Unexpected Conversations

Kevin fought to keep up with Blue as she pulled him through the city towards… wherever it was they were going. He still wasn’t actually sure, since the Harpy had been too insistent on tugging him through the crowd to actually pull up her character sheet and show him. So while he knew that it was big, in a building, and in the city, that didn’t exactly narrow it down.

He was familiar with all of the major monuments in his version of Adventuria, of course, but the version Lilith had summoned him to had enough differences from his own that he couldn’t do more than guess.

When they arrived, it was almost with disappointment that Kevin realized he knew what the building was. “Oh, the old Guild Hall! I put this on the very oldest version of the map, back when finding someone to teach you before you could level was still a part of the rules of the game. The system took that part out, but I didn’t feel like re-drawing the map.”

They had stopped on the street to admire the structure, but when Kevin checked his sheet he saw that the building hadn’t actually been added to his list. “Guess we need to go in. Shall we?”

In response, Blue darted for the door. Kevin shook his head and followed, while Elsie brought up the rear.

The class trainer’s hall followed a simple design, with a long entry hall which led to a central office area then forked left and right to the end of the building. Thanks to Kevin’s inexperience with scale when he first invented the building, it was truly massive. Each class trainer had a room that had been easy for him to draw—twenty by twenty on a grid hadn’t sounded oversized at the time, the same width as the hallways—but as he stepped under the vaulted roof he realized just how exaggerated his early design had been.

The location appeared on the appropriate tab of his character sheet as soon as he stepped through the door—which was apparently all Blue had done on her first trip through the city—but they’d decided they might as well find out what services were offered in case any of them turned out to be helpful.

“I read that on some of the other seasons of Harem Hotel they were able to upgrade their transformations to make them a lot more manageable. You think we can get them to do the same for us here?”

“Can’t hurt to check.”

Elsie’s response was fast, but it still didn’t beat Blue taking off. By the time the brownie finished speaking, the blue-feathered Monk was already jogging backwards down the hallway with her eyes fixed on them as she entreated, “C’mon!”

Penny wandered aimlessly through the streets, lost in her own thoughts.

It isn’t fair.

It had been simple enough to slip out of her room—she’d just waited until Tess and Abby left, then used her Bard ability to assume the role of an adventurer and walked out through the main room. The only one who had so much as looked in her direction was her roommate, and all she’d seen was a tall woman with dragon wings wearing a scale mail bikini.

After an hour, the disguise had worn off but Penny still hadn’t figured out where she wanted to go. There was a part of her that wanted to seek out Kevin, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it.

I—I didn’t do that. I never met Kevin before the show. It’s not real.

Despite her best efforts, though, Penny couldn’t force the memories from her mind. As far as she, Kevin, and the rest of the world were concerned, she’d met Kevin five or six years ago, seduced him, and then left without a word.

She wanted to explain, to tell him why she’d done it, but the look on his face after Lily had performed her magic in the courtyard told Penny that the version of events Kevin remembered was a source of pain.

And that he blames me.

The siren shook her head and turned down a street at random. She’d wandered out of the merchants’ district a while ago and the buildings around her were unfamiliar and run down. That didn’t stop her from recognizing a bottle on the sign down the road.

Perfect. Fuck it. Day drinking. Why not? It’s not like it can make anything worse.

The interior of the Class Trainer’s Hall seemed unimaginably big to Kevin, but it wasn’t until he counted the doorways and did a little mental math that he realized the building actually was bigger on the inside than on the outside. The original hall he’d designed had only needed to make room for eight class trainers, and rather than subdivide the massively oversized rooms each class had been granted, Lilith had chosen to expand the interior of the building.

He and Elsie had walked down the entry hall behind Blue, but while she’d run off to explore the east wing of the building they’d stopped at the front desk. The woman who greeted them was a pretty elf with long black hair, wearing a ruffled blouse and black skirt with suspenders which seemed oddly familiar, but neither he nor the brownie managed to put their finger on why.

The receptionist offered a bright, professional smile when they arrived. “Welcome to the Class Trainer’s Hall! Can I interest you in directions, information, or services?”

“Information, please.” Kevin did his best to sound confident as he approached and stood in front of the woman’s counter. “Can you tell us what kinds of services you have available here?”

“Certainly!” The elf’s voice was crisp and smooth—rehearsed, even—as she rattled off, “The Class Trainer’s Hall is the central location in Adventuria for training, upgrading, or customizing Class Abilities. We also offer teleportation services to several major destinations for an affordable fee, as well as acting as a central hub for the distribution of quests.”

“I’d forgotten that I originally had a quest board in here.” Kevin muttered the words under his breath, then watched as the elf’s slender pointed ear twitched in response. Her head canted to the side for a moment, before she asked pointedly, “Would you happen to be Favored Soul Kevin?”

He furrowed his brow. Thus far, most of the NPCs Lilith had seeded the world with seemed to somehow instinctively know that he and the women in his party were ‘adventurers’, but pretended not to know anything else about them. Or maybe they weren’t pretending. The winged hostess had already demonstrated an uncanny ability to alter memories which she claimed was the result of changing history. Kevin had no way to prove her wrong—he certainly remembered his early childhood encounter with Blue, but who outside of him had ever known about it?

It wouldn’t make any difference if she just altered our memories and made both of us think we met each other when I was a child. My parents weren’t there, and the disjointed story I told them when I got back was the same kind of fantasy I was always making up as a kid—some encounter with magic, like the time I thought I managed to fly in the corner of the yard during recess in kindergarten. Overactive imagination, nothing else.

Kevin realized he’d been staring at the receptionist for several seconds while he thought through the implications of Lily’s change and snapped back to attention. “Oh, err, yes. I’m Kevin and I’m a Favored Soul, at least.”

The woman continued as though she hadn’t noticed his pause, suddenly pulling herself straight and pulling back her shoulders. The motion had the effect of forcing her breasts to strain against the ruffled blouse she wore, as though to deliberately put them on display. Kevin did his best to keep his eyes focused on her face as she responded brightly, “Fantastic! Hierophant Kyle left me a message this morning informing me that you’d be arriving today.” She gestured to the left hallway, the opposite direction from where Blue had gone. “His office is on the right, four doors down—number 108, you can’t miss it. Do take your time, though, he told me, and I quote, ‘He’ll get here right on time.’”

Kevin blinked. “I didn’t—he didn’t send for me or anything, I don’t think I have an appointment.”

The receptionist nodded, then replied, “He told me you’d tell me that.”

When she didn’t elaborate any further, Kevin stepped back and glanced to the side to meet Elsie’s gaze. “Did you—have a vision about this place today, or anything?”

The brownie’s face suddenly flushed red as she shook her head. “No. I don’t recognize the desk, at least. I guess one of them could have been somewhere in this building, but the other one was—” She paused, then forced herself to finish, “—um, in your bedroom.”

Kevin smirked. “Lilith isn’t exactly being subtle, is she?”

Elsie shrugged. “Does she have to be? She’s got all the power.”

Does she though? The thought seemed to seep into Kevin’s brain uninvited. I already know there’s two kinds of magic at work here. Lily’s magic is certainly powerful, but it looks like most of what she does with shadows is more ‘insidious mind control and illusions’. Any time she’s actually altering reality there’s a big dose of gold. If we assume that the shadow magic is her own and the gold is whoever is behind this season, does that mean we have someone to appeal to?

Kevin frowned. “Maybe. We should go talk to this Hierophant Kyle either way. I’m not sure how he knew I was coming, but it’s worth checking out.”

The atmosphere inside the bar was more ‘modern dive’ than Penny would’ve expected in Adventuria. The tables were solid wood, but their polished surfaces had been scratched by years of service. The lights were dim, and whatever smoke filled the air wasn’t tobacco, but it was close enough to feel like home.

It even had a stage, though the venue was barely big enough to justify it. A gig there was something she would’ve turned her nose up at even when she was just starting her career. She was tempted to see if they’d let her perform anyway, just for nostalgia’s sake, but figured a drink first would be a good idea either way.

The wine she got wasn’t as good as what they served at The Long Rest, but it had a compellingly sweet flavor that was better than Penny expected. She’d just finished the first glass when a second one slid onto the table of the booth she’d claimed.

Penny looked up in time to see Hwa slide herself onto the bench opposite her. After the expansion of the Korean woman’s breasts and hips, the corset and skirt she’d purchased within a day of her arrival had gone from revealing to obscene. She’d replaced it at some point after the challenge, but while the high-necked black dress she wore now technically covered more of her skin it still left her shoulders bare. There was no disguising the massive swell of her breasts, but at least they weren’t about to pop out.

“To what do I owe the pleasure?” Penny did her best to keep her tone neutral. The kumiho could be acerbic at the best of times, and the siren really didn’t want to deal with another headache on top of the one she’d come in here to drown.

To her surprise, Hwa smiled. Penny was so used to the perpetual sneer the other woman wore that the expression looked strange—almost alien. “You looked like you could use a drink. I thought I’d oblige.”

Penny blinked slowly. “Did I walk into the backwards zone? Are you under a curse, or something? Did Lily do something to you?” She paused briefly, then added, “Ok, that’s a dumb question. Is this something new, I meant.”

Hwa shook her head. “No. That is not why I’m here. I just wanted to—” The smile faltered for a moment before steadying. “I want to make something of a fresh start with you. The others, I fear, seem to have all accepted what Lilith has done to us. You still fight. It is—worthy of some respect.”

The bard reached out and picked up the new glass, bringing it to her lips to take a drink. “For all the good it does. That woman does what she wants and none of us seem to be able to do anything about it. I’m—the background thing, with Kevin, the things she made me do—”

Hwa leaned back in the bench and raised a hand. At a gesture, the bartender brought over another glass, leaving both it and a fresh bottle. As the kumiho poured herself a drink, she prompted, “Tell me about it.”

Massive double doors led to each of the rooms in the Class Trainer’s Hall. Kevin could see rank after rank of them stretching off on either side of the hallway, the far end of the building just barely visible in the distance. “At least she didn’t say he’s the last door on the right.”

Kevin’s comment brought a quiet giggle from Elsie, who stepped up beside him. “Should we go straight there?”

“I don’t think there’s any point to checking out the other trainers first, really—unless you want to try to find one of yours and start there instead.”

Elsie thought for a moment, then shook her head. “I want to go to at least one of them eventually, but let’s start with yours. If it goes well, maybe I can try to improve the usefulness of some of my abilities without, you know—”

“Lilith turning you more sex obsessed? Yeah, probably smarter to start with mine.” Kevin nodded, and the pair set off down the hall.

About a minute into the walk, he turned to ask a question of the English woman, only to realize she’d fallen in step behind him, rather than at his side. She caught up when he paused, her expression quizzical. “Is something the matter?”

“I’m struggling a little. I don’t want to just accept Lilith’s changes to you, but every time I stop actively paying attention to you, it’s like you fade into the background in my mind.” He frowned. “It’s—I don’t want to be the kind of guy who just forgets about the women in his life unless they’re doing something for him.”

“You won’t, but if it helps—” She stepped closer, then reached out one arm. Delicate fingers slipped over the skin of his palm, soft and warm, as she gently took his hand.

Kevin squeezed softly and smiled. “It does. Thank you.”

When the pair arrived at room 108 a few minutes later they discovered that while the massive wooden double doors opened with surprising ease, Elsie was unable to see inside. While Kevin perceived a room filled with plush cushions and silk veils, all the brownie saw was a glowing golden portal which refused to permit her access when she touched a hand to it.

“It’s fine. You go ahead, I want to go see if I can find my own class trainers. Meet back up in the middle when we’re done?”

Kevin nodded. “Yeah, I’ll see you then. Don’t—” He paused briefly, then restarted, “Don’t do anything to put yourself at risk. You’re—I’m not sure what I’d do without you.”

In response, the English woman slipped forward and tilted her head back as she lifted herself on her toes to brush her lips against his. “I’ll be safe enough here. Remember, the whole point is to make everything sexy, they aren’t going to let me put my life at risk. Go figure out how to use your powers for good.”

Kevin found himself wrapping his arm around Elsie’s waist on instinct. He pulled her in for another kiss and only broke his lips from hers a few seconds later when he was satisfied. “I’ll see what I can do. If you see Blue—try to make sure she doesn’t get in too much trouble?”

To that, Elsie laughed. “No promises.”

A moment later, Kevin slipped through the door.

The moment Kevin stepped through the arched doorway into the Favored Soul hall, it was as though he’d entered another world. The echoing sounds of Elsie’s footsteps cut off in an instant, replaced by the distant sound of a string instrument playing a quietly meditative tune.

As he turned to survey the room, he was surprised to discover that there was no wall behind him. The doorway was, to his relief, still there—the Class Trainer’s Hall still visible through its open doors—but it rose unsupported from the middle of the floor. In shock, he walked a slow circuit around the door and discovered that the back was covered in the same glowing gold Elsie saw when she tried to enter with him.

Pushing deeper into the room revealed an order to the chaos that hadn’t been apparent when he first glanced through the door. The room was filled with ornate carved pillars, around which were strewn pillows and cushions to turn each into its own oasis of comfort. Silk veils hung from the ceiling between each, easy to push aside but offering a modicum of privacy to each pile.

The room was also larger than he expected—by the time he’d passed the tenth pillar he could barely make out the doors in the distance behind him, but he still couldn’t see the far wall through the veils. Neither had he seen anyone else, though, and wandering around aimlessly seemed like a great way to get lost, so before he lost sight of the door entirely Kevin turned around to head back—only to discover that there was someone lounging on the pillows against the pillar directly behind him.

Taller than Kevin and with a dark Middle Eastern complexion, the figure wore a short, neatly trimmed beard and mustache. His features were handsome without being pretty, and the relaxed smile he wore went a long way towards disarming the initial shock the DM felt at the man’s sudden arrival. “You weren’t there a moment ago.”

“What makes you say that?” The man’s voice was rich, smooth, and deep. His accent was unplaceable—heavy enough to be noticeable, but light enough that Kevin had no difficulty understanding him.

Kevin did his best to sound confident. Something about the man set his teeth on edge—as though his very existence was a challenge to his own, a demand that he prove his own worth. “I walked right past that pillar, and I was paying attention. I would’ve seen you if you were there at the time.” He had to fight to keep his tone civil, but couldn’t quite keep a hint of bite from his words.

“Interesting. So you believe that if you set out to do something, you will succeed regardless of impediment?”

The man’s eyes had been pointed more-or-less at Kevin’s feet, but as he spoke he drew them lazily up to meet the gaze of this season’s Master. Kevin nearly stumbled in shock when he realized that the irises of the man’s eyes were molten gold, shining with the same glowing energy which had permeated so much of the magic he’d seen Lily wield. “I—no, of course not. Some things are impossible from the outset, no matter how hard we try.”

“Interesting. It seems to me that your statement lies at odds with your previous claim. You say you would have seen me if I’d been here, yet you also acknowledge that some tasks are impossible. What makes you certain that seeing me was not an impossible task? When you fail, how do you know whether the result was of your own making rather than the result of impossible circumstances?” Kevin tried to open his mouth to respond to the question, only for the man to ask, “Do you include your own limitations in the definition of impossibility?”

A moment passed in silence as Kevin attempted to parse the flood of sudden questions, only to respond with, “You’re Hierophant Kyle, aren’t you?”

“You may call me that if you like,” the man responded with sanguine indifference, before adding, “You would not be the first.”

“You told the receptionist that you were expecting me. How did you know I’d come here today?”

Kyle shrugged without lifting himself from his pillows. “Perhaps I didn’t. Perhaps I’ve told her that every day, and today is simply the first day it’s come true.”

Kevin stared for a few moments before asking, “Is that what happened?”

The man laughed. “No. But it would be a more plausible explanation than ‘magic’, wouldn’t it?”

The Dungeon Master raised his hand to his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. “I’m going to have a headache when I’m done with this conversation, aren’t I?”

Rhetorical though the question might have been, Kyle answered immediately, “Yes. Do not worry, it will pass before you leave your second Place of Power for the day.”

“Great. So, you’re a seer too?” Kevin had to force himself to unclench his teeth after he spoke as something about the other man—or perhaps about the circumstances in which he found himself in his presence—grating in a way he couldn’t easily explain.

“Not exactly. I summoned you here—in a manner of speaking. I thought that it was past time that we talked. I would’ve expected you to seek me out in the first week of your arrival. When you didn’t, I took a slightly more active role in arranging matters.”

“I—you summoned me? How—” Kevin suddenly cut himself off as he thought about the events which had led him here. “Blue’s quest—were you responsible for that?”

Kyle’s lips curled into a faint smile. “Indeed. I’ve been watching your behavior since Lilith brought you here, Kevin. What you are attempting to do is worth—laudable, even—but you appear to lack both the means, and the conviction to carry it out.”

A breath of air escaped Kevin’s nostrils in a snort. “Sure. I guess. What exactly is it you think I’m trying to do?”

“You’re trying to preserve the women in your harem in as close to their original state as you can.”

The words were delivered with quiet conviction, as though Kyle had no doubt of their veracity, and Kevin found himself caught off-guard by their conviction. “I—okay, yes, that’s more or less right, I guess.”

“I know. The problem is that you don’t know what that means. You don’t know the women Lilith bound you well enough to preserve them, you don’t have the power to do so if you did, and even if you had that, you lack the conviction to resist the temptations the hostess offers.” Kyle’s tone held no malice or anger, but Kevin found his shoulders slumping under the weight of the words.

“I—I’m in so far over my head I can’t even tell which direction is up.” The admission slunk out of Kevin like a beaten dog. The upright bearing he’d been trying to maintain, the air of strength and confidence he’d been trying to project abandoned him, and he dropped his gaze to the floor. “I want to do right by everyone—to save everyone, as much as I can, but—”

“But you can’t. You don’t know how.” When Kevin nodded, Kyle continued, “You’re afraid of every action that you take. You have practice in seeing down the lines of probability—the possible outcomes of each action, the flow of cause and effect. Each time that you do, you realize that your inexperience means that any weight you put on the scales has outcomes you cannot predict. It makes you hesitate, makes you reluctant to use your power for fear that it will make things worse.”

Eyes still fixed on the ground, Kevin nodded again.

Kyle smiled, “That is where I come in.”