4. Overflow (Pt. 2)

The boy opened his eyes and let out a tired exhale. He felt exhausted. His muscles were tired, his eyes felt heavy, and his mind couldn’t quite focus on anything in particular. He was drenched in sweat and to say he was thirsty was an understatement. He looked down at the hourglass. It had once more long been empty. Alba was standing beside it, and Yir was standing on top of it. Jake gave them both a forced, shaky smile. Yir raised her eyebrows as she looked down at Alba. Alba just shrugged.

“Mr. Furrow. I would like to ask you a question.” Yir tilted her head slightly as she looked up at him. “Lady Ferynith. Your blessing came from her, correct?”

“Yea?” Jake was confused. When he had met the Gods, the Dragon Goddess was the only one who had given him a ‘gift’. The others seemed… hesitant. Sure, he was given the Finder Gem from Thaedraun, the Dwarf God, but that was a physical object.

“Are you certain?” Yir narrowed her eyes a bit. “I want you to think very, very carefully. Are you absolutely sure she was the one?”

Yir’s tone was firm. It wasn’t scary but she wasn’t being playful with her question. To respond, Jake made sure to put some actual thought into it. He nipped at his bottom lip and sought out his memory. It was recent, fresh in his mind. He thought of his interactions with each of the Gods. He thought of the Gate, and he thought of the riddle he had been asked.

“The gifts, are they given by touch?” Jake recalled something. A brief interaction he had brushed off. However, now that Yir was so keen on it he was remembering something.

The Fairy hummed for a second as she checked her knowledge. “Most, yes. I know Lady Rastua, Lady Ferynith, and Lady Syndir are both powerful in the Arcane so they should not need to touch you directly. The others will need to have a form of physical contact.” Yir crossed her arms, her fingers tapping her biceps as she looked up at him. “But when there is a council called- it is a rule that they must touch the individual.”

Jake nodded and his hands gently gripped at his knees. “The Daemon Goddess, then. Maybe. She touched me when I was solving one of Lady Ferynith’s riddles. The Dwarf God touched me, too, but his was more like a pat. I felt something when the Daemon Goddess touched me. Heat, maybe?”

Alba’s eyes opened a bit as she glanced between Jake and Yir. Yir grimaced and her eyes turned green. She looked at his mana flow, the tension on her face only increasing as she stared at him. “Did you feel my assistance earlier? Was it a similar sensation?” Jake nodded at her question. Yir’s jaw tensed briefly.

“Your mana is unnatural. Both in amount, strength, and feel. Lady Syndir, the Daemon Goddess who touched you, must have placed a seed within you. When Lady Ferynith gave you your gift, that seed must have fallen in place within your Mana Source.” Yir let out a sigh as her eyes returned to normal. Jake gulped.

“Is… Is that bad?” The way Yir worded things made him wonder if there was something wrong with him now. Maybe that was why he was having such trouble.

However, Yir shook her head. “No. Not right now, at least. Your mana is strong and very resilient. In time, as long as you continue to cultivate and refine your control, the side-effects of her meddling should be minimal. Though I cannot be sure of what she’s done exactly. Not until that seed she placed blooms.”

Jake let out a sigh and slumped forward a bit. He was far too tired to be dealing with this now. He just wanted a break. Yir must have seen that, as she clapped her hands loudly to get his attention.

“None of that,” Yir glared at him, picking up on the cue of his weariness. “It is not something that will get in the way of your progress. I doubt she would try to harm you in any way. Lady Syndir is a very powerful Mage and she is very kind to all Apostles. If she has given you a gift as well, then I assure you it is for your benefit.”

Yir stepped off the hourglass and fluttered up into the air. She waved her hand, her magic stretching outwards as she began to collect all of the books and the hourglass from the floor. She closed the books and herded them up onto the table.

“You are tired. I can see it all over you. Go home, Mr. Furrow. Rest and return later when you feel rested.” As Yir organized the books, Alba fluttered over to help her. Jake grumbled a bit and got to his feet. He approached the table to help but was quickly struck by a zap to the nose from Yir. The boy flinched and backed away. “Home, boy.” She snipped.

Jake frowned and lowered his head a bit. “Yes, Miss. Yir. Thank you for your help today.” He bowed his head and then hurried out of the room as Yir threatened to zap him again. He didn’t look around the atrium as he left it and practically stumbled onto the sigil to leave. Using barely a drop of mana, Jake triggered the platform and closed his eyes. A moment later, he was back in the Overworld. The boy slumped over and flopped over onto the wooden planks of the guard tower as he felt fatigue wash over him.

Seeing the boy alive and awake, Chul crept out of the corner and tapped lightly on his head. “This is not a place to sleep, boy.”

Jake grumbled and waved him off, but the Arachkin was persistent.

“Get up, Child. Let us return to your Auntie.”

While Jake wanted to just sleep where he sat, Chul was right. He needed to go back to the tent and speak with his Auntie. He doubted the conversation would be fruitful but he hoped he could make some kind of progress tonight. He was exhausted, though, so he hoped it would be short.

Jake forced himself to roll up onto his hands and knees, then he crawled to the exit trapdoor. He unlatched it before giving the handle a yank to pull it up. Chul crawled onto his back and made himself comfortable as Jake swung his feet through the hole. The boy descended a few rungs, yanked the door closed, and then returned to the sands below. The market had quieted down. Most of the patrons were gone and those left behind were either far too drunk or working to clean up the messes left behind.

“You went somewhere in your dreams, didn’t you?” Chul asked from the boy’s shoulder. Jake nodded.

“It’s a place called the Eternal Library. It’s where I met Yir.” Jake remembered he had mentioned Yir to Chul before but hadn’t told him where. Though, the Arachkin also hadn’t asked.

“Ah, the Hall of Knowledge made by the Dragon Goddess, I presume?” Chul let out a faint chuckle, his fangs chittering. “I should have known.”

“You’ve heard of it?” Jake raised his eyebrows as he walked through the bazaar and towards the lane of tents. Chul chittered a bit.

“Only stories. However, after you spoke of Yir and your sudden infatuation with magic, I suspected it was real. Ethereal in location but most certainly real.” Chul let out a faint hum for a moment. Then, he relaxed. “It matters not to me how you learn magic, or whom you learn it from. As long as you are mindful of its dangers. If the Library is real and you are capable of entering, I have high hopes that you will do fine.”

Jake smiled and reached up to brush his fingers over the Arachkin’s fuzzy back. Chul shivered a bit from the touch. “Thanks, Chul.”

“It is my pleasure. Fostering your growth is my duty, after all.” The Arachkin let out another soft laugh, and Jake’s smile broadened. They returned to his Auntie’s tent and Chul hopped away to slip into the shadows.

The boy paused at the flap of the tent, his face becoming tense as he took a few breaths. When he was ready, he grabbed the fabric and gently brushed it aside. Jake stepped inside, only to find that the candles had all been blown out except for a few. Auntie left behind a small bowl of soup on the table along with a cup of tea and another paia. There was a note beside the plate.

Dinner for the Wandering Thorn in my side. - Auntie

Jake’s jaw clenched as he looked towards the sleeping area. He smiled softly before sitting down on his cushion to eat. The tea and paia were still a little warm and though the soup was cold, the meal tasted delicious.