To dig up a chest in the sand.
She searched high and low,
But all she could show—
Was a crab that latched onto her hand!
- Goldie Honorhide.
“And you just happen to know where this hidden stash is?” Goldie asked sceptically.
“I said I didn’t know where it was, but I did know it was around this area,” Makara explained. “It is obvious, but I will explain it for the simple: we Mer don’t carry a lot of things with us,” she indicated her belts and pouches. “It is common practice, therefore, to have caches of spare gear in places that you frequent in order to resupply and re-equip. We have been chasing the Blue Bastard for weeks, and he has consistently been going in this direction. He will have a hideout near here with potions, equipment and probably coin. Hopefully, there is also loot from one of his heists.”
“The wilderness is a big place,” Yoboc said, “what makes you think it was near here?”
“Because he got desperate,” Makara said. “The taniwha was a move of desperation and high risk. Therefore, he has a stash of potions nearby.”
“Wait a minute. When he attacked me, he was partially healed, and you thought he had a healing skill rather than potions. Why wouldn’t he have just gone to his stash and be fully healed?" I asked.
“I don’t know why,” Makara said. “But he wasn’t fully healed, so he didn’t go to his stash.”
“Which indicates it is not around here,” Goldie said. “This is a waste of time.”
“I think it is around here, and I think it is worth spending a few days looking.” Makara countered. “Ivan needs to spend some time healing, and Bjarne was wanted for a number of unrecovered thefts.”
“Bjarne? That was the Mer's name? I don’t think you ever said before,” I said.
“He had a variety of names he went by. That was the name on his Mercenary Guild membership, but we doubt it was his birth name. He was a slippery bastard. Easier just to call him the Blue Bastard,” Makara said.
“Ivan has injured shoulders. He can still walk. We should leave and head to Worlds End,” Goldie said.
“I can walk,” I said, “but I can’t carry a pack. I also can’t turn into a Bear and carry the rest of the gear that I salvaged.”
“Fucking Beastkin and their transform skill!” Makara said enviously.
“You can’t transform?” I question.
“No, Mer are like Dwarves and Avions. We are what we are. Only Beastkin can transform into their beast and back,” Makara replies.
I knew that about humans and dwarves, and I assumed elves, but I assumed Mer were more like Beastkin—the Beastkin of the sea. Apparently not. Interesting.
“It will be about a week before I can transform. Less if we find this stash and there are strong potions. We might as well look,” I said.
There was some more grumbling, but in the end, the Dwarves and I combed the shore while Makara searched the sea bed. She assured us that if it was on land, it would not be far from the sea. It would be camouflaged, but he had some sort of permanent marker nearby to guide him—a carved stone or stone pile. The marker was probably stone, as that is what they would also use under the water.
We decided to search for two days in one direction, along the coast, and then two days in the other direction. Makara had the largest area to cover in the sea, but she was faster in the water and knew the type of thing to look for. She was also convinced it would not be far from shore.
I was walking the shore and practising, focusing on my Void Senses and narrowing the area to gain more distance. This way, I could cover the shallows as well. Yoboc and Goldie were inland of me.
About lunchtime, Yoboc approached me, “Here, lad, sit. Let’s have a bite.”
We pulled out some cold meat and sat.
“Where’s Goldie?” I asked.
“Inland. I wanted to have a chat. Man to man. Best if she wasn’t here,” he replied.
“Oh?”
“Mer have a reputation. Not all Mer, but definitely some. You probably know their reputation for theft and piracy, but they also have a reputation for sexual luring of people they then steal from.”
My mind went back to the morning episode. Was that what that was?
When I was silent, Yoboc continued, “Shark Mer are usually more aggressive, but they also have a reputation for being sexually aggressive. There are Mind Skills that some Mer learn to seduce people. Not just Mer. Sex workers of all species do the same, but Mer… well, a lot of people go missing at sea.”
“You think Makara is like that?” I asked, the morning's events high in my mind.
“I am not saying she is,” he said, “But you are young and don’t know these things. Sapient sexuality is very much mind-driven. The physical plays a part, but it is the mental where the true seduction takes place. To resist the pull of sex seduction, you need high Mental Strength, something the young are not generally strong in.”
“How will I tell if she is influencing me?” I asked.
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“It often starts with flirting, the stirring of interest and desire. It might then move to touching in general and then touching in sexually sensitive areas. She will probably suggest a course of action where you two would be alone. Did something happen already?” Yoboc asked.
“There was a conversation this morning that had some sexual references, and I touched her scales to look at them, and she touched my fur.”
“Bloody Kraken bait! Do you have any spare attributes? If you do bolster your Mental Strength.”
I shook my head as I didn’t have any spare attributes.
“We probably need to send Makara away. If Goldie was here, she would be looking to kill her, and she wouldn’t be wrong. The Mer is trying to take advantage of you. Have you told her about your affinity?” Yoboc asked.
“No. When we met, she assumed I had an Ice affinity, but then it was obvious it wasn’t; it was just a freeze skill. She was quick to identify it so she would know I had something unusual. She thought my ice affinity was a good counter to her water affinity.”
Yoboc’s head snapped around. “She has a Water Affinity? She never told us that.”
“Yes, I saw it in action. She can definitely manipulate water. Maybe she assumed I would tell you. She didn’t say it was a secret or anything. In fact, she was pretty upfront about it.”
“Upfront to you, but not to us,” Yoboc said. “Why is she interested in you?”
“I don’t know. She killed the other Mer and saved me.”
“You mean she watched your fight, and when you were going to lose, she stepped in. Why did she not step in sooner? Why wait till the last minute? To look like a hero? To gain your trust? Why?”
“Are you sure she waited? She might have just arrived,” I said.
The look Yoboc gave me said he didn’t believe it for a second. “I will talk to Goldie. We will tell Makara to move on.”
“It was just talk,” I said.
“Did any of the dwarves ask to touch your fur, Ivan?”
“No. Goldie keeps making sexual comments, though. How is this any different?” I asked.
“You think about the conversation you had and then what Goldie does. Are they different?”
I thought about it. “I know Goldie is not serious,” I said. “Makara was different. We were finding out about each other's species.”
“She was finding out about you, you mean. There is no way she hasn’t met Beastkin before, being in the Mercenary Guild and all,” Yoboc said.
“Shouldn’t we find out what she wants before we leave?” I asked. “Otherwise, she could follow or return with help. She thinks there is valuable stuff in this stash. Dwarves like valuable stuff, don’t they?”
“There is risk vs reward, lad. Mer are untrustworthy. The risk is too great,” Yoboc said.
“There are untrustworthy people in every species. You have told me many stories about Dwarves and Humans trying different scams, yet not all dwarves are untrustworthy.”
Yoboc grunted.
“It was just talking,” I said.
“I am not convinced it was just talking. Are you even old enough to have sex?”
“I have the ability to mate. I have had it for a while. Mum said I should hold off having cubs until I am older and can take care of them and train them.”
“Sex is more than just mating. It is forming a bond emotionally. People have sex to increase intimacy and build that connection,” Yoboc said. “Unscrupulous people cultivate emotional and sexual ties to manipulate the other person.”
“I am not sure polar bear-kin do that emotion and sexual ties.”
“Other beast-kin do, and you definitely form bonds,” he indicated Felix at my feet, “so I don’t know why you wouldn’t. You are young and need to be protected until you grow.”
I could understand that. Mum protected me until it all came crashing down. It is possible I still lack knowledge in some areas. OK, a lot of areas. My Mental Perception is my lowest attribute, and that is about understanding people.
“I can understand that. I still think this could be a misunderstanding. We should talk to her first.”
“Hummph.” was all I got in response.
It is clear that there is bad blood between the dwarves and Mer. I mulled over the conversation, just curious. She was the one to bring up sexual references, but I was used to ignoring Goldie. Was Makara’s intent different? She did suggest ditching the dwarves. I don’t know.
I want to rely on the more experienced Yoboc and Goldie, but they are clearly biased against Mer. Makara is probably also biased against dwarves. I didn’t know what was going to happen, but if I had to choose, then Yoboc and Goldie have already proven themselves trustworthy, and Makara was unproven. If it came to a choice, I would choose Yoboc and Goldie.
I checked my status and saw I had a new skill, Sapient Lore. I guess this talk of sexual practices between species has added enough information to recognise the skill. I also earned a point in Mental Perception. This might help my understanding of people. It is still my lowest attribute by several points.
“When we meet with Goldie, I will get her to teach you about Mental Shields. Your mental attributes may not be high enough, but they are worth practising for later,” Yoboc said.
We soon got moving to our rendezvous with Goldie and Makara. I didn’t sense any hidden cache of treasures. I think this is just a waste of time, but it is good practice for my Cosmic Aura and Void Sensing.
Goldie arrived before Makara. I didn’t hear what Yoboc said to her. I probably needed to level my Hearing Aid. On the other hand, maybe it was best I didn’t know.
Goldie took me away from camp. “You need some mental defences. This is a technique that is recent and is said to have come from Wiremu Hunter. Do you know who that is?” I shook my head. “He is legendary, but don’t worry about it. He can’t have done half the things they say he did. However, this is the simplest technique I have heard of. It apparently works best with those who have affinities. Wiremu had a stone affinity, apparently. However, it works fine for me.
“I think of it as a shield for my mind, and the way it works for me is the same way I am wielding a physical shield. Wiremu apparently created a stone wall around his mind, and there are rumours that Duchess Kelda turns her mind into flames with her fire affinity, and they burn whoever tries to attack her. Therefore, it can have an attacking aspect as well as a defence. The most I have managed is using my mental shield to bash attacks. Are you following me?” She asked.
“Sort of,” I said, not really getting it.
“The idea is to focus on something you know. For me, it is a shield. Yoboc has a thorny hedge, which is better than just my shield as it pricks back, but it is not solid like my shield. You should focus on an aspect of your affinity. This uses Mental Strength to defend and Mental Agility to shift those defences to where they are needed most. What are your attributes in those two areas?”
“Eighteen each,” I replied.
She winced. “If you can learn this, it will guard against subtle influences, but anyone strong enough to create a direct attack… let's just say putting an axe in the attacker does wonders as a defence against all sorts of attacks. You are strong physically, and I don’t think that will ever change, so that is your go-to method. This should hopefully give you time to take their head off first. If you feel a mental attack, strike hard and fast.”
“And this technique will tell me I am being attacked mentally?” I asked.
“Mine does, and I raise my mental shield actively and get my axe physically,” she grinned. “Let me walk you through it. Start with visualising an aspect of your affinity.”
I thought about my affinity. The cold, freezing ice would work, but my affinity is the astral, not ice. It is only cold because there is nothing there. I am not strong mentally. I never have been, but an empty mind sounds doable.