Chapter 324: Deceptively Easy

"So, care to tell us what the emergency is?" Sera asked from her slightly precarious perch halfway down the dragon's back.

Thanks to a recently devised spell that created a bubble of calm air around them, she was able to do so without yelling over the sound of the wind. He was still fine tuning the specific elements, but he'd managed to keep it from suffocating it's occupants. Which was a win in his book.

"We've attracted the attention of some enemies I would rather not cross at the moment. Rather than risk dealing with their attacks or kidnapping attempts, I felt it was safer to beat a hasty retreat." He explained without looking back.

[I'm not a hundred percent certain that this Undying Court is related to the vampire that tried to capture me near Wyrport, but I can't take the risk of them ambushing our group. For the time being, it would be best to gather more information and plan accordingly.]

With that in mind, he sent a quick mental message to Selene, directing her to find out whatever she could about this new potential enemy of theirs. She grumbled back at him, annoyed at having yet another line of investigation to pursue, but nevertheless acknowledged the order.

"You should know, any hope of keeping your identity or presence secret in this region is pretty much impossible now." Morris chimed in, evidently having waited for an appropriate moment to make the observation. "While the informal rules of etiquette surrounding Tier 4s means that we should still be able to operate without too much direct interference from the powers that be, we'll all definitely have to travel in disguise in order to avoid detection."

At that, Mike couldn't help but grin. "I've actually been working on that since we talked about it, and I've come up with a couple of solutions." He said while mentally telling the dragon to descend and land on a small hill in the middle of the grasslands.

After helping his party members down, he reached into his inventory and drew out several items, laying them out on the ground. "First, I've managed to concoct this potion during a little alchemical experimentation."

He held up five vials filled with a purplish liquid so dark that it was almost black. "Apparently, these are known as Chameleon Elixirs, which enhance a person's stealth by allowing them to blend into their surroundings. They won't help disguise you by themselves, but they'll help if we need to sneak in somewhere. I haven't tried using one yet, so I'm not sure how effective they might be, but they should help. If we head back to the Screaming Dark, I'll try to pick up more of the base ingredients and make enough to last us the rest of the trip. In the meantime, I'd like each of you to hold onto one vial and make use of it when necessary."

"Second, I have these scrolls." He said while pointing to a pile of nearly twenty strips of rolled up paper. "They contain a modified version of the Light Magic spell, Distortion. Originally, it was meant to blur the visual outline of a person and make it more difficult for them to be targeted at range, but I've managed to alter the distortion field so that it causes light to bend around the target."

Mike took a moment to glance up at his party, quickly realizing that, with the possible exception of Morris who had a thoughtful look on his face, they had no idea what he was talking about. Scratching the back of his head, he explained more simply. "It will make you invisible."

"What in the hells?!" Sera exclaimed. "Isn't that supposed to be a high level Arcane spell?"

Tal and William looked at the scrolls with obvious interest, or at least that was the case with the latter of the two. Lily, on the other hand, was still focused on the potion she was holding. He hoped she didn't decide to drink it randomly out of curiosity.

"Maybe? I'm not too familiar with that magic system, so I suppose it's possible. However, I should mention that there are still a number of flaws to this spell. Someone paying close attention will see a distortion in the air as if they were looking through a poorly made window. Not to mention the fact that you'll technically be blind while using it, since it prevents visible light from reaching your eyes."

"Visible light?" Morris muttered quietly.

"Eh? So we'd be invisible, but basically helpless?" She continued.

He could see some of the enthusiasm of his party diminish. Evidently, the people of this world dreamed of invisibility as well.

"Unfortunately, yes. It will definitely keep you hidden, should that be your primary goal, but it can't do much more than that. Also, displacing that much light seems to be creating some rather unusual thermal effects. Using this spell in well lit conditions generates a lot of heat. Sometimes, especially when it's very bright outside, it can even cause small fires."

Morris, who had so far been listening carefully to the explanation, nodded. "Based on your description, I guess that it only operates in terms of visibility and does nothing to hide your presence from sensory skills, or prevent you from being detected by smell, sound, or touch. Is that right?"

Mike gave him a smile. "That's right. While it can certainly come in handy in certain circumstances, it is by no means an effective alternative to moving carefully. So, keep it's flaws in mind when using them."

"Got to say, I was hoping for a little bit more from one of the legendary spells." Sera grumbled while looking over the runes traced on one of the scrolls.

"As I said, it's something I'm still working on. True invisibility seems difficult to do with Light Magic alone, so I've been considering a few composite spells that might work better. When I have the time, I'll experiment with them."

[Yet another thing to work on. I really should start writing some of these down.]

"So what else do you have?" Morris asked, gesturing at the last item, a small strip of black cloth. "I'm guessing this is more than just a scarf?"

"Indeed!" Mike announced excitedly. "I'm actually quite proud of this. It's something I came up with after we had our late night conversation. Using silk harvested from the spiders that inhabit the screaming dark, combined with my newly acquired Tailoring skill, I was able to stitch arcane runes into the scarf as a means of enchanting it with Artifice."

He used Appraise to once again confirm the item's effects.

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Scarf of Obfuscation

Magic Item (Tier 2, Rank 2)

When worn, this scarf creates a subtle magic effect on observers, causing their attention to slip elsewhere. This state can only be maintained so long as the wearer avoids doing anything that would otherwise expressly alert others to their presence. The effectiveness of this item is limited by the Willpower and Tier of the individuals viewing the wearer, with Tier 3s and higher being immune.

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"This is still a prototype, of course, but it should allow you to conceal your presence while traveling. Think of it as a sort of passive stealth skill that makes it harder for others to notice you." He explained while holding it up for the others to see. "I only have one at the moment, but give me a day or so, and I should be able to make a few more."

"Combined with more mundane efforts of disguise, I think that should do nicely to prevent recognition from here on out." Morris said after some thought.

"That's something I can help with." Sera broke in proudly. "My mother taught me the basics of making disguises while we were on the run. I think I might still have a few of my old tools somewhere…" She began digging through her belt pouches.

"I believe I can assist Miss Seraphina in that regard." William added hesitantly. "I've been responsible for preparing my lady's makeup for many years now, so I should be able to help."

There was a strange reticence to his manner that Mike finally noticed. As if he were afraid of something. Perhaps he was feeling out of depth in this tense situation?

In any event, it was about time for them to move on. He didn't think there was much of a chance of someone following them from the city, but in this wide-open country, it would not take much effort for someone to notice their passage. A simple investigation would quickly lead any pursuers to this location.

"Alright, then with that we'll begin phase two of the plan I came up with on the way here."

The others gave him a look, but did not interrupt as he continued.

"For now, we'll be moving on foot towards our next destination, the Seaside Citadel, which should be a few kilometers that way." He motioned to the east where the ocean could be seen on the horizon. "Before we arrive, however, I plan on building a temporary base of operations with Earth Magic."

"If there are enemies searching for us, it would make sense to avoid inns." Morris commented. "They are the first place checked in these kinds of situations, although depending on the situation of the area surrounding the dungeon, we may need to get a room under an alias in order to avoid raising undue suspicion."

"What enemies?" Tal asked, breaking the silence she'd been holding for their entire trip.

"Ah, I didn't explain, did I?" Mike realized. "The Guildmaster tipped me off to the fact that an organization known as the Undying Court has taken an interest in us. At roughly the same time, I detected a faint source of hostility in our immediate surroundings that disappeared quickly. I feared that meant we were being followed by an enemy with some kind of stealth ability that I would have a hard time countering."

There was a few seconds of silence as they processed all that, before Morris spoke up. "The Undying Court is supposed to just be a myth, but if it actually exists, they could prove to be quite dangerous."

"Aren't they kind of like the bosses of the world's vampires or something?" Sera asked, obviously hoping that the bard would explain further.

"More like the shadowy rulers of all those varieties of undead that prey upon the living, of which vampires are only one of. While it's origins remain a mystery to non-members, I recall it being theorized that the Court arose as a sort of regulating body that prevented the undead from overstepping their bounds and provoking the wrath of the living kingdoms."

[So a bit like a game warden, I guess? Keeping the undead hunters from killing too many people and ruining the hunting grounds.]

"Alright, that's fair enough, but what would they want with us then?"

Morris looked uncertain. "I don't know enough to tell you. I've heard that the Court has factions which compete with one another for influence and power. It's possible they are looking to involve us in one of their schemes, or maybe Mike's presence is causing some kind of interference to their operations, or maybe they were just trying to keep an eye on a potentially disruptive element inside the city. I really can't tell you."

He lapsed into a regretful silence for a few seconds before glancing over at Mike. "Are you thinking this might have something to do with that attack outside Wyrport?"

"I'm not sure, but I am operating with that as a possibility."

"I see…"

"Hey…" Sera started. "What happened outside of Wyrport?"

Mike blinked for a second as his thoughts changed gears. "Ah, I suppose that was before I knew most of you. Do you remember the Day of Wrath?"

She stared at him with something approaching disappointment on her face. "...Yeah…"

"Well, that bolt of lightning was a product of me fighting off a vampire that tried to kidnap me."

She opened her mouth as if to say something, paused, and then closed it. Finally after a few seconds she added quietly. "You know, it's really my own fault for asking."

Perhaps sensing that the conversation was taking a darker turn, Tal stepped forward and placed a comforting hand on Sera's shoulder, before speaking to the rest of the group. "Should get moving."

"Right, let's start walking. The sooner we get going, the safer we'll be." Mike commented while gathering up the items he'd been showing off.

[Why do I feel like I'm forgetting something?]

"Um...if I may be so bold," William began tentatively, "what do you plan on doing with this terrifying..ahem...I mean majestic beast?"

He glanced back at the green scaled dragon who'd been quietly and patiently waiting on them.

"Ah...I forgot."