“My Lord the carriage is ready.” The serving girl said. I gave her a nod of acknowledgement and signaled her to leave. I suppose the time had come for me to meet this little cabal. It was a closed-door meeting under the guise that I would be attending a private lunch with Denerif Mason and a few of his acquaintances. I was dressed my best of course and Benny would be attending in her full suit of armor. Though once the meeting started, she would have to remain outside the doors as with all other personal guards. I learned very little about Denerif, beyond his dislike of the Imperial family. The man was richer than most dukes and wielded considerable power, but his lack of noble birth was always something that the imperial family held against him. So long as I got what I wanted I cared little about the birth of the one who provides it.
Benny and I entered a carriage sometime later. It was rather plain compared to most of the ones I rode in, but that was probably to obscure my identity. It took almost an hour to navigate the complex streets of the city to his Manor. I had to admire the Denerif’s massive home. If not for the splendor of the imperial castle it would be the most impressive manor in the city. It was a singular large manor house at least five stories tall, painted a cream so light it was almost white. The entire manse was surrounded by a 10-foot wall and the main gate was large enough for 3 carriages to enter abreast.
We waited outside for a few moments before the gate was opened, and we crossed the long path leading up to the entrance. Benny glanced out the window staring at the large sculptures that decorated the gardens along with the small army of gardeners that maintained it.
“I know Denerif was rich, but damn, this place is a bit much.” Benny said as she gawked at a sculpture of a naked man drawing a bow. Interestingly enough the entire thing was either made of gold or plated in gold.
“The man sure knows how to show off his wealth at least.” I said.
Perhaps it was spending the last few days in absolute luxury. But I wasn’t as moved by the overwhelming displays of wealth as most people would be. We rolled along the long entrance for almost a minute before the carriage stopped and the door opened. Standing there was Denerif. He was, as the descriptions have stated, tall thin with gray thinning hair. He had a hawkish nose and bright blue eyes that seemed to track me as I walked forward. He wore fine clothes that, while plain, were clearly made of the finest cloth.
“So, you are the one they call Lightbearer.” He said giving me a once over.
“Indeed, though I know my reputation has grown I’m surprised you decided to greet me personally.” I said.
It was normal protocol to simply have a servant take care of such matters as greetings. But from what I know of Denerif he was not one to stand on propriety.
He chucked though no humor reached his eyes. “I’ll leave such pageantry to those who do not value their time. Please come.” He asked.
He didn’t even so much as glance over to Benny which was odd. She was dressed quite impressively, every bit the mage. Though it’s not as if he was unfamiliar with mages since I knew he had an entire force of his own. We walked side by side through his mansion. I made sure not to admire the impressive furniture or any other impressive looking decorations, outwardly.
“The others have arrived?” I asked.
“Indeed, they have, they are waiting in my wine room to begin discussions.”
They must be wondering what price I would ask and what the true extent of my abilities are.
“I imagine the speculation has been endless.” I joked.
“Not so much as you would think. To be frank we have compiled everything there is to know about you and we have a rough estimation of the value of your abilities.”
Did they now? Well, we will have to see how much of an understanding they really have and whether they value it as much as I think they do.
“I am excited to see the extent of your information gathering skills.” I said.
“All will be revealed in due time.” Denerif responded.
From out of nowhere a smartly dressed servant began leading us to his wine room as he called it. Roughly a minute later we stopped at a door and the servant opened.
Denerif turned to me and said. “This is where I would ask that your apprentice remain outside. There is a room across the hall where food and drink are offered to the servants of all our guests for the eve.”
Benny looked like she didn’t want to leave me alone but it’s not as if I was in any real danger here. With her abilities and her radiant carapace there was no chance anyone could really hurt her. We had long had this conversation. So, to make sure that we were seen as a single unified force by the others, I gave her a single nod and the butler led her into the room. I gave her simple orders.
Tolerate no disrespect, guard all information and if there is even the slightest hint of danger to herself or myself hold nothing back.
Before the door closed behind Benny, I could see liveried servants and other mages eating and drinking inside a recreational room. There was even the sound of music and I even overheard the familiar voice of Briannah calling Benny over.
“Well then Moon shall we begin?” Denerif asked.
Inside the wine room was as luxuriously decorated as I had expected. In the center was a circular table with tall, backed chairs. Each was embossed with gold and had deep red cushions. There was a fireplace to the right and the sun streamed through the massive window near the back of the room providing light. To the left were hundreds of wine bottles lining each shelf. Sitting around the table were Baroness Hearthaven, dressed in beautiful green, an older woman of about 70 with white hair, who was probably Dutchess Shorecast. Finally, there was a man of around 50 in purple and gold clothing so opulent it almost gave me pause. Archduke Halloway I presume.
There were 5 seats around the large table and each occupant had a wine glass. I met each of their eyes as I made my way to a seat. Part of me was amused that in only the span of two years I had made my way from urchin in a forest to drinking wine with some of the most powerful humans in Vendalia.
After Denerif and I took our seats and introductions began. To my left was the Baroness and to her left respectively were Archduke Halloway, Denerif Mason and Dutchess Shorecast.
Dutchess Shorecast started first. “So, this is the Lightbearer, it is surprising that one with such an innocent face is the cause of such an upheaval among the nobility.”
The strength of her voice and the clear focus in her green eyes were almost anachronistic to her wrinkled face and white hair.
I responded, “I find most humans tend to underestimate danger when met with a sweet face, it has served me well.”
Halloway glanced at the baroness and said with some humor in his voice. “I’m sure it has served you in many ways.”
Baroness Hearthaven rolled eyes. Clearly our intimacy was known by the rest of the group. I wonder if that was also a ploy.
It probably was.
There was clearly some friction between those two. Denerif sighed and took control of the conversation.
“Regardless, we are here to discuss your contribution to our group. I'm sure by now you have surmised that we have use for your abilities. Both the proficiency of your healing, the creation of mountable etheric beasts, and of course the ability to enhance the power of mages.”
Dutchess Shorecast continued. “Yes, Even the royal family has begun to ask questions. It took no small amount of effort to keep the scavengers from circling. I am most concerned with the price.”
I cut the baroness of whatever she was about to say. “What specifically do you want from me? your answer will determine my price.”
I mostly wanted to see how much they knew about my abilities. What they wanted from me will determine how much they truly understood.
Archduke Halloway who maintained a largely neutral expression said. “Etheric beasts for our own forces, magical enhancement for our mages and the use of your magical abilities with training and maintenance of our armies.”
The baroness continued on as if this was already discussed. “We want you to repeat on a larger scale what you did with my army. The Radiant orb of Regeneration is an incredibly difficult spell to cast on a large scale and very few in the empire have the skill or raw power to cast a single one even with an amplifier. The training regimen you designed is far more efficient than any in the empire. Months of physical conditioning in the matter of weeks with no side effects from overtraining. Many generals are interested in the concept. They simply lack a light mage to perform it on a large scale.”
She then looked to Denerif, and he continued her through in greater detail. “Next is the enhancement of a mage’s strength. It is still unknown what price you pay to perform this but from everyone I have spoken to it must be heavy. From even the cursory glance of your apprentice we can see the effects of your abilities. How many mages we enhance would of course depend on your abilities, but even one very few months will be more than adequate.”
Dutchess Shorecast continued on with the etheric beasts.
“Every mage under my command is asking for their own flying mounts. Having a force of aerial mages is enough to render all standing fortifications useless. Even the empire’s dragon ships would be useless when compared to the speed and maneuverability of your mount. How you ended the war in Hearthaven was enough proof of the effectiveness of such a force.”
I sat back in my chair relaxing as I absorbed their ideas. It was largely what I had expected, however there was one problem here.
Why?
Why were these dukes in alliance? What is their end game? Do they really think that the rest of the empire will sit idly by while they reap the benefits of my abilities? I truly dedicated myself to the effort, I could have a dozen mages in the air within a month. I could Enhance at least 30 people if I was gauging the amount of living ether I carried correctly. For that matter, the beasts I enhance don’t even have to be birds. There were many strange flying creatures in this world, many much more dangerous than an Arlette.
“How will the other Dukes or the imperial family for that matter respond? While I'm confident in my abilities, I'm not interested in fighting Princess Morianne.”
Denerif sniffed at that. “I assume you wonder why this cabal even exists. It's rather simple: the empire is fracturing.”
Now that was a bombshell.
“Explain,” I said.
“The imperial family is largely withdrawn from ruling anything that is not the imperial city, and the dukedoms are practically countries of their own. At some point it will break, and a civil war will break out. The north vs the south. No one is saying anything, but it is in the air. Everyone feels the cracks forming within the empire. The northern dutchies have the largest armies and the imperial army is roughly 100,000 men strong. Though it’s unlikely to happen soon. Five to ten years by my guess” Denerif finished and allowed the information to digest.
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If a civil war is about to occur with the largest civilization in the world, then I have no interest in participating. All the magical knowledge in the world wasn’t enough to make me want to participate. They were asking for a lot and the price would have to be dire. There was one caveat, however. I was never going to offer them flying mounts. It was far too much power to be under anyone’s control but mine.
Enhancing mages however, I would be fine with. There were 4 members of the cabal not including myself so I would offer them 4 enhancements.
“The mounts I still haven’t fully determined how to repeat so that will have to be on the table for now. I can easily reproduce my training regimen on a mass scale even easier with a decent amplifier. As you no doubt have guessed, enhancing mages is costly to me so I can offer you 4 enhancements.”
Some didn’t look pleased by my response, but I was baiting them since they didn’t fully understand what my abilities did.
Denerif was stone faced but didn’t seem keen on pushing. “We can shelve the issue of flying mounts for our mages for now. But I must ask, what is your price?”
That was the issue, wasn’t it? What do I want from some of the most powerful people in the empire? Power, wealth, I could probably ask for a million gold, my own barony, and lands. If they truly understood what I could do there is no price they wouldn’t pay. But material possessions were temporary, kingdoms fell, and power could be taken away. What I want is knowledge. Knowledge was power. I smiled and decided what I wanted to ask.
“For the training and enhancement of 4 individuals of your choice. Along with the possibility of a flying mount in the future. I want only two things.”
I looked at the Baroness and said. “The knowledge of a master enchanter and every grimoire in your collection.”
They all stiffened as I finished the sentence. Absolutely no master enchanters operated outside the imperial capital. And teaching the skill outside of official imperial channels was a death sentence. But that was my price.
Everything from etheric knights, amplifier creation, armor enchantment and a whole host of other kinds of enchantments, Were well within the skill of a master enchanter. My magical abilities have ripened on the vine and now it was time for me to expand.
“That is a lot to ask. Admittance to the enchantment academy for a non-empirical let alone an elf is a problem.” Dutchess Shorecast said.
“I have no interest in attending a magical academy, private tutelage will do.”
I pulled out an etheric gem and an ingot of mithrite from a pocket in my overcoat. And dropped them on the table.
“Etheric knights, Enchanted weapons, armor and of course amplifiers. I want all that knowledge.” They all stared at the glowing light attenuated gem and mithrite. It wasn’t the value of the object that moved them, but likely the difficulty in getting what I want.
“Impossible” Dutchess Shorecast said. then looked to Denerif and continued. “The potential risk of discovery is too much; he does not even guarantee the etheric beasts.”
Denerif focused on me, his gaze unwavering “Is there no room for negotiation?”
“No, however you are all too focused on the etheric beasts and fail to see what I am offering you.”
Everyone’s eyes focused on me at this proclamation.
“There is more to your abilities?” Allyssia asked.
“There is more to enhancement than just a boost in power for that matter it’s not limited to mages.” Then her eyes brightened with understanding.
“Benny and Noire, you did the same thing to both of them. How it manifests depends on the individual.” She said.
The rest of them started to catch on to the next obvious conclusion.
“Correct Allyssia. But there is even more to it. How my abilities manifest is dependent on the creature I try to enhance. An average mage becomes a world class talent, a simple bird becomes an Etheric beast. So, what would happen if I enhanced a regular human. Simple, they would grow stronger and healthier in every capacity. Tell me Denerif would you not like the health and vitality of your youth returned to you. In fact, if you allowed my enhancement, you would be more vigorous now that you ever were at 20. The change would be more than internal. You would literally age in reverse what could a man like you accomplish with another half century of youth. That is the gift I offer for the low low price of the abilities of a master enchanter and access to grimoires.”
That proclamation gave them pause. I had to hold back a smile as everyone in the room contemplated what such a thing could mean for themselves. It was my hope that their selfishness in the end would win out. Even if they didn’t all agree Denerif, Shorecast and Hallow had to have been feeling the effects of age.
Allyssia was still a young woman so aging is not as big of a concern to her as the rest. However, she is a mage and there is not a single mage alive who doesn’t want more power. Their eyes flicked from between each other in silent conversation. I suppose other than Allyssia they never considered enhancing themselves. In truth I can ask for more, but I wanted them to be proactive in keeping my loyalty. If this ever got out to the royal family well, I’m sure the emperor would have some words. Greed or safety: which one will win out in the end?
Finally, Shorecast, the eldest member, said, “Can you guarantee such a thing? Give me my youth back.” she asked, her voice betraying the brittleness I expected of someone of her age.
“With my ability it will be more than just youth. But yes, you will have your youth and beauty returned. How you’re going to explain how a woman of your years suddenly looks like she is in her mid-20s is your problem to deal with.”
This was largely the perfect outcome; Allyssia was about to be a Duchess, and the rest were regular humans. They aren't stupid enough to allow this opportunity to pass them by or have someone else snatch this chance. So, I was confident that they would agree.
“I will be first.” Allyssia said.
As a competent earth mage, she stood the most to benefit from this. I had little to worry about from her since she had a duchy to occupy her time.
“May I assume you all agree to my terms.” I asked, looking around the room.
There was one final shifting glance between them then subtle nods started.
“Agreed” they said in unison.
A smile came across my face as I stated. “Good as soon as my enchanting ability progresses to the point I can create my own amplifier. I will Enhance one of you or someone of your choice. Everyone else will have their own enhancements as my enchanting skill increases. As much as I understand your eagerness Allyssia, I recommend I start with Dutchess Shorecast as proof of my abilities.”
She was the one with the most connections to the enchanting academies after all. Besides, she could drop dead before my enchanting ability reached where I wanted it to be.
“That is acceptable.” Denerif said.
Halloway, while he maintained the stony expression, not even he could hide his anticipation of what my abilities could do. He looked at Shorecast and said. “We will proceed accordingly. I’m sure you can have someone to teach him under the table. Your cousin could do it.”
Shorecast bit her lip and then nodded. “Very well I’ll make the proper arrangements.” She then turned her attention to me. “Is the rumor that it took you only a month to use magic true?”
I answered a bit arrogantly. “It took me seven days between seeing the ether and casting my first spell. Magic was relatively easy to learn after that point.”
Shorecast nodded then said. “In that case it should only take you a few months to reach the point where you can create an amplifier. Perhaps a year before you could move on to something as complex as creating etheric knights and their equipment.”
It was rather amusing that they were so casually discussing what was technically treason. But I didn’t care how dangerous it was to them. Knowledge was knowledge and it served my ambition. Part of why I was so willing to perform an evolution on the old woman was partially my curiosity on what my abilities would do to her and to foster the jealousy or even greed in her compatriots. With her willingness to take such a risk I can only assume she was starting to feel the call of the grave.
They will no doubt try to bargain for more things from me. Perhaps for a spouse or child or simply more for themselves. Either way I intended to collect.
“A bit of warning though to gain The Lightbearer’s Gift comes at a cost. One that is completely unavoidable.”
Denerif, who seemed to be colder than usual, asked. “And that is?”
“During your enhancement you will endure more pain and suffering that you can ever imagine. Nothing will come close I assure you. In the space of a few minutes I was set on fire, threw myself off of a cliff and severed my own arm and leg. That pain was barely a pin prick in comparison. But that is for later, for now let’s move on to a less morose topic. Do you have any information on my would-be assassins? I have been anxious to learn.”
They seemed to recover from that proclamation. Denerif answered in a precise tone. “I have been able to confirm one matriarch beyond a shadow of a doubt. One Boriel of Lum'nar, a few connections in the underworld informed me that one of her clan was seeking information about mage companies. A few weeks before your assassination the same elf picked up coin from one of my branches, a sum of 56,000 gelding.”
“Can you confirm this with certainty? And what account provided that sum of coin.” I asked.
“Yes, I have the records of the transaction. Reports from within the elven coalition itself as well as personal eyewitnesses from sources I trust with my own life. The elf was without a doubt from clan Lum’nar and a plan such as this would have to have been sanctioned by the Matriarch. As your fame grows more and more people are asking questions and slowly the guilty are coming to light.”
I smiled. I will settle the score with her soon enough, but I can wait. I have much more to do in the meantime.
Denerif continued, “One problem with the source of the fund, however. The coin came from what are called white accounts. They are completely anonymous by design and cost 100,000 gelding to set up. You get a special card and a single account number with no insurance. So technically anyone can walk in and withdraw or deposit coin from the account with no need for two party verification. The accounts are heavily taxed for each transaction. Many of the most powerful nobility in the country use these accounts for backroom dealing.”
“Why would the emperor even allow such a thing to exist?” I asked incredulously.
“Those kinds of deals will happen regardless; he figures he might as well tax the dealings. Everything is done through intermediaries, so the two parties remain anonymous. That’s the fundamental problem with tracking the coin. Our suspect pool is too large. However, if we can find a noble with a connection to clan Lum’nar we will have our suspect.”
I nodded along absorbing the information.
“I’ll need to see your evidence to verify it for myself” I said to Denerif.
He nodded back at me.
I continued “There is the matter of the rest of the coin, it had to come from somewhere and if not from your bank, then from someone in the elven coalition. It’s estimated that the cost would have to be over 100,000 gelding, Hellia, of Cres’tiln, Mellie of Thron’vax, Namoila of Aelv’oth Vinium of Fost’Krin and Claier of Sham’ir are possible culprits as well.”
Allyssia was giving me a searching stare then finally asked. “What will you do when you have the names of every culprit?”
I smiled without humor, “I will kill them and anyone who stands with them.”
Halloway chucked and said. “Even the smallest clan number in the thousands. Do you think they will just allow you to walk up to their matriarch and take her head.”
“Well, it’s a good thing I can fly.”
“You seem to care little about the lives of your own people.” Denerif said though I couldn’t tell if he was being reproachful or just stating an observation.
“As I have said before I couldn’t care less about the elves and my royal blood.”
I glanced over to Allyssia with an expression that said. ‘Is this not obvious to everyone.’
She shrugged, perhaps he simply wanted to hear me say it.
Shorecast didn’t seem to care what I did with the information and asked. “The enhancement, how long will it take?”
I rubbed my hairless chin and considered. “I’ll need 3 days. One to manually reverse much of the damage that comes from aging. Damage to joints, skin, muscle, tendons, organs all have to be reversed. Another two days for the change to take place, which is the point where it will be painful. But I assure you it is worth it. Over the next few weeks your body will stabilize. It’s up to you to arrange things.”
It would be easier to just dump living ether into her let the change happen, but she was a perfect test subject for my abilities. Old, frail and a non-mage to what extent I can reverse aging was a curiosity I wanted to satisfy. I didn’t dare try something like repairing genetic damage or even regrowing telomeres, but the possibility was there I just needed practice. From what I could see when examining Benny, I simply slowed her aging, her telomeres would take decades to show any significant degradation.
Shorecast took a moment to consider and spoke to everyone in the room. “How about this, Moon can live in my manse as an honored guest. During that time Trent can begin his tutelage. I have restricted areas built where sound can’t escape, and my age will be a sufficient excuse to recuse myself for a few days. Once he reaches a level of skill that can be described as master, another one of us can then undergo the enhancement.”
Shorecast had a smile while talking the entire time no doubt in great anticipation of what I can offer. It was endlessly amusing as the rest became uncomfortable with the idea. One of them trying to monopolize my abilities is something I expected. Usually, I would be against someone simply deciding things for me, but I held my tongue. I am perfectly content to let them compete with each other. I mean the Duchess was already giving me what I wanted, why would I even bother treating with the rest. They will have to come up with something on their own.
“That is acceptable, would you have room to store my mount.” I said.
Allyssia’s eyes tightened, no doubt realizing what I was doing.
“Certainly, my manse is as large as Denerif's,” she said confidently.
Denerif remained poised but Halloway was giving Shorecast suspicious glances.
Denerif, before words would be exchanged between the two, said. “This is acceptable. We will be able to observe the effects of Moon's abilities and hide the extent of it from others. Dutchess, I would be willing to provide the funds for the materials for Moon's tutelage in enchantment. Duke Halloway, Baroness Hearthaven, I know you have good connections with several mining companies can you discretely arrange the purchases.”
Allyssia and Halloway looked at each other and nodded.
I had to appreciate Denerif’s cleverness. Shorecast couldn’t deny the assistance without it being an insult. And he did it in such a way that she couldn’t monopolize my abilities by arguing she alone paid for it. I maintained my poise of course. But this is exactly what I wanted. I can't wait to see what they will offer once my work with Shorecast is complete.
I glanced at the shelves behind Allyssia and spotted a bottle of spiced wine with which I was familiar.
She followed my eyes and smiled and said. “Perhaps we should drink to our newly formed alliance. If my guess is right, we can accomplish much together. By the end of the year, we will have half the empire under our control.”
Everyone smiled at that proclamation, I couldn’t care less. I was going to get what I wanted, for now I would observe and learn. Let them believe the trickle of power I offer them was a great ocean. Once my enchanting abilities are sufficient and I have proper gear I will finally begin hunting.