The Newt and Demon - Book 8 Chapters 13,14,15

Chapter 13 Ablate Taking care of the situation at Slagrot was one thing but as Theo sat at dinner that night, he couldn’t keep himself from

Chapter 13

Ablate

Taking care of the situation at Slagrot was one thing but as Theo sat at dinner that night, he couldn’t keep himself from probing the magical potential of the reagents he had pilfered from the volcano. Both the Lavashroom and Spit’s Pumice felt weird in his hands, as though they were different from the other reagents he had worked with. Both appeared to be normal reagents when looked at from a high level, but underneath their exterior waited something else entirely.

“No playing with your food, Theo!” Fenian shouted, spearing a large kernel of zee and taking a bite from the side. “We have plenty of time to destroy Balkor’s remnants.”

“That’s not my problem,” Theo said, placing the reagents on the table and taking a bite of his food. “I think I need to use my new skill to make the solution to destroy them.”

“So? Do it,” Jan said. He had already finished his food and was waiting patiently with his hands in his lap.

“It will require some experimentation for me to get right,” Theo said. “And I just can’t get my mind off of it.”

“I killed a dragon!” Tresk shouted. It was the 500th time she had yelled it, and she wouldn’t stop doing silly poses or pumping her fists in the air. 

Although Theo wanted to retreat into his thoughts, he was there for his companion. This was her moment to shout about her victory over the dragon, and the alchemist didn’t want to diminish her accomplishment. He put aside those things for now, intent on studying the reagents as much as the Dreamwalk would allow him. A few too many bottles of zee liquor were passed around, and Theo had to excuse himself and Tresk after a while. The others could celebrate all night for all he cared, loud noises never pulled them from their deep slumber.

Tresk was happy to plop them back down into that volcano. She imagined the scene from the fight just as it had been, the lava dragon flying around and shooting fire. Theo found a quiet corner as Alex got to experience the battle. Both of them zipped around the wide-open area, screaming with excitement as they fought the dragon’s replica.

“Are you going to work with me tonight?” Theo asked, settling in with his thoughts and the power of the Dreamwalk around him. “I need to reveal the properties on these items.”

The alchemist held the stone and the mushroom in his hands, extending them as though to offer them to the realm. He felt it push back in recognition, as though probing the items and determining their worth.

“I know this is a weird request,” Theo said. “But I have a strange feeling about these reagents. The potion I need to brew will destroy a piece of an ascendant. What’s left of his soul is poisoning the mortal plane. Leaving them where they are isn’t possible.”

The Dreamwalk pushed back, assessing his request. The realm could be rejecting at times, not allowing Theo to do things he had done before. Perhaps it was the excitement of defeating the dragon coming from Tresk, but it sent the faintest mental confirmation to his request a moment later.

“Thanks,” Theo said, settling down with his reagents and getting to work. First, he would deconstruct the pumice. It turned to ash in his hands, the smoke rising into the air as the three properties revealed themselves. “Hmmm…”

The alchemist summoned the properties for Spit’s Pumice, reading through them and nodding along.

Properties:

[Flame] [Dissolve] [Ablate]

The first two properties were ones Theo already had access to. The Ablate property was the one that drew his interest. From the sense he got inspecting the reagent, he knew this was a property powerful enough to remove the layers of magic binding Balkor’s phylactery. But it was missing something. Something the alchemist expected to find in his next ingredient. He got to work on it, dissolving the Lavashroom away until only chalky dust remained. After revealing the properties, he inspected them.

Properties:

[Flame] [Pyro] [Accelerant]

Theo was certain he was looking for the Accelerant property on the Lavashroom. That’s the one that felt right. But as he considered how to use them with his new form of alchemy, he was unsure. His instincts said he needed to combine them in a novel way, although what that was he couldn’t say. One thing he knew for certain was that he couldn’t do it here in the Dreamwalk. Gaining the properties was one thing, but he knew it wouldn’t let him go far enough to make a completely new potion.

Theo instead watched Tresk and Alex do their thing while working on his Herbalist core. It was slow, especially as the core drew closer to Level 40, but it was better than nothing. Deep down, Tresk knew that the dragon she had defeated wasn’t a true dragon. He was surprised to see that it didn’t bother her as much as expected. In her mind, a dragon was a dragon and it still counted.

“Ya gonna need help with that tomorrow?” Tresk asked, gesturing to a pile of dust on the ground. Theo had tossed the primal essences onto the ground, not thinking much about what to do with them. They were the imagined versions, after all.

“Maybe. I’m not sure what’s going to happen when I try emulating the Suffuse Potion,” Theo said. “Depends on if I have mastery over the skill yet.”

“What’s your opinion on that?” Tresk asked. “Do you understand it well enough yet?”

“I think I can do it,” Theo said. “I can’t really check from here, but I think it has to do with how well the two reagents get along. If they play nice, the connection will be easy. Otherwise, I’ll have to force them to work together. I get the sense that combining properties with this method will be even more hit or miss.”

“Let’s not forget to talk to Elrin once you get it working,” Tresk said, waving a finger. “Gotta get more Shards back to the mortal plane.”

“Easy peasy,” Theo said.

The rest of the Dreamwalk was mostly uneventful. When Tresk finally pulled them out, Theo felt as though someone had pulled the cork from a bottle, releasing pressure he didn’t realize was there. The knowledge he had gained within the dream realm came bubbling out, rising to the surface like some unwanted tide. The alchemist sat in the bed for a while, thinking he had some better understanding for how this was going to work.

Yet the cost of the Dreamwalk’s effort had taken something from Theo. Eventually, he rose from bed. But it was difficult. He found himself swaying on the spot after descending the stairs, standing and watching the others eat their breakfast as though viewing it from another person’s perspective. Fenian, Twist, and Jan had joined with Sarisa, Rowan, and Tresk at the table. Served at the table were plates piled high with greasy meats, almost as though they had anticipated his torpor.

“You’re looking rather green,” Fenian said, laughing as Theo fell into his chair.

“I think the Dreamwalk drained some of my life force or something,” Theo said, tossing a healthy pile of sausages onto his plate. “Almost like a hangover.”

“We know all about that, don’t we?” Fenian said, wiggling his brows at his companions. “You should’ve seen what Jan did after getting ahold of some pure elven wine.”

“Don’t remind me,” Jan grumbled, spearing a sausage and taking a bite. “You said it was ‘kinda strong,’ not that it could strip the paint off the hull of a ship.”

“Good thing Twist doesn’t drink,” Fenian said with another booming laugh.

Twist offered nothing to the comment, only concerning himself with the food on his plate. Theo listened as the others shared stories. A plan formed in his mind as the greasy food gave him comfort. This was a big turning point. If they could sort out Balkor’s problem, it would represent one of the last things he had to fix for the mortal plane. After that, there were only the shards to figure out. Then the mortal world would be ready for the reset. And just in time.

“Get up,” Sarisa said, patting Theo on the head. “I know your stuff is important. Gotta get it done.”

“Yeah, get up, lazybones,” Rowan said, dabbing the corners of his mouth.

“Speak for yourself,” Theo said, wobbling as he got to his feet. With a flash of his willpower, he steadied himself some. The familiar shadowy aura sprung out, surrounding him with a comforting field. “Come, I could use the company while I figure this out.”

“Well, what’s the problem?” Sarisa asked, leading the way and holding the door open for him.

“Thanks,” Theo said, heading outside. The humidity of the swap hit him, bringing some more clarity back to his mind. “My problem is one of process. I know I need to combine two properties from reagents using my new skill, but the template I’m working from revolves around the Suffuse property.”

Sarisa took a deep breath, closing her eyes. “Okay. That’s the potion you use to bind other potions, right?”

“Yep. It makes the elements of each potion play nice, creating another potion,” Theo said.

Sarisa followed close behind, cupping her chin as she hummed to herself. “Your new potion-making scheme is loose, right? Like all that willpower crap. The description on your new skill says you can bend the rules. Just bend the rule about suffuse potions.”

That was a fine place to start at. But the first thing Theo needed to do was to get somewhere safe. It didn't matter how sure of himself the alchemist was if he blew himself up while performing his experiments. He made his way to the giant metal cube and cleared out the workers there. They were, of course, thrilled to take the day off and were paid for their time, regardless. He established some barriers within the cube and then placed the two reagents down, eager to get to work. He started by adding each ingredient to their respective flask and decomposing them with his new skill, applying mana and willpower until they became the essence version of the ingredient.

Each felt stable enough on its own, but as he considered mixing them together, Theo got a sense that they wouldn't play well. As Sarisa watched from behind, he ran through scenarios in his mind.

“They don’t want to play well together,” Theo said, withdrawing another flask from his inventory. He placed it on the ground, drawing a tiny amount of essence from each vial and dripping it inside. The reaction was violet, but not destructive enough to do much more than shatter the container.

“You’re just not trying hard enough,” Sarisa said, huffing. “Try harder.”

Theo looked back, shooting her a glare. He turned back to his experiment after she gave him an unflinching stare and thought about it. It wasn’t just a matter of trying harder, but he could juice his willpower by increasing the potency of his aura.

“You asked for it,” Theo said, pulling an Aura Potion from his inventory and drinking it.

Theo allowed his aura to slip out. The metal cube was plunged into complete darkness and beheld with a murky gloom until the alchemist toned down that aspect of it. He took a deep breath and then held it, infusing every bit of his willpower into that aura and then likewise looping it back into his willpower. He focused on mixing the two potions, even as the metal cube around them rattled and the space seemed to warp inward towards Theo's efforts as he combined both essences. The only things he kept in his mind were the concepts of the suffuse potion and an image of what he wanted these two essences to achieve.

Sarisa fell over at some point, but Theo was too focused on the potion to stop. He felt it lash out, as though trying to break free of the bonds the system set forth. But he held his focus, pouring every bit of effort he had into it. The mixture took on a dark purple color, swirling within the flask without him touching it. Reality bent more, parts of the void slipping through right over his hands.

And then all was still.

“Job done,” Theo said, dropping his aura and holding the flask up. “Guess it worked.”

Clutching her chest, Sarisa looked up with fear. “Guess so,” she said, drawing a ragged breath. “Think I’ll need a nap.”

Chapter 14

Destroying Balkor

The new mix was a combination of the Ablate property from Spit’s Pumice and the Accelerant property from the Lavashroom. When these two properties worked together, Theo got the feeling that they would peel apart the layers of anything, removing it from existence. He supposed the ablate property in particular was useful, as it could dig deeper than just physical things, going deep and removing Balkor’s soul from the objects. Although he wasn’t sure how the ex-ascendant demon felt about it, it hardly mattered.

The objects had to be removed from the mortal plane.

Theo watched as Sarisa approached the flask, dropping a small rock inside and clapping with excitement as it dissolved. The solution inside the glass flask was incredibly volatile, and he wouldn’t want to get any of it on his skin. At least it wasn’t so destructive that it broke all the rules of alchemy. Everything he had learned up to this point showed that glass was neutral, no matter what. However, he was pleased that this rule still stood.

“So what, do we just destroy all the pieces of the demon now?” Sarisa asked.

“I don’t think so,” Theo said. “Doing each one at once might be too much for the world to handle. I don’t know if they’ll release any of his old energy when they’re destroyed, so I think it’s best if we take them one at a time.”

“And we better go do it by the shard up at Banu’s Farm,” Sarisa said. “Closer to a shard means it’ll have an easier time absorbing the energy, right?”

Theo hoped that would be the case, but how the shards worked exactly was still a bit of a mystery. He tried and failed to call Elrin. The beast tamer wasn’t accepting calls at the moment, likely off on one of his many adventures. The alchemist doubted Fenian and his gang knew anything, so it was time for some old-fashioned experimentation. He got Sarisa ready and headed over to the farmer’s hill, ascending the familiar ramp and spotting the farmers going about their day.

The farmers were growing crops at an absurd rate, trying to keep up with the demand of the visitors. Since he had arrived in Broken Tusk, Theo had always marveled at how quickly the farmers could grow food, and now that skill was being put on full display with so many visitors eating so much food. There was a certain tonnage they had to meet every week. It was only going to get worse before the end drew closer, but the farmers were doing their jobs. Between Banu’s farm, Theo’s own farm, and the scattered farms in Rivers and Daub, they could get the job done.

Theo turned the corner around the tower that had sprung up in the center of the farm. Finding the interior mostly empty, he observed the gently rotating shard that emitted an extremely comforting energy. The alchemist couldn’t deny that every time he visited the site, he felt at peace. However, that peace was broken when a gruff voice called from behind.

“Here to put another gigantic, freaking crystal in my farm?” Banu asked, placing his hands on his hips and scowling at the alchemist. The farmer had always had something of a vendetta against him, or perhaps that was just his nature—to be so grumpy.

“We’re thinking of installing at least three or four more,” Theo said. His eyes were still locked on the shard. “Maybe one directly over your house. You wouldn’t mind sleeping on a giant blue crystal, would you?”

“Laugh it up, alchemist,” Ban said, grumbling. “Just give me a warning next time you add random stuff to my farm.”

Theo waited for the farmer to clear out before he said anything. He shot Sarisa a concerned look and said, “Let’s not tell him that the energy this thing puts off could reanimate the dead if we’re not careful.”

“Got it,” Sarisa said, giving him the thumbs-up. “We’re not saying a thing about the undead.”

Before starting this phase of his experimentation, Theo placed the flask of dissolving potion before him to get a better sense of how it interacted with the crystals and magical energies. It seemed okay. He didn’t sense anything unusual happening, but when he withdrew the phylactery and placed it nearby, he felt the shard lurch as though it was attempting to reach out and banish those energies. But that process would take far too long, and they had too many to destroy.

Theo erected magical barriers all around them, weaving both physical, elemental, and magical barriers to contain whatever it was they would release. He felt some of Balkor’s power slipping through the cracks in his defenses, but this would need to be good enough for now. Sarisa stepped away, gaining a healthy distance before the experimentation started.

“Ready?” he asked.

Sarisa looked nervous, but nodded.

Theo held the phylactery tray over the flask for a few moments too long, feeling something within it pushing back. There was still a piece of the old ascendant demon in there, and it was difficult to understand how cognizant it was. He let it fall, watching as the object splashed into the potion and then sank below. Ribbons of green energy rose forth, creating a cloud in the air that seemed to lash out at anything living. Power from the shard joined the fight, pulling back on the green cloud until it drifted through the barriers. Whatever power Balkor had on the mortal plane was destroyed then, the shard drinking the essence hungrily.

“Is it over?” Sarisa asked, hiding behind the wall of the tower. She only poked her head out to see what was going on.

“Looks that way,” Theo said.

Swirling the contents of the flask around, Theo could see nothing of the phylactery. It was completely destroyed, and the shard had absorbed the remnant energy as though it were nothing. However, the alchemist wasn’t foolhardy enough to feed the potion more, as he was afraid of overloading the crystal with too much negative energy. He would leave that to the experts, but at least he had proof of concept.

Theo perked up when he heard a familiar roaring in the distance. Then came the screams.

“Elrin is here,” Theo said, pushing himself to a standing position. “We must’ve done something big enough to gain his attention.”

Theo and Sarisa jogged to a clearing away from the tower to get a better view of the soaring dragon in the distance. As always, Elrin had a way of making an entrance. The light-colored dragon seemed to mingle with the clouds floating in the sky above, dipping and diving as it rushed toward them. The nearby farmers fled, assuming something worse than what was coming. At least Elrin was kind enough to dismount the dragon far away and make the rest of the approach on foot. But as he approached, Theo could see the sour look on his face.

“What are you doing?” Elrin asked, hands on his hips as he looked between Theo and the Shard.

“Well, you didn’t answer my calls, so I had to do an experiment myself,” Theo said, jabbing a finger back at the tower behind him. “I destroyed one of Balkor’s phylacteries and let the shard absorb the energies.”

“And it worked?” Elrin said, pushing past Sarisa and Theo to look into the tower. “Perhaps we should’ve talked beforehand, but it appears to have worked. The energy was almost too much, but it took it… Interesting.”

“Does that mean we did good or what?” Theo asked. “I took the appropriate precautions, so I wasn’t too worried. But now you’ve got me a little worried.”

“This one was fine,” Elrin said, keeping his eyes on the shard as he spoke. “We’ll need to bring more of them to the mortal plane if you want to keep it up, but this is a great start.”

“Excellent, that reduces the number of items on my checklist by one,” Theo said. “Bring the shards here, get rid of the pieces of a demon ascendant, and oh yeah, gain the favor of every god. I’m still not sure if I need that last one now.”

“I doubt it,” Elrin said. “The pace at which your willpower has grown is absurd. When the next reset comes, you should expect it to be sent back to zero. I don’t think the system takes kindly to things like that. Back in my day, I bent a few rules and had the intervention of the system more than once.”

“Everything else is good, though, right?” Theo asked. “Did you want to go pop off and grab another shard?”

Elrin paused for a few long moments as though he were allowing his thoughts to gather. He eventually nodded. “I’ve got a good spot for one, but I don’t really care to return to that place. However, it’s got to get done.”

This was more of Elrin’s dark past rearing its ugly head. The alchemist really wasn’t sure how he would respond, so he took a few moments before saying anything. “If you’re comfortable,” the alchemist said with a shrug, “we don’t have that many more to place, do we?”

“We have a lot to move,” Elrin corrected. “It’ll be easier once we get more onto the mortal plane. But starting off with only a few, the world needs to get used to it. We’re effectively jump-starting the energies that run the mortal plane, so we have to go slow. Once we get ten, it’ll be faster after that.”

“How would you describe the energy the shards provide?” Theo asked. “The way you explained them in the past, it seems like the world’s life force.”

“In a way,” Elrin said with a shrug. “That’s not inaccurate. The Shard Network is a balancing force. Things wouldn’t have been this bad if the shards were still awake…”

“Wanna come?” Theo asked, turning to Sarisa.

“Me?” Sarisa asked, looking around as though there were another of her standing around.

“Yeah, come on, never be fun,” Theo said, spreading his aura to encompass all of them. Still under the effects of the aura potion, he found his shadowy sphere of influence springing out with little effort. Elrin shot him a nod, as though to confirm their departure. “Right, here we go.”

Theo loved showing off his new ability. He folded the void in on itself, connecting the points between the mortal realm and the void island to a single dot. An instant later, they were standing at the base of a ziggurat, and Sarisa was falling to one side, stumbling at the sudden change in location.

“I’ll never get used to that,” Elrin grumbled, striding off to find the right shard.

“I’m gonna stay with her,” Theo said, kneeling to help Sarisa back to her feet. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” Sarisa lied, her orange complexion going pale. “I just need a minute.”

The void island has changed in recent memory. The energies holding it together are fading, and the void seems to encroach further. Theo can see that, at one point, this place would have been bustling with activity from the space elves. When the shards still had a lot of energy, the island would have been very habitable. However, as those energies faded, unpowered by the mortal plane’s unknowable engine, the livability dropped significantly. It was now an aggressively hostile place where the powers of the void clashed with the shards.

“This place doesn’t have much longer,” Theo said. “I hope we can get all the shards before it collapses.”

“Got the one I need,” Elrin said, waving for Theo to follow him.

Theo helped Sarisa to her feet, dragging her through the jungle and over to the shard in question. Elrin had already strapped the devices to it, and the alchemist assumed the spot on the mortal plane had the corresponding beacon.

“So, where are we going?” Theo asked.

“Old Whisperwood,” Elrin said with a shiver. “Near it, anyway.”

“Ah,” Theo said, nodding. “We’ll make it quick.”

Chapter 15

Metaphysically Large

Theo followed the signature of the beacon, allowing himself to be guided through the void. While it would have been better to have access to his newest favorite ability, he didn't mind sailing through that darkened realm. In the distance, he could spot the heavens where the gods currently sat. It appeared like a massive star wreathed in luminous clouds. However, the trip was brief, and they were soon approaching a section of the mortal plane the alchemist had visited several times before.

On the eastern side of Tarantham’s continent, there was a heavily wooded area. Theo had learned this was Elrin’s home, a place once called Whisperwood. It was now mostly destroyed, or occupied by random elves that had no business being there. The alchemist could see the look of contempt on Elrin’s face as they approached, shaking his head as they landed in a mountainous region. They were to the southwest of the spot where the city had once stood. Hopefully, they were far enough away not to cause too much pain.

"It should be right over there," Elrin said, gesturing forward. The party proceeded forward with a shard hovering right behind them.

The shard was to be planted atop a hill. It provided a decent view of the surrounding area. Arid mountains stretched as far as the alchemists could see, with sparse wildlife visible here and there. What little plant life existed in the area clung to the dusty rocks, desperate to get both nutrients and water in the wasteland. The dense trees Theo had seen on his way in had faded, lingering to the north and showing up on the distant mountains.

“This place is dry,” Theo said.

“It gets worse to the west, right before Vesta… Or whatever they renamed that city… Tarantham City,” Elrin said, spitting on the ground. “Couldn’t they have been more creative?”

“Guess not,” Theo said with a shrug.

Sarisa breathed a sigh of relief. “I’m just glad we’re back here. I can’t stand the void.”

“Then why did you come?” Theo asked.

“Uh, because I knew we were coming back. Duh. I get to see the far-flung places of the world!” Sarisa shouted, her voice echoing off the barren rocks around them.

The group ascended the hill until Elrin spotted the place where he wanted to put the shard. Sarisa and Theo watched as he planted it, summoning the tower that surrounded it. Funny enough, there were slight ruins around the area, denoting the spot where the old tower once stood.

"So, what was this place?" Sarisa asked, scanning the environment as they waited for the process to complete.

"This was the territory of some theocratic nation back in Elrin’s day," Theo explained. "I think he was born there and set off on his adventures from there. But I'm pretty sure most of it happened in the west. When the monster waves came, his home was hit very hard. I don't think they were built for war."

“Huh. Ya learn something new every day,” Sarisa said. “Sixty-thousand years of history, though… That’s kinda weird, isn’t it?”

“Everything about this world is weird,” Theo said. “Nothing is as it should be, and that’s why we’re working so hard to set it right. The ascendants are to blame as much as the space elves, and I’m happy they each got theirs.”

“Wow. Vengeful much?” Sarisa asked.

Theo shrugged. “Neither of us were alive back then, so I guess we can’t truly judge. But that won’t stop me from complaining.”

“Look at that,” Sarisa said, whistling.

Elrin had planted the shard. The tower sprung up around it, reaching high into the sky. A pulse of energy rolled from the tower, washing over the landscape and tingling the alchemist’s senses. The stinging faded after a few breaths, leaving the environment with a clean feeling. It was more than just a purging of aberrant energies. The air he breathed felt better, although it was hard to put it into words. It was just right.

“All done,” Elrin said, giving both Theo and Sarisa a sharp nod. “That’ll help a lot. The most powerful shards are all located on this continent. Except for a few others, every other one is in a support role.”

“That’s good to know,” Theo said. “So, what can you tell me about this area?”

Elrin shrugged, looking out over the horizon with a blank expression. “It changed too much. But we used to go down to the beach that way and play a lot. My clan was small, compared to the others in Whisperwood, but we had enough money and influence to spend leisure time by the sea.”

“Wow. Sounds nice,” Sarisa said. “We used to spend our leisure time throwing mud at each other.”

“The port is gone, but it used to ferry people all over the continent. Since we didn’t trade much with the western or eastern nations, everything was insular. That only got worse when the monster waves started,” Elrin said. “But there was a lot of good stuff going on. When the adventurers united, we did some pretty cool stuff.”

A gentle breeze blew from the south, bringing with it a wash of hot air. Theo couldn’t help but think about those future things the people on Tero’gal would get to experience. He hoped they could avoid the pitfalls this world had experienced. So long as the ascendant system was patched out, everything would be fine.

“The thing that shocks me most is how Tarantham is doing,” Theo said. “They’re just still chugging along without their emperor.”

“Curious how that works, right?” Elrin asked. “As much as I hate Kuzan, he established a lasting legacy.”

“And one that doesn’t require a cult to keep running,” Theo said. “Khahar did the same, but he turned his people into a bunch of weird worshipers. Not sure what I think about that.”

“Once the switch happens, we’ll see how long his legacy lasts,” Elrin said. “Time will be the new factor that proves everything true or false.”

Theo didn’t care to return to Broken Tusk right now. He stood there on the hill, looking out over an unfamiliar landscape to daydream about what might have happened here however many years ago. Perhaps only the stones could remember all those stories, but the alchemist held a hope that more people like Erlin were around to recount the past. But the group grew bored of the endless nothing, and were soon poised to head out.

“Feeling better?” Theo asked, wrapping both Sarisa and Elrin in his aura. He nodded to the half-ogre, unable to stop himself from smiling. The color had returned to her face at least.

“A lot better,” Sarisa said. “Nothing like home to make one feel better, right?”

“Absolutely,” Theo said, folding the void. In the edge of his senses, something strange appeared. The alchemist narrowed his eyes, feeling it in his peripheral sense. “Hold on. Something weird is going on…”

“What is it?” Elrin asked.

Theo allowed himself to be drawn by the feeling, folding space where it felt appropriate. It was finally becoming second-nature to move on the mortal plane, and the group soon snapped into a snowy landscape. A sheet of white blinded them on all sides, the temperature dropping significantly. The alchemist felt the wind sting his face, forcing him to draw his coat tighter. When that didn’t work, he sent out a bubble swirling with fire, bringing the temperature to a reasonable level.

“You brought us to Calet,” Elrin said. “Why?”

“I don’t know,” Theo said, unsure if that’s where they really were. “This place is awful.”

“I’m so cold!” Sarisa shouted, her arms wrapped around herself. “Even with the swirling fire thing.”

“It should warm up in a second,” Theo said. “Did people used to live here?”

“A long time ago,” Elrin said. “Long before even my time. But what is it that drew you here?”

“That’s an excellent question,” Theo said, sending his aura wide. He felt things here and there, but nothing that would warrant such a powerful response when he had teleported. A few minutes of scanning later, and he felt something bigger. Something beneath the snow. Below their feet, the thick snow drift was melting. “I think what we’re looking for is over there. Under the snow.”

Elrin blew his whistle, and a massive dragon appeared. Trevor, in his dragon form, roared and got to work on the digging. “He’ll make quick work of it.”

“And quick work of my clean pants,” Sarisa said, looking up with her mouth agape. “Seriously, that’s not normal. You guys should freak out more.”

Trevor roared after removing tons of snow, flapping his wings to clear away some debris.

“He found something,” Elrin said, jerking his head to the side. “We should check it out.”

“Should we, though?” Sarisa asked, a spear and shield appearing in her grasp. “Theo gets pulled over by some weird magic and we’re just gonna dive on in?”

“Why wouldn’t we?” Theo asked. “Magic hole in the snow. Who doesn’t wanna jump in?”

It was truly impressive how deep Trevor had dug in such a short time. It was even more impressive how deep the snow itself was. The ragged hole stretched twenty feet down, the endless sheet of white finally ending with a scratch of gray. “So that’s where the ground is,” Theo said.

“Strange,” Elrin said, jumping into the hole. Another blow of his whistle saw the dragon vanishing, replaced by a tiger. Trevor’s tiger form wasted no time digging at the snowy walls, clearing a path forward. “He senses what you sensed.”

“I’m not sure how,” Theo said, helping remove the layers of snow. They tunneled, creating a straight corridor that looked unstable. The alchemist eventually felt his fingers scrape something and cleared away the last layer. After stepping down, he released a whistle. “What do we have here?”

Buried in the snow was a stone effigy, roughly the size of Theo and representing an abstract shape. The energy coming off it was faint. It was the flavor of power he associated with the shards, gods, and system. A subtle energy that could hardly be detected unless one knew what to look for.

“I don’t know what I’m looking at,” Elrin said, clearing away more of the snow to get a better look at the statue. “This feels made by the system. I don’t get it…”

Theo looked up, expecting the gods or the system to interdict him for his discovery. But nothing happened. Both allowed him to remain there on the mortal plane, observing the weird statue. He came around the side, allowing his aura to soak into stone. Sarisa stood back, a concerned look on her face the entire time. If she had further concerns, she didn’t voice them.

“Another weird thing left by the system. Just like the shards,” Theo said. “What’s so weird about that? I’d be surprised if there weren’t even more nonsense artifacts hanging around.”

Elrin gave Theo a serious look. “I’m not sure about this one. There’s something wrong about it.”

Trevor growled in agreement, pawing at the statue and gaining some distance before growling again. He then purred when Elrin patted him on the head.

“We can take it with us,” Theo said, wrapping his aura around everyone and the statue. “No need to freeze our butts off.”

“I’m not sure you can,” Elrin said.

With a shrug, Theo tried to fold the void over on itself. What actually happened was a sensation like being kicked in the chest by a horse. The alchemist was thrown back, slamming into the rear wall of snow and leaving a Theo-shaped hole behind. Sarisa let out a strangled yelp and Elrin sighed.

“It is a metaphysically large item,” Elrin said, reaching into the hole and pulling Theo out.

“Yeah? How heavy?” Theo asked, groaning as he was removed from the bank of snow. “You realize I can interdict a landmass the size of Tarantham City… if not more.”

“I’d say it weighs a bit more than Tarantham City,” Elrin said. “Based on observational science.”

Theo narrowed his eyes at Elrin. “We’re getting out of here.”