"Soloman. Soloman wake up!"
A soft female voice woke me up.
Memories of the owner of the voice were vague, but the face I saw was one I would never forget.
"Beautiful" I unconsciously said aloud.
She giggled and the face I was staring at so enamoredly, changed, it was Talon's mother. She looked a lot better than she did the day before, it seemed that a good rest in a clean environment, along with taking her medication, had improved her health immensely. She was still far from being comparable to that woman I saw before I woke up, however she was now a beautiful middle aged woman.
Speaking of that woman, her name was Altaier, but the rest of the memories I had of her were not so clear. She wore a flowing white toga, however the symbols on it were blurred. Almost like they were censored. I didn't know where she was from, or how I knew her, but I knew that I now had memories that were not my own.
'Soloman... The King of kings. An ancient being who lived for billions of years, alongside other Gods, however he suddenly disappeared from existence. Nowhere to be found, and forgotten in the annals of history. What happened to you...'
"You were such a sweet talker when you woke up, and now you're ignoring that we exist." Talon's mother said as she covered her mouth, trying to hide her laugh.
"Ah, I am sorry. I was lost in thought. I had a really vivid dream, so I was a little out of it when I woke up. You look much better, I must say, I guess they don't call it 'beauty sleep' for nothing." I smiled, and rose from my bed. I stopped as I walked by a mirror, and I inspected myself. My eyes were a golden hue, with specks of purple swirling within them. Almost imperceptible if one were not of keen eye. However something felt odd, I don't remember my eyesight being this good?
As I looked at myself, I noticed I could see a transparent blue square when I looked at myself, and when I tried to focus on it a screen enlarged in my vision. It was similar to a status screen I would see when I played video games in my old world. I could clearly see my stats, and honestly I wasn't too impressed.
[Merlin Soso
Might: 1
Speed: 2
Magic: 0
Talent: Assassination]
'Maaaan, what the fuck was this?! I was capable of Magic? This was a fantasy world! Sword and MAGIC! I wasn't too upset about my only talent being Assassination right now, because Talents worked differently in this world than typical games or novels. Having a talent meant you were a genius in all things related to that talent field. Meaning I would, with time and practice, become unparalleled in Assassination.
This is where Techniques came in, a Technique was just that, a technique I learned. My boxing technique meant I knew how to box to a beginner proficiency, however that did not mean I was talented. I was, for lack of a better word, not good at it. It would take me tremendous effort to reach even mediocrity.
Thankfully this system of mine seemed to be compensating for my shortcomings. This system was... Peculiar. It wanted me to interfere with the plot, and it continued to give me the abilities to do so. I didn't know for what reason though? In my world, the novel was completed, meaning there was already a set ending, however here I was directly changing it.
This meant that I was going down uncharted territory, because I wouldn't know what my interference would change. I looked away from my reflection, and looked closely at Talon. I wanted to look at his stats.
[Talon Derringer
Might: 1
Speed: 1
Magic: .5
Talent: Martial Arts]
So he was truly talented in all forms of martial arts, it was almost a steal that I was able to gain his loyalty so early, but I needed him. Later in the novel, things got really violent, and I wanted to increase my chances of surviving as much as possible.
Talon seemed to have felt my gaze, so he turned towards me.
"Thank you again, for helping me, Sir. I will make sure to pay you back, however I will be honest that I do not have a lot of money..."
Talon looked really dejected, I felt sorry for the kid.
"My name is Merlin, you can just call me Merlin, don't call me sir. I'm the same age as you." to this, Talon's eyes went wide.
"You're the same age as me? I am surprised, you're just so... Mature, and the way you dealt with those thugs yesterday.. Can you... Can you teach me?" His eyes sparkled as he asked me, however I shook my head.
"I am only a beginner, I have no talent. However, do you know where you can learn? The Academy. I will be attending this year, so you'll need to join now."
"How can I gain the qualifications to join? If it's for the sake of gaining power to defend myself and my mom... I'll do anything." Talon had resolve plastered on his face. He did not look like the naive kid he usually did, I saw a glimpse of that crazy Aura that was described in the novel. He meant it when he said he would do anything.
"We need money. Money, unfortunately, solves everything. I know you don't have any, but I know how to make money." I looked over, and Talon was listening very carefully. "You know your way around the slums right?"
Talon nodded his head furiously. "I know my way around the slums! Is there something you're looking for?"
"Not something, someone. Ally Finge. She doesn't go by that name but she is a woman who has brown hair, she's around 4 ft 11, and she is clearly not from the slums. She might try to blend in, but anyone from the slums can tell she's not. Does that ring a bell?"
Talon began to think carefully, combing through his memories of all the people he has run into. The slums were large, with many people who hid themselves away from society for many reasons, so it was a difficult task. However after a few minutes of thinking, he shook his head.
"I'm sorry Merlin, I don't know anyone who fits that description... I can ask around if you need."
"Its okay, and yes, you'll need to go looking for her. However, not by yourself, it's dangerous in the slums. I'll travel with you, I just need you to take me around to people who we can ask for information."
"Merlin, what is so special about this woman that you are willing to spend time looking for her in the slums? And how will she make us money?" No matter how much Talon thought about it, he couldn't guess what importance she held.
"Hahah. No one knows of her, but she has a talent for making magical artifacts. She is the only one who can in this Era, so she is invaluable. She doesn't know she possesses this talent, so we must get her before she is known around the world, and others come trying to snatch her away." I walked past Talon, and headed to the kitchen. When I got there, I grabbed two pieces of toast, spread some jelly on them, and left the house with Talon behind me.
Taking a bite of the food, my eyes grew a little wide.
"Talon, did your mother make this jam?" to which Talon nodded with a smile on his face.
"My mother is an amazing cook, she just hasn't been able to work because of her illness... It continues to drain her energy, and we can only afford one treatment a month. However it never fully goes away.. I think the alchemists who make the medicine don't truly have any intention of curing her, rather they only make medicines that treat the symptoms. This way they can bleed us dry, forever..."
I nodded. That was indeed the same as in my world. The field of pharmaceuticals was corrupt, and rarely about healing. It was a for profit industry and it had bothered me in my past life. I knew a few talented alchemists and herbalists in this world, so I would later do what I could to change the way things worked in any way I could.
Talon led me around the slums, to friends and acquaintances of his, to ask about Ally Finge. After an hour of asking around, we still had no leads, and it was beginning to weigh on us. It was around this time that Talon was talking to an old street salesman, that I noticed a woman flinching nearby. I thought it was nothing big, however my instincts told me that it was because she overheard Talon.
'Is this my talent for assassination? Noticing such a small detail and reading body language? It's possible.' I tapped Talon on the shoulder, and began to walk towards the woman.
As we approached, I got a better look at her. She was wearing a large hooded robe, however I could see strands of brown hair underneath the hood. She was a younger woman, around 20 years old, and she was incredibly short.
I walked up next to where she was standing, which was a fruit vendor's stall, where she had a basket filled with apples. She was counting bills and coins, seemingly struggling with the decision to buy the fruit or not. I reached past, and handed a $20 bill to the vendor.
"For her basket of fruit, and you can keep the change." I said, smiling softly at the woman. The vendor happily took the money, and even handed me another apple for free. Taking a bite of the apple, I locked eyes with the woman in the hood. "I'm not sent by anyone. Also, if I wanted to kill you I would have already."
Saying this, I lifted my shirt and showed her the gun I had on my waist. She flinched when she sat the gun, but relaxed when she processed the words I had said.
"What do you want from me then... It seems you know about me, but you should know I was thrown out of my family. I don't have anything to give you... If you want my body... I will fight you with every fiber of my being." She looked at me with a murderous glint as she said the last part, to which I simply smiled and laughed.
"This is Talon, a boy who yesterday lived his entire life in the slums. His mother is sick, but she's doing better now that we moved her out of the slums and she got some medicine. He, like you, is seemingly worthless by society's standards, but in my eyes... You're both golden geese. Big and fat ones. He, is immensely talented in fighting, and you, you are talented at artifact crafting."
Ally looked directly into my eyes, but she seemed too enchanted by the golden eyes that she became lost in thought.
"Come with me if you want to make a lot of money, if not stay here and be worried for your life for the foreseeable future." With that, I walked away. Talon looked back and forth between the unmoving woman, and me with concern on his face.
"If that was the woman we have been looking for, why are you just walking away from her?" I smiled at his question, because I found it humorous that he didn't question how I knew he was talented in fighting or that I had clearly approached him with this knoedge in hand.
"She will come because that is the effect money has on people who have lived a good life. For people like us, who have been poor our whole lives, money is more of a goal. To obtain more and more is how we think. For those who had money, and know what it's like to live lavishly... It's a lifestyle. One they don't want to abandon or forget. She would rather come with me, someone she doesn't know or trust, than live a life in the slums." As if on cue, a small brown robe ran past us, turning and coming to a skidding halt in front of us.
"Did you mean what you said about me having a talent?!" Her hood fell, and we could clearly see the face of Ally Finge. She was a cute young woman, with short brown hair and a button nose. She looked incredibly young, and with her height it only added to the image that she was a middle schooler.
I smiled and simply motioned for her to follow me. The two began to follow me as I led our way back to the house.
Ally looked at Talon, and began to talk to him.
"He said he met you yesterday, is that true?"
"My name is Talon, I was indeed living in the slums until yesterday." Talon replied while looking at Merlin's back in reverence.
"Then was that thing about you being talented at fighting true? How did he know? What did he say?" Ally began to rapid fire questions. It was part of this personality trait that made her a good artificer, she probed at the unknown.
"His name is Merlin, and I don't know how he would know I am talented. However, he saved my mother's life... If not for his help she would have most likely died during last night, so whether or not he is telling the truth? I don't care." Talon was not an idiot, he understood that what Merlin revealed to him was indicative of ulterior motives, he trusted Merlin. Turning to Ally, and whispering he said, "However I am sure you have noticed, he is not ordinary. I am willing to bet that he is going to be someone great in the future, and it wouldn't be bad to be someone who grows with him."
Ally nodded and also looked at Merlin's back. The kid before her did not give her the vibe a 15 year old kid would, he almost carried himself like an adult. He also knew more than he was letting on, which made her question how he knew about her. Her exile from her family was top secret, not even her relatives knowing that she was exiled, for they all thought she died. The only ones who knew of her still being alive, and also the ones who sent assassins to kill her, were her grandfather and her uncle. She had dealt with assassins before, and it was obvious that they didn't know anything other than that she was their target.
So how did a child know more than highly paid assassins? There were too many questions, but Ally felt that with time she would receive answers from Merlin. As the three all had different things on their minds, they arrived at the house. When they walked inside, Alexander was sitting at the table happily talking to Talon's mother, while eating a sandwich.
As we walked in, Alexander turned towards us, and raised his eyebrows. He began having a silent conversation with me through gestures and facial expressions.
'Why are they here?'
'Money.' I expressed, simply rubbing my fingers together using the universal, and apparently dimensional, symbol for money.
"This is Ally Finge. Please supply her with gold bracelets and mana crystals, she will begin her training to learn to create artifacts. You can then turn and sell the items she makes. We keep 100% of the profit for now, but she will stay here under our protection."
"Protection from what? Also what about the kid and his mom?"
"Talon has a talent for martial arts. I need you to help him enroll in the Academy. I know your funds are tight after helping me, so his enrollment will wait until Ally can make us money." I then took this opportunity to check Talon's mother's status.
[Miranda Derringer
Might: .2
Speed: .5
Magic: 0
Talent: Cooking]
"Miranda here has a talent for cooking as well, so with good ingredients you'll have top class meals as long as we stay here. Also... I will find a way to rid her of her ailment. Is there anything else you want to know about Alexander?"
Alexander simply shook his head, he was satisfied, and also impressed. He too sensed Talon's talent, simply from the way he instinctively stood to guard both Merlin and his mother when he saw a man he didn't recognize. Talon had perfectly placed himself to react to an attack on either one, while never turning away from Alexander.
'He deserves to study at the Academy... How is Merlin able to find these people so easily? Just the other day he was on the brink of dying to assassins, and now he is living without any worries.' Alexander shook his head to clear his thoughts. Then went back to talking to Miranda about the food and what other kids of food she knows how to make. Alexander Borovsky was also a gourmet, but not many knew until later in the novel where he broke down in tears because he wasn't able to enjoy good food due to the apocalypse.
The group enjoyed a delicious lunch, and Merlin went to take a nap.
[Congrats for bringing Ally Finge under your control! Plot has been changed slightly!]
[Heavenly Pillow has been rewarded.]
The pillow Merlin was sleeping on changed into a different material, which his head instantly sank into. It conformed perfectly to his head, and began to regulate heat.