Wearing Power Armor to a Magic School (121/?)

Nexus. The Crown Herald Town of Elaseer. Ambassadorial District. Adventurer’s Guild Hall of Elaseer. Guild Master’s Office. Local Time: 1935 Hours.

Emma

Five plans had been drafted up.

Each one more ludicrous than the next.

However, all of them held a consistent theme all throughout.

A theme which more or less invalidated their use from the onset.

At least when it came to me using them.

“So… magic, huh?” I muttered out under my breath, prompting Sym to both raise a brow, and nod slowly. 

“Yes my lady.” He reaffirmed, as we both now looked up at the blackboard the bat-like Thulvahn had so eagerly rolled out from some side closet. “Or at the very least, the first two plans explicitly require the use of magic.”

His bardic sensibilities were very much on display, as each plan was illustrated with toony intent. 

Everything, from the dragon and its lair, down to my armor — and in particular my helmet — was drawn with these sketchy, super-shaky lines. Which made for really dynamic motions, all of which were very much fitting for the sorts of stunts they had drawn up.

From the first plan which required a massive distraction and the introduction of another hostile beast, to the last plan which required some Cirque Du Venus level acrobatics, there was definitely a lot of thought being put into these propositions.

Though admittedly, not a lot of practical gains could be extracted from them.

“Right, let’s take it from the top.” I began, letting out a slight exhale as I stepped up, standing next to — and towering a good few heads — above Thulvahn. 

“Plan number one — calling upon a familiar, or a hoard of loaned familiars?” I asked frankly, trying my best to hold back my disbelief.

“Yes, my lady! You see, I believe that the best plan of attack is one where you needn’t even be on the offensive!” The man beamed, taking on this car salesman-like persona as he grinned as wide as his little maw could manage. “Why risk your own life when you can instead risk the life of your own thralls!” He began, though just as quickly shifted inwardly, immediately turning timid upon hearing the words that just came out of his own mouth. The glares from everyone present definitely hammered home the awkwardness of that unfortunate phrasing. “Er, what I mean to say is, given the wildly dangerous nature of the dragon, it might be best to allow nature to take its course. Call upon beasts to fight the dragon, and in the process, a few crystals should be ripped out as collateral!” 

Thalmin was the first to raise his hand at this plan, turning towards me just for a moment as if to ask to speak on my behalf.

“With all due respect, adventurer, this plan lacks both guarantee and agency.” He began, listing those two points by raising one finger after another. “We lack any assurance that a crystal would even be knocked off the dragon for the former, and we are reduced to mere observers when it comes to the latter.” 

“I apologize, mercenary prince.” The bat-man bowed deeply in a show of apologetics. “I should have prefaced this by saying that this plan hedges on a magic user’s abilities to call upon familiars or familiars-on-loan.” 

The pocket monster plan… I thought amusingly to myself.

“Well we can immediately disregard it.” Thalmin rebutted. “We are neither tamers nor beast masters.” 

“Such a thing is far beneath our station.” Ilunor quickly added, as if to save face.

This merely elicited some neutral blinks and several nods, as I began pointing at the second… very questionable plan.

“Ah, yes! Plan two!” The bard proclaimed brightly. “Illusions! Simply have a grand illusionist conjure up an attractive dragon to distract or potentially even—”

“STOP!” All four of us shouted in unison, putting the idea down in its tracks. 

“I cannot believe you would even dare entertain such a debased idea in front of us.” Ilunor seethed, the man clearly more offended than others given his mastery over illusion magic. 

“Very well, my lord.” Thulvahn bowed deeply, simply moving his clawed hand down to point number three.

“Plan three! We bait the dragon with food! Now, as we all know, amethyst dragons, like most other gem-based dragons, hunger not merely for meat but for minerals.” He grinned, once more turning to Ilunor. “I believe you may know this best, my lord.” 

The Vunerian didn’t reply, merely glaring deep into the man’s soul, causing him to flinch.

“The idea is simple. We bait the dragon, and then, while it’s distracted, we—”

“I will not sacrifice my precious jewels for such a flight of fantasy.” Ilunor cut the man off, before turning towards me. “I must make this clear, Cadet Emma Booker. You will not be using my precious jewels as if they were worms on a hook!” 

“Yeah, there’s no need to waste your breath there, Ilunor. The bait idea is just… too risky, I think.” I offered, prompting the bat-man to move on to the fourth point on the list.

“Plan four it is.” He spoke brightly, before pointing at the convoluted set-up that would’ve made even the looniest of toons seem tame by comparison. “We attack from below. With some clever mathematics and subterranean expertise, we dig a hole directly underneath the dragon where it sleeps.” My eyes followed the diagram behind the man, as it detailed what was clearly Sym, tunneling through to the cave, and then chiseling out a small hole beneath a sleeping dragon. “Following which, we quickly procure ourselves one of its gems, and then escape down the small tunnel we came from!” 

“At which point we might as well be running head-first into the dragon.” Thalmin growled out. “Do you honestly believe the dragon wouldn’t simply rise upon feeling one of its gems being chiseled out?” 

“I was hoping someone could potentially utilize a spell with which to knock the dragon out—”

“I am afraid you overestimate our current capabilities, adventurer.” Thacea interjected this time around. “Such a task requires… a mage far beyond even that of graduates from the Academy. A dragon’s mind despite its bestial nature is, after all, quite difficult to influence.” 

“Right.” Thulvahn acknowledged, before moving on to what was probably the most ‘practical’ idea.

“Plan five. We simply walk around the forests until we find ourselves a crystal. Considering how many engagements the dragon has had with men-at-arms and local beasts, I assume that at least one crystal fragment can be found somewhere.” The man as if he was about ready to give up.

“Time-consuming… but probably the most reasonable plan out of all of them.” Thalmin concurred, nodding with closed eyes, miming the movements of both the guild master and Sym. 

“Why does it always have to be the least exciting one…” Thulvahn mumbled to himself before sitting back down. “I must warn you, considering the size of the forest, this particular plan may take quite a while to accomplish.”

“Moreover, it still relies on chance rather than any form of assuredness.” Thalmin quickly added.

“Exactly!” The man beamed back with a sudden burst of confidence, though he just as quickly reeled himself back in upon locking eyes with the lupinor. “Er, my lord.” He promptly added.

“In any case, I believe this should conclude our consultation.” I offered, turning to the time, as Sorecar’s cautious warnings were still fresh on my mind. “I appreciate the… creativity on display here, Adventurer Thulvahn.” I offered politely, causing the bard to puff up his chest in response.

“Thank you, my lady!” 

“Though considering everything you’ve been through, I believe all of you deserve a well earned rest. So I won’t be taking much more of your time.” I concluded diplomatically, gesturing for Ilunor to hand over the sack of gold. “As promised, your payment.” 

I spared no time, whilst savoring the moment, to untie the top of the sack then allowing it to drop with a satisfying, clinky THUD onto the table in front of us.

Gold coins practically spilled from the top following that stunt, forming a respectable pile, which caught the full and undivided attention of both kobolds present — deluxe and otherwise — along with Thulvahn. 

“I’ve always wanted to do that…” I muttered to myself under a muted microphone. 

What happened next was a brief tallying of the gold coins in front of Piamon. Followed shortly by the arrival of the receptionist who began sorting the coins through what I could only describe was an old-timey coin-sorter. 

“Genuine and up-to-date, Master Piamon.” The elf announced politely, before nodding and leaving the room just as abruptly as she’d arrived.

“Right then.” The slime began, as he turned towards both me— “Quest giver.” —and Sym. “Adventurers. Are there any points of contention either party would wish to raise?” 

My eyes locked with Sym’s, as we both nodded and spoke in unison. “No, guild master.” 

“Quest giver.” Piamon focused on me this time around. “Have all the terms of the contract been fulfilled to your satisfaction?” 

“Yes.” I nodded.

“Adventurers.” Piamon quickly turned towards Sym. “Do you wish to raise any issues with the compensation of your labor?”

“No, guild master.” The dwarf bowed.

“Well then, considering all parties are satisfied, I hereby proclaim this quest…” The slime paused, as he jumped up towards one of the cabinets, grabbing a stamp, before careening back down onto his desk at significant speeds — slamming the quest contract with a satisfying THUD. “... complete!” He announced vibrantly, holding up the contract with a single slime tendril, pointing at a stamp with what appeared to be a family crest in the style of his own slime form now wax-sealed onto it. “This particular quest will be filed into my personal vault. So following your departure, none of us shall talk of this quest unless all are present in front of this contract.”

We all bowed at that, and began shuffling out of the room wordlessly.

With one party now primed with information, and the other now loaded with the fruits of Ilunor’s impromptu sports betting ventures.

However, I couldn’t stay entirely silent as we made our way down the stairs, as I turned towards Sym with a smile beneath my helmet. “Y’know, I was wondering if there would be a way to contact you guys just in case I needed some help in the future?”

The man turned towards me with not necessarily a smile, but a warm expression, grabbing what appeared to be a business card in the process. “Aye, unlike other adventurers we don’t necessarily have a base of operations—”

“Our previous base was repossessed… along with our wagon. But all that might just change because of your—!” Thulvahn muttered out, only to be shot down with a stern glare from Sym. “Sorry…” He apologized meekly.

“Our company is based out of this guild hall currently. However, if things do change—” The dwarf paused, turning to shoot the bat-man another glare. “—I will leave a note with the receptionist as to our new lodgings.”

“Thank you, Sym.” 

“The pleasure is all mine, Cadet Emma Booker.”

We parted ways on about the second floor, with Sym and his gang entering a door marked as ADVENTURERS ONLY.

A few barely contained cheers and the distinctive clinking of gold coins quickly arrived shortly thereafter, very much audible even behind closed doors, marking the end of Sym’s adventure, but ushering in the start of my own.

Our departure from the guild hall was… certainly a bit different this time around however.

As there were more than a couple of eyes watching our every move as we made our way through the lobby.

Garna, Loris, and a whole host of unnamed adventurer trainees kept their eyes on us through the main dining hall, prompting me to give them a passing wave.

I was rewarded with distant ‘thank yous’ and a few cheers as a result.

Which prompted Ilunor to eventually ask me something unexpected, just as we left the guild hall proper.

“While I understand your bonus to Sym and his sorry troupe, I do not understand your proclivities for charity when it comes to these trainee adventurers, Cadet Emma Booker.” Ilunor announced, as I began grabbing hold of what was left of his shopping bags from the trolley. “Charity for the sake of building connections, forging a face, and investing in future alliances is a smart long-term strategy. However, I doubt you’ll be making the Nexus your next home, let alone Elaseer. So I do not see the purpose in your charitable investments.” 

“That’s precisely the issue, Ilunor.” I sighed out. “I don’t see it as an ‘investment’. I’m not doing it in order to create nor save face. Heck, it’s not even a public outreach thing.” I shrugged. Though I’d be lying if it wasn't something that fell under the hearts and minds handbook of SIOP soft power pointers. “I just… felt like I wanted to offer those kids something they probably don’t get too much of.”

“So selfishness then.” Ilunor surmised, sucker-punching me with that out-of-left-field response. “You said it yourself, Emma Booker. You merely felt like doing it. Perhaps to assuage some deep-seeded desire to be seen as a savior, or perhaps, a benefactor.” 

“The fact you’d immediately jump to that conclusion, says more about you than me, Ilunor. And that’s where I’m going to leave it.” I stated plainly, prompting the Vunerian to simply shrug as we made our way towards the Academy.

=====

Nexus. The Crown Herald Town of Elaseer en route to The Transgracian Academy for the Magical Arts. Gondola Express. Local Time: 2000 Hours.

Emma

Something had compelled us to take a brief change of scenery.  

Perhaps it was a desire to simply sit down after an entire evening’s worth of shopping around town.

Or perhaps, it was a pressing urgency to immediately dig into the logistical issues that came with what I was quickly dubbing the Dragon Quest.

“I think we’re all in agreement here when I say we definitely need a plan that’s more solid than just… roaming around the forests until we find an errant crystal.” I began, gesticulating wildly the moment the gondola began moving upwards, and right as Thacea had established the privacy screen.

“That consultation left a lot to be desired, so I can most certainly concur, Emma.” Thalmin growled back in acknowledgement. 

“I mean, it wouldn’t hurt to do a whole sweep of the forest, that much I can agree with.” I continued. “So that’s probably the first thing we’ll do. But honestly, that falls under standard protocol anyways.”

“Mapping out the terrain utilizing your… ‘drones’, Emma?” Thalmin shot back.

“Correct. So spotting an errant crystal probably won’t be too hard, especially if I get my infildrones to supplement my standard recon drones' operational capacity.” I shrugged. “But in any case, we should think of a fallback plan in case we come up with nothing.” 

Thalmin paused, cradling his snout as he looked out of the gondola, deep in thought.

The darkness here truly was… dark, with only the town illuminating the world around it. Though, if I were to squint a bit, I could actually make out a few of the main roads leading out of town, snaking through the idyllic countryside like orange and yellow fluorescent veins, pulsating with whatever magical fire was inside of those lanterns.

“We could slay it.” The wolf prince spoke abruptly, garnering everyone’s attention. A brief ‘lock’ of our eyes however prompted the man to simply sigh and shrug. “Though, it is understandable that you wouldn’t wish to go that far.” He conceded. 

“I won’t say it’s completely out of the question, Thalmin.” I acknowledged begrudgingly. “The mission… is vital. However, I’d rather we not antagonize a creature that’s already gone through literal hell. I can only imagine the sorts of things it’s been through down in the life archives.” I visibly shuddered. 

“An honorable notion.” Thalmin spoke firmly with a single dip of his head. “Though I must stress something, Emma.” He quickly added, his tone growing more severe and urgent. “If it comes to the point where slaying it is the only assured path towards accomplishing your mission, then we must be decisive.” His eyes narrowed, something burning hot behind those amber pupils. “There can be no hesitation.” He emphasized sternly, pressing me on my admittedly timid concession. 

“If we reach a point where all non-lethal options are exhausted, then of course, Thalmin.” I conceded, finally drawing out a firm nod from the wolf.

“Very well. Then let us discuss our options.”

We prattled on for a solid five minutes, throwing everything and the kitchen sink at the proverbial idea-wall to see what actually stuck.

By the end of it however, we’d managed to come up with something that was at least somewhat respectable. A plan that was both simple and straightforward, yet fraught with just as many unknowns as one of Thulvahn’s harebrained schemes.

“You’re certain your weapon will be able to sheer through one of its crystals?” Thalmin inquired skeptically. 

“Yeah. The science team back home has had experience with cutting one of its crystals in half, remember? That means I can guesstimate just how much force will be needed to crack it.” 

The lupinor prince’s eyes quickly shifted to my hip, or more accurately, the weapon holstered within its magnetic holster.

“I admit, your… bullets are quite formidable. But I highly doubt that they will be sufficient to inflict the necessary damage, Emma.” 

“Oh, you’re definitely right on the money there, Thalmin.” I confessed through a barely restrained grin. “Though thankfully, I’m packing much more heat than that old thing.” I continued cryptically, moving my eyeballs to authorize the next few motions.

My heart filled with an untamable giddiness as soon as I heard the EVI replying with three ear-piercing chimes. I raised my right arm up in a vertical motion, balling my hand into a fist as panels on my forearm separated and receded with sounds like swift blades. The weapon’s deployment came with the soft whirring of motors and the thrums of surging energy, before finally settling in place with a sharp, locking KA-CHUNK! 

Thalmin’s eyes widened with both curiosity and excitement, followed closely by Thacea’s wary yet piercing gaze, and the Vunerian’s suspicious amber-yellow orbs. 

The subject of their newfound interest was what at first appeared to be a simple, almost underwhelmingly bland-looking solid chunk of hefty metal; coated in a dull-white coat of heat-dispersing ‘paint’. 

This geometrically simple monstrosity was chunky at its rear, barely tapering as it continued ‘down’ my forearm, before finally ending at what appeared to be two blunt ‘pincers’ that extended just five inches in front of my clenched ‘fist’. 

“This is what’ll do the job.” I grinned wildly. “The Mark VII Type XXII variant, Model 2777. The Expeditionary version with the upgraded capacitors if I might add. A rather rare model to pair with the power armor but…”  I trailed off, cutting myself off before I began geeking out about this fine piece of military hardware. “But yes, while the moon gun is definitely out of its league when it comes to its piercing power, this bad boy definitely won’t have the same problem going straight through the dragon’s crystals.” I gestured towards the unprimed weapon pridefully, all the while making sure it wasn’t pointed at anything I didn’t want at the end of the barrel as per basic safety protocol.

Speaking of which, I quickly collapsed the whole thing back into the right forearm compartment, causing all three present to merely glance at one another in varying levels of… concern.

“I will not mention Academy regulations when it comes to non-ceremonial weapons, Emma…” Thacea muttered out. 

“Hey, what they don’t know won’t hurt them. Besides, between you and me? This is merely a… tool. A heavy demolition tool, or a particularly heavy-duty deconstruction tool for my equipment.” I winked, garnering an uninterrupted two-second sigh from Thacea.

“Go on.” She gestured dismissively towards both me and Thalmin.

“Right, so, we definitely have the firepower needed to shear its crystals off. So you can strike that off of the problem-list, Thalmin.” I reiterated, prompting the lupinor to continue onto the next  point. 

There was a twinge of hesitation before he continued however, as his eyes were clearly locked onto the now-hidden railgun. 

“The next problem I foresee is how we proceed after we… ‘extract’ said crystal.” He offered. “Because as it stands right now, we’re treating the dragon as if it were a null actor. Our current plans fail to take into account exactly how we should contend with the dragon following a successful long-range extraction.” 

“Yeah… you do raise a very good point there. I mean, sniping the dragon from afar, before sending one of the drones in to retrieve the crystal is still the most solid and minimally invasive way of going about it I think.”

“I don’t suppose you’d be willing to sacrifice more of your ‘drones’ as bait to distract the dragon while we retrieve the crystal?”

“I’d rather we not be too frivolous with mission-pertinent resources, Thalmin. But, we can definitely try the distraction plan with something else. I’m actually liking that now, actually.” 

I could feel the cogs in our collective heads turning now, as the minor kinks in the plan were ironed out… or at least, as ironed out as they could be on this gondola ride trip.

There were definitely still a lot of variables that needed to be accounted for.

Variables, which Thacea would eventually be more than happy to indulge in as we continued the conversation through the halls within a privacy screen, up until we finally reached our room.

=====

Dragon’s Heart Tower, Level 23, Residence 30, Living  Room. Local Time: 2030 Hours.

Emma

“I’m happy to see the both of you so enthusiastic about this endeavor.” The princess began, just as the door closed behind us. “And while I hate to be the tether to pull a pair of soarers back down to ground, I am afraid there are matters of logistics which must be discussed.”

That one word managed to capture both of our attentions, as we sat down, while Ilunor began opening up bags upon bags of still-piping hot snacks.

“Tell me, you don’t happen to believe this mission will be completed in a mere weekend, now do you?” Thacea questioned.

A collective silence rang out as that question’s only response, prompting the princess to continue unabated.

“I need not remind you of our current place within the Nexus, and what responsibilities we are beholden to as students of one of its most prestigious academies. Moreover, I think both of you understand the degree of scrutiny we will all be put under, should any of us fail to attend a single class for reasons other than sickness or mere academic dishonesty.” 

“We are already in deep and murky waters as is.” Ilunor quickly chimed in, taking a bite out of a piece of pastry. “Moreover, I’m sure you’re about to broach a second but easily just as vital a topic, aren’t you, princess?” 

Thacea nodded, before relaying Ilunor’s second concern to us. “Secondly, we must discuss the distances involved in your journey to the North Rythian forests. For there are… functional limitations when it comes to the use of the transportium network.” 

I blinked at that second point, turning to Ilunor expectantly. “I… assumed you’d be the one taking us there, Ilunor?”

“And there we go with your presumptuousness, Cadet Emma Booker.” The man sighed out. “Putting my personal reservations about this whole… debacle aside, I simply cannot take you there by virtue of it being a practical impossibility.”

I cocked my head at this. 

“And why not? I thought Sym made it pretty clear that Nexian nobles are—”

“Nexian nobles are allowed this privilege, yes.” The deluxe kobold interjected, waiting for me to  grasp his meaning.

It took me only a second to get it.

“So you’re saying only you are able to go through, no questions asked?”

“Precisely, Cadet Emma Booker.”

“But… I assume nobles don’t just go on strolls through the transportium alone. Like, there’s obviously going to be attendants, servants, security, and so on and so forth. What about—”

“Your ability to grasp, yet fumble such simple logical assertions never fails to amuse me, earthrealmer.” Ilunor chided with his signature smug and puntable grin. “You see, you are correct. Nobles more often than not will have some form of retinue. However, it is the nature of these retainers that allows them access through the transportium.” 

I paused, my eyes growing wide as I thought back to Rila.

“They’re… officially part of your party, legally, and bound by contract then. That’s what allows them to go through with you.”

“Precisely, Cadet Emma Booker.” The Vunerian nodded politely.  “Moreover, there is a long and frankly frustrating process of obtaining approval for such a warrant. Which is typically fine for most situations…”  Ilunor paused, before looking both of us up and down. “But not for our particular circumstances.”

“We’re also adjacent realmers, Emma.” Thacea added with a sigh. “And with how much scrutiny you’re under, it is unlikely that we will be able to proceed in that particular direction.” 

I grimaced at that, letting out a deep sigh, only to cling onto Thacea’s final few words. “Wait, you said this particular direction. Are you saying there’s another way?”

This piqued Thalmin’s interest, though not necessarily Ilunor’s.

Instead, the man quietly started grinning, a small cackle forming as he gestured for the princess to continue.

“The course syllabus might not have fully expanded on this, for reasons of Academy intrigue. However, it is widely known that there are a series of… quests the Academy issues students, which grants them temporary access to the wider Nexus; including access to its transportium network.”

“These quests are infrequently frequent.” Ilunor quickly chimed in. “With the first of which coincidentally poised to be announced tomorrow, in Professor Belnor’s class.” 

The cogs in my brain started spinning into overdrive now, as I turned to both Ilunor and Thacea with an expectant gaze. 

“And since this is an Academy-issued quest, this’ll address both of our logistical issues. Both the absence thing, and access to the transportium network.” 

“Precisely, Emma.” Thacea acknowledged, though she was quickly overtaken by an overeager Ilunor.

“Moreover, this will inevitably cause us to fall into the path for Class Sovereign. As such a quest is poised to garner points and accolades for all those seeking to participate.” The man beamed out, making it clear exactly why he was so invested in this thing.

“Right.” I sighed in acknowledgement. “Okay, well, I guess that’s sorted.” 

My eyes shifted sharply towards the window, narrowing onto the lit-up roads over in the distance.

Thacea, rather coincidentally, decided to bring up the next point currently brewing in my head.

“Though even with the transportium, there is still the matter of your own means of conveyance, Emma.” She began. “It took Sym an entire day’s travel to reach the forests on both enchanted steeds and monotreaders. Considering your… predispositions, and your inability to utilize enchanted artifices, I don’t suppose the speeds you’ve demonstrated in physical education can be sustained for the entire journey to the forests?” 

This question… elicited a smile to form at the edges of my face, as my eyes quickly shifted upwards into one of the many projects I’d been lining up for the dragon quest.

“While I think I could hoof it, I think I have other options I can consider.” I began with a slight chuckle. 

“EVI?”

“Yes, Cadet Booker?”

“Getting the EMMV printed out might be a bit too ambitious given our time crunch. So how about we print out the Martian Opportunity.” 

"Acknowledged."

[New Project Designated: Printing and Assembly of the Adaptive Terrain Two-Wheeled Vehicle (AT2WV) Model: Martian Opportunity V4c.]