A man stood in front of Nym in an endless white void. His entire outfit reminded Nym of some of the more ridiculously expensive ensembles nobles wore, just layer after layer of lavish fabrics with gold and silver threaded through them and gemstones woven into the design. The metals were stitched into runes all across the clothing, with gemstone buttons that had their own runes carved into them.
He had long hair the same color as Nym’s, and was clean-shaven. The man’s face was eerily familiar, but Nym couldn’t quite place it. At first, he thought it was his father from the visions, but it didn’t quite look right.
“If you’re seeing this, that means you’ve regained enough magic to access the Astral Sea. It has likely been three months since I recorded this for you. I’m sure you’ve figured out most of what’s happened already, but I will take a moment to review the situation.
“We are Exarch Niramyn. Our rival, Exarch Myzalik, has done something everyone thought to be impossible and weaponized the immortality spell that forms the basis of our eternal civilization. If ever there was an ascendant to do it, it would be an Exarch who specializes in time manipulation, but I was arrogant, and was a fool to think we were so untouchable.
“I was left with no choice but to flee the attack, and to prevent being discovered, I had to splinter my mind and sequester it away into this trinket. I’ve layered it with the most powerful spells I can in the limited amount of time I had left to render it undetectable to everyone but myself. It would be much easier if I could simply give you, give myself really, back my memories and abilities, but you are not ready for that yet.
“Once you become Niramyn again, they will be able to find you. The spells I was able to cast to shield you from their sight won’t hide me, and right now your body isn’t strong enough to withstand the spells we must utilize in order to regain our power. I have plotted a course from the fifth layer back to full strength that will take us a little over a week.
“Fortunately, there is nothing truly dangerous in the mortal realms, and I’ve set up a few contingencies for the most likely scenarios. I’m sure it has been a thoroughly annoying and frustrating few months living with them and dealing with them, but by now you should have acquired the magic you need to reach the fifth layer. Place the memory cube back in its hiding place until you’ve completed your rehabilitation. Once you’ve touched the fifth layer, return and I will begin imparting our memories to you so that you will understand the process of ascending.”
Nym stared, slack-jawed, at the apparition that droned on. Any attempts to get in a question were ignored. It just kept talking, so pompous and arrogant and full of incorrect assumptions. The vision thought it would only take him a few months to reach the third layer, but it had taken close to a year. The only reason people had stopped commenting on his abilities was that he had physically aged up to a point where it wasn’t uncommon for a person to know some second circle magic.
Looking back on the few memories he did have, he supposed he understood why this past life version of himself thought it would go much quicker. He’d had luxuries Nym could only dream of. The training was no doubt harsh, but in every memory, someone was there to guide and teach Exarch Niramyn. There was no sign that he struggled for food or shelter, no sign that he’d been forced to scrounge through whatever random books he could get his hands on.
“You’re kind of a prick,” Nym told the vision, which of course ignored him.
The visage of Exarch Niramyn kept speaking, now detailing the many spells it had cast before splitting its memories from Nym. The seed memories were of course Niramyn’s doing, as was the aging spell designed to force him to physically mature faster so that his soul well would expand. The visage made no mention of how to stop that spell, which Nym took to mean that it would end when he regained his lost memories and chose to end it.
It detailed a number of obfuscation methods it had used to hide, reciting the spells one after another in a bored tone, simply regurgitating information for the sake of being thorough. Nym recognized none of the spells.
To cap it off, there was a time-line wipe that essentially removed him from the past for a period of about two minutes. The spell was something of his own design, crafted specifically to counter Exarch Myzalik’s abilities to snoop through history and alter it to suit his needs.
“About our rival, some things must be said. He will know that we survived, but if my emergency measures have been successful, his magic will not help him find you. The mere fact that you are seeing this, months later, is all the confirmation you need. Had he been able to find you, you would never have survived. I imagine he’ll be getting quite desperate to figure out where I am and what I’m doing.
“Do not think to challenge him as you currently are. Even the least ascendant could crush any human mage. One who stood at the pinnacle of our society could annihilate the entire species. Be discreet whenever possible. Avoid standing out, or getting entangled in any large-scale human problems. Your disguise won’t stand up to direct scrutiny against an ascendant.
“Prioritize staying hidden and staying well-fed. The growth spell is dependent on an ample food supply to run at maximum strength. By now you probably look to be a human in his early twenties, unless something has gone horribly wrong.”
Once again Niramyn had underestimated the difficulties Nym had faced. The longer the visage kept talking, the more annoyed Nym got with it. His previous self had a colossal ego and had apparently, literally lived in another world. He’d had no clue what kind of life he’d set Nym up for. Who knew what kind of damage Niramyn had unwittingly done to himself when he’d split off his personality and memories to create Nym.
“Finally, begin work immediately on creating the soul channels needed to increase your maximum arcana capacity. You’ll need it in order to breach the fourth layer. I’m sure you’ll figure this out on your own easily enough, but humans have so little understanding of how magic works that it would be unwise to trade this technique to others.
“The fourth layer is like the second layer’s crystallized arcana, except instead of it randomly floating in that reality, the fourth layer is known as the Bulwark because it is made entirely of crystallized arcana. It’s possible to refine it for use, but it’s less effort to bore directly through it to the fifth layer. To do so, you must push arcana from the Astral Sea into the tip of your conduit and enhance it with your own magic so that it’s strong enough to breach the Bulwark.”
“Once you’ve gained access to the fifth layer, touch the cube again and merge our memories and personalities back together. We will know how to navigate Transcendence and return to our former power.”
The visage faded away and Nym felt like his whole body was being flung through space. He came to a stop without actually ever having moved, and a wave of vertigo passed through him. Ciana stood there in the pre-dawn light, watching him. Everything was the same as when he’d first seen the vision. Not a second had passed.
Nym frowned to himself and pulled the cube out of the bag. “I should hide this here,” he told her. “Do you mind if I bury it under your cellar?”
“What is it?” Ciana asked, peering at it curiously. Her eyes kept sliding off to the side, then refocusing on it. Furrows appeared on her forehead as she concentrated. “Something magic?”
“I’m not exactly sure,” Nym told her. “But it would be best if no one else knew about it until I learn more.”
“Go ahead. I won’t tell anyone it’s there.”
“Thanks.”
Nym ran back down the stairs, broke open the stone floor in the middle, and deposited the cube into the hole. His magic smoothed the dirt back down and with a small surge of effort, transmuted it back to whole, unblemished stone again. No one would suspect a thing just from a visual examination.
Then he began the process of collecting third layer arcana again, said his goodbyes, and teleported back to Ebalsan.
* * *
“Got something on your mind?” Jharn asked over breakfast.
“Hmm? Oh, just working through some spells,” Nym lied. He hadn’t gotten a minute of sleep and was only conscious thanks to liberal use of the stimulant spell Jharn had taught him. He ate the food in front of him mechanically, ignoring it while he tried to sort through the implications of what he’d just learned.
If he assumed it was all true, he would be incredibly valuable to Analia’s father. He was a living research specimen, an ascendant, and one who was too weak to defend himself. Nym would spend the rest of his life locked in a mage cell while they performed every experiment and test they could think of on him.
They already knew something was weird about him. His soul well was way too big to be a normal person’s. Combined with his unique history, there was obviously something there they might consider being worth investigating. Maybe they even already suspected he was an ascendant. He’d certainly figured it might be the case once he’d started to learn more about them. It sounded farfetched, of course, but it did provide a possible explanation for a lot of the questions he’d built up.
In truth, being detained indefinitely was already a risk. Admitting he wasn’t human just magnified the chances of that happening. There was no reason to tell the Collective either. Admitting that he’d reached the third layer might help in some way, but he didn’t see any positive outcome to telling them he was an ascendant.
There were people he did trust, Analia and the Earth Shapers, but he wasn’t sure they’d be able to help. He would tell them he had reached the third layer, but he didn’t know if he wanted to tell anyone that he had finally learned the truth about his past. It didn’t seem like something anyone could help him with beyond speeding up the course his past self had laid out for him: become an archmage and then retrieve the memory cube.
Nobody needed to know he was an ascendant to do that. For now at least, that was a secret he’d keep to himself. He did need to find a way to get help with learning third circle spells though. A tutor would be ideal, but that would be an extravagant expense and there was no way he could hide it from the Collective.
While they were eating, Nym formed a message and sent it across the house to Analia, who was taking a bath. [I broke through to the third layer. I do not want anybody to find out. I can’t explain why. Can you see about discreetly getting spellbooks with third circle spells?]
A minute later, he got a response. [I’ll set up anti-scrying and privacy wards while you’re out. We’ll talk later.]
Nym finished his meal and stood up. “Let me grab some stuff and we can get going,” he told Jharn. They had a freelance job they’d reserved yesterday thanks to his connections with the clerks to spend their morning on.
Once he got back, he’d have his strategy meeting. That gave him plenty of time to figure out exactly how much he was willing to reveal and how he wanted to go about saying it. No doubt the geas would complicate things, but Analia was smart enough to pick up on what he wasn’t saying.
He just hoped he wasn’t dragging her into this mess with him.
A man stood in front of Nym in an endless white void. His entire outfit reminded Nym of some of the more ridiculously expensive ensembles nobles wore, just layer after layer of lavish fabrics with gold and silver threaded through them and gemstones woven into the design. The metals were stitched into runes all across the clothing, with gemstone buttons that had their own runes carved into them.
He had long hair the same color as Nym’s, and was clean-shaven. The man’s face was eerily familiar, but Nym couldn’t quite place it. At first, he thought it was his father from the visions, but it didn’t quite look right.
“If you’re seeing this, that means you’ve regained enough magic to access the Astral Sea. It has likely been three months since I recorded this for you. I’m sure you’ve figured out most of what’s happened already, but I will take a moment to review the situation.
“We are Exarch Niramyn. Our rival, Exarch Myzalik, has done something everyone thought to be impossible and weaponized the immortality spell that forms the basis of our eternal civilization. If ever there was an ascendant to do it, it would be an Exarch who specializes in time manipulation, but I was arrogant, and was a fool to think we were so untouchable.
“I was left with no choice but to flee the attack, and to prevent being discovered, I had to splinter my mind and sequester it away into this trinket. I’ve layered it with the most powerful spells I can in the limited amount of time I had left to render it undetectable to everyone but myself. It would be much easier if I could simply give you, give myself really, back my memories and abilities, but you are not ready for that yet.
“Once you become Niramyn again, they will be able to find you. The spells I was able to cast to shield you from their sight won’t hide me, and right now your body isn’t strong enough to withstand the spells we must utilize in order to regain our power. I have plotted a course from the fifth layer back to full strength that will take us a little over a week.
“Fortunately, there is nothing truly dangerous in the mortal realms, and I’ve set up a few contingencies for the most likely scenarios. I’m sure it has been a thoroughly annoying and frustrating few months living with them and dealing with them, but by now you should have acquired the magic you need to reach the fifth layer. Place the memory cube back in its hiding place until you’ve completed your rehabilitation. Once you’ve touched the fifth layer, return and I will begin imparting our memories to you so that you will understand the process of ascending.”
Nym stared, slack-jawed, at the apparition that droned on. Any attempts to get in a question were ignored. It just kept talking, so pompous and arrogant and full of incorrect assumptions. The vision thought it would only take him a few months to reach the third layer, but it had taken close to a year. The only reason people had stopped commenting on his abilities was that he had physically aged up to a point where it wasn’t uncommon for a person to know some second circle magic.
Looking back on the few memories he did have, he supposed he understood why this past life version of himself thought it would go much quicker. He’d had luxuries Nym could only dream of. The training was no doubt harsh, but in every memory, someone was there to guide and teach Exarch Niramyn. There was no sign that he struggled for food or shelter, no sign that he’d been forced to scrounge through whatever random books he could get his hands on.
“You’re kind of a prick,” Nym told the vision, which of course ignored him.
The visage of Exarch Niramyn kept speaking, now detailing the many spells it had cast before splitting its memories from Nym. The seed memories were of course Niramyn’s doing, as was the aging spell designed to force him to physically mature faster so that his soul well would expand. The visage made no mention of how to stop that spell, which Nym took to mean that it would end when he regained his lost memories and chose to end it.
It detailed a number of obfuscation methods it had used to hide, reciting the spells one after another in a bored tone, simply regurgitating information for the sake of being thorough. Nym recognized none of the spells.
To cap it off, there was a time-line wipe that essentially removed him from the past for a period of about two minutes. The spell was something of his own design, crafted specifically to counter Exarch Myzalik’s abilities to snoop through history and alter it to suit his needs.
“About our rival, some things must be said. He will know that we survived, but if my emergency measures have been successful, his magic will not help him find you. The mere fact that you are seeing this, months later, is all the confirmation you need. Had he been able to find you, you would never have survived. I imagine he’ll be getting quite desperate to figure out where I am and what I’m doing.
“Do not think to challenge him as you currently are. Even the least ascendant could crush any human mage. One who stood at the pinnacle of our society could annihilate the entire species. Be discreet whenever possible. Avoid standing out, or getting entangled in any large-scale human problems. Your disguise won’t stand up to direct scrutiny against an ascendant.
“Prioritize staying hidden and staying well-fed. The growth spell is dependent on an ample food supply to run at maximum strength. By now you probably look to be a human in his early twenties, unless something has gone horribly wrong.”
Once again Niramyn had underestimated the difficulties Nym had faced. The longer the visage kept talking, the more annoyed Nym got with it. His previous self had a colossal ego and had apparently, literally lived in another world. He’d had no clue what kind of life he’d set Nym up for. Who knew what kind of damage Niramyn had unwittingly done to himself when he’d split off his personality and memories to create Nym.
“Finally, begin work immediately on creating the soul channels needed to increase your maximum arcana capacity. You’ll need it in order to breach the fourth layer. I’m sure you’ll figure this out on your own easily enough, but humans have so little understanding of how magic works that it would be unwise to trade this technique to others.
“The fourth layer is like the second layer’s crystallized arcana, except instead of it randomly floating in that reality, the fourth layer is known as the Bulwark because it is made entirely of crystallized arcana. It’s possible to refine it for use, but it’s less effort to bore directly through it to the fifth layer. To do so, you must push arcana from the Astral Sea into the tip of your conduit and enhance it with your own magic so that it’s strong enough to breach the Bulwark.”
“Once you’ve gained access to the fifth layer, touch the cube again and merge our memories and personalities back together. We will know how to navigate Transcendence and return to our former power.”
The visage faded away and Nym felt like his whole body was being flung through space. He came to a stop without actually ever having moved, and a wave of vertigo passed through him. Ciana stood there in the pre-dawn light, watching him. Everything was the same as when he’d first seen the vision. Not a second had passed.
Nym frowned to himself and pulled the cube out of the bag. “I should hide this here,” he told her. “Do you mind if I bury it under your cellar?”
“What is it?” Ciana asked, peering at it curiously. Her eyes kept sliding off to the side, then refocusing on it. Furrows appeared on her forehead as she concentrated. “Something magic?”
“I’m not exactly sure,” Nym told her. “But it would be best if no one else knew about it until I learn more.”
“Go ahead. I won’t tell anyone it’s there.”
“Thanks.”
Nym ran back down the stairs, broke open the stone floor in the middle, and deposited the cube into the hole. His magic smoothed the dirt back down and with a small surge of effort, transmuted it back to whole, unblemished stone again. No one would suspect a thing just from a visual examination.
Then he began the process of collecting third layer arcana again, said his goodbyes, and teleported back to Ebalsan.
* * *
“Got something on your mind?” Jharn asked over breakfast.
“Hmm? Oh, just working through some spells,” Nym lied. He hadn’t gotten a minute of sleep and was only conscious thanks to liberal use of the stimulant spell Jharn had taught him. He ate the food in front of him mechanically, ignoring it while he tried to sort through the implications of what he’d just learned.
If he assumed it was all true, he would be incredibly valuable to Analia’s father. He was a living research specimen, an ascendant, and one who was too weak to defend himself. Nym would spend the rest of his life locked in a mage cell while they performed every experiment and test they could think of on him.
They already knew something was weird about him. His soul well was way too big to be a normal person’s. Combined with his unique history, there was obviously something there they might consider being worth investigating. Maybe they even already suspected he was an ascendant. He’d certainly figured it might be the case once he’d started to learn more about them. It sounded farfetched, of course, but it did provide a possible explanation for a lot of the questions he’d built up.
In truth, being detained indefinitely was already a risk. Admitting he wasn’t human just magnified the chances of that happening. There was no reason to tell the Collective either. Admitting that he’d reached the third layer might help in some way, but he didn’t see any positive outcome to telling them he was an ascendant.
There were people he did trust, Analia and the Earth Shapers, but he wasn’t sure they’d be able to help. He would tell them he had reached the third layer, but he didn’t know if he wanted to tell anyone that he had finally learned the truth about his past. It didn’t seem like something anyone could help him with beyond speeding up the course his past self had laid out for him: become an archmage and then retrieve the memory cube.
Nobody needed to know he was an ascendant to do that. For now at least, that was a secret he’d keep to himself. He did need to find a way to get help with learning third circle spells though. A tutor would be ideal, but that would be an extravagant expense and there was no way he could hide it from the Collective.
While they were eating, Nym formed a message and sent it across the house to Analia, who was taking a bath. [I broke through to the third layer. I do not want anybody to find out. I can’t explain why. Can you see about discreetly getting spellbooks with third circle spells?]
A minute later, he got a response. [I’ll set up anti-scrying and privacy wards while you’re out. We’ll talk later.]
Nym finished his meal and stood up. “Let me grab some stuff and we can get going,” he told Jharn. They had a freelance job they’d reserved yesterday thanks to his connections with the clerks to spend their morning on.
Once he got back, he’d have his strategy meeting. That gave him plenty of time to figure out exactly how much he was willing to reveal and how he wanted to go about saying it. No doubt the geas would complicate things, but Analia was smart enough to pick up on what he wasn’t saying.
He just hoped he wasn’t dragging her into this mess with him.
