Kade and Salarus didn’t have to go far to determine what the Trial seemed to expect from them. The ledge they had awoken on was large enough for them to explore a little, but it was quickly apparent that it provided a good view, and little else. There was no way to scale the mountain safely either up or down, and that left a single cave entrance leading deeper into the mountain as the only option. It was wide enough for six people to walk comfortably abreast, and completely unlit. After agreeing it was the only option, they prepared themselves for whatever might be waiting for them inside.
It was more accurate to say that Salarus prepared, as he had a number of helpful spells to cast, while Kade mostly stood leaning on his spear. He was grateful for what Salarus did though, as he felt a layer of unseen protection resting over his body, and he could sense the improved mana regeneration. He was now waiting as Salarus rested a hand on the stone beneath them and mumbled to himself, gathering power. Kade appreciated that the man was only doing the smart thing, but he was a little irked that the tall Sorcerer never bothered to say what he was doing; he just cast his spells.
At last Salarus stepped back, and Kade was treated to something he hadn’t seen before. With a small eruption of stone, a boulder just over half Kade’s height floated up from the ground. It hovered ominously for a moment, and then began to spin rapidly. After building momentum, it suddenly took off, slamming into a wall–thankfully a safe distance away. Kade was momentarily confused as the boulder shattered into thousands of pieces, but after a moment they all began hovering again, then in a blink they formed together, and a humanoid creature of stone was standing in their place. It walked up in front of Salarus, then took a defensive stance, appearing to look for threats–though this was difficult to tell, given it was only the vague shape of a round person with blocky limbs, and lacked any facial features.
Salarus greeted it warmly, resting long, delicate fingers on the golem’s shoulder, then began introductions. “Anton, this is Kade, we must keep him safe. Kade, this is Anton, my Stone Aspect. If there’s danger you can’t escape, get to Anton and he’ll do everything he can to protect you–if I’m not there first of course.” Anton didn’t speak, but seemed to bounce up and down, possibly in greeting. At a loss, Kade tried to be polite.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you…Anton.” He looked back to Salarus curiously, “I haven’t heard of Aspects before, is this a Sorcery thing?” Salarus looked surprisingly annoyed by the question.
“No it isn’t a Sorcery thing. Aspects are beings which embody a specific type of magic manipulation; Anton is effectively a stone-Elementalist, but with his own restrictions and limitations. They’re rare Path abilities, but highly prized as they can give access to what may otherwise be an unattainable power-set. It’s not surprising that you haven’t seen one, I know of only a few local Keepers with the power.” Kade nodded, then watched the Sorcerer cast another quick spell, making Anton glow with inner light, then he pointed and the stone creature sauntered into the cave, illuminating the path.
Salarus wasted no time following after the Aspect, though he held his staff in a ready position, showing some caution. Kade hurried after, spear held similarly. After a few minutes of walking the cave was still a straight path, and they’d met no resistance, so Kade risked a question or two. “Salarus, what can a Sorcerer actually do, anyway?” As if he had flicked a switch, Salarus completely lost control. He whirled on Kade, features twisted with fury.
“Even in here?” he screamed. “Even in our damned Trial, even by someone without a single Path? Still I’m the object of scorn and ridicule! Well I didn’t take it from that wretched Abbot so gods be damned if I’ll take it from you!” He finished by slamming his staff into the ground, causing an alarming rumble from the mountain around them. Anton was in complete panic, desperately moving its bulky body around them, searching for whatever threatened its master.
Kade had absolutely no idea what to do, and Salarus was still standing nearly on top of him, looking at him with rage and–hurt? Kade put a hand out in front of him then slowly backed off a pace, before speaking as calmly as he could, “Salarus, whatever the hell I said to get that reaction, I’m truly sorry. I genuinely have no idea what’s happening right now.” Salarus stared into his eyes in the dim light, seemingly searching for something, then they widened suddenly and he backed away in a rush.
“I’m an absolute fool, aren’t I? I forgot about your damned memory problems,” he slumped back against the cave wall, looking utterly drained. “It was Lothros, that ancient, wretched prick. I just wasn’t ready for another jab today, and not from someone powerful enough to snuff out my life with a thought. It took everything I had not to back down from him, and then when you seemed to be…you really have no idea, do you?”
“I don’t even know what we’re talking about right now, let alone why the Abbot was able to bother you so much.” Kade was desperately trying to look down the tunnel as they spoke, worried about what the Sorcerer’s screams might have attracted. Salarus noticed this and looked even more embarrassed, but quickly put a hand on Anton to settle him, and resumed walking.
“Don’t worry. They’re coming, but they’re at least six minutes away if I’m sensing the tunnels correctly,” Kade looked at the man with a hint of doubt, but felt it was best not to express those feelings at the moment. Salarus kept speaking–softly this time–while they walked deeper into the mountain. “Lothros said what most powerful Awakened think, but won’t say to my face. That Sorcery is a lesser Path, and a lesser power.” He sighed, then continued, “Until a few centuries ago, you could argue he was correct. With no advanced Path to progress toward, and no way to synergize effectively with other Paths, Sorcerers really were less effective than almost any other vocation.
“But someone in my family discovered an unexpected Ancestor, and the Magus came to be. We still know little about it, and I’ll be among only a small handful, but I will show the world what true Sorcery is capable of. That will be my Legend.” Kade suddenly felt like he understood the man a little, and a lot of his previous behavior made sense in this new light. Kade felt it was safe to repeat his question.
“Alright, then understanding I’m asking out of genuine curiosity–and a desire to fight effectively beside you–can you tell me about Sorcery? Why would you even choose a path that people look at with such derision–even if it is misplaced,” he finished hurriedly as Salarus gave him a dark look.
“That’s a longer story, and one that I’ve told to very few. What I will say is that my Soul Awakened Sorcery,” at Kade’s raised eyebrow, he nodded and explained. “Sorcery, at its core, is energy manipulation without any of the limitations that other Paths experience. Theoretically my Soul power allows me to do anything that another Keeper could do,” Kade waited for the inevitable but. “But just because I’m capable of it, doesn’t mean I have any idea how to do it. As far as I know, I’m the first to Awaken Sorcery and not simply follow it as a Path.”
Kade considered, “That sounds completely opposite to what I was told about Path Abilities. They’re supposed to be really static and unchangeable; how do those even work for a Sorcerer?” Salarus actually seemed excited now to be speaking of his passion with someone willing to learn.
Stolen novel; please report.
“Exactly! That’s what held Sorcerers back: of all the Paths our Ancestors have walked, Sorcery is the least conducive to the limitations of Path Abilities. My first two abilities are Wind Element, and Lightning Element, and they give an intuitive understanding of how to incorporate those elements into my spells–if I weren’t a Soul Sorcerer they’d also provide the means to use them. The problem is that most people just see a weaker Elementalist, and while I have more flexibility than that, very little is needed when most Keepers are just looking for big explosions,” he spoke the last with utter disdain.
“But your Soul powers help?” Kade asked, now becoming worried that they were running out of time.
“Yes and no. At first I genuinely couldn’t do anything with my Soul Sorcery. Finally I discovered that with long hours of study and a patient Keeper, I could learn to emulate the most basic of spells. I’m hoping that Magus will change that. At the very least it will grant me access to vastly more exotic forms of magic, but I may be able to do more than those before me because of my Soul powers.”
“I guess that just leaves specifics, what do you actually do?” This time the question didn’t prompt outrage, but instead put a wicked grin on Salarus’ face.
“I didn’t tell you specifics, because I’m about to show you. They’re here.” Kade whipped his head forward at the words, trying to see as far down the tunnel as possible. The taller man was proven correct when light became visible in the distance. It took a moment for Kade to understand its source, but once it was close enough it became clear that the tunnel was swarming with the creatures they’d witnessed being birthed from the fissure, each glowing softly, not unlike Anton.
Kade lifted his spear, feeling incredibly underprepared, but a gentle hand guided him back as Salarus strode forward. The Sorcerer’s staff began to glow with a blue energy that made Kade’s hair stand on end, and the tall man planted it in the ground before him, sparks flying wildly in every direction. Next he began to shape more energy into his hands, which slowly grew into a ball similar in size to Anton before he’d reshaped. Salarus lazily hurled the ball forward, and Kade realized he could see a small storm captured inside it. It didn’t move quickly, and long before it reached the approaching mass Salarus had conjured two more, which he hurled after the first.
Kade watched in undisguised excitement as the orbs moved forward through the center of the tunnel, but was disappointed when the creatures adapted, spreading out and climbing until even the ceiling was covered in countless monsters, squeezed in shoulder to shoulder. The orbs sailed right past them, casting their own blue light against the eerie reddish-pink cast off by their advancing opponents. Kade looked to Salarus to warn him, but found the man unconcernedly working on another spell. This time the energy gathered in his hands was transparent, and seemed to be sucking all the air toward it. Once it was finished, Salarus transferred it to his right hand and simply waited, as the sounds of screeching and claws on stone grew closer.
Finally, when the creatures–Kade thought of them as spawn–had nearly reached Anton, the Sorcerer reached out. Instead of hurling the orb, it seemed to burst open, and what Kade could only see as a horizontal tornado burst to life in front of them. Kade felt himself sucked forward by the overpowering air pressure, and needed to anchor himself with his chains to keep from being pulled in. The spawn had no such ability, and were uniformly pulled into the vortex, where they were blown back the way they came from–now in the center of the tunnel, Kade realized with an admiring smile.
Sure enough, when the winds died seconds later, an explosion of lightning burst to life almost further away than Kade could see, and thunder echoed around them accompanied by the shrieks of dying spawn. Kade had to admit that he understood some of Salarus’ confidence after seeing the display, impressed that he’d managed to demonstrate not just raw power, but the versatility of his Path at the same time. Kade suspected the tactic was chosen for more than just its ability to effectively eliminate their foes, but he still gave the Sorcerer the broad grin that he’d undoubtedly earned.
Salarus gave a half-smile back, but looked slightly sheepish, “I may have overdone that slightly. Another group of comparable size is only a couple of minutes away, and we’ll need to rely on Anton to buy us some time. I can still handle them, but it’s going to get more dangerous for you than I’d like.” Kade looked back to the long, dark cavern, and considered.
“There’s something I’ve been wanting to try, and this is a good place for it. I should be able to buy some time, though I don’t think I’ll be able to do any real damage–those things seem way out of my league,” Kade was surprised by the look of open concern in the Sorcerer’s eyes.
“I don’t like putting you in harm’s way. I said I’d keep you safe, and I meant it,” the earnest tone shocked Kade, and he realized he’d been wrong to assume ulterior motives when the man had first made the assertion. He found he’d been wrong about Salarus in a number of ways.
“I’ll be safe,” he promised. “I just need to head down the tunnel, and I’ll come right back.” The Sorcerer looked at him for a moment, then nodded. Knowing he had no time to waste, Kade raced off as quickly as he could, though memories of another series of endless dark corridors echoed through his mind. He got as far as he dared, then began to plant anchors. Lots and lots of anchors. He’d had a great deal of time to think about how he could make good use of his chains, and he finally had an epiphany when he’d seen the Iros equivalent of a house spider. While it had more legs and almost seemed like a centipede, it nevertheless used webs to catch its prey, and that opened a lot of doors in Kade’s mind.
He used that inspiration now as he sprinted back toward the Sorcerer, leaving his own winding web of black chains–nearly invisible in the tunnel’s darkness. He kept the chains thin, but strong–he wanted the creatures to charge through dozens of them before they noticed they were caught. He was sure the spawn would be strong enough to snap the chains like thread, so he was counting on the surprise of it all. By the time he’d nearly reached Anton, his speed was being fueled by the horrible screeches following in his wake.
He slowed to a stop next to Salarus, who was staring down at Kade’s belt, now possessing only a single chain, extending into the darkness. The Sorcerer put things together quickly, “How long do you think that can hold them?” he asked, and Kade frowned.
“Honestly it probably can’t hold them at all. I can constrict the chains suddenly, and once they’re all wrapped up in them, their momentum should at least make a number of them lose their feet. I was hoping that would cause some mayhem, maybe even get a few of them crushed to death.” Salarus was looking contemplative at that, and finally smiled.
“Don’t bother tightening the chains, the more they get wrapped up the better. Hopefully they’ll ignore them if they’re little more than a nuisance.” Kade gave him a curious look, but a glance back showed the tunnel was now lit up from the glowing creatures, and he knew he had to trust the more experienced warrior.
“Whatever you say,” he replied, then turned and braced himself, holding the chain tightly. He knew he’d have to pour every ounce of mana he had into repairing the chains as many would inevitably snap in the spawn’s mad rush. He was surprised when Salarus stepped in front of him, rather than readying another spell, but he got a sense of the man’s plan as lightning began to crackle around the Sorcerer’ entire body. As the creatures finally made contact with the chains, Kade could feel them snagging on countless, fleshy bodies, tangling around them again and again.
As the mass of spawn got closer, the lightning grew brighter and more insistent around Salarus, until Kade was worried it might jump to him by proximity. When the creatures were close enough that Kade could make out details, he saw that they had several sets of eyes over elongated humanoid mouths, with an enormous bottom jaw covered in glistening teeth. The massive arms did indeed seem to be doing the majority of the work in dragging the misshapen bodies forward–despite the four hind legs–and the creatures ran on the ceiling of the cave as easily as the floor.
Just as they were within a dozen paces of reaching Anton–the squat stone figure looking like a small round child in the face of the massive advancing horde–the Sorcerer finally grabbed hold of the chains, and the lightning spread across the complex web in an instant. The result was horrific, and Kade was grateful not to have seen the first attack up close. The electricity flowed through each creature with no apparent resistance, not only locking muscles and causing the spawn to fall down convulsing, but the Sorcerer’s power continued to pulse through the chain for nearly a minute, until many of the spawn were becoming smoking, reeking ruins of what they had been.
Salarus finally released the chain, and looked out at what must have been over a hundred huddling forms, many still shrieking in agony. The Sorcerer cocked his head to the side, then addressed Anton, “Go have fun now,” he said indulgently, and the Aspect of Stone appeared gleeful as it charged toward the long line of the spawn–conveniently arranged like bowling pins down the slanted tunnel. Salarus whispered a quick spell and hurled it at Anton while the stone man reformed himself into a boulder. “Increased weight,” he said to Kade before the question was asked, and they both watched in fascination and disgust as Anton rolled over the countless, fleshy bodies, leaving nothing but a flattened, wet trail of gore in its wake.