Supreme Magus

Chapter 4109: Majestic Form (Part 2)

’I don’t feel anything weird.’ Protector sniffed the air like a hunting dog. ’For what is worth, the smells of our marks don’t disappear here, but at the ground level where Friya sensed the exit point of the Warp Steps.’

’How is this possible?’ Solus asked via her bond with Lith. ’How can three people sense something that escapes even the Eyes’ detection?’

’Because you are using the wrong tool.’ Menadion replied. ’The Eyes can be fooled by proper cloaking, but there is no enchantment that doesn’t cause a ripple in the flow of world energy. That’s why I made the Ears.’

’Fuck me sideways.’ Lith said the moment he donned the helm, and everyone could feel the tension in his thoughts. ’We have to leave without arousing suspicions. Follow my lead.’

He shapeshifted into a Tiamat, sniffed the air a few times, and then circled around the clearing, playing dumb until he pointed in a random direction and flew towards it.

Nobody but Solus and Menadion knew what was happening, but they had the common sense not to ask questions.

’Whatever scared Lith/Scourge is likely to terrify me. Better to be in the dark and alive than aware and dead.’ Everyone else thought.

Lith kept flying until the Ears confirmed to him that they had escaped the range of the Black Throne’s sensing arrays, and a small mountain hid them from conventional sight.

’I need you to stay calm.’ He said while Hushing everyone for good measure. ’This is what we are against.’

The mind link showed with everyone the colossal figure of the Black Throne. The Ears couldn’t perceive the exact form, but it clearly showed the size and vigor of the world energy surrounding the Black Throne.

’Great Mother almighty!’ Phillard said. ’Is that the legendary Menadion’s tower?’

Everyone turned towards Ripha, even though for different reasons. Those who knew the truth hoped she could explain the phenomenon, while the rest waited with bated breath for the revelation.

’That’s not my tower.’ The answer made the Hyperion and the Lindwurm groan in disappointment. ’But that doesn’t mean it can’t be another mage tower.’

The disappointment was gone, and now Phillard and Crank experienced the same dread as everyone else.

’This doesn’t make sense.’ Protector said. ’Narchat already has Moonlight. What need does he have for a second tower?’

’None, and he’s not the kind of man who’d give such a powerful weapon to his second in command.’ Morok pondered. ’Even assuming I’m misjudging his character, how did Narchat know where to find another mage tower? Something is fishy here.’

’You guys make excellent questions, but we have no time to look for the answers.’ Lith replied.

’Maybe Meln has become more generous, maybe he has nothing to do with him, or maybe the reveal of my Indech form and Ajatar’s Sapphire Dragon made Meln so desperate that he is willing to gamble on his followers.

’No matter the answer, we can’t let him get his hands on another mage tower. Whoever is in there with the Book of Knowledge, we have to stop them before they complete whatever trial is required to take control of the tower.’

’How can you be so sure they didn’t just put a hand on a wall and imprinted it already?’ Phillard hated thinking, but there was nothing he wouldn’t do to keep his scales on his flesh and away from a trophy wall.

’If that were true, why would the tower just be cloaked and let us pass?’ Menadion replied. ’Why didn’t the Upyr just kill us all with their new toy?’

’Maybe, Narchat wants to keep the second tower as a secret weapon until he strikes again.’ Crank asked. ’It would be smart of him.’

’Meln? Letting me go unharmed instead of throwing a tantrum and giving me a speech about how awesome he is and I’ll never catch up to him?’ Lith scoffed. ’Have you ever listened even to one of his public rants?’

’Point taken. We can rule out his presence. If he were there, I bet he would have cast his Blade Tier Spell behind the safety of the cloaking field and killed us with a surprise attack.’ The Hyperion said, winning the bet.

’We can also rule out that this tower is already under his control.’ Solus pointed out. ’If he had a new weapon of this caliber, Narchat would shout it to the world and use it to recover from the blow we dealt to his recruitment campaign.’

’That’s nice, but let’s discuss what we do know for sure.’ Morok said. ’We can’t go against a monstrosity over 60 meters (197’) high armed with just good intentions. Even if this thing doesn’t have a master, it’s still a frigging mage tower.’

’We won’t. That’s why I brought us out of its sensory field before stopping to discuss our strategy.’ Lith reply. ’I don’t plan on charging ahead like a moron. I already have a contingency plan, but we need to buy time for it to work.’

’Before that, is it normal for a mage tower to be so short, Ruler Menadion?’ Crank asked. ’I’m a bit disappointed. In all the myths I heard as a child, mage towers are as tall as mountains.’

’Yes, it’s normal.’ Ripha nodded. ’A mage tower is still an artifact and needs energy to work. Even a mana geyser can only produce that much power, and if your tower is 1 km (3281’) high, it means that either most floors are merely cosmetic or that the power of their enchantments is negligible.’

’No one would invest countless priceless magical resources just to have the vertical equivalent of a mansion.’ Crank pondered. ’Each floor should possess unparalleled power to be worthy of a mage tower.’

’Exactly.’ Menadion nodded. ’For what it’s worth, the stories you heard as a kid hold a grain of truth. No one in their right mind reveals the true appearance of their mage tower to strangers. You always add a majestic form that’s purely for show.

’Its purpose is to fool spies, impress your guests, and make it impossible for anyone you don’t trust to map the real structure of the tower and where you keep your treasures.’

’Ingenious.’ Lith said, adding on their private link: ’Why did I never hear about this before? The only time I saw something like that was when I first met Solus, and she showed me what the complete tower looked like.’

’Because Epphy doesn’t remember about it, and the majestic form is one of the last enchantments the tower will regain. It has no defensive or offensive value and is the least useful tool for a Forgemaster like me.’ Menadion said.

Then, she opened the telepathic channel with the rest of the group again.

’There are two more things you need to know if you want to survive the experience. The tower is likely to have underground floors, so it’s bigger than you think. Also, it should have a battle form, and if we enrage it, it will come after us.’

Lith didn’t like Menadion sharing such things with Crank and Phillard, but she was right. They needed to know the truth to live long enough to serve their purpose. Besides, it was no shocking news.