132. The Jotun Problem

The conversation started after the delivery of two heavy mugs of steaming mead. The sweet aroma of honey mixed with cinnamon, cloves, and dried citrus peels filled the room. It warmed Lukas’s chest and stomach with the first sip.

“You look different?” Penelope said after taking a long sip of her beverage.

“Finally managed that body ascension,” Lukas answered, grinning. “I’m surprised Mira didn’t notice.”

“Oh, she did.” Bass grinned, showing off his mouth full of pointed teeth. “Maybe not directly, but some part of her did. Mira lingered a tad too long at the top of the stairs—”

“That’s not important right now, Bass.” Penelope cut her familiar off. “Why don’t you go get me a meeting with the city council?”

“You know that’s not going to do any good. They’re stubborn—”

“It doesn’t matter. We need to try.” Penelope returned her attention to Lukas as Bass let himself out, grumbling under his breath. “I doubt anything is going to get them to pull their heads out of the snow. Greed has clouded their judgment. First, they didn’t believe the Jotun existed. Now—” She adopted a mocking tone. “No. They’re our dear allies, and we must treat them as such. The Schwarzberg kingdom can’t turn its back on the true residents of this land.”

“I’m starting to think the court is full of morons.” Lukas sighed, shaking his head. “How can they not see what the Jotun are doing? Distract with good deals while getting forces and assets in place. I can’t help but wonder if the Jotun ambassadors are all mind mages or if we have traitors in our midst.”

“I’m guessing you need me to investigate the council and get evidence of corruption and whatnot?”

“No. We might not have the time for that. Because whoever it is will excel at covering their tracks and getting rid of evidence. Besides, Ogden is looking into that for me already.” Penelope downed more than half of her beverage despite the temperature before placing the mug on the corner table separating their seats. “I need you and your clones out there with Mira and me. We’re going to infiltrate and investigate the Jotun encampments. Your camera thing, Morph, and that Shadow Step should get us what we need.”

“I don’t know.” Lukas leaned back in his chair and took a long swig from his drink. “I’ve got everything I want out of the Gray and am not particularly attached to the city. If I were to think about it from the Jotun’s perspective, the Schwartzberg Kingdom deserves whatever it gets. They’re not exactly the good guys.”

“In the grand scheme of things, there are no good or bad guys,” Penelope said. “It becomes a matter of which side has more lives to protect, contains more of your personal interests—whether that be loved ones or assets, and who is important to your future. Besides, despite the initial stand of: this is our land, we need to drive the Jotun out, the Kingdom of Schwarzberg is now willing to coexist—”

“That’s because they believe there is money to be made in trade,” Lukas interrupted. “The Jotun have unique magic and equipment, and the Kingdom wants it. I wouldn’t be surprised if they made a move to eliminate them after figuring out a way to replicate it all.”

“You’re not wrong, but that doesn’t change the fact that the Jotun were more than compensated for the wrong done to them. They accepted it at face value, but in reality, they are preparing to raze the Gray. It wouldn’t surprise me if they didn’t stop there and aimed to launch a kingdom-encompassing campaign.” Penelope kept going even when Lukas tried to interject again. “I don’t have evidence to back this up, and I’d rather you not take this as manipulation. However, a part of me believes the Jotun are in league with a Greater Being from beyond Fracture. And I believe the last thing you want is another one of them getting in the way of your goals, right?”

Lukas didn’t answer straight away. The pair sat in silence, indulging in their beverages. Eins and Zwei had also fallen silent. Instead of exchanging banter, they focused on their individual projects. Eins applied the finishing touches to Flukas’s base scepter. He had modeled it after a roc’s foot. The shaft’s design matched the texture and natural pattern of their hide. The top branched into talon-like extensions, which held the beautifully cut and polished magic crystal. Meanwhile, Zwei was busy finalizing the enchantment script to be inscribed on the weapon. It was clear from the reduced pace that they were more focused on eavesdropping than on the task at hand.

“You said there was something in it for me,” Lukas said. “Are you finally going to let Mira go and not report her existence to the Conclave?”

“Funny your mind went there.” Penelope grinned. “You really like Mira, don’t you?”

“We’re still in the early days, but yes. It’s been a while since I’ve enjoyed being with someone beyond the physical side of things. If you promise to—”

“Mira might officially be my apprentice, but she isn’t in any sort of service contract to me. She is free if she wants and when she wants. In fact, she’ll probably leave with you tomorrow if you ask her. The Conclave knows of her existence already. I had to tell them when launching the investigation into the Aquila and the whole thing with Ephram.” Penelope held up a hand when Lukas tried to interject, silencing him. “However, they believe she is an ordinary dragonblooded individual they were rearing to be empowered and turned into a soldier. The Revolution isn’t the first to attempt anything of the kind.”

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“You haven’t told them about the dual dragon fire?” Lukas asked, eyes widening.

“No,” Penelope answered. “I know what they’d do to her. They would like me to bring her in because of how rare individuals with silver dragonfire are. However, it's not an order that demands I bring her in by any means necessary. If I tell them Mira refused and went her own way, they’ll keep their eyes open but won’t send people after her. Things would be different if they knew about Erasure.”

“Thank you.” Lukas sighed. “Honestly, it’s cost me sleep.” His eyes drifted to the ceiling. He could hear the tub filling with water. “Mira is important to me. I haven’t felt like this about anyone in a while—”

“Kat and Leisel?”

“We’re going to be here all night if we get into the complexity of the clones’ romantic pursuits and my detachment from them,” Lukas said. “Take away all of my inhibitions and sense of self-preservation, and then you have a clone. The specializations and shard abilities have added new layers to the dynamic. It's hard to explain. Kat was important to them, and I wanted nothing to do with her. Did I think she was attractive? Sure. But I had no interest in her otherwise.”

“And Leisel?”

“It was purely carnal. Mira is the first person I’ve felt anything for in this new life. We’re a good fit.”

“I’m happy the pair of you found each other,” Penelope said. “You needn’t worry about me getting in the way of that or using your feelings to get anything out of you.” She raised her mug, gesturing at the clones for a refill. Zwei rolled his eyes but complied. “I have something else for you. Have you made a start toward your confluence ability?”

A chill ran down Lukas’s spine at the prospect. He hadn’t thought about it in quite some time. It wasn’t something the Pillars of Self just offered, like the conjunction abilities. Instead, a confluence ability demanded research, training, and development. Lukas had spent the bulk of the past year growing his business, working on different shard abilities and understanding them, and arcane development. Yet he was nowhere near bringing the four shards and their conjunctions together to cement what some called their keystone.

“I don’t know where or how to start,” Lukas answered. Of all the people he knew, only Xander had been open about his confluence ability. All his shards complemented each other, turning him into a juggernaut with incredible defense and capable of recovering from almost everything. His confluence ability magnified recovery, making him near unkillable. “I don’t know what I want or what is even possible. In the pursuit of diversifying my clones while simultaneously achieving my electromagnetic goals, things may have ended up all over the place.”

“Eclectic isn’t necessarily a bad thing. There are confluences that enhance that one thing a person focuses on and excels at, or does a bunch of little things, granting overall benefits. It can be a single ultimate ability, or it can be a utilitarian boon that improves life in general.” Penelope retrieved a thick palm-sized book from her fur coat’s inner pocket. The leather covers were worn, but the pages between them appeared in pristine condition. “Agree to help me, and I’ll give you this.”

“I don’t even know what that is.” Lukas frowned, resisting the urge to jump at the mystery box.

“You might not work with beasts or minions, but your clones and how you operate make you a cross between a commander and a summoner.” Penelope returned the book to her pocket as Zwei arrived with fresh mugs of hot mead. “Powerful individuals like yourself use their confluence ability to construct a domain within themselves where their summons or beasts can continue to function and thrive without stepping on the material plane. The conclave has powerful mages who dedicated their confluence ability to constructing something similar to a wizard’s tower within their soulspace instead of developing a powerful arcane tool or spell. I’m told that the more powerful among them can summon parts of it into the material realm. I believe you can benefit from something of the sort.”

Penelope drew in the air with azure flames as she continued. “Shadowsteel can act as the material. Your Heart ability is an excellent energy source. Use Spellweaver to grant parts of the structure unique functions. Man and run it with your clones.”

“I could have a mobile base and workshop as I travel,” Lukas whispered to himself. He studied the Pillars of Self Penelope had drawn and the outline of a fort next to it. “Could such a thing be used to carry resources and materials?”

“It can be whatever you want. You’ll be the master of your own domain. Smithy. Brewery. Fort. Arsenal. Storehouse. Menagerie. Build whatever room you want. Make the space your own. I’ve even heard of a druid who uses his soulspace as a farm, kitchen, and brewery, and occasionally summons a section of it into the material plane to use as a tavern.”

“Fine,” Lukas said. “I’ll do it. I’ll help you with this Jotun thing.”

Penelope took the book out of her pocket again and placed it on the table between them. “It's yours.”

“You don’t want to do a contract for this?” Lukas asked, resisting the urge to grab his prize straight away. “This is the real me. I assure you. Anything I sign will be binding.”

“Not necessary,” Penelope said. “Despite Bass’s protests, I’ve decided to trust you. Besides, you’re in love with the girl up there, and you won’t betray me for her sake. So, if you say you’re going to help me, I’ll believe you and let you have the pay in advance.”

The book disappeared into the journal’s storage as soon as Lukas touched it. He tried to copy it straight away but failed. A powerful enchantment resisted the soulbound relic’s power.

“Thank you,” he said. “When do we leave? What’s the plan?”

“How about we leave that for later? There are quite a few things I need to sort out first. Give me a day or two.” Penelope grinned. “In the meantime, why don’t you go upstairs? I’m sure there is a pretty, naked little thing waiting for you. We’ve travelled far, and I’ve been pushing her a fair bit. The last thing you want is for exhaustion to catch up and your reunion to be delayed until tomorrow.”

“Do you need a clone to help you with whatever needs preparing?”

Penelope nodded. “I’ll take the Stalkers outside. Now go. I’ll finish my drink and see myself out.”

Lukas nodded. It was tempting to dive into the enchanted text straight away, but Mira came first. He sent the relevant clones messages through the journal before rushing up the stairs.