Dexter

The orc led me into a small room off the hall much like a small office you'd see at a bank if the bank was built in the medieval era. It was furnished with a desk and two chairs that sat opposite of each other. There were several quills and inkwells lined neatly on each side of the desk, positioned for easy handling and writing. Orbs of light glowed into existence above the table as he pulled the door open and we stepped in. The chairs themselves were thin and basic while the desk itself seemed a bit beefier. I assumed there were many drawers I couldn't see from where I stood. The orc gestured for me to sit on the chair closest to us while he walked around to sit in the other. “Firstly, I will need to examine that crown you have brought. I must ensure that it is not a replica of some sort before we can begin.”

I nodded as I sat down with a relieved sigh and placed the crown in front of me. “Knock yourself out. . . I'll be here if you need anything answered. . . Jesus Christ it's hot in here.” The orc took the crown and started examining it as I began fanning my face with my hand. I'd always been told I had large hands. It was something I never usually thought about, but at that moment, I was glad for my oversized appendage. I cleared my throat as I was sharply reminded of how dry it was. “Hm-mmm You wouldn't happen to have any more water, would you? . . I'm still really fucking thirsty.” The orc paused his examinations to glance up at me then reached down and opened a drawer in the desk. He pulled out a large pitcher of water and set it in front of me. I cleared my throat again and nodded as I reached for it. “Hmmm, Thanks.” I lifted the metal container to my lips and drank deeply as the orc shook his head and turned back to the crown.

The cool water sent another chill through my body as the orc let out an intrigued grunt. “Where, precisely, did you discover this artifact?” He asked.

I took a few more mouthfuls of water before letting out a satisfied sigh and answering. “Haaa In Vedug, in a tunnel behind the throne room. I had to swim through freezing cold water to get to the tunnel. I kind of wish I could take another swim there now. It's a nice place for a dip, save for the potentially deadly undertow or unidentified creature. Then again, as long as you stay near the surface you don't have to worry about that.”

The orc stared blankly at me as I finished my spiel. He then reached down again and pulled open another drawer. When he straightened again he set a wide pale white candle on the table in front of him. “In a moment, could you repeat that answer? To ensure accuracy, I wish for a Candor Candle to be present.” It was my turn to give a blank stare as the orc gestured briefly then caused a small flame to appear on his fingertip. The candle itself didn't seem all too special, just a white wax candle with predicable flakes of impurities from its medieval nature. At least, that's what I reasoned when I noticed the green and yellow flakes sticking out on the wax. It also looked well used. A thin wall of wax surrounded the wick and practically covered all but the very tip of it from my field of view.

He lowered the flame to light the candle as I let out a few involuntary coughs. “cough cough cough The hell is a Candor Candle?” I asked curiously. “I've heard of Candor before, but for the life of me I can't remember what it means.”

The orc nodded as he flicked his fingers and extinguished the flame as he explained. “It is a candle meant to determine the honesty of a statement. If a statement is dishonest the candle will indicate it as such. Now then, could you repeat where you found this item?”

I looked at the candle skeptically as I pondered the implications. “I found the crown at the top of a tree, guarded by a three-headed serpent.” The flame suddenly turned a bright blue color then slowly faded back into orange. “Woah,” I exclaimed, raising my eyebrows.

The orc nodded as he gestured insistently. “Yes Yes. The item is quite fascinating. Now then, could you repeat your original claim?”

I nodded as I continued to stare at the candle. “In a tunnel behind the throne room. It was actually at the bottom of Vedug and required quite a bit of swimming to reach.” The flame turned a bright green and gradually shifted back to orange. I grinned as I gazed at the shifting flame. “Now that is fucking amazing.”

The orc nodded as he started thumbing through the stack of parchment. “Indeed. Now then, is there anything else of interest you can disclose about what you discovered in that tunnel?”

I thought for a moment then nodded affirmatively. “Fucking moving statues, evidently used as a defense force down there. There were also some gauntlets that someone from my team claims were of ‘divine' origin or were at least good replicas. To be honest, I think they were just made by the city. It's about the only thing that makes sense to me. Anything else just seems implausible.” The orc stared at the candle as I spoke. It glowed a consistent green hue and didn't waver. The orc let out another intrigued hmmm as he turned back to the crown again. He turned it over and waved a hand over it. My muscles let out a groan as I slowly leaned forward in curiosity. “Anything special about the crown? You know, beyond its discovery.”

The orc was silent for a minute before answering. “Indeed, there is. There is an enchantment placed in here that I cannot identify. It appears to defy my queries on its purpose. I believe this may indicate an extempore enchantment or the enchantment works in conjunction with another artifact. In any case, it will take time to prove the Vedug origin of the item. However, I can allow you to complete these documents. To do so, I will need you to describe the location and appearance of the Archive. I must ensure you have not omitted anything to gain this claim.”

I nodded as I slumped back and mentally walked through the events. “Like I said I had to swim to get to it. It's behind the throne room, which is in a chamber off that circular pit in the center. There are some other rooms between the throne room and the Archive, but I didn't exactly have time to explore them. There might be some worthwhile things in there if you look hard enough. Anyway, it's in the left wall when you get to an unflooded portion of the tunnel. The door is massive and covered in some sort of ritual type circles, kind of like the Mayan calendar except made of a lot more layers and using symbols I'm even less familiar with. . yawn . . It's made of some kind of brass type metal. As far as I know, it's locked and empty. We didn't exactly seem like the first ones to visit that part of the city and judging from how they left it, they weren't all too keen on sticking around. Anyway, that's about all I know about the Archive. If you want to know more, you'll want to ask my group when they get back. They might have found out more by now.”

The orc nodded as he kept glancing at the candle. Predictably, it remained a solid green color throughout my talk. The orc reached for the stack of parchment again and pulled out a smaller stack. He tossed the pile my way then rifled through the stack again. “Complete these. Fill in all relevant details that you can recall. I have my own rolls to complete for this process. Once that is finished I will submit these for review and finalization.” I nodded as I grabbed one of the quills and carefully dipped it into the accompanying inkwell. “Alright. Let's get this shit done. . . Oooohhh hang in there arms. You'll get to rest soon enough.”

Amelia

It took us most of the morning, but eventually, we sorted through everything in the Archive and divided up its contents accordingly. We'd emptied the boxes we found in the Archive and refilled them with a relatively even assortment of valuable items. Even with the extra hands and Dumag's extra space, we were all carrying cumbersome boxes loaded with numerous artifacts and staves tied into bundles on our backs. Oghash stared at us warily as Brokil pulled out another beacon and placed it on the floor. “You are certain you wish to abandon your beacons? They are not easily replaced.”

Brokil nodded as he straightened and adjusted the box resting on his shoulder. “I have no immediate use for them. If I eventually require more I can simply make them. In any regard, I am certain there will be those that wish to study the Archive proper. The enchantments used to create it are still unknown. In the interests of the Institute as a whole, it would be wise to make access to this location easy. Besides, I assume you wish to be able to leave the tunnel once we have departed.” Oghash's eye twitched slightly as she glanced at one of her mages. She was tying her box closed with a length of rope and being excruciatingly careful not to let the contents spill. The rest of her team carried equally stuffed boxes in their arms and practically staining bundles on their backs. Without the space Dumag had brought, they were stuck carrying everything by hand. The mage working on her box was the only one not quite ready to leave the tunnel. Brokil took Oghash's distraction as an opportunity to look at the rest of us. “Is everyone ready?”

I nodded as I adjusted the box tucked under my arm. In reality, Dumag was carrying most of the artifacts, but those bags of his meant we could divide the load however we saw fit. I briefly reached back and tapped one of the pockets on Dexter's backpack to ensure the pouch of spellstones was still there. It would suck to realize halfway back that I'd left the bag in the Archive. In any case, we were all ready to head out and start the now cumbersome journey to Snakhagr. Brokil nodded again as he put his free hand in the center. “Then let us begin.” Everyone nodded as they placed their respective hands in the center, just above the beacon, and Brokil began the incantation. Pretty soon, we disappeared from the tunnel with a pop and began making our way out of the city.

Surprisingly, it was easier to get back to Snakhagr than it was to go to Vedug. Among the items we'd pilfered from the Archive were some decently sized manastones. We were using them to make longer jumps and cutting an hour or two off our travel time. Though we ended up stopping for breaks more often, what with the extra thirty or so pounds of items each of us were carrying. We'd either stop in the forest for some food or in a clearing where we could rest on some soft grass. The mountain behind us slowly shrank in the distance as the hours of journeying brought us closer to Snakhagr. It was during one such break when Salthu approached me and sat down. “Thank you again for inviting me. I only wish I could have done more to help the expedition.”

I shook my head and laughed as I gestured dismissively. “Haha What do you think all that prep work was for? Your insight was crucial to getting everyone in the right mindset. It also provided a solid backup plan in case the radar spell didn't pan out. Not to mention what you did when we actually got to the Archive. You busted out a set of lock picks and started working on a keyhole I hadn't even noticed before. I was kind of impressed when you stuck your arm in the hole and worked on it one-handed.”

Salthu grinned sheepishly as he nodded. “Unfortunately, it would seem that was built to distract any would-be thieves. I doubt it was connected to anything but itself. It is a shame. I had hoped to be able to circumvent any measures blocking our entrance into the Archive. It would have made unlocking the Archive all the more exhilarating.”

I shrugged as I glanced around at the others. “Still we managed to get out of there with some impressive artifacts.” Salthu nodded as he looked around as well. Our equipment and loot were neatly piled near where each of us sat. Dumag was carefully sifting through the box he had been carrying. He was likely searching for another full manastone to use for another jump. Bruga sat beside him. She had a far off and worried look, the same distant look she had since returning from the tunnel. Dumag appeared to take notice and patted her shoulder comfortingly. He then leaned over and whispered something in her ear that seemed to put her at ease. Meanwhile, Gremach and Brokil were discussing something as they both examined one of the spellstones. They were probably debating on how to go about recreating it, whether it was worth destroying some or to just try and study them the slow way. I stood and turned back to Salthu as I pulled my satchel on and slung Dexter's pack on top of it. “We should get going. We might even be able to make it to Snakhagr before dark.”

Salthu nodded as he stood and walked back over to his box. “Indeed. I am eager to begin studying the artifacts we have recovered. Hopefully, they may allow us to create better spells and enchantments.”

I nodded as I turned towards Dumag. “Y'all ready to get moving again?” I asked, my slight southern drawl leaking through.

Dumag glanced up then reached down into his box and pulled out another manastone. “If you insist. You outsiders do not ever wish to take pause, do you.”

I grinned and shrugged as I picked up my bundle of staves and tossed it onto my shoulder. I let out a strained breath as the weight of the wood was added to the satchel and backpack. “I guess it’s comparative . . and a consequence of our biology. I only wish we had a few more fast-twitch muscles. That might make carrying things easier.”

Dumag looked at me curiously as he stood and pulled on his satchel. “Do you require assistance carrying your belongings?”

I shook my head as I stooped and slowly lifted the box I'd been sitting on. “I'm . . fine. Hooo I just need to get comfortable with the weight.”

Dumag shook his head as he walked over. “Nonsense. There is no point overburdening yourself. It is unwise to exhaust yourself without reason, especially considering we are not in any rush.” He then reached down and almost effortlessly lifted the crate from my grasp. He raised it higher and placed it on his shoulder before I could protest. “What is the purpose of a team if we do not help one another?” He asked before turning and walking back over to his own stuff.

I wanted to insist that I didn't need any help, but my arms were just glad to be rid of the cumbersome load. “I guess you have a point, but don't let me walk the whole way back without that. I need this as a learning experience. I'm not going to improve if I don't push myself.”

Dumag nodded as he reached down with one hand and pulled his satchel over his shoulders. “Worry not, we shall share this particular burden. If we continue this pace we should arrive at your abode just after sundown.”

I grinned as I looked towards the others. They just finished picking up their things and were gathering in the usual teleportation circle. I stepped forward to join them, waiting for Dumag to pick up the last of the artifacts. “Let's hope Dexter's plan worked. I'm pretty sure we all get a sizeable bonus for finding something like this.”

Gremach nodded as Dumag trudged in our direction. “The artifacts alone would grant us compensation. Considering we discovered the Archive we may even be granted access to some of the more restricted artifacts. I am eager to learn of the more dangerous work some of our predecessors have done.” I nodded, and everyone turned towards Dumag as he joined us.

He took a second to hand the manastone to Brokil before shifting the boxes he was carrying to both arms. “I believe that is the last full manastone in my possession. Hopefully, it is enough to make a significant impact on the remainder of our journey.”

Brokil nodded as he palmed the crystal before extending the hand towards the center. “It will be late, but we should arrive just after the sun sets.” I grinned as Brokil began chanting and I felt the familiar tingling feeling of a long-range jump. There was a brief pause . . then we disappeared from the clearing with a loud Pop.

The sun was just on the horizon when we materialized in front of the barn door. I let out a sigh of relief as I stretched my sore muscles and reached towards Gremach to take the extra box he was carrying. “You guys might as well come in for a break. Dexter will probably want a look at the stuff we managed to bring back. If he ended up running all the way here he'll want to be reassured it was for something.”

I saw the others nod as they carried a queasy look. Salthu was the first to step forward to pull open the barn door. “I am in favor of this plan. It will be good to allow rest before we return to the Institute.” I nodded as we followed him into the dark interior of the barn. “Weird. . . I thought he'd be-” zzzzzzzzzzzz Suddenly, I became aware of a low rumble in the darkness. I cast Illuminate and tossed the glowing orb into the room. Dexter's slumped form appeared in the office chair, chin resting on his chest as he snored lazily. I stifled a small laugh as I set the box down and walked over.

I bent slightly as I gently tapped Dexter's cheek, using a sing-song tone. “Dexte~er. Wake u~p.”

Dexter twitched and let out a groan as he leaned back and blearily opened his eyes. “zzzz nz mmm” Now that he was sitting up I could see the damp patch around his neck and on the end of his short sleeves. He blinked heavily as he sat there and cleared his throat. “Hm mmm. Oh hey, Amelia. What's the verdict?”

I pulled the bundle of staves off my back and showed him. “A lot of artifacts with a lot of unique purposes.”

His tired eyes suddenly went wide as he saw the staves and he lifted his hand to reach for the bundle. “Holy sh- ooooooohhhhhhhhh.” He lowered his hand again as he sat back in pain. “I'm guessing that means you got the Archive open?” He asked as he winced.

I nodded as I looked at him concernedly. “It took some thinking and one of the gauntlets, but yeah we managed to get it open. Are you alright?”

Dexter nodded as he sat there and cringed. “Yeah. I'm just suffering from my actions. Brokil, I'm going to need you to make some more of that potion and provide the recipe if you're willing. I haven't been in this much pain since the battle.”

I turned and saw Brokil nod as he set his belongings on an open table. “If you truly require it. I cannot provide any at the moment, but I can create some for the morning.”

I turned back in time to see Dexter nod in response. “Go ahead and do that. I'll probably just veg out here for a while.”

I stared at him with more concern as he tilted his head back and closed his eyes. “What about the registration?” I asked curiously. “Did you end up making it?”

Dexter kept his eyes closed as he nodded. “I had to run the whole way, but I made it. Everything hurts, and I had just enough energy left to go down to the Great Hall's kitchen for a really big lunch.” He pointed to an empty plate I was just now noticing. “Who knew bear steak was so tasty.”

My stomach let out a soft growl as Dexter grinned and let out a satisfied sigh. “You want to tell us specifically what happened?” I asked again. Dexter paused for a second then nodded. He kept his eyes closed as he explained what he'd done and what brought him to be sitting there in obvious pain. Everyone pulled up a chair and sat down as he gradually wove through the story and eventually stopped when he got back to the barn, ate the meal, and passed out not long after.

When he finished he sat up a bit and pointed towards Dumag. “I also still have your bag. I think I set it on that table before eating. It should still have Brokil's beacon in it.” Dumag nodded as he stood and moved over while Dexter finally looked around at us. “What about you guys? What happened at the Archive?” Everyone glanced at each other before Salthu enthusiastically leaned forward and began explaining. I leaned back in my chair slightly as I allowed myself to relax. The prospect of studying the items was part daunting yet part exciting. I'd get a sneak peek at how the items of the past functioned. When Brokil and Gremach succeeded in recreating the process of making spellstones, our group would be the first to benefit from it. I was getting more and more onboard with Dexter's plan to attack Nione. “Give that god damn animal something to fear. I can't wait to see the look on his face as his city falls. God, I hope I'd get to see that. Monsters like that always deserve whatever's coming for them.” I looked up as Salthu finally finished our side of the tale and Dexter turned to me. “You let Oghash get away with a gauntlet?” He asked, a little annoyedly.

I nodded as I rubbed my head. “If we left without opening the Archive it's almost guaranteed that word would get out and we'd have to contend with more teams. Each one of them would potentially be able to open the Archive without the gauntlets. Slathu, you mentioned you'd need time. How long do you think it would take to trip the locks for the Archive and have it open?”

Salthu grew serious as he closed his eyes and rubbed his head. “With the gauntlets at our disposal, we would have had an advantage. The final word she used, I had not heard before. I doubt our tomes contain the knowledge we would seek. At the soonest, it may be a week. At the latest, it could take a few months. During that time hundreds of teams might have visited the Archive, each of which could potentially pour increasingly more hours into opening it. Theoretically, a specialized group could have opened the door in a single day. It might have taken weeks if not months for the excitement around the Archive to die down to the quiet we first experienced when walking into the tunnel. We had no other choice. We had to sacrifice the artifact. I am only thankful for the potential replica nature of the item.”

Dexter stared tiredly at Salthu as he seemed to consider the events then let out a sigh as he sat back again and looked up at the ceiling. “I still think it was a bad idea. We could have studied it to find out what it was. Hell, if they managed to make them into keys it might have been useful to have two examples instead of one. That way it would be possible to pull out that part of the enchantment more easily.”

I shrugged as I leaned back. “Well, there's nothing we can do now. We just got to work with what we have and what we have is a lot of artifacts.”

Dexter was silent for a minute then appeared to nod reluctantly. “I guess, but that's still something we can't study anymore. At least we have the other one, right.” Dexter sat up a bit to look towards Dumag. Dumag reached into his satchel and pulled out said gauntlet, showing the regal item to him. Dexter let out a satisfied nod and leaned back again. “Good. The crown will be back in our possession in a week or so. That's about how long he said it'll take for them to confirm its origin. After that, we can study it in greater detail. Until then, the rest of the loot will be our priority.” Everyone nodded as they relaxed a bit and sat back in their respective chairs. I looked up as I gave some thought to the artifacts. “The spellstones will be our main goal to recreate. They're supposed to hinge heavily on their unique method of constructing spells. So making the rest of the artifacts might be easy once that's accomplished. From there, Dexter will probably turn back to his promised weapon. I'm starting to wonder if he has any real ideas for it. There is an endless number of ways to hurt someone. Magic just throws a curveball into that field, kind of like using imaginary numbers for a graph. He could just need time to go through all the basic possibilities or he has no idea what he's doing. Still, he's trying something. . . . I might as well try to come up with some things too. Maybe start making a list of all the modern inventions I could try and recreate here. Magic would make that easier.” I looked down as Dexter suddenly let out another low snore. “He's probably thought like this for hours. He probably just needs a bit of help here and there. I'll have to sit down with him one day and help brainstorm some ideas. Until then, I like the idea of rest.”

I stood and stretched as I turned towards the others, dropping my voice down to a low tone. “I think he needs some rest right now. Y'all can come back in the morning if you'd like, but for now, we should all get some sleep.” They all nodded as they quietly collected their things and trickled out the door, waving goodbye as they did so. I returned the gesture as Bruga quietly slid the door back into place with a soft bump. I let out a sigh as I turned to the pile of things left behind; Dexter's backpack, my satchel, the box of artifacts, the bundle of miscellaneous staves, and the collection of magic bags Dumag was letting me borrow that were scattered throughout the various containers. I walked over and stooped to begin sorting through and separating them as Dexter's snoring filled the barely lit barn. “With Adympia being the end goal, we'll probably want to arm the orcs as best we can. There's no telling how that bastard Almar will prepare for a potential assault. Let alone what the other cities have to defend against an invasion. They haven't lasted a millennium because of nothing.”