Rise of the Living Forge - Chapters 600-601

Arwin’s mouth felt clammy. Even the heat of the Soul Lava pumping through his veins couldn’t stop the chill from running down his back. The mere idea of the Guild having somehow found a way to directly attack the Mesh was somewhere between terrifying and laughable. He normally would have dismissed the thought instantly. There was just no way someone could target the Mesh itself. It wasn’t possible.

But it was a bit harder to convince himself of that whilst staring at the Mesh’s very corpse. Something — somehow, some way — had killed at least some portion of the Mesh. And the only people Arwin could possibly attribute that to were either the Guild or Necrohammer.

The Mesh was all but helping the Guild, though. It was completely aware of what they were doing and wasn’t taking any action to stop them. If I’m right… this could potentially be what is causing the world to slowly die. It could at least be part of the problem. And that wouldn’t be something the Mesh would just permit. Isn’t that the whole reason it’s trying to find other solutions?

It made no sense. No matter how Arwin looked at it, there was just now way the Mesh would have been sitting around and just letting the Guild kill off portions of it whilst still wondering how the world was dying out. It would have been pretty easy to start connecting the dots.

That meant that the Mesh either had absolutely no idea about what was going on here, Arwin’s analysis was completely wrong, or the Mesh was somehow aware of what was going on here and simply didn’t see it as a problem for some reason.

He wasn’t sure which of those options made more sense.

There was only one thing he could say for certain. These Guild Daggers were far more than what they’d thought. This wasn’t just some way for them to get more power and strengthen their control over the world. Of course, Arwin had already known the blades had served some greater purpose. Back when they’d interrogated Mask, he’d mentioned something about a hole that the Guild was pumping full of power from the daggers.

But if literally any of the thoughts he’d just had were even slightly close to the truth… they’d drastically misunderstood just what the purpose of these weapons were. The answer might have been lying right in front of them. If he could figure out what the real purpose of the daggers were, then there was a chance they could figure out what the Guild was actually doing with them.

I need to tell Wallace and Koyu about this.

Arwin stepped back from the corpse. Leaving a Vision without actually defeating the material he was meeting with in a battle of wills had been impossible in the past. But this time was different. The darkness fell away the instant his mind pulled back, and he found himself standing in the Infernal Armory once more.

He nearly tripped over his own feet in his surprise. It had been so easy to escape the Vision that it barely felt like anything at all had even happened. Wallace and Koyu both sent Arwin a concerned glance.

“What happened?” Wallace asked. “It looks like you saw a ghost.”

“More like a body,” Arwin replied, looking back down at the dagger cradled in his gauntleted hands with disbelief. He carefully laid the weapon back down and took a step back before dismissing the Gehenna armor.

Why was that so easy? I don’t think it had anything to do with getting stronger. That Vision just felt wrong. Like I was paying a visit to an empty home. It doesn’t feel like there were two parties involved. The dagger was just… empty.

“A body?” Koyu asked. “Of one the dagger had killed?”

“The Mesh,” Arwin replied stiffly. “I saw the Mesh. Dead.”

“What?” Wallace asked.

“I know,” Arwin said. He shook his head. “But I know what I saw. It was the Mesh.”

“How?” Wallace asked. “The Mesh can’t be dead, lad. My magic is still working just fine.”

“He’s right,” Koyu agreed. “If the Mesh was dead, the world—”

“Trust me,” Arwin said as he raised a hand. “I’m more than aware. But it was the Mesh. That wasn’t an illusion. I made certain. It was dead. And it’s been dead for a while. That Vision wasn’t like any of the other ones I’ve ever had. There’s normally a mental battle between me and the material I’m trying to speak with. But this time, there was nothing. It was like the dagger was dead before I even got there.”

“How is that possible?” Wallace asked. He sent a wary look in the dagger’s direction. “Do you think it’s possible there was some kind of trap for people with increased sensitivity like you? Something to trick them into the wrong direction?”

“I don’t,” Arwin said with a shake of his head. “I’m almost completely certain that was truly the Mesh. It’s too… distinctive looking. That isn’t something you can fake.”

The other two men stared at Arwin for several long seconds. Then Wallace swallowed.

“Well… you’ve actually spoken to the Mesh. So if anyone would recognize its corpse, it would be you. But I just don’t understand how this could be. The Mesh can’t be dead. There wouldn’t be a world left if it was gone. They’re one and the same.”

Koyu let out a hiss that sounded suspiciously close to a number of different curses. “A fragment of the Mesh’s soul?”

“You think something carved a portion out of the Mesh and then killed it?” Wallace asked in disbelief.

“That was my theory as well,” Arwin said. His gaze snapped to Koyu. “Do you know of a technique like this? Something that Liches use?”

“Yes,” Koyu said. “Soul Binding. Removing a piece of a being’s soul to permanently bind it to a piece of equipment. It was what Liches often used on themselves to create a phylactery — but it was utilized on enemies in order to create powerful weapons as well.”

“Are you implying that Necrohammer is going around carving chunks out of the Mesh in order to create his daggers?” Wallace asked, pulling on his beard in thought.

“Necrohammer should not have the ability to use this magic,” Koyu said slowly. “If he was doing it, then there is another involved. Soul Binding is Soulmancy. Everything I know of Necrohammer implies that he should just be a Necromancer.”

“Is that exclusive?” Arwin asked. “Couldn’t he have learned?”

“No,” Koyu said. “Soul Binding is one of the most powerful skills known to a Lich. The peak of Soulmancy. Necrohammer has not lived for long enough to achieve such a powerful ability. This power is not his. It must come from another.”

“Which means the Guild might have a Lich standing with them,” Arwin said grimly. “That’s what you’re implying, right?”

“It is,” Koyu said. “If you are correct and there is indeed a chunk of the Mesh trapped within this dagger, then there is no other option in my mind. The Guild has a Master Lich.”

“Fuck,” Wallace breathed. “I thought they were all destroyed. Not even you made it through. No offense. But you’re not really a proper Lich anymore. More like the ghost of one.”

“None taken. If I could choose to never have been a Lich, I would,” Koyu said. “But I was not comparable to what we may be dealing with. I never achieved the strength to use Soul Binding. I was not powerful enough.”

Arwin blew out a slow breath. His eyes flicked back to the dagger. “So the Guild has an ancient, incredibly powerful Lich likely working with them.”

“That is seemingly the case,” Koyu said. “But it does not answer one question.”

“Right,” Wallace said. “Why would the Mesh ever permit this to happen? It isn’t known for interfering in small things, but if the Guild were actively waging war on it and carving chunks of magic away from the world… there’s no way it would just sit back and do nothing.”

“It definitely would have told us,” Arwin muttered. “You’re correct about that. I don’t get it. The Mesh implied to me that it knew what the Guild was doing, and that it was necessary. But it never mentioned anything like this.”

“Is there a chance it doesn’t know?” Wallace asked. He looked to Koyu. “Is there a way you can use this Soul Binding thing without the target knowing?”

“Absolutely not,” Koyu replied with a firm shake of his head. “The agony of carving out a piece of your soul is impossible to miss. It is not something that could be done in secret. I — wait.”

“What?” Wallace asked.

It was a moment before the other man replied.

“Technically, if your target were already dead, they would feel nothing. I had heard of Liches who transformed their fallen enemies into weapons in such a manner. It is immensely difficult to cut away the soul of a living being who is actively fighting against you. So if the Mesh were truly dead…”

“Then it’s possible they could have done it,” Arwin said.

“But how would there be a dead piece of the Mesh?” Wallace asked incredulously. “It’s not even like the Mesh has a physical form. There’s nothing to cut off or die.”

Arwin’s head snapped around to look in Wallace’s direction. “That’s it.”

“What?” Wallace asked, blinking. “What is?”

“The Mesh does have a physical form,” Arwin whispered. “I’ve seen it. And so has Koyu.”

“What?” Wallace asked. “What do you mean?”

“Leylines,” Koyu breathed, his eyes going wide in realization. “The areas of the world where the Mesh is made manifest. The Guild has access to a Leyline.”

Chapter 601

“A Leyline?” Wallace asked, his eyes going wide. He looked from Arwin to Koyu. “You think the Guild is transforming a literal Leyline into magical weapons?”

“It adds up, doesn’t it?” Arwin asked. “What else could possibly explain the situation we’ve got on our hands right now? There’s a piece of the Mesh in that dagger, and it’s dead. How could something like that ever come into being? The only answer is a Leyline… unless you know another way in which the Mesh is manifested?”

Wallace was silent for several long seconds. Then the dwarf shook his head. “I don’t. But this is raw magic we’re talking about. Concentrated power at a level that would melt away most minds in a span of instants. Even a powerful smith would be beyond hard-pressed to craft with it. I can’t begin to imagine how the Guild — those mouth-breathing morons — would not only manage to carve away a piece of a Leyline, but then also kill it.”

“And they would have to do it without the Mesh noticing,” Koyu observed quietly. He crossed his pale blue arms behind his back, but his features were carved with thoughts. “It is not so easy to fool an entity like that. Magic runs through every part of this world. Slipping something under its nose — especially something so significant — would be deeply difficult.”

Wallace looked back to the dagger. He tugged on his beard furiously, as if he were testing the strength of the hairs holding it to his chin. Then he blew out a sharp breath. “This is a lot of guessing. More than I’m a fan of doing. Leaves too many openings for a fault. But if we assume the Guild somehow did manage to carve a piece of a Leyline out, kill it, and forge it into a dagger, all without the Mesh noticing anything at all… that would indeed explain why these daggers are capable of stealing magic.”

“And it could explain why the world is dying,” Arwin said. He felt more certain of his words the more he spoke. “It all makes sense. What if these daggers aren’t the extent of it? What if there are other weapons like these? Bigger ones? Stronger ones? If they’re taking pieces of the power latent to the world away, that magic is never re-entering the cycle. It’s just sitting. Dormant. And who knows how much of it they’ve stolen?”

“If you’re right, you do realize what you’re implying, right?” Wallace asked grimly. “It would mean the Guild has a stash of weapons far, far more powerful than these daggers. And presumably quite a few of them. The Mesh itself is taking action because of what you are now implying to be the Guild’s direct movements, Arwin. Can you even imagine the scale of what we’re dealing with if you’re right?”

That took the wind out of Arwin’s sails. His face paled. “Shit.”

“Shit,” Koyu agreed. “But I would not go so far as to determine this is our problem. Wallace was right. We should limit how many assumptions we make. It is through incorrectly based theories that the easiest answers are missed. Before we do anything else, the most pressing matter is to verify the nature of the dagger.”

“How?” Wallace asked. He nodded to the dagger. “What can we even do with that? I can’t un-forge something. I don’t reckon the two of you are any different. If there really is a piece of a Leyline somewhere within it, we’ll have to tear that thing apart searching for it. There’s a good chance we lose it. Magical weapons don’t tend to withstand people tinkering with them”

Arwin’s lips pursed. The room fell silent for several long seconds as everyone thought. Then a ripple of red smoke passed through the air.

“There are other methods that can be used,” it said, and the flicker of surprise that passed across Wallace and Koyu’s features made it clear they could all hear it. “Smithing is not the only path for such things.”

“Esmerelda!” Arwin exclaimed. “She might be able to melt the dagger down or something with her magic!”

Koyu and Wallace exchanged a glance.

“As good a bet as any,” Wallace said. “If there’s anyone that knows powerful magical weapons, it’s probably her. Besides, if Arwin’s vision didn’t work to figure out more details about the dagger, this seems like our best bet.”

“It won’t hurt to ask,” Koyu agreed. “At the very least, we should bring her here and see her thoughts. Esmerelda is old. And, while I rotted away on this street, she still wandered the world. There may be some insight she has that even I cannot offer.”

***

“Mad,” Esmerelda said. “You’re all mad.”

It had been pretty easy to find her. She’d come quite quickly when Arwin had given her a brief rundown of the situation, then sat and listened as Arwin had filled her in on what the three of them had spoken about until they’d come to get her.

“That is not very productive,” Koyu said.

“I never claimed to be,” Esmerelda replied. She thrust a finger at the dagger. “But you honestly think that the Guild has managed to steal away a sliver of a Leyline and pound it into a chunk of metal? Do you have any idea how much magical power runs through Leylines?”

“Yes,” Koyu said. “I have been in one.”

“You’re a Lich,” Esmerelda said. She turned to Arwin. “And you’re… you. But the dwarf should know better.”

“It is just a theory,” Wallace said. He crossed his arms in front of his chest. “And one that seems somewhat sound. We do not know what the Guild is capable of. They have been around for a very long time. I cannot account for every possibility.”

“The power of a Leyline is enough to melt away even powerful Adventurers,” Esmerelda said flatly. “If someone had somehow managed to condense even a drop of its power into a weapon, that weapon would put out energy like there was no tomorrow. Placing it into something that seems as mundane as these daggers… it would be like dropping a baby into an active volcano.”

“What’s that even meant to mean?” Wallace asked. “Analogies are meant to make things clearer. I don’t know what would happen if—”

“It would probably explode,” Esmerelda said.

“I don’t think that’s what would happen,” Arwin said.

Esmerelda sent him a flat look out of the corners of her eyes. “Well, I’m saying it would. There’s absolutely no way you could condense a fucking Leyline into a shitty little dagger and then hide its magical signature to such an extent. Even the most powerful Devils I have put out more aura than this thing. Necrohammer certainly used some old, powerful magic to create this… but it can’t be a piece of a Leyline. We’d know. The whole room would probably be glowing gold.”

“Just humor us,” Arwin said. “No matter what the case may be, we need to know what this dagger is made out of. That’s the only way to figure anything out for sure. And I don’t think anyone has a better chance of doing that than you. My Vision failed.”

Esmerelda pursed her lips. She was silent for a second. Then she shrugged one shoulder. “I could probably melt it apart, starting with the weakest of the magical materials and working my way up in hopes of isolating something. But it’s going to damage the dagger beyond repair. You’ll be throwing away the only one we’ve got.”

“It’s not throwing anything away if we get useful information out of it,” Koyu said. “We should do it.”

“Should we get the others?” Wallace asked. “In case one of us misses something important?”

Esmerelda scoffed. “Trust me. I won’t. I know what I’m doing. Whatever materials this evil little chunk of shit has in it, I’ll find them. I expect you’ll find that the magic was never in the materials, though. It’s in the enchantment. That’s how weapons like this are. And if that’s the case… you won’t find anything at all. It’ll just be gone, and nobody will be able to get it back or see what the magic once was.”

“It’s your call,” Wallace said, looking to Arwin.

“I know what the Vision showed me,” Arwin said. He nodded firmly. “Take it apart, Esmerelda.”

Esmerelda shrugged. Then she snapped her fingers. “A cauldron, dear. Please. And a  big one. I don’t work with small bowls.”

The ground rippled. Obsidian rose up, melting together into the shape of a wide cauldron. A satisfied grin splayed across Esmerelda’s lips and she reached into a pocket, pulling out a small vial of clear liquid. She removed the glass stopper and upended it over the cauldron.

The contents of the vial spilled out. And then they kept coming, liquid pouring for far longer than it had any right to from such a tiny vessel. It continued until the cauldron had been filled well over halfway. Only then did Esmerelda carefully right the vial and return the glass stopper to it before slipping it back into a pocket.

“What?” Wallace muttered, mostly to himself. “What kind of enchantment is that? An endless mug, but for potions? I’ve never seen—”

“In goes the dagger,” Esmerelda said firmly. “This acid isn’t going to stick around forever. Then be quiet and keep your eyes on the bowl. If there’s any truly powerful magical material in this thing in this thing, then it’ll make itself clear pretty soon. And if there’s a bit of a Leyline in it… well, you’ll know.”

They all nodded. Then Arwin gingerly picked the dagger up. He carefully brought it over the bowl, then glanced at Esmerelda.

“Tell me when.”

The old woman’s eyes narrowed in concentration. She let out a slow breath, then gripped the sides of the cauldron. Coils of green magic wound out across the metal to weave into the acid, making it bubble.

“Now,” Esmerelda said. “Just get ready for a boring waste of a perfectly good lead.”

Arwin dropped the dagger into the cauldron.

It landed without so much as a splash, immediately sinking into the clear liquid and falling all the way down to the bottom of the obsidian cauldron. Tiny bubbles beaded up on its surface, hissing furiously as they rose up to the liquid’s surface.

Then the dagger started to dissolve.

It wasn’t a slow process. Huge chunks of it disintegrated, falling away so quickly that Arwin barely even had a chance to realize what was happening before less than a quarter of the weapon remained. It only took seconds for it to almost entirely vanish.

Then final chunk of the dagger melted away. But, instead of fading to nothing, it left behind a tiny chunk of what almost looked like coal. It was pitch black and no larger than the fingernail on Arwin’ pinky.

Arwin’s skin prickled.

Esmerelda’s brow furrowed. “What—”

The world flashed white. A wave of magical energy slammed into Arwin, picking him off his feet and launching him across the Armory. He slammed into the wall with a loud crash, dropping to the ground with a pained wheeze.

His instincts took over. Arwin rolled over and threw himself back to his feet, staggering as he rose, the world still spinning around him. The others had been thrown in every odd direction and laid all across the room, stunned.

Esmerelda’s cauldron had cracked down the middle. There was no trace of the acid that had been within it, but a thick cloud of pitch-black smoke twisted in the air where it had been.

Everyone else slowly rose back to their feet, staring in disbelief as the smoke slowly dissipated.

There were several long seconds of silence.

“What the fuck was that?” Wallace asked.

“It seems that I must apologize,” Esmerelda said, wiping some soot from her face and blinking heavily. “It seems that I was dead wrong. That magic… it was immense. My power should have suppressed it entirely. I’ve contained Legendary items with this spell without so much as a hitch. There’s only one thing that could have generated so much force with such a tiny chunk.”

“A piece of a Leyline,” Arwin said grimly.

“I’m afraid so,” Esmerelda agreed. And, for once, there was no sarcasm in her voice.

There was only dread.