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His New Hoard

Chapter 8: Making A Living

Sponsored by Repanbo

By Draconicon

Draconicon returned to the village without incident, though it took him some time to actually find it. The tracks that they'd left on the way to the temple weren't the most visible after the long trek there, and he wasn't particularly good at finding his way through jungles to begin with. More than once, he ended up getting turned around, and Jaceb, of all people, was the one that had to point out the right way to go.

"How did you remember the way?" he asked as they stepped out of the trees.

"I read a b-b-book about it," the mole muttered.

"Well, you're definitely well-informed. Certainly worked here."

"Th-thanks..."

He could tell that Jaceb was still recovering from being, well, dead. The mole wasn't speaking much, and he was still as shy as ever. Not accepting the compliment wasn't that new, either, but he supposed that might have been made worse.

Regardless, they were back at the village, and he could start making progress on his new idea.

The guards at the gate let them through for the same entry cost as the day before, and he returned to the inn. The rat in charge was still there, though surprised that he had come back. Draconicon raised an eyeridge at the rodent, and was quickly shown back to his room, given his key, and left alone. He sat down on the edge of his bed, taking a deep breath before lowering his back to the bed. A long sigh later, and he felt a bit better.

Just a bit, though. After all, he had tangled with a god, had to force it to back off from him and some new companions, and had to take a long trek through the jungle. All in all, it had been a rather busy day, and it wasn't even done yet. He covered his eyes, grumbling to himself.

"Um..."

"Yes, Jaceb?" he muttered, rubbing his eyes.

"W-well, I...I w-w-was just w-wondering..."

"Uh-huh?"

"W-what do w-w-we do n-next?"

"In terms of what?"

"G-getting out."

"...You know, that's a good question." He sighed. "Not sure that I have an answer to that one yet."

"W-we are g-g-going, t-though, right?"

"Eventually, yes."

There was no question of that. They had come here by accident, just as a way of getting out of Hell. Now, they had to push further, to keep crossing the multiverse. If they stopped here, someone would eventually come down and shove them back to the bottom, right back into Hell. And if the angels, or the dragons, or even the demons looking for escaped people didn't find them, well...

He had studied gods. He knew that they weren't creatures to cross, even weaker ones like the Winged Serpent. If they weren't careful, they could end up pissing off entire pantheons, and he didn't want to deal with that. Not now, and not ever.

Draconicon reached into his robe again, pulling out the little amulet that he had retrieved. It still glowed with magical power, and he knew that the Winged Serpent was going to be pissed at losing it. Even now, he could feel the energy inside, and if there was a way for the serpent to take it back, the god doubtlessly would have been draining it right then and there to keep him from being able to use it.

But obviously, that wasn't the case. It was as strong as it had been when he picked it up. Tapping the side of the snake-head amulet, he watched it spin, shaking his head.

Jaceb watched him, the short, chubby mole keeping an eye on the amulet. Draconicon cocked his head to the side.

"Can you feel the magic?" he asked.

Jaceb shook his head.

"Huh." The dragon looked at the amulet for a bit longer, then looked back at the mole. "I meant to ask, earlier. Are you just a necromancer, or do you know other magics, too?"

"Just...Just a n-n-necromancer..."

"You sure? You're pretty powerful for that."

"Only w-where th-th-the dead are...plentiful..."

"So, you're strongest where a lot of people died?"

The mole nodded, rubbing his arm.

"I'm sorry. That has to be hard to carry."

"It's n-not easy..."

"You want me to shut up?"

"Please..."

He did, lying back down and staring at the amulet again. It was hard to know what to make of Jaceb sometimes. The most he really knew was that the mole didn't deserve to be in Hell, not with the sort of person he was. However, past that, he honestly didn't know that much about the little guy. He didn't know how the mole's necromancy worked, and he didn't know how Jaceb had gotten that much power in Hell, or what the skull he carried meant. All he knew was that the mole was a decent person, and that was all that he needed to know.

The amulet, now...

Letting it spin around slowly, he cocked his head to the side. It was a small thing, but it was jam-packed with the power of the Winged Serpent. Draconicon could feel it seething just below the surface, twisting and turning, writhing with the poisonous, chaotic energy of the aged, weak god. The temple had been ruined, the power there scattered slightly, but this was primal, old.

Oh, he was bluffing hard. This would have matched his shrine, easily, Draconicon thought. And the raw energy in this...

He hesitated, knowing that messing with it could cause some problems. However, he was curious, and he needed to figure out if his theory was right. Holding the amulet by the string, he used his other hands to summon his black flames.

"W-what are y-y-you doing?" Jaceb whispered.

"Trying something."

If there's magic in this, that means that there had to be a way to put it in, he thought, looking at the stone carving. And if it could go in, then it could come out, theoretically. It would just need a place for the magic to go.

Coins. There were still plenty of those. He took four of them from his pocket, already having an idea of what he wanted to do with this.

Coins, symbols of stability, symbols of currency, numbers. Four coins. Four markers. Purchased freedom from chaos.

It was a rough adaptation, but it was something that he imagined could be done. The shift of power had to be something symbolic, he felt, otherwise the magic might not take. Something in it had to make sense, otherwise, it would just be a storage bank of power.

He flicked his hands up, the four coins surrounding the amulet as his black flames continued to dance, forming different shapes around the five objects. They were all hovering in the air, now, all dancing back and forth, the coins orbiting the amulet as the black flames became conduits, attached to the coins on one side and the amulet in the middle.

That sets up where the power will go, but how to get it out...

The answer came a second later. The power of the serpent was to poison, to mutate, to change. All he had to do was call on the power, and let it pass through his black flames, allowing that magic to direct the mutations and stabilize them.

It should work. Should.

More of his magic began to flow, and he hissed as he felt it pulling on his inner stores. This better work, because he was forcing quite a bit of magic into this in hopes of bleeding it properly. If it didn't work, then he was going to be out a lot without any return on it. He shifted his attention slightly, pushing at the connecting channels against the amulet -

Click.

As soon as the pressure of his magic met the amulet, it started oozing with power. He could feel the god's strength as it rolled down the black flame channels that he had made, making the coins glow a deep green that slowly started to darken. It turned black after a few seconds, touched, channeled, shaped by his own magic, making it into something that was less painful, less chaotic.

Less poisonous.

Draconicon kept it going for a bit longer, making sure that the spell on each coin was strong enough before finally releasing it. The black fires disappeared, and the amulet fell back on the bed. It was still powerful, filled with plentiful magics, and he knew that he could tap it again if he really had to.

The coins, however...

He looked at them as they fell on the floor. Each one had a black edge to it now, marking it as something different to the average coin. Draconicon pulled the edge of his robe over his hand, using it to pull the coins together without touching them.

"W-what did y-y-you do?" Jaceb asked, looking at the coins.

"I made something to help our new acquaintance."

"B-but how?"

"You'll see when they get back here tonight."

"T-think t-t-they'll b-be b-b-back?"

"I think they'll be curious enough to be. If nothing else, they'll still want me to work on helping solve their problem."

Then again, he might have already done that.

The dragon was napping with his hands folded over his chest when the knock at the door came. It was a small one, but regular, and it was repeated ten seconds later. On its third repetition, he rolled out of bed, finding Jaceb snoozing on the floor, the mole's head tucked into a pillow and his glasses folded and tucked into his robe. He smiled slightly, stepping over him and making his way to the door.

He opened it as the fifth repetition began to find the kangaroo standing there, looking at him. She seemed a big haggard, a bit tired, but she still smiled. He offered a smile in return.

"Lots of alone time."

"Yeah, not so much 'alone' when you're all in the same head," she said, hopping in. "Aw, little guy's sleeping. Sorry."

"Don't worry. He slept through the knocking," he said, quietly pulling the door closed. "As long as we don't shout, we should be fine."

"Yeah. Heh. Poor little guy," the kangaroo said. "Ain't got a clue what's going on with 'im, but he's special."

"He is that."

Shaking his head, he gestured for her to follow him to the other side of the room. With her hopping along, he reached into his pocket, clenching the sleeve of his robe around the coins. He held his hand out, the robe still covering them so that they didn't fall, nor did they touch anything.

When they were further away, he looked back at the heavy-hitting 'roo.

"So, why are you, um..."

"Front?"

"Let's go with that."

"Yeah, the other two are talking stuff out. They thought you'd like to talk to the 'nice' one tonight."

"Well, I might have some good news for you."

There was a sudden flicker of motion through the kangaroo, a Doberman muzzle replacing hers before her large stompers were replaced with German Shepherd paws. Then it shifted again, other body parts popping in and out and then in again, always with a different sort of appearance until the 'roo managed to reassert herself.

"Ey, ey...You said I'm front, so I'm front. Got that? Yeah? Yeah? Good." She shook her head. "Say they want me to talk, and then they're all ears as soon as - heh. You said something about good news?"

"Yes."

He flicked the sleeve of his robe open, showing the different coins that rested on his palm. They blinked, looking down at it before looking up at him.

"What's this?"

"I drained some of the magic from the amulet, stabilized it. If I've done it right, then...well, there's a coin for each of you. If you hold it, think of it like paying the exit toll. You take your coin and you can...split, for lack of a better term. As long as you hold onto the coin, you're able to keep a stable body, and when you come back, you give the coin back, and you come back together. It's not...well, it doesn't reverse the curse that you're under, but it's the best I could come up with."

The kangaroo stared at him for a moment or two, and he genuinely wondered if he'd offended her. He hadn't had a lot of time to think of a good way to use the magic, and he still didn't even know if it'd work, but -

"Hang on, hang on..." The 'roo pressed her hand to her head, shaking it from side to side. "Now...now...settle down...settle down..."

He waited. After all, it was only polite to not interrupt a conversation that was already going on. Instead, the dragon leaned back against the wall, putting the coins down at his side. Several times, the 'roo's hand twitched towards it, almost like she was going to grab them and run. If that happened, he wouldn't have been surprised, nor would he have been offended. After all, there was no deal that they were supposed to work together or anything of the sort. Just that they would be together for a bit, get a job done, and they'd done that.

Eventually, the chaos slowed down, and the kangaroo once more looked up at him. She shook her head.

"Really, really sorry about that."

"No worries. I imagine that it's a lot harder to get people to settle down when they're not in easy grabbing distance."

"Heh, well, you're not wrong," she said with a little chuckle, but the smile from it didn't last long. She sighed, rubbing the back of her head. "Look. Can I be straight with ya? Just for a second?"

"Course."

"What else are ya wanting for this?"

"For the coins?"

She nodded.

"Nothing."

The kangaroo arched an eyebrow, slightly disbelieving. He shrugged.

"I told the truth when I talked to the god at the temple. I stood up for you four because you were in pain, or at the very least, not happy, and it wasn't your fault. I did this because I could, and I thought it'd make things better. I promised to try, and...well, that's the result," he said, nodding at the coins. "If that's not good enough, I'm sorry, and I'll try and find more, but...well, that's the best I can do for now."

"Oh, oh. No." She chuckled. "It's good enough. More than good enough. That's why they want it so bad. No, I'm just...concerned, ya know?"

"Thinking I'm going to want something more later?"

"Something like that."

"I guess I can't blame you for that."

Draconicon sighed. He hadn't been sure just what he had been expecting when they came back. A little more gratitude, perhaps? Maybe. But the suspicion, the worry, it was all understandable. They barely knew him, and he was a mage. They weren't that welcome in this world, and he could see that suspicion had long reach. He nudged the coins.

"You can get them examined, if you want. Or test them out. Either way, they're yours. Anything you want to do after that, or want to deal with me over, I'll happily go along with. But these? They're yours, free and clear. All of you."

"...You're a very strange man. A good man...but strange."

"Not the first time I've heard that."

"Heh, guess not. Well..."

The kangaroo paused, looking down at the coins one more time. Her muzzle changed to that of a Doberman's, the nostrils flaring, followed by the same happening with a German Shepherd face. The 'roo's metal armor clinked softly as she reached down, taking the coins in hand.

"Ya got any idea how they're supposed to work?" she asked.

"Just clench your hand around them. Whoever's leaving, just pull a coin free, and it should let them just walk right out."

No sooner had he said that than there were two free arms wiggling around the kangaroo's left side. One had the leather armor of the Doberman, the other of the German Shepherd. They both froze in mid-tug, and it made the kangaroo look like she had four arms instead of two. She opened her fist, and there were only two coins there instead of four.

Dragon and 'roo stared at the extra arms for a moment, the room completely still save for the mole's occasional snore. Eventually, the kangaroo reached over, slowly pushing the arms back down into her own, and they disappeared. She opened her hand, and it was back to four coins in her palm rather than two.

"Blimey...it works," she whispered.

"Looks like it."

"Goddamn..."

There were tears in her eyes, and he knew that this had to be a powerful moment for them. The dragon looked away, lifting his wing to cover his head and put a curtain between them.

"What are you doing?" she muttered, her voice half-choked. "Ain't that ugly, am I?"

"You're crying. I figured you didn't want to be watched for that."

"Yeah? Well...so what if I am? Ain't nothing wrong with...with...Oh, god..."

"Do you want some time?"

"Just...just go over to the little dear...please...They're so..."

He nodded, patting the kangaroo on the shoulder. Going back to his bed and then to the other side, he sat with his back and wings to the mattress. Jaceb rolled over slowly, the mole rubbing one eye.

"T-things okay?"

"They will be."

"T-they...okay?"

"...Eventually, I think."

There was a soft hiccup from the other side of the room.

"Pretend that you didn't hear that. Sleep. We're probably going to be busy in the morning."

"Is s-s-something g-gonna happen? Is...are y-you..."

"We're not leaving yet. Not nearly enough magic for that. But there might be something I can do that will get me what we need."

He just had to talk it over with the four of them in the morning, if they were still there, and willing to talk to him. There wasn't a lie in what he'd told the kangaroo. He didn't plan on holding this over them, nor was he planning on milking it for different favors. However, if they were willing to work with him, he hoped that he would be able to get some information on survival out here.

Heavens knew that he didn't know how to do it himself.

He patted the mole once more, gently encouraging him to go to sleep. Eventually, the necromancer did, curling up around his skull. Draconicon leaned his head back, slowly closing his eyes and drifting off.

The next morning arrived with the smell of roasting pork in the air. He sniffed a few times, then opened one eye. Unsurprisingly, he saw the German Shepherd on the floor against the wall by the door. She was still here, though it was hard to tell if it was just her, or all of them. She had a plate with a chunk of pork and some eggs on it, something that he imagined was being served for those with the coin for it downstairs.

She looked up as soon as he opened his eyes. Not surprising; he had probably changed how he was breathing.

"Do you always snore so much?" she muttered.

"No idea. Never heard myself sleep." He shifted his weight, then looked down at Jaceb. The mole was still out. "You been here all night?"

"...One of us was."

Shrugging, he slowly pushed himself to his feet, cracking his back as he rose up. He groaned as he felt the cricks and cracks back there, deciding that it wasn't a fun experience, and he sat down on the bed.

"Mmmph...not doing that again if I can help it..."

"Hehehehe, never roughed it, have you?" she asked with a chuckle.

"Not since I was a hatchling."

"What changed?"

"I stopped being homeless."

"...Ah. That kind of thing."

"Yes, that kind of thing." He nodded. "And I didn't really think I'd be going back to it, but here we are."

"..." She put the plate down, crossing her arms. "You know I know you're not from here."

"We covered that, yes."

"Where are you from?"

"Originally, or just before arriving here?" he muttered, rubbing his eyes. "Also, brilliant choice of conversation for the first thing in the morning, let me just say."

"Oh, I'm sorry. Would you like a cup of tea first, Mr. Fancy-Ass Wizard?"

Draconicon shook his head, rubbing his eyes.

"Sorry. I'm not the best when I first wake up."

"...And that was...rude of me."

"Please, be as rude as you want. I told you - no, I told the kangaroo - that you don't owe me anything for the coins. I did that because I wanted to, not because I wanted something."

"..."

"Is doing something for someone that strange for you?"

"It's...not what people do. People don't do that."

"Maybe not here. And maybe not in a lot of places." He shrugged. "Maybe people don't. But persons do."

"...Originally."

"Hmm?"

"Where were you from, originally?"

"Nowhere around here. Actually, on the far end of the multiverse from here."

She mouthed the word, almost like she was tasting it as he said it. He supposed that wasn't much of a surprise. One needed to be in touch with some very magical individuals or some very scientific minds to be aware that there was a universe out there beyond your own, or even imagine it as a concept.

That was confirmed as she looked at him with annoyance, and he smiled.

"Think of it like this. This village is...consider it a pebble. The world that the pebble sits on is about the size of this inn, in comparison." She nodded, understanding him so far. "Now, take that up a notch again. Imagine that this whole world is the size of that pebble, and in comparison, the rest of your universe is as big as your world compared to the pebble."

"...Go on," she said, nodding, her eyes glinting. Oh, she was interested, alright, interested and hungry.

"Now, take all of that, and imagine hundreds, if not thousands of different universes like that. Each one completely different, each one made up of different things, different people, different magics, different gods. That's the multiverse. Does that make sense?"

"..." Her mouth hung open, and her eyes had the perfect expression of 'why did you tell me this' and 'holy fuck' rolled into one. Draconicon rubbed the back of his head.

"Well, assuming it does. I came from the universe waaaaaaaaay on the other side. This one is right on the rim, rolling around the edge of the whole collection. Hell's just a hop, skip, and a plummet downwards."

"Always knew that this shithole was close to the bad place..."

"Well, it's not necessarily bad because of that, but it probably doesn't help." Draconicon shook his head. "Anyway, I got kicked out of my realm, bounced around, landed in Hell as a banishment. I managed to get out, and I landed here."

She gave him a look, and he knew exactly what she was thinking. He had been in Hell, and he had been banished from his own realm. It was the same look of suspicion and discomfort that he was expecting from anyone that heard that he had been in Hell, and he wasn't at all surprised that it came out here.

He was more surprised that her poker face was so bad, honestly, and it made him think that she probably was alone in there right now, if only for the fact that she had probably gotten used to hiding her disbelief behind the faces of the others.

Sighing, he nodded down at the mole.

"He was down there, too."

"No." She shook her head. "No. He wasn't."

"He was," Draconicon said, shaking his head. "That's the problem with Hell. Sometimes, you fall down there because you deserve it. Sometimes, someone sends you there."

"Why would anyone...he's not...Oh, ho, ho..." The German Shepherd held up a finger. "I'm gonna need a second. No, no. A minute. A minute and a lot of things that can be broken quickly."

"I think I saw some pumpkins out back."

"That'll do it. I'll be back...oh. Oh, ho, ho, fuckers..."

He watched her leave, slowly laying himself out on the bed. That had gone about as well as it might have, he supposed. There was going to be more explaining when the rest of them understood where he came from, and he imagined that was going to be all kinds of awkward, but better to have it out now rather than later. Far better to have it out now if he wanted to talk with them about getting some help.

A soft whimper caught his attention, and he looked down at the mole. Jaceb had pulled himself into a tight little ball, curled up against himself. He was whispering, his voice quiet but quick. Curious, the dragon leaned down.

There was no stutter as the mole spoke.

"Not right, not right. They hurt them all. I saved them, he killed them, they killed them, I saved them, no, no, no. No, no...no...no..." The mole whimpered deeper, grinding his face against the floor, his eyes wet in his sleep. "No, no, have to save them, have to save them. Didn't deserve it, didn't...no, no, no, can't save, must save, can't save, must save..."

The mole's whimpers slowly trailed off, turning into something else as he curled even tighter. His eyes disappeared under his arms, and he whimpered as he shook in his sleep, trembles rocking him from side to side. Draconicon shook his head, resting a hand on the necromancer's shoulder.

The light touch, however, was enough to scare Jaceb right out of his skin.

"AAAAH!"

And just like that, there were mole bones all over the room, with a rune-marked skull right in the middle of them. Draconicon stared at the mess, slowly shaking his head. He was just about to get up when the door opened, and the kangaroo looked in. Her eyes widened slightly at the mess on the floor, and she slowly looked up at him.

"...Ya know, I'm not gonna cut your head off. Because you've been good. So far. So, I'm gonna give ya a chance to explain why the little dear's all over the floor right now, and I'm gonna hope ya got a good answer."

"You know, I appreciate that, but..."

He gestured at the shadow that was already streaking out from Jacob's shell of a skin suit. The mole-shaped shadow was already picking up the different bones and bits, including yanking one finger-bone out from under the kangaroo's foot. She apologized under her breath, then stepped the rest of the way into the room.

"Okay, so...he's gonna be okay, right? This happens a lot?"

"Often enough. I don't think it bothers him that much anymore."

"Well, if ya say so." She shook her head. "Poor guy. Dunno what happened to him, but I just wanna put him in my pouch and let him rest."

"I wouldn't. He'd never come out."

"Heh, well, he'd have to fight the little one to move in." She blinked. "Or...not. Huh. Didn't expect that."

"I'm going to guess that, um, the German Shepherd is still outside?" he asked, nodding towards the back of the inn.

"Yeah, she's chopping pumpkins. Pretty angry, heh, but I know it's for the right reasons. She's a good girl."

"I imagine you're all good."

"Now why would ya say a thing like that?" she asked, chuckling.

"Well, I haven't seen any evidence to the contrary yet. Why not assume the best?"

"...Ya know, I stand by what I said before. You're a very strange man. Good, but strange."

"Hopefully, one day I get you to turn that around."

"Heh, ya know, ya just might. Anyway, I thought I'd come and give ya some info ya might be able to use. Ya still got that amulet?"

He nodded.

"Then you're set. And...we might just be willing to help out. If you're willing to help us out in return. Ya game?"

"...I might be," the dragon asked, lifting his legs out of the way to give the mole's shadow room to work at reassembling Jaceb. "What do you have in mind?"

The End

Summary: Draconicon and Jaceb talk a bit about what to do next. The dragon helps the four in one acquaintance achieve independence again.

Tags: No sex, humor, worldbuilding, character development, dragon, mole, canine, german shepherd, Doberman, kangaroo, magic, series, his new hoard,