Victor of Tucson

22 – Mount Ember

Valla led Victor through her mother’s palace to the manicured gardens behind it, and they walked together for several minutes in silence. When Victor felt like they were a reasonable distance from the palace and the nosy people within, and when the silence felt just on the verge of being too painfully awkward, he slowed his steps and reached out for Valla’s hand. “I’m sorry if it seems like I don’t want to spend time with you. I do.”

She smiled softly, though her eyes didn’t look the least bit happy. “I know, Victor. I can read you better than my own diary. You’re holding something back, and there’s real worry behind your eyes. Can’t you tell me what it is? Is it that…thing on your chest?”

Victor sighed and gently kneaded Valla’s palm with his thumb. “Yeah, it is. There’s nothing you can do about it, though. Nothing anyone can—not if I don’t want to lose a part of myself. I have to deal with it alone.”

“Alone, hmm?” Valla frowned, and her eyes narrowed, but Victor wasn’t sure what she was thinking.

“Yeah. Alone. Dar can’t help. Tes couldn’t help. It’s a curse on my spirit, and I have to break free of it.”

Valla sniffed and nodded, turning her gaze toward the horizon where, apropos of their earlier discussion, the distant purple slope of Mount Ember lurked. “Will you succeed?”

“Hey, who do you think you’re talking to?” Victor tried to put some levity in his voice, but Valla pulled her hand away and turned to glare at him.

“Don’t make jokes. Will you?”

Valla nodded, her eyes widening. “I should come and help you.”

Victor shook his head. “Valla, I know you’re getting stronger, but I’ve already beaten that thing once. It’s going to be brutal the next time I go in.”

She folded her arms over her chest. “Arona will join you?”

He gave a half-hearted shrug. “She’s tier nine.”

“Strange that she’s here. I could swear you led everyone to believe she’d died in the Iron Prison. How did she come to—” She shook her head, blinking her eyes rapidly. “Don’t answer that. I don’t want to learn that this is yet another secret you kept—”

Victor clenched his jaw. “Not my secret, Valla.”

“You do that when you’re irritated—say my name like I’m a petulant child.”

“Doesn’t everyone do that? I’m sorry I’m irritated. I have a lot—”

She shook her head and reached up to cup the back of his neck with her long, slender fingers, gently stroking the edge of his hairline. “I know. I’m the one who should be sorry.” She smiled, but it was a sad, wistful smile. “We have so much to talk about, and every second I hold you here is a second you could be battling this curse of yours. It’s not fair.”

“I wish I could spend more time with you. Will you be here long?”

She shrugged. “A month, perhaps? I'll head back once I’ve passed a test my mentor sent me. However, I’m sure I’ll need another break to synthesize his teachings again soon.”

“Will you promise to let me know when you come and go? I miss you, Valla.”

Her smile brightened a little, and a hint of her old dry humor surfaced as she asked, “You had time to miss me with Tes here?”

Victor clicked his tongue and shook his head. “You’re wicked. Anyway, she’s gone. I got a speech from her that wasn’t too different from the one you gave me.”

“Oh? She didn’t want to dwell in your shadow?” Her grin tilted higher on one side of her face as she cocked her head at him.

“I think you know it was the opposite.”

Her face grew serious again, and she moved her hand to rest her palm on the left side of his chest. “I’m sorry that I tease you. Does your heart ache? I should remember my own pain and multiply it by two—It’s not fair, Victor.” Her hand felt like a balm for his soul as she pressed it over his heart. Her sympathetic tone broke something loose in him, some emotion he’d held buried. He felt it welling from deep within, and he didn’t dare speak as tightness gripped his throat and moisture gathered in his eyes.

While Valla looked at him, he stared into her eyes and didn’t try to stop the tears that slipped free of his. After several deep breaths, in and out, he said hoarsely, “I can’t help it that I love so damn hard.”

“I know, love,” she whispered, gently stroking his chest. “I know. It only makes me love you more. Was I a fool, Victor? Should I have stayed with you? Should I have seen how we might overcome our difficulties? Or should—”

“You’re not a fool, Valla. I’ve changed a lot.” He sniffed, squeezing his eyes shut as he let the waves of emotion roll over him. “I have a lot more growing to do. I haven’t stopped loving you one little bit, though; I hope you know that. I’m sorry, I love Tes, too, but—”

“Hush.” She stretched her other hand up to grasp his neck again, gently stroking. “You’ve loved her since Coloss. I know you love me, too. It’s a big universe, and we’ve long lives to live. There’s room enough, time enough, and you’ve got love enough. You’re not a man who’d stray and bed every pretty face that turned his way.” She arched an eyebrow. “Are you?”

Victor wasn’t exactly sure what she was saying to him, but he understood that question. “No, Valla. If we were together, I wouldn’t dream of—"

“I know, sweet man.” She tugged on his neck, and that was all the invitation Victor needed. He bent to kiss her, and when they parted, she smiled in a way that reminded him of the happy times before their split. “So, we’ve both got growing and living to do, but let’s remember this love we share and reconnect more often, shall we? I’m counting on you to beat that curse, Victor.”

Victor smiled and nodded. “I’m not planning to fail.”

“Go on then. Take your secret, former Death Caster, and do what you must.”

Victor cleared his throat and rubbed his eyes with the back of his sleeve. “All right.”

As he turned to retrace his steps through the garden, she called, “And write to me soon!”

“I will!” he called back. As he walked, he tried to make sense of the conversation he’d just had and, as usual, wasn’t sure he understood exactly what was happening with him and Valla. He supposed not much had changed other than the fact that they’d both acknowledged their continued love for each other—and Tes. He’d confessed he cared for Tes, and Valla acted like it was old news. He supposed it was. Hadn’t that been her primary objection when they first got together?

He felt stupid and grateful and, as usual, confused. So, he resolved to put love out of his mind for the time being and focus on more tangible things—like dealing with the curse eating a hole through him. “Like fighting,” he grunted as he strode through the central hall of Rellia’s palace. He didn’t have to go looking for Arona; he’d asked her to set up the portal array in the courtyard, so he walked directly there.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Of course Rellia was waiting, watching Arona work, and when he strode down the steps into the morning sun, she smiled his way, shielding her eyes in the bright light. “An impressive artifact you have here.” She waved a hand at the glowing pink crystals.

“Thank you.” He summoned the destination orb from his storage ring. “I’ll be heading off, but before we go, can I ask that you add a few stipulations to our deal regarding the dungeon?”

“Oh? After we’ve sealed the deal, you seek to alter it?”

Victor sighed. “Not exactly alter, but just some fine details. Do you mind?”

“No, Victor. I tease. What is it?”

“I just want it clear that if there’s a queue to enter, and I’m sure there will be on some days when powerful parties want to enter, certain people will take precedence. I don’t want Deyni or my ward, Cora, ever to have to wait, for instance.”

Rellia nodded. “I was already planning something like that. You know I’ll want to enter frequently. I’m sure there are others we want on that list. Kethelket? Deyni’s step sisters? Valla? Polo Vosh? I’ll make a list, all right?”

Victor nodded, relieved that he had her there to manage things. “Thank you, Rellia. I’d hug you, but let's not risk it this time, yeah? I’ll owe you one.”

Her eyes squinted in amusement. “Of course, but before you go, may I ask you a question?”

“Sure.” Victor squeezed the golden orb and stepped into the array.

“Did you really have fifty million beads to pay me if I’d refused the knowledge about the dungeon?”

He grinned. The answer was yes—he had a good deal more than that, but he wasn’t sure exactly how much. Even so, he said, “Come, Rellia, you want me to expose all of my secrets? You taught me better than that.”

She laughed, a genuinely joyous sound. “I did teach you, didn’t I? Ancestors! It feels like a century ago, but it wasn’t, was it? Can you recall our battle? It absolutely ruined me when you won! I thought I’d never recover.”

Victor reached out and grasped her shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. “And look at you now.”

She inhaled deeply through her nose, nodding. “And look at us now. Good luck, Victor.”

“Thank you. We’ll speak again soon.” With that, he focused on his memory of the volcanic caldera atop Mount Ember, and seconds later, the magenta portal crackled into being. He gathered the crystals and the control box, then looked at Arona. “Ready?”

She nodded and, before he could protest, strode through the opening. Rellia laughed again. “She’s not one to waste her breath on frivolous things like words, is she?”

Victor chuckled. “Not very often, no.” He stepped toward the portal. “Goodbye, Rellia.” Before she could respond, he was gone, swallowed by the rip in the fabric of reality. When he emerged, he stood on a blasted plain of dark obsidian and hardened magma. The ash from the eruption was long gone, washed away by the storms that frequently broke on the slopes of the mighty mountain, but the evidence of it was everywhere. Arona stood before him, turning in a slow circle, frowning.

“Can you feel it?” he asked, meaning the heady, magma-attuned Energy that hung in the air.

“Was there a major death magic working here?”

“Ah.” Victor chuckled. “Yeah.” As he walked around, following the threads of hot, angry Energy, he told Arona about Dark Ember and the invasion he’d helped battle in the Free Marches. He finished the tale just as he stepped into a massive lava tube.

“No wonder the people here hold you in such high regard; you’re a war hero to them.”

“Ah, don’t say that. I made plenty of mistakes.” He stooped a little, peering into the dark circular passage. “I think we can follow this down into the mountain. The magma-attuned Energy is practically pouring out of it.”

Arona nodded, and before Victor could summon a light of his own, dozens of dancing fireflies that blazed like miniature suns flooded into the shaft, illuminating it for hundreds of feet until it curved too far to see around the bend. He looked at her and smiled. “Flashy.”

She smirked and offered a dry, raspy chuckle. “So many of my spells changed or were removed by the System. That’s the first time I cast that one!”

Victor nodded, and together they descended. As he’d hoped, the magma Energy in the air grew thicker and thicker, and the dormant lava tube led them downward for hundreds, maybe thousands of feet before it opened into an enormous cavern with still-bubbling pools of lava visible at the center. The air was thick with caustic gasses, but they didn’t bother Victor. He looked at Arona and saw she’d wrapped her face in a shimmering blue and gold scarf.

When they locked eyes, she nodded. “I’m fine.”

Victor led the way toward a broad stone shelf about a third of the way into the cavern, and once he stood upon it, he unlocked his vault. “I’m going to get Du out,” he explained.

“Do you think this is a good place?”

“I do. I’ll have Gorro build a passage down here using that lava tube as a guide. We’ll build the keep atop it and then close up the other ones.”

“Are you going to wait for him to—”

“Hell no. It’ll take those guys weeks, at least. You and I are going into this dungeon now.” Victor opened the vault and stepped inside, approaching Du.

Meanwhile, Arona replied from the doorway. “I’m going in with you?”

Victor took hold of Du and prepared for the jolt of lightning that had hit him the first time, but it didn’t happen, perhaps because the Dungeon Core wasn’t currently in a dungeon. He carried the Core out and then locked up his vault, wrapping it around his wrist again. That done, he looked at Arona. “Don’t you want to?”

“I—of course! I just thought you would want the maximum benefit possible, and surely you’d reap more reward if you weren’t splitting the Energy with me.”

Victor shook his head. “Not necessarily. If we can complete it a lot faster, then it balances out. Besides, we don’t know exactly how that all works; maybe there’s more potential for Energy based on how many people enter. We’ll try it, anyway.” Victor moved to the center of the stone slab and released the Dungeon Core. It hovered in the air as he pulled his hand away. “Du?”

“Hello, Victor. I’m surveying this environment. The Energy is plentiful, though not as potent as that of Iron Mountain. If the Energy supply remains constant, I will be able to create my tier-nine dungeon dimensions roughly every fifty hours. Lower-tier instances will be much easier. For instance, I could craft tier-two dungeons indefinitely. Will you permit me to set my roots in this place? I’d draw much of the ambient Energy, so if you had other uses for it—”

“That’s why I brought you here. Go ahead, Du. Will your portal appear here?”

“It will. Thank you, Victor.”

“Hey, Du. Don’t forget about my list. Will I be able to give it to you later, or do I have to do that before you, um, set your roots?”

“Simply speak the names of those you wish me to take extra care with. You may do so now or anytime you enter my dungeon pocket dimension.”

“Well, off the top of my hand, there’s Edeya, Deyni, Cora, Lam—”

“Wait, Victor!” Du interrupted, his strange, high-pitched voice warbling. “It occurs to me that there may be others with the same names as those you care for. I offer you another solution. Do you intend to enter my dungeon immediately?”

Victor nodded. “Yes, and Arona with me.”

“In that case, should you complete the dungeon again, I will award you twenty tokens of favor. Simply give them to the people you want me to, ahem, favor.”

Victor chuckled. “All right. Fair enough. Thanks, Du.”

Du’s pink light blinked rapidly as he replied, “Thank you, Victor! I’m eager to see what sorts of adventurers will come my way in this new home. Tell me, what is this place called?”

“This is Mount Ember in the world of Fanwath.”

“Wonderful. Thank you again…” Du’s voice faded as he flared brightly and then, with a pop, vanished from sight. Victor looked around, squinting into the recesses of the cavern.

“Huh.”

“I’m sure it will take a moment,” Arona said, though she didn’t sound so sure to Victor. He decided to spend the time waiting for the dungeon’s portal to appear by getting ready. He summoned Lifedrinker, then, one by one, his pieces of armor. He was happy to see that the aegis was too stiff to press into the cleft between his pectorals where his void curse sat. He was sure his shirt would have a hole in it, but he didn’t care.

When he stood before Arona girded for battle, she looked him up and down and asked, “No greaves?”

Victor chuckled. “Not yet. Maybe Du will hook me up.”

She nodded. “I meant to tell you before: the crown is impressive. You cut an imposing figure in that armor, and the crown adds a certain quality that a helmet would not.”

“I still feel like I’m full of shit when I wear it. I’m not a king anywhere.”

Arona tapped a finger to her slightly dimpled chin. “If you styled yourself a king in these lands, who would dispute it? Who could?”

“Yeah, but I’m not that kind of pendejo. You know?”

“Then perhaps you need to conquer a world of your own.”

Victor chuckled. “Now you’re talking.”

“Or you could marry Queen Kynna. I believe she’d have you.”

“Chingado!” Victor laughed. “Don’t start with that shit. I’ve got enough trouble with women.” As he spoke, something crackled in the air behind him, and when he turned to the noise, he saw Du’s fiery portal. “Well? Looks like we’re up, Arona. By the way, I think I almost died a couple of times when I did this dungeon alone, and Du didn’t promise to pull any punches with us. You sure you’re up for this?”

Arona smiled, her eyes bright. “I’ve levels to regain, and, yes, I’d like to be a steel seeker before I meet Vesavo Bonewhisper again. If he holds a grudge, I’ll need the weight of that new rank behind my light spells.”

Victor nodded. “If he holds a grudge, that piece of shit better be ready to mess with me, too.” He held out a fist, and to his delight, Arona bumped it with her dainty knuckles. He locked eyes with her and nodded. “Let’s do this.”