Brand new Tepin

It’s astounding how fast time can fly past when you get to experiment on your friends with new spells. It turned out to be a great distraction. I improved at dodging and managed to adjust my spell well enough that I was able to paralyze people with it. The first time it worked, I was shocked, seeing Olgore falling flat on his face. Aside from that, I worked hard on my artificial body spell. I managed to finish it just one day before they would leave for Guild’s Rest. My companions were currently out on an assignment, so this was the perfect time to create my new body!

My core shivered while I gathered mana into a sphere before me. Little bolts of purple energy started jumping off me. I extended a small tendril from the ball of mana and attached it to the complex rota sequences hidden away within my core. The spell drank the collected mana up like a thirsty animal. Once its appetite was quenched, the rota activated. 

They started glowing in a strong purple, as the first step of my spell began. The rota attached to my mind, giving me the control to form my new body. My soul still remembered my lost body. The weight of it, curves, imperfections, everything, and I let it flow into the controls. An aura of purple mana shaped around me, small jolts of purple shooting through it. It solidified into what was to be my new body. I decided to change my lineage. My body would have to look like it belongs in this world. So while my proportions were representing me, my physique would now be human. The purple color of my skin now a pale ivory, my turquoise scales replaced by freckles. Wild ginger hair sprouted from my head, flowing down over my shoulders. Horns and tails nowhere to be seen. My eyes the one thing left hinting towards my Kirin descent. Iris an electric blue with hints of purple towards my pupils that were formed in an ellipse. Knowing I could not truly be myself, a pang went through me. The outside of my body molded, all that was left were my senses. My new body shuddered as the freezing air of the surrounding room caressed it for the first time. My new eyes started blinking as my sight shifted to them. I stumbled as the movement controls connected with my mind. It was done.

Peeking down at my new body, I slowly raised my arms, making a fist with my hands, and opening them again. As excitement bubbled up within me, a shudder ran along my back. With this, I could finally enjoy a proper life! Freedom!
Droplets of water started running down my cheeks.  A small laugh escaped my lips. This was not part of my spell design! Wait, could it be wild magic? Eh, it didn’t matter. My pent-up emotions at last had a way to release themselves, and I didn’t try to keep the dam from breaking. No, instead, I let it burst wide open. 

There I stood in the middle of the desolate room, hugging myself. Tears were running down my cheeks. Each droplet making me shiver. Happy with my achievement, but also sad about what I had lost. 

Time continued flowing, though. Soon, I heard steps approaching the room. My head shot up as the voices of my two companions reached my ears. Time to surprise them! I still hadn’t moved. Looking towards the couch beside the table, a thought formed in my mind.  Wouldn’t it be funny to sit there all menacingly awaiting them in the dark. Turning towards it, I saw my reflection in the window and stopped. A soft blush reddened my cheeks. How could I have forgotten this? I was naked. No clothes in sight. Damnit Tepin! My eyes darted around the room, landing on the blanket of one of the beds. The sound of a key entering the lock of the door reached me. Stricken by panic, I broke out in a run towards the bed, hands outstretched, to grab the blanket. Before reaching it, I stumbled over my own feet. Why had nobody told me that walking after so long would be difficult? I fell halfway onto the bed as the door started opening, the soft blankets dampening the impact. Managing to get hold of it, I spun myself around to wrap myself within the cover. Light flooded the room as I rolled across the floor, coming to a stop beside the table.
 

“Who are you?” Dust said, his voice laced with suspicion, as I heard Olgore unbuckling his weapon. Yeah, maybe I should have warned them after all. 

My ginger head peeked up to Dust from the end of the makeshift roll of cloth surrounding me. A bit rattled by the situation, all I got out was, “S…. Sur… Surprise?” Half a grin adorning my face. 

For a moment, they just stood there staring, then Olgores’ eyes lit up. 

“Wait, is that you, Tepin?” He asked. Dust looked at him as he said that, raising his brows.

“Yup. It’s me in the flesh,” I said.

“Please let us know when you do things like that.” Dust said, staring down at me, while Olgore started chuckling. I let my head hit the floor in defeat. 

“Yes… you are right. I should have just told you. But that would have ruined the surprise. But I might have forgotten something rather important.” The oversized lizard broke out laughing, while Dust continued staring at me. 

“You actually pulled it off, though, huh? I am unsure if you are aware, but I don’t think rota magic that complex is commonplace. I am not an expert, but still,” Dust said. 

“Is that so? It’s pretty normal back on Eriphynia. But that is not important right now… I uhm n-n-eed… I need clothing…” My face turned a bright red; I could feel my cheeks burning. Again surprised this was not something I included in my spell. 

“Alright, we will see what we can do,” Dust said, turning around. Olgore, still laughing, tears in his eyes, looked at me one more time and said, “I am going to miss you.”

That stung. I knew we had to part ways soon. I would miss them too. Heck, I wasn’t even sure that I was ready to be on my own. Yet I was excited to explore this world on my terms. For a while longer, I lay there on the ground, enjoying the embrace of the warm blanket. Before too much time passed, I rolled out of the cloth around me and stood up. My hand glided over the magitek-powered lamp on the table, a tiny bolt of mana jumping over to it, turning it on. I put the blanket around me and sat down on the couch. While I enjoyed the soft sensation of the pillows on my skin, a knock disturbed my silence. 

“Tepin, are you decent?” I heard Dust’s voice from the other side. 

“Yes, you can come in.” The door opened, and only the elf came in. He was carrying a little bundle under his arm and dropped it beside me. 

“I got you some clothing. Now, I didn’t know your size, so I got multiple sets. I hope at least one of them fits.” 

“Thanks so much! I will try them right on,” I said whilst standing, the blanket slowly sliding off me. In seconds, I sat down again, pulling the blanket back up. 

“I will see myself out. Just call us once you are done.” Dust said, amusement trickling through his voice as he left the room. 

Alone again, my hands caressed the cloth; it felt a bit rough to the touch. Unfolding the piece of clothing on top of the pile, a shirt revealed itself to me. It was ivory colored; there was a placket with buttons for adjusting. Not waiting long, I pulled it over my head. It was a bit too big but workable. Pulling my hair out of the back, it fell over the shirt. Looking down, I saw another shirt, this one a lot smaller. I put it to the side, beneath there were several underpants together with multiple brown trousers. After trying them on, I found one that would fit me if I fastened it with a belt I had stolen from Dust. I pushed the ends of my shirt under my pants and tightened it with the belt. He had even thought of a pair of shoes. They were made of leather, and as I slid into them, I noticed that my toes had a bit too much freedom. 

The door creaked as I opened it and stepped out. Olgore was leaning against the wall, Dust standing right before me. I am not the most touchy person, but I had been deprived of physical contact for too long. Dust’s eyes widened as I attacked him with a hug. Droplets of water hit his chest. I hadn’t noticed before, but he was quite tall. He always looked small beside Olgore. They both towered above me. 

“Uh, why? Huh. Is everything okay?” Dust asked with his hands just hovering in the air. 

“Yes, yes, everything is fine. I am just so incredibly grateful,” I said. Letting go of him, I turned towards Olgore. 

“Oh, there is really no need, Tepin,” He said, taking a few steps back, but it was too late. Squeezing him with all my might, I hugged him too. Tears flowing freely again. I barely reached his stomach at my height. 

“Thank you, thank you, thank you,” I mumbled into him.

“It’s okay, it’s what we do, right, Dust?” He said while petting me on the head, barely touching it. I let the embrace go, looking over to Dust, who was nodding. 

“Well, you better be used to it by now. Because there are a few more things we want to do for you before we part ways,” the elf said. 

“Huh?” What else could they do? My head was blank as I wiped away the tears from my eyes.

“We realized that we cannot just put you on the street like this. That would feel wrong. What do you think about becoming a guild member? Plenty of assignments do not involve slaying beasts,” Dust said. 

“Don’t forget the armour, Dust, she cannot go out adventuring in those racks!” 

My mouth stood wide open as Olgore walked over to me and closed it. My fist hit him in his side, doing zero damage. He just chuckled.

“That sounds really helpful, but you can save the coin for the armour. Unless someone hits my core, I am not in danger.”

“You might not need it for protection, but people will be suspicious, or could give you a hard time without it. Especially when you go outside the city,” Olgore said.

“Alright, alright,” I was defeated. 

“Good, then let’s go downstairs and get you registered,” Dust said.

“What, now already?” I asked.

“Yes, we don’t have that much time left. Tomorrow is our last day here, and we will be busy getting your Armour and buying equipment for our journey.” 

“Oh, okay then, let’s go,” I said.

Misplacing my feet on the stairs down I almost fell again if it wasn’t for Olgore catching me. I grimaced, it would take a while until I could move with confidence again. We entered the reception room devoid of any adventurers. It was quite late, but there was still a very bored-looking receptionist reading a book. As we approached him, he laid it down and said,

“Ah, hey Dustin, how can I help you at this late hour?” I looked towards the elf, confused. 

“Dustin?” I said.

“That would be my name. But Olgore here thought Dust sounds better, and I gave up on correcting him,” he said with a sigh. Ah, well, too bad for him, by this time, I had gotten used to his nickname as well. So, Dust it would stay!

“Anyways. We want to register Tepin as a new member, Luce,” Dust said.

“No problem. Let me get the papers,” the receptionist said, leaving for the filing cabinet. My sight wandered towards the clock hanging from the wall; it was almost midnight. They must have great service if we can do this so late. 

“Alright, here is the basic form you need to fill out. You can do so at the desk over there,” Luce said. I thanked him and, together with Dust and Olgore, I sat down at the nearby table.

It took me a while, but I was able to decipher some of what was written in the form. I refused their help, reading what the forms said to me. Sure, I could now talk with people, without needing a mental connection, but deciphering letters was another story. Pointing towards the different fields, I looked at Dust.

“This is where I need to write my name, right? These fields are for age, size, eye color, and lineage? That’s a lot of information they want.” 

“Yes, all of that is correct. They will also take a memento and register your mana signature. Together with your guild emblem, that is how they will identify you in each guild branch,” Dust said. Smart, I didn’t expect them to be advanced enough to know that everyone has a unique signature. 

“Hey, Dust. What is a memento?” I asked. Not able to recognize the word. 

“It’s a magitek device that will save your face like a painting on a small piece of glass.”
“Good to know, thanks.” So, a picture, another surprise!

Picking up the pen with a trembling hand, I started writing. It was awkward, but I managed to write. Most of the information I wrote would have to bend the truth. Date of birth, with this calendar, no clue, so I just wrote down the 35th of the third month of Sinstere 1401. The day I managed to create my mana-sphere! That would make me 28 years old. Before the accident, I was 27, but I had no clue how long I had been passed out. My actual age was a mystery even to myself. Last, I wrote down my name. Tepin Teppes. 

Crooked, squiggly-looking letters looked up at me. What did I expect? Until now, I was only able to draw the alphabet using mana. I sight.

“Hey, that is almost readable!” Olgore said. My fist connected with his side, doing nothing again. I was tempted to use my paralyzing spell, but decided against it. Huffing, I stood up, making my way to the receptionist.  

“Here is the form,” I said to Luce. He took them off me and started filling additional papers, before letting me sign a contract that allowed them to take my mana-signature. A cabinet opened beside the desk, within it a blue crystal sphere. 

“Please put your hand on it so we can measure your unique signature. It will only take five seconds.” I did as I was told.

Without saying much more, Luce took out a little square gem from behind the cabinet and left for a while. 

“Back in Eriphynia, bureaucracy is pain, I tell you. This is easy in comparison,” I told my companions. 

“If Eventyr took ages for everything, they wouldn’t have gotten this far,” Dust said as the receptionist came back carrying a little box. 

“Alright, in here is your guild emblem, which you will use to identify yourself. Your signature is saved within. It also contains your current rank, which is D. The coin you earn are saved on your emblem, you can withdraw them at any guild location. Any further questions?” He asked. 

“Nope,” I said and stretched my hands out. 

“Good, that will cost you 60 coils.” My hand faltered. Then, Olgore dropped the coins on the desk, and in turn, the receptionist dropped the little box into my hands.

“Welcome to Eventyr.” Olgore and Dust said, the receptionist rolling his eyes.