Gysil Vilignin.

Grandmaster Mage of the Marulean Guild Association.

[Prestige Fighter: Amazonian Warrior, Step 20: Crowned Warrior-Queen.]

2 Septara, 1492.

04:42.

***

My return to the Bodhi Tree was unprecedented, unannounced, and unwarranted. So too was it urgent, deeply unsettling, and well within my rights. Namely, because I was strong enough to go wherever I damn-well pleased. But also because the Marulean Guild Army was ranked 8th in the Optimus Regni and thus was expected at these events. We simply never showed. Due to the recent events in Maru, however, that was no longer the case. And more, it seemed Maru wasn't the only place to have faced such growth.

The Bodhi Tree had always seemed impervious to change. Perhaps that was why its change seemed so pungent. The forest looked a lot less verdant. Mist hung to the ground. The shadows seemed deeper. I could sense many beasts watching me from the distance. Strong beasts. Intelligent beasts. It was so... beautiful. But when the entrance came into view, my eyes were drawn not to the mountainous tree, but to a vast structure in the distance, with many paths leading to it. It looked like some grand administrative hub or something, or perhaps a chariot racing track; wide and stout, with a flat top that seemed like it was open to the skies. As I got closer, though, I saw it for what it was - a coliseum. Made of wood and stone, it poured a familiar silver light from the spires encircling the unseen arena within.

I was just going to enter when a trio of excited voices pulled me to my left, where a door of shimmering light stood out in the open, surrounded by five young mystics. Two of them ran forward the moment they spotted me. But only one was familiar. An exceptional one from Maru- from Odissi, and trained at Corvus Academy by one figure in particular. Morris Frasier had brown skin that reflected the silver glow of the lights behind him majestically, almost like his fighting prowess, which he augmented with his Gem Magic and elemental manipulation abilities far beyond those of his peers.

"Grandmaster Vilignin!" He bounded to me with the other Marulean trailing close behind him, leaving a few others to choose between following them or remain crowded around a shimmering doorway standing in the grass. "I never expected to see you here."

"I can say the same," I said, chortling at their bemused expressions. "It's too early for you to be prancing about, though. Or do you not take this event seriously?"

"Quite the opposite, Madame. I can't sleep to save my life!"

"Oh?" I turned to the one who spoke with a raised brow. She had skin like glacial ice, gray with hints of blue. Dull, unlike her sapphire eyes and radiant white hair. Like Morris, she had a fighter's build about her. Which was surprising, considering she was a water Djinni. "And what's so special about this place?" I asked, turning to the shimmering door.

"Amun's in there!" Morris beamed. "I was hoping to see him again. He looks so different!"

"Is that so?" I turned to the doorway with a new glint in my eye.

"A lot of the other Guild Masters as well," said Jace Hardy, the other Marulean, as he turned to me with wide eyes. "Is… is what he said true, Madame? Youteran elves are in the Marulean Darkworld, preparing for war?"

'Of course, he told them.' I sighed, already feeling the weight of another report building up. "Between his forces and ours, we have it handled. Just focus on your courses so you can be as ready as possible when it comes time to act. Assuming you will, of course."

"Of course I will!" Morris slammed his fist against his chest. "Maru is my home!"

"Mine too!" Jace shook his fist. Then gestured to the other three; a Nimbuan, a blue Sapiavi, and the water Djinni. "I'm trying to get them to come along, too."

"Then I'll see you on the other side." I gave them each a proud nod and stepped through the standing doorway.

The icy fingers of death slapped against my face the moment I entered, but I faltered not because of that, for I have felt such a thing before. What made me falter was the space in which I found myself. The backdrop was endless and black, speckled with countless stars but illuminated by a silver light poised overhead. Solid rock was beneath my feet, stretching out in terraces that housed some guild masters of the Optimus Regni, many of which I'd never seen. Their focus was held on scrying windows inlaid in their seats, each showing something more beautiful than the last, while the platform in the distance only showed smoke churning by the volley of countless shockwaves.

I took the closest seat and turned my attention to the window, where I saw a much different being than I was familiar with. His eyes were different, draconic and white, with black sclera limned in a multicolored radiance. Horns protruded from his hairline, blacker than black but with a couple of white markings akin to stretch marks laid horizontally across their surface. Arcane fire wreathed his ashen hair and eldritch blue veins glowed along his arms, wrists, and temples. That, I was familiar with, for that was what me and every Marulean saw during his address. What was unfamiliar was the stench of death about him and more, his deathly visage, shrouded in the ethereal blue-green fires of… ki.

He just stood there, draped in the fires of his ki in a patient stance like a predator waiting to strike, and yet he remained still when a streak of tan, red, green, and blue flew past him, leaving much of his throat a mangled, bleeding mess. Yet he did not flinch or react, nor did he falter. He simply stood and stared while the cloak of blue-green ki ballooned into a domain around him. And when the next streak appeared, the living lich became a blur as well, effortlessly snatching in mid-flight what at first seemed to be a colorful Sapiavi's talon, casually lifting it overhead to slam it into the ground with the strength of one of our sisters.

It was an unbelievable display compared to what I saw just a year and a half ago; both from him and the one annotated on the window - Jaimess A. Corey, the… Tengu Tamer.

A tidal wave of roiling red liquid poured from the smoke behind them, threatening to overtake them. Simultaneously, Amun and Jaimess leaped in opposing directions, only to be attacked by claws of lightning sparking from all angles, sending them darting through the skies before they were cut off by a shadow looming overhead, giving them little time to react before a giant's hand of metal smashed them to paste.

Eager to see more, I flicked the switch on the side of the screen and came to see a young girl with vibrant blue eyes and a tunic of the same color, engaging a hooded knight wreathed in electricity with a ferocious intensity, her bare fists ringing like metal against his armored gauntlets. Though sadly, the names Iris Cole and Zane Cooper were all I could glimpse before a horrendous buzz reverberated throughout the space, clearing the smoke in an instant to reveal what had to be nearly a hundred individuals bearing that ancient mark on their chests.

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

The crowd did not erupt in cheer, as one would expect from such a display. They were motionless and stunned or muttering meaningless nothings to themselves and each other. Only a few voiced their opinions openly. Me included. Perhaps it was because I did not witness the entire show, but I marched to the edge of the audience to cast a wide smile of admiration on those in the distance. "I knew you were exceptional, but I never imagined you to be a Marulean God walking among mortals!" I couldn't help but chortle in dismay as my eyes turned about them. "And the rest of you are so strong! That was the most beautiful thing I've ever seen!"

"I find myself saying the same," said a wizardly drow before Amun suddenly appeared next to me, lowered in a bow.

"Grandmaster Vilignin, what a pleasant surprise!" He smiled, showing an eldritch row of jagged teeth. "What brings you here?"

"You, actually. I'm on orders. Official business with your guild. So I'd appreciate it if we could speak in private." I said, looking around at the other Guild Masters.

Surprisingly, it took little else for them to leave. I assumed it was their shock. But in truth, I didn't care for anything other than being alone with Amun and the many members of his guild. My mission did not pertain to anyone else but them. For now. But them, they had to be several hundred, if not a few thousand strong, given the numbers of their senior leaders, organized into eleven sub-guilds. Legions, colored and armored differently, from the warriors, hooded knights, and giant men standing behind Toril, to scale mail clad humanoids corrupted by darkness standing behind a vampyr lord. All of them had arcana. Moreover, all of them held traces- slivers of him in their minds, bodies, and spirits, like us children of Amazonia, granting them immense power. But not as immense as those closest to his side. The girl with blue eyes, the wizardly drow, and several more. Including one of my cousins - a Gerdian.

"So, this is the guild I've been hearing so much about?" I spread my arms. "The result of your ambition is pleasurable indeed." Then came my smile.

"Yes." Amun's smile followed. "The Legio Noctis. Eleven Legions, led by the Deities of my pantheon, my classmates, and my Troupe." He gestured to the strange gathering around us. "In turn, they lead demigods. Explorers and warriors, creators and destroyers. What you see, however, is only the beginning; the upper echelon."

"Well met!" I guffawed. Then began pacing before their ranks. "For those of you who do not know, I am Grandmaster Mage Gysil Vilignin of the Marulean Guild Association. A crowned Amazonian Warrior-Queen, like some of you are sure to be." I winked at those in the crowd before facing Amun once again. "I come at the order of Guild Master Amos Silva. In short, my primary order is to ask for your allegiance in the fortification and defense of Maru against the Ulaian threat and the Youteran interlopers."

"That's already a given." Amun carelessly waved the matter away. Only for a curious grin to befall his face as he returned his focus to me. "What's your secondary order?"

"Already accomplished." I smiled. "It was to gauge the strength of your forces. However." I quickly added. "I am also to request for Imkeruram to host this year's assessments, if possible, for the whole of Maru, given it is now the safest place in the realm. And, should you agree, I'm to establish a preliminary plan for Maru's protection. After that, I'll continue across Nonus in search of powerful allies until I return to Maru with you."

"I see. I see. Yeah, that's no problem. We may have to work with the locals to build up some infrastructure to make it happen. But me, Ed, and Iris have just the thing for that. I'll send the word to Imkeruram and have someone contact your people," He muttered while fumbling in his shadow. From it came something I never suspected. A parchment-sized piece of polished slate or obsidian. It looked like one at first sight, at least. It was about the size of my hand, but not of stone, given it was flexible enough to envelop my wrist comfortably. "This is a Data Slate, one of things I sell as a Grandmaster Artificer." He explained.

"A - wow!" I mentally stumbled at the revelation of such a rare class. "Congratulations!"

"Thank you." He calmly bowed. "Devices like these use mana and radiation as for instantaneous communication across vast distances, even the realms or planes of existence. Worry not about the elves detecting it. This version is only given to our civilians and allies. It's infused with my void sorcery for encryption, hence the name, VoidNet. On it is a database containing much of my knowledge. It has blueprints for better materials and infrastructure, weapons and equipment, and knowledge of the natural world, which can amplify one's magical or manipulation capabilities. Use them to your full advantage. That one is yours. Imkeruram will distribute more to your superiors, to be issued to the Guild Army. Just connect your mana to it and it can be made to disappear, reappear or otherwise be controlled by your thoughts."

I did as asked and the… slate illuminated with images and words that threatened to steal my concentration, thus I willed it away and marveled at how it simply vanished from my hand.

"Thank you, Guild Master! Together, we will make Maru into the realm it was meant to be. And, by the Gods, may we take back the Motherland!"

"We will, Grandmaster." Amun grinned in a way that reminded me of his ancestor - a reassuring sight. "We absolutely fucking will."

I nodded resolutely in response to Amun's grin. Then turned with a gesture for the door. "If you would be willing, I can remain in the area for some time, so we may agree on a plan."

"Well." Amun tossed his head, though he began moving for the exit. "My subordinates are enjoying a period of leave. I'd prefer to not interrupt that, so it'd only be the two of us."

"Fine by me."

That marked the start of a conversation that would be most enlightening. To begin with, I grew more acquainted with the data slate as we entered the compound. Through the illusory words and images it displayed through the surrounding mana - which only I could see - I learned of the many features found within this grand complex and the creatures the students would soon battle, evolved by Amun and his Troupe's divine mana. Then, I used my newfound proficiency with this… technology, to learn more than enough about the Legio Noctis to give my report.

Upon our relocation to a booth within the colosseum, we were treated to breakfast and got down to official business. To begin with, we agreed there would embassies constructed in each of our lands, besides the added presence of their advisers to our rear base on the island off the southern coast of Ulai. There, they would construct coastal defense infrastructure and assess our forces stationed to keep the monsters within contained, not to mention gather intelligence on those monsters as well. He created a set of prototype blueprints for a new generation of fleets and the shipyards to build them, to be evaluated and perfected by his subordinates after their period of leave. The same as the 'skyport,' intended to bolster our supply lines and work alongside the fleet to gain superiority over the Marulean sky and seas. Both were to be built across Phaegrath and Epethia while our diplomats, warriors, and artificers engage in 'cross-training' with those from Imkeruram to learn how each group operated and tweak their procedures to 'piggyback' off each other; thereby boosting camaraderie, teamwork, and competence.

Considering the efficiency and divine levels of artificing prowess of this guild and empire, everything but the cross-training was projected to take less than a month. That was not so for the next phase, however.

The second phase would begin with our forces adopting the role of trainees. Using what was developed in the phase prior, we would learn to use these flying machines, advanced battle fleets, spell canon 'batteries,' and MagiTech weapons effectively in battle, and then spread to take up posts across the realm at all depths of the sea and all altitudes of the sky. Once superiority over Ulaian waters and airs was established, Amun's numerically disadvantaged forces would shift their focus towards reconnaissance. They would map the continent from above with enough detail to pinpoint resources, enemy positions or fortifications, and other points of interest accurately, tracking them in real time to gather as much knowledge of our enemy as possible. In the meantime, our civilian allies would venture to those resource-rich points in Epethia and Phaegrath to begin an industrial age the likes of which the realms have never seen, intending to spread mechanical roots across the whole of Maru to turn the fortify the underground and turn the surface into a bastion, starting from the vast lake surrounding the Tree of Life. By that time, Amun suspected the elves would act. If not, that would be the time to probe the Darkworld. As such, there was little more planning to do past that. At least until more information was gathered.

Although my directives were complete, I decided to stay for at least one match. I could have fulfilled my other directive as well, I supposed, but I doubted any of the Nonus-born guilds would return to their ancestral roots by assisting those of us in Maru. Even if the realm was in such a precarious state. If their minds would change in the coming years was up for debate. But in the end, it mattered not, for the Bifrost was soon to close forevermore.

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