Outside factors

Rila sat as she styled her hair in the mirror. She loved her platinum blonde hair and was glad she’d been the one to inherit it from her mother. Her brother and sisters had all gotten their father’s stark black hair, and while she had nothing against the look, she much preferred being blonde.

It makes me unique. I wonder if Julian likes blonde hair.

Flushing slightly, she tried her best to dispel all thoughts of Julian and what had happened the night before. Unbidden, the memory of their kiss flashed through her mind. She bit her lip and sighed.

Gods, I cannot believe I kissed him. What am I going to do? What will I even say to him the next time I see him?

Her lips felt warm and wet. She sniffed and almost tasted his masculine scent. Julian was lacking in many things, intelligence and simple forethought chief among them. But he was most certainly a man. A newly-classed man who was in the most dire need of her help. She glanced at the wall on the other side of her room.

That idiot almost got himself killed. I can’t believe he went down to the monster dungeon by himself. So what if he just classed? Everyone knows you don’t go off on your own at such a low level. It’s suicide!

She remembered when she’d first classed. Her parents had been so proud, especially her father since she shared his ability to use light magic. Their tutoring sessions had been… nice, to put it one way, but then her father had gotten busy and the training sessions stopped. It didn’t help that she’d complained every time she had to kill a monster or dangerous animal. Somehow, despite everything, the disapproving looks her father had given her whenever she’d refused to kill a wounded or defeated monster had felt worse than doing the actual killing.

She put her comb down on her vanity. Stylizing her hair no longer interested her.

I wonder if the others are awake yet. I… uh, don’t think I’ll check in on Julian just yet. I know I’m supposed to help him no matter what, but last night was so awkward. I don’t really want to think about it, no matter how good his lips tasted…

Her pussy tingled, and she reflexively rubbed her thighs together.

Rila stood up abruptly, trying to ignore the way her large breasts jiggled in the low-cut top she’d worn. She pretended not to hear the quiet voice in the back of her head that asked if Julian would have liked them.

As she entered the hallway, she deliberately did not look in the direction of Julian’s bedroom. She couldn’t help but recall what had happened there, however, and womanly parts twitched irritatingly in response.

Biting her lip caused a flash of pain which helped her refocus her thoughts and distract herself. She moved toward the stairwell and skipped down them, two stairs at a time. She ended up on the first floor to hear voices coming from the kitchen.

She turned left and walked down the hallway. As she moved closer to the kitchen, she was able to make out the voices, one masculine and the other feminine. Both of them were familiar to her.

“-this is pretty good. I wish lunches at the redoubt were this nice. You really must come and teach the classless cooks how to prepare actual food.”

Rila peeked her head through the doorway and saw her sister Brynn sitting at the kitchen table with Clevis Revenar. Brynn wore a black robe with white highlights along the seams. Clevis was dressed in the silver-gray suit of Enforcer armor he always seemed to wear these days. She had to admit that the uniform made him look handsome. They both had plates in front of them upon which sat sizzled pieces of beef and baked potatoes.

Warm amber light from the afternoon sun lit the kitchen through windows on the far side of the room and the walls to the right of the entrance.

Hm. He’s probably here to court Brynn again. How many times does she have to say no before he’ll get the hint?

Brynn snorted and shook her head.

“It’s just cooked beef and potatoes. Anyone could make it.”

The red haired elf’s violet eyes narrowed with irritation. He schooled his features quickly and smirked.

“But you make it so well,” he said. “It was really nice of you to do after I arrived at your estate unannounced.”

Brynn blushed slightly.

“It wasn’t a problem. Your family and mine have been allies for a long time. Gods, you and I used to play together as children. It was the least I could do when you came knocking.”

Clevis smiled in a way that made Rila shiver, but Brynn apparently had no instinct whatsoever when it came to boys. Or maybe she really was smitten with him, in which case things could get ugly very fast. She had to intervene.

“Good afternoon, Brynn! And Clevis, it’s so nice to see my favorite Enforcer!” she smiled brightly as she walked into the kitchen. Brynn glanced over at her and smiled back. Clevis smiled as well, but very thinly. She did notice his eyes lowered slightly to stare at her breasts before flicking back up to her face.

Disgusting. If Clevis were really the nice guy he claimed to be, he wouldn’t be ogling the sister of the girl he was trying to win the heart of.

“Rila. I was just wondering where you were. You really need to stop sleeping so late. Your initiation quest is coming up soon and you’re not going to get any training done just staying in bed,” Brynn chided her.

Rila resisted rolling her eyes. It had been a conversation they’d had time and time again. It usually spiraled into an argument. As much as she enjoyed those, she was more interested in keeping her sister from making a terrible mistake.

“I know. I’ll train later today, I promise.”

And I’ll have Julian help me. With him around I may stand a chance of completing the initiation quest on my first go.

Brynn gave her a stiff nod, then furrowed her eyebrows.

“Has Julian gotten up, yet?” Brynn asked.

Rila blinked.

“I… I don’t know. Why?”

Brynn frowned.

“He hasn’t come down. He’s usually up much earlier.”

“I know,” Rila said. “But his door was closed. I didn’t knock to see if he was up, but…”

Clevis cleared his throat.

Rila whipped her head around to stare at the elf. She caught a flash of a smirk, but it was gone almost as soon as it appeared.

“Um, if I may?”

Brynn frowned at him.

“Clevis? What is it?”

Clevis shifted slightly in his seat.

“On my way over here, I saw someone leave the forest. I didn't think much of it at the time, but now I can't help but realize that he looked an awful lot like Julian.”

“Liar,” Rila seethed. “You’ve always had it out for him and you’d say anything to get him in trouble!”

“Rila!” Brynn slapped her shoulder.

Clevis looked entirely nonplussed.

“Trouble? Why would Julian be in trouble?” his lips twitched upwards, for but a moment.

Rila clenched her fist, and hid it behind her back when it began to glow white.

“He’s not,” Brynn bit out. “We… our mother just told us to make sure he stayed home. Did you see where he went?”

Clevis nodded.

“He hitched a ride with a couple driving a horse carriage. Last I saw, they were heading toward Rona.”

“And you didn’t think to stop him?” Rila said.

Clevis blinked at her like he thought she was stupid.

“I don't know why you're under the impression that I'm somehow responsible for where Julian goes. As long as he isn't breaking the law, I don't have any reason to go and question him. How was I even supposed to know that your mother commanded him to stay home? If I had, I would have at least let you know what was happening as soon as I arrived here."

Brynn cursed and Rila felt much like doing the same.

This isn’t good. When Mom gets back and finds out that Julian snuck out on our watch, she’ll punish us! She might even stop me from taking my initiation quest! Gods, why did I have to sleep so late?

Brynn sighed and looked at her.

“Mom’ll be home sometime later today. We have to find Julian before she realizes he’s missing,” she glanced at the elf. “Clevis. You have friends in the Enforcer Corps. Will you help us find him?”

Clevis smiled.

“Why, of course. I’d be a pretty poor ally if I didn’t do my best to help you get your brother home safe. I’ll ride to the city and see if anyone’s caught sight of him,” he stood from the table. He tilted his head back and forth and sighed as his neck cracked.

“Clevis-”

“I’ll be discrete. I promise, no one will know Julian’s missing except people I trust to keep a secret” the elf said.

“I appreciate that,” Brynn smiled at him. “But I’d actually rather you stuck with us. Julian was arrested yesterday and I’m afraid he won’t take too kindly if some Enforcers try to bring him home. He might not be happy with us at the moment, but we’re the only people he might actually listen to.”

Clevis looked like he wanted to object, but nodded.

“If that’s what you want. I could find him a lot faster if I had my men, but he’s your brother. We’ll do it your way.”

“Thank you,” Brynn walked up to Clevis. Leaning towards him, she planted a quick kiss on his cheek and retreated to where she’d been sitting at the table.

The elven Enforcer smirked wolfishly. Like a predator that had just gotten the scent of wounded prey. No doubt several gears were turning in his head as he thought about what the kiss meant and how he might twist the current situation to his advantage.

If Clevis helps us find Julian and bring him home before Mom realizes he was even gone, that’ll win him a lot of points in Brynn’s favor.

“I’ll go get the horses ready. But hurry. The more time we waste here, the greater the risk that Julian might just run into someone who would think nothing of taking advantage of a classless noble wandering alone in the city.”

Wasting time? If you’d told us you saw Julian earlier, we would already be in the city looking for him!

With a parting glance at Brynn, Clevis turned and left. She heard the front door open and close with a low thud.

“He actually likes you,” Rila muttered. “I’m not sure that’s a good thing.”

Brynn turned to glare at her. Her cheeks were bright pink. Her storm-gray eyes narrowed into thin slits that promised retribution.

“What are you still doing here? Go check Julian’s room while you’re at it in case Clevis was mistaken and see if he left any clues as to where in Rona he might have gone. I’ll go find Velri.”

Rila glared at her older sister. Brynn glared back, crossing her arms beneath her breasts.

“At once, your highness,” Rila gave a mock bow before turning and leaving the room.

She hurried up the stairs, taking them two at a time. Within seconds she was in front of Julian’s door. She grasped the hand and twisted it, opening the door.

“Julian, please be in your room. Please be in your room. Please don’t be stupid enough to leave without telling anyone.”

She entered his room. No sign of Julian. His bed was made and the room was very neat. It didn’t look like he’d actually gathered his things and ran away from home for good.

Rila turned to Julian’s desk. The large dark wooden fixture had various scrapes and marks on it from Julian’s fervent reading and writing. She remembered barging into his room in the past and always seeing him at that desk, hunched over some arcane tome from the family library and scribbling frantically on a piece of paper with a quill. His quills and inkwell were still perched on the desk.

There’s no way he would just leave those here. I wonder if he left his dagger.

She opened his desk drawer. The dagger which had always been there whenever she’d decided to go through his things wasn’t present.

Well, if he gets into trouble, at least he’ll be armed. On top of whatever class abilities he has. If I'd been a better sister to him, maybe he would have told me he planned to sneak out. I... I need him to trust me. To make him realize I can be a good sister to him. When I find him, I won't let him out of my sight again until he gets it through his thick skull that I'm actually here to help him!

Rila slammed the drawer shut and headed downstairs. She found Velri and Brynn at the front door, and from the look on her oldest sister’s face, Velri was very far from amused.

“That bloody idiot. It wasn't enough that he got himself arrested and embarrassed our family among the nobility, he has to run back to Rona and commit whoever knows what other crimes he's been dreaming of in that depraved little head of his.”

“Shouldn’t you be celebrating? I thought you wanted Julian out of the house,” Rila blurted out before she could stop herself.

Velri whirled around to face her. The dark-haired young woman towered over Rila. Her bulky heavy armor and statuesque, amazonian frame made her seem more like a Barbarian than the noble Knights her mother used to read to her about.

Her ocean-blue eyes glared at her.

“I don't see why the humiliation of our family would be something I would celebrate. If Julian wants to leave us, I'll be happy to see him go, but he has to go far away, to a place so isolated that his idiocy will never bring ruin upon House Imerdan."

Rila’s eyes widened. Her heart thudded angrily in her chest.

“You hate him, don't you? You do! You hate our own brother! What about me, huh? Will you start hating me if I do something that's even remotely embarrassing by your standards?"

Velri stalked up to her, fury brimming in her eyes like a churning ocean.

“Stop it, you two, please!” Brynn snapped. She held a dark gray staff in her right hand. Its sapphire gem crackled faintly with electrical energy. Rila thought she felt her hair stand up. “We're family. We're Imerdans, for gods' sake. We don't descend to infighting because something happens to go wrong. We're better than this.”

Velri's eyes flicked over to Brynn. The fury in them seemed to have subsided. Their older sister sighed heavily, most of the tension leaving her body like water through a punctured flask.

Rila stared at Brynn with wide eyes. She couldn't believe Brynn had actually gotten through to her.

“You’re right. This isn't the place for petty arguments. Those can be resolved later, preferably over dinner, as is the Imerdan custom."

Did she just make a joke?

Velri's lips twitched upward slightly, and for a moment Rila thought her oldest sister might actually smile. Then, she turned abruptly and walked through the open front door, the sword at her waist clanking against her armor as she strode purposefully into the courtyard.

Rila shook her head and followed after her. Brynn brought up the rear, closing the door behind her. Ahead, Clevis stood with four horses, three of which she recognized from the stables.

“Good afternoon, Clevis,” Velri greeted the elf neutrally.

Clevis paled.

“H-hi, Velri. It's nice to see you. Wish it were under better circumstances.”

Velri hummed ambivalently and walked past him as if he barely existed. She hoisted herself upon a dark brown horse in one swift move which belied the strength of her body.

Rila caught Celvis’ eyes wandering over Velri’s body. Of the three sisters, Velri had always been the biggest. She’d inherited their father’s large frame and their mother’s endowments. Rila had grown used to men lusting after her eldest sister, just as she’d grown used to Velri rearranging the bone structure of any man who got too presumptuous.

Clevis was apparently no stranger to such, either, and quickly averted his gaze when Velri glanced in his direction. He gulped.

Rila suppressed a grin. She may not have been the biggest fan of her older sister, but she at least had a far better taste in men than Brynn did.

Brynn and Clevis mounted their horses. Rila rushed to do the same, pulling herself atop a light brown mare that had a white mane that Rila found pretty.

"To Rona we ride. Yah!" Velri said, her horse galloping forward towards the city beyond.

It was darker than usual as Valda entered the stairway to the basement. Not that he minded, of course. Darkness was not something that bothered his race like it so easily bothered humans, elves, and the rest of their fleshy cousins.

He licked his teeth. Oh, how he wished he didn’t have to assume the form of that disgusting innkeeper. But he had to keep appearances. It was how his kind survived, now. The only way they could. It rankled him that a people so obviously superior had to hide and scrounge and scrap to eke out a living. And it was all because of Tenlan, and their damnable Necromancers who had seen his people’s strength and desired to harness it for their own. His people had been cleansed, slaughtered, and reanimated, all so Tenlan in their unending lust for power could conquer Aemar and at last gain dominance over the continent.

It had nearly worked, but while the Tenlani were almost peerlessly powerful and destructive, the Aemari had possessed a seemingly suicidal drive to persevere in spite of impossible odds. Their armies plowed fearlessly through the swarms of undead, their armor enchanted to collapse into a dissolving acid should its wearer die and deny Tenlan the opportunity to gain another soldier. It was a sort of brutality that Valda almost admired. And so, instead of being the conquerors, the Tenlani had been conquered. Annexed into the greater Aemari Empire. Their Necromancer caste had all but been exterminated or imprisoned in Eptium, though there were rumors that some had managed to survive the Purge, hiding in secret among Tenlan's broken temples and crypts.

How fortuitous it was for those rumors to not only be true, but for one of those very Necromancers to wander into his inn. Izel, her name was. He didn’t catch her family name, but he was certain that she was classed. He could smell the scent of **** on her.

She’d met with an Aemari noble. A young man barely into adulthood by human standards, though his presence was compelling somehow, and warranted caution. Valda wouldn’t have been surprised if he was a powerful class, perhaps more powerful than the Tenlani female was. He would take no chances with him.

No matter. If I play things right, he won’t be able to defend his mate from us.

He entered the basement and sighed contently as the heat and humidity he had cultivated there soothed his firstskin. The pale, corpulent human flesh above writhed slightly as his true body shifted underneath.

The basement area was much wider than the rest of the building, with connections to the greater Rona sewer network. There were tables scattered about the dimly-lit stone basement. Red marks were smeared across them; dried puddles where their favorite prey had been slaughtered and consumed.

“Father,” another man approached him. He too wore a large human form ideal for housing the being beneath. Like him, his son’s human form had dark hair and beady black eyes.

“Jakrim. What’s the status of our silencing wards?”

His son smiled.

“Complete, Father. We could cause an explosion here and no one outside would be the wiser.”

“Well done,” he put a hand on his son’s false shoulder. He felt Jakrim’s firstskin wriggle beneath. “The two Enforcers that were here earlier have left and the dining area is cleared. We won’t have a better opportunity to make a move on that Tenlani whore. We can't risk her leaving. Not after what her people did to ours. We will incapacitate them both and drag them down here. Then we will feast.”

Jakrim smirked.

“I’ve always wanted to know what Tenlani Necromancer tasted like.”

Valda’s grin widened.

“And you shall soon find out, my son. Very soon. Go find your brother and meet me outside their room."

"Yes, Father."

Jakrim nodded and scampered off.

Valda moved further into the basement. The room narrowed slightly before widening. Gleaming suits of armor and racks of weapons lined the walls. He had lived for a very long time. With time came opportunities and spoils, even in an existence as secretive as his.

He stretched his right arm forward.

A large, ornate steel sword on the wall shuddered before whipping through the air and landing in Valda’s outstretched hand. He gripped the hilt so strongly the metal almost whined.

Soon, his sword would taste Tenlani flesh. And so would he.

Julian Imerdan (lv. 5 Psion)

HP: 115/115

ST: 90/102

WP: 271/441

Skills...

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. Can be interrupted by any sudden or intense stimuli. Duration: ten minutes.

[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.

[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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