20 Charm

…After the brutal battle at Passage that many onlookers described as “like two toadhounds ripping into each other” and “a piece of the sky falling,” official sources have stated that the victorious surfacer is not, in fact, a hostile agent of Albion, but rather a wandering Pathbearer on a mission of peace and security going by the title “Shiv.”

Afterward, though wounded, the surfacer continued on with his Umbral and Weaveress escort to meet the Exalted Mother. However, things weren’t to end for our intrepid guest. Here, another of his erstwhile companions—so we have deduced from unnamed sources—went to the Cradle of Flesh after midnight to resolve a most unanticipated and intense hostage crisis. Their companion, noted to be disturbed of mind and suffering from immense shock (described as a “dung-eater” in the most stable of times), had to be talked down from holding several of the Cradle’s staff hostage by our newfound surfacer ally.

It is not known if this “Shiv” is drastically different from other surfacers, or if he stands as the general norm among his people, but we at Vibrations are watching his movements closely.

Whatever the case, I’m sure more interesting times will be ahead of us, and our newest guests as well…

-Vibrations, Weave Tabloid

20

Charm

The Deathless had gotten up early that morning, despite his midnight interruption, and began his preparations. To his surprise, he only slept for three hours, and yet it somehow felt like the best rest of his life. Valor told him it was a natural part of increasing his Physicality, and the higher that skill climbed, the less rest Shiv would need in general.

On the other hand, Adam, despite how amped up he was the day before, had fallen asleep after repositioning the couch and tucking himself in a corner. He clearly believed Shiv’s speech about there being spiders in the walls a bit too much. 

After making sure the other surfacer was still breathing, Shiv went through his pantry and fridge in detail, marveling at all the ingredients that were stocked. Usually, he stayed late at the Swan-Eating Toad just to do a bit more experimentation. Georges usually didn’t have a problem with this, so long as Shiv cleaned up and then locked up. Here, though—here was a place that was at least temporarily Shiv’s own, and he could do whatever he wanted with this food.

Shiv laughed, his chuckle growing dark and devious. “Oh, there’s no one that can stop me now. There’s nothing you can do to stop me from making you pristine.”

“Shiv, please don’t do that,” Valor implored. “It’s very strange when someone does an evil speech to their food.” 

“No,” Shiv replied, adamant. “They must know I’m the chef.”

“By way of an evil speech.”

“Fear is a flavor.”

“They’re inanimate, Shiv.” Shiv stared at the dagger on the table next to him. “Were you just staring at me right now? Because I’m technically an inanimate object.”

“Yes.”

Valor sighed. “Monologue away.”

After bit of searching, Shiv found what he thought to be yogurt in the fridge, some fruit, strips of meat that looked ready to be fried, and, interestingly enough, some form of vegetable that smelled remarkably fresh and delightfully cold. He experimented for a while, testing nibbles and mixing things together.

“Breakfast doesn’t need to be grand,” Shiv muttered, “but it does need to put a punch in someone’s step and kick-start the beating of their heart. How you eat in the morning is how you face the rest of the day.” And Shiv, despite everything, intended to face the day with more fire in him than the day before.

After a good two hours of testing and cooking, another knock came at the door, and Shiv found himself grinning. A loud groan sounded from the couch, and his grin faded slightly. Right—he had a freeloader with him now. But that, too, pleased Shiv: to have Adam Arrow in such a precarious position.

“I must be in a dream,” Shiv said, mocking Adam’s statement from yesterday about how everything was a nightmare. And so Shiv welcomed his guide, growing friend, and perhaps something else, into the room as she brought in an assortment of clothes. To Shiv’s surprise, they weren’t only for Adam, but for him as well.

“I thought you could use a few sets yourself,” Uva said, holding some new pants for Shiv. 

He held them up and blinked. “This is some kind of leather?”

“Moleskin.”

“Moleskin,” Shiv said. He looked down at the pants he was wearing—and winced. All the constant fights, a dragon’s fire, and the traveling he did to reach this place. Had left the clothes on his body looking like a ragged mess. She placed a few more sets of clothes for him on a nearby table, and dumped a color-clashing mess where Adam was sitting.

The Young Lord blinked blearily. “Why does he get the nice-looking ones.”

“Because I cooked for her yesterday, and I’m doing it again right now,” Shiv said, sneering at Adam. “Meanwhile, she had to get out of bed to deal with you having a psychotic episode.”

“It wasn’t a psychotic episode! I was—I woke up and found a group of humanoid spiders performing surgery on me. How would you react to something like that?’

Shiv considered the Adam’s words. “Probably assume that one of my fellow chefs misplaced the wrong kind of brownie in our team dessert. Anyway.” Shiv placed a bowl in Adam’s lap too. The Young Lord blinked twice. “What? You have to eat too, don’t you?”

Adam stared down at Shiv’s efforts. A soft and creamy expanse of yogurt mixed with cut fruits and glistening vegetable clumps awaited him. “You… didn’t spit in this, right? Or add laxatives.”

Shiv leaned down very, very close to Adam. The Young Lord slowly shifted back, frowning. “Adam. If you ever insinuate that about me again, we will felling get bloody. It will be on sight until one of us dies for good. I don’t spit in the food of people who don’t deserve it.”

“I don’t deserve it?” Adam said.

“I don’t like you, Adam,” Shiv said. “But if I learned one thing from Georges, it’s that you can not like a lot of people in the world, and only spit in the food of those who treat servers like garbage and constantly complain about something being too spicy—when there aren’t any spices as all.”

The Young Lord gawked at Shiv for a moment, but the Deathless was no longer talking to him. Instead, he moved back to greet Uva, and he presented her a bowl of breakfast with a great deal more warmth. He even did it with a smile. ‘Now, sister,” Shiv breathed. “How did you sleep?”

“With anticipation,” she said, eyeing Shiv briefly before sinking her spoon into the yoghurt. “Did you add havadels to this?”

“Is that what the vegetables are called?”

“Yes. They’re usually for appetizers.”

“Hm. Forgive me and my ignorant surfacer ways. I tested it a few times and thought the crispness might go well with the fruit assortment and the creamy texture. Have a taste. Tell me what you think.”

Uva took a bite, left the spoon in her mouth, and blinked several times. “It’s…” she shook her head. “You’re right. It is fresh. But…”

Shiv leaned in, narrowing his eyes. “Go on. Be honest.”

“I think the vegetable blunts the sweetness.” Uva swallowed slowly. “I rather like the sweetness of fruit.”

“Ah. I’ll keep that in mind.” He hummed. “Georges might have noticed that better. My greatest problem has always been an insensitivity to clashing flavors.”

“I wouldn’t call it a problem. Just a place to improve.” She took another slow bite, and he watched her eye. “It’s really quite good.”

“Ah. But you can’t blame me for wanting to get yesterday’s reaction out of you again.”

“We can’t always make something divine,” Uva said.

“No. But we can always try.”

They stopped talking and just stared at each other for a moment. On the couch, Adam stared as he ate awkwardly, fighting the urge to go finish elsewhere.

“It’s like he doesn’t have any doubt or fear,” Valor muttered on the table. “Has he always been like this?”

It took Adam a moment to realize the dagger was talking to him. He swallowed. And winced. Dammit, the food was really good. “I… am not the best person to ask about how Shiv has been. We’re not friends. Pretty far from that.”

“Yes. The ritual. I know of that. You do understand that’s not his fault, yes?” Adam stared at the dagger, but continued eating his food. He let silence be his reply. “For what it is worth, I am not blaming you. It is a dark deed. One that has scarred more than a single life. And that is all I will say now.”

The Young Lord eyed the dagger again. It seemed Valor knew just how far to go without starting something truly messy. “So. Where’s the way back up.” Adam said, scooping another spoon of yogurt. “And when are we moving out?”

His dramatic interruption failed as Shiv was accounting his thought process behind the creation of breakfast, and Uva was just… she was staring at him, watching him talk. The Young Lord couldn’t believe this shit. It’s like the Abyss was some kind of inverted world where he was the hated outcast who ruined things for everyone, and Shiv was some kind of beloved casanova for pale elves and spiderfolk.

Adam didn’t keep track of Shiv for good reason. Their history was an ugly one, and if Roland Arrow hadn’t kept Adam informed about Shiv’s continued status as a Pathless, Adam would have pretended the Omenborn didn’t exist if he never ran into him. The Young Lord paused. That might have been a lie though. He remembered sensing Shiv in the Slayer’s Guild. He could have let the Omenborn pass through then, but… He couldn’t help himself.

The hate was still there. Even now.

But there was something else as well.

Shiv didn’t need to die fighting the raven over and over to help Adam. Nor did he need to let Adam stay in his apartment. These things didn’t make up for the wounds of the past, but Shiv was right to an extent: Didn’t like and even hate was very different from didn’t respect at all.

And the breakfast was kind of good too, Adam begrudgingly admitted. Godsdammit. Maybe it would have better to have him be a Chef. That might have helped me avoid… whatever this is. He watched Uva place a hand over her mouth as she fought to stop herself from giggling as Shiv recounted a brawl he apparently had with a “rodent of unusual size”  in an alleyway. Broken Moon… This isn’t an act.

Adam’s stomach made a noise. And somehow, that broke Shiv’s conversation. The former Omenborn turned to regard the Young Lord with a wince. “Wait, Adam, how long has it been since you last ate?”

“The spiders tried to feed me some… paste at the hospital,” Adam muttered. “I kind of spat it out. Before that…” Before that, he could only remember bits and pieces of everything. He spent a time in a feverish delirium after the raven captured him. The damned assassin drugged him with some kind of vial—but they were attacked at some point as well. The past three days were more like a chaotic haze than a series of coherent events. “So, maybe Blackedge. It’s fine. My Physicality’s on the verge of a Skill Evolution. I can probably go almost a month without food or water.”

“Yeah, but it won’t be a comfortable month, will it?” Shiv said. He shook his head and handed his own bowl to Adam. The Young Lord blinked. “I can make more. Just eat up. We’ll deal with other matters afterward.”

Adam stared. “...Thanks.”

And then, with that, Shiv went back to detailing his desperate childhood battle, and described Georges coming out with a cleaver to finish the rat off as Shiv held it down—only for it to catch the descending blade with its teeth. After that, they let the rat go and named it an honorary chef for a worthy battle fought.

Uva’s efforts to keep herself poised broke, and laughter rang out from her like a morning bell. She reached out and brushed Shiv’s arm.

All the while, Adam just watched. What the felling hells. Does… does he have some kind of Charisma Skill as well?

***

“So, from what the Composer told me, our way back up to the surface will be through a gate—but it doesn’t sound like the gate is controlled by her or by Weave. I haven’t gotten more details yet, but I suspect it’ll either be a place we have to pass through quietly or that we capture.”  Shiv stopped talking briefly as he put a plate down in front of the Young Master, its contents minced meat and spices wrapped in some variation of lettuce. “Try this.”

Adam didn’t even hesitate anymore. He just tore into the food. Though his excuse was that he’d been starved for three days, the honest truth was that somehow, Shiv was just unnaturally godsdamned good at cooking even without having a full chef’s Path. As so as the Young Lord’s breakfast turned to brunch, the once-object of his loathing recounted everything he’d been through.

“You fought a high vampire?” Adam asked while wolfing down a mouthful of food.

“Yes,” Shiv said. “It’s the reason I developed by Biomancy—”

“Yeah, that too: How? Mana usually takes years to attune—” Adam trailed off. “Right. You hunted lesser vampires to earn a Path.”

Shiv grinned as his cover story worked. “I think I wasn’t that far from attuning before, anyway. I just needed a Path.”

“Still that’s… You managed to survive a lot.” Adam nodded.

Shiv snorted. “Do you have a curse I don’t know about, Adam?”

“What? No? Why?”

“Because you act like complimenting me might make a demon hatch from inside you.”

Adam frowned and made a warding gesture. “Don’t even joke about that. The taint is—”

“Only associated with a specific demon,” Shiv said, eyeing Uva. “From the Dimension of Flies and Plague.”

The Umbral smirked. “You remembered.”

“I did. It helps that the speaker I heard it from has such memorable lips.”

“He just went for it,” Valor whispered off by the side. “No hesitation. Like he’s talking about the weather. Monstrous…”

Uva shook her head and half-heartedly chiding Shiv for pushing his luck, but she didn’t seem put off at all.

Adam thought back to his own courtship with Isabella, and something inside him trembled. Could I say that with a straight face? Could I pull that off? He looked back at Shiv, and studied the easy smile on the Deathless’s face, how he cleaned a plate as he worked. Maybe. I’m not a coward. I’m not.

But Adam did doubt himself often. It came with the territory with being the son of a Town Lord—and a great hero of the Republic. And so, ultimately, it was Isabella who approached him after they spent some time making eyes at each other. Suddenly, another terrifying thought materialized in Adam’s mind: he imagined Shiv going to the academy as well—and the image of him charming Isabella the same way spread through Adam’s being like a forest fire.

No, she… she would notice something… something wrong with him, Adam swallowed. His eyes, perhaps? Wait? When did he get irises? What even is this? Am I jealous of this man? I hate this! I hate him!

“It goes in your mouth, not all over the table,” Shiv said, pointing at Adam. The Young Lord looked and saw his hand shaking, with some of the minced meat leaking out. “If you don’t like it—”

Adam tore into the food again, like a dog starved for days. Shiv drew back and shook his head, muttering about understanding the spiderfolk more than he did his own people.

“Anyway,” Shiv said. “We’re not leaving the city. Not for a bit. Not until the Composer summons us again and elaborates on the route we take.”

The Young Lord gulped down another bite of food. He was about to voice his protests when Shiv laughed. “What?”

“Cooking went up?” Shiv said.

“Again?” Uva said, narrowing her eyes.

“Again,” Shiv said.

Cooking > 22

“That’s… unnaturally fast growth,” the Umbral said. “But I will not complain. This pleases my tongue and stomach, after all.”

Shiv gave a coy smile. “And I’m honored to please your tongue. And stomach.”

“Shiv,” she rolled her eyes.

“How,” Valor groaned off by the side. “How does he say these phases so easily? And why do they work?”

Shiv blinked at the dagger. “Because I mean them.” Then, Shiv shrugged, as if it was no big deal.

Skill Gained: Silver Tongue 1 (Adept)

Huh, Shiv said, his face turning into a wide grin. This is unexpected. But very welcome.

“What?” Adam moaned. “Why are you smiling like that?”

“New skill,” Shiv said. “Another Adept.”

“Another?” Uva leaned back. Even she sounded disturbed.

Shiv smiled at her. “Would you doubt me if it has something to do with tongues?”

“Shiv,” Uva rolled her eyes.

“It does,” Shiv said. “I seem to have developed a bit of a… Silver Tongue.”

Adam began ripping the remains of his food apart in a fit of absolute rage, imagining he was biting into Shiv’s neck with every clench of his teeth. 

Both Shiv and Uva stared at the Young Lord’s rage-eating. 

“Calm down, Adam. I’ll make you more food if you need. Broken Moon. I should have made the raven die slower. He really must’ve damaged your metabolism with those drugs.” Shiv scowled.

Adam didn’t even have the heart to admit the truth. He just did his best to transfer his torment onto the food. Until there was nothing left. And why does it taste good? Why does it have to taste good too? It was like the system was refunding Shiv for countless loss years of Pathbearer development all at once. And taunting Adam in the process.

“Anyway. While we’re here and waiting, we should make good use of our time. I want to see the city and explore. The first place I want to go is the library—there are some books I need to purchase.”

“Oh, that’s a good idea for another reason,” Uva said. “You’ll likely need a pair of enchanted reading glasses to deal with the local texts. Otherwise, there won’t be much hope of you reading at all.”

“They sell those?” Shiv asked.

“They sell those everywhere,” Adam said. “Practically all bookstores offer the service. It’s hard to read primary sources without them.”

“The Blackedge public library didn’t have this,” Shiv muttered.

“That’s because some of the Slayers would have stolen and sold it for booze money,” Adam deadpanned. “Father tried as much as he could, but we still live in a fortress-town, Shiv. It’s your home too. You should know this.”

“Well, I would know this if everyone didn’t treat me like I was vermin,” Shiv almost growled.

The atmosphere in the room changed, and Uva looked between Shiv and Adam. The Deathless shook his head. “Doesn’t matter. I’ll need some books on Biomancy first. Then, I’ll need to visit the Cradle again to see if their offer is still open after the Young Lord’s mental episode.”

“I hope they breed you,” Adam muttered.

Shiv shrugged. “By this point, I don’t care if they do. So long as I can learn something from it. After that…” He looked to Uva. “I would like my kitchen knife back. And the Young Lord has some armor with you as well.”

“Quite so,” she replied, eyeing Adam. “Legendary armor. Our smiths can’t even identify the material. Or if it can even be broken.”

Shiv paused. Then turned to stare at Adam. “Legendary?”

Adam folded his arms defensively. “Father… wanted me to train hard and development myself in practical situations. It’s hard to do that injured.”

“Did father get you this armor as well? From some kind of Legendary gate?” Shiv shook his head. “Valor, how hard is it to obtain a Legendary set of armor.”

“Nightmarishly so,” the dagger said. “It would take a Legendary Crafter at the height of their Path a great deal of time to create consistent pieces of Legendary Armor. Or the closing a Legendary Gate to earn them as system rewards.”

Now Shiv was glaring at Adam with jealousy. “And somehow, you still lost to the raven-helmed idiot.”

“The armor was unbreakable! My limbs weren’t!” Adam shot back.

“What is your Toughness?” Shiv asked.

Adam pouted. “It’s high.”

“Do you have a Skill Evolution for it yet.”

The Young Lord’s pout deepened. “Soon I will.”

“In the span of months or years?” Shiv asked.

“How about you come clean this plate, too, hm?” Adam snapped. “I'm done with the food and want service.”

“And I want that armor,” Shiv said. “And to not be hated my entire life for a mistake I didn’t make. But I suppose things don’t always go the way we want them to.”

“You cleaned her plate!” Adam complained.

“There’s a difference between you and her: It’s the difference between an undercooked, moldy length of sausage and an enchanting five-course meal with outdoor setting, an assortment of wines, and a proper band playing in the background. A Legendary band.”

Silver Tongue > 2

“And it still somehow leads back into a compliment for her,” Valor breathed. “This power is unnatural in the hands of one so young… It’s too much…”

Uva, for her part, rolled her eyes but looked rather smug. Adam felt more offended that Shiv was capable of maintain his charm offensive on the elf while also insulting Adam.

“Sister Uva,” Shiv said, placing her cleaned plate in a rack. “I think I had enough of being inside. I’m going to go out. I’m going to be at the library and move onto other things. I don’t know what the Young Lord’s plans are, but I would ask that he doesn’t get himself into more trouble. However, if I might be so bold as to ask your plans for the day…”

The Umbral smiled. “I need to report back to the local headquarters in a while to retrieve your personal effects. After that, I have some patrols outside before I return in the afternoon.” She reached into a bag she brought with her and placed two brooches on the table.

Shiv’s eyes widened and he laughed. He pinned one of the brooches on his collar without needing her to explain what it was. “I talked to Nomos through this. It wasn’t a very pleasant conversation.” His voice came out through Uva’s collar, indicating a successful connection. “You, however…”

She closed her eyes and giggled. “Shiv, stop… Please… Don’t you get tired?”

“Of you? Is that possible?”

Slowly, Adam reached for his own brooch, unwilling to even look at Shiv, as if fearful he might get sucked in the vortex of the other man’s monstrous confidence.

As the Umbral finished laughing, she elaborated on the brooches functions. “The brooch is routed through headquarters. There is an operator listening on the other end, and they will connect you to the person you request based on name, identification number, or code phrase. All conversations are recorded, so be mindful what you say.” Shiv opened his mouth, but she interrupted him. “I’m serious, surfacer. These are connected to official security channels. It is a major act of trust on the part of the Composer to let you have these. Do not use it to flirt.”

Shiv winked. “Don’t worry. I won’t embarrass you in front of your sisters through the brooch. No promises about doing things in person though.”

“You’re hopeless,” Uva replied with a sigh.

“Only when I’m struck by incredible beauty.”

She covered her face. “I need to leave before this gets too much. Even for me. I’ll take you both to a nearby library. You’ll be able to find a map and the necessary enchantments you’ll need to navigate the city there.”

“And I’ll see you for dinner, at least?” Shiv asked.

“He keeps going,” Valor gasped, like a man drowning. The dagger started laughing. “I can’t believe this.”

Uva just stared at him. “You might see me earlier than that. I’ll call you when my daily duties are done.”

She’ll call him? Adam’s jaw dropped. He was courted by Isabella but… That was after months of awkward attempts at getting closer and signalling his intent. He even had flowers mysteriously delivered. This… could this possibly work.

“Well, make sure you don’t take too long,” Shiv said. “Otherwise, I might have to voice an official complaint to the Composer. You are supposed to be my guide.”

“I have other duties too,” Uva sighed.

“You can show me these other duties sometime. Do they cook for you too?”

“Great One… Great One please… You overblessed this one… Take some of his confidence away from him.” Valor was literally praying. Worse, Adam found himself agreeing with the damned dagger. This was just unnatural. It was too much casual confidence for a man to have.

Blackedge should have broken him, Adam despaired. But he’s just unshakable now…

The Umbral got up and eyed Shiv. “Go get changed. You should look presentable when you go out. I am sure the tabloids will be ripping into you.”

“Fine,” Shiv said. As he walked over and gathered his clothes, and looked over his shoulder and fired a final shot. “Hey. Thanks for these. They look very tasteful.”

And then he walked off into the bathroom, and Adam noticed the bloody Umbral staring at him, not even blinking. She even bit her tainted bottom lip. Slowly, Adam reached for his miss-matched mess of color-clashing clothing. “I should change too, right?”

Slowly, Uva turned and regarded Adam as if he was a cockroach she spotted crawling underfoot. “I care little what you do.”

And that was all she said to him.

Adam’s despair grew. If my soul has testicles… she definitely just kicked them…

***

“This is complete bullshit,” Adam muttered, flinching as the other patrons in the library started eyeing him from the moment he entered. His new blouse was the color of dying grass, his pants hot pink, and the shoes she got him were mismatched in style. It was like the Umbral was taking revenge on him for something.

Shiv, meanwhile, walked in an all-dark blue ensemble. Silk shirt, leather jacket, leather pants, leather boots, and a wide grin. That being said, Adam did notice the tremor in the former Omenborn’s hands as all eyes fell on him.

He’s not entirely comfortable with a crowd at all, Adam blinked. He just hides it. However, with the girl… The Town Lord caught the Psychomancer sneaking looks at Shiv.

“Hello,” Shiv said, smiling. “I-I’m not actually a surfacer. I’m just an Umbral with a skin condition.”

“Shiv, be serious,” Uva chided. She reached over and slapped the laughing Shiv on the chest as Adam shook his head.

I think I’m going to be sick, Adam groaned.

With the surfacers delivered to the district’s local bookstore and library, the Umbral Psychomancer prepared to depart for the day, her other duties awaiting. “Shiv. Do what you can to stay out of trouble.” She eyed Adam, and all the warmth in her expression died like a candle in a blizzard. “And watch him, too. He’s your responsibility. If he does something, you will be held judged on his behalf as well. Especially after yesterday. You’re lucky the Composer is so magnanimous.”

Shiv couldn’t help but grin at the word “responsibility.” How the wheel turns for the son of Roland Arrow. “You don’t trust me?”

“I’ll tell you after dinner,” she said. “But for now…” She handed him a purse. “You have ten thousand scale in here. I doubt you can spend it all if even if you tried, but it should be enough to get you the books and items you need. Don’t lose it.”

Shiv reached out to “receive” the purse, but accidentally “missed” wrapped his hand around hers as well. She looked at him. “Oops,” he said. “I apologize. I meant to grab the purse.”

“No, you didn’t,” she replied without an ounce of offense. She placed the money in his hands and let out a breath. “Shiv. Remember what I said.”

“I won’t push my luck,” he said. “Much.”

The Umbral sighed. “Much, he says. Composer watch over you.”

“And you as well,” Shiv replied.

As she walked out, Adam caught her turning back to give the damned Omenborn bastard a final look.

“Shiv,” Valor began. “Did you at any point in the past few hours think twice about what you were about to say to Uva.”

The Deathless’s frowned. “No. Why? Did I do something wrong?’

“No… You are a terrifying boy,” Valor finished.

Shiv blinked. “Where’s this coming from?” He didn’t get it. “If you weren’t stalwart and certain Georges kitchen, you would get destroyed. There was no slack or easy way out: Just be good at what you do and never doubt yourself.”

“I think I would like to meet this Georges someday,” Valor mused.

“I’d be happy to introduce you,” Shiv said. He looked at Adam and snorted. “Well. Come on, Young Lord. Let’s get you an education as well.”

“I graduated with Esteemed Honors from Phoenix Academy,” Adam spat. He looked around the library, with a sneer. “I assure you, what I had access to in the Capital—”

“Adam,” Shiv said, his smile turning forced. “We are surrounded by Umbrals and the spiderfolk. They are all looking at us. Finish that sentence, and we might not be able to get anything done here. And if Uva has to come back, she will be upset. Which means I will be upset.”

“Which means what to me?” Adam glared, tired of being bullied.

“Which means you might need to find lunch and dinner elsewhere.”

Adam could put up with being bullied a little more. And so he stopped talking.

“Thank you, Young Lord,” Shiv said, letting out a breath. “I will remember this sacrifice.”

“You’re a real bastard, Shiv.”

The library had around five levels to it. Five levels with walls and shelves stacked full of books. There were floating quills flying through the air as well, guiding the shoppers toward the texts they sought. While Shiv marveled at the establishment, the locals gawked at him and Adam. Slowly, they gained a few shadows as Shiv made his way to the front desk.

“Hello,” he said, leaning down and smiling at one of the Umbrals working there. For once, the Umbral seemed to be obviously male. Shiv blinked in surprise.

“I—oh,” the Umbral librarian said. “I… are you the surfacers.”

“We’re surfacers in search of a few books and reading aids. We require enchanted reading glasses to start. A map of Weave—along with other navigational materials you might recommend. After that, can you point me to a few books? Namely The Basics of Biology and Anatomy, Core Medicae, and... Odes of Blood and Flesh.”

The librarian just kept staring for a few minutes. Then shook his head. “I—Yes. Yes, of course—wait, Odes of Blood and Flesh.” He looked disturbed. “That book is restricted for general use. The only reason we have a copy is for research purposes. That is only for certified personnel from the Cradle.”

Shiv stared at the Umbral. “Is this a certification that money can solve?”

“No!” the librarian said, offended.

“I see,” Shiv said. Then, he employed his backup strategy: He held up Valor.

“Give him the book, boy,” Valor said.

“I—what is this?” the librarian said.

“I am Valor Thann. Now, you can doubt who I am, but if you inconvenience us… it will likely not result in much trouble for you. This is not a threat. However, Shiv does need the book, and we will contact the headquarters of the Arachanae Order if need be for permission, which might cause some interesting conversations to happen between you and your superiors. I don’t want that. So. Directions please.”

The librarian blinked. With a shaking hand, he reached under the table, clicked a mechanism Shiv couldn’t see, and a flying quill drifted over him. “F-follow that,” the librarian said. “P-please, f-forgive me V–V-V—”

“It’s fine, boy,” Valor said. “You are spared. I will speak highly of you to the Composer.”

A single tear fell from his face, and two of Shiv’s social skills advanced at once.

Intimidation > 5

Barter > 10

Talk about borrowed strength, Shiv thought, looking at Valor. “Hey, Valor?”

“Yes, Shiv?”

“I think I want to be you when I grow up. And get sealed in a dagger.”

“And I think I wish I was you when I was but an angry youth. Who often failed to interest the fairer sex.”

Behind them, Adam looked on, utterly alienated from the process.

Shiv had a grand time following the quill around and picking up the books he needed. The Basics of Biology and the Core Medicae were easy to find—and there was a special auto-enchantment table to get the reading glasses he and Adam needed. The Young Lord seemed to follow along in a daze, his eyes locked mostly to Shiv and no one else, his expression one of paranoia. The other Umbrals, weavers, Weaveresses, and more were also incredibly aware of the surfacers among them.

But by this point, Shiv didn’t care. Finally. I’m going to learn about the basics of felling magic. I’ve been waiting to do this my entire life… His heart raced as he was led through a set of magically sealed vault doors into the restricted section. There, two Weaveresses playing what looked like a complicated card game shot to their feet, saluted Valor Thann, and then literally took out keys to unchain the Odes of Blood and Flesh.

The book lived up to its dark reputation. Shiv’s Biomance felt a faint field around the book, and the leather that bound it was made from skin. A high vampire’s skin. It also had a set of eyes and teeth lining the back, so one could cut themselves holding it the wrong way.

“What the Broken Moon is that?” Adam breathed.

“Something I look forward to reading,” Shiv said. “You can have a peek as well. Apparently, it seals you in the body of a series of torture victims while teaching you about anatomy and biological functions.”

The Young Lord stared at Shiv like he was daft. “And why do you want to read that?”

“For Biomancy? Why else?”

“Aren’t the basic textbooks enough.”

“I’m more of a hands-on learner.”

“And it’s not like pain or the threat of death scares him, it seems,” Valor mused.

As Shiv thanked the Weaveresses and added his final book to his basket, he decided he was going to look around a bit more before leaving. He encouraged Adam to explore as well, but the Young Lord treated all the locals like how he treated Shiv when he was still Pathless.

He’s probably still dealing with all the Republic’s propaganda, Shiv said. He probably got a lot more of that junk in him than I do.”

As they wandered, Shiv picked out a dozen more books—five of them a collection of local recipes, one of them a pop fiction novel with a rather muscular-looking Weaver fighting demons with a cursed axe, a history book on the surfacer invasion of the Abyss on Valor’s recommendation, and finally an introduction to Psychomancy—because that was the next magical skill he was trying to develop.

“So,” Adam said. “Are we done? We’ve been here for an hour.”

“Just about,” Shiv said. “Why are you in a hurry?”

“Because our home is being attacked by literal monsters from the dark,” the Young Lord hissed.

“A rogue faction,” Shiv corrected.

“Whatever! They need our help! We don’t even know—”

“The quest hasn’t failed yet,” Shiv reassured. “And we won’t make it if we just go rushing back right now. Not without the Composer’s help. We’ll get lost or get killed. Now, I have no problem with the getting killed part, but you?”

Adam sighed. “I know they treated you like a monster. But—”

“Georges. Seymour. Tran.”

“What?” Adam said.

“Not everyone treated me like a monster. And I don’t want Blackedge to fall anymore than you do. You might care about the town more, but I have people too. I’m not blowing this off. But I’m not rushing back blind.” Shiv paused. “You don’t know what it’s like out there. I walked through the wilderness and I got through that the hard way. Then, when I finally got close to this place, a Dragon-Knight obliterated the mountain maze I was supposed to enter in a fiery tantrum. I didn’t do anything wrong a lot of the time. But I still fell. There was just no winning sometimes.”

Shiv eyed Adam. “I don’t want you to die. Despite everything. I won’t blame you if you want to go right now, but I don’t think I’ll ever see you again if you do. And I don’t think you’ll ever make it home to your dad or your beloved either.”

Adam swallowed and nodded. “Fine. But the moment the Composer calls—”

“I’ll answer—” Shiv bumped into an Umbral, and she dropped her book. He turned and winced. “Ah. Sorry. Surfacer’s are clumsy when they speak to each other.”

Unlike the other Umbrals, though, this one simply stared up at him with a blank expression. He reached down and picked up her book. Using this as an opportunity to test his new reading glasses, Shiv examined the cover.

“Mana-Physics: An Advanced Text on Magically Enhanced Engineering,” Shiv read. “Sounds complicated. I’ve fixed a magical freezer before. For a kitchen. Is there a chapter on that?”

The Umbral just kept staring at him. There was a distant look to her eyes, and he noticed a hive of scars running down the left side of her face. The kind of scars one got from an acid burn. As she took the book out of his hand and placed it back on the shelf, something hit Shiv—and hit him hard.

Foreshadowing: She imagines her bomb going off. She tries to conceive of the light. The heat. She tells herself she will likely be dead immediately. There will be no pain. But she’s not worried about herself. She just wants her son back.

She doesn’t know why the crow-faced men targeted her specifically—or why the raven that led them is forcing her to do this. All she does know is that if her bomb does not go off within Passage by the afternoon, her boy was going to die.

For the past three months, she spent her time quietly assembling a bomb within one of the teleportation anchors. There are unused spatial passages—and with the blindfold they gave her, the Composer would be blind to her actions. And so she worked. And at night she wept. But what was supposed to do? They were always watching, and the raven brought her letters from her son every day at midnight.

Whatever these agents of New Albion were planning, it was beyond her—it was going to swallow her life. But the contract they gave her promised the life of her son. So it was going to happen. She was going to betray her Exalted Mother, kill her sisters—and so many other people coming and going from Weave along with herself. Because she doesn’t want to live with it. Because she can’t…

The time is close. She went back to her favorite library for one last time. One last moment of comfort from the past. Everything was going to be bright soon.

Foreshadowing > 7

Quest Gained: Stop New Albion from bombing Passage and damaging Weave’s critical teleportation anchors.

Reward: Mask of False Paths (Master); Cloak of Midnight’s Kindred (Adept)

Failure: The hidden Compact gateway leading back to the surface will become sealed.

“...Shiv?” Adam shouted. Shiv blinked and found the Young Lord holding him by the shoulders. “Are you alright? Is it that book you got earlier? Did it reach into your mind? Or were you thinking about how to seduce that elf you just bumped into. Please say no. Please.”

“No,” Shiv breathed. “I just got another quest.”

“What? No! No! Tell me you were going to seduce another one of these elves instead!”

“Adam,” Shiv said. The Young Lord quieted at Shiv’s sudden shift in demeanor. “We need to follow that Umbral. I think someone’s blackmailing her. They want her to bomb Passage. And if we fail, I think our gate back up will get sealed.”