The Tempest Crown was 2,000 chits, but Rowan had given it to him for 1,200 with a wink and an apologetic handshake. Tyler had also bought a bag of holding, which Alberta said was always useful, and a discounted cloak of invisibility. Rowan had said that the way that the cloak produced its effects was what made it so valuable — it didn’t rely on a mana source, but rather strong Resonance was woven directly into it until it naturally produced the desired effect. Apparently, such items usually went for an order of magnitude more than even the 1,000 chits it was listed at.

  However, its effect was still incredibly diminished given that it wouldn’t hide one’s aura, so after failing to sell it for a whole month Rowan had cut its price in half once more just so Tyler would take it.

  That lucky bargain had brought his total to just about 4,000 chits, which felt like both an astronomical amount and barely anything at all.

  He'd pondered getting some of the weapons laid out that were just enchanted to be strong or extra sharp without any magical effects needing mana, but his fighting style had always revolved around his fists. And if he ever did figure out how to create a properly focused offensive technique, he wouldn't be able to use it on any weapon that he wielded.

  So, at the end of the day, he decided to save the rest of his money for the markets at the Main Branch, which Rowan promised would hold an even greater variety of things.

  Before sunrise the next day, he found himself in an empty training room, leaning against his favorite boulder and playing with his new bag of holding. It was a very strange multi-pocketed artifact, which his Analysis told him had been crafted by at least a Master of the Aspect of Space. There were different dimensions in each pocket, and the items placed inside different pockets would be completely separate from one another, making the bag ideal for alchemists and the like.

  The weight reduction component was weak compared to that of the average bag of holding, but Tyler's physical strength made that less of a problem. In fact, he had half a mind to ask if there were any weapons enchanted with a similar dimensional effect, but without the weight reduction at all. He imagined a super-heavy mace would probably be one of the better things for his own fighting style if he was able to keep advancing at this rate.

  The blue bag shimmered with a celestial pattern — not that unlike the cosmic swirls present in the dimensional soup just a couple stories beneath them. And his hand felt an odd tingly sensation as he reached within it to withdraw something — perhaps the magic of the bag itself.

  All bags of holding had a function where you could feed it a bit of mana and specify your intent for which item you wanted to withdraw, but without that capability, Tyler was left digging his actual arm through the pouches and grasping like it was a physical container. That was why he’d chosen the multi-pocketed one compared to a more traditional single bag with larger storage space.

  The edges of the bag felt weird and supple, but if he tried pushing too much at any given point, it would cease giving entirely. A part of him was curious about what would happen if he put more force into it, but he didn't want to break his new artifact that had cost almost 2,000 chits.

  He'd been experimenting with how little he could put a finger in while still feeling that edge of where the bag's magic began when he heard some light footsteps at the door.

  Brandon came in dressed in a fine suit but with twitching eyelids and a slight shiver to his step. He hadn't slept, but as he quickly walked towards Tyler, he could feel the weight to the man's aura.

  Peak-Novice.

  "You did it!" Tyler exclaimed.

  "I did," Brandon said with an exhale.

  "Good job. Holy shit — was the crown any good?"

  Brandon smiled softly. "Didn't even take a quarter to top me up."

  "Nice. Then did Brian…?"

  Brandon nodded.

  Tyler stood up, clapping the man's back, careful not to hit too hard. "Congrats, man. Lisa's probably telling everyone before we leave then, huh?"

  "Yeah." Brandon laughed. "Thanks again, Tyler. Truly."

  For a moment, they just stood in silence.

  Then, Brandon swallowed. "Why?"

  "What do you mean?" Tyler asked.

  "Why are you helping us like this? Why are you helping me?"

  Tyler laughed. "I mean, because now you get to be on the ship with us. You can help smooth things out and be with your sister. I think Lisa might have still not gotten on the ship if you weren't coming with."

  This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  Brandon shook his head. "No, no. I mean... why?”

  He pulled out the crown. “Why this? A thousand chits — and I know it was more like two thousand before Rowan gave you the pity discount for having to deal with his boss.”

  He looked Tyler in the eye, and his words came out in a soft whisper. “You've only known us for a week. We don't have much that can benefit you. Even if Lisa does make Journeyman, you'll probably have much better connections once you get to the Main Branch. Everyone's going to want to make friends with the guy who cleared a major bounty. So why?"

  Tyler laughed. "Because I see you, Brandon. I see the kind of person you are, and you're the kind of person that I wish there were more of. I see that you care. Especially for your sister. And for me, even though you've only known me for a week. Especially yesterday. That day. That desire to wish you could do more. To wish that you could have more of an impact. I've been in the same place. Hell, I kind of still am in the same place. If I can help you then... shit."

  He gave a small smile. "I want to."

  Tyler could see Brandon's eyes tracing the floor as he fiddled with the crown in his hands. The man didn’t respond for a moment. Then, he looked back up at Tyler.

  "I actually advanced to Peak Novice last night."

  "Huh?" Tyler’s eyebrows raised

  "I asked for permission from Brian and he said yeah, but I'd have to make myself useful to Rowan. And Rowan was happy to have another Wind Mage, but he didn't expect much out of me, I think. But when he put me through the tests..." Brandon ran a hand through his hair. "You know that slab that I fly around? I got it as a reward from Emery for clearing out some cloud of poison spores around a valuable scavenging ground. The note attached to it said that it's a high honor to have such a flying artifact and that I will be in a place of great privilege to make use of it for the Branch."

  He let out a dark laugh. "Apparently it's a piece of shit."

  Brandon rubbed his fingers together, and a small gust swirled around them. "I've been going through testing procedures all night. When I power the scripts of the skyship, I can produce more lift than any other Novice on the crew. I'm not quite as powerful as the best crew members, but I can do a lot with my mana. Apparently I have an above average capacity for it, though nothing like yours I'd assume. And I never knew. I was always the only one here, aside from fucking Rhett with his flying sword. Now that some other Wind mages have noticed me..."

  The man quieted.

  "Yeah?" Tyler said.

  "I've been offered potential advancement in the future too."

  Tyler coughed. "You too? Holy crap, is it supposed to be this common?"

  Brandon shook his head with a laugh. "No, Lisa has been stuck at Peak-Novice for months without any sort of offer, and mine will almost definitely come with the standard contract. Rowan says he can usually get the people to assign his invitees to him or his org, and they don't always have such dickheads bossing them around. I'm seriously considering it."

  Brandon reached out to place the Tempest crown back in Tyler's hands. The half-rusted metal crackled slightly against his skin. "I really wish I could do more to thank you. What you've bought for me with this is way more than just a single advancement level. But at least I can give this back mostly intact."

  "Keep it." Tyler waved him off. "You'll need it for when you advance, won't you?"

  Brandon opened his mouth to protest, but Tyler shook his head. "Without you, I wouldn't even be here right now. I'd probably be dead, and some monsters would be gnawing away at my corpse. Consider it your finder's fee for getting my unconscious ass into medical care."

  Brandon frowned, but eventually took the crown back.

  Tyler grinned. "So… have you told Lisa?"

  The man laughed. "Hell no. She'll tell me I'm insane. Nothing's finalized yet, either. It might be a month until anything happens. I want to support her and her advancement before bringing anything up."

  "What about Tammy?"

  Brandon sighed. "I was going to, but she's locked herself in her room right now. I guess I'll catch her soon enough when we're all boarding, but I don't know. I still have a ways to consider. And my sister getting an unconditional offer is much more impressive anyway, even if that was mostly from her being around you."

  Tyler shrugged.

  "I mean, same thing. Without her healing, I don't know if I'd be here. I'm glad she got it. It's not like I need to advance to Journeyman." He chuckled.

  Brandon nodded, turning towards the small cracks in the boarded-up windows, and they returned to silence once again. Tyler took in the tall man, the half-suit-half-robe he was wearing a perfect blend of modern human tastes and the ancient alien cultures he’d come to appreciate.

  Then he spoke again. “What will you do?”

  Brandon turned back towards him. “Huh?”

  “You said you wished that you were strong enough to get the advancement offer for yourself. Now it looks like that’s gonna happen. What are you gonna do?”

  Brandon chewed on his lip for a moment. “Shit, man. As much as I’ve thought about it, now I have no idea. I’ve always hoped that Lisa would get the offer, but something like this is already way better than anything we could have expected. I can’t really tell you — she’ll be strong enough to protect herself, and me along with her. I guess we can really do whatever we want. Get stronger, I guess. All this time I’ve been so focused on survival that I never really stopped to consider what happens next.”

  “Yeah.” Tyler nodded. “Me neither. But maybe we’ll have all the time we need to figure it out, one day. Wouldn’t that be nice?”

  “Hah, yeah. Apparently advancing ups your lifespan, too, so we might have a couple more decades than normal to find something nice.”

  “Then I’m excited see what we can come up with.”

  “Me too.” Brandon smiled, pointing to the small sliver of bare glass between the wooden boards along the windows. The slightest bit of sunlight was creeping through, illuminating his tired but hopeful face. “For now, though, I think it’s time for takeoff.”