Chapter 996: Lord of Memory

Chapter 996: Lord of Memory

As the raelons final breath rattled across the dunes, Tiraeses, still covered in blood, roared incoherently in savage triumph and launched himself at the creatures corpse. Leon followed, though he kept his elation at the successful hunt under wraps. To defeat such a large and powerful creature was thrilling, but the manic way that Tiraeses threw himself at the monster, not to mention the injuries hed sustained, concerned Leon.

Tiraeses reached the raelon first and began battering its corpse with fists of light. Without the monsters magic to protect it, its body was torn asunder by Tiraeses strikes. Leon had to be careful with his approach lest he be covered in black blood and chunks of monstrously mutated meat.

Something he found rather distressing was that despite Tiraeses furious violence, the greater being done to the raelons corpse was from the darkness magic saturating the environmentblack translucent clouds gathered about the dead monster and ate away at its exposed flesh like acid.

Tiraeses! Leon called out, but the monk either ignored or didnt hear him. Instead, he kept shouting and leveling terrible blows upon their defeated foe.

[I daresay this man has lost his mind,] Xaphan whispered.

[Killing a creature such as this is no small feat,] the Thunderbird replied, [but this is a bit much.]

[Are you familiar with such beasts?] Leon asked his Ancestor.

[Not this one specifically,] the Thunderbird said, [but the Primal Gods and Devils were known to twist living beings to suit specific purposes. Or even if they simply felt like it.]

Leons thoughts momentarily turned to Krithis and the results of its workJormuns transformation into a Great Horned Serpent, and his own Thunderbird forms. [That doesnt surprise me with the Primal Gods; they seemed rather well-versed in light magic, werent they? And light magics greatest strength is influencing the body]

[Primal Gods utilized every magical element,] the Thunderbird corrected. [Light is something they certainly leaned into, but the Primal Gods held no reservations about using any element they thought would aid them in their goals.]

[Was it the same for the Primal Devils?]

[Generally yes, but when it came to darkness magic, I doubt even the Shadow Kings of Khosrows Law know more than the Primal Devils did about darkness and the way it affects the mind. However, to mutate something to better fulfill desired purposes, the Primal Gods and Devils differed, with the Gods preferring to use light to twist the body and the Devils using darkness to twist the mind. The end result is often the samethe perversion of both mind and bodybut the actual methods were worlds apart. You can sense the darkness here, cant you? This entire plane has been tainted by the power of a Primal Devil.]

[Ill keep our lightning close, then,] Leon said.

[Wait, wait, wait,] Xaphan responded, [are you actually making a prudent decision? Something wise and not cautious? Well dampen my ashes and call me ink, I can hardly believe my ears.]

[The wise and cautious thing to do would be to leave,] the Thunderbird replied. [Leon, my boy, I will be honest with you: this problem youre investigating is far beyond you. You should not be here. I believe I was told you have a method to depart?]

[Ambrose did give me something I can use to leave, yes,] Leon confirmed.

[Waste no time in using it.]

Leon frowned, deep unease settling into the pit of his stomach. If the Thunderbird herself thought he shouldnt stay, then Hed been gone for only a matter of a few hours, and hed hardly seen most of the plane yet. And yet, his only job was to investigate the plane, and hed done that; it was a swamp of darkness conjured by a Primal Devil.

Despite that, Tiraeses had survived, his very presence keeping Leon from agreeing with the Thunderbird. If Tiraeses survived, then surely there could be other survivors? He didnt know if the entire plane was covered in this power, and even if it had been, there could be many others like Tiraeses out there.

Besides, ten mages had been sent before him, one from each of the other planes of the Divine Graveyard. While Leon knew nothing about the other Grave Wardens, he couldnt imagine that all ten of them sent their mages without methods for returning home, and yet all ten had gone missing. An ill portent for him, to be sure, and he didnt think anyone would blame him for leaving at this point, if only to avoid a similar fate. The Grave Wardens were also apparently assuming the worst already and preparing to destroy Arkhnavi in nine months

[Ill think about it,] Leon finally replied to the Thunderbird. [I wont overstay my welcome and Ill keep the silver twig close.]

[There it is,] Xaphan responded with an unsurprised tone. [We just got done praising your caution, Leon, and here you are continuing to risk your life. Well fucking done, I say.]

[Xaphan, youre sending me mixed messages.]

[The tiny, flickering match doesnt have your best interests at heart; pay him no mind. See to yourself first and foremosteveryone else on this plane is dead and wont appreciate your sacrifice. Leave, and let the Grave Wardens clean up their own mess.]

By Mulitan, Lord of Memory, I remember him sleeping down here more than once. Rare was he seen outside of these halls, constantly tinkering with all of this.

Do you mind me asking what he was trying to do? Leon asked. A lot of these enchantments are complex or bespoke enough that I can hardly tell what theyre supposed to do; their functions are hardly mundane utility

Tiraeses expression fell a fraction. There are many things I would ask of Mandious, Lord of All in Heaven, and one of them is to know what Laylen had been doing down here. I wish I knew.

Leon sighed. Of all the enchantments in the halls, hed only managed to identifywith the Thunderbirds helpthe one that had kept him out of the monastery in the first place, while there were at least half a dozen others spread throughout the vast web of enchantments. Leon copied them all down though, and he hoped that upon returning home, Nestor would be able to help him in deciphering them.

One time, Tiraeses continued, I was forced to come down here after Laylen hadnt been seen for three days straight. I found him arguing with himself over the best place to inscribe a new rune. Right here! No, a tenth of an inch to the right! Idiot, it should be one one-hundredth of an inch to the right! He did that often: argue with himself aloud. It seemed to help him to vocalize his thoughts.

Tiraeses voice caught in his throat and his eyes became rather misty. He blinked several times and cleared his throat. Apologies, I dont mean to lose myself in the land of Mulitan, Lord of Memory.

No, please, Im your guest. Id love to hear more of the people who lived here, if youre willing to share.

Tiraeses slowly smiled. He took a deep breath as his eyes slid away from Leon and settled on nothing in particular. I remember Azliep, who loved to fish. He was more known by the fishermen of our local watershed than he was even by us! If ever there was a fisherman who couldnt catch enough to feed his family, Azliep would work hard to help him provide, even if it meant he returned to our sanctuary late.

Reykh Moerum was a former Lord, who abdicated in favor of his son before retiring here, to spend his last days honoring the gods. The stories of politics he could tell I lost my appetite for politics a long time ago, and his stories only validated my distaste. However, even I never knew that politics could be so petty!

Leon nodded sagely. Ive known some petty politicians in my time, he agreed. Those who would throw thousands to their deaths out of pride and vanity.

All politics are inherently vain, Tiraeses said with an amused grin. Such were the first words I ever heard Brother Bulian Khelum say. He fancied himself a philosopher, but I think he just hated the King he once served. He was never so alive as he was after hed received news of his home and had fresh complaints about those who ruled it. Our our last night spent here before we went to confront the raelon he tried to lift our spirits by going on a long rant about how

Tiraeses stuttered and paused. For a moment, hed looked thrilled to speak of his brothers, but now, his expression was sliding back into deep sorrow.

He launched a long rant about how Kings should all be torn from their thrones, he quietly reminisced. He had radical beliefs about building a new system to replace Kings and Lordsand even, if he were drunk enough, the gods themselves! A new system where all worked for the benefit of all, a system where money was abolished, and more. I confess that I hadnt paid much attention at the time, focused as I was on my prayers. But many of my other brothers seemed to find much amusement in Khelums words, for they soon laughed him into silence. Memories of their laughter have kept me warm for many years.

Thats quite a view to have, Leon said with a grin. Im not surprised he was here instead of continuing to serve his King. I dont know how I would handle someone like that in my court

Your court? Tiraeses whispered in momentary confusion. I had assumed that you would be someone of importance back in on Aeterna, but a King? By Mandious, Lord of All in Heaven, should I fall to my knees and beg for your mercy and understanding in my not following any court protocol? Tiraeses grinned at Leon, clearly in jest.

Leon laughed, though he supposed he ought to have told Tiraeses exactly who he was before this moment. When hed told the man his story, hed focused mostly on his encounters with Ambrose and Krithis, he hadnt long dwelled on his other adventures, or where theyd left him.

No, no, he said with a wave of his hand, Please, dont get too formal with me, Im a long way from my court and I have little patience for such ceremony anyway.

Humility is a great virtue Tiraeses murmured, his smile growing slightly.

So some say, Leon replied. Others would say that a King ought to be at least a little arrogant. A King cant be seen as weak or vulnerable, after all, else his enemies might try to take advantage of him.

Tiraeses shrugged. As you say. Im more concerned with how to be a good and virtuous man, and Khelum and I at least agree that to be both a good man and a good King one must be in some ways beyond human. Well may Just Helior forgive that small deception; Khelum believed it is impossible to be a good King and a good man, both.

Ive seen some truly shit monarchs, Leon conceded. But others others have been quite good. Or at least had good intentions and the will to follow through on those intentions. I try to be the latter, though I was crowned less than a year ago, so I think its a little early to say how well Ive done.

If youre willing to come here just to see what has happened Tiraeses whispered. He went quiet for a long moment, and after looking around, his eyes remaining unfocused and not lingering long on anything in the halls, he simply said, I will leave you to study Laylens work. I pray to Mulitan, Lord of Memory, that it never be forgotten. There are other things in this sanctuary that I must preserve, too.

Without another word, Tiraeses departed the halls, and Leon didnt try to stop him. Leon wasnt sure what was on his mind, but given all that had happened in the past day, on top of seventy years of apparent isolation, he wasnt going to deny Tiraeses some desired privacy. Instead, he turned his attention back to the enchantments. He was sure they were going to speak at least once more anyway, if only to get on the same page about where to go once they left the monastery.

And, as ideas rushed through Leons head after studying the enchantments, how they might repel the darkness magic that filled the air outside