A close call

Rila kept silent as they entered Rona. The city was bustling with people going about their lives, unaware that the son of one of Aemar's most powerful families had gone missing. Merchants with makeshift shelters traded along the side of the road. Criers advertized goods and services from more reputable vendors with marble storefronts. The odd armored folk strode purposefully through the streets.

They'd had their horses move as fast as they could on the road, their hooves clanking satisfying against cobblestone. There'd been very little chatter during that segment, the seriousness of their task weighing upon them.

She looked over her companions, or rather, her sisters and Clevis. The purple-eyed elf had kept close to Brynn throughout the entire ride, much to Rila's disgust. The insufferable man had sent her a knowing smirk that made her want to wring the life out of him.

Velri made up the front of their procession, and the city folk had looked upon her armored form with equal parts awe and terror as they made way for her horse, which trotted with just a bit more urgency than expressly permitted within city limits.

"When we get there, let me do the talking," Clevis spoke, his voice smug. "The men in there won't understand the seriousness of the situation unless I explain it to them."

Rila shot him an irritated look and tightened her grip on her horse's mane.

"Julian's our brother. You think we aren't capable of letting the Enforcers know how badly we want him back home unharmed?"

"Calm down, Rila! He's just trying to help," Brynn leapt to his defense. The dark-haired girl glared at her angrily, like it was somehow not obvious to her that Clevis was just playing her for a fool.

Clevis merely sent her an affable smile, not taking any visible offense. That somehow made her angrier than all of his smug grins put together.

"It's fine, Brynn. Rila's just worried about your brother, that's all."

And the only thing you care about is getting under Brynn's robes. Gods, why does Brynn have to have such horrible taste in men?

"No, it's not fine. You're going out of your way to help us find Julian and Rila's done nothing but question your intentions since we left the manor!" Brynn turned to face her, her gray eyes crackling like a thunderstorm. "What is your issue with him, anyway, little sister?"

Rila raised her eyebrows in challenge.

You know, I was going to keep my mouth shut about this, but now suddenly I don't feel like being nice.

"Because he hates Julian just like he despises all the classless. The only reason he's helping us is to get into your good graces. Why do you think he really didn't tell us he saw Julian on the road hitching a ride with some strangers? They could be classed for all we know."

Just like you, Julian.

Her cheeks flushed slightly at the memory of the night before. Her brother had finally gotten his class! She was so excited for him. She couldn't wait until their parents found out.

Maybe life at home will get less miserable for a change once Dad realizes his son's got some power behind him. Ah, who am I kidding? We're Imerdans. We'll find a way to make everything miserable despite getting what we wanted. At least… at least I can try to make things a little better. I'll be Julian's perfect companion, to help him whenever he needs it. No matter what.

She remembered cradling his bloody arm in the dungeons as she healed him, cursing his foolhardiness for going to the dungeons alone. She'd thought she'd reached the limit to the degree with which she could be angry with him. The last few hours had rudely disabused her of that notion.

He could have died down there and he shrugs it off like it was no big deal. Then he up and leaves the manor when we are… when I'm supposed to be watching him. He may be the older brother, but he's only just gotten his class. There's so much he doesn't know. So many levels he has to attain before I'll be comfortable letting him out of my sight. A good sister wouldn't let Julian wander the city alone without someone to keep him safe.

Another memory flashed and she moved her hand to her lips. Her heart fluttered rapidly in her chest and her fingers dug at the edge of her robes. She felt hot for some reason.

I really shouldn't have kissed him. Oh, but he was so cute last night, with those piercing gray eyes. I just couldn't resist him! And he was such a good kisser! Better than any of the so-called men who've tried to court me in the past.

She'd always known Julian was handsome, but she'd never before considered him as a romantic prospect. The previous night had effectively upended her entire world.

He's my brother, but… does that really matter? I mean, we both enjoyed ourselves. I know he finds me attractive. He wouldn't have kissed me otherwise or stared at my body.

She felt a tingle between her legs, and she couldn't help but think about what might have happened if she'd stayed in his room for the night. She didn't have to imagine what he'd look like naked; she'd seen him once or twice without his clothes when he'd been changed and had foolishly left his door open. It had been the first time she'd ever seen a man nude, and while a part of her was disgusted with what she'd seen, she found she couldn't suppress the image in her mind of his large, dangling masculinity.

I don't see how that thing would ever fit inside me, but Gods forgive me, I can't stop thinking about it!

She bit her lip.

No. I... I can't be thinking about stuff like that. I have to be a good sister for my brother. Good sisters wouldn't be thinking about… that… would they?

Rila was so distracted by her thoughts, she nearly jumped out of her saddle when Clevis spoke.

"Look, Rila, I'll be the first to admit that Julian and I aren't on the best of terms anymore, but that doesn't mean I'd ever allow any harm to come to him. Like I said before; our families are inextricably linked. I don't care that Julian's classless. Our disagreements aren't even about that."

Liar.

"Then what are they about? What could he possibly have done to draw your ire?" she said. "What did you do to gain his?"

Clevis seemed stumped for a moment. Brynn glanced at him, treasonous curiosity brimming in her gaze.

Got you!

"Will you three be quiet?" Velri's cold voice cut through the conversation like a knife.

Brynn, Clevis, and Rila shut their mouths almost instantly. Clevis did so almost gratefully, a relieved smile on his face.

Of all the times to interrupt, why did you have to pick now, Velri? You're such a terrible sister.

The road narrowed slightly as they approached the Enforcer redoubt. They passed an inn called The Blue Dragon. She stared through the glass windows and saw no one seated at the inn's various tables. On the front door hung a sign that read: "CLOSED".

That's weird. A place like that should be packed with people at this hour. Why would the owner shutter it so early?

As they passed the inn, glass suddenly shattered against the road behind them. Shards of it fell past Rila, narrowly missing her head.

She looked upward just in time to see a young, dark-haired man clad in a familiar brown coat and matching pants fall toward the ground.

Her eyes widened with recognition and horror.

---

Fear gripped Julian as the feeling of momentary weightlessness left him and the sensation of falling overtook him. He'd smashed through the glass window back-first, propelled by whatever **** ability Valda had conjured up to remove him from the fight and possibly kill him. His body had flipped, and now he was facing the streets below. He was dimly aware of the pain coursing through his body from the thin bony protrusions embedded in his flesh. Focus had numbed him significantly and it seemed to have also slowed his perception of time. Or maybe that was his mind coming to grips with his imminent demise.

Izel's scream echoed in his mind. She'd called his name as he was flung from the window. She must still have been fighting Valda, and while she'd shown herself to be a capable, strong combatant, could she really defeat Valda on her own? For all he knew, she could have gained the upper hand now that she no longer had to worry about his safety or faltered and been grievously injured and was moments away from ****. And even if he could have somehow gotten back inside the inn, he doubted he was powerful enough to make a real difference in a fight between the two.

Not that any of that matters. I'm about to die and she's going to be left in there with a strong monster that hates her with every fiber of its being.

The thought grated on his nerves. He hated being useless. It was something he'd experienced ever since it'd become apparent to him that he'd be classless his entire life. His family was ashamed of him and seemed to regret the fact that he existed at all. He understood why; his family was powerful and well-known; having a classless son had been a greater blow to Krevos and Maela Imerdan's credibility than any of their true failures. He'd contemplated running away, fleeing to a country like Nyros where class seemed to no longer have any bearing on one's station in life, but a part of him balked at the idea. He was an Imerdan, regardless of what his family or their peers thought. Imerdans didn't let anything as trivial as heights do them in, and they certainly didn't fail when the people they cared about were counting on them.

Except Mother and Father. And Brynn. And Rila. They all failed me when I needed them, so maybe the Imerdans aren't so great for their loved ones after all. But you know what? I'll be the one who changes that, and even if I don't succeed, maybe I'll at least save Izel. That would be enough for me.

For a moment, he glimpsed his lover's beautiful face. Her amber eyes stared into his, glowing with a level of affection he'd never seen from a woman before. Her lips, plush and soft, were twisted into an impish grin. For him and no one else.

The image shifted, and he saw her body broken and torn apart, her internal organs exposed. A grinning Valda stood over her, blood dripping from the pale, corpulent figure's inhumanly sharp teeth.

He clenched his fists. The ground was nearer now, and so was ****.

This isn't where my road ends. I will save Izel. I'll honor my family name in a way they never could!

He felt something shift inside his mind, like a key forcing a rusted lock open and nearly snapping in the process. New information filled him, and with the certainty of a practiced acrobat, he moved, curling his body so his feet faced the ground. The impact came moments later, and again he was assailed by practiced knowledge that was not his own. Grunting in pain, he allowed himself to roll once, settling into a low crouch. Shards of glass and chipped wood fell all around him, shattering and clattering against the cobblestone road.

Agony lanced up his legs, but Focus numbed it almost instantly.

I... how did I do that?

"Julian?" a familiar feminine voice broke him from his reverie.

He glanced upward, dread filling him when he saw his three sisters perched atop their horses. They stared at him, varying emotions playing across their beautiful faces. Velri glared at him angrily, her blue eyes brimming with righteous indignation. He knew that look. It was something his older sister only showed him when he had truly upset her. Brynn's eyes were wide with shock. Dark blue ribbons of electricity crackled across her body in spurts before she took a deep breath, calming herself. Her sapphire-tipped staff stuck out of one of the storage slots in her horse's saddle. Rila was the closest to him. The blonde had a hand raised to her mouth as she stared at him like she couldn't believe what she was seeing. Her hands gripped the mane of her horse tightly.

Julian felt a surge of anger when he saw Clevis with them. The redheaded elf's purple eyes stared at him with open disbelief. A hand rested on his bow seemingly out of reflex.

Movement drew his gaze back to Velri. Her angry look had faded into open concern and she lifted herself from her horse and rushed over to him with a speed that made her hefty armor seem like it weighed nothing. Within moments, her arms forcibly, but gently, laid him on the ground. Her face was directly above his.

He tried to resist, but a sharp glare from her stopped him.

"Don't even try to move, you arrogant, pig-headed fool!" She commanded as she looked him up and down. She grit her teeth as her deep blue eyes widened with worry.

He wanted to laugh.

There's no way she's actually concerned about me. The blood loss is probably making me hallucinate.

Focus deactivated. He collapsed against the ground like a puppet with its strings cut.

"N-no!" he cried out, writhing helplessly on the ground, his eyes fixated on the inn. He tried to move, but his body refused to obey him.

The pain the Skill had held back for several minutes came howling back with a vengeance. Stars danced across his vision and he couldn't help the agonized yelp that escaped his lips.

"Rila, get your ass over here right now!" he heard Velri's voice.

He heard clattering against the road and suddenly he felt surrounded. He blinked and looked upward. His three sisters stared down at him, their faces red and contorted with worry.

"Oh Gods. Julian, what have you gotten yourself into?" Rila groused, hastily muttering a spell. Her hands glowed white. She reached down and touched him. Pain lanced through his body and he reflexively tried to shift away. "Argh. Hold him still!"

Two sets of arms grabbed him and anchored him to the road. He was dimly aware of other figures perched beyond his sisters. Unfamiliar voices chattered animatedly. They must have attracted a crowd at some point. His head pounded. It was so hard to think over the pain.

"Back off morons, or taste steel!" Velri ordered, drawing shocked gasps from the crowd. The tenor of their voices grew softer, as if they'd moved away somewhat.

Brynn moved her face in front of his. Her position above him meant the tops of her pale, creamy breasts were exposed when her robe drooped downward with gravity. At any other time, he'd have gawked at her, but his body coursed with agony. His soul quivered with anguish. He wanted to stand. He wanted to march back into the inn, kill Valda and save Izel. He wanted it more than he had ever wanted anything, he realized. He tried to move again, but his sisters held him down.

"It's okay, Julian. I'm here. We're here," his twin whispered, and he wanted nothing more than to shove her off him. She cupped the side of his face and smiled. "Just relax. Rila's healing you up. You're going to be okay."

"I've got to…" he breathed. "Izel, she's still…"

"Hold still!" Velri tightened her grip on his arm when he tried to move.

The pain had begun to subside. He felt his strength returning. There was an absence in his chest and leg where the bone-knives were. Had Rila taken them out and healed him?

"S-status," he breathed.

Julian Imerdan (lv. 6 Psion)

HP: 70/127

ST: 41/110

WP: 161/445

Skills...

<New Skill Discovered>

<Two Skill Points Available>

Attributes…

Effects…

More than halfway healed. Enough to stand and fight? Gods, I don't even care.

"That's enough!" he said, trying to move again only to be held still be Velri's iron grip. "Let go of me, I'm fine!"

Brynn glared down at him.

"Shut up!" she glanced over at Rila, who currently had her hands on his chest. The blonde's eyes were shut and her brow was furrowed with concentration. "How's he looking?"

"Better," his younger sister's voice was strained.

"Good enough to move him?" Brynn asked.

"Gods, just let me up!" he struggled against Brynn with renewed strength, but Velri kept her weight on his shoulders, stopping him.

"Stay still!" she ordered, a vicious undercurrent to her voice. Her fingers dug into his shoulders.

Fuck this.

-Julian's fine. Let him up.-

The Suggestion extended out from his mind. The dark tendril probed at Velri's mental defenses before pushing forward, sinking into her brain. The anger which had burned so brightly in her eyes diminished almost instantly. Her fingers let go of him almost reflexively, like she'd just touched a scalding kettle.

"What are you doing, Velri?" Brynn looked up at her, her eyes wide.

"He's fine," Velri said gruffly. "Let him up."

Brynn and Rila paused.

"Did you hear what I said? Let him up!" Velri commanded, her piercing blue eyes staring at them.

Brynn and Rila obeyed, moving away from him, though Rila only looked more worried as he stood up. The pain that had burned through him was nothing more than a faint tingle now. He brushed himself off. He was about to start toward the inn, but he noticed something on the ground.

Vern's sword. It must have gotten thrown out of the room with me.

The bone-white blade was flecked with spots of dark red blood. His blood. He snatched it from the ground, his fist tightening around it, trembling with rage and adrenaline. He didn't notice Rila and Brynn casting him worried looks.

I wonder how that bastard Valda would feel if I ran him through with his own son's blade?

He ran up to front door of the inn and tried the doorknob. Locked.

Fuck!

He kicked the door. It stood resolutely in place. His foot throbbed.

Fuck it, I'll break one of the windows.

"Julian, what in the name of the gods are you doing?" Velri's voice broke him from his stupor. He whipped his head back to look at her. He trailed his eyes over her, Rila, Brynn, and Clevis. His sisters were staring at him like he were a stranger.

"I was attacked," he took a deep breath to calm himself. Perhaps if they knew what he had gone through, they would help him. The four of them with Izel against Valda would be much better odds.

I don't have time to convince them! Izel needs me! She could be dying right now and these... these morons are just standing here talking!

"So that's where the daggers Rila took out of you came from," Velri said, frowning. Her hand rested on the pommel of her sword. "So you want to go back for ****, is that it? What even happened?"

"I told you, I was attacked!" he snarled. He took another deep breath, wishing that he had Focus to calm his nerves. "And no, this isn't about ****. My-my friend's in there. She saved my life and now she needs my help. Please. If I ever meant anything to any of you, you'll help me save her."

His sisters shared a look. Clevis raised his eyebrows.

"If someone's tried to hurt you, I'll go get the Enforcers. We'll set this right," he said, a self-satisfied smile on his face.

"You go, you coward. I'm not waiting for you or them!" he said, ignoring the flicker of rage that crossed the elf's features. He looked at his sisters. "Velri. Brynn. Rila. Please."

Rila was the first to speak.

"I think we should help him. Or rather, his friend."

Velri and Brynn stared at Rila.

The blonde swallowed.

"I-I mean, if it were any of us who had a friend in need, we'd help each other right away, without question," she nodded. "Besides, whoever hurt Julian can't be allowed to get away with it. Our family honor demands that whoever attacked him pay with their life."

Julian gazed at her, momentarily forgetting his troubles. Something warm blossomed in his chest. With a bit of effort, he shoved it away.

No time.

"We don't have any time for this," he said. "Either you help me or I find my own way in and take my chances."

After a long moment, Velri nodded. Her ocean blue eyes studied him as if weighing whether or not it'd be worth it to knock him out and carry him home.

"Very well," she nodded, drawing her sword. The blade sang as it left its scabbard. Julian's eyes widened in surprise. "We'll deal with... whoever it was who attacked you. What did they look like? Do you have a good sense of their capabilities?"

He nodded, hope blossoming within him like a flower in spring.

"He's large and fat. Black hair and black eyes," an image of the Amyss' form flickered across his vision. He saw him outstretch his hand and hurl Izel through a wall. "H-he's strong. He wielded a large sword that he was able to control magically. A **** Mage, I think."

Velri nodded grimly.

"I see," she looked over at Rila, Brynn, and Clevis who was still there for some reason. Didn't he have a building full of Enforcers to scurry back to? "I'll go in first and take up the **** Mage's attention. Brynn and Clevis, you'll pepper him with attacks. If you manage to stagger him even once, I can probably finish him with my sword. Rila."

"Yes?" his blonde sister said.

"I really wish you didn't duck your training lessons, but we might need a Cleric. Can I trust you to stay out of harm's way and only intervene when someone needs healing?"

Rila nodded.

"You can count on me," she said, her voice uncharacteristically firm. She balled up her fists, adopting a fierce look on her face.

"And what about me?" Julian asked.

Velri turned to face him.

"You? You're not classed, so you'll only get in the way. Go to the Enforcer redoubt and wait for us there. That's an order."

He stared up at her.

No. I'll be damned if I sit it out while Izel's in trouble!

Rila's eyes found his. She mouthed something. Tell them.

"No," he faced Velri, his gaze unflinching even as she dominated the space between them with her size. "I just discovered my class. Whatever happens, I'm going with you."

-Julian's class is powerful. He can hold his own in a fight.-

He felt the Suggestion scrape across the surface of his sister's mind. For a brief, terrifying moment, he feared it wouldn't work. Then the tendril found a small entryway into her mental landscape, and made the change he wanted.

---

HP: 70/127

ST: 44/110

WP: 123/445

Skills...

<New Skill Discovered>

<Two Skill Points Available>

Attributes…

Effects…

Julian's Skills

[Manipulation] Suggestion (cost: 20 WP) - The user can telepathically implant a suggestion in the mind of a target to influence an action, thought, or behavior of theirs. The target must be sapient. There is a chance that it might fail depending on the state of the target mind. The more simple and less unusual the suggestion, the easier it is to implant.

[Manipulation] Hypnosis (cost: 30 WP) - The user lulls the target into a light hypnotic trance. While hypnotized, the target will be more open to Suggestion and suggestions, and more likely to divulge information they would not otherwise. Requires the use of a pendant or other foci to draw the target’s gaze.

[Affliction] Mind Jab (cost: 15 WP) - The user projects a weak bolt of psionic energy that attacks the mind of an opponent, causing crippling mental pain that lasts for a few seconds. Affects any living creature with a brain.

[Affliction] Psi-Bolt (cost: 5 WP) – The user emits an unguided bolt of psionic energy that inflicts low Psi damage to a target upon impact. Deals moderate Psi damage against targets affected by Mind Jab, but clears them of the status.

[Connection] Detect Mind (cost: 2 WP/s) - The user can detect the minds of sentient organic beings within ten feet.

[Knowledge] Safe Fall (cost: free) - The user has learned a method of shifting one's body mid-air to significantly mitigate falling damage. Only usable from survivable heights.

[Innate] Focus (cost: free) - The user enters a state of emotional detachment, allowing the user to ignore pain and resist negative mental effects. Increases WP regeneration by 20% while active. Only usable during combat.

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