Chapter 10: Tempering arc

"You look like a teenager seeing a naked woman for the first time," Nora mocked. Marcus ignored her. The library spread out before him, rows after rows of bookcases crammed into the room. Was that a second story? "Seriously, I saw you in here a few days ago."

"Stop asking reasonable questions and tell me I have access to all the books."

Nora shrugged. "Sure. The academy considers death-by-overconfidence a valid method of weeding out the unworthy."

Fuck yes.

Marcus advanced on the closest bookcase with a spring in his step, the engraved words above it marking them as volumes on summoning. He pulled out a book at random, opening it to find knowledge on a subject he already knew.

The book also seemed to repeat itself about four or five times as he leafed through it, which was weird.

He pulled out another. This one described the finer details on summoning elementals from the four basic elemental planes. Also something he already knew. Just like the one before, it started to repeat itself like it had pages to fill.

Fifteen minutes later Marcus sat at one of the tables, two dozen books spread around him like a spiral. Nora was looking through them, growing increasingly confused. "How did I never notice this before?"

Marcus didn't answer, resisting the urge to burn the entire library down. 

"Every single one," he muttered, poking hatefully at the book before him. It was titled The Great Exploration of the Dungeon, and it was filled with nonsense. Bits and pieces from other books, things he already knew, the works. "All of it knowledge I already know."

Nora set the book down, taking a seat. "How did I never notice that before?"

The School of Life couldn't produce information. That or it was damaged, though if it was there should be some new information. He'd kind of known it before, even, but no magical knowledge? From an Archmage? The Hells was the point of this artifact in the first place?

"I have a better question," Marcus said, nodding to a trio of students two tables over. The library was quiet, quiet enough they had relative privacy, but he spoke in a low tone anyway. "Why aren't they noticing?"

That scan all the way at the start. It had pulled more than just his memories, hadn't it? The artifact used them to fill in details. An anti-theft measure? If anyone stole the thing Balthazar wouldn't have to worry about his knowledge being stolen with it.

Still. 

"You know what's going on, don't you?" Nora asked, tone hard. "Mind filling me in?"

"Mind telling me why an Elf wouldn't gut those four assholes for even carrying a slave collar?"

Nora scowled. "Don't answer a question with a question. It's annoying. And yes, I do mind, but you seem like the stubborn kind. I could have killed them all myself, but lashing out with extreme violence would only isolate me further."

"As opposed to the weekly evaluations, which are apparently death matches," Marcus nodded wisely. "Gods forbid someone protects themselves from being enslaved."

"I'm one of four Elves in this institution. All of us have been cast out from our tribes for coming here, and all of us hate each other for it just as much as we hate ourselves. I didn't gut them because I would find myself even more isolated. Does that satisfy your curiosity, mister Lannoy?"

Her tone was definitely cold, but Marcus had never really been one to get flustered during confrontation. Being a highly capable mage helped, though it appeared everyone here was just as good, if not better, than him.

"It does," he allowed, leaning back and crossing his arms. "And the books are copies because it only knows what I know. And I know quite a lot about magic, but not enough to fill an entire two story library. A phenomenon that would make no sense unless you consider this isn't the real world, which can be verified easily enough by trying to contact the Hells."

Such a strange thing they were, the rules of this place. First he couldn't tell anyone about the loop for fear of a reset, then the shapeshifter could adapt to it, now it seemed to care little for what he did. It would reassure him if that meant the restrictions were loosening, but he doubted that.

He was stopped from any deeper introspection by Nora carving a small summoning circle right on the table, her knifework practised but the lines somewhat inefficient. The binding portion would only last for a few days, for one, and the power limiter wasn't properly reinforced.

Considering a circle that small couldn't summon anything bigger than a bird, he resisted the urge to point that out.

Well, actually, that power limiter really isn't great and something quite a bit bigger could force its way through if she does-

Nora's hand touched the seal and nothing happened, which actually was kind of weird. The professor didn't seem to have any issue working his way through the cracks in the boundary. Nora looked at it, then her hand, then back at the seal. "I can't summon my demonic hornets."

"Your what?" Marcus asked, instinctively breaking the connection the seal was trying to form. Without manual guidance it was just pushing against the boundary, which actually would suggest someone could get lucky if they tri- No. The hornets. "You were trying to summon demonic hornets?!"

She seemed actually startled by the incredulity in his tone. "Yes? They're useful as scouts, to harass and for distraction. In large enough groups they can be quite lethal, not to mention the low summoning cost."

"Have you ever summoned more than two thousand of those at once before?"

Now she seemed downright worried, which was good. "No?"

"Don't. They fuse together into something called a Hornet Lord, which is not covered in your seal of obedience. It is dangerous, can summon more demonic hornets from the Hells and tries to build a nest where you summon it. It's also humanoid, which means thumbs. Just, don't summon more than two thousand at once, yes?"

Nora nodded mutely, her mind clearly catching up to the fact she couldn't summon anything. "We're in a fake reality."

"So we are," Marcus agreed, waving his hand to collect the strewn about books. Disappointing or not, fake or not, they were still books. Telekinesis struggled to lift some of the heavier tomes, though that was nothing multiple threads couldn't fix. "So, I know the answer to this, but Elves don't live for hundreds and hundreds of years, do they? Perhaps even millennia?"

"What? No. Why would we?"

"Because it would be convenient. Also because this is about half a millennium in the past, and finding someone from inside on the outside would be nice."

She paused, clearly trying to parse that statement, then skipped past it as if he'd never spoken. Fair enough. "What's going on here, Lannoy?"

"Are you feeling any inexplicable urges to adapt to the loops and remember things between them?"

Nora pulled her knife, which he judged to be an overreaction, and he put up a placating hand. Her lips curled into a snarl as she spoke. "Explain. Now."

So he explained, watching Nora grow from confused to upset to resigned. Marcus wasn't sure how well he'd take being told he wasn't real, but so far the best outcome had been apathy.

Nora, instead, straightened. Seemed to come to terms with it almost suspiciously quickly, though the books probably helped. "In your future, how many Elves are left?"

"Full-blooded? None. Perhaps some managed to survive in the Empire, but if they did I don't know of them. Even those who bred with humans are few and far between, and I don't think you'd call those Elves."

She looked at him, eyes seeming to stare into his soul. Marcus shifted, uncomfortable, but breaking away didn't even come to mind. That feeling of when he'd first seen them came to mind. That sheer otherness the Elves possessed.

"We come from Trakka," Nora said after a moment. "From mountains and forests we share with dragons. If my people are still alive, they will be there. Kingdoms or tribes, millions or thousands, they will be there. If the opportunity comes, I want you to help them."

Dragons?

"Elves rarely need help, in my experience."

"That's my price, Lannoy. Help my people and I'll help you. Now, in the next 'loop', however long it takes. Atya i calen, arlye i elen. Help the future and you help yourself. It does not translate well, I will admit."

"How would you possibly know I'd keep that promise?"

Nora shrugged. "You seem like the type to keep their word. It is a rare thing in Humans."

Well, that was probably one of the nicer things anyone had ever said to him. Marcus inclined his head, wondering when he'd started feeling more at home in the past than he'd ever had in the present.

"You have my word, then."

"Good," Nora nodded, tapping her knife. "A nísë laitalé undó. A promise left unfulfilled. Repeat it back to me."

"A nsë laitalé ndó. How would that mean anything to an alternate you?"

She smiled with a touch of condescending pity. "I'll know what it means, Human. Again. If you mispronounce it, it won't work."

﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌ 

"The standard defence package," Nora said, putting the bundle of papers down on the desk. Marcus raised his head, having grown tired of inspecting the dorm room. "I had to put it together myself since all the information got randomized. It should protect you from just about anything though."

Marcus leafed through it, eyebrow raising. "Standard? This required four simultaneous spell matrices! Shield, another shield but specialised for inertia damping, environmental and sensation tolerance, an adaptive recharge matrix hooked into all three? I don't even know what half of that means."

"Considering you told me all of this came from your memory, that is a lie. The shield and inertia equaliser will allow you to block just about any attack, sensation tolerance just means you can't be blinded, deafened or otherwise have your senses messed with and the environmental protection is self explanatory. Regulated oxygen, heat, cold, you name it. The adaptive recharge matrix allows you to feed more power into one or more of the other spells."

Fuck that's good.

"Alright, that's pretty good. Not quite flight levels of good, but good. Four simultaneous spells, though? I can only do two comfortably, let alone keep it active for long periods of time."

"It gets better," Nora said, pointing at one of the pages. "Proper mastery means breaking the shield down into hundreds of smaller shields, preventing the whole from breaking should one section be overwhelmed, and for the sensation tolerance to enhance the senses as well as protect them."

Marcus stared. "That's insane. Archmage levels of insane."

"I know of two dozen that have the former version down," she shrugged. "At least two of the professors have mastered the latter. How common would four be in your time?"

"I'm the only one in my Kingdom who can manage two with proper speed. I'm not sure about the Empire. We only really trade with them when the mountain passages melt, and even then the moderates control it all. Imperial visitors in Redwater are rare, to say the least."

"I understood maybe a third of what you just said."

"Oh, sorry." Marcus waved his hand. "The Mirranian Kingdom, my Kingdom, is almost completely enclosed by mountains. We border the ocean, so only three real roads exist to the Empire. Two are mountain passes, one is over relatively flat land. The moderates are a political faction that border the southern side of my Kingdom, and they also control all three roads. The latter isn't particularly big, though, so trade suffers in winter. Uhm, Redwater is the capital. The bay water turns red becau-"

"I don't really care. Sounds like something of a backwater."

Then why did you imply you wanted a clarification? She had a point, though. Magically speaking his Kingdom had it all, but compared to this? His kingdom had druids, witches, mages, herbalists and more, but all knew only their own discipline. Recorded any findings only sporadically, let alone creating proper copies, and even if they did they'd never allow someone who wasn't their direct disciple to read them.

Marcus sighed. "Yeah, I'm starting to see that."

"Also, there's something you should know. The other students are figuring out they can't summon anything. An hour or so ago one managed to get through the 'cracks', as you described them. People are getting worried and even the faculty is getting involved."

"Already? It hasn't even been a week."

Nora raised an eyebrow. "Summoning is one of the more popular branches for how useful it is against the dungeon. Of course people were going to notice."

"Well they still haven't noticed the library is fucked."

"True," she allowed, finally taking a seat. "I'm guessing this artifact we're in is degrading quicker than anticipated, then?"

"Is it hypocritical to be afraid of dying?"

"Fear it, run from it, embrace it, death comes all the same. Maybe tomorrow, maybe not. I will not let death rule my life."

Marcus looked away, not sure what to say to that. What could he say when her eyes burned with more than conviction, more than belief, and turned downright other? He turned to the papers, clearing his throat. "I'm not sure how to maintain three spell matrices for a long amount of time, let alone four."

"You were a Prince, yes? More brilliant with magic than all those around you? Spoiled, pampered, arrogant, irr-"

"Yes, thank you. Your point?"

Nora grinned. "My point is that you've never been pushed. Not when it comes to magic. I wonder how well you'll do when you aren't the bestest, most amazingest person around."

"Please never speak like that again. And I'll have you know that I am perfectly capable of accepting any cri-"

The door was thrown open and Marcus whirled, a shield springing to life as arcane fire sparked in his hand. I'm growing tired of these constant interruptions. He saw Nora draw her dagger, arm cocked as if she was going to throw it.

A group of three students barged inside, Olive at their forefront. The druid flinched at the sight of arcane fire, then flinched again when he saw Nora, but he didn't draw back. His face drew into a determined expression instead, his two fellows conjuring their own shields.

Bert wasn't among them, interestingly enough. Olive scowled. "You, Lannoy. What did you mean when you said this was a fake reality?"

He just knew that was going to bite him in the ass. Marcus cleared his throat, drawing himself up and taking a step forward. Nora stepped to the side, knife still held at the ready.

"You didn't knock," Marcus drawled, condensing the arcane fire in his palm. "You didn't knock and now demand things of me? Of me? No. You will leave and enter after an invitation has been given, or you will burn."

Whatever they'd thought was going to happen, Marcus drawing on his most insufferable royal etiquette clearly wasn't part of it. Olive hesitated, eyes flickering to Nora then to the desk. "I just want to know what's going on."

"And why would you assume I know?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. "You are wasting my time, druid."

Olive shook his head, eyes narrowing. "It's you. From the moment the professor bade you to fight Yanick you've been off. Acting strange, being secretive. I will have answers and I will have them now."

Marcus was about to reply when Nora threw her dagger, one of the mages raising his arm. He couldn't tell if she'd done that before or after the mage had acted, but the moment she did the point was moot.

Olive slapped his hand together and Marcus danced back, thorns bursting at his feet. The attempted evasion was cut short when the third mage unleashed a disruption spell. Marcus tried to dodge that too, losing his footing just as his shield collapsed.

His head hit the table, and Marcus blinked as he found himself seated in a classroom. "Quills down. I will be collecting your exams in a moment, and until I am finished you are all to remain seated."

He looked down, finding the exam as he remembered it. Except not, the paper filled with summoning seals instead of enchanting questions. They change? Why?

"Such great talent, yet so poorly applied. Stay after class, mister Lannoy." Professor Mackenzie leaned over him when Marcus didn't immediately reply. "Something wrong, mister Lannoy?"

He looked the man in the eye, enjoying the flash of uncertainty more than he probably should have. "Why would there be anything wrong, professor?"

The man moved on without answering, the class emptying when the final paper was collected. Marcus stood, the same three that had stayed behind this time doing so again. Olive and Bert he remembered, but the third guy's name? Yan something?

"You are applying yourself poorly, mister Lannoy," the professor said, Marcus preparing a disruption and banishment matrix. "Poorly enough your weekly evaluation has been moved up. Mister Yanick, if you please?"

Marcus turned, picking up one of the chairs as he fired the first of his spells. Yanick didn't flinch back as his shield was dispelled, though the raised chair made him hesitate as the kid tried to adjust his aim. Marcus threw it, powering the second matrix.

The chair flew with more force than he could have thrown it, though a banishment matrix suffered quite heavily from diminishing returns. Nonetheless the chair hit the man before he could refresh his shield, causing the spear of ice his 'enemy' had been planning to attack him with to go wide.

Yanick stumbled, hitting his head on the wall and losing his balance. Marcus slapped the kid with a sleeping rune, turning back to the professor. And I didn't even kill anyone that time.

"Well done, mister Lannoy," the professor drawled. "Olive, Bert, get Yanick to the infirmary. Lannoy, you are dismissed."

Marcus didn't need to be told twice, though he would have left anyway had the professor not dismissed him. He was the first out of the door and so wasn't delayed by Olive, either, though without having a long talk with the professor about the School of Life there wouldn't be any reason for the druid to do so anyway.

Nora was already where he'd found her last time, though the collar wasn't anywhere to be found. Still ramping up? Marcus wasn't going to wait around and see.

"Fuck off and die." He barked, thundering their way. He conjured a ball of arcane fire in his hand, which seemed to scare just about anyone. The group froze, unsure, and Marcus reared back his hand as if he was going to throw it. Apply pressure and don't ever stop. "I said fuck off."

The group scattered, their leader more hesitant than the others. Something to watch out for, though maybe not. He struck Marcus as a coward going after isolated victims.

Nora's eyes flickered to him, her guard not dropping even after he dismissed the attack. That wasn't fun to get used to. Seeing other people forget. "What do you want, Human?"

"A nísë laitalé undó."

She stiffened, eyes growing wide then settling into a scowl. She stepped closer, her tone nearly a hiss but her dagger undrawn. "I don't remember telling anyone those words, let alone a Human. Explain."

"You seemed sure it would work even if you didn't remember," Marcus offered. If this didn't work he was shit out of luck, and he had a feeling her early affection for him came partly because he'd actually beaten those four assholes, not just threatened to. "Some magical component to it, I think, though you refused to tell."

Nora paused, half closing her eyes before sighing. "Well, you've either done something no mage has ever done in living history and mimicked an oath-resonance bond, or you're telling the truth. For my own sanity I'm going with the latter."

"If you want more proof something fucked up is going on, try to summon one—one—of your demonic hornets."

Half an hour later he was sitting in the library, an increasingly confused Nora pulling books from the bookshelves. Marcus hummed, writing down possible exercises to increase the number of active spell matrices he could hold.

Gods themselves be his witnesses, he was going to learn at least one magical skill before he got out of here.

Afterword

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