THE CHAMBER WAS EERILY QUIET, FILLED WITH ONLY A HANDFUL OF FIGURES, YET EACH OF THEM REPRESENTED THE MOST IMPORTANT LEADERS FROM ACROSS VARIOUS RACES. THE TENSION IN THE ROOM WAS PALPABLE, EVERY BREATH HELD IN ANTICIPATION. BASTIAN, THE LAST OF THE CLAIRVOYANTS TO AWAKEN, HAD ONCE BEEN THOUGHT LOST TO THE WORLD, HIS LONG, DEATHLIKE SLUMBER HAD CONVINCED MOST THAT HE HAD PERISHED, AND FOR YEARS, THEY HAD WRITTEN HIM OFF AS ONE OF THE FALLEN.
BUT THEN, HE HAD RISEN. WHEN HE CRAWLED OUT FROM THE MOUND OF CORPSES, GASPING FOR AIR, HE HAD TERRIFIED THE BAND OF THIEVES SCAVENGING THE BATTLEFIELD FOR TRINKETS AND LOOT. HIS RETURN TO THE WORLD OF THE LIVING HAD CAUSED QUITE A STIR, BUT IT WAS THE INFORMATION HE CARRIED BACK WITH HIM THAT HAD TRULY SHAKEN THE LEADERSHIP OF THE COALITION.
HE HAD COME BACK WITH CRUCIAL INTELLIGENCE. REAL INTELLIGENCE. THE KIND THAT COULD TIP THE SCALES IN THEIR FAVOR IN THIS ENDLESS WAR. AND NOW, STANDING IN FRONT OF A DRAGON WITH MOLTEN FIRE RUNNING ACROSS ITS SCALED BODY, A TOWERING GIANT CHIEF REPRESENTING THE BRAM THE GREAT, A DWARF KING WITH A BEARD BRAIDED WITH PURE GOLD, ANDGWENITH; THE ENIGMATIC SEER HE HAD ONCE CROSSED PATHS WITH, HE KNEW HIS WORDS HAD TO BE CHOSEN CAREFULLY.
"THIS INFORMATION," BASTIAN BEGAN, HIS VOICE STEADY BUT BURDENED, "CAN ONLY BE SHARED WITH THOSE WHO ARE ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY. IF EVEN A HINT OF THIS LEAKS, THE ELVES WILL MOVE FASTER THAN WE CAN ACT. AND SOME AMONG YOU," HIS GAZE SWEPT OVER THE ROOM, "MAY HAVE ALREADY DEFECTED TO THEIR SIDE."
THE TRUTH HE CARRIED WAS NOT HIS ALONE. IT HAD COME TO HIM FROM A SNOWY OWL, AN OWL HE SUSPECTED WAS MORE THAN IT SEEMED, LIKELY AN ELVEN SPY IN DISGUISE. YET THE PIECES HAD FALLEN TOGETHER. OVER YEARS, THROUGH HAPPENSTANCE AND SUBTLE REVELATIONS, BASTIAN HAD UNCOVERED THE DARK WORKINGS OF THE ELVES: THE SECRETS OF EARTH VEINS, REINCARNATION, AND SOULS, ALL TIED TO A TERRIFYING PROSPECT, THE MANIPULATION OF INFINITE MAGICAL POWER.
"YOU SEE," HE CONTINUED, LOCKING EYES WITH EACH OF THEM, "MANY YEARS AGO, BY ACCIDENT OR FATE, THE ELVEN SAGE DISCOVERED HOW TO TAP INTO THE EARTH'S VEINS, INTO THE VERY CYCLE OF REINCARNATION ITSELF. THE ENERGY OF SOULS, THE FABRIC OF LIFE AND DEATH, COULD BE HARNESSED. AND SO, THE 'PHILOSOPHER'S STONE' WAS BORN, A COLLECTION OF INFINITE SOULS, THE SOURCE OF BOUNDLESS MAGICAL ENERGY."
THE WEIGHT OF HIS WORDS HUNG IN THE AIR, BUT BASTIAN PRESSED ON, THE URGENCY OF HIS MESSAGE FUELING HIM. "UNDER THE SAGE'S ORDERS, THE ELVES SCOURED THE LAND FOR THESE VEINS, CONSTRUCTING WHAT THEY CALLED 'ALCHEMICAL TOWERS' BUT IN TRUTH, THEY ARE SOUL-SIPHONING TOWERS. THEY INTERCEPT THE NATURAL FLOW OF THE UNDEAD RETURNING TO THE EARTH, DISTILLING THEM INTO A RAW MATERIAL THEY CALL 'PHILOSOPHER'S STONE ORE.'"
HE PAUSED, LETTING THE GRAVITY OF THAT SINK IN. "THESE ORES ARE TAKEN TO SECRET LOCATIONS, REFINED UNDER THE SAGE'S WATCHFUL EYE, AND TRANSFORMED INTO CONSUMABLE PHILOSOPHER'S STONES; ITEMS WITH LIMITLESS MAGIC THAT THE ELVES NOW WIELD."
BASTIAN'S EYES BURNED WITH INTENSITY AS HE CONTINUED. "THE PHILOSOPHER'S STONES AREN'T JUST TOOLS OF CONVENIENCE. THEY'RE USED IN FOUR TERRIFYING WAYS. FIRST, THE 'ETERNAL SPRING ALTER, IN LARGE TOWNS, THESE DISTORT NATURE ITSELF, ALLOWING SPRING TO LAST ETERNALLY. THE RESULT? PERFECT WEATHER, CROPS THAT RIPEN DOZENS OF TIMES A YEAR, AND AN ALMOST INEXHAUSTIBLE FOOD SUPPLY. THE ELVES' POPULATION HAS EXPLODED BECAUSE OF IT."
"SECOND," HE SAID, HIS VOICE LOWERING, "THE STONES POWER ENORMOUS ALCHEMICAL MACHINES; CHARIOTS, AIRSHIPS, GOLEMS; NONE OF WHICH TIRE OR FALTER. OUR ARMIES FACE AN UNENDING TIDE OF WAR PUPPETS, WITH NO END IN SIGHT. AND THIRD," BASTIAN ADDED, "EACH ELVEN SPELLCASTER TAPS DIRECTLY INTO THE PHILOSOPHER'S STONE ON THE BATTLEFIELD. THEIR MAGIC SHIELDS, LINKED TO THE STONES, ARE VIRTUALLY IMPENETRABLE. ANY BACKLASH FROM ATTACKS IS ABSORBED BY THE STONE ITSELF, WHICH, AS A COLLECTION OF SOULS, CAN TAKE INFINITE DAMAGE; UNTIL IT BURNS OUT. BUT BY THEN, IT'S TOO LATE."
BASTIAN FELL SILENT FOR A MOMENT, ALLOWING THE ENORMITY OF HIS REVELATIONS TO SETTLE OVER THE ROOM. EVERY EYE WAS ON HIM, EVERY BREATH BATED.
"THIS," HE CONCLUDED SOFTLY, "IS WHAT WE'RE UP AGAINST. AND NOW, YOU MUST DECIDE WHETHER YOU BELIEVE ME."
THE REASON WHY I SAY IT'S "BASICALLY IMPOSSIBLE" AND NOT "ABSOLUTELY IMPOSSIBLE" IS BECAUSE OF THE LEGEND SURROUNDING THE BRAM THE GREAT. HIS FEAT OF SHATTERING THE "BLUE EGGSHELL," A MAGICAL BARRIER THOUGHT TO BE UNBREAKABLE, WAS JUST AS EXTRAORDINARY AND ANOMALOUS AS THE PHILOSOPHER'S STONE ITSELF. IT DEFIES THE NATURAL LAWS, MUCH LIKE THE LIMITLESS POWER DRAWN FROM THE STONE. IT'S THE KIND OF FEAT THAT SHOULDN'T BE POSSIBLE; AND YET, IT HAPPENED.
BUT THAT'S NOT THE WORST OF IT.
"THE FOURTH AND MOST DANGEROUS THREAT," BASTIAN CONTINUED, HIS VOICE DROPPING SLIGHTLY, "ARE THE POWERFUL ARTIFACTS WIELDED BY THE SAGE AND HIS SONS. THE PHILOSOPHER'S STONES USED BY ORDINARY GRAND WIZARDS ARE, IN FACT, INFERIOR. THE REAL DANGER LIES IN THE HIGH-QUALITY STONES THAT HAVE BEEN METICULOUSLY PURIFIED AND REFINED. THESE ARE USED TO FORGE ARTIFACTS OF IMMENSE POWER, AND THE MOST FEARED AMONG THEM IS THE SOUL-DRAINING CROWN, AN ARTIFACT THAT IS SEEN AS THE SYMBOL OF THE ELVEN ROYAL FAMILY."
THE ROOM GREW EVEN QUIETER, IF THAT WERE POSSIBLE. BASTIAN COULD FEEL THEIR TENSION RISING AS THEY HUNG ON HIS EVERY WORD.
"IT'S SAID THAT THIS CROWN, AND A FEW OTHER POWERFUL RELICS, HOLD THE DEEPEST MAGICAL SECRETS OF THE ELVES. THEY DON'T JUST DRAW FROM THE PHILOSOPHER'S STONE; THEY STORE THE INFINITE MAGIC WITHIN, MAKING THEM NEARLY INVINCIBLE. THESE ARTIFACTS ARE THE ELVES' GREATEST WEAPONS, AND THEY'RE WHAT GIVE THEM THE AUDACITY TO CHALLENGE THE VERY THRONES OF THE GODS."
SNOW OWL HAD SPOKEN OF ONLY A HANDFUL OF THESE ARTIFACTS, BUT EACH ONE WAS MORE TERRIFYING THAN THE LAST. THEY WERE THE FOUNDATION UPON WHICH THE ELVES BUILT THEIR EMPIRE, A SAFEGUARD SHOULD THEY EVER BE FORCED TO UNLEASH THEIR FULL MIGHT. AND THAT, BASTIAN REALIZED, WAS THE GREATEST THREAT OF ALL.
"THE ELVES," HE WENT ON, HIS VOICE STEADY, "AREN'T EVEN USING THEIR FULL STRENGTH RIGHT NOW. THE SO-CALLED 'GODS OF THE NEW WORLD' HAVEN'T ENTERED THE BATTLEFIELD. THEY SEE NO NEED. THE ELVES THINK THEY HAVE THE UPPER HAND, AND AS LONG AS THINGS CONTINUE TO GO THEIR WAY, THESE GODS WILL STAY ON THE SIDELINES. BUT IF THE TIDE TURNS AGAINST THEM, IF THE WAR BEGINS TO LOOK LESS FAVORABLE, THOSE GODS WILL ENTER THE FRAY, AND WE MUST BE READY WHEN THEY DO."
AT THIS, THE LEADERS IN THE ROOM EXCHANGED GLANCES. THEIR FACES REMAINED COMPOSED, CALM EVEN, BUT THERE WAS A SUBTLE SHIFT. THEY WERE WEIGHING HIS WORDS, CALCULATING THE IMPLICATIONS. THOUGH THEY DID NOT SEEM COMPLETELY CAUGHT OFF GUARD, THEIR SILENCE SPOKE VOLUMES.
BASTIAN FELT A SLIGHT SENSE OF RELIEF. PERHAPS THE COALITION WAS NOT AS UNPREPARED AS HE HAD FEARED. THEY MIGHT NOT HAVE KNOWN THE FULL DETAILS, BUT THEY WEREN'T ENTIRELY IN THE DARK EITHER.
THE SECRETS BASTIAN HAD JUST SHARED WERE, AFTER ALL, KNOWN TO A FEW AMONG THE ELVES, HIGH-RANKING NOBLES AND ALCHEMISTS MOSTLY. EVEN THE LEADERS OF THE COALITION HAD HEARD WHISPERS OVER THE YEARS. THEY KNEW THE ELVES HAD BEEN ADVANCING RAPIDLY, PUSHING OUT NEW INVENTIONS WITH UNSETTLING SPEED. WHAT THEY HADN'T FULLY GRASPED WAS THE IMPORTANCE OF THE PHILOSOPHER'S STONE ITSELF, A SECRET THAT HAD BEEN TIGHTLY HELD UNTIL THE WAR FORCED IT INTO THE OPEN. NOW, THE PHILOSOPHER'S STONE WAS AT THE HEART OF EVERY CONFLICT, ITS POWER SPREAD THROUGHOUT THE ELVEN RANKS.
EVEN WITHOUT BASTIAN'S INTEL, IT WAS ONLY A MATTER OF TIME BEFORE THE COALITION FORCES WOULD HAVE PIECED IT ALL TOGETHER.
BUT BASTIAN WASN'T DONE. WHAT HE HAD DISCOVERED NEXT WAS THE REAL PRIZE OF HIS MISSION.
"THE SOUL-DRAINING TOWERS," HE BEGAN AGAIN, "OR WHAT THE ELVES CALL THE ALCHEMICAL TOWERS, ARE SPREAD THROUGHOUT THE WORLD. THEY'RE NOT ONLY PULLING MAGIC AND LIFE FORCE FROM THE EARTH, BUT THEY'RE ALSO THE PLACES WHERE PHILOSOPHER'S STONE ORE IS PROCESSED INTO PHILOSOPHER'S STONES. AND MORE IMPORTANTLY, THERE'S A CENTRAL CONTROL SYSTEM, A MASTER TOWER, IF YOU WILL, THAT OVERSEES ALL OF THIS. IT'S ALSO WHERE THE PHILOSOPHER'S STONES ARE STORED BEFORE BEING DISTRIBUTED TO THE ELVES."
THE ROOM STIRRED AT THIS. EVERYONE THERE KNEW WHAT THIS MEANT.
"THIS IS THE KEY TO EVERYTHING," BASTIAN SAID, LEANING FORWARD SLIGHTLY, EMPHASIZING THE POINT. "AS LONG AS THEY CAN PRODUCE MORE PHILOSOPHER'S STONES, THE ELVES WON'T STOP. THEIR POWER IS PRACTICALLY INFINITE. THE ONLY WAY TO END THIS WAR IS TO DESTROY THE MAIN TOWER AND WIPE OUT THEIR STOCKPILE OF PHILOSOPHER'S STONES."
A TENSE SILENCE FOLLOWED. THEN, FINALLY, ONE OF THE LEADERS SPOKE. "WHERE IS IT?"
BASTIAN SHOOK HIS HEAD SLOWLY. "I DON'T KNOW. NO ONE DOES, NOT EXACTLY. EVEN AMONG THE ELVES, ONLY A SELECT FEW ARE PRIVY TO THAT INFORMATION. SNOW OWL TOLD ME HE HAD NO IDEA."
"BUT," BASTIAN ADDED, HIS TONE SHIFTING, "SNOW OWL DID MENTION SOMEONE WHO MIGHT KNOW. SOMEONE EASIER TO REACH."
THE GIANT CHIEF, WHO HAD REMAINED SILENT UNTIL NOW, RAISED AN EYEBROW. "SCORMETHEUS?" HE ASKED, THE NAME HEAVY WITH SKEPTICISM.
BASTIAN NODDED. "YES. THE ELF SCORMETHEUS. IF ANYONE KNOWS WHERE THE MAIN TOWER IS, IT'S HIM."
"SCORMETHEUS."
GWENITH'S VOICE RANG OUT WITH CERTAINTY, LEAVING NO ROOM FOR DOUBT.
BASTIAN BLINKED, A LITTLE TAKEN ABACK. IT SEEMED THIS "FORMER CROWN PRINCE" WAS MORE INFAMOUS THAN HE HAD REALIZED. THE NAME ALONE HAD BEEN ENOUGH TO SHIFT THE CONVERSATION'S FOCUS ENTIRELY.
SCORMETHEUS, THE ELDEST SON OF THE SAGE, WAS THEORETICALLY THE FIRST IN LINE TO INHERIT THE THRONE OF THE ELVEN KINGDOM. BUT IN REALITY, THAT POSSIBILITY WAS NOTHING MORE THAN A FAR-OFF DREAM. THE SAGE, AFTER ALL, WAS CONSIDERED NEARLY IMMORTAL, MORE GOD THAN RULER. AS A RESULT, MANY REFERRED TO SCORMETHEUS AS THE "ETERNAL HEIR," A TITLE GIVEN WITH NO SMALL AMOUNT OF MOCKERY.
IN HIS YOUTH, SCORMETHEUS HAD BEEN HELD IN HIGH REGARD. HIS REPUTATION WAS THAT OF A PROMISING AND NOBLE FIGURE. BUT THINGS HAD CHANGED. WORD SPREAD THAT THE SAGE FAVORED HIS YOUNGER BROTHER, JORDAN, THE SECOND SON. HINTS FROM THE SAGE HIMSELF SUGGESTED THAT JORDAN WOULD BE THE ONE TO INHERIT THE THRONE, NOT SCORMETHEUS. THIS SHIFT IN FAVOR HAD DONE MORE THAN BRUISE SCORMETHEUS'S EGO; IT HAD BROKEN SOMETHING INSIDE HIM.
FROM THEN ON, HE BEGAN TO SPIRAL. LUST, INDULGENCE IN WINE, AND AN INSATIABLE GREED FOR WEALTH, ALL THE VICES THAT A FUTURE RULER SHOULD SHUN, SCORMETHEUS EMBRACED. HIS ONCE-NOBLE REPUTATION TARNISHED, AND THE SAGE'S INFLUENCE NO LONGER SEEMED ENOUGH TO SUPPRESS THESE BEHAVIORS. THE "ETERNAL HEIR" HAD BECOME A JOKE, A SHADOW OF HIS FORMER SELF.
AND THE LATEST SCANDAL? IT WAS WELL KNOWN AMONG THE ELVES, AND NOW EVEN BEYOND THEIR BORDERS. THE SAGE HAD PASSED DOWN THE "SOUL-DRAINING CROWN," THE SYMBOL OF ROYAL POWER, TO JORDAN. THIS HAD DRIVEN SCORMETHEUS INTO A FIT OF DEBAUCHERY, SO EXTREME THAT HE DISAPPEARED FOR TWO WEEKS, DROWNING IN WINE AND SHAME. IT HAD BEEN SUCH AN EMBARRASSMENT THAT THE SAGE HIMSELF HAD TO INTERVENE, DRAGGING HIS ELDEST SON FROM THE DEPTHS OF HIS DISGRACE.
IT WAS THIS VERY STORY, SO SPECIFIC, SO RECENT, THAT CONVINCED BASTIAN THAT SNOW OWL WAS INDEED OF ELVEN ORIGIN. NO OUTSIDER COULD KNOW SUCH INTIMATE DETAILS UNLESS THEY HAD A DIRECT CONNECTION TO THE ELVES.