by Skyler Grant
WARNING
Destruction of Falkirk deadline has arrived.
Threat level is critical.
None of that was news.
Helen was already gone, off to respond to another invasion of Deep Spawn. She had left supplies for him. There were half-a-dozen healing potions as well four extra poison and fire ampules.
Ryn looked far more awake, even just a few hours rest doing much to make the circles under her eyes fade. Braces empty of throwing daggers had been refilled.
The pyres were still burning in the streets, more people dying in the small period they'd rested, and in the distance was the sound of steel striking dissonant hide.
The first rays of dawn were showing, the horizon pink through the fog. It was hard to tell for sure, but the glow surrounding the keep seemed a little brighter. Each new soul that died bringing Sabrina a little closer to her transformation.
Ryn led Alex and Jess into the city’s sewers—and he wasn't grateful for his enhanced senses. It took fifteen minutes of navigating the winding tunnels before Ryn twisted a torch mount and a wall peeled way to reveal steps leading upward.
"How much sooner did they wake you?" Alex asked Ryn.
"Twenty minutes, I needed some time to prepare and get the directions. This is all my sort of thing, Alex. I'm good at it," Ryn said.
Ryn struck a light in a lantern and led the way forward slowly. The tunnel continued to angle upwards at a slight angle, the narrow passage coming to an end with a pile of heavy rocks filling the passageway.
"This must be the cave-in that Cassandra mentioned. I thought it would be further in the complex," Alex said.
"Don't give up yet. I'm going to have a look around for secret passages," Ryn said.
There was a faint hit of dissonance from the rock pile. Magic. Alex reached out to touch it just to make sure it was real. Stone, coarse and rough.
Jess stepped forward and knelt on one knee. "You feel it too?"
"Magic of some sort. I was hoping the pile wasn't real, but it obviously is?"
"Don't be so sure. It is a hastily done illusion that only has one dimension," Jess said, as she reached out. Blue sparks flared, a waft of smoke filling the air.
"If Sabrina is capable of something like this, she could make anything look like anything," Alex said.
"This isn't her work. This is an illusionist who actually knew what they were doing. They're good, but I'm better," Jess said, pressing her palm to the rocks. For a moment her own illusion flickered, her seemingly human skin vanishing briefly to reveal the tattoos beneath glowing softly. Then the rock pile faded—revealing the narrow corridor stretching ahead.
Ryn moved between Alex and Jess, resting a hand on each of their shoulders as she beamed a smile. "Oh Jess, sugar. You, me, and Alex are going to steal so much stuff with our combined abilities."
"I'm part of the team now?" Jess asked.
"You are so much a part of this team. Fifteen percent share and everything," Ryn said.
"I may be from another world, but we do have math," Jess said.
"Percentages to be determined later then," Ryn said, slightly disappointed. "Onward."
"Not too quickly," Alex said. With the illusion gone his map was populating and there was a warren of tunnels and chambers ahead. They weren't unoccupied, Alex could also hear it like a grating in the distance. Glitch, although even with her illusions up Jess was still too loud for him to tell exactly what kind without getting closer.
"Trouble?" Ryn asked.
"Glitch. I don't know numbers, but more than one. There is a complex of rooms, we might have found what we were looking for."
The end of the hallway had a door marked with magical runes. Ryn was ready for this, pulling a vial from a pocket and she applied the anti-magic fluid to the runes one at a time. When the last had faded Alex pushed the door open, the room ahead lit by lanterns.
43
“You are not a victim burned by fire, you are the steel the fires forged. You are strong and edged and always in control.” Margot Collier, House of Carnage. Three weeks before the destruction of Hamin.
The room was a library, well-lit and with a cabinet near some seating filled with wines. Alex pulled a few volumes from the shelves and checked the titles. 'Of Curses and their Affliction', 'Rituals of the Keltari', 'Wards and Defensive Magicks'.
"Spellcasting books," Alex said, turning his gaze around the room as he activated Analysis Mode.
"We're close then," Ryn said, as she patrolled around peering at the volumes.
"Obviously she comes down here," Jess said, pointing to the lights.
"I'm also guessing she knows we're here since we dispelled the runes on the door. Finding any hidden secrets?" Alex asked Ryn.
"Nothing. No surprise, since the whole room is already a hidden secret. Do you want to go through the books?"
Alex was already scanning the titles. If there were something about the magic Sabrina was using to transform herself it would be valuable knowledge, but his bracer wasn't picking out anything of interest.
"No, let’s move on," Alex said, moving to the door at the other end of the library. A fork in the tunnel beyond led in two directions. According to his map one terminated in a large chamber and the other to a hall flanked by smaller rooms.
"This way," Alex said, heading towards the large chamber. This one wasn't well lit and Alex had to turn on the lights. It was a mages lab, but it looked long-abandoned. Cages filled with bones flanked the walls, and a center table held alchemical equipment along with a few familiar-looking vials. Liquefied quintessence, a corruptive agent just like Alex found in Renauld's lab. Each of these vials glowed with a dull red.
"I think some of these are human," Ryn said, she had wandered over to investigate the cages and their contents. Jess was running her hand over several orbs set in the walls, which began to glow brightly.
"What is this place?" Jess asked.
Alex saw what looked to be a journal amongst the bottles on the table and opened it, flipping through to the last entry. The date was a little over ten years before.
“The reduced dosage is proving effective and the girl is responding well to three drops nightly. The tremors that used to plague her have subsided and her health is improving, but the corruption is still insufficient for bonding. Will continue treatment for another week before increasing dosage to four drops every other night."
The notes didn't make much sense, so Alex read back through the earlier entries. What he found didn't bring him any comfort.
This was the journal of Renauld. Just like Kationa he had a laboratory both in his tower and in this keep, although his had been a secret. The baron had requested his help with his sickly daughter. Renauld had been willing, but he had his own experiments he wanted to perform that he never told the baron about.
Ebonhart hadn't been brought here for an act of treason. Renauld told the baron it was required to save Sabrina. For months the mage had dosed the girl with red quintessence nightly, bonding the energy with her body in the hopes that she'd one day be able to wield the blade safely.
Renauld had done everything to keep the girl alive, trialing dosages first on test subjects and carefully working towards exactly what was required.
Did Sabrina know all of this? Of course she must have, she would have long ago found this room and this journal. The fact that it had been left untouched must be as a reminder to herself, a reminder of her parents’ innocence. And that she started to leave her humanity behind a long time ago through no fault of her own.
It explained why Sabrina had been completely unfazed by Ebonhart. In a way, that was exactly what she had been treated for. Why hadn't she taken it? Whatever her goals were now, that sword would have offered tremendous power in any circumstances.
Words came in his head. Sabrina suddenly speaking to him amongst his thoughts.
'The price was too high. I wouldn't have been me anymore, I would have been an extension of it. Renauld was a fool, no mortal
can truly master that blade and remain themselves.'
'Sabrina?' Alex thought back.
'We're connected, Alex and when we're close you can't hide anything from me. I know where you are, I know what you're trying to accomplish. I won't stop you, not yet. There is more you need to see, more you need to understand.'
"Sabrina is in my head, she knows we’re here," Alex told the others.
"Fantastic. Why couldn't you just sleep with Jess? It would have been way less dangerous," Ryn said.
Jess said, "I do scratch and bite sometimes, but I'm not a city-destroying monster. Well, not on purpose."
"Have you ever actually destroyed a city?" Alex asked.
"Well, no," Jess said sheepishly. "The worst I've ever done is kill people and I turned a guy into a horse once."
"He wanted to be hung like a stallion?" Ryn guessed.
"Yeah, it was kind of funny. I mean, not for him, but the girls he was trying to impress really found it funny," Jess said.
"A lot of your stories seem to involve dicks," Alex said.
"Men," Jess and Ryn said in unison, and shared a look.
There was nothing else in the laboratory worth seeing. Alex took the time to stash away the vials of quintessence. While dangerous, vials like these had proved their worth before.
Alex led the way back out into the hallway and took the other fork. The hallway was narrow and had several thick, wooden doors with viewing hatches. Alex opened one slot and saw a makeshift pond with three Deep Maidens lounging within.
'A failed experiment. I tried to modify them to not kill their mates and lay their eggs externally. All of the Glitch army none of the suspicious deaths. Success on the first part and a failure on the later," Sabrina said.
The next cell contained a drake pacing angrily within the too small chamber.
'Any idea how rarely drakes reproduce? An army flying into Youlash would have been glorious.’
"A glitch zoo?" Ryn asked.
"Experiments, from what she is saying in my head. Different ways she tried to accomplish her goals," Alex said.
"I'm glad she didn't put me into one of these," Jess said, folding her arms.
'What use have I for a sword that turns against its wielder? Besides, I like Jess, truly,’ Sabrina said.
'Are you bored? Surely you have some controlling of Glitch armies to do or something?' Alex asked her.
'Have you ever transcended into a higher state of being? Do you know how much waiting is involved? I'm bored out of my mind, Alex. If you care to give up on the whole killing me thing we can pass the time much more pleasurably for us both.’
'Tempting. It would be fair play to try to time things just right. I wish we could. Just stop this, please,' Alex said.
'I can't. You'll see, keep going.'
What was she thinking? Alex was more prepared than ever to feel sympathy with her, from a young age she had been manipulated into this. The passion she had shown in bed, the vengeance driving her to do all this? Sabrina was a human filled to the brim with red quintessence. Not a Glitch, but driven to extremes.
There was another large chamber up ahead at the end of the hallway. Alex went inside and knew at once he'd found what they'd been looking for. A triangle was sketched in the middle of the floor and at the three points were three pedestals. On one burned a Coldflame, although unlike one Alex had seen before, red, black, and white flames swirling into one. Another pedestal held three gemstones, by the looks of it a ruby, opal, and pearl all glowing with dull light. The last pedestal contained a bowl of water, shimmers of all three colors twisting throughout it.
Alex's head ached at the power coursing through this room, the sheer noise of it all. The dissonance, the quintessence.
Analysis
Coldflame
This is a Coldflame recipient matrix meant to draw in and focus the power of paired Coldflames.
Softstone
This is a Softstone recipient matrix meant to draw in and focus the power of paired Softstones
Softstones are shards of rock highly powered by quintessence that are bound to human hosts. Cursed objects, the control lost is sent elsewhere and can be used to amplify mental attributes.
Burnwater
This is a recipient matrix meant to draw in and focus the power of paired Burnwater.
Burnwater corrupts a water supply, infecting those who drink from it with a crippling disease that ultimately proves fatal. The strength and health that is taken flows elsewhere to enhance a physical form.
Alex had thought he'd done a decent job at stopping Sabrina's plan. Instead he'd disabled—what ... only one third?
'Flames can be relit, Alex. You've done little but bring yourself closer to me—for all your efforts. You never found the plague victims or my little monsters among the town’s populace,’ Sabrina said.
'Gloating?’ Alex asked
'You were never a true threat to my plans, Alex. If you were I'd have done something about you that I'd have regretted,’ Sabrina said.
Alex moved towards the pedestals. A red barrier appeared as he got close. Alex focused, but unlike with the barrier on the path outside he couldn’t get close here. Energy kept him back.
"Ryn, Jess. I'm open to ideas. These pedestals are channeling power to her and are connected to some very bad things." Alex said.
Ryn pulled the anti-magic vial she used to defuse traps and splashed the liquid on the barrier. Red light shimmered and droplets seemed formed on invisible glass and slid down to the floor.
"I could get you through if this was illusion, but it isn't. This is real power," Jess said.
Alex wasn't out of ideas himself, not yet. He took one of the fire ampules Helen had given him and spilled the contents over the floor. Then he opened one of the vials of liquefied quintessence from his pack and carefully poured it into the empty ampule.
'This is an interesting idea, Alex, but I don't recommend it,' Sabrina said.
'Scared?' Alex asked.
'Worried, for you. Raw quintessence is nothing to play games with and it most definitely is not a weapon.'
Was she being sincere? Perhaps. Enough for Alex to be concerned about the most fragile of his companions at least.
"Ryn, step out of the room," Alex said, as he unloaded a round from his potion-caster and slipped in the quintessence round.
Alex took a step back and braced himself before he raised his arm. The ample exploded against the barrier. The blast drove Alex backward to slam hard against the wall with bone-breaking force.
You have suffered dissonant force damage
29 Dissonant Damage
9 has been absorbed by your armor
29 Blunt Damage
9 has been absorbed by your armor
40 Damage received
Even with his newly upgraded armor Alex felt the impact, he wouldn't be surprised if it had fractured at least one of his ribs. Maybe not just his ribs—his attempt to get upright wasn't going so well. Jess was a crumpled heap against the wall although she was already starting to push herself up.
Sabrina spoke aloud from somewhere, "Jess, get Ryn out of here right now. Leave Alex, I won't hurt him. You have my word, but if you don't go I will kill Ryn."
The voice wasn't in his head. Alex couldn't see her—he couldn't turn his head.
Jess said, "You really don't have to do this, you know. Alex likes you, I like you, we'll find a way to make it okay. I'll take you to see my home."
"I'd like that, but not today, Jess. Go," Sabrina said.
Alex heard steps moving away, then felt the sensation of Sabrina's dissonance growing closer.
Sabrina entered Alex's field of view, kneeling down beside him. "Don't worry, you'll wake up from this." Sabrina's fingers reached out to rest on Alex's scalp, light flared, and the world faded to darkness.
44
“It matters who strikes first. It matters more who strikes last.” Tessa Rapier, House of Bats
When Alex awoke it was to the feeling of wa
ter around his naked body and a woman straddling his hips riding him with considerable vigor. Alex's eyes flickered open, expecting to see Sabrina.
Grey flesh, dark hair and eyes, perfect features. A Deep Maiden, he was in their cell.
There was no trace of his armor and his hands were bound into a set of rusting shackles on the wall.
'You've got to be kidding me,’ Alex thought.
'A fractured skull, a broken spine, and raw red quintessence in both wounds. After all the corruption I've put you through your natural regenerative properties were weakened and there was a danger of the damage persisting,' Sabrina said.
'And this is your answer?' Alex’s thoughts were growing a little disjointed as the Glitch on top of him continued to move.
'They're black-aligned and I shot them full of black quintessence, and you need to burn off some of that red. I assure you, I'd rather be in their place but I'd make the issue worse. They'll also keep you out of my damned way. Sit back, enjoy, and be glad I'm both a genius and not the jealous sort.’
Alex almost felt a door slam in his head. Somehow she had forced the connection to shut down. For all her claims about not being the jealous sort, this must bother her.
Time faded to a sort of dull pleasurable blur. Alex really did have some red quintessence to burn off and the Deep Maidens seem possessed of an endless appetite. To them it was more like their murder victim just wouldn't die, and that meant they tried all the harder.
When the cell door swung open, again it wasn't Sabrina as he expected, but Ryn throwing daggers driving the Deep Maiden’s back. Then Ryn leaned over the manacles. They weren't locked. She slipped loose the pin securing them and dragged him from the cell as the Deep Maidens hissed.
"This is what happens when I'm not by your side," Ryn said.