“Allow me to formally welcome you to my home,” announced Sanguine Disposition as he exited the carriage, turning back to Lex and the others as he bowed deeply. “Please, come inside and be at ease.”
Disembarking from the conveyance that the other stallion had summoned – Solvei and Akna doing the same behind him – Lex didn’t immediately take the leather wing up on his offer, instead taking a moment to look around at where the red-eyed pony’s carriage had brought them.
Far from the bustling avenue that had greeted them beyond the entrance to Eigengrau, they were inside a walled estate now, with an area that, in Lex’s estimation, was roughly the size of a city block. Unlike the rest of the city, there were no exterior lights, allowing only the diffuse illumination from the rest of Eigengrau to brighten the place. Even then, it did so only dimly, as the walls kept out much of the light.
But the lurking shadows only seemed to highlight the uncanny vista that was Sanguine Disposition’s home.
The vast majority of the space inside the walls was dedicated to an expansive yard, most of which had been given over to a garden composed entirely of a variety of colorful roses. Indeed, the bulk of the front lawn was covered in them, with the flowers ranging in size from miniature buds to a few blooms that were larger than a pony. It was a spectacle designed to be admired more than interacted with; aside from the entryway through which their carriage had entered, only a few select walkways had been cleared amongst the sea of flowers, leaving the majority of them out of easy reach.
At the center of the estate was a gothic-looking three-story villa. While not nearly as expansive as River Bank’s sprawling manor, it still dominated the scenery, having an arched entryway, stone eaves that flared out from each corner of the house, and gargoyles perched between the windows. The foreboding impression was abetted by the large pole extending upward from the center of the roof, from which a series of wires – separate from those spreading over the town proper – extended down toward the top of the estate’s walls, effectively keeping the entire place cordoned off from the rest of Eigengrau.
The outer walls themselves were only half as high as those protecting the town from the wilderness, nor were they as thick, but it took only a few seconds of concentration for Lex to see that they were no less impressive in their magical construction. If anything, they were even more intricately designed, something which only served to further confirm what Sanguine Disposition had implied about being a wizard of considerable power.
Nor were they the only source of magical auras. A casual sweep of the yard showed Lex that there were freestanding spells spread across the garden, just waiting for an intruder to set them off. There were wards on the house as well, and the multiplicity of auras made it almost impossible to pick out any single spell, the sheer amount of magic in the area causing them all to blend together in his sight, defying any attempt to single out their individual functions.
But Lex didn’t even have a chance to try when a loud clank from behind him drew his attention.
Glancing backward, he saw that the ornate silver gate, which had opened of its own accord as their carriage had approached, had just closed behind them. Like the rest of the estate, it was also glowing with magic, and Lex let out a slow breath as he realized that this place’s defenses would likely work against unauthorized exits as well as entrances.
Now that he’d accepted Sanguine Disposition’s invitation, the leather wing would need to be dealt with – one way or another – before leaving Eigengrau.
“I’ve never seen flowers like these,” murmured Akna, kneeling down at the edge of the rose garden. “They’re beautiful.”
Sanguine Disposition grinned. “Aren’t they? Roses have always been the apex of floral aesthetics. Not only do they bedazzle the senses with their scent and appearance, but they also teach us an important lesson.”
Solvei frowned. “Lesson? What lesson could a bunch of flowers teach?”
Only half-listening to the conversation, Akna reached for the nearest bloom, a rose with white petals. But when her fingers came within a few inches of it, the stem suddenly moved, wrapping tightly around her fingers. Yelping as the thorns dug into her skin, she yanked her hand back, and Lex could see blood on her palm.
Chuckling softly, Sanguine Disposition nodded toward Akna. “That even such beautiful things have their thorns.”
Her ears flattening, Akna glared at the red-eyed stallion, but Sanguine Disposition didn’t seem to notice, turning toward his villa. “But I’m sure you all are tired from your journey here, to say nothing of that unpleasantness with our guard captain. Come and let me treat you to some hospitality.”
Striding toward the front door – which, like the gate, opened of its own accord to admit him – Sanguine Disposition entered the house, leaving Lex and the others to follow after him.
Master, I don’t like this, whined Solvei telepathically. Those flowers are dangerous, and their scent is so overpowering that I can’t smell if there’s anything lurking among them! We could be surrounded by enemies right now and not even know it!
Calm yourself, Solvei, replied Lex. Plants don’t handle cold temperatures very well. Remember how you defeated that scythe tree on our way here? If we need to fight our way out, you can use your ice magic to kill all of these roses, clearing a path to the exit.
Yes, Master! Lex registered relief coming from her then, and let the matter drop. While everything he’d just told her was true, there was no need to burden her with his doubts about whether or not things would go that easily if they needed to fight their way out. With Solvei having used up her reserve of enhanced magic, Akna already having called upon an ice elemental during the fight with White Wraith, and his having expended both his dark magic and the Charismata, they’d have an uphill battle ahead of them if things turned violent...and if that happened, the roses were the least of Lex’s concerns.
But as he turned to follow Sanguine Disposition inside, it didn’t escape Lex’s notice that the white petals of the rose that had pricked Akna’s fingers were slowly turning bright red.
“...right away.”
Lex caught the tail end of Sanguine Disposition’s whisper – doubtlessly an instruction to some unseen attendant – as he caught up to the stallion, who was waiting for them in an elegant-looking foyer. Red walls with deep brown paneling were highlighted by candelabras bolted to the wall, the lit wicks filling the room with natural light, a far cry from the magical illumination used throughout the rest of the city. Several doors led off in various directions, with Sanguine Disposition himself waiting by an open one near the back.
“Normally I’d ask if you’d like to rest and refresh yourselves after the trials you’ve been through, but I believe you said that you weren’t planning on remaining in Eigengrau very long, yes?”
The red-eyed stallion directed his question to Lex, who answered with a curt nod. Smiling, the leather wing gestured toward the door beside him. “In that case, since you’ve done me the honor of accepting my invitation despite the pressing nature of your business here, I’ll make good on my offer of dinner and then see you on your way. Although...”
He paused as his crimson orbs slid over Solvei and Akna before returning to Lex. “There’s no reason why your servants should have to dance attendance while you and I take our repast, is there? With your permission, I can have them shown to comfortable quarters while we get to know each other better.”
Akna tensed at that, and she wasn’t the only one. Master, he wants to split us up! yelped Solvei across their link. We shouldn’t-
“That’s fine,” answered Lex without looking back at the winter wolf.
“Excellent!” Clapping his hooves together, Sanguine Disposition indicated the open door next to him. “Right this way, then.”
Lex immediately moved after the red-eyed stallion, leaving the Solvei and Akna behind without so much as a backwards glance.
But not without further instructions.
Solvei, as soon as you and Akna are alone, use that opportunity to check her lifeline.
Her lifeline? Nervousness and confusion came from Solvei in equal measure, clearly not happy about his leaving them. Why?
Resisting the urge to sigh across their link, Lex explained. We only came here because our lifelines were pointing in this direction, remember? Now that we’re inside the city walls, we need to check them again in order to confirm if they’re indicating whether or not we should proceed beyond the other side of Eigengrau’s boundaries. But since we need to keep our lifelines a secret-
We have to check them where no one else can see! finished Solvei. Now I understand!
Exactly. While I keep Sanguine Disposition occupied, the two of you wait until you’re alone and then check Akna’s lifeline. Since this place is heavily warded, there’s minimal risk of anyone spying on you from outside.
So that’s why you wanted to come here! Because after what happened with White Wraith, you knew we’d drawn too much attention, and so needed someplace safe to check which direction your lifelines were pointing once we got inside the walls! For a moment, Lex registered Solvei’s state of mind as changing to awe, only for worry to come to the fore a moment later. But, Master, what if that bat pony’s servants spy on us while we’re checking Akna’s lifeline? If they live here, they might know how to get around whatever magic is protecting this place.
That’s a calculated risk, admitted Lex, silently following Sanguine Disposition as the leather wing led him deeper into his villa. Fortunately, whatever wards were built into the place didn’t keep him from sensing her distance and direction from him. Hopefully they wouldn’t keep him from teleporting her to his side if worse came to worst, but if everything went well he wouldn’t need to try and find out. But it’s a risk we have to take. He didn’t attack us while he was observing our fight with White Wraith, so it’s unlikely that he will now.
I guess, answered Solvei doubtfully. But I still don’t trust him.
Neither do I, agreed Lex. That’s why I want you to take as many precautions as you can when you check Solvei’s lifeline. Use your magic to surround yourselves with a barrier of ice; that way, even if Sanguine Disposition’s lackeys know how to bypass the wards, all they’ll see is the frozen water surrounding you.
Understood!
Lex allowed the conversation to lapse with that, as Sanguine Disposition opened a door near the end of the hallway they were traveling down with a flourish. “Here we are!”
Gesturing for Lex to enter, the leather wing made sure to close the door behind him once he’d followed his guest inside.
Rather than a spacious banquet hall, he’d brought them to a surprisingly small dining room, with a cloth-covered round table barely large enough for two ponies to sit at taking up the center of the chamber. As in the foyer, the only light was provided by candles, primarily the three that were at the middle of the table, with just a few additional tapers strategically set along the walls. A glass bottle and two goblets were already set out, as were two steaming plates of a diced red substance that Lex couldn’t identify.
“Bloodfruit,” explained Sanguine Disposition as he glided around Lex. “From a private reserve I keep outside of town. It’s normally quite dangerous to eat, but when properly prepared, it can dazzle the palate like nothing else.”
Holding out a chair, he gestured for Lex to sit down. Eyeing the leather wing for a moment, Lex slowly approached and took the offered chair. Grinning wider, Sanguine Disposition didn’t immediately take the opposite seat, instead reaching out to open the bottle sitting on the table. “Are you familiar with syrinelle? It’s one of the rarer vintages of elven wines. I’ve always appreciated the way its sweet aftertaste that hides how strong it really is.”
Never having heard of the liquor in question, Lex gave a noncommittal grunt as the other stallion poured a tall glass for each of them.
Finally, Sanguine Disposition sat down. “So, now that it’s just the two of us, what shall we talk about?”