Flying in the past were I had found Bron and the others, I cast a wind resistant barrier around myself and accelerated. It was a pity that I couldn't measure my speed, because I felt like I could leave a jet behind if I pushed it.
Passing over the boy's path, I was shocked at how far they had made it. It would have taken the several days of walking through the wastes to get where they were and, somehow, they hadn't lost anyone. It was nothing sort of a miracle.
As I reached the edge of the wastes, I began to notice animals and monsters wandering around. The edge of the wastes were they had entered was a thick forest teeming with various monsters. I didn't notice any pursuers at the moment, but an idea began to form as I flew back. Stopping about twenty miles from the forest, I began to imagine in incredibly deep and long canyon.
"{Canyon Illusion}"
Before my eyes, the ground appeared to vanish as a canyon a mile across appeared before my eyes. To make sure, I also caused the opposite side to rise half a mile into the air. Illusions were a bit complicated, because a more skilled mage could potential perceive or lift the illusion. To help defend against this I made this illusion extends hundreds of miles in both directions. Also, I carefully tried to hide the magic power's signature by making it mimic the magic power that flowed naturally around this area. Hopefully, this would deter some of the more stubborn invaders, but if not, then it would I should notice if anyone broke through.
"That will do for now," I said, flying into the air and rapidly moving towards the mountain. "Lets see what happened during my absence."
As soon as I arrived, I cast 'invisibility' on myself and began checking on the boys. Almost immediately, I noticed that about five of them were missing. Casting a spell to find them, I was nicely surprised to find them making their way through the fifth floor of the mountain. They must have started walking quite a while ago because it was obvious that they were being extremely cautious and didn't really understand the layout of the tunnels.
"What did they want to talk about me so much that they would wander around the tunnels of a man that they don't know or trust?" I wondered as I touched down on the balcony.
I still hadn't managed to work out plumbing on any of the floors, so I figured that they would probably be tired when they arrived.
"{Create Glass}{Cold Water}{Ice}"
I created six glasses on a stone table and filled them with ice and water. Sipping at the water, I waited as for them on one of the chairs that I had made earlier. The magic was very convenient, but I still wasn't quite sure how to make something soft with the current materials. Thankfully, my current body was strong enough that I didn't get sore, but it did get tiring.
Finally, I noticed that they had arrived outside the door, but still hadn't knocked. After a couple of minutes, I walked over an opened it for them. The door made by my magic was perfectly balanced and didn't make a sound a it opened.
"I promise not to bite," I chuckled as I saw their fearful expressions. "Please come in and have a drink."
I turned around and walked back into the room. Sitting down in my chair, I watched as they hesitated in the doorway. They all stared at Bron, waiting for him to make the first move. He, in turn, stared at me, while I could see his thoughts clashing violently in his eyes. After several minutes the five of them entered and sat down in the chairs that had been arranged in a semi-circle across from me.
"{Levitation}"
As I gestured, the glasses of ice water floated from the table to hover in front of each of them. Once again, each of them hesitated while staring at Bron for the signal to move. It was obvious that they deeply trusted the boy. Just what had they been through to build such a deep trust between them?
I was a little envious of their relationship. Even before I had died, I hadn't really had anyone that I could rely on. I had been orphaned at a young age and then passed from one relative to another before finally being put in foster care. I had waited full of anticipation to become a legal adult so that I could leave, Who knew that I would die less than a month before and be sent to another world?
"I promise that there is nothing in them," I coaxed as I sipped from my own recently refilled glass.
"Even still," Bron said, attempting to politely reject them.
Shrugging my shoulders, I waved them back to the table.
"So, to what do I owe the pleasure of you company?" I asked curiously. "I had honestly thought that you would avoid entering this place for a lot longer."
"We were planning on steering clear until we were well enough to leave," Bron stated frankly.
"What changed your mind?" I asked in an even tone. To be honest though, his words smarted a bit.
"We knew that we would likely die in the wastes, but you rescued us, then healed the injured and sick," Bron said, listing everything that he had noticed. "Finally, you even created living quarters for us without being noticed by our guards."
"Honestly, I still fail to see your point. I don't think any of those things would have been enough to bring you here," I admitted. Sure, I had helped them, but I knew better than many that people would often try to hide their ulterior motives behind kind words and actions.
"Lets just say, that we have our reasons to believe that you are who you present yourself as," Bron said attempting to avoid my unasked question.
For just a moment, I noticed his eyes flicking to Tyler's face, who I had noticed in the group earlier. If I hadn't been looking for it, I might have missed it. Tyler, on the other hand, had his eyes focused on me throughout the entire conversation. Just what did you see with your 'sight'?
"Fine then," I said, accepting their words for now. "And what would you like to discuss?"
"I would like you to shelter us here," Bron declared, bowing his head to me. The others were quick to follow his example. Why did everyone on this planet keep bowing their heads to me?!?!?