Vaughn always felt nervous going outside without his mask on. Always suspicious someone would recognize him, even though Seron was the only person to successfully unmask him ever since he had a reason to hide his face. He was sitting on a bench in the park he was told to go to. The red tint of Sumeria’s glasses give the place an uncanny feeling. Vaughn took the glasses at Sumeria’s request before she died. She claimed they were lucky and she wouldn’t need them once she was gone.
He began to think about luck. Vaughn certainly had a lot of it, if the glasses were the reason for that he did not know. He remembered reading about a man who lived in isolation and had no concept of luck until encountering other cultures. That person described it as “A theoretical substance that influences the outcome of events.” and it always struck Vaughn as odd.
He never thought of luck as a substance. To him it was more like a state of being. Be it good or bad luck, people simply are one of these states at completely random times. Things considered to be “Lucky” are just increasing the odds of either state happening. No one knows if luck is truly a real thing or not, but Vaughn hoped he had good luck right then as someone sat down beside him.
A half-orc in an incredibly plain outfit, likely trying to blend in and not get noticed. Vaughn could sense necromantic energies from him, this must be Danube. Neither one made eye contact or even so much as looked at each other once they both were seated. Both focusing their attention on whatever people passed by in front of them.
“Hello, I understand you knew Sumeria.” Danube said.
“I did. She was a great teacher, I can only imagine what it was like for you when you had more time with her.” Vaughn said.
“She wasn’t for everyone, had very few students in her time. I happened to be the right fit for her and the last official one she had.” Danube said.
“Hey, did you ever hear of a guy named Brisc Undgain?” Vaughn said.
“No, I don’t believe I have. Who is he?” Danube asked, while feeling confused.
“He was an old performer, been dead for a long time. His gimmick was being insanely good with a crossbow, performing all kinds of trickshots and such to entertain people. Allegedly he once shot a target perfectly as it was attached to the bottom of an airplane as it flew overhead.” Vaughn said.
“Why do you bring him up?” Danube asked.
“Because I have him on a rooftop across the street aimed right at you.” Vaughn said as he pointed towards a building behind the bench. “Now this is just me being careful, because I’ve only lived this long by being more paranoid than a king trying to avoid a prophesied death. So tell me why you asked me to come out here and how you found me.”
Danube nervously turned to look at the building behind him. It was too far away to tell for sure, but it did look like someone was standing on the roof. He turned back around but did not look towards Vaughn just yet. Danube shaked off the sudden anxieties and regained his composure.
“Did you suspect this was a trap to lure you out?” Danube asked.
“I’d be stupid not to. Oh and it’s not just Brisc, I have several others ready to go should anyone else show up.” Vaughn said.
“Well you should know I am not here to bait you into anything. I’ve come here alone because I wish to know what happened to Sumeria.” Danube said.
“Dead, taken by her illness a mere two years after we met. That was eight years ago.” Vaughn said.
“I trust her body is well hidden?” Danube asked.
“Currently lying in an unmarked grave nestled deep within a place that as far as I’m aware, only we know exists.” Vaughn said.
“The bottom of the Goddess’s Bottle?” Danube asked.
Vaughn turned to look at Danube, surprised at his answer. “How did you find out about it?”
“I was the one who discovered the place for her. An ancient text in the Gigalibrary of Asmades. We spent a lot of time there during my apprenticeship. I figured that’s where she went after she was exiled, where else could someone bask in such dense death energy. That’s how I found you after all.” Danube said.
“Explain.” Vaughn asked.
“We first learned of what was at the bottom when we discovered a stray leaf from one of the plants, allegedly harvested by a servant of the goddess for study. Even after all this time the leaf has yet to rot. The energy I can feel radiating from you is exactly like that leaf. Wasn’t hard to use it and track you down.” Danube said.
“Does anyone else know?” Vaughn asked.
“After your little revelation on who gave you that power, I was quickly interrogated by the Necromancer Council about my former master’s potential whereabouts. I told them the truth, I had no solid idea where she is and that by this point her illness would have taken her. So unless someone else stumbles across that singular book among millions and comes to the same conclusion that it would make a great spot to develop magic, then I doubt anyone will find it.” Danube said.
Vaughn was relieved to know this. Samples of those plants would be perfect to use for tracking him down. Vaughn wouldn’t be able to hide if that were to happen. It would only be a matter of time before he was caught or killed.
“The council is focusing a lot into finding you. I think their idea is to force the information about your magic out of you however they can. They want it to never see the light of day again and need to know everything about it if they hope to prevent anyone from recreating it. You’ll probably be confined to some place under heavy guard afterwards. You are an incredible threat, but not something they want to outright destroy.” Danube said.
“I wasn’t planning on being caught yet. Is knowing what happened to her all you wanted from me?” Vaughn asked.
“I actually wanted to help you as best I could. Sumeria was good to me and I still feel that her exile was unjust. So consider this my revenge against those responsible.” Danube said as he handed Vaughn a small USB drive.
“And this is?” Vaughn asked.
“It’s no secret that Sumeria had theories about your magic before she developed it. She even came close once, it’s one of the reasons they exiled her in the first place. On that drive are her notes that I had digitized. They tried to destroy them, but I managed to make copies and hide them away. Could be something in there that can help you.” Danube said as he stood up.
“Thank you. I’ll look these over immediately.” Vaughn said.
“And one more thing. While I support your endeavors to explore her power, it still poses as much of a threat to me as it does other necromancers. If you make me regret not killing you here, I will not hesitate to tell the council what I know.” Danube said.
“Well, rest easy. I can assure you I will do my best to ensure this power doesn’t ruin it all for us.” Vaughn said.
“Good to hear. I wish you luck Mr. Sock-Buskin.” Danube said as he walked away.
Vaughn waited until Danube was out of sight before he stood up and walked straight back to his motel room. The USB held very interesting data as Vaughn saw when he combed through it. A large part of it was useless to Vaughn as he already knew it or were just now disproved theories, but some of it gave Vaughn ideas on how to further his goals. The next step was now clearer than ever.
When resurrecting other wizards, their magic is often weaker. Entirely due to their soul not being in their bodies anymore. Souls act as a sort of amplifier for magics. However, Sumeria had records of experiments she performed with artificial souls. It turned out the body just needed a soul, not always the original one inside of it.
Artificial souls are a recent concept in the wizarding world. It’s not a real soul, it’s more like the spiritual equivalent of creating a brain-dead clone. There was no consciousness inside it at all. Magic cannot manipulate a soul, but somehow creating a fake soul is a weird loophole in the system. The exact process behind it all was still a mystery.
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Vaughn had no way of making one himself. That would involve using a type of magic he had no experience in. There was however, a workaround. He just needed to acquire a soul already made. They stored the souls inside special crystals for study and easy transport. Getting one wouldn’t be easy, but Vaughn knew he would need one.
The assimar wizard from the forsworn Theater was unable to call forth Sumeria from the dead. While one cannot pull the dead from their realm, one can create a lure of sorts to attract someone specific. The weakened abilities of the resurrected wizard were not enough to bring out Sumeria however. Once he was given a soul though, it should be no problem at all.
Then Vaughn heard a small knock at his door. It was quiet and low to the ground. Vaughn quickly put on his mask and brought forth the ventriloquist to stand out of view from the door. He cautiously opened the door and saw no one outside. Then he looked down and saw something very strange.
A small egg-shaped creature standing on three legs and staring up at him with three small eyes. Vaughn had never seen such a creature before. He could see no one was nearby, this thing clearly came here on its own. The ventriloquist was puzzled too, unsure if this thing was a threat or not.
“The hell is that thing?” Vaughn said to himself.
“I’ve come to ask for your help.” the creature said.
Vaughn was clearly surprised that it could talk, but he wanted to get to the bottom of this quick. “Who sent you?”
“No one that’s after you. My summoner is not affiliated with the necromancer council, nor any bounty hunters.” the creature said.
“Why should I help you then? Why shouldn’t I just kill you for knowing so much about me?” Vaughn asked.
“Because I can help you get an artificial soul.” it said.
Vaughn had not even considered the soul until a few minutes ago, yet this thing knew about it. Not wanting anyone to overhear them, he quickly let the strange creature inside. It scuttled in and quickly jumped onto the bed. It looked at the ventriloquist for a bit, Vaughn had no idea how to read its body language so he had no clue what it could be thinking.
“How could you possibly know I want that?” Vaughn asked as he sat in a chair and faced the strange creature.
“You hide your eyes behind those crimson lenses, but they are clear enough for me to see into them.” it said.
“What does that mean?” Vaughn asked.
“You cannot hide anything from me. Only I know at the moment, I could always pass it on to my summoner.” it said.
“You’re a summon? You don’t look like any I’ve seen.” Vaughn said.
“Not from this reality, my summoner taps into places far beyond. He needs something and tasked me with getting it. I determined that you are the most likely medium I can use to get what I need. I am prepared to offer you something in return.” it said.
“Okay…. What do you want?” Vaughn asked.
“Your memory of falling into the bottle and accepting death. I wish to experience it firsthand so I can bring it to my creator. He is making something that requires a lot of…. Unique ingredients.” it said.
“What the…. Wait, I can’t be the only person in the city with a near death experience. And what do you mean by that? Didn’t you say you already know everything about me?” Vaughn asked.
“Yours is the key to your power. Had that not happened, then her magic would have never been passed to you. It was more than just a near death experience, it was a transformation. Take me to memory lane. Seeing it firsthand is the best way for me to observe it.” it said.
“And what am I getting in return?” Vaughn asked.
“I cannot get you a soul myself. Yet I do know where to get one and my summoner has the means to steal it. So instead of fumbling around and making more deals with that elf, I can arrange it for you.” it said.
Vaughn paused for a moment, pondering the offer. “How do I know you’re not lying and this isn't some kind of trick?”
“I will impart onto you a day in my home. It should affirm my claims.” it said as its eyes began to flash.
It was to be a simple trip to Memory Lane. A quick stroll through there and if Vaughn believed it, a trip down his side of Memory Lane for the memory. For anyone watching this, it seemed to last only a second. For Vaughn, it lasted a whole day. The things he saw were alien to him, he understood none of it then and he never would. When it ended, he had no doubt in his mind that this thing was from another place entirely.
The small creature hopped off the bed, having received what it needed and assured Vaughn would be given what he was owed for his help. Realizing it had no way to open the door, Vaughn let the small creature out. Before it could scuttle away to wherever it came from, it turned back around to face him. Its tone of voice sounded different, almost as if it was worried.
“Can I call on you in the future? I believe my summoner is going to do something, what exactly I’m still figuring out. I don’t know enough about this world to know if what I think it is will be good for the world or not.” it asked.
“Uh…. Sure? If I’m around then I’ll help.” Vaughn said.
“Good. I’ll be off. Good luck with your quest.” it said as it scuttled away.
Vaughn closed the door and locked it before laying on the bed to try and figure out what just happened.
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It wasn’t easy for Cyreen to get the information from Tsilo. The covens had to pitch in for a proper trade with him. Yara wouldn’t pay them any mind unless they had something she wanted. Tsilo admitted to giving the information on this person Yara was after simply to avoid Yara coming to get it the moment she was aware he had it. He warned Cyreen that Yara was incredibly dangerous and she had no reason to doubt him.
The coven leaders sent Cyreen to propose the deal as they all prepared to move their own covens if needed. All Cyreen had to do to get an audience with the fae queen was say she has information on someone named Clarita D'Sawunn. Next thing she knew, Cyreen was being brought to the queen’s home. None of the typical fae tricks on display either.
She stood at the bottom of a large staircase in the queen’s foyer. At the top stood the fae queen who was soon joined by someone Cyreen could only assume was Yara. They walked down to meet Cyreen, keeping some distance between them. Cyreen could sense strange magic saturated with a rage she had only felt once before in the very hunters that caught her.
“So. You have information on her?” the queen asked.
“Yes I do.” Cyreen said.
“But we’ve never dealt with you before. How do you know of our efforts against her?” the queen asked.
“I need help from someone powerful. I talked to Tsilo for any leads and he pointed me to Yara and gave me the means to make a deal with her.” Cyreen said.
“So he gave you this information?” Yara said with a voice that made Cyreen nervous.
“He told me to tell you that this information is something he came across after your initial meeting together. He seems quite scared of you.” Cyreen said.
“He has good reason to be. Let us convene in private.” the queen said.
Cyreen was shown to a small den with three chairs around a fireplace. It was not the time of year for a fireplace, yet the flames gave a strange sense of comfort in this strange place. Everyone sat in a different chair as the queen commanded that they not be interrupted until the meeting was over. All doors closed and they were finally alone.
“What is the information you have?” Yara asked.
“This woman you’re after, Clarita D-” Cyreen stopped mid sentence as she could feel Yara’s rage suddenly flare up. “Well, you know who. Apparently a distant relative of hers died. As she is the only next of kin they had, a letter was mailed to her. While I have no idea where it was mailed to, it did get mailed.”
“Meaning the ones who delivered it know where she is.” the queen said.
“I understand this person is incredibly elusive. I assume this last remaining relative was some sort of oversight. Regardless, what you need is in the post office.” Cyreen said.
Yara calmed herself down with a deep breath. “What do you want in return, you need help don’t you? I’m surprised you didn’t wait until after our deal to give me the information.”
“A group of witch hunters is entering the city soon, so we don’t have time to spare. They are specifically coming after me and my coven, along with any other covens they happen across when in the city. They’re experts at fighting witches so we’re at a disadvantage, we need an edge.” Cyreen said.
“So you want me to aid you by killing them?” Yara asked.
“Yes. How it happens doesn’t bother me. Just make sure they are gone.” Cyreen said.
“I should be able to manage that. Witch hunters are often bad at fighting anything using unconventional magic like mine.” Yara said.
“So you’ll do it?” Cyreen said.
“I know what it’s like to live in fear of a foe who knows exactly how to bring you down. I’ll kill them all.” Yara said.
“I’ll have my scouts find where they are.” the queen said.
“A potential problem just occurred to me. She will undoubtedly be aware of the letter sent to her. There will likely be someone watching the post office for me. I need you to retrieve the information.” Yara said.
“Why me?” Cyreen asked.
“Same reason you came to me for help. Whoever will be waiting there will be expecting to fight me. You are not me, so they will be unprepared.” Yara said.
“Alright. A favor for a favor, I can do that. Tell me what I should be looking for.” Cyreen asked.
“An address, information, something to lead me to her. Promise me that and you’ll get a whole pile of dead witch hunters.” Yara said.
“We have a deal. I’ll get right to it, I hope you’ll do the same.” Cyreen said as she stood up.
The two strange women shook hands to seal the agreement. They both trusted each other to uphold their end of the deal. Cyreen soon left the fae district and looked to meet up with Lavor. She had no idea what might await her at the post office, but bringing help was always a good idea.