NOVEL SIMPLE Chapter 35: Doug
The Space primals originate from the Hollow Peak, the city once known as Atlian. The creation of a hyper-compressed spacial pocket within a cavern attracted the Primordial of Space. The giant spiders bred for silk were the first Space primals to arise, but Illusian Space primals arose shortly thereafter.
Lidian’s Manual to Magical Fauna, 283rd ed
—
Kole wasn’t late to meet Zale and Rakin for breakfast the next morning, though he was very tired. His new bed alleviated the soreness he’d been feeling each morning from sleeping on the ground but had done nothing to make him go to bed at a more reasonable hour.
“Ye look like shite,” Rakin said in way of greeting.
“Good morning to you too,” Kole replied.
“Late night?” Zale asked.
“Always.”
They ate a light breakfast, talking over last-minute plans, but the plans were not complicated and had long been talked to death.
***
They entered the training hall of class to find the other students already huddled, whispering conspiratorially to each other. The class was smaller, down to around ninety from the original hundred and ten, many students dropping out after their experience with the goblins, having confronted the realities of the adventuring life and realizing they were not cut out for it.
Following the direction of all the poorly hidden furtive glances, they found the new object of the collective’s disdain. A young man stood talking to the professors at the front of the room. He was dressed in the forest greens and browns of an Assuine worshiper and his skin was tanned from long days in the sun. What made him stand out, and drew the attention of all the other students, was the long serpentine tail swaying energetically behind him and the pair of antlers protruding from his hairline. The antlers looked to be those of a young buck—though Kole didn’t know this, never having seen a deer.
“A demonkin,” Kole whispered.
“A primal too,” Zale observed, watching as Underbrook passed him an orange stick to accompany the green and yellow he already had.
Rakin let out a whistle.
“Blessed and a primal,” Rakin observed. “If he weren’t a demonkin, groups would be fighting over him.”
Kole had never met a demonkin and—as with most things—his people had lost their fear and hatred of the Faust-spawned creatures in their hundreds of years of isolation.
He knew that they’d once been a menace before the Flood, slaves of the demon lords that made their way to the Material Realm. As slaves, they were pitiful creatures, used as fodder in the insane wars of the cults that worshiped the demons. When their demon lords were inevitably banished, their followers were killed. Whenever a demon lord arose, they brought—or created—more demonkin.
When the Avatar had arisen, the demonkin began to manifest sorcerous magics and a feral insanity along with them. They followed in the wake of the Avatar, and in doing so found their way to Basin where the Avatar was trapped. From then until the Last Dragon War they lived on the fringes, another race of the forsaken.
But, after the corruption of the Avatar was sealed they regained their sanity. Some had broken free of the corruption before that final sealing and fought against their kin at the side of the Illusian races. Since then they have still existed on the fringes. Tolerated but not accepted.
As they watched, the demonkin student finished his conversation with the professor and turned to join his classmates. In doing so, his tail hit a weapon rack behind him, knocking over a row of glaives. He froze, eyes growing wide as he watched the tall-bladed weapons fall towards him. Underbrook wasted no time lunging forward, grabbing the student by the wrist, and teleporting them both to safety.
When the tumult of the falling weapons died down, Kole distantly heard the new student say, “Sorry.” In a soft defeated tone.
***
“Class, welcome to your second week of PREVENT!” Underbrook called happily to the gathered students after the mess had been sorted. “Today you will be facing off once more against the goblins of last week. You’ve had a week to reflect on your mistakes and plan your next assault, but… so have they. Keep that in mind as you prepare to embark. We’ll pull lots to determine the order, so each team should send a representative to the front.
“The sneaky weasel,” Rakin grumbled. “He never told us the goblins would remember our assault.”
“He sort of did,” Kole said, recalling what Professor Underbrook had said before they had entered last week. “He said there was no shame in retreating, but warned that the enemy would prepare in our absence.”
“Bah. That’s stupid. We didn’t retreat. We died fighting.”
Kole, who had retreated, thought it best not to point out that dying in battle was hardly an improvement on fleeing.
“We’re last,” Zale said, rejoining the pair after going to draw a lot. “Underbrook asked us to come see him as well. He said a few students didn’t show up today who hadn’t formally dropped. He’s going to fit the new guy into a group. All the people that formally dropped already had their groups resorted during the week.”
“Who dropped out late?” Rakin asked.
“Shalin and Drupin,” Zale said, listing two people Kole didn’t know. “But Shalin’s group members claim she didn’t drop. They said she went missing over the weekend. Left all her stuff in her room even.”
“Odd. She was the Space primal from the Hollow Peak right?”
Zale nodded.
“I’ll ask Mom if she knows anything later.”
They gathered at the front of the room with two other groups of three students. One group looked irritated, while the other somewhat distraught. Kole guessed Shalin was from the second group
“This is Doug,” Underbrook introduced the demonkin. “Yes, he is a demonkin, and no, he is not enthralled by the will of Faust. He is a skilled ranger, Blessed by Assuine, with latent primal talent. Who would like to extend him an offer for their group”
An awkward silence followed, the other groups looking at their members, no one wanting to draw attention to themselves.
Doug, who was already uncomfortable from being the center of attention, began to wilt under the weight of the silence. Zale grew angry at her classmates' actions and stepped forward angrily.
“You can join us!”
"Hurray,” Rakin muttered, so only Kole could hear. “Now we’re going to be even more popular.”
***
“This is Kole,” Zale said later when they’d stepped to the side of the room to get acquainted with Doug. “He is a wizard. Rakin, who’s a pugilist training with the Order of the Resounding Silence, and I’m Zale. I swing swords.”
Doug hadn’t spoken since Underbrook had left, he’d only gaped at Zale.
When he didn’t respond, she added, “And yes, I’m part voidling.”
At that, Doug’s senses returned to himself, and he grew visibly embarrassed and then ashamed as he realized he’d been treating Zale much the same way others treated him.
“Sorry! I’m Doug, but you already know that.”
“First day with the tail?” Rakin asked, pointing as Doug’s tail smacked him in the leg as it waved about in Doug’s nervousness.
“Oh! No! Sorry! This place is odd,” he said, gesturing to the room. “Assuine’s power is lacking here. I’m used to the forest, where I can sense my surroundings through my Blessing. I can feel the presence of others, but… you are invisible to me.”
“Aye,” Rakin said, refusing to elaborate. “I would be.”
We moved from introductions to our plan for the trial of the day. Doug only listened, not asking questions.
“Just stay in the back and shoot the green people,” Rakin advised.
“Got it,” Doug said, oblivious to—or choosing to ignore—Rakin’s rude tone.
They made their way to the wall of equipment and began to get the gear they’d discussed.
Rakin collected some throwing darts, while Zale gathered some rope and a bow with a quiver full of arrows. I took a clarity potion for myself, and a dagger. Doug took some extra arrows inspecting each carefully, and a second hatchet he put on his belt, joining another there.
“How do they afford to pass these out?” Kole asked, holding up the potion.
“It's just blue water,” Zale answers. “The dungeon makes them real, and don’t ask. I don’t understand how it works.”
“How?” Kole asked, dumbly.
Rakin sighed, Zale smiled, and then Tigereye’s voice boomed from just behind them.
“You are up.”