23 – Suns. Shadows. (1)
The monsters inhabiting the dungeon were pretty straightforward; bugs, mammals, and natural dungeon monsters like Golems and their variants.
While most were weak to fire like any living creature, the Golem family had a high melting point depending on the material they were made of. Jungle Golems were made of E’eral Rock, which for some cosmic reason means they’re alive.
No matter the nature of the monster, none would withstand the force of my strikes, so we changed topics to formation and the like. I proposed the five would follow me around the dungeon on top of the mounts while I killed everything.
When we reached a conclusion, we left the library and went to fetch the men to inform them of the current circumstances and if they’d choose to join us even if some shady group chased me around the world.
As we came out to the yard, I was surprised to see it was raining.
“So it came.” I muttered as I looked up.
The sky was full of thick, dark clouds. The rain was gentle and the drops were thin, unlike what I was used to. I stood at the arc of the door, avoiding the rain.
“That’s right.” Yolin chuckled as she patted my back, then groped my butt. “It’ll rain for a few days straight and then summer begins.”
I turned to her with cosmic confusion.
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“Uh… summer. When the temperature goes up?” she tilted her head, then whispered into my ear. “You didn’t have summer back in your world?”
“Of course we had summer.” I chuckled. “What I mean is, why that fast? Two weeks ago Lapia told me we were in the middle of spring.”
Lapia facepalmed and sighed.
“Alyssa and Yolin, could you explain Bromisnar and Bonte the situation while I explain the seasons to Natasha?” the Elf shook her head in defeat.
“Sure!” the tank responded.
Yolin walked to Lapia and gave her a kiss, then turned and went to where Bonte and Bromisnar were chatting on the stands of the low budget coliseum.
Alyssa giggled from behind us, then caught up to the Oni and took her hand as they walked under the gentle shower.
“Polyamory is truly amazing.” I whispered while looking at them.
“What’s that?” the Elf turned to me and tilted her head.
“What we have.” I answered. “Poly… amory… you know. Many people in one relationship? Or something like that.”
“Hmm. I’ll ask you more details later.” Lapia chuckled and looked up at me. “Natasha.”
“Yes?” I nodded and turned to her.
“How many suns did you previous world orbit around?” she asked.
“Only one.” I chuckled.
“I see. Well, Galeia orbits around two suns as you already know. We have two winters, two springs, two autumns, and two summers a year. Every winter, one sun blocks the other for two weeks straight. This makes winters incredibly colder than summers, and seasons are equal all around the world because of this. Since sunlight is halved, days are darker and shorter.”
That staggered me for a second. Weirdly makes a lot of sense.
“Right… If I remember correctly, you said you’re turning 81 next winter. I didn’t even bat an eye at that back then, thinking it was the coming one.”
“Well, in a way it is the coming one.” she smirked. “It works like this.”
She raised both hands with each index finger standing up.
“During both summers, Galeia is at her farthest from the suns, and they are at their farthest from each other from our point of view. Since both suns are at the same distance, we receive heat from both equally. Fortunately we are far away enough that the heat doesn’t boil the seas. We call this the Dual Aphelion. Days are longer and warmer. As the planet continues its orbit, we move away from one of the suns and autumn takes place. With me so far?” she smiled.
The thick crack on my sense of reality thickened further. I blinked a few times.
“Wait, so the planet doesn’t have summer in one side and winter in the other?” I was confused.
“No.” she chuckled. “The entire planet experiences the same season at the same time. Some places have warmer climates than others, but the difference is not that pronounced.”
She moved her hands, putting one in front of me and the other one in front of her, blocking one hand.
“As I said, one sun blocks the other during winter. This is because both are the same size. Fortunately both are also equally as hot, otherwise life wouldn't exist on this planet. Galeia is closest to one of the suns during each winter, which prevents the entire world from freezing. Temperatures do drop considerably still, since we only get the heat of a single sun. We call this Single Perihelion, attaching the name of the sun. We passed Eternia Perihelion last winter. Next winter would be Perpetua Perihelion. Before you ask, Halves and Gods named the suns.”
“Haaa…” I sighed. “I see. But suns are not eternal, though.”
She nodded. “You name things before completely understanding them.”
I giggled. “True. So how long does each season last?”
“Spring and autumn last thirty five days each, while summer and winter last fifty six days each. Spring ends with continuous days of rain in Leks. It does rain more often in summer, but that’s because it’s warmer.”
“Wait… shouldn’t rain have come earlier, then? We met a little over two weeks ago…” I rubbed my chin.
“Why would you think that?” she tilted her head.
“Back then I asked you about the season and you said, and I quote: ‘It’s the middle of spring’. Here, look.”
I took out my journal and went over to the exact page, then showed the Elf.
“Your handwriting is very beautiful.” she nodded. “Your writing skill needs improvement, I didn’t ‘just stare’ at you. I was surprised you floated in the river.”
“That’s not the point, Lapia.” I chuckled and stored the journal.
“True. What I meant back then wasn’t the literal mid point of spring.” she sighed. “More like the beginning of the third week of spring. Out of five.”
I nodded. “I see. I got a little confused. I was used to ninety days for each season on average.”
“Right… a single sun.” she nodded with a smile. “This is very interesting.”
“When does the year begin?” I asked.
“When Eternia starts disappearing behind Perpetua. It’s really pretty.” she smiled.
“I bet.” I imitated her smirk.
She laughed and playfully pushed me.
I deflected her hands and hugged her. “How cold will it get?”
“The lowest reaches eighty degrees below zero.” she squeezed me, or tried to. “I have a few ideas to keep me warm.”
Her hand reached down under my skirt and groped my butt.
So cold! I’ll make sure to buy warm clothes.
I took her hand away from my ass and shook my head.
“Not outside, cheeky Elf.”
“You groped mine back in Riverfield.” she pouted.
“And now we’re even.” I chuckled. “How hot will summer be?”
“Fifty the highest. I don’t think temperature will be an issue for you. You survived Solar Epitaph while I held the staff you gave me. That was around two thousand degrees hot.” she laughed.
“Oh, come on! Don’t shatter my sense of normalcy.” I whined and let her go.
“I have a diagram of the seasons if you want it.” she stood on the tip of her toes and kissed my cheek.
“That’d be really useful.” I nodded and thought of something. “When is your birthday?”
“Nineteenth day of the seventh month. Alyssa’s is the twenty fifth day of the tenth month.” she handed me a piece of paper.
I took my journal out and wrote them on the last page along with the piece of paper. “Neat. I’ll ask Yolin’s later.”
“And yours?” she asked. “I noticed you always fuck it up.”
I looked into her emerald green eyes and smiled.
“I’d like to live this life without considering the previous. You know, year zero and all that.”
“Fair enough. But don’t dodge the question.” she giggled.
“I met you one day after waking up.” I looked up trying to do the math.
“First day of the third month, then. Alright.” she nodded.
I stared at her for a few seconds.
“You work on your numbers pretty fast…” I raised my eyebrows in amazement.
She shrugged. “Been doing it all my life.”
I smiled and nodded.
“You’re amazing.”
She blushed and scratched one of her long ears.
“Thank you.” she gave me a shy nod.
Oh? I smirked.
“Anyway. Can you tell me how you went about advancing the skill?” she asked as she closed in, looking up at me.
“With the power of imagination.” I lowered my head and gave her a quick kiss. “I noticed Auras have a certain pattern around the knowledge of the skill. It resembles flowers and their petals. Warcries, on the other hand, have spikes around them. So, I turned some petals into spikes like the thorns of a rose. This changed the skill from full support to having an area that affects enemies.”
Her eyebrows went up to their limits and she stared at me for a few seconds.
“Is this a joke?” she chuckled.
I shook my head. “Not at all. The book didn’t have a specific way to do it, so I just went with my gut feeling.”
“And it worked?” she asked, her voice thick with skepticism.
I nodded. “It surprisingly did. I thought about the Rhak’Math View and integrated the effect warcries leave after activation while doing it.”
“That’s more like it.” she nodded. “That reminds me of a primitive way to advance skills. Glad it worked for you.”
I shrugged. “If it works, don’t fix it.”
“But you can improve it.” she pinched my right cheek.
“True.” I nodded.
The sound of footsteps made me turn to the side. Alyssa, Yolin, Bromisnar, and Bonte were walking over to us.
“Can I see the threatening letter?” Bonte asked as he stretched a hand. “I might have heard of the group before.”
Right, this dude is a sneaky scout.
I produced the letter and offered it to him. He went over it and frowned.
“No clue.” he shrugged. “The skull resembles Tripirin, but super low budget.”
“Well… isn’t that a clue?” I asked with a small smile.
Alyssa giggled and covered her mouth. “Yeah, that’s quite the lead.”
Bromisnar chuckled. “Either this… organization… is out of money, or they are a lame attempt at copying them.”
“What is Tripirin?” Lapia asked the important question.
“A group from the dark side of the world.” the Tigea answered in an ominous voice.
I bit my lips to avoid laughing.
“The name is ridiculous.” Yolin laughed. “Tripirin… who was the idiot that came up with that?”
I laughed. “That’s a serious case of bad naming sense. Why not The Black Rose or something more clever?”
“Or Shadow Knife.” Alyssa supplied. “That sends a better message.”
“How about Poisoned Petal. It could be shortened to PP.” Bromisnar rubbed his chin.
“HAHA!” I hugged my stomach and let out a loud wheeze. “I wouldn’t be against the PP chasing me.”
Bonte handed the letter back and I stored it as I continued laughing.
“How about Cut Shadows?” he asked. “Striking in the dark of night. And when the target is dealt with, they returned to the shadows.”
“Too dark.” the Satyr shook his head. “It has to be a little poetic. With triple meanings if possible. PP would be the masterminds behind major political events. Maybe a few assassinations here and there. Betrayals and conflicting goals among the ranks. The leaders would be two childhood friends who grew up in the slums in Karakh. A Ferk Dwarf and a Dhar’Ji Tigea.” he nodded.
“However,” I continued. “Before the story begins, the Tigea would be stolen. By an Ork with endless stamina, sating them with pleasure never to be found again.”
“Ohhh!” Alyssa clapped. “And the Dwarf would go after them, thinking the Tigea was kidnapped only to find them in bed one night. Drunk in pleasure and beyond salvation.”
“Then,” Bromisnar smiled. “Feelings of love would turn into passionate hate, seeking nothing more than to end the perpetrator. The Dwarf would then recruit allies in order to take on the opposing organization which the Ork belongs to. None the wiser, the Watchers would only find dead bodies every morning. Until the big confrontation.”
I nodded. “The Dwarf would face off against the Ork. Both being scouts, the fight would be quick and silent. As the Ork deals a lethal blow, the Tigea comes out of the shadows and cuts the Ork’s throat. It was all part of the plan. The Ork was never that good in bed, turns out. But the damage was done. If they go to the Church and ask for a healer, their bloodied hands would come to light. So, the Tigea pulls out a Poisoned Petal.”
Bromisnar’s goat-like eyes went wide. “I can see it! Thinking that the Dwarf is dead, the Tigea then eats the plant. After a few minutes of silence, both Dwarf and Ork stand up. It was all part of the plan. The two scouts had Elixirs hidden in their clothes. They set out to Uriks and start a new organization together.”
Alyssa clapped excitedly. “That’s a best seller!”
“Wait, what?!” Lapia spoke up. “What about the feelings of hate?”
“Mh?” I turned to her. “Ah, those were hate for the Tigea, not the Ork. The Dwarf had met the Ork a few months prior and they shared nights of passion. The Dwarf left without a word, however, so the Ork thought love was not possible. Hope was never lost, fortunately.”
Bonte shook his head. “Too many plot holes. Why wouldn’t the Tigea have an Elixir as well?”
Alyssa nodded. “That’s the beginning of book two.”
I nodded at that.
“Needs a bit of work. I can see it being a good book.” I rubbed my chin. “I don’t want any shady organization if they don’t have a background as convoluted as that.”
“Not at all!” Yolin spoke up after being silent. “That doesn’t make any sense!! Why not talk it out, are they mute? Do they not know sign language?! Why such tragedy?!”
I shrugged. “That’s the nature of the dark side of the world, Yolin. Suffering is a must for characters to justify their motives.”
“But didn’t the Dwarf plan to take out the Ork’s organization?” she asked a little desperate.
“That was to lure the Tigea out.” Lapia nodded. “I get it. Multiple betrayals are a staple to those tragedies.”
We all nodded, then burst out laughing.
“They’re here, aren’t they?” Alyssa asked.
Bonte nodded. “Last night we saw a cloaked person following us.”
Well, shit.