Bloodcrete (The Weirkey Chronicles Book 6), page 21
"Actually, I was waiting to ask." Friend Theo glanced toward the Blacksilver camp, then shrugged. "I guess the intelligence I gained in the Gold Wastes isn't really relevant anymore, so there's no point reporting. Sure, let's work on it. I've been practicing, but I feel like I'm making a lot of mistakes."
"Extend your senses as far as you can," Relative Guchiro said. "We will compare and test your limits."
Friend Theo responded without arguing, and though Fiyu couldn't sense the details of his technique, her relative frowned carefully. After they spent some time analyzing, he gave his pronouncement. "Your personal sense appears to be somewhat imprecise, but it is enormously long range. If you fix your current errors and ascend even once, your range will exceed mine."
"I suppose that makes sense," Friend Theo said. "The force of gravity isn't as strong, but it operates over an infinite range. The thing is, I still want to use it for combat purposes."
"Your efforts will improve by shifting your goals. Your senses are not suited to analyzing individuals, but if you are only concerned with identifying all entities, you can specialize in a number of ways..."
That set off almost an hour of analysis and soulcrafting discussion. Fiyu was overjoyed to find that she was actually able to assist, even with her relative present. Relative Guchiro might be familiar with training wards, but he was many years removed from first discovering his own senses, and he didn't understand Friend Theo's thinking as well as she did. Fiyu found the discussion itself enjoyable and she was happy that her companion would make good progress with their advice.
Perhaps his greatest shortcoming was that he needed to dedicate more internal space to his new sense. Ordinarily Fiyu would have thought a remodel was necessary, but Relative Guchiro said that with his spherical flow, a little-used chamber on his second floor might synergize best. Fiyu was unsure, but Friend Theo seemed pleased: he had already been planning a mind-enhancing chamber, so designing one that also granted him the capacity for new senses worked well. Or perhaps he was merely pleased to better fill in a long-standing gap in his design.
For her part, Fiyu was happy to contribute some of the excess shadowminds she had collected. Friend Theo agreed that some of them would be appropriate, though he wasn't sure if they would be sufficient as a central material. Even for a start, however, they let him improve himself and begin testing the new techniques they had offered to develop his new sense.
Once Friend Theo left to practice, Fiyu joined her relative to begin searching the region for the demonic artifact. She discovered that her relative had already begun, but his broadest search had uncovered nothing. Presuming the device had a physical core, it was too well-hidden to be easily found. Still, she was hopeful that they might locate it.
Yes, the major forces on the Norron continent were nearly at war. Yes, she was still missing Friend Nauda. Yes, the demon leader had survived and was no doubt regrouping. But now that she was with companions again, Fiyu could feel optimistic.
That optimism lasted until a portal opened in the sky and tentacles dragged Friend Theo into nothingness. It vanished a moment later, before they could react. Across the plateaus, the House of the Lost began to move.
Chapter 20
Theo had absolutely no warning before a tentacle that shouldn't exist wrapped around his body. It didn't feel slimy, it felt like reality was screaming in pain as it was twisted into a knot. He felt a brief sensation of being pulled, then it was overwhelmed by a grinding disorientation completely different from any gate or weirkey.
Then he was back in normal space. If he hadn't traveled through so many worlds, he might have been disoriented or even incapacitated, but the shock had made Theo completely alert. His gravity senses immediately oriented him to the fact that he'd only shifted across the plateaus, and his eyes revealed a number of beings around him. Each wore a cloak and looked roughly human, at least until something slithered underneath the fabric.
"The House of the Lost," Theo said, calmer than he felt. "You've been ignoring my letters."
"It's one of them," a cloaked figure to his left said. At least, Theo was reasonably certain that was its meaning. The words that reached him through soul translation writhed inside his mind.
Though the group seemed strange, and their cantae buzzed unnaturally, they were soulcrafters. And they felt like strong ones, largely Authorities. Considering the way they had kidnapped him and how they had addressed him so far, Theo decided that he didn't have time to waste on pleasantries and played his strongest card.
"I saw you fight Vistgil in the Chasm of Lamentations." That name finally got their attention. "How many of those spatial traps does he have? One of them nearly got me on Tatian."
"The threat is too high," one of the figures said. "Extract everything."
A squat cloak shifted forward and a tentacle extended from between the folds. An instant later, Theo was screaming as unnatural forces assaulted his mind. He hadn't even sensed a technique, it just felt like icy claws were reaching into his brain and scooping out memories. Letting the pain fuel him, he fought them back, snatching everything they tried to take.
When the sensation faded, Theo was left gasping for breath. He repeated in his mind that they were soulcrafters, over and over. They might seem like incomprehensible eldritch beings, but if they used cantae, he could resist them with cantae.
That was what he told himself to stay sane.
"Unusually resistant. An enhanced model?"
"Eliminate."
"No. Further study is required."
Another portal appeared beside him, but this time Theo was ready. Before anything could emerge, he applied his tunneling cantae technique directly to it. He might not be able to transport himself, but he could twist space and ruin other similar techniques. The portal distorted and collapsed.
Then a far larger cloak emerged from the shadows, burning with power. Its authority wiped away all other cantae, like they were nothing more than cheap light tricks. Theo suspected that this being was the same one he had seen in the Chasm, and it certainly felt like it was beyond Dominion. As it leaned down to inspect him, he decided that he needed to bet it all now.
"If you want to kill me, do it! But if you want information about Vistgil, you'll have to talk to me." He gathered enough power for a torsion bolt and pointed it at his own head. "If you're not working against him, I'd rather take death."
The leader uttered something completely incomprehensible, but it pulled back and released its power. One of the smaller figures stepped forward to speak. "We do not work for that being. But it is difficult to communicate with your kind about such matters."
"I understood you just fine in the Chasm."
"Because we are distorted by these worlds. It distorts essential meaning."
Since the tallest one was clearly the leader, Theo directed his attention toward it. "Then let's go to your world. Unless it's going to kill me instantly, I think we'd be able to communicate easiest there."
Several of the cloaks scoffed, and sounded decidedly human in doing so. But the leader's hood tilted strangely, then it slipped a tentacle from its sleeve. Theo caught a glimpse of a jagged hole in the world shaped roughly like a key, then his entire body tried to turn itself inside out.
It was definitely worse than any transition he'd made before. Theo felt like he had a throbbing heart everywhere in his body except his actual heart. When he tried to look around him, the only way he could understand it was like a mirror shattered into a million pieces, each reflecting another side of him. Trying to interpret the scene through gravity gave him a sense of twisting... and an impossibly vast being directly in front of him.
"Can you survive here?" When it spoke, the words tore into his mind, but at least they didn't distort like before.
"I think so." Theo winced, since his own words hurt him too. It was definitely one of the nastier experiences of his life, but if these creatures were really Vistgil's enemies and knew something important about him, he'd swallow broken glass if it let him communicate with them. "Let's talk."
"You resisted some of our analysis, but not all. Your soul has taken a twisted path. But you bear his taint."
"Because he controlled me, the first time I came to the Nine Worlds. Back then, I was too stupid to know any better. But in the end he killed me. I think the only reason that I survived is that I have a body back on Earth - my original world, I mean - and only my soul comes to the Nine."
"No longer."
"What?"
"Some of your kind do possess split natures, and that may once have been the case for you." The cloak leaned closer, and this time Theo didn't resist the power he felt examining him. "Yes, I can see the traces. When you returned to the Nine, you transferred yourself completely, body and soul. You possess a vestigial link to the form of an elderly body from your reality, but nothing exists there any longer."
Meaning that, if he died, there would be no third chance. Good thing he hadn't been treating this like a game. "But my theory was right? People from my world can come back because their souls and bodies are split?"
"Yes. The Nine Worlds are linked, separated by no more than a thin film of reality. Our reality, and others, are much further away. Your reality is different: it is separated from the rest by a vast wall. We had wondered if Vistgil created it to generate minions."
"I don't think he did. It seems more like he's taking us from our home."
"You are unusually reasonable for such beings." The cloak slid closer to him and he felt the intense sensation of floating above a planet-sized mouth filled with endless rows of teeth. "But we are... skeptical of Vistgil's tricks. If we are to work together, I require more access to your memory."
"Fine. Just be..." As soon as Theo loosened his mental control even slightly, the alien presence pressed in.
It hurt. More than he could find words for. But this felt less like an assault than a surgeon working with utter indifference. Theo had the inane thought that he should ask this being for soulcrafting tips and he almost giggled as he teetered on the edge of madness.
Then, all at once, the presence was gone and his mind was his own again. Apparently intact. The presence withdrew and the cloak folded in on itself, inverting space and then somehow unfolding back in reversed form.
"It seems you were not mistaken. Our enemy did not send you. This is unusual."
"What do you mean?" Theo asked. That should have been reassuring, but he was still trying to figure out if his organs were all in the right places. "I've already met at least one other person who came back without permission. I figured that was why Vistgil was setting so many passive traps."
"We do not have... your relationship to linear time. These things are difficult for us. But while traces of your spirit exist within me, it is somewhat clearer." The being turned its attention away from him and spoke in a cool voice. "Vistgil's methods have changed over the course of linear time. They have become increasingly efficient. Once, he did not know that beings from your reality would return. Now, their presence is unwelcome but predicted, and he uses many traps that destroy the soul permanently."
"How much time are we talking about?"
"Even for your kind, it depends on your frame of reference. But we believe that your previous presence in the Nine Worlds may have been among his earliest experiments. There was then an unusual gap in time, while you remained in your original reality, during which our enemy refined his methods. It seems likely that your return was not only unplanned, it was something he did not foresee."
Theo had hoped as much, but it was comforting to hear it repeated by a giant eldritch abomination. "Are there other flaws in his system? You were treating me like you expected me to be controlled by him."
"We are aware of only one other incident, occurring between your two presences here. Four beings from your reality were mishandled and escaped Vistgil's control. The beings of your kind in the Nine Worlds sometimes refer to them as the Siblings. They have fought Vistgil, but they have also fought us on sight, which was another reason for our suspicion."
"Can you at least tell me about them so that I can prepare?" Theo was actually sure that Senka had mentioned them before, but he'd take any information he could get.
"All of your kind appear very similar to us. We can tell you that they attempted to turn Vistgil's weapons against his allies, but they largely failed. During the course of their failure, they established an empire on the world called Deuxan. Then, a period of time I cannot determine later, three of the Siblings disappeared, leaving only one in control of their court. That is the sum of our knowledge."
"I see." Theo closed his eyes, which did no good at all in this shattered world. He forcibly pulled himself back together and chose his next words carefully. "I don't have an empire or great power. But like you said, Vistgil made mistakes with me, and those could be weaknesses. I want to exchange any information we can that might help either of us stop him."
"This is agreeable." The cloak shifted back and partially unraveled, revealing a hungry emptiness, then it became translucent. "I observed your memories, but your minds are little compatible with ours. So much of your realities are strange and petty and broken. But we may be able to cooperate."
"Before we discuss anything else... what do you and your people want?"
"To be left alone. Vistgil entered our world, forced many unnatural concepts upon us, and left it sundered. What you see here is one of the few areas we have reconstructed. Our capacities are greatly limited by exposure to these clustered realities."
So much for the idea that the House of the Lost had been twisted by the destruction of their world. Theo had a feeling that he really wouldn't have wanted to meet any of them before they were limited and distorted by the Nine Worlds.
"We do not understand Vistgil's actions in the slightest. He seems to seek destruction, but only on very precise terms. He possesses power equivalent to mine, so if he simply wished to exterminate life on the Nine Worlds, very few would be able to oppose him. At times he appears truly limited, but we are uncertain... all of your kind appear strangely limited by social, moral, or aesthetic rules. Local beings have suggested his are more limited, but the information is unclear."
Strangely, it might have been more beneficial for Theo to be able to read the being's memories than the other way around. Based on what he'd seen of Vistgil so far, Theo strongly felt that his actions had an underlying logic that would betray his purposes. But he had a feeling that looking into this being's memories might destroy his mind.
"Did you know anything about where he killed me?" Theo asked. "It was a world some call the Cleansed Lands, outside the Nine Worlds-"
"No. That place is not numbered among the Nine, but it is linked to them."
"I... see. Is it like the Chasm of Lamentations?"
"Similar, but larger and more deeply integrated."
"So the Nine Worlds are really more than just nine. I wonder why they got that name. So many of the other worlds seem destroyed, there might have been Twelve Worlds once. Even if they're not counting partial fragments, the Cleansed Lands seems large enough."
"We presumed that your kind had trouble counting."
Theo stared at the incomprehensible being, wondering if that had been a joke. There was no sign whatsoever, and he decided that wasn't a safe bet. "Is there anything else you know that would be of use to me?"
"That is a difficult question for us. Specify."
"You've been monitoring Vistgil's activity for a long time. What else has changed over that period?"
"We have attempted to monitor it, with limited success." The being was silent for some time, and its cloak briefly dissolved into tentacles before snapping back into place. "Our enemy has acquired allies along the linear path of time. Beings that are... more similar to him than to others of your kind. When he fought us, he did so alone. During your first presence, he was aware of beings similar to himself but in conflict with them. Such conflicts remain, even when they work together... we cannot speculate on the motivations and goals of such creatures."
It was more than he'd gotten from anyone else. Theo would have smiled if he thought it would mean anything. "Do you know any more about his allies? Or about their exact number?"
"These are difficult for us to determine. Both due to our nature and his design."
"Fine, we can leave that. Let me see if I understand what you know so far: Vistgil invites people from my reality into the Nine Worlds. He guides their paths and uses them in some way, then he kills them. If they have a body on Earth to return, he tries to eliminate them for good."
"Accurate."
"You were trying to split my brain open earlier, and I'm betting you've had more luck with others," Theo said wryly. "Not offended, just interested. Have you figured out anything about how he's using them?"
"It is difficult to determine." The being seemed to be doing its best, but Theo felt a roiling chaos growing beneath them. "Vistgil seems uninterested in their actions. All of his manipulations are to help them ascend as quickly as possible while remaining ignorant. Then they die in battle at Dominion."
"Wait, Dominion? Is it always at that tier?"
"The Siblings surpassed that point, and there have been occasional other exceptions. Some are extremely incompetent."
Including Theo himself. He had been trying to figure out Vistgil's motivations during their last encounter for a long time, but that was a new wrinkle. Apparently Theo had died earlier than average, which he hoped was due to being where he shouldn't instead of his stupidity.
"Alright, I think we're clear on that part." Theo rubbed his forehead and tried not to think about the fact that his fingers looked a bit too long and wiggly. He'd had so many questions for so long, and now he was struggling to sort all of them in his mind. "Why Earth? I mean, is Vistgil doing this with other realities too?"
"We had believed this information was commonly known to your kind." The being paused oddly, its attention directed outside their fractured world. "Yes, they are called the Order of the Deepest Blue. As they said, beings of your type influence the demonic systems of your reality and generate more demons."
