System Change

Derek, with Silvi practically hibernating on his shoulder, followed Braxton through what felt like a maze of hallways and open rooms until they finally made it to one specific room. It was a room that Derek knew all too well—the teleportation room. Now, this wasn’t a teleportation room that he’d used before, but it was near identical to the one that he and Vanessa had been led through when they first visited the Assassin’s Guild.

“We’re already in Vallum, right?” Derek asked. When he looked for Braxton in his void tunnel, the man’s aura was away from everyone else’s, but it was relatively close to Nyx’s aura. “The Assassin Guild’s main headquarters is in Vallum, but your branch is here, too?”

“That’s how it is,” Braxton said. “It works out, though. Since it’s all connected.”

“I see,” Derek said.

“Now, come one,” Braxton replied, then led Derek directly through the teleportation room, and into another hall, which had Derek confused, but he shrugged and kept following. Soon, the duo stopped at a random spot in the hall, and the dwarf turned towards the wall. “Here we go,” he said as he reached out and placed his hand on the stone wall.

All the sudden, multiple runes appeared on the wall around his hand. Then, the runes began to scatter. The next thing Derek knew, all the runes that had been appeared around Braxton’s hand had moved out and formed a large rectangle along the wall and floor. In the next instant, the wall started shaking, then the stones within the rectangle all lowered down into the ground.

“This way,” Braxton said, and stepped inside.

“If you say so,” Derek said as he followed behind. “Huh…” Derek muttered as another pretty familiar room appeared around him. It wasn’t familiar because it was a place he’d been before, but more so because it was barren—just like his own travel room that he used. The only difference was that there was a teleportation circle in the center.

“This is my private teleporter,” Braxton said. He then walked over to a certain place and placed his hand on a wall with runes. The man and the runes slowly began to glow a sort or fiery orange color as Braxton pumped mana into the runes. The fiery orange mana was then converted into pure blue mana as it moved through the runes and into the teleportation circle.

I wonder what kind of affinity that is, Derek thought to himself as he felt the pressure created from Braxton channeling his mana and thus, unleashing a bit of his aura, dissipate.“Whew…” Braxton said, as he turned back to Derek. “I hate having to power this thing up. I don’t have much in the way of mana… I always have to push myself and I let a little aura leak out. Hope you didn’t mind,” he said, then a jug appeared in his hand and he turned it up into his mouth—drinking it all within seconds.

“Not at all,” Derek said. “In fact, I’ve never seen mana or an aura like that before. It’s like red and gold mix—kind of orange, but with the red color more dominate.”

“Mhm,” Braxton nodded. “That it is.”

“Gotcha,” Derek said with a chuckle. Whatever class or affinity the man had, it was for Braxton and him alone to know and decide who also would get to know.

“An assassin needs some secrets,” the man said. “Now, are you ready?”

“Is the teleporter ready?” Derek asked. His vision moved to the circle on the floor and it was glowing brightly. At least to him, it looked ready.

“It’s as ready as it will ever be,” Braxton said. The dwarf then took a blue vial from his storage ring and gulped the contents of it down too. Derek knew the color well. The dwarf was drinking a mana potion.

Interesting, Derek thought. I wonder how much mana he has, even. Probably not a lot if he’s drinking a potion right now. But his willpower is super strong, at least based on how he handled Roman’s wyvern brew. Those controlling effects weren’t anything to scoff at. Derek let his mind wander, but he didn’t think on it too much. Besides, I know for a fact that Avery barely has any wisdom to increase his mana, yet his willpower is second to none because of all the time he spent with Alanah.

“You ready to go to Stonehelm?” Braxton asked.

“I am,” Derek replied. After that, both men—and Silvi, who was snoring heavily on Derek’s shoulder—stepped onto the teleportation circle. Once in the center of it, Braxton kicked at the ground. The next instant, a blinding light fell over them, and they disappeared.

When Derek opened his eyes again, his first instinct was to check and make sure Silvi was still there, and she was. Even with the light of the teleporter, she hadn’t moved a muscle. All that food and dragon flame must have really drained her mentally, Derek thought.

Next, he scanned his surroundings, only to realize that the room they were in was identical to the one they were just in. In fact, it was a perfect match, down to the placement of the runes.

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“Did we actually teleport?” Derek asked.

“We did,” Braxton replied. “Welcome to Stonehelm!”

“It’s…” Derek looked around the room. “Kind of small.”

“Oh, just you wait,” Braxton said, then moved to the wall and lowered it, just as he had the one back in the Assassin’s Guild branch.

Derek followed the dwarf out and stepped into a quaint stone house. It wasn’t big, but it wasn’t overly small, either. “This your home?” Derek finally asked.

“It is!” Braxton said. “Three bedrooms, two bathrooms, in the heart of the world—Stonehelm,” the man explained. “Homes don’t get any better than this.”

“I see…” Derek said. “It’s… nice.” And it really was. If he had to describe it, he’d actually call it cozy. He didn’t get a look into any of the rooms or the bathrooms, but he did see the living room. It had a nice sofa and some sitting chairs. Braxton didn’t have anything as nice looking as his own chairs, but what he did have would pass. The room also had a fireplace inside to add to the coziness. Of course, the smoke just disappeared into the runes above it to keep the room from filling up.

I wonder where the smoke goes, Derek thought. In his basement, Brandi had sort of the same thing, only, the smoke from her forge was sent from one set of runes to another on the top of the building, and let out there. “Braxton…” Derek said as he looked.

“Yeah?”

“Are you… married?” Derek finally asked. The house they were in did not fit the crude dwarf assassin, at least, not based on their interactions so far.

“Married? Me?” Braxton raised his brows and pointed at his face.

“Yeah,” Derek said. “Are you?”

“Of course not!” Braxton said.

“Braxi, honey!” a door down the hall that Derek had walked passed opened and a dwarven lady came out. She rushed into the living room and gave Braxton a big hug. “You didn’t say you were coming home.”

“Down! Put me down!” Braxton complained as the woman lifted him off the ground and spun him. Derek couldn’t hide the giant grin on his face.

“Fine!” The woman dropped the dwarven assassin. “Why didn’t you tell me you were coming home today? And you brought a friend! I would have made dinner! Are you going to introduce us?”

“I’m Derek,” Derek said. He stepped forward and bowed slightly—not knowing what the custom around the area was.

“Derek,” Braxton said. “This is Gretchen, my girlfriend. Gretchen, this is Derek Hunt. I told you a bit about him.”

“You’re the one who helped Braxi get that new brew he’s been talking about,” Gretchen said.

“Yeah…” Derek said. “That’s me.” He could think of multiple other ways that Braxton could have explained him to others, but he guessed that the man only cared about what was truly important to him… alcohol.

“And you!” Gretchen turned back to Braxton and slapped him across the face. “I’m your ‘girlfriend?’ We’ve only been dating for what? Five decades now?”

“Okay, okay…” Braxton said while rubbing his cheek. “She’s a bit more than a girlfriend.”

“A bit?” Gretchen looked at Braxton, then sighed. “Well… I’ll take what I can get. Took the man two decades to introduce me as more than a friend, it did.”

“I see,” Derek said.

“Anyway,” Braxton said. “I hadn’t planned on coming home today, but some things came up and we needed to come to Stonehelm,” he explained.

“Something important?” the woman asked.

“Very,” Braxton said. “But not something we can talk about, at least not now.”

“So you’re not staying?” Gretchen asked.

“Afraid not,” Braxton answered. “But I’ll be back later, even if it is just to use the teleportation circle. We can have dinner then? What do you say?”

“That sounds splendid!” Gretchen. “Derek, will you and… your bunny…” she tilted her head as her eyes caught sight of Silvi. “Be joining us?”

“No,” Derek said. “I don’t think I have the time. But maybe some other time.”

“But… dinner…” Silvi’s weak voice came from her communication crystal as she raised her head up and looked around. “Nevermind…” she said. “Can’t… eat… more right now.”

“Oh!” Gretchen’s eyes lit up, and she brought her fists up to her cheeks as she looked at Silvi. “So adorable!” Braxton leaned over to his girlfriend and whispered something in her ear, causing her eyes to widen. “Adorable and dangerous!” Gretchen said, not the least bit afraid. “The perfect combination.”

“Mhm… perfect…” Silvi’s childlike voice chimed again, then she lowered her head back down and stopped moving.

“Silvi’s…” Derek started. “She has had a long day. You’ll have to excuse her.”

“There’s no need!” Gretchen waved Derek’s concern away. “Now, off you go!” She pushed Braxton towards the door. “You need to be back in time for dinner!”

“Yes, ma’am!” Braxton said with a laugh. He turned, stole a kiss, then opened the door and ran outside.

“It was nice meeting you, Gretchen,” Derek said to the woman.

“It was my pleasure!” Gretchen grabbed Derek by the wrist, then tried to pull him in for a hug. However, he didn’t budge. Finally, he shrugged and let himself be pulled in. “That’s more like it!” The woman spun him around once, then sat him down closer to the door. As Derek made his way out, the woman yelled, “Don’t be a stranger! Braxi needs more friends!”

“Bahaha!” Derek couldn’t help himself, and let out a big belly laugh as the door closed behind him. “I like your wife… Braxi,” Derek said to Braxton once he got beside him.

“She’s not my wife… officially…” Braxton said.

“Sure…” Derek said.

“No… not sure,” Braxton said with a sigh. “She can’t… we can’t marry… yet,” he said.

“What?” Derek asked in confusion. “Why not?”

“It’s complicated,” Braxton said. “A long story.”

Derek looked back at the house, which was very nice on the outside, too, then back to Braxton. “Uh… you’re not… like… related, are you?”

“Related?” Braxton’s eyes widened as he looked at Derek in shock. “Wha… why would you ever think that?”

“Well… I don’t know dwarven customs. Maybe she’s your third cousin twice removed or something… I don’t know how any of this,” Derek motioned to his surroundings. “Works.”

“No…” Braxton said with a chuckle. “We are not related. And just because we live underground, doesn’t mean we marry… cousins.”

“Oh,” Derek said. “Okay. Then…”

“Like I said,” Braxton said with another sigh. “It is complicated.”

“Do you have children?” Derek asked.

“No,” Braxton said. “But… when I retire… maybe…”

“Ah…” Derek nodded. “Now I see why you’re really so ready to retire from the assassin business.”

“Shh!” Braxton shushed Derek. “Please don’t go around telling everyone I’m an assassin. I am quite good at my job, and a lot of that is due to nobody knowing.”

“Oh… sorry,” Derek said, remembering the conversation where Braxton had told him that it was easy to stay unknown when you never left any witnesses.

“Now, do you want to get some armor, or are you planning to stand here talking about my relationships all day?” Braxton asked. “Because I could just go back and get some work done if.”

“Definitely armor,” Derek said.

“Good!” Braxton replied.

“Lead the way! Braxi, honey!”