Chương 325: AF Chapter 324 – A Withered Region

The big surprise as we headed south wasn't the absence of Dungeons and thickness of the land spawns. It was the fact we could see a whole lot of Dungeons that Lord Mick swore up and down were not there before the Fall. Caves in the sides of hills, extruded entry chambers, eruptions of stone with gaping holes in them out of nowhere, and even fortified lairs of one kind or another, occupied by undead or shades patrolling them. Some of the secret lairs of the undead and shades, forced out into the open.

There was at least one stronghold of the virindi, red and black crystals about its entry hole, while the top was thick with scarecrow-like Minions and a horde of vermilion-hued tuskers. We painted everything into the Markspace, the Mick in only a little disbelief.

"Just like up in the north, when we were running from Stonehold, except those were all undead up there," he had to say, surveying a small keep on a hilltop that hadn't been there before. I just held a hand up to my head.

"We're both total doofuses, you realize."

"Well, that were a given, but how so?" he asked, unfazed.

"We should have at least gone to the top of one of the Black Hills, or run up the side of one of the ringing mountains, and seen what was on top of them. Can you imagine anything NOT being on top of them? I could even have cast Eagle's Vantage or Wizard Eye to do it for us…"

"Ye couldn't see it from way up in the sky?" He sort of /gestured in Markspace to my orbital map.

"No. Look how much fuzz and interference is spilling off the Obsidian Plains. I could barely track the 'cracks' in it. No details to speak of, save for Aerbax's Platform." I drew a rough circle around the Black Hills, then extended it north around another area he knew well.

"If you look closely at these areas, there's no close-up except shades of color. I couldn't see any fine details there, or at the Valley of Death." I could see enough to see someone's damn initials there, however, almost taunting with how clear it was, wanting to be seen and recognized. He zoomed in on the view, and realized it was true. I could and had easily made out castles and fortifications on Marae Lassel, the Hlaetians, and in the Direlands and Osteth without difficulty.

The Obsidian Plains, the Valley of Death, the Frozen Valley, Moarsman Island, the Singularity Caul, Aerlinthe, Vissidal, and the Dark Island were all only generally visible. He could follow the rough terrain, but couldn't see any details or indications of individuals on it, whereas the other places had dots of various colors and sizes indicating the presence of Summons or other beings.

Cities and fortifications were visible and readily apparent, but not in detail, and small things like Dungeon entrances weren't visible at all.

"Well, it not be hard to go back there, although that be a LOT of hilltops to look over," he admitted.

"One thousand one hundred and fourteen," I informed him calmly.

"Ye could fit a whole damn lot o' secret hideyholes atop that many hills," he remarked.

"Especially if ye could just Recall up or down from them, aye."

"Without the proper Focus or Portal Tie, almost impossible to get to," I agreed with him.

"Ideal for a summer home, vacation cottage, or garrisons of things to whom time doesn't mean anything."

"Bloody lot of scouting," he sighed.

"And we probably can't even fly between them, can we?"

"Likely not, with the restrictions on magical flight here. Could always build a dirigible or something, however."

"Like the drudges did, back then?" He didn't hide his interest.

"Ye know how to make such a thing?"

"Yes, it's not actually that hard from a design standpoint. More about getting the right materials than anything else."

"Huh! Non-magical flying would be even sweeter than the magical stuff in some ways…"

"It's probably limited because they don't want us going out over the Inner Sea." He glanced at me and started to say something, and I made a zipping motion across my lips. He raised an eyebrow, but clammed up regardless.

"Well, naught fer this but t' do some exploring and scouting when we've the time. Shall we keep wanderin' south?"

"I've a question to ask you first, since you're the most well-traveled person I know on the island, and I'm sure you've some thoughts on the matter." I waggled Crown at him.

"You know I'm restricted to Gold spells. I can add some things to them if I'm standing on the ground with the Earth Spell Metamagic, but I can't get above Gold, even with a Virindi Amulet.

"Do you have some thoughts on what might be used to get me past the limit? It's probably a material component of some kind I don't know of." He crossed his arms, frowning as he thought on the matter, looking between me and my Staff. After a minute, he snapped his fingers.

"When next ye meet the Princess, ask t' borrow her Blackfire Stones." Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.

"Blackfire…" I repeated, running down the list of alchemical components.

"I know obsidian doesn't work. But there are… Orbs of Blackfire, and Wands of Blackfire, as I recall…

"Those be dropped by Magma, Obsidian, and Plasma Golums," he informed me.

"The Black Boulders fer the Blackfire Stones, now, they be dropped by the Behemoth golum in the Crater o' Tenkarrdun on Aerlinthe Island. Ye gave the thing t' a Stone Collector, an' lo, ye did get a Blackfire Stone back from 'im."

"Implying the latter is made from the former, and he did it instantaneously because magic." A gemcrafting check, then.

"Are there any of them left?" I asked.

"Aye, at Candeth Keep. The ones in Zaikhal and Qalab'r we put t' rest. Martine be keeping the one in the Keep alive. He were a lugian worker o' the stone, now undead."

"So, the first thing to do is get ahold of some of those rocks and stones they drop?" I considered that.

"I think we have a bunch of them from salvaging the apartments, as I recall?"

"Aye. They be not strong in power, but they should be able to tell ye if there's some affinity there for the magic, I be thinking." He looked off, considering other points.

"Also, ye might be considering some other weird scarab possibilities, like. Wave and Water Golum Hearts, there be no known use for 'em. Likewise, Vapor Golum Hearts, no known use, although maybe the Aun use them for something with the wind spirits. Burning Sands Golums be back, if the A'nekshay be returned. They be powerful, and no use for their Hearts other than carving keyrings out of them be known, either.

"Likewise, the Coral Golum Hearts an' their Black version have no known uses other than bein' carved inta' keyrings." He gave me an odd look.

"Aye, and Magma Golums never be droppin' a Heart, only the black rocks. Makes me wonder if'n the scarabs ye could carve out o' them might be special, too."

"So, you could assemble the four classic Elemental affinities of Fire, Earth, Water, and Air, if they could be carved into scarabs. And since Isparian Magic doesn't use the four classics, nobody bothered to try…"

"There should be some stores o' the lesser golum Hearts about, but the Burning Sands, ye belikes have t' be killin' yerself. I doubt there'll be much problem getting some to practice on." I could only smile.

"Well, I have some work ahead of me, then." And I was already sending out the requests for Golum Hearts to practice some scarab-carving on…

"My personal Lived-Line ends right here." I could feel the link-up as my Lived-Lines crossed on the little sandbar of an island off the Withered Beaches of the southeastern Direlands. The beaches were still absolutely packed with powerful drudge, banderling, Hea, and Gotrok Summons, all of them looking rather gaunt and lean, as if something vital had been sucked out of them. The enervated appearance completely belied their vitality and toughness.

The creatures were incredibly tough and resilient, far more powerful than any other Spawns of their kind to be found throughout the Direlands. Moreover, they were completely immune to Life Magic, meaning the vast majority of Debuffs. That didn't prevent the non-lugians from heaping such Debuffs on you while letting go with spells, however.

The Withered forces were allied to no other faction known, and it was surmised that they had Sworn Allegiance to yet another of the myriad Mythos Entities the Falatacot loved so damn much, which sucked at their souls even as it enhanced their flesh.

"This were one of the greatest Karma harvesting places out o' doors on the whole island," the Mick stated, looking over the companies of the four species there. They had doubtless noticed us, but like any Summons, ignored us until we got into range or attacked them.

"It were first fer Melees, then the War Mages moved in an' started blasting everything within sight, an' it became their playground with their unlimited mana. Since the Withered be immune ta Life Magic, there were no playin' support mage, so the mages just blasted the crap out o' everything, which really drove the point home on how powerful they had become. It were the start o' the end fer Melees as a profession back then."

"Then reality came crashing back in, and they would be next to useless here now. Throw a few big War spells against things with thousands of Health, get totally depleted, and have to go home."

"Aye." He was almost bouncing on his feet, his eagerness to start some fighting shining in his dark eyes.

"Can this old fart impose on ye fer some Healing if needed, while I test me Bunita against these critters?"

"Anything to watch out for in particular?" As long as I didn't Cast on them, I didn't expect much reaction from them while they had a Mick to beat on in their faces.

"They be using Plat spells, which be not fun t' eat. The lugians an' banders are both best killed with lightning, the Hea have the best armor an' are the toughest t' bring down with blades, an' the Drudge Seraphs are best killed with fire, while the Mystics ye bring down with acid if ye be fightin' em. Just use fire on the Hea an' other drudges if ye be using magic on 'em.

"The lugians might be tossing chorozite, so be watchin' for that."

"You going to Healing Edge or Brilliant?" I asked him neutrally as his eyes danced with eagerness.

"Me Ways o' Water and Armor Cleaving be shearing their armor fine enough t' not need Umbral nor Brilliant, methinks. Healing Edge is going t' be working just fine, as the lugians be the only ones who might be using Weapons, other than tossing stuff our way." Which meant Sword beats Fist procs, among the other Attacks of Opportunity he'd be getting off.

"You want me countering or Darting?" I asked him.

"Let me see if me magic defense an' Healing Edge lets me keep up with the spells. I ain't worried about them in melee."

"You probably should be." He shot me a startled look.

"If they are moving to Attack Bonus from using One Strikes, they could be unleashing a blizzard of strikes at you, and some of them are going to connect. Sure, some will miss, but if they go to One Strikes, that's double, triple damage coming in at you…"

"Huh." The idea that the Summons could be benefiting from some of the magical changes in combat happening plainly discomfited him a moment, but his eyes regained their gleam quickly.

"Someone has t' find out, an' I've got great back-up here. Shame not t' investigate properly!"

"Indeed it would be," I went along with him easily, flicking my hand and bringing up a trio of Darts, my own endless firepower, each of them as long as my palm and bristling with multiple energies, Elemental and otherwise.

"What are we trying out first?"

"Banderlings," he stated, pointing at the company of them near us on the island there with Bunita, now sparking and hissing with the constrained power of Lightningphasing from the two Sparking Stones, Major and Minor, mounted upon her.

"Let's go to it, then."