"SJ," Lythonian called.
SJ had been helping clear up the gate area. The destroyed tents and rubbish from the gnolls' inhabitants were currently burning. It was late afternoon of the next day since their battle to take the gate, and there had been no reports of any beings heading towards the crags from the town. Their captives had been escorted back to the plain in the valley and were being watched over by the town members. Alice, Zej and several other injured beings had gone with them. They may not be able to fight fully in a battle, but they would still help to be a deterrent if the gnolls tried anything. Not that SJ believed they would, they had seemed almost grateful to be free from the draconian orders.
The scouts were all in position along its route and would report back on any movement. They had discovered a covered wagon that had been full of rations, which meant that those at the gate had enough supplies with them for a few days. SJ only hoped this was the case, and none of them would come and investigate, even after SJ's and Fas's recent killings; the number of forces in the town was too many for those near the gate to contend with.
The main forces had repositioned themselves back into the northern woods. The natural terrain provided natural protection, especially against any lizards that would be unable to traverse it.
The corralled lizards were the reason that Lythonian had called SJ.
"What's up?" SJ asked.
"You need to come and see this," Lythonian said. He sounded short of breath from running to find her.
SJ followed Lythonian as they headed to where the lizards were penned in. Penned wasn't the best description, as no barriers were holding them in the forest, just the presence of Aletheia, who sat cross-legged by them. Patch and the pack were all lying around the area; none of them appeared even concerned by the lizards now.
Cristy was sitting with Patch, stroking his massive head fondly. His head was resting on her lap, and his eyes were closed.
What immediately drew SJ's attention, however, wasn't the almost relaxed and natural-looking scene, but the lizards. She frowned as she took them in. All the lizards she had seen previously were a mix of mottled ochre colouring, but as she neared them, their colour had changed. They no longer appeared ochre; instead, their scales had lightened, almost turning white.
"What's happened to them?" SJ asked.
"I have no idea," Lythonian replied.
SJ moved over to where Aletheia sat, her hands resting in her lap as she stared towards the beasts. She had hardly moved since the battle.
"Just watch," Cristy said, hearing SJ's voice.
SJ stared in astonishment as the closest lizard slowly stepped forward. They no longer hissed or snapped with their previous violent intentions. Instead, it moved slowly, deliberately as it approached Aletheia. Its large tongue flicked from its lips as it tasted the air. It neared within a few feet of Aletheia, and she lifted her hand and held her palm out towards the beast. Cautiously, the lizard moved forward and sniffed it.
SJ's heart was in her mouth, expecting the lizard to snap her hand off suddenly. Rather than bite, it licked, its tongue slowly stroking along Aletheia's open palm. The lizard shuddered, its limbs shaking and its inner lids closing as though in pleasure. It then turned and walked away again.
"What's going on?" SJ asked.
Dave spoke in a tone as surprised as SJ's. "I have absolutely no idea. This breaks my understanding of any expected behaviour. These beasts are feral, controlled by violence and power. They shouldn't behave like that."
SJ approached Aletheia. "Aletheia?"
"Yes, SJ." She hadn't turned away from looking at the lizards.
"What are they doing, or more to the point, what have you done?"
"I am removing corruption and aligning their mana. After looking at these poor lizards, I can understand why they are so angry. The pain they must have been suffering, their mana was so misaligned."
"You're healing them?"
"Correcting, not healing. These beasts were an abomination of the system's creativity."
"Holy poxed fae wings," Dave blurted.
'What?' SJ thought.
"Look at your display."
SJ opened her display and gasped. Where grey dots would have shown the lizards previously, they were now a light green colour. Not as bright a green as Cristy and Lythonian on her display, but they now showed as friendly or at least becoming friendly. That was also when SJ realised that Aletheia didn't appear on her display.
"What?" Lythonian asked at SJ's gasp.
"I think they're friendly."
Lythonian's face screwed up in a confused expression at the thought of the lizards being friendly. Only yesterday, they had attacked and injured several members of the guard. There was no logical explanation, and Lythonian looked at Aletheia as he made a sweeping holy gesture with his hand. SJ had seen Lythonian perform the same act frequently while saying a silent prayer.
SJ slowly stepped toward them as she entered the area where they were. This close, she could clearly see the bleached white scales, and their eyes were now a clear amber. Patch lifted his head and watched her. He didn't react and showed no signs of concern. She held her breath as she approached them. One of the lizards let out a low hiss, but SJ knew it wasn't a threat. Kibble swooped down towards her, landing on her shoulder with a large beetle in his jaws. He flicked his head back, swallowing it as he chirped at her, blue lightning forming on his jaw.
"What do you think you're doing? Kibble asked.
"I think they're friendly," SJ replied quietly. She lifted her hand out towards the lizards. A different lizard than before tilted its head, its tongue flicking from its enormous jaws. It could probably cut her in two with a single bite if she weren't careful, but for some unknown reason, she just knew it would be alright.
"They recognise you," Aletheia said from behind SJ.
"What do you mean, recognise me?"
"You are the trigger. The reason for the change. They welcome you."
None of this made sense. Aletheia's alien behaviour and impossible ability. SJ still hadn't spoken to her about the ring of light she pulsed from her being, and after talking to Dave, he knew neither. The system hadn't even been able to register it.
SJ noticed the vibration in her inventory. She knew it was the tablet, but wasn't going to reveal it now. Only Fas had seen it previously.
"Because I broke the system?" SJ said.
"No, because you remind them of what they once were."
"This is madness." Dave was flummoxed. "These lizards no longer have the same signatures. It's as though they have been genetically modified. It's as though the code has been rewritten at such an intricate level. I need to perform further analysis, which may help in understanding exactly what Aletheia is capable of. Plants are one thing to purify, but beasts! That shouldn't be possible."
SJ's actions hadn't gone unnoticed, and several were now looking over to where she approached the lizards. Lorna approached, staring at her friend.
"Do you think we could ride them?" Lorna asked, maintaining her distance.
"I don't know," SJ replied. "Perhaps?"
Silence fell over the scene as the lizard licked SJ's outstretched palm, as it had Aletheia's. It was only then that Aletheia spoke. "I must rest now." Without a word, she lay back on the grass, her eyes closed as a faint glow thrummed from her body.
Lythonian had immediately moved to her side, where she now lay perfectly still, a smile on her lips as though having a pleasing dream. Lythonian leaned over her, listening to her breathing. He looked up again, turning to the others. "She's asleep," he said.
SJ slowly walked along the side of the lizard, her hand reaching out and touching its cool scales. Its surface, although looking smooth, was pitted, and there were evident scars where it had sustained injury over its life. She then moved to the other two, which, after accepting her, allowed her to do the same. The whole time, Aletheia lay perfectly still, as though in a coma.
"Imagine if we could get control of the remaining lizards?" Lorna said excitedly as SJ moved away from the lizards again.
"I don't think that's an option. You have seen how long it has taken Aletheia to change just three of them," SJ said.
SJ moved back toward the gate, trying to get to grips with everything, when a friendly face appeared.
"SJ," Fran called. She had remained in the valley as a line of defence if the battle at the gates had failed. Her skills as a mage were strong, but offensively, she was still weak magically.
"Fran," SJ said, jogging towards her. "Have you heard from Harrietta?"
"Just that's why I came to find you. She had trouble entering the Wandering Ogre; it has wards placed on it, but she eventually found a workaround. It's a good job her magical affiliations are so varied," Fran said as a way of explanation.
"What did she discover? Is Zigferd there?" SJ said hopefully.
"Yes, Zigferd is being held captive inside. There were three of them. Zigferd, Orik, and Gary."
Hearing Gary's name filled SJ with mixed emotions. Relief that he was still alive, but dread that he was captured. Gary was probably one of the few remaining guards in town as a sergeant. Orik was the lead dwarven representative on the town council and controlled all the mining, building, and excavation works for the town.
"How were they?"
Fran's face dropped. "Poor. The draconians have been using Gary as a means to break Zigferd."
"They're torturing him?" SJ gasped.
Fran didn't reply; she didn't need to.
SJ let out a scream, pure anger flooding her. All those within earshot turned to stare at her.
"I'm going," SJ said, turning on her heel.
"NO!" Fran shouted. "You won't get past their wards. As I said, Harrietta only just managed to get through them. They are shamanic dark magic, she said, it reeked of sacrificial bloodwork. You won't get inside without drawing their attention or being cursed, or worse."
SJ had no understanding of shamans or their abilities, having only briefly encountered the two she had dealt with.
"I can't just leave them there," SJ snapped.
"The wards would need to be broken. That will only happen with the death of the shaman who has set them," Fran said.
"That's fine, I will kill them first then," SJ said as she continued away. Her fists flexed as she stormed to where she knew Fas was resting. Fran watched her go, knowing there was little she could say to stop her.
"Fas, are you okay to travel?" SJ asked.
"I'm feeling much better now, yes," Fas said as he stood up, no longer wincing from the injury he had sustained.
"Good. We need to go."
"Go where?"
"We have to find and kill all the shamans in the town. The Wandering Ogre has wards on it, and only once they are dead will they break. Zigferd, Gary, and Orik are inside, and Gary is being tortured."
Fas nodded, not replying, as SJ turned and headed towards Lorna, who still stood near the lizards. SJ explained to Lorna and, going against Lorna's pleas to wait for the reinforcements, SJ shrank and headed towards the town. The lizards at the forest edge turned and watched her depart.
Kibble flew by her side and chirped.
"Is this sensible?" Kibble asked.
SJ frowned as she watched Fas Shadow Step below through the forest. He was following the main trail.
"I'm not leaving my friends to be tortured," SJ replied.
"You know I will do anything for you, but do you think this is really the best option we have?" Kibble reiterated.
SJ glanced at her companion. "When did you get such an old head on your shoulders?"
Kibble didn't respond.
"He's right, you know," Dave said. "You have had two close run-ins with shamans already."
"I don't care. I won't sit by and wait. We still don't know when the reinforcements will arrive."
"Okay. I understand, but before you go steaming in, let me see if I can make some adjustments."
"What adjustments?"
"I may make some further enhancements to your display. If I consider strands over blocks, it could be possible to show where there are mana-dense areas."
"That could help," SJ agreed, glad her friend was thinking ahead. "Do me a favour, at least warn me before you adjust anything."
Dave scoffed in response.
SJ triggered her clip. "Stay in the forest. I'm going to scout," SJ said to Fas. They were now nearing the southern forest edge, before the cornfields that led to the town.
"Kibble, stay with Fas," SJ said.
Kibble squeaked, attempting to argue.
"Now," SJ said.
Kibble chirped angrily, but didn't follow her as she flew higher and crossed the cornfields. Her miniature form was no larger than a small bird as she covered the remaining distance. She glanced at the roof of the destroyed mill, one of its sails hanging limply, where stone had broken it as it collapsed.
It was only late afternoon, and the sun was still high. The streets on this side of the town were mostly empty, except for the patrolling enemy and the areas selected for the captives. Debris and broken wares littered the streets, windows smashed, and doors hung off their hinges. No building appeared untouched now, the hostiles having ransacked everything. As she passed the Hogling Arms, she stopped dead. The tables that had remained in the streets after the party had been rearranged, and several gnolls sat at them, eating.
That wasn't what had made her stop, but the sight of Kerys and Holly, as they moved between the tables serving the enemy. Kerys looked down, beaten, her head down as she carried a tray, delivering ale to the tables. Holly was the same. SJ had brought Holly and her family from Asterfal to start a new life in Killic, and it pained her to see how they were being treated. SJ wondered where the kids were and whether they had escaped.
"You can't do anything at the moment," Dave said, reading SJ's thoughts. "You have already made a decision, unless you wish to free Kerys and Holly first? They don't appear to be in immediate danger, so prioritise."
SJ watched for another couple of minutes before growling in annoyance and continuing towards the barracks area. As she flew nearer, the streets below were being cleared. Members of the town, under the direction of gnoll and draconian captors, were being ordered in parties to clear the debris and rubble from their ransacking.
They moved slowly, hunched under the tyrannical rein of their captors, who snapped and barked orders at them. A gnoll prodded one of the beings viciously with the blunt end of his spear, making it cry in pain as it fell to its knees. SJ's temper was rising with everything she saw.
No longer were they captives, but were being put to work as slaves. It hadn't taken the attacking forces long at all to break the will of the town.
"SJ. I think I have it," Dave said. "Can you find somewhere safe while I implement it?"
SJ flew to the roof of a nearby building, setting down.
'Okay. Do what you have to,' SJ thought.
"Okay. Oh, wait... Ummm... Hang on..."
'I thought you said you had it?'
"You do understand the complexities of the calculations, don't you?" Dave huffed. "And you keep telling me to make sure it's safe. I just noticed a minor coding infringement, so I'm just running it through simulations."
'Hurry up, will you? I need to get on with it.' SJ's frustration was bubbling over.
"Patience," Dave sighed.
SJ grumbled.
"Okay, here goes."
SJ opened her map display to see what had changed.
'It's the same?' SJ said.
"It's embedding, give it a second."
SJ's screen started to flicker like a lantern flame caught in a breeze, and then blinked out.
'It's gone!'
"Patience," Dave snapped. SJ could imagine him with his tongue sticking out of the corner of his mouth, the way he sounded.
"Right, it's just coming back. Now."
As Dave said, now her display burst back to life. Her display still looked the same.
'It's still not changed!'
"Right, so to use this display, can you see the small icon that looks like a lightning bolt?"
'Yes.'
"Select that, it will adapt your overlay for your map so it can be turned on and off. You will see why when you turn it on."
SJ triggered the emblem, and her display changed from its usual clear picture to a mosaic of hundreds of thousands of orange dots and lines. It took her a few moments to get used to what she was looking at as realisation set in. Everything within the area was now mapped out by its mana levels. Walls or other inert objects were thin lines, while other regions glowed a brighter orange.
'Wow. So, the brighter points are where mana saturation is?'
"Yes, in the simplest terms. It maps out all the strands in the area and shows them in a two-dimensional profile."
SJ looked over the display and noticed an object moving that was a brighter orange than its surroundings. She focused on her display and zoomed in. Pale orange markers surrounded it.
'That must be a shaman,' SJ thought.
"Perhaps, or another being strong in magic. You can't tell if they are friendly or hostile from this view, so it's limited."
'It's still going to make it easier to find those who are magic users and should help identify the shamans amongst them.'
"It will also identify the shield around the wandering ogre if it is magically protected with a ward."
'Only one way to find out,' SJ thought as she took off and headed towards it.
