“The Nebulae Arcana contains three items. One of them is a piece of the divine sphere. A small piece, but even a fragment of the divine sphere holds terrible power, for it also contains a spark of Heavensflame, which it imparts to wielders the universe deems worthy. With power such as that, it’s likely one could shatter the greatest spells and control the wildest arcane magic.” The king stared at the red stain untouched on the table, and let out a soft breath. "Only with that, can we have a reasonable chance against the carrion queen."

"Eternal fire of the Outerrealm!" Lindley repeated subcounciously, his hand fiddling the berries on the plate before him. He had learned about the tales of the sparks of the Heavensflame, eternal fire of terrible power that could only exist in sparks in the mortal world. It was just like the abyssal fire, but with a divine touch. Anyone in possession of such power would be able to channel a fragment of godly power. "So much power."

"It is, but it's power only last for thirty heartbeats, and it comes with a price. A price I'll gladly pay." King Baragh Abaethaggar said, releasing a soft breath. He knew some powers were too terrible for the mortal worlds, so they had to be laced with restrictions and consequences. He shook his head and continued. "But there's also something in the artifact that could be of great use to you, humanling."

"Me?" Lindley asked in shock. What coul possibly be inside a powerful item that he could have. The Heavensflame would certainly burn him to ashes if he tried to use it. When it comes to magic, he was still at the lowest level since he just got his mage class. Cautiously, he gave the scaven king a curious look.

"Is there any other human here that I'm unaware of?" The scaven king asked sarcastically before focusing his sharp gaze on the human boy. "What do you think of the Soul Seed?"

"The Soul Seed?" Lindley swallowed, his throat gone dry as dust. At the mention of the Soul Seed, he felt a stirring in his soul, a sharp but strange excitement. Coincidentally, it was the same feeling he got whenever he visited the temple of Maikan with his parents when he was younger. Maybe his life would have been different, had the goddess not died in the immortal wars. Maybe, he could have become a junior acolyte for his goddess.

"Yes, the Soul Seed, and other treasures, could be yours."

"What do you require of me, king Baragh Abaethaggar?" The promise of sending him to the overland directly and the possibility of him possessing the Soul Seed, to have an object that could eventually open his own soul space, not to mention other treasures, flared in Lindley.

“You see, I will not allow the drow to herd and slaughter us. I’ve fought them for centuries in the Night Wars and always beat them back, but I don’t have the numbers to drive them off any longer. There will be war, and I need every warrior willing to fight for this city. Since there's been good reports about you, that includes you."

“You want me to fight for Kulgagar?” Lindley nearly choked on his own saliva. He hadn’t expected this—the strong scaven race, the scaven king to be precise, asking for help from human novice like himself, someone with no battle experience whatsoever? Moreover, wouldn't that put him on the wrong side of the drows? He guessed that was the price he had to pay for his friendship with the Scavens. "I'm sorry to disappoint you, king Baragh Abaethaggar, I lack everything it takes to be on a battlefield."

“The little you have will do. And to tell you the truth, I need you, not just in the battle that’s coming,” the king said, and when he looked at him with those shrewd silver eyes, Lindley felt a stirring of unease in his gut. “But I also want your particular magic.”

"My magic?" Lindley asked in bewilderment. He didn't know if he should laugh or cry. His magic? He just received the damned mage class. He had received no formal training, no magical books to learn spells from, not even a single low-level spell was in his memory. Maybe, there was sonething he was overlooking that the scaven king saw clearly. “What do you mean, king Baragh Abaethaggar?”

"I know you are yet to manifest your magic, but I can sense old magic of the human race in you. It's what I'll need."

"Why do you need this magic, if I may ask?"

“I mentioned earlier that we captured a drow watcher,” Baragh Abaethaggar said. “I pulled information about the enemy’s plan from his mind, but still he hides secrets from me, protected by powerful magic. The only force I know of that’s strong enough to penetrate this barrier is the last item inside the Nebulae Arcana. The Divine Mind Scryer."

"Alright, but how am I involved?"

"You are human, a practitioner of the Old Art. The artifact is made of Old magic, so it’s possible the artifact might open its power to you. If so, you could use it on the drow for me.”

"Even if all that is true, I still won't be able to use the artifact at my current level. It's way above me."

"That's why you'll get the Soul Seed. Once you have the soul seed in you, I'll be able to connect with you and guide your path.” King Baragh Abaethaggar said. “Still, this will exert unimaginable toll on me.”

“Why go through all these troubles?”

“Because my city stands on the verge of annihilation,” Baragh Abaethaggar said. His voice shook, and his silver eyes blazed with rage. “If I don’t find out what the drow are plotting and find a way to stop it, my people will die. I’m willing to sacrifice a great deal to keep that from happening.”

The king fell silent and looked at him expectantly.

Lindley realized he was waiting for an immediate answer—no, an immediate acceptance. He knew how much this chance meant to him. He’d admitted that it was a matter of life and death. Thinking about the recent past, he prefered to be in good terms with scavens to the drows. What more, an aspect of the spider queen nearly killed him earlier in the tunnels. So, how could he refuse? "I accept."

“Done,” the king proclaimed, and again the triumphant light came into his eyes.

Lindley tried to put aside the sense of foreboding that settled in his stomach. Everything was happening so quickly, and the king was being far too accommodating for his comfort. Yet everything appeared too precious to just throw away. “Thank you for welcoming me, king Baragh Abaethaggar.”

“I’ll leave you now,” the king said, as if he sensed his unease, “I’ll send a guard to you in a while to show you to where you’ll be staying.”

Lindley stood as the king left the hall. He listened to the scaven’s heavy, echoing boot tread recede until the great doors opened and shut, and he was alone. He let out a long, gusty sigh and plunked down in his chair. He couldn't help wondering how he got himself caught up in these crazy situations.