Chapter 479 - Altari Magic

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Hump had spent much of the week it had taken to reach the Sky Isles bent over his spellbook, searching for and experimenting with a handful of spells he thought would prove useful in the days ahead. Embrace of the Wind and the rest of the spell tree had been an obvious choice when they were so often a bad choice away to falling to their deaths, but true flight was still beyond his reach. Now that he’d met Acalin and the altari, a more pressing matter had presented itself—they would stick out like a sore thumb anywhere they went.

A hooded cloak could only do so much when trying to walk through a populated town as the only humans in an entire world, so Hump’s attention had turned toward one of his least favourite spell schools—illusion.

Greater Disguise was simple enough on paper Cast on a single target, the spell barely counted as Tier 2, but to extend it across five people at once, with every layer of detail maintained and reinforced so that if he walked out or range or became distracted it would not fail, the structure demanded that of a Tier 4 spell, along with a conduit on each of the targets.

It all required far more patience than Hump preferred. Illusions were subtle and artistic—not exactly ideal for a wizard that preferred big, powerful spells where most problems could be overcome by throwing more essence at them. But necessity had a way of sharpening one’s talents, and by the time the windrunner began its approach to the Sky Isles, he’d managed to force the spell into shape.

The ritual was no small affair. They found a quiet spot in a clearing on one of the larger islands bordering the Sky Isles. Hump drew a series of wide spell formations on the ground using Transform Earth, and made his party stand in their own marked circle. The magic spread like a web, weaving light over them all. To sustain it, Hump had prepared a charm with the help of the Enchantment Table inside the lich’s phylactery—a simple loop of chain marked with the simplified Disguise spell. His own hummed faintly with power, holding the illusion in place even.

“You’ve done amazing,” Dylan said. “Learning all this is impressive.”

Hump shook his head. “Far too much was achieved through a combination of my spellbook and soul strength. I can simply maintain more elements at once than a weaker wizard, so this is hardly the most practical spell.”

“The most practical spell is the one you have on you when you need it,” Dylan said. “This is fantastic. You couldn’t have given me my arm back though?”

The altari version of Dylan waved what Hump thought was a very accurate to life stump, and he looked every bit like an altari now. Hump had modelled each of them after Acalin and his party, them being the only altari he had ever met had left him with little choice. Everyone now wore the angular features, tall frames, and colourful hair, looking suspiciously like distant cousins of Acalin’s group… well, Hump could see the family resemblance at least. Good enough if nobody decided to dig to deeply.

“Easier to make it as close to reality as possible. That charm should maintain the spell for a period even if we get separated, but don’t go too far.” He turned to Acalin. “What do you think?”

“It is uncanny,” Acalin said. “There are oddities—the hands look a little strange, Bud’s eyes are a bit far apart, and you are all still on the shorter end of my kind, even with the added height.”

“I couldn’t make them taller without a risk of giving away the disguise,” Hump said. “The last thing we need is a head passing through something it shouldn’t. Will it hold up to scrutiny?”

Acalin nodded. “Absolutely. Even counting the oddities, I have seen stranger looking altari. Just look at Karo.”

“What do you mean, ‘look at Karo’?” the altari said, emphasising Acalin’s words in a goofy impersonation. “I am as handsome as they come.”

“The bulging eyes of Bud’s are from him, right?” Acalin said, ignoring his friend.

Hump’s lips formed a tight line as he met Acalin’s eyes, saying nothing. The rest of Acalin’s party looked at him.

“Why are you all looking at me as if I have something on my face?” Acalin asked.

There was an explosion of their own language, smiles on everyone’s faces but him.

Finally, Meli turned to Hump and his party. “We were just informing him that he may need to look in a mirror.”

Hump and the others laughed.

“There’s one problem,” Celaine said. “I can see through this at little more than a glance. I can’t tell what’s beneath the illusion, but it looks like a dense array of essence.”

“Nothing I can do about that,” Hump said. “You’re more powerful than the spell, and I’m not skilled enough in illusion magic to make up for the difference. We need to be prepared for it to fail if anyone inspects us using magic. Obviously, we won’t be able to speak either unless we want to draw attention to the fact we speak their holy language.”

“It will do,” Acalin said. “I do not mean to be immodest, but my name opens many doors. It is unlikely that we have trouble. If anything, Nishari is more likely to be a problem.”

“Oh, don’t worry about her,” Hump said. “She can fly overhead and meet us once we’ve found accommodation.”

***

Acalin dropped off his own party on the main island first, then returned for Hump and the others. From the deck of the windrunner, the Sky Isles sprawled across the horizon. Jungle-canopied islands rose from the mist, veined with flowers that gleamed like fireflies against the dark. Between them, buildings of bright stone and painted wood spilled over the cliffsides, bridges and ropeways criss-crossing the gaps. And all of it suspended above a sea of rolling clouds. Among them, he saw ships as large as any he had seen in the Elenvine docks, though far flatter. It looked impossible, yet seeing it was proof of something Hump had always thought but never truly believed—with magic, anything was possible. Maybe this world would change his mind.

Despite himself, Hump grinned.

“It’s lovely, isn’t it?” Celaine said, leaning against him. “So much more alive than the cities of your people.”

“That’s one way to put it,” Hump said.

She glanced at him. “That feels like one half of a sentence.”

Hump shrugged. “It’s like we’re flying into the painting of a crazy person. The town is floating! Everything’s floating!”

Celaine snorted.

From the island, a much larger vessel glided into view, dwarfing their windrunner.

It was cylindrical in shape, with a great central chamber ringed by balconies—something between a lighthouse and a fortress tower, though fashioned entirely of steel and runes. At its midsection, a walkway circled the hull, where a uniformed woman watched their approach with hands clasped behind her back.

“Dockmaster’s vessel,” Acalin explained, easing the windrunner into a slower drift. “Standard procedure. No one enters the Sky Isles without registration.”

Acalin guided them alongside the tower-ship, exchanged a few curt words with the woman, and presented a sigil pressed into bronze. After a brief inspection and the clink of coin for the entry fee, their windrunner was waved through. The great vessel peeled away, already angling toward the next arrival.

Docking was easy enough, though the guards made Hump a little nervous. He sensed essence over a few of them, though it didn’t seem directed toward them. There was no way to avoid them though. All they could do was move like they belonged. Turned out, he’d been worrying for nothing. His spell held.

The Sky Port unfolded before them in a riot of color and sound. Altari strode along broad platforms carved into the floating rock, their vibrant hair glinting like banners above the crowd. Lamps lit the streets in a consistent glow, each holding the same rune within. Hovering platforms floated path, imbued with what must have been the same enchantment as the windrunner based on the bronze glow below. Merchant stalls overflowed with fruits, metals, and trinkets, their sellers shouting over the crowds. It was busy, but not in the same way as Elenvine. This wasn’t a place ordinary people chose to live. It was a stop on the way, and those that lived here built their industry around that.

They were walking through the streets of town on their way to an inn when Karo took a step closer to Hump. The man had been the most intrigued out of all of Acalin’s party, hovering at Hump’s side as if trying to decipher some great problem. He had a thick beard and long hair, both braided with essence stones, many of which were inscribed with runes.

Hump could guess what it was easily. The altari held a bronze staff in hand and studied him intently, a light in his eyes that matched the runes in his staff—he was studying him with some sort of magical sight.

“You know, in my world, it’s considered rude to inspect someone like that without asking,” Hump said.

“Here too,” Meli added.

“I am sorry. I am simply fascinated. This is the external essence manipulation you spoke of?” he asked, an intensity in his gaze that made Hump a little uncomfortable.

“Yes, a Tier 4 example,” Hump said. “Illusion magic is one of the areas I’m weaker in so this is about the best I can manage.”

“Are there many spells like this?” the man asked.

“Hundreds. Thousands even.”

“And how many can you use? How many do you have access to? Is this something anyone can learn, or must you have a talent for it?”

“That’s a lot of questions,” Hump said with a smile.

“My apologies, I just never imagined such a thing was possible.”

“It’s fine. I don’t know the exact number, but I can use pretty much any cantrip I have access to without much effort—those are the spells apprentice wizards start with as part of their studies. Tier 1 and 2 spells are quite simple to learn, and then a Tier 4 spell like this took up most of my focus during downtime this week.”

“Just a single week?” Karo asked.

“At my strength, such spells are not too challenging,” Hump said.

The altari man shook his head. “How much more powerful can they get?”

“Is it really that impressive?” Tamira asked.

Karo looked at her and laughed. “A spell like this would only be possible with the runecraft of one of the Holy Ones.”

“You should see him when he’s not being so friendly,” Dylan said. “Hump’s not very good at the more intricate spells like this, believe it or not? His specialty lies elsewhere.”

Karo’s eyes widened, a smile on his lips. “Can you show us?”

“Probably best not to do it here,” Hump said.

“Why?” Karo glanced at Dylan and the rest of Hump’s party, amusement dancing on their faces. “I feel like I have stumbled upon a joke I do not follow.”

“My specialty is more in the blowing stuff up kind of area,” Hump said. “With any luck, you’ll never need to see.”

“Now I am most curious! It is said that High Priest Haradron can raise walls of fire out of nothing and breathe out scarlet flames that could set a forest on fire, but I have never seen such things. You know how it is with stories, they are always exaggerated.”

If the Holy One’s were Loften’s Chosen, by Hump’s guess that would put them somewhere around silver rank, though that could mean anything from fourth to sixth circle.

“How many spells can you cast?” Hump asked.

“Every rune in my staff was painstakingly carved. Each spell chosen with great care to ensure I had the necessary abilities for whatever crisis we might face. There are thirty-two spells upon my staff, varying in their power and complexity.” Karo fingered his beard. “These runes hold simple spells too, though the makings of them means that I can only use them once.”

Hump could see the essence brimming in each of them. While Acalin’s party hadn’t achieved Soul Manifestation yet, an arsenal of magic such as this left them well equipped. “And they require the mark on your chest to use?”

“Correct. To you, the uninitiated they are little more than glowstones.” Karo turned to Acalin. “I would be curious to see what our brand would do to them. Have you discussed taking them to the temple to see if initiating them might be possible.”

“No,” Acalin said. “And I suspect they will not want to. They have their own gods and power.”

Well said, Hump thought. The last thing he wanted was to be branded by a mark he was pretty sure siphoned off their potential.

Karo seemed disappointed. “A shame. It would be good to teach us each other’s magics.”

“Are you interested in the study of magic?” Dylan asked him.

“Of course. You may say it’s my passion. I would not be here, in fact, without the push of my teacher for some real world experience.”

“Karo was top of his class at the adult school,” Yoltza said. “I do not know how you would say such a thing.”

“University or academy,” Dylan offered. “Why did they push their top student to come out here? That sounds like a tale.”

“Not an exciting one,” Karo said. “I had learned what I could, and practical application was the next step. If I knew I would be eviscerated by griffins, I may have pushed back more.”

“It was very exciting!” Meli said. “Karo learned everything the school had to teach and started experimenting on his own. He blew up an entire wing using a runic array that powered itself on the environment.”

“Ah,” Dylan said. “I’m seeing why some experience was deemed important.”

“Their loss and our good fortune,” Acalin said. “Karo’s magic has helped us out of many dangerous places. And one day, it will be key to capturing a dungeon.”

“We have dungeons in our world too,” Hump said. “Are they horrible places filled with monsters here too?”

“Yes, but we do not see them as such,” Acalin explained. “Dungeons were places of great importance before the shattering of the world, and now, they are a place where we can challenge ourselves. To capture a dungeon is to claim its treasure. As dangerous as they are, they are bountiful, and a chance for us to prove ourselves to the Maker.”

“Loften created them?” Hump asked.

“Yes. It is said that when he rebuilt the world, he put all the darkness into these places and sealed it away, binding it until a champion powerful enough to claim it came along. Of course, there are monsters elsewhere, but the lower islands are far more dangerous, especially near dungeons. Most do not go to such places.”

“Interesting. You’ll need to tell us more about it.”

“You intend to try your hand, little man?” Tamira asked with a smirk.

“I do.” He grinned back. “How could I walk away from the promise of treasure?” He decided not to add that his dungeon in particular happened to contain their imprisoned god.

He wondered what would happen to Var and the altari if Loften was set free. All this time, his focus had been on getting home, avoiding Godfrey, and keeping his party alive. But Loften was so ingrained in their lives, from the brands on their chests, to their magic, to holding together the very ground they stood on that Hump had no idea what the true repercussions might be.

They had set off to free an exiled god, which, under the best of circumstances seemed like a questionable thing to do to Hump. Now, he was beginning to think they may need to learn more to ensure they weren’t dooming this world by doing so.

It seemed he and his party needed to have a talk.