He clutched the note in his hand tightly. Had it been teleported to him? That would imply Iridel was close by. He wouldn’t risk sending it over such a long distance. Not with how easy such magic was to trace. He could have been in the crowd. Or... or had one of the Blue Banner members slipped it to him while Illaria and himself chatted about the tournament? He hadn’t felt a spell go off, so he couldn’t help but lean towards option two. It had to be the gruff-looking man. He looked like someone who knew a few tricks, like how to plant a letter on a target or pick their wallet clean of coins.
The group headed towards the tower, and Alvec stuck close to them. Iridel hadn’t reached out since the night the Gold Banner had arrested Illaria and Bait. Why would he choose now? And with the timing of what they found in the Valley of Steam, it certainly had Alvec on edge as they walked to the compound. He went to his room without a word and pulled the letter out. It was sealed with the Reynore family crest, alright. A raven’s head in the center of a red wax seal, four circles in the edges, each depicting arcane writing that visualized the four primary elements.
He heated the wax with the lightest bit of magic as soon as he got behind the comfort of his door. He knew already that his wards were sufficient to stop most onlookers. He unfolded it and read Iridel’s reply to his letter.
“If anyone but my grandson is reading this, know this. The men carrying this letter do not know a thing about its contents. They only know that it is to be delivered to my grandson in Sha-Laial. It was fortuitous that the Festival of Blades was going on there and that they would make the trip directly there. They were told that it was a sensitive family matter and nothing more.
With that out of the way: Alvec, I’ve received your sketches and descriptions of these strange creatures you’ve encountered. There have been whispers here about this sort of thing among the Blue and Red Banner army, but there has yet to be an organized response. Please forward me your findings when you can analyze the sample you took.
Additionally, I would like to comment that there does seem to be something amiss with the Gold Banner. So much so that I’m willing to take the risk of directly communicating with you. You contacted me weeks ago now, and as of my writing this, no one has stepped in to speak with me. This is very much a breach of their usual protocol. It leaves me only speculating what possibly could be keeping so much of their attention that me, being contacted in the middle of the night by my grandson, under suspicion of summoning a devil himself, didn’t even warrant a slap on the wrist.
I think we should speak more on this matter in person. I can secretly have an imp waiting for you on the outskirts of Ac-Aziza. It will take you to a place I have already secured, where we can discuss some of these issues in person. Head here as soon as it is possible. When you’ve read this, dispose of it thoroughly. We do not need any Gold Banner operatives reading this if it made it safely to you.”
Alvec held the letter down in front of Rem. “Read this, little buddy. I need to make sure someone else tries to remember. If we forget it, we can try to remind and refocus the other.” Rem nodded in agreement before focusing on the paper. He tapped his paw and yelped when he was done. Alvec poured a vial of alchemist fire on the letter. It would take strong magic to reconstitute the entire paper if it was little more than ash. It wasn’t impossible, mind you, but it was far more challenging with less to work with.
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They couldn’t leave right away. The festival was going on, and as far as they knew, none of these problems would go anywhere soon.
Their business concluded the pair rejoined the group downstairs; Mavec was sitting at the table with a pamphlet open. “Bait, you’re gonna want to hear this. Our first match is against the Boar Eaters. Let's eliminate those spear-wielding assholes. Everyone got a plan?”
“Shoot dem in the face,” Bait replied.
“Honestly, what he said, but with swords,” Naya replied.
“It's pretty straightforward, Mavec; not sure we really need any tactics,” Illaria replied as she sat at the table with a loaf of bread and a butter container.
“I’m with you, Mavec; we should plan ahead. I’ve got an idea. There's an illusion spell that creates duplicates of yourself. I was thinking of tweaking it to make exploding duplicates. They wouldn’t do much damage, but I’m sure it could be helpful.
“That's the kind of energy I need, people. Be more like Alvec; we need a plan, and it needs enough pizzaz to get us all the way to the fight with Warren Alston,” Mavec replied.
“So beyond that, I’ve got something else to discuss with you guys. I sent a letter to my grandfather before we arrived at Sha-Laial. About the abominations, we’ve run into a few times now. He indicated he’d heard rumors of strange creatures as well. He’d like us to go talk with him in person. Mostly because he agrees that there is something wrong with the Gold Banner Army, “ Alvec said.
“Well, of course, there is. They're dumb as bricks, I guess,” Mavec replied.
“I assume you be meaning there's something MORE than just their dealings with us making them seem... compromised?” Illaria asked.
“That's what it sounds like. Once this festival is over, I’d like us to meet with him and see what information he can share,” Alvec said.
“Help me punch that smug smile off Warren’s face, and I’ll go to the end of the world with you,” Mavec said.
“Sounds like a deal,” Alvec said as he pulled out his spell book and took his place at the table. Altering a spell was a lot simpler than creating it from scratch. The base spell was a second circle spell. He'd need to increase it to the third circle without losing any of its defensive properties and adding some offense. Even that wouldn’t be strictly enough. He'd have to sacrifice raw damage to have it reactive to the environment. Containing each lash of fire to the power of a first-circle spell would work. Circles of spells weren’t simply additive. Nor were they cumulative. The power of spells varied pretty dramatically. Adding a second and a first-circle spell together didn’t inherently give you a third-circle spell. Third-circle spells were more powerful, but only in specific ways. Fireball was the go-to spell. Slow enough that enemies could get out of the way, but its 20-foot radius meant it could hit a fair number of targets. Each target could take as much as the most empowered first circle spell, even if they dodged successfully. Better yet, the caster didn’t have to aim it; it just was.
Alvec was borrowing that aspect of it. It took a few hours, but he was reasonably sure he had it down. Linking the damage to the fake image being dispelled meant it would leap out at whatever triggered it. Making it react to projectiles proved to be too much of a challenge, so only direct strikes would work. He labeled it “booming clones” and added one last bit of flavor. When the clones were destroyed, they gave off a loud sound, not unlike a black powder gun being fired. He had to support Bait’s claim that guns were better after all.
Tomorrow, he’d test it in battle. Not exactly the ideal circumstances, but it was another opportunity to show himself off. A tiefling wasn’t always the most desirable option in business or love. He needed to make up for this with persistence. Talent would only take him so far, after all.