Dungeons Are Bad Business

The first time Vee Vales woke up on Present Day, it was dark outside, and he smiled as he rolled over into a more comfortable position and went back to sleep. After all, he’d set his alarm for fifth morning bell, and there was no point in getting up too early.

However, the second time Vee woke up on Present Day, bright rays of sunshine were peeking in through his window – it was, in fact, one such beam that’d woken him up in the first place – and Vee sat up in a panic. He hadn’t heard his alarm go off, but the fact that it was already so bright out meant that it was indeed later than fifth morning bell.

Throwing open his blinds, Vee looked out at the city below. Bardis was covered in snow, its streets perfectly white, and icicles hung from the windows of every other building that he could see. It was festive and peaceful, yet the youngest Vales son’s mouth fell open in abject horror.

What time was it?

He looked over at his bedside table to check his clock, only to realize that the clock wasn’t there at all.

“Looking for this?”

Vee’s head snapped over to the foot of his bed, where his older brother, Emory, was sitting and tossing Vee’s clock up and down like a ball. Emory was grinning, and with a strangled cry Vee ran over at attacked as much fury as his eight-year-old body could muster.

“I thought you were going to wake up earlier than me this year? Didn’t you bet me half your candy that you’d be up first? I got a look at them when I came upstairs, and let me tell you, little brother, they look awfully full!”

“You cheated, Em! You stole my clock! You’re a no good dirty rotten cheater.”

Emory laughed, taking his brother’s blows in stride for a moment before grabbing Vee in a tight one-armed hug. “Hardly. You’ve got to expect stuff like this, little brother. Leaving your belongings unprotected is basically inviting them to get stolen. Besides, even if you’d had your alarm you wouldn’t have been up before me. Father had me up at fourth bell to look over some of the inventory that came in overnight.”

Vee stopped struggling. “He did? Why didn’t he wake me up too?”

“You’re still too little,” Emory said. “He only started having me look at them with him last year, so I’m sure that you’ll get woken up extra early in another couple years.”

Vee started to pout, but was distracted by Emory pulling him toward the door.

“Come on, breakfast is just about ready, and after we eat you can go through your candy sock. Since I’m such a nice big brother, I’ll let you pick the candy you’re going to give me.”

The Vales household was always well-kept, but on Present Day morning it was a sight to behold. Red and green tapestries hung from the walls, all the gold and silver decorations had been freshly polished, and the air was filled with the warm scent of roasted chestnuts and other spices. Several of the family armorsouls wandered the long hallways, sweeping up even the smallest specks of dust, and they all bowed to Vee and Emory as the boys passed.

“Good morning, young masters,” they all said.

Vee waved back, and Emory gave them all a solemn nod.

The family dining room was decorated in the same way as the house, and the large table in the center was filled with all manner of delicious food. There were trays of eggs, fried potatoes, and various bits of meat, platters of fruit shaped to look like flowers, and enough cookies, pastries, and tarts to open a bakery. Had it just been the four of them, Vee would have thought the display excessive, but since it was Present Day – like all holidays as well as the last Saintsday of every month – the [Servants] would be joining them too. Since the Vales family was served by a small army, there’d be enough for leftovers but not much more than that.

His parents were already sitting at the table, and while Vee’s mother, Emma, waved her sons over so that she could give them both a strong hug and enough kisses to make both boys blush and brush her off, Vee’s father was focused on the sheet of paper in his hands. It might be Present Day, but business didn’t stop, and Tyrion Vales barely acknowledged his sons with a grunt as they sat down.

A bell rang a few seconds later, and the [Servants] filed into the room soon after. After receiving their annual bonus envelope from Tyrion and Emma, the [Servants] took their places at the table and joined in the morning’s feast. Conversation and the sounds of utensils filled the air, and Vee let his eyes lead his stomach as he piled his plate high with fried potatoes, slices of thick bacon, and eggs scrambled with red spices and topped with green stuff. Like any good eight year old, Vee normally didn’t like green stuff on his food, but the eggs were so yummy that he didn’t really mind it in this case.

Vee ate quietly and quickly, nodding his head and responding politely whenever anyone tried to strike up conversation. Next to him, Emory was having an animated conversation with Jules, the [Head Butler], about some painting in the family study.

Not for the first time, Vee wished that he had his older brother’s ability for conversation.

His mother reached over and idly stroked his hair, and Vee snuggled against her once he was finished eating.

“Okay, are you about ready for your presents?” she asked.

“Yeah!” Vee said. “Let’s go, let’s go!”

Smiling, Emma reached over and put her hand atop Tyrion’s. “Come on dear, let’s go watch the boys open their presents. Your reports will be waiting for you when you get back.”

Vee’s father grunted. “Of course, darling. Just one last document.”

“Now,” Emma said with a laugh. “You know as well as I do that if I agree to let you fiddle with your papers we’ll be here till nightfall. A few minutes without work will do you some good.”

Sighing, Tyrion set down his report and stood up. “I suppose you’re right, my love. Come on, lads, let’s go see what you got for Present Day!”

Inside the Vales family room, there was a pile of presents that was taller than Vee was. However, in the center of the room, there were two boxes that caught Vee’s attention and held it without letting go. They were made of a nice, dark wood, and covered in marquetry patterns of flowers and birds. One had ‘Emory’ on its side, the other had ‘Vee’.

“I’d suggest saving those for last,” Tyrion said with a smile as Vee went over to open the special box up to see what was inside. “Go ahead and open your other presents first.”

Vee did as his father said, and for the next hour he and Emory opened up all manner of incredible toys, exotic candies, and nifty little trinkets. Most of them were from his parents, but a few were from his aunts and uncles or some of Tyrion’s business associates. This latter group was scrutinized by Tyrion himself, and Vee was sure that his father was mentally judging the presents.

Finally, the time came to open the special box, and there were five small elixirs inside.

“What are these?” Emory asked, picking up a bottle and examining it. “This one says [Acrobat].”

“Those are Zalumnian Class Testers,” Tyrion said with a smile. “Drinking one lets you become the labeled classholder for a few hours.”

Vee looked down at his own bottles. Like Emory, he too had [Acrobat], but that was where the similarities ended. Instead of [Panflute Summoner], [Ghost Maestro], [Wrestler], and [Carpenter], Vee’s own bottles contained [Shadow Dancer], [Wind Caster], [Explorer], and [Cook].

There was also a small booklet that contained brief descriptions of each class, and Vee read the entries for [Shadow Dancer] and [Wind Caster], since they seemed the most interesting.

[Shadow Dancer] - Use the power of shadows to weave in and out of existence.

Skills gained: [Shadowstep], [Two Step], [Basic Rhythm]

[Wind Caster] - Use the power of wind for fun and profit!

Skills gained: [Gale Flick], [Trade Winds], [Gust]

Vee rubbed his chin. Hmm, that didn’t really explain much, did it.

Emory had already drank his [Panflute Summoner] vial and was trilling away on the spectral silver instrument that’d appeared in the air before him. Sure enough, a stream of butterflies poured out.

Which one did Vee want to try first? Truthfully, none of the options seemed all that great, but Vee picked up [Shadow Dancer] all the same, as it seemed the most interesting of the options he had available.

However, before he opened it up, he looked over at Emory’s box. For some reason, [Ghost Maestro] caught his eye. He thought back to what Emory had said earlier that morning and smiled.

Moving as deftly as he could, Vee swapped the [Shadow Dancer] vial for the [Ghost Maestro] one and popped the cork out. The liquid was cool and slightly sour as he drank it down, and Vee shivered as a false system notification appeared before his eyes.

[Congratulations! You have been given temporary access to the Ghost Maestro class!]

[You can temporarily use the skill Shape Ectoplasm!]

[You can temporarily use the skill Second Sight!]

[You can temporarily use the skill Ghost Baton!]

[Time remaining: five hours, fifty nine minutes]

Vee didn’t know what any of those skills were or what they did, so he closed his eyes and consulted his soul’s mirror to check. What the heck was ectoplasm?

Thankfully, [Second Sight] allowed him to see the strange, wispy energy that floated in the air like cobwebs. There wasn’t much of it in the mansion, but he gathered up enough to make a small, uneven ball and bounced it on the floor a few times.

It wasn’t as impressive as the myriad of followers that now surrounded Emory, but Vee thought he’d have fun with his temporary class for the next few hours.