Chapter 1-35: The Past

He looked at me. I sighed and just nodded.

He opened the advisory file with the gnome attached to it.

“Wow, Fred, you meet the most curious people. I thought she was a celebrity, but I had no idea...”

Well, doesn’t that sound ominous. I rolled my eyes and continued listening.

“First of all, her online presence was scrubbed. I mean, professionally. Someone went in and cleaned up any hint of her online. There’s nothing about her on any form of social media or news, and that’s after I really went looking for her after I found out who she was.”

My brow furrowed.

“This isn’t a recent thing. Someone has been keeping her out of the spotlight and her existence hidden basically since she was born.

“She wasn’t born in America, but in France. The Sylunar over there were actually the most helpful in identifying her, as the silver eyes were pretty distinctive. I actually got in touch with the priestess who Moonblessed her and Assayed her for the goddess and her mother.”

The gnome’s high voice paused a bit reluctantly, and continued, “She was assessed as having no magical ability whatsoever in the tests of the Sylunar. According to the Moonsister, her mother was livid at the news, and actually stormed out of the temple without her.

“A halvyr without magic is a very rare thing indeed, and would usually indicate some sort of major mental deficiencies in all categories. The girl was eventually sent to live with a hired maid, and had virtually no contact with her family.

“From what I can determine of her life from her family records, she had a pretty nasty childhood. No magic for a halvyr made her vulnerable in the eyes of people who resent the Powered, and she suffered for it. All her school scores indicated she was sharp and clever, certainly didn’t have any brain damage or illness, but she couldn’t generate the slightest Cantrip.

“She started falling in with a bad crowd, and eventually ran away from her foster home, and must have come to the States by some alternate method.

“She has some sort of trust fund providing for her once she turned sixteen, so she dropped out of school, and has been living out of a condo in Baltimore for the past year or so. What exactly she’s been doing, I don’t know.”

My lips twitched. This girl had AMAZING magical talent... it just destroyed itself. Two powerful Bloodlines, canceling one another out...

“The files are all the documentation I could find and dig up. Here’s the original birth record from Le Stellae Dame.”

A file opened up and displayed a copy of a birth certificate.

Elrii Morningdark, Halvyri.

No name for the father.

Mother, Jalaez Morningfire, Halvyri.

Fred blinked in recognition. I just lifted an eyebrow.

“Everything I can tell is that this girl has been written out of the family entirely. There’s no record of her ever meeting her mother or sisters. I can imagine how cruel that would be once she found out whose family she was part of.

“It looks like she did finally get some magic after all, and isn’t too bitter about it. I hope all the best for her. She certainly earned a shot at things.”

His voice cut off, leaving the files floating there in the holo.

“Why do I have the feeling that the mother’s name is very important?” I asked, feeling another headache coming on.

He sent the file off to the side, clicked around on the keypad, and brought up another picture.

Well, he definitely got the search results fast. And with a lot of pictures, too.

It turned out that Jalaez Morningfire was an extremely famous halvyri sorceress with the Phoenix Bloodline, an internationally known socialite and beauty who, if her looks were any indication, was probably recognized by most every red-blooded male the world over.

Fred clicked on the Lexipedia article, and it washed into place, giving way to a publicity photo that complimented her very well: the fires dancing around the edge of her hair, golden eyes, perfect complexion, and seductive smile, along with marvelous figure and taste in expensive clothing and jewelry.

---

Relatives: Essander Highmoon, Elven, Father (deceased); Colleen Morningsun, Human, Mother (deceased); Sean Highsun, Halvyr, brother; Brigette Morningflame, Halvyri, Daughter; Sinead Morninglight, Halvyri, Daughter; Azaia Morningwind, Halvyri, Daughter

---

Well, that pretty much said it all, didn’t it? She wasn’t allowed to use the family name, for fear her no-magic self might be linked back to the family.

“I am getting the distinct impression that this is a very famous magical family,” I sighed.

THEY MIGHT BE THE MOST FAMOUS MAGICAL FAMILY IN THE WORLD. His hand hovered over the Vaccine. DO YOU WANT TO READ ABOUT EACH OF THEM?

I sighed. “Just tell me quickly for now...”

ESSANDER WAS SYLUNE’S MOST FAMOUS MYSTIC THEURGE.

COLLEEN WAS THE MOST FAMOUS FIRE SORCERESS IN THE WORLD FOR HER BLOODLINE.

SEAN HIGHSUN IS THE MOST WELL-KNOWN CORONAL KNIGHT OF ARU IN THE WORLD.

JALAEZ HAS INHERITED HER MOTHER’S FAME AS A PHOENIX BLOOD SORCERESS, BUT SHE’S A DARLING OF THE NUAVANS, NOT SYLUNE.

HER DAUGHTER BRIGETTE IS A COMBAT SORCERESS WITH THE EUROPEAN LEAGUE OF CHAMPIONS.

SINEAD IS ONE OF THE MOST FAMOUS MINSTRELS AND ILLUSIONISTS IN THE WORLD.

AZAIA ISN’T SEEN MUCH, BUT SHE’S A DARLING OF THE SYLUNAR, AND SUPPOSEDLY A MYSTIC THEURGE AND WIZARD, EVERY BIT AS TALENTED AS HER GRANDFATHER.

I frowned as I read all that. I could find out more details, certainly. “Why so famous? I don’t mean to be a downer, but beautiful spellcasters are practically one word once you can alter your features. Biosculpting is a thing, you know?”

I WAS TOLD THEY ARE ALL NINE CASTERS.

My totally unimpressed expression must have thrown him a moment. UM, MOST HUMANS NEVER GET PAST SIX, WITH A RARE FEW REACHING SEVEN. ELVES REACH EIGHT. THE MORNINGSUN HEIRS ARE THE ONLY ONES KNOWN TO HAVE ALL REACHED NINE.

“Oh.” My completely underwhelmed expression made him smirk despite himself.

SO, HOW POWERFUL WAS YOUR PROGENITOR?

“At the time, a very, very Deep Fifteen.”

Both his hands popped like rocks splitting as he abruptly clenched them hard, staring at me. AND HUMAN?, he asked, the flames were clearly a few watts brighter than before.

“Very much so.”

He exhaled hard. SO, IT IS POSSIBLE...

“Certainly is.” I gave him an odd look. “You’re a Four Pact Warlock. You’re already a Seven, it’s required. Didn’t you know that? You should’ve stepped Into the Dance.”

He shook his head. I TOOK HUMAN/2 AND APPLIED THE CASTER LEVEL BONUS TO WARLOCK.

Well, that was unusual, but certainly not wrong, since it was his only Caster limit...

“Have you tried to advance to Seven?” I asked calmly.

NO, he admitted, and I arched my eyebrow at him. I TEND TO OPERATE ALONE, SO I HAVE BEEN ROUNDING OUT MY FUNDAMENTALS. AH, GOING DEEP, AS YOU SAY.

“Your road to Ten is wide open. Your Primary Class can’t be lower than any of your other Class Levels, so having Warlock Casting at Seven means you can take your Primary to Seven. As soon as you do, you can take Wrath Mastery to /4, and Warlock Mastery to the same, putting you at Nine, and leading you right to that, whereupon you can take your /5’s and make Ten with ease.

“It should come as no surprise that Heaven wants you to get higher Level, Master Fred.”

His hands crinkled again. YOU SOUND LIKE AN EXPERT IN SUCH THINGS.

“Yes.” And since he could... “If you have the Karma, take your Human/3 Level. It dovetails right into your ability to heal yourself, so you should have your Health as utterly high as possible.

“Stay at Six and get as Deep as you like, but you should have enough Karma ready at any and all times to walk into Seven if you need it. Nothing is going to stop you. You are already there.”

Again, that faint, harsh smile, some grim irony. INTERESTING BEING ADVISED BY AN OUTWORLDER HALF MY AGE.

I just snorted delicately back at him. “I may not have power, or even all the memories I should, but experience is experience, regardless.”

YOU SAID YOUR BLOODLINE HAS BEEN ASSIGNING YOUR KARMA FOR YOU. I nodded at that. WHAT DID IT GIVE YOU TODAY?

“Staff Magus,” I admitted readily.

STILL A ONE?, he asked curiously, and I nodded again. THEY HAVE A COURTYARD FOR WEAPONS PRACTICE. COME.

Having little else better to do, I followed him...

------

Clerics of the gods are not non-combatants, and were expected to be able to defend themselves and their parishioners with more than simply magic. While all the temples trained templars of one sort or another to defend themselves, and had faithful who would rush to help as well, the Clerics who dwelled there were expected to be able to pick up the favorite weapons of their deities and beat on things as needed. Magic only went so far, after all.

Of course, in a technology era, this tended to be happily supplemented by firearms and bunches of alchemical Twilight alloy bullets that worked as both silver and cold iron.

While thematically the Harsites might have preferred warhammers, they were not idiots, and so moonhammer axes predominated weapons training. As a point of differentiation, Harsite axes were bearded with a center spike, Aruan axes were bearded with beaked backings, and Sylunar axes were true crescents. Sylunar Casters tended to prefer staves that could unfold glaives or spears if they could afford them, and Aruans and Harsites enjoyed doing the same with halberds, if they didn’t care to use a shield.

I hadn’t really had the chance to use this staff in a fight, and true to my estimations, my performance with it was awful. It hadn’t been Boneshaped and balanced at all for fighting, so just going through katas was a pain... and I had absolutely average strength for a woman, no muscle memory, and none of the upper body physical conditioning necessary.

I sighed as the staff spun out of my hands for the fourth time, clattered to the well-kept stones of the courtyard, and toed it back up to myself. Even that wasn’t right to my hand, and I had to snatch at it.

THAT IS VERY INTERESTING TO WATCH, his flames noted from the side. YOU KNOW EXACTLY WHAT TO DO, IT IS QUITE OBVIOUS, AND YOU ARE INEPT AT DOING IT.

I had to laugh, despite myself. “I can remember doing these things thousands of times, for years and years... and technically, this is my first time trying to do a set on my own. I’m over-reaching myself.” Hells, I didn’t even have an Attack Bonus. If I wasn’t naturally coordinated, I’d look like a total idiot...