What have I got myself into? Hump slowly looked over the vault, his eyes glazing over riches beyond his imagination, and he had a fairly good imagination at that.

“Are you sure we can help ourselves?” Emilia asked.

“This will all be useless if Sheercliff falls,” Marcela said. “Take what you need, but be swift. This is no simple quest, we’re arming for war.”

Hump licked his lips. This was too much. The wealth before him, and Marcela’s willingness to part with it. It made the scale of what they were doing all the more real. The risk felt that much more obvious. Gods, his master would slap him for getting himself caught up in this mess.

His eyes wandered to a glass cabinet filled with some of the largest essence stones he’d ever seen—such riches, and they were unguarded—all ripe for the taking.

“Arrows?” Celaine asked.

“Check the barrels over there.” Marcela pointed over to one corner of the room, where a variety of crates and boxes were stacked out of the way. “The narrow ones on the right. Help yourself.”

“We could use some new potions,” Dylan said. “Or any healing supplies for that matter.”

“Len, can you show him where they are,” Marcela said, already moving to the back of the hall. “Get a selection for all of us.”

Hump glanced around. Nobody was looking his way, instead, they were focused on grabbing the gear they needed for the fight. If he wanted to, he could slip these essence stones into his bag and nobody would even notice. He wasn’t that person anymore. He didn’t need to be. These were his companions—his friends. Hump glanced once more at the many temptations around him—spellbooks, essence stones, even gold. None of which he could make use of now. They were counting on him. Somehow, he’d ended up the party leader in his group of Chosen and nobles. He needed his head about him and focus on a clear objective.

Of everyone, it was only Bud standing by. Hump approached him. “Do you have everything you need?”

“I’m fine,” Bud said, voice grim. “I have Kelisia’s blessing, that’s enough. We just need to move.”

“Chosen die all the time,” Hump said. “Righteous path or not, it’s a path paved by dead.”

“And more will die today. They have died, and they are dying now. I am ready to do my part.”

Hump could hear the resolve in his voice. He didn’t like it. He was overconfident, which worried him. Kelisia’s blessing might help them, but it wouldn’t solve their problems.

“What?” Bud asked.

“Just crossing my fingers that your part isn’t dying,” Hump said.

“We will make it through this,” Bud said. “All of us.”

Hump didn’t know what to say to that, so instead, he held up his free left hand, fingers crossed, and then followed after Marcela.

“What are you looking for?” Hump asked as she threw open the metal doors at cabinets of the back, searching through the priceless artifacts inside with reckless abandon.

“Anything my mother didn’t take with her,” Marcela said. “Unfortunately, most of the convenient choices are gone.” She snatched up a box. “This will do though.”

Hump studied the wooden jewellery box; it was simply decorated in woven strands of silver and runes, much like the one Countess Daston had given him along with his ring and spell tree. He tried to focus on it and give his spellbook a chance to grasp its powers, but nothing happened. His eyes went to the small runes inscribed along the inner surface of the glass display, likely preventing this type of identification magic.

Marcela opened the cabinet, and in only moments a shiver ran through Hump’s book. While Marcela carefully took out the box, Hump discretely glanced at the new page inside.

Item Index

Box of Contain Magic

Artifact | Universal | Bronze

Description

A box that perfectly seals in the magic within, storing it for future use.

Origin

Sheercliff, The Daston Estate Vault

“It just looks like a box,” Hump said. “I don’t sense any serious power from it.”

“You wouldn’t,” Marcela said. “It’s a containment box, designed to preserve the essence of the item within.”

“And what’s that?”

Marcela looked at him and smiled slightly. “A phoenix feather, imbued with a fragment of its spirit. A gift to one of my ancestors after returning an unhatched egg to its mother.”

Hump paused for a moment—he’d heard the tale before, though never in reference to the Dastons. “I always assumed that was just a children’s story. It’s true?”

She nodded, a proud look in her eyes as she studied the box. “It is. The feather grants the user the strength of a gold ranker for a single use. I suppose my mother left it behind as the box is awkward to carry and she doesn’t need such power, but for us…”

“It could give us the means to take down the tree,” Hump finished.

“That’s the idea. Do you think it will work?”

The earth shook, the entire room shuddering, the items rattling within their containers. Hump gripped the table beside him for balance as the entirety of Sheercliff rocked with the sound of an avalanche. He sensed essence at work outside. Fighting, distant, but clear even in the vault. The power of hundreds of Chosen and practitioners in combat.

As the shuddering stopped, Hump took a breath. “It’ll have to work if it’s all we have. We’ll need a strong attack. Are you confident your blessings could pierce the tree’s defences and destroy it?”

Marcela glanced up at the roof, a concerned look on her face. She turned back to Hump, frowning. “My blessings are ill-suited for the task. Even if I could slice through the tree, I’m not sure it would kill it. Actually, I believe you’d be the best equipped for the task.”

Hump blinked then shook his head. “I’m just a wizard. You have powers from the gods.”

“I saw you bring down a dryad in a single jet of flame,” Marcela said. “This feather will grant you the strength of a phoenix, even if only for a moment. Whether a blessing or wizardry, it will be the source of strength for the attack. And what better than fire to bring down a Tree of Damnation?”

Hump stared at the box, his heart hammering, a well of anxiety opening inside him. “Bud just received Kelisia’s blessing—it was meant to be him.”

Marcela shrugged. “It’s your decision. If you lack confidence, Bud would be my second choice. His Frostfire possesses purification properties and may be effective, though he has the disadvantage of needing to be within reach of the tree.”

“Do you want to discuss this with the others?” Hump asked. “Perhaps they—”

“I’m confident,” Marcela interrupted. “This must be your decision before anyone else. You’re the one that can judge your capabilities best.” She extended the box toward him. “What will it be?”

Hump swallowed; indecision rampant within him. There were Chosen all around him, yet Marcela was bringing this to him. He forced himself to use his wizard brain. The first and most important question was of course whether he believed he could do this. That was the basis for all magic. He had to know. The truth was, he did. If he called upon the power of White Flame, perhaps it was their best chance at the tree’s destruction. Of all of them, he had the most experience wielding foreign essence. It seemed logical that he would be the least likely to lose control.

Yet there was that voice in his mind that made him nervous. Lucile’s voice. The gorger’s voice. They pushed him to reach for dungeon essence. They grasped at his soul with their icy tendrils.

“Have you forgotten that I’m a warlock too?” Hump said quietly.

“I am no fool, Hump,” Marcela said. “We have all seen the strength of your soul. Whatever changes you have undergone, they have made you powerful. We need that power now.”

Another shudder shook the cliff. There wasn’t time for this. Hump tucked his staff between his elbow and slowly reached for the box, taking it in both hands. He’d expected it to be heavy—wanted it to be, so as to match the weight of responsibility that he felt—but it was the opposite. Without his spellbook, and without what Marcela had told him, it was just an ordinary box.

“I’ll do it,” Hump said, slipping the box into his pouch beside his dragon egg.

“Thank you.” Marcela gave a weak smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “Just try not to burn the city down while you’re at it.”

A nervous laugh escaped Hump. “No promises.”

Marcela stepped past him and raised her voice. “Time to move! Is everyone ready?”

They gave their affirmations, gathering at the entrance to the vault.

As Hump rejoined the others, Dylan approached him. “A Potion of Healing and an Essence Elixir.” He took them from a new leather bag he had at his hip and handed them to Hump. “And a spellstone of Major Heal. It sounded powerful.”

Hump took them, adding them to his own potion pouch. “It is powerful. Tier 4 I think.”

“Good,” Dylan said. “We’re well prepared. So long as you don’t die immediately, something in here will keep you alive.” Dylan patted his pouch.

That didn’t sound nearly as appealing as Hump imagined Dylan had intended. He looked at the others. Celaine and Teff both had full quivers. The arrows inside were made of dark wood marked with runes—he should have guessed that there would be no ordinary arrows in a vault like this.

“Did you get what you needed?” Len asked Marcela.

She nodded. “We’re in business. Let’s go. I’ll explain on the way.”

Marcela ran them through the plan as they made their way to the gates of the estate, exiting out onto the street. Above, Hump saw shades floating through the Upper City manors, coming from within the tree. He wondered what other monsters must be out there, hidden from sight. The only signs of fighting the constant flashes of light and essence focused around the tree, and another location closer to them.

“Who will be the one to wield the feather?” Bud asked.

Marcela looked at Hump.

Hump patted his pouch. “I will be.”

“You think you can do it?” Teff asked.

Hump hesitated a moment, waiting for people to complain, or question the decision. It didn’t come. He supposed it was his own insecurity at play. He’d quested with these people since Stonebark, fought alongside them in half a dozen warlock bases. All that time, he’d never quite felt like he belonged. Like he was anything more than a hedge wizard. As he looked over their faces, not even the members of Marcela’s party seemed to doubt the choice.

Hump nodded. “I think so. I’ll hit it with the same spell as the dryad, only this time, it’ll have the strength of a phoenix behind it. Just get me close enough.”

“That part may be tricky,” Len said. “You’ve noticed the place is swarming with monsters, haven’t you?”

“I might have an idea for that,” Celaine said. “There’s fighting at the academy. At least a hundred people strong, holding off against monsters. I think they might be trapped by the same type of formation that was used over the opera house. A Tree of Damnation has ruptured the roof of the main building.”

“The goal was a small force that could strike unexpectedly,” Marcela said.

“We can still do that,” Hump said. “We need to fight our way across a battlefield, we could use the reinforcements.”