Sanvi nodded. “When one plumbs the depths of the arcane, you will discover hints and traces of the spells of old. They cannot be cast, as they were, due to Mystra’s Ban, but that does not mean that the spellwork is useless. There are already magics that allow one to do things outside the normal realm of spellcasting, after all. Ritual magics, sacrifices, wild magic, and other such things can produce effects that no spell can truly replicate, but the Ban has not stopped them from functioning.”

“That’s right!” Siora nodded. “The ritual that Oriel showed us in Geburatiel, which allowed us to transfer some of the properties from other items and add them to ones we already owned was not typical spellwork. I had thought it some demonic secret of the deepest Abyssal planes, but if it was actually building off magic that existed before the Ban, that makes much more sense.”

Sanvi smiled. “It is likely that the answer is both. The demons remember the time before the Ban, just as the celestials do. Many of both kinds were still alive back then. So, the idea that they might have found ways to slip around the Ban, and made those available to their mortal followers, is certainly not outside the question.

“The process of creating a spell which can slip past the Ban, rather than some ornate ritual that requires many casters, a dedicated circle, and perhaps even sacrifices, is not a simple one. For one thing, one must be well-versed in Spellcasting, which will give you the opportunity to study and try to use those spells. However, you must develop the spell yourself, as no guides exist, or, if they do, they are single-use items which crumble when another mage learns the spell. And developing these spells requires the wealth of nations.

“Unless, of course, you live in the higher planes, where resources are different, and more sources of ancient knowledge can be found. The process is still extremely expensive, enough to the point where few mages, even amongst the celestials ever attempt to learn these spells. However, I’ve lived a long time, and spent my money so that I had as few possessions as possible for my father to strip from me, if he ever grew displeased. Now that I am free, I still have my spells, even without the threat he posed.”

I nodded in understanding. Wanting to find something you could pour your efforts into, without the threat of them being taken away by an unfeeling master, was a feeling that I knew well, in my old life. Of course, how useful those spells were all depended on what they were, and what they could do.

“And what spells did you learn?”

“The first I learned was a heightened version of the Mage Armor spell which I am sure you are all well familiar with. Casting the spell takes a minute, compared to the normal cast time, but it lasts for twenty-four hours, and provides five times the protective bonus. Otherwise, it is the same as the normal spell.”

“An impressive tool to have, for certain,” Vestele nodded. “I can think of many who would love to have such protections to hand. Even some warriors, when they get to the point where armor slows them more than it aids them, would be interested in it.”

“The second spell I developed was another defensive magic, but this one more active than the first. It is called ‘Epic Counterspell’, and should I ready myself ahead of time, I can interrupt their spellcasting, as one would with a Dispel or Greater Dispel magic spell. However, for this spell, one would have to be a caster greater than level 30 to even have a prayer of overcoming my counterspell.”

I whistled appreciatively. “Thirtieth level casters are not in great supply, even on the outer planes, I believe. I am blessed to have two friends who are in that rare company. If your spell is such that one would needs be much stronger to be sure of casting against you when you are ready, then that is truly admirable.”

Sanvi smiled. “It has proven useful in the past, though I had to be certain that those who saw it did not live to spread the tale, lest I lose my advantage over unsuspecting rivals. Which, by chance, leads to the third spell I reconstructed. The Greater Ruin spell is one of the few epic spells known to more than a handful of mages in the celestial planes, because it is, in essence, a more powerful version of the Disintegrate spell. I, however, modified it so that it would no longer drain my experience each time it was cast. This increases the difficulty and strain on me, but it is worth it, in my opinion.”

Fartooth laughed at that. “Oh, so that is how you kept them from talking, hmm? Dust isn’t known for being all that talkative, all right! Hah!”

“Indeed. However, that was just a warmup for my magnum opus, my greatest work. I had actually just completed it when my father hauled us away from Geburatiel to start searching for you. Unlike my version of Greater Ruin, which is just a miner modification to the spellwork, this is a spell that I created from scratch, by my own research.

“I call it Soulforge, for that is what it does. It requires the aid of two casters capable of using at least eighth-level spells, but in an instant, the spell allows me to transform an individual permanently into an intelligent magic item, trapping their consciousness in that state of neither life nor death, and forcing them down into the item’s form. The item gains powers as normal for intelligent items, but if it is a weapon or suit of armor then it only has the bare minimum enchantment that any magic item of the sort has, but that can be enhanced as normal through enchantment.”

That left us all stunned for a moment. “Wait,” I finally said. “Wait just one moment. You created a spell that can trap a person in the form of an intelligent item? That’s… well, that’s huge. Especially since they would not be dead, so spells to contact or resurrect the dead would not work on them. Even a sending spell would fail, since no doubt they would be too far changed to count as the same being. That is, well, simply incredible!”

“That’s putting too low a bar on it, Mel,” Siora said, “Even if she can’t choose what powers the item has… You can’t can you?” She asked, looking at the former archon. When Sanvi shook her head, she turned back to me, “All right, even with the powers being random, or, more likely, determined by the nature of the creature locked up as the item, that is still insane! That’s the kind of thing that makes for artifacts, or truly unique items, given enough time and further enhancement.”

“It also has a weakness, however,” Vestele pointed out. “Since the item, if it is a weapon or armor, is only the least magical version it can be, the individuals who the weapon would be useful for are not likely to be strong enough, mentally, to overcome the spirit trapped in the blade should they work at cross purposes. And strengthening the enchantments on the blade would only strengthen the spirit’s will.”

Sanvi nodded grimly. “Yes, but there was no way around such an event without making the resulting spell too difficult for even I to cast, and there would be no point to the research. Even now, I would say that the spell would fail one time in four, if I did not use anything other than the boosts I already have thanks to my items and skill. Such is the way of things, when one tries to circumvent the Ban and bring ancient magics back into the light.”

“No,” I shook my head, firmly. “This much on its own is a boon to our efforts. And it would allow us to potentially take a piece or two off the field where they might otherwise be put back in play immediately, using magic. That kind of boon is not something to be taken lightly. And, no doubt, there will be plenty of parties who would be interesting in possessing a dagger with the soul of a celestial blademaster trapped inside.”

“You mean to use it against my father, then? That is bold, but it should work. If you can keep him from scurrying off, or throwing off the effect. He is not weak, by any means, but he is more likely to run than to force a final confrontation with you, especially since you’ve humiliated him twice, now. Once with his restricted form on the Material Plane, and second by what happened to Peliel in Geburatiel. That did not go unnoticed.”

I laughed wickedly, and said, “I would have sent him a record of the fight, if I knew how to capture image and sound and save it so that it might be viewed at any time in the future. But that is not my skill set, and I have not had time to be learning new skills, not when so many of my old ones still require my attention, to some degree or another. Either way, toying with the arrogant little bird was quite satisfying.

“Though I do wish to get my claws on the father, at some point. To beat him, bloody and broken, and then turn him into a literal object for me to toy with? I can think of few things that would be better. Especially since he would be forced to linger, and simply watch what I do, powerless to stop it.”

Siora grinned. “Well, you say that he fancies himself a ‘gift to all women’, or something like that? Then, why not turn him into an actual gift for women. A strap-on device for use when women are pleasing other women, or defiling a man, whether he’s into that kind of thing or not. The bird-man’s pride would be torn to pieces, not having any power over the situation.”

Vestele smiled wickedly, “A fitting start, sister, but why stop there? Why not make him a gift for all men? After all, there are many lonely men who do not have willing wenches to sate their desires, and so must take things in hand. While they aren’t as popular as the tools a woman might use, there are designs that act as a sheathe for his sword, even when he is on his own. If such a prideful man was made into such an item, what kind of torture would that do to his mind?”

“Now, now,” I clapped my hands. “We will figure out what cruel fate to bestow upon Zadkiel once he is firmly in hand, and is unable to resist. For now, such discussions are, at best, premature, and are distracting us from the true question we should be asking. Namely, whether we should go out, and hunt Sanvi’s former sister-wives and her father, or let them come to us here. Either one has its benefits and risks.”

Satisfied that all eyes were on me, I continued, turning my attention to the unmelting cube of ice sitting on a nearby shelf, the collapsed form of the airship I bought from Cid in Geburatiel. “I have had the artificer aboard the Will of Winter make some modifications to my ship in the last couple years. Now, it can not only traverse the planes, but it can also use a greater teleport spell to travel on the same plane, though only once a day. That, alone, would make traveling far more convenient than it would otherwise have a right to be.”

My eyes turned to the twins. “I know you two have your flying island, but I doubt you have had the time to invest more into allowing it to travel like that. However, it would make for a slightly more… acceptable base of operations when we’re dealing with people who may not be entirely pleased to have an actual warship show up at their door. This would allow us a solid foundation for going out, and hunting them, before they can get to us.

“The other option, of course, is to wait until they come, and strike them down. This is more problematic than I would like to admit. If they managed to gather, and come at us all at once, then we would be severely disadvantaged. However, we would have the ‘home field’ advantage, since we’d be fighting in a scenario that has already been game-planned and considered since this kingdom was formed.”

“I don’t know about you,” Fartooth said, “but I seem to recall that all our successes, so far, have come from actually getting out there and attacking the enemy, not letting them come to us.”

“He’s right, you know,” Siora nodded.

Vestele grinned. “Indeed, Fartooth is correct. We should hunt down the archons and angels, attacking them when they are alone, and separate. Perhaps we can even get some use out of them, to force the others to move according to our wants.”

Sanvi just nodded. “So long as my father pays for what he has done to me, I care not.”

I grinned, and said, “Then, let us prepare for a trip. It will take me a few days, but I can at least say that I intend to return, as soon as these wretches are dealt with. Then, we’ll work on how to force the so-called god out of the higher planes, and down here, with the mortals, so we can do even more corrupting!”