Power Without a Price

[curiousdiscoverer]

The first time Ezra finds Milliways he spends most of the experience overwhelmed by psychic sensory overload. Postcognition doesn’t really mix well with inter-dimensional nexus.

However when he walks out and tells about the experience, the true nature of the place is eventually revealed, furthermore he discovers that the Traders are very interested in using the unique location to seed magic to other worlds and they pay very generously for it. So Ezra’s family all hear about the story and stay in the look out for another door, just in case.

Years pass, and Ezra’s family gets a little smaller, and starting wishing for a door to show up.

Because resurrection is possible, but expensive and bringing three people back is impossibly costly without extreme circumstances.

So Ezra feels extremely lucky the day he finally finds a door again, with family in his apartment where they wait behind after Ezra grabs a few things while Temps holds the door.

He is now in better control of his powers and Milliways massive history doesn’t overload him anymore.

Ezra looks around the bar, sits on a table with a nice view and observes.

Is anyone here that could want and deserve magic?

Comments

[mage_see_mage_do]

Temps did not expect such strong reaction, it is a little sad, the lost opportunity.

"I don't know what to tell you," Temperance says sadly "but I understand the... wait, a minute, how do you explain the book? The one about Faster-than-light travel?"

[unblinkered]

He halts. "Just to sucker me in, probably. I don't doubt it can really hand out things like that, I just doubt its purpose in doing so. If its purpose is to lull me into a false sense of security so that I allow one of its co-conspirators to cast some time-consuming spell on me without resistance, giving gifts is completely in accordance with that."

A napkin indignantly denying Max's accusations goes ignored on the countertop.

[mage_see_mage_do]

"I assumed you had somehow verified if it was useful," Temperance says.

She gives up on Max, and then starts thinking really fast.

"Okay, I don't think I can convince you of my good intentions," Temperance says "I would ask you to give the book to the people outside the door. I might have robbed your world of potentially good knowledge and technology..." she pauses "I honestly don't know if I should make cryptic references to magical consequences if you don't do it, but that defeats the purpose of trustworthiness... and I suppose you could just interpret that as cryptic reference already. Damn."

Temperance hates paranoia.

[unblinkered]

"I'm not giving away the book. I-"

He stops.

"Hold it. The people outside the door? What peo- the ones I- if the door was already open, then... you already...?"

[mage_see_mage_do]

"Breath" Temperance says "Under your logic, the book is either useless... or maybe the supposed conspiracy is powerful enough that it can hand space travel as a gift to earn trust," Temps shrugs "We already infused two people in your world, they are leaving and you managed to pass through the door. I thought I at least hinted to it?"