792 - Secreted Away
Master, you don’t need to do this now, do you? Why not get some rest first?
Despite Solvei’s pleading, Lex – currently in shadow-form – continued toward the top of the cathedral. The Keeper may be mad, but he’s not a fool. If he realizes that I’ve come to understand the nature of the clue I forced him to reveal, he might take action to remove whatever it was that he hid.
But wouldn’t he have done that by now anyway? complained the winter wolf. I mean, he had all that time that you were conducting that ceremony. Wouldn’t he have moved it then?
That’s possible, but unlikely, countered Lex. Thus far, the Keeper has shown himself to possess no capacity for magic. He hasn’t cast any spells, used telekinesis, or shown himself to have any notable powers. Even his current state – with its attendant abilities of flight and his aura of supernatural darkness – are by his own admission the results of his own use of the Confluence.
Across their link, Lex registered confusion from Solvei then. So?
So, answered Lex, If he required any sort of assistance in concealing whatever it was that he brought here, he’d need one of his acolytes to help him do it. Quite possibly most of them if he needed to formally invoke the Night Mare’s power, since that’s the only sort of magic he seems to have. And since all of his minions were with me...
Lex didn’t bother finishing his thought as he reached the top of the cathedral, ignoring Solvei’s statement of understanding as he changed back to his corporeal form-
And staggered, the newfound muscles of his enhanced body straining before he managed to right himself. Even then, he found himself panting with effort, needing several seconds to recover from changing back. But in that time, he heard no sounds from within the cathedral; no snarled threats from the Keeper, no rushing footsteps of his acolytes, or anything else to mark that they were aware of his being there.
Which was, of course, the entire reason he’d changed into a shadow in the first place; with most this place’s residents only having – as far as he knew – limited-range darkvision, it was far easier to avoid notice by flying to the cathedral’s roof rather than by traversing its interior.
Still, that he’d been able to make the trip that way was a pleasant surprise. Although he’d completely expended his dark magic – which, unlike the Charismata and his divine spells, wouldn’t replenish itself until he rested – before going through the so-called Rite of Sublimation, Lex had long grown used to forcing himself to go beyond his physical limits. And since the magic of his horn was physical by nature, he’d known that he could forcibly draw on some extra power at the cost of his stamina.
In his old body that wouldn’t have been possible in the state he was in now; the level of exhaustion that he was fighting would have meant that he’d have collapsed, quite likely injuring himself in the process.
But his new body had strength to spare, and although even it was nearing its limits, Lex was pleased to confirm once again just how far those limits exceeded what he’d previously been capable of.
At the moment, however, that was less important to him than the cavern ceiling was. If whatever magic the Keeper had brought to the Shrine of the Starless Sky truly was “beyond reach,” as he’d said, then it had to be here. Which meant...
Narrowing his eyes, Lex again called upon his horn’s magic as he enhanced his vision. Fortunately, that was such a minor bit of magic that even in his weakened state he felt no strain to speak of, instead looking at the onyx-lined ceiling above him.
Master, are you sure you don’t want to at least summon me up there so I can help you? whined Solvei in his mind.
Lex didn’t bother shaking his head, continuing his examination of the roof of the cave even as he answered her. That wouldn’t work. The teleportation effect I use to call to you my side works by moving you through the Astral Plane. Since this cathedral is warded against planar travel, that isn’t something which can be done here.
So that’s why you took everyone to the riverside before you sent them away! exclaimed Solvei. I thought you were just being sentimental!
That was enough to earn a derisive snort from Lex, and he was about to ask her how exactly that would have worked when he caught a glimpse of something.
The decorative aspects of the Shrine of the Starless Sky had been constructed with a careful eye for detail. While the most obvious efforts had gone toward the stylized cathedral that dominated the surrounding buildings, the onyx stones covering the sides and top of the cave had been intricately laid as well. No two pieces were the same, and having grown up with a lapidary for a mother, Lex could tell that while each stone had been lovingly polished, none had been cut. That made it all the more impressive that each piece of onyx had been fitted together so closely that there was barely a fraction of a millimeter between them.
But it wasn’t just that they were snug in their positioning, but that their collective surfaces were contiguous in their thickness, the polishing having left the surface of each stone perfectly level with its neighbors.
Except for one particularly large block of onyx directly overhead, which was jutted out a hair’s breadth more than the surrounding pieces.
It was the sort of thing which wouldn’t have been noticeable unless you were already looking at it. Indeed, Lex was looking at it, and even then it was only because he was able to enhance his vision that he was able to notice it at all. There was no other indicators in place, or at least none that were magical; a quick examination via the magical spectrum showed no spells or other magic in place.
But that’s what you’d want for a hiding place, Lex knew. An obtrusive defense, no matter how potent, defeats the purpose of putting something in a place no one would ever think to look.
Even so, Lex spent the better part of a minute examining the stone and the surrounding area for magical emanations. Back in Darkest Night, he’d drawn White Wraith into a feint by placing a false aura around his broken mask, making it look like it was still a potent weapon despite having lost all of its power. But in the course of researching the spell for that, Lex had confirmed that the opposite – using magic to conceal an active aura – was also possible. Which meant that just because he hadn’t seen any magical traps didn’t mean that there were none.
It was only after he confirmed the total lack of active magical auras in the surrounding area – his own gear notwithstanding – that Lex decided he’d need to chance it.
Hoping that he’d been right to assure Solvei that the Keeper had little in the way of personal magic, Lex stepped out from under the stone before he reached out and grabbed the edge of it in his telekinesis.
It wasn’t an ideal way to test whether or not the large onyx truly concealed a secret; changing back into a shadow and phasing through it would have been far more ideal. But in his current condition, that would have required more strength than simply trying to force the stone to move. Hopefully the upraised talons that ringed the top of the cathedral would block out the dim glow of his purple aura.
Since telekinesis offered no tactile feedback, Lex stared at the round black rock as he tried to pull on it, each passing second seeing him tug with greater force.
But the rock refused to budge.
Not ready to admit that his speculation had been unfounded, Lex instead reversed course, pushing the massive onyx upward. That was far more difficult, as it required displacing the stone against gravity, but he persisted, able to exert far more force now that his body’s magical channels allowed him to exert far more force than he could have before.
A moment later his efforts were rewarded. With a soft scraping sound, the onyx slid upward slightly, dust falling from the ceiling to mark its movement.
Encouraged, and relieved that no hidden spell had been tripped, Lex renewed his efforts. Pressing his telekinesis more, he could tell from how little headway he was making that the onyx had to have weighed a great deal; several hundred pounds at least. But slowly, it slid upward...only to stop once he’d pushed it nearly a foot into the ceiling.
Snarling, Lex tried to wrench it back and forth, hoping to dislodge whatever it had caught on. But his surprise was complete as the stone turned almost ninety degrees, realizing belatedly that there was some sort of groove that it was set in, almost able to see the insets from where he’d already pushed the stone upward...and more leading back down now that he’d changed its position.
Lowering the onyx, which slid free from its place in the ceiling now that it had been rotated, Lex slowly brought it down to rest on the cathedral’s ceiling. Free from where it had been set, he could see that it was indeed a single massive piece of pure onyx, forming a stopper nearly three feet deep.
But as much as it was a marvel of both geology and carving, Lex was less interested in it than in what was behind it. Stepping on top of the stone plug, he vaulted himself upward, making sure not to damage the grooves as he caught their edges with his talons, hauling himself upward.
The small room, roughly half the size of the place where he and the mares of Fail Forward had resided during their stay, that was waiting for him lacked the rest of the Shrine’s grandeur. The unworked stone walls were bare of onyx covering, nor were there any carvings of the Night Mare’s holy symbol. There weren’t even any creature comforts, lacking even the most basic of amenities.
But that didn’t mean it was empty.
Lying off to the side was a dust-covered sword, its edge chipped and dull. Next to it was a set of plain boots alongside a pile of muddy clothes, all of them dust-covered and half-rotted with decay. Nor was the simple set of quilted armor in any better condition, time having reduced it to so much rags. And none of them were magical, Lex confirmed a moment later.
But the same could not be said for the book lying in the far corner of the room.
Indeed, it was radiating so much magic that it almost made Lex’s eyes smart from how brightly it glowed, causing the small chamber to shine as though a floodlight had been turned on it. What-
“Ah, so that’s where he hid it.”
Whirling, Lex turned around...
And found himself staring right at Sanguine Disposition.
“I have to admit, I should have thought to look here,” grinned the vampire, speaking as though he were carrying on a conversation that the two of them had been having for several minutes now. “I mean, a secret room just above a grasping claw? It’s almost trite when you think about it. But I didn’t think of it, so I suppose I can’t bring myself to criticize.”
Casually strolling around Lex, the undead leatherwing wrinkled his nose as he glanced at the discarded clothing. “You know, I’m almost tempted to wave these in the Keeper’s fleshless face. He likes to say he’s the bastard son of some forgotten king, and yet I doubt that even disgraced royalty would wear rags such as those.”
“What are you doing here?!” hissed Lex, unnerved at having been so easily caught unaware. “How did you evade my notice?!”
This was the second time the vampire had appeared seemingly out of nowhere, the first time having been when Sanguine Disposition had intervened to save White Wraith, but between his augmented senses and having taken the time to check for local magic, Lex felt particularly aghast at having been unable to detect the vampire’s presence.
“Oh, you weren’t aware of me?” His brows rising slightly, Sanguine Disposition looked back at Lex. “I was sure my little gift tipped you off that I’d come through the Confluence; I even made sure to place it in such a way as to keep that bloodless buffoon who oversees this place from hurting your little friends. He’s not really much of a threat, but with them being blind and all, who’s to say what he might have gotten that dog of yours to do? But I certainly didn’t expect my anti-detection spells to fool even you.”
Not sure if he was being taunted or not, Lex glared at the leatherwing. But he was angry at himself as much as the vampire; as galling as it was to admit, he should have realized that the reappearance of the giant quill he’d lost in Darkest Night – complete with a note from Sanguine Disposition himself referencing Lex’s new body – had meant that the Night Mare’s other champion was lurking about. In hindsight it seemed so obvious as to be embarrassing; he’d even recognized the possibility that magical auras could be hidden, not realizing he should have been wary of an interloper rather than a trap!
“You haven’t answered my other question,” growled Lex through gritted teeth. “Why are you here?”
“That’s not obvious either?” tsked Sanguine Disposition. “I was hoping you’d find what the Keeper’s been hiding away all this time. Why do you think I told you about it in the first place?”
For a moment Lex seriously considered manifesting another weapon designed to target the undead, the way he had back in Eigengrau when the vampire had pushed him too far. But there was no point in making the attempt now; unlike the Charismata and his divine magic, whatever new power he’d discovered as a result of mastering his tulpa was still refusing to activate; apparently, like his dark magic, it required rest to replenish.
But that didn’t mean that Sanguine Disposition knew that. “And you think I’ll let you just take that book and leave?”
“Why not? I did bring you a gift and all. Some might say that say you owe me one.”
Smirking, Sanguine Disposition’s threw Lex a wink over his shoulder as he sauntered over to the tome in question. “But I might be open to changing my mind if you feel like...persuading me,” he purred, looking the unicorn up and down. “Have I mentioned just how fetching your new look is?”
His lip curling in disgust, Lex briefly ran through several scenarios where he took the book by force, but reluctantly made himself to discard the notion. Even if the vampire had been telling the truth about the Night Mare not allowing her champions to attack each other directly, and even if this hidden room was technically outside of the Shrine’s sanctified area and its prohibition on combat between the goddess’s faithful, the fact remained that Sanguine Disposition had again proven himself to be a powerful and versatile spellcaster.
Lex had no compunctions about fighting a foe who was stronger than himself. But he also knew better than to undertake such a confrontation lightly. Especially when it was over a magic item of unknown provenance and abilities, no matter how great its power was.
With no other option, he simply glared at the vampire, seething.
“Ah well, such a shame,” pouted Sanguine Disposition before shrugging. “To business then.”
Crossing the distance to the book, he reached out and placed his hoof on the cover, closing his eyes. “Let’s see here.”
Realizing that leatherwing was using the Secreta, Lex slipped his vision back into the magical spectrum...but whether it was because of the vampire’s magic, or (more likely, in Lex’s estimation) the Night Mare’s gift to him was as undetectable to conventional magic as the Charismata was, his spell returned no results, showing only the impressive magic of the book itself.
With no other options, Lex could only wait for Sanguine Disposition to finish his examination.
The vampire didn’t make him wait very long, chuckling as he opened his eyes and removed his hoof. “Well well well...now this is a rare treasure. I’ve heard about this particular codex many times over the years, but this is the first time I’ve ever seen a copy.”
Lifting it up, he started to tuck it into a saddlebag, only to stop as he glanced back at where Lex was glowering at him. For a moment his eyes flickered between the stallion and the book, and then he lowered it with a sigh. “I hate the thought of you resenting me for this,” he muttered, rooting around in a different pouch. “So how about you and I split the difference?”
Lex frowned. “Meaning what, exactly?”
“This book has its own way of doing things,” answered Sanguine Disposition, before shaking his head. “No, that’s the wrong way of putting it. It’s not alive, so much as it has a certain set of rules that it follows. One of which is that it once someone reads it cover-to-cover, it always moves on, making itself available for someone else to find. Ah, here we are!”
Withdrawing a diamond the size of a grapefruit, Sanguine Disposition began uttering a quick series of words as he started performing gestures in rapid succession. But as fast as he was chanting, Lex could still catch the nature of the spell he was casting, and it was enough to make his breath catch in his throat.
Direct reality manipulation! he realized, stunned. That’s the province of the gods, except he’s artificially recreating it with a spell!
Awed, Lex could only watch as the strongest spell he’d ever seen was cast right in front of his eyes.
The closest thing he’d ever seen to what the vampire was doing was on the spell scroll that he’d taken from Xiriel, after he’d slain the devil back in Vanhoover. Although it had destroyed itself in a trap which Lex had carelessly set off, he’d later been able to recreate one of the spells on it, an open-ended enchantment which had pulled in a huge amount of magic which let the caster shape it in any manner he desired. In essence, it had allowed for almost any sort of magical effect to take place, albeit within the limits for what that much power could do.
In his case, Lex had used it to replenish his own magical stores, giving him the strength necessary to augment his floating gemstones – also taken from the devil – and pass them on to Garden Gate, letting her stop the ghouls who had gotten past Severance.
But what Sanguine Disposition was doing now was far and away greater. Rather than simply gathering ambient magic to allow for an open-ended spell, he was concentrating so much power in the local area that the fabric of the universe was starting to strain under it. Which, Lex knew, was the entire point; like a steel bar heated until it became malleable, the vampire’s spell was putting so much stress on reality that it was open to being reshaped. All that was left was for Sanguine Disposition to make the changes that he wanted...though even then, Lex knew it would still have to be extremely localized.
That didn’t detract from the sublime feat that the vampire was performing, however. While it was bludgeoning the universe into submission rather than deftly overwriting it the way the Charismata did, it was nevertheless a spell of not only massive power, but unimaginable complexity. To make a small portion of the existence open to reinterpretation, without any divine backing...
If there had ever been any doubt in Lex’s mind that Sanguine Disposition was a wizard of extreme skill, it was gone now.
And then Sanguine Disposition finished the spell, opening his mouth to give the universe its new instructions.
“I wish to be the one this book appears before after it’s next read.”
There was a sense of pressure giving way then, and Lex knew that it was reality stabilizing. The book, despite being the subject of the vampire’s so-called wish – as though a spell that powerful could be called something so bromidic! – appeared no different. Only the massive diamond that the vampire had brought out, which Lex now realized had acted as a lens to properly direct the spell’s activation, was gone, consumed by the incredible energies Sanguine Disposition had so easily unleashed.
As for the leatherwing himself, he stretched and let out a groan, looking more like he’d just finished a long day filling out paperwork than casting a spell of godlike power. “There. Now you can get first crack at it, and I’ll read it after you’re done,” he announced, giving Lex a smirk. “I usually like to play with new toys immediately, but you know what they say.”
Slinking back toward the exit, the vampire lowered his voice to a husky whisper as he passed Lex. “Anticipation makes fulfillment that much sweeter.”
Still disconcerted after the incredible display of magic he’d witnessed, Lex didn’t reply as Sanguine Disposition walked by him, the leatherwing’s tail brushing his side as he left.
“Oh, and by the way.” Stopping just in front of the hole, the vampire shot him another grin, this time flashing a fang in the process. “You still owe me one.”
Then he dropped out of sight.
Lex didn’t bother confirming that he was gone – now that he was aware of just how powerful the bearer of the Secreta truly was, it seemed like a pointless activity – instead turning his attention back to the book which had prompted the incredible magical display. Still shaken from what he’d just witnessed, it was morbid curiosity that made him lift it in his telekinesis, curious about what was so impressive as to warrant Sanguine Disposition using such powerful magic to ensure that he’d have a chance to read it.
Certainly, the magic aura around this tome was powerful, but after such a grandiose display it was hard for Lex to imagine that the vampire was all that impressed by it!
Slowly, he flipped open the cover...
And beheld a blank page.
Blinking, Lex could only stare, nonplussed at the lack of writing. What-
Then, before his eyes, ink bubbled up on the page. Moving as though being directed by some unseen stylus, it slithered across the unmarked surface, forming an illustration that took up the entire square of parchment. In moments, there was an image of a face – one which was vaguely humanoid in design, with its bald head and bushy beard suggesting a masculine countenance – though the horns sprouting from its head were distinctly demonic in nature. Its eyes were wide, wit the brows positioned that it could have been screaming or scowling.
But it was clearly doing one or the other, as its mouth was open as wide as possible, and inside its maw was utter blackness, as though its mouth contained a void rather than passage into its gullet.
For a moment Lex could only stare at the image, and his magical senses registered something happening. It was enough to make Lex tense, readying his dark magic in case the book attacked his mind. This was, after all, the item that had driven the Keeper mad, and while Lex felt confident that he was made of far sterner stuff, he wasn’t about to let confidence undercut caution.
But after several seconds, nothing happened, and Lex almost put the book down when the page turned of its own accord. Again, he found himself facing a blank square, but this time when the ink bubbled up out of nowhere, it formed words instead of a picture.
You are to be congratulated, it read. Few are those with the intellectual curiosity, spiritual discipline, and moral fortitude to be found worthy of these words. All you need prove now is your courage, for the knowledge contained within these pages opens paths that most dare not walk. Read on, and know that you are among the chosen who are burdened with the horrific majesty of knowing what fate that lurks past the veil of mortality.
Again the page flipped by itself, and again the ink appeared, forming words of its own accord.
Beyond this world are the divine domains
Which the gods call home, and mortals call planes
To these worlds we fly, when our bodies are no longer whole
Our eternal rest, the last home for the soul
This we are told, and taken as truth
And thus do we all play the fools, forsooth
Read on, for the facts past these lies the gods call salvation
Dwell within this tome, the Libram of Ineffable Damnation.
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If the Keeper still had a living body, he'd choke and die all over from Lex doing what he couldn't accomplish himself...again. Still, given the book's apparently magical property, there's bound to be quite a lot of forgotten and possibly forbidden knowledge within its pages. Especially moreso since Sanguine wants said book after Lex is done.
Really curious to find out since the vampire literally bent reality to his will just so the book would...poof(?) over to him instead of going to a random recipient which I guess is what happened to the Keeper.
Sanguine just cast Wish?
Uhoh. The Libram of Ineffable Damnation? Is this the one with Hecate ruling it?
well this is a huge boon.
11488322 I almost feel sorry for the Keeper in that regard, because the thing is, he simply didn't meet the prerequisites necessary to read that particular tome. You see, in order to use the Libram of Ineffable Damnation, you need to be an arcane spellcaster, and of evil alignment. The Keeper meets the latter requirement, but not the former, and so suffered the penalty outlined in the Libram's description (and failed his Will save). Lex, while not actually evil-aligned, is treated as though he is thanks to his horn, and of course is an arcane spellcaster of considerable magnitude.
As for the forbidden lore the book contains. Well, it's not really relevant to that, or this story, but D&D aficionados might pick up a hint as to its authorship if they recognized the description of the illustration and the penchant for poetry. (Which is to say, the author is Acererak, and that illustration is the Sign of the Devourer, aka the "great green devil face" found in the Tomb of Horrors.)
EDIT: Just for background, I should add that the congratulatory tone that the book presents is an homage to "The Raiment of Clarity," a treatise on necromancy from Van Richten's Guide to the Walking Dead, where the author (who identifies himself only as "Iron Crown," in what seems like a not-so-subtle reference to Azalin Rex, who is himself one of the inspirations for Lex), takes every opportunity to praise the reader's shrewdness and ambitions while instructing them about how to become a peerless necromancer.
11488448 Sanguine Disposition did indeed cast a wish spell, which is far and away more powerful than the limited wish Lex used off of a scroll back in Chapter 244 (which is what he referred to when he mentioned the scroll he got from Xiriel in this chapter). As for the book itself, I'll refer you to the link in my previous post, as well as the spoiler about its true author.
11488470 Let's hope so, since Spinner's prophesying that Lex would go down the pathways of damnation didn't exactly sound like a good thing.
11488610 Well, he has a pretty close connection to an actual deity, so with any luck he won't have to go too far to get answers if he wants to know more about what the Libram says. But then again, if the book says that the gods are liars, does that mean that Lex can't trust what the Night Mare says?