Dylan
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I guess I didnt need to ask if I could keep the chipmunk's spellbook. I did however need to figure out where I was. Exiting the tower put me in the middle of a large courtyard. And from the size of the building next to me, this must be the royal grounds. Oh, I really didn't wanna be here.
Just when I was about to leave, a very awake and very shocked chipmunk flew out of my pocket. He stared around us in shock, then looked at me and started chittering. "I can't speak chipmunk, but I can tell you're angry. Look, that wizard would have destroyed you after he found out what you did, and I saved you from being his lunch." I heard am audible gulp.
It seemed to be contemplating something and held out its hands. Huh? Oh. I pulled out the book and laid it out before him. He started skimming pages and stopped on a passage I could not read. But the symbols on it indicated a star map, and something to do with the constellations. "A spell?" It nodded. "Well alright. Looks pretty complicated but I'm guessing you just need to use this on whatever night those are out, right?" I earned another nod.
Cool. So what the hell were those constellations then? We heard footsteps and I quickly hid the chipmunk and his book. An older man in regal robes passed by us. And the had to do a double take. "I'm sorry, who are you, and what is your business here?"
"Uh, official business. Consortium business. Into constellations." Fuck, what did I just say? What consortium? He looked up and down a moment with a raised eyebrow.
"Didn't think they'd send a mercenary. But I suppose they need someone to take care of their mess." Wait, did I actually just stumble into something interesting?
So I guess this man's name is Bertram, and he is the head archivist of the royal archives. He brought me towards the back of them, keeping me out of the eyes of most nobles. Moving through, I felt the chipmunk move around in my vest and then he jumped from my shoulder onto some bookshelves. He looked back to signal me to keep following Bertram, before moving off somewhere else.
The backrooms of this place was kinda musty, and there were a lot of pieces of parchment with open inkwells around them. Several men were hard at work transcribing various texts and Bertram snapped their attention.
"Gentlemen, this...is uh.." Dylan. "Yes, Dylan. He has been sent by the consortium of High Wells and Charred Groves. With his help, we should be able to crack down on this latest mishap."
Shit. I hope someone mentions what exactly the problem is, I can only go so far with this false narrative I've driven. But those names are good to know, both of them are rival branches of the same group of mages based around salt lakes. I heard all three groups were fighting for council seats within the arcanium. If two of them are working together, then something big must have happened.
"Finally, we've been able to pinpoint the location of the impact site, but they should know it will not be good for either of them if it brings along something unwanted." A younger man spoke up, seeming a bit relieved to have this being lifted from his team soon.
"Uh, how did you figure where it is landing?" The fuck even is it...?
"When we first spotted the meteoroid's trajectory, we knew it was moving towards the westlands. Those mages were lucky they didn't accidentally call anything bigger, or we would have lost a large chunk of them." Whoa, okay. A space rock, gotcha. Why are they still so worried if they landed in the westlands? It's all just wild lands and ruins there.
"So, where exactly is it?"
"Landed in a ruin. One labeled do not disturb. Could be any number of restless dead down there, and the place was sealed after several excavation teams went missing. Now, there is probably a big ass hole punched through the middle of it all." Now it was Bertram speaking again. He coughed a bit to hide his embarrassment over his last sentence, earning some looks from his men.
I grinned. "Guess I've gotta dive down there and check out this rock."
"It will not be so easy. Did your employers tell you the details of what they were calling?" I thought it better to say no. "I thought so. It is a delicate matter but you should know now. It is a large source of elemental energy, seeming to harness it within its core. We do not know what dangers such a thing possesses, but recovering even a small sample could lead to some amazing findings, both about what is in our solar system and possibly beyond."
"Great, so which ruin am I hopping into?" I was starting to get a bit excited.
"Mergram's Cradle. The second largest city ruins on the western edge of our country." Oh shit, that's the place I barely escaped with my life from when I arrived in this country. But I had no idea there was a city beneath it all.
Seemingly satisfied with the briefing, I was sent off. I was told I'd be handsomely rewarded for bringing back as large a sample as I could carry, and given an enchanted bag to carry what I find in. Not to mention, they would pay extra for anything else I've found. On my way out, my chipmunk friend hopped back down to me with some papers stuffed in his mouth. How did he keep them dry in there?
Filling him in on the details, we began to set out. I wasn't too excited to find myself going back to that place, but this time I had a chipmunk wizard with me. And he found some scrolls!
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Dylan
