Mantle of the Gods

The room was big enough for an entire team.

I had a feeling that the whole team trying on armor in one of these rooms was a normal thing for Adventurers. From the handful of overnight trips I’d done, the Adventurers had never taken off their armor. And they’d always been wearing it by the time they reached the Dispatcher’s hub. So I had never really thought about how much effort went into putting on some of the armor.

I’d had to steady my breathing for a moment before I got up the nerve to try on the pants and it seemed like Fray was in the same situation.

Oz on the other hand had already stripped down to her undergarments and was on her second set of pants. I had discovered why her stack was so big, she’d gotten two of everything.

“Why the doubles?” I finished pulling the pants up. The fit was a little snug, but I could move in them, which was the important thing.

“What happens if we’re in the dungeon and the armor I’m wearing gets destroyed? You need to have a backup.” Oz looked at Fray, then turned to me. “You both should get a second set before we leave.”

This armor was going to run over seven hundred fifty All by itself. Doubling that and adding in the weapons we’d already bought as well as the skills I’d asked Gesai to pick up for me, I was probably going to spend over three thousand All this morning. It seemed wasteful, but it was also just barely over half of the apparent budget Trent had given us.

“I’ll grab another pair of everything before we leave.” I deposited the pants back into the crystal and began putting my own back on.

“Good.” Oz smiled and held out a leather corset. "Since you’re not trying on anything else, help me tie this up, will you?”

I’d planned on going and getting the extra set of armor while they finished trying on their stuff, but it seemed like Oz was going to make good on her need of my help with her armor.

“Sure…” I muttered under my breath.

“Fantastic.” Oz turned around so that she was facing a mirror and held the armor against her. "You know how to do this?” Her green eyes focused on me in the mirror.

I shook my head. "I’ve never needed to wear one of these before.” I cupped my chest through my shirt. "Do you think it would help?”

She stuck out her tongue. "Very funny.” She had her elbows at her sides, so she couldn’t reach behind herself. "It’s just like your boots. It needs to be tight, but not so tight that I can’t breathe or move.”

“Tight but not too tight.” I nodded as I grabbed the cord and began threading it through the loops. “Gotcha.”

I was done a little while later and she was adjusting it to see how much she could move around in it. Satisfied she spun around and ran into me. Not hard enough to knock either of us back, but enough so that she was pressed against me.

“Sorry…” I started to back up, but she grabbed my shirt with both hands and held me close to her.

“Atlas…”

“I think you’re embarrassing Fray.” I looked over at Fray, who was standing in the pants she’d selected and her underclothes. She was holding a similar brown leather corset in her hands, apparently waiting her turn to get my help. Her face was red and only grew redder as my attention turned to her.

“I haven’t done anything to be embarrassed about…” Oz stood on her toes so she could whisper in my ear. "Yet.”

That was enough to get my face even redder than it already was. "What happened to ‘nothing can happen between us’?”

“That was when we were going to go back to our lives and rarely see each other for six years.” Oz pulled her face back so she could look at me with those captivating green eyes. "That’s no longer an issue.”

“You’re going to have to have a conversation with Ether first.” I made sure to watch her eyes for any sudden movement, but there was no denying that the air was thick with the chemistry between us. "And you know Gesai is going to have something to say about it. Are you sure you want that?”

“I knew what I wanted then, like I know what I want now.” Oz leaned forward slowly until her breath was tickling my ear. "I’m just letting you know.”

She pulled back before I could answer and patted the armor. "I think this will work. You can help Fray while I get out of this.”

I knelt down behind the timid brunette and began lacing her up. “So are you planning on professing your undying love too?” I tried to make a joke to lighten the nervousness I could feel on her.

“No…” Her voice was already quiet as it became even fainter. "Not today.”