September 15, 2152
A warm fall glow poured in through the open window and gently heated up Emory's blankets. Once they got hot enough, she peeked open her eyes and gazed into the brilliant light. The world looked different than it did six weeks ago, bigger and harsher than she ever could have imagined. Who could have guessed that in just that short time she would go from a normal eighteen-year-old girl to Supreme Witch and General of the High Collective. Still, with a half-Fae mother and a dragon father, it was probably inevitable, though that didn't make it any easier to swallow a certain future. She wondered what her life would have been like if she hadn't met Sam and then everyone else; would she have faded away into the background or risen to the top regardless? Nevertheless, it was pointless to dwell on what may or may not have happened, so she stretched her arms wide as she leaned up in her bed. Slowly, she drew the covers back and changed into her original clothes which had been washed, dried, folded, and set on a nearby dresser.
Once she was dressed, she left the room and gracefully walked down the hall. To her surprise, the wood and greenery that flowed throughout the manor looked more beautiful today than it had yesterday. Even the flower blooms appeared to have grown two or three sizes larger than they would naturally grow. Emory found it equally strange that every servant in the house made it a point to bow to her as she approached and remain so until she had passed; they didn't even react this way to Perceval. Finally, she made her way into the sunroom, yet she couldn't believe this was the same place she had visited yesterday.
Every tree in the room was now pressing against the ceiling, as if they had grown a couple feet overnight. Vines wrapped around the trellises and beams so thickly that you couldn't see the structure, just fruits and leaves covering every inch. And the fruits were enormous; the apples had expanded to the size of small melons while the grapes were almost the size of lemons. Perceval was even whistling a tune while he walked through the sunroom as she stared at the sight. She whispered, "Perceval, what is going on with your house? I figured it would have been at its peak yesterday, but this is spectacular."
"Oh this?" he chuckled as he pulled a massive grape off the vine, "This isn't me, Lady Supreme. You did all this last night when I assume you were channeling your magik before bed."
"What! How did I do all this?" Emory shrieked.
"Calm down. It is far too early to be so loud," Perceval grinned, "You see, the magik that powers to manor normally comes from the outside environment. But yesterday evening, you allowed your magik to pour out, which the house sucked up quite remarkably. This is the result."
Shanna sang as she entered the room, "My, what a glorious day is it to have an Aurelias in the home again. You are quite the wonder, Lady Supreme. It is a shame that you will be leaving again so soon."
"I know. I wish I could stay," Emory expressed sadly, "Unfortunately, my friends are out there all alone. If I stay, who will help them?"
"You'll have to stay through breakfast at the very least. They worked on my gifts for you throughout the night, but they're not quite finished. I apologize for the delay," Perceval lowered his head.
"That's no big deal," Emory smiled, "Besides, my friends are still sleeping anyway, so I'm not leaving yet. Thank you for your generosity, Lord Perceval."
Perceval shook his head, "No, Lady Supreme, I thank you for your generosity. After all, you owed us nothing, yet you still outstretched your hand to help us. Clan Ide will always stand with Clan Aurelias."
"As will Clan Romanovs," Shanna agreed, "We will continue to support you wherever you go among the stars."
"Thank you both. It's only because of your support that I was able to stand before the others. I hope I make you proud of your conviction," Emory blushed. She moved into the greenhouse portion of the room and observed the many varieties of tropical plants. While she did, Gwen, Lilina, and Sam separately meandered into the sunroom. After Sam entered, Perceval gathered everyone and led them to the dining room. Breakfast featured some of the giant fruit Emory had helped create as well as the usual pastries and grains. Since the three older Councilors were on the opposite side of the table yesterday, they asked the young women about the other planets they had been on. Despite being elders, Perceval had only been to Mars once while Shanna had been to Callisto during the war. They were especially excited to read through the journals just because of the exploration the Aurelias clan had done.
Midway through breakfast, Franz hurriedly brought in a large box and placed it on the table next to Emory. The box had been wrapped in green paper and tied with violet vines. "Sorry for the delay, Lord Perceval. I brought them straight here from the smithy," Franz bowed as he apologized.
"Thank you for the rush order, Franz," Perceval patted his shoulder, "Now, get some rest. Once our Lady Supreme takes off, we will have much to do. Lady Emory, please take them out and look them over."
Emory slowly opened the box and gasped, "These look amazing! You made these so quickly." From the box, she first pulled a dark chainmail shirt that felt as light as if it was made of silk. The sleeves came down midway through the forearm and the shirt length itself was a little longer. At first, it looked black, but in the light, she could see it was a dark forest green with patches of brown speckled in. Then she pulled out a matching pair of chainmail leggings which had green spirals running up the sides. Setting them next to each other on the table, Emory waved her hand over them and whispered the same phrase Perceval had used to reveal the information about her gauntlets. Like before, a green light began forming letters over the set reading, "Level five protection enchantment: Nature. Active Skill: ???. Passive Skill: ???."
"That's odd," Perceval rubbed his chin, "Normally, it wouldn't show any information about skills unless the item had one." As the words faded, Perceval repeated the action to make them reappear, but this time, there was no information about skills.
"Very strange indeed. It reveals more information when using Arcane magik than when using raw magik. I've never noticed this phenomenon before," Shanna added.
"We grabbed the research on skills from the estate, right?" Emory asked to which everyone else nodded, "Good. Once we discover what we can about the Void sphere, let's pivot to finishing that research. With any luck, skills can be added afterwards and hopefully the Elandrian can unlock these."
Everyone quickly finished breakfast after the armor set was delivered. While Gwen and Sam were grabbing their clothes from their rooms, Emory sat on a bench in the foyer and fidgeted quietly. Perceval approached her and set a small gift box beside her.
Emory looked puzzled, "Perceval, you've been far too generous already. I can't accept any more gifts."
"These are just more link stones," Perceval laughed as he sat beside her on the bench, "Lady Emory, thank you again. We Witches were teetering on the edge of a cliff, but you brought us back. You've breathed life again into these old bones."
"I'm only doing the right thing. My mother would have wanted this. And I should be the one thanking you; I couldn't have done this without your support," Emory blushed and kicked her legs.
"Now that the Aurelias clan is safe once again and even bigger than it has been in many years, I think it's time for me to rest," Perceval remarked with melancholy in his voice, "Did you know I was the first warlock to become leader under fifty years old? Now, I'm the oldest person on the Council. Time doesn't stop moving, does it?"
Emory patted his hand, "That's a good idea, Perceval. You deserve some time to rest and enjoy life. Does Franz know yet?"
"That's what I was going to tell him after you left," Perceval stared into space, "He's a good man and will make a good Councilor, even if I do give him a hard time."
"And what will you do after you retire?" Emory inquired.
Perceval grinned so wide his teeth showed, "Whatever I want. Maybe I'll even join you on the battlefield, Lady Emory." He was roaring with laughter as Gwen and Sam entered the foyer. Emory and Perceval stood up and moved to the door with the other two girls. "Safe travels, young Ladies," Perceval shook their hands with a proud countenance, "And may you not invoke the Void."
"Thank you for your hospitality, Lord Perceval! We'll visit again!" the three girls cheered. They walked through the door, out to the teleportation pad, and vanished in a flash of rainbow light. Once the light faded, the thick woodlands scenery had changed to a wintery wonderland as they returned to Bustrun. On the edge of the base, a gigantic barracks was under construction while patrolling sentries walked around the edge of the shelter. As soon as they stepped off the teleport pad, Emory grabbed two of the link stones and handed them to Gwen.
Emory explained, "One is for you, and the other is for Tana. We can use these to keep in regular contact instead of relying on the RRS. Besides, once we get the hang of the Arcane sphere, we'll all be able to teleport wherever we need to go." They continued onwards to the construction area where they assumed they would find Tana. She was there, sitting cross-legged on an ottoman made of ice and watching the process go on. When Emory, Gwen, and Sam popped around the corner, Tana quickly got up and walked over to them.
"Wow, you weren't there very long," Tana mentioned, "Is it bad news? It's always bad news when it's quick."
"It was awesome! You should have seen Emory fight; it was spectacular!" Sam exclaimed.
"Yeah! Emory kicked my father's ass!" Gwen shouted, "She put those old sticks-in-the-mud in their place!"
Emory sighed, "It wasn't that great. But there will be some changes, hence why I had you all start building the barracks. One thousand Witches from Clan Ewan will be coming in the next couple of days as well as the leader named Galle."
"A thousand Witches and one of the leaders?" Tana repeated in disbelief, "How did you convince them to send such a large force?"
"Well, I'm the Supreme Witch now, so it was less of a request and more of a demand," Emory answered plainly while Tana's jaw gaped open at the comment.
"You should have led with that information, you psycho!" Tana yelled before covering her mouth with her hand, "I'm sorry. That was disrespectful of me."
Emory's eyes rolled, "Don't start putting on airs. I'm the same person I was a few days ago. Anyway, Galle's clan specializes in a sphere called the Lava sphere. You're still in command of this outpost; he's here to help our troops train better and to help defend."
"And we both report to you, General Supreme Witch," Tana cackled. Emory lightly smacked the mischievous girl's shoulder.
"The main foci are two items in this order: finish the structures and train," Emory cleared her throat, "We'll worry about exploration when we're safe. I also gave Gwen a link stone for you. We can use them to communicate with everyone who has one, which is every Witch Councilor and our group of eight after I get done handing them out. This way, you can call right away if you have any problems."
Tana nodded, "That sounds simple enough. Anything else I should be aware of?"
"Since you're a Bonded Hexblood now, you can learn one of the special spheres now," Emory continued, "When you're ready, just let me know; I have copies of all the other sphere spellbooks. Or no pressure, you can learn any sphere you want."
"Okay. Oh, before I forget, Ninian stopped by and asked about you yesterday. But when I said I didn't know, she shrugged and left," Tana added as she ruffled through her pants pockets.
"Good to know," Emory remarked, "Gwen, since you have two spheres, you should work on achieving Meta Form. Having fought against your father, I can only imagine what the combination of Arcane and Blood will be like."
Gwen gave her a thumbs up, "Don't worry about us. We'll be ready when the Apleem come."