Dungeon Crawling

The first thing I noted when Archer and I entered the underground chamber was a pool in the center. It was surrounded by trees on either side.

Trees around the pool had lovely silvery green leaves, deep brown bark, and white berries. I slowly advanced to the pool, while Archer went to get better loot at the trees.

The pool was filled with bright, clear water that looked fresh. The bottom is lined with files carved out of some sort of blue stone.

The air was fresh and clean and filled with the fresh sweet scent of trees, with just a hint of water. Not a sight one would expect underground.

There was a long white staff tipped with a pale blue gem at the bottom. Of the pool. With a gesture, I called to my hand. Minor telekinesis was something that I could achieve by manipulating the Unseen. That and making light. And bestowing blessings on animals.

The Seen and the Unseen, mirror realms of this World.

Seen- the familiar material plane, bound by known laws of nature, organized bottom-up. A collection of single notes built into a complex song.

Unseen - the realm of spirit and thought, organized top-down. A tree sprouting from a single root.

Honestly, I was much better at using Unseen to add additional properties to objects during the making, enchanting in other words. But that was a more natural application.

After all, whenever one created something, one usually did so with a purpose, and that purpose was written in Unseen.

The Elves were just more cognizant of the process and able to further improve it. Thus, gems with the purpose of giving light could catch and store starlight. Thus, swords with the purpose of being a guardian would warn of the presence of enemies. 

Or maybe it was that radioactive or chemical decay produced luminescence. And perhaps swords, being metal acted like psychic antennae picking hostile intent. 

I could not overlook such possibilities. 

But if the first hypothesis was correct enchanting was using the material to affect immaterial so it would affect material again. A cycle, but still easier than affecting immaterial by will and word alone. Or perhaps a better metaphor would be preparing the body to host the spirit. 

Another link to the birth of a child. 

A sudden flash of inspiration struck me, like an apple falling on my head. Or maybe rock, since I was underground. 

I may have made a mistake in how I approached my experiments by combining elven enchantment and jewel magecraft. 

Instead of trying to adapt existing enchantments to a new purpose I should have used the process of preparing the gem for magecraft to create a new enchantment. I had been too distracted by getting my hands on beautiful gems.

But enough of that I need to focus on current matters. That staff was obviously more then it seemed.

It would have rotted away otherwise.

Unless it was a property of the pool and not the staff that prevented water damage.

No, it was definitely enchanted.

I could feel its presence shine in Unseen. But not a strong one. 

I could have tried to use magecraft to identify the staff properties, but I needed to practice sensing the Unseen. 

The crystal at the top had felt a bit like a starlight-infused stone that replaced lamps at my home. But there was more. Did it feel like seeking? Hunger?

I was still examining it when Archer came back with a wild grin on his handsome face and arms full of berries, "Want some?"

"Yes." I put the staff down and took a few. The berries were pure white and shiny and looked very appetizing. Once I would have said they were the most delicious thing I ever ate, but now the best compliment I could give was that they tasted almost as good as elf-grown fruit. I have been spoiled by elven food, prepared by Archer. "What do you make of this place?"

"This is a greenhouse, obviously" he replied, washing his hand from berry juice in the pool. I was entranced by how his elegant fingers moved in clear water, berry juice dissolved almost immediately. The pool was special too. 

His conclusion seemed correct but could be elaborated on, and so I did. "Indoor greenhouse? Not the work of Elves in my opinion. And trees? Not something that Dwarf would make. And the ambiance is all wrong for the works of the enemy. There should be more thorns, or poison or poisonous thorns. So by process of elimination that only leaves Man. And only one kind of Man could have made something like this. So Arnor or Gondor?"

"As expected of my Master. Even with scarce information, you still managed to guess right," he praised me. I braced myself for I knew what came next, "I said because you made so many assumptions that I can't rightly call it a hypothesis. This was made by Dunedain of Arnor."

"You got that from the bridge?" I said, grinding my teeth. He might not have used a whip on me, but his tongue was as sharp. 

"No bridge is not a sword," he replied, as he did not notice hitting the target. But I knew better. There was a trace of that catlike satisfaction. "I guess you could use a big sword as a bridge, and we have fought some very strange people so the reverse is possible. But still, the only thing I got from using magecraft on that bridge was direction. One side to exit, and deeper into this facility. I am not skilled enough to get more detail from it. Especially considering time passed since it was used. No further information I learned from trees."

That statement was not strange, just meant that I was getting used to being an Elf. 

"And how are these trees?" I asked. It was only polite.

"Lonely," he said, looking at the trees in question. His blue use seemed, soft and compassionate. He cared even about the feelings of trees."It had been quite some time since anyone visited."

"I didn't know that trees cared about that," I mused, my mind wandering. Were untamed forests bastions of loneliness? 

"Wild ones don't, but these ones were planted and cared for by humans."

"A yes. Dunedain of Arnor." The northern kingdom, destroyed by the Witch King so long ago. "So where exactly are we? "

"Caves under Amon Sûl. This is a secret retreat, to hide a very small number of people in case the fortress falls. This was to be a source of replenishable supplies. Trees were quite proud about that."

"Only this? I am not sure how many people you could feed with this much."

"Only a few. But that was all that was needed. This was not meant to save lives, only to preserve critical knowledge or items. Too many would be missed."

I nodded seeing the logic of it. It was pragmatic, although a bit ruthless. But that had probably been built during centuries of war against Angmar. Those had been dire times. Not just for them, but also for Elves of Imladris. 

Before my time, though. 

"Well, at least we are not far from Bree," I said, "Once we secure this location we can go there."

Thinking about the caves under Amon Sul, I was certain I had read something about it. A short reference, in Elrond's library, perhaps?

"What are you thinking about? You look like you are trying to remember something you have forgotten."

"You know me too well. There was a legend about caves under Amos Sul. About a door that could not be opened until the proper time. I think. I just read it in passing,"

"You mean the Riddle of Traveler's Gate?" he asked. I had almost forgotten, but Fano was something of a Riddlemaster. Several memories flashed through my mind, of Rin and Fano, quirky together in Elrond's library. 

The reason may be, that after Acrher and I arrived in this Wolrd, he had not spent any time on such pursuits. 

Archer's voice drew me back form tip through memory line, as he continued speaking.

"Although I suppose it's more of a prophecy. It goes like this: While the kingdom prospers and the fortress stands, the gate will not open. When the kingdom is gone and the fortress falls, the gate still remains shut. Only when that which is most coveted is given away freely, will it begin. But only when Traveler awakens will the gate be opened. The first part is obvious now."

"Arnor?" After it had prospered and then destroyed. While it had prospered, the fortress stood. When the kingdom had fallen, so had the fortress, leaving just ruins upon the hill. 

"Yes. The second could be more tricky, but I believe 'that which is most coveted' is One Ring. Bilbo is the first in its history that has managed to give it away freely."

"That makes sense."

"And Traveler is you," he said pointing right at me. 

"Why?" I asked back, confused. "I don't see it."

"It's obvious!"

"Now, who is jumping to conclusions? I mean it's possible, even likely. But we have no way to be sure. Although it has some disturbing implications if true. I mean what does awakening mean in this case? And we assumed that Otherworld came with us, but if the gate was here centuries ago how is that possible? Was it waiting for us?"

"Or perhaps we had arrived before, we just forgot everything."

"But when did we lose our memories? When did we arrive?"

"There is another possibility. When elves are reborn they forget their previous life until they come of age. Something similar could have happened to us. We remembered things a little later, but we weren't originally elves, so that could explain a delay." 

It was a passable theory. And I liked the implications. If that happened we didn't steal anyone's life. And because I liked it so much, I needed to be careful about confirmation bias.

Then I remembered the staff. I showed it to Archer and asked "What can you tell me about this?"

"It's a fake."

"Fake?"

"Someone hid the Staff of Truth here during the fall of the fortress. This is a decoy. If someone searches for real staff, they will find this one first and leave satisfied. It shares some properties with real staff. Enough for it to be believable fake."

"So useless?"

"Well, it can generate light, and dowse for food and water."

"So nearly useless. Let us put it in storage. What about the real staff?"

"It should be in this building. Unless someone took it."

"Just one thing. What is the Staff of Truth?"

Because I couldn't remember it from books or from locally gained knowledge. 

"To be honest, I don't know. I know that it was placed here as a decoy for the Staff of Truth because that was the staff's purpose. But I would need to see real staff to know about it."

Like all of his magecraft, Archer's divinations were very potent but limited. A specialist curse.

"Anyways we need to search this place. Where next?"

"Wait. I have an idea." He then kneeled, placing both of his hands on the ground... "Trace on: Map."

As a form of self-hypnosis, each aria was personalized to a Magus. It was different for inherited spells and systems, but Archer's were self-made. That should have made them rather weak and unstable, but he cheated with Realy Marble.

But as it was said unless you were cheating, you not trying. That went double for Magi. 

Compared to Archer, my sense for magical energy was rather dull but I could feel it.

His Od spread like a wave all through the floor and then to walls and ceilings. It was more wasteful casting than I was used to from my partner.

He was adapting to his new circumstances well. After all, what was the point of being frugal with magical energy when one had a Magical Core? 

"Found something."

"What?"

"A sword." 

"Were we not looking for a staff?" I asked, raising my eyebrow. 

I mean we were in the wrong book for the Sword of Truth.

He just raised his eyebrow, and said curtly, "Follow."

He went to the door opposite the one we entered and I of course followed.

Behind was a short corridor of stone with a door on either end.

And behind the second door was a room bisected by a narrow stream that flowed directly through into the pool at the center of the room. Twelve spiral columns surrounded the pool; beautiful carvings covered the wall.

"The architects of this place really liked water."

"It was built on an island on an underground river."

"It makes sense. Running water would be excellent protection against morgul," I said while examining the water, I turned back toward him to say more, but I saw that he had taken off his top and was in the process of removing his pants.

My eyes lingered a bit on his naked torso, admiring it. As an elf his body was hairless and his skin was almost luminous, with small firm nipples. I said, "I don't mind the show but why are you stopping?"

"Sword is underwater."

I watched him as he waded naked into the clear swift water of the stream. The water barely came up to his waist. It didn't take him a long time to find what he was looking for. He ducked under and returned holding an old, rusted sword.

"This belonged to a soldier that hid the staff. I know where it is. Wait here and watch my stuff, I will be back soon," he said. He threw a rusted sword on the floor, near where he left his clothes.

He waded downstream until he came near the wall. He then dived under and disappeared. 

Bored. I wish I had packed a book. But someone had to keep a watch on clothes. Well, I could listen to the radio. He should be back soon, so news.

I took off my amulet and shifted to the radio. I turned it on and set it to the Manwe channel. I preferred Aule's, but I didn't think Archer would be long, and the news was shorter. 

"... under command of their dread captain have left Mordor. In other news.."

A splash. He was back. I turned the radio off and watched him come out of the water with a staff in his hand. It was made of pristine white wood and topped with a shining blue gem. A bit longer than the other one.

"They don't look much alike," I commented.

"True. After the fortress fell they had to improvise."

"So now we have the Staff of Truth. What are you planning to do with it?"

"I promised to take it to Estel."

"You have a copy?"

"It is a weapon."

We searched the rest of the building. We found four more places with provision, although much smaller. And plants had some medical properties. There was a room with a pool of water with healing properties, in a room with thirteen columns that held up the ceiling. There were carvings on the walls, but after examining them we found them to be merely decorative. There were two more pools, one dried up, the other filled with ordinary water. In much smaller rooms and a well. Archer climbed down it and found nothing of interest.

There were no living creatures.

There were four exits from the building. Three had bridges over the underground river intact and doors on the other end jammer and the tunnel behind them collapsed... The waters of the river were black and unwholesome.

From the last exit, we could see the massive landing on the other side and a small tunnel on the side. There was no bridge.

As we approached the river, the staff had a peculiar effect on the dark waters. They become lighter, more like normal water. 

"I'm beginning to see the problem."

"What do you mean?"

"We are here to root out danger. The Staff of Truth properties are counterproductive to our efforts. How can we find danger if the staff is doing its best to protect us?"

"I see. Then I will take it back to storage. Wait for me here."

So I was left alone on the banks of the underground river that served as a moat.

Stange. For a moment I thought I saw something moving under the water.

No, I definitely saw something move.

Quickly, I drew Larmo from the scabbard. It was humming. There was at least one enemy nearby.

I noted to myself that I would need to redesign scabbards, so a warning could be passed on even when the sword was sheathed.

A sound of water splashing. I turned. Nothing. Just ripples on the surface.

On instinct, I jumped. I was not sure what tipped me off. Maybe a sound? Or a breeze?

A shadow passed where my legs had been a moment ago, returning to water too quickly for me to see what it was. Leaving only small puddles in its wake.

There. I saw movement in the water. It looked like a tentacle. One. Two. There.

Water spayed, as they busted out from under the surface, moving with unexpected swiftness through the air. 

Duck under, cut one going for my leg. Larmo sang as it parted rubbery flesh. The black blood gushed from a cut and the tentacle jerked back, nearly pulling the sword from my hand. 

Dodge left, cut one going for my arm. It pulled back, faced with a blade, making me miss. So it could feel pain.

I danced among them, avoiding those I could and cutting those I could not. But the creature's main body remained underwater. It was just a matter of time before I made a mistake.

I was not afraid. Not yet. I have survived many battles. Also even though I was trying to win the battle by attrition, I just had to hold a little longer and Archer would be back.

But there was no need for that.

"Thou shalt mingle thy life with the universal life. Thou shalt keep not back one drop."

With that aria activated the Spider's Kiss curse. As this curse was originally designed to be used during seduction, it passed through bodily fluids.

To use it effectively in combat, I needed my familiar. I cast a curse through the slime, infusing its coating with lustful malediction.

I nailed one tentacle to the ground with Larmo, and my curse-charged slime crawled from my arms over the sword and onto the tentacle.

Tentacle drew back to the water, taking my sword with it. I was without a weapon, but it was too late for that creature. The Spider's Kiss, unless stopped, was lethal. And more than lethal. As incapacitated its victim with unbearable sexual arousal it would convert the victim's vitality into Od, and then allow me to harvest it. 

In a minute or so all tentacles had withdrawn. The water continued to churn. It almost seemed like it was boiling.

"I really can't leave you alone for a moment."

Archer was back, and he didn't really sound pleased. I wondered why.

"I was right. Without the staff, I found danger right away."

"Yes. You did that." Then a small pause, and then he added more forcefully, "Without me."

"Well one of us had to take the staff to storage."

"And that could have been you, or we could have done it together."

"I am not helpless. And besides, you are no longer a Servant. You don't need me to survive." I was no longer a weak point in our partnership.

Next, he almost growled, "That is no excuse to be reckless."

I didn't think I was reckless. I was about to reply, but I could sense that there was almost time for harvest. That tentacled thing was near orgasm. My slime had been productive.

I had a choice to make. I was killing it anyway. Having it here was unacceptable. But death does not have to be an end.

"We could use a guardian," I said out loud. "This next part is going to be tricky. Cover me."

"What are you planning?"

"Making another familiar," I said and there was no more time to talk to him.

Carefully I began chanting long aria.

"Then shall thy brain be dumb, and thy heart beat no more, and all thy life shall go from thee, and thou shalt be cast out upon the midden, and the birds of the air shall feast upon thy flesh, and thy bones shall whiten in the sun."

There was a Mystery my family called Greater Marriage.

It was the path to death and rebirth. The Magus would prepare his body and soul, to be able to seduce a goddess. The reward for such unions was always the death of the Magus.

But death was but a gate, and the soul freed from flesh would pass into the goddess to be reborn as Magus' own progeny. Thus Magus became both his own father and the son of a goddess. 

In other words, it was a way for one to turn oneself into a Pseudo Servant with a Divine Core. Sound path to victory in the Holy Grail War.

The number of times that spell had been successfully cast, recorded in my Magic crest, was exactly zero.

"Then shall the winds gather themselves together, and bear thee up as it were a little heap of dust in a sheet that hath four corners, and they shall give it unto the guardians of the abyss."

Since rarity made attempting to study that Mystery in a raw form difficult at best, instead Toshakas studied its debased form.

As a side effect that allowed the creation of interesting familiars 

"And because there is no life therein, the guardians of the abyss shall bid the angels of the winds pass by. And the angels shall lay thy dust in the City of the Pyramids, and the name thereof shall be no more."

Like a praying mantis or a black widow, my slime would kill and devour cursed creatures during sex. And use both its flesh, spirit, and magical energy harvested by the curse to create offspring which would contain its residual thoughts.

After movement under the river's surface stopped, my slime emerged carrying the egg size of a human fist.

I ripped a lock of my hair, placed it on the egg, and started the next chant. I needed to bind it to me.

"Yea! verily this is the Truth, this is the Truth, this is the Truth. Unto thee shall be granted joy and health and wealth and wisdom when thou art no longer thou."

Hair melted into liquid, which was quickly absorbed by the egg.

"Then shall every gain be a new sacrament, and it shall not defile thee; thou shalt revel with the wanton in the market-place, and the virgins shall fling roses upon thee, and the merchants bend their knees and bring thee gold and spices. Also young boys shall pour wonderful wines for thee, and the singers and the dancers shall sing and dance for thee."

Yet there was something more than just binding a new familiar. My words reverberated through the Unseen. It seemed that I had also bestowed a blessing on it. 

Water was lighter now that creature that haunted it was, not gone, but transformed.

"You should make one," I said to Archer.

"A familiar," he replied. "Have you forgotten, I no longer have Magical Circuits, instead I have Magical Core? I have no idea what would happen if I tried."

"What was the worst thing that could happen?"

"I could accidentally create a wyvern."

"A wyvern? I see. Because of how dragons naturally reproduce. You have thought about this."

He was about to reply when the waters began to bubble once more.

We both turned towards the river, he drew the bow, and I took one of the gems I had prepared.

What emerged was a beautiful woman, a glowing gem in one hand, a sword in the other. My sword.

She was dressed in a loose, green dress that reminded me of seaweed, wind long hair that seemed to flow upwards unbothered by gravity.

"Greetings, fair ones," she said in the voice of one still underwater, "I am a daughter of the waters and a friend of the men who made these caves. I give heartfelt thanks for defeating the evil that lurked in this river."

"A star shines on the hour of our meeting. I am named Rin, and this is my companion Fano. We hail from Imladris. No need for gratitude for we have done so for our own purpose."

"This is yours I believe," she offered me my sword.

"Yes, thank you. I'm in your debt."

Her laughter sounded like a joyous mountain brook. "No need for debt, for I have done so for my own purpose."

"May I ask a question?"

"You may, Fano of Imladris. I may or may not answer."

"You know these caves. Can you tell me what danger is in them?"

"None as potent as one you have already destroyed. Of greater ones, there is spawn on Hungry Darkness, and a foul spirit clad in cold flesh. Of lesser threats, there is a troll and some goblins."

We spent quite some time talking about more inconsequential topics. She did ask us to sing, and I found that my singing had improved. I was still average, just average for an elf. Singing together with Archer was quite nice. 

She left as suddenly as she came, melting into the river.

Afterward Archer and I spit. As there were no serious threats left, he went to clear the caves, while I began to set up security in the stone structure that hosted the anchor gate.

I put the egg into the pool with healing water, turned the radio on, this time to transcendent music on what was God's channel in the previous World and began my work.

First I needed to write proper sigils to mark boundaries, then connect them to the gate, and source of magical energy behind it. 

Since I had an abundance of magical energy I could make something very strong.

I began with standard features, protection against scrying, astral projection, curses, poison, pestilence, fire, and frost, then added a light and sound barrier.

That was enough for the beginning. I would need Archer here when adding active defenses, so I could key him in.

It was hard work, and I had gotten completely soaked.

So I stripped and went to soak in a pool in the greenhouse.

I was still enjoying pristine water when Archer finally came back. He came back dragging the corpse of a giant spider and carrying a human one on his back. He also had an amulet that could translate any language, which he gave to me later, and a book of riddles that kept to himself. 

"Is that Stake of Wailing Night?" I asked, looking at the corpse he had just dropped on the ground. The iron stake protruded from the chest. 

Stake of Wailing Night, also called Night-Weeping Iron Stake was the Mystic Code originally developed during the Vampire-Magi wars. 

"Yes, the best way to keep the corpse from moving."

"A wight then." 

"It played a game of riddles with me and lost. It tried to run, but since it tried to kill me if lost, I thought it was only fair."

"Interesting, I would like to examine the local undead. And the spider?"

"A small gift to you."

I made a show of looking first at his head, then twisted to look at his behind. He looked at me and asked amused, "What are you doing?"

"Looking for ears and tail. Since you have suddenly decided to become a cat. Since you have begun bringing dead things as gifts."

"No, I bought them because you like to play with corpses."

"Don't say it like that. You make me sound like a necrophiliac."

"The first step towards correcting a problem is acknowledging it."