Crystal Clear
Chapter 192
Heather didn’t turn up that evening but neither Tiller nor Elim were surprised by it. Skeletons didn’t have mortal needs so it wasn’t like the woman would come around begging for dinner. They discussed the plan for the next morning, such as it was.
Being honest, Elim’s mind was on finding a stall that sold more exotic woods than he’d been able to so far. He was taking the matter of visiting the church seriously, but with little to go on he had little to think about.
A more appealing line of thought was the fact he’d settled on a pendant for Tiller’s courting gift. The trouble was he didn’t want to use a common wood. Fancy materials wouldn’t make up for his skills, but she deserved something nice and he wanted an interesting color. Paint would fade or chip away, but the natural color wouldn’t.
They slept in separate rooms but met to have breakfast together in the morning. Sellos slept in for a while but turned up in the dining room when their meal was served. Heather made an appearance not long after that.
“Find anything?” Elim asked.
“Nah, nothing useful,” Heather admitted cheerfully. She joined them at the table, sitting next to Sellos. Rather than sit still she took out a coin and started juggling it between her fingers.
“Well, Sellos, if you're still willing I think it's about time we head out,” Elim said as the other man finished his meal. He’d ordered fish and vegetables so it had been a little while in the cooking.
“Sure,” Sellos said easily.
“Eh, not too quick. You're a bit empty handed,” Heather cut in. She placed a pair of sheathed knives on the table. Elim recognized them as 42’s work immediately. The scarbards were too nice.
“My thanks,” Sellos said simply as he took the blades.
Arming Sellos made sense, Elim had planned to do so on the trip over from a normal shop. Asking 42 for blades for him though felt more like a gift than necessity, particularly given the water themed tooling on the sheaths. Heather would have had to ask for that.
“Let's be on our way then,” Elim said simply. He was curious about Heather's motive but it wasn’t worth making a fuss over.
Per the limited plan Tiller and Heather hung back once Sellos indicated they were getting near the church. They’d keep a look out while Elim and the other man went inside. The only trouble was the area they found themselves in.
Given who was involved Elim had honestly expected to find himself in the slums. Instead they were in a modest but still decent part of the town. The church itself was average size and well-maintained, its stone walls weathered but solid.
A simple wooden sign depicted a brilliant sunrise in faded colors. A nameless church of the sun, the sort any town big enough to have more than two churches in it would have. What exactly they believed would vary a bit, but generally they were all about comfort and blessings.
They were also more inclined to heal the poor than other churches. Elim had gone to a similar one close to Selton to try and help his mother with her poor constitution years back. They hadn’t been able to do anything but they hadn’t tried to charge him anything either. They’d been kind.
“You sure this is the place?” Elim asked.
“Yeah, sat staring at that sign for a good hour last time,” Sellos confirmed.
Elim took a deep breath, steeling himself. He'd been expecting something more sinister, or at least shady. The familiar building left him uneasy in a way a more dangerous place wouldn’t have.
He opened a voice only line to 42 which she muted as they got close. She’d be able to hear everything going on, but no sound would come from her side to give her way. A very strange function for a communication spell in Elim’s book, but handy at the moment.
As he entered the church with Sellos, Elim was struck by how normal it all seemed. Wooden pews lined the main hall, and sunlight streamed through simple stained glass windows. A few parishioners knelt in prayer, while a young acolyte swept the floor near the altar.
An older man in clerical robes approached them, a welcoming smile on his face. "Greetings, friends. How may I assist you today?"
Elim cleared his throat. "Good day, Father. I'm here on behalf of Remic to complete our... exchange."
"Ah, yes! We've been expecting you. Please, follow me to my office," the priest said pleasantly. His eyes had lit up at the mention of Remics name in an uncomplicated way.
The priest's office was small but tidy, with shelves of religious texts and a carvings of the sun of varying quality lining the walls. He gestured for Elim to take a seat while Sellos remained standing by the door.
"I must admit, I was expecting Remic himself," the priest said, settling behind his desk.
The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
Elim nodded, adopting an apologetic expression. "Yes, I'm afraid some urgent business called him away. He sent me to finalize everything in his stead. I hope that's not an issue?"
"Not at all, not at all. I recognize his porter, I’m more than happy to complete the sale," The priest said, waving a hand dismissively.
“Though do forgive my manners, would either of you like a drink or… Remic said you were uncomfortable in small spaces last time, so please don’t trouble yourself on my account,” the priest added, looking in a kindly way at Sellos who loomed in the doorway still.
“Oh, it comes and goes. I’m alright today, though the drink would be welcome,” Sellos said after a pause. He sat down at the desk and the priest didn’t seem the least bit bothered by it.
The priest took out a jug of cordial and several glasses before serving them all. Elim made sure to take a drink first to ensure it wasn’t tainted with anything, but found nothing but a pleasantly tart cherry flavor to greet him.
“Do you like it? It was a gift from a parishioner but I’m not well versed in such things,” the priest asked.
“Very,” Elim said as he nodded slowly, his mind racing. This wasn't at all what he'd expected.
“Now, the payment for the crystal,” the priest said with a pleasant smile. He got out a locked box and produced a small bag of coins that he handed to Elim. Going by the weight it was all gold, probably all of the church's donations for the year.
“This seems to be in order, but I’d like to inspect the crystal if you don’t mind. Just to ensure everything is as it should be before we’re done,” Elim said, handing the bag back.
“Inspect?” the priest asked, looking baffled. He didn’t offer the coins back though.
“It traveled a fair distance and I wouldn’t wish to be remiss,” Elim explained, lying through his teeth.
“Well, I suppose… that's quite kind of you. Perhaps you could also explain its activation? Remic was rather vague about that,” the priest asked, looking hopeful.
“Certainly, he and I have different expertise,” Elim said with a smile.
The priest nodded happily and got a more secure lock box out of his desk. Whatever the crystal was supposed to do, it made it more valuable than money it seemed. With care he brought it out and unwrapped the silk cloth it had been wrapped in.
Elim had to suppress a flinch. Whatever it was supposed to do, the thing was filled with a nasty kind of magic that had a similar oozing feel to the slave collars. The office suddenly felt far too small a place to be with that thing in it.
Despite the nausea the very idea caused, Elim held out his hands to accept the cursed thing. The priest handed it to him gently, still cocooned in the cloth.
“If you don’t mind, I’d like to examine it in the light,” Elim said, truly forcing his smile now.
“Certainly, the sun's light reveals all,” the priest said with a smile. Elim nodded, doing his best not to look at the crystal as he stood up to go. It helped a little though he still felt like he was holding something made up of putrid slime rather than a crystal.
As soon as Elim’s back was to the priest he put the item in his inventory so 42 would be able to examine it. He kept his hands cupped though like it was still in the bit of silk he was holding. It only took a few moments for a message to chime.
[Its fucking cursed, sending you a replacement asap]
42 replied. Whatever ‘asap’ meant, Elim hoped that she was working fast. He was walking slowly, as if being mindful of the crystal, but he only had until the short walk to the church door finished before he’d need to produce it again or the replacement.
“So, what did Remic tell you about the crystal so far, father?” Elim asked, slowing his pace a little more to fall in with the priest. Thankfully the man was older and limped a little.
“Well, that it was a fitting relic for our church, and he made it light up in a dark cupboard. I’m not sure how though,” the priest explained. Elim was instantly relieved, 42 could manage a stone that lit up without any trouble.
“Well, relic is a strong word. I just wanted something nice to use during ceremonies which is why I tried to commission a magic item. Couldn’t afford it, but Remic said he had something fitting and it was quite inexpensive compared to having something made,” the priest continued.
[Activation phrase is ‘brilliant light’ to make it light up while holding it, ‘crimson sunset’ to turn it off. It sparkles in direct sunlight and and will purify water automatically too]
42’s message came just as they were reaching the door. Elim was relieved to find the new item in the inventory and quickly got it back in his hands and the silk cloth.
“Did he explain how he came by it?” Elim asked, keeping his tone conversational.
“He said it belonged to his family,” the priest said. His expression was still open like he believed everything he was saying. It was disturbing because it suggested something much less straightforward than a sale was going on.
“Well that's true, we had a great uncle with a bit of magic and he went traveling, wanted to train to become an artificer,” Elim lied cheerfully. He enjoyed inventing eccentric family members when given the opportunity.
“He didn’t get too far with it and never had children of his own to pass it on to, so we were left with a collection of his journeyman works… if that's how they call it? Not terribly sure, but point being I did study his journals a bit so I know more than Remic about how they work,” Elim kept on.
“Oh, well, I’m glad,” the priest said.
Elim made a show of rubbing the crystal with the silk before taking it out and holding it up. It shone brilliantly, throwing rainbows from every facet.
“To get it to glow, say ‘brilliant light,’” Elim explained. The crystal immediately lit up brightly.
“And ‘crimson sunset’ to get it to stop,” he added. Rather than simply turning off, the light colored gold then red and faded.
“Oh, that's wonderful!” the priest said in awe.
“It will also purify water, though I can't say how much. My great uncle didn’t put that in the journal and my family was always reluctant to get it dirty,” Elim added. It didn’t really need the extra feature, but he knew 42 would be cross with him if he left it out. She was particular about water as he well knew.
“Young man, truly… I haven't paid you enough for this. The mages would want ten times as much as Remic asked for it. I can't in good conscience-” the priest cut off, looking mournful. He was clearly struggling with himself to get up the nerve to give it back.
“You know, not many people would admit that,” Elim offered.
“Well, I’m bound to honesty by my vows,” the priest said with a helpless shrug. Bound was an exaggeration, there was no contract magic on him. So oath or not, he was just a man who’d made a promise but he was clearly trying to unhold it.
“My mothers been weak all of her life, and it was the church of the sun that was kind to us when others just demanded coin we didn’t have. So for your honesty priest, keep it. Just promise me you’ll use it to help people,” Elim said with a grin as he handed the crystal back.
“That- Let me at least pay what was agreed!” The priest said and turned to hurry back into the church. Elim managed not to laugh as he turned and made for the street. He wasn’t going to accept a single coin and was glad that Sellos quickly followed.