Tad awoke in the dark on a hard floor. His neck and body ached. He tried to sense the things around him, and his magic was stopped short, pushing against a magic shielding. His neck throbbed, then his hand throbbed. This happened several times. He opened his eyes, lifting his hand. The green stone in his minor ring of regeneration pulsed slowly in time with the pain on his neck.

Tad summoned a light lancer, which raced up and started to circle. Tad took in his surroundings. He was in a small chamber with a single metal door in one wall, and he realized he no longer had Galadinidú.

He reached out again with his senses beyond the door, and he could find nothing, just a barrier that kept him from going past it.

Tad felt his neck where the pain was, then looked down as best he could. On his chest and closed around his neck was the Torque from the corpse. He felt for a way to take it off, but he couldn't find a clasp. He tried to lift it off around his head, and his neck felt like someone was stabbing it over and over. It was under his shirt. The Torque was sealed to his skin. It lay flat and looked solid gold.

"Kettle, can you tell me where I am? " projected Tad to his Kettle bracer.

"Tad, you're awake. Great work. Your quests are updated again. Oh, and you are far away again. " replied a distant and quiet voice of Kettle.

"Not great work, Kettle. This is the opposite of great work, and how far away?" asked Tad.

"Far. Farther than the last time," replied Kettle.

"Which quests changed? " asked Tad.

"Release the spirits: Artificers dominion and A safe place to live: A city is reborn," said Kettle.

"What does that mean? " asked Tad.

"No idea. The symbols didn't change color, though, still blue and gold. There is a new red symbol I've never seen next to the gold one. " said Kettle.

The Torque pained him again as if it was piercing his chest. It was followed shortly by the regeneration ring pulsing and relieving the pain. Tad could see the cursed life mana flowing through the Torque on his chest. It felt horrid as if it was feeding on him.

"Do you know anything about this Torque? " asked Tad.

"I saw the corpse crumble when it jumped at you, Tad. There was a magic rod under the corpse," said Kettle.

Tad thought about that for a few moments, "That little devil." The Imp had tricked him.

What was he doing, believing an Imp at all? Even magically bound, the things were treacherous. What made him consider anything that creature had said was going to turn out good? Did the knowledge of the quest updates influence him? He would never have thought touching strange magic was a good idea. His mind was racing around these thoughts. He took several deep breaths calming himself.

"Ok, I'm going to open this door. Let me know if anything else changes," said Tad channeling energia into the bracer to form a gauntlet on his hand. He closed it into a fist.

Tad slowly pushed the door open. It had a metal handle that lifted to unlatch the door. He sent another light into the half-opened door. He saw a large chamber on the other side, and he could see bookshelves and tables with stone statues lying on them. He pushed the door the rest of the way open.

Tad stepped through the door, and several sconces along the walls lit up around the chamber. They continued to light themselves, going up stairways several levels above, extending at least fifty feet. The sconces lit the area above him. What Tad saw was a large workshop with statues lying on tables. Books on stone bookcases, and as he looked upward, he saw row upon row of these bookcases lining the wall accesses with balconies that ran around the room. Most of the bookcases sat empty in the farther reaches, but the ones at the bottom had hundreds of tombs and books. Tad saw a large stone block across the room. On top of it with a light to either side was the bust of a woman.

The half statue of a human female's torso was sitting on a stone block table. The metal image of a human female's upper half wearing a metallic grey blouse extending to her forearms with draped ends. The collar and sleeves are simple looping lace designs in a lighter yellow metal. The bust is made out of silver metal.

Tad walked into the room, and he saw a sitting area to the right wrapped around a low round table. It still had a crystal glass on it. The seating around was several divans. What lay on the divans were mummified corpses. They looked like women in black frilled dresses. But they were emaciated, and dry, leathery skin drew taunt across their faces. Gaping holes were in the place of eyes. One was sitting up in a chair in front of the crystal goblet. She looked shiny, like perhaps it wasn't entirely dry the way the other two looked. Tad could not sense any consciousness in them. They did have sublet flows of magic across them—the green of the undead.

"Tad do you see the sitting one's mouth? " said Kettle.

"Yea, it looks like fangs. That is creepy," replied Tad.

"Vampires? They don't look too good. Do you want to stake them or burn them with flame and life energia?" said Kettle.

"I don't think they are a threat. They hardly have any magic Kettle. I also don't have any stakes. Let's hold off for a few minutes before we start wrecking the place. I don't sense any presence right now," said Tad, then he thought about it. He did sense something. Tad felt it through the Torque on his neck.

He walked towards the female bust across the room.

As he approached it, the eyes of the bust opened wide, and it turned towards Tad. Its eyes were mesmerizing. Tad felt a painful thump against his soulscape.

"Submit! " came a loud projected voice booming in his mind.

Then he felt a thump in his chest, it came again, and Tad felt pain. Tad expanded his soulscape and pushed back against the pain. He was standing in his soulscape tent. He looked through the crystalline structure as large creatures in the shape of animated statues beat against the walls of the souldmancy tent with stone swords and spears. Tad felt pain in his very soul every time one hit the tent.

"Kettle do you see this? " asked Tad, panicked.

Kettles translucent avatar appeared in Tad's soulmancy tent, " That isn't good. "

"SUBMIT! " came the voice again, very loud now that Tad was in his soulmancy tent.

"I don't know soulmancy, Tad, but I think it's a battle of wills, Artificers dominion," said Kettle.

Tad winced in pain again as the statues continued to hammer on his tent. Cracks were running up sides now. Tad didn't have much time to think about what he had just heard, but he understood what he was seeing. How do you defend against this? He thought. The statues were pounding in unison now as more cracks ran across the tent. The pain shot up.

Tad was suddenly angry. Tad was tired of being pushed around, chased, and tricked. He was tired of being worried and afraid of everything. This was going to end now.

Something shifted in Tad.

He said quietly out loud, "I will not submit. ", then he said it again as the pain increased. This time he said it louder, slowly, "I will not submit. "

"SUBMIT! " said the voice as the statues hit the tent harder, cracks started appearing everywhere, and bits of the tent surface fell and disappeared before hitting the floor.

"NO!," Tad shouted out loud and inside his soulscape.

"I am done submitting. You will have nothing! " he said as Galadinidú appeared in his hand.

"I will NOT submit. I am done running, and I WILL NOT SUBMIT." Then he let the constructs into his soulmancy tent. Galadinidú flared a bright white with streaks of yellow. Tad slammed the end of the staff into the ground, and the sound of that strike reverberated through his mindscape. A subtle and loud sound could be heard. Dong… Time slowed.

Then Tad moved. Every block, every form, and swing he had ever performed flowed through him. Galadinidú in hand, he struck the statues. They exploded where the staff crushed them. Huge chunks flew off to disappear before hitting the ground. He swirled, he flipped, he put more energia into his staff. He summoned shields filled gold with the many domains of energia. He was a storm. He was destruction! He was fury! He had no interest in taking prisoners or letting these invaders survive. He moved among the statues flowing through them like a thistle in the wind, leaving broken, disintegrating constructs in his wake. Then they were gone. He stood there as the remaining constructs disintegrated.

He saw a shadow take shape beyond on the edge of his soulscape.

A new statue walked towards him. It flickered with the brown ichor of cursed life mana. Tad knew this creature, it was wrapped around his neck. It was trying to eat his soul.

"SUBMIT!," boomed the voice from the Giant Statue. It swung as it neared Tad. It was faster than the others. It was stronger. Its first overhand slash with the giant sword in its right hand barely missed Tad as he moved to the side. The sword dug deep into the surface of the ground. Tad felt pain then, in the chamber, his body was on its knees, using one hand to hold him up.

Tad lept towards the statue, bringing Galadinidú around in a powerful overhand strike. Tad poured more energia into the staff. It struck the statue across the chest, and the creature immediately pulled its left hand out of the shield and grabbed the staff that was rebounding off the large dent in its chest.

The construct held it in its grip, and Tad could not pull it free. The statue's fist holding its sword came across, clipping Tad with the pummel and fist. Tad flew across the soulmancy space as the statue continued to hold onto Galadinidú. Tad felt the pain now. Bruises appeared across the surface of his body as the ring on his finger throbbed constantly.

Kettle was across the tent area, still just standing there. "Tad, I think it can kill you. Your will makes it real. "

"Yea, " was all Tad said as he rolled back to his feet. He spit some blood from his mouth. He wasn't even sure how that worked in his soulscape, but he understood what pain was. That part was easy.

Tad couldn't feel Galadinidú any longer, and the staff blinked out of existence as the statue threw it to the side.

Tad was angry, and he was in pain. He was seething. He drew mana to himself, converting it to energia. He was going to burn the statue to the ground. He would pump everything into that flame. He was FURY! He cast flame nozzle pumping every color of energia he controlled, wrapping the flames in green, yellow, white, and red. The stone arm of the statue sagged. The magical flames were melting the statue. Its surface flowed like the wax of a candle. He was FURY! Tad redoubled his effort. His head started to hurt from all the energia he was releasing.

Then something happened he didn't expect. An image appeared in his mind, Kimbriel and Maygur. The two monks had been verbally fighting, and Tad was outside a wagon sensing how they had gone from calm to anger. Then they had both calmed, and Kibriel had come out to tell him Maygur would train him. He thought of his friend Maygur. The man should have hated Tad for being forced to train him. But he hadn't. In the end, they had become good friends. Burning this creature in anger felt wrong to him somehow.

Tad stopped then and looked a the half-melted form of the statue, struggling to reach him with half a leg melted off and parts of its body dropping from the heat of the magical flame.

Tad looked at the creature. This is wrong, he thought. He closed his eyes, and the hand with the gauntlet bracer still on it was pointed at the statue where the flame had been projected. He stopped the flames.

He spoke calmly and firmly, "I will not submit. This is my space. You shall not trespass here. " Tad clenched his gauntletted fist. Then he opened his eyes.

"SUBMIT!" came the voice again, but Tad sensed it waiver.

"No," he said calmly, taking a step forward.

"You do not belong here. " Suddenly, the tent reformed around them. Clean, strong, and uncracked. The crystal windows of its carved surface flared with Energia. The clear panels strobed colors and lights across the inside as he channeled more energia through his soulscape. Tad took another step, and the construct swung its sword.

"NO!," said Tad loudly, and the arm stopped mid-swing. Tad walked forward. The giant construct was now down on one knee as its other leg was disfigured from the heat of the spell. Tad punched it, swinging his gauntleted hand at the half-melted face of the construct. He stopped the blow an inch from its forehead. He opened the gauntlet as it glittered with the Energia he was channeling. Then he pushed against the surface and plunged his gauntleted hand into the stone skull of the constructed. He felt the entity inside and wrapped his hand around it.

"You will submit," said Tad calmly, slowly increasing pressure on the corrupted spirit inside. The top of the gauntlet flared as more energia flowed into it, empowering Tad's strength. He felt like he was there for hours struggling with the cursed spirit. He brought calm as the spirit raged and tried to escape his grip with the magical gauntlet.

It was the statue's turn now, "NO!" it shouted, and it thrashed, then stopped still. Tad had increased the pressure.

"You will die for this, " the statue said with hate in its voice, and Tad felt pain in his neck. Horrible pain, his ring flashed green pulsing, a constant thrum.

Tad increased pressure, the head of the construct started to crack, its right ear fell away, disappearing.

"Submit," repeated Tad slowly as he squeezed harder and harder, flooding energia into the gauntlet. The flesh of his fingers burned and ached under pressure.

Tad would not live his life in submission to this thing. If he is to die, it would be on his own terms. He would take it with him if he must, but he would not let it go.

More cracks appeared on the statue as the pain in Tad's chest shot up. Tad's vision blurred. The face of the statue was barely recognizable. Tad could see the light of the spirit inside, and it was dimming as he squeezed. It was barely a flicker now. Tad was losing consciousness, he pushed back against it, but the pain in his neck went up.

"I submit, " was all he heard from the spirit. Then darkness again consumed Tad.

***

"Tad, Tad, Tad, Tad,.." was all Tad heard as he regained consciousness.

"Kettle stop. " projected Tad.

"Hey, your up! Great job. Are you feeling ok? Do you want to hear what happened?" asked Kettle.

Tad tried to open his eyes. They felt glued shut with all the tears that had dried there. "Sure, " he croaked.

"Ding, Ding, Ding, Ding, ding, ding. Ding, " Kettle paused, taking a projected breath, "ding, ding, ding—"

"Stop, please. Didn't we talk about this already?" asked Tad, who had managed to rub some of the crumbs from his eyelids and was busy opening them.

"You said you wanted to hear what happened, " Kettle sounded like he was a child about to pout.

Kettle let out a projected breath. Tad knew his friend didn't breath.

"Fine. You have an entry in your book. You have shown calm where others would rage. You have shown compassion where others would kill. You have chosen your path. " said Kettle.

"What does that mean? " asked Tad

"Well, you got three ranks in soulmancy, two ranks of Monk, and two of Paladin. Including two in staff-wielding. Oh and something called curse resistance four ranks," said Kettle

Tad sighed as he opened his eyes, looking straight up into the distance above him. He was starting to understand what the names meant, but he didn't understand why there was a number.

He saw railings and floors that had bookshelves lining the walls. Sconces bright with pale yellow light magic that were evenly spaced between them. The floors above wrapped as they went up and up. He took a deep breath. The pains in his chest and neck were gone. The weird pulsing of the necklace and ring had stopped. Then the head of the metal female bust leaned over into his view, looking down at him. She was pretty and made of metal. She just stared at him with an occasional blink of metallic eyelids.

"I've got more to share if you want to hear it, " said Kettle with a projected smile.

"No more dings, please. What happened?" asked Tad, sitting up and looking at the bust of the metal woman who leaned back upright.

"Well, it turns out you were cursed. You overcame the curse. By the way, didn't your mom tell you not to touch strange magic? " said Kettle.

"Yea, that's what I figured, " said Tad standing up.

"You also had an update to your quest and more than a few skill and class increases since the Imp battle. Oh, and I've been talking to the nice lady over there on the coffin," said Kettle.

Tad paused at that information. Is it a coffin?

"And? " said Tad waiting.

"She says she likes you and will help you with any of your book selections," said Kettle.

"Kettle, why would she like me? Didn't I just defeat her? " projected Tad.

"No, you did not. Your battle was with the magic artifact around your neck. She had nothing to do with it. She also said the previous wearer had failed in his battle, and the spirit in the necklace rode him like an old mule. She had more words for the man, none of which I'd use in polite company. His name was Yevgeny Zajíc, and this is his workshop and residence. Oh, and he was also a vampire," said Kettle.

Tad looked back over at the mummified vampires near the table. They hadn't changed or moved.

"Whats in the coffin? If these are out here," asked Tad.

"I didn't ask. You were not out very long this time. Once that Torque stopped drinking your blood and energia, you healed up pretty fast. " said Kettle.

Tad touched the Torque around his neck. It was no longer sealed to his skin. He lifted it up to look at it. Two small fangs were there turned up against the bottom of the necklace where it had hurt so much. There was dried blood around the surface. They were retracted.

"Did you ask her about this? " said Tad.

"Yes, there is also an entry in your book for it. It said you succeeded in defeating Gold Symbol, Artificers dominion in souldmancy combat of wills. Which is why you got so many dings. " said Kettle, brightly emphasizing ding.

"You know, saying ding all the time isn't that funny, Kettle," said Tad.

Kettle projected a laugh, "It is when I can get you to say it. "

Tad shook his head, "So this thing is a gold symbol? " asked Tad.

"Those are words or complex thoughts I haven't figured out yet. I think in this case, it means artifact called Artificers dominion," said Kettle.

"Are there any more in the Book? " asked Tad thinking about Galadinidú.

"No, it only put the name in there because you defeated it in combat. I think you have to discover if there are others by another means. Unless, of course, you plan on fighting every magic item you come across. " said Kettle.

It would have been nice if the book thing Kettle was reading could tell him the name of magical items. Another idea down the privy Tad thought.

He turned to the metallic bust of a woman on the coffin. What a weird place to put it; perhaps it was to disguise that it was a coffin?

"Do you speak? " asked Tad. Tad felt the Torque around his neck pulse. He was suddenly happy he had left his cittern back at the dwarven Hold. This thing would have wrecked the instrument.

"Yes, Sir. " said a squeaky sounding young female voice. The statue's lips even moved. He didn't think it breathed, though.

"What is your role here? " asked Tad.

"My role is to organize and catalog all books in the workshop. I also control the temperature, humidity, lights, book longevity, and general upkeep of the structure." said the statue.

"Do you have a name? " asked Tad.

"Yes, I am Aanalean. " said Aanalean.

"Ok, Aanalean. How do you organize books from there? Also, how many books do you have here? " said Tad.

A book flew from a shelf across the room and landed in her hand, "We have over 800 books here covering magic, ecology, politics, and constructs. There is also a couple on vampires that those ladies had with them." She pointed at the three mummified bodies near the table.

Tad looked again at them, "Who are they, and what happened here? Also, where is here? "

"The one with the Tiara is Synethaes, " the statue paused for a moment, " Do you want to know what they are or who they are?" asked Aanalean.

"Both if you could, " said Tad.

"The one with the Tiara is a Mistress vampire. She is very powerful and is the one that turned the previous holder of that Torque. The one next to her is Olylia. She was a servant to Synethaes. Until she went feral for lack of blood, she is the one that drained Aea, the unblooded vampire on the end there. Mistress Synethaes drained her in turn for going against her wishes, and then after a very, very long time of the Mistress wasting away in that chair. They all sit as you see them now. " said Aanalean with a nod.

"Can I just call you, Leana, for now? Also, what is an unblooded vampire? " asked Tad.

"You may address me as Leana if it pleases you, Sir, and an unblooded vampire is one that has been turned but hasn't killed or drunk blood from another sentient creature. She would have gone Feral also, but Olylia beat her to the punch, " said Leana.

"So you are saying she has just turned? That means she wasn't a vampire before this? " asked Tad.

"I do not think so. This was very, very long ago. Yevgeny Zajíc brought Aea here while the Mistress and her servant were also visiting. Perhaps he wished to impress them. He then left using that Torque around your neck and never returned. " replied Leana.

Tad thought about what she had just said for a few minutes. "Why didn't they just crawl in the coffin and sleep, " asked Tad. He knew almost nothing about vampires either, just stories.

"There is a book on vampires on the second floor. Would you like me to retrieve it for you? Vampires can not occupy or even open another vampire's coffin without being invited. It's just like a house if they are not invited. " said Leana as a book descended from the second-floor bookshelves. Tad took the book and opened it. It was in a language he didn't recognize, but his language charm let him make out the words after a few moments. He looked at the cover for a minute, then tried to place it in the bag of holding on his belt. The bag accepted it, so he put it in there for now. Another on a long list of books he had almost no time to read.

"You said Yevgeny used this Torque to leave here? What else does it do? " asked Tad.

"This place, " Leana used her hands to present the whole chamber. " is a pocket dimension. It sits in the astral, and that Torque controls it and the constructs made here. It lets you access this place from anywhere and will return you to the exact spot when you leave. "

"Does it make Constructs? " asked Tad.

"I do not believe so. It is tied to any that are made on that large table over there. There is a lot of magic involved that the artificer has to cast to make it all happen. But if he is wearing that Torque and makes the construct here. Then it will control the creature. It's the nature of this place. " said Leana.

"So Yevgeny wasn't the first person to use this? " asked Tad.

"No, he was the nineteenth. He was, though, the first to be good at the task since the original creator, Nola," said Leana.

"This Nola made the curse then? " asked Tad.

"No, that showed up on the 18th wearer. He was very paranoid about it being stolen. He was also a vampire. You might want to ask Mistress Synethaes if she awakes. They knew each other, " said Leana.

Tad nodded. He looked at the vampires, and he had no intention of waking any of them. He started thinking about his friends back at the Temple of the Sun.

"What is in the coffin, and why didn't you open it for Synethaes?" asked Tad.

"Inside is some dirt and treasure, of course. But I can't open it for you," said Leana.

"Why not?" asked Tad.

"I do not like you well enough, and I just met you. Torque or no Torque, I will not open it until you prove to me you are not as much of an ass as Yevgeny. I made that mistake once, and I won't do it again. " said Leana with a matter-of-fact lilt to her voice.

"Can't I just force you to do it with the Torque? " asked Tad, now worried about what might be in the coffin.

Leana looked like she was offended that Tad would even say this, "I am not a construct. Those mindless idiots. I assure you it will not work on me, and if you try to force your way into this coffin, I will open this building to the Astral plane, and we can see what's out there. "

Tad nodded, looking again around the room with his magic sight. Every part of the wall was infused with the energia of different domains pulsing around the room. He looked again at Leana, and she also was infused and part of the structure.

He frowned, "Ok, I'll be back later. You think of a way I can convince you to open that coffin while I'm gone, " said Tad. Then he willed the Torque to take him back to the Temple.

***