Transcendence, page 17
part #6 of The Beginning After The End Series
The jagged plains dipped and rose to form ravines. From the books I’d read and what Elijah had told me, many of the gullies and ravines strewn across the Kingdom of Darv hid entrances to the underground cities where the dwarves actually lived.
I took a deep breath. “Let’s get started.”
Reaching into the depths of my mana core, where Sylvia’s beast will resided, I activated Realmheart once more.
The familiar sensation washed over me, and my body immediately protested. I lurched over to the side and retched out whatever partially-digested food I had in my stomach. When that was all gone, I spewed a dark bile.
My chest heaved and the world spun around me, but fortunately, I was still able to maintain Realmheart—which was crucial for this task.
‘Maybe we should come back next time. With my lineage, I’m almost positive I’ll inherit Realmheart once my powers fully develop. We can come back then and both of us can search—’
I shook my head. It doesn’t work that way. By then, the mana fluctuations from the soldiers and the retainer will have equilibrated. The search has to be done now.
‘Equilibrated?’
The mana in the atmosphere will return to its original state, I explained, turning my attention back to the particles of mana in the vicinity for any signs of abnormalities.
When I had first experienced this perspective while in Realmheart, the particles had appeared chaotic—like specks of dust pushed and pulled by even the slightest breeze—but that wasn’t the case. During the short time I had spent with Lady Myre, she’d explained to me how mana and aether behaved in their natural state.
Each element of atmospheric mana followed its own pattern. Earth-attribute mana remained near the ground, faintly shifting like fine sand rolling down a hill. Water- and wind-attribute mana moved similarly, flowing in lazy streams, but water particles were much more scarce. Fire-attribute mana was scattered throughout, throbbing and pulsing, almost as if it was giving life to the planet.
Aether, however, behaved as if each particle had its own consciousness. Some moved alongside the particles of earth, while others congregated around the wind- and water-attribute mana, herding them as if they were sheep. What Lady Myre had said about aether being the glass that held the liquid—this force seemed to interact with mana in a special way.
Because of the sheer number of Alacryan soldiers that had somehow snuck into the Kingdom of Sapin, I had hoped there would be some lingering trails of mana fluctuation, but the task of actually singling out minute discrepancies in the endless sky of particles proved even harder than I had thought.
To make this task even more difficult, I had to limit my use of mana to nothing more than strengthening my body. The very act of absorbing mana from the atmosphere would create fluctuations that would interfere; I wouldn’t be able to tell my mana use from the Alacryan’s.
Taking long strides, Sylvie and I skirted one of the rock formations along the border between Sapin and Darv. Luckily, the soldiers hadn’t been able to hide their trail in the forest. Sylvie was able to find where they had moved, but in this rocky desert, where the wind constantly wiped all sign of activity, I was left with the cumbersome task of locating traces of mana fluctuations.
After an hour had passed, Sylvie finally lost her patience.
‘Shouldn’t we be making our way toward the coast for signs of Alacryan ships? I don’t understand why we’re wasting time here. If anything, you should be getting rest, not wandering through this miserable desert.’
I thought you were able to read my mind, I quipped, turning my head away from a strong blast of sandy wind.
‘That’s not how it works. It’s mostly emotions that come through, and very basic thoughts. Right now I feel a strong sense of suspicion coming from you, but other than that—’
I found something. I nearly said it aloud as I came to an abrupt halt. I had been looking at the sky this whole time, but I hadn’t noticed anything odd until I spotted a dark spot on the ground. A thin layer of dry sand covered it, but there was an undeniable small puddle of moist earth.
Dropping to my knees, I rubbed the wet dirt between my fingers just to make sure. I looked up at the sky once more and finally spotted what was missing. There was an absence of water-attribute mana in the vicinity of the moist soil.
‘What’s going on?’ Sylvie chimed, staring at the dirt in my hand.
Looks like someone got thirsty, I replied.
Surveying the area, I found more patches where the atmosphere was devoid of water-attribute mana. Following this faint trail, we headed southeast, away from the coast, until we arrived at the edge of a narrow ravine.
Come on. Let’s go down.
We carefully climbed down the steep slope, the whistling wind masking all other sounds. At the bottom of the ravine, the faint trail of missing water-attribute mana disappeared—but it didn’t matter.
“Damn it,” I muttered softly, peering down the cliff. “I was actually hoping I’d be wrong.”
‘Your suspicion… don’t tell me…’ A wave of realization emanated from my bond as she felt the rumble of the hollow ground beneath us.
Yup. I’m still only eighty percent sure, but I strongly suspect that the Alacryan army we fought got into Dicathen with the dwarves’ help.
Chapter 21
Down Within
There were radical implications if the dwarves were really allied with the Alacryans, but regardless of my hunch, I needed to make sure I wasn’t being overly suspicious.
It took me another hour or so to locate one of the hidden entrances to the dwarves’ underground kingdom—and even that was only possible with the help of Realmheart. I carefully ran my fingers along the faint crease, camouflaged to look like an ordinary crack in the steep cliff.
‘Your breathing is strained,’ Sylvie noted from inside my cloak.
It’s fine. I just used Realmheart for too long, that’s all, I replied as I stared down at my arms. Without the golden runes etched into my skin, and now that my vision had returned to normal, I realized how pale my body had become. It wasn’t the creamy sort of pale that girls wished for, but the sickly kind of pale that made you worry for your wellbeing.
‘I feel like I shouldn’t need to remind you, but you do know that there is a concept called “moderation,” which works wonders on both mind and body, don’t you?’
Ignoring my bond’s nagging, I pushed at the concealed entrance once more. Despite the mana I added to strengthen my body, the earthen door still refused to move.
There should be some sort of way to open it. I’m definitely missing something. I continued sliding my hands, which were surrounded in earth-attribute mana, across the length of the hidden door.
‘Maybe you need to be a dwarf to be allowed to enter,’ Sylvie mused.
No. I highly doubt that there’s a specific mana signature that only dwarves can have, besides perhaps the occasional deviants, and if entry were based on the manipulation of deviant mana, more than eighty percent of their population wouldn’t be able to get in through their own doors. No, there has to be a different—I think I got it!
I quickly kneeled, sending Sylvie tumbling out of my cloak at the sudden movement.
You may not need to be a dwarf, but a dwarf definitely built this, so I should act as if I were one. I ran my hands over the rocky wall once more, pushing aside the shrub that covered much of the bottom half of the hidden door.
‘Ah, the height!’ she exclaimed, her excited voice ringing in my head as she climbed atop my shoulder.
After several minutes of searching for the handle—or button, lever; anything—to open the lock mechanism, I finally found it. About two and a half feet from the ground, near the ridge of the door, my left hand sank into the cliff. At first, it felt like I had accidentally touched some sort of sap or glue-like substance, but when I increased the output of mana into my hand, the viscosity of the wall changed.
As I played around with the unique mechanism of this door, I realized that it wasn’t about how much earth-attribute mana you put into your hand, but the precise pattern of mana levels you invoked as you inserted your hand deeper into the hidden lock. I needed to find the right combination of mana output levels to successfully unlock this entrance.
Every time I guessed the output level wrong and attempted to push my hand deeper into the lock-hole, the earth surrounding my hand turned more viscous, pushing my hand out of the lock.
“Damn it,” I cursed under my breath after the twentieth failed attempt. Half-tempted to blow open the door, I took a deep breath and released Realmheart once more.
Immediately, a searing pain flooded out of my core and into my body and limbs. I buckled and fell to my knees with a series of intense coughs. I didn’t just vomit food and bile this time, but blood as well.
A wave of distress and concern washed out of Sylvie.
I swear, if you say anything about moderation again…
‘Let’s just get this mission over with. Then you can get some rest,’ she replied.
With a feeble nod, I tried to put weight on my legs and prop myself back up, only to end up flat on my back. With the little mana I had spent on maintaining Realmheart, I rescinded the mana I’d coalesced into my legs to save for unlocking the entrance.
I could feel my bond’s emotions once again as she peered down at me. Staying silent, Sylvie helped me into a sitting position, using her head to push me back up.
Taking breaths felt like I was swallowing needles, but I was thankful that I could even activate Realmheart again. Wasting no time, I focused on the area where the keyhole was, my hand barely reaching it with Sylvie’s help. Using the last bit of mana that I’d saved, I willed earth-attribute mana into my hand.
Immediately, I could see the fluctuations of mana particles gathering around the concealed keyhole. When I willed the correct amount of mana into my hand, the particles lit up and dispersed. I was able to put my hand further into the hole without fear that I’d have to start over.
I bet you dragons never thought of using Realmheart for things like this, I said, grimacing as my hand submerged into the wall, now up to my forearm.
‘Things like unlocking a door? No, that’d be beneath us,’ she grunted.
Situations call for adaptation, my furry little dragon, I retorted, tugging on the handle buried deep within the lock mechanism of the concealed door. With a satisfying click, the earthen wall rumbled before sliding open.
Sylvie was still propping my broken body up; I turned and shot her a proud wink.
‘I get embarrassed at the thought of ever referring you as “papa.”’ Even in her furry little fox form, there was a palpable sense of mockery as she rolled her eyes.
Hey, you were the one who hatched for me. Withdrawing Realmheart, I wiped at the trail of blood that ran from the corner of my mouth and down my chin, then reallocated my miniscule mana into my legs once more.
Working with a single-digit percentage of my mana barely allowed me the luxury of using my mangled legs—even standing was an arduous task.
Using the wall as a support, I got up and spared no time heading down the narrow corridor. The passageway was about five feet wide and the ceiling scraped the top of my head even when I hunched; it was more like a crude tunnel than an actual hallway. Fortunately, there were candles casting a dim light inside little cubbyholes dug into either side of the walls. Without the need to use mana for anything other than strengthening my legs, I was able to take advantage of this brief down-time to use Mana Rotation to replenish my empty core.
I could feel the heat from the candles, but after venturing through the harsh, sandy winds, I wholeheartedly welcomed it. I stuck to the left side of the hallway, partly to be somewhat hidden and also because I desperately needed the support. I leaned against the jagged wall as I walked down the small slope. Meanwhile, Sylvie trotted carefully a few steps ahead, checking and testing anything remotely suspicious to be sure there were no hidden traps.
‘Is this really a good idea? You’re in no state for battle if we happen to encounter an enemy. I’m limited to what I can do in this form and even if we do see that the dwarves are allied with the Alacryans, what can we do?’ My bond bombarded me with questions as we slowly made our way down the hallway.
It’s not a good idea, but we need to do this, I replied seriously. You’re right; I can’t fight, and there aren’t many places to hide if we do run into someone, but we can’t waste time recovering. If I’m right, even if I can’t gather proof, I know at least Virion and Aldir will listen to me.
‘Fine, but our arrangement still stands. The moment we run into trouble, I’m breaking these walls and we’re getting out of here.’
Sure, I agreed. We proceeded down the dimly lit hallway until something luminescent—something that wasn’t a candle—appeared in the distance. Exchanging glances, my bond and I made our way toward the light.
The tunnel curved slightly as we got closer to the still light, and my ears were able to pick up distant echoes of sounds. The sounds grew louder as we continued down the tunnel, but there were too many things going on at once for me to pick apart specific sounds. There were conversations and echoes, and multiple sharp footfalls, as well as the clanging of metal. Finally, after a few more minutes of steady staggering, the exit of the tunnel lay just ahead.
With my back against the wall, I sidestepped toward the exit, careful not to accidentally kick any pebbles or create any other noise that might alarm any guards who might be around the corner. Sensing no signs of activity just outside the tunnel, Sylvie and I shuffled quickly to the edge of the exit, where a curtain of shadow hid us from any prying eyes.
We gazed blankly at the magnitude of what we had stumbled onto. The hallway opened up into an enormous cavern with a domed ceiling so flawless that, for a second, I doubted that we were still underground. Rather than candles, massive torches lined the walls, revealing just how large the cavern actually was and who was within.
I let loose a string of curses in my head as I peered down. In the center of the cavern floor—roughly two stories down—was a massive teleportation gate surrounded by dwarves, and steadily trickling out from the shimmering gate were Alacryan troops.
Before I was able to get a closer look at what was going on, the sound of footsteps made me turn back. The massive cavern was like a beehive, with dozens of tunnels uniformly dotting the wall. Staircases carved of stone lined the walls, each one leading to a different tunnel, and approaching the tunnel that Sylvie and I had come through was a platoon of Alacryan soldiers.
‘I’m getting us out of here,’ my bond stated, her body already beginning to glow.
Not yet! Focusing on an entrance to another tunnel several yards away, I managed to will a few rocks to dislodge. I immediately heard the flurry of movement as the platoon whirled around, weapons and armor clanking.
Seizing the opportunity, I picked up my bond and held her tightly against my chest. Flattening myself against the corner of the entrance and wall as much as possible, I mustered more of the mana I had gathered on our way here and willed a curtain of rock from the wall to surround us.
“Just a loose rock. Let’s go,” the soldier leading the platoon grunted.
Hold your breath, I ordered Sylvie as I activated Mirage Walk. Coalescing the atmospheric mana around us to hide our presence was a technique I hadn’t needed to use since coming back to Dicathen, but in this situation—where enemy mages would be marching just inches away from us—I didn’t want to take any chances.
Inside the coffin of earth, I was surrounded by complete darkness. I could hear the synchronized steps of the soldiers as they went past us, their deliberate footfalls echoing against the tunnel walls. They were so close I could hear the hushed conversation of the soldiers.
“When do you think we’ll go back home?” one voice murmured.
“Why? Miss your family already?” a husky voice mocked. “Just focus on racking some achievements through this war. Your blood will be thankful if you can finally afford to move them out of that little hut you call a home.”
“Great Vritra, shut up back there,” a gruff voice bellowed. “Shut your mouths and march or your whole team is going to be on night watch.”
I was fascinated by their conversation. Their way of talking was similar to ours, but certain terms—like ‘blood’ and ‘Great Vritra’—I had to guess at by their context. This got me thinking: How can two different continents that had almost no contact with each other have languages so eerily similar?
‘Grandfather told me it was due to the asura’s intervention,’ my bond chimed in, her voice tense even in my head. ‘Asuras often sent representatives to secretly help advance Alacrya and Dicathen when needed. He said they would take the form of a lesser being, albeit an exceptionally smart one, and help them progress through the centuries.’
Sort of like how you asuras granted us the artifacts way back then? I asked.
‘Yup. Except that, apparently, we had been doing it long before then. The artifacts were supposedly a drastic change, something the asuras chose to do to keep the lessers from going extinct.’
I see, I pondered. It was scary to think that perhaps the geniuses of my old world had actually been deities sent from above to help us survive and progress.
As the minutes slowly trickled by, the discomfort of our situation built toward agony. We took only shallow, inaudible breaths, and even then I could feel the oxygen in our conjured stone coffin diminish, as there were no cracks to provide breathable air. It quickly became almost unbearably stifling and hot, enhancing the suffocating feeling. I tried to focus solely on keeping up Mirage Walk to hide us from anyone with a keen sense of mana, but nearly lost my hold on the spell when a loud thump shook the crevice we were enclosed in.
“What are you doing?” a soldier whispered impatiently.
The earthen crevice shook once more as something hit the wall I had conjured.
