TS5: Chapter 11 (Patreon)

Passing through long hallways and majestic rooms, as well as beautifully arranged courtyards, Thorn couldn't help himself and tapped the servant leading them on the shoulder.

"Yes, my lord?”

"I'm curious. The Vantor family is a challenger clan?"

The question must have sounded stupid to the servant, but he did his very best to keep his expression neutral.

"Indeed, my lord. The Vantor family is one of the ten great challenger clans," he said.

Rubbing the back of his head, Thorn looked out into the endlessly blue sky that surrounded the tower, taking in the sight of hundreds of islands floating above them. The island they were on was rotating around the tenth floor, but it was noticeably larger and more ornate than any of the other islands at this level, and was even larger than some of the islands on the level above them.

"What my husband is wondering," Velin cut in smoothly, "is what floor this island normally occupies?"

"Ah, the Vantor challenger clan has islands on the tenth, seventeenth, forty-second, and eightieth floors," the servant replied. "This is the island they use for entertaining those who have yet to reach the tenth floor."

"I see. Thank you."

Soon after, they arrived at a large banquet hall where the feast was to take place. After handing them off to a steward, the servant bowed and returned back the way they had come. There were hundreds of individuals—humans, elves, animalkin of various kinds, and god beasts—sitting at the various tables spread around the hall. At the front of the room was a large, long table, and Thorn immediately spotted Tessra, Mistress of Flame, sitting in the center. She appeared to have been on the lookout for him, because as soon as he arrived, she rose, causing the gentleman to her left who had been chatting with her, to trail off.

"My apologies, Matthias. I've just seen an important guest."

Slowly standing from his seat, Matthias, who was dressed in a loose robe and carried a sword at his waist, narrowed his eyes as he stared at Thorn.

"More important than me?" he asked, his half-joking tone unable to mask the anger in his eyes.

Tessra didn't bother to reply, and instead, through an imperceptible signal, indicated that the steward was supposed to bring Thorn and the others up to the front of the room. As they got closer, more and more of the guests stopped their conversations and turned to look, curious about who these new visitors were. It was clear from the way that other guests were being ushered into the hall that it was fairly rare for Tessra to greet guests herself, and yet now she had completely stopped her conversation and was simply standing and waiting, her eyes scanning over the group as they approached.

"My lady, Mistress of Flame, allow me to introduce to you Thorn, Velin, Mina, Corvo, and Alph," the steward said, beads of sweat rolling down his face.

He had asked Thorn and the others for their names as they walked through the hall, expecting them to give him a list of their affiliations so as to allow his introduction to be suitably grand. Instead, he'd been casually given their first names, and they said nothing else. Feeling an intense glare as he finished introducing them, the steward surreptitiously looked around, trying to figure out where it was coming from. It only took him a moment to spot the furry creature riding on Thorn's shoulder, who was glaring daggers at him.

"Her name's Akira," Thorn said, helpfully.

Quickly clearing his throat, the steward spoke quickly, "Ahem, and Akira."

Amused, Tessra waved her hand, and the steward retreated, relief evident on his face.

"I know you, but not your companions," she said to Thorn, her eyes sweeping over them. "And it would seem that you didn't bring Stello. You wouldn't happen to know where he is, would you?"

Shrugging, Thorn shook his head.

"I genuinely don't," he replied. "Honestly, he could be just about anywhere.”

"Well, if you do find him, you can tell him that the Vantor family is willing to call off our hunt," Tessra said waving her hand, “we have no intention of pursuing him any further. But enough about him. Welcome to the Vantor Clan’s island. I'm grateful that you accepted my invitation."

Bowing slightly, Thorn returned Tessra's smile with one of his own. "Well, thank you for inviting us. Allow me to introduce you to Velin, my wife. Behind me are Mina, Corvo, and Alph, members of my team. And this is Akira. I'm sorry, Queen Akira."

As Thorn spoke, Tessra's gaze lingered for a split second on each of the individuals he introduced, quickly passing on to the next. Though when he was done, her gaze returned to Velin, who stared back calmly.

"It's wonderful to have you all. Come, sit."

At some point during their conversation, a table had been added right next to the main table at the front of the room, and Tessra herself led Thorn and the others over, waiting until they had taken their seats.

"After we get the festivities underway, I'll be over to chat more," she said to Thorn. "But again, allow me to express my appreciation for all of you coming."

Watching as Tessra returned to her seat, Mina let out a sigh and shook her head.

"Something the matter?" Thorn asked.

"Not the matter, no," Mina replied. "But this is my first time seeing anybody who could even come close to rivaling you in power. I mean, apart from Master Keadore. But, like, you know, someone like us. Someone who's still growing."

"She is quite strong, and very close to the tenth tier," Thorn said. "Her power is nothing to sneer at, that's for sure."

"She wants something from you," Velin said, her expression calm and cool.

"What do you mean?" Thorn asked, picking up one of the plates of food that decorated the table, and sliding the entire arrangement onto his own plate.

Velin, who had been watching as Tessra returned to her seat, used her fork to spear one of the pieces of fruit on Thorn's plate.

"My guess is that she's going to request something of you, likely related to forging.”

“You think that's why they're giving up their chase of Stello?" Thorn asked, his forehead furrowing, as Akira took some fruit from his plate as well.  "Hey, what are you doing? This is my food. There's plenty of food over there. Get your own."

"It tastes better from your plate," Velin said, spearing another piece. "But yes, I think that's exactly what's going on. Judging from the response the Golden Scale Alliance had when they realized your skill, I'm guessing the Vantor family is in exactly the same boat. They want something of you, and their best piece of leverage is to stop their pursuit of Stello, hoping that endears them to you."

"They're not going to be the only ones," Corvo said, causing the rest of the team to look at him. "I don't know what Tessra said to that swordsman, but he's on his way over."

Looking up from his food, Thorn saw that Corvo was right. The robed swordsman was striding towards them as Tessra watched with curiosity from her seat. Stopping in front of the table, the swordsman surveyed all of them and then gave a half-hearted salute.

"My name is Matthias, disciple of the Solitary Blade Peak," he said, clearly expecting that they would know who he was.

When all he got back were blank stares, he was slightly thrown off, but quickly recovered.

"Ahem, I've been told that you are the disciple of a Grandmaster Blacksmith, capable of making outstanding blades. I want to commission a personalized sword."

Thorn's fork was halfway to his mouth, carrying a wedge of apple, but he paused, blinking at Matthias.

"I'm sorry," he said. "I don't think the Grandmaster is open for commissions at this point, and even if he was, the wait list is pretty long."

"Then you'll put me at the front of it," Matthias said, his eyes narrowing, and a faint pressure starting to emanate from him.

Staring at the man in front of him, Thorn found himself genuinely confused. He had no idea who Matthias was, but judging by Matthias' aura, it was clear that he, like Tessra, was almost in the tenth tier and the feeling he gave off was sharp, like that of an unsheathed blade. Wanting to avoid a fight, Thorn put his fork down, and spread his hands helplessly, giving a helpless shrug.

"I'm sorry, Matthias. I don't make the rules."

"If that isn't the most blatantly incorrect thing I've ever heard Thorn say," Mina muttered under her breath, earning herself a glare from Thorn, and a chuckle from Corvo.

Matthias, who had clearly heard her words, gripped the handle of his sheathed sword.

"It should be an honor for your master to make a blade for the Solitary Sword Peak of the Sword Clan," he said, staring down at Thorn haughtily.

"Sword Clan? As in, one of the ten challenger clans?" Velin asked. "You're one of their disciples."

Seeing that she had pulled a notebook out, and was making notes as if she was interviewing him, Matthias was once again thrown off. Before he could respond, there was a loud sound at the door, and a large group entered, bringing with them a soft golden light that flooded into the hall.

The chief steward, running ahead of the group, shouted in a solemn voice, "The holy saints of the Temple of Man have arrived."

Scanning over the group of fifteen individuals who had walked in, Thorn saw Ascendant Lesior and Ascendant Quilla in the group but to his surprise, they were walking towards the back, considerably more subdued than the last time he had seen them. There were a number of other saints, also clearly ascendants, in front of them and one in particular caught Thorn's eye. Walking at the very front of the group was a large man with a jovial looking face, and considerable girth. He was close to six and a half feet tall, and weighed a good four hundred pounds, though no one would mistake him for fat. There was something instantly friendly about him, and the aura that surrounded him was gentle and calm, which instantly put Thorn on guard. The requirements to become an Ascendant included spilling a considerable amount of god beast blood, and from the way the other ascendants were treating him, Thorn knew that this saint must have seen more than his fair share. The group of saints walked forward until they faced Tessra, who stood and bowed.

"Welcome to Vantor Clan Island," she said. "I'm glad you could come."

"It is our honor to be invited," one of the ascendants said, bowing in return.

All of the Ascendants followed suit, except for the man in the front who simply placed his hands together in a gesture as if he was praying.

“I'm particularly pleased to see you, Ascendant Tora,” Tessra said. “Would you join me at this table?”

“Thank you for your offer,” the large Ascendant said, “but I see that one of our members is already seated to the side.”

To Thorn's surprise, he saw Tora gesturing to him.

“It is enough for us if you add a table next to theirs.”

Nonplussed, Tesra nodded, and with a smile gestured for the servants to comply. A moment later, a new table had been set up, and the Ascendants all made their way over. Tora walked directly toward Thorn's table, nodded to Matthias, who had backed off a few steps and was watching him warily, and gestured to one of the empty seats.

“The other table is a bit crowded,” he said. “I hope you don't mind if I share yours.”

Without waiting for Thorn or any of the others to speak, he took his seat, smiling at Alph, who was next to him.

“My name is Tora Beser,” he said, “Ascendant of the Temple of Man.”

Alph's eyes narrowed for just a moment before widening.

“Beser? You mean you're from the first Challenger clan?” Alph said.

“Indeed,” Tora said, his expression not showing even a hint of pride.

Across the table, Thorn listened carefully, and even as he did, Eve pulled up information on the ten primary Challenger clans. The Beser clan held the number one spot, controlling close to two dozen of the Tower's floors. Under them, the Coralie clan, Urala clan, and Denovan clans, each had ten to fifteen. Then came the Sword clan, to which Matthias belonged, the Souders clan, Vantor clan, and the Tardoff clan, who each controlled five to ten. At the bottom of the list were the Rola and Gulf clans, who only controlled a couple. Tora, helping himself to a roll, looked at each of the people sitting at the table in turn, his jovial smile never wavering. When he got to Thorn, he paused for a moment, and then his smile widened.

“You must be Thorn,” he said, “Disciple of the Steward of the Tower.”

“Is it that obvious?” Thorn asked with a small smile.

Chuckling, Tora nodded and shrugged.

“I'm afraid it is. There are not many of your stature who have joined the Temple of Man recently. I know most of the other Ascendants, but you're not familiar to me.”

“I only became an Ascendant fairly recently,” Thorn said.

“And it caused quite a bit of ruckus. From what I hear, you had quite the adventure in the Renith Ruins.”

“It was a good time,” Thorn said. “For me, at least.”

“Well, my master informed me that you are absolutely someone I need to get to know,” Tora said. “You not only have connections with the Master of the Tower, but a Grandmaster Blacksmith as well. And from the reports that Ascendant Quilla so helpfully provided, it sounds like you're considerably skilled yourself.”

Shrugging, Thorn picked up a roll and tore it in half.

“I get by,” he said, his tone casual. “This is my first time meeting anyone from the top Challenger Clan. I'm curious, how did you end up as a Saint?”

“It is unusual, isn't it?” Tora said. “I mean, one would naturally expect that the Challenger Clans would want to keep their strength to themselves. That is, after all, how most of them have grown to the level of influence they have. But I'm much more suited to be a Saint as I'm especially gifted with Divinity.”

Though Tora spoke of it lightly, Thorn could tell that the Ascendant was in no way overstating his gift. The Divinity Thorn could sense from him was thick, and though it was still a faint amalgamation of many Divinities pressed together, it was purer than almost any Divinity he had come across. The predominant element Tora’s Divinity contained was light, though Thorn could feel a number of different aspects all crammed together. He was genuinely curious about Tora's strength, but before he could probe, Tessra stood up and lifted her hands to call for quiet.