A late night of dungeon planning spilled his work into his dreams. Hans envisioned all manner of smaller, less threatening monsters that he might use to complete the dungeon core, to fill in as much as he could with the least harmless threats possible. Lest the core make its own choices again.

  Kaboureks and nipguddens sat at table playing cards. The former was a species of water goblin, and the latter was a small troll species. While they anted to start their next hand, betting with stacks of valorite cogs, other monsters wandered through.

  Kobolds. Giant crabs. Giant bats. Rats. Dire rats. Halfling skeletons. Gnolls. Lesser elementals of all varieties.

  A tapping at Hans’ window woke him. The sun was just beginning to rise. Hans guessed the sparrow had been pecking the glass for some time, judging by the way it huffed and then, without breaking eye contact, slowly. tapped. the. glass.

  Hans opened the window and the sparrow flew into the forest.

  With an immense amount of begrudgement, Hans haphazardly threw on clothes and boots, stepping outside in his cloak shortly after. The guards were surprised anyone else was up at this hour during the winter, so he had to wait, dancing in place to keep warm while the guards cracked the gate wide enough for him to leave.

  No one shoveled the snow on this side of the wall, and he had yet again underestimated winter in Gomi. He should have taken the time to strap on snowshoes. Hans eye-balled a shallower area beaten low by wind and tried to ignore the shocking sensation of snow in his underwear as he sank to his waist. When he reached the treeline, the Lady of the Forest formed a face out of a snowy pine branch. Little bits of white shook loose as she spoke.

  “A Platinum-ranked adventurer approaches.”

  Hans’ stomach lurched. “How far out?”

  “Four hours.”

  “What? Four hours? Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”

  The dryad didn’t speak for a moment. “The timing of your warning is a result of the Platinum’s power. I tarried-not in alerting you.”

  Fuck.

  The Guild Master turned to head back to town. He had a lot to do in four hours.

  “Friend of the forest,” the Lady said. “I would ask of our oath before you depart.”

  “I’ll hold up my end. I promise.”

  “You misunderstand. Your oath obligates me to protect anyone with your town’s symbol, such as yourself. I will honor that oath, but I believe in doing so, I will undo the real intent of our agreement.”

  “I don’t have time for this. Out with it.”

  “You struck this bargain to protect your people. However, if you do not permit me to abstain in this case, I fear my defense of you will lead to the demise of all. I cannot defeat this enemy.”

  Hans closed his eyes, trying to breathe slowly. “You’re right. If the Platinum attacks me and me alone, you have my permission to disregard your oath in that instance. Furthermore, I select Quentin the Apprentice Adventurer to take up the oath if I die. If he isn’t ready, Becky can speak on behalf of Gomi until he is.”

  “Very well.”

  All of the snow from the branch fell to the ground when the branch returned to its original shape.

  Despite the urgency, Hans found himself wanting to take his time, soaking in every step of equipping gear that had become ritualistic over dozens and dozens of jobs. He shouldn’t assume the worst, but he could think of only one Platinum who could move like that. And he was motivated enough to cross the mountain pass in the dead of winter, less than a day after a major blizzard? That did not sound like a peaceful visit.

  Hans hesitated when he reached for a sword, debating how well to arm himself. He made his selection and cinched a belt around his waist, its scabbard as plain as the iron sword it held. He exited the guild hall carrying the enchanted Gruwalda sword wrapped in a towel and the three books he had needed to fully transcribe the Takarabune manual.

  He pounded on the door to Charlie’s bakery and let himself inside.

  “I knew you’d be back,” Mayor Charlie called from the downstairs kitchen. “Give me another half hour, and I’ll have fresh scones.” He saw Hans’ face. The joyful glow Charlie had dropped away.

  “Get Galanda too,” Hans said. “We don’t have much time.”

  When both Charlie and Galinda stood across from Hans at the bakery’s small counter, Hans set the Gruwalda sword and his transcripts between them.

  “A Platinum is on their way to Gomi, moving fast,” Hans said. “My guess is that it’s Devon, and I need your help. The sword? See that Quentin gets it. As for these books, burn them if anything happens to me. To dust. Promise me.”

  “We swear it,” Charlie said. “I’ll send a sparrow for Becky.”

  “She won’t get here in time. Tell her to get Izz and Thuz from the dungeon and bring them down. Myself and those notes are the only danger to Gomi. Devon’s a lot of things, but he isn’t a mass murderer. If he’s coming for me, let it happen, whatever it is. Don’t provoke him on my behalf. The brothers are on good terms with Devon as far as I know, and they’ll protect Gomi if something happens to me.”

  “This sounds quite grim,” Charlie said. “You really think he’s looking for a fight?”

  “I don’t, actually,” Hans said, thinking of Devon’s recent letters. “I’ll go peacefully.”

  Galinda put a large hand on Hans’ shoulder. “We will miss you.”

  When Hans exited the bakery, he debated whether or not he should speak with Olza. Before that thought developed into a decision, a guard yelled down from Gomi’s lone watchtower.

  “Mr. Hans! Come up here and take a look at this.”

  Four ladders later, Hans saw what had perturbed the guard. In the direction of Osare, out over dense forest and toward the mountain pass in the distance, a wide, dense plume of perfectly white smoke rose into the sky. Not gray or black like a forest fire but just as large.

  “What burns white like that?” the guard asked.

  “It’s not smoke. It’s steam.”

  Hans lingered at the split in the snow trench. The left led back to the guild hall. The right led to Olza’s.

  Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

  He went left. He had already said his peace to Olza, he realized. He didn't want to visit to tell her anything new. He desired to visit because he hoped she'd say what he wanted to hear.

  That wasn't fair to do to her.

  In the guild hall, Hans paused to appreciate one last calm moment in his sanctuary. He spent most of that time looking at the drawings and paintings pinned to every bare surface of the guild hall. Harry, Harriot, Chance, Loddie, and a dozen other children ran through his mind as he looked from goofy smiling suns to outrageously proportioned stick figures.

  The job board had a few quests left from the fall. Hans was certain Charlie would honor job completions–and the payment of baked goods–whether or not the Guild Master was present. He gave his map of the Gomi forest one last, long look as well. That map marked memories as much as it marked locations.

  After one more reverent glance, Hans set to his final three errands.

  He wrote Galad a brief note, thanking him for his friendship and encouraging him to continue the work of the Tribe, even when it was hard. He left the letter in an envelope on his desk.

  He popped upstairs and picked a Haynu novel he hadn't reread recently. He put Volume 30: Where Pleasant Fountains Lie under his arm.

  Next, he grabbed the valorite cogs from his drawer and walked them to the smith. The smith was occupied with the furnace. He waved for Hans to set the pouch down and returned his attention to his work without speaking.

  Hans said a quiet thanks that he didn’t have to explain his actions.

  And that was it. All that was left to do was to wait.

  New Quest: Meet Devon at the gate.

  He looked at the sky. The Dead End Mountains were behind him. The steam clouds were larger now, but Hans still had an hour or so according to the dryad’s estimate.

  So, he decided on a fourth errand. He quickly returned to the guild hall and took a long chug of fool’s root vodka. He coughed and sputtered after. When he composed himself, he went to Gomi’s front gate.

  At some point while Hans tended to his affairs, the guards dug a wider, more open area beyond the gate, giving Hans a place to stand and greet the approaching Platinum and have neither man sink into seven feet of snow in the process. He again felt like he stood in a crater, the tall snow surrounding him. Or perhaps this felt more like an arena, and he was in the pits with the dire roosters while noblemen looked down on him.

  The white clouds were larger now, and a noise rolled across the quiet winter forest, a faint sizzle mixed with the dull cracking of flags whipping in the wind. The sound steadily grew from second to second, and the steam clouds kept pace.

  Two large hands grabbed Hans’ shoulder and relocated him a few feet to the right.

  Galinda had squeezed through the gate, with Charlie following behind. They were wrapped in jackets and cloaks made from gnoll fur.

  “It’s safer for Gomi if you don’t try to intervene.”

  Charlie nodded. “Can still give you the decency of showing our support and seeing you off.”

  Hans thanked them and returned to his vigil. No one much felt like talking.

  Several minutes later, Galad, Roland, and Olza came through the gate. The alchemist offered Hans a knowing frown, condensing her goodbye to a meek head nod. Galad and Roland shook the Guild Master’s hand and clapped him on the shoulder. Those gestures said all the men had needed to say to one another.

  With five friends at his back, Hans lifted his chin and waited.

  When the Platinum broke free of the treeline to cross the clearing before the gate, Hans couldn't see it, but he could hear it. The volume of the approach suddenly jumped. And it grew louder yet.

  The faint sizzle grew to a violent whirlwind with a deafening crackle and a bass that shook the ground. The strange wind lashed at his cold face. Snow sprayed over the lip of the pit around him like waves hitting a rocky beach.

  A large ball of opaque purple flames burst through the wall of snow. A hot breeze blew toward the gate, and the snow at the edges of the flames popped and boiled, turning to liquid and then to steam in a blink.

  When the fire winked away, a figure clad in full platemail crouched with his shoulder behind his shield, positioned as if he were about to break down a door or block a heavy attack.

  From his boots to his helmet to his shield, the warrior’s armor was celestial steel, glowing like the soft, perfect white of a distant star. The armor appeared freshly polished, showing no trace of what must have been a long journey to reach Gomi. The shield had a gold in-lay of the Adventurers’ Guild crest, and that aesthetic continued down his arms and across his body with gold filigree and depictions of previous battles and triumphs.

  His helm was forged in the frogmouth style, which made his helmet look like an exceptionally tall collar. A wide visor formed from the collar jutting forward, high on the helmet, like a pelican with an underbite. A heavy purple cloak hung from his shoulders. The fabric sparkled like amethyst in the sunlight, and it too was free of any hint of dirt or grime.

  The Platinum’s blade matched the proportions of Marrok’s greatsword, but this adventurer wielded it with one hand like it was no larger or heavier than a shortsword.

  Hans had never seen so much celestial steel in one place. It made the adventurer look otherworldly, as if the soft pale glow made him ethereal.

  The Platinum stood to full height. He wasn’t a giant, but he was tall for a human, and though he was covered in brilliant platemail, his form and posture suggested that a powerful frame lay beneath.

  Hans and his supporters didn’t speak–couldn’t speak, really. Power had a presence of its own, an invisible ripple that squeezed at hearts and dried throats. Like seeing a dragon and knowing–feeling–that you are to them what an ant is to you.

  The Platinum stepped forward. He dropped his shield. He stepped again. He dropped his sword. Hans head tilted back gradually to keep his eyes locked on the slit in the advancing adventurer’s visor.

  Step.

  Step.

  The adventurer reached up with both hands and unclasped his helmet. He dropped it to the ground as well.

  Devon was every bit of the dashing hero that rumors made him out to be. He had the hard cheekbones of a sculpture, and his blonde hair was pulled back in a ponytail. His beard was neat and trimmed. He had the barest indication of sweat on his brow.

  Yet he looked so much like the boy Hans met in Hoseki. The face Devon wore now was the same one he had after his first tournament as an Apprentice. He had gotten absolutely wallopped in his division and was too afraid to do the absolute. Though tears weren’t in his eyes then or now, the tension in his face betrayed that he was fighting to hold them back. He was embarrassed. He was ashamed. He felt like he had let Hans and his classmates down.

  The loss of an Apprentice match wasn’t a world-ending calamity, but in Devon’s mind it was. Such was the nature of young adventurers.

  The Paladin had that expression again there in Gomi. Seeing it on Devon the man rather than Devon the boy brought a new, heavier darkness with it. This Devon was mature enough to know what real calamity was, and the weight of his experience made his face sharper, more serious.

  He looked down at Hans, not speaking, the winter wind howling as it wrapped around Gomi’s palisades.

  “Hans,” Devon began. He closed his eyes and opened them again a few seconds later. “Do you serve yourself or the greater good?”

  “The greater good.”

  “Is our friendship beyond redemption?”

  “No,” Hans said, sincerely.

  The Paladin sighed with relief, his facade of poise disappearing completely. Hans could see even more of Devon the boy when his shoulders slumped and his chin fell. He looked at his hands and turned slowly to view his breadcrumb trail of priceless celestial steel artifacts, sunk into Gomi mud where they fell.

  “I don’t want this, Hans. I don’t want it anymore. I need it to stop.”

  Open Quests (Ordered from Old to New):

  Mend the rift with Devon.

  Complete the next volume (Iron to Bronze) for "The Next Generation: A Teaching Methodology for Training Adventurers."

  Await the arrival of a safe for the Gomi chapter.

  Complete construction of the Takarabune (still need diamond, scarlet steel, celestial steel, and mimic blood).

  Fix the two broken drawbridges.

  Learn the results of the high-potency Resist Magic potion test.

  Make and test valorite armor. Bonus Objective: Think of more cool items to test.

  Plan the next expansion to prevent the dungeon core from acting on its own.

  Test the Gruwalda shield with the smith.