This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/hfy by /u/KyleKKent on 2024-10-30 22:50:07+00:00.

First

Weight of Dynasty

“Honestly, I cannot eat any more. My stomach is literally full. There is no more room.”

“But there’s still more on your plate.” His mother protests.

“You kept piling it up. I’m a half mouthful from things hurting.”

“But baby.”

“No.”

“Oh come on little brother… a little more? You’re so skinny.”

“No.” He says standing firm.

“Just a bit…” Another starts to wheedle him then people have to resist the urge to jump as there’s suddenly a hawk on his shoulder and he holds up his plate for the beast to savage a half dumpling before vanishing. Then another appears and finishes it off.

“Where did that come from!?” Cali’Flynn asks as the hooked beak and sharped clawed animals keep appearing and disappearing to eat right off of Arden’Karm’s plate and clear it. Followed by a shelled mammal creature snuffling around and clearing away the scraps that the hard beaks wouldn’t be able to pluck so easily. Then it too vanishes.

“Where indeed.” Arden’Kar teases.

“You’re literally controlling animals to not have to eat more?” His mother asks in a concerned tone.

“I don’t have to command them to eat safe and tasty food. It’s free food to them. Nor do I have to control them to keep them calm. They know from me it’s safe here, no one in this room is going to start hunting them. We have fed and our larders are nearly full.”

“Could we please get back to little Arden randomly pulling animals out of thin air to clean off his plate and avoid eating more?” Hrana’Ilar asks pointing at him.

“That is a very dramatic pose.” Arden mutters in the moment of silence beforehand.

“Did you not tell them girls?” Valari’Karm asks.

“I wanted to see the looks on their faces!” Is the general answer and Arden leans back in his seat and shakes his head.

“Really?”

“Yes!”

He shrugs before looking from Cali’Flynn to Hrana’Ilar to Shar’Uran to Lali’Yavar to Marla’Xeran. Shrugging again.

“You’ve heard the stories of The Dark Forest and it’s terrible Sorcerers yes? Men vanish during a tragedy to return years later as a force of nature hellbent on causing as much damage as possible to avenge it right? Old fashioned homeworld stories about the times where the average Apuk smelled of arson and blood.” Arden says before taking a sip. That was the most he’d said in one go in… A very long time. And it wasn’t even close to enough. Damnit.

Thankfully his mother is willing to pick up the slack. “Arden didn’t simply walk back without warning. We were attacked. All of us. We’re not totally sure why. The group responsible was tricked by an outside party, and thankfully no one is dead on any side so there’s no one looking for revenge. But when we were attacked. A huge dust storm swept in, and we heard Arden speaking through it. Warning them off.” And when they wouldn’t listen, he shot the weapons right out of their hands. Never missed a shot, and none of us were so much as bruised.”

“That’s incredible but why did you bring up Sorcerers? The storm sounds convenient and using Axiom to shout is smart, but…”

Arden’Karm holds out his hand and ‘dust’ gathers in his palm from nothingness. It then rises up and starts coiling around him and then comes to rest in the palm of his other hand.

“It’s not dust. These are seeds.” He says before causing it to form a dust cloud above and then… his gun drops out of it and he catches it lightly. “And I’ve upgraded my gun. I shoot with The Forest.”

“But they… that…” Cali’Flynn tries to find words.

“So cool…” Marla’Xeran says with wide eyes. Which is understandable, a lot of the classical songs and remixes of them she led were Sorcerer inspired when they didn’t come from the exploits of Battle Princesses. There had even been some arguments between her and Shar’Uran as to who would sing about The Bonechewer when he came up.

They had split the difference and led it in a duet.

“But… don’t Sorcerers only come from terrible things happening?”

“Not necessarily. You have to ask for help and accept it. Fully. Right down to the depths of your soul. Deep. In those places you don’t talk about. You have to let it in there.” He explains before taking another sip. He doesn’t really need it. But it lets him stop talking for a bit. “That’s what makes a Sorcerer. You connect so deep that the question of the difference between you and it is… hard to answer. Normally only the desperate do that.”

“Hence why the classics are all… wait, what about the legends that The Forest Never Forgets? We remixed that not long ago.”

“It’s true. I made the connection to the newer forest, but it’s connected to the older one. I flash learned Ancient and Classical Cindertongue in all it’s dialects.”

“We need you on stage.” Marla’Xeran says with her eyes wide.

“What?”

“You can speak in Ancient and Classical right?”

“Yes?”

“AND you can command animals and plants as a Sorcerer right?”

“Oh goddess you’re right! It’s perfect! He’d be the perfect guest singer! Get some practice in and a mysterious ‘extra’ microphone to have him suddenly appear in a burst of flowers to start singing ominously in Ancient Cindertongue!? I can see it now!”

“That’s a bit much…”

“But it would be so cool!”

“I’ve watched what concerts look like. An entire crowd of people screaming at me? … Don’t you have to do awful things then die before going to the bad place?”

“It’s not that bad! Here, we use these.” Cali’Flynn says as she reaches into her jacket and pulling out a hot pink pair of headphones. “They’re noise cancelling. Here.”

He lets her put them on him and she presses a button hid in the insect designs on the side. The room becomes very, very quiet. She then leans back and starts clapping her hands as if giving applause and Arden’Karm has to look around to see just how fast the rest of the room has joined her.

Everyone’s clapping and he can barely hear a thing. He lowers the headphones after it dies off and hands them back.

“If that kind of sound cancelling is on the table… why not? I didn’t get stronger by being shy, I got it by being bold.”

“That’s the spirit!”

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The Compound had reached 92% completion. The AI turned it’s attention to finding it’s appropriate method of delivery. The purpose was not mass death. Mass death was simple. Mass death would accomplish it’s goals but was not appropriate.

Restrictiosn did not apply to creatures catagorized as animals or plants. Therefor a creature defined as an amalgam of plants and animals was an acceptable target. Rarity would ensure outrage. Would ensure.

The basic AI brushed against a Search Algorithm AI. The two logic trees exchanged data for a moment. The Sabotage based AI received new data. Important data.

Apuk are a form of animal. Tret are a form of animal. All known species of person are also technically heavily mutated animals.

It adjusts it’s targeting parameters. The environment is now target rich.

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“…and while there are risks to having Sorcerers around there’s also benefits. There may be a whole horror genre based around telling and retelling what Brin’Char has done, but his actions have driven criminal organizations deep underground and kept them from EVER making too big a spectacle of themselves. And the ones bold enough to are usually stupid enough to take up the old name of The Orega Girls and the madman goes off again like a bomb and the criminals of Serbow are scared again.”

“And I suppose things calmed down in a hurry when The Judge emerged a decade early from his trip to the forest and was able to stop the attack before things went to far.” Queen Margat states.

“Exactly. I understand it can feel… unpleasant to lose control of a chunk of your territory. It’s yours after all. However, in this case you’re gaining an area almost impossible for enemies to move through unless you have made an enemy of it. All territories that border The Dark Forest consider it effectively an impassable defence from that direction. To say nothing of the fact that there isn’t a single one that isn’t some kind of successful businessman. The Bonechewer’s Courier Service is one of the best on Serbow. Dreadmoss has a personal brewing operation with a class of wine so high that gifting one to a Duchess or even the Imperial Family for a particularly good bottling is considered a very well thought out gift.”

“To say nothing of the military security.”

“Right you are. Many armies get understandably… cautious if they’re in an area known to have a sorcerer living there. Some will even opt to simply go around.”

“Surely the homeworld isn’t so… volatile.” Queen Margat says and he shakes his head. “Oh good.”

“No as in… it can be. It waxes and wanes. Generally attacking another openly is only done when one is absolutely certain, then everyone ducks down for a time as The Empress does not approve.”

“Something protecting you and your family even now I assume.”

“It’s even easier than that good Queen, my opponents are trying to simply take things in a bloodless subversion or coup. The problem is that if the target is wise to such things, they’re almost impossible.” Hart’Ghuran states before grinning. “But we’re a little off topic, you wish to…”

Hart’Ghuran is cut off from further explaining when one of Queen Margat’s secretaries rushes in. Bows quickly and then rushes up…

Content cut off. Read original on https://old.reddit.com/r/HFY/comments/1gfzpeu/oocs_into_a_wider_galaxy_part_150/