(Next morning, Death Eagles camp.)
"Hey Nera, nice to see you," Seef said. "What are you doing here so early?"
"She came to see me last evening, and wound up staying all night since it got so late," Drysia said, eating her morning cereal without really waiting for it to cool.
Nera looked embarrassed. Seef figured it was one of those noble things; rich types usually took time to adjust to the more relaxed lifestyles off-duty adventurers led.
The priestess was grateful to Drysia. She certainly didn't want to explain to anybody that she and Elmerin had had sex again after waking up, on top of what she'd done with Drysia. She rubbed her arm; Clean got rid of the mess and smell on body and clothing, but it wasn't nearly as satisfying as a bath.
"Done?" Drysia plonked her bowl by the fire.
"Aah…" Nera quickly scarfed the last spoonful and finished her water. "Yes."
"C'mon then. You can walk part of the way with me; Rammeld's tent is in the same general direction as the healers'."
As they left the tents, Nera said, "That drink you gave me last night was really good. Can-"
"Ssshhh!" Drysia quickly looked around. "That was something I got from the Cothmores, and they'd be pissed if they knew I still had it."
"Oh!" Nera slapped a hand over her mouth. "I'll not tell anyone then."
******
"You still look like crap."
Elmerin raised his eyebrow at Alexavier and continued to show Kres how to check a horse's frogs for small stones and thorns.
The fellow was an old Kethelson mix who'd been with Elmerin for years. Elmerin was planning to head home for a while after the mess with the Cothmores was resolved; he hoped the old boy could last that long so he could enjoy a nice retirement.
"Your skin doesn't have that green tinge anymore, but it still looks like a vampire victim's."
"I'm fine, Alex." Elmerin patted the horse's neck and gave him a snack for his patience.
Kres looked profoundly doubtful. "Are you sure? You look really bad. Like when that moving mushroom got you."
"When what?"
"Nothing serious, Alex. About six months ago, I was teaching Kres some low-level hunting. Those boulders in the woods not far from the Cothmore estate? There were a bunch of the little bastards there." Elmerin paused in his inspection of the horse's ears and frowned. "Come to think of it, I remember their markings being unusual for the ones around here."
"They had green and yellow dots, and the cap was blue," Kres added.
Alexavier pulled out his Guide. "Mushrooms, mobile, blue… Crap. Look."
Elmerin did and facepalmed. "Mindsingers from Ochrea. Looks like I have something else to tell Rammeld."
"Did the Cothmores bring them in? Why?" Alexavier rubbed his chin.
"I have an idea." Elmerin tilted his head slightly at Kres. "I'll tell you later, when I'm more sure." In small portions monsterized Mindsinger extract made you feel good, and in large quantities it induced hallucinations; Elmerin could think of several uses the Cothmores could put it to.
"Got it." Alexavier knew Elmerin well enough to know he had more than an idea. "Anyway, when you get back-" he pinned Elmerin with a glare "-you are going to rest. No arguments!"
Elmerin ignored him, giving the horse a slap on the shoulder and another snack to signal they were done. "It's about time to see Rammeld. See you both later. Alex, make sure Reefka doesn't go overboard on the sweets." He patted Kres on the head. "Be good."
Alexavier pinched the bridge of his nose as Elmiren walked away. "That guy, I swear."
"Why does he do that? He still likes you." Kres was confused.
"Oh?" Alexavier looked down at the boy. "What makes you say that?"
Kres considered. "Well, when he's not being careful, he acts around you the way he does around stuff he likes. It used to be really hard to see because he hid it. But it's easier to see now."
Squashing the reflex to be dismissive and hurt the boy's feelings, Alexavier suddenly remembered the child's Birth Talent. Enhanced sight.
"Kres, why don't we go talk to Riyo?"
*******
(Rammeld's office tent, above ground.)
Rammeld sighed, looking at his enormous pile of notes and checking again the record device was recording correctly. The thing required a large trunk to keep it in and two large men to get it in and out of the item bag, but it had been worth it to bring it out this far.
In the camp chair opposite him, Drysia slumped, feeling drained. But somehow, she also felt a wonderful emotion: vicious satisfaction. She carefully hid that feeling.
All of it. She'd handed over everything that she knew, the experiments, the illegal slavery, the smuggling - careful to appear as much an uneducated, clueless victim as possible. Well, she had been at first; she'd just caught on quickly. She hadn't mentioned her own abuse or the tattoo. The first was too personal, and Elmerin had promised to handle the tattoo.
On his part, Rammeld suspected Drysia had more dirt -possibly a lot more dirt- on her hands than she'd admitted. But proving it would be quite difficult; even if the Cothmores had evidence, it could be interpreted as framing someone they wanted to keep under their control. Proof would also tarnish the image of a hero who'd helped keep a dungeon from forming.
People liked their heroes white and their villains black. Most would not tolerate shades of grey.
"You know that some will think you had a hand in this."
Drysia squirmed as if nervous. Duh, she knew that. What she wanted was to make the charge look stupid.
"I think we can allay that with a few steps. What we need to present is the story of a girl who was raised in poverty and thought she had found her prince. But slowly, it dawned on her that he and his family were actually scoundrels. She gathered evidence and bided her time until she could get the information to a trusted authority.
"The family hated even the possibility of illegitimate offspring. So as part of her act, she repudiated her only child."
Drysia's head snapped up. "I. never. wanted. a. child." Her finger stabbed the tabletop for emphasis. "I do not love him, I do not care for him, I do not give a shit about that brat!"
"Then why did you save him?" So sad, Rammeld thought, that she'd had to so thoroughly immerse herself in her role. "Alexavier told me about that. You could have let the vine monster claim him while keeping your hands clean."
"You protect other adventurers. You don't let them die because it's easier for you. And you sure don't put them in danger like that vision-thing showed Falchan doing."
Rammeld nodded. He still thought Drysia was lying to herself. As someone with an overly romantic view of family, he couldn't recognize that some things are stronger and crueler than family bonds.
It was strange, though. Many of the adventurers in the labyrinth had reported visions of things that could happen. The oldest accounts put the first at eight days ago, while some had occurred just yesterday. It couldn't be from the Bolat crystal; the priests and elder adventurers estimated that it had been in place for at least three weeks. Maybe some interaction of magic and Skills?
The results had been a net positive, though. Many of the adventurers had seen injury and death, and been able to avoid such in response.
Rammeld remembered that Drysia was still there and pulled himself back to the topic at hand. "Nevertheless, Lady Drysia-" the title respecting her Diamond rank "-there is what there is, and there is what story is told. In this case, the story will be one of a mother willing to alienate her only child for the greater good. I'll make sure Elmerin is on board with it as well."
"Good luck with that," Drysia snorted.
*******
People mentioned in this chapter:
Elmerin
Alexavier
Drysia
Seef
Nera
Rammeld
Kres: Birth Talent: Enhanced Sight. Rank: Low Intermediate.
Items, magic:
Record device: A large device that can record speech, images, and movement in its presence. Images take more storage room. Usually made of metal set with storage crystals, powered by a mana stone, though the fancier ones can have wooden handles or decorations. The smallest ones in common use are about 60 cm by 90 cm.
Monsters:
Mindsingers: A mobile mushroom that exists only in monsterized form. No one is sure if it originated with a normal species, or if they're the result of an experiment somehow released to the wild. They are about 10-12 cm tall including cap. The stem tends to be about 3-4 cm in diameter, while the cap is 5-7 cm in diameter.
They produce a slime that coats their caps. Small amounts create pleasurable sensations, while large quantities -three or more mushrooms' worth- induce hallucinations in the victims. The slime has no medical value.
The mushrooms tend to be aggressive in groups of six or more. They try to swarm targets, then dust them with spores while the target is under the influence of their slime.
The mushrooms are a standing request at the guilds under "pest control". It is very rare for the fungi to get above Ruby level.