Lateral Movement

by Alzrius

940 - One For the Road

“By the by, lad, check Vystalaran’s gear if you want an example of fate in action.”

Odin’s voice floated through the air in the aftermath of the portal’s closure, the words seeming to glide on a nonexistent breeze before fading away, leaving Lex frowning in confusion. The only thing that made less sense than suggesting that Vystalaran’s remaining equipment was some instance of “fate” – whatever the old man meant by his nebulous use of the term – was implying that the avatar had left behind anything in the first place. After all, Belligerence had consumed him utterly...

Except, Lex realized a moment later, that wasn’t true.

Belligerence’s shape hadn’t been a perfect match for Vystalaran’s body. That meant that when it had made contact with the avatar, there had been a few small areas which had avoided touching the void that made up Belligerence’s form. Not many, and none of them were very large – a few square inches at most, and all of that clothing rather than flesh – but still a few.

Telekinetically picking up those scraps, Lex looked at them each in turn.

At a glance, none were very impressive. There was a frayed corner of a cloak, a crumpled section of cloth that could have been any kind of garment, a broken fragment of the armor he’d summoned right before being destroyed-

And stuck to the back of that piece of metal was a pouch.

Tilting his head, Lex discarded the other remnants of the avatar’s belongings as he examined the small container, not opening it right away as he instead gave it his full attention.

It had no magical aura – just like the rest of the oddments the avatar had left behind – and while its craftsmanship was exceptional, being made of velvet and inset with stitching that depicted a forest scene, it was otherwise unremarkable.

Which was enough to make Lex instantly suspicious.

Even if he had been disguising himself as a mortal, Vystalaran had still been masquerading as a wizard of great power. Given that he had been proud to the point of arrogance, having a divine aura that had made the universe revolve around himself in the most literal sense imaginable, it wasn’t hard to imagine Vystalaran playing that role to the hilt, props and all. He had, after all, used several magic items prior to revealing himself as an avatar.

And even a lowly devil like Prevarius had been scornful of magic items which didn’t have cloaking magic built into them in order to prevent anyone else from gathering information about their functionality.

Which almost certainly meant that the pouch was magical, particularly since – when he’d scanned Solvei’s memories after rushing to her aid – she’d seen Vystalaran remove and replace several staves from pouches much like this one. Which likely meant that this was another storage item, much like the ones he himself had used more than once when he’d still been mortal.

Except this one was probably trapped in case of unauthorized usage.

It was what Lex himself would have done; even now, he’d layered his pocket dimension with numerous wards and countermeasures in case anyone tried to break into it.

Except the pouch had a vulnerability that his pocket dimension didn’t.

Capitalizing on that, Lex sank his claws into the fabric, tearing the thing in half.

Sure enough, several items that were far larger than the bag immediately came spilling out, even as multiple spells activated, targeting him as well as the contents of the bag.

Fortunately, Vystalaran had apparently been quite committed to his disguise, and the spells themselves were indistinguishable from what a mortal might have used. An exceptionally powerful and skilled mortal, to be sure, but still a mortal nonetheless. Which made it easy for Lex to tear apart the spells targeting the bag’s contents via Nenet’s countermagic, even as he let his own titanic defenses and equipment endure and overcome the spells directed at himself.

There was no real risk involved, since the pouch and its contents weren’t immune to his foresight the way Vystalaran himself had been. Rather, it was simply a chore, one that Lex was eager to be done with. Solvei and the others still weren’t in imminent danger, but he wanted to get back to them as quickly as possible anyway.

Even so, the numerous secrets that Odin had hinted at made Lex hesitant to ignore the human god’s final cryptic message, and so he continued to rip apart the defenses that Vystalaran had layered.

Finally, dismissing a corrosive spell that tried to destroy the bag’s contents, Lex let the Pentachromatic Armor endure a blast of multi-elemental energy as he likewise let Out of Time cancel a spell designed to impede his reaction speed, defeating a subsequent spell designed to cause nonliving objects to shatter. That, he knew, had been the last of the bag’s protections.

With those taken care of, Lex examined what he had recovered...

As it turned out, Vystalaran had made himself out to be quite the wealthy wizard indeed.

There were almost a half-dozen staves, along with a small iron flask that was twitching on its own for some reason, a crystal ball almost the same size as Kryonex’s eye, a wooden case with a glass top through which could be seen a set of small figurines, and a thick book with a latch on the cover.

All of the items were apparently warded with the same cloaking as the pouch itself, which kept them from emitting any emanations in the magical spectrum.

Which made the one item that did radiate magic that much more noticeable: a small statuette.

It was unlike the figures in the case, all of which were either made of metal or carved out of precious gems, having forms of various animals or humanoids. This one was made of plain, dull granite, depicting a hooved quadruped, one who was wearing armor that hid most of their features. More notable was that the aura of magic around it indicated that the statuette was, in fact, shrunken down; apparently it had originally been life-sized, only for Vystalaran to shrink it so he could put it in his pouch.

There was also a lingering aura beneath the still-active shrinking spell...one which emanated transmutation.

Lex’s eyes narrowed as he realized he wasn’t looking at a magic item at all.

He was looking at a person who had been petrified.

As for who they were...

Peering into the immediate future, Lex concentrated on what would happen if he undid the magic afflicting whoever this was, seeing what he’d be able to glean if he changed them back and inquired as to their identity. Being able to only see six seconds forward, that pressed his limits, as he’d need to undo both spells and get whoever had been petrified to give him their identity in that span of time, and he could already tell that they’d be highly disoriented to be revived so suddenly by a complete stranger. But he’d also be able to read their thoughts – something justified by the uncertainty as to whether or not they were a dangerous individual – and at least get their name-

Shock ran through Lex as he suddenly found out who he was looking out, causing his eyes to widen in absolute astonishment.

Impossible!

For a moment, all he could do was stand there, trying to fathom how this could be. The odds of his running into this particular individual here, like this, were too small to calculate, even for him. It was a coincidence that went beyond simply being preposterous to being utterly contrived, almost as though it was...

Lex turned back to stare at where the portal had been, half-expecting Odin’s voice to drift through the air again despite the gateway being well and truly closed.

This had to be what the old man had meant by fate, except...that made no sense. For him to say that at all implied that either Odin knew far, far more about him than he should have, or he had some sort of awareness that operated on a vastly deeper scale than previously imagined. Both explanations were worrisome, as each showcased – as though his encounters with Kryonex, Gwynharwyf, and Vystalaran hadn’t already driven the point home – just how limited his power still was, despite having become a titan.

Grimly, Lex put each of Vystalaran’s items in his pocket dimension, albeit after only scanning each of them to make sure they contained no further traps or unpleasant surprises. Finally, when they were all stored safely, he turned his attention back to the statuette.

A moment later, he began to unravel Vystalaran’s magic.

That he needed to release the avatar’s prisoner from their petrification was demanded by his moral code. Although someone who had been petrified was insensate, lacking any sort of feeling or awareness, that didn’t change the fact that they were still confined, and confinement was a form of punishment. Given that Vystalaran was far from being a moral agent that Lex could respect, he therefore had no alternative but to release the elf’s captive at once.

It took only a few moments to return the statue to its original size, now showcasing the armored warrior in much greater detail. A large, visored helm covered their head completely, and their back, sides, and flanks were similarly ensconced in plate armor that looked old and battered. No weapon hung at their side – apparently the elves had wanted their prisoner to be protected, but not armed – and a drab-looking tail hung behind them.

Another spell, one designed to remove baleful transmutations and other harmful magic, undid the petrification a moment later.

Slowly, color returned to the figure, who swayed for a moment as their consciousness came rushing back. “Ugh,” came a groan – masculine in tenor – from beneath the helmet. “What...what happened...?”

“You were petrified,” answered Lex grimly, making no move to approach the warrior. “Turned to stone by Vystalaran, one of the elves who had you in their custody.”

“Yes,” came a hoarse reply a moment later. “I recall now. They wanted me to guide them, not being familiar with the terrain here.”

He paused then, turning in place as he slowly looked around, taking in the broken landscape around them, which clearly showed signs of the successive battles which had taken place so recently.

“It seems a pitched struggle was waged in this place,” he continued after a moment, returning his gaze to Lex, looking upon him without fear despite the titan’s outsized presence. “Am I correct in assuming that the elves were defeated?”

Lex gave a single, curt nod. “I overcame them myself only a few minutes prior. You’re free now.”

A shuddering breath came from the armored figure. “Then the Sun Queen has not forsaken me after all. I must give thanks.”

The Sun Queen was just here, and didn’t say one word about you, spat Lex inwardly as the warrior kneeled down and bowed his head in prayer.

But he knew better than to give voice to that thought, aware that it was the product of how uncertain he was feeling. Given how Odin had apparently been aware that he had a connection to the elves’ prisoner, did that mean that the Sun Queen had likewise been cognizant of her worshiper’s presence, but had known that Lex would free him? It wasn’t implausible. In fact, given what Odin had revealed about her working behind the scenes to limit the fallout from his battle with Gladoneral’s avatar, such a thing was distinctly likely.

It was enough to make him growl inwardly, unhappy with the idea that the gods seemed content to keep foisting their own responsibilities off on him. Between Adagio’s commoditizing pony souls, the tensions with the elven pantheon, and now rescuing another god’s worshiper, he was sick and tired of cleaning up the pony pantheon’s world while his own went ignored.

“I must also give thanks to you,” announced the figure as he stood up, apparently having finished his prayers. “May I know the name of my benefactor?”

“I am Prince Lex Legis, champion of the Night Mare.”

“To have been rescued by a champion of the gods, and one who is royalty at that, is an honor unworthy of me. Were I not constrained by the oaths I made to my goddess, I would declare myself to be in your service until the debt I owe you has been repaid. Nor, to my shame, do I have anything of value to give to you as a token of my appreciation. I can only ask for Your Highness’s pardon at my lack of proper gratitude.”

“No gratitude is necessary,” replied Lex evenly. “I faced the elves in battle for my own reasons, and I released you afterward because I have a moral obligation to manumit anyone who is unjustly bound.”

“Those words make me respect you even more, Your Highness. Then, please accept this pauper’s heartfelt appreciation for your clemency.”

Hooves came up then, undoing the straps on his helmet and removing it. As it came off, long ears stood upright, and a protruding muzzle with a scraggly beard could be seen, revealing the face of a donkey.

But not just any donkey.

“Long Road, paladin of the Sun Queen, thanks you.”

Author's Note:

Acting on a tip from Odin, Lex not only recovers some of Vystalaran's gear, but also finds that the elf was holding none other than Long Road – whom Lex once promised Rarity he would try to bring back – prisoner!

How did Long Road come to be in the elves' custody? Is Odin right about this being fate at work?

Comments

[Booster Spice]

Well that was an intresting couple of rolls in the GM story generation table. Straight to the village to check over before heading off after Sanguine, or taking this guy along as Follower or Retainer?

[Alzrius]

11890318 I just get a kick out of laying down plot threads a few hundred chapters in advance, is all.

As for Long Road being a retainer/follower...that's not really in the cards, hence his saying that his oath to the Sun Queen prevents him from placing himself at Lex's service in repayment for saving him. While Pathfinder 1E explicitly formalized the concept of alternate paladin codes (although they'd been around for quite some time in D&D if you knew where to look), the standard paladin code of conduct expressly forbids allying with evil individuals, and while Lex isn't evil per se, he's just introduced himself as being in service to the Night Mare (herself an evil deity) and quite simply looks like a bad guy (what with the sharp claws, barbed wire foreleg, vertical-slit pupils, long lashing tail, etc.). Long Road, being a Lawful Good paladin of a Neutral Good goddess, isn't going to throw in with someone like that, even if they rescued him.

[Not so New Brony]

This will definitely put Lex in Rarity's good books and maybe Twilight's as well given her past relationship to the ex-food vendor. Though I suppose he'll need to get back to Equestria himself to deliver the good news in person and Lex just happens to be on his way back...after he figures out how to get past the blockade first that is.

Well, provided he isn't waylaid by whatever situation has arisen in the Darkest Night due to the Night Mare's absence.

[Alzrius]

11890843 Given that Lex seemingly reached some sort of accord with Rarity regarding his agreeing to try and bring Long Road back (in Chapters 550 and 551), he'll definitely be looking to leverage that now. We still don't know exactly what passed between Lex and the fashionista, but if he can bring Long Road back, he'll definitely call in whatever favor Rarity agreed to.

Of course, he still has to get him (and himself, and quite a few other people) back to Equestria in the first place...