The chamber within that Relma saw was a circular metal one without decoration of any kind. The floor was well-cleaned and shined so you could see your own face within it, and the ceiling was low. It gave off a chilling feeling for Relma as she walked in. At the center was an unadorned altar with a box within it. It was black and made of metal, and Relma eyed it with concern.
She had a bad feeling about this.
"Ah, and here it is at last. This place will allow one to reach people far away from us. So long as they have a place in the Road of Ancient Stone," said Durag. "You should be able to locate Lucius easily enough."
"Thank you," said Relma. "How do I work it?"
"Simply place your hand into the box," said Durag. "Oh, mind you, this device can be... painful to use. And it gets worse the longer you use it. I recommend preparing yourself and then only talking for a short time."
"How do I use it?" asked Relma.
"Simply focus on who you wish to speak with," said Durag. "Lucius should be available. He usually is." Then he turned and walked on out, shutting the door slowly.
Within the room, Relma could only see a little. She checked to make sure the door was not locked. "Thank you."
Then Relma inserted her hand into the box.
As she did, she felt a slight tickling sensation in her hand, which made her flex her hand instinctively. Focusing, she sent her will out to Lucius as quickly as she could.
"Ah, Relma, I had hoped you'd be able to make contact, though not in this manner," said Lucius. "Are you using Durag's magic?"
"Yes," said Relma, feeling the tickling become pointed. She tried not to think about it.
"Not a prisoner, I hope?" asked Lucius. "He is generally the sort to let them communicate to gain leverage."
"No, I-" Relma felt a spark of pain and drew the hand out on reflex. Then she put it back in and felt the tickling. Lucius' presence was there.
"Relma," said Lucius. "Your connection broke out. He's not forcing you to use the communications box, is he?"
"Not forcing," said Relma. Then she drew out the hand and put it back in. "Just giving me the option." The tickling seemed to be turning to pain much faster. "I was taken captive by the Sun Soul Empire, but I convinced them to take me here. I've offered to try and negotiate a ceasefire to their benefit with the Dragon... Dragon Empire!"
With a cry, Relma steadied herself and focused on controlling her pain. She let it wash through her and dulled it. She decided to try Montazus' theory.
"I see," said Lucius. "I would guess, then, that you want me to make contact with Queen Isriath, as well as Telix's Brood?"
"Yes," said Relma, her every fiber trying to force her to take her hand out. "There is information I need to give them on how things are going here." The pain was getting worse, but Relma was able to steady herself. She felt her hand blackening, and even if she knew she wasn't being hurt, there was the reflex to draw it out.
"Well, that doesn't sound too unreasonable," said Lucius ruefully. "I recommend drawing up some notes before you make any official contact, however. You want to have your agenda set."
"I'll keep it in mind!" said Relma before drawing out her hand. She looked at her hand for a moment, making sure it wasn't burning up. It wasn't, of course, and she knew she could not afford to end the conversation here.
The flesh was completely whole.
Putting it back in was even more difficult, and she was assailed with the same agony. Her attempts to dull her pain with healing were of little use, and controlling it sent sweat down her brow.
"I recommend cutting this conversation short; Durag's spells are painful. Is there anything else?" asked Lucius.
"Tell Aren not to launch any invasion!" gasped Relma, letting out a scream despite herself. She tried to focus on other things, on how this pain would be dished out to so many others if war happened. "I think I can establish a permanent peace! I have to go!"
And she jerked it out.
The agony took a little while to fade away, and Relma did not feel any wiser for having felt it. Though at least she had gotten the job done. Glancing back, she saw the door open and light return. Durag floated in. "...Interesting.
"Most humans I tested the technique with were screaming in agony far sooner. You must be far stronger, somehow."
"You've done this experiment before?" asked Relma.
"Well, I do enjoy observing events," said Durag. "I've already tested strong-willed humans caught unawares and weak-willed humans caught unawares. The logical step would be to focus on those warned ahead of time.
"And it is the only means to speak with Lucius, so perhaps you will forgive me."
"I might," said Relma.
She did not see that this kind of agony could teach any lesson, nor did she think that any cause was worth inflicting it. "This box... it simulates the feeling of burning inflicted by the Sun Spirit?"
"Inflicted would be the wrong word," said Durag. "The Sun Spirit is more a present, with no true consciousness. The Sun Soul Empire has attributed it to the characteristics of their ideals.
"In any case, welcome to my home. Will you dine with me?"
Relma wanted badly to tell him to go to hell. But, at the same time, Relma knew that she couldn't let pain distract her from what mattered. "Yes, I... I think I will."
"Then follow me," said Durag with a bow.
He led her into a dining hall, where two plates were being laid out. At the center was a long oaken table. The walls around it were decorated with symbols of great battles. A bookcase was on one of the far walls.
Among them were such titles as:
The Founding of Highwatch; the Saga of Beus Karakan.
The First Sun Wars: the First Emperor
The Fall of Malatrus: How the son betrayed the Sun
"Who were Beus Karakan and Malatrus?" asked Relma.
"The founders of Highwatch and the Sun Soul Empire, respectively. They were sworn enemies," said Durag, floating toward her. "Beus killed Malatrus by converting his firstborn, Muxil, to worship Barden. That, and trying to force a change of religion. Malatrus and Muxil killed each other, and his second-born took over.
"Though perhaps you guessed some of that from the book titles. Though are some of my works."
"You wrote them?" asked Relma, surprised.
"Transcribed, actually," said Durag. "The Sun Soul Empire communicates stories orally from person to person. They do it with specially trained storytellers, and there is a device that involves strings and beads. The name escapes me.
"But it is remarkably accurate for a system with no writing. I have taken time to learn and record as many of them as I can find here.
"Please, sit down.
"We can speak of Malatrus and Beus while we, well, you, eat."
Sit down they did, and Relma was brought a number of truly delicious-looking meals. These were brought to them by living dwarves with neatly trimmed beards. They said nothing as the meals were placed on silver dishes.
"This dining hall is beautiful," said Relma, eating and enjoying the meal very much.
"Yes, well, here is where I receive guests usually," said Durag. "There is a rational reason for ornament in this place. You'll find ancient dwarven designs in this place."
"Do you use it often?" asked Relma, finding the bread unique. It had a light, fluffy texture and seemed to have many layers.
"I don't believe I've been in this room before," said Durag. "I must have had it made two or three hundred years ago, but I fear I've never had to use it. I do not eat, you see.
"And when I did, I far preferred to eat alone."
"Don't your allies ever visit you?" asked Relma. In Harlenor, visits between allies were standard practice. If they stopped happening, it was suspicious at best.
"They do, but the priests of the Sun Soul Empire do not dine with me," said Durag. "And, well, my homeland has never accepted my choices."
"What choices?" asked Relma, trying the meat.
"When I chose to begin using the Withering for my ends, Highwatch was verging on collapse," said Durag. "The Conquista of Anoa were our allies, but we increasingly relied on them. I remember that they kept changing the terms of our alliance. They were giving us one pretty word for extortion after another.
"It was when we gave them the secret of gunpowder that I realized our alliance was unsustainable. Even if we triumphed over the Sun Soul Empire, which then was a great power, we'd be junior partners at best. Or, more likely, slaves.
"After all, the Conquista was originally just knights and their soldiers. Their serfs are descended from those they conquered from the Sun Soul Empire. At least those among them who survived Laevian's plagues.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
"Where was I?"
"Turning on the Conquista," said Relma, wondering what plague Laevian had sent in here. And how, for that matter? She'd heard rumors of such plagues coming during the Tournament of Kings. Laevian was quite merciless.
"Ah, yes," said Durag. "At any rate, assessing my options, I staged a coup and arranged for a loyalties change.
"The Sun Soul Empire had a great deal to gain from working with us and much to lose. With our help, we were able to weaken both the Dragon Empire and the Conquista.
"And once I had contact with the Sun Soul Empire, I was able to find those who did not enjoy serving them. Leaving Highwatch, I set up my kingdom in this domain, alongside my followers. At first, we were small but over time, were able to gain the villagers' loyalty here.
"The rest, as they say, is history."
"I'm not very familiar with your history," said Relma, deciding on the truth.
"Ah yes, of course," said Durag. "Well, Highwatch needs me to maintain a buffer state between them and the Sun Soul Empire. The Conquista needs me to serve as a scapegoat. I save them from the natural consequences of their imperialist agenda. The Sun Soul Empire needs me to keep its borders intact. And, of course, the Dragon Empire needs me to keep Bryag from coming home."
"What do you mean by that?" asked Relma, eating some delicious spiced meat. Though she had her suspicions, Vanessa might benefit from not having Bryag able to move in and take revenge.
"You don't imagine that Bryag would be content to sit all day idly if there were not some grave threat to his people?" asked Durag, confirming her suspicions. "As long as I send the undead across that bridge, he has something to occupy his time with. That being putting the mutilated souls of the damned out of their misery.
"As long as he is otherwise occupied, Bryag will never try to kill those who take advantage of him. If ever he did decide to, I imagine he'd be able to kill a great many of them before they took him down. Even if they would never admit it.
"So, I more or less perform an integral service to every single major faction, and they hate me for it."
"I don't see why the Conquista needs you," admitted Relma. "In fact, they said they wanted me to kill you."
"Oh yes, they are the spanner in the works if you'll forgive the unworldly expression," said Durag.
"What does it mean?" asked Relma. She tried some of the rice, spiced a yellow color with many vegetables.
"Well, on certain worlds, far from this one, there are machines," said Durag. "Very sophisticated machines meant to manufacture various devices. One surefire means of sabotaging them is to put a tool called a spanner on the conveyor belt.
"The machine tries to work with the device, but it can't bend or change the metal. So all the equipment gets broken, and someone has to be called in to repair it. I'm told that it's a common means of sabotage.
"The practice has been compared to how a single bold hero tends to derail even the best-laid plans. Often without even realizing they are doing it.
"Which brings us neatly to the Conquista. You see, they would actually be far worse off if I died.
"Without me, the Dragon Empire would be able to devastate the Sun Soul Empire quite easily. With that done, they'd naturally focus their full attention on the Conquista.
"The problem is that I'm afraid the Conquista don't particularly care.
"They'd been trying to fulfill their mission of bringing horses to King Anoa for a very long time now. And I'm fairly certain they are willing to destroy themselves if it means achieving that goal.
"Few things indeed are more dangerous to a well-ordered scheme than a man of principle. How are you enjoying the food?"
"This meal is excellent," said Relma, having never tasted anything better. "Though the second course is far... denser than the first."
"The first was a kind of bread made by elves, meant to be light. The second curse is Dwarven cuisine, meant to have strength of flavor," said Durag. "I fear I can't eat anymore. But I keep cooks on hand to feed my mortal subordinates. Now, perhaps you could tell me some news of what things are like to the north of here?"
"That seems only fair," said Relma.
And so Durag began to ask questions in turn of Relma about how things had been going. He seemed interested in the reasons for the Escorian Civil War. And he often asked questions about the rulers. Relma found she could answer plenty of questions about Escor and Antion. But she knew very little about Haldren other than that House Gabriel was based there.
Under his queries, Relma was faced with many things she didn't know. Several times, she had to take a swig of the ale provided. It was the strongest stuff she'd ever had, and she quickly had to stop.
"Do you enjoy the ale?" asked Durag.
"I admit, I um, I've never had this much ale before," said Relma, inhibitions dropping. "My Aunt Pan generally doesn't like me drinking this much."
"Yes, well, ale has always been the favored drink of dwarves in these parts," said Durag. "We've cut this with water, of course, too much would harm you. I've actually discovered exactly how much alcohol someone of your weight can drink. Not accounting for magical healing, of course."
"How did you do that?" asked Relma, curious. It seemed the kind of question that would be difficult to find the answer to.
"Well, I am called a Scientist King for a reason," said Durag. "Most of my experiments might seem very petty and pointless. Yet they provide very real information that can be very useful.
"For instance, do you know how long a man can go without starving?"
"No," said Relma, not liking the question.
"I do," said Durag. "I've taken precise notes on the subject of all kinds of body types and such. And it has been very helpful during famines in my villages.
"I can allocate rations to my people so as to ensure as many as possible survive. If I didn't have that information, many more would have died in a famine ten years ago. With it, I was able to ensure the best possible outcome.
"Now tell me of these plans you have? I'd be very interested in hearing."
"That's a bit of a complicated thing, and I'd have to coordinate with everyone to do them," said Relma. "However, my hope is that we'll be able to set up some kind of long-term truce. There is a powerful alliance forming to the North in Escor, with many powerful figures within it. Fairies, werewolves, the kingdom of Escor, and many more."
"Are you the head of this alliance?" asked Durag.
"Well, not technically, but I did put a lot of it together," said Relma. "If we can set up communication between you, the Sun Soul Empire, and Escor, we could force the Dragon Empire to terms."
"Are you not working for them?" asked Durag.
"I'm not working for anyone," said Relma quickly. "Not even myself. I want to set up a dialogue between all the great powers. Once that happens, I want there to be a council of powers who can work out their differences peacefully.
"And if a war does break out, we can use the council to negotiate an end."
"A council presided over by you?" guessed Durag.
Relma reflected that the way things were going, it would be her. She was rapidly becoming the only unifying element. "Well, I don't actually want to hold the position. But, as the Heir of Kings and the person putting this together, if I were asked to take the position, I could hardly say no."
"So you mean you," said Durag again in amusement.
"Yes, I suppose I do," said Relma. "If there were someone better for the position, though, I'd hand control over to them." Or she hoped she would. "May I ask you something, Lord Durag?"
"Please, just Durag, titles have no place among the enlightened," said Durag. "They are meant to impress peasants and weak-minded younger sons. To those of greater reason, they are but meaningless formalities.
"And you may."
"Why are you so interested in meeting Wrynncurth?" asked Relma. "I mean, you sent an army after us."
"Ah yes, that," said Durag. "Well, Akar has always been a zealous supporter, if not a bright one. I had hoped to invite you; however, your meeting with the Dragon Queen shifted things a touch. You became an enemy agent. In addition, well, until recently, the Sun Soul Empire wanted you for fuel.
"The usual sort of cutthroat politics. Though I must thank you for killing so many undead in the process, it has taken a great deal of strain off my mind."
Relma made a not to ask about that last comment later. "But did you think Wrynncurth would not respond? He'd likely be upset."
"My dear girl, I hope you will come to learn that one person's good cannot be another," said Durag. "Even men who are enjoying the same experience are enjoying two separate experiences. After all, experiences are a result of who we are, and no two people are wholly alike."
Relma paused. "...I don't understand your answer."
"Well, that's a brave thing to admit," said Durag. "How do I put this? We, as people, exist wholly independent of the others. Even though we are sitting in the same room, how do we know the other exists? How do we even know the room exists? Perhaps all the world is a vast illusion to deceive our senses?"
"Well, it doesn't matter, does it?" asked Relma. "If we see other people, we've got an obligation to treat them with respect. Even if we aren't sure, they exist. Even if the universe around you is fake, you have the same moral obligations to it."
"Hmm, but what is the purpose of good deeds?" asked Durag. "What meaning do they possess?
"It is, perhaps, true that certain deeds can make a person happier, while others may cause stress or guilt. And many less advanced intellects believe that because of this, those things are evil or good.
"But what are evil and good? How can you define them?"
"They are what you ought to do and what you ought not to do," said Relma, fairly certain in her answer.
"And why ought you do them or not? Who made these rules?" asked Durag.
"The gods, I imagine," said Relma, now less certain.
"But the gods do not fully embrace they're own rules and often disagree, do they not?" asked Durag.
Relma remembered her studies under Benarus and some of the theories he had provided her. Writings by the Church of Elranor. "...I read in Gel Carn a theory that there is a greater, ultimate God beyond the Soul Event Horizon. One who is completely good and all-powerful."
"But there you are saying it again, aren't you?" asked Durag. "According to you, God is completely good. But for him to be good, good must be a thing that exists independently of him. And if it exists independent of him, he cannot be all-powerful.
"And if good is defined by him, then good is merely his personal preference. An arbitrary preference at that, since no conditions exist independent of his will. What if he were to declare that lying, murder, and rape were good deeds tomorrow."
"I imagine he wouldn't," said Relma.
"But what if he did?" asked Durag.
Relma considered her answer. The possibility of God, if he existed, forcing the races to uphold one set of rules. All only to upend them disturbed her. It was then she realized that such a thing was a deception. "Then he'd be a liar and therefore not all-good or all-powerful. And if he could make those things good, then he could just as easily rewrite all of reality to fit the new rules."
"But, if he defines what good and evil are, he could change the rules within the context of his own subcreation?" asked Durag. "And he could still make it good."
Relma paused. "...You're assuming that he intended everything to be as is. But the fact that we are serving lesser gods indicates it isn't. Perhaps he lets us determine our own reality. Then sets in place rules appropriate to the reality we create.
"In which case, he has created laws of morality appropriate to each world. In a world where rape, murder, and lying were beneficial, they may be considered good with none of the ill effects. But if so, it would have been defined for our benefit, not for his own."
"And what would the goal of such rules be, if good and evil are a means to an end?" asked Durag.
"To prevent people from regressing into beasts. That and ensuring we continue to grow closer to perfection," said Relma, a bit too quick for her own liking.
Durag, who had begun to lean forward across the table, sat back in her chair. "There, you have my answer."
Relma tried to work out what he meant by that. The conversation had changed a lot, and she was having trouble keeping track of it. "What answer, what are you talking about?"
"Power is the only goal that anyone really seeks," said Durag, clasping his hands and leaning back. "Whether it is power through money, power through weapons, or power through sorcery. Perhaps even power through friendship. Powerful men understand this, for they must in order to stay that way. And Wrynncurth is a very powerful man."
"What about the ultimate deity?" asked Relma.
"He too is seeking to increase his power," said Durag. "After all, if one is all-powerful, the universe itself is but a figment of his thoughts. So how can he exact his will? Power is defined by your ability to defeat obstacles. And nothing is, by definition, an obstacle to him.
"That is why he allows creatures to grow in power independent of itself. God does not desire subjects, but a rival against whom he can strive."
Relma found a sense of awareness growing on her mind. "Would that be you?"
Durag probably would have smiled if he had lips. He managed to exude an aura of smugness without them. "Well, everyone needs a longterm dream, I suppose.
"Would you care for a tour of my experiments?"
Relma wasn't sure she wanted to know. But she did know that she needed to know. She guessed that knowing unpleasant truths was the cost of the ruling. "I would like that very much."