Chương 148: AF Chapter 147 – Diagrams and Discourse

"I have a question of the esteemed elders, now that you have seen fit to examine my Sword and address your own reservations about my qualifications," Princess Kristie began, holding up the blue-and-white Staff she lifted out of her Masspack for them all to look at.

"An advanced Staff of Clarity!" one of the elders, with bright golden rune-tats on the left side of his face called out immediately in recognition.

"You have one that is intact?!" he cried out in delight.

"My question is this," Kris went on without answering the obvious question.

"Who is responsible for the design of this device? I would know the name of the Smith and Artificer who wrought such a marvel!" I was watching carefully, and saw several mouths open to answer her, old and strong smiths who honored their elders… And slowly, almost in confusion, she watched their hard purple-gray brows furrow in consternation, and there was no response to her question.

"Elders?" Princess Kristi reported.

"Elder Vroekor?" she pointed out the gold-tatted Elder specifically.

"Surely you know your own history well enough to credit who makes such an object so integral to the higher tests of character in your society?" He was staring right at her, rather inflexible face still managing to frown sternly at her.

"I… cannot remember the one who designed the improved Staff of the Mind," he admitted after a moment. He slowly looked around, and the lugians around him all looked back, then shook their own heads in confusion.

"I see. Am I to deduce from your confusion that this level of Staff did not exist on your homeworld?" she went on calmly.

"I… that is correct!" Elder Vroekor responded.

"I was of the circle that designed the tests and helped forge the rewards for passing them! My associates and I are well aware of the work that needs to be done on the rewards of the Arm, Mind, and Heart!" he declared firmly, his words supported by fully two-thirds of the elders calling out support and indicating they also knew the specifics. Kris just snapped her fingers. I put up the Holo of the internal workings of the Staff above her, and the calls and rumbled words were cut off like a knife.

I displayed the runic structures from the base all the way up the mace-like tip with its alternating bases of alloys, the Runic structure and the resonating effect that the layers of crystalline metals had upon the magic that went through them. The Makers in the room were silent as they stared hungrily at the display, unable to hide their surprise and consternation at such a thing existing in an item that was such an emblem of their people.

"This is a Bludgeon Cleaving Runic Formation, a unique and powerful design that matches nothing I am familiar with. In particular, it is meant to work with this resonating alloy pattern, and thus be unique and restricted to bludgeoning magical energy moving through the Staff, and nothing else. Attempting to replicate this effect to a proper Polemace or other true Weapon would be useless.

"So, very powerful, very valuable, and very useful only for one very limited application… an Implement that shoots bludgeon-style force magic." She surveyed all of the staring elders.

"By your expressions, am I given to understand that you had no knowledge of this Rune structure, nor the resonant effects of the layered alloys?" The most skilled and learned members of lugian society looked at one another blankly, including King Kresovus himself, unable to believe that NONE of them knew what their own Artifice could do!

"I see." If she sounded a little disappointed in them, well, she was an Imperial, and really good at manipulating people, especially proud people who knew duty. The lugian elders all flushed slightly under her gaze.

"Ryin, can you work up a suitable Artificing Template for them all to see and study as they might like, to learn this particular Formation?"

"If it pleases Your Highness, I should like to do more." All eyes snapped over to me in sudden interest as I rose to face them, obviously the source of this marvelous illusion that was the absolute best visual representation of an Artificing Rune Formation that they had ever beheld.

"If the elders will focus their attention on the elements of the Cleaving Formation there, and the resonant patterns there…" I indicated, blowing the details of them up into massive close-range fineness, and the elders instinctively leaned forward for closer looks. An elder with dark purple rune-tats spoke up first, "Those are Elemental Runes in shaerzdig placement there!" he called out. I made the indicated Runes glow, and they all saw that they were filtration and attunement Runes.

In return, the physical structure of the surrounding alloys was removed and replaced by interfaces and connections… to which I began to add things. The elders choked up as multiple Rune Formations were etched in the circled spaces of shaerzdig, just turned a degree away, linked and connected, but very, very different. The connections between the harmonic layers spun and shifted to accommodate the change in energies as I added each one.

Different metals and alloys to the connection points, different layers and flow patterns. The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. All at least partially recognizable.

"A multi-Element modular Cleaving Rune Formation?!" King Kresovus roared out in disbelief, and the whole meeting erupted in calls of how impossible it was.

"Silence." It was a Warlord's and Minstrel's Voice, and it cut the hubbub like a knife. Mouths clamped shut in spite of themselves, the lugian elders startled to find themselves obeying a voice like that so readily… and at the way that Kris' voice had an edge of its own.

"Your answer is incorrect, King Kresovus. Or at least, it is not correct, yet." I indicated the eightfold Master Runic Pattern, gleaming and whole, each separate iteration of it full and complete on its own, spinning and shifting to bring each into master alignment.

"That is the correction I came to inquire of the Elders here.

"I have come to ask them if they would be willing to fail, and fail, and fail again, to find these." The harmonic contact points, the strips of metal and crystal that had to exist there, glowed in series as the Holographic Staff of Clarity spun through them, as did the additional Rune Structures.

"I apologize if I seem to have startled you," I went on, as the elders all calmed down, but now their gazes were just as thoughtful and intense as they had been excited.

"One, I do not know a single Element Cleaving Formation beyond this one, and I have been told this one is likely very specifically modified and limited to Bludgeon so as to accommodate the Crushing Blow Runic Structure also built into the Staff." I backed the detailed view out, and the familiar Crushing Blow Runes glowed into visibility about the central Formation.

"Two, I do not know the combination of crystal and metal resonances that would be used to produce the modular flows for each of the other Elements.

"This Staff of Clarity clearly shows the way for all of these things to be applied. Equally clearly, it does not give us the slightest real method of managing to attain any but what is likely the simplest and most basic Element of magic.

"If one were optimistic, one might see this as a guidepost and the unlocking of a door through which we might step further along on our understanding of magic.

"If one were a skeptic, one might see it as a test of our ability by something greater… whatever force or individual actually designed such a revolutionary methodology that might advance our own magical understanding and artificing.

"If one were a pessimist, one might say that it a slap in the face, right in front of our eyes, not discovered despite being right there… or perhaps concealed from us as not being worthy of the true secrets of even the least aspects of this more advanced system." I let them ruminate over that as they studied the Formation, processing it, realizing it was not complete, not true… but that it could be.

"Lady Ryin," King Kresovus rumbled for them, knowing more than they, and so something of what was to come, "why do you have EIGHT potential paths to follow, instead of the Elemental Seven?"

"Because the Fourth Element of Force, or the Fifth Elemental Energy, however you care to see it, is Sound, also called… Thunder." I spun up the thirteen Shards around my hand, each of them chiming a different Note, ascending up the scale, the air rippling and warbling around them visibly, clearly leashing and controlling a pure energy they were both familiar with and not.

Who among them had not felt thunder breaking upon them, the force of a ringing hammer smashing against ears and skin, knowing the power of a great noise to ripple the muscle and pound at the blood? But the fact there was an Eighth energy solidified my pedigree as an advanced spellcaster who knew more advanced magic than they did instantly, simple and basic and yet there it was, right in front of them all this time, never tapped. Princess Kristie stepped forward, her pale violet eyes flashing deadly serious.

"This is the task we set before you, Elders. One, we wish to take the Bludgeon Cleaving Rune Formation revealed here and broaden it once again to include Implements. We may have a way forward there with the discovery of a metal called darksteel." They repeated the word in wonder and expectation, clearly salivating for a display of this wondrous material.

"Second, we need to find the proper Rune Formations for ALL of the Elements, and the Alchemical resonances for the materials that work with each of them.

"Third, we need to unify that knowledge into the Master Rune Formation that Sage Ryin has shown you, breaking through ALL of the barriers that have been placed in front of us.

"To that purpose, I ask you this: how many Elemental Cleaving Weapons do you have that yet remain, and can we add their Formations to the existing knowledge base for all of our peoples?"

"The Explorer Weapons!" Sage Vroekor spoke up promptly and earnestly.

"There should be examples of Bludgeon, Slashing, and Piercing Cleaving Rune Formations among them! There are still examples of them left in the old supplies, although none dare employ them, and they seem frail and damaged!" Kris raised her fist and clenched it.

"Samples are all we need, Elder!" she promised firmly. She reached over and lifted up the broken Silifi of Crimson Night, raising it up.

"A very, very specific question. Do any of the Rubies to this Weapon still exist among you? Because Lightning Cleaving was among its options!"