The Power of Ten, Book Five: Versatile Wizardry

There wasn’t a lot the Great Beasts could do to help me with the Pyramid, other than make sure I had the stone available to work with, which was literally the work of a few minutes for the numbers of them gathered there.

I did have to boost my Stonecarving skill to the 50+ Level to do this right, but that was fine, just an investment in Feats and Masteries as I slowly applied Karma and did what I had to do. Favor of the Imperial Artisan swapped it over to Concentration for long-term application, and I just stayed Focused as I went about my task.

I couldn’t affect as big an area as Aelryinth due to current Valence restrictions, which meant basically a twenty-foot cube a minute. However, the first time I finished one, it levitated itself off the ground, and drifted out over the continual vivic burn of the Breach to soak in its energy, all the Great Beasts watching widened their eyes in amazement.

Their power was all about devastating, overwhelming force, not intricate precision, after all. The level of control I was displaying in the carving of the stones, so much so that they literally Enchanted themselves, had many of them studying the stones in utter astonishment as I continued to make more of them.

That I could make them so quickly at the same time, and each Pattern on each cube was changed slightly to accommodate the flows of energy linking stone to stone, building up power with each entirely separate Formation, astounded them despite themselves. After all, they would have simply formed up a great mound of stone, then Shaped it all bit by bit as one cohesive whole, instead of this odd piecemeal approach which was making something greater than the sum of its parts.

I was making a steep fifty-stepper, with nearly forty-three thousand blocks involved, minus any internal areas and spaces I left empty. At optimally sixty blocks an hour at this point, with a Sudden Widened Expanded Shape Stone, even overcast with Magery Mana for greater effect, it was going to be a couple of months of work to assemble it.

So, it took me four days to make the bottom level of twenty-five hundred blocks, first making one long line of them floating out there above the vivus, then another line took shape and finished before being drawn over to the first one and sealing together in a double row, even as I started on the third.

All the Great Beasts staying around to watch felt the surge as the first block of floating stones Sealed themselves properly into a cohesive whole, the thrumming power of channeled vivus energizing all of them and further solidifying this conduit into a cohesive whole, helping Burn the incoming energy faster and more purely as it did so. The smaller and braver Beasts actually prowled about the top of the thousand-foot floating plaza mosaic and Pattern they formed together, amazed at its power.

The next tier of forty-nine-by-forty-nine blocks began to assemble above it, drawn into position, but unable to join the full Pattern until its layout was complete.

I spent twelve hours a day at that task, and then nearby started working on the Healing Circle.

An Emerald Swan, one of the great Healer Lineages of the Beast World, had volunteered to oversee it after word passed around of what I wanted to do. The sacred Avian watched as the Great Beasts flattened an area of ground here, where the territories of multiple Emperors met, where the Pyramid was going up, the Breach was burning, and obviously the power of the Beast Lord was omnipresent and His attention upon the place.

None of them would dare seek to claim control of it.

I had to Consecrate the entire area on both the Primal and Divine levels, something that had never been done in the Beast World before. The alien, yet benevolent power of Heaven coming down and Blessing the area with true Holy power was remarked upon by many of the Great Beasts. They watched closely as I scribed the Patterns of the Seal and Circle there, filled in Runes and Sigils with the gold they provided me, and wound truly Sacred power into the whole thing as I Sang the Heartsong and harmonized the whole thing together to a degree the Great Beasts simply could not emulate.

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It did not take long for the basic Healing power to become available.

“Like this, Elder,” I said calmly, reaching out with Healing energy and infusing it into the basic Circle. The towering Emerald Swan, a Noble Avian whose neck stretched to over eighty feet high, with feathers glittering like metallic emeralds, watched with glowing golden eyes.

After activating the vivus-infused Patterns, the first set of Seals all woke up swiftly, altering the power there to a Healing effect. They swept rapidly around the Circle and lit it up with a Holy Healing effect clearly more powerful than the basic energy I had used.

“You can Heal slowly and constantly, conserving energy, or swiftly and powerfully, as you care to. But as always, gentleness is the key. Harmony and care, mercy and kindness in mind as you do this.” I waved my hand, and a small horde of Warrior-level Beasts still nursing injuries carefully followed the paths into the hundred-meter Circle, taking up the smaller Circles spaced carefully inside of the larger one so as to maximize, yet focus, the Healing powers it could channel.

If the Holiness about the place made them uneasy, at least it was not hostile in the slightest.

I triggered the minor spell, and a mass Lesser Vigor rippled across all of the Beasts, making them call out in surprise and relief as it coursed gently across them, carefully mending wounds and easing their pain as it did so. It was Fast Healing, so it would leave little to no scarring, and it would also deal with internal injuries and any scarring there, worrying them away and leaving behind unbroken and unblemished flesh under the power of Heaven.

If they felt the kindly warmth of Goodness as it did so, well, that was totally by design.

The Emerald Swan bobbed her head in recognition of what to do. I pulsed a Cure Light Wounds through it, and she cocked her head at the greater speed of the effect, but it left subtle scarring behind that might need to be addressed.

I had her use the Healing Light of her own power at lowest power, and the Beasts called out in gratitude as it swept over them.

“This is a most wondrous thing you have made for the Beast Realm,” the Emerald Swan acknowledged of me, as she continued with the slow, patient healing of hundreds of Beasts at a time with scarcely any use of her strength at all. “And you say that it will also be able to heal wounds of the soul?” she repeated in astonishment, waving her verdant wings excitedly.

I pointed upwards at the golden sun of the Beastworld. “We bring down the Light of Heaven to cleanse the soul, and then to ease its pain and return it to full. Such injuries are dangerous, of course, but over the course of a night and day, you should be able to burn away any Curses less powerful than an Emperor’s own, and deal with any spiritual injuries inflicted by less than a Realm Lord, even if they are old and deep.

“Of course, the more powerful the Beast to be treated and the injury inflicted, the longer it will take and the more power. But none should be beyond your own power to Heal, although you may need to rest and recover your strength afterwards.

“Perhaps you might wish to keep another Healing Beast or two with you to take over the more routine Healing in such events. As this is a central location where many Beasts may gather, it should not be so difficult.”

“I will speak with the Emperors about this,” she agreed solemnly. Although only a Baroness herself, the Healing Beasts all held influence far greater than their power in the Beast World, for obvious reasons. “What of those outside the territory of the five Emperors, who wish to avail themselves of this place?”

“I would make trails along the stone and sky, that supplicants to the Healing Circle can travel upon. As long as they deviate not from the path, declare them safe to come, and safe to go. I do not believe it is something that other Beasts will use for invasion, given the Beast Lord is watching this place.”

“It is not our way,” the great Avian warbled in agreement, watching as the first of the Warrior-class Beasts stood up, fully Healed and ready to depart. Some would take longer than others, of course, but breaking the Greater Circle would end the effect, so they merely waited patiently as other Beasts, predator and prey species alike, slowly rose to their feet, limned in soft golden light, to indicate they were done.

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The second set of Circles allowed the attending Beast to administer the Blessing Magic at the same time, which could immensely speed up and purify the Healing magic, at cost of greater energy. It allowed even dire and life-threatening injuries to be so treated, and could even fight some extremely potent poisons.

The last Circle was actually of the Light magic, and required a Commander-Class or higher level of power to work. This was the power that brought down the Light of the sun and moon, Cleansing even the most potent physical and spiritual residues, and empowering the Healing and Blessing Magic to their utmost extent, leaving them able to attend to ills even Emperors were suffering, if need be.

There were quite a few Beasts who had suffered grievous and slow-healing spiritual injuries during the many battles against the Dark Realm. Soon enough, they were laying under the Light of Heaven for a day and a night, bathing in Holy Mercy as the pains of their sacrifices were Restored to them, fueled by the power of the Healing Beasts of all kinds who came to assist in the process.

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“You are very sneaky and clever, but I have been expecting you. Please come out.”

I turned my eyes on the riot of new greenery nearby, the flowering bushes already showing years of growth inside a mere month. This forest was going to be very different than the one before, with isolated forest giants standing like skyscrapers scattered here and there, while a wild variety of other life filled the spaces below and around them with almost riotous vitality. The number of Beasts flocking to these lands was impressive in both numbers and variety, as the pure spread and assortment of plant life attracted many species who had not lived here before.

There was a moment of hesitation before something blurred amid the greenery, coming out of near-invisibility to sudden presence not twenty paces from me.

The Fox was the size of a horse, fairly average for one of the young ones, and sitting at the Great Servant-Class, ready to break through to Warrior, but without the resources to do so. He looked very much like a standard red fox, except his coat was an incredibly vivid scarlet, his breast and tail-tip a very pure white, and his muzzle, paws, and ears a much deeper black than a terrestrial fox would ever have.

All in all, he was quite striking, leaving one to wonder how such a creature who stood out so much could possibly be as elusive and invisible as the Crimson Ghost Foxes were.

“Can understand?” he yipped in surprise, crouched and ready to flee in an instant as he stared at me. He was still a very young Fox, and as a Servant-level Beast, not much smarter than a younger child.

“Of course you can. Come. You have watched me long enough, and you know I am no enemy to the Beasts, nor am I going to prey on you for any reason.” I waved him in politely, and, after his bushy tail twitched a few times in hesitation, he padded towards me with silence very unexpected in something so large, even the grass beneath him not crinkling as it should.

A number of the more powerful Beasts in the area glanced over in surprise to see him, clearly not having sensed his presence, and then simply looked away. A Servant, however powerful or whatever their Bloodline might be, was of no threat to them.

He came forward to smell me carefully, as well as feel my utter lack of fear of him. Domination was established, but I wasn’t bearing down on him, which likely would simply have made him flee.

“Let me look at you here. You are very handsome, you know.” He preened despite himself as telekinetic fingers stroked him down, tongue lolling in a familiar manner. I caressed his skin, feeling the spiritual strength that could turn silken hair into basically body armor at need. Spiritual Beasts all basically had at least 10 points of Damage Reduction/Magical, not much different than werefolk in other places, which made them impervious to most ‘normal’ damage, up to the level of rifle and shotgun rounds. It would take concentrated machine-gun fire to do any level of damage to most Spiritual Beasts, unless magical ammunition of some kind was being used, which was why they were so feared by most mortals.