Chapter 98 (Arc 3, Chapter 2) Goldreach

The Maelstrom glided through the air as we raced toward the lowlands. Leda was orienting the ship toward the city of Goldreach, the Sadian capital, situated on a large lake. The navigation array was one of the few things I had not artificed myself. It locked onto the massive aether ley lines in the crust of the Sphere to orient the ship via a sort of magical positioning system.

The ley line patterns repeated in the Sphere, but each segment was about 2.5 million square miles. So, you needed the unique grid map for the section you were currently flying over. The map we needed was easily available in Skyholme. The map was a relief terrain map showing elevation and environments.

The environments portrayed would make no sense to a naturalist with a desert adjacent to ice fields and swamps. Adjacent might be too strong a word. The transition between different terrain types was usually hundreds of miles. But it did sometimes result in perplexing events like snow in a desert. The different environments were linked to the ley lines. These were the same ley lines that hosted the hundreds of thousands of dungeons within the Sphere.

The other device that Leda was monitoring was our scanners. It detected density out to about 20 miles, showing skyships and flying creatures. This magic radar was ineffective as invisibility spells could easily hide from it. It also took skill to manipulate it in order to get an estimate of what was showing on the radar. Figuring out the mass and shape of the object was more of an art form than a science.

Skyships usually had spotters on the top deck to increase the ship’s detection range. Skyholme was too far from one of the major tunnels that led to the Outer Sphere, where technology and magic were merged into powerful magitech devices.

Leda announced a direction change, and the viewport swung a few degrees as Cila corrected our course. We would maintain an altitude of about one mile as we traveled. Our speed would be 500 miles per hour, and we would slow when contacting a patrol or approaching a city. Due to their bulk, most skyships were designed to land in water or cradles. This meant the favored design of a skyship was closer to a sailing ship, usually without masts, unless it also used the wind for propulsion. This style was the first Sadian ship we encountered. It looked like a flying galleon trader. Cila kept her distance as we zipped past.

Even at a quarter of our top speed, we were one of the fastest skyships in this region of the Sphere. This was due to our low mass compared to the larger warships and traders. The more mass then, the larger the inertia sink you would need. As we sped over a magnificent forest with trees reaching hundreds of feet into the air, Leda started to call out various contacts on the radar. They were mostly flying beasts that had no chance to intercept us.

The time passed quickly, and we reached the massive lake Goldreach was on. Cilia suddenly stated, “We need to land on the water in the southern bay. From there, our ambassadors will have to walk to the city’s center and petition an audience.” We all already knew this, and Cila reiterated it somewhat nervously.

Bylura and the Torrent envoys went to change into their formal clothes. At least, that is what Bylura muttered as she left. The rest of us stayed transfixed to the scenery below as roads and towns started to appear. It made you feel powerful being able to look down from this height. “Interceptor…” Leda stated. “Probably can not catch us. Storme, what flag do you want to fly?”

“Generic merchant,” I stated. Sammie rushed out to extend the flag. Flags were the common way to communicate since communication stones were expensive. After ten minutes, Leda announced the interceptor skyship was breaking off. It was either because of the flag, or they realized they could not catch us.

We made our approach over the water toward the sprawling city of Goldreach. Although it encompassed fourteen square miles, it was not impressive. A few buildings in the center were maybe sixty or seventy feet in height and made of stone, but the rest seemed to be two and three-story and mostly wooden buildings.

Gareth asked, “Why so few skyships?” There were only four skyships visible over the city.

Leda answered him, “Their military investment focuses on land forces as they border many kingdoms and even have passages to the Underearth. They also have twenty times the population of Skyholme and many more cities. Although Goldreach is the capital, they have many cities this size within their borders.”

Cilia added, “Skyholme uses almost all its resources to maintain a fleet of skyships. The Sadians have millions of citizens, and enchanted items are more common. They chose to focus on free trade, meaning the cost of the precious metals is quite high.”

Gareth gave me a look with a grin when Cilia mentioned precious metals. Cilia landed among dozens of moored skyships in the bay without issue. She followed the flaggers in the bay to a specific slip. I would have preferred to be on land, but that would have to be negotiated. With the Maelstrom tied off, we took the top access hatch to disembark. The Maelstrom was drawing a lot of attention, and the dock was getting crowded as the port master came to us with a clipboard. I let Leda handle the formalities as she was trained in this type of etiquette.

The smell of the briny air with a hint of fish was invigorating. Skyholme always smelled sterile, like its constant morning mist. Everyone was looking around excited. Dozens of non-humans walked the docks, and a huge variety of vessels bobbed in the calm water, only disturbed by waves from ships under power. We looked like a group of young tourists.

Leda came back to our group, “Got us a landing platform in the trade district, five gold a day.” She looked pointedly at me. I fished out four large gold coins and handed them to her. Loriel had given me fifty large pieces of gold for this job. The coins were all generic dungeon coins. There was no point in spending Skyholme stamped coins here. She returned to close the registration. Renting the pad for eight days was probably overkill, especially since I planned to leave when the core crystals were recharged.

We all boarded the Maelstrom and did a short hop to our new berth. It was a stone landing pad about 100 feet across, just outside the inner gates for the trade district, Pad T-7 was clearly marked in large common lettering as we landed.

We lowered the ramp this time and exited from the mostly empty cargo hold. It looked like there were ten pads here, and two others were occupied. One skyship looked like the typical large wooden trader, while the other looked more sleek in design, like the Maelstrom. That ship flew an unfamiliar flag and was coated in a dull gray metallic hull plating.

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Sadian soldiers in cloth uniforms stood around the landing yard with vigilant expressions. There was one gate into the trade district and it was guarded by four soldiers in armor. We convened at the bottom of the ramp. Lord Torrent proclaimed, “If you are going to escort us, you will need to wear more formal clothes.” My blank, uncompromising expression had him step back.

I finally replied, “Our job is done. We are going to explore the city.”

Bylura rolled her eyes, “Storme, I think the expectation was for you to escort us to the palace. You don’t need to enter with us, but at least give us the impression of a procession.”

“Fine, Cila, Leda, Remy, and Sammie stay with the ship. Gareth and I will be your honor guard,” I said imperiously. Bleiz was also around, but invisible. I gave him a hand sign to stay with the ship. I was fairly certain his invisibility artifact would not work in the palace anyway. The tier three invisibility effect was strong, but the Emperor of a large Kingdom would have defenses against it.

I guess I should take this somewhat seriously. A short time later, Gareth and I were leading the two envoys through the streets. I guessed about 80% of the population was human. We did see elves, dwarves, ogres, orcs, dark elves, kobolds, and a few beastkin. Almost everyone was well-dressed in this district. And no one appeared to be an indentured or an enslaved person.

We had to pass two more stone walls with checkpoints to make it to the central district that housed the palace. A dozen armored guards were here, and Lucian Torrent stepped forward and handed him his diplomatic papers and requests. The soldier took the papers and made us wait inside a room in the guard tower.

Nearly two hours later, a very formally dressed man finally visited us. He sat down and talked with Lucian and Bylura for a time before leaving. I was planning to leave, but the guards would not let us. Gareth and I were getting antsy at the long wait. When our party was summoned, we were forced to join the two envoys deeper within the palace grounds and into an audience hall. The hall was white marble and well-lit with large skylights. An elevated dias was at the end, with a number of attendees standing at the base.

On the dias were six seated individuals. I guessed one was the Emperor and the others his advisors, as they had much smaller seats. Our envoys got announced by the herald, but I was scanning the attendees. One quickly stood out, and he was making eye contact with me. It was Baladon, the Bricio mage I had defeated in single combat and fled the Black Spire with his family.

His eyes had nothing but hatred for me, and his face wore a malevolent smirk. They were actually here to convince the Sadians to attack Skyholme. Loriel was right. Depending on how this interaction went would determine if we would travel to Llorth or back to Skyholme. I did not see Abaddon anywhere in the group, but I was sure Baladon’s brother was not far away.

The etiquette introductions were concluded, and the Emperor motioned for us to present our business. Lucian tried to step forward, but it was Bylura who spoke first. I guess there was some diplomatic protocol because he relinquished the floor to her by stepping back. The tension in his body told me he was not happy, though.

“Esteemed Emperor Hadrian, we come to you bearing gifts,” she opened with a bow. I thought if she offered up the Maelstrom, I would storm back to Skyholme and toss Loriel off the edge of her island.

Bylura continued, “We wish to open formal trade and exchange stone portal keys. The new Triumvirate of Skyholme seeks to enter a mutually beneficial trade and period of cooperation.” She then produced a blade from her hip and knelt, holding it up. Someone came, inspected it, and they brought it to the Emperor. He unsheathed it, and my eyes popped. It was a thin short blade, but that was a deep black. It was adamantine. A blade either made from or coated in the most precious metal in all the Sphere. Adamantine was a prime aether insulator; if the blade held any enchantments, it would be extremely powerful.

The Emperor was impressed, and Baladon was stewing with fury at being upstaged. I thought maybe Loriel did have a good plan. The Emperor intoned, “What of the protections? When will the portal stones be usable.” He placed the blade in his lap and stroked it like a precious kitten.

“Our portal currently stands open,” Bylura said, and Lucien reached out to grab her but restrained himself at the last moment. Murmurs went up in the crowd, and I saw Baladon make for an exit, but the two guards there would not let him pass until court was completed.

There was more going on here than I understood. The portal stones were very advanced magics built by an ancient race in the Sphere and located throughout much of the Sphere. They allowed instant travel between points as long as you had the key sequence. Loriel was essentially giving the Sadians a way to launch an invasion into Skyholme.

Bylura did not admit the anti-teleportation device was destroyed, though. The little wolf-girl was more clever than I gave her credit for. The threat of being able to activate the anti-teleportation runes may keep the Emperor in check. She could only do this because she knew Aelyn and I had dismantled the Heart Stone array.

It was another brilliant play on Loriel’s part. She was keeping the anger in Skyholme focused on the Bricios. Not only had the Bricios tried to eliminate the Miaden and Torrent lines, but the inner council thought they had taken away the strongest aspect of Skyholme’s defenses. I had to admire Loriel. She turned every disadvantage into strength to secure support and focus the people.

The conversation went back and forth as they discussed the implications and establishing a military truce while trade would be opened up. The Emperor eventually said he was famished and invited our party to dine with him. Lucien accepted immediately, trying to gain some control in the discussions that Bylura had been leading. Baladon was practically running away now that he could leave, probably to tell his brother about our arrival and the negotiations.

I was tempted to try the dishes of the Sadian culture, but I needed to get back to the Maelstrom and use the communication stone. I was certain that Bylura had her own communication stone with Loriel, but Callem also wanted to be kept informed. Maybe the old man did not trust Loriel as much as he outwardly displayed.

I felt slightly guilty about leaving Bylura on her own. I had nothing against the wolf girl; she was definitely more than she seemed. Bylura was petulant on the surface but thoughtful and cunning underneath. Her small stature and childlike build made people underestimate her.

I held Gareth back, and he looked indecisive as well. “Are we leaving Storme?” Sadian guards flanked Lucien and Bylura and followed the Emperor’s party.

“Not our fight. We did our piece, and I am worried if we stayed, we might get further drawn into some web Loriel is weaving,” I told my friend.

“We should have brought Bleiz with us. He could have stayed here and kept an eye on them,” Gareth suggested.

“No, I wouldn’t put him in harm’s way like that. Politics can cut faster and sharper than a blade. At least with a blade, you can defend yourself,” I walked as two ceremonial soldiers escorted us off the grounds. A man in robes handed each of us a token in case we wanted to regain entrance into the palace. It was a very informal gesture, and our descriptions were also noted in the guard’s logbooks. I knew it was not the only security as I could feel numerous aether weaves in the air.

When we were back in the streets, we headed back to the Maelstrom. Everyone was still there, and I called Bleiz, who appeared next to Gareth. Gareth turned to Bleiz and smugly whispered, “Knew you were there the whole time.”

“They are working on some type of open trade. We are going to wait on board the Maelstrom. No one goes into the city in groups of less than four. The Bricios are here, and I am sure they have their own plans.” I charged and tossed the communication stone to Gareth, “Explain things to Callem, and then you can keep that.”

I went to my quarters to think. We had half a day to charge the ship’s power crystals fully. I had three options after that. Wait for Bylura and Lucian. Go and search Llorth for Aelyn. Or return to Skyholme. I wanted to search for Aelyn and visit the library in Lloth, but my conscience wanted me to wait here. I could not do anything until the two crystals recharged. I set my privacy screens and alarms and took a nap.