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Rise of the Archon: Book 3, Chapter 1

Traveling with new people was always illuminating, in my experience. It revealed the distinctions that might arise from personalities, training, and overall goals.

My time with Leon, Sophia, and the others had shown our inexperience, soft upbringings, and almost meandering destination. Only Leon had any real training for the road, but even he relied heavily upon the luxuries one might expect of a noble.

What's more, we never moved with anything resembling urgency. Sure, we had a d...

Rise of the Archon: Book 2, Chapter 87

Flynn waited until the guards straightened again, dismissed by some unspoken command, before he lowered the platform. I expected him to say something, but he walked away the instant his boots touched the grass without so much as a glance in my direction. After a brief pause, I followed.

I caught up to the light mage in seconds, placing a hand on his shoulder and pulling him with a firm, but not rough, tug. Flynn half-turned to face me, one eyebrow raised.

"Can I help you, little b...

Rise of the Archon: Chapter 86

I didn't move at first. The drake seemed dead, but I had seen it regenerate from grievous wounds already. No sense in assuming anything.

Minutes passed as I waited for any flicker of wood mana or twitch of a muscle. I kept mana flowing through my body, purposefully ignoring my ever-draining core as I watched the drake for even a hint of life. If it were still alive, I'd need to retreat once more and try again the following morning. I had given myself a few days of leeway for th...

Rise of the Archon: Book 2, Chapter 85

I stabbed my spear into the dirt, then straightened up and turned to examine my surroundings.

The clearing was wide and oval-shaped, with an opening on one side where the trees gave way to grassy fields. I had found it several days earlier and decided it was an ideal place for my battle against the drake.

For a moment, I wondered why no trees had grown within the clearing. I could sense the mana under my boots wasn't quite the same as in the rest of the forest, and I suspected thi...

Rise of the Archon: Book 2, Chapter 84

I allowed myself three days to rest and recover. It strained every ounce of patience I had, but I knew it was the wisest course of action. My mana was too unstable for any precision work, and I was still concerned about some hidden strain or injury to my body.

That didn't mean I was idle, of course. I spent hours every day meditating to reduce the twisting mass in my core. When I wasn't focused inward, I was going over my notes, running through the details of my ritual, and searching fo...

Rise of the Archon: Chapter 83

Flynn stood near what had once been the bar, leaning against it with both hands tucked into his pockets. He wore a curious expression and seemed casual, but I could see the focus shining in his eyes and the tension in his stance. That, coupled with the mana twisting and shifting under his flesh, told me the truth.

I was about to respond when I noticed the rest of my surroundings.

The inn had been relatively intact the last time I saw it. Damaged and uninhabitable for anyone civili...

Rise of the Archon: Chapter 82

What is magic?

I had read countless treatises and texts on the subject, covering theories and philosophical musings, academic hypotheses, and observations on the variance between one mage to another. Some called magic the soul made manifest. Others claimed it was the world's will as reflected through a living person, who acted as the conduit.

All of those had always felt needlessly complicated and self-aggrandizing. Magic wasn't, ironically enough, some mystical thing. It was mana...

Rise of the Archon: Chapter 81

I took a final look around the half-destroyed inn, which had become my unofficial home since arriving in the border town. It had taken me days to clear out the debris, find an intact spot on the floor, and carefully prepare it for my needs, and days more to finish my work. Finally, I was ready to begin.

A massive circle sat in the center of the floor. I had carefully drawn it using charcoal from the guard's campfires, then painstakingly carved it out with my knife. That alone would have...

Rise of the Archon: Chapter 80

I made it back to town after about an hour. There were quicker paths back, but I made sure to take a winding, roundabout route to make sure the drake couldn't follow. No sense in giving it that opportunity. At least, not until I was ready to confront it again.

Flynn and his guards had already set up camp in the town ruins. I passed through a hasty checkpoint made of piled-up stone and wood, noting the handful of tents and the campfires scattered about as I walked towards the light mana ...

Rise of the Archon: Chapter 79

It took us two days to reach the border town. Flynn insisted we travel together despite my best efforts to go ahead and seemed to relish the chance to...well, he called it 'getting to know one another,' but it felt more like prying.

The damned noble would walk beside me, asking all manner of questions. These ranged from what type of magic I had studied since we last met to where I had gone, what place was my favorite, and why I enjoyed particular destinations. He seemed to reve...

Rise of the Archon: Book 2, Chapter 78

I bowed my head to Flynn. "Apologies for my late arrival. As you may imagine, traveling halfway across Ferris takes quite some time on foot."

"On foot?" Flynn echoed, feigning shock before shaking his head, "Torturous, I'm sure. But please, don't feel the need to apologize. I typically spend my days awaiting letters from near-strangers requesting I meet them in the middle of..."

Flynn trailed off, glancing around us before continuing, "This lovely bit of countryside."

Rise of the Archon: Book 2, Chapter 77

I could not say how long I stood there, staring at nothing. A complicated mess of emotions ran through me, most of which I could not name. The strongest of these was...not guilt or regret but something close to that.

These bandits were not good people. They had hurt, likely even killed innocents, and shown no hint of remorse in the process. They were not here hiding, ruminating on their mistakes, or fleeing. I had no doubt that they would go on to harm more if left to their own affairs....

Rise of the Archon- Book 2, Chapter 76

I picked my way through the dozen or so bodies, trying to find one among the wounded who was lucid enough to answer a few questions. It took me a minute, but I eventually settled on a young man with a slowly spreading bloodstain on his abdomen. He had dirty hands pressed against the wound, his face showing fear and pain in equal measure, and his breathing came ragged.

"Nasty wound," I said, kneeling beside the young man. His eyes flicked towards me, and I saw the contempt and blame with...

Rise of the Archon: Book 2, Chapter 75

I should just walk away.

The refrain echoed in my mind for what felt like the hundredth time, whispering its tempting offer into my ears. I knew I should listen to that little, selfish voice, but I could not help myself.

I had first noticed the group about a half-hour earlier. They appeared like a band of travelers setting up camp for the evening beside a quiet, dirt and gravel road. Strange, considering there were several hours left until sunset, but not unwelcome. Weeks of tra...

Rise of the Archon: Book 2, Chapter 74

I spent several hours painstakingly creating daggers while attempting to bind my "intent" into them. It was a 'test' rather than anything practical, a way to gauge how daunting the task might prove.

In a word? Extraordinarily.

Creating a permanent mana-based construct was already tricky enough. Binding an enchantment to an object was even more so, at least to the point where it would be stable and reliable. Doing both at once? It was like trying to sing an aria while juggling a do...

Rise of the Archon: Book 2, Chapter 73

I found Wallace standing in his workshop. It was a small room built into the back of his home, and I opted to remain at the doorway rather than crowd the already cramped space.

Fortunatus padded up beside me, and I sensed his curiosity through our bond. That and something else. His aura felt stronger. Denser, maybe. Had he grown more powerful these past few months, or was I growing more aware of it as our tether grew more stable? Questions for later.

Wallace glanced over his shoul...

Rise of the Archon- Book 2, Chapter 72

We descended the staircase in silence, which was not unwelcome. After all, it allowed me to extend my senses in all directions as I worked to parse out the magic that lay around us.

I could sense mind-boggling quantities of mana flowing underneath us. It felt like a chaotic miasma of varying elements drawn under some unseen current. I had detected that attractive force already, but this was at a magnitude far beyond the one present within the town.

Soon, we reached the bottom of t...

Rise of the Archon: Book 2, Chapter 71

My blood froze. I could feel Keeper Yorish's eyes spearing me in place and wondered if he would strike me down. Could I gather enough mana to mount a defense in time? His mana signature felt unchanged, but that meant nothing. If I could hide my spellcasting thanks to Wallace's looping technique, there was no reason someone of Yorish's skill could not do the same.

The grim truth was there was no point. If Yorish decided to kill me, I would die. So, my only choice was to talk, hoping he w...

Rise of the Archon: Book 2, Chapter 70

The room was silent. I expected more of a reaction, but the Speakers and Keeper kept their emotions mostly hidden. However, a few let hints slip past their masks of apathy.

One, a woman with graying hair and dark skin, leaned forward in her seat with a faint smile on her lips. Another, a man in his forties, regarded me with raised eyebrows, and the Speaker sitting beside him was rubbing her chin with one hand.

The performance had been a carefully weighed risk between theatricality...

Rise of the Archon- Book 2, Chapter 69

My idea was not wholly unique. I had read about it once, but it was a rare talent most regarded as pointless to learn. What's more, mastering it to the point where I could use it in a demonstration seemed like something that would take months.

I had three weeks.

Despite that daunting prospect, I found myself more driven and focused than I had felt in months. A part of that stemmed from simple envy and fear. Wallace had surpassed me with apparent ease, and it needled my pride. And ...

Rise of the Archon- Book 2, Chapter 68

Mana slid through my channels in smooth, flowing currents. I focused, adjusting their movements just a hair. Strengthening magic did not work equally well on every part of the body, and learning those intricacies would only improve efficiency. Every little bit mattered, as I had come to understand.

When I felt ready, I took a deep breath. Then, I moved.

The movement was as simple as pressing one foot to the ground and adjusting those flowing currents. I felt them ripple and surge ...

Rise of the Archon- Chapter 67

I had my arms behind my back, dressed in the thick robes of an Initiate. The Speakers of the Order sat before me, all half-turned to face the Keeper. I knew what he would say, but poor manners would do little to help.

"I'm sorry, young man, but we cannot grant you the rank of Disciple," the Keeper said. His eyes were sympathetic, and his smile placating. All it did was irritate me further.

"I understand, honored Keeper," I replied, bowing my head to hide the scowl that came to my ...

Rise of the Archon- Book 2, Chapter 66

I did not like to toot my metaphorical horn, but I was abnormally skilled in self-augmentation. My core and channels were large and durable enough to support those spells far longer than most. Hours of practice had made my Arcane Body spell near-instinctive, and a combination of Wallace's looping technique, my modified mana breathing, and my knowledge of healing magic and human anatomy had combined into something bordering on impressive.

However, magic was no substitute for a good night...

Rise of the Archon- Book 2, Chapter 65

Vidarr stood at the top of the hill, overlooking the rest of the 'town' or whatever one might call it. As we approached, he turned to face us.

"Tell me, do either of you begrudge a hard day's work?"

"No," I said, and Wallace echoed my sentiment after a second's pause.

"Excellent," Vidarr smiled, pointing down towards one building, a low, rectangular house with a crimson-tiled roof, "Head there and tell the man living within that you seek lodging. If he makes a fuss, kindly r...

Rise of the Archon- Book 2, Chapter 64

The last few months were a failure in almost every regard. I had lost my notes and, with it, months of research and preparation. My schematics and long-term plans were gone. All of that hard work had gone up in smoke. The waste of it rankled me, though it was not a catastrophic setback. I had committed much of it to memory and planned to rewrite as much as possible when I had the chance.

Thankfully, the most critical things remained fixed in my mind. A small blessing, for once.

Ma...

Rise of the Archon: Book 2, Chapter 63

We did not stop running until dawn. Wallace had wanted to rest earlier, as did I, but we both understood it was too great a risk. The more distance we put between us and Aranth, the better.

As the sun crept over the horizon, we found a hollow in the grassy plains where we could sit and avoid notice from the road. It was not much as far as cover went, barely more than a minor inconvenience, but neither of us had the energy to demand something better.

Wallace rounded on me like a wi...

Rise of the Archon- Book 2, Chapter 62

I had to grant one thing to the four would-be assassins. They were exceptionally quiet, so much so that I would have missed them if I did not have a partner as a watchdog. Or rather, a watch cat.

That phrase did not roll off the tongue quite as well, but I suspected Fortunatus would prefer it regardless.

The cat in question sat on the rooftop, and a strange thing happened. I could 'see' in a way through his eyes, almost like a half-remembered dream. And through his e...

Rise of the Archon- Book 2, Chapter 61

I reached the city outskirts just after sunset. The guards standing watch near the gates spared me a glance but did not seem overly concerned with a late arrival. Then again, I was a slim, superficially unarmed teenager wearing simple traveler's clothes and carrying only a backpack. If I raised suspicions, no one could ever enter Aranth without drawing suspicion again.

The streets were quiet, with only a handful of people walking this way as they made their way home...

Rise of the Archon, Book 2, Chapter 60

I tilted my new spear this way and that, catching the candle's light along the edge. Johann had done good work, remounting the dagger's blade at the end of a crossguard and blending the two until they were indistinguishable. The haft was blackened wood with a few strips of leather wrapped around it to provide a better grip, and he had noted that I could unscrew the entire thing into three smaller pieces for easier storage.

However, I could already see the flaws. The balance was o...

Rise of the Archon- Book 2, Chapter 59

Hours vanished as I threw my full attention into repairing my injury. Past healings had done the lion's share of the work, but I could still sense lingering damage beneath the surface. I had to be careful, as my body was still far too low on nutrients to cope with a protracted session, but there was not much choice.

Ideally, I would remain here for weeks, even months, as I slowly recovered. It was the wise, careful choice, one that almost guaranteed my safety and one I might<...