Ends of Magic

The council of war wasn’t held in the control room for the city enchantments - there wasn’t enough space. Instead it happened in a grand dining room around a table that could seat thirty. Everything in the room was enchanted - the stone table sent glowing ripples away from every touch while the chairs conformed to the bodies of those who sat.

The Heirs entered the room and were introduced to Myrla, the scribe who’d taken over many of the administrative duties of running Halsmet. She was a pale-skinned woman on the far side of middle age and she seemed to be taking great joy in sitting in the throne-like chair at the head of the table. Olad stood at her right hand while a small group of scribes stood and sat on her left. She wore a comfortable-looking orange robe that wasn’t quite the right size for her.

She nodded respectfully to the Heirs. “Adventurers of Gemore - friends all.” Then she addressed Nathan. “Your face is familiar. Yesterday you banished the spell that has shackled me since I was a girl. As easily as I erase ink on a page - a Giant’s deed. A dragon’s deed, to do so to every slave in the city. This is a time of Ascension, Nathan Lark.”

Wonder what that means.

He was saved from having to come up with a response by new arrivals. Specifically, the reinforcements from Gemore. Nathan had been expecting the Guardians, Stanel and Gale Shullet, the crow-woman who led the Seven Fools.

He hadn’t been expecting Sudraiel, Kozar and nearly twenty other team leaders.

How many people can Stella’s parents bring with them? Who’s left in Gemore? I know there are almost thirty Adventuring teams - so this is more than half of the Adventurers in Gemore and most of the projected combat power. Is Jolba in charge back home?

The large room was overfilled with this many people, and Nathan and the Heirs stood to the side as they sorted themselves out. Kozar sent Nathan a glare, but went to stand against the far wall without saying anything. The Guardians of Gemore stopped nearby, and Kullal moved towards the Heirs with her arms wide before Dalo dragged his wife back, whispering something into her foxlike ear. Kia merely sent her son an approving glance. Nathan tried to catch her eye, to signal that he wanted to chat with her later.

Sudraiel took the chair at the other end of the table - facing Myrla. The guildmistress met Nathan’s gaze and rolled her eyes with obvious level of exasperation.

“Faline? I know you’re here. Come out.” Sudraiel’s tone was mild, but she was clearly not in the mood to tolerate any nonsense.

The assassin faded into notice. She was in her black-clad guise, with glowing green eyes and long dark hair streaked with color. She was leaning on the throne-like chair Myrla was sitting in, twirling a knife through her fingers. “I’ve long aimed to kill the occupant of this chair. Now I’m in place, but the occupant is different.”

Myrla squawked and jumped at Faline’s sudden appearance, but Olad and all of the Adventurers took it in stride.

Sudraiel simply glared at the grinning woman. “Exea has fled. Is there imminent danger of an attack to retake this city?”

Faline stepped up to the table next to Olad, laying her dagger down on its surface and becoming more serious. “No. The archmage of Halsmet has lost much standing, and every mage of Giantsrest knows she fled a slave uprising caused by a small force of Adventurers. Every joke will cut her, and many of her friends will seek new allegiances.” The assassin paused for a second, enjoying the tension as the room hung on her words.

“But she is still an archmage, and has favors and power fit to challenge prophecy. Some ambitious mages may think to retake Halsmet and usurp its industry and prestige, but Exea’s first target will to be to crush them and make it clear that the only one to retake this city shall be her.”

Faline flicked her hand out to point in Nathan’s direction. “They will also hear tales of the ‘Mage-breaker,’ and will be hesitant to attack with such an unknown. Mages died and Exea fled her city. Any with more intelligence than a muckgrabber will know this isn’t a matter of throwing a few fireballs and casting some paralysis spells. They will know to bring non-mage soldiers, which will slow them down enough for Exea to exert her influence.”

She stopped, then tapped her finger on the table to emphasize the next point. “But we have dripped blood in Exea’s eyes - she will attempt to retake Halsmet with every force she can muster. But that work will move at the speed of Giantsrest politics, which is measured in dinner parties.”

The assassin picked her dagger back up off the table, idly twirling it once before it vanished. “We have three to four weeks before any significant attack. There may be probing attacks starting as soon as a week, but their goal will be to pick people off and gather information on our defenses. When the main attack comes, it will be heavy. Exea will be able to secure contributions from every archmage of Giantsrest, in soldiers and mages if not their personal involvement. None of the archmages will like the precedent of the fall of Halsmet - but all will wish to secure their piece of Exea’s hoard.”

Sudraiel nodded gravely. “Does the Questor change these calculations?”

Faline shot a look at Nathan, biting the inside of her lip as she thought. “No. From what we know the Questor - Badud - intends to lead an expedition to conquer Gemore. He is likely to see Exea’s effort as convenient, and support her on the condition that the army that marches on Halsmet continues to Gemore afterwards. Badud will join the army when it marches.”

That pronouncement caused the Adventurers to trade a series of grim looks with one another, and Nathan heard Kia’s gauntlets creak as she reached unconsciously for the giant greatsword on her back.

Wait. Are we trusting this? This analysis seems kind of threadbare. How does Faline know this?

Kozar seemed to share Nathan’s distrust, speaking up for the first time since he’d entered the room. “How certain are you? This conjecture is no prophecy I trust.”

The assassin gave the old adventurer a syrupy-sweet smile and replied in a condescending tone. “Dear Kozar, this is my Path. I know the workings of Giantsrest as you know the veins on your own spear-shaft. There will be much complexity to the politics, but I am certain that it will take time, and that it will end where I have prophesied.”

Kozar’s face grew thunderous and he opened his mouth to reply, but Faline cut him off by turning back to the guildmistress. “Have we received a Questor of our own?”

Sudraiel shook her head. “No. The guards are keeping an eye out, and we’ll be looking here as well.”

Faline pursed her lips. “Then this prophecy is as solid as any. There will be no battle of this kind without Questors on both sides. Badud will seek to smother our fire, to sunder all that Halsmet could become. A Questor will join us. It is the way of Davrar, as certain as the Endings.”

Several people looked confused or quizzical at the statement, but most didn’t. Both Kia and Gale nodded gravely at Faline’s words.

This seems important to understand.

“Why? Gemore has been attacked before without a Questor showing up.” Nathan asked.

“Fate.” Kia was the one who spoke, and her eyes glowed golden as she turned them on Nathan.

“This is no skirmish as has come before. You have freed a city - and the coming clash will be the largest of any since the founding of Gemore. What will happen - “

She trailed off as her red-gold hair started glowing. It slipped loose of the crown braid and started rising into the air, as if Kia was underwater. The light from her eyes intensified, and more escaped her mouth as she spoke in a voice that shook the building.

“Five hundred years of accumulated strength - unleashed in a battle of Giants and water to lay low a Questor. Ruin will be brought to an ancient city by a mage beyond Endings - and the outcome will determine when the Ending of History begins.”

Kia’s voice stopped as if cut off with a knife and she raised a shaking hand to massage her forehead. The silence was quickly filled with quiet cursing from nearly every elderly adventurer in the room. The word ‘prophecy’ was repeated a few times.

So that’s what a real prophecy looks like. Huh. Frustratingly vague - though it implies that we can at least affect the Endings.

Kozar fixed Nathan with a glare. “Shoulda’ never come to Halsmet. Returned to Gemore, like any with a ghoul’s wisdom would have. Now good adventurers are dead, and Gemore faces its doom. If not Giantsrest, then the Ending that will follow.”

A few people shot him glares, but more were still trying to wrap their heads around Kia’s prophecy. A couple of the Adventurers Nathan didn’t know seemed to agree with Kozar.

Vhala spoke up, her voice full of venom. “You think Nathan should have abandoned his teammates? Or fled when he could fight those who enslaved our ancestors?” She hissed at him derisively. “You’re a coward, Kozar Bho. Nathan has freed a city. If we flinch from striking back at Giantsrest, we will never be free of them. A prophecy only means the outcome is uncertain!”

For a second Nathan thought that Kozar was about to challenge Vhala to a duel. But then he looked around and saw a ring of unfriendly faces, the guildmistress’s and every single freed slave featuring primarily among them. Olad gave one shake of his head, and Kozar glared around generally. “Fah - this will be the end of Gemore.”

Stanel cleared his throat from the corner. “A weighty prophecy around the battle to be sure. The question must be asked - should we retreat to Gemore?” He held up his hands when Myrla and the other freed slaves of Halsmet shot him dirty looks. “We’ll bring everybody with us! But if this city will be attacked, and ‘five hundred years of strength unleashed’, maybe we should be somewhere else.”

“Here, there - the stories say you can never dodge a true prophecy.” Kia’s voice was scratchy, her unbound hair now flowing down her armor like a golden waterfall. “It will come for us. Badud was always going to attack. Halsmet is now his cry to rally the mages of Giantsrest. It will be a battle of Questors, but we must burn brightly enough to follow the Path now before us.”

I think it’s more gold than it was before. Only hints of red left.

More voices rose in argument, but Sudraiel slapped her hand down on the table with a loud crack. “We stay and defend Halsmet. Better to fight here, on territory they value too much to devastate. To read into prophecy is foolish - the meaning is only that this fight will not end in a stalemate. With us here they will focus on this city, not on Gemore and not on the villages. We will fight.”

“The freed people of Halsmet will fight with you.” Olad said, glancing at Myrla and receiving a nod in return.

The old scribe frowned and turned to address Sudraiel. “What of Halsmet’s loyalty? Will you ask us to swear our allegiance to Gemore?”

Sudraiel waved her hand dismissively. “Politics. Unimportant politics. We are not Giantsrest - but Gemore and Halsmet are tied together already. The details will be worked out in a series of very boring council meetings you will be part of. You may wish to throw a trusted underling to the Stalkers instead.”

The elderly guildmistress shrugged. “More important is working together to slay this waking Giant. Faline says we have time. We will use it to organize and prepare.”

Then she turned towards Faline once more, glancing between her and the Heirs. “But first, I would hear how in the steel shrieker’s shit this happened! One day I hear that the Heirs were captured, but are now freed and trapped in Halsmet, and an archmage is dead. Then the Guardians slam through my door, demanding a rescue. Then the next day Halsmet is freed and Exea fled.”

Her look became a curmudgeonly glare. “If my words tell the tale whole I’ll take up hydra farming. Explain yourself, Faline Sklaria.”

The dark-haired assassin drew herself up and smirked. “I won’t stare the ghoul in the eyes. This deed and plan belong to Nathan Lark. I argued against it - but he was stubborn as adamant.”

All of the eyes in the room swiveled to Nathan, and he rolled his eyes at Faline.

You could have phrased that more favorably. I asked the original question as a thought experiment, fully willing to abandon the idea if it seemed untenable - and it didn’t.

Kia spoke up, her voice commanding but not aggressive. “Speak. Tell us how you came to Halsmet and blazed a Path to victory in a day - a victory sought for centuries.”

Nathan looked around with a sudden bout of nerves. He held a degree of respect and awe for many of the experienced Adventurers here now. Sudraiel and Kia, Vhala and Gale - they had managed to carve out some measure of safety on the deathworld of Davar.

But I’ve accomplished something they couldn’t. I can fight any mage, but I couldn’t kill a Castlebear. I’m proud of what I’ve done here, and want to do it again.

“I’ll start at the beginning. I’d made an enemy of archmage Taeol dho Droxol, and he wanted to capture me. He tried to ambush the Heirs outside the town of Farfield when we were on a mission out west. It failed and he was the only one of five mages to escape.”

We killed three and captured one. I wonder how Harthi’s doing? Presumably still back in Gemore.

The Guardians had all heard this before, but many of the older Adventurers hadn’t. Lycaste spoke up, the armored orc looking confused. “How in the dungeon of fools did an archmage get all the way to Farfield?”

Dalo replied, his arms crossed. “Archmage. [Mass Teleport] or some such secret of the Questors.’”

Nathan nodded back. “[Enlarged Teleport]. Badud was dangling the Insights of [Mass Teleport] just beyond his grasp as a reward. Regardless, after that we decided to be hard to find - so we went south, and lost ourselves in the wilderness.”

He cast his mind back to those days, where they’d been trying to get lost in the southern wastelands. It hadn’t been as carefree as the time out west - but there had still been a feeling of seeking the horizon. Before they’d been interrupted. “Taeol woke up an Old Gemore Fortress Foundry to threaten Tarren and flush us out.”

Nathan glanced towards Kozar. “We went to relieve Tarren, then met up with the Old Hands and the Legacy of Gemore to destroy the Fortress Foundry. But Taeol was watching. When we left, he followed us - and called in the Questor to ensure his victory. Badud struck the night after we left, casting several spells to incapacitate us.”

“Is this truth or a flattering guess?” Kozar glared back at Nathan, his arms crossed.

Nathan pursed his lips, meeting Kozar’s gaze calmly. “Truth. Badud mentioned it when he was lecturing Taeol. He said he would only teach Taeol more magic when he killed or captured me, then kidnapped the other Heirs to force the conflict.”

A spell of sound and dreams manifested next to Nathan’s ear, and he almost canceled it instinctively. Then he recognized the source - and let the spell complete.

Gale’s voice emerged from the spell - and it was loud enough to be audible to everybody. “The Questor left you alone?”

“Yup. They couldn’t exactly [Teleport] me back. I think Badud expected the kidnapping to bring me to them under my own power. But I don’t think they expected me to charge straight to Halsmet and arrive the next day. If I had to guess, Badud thought I was going to go back and get the Guardians. He might have wanted to ambush them when we tried to rescue the Heirs - but taking Halsmet blew that plan out of the water, especially with so many elite Adventurers here.”

I could be way off, but that sounds reasonable.

There were some mutters around the room at Nathan’s supposition.

He turned towards Faline, nodding respectfully. “When I got here, I didn’t have much of a plan beyond busting my way into Taeol’s mansion and freeing the Heirs, but Faline found me before I raised any alarms. She helped me get to Taoel’s mansion. I killed Taeol and freed the Heirs from his custody.”

Several disbelieving Adventurers tried to ask questions, but Sudraiel held up her hand again. “Allow the tale to be told.”

Nathan nodded his thanks and continued. “Faline took us to a safehouse she has in the city, protected from the detection enchantments. When we scouted to plan our escape, it became clear that Giantsrest knew we were still in the city and were trying to catch us.”

I probably shouldn’t mention the second class thing.

He met the assassin’s eyes across the table, and she shook her head minutely. Nathan didn’t react to the signal - continuing his tale. “We decided to go on the offensive to draw their focus away from the walls. Faline and I killed a bunch of mages in the inner city, including a senior enforcement mage and a few trainees. Nobody - other than our victims - saw us.”

Faline broke in, speaking in the dramatic tones of an experienced storyteller. “Nathan’s trail sowed terror amongst them - mages slain with brute force. Many of the victims clearly defended themselves with powerful magic. But none survived, not even Taeol. Those remaining didn’t know the nature of the threat - they named him the ‘mage-breaker.’”

She paused and gave a little flourish to mark a transition, ramping up the tension in her voice. “It was as if a Terrorghast was released in a nursery, and the [Messages] grew frantic. Many mages fled to their relatives away from Halsmet. To kill the problem, Exea commanded every War Mage and slave-elite to gather into a single response force. They were to track down the mage-breaker. With this panic, we were ready to flee, but Nathan decided our path did not lie with escape.” The room hung on her words - but she gestured back for him to continue.

Definitely a bard class of some kind.

Nathan shook his head, resuming over with a matter-of-fact tone. “I saw it as an opportunity. Faline overheard where the response force was staying and what their schedule was. I knew I could break enslavement enchantments, and them gathering the biggest threat in one place meant we could strike it. We waited until the response force was resting, then Stella opened up a hole in the wall. Faline and I went in and killed the mages and I broke the enslavement enchantments.”

He shrugged. “We’d sent the rest of the Heirs down to one of the outer gates to open a path for the other Adventurers, and I took the freed elites to break open an inner gate. Then we blitzed for Exea’s mansion. There were mages in front of it - but we managed to break through their defenses and slaughter them. That’s where Delric Enesto died.”

“Remember unto Endings.” The phrase came from every Adventurer in the room.

Left out a lot of detail, but really that’s the core of it. Egall, the first few elites I tried freeing, [Leadership] - not really important at this level.

“Then we carried our momentum into an attack on Exea’s mansion, so they didn’t get a chance to respond. Artha battered the gate down, and Exea and her household were on the other side, waiting for us.” Nathan’s eyes grew shadowed as he remembered what happened next. “She killed Artha and teleported back to Giantsrest before I got my hands on her. But I disrupted the spell enough that her arm stayed in Halsmet.”

Lycaste placed a pouch in the center of the table. “With a dragon’s hoard of valuables in enchanted rings and bangles.” He shook his head. “There are so many defensive artifacts here that I cannot believe she feared any attack. These are yours, Nathan Lark.”

Nathan examined the bag for a second then pointed at Olad. “I can’t use any of it. We’ll distribute it among those who stormed Exea’s mansion. You followed me into the Castlebear’s lair, and I owe a debt for that.”

Lycaste’s eyes lit up in a smile, and Olad slapped a hand against his chest in a salute. There was some shifting from around the room as various Adventurers looked at each other and eyed the bag, but nobody challenged Nathan's word.

Leadership 4 achieved!

“That’s the story. After Exea fled, we spent a day mopping up. We reversed the detection enchantments to hunt down every remaining mage, then I freed every slave in the city.”

Status of Nathan Lark:

Permanent Talent 1: Aura of Antimagic 6

Permanent Talent 2: Perfected Body 7

Talent 3: High-tier Slow Fall 10

Class: Implacable Antimage level 210

Deepened Stamina: 6073/6600

Antimage’s Impassivity

Antimagic Momentum

Raging Thrill

Implacable Inertia

Unarmored Resilience

Improved Antimagic

Strenuous Agility

Hand-to-hand Expertise

Class: Assassin of Gemore level76

Regenerative Focus: 844/860

Catastrophic Blows

Stealthy Movement

Infiltration

Forgettable

Unsuspecting Strike

Utility skills:

Battle Meditation 8

Leadership 4

High-tier Sprinting 7

Magical Perception 6

High-tier Notice 9

Magical Intuition 3

High-tier Dodging Footwork 9

High-tier Enhanced Memory 10

Mid-tier Lecturing 10

High-tier Tumbling 7

Mid-tier Noticeability 6

Low-tier Quiet Movement 4

Low-tier Disguise 4