Theo didn’t know how anyone could survive in the tundra. He followed behind Elrin, who forded a path through the deep snow with ease. There might have been reagents buried under those layers of snow, but the alchemist wasn’t certain. There was a quality of the region he couldn’t quite explain. Of course, the man with the dragon was eager to dump some lore. This was, after all, his home from another time.
“Since I was a child, and indeed far back into the history of the Kingdom of Perisart, the Region of Calet has been inhospitable.”
“Ya don’t say,” Theo said, having to raise his voice above the sound of the driving wind. He extended his aura out, shrouding them and diminishing some of the endless drone.
“Just a moment.” Elrin blew the whistle hanging around his neck and a roar issued somewhere in the distance.
Theo felt a twinge of magic coming from the man, and a moment later the roar grew louder. It echoed over the snowy fields, barely quieted by the sheets of insulating snow. A breaths later, and the snow overhead stopped falling. It did nothing to solve the problem of the drifts, but at least the snow overhead had ceased.
“If you could’ve done that from the start…”
Elrin turned around, smiling and shrugging. “I like it, sometimes. I come here when I need to think.”
“Okay, so this place is horrible and no one has ever liked it. Carry on.”
Elrin resumed his journey through the tall drifts, rolling his shoulders. “In my time, orcs were the natural enemies of all elves. We fought each other since my people were scratching rocks together in the forests. Oddly, the orcs had an affinity for the snow. The cold didn’t bother them nearly as much as the elves.”
From what Theo understood, the Calet Region was north of Tarantham. On maps he had seen, it was separated by a strait, which connected with the continent in the east over a massive land bridge. He also knew that, somewhere nearby, was one of the few shards they had brought to Iaredin.
“During the war, I staged quite a few attacks from here. But there was something even more interesting.” Elrin gestured ahead, squinting against the endless white.
Trevor, in his dragon form, came swooping down to beat his wings. The snow was driven away by an intense gust, sloughing off hidden structures or otherwise being sent into the air. Theo watched, doing his best to keep his mouth closed as the dragon did its work. Three mighty beats of the beast’s wings and a pair of ruins appeared, still resting under some amount of snow. It was a stone block construction, worn from years of exposure by otherwise decently preserved for the many thousands of years it had been there.
Without investigating much, Theo felt the magic pulsing through the area. He got distracted for a moment, plucking a flower from the ground. The petals seemed made of ice, while the stem felt hollow, as though the plant had long-since died. “Found the flowers you were talking about,” he said, scooping a few more and adding them to his inventory. “They feel weird.”
“As they should. I told you this area was mostly untouched. Any region in this world that remains outside the attention of the players in this stupid game is rare.” Elrin pressed forward again. The deep breath he took didn’t go unnoticed by Theo. “There was a strange form of magic here back in my day. The orcs, which we had assumed migrated entirely to mountains to the south, remain.”
“Ghosts?” Theo asked, sending his senses further. He didn’t feel the telltale signature of ghosts. He had enough experience dealing with the damned things to pick them up from afar, but there was nothing. The only thing he could feel was the magical energies generated by the perpetual storm, the flowers beneath their feet, and the looming dragon. “I don’t feel anything.”
“Nor would you. They’re strange. And, as you might imagine, we didn’t have much time to study them during the war. These ghosts are more like echoes. They’re an after-image left by the thought of the ancient orcs, and something the Spectre used to harass us constantly.” Elrin approached the edge of the ruins, passing a tentative hand over the surface of one rock. “Something of Kuzan’s Creation Magic still lingers here.”
All this was very interesting, academic information. Which meant Theo had absolutely no use for it. He enjoyed magic that was practical, instead of theoretical. “I’m wondering what it is you want to show me,” the alchemist said. “Is this just an interesting thing, or do you need this?”
“I need it for my plan,” Elrin said. He gestured vaguely at the barrier around them. “This is preventing the gods from hearing us, right?”
Theo checked the quality of his barrier. He infused it with all of his will, something that he believed bordered on muting even the System itself. “It is now.”
“I need it for my attack on the heavens,” Elrin explained.
Theo stopped in his tracks, swallowing hard. That wasn’t going to work for him. The gentle balance they had fallen into with the gods was good for now. If everyone chilled out, they could get through the reset with minimal losses. Whatever losses they did have would fall into the cycle of reincarnation, meaning that exactly 0 people would die. The alchemist knew a few people who were hell-bent on being the masters of their own destiny, or whatever, but wasn’t being alive better than being dead?
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He measured his response, not wanting to set Elrin off.
“Sorry, but are you an idiot?” Theo asked. “We just struck a deal with them. You have oversight over Death himself… Isn’t keeping Kuzan on a leash good enough for you?”
“Not by a longshot.” Elrin turned, his eyes flashing with a potential Theo couldn’t possibly understand. “I’ve put the pieces together. I know where this is going, and I can’t suffer in a world where the gods don’t do their part. A time will come when we’ll be assailed on two fronts. Both the mortals and the gods will have to do their fair share… If they don’t? We’ll all suffer for it.”
Theo rubbed his face, trying to see how any of this made sense. They had worked hard to create the stability they now enjoyed, but what about an attack after the fact? Elrin was saying the gods were wimps who needed to toughen up before the reset. Because after the reset, they expected an attack… Now they were expecting two attacks? Mortals on mortals and gods on gods?
“God, I hate you. I can’t imagine you had many friends back in the day.”
“No, but I had an army,” Elrin said. “I’ll have one again. Did you actually want to know the entire plan, or are you interested in more history?”
Elrin was giving him a way to excuse himself from the conversation politely. Theo pursed his lips, having an interest in both topics. “Give me both. History first, please.”
Elrin smiled, jerking his head to the side before leading the way through the ruined city. Theo wasn’t sure if he would classify it as a city or a town, as there weren’t many buildings remaining. There were a few that had kept their general shape, but none had roofs. Those had been eaten away at by time, rendering to dust where the stone still stood. But the workmanship of those stones was fine, resulting in mostly even blocks that stood strong. Even against the weight of the snow, some buildings held on.
“Orcs aren’t good at keeping their history,” Elrin said, approaching what once must have been a fountain. He knelt nearby, pressing his hand on the stone.
Without warning, the image of a few hundred orcs sprung up around them. The creatures were vile. Theo had trouble not hating them on sight, and had to force that reactionary thought away. The creatures were hunch-backed, almost doubled over with beady eyes and wide frames. Although the illusions lacked lustrous color, he could see their skin was tinged green. Assembled before the fountain, the orcs cheered for one figure, standing on a long-gone wooden platform.
“Behold, the source of my people’s shame,” Elrin said, gesturing as a figure appeared at the crowd’s edge. “Kuzan still hasn’t given me an answers as to why he was here. It was a few hundred years before my time, so there are no records.”
Sure enough, a regal-looking elf strode through the crowd of orcs. He had long, black hair and a swagger that meant business. Theo watched as the image of a young Kuzan approached the orc in charge. They exchanged words before turning to the crowd, which only made them more excited.
“Best I can tell is that Kuzan recruited the enemy to strengthen his people.” Elrin shrugged, pointing between the old king of the elves and the orcs. “Some staged attack to garner support. Can you imagine the result?”
“I’m guessing it isn’t good.”
“No. It wasn’t. The beastfolk of the world united, almost destroying civilization.” A shiver ran up Elrin’s spine, and he looked uncomfortable for a few long moments. “Only by the grace of the Archduke of Vesta did we survive. In my time, a similar event happened… Until the rifts to Earth appeared.”
Theo shook his head. “I’ve always had a problem with that. Nowhere in my history do people talk about the rifts. I’d like to meet someone with an answer.”
“From what I understand, a lot of time had passed. When Iaredin and Earth were slated to merge, the system flipped a coin. Earth died, and Iaredin survived. How does that cruelty make you feel?”
Theo shrugged. “Seems too random.”
“Yet, it really wasn’t. This is an entirely different story, so I won’t bore you. But Earth was at fault for the merge to begin with,” Elrin shook his head. “We could’ve avoided it all if not for some curious earthlings… Well, you can see the army moving out now. Kuzan recruited the orcs to attack my people back in his day, and when he came under the yoke of the system, he did the exact same things. Do you see why my plan is important, now?”
“Because history repeats. If a guy did it twice, he’ll do it again.”
“Exactly. But not if I inflict some pain on him first,” Elrin said. “If I drive a sword through his shriveled heart, he’ll think twice before betraying us again.”
Theo snapped his fingers. Maybe Elrin wasn’t a complete moron. “You want the gods to know they’re not safe. You want them to know you can wage war on them if you need to.”
Elrin smiled widely, nodding with approval. “No one should actually die. Not if my people are as strong as they should be. But a simultaneous attack on the heavens will make each god remember their purpose. Both sides are meant to help each-other. Especially those of us who have risen to absurd heights of power.”
“What about breaching the heavens? If you can go there, can’t they come here?”
“They’re already here,” Elrin corrected. “Both sides have a mechanism to influence the other. If a god has a faith-based system, they can recruit followers and give them orders. If they don’t rely on the faith of their people, they can select champions. We already have a few on Iaredin right now.”
“And what about the other way?”
“Veterans of system-based wars can interact with the system’s magic, declaring war on anything. Make no mistake, this action serves only to strengthen the gods and the mortal worlds.” Elrin paused for a few long moments, looking skyward. “I have two-thousand eager soldiers waiting for my orders. Hidden, perhaps even from you… Well, not all of them. Howd is a moron.”
“So, war games. That’s what this boils down to.”
“Correct.”
“And is the System aware of this?”
“I have the backing of the Shard Network, but I’m certain she could convince the system.”
Theo shrugged. It was a lot more logical than he had first expected. “Well, you have my blessing. Sounds like a bit of fighting will make everyone stronger. When does it start?”
Elrin flashed a devious smile. “Just infuse these stones with your will. I’ll guide you the rest of the way.”
Theo blinked a few times. “So… now?”
“Now.”