Birgit

  Birgit woke to someone shaking her.

  “Wake up, Birgit, it is time for your watch."

  She recognized Uma's voice whispering and opened her eyes. Light from the campfire filtered in through the open tent flap, and by the faint illumination, Birgit saw the face of Niles alarmingly close to her own. She gasped and pulled back, sitting up quickly.

  “Are you alright?” Uma whispered.

  Birgit took a calming breath. “I was just startled. I am fine.”

  Looking back over at Niles, she saw he was still asleep. She knew he had set up his bedroll next to hers. It was only fitting that he sleep between her and the edge of the tent. He was her guardian, after all, and there was not that much room in the tent. He must have just rolled over in his sleep. It was not like he had wrapped her up as Susi had done to him. Still, it was rather frightening to be lying so close to such a brute. He had yet to give her any reason to fear him, but would that remain the case if she failed to return him home soon?

  Uma stepped back out of the tent, leaving Birgit to wake Niles.

  “Niles,” Birgit hissed quietly from outside his reach, but he did not stir. She did not dare speak any louder for fear of waking Hilaria, who had already finished her watch and was sleeping on the other side of the tent. Tentatively, she reached over and poked Niles in the shoulder, quietly calling his name again, before pulling quickly back. He shifted slightly, but did not wake. Once again, she leaned in and whispered his name and poked him a little more forcefully before pulling back quickly.

  “Uhhh, Cynthia…” Niles grumbled, and he rolled from his side onto his back, but his eyes remained closed, his face now scrunched into what she thought was an annoyed expression.

  Who or what was Cynthia?

  Birgit waited a long moment. Niles seemed no closer to waking up, and his face relaxed back to a neutral expression. Birgit reached in one more time. This time, she placed her hand on his shoulder and shook him.

  Niles eyes shot open, and he looked around wildly, his face contorting into a terrifying visage. Birgit froze, and his hand shot up, grabbing her wrist in a viselike grip. She gasped, and the sound caught his attention. His gaze locked on her, and his eyes went wide. Letting go of her hand, he shrank back, almost as if he was afraid of her.

  After a moment, he shook his head, and his expression calmed. “Oh, it’s you, Birgit. Is it time for our watch?”

  “Ye…yes,” Birgit stuttered, her heart still hammering.

  Birgit retreated toward the tent flap, only to remember she had removed her boots and surcoat to sleep. She had to return and quickly put them on, as Niles got up and did the same. At least he had not slept in that outfit from his home plane again.

  Niles finished first and led the way out of the tent with his spear in hand. Seeing it made Birgit glad he had only grabbed her wrist.

  “Everything alright out here?” Niles asked Mona as he approached.

  The gorgon yawned and stretched. “No sign of any trouble, just the usual night birds, and such.”

  “Sleep well, then,” Niles offered with a smile. “We’ll see you in the morning.”

  Uma dismissed her guardian familiar and climbed into the tent, with Mona right behind. Niles prowled around the edge of the camp, just inside the spell perimeter, looking out into the night, before returning to where Brigit stood by the fire.

  “I’m sorry I grabbed you like that," Nile said, still looking out into the night. I’ve got to get better at waking up. First Susi, and now you. It’s just so disorienting waking up here. I was dreaming that I was back home, and when you woke me up, I didn’t know where I was.”

  “It is alright,” Birgit said, studying Niles. He really did seem apologetic. “Was it a good dream?”

  “No, not really,” Niles said softly, his expression turning grim.

  Birgit was curious, but his expression dissuaded her from pursuing the topic, so they watched the night in silence for a long stretch.

  “How likely do you think it is that we’ll run into monsters out here?” Niles asked, startling Birgit as he broke the silence.

  “That will depend on how recently this area was searched for crystals,” Birgit answered. “If other hunters have been through recently, then we will probably not find any, but we will probably find few, if any, crystals as well. The longer it has been since crystals were gathered here, the more likely we are to find crystals that have been growing for some time. And crystals can taint the surrounding wildlife over time and even attract other-planar horrors if they become potent enough. The monsters will stay near the crystals, though, and there are none near enough to the camp for our detectors to pick up, so we should be safe enough here. We probably will not really know how dangerous this area is until we begin the hunt.”

  They lapsed into silence again, but after a shorter interval, Niles spoke again. “I know you have been busy since I arrived, but when do you think you can start working on finding a way to get me home?”

  He did not sound angry, but Birgit chose her answer carefully. “I will start my research once we get back to the academy. This week for certain, but I should warn you, it may take some time.”

  “How much time?” Niles asked, turning his gaze to her.

  Birgit studied his gaze, but it was studiously neutral. “There is no way to know for sure. There are three things I will need to get you home. The first is the elemental signature of your plane. Each plane has a unique signature. Once I have that, I can create a spell to open a gate there. If the academy library contains some reference to your people that contains that signature, then all I have to do is find it. If it does not, then I will have to widen my search, and that will take much longer. The second thing I will need could be far trickier. Since you cannot travel between planes as other familiars can, I will need to discover a way to create a portal you can travel through, and that will require me to discover much more about your nature. The fact that you can see magic, resist lightning, and heal exceptionally fast gives me hope that you have access to some form of magic, but its nature is quite unlike anything I have ever seen, so it may take some study. The third thing should be the easiest to obtain, but could potentially be the most time-consuming, and that is gathering the spell components I will need to cast the spell to send you home.”

  “But are we talking days, weeks…” Niles pressed.

  Birgit took a step back, trying to make it seem like she was just shifting her stance. “If I am lucky and the information I need is in the library, I should be able to find it in only a few weeks. I suspect finding a way for you to travel between planes will be more complex. That will take research and experimentation and could take anywhere from a month to several months. Gathering up enough money to afford the components for a spell to send you home could take some time as well. It took me well over a year to earn enough to afford the components for the spell to bring you here. I suspect the spell to send you back will be equally expensive.”

  Niles scowled. “So you’re saying I’m stuck here working for you for over a year?”

  “It might not take that long with you helping me gather crystals,” Birgit replied quickly.

  “I think we are going to have to renegotiate our financial arrangement, then.” Niles said, his expression stern. “If I’m helping you make money, I want a good portion of it set aside for me. I’m not working to put you through school only to have you change your mind about sending me home once you have what you want.”

  “Of course, that is only fair.” The vehemence in his words surprised Birgit. Since that first night, where he’d been understandably agitated, he’d seemed fairly docile, but now his gaze was positively terrifying. Under that withering glare, she decided to try to change the topic. “What is Cynthia?” Niles' brows knit in confusion, so Birgit quickly explained. “You said that while I was trying to wake you.”

  Niles looked back out into the night. “Oh.” He paused for so long that Birgit thought he would answer, but then he continued. “She’s my ex-girlfriend.”

  The term was unfamiliar to Birgit, and her curiosity got the better of her. “What does that mean?”

  Niles let out a long sigh. “We were romantically involved, but it ended a few months ago.”

  Birgit waited, but Niles said no more, nor did he even look in her direction. His expression was grim as their vigil stretched on in silence. Birgit wondered if her curiosity had pushed him too far. This Cynthia seemed to be a sore subject. He had not called her a wife or consort, but he had said they were romantically linked. Did that mean they were betrothed, or had it been some sort of illicit affair? Did Niles’ people even practice marriage? Given the scandalous clothes he had arrived in, perhaps his people were more free with their affections than the people of Deca.

  Birgit distracted herself by rechecking all the spells she had ready on her jewelry, wands, and staff to make sure they were all in perfect condition and ready to cast. Niles looked formidable, but Birgit wanted to be ready in case they encountered something he could not handle. She hoped they would not. Each of the pre-cast spell items represented at least a few silvers’ worth of materials that would be consumed if she cast them.

  Once she had determined all her spells were ready, Birgit checked on the warding spells they had placed on the camp to make sure they were all still active. Niles followed her as she made a circuit of the wards, keeping watch, his spear ready, so at least it appeared he still planned to protect her. All the wards were still undisturbed and ready, and Birgit returned to the center of the camp, with Niles not far behind.

  Stolen story; please report.

  Birgit’s mind kept returning to this, Cynthia, wanting to ask more about the ex-girlfriend. Niles must have been dreaming about her, but he said his dream had not been pleasant. Had she died? But if she had, would he not have said she passed away then, rather than saying their relationship ended? Birgit wondered if she was just curious, or did she think that learning more would help understand Niles better? She had thought he was enjoying himself, but he clearly still wanted to go home. That was understandable, of course. But if she found a way for him to return home, could he, or even would he, return to her? Did she dare stall to make sure she did not return him until after she graduated? Dawn arrived, bringing light to the sky but no more clarity to Birgit’s dilemma.

  Birgit built up the fire and began making some porridge for them all to share for breakfast, and heated water for tea. Niles helped her, but was still keeping quiet. When the others woke and joined them, he greeted them all in a friendly fashion before excusing himself to go wash up down at the stream.

  “Will Niles be staying with you until we return to the academy?” Uma asked.

  “Yes, I thought that would be safest,” Birgit answered. She felt bad misleading her friends, but saw no other option. “That does not bother you, does it?”

  “Oh, not at all,” Hilaria purred.

  Birgit followed the gnoll’s gaze and saw Niles had taken off his shirt to wash. Hilaria was openly staring.

  “He certainly has quite a physique,” Mona added. She was watching him as well.

  “Just what did you offer to get him to spend so much time here?” Hilaria asked. “From what Professor Spinner taught us, other-planar entities usually are very stingy with their time.”

  Birgit’s mind raced. She didn’t want to lie, but she needed to come up with something believable. “Well, the usual access to our magic, of course, magic is scarce on his plane, and gold. Gold is very valuable to him.”

  “How much gold did you offer him?” Hilaria asked.

  “Well, only two small gold to start, but…” Brigit started to answer, only to be cut off.

  “That is all?” Hilaria gasped. “I wish I had a hu.”

  “Well, that is just to start,” Birgit clarified quickly. “I will be giving him a percentage of the profits from the crystals he helps me collect as well.”

  “That makes sense,” Uma agreed.

  “I suspect that is not the only reason he is staying around so much,” Hilaria said, and Birgit froze. “I think he likes you.” The gnoll turned and gave her a mischievous smile. “I noticed his bedroll was awfully close to yours last night. It must be nice to have such a big, handsome guardian around all the time.”

  “Hilaria, behave,” Uma scolded, but then laughed. Mona and Hilaria did as well, so did Birgit, hoping her laughter didn’t sound as nervous to them as it did her.

  After breakfast, they packed up their campsite and prepared to begin their hunt. They would leave their camping gear and supplies here to pick up later, as they planned to move on once they had swept through the valley and camp somewhere else come nightfall. Uma and Hilaria re-summoned their guardian familiars, and the three students spread out across the valley. Birgit took the right side, Uma took the left, and Hilaria stuck to the center. The valley was not wide, so they would all be within hearing of each other, should they need aid.

  Holding the crystal resonance detector in nervous hands, Birgit set out with Niles leading the way. She fervently hoped this valley was remote enough that no one had been here for some time. Birgit’s funds were almost completely tapped out, so she desperately needed this to be a profitable crystal hunt, especially if she was going to have to split the profits with Niles.

  Directing Niles to travel in a serpentine pattern, Brigit planned to cover the most possible ground, giving the detector the greatest chance of finding crystals. They had not traveled far at all when the crystal began glowing faintly.

  “I have a contact,” Birgit reported excitedly. It was an excellent sign that they had found a crystal so quickly. “It is off in that direction.”

  “Oh, I see it,” Niles said, looking in the direction she was pointing.

  “What? How can you see it already?” Birgit asked incredulously.

  The detector had only just picked it up, and from the faint glow of the device's crystal, that meant it was at least ten paces away. Even with the detectors pointing the way, the little crystals were notoriously hard to spot. Usually, they ended up walking past a crystal a few times before finding it.

  “It’s right there in the shadow of that big rock,” Niles said, walking forward.

  Birgit saw the shadow, but it hid whatever lay inside. “I cannot see anything.”

  Niles turned to look at her. “Is this like magic, then? You can’t see that purple glow?”

  “No, I cannot.” Birgit admitted.

  “It’s probably a dark crystal, since that’s the color of dark magic,” Niles mused. “Makes sense, I guess, since it’s in a place that probably never sees sunlight.”

  As Birgit followed Niles forward, the glow of the detector crystal increased. Reaching into the shadow, Niles pulled out a crystal the size of his thumbnail. It was a deep purple, which was the color of a dark element crystal, though to Birgit, it did not glow.

  “That is a dark magic crystal, and a medium-sized one at that,” Birgit announced. “But wait, the detector crystal’s glow is fading. It is almost like the crystal is getting farther away.”

  “That’s weird, the magic glow coming off this crystal is fading, too,” Niles said.

  “Quickly, drop it,” Birgit ordered.

  Niles did as directed, and as soon as the crystal left his hand. The glow in the detector stabilized.

  “Do crystals get drained of their magic when you touch them?” Niles asked.

  “Not when most people touch them,” Birgit answered, reaching down to pick up the crystal. It was a noticeably lighter color than it had been when Niles first held it up.

  “Sorry,” Niles said sheepishly. “I didn’t ruin it, did I?”

  Birgit took out a magnifying lens and carefully examined the crystal. “You drained some of the magic from it somehow, but it is still a good crystal.”

  “How much do you think we can get for it?” Niles asked.

  “Well, there are four factors that determine the price of a crystal: color, purity, size, and type,” Birgit explained, as she continued her examination of the crystal. “The size grades are small, medium, large, and grand. Crystals grow over time, so the larger it is, the older it is. This one is medium-sized, so it has likely been here for at least a couple of years. Purity reflects the quality of the crystalline structure, and each crystal is graded as flawed, rough, clear, or pristine. I would gauge this one at only rough purity. Type refers to the elemental type, and dark is a common element. Color represents the concentration of magic in the crystal. As a crystal is used, its color fades. They become clear once the magic is completely drained. The color grades are light, middling, strong, and vibrant. This is still at least a middling color, so you did not drain it completely. We should be able to sell it for at least a large silver.”

  “Is that good?”

  “Considering how quickly we found it, that is excellent.” Birgit answered happily. “Unless the last hunters missed this one, that indicates this area has not been searched for a couple of years, maybe more.”

  “I wonder if I can see any more?” Niles said and quickly climbed up on top of the big rock that had hidden the crystal in its shadow. “Ha, there’s one over there in that old tree. It’s glowing gold, though, so I’m not sure what type of magic that is.”

  Birgit gasped. “If the glow matches the crystal color, like the dark one, then that could be a time crystal. Those are very rare and valuable.”

  “I’ll let you pick this one up, then,” Nile said, hopping off the big rock and landing smoothly beside her. “Come on.”

  Birgit followed, and it was several paces before her detector indicated that there was crystal ahead. Niles led her to a gnarled old tree growing on and around a pair of large rocks, its roots nearly covering the boulders entirely. Niles pointed out a spot about ten feet up in the trunk where a glittering golden crystal was embedded in the rough bark.

  As they approached the tree, a loud, agitated chittering assaulted them. Looking up, Birgit saw a squirrel sitting on a branch just above the crystal. She could tell at once it was no ordinary animal. I was the size of a large house cat, with teeth and claws that were disproportionately large, even for a beast of that size. Its black fur was shot through with gold, and it glared at them with large, golden eyes.

  “Is that what squirrels are supposed to look like in your world?” Niles asked.

  “No, that is most definitely a tainted animal.” Birgit answered. “We will need to be very careful. It will not let us take the crystal.”

  “Well, I hate to just kill it, though,” Niles said.

  Suddenly, the creature became a blur of speed. Racing down the tree. It rushed at them. Niles stepped in front of Birgit, and the creature leapt at him. He had no time to employ his spear, and the beast landed on his arm, biting and clawing. Niles growled in pain and waved his arm violently. The creature flew off, becoming a blur again once it landed on the ground and ran back to the tree, where it perched and chittered at them again. The creature had only been on Niles’ arm for a second, but his sleeve had been shredded, and blood covered his arm.

  “Gaahh,” Niles snarled. “I take it back, let's kill that overgrown tree rat.”

  “Be careful,” Birgit cautioned. “It must be using time magic to speed itself up.”

  “Yeah, I got that,” Niles grumbled, just as the squirrel blurred down the tree again.

  Once more, it charged toward Niles and leapt at him, but this time, it seemed like Niles blurred as well. He caught the speeding rodent by the tail, spun around, and dashed it on a rock faster than Birgit’s eyes could clearly follow. There was a loud crack as gore painted the rock.

  “Let’s see you scamper now, varmint,” Nile grumbled, letting go of the shattered remains of the tainted animal.

  “That… that was amazing,” Birgit gasped. “How did you do that?”

  Niles shrugged. “I’m not sure. It just kind of slowed down there at the end. It must have run out of time magic.”

  That is not what Birgit thought she had seen, but it had all happened so fast she could not be sure. “Here, let me take a look at your arm.”

  “Wait, where’s Ruby?” Niles began frantically feeling around at his neck, where the little elemental usually rested.

  “Relax, Ruby must have just returned to her plane.” Birgit assured Niles. “She is a very friendly elemental, but not a very brave one. I am sure she will be back soon.”

  As if on cue, the little life elemental appeared on Birgit’s shoulder. Ruby felt heavier than usual, likely because she had been spending so much time on Niles that Birgit had gotten used to not carrying her everywhere. Walking over to Niles, Birgit took out her waterskin and began washing off his arm. As soon as she was close enough, Ruby hopped back over to Niles and once again curled around his throat.

  Some of the scratches and bites on Niles arm must have been deep for there to have been so much blood, but as Birgit washed the blood away, she saw that all the wounds were already closing as if they’d been healing for days already, and they continued to heal as she watched. By the time she retrieved bandages from her pack, she saw they would not be needed.

  Birgit gave Niles a quizzical look when she heard him chuckle. “What?”

  “This is not exactly how I pictured my first battle with a monster going. How am I going to brag about this?” Switching to a comical voice, he puffed out his chest and spoke grandly. “Yes, but it was a very vicious and fast squirrel.” Birgit couldn't help but laugh as well.

  With the crystal's defender out of the way, Niles boosted her up enough so that she could carefully pry the crystal free. Birgit marveled at his strength. He had simply squatted and formed a stirrup with his hands. As soon as she placed her foot in his hands, he simply stood up and raised his hand up to his chin, as if she weighed nothing at all. It was a giddy and terrifying experience to be handled so effortlessly.

  The crystal was medium-sized, like the last, but this one had a strong color, and its purity was at least clear, maybe even pristine. Birgit was sure it would be worth several gold. This one crystal was worth more than she had earned in the last two or three hunts, and the morning was only just beginning.