“Well, here I am,” Mortisflor said, seated upon the disc that served as her throne in a short robe of silky red material which left little to the imagination. “Whatever you want, I suggest you make it quick. Had I not given you my word that I would grant you an audience, you would already be dead or banished from my city.”

“Then I won’t waste your time,” Atasimon said. “Where and how did Meztraxia obtain the ability to negate magic?”

“I don’t know the exact details, as I wasn’t there when it happened. But from what he told me and what I could confirm on my own, he drew it forth from a magical device of some kind that he discovered in the King’s River. It had been sapping the life from my city for some time before he rooted it out for me.”

“Where is this device now?”

“Destroyed, quite thoroughly I might add. I take a dim view to such tampering.”

“Is that all you have to offer? Without the device, your story is of little use to me.”

“While I may no longer have it, I do know where it came from and who made it. It was all the work of a wizard by the name of Erstanos. He has been trying to bring down my city for some time now from his tower near the Great Rift. If anyone knows about that device, it’s him.”

Mortisflor got up and walked towards the exit, only turning back for a few last words. “While you’re there, kill him for me, would you?”

Mortisflor’s chamber faded away to red, and Derzina appeared before the Great Rift.

“That went surprisingly well,” Derzina said, “given what Mortisflor is like.”

“Indeed,” Atasimon said. “Though I don’t relish the prospect of dealing with a wizard, he may very well prove to be worse than Mortisflor. At least her madness was manageable.”

“How would you suggest we go about it then? I know nothing of wizards.”

“I recommend that you treat him with as much courtesy as you can manage, wizards tend to be both mercurial and prickly in my experience. Much as I’d prefer to kill him and be done with it, I have little faith in our ability to discern anything about his plans or how he created the device in question without questioning him.”

“You want me to talk to him?” Derzina asked. “Shouldn’t you handle that, given how important this is?”

“I don’t know how much good it would do, you’re as likely to get things right as I am. I would much rather maintain my focus in case he decides he’d prefer to destroy us than hear our plea.”

“Is that likely to happen?” It would make for quite an unfortunate end to their journey if they were to die here when they were so close to finding the answers they’d come all this way for.

“I hope not, though it’s impossible to say without knowing the wizard himself. The ones I knew more than a century ago were quick to take offense, and I imagine the current state of the world has done little to improve their temperament.”

“I fear you likely have the right of it,” Derzina said. “After seeing a god brought so low by the corruption the demons brought to this world, it seems a miracle that any semblance of true civilisation still remains within this realm.”

Seeing little reason to delay further, Derzina searched the vicinity of the Great Rift. Try as she might, she could find nothing that so much as hinted of a tower or any worked stone at all. It was only when Atasimon sensed faint amount of peculiar magic emanating from a rock formation that Derzina located the tower nestled within it.

She squeezed through the narrow passage and beheld the structure of pale crystal. Tapering sharply at the top, it resembled a great spearhead pointed toward the sky. Curiously, unlike the colourful crystals Derzina encountered on her way here, the enormous crystal that made up the tower was without pigment. Its only hue came from taking on those of its surroundings.

“Am I supposed to knock?” Derzina asked within her mind. There was no door or any other means of egress to be seen.

“I doubt he’ll be able to hear you, but the mere act of touching it may serve to alert him. Though before you do anything allow me to offer what little protection I can.”

Shadows wrapped around Derzina’s right hand, and she used the same to rap lightly on the tower’s hard exterior. Her knocking produced little in the way of sound and, bereft of any indication that the wizard had noticed her, she tried again to equally poor results.

“Do you think he might be away?” Derzina asked.

“Though possible, I think it rather unlikely. Wizards tend to keep to themselves, and I imagine he would have little desire to venture out in this accursed land. I know I would much rather be sitting in a tower right now, given the option.”

Derzina was considering how else they might be able to rouse the master from his home, when a narrow slot opened in the tower. An old man peered out at her, eyes narrowing as if he was struggling to see her across the short distance separating them.

“Hello?” Derzina called, leaning forward.

“What?” the old man demanded, veins standing out on his forehead through his dark parchment skin.

As she opened her mouth to repeat the greeting, he cut her off with another question. “Who are you then?”

“My name is Derzina, I’ve come to ask about a device of your creation, capable of negating magic.”

“You’re a human, are you?”

“That’s right.”

“Don’t see many of your sort around these parts. I don’t think I’ve spoken with a human in decades.”

“That’s understandable, this- “

“’Course,” the old man said, “it’s not as if I wanted to. Bunch of half-wits with the imaginations of rocks if you ask me.”

“I’m looking for Erstanos; are you him?” Derzina asked, pressing on in spite of the old man’s ramblings and interruptions.

“Who wants to know?” he demanded, brows knitting together in confusion.

Derzina wondered if old age had robbed him of his wits, but she heeded Atasimon’s warning and proceeded with caution. “As I said- “

“Oh, I’ve made many things over the years. You’ll have to be more specific.”

“It was a device capable of nullifying even the power of a god. I was told it was placed in the King’s River before being found by the Demon Lord Meztraxia.”

“Where did you hear such a thing?” he asked.

“From Mortisflor.”

“That demented old beast? Are you one of hers?”

“No, I’ve only recently become acquainted with her,” Derzina said, disgusted at the very thought that someone would think her a servant of the mad god. “And that was purely for the sake of my search, I must know how Meztraxia acquired this power and what can be done to defeat him.”

With a grunt, the old man rubbed his brow. “For what reason do you wish for his destruction with such fervour? You must harbour a great deal of resentment toward him to have come so far and dealt with an entity as foul as Mortisflor.”

Derzina knew from his tone that he was just being polite, but even that much recognition was reassuring. Too long had she been the company of those who cared not in the slightest for the tragedy she sought to avenge.

“You have the right of it, sir. Meztraxia destroyed my city and slew my god. If he is not stopped, I fear he shall do the same to the last of my people’s havens.”

Heat spread through her chest as righteous fury built within her. Had Meztraxia presented himself at that moment, she doubted she could have restrained herself from trying to end the Demon Lord who had caused her, and her people, so much suffering.

“Then you act for the sake of averting further destruction? Admirable enough, assuming what you say is true. “

“I swear on the memory of Ortesia, who I pledged to serve, that what I have told you is without falsehood.”

He narrowed his eyes at her, looking her over for the first time. “You seem sincere enough. Very well, I shall render unto you what assistance I can. I did indeed create the device you speak of, but it does not negate magic; it absorbs it. Forged from a combination of cunning artifice and the raw energy of creation, I named it the Heart of Imistala, after our founder. If he possesses the same power, it because he has absorbed the heart’s essence.”

“For what purpose did you create such a thing?”

“I cannot say. Though I wish to help you, there are some secrets that are mine alone to bear.”

“I see,” Derzina said, trying to keep the disappointment out of her voice. For all that he claimed to support her cause, the wizard seemed to be offering little of value. “Then is there any assistance you can provide against this blight upon the world? Can the heart be destroyed?”

“Destroyed? I think that rather unlikely, barring some method of cutting it off from the world entirely. You’d best look elsewhere if that is what you seek. For what it’s worth, I would much rather you leave what remains of the heart intact; it took quite a lot of time and effort to create.”

Derzina took a deep breath, struggling to remain patient in the face of someone who obviously cared little about the outside world. And why would he? Humanity being wiped out wouldn’t change much for him out here, hidden away in his tower.

“If you don’t want to destroy it, then is there some way to disable it? Meztraxia simply cannot be allowed to wield such power.”

“I suppose demons are the not the most stable creatures, it likely would be prudent that the heart was not left in his hands overlong. Unfortunately, it also cannot be disabled; it possesses far too much energy for that.”

“Is that it then?” Derzina asked, struggling to keep from shouting. “Is my only course to accept the eventual doom he will bring upon my people?”

“There may be a way to separate the Demon Lord from the heart,” the old man said, stroking his chin. “To what extent are you willing to go to see this thing done?”

“I will do whatever it takes,” Derzina said, covering her heart with her fist.

Wrinkles shifting, the old man smiled ever so slightly. “So long as that resolve remains true, then Meztraxia shall be deprived of his pilfered power before he has a chance to do further harm to the world.”

Derzina’s frustration evaporated, it seemed the wizard finally had something to offer. It would have saved her a considerable amount of disquiet if he’d simply led with that, but she was happy to overlook it.

“What must I do?” she asked, steeling herself for whatever he might propose.

“I created the heart to bond with any sources of magic it came into contact with, though that didn’t quite work out as far as the river was concerned. It did, however, work quite splendidly with Meztraxia.”

He let out a short bark of laughter. “I was largely unconcerned with that result until you arrived at my door and informed me of the damage my creation had caused through its new owner. But I digress, all you require is someone a subtle touch and a great deal of expertise with magic. And, of course, the willingness to get close enough to interact with the heart’s bond directly.”

“Where could we find such a figure?” Derzina asked. “Meztraxia was able to defeat gods, so I doubt any of those would fit the bill. Except maybe for Darmis.”

The old man blinked. “Where did you hear that name?”

“From a servant named Venestamino, he was the one who pointed us in the direction of the Great Rift in the first place.”

“That explains much. While Darmis would certainly be a suitable candidate, I fear we haven’t the slightest chance of persuading him to aid us. No, my thoughts were of a rather different being; a colleague of mine, by the name of Araveena.”

“Another wizard? Would they truly be willing to risk themselves to combat Meztraxia? I imagine getting close enough to him to remove the heart will be quite dangerous.”

“Likely it will be, but Araveena has always had a soft spot for humans; she was one of the lead proponents of the plan to destroy the demon’s world after all.”

Derzina was surprised enough that Erstanos had been willing to aid her to this extent, it seemed almost too good to be true that there was another wizard out there willing to do so much more. Clearly the merging of the worlds had done little to tarnish the hearts of wizards, perhaps it had even improved them.

“Wonderful, then I would be delighted to meet her. Where does she reside?”

“Near a city to the south-east, if you will but allow me a few moments I shall provide you with a map.”

“Of course,” Derzina said, “I’m happy to wait.”

The slot closed, hiding the old man from view.

“This is going far better than I could have hoped,” Derzina said, within her mind.

“He has been surprisingly helpful, though I still don’t trust him.”

“Why not?” Derzina asked. “I know he’s not too concerned about our plight, but he’s clearly willing to help, isn’t that enough?”

“It speaks in his favour, but I cannot forget that the last time I trusted a wizard it resulted in this ruin of a world. I suggest you keep that in mind.”

“I will, though I doubt we have anything to concern ourselves with in that regard. I’d say it’s best that we focus on the task at hand.”

“You’re right,” Atasimon said, sounding chastised, “I should be thinking of what’s important. I fear watching events unfold as a mere spectator like this leads me to overanalyse things.”

The tower opened up again, and the old man thrust a piece of dark red parchment through the narrow gap. Derzina took it and saw there were only two locations marked, with a little symbol at the top to indicate north. Erstanos was obvious enough, but she didn’t recognise the name atop the other mark.

“What is Brtet?” Derzina asked.

“One of your human cities; you’ll find her tower on the outskirts.”

“Would it be possible to get more detailed directions? I wouldn’t want to miss it.”

“You’ve got eyes, don’t you?” the old man asked scornfully. “If you get anywhere close, you’ll spot it.”

Crystal shifted, concealing the wizard from view and cutting off further conversation. Taking the hint and satisfied with all she was given, Derzina took her leave.