Chapter Ninety-Five

  With two dozen books, five assistants, and Bates sure to clear his throat if he felt the need to step in, Harmony was ready to look at her evolution options. There had been opportunities to check in the tower, and at the party, but here she could do it with the support and full attention of her friends. Guardrails for her own impulsivity

  Adric, Ambrosia, Hyacinth, Maxwell, and Len waited for the reveal. Lord Tyler looked like a kicked puppy when she’d invited Len instead of him. Not sober enough even with a magical cure-all. While not stupid, the brain behind the initial design of Night, as small armor, and the women's uniforms for the Coodly staff guaranteed his biases were different from hers. Len was fringe, but the evolved editor did have research experience and a solid work ethic. The goal was insights, not a debate.

  Choose your css and profession evolutions.

  She had everything, so why the hesitation?

  “Are you going to tell us what your css and profession options are?” Ambrosia asked for the second time, interrupting the long silence.

  Harmony opened herself to the options.

  Css- Demonic Devourer - Necrotuned Revivalist - Deadly Flesh Sculptor

  Profession - Aristocratic Keeper of Dwellings - Emergent Dutchess - Rigorous Royal Eraser

  Broken bones, that demon-css option was going to chase her forever. It at least made sense now to have the option again if what Ambrosia said was true about her soul strike and how [Cim the Remains of Power] ripped skills out, but with a name like demonic devourer one would think she’d have to eat ten babies. “Let’s start with the professions. Aristocratic Keeper of Dwellings, Emergent Duchess, and Rigorous Royal Eraser.”

  Books flew open. So You Wish to Be a Princess by Aurora was a comprehensive list of women and aristocratic paths of evolution. The Evolved Maid’s Handbook - Revised, covered domestic paths. Outliers - A Record of Unusual Evolutions and others created rustling sounds as her team flipped through the pages. It was good to have friends.

  “Duchess would put you one step below the queen as the next highest-ranked woman. I think the charter would require you to be appointed ruler of Hazeldown.” Adric started.

  Rule of Hazeldown, seat of the undead dungeon the perfect stereotypical box for a necromancer. The css would require city building or at least city management. Deal with the gang situation. Manage conflicting powers. So many meetings with people who want things the experience of Ma Bell’s table would be a fond recollection. [Poise and Bearing] suppressed a shudder. It would also pce her in an adjacent retionship with the queen. “Duchess is spelled with a T if that matters.” Harmony crified.

  Len in editor mode popped in. “That’s an archaic spelling. It’s valid, but not used commonly. Some spelling troll will probably have their head explode at it. Archaic is the trend I’m seeing here, I wish you’d invited Rosaline. I’m sure Hargreaves might have some insights.”

  Rose left before she could, and If she’d invited the Princess then it would have become a team activity and she couldn’t have left Lord Tyler out. There was the issue of the shove the princess had yet to broach. Joining the party was an acceptable step even if she left, but an actual apology would have been better. What next, invite Thorne or even Maekus because of their experience? This was supposed to be a personal choice with the input of only close friends and family if you wanted. Many chose to have no one to talk to. “We’ll make do. Can we explore the other options first?”

  Ambrosia pulled herself out of The Evolved Maid’s Handbook, “Keepers are all protectors, maintainers, cleaners of things, but ultimately Keeper of Dwellings is a fancy word for housekeeper.”

  Maxwell had So You Wish to be a Princess. “Aristocratic is simply an old pceholder for someone with authority that’s neither male nor female denoting. Royal is interesting. A royal shoemaker and many servant professions with that qualitative adjectives have authority, generally a small amount making them subservient to princes and princesses, but there are exceptions. A prince evolved into a royal warden. Got shipped off to an evolved finishing school, which he flunked out of. Years ter spent a few years as an interim ruler under the charter until a king or queen rose up.”

  “But what is an eraser, and any info on the effect of being emergent or rigorous?

  Harmony dove into the books too, hunting for any information that might tip the scales toward what would be the best fit. One of the answers was in the Grave Society texts. “An emergent necrotic caster's skills start weaker than a base necrotic caster but as the skill levels surpass level ten the skill's power and effectiveness pass that of the one without the adjective. It is estimated at level fifty as a skill from an emergent caster runs as though it is five levels higher than that of an equally leveled skill of someone without emergent. A highly desirable addition.” Harmony read for the rest of the team.

  Notes on rigorous came from a different source outside a standard dictionary of terms. A collection of diary excerpts talking about people's csses and skills called The Patnum Papers that Len had brought a copy because it was listed as a reference and source material for several restricted books talking about skills. “See. They change the information once it reaches publication. Going to the primary source is the best way to get what you need to know!” His fervent excitement marked possibly a bit of leakage from his new profession as a conspiracy theorist. A reminder of how important this choice was.

  Rigorous master tracker, I don’t know if this css is a blessing or a curse. I’ve spent months chasing my tail at hints others say don’t exist. Yet after all the others left I found her. Only eleven, not even old enough for her first choice, shivering and in shock while hiding in a crevasse half filled with mud to the point she was stuck. But she’d managed to escape the bandits when her family had not and somehow made it this far in her desperate bid to run away. A miracle driven by that damned stubbornness. Makes it worth all the trouble it gets me in.

  “Can anyone imagine Harm being more stubborn than she is now?” Ambrosia asked.

  Adric started to giggle.

  Using [Dust] and a little [Mend] to pull up a dirt clod. Harmony tossed it at the prince’s head.

  “Gweh. Gweh. Gweh.” Hycinth started his ugh. [Familiar Bond] made it clear it was at her and not the now dust-covered prince who hadn’t stopped giggling.

  “But imagine if it did make her more stubborn.” Maxwell insisted.

  “She’d still just be regur old Harm. Sometimes choices aren’t about making you into anything new and more of pointing out who you are.” Ambrosia answered dismissing the agent’s fear.

  That was a whole different debate around choices, evolution, and such. Another reason why the demonic devourer’s appearance sent her heart beating a little quicker and [Recall] reminding her of her bloody fingertips as she plucked skills from the would-be assassins on the seventh floor.

  “But what is an eraser as a profession? I’ve never heard of that one.”

  It wasn’t in the Encyclopedia of Professions, The Evolved Maid’s Handbook, or Outliers. The name didn’t sound like something that would be too unusual based on the word, one who removes.

  “One second, Lady White.” Bates interrupted everyone unprompted and left the room.

  It was actually several minutes before Bates returned with a small, but very old and worn book, Common Cleaning Aids for Stubborn Messes. “It was my mothers, she was a basic cleaner and never managed to evolve. It mostly talks about ingredients and skill combinations to handle difficult situations. It’s been years since I looked at it.” After a little searching, he found the spot to show Harmony. The pages were so old it looked like the book could have come from Lord Tyler’s collection if it wasn’t so simple a text. If all else fails, find an eraser. No one is better at removing stains, messes, problems, obstacles, and trouble. “I’m afraid that is the only mention of such a person in the book.

  “A curious description.” A cleaner. Bit of a downgrade from being a maid. But it certainly beats taking care of houses or cities. Someone always needed people to clean a mess, and at least it wouldn’t anchor her down anywhere. “I kind of like it.”