Chapter 283-19

Kneeling on the ground, Harmony pounded the dirt with her fist, spitting out the little bit that got in her mouth. Using [Dust] to clean herself off just made it easier for Juliette to get a solid grip and toss her across the practice field.

“I can see the habits you picked up, weaving your acquired combat skill with your innate movement ones. It’s showy, dramatic, more fit for an exhibition than close combat, all while leaving openings to exploit. I’ve always thought erasers were meant not to be noticed, but there is that aristocratic streak in you.” Her tutor lectured.

Harmony used [High Kick] to launch herself up and back at the skinny blonde girl. [Small Armor] hoped for a pre-emptive strike from Juliette that it could dodge or block, causing her tutor to overextend herself to create an opening. Fists or feet,  Harmony had knowledge and practice she’d earned through blood since gaining [High Kick]; only the rote activation, which brought with it magical force, required Harmony’s foot to swing high.

No opening, nothing until the moment before impact, when the woman's hands grasped, pulled, or guided Harmony around her with the barest of nudges, allowing the momentum to shift to a different angle, sending Harmony tumbling onto the dirt once more. This time Julie shifted, matching speed at the last moment, and used her forearm to shove Harmony away with only minimal impact. If Juliette initiated combat, there were more opportunities, but this session was about getting past that defense.

“All bad habits?” Harmony asked from her new position on the ground.

“Mixed. You’ve incorporated your skill stone well, and it was high quality, but there is a gap in practicality, like your family had you fumble through this alone rather than have experts guide you. An overreliance on your obscene strength and speed, so that if a match lasts longer than the initial blow, you’re at a disadvantage.”

“And how are we going to fix that?”

“By beating it out of you. Now come at me again, but don’t launch until you're much closer. I hear you're an excellent healer, so don’t hold back.” The slim blonde said with a smile.

It took a dozen more rolls in the dirt before a lucky blow finally wiped the grin off the woman's face. At that point, a chunk of time was spent putting the bones back together. The fact that it was luck, and finally wearing Juliette out just enough to be a fraction of a bit slower rather than any new leap in ability that caused the impact, was a bit disappointing.

“When you gain skills and knowledge from a skill stone, it can sometimes overwhelm your natural tendencies. I can tell you’ve had some lessons from before you made your choices; my suggestion for the next session is to see what you can do without that borrowed power.”

Sparring sessions with the Dig Boys, the flowy dramatic moves of actors drawing eyes to them play-fighting on the stage, or mom’s words after making sure she had a rusty knife, too big for her small hands. “Don’t let them see the blade. They shouldn’t see the blade even after you’ve left them bleeding on the street. It’s easiest if they feel you’ve fought hard and given up.”

“I’m not sure I have enough time to fix my flaws before the tournament,” Harmony answered, more than a bit humbled.

Juliette flexed her hand on the repaired arm. Harmony had tried some bone-strengthening techniques while healing it. On Bea, it had been easy tinkering on undead; here the resistance was much greater with the living, but it was only on her radius, and how the bone shattered into so many pieces helped, giving an entry point to work the magic.  “Then do it during the competition. School pride is on the line.”

It was hard to feel that same pride. She’d chosen this school off a list provided by Von Trell months ago. She didn’t grow up visiting the intercollegiate games to cheer for her favorite school the way Juliette had.  Personal pride was there, but the idea of going to a school like The Academy had been so far away. It was chance and curiosity around that small paragraph with additional information. Something about the first school and oldest dungeon had brought a little flutter to her chest, something that made it different from the other schools that Von Trell called, “Just about equal, and all well out of reach of her local politics.”

“For The Academy!” Harmony answered, so as not to disappoint the teacher who’d thrown her around with ease the whole practice session.

A little [Dust], a touch of [Beautician], and [Renew Spirit], and they were both out of there looking like they had a spa day rather than a brawl.

Harmony prodded [Old Ways] as she made her way back to Fairfax Manor. All it came back with was the spiritual equivalent of sucking on your finger after poking something charged with a shock spell. It didn’t budge, activate, or find a use to latch onto. If it was passive, she couldn’t see or feel any effect, even staring at her status or soul with all her tools.

A dead skill would be awful for advancement, except [Old Ways] came with ten levels, even moving up to eleven after a day, putting it well above [Secure Seal], which had only gained three early levels after putting it through the paces by locking Marci completely out of her room. Something was moving and advancing in there.  [Old Ways], bah. At this point she’d let Von Trell’s apes grab her again and put her through a thorough analysis, if he wasn’t still away.

The Association of Amateur Immortalists was a busy little warren.  Dame Rhonda stood in the entryway ordering servants around with boxes of equipment. “The skill splicer needs to be kept away from the merging and continuance anvil.”  Once that was settled, the older woman turned to Harmony. “Archivist White. I’m so honored you're joining us for the reopening of the research wing and its vault."

“It is under the purview of my role here. And you said there was mention of keyholders in the sealed records, so there is a personal stake.”

“Still, as a student and su-primus, you are so busy. So, I must give you gratitude.”

Having read the clauses in the organization’s documents, there was more to it. Not performing your duties opened you up to an easy vote for removal under the dereliction clause. Exceptions like the tournament were built in, but there was no reason to risk losing her spot to one of Rhonda’s wealthy friends and upsetting a balance of power that was already in flux due to Milwep’s greed. A coup was unnecessary unless she was running it.

All the interested parties waited at the closed research wing, including the banker who made sure the rules were followed. Steward Bellwether and several of the new council members were at the door chatting with the man from whom all the funds flowed. Scheduling and specific requirements had delayed the opening even after enough money was collected.

“I see all the people who signed up are here. I’ll remind you of the rules in the bylaws.” The bank trustee started. ”All work materials brought into the wing will stay there, becoming part of the wing. So I hope you’ve paid attention to the entry requirements; I don’t want you to lose your favorite pen, crystal, or book to the place. Due to recent changes in the city wards and their age, a fresh coat will be added by the wizards I’ve hired, creating a closed system.”

Some of the members here had expressed annoyance at the lack of access to the city’s legendary new resource. Harmony was excited that Marci would be barred because of the technicalities around old regulations. It had been satisfying to stand against proposals to change that during council votes.

“Now will the relevant council members place their hands on the door and I will initiate the spell to unlock it.”

Harmony and Rhonda stepped forward, adding their hands to five others on the door, including Bellwether. Milwep, hating the loss of money on this project, declined to join them.

“I, Trustee Graham, initiate this opening. State your position and name truthfully to open the door.”

“Researcher Rhonda.”

“Researcher Quinn.”

“Steward Bellwether

“Scribe Coughlin.”

“Alchemist Ben.”

“Archivist White.”

The door glowed with power that called out to [Secure Seal]. Whatever magic closed up the wing was of a similar type as hers, but more advanced. Harmony made sure to pay attention to as many details as she could about how it closed off the area and was unlocked. She’d get a second chance to see this when it was time to open the vault, but the potential to gain understanding was too much to ignore.

The door swung open to darkness created by depowered glowstones; the disturbance kicked up a portion of the thick layer of dust.

“May I?” Harmony asked.

Bellwether nodded. He’d seen her touch up the library enough times to know her skill set.

The research wing was only four rooms, each without doors. The closed vault waited at the end of the hall. She should have enough power to handle the rooms. [Mana Rotation] spun up, empowering the combination of [Dust] and [Manipulate Dead]. If she could manage the attic at Coodly Manor, this should be easy, as long as she didn’t overdo it the way she had there with that solid ball of dirt, debris, and dying rodents and insects caught in the process.

Dust only; A touch of discretion from [Beautician] would help, as well as subtle nudging of [Style and Grace].

You can’t move that much dust and dirt without creating a breeze from the movement, which will help with the long sealed-off stale smell.  The particulates moved together in a stream that landed into a not-insignificant pile.

Rhonda motioned to her servants to take care of it.

That done, the wizards moved in, establishing the ward system while Harmony took advantage to chat up those who would be spending their days down here.  

Quinn babbled excitedly about their goals, “We’ll have weeks of work before we get to actual experimentation. First we’ll need to compare old records with projects done since the closing to see how those line up and decide which direction we want to go in. Immortality takes many forms, like restoring youth or tricks to help push into the next step of evolution where more time is bought. Then there are the side projects of stasis and freezing. We have our preferences, but just looking at the records might change some avenues.”

Research into immortality wasn’t everyone’s mission. Harmony had her personal plans, and Dame Rhonda focused on the vault; they both wanted the keyholder information.  Harmony blocked some of the wealthy woman’s goals by refusing to allow herself to be studied, resisting with the fact that they were peers in the organization. The light outer layer of [Secure Seal] Harmony applied probably irritated the woman. It wasn’t the same as locking down skills and living as someone weaker, but it did hamper inspection.  

The prisoner’s door would wait until all the politics and possible selection of who should try for the silver keyholder happened. Marci’s introduction at least delayed that a bit longer. There was something to be said about the latest bit of excitement taking priority, but once bureaucracy took hold of something, end results could be inevitable.

With the ward system set and glow stones lit, Harmony joined the crew in looking about. It tingled a little crossing the threshold, but they were serious about the security that made it so once most things entered, they could not be removed.  To prevent clutter, there was a disintegration box for disposal. Old as it was, how did it compare to her skill?

The four rooms were spacious and filled mostly with boxes; most of it was unfamiliar, but the equipment she did recognize was from alchemy class or Hexio Curie's class. The others talked excitedly as they added their boxes to the piles. The real prize would be in the vault.

Only her and Bellwether’s hands were needed to open that door after they signed a document from the trustee.  “This will keep it open for three months. The magic here is similar to the wing, so be careful what you bring in here. The vault magic is sturdier, engraved by master craftsmen into the metal; an outside power source has been keeping it fed, as seen in the yearly expense report. Contact me if there are any other questions,” The bank representative finished.  

Books! And a collection of engravings on metal tablets filled most of the space. Decades of research in one room. As exciting as it was, Harmony did not have time to dive into them right now. Bellwether would have to let her know if anything of interest showed up.

[Old Ways] stirred.

The Wall— it whispered in a voice like dry, crackling paper, the sparks of energy around it picking up for the first time.

That was bleeding creepy. Harmony approached the far wall slowly, examining the books that were there.

“The earliest experiments. Most of these experiments ended up disastrously. The far wall’s nickname, according to records, is the wall of failures, but it is important to know what not to do.”  The old man commented.

Her newest skill told her there was something behind that wall. Something it wanted.  The how and why explaining that desire wasn't there. Even Byerly’s book hadn’t brought anything out of the skill. After the tournament. If it isn’t worth it, I’ll cut you out myself and figure out how to start over again. She lectured her new skill.

Maybe not that extreme, but she’d seen skills change under chaos, broken them for different effects, and knew it was possible to reshape problem ones, even if costly to a person’s soul and path.

[Poise and Bearing] hid that little internal conversation as she turned to the steward. “I find failure to be an excellent tool for learning, especially if there are consequences. I sadly can’t stay for most of the process. Let me know what is found about the keys, keyholders, or the prisoner’s door. I’m counting on you.”

[Old Ways] was quiet as she left. She’d hoped it would be grumpy, but outside of that one bit of communication, that was it. The tournament was coming soon, and she had a few more stops to make before the day arrived.