Some many thousands of years ago.
Merlin stared at the magically projected screen with an intensity that only an archmage of the Deeper Magic can, whilst the array of the most powerful mages sat around waiting for him to respond.
In attendance at the round table were all the leaders of the known world, The King Atlas of Atlantis was to his right, as befitting of the second in command of the Archmage’s Circle of Elders.
Avalon had Arthur the 5th the only non-mage in attendance, being a Manatouched like his forefathers he could learn to use the internal body magics, his lineage had fostered a dual affinity for space and void that made his position of King Protector of Man and Mortals his true calling. He was King Protector of Avalon and Camelot, home to the Circle of Mages Guards and standing armies, a position that required him to protect the non-mage from abuse of the un-enlightened or fallen mages.
Around the table were Zeus of Olympus, Ull of Alfheimr, The head elders of the Mer, The Amazonian delegation, Mage Kings from the south and West continents, The eastern Yan Emperor and the spiritualist from the many islands of the Far Eastern seas.
In the auditorium arrayed around were thousands of citizen members of the Great circle, united in the use of Mana and the search for knowledge.
“Is it true? Have we not more data to include” Merlin asked, knowing the answer before he asked it. He had been the one to start the investigation when he noticed the fading of the great wards.
“Marlin, we have spent 50 solar cycles recording from all corners of the globe, We even commissioned the attunement pyramids built to detect leyline fluctuations.” said one of the Mage King Pharos from the great sands.
“It is undeniable, my friend and we must act now,” Said one of many astral projections in the room, this one from one of the Archmages from the great lands to the west, across the Atlantian seas.
Atlas spoke and like Merlin before him, all chatter in the room stopped.
“In roughly one thousand solar cycles the ley lines will fade and magic will diminish for... “ he glanced at his own projection. “ from the range of two or three thousand cycles.. Or more”
Everyone in the room had known this when the call was sent for a grand council and for the first time since the founding of the Great Circle of Magic was it in full attendance.
Many solutions were provided in the pre-gathering correspondences, from mass ritual sacrifice to maintain the mana flow in the three thousand year drought to the use of stasis and time manipulation to skip ahead. One thing they all knew is that they could not stop it, it was a natural cycle of the world. A way for evolution to jump forward a few million cycles in a thousand, no one in attendance would know how or would want to stop Gaia and her cycle. But no Mage wanted to lose magic and immortality.
“If we stay, we suspect that mana deprivation aside, we will not be able to care for the mortals any longer, our reach will be diminished. The Manaborn and Manatouched will be relegated to mortals. We will not be able to complete our purpose, we will not be able to protect the libraries, the scribes are trying to write it on Pyrus and skins but we have forgotten the old ways in our hubris. All the knowledge will be lost.. We must not allow this to happen” This was spoken by Arthur as his position dictated the protection of mortals and knowledge was his only concern.
Murmurs of agreement and some small few in disagreement from the stadium rose at Arthur’s assessment.
Merlin looked up and the room was silent.
“We have two choices to make, We stay or we leave,” He said somberly before continuing.
“The fey will not have us, nor would they want to. We cannot invade the great seals and stop mass movement both ways, as say the accord of the gods.” Many around the great hall made a circle with a finger or hand on their forehead, in homage to the last great war. Many include a small sending of mana to strengthen the great wards.
“The Red planet is lost to us and we dare not step foot or risk awaking Tartarus”
“But not all, some must stay to help the mortals. I will stay” predictably said Arthur as was discussed between the small circle days ago, to convince the few sceptics only Arthur would remain to prove it was not a ploy for power. Not a single mage would question his conviction.
“What do you suggest, Arch-Mage?” a call from the auditorium came.
Merlin hid a secret smile knowing Morgana had picked the perfect time.
“We can't stop it, we can bring this calamity forward, the Great Seal's creation did as much when we cast them and potentially extended the duration, and to forestall arguments this was agreed upon and voted as fact. Anyone, who dispute brings evidence forth or a new theory into the mana and ley fluctuations or the records will remain?”
Silence
“No? agreed. Scribe! in Iron for it to forever hold” a ritual saying and a holdover from the Fey war. Unfortunately for the times to come this meeting of the great circle will be scribed into iron, a practice not seen in a thousand years.
“Agree twice,” said Atlas
“Agreed Thrice,” said the gathered table as one.
“ The only option in the next solar network to our own, our scyings have confirmed many livable worlds with a mana core and we have a spell model that can be used for the travel, However, we will only have a single cast then the calamity will be upon the few that remain.'' Merlin finished and with a flick of his hand, the mentioned formulas and runes were sent to all.
“What of the Gods? They still will not speak to us on the calamity, our auguries have failed to confirm this. We know this is your doing Merlin” yelled one of the kings of free cities, this city namely Troy. King Priam was always a sceptic of the calamity, relying on the words of gods. Words that were bound in deep magic and rules self-imposed after the War of the gods. His outburst was not unexpected and Arthur was chosen to deal with the answer to avoid escalation.
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“ The gods cannot and will not answer; to do so would be seen by Gaia as interference and punished accordingly, and what of the gods? This is our discovery and our choice. Merlin and others discovered the event and I know that your auguries have confirmed from the gods it has happened in the past. So I ask What Of The Gods? And I will remind you your answer will be recorded into the archives of Camelot and Alexandria.. In iron.
King Priam did not flinch at Arthur's rebuke by responding in kind with venom and scorn.
“I am accusing YOU MERLIN of sealing Gods in geas, You did it During the God Wars and you have DONE IT AGAIN” His accusation brought a stillness to the room, as an accusation of this magnitude if proven true would be death. A Law on the first Tablet that Moses presided over and Merlin helped write.
Moses perked up at the mention of an accusation, who sat on the Chair of Law directly behind Merlins on a throne elevated to symbolise no one is above the Fifteen Commandments.
The bearer of the commandments looked from the King of Troy to the Archmage of the great circle of Mages with his golden left eye, given to him from Oden the Allfather as a gift in homage to Moses’s wisdom and his Right silver eye that death had given him to see past the veil of untruth.
“The claim is... FALSE, However, the King of Troy Believes it in his heart and mind to be true, No Punishment and No Recourse. But, know this, the gods may not talk of such things for it will have a direct impact on all of Mankind, but I can ” Moses’s voice was booming and when he spoke even the gods would be unwise to not listen. Merlin was shocked, his oldest friend had not spoken more than the word of Guilt and punishment since he gave his soul to the Law they had created. Merlin's only hope was that what he had planned was true and right for if Moses spoke against him in this, he would have to abandon his plan of salvation.
“The Calamity will happen, and most must go. For if you stay our great society will not survive.`` As he said this a faint and sad smile appeared on his sombre face, his hand moved to rest on the tablet containing the first five commandments that were exclusively for Mages, the later ten were for mortals and Manatouched, but the first five were sacred to mages only.
“I must not go, I must stay to hold the gods to the laws until the last moment or we risk intervention, but I will help you leave. Some may question this path but I will give my right eye back to death to see you to your new home. SO SAY I, IN IRON!” The room was bathed in Golden light as Moses called forth his Deeper magic, gifted to him by both sides of the pantheons at the end of the God’s War.
On the first tablet was now another commandment, one that said simply Thou Shall find salvation in the stars and with that his right eye dimmed from bright silver to a dull grey.
Merlin's breath caught in his chest, like most in attendance before he released it as a sigh, and thanked his old friend with a small nod. Moses had not sided with anyone, not even an inch in a dispute for the last 100 years. His face was now graced with a sad smile, then a shake of his head.
Merlin was about to say he would do as Moses did to ensure the plan, but Moses stopped him
“NO” again the room froze at Moses’s word.
“No member of the High council shall remain, except for Arthur and his order, This must be so.” with the great Law Keeper's words, it was now as good a moot argument or as close to the law as the mages had. Merlin looked to a few members who he suspected would ignore this, but he suspected Moses knew this too, we just need most.
“So…” Said the Yan Emperor “When do we start and what will be required of us” he finished, looking from Moses to Merlin.
“ We will use the great works around our cities, we shall use the ley lines in the same way we made the great seals and we shall leave and arrive through space and time to our new home, for when this calamity is over we shall return to see what is left or what the mortals have become.” Merlin finished looking around the great auditorium for any disagreement. He saw a sew but it was a stone in the ocean.
“But what of the Gods, Some are absent, others can only whisper. SOMETHING IS TAKING THEIR POWER!!” Shrieked Priam again.
This time it was a Pharaoh to respond “Unlike the free cities, we do not ask our gods about things they are law bound to not answer. AND WE asked what we could do to help them, and derive answers from that. King Priam of Troy do you know what answer we divined?” said the Pharaoh with a refinement only an immortal King of the south could achieve.
“No” came the hiss “If I had the proof, I would not have asked here”
“Then maybe you should have asked your gods, however, the answer was that the mana does not diminish, but condense inwards back to Gaia and her core. The gods asked for us to give and not take, so that they may hibernate and outlast a cataclysm. That is what I and my fellow Pharos have and will continue to do since we first learned of the calamity.”
The Pharaoh magic screen slightly flashes indicating messages from the assembly. This information was common knowledge for most who attended the regular sessions of the Great council. Now all would know the reasons for the lessening voices of the gods.
“Now, what we need to do now…” said Merlin
………
Approximately 75 Solar cycles later
“Are you ready?” asked Merlin to his two closest allies
“Yes Arch-Mage,” said Arthur, Moses only nodded.
“I trust you with this, we must give the mortals a chance when the mana returns,” Merlin said knowing this was the last time he would see both men.
“If you return Arch-Mage, the mortals will all be enlightened. The genetic modelling is sound, The fourth Law of separation will not prevent it and the modification to the great seals will enable new gods to be born. We that remain to have faith in Moses and the plan, Emperor Yan’s fifth son shall remain in the east, Genghis Khan and his clan in the north, and one of the Mien Princess in the far West these select few have modified the translocation framework to move in time, worry not my friend we will have our people appear throughout the drought to ensure the gift is not restricted. Manatouched and mana born will not be a few in a hundred thousand when mana returns. When the mana rises back the frameworks will hold and the crystallization of the great seals along the new ley lines is guaranteed, our descendants shall not fear the Fey through lack of knowledge. This I am certain.” said Arthur as he gripped his mage blade Excalibur, which in a few short moments would become a regular sword.
“The Burden of the First Five Commandments will not restrict us in this, as when you leave the ambient mana will be too low to enforce, and when you return… I cannot see past the return” Moses confirmed and Merlin nodded in affirmation with a hint of relief, as this would not be possible without his sacrifice.
“And the cults that follow the drakes have been silent, some of our operatives have reported some kind of preparations for the event, but nothing that could pose a threat” added the knight with a look of worry.
Melin nodded at Arthur’s report, “the Dragons have been around longer than us, I suspect that have survived this before, or the older ones will just sleep through it, I care not”
Merlin feared the unknown, an unknown of what his people will find upon their return, his secret research had proven his suspicions that it was an event like this that mutated the apes into humans, he was afraid that he would return to a world devoid of humanity and replaced with something else, something he would need to cleanse to secure magekinds rightful place. The Dragons allowed humans to evolve and now they are relegated to the mountains and shadows, and the dragons are vastly more powerful than the common individual mage.
A small pulse of mana to his brain calmed him and his resolve.
Merlin pulled his oldest friends into a hug and whispered “My Gaia guide us.”
As the Greatest Spell ever cast concluded the greatest cities in the world and the most powerful empire vanished in a blinding golden light. Only hints and stories of the empires and people remained.
-------
At the point in space that had no place in time, a place that if any mage knew, they would curse their ancestors at their inability to look there first, a Greater God and Divine Beast opened its scaly eye and looked through eons of space and time. He saw the extinction of his progeny in droves, he saw a great war that followed and his eventual exile, for he could not be killed like his children… not in the mortal sense of the word. He did, however, see hope, and a chance, so he tipped the scales, and offered a few of his line knowledge at just the right point in time to make difference, he then allowed manipulation of time and held back the void for a microsecond to allow it to finish. After this slight effort, the divine beast sent out a magical command to his progeny, a message that would resonate in all drake-kinds blood for generations, before he closed his eyes, eyes that would not open for the next few thousand years.
His intent was clear and he knew a few would not listen or understand for his kind would never be slaves, but he only needed a few to heed and the ones that perished would only strengthen the whole with their deaths. For his blood would survive and be passed on. With the slight smile on his Tooth filled maw, normally his children would seek the deep parts of Gaia and be close to the ambient energies of the world and hibernate, the strong and old would outlast a few thousand years of drought, the weak would perish.
The eldest of his children would do this, as they have done before. This new idea was inspired by a mage and friend, a mage that would count him as an enemy, Merlin. Why just sleep when my blood could be passed on in secret? and why not mix and see what could be made from new and old?