Hump stayed clear of the battle, conserving his essence as the fight dwindled around him. His gaze caught a few warlocks attempting to flee into a cellar. He scanned the area for a nearby party, and was surprised to find himself face to face with Randall Ferrand.
Well, you work with what you got.
“Randall, has your party got a minute?”
“Wizard Humphrey!” The Sorcerer said as if they were old friends. “What is it?”
His eyes followed Hump’s finger as he pointed toward the doors of the cellar, as a Wizard Hand closed them. “Warlocks in the cellar. How about we fish them out?”
Randall grinned. “Skander, Madeleine, we have the White Wizard himself asking for our help.”
The rogue and shield maiden both nodded greetings to Hump and then they were moving toward the cellar.
“How many did you see?” Madeleine asked.
“Just four,” Hump said.
“Then this should be easy.” Skander stepped forward, shadow erupting at his feet. He reappeared at the cellar doors and pressed an ear to it. “Sounds like chanting inside. They’re casting a spell. We should hurry.”
“I’ll get the door,” Randall said, levelling his wand. Skander stepped out of the way as a ray of Frostfire shot forward, blasting the doors open with an icy burst, crystallising blue over its surface. Stairs led the way down inside.
“Shit,” Skander said, vanishing in a poof of shadow as retaliatory spells came from within. The rogue dodged them easily enough, the blasts bursting as they hit the roof of the temple but doing no damage to the ancient building.
“Allow me to lead the charge,” Madeleine said, the shield maiden of Byzantius taking a position before them, sword and shield raised. Her blessings expanded before her until a giant shield almost as large as the cellar doors was before Hump. She marched forward, Randall following and casting Hump a grin.
“Just like old times, huh?” Randall said.
Hump remembered their times a little differently, having been the recipient of one of those Frostfire blessings, but he supposed Randall’s attitude toward him had long since changed. The young lord’s father had betrayed Sheercliff to the warlocks, and seeing Randall now, it seemed he was still doing his best to make up for it.
“Just like old times,” Hump agreed, following with his staff in hand.
As they reached the cellar, Hump’s eyes locked onto the sigil of the Three Eyes carved into the stone above the door. His thoughts immediately flashed back to the ruined temple where the gorger had kept its prisoners, and Hump had once hidden before helping the others escape. Stepping inside, a chill ran through him and he drew a breath, casting his nerves to the River and Waves and focusing on what lay ahead.
Together, they entered the cellar. A barrage of spells bombarded Madeleine’s shield, breaking upon it in bursts of light, essence and smoke. The shield maiden paused briefly, but their strength was not even enough to force her back a step. She pushed onward, and soon Hump caught sight of five warlocks working together to hold the stairs. A sixth lay on the ground dead. Blood pooled around the body and the beginnings of a spell formation was taking form around it, drawn in the blood by the other warlocks. Had they turned on this one in a bid to escape? The thought left Hump feeling sick.
The warlocks stood no chance. Hump cast Earthen Grasp, summoning two large hands from the ground behind the warlocks and grabbing them around the shoulders, crushing their hands to their bodies and holding them in place. Randall lashed out with tendrils of ice, snaking around Madeleine’s shield and climbing the warlocks from the feet up, coiling around them like snakes. Where they touched, crystals of ice blossomed, freezing them in place. Skander appeared beside the fifth.
“Morning,” Skander said, giving the warlock man a pleasant smile.
The warlock’s eyes were wide. He tried to redirect his staff toward the rogue but Skander feigned a punch at the man, stopping just before hitting him. The action was enough to make the warlock blink and briefly stun him in place. “None of that now. Let’s not be rude. You just stand there nicely and you can be captured without me hitting you in the face.”
The warlock screamed, swinging his staff at the rogue again, only for Skander to catch it with one hand.
“Well, don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Skander’s fist found the man’s face and sent him hurtling backward. He tripped over the body of the dead warlock and landed on the ground where he groaned and clutched at what Hump guessed was a broken nose.
“He did warn you,” Madeleine said. “He doesn’t warn most people.”
“What can I say?” Skander shrugged. “I was feeling generous.”
“Thanks for the help,” Hump said, looking over the five captured warlocks. “I suspect General Korteg will be pleased to have a few more prisoners. We’re going to need them.”
“Are we?” Randall asked.
“Unless you know how to get to Elenvine from here, I suspect so.”
“Ah. Yes, well, my knowledge of this realm extends from that sandy hill we started on to here, so I see your point.”
Hump chuckled. He glanced around the cellar, noting the barrels and crates stacked full of provisions, from sacks of flour to weapons.
“Anyway, I’ll leave these ones to you,” Hump said. “I had best check on my own party.”
“Appreciate the help,” Randall said. “Until next time, Wizard.”
Hump made his way back up the stairs, feeling a wave of relief as he was out of the cellar once more. He gazed around the temple, looking toward a large circular platform at the centre of the room with a pedestal erected at its centre. It was covered in runes. Based on its position and the position of the cellar, Hump suspected this might be a replica of the artifact the gorger had used to open the rift to the temple beneath Fisher’s Lake. If that were true, it might be that all of the wizard temples used to traverse this realm were built using similar building plans.
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Hump glanced up to the floor above to see Celaine perched on the banister, one foot propped up in front of her. She played idly with a dagger in her hand and hadn’t noticed him looking yet. For a second, he was captivated looking at her. She must have felt his stare as she turned straight to him, her face breaking into a smile.
“All good?” Hump called.
She returned a thumbs up and Hump smiled.
He moved to the platform where Wizard Aldric and a number of wizards and Chosen were already gathered, investigating the large enchantment array on the ground leading to the pedestal. Aldric glanced at Hump as he approached.
“This connects to Fort Nordric,” Aldric said. “It must be how the warlocks got into the city previously. We’re trying to identify the activation method, but it seems to rely on some sort of artifact.”
“You’re looking for a crystal orb about this big,” Hump made a shape with his hands about the size of a melon. At Aldric’s confused frown, he explained further. “The gorger used one to activate an array just like this.”
“I see. Then either other warlocks took it with them, or these ones are hiding it from us.”
“I suspect the latter,” Hump said. “The portal remained open so long as the artifact was in its fixture here.” He indicated the stone pedestal with a large dip in its centre where the orb would fit. “I can’t see a reason to take it through to the other side unless they didn’t intend to use it again, in which case, why leave guards here?”
“It’s a good theory, and one I can’t argue with. I will speak with the general and Count Daston and then we’ll round up the prisoners. With any luck, these answers will come easily.”
Hump paused, not keen on the idea of torture but at the same time they were in a hurry. Every minute mattered. “How do we get them to speak?”
“At their core, warlocks are selfish.” Aldric took out his silver flask and took a swig. “It is one of the reasons their efforts have never brought about serious change in the past. What they want is to increase their own personal power, and they are willing to sacrifice anything and anyone to do so. In my experience, making such people talk is a simple matter.”
Hump considered it a few seconds and then said, “Pit them against each other.”
“Precisely. There are many dreadful rumours of the terrible torture prisoners face under the hand of the Inquisition—a rumour, I might add, that is intentionally fostered—but in truth, rarely are such… inhumane methods utilised. Mind magic, coercion, truth serums, and all manner of magical and alchemical methods, on the other hand are common practice. With a group of warlocks this size and strength, however, even that is often unnecessary. You would be amazed at just how willing a person is to talk if they believe somebody else will speak first. Particularly with the threat of execution quite literally hanging over their head.”
Hump wasn’t sure what to think of that. On the one hand, he was relieved to hear that he likely wouldn’t be tortured by the Inquisition for wizard malpractice, while on the other, the detail with which Aldric could speak on extracting information from a person was quite terrifying.
Things moved quickly once the battle was decisively over, and the temple secured. Two squads were left to guard the exterior of the temple, watching for any warlocks that might return, while everyone else remained inside. The battle had left most of the warlocks dead, but they had fourteen captives, of which at least a couple seemed to have had some sort of leadership role. Those who survived were bound in magical chains and lined up before General Korteg. He walked the line, boots echoing on the stone floor, his presence radiating authority.
“I have questions,” the general said, his voice steady but intense. “This process will be a simple one. Those that answer my questions will be spared. Those that do not will be executed. And as I’m sure each of you is well aware, we do not have time to wait. Consider that carefully before you try to scheme. There will be no salvation for you. No help will come that can defeat my force, and you will certainly find no mercy from us, warlocks. Not unless you give us what we want. With that in mind, tell me what the artifact of this temple does.”
The warlocks exchanged nervous glances.
“Don’t we already know that?” Celaine whispered to Hump.
Hump gave a tiny nod. “I suspect he wants to see if they are telling the truth.”
The silence continued, but the pressure in the air intensified as Korteg’s blessings activated. A blood-red aura flared around him, the air fragmenting like glass, crackling with power. Even outside of its range, Hump felt a deep, primal fear. The warlocks closer to the general visibly trembled, some falling to the ground and retching, while others tried to retreat, only to be stopped by their bonds.
“Speak!” the general roared, his voice filled with divine power.
“It is a scrying tower!” one of the warlocks said in a panic—a woman. She looked middle aged. “It doesn’t connect to anything, but it utilises ancient magic to see into our realm.”
“It’s true,” a man said in support.
General Korteg withdrew his greatsword slowly from the sheath on his back, the hiss of it leaving the weather like a winter wind. The warlocks went completely still as the general placed it on the shoulder of the first woman, the edge of the blade against her neck.
“Remember that I am very short on both time and patience,” General Korteg said.
“The temple connects to a place beneath Fort Nordric!” one of the warlocks blurted out, fear written on his face. He was a young man. “There’s an artifact to activate it!”
“Don’t you dare!” the woman spat, fearless of General Korteg’s blade. “Silence!”
General Korteg drew his sword along her throat, sending her head tumbling to the ground. Wide eyes stared at the woman as her body thumped to the floor. Even Hump was shocked at the sudden death.
Korteg relaxed slightly, the weight of his aura diminishing but not disappearing entirely. “What is your name?” General Korteg asked the warlock.
“Baelok,” the man said, still staring at the body. He let out a defeated sigh.
“How long does it take to reach Elenvine from here?”
“Two days,” another warlock said, a woman this time. “You would need to travel at a fast pace though. This realm is smaller than our own, but it shares many borders. We navigate the realm using a bloodbound compass. Each of the temples has an identifying sample. You can get it from…” the woman trailed off as her eyes went to a hooded figure at the end of the line. As Hump looked closer, he recognised the man that had been trying to activate the artifact before.
“His amulet is a storage artifact,” another said. “Please, just don’t kill me. I was forced to be here.”
“This man was attempting to activate the temple array before we stopped him,” Count Daston said. He leant down, finding the amulet around the man’s neck and revealing it. “I sense magic from it.”
The man snarled at them. “You have no idea what you are doing. Only death awaits those that resist. The old gods are coming, children of false gods. All of you shall know their wrath.”
General Korteg’s face twisted into a grin. “They are welcome to come find us.”
He stepped away from the warlocks now, moving on to other things while the amulet was taken and searched by one of the members of his retinue.
“I suggest we divide the force,” General Korteg said. “We must move quickly through this realm—those that do not have the strength to keep up should use this temple to travel back to Fort Nordric. It will give us a chance to understand how to wield the artifact. The rest of us will move at speed to Elenvine. We have enough Chosen of Seres to imbue us with speed for the entire trip. If warlocks can do this in two days, we shall do so far faster.”
“It pains me to say it, but I shall lead the second party back to Fort Nordric,” Wizard Aldric said. “I’m afraid I’m not much of a runner. My efforts would best be served ensuring the fortress is well defended and taking the slow route south with reinforcements.”
General Korteg nodded. “I shall leave the fortress in your hands.” He raised his voice. “That is the plan. I will leave it to all of you to separate yourselves into groups.”
Count Daston seemed surprised when he noticed Hump approaching the first group along with the rest of his party. “Are you sure you’re up for this? I didn’t think wizards would be too keen on long distance running.”
“Oh, I’m not keen,” Hump said. “But I don’t want to miss out on this.”
That dragon blooded strength was going to have to show its worth.
“Reminds me of the running Vivienne used to make us do,” Bud said with a wistful smile.
Staring out at the barren wasteland through the temple doors, Hump shook his head bitterly. “No it bloody doesn’t.”