#i got so busy today and yesterday i forgot to post again arghh ajhbak

[huffle-dork]

Long Live the King

Chapter 5: Training Montage

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Morning dawns bright, with only a smattering of clouds in the sky. During the night the lookouts shifted, but the boat continued down the river. Now it cuts through fields of wheat and vegetables--clearly this area is home to many farms. An unfortunate side effect of sleeping outside is that there's no shelter from the sunlight when the sun rises. Are these visitors tired enough to sleep through the dawning light?

Dr. J, Jackieboy and Henny rise with the sun, all to varying degrees of success. JJ seems used to waking early, stretching and quickly rolling up his bedroll. Henny looks sleepy still but groggily sits up and rubs at his eyes, fumbling for his glasses. Jackieboy groans and tries to curl back up, covering his head with whatever he can find nearby. Bro is slumped against the wall, like he just fell asleep while he was sitting up. He doesn’t look comfortable or that he slept very well. He’s still somewhat asleep as the sun rises, though his eyebrows furrow as the light shines bright.

As the sun fully rises, Chase and Jackie come out of the hold together. They're talking quietly at first but then stop when they see the others awake. 

"Ah, good morning," Jackie says, cheerful but not too loud in case the Swaps want to ignore him. "Sleep well?"

Dr. J rises up and smiles, “Good morning. I slept just fine, thank you!” 

Henny smiles after finding his glasses, “Good morning!” 

“Why is the Sun so bright at butt fuck in the morninggg?” Jackieboy moans. 

Chase laughs. "It's a terrible thing, isn't it? How dare it be so bright." 

Once he starts hearing the others’ voices Bro blinks open his eyes and tiredly looks out. He rubs at his stiff neck and rolls his shoulders, trying to wake himself up.

"Happy you guys slept well enough." Jackie grins. "Hey, want to see something? In a moment--" 

Before he can finish, the door to the boat's small cabin opens, and out walks Henrik. Followed shortly by Vsevna. 

Jackie's grin widens. "Marvin wasn't just joking when he said that yesterday."

Jackieboy perks up and sits up at Jackie’s comment and looks back. He sees Henrik and Vsevna and grins wide. “ooooh!” 

“Aww a slumber party!” Henny says cheerfully. 

“Henny no-“ Jackieboy laughs.

Chase lets out a snort of laughter. That draws Henrik and Vsevna's attention. "Wh-what are you all staring at?!" Henrik demands, narrowing his eyes. Vsevna just grins and laughs. 

Jackie waves. "Hello, Schneep!" 

"Do not 'hello' me!" Henrik folds his arms. "You better not be saying anything strange to the otherworlders!" 

"Promise we're not," Chase says. 

"Promise?" 

"Promise." 

“We didn’t hear at thing! Promise!” Jackieboy says with a big grin. Dr. J rolls his eyes. 

Henrik pauses for a moment, assessing him, then says, "I am going to get food for breakfast. Does anyone want any?"

“Breakfast sounds great, other-me! I would like some!” Henny says brightly. 

“Yeah me too-“ Jackieboy adds. 

“Would you like some help, Henrik?” Dr. J asks. 

Bro looks like he might fall back asleep, rubbing at the dark spots under his eyes.

"Yes, that would be great, JJ," Henrik says. "Right down this way--unless we stored some food under the grates like we did with the weapons?" 

"No, it's just weapons." As Jackie says that, he uses the toe of his boot to slide open a grate on the floor, revealing a small compartment. 

"Alright, to the hold, then."

Before Henrik can go down into the hold, Jameson pops out of the entrance. He stands to the side so the others can walk through.

Dr. J smiles and nods, walking after Henrik. He pauses at seeing Jameson and waves, “Good morning, Jameson.”

Good morning. Jameson smiles at him. He looks at the others. I see most of you are already awake. Everyone down below is the same. Well, almost everyone. 

"Marvin is asleep?" Henrik asks. 

Yes. 

"Well, he can get food on his own time. Come, JJ." Dr. J chuckles at this and follows Henrik. They head  downstairs while Vsevna walks over to the wheel to take over from the night helmsman. 

Jackie sits down on the deck next to the others. "We'll be on the boat for most of the day," he says. "Then around sunset, we'll reach the edge of the Moors and switch this boat for one better for that environment."

Bro looks up as Jackie joins them. His shoulders slump slightly as he sighs, “…a whole day… I guess there’s no use in me trying to fly ahead huh?” He laughs tiredly and shakes his head. “…I’d probably just get lost…”

"Well... we're on a river... going straight south... you won't get lost that easily," Chase says. 

"But it's probably not worth the attempt," Jackie agrees. "We can use the time to help train up your friends--if they want," he adds, looking at Jackieboy and Henny.

Jackieboy bounces up slightly, “Yeah Chase! This is what you were most excited about!! Seeing me get my ass beat!” 

Henny giggles. 

Bro chuckles too and gives his friend a smile. “…yeah… I think that’ll be fun. A good distraction too.”

"Great!" Jackie says cheerfully. "So, what is it? Two close quarters weapons and a ranged one?" He looks down into the grate he opened earlier. "We have some daggers here, varying lengths, a couple shortbows with quivers--oh! One of those new crossbows." 

"Crossbow?" Chase looks in as well. "Oh, if no one takes that, I want to practice with it."

“Ah damn- I guess it’d be harder to get a sword hidden in there huh?” Jackieboy laughs, “I could fuck with a dagger though!” 

“Ummm.. hmm… I think like Juwel maybe I should learn something ranged. That way I can also be on look out for things that might need my magic!” Henny says with a bright smile. 

"You could use one of mine if you want, Jackieboy--it'd be fitting." Jackie grins. "They're lighter than the usual broadswords used by the royal warriors, though, if that makes a difference." 

But if you want to use a dagger, me or Henrik could help out, Jameson says. 

Jackieboy’s eyes gleam, “I mean… that’d be cool! … but I should learn something that I don’t have to borrow from someone else. I wouldn’t be as good as you are with them anyways.”

“Take a swing at the crossbow, Chase- the others gotta learn the shortbow basics first.” Bro says with a smile.

"Good point," Chase says to Bro. He rummages through the grate and pulls out the crossbow and two shortbows, along with quivers of arrows. "Usually we practice with blunted tips but they didn't pack any, not expecting to have the time. We'll have to be extra careful." 

“I am sure we will be careful, but we also have two very good doctors with us in case of accidents!” Henny beams. 

Henrik and JJ return at that moment, and Henrik passes out little bundles of cloth with food inside. "Here we are," he says. JJ also helps pass out food then sits down with a bundle for himself. 

Henrik notices the bows and quivers. "Ah--are you practicing?"

“Not yet just,” Bro says, “But we’re hoping we can practice to help the day pass.” 

“Well if that’s our goal, let’s all make sure we eat well,” Dr. J chuckles, “Cant learn or fight on an empty stomach.”

Indeed, Jameson says. So everyone eat up. 

The breakfast passes quickly, as travel provisions are dry and easy to eat by design. 

Marvin joins them just as they're wrapping up, holding a hunk of bread in his hand and taking bites out of it. Clearly he's found his own breakfast. "Let me guess. It's training time?" he says. 

"Hopefully!" Jackie says cheerfully. 

“Good morning, Marvin,” Dr. J greets. 

"Good morning," Marvin replies. "Suppose I'll watch this. It was fun last time."

"Other me, when you're done take a look in here and try to find a dagger you can use. Shorter is better for beginners, though it does mean you have less range." Jackie says.

Jackieboy quickly gets to his feet and goes over to look at the weapons. He hums as he looks then grabs about a medium sized dagger. He grins and looks at the others, “I’m pretty speedy so- I’m not too worried about range!”

Marvin looks around. "Do you think there's enough room?" 

"The bows will need space," Chase muses. "I'm guessing you didn't pack targets when you left." 

"No, sorry," Jackie says. "It's alright, we can improvise." 

"You know, the royal crest sort of looks like a target," Jackie says slowly. "And we still have that tunic that Bro ripped up..." 

Marvin laughs. "I was not expecting that 'disrespect' from you, Jackie." 

"We're short on materials!"

Bro grins, “That sounds perfect.” 

“Fuck yeah! We can get out our rageee and practice! It’s two birds with one stone!” Jackieboy laughs.

Everyone laughs. Even Chase, who seemed so quick to defend the real king earlier, smiles a little. "Alright, let's set it up, then," he says, getting to his feet. 

A lot of the Phantoms have to clear some space for the others to have room, but luckily, they don't mind. Bro goes to sit on the wall of the boat, watching with a smile.

Jackie pins the ripped tunic to the wall of the cabin with some arrowheads, providing a target. Half of the deck is thus converted into a shooting range, while the other half is for everything else. 

"Alright, Henrik, did you want to help with the knife lessons?" Jackie asks. 

"Yes, sure." Henrik nods. 

Bro blinks and smiles, “Oh Henrik’s gonna help this time? Nice!”

"Hah, yes, my weapon of choice is usually a smaller dagger." Henrik reaches down to his belt and pulls a dagger out of the sheath. "I am not often out in the front, being a doctor. So this is for just in case people get close." 

There's also those potions you've been using lately, Jameson says. Those are very helpful. Did you see him throwing those yesterday? 

"They are, are they?" Henrik grins. "I did run through almost all of my supply yesterday, but I can brew them easy enough, I just need more of the special bottles." 

Meanwhile, Chase is fiddling with the crossbow, looking it over. "Why does this seem so complicated, and yet, so simple?"

Henny looks down at Chase’s crossbow and tilts his head. “That does look complicated…” 

Dr. J tests the strength of the string on his shortbow.

"It looks like I just have to pull this, ah... I don't know what to call it, this... lever?" Chase indicates a trigger on the crossbow. "While I figure this out, let me give you two advice. The string will take effort to pull back, but if you can't move it at all it's too tight. You'll want to hold the bow with the opposite hand of your dominant eye." 

Henny perks up hearing about the potions and jumps over to Henrik, “oh!! I was wondering what those were!! Are they magic??! They are so fascinating!” 

“Oh well… we lost Henrik-“ Dr. J laughs. 

Henrik starts a bit at Henny appearing, but then laughs. "Yes, they are magic. This land has many plants with magical and medicinal properties--is why I came here to be a doctor so many years ago. But the unmixed potions are a practice from my home." He looks around, then reaches into one of the grates on the floor and pulls out a round bottle. A glass wall divides two different liquids inside, one a bright pink, one a pale yellow. "When you pour out the bottle or smash it, the liquids inside mix and form new effects! This one will cause a bright light." 

Henny’s eyes sparkle in fascination. “Woahhh!! That is amazing!! And you not need to be magic yourself to use such things?!” 

“I mean- even back home not everyone needs to be magic to use magic, Henny.” Jackieboy grins, “My family really liked witchcraft growing up. Was a fun Irish tradition my mam kept going with us- even if me and my siblings don’t really practice. At least the… religious stuff.” He laughs, “Oops Off topic but! Nature based magic? That’s always been open for anyone to learn-“ 

“Oooh really? Is that similar to what you use here, other me?” Henny asks. 

"Witchcraft is what it's called here too, yes," Henrik says, looking back and forth between Henny and Jackieboy. "And anyone can use it, learning to brew the right potions or craft the right talismans." 

Then Henny pauses and looks back at Jackieboy. “you never really talk about knowing magic things Jackie!” 

Jackie’s easy expression falls for a second and he looks away. “…it’s… kinda a… sensitive subject… cuz it… deals with.. you know.” 

Henny’s eyebrows furrow and then his eyes widen. “oh right! Yes I.. I am sorry Jackie-“ 

“It’s okay, hen, I brought it up!” Jackie laughs.

"What happened?" Jackie asks, picking up on Jackieboy's 'sensitive subject.' 

"Jackie, please," Henrik says, having also picked up on that and deliberately ignored it. 

"What? I can't help but be curious, since he's... me in a way. My family was never that into witchcraft, other than the handful of talismans to help protect from wild animals." 

"He just said it was sensitive." 

"He doesn't have to answer." Jackie looks a bit ashamed. "But, um... sorry." 

Jackieboy’s face falls again. But he tries to laugh, “no I… I get it. I would have asked too… I just…” He holds his arm and sighs quietly. “…I don’t want you guys to think… differently of me. But I… I knew… Magnificent… when we were kids. He was… my best friend. I’m the one who taught him about witchcraft… opened him up to studying other magic outside what his family knew. I… really loved teaching him. But now…it just reminds me that…” He purses his lips, trying to school his expression. 

The others' expressions fall. 

Henrik gives Jackie a glare, who just looks apologetic. "My apologies... for asking," Jackie says awkwardly. 

Marvin glances away. "If it makes you feel any better, I don't think it was your fault," he says slowly. "Jackie and I have had arguments as well--in fact, we had quite a big fight almost two years ago--and I still never would have done something like--not to make it a-about me, that's not my intention, I just--I simply mean that Magnificent might be the same regardless of your actions." 

I'm not sure that helps, Marvin, Jameson says. 

"I'm... sorry if it doesn't. I just... want to say he shouldn't blame himself." 

Jackie looks up and smiles at Marvin, “No actually that… that helps, Marv... But… I don’t blame myself. It… took a while to come to terms with.. all this. I.. honestly thought he was dead. But… I know now. That he chose to do all this.., I was there for him as much as I could be. …we all make our choices.” His expression darkens.

"W-we should continue with the lesson," Henrik says, quickly changing the subject. 

Jackieboy shakes out his head. “uh… yeah. Now you know! So… violence?” 

Jackie laughs. "Violence. Yes." 

Henrik nods. "The first step with any knife is getting comfortable holding it. For some reason, people are more wary around them than they are swords." He flips his own dagger in his hand, holding it a different way. "When I was learning, I had to spend a few days carrying it around with me, so I would be cautious but not overly nervous. But I will not make you do that, sicne you may not be in this world for long. Just keep in mind that you want to hold it tight, but not in a death grip." And you rarely want to hold it with your thumb at the bottom, Jameson adds That's only really helpful if you want to stab like this. He makes a stabbing motion that reminds the Swaps of the stereotypical horror-movie-killer stab. And it's rare that you'll do that. 

“Oh really?” Jackieboy says, already holding his knife like Jameson suggested not to. He studies Henrik then changes his grip, slicing at the air a bit to see how it feels. “huh- neat!” 

Meanwhile, JJ goes to follow Chase’s advice, testing his eyes. He puts his bow into the left hand and tries to see how well he can pull the string. 

"Looks like you're doing well," Chase says to Dr. J. "Now put your guard on your left arm so the bow string doesn't snap against your skin. Then move your feet like this." He turns sideways. "Your left foot should be in front." He looks at his crossbow and tries aiming it. He pulls the trigger--and nothing happens. Confused, he looks it over. 

Dr. J follows the instructions with a concentrated expression. He shifts his foot and puts the guard on. He holds out the bow and string and smiles. “Oh… that kinda makes you feel powerful doesn’t it?” He chuckles. He looks back at Chase and relaxes his stance. He hides a laugh, “Having difficulty?”

"Yes, but I can figure it out." Chase turns the crossbow over in his hands. He tries moving various parts--and finds a little lever on the back. "Oh, this was keeping it from firing, I think." He laughs a little and looks back at JJ. "It does, sometimes. I imagine it's more so for longbows. Those can be up to this tall." He holds a hand out just below shoulder-height. "Oh! When you nock the arrow, be sure that one of the three vanes--those are the feathery bits--points outward."

Dr. J chuckles at Chase’s discovery. “Ah that’s probably a safety so it won’t shoot when you’re not ready.” He takes out an arrow and studies the end before nocking the arrow. He pulls back and tries to aim for the makeshift target.

"A 'sayf-dee,'" Chase repeats. He looks at Dr. J as he aims. "Make sure your bow is lifted all the way. New learners tend to let them droop. Keep both your eyes open to aim. And loose whenever you're ready."

Dr. J opens both his eyes after keeping one shut. He nods and follows all his advice then fires his first shot.

Dr. J's arrow hits near the center of the royal crest. Chase's eyes widen and he laughs. "Nice! You're either extremely lucky or you really have a knack for this." 

“I’ll go with extremely lucky.” Dr. J laughs. 

Chase looks over at Henny. "Hey! Did you want to join as well?" As he waits for Henny's answer, he takes aim with his crossbow and pulls the trigger. The bolt hits the crest, closer to the edge than the center. "Hmm. This is strange."

Henny blinks as he’s called and calls back. “Oh! Yes! Coming!” He then turns back towards Henrik and grins. “I’d love to see how you make your potions later then, other me! I think it could be useful to learn!” Then he rushes off to join the archery lesson. 

Back at the knife lesson, "Pay attention to if your blade has one side or two," Henrik says. "If it is one-sided, rest the thumb on the side that is not sharp. If it is two-sided, like this dagger, hold it securely with all fingers and your thumb on top." He demonstrates. 

Jackieboy squints at his dagger. It seems… two-sided- so he tries to mimic hold Henrik is holding his. “like this?” 

Henrik nods. "Very good. Now, we should start with defense. Jameson, you learned this more recently, so if there is anything you remember feel free to jump in. Defense with a knife is difficult compared to a sword, due to the lack of reach. You should put more force into it than you expect to make up for that lack." 

Jackieboy nods, testing his grip and swinging the dagger around. He grins, “I can see why Alt likes these kinda things though- s’like a surprise no one anticipating! But yeah- more force… got it!” 

Meanwhile, Dr. J helps Chase to instruct Henny on how to get set up. He seems to be more left eye dominant so he holds his bow in his right hand and puts the guard there. JJ helps him get into stance and Henny starts to close his eye before JJ warns him not to. He giggles then takes aim too, letting his arrow fly.

Henrik's arrow hits even closer to the center. Chase blinks in surprise and laughs. "Are you sure you two haven't done this before? 

Henny blushes and waves one of his hands, “I swear I have not! I do not know how I did it!” 

“Maybe it’s a natural talent you didn’t know you had, Henrik,” Dr. J says kindly, patting his shoulder. “it really wasn’t something you could have learned.” 

“Alright, alright. Shoot another, we'll see if it's really luck." Chase says.

Henny smiles shyly.

Meanwhile at the knife lesson, I could help with a demonstration, if you need it, Jameson offers.

Jackie blinks then smiles, “Only if you wanna man! Anything would help probably.” 

Bro watches with a smile, leaning his head on his hand. He wonders if the Phantom managed to keep the sword the king gave him- technically now it’s stolen.

"I think it would help, too," Henrik says. "Jameson? Let's go slow." Jameson nods, taking a knife from his belt. This one is one-sided compared to the two-sided daggers. He steps over to Henrik and slowly mimes a slashing attack. Henrik demonstrates how to deflect. "If it is a knife attacking you, aim for the base," Henrik says. "In a fight, it's better to overcorrect and hit the attacker's hand than to undercorrect and only push away the tip a bit. If it is a sword, you will have less problem aiming for the bigger blade. And it is there that you will want to use the most force, since the bigger blade will naturally have more strength behind it." 

Jackie tries his best to absorb the information, nodding slowly. “Okay yeah- makes sense. You wanna disarm another guy with a blade cuz then you’d have the advantage but with a sword you just wanna sure you don’t get like- chopped.” 

Back at the arrow lesson, the swaps try to shoot again, Henny first then JJ.

This time, neither of them hit the makeshift target. Henny's arrow gets embedded in the wood farther to the left, while JJ's doesn't even do that, instead bouncing off the surface. 

"Well, I would've been embarrassed if you were both better than me right away," Chase chuckles. 

Henny and Dr. J laugh, Henny a bit more embarrassed but JJ seems to be taking this all in stride. 

"Here, let me..." Chase raises the crossbow, aims, and fires. The bolt hits the dead center of the crest. He blinks, clearly surprised. "Oh! Well, I suppose we all have beginner's luck, hah." 

“Ah you’ve been doing this much longer, Chase! I think that bullseye was well deserved.” Henny says brightly. 

He looks back at the two of them. "I think you were both a little looser with your stance and aim the second time. You can't get too confident."

Henny takes Chase’s advice and stands up straighter as he pulls the bow again. Maybe- bordering on too straight. Dr. J tries to take it a bit easier while still following Chase’s instruction.

"Don't break your spine, Henny," Chase grins. "Being too stiff is just as bad as being too loose. JJ, you look good. Try not to recoil from the snap of the string when you loose the arrow."

Henny blinks and then tries to relax and Dr. J nods with a smile. They both fire again. Henny’s posture correction helped him to hit close to the center again, if a bit off from the first time. But definitely an improvement from the time before. 

Dr. J’s gets stuck in the wood before the fabric. He chuckles. “Maybe i should try to learn about those potions! I’m not sure weapons are my strong suit.”

Chase laughs. "We can always do that later! I'm curious about Henrik's potions myself. For now, practice makes perfect."

"You're all doing great!" Marvin says encouragingly. Thank you, Marvin, Jameson says. 

“Yes, Juwel! You are always telling me the same are you not?” Henny smirks, nudging Dr. J slightly with his elbow. Dr. J flushes a bit but still laughs, “Touché. Alright, let’s keep practicing then.”

"And I'll do some practicing of my own." Chase loads another bolt into the crossbow. "Ask me for any help you need."

"If you want, I can help demonstrate, too," Jackie says back at the other lesson. "Or, if you want, Bro, you can. We still have that sword you had earlier." 

Bro blinks and points at himself. “Oh? I mean- yeah I could I’m just- still nowhere good enough to teach anything yet.” He grins timidly. 

"Ha. Well, I mean, it could also be practice for you, for defending from knives," Jackie says. "While Jackieboy keeps from being 'chopped,' you keep from being 'shanked.'" 

Bro bursts out laughing then shakes his head, jumping off the boat’s wall to his feet, “Alright- I guess I’m game then!” 

"Great!" Jackie grins. "We put your sword in the hold, so I'll go get that real quick. You guys keep practicing while I do that." 

Henrik nods as he walks off. "Alright, Jackieboy, I'll show you some basic moves, then." 

◈━◈━◈━◈━◈━◈━◈━◈━◈

As much as the King would have loved to sleep more, they had a lot of ground to cover. And Alt needed sleep to function; his body was the same as ever even if his mind was ensorcelled. So the King relieved him of guard in the middle of the night. And now, with morning dawn, he nudges him awake with the toe of his boot. "Wake up, á klaíoh," he says. 

Alt very quietly groans before he registers who’s speaking and his eyes fly open. He glitches to his feet and nods his head to the king, bowing slightly. There’s a faint tremble to his hands and the bags under his eyes seem deep. But overall he seems fine as far as the King can tell. The spell is still strong. 

And then the King glances to where Magnificent is sleeping. "And you too, Magnificent, dear."

Magnificent stretches very cat-like and swats at the air, “Yeah yeah m’wakin’ up…” He slurs as he rubs the sleep out of his eyes.

The King chuckles lightly. He goes over to the horses, which were tied to a tree branch during the night. After rummaging through the saddlebags, he tosses some provisions to Alt. "Eat. Quickly. Then go scout around the area." 

“Yes, mu Ríth.” Alt responds, grabbing the food and scarfing it down quickly. 

Aneirin double-checks that his gold circlet is still where he left it on his belt. It is. Good. 

Soon enough, Alt is glitching to his feet and goes to scout around while the King and Mag prepare. 

"We'll be passing through some farmlands on the way west," Aneirin says to Mag. "Can't be avoided if we want to take the shortest route. Will you have any problems with that?"

Magnificent teleports to his feet and stretches more before looking at the King, tilting his head. “Why would I have an issue passing through farmland? If it’s the quickest then that’s where we should go.” 

"I didn't wish to assume," Aneirin says. "Perhaps you don't like being seen. But to be honest, a trip through the farmland could be ideal for gathering food. We can scavenge through most of the kingdom, but it is unwise to trust the plant life in the Wyldwood. It may cause undo side effects. The first time I was there, my... companion... unwisely ate a strange fruit and I had to waste a day taking care of him while the effects wore off." He purses his lips, frowning at the memory.

“Well yeah that sounds like it’s good to avoid.” Magnificent says flippantly, brushing himself off. “I don’t mind being seen- and you do whatever you need to keep the brat and your body running.”

"Ha. Indeed I will." The King grins and then takes some provisions for himself to eat. "Hmm... if any of the peasants see us, I'll have to modify their memories so rumors don't spread. Luckily I can do that without expending any of my power. So in just a couple days we'll be able to take a shortcut, barring any unforeseen circumstances..." He's more speaking to himself than anyone else.

Magnificent nods, leaning back against the tree he was resting near, “Alright yeah- guess the King traveling towards this big forest thing would cause quite the rumors?”

"Oh, definitely. It's rare to see a member of the royal family out in the country." He chuckles, and waits for Alt to return from the scouting.

“Ahhh yeah. Figures.” Mag chuckles along with him. 

Soon enough, Alt glitches back and stands at attention towards the King and Mag, “The area is secure, mu Ríth. Nothing out of the ordinary.” 

"Excellent. We'll move on, then." The King heads back over to the horses and mounts his. "Keep a lookout as we go. Alert us if there is anything strange before acting." Like that bird yesterday. That was strange. He pauses for a moment, wondering if there was anything... magical about it. But he can't think of what it could be. 

Alt nods, “Of course, mu Ríth.” 

Magnificent stretches again the teleports onto his horse, calming it down and then settling in. 

Alt hesitates, not really wanting to get on the horses again but not really wanting to walk the whole way either… but maybe he’d be able to scout better on the ground. 

Aneirin notices Alt hesitating. "What's the problem?" He raises an eyebrow. "Surely there isn't one."

Alt straightens up and shakes his head, “um n-no your highness, a-apologizes.” He glitches onto the horse with Mag and tries his best to hide his discomfort.

Aneirin chuckles. "On we'll go, then." He snaps the reins and the horses start off. 

◈━◈━◈━◈━◈━◈━◈━◈━◈

The whole day passes on the river. As the boat goes, the river gets wider and wider, and yet also shallower and shallower. More trees appear, taller ones with large roots and drooping branches. Henrik and the other doctor on board pass around a couple jars of paste that smells like bug spray. Until, near the end of the day, the boat pulls to the side of the river. There's a small wooden building there with a dock, and docked there is another boat, one that's wider and shallower than the last one, without a cabin. Vsevna disembarks and starts talking to a pair of women who come out of the building.

The guys are hanging out on the surface of the deck, waiting for the go-ahead to start shifting the stored supplies to the other boat. 

Henny watches from the edge of the boat, studying the landscape. “ohh I see now why we need to change boats! These waters are very different.” 

“And full of bugs-“ Jackieboy mutters, swatting at one of his arms. “I need more of that paste stuff, Jesus.” 

"Here, there is some left, but do not take it all," Henrik says, handing the jar he has to Jackieboy. 

Jackieboy smiles gratefully and takes some more before giving it back. “Thanks Doc!”

Dr. J looks to fantasy boys, “How far to the wlydwoods from here?” 

"From here, it's due south to the coast," Chase says. "Where we'll meet up with a larger ship and sail west for two days until we reach the Cliffs of Feall. And that's not too far from the Wyldwood at all. Only a couple hours walk, really." He glances at the others. "I still can't believe you set up camp there." 

"Cliffs are defensible," Marvin says simply. "We could technically continue going west through the Moors, they spread more west to east than north to south. But this time of year the bugs are especially active, so I doubt anyone wants to spend a lot of time in here." 

"We have medicine for marsh fever if it comes up," Henrik adds. "Though symptoms do not usually appear until a week afterwards. I hope you have medicine for it back home if you catch it." 

Last time Bro and Alt did make passing mention of a lot of medicine, so I think they'll be fine, Jameson says. Don't worry them. 

Dr. J nods, “Reasonable… and yes I’m sure if we were unlucky enough to catch something here we’d be okay, granted we got treated quickly once we’re back home.” 

“Two days…” Henny says in a small voice, “I understand why…I am used to longer travels… I am just worried for Alt…” 

I know we only spent a few days with Alt, but we could tell that he's very... hardy, Jameson says. And I doubt the King or Magnificent would hurt him. It's not ideal, but we're moving as fast as we can. We'll be sure to beat them for what they've done. 

Henny still looks worried as he adjusts his jacket. “…I know… but even if Magnificent does not… intentionally hurt him… he does not know what being human is anymore… I remember how tough I was pushed when-“ He then slaps his hands over his mouth, eyes wide for a second. Then he sighs and lowers his hand, looking away. No use hiding this- “…when I was used by him… I just… I want him to be okay…” He blinks tears out of his eyes and tries to keep them back. “but I know he will most likely not be… and it hurts my heart.” 

Dr. J pats Henny’s shoulder lightly. “…we can’t change how this is playing out, my friend. We can only do what we can…” 

Jameson's eyes widen slightly. He starts to reach out, then hesitates and pulls back, pursing his lips. Well, it's not just Magnificent, he says. The King is... not kind, but he likes to keep people functional. And he probably understands better what it's like to be human. Even if he is just a spirit. He hesitates. I'm... sorry that happened to you. Nobody should be used. 

Marvin glances over at Jameson, concern flickering on his face. Jameson notices this and gives him a reassuring smile.

Henny’s eyes widen listening to Jameson. Then he smiles knowingly and nods, “Thank you, my friend.” 

Despite the others having gathered together Bro has taken one of the bows and is practicing taking aim at the Royal crest, eye narrowed as he sits on the ledge of one of the ships railings, up higher than the others. He’s a pretty decent shot if not just a bit rusty. And he’s being careful that no one is near while he shoots.

Jackie looks back at him. "You know we'll have to get off the boat soon," he reminds him.

Bro grips the bow tighter and calls back, “I know- I’m just passing the time.” But really- he’s letting out his frustration and pent up anger about this whole thing. “It was either this or use my Jackie as target practice-“ 

“Hey!” 

“Well I’m not am I? Cool your jets-“ Bro mutters, letting the arrow fly. The arrow just barely nicks the edge of the center circle and Bro tsks under his breath. 

“Still Chase… we should be getting ready to go to the next boat…” Dr. J warns gently. He recognizes that look in his eyes… 

“I hear ya!” Bro says as he jumps down from where he was perched to go grab the arrow and the tunic. 

Marvin blinks. "Cool your... 'dyets'?" he repeats under his breath. "That sounds like a Lodkan word." 

"It's not," Henrik comments.

Jackieboy giggles, “‘Jets’- it’s like a… high powered thing. We use it on air- …flying ships. And they can get hot so- ‘cool your jets’.” 

Marvin nods and turns back to Jackieboy. "Flying ships... that sounds very interesting." 

Jackieboy laughs, “Yeah they’re pretty cool. Make traveling a lot faster in our world!” 

“Lodkan?” Dr. J can’t help but ask, “Is that another country nearby?”

Henrik clears his throat. "Lodkan is the language of Leylodka, a nation to the north. The largest of the five nations that are farthest north in the world, actually. Vsevna is from Leylodka. And many of his crew are also from the far north. Those nations are well known for their shipfaring in this sea." 

Dr. J looks fascinated, “Oh I see… that explains their differing accents for sure. How interesting!” 

As if queued by the mention of his home language, Vsevna whistles for attention. He waves at those on deck. 

"That's our cue to start moving things," Jackie says. Other Phantoms who caught the cue are already heading down into the hold.

"You're improving a lot," Chase compliments his other version. 

Bro glances at Chase and tries to give him a smile, but it falls short. He takes out the arrow with force and takes off the tunic as he mutters. “Maybe I’d aim better if I pictured Mag…” he mutters. 

He perks up as he hears Vsenva’s whistle and he sighs, moving to deposit the things on the deck for now. “I should help with the heavy things-“ he comments before heading down to the hold to help. 

“Ughh how is Bro not sore? Even with just using a dagger my arm is killing me… I dunno if I can lift a lot.” Jackie moans. 

“He is a superhero, Jackie.” Henny giggles. 

“Yeah yeah-“

Jackie watches Bro go. Then looks back at Jackieboy. "Yea, don't worry about it. He has his magic and the rest of us have used weapons for a couple years at least." 

Except for me, Jameson admits. So I understand, other Jackie.

Jackie laughs a little. "I'll go down to help now, too." And he does.

Jackieboy massages his arm and chuckles, “Bloody cheaters, the lot of you! Only me and my boys and Jameson are legit it seems!” He jokes, lightly nudging Jameson with a smirk. 

Dr. J laughs and shakes his head, “I’d like to help… but I’m afraid my arms feel like jelly-“

“Hey, experience is not cheating,” Chase says. “In fact I would argue it’s just the opposite.” 

“Yes, magic is cheating,” Henrik says. 

“Hey!” Marvin gasps, mock-offended. 

The others laugh. 

Jackieboy giggles with the others, “Nah man I’m just havin’ a laugh- it helps distract me from the arm pain!” 

“Don’t worry about helping if you feel you can’t, JJ,” Chase says. “It just means you get to claim a spot on the boat first. This one has benches built-in.” He grins.

Henny laughs too, hiding his mouth behind his hand. Dr. J looks a bit relieved as he chuckles, “Oh that would be brilliant actually!”

Chase laughs. “Well what are you waiting for then? The rest of us are going to get pulled into helping, but no one would stop our guests.” 

“It is getting late, so tomorrow I could show you our potions and medicines, if you like,” Henrik says.

Henny nods excitedly at this, “Oh yes! I would very much like that other me!!” 

Dr. J chuckles and nods, “Yes, that sounds lovely as well, Henrik.” 

Jackieboy grins, “Well then gents? To the new boat!” He parkours over the side, making sure he’s landing somewhere safe before heading over. 

JJ rolls his eyes, “What a show boat. Come along, Henrik- we can use the ramp like civilized guests.” 

Henny giggles and they too head off to the other boat. 

Bro flies out of that hold with a heavy load but doesn’t look deterred at all. He touches down to the dock and grins at the others. “…I have no idea what any of this is but! Putting it on the new boat should do it right?”

Jackie follows Bro on foot. “I’ll still never get used to that,” he mutters, indicating Bro’s flight. 

The others all join the guys on the dock eventually. “Those are for the food,” Marvin says, indicating what Bro was carrying. “We also have medicine, ingredients and supplies for making medicine, spare clothes, weapons, the tents, random stuff—you’d be surprised.” 

“See? Cheating.” Chase gestures at how Marvin is using magic to make the tents he’s carrying levitate.

Bro blinks and then giggles, “Yup that’s me! Big ol’ cheater~” He does not even seem remotely sorry. “Are we putting these in a separate hold or-“ He asks the others.

"The hold is these flat boats are very small," Henrik says. "Here, let me show you." He walks onto the boat and pulls open a trapdoor in the center. The space beneath is barely big enough to crouch in. "So we can only put things here that we are sure we won't need. Everything else will be strapped down on top." 

"There's surprisingly a lot that we won't need," Jackie adds. He gives guiding gestures to Marvin and the others with the tents, and they put them into the small hold. "Pretty much only weapons and food are going to be up top." 

"And of course, if you want to learn about my potions, the materials for that," Henrik adds. 

The other boat was already crowded, but this is going to be much more, Jameson says. 

"Yea, don't worry about sitting down on deck, everyone's gonna be doing that," Jackie says.

Bro follows after the others and nods to all their info. “Well guess it’s good we’ll be on another boat soon then-“ He comments putting his pile of stuff down on the deck of the new boat.

"Yes, by this time tomorrow we'll have reached the ocean," Marvin says. He makes a face at that. "Oh joy." 

"Marvin, this time I insist you take a nausea tonic," Henrik says. He looks at the swaps. "And any of you who need it." 

Dr. J timidly raises his hand, “I will need one for sure-“ 

Henrik chuckles. "Will be no problem, JJ. I packed plenty. Thank the Sisters that you are not stubborn like this one." He pats Marvin's shoulder. 

Marvin makes a face at him, then turns to Dr. J. "Well, we won't have to worry in the Moors. It's all very still water here. There's not even much wind. See? There's not even a sail on the boat." 

Dr. J studies this with even more fascination. “Oh I see! Either there must be a stronger current here or it just doesn’t get enough wind… or perhaps both.” He chuckles. 

“Marvin being stubborn must be a multiversal thing-“ Jackieboy mutters to himself. 

"Not enough wind," Marvin says. "The trees tend to block a lot out. And I heard that." 

Jackieboy flushes and waves his hands, “Wait no I didn’t-“ 

Jackie laughs. "You're too right, Jackieboy." 

"You are not much better," Henrik mutters. 

"Neither are you!" 

"Okay, we get it, the three of you are stubborn bastards," Chase says, chuckling. 

All three of them make sounds of protest, specifics getting lost in their overlapping voices. 

Bro laughs, shaking his head, “I think most of us are stubborn. I know Alt is like 1000% stubborn.” 

“Chase you are too- it’s definitely a Brody trait from what I’ve seen.” Dr. J smirks. 

Bro shrugs, “Yeah that’s fair.” 

“But he’s nowhere as bad as Alt-“ Jackieboy adds. The 

others all nod in agreement.

Jackie grins. "From what I remember of Alt? Yea, that's accurate." 

With all of the Phantoms helping, it's not long before everything that needs to be stored is stored. It takes a bit longer to tie down the things in the center, but soon they have a pile, with everyone's bedrolls around the edges so that they can be easily grabbed when night time comes. There are no hammocks below deck like the last time. Seems everyone would be having a night under the stars.

Bro backs up from helping everyone tie stuff down and wipes sweat off his brow. He goes to sit in front of his friends on the deck. Jackieboy pats him on the shoulder and Bro smiles back at him tiredly. Henny looks over the edge, studying the water. Bro makes himself comfortable with a sigh.

As soon as everyone's on board, one of the Phantoms pushes away from the shore using a long pole. The boat drifts out onto the water. There is no wheel for steering here, just a lever at the back that connects to a rudder. The rudder and poles are the ways to steer here. 

The boat continues down the water, the trees getting taller and wider. The sound of frogs fills the evening air, so many that it sounds more like ringing than any animal sound. The sun begins to set, and small specks of yellow light start flying through the air. 

As the specks of yellow appear, Henny shoots to his feet and tries to get a closer look. "Oh mein gott!! What are these???" 

Dr. J watches with quiet awe, a soft smile on his face. "...they're... fireflies...! Oh my... I’ve never gotten to see them in person..." 

Marvin laughs. "Yes, fireflies! They exist in your world, too?" 

"Oh yeah- we only got glowworms back home-" Jackieboy chuckles as he looks, "Not nearly as impressive! These are... wow-" 

Bro looks up at the fireflies and smiles. They were beautiful... but it also just makes him miss Alt. He would have loved to see this... 

"Sounds like they exist, but they've never seen them," Chase says absentmindedly. "Well... I haven't, either, to be honest." He and Jameson are just as enamored with the glowing bugs as the swaps. 

"They exist in America," Bro says quietly, a far off look in his eyes, "... I remember seeing them sometimes... before I moved to the UK." 

"Here, watch this." Marvin holds out a hand. After a moment, one of the fireflies lands on his finger. "They just do that. Even with the repellant. It's so, um... 'cool.' It's sooooo 'cool.'" He chuckles. 

Henny looks so excited and eagerly holds out his hand for some fireflies to land on- but he's too excited. "come here little friends!!" 

"In the Wyldwood there are blue fireflies. But they're not as friendly. Not unfriendly, either, they just won't land like this." Marvin says. 

Will they land on us while we sleep? Jameson asks. 

"Yes, but they're harmless."

Jackieboy groans, "Man I'mma light sleeper- Imma feel these fuckers all night!"

Might want to use a blanket, then, Jameson says to Jackieboy. Cover your head.

Jackieboy chuckles, "Solid idea!" 

"Oh blue? How interesting... I wonder if that's magic or like... just different species of bug," Dr. J muses thoughtfully. 

"They seemed magic to me." Marvin shrugs. Then he looks at what Henny is doing and smiles. "You have to be a bit slower, Henny. It's very 'cool' but they get scared easily."

Henny looks to Marvin and then nods, trying to hold his hand steady. Finally, one lands and Henny squeals quietly. "J-Juwel! Juwel look!" He whispers in barely contained glee. 

Dr. J laughs, "Good show, Henrik!" 

"Ah, so you are also a mover, then, Bro?" Henrik says. "From... where was it? Umaerikah? To the Ookay?" He chuckles. "These sound like such strange names, but I suppose it's a matter of perspective. It can be very strange to move somewhere else." 

Bro blinks at Henrik and then laughs, "Oh uh... U-K, stands for United Kingdom... or Britain. It's where all of us live now. But, I was born in another bigger nation across the sea, its also called the United States. Goes back and forth." He looks back up at the sky and the fireflies and sighs, ".... I try not to think about America much... I've lived the UK for much longer now. It's home more than anywhere in America." He looks back to Henrik, "What about you Schneep? Do you miss your old country?" 

Henrik blinks, thinking about it. "Sometimes," he says slowly. "Alterde was a beautiful place, in both nature and the cities. Many artists live there. My memories tell me that it was cleaner, as well, but I cannot be sure of that. But..." He shakes his head. "Some things about it were not so good. They were not as accepting of people with other preferences, or of people with what they called mind sicknesses. Which was not good for me on either count." He chuckles. It quickly fades. "And like you, I have lived here for much longer. Jackie and Marvin were my first real friends. I cannot imagine going back and leaving them behind. Or... without finishing our business here with the King."

Bro smiles at him and nods, "Yeah... I get that... sometimes... it's nice to remember the nice moments... but then you remember why you left and what you have now and.... it almost feels silly to miss it, huh?" He laughs quietly, shrugging. "That's how I feel at least. ... there's nothing back in America for me and Alt so... we're never going back there. We got all the family we need here." He looks back to his friends and smiles a bit more warmly. Especially as he sees the firefly Henny caught going to land on Dr. J's face, causing Henny and Jackieboy to erupt into giggles.

Henrik nods. "Yes... I understand what you mean." He looks at the rest of the guys, at Marvin and Jackie laughing as Draco tries to bat at the fireflies, at Chase and Jameson trying to get the glowing bugs to land on their fingers. "It is getting dark. We should get some rest, yes?"

Bro sighs and leans back on his arms, "Yeahhh... probably." 

Jackieboy suddenly lets out a loud screech- one of the fireflies landed on his arm when he wasn't paying attention- and all the swaps fall over themselves in laughter while Jackie's face turns bright red. He grumbles and stomps over to find his bedroll, muttering about "Shining lil bastards-"

The fantasy boys all giggle in unison. "Good night, everyone," Henrik says, and walks over to grab his bedroll. 

We'll see you all in the morning, Jameson says. 

"And all through the night, since there's not much cover," Jackie adds. 

After everyone grabs their bedrolls and spread it out, they all huddle up to go to bed. 

◈━◈━◈━◈━◈━◈━◈━◈━◈

Aneirin scowls at the sky. Even with the horses, they're not making much progress before nightfall. His power is still recharging for a big jump. "What say you about going a bit through the night?" he asks Magnificent.

Magnificent blearily looks up from where he's resting against his horse's neck and waves his hand, yawning loudly. "Yeah yeah- whatever you think is best~" 

Alt frowns, "... can the horses navigate at night...?" He asks quietly.

Aneirin tilts his head, considering that question. "Not as well as they can in the daylight..." He pauses for a moment, then shakes his head. "You're right, á klaíoh. Thank you." It's important to make them feel like they're appreciated. If they have positive feelings associated with you instead of only negative ones they're less likely to shake out of it. He pulls the horses to a halt. "For the night, then."

Alt blinks in surprise and then flushes slightly- not used to the praise. "Oh... uh... y-you're welcome, mu Ríth." 

Mag glances between them and snorts before hoping off the horse. "Well don't just stand there and gawk, kitten. Start getting us some firewood then." 

Alt straightens up and nods, glitching off into quickly darkening surroundings. 

The King gets off his horse as well, surveying the area. This is mostly fields, but it's impossible to keep a field completely clear of whatever plants will grow, so there are a handful of thin trees. He ties the horses to the nearest one. 

"It's important to thank them sometimes," he says idly to Magnificent. "Give them praises. They'll want to leave less. But I'm sure you know that already. You've probably been doing this longer than I have."

Magnificent waves the King off, "Yes yes- I'll make sure he know he's the 'best kitty everrr'~ when he gets back." He says sarcastically. He sits down and then contemplates this further. "Huh... i guess I don't.... really do that. I just- pump them full of my influence so they'll wanna stay. Like... getting them addicted to a drug. Hm...."

Aneirin raises an eyebrow. "Really? Well, I suppose if it works, it works." If it works. He knows from peering into Magnificent's mind last time that it doesn't always. "Perhaps I just look at it that way because Aodhan was taught from a young age to use his enchantment skills only to help."

"Mmm perhaps," Magnificent muses as he laughs, "Ha! Imagine having such a power and using it to help others! Ridiculous... this kind of power was only ever made to aid men like us. don't you agree, Aneirin dear?" 

"Ha! Indeed." The King laughs. "I got more kingly duties done in a week than he got in a whole year. It's so easy when you can make sure everyone agrees with you. Keeping such tight control is what enchantment is for."

Magnificent grins, "Exactly~!" He hums in amusement and then looks out at the fields around them. "..though... mayhaps I'll give the praise a shot..." 

Soon enough, Alt glitches back with as much wood as he can find and places it in front of the King and Mag. He steps back respectfully, about to go sit out of the way when Magnificent stops him and holds up a hand. "Wait a minute Alt... you've done so good for us lately, kitten. Why don't you come rest over here?" 

Alt blinks at Magnificent and looks confused. But slowly he nods and glitches over to sit next to Magnificent and sits awkwardly, arms stiff and in his lap. 

Magnificent rolls his eyes and then pulls Alt to lay down on the ground next to his leg. "I said to rest, Alt." 

"S-Sorry, my liege," Alt mutters out, awkwardly curling up. 

The mad magician pauses as he studies his former apprentice. He reaches out- and then gently starts to pet back Alt's hair. 

Alt stiffens at first- but then purple magic blooms in his eyes in a quick spiral before he shuts his eyes and melts into the touch, practically purring.

Aneirin watches this with a mix of curiosity and fascination. He wants to make some comment about how Magnificent must really like cats to act this way, but something tells him this won't go over so well. So he simply gets busy setting the fire up, something he can do without even thinking. He lights it with a spark of lightning, directed down his seax to the wood. Then he sits. 

Magnificent blinks in surprise, then grins, doing a bit more and washing more of his magic over him. Might as well keep the magic strong right? "Yes... that's a good kitty... rest... and let all those pesky thoughts fade away... let yourself be well rested for tomorrow. We such great need of you... and you're doing so good for us~" 

Alt slumps against the ground and actually makes a purr like sound. He watches the now started fire, entranced and totally relaxed. Magnificent giggles and leans back, pleased with how that went. 

"Never one for that," Aneirin mutters, glancing at Magnificent and Alt. He's not really talking to anyone else. More to himself, reflecting on how intimacy of any sort never really appealed to him. It was no great loss to lose the sense of touch for so long. But... did it make him seem less human to others? Maybe if he pretended, less people would be inclined to see him as a figure to rebel against.

Mag looks to Aneirin and shrugs, "I'm not usually one for it either- when it comes to humans at least. Cats however..." He chuckles. "This must be leftover conditioning from another spell I've done on our lovely knight~ not too long ago, I had him believing he was an actual animal, a pet of mine." He then sighs loudly and digs his claws into the ground with a suppressed snarl. "It was going so well until his idiotic friends came along... but, nice to know there's still a bit of Blitz in there~"

Aneirin blinks. "Ah. Yes, I can see how that would be helpful." In fact, wasn't Magnificent planning on turning him into a cat last time he visited? When he thought he'd finally gotten the King under control. Though he technically did, being able to put Aodhan under his spell, but not loosen Aneirin's control on the body. "Your panthers in the other world. The ones we are trying to reach by finding the doorway. They are something similar, then." He chuckles. "Maybe you could build up their ranks while here. Big cats are not native to the island. They will certainly take the rebels off guard. Along with the... what did you call them? Remnants, or such?"

"hmmm... my panthers are similar but very different," Magnificent hums, "My panthers are merely street cats I fit into my mold. They can change size but they aren't useful past that. Good for spying though. My vestiges however~!" He grins madly, "That was what Alt was going to become... My vestiges are carefully made~ former magicians turned into loyal pets through dark magic. All giving me magic I can't normally access!" He sighs and flips his hand. "They take months of careful conditioning to make however, and a proper ritual as well. So, I only have a few now." He smiles then looks at Aneirin with glowing eyes that shine with madness. "..however... If we leave some of the rebels alive... I could make good use of them... maybe that pathetic other-me from this world~!" He giggles.

"Marvin Tinechroí is certainly pathetic compared to you, dear Magnificent." Aneirin chuckles. "Honestly, he's not even as powerful as his sister. But he has quite a bit of magical knowledge in that head of his, so before you do, we have to be sure to get that all out, in case there's something useful. " Aneirin tilts his head. "I wonder if any magic-wielders could be transformed into a vestige. Or would it be limited to wizards...? Well, something to find out, I suppose.“ 

Magnificent chuckles, "I'm sure it could- though magicians are all similar in my world, even if their specific magics differ." 

“I only ask that we spare Jameson Jairsolas from that fate. He has use as an oracle, and I must admit, I've gotten attached to him and the work I've done." Aneirin’s  eyes flick to Alt. "Which I'm sure you understand."

Mag tilts his head at Aneirin admitting he's grown attached to Jameson. He hums and looks down at Alt, a strange feeling in his chest. "...yes... i suppose I do." He then shakes out of his thoughts and waves a hand, "Not sure a seer would make a good vestige anyways." 

"I think it'd be interesting to try, but you know the process better than I do, so I'll defer to your judgement." The King shrugs. He looks up at the stars in the sky and frowns. "We waste so much time by resting," he mutters. "If you ever find a way to get around that, let me know. It'd be most helpful. But until then, we should get some sleep."

"I mean.... I don't know how compatible our power is... But i could always lend you mine." He shrugs, "I don't need much to keep the spell on Alt and all the magic around us keeps me sustained. We could try it in the morning, perhaps?" He pouts, "Because unfortunately sleeping is the one thing I have to do..." 

Alt has already fallen asleep in front of Mag, breathing softly.

Aneirin raises an eyebrow. "I didn't realize you could lend power as well as steal it. Though... I suppose it makes sense." He nods. "So we'll sleep, then. And if any farmspeople find us in the night, we make them forget." He stretches and lies down on the grass, staring up at the moon. "Good night, then."

Magnificent shrugs, "Eh- don't do it that often. Only for people I like~" He winks at the King then chuckles, going to curl up in the grass. "Good night."

The King smiles faintly. For once, he can't say if the smile is self-satisfaction... or genuine affection. It better not be the second. That just leads to danger. Sighing, he closes his eyes, though he doesn't sleep for a while longer.