PftA Book 5 - Chapter 23 - Time Slipping By

“Don’t forget to spend time in the Arcane well,” Anya reminded me just before I left. “I’m not sure how it will help, but my intuition is adamant that it will.”

“I won’t forget,” I assured the Fate Mage before disappearing from her spacious apartment.

I’d interrupted one of Anya’s rare days off, which probably should have made me feel bad, but it didn’t.

Returning to my demesne, I opened a portal to the Arcane well and watched as the mana once again poured in.

It was odd because my demesne was a Tier Nine space, so the mana density should have been equalized with that of the mana well. Maybe not perfectly, but close enough that the flow of mana should not have been so pronounced.

Yet it was.

I settled onto the small meditation mat that I’d picked up a couple of weeks earlier and mulled over the information Anya had given me as I soaked in the Arcane mana.

There was a lot to think about, especially regarding the limited number of system-supported skills that I’d be able to keep or gain. It was still far too early to make any definitive decisions, but I enjoyed the planning process.

My thoughts eventually shifted to focus on the Arcane. My soul seemed almost eager to drink in the energy pouring through the portal.

There was mana, but also something else. Was it essence?

Focusing on the ‘other,’ time slipped away.

= = =

Even with the extra time I gained when I was in my demesne, the next several months passed quickly.

Rhona’s wedding was just as much of a spectacle as I expected, though the invitation to attend had caught me a bit off guard. Given our history, I couldn’t say no to the honorary princess’s request, and she seemed quite pleased by my presence at the ceremony.

Zavira’s wedding was held just a month later. This time, I was not just a witness, but an active part of the ceremony.

The closest analog to my role was a bride’s maid, though they called them advisors instead. In truth, the role was unnecessary since the marriage contract was reviewed and agreed upon prior to the actual wedding ceremony.

Still, tradition held that each half of the marriage had their own set of advisors to advise on the details of the marriage contract during the actual ceremony itself.

Unlike the Earth weddings I’d seen in the past, Alliance culture had the bride and groom enter from opposite ends of the venue. They paced each other as they slowly made their way to the front of the large hall, trailed by their respective advisors.

Matching Zavira and her other three advisors, I wore a mauve gown over a dark silver bodysuit – colors representing Zavira’s primary Force and secondary Metal affinities.

Since her soon-to-be husband had strong Metal and weak Force affinities, he and his advisors appeared to almost mirror us with dark silver outer garments over mauve inner garments.

There was no requirement that brides only had female advisors or that grooms only had males. Advisors could be anyone who stood for the best interests of the bride or groom.

When we made our way to the front of the hall, I stood silently as the terms were read out, point by point. It was detailed and encompassing, ensuring the participants and all witnesses understood exactly what the contract entailed.

Though unnecessary, I fulfilled my role by listening carefully and ensuring no unexpected clauses were added at the last minute.

Once Zavira and Kestin agreed to the final clause in the marriage contract, they signed it with mana and sealed the union with a kiss before being pronounced husband and wife.

Seeing her beaming expression, I felt a surge of happiness for my closest friend. My time locked in the rift really hadn’t done much to dampen our friendship, which I was grateful for.

I just hoped the same would apply when I returned to the dungeon.

= = =

“I think I’m going to take one last vacation before I head back to the dungeon,” I said to Zavira as we watched her oldest two children playing together on a small playground outside of her sect compound a few years later.

“You’ve still got three months, right?” she asked, glancing toward me as I rocked her youngest child in my arms.

I didn’t need to check with Lisa to verify the countdown since I looked at it almost every day.

The last years of my break from the dungeon had passed in what felt like a blink, even with the time dilation of my demesne extending my time by a significant amount.

Between taking classes, teaching classes, crafting, meditating to improve my Arcane affinity, and spending time with family, time had just slipped by.

Amie had gotten married a year after Zavira, almost to the day. It was a pretty big event, especially given the connections she’d made in her role as Rhona’s assistant.

“About that,” I said with a nod. “I’m probably going to spend a lot of my time traveling since I’m not sure how much time I’ll get to spend in the realm after I reach the pinnacle.”

I’d considered inviting a bunch of family members to join me like I’d done before entering the dungeon the first time, but I decided against it at the last minute. Instead, I planned to invite various family members to join me at different points in my vacation instead of trying to get everyone together at once.

It would be a lot less stressful for everyone that way.

Zavira frowned. “It seems a little unfair that you’ll be pressured to ascend right away when so many have gotten to linger for centuries.”

I’d already shared what Anya had told me about Kai’s likely ascension, so Zavira knew it was unlikely I’d be joining him.

She’d joked that maybe she’d catch up and we’d be able to ascend together, but we both knew it was unlikely. Anya would have mentioned it if it were possible, I was sure.

“I should be able to stay for a little while,” I said hesitantly before glancing at the cute bundle I was holding. It would be a shame not to see the kid as an adult. “I won’t be anywhere near the end of my natural lifespan.”

“Won’t you, though?” Zavira asked with a raised brow. “If you take into account the time dilation in your demesne, you’ll definitely be approaching a normal human’s lifespan by the time you finish. You might even have exceeded it.”

“I’m not sure that counts.”

“Why wouldn’t it?”

I didn’t really have an answer for her question. Nothing said that Time Mages automatically got extra time because we could reverse the effects of aging, and it wasn’t like I could ask any of the Time Mage Pinnacles since Kai was the only one left, and he hadn’t had to deal with the pressure to ascend due to his contract.

“You should probably plan on being forced to ascend like Kai,” my best friend continued matter-of-factly. “That way, if you get to stick around for a while, it’ll be a happy surprise instead of the opposite if you don’t prepare.”

“You’re probably right,” I conceded, though I didn’t think it was very likely that I’d find myself being forced to ascend right away. I was sure I’d at least be able to hold it off until I could leave the dungeon and say goodbye to everyone.

I’d already set up a trust to manage my accounts and ensure they were distributed based on my wishes, so there wasn’t much on that end that still needed to be done.

Most of my belongings would go to my family, but a good chunk of my liquid assets would be donated to the orphanages that had been set up to deal with the children orphaned by the war.

I’d started donating to the cause just after the war ended, and I wanted to ensure the organizations that depended on that support continued to get it after I was gone.

After a long moment of silence, Zavira sighed and said, “I hate that you have to go back alone. I wish I was strong enough to go with you.”

I shook my head and shifted the infant sleeping in my arms.

“Don’t feel bad about that,” I said.

I knew that the dungeon, especially the last couple of floors, had been hard for Zavira. The fact that she’d stayed for months on the eighth floor was significant enough. I didn’t want her to feel bad about having an actual life now that she’d left.

“But you’re my best friend.”

“That won’t change just because I’m going back to the dungeon,” I assured her. “You didn’t forget me when I was stuck in a rift for a quarter of a century. I doubt you’ll suddenly forget me when I can actually keep in touch.”

Zavira gave me a sad smile. “I won’t forget you. I promised to message you every week, and that’s what I’ll do. The only exception will be if I’m in a rift and can’t reply, but I’ll warn you beforehand if that’s likely to happen.”

Carefully avoiding waking the sleeping baby, I gave my best friend a quick squeeze with one arm.

“Let’s not talk about that for now,” I said. “How about you tell me about your new disciple. You picked a new one, right?”

Zavira’s eyes lit up as the topic shifted. Like her children, Zavira loved talking about her disciples. Even after several years, that hadn’t changed.