Chapter 502 - Beneath the Tower

Quick announcement before Christmas, I will be taking a break next week so don't expect a chapter Tuesday 23 and Saturday 27. Just wanted to give you a heads up. Hope you like the chapter!

The statue was carved from cracked grey stone, its surface veined with age and stress fractures that ran across its body like frozen lightning, emanating from the stone sword that had been driven clean through her chest. The blade pinned her to the wall behind.

Though the statue’s eyes moved and its mouth shaped words, the rest of it remained still. It depicted a young woman, her expression caught somewhere between sorrow and defiance. Curls of stone spilled down around her face, carefully sculpted, and she wore a long dress that, despite being carved from rock, somehow looked soft, as if it might sway if the air stirred.

“I ask again,” the statue said, her voice echoing in the small chamber. “Who are you?”

Weapons were still raised around Hump. Bud’s hand hovered near his sword. Celaine’s bow was half-drawn, and Nisha growled low in her throat, wings tucked tight to her side. Hump felt the tension ripple through them all, a shared thought on their mind—was this statue the first of the Pantheon’s traps left to keep Loften sealed here?

His eyes returned to the sword through her chest. He didn’t think so. Slowly, deliberately, he lowered his staff, though he didn’t loosen his grip on it. “I am Wizard Humphrey, and these are my companions. We came at the request of Loften. We intend to free him. Now who are you?”

The statue’s green eyes shifted, fixing on him with unsettling intensity. “The Creator named me Kaestra,” she said. “Keeper of the Tower. Or I was, once.” Her gaze drifted briefly to the sealed door behind them before returning to Hump. “You are not the first to come here hoping to free him. Many have entered this tower. None have ever left.”

“And did Loften call them as well?” Hump asked.

“Some. Others came of their own volition. Faithful, and carrion, parasites, thieves, and fools. I have seem them all, and all have perished. Which are you, I wonder? It has been long since any have come.”

That settled uneasily in Hump’s stomach. At least they were they were the first visitors in some time, assuming Kaestra was telling the truth. The last thing he wanted was to bump into Godfrey in a place like this.

“Greetings, Kaestra,” Bud said, stepping forward slightly and nodding his head. “My name is Robert Blackthorne. We come as friends, so please, tell us what you can so that we might free Lord Loften from this place.”

Her eyes snapped to him. “To you, Chosen of the Frost Bitch,” she hissed, “I am no friend.”

Essence radiated from her, carrying the soft warmth of divinity, though it was faint. Yet as quickly as it rose, it faded away. It was then that Hump noticed his own essence did not linger in the air around him either. In fact, there was no ambient essence whatsoever. He released a little more, and sensed a faint tug, almost imperceptible. Essence drawn away from the space around them, flowing downward like water seeping through stones.

Bud’s hand returned to his sword. “Then if you are looking to make an enemy, I will also oblige. I will not let you speak of my lady like that again.”

Emilia placed a calming hand over his wrist. “Enough,” she said quietly, then looked up at Kaestra. “We know Loften’s history with the Pantheon. We came here despite it. The world outside has changed. We need him—and if you truly wish your creator free, then our goals align.”

Kaestra studied Emilia in silence, her expression unreadable. The green light in her eyes dimmed and brightened.

At last, she spoke. “What do you wish to know?”

“Why did those that entered before us never return?” Emilia asked.

“They entered the tower,” Kaestra replied flatly. “They sought the dungeon below. And there, they remained.”

Bud snorted. “That’s not much of an answer.”

Her gaze flicked to him again, cold and disdainful. “I am bound here. My sight does not extend beyond this hall.”

Hump’s eyes lingered on the sword impaling her, on the way it fused seamlessly with the stone of her body. He couldn’t imagine the loneliness of centuries spent like this—aware, thinking, watching the same walls forever.

“You must have suffered,” Dylan said gently. Kaestra did not respond, but she watched him closely. Dylan offered a small, earnest smile. “I am a Chosen of Krioc. I understand if you distrust me too, but I do believe our interests are aligned now.” He lifted his prosthetic arm. “This was crafted for me by a Runesmith of Loften on his instructions. We are here on his behalf, so if you know anything that might help us, please tell us.”

“Or at least let us past,” Celaine added.

“I cannot stop you,” Kaestra said. “Nor would I. I will help you, adventurers. I cannot leave this place, but I can guide you. Bring parchment.”

Hump opened the Book of Infinite Pages, ink swirling across the pages as she described the layout of the tower and what lay beneath. As Kaestra spoke, the lines that formed showed corridors, chambers, and spirals descending ever deeper. The tower was vast, and far deeper than Hump had imagined from outside. For centuries, it had been personal residence, a place where he forged his most complex workings and shut himself off from the world to further his study of runecraft.

Now it was his prison.

“That is all I can provide,” Kaestra said. “Of the Creator’s prison and its guards, I can tell you nothing. In that, you must discover for yourself.”

“What of the essence in this place?” Hump asked. “I can sense something siphoning it out of the air.”

“I do not know,” Kaestra said. “It was not always like this. Once, this was where the Creator’s craft and magic combined to make a place of wonder, but that was taken from him. Now, it is but a shadow of what it once was. Hollow. Desolate. Destitute. Go now, adventurers, for I must rest once more. I wish you luck, but I do not think we shall meet again.”

With that, the statue stilled. The green light dimmed, leaving only the candles burning above the inner door. The air felt colder without her voice filling the space.

“Do you have to pick a fight with everyone who says a bad word about Kelisia?” Emilia snapped, clapping Bud on the back. “You understand our situation don’t you?”

“She called her a… you heard what she said,” Bud said defensively.

Emilia rubbed a hand over her face. “I did. I also saw you threaten a statue created by a god. Next time, take a breath.”

Bud glanced to the rest of them for help.

Dylan shrugged. “She has a point, big guy.”

“Kelisia might be more popular with Loften’s guards once we find them,” Celaine said. “At least you have that to look forward to.”

Bud sighed. “Gods help me, what do we do if they’ve left Chosen behind?”

“If they did, this should be easy,” Hump said. “Any Chosen should be long dead.” Hump went to the inner door. “Are we ready?”

“Yes, but let me,” Bud said.

Hump made way for the knight, the five of them positioning behind him, ready to cast their protections if he needed it. Yet when Bud opened the door, they were greeted by an empty, dark entry hall.

Nisha let out a low, uncertain rumble, tail twitching behind her. She hadn’t stopped staring at the darkened hallway. Even Celaine checked her arrows for the second time. No one spoke, but the silence pressed in like a held breath. They waited, ready for what might lurk within.

When nothing came, they shared a look, then Hump held his staff overhead, Wizard’s Light illuminating the place, though he kept it relatively dim, not wanting to attract the attention of anything that might be lurking.

Once, it must have been lavish, but now, the hall was in disrepair. The stairways had collapsed. Part of the upper balcony had fallen away. Statues had been defaced, the gold plundered, even sections of the floor had been torn up for scavenge. There were still faint outlines of runework over the walls, their magic long since bled dry, any essence stones dug out. Blackened scorch marks marred what remained of murals depicting Loften and his creations. Gold had been stripped from decorative motifs, leaving behind only jagged outlines of hammers, anvils, and runes—symbols of Loften’s dominion. Every inch of the tower was looted.

“Where do we start?” Emilia asked. “The upper levels of the tower may be worth clearing so we know there’s nothing at our backs when we descend. We can probably do it before the day’s end, then we can get some sleep before descending into the dungeon.”

“I don’t think we should wait,” Hump said. “We know Loften isn’t up there. All we’re doing is increasing our risk of discovering traps left behind.”

Emilia looked at him. “Then what?”

“I’d like to see where it is our essence is being siphoned off to first of all. Kaestra said that it didn’t used to be like this, which means that whatever is the cause, it’s likely new. It seems a safe bet to assume that it’s related to whatever is holding Loften here, or the guardians they left behind.”

“Agreed,” Bud said. “Let’s get this over with.”

Emilia nodded. “I can be convinced of that. Very well. Where do we need to go?”

Hump activated Spirit Sight. It was a simple matter to see where his essence was going, the trail streaming from his glowing staff and disappearing below ground.

“It’s being siphoned to something beneath us, so I think we need to find the door.” He brought out the Book of Infinite Pages, opening it to the depiction of the ground floor of the tower. Hump frowned, then turned his book on its side, then upside down. “Where are we?”

“Give it here,” Celaine said, taking the book. She skimmed over it, then headed to the door on the far left. “This way.”

Celaine led the way to the door on the far left, her steps soft as shadow. The rest followed, weapons ready, spells prepared. They passed through ruined halls in silence, Celaine careful of any traps. The desecration continued across the entire floor. Whoever had done this must have hated Loften. They didn’t just want to take anything of value, they had destroyed anything and everything they could, the pieces littering the ground as they walked.

Kaestra’s map led them to an unremarkable room. Furniture lay in pieces inside what could have perhaps been a reading room once. There were no other doors, just the cracked stone tiles beneath their feet and four empty walls.

“This is it?” Bud asked.

“Kaestra warned us that the door was hidden,” Hump said. “We’ll need to activate the runes. Help me clear off all this scrap.”

They emptied the room entirely. Hump wasn’t surprised at all that he still couldn’t see the runes, even with Spirit Sight. They were placed here by the most advanced enchanter known to Alveron, so it only made sense that they were well concealed, but Kaestra’s instructions led him true. He crouched low beside what remained of the fireplace, reaching inside to touch the inner left wall with his palm. Still he sensed nothing, but a quick burst of essence was all it took for runes to flash to life.

Golden lines flared through the stone like veins of light, forming a complex lattice of interlocking circles and angular script. A low grinding sound rumbled through the chamber. Dust spilled from the seams in the floor as the central tile sank, forming a spiral of descending stone steps.

“Kaestra was telling the truth then,” Bud said. “That’s a good start.”

“I wonder if she told the others that came here how to get inside,” Dylan muttered.

Hump peered into the opening. The stairwell descended steeply, its curved walls lined with dead essence lanterns, empty glass spheres set into gold mounts. He wondered what colour they might have blazed once. Loften seemed drawn to gold and flame from what he’d seen so far.

“Celaine, can you check it out?” Hump asked quietly.

She nodded, drawing her knife in her left hand while keeping her bow ready in the other. Without another word, she descended into the darkness.

Her silence in these times always made Hump nervous. Together, they stood waiting for her return, barely breathing in case they missed a sound from below. Yet not sound came.

A minute passed when like a ghost Celaine returned. “All clear. No traps on the stairs or down below. And nothing I can see that might attack us?”

“How is it?” Emilia asked.

Celaine considered her words. “It’s pretty much what you would expect from a very wealthy craftsman that thinks too highly of themselves.”

The descent was narrow but not very deep. The stairs were pristine, untouched by looters. They stepped out onto solid ground, and the hallway opened into a vast, open antechamber.

Celaine’s words were no understatement.

Before them stretched a chasm of a chamber, a single hollow carved from the earth so vast that it would take them minutes to walk to the other side. They stood on a stone balcony at the very tp of the space. Below them were four levels stacked atop each other, each one a maze of crumbling balconies, collapsed bridges, dark corridors and chambers. At the far end was a statue of Loften. The god’s form stretched through the chamber’s full height, forged of seamless silver metal. The head was gone, and Hump suspected he knew where.

At the centre of the chamber was a deep, dark hole.

“You’re not going to like this,” Hump said. “I’m fairly sure whatever is siphoning all the essence is down that hole.”

“Do you think you can maintain that spell you used to slow down our fall here?” Celaine asked.

“Yes, but it would draw attention if there are enemies down here.”

Celaine peered over the edge of the balcony, searching for a route down. “It’s going to take us a while to walk it. And we’ll still need to get down the hole.”

Hump heard a thud nearby. They all startled, raising their weapons toward the darkness to their right. There stood Nisha, a very human bone in her mouth, and a happy grin on her face.

“Oh, for goodness’ sake Nisha!” Hump hissed. “Spit that out!”