Chapter 248 - Seeds of Corruption

I had a finished version of this chapter yesterday but my beta reader pointed out a flaw that I needed to fix. Ended up doing that today and the chapter got pretty long.

Nishari tugged at Hump’s mind, drawing his attention back to Drakalyn. From where he stood in the forest, all he could see was the towering Great Tree. Still, he knew what had happened. He’d never sensed such complex emotions from Nisha before. Both sadness and happiness, heartbreak and delight. Oh She was in the presence of Vindari’s heartstone.

Once again, she surprised Hump with how far she’d come since she hatched, and the expressiveness of wolf dragons. Her mind was developing, to the extent that she understood it was her dead mother before her. Hump just wished he could be there, though he was comforted that Celaine was in his stead.

“Everything okay?” Ado asked, coming to a stop ahead of Hump.

The two of them were hiking back to the dungeon. Ado had asked Hump look at what they’d found so far through the lens of a wizard. Hump wasn’t sure what he’d be able to offer the powerful Chosen of Owalyn, but he’d been happy to oblige.

“I think Nisha just met her mother’s heartstone,” Hump said.

“She okay?”

Hump smiled, nodding happily. “She’s good, yeah. Just surprised me.”

“Wolf dragons will do that, especially when they’re young.” Ado stared off into the distance. “My boy always said their minds were much like our own, only where we use words to express ourselves, they share in emotions and their mind’s eye.”

Hump was caught off guard. Ado had never spoken of his son before. “Her mind’s eye is a good way of putting it.”

Ado grunted in acknowledgement, not turning back. “Let’s keep going.”

They continued through the forest. They were about halfway there by Hump’s estimate, but Ado hadn’t taken the same path as Hump had gone previously.

“So, what can you tell me about this Trial of Resolve? How painful will it be?” Hump tried to sound confident, though now that he’d had the night to mull it over, he wondered what exactly he'd signed up for.

"What was the most painful thing you ever felt?” Ado asked.

Hump thought about it for a moment. “Probably having my soul tortured by a gorger, though it depends on how you judge it. The essence overuse I felt after the Battle of Sheercliff was more upfront pain, but it didn’t last as long.”

Ado gave him a look, opened his mouth as if to speak, then closed it again. “It’s probably not as painful as that actually.”

“Probably?” Hump said glumly.

“Can’t say I’ve ever been tortured by a gorger, so it’s a tough call.” He paused. “I suppose technically I’ve not experienced the fast version of the dragon blood transformation either. You’ll have to let me know how bad it is once you’re done.”

“Brilliant… I’ll write you up a report.” Hump sighed. “Still, if it makes me stronger, it’ll be worth it. That’s why I came to Drakalyn.”

Ado nodded. “Pain is temporary. Being dragon blooded is for life, and it only becomes more effective as you climb the ranks. I’m sure you’ve seen Vamir’s scales.”

“I’ve seen it,” Hump said. Then a thought occurred to him. “Is it rude of me to ask how it affects you?”

“Not rude of you to ask,” Ado said. “Though I’ve got every right not to show you.”

“Will you?” Hump asked.

Ado glanced at him then nodded. He twisted his wrist so that his palm faced upward. His muscles tensed, each one perfectly defined up his arm. His hand darkened, black scales formed across it and his forearm. His fingers twisted into claws, nails extending and turning dark as iron.

“I can take on aspects of a dragon,” Ado said. “Perhaps one day, I might be able to turn into one entirely.”

“That’s possible?” Hump asked, staring in awe at the man’s transformed wrist.

Ado laughed. “No. But Perhaps I can get close to it.”

“Do you know why Celaine hasn’t shown a similar ability?” Hump asked.

“She’s young,” Ado said, his hand returning to normal. “It takes time for these things to develop. She also has better eyes and instincts than most dragon blooded, so you may simply not have noticed her progress. I’ve got no idea how it will present itself in a wizard, especially one that can already summon their spirit.”

“If it increases how much essence I can use, I’ll be happy. Even happier if it gives me the strength to pick up a friend of mine.” Hump laughed at the thought of lifting a fully armoured Bud over his head. “He’ll be shocked, I’ll tell you that.”

Ado snorted. He hacked at a thick section of brush ahead of them with a long knife, forcing a way through.

“You’ll be happy, I’m sure of that. I suggested the trial because it plays to your strengths. The danger comes from the intent in the blood—your body and spirit will reject its presence. You must not let them. It’ll feel like your blood is boiling, but it’ll pass so long as you don’t resist.”

Hump was reminded of the many imprints on his soul in Sheercliff and how he’d achieved something similar. “Do you know when it will take place?”

Ado shook his head. “No, and even if I did, I could not tell you. It will come sooner rather than later.”

Hump nodded, resigning himself to the rules of the trial. “Then I’ll ensure I’m prepared.”

“I am curious at its effects on you,” Ado said. “Your summoned spirit strengthens your body and gives you a dragon-like presence. I expect you will see benefits to it.”

Improvements to Hump’s soul manifestation certainly did not sound bad. It would be a big change. His body would effectively be mutated, and he wasn’t entirely sure how he felt about that. After his soul had been twisted for so long, it felt strange to willingly accept such a change. Though, considering the entire populace of Drakalyn went through a similar process for generations, he supposed it was well researched.

“What about negative side effects?” Hump asked. “Could this transformation kill me or change me in negative ways?”

Ado frowned. “We never lose children to it, not under Owalyn’s guidance. For your trial, it could kill you. If your mind gives out, the intent of the dragon blood will overwhelm your body, destroying you from the inside out.” Ado gave Hump a hard look. “Do not let me force you into this. I believe you are strong enough to succeed, but it must be your decision. It’s not too late to back out.”

Hump didn’t need to think about it. Decisions like these were the banes of wizards. To doubt oneself was a dangerous path when one’s resolve was all that stood between being a wielder of magic or its puppet.

“If I didn’t trust in my will now, it would forever impede me,” Hump said. “I’ve made my decision. I can do this.”

It was another hour until they reached the dungeon. Dozens of people were already at work: shamans performing purification rituals, alchemists bottling up samples and useful ingredients, or pouring their own alchemical goods onto the various plants and animals of the destroyed dungeon.

“Are they looking for things specific to the lich?” Hump asked.

“Partially,” Ado said. “Just as dungeons bring death, they often bring the cure to their own poisons. We take samples of what we can for study—monsters, plants, essence stones—and harvest resources we’re familiar with. You’d be surprised how often the same or similar variants pop up in dungeons.”

Hump wasn’t that surprised. From what he’d observed of dungeon cores so far, their essence was always similar. From the marshland in the Fallen Lands, to the Kobold Den of Bledsbury, it was that same chaotic essence twisting everything.

His gaze roamed the makeshift encampment. “What do you expect me to find while I’m here?”

“Not sure. Hopefully you’ll surprise us.”

Hump snorted. “Can you at least tell me anything?”

“If it’s okay with you, I’d rather you look upon the scene with fresh eyes. Afterward, we can see if you’ve made similar observations and go over what we’ve found.”

Hump nodded. “I take it you’ve tried talking to the trees again already.”

“I have,” Ado said. “All I hear are screams.”

Well, that doesn’t sound good, Hump thought.

“Wizard Humphrey!” came the voice of Elder Sulamir. “I didn’t expect to see you here.”

Hump turned to find the old man approaching.

“I thought a wizard’s perspective might serve us well,” Ado said.

“Excellent idea,” Sulamir said. “It certainly won’t hurt.”

“I’ll see what I can do,” Hump said, suddenly feeling the pressure.

He pushed that feeling from his mind and removed a bundle of herbs from his pouch. He’d discovered an upgraded version of the Magic Eye spell he usually used to analyse essence in the Daston Library and was eager to have a real scenario to test it on. Taking out his spellbook, he glanced at the formation on the page. A simple ritual, but it was useful to see it laid out before him.

SPELLBOOK

Essence Sight

Enhancement | Ritual | Tier 2 | Range: Line of Sight

Description

Enhance perception to reveal the essence of the world, complex magical patterns, spiritual auras, and unravel veils. These effects can be enhanced through a potent combination of alchemical ingredients.

Origin Spell

Magic Eye

Notes

y.936 – Hump – An enhanced variant of Magic Eye discovered in the Daston Library of Sheercliff, which I was fortunate enough to gain access. Most notably, it no longer requires a concoction of herbs to function, though the effects are less powerful without them.

He’d made the note back when he’d first tested the spell on his travels to Drakalyn. Knowing the necessity, he withdrew the necessary bundle of herbs.

“Spark,” he said, and the bundle easily burst into flame.

He breathed the smoke deeply, then chanted the words of the spell. Power came over him in a haze. His eyes ached a little, throbbing with essence. It wasn’t a pleasant sensation but he supposed that meant it was working.

Opening his eyes, he looked around at churning waves of essence all around him. Dungeon essence still lingered in the air. It was only faint now that the core was gone, but there was no missing it. Red streams of smoke rose off everything affected by its presence, and the sludgy earth was misted by it. The second thing most obvious to him was the green light of Owalyn, spread by the Chosen as they conducted their rituals to purge the area. Items imbued with magic shone brightly with essence, the bow on Ado’s back in particular, along with the alchemy components. He could barely sense the lich. In fact, if he didn’t know of her attack, he wasn’t sure he’d be able to tell at all. The only give away was a strange sense of wrongness—faint, but knowing what to look for it was unmissable.

“Is there anywhere in particular you want me to start?” Hump asked.

“Wherever you think,” Ado said.

“The core chamber then. That was where the lich struck.”

He made his way there slowly, looking over the many things already gathered by the group. Most of it was the bodies of monsters and plants, essence stones, strange rocks and other unusual materials. None of it was explicitly… lich.

Walking through what had once been the dungeon’s domain, the lich’s presence slowly became stronger. Even if he had not gone to the core chamber with intention, he would have been drawn to it. At first, he thought it was the dungeon core’s pedestal, but as he drew closer, he realised it was the ground around it. There were many points where her purple essence leaked from the ground, but a few seemed particularly dense.

Hump pressed his staff to the ground. Bronze essence lashed the ground from his focus, making the sludgy soil appear as if bronze fire burned within.

“Transform Earth.”

With an effort of will, he raised the ground before him, burrowing a hole into one of the sections of ground that felt strange. Earth rose into the air, suspended so that single grains floated before him, remaining in place as he stepped forward to observe the hole. The sludge tried to fall in to fill the hole, but another application of essence was all it took to reinforce and harden the edges of his hole. He stared down as a stench rose from within.

“There’s remains down here,” Hump said. “It’s rotting, and rife with the lich’s power.”

Ado came to stand beside him, peering into the hole. “We’ve discovered a number of these around the dungeon and believe it’s how she’s spreading her influence. They’re all so far gone it’s difficult to tell what they are for sure, but I think they’re rats.”

Hump scrunched his nose and squatted down for a better look. The stench was terrible, but he tried not to focus on that.

Hump looked over the other sections around them where her essence was more visible, and idea formulating. “You said you found more remains. Can you show me where?”

Ado called upon the help of some of the others working in the dungeon domain and together they were guided to each of the discovered locations. Piece by piece, a pattern started to formulate in Hump’s mind. A formation of sorts, but it was not like one Hump had seen before.

“I think I might have something,” Hump said with growing excitement.

“Oh?” Ado raised an eyebrow.

Hump nodded eagerly. “It’s a formation. Not a traditional one, but there’s something—like a net weaved of essence. Look.”

He held out his staff, forming a stone stump beside one of the locations then moving over to the next. Again and again he cast his magic, until a multitude of stone pillars were spread out throughout the former domain. He drew the attention of Sulamir and some of the others as he worked, who gathered to see what he was doing.

Finished, Hump gazed over his work, noting the even spacing and points of symmetry between the remains and the sections of ground where the lich’s essence still lingered strongly.

Sulamir squinted, studying the formation with a thoughtful expression. “It’s a pattern. The placing appears too deliberate.”

“It’s quite different to formations I’m used to,” Hump said. “The remains seem to take the place of runes, but I don’t understand their function.”

“You were right before, Hump” Ado said. “It’s like a net. It’s not just about the physical remains spreading the lich’s influence. It’s about the flow of her dark essence, twisting a web that allows her to extend her influence even from afar.”

“The remains could serve as anchor points,” Hump offered. “Deliberately placed to create a repeating formation, as if she’s slowly enchanting the entire forest.” He frowned. “But this must have been years in the making. I thought the lich only appeared in the last year. And how could it have slipped beneath Owalyn’s gaze for so long? This is her forest. Her domain. Surely she would sense an invasion like this.”

“This lich is powerful enough to attack one of Owalyn’s Chosen as they are granted a new blessing,” Ado said. “This isn’t a stretch to imagine.” He turned to Sulamir. “Has there been any contact with Owalyn?”

Sulamir seemed to thing for a moment then shook his head. “Owalyn has not answered us since the attack, though I can sense her presence within the Great Tree.”

Hump hesitated a moment, then decided to ask the question that had been bothering him since the attack. “Owalyn called the lich Irila. Have you heard the name before? The two of them could be connected somehow.”

“That name is unknown even amongst the elders.” Sulamir asked, irritation in his voice. “What are you insinuating?”

“Only that if this Lich Queen Irila is an enemy of Owalyn’s place, it would help to explain how she could craft such complex magic unnoticed.”

“Where the lich comes from matters not,” Sulamir said. “All that matters is that we figure out how she’s influencing our lands and bring it to a stop. At least if her anchors are physical objects like bones or animal remains, they can be destroyed.”

“I’ll see if I can follow the formation back to its source,” Ado said. “We might be able to use this against her and identify a vulnerability.”

Sulamir nodded. “Let me know what you find.”

Ado looked at Hump. “With me, lad. Keep those wizard eyes of yours open.”