The Lighthouses and the Pit (Fantasy Mage Quest)

[occipitallobe]

[X] Swallow
Devours distance; birds are swift and darting; always returns home.

"Swallow, huh?"

She looks at you, eyes roving up and down for a moment.

"Yeah, I can see it. Good choice. Simple, punchy. Well, Swallow. Time to learn how to use magic."

She gestures at you to come with her. Inside the hall, at the end, there are a few pillows. Dagger sits on one, and leaves the other to you.

"This is simple. Easy. Close your eyes, and breathe. Normally, you can feel the air around you, the sensations on your skin. The sounds, even the quietest ones. And once your mind stills..."

You do as she says, and when you reach a moment of quiet calm, you feel yourself looking at something. A pool of orange light, the occasional ray of light striking it and disappearing, growing the whole.

You feel a hand on your shoulder.

"Easy, right? Once you have magic, it's the simplest thing in the world to use. Now, watch me."

Dagger draws a dagger, and slices. She steps forward, and is five metres ahead of where she once was. It's hard to describe from behind. You see her take the step, and it is only one step. You see no real discontinuity, merely a strangeness, a sense of wrongness, and then she is further ahead than she was. A step, and she is there. She slashes and stabs, moving about the stone hall with rapidity you have trouble following, dancing from space to space with ease. One more slash, and you see it.

You're not quite sure what it is. But you see the blade cut something, something that wasn't there before, something you can't properly see or understand, but you can see nonetheless. She turns around.

"You see it?"

You nod dumbly.

"Good. Look for it, and cut it. Grab one of your swords. Cut the same place, the same way, until you see it."

You stand there, and start cutting. A minute passes. Ten minutes. Your arms tire, and Dagger stops you.

"Five minutes, then we start again."

It is two hours later, two exhausting hours of sword-swinging and hopelessness that you see it again. You swing at it, step forward, and stumble. What you step onto isn't quite what you expected, and you almost lose your footing. As you do, you feel the pool of orange light rush out of you, swelling through you, from your head to your toes, rushing out of your fingertips, and into the sword, and from there into the air itself, emptying itself into the air. You can't feel it anymore, but when you swing again, the distance parts before your blade with ease.

"Anyway, I think you've had a bit of time to come to terms with this. Let me tell you about what's happening."

Dagger gestures again at the cushions, and you sit down, glad you mastered the trick, but exhausted nonetheless.

"You know about the Pit?"

You nod. You remember being taught about it. The infinitely deep chasm that dominated the centre of the continent, filled to the brim with Darklings and Artifacts.

'Well... eight months ago, the various guildmasters found something. Not sure what it was, and they're not telling, but apparently it's important. Or maybe it was just the location of something, I'm not really sure. They raised an expedition of fifty or so mages, and sent them down into the Pit. Big expedition, biggest in years. Something went wrong, though. So they called for a rescue expedition. Raised three, four hundred mages. Some of the city's best, finest mages. Sent them down into the Pit."

Dagger sighed.

"I'm not sure what happened after that. They're still alive, apparently. Some of them, anyway. The more powerful Shaderunners can come back and forth, but everyone is really secretive about what's happening down there. They're stuck, though, and Thousand Shards - that's the old Guildmaster - got stuck down there too. Sent back a letter advising he was abdicating, and Biting Blade got elected from those of us who were left. That was two months ago. Most of our best are down in the Pit, but she wants to try and send another expedition. Half the city's Tremorfeet are down there, and they've built some sort of fortification, but they can't seem to get out, or maybe they don't want to. Not sure."

She shakes her head.

"I voted for her, but... well. We barely have enough mages to cover our defense as is, and sending another expedition could very well doom the entire city. As it stands, we'll be set back by fifty, sixty years worth of mages, but at least we'll survive. Probably."

You nod.

"No, I understand. You want to train me so you can send me into the Pit?"

Dagger bursts out laughing.

"No, no, no. You'd die in the Pit, mageling. Like that."

She snaps her fingers.

"We don't send yearlings into the Pit, Tremorfeet notwithstanding.

She smiles at you, though.

"I like your enthusiasm - I mean, it's in fellowship we find salvation and all, so good to see you're on our side. But no, new Bladebound we usually send out on one of three missions. Helping guard the southern caravans, which are pretty safe to begin with, is usually what we offer. Sometimes we send you out with a Shaderunner to a village - fortified villages are tremendously valuable in keeping the Darklings off us for a little longer, so we like to assist them from time to time. Lastly, you can be sent hunting Darklings near the Lighthouses - they're weak there, and it's a good opportunity for you to train."

"No need to decide any of that just yet, though. Now... how are we going to train you? No offense, but you're rubbish at fighting, even for a newbie. Instincts are terrible."

You glare at her.

"I can swing a sword just fine."

You swiftly draw one of your swords, and flourish it about, weaving in the air with ease.

Dagger sighs.

"Yes, you can swing a sword just fine. Any Bladebound can swing a sword just fine. It's in our name. Your footwork is garbage, your instincts are terrible, and being good at handling a sword with your hands means absolutely nothing for the rest of your skills. Anyway, here are some things I think might suit..."

---

[ ] Defensive Style - Locked by trait Compassionate. Different style unlocked below.

[ ] Interception Style

Gains bonus from Stubborn. You learn to fight defensively, though in the space of a month Dagger can only do so much. Your natural compassion and concern for others mean training to solely defend yourself is not sufficient - Dagger recognizes this would only cause you to throw yourself into danger you had not trained to face. Instead, the Interception Style is a mainly defensive style in that it focuses on being able to prevent being hit, and also intercepting enemies headed for others and distracting them and defending against them.

You will train primarily to survive, and assist others in doing so. Your shortswords are ill-suited to pure attack, and so you train merely to survive for now. You are less likely to kill or wound enemies in combat, but are also less likely to take wounds. You are also able to lower the risk of wounding or death for others as well.

[ ] Offensive Style

Defense is good, offense is better. You can get in and out fast, so use that to be aggressive. Strike your enemies down as quickly as you can. You'll be more vulnerable to attacks, though. You are more likely to kill or wound enemies in combat, but are also more likely to take wounds.

[ ] Ambush Style

You're weak, and you know it. But with your extra mobility and low reach, maybe your focus needs to be elsewhere. Bladebound can fight, but you know you're not killing anything with ease right now. The better option is to use your mobility to your advantage, slinking around the battlefield and striking at the unaware. You can deal tremendous damage when catching enemies unaware, however your general combat prowess (both offensive and defensive) will suffer.

 

[occipitallobe]

Pivot. Step back. Lunge forward. You spend the next week tirelessly training with your shortswords, Dagger swiping at you every time you make a mistake with your footing.

She takes you outside briefly, to the Trade Ring, where she haggles with a merchant over a few loaves of bread, and apples, and other such things. Normally, she tells you, the Guild would have someone do that for them, but times are hard at the moment, what with most of the Bladebound trapped in the Pit. Your days are full, though, and you meet no-one else. No other Bladebound in training, surprisingly enough. No other apprentices around.

"Dagger?"

"Yes, Swallow?"

"Why is nobody else here? Apprentices, I mean?"

"Only one group goes to the Orange Lighthouse a season, and after three months of training we send you into the field on some job or another. You're the only one this season. Nobody to test yourself against, unfortunately."

A second week passes, and Dagger continues to drill you. Your fundamentals remain poor, but at least you don't fall over your own feet. You're not the equal of a master swordsman, but with your improved mobility and magic-given sword skills, you could probably kill a regular one. You eat bread, cheese and apples every day, until you think you're going to go crazy, and Dagger leaves you to meditate, coming back with a side of beef she has roasted later that evening.

You'd think you'd spend your time exploring the halls of the Guild, meeting people and exploring the town, but you've had very little time for yourself. You've spent sunup from sundown training every day, and you sleep as soon as you're done with dinner. Still, you're a little better than you were before, trained enough to be a danger to someone other than yourself.

In the meantime, you start to notice different uses of your magical power, little variable ways you can sever the distance between two points, little tricks with the skill that allow you easier options.

You focus on one, specifically.

Note - these cost zero magical investiture. They're just applications of your current skill, and you'll be able to learn these at any point simply by applying more time. You'll also get better versions of these naturally as you level up Severing Distance (if each swipe with the blade severs five meters instead of one-half a metre, it'll be able to sever ninety percent of the distance instead of thirty. Sufficient investment in Severing Distance will make skills like Bladefall and Bladeleap less useful unless you need to fall or jump really far.)

[ ] Bladefall

It really sounds a lot better than it is. But cutting through distance while falling is no easy feat, but you can do it reasonably quickly. Reduce any falling distance by one-third, allowing you much better survivability when falling.

[ ] Bladeleap

Difficult at best to time, even moreso than Bladefall, Bladeleap is simply practicing cutting away distances while jumping, seeing where next to cut while moving horizontally in the air. Increase horizontal leap distances by (up to) one-third.

[ ] Inconvenient Slices

This is much more of a 'trick' than the other two. Sever distance near and around your opponent in frustrating ways - if they're a foot away from where they expect to be, they very well might stumble and fall. Difficult to use in combat regularly, but may create openings that were not there otherwise.

[ ] Just Focus on Training

No, don't worry about little tricks. Focus on your swordsmanship. Become the warrior before you become the mage.

---

As the weeks move on, you find Dagger gives you a little more leeway, and in your third (and second-last) week of training, you've given a few hours on your own every few days. She forbids you from visiting the other Guilds, though, stating that 'Not all mages are as generous to the newly-Ascended as we are. I don't want some paranoid Glimpse knifing you because you might be a threat to them some day.'

Your head rolls with choices, and you decide to...

[ ] Visit the Trade Ring

You've been there two or three times. Surely you can go shopping! Well, you have no money. But surely you can go exploring! You might be able to barter for something, or the services of someone.

[ ] Explore the Guild

It's a big building - a few libraries, other training halls, rooms, and armories. Why not explore a bit? You might learn something useful, or discover a piece of information you could use.

[ ] Visit the Shield Ring

You grew up there. You can't remember most the details, but you do remember Father Matthias. The orphanage, though not the name, or where it was. Bits and pieces run through your head, and if you want to make sense of them, perhaps the Shield Ring is the place to go.

[ ] Obsessively Train

Take time off? Pah! Time to train more! MORE! You will be better at the choice made above. Will make you a tiny bit more Stubborn.

[ ] Disobey Dagger - Visit Another Guild

This may not be the best decision, but you feel like Dagger could very well be lying to you. You'd have no way of knowing, after all. Better to check somewhere else, see what the truth is. (May harm your relationship with Dagger if found out.). Write-in a guild - Glimpses, Shaderunners, Tremorfeet, Fleshcrafters or Spellthieves.

 

[occipitallobe]

Training is a good idea, but something about the city... itches at you. When you walk through the Trade Ring, nothing seems to jump out. It just seems subtly wrong, like someone has replaced the place you knew with something else entirely, like walking back to your dilapidated old house and overnight finding someone had built a mansion there.

It always feels a little off.

Among the few memories you have, Father Matthias seems to feature frequently. You think he was a teacher, maybe. A travelling priest? You find that only wisps remain, and trying to form a coherent picture in your memories is virtually impossible. Rather, you think, it is better to return to the Shield Ring, and find what is there. Where you lived. You remember pieces of the grinding poverty, the scant meals and the rubble sitting outside, but not enough to truly give you a sense of identity.

You tell Dagger you're going. She nods, and hands you an armband. It'll mark you as a servant of the Guild, she informs you with some amusement. Apparently that is your actual rank at present, not being an actual member.

You walk through the Trade Ring, and into the Shield Ring proper.

To your shock, you notice a pile of corpses lazily stacked near the walls, men hauling more onto the pile in the dusk. Twenty or thirty of them, perhaps. Had the city suffered an attack? Had you not even noticed? Another man gatherers pieces of wood, and a stern-looking woman besides him tries to light a small pile of wood shavings. It makes sense - they're hardly going to send people outside the walls to bury the bodies, and the city has tight limits on space.

So it comes a little further. You explore around, looking for the orphanage. There are no signs, though, no easy ways to see where to go in the fading sun. You thought you knew! You lived there! You were taken from there, and then... You can't quite remember. Still, you walk around the streets for a few hours, seeing nothing but damaged houses, far more than are usual, apparently. There are few Tremorfeet to raise new structures at the moment, and so the orphanage should be even more visible. But the city is a big place, and there's every chance you're simply heading in the wrong direction. You circle around, when suddenly you hear a noise, stone clattering and falling.

You look around, peering to see if anyone is nearby. You see a small child over near a collapsed house, but as you turn to him, he runs away, fear in his eyes. You remember a little of that fear yourself, and you wince.

Surely there's something you can do to help him.

You look around helplessly for a moment, and stride back to the gate guards.

"Guardsmen."

You try to look regal and intimidating, but they regard you with only a little respect.

"Yes?"

"Where would I buy a loaf of bread at this hour in the Shield Ring?"

One of them gestures down the road, showing a darkened stall with a wizened old woman tending to it. It's uncommon, seeing the elderly in the Shield Ring, but it does happen.

You walk over, and pull out one of the few coins Dagger had left you for petty purchases. It's silver - the smallest she had. You give it to the old woman, and her eyes brighten.

"That could buy my entire stall, m'lady!"

You look at her, for the first team realising what you must look like. To yourself, you are still striving at the very basics, barely able to shift yourself half a metre with surety. To the old woman, you represent danger - opportunity as well, but you are suddenly aware that if you chose to cut her down here in the street, there would be no repercussions for you.

"That's wrong...", you mumble.

"Pardon, m'lady?"

You squeeze your eyes shut for a second.

"No, nothing. A single loaf, please. Keep the remainder."

You take the loaf of bread, and return to where you saw the little boy.

Nothing. Of course he's hiding. You start stalking around, looking for him, peering in buildings and under rocks. You're there for nearly a full hour, and you see no-one. Nothing.

You understand why, of course. A loaf of bread isn't worth your life. You know that much, though you felt like you'd gain more from coming out here. But maybe it's as Dagger says - the memories are gone from the world, and though you might be able to rebuild pieces of your past life, you can't simply reclaim it.

You carefully put the bread down on a nearby rock, and head back into the city proper. You're late to bed as it is, and the next day will be hell. You're not looking forward to it, no.

---

I actually meant to put this up for vote earlier, but here it is now. What do we look like?

[ ] Default - short, black-haired, dark-skinned, and brown-eyed. Your hair is curly and wiry, though you are certainly underfed, ribs still visible and very little muscle or fat on your frame. Your eyes are small and a little beady, your nose is large, crooked and dominates your entire face. You have chubby cheeks, long eyelashes, and large hands and feet.

[ ] Write-In - Write in a description. If it's a human characteristic found on Earth, you can have it here. Within reason, of course. No people with brown hair on the right and blonde hair on the left. If you write in an option, format it like this has been so others can vote for it.

---

The final weeks of training are not especially brutal, but they are intense. Dagger teaches you a technique to cut away space near an opponent, allowing you to force them to stumble, fall, or even lunge too far with their sword. It's not effective compared to simply killing them, she warns, though it's sometimes useful against foes you can't kill.

Two more weeks go by, and at the end, Dagger parries aside a sword-blow with ease, throws the butt of her sword into your face, and while you're down, speaks.

"Acceptable, Swallow. Not as good as the training usually is, I'm afraid, but without more trainers and more rivals it's hard to motivate you properly. Still, you very well might live if you face off against a peasant who can't distinguish between his nose and his spear."

You cough.

"Thank you. So kind."

She inclines her head.

"So. Have you given any more thought to the Guild's offer? Eleven months more training, with a month of service in return? Once you complete both, you'll be a full member of the Guild in good standing, as well. Or you can strike out on your own, if you want.

---

Due to the thread reaching the first major decision to be made by Swallow, you are hereby awarded 1 Fate Point. Use it wisely.

[ ] Additional Training

Sure, you're ok. Literally nothing more, though. Dagger uses a dagger when she fights you, parrying two swords at once and it doesn't even seem to phase her. You're ok, but you really need more. The obvious pro is that you'll go from barely competent to moderately competent, maybe even enough to survive. The con, of course, is the month of service. Who wants to owe something?

Sub-Options (Please vote for one of these as well if you voted for Additional Training)

[ ] Caravan Guard

A simple task. Guard caravans as they travel to the south. An easy route, though there are few other mages to protect you, given the situation in the Pit. You'll travel south to Everett, bringing wagonloads of fine pottery and spices to exchange for the alchemy and grown plants of the Everett mages. The guards are more sparse than usual, though, and the Darklings more bold...

[ ] Darkling Hunter (Paired)

With the fate of the expedition to the Pit still unknown, the usual patrols to thin out Darkling numbers have declined drastically, as more mages are sent on caravans and brought back to guard the walls of Madalgia. Near the Lighthouses Darklings are weaker, however, so unexperienced mages are often paired with a moderately experienced mage to slay those they find - usually only a few Spinewolves in normal times, but things have gotten worse and worse...


----------------------
[ ] Strike Out On Your Own

So, sure. Eleven more months of training is ok, but you need to do more. Not in a few months, or a year, but now. Whether that be helping people, guarding caravans, whatever, you know that you can't simply sit by much longer. The city is in danger, the people from where you grew up are teetering on a knife's edge, and a single strong Darkling attack would leave them dead, more piles of corpses to be lit on fire.

(Sub-Options. Please vote for one of these if you voted for Strike Out On Your Own)

[ ] The Village Blade Wizard

You know that you don't know how to help Madalgia. You can't fathom the problems of the Shield Ring right now. Though you want to fix them, you don't know how. Maybe the model for helping a larger town lies in helping a smaller one, though. If you could aid a village, you could see the problems at a smaller scale, and use that to help more people. Stay with one village for awhile and help with their problems.

[ ] The Vagabond

Wandering around, solving issues, killing Darklings. Go help people, but don't stay in one place. Spend time in villages, helping people, and move from place to place. Safe, as you can leave any danger if it arises, but perhaps less satisfying.

[ ] The Hunter

Dangerous. Utterly dangerous. Go hunt Darklings on your own, far from the Lighthouses. Kill them, and use their power to empower yourself. The quickest path to aiding the villagers, the caravans, and such, is to kill the beasts that plague them. Does more good, and empowers you faster, but the risk? The risk is tremendous. Many mages have died doing such things, and you are only a mageling yet. Costs 1 Fate Point, unless an excellent plan is put forward as to how this might be done safely. This Fate Point will allow Swallow to survive this choice this turn, not necessarily choices afterwards.

 

[occipitallobe]

"I'll join."

Dagger nods, as though there had been no doubt. That morning, she rousts you out of bed, and begins drilling you again. Back, forward, blades dancing against one another. For the first time, though, she speaks more readily, more easily.

"We need to get you trained up. Normally we'd have time, but the Darklings are savaging trade, as well as our Lighthouse groups. We lost thirty on the last trip, and we're bleeding people. It's not sustainable, Eyes-That-Blind says."

"Eyes-That-Blind?"

"Glimpse. Some point he's making about his future sight blinding others or something. Not really sure. Smart man, though. Probably the closest thing the Guilds have to a leader."

"He's not on the Pit Expedition?"

Dagger barks out a short laugh.

"Glimpses? Are you insane? The closest a Glimpse will get to combat is seeing it in their future visions, and even that is a bit of a stretch."

It takes another full month, but Dagger brings in another man, a Bladebound. He's tall and muscled, a disjointed nose that looks like it's been broken once or twice dominating his face. Below it sits a pointed, well-groomed beard and mustache, and beside it are two startling green eyes. His arms are wrapped around a polearm with a hooked blade on the end, sitting across his shoulders. You know that's not how you're supposed to carry a weapon, but you're not exactly of a rank to speak up.

"Swallow, this is Jagged Edge. Don't mind the name, he's quite nice when you get to know him."

The man looks down at you with little interest.

"You say she has potential, Dagger?"

"Oh, she's bright enough. Works hard, though, and we've done precious little but train since she got here. I wouldn't call her especially talented-"

Your eyes sharpen and you glare at the other woman.

"-but she's hardly another Janissary."

He chuckles.

"Fair enough. You want me to train her to do.. what? Defend?"

"I'm a short blades specialist. Need you to train her against long blades, and get her a little more used to someone who won't hold back so much. When you're ready."

You look at her.

"When I'm ready?"

In an instant, Jagged Edge whirls his halberd down, and with it takes a step. Reality parts without protest, and before you can move the blunt end of his halberd has swept your legs from under you and you're on the ground.

"Up."

You stand, shortswords at the ready.

Again he moves, but this time you're prepared. You slice distance away yourself, moving closer - you know you need to get inside his guard with his long reach, but he pivots neatly and is suddenly behind you after two steps, and again you tumble to the floor. You wince - your thigh is going be bruised tomorrow.

"Very slow. I thought you said she wasn't another Janissary, Dagger?"

Dagger glares at him.

"That's a little too harsh, Jagged. She has no foundations or combat skills, of course, but she's a devoted student and I think she'll be fine."

Jagged Edge looks you up and down.

"Well, I'm here for three months. Dagger will be passing you off onto me, she has duties that have long gone unattended. I won't go easy on you, unlike your teacher here. She's notoriously friendly and easygoing-"

What. You've spent twelve grueling hours a day training, every day and that's easy? No. Your refuse to believe it.

"-but I am not. We will focus simply on the ability to kill and escape, two crucial things for any mageling who might be facing Darklings. At the end of the three months, you'll go out with our next group to the Yellow Lighthouse for a week, scouting ahead and hunting Darklings who might pose a threat. Understood?"

You can only nod.

"Good. Now, there are a few things I think might be worth focusing on before we finish up. What do you prefer?"

---

[ ] Improve Severing Distance

Right now you can move about half a metre. With three months of training, Jagged Edge believes he can increase that to around three-quarters of a metre, but more importantly increase the rate at which you are able to swing, making you travel more quickly as you become more accurate with each swipe.

[ ] Learn Blade Projection

Jagged Edge wields a halberd, he states, precisely because that's the best way to get really good range. He fights from afar most of the time, and this is his specialty. You won't have much power - your range will increase by thirty or forty centimetres, but even that can be very helpful in a fight. Combined with your distance trick, and you'll be able to dart in and out of combat highly effectively.

[ ] More Swordsmanship! More! MORE!

You don't care about magic right now. Those base skills of yours are going to be superb by the time you leave, and if you focus on nothing else they really can be. Magic can come later, right now you're all about getting to surpass normal human limits. By taking this option you'll reach the first stage of swordsmanship early, which is peak human. (You would ordinarily reach this at the end of your year's training).

---

The training is brutal and hard, as you expected it to be. After it, though, you're going to be sent on a mission. It's a while away, but if you pick now, you get to choose who you pair up with! Nobody is particularly happy to be shepherding an apprentice, but due to the fewer numbers of apprentices right now, you can at least pick.

---

[ ] Cloak of Memories, the Shaderunner

Clever and acerbic, Cloak of Memories is a perennial trainer for young Bladebound, as he teaches them to work with Shaderunners. If you get in trouble, you really can just run away and hide. Of course, he won't offer that much on a combat level, so you'll need to pick your battles wisely...

[ ] Jingles, the Spellthief

Jingles is a young woman who dresses like a carnival-goer, with facepaint and rainbow-dyed hair. Unpopular among her fellows, she is taking on this mission largely because she's low on spells and needs some money to purchase more. She's not happy to be there at all. However, if you get in real trouble, she has a large repertoire of magics to resolve the issue. Of course, if she has to use them she'll be angry...

[ ] Grand Axe, the Bladebound

Grand Axe is one year your senior, having just finished his training himself. A little better than you, he uses a large battleaxe, projecting it some distance. Powerful and powerfully-built, he's not very mobile, but very strong. Friendly and jovial, you get the distinct impression he's doing this to impress Dancing Dagger. In most fights, he'll be able to take enemies down fairly easily, but if you start losing, you could face real trouble...

---

Next turn will be the first expedition to the nearby Lighthouse.

 

[occipitallobe]

Jagged Edge trains you, though not any particular trick. Rather, in the months that follow you find yourself parrying blades, halberds, daggers from Dancing Dagger on occasion, and even thrown projectiles with relative ease. You can't quite manage arrows, but your skills improve at a dizzying rate, and for the first time Jagged Edge brings in other men - ordinary men - to face you.

"Facing men is nothing like facing Darklings."

You look at him, as he gestures them to come into the hall. Even now, you don't speak overmuch. He trains you, and you learn, and in between there is mostly silence. Dagger chattered as she trained, talking about this or that, but Jagged Edge has told you nothing of what has happened in the last few months in the Pit, although occasionally he does look particularly sour when it is mentioned.

"Then why have me face men?"

He pauses thoughtfully, running one hand down the side of his face.

"You need to understand your fellow man. How weak they are, how slow. How unskilled. Your magics make you naturally a prodigy at the blade, the sort that is only seen once a generation among all human beings. That is not to speak of the magic you hold as well. It comes easily to you, and your accomplishments in months rival what these men must take decades to accomplish. None can rival the combination of your youth and skill - without the assistance of the Lighthouse, it is a simple impossibility."

They look at you, a stripling of a girl, and move towards you warily. You have your blades, but they're wrapped to prevent any real injuries in the fight, and as you face the first one, you realise how slow he is. Not that he is strictly slower than you, but his movements don't reflect what he is doing, in a sense - his blades don't match his feet, and take precious moments to correct.

You move in towards him, reach, size, and strength all inferior. You block his blade with one of yours, twist, and send it flying. A moment later, your blade is at his throat.

"Again. Two."

Two men is something more of a challenge, but still, they cannot move together, and you flick their blades aside with ease, striking them so they turn aside, so that their feet are put the wrong way to their bodies and they are made easy prey.

"Again."

"Again."

"Again."

You fight for the remainder of the evening, and three days besides. At the end, you can face down seven men with ease, eight men with regularity, nine men most of the time, and even defeat ten on occasion. You cannot describe it, exactly, except to say that you can see how their intents and actions are mismatched, that their body does not naturally follow the form of their intent.

For another week he has them hunt you, moving about the halls and the training ground, trying to strike you while you cannot strike back. The longer you survive, the better, though you rarely see a smile on Edge's face. A single strike and you're out, and you need to start again.

"If you are hit once by a Darkling away from a Lighthouse, you will die. Unless you are particularly robust or lucky, or you have a Fleshcrafter nearby, or an Alchemist's potion of cleansing, you will die. Near a Lighthouse their poisons are weaker, and can be survived by almost anyone, but in the Pit a single drop of poison is near-certain death. A Spinewolf is a dangerous and difficult foe in the Pit, and even in the light of a Lighthouse they should not be underestimated."

Another session follows, and you defend yourself well, not taking a single hit for fifteen, and then twenty minutes.

Jagged Edge pronounces himself satisfied, stating "If you were taller and stronger perhaps we could seen you defeat more, but you have defended yourself well and that is the main thing."

It is the day after that that another man comes to your training session. He towers even over Jagged Edge, standing a full seven feet tall, and broader across the shoulders than you are tall. He carries a massive axe with some blades on the haft, and is dressed in what looks and smells like unwashed leather armor.

"Swallow, this is-"

"GRAAAAAND AXE!", the man shouts.

"...Grand Axe."

Jagged Edge looks particularly put-upon and grinds his teeth.

"You are aware he is to be your mentor for this expedition we are setting up. It will be simple - a weeklong expedition to the Yellow Lighthouse, wiping out any Spinewolves you see. You are not to engage anything larger, as you will die. If you get our new Bladebound killed, Grand Axe, I will make Dancing Dagger personally aware of your ineptitude."

The big man wilts almost instantly.

"Don't worry, I won't get her killed. She running interference?"

Jagged Edge shrugs.

"You are leading this little adventure. Work it out yourself. Take chits from the central repository, and head down to the quartermaster's building. Take what you think you'll need. Oh, and do try not to hog all the kills this time."

You get the distinct impression he doesn't like Grand Axe.

Grand Axe extends a hand, and you take it gingerly. He shakes it, and then gestures to you, running off like a great big puppy.

You follow him, out of breath keeping up, as he leads you down the hall, into a room, takes a handful of wooden coins engraved with something, and then races off again. Five minutes later, he takes you to a smaller building outside of the Guild, where there are all sorts of things - helmets, ropes, bags of food, everything an expedition might need. He stops at the door.

He turns to you, and suddenly realises he hasn't spoken yet.

"Hah! Sorry, mageling. I'm Grand Axe. Got caught up in my thoughts. We'll be heading out, killing a few Darklings, heading back. You'll be running interference, moving about, distracting them if necessary while I hit them from afar. I'll try and leave them to bleed out if you want to get a few kills, though with this beauty I carry it won't be easy. Anyway, anything you want to add to that? Jaggedy says you're 'barely acceptable', though from him that's actually praise."

---

Clear the Wolves Out [ ]

Sure, it's nice to increase your personal kill count, but the real objective here is to clear out the Spinewolves. If you let Grand Axe kill them rather than try and merely maim them, you'll be able to kill many more, much more quickly. You won't see any appreciable increase in personal power though, if at all. A riskier option.

Increase Your Kill Count [ ]

Ok, on one hand you want to kill some wolves, on the other, it's still important to ensure you clear some out. Ask Grand Axe to go through with his original plan, but also to work harder to ensure he leaves kills for you. Will see a minor increase in personal power (about two week's worth of power accretion), but less wolves will die - you might only kill half or a third as many overall. A riskier option.

Wreak Bloody Havoc [ ]

WILL CONSUME ONE FATE POINT.


Play It Safe [ ]

Sometimes what matters isn't killing all the wolves, it's surviving for another day. Kill those who come too close to the Lighthouse, take what kills you can, but don't take excessive risks. This is the original plan laid out by Grand Axe. No real increase in personal power.

---

"Hmm, well, I guess we can go with that. As long as you can handle it. Next..."

He tosses you a chit.

"Go buy yourself something useful."

You walk into the store, and after a little browing, note only a few things there that might be of use. You can only pick one, though, and Grand Axe notes that you'll need to either return it to the store (for credit) or to the Guild after your expedition.

---

[ ] Silken Rope and Grappling Hook

[ ] In-Depth Maps of the Area

[ ] Bulls-Eye Lantern

---

(The second vote doesn't really matter as much - occasionally I'll offer minor choices and items to help with any write-in strategies or notions you might want to come up with or discuss)

 

[occipitallobe]

Hi guys a brief update. Minor issues with my hands have turned into major issues with my hands. Haven't been writing as a consequence. Just trying out some voice recognition stuff to see how it goes. Will be updating very slowly as a consequence.

---

The day starts and the sun rises. You leave the city with little fanfare, no one stops to look at you no one gawks at you, no one follows you It is surprisingly uneventful - Grand Axe takes you through the city streets looking all the while like a great unwashed barbarian which is, you suppose largely what he is.

Despite all this you can't help but feel uneasy, this is the first time you'll be facing Spinewolves, even if it is with Grand Axe. You mean, you'd faced them before from what you can remember but you never actually been expected to kill one. As you leave the city you look around and see plains you've seen several times a full.

Great plains filled with waving grass that has grown short as it is often burnt to make it difficult to approach the city walls unseen. The land is denuded of trees for much the same reason as any cover whatsoever would make it impossible for the Bladebound to slice through the enemies they could not see.

You travel out of the city towards the Lighthouse, the plains slowly giving way to forest all the while. The road winding through the forest is broad, and build of the smooth material in places that here and there have been uprooted and filled them with patches of rubble or dirt. There are few signs of civilisation out here. While you know towns exist far from Madalgia, the city wouldn't allow them so close to its walls where they might attract more Darklings.

Autumn has begun and leaves are beginning to fall from the trees scattering the ground in various shades of orange. You know you had to have gone this path before but you cannot remember it. On the way there are memories are taken by the Lighthouse, and on the way back you were so sick you barely noticed anything at all.

It is not until the next day that you see your first Darkling, a Spinewolf traipsing through the trees. It is not how you remember them, merely wandering around looking lost and somewhat confused. Grand Axe looks at you and speaks quietly.

"They are confused in the light of the Lighthouse. Weaker, too. Do you want to try your hand at killing this one? Or should I try to take care of it myself?"

You think for a moment. You'd already decided to clear out as many Spinewolves as possible. No point risking yourself when you don't have to.

"You do it. I need to understand what you can do."

Grand Axe nods. He hefts his axe, the massive blade glinting in the afternoon light. He held above his head, roars and swings it down with massive force. The blade slams into the dirt, kicking up a cloud of dust. In the distance you see the Spinewolf, neatly separated in half.

You approach it with curiosity, you've never seen one up this close before.

"Vile aren't they?"

Grand Axe looks over you and then down at the Spinewolf. It is indeed a vile thing, and to be honest you don't see the resemblance between it and a wolf. Admittedly it has four legs, but rather than a muzzle it has a flat maw with gnashing teeth, and its feet are tipped with long gnarled claws. It has fur but underneath the fur, patches of scale shine through. You nod your head, looking at it more closely. The teeth are yellowed and chipped, and the tongue forks off into three prongs at the end. You shudder, as you realise it a single scratch in the claw, a single bite, or even enough of the poison from the tongue would be sufficient to kill you.

Over the next two days you kill more and more Spinewolves, each going much of the first. Your map of the area comes in handy as you are able to move around through more open areas in the forest and avoid places for a Spinewolf might strike at you by surprise. By the end of the third day you have killed seven. Of these you have not killed any.

Grand Axe smiles and speaks.

"We've done well. They wouldn't expect to see so many Spinewolves this time of year. It's worrying to see how close to the Lighthouse they are getting. And this is meant to be the safest area as well… I hope the merchant trains are alright."

You make camp and go to bed, each of you standing watch for a few hours to ensure you are not taken by surprise. You wake the next day eat a light meal, and proceed towards the Lighthouse. It is here you see something you had not expected to. On the road are a pack of Spinewolves, five of them racing down the road away from you. Two travelling carts of merchants are trundling away but are unable to move quickly enough to avoid the Spinewolves. Grand Axe growls, and speaks.

"Swallow, they're too far away. We can't reasonably save them. Go in slowly, distract one or two, and I'll kill them as you do. We might be able to save some of the merchants, but I doubt it."

You look up at him and speak -

[ ] Understood.

You will do as he says. It's the smartest option, it will allow you to distract some Spinewolves and maybe save a few of the merchants. It will put you in some danger though. But then, that's part of what you signed up for.

[ ] Let's play it safe.

Going in again five Spinewolves? You'd rather not be torn apart thanks. Instead go in slowly and methodically staying in range of Grand Axe all the while. The merchants however are likely to die.

[ ] I should go ahead.

You understand that it's dangerous, but you're much faster than Grand Axe. If you go ahead you should be able to distract the Spinewolves and save the merchants. This is a dangerous option though. MAY USE 1 FATE POINT, depending on strategy.

 

[occipitallobe]

Just a little snippet of conversation as the vote continues.

---

It was not something you had thought about overmuch, but it was your first night with Grand Axe when he had raised the point.

"Why not Blade Projection? It's the most common choice for a mage starting out. Infinite Sharpness is pretty common as well, Severing Distance is a bit of an odd choice for a newcomer."
You sit and think about this for a while, and to be honest you realise you didn't have perhaps the best thought out answer. You'd wanted to teleport, simple as that. You look at him and speak.

"It seemed… More impressive. Should I have selected something else?"

Grand Axe chuckles.

"It's not that. I guess when I started training there are a lot more of us. Normally they told us we should learn Blade Projection. Back then we'd sit in the back line and hack away to help increase our powers. Right now… Things are worse. I had thought Dagger would have pushed you into it, to try and keep you safe."

He stretches out under his blanket.

"I guess it's not the worst choice you could have made, not with things the way they are. To be honest I'm a little worried about myself. I am more experienced than you, but normally we have a Bladebound of three or four years experience leading one of these things. Defensively, I guess my skills aren't there yet."

You stand up and pace around the trees, there are only two as you picked a sleeping place in the open. This isn't exactly what you expected, though Grand Axe seems competent enough or at least aware of his own limitations. You speak.

"I mean, it's frustrating not to grow as quickly, but living seems more important. Besides, once we gain a little more synergy I think you may be able to leave some of them to me to kill. I'd prefer to get my feet under me for now."

He yawns, and nods and then finally closes his eyes. It has given you something to think about however, not only what you're doing for the moment where perhaps you should go in the future. Questions for later however, as right now you need to focus on simply clearing out the Spinewolves wherever you find them. You decided to do so before and were intent on making good on your self appointed task. Increasing your power could perhaps wait for another day.

 

[occipitallobe]

"No, we can't just leave them to die."

You look Grand Axe in the eye. He raises his hand and begins to speak. Before you can hear anything he says, you start swinging your sword, cutting distance away as you pace rapidly fought. He shouts something behind you, a little incoherent. You shout back at him.

"I'll go ahead! Follow me as fast as you can, back me up when you can."

With swift strikes of the sword you quickly outpace Grand Axe, and while he follows behind you, you are quickly into the fray. You have not moved like this, not yet. While you have advanced before, you have not advanced into combat unsupported. As you move towards the wagons, you see the faces of the merchants, filled with fear as the Spinewolves snap and snarl at them.

Each of the five Spinewolves looks different, some with lengthened muzzles, others with weird misshapen maws that almost seem as though they retract into their skulls. One stands tall in the rest, long gangly legs letting a tower foot or more above the others. They tear and hack into the wooden sides of the wagons, two merchants striking at them with swords to little effect. Another merchant jabs at them with a spear, and after a moment the spear gets stuck, caught in the scales of one of the Spinewolves. It rears up and tears across his face, leaving nothing but ragged bone behind.

As you run in, you find the Spinewolves turn on you with a frightening efficiency. Where five were harassing the merchants before, they now move towards you, spreading around in a half circle around you. You curse under your breath, cutting distance behind you and retreating for a moment. It does little good, as they approach towards you quickly, though one turns savaging the wagon once again.

You swing at one desperately, your sword catching on the scales barely cutting to the surface. The Spinewolf looks at you curiously, before batting at you with a clawed and gnarled paw. You fall to the ground, any thought to cut through the distance gone, the Spinewolf diving to your throat. You raise your sword desperately barely keeping its jaws off you, and another paw crashes down next to your head, avoiding pulverising your skull by mere inches.

You jab upwardly, desperately hoping to hit something before it strikes again. You see your sword pierced the Spinewolf's throat, and well into its brain. You pull your short sword but it is decidedly stuck, and so you roll away taking your only sword with you. There are still four left, and the merchants do not seem inclined to leave the wagons to help. You look around you consider Spinewolves still closing on you, you dart to the left hoping to take out the one furthest from the others. It is the tallest and you hack its leg savagely, it falls to the ground wounded.

There are three left now, and you feel a little more confident. One of the Spinewolves dives at you, and with casual ease bats your sword out of your hand. It goes flying, and while you twist your head to look at it the approaching Spinewolves demand all your attention. You start retreating in earnest now, but know better than to turn your back to the creatures.
As you back away another Spinewolf jumps on you another paw throwing you to the ground again. You look up and see death in the shape of yellowed broken teeth. The creature widens its jaw, preparing to tear you into pieces. As it descends, it simply topples, one half falling one way - the other half falling another.

"HEY! I'M GRAND AXE, AND IF YOU THINK I'M GOING TO LET YOU IDIOTS KILL THAT IDIOT..."

The roar trails off for a moment. Another Spinewolf is simply obliterated, separated down the middle with one eye either side of the cut. The third comes rushing towards you, but before it can descend, it is thrown to the side by an axe which is then swung down repeatedly on its head leaving it whimpering and unable to move.

A massive hand comes down towards you and roughly pulls you up right.

"Then you got another thing coming."

Grand Axe's face, puffy and red with exertion looks down on you. He shakes his head, beads of sweat dripping off it as he gasps for breath.

"Now, Swallow, go get your swords."

You run over to your swords eager to rearm yourself, and feel much safer once they are in your hands again. Grand Axe merely nods at the two remaining Spinewolves.

"Do it."

You walk over to the first one, hand shaking with fear. Still you bring the sword down cutting through its throat and for the first time feel a trickle of… Something in the back of your mind. You realise now it happened before, when you killed the first Spinewolf but you had other things on your mind then.

The second Spinewolf is lying on the ground, the still slavering, still dangerous. Grand Axe hefts his axe and casually slices off both of its forepaws from thirty paces away. You walk over unevenly, and jam your swords into its eye sockets. It ceases moving within a few seconds, and if you feel another small trickle of something again.

Grand Axe looks you, and inhales before speaking.

"Idiot. Idiot! IDIOT!"

He takes a deep breath.

"Go see to the merchants - we will speak of this afterwards."

The merchants are still huddled in the wagons, looking at you to see if it's safe. You wave to them, and shout.

"Hey! Come down here. We're mages from Madalgia, come to clear the Darklings out of the area. Where are you headed?"

One man looks down at you and speaks.

"Back to Madalgia. We've come from Rosolin, bearing important goods."

You look at him critically. Important goods? If they were so important…

"Why have you no escort? If these goods are so important where are your mages?"

"Well, halfway through the trip they left us, heading south towards The Pit. Don't know why, just told us to get this to Madalgia."

You jump up onto the wagon, and see a series of tightly bound iron chests.

"What's in there?"

"Don't rightly know, just told us these are important and to get into the city. I know you've already saved us, but you mind helping us again?"


Grand Axe strides over to one of the chests before you can speak, cracking one open with the haft of his axe, revealing what is inside.

He raises an eyebrow. Small black spirals made of some curiously hard material are revealed, glinting in the sun.

"I've never seen these before, what are they?"

One of the merchants looks up at him nervously.

"I don't know, sorry. All I really know that they're important."

Grand Axe grunts.

"Sorry Swallow. Depends if these really are important, I guess."

He looks over the merchants with a critical eye.

"Though to be honest, I don't see a caravan with no escort being that important to begin with."

You look over to Grand Axe, hoping for his opinion. He shrugs his shoulders, clearly leaving it up to you.

---

[ ] Return to the City

If this is truly an important shipment, helping these merchants may be the most valuable thing. Of course there is a better than even chance that they are simply lying to you to make the return trip safer. In that case you'd just be failing your mission.

[ ] Continue Your Mission


The shipment is one thing, but you largely have cleared out the road behind you. More important is keeping this area clear, these are hardly going to be the only merchants on the road at this time of year.

YOU NOW HAVE ZERO FATE POINTS.

 

[occipitallobe]

You shake your head thoughtfully. While the merchants needed your aid, your duty is to keep the entire route clear. You cannot simply abandon your task and leave the road vulnerable. It is one thing to save someone at your own risk, it is another to sacrifice others to help that same person. Whatever these artifacts are, if they were so important there would be mages guarding them already.

That is not to say that you don't sympathise with the merchants, after all going down this road with no protection is a fearsome thought. Still, you have a duty and you intend to fulfil it.
"Apologies, good merchant. You must make your way back to the city on your own. There are the caravans may require aid and we can't abandon everything simply to help you."

The merchant protests against this, but before he can begin speaking you raise your hand and silence him.

"There is no negotiation on this. Please, attend your wounded, repair your wagons and be on your way. We can stay to guard you for perhaps half an hour, but after that you must leave."

There is no arguing after this, none from Madalgia would dare gainsay a mage after such proclamation has been made. You spend little time assisting the merchants, who unceremoniously dumped out the corpse of their friend after stripping his body of anything useful, and immediately start trundling off while you're still there to watch. You feel bad, but you cannot only have compassion for those who are nearby.

---

The remainder of the mission continues fairly uneventfully. You and Grand Axe move around the Lighthouse, killing a few confused Spinewolves as you do. Over the next few days, the two of you fall into a sort of pattern. Grand Axe hacks at the Spinewolves from afar, while you distract them if necessary. You find that you are rarely necessary, serving more as an insurance policy for Grand Axe in the event that he should need you to distract a Spinewolf.

By the time you are due to return, have killed no less than twenty-three Spinewolves, though only four of those have been your own kills. What had been monsters that almost killed you became more trivial, creatures that were split in half by Grand Axe's mighty blows. Occasionally one was sufficiently wounded that you could simply kill it yourself, but for the most part things continued in this vein - you scouting, and Grand Axe killing.

He is quiet for these few days, occasionally looking up at you as though thinking of something to say. He had promised to raise the matter of the merchants with you once you had been done with them, but had not done so.

It is only on the last night, when you're camped around a small crackling fire that he finally speaks.

"Swallow, do you know why what you did was wrong?"

You shake your head.

"I understand why you might think it's wrong. Saving someone like that, even if it was to risk my own life. After all, I'm more valuable, right?"

Grand Axe sighs.
"Partially. It's not just about valuable, though. It's about need. The city needs you, Swallow. Not in the same sense that it needs those merchants either. I think… I know sometimes it's hard to accept, but the reality is actually somewhat bleak. If those merchants died, we could send someone out to retrieve the cargo. If you die on the other hand, we can never retrieve your skills or powers. Every time we lose a mage, Madalgia bleeds a little. Every time we lose an untrained civilian…"

His voice trails off.

"I know. I know, but it's still not right to let someone die like that. Did you really expect me to stand there and watch them get torn apart by Darklings?"

"Swallow, it's not that I expected you to. It's that you should have done that. If I hadn't been there, I'd been a little bit slower, you'd be dead. Those merchants would be dead as well, and
there's every chance I may have been overwhelmed as well. Do you think taking that risk was worth it?"

You look up at him, unsure of what to say. Part of you desperately wants to scream that yes, yes it was, part of you simply feels as though you failed and should make up to him somehow.

He turns around, and closes his eyes.

"I'm going to get some rest. Keep watch. And think on what I said. When you take risks like these, don't just risk yourself, you risk not only the people you're with but also the other people you bear responsibilities to. If you had died then, we would not have killed the other Spinewolves, and how many other merchants might have died on the road?"

He goes to sleep. The next day, it is as though you had never had the conversation. Grand Axe roars, leaps and thoroughly enjoys himself, at one point using his blade projection to slice apart a tree that lay across the road. There are no more Spinewolves, and you see no other merchants on your way back to the city. The trip back is uneventful, though there does seem to be a little distance between you and Grand Axe. His jokes come easily, but a small amount of mistrust seems to lie between you and him, and when you move, you find he is always watching out of the corner of his eye.

The two of you return to the Guildhall, and Grand Axe leaves you, to give his report. You are left alone with your thoughts, and wonder what is next for you. You know from the discussions that you had before you left, that you will continue training for a few more months before being sent on a mission once again. But what to train? You're not sure, and it isn't until several hours later you start to settle on an answer.

---

[ ] Learn Infinite Sharpness

You have a little power - enough to begin to learn Infinite Sharpness. You would gain only 1/10 of a second of sharpness with each strike but it may still come in handy.

[ ] Master Severing Distance

Spend more time increasing the power of your Severing Distance technique. You will gain about fifteen or twenty cm in terms of mobility per swing. You will also become more proficient
at using this technique to dodge.

[ ] Train Your Combat Skills

While you are proficient, you are hardly at the level of the other Bladebound. You need to continue training if you are to ever reach their level of prowess. Focus on your proficiency with
your short swords, and become more than any non-mage could ever hope to be.

[ ] Learn Survival Skills

So close to the city, you didn't find that you were particularly threatened by lacking survival skills. However, in future being able to scout more effectively, and forage off the land would
be a great advantage.

[ ] Study Darklings

You understand so little about Darklings, even after the Spinewolves almost killed you. Knowing the enemy is perhaps the first step to being able to kill them, and more importantly, survive them. There are libraries here, and if you spend your time researching and reading you should be able to find out a great deal.

 

[occipitallobe]

Coming to a decision was significantly harder than you expected, as you knew that most of the coming time would be taken up with mandatory training, and other things you had no options regarding. Everything you thought of seemed appropriate, and almost you decided to go several different ways.

Your first thought was simply to increase your skill at Severing Distance in order to make you hard to hit and harder to kill. You meditated on that for a little while, before realising that had Grand Axe not been there you would have died regardless. You needed some way to kill your enemies, not merely inconvenience them.

You considered studying the Darklings in-depth, trying to understand where their weaknesses lay and what methods you could use to dispose of them, but decided against it as well. After all knowing your enemies weaknesses was a good thing, but you had so few strengths to use against them. Better find some way to destroy them before understanding how it could best be used.

Your thoughts had flashed back to the moment when the Spinewolf had almost killed you, jaws slavering above you as you thrust your sword desperately upwards. If your blade had been a little sharper, you could have pulled it out quickly, killing your enemies with sudden swift strikes. That then, was the way forward.

You returned to your training, although this time Jagged Edge greets you at the training hall.

"Dancing Dagger has been required elsewhere. You will once again be training under me."

He smiles.

"And this time, I will not be so lenient. Grand Axe has told me all about your… escapade."

With that, you begin training. You would have thought it would have been a more difficult time, but Jagged Edge treats you no more harshly than he had before. There are long, arduous days but when you tell him of your desire to learn Infinite Sharpness, he merely nods letting you know that he thinks it is good you are considering a future. After a few days of training, you come into the hall the morning ready to train.

Jagged Edge is standing there, along with two people - a man and a girl. He gestures towards you.

"Come in, Swallow and sit down. Leave your swords with me."

You do as he says, sitting down ten or so paces away from him, leaving your swords by his side.

He raises his halberd above his head, leaping forward towards you and cuts above and around you. You feel woozy, and weak. Suddenly you could not stand if you wanted to, you can
merely watch and barely that.

"This is an object lesson, Swallow. You disregarded orders, endangered yourself, endangered your assigned partner, and ultimately endangered the city itself. I am making it clear to you why this is unacceptable, firstly through argument, and secondly by example."

He gestures at the man.

"This is Fulbad. He is a merchant. You may remember him from when you saved his life."

Jagged Edge looks you quizzically.

"You may not, I understand your blood was running hot that day. In any case, Fulbad was saved because you disregarded orders. Reasonably speaking, he should be dead right now. I have brought you here to see the consequences of your actions. Dagger and Axe considered this to be excessive, by the by. In normal times I would agree. These are dire times, though, and we cannot afford foolishness such as yours if we are to survive."

He gestures at the girl. She is pretty enough, you suppose with a shock of red hair falling down around her shoulders. Her face is a little dirty, and her eyes are wide and full of fear.

"This is Shaina. She is seventeen, a little older than you. The difference between the two of you is that she went to the Lighthouse. She, however, was unlucky. Take off your shoes
Shaina."

The girl takes off one of her shoes, showing a wooden peg leg stuck within it.

"She was maimed, and is consequently little use to the city. Do you know why she is here?"

Jagged Edge closes his eyes and his forehead creases.

"It is frustrating to have to do this personally. But I must impress upon you the depths of our resolve - if we do less than this, we die and the city dies with us. This is not a decision made
to inflict pain upon you, it is merely this: Fulbad is valuable and should live. Nonetheless, your actions demand redress, and you should see the consequences of what you do. So..."

Shaina looks at him, eyes widening even further with terror.

Jagged Edge raises his halberd again and slashes at the air. The clean strikes you had seen done to the Spinewolves are nothing like that now, as Shaina's head is carved in half like a melon, the top half of the skull falling to the ground, one eye still wide open and staring starkly up at you.

"When you act without thought, when you act in ways likely to endanger your fellow mages in the city, or the city itself, you must fully see the likely consequences of your action. Many die merely for the possibility of magic, and you throw it away so lightly? Others sacrifice, that you might live, and you risk that for some self-satisfaction? Do as you will, but do not think there are no consequences."

He walks over to you and swing the halberd above you once more. You feel your limbs strengthening, and you are able to move once more.

"Do you understand, Swallow? Or is more instruction required?"

Shaina's corpse stares up at you, blood and brain strewn across the floor. You feel the need to vomit, but steel yourself and manage to speak.

"...Yes."

[ ] You Lied, Stubbornly

[ ] You Whispered, Hopelessly

[ ] You Murmured, Fearfully

[ ] You Spat, Full of Fury

---

"There is one more thing. In addition to this Swallow, you will be required to undertake some… Community service. This will be part of your training, and will present no danger to you. However, it will require you to take actions that you would otherwise consider distasteful. Let me know which one you prefer."

[ ] Driving Out The Failures

Those who have failed to attain powers and become crippled must periodically be driven from Madalgia. There is no room for them here without attracting the Darklings, and simply killing them in the streets incites too much unrest. Better they sate the appetites of the Darklings before they can reach the City itself.

[ ] Executing the Rebels

Sometimes the Shield Ring gets restless. Occasionally children throw rocks at mages, adults attempt to attack guards, gangs try to steal from carts. These are considered acts of treason in Madalgia, and it is considered useful to set examples to set the remainder back in line.

[ ] Burning Out the Settlements

If those who leave happen to settle too close to the city, they are relocated - assuming they refuse to do so willingly. Typically this takes the form of a punitive expedition with mages, soldiers, and fire. Few enough are killed, but being driven from a fortified village into the wilds is usually a death sentence in and of itself.

[ ] Leave

You can leave the city. Of course, you'll receive no more training and you'll be blacklisted by Madalgia in addition to that, making returning a near impossibility. A risky choice that only the most stubborn would go through with.