"Just wait a bloody second, I killed your critter!” Blake tried and failed to seize Lumiere with Telekinesis as the little bugger sped off. “What's my damn reward?"

The floating lantern was practically at the gate before it stopped and turned, clearly small enough to zip right through the bars.

"Oh. You haven't been...paid?"

"No I have not." Blake took a deep breath and Meditated, hoping to build enough mana to grab the thing if he needed to. "I've got a lot of questions. And I'd like that gate opened. How about we start with that?"

Lumiere frowned. "I'm afraid only the Curator can open the gate." Then he beamed. "But I am happy to answer your questions! That's my secondary function!"

The ‘Curator’, eh? Why did that sound vaguely familiar? Well. Answers were something. "What are these statues? How do I make them work?"

"These are not statues, Mr. Controller. They are Arcane Constructs, built by the Makers in the Age of Ignorance. As you can see," it looked towards the dead demon. "They are still moderately effective. How to make them work is simple! You've already done it. Just infuse them with mana."

Blake nodded. Simple enough, then.

"After I've infused them with mana, can I command them? How long do they last?"

Lumier frowned again. "I’m sorry, commanding Arcane Constructs is not a topic I have knowledge of." Again its expression transformed very creepily and instantly to something more pleasant. "But I can tell you they run on mana, and will last until their charge depletes."

Right. So basically exactly what Blake expected, which made the thing's answers not helpful at all. Maybe it was time to do his level. "Just stay right there a second," he said, then pulled up his profile.

Another power was sure as hell welcome. Psionic Physiology had been pretty damn cool, but he should at least see if there was anything useful. Mostly everything looked the same, and he flicked through them without much interest until he saw something slightly highlighted in blue.

He hadn't seen that before. Psionic Construct. Wait, yes he had, it just wasn’t highlighted. Was it because he'd found these things and interacted with them? Did that mean you could get better powers based on what you did and experienced in the game?

He read the brief description: Animate, and even create, objects with psionic power.

That was all it said, which was infuriating little information to go on. Was it something like Telekinesis? Or by animate did it mean 'bring to life' like the statues?

Surely that made more sense given the circumstances. Though he had no clue what it meant by 'create'. As in make new objects with his mind? That sounded extremely intriguing, he just didn't want to get stuck with a sub-par power if it turned out unhelpful.

Blake looked between that and Psionic Physiology, which he knew would be useful, unable to decide. Ultimately the special blue color was impossible to resist, and he hoped he wasn't an idiot just chasing a shiny object and that it actually mattered. He took Psionic Construct.

The power entered his list, and he went to activate it, then watched it bleep red in his vision. He immediately felt like he'd been smacked in the side of the head, groaning as he put a hand to his temple. Apparently just activating it took more mana than he had left.

Blake sighed and looked around the silent statues, then the floating little light with a face. He supposed he'd better get comfortable. He was likely going to be here awhile.

"I don't suppose you can bring me any food or water?" he asked, settling for a nice cosy patch of cold, hard stone in a corner.

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

"Refreshments? Certainly! Please wait here and I'll return shortly!"

With that Lumiere zipped off through the gate before Blake could even question what he might bring back. Instead he just slumped against the wall and started Meditating.

* * *

When Blake opened his eyes at about half mana, Lumiere had apparently stacked up a veritable feast. It looked like…canned water, and ancient...spam? He sniffed it, and at least didn't feel like vomiting.

"Is this...edible?"

The floating lantern looked at it, then back at Blake, giving a hopeful expression and what might have been a shrug.

"How did you even carry it," Blake grumbled, "or open these cans?"

But he was starving and didn’t really care, so he scooped a little and chewed the soft, bland, but salty 'meat' and hoped he didn't die. After finishing most of it, he stood up with a few crackles and focused on his new power.

"OK," he said. "Round two."

This time it worked, draining maybe 10% before the world lit with possibility. The statues weren't eligible, apparently. Nor was Lumiere. But all the spears he'd been throwing at the demon were. His clothes, too. And the gate. Some of the pedestals the statues were sitting on. He also saw a 'creation' menu but decided he'd try that next time.

For now he focused on the gate and accepted the prompt. It gave him two options: permanent, or temporary. Uh, temporary. Physical attributes, mental attributes, or both? Mental.

[Activating.]

The spell took considerable time to cast—much more than Arcane Blast or Mind Control. He was forced into a very limited 'channel' state, feeling arcane threads connecting him to the gate like with his mind powers. It felt like it was pulling him, sucking the energy out as it infused the object.

In what seemed only moments, he felt like he'd been reading a textbook for two hours, his concentration hard to maintain Then the spell finished, and Blake's mana sagged maybe another 10%.

He walked forward to inspect the gate, no idea what he’d find.

"Uh, hi? Are you alive now?"

Even though he was sort of ready, Blake still startled when the gate opened its eyes. It had a 'face' much like Lumiere, the bars making its mouth look like a grill.

"Master," it said with a cold, monotonal voice.

The moment it did, Blake felt its ‘presence’ in his mind. Something like a video game pet bar appeared in his vision with an obvious timer, which seemed maybe only a few minutes. He grinned, even though it hadn't done anything. He could make bloody pets!

"Open," he commanded, not really expecting it would work.

Then the gate rattled with a metallic noise, screeching as it flew back up towards the ceiling, ending in an audible clang.

"Well son of a bitch." Blake looked up and grinned. "Lock up there, if you can lock," he said. And the damn thing made a click.

Lumiere was staring now, too.

"The Curator may be angry," he said with a frown, then looked extremely happy again. "Shall we continue with our tour?"

"My friend," Blake said with a sigh. "Nothing would please me more."

* * *

Getting information from a talking lantern was a lot easier without a demon trying to kill you. Blake listened patiently to the entire history of the Makers, including the 'three ages' of their ultimately doomed empire. 'Awakening' was apparently first, followed by 'Ignorance', ending with 'Destruction'. Though Lumiere was a little shaky when it came to the details.

"What destroyed them?" Blake asked, looking at a painting of what looked like a planet imploding.

"No one knows," Lumiere said with a frown. "But they left us with many gifts."

"Did they make you? This place?"

"Oh no." Lumiere pretended to laugh. "I was made by the Keepers of Official History. As was most of this structure. But there is one place made by the Makers, and we'll see it at the end of the tour."

Well, ‘Keepers of Official History’ was the most Orwellian name Blake had ever heard. "These Keepers...are they still...here? Alive? Who are they?"

"Wizards, of course, like yourself,” said Lumiere. “I thought they’d sent you! They made several such halls to remember the glory of the Makers. Where they are is not in my knowledge. But I have never seen one. Right this way, please."

Blake asked how old the place was, where the demon came from, where the Curator was, as well as questions about Ilya and where he might find her and if there was any way out of this hall. Lumier proved not at all helpful.

"And this is the door to the Maker Hall—the last true remnant of their greatness in this area of the world. If you'd like to see more, please insert your key and go inside."

Blake frowned. "I don't have a key."

"Oh." Lumiere stared until his eyes wandered in separate directions. Then a small metallic glint shone from the bottom of his body, and a plastic skeleton key floated out more or less like he'd used Telekinesis. "Great news! In thanks for clearing the hall critter, I'm authorized to lend you a spare! But please return it when you're finished."

Blake grinned and took the key from the air. "I'm beginning to like you very much," he said, then inserted the key into the obvious lock, which was more like a keycard, and shivered as he felt something warm move up and down his body in a ring.

Then the door opened, revealing a medieval looking vault full of art and maybe coins. Without a care or concern in the world, Blake walked right inside.