The Primordial Cloak

“What is the meaning of this!?” Illyandaril’s voice shrieked, piercing the chilled, morning air. She could hardly believe what she had just heard. Before her stood Renji, and behind him there were three others, all waiting and eager to go to varying degrees. Nemi swayed gently on her hoshirin, while Hestia and Mariel stood beside theirs. Mariel had a look of nervous acceptance on her face, flinching slightly from Illya’s outburst. Meanwhile, Hestia played with her hair, suddenly unsure and wary of what she had agreed to do.

“We need help, Illya. I had a lot of time to think, and I got worried. Given the kidnapping incident, were I to be captured again, I know you’d surrender to save me. I don’t want that to happen again.” Renji gestured to the three behind him, then to himself. “Besides, we both know I’m not strong enough yet. Balam still has me defeated in both the martial and magical aspects. So, I asked Nemi to come along. That big fiery orb on the docks was her doing, with that level of power she’s a valuable asset—not to mention that she has Hutch’s permission to continue on as my magic teacher.”

Gesturing next to Mariel, Renji’s smile softened. “I’m sure you recognize Mariel. Turns out she’s quite gifted with using bows and crossbows, but ever since she and I were kidnapped, she has been training with close ranged weapons; short swords, daggers, even some dueling swords. When I found her practicing on the field, I knew I had to ask her. Though despite this, we’re going to need someone to maintain our supplies and camp. If that task falls to you or I, we’ll be stretched too thin, and speaking of which—”

Renji patted Hestia’s shoulder, smiling widely at Illyandaril. “As you know, I’m a cook in my home world, but there is far too little that I know about this world. I could see a creature that looks exactly like one from my world, like many I’ve already seen, but it could turn out that its meat is lethal to ingest. So, who better to whip up nutritional meals without me accidentally poisoning us than Hestia, daughter to the head chef herself? With her focusing on cooking for us, she eliminates another task that would wear us thin. Now, I had hoped to add another fighter to our roster, but of the few people I did ask to come, all of them said no.” Renji didn’t include the part where all of them refused because they feared Illya’s strength, fearing upsetting her further.

Illya kept her tongue held as she listened to Renji’s explanation. Her cheeks flush a mild pink as she looked embarrassed. Her belief that it would just be her and Renji had made her a bit more excited to learn more about the Outworlder that had somehow come into her life, but she couldn’t argue with the logic of his words, save for one thing. “You said that you were worried about being kidnapped again. I could protect you if it’s just you, but if I have to protect four people, wouldn’t that make it easier for one of you to get kidnapped?”

A fair point, Renji thought, but not something he hadn’t thought about. “I’m glad you asked. You see, I only asked people who I knew to be tough. Mariel, for example, has three knives hidden in her boots, two in the soles, and one inside the boot. Even if she is bound like she was before, she’d be able to do something about it; whether that means fighting or escaping. Nemi, well, we’re always going to have to protect our magician a little, but she knows quite a few defensive spells—enough to cover for us in the event we encounter something like a rain of arrows.”

Renji makes his way to Haru, carefully getting onto his beloved steed. “The only one among us that doesn’t have formal training is Hestia, but even she keeps hidden weapons on her. According to her father, she is also blessed by Gravock. According to Nemi here, it’s like she’s permanently under the effects of the stoneskin spell. She could stick her hand into a boiling pot and not feel a thing, so she does have some kind of protection. If we’re lucky, we might even be able to pick up another front-liner while we’re on the road. I was hoping we could find someone who specialized in defense to round us out, but we just have to work with what we have.”

Once again, Illya couldn’t argue, but she didn’t feel like her concerns were completely addressed. She saw the practicality of his plan, and tried to tackle it from different angles, as Renji had suggested she try to do more often. On one hand, everyone else that he had brought does have some answer to being kidnapped. Hestia most of all—though it is a secret Illya is sworn to keep. The only one who doesn’t have a means to escape kidnapping is Renji himself, a fact that he is painfully aware of. “Fine, you win. You’re right, this is probably for the best, but you’d better put in double the effort for training, Renji. I won’t be able to protect all of you at once if something happens.”

As they finally prepare to leave, a familiar voice rings out behind them. “Please, wait one moment longer.” Illyandaril’s father, King Roland, had arrived. Hutch, Balam, and many other servants accompanied him. In the King’s hand is a thick cloth that he held forward. “Renji, approach.”

The seriousness in his voice was all the signal Renji needed. This was some form of ceremony. Getting off of Haru quickly, he knelt in front of the King as the others behind him, sans Illya, bowed their heads. “Renji Naoki. Otherworlder, I know we ask much of you, but you have thus far risen to the challenge time and time again. Here you are now, prepared to undergo a quest to save us all and protect my daughter. In recognition of your bravery, I asked our enchanters and weavers to work together to make you this.”

Unfolding the cloth in front of him, it revealed that it was, in fact, a dark brown cloak. The weave was thick, strong enough to block bladed weapons and provide adequate protection against blunt weapons. The fur that lined the edges of it means that the cloak would adequately serve to keep him warm at night. Roland began to lay the cloak over Renji, tying the straps around his neck and ensuring that it was fastened strong. “This cloak was not easy to make. It is a Primordial Cloak. Any magical attack that strikes it will be negated, returning that spell into raw aether that’d ordinarily just return to the air. I thought this might benefit you the most, Renji, for if my theory is right, you should be able to absorb that very aether. Be careful, and use it well.”

Standing up, Renji couldn’t help but feel as though he had just been knighted. He felt his face turn red as people stared and clapped for him, and with one final goodbye for everybody, they were sent along their way. The hoshirin were in good health and were each cooperating, and Renji truly felt like a lord as his new cloak flapped in the wind behind him. It felt good, like he was an important person for the first time in his life. However, Illya’s voice broke him out of his entranced state; “I can’t believe he did that for you.”

Illya shook her head, chuckling under her breath with complete disbelief. “What? Why?” Renji’s first questions slipped from his lips with little thought. Nobody answered, but ultimately it was Nemi who pulled her hoshirin up beside him and leaned left towards him, practically resting her head on his shoulder. “You have no idea how lucky you are, big guy. You said your world had no magic, right? Well, let me put it into perspective.” She looks up at him, a look that was somehow both smug, yet filled with admiration. “Magic items might not be that uncommon, but the worth of a Primordial Cloak? Its worth alone nearly eclipses all the land within Aldelthorne’s territory. Best not to go advertising it, not unless you want a crowd of gold diggers who think you’re packing some serious coin.” Her smile widened before she straightens up, giving him some distance.

Renji’s face turned red again, his grip upon the reins of his steed tightened. The lordly feeling was still there, but the idea that he was wearing something so important was overwhelming. More than that, he wasn’t used to people invading his personal space like that. He recalled when he had asked Nemi to join them; she was jumping for joy, thrilled beyond belief that she’d be allowed to come. The way her eyes shined had struck him, but he thought she was simply eager to get out of the castle and potentially study more forms of magic. Was he part of the reason for her excitement? “Of course,” he thought to himself. “I’m the ‘Outworlder,’ of course she’d be excited to have more chances to dissect me and learn more about my home.”

The quintet rode quietly, heads held high, and while they were each nervous in their own way, spirits were high. Hestia was perhaps the most nervous of them all, but even she seemed resolute. This was her chance to prove to her father that she had what it takes to be the head chef, and her father always told her that she was going to have to travel and experience more of the world. She just didn’t think it would be happening so soon.

Their first obstacle was the forest called The Verdant Shroud. It was a location that Renji was most curious about, especially after hearing that it was supposed to be full of lively and friendly fauna. Given his blessing, and his natural proclivity for animals, he was thrilled to finally have his chance to see it. Reaching over to his hip, he clutched Tiamat’s holy symbol tightly, though he couldn’t help but feel a sense of unease as he did. He couldn’t figure out why, and wondered if perhaps what he felt wasn’t his own unease—but Tiamat’s.