“Ritual magic has long become a favorite of cultists, covert invaders, and saboteurs. As long as they have a template of the spellscript and a practised scribe, it doesn’t take a particularly talented or powerful mage to complete ritual.
Rituals require a combination of time, mana, materials, and focusing practitioners to succeed. An individual with a large core or a large group of aether practitioners can fulfil the energy requirements. Anyone with sufficient funding can do the same. Capital is necessary for most powerful rituals since the materials don’t come cheap.
Often its the cults, invaders, and criminals that turn to ritual magic because the more powerful and ancient variants demand blood sacrifices, too. Bloodletting, murder and executions are often a necessary element. As a result, most super powers have outlawed such magic”
—Kris Greengrasse, Seeker of Knowledge, Professor of Stealth Magic and Wardbreaking
Now that Nox was out of the fight, he got a better look at the enemy force. There were far more than the couple dozen he saw on entry. In fact, the low-expert aether warrior somehow escaped his notice. As the fight unfolded before him, their numbers only continued to increase.
Fortunately, it wasn’t just Caitlin and Lord Highwater who converged on Otis’ Signal Flare. Several members of the student police, guards, and even a couple of professors made an appearance. Nox witnessed Professor Diya Sen, the university’s authority on Spell Weaving, in action for the first time. He always believed the grandmotherly mage was more a mage than a combatant, but she proved him wrong.
A royal-blue coat, gloves, and boots of a similar color covered the woman’s otherwise simple clothes. The garments shimmered with a liquid sheen, and intricate luminous runescripts covered them. Fiery blue spikes grew out of her back, pushing away any who tried sneaking up on her. The old professor didn’t move or spare a second for anyone in particular. Instead, she let her fingers dance, and blue flowed off her coat before painting shapes, runic characters and syntax Nox had never seen before. The precise Shaping and Manipulation put Dean Woodson and Professor Reginald Dwight’s demonstrations to shame. It wasn’t just the precision but also the speed at which she worked. Nox couldn’t help but wonder if she had planets or moons dedicated to set scripts.
Blue vines sprouted from the growing magic circle’s edges and formed a defensive ring. Pale lights pulsed through them whenever an attack or spells struck. The vines shrugged most of it off and swiftly recovered from whatever damage they suffered. Individual vines twisted around each other and wove themselves into a tight weave.
“Free the prisoners and bring them in here,” Diya ordered the closest student police. The vines grew up through the hole in the ceiling, forming a staircase. “Anyone not in combat, form a defensive line. Getting the civilians out is our first priority. Understood?”
Nox had Otis assist. His long, spidery fingers were perfect for opening cages, but he didn’t use them for the task. The mischievous little gremlin flashed a proud grin, drawing a giant, rune-covered key from his mouth. He danced around opening cages and rescuing the trapped.
All but Leanna Tanner sprinted to Diya for protection. “Thank you for coming for me, Sir Ratra,” she said. A healer had already come to Nox’s aid. The woman set his arm, and green-gold light now flowed from her scarred fingertips into his chest. “I—”
“What are you doing, Leanna?” Nox demanded. The words came out hoarse. The healing brew and magic mainly had fixed the bruising on his throat and neck, but it didn’t feel like enough. “This is still a war zone,” he continued, nodding at the fights on the other side of the room. He failed to spot Joey in the chaos. “Get out of here. You can thank me later.”
“No, Sir Ratra. You need to save April!” Leanna’s protests got Nox to sit upright. “They took her down below a couple of hours ago. People never come back from the basements.”
“Sir Ratra, you shouldn’t be moving!” The healer exclaimed when Nox struggled to his feet.
“Are my ribs healed?” Nox asked.
The woman nodded.
“Will healing brews see me through for the rest of the day?”
She nodded. “You’re weak, though. Further strain might likely cause tears and more serious, perhaps permanent damage.”
“I’m no stranger to permanent damage.” Despite the risk attached, Nox popped a couple of healing pellets into his mouth. The Sigil of Immunity protected him from toxic buildup, but it did nothing for the risk of mutations and cancerous growths. Nox had no choice but to risk it. Joey and April were his people. He intended to do everything within his power to save them.
It didn’t take much effort to find the way down. He caught a young enemy fighter attempting to flee through a trap door hidden behind the stacked cages running along the far side of the room. It was close to where Joey had found himself cornered, and bodies were piled high. Nox guessed the enemy had piled on faster than he had cut them down. Since there was no sign of him, it was likely he had gone below to the source and found April.
Nox’s hypothesis proved correct. A trail of corpses took him deeper into the underground compound. It surprised him how much the enemy had built under everyone’s noses without notice. He kept the short bow nocked, and scribed marbles sat ready in the gauntlet’s slots.
The precise angles and smooth, seamless walls suggested a talented earth mage assisted in the construction. Symbols characteristic of ritual magic marked several walls, and Nox found his heart racing as he wove his way deeper into the compound. He didn’t want to believe that the Imperium would dare to launch an operation of such a magnitude against the City of Ygg.
The two superpowers didn’t strictly agree on how to deal with dungeons and had different views on the positions of rank, aether practitioners, and civilians in society. However, the Imperium valued Ygg. The world tree and its magic were necessary for their continued prosperity and the repulsion of powerful magic beasts from the western half of the continent. Without Ygg, the lands would be as unstable as they were in Alkebulan and Han, if not wild and untamed like the continent across the western ocean. An operation with what was probably a hundred well-trained individuals, vast resources, and a skilled intelligence network likely had decent financial backing. An infrastructure capable of covertly transporting so many abducted women for over a year likely required lots of money and local help too.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
Nox had spent the past year worried about the Cabal, but now he couldn’t be sure if they were the real enemy. For the time being, he put geopolitical concerns aside and focused on the matter at hand. There was no telling what other threats awaited him.
Only wards and tinkered traps slowed Nox. None were as powerful as the first few he dealt with. It took him a minute or so to deal with each. His joints complained, and his muscles ached, but he pushed on, resisting the urge to consume more healing products.
Fortunately, no opponents appeared to block Nox’s path. He found Joey and April. The latter of the pair lay on a stone dais. Joey leaned against it, bloody and panting.
“She has a heartbeat,” he said. “It's slow, but it's there. Must be some sort of anesthetic or sedation spell.”
Nox held smelling salts under the woman’s nose. She didn’t stir. “It's a spell.” A magic circle and alien runes surrounded April. “Or the start of some ritual. I don’t know what the script means, but the mana running through it is unstable.”
“What does that mean?”Joey asked. “Is she going to be okay?”
“I’d like to think so. We probably interrupted whatever they were doing. It's best if we get her out of here. There are life mages and professors up top. They’ll figure out whatever is wrong. If not, I’m sure Caitlin can have Dean Woodson look into the matter personally.”
Joey nodded. Nox had no choice but to use another shard he was hoarding: gravity essence. It made the already light April near weightless, ensuring he and Joey had no trouble sharing the load.
By the time the pair returned to the floor above, the battle was over. Most of the enemy forces were dead, while the rest lay unconscious or restrained.
A trio of healers and Liesel Wyrd rushed to their aid. Unlike all the other mages and aether warriors, the professor and her clothes remained unblemished by dirt and blood. Nox didn’t see a bead of sweat on her either. One healer to Joey, while the other two and Liesel examined the unconscious April. Nox missed it on the dimly lit lower level, but someone had painted runes all over her half-naked body. The color and texture suggested that they had used blood. The rings of intricate red marked her ankles, thighs, waist, upper arm, and wrist. The start of one sat on her neck.
“I recognize this pattern,” Liesel Wyrd said. “I’ll need to check my old journals, but I promise we’ll get to the bottom of this.
“Do you know what they did to her?” Joey asked.
The professor nodded. “It's a powerful sedation spell accompanied by bloodletting. The healers might say differently, but in my opinion, a strong regeneration spell and one of Sir Ratra’s healing brews will be enough to fix her. She’ll wake up weak, though. Meat, fish, cheeses, and plenty of rest will do her good.”
“Thank you, Professor.” Joey slumped on the floor, finally relaxing. He had suffered several cuts. Bruises ran from the left side of his neck all the way down the connected shoulder and arm. Nox couldn’t be sure, but the limb seemed broken too. He and the professor took a step back when Caitlin joined them. Her wood and water elemental armor moved independently, helping fighters and prisoners who couldn’t help themselves.
“Sir Ratra, could we have a word away from prying ears?” Professor Wyrd asked.
Nox glanced at the people around them before nodding. Ingrid hovered nearby, staying just within earshot. Half a dozen mage hands flew around her, passing bandages, water, and other supplies around the triage area. He and the professor moved to a quieter corner of the room. Worried she had sensitive information to share, he also Shaped a minor Dome of Silence spell onto a shard of sonic essence.
“Our earlier conversation got me thinking,” the professor said. “My people and I looked into it, and we couldn’t help but study the bodies in here.” She pulled a couple of signet rings out of her pocket. Both carried a spider emblem. “This Perry the Spider might be involved if not behind whatever this is. A couple of these bastards, including the aether warrior you fought—an amazing job with that, by the way—had variants of spider and spiderweb tattoos.”
“That’s surprising and suspect,” Nox said, claiming one of the rings. He had intended to send Liesel Wyrd on a wild goose chase so she’d leave him alone. He didn’t intend or expect the fake lead to go anywhere. Nox claimed one ring and studied it closely. It was identical to the one he received from Perry. Nox was supposed to activate the runes on it to establish contact or show it to another member of the ‘Web.’
Nox didn’t want to say it out loud, but as he thought about it, the spider signet’s connection to the Cabal had the potential to make sense. Pestilence had used a hornet as her crest, after all. It was possible the organization utilized different arthropods as their insignias.
“Thank you, professor. This is valuable information.”
“If you have any more information regarding Perry and his organization, please don’t hesitate to share it with me,” she continued. “These people are potentially dangerous and are likely part of some cult. There have been reports of rifts containing Arachne and spider creatures in recent years too. It's important we look into this and ensure they’re stopped before whatever they’re planning comes to fruition.”
Nox considered telling her about what Joey said about Professor Lorenzo for a moment before changing his mind. Liesel Wyrd had shown up at an opportune moment and potentially saved his life. However, he wasn’t sure about trusting her just yet. The cloak and dagger and her initial use of Mind Magic still had him concerned. Fortunately, Professor Diya Sen rescued him from the conversation. Nox dispelled the Dome of Silence as she approached.
“Excellent work, Sir Nox Ratra,” she said, flashing her usual grandmotherly smile. Her royal blue coat had shrunk to a waist-length jacket. The boots and gloves had disappeared altogether. On closer inspection, Nox realized it was bright blue ink. “Professor Wolfhammer told me you were a talented combatant, but I didn’t expect you to take out an aether warrior of such rank and experience.”
“I might have taken his arm, but the man had the upper hand throughout,” Nox replied. “If Professor Wyrd didn’t show up when she did, I’m sure I’d be dead right now.”
“Don’t sell yourself short,” Liesel said. “An average aether-warrior can easily outclass a talented mage of the same rank and experience. The discipline was created to defend long-range fighters and take out enemy mages. Their skills and weapons exist to disrupt the use and flow of magic and destroy the enemy’s concentration. Yet you fought the Imperian bastard to a stalemate. When I arrived, he was in a worse state than you.”
“I think it's about time you put on a demonstration for me and Dean Woodson,” Diya said. “You deserve passes for the courses you failed to complete.”
“Thank you, Professor.” Nox smiled. “I’ll be sure to book an appointment with the both of you.”
“You’ve done a lot here.” The ancient professor placed a wrinkled hand on her shoulder. “Go get some rest. The council and deans have called for an emergency meeting tomorrow morning. They’ll want to be debriefed. I’ll have a carriage pick you up at the ninth bell tomorrow morning. Bring Joey Greengrasse.”
“Yes, Professor.”