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Aperio could not help but raise a brow at the crude runes etched into the walls that hid the entrance to the basement. Of course, the magic worked on neither her nor Caethya, but the All-Mother was surprised that it worked on anyone at all, as the amount of mana they used was truly pitiful. A child could break these…
If her control over her aura was even a tiny bit lesser, the ward these runes created would have broken as soon as she had arrived on Earth; as it stood however, the enchantment merely flared up as she stepped past. Much like the runes she had seen when she had first returned to Verenier, these ones seemed to etch themselves deeper into the stone and some even began to shine with the silvery-blue glow of her mana.
Eleanor hesitated for a moment as she spotted what, to her, was likely unexpected behaviour from the runes and shifted her gaze towards the All-Mother, who only offered her a smile in response. The mortal mage was smart enough to figure out that her mere presence was enough to upset their meagre runes. And I am holding back harder than I ever have before…
"I am surprised those runes are even working," Caethya remarked, placing her hand onto the small of Aperio's back. She looked up at the All-Mother and switched to Ancient Common. "You got better at holding back, didn't you?"
"A little bit, yes," Aperio replied. "It's mostly based in my realisation and actual acceptance that I can just want things to happen and they usually do. That's a bit oversimplified, but I think you know what I mean."
"I do," her love said. "Now you just need to figure out how to hold back in a fight."
Aperio gave a non-commital grunt in reply. She could hold back her magic, but what she could do without it still vastly eclipsed anyone else, and not making use of that in a fight was harder than one would think. Not breaking someone while shaking their hand or not shattering the cup they gave you was easy; happened basically on its own. Not breaking someone when she threw a punch, however, was harder. Even the lightest blow she could offer was enough to injure a God, let alone some puny mortal that barely had any mana.
"The runes are old but they serve their purpose," Eleanor said as the All-Mother had not replied to Caethya's words. "Maybe not for you," she added, as Caethya was about to speak, "but for anyone else they do."
"Even your Vampire friend?" Aperio asked, tilting her head slightly as she let the mortal in question pass. "He might not be that strong, but he can still draw on more than most of the people here."
"They work just fine on him," the mage replied before taking a turn and descending down the stairs that were supposed to be hidden by the ward. "Besides, Ethan isn't known for his magical prowess. His thing is more… brutal murder with his hands. And biting. Lots of biting."
"I did not come here to get insulted," Ethan mumbled in reply, though not showing any sign that he was inclined to leave. "But yes, I am not a magician. Vampires rarely are."
Aperio tilted her head as both Ethan and Eleanor looked at her. "Why are you looking at me? I would not know if he speaks the truth, he is the second Vampire I have ever met." That I can recall, at least.
A small mental query directed at her love asked if she might know of a blood-sucking mage, but — much like Aperio had thought — Caethya did not know of one either. Why would they even think I know that?
The reason probably mattered little, and Aperio, frankly, considered herself unable to actually understand mortals. It had become abundantly clear that during her time as one — or at least as close as she would probably ever get — she had not managed to truly understand the mortal mind. It had afforded her a new perspective, and more strength somehow, but the rather random nature of mortals still confused her.
"I had assumed you know because you seem to know how strong someone is with just a glance." Eleanor shrugged and opened another door in the narrow hallway. "Down here."
"Did you really build a coffee shop over old catacombs?" Caethya asked as she followed the mortal mage down the staircase. "These stones are old; older than most things in this city, I'd wager. The symbols too. I don't recognise them, but they remind me of burial charms I have seen."
"Interesting how that works," Aperio commented, ducking through the doorway and walking slightly sideways as the stairway was too small for her. "I, too, recognise some of these, even though there should be no way I should be able to."
"Why not?" Eleanor asked. "It's not like these are exclusive to this region. If anything they came from somewhere else."
"Our home is very… reclusive," Caethya said, looking at Aperio over her shoulder. "Not many people go in and out."
Ethan huffed at the words. "Does the place have a name?"
"It does," Aperio replied, letting a bit more mana seep into her voice. A few of the runes that had been engraved into the stone further down flickered, and the Vampire almost stumbled as her power rushed through them. "But that is not important for you."
A huff was the only reply the All-Mother received from Ethan, the Vampire likely not wanting to say anything more that might upset Aperio. Did I overdo it? She had intended to scare them a little so they would not ask about Verenier, but apparently she had overestimated how much mana she should use.
She shook her head slightly, rolling her shoulders to ease the slight stabbing pain just below her shoulder blades where her wings should be. Not having her feathered appendages on display was really starting to annoy her. After this, I need to stretch my wings.
Aperio had found the ritual site already; that had only taken a moment. Discerning its function, however, was much harder and the main reason why she would simply be a supplier of power while letting Eleanor do all the magic. All the runes they have there look like generic guides for mana… They were not quite the same as the ones she knew from Verenier, but close enough that she both recognised them and questioned how they were so similar.
"What can you tell me about the ritual?" the All-Mother asked, her voice easily reaching Eleanor even after she had unlocked a door at the bottom of the stairs and walked through it.
"Only that it is old and technically forbidden," the mortal mage replied, Aperio only hearing the answer thanks to her vastly enhanced ears. "And that it requires a lot of power."
Somehow, I doubt that, Aperio thought to herself, drawing just a tiny bit more heavily on her well. It was something she had not done in a while but should definitely do more often, even if it sped up the strengthening of her body way past the point of what even she had come to consider reasonable.
"I think we will be fine," Caethya said with a slight giggle as she looked around the chamber the ritual would be set in. She looked at the All-Mother as she ducked into the room, a few of the old stones cracking as Aperio turned a little too soon. "Though I do hope that the ritual can withstand more than your doorways."
Eleanor let out a sigh as she looked at Aperio, who only shrugged. "Not to worry, she is not the only one that breaks those stones. We have replacements. Somewhere." The last word was barely a whisper, words not meant for anyone but the mage herself. She remained quiet for a moment before she clapped her hands. "Anyway, the ritual."
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"Yes," Aperio said as she stepped into the middle of the room, for once not feeling anxious standing inside a runic circle, "the ritual. Just do what you need to do, I will supply you with the mana you need." The All-Mother turned slightly to look at Eleanor. "If you try anything funny, I will make sure that I will have the last laugh. Understood? The same goes for your friend."
///
Eleanor eyed the Fae-Elf-Whatever woman for a moment longer before she turned around and pulled a stone out of the wall. Inside the hidden compartment there was a small book bound in purple leather and embossed with a golden skull. It was a family heirloom that had been passed down for generations, and was very much illegal. Her mother had given it to her on her twenty-third birthday — a tradition of their family — with a very detailed lecture on how, and much more importantly, when to use it.
This situation had most definitely not been in that lecture, but Eleanor simply filed it under the 'extraordinary opportunities' her mother had mentioned. It was not every day that someone practically oozing mana specifically sought you out, let alone two. The fact that one of them caused her to grow a tiny bit dizzy every time she talked was a small price to pay for having even the slightest chance at talking to the maker of their world. Or at least the maker of our magic.
Who made what was a hotly debated topic among the mages. It was generally accepted that what many people referred to as the Voice of the World, or God, was not responsible for the actual creation of the world but more for the magic and people on it. At least, accepted among the various factions of magicians.
"Crossing you or your friend seems like a bad idea," Eleanor said as she began to leaf through the book. "But I am a little surprised that you have no issue standing in the middle of a formation that's mostly used to sacrifice things."
The woman simply raised a brow at the words, the runes on the floor flickering slightly again. Just how much mana does she have? A part of her wanted to say that she had an infinite amount, but that would be crazy. How would a single being ever be allowed that much power? If she was a Goddess maybe… But then she wouldn't walk around here like that.
Aperio was rather formal, yes, but more in the way of some rich snob — or a queen, if you wanted to go back to the time she seemingly lived in — but not a Goddess. Someone divine would probably also not see the need to apparently live in the gym like this woman did.
"You would need a lot more than this to worry me," Aperio said with a shrug. "These runes are already struggling with my presence when I am holding back. The only thing that makes me do, is question the viability of this site to perform any sort of ritual."
"While we aren't in a big city with millions of people," Eleanor began, placing the book on a small pedestal as she had finally found the correct page, "we still need to make our ritual sites a lot more sensitive than we — and by we, I mean us mages — used to. Finding people that can power even a small ritual on their own is hard enough."
"And I bet you are one of those," Caethya said as she stepped up next to Eleanor and looked into the book. "This one calls for five people?"
"It does," the mage replied. "That's why I said I am not sure she can do it on her own. In the past a single mage had more mana and you still needed at least five to do this. Now there is less mana, and she is only one person."
Aperio crossed her arms in front of her chest and narrowed her eyes slightly as she looked at Eleanor. "Five mortal mages? That is all?"
"Why do you refer to everything as 'mortal'?" Eleanor asked, her eyes wandering to Ethaniel. "I know it's technically true for most of us, but it sounds weird."
"I do it because it is true," the woman replied. "Your Vampire friend is also very much a mortal despite his kind’s different viewpoint. At least I assume he, like the other one I talked to, thinks that he is undying." Aperio offered a smile. "You are ageless, but not beyond death."
"A Vampire can die," Ethaniel agreed. "But it's not something your average Human or mage can do."
"Good thing neither Aperio nor myself are average, then," Caethya said before she returned her gaze to the book in Eleanor's hand. "Could I borrow that book for a moment after we are done? It looks most intriguing."
"No," Eleanor replied. "You are lucky you get to see any of it."
Caethya said something in their weird sing-song language and Aperio, who had taken a step towards them, mumbled something in reply and moved herself back into the centre of the circle.
"How much longer will we have to wait on you, mortal?" she asked and Eleanor was sure she could see a few cracks form and subsequently vanish in the stone beneath the woman's bare feet.
A part of her wanted to say that they would start once she had put on some shoes. But, after taking a quick look, Eleanor was convinced all over again that Aperio did not seem like a person who would take a joke well. The mage had no desire to find out if a poorly-timed jest would result in being broken by magic or by fists. Probably both.
"I'm ready whenever," she replied, trying to hide a little behind her book. "Just need to figure out how, exactly, I am supposed to use your mana instead of mine. I haven't exactly tried to take the power of someone else before, especially not someone stronger."
"Simply begin the ritual, I will do the rest."
Eleanor gave a hesitant nod at the words, the amount of mana Aperio had put into them making them significantly more of a threat than a request.
She closed her eyes and folded her hands in front of her chest before beginning to recite the words the book stipulated for the ritual. The exact meaning of the words had been lost long ago, but she knew the gist of it.
It was a prayer, something you could potentially guess from her folded hands but many mages still somehow missed. It didn't really matter if the other participants knew if it was a prayer or not as nobody listened to this one, anyway. Only the mana you offered with the hollow words was of any importance, which had given this ritual the nickname of 'Hollow Offering,' often extended by annoyed mages to 'To a Deaf God.' Deaf as whoever listens to this might be, they still brought magic to this world.
Eleanor had to press her hands harder together after she had finished the first verse and a veritable torrent of mana followed the path her own took through the room. The foreign mana mirrored every action her own took, reacting to her guidance before she had even finished directing where she wanted hers to go. Whoever this mystery woman truly was, once she had told her master of this he would stop at nothing to recruit; that, Eleanor knew.
The second verse was followed by even more mana from Aperio as well as a sensation Eleanor could only describe as something brushing against her mind. She did not know if that was part of the ritual or not, but for now she would assume that it was intended. They were trying to contact a God, or something like one at least, so it only made sense that they would speak directly into your mind.
Before Eleanor could began the next verse, she felt a breeze rush past her, almost as if the ritual had taken place outside. She opened her eyes, immediately squinting against the torrent of blinding blue light that swirled around Aperio.
The woman seemed to have no issue with being in the middle of the storm of mana, still standing there with her arms crossed and her eyes fixed on Eleanor.
"Focus," she said, her voice ringing not only Eleanor ear's but also her mind, somehow pushing away the other presence she had felt approaching with ease. "Being distracted by a inconsequential whisper is not what you should do when commanding more mana than you will likely ever possess."
Aperio let out a sigh and motioned for Eleanor to continue. The storm of mana reacted to her gesture, swirling around the outstretched hand as if it wanted to do nothing more than return to her; as though it was somehow alive.
Eleanor closed her eyes again. She wanted nothing more than to watch the storm of mana the ritual had brought forth, but the tall woman had been correct. For now, she needed to focus.
The third verse left her lips and, just like before, the mana Aperio offered the ritual increased again. Once Eleanor had spoken the last words of the prayer that had ingrained itself into her mind after looking at it for only a few minutes, she felt weightless.
When Eleanor dared to open her eyes again, she saw nothing. She was surrounded by a black nothing and, for just a moment, the thought that she had died crossed her mind. That was quickly proven wrong as not only Aperio but Caethya and Ethaniel all appeared in the black abyss next to her.
"What a cheap imitation," Aperio mumbled before letting out a sigh and waving her hand.
In response to the motion, the darkness faded, revealing a wall in front of them that featured what Eleanor could only describe as a tapestry of every religious symbol that might exist on Earth, as well as some that definitely did not. If her master would have heard her next words, he would have not only reprimanded her but also given her at least a week of house arrest. "What the fuck?"
"Swearing will not give you answers," Caethya said as she wrapped around Aperio's waist and looked around. "Asking that guy… thing might, though."
The slightly smaller pointy-eared woman gestured towards a man — at least Eleanor thought it looked like one — that was sitting on a nondescript chair. One moment he was a bearded old man, and the next his face was heavily painted and he grew a pair of ghost arms that rose behind him in addition to his actual ones. His form, his face, seemed to twitch and change every second.
Eleanor could not help but blink and repeat herself. "What the fuck?"