Seth: “That’s where I come in! Greetings, friends, and welcome to my home. I’m Seth, the caretaker of these fine volumes. Perhaps I can be of assistance?”
Oh, man. I totally panicked and overdid it.
They didn’t seem to care, though. All at once, the entire group started talking over each other. I closed my eyes and plastered on a smile, waiting for an opportunity to cut in.
Seth: “Alright, that’s enough! Quiet down, please! To be honest, I overheard most of your… discussion, and there’s a lot to process there. A lot of unpacking to do. Luckily for you, I’ve already determined what both groups are looking for, and I’d be more than happy to help you out."
Every one of them looked at me incredulously. Was that doubt? Ouch. Time to up the ante.
Seth: “Not to overstep, but you’re all in a bit of a hurry, are you not? Nobody wants to waste time searching when what they need is so close. And so, I’d like to propose a deal.”
I gambled on a pause here. I needed them to feel involved, and monologuing wasn’t going to help with that. Predictably, the priest spoke up, eyeing me with suspicion.
Maxentius: “What kind of ‘deal’ are you talking about?”
Seth: “I promise to give you exactly the information you’ve come here for, and you can waste no time returning to your mission. I only ask one thing - that you take me with you.”
The cultist raised an eyebrow, those dismissive, kohl marked eyes cutting a thousand yard stare. That’s… actually pretty intimidating.
Maeve: “Putting aside your weird request for the moment... Why exactly should we trust you with this?”
Seth: “Because I’ve memorized the entire contents of this library.”
They continued to stare at me. Yep, that is definitely doubt. I anticipated this skepticism, though, and I’m prepared to show off a little.
Seth: “Go ahead. Test me.”
Sharing a look amongst themselves, the group wandered for a few moments, pulling out books they were familiar with or just ones that seemed really challenging. After a moment they began haphazardly throwing questions my way.
Orchid: “What year was the central kingdom of Providence founded?”
Seth: “345 After Yreth.
Maxentius: “What is the earliest recorded mention of Yreth’s divine laws of commerce?”
Seth: “Oral Traditions of the Ordered Faith, Elivque Bionbyr, 500 With Yreth.”
Xenna: “Explain the aetheric principle wherein potential energy rapidly shifts from one state to another.”
Seth: “Basically, mages can trap potential energy, called aether, into a mystical orb representing their influence, then channel their will into it, forming the aether into a new state of their choosing - provided, that is, that the mage thoroughly understands the principles behind the new state-”
Alsatia: “Who were the Cenotaph?”
Seth: “The Cenotaph were an ancient people who possessed radically advanced technology and magic, but rejected Yreth. They are no longer believed to exist among us after extensive wars between our people, and it is unanimously believed that we have Yreth to thank for our victory.”
Wolfgang: “Are the Cenotaph the only species that humanity is responsible for driving to extinction?”
Seth: “...No. We were forced to defend our settlements from territorial dragons as well, in the earliest days. But once we realized they could actually be killed… we couldn’t seem to stop ourselves.”
Maeve: “What is Bedlam?”
Seth: “It is believed to be a plane of existence beyond our own where the laws of reality and causality as we know them do not apply. Powerful beings are thought to exist there, known simply as the Denizens of Bedlam, but little is actually known of them and their intentions at this time.”
After a little more of that, the group seemed satisfied, even impressed. I couldn’t help but feel a little proud that my mind-numbing years of study had finally paid off in a big way. Sure, some of my information was a little out of date, but nevertheless it was pulled right from the text, word for word. Still, I couldn’t rest easy yet. Proving I was useful was one thing. Proving I was trustworthy was something else entirely.
Zyturak: “And so we return to the question at hand. Why do you wish to accompany us?”
He looked at me with unbelievable focus. I couldn’t help but feel nervous at the scrutiny, so I just told the truth.
Seth: “I’m…well, I’m a prisoner.”
I cast my eyes to the floor, embarrassed about it for reasons I couldn’t place. The intensity with which Zyturak looked at me disappeared, replaced by contemplation.
Seth: “It might be hard to believe, but my parents dumped me in here when I was a kid and never came back. I guess technically it’s supposed to be my duty to watch over this place, but aside from the information you’ve journeyed here for, and maybe that Cenotaph Interface over there, nothing here was remotely worth losing over twenty years of my life.”
Alsatia, who had been admiring the Interface since she arrived, looked sheepish. Xenna spoke with barely more than a whisper, unable to make eye contact.
Xenna: “That certainly is… difficult to believe.”
Maxentius narrowed his eyes at me.
Maxentius: “If you are a prisoner, you may well have deserved your fate-”
Maeve, whose expression had softened somewhat after hearing my story, interrupted him with a spiteful grin.
Maeve: “Wow, put him on a stake already.”
Maxentius: “-however, I believe in innocence until guilt is proven. Care to submit your testimony to Yreth, God of Law and Truth? Surely it will be a mere formality for you.”
I shrugged, eager to move the process along. Though I had been in the archives for decades, with a chance like this right in front of my face I didn’t think I could stand to stay another hour. After a small ritual involving a candle and a set of scales, Maxentius gazed through me almost like Zyturak had, except his eyes were now burning holes of light.
Seth: “I am a prisoner here, cast away by my mother and father to serve as caretaker to these archives forevermore.”
My one sentence biography was pulled from me without any input on my part. All at once the light was gone. Maxentius looked to Zyturak, who gave a small nod. I took that to mean he had tested me in his own way, and the results lined up.
Maxentius: “Well, it looks like you believe what you say at least, odd as your story may be. And despite what others in our company might insinuate…”
He shot a scalding look at Meave, who stuck her pierced tongue out at him.
Maxentius: “...I would like to see you freed from your sentence at once. What, exactly, is keeping you here?”
I gestured to the hallway.
Seth: “There’s a strong energy field... It doesn’t affect anyone but me. When I try to pass through it, I feel waves of pain until I’m physically too weak to keep moving. And if I had to guess, there’s almost definitely worse further down the hall.”
The eight of them briefly talked amongst themselves. Suddenly the group was no longer a bickering mess. They moved quickly and efficiently to their area of expertise, preparing as best they could like cogs in a well-oiled machine. I began to wonder just how capable this odd group really was.
Alsatia sat down at the Cenotaph Interface with a wide smile and began typing at staggering speeds.
Xenna studied the magical trap that had been my bane for decades, scanning for aetheric flaws that only her ghost white eyes could see.
Orchid walked up and down the hall itself, examining the structural integrity of the walls and searching for any irregularities.
Wolfgang moved outside, crouching with hand outstretched to the ground, his eyes closed as if communicating with the earth itself.
Sai seemed to be meditating, cerulean and alabaster energy swirling around him, while Zyturak stood where he could see everybody, using his insight to advise the group.
Maxentius and Maeve, of course, were praying to their respective deities, he by speaking hymns aloud and she by whispering quiet secrets.
I simply stared in awe at the coordination this discordant group was actually capable of, before remembering to pack some last minute bags.
Within a half hour, everyone was ready for Operation: Freedom. Alsatia had figured out how to sync the Cenotaph Interface with the hallway and discovered several traps which she deactivated with a few choice keystrokes.
Orchid uncovered and destroyed a nasty one which would have apparently begun firing lasers at me (what the HELL mom and dad!).
Xenna had peeled away a number of aetheric barriers, and Wolfgang unravelled a few more from outside that lay too close to the earth’s domain.
Sai and Orchid were serving as my bodyguards should any of the traps remain, with Maxentius, Maeve, and Zyturak serving as magical support. Maeve flashed a wicked grin my way.
Maeve: “So, are you ready to leave this washed-up tomb behind?”
I replied with one of my own.
Seth: “You’re damn right!”
She laughed.
Maeve: “You’d better be worth the trouble!”
Then, Maxentius counted everyone down, and my heart started pounding.
Maxentius: “Three… Two… One… By the power invested in me as a priest of Yreth, we release you from this prison!”
At his signal, we started moving. Orchid was ahead of me with her shield raised, while Sai stood to my left and Zyturak to my right. Maeve and Maxentius took the rear. My mind screamed in warning as I approached the hall, bracing for the familiar pain...
But it didn’t come. Xenna had successfully dispelled the trap.
Seth: “I- I’m past the barrier!”
I laughed giddily as we kept moving. I’m seriously getting out of here!
I was suddenly drawn out of my euphoria as a turret swung down from the ceiling and began to open fire, this one not with lasers, but actual bullets. Sai pulled me down with astonishing speed as Orchid blocked the barrage with her shield. She called over her shoulder, increasing worry in her voice as her shield dented and warped under the assault.
Orchid: “Alsatiaaaaa!?”
Alsatia: “Sorry! Missed one!”
The artificer responded semi-apologetically from the Interface. Of course, she was tinkering with the incredibly complex inner workings of a Cenotaph machine, so the fact that any of the traps had been deactivated was nothing short of incredible. Maxentius called out to Yreth, his hand glowing as he imbued Orchid with some kind of golden aura. Miraculously, her shield held out for another half minute until the turret finally deactivated. I laughed nervously. Despite the danger, Orchid gave me a comforting smile as her shield's aura faded, restoring it to perfect form.
Orchid: “Are you alright?”
I nodded, trying to catch my breath. Sai responded in a huff.
Sai: “Of course he's fine! I’m right beside him, aren’t I?”
Orchid nodded at the ascetic’s response.
Orchid: “Then let’s keep going.”
Moving even more cautiously now, we got about halfway before the left wall suddenly fired off a barrage of blades. Before I even noticed them, Sai had deflected the ones aiming for me in a blur with his bare hands, which were now laced with that same brilliant energy I had noticed swirling around him before. I thanked my saviour but my blood ran cold as I realized someone was hit.
Seth: “Maeve!”
But no one else seemed to worry much, even her own companions. Could her status as a cultist be the reason? Blood trickled down her side, but something was off. There was too much of it…
I was about to panic, but I felt a soft reassurance from outside of myself. I looked around in confusion until Zyturak put a hand on my shoulder and pointed to Maeve’s wound. The blood was thickening quickly, forming into some kind of preternatural black and red tendril which seemed to move with a mind of its own.
Maeve: “Sorry, priest. Was hoping to avoid the blasphemies today...”
She drawled the words, clearly not sorry at all. Maxentius merely rolled his eyes. Confident she wasn’t conventionally hurt, we reached the final few feet when a massive pendulum blade swung straight down the middle of the tunnel toward us. Vines suddenly burst through the wall at Wolfgang’s command, wrapping around the blade and slowing its arc just enough for Maeve’s bloody tendril to slice cleanly through the fulcrum, causing the whole thing to fall harmlessly into the floor in front of us.
Maxentius looked at the blade, then to Maeve with something like respect.
Maxentius: “Well... I suppose I can forgive this particular blasphemy, just this once.”
Despite that needlessly deadly experience, there was nothing else standing in our way. As we came out the other side of the Hallway of Freedom I shielded my eyes from the blazing sun and resisted the urge to kiss the ground. Maeve’s additional new limb was temporary, apparently, and it sloughed off her body in a way that was not overly pleasant. Maxentius watched the limb dissolve into a pool of blood with immense distaste, to which the cultist just shrugged semi-apologetically. I hardly registered their shenanigans, instead staring wide eyed at the world around me as I felt the wind on my skin for the first time.
Seth: “I can’t believe it…”
Wolfgang laughed.
Wolfgang: “And I can’t believe you survived alone in that place for this long! What did you eat?”
I groaned.
Seth: “There was a fish pond and mushroom farm in the basement… If I ever have to eat a mushroom again, it’d better be poisonous.”
Maxentius cleared his throat.
Maxentius: “Well, you’re free to seek out the local cuisine at your leisure. But first…?”
Ah, right. I wasn’t exactly sure what I was going to do with my newfound freedom, but something told me staying together as a big happy family wasn’t an option. There were clearly two opposing groups here, and they weren’t going to be joining together no matter how formidable a team they made. So it was time to choose…
