The Ruby Magician

Wyn emerged in the hall of portals, taking deep breaths to steady himself. He smiled. They made it. Two floors completed and entered the third. The next time they could start right at the third floor and take their time working towards finishing their ultimate goal for the season.

He thought back to their discussions in the war room. They were going to complete the first tier of the tower by finishing the fifth floor, amassing as much wealth as possible to satiate the debtors of his father. He wouldn’t obtain nearly enough, or even enough to average out his remaining time, but it was a start. Hopefully the coins he earned for the month would be enough of a showing to prove he was diligently working to pay it off without issue.

“We made it,” Tasha said, collapsing to the ground. “I honestly didn’t think we would for a minute there.”

“I know,” John said. He bent down and put his arm on her shoulder. “But Wyn saved you. When I couldn’t. And you’re here, and look to be in pretty good shape to me!”

Tasha stared at him and blushed. She shook her head, opened her mouth to speak, then closed it. Deciding not to let the moment pass, she opted to release some inhibitions and relax into his arm. John also seized the moment and squeezed her tighter. They both decided words didn’t quite fit in the moment, and somehow knew it’d be alright.

“I think I need a bit of a break,” Cal said. “That was… tough. Mentally, at least. And not what I expected.”

“You helped us a lot,” Wyn said. “I’d love to have you back with us.”

“And that food… gods, that was amazing,” Marcy said, patting her stomach and smiling. “That is worth more than gold or magical items. Trust me.”

Cal laughed, but shook his head. “I appreciate it but I just can’t. I’ll be around, but I’m not going to be a Mapper for a few days at least. There’s some things I need to think about.”

Wyn nodded and extended his hand. “Do what you need to do. I sincerely hope you consider us for your next time in the tower. I know you work on contracts, but I felt like we had a good system going.”

“I think we did, too,” Cal said, shaking Wyn’s hand. “Maybe if you started a guild you could just hire me on full time.”

Wyn cocked his head to the side. “Huh. I would’ve never considered that.”

“It makes sense,” Marcy said. “You’re a natural leader. It’d make you more gold and networking than no guild. Just takes people and costs upfront.”

Wyn’s mind began to wander but he reeled it back to reality just as fast. It wasn’t a thought he needed to explore right at the moment. His money needed to go elsewhere for the foreseeable future.

“I see,” Wyn said. “Something to think about. Regardless, we’ll be around, Cal.” He reached into his coin pouch to pay him. “How much was it again?”

Cal laughed, and to Wyn’s confusion, Marcy did, too.

“I’m automatically paid with the parchments when you get your rewards,” Cal said, smirking. “So don’t worry about it. The dagger drop will be worth much more, anyway.”

“I hope you can put it to good use,” Marcy said. “That or trade it for something useful. I don’t really care.”

Cal chuckled, causing a chain reaction of Wyn laughing and Marcy smirking, pleased with herself.

Cal waved his goodbyes and walked to the entrance of the base. Climbers were still walking into the portals and out back towards the tower’s entrance, and he blended in before long.

John and Tasha were still on the floor, their clothes bloodied and cut up. It was a stark contrast to the pristine marble stone that made up every inch of the large hall.

“So now what?” Marcy asked. She looked back at the two Climbers huddled together. “I think we might need to recover after that.”

Wyn sighed. “I know. We’re seeing Cedric tomorrow so maybe taking the rest of today and tomorrow off will help. But Marcy, something’s been bothering me.”

Marcy furrowed her eyebrows. “What’s that?”

“Look at them,” Wyn said, lowering his voice. “John’s beat to hell and Tasha nearly died. Cal helped but his focus wasn’t climbing like us. How are we supposed to survive this? And without a full group? That was only the second floor, too.”

“I know. That was unusual for enemies to be that coordinated on the second floor, but not concerning enough like when we were in the caves. Better items and having a full group will help, but that’s the reality of climbing the tower. It’s hard, Wyn. If you aren’t ready you can end up worse.”

Wyn sighed. “That’s what I was afraid of. I’d love to have a full group but I just don’t know. And we’re slowly getting magic items. It’s only been a week, after all.”

“True. It’ll happen. Just keep being cautious. We can run the third floor several times if we want to get some more funds and items. We’re doing fine, all things considered.”

“What about the second floor? We know we can run that, at least.”

Marcy shook her head. “It’s a maze and full of traps. We’d be lucky to finish one run in a day - we just pushed hard and didn’t have to backtrack much today. The third floor shouldn’t be quite like that.”

“Then we need to get our confidence up and finish it without an issue,” Wyn said, folding his arms. “Which means more in our group.”

“Then we need to do some recruiting,” John said.

Wyn and Marcy both looked over at John at Tasha who were still holding each other but obviously listening to their conversation. They shared a brief look and shot up, Tasha pushing John away with the realization of him comforting her intimately.

Wyn snickered. He could see the start of something between them, and thought it was funny they reacted the way they did. It didn’t bother him in the slightest, and it was nice to see them connect like that.

“I don’t want to be a burden,” Tasha said, dusting her robes off. She stopped at the blood across her stomach and straightened up before staring at the Climbers with a determined gaze. “I refuse to be one.”

“And I will look for another Fighter to join us,” John said. “I know some good ones I trained with who might agree to help us.”

Tasha tapped her staff against the ground twice. “We can’t stop because of me. We all have goals of why we’re here, and I will be better.” She looked at Wyn and pursed her lips. “I want to go over some spells and strategies for me to be less of a liability. This evening. We can review my spells and item options. Whatever it takes so that won’t happen again.”

Wyn assessed her in a split second. Yes, she nearly died on the second floor. But this was not the same White Mage. She stood tall, her gaze pierced Wyn like one of Marcy’s arrows, and she seemed genuine. Whatever she went through mentally after Wyn healed her must’ve set her on the path to this conclusion. Maybe John whispered something to her, or some memory sparked a flame inside her.

Wyn smiled. The how didn’t matter. What was important was that she wanted to improve herself. He didn’t think she was in the wrong, and he doubted the others thought she was, either. But Tasha thought she was holding them back. Then she admitted her feelings and expressed a desire to change. That was the difference, and it was an important one.

“Of course, Tasha,” Wyn said. “And anyone else can come, too. If we want to make it another strategy meeting I’m all for it.”

Marcy groaned. “Not another strategy meeting! Count me out. I’m managing just fine.”

John cleared his throat and sheepishly smiled. “I think my time would be better served finding us a Fighter. If I don’t find one this evening, I can look tomorrow when we aren’t with Cedric.”

“That’s a good plan,” Wyn said. “I trust your judgment. Tasha, maybe we can start by trading these items we found for something you can use?”

Tasha blinked several times in quick succession. “Items? What items?”

John nodded slowly, clicking his tongue. “That’s right, you were… a bit preoccupied when we found them. They’re the drops from the boss room on the second floor. We found a magic staff and leather armor.”

Tasha blushed and sunk a bit, her shoulders drooping. “Oh. Well, that’s good, then. What kind of staff? I can’t wear the armor, sadly.”

“I haven’t identified them yet,” Wyn said, opening his arms in an apology. “Maybe we can see Benedict and look at our options?”

A small smile flashed across Tasha’s face. It was nice to see, and much more pleasant than her self-criticism.

Marcy turned and began to walk away. “We aren’t doing anything until we get our rewards. I want that money!”

John, Tasha, and Wyn all looked at each other and grinned with envious, greedy intent. Somehow, Wyn’s magical coin pouch seemed a little lighter than he wanted, and he quickly followed Marcy to collect his spoils.

*****

The bell above the door at The Silver Step rang harmoniously, and Wyn and Tasha were relieved when they entered. The magic shop had customers perusing items but wasn’t overly busy with Climbers. The pair wanted Benedict’s counsel about items to trade and were afraid it was going to be too crowded to get his undivided attention.

Wyn didn't see the owner around so he decided to look through the items himself. "So what, exactly, did you decide would be the best kind of enchantment for you? Since you can't wear armor as a Diamond Mage."

Tasha was close by but looking at another isle of magical items. She inspected an elegant circlet that seemed to glimmer in the light, a purple aura radiating around it. "That was what my mentor and I have been discussing. Obviously my options are more limited until I can get more powerful spells and a higher mana pool. But I have a couple in mind."

Wyn put down a gauntlet that was heavy and woven with dark red chainmail. "Are you going to tell me or make me guess?"

Tasha chuckled and walked over to the section of the shop that held larger pieces of armor. She passed by leather pieces, chainmail, scaled armor, and stopped in front of cloth robes and cloaks. "No, I'll tell you. Enchantments vary quite a bit with benefits to abilities, boosted performance, or using skills or spells. The combinations can literally be endless. One was an illusion spell that can make copies of myself to prevent being targeted or hit. Or getting one with Arcane Aura so I don’t have to use it myself.”

"So you can find either spells that bolster your defense or spells that prevent you from getting hit altogether. If you’re only looking for spells rather than effects."

"Exactly. I just can't decide. Both effects and spells seem to be helpful, and I keep going back and forth in my head."

"Having both would be extra helpful," Wyn said, holding the side of a long white robe out. A green aura radiated from the entire garment. When he bent down to read the description, it read Divine Mana Robe: Will boost your overall mana capacity and magical power a bit.

"Huh," Wyn said, almost absentmindedly. That seemed nice even if it was fairly basic.

"Here's something good!" Tasha said. She was twirling around with a white robe accented with golden trim and complementing grey features. "It says it can boost magical power and casts the Reflection spell twice a day! Exactly what I was talking about earlier!"

Wyn crossed his arms and nodded his head. The robe certainly looked fitting enough for a noble, so that was a benefit. "Does that spell make copies of you? I haven't heard of that before."

"It's because it's a second circle spell," Benedict said, appearing in their isle with a flourish.

Both Wyn and Tasha jumped, though quickly calmed down seeing the shop owner.

"Benedict!" Tasha said. "It's so good to see you!"

The shop owner bowed his head and smiled his wide, charming smile. "Lady St. Clair, it's a pleasure, once again. And Wyn Thatcher accompanying you, too! My, my, what a treat today." He winked at Wyn.

Wyn blushed, not sure what to say. So, he decided to say nothing.

"Benedict," Tasha said, "this is an impressive robe. I need something like this."

Benedict nodded and hummed, holding the robe out beside Tasha. "It does seem to fit you! Good spell, good effect. Perfect for a Divine Magician! Are you wanting to be a little more evasive in the tower?"

Tasha's smile faded. "Well... yes. I was hurt pretty badly today. I need something to prevent that from happening again."

Benedict's smile was erased from his face as quickly as it appeared, and he frowned with a deep downturn of his lips. He hugged Tasha from the side, awkwardly holding her against him. "My dear, I'm so, so sorry. I would love to help find something to keep you safe. Are you looking to buy or trade?"

Wyn smirked, amused at Benedict's quick turn from compassion back to his merchant's mindset. He bent over to read the robe’s description, curious about buying it. His eyes grew wide, but he forced them to return to normal, hoping to hide his surprise. "I think we might need to trade for it. I don't quite have 1500 crowns to buy it outright."

Benedict snapped his fingers and waved his arm at the same time. "Darn! Oh well, another time and another item, perhaps. But, let's see what items you'd like to trade. We can see about what you and your group could use."

Wyn pulled out his leather armor piece and staff and placed them on the glass countertop. Benedict quickly identified them with his eyepiece after a nod from Wyn, and hummed to himself while looking at them. The leather armor morphed into a green, scaly cuirass, and the staff became knotted at the end of a thick, dark brown piece of wood. Benedict pulled out a piece of small parchment paper and read it after the descriptions appeared for the items.

"Mhmm, yes, I've heard of these sets but haven't seen these pieces. A great find! They are earth element pieces. The armor casts a spell that gives a knockback effect, and the staff fires a series of rock-like projectiles."

Wyn sighed. "That piece of armor is the same as John's boots, then. That's not quite as useful. What is the benefit of a set?"

"Having a full set of armor or weapons will give you bonuses. For example, if John wore this armor along with the boots, he could increase the number of times he could cast the spell, and the spell would be stronger."

Tasha scratched her chin in thought. "That could be helpful, but we should probably spread out the items for us to use rather than stack only one of us up. At least until we get more items. Plus, he has that necklace."

"I agree," Wyn said. "The bonus would be nice but the priority should be just getting magical items first. So let’s trade it and the staff. We don't need that, either."

Benedict smiled and clapped his hands together. "Excellent! That's two blue aura magic items. That robe will do wonders for you, my lady, but if you're wanting to be extra careful you should look into another item, too."

"What item would help?" Tasha asked. "I can't trade for jewelry at the moment. I know those are worth more. Boots? A different staff? I like this one that can cast Torchlight."

Benedict gasped, and raised a fist in triumph. “I’ve got it! Give me just one moment. You! Fighter! No testing the items in the store!” Benedict pranced away, his attention diverted.

“What do you think he has in mind?” Tasha asked. She played with a curl on her shoulder.

“I’m not sure,” Wyn replied. “But it’ll be helpful. That I do know.”

A thud made Tasha flinch. A pair of short boots were resting on the countertop with the same color scheme as the robe she found before. They were white-dyed leather with golden accents and grey laces, and radiated a faint blue aura.

“These, my dear Mages, are the complement to the robe you found. I knew I had them in here somewhere! They work similar as the robe, except for a small trade off - it only casts the Reflection spell once doesn’t have the magical power increase, but it increases the time of your spells. With both items the effects will increase a little and should improve the number of times you can use the spell. At least once!”

Tasha ran a hand over the pair of boots carefully, her eyes widening with each new rune felt by her touch. “They’re amazing.”

“But if you want an alternative, here’s something else.” Benedict flew a cloak out over the counter. It was a lighter grey with white streaks running along it like a web, though the entire edge was curved in places like an insect’s wing.

Several Climbers had gathered around now, curious to see what the three were negotiating.

“This is called the Cocoon Cloak,” Benedict said, brandishing it around his shoulders like a shawl. “And it’s a special piece indeed.”

Tasha cocked her head to the side. “Hmm. It looks like an insect, especially with that scalloped edge. What does it do?”

Benedict laughed heartily. “You have quite the seamstress’ eye! It’s a blue rarity item that can cast Arcane Aura on you twice a day, improves your support spells, and also has a one-time use bonus that will destroy it when used.”

A few gasps came out of the small crowd in the shop. More Climbers were interested.

“Oh yes, the primary feature is quite enticing,” Benedict continued. “If you’re badly injured it will magically wrap you in a cocoon of silk, protecting you from magic and physical damage, and cast Greater Cure on you instantly.”

A few whistles and more gasps came from the crowd. Tasha’s eyes lit up hearing the cloak’s abilities, and she reached for it with both hands.

“That’s absolutely perfect,” she said, holding the soft cloak with a newfound respect. “How is this just a blue rarity, though? That seems like an immensely powerful effect.”

“It is powerful,” Benedict said, “but once that life-saving feature is used the cloak is gone. So it balances out. I almost forgot about it, actually. It was brought to me from many seasons ago and it’s been collecting dust since.”

Tasha looked over at Wyn and deflated a bit. She held the cloak tight but set it back on the counter. “What should I do? The bonuses from the pair or the boots and this cloak?”

Wyn looked at Tasha and smiled. “They’re both helpful. It’s your decision!”

Tasha looked at the robe she held and the cloak on the counter. Then she took a deep breath. “Alright. I think I’d prefer the cloak at the moment. We’ll trade you both the armor and staff for the boots and cloak.”

Benedict clapped and yelled in happiness, and a few Climbers in the shop clapped, too. Benedict then clicked his tongue and put his elbows on the counter, cupping his face with his hands. “Excellent choice, dear. You need to be careful, after all,” Benedict said, dropping his voice lower so the now dispersing crowd wouldn’t hear him as well. “There’s something happening in that tower.”

Wyn furrowed his eyebrows. “What do you mean?”

“Well, rumors are swirling about some outside force complicating the standard climbs. The Faceless Four nearly lost a member a couple of days ago!”

Wyn looked at Tasha, whose face went pale.

“Who are they?” Wyn asked.

“The Faceless Four are a notorious group,” Benedict said, “who are known to rush to the third tier and farm it for items. No one has seen their faces in the tower since they cover up with masks, and they are known for moving as fast as the top guilds even though they aren’t a registered guild themselves. And there’s only four of them!”

“What happened?” Tasha asked.

“No one knows exactly,” Benedict continued, “but they think there is some sort of cult working in the tower against Climbers. It’s all so dangerous!”

Wyn’s heart raced. Could it be Lionel and whatever group joined? It seemed likely and followed in line with what the traitor said about protecting the tower itself.

Benedict slid the cloak and boots across the counter. Tasha picked them up and nearly dropped the pile when she heard glass bottles clinking together. She looked in the cloak and pulled out three small vials - two red and one blue.

“For the future,” Benedict said, winking. “Oh, and Wyn, this is for you.” He placed a long, cylindrical canvas wrap that was neatly tied in twine on the counter and slid it over to Wyn. “Put it to good use.”

Wyn nodded, and mouthed his thanks to the shop owner. He and Tasha then left, though they were less sure of themselves now than before they entered.