Declan sat on the floor of his apartment, so glad the heat rune worked. So glad he wasn’t under blankets and shivering. Still upset he hadn’t realized it sooner. But right now, his mana bearing sat in front of him, the mana stone orbited, and he held his prize. A tier zero Protect.

  Protect: Surround yourself with a weak single-hit barrier. Mana cost: moderate, fixed. Tier Zero rune.

  He’d tried directing his own mana into it with predictably bad results. The small stone would in his estimation, take about an hour to charge Protect due to the four angles. The shape connected, which made it better than Deflect but still, slow.

  Now the mana bearing began a torturous path around him, not smooth but still rolling and without breaking the walls. He didn’t push for speed, just progress, and when it locked into place, he was already focusing, both hands on Protect. The tidal wave of mana that gushed through him overflowed what protect could absorb, and yet, so much of it drained away instead of into the rune. It was a mystery, one he wanted to solve, but it only took five orbits of the smaller stone to charge Protect. He didn’t waste the charge, instead choosing to focus on Deflect.

  It really was a simple rune. The modifier line was too long, the widths different, the effect not an artists, but functioning. This was worth a little blood. Killing a blazed beast with Protect was at best unlikely but Deflect, if used right, could break the neck of those storm hawks.

  This was the beginnings of power.

  The week of Long Dark began as the name suggested, and as history said it would, with Declan doing his damndest to keep from getting beaten down. The only positive was that Anthony had declared his heart strong enough to use an actual sword, though the edges were blunt. Afterwards, Declan lay gasping on the grass while Anthony slew a flaming bull with the training sword that wouldn’t cut butter—or his fingers off.

  Anthony returned, holding a rune and as always a smile. “You see, my friend? I teach you. You lure the blazed beasts. We are both stronger. It really is a good day.”

  “Thank you for the lesson,” Declan said.

  “Thank you for the runes! Look, the sky is falling!” Anthony pointed into the sky.

  A meteor of light had launched from far past House Perth and now rocketed through the dark sky, heading uncomfortably close to House Ariloch. No, heading uncomfortably close to Declan. As it fell, he felt a familiarity and recognized the color, the feel of the mana. Lake Domine landed with an impact that tore grass from the scab and sent a blazed puma that had been stalking Declan running, with Anthony close behind. She shouted “Look who’s the baddest bitch in the scab! It’s me! That feels awesome!”

  “You were flying,” Declan said. His deflect no longer felt impressive.

  “Not really, but also yes. Got my mana boost treatment and I’ve got two, two and a half minutes before I crash and have to recover. Gotta fly!” She shot up into the air, spun and fired off three Pierce bolts before sailing away.

  Not one, but three thunpers fell from the side of one of the buildings. Declan ran to collect the spoils. They were marked with Lake’s mana but it would keep someone else from stealing them. Then he ran for House Ariloch, because he sure as hell wasn’t going to be the one killing.

  Hadyn was eating a bowl of cereal in the commons and waved. “It’s ready. You overpaid!”

  “Are you saying your work isn’t worth rin?” Declan asked.

  “It technically is only a little mine,” Hayden said. “But I’m an artist. I’m worth every coin and more. You can’t afford me, except I can’t afford to go anywhere else, so we’re good?”

  “Good.” Declan didn’t have long to prepare and still wasn’t sure what to do for Roland. The gift he’d chosen was almost certain to backfire or be abused and yet it was worth it.

  He helped out with the study session, grilling Jackson. “When is it?”

  “Tomorrow. There’s a minor swarm in Echland and they’re setup for us. I…made a request. I asked for you to accompany me. I’ll be in the focus ring but I figured that much mana exposure, it might help you. They told me they’re packing the room with candidates.” Jackson shook his head. “I halfway want to run away.”

  “You entirely want to stay. We’ll be here when you come back and if I have to, I’ll assign someone to feed you soup. Or my stew. You do not want my stew.” Declan had to run to lunch and didn’t want to be late.

  He arrived early and was still last, since every other house arcanist was there. Eden sat with three neat yellow gift bags. Roland had nothing and Harris looked panicked.

  “Today? I thought we had another week,” Harris said as Declan sat down. “I’m not ready for Long Dark gifts. I’m not. Give me a week. Two at the most.”

  “I already gave you my gifts,” Roland said. “The gift of friendship. And a few minor things, courtesy of House Perth. If they say ‘Roland’ on them, just pretend it’s your name.”

  The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

  Declan handed his to Harris first. “I couldn’t think of anything you’d want more.”

  “You got me a enchanted diamond engraving awl?” Harris shouted. “Oh, it’s a rune. How did you get a rune? What does it do?”

  “I get credit from the Armory for help and that one has literally been in their inventory since before all of us were born. It’s called Explosive Flatulence and I do not recommend trying it. I figured you could use it for something like Fart Strike.”

  “Pretty cool, thank you!”

  The next gift worried him slightly, but he handed the envelope to Eden. “It’s the name of an enchanter. Your windows on the north side condense because they’re built badly, not because the enchantments are wrong. This guy builds them right. He did both of House Ariloch’s and the work is exquisite.”

  “I love it!” She tucked the card away.

  The last was the simplest. He handed Roland a stack of paper. “It’s certificate for eight hours of official Insight.”

  “It took you this much to write?” Roland asked.

  “The rest of it is conditions. See, I figure you’re going to trade this to someone else, some noble family or one of the other houses or for that matter, the actual familes themself and I’ll get stuck doing it for them. So, if they want me to spend eight hours trying to identify something, I will but that’s it. No promises it’s absolute, papers only for what I’d stake my reputation on.”

  “Best damned gift ever.”

  Eden passed out bags. “They’re wake and sleep potions. And something special for you, Declan.”

  He pocketed the potions and took out the small crystal pillar. It sat upright on the table and when tapped gave off the same dim blue light that matched his runes. It was roughly shaped like a tree, if the tree had a disease. “I’ve seen these on the tables. Privacy guards? It’s so pretty, I’ll put it by my bed.”

  “Not it!” Harris said. “You got it for him, you explain.”

  Eden gently tapped the pillar. “It’s…a way of saying you’re open to company. You go to the commons, set it on your table, if someone sits down, you know they’re interested. Adjust on the bottom for blue, green, red, or amber. Blue is looking for women, green is men, red is either, and amber means you want to be surprised. Not to be rude, but you really look like you could use some company.”

  Declan began to laugh until he almost cried. “Let me tell you about Ainsley Herring and the great bonfire of the summer. Let me tell you, my friends. Think I’ll just keep it by the bed.”

  Only after they were done did he show them Deflect. “I’m losing so much mana. It doesn’t go into the rune, it doesn’t go into the ground, I don’t know where it goes.”

  “Talk to Brieze. Instructor Brieze,” Eden said. “I…liked their class. They’re kind of odd but in a good way, not a wear-your-skin way. And they like math and equations and mana conversion is a passion for them.”

  Declan headed to Instructor Skinner’s next, ready to show his new ability. He walked in the door and triggered Deflect, knocking away a Strike. “Ha! I knew you’d—” Another Strike shot at him, this one deflected by Protect. The third one hit him in the nose, leaving him wincing. “What the hell was that?”

  “I wanted to make sure you were prepared,” Skinner said.

  “And the second one?”

  The old man shrugged. “She told me you bartered for a Protect. If you’re going to get one, you’d better have it ready to use.”

  “And the third one? You had to know I didn’t have a third option.” Declan wasn’t letting him off the hook.

  “I didn’t expect you to stand there and get hit. I thought you’d dodge. I’d have corrected and still hit you, but I’d have more respect for you in that case.” Skinner pointed to the edge of his desk. “They’re testing the glint system with rapid response runes. They require a mana charge built up but can be aligned and triggered in less than an hour. It should let us respond to swarms more quickly, and the crown is funding them in critical locations.”

  Declan opened the envelope to find a white bracelet with his name. “Thanks. What is this?”

  “Oh, the new system lacks all the safety protections of the old one. They’re looking for hardy souls who would be willing to try it and I signed you up as my representative. There’s one to Foundry. House Sullivan is very afraid of what happens when a blazed beast swarm gets near that much arcite. Anyway, should you decide to test it, please make it back before it closes in two days. The journey without glint is weeks.”

  “House Ariloch needs me.”

  “I find that unlikely, given that it has been rudderless for years. Why not treat this as an exercise in growth? This is an opportunity. You should look for them and take them.”

  “Thank you.” Declan took the bracelet. “Why does it have my name on it and not yours?”

  “Oh, that. So they can identify your corpse if something goes wrong,” Skinner answered.

  ###

  Declan had stopped by House Ariloch to gather his pack, recharge his runes and make some snap decisions. The first was easy. “I’ll be gone a couple days, keep the house standing, Chen. Don’t go in my apartment, but other than that, you’re like a less handsome version of me.”

  “Behold!” Chen shouted. “The reign of Chen the Great has begun!”

  Some things just had to work themselves out.

  The Glint circle was cordoned off and guarded, until Declan showed his bracelet and then he was treated like royalty and guaranteed that it was almost certain the array was aimed correctly, and if it wasn’t, he’d never know. Probably painless, they assured him. They meant the death, the actual travel would be identical.

  Declan’s palms were slick and his breath caught as the array activated. Someone tossed a chicken into the glint, where it shrieked and disappeared. Then another. And another. Then an argument began that concluded with them claiming the array was probably working because the chickens disappeared instead of exploding like they often did.

  He ran, sprinting straight at the field. Sharks ripped at his legs, ants devoured his eyes, and Declan tripped, flying through the glint to crash to the ground on the other side. He wasn’t clear, and dragged himself with his forearms, each inch reducing the agony until he could stand.

  “Array is disengaged!” someone shouted. “Whooohooo! We got a live one. And three dead chickens again.”

  Declan rose on shaking hands. The air tasted of cold ash and arcite, the smell of home and happiness. Then he stood up, collected his pack and sundries. They had arrived west of the foundry, which was dark, and north of foundrytown.

  Everything felt small as he retraced the steps of his childhood. Every corner, filthy, every building, ramshackle, every window broken. Had it always been like this? At last, he passed by the foreman’s big house and on to the worker’s tenaments.

  It felt like a thousand miles from the cobblestone path to the front door, and then it had to have been someone else’s hands knocking on the door, someone else in Ariloch white. The door swung open, and Jan Yacca’s mouth dropped open. “Lise…Lise, our son is home!”

  “Hi,” Declan said. “I came home to visit. And I brought chicken!”