Curselock

Chapter 241: Legacy

“Are humans normally this… fearful?” Gelo asked as they walked through the streets of Frostford.

They had already finished shopping and were heading toward the gate to leave, but the walk was slow going. Not because there were hazards or many people stopping them to talk, but because Gelo gawked at most everything.

Buildings? The only buildings she had seen was the ice castle within the dungeon, so every change in architecture made her stare. A fountain playfully shooting water into the air? It was as if the cub was looking at a bar of gold. But what made Gelo freeze on the spot were the grilling stalls. Sizzling meat, charred vegetables, skewers of rich, fatty cuts… they caught her nose and pulled her to the front of the line.

The people in the line didn’t seem to mind for the simple fact that Gelo was a literal bear. A talking bear, at that.

“Civilians are always like that,” Jude said, waving a hand. “I remember one time I took out my axe to sharpen while waiting on a public bench, and the guard was there in minutes. Apparently I was ‘scaring the locals.’”

Glenny snorted a laugh. “Haha, loser.”

Ignoring the attempted banter, Jude spoke right over him. “Once you are around more people like us, people will respect you more.”

Leland added to that, “Though we are a bit of an oddity even when it comes to adventurers. You all saw how that one adventurer ran away from us at the gate, right? Not everyone is ‘like’ us.”

“That’s true enough, especially compared to you.”

“It’s not even just that, Gelo,” Glenny said. “People don’t know you. Once people get used to you, they’ll realize you’re cool as heck and try to pet you or something.”

“Most will try to give you treats,” Jude added to that. “Which might be a bit speciesist, but hey, free snacks. I’d say that’s worth the exchange.”

Sighing, Leland said, “And if they don’t, just tell Jude and he’ll play his flute as loudly as possible in their ear.”

Even with all of their hopeful words, Gelo still felt her feet grow heavy. She wished her mom was here.

From there, they quickly traveled out of the town . Gelo suddenly didn’t want to be a tourist and instead wished to get on the road. Camping was what she was looking forward to. A nice, easy trip through the wilderness with plenty of things to inspect and a chance to stare up at the starry sky.

But, unlike Jude, she didn’t say her wishes aloud. One jinx per group was enough, and the young man had that under lock and key.

That night, some distance away from Frostford, they rested. Rotational watch-cycles were set, dinner was munched on, and soon everyone fell asleep. Gelo offered to take the first watch, citing the stars and the fact that sleeping through the night rather than being woken up part-way through seemed the best option.

And when Glenny woke for his shift, Gelo finally fell asleep. If the worst day of her life was the day her father died, today had to have been the second worst, the day her mother left.

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She was just glad it was finally over. Day two would be easier, hopefull—

“Gelo.”

She turned, finding the chilled forest gone. Instead of trees and shrubs, rock walls with water-leaking cracks were front and center. She didn’t think about that, however, instead her heart pounded. The sound consumed her hearing, everything turned narrow.

And despite this, the presence she was staring at thawed her growing anxiety.

“Mom! What—”

Gelo lurched forward, ready to pounce on her loved one, but she stopped, a flicker of hesitation. A flicker of forethought. Was… was this an illusion? Was this some sort of trick? How was she here? How was the Lord of Dungeons here?

How was her mom here?

“It’s only been a few hours,” Floe said, a slice of her confidence missing. “Did you already forget about me?”

A wallop slammed into Gelo’s heart, instantly turning her face to a scrunched mess. Tears of ice flowed like waterfalls, globs of snot poured from her snout.

“Mom!”

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That was all it took. That one question dispelled the sense of trickery and set the cub slingshotting into her mother’s fur. The suddenness caught Floe off guard, and yet, the warmth, or rather, cold from her daughter smoothed everything right over.

Floe wrapped her massive arms around her daughter, and the two stood like that for a long time. At least, until Gelo remembered the strangeness of the situation.

“How are you here!?” she finally was able to ask.

Her mom chuckled. “The real question is how are you here? Look around, my sweet.”

And Gelo did, finally concluding that the cave walls were not of a forest. In fact, she recognized these walls to be her home within the dungeon. It was their cave, albeit different. It was colder here, more in tune with the cold element, which, to the bears with ice for fur, made things much more pleasant.

“Where did—”

“Worry not, my child. Now that I am a Lord, I have a few extra responsibilities. One is to lead mortals.” Floe stiffened at the word, thinking in terms of immortal and mortal was like flame and fire to her. “When you return to the boys, please tell Leland his Lord has been helpful. She’s the one allowing me to do this.”

“D-do what, mom?” Gelo asked, finally taking in that her mom wasn’t just her mom any more. She was the Lord of Dungeons. Her. Her mom. A giggle escaped her lips. That’s pretty awesome, right?

“It is simple. As a Lord, I need a Champion – someone I can communicate with at any time, someone who I can bother with my problems or assist with theirs. You, in other words.”

“Okay! How do—”

“Gelo, you should think about this before you accept. Becoming a Champion has responsibilities. Other Legacies of mine may come to you—”

“I understand! I’ll be your Champion!”

Gelo and Floe both knew Leland was a Champion, but now that Floe was a Lord in her own right, she understood just how improper of a Champion he was. In just the short span of a single day, Floe had met several dozen Lords, all of whom gave her advice to better serve her Legacies. And while that advice changed from Lord to Lord, the overall consensus was that a trustworthy Champion was needed.

“Just so you know, beasts don’t usually gain Legacies or Championships. We don’t need them, being close to nature and the elements. But that doesn’t mean we can’t.”

“Will I still be able to cast magic?” Gelo asked.

“Indeed. Your power as you are now will remain, as well as, any future power you garner by yourself will persist. But you will also take on my Legacy as the Dungeon Lord.”

The cub let out a low groan. “I don’t want to have to take care of a dungeon.”

“No, no. My sweet,” Floe brushed her with a paw. “Nothing of the sort. I oversee all dungeons, you will do nothing of the sort. But you will gain powers related to them in some fashion… what that fashion may look like, I do not know.”

“You don’t?”

“Mostly. You would be my first Legacy, the test-run so to speak.”

That made Gelo’s eyes light up. “Does that mean I can help you create a Legacy? Choose spells and offer my perspective on—”

Floe’s smile stopped the cub.

“W-what’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” the mother bear whispered. “I just didn’t realize how much I would miss you.”

“Oh… well… O-of course.” Gelo raised her head high. “Am I not so great as to be forgotten?”

Chuckling, Floe purred, “Of course, of course. You are the daughter of a Lord!” She stood up straighter herself. “Everyone will bow to you once you come into proper power. Ice and esoteric divine magic connected in some way to dungeons. You will be unstoppable.”

“Just wait, mother. I’ll acquire Iceheart soon enough and fight my way into the heavens.”

“Iceheart? That is bold of you.” Floe considered this. Maybe there was a way—

“What are you thinking about?”

“Hmm?” she asked, shaking her head to quell her thoughts.

Gelo rolled her eyes. “You trailed off then stared at the wall for a moment.”

“Oh. Sorry, lost in thought. I was just thinking of a way to help you conquer Iceheart using power from my Legacy.”

“Nope!”

“Hmm?”

“Don’t want your help. I’ll achieve Iceheart all on my own,” Gelo said with an over exaggerated head nod. “Then I’ll teach Jude, Leland, and Glenny.”

Floe couldn’t suppress the grin that appeared as her daughter spoke. The goal, while ridiculous, was only achievable with hard work, perseverance, and a bit of arrogance. Three things she knew Gelo had, three things that would propel her into a bright future.

“Fine, fine. But for now, if you are to become my Champion, you need the first spell, ability, or technique of my Legacy. What shall it be?”

Gelo thought for a moment. “I have no idea.”

“Perhaps an attack spell? Being the Lord of Dungeons, I now have ample direction over space and—”

“Not ice? You love ice!”

Floe raised her paw, summoning a miniature blizzard between her claws. “Ice and cold, yes. But now,” she raised the other paw, ushering in a slightly teal buzz. It wasn’t wind but rather flowing space rippling like a bed sheet held by two of its corners. The blizzard gently became one with the gust, moving throughout the cave. Soon a layer of snow covered all of the rock and Gelo for that matter.

“That was awesome!” the cub cried, shaking her head to rid herself of loose snow. “Who taught you that!?”

“That trick? The Lord of Space, Pathways, and Magic. They will be akin to tutors for the next few years, teaching me to properly wield elemental space. Among other things needed to properly oversee dungeons. I’ll have to even create a few every now and again.”

Gelo licked her lips, finally starting to see the beauty of what a Legacy could do. “I want that. That’s what I want my first spell to be.”

Looking from the magic pushing the blizzard around, Floe began to chuckle. “That may be doable.”