The darkness felt different. Rather, it wasn’t darkness, but a sense of absence. There were no magic threads, no void, no anything… and within this entire endlessness of nothing stood Dallion.
I’m dreaming? He wondered.
It wouldn’t be the first time, especially after something so traumatic. He could still feel the vast amount of magic threads he had absorbed circulating through his body, adjusting it as they tried to settle down evenly within him.
I’m not dreaming, he thought.
Absorbing the vortex hadn’t knocked him out; it had supercharged him to the point that everything, even his perception, was several times higher than it was supposed to be. All this was a moment in time—fractions of a second, required for his body to readjust. During that moment, though, he was almost a moon. His perception and reaction speed were so high that they were faster than the speed of light, making it seem as if he were in complete darkness. In reality, he was at the exact spot at which he had defeated the second vortex twin.
Nil? he tried to enter his realm.
Even that proved impossible. The amount of time had to be so minuscule that even venturing within a realm—which normally took no time at all—was considered too much. If the old mage were able to speak, he’d probably have provided an explanation; something vague and philosophical that made just enough sense. Maybe it had to do with speed, after all? Venturing into the realm wasn’t exactly instantaneous, it still required a conscious mental effort—the thought that started the process. Right now, was he too fast even for that?
Dallion’s hands slowly gained form. He could see them, all four of them, holding the weapons he had used to defeat the twin. Remaining completely still, the view built up, slowly spreading to the rest of his body.
Light, he thought. His hands were the closest things he could see, so the light reflected off them would reach his eyes faster. The logic was fascinating with its illogicality. With Dallion returning to normal, light was finally starting to move again.
I’m just like a galaxy. He laughed mentally.
More of his surroundings he saw, the more the speed of light accelerated. The armadil shield was visible, remaining still in the air about a hundred feet away.
Adzorg was the next to appear within view, a few thousands of feet away. He had cast a protective spell around Ruby. The simplicity of the spell was a bit unlike him, but given the urgency, understandable.
What now, old man? Dallion thought. We’ve got rid of the vortex gleam, so the city should return to normal. What about the damage, though?
Soon enough—or within a moment in the real world—Dallion was going to find out. Then, a more serious talk would continue. There were several questions that had to be answered about Adzorg, the device, even Diroh, who had transformed into a copyette. Adzorg had made a Moon vow, so there was no—
MEMORY FRAGMENT
The Fallen South, 85 years ago
“Hurry up!” Mage Eliac hissed.
He was a round man, with as much common sense as restraint from partying. Adzorg didn’t like him, but he had to admit that the man had skills. He was one of five people in the entire Academy that saw the benefits of sending expeditions to the fallen south, and the sole one who had the courage to go there himself. Of course, as an otherworlder he had it easy. There were no limits when it came to his development. The man had managed to raise all his awakened level way beyond the required twenty, despite decreasing his magic trait by ludicrous, in Adzorg’s view, amounts.
“Yes, mage,” the apprentices muttered,
There were four of them in total, all of them having the misfortune of being selected by the mage as his disciples. In theory, that was supposed to be a good thing. Working alongside a senior mage guaranteed status, connections, not to mention a quick promotion to full mage, three times faster than with anyone else. Often, though, Adzorg found himself wondering if it was really worth it.
“Once we reach the next tower, you’ll get some rest,” the ruddy mage said. “Unless you kill off some specimen again.”
Hell! Again with the specimens?! Adzorg gritted his teeth.
Not only did he find himself in the worst place in the world, but he also had to be careful not to “harm” any of the local flora and fauna, as if the creatures needed protection. The place was crawling with Star spawn, not to mention that even the “ordinary” creatures could devour an apprentice on a good day.
Flying through the jungle, wrapped in protective aether bubbles, the group continued towards one of the three known towers in the area. Moving above the tree crowns would have been much easier, but the mage didn’t want to attract the attention of the local gulls. Also, there were rumors that a dragon had made its lair in the south recently.
“Sir,” Rivette said. “There’s a vortex.”
She was said to be one of the Academy prodigies, although Adzorg found her skills vastly exaggerated. True, she was faster at casting than anyone he knew, but her spells lacked any imagination whatsoever. Everything she made she’d learned from books, as she never missed an opportunity to remind people.
“I know.” The man didn’t even look back. “Ignore it.”
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“It’s a level three at least,” the girl persisted.
“Would you really want to pause the expedition to gain a few magic levels?” The mage turned around with a sigh.
“Of course not, mage,” everyone replied.
It wasn’t difficult to tell that they were lying. Three magic levels were considerable. An apprentice was lucky to stumble upon a level one vortex, let alone anything else.
“Alright, go get your magic,” Mage Eliac grumbled. “Adzorg, you stay.”
Just great, the boy grumbled.
For some reason, he was always a favorite to be picked for punishment. The mage claimed it was nothing of the sort, but it was difficult to deny that he was making the boy miss opportunities the others had.
“Tell me, why are you here?” the mage asked. “You could have remained in the Learning Hall focusing on research you do best. Unlike that lot, you’re no combat prodigy, and you’re definitely not a fast caster.”
“Apparently, you think I’ll learn something from the experience, sir.”
“And you don’t?”
“Magic makes void manipulation impossible.” Not to mention it’s forbidden by the emperor and the Order of the Seven Moons. “Anything relating to the Star is… of questionable usage.”
“And the artifacts left behind?”
“The Academy gets hundreds of artifacts every week, sir.”
“Yes, but not such types of artifacts. The south doesn’t just contain a keep of ancient ruins. The whole world is scattered with those. This is the only place that you could find artifacts from another world.” He paused. “From my world. Everything that trickles to the Academy has come from here one way or another.”
“And why should that interest me, sir?”
“Because it’s what you’re good at. All of my students are prodigies and geniuses in their own right. You’re no exception.” The large man floated to Adzorg and placed his hand on the boy’s shoulder. “The only thing you’re lacking is inspiration.”
That was the most peculiar thing to say. Adzorg felt he lacked many things: awakening levels, magic levels, access to the archmage’s library where the actually good tomes of spellcraft and magic theory were kept. Of everything that he needed, inspiration wasn’t even in the top fifty.
“If you say so, sir.” The boy did his best not to sigh.
“You’ll see.” The mage laughed. “Once we find something interesting, you’ll see.”
They didn’t find anything interesting for the rest of the day. After absorbing the vortex, the rest of the apprentices spent the day talking about it and subtly gloating they were ahead of Adzorg. Competition drove progress at the Academy, even among the apprentices of the same mage. To have someone lag behind was equivalent to being ahead. Naturally, there were all sorts of rules that forbade open sabotage outside of magic duels, but there still were ways to mess with others, especially if they weren’t careful.
The following day, after being attacked by a giant fish that emerged from the ground itself, the mage decided to make a pause to examine the creature. It quickly became obvious that other than the local creatures’ size and ferocity, they had precious little magic.
After a thoroughly disappointing three hours, the giant fish was returned to its underground lake, and the mage led on through the jungle. It was then that they finally arrived at one of the fallen towers.
In terms of architecture, Adzorg didn’t find it particularly impressive. With the exception of the height, he had seen better at the Academy. The real value of the towers, as Eliac kept on repeating, were the treasures held inside.
“Cast your protection spells.” The mage turned to his disciples. “There might be a few creatures on the inside.”
Spells were drawn in the air, surrounding Adzorg and the rest with several protective spheres. A few even added some aether swords or thorn rings in an effort to show themselves fancy. Interestingly enough, the mage did nothing of the sort.
“Don’t you need protective spells, sir?” Adzorg asked.
“I’ll be fine. Thanks for asking.” The man cast an advanced flight spell. “Now, slowly, follow me.” He rose up on the outside of the tower. At no point was he more than half a foot away from the dark gray surface of the structure, and yet not once did he try to enter.
Suddenly, as they were ascending, a multitude of black tentacles poured out of all the windows of the floor, thrusting in the direction of the mage.
“Look out!” Adzorg shouted. His hands quickly cast an attack spell as fast as he could.
Barely had he gotten halfway there when two of his fellow apprentices completed their spells, launching beans and aether projectiles at the void matter.
Huge chunks of black were torn off. Losing structural integrity, they fell down to the ground in the form of large blobs of liquid.
The mage, on the other hand, didn’t move a muscle. It was almost as if he was welcoming that action. The moment a tentacle came in contact with him, it became clear why. A bright mess of purple flashed around him, setting the tentacles on fire.
“This is where we go in,” he said, as the void retreated into the building. “Remember, be on guard and stay behind me.”
“Why not just scorch them out of there?” Adzorg asked.
Without a reply, the large mage floated in. The apprentices looked at each other. No one was willing to be the first to follow their mentor, just as no one wanted to be the last. A few blood freezing screams later, Adzorg decided to take the initiative.
Casting a spell to increase the opening of the window, they stepped into a narrow corridor. The smell of burned bones and fur hit his nostrils like a brick. Eyes tearing up, the apprentice quickly cast a smell negating spell.
“What do you see?” one of the other apprentices whispered a safe distance behind him.
“Nothing,” Adzorg whispered back.
That wasn’t exactly true. While there was no trace of the mage or any Star spawn creatures, thankfully, there were quite a few things to be seen. Most notable were the large circular holes in the wall. Judging by the faint remnants of magic, it was safe to assume that they were made by Eliac.
“He’s further inside,” Adzorg said over his shoulder.
To his surprise, none of the other three joined him in the building, still floating on the outside. At that moment, he got a sudden realization. This was finally his moment to shine. Even if he didn’t tell anyone about the others’ cowardice, the notion would remain buried deep in their minds.
With a confident smirk, he floated on.
Room after room, he moved on, always on guard. If there were any furniture or decorations, the void tentacles or the mage must have utterly destroyed them. Each room was as bare as a beggar’s cellar, only darker than the last.
All the bestiaries claimed that it was a bad idea to cast light spells when in the presence of dangerous creatures, but Adzorg’s curiosity got the better of him. Holding his breath, he cast a quick spell, creating a ball of white flame.
Soon enough, he finally glimpsed the back of his mentor.
“Mage,” he whispered, slowing down as he approached.
There was no response.
“Mage Eliac,” he repeated, slightly louder.
“There’s no need to whisper, kid,” the mage said. “It’s only the two of us.”
What are you looking at? Adzorg thought. Curiosity urged him to approach, but caution kept him ten feet away. Finally, curiosity won.
Fingers at the ready, Adzorg moved through the final hole in the wall, joining the mage’s side. That’s when he saw it: an artifact so different from everything he had seen before that he knew it couldn’t come from this world.
“Beautiful, isn’t it?” Eliac asked. “Never thought I’d see one of those again.”
“What is it?” The object resembled a medium-sized cube of some sort of metal with a class circle on one side.
“Something that’s not supposed to exist here.”