Aegis Online

I flip through the pages of the book, as dad gives us all a few minutes to decide. There are so many things to choose from, and I’m torn between several different options. Finally, I make my choice!

“I’ll take this! The Mantle of Spell Resistance!”

Dana grins. “I’m gonna take the Iron Bands of Binding! We might find a use for them!”

Houseworth picks something called the Berserker Axe, and grins when it’s approved by dad.

Mom chooses a Wand of Fireballs, and dad gives her a stern look, warning her, “No self-inflicted TPKs, this time, Sylvia!”

Mom smirks. “No promises~!” she sings, and we all look at Jeffrey.

“I’ll take the Belt of Dwarvenkind!”

Dad blinks. “Okay, weird flex, but go off, king. Anyway… Jeffrey? Roll me a d20, no modifiers?”

Jeffrey smirks, then rolls. “12!”

Dad grins.

“As you watch the Warforged cinch the belt closed, something beyond bizarre happens. Despite all appearances, there’s steel wire pushing out of Ironhand’s face, curling and twisting, until the sentient mechanical being before you… has a full beard made of steel wool!”

Everyone stares at Jeffrey as he cackles in delight, clapping his hands in glee. “YES! Oh, fuck the hell yes! That’s what I was hoping to hear!”

 

With Jeffrey jubilant at his character’s new beard, we make our way back to town, explaining the situation to the mayor of Fisher’s Ford, and he pays us the 150 gold each that he promised, the relief on his face showing how worried he’d been that we’d ended up either dead or killing the dragon against his wishes.

However, I’m a little concerned that the cult from beneath Glenhollow had been here, too. Was it a splinter faction, or a few rogue agents? Who’s behind the orders they seem to be operating on? I don’t have much information to go on, so I make some notes, as thorough as I can with the limited knowledge I’ve gleaned so far. Dad’s doing his DM thing well, sprinkling little hints here and there, so I wanna gather as many clues as I can to make the outcome more favourable for our party.

 

 

After the session, Dana and I share a goodnight kiss and I can almost hear my mum squealing as she spies on us through the window. I watch my girlfriend roar down the street on her motorbike, before heading back inside and high-fiving Jeffrey.

“Seriously, you just picked that belt so you could play a robot with a beard!” I laugh, and Jeffrey smirks.

“Guilty as charged!”

 

I roll my eyes. “Anyway, I’ll see you in-game, yeah? We’ve barely spent any time together!”

Jeffrey nods, smiling. “Yeah, you’ve been streaming and spending time with your lady and your guild, and I’ve been busy with grinding my level in order to get some stronger summoned spirits! Can’t wait until I can just… summon a fuckin’ dragon or something!”

 

I grin. “Well, your Black Parade summon was kinda awesome to watch, though Marika’s now a good friend, so don’t spook her again, yeah?”

 

Jeffrey grins. “I ACTUALLY got an apology message from her! She was very repentant, but I can understand why she didn’t make it in person after I set my Wyrewolves on her. Those things are pretty mean. But I’ve released those spirits to the afterlife so I can summon much stronger entities. If you loved the Black Parade, you’ll get a real kick out of the stuff I can do now!”

Grabbing his jacket, Jeffrey gives my mum a hug and cheerfully lets my dad put him in a playful headlock, promising to be there for the next session in a week.

“Oh, and Kylie? Where should I come to find you in Aegis?”

I grin.  “Clearly you haven’t been keeping up! My current location is Aerene, the home of the Skyborne! Watch out though, most of them are nice enough, but the KIDS are little assholes. They’re bullying this girl, Morrigan, because she was born without any wings. Her parents are both dead, and she’s treated like a total pariah. Ulged, Gimmel, Trinity and Doctor Frank are helping us make her some mechanical wings so she can finally fly!”

Jeffrey grins. “Oh hell yeah, I wanna meet her! I’ll log in when I get home and start making my way to you!”

I smirk. “Well, it took my ship a week of in-game time to get there, so you’d better wait for me to come and get you. Ulged might have set up a Translocation beacon by now, while he’s waiting on me and Dana to get back. you got a Teleport crystal?”

 

“Uh… nope. Why would I have one of those? I certainly haven’t been hunting down Demonscale Pangolins in order to avenge my friend after she got killed by one.” Jeffrey says sarcastically, and I groan.

“Uuuuuugh, right, you’re one of Elif Thade’s servants. I should’ve known you’d find out about my death.”

Jeffrey grins. “Yep! Lord Elif was pretty amused to meet you in such… unusual circumstances.”

I huff. “Where are you in-game, you jerk? I’m gonna come find you and bring you to Aerene, so be nice!”

Jeffrey chuckles, “I’ll make my way to Vassim. You know anywhere that’s good to use as a landmark?”

I nod. “just go to the Trevalli Estate and tell the Duchess that you’re a friend of Dame Kettrin!”

“wait… DAME?! You’re nobility now?!” Jeffrey splutters, eyes wide. I throw up a peace sign, smirking.

“Yep!”

 

Jeffrey shakes his head, muttering something about ‘damn lucky bitches’, and I grin. “I’ll be there to grab you as soon as you’re ready! See you soon!”

 

He leaves, and I give my parents a hug. Dad grins and mum squeezes me back. I smile. “I’d better get to work, okay? I have to stream now!”

“Go get ‘em, sweetie!”

 

I skip upstairs and slip into my podwear, before hopping into my pod. “Please load my Aegis Online profile!”

My pod responds in my dad’s voice as usual, “Got it! Have fun, but remember you have college tomorrow, so don’t play for too long!”

 

“I won’t!”

 

 

In-game, I sit up in my cabin bed, yawning. Tugging on my armour and adjusting my wings, I step out, listening to see if there are any others up and about. There’s some noise coming from the workshop room, and I make my way to the door, pushing it open and stepping in.

“hey, Ulged, Trinity, Gimmel. How’s the process going?”

“Hey, lassie! ‘Tis almost finished. Just the last adjustments t’ mek and we’ll have wee Morrigan in the air before ye know it!”

 

I smile. “Awesome! Can I see the wings?!”

 

Ulged leads me over to an object covered in a sheet. “Aye, ye can! Here!”

He pulls the sheet back, and I stare in awe. The wings laid out before me are… stunning. The main chassis is sleek, coated in a smooth black lacquer that’s meant to prevent the metal parts within from attracting lightning while in flight.

The wing panels aren’t bare leather anymore, they’re covered in… feathers! I blink, and Ulged grins. “Now, ye know how feathers c’n fall out or be damaged by age, poor conditions, or fire? Well, the guid doctor had a grand idea! What wee birdie ne’er dies, is flame element-aligned, and cannae naturally shed its feathers ever?”

I frown. “Uh…”

Ulged’s grin widens. “The phoenix, lassie! Mur an’ I went hunting and, after a wee… altercation or six, we managed to gather enough feathers, wi’ a bag o’ spares fer mekkin’ adjustments as wee Morrigan grows up!”

 

I squeal, “You used phoenix feathers? Holy shit, that’s awesome!”

Ulged grins. “Since the phoenix is immortal, its feathers are, too. They’ll ne’er die, like when a chicken’s fall out or get plucked. Morrigan’s wings also have an… interesting property. Fire damage actually empowers them instead of causing any harm, giving a major speed boost!”

I squeal in delight, as Morrigan’s footsteps barrel down the passage. Ulged covers her wings up before she arrives.  She launches herself in to my arms, and I hug the teenaged girl. “Hi, Morrigan!”

“Hey! Mr. Ulged said my wings were ready, but he wouldn’t show them to me until you arrived! Can I see them now, please-please-please-please-please?!”

I smile and nod. “Of course! You’re going to love them!”

Ulged whips the sheet away, and Morrigan’s eyes widen, as she stares at her new wings. She reaches out and gently touches them, the red, yellow, and orange feathers shining softly. “Oh! They’re warm… it’s like they’re giving off a little heat!”

I smile and help her slip the harness on. She shifts her shoulders, and then focusses. The wings… shift, before furling. She gasps in delight, before unfurling them. They react as naturally as mine, and she furls and unfurls them several times, a huge smile breaking over her face.

“This is incredible! Haha! Oh my gods, I can actually feel them responding!”

Dana rushes in, her eyes gleaming as she claps her hands in glee. “They look so good on you! I’ve set up a little space where we can help you get used to flying without anyone seeing us! We’re gonna surprise everyone!”

 

I watch as the two girls leg it out of the room, and I check to see if Harvenhaight has logged in yet. He has, and he’s apparently on his way to Vassim. I smile as I see a thank-you message from Marika about the ability I’d made her, as well as a thank-you from Sionnach.

 

While I’m waiting for Harvenhaight to let me know he’s ready, I explore Aerene a little more, walking through the wide, white-stone streets, browsing in the shops, and answering a few questions from curious individuals, before spotting a Skyborne with a book and quill talking to large crowd of surprisingly young people in the central plaza, in front of the massive glowing crystal. I saunter over to check it out, and the book-keeping Skyborne nods at me. “Now, anyone else want to sign up?”

He takes down another name, and I ask, “Sign up for what?”

He tilts his head. “Ah, right, you arrived on that skyship. Not an Aerenian native?”

I nod. “That’s right. I guess this is some kind of competition?”

He shakes his head. “Not exactly. It’s the annual Cloudrace. All these kids are about to come of age, so they must take part in a race through the archipelago, following a chosen route, passing through the waypoints set up, and reach this point, and place their hand on the Heart Crystal. Do that, and you’re considered an adult by law. And, the winner even gets a cash prize. There’s no loser, though. As long as you make it back and touch the crystal, you’re granted full adulthood.”

I nod and ask, “Can I register someone else for them?”

“Sure, parents often sign their kids up. But you don’t have to sign up today, I or one of the other clerks will be out here every day for the next week to take down names. And anyone can enter, no matter what. Seriously, the last time someone was excluded, their name got put in the books anyway by magic…”

I watch the Skyborne shudder, clearly unsettled, and grin. That makes things easier.

I excuse myself for a minute and head to sit on a bench, calling Asteria via the communication spell.

“Hey, babe? Can you ask Mor something?”

“Oh, sure, what is it?”

I grin. “Ask her if she wants to sign up for the Cloudrace!”

 

There’s a bit of silence, and then Asteria’s voice comes through again. “I dunno what this Cloudrace is, but Mor’s nodding her head like it’s in danger of falling off!”

I grin. “Awesome! Now we’ll have to double down on the training and get her into full race-mode! I’ll be back soon!”

I hang up and approach. The crowd’s dispersed, and the Skyborne clerk is about to pack up and head off. I smile. “I just checked with my friend, and she’s interested in racing!”

“Ah, excellent. So, what name am I putting g down, young lady?”

I grin even harder. “You can write down… Morrigan!”