Joan leaned back against the inner walls of the keep, watching Thalgren and Korgron work. It was honestly pretty amusing to her, she wondered if they could see it.

The two had only just met each other and yet they were already so willing to work together to create this array. She supposed it did say a lot about the kinds of bonds that the Chosen had with each other. The kinds of bonds it seemed they had with her.

“Here,” Korgron said finally, motioning down towards the ground at the east side of the courtyard.

Thalgren nodded and closed his eyes, holding his hand out. Joan couldn’t help it, she felt a rush of excitement when she watched him get to work. There wasn’t really a surprise that a dwarf was the Chosen of the Hammer, considering the connection it had with the earth. Even so, dwarf mining techniques were so much different from the other species, even different from most earth mages.

While most species had to dig into the ground in order to make tunnels or gather the minerals within, dwarfs used a far kinder, gentler approach. The ground rippled beneath him, as if it was made of water. The dirt slowly swaying to the left and right until, like pearls rising from the depths of the sea, crystals rose out from the ground in a wide circle. Once all of the crystals had arisen Thalgren then lowered his hands and the crystals flattened on the ground, forming a small glimmering arcane circle that was no higher than the dirt around it. He then began to swirl his hands from side by side and the dirt around the crystals was replaced by what almost appeared to be liquid stone, hardening into a solid state after a few moments.

Watching Thalgren do it alone was impressive in its own right. Even amongst the dwarfs creating such an array would have normally taken almost a dozen of their mages, assuming there were enough gems or crystals nearby of the correct quality. The way the rock and crystal bent to his whims with such ease was absolutely breathtaking. Especially now that Joan had enough knowledge on how hard it normally was to perform such a task.

“Will that suffice?” Thalgren asked before reaching up to wipe the sweat from his brow.

“I couldn’t have done better myself,” Korgron said with a light chuckle. “And that’s saying something. Where did you learn that?”

“It runs in the family,” Thalgren said with a light laugh before motioning her on. “I won’t be much use for the next part.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Korgron said before glancing to Joan. “Think you can help?”

“I don’t know,” Joan said. “I’ve made things like this with you before, but I’m a lot weaker than you’ll ever be. It might kill me if I--”

“I won’t let it hurt you,” Korgron said quickly before holding out her hand. “Come on, it’ll be fun.”

Joan blinked a few times, eyeing the hand. Working with a Chosen was something she really wasn’t capable of, at least not like this. But it was still so tempting. Besides, magic like this was Korgron’s specialty. If anyone could do it safely, despite Joan’s weakness, it was her. She pushed off the wall and walked over, putting her right hand in Korgron’s.

“Good,” Korgron said. “Now, anything you need to know before we start?”

“Be gentle?” Joan said.

“I always am,” Korgron said before her magic flowed into Joan.

For a moment it felt like she was a water skin that had been attached to a river. One moment she was fine, the next there was so much magic flowing through her that she threatened to burst. Fortunately, it didn’t actually hurt. After a few moments the pressure released and began to stabilize, venting off her and away, releasing in small bursts until she felt nowhere near as filled to the brim. It was still more power than she could ever hope to harness.

However, there was something else there. Korgron was probing with her magic, though Joan couldn’t say exactly how or why. It very gently seemed to be nudging around inside her body, releasing pressure, moving blocks that Joan didn’t even know she had. “What are you doing?” Joan asked softly.

“Making sure this won’t hurt you,” Korgron said softly. “You’re stronger than you were when we first met.”

“Not that much,” Joan said softly.

“Quite a bit. No. That’s not it,” Korgron said. “You’re not stronger. But you’re more durable. Can endure better. Channel more magic, if you have to.”

“Well, I did almost kill myself trying to cast swanfall,” Joan said. “I guess what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger? Maybe I can try to--”

“Don’t even think it,” Korgron said quickly. “You’re not going to try any magic like that for a while. Now then, follow my lead.”

Joan nodded and held out her free hand towards the array. She could feel Korgron’s magic washing over her own, the two working together. Korgron’s the firm outer layer while Joan’s was more like a very tiny, weak core. But they flowed into the array, weaving their magic into the crystals and stone. Each one a small vocal point that allowed them to target it and realize where it was from even across the continent. Joan had only ever done this spell with Korgron and, even when she had been the Hero, it always felt so impossibly breathtaking.

Korgron wove the magic as if it was a song, easily manipulating it in ways she could never even hope to mimic.

Joan’s breath stopped when the spell finished and, for a few seconds she could feel it, as Korgron did. The array sending its signal deep into the earth and connecting to the same strange, arcane network that dozens, possibly hundreds or even thousands of such arrays connected to. So many of them, some inactive, some damaged. Some destroyed and little more than small stumps of magic to show they ever existed. But so many mages that had touched the world and setup their own little beacon for others to teleport to. When Korgron’s magic left her she could almost feel the echoes of so many magic arrays rippling through her.

Without the demon’s magic supporting her anymore, she suddenly felt weak and began to stumble forward. Korgron quickly reached out, catching her before she could fall. “Joan? Joan, are you okay?”

“Oh that is not altogether a pleasant feeling,” Joan said, slightly dazed and disoriented. “I’m sorry I didn’t do much of anything.”

“Huh? You did plenty,” Korgron said.

“No, I didn’t,” Joan said. “All I did was be there while you worked.”

Korgron stared at her with a confused look on her face. “You didn’t notice?”

“Notice what?” Joan asked.

“Huh, interesting,” Korgron said.

“What? Tell me!” Joan said.

“No, it’s likely better I don’t,” Korgron said with a small smile. “I don’t want you getting a big head. Your head already causes us enough issues as it is.”

Joan just stared at her and felt her annoyance growing. “Come on, tell me. What did I do?”

Korgron chuckled and then reached out, lightly tapping her nose. “Everything I needed you to, Joan. That’s all that matters.”

“I will bite you,” Joan said.

“You’d break your teeth,” Korgron said.

“Do you think that’d stop me?” Joan asked, glaring up at her.

Korgron gave a soft sigh before smiling. “You guided it really well, Joan. Kept up, helped weave the spell. It really feels like something we’d done hundreds of times and… I guess we have, haven’t we? Well, you have at least.”

Joan’s cheeks burned red. “Really? So you’re not just messing with me or anything?”

“I am not. You did a fine job, I would be happy to do such magic with you again, anytime.”

Joan couldn’t help but grin, barely resisting the urge to hop up and down a tiny bit in excitement. She’d done good, even if she couldn’t keep up with the chosen at all didn’t mean she couldn’t prove useful.

“You’ve also gotten a lot stronger than when we first met,” Korgron said. “Or maybe it’s just that you’ve managed to actually recover after nearly killing yourself a thousand times. Humans are like that, aren’t you? You nearly die and then, if you manage to recover, just become stronger.”

“Eh, something like that,” Joan said with a shrug. “Demons don’t, do they? But then, you’re already naturally stronger, faster and more powerful than us in every way it’s not like it’d mean much.”

“I’m that way for everything, not just humans,” Korgron said.

“Humble too,” Thalgren said. “Is there anything else you need?”

“Nothing right now. If you want to go talk with your brother, you’re welcome to,” Korgron said.

“Not at all,” Thalgren said before a sly grin formed on his lips. “I’m going to go look around this village. There’s a few things I want to measure.”

Joan sighed and shook her head. “Just don’t try and ‘invest’ in anything until you’re certain that Hardwin will approve! It’s his reputation on the line if you stir up trouble.”

“You really believe I would stir up trouble?” Thalgren asked.

“Not at all,” Joan said. “I KNOW you would.”

The dwarf gave a sharp laugh at that before he turned and headed out through the main gate, leaving the pair behind.

“I swear, every single one of you Chosen are so much hassle,” Joan said. “It’s almost like making people the embodiment of a pair of god’s wills results in them being a troublemaker.”

“Oh, what does that make you, then?” Korgron asked with an amused chuckle before, gingerly, pushing her back up and ensuring she could stand.

“The most talented troublemaker of them all, obviously,” Joan said before glancing back towards the array. Even now she could almost ‘feel’ it, even though it was inactive. She suspected because she had helped to make it. “You don’t always need one of these to focus on, do you?” Joan asked.

“What do you mean?” Korgron asked.

“You can send things to a place even if there isn’t one of these, right? No array, no beacon, nothing to hone in on?” Joan asked.

“Kind of,” Korgron said. “It’s a lot harder, but yes. I’d really rather not if I can avoid it, but it is something I can do.”

“How hard was it to send the werewolves?” Joan asked.

Korgron sighed. “Ahhhh. That. Do you really want to know?”

“Yes,” Joan said. “Honestly, I probably should have asked beforehand, but it hasn’t been on my mind much. But since we just set up one of these, I figure it’s a good time to ask.”

“I wasn’t alone,” Korgron said. “There were quite a few demons there to help me. The teleportation circle that we used when we arrived was inactive, but there was something smaller when I sent them over. It wasn’t very focused, but it was enough to get me a general feel for where the castle was. I think the Demon Lord had managed to set it up, or at least direct me towards it.”

Joan let out a soft gasp. “Wait, what? You did? Why didn’t you tell me sooner? We were just at the castle, it--”

“Wasn’t there anymore,” Korgron said. “Whatever it was, I couldn’t find it again. Not a trace of it remained. It wouldn’t do them any good to know about something that doesn’t exist anymore.”

Joan groaned, but grudgingly had to agree. They certainly knew something had happened, otherwise the werewolves wouldn’t have been there to begin with. So what good would it do for Korgron to confirm what they already knew? On top of that, it was distinctly possible that they had found whatever it was Korgron had felt and long since disabled it, which was why she couldn’t feel any trace of it. It was still disconcerting though. It--

“Joan!” Vivian’s voice suddenly called out, making her jump.

Joan turned around and saw the woman rushing right at her. Oh no. She felt another rush of panic and quickly braced herself in case the woman took a swing at her.

Instead, Vivian knelt down and hugged her.

Joan blinked a few times, unsure of what to do about this. “Uhhhhh… what?” she asked.

“Oh you poor, sweet child,” Vivian said, hugging her so tightly that Joan could barely breath.

“What? What’d Hardwin say?” Joan asked, feeling another rise of panic. Whatever lie it was, it had to be horrible to cause this kind of reaction.

“He told me everything,” Vivian said softly. “I’m so sorry. I never suspected it was anything like this. I knew there was certainly something going on here. But I never imagined you could have been through something so terrible.”

“What? Wait, what did he tell you?” Joan asked, feeling panic rising inside her. She didn’t want to have to try and keep another story straight. Especially one she didn’t know.

“Everything. You, the Hero, your attempts to save the world, everything,” Vivian said, not letting her go and instead placing a soft, delicate kiss on her forehead. “You poor, sweet child. I’m so sorry. No child should have to bear such a burden.”

“What?” Joan asked. “I don’t, what? It’s fine, really. I’m fine. I just-- grk!” The hug only got tighter.

“I swear, Hardwin will help you in any way he can,” Vivian said firmly.

“Shouldn’t I be making that decision?” Hardwin said.

“Yes, and you will make the right one,” Vivian said.

“Mother, you’re going to kill her,” Hardwin said.

“Air,” Joan managed to say, rasping slightly. The arms loosened and she gasped, escaping from the woman’s grip the moment she could. She slid behind Korgron quickly, where it was safe. “I know he will! Really, I do. I mean. He’s my best friend. I know he’ll help, even if he doesn’t believe me much yet.”

Korgron gave a light snicker and nodded. “We all will. She’s in good hands.”

“Of course,” Vivian said before wiping her eyes. Wait, why was she crying? “Oh you poor, poor child.”

“I am really not used to this reaction,” Joan said before looking to Hardwin. “What did you tell her?”

“What I could,” Hardwin said.

Joan nodded, though she couldn’t help staring at Vivian nervously. The woman just kept staring at her like she was a wounded animal that needed to be tended to. “It’s fine. I’m fine, really,” Joan said. “So I take it you believe me? Him?”

“Of course,” Vivian said. “Oh, no wonder you came up with such a lie. Yes, of course. You’ll be my grandchild. Oh, you poor thing. If you need anything, please. Let Hardwin know.”

“Mother,” Hardwin said before pinching the bridge of his nose. “She’s fine.”

“Though she absolutely loves to be pampered,” Korgron said suddenly, a wicked grin on her lips.

“What?” Joan asked. “No I don’t!”

“Oh, yes you do,” Korgron said with a light laugh. “Come on, little mouse. She’s your grandmother. It won’t hurt to let her pamper you a little bit.” Despite Joan’s objections, the demon quickly moved aside and then pushed her lightly into Vivian’s arms with a squeak.

And more hugs. Okay, this really was NOT the reaction she expected.

But maybe it wasn’t the worst one. A little bit of pampering couldn’t doom the world, could it?

MelodyAvant

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