3
the Litch's plan
Although the leading wizards and witches of the Litch prided themselves on the marvellous architecture and thriving community within the city, the enormous governmental tower at the centre, Litchspire, was where most of their business was handled. The tower was composed of obsidian, its surface smooth and reflective, with serpentine vines of silver engrained along its reach. The vines pulsed in rhythm with the beat of a human heart at rest. You didn’t have to be blessed with magic to understand that this building was alive, and had been for the past several centuries, dating back to the days of the Architects (otherwise known as the Great Five): Aetherius Terramagus, Elara Luminae, Thaumandros Chronowarden, Selendra Mindscape, and Valthor Beastbinder. The legendary wizards and witches whose skills and stones forever allowed the many children of magical descent to live without the fear of being hunted by the aura-blind.
Raven made her way through the crowding dirt roads, along the steel-grated platforms lit only by orange lanterns, and through the alleyways of pubs, apothecaries, tailors of almost every fit, and all the wondrous potion shops a budding mage could ask for.
She kept moving, her mind fixated on what this job could have possibly been about. Was this going to be her first breakthrough, or was it going to be another bust, where Nautilus would come out with most of the glory while the rest of the crew were left with pittance? It wasn’t uncommon for Nautilus to get the crew to run some errands for him – going out into the wild to retrieve sage, quartz, silver, nightshade – things he would later turn into potions which would be sold to merchants at an even later date. He was a good salesman when he wanted to be; he knew how to convince even the sharpest of vendors that with enough magic dirt you could restore the natural energy of your gemstone.
Of course, nothing could restore the energy of a gemstone after depletion. Many had tried, and all had failed, even the Great Five.
After some time travelling through the alleys and dimly lit roadways, Raven made it to the other side of the great cavern, where the fungi clinging to the walls shifted from an endearing blue to a fiery orange, and all that lay beneath it was cast in artificial sun, creating a twilight effect on the many speleothems, stone columns, and jagged rock formations. Just ahead was the vast, circular chasm known as the Arcane Basin. Carved into the earth by the Great Five, the pit was surrounded by a steel parapet along which a knee-high glowing wall of enchantment thrummed. The Basin's walls were lined with an array of ramshackle buildings, seemingly defying gravity as they clung to the steep incline. These structures, fashioned from an eclectic mix of materials such as aged timber, weathered stone, and enchanted glass, resembled a favela in layout. Each building was unique in design, reflecting the guild that occupied it – from the soaring, ornate spire of the Conjurers to the ivy-covered, hidden sanctuary of the Enchantresses.
A voice came from her bracelet stone: “Are you nearby, Raven?” Nautilus, of course.
She rubbed the stone as she hurried down the wooden stairways along the walls of the Arcane Basin, glancing at the less fortunate folk sitting and chatting by the bannisters. They were unemployed and homeless. Many of them had tried to secure positions with guilds – but sometimes there were no spots open – while others refused to be part of, in their own words, a ‘soulless, cheating political system’.
Raven feared that one day she would be in a similar position.
“Approaching your doorstep,” Raven said.
The Dreamweavers were located at the very bottom of the diverging stairway. It was hard to miss the wooden sign pegged to the poles sticking out from the top of the rusty door. She knocked. Nautilus’ voice rang out through the stone again, asking if that was her. When she told him yes, the door clicked open and she walked inside, getting hit with the musty-smelling floorboards. Although she’d been coming here for more than a month, the odour always made her retch.
That said, she felt a sense of relief as well; this ramshackle building was like a second home, only she didn’t have to endure the irritating voice of her brother and his great fortune.
The floorboards groaned under her feet as she made her way through the dimly lit corridor to the meeting room, which was where most of the guild’s internal activities took place. The only other room in the building was directly across from it, and that had a big OFF-LIMITS sign stencilled in red for a reason: it was full of treasure. Gold, amulets, spellbooks, potions, maps, all sorts of things. And Nautilus didn’t give them to anyone, not without a price tag. He was an expert trader above all else.
Raven heard voices from the other side of the meeting room door when she approached. She pushed it open and eagerly stepped inside. The small, circular chamber was illuminated by a single yellow orb which floated above the large, round table at the centre. The orb cast shadows on the shelves filled with ancient scrolls and dusty tombs. The air was heavy with the scent of ink, parchment, and age-old magic.
Vox and Heather turned their heads from their seats, looking back at her. Vox was still clad in shadow, while Heather’s fiery red hair was unassuming beneath the orblight.
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Nautilus was holding a piece of chalk and scrawling something on the blackboard. “So nice of you to join us, Raven.” He didn’t turn to greet her.
“What’s this about?” She slid between Vox and Heather in the bench seat that rimmed the table. “And sorry. You caught me at a bad time.”
Nautilus chuckled. “Oh yeah, your sister, I take it? How old is she anyways?”
“Eleven,” said Raven. She’d told him before, but he must have forgotten – or pretended to have forgotten, just to make conversation.
Nautilus hummed. “Cool. Now, listen.” He turned, revealing a well-bearded face which sat above roofbeam shoulders on a neck wider than it was long. He wore a silky burgundy waistcoat adorned with golden embroidery that created intricate patterns along its edges. “I know you’re probably sick of me calling you in here for simple tasks, Raven. But I made a promise that this was worth your while, worth all your guys’ whiles. I told Vox and Heather a little bit about it already, Raven, but just to bring you up to speed—”
“An ancient stone,” Heather said, her voice raspy but not withered. It was perhaps all the cigars she smoked that left her that way. “He wants us to raid King Abundus’ carriage.”
Raven didn’t know what to question first. “An ancient stone? What do you mean by ancient?”
“One whose power has gone untouched for what, a thousand years, you say?” Heather’s voice was suspicious, but she seemed intrigued all the same.
Nautilus ignored her, slid the chalk back into place, and grabbed the crystal ornament on the desk beneath the blackboard. Raven didn’t notice it until he stepped away from the board and took a seat at the table with the rest of the guild, but the board read MEEDAN’S GEMSTONE — 25,000 GOLD — SATURDAY 8 AM, NORTH ROAD.
“Some of the wizards in the kingdom brought me news. Abundus made a deal with one of the seven kingdoms for an ancient stone found buried at the bottom of the Whispering Sea. They haven’t detailed what the stone is capable of—as far as I’m aware, even the king isn’t sure—but the stone has been unused for about twelve-hundred years.” He rubbed the crystal and an enchanted rectangular aura of light shone from the sharp tip. On it, information about the gemstone was listed.
The Meedan’s Gemstone
[Ancient Descent: ~1200 years old.]
Effects:
Passive:
Spells:
Unknown properties
“The locals heard about it too, so it seems Abundus isn’t as secretive about it like he normally is with valuables,” said Nautilus.
“That’s strange,” Vox said. Raven had almost forgotten he was there.
“Which part?” asked Nautilus.
Vox took a bit of time before responding. He templed his chin with his fingers, thinking. “All of it,” he said. “Either the undercover wizards didn’t hear of this from the locals, or there’s someone working for the king spreading the word. King Abundus is secretive for a reason: so people like us… wizards… don’t interrupt his carriages.
“Which is often why he orders the carriages through peaceful towns, even if it means taking the long route. He knows someone will come to stop it. I know he knows.” Vox’s emotionless tone somehow seemed sinister in the moment. It sent a shiver down Raven’s spine to hear her cousin speak with such eerie disregard.
“You’re right about all of that, Vox.” Nautilus rubbed the crystal again and this time another rectangular aura appeared, replacing the old one.
King Abundus has ordered his goods and, should they arrive by next week, we can expect the king to take the safest route through the forest villages.
By Saturday morning, we can reasonably expect the carriage carrying the gemstone to be in Bogdonrail before noon.
— Apollo
“But—” continued Nautilus. There was always a but. “—if this heist is successful, then you might not have to worry about gold ever again. I can sell the stone at nearly twice the value if people are desperate enough. I’ll split the gold between us equally… well, almost equally. I have a business to run, after all.
“Then, with that gold you can purchase better gemstones. Hell, I might even buy them for you. Think of it as a business investment. Then we’ll be able to take on bigger challenges. I’ll trust in you to go farther and bring back more gold. Rince and repeat.” He hesitated a moment before continuing. “I just need you to understand that this is no ordinary heist. This is a game-changer. This will make the difference between us being a small-town group of nobodies to being up there in the tower, one day.”
Heather folded her arms, a stern look on her face. “How do we know we’re not being pulled into a trap?”
A good question, one that deserved a thoughtful answer. Before Nautilus could reply, Raven chimed in.
“And who do you know who carries that sort of coin down here? Fifty thousand gold, right? Twice the current value? And even if someone did, spending that much on a stone would be frankly… outrageous.”
Nautilus smirked. “I never said I would be selling it to one person.”
“Then to whom?”
Nautilus let go of the crystal and the aura vanished into nothingness. He stood from his chair and placed it back on the desk. “The Enchantment Syndicate.”
Raven’s eyes flew wide. “My brother’s guild? Why them?” Then it clicked. Nautilus didn’t even have to say anything. “Oh… they’re the only guild with that much gold on reserve… aren’t they?”
“Not just that much,” corrected Nautilus. He grabbed the piece of chalk and wrote a number on the board. “Over the last year and a half, they’ve managed to reserve three hundred thousand gold.”
“Great Lord,” said Heather. “They have a lot of powerful stones, so that makes sense.”
“They also have skill, experience, wisdom,” said Vox. “Things we lack.”
Nautilus turned. “Which is exactly why getting this gem is our best option, trap or not. We simply can’t let it pass. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”