Last Life

FINALLY, DUVAL FINISHED scanning me with his eyes and turned back to his co-conspirators, who were busily stripping Uwe’s corpse of anything valuable.

I took advantage of the ensuing pause and forced my parasite to redirect its reserve of energy into a single point. All I needed was to break the magical ice in a single spot, and force a tiny ray of my own aura through it, and then I’d be able to use my webs. As I watched the golden parasite get aggressively to work, I was already savoring the anticipation, imagining the looks on their faces when I suddenly burst out of my icy bonds.

“Move,” Duval barked at his soldiers in an icy voice; then, with a nod to me, he added: “We don’t have much time. We have to get him to Lord Khaldrekar alive and unharmed as soon as we possibly can, and it’s at least a few hours from here to the temple. We’ll have to move fast. So if we don’t need it, leave it here. We’ll get everything on our way back.”

Duval’s words made me reconsider, and I ordered my parasite to stop. It surprised me once again, because despite its obvious reluctance, it did exactly as I ordered...

Some sort of Lord... A temple... Apparently that was the REAL reason he had led us to this godforsaken cave. I noticed one more important detail, too, which is that Jean had abruptly switched to witching tongue.

As I stared unblinkingly up at the back of Duval’s head, I realized that no matter how badly I might want to finish off the three traitorous bastards right where they stood, I was going to have to wait a little while.

Molchun, who still hadn’t said a single word, set Uwe’s ripped-up bag full of bruts down on the ground, then stood up and started walking toward me. Meanwhile, Togrul quickly started shuffling items from a number of backpacks and piling them together in his own bag.

Molchun and Duval spent the next few minutes carefully removing my snake armor, as well as my belt and its bag of bruts. They didn’t utter a single word the entire time, nor did they look me in the eyes at all. As far as they were concerned, it was like I didn’t even exist anymore.

I was pleased to see just how self-confident Duval seemed to be. Apparently, he was totally certain that his elixir would keep functioning without any hiccups for as long as he needed it to. If only you knew, I thought... I could have taken your head off several times by now if I had wanted to...

Before we ducked into the tunnel’s yawning black mouth, I took one last glance back at Uwe’s pale, dead face. His glassy eyes were looking straight up at the ceiling...

After about an hour of travel (which I spent bouncing around on Molchun’s shoulder), I had another very unpleasant surprise. At a certain point, I realized that these three people didn’t seem to be behaving normally at all (and I’m not talking about the fact that they had just betrayed me). Their movements, their expressions, their gestures — everything pointed to these people being completely different from the ones who had been with us earlier in the day.

Before I switched to true vision, I had thought that maybe the ice poison was affecting my brain and causing hallucinations. But my sudden, wild guess turned out to be exactly right. These weren’t people in front of me at all: they were Ghosts.

In true vision, I could see that their energy systems weren’t lilac-colored like those of strykers. The mana circulating through their energy channels was getting darker and darker, slowly changing to a deep steely-gray color.

I had seen such an energy system once before, in the Ghost woman I had set free during my first time on the frontier... By the way — Duval, or whoever the hell he was, spoke the witching tongue with the exact same accent as that Ghost, with heavy emphasis on the final syllable of every word.

Duval and his pseudo-strykers, however, had more developed energy systems and reservoirs than that Ghost, and the mana in their systems was much more saturated. Also, these creatures seemed to have excellent mental defense. Even the lunari hadn’t managed to spot anything suspicious. The three Ghosts had obviously sensed the presence of my three fairies right from the start, and conducted themselves accordingly. I still didn’t know whether everyone in Duval’s unit knew about his true nature or not... As I thought about all these mysteries, and the fact that I might still have a chance to solve them, I gave myself another little mental pat on the back for not simply killing the treasonous bastards immediately.

Their internal transformation had begun almost as soon as they betrayed me, but as we descended deeper and deeper into the ground, the three began to change externally as well. After just a few moments, I saw Jean Duval’s body start to get longer. His limbs stretched ever so slightly. The tops of his ears became a little bit sharper. His eyes grew narrower, and a small bump appeared on his flattened fistfighter’s nose. In the dim grayish light that was reflecting off the walls, it was hard to determine what color their skin was, but I was pretty sure it would turn out to be gray, just like that Ghost woman on the frontier.

After passing a few natural tunnels and caves, we found ourselves at the edge of a huge, spindle-shaped pit in the ground, along whose edges a series of enormous steps spiralled down into the depths of the earth.

Every step was supported by several stone columns, whose surfaces were pockmarked with strange runes. It was a truly majestic sight, and it certainly hadn’t been carved anytime in recent memory.

I switched to true vision and saw a familiar, gray-brown magical glow emanating from inside these ancient stairs and columns. A huge energy system extended all throughout the columns and steps, its many tendrils winding themselves together to form big, thick conduits like the roots of a tree just at the point where they disappeared inside the wall of the cliff. Considering the quantity of brown mana inside the staircase, there was no earthquake in the world that could possibly have taken it down. I could only imagine the size of the brut that was powering the whole thing.

Thinking of this suddenly provoked a flash of realization in my mind. Okay, I thought... I’ve definitely seen something like this before... And it was also in the Shadow... Except that brut was an emerald-green one.

The Scarlets had discovered one of the Great Sources of Power!

The sight took my breath away for just a moment. Suddenly, though, the golden parasite tore my attention away from the miracle in front of me. Having sensed the incredibly-powerful flow of brown energy, the beast was trying to rebel against my attempts to hold it in check. I had to exert a little more control to suppress it. The time still hadn’t come...

Just then, as if reading my mind, Duval stepped in closer. He stopped Molchun, then jabbed another needle into my neck, followed by one more in each of my wrists, which sent another wave of burning cold racing across my body.

Go ahead, I thought — it still won’t be enough to save you...

Suddenly, Duval cocked his head to the side and looked me in the eyes. His face transformed in an instant. The old Jean Duval was staring back at me. A mirthful little flame was shining in his gray eyes. He winked at me, then began to speak in Vestonian (and with just a little hint of mockery in his voice):

“Hang on just a little longer, Your Lordship. We’ll be there soon. But I want to warn you in advance — you’re not in your Margraviate anymore. So please, be polite and show the proper respect to the master of this place, whom you’ll be meeting very shortly.”

I blinked, and saw that the creature with the dead, emotionless eyes was staring back at me once again. After slapping Molchun (who was standing there as still as a statue) on the shoulder, Duval headed toward the steps that lead down into the bowels of the earth.

Our arrival hadn’t gone unnoticed. Two armed guards with sharp, pointed ears were already rushing toward us from the direction of the steps.

Damn, I thought... Duval obviously isn’t on the lowest rung of the hierarchy around here. After a quick identity check, we were allowed to pass without any further delays.

As we descended the staircase, the trio of Ghosts was engaged in an animated discussion about a piece of news that one of the patrolmen had passed on. A unit had just returned from the north. As far as I could tell from the snippets of conversation I managed to overhear, all three of them had been eagerly awaiting the unit’s arrival. The Ghosts seemed to be preparing for something.

Several times, Duval — who was keeping a close eye on my energy system — had to stop Molchun and jab more of his icy poison into my body. I was successfully keeping the parasite from displaying any sign of activity, but Duval seemed to suspect something nonetheless. The further we went, the more frequently he kept taking out his little bottle of poison.

For my part, I was operating on the assumption that his little bottle of medicine would last at least until we made it into the presence of his so-called “master of this place.” Even in true vision, I couldn’t tell exactly what specific concoction was inside the little bottle of ice poison lying in Duval’s pocket. The container was sealed tight with magic runes; more surprisingly, they were almost undetectable by magical means.

Long story short, however, it was pretty clear that I would just have to put up with it for the time being and avoid giving myself away.

Molchun and Togrul picked me up beneath the arms and set off down a series of wide hallways in what was clearly a sort of underground building. The carefully-hewn stone walls were decorated with ancient symbols and bas-reliefs. They looked vaguely familiar to me, but I didn’t have any opportunity (much less any time) to go check them out. It was hard to pick up much detail in my peripheral vision. Especially when my head was just hanging there powerlessly, pressing my chin against my chest.

The former strykers were still holding me tightly from both sides as they ducked into a passageway that led off to the right. Then came a quick descent down a short spiral staircase.

Another passageway. And then we finally found ourselves opposite a big, wide door with two Ghosts standing guard outside it. As soon as they saw us, they started showering my captors with questions; they were clearly very interested in what was going on, but Duval quickly put a stop to the conversation.

The big door swung open, and they dragged me inside.

The first thing I noticed was the sharp, musky smell of an animal, mixed in with the revolting stench of excrement, urine, and rotting flesh. They were dragging me past a long row of cages, with Shadow monsters of every size and description crammed inside them.

Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted something that looked like a big wolf in the cage nearest me. I say “like a wolf” because instead of fur, it had thick, deep-gray scales that almost looked like they had been carbonized. Its massive paws tensed up as I approached. I could hear huge claws scratching against the stone floor.

The creature’s glowing lilac-colored eyes were fixated on every step the jailers took. As we drew closer, a menacing growl started to rumble out from within its throat.

At that point, the jailers abruptly turned me around, and I had a chance to look into another cage. This one contained something quite a bit scarier. It was a strange-looking, hunchbacked humanoid with long arms that stretched all the way down to the floor. Its skin looked like it had been carved from some sort of dimly-shimmering rock that was covered with cracks. The creature didn’t seem to have noticed me, but its sudden, frantic movements nevertheless suggested that something was making it nervous. Every muscle tensed up and started twitching as though the monster was preparing for an attack.

My scanner showed that both monsters possessed four-colored magical reservoirs. Presumably, they were some of the chimeras Duval had told me about.

Molchun and Togrul lowered me into one of the cages. All around me, I could hear the sounds of heavy breathing, claws scratching, and a low, deep growling that never seemed to stop. At that point, Duval, who had been walking behind us the entire way, suddenly said something to his companions, and they quickly left the hallway, leaving me alone in an open cage (again, they seemed totally confident in the poison’s ability to keep me from going anywhere).

Time passed slowly by, and I still couldn’t move a muscle; I could only watch the monsters in my peripheral vision as they cast me an occasional glance. I could also hear Duval’s muffled conversation with one of the guards. According to what I could make out, the unit of northerners had just been escorted in for an audience with the same Lord Khaldrekar to whom that bastard Duval had so kindly promised to introduce me.

Finally, Molchun and Togrul came back. They were carrying a collar and a set of four shackles, all linked together by lengths of chain. The bright magical glow radiating from the artifact suggested that it was similar to the one I had taken off the Ghost woman during my last trip to the frontier.

It wasn’t hard to guess who this one was meant for. Of course, my previous experience with the other artifact made me feel pretty confident that I would be able to get it off without too much difficulty when the time came. Especially considering how much more powerful I had become since my first trip to the frontier.

Without a word, Molchun and Togrul slipped the rune-covered artifact onto me. With a click, the steel hoops squeezed themselves around my wrists, my shins (just above the ankle), and my neck. Another click, and a number of thin needles shot into my skin beneath the metal hoops, delivering a fresh new dose of ice poison into my body. Thankfully, they didn’t seem to realize that the more of this ice mana they pumped into me, the quicker I would be able to develop an immunity to it. It was just like what had happened with those acid-spitting ants, back when I was sitting in that cage in the jungles of the Shadow.

Noticing my glance, Duval interpreted it in his own way. With a cold, unnatural-looking smile on his face, he winked at me, then turned around to leave. The door slammed shut with a loud clang. I heard the jingling of keys, then the sound of footsteps fading into the distance.

I closed my eyes and tried to separate myself from the disgusting menagerie’s chorus of snarls, growls, and shrieks.

Then I glanced down at my own energy system. The golden parasite was just waiting, obediently and motionlessly. As things stood at the time, smashing through the poison’s block and removing the artifact would only have taken a few seconds. But I decided to get acquainted with the local boss before I did so. I knew it would be best to keep my freedom of movement a surprise.

In the end, they didn’t give me much time to be alone with my thoughts. I heard a noise near the entrance doors, followed by the sound of hurried footsteps approaching my cage. Apparently, whoever owned the place had learned about my arrival and decided that they wanted to meet me as soon as possible.

The doors to the cage swung open, and I saw a number of unfamiliar faces. Gray skin and energy systems, pointy ears, narrow eyes — they had sent a group of five Ghosts to fetch me this time. I didn’t see Duval among them. Presumably, they all thought I was safely immobilized.

A short while later, the small convoy led me to a pair of big, elongated doors, which were affixed to the wall by massive hinges made of Shadow steel.

Everything around me — the walls, the doors, the floor — was all interconnected by a tangled web of brown energy channels. I could literally feel the primordial power flowing from behind the door. The Great Source was probably somewhere very nearby.

The golden parasite started writhing around in anticipation. Like a fierce predator that had picked up the scent of blood, it was ready at any moment to smash through the icy barrier inside my energy system and launch itself at its prey. But it clearly wasn’t going to do so until I gave the order. And the right moment for that order had not yet arrived...

In my mind, I couldn’t help chuckling to myself. History was repeating itself. I was back in the pit. Bound by shackles and chains. Preparing to meet the master of the place.

Slowly, the gigantic doors began to crawl inward. The surge of magical power that washed over us as they did so was so powerful that, for just a moment, everything started to go dark. A strong smell of damp earth wafted over me.

Hold on, I thought... Not quite yet...

They led me in a little farther. The first thing that caught my attention was a massive brut that stood in the center of the hall. It was shaped sort of like a huge, broken tooth that had grown straight out of the cliff. The mesmerizing crystal’s thick walls were covered by a web of thin cracks, through which faint, gray-brown energy was slowly seeping out into the air. The mana inside the crystal was vibrating ever so slightly, emitting a faint, subtle hum that pierced deep into my mind and made me slightly dizzy. Something was obviously wrong with the crystal. I seemed to remember that the green Source in the lands of the Lao people had “behaved” pretty differently.

There were huge, thick energy channels stretching out from the base of the rock, like roots from an ancient tree. They extended throughout the entire hall, deep into the walls and floor. The channels were feeding the subterranean temple, supplying it with power that kept the place from collapsing. The light coming from these channels was brighter than the surface of the crystal itself, and once in a while it seemed to be pulsing, as if it were keeping time with some mysterious rhythm. No, I thought... Brown mana shouldn’t be behaving this way... Something’s clearly wrong with this place... And I think I know who’s to blame for that.

At the very top of the crystal, seated as if upon a throne, was a tall humanoid — and when I say “tall,” I mean about twice the size of a normal human. It had a slightly elongated head with a huge jawbone, a flat nose, and eyes as dark as the Abyss itself (which seemed to be pointed slightly out to the sides). Its steely gaze seemed to be looking straight through me.

In terms of clothing, all it had on was a long, black, toga-like garment that was covered in dimly-glowing, embroidered writing. Somehow, it seemed like something not of this world.

The giant was holding a brown brut the size of a human head in each of its clawed hands. And it was burning through the mana in these bruts at a pretty striking pace. Both bruts crumbled to dust in the space of just a few heartbeats.

My captors set me down on my knees in front of this strange ruler of the underground. The eyes of Lord Khaldrekar, whom everything suggested this must be, radiated an icy calmness and a sense of complete confidence in his own power. After a quick glance at his energy system (which he didn’t even bother to conceal), I realized that I was dealing with a compatriot of Sister Fria. This demon, though, was quite a bit more powerful.

I lowered my gaze for just a moment. Dozens of Ghosts were standing around on either side of the brut. Judging by the fur lining on their clothing, these were the northerners that the others had already mentioned a few times.

My eyes focused on one of the figures, who was standing a little farther away than most of the others. This Ghost’s face somehow looked familiar to me. Our eyes met...

For just a moment, a flash of recognition lit up her otherwise soulless eyes...

Meanwhile, the creature sitting atop the Source of Power leaned forward just a little bit. Its voice sounded like a piece of metal scratching across a stone surface, and every word dripped with derision. The overall effect was harsh, cold, and almost unbearably heavy.

“Nice try, little fox.”

A second later, a shimmering web filled with black mana shot toward me out of its claw-tipped hand.

Okay, I thought — NOW it’s time!