Sophie

Surdenholm wasn't a big city by any stretch of the imagination, but it was apparently much bigger than his hometown of Woodsedge from everything Tristan had told her. When she looked at the tall swordsmith, it wasn't difficult to see the small-town boy in him. He'd never so much as had a thought about fashion, and he still had that scruffiness about him that came from not having too many people to compare yourself to. At times she envied him for his lack of hypersensitive social awareness.

And his ability to outright ignore heat.

She'd known of his [Heat & Fire Resistance] for a while now and been mildly envious of it in the volcano of the raid. Back then, the heat had only been a mild inconvenience to her though. It was something she'd get past in just a few hours when they finished the raid. Now that they were in Surdenholm for the foreseeable future, its constant, blessed heat was much harder to ignore. It was secretly one of the reasons she'd switched out Poof for Sneakers most recently, too: she was tired of the little mage's complaints. The last things Sophie needed were more reminders of the heat!

She petted Sneakers while watching her practically-heat-immune friend. While she was mildly uncomfortable, that didn't stop her from appreciating just how much things had changed for the better thanks to him. She would have never guessed she'd be in a Permanent Party with someone like Tristan Hammerson. She wondered what her sister was going to say in her reply letter. There was no doubt at all that there would be one. Furthermore, she really hoped Rina would heed her wishes and let Sophie be the one to tell their parents. A version of her mother's shrill, disapproving laugh had been echoing through her head ever since the Permanent Party request notification had appeared.

Sophie didn't care about that though. She had been making her own decisions for a while now, and there was not a single person in the realm she trusted to be in a Permanent Party with more than Tristan.

As the swordsmith looked out the carriage windows, mouth still slightly agape in that hint of awe that told Sophie he might somehow still be impressed by a town like Surdenholm despite having visited both Rockmoor and Perpetua, she wondered if he was thinking about how far they'd come, too.

It was more likely he was thinking about Timetwister. Sophie could practically see the anxiety boiling within him. He'd been tense ever since they'd left Jamal's. He'd hardly even touched his Astral Languages book, defaulting to the more relaxing fantasy story he'd picked up, when he read at all.

Sophie wouldn't judge him for his nervousness, though. She was more than a little nervous herself about what the next few days would bring. It didn't matter how much they'd prepared and planned. One of her father's favorite famous quotes was about how no plan survived contact with the enemy, or something like that.

She stared out the windows of Billy's carriage, wondering where in this small town a {Legendslayer} could hide. What was such a high-tier healer even doing here? No matter how big Tristan might think it was, the town was too small to be useful to Timetwister, being as high-tier as she was. It was small enough that there were actually people just standing outside and talking to each other. Then again, some of the others were moving around quickly and determinedly enough that it was clear they didn't feel compelled to interact. So it's not that small a town, Sophie corrected herself. There was no guarantee all those people knew each other. Perhaps outsiders weren't immediately recognized, and she and Tristan could go on unnoticed.

Their carriage rolled slowly down the main street, and it was clear Tristan was trying not to direct Billy directly toward wherever his quest arrow was pointing. It was entirely plausible that by riding into town and heading directly to wherever Timetwister was they could attract unwanted attention. If there was more to do in Surdenholm, if there were more attractions to draw outsiders even from within the Embrace's domain, she would feel more at ease. Unfortunately it seemed to be the sort of town you just passed through on the way elsewhere.

Billy seemed to have loosened up considerably once they'd arrived in town. He was now clearly trying to serve as a tour guide of sorts, which Sophie supposed made sense since Tristan hadn't told him why they were headed to Surdenholm in the first place.

"So there's a theater down that street," Billy was saying. "They've got a good group of performers, mostly locals I think, but still talented. I've caught a couple of their shows through the years, and I've always been pleased. The last one I went to was with a nice lady friend. It was a comedy, and I swear to the gods, both of us laughed so hard. It was one of the funniest things I've ever seen. It was about a man who couldn't tell a lie."

Tristan nodded politely before asking, "Are there any interesting dungeons nearby maybe? Or crafters here that excel in their field?"

Billy laughed a little. "No, Surdenholm doesn't really have anything like that, and the people here seem to prefer it that way. Dungeons would bring adventurers, and any crafters who are that ambitious end up going elsewhere. Most of the older buildings beyond the residences have been slowly being converted to warehouses, but..."

The big swordsmith scratched his head. "How about restaurants or... just any points of interest?"

Billy looked over one shoulder at Tristan with his brow slightly pinched. "Why'd you come all the way out here if you're asking these questions? If you don't mind me asking, what're you going to be doing in Surdenholm?"

"I've got to meet with someone," Tristan answered surprisingly smoothly.

"Ah, and I'm betting they set up the meeting place," Billy said, scratching his chin. "You won't be the first or last. I don't love asking this, but are you sure you know what you're getting into? Surdenholm is kind of on the outskirts of The Embrace's realm, far enough out that no one tends to look this way. People tend to forget about it. Doesn't help that it's blessedly hot, too. If the person you're meeting is dealing in... less-than-legal affairs, well, that might make sense. This place does kind of have that reputation."

Sophie and Tristan exchanged a pointed look.

It would make sense if that's why Timetwister's here. But it's also been weeks. What could be here that's taking her so long? Sophie thought about that for a while. Unless she's been meeting with more than just one person. If she's been setting up meetings with several others...

Sophie stopped herself before she spiraled further. She didn't want to think about those kinds of possibilities until she had more concrete information to go on. It would only lead to more unanswerable questions, especially when that's all they seemed to have lately. Perhaps now that they were actually here, they might finally be able to do some proper investigating and get some answers.

They were in the middle of a block, not really near any sort of establishment at all, when Tristan spoke up. "Here's good enough for now."

Sophie immediately tried to speak up to cover for her teammate's lack of response to any of the several points their driver had given. "Thanks for all the info, Billy. You've been really wonderful about all this."

Billy stopped the carriage with surprising speed and shrugged. "If you say so. Would you like me to sit here for a while and wait, or would you prefer I find us a place to stay?"

"Stay here please, if you don't mind," Tristan replied before catching Sophie's eye and pointing steadily in one direction. Of course she understood and made sure Sneakers did as well. Timetwister was in that direction. Time to put their plan to work.

'Just simple recon for now, Sneakers. Fly in that direction, and try to find anyone that looks like they don't belong here. Anyone that looks high-tier at all.'

'Tier 4, right?' the bird asked quickly.

'Exactly.'

'Got it. I'll look for question marks,' the birdlike astral replied. 'Stealth is still key?'

Sophie nodded. 'Yes, but don't go so high that we lose sight of you.'

'Yep, I know,' Sneakers sent back.

The door opened, and in the blink of an eye, Sneakers was flying off into the sweltering sky in the direction Tristan had indicated.

"We'll be back soon, Billy," she said as she climbed down and gave what she hoped was a charming smile. "And thanks for being so flexible." She gave her most winning smile, as she truly did appreciate that the driver had been so kind and capable. Sophie recognized that the small kindnesses were the best way to stay on his good side.

The half-elf scoffed, but it sounded more playful than offended. "Yeah, well, what else am I going to do? Hey, what if I found us somewhere to eat?"

"I think that would be great," Sophie replied, since Tristan was already looking and walking in more or less the direction Sneakers had flown. At least his pace was fairly measured and more or less unsuspicious. Whether he was following the arrow of his quest or Sneakers, Sophie couldn't be sure. The fact that he was moving toward her astral confirmed that Sneakers was going the right way.

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This was the part of the plan that she recognized was the most patchy. They were flying more or less blind until they found their mark. But until one of them said otherwise, she was just going to keep doing what they'd previously discussed.

After about a minute, Sneakers checked in. 'I haven't seen anyone higher tier yet. Want to share eyes for a bit?'

Sophie replied that she did, but she also whispered for Tristan's sake, "Alright, I'm going to take a look through Sneakers's eyes and see if I can notice anything."

Tristan nodded. "Sounds good."

Then Sophie activated her [Astral Sight] skill and fought through the brief disorientation as she began seeing through her astral's eyes. Tristan had told her before that her eyes got milky white whenever she used this skill, which was bound to be a bit unsettling, but it was too important a scouting tool to ignore no matter how it made her look.

As Sneakers soared through the sky, Sophie was with him in spirit. She saw the world as her birdlike friend did, with a bit of a convex bend around the edges. Even a place as folksy as Surdenholm seemed a bit more exciting when viewed from up high like this.

She heard Tristan's words and followed along with his gentle guidance, trusting him to keep her safe. She appreciated that he had definitely slowed his pace a bit, as she was essentially blind to her true surroundings at the moment. They'd both agreed that an initial scouting report was essential, and any additional information they could get on Timetwister--especially a visual of what she looked like--would be huge. That said, it also wouldn't do to rush things and risk being discovered. They had to walk a fine line.

"She shouldn't be that far," Tristan whispered, not that it helped. Sophie knew he had no idea how far the astral had already flown.

Sophie tried to explain the immediate issue she was seeing. "Yes, but Tristan, there aren't any people on the streets in that direction. They actually seem abandoned. If she's inside one of those buildings and she looks out, I worry that I'll look super suspicious if I'm just walking about out in the open."

Tristan made a pensive hmmming sound, which at least gave Sophie some indication that he'd heard her and was considering their next step. Then, a bit surprisingly, she heard the sound that said his reply had come through their permanent party chat.

Sophie's eyes turned back to their typical brown, and the world around her became much more grounded as she read the reply.

Tristan: I guess you should call Sneakers back. We've got to get closer, but maybe it is time to get a bit sneakier. Sophie: Are you going to be good at that?

She'd sent it without thinking about how her message might come off without any vocal intonation. Still, she hoped he'd understand, especially since she felt it was a fair question and concern.

Tristan: Not really, but she also won't be able to see me thanks to the [Avenger's Stealth].

It was a fair point, Sophie had to admit.

Sophie: We could also try using Sneakers's eyes again when we're closer. Tristan: Maybe... But we're already pretty close. Sophie: I'll follow your lead then.

Sophie sent Sneakers the message, 'Come back to us for now. Still stealthy, just stay above and alert.'

'On my way,' he replied.

It was odd to try and walk casually while also sticking close to the walls of the buildings. Luckily, just as she'd told him, the streets were nearly empty in this part of town and none were around to witness their odd behavior. Perhaps explaining the decrease in population, the buildings here no longer seemed to be residential at all, but more industrial. They were surrounded by warehouses and manufacturing plants of some sort. She wondered what the people of Surdenholm would be making, other than the shady deals Billy had warned them about.

Regardless, they encountered no one as they crept along the street. To the best of her knowledge, no one saw them approaching the largest building on the block either.

Tristan: I think she's inside here.

He had stepped into an alley and was now leaning against one of the buildings.

Sophie: So what's our next move?

Tristan looked down the alley toward what appeared to be a simple metal door. It matched the rest of the building's exterior, which was sturdy cinnamon-colored brick.

Tristan: That seems too simple, right? Sophie: It certainly does. Tristan: Are there any windows or other places where Sneakers could either get or see inside?

Sophie forwarded the question to her astral who replied, 'There are some high windows near the roofline, but they are pretty dark. Give me a sec.'

Sophie: He's checking.

While she waited for the next update, she pressed Tristan more.

Sophie: How sure are you that she's in there? Tristan: Almost positive.

He took a few steps this way and that, probably to triangulate using the arrow.

Tristan: It's too big a building, and the arrow is already starting to swing. Sophie: So I'll ask again: if Sneakers gets visual confirmation and we see her in there, what's our next move? Tristan: I think... I'll go in there. Sophie: Alone? Tristan: Just to scout a little more. Tristan: I want to see her for myself. I want to see exactly who we're up against. Tristan: But before you tell me that this isn't a good idea, I know. And I'm not going to engage with her or anything. When we do hit her, we'll do it together. I promise. Sophie: Good.

Sophie clenched her teeth, but at the same time she wasn't really mad. She'd been slightly afraid that he might try to play hero now that they were so close. They had worked too hard to abandon their plans. She was afraid that they'd need every one of the few advantages they gathered.

He at least seems self-aware enough to know what I'm worried about. She sighed, trying to calm and remind herself that the invisibility buff Tristan's quest gave him was one of those advantages.

Sophie: No matter what, don't get detected. Not yet. The moment she knows something's up, our chances to win drop precipitously. If she's really good with time, she'll just freeze you and you'll be dead before you even know it. Tristan: I read the notes, too, Sophie. I know. But seriously, thanks for your concern. I'm going to be careful. I promise. I am not going to try and take her alone. I've learned that lesson.

Sophie nodded.

'I am at the window,' Sneakers sent to her.

Sophie: I'm going to use Sneakers's eyes again here. Watch for me for a bit.

"Of course," Tristan whispered back, his voice barely audible.

Sophie activated [Astral Sight] again and found herself sitting on a window ledge. She couldn't tell precisely how far her vision had moved, but she was much higher up.

The window was cloudy, but not dirty. It was tinted in a way that spoke to intent, not neglect or age. Still, she was able to make out movement within.

'Can we get any closer, or clean the window?' she asked.

'I will try,' Sneakers replied.

She saw his wing flap against the window as it attempted to run some of the darkness off. The result was only the tiniest improvement.

'That will have to do,' she sent through the bond. 'Just get your eyes as close to that window as you--!'

She stopped mid thought as she saw their target. The woman was unmistakable from the description in the report. There was a mist about her that made some of her motions blur, and at times it appeared as though she was moving too quickly. That was a definite Hallmark of time magic. Another, which Sophie recognized just as quickly from her studies, was just how young the woman looked. Still, an [Identify] did give her all the proof she needed. It might have been mostly question marks that indicated a higher tier, but the title was undeniable.

[?, Human, level ?, ?] {{Legendslayer}}

"I see her," Sophie whispered aloud. "The {Legendslayer} title is hard to miss."

Tristan's answer came after a notable delay and from so close she could feel his breath. His voice sounded very tight. "It's meant to draw attention."

A motion within the room but slightly beyond what she's seen before caught her attention. Then a second, shorter woman walked into view. A woman with radiantly glowing purple hair. Sophie sucked in air. "Oh! Timetwister isn't alone. There's another woman with her. A gnome, by my guess. She's shorter, purple hair."

'Sneakers, can you get me a better view of the shorter woman? She's not clear enough now to use [Identify] on her.'

Immediately the view began to shift as Sneakers was clearly trying to get a better angle. 'Is this good?' he asked.

Sophie tried to scan the gnome, but she still couldn't. 'Sadly, no,' she sent back.

Her astral then promptly took flight, heading around the corner to another window. 'And now?' he asked.

It took Sophie a few seconds to get her bearings again, but she could quickly tell that she was closer to the gnomish woman. She had a slightly better angle... And [Identify] worked!

[?, Gnome, level ?, ?] {{Mistress of Plenty}}

More question marks, which Sophie supposed shouldn't have surprised her, but it was still annoying. She was really looking forward to tiering up and receiving fewer question marks when she used [Identify]. Though again, the title seemed useful here.

"She's got a title, too. But not {Legendslayer}," she added quickly.

"I didn't think so," Tristan said, "or else my quest would have updated to include her. What is her title?"

"I'm not sure whether it's good for us or not," Sophie admitted. "She's a {Mistress of Plenty}, meaning she's connected to the goddess Plenty."

"Great," Tristan said with a groan. "Then I have to be even more careful."

Unfortunately, it took her a few moments to realize what he meant, and by the time she did, pulling her sight back into her normal body, the broad-shouldered swordsmith had already moved to stand right by the suspiciously-normal-seeming door.

Sophie: Wait!

But even though she knew he had to have received and read it based on the way he paused, it was only for a moment.

With a sharp exhalation, he wrapped his large hand around the tiny knob and turned.

Tristan: I promise I'll be careful. Wish me luck.

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