The tour was… well, kind of impressive, I’m almost ashamed to admit.
I hadn’t really taken it in at the time, no more than a passive intake of relevant information, but now that we were going through it, the thick, rustic stone of the medieval-style building possessed an odd quality. It told me that it had stood for centuries and would stand through whatever would come, apocalypse or not. It seemed to exist outside of time, stuck in perpetual limbo between timeless and timeworn.
The modern glass and steel accompanying it added a jagged, unsettling contrast, an alien intrusion into an ancient world. A species made of glass, itself trying to seek the secrets of immortality by attaching itself to its ancient brother.
The smell of ancient wine, old stone, and clean metal was almost unnoticeable at first but it creeped in slowly and deeper into you. One sniff, nothing, then the next your nose was filled with it, then a third and it had always been there. I stopped as the smell sank further in, and fully disappeared. Weird. This whole place was weird.
Morrigan didn’t stop walking and so I continued to follow him deeper into the winery.
The weight of the stone deepened around us and a sense of unease crept its way through my spine. The mix of old and new seemed to blend everything. I noticed that my feet had lost track of the distance we had traveled. A bit unsettling, but, to be fair, I also wasn’t actually paying that much attention.
It was just us two at this point, he took opportunities during the tour to send his entourage off on seemingly random tasks. I couldn’t really tell what was real or if it was just busy work, I had no experience with winery stuff and apparently ‘Morrigan’ was some old money name too boot. The only thing I knew less about than wine, was old wine. I mean, I don’t know plenty of shit but it’s an example alright? Just accept it.
“Has the winery been in your family a long time?”
He laughed, not unfriendly, “No no, it was something my mother fancied, but my father never cared for it. After she died, I ended up being able to keep it as my ‘California Retreat’.”
I raised my eyebrow, “You just… used this as a retreat? That’s it?”
He smirked, “That’d have been a waste of money, it was fully functional of course. Tours, tastings, functionally a hotel as well as a personal retreat. Here’s a resting room if you’d like to freshen yourself and rest for a few hours.”
I eyed him, he shamelessly grinned back in perfect upper-crust white, “Do you not want to rest? I hope you don’t mind my presumption.”
I kind of did, but it also kind of made it better than having to negotiate my stay otherwise. Still, Lena’s lesson stayed in my head, I’d always be at a disadvantage as a solo traveler.
“As long as you don’t expect me to fuck you… or vice versa. Don’t get me wrong, you’re a good looking dude, but I have a girlfriend.”
He laughed, a real one this time, “Honestly refreshing. Nothing like that, we are having a fire tonight at sunset, if you’d like to join. We can discuss business after.”
“Sure… as long as business isn’t giving me the business then that’s fine.” I wasn’t trying to be homophobic, but I’d rather be a bit rude at the outset than find myself in… a compromised position later on. Lena’s warning perhaps kept me a bit too paranoid. It’s not being paranoid if you’re actually being follow though, is it?
A wide smile reflected in his eyes, “Should I send someone by to get you before then?”
“No,” I held up my watch, “I have an alarm.”
“It’s at six-fifteen. I’ll send someone by a little before then.”
I nodded, whatever, and checked my watch. It was 2:15 now. I wanted to nap more than I wanted to shower. He departed and I entered the room. I looked around, ah… what was the word… parlor! That was it. It reminded me of one of those old-timey parlors. Two couches faced each other with a long wooden coffee table between them. A bookshelf lined on one side with a long bar on the opposite. Near the windows was a laying couch… a fainting couch! Damn I’m good.
The fainting couch looked… pretty damn good. I was getting sleepy just looking at it. I kinda always wanted to pass out on one of those, a real luxurious vintage-style nap. Damn that was sounding better and better. I opened one of the doors and found an empty coat closet. Having done the minimum looking required for a place to freshen up, I sat on the fainting couch, then laid on it. My eyes shot open and I got up to lock the door and set my watch to wake me up at 5:45.
Then I took off my backpack and laid back again. I got up and dragged the fainting couch over as it protested it being moved from its ancestral spot before setting it against the door. Then I laid back down and passed out.
Well, almost. There was one thing I wanted to handle first.
“Display Status.”
Doubting Thomas
Class: Ghetto Hedge Knight
Rank: Above Average Human!
Level 6/20
*Knightley Duties
Earned Feats:
Bonus Feats:
Unspent
Feat
Points: 6! +15 21!
Body
7+ 9!
The Strength of your Body.
Fight and Rage: 1
Feline Bane: 1
Cat Shepard: 1
*Keep walkin’ son: 1
*Shield of Ontiveros: 1
Mind
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
7+ 10!
The Strength of your Mind.
Trap n Burn: 1
Distract the Doggos: 1
*Looks shadily around, whispers, I gotta plan: 1
*Man with a plan: 1
*Contact: 1
Soul
7+ 9!
The Strength of your Soul.
Mercy on a Poor Soul: 1
Zomboi: 1
*Heart of Ontiveros: 1
*They Count on You: 1
*Good Boy: 1
External Will
5+ 8!
The inner spark of Man manifest, the Will to Shape Reality
I’d rather Die than Lose: 1
*Improvised Defense: 1
*Clever boy: 1
*Friends in low places: 1
Internal Fortitude
7+ 11!
11/11
How do you carry on when all is lost?
Tis but a scratch: 1
Found a Reason: 1
*Thou Shalt Not Pass!: 1
*Down but not out: 1
*Excuse me… That’s Mine!: 1
Back from the Brink: 1
*Delayed Gratification*
Divine Spark
0
Do you believe in miracles now, heathen?
Your little stunt with the Ontiverians would have been enough. Before. Heathens gotta work much harder than that.
Luck
7+ 8!
To clarify, Humanity has an average luck of 20. Losing His Favor was your choice but regardless, you can't call that 'good' luck. Humanity’s luck reset to (0)
*Make your own luck: 1
Right Lady, Wrong Time: 1
Fortunate Son: 1
MisFire: 1
Potentiality
-9.94 →
-9.97!
Ranges between (-10 and 10). Losing Status as Most Favored is pretty bad on a potentiality curve, don't tell me that surprises you?