through the door, “Lannah’s back! Dad! Mom! Lannah’s back!”

Lannah smiled as her younger sister slammed into her, giving her a hug. “Hey, Sara! I am so glad to be back!”

Sara was crying tears of joy, “I thought you were dead! We heard that the goblins got you, then dad said that you were alive and we were going to rescue you. Then nothing happened and it was weeks ago. Dad kept saying that you were okay and on the way back with Folmer but that it would be a while. I was worried something else would happen and that you would be gone!”

The happiness from Sara was contagious as Lannah grinned and laughed when her dad came out.

“Lannah, Sara! Come in, we need to make sure Lannah is recovered before everyone starts arriving. Folmer, thank you for bringing Lannah home. I hope that you and my brother will come by for the celebration in a few days.”

Folmer bowed slightly, “I would be happy to come back if I am recovered, the walking took a toll on me in ways that I wasn’t expecting. I will pass on your love to my dad.”

With that, Folmer headed down the road toward the elvish district. The two girls and their dad headed back into the store. When they got in, Gormer gave Lannah a hug and held her out at arm’s length smiling.

Gormer shook his head slightly with a rueful smile. “Lannah, I would close the store and spend the day with you but I am expecting a team from the final floor today. I can’t be closed when they get here as they might go elsewhere.”

Lannah nodded her head, “I understand, how is mom?”

Saralyn’s smile faded a little, “she isn’t doing that good. She is up in bed the sickness is acting up again.”

A bit of the joy from being home faded at that point for Lannah. Her mom had an illness that had been plaguing her for years. It slowly drained her health out. Only greater recovery potions found deep in the dungeons could heal her. One of them would work to restore her for around two years.

“Let’s go see her; perhaps me being home will cheer her up some,” Lannah said as they started upstairs to the living area of the shop.

The stairwell was narrow as they didn’t want it to take much room and Lannah’s dress started to brush the edges of the walls. She had always hated how it was difficult to navigate the stairs. As she thought about that, her dress changed to her athletic wear. Her sister gasps behind her.

“What happened to your dress?” Sara stammered out.

“That’s part of the story to tell mom. I just wish that it would have stayed the dress at least this time I wasn’t with Folmer!” Lannah said.

The sisters quickly came into their parents’ room. Lannah rushed over to her mother’s side. “Mom, I’m back. Daddy’s rescue worked!”

Lilee, Lannah’s mom, opened her eyes and smiled at her daughter. “I am so glad you made it back!” Her eyes were filled with tears of joy and pain.

“Momma don’t cry. I came back and I think things are better now.” Lannah said as she was brushing the tears off her mother’s face.

“Sit me up and then pull a chair I need to know what happened. And start with why you are wearing whatever that thing is.” Lilee said.

Lannah sighed, and then the sisters helped to get their mother sitting up in bed. Then both of them grabbed chairs and came back over.

“Should I tell you everything or wait till tonight to tell Dad as well?”

“Tell me everything and then I will tell you what to repeat to your father. He might not need to know everything but you need to tell it all. Start with why you are wearing that thing and if you would rather go change first you can.”

Lannah smiled at her mom and then at her sister. “Well, I guess the most important is tied to this raiment,” she said as she drew her hands down her outfit.

She stood up, took a deep breath, and sighed out as she did the raiment changed from the Athletic wear back to the normal dress she had on when she left. The light blue and cream white almost folded out of the pink and black that she had on. The way the raiment changed always was a little unnerving for her if she watched it.

Saralyn was the first to speak, even if it was a sharp gasp, “Wow! That’s amazing. Is it an illusion?”

“No, no illusion from what I can tell the fabric in all the forms is real.”

Her mom asked, “all the forms?”

“Yes, this has three forms other than what you see here.” Lannah said as she sat back down.

“How much did it cost you?” Sara asked with a wild smile.

“It was a gift from the man who saved me from the goblins.”

Both her mom and sister asked at almost the same time, “what?”

“Okay, I guess I need to explain some things about what happened but I think that I have found a way to help our family even more than my marriage. This should tie us in with another power and should get the elders to look at mom’s condition again.”

Sara smiled, “Did you use the powers of the sun and moon on the one who rescued you?”

Lannah laughed, “Oddly enough only the drawings of the moon were needed and mom’s teachings to keep him off balance long enough to negotiate a great deal for us. I just wish that dad had sent a full team so that he would have been brought back.”

“What was the trade that you managed that makes you certain the elders will care to look at me?” Their mom’s weak voice asked.

Lannah smiled, “I wasn’t sure who had rescued me at first and so I as I gathered enough mana under the moon I started to influence him to care for me. I didn’t want him to just dump me and run. He was ragged but all his equipment was showing up as magical. It was the oddest thing I have ever seen. He was wearing a cored fur armor, and had grieves and vambraces of wood that also had cores. He had magic all over him mom!”

Saralyn leaned forward, “Well go on!”

“So like I said, I used the moon’s influence to make his emotions bounce a little and then I followed mom’s teachings of acting bashful in front of those who are powerful. It worked almost too well on this guy. That first night I wasn’t sure the type of man he was so I tried to make him feel the need to guard me. The next day I found out that he was a good man.”

Lannah leaned back a little and got a big smile. “His dumb lizard pet, was taking up his sleeping fur and so I ended up falling asleep in his chair by his fire. He moved his pet and then moved me to bed but was too embarrassed to talk about seeing me in just my wet small clothes.”

Lilee coughed a little, and then it turned into a fit where she spat up a little blood. “Hand me that napkin, dear and tell me why you were in your WET small clothes.” She said while reaching out her arm.

Lannah passed the cloth to her mom, “Mom, I got wet as we escaped through a river to try to throw off the trackers, then we had to climb and my dress wasn’t going to let me. So I made him turn around and I climbed up to his camp without my dress and then had him bring it up. I just fell asleep by his fire before he got there. Oh, and his lean-to has a core in it that made the fire magical!”

Sara chuckled, “Well he sounds rich enough, what did you trade with him? It has to be good if you got an enchanted dress, and the elders will listen.”

Lannah folded her hands on her lap and leaned back in her chair, and held her head up proudly, “Look at the contract and tell me that I didn’t do the best for us!” She forced the contract to appear out where both could see it. And smiled happily.

Familial Contract

Request from Lannah Darkweaver currently Synchronized.

Lannah Darkweaver offers access to her full mana pool and all duties of a Familial Contract per custom for the following:

Your Family name once found or earned to be hers and those of her children

Protection granted as able from all who wish her harm per custom

1 blank core from The Necklace of Cores per month of contract

4% of all earned experience until you reach level 10

.5% of all experience earned after you reach level 10

Her mother gasped and shook her head. “You fool child, the world might let you bond to someone but our laws don’t look favorably on this. The marriage we had lined up for you will have to be on hold until we find this man as he now has a say. You are part of his family even more than ours now. You represent him before us in all things. Perhaps we can salvage this. Tell me what is this Necklace of Cores?”