He wasn’t a golem, he wasn’t made of metal. He wasn’t a monster, he had no desire to kill the people around him. He still looked and felt like a human. Did the Acomarians create an all new human body for him? Why would they do that instead of just putting him back into his own body? None of this made any sense.

He glanced down at the ritual. All of the nodes were dim. That meant the ritual was deactivated and he had lost his connection to this point in time. No more time traveling for him, this was his last life. Who was he though?

While he was having an existential crisis, the rest of the people from the ritual lined up to run down the mountain. They were in a generally good mood. Eight people had been soulmarked by Alexandru’s ritual, and no one had died. They didn’t know what to make of Hugo. He could tell some of them thought he was crazy. He had just had a very confusing conversation with ... himself.

He listened to the mountain guide leader give his same speech and then started running down the mountain. For the last time.

It was harder than ever before. He didn’t have the higher strength and dexterity he had grown used to. He knew exactly how dangerous it was to get left behind, so he put his everything into running with the pack. The exhaustion of running down the mountain wasn’t enough to distract him.

He wanted to know who he was now. He cycled mana through his eyes to gain the mana sight skill once more. It was easy. Even easier than he remembered from last time. He looked down at his chest with the skill active.

It looked different than he was expecting. He still saw his soul core where he expected it. It had a drop of mana left in it, slowly being used up as he used mana sight. It looked different though. He hadn’t looked at his own soul core often enough to know why it looked different to him.

The skill ended and he was left to his own devices while his mana slowly refilled. The run was really getting to him. He was so tired his bones hurt.

An idea occurred to him and he looked around the group running with him. He saw his target and an extra boost of speed brought him closer. He quietly said, “Sebastan Baden. I am curious about what I look like to your skill enhanced eyes. Could I trouble you to take a look?”

The light mage turned to look at him with a suspicious look on his face. Probably wondering how this strange boy knew his name. His curiosity must have gotten the better of him. Sebastian’s eyes glowed yellow as he stared at Hugo.

They ran down the mountain in silence before Sebastian said, “Very strange.”

Hugo nodded and said, “In what way?”

“Where did you come from?” Sebastian said, ignoring his question, “How did you get onto the center of the ritual circle?”

It took Hugo a moment to get enough breath to answer, “I will tell you if you tell me what you see.”

“I am not sure,” Sebastian said and looked away.

Hugo frowned. That wasn’t helpful at all. He wasn’t a fan of that Baden family. Sebastian knew something, he just wasn’t going to tell him.

The rest of the crowd were much better people. He was happy to see them all alive. He wouldn’t have to send Marion’s letter this time. Xhosa’s family would finally have a mage. Lina’s family would have a chance now that she was alive to answer the challenge. Now that he thought about the Brambled Wood family, he realized he should say something to them. If their family won the challenge, no one would sell addictive drugs to the hedge mages.

He wondered how he should approach it. What lie would they accept without making them too suspicious?

Wait.

He didn’t have to lie. He had always had a family he was part of before, or a fear of what people would do to him when they found out. None of that mattered anymore. He could just tell the truth to everyone. Starting now.

“I know the future,” Hugo said.

“What?” the mountain guide leader said.

“Monsters. Shortly before we get to the underground stronghold,” Hugo said, catching his breath, “They are giant spiders, disguised as a grove of trees.” Hugo held up a finger to let him know there was more. Once he caught his breath he said, “You will want to use the slowing potion your alchemist has. But she will miss. You have to throw it instead.”

“Kind of a weird prediction. Are you a hedge mage or something?” the mountain guide said.

“Or something,” Hugo replied.

The mountain guide gave him a weird look. About an hour later, they saw it. The illusion of a grove of trees. This time when the mountain guide stopped the group, he called Hugo to the front, along with the alchemist. There was a bit of back and forth about how Hugo knew this would be there. Eventually, the leader took the potion and threw it.

It arced through the air, the green potion tumbling forward. A gust of wind knocked it off course, but the mountain guide leader was a barrier mage, and solidified a channel in the air to redirect it. The slowing potion hit dead center in the grove of trees. The six giant spiders dropped their illusion magic and leapt forward. All of them were slow enough that the mountain guides were easily able to kill them before the effects wore off.

The mountain guide leader stared at Hugo, but didn’t say anything. He just got the caravan going again, running the last little bit before they reached the stronghold. Hugo didn’t need to listen to the instructions as he stumbled inside. He knew right where to go.

He was exhausted, more than he had been in literally years. He plopped onto a cot and slowly caught his breath. It was only now that he realized he didn’t have a bedroll. It wasn’t that important, he was going to sleep well anyway. But it hammered home the fact that he literally had no food or money. Not even a change of clothes.

Now that he thought about it, he wondered what he was wearing. He picked at the silver fabric. It wasn’t anything he had seen before. It was soft and comfortable, but made of a tough and durable substance. It was like a mix of silk and metal. Who had created this?

The better question was where did his body come from? He was inhabiting a body that wasn’t there when the ritual started. Everything was different this time around. Even the process of traveling back in time was different. He had just hovered in nothingness while he heard snippets of a conversation. Was that the Acomarians talking while they created this body? It was his best guess at the moment, but he didn’t understand why he didn’t just go back into his own body. It didn’t make sense.

The other Hugo walked in then, chatting with Marion. Neither of them seemed as exhausted as he was. A check with mana sight showed that both of them had been soulmarked. That also indicated that they both had souls. They had the souls they were born with, and hadn’t died in Alexandru’s ritual.

What about him? Hugo wondered if he had a soul. A glance down showed that he had a soul core as well. Did that mean he had a soul too? If so, where did it come from? Did the Acomarians create a soul for him? Did that mean that he had been born today, and they were his parents? That didn’t make any sense.

Hugo shook his head. He wasn’t going to figure this out just by thinking about it.

Everyone was in the back room of the cave now, slowly settling in for the night. Hugo saw the riese family set up nearby and decided there wasn’t going to be a better time to talk to them. He walked over and gave them a stiff riese bow.

“Darius, Shirin, and Lina of the Brambled Woods. Perhaps you saw me appear in the center of the ritual circle. I have been sent here by the gods. They have given me glimpses into the future. Not my future, but yours,” Hugo said. He could tell by the expressions on their faces they were wary and on the defensive. They had been traveling incognito, and now someone knew their names and claimed to know their future.

“Who are you and what do you want?” Shirin said.

“I am Hugo Ersatz, and I want nothing for myself. I only want to deliver this message, I expect no payment,” Hugo said.

“What kind of message?” Lina said.

Hugo nodded to her politely and said, “When you return home to the royal grove tomorrow, Amir is going to tell you he just found out that house Juniper has spoken to The Mother, and they are challenging your family. This is a lie. He has known about the challenge for a while because he is working with them.” He held up his hand when it seemed like Darius wanted to defend his brother.

“House Juniper and Amir are working together to gain the throne of Ettel. I know you doubt me, but perhaps you will change your mind after the Lofty Leap. They plan on using iron poison to kill the King and Queen,” Hugo said and turned towards Shirin, “Your sister is buying the Stormbringer, you have no chance of beating her. Your money would be better spent providing for Lina.”

Hugo turned to Lina and said, “Bijan will choose his family over you. Do not trust him. Trust in Yasmin. She is a true friend. She can cure you of your fear of heights. You should take her hunting with you to thank her. The Huntmaster and Yasmin are the only two you can truly trust.”

Darius stood up and loomed over Hugo. The riese said, “You aren't getting any money out of us, boy. I don’t know how you know everyone’s name, but we aren’t fooled by your petty tricks. We won’t go against our family on the word of a stranger.”

Hugo backed up and said, “The message has been delivered. What you do with it is up to you.” He meant it too. If they took the throne, they would make battling the hedge mages easier. But the riese weren’t an integral part of the plan. The sentinels could still defeat the hedge mages because Hugo knew where they were based out of.

He looked around the room, trying to decide if there was anyone else he needed to talk to. Xhosa’s family was good to go. They had a mage in their family now, they didn’t need any more help. It was too bad Hugo didn’t have an excuse to meet Nobomi again. His former sister was so cute and kind. Actually, maybe there was something he could do for her.

He walked over to Xhosa and gave him a symmetrical nox bow. “Xhosa Bandile. You have been blessed with a soulmarking today, but your journey to become a mage is not over. You must still gain a domain. I come with a prophecy from the Acomarians. The only way you will be chosen by a master is if you first show your family love. Cook with your mother Themba. Play with Nobomi. Listen to every word of advice from your aunt Celia. Without them, you will never gain a domain.”

Hugo quickly walked away from the speechless Xhosa. His ‘prophecy’ wouldn’t help save the wheel, but hopefully it would help the young nox be less of a jerk. And listening to Celia would help him in the apprentice bid process.

He didn’t know much about Marion, so there wasn’t much to say to him right now. He couldn’t handle talking to the other Hugo right now. The real Hugo? Whatever, moving on. His eyes fell on Florin. There wasn’t much he could do to help that disaster of a person. He was a lost cause. But Hugo might be able to help his sister.

He turned towards Sebastian and looked him in the eyes from across the room. He talked to him, knowing the light mage would be able to hear him despite the distance, “Hello Sebastian. I imagine you have overheard everything. I bet you are wondering if I have a prediction for you, despite not really believing me. You are in luck. I do have a prediction for you. Your family is headed for financial ruin.”

By the scowl on Sebastian’s face, Hugo could tell he heard everything. Hugo continued, “In a few weeks you will hold a party dedicated to Demeter. There you will be invited to go talk with the Grand Daimu. He will grant you permission to grow and sell golden rice.

“This is exactly what you have always wanted and you will go into debt to accept his offer. You will leave Florin in charge of your agribusiness in Tallinn while you supervise at your estate on mount Lian. Your idiot son will lose every cent Baden Grains earns and within a few years your whole family will be destitute,” Hugo said.

Hugo stared him in the eye and said, “Unless... unless you leave the agribusiness to your daughter Milana. She is brilliant and responsible, and already knows the business. The gods don’t particularly care if you succeed or fail. But your worship of Demeter has been pious enough to give you a single chance. When you get authorization to sell golden rice, you will choose the future of your family. Make sure it is a choice you can be happy with.”

Not bothering to see his reaction, Hugo fell onto his cot and quickly fell into a dreamless sleep.