Ok, so this one took me a bit longer than usual, both to write and to get around to. The tables don't look quite the way I wanted, but I'll deal with that later. I'll try to get the next chapter out today. As usual, if you see any problems, let me know.
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Light flickered in the depths as I descended ancient stone steps. The stairwell was subsumed in darkness, except for the spec of light guiding me just past the twisting bend. My magic sight could detect the energy suffusing the walls, and with each step I could feel it reacting to my presence. The walls themselves were chill, an aura of cold rolling off of them, all heat pulled into the cold earth. With every yard I descended, the temperature dropped further, until after a score of turns my feet touched the bottom.
The light in the depths was formed of dim blues, purples, and greens. Phosphorescent illumination lined ornate patterns that spiraled across white surfaces like vines. Florid symbols were embossed in the pure white stone, a strange glassy marble that lent a 'living' quality to the shapes of leaves and flowers. The phosphorescent light bled into the stonework, at times giving it a feeling of blood circulating through marble veins. There was magic here, and though I couldn't quite describe the sensation...it felt ancient, but also familiar.
The massive hall of white was supported by pillars that looked like trees, their limbs intertwining to create vaulted ceilings. The hall opened into a cavern that extended into the darkness below. I could make out platforms made from the same white material that lined the walls, and many tunnels and rooms in the depths. Stairs connected to the platforms, creating a simple web of walkways, and as I stepped into the cavern I realized that the place was built as if it were the inside of a tree, and the depths its roots.
Looking closely at one of the 'tree' pillars, I ran a hand across the surface, feeling the intricate details along the surface. The material was almost like a highly polished wood, and as my hand pressed against the it fully, I could feel mana leeching from my body.
Almost immediately the tone of the material changed, the ambient phosphorescence growing brighter, and spreading from tree to tree. Warmth spread under my feet, and a comforting sensation of acceptance that was hard to describe filled the air. The light began to spread slowly down into the depths like water carried through the roots of a tree.
I pulled my hand away from the pillar, and the drain stopped, but I considered it for a few moments. On a hunch I pulled my boots off, and stepped barefoot on the warming floor. Mana began to seep from me, but still slower than my natural regeneration rate. With every footstep I took, a dim light illuminated beneath my path. The energy continued to spread downward illuminating the walls and stairways. The cold was slowly parting in the depths, and I could see ice further down encrusting the surfaces of walls and floors.
I followed the path downward and found myself before a small frozen lake, at its center was a small island with throne, and upon the throne a silvery crown that looked woven from leaves and vines. At one side of the frozen lake a statue rose from the ice. It was in the form of a familiar woman holding a familiar sword. She was holding the massive stone sword out as if in offering, and as the light poured down across the lake, it rose through the statue, and formed ghostly wings of light at her back.
“Well...this might cause structural problems.” I said out loud to myself. The castle above us was obviously built on top of this place, which meant hundreds of tons of force were being applied at the roof. There didn't appear to be any drooping in the ceiling high above, which probably owed to 'magic'. If this place had been made out of wood the whole castle would have fallen through ages ago. On the upside, the mana I had been leaking into the place seemed to give more vibrancy to everything...though if it was heating up down here...would I need vapor barrier to prevent mold later?
I crossed the lake, my footsteps creating ripples of light through the ice. When I reached the throne I considered the crown. There was definitely magic in it. I brought up Divine Identify, getting an...interesting result.
Crown of ÁineÁine is the goddess of sovereignty, wealth, and summer. Her crown marks the sovereign ruler of the Fae, and provides fertility for the land and its people. This crown was held by the rulers of the summer court until the mortal kingdom of Caerleon defeated the armies of King Olmucaid. King Arwen of Caerleon sealed the crown away after he was poisoned by his eldest son.Effect: Major Illusion Resistance
Effect: Eternal Youth
Effect: Unmarred Beauty
Effect: Removal of limit rating for Path of Nature, and Path of Illusion
Effect: Major increase in fertility for the lands and people of any territory ruled by the wearer.
I picked up the crown and smiled. It was strange that this place had gone undiscovered for so long. It created questions about how the castle was built without everyone knowing about this place, if it was a preexisting structure. Then again...magic I supposed. I picked up the crown and took a seat on the throne, looking upward and marveling at the architecture. It really was a beautiful place...I wondered if mother would like it...or if I should really show it to anyone yet. A hidden underground lair like this would be invaluable.
I placed the crown on my head, and felt a familiar sense of warmth spreading through me as something in the crown responded. If inanimate objects could have motions, I'd say it felt happy. Then again, that was probably just me attaching human characteristics to inanimate objects. Shaking my head, I left the small island, my footstep sending more ripples as I moved to explore the structure. At the very least I should know if there were any exits down here.
The place was larger than I had assumed, the tunnels like roots of the 'tree'. There were occasionally passages closed by woven illuminated vines, but they parted on my approach revealing ornate bed chambers, armories, storage areas, and even a library which seemed to be woven from a number of the 'tunnels'. The tunnels curled around in stairwells, emptying out onto the separate floors. There was a railed opening at the center of each floor that gave a view of the floors below, but each floor was otherwise just rows and rows of books. There were a few sections in blocked areas whose books glowed with magic, while the rest were more mundane. I opened books here or there, and found poetry, plays, stories, histories, and even writing on assorted crafts and nature.
I reached blocked off sections and it opened with a touch. The bound tomes within had titles like 'The Art of Illusion, Vol 1', 'The Medicinal Applications of Life Magic', and 'The Hierarchy of Primal Souls'. A little scouring even turned up a beginner’s book on magic.
As I absorbed information from the books I handled, I felt my mind inundated by intricate patterns, chants, and dances. Skill windows started popping up as my occult rating rose by more than fifty points in a matter of minutes. Focusing through the information overload I grasped at one of the concepts. “Path Display”
PathAffinityRatingLight:100%10%Darkness:100%0%Creation:100%10%Destruction:100%0%Illusion:100%0%Nature:100%0%Fire:100%10%Water:100%10%Earth:100%0%Air:100%0%Subpaths:AffinityRatingBlood:-10%
According to the information in the books, path affinity provided a hard cap on how high a person's path rating could actually reach. Most of those magically endowed had maybe one or two affinities higher than ten percent, with a normal upper range at fifty percent, though there were legendary 'arch mages' with affinities up in the 80% for their primary. The upper levels of each path reached into 'high arcana' at around 80% allowing for legendary spells. The book mentioned divine spells from the 'Age of Gods' which supposedly required 90-100% affinity in a path to learn, but those were supposedly all lost, or known only by the god associated with that sphere.
The affinities also reduced the cost of spells from their associated paths, while rating was a measurement of mastery and comprehension on the fundamental aspects of the path. What was curious was the tenuous relation between affinity and rating, to the power of those spells. While most spell casters didn't tend to have affinities higher than thirty to fifty percent, the actual classes provided abilities that improved power, versatility, and range of the spells at lower levels. However the book described an inherent, and compoundable, increase in those traits from natural affinity levels. That might explain why I was able to match the kind of magic output the fire mage I had fought the night before was putting out.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
Subpaths were more specialized fields of study, with limits associated with one of the primary paths. The specialized subpaths tended to be more limited at the higher levels though. As I thought about it I was I was also able to bring up spell lists for each path, using 'show path status'.
Path of LightRating: 10%Spells:Create Light, Detect Lies, Induce Calm, Shield of Light
Path of WaterRating: 10%Spells:Water Jet
Path of FireRating: 10%Spells:Fire Resistance, Fireball
Path of BloodRating: 10%Spells:Discern Heritage
The paths themselves became progressively more difficult to learn the higher their rating, with 5 to 10% generally taking a year or two, and going from twenty to thirty potentially taking a decade. The 'Arch Mages' of legend were known to have lived centuries mastering the high arcana, some turning themselves into the first liches and vampires, were the blessings of gods not available. The ancient fae supposedly lived for millennia, much like the scions of gods, while elves tended to have life spans in the range of many centuries. This meant that aside from the 'high races', most mortals needed artificial means to extend their lives just to master the upper limits of their affinities, at least where archmagi were concerned.
The basic books also described the types of abilities used by the magic using classes, such as abilities to control the shapes of spells, to delay them, or alter them to perform effects not generally associated with the paths in question. Supposedly that's how many of the subpaths were created. I took a moment to use 'Show Abilities' to review my ability listings for the first time.
Class: Abilities:Martial Artist:Ki Pool, Divine Meditation, Body Reinforcement, Quick SightWizard:Magic Accumulation, Magic Manipulation Form: Abilities:AikidoImproved Deflection, Greater Throw, Ki ManipulationTai ChiMoving MeditationWing ChunHeavy Hand
Beyond pure spell casting, referred to the books as weaving or shaping, there were complex and time consuming rituals that allowed certain mages to produce spell effects normally beyond their natural affinities. Of course these rituals also tended to require often expensive material components, much like creating magic items. The theories in the books were simple enough to digest, and as I moved through the texts I realized that the fae here only really kept magic texts on nature and illusion magics, the last often referred to as 'seemings'.
Getting a better understanding of the basic concepts, I moved on to a couple of the practical magic tomes. Placing my hands on one of them I began to absorb the information in the books, my mind suddenly being hit with a sledgehammer of information.
[tr]
Path of Nature Learned: 20%
[tr]
Spell Learned: Nature BondEffect: This spell alters the essence of a target, allowing the creation of a bond with natural beings so that they recognize the individual as 'one of their own'.Cost: 40 mana/day
Spell Learned: Detect EssenceEffect: The spellcaster is able to detect any being's life essence in a thirty foot radius. The caster is able to identify the race or elemental signature of the being. Radius increases with level of spellcaster.Cost: 20 mana/minute
Spell Learned: Communication through SpiritEffect: The spell establishes a connection between the caster and another living being. This spell allows the two to communicate spiritually, bypassing the need for language, allowing it to work between plants or animals.Cost: 50 mana/day to maintain connection
Spell learned: Life Sight Effect: Used to analyze natural entities, such as plants or animals, this spell allows a practiced user to assess properties such as health, status effects, or toxicity.Cost: 20 mana/minute
Spell Learned: HealingEffect: This spell boosts the natural healing qualities of a target, causing wounds to close and the target to regain 20% of its health, +5% per ten levels of the spellcaster. This spell doesn't replace lost limbs, or heal what time would not.Cost: 100 Mana
“Owie owie owie owie!” I cried out as I fell to my knees, gripping my head as the pain receded, followed by mild nausea as my stomach turned. I gasped teary eyed as I tried to get a grasp on my senses again. The patterns and concepts were burning themselves into my brain as I shuddered. After a few minutes I wearily made my way to my feet, being a bit too careful not to touch any more of the magic tomes yet. My mind was still trying to grapple with the information, but I could feel my mind cycling through spells, adjusting my 'senses'. I looked at the other books, including the illusion books...and decided to save this for later. With my luck I'd put myself in a coma trying to assimilate all of those spells in one go.
Turning my back on the rest of the library I made the long walk back through the complex of passages, through the stairways of the 'tree cavern', and finally up the stairwell back to the library I came in through. As I passed through the underground building I could feel the ambient magics in the walls growing stronger, as the lights became brighter and more vibrant. The pale white substance of the place had taken on a livelier hue, the blues and greens of the phosphorescent light showing yellows and whites which made the whole place look more 'alive' than before. The small lake down at the depths had lit up, a thin fog appearing over surface filled with glimmering lights. The place felt more comfortable returning than it had coming down...and a lot less cold.
As I ascended the stairwell into the castle library I saw my mother stepping into the light from one of the hallways. She looked confused and concerned as she spotted me, and began moving toward me.
“Faith..Can we talk now?” my mother asked me, closing the door to the library behind her. She looked at the stairwell at the center of the library, as I pushed a button on the wall causing it to start closing.
“Sorry...there's a sub-structure. I don't want anyone getting hurt down there until I really get a chance to go over it. Especially with the castle up here still needing repairs...” I explained with a worn smile.
“Ahh..I see.” Jasmine said stepping toward me, and wrapping her arms around me. “Baby, I'm worried about you...and I don't know what's going on with you...or this place. How did you get this all...And where did you get that crown from?” she asked looking at the Crown of Áine, and the glimmering lights flowing through the flowery mithril surface.
“Oh, um, it was laying around down below...” I said, looking up at woman hugging me. “I'm sorry mommy, It's just been a long couple of days.” I said placing my head on her shoulder.
“It's alright baby. Come sit down and tell me about it.” my mother said, pulling me toward a small set of chairs next to one of the windows.