Chapter Five Hundred And Forty Three - 543
The starry darkness resolved into something far less nebulous but almost as dim. Felix stood atop a rough summit and beheld a landscape of mountainous peaks. They extended for countless miles in all directions, their bases hidden, drenched in the shadow of a moonless night. Stars glimmered in a cloudless sky, wheeling ever so slightly as the earth turned beneath them.
Gloomy, Pit said.
Felix didnt argue. It certainly was a far cry from the chill winter morning they had just left. It feels solid though. Real. Similar to the Shadowgate paths, I think, butquieter. Huh. He wondered if it was the effect of his Chthonic Traveler Title, or simply moving with a smaller group of people, but the background cacophony of his last journeys was muted here.
Speaking feels wrong here, Errol said as he pulled his purple cowl up around his ears. The dark metal gauntlets he wore had already started to frost over. And it is far colder than Nagast.
The Fiends Shadows spread out around them, five in total. Aside from their leader Errol, there was Veddi, Devvi, Kress, and Geddin. The first two were Frost Giants equipped with trident and club, both of them somewhere around fourteen feet tall. Short, but they were young and talented with violence. It was how theyd gotten the job. Kress was a Human, Geddin was a Goblin, and both were members of the Arclights before becoming Shadows. Errol himself was a Fist, dedicated to unarmed combat. Three warriors and two mages. Felix didnt need them, hadnt wanted them, but the Shadows had put up as much fight as Karys. If he hadnt let them come, Felix didnt doubt that Karys would have followed himself.
This? This is nothing compared to the Hoarfrost, Veddi said. He grinned, showing off slate gray teeth beneath blue lips. Soon we shall bask in the winter sun.
Sir? What is the next move? Errol asked.
Felix peered over the edge of the precipice. It wasnt very wide, perhaps a rough thirty feet across, and the drop was sharp. He could not perceive the ground at all. First we find a way across. I had figured this would be simpler.
I dont see a path, Geddin said. He and Kress were inspecting the mountain behind them. But the Mana feels stable. I can sense nothing different from the real world.
Kress lifted her arm, where bands of Mana coalesced. Approximately twenty two percent ice Mana, fifteen percent earth and air, and the rest is shadow. Its solid, but it feels strange.
Felix pressed his Perception and Affinity to its limits, stretching himself as if reaching across a very wide table. Impressions passed through him, flitting and ephemeral, but definitely there. Something is moving out there. Voidbeasts probably. And he paused. Oh, thats interesting.
Sir!
Felix stepped forward, almost over the edge. I almost missed this. He lifted his scaled hands and pressed them against the air, where he felt a soft resistance. Within him, Labyrinthine Wing hummed louder, repeating its pattern over and over again in sharper tones. Like the Shadowgates, this place takes direction from the one who opens it up. But this place is a lot moresuggestible, I guess is the word.
Suggestible? Pit tilted his head, like a dog hearing something they werent sure about. What does that mean?
Lets find out.
Felix grabbed at the air and sounded several Skills at once. His Shaping Array thrummed, spinning ever faster in his core space, as Stone Shaping, Auroral Forge, Cardinal Flame, and Green Shaping all surged through his core and out of his channels. Mana bloomed in a rainbow of color, pouring from Felix in a liquidbefore coalescing into something far more. Stone ripped from the mountains, light and fire condensing within it, as shimmering roots burst forth to surround and encase it all.
Cmon. As with all shaping magic, it took attention to detail and a very large Mana pool to make anything worthwhile, and this was no different. The spells worked with one another, resonating in ways he was still unused toan effect of the Skill Arraybut more than that was affecting them. A structure formed without Felixs direct Intent, flexible roots spreading like a set of ribs and slats as stone and flame reinforced corners and seams. Inside his core space, his Divine Tree was set to creaking, and as if in sympathy the structure before him swayed in time. Thisthis is not what I intended.
All at once, it was done.
Stone Shaping is level 86!
Auroral Forge is level 76!
Green Shaping is level 84!
Dual Casting is level 79!
Congratulations! Due To Extensive Use And Potent Resonance, Your Skill Dual Casting (Uncommon) Has Evolved!
Dual Casting (Uncommon) Has Become Multi-Cast (Epic)!
Level Is Maintained!
Multi-Cast (E), Level 79!
You have the Will and the resources to cast several spells at once, and have proven it time and again. Now you may cast the same spell multiple times and each casting will stack, increasing the effects of the Skill as well as the costs. Multiple spells may be stacked in this waythe only limit is your Willpower, Intelligence, and Mana pool.
The five Shadows moved like oiled clockwork, stepping into the portal with a practiced precision, leaving only Pit and Felix behind.
After you, little man, Felix said. Pit nuzzled him, nipping at his ear with his dark beak, before trotting through. Behind him, the ship creaked as Felixs attention strayed away from it. Pieces of it dissolved into liquid and then vapor, boiling away into the eternal night. Felix was filled with the awareness that the ship would be gone in minutes. Step one, complete.
He walked through the portaland right into a rushing river.
Gah! Rime Shaping!
Ice swarmed upward from the surface of the raging waters, just enough to create a platform for one of his feet. Felix cast about, finding the riverbank only a few feet away, and grasped at the air.
Adamant Discord!
The tiniest lightning bolt surged between him and the shore, hauling him forward to the snow-caked earth and shattering the ice he left behind. He landed just in time to see it all swept away, carried by the deceptively swift current.
That was unexpected, he muttered.
Youre telling me, Pit said. The poor tenku was sopping wet and shivering a few feet away. In fact, all of his party was, and only the Frost Giants werent soaked to the bone. Next time, you can be the first one out.
Errol stood, and ice cracked off his armor where the river water had frozen him to the ground. M-my Lord, pl-please sit. W-we are co-collecting firewood to build a ca-campfire.
Cardinal Flame!A bonfire manifested between them all, colored red-gold but as good as any natural fire. Dont bother yourselves. Rest.
M-my Lord, this is unnecessary. Do not strain
It is necessary. You take care of me, and I take care of you. Isnt that how this whole Autarch thing works?
The giants and mages traded glances, while Errol merely bowed his head. Thank you, my Lord.
Felix inclined his head. Vess had drilled him in enough lordly niceties to know this much. He looked up at the sky, which was only slightly overcast. He could clearly see the sun, and it was still relatively high in the southern sky. Judging by the sun, that took us only a few hours. Karys?
Green-gold steamed from his waist, and the tinny voice of his Chancellor came with it. My Lord! You have exited the Dark Passage already? How was it? Are you injured?
We have. It was wonderfully uneventful. How long has it been since we left?
Three glasses. Excellent time!
Hm. Not nearly as fast as a Shadowgate, but bringing a week-long trip to three hours is huge. Thats great news. Well be making the second leg soon, just have to uh, recuperate a little.
And the Dark Passage was safe?
I dont know about safe. There were things in there, monsters of some variety, but we avoided them easily enough.
I suppose that will have to suffice. Perhaps the last portion of your trip will be just as uneventful.
Lets hope. Felix brought up his Territory Map and checked their location. Ill reconnect once we land in the Boreal Pass.
Right. Safe travels, my Lord.
The green-gold glow faded and Felix focused his attention on his crew. They were looking a lot better now, even Pit, who had started methodically cleaning his legs and chest. Alright. Well warm ourselves up here and then well head to the next Dark Passage entrance.
Pit lifted his head from preening his feathers. Wheres that? Felix said nothing, but it was very hard to hide things from his Companion. Felix. Back in the river?
Felix grinned. Ill build a boat. Again.
