With news of more trees discovered on the warlock base targeted by Countess Daston, Ricard ordered Hump and the others to remain on site until the situation was clarified. It was grim tidings. Resources were spread thin across the city, and now was not the time to let down their guard.

“I want to take a look around,” Hump said. “Even if the spell formations here are incomplete, I’d like to make a record of what remains.”

“Please do so,” Marcela said. “We found a few more around the room. In truth, everything about this place gives me the creeps. We found what’s left of an armoury through there, and a small collection of books beyond that. You may want to see if you can make anything of it.”

“Don’t expect too much,” Len said. “Looked like a bunch of insane drivel to me.”

“I’ll take a look.”

Hump informed the rest of his party, Celaine joining him on his search while Dylan tended to Emilia’s injuries. Minor, but one should never leave a cut from a blade untreated for long.

He started with the spell formation they’d first found when they explored the base. He was no expert on old blood, but he’d guess it had to be at least a month old. The lines were smudged and worn, likely scuffed by many treading shoes, so he doubted it was important. Still, he had nothing better to do right now. It was too incomplete for the Book of Infinite Pages to record it on its own, so he wielded the ink within to draw what remained. Even incomplete, Hump felt a sense of wrongness to the markings. It oozed off the page, and even holding their image in his mind made him uncomfortable.

Moving on, he found a number of other runes throughout the base. It seemed blood was not of standard use within the main chamber. There was no demonic altar. No collection of prisoners in case the need for a bloodletting struck. For the most part, it was a dull, dusty hole to survive in, fit with beds and other necessities.

The ward over the room caught Hump’s interest. The disruption to his essence before hadn’t been a result of the tree’s power, but a wizard’s. A string of runes lined the edge of the ceiling, all the way around the main chambers wherever it connected to the streets and buildings above. After following it around the room, Hump found some success. His spellbook shook.

SPELLBOOK

Disruptor Veil

Formation | Bronze

Description

An illusionary veil that muffles essence usage and sound inside by disturbing their flow.

Now that’s a handy spell, Hump thought. Combined with his own Hidden Fire ward, he’d be able to almost entirely conceal their future campsites. It would be particularly useful in a dungeon, creating a safe spot to rest, and reducing any noise or essence usage in case they were attacked. At least he’d gained something usable out of all this.

Despite the state of the chambers, the weapons and book collection were in pristine condition. Evidently, they had only recently been brought here. There wasn’t much. None of these warlocks had been very powerful. A few swords and spears still hung on the walls, though these lacked enchantments unlike many of the weapons in the other room. There were a dozen or so books shelved in one of the dormitories. Hump picked through them, opening the oldest looking one to find a book of monsters—or more specifically, men turning into monsters. He flicked through it, searching for the tree they’d discovered.

“Huh,” Celaine said, staring at the wall.

“What is it?” Hump asked.

She pointed at a hand sized rune carved by the edge of the wall at roughly knee height. “I’ve noticed a few of these. I think there’s one in every room.”

Hump put the book down and walked over and squatted for a better look. “I hadn’t noticed them.”

He studied the marking. Strong, hard lines that held no meaning to him, though they appeared remarkably similar to the runes in Kassius’ formation. He compared it to the formation in his book.

SPELLBOOK

The Binding of Thirteen

Unknown | Formation | Unknown | Unknown

Description

Unknown

It didn’t share any of the runes, but it certainly wouldn’t be amiss. He’d show Vivienne later. She’d managed to devise her own version of the Binding of Thirteen, so perhaps she’d have some insight into the marking. He made a note, and then Celaine showed him another she’d found in the armoury. They went room to room after that, finding thirteen of the markings in total. The number of the fallen god. Hump was starting to see a pattern.

In the end, he’d found six incomplete formations, as well as the thirteen runes and Disruptor Veil. He didn’t know if it would be useful, but it wasn’t like he was about to start running out of pages.

He was finishing up back in the main chamber when their relief force arrived. A group of priests and two Chosen, all carrying the sigil of Emirai. The priests looked nervously at the warlock bodies piled in the room and kept walking, staying tightly together. Hump caught the eye of one of the Chosen just as he’d finished with the last rune, and the woman took one look at his staff before turning away in disgust.

Well, that was just brilliant. Hump hadn’t considered the effect a bunch of evil practitioners in the city might have on people’s perception of wizards. Either that, or the woman was just a stuck-up Chosen. He’d seen plenty of them in his time too.

Ricard returned to the main chamber to greet the new force, speaking quietly with one of the priests that Hump took to be the leader. A middle-aged man wearing the familiar priesthood robes. Though unlike most priests, he walked with a chest-height staff with a spiked mace head protruding from the end. It was a brief conversation.

“Can you catch what they’re saying?” Hump asked Celaine.

“Something about attempting to purify the tree. You think it will work?”

Hump looked the priests over. There were only six of them. “They’ll need a damn sight more priests than that if they want to have a chance of overcoming this monstrosity.”

Ricard allowed the group to pass him and gain access to the tree, while he came over to the rest of them. They were to be dismissed. All loot was to be handed over to squad leaders to be divided up the following day. Hump was reluctant to part with the staff he’d won, but had neither the will or the energy to argue the point right now.

It was strange. As much as Hump wanted to be gone from this place, a part of him wanted to remain and see what the priests would try. As cynical as he usually was, he wished them luck. Being followers of Emirai, they might just have a chance after all.

***

“To another successful quest.” Emilia held up her tankard, a wide smile on her face. “And congratulations to Celaine for her fifth blessing.”

Celaine laughed, and the five of them clinked tankards.

Hump took a long swig and then rested the tankard on the table, staring into the swirling liquid. The inn was lively tonight, packed full of as many occupants as Mister Gronde could possibly cater for. Hump’s mind lingered on less pleasant things. He could still hear the screams, piercing and desperate for release. The dark, haze of essence lingered in his throat, clung to his skin. He wished he’d never looked at the tree.

Emilia budged up beside him on the rounded chair, pressing against his shoulder. The contact knocked him out of his stupor.

“You look out of it,” she said.

Hump looked at her and smiled. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to bring down the mood.”

“Still thinking about the tree?”

Hump nodded.

She sighed and gave him a sympathetic look. “That bad?”

“I’ll get over it.” He took another swig of his drink. “It’s not the first time I’ve seen something I wish I hadn’t, and it won’t be the last.”

“Well, it sounded horrifying. I’ve never been very good at sensing external essence. I can’t really imagine what you saw.”

“It’s not just the sight of it,” Hump said. “Magic Eye allows a wizard to experience essence like a physical thing. For most things, that’s just a colourful show of essence, or a change in temperature, or a sharp cold to the touch. This… it hit every sense I have. The power reeked of death. I can still taste it in the air and feel its touch like a feather on my skin.”

Emilia bumped his shoulder again with her own. “Sounds awful. You could get Dylan to use Nature’s Spring on you. Maybe if you use Magic Eye at the same time it might wash away some of that feeling.”

Hump shook his head. “It’s alright. I look at it as a reminder of how dangerous the situation in Sheercliff has become. It’s made me question some things.”

“Are you thinking about leaving?” Dylan asked from across the table.

Everyone was paying attention to him now.

“It’s crossed my mind,” Hump said.

“We’ve had this conversation,” Bud said. “We’re adventurers. It’s our duty to help these people.”

“No,” Hump said. “That’s the duty of Chosen. Adventurers…” Hump sighed. He felt like a hypocrite. “Adventurers are there to help, but they’re not there to die.”

“And Chosen are?” Bud asked, his voice rising.

Hump snorted. “That depends on who you ask.”

“Not this again.” Bud rolled his eyes.

“Relax,” Hump said. “I’m not suggesting we leave.”

“What are you suggesting then?” Bud asked. “Because it sure sounds like you want to.”

“Of course I want to. You would too if you saw what I did. The evil this magic contains. The suffering it causes. If staying here means we might fall victim to that, then yeah, a part of me wants to leave.”

“What’s your point then?” Celaine said. “We’ve already decided to stay. The quest was successful. We’re training, working with people, doing things officially.”

Hump rested his face in his palm, suddenly feeling exhausted. His mind went back to the tree, then to the shadowy figure that he’d seen in Bledsbury Dungeon. The riftwalker.

“My point is that we may be fodder in a battle too big for us,” Hump said calmly. “If that tree we discovered is just one of many, can you imagine how powerful the person behind all this is? Someone willing to wage a war against Sheercliff. Against Alveron itself. What difference can we make?”

“We help the people we can,” Bud said. “And we trust in those above us to do the same when larger threats come. Sometimes the smallest of actions are all it takes.”

“Do we need to make the difference?” Dylan asked. “The coin’s good. You always say that’s what you’re here for.”

“Not much good if we’re dead,” Hump said. “We’re sitting here celebrating a victory, but I can’t help but feel it was insignificant in the grand scheme of things. The warlocks had time to put more defences in place. If they’d wanted to, they could have fought harder. Instead, it was as if they’d been cut off. Sacrificed. Where were the defensive artifacts? Where were the leaders?”

“If all we do is dwell on the big picture, we’ll lose ourselves long before we make it to the end,” Emilia said. “It’s important to celebrate the small victories. That’s how we keep going. We’re adventurers, not gods, that’s what you told me. What matters is we continue to put our best foot forward.”

Hump turned to her, glowering. He knew what she was doing. He’d said the same things to her after their battle in Stonebark Forest, when she was blaming herself for the lives lost. “Didn’t I also mention something about the gods not giving a shit?”

Emilia tilted her head, thinking. “You might have.”

Bud laughed. “You can’t argue that the gods are not on our side. Whether you believe it or not, Hump, you’ve got hundreds of Chosen in this city working toward the same goal as you. To eradicate these warlocks. This is war, and it won’t be over in a day.”

“It sure won’t,” Hump said. “I can’t help but wonder though—if the warlocks were willing to sacrifice these bases without much fight, what is it they’re hiding? I think we’re just scratching the surface of the infestation, and I’m not looking forward to what we find next.”