ULTRAMagic Shadowland - Chapter 14
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A couple of days had passed since Aureolus had returned, despite no one actually being aware of this. He was blazing through his new grimoire, eager to learn all about hex magic. Naturally he got so engrossed in his studies that he forgot to leave his room. Occasionally someone would come to check on him with a knock and he would reply through the locked door. While all of this was happening, the plans to demolish The Eternal Church were underway. Aureolus remained unaware of this up until Dunja paid him one last visit.
“Hey, Sweetie? I know you’re busy studying, but we need your help. It’s an all hands on deck situation…”
Aureolus looked up from his work and finally opened the door. His eyes were slightly glazed and his hair was unkempt. “What’s the matter?” he asked with a yawn.
“Wow…” Dunja remarked at all the work she could see. “What are you wearing?”
“Oh, this? It’s just something I got from a friend…” He was not sure if he wanted to say who yet.
“Okay then… May I come in? I don’t want to say what I have to say out in the open.”
He welcomed her in. “Sure, just let me tidy up a little first…”
“Hey, where’d that nice cape come from? Was that because of your ULTRAMagic?”
Aureolus lifted the cape up for a second, with it shimmering like the starry void of space. “Oh yeah, I thought it would be cool to have it out, as it makes me look like a comic book hero.”
Dunja shut the door behind her and turned around to see how much of a mess the room was. Books, papers, and cards were everywhere. Her nephew was quick to organize everything, going back and forth between the desk and the bookshelf. Picking up one of the cards quickly gave Dunja an idea of what had happened. They were all too familiar to her. Furthermore, the grimoire over on the desk was a dead giveaway.
“So, where’d you get these cool cards from?” Dunja questioned.
“Oh, um, same friend…”
“Mind telling me who this friend is?” Aureolus was hesitant, so she figured she would just say it. “Dear, I’ve seen these cards before. Also Andelin used that exact book in the past.”
Aureolus was shocked. “Really now? Okay; I talked to Delphine, the Discordant God of Desire the other day and she gave me these cards… and the armor.”
Dunja sighed, but was proud of him at the same time. “Be careful, sweetie. I trust Delphine, but there’s a lot of entities I don’t know.” She paused. “You know? This makes me wonder if this isn't connected to Andelin’s odd behavior… Either way, make sure you study hard. That is powerful magic.”
“Don’t worry, Aunt Dunja. I’m reading the book carefully! So, what’s going on that’s so important?”
Dunja took a seat and explained that Barna had begun moving explosives to The Eternal Church. Sten was not happy about this, but conceded once he realized Barna was dead set on it. The first odd occurrence was that things were going smoothly… Cultists were few and far between, with turncoats helping them out. Something had to have happened behind the scenes and Dunja had a few ideas on what it was.
“My main idea is that Gratiana may have finally turned her back on Milosh.”
“What makes you say that?” Aureolus wondered. “Awesome if she did.”
“The main two men helping us out worked closely with her in the past.”
The second oddity was hard to explain. Things were not going wrong, rather they were being interfered with. Dunja described a bunch of instances and insinuated it was all Andelin’s doing. Why was a whole other matter. She was not trying to stop them, but there was clear intent behind her actions. And of course she was being cryptic and leaving riddles everywhere.
“You know? A lot of that sounds like what I’ve been studying” Aureolus observed. “Perhaps I can help out more than we think…”
Dunja got up and headed for the door. “Follow me then. Things are a bit hectic at Strike Street.”
Despite what the queen had described, the walk to the street was fairly normal. The citizenry were all over the place, going about their business. Shops and roads were slowly returning to the activity they once saw. Some people even stopped to compliment Aureolus on how dashing he looked in his cape and armor. And while they were still leery towards Dunja, they seemed to be getting used to her. Reaching their destination, the two saw Barna and Albrecht moving crates around. Aureolus was about to ask what was wrong, but then he saw the crates change color and move on their own.
Barna could be seen getting more and more frustrated. “Argh! Stupid colors! Red should go with red, blue should go with blue, and yellow should go with yellow! Why do they keep moving away from each other?!” he cried. This nonsense was driving him mad.
“Maybe it’s a puzzle we need to solve?” Albrecht suggested. “I mean, we nearly had that one attempt where they turned different colors…”
“Boy, we don't have time for fun and games. This is serious business.”
“Well maybe we need to make time and relax a bit then. I’m willing to figure this out, whatever it is.”
Barna groaned. “This is giving me a headache…” he complained as he sat down. “Claudius, can you do me a favor and get me some ice cream? Or something similar?”
“Aspetta, davvero? Since when do you enjoy such desserts this casually?”
“Well I don’t think an ale is going to help me right now…”
Dunja laughed. “I know how you feel, Barna. Don’t forget to add some chocolate sauce. Claudius.”
“Su di essa” he replied. Fortunately there was a parlor restaurant within walking distance.
“Hey, dad!” Aureolus said as he hugged Barna.
“Hey, son. Finally out of your room I see… where’d you get this suit from?”
“A new friend. So what’s wrong?”
Albrecht tried to solve the puzzle again, but failed and stepped away. “We need to get these crates all sorted, but these weird colors appeared and they don’t want to stay put. I think there’s a specific solution here, given that the tenth crate is a unique color.”
Aureolus looked around. There were nine crates in groups of three, one for each primary color. The last one was green. “Hmm… maybe the tenth crate is a hint…”
Claudius returned with Barna’s ice cream while Aureolus got to work. He had Albrecht put a blue and yellow crate together. The tenth crate dinged and turned orange. Dunja nodded and suggested red and yellow next. Another ding sounded off, with the tenth crate turning purple. Aureolus was enjoying this, so he moved the last two crates himself. A successful chime played, with the special crate turning white. This last hint was a bit more challenging, however.
“White, white…” Albrecht pondered. “How do we get white?” The solution felt so obvious.
“Perhaps try all three, as white is the presence of all colors” Claudius pointed out.
“Alright then…” Albrecht replied as he began pushing. This caused the special crate to give off a triumphant jingle, with a card sticking up out of the seams.
Aureolus took it and inspected the image on it. “A thermometer? What does that mean?”
Barna thought about this as he finished his snack. “Well, I’ve always considered blue to be a cold color and purple is close to it…”
The gears in Aureolus’ head were turning. “Yeah. Albrecht, help me move these crates there…” The final order was ‘Purple,’ ‘Green,’ ‘Orange,’ and ‘White.’ After a moment of silence, the final crate sang a victorious melody. All of them then arranged themselves correctly.
As the group celebrated, Andelin and Gratiana watched from the shadows. “Andelin, outside of problem solving, what was that testing exactly?” the latter asked.
“I’m… not sure. I just thought it was a neat idea Gabriella helped come up with.”
“Fair enough, I suppose. Speaking of her, are those three ready?”
Andelin chuckled. “Yup. They’re all in position. And as for you, my friend, you’re up next…” She handed her a stone that had an eye etched into it. “Go to Hawk street and place this in the fireplace of the rundown house with the red roof, near the wall.”
“So that’s where you hid The Fear…”
“Indeed. Don’t worry, the error in question will only be detectable by other primordials.”
“Other primordials? What do you mean by that?” Gratiana asked.
Andelin chuckled again. “You haven’t noticed Maximus and The Beast of Old running around?”
Gratiana frowned. “No, I mean how do they play into all of this?”
“Well, The Fear has been getting pretty nervous as of late. He tolerates me, but he only wants to see Milosh or other primordials at the moment…”
“He still thinks Milosh is his best friend?”
“Unfortunately. Ideally I want Maximus to talk some sense into him…”
With Andelin advancing the next part of the plan, Gratiana bid her friend farewell and took off. She stuck to the alleys and back streets, careful not to be seen. The abandoned building she arrived at was unassuming despite the color of the roof. Inside was dusty and dark, suffering ages of neglect. The floors creaked and furniture was tipped over. Feeling like she was being watched, Gratiana quickly walked over to the fireplace and did what Andelin had instructed. A black and white flame that gave no smoke sprouted from the old ashes.
Hearing a creak that was not hers, Gratiana turned around, only to be startled by a man in the doorway. “Gummi! Goodness, I thought you were Milosh for a second…”
He shook his head. “Looks like you made that coffin for nothing, mom.”
She smiled in return. “I had a change of heart, thanks to Andelin and Weaver.”
Gummi rested his arm on the mantle of the fireplace. “So Andelin hid him in my place…”
Gratiana looked around again, the realization dawning on her. “This is where you’ve been hiding out when not on duty?” Her son nodded. “My goodness, boy. You could’ve at least asked me or Andelin to touch this place up for you. It’s utterly filthy.”
He chuckled as he dragged his finger along the dusty surface and brushed it off on his pants. “Yeah, but I wanted this place to be inconspicuous. Besides, I stick to the upstairs.” Gummi paused for a moment, something weighing on his mind. “Mom? Why don’t we just go and take care of Milosh right now? I wouldn’t even have to poison him: You could just go…” He ran his finger cleanly across his neck. “... like that.”
She thought about it, as it was incredibly tempting. “As much as I would love to do so, blowing up the church means a lot to Barna. He needs this victory after all the nonsense Milosh has put him through. It may be a bit barbaric, but I am in no position to argue against his convictions.”
“Fair enough. I’d like Milosh dead now, but utterly destroying him and what he stood for would be pretty nice.”
“Implying that blithering fool stood for something in the first place…”
They both laughed. “Oh gee, what is it this week? Is he the god emperor of man this time? Some random god… what was it again? The Tyrant God?” Gummi mocked.
“He was considering the former at one point” Gratiana pointed out.
“Real quickly: Barna is such a great person. I would’ve loved for him to be my father.”
“Agreed… Huh, now that I think about it, he is quite the man…”
Gummi led his mother upstairs where things were a lot cleaner. There were two bedrooms and a study down a long hall. The study was lined with books and devices, all looking like they were collected for a purpose. While Gummi straightened up his mess, Gratiana went over to his desk. Several books regarding medicine and biology were there. On top of one was a letter signed by Claudius Leonardo Adriano Alfieri. This confirmed her suspicions about his plans.
The conversation the two had had no rhyme or reason. Aside from Andelin’s plans, Gratiana and Gummi just talked. it legitimately made them feel like a mother and son. After some jokes at the cult’s expense, Gratiana decided to clue Gummi in on her plans. He was all for them. Stabbing Milosh in the back was music to his ears and the idea of wanting to start over made him truly happy. Of course all of that was easier said than done, but Gummi had some ideas and the determination to see them through. He promised they would both leave Shadowland in one piece and end Milosh (one way or another).
Next: Chapter 15
ULTRAMagic Alternate © 2022 William Ford II (ChaoticTempleKnight)
Master Post - Patreon
A couple of days had passed since Aureolus had returned, despite no one actually being aware of this. He was blazing through his new grimoire, eager to learn all about hex magic. Naturally he got so engrossed in his studies that he forgot to leave his room. Occasionally someone would come to check on him with a knock and he would reply through the locked door. While all of this was happening, the plans to demolish The Eternal Church were underway. Aureolus remained unaware of this up until Dunja paid him one last visit.
“Hey, Sweetie? I know you’re busy studying, but we need your help. It’s an all hands on deck situation…”
Aureolus looked up from his work and finally opened the door. His eyes were slightly glazed and his hair was unkempt. “What’s the matter?” he asked with a yawn.
“Wow…” Dunja remarked at all the work she could see. “What are you wearing?”
“Oh, this? It’s just something I got from a friend…” He was not sure if he wanted to say who yet.
“Okay then… May I come in? I don’t want to say what I have to say out in the open.”
He welcomed her in. “Sure, just let me tidy up a little first…”
“Hey, where’d that nice cape come from? Was that because of your ULTRAMagic?”
Aureolus lifted the cape up for a second, with it shimmering like the starry void of space. “Oh yeah, I thought it would be cool to have it out, as it makes me look like a comic book hero.”
Dunja shut the door behind her and turned around to see how much of a mess the room was. Books, papers, and cards were everywhere. Her nephew was quick to organize everything, going back and forth between the desk and the bookshelf. Picking up one of the cards quickly gave Dunja an idea of what had happened. They were all too familiar to her. Furthermore, the grimoire over on the desk was a dead giveaway.
“So, where’d you get these cool cards from?” Dunja questioned.
“Oh, um, same friend…”
“Mind telling me who this friend is?” Aureolus was hesitant, so she figured she would just say it. “Dear, I’ve seen these cards before. Also Andelin used that exact book in the past.”
Aureolus was shocked. “Really now? Okay; I talked to Delphine, the Discordant God of Desire the other day and she gave me these cards… and the armor.”
Dunja sighed, but was proud of him at the same time. “Be careful, sweetie. I trust Delphine, but there’s a lot of entities I don’t know.” She paused. “You know? This makes me wonder if this isn't connected to Andelin’s odd behavior… Either way, make sure you study hard. That is powerful magic.”
“Don’t worry, Aunt Dunja. I’m reading the book carefully! So, what’s going on that’s so important?”
Dunja took a seat and explained that Barna had begun moving explosives to The Eternal Church. Sten was not happy about this, but conceded once he realized Barna was dead set on it. The first odd occurrence was that things were going smoothly… Cultists were few and far between, with turncoats helping them out. Something had to have happened behind the scenes and Dunja had a few ideas on what it was.
“My main idea is that Gratiana may have finally turned her back on Milosh.”
“What makes you say that?” Aureolus wondered. “Awesome if she did.”
“The main two men helping us out worked closely with her in the past.”
The second oddity was hard to explain. Things were not going wrong, rather they were being interfered with. Dunja described a bunch of instances and insinuated it was all Andelin’s doing. Why was a whole other matter. She was not trying to stop them, but there was clear intent behind her actions. And of course she was being cryptic and leaving riddles everywhere.
“You know? A lot of that sounds like what I’ve been studying” Aureolus observed. “Perhaps I can help out more than we think…”
Dunja got up and headed for the door. “Follow me then. Things are a bit hectic at Strike Street.”
Despite what the queen had described, the walk to the street was fairly normal. The citizenry were all over the place, going about their business. Shops and roads were slowly returning to the activity they once saw. Some people even stopped to compliment Aureolus on how dashing he looked in his cape and armor. And while they were still leery towards Dunja, they seemed to be getting used to her. Reaching their destination, the two saw Barna and Albrecht moving crates around. Aureolus was about to ask what was wrong, but then he saw the crates change color and move on their own.
Barna could be seen getting more and more frustrated. “Argh! Stupid colors! Red should go with red, blue should go with blue, and yellow should go with yellow! Why do they keep moving away from each other?!” he cried. This nonsense was driving him mad.
“Maybe it’s a puzzle we need to solve?” Albrecht suggested. “I mean, we nearly had that one attempt where they turned different colors…”
“Boy, we don't have time for fun and games. This is serious business.”
“Well maybe we need to make time and relax a bit then. I’m willing to figure this out, whatever it is.”
Barna groaned. “This is giving me a headache…” he complained as he sat down. “Claudius, can you do me a favor and get me some ice cream? Or something similar?”
“Aspetta, davvero? Since when do you enjoy such desserts this casually?”
“Well I don’t think an ale is going to help me right now…”
Dunja laughed. “I know how you feel, Barna. Don’t forget to add some chocolate sauce. Claudius.”
“Su di essa” he replied. Fortunately there was a parlor restaurant within walking distance.
“Hey, dad!” Aureolus said as he hugged Barna.
“Hey, son. Finally out of your room I see… where’d you get this suit from?”
“A new friend. So what’s wrong?”
Albrecht tried to solve the puzzle again, but failed and stepped away. “We need to get these crates all sorted, but these weird colors appeared and they don’t want to stay put. I think there’s a specific solution here, given that the tenth crate is a unique color.”
Aureolus looked around. There were nine crates in groups of three, one for each primary color. The last one was green. “Hmm… maybe the tenth crate is a hint…”
Claudius returned with Barna’s ice cream while Aureolus got to work. He had Albrecht put a blue and yellow crate together. The tenth crate dinged and turned orange. Dunja nodded and suggested red and yellow next. Another ding sounded off, with the tenth crate turning purple. Aureolus was enjoying this, so he moved the last two crates himself. A successful chime played, with the special crate turning white. This last hint was a bit more challenging, however.
“White, white…” Albrecht pondered. “How do we get white?” The solution felt so obvious.
“Perhaps try all three, as white is the presence of all colors” Claudius pointed out.
“Alright then…” Albrecht replied as he began pushing. This caused the special crate to give off a triumphant jingle, with a card sticking up out of the seams.
Aureolus took it and inspected the image on it. “A thermometer? What does that mean?”
Barna thought about this as he finished his snack. “Well, I’ve always considered blue to be a cold color and purple is close to it…”
The gears in Aureolus’ head were turning. “Yeah. Albrecht, help me move these crates there…” The final order was ‘Purple,’ ‘Green,’ ‘Orange,’ and ‘White.’ After a moment of silence, the final crate sang a victorious melody. All of them then arranged themselves correctly.
As the group celebrated, Andelin and Gratiana watched from the shadows. “Andelin, outside of problem solving, what was that testing exactly?” the latter asked.
“I’m… not sure. I just thought it was a neat idea Gabriella helped come up with.”
“Fair enough, I suppose. Speaking of her, are those three ready?”
Andelin chuckled. “Yup. They’re all in position. And as for you, my friend, you’re up next…” She handed her a stone that had an eye etched into it. “Go to Hawk street and place this in the fireplace of the rundown house with the red roof, near the wall.”
“So that’s where you hid The Fear…”
“Indeed. Don’t worry, the error in question will only be detectable by other primordials.”
“Other primordials? What do you mean by that?” Gratiana asked.
Andelin chuckled again. “You haven’t noticed Maximus and The Beast of Old running around?”
Gratiana frowned. “No, I mean how do they play into all of this?”
“Well, The Fear has been getting pretty nervous as of late. He tolerates me, but he only wants to see Milosh or other primordials at the moment…”
“He still thinks Milosh is his best friend?”
“Unfortunately. Ideally I want Maximus to talk some sense into him…”
With Andelin advancing the next part of the plan, Gratiana bid her friend farewell and took off. She stuck to the alleys and back streets, careful not to be seen. The abandoned building she arrived at was unassuming despite the color of the roof. Inside was dusty and dark, suffering ages of neglect. The floors creaked and furniture was tipped over. Feeling like she was being watched, Gratiana quickly walked over to the fireplace and did what Andelin had instructed. A black and white flame that gave no smoke sprouted from the old ashes.
Hearing a creak that was not hers, Gratiana turned around, only to be startled by a man in the doorway. “Gummi! Goodness, I thought you were Milosh for a second…”
He shook his head. “Looks like you made that coffin for nothing, mom.”
She smiled in return. “I had a change of heart, thanks to Andelin and Weaver.”
Gummi rested his arm on the mantle of the fireplace. “So Andelin hid him in my place…”
Gratiana looked around again, the realization dawning on her. “This is where you’ve been hiding out when not on duty?” Her son nodded. “My goodness, boy. You could’ve at least asked me or Andelin to touch this place up for you. It’s utterly filthy.”
He chuckled as he dragged his finger along the dusty surface and brushed it off on his pants. “Yeah, but I wanted this place to be inconspicuous. Besides, I stick to the upstairs.” Gummi paused for a moment, something weighing on his mind. “Mom? Why don’t we just go and take care of Milosh right now? I wouldn’t even have to poison him: You could just go…” He ran his finger cleanly across his neck. “... like that.”
She thought about it, as it was incredibly tempting. “As much as I would love to do so, blowing up the church means a lot to Barna. He needs this victory after all the nonsense Milosh has put him through. It may be a bit barbaric, but I am in no position to argue against his convictions.”
“Fair enough. I’d like Milosh dead now, but utterly destroying him and what he stood for would be pretty nice.”
“Implying that blithering fool stood for something in the first place…”
They both laughed. “Oh gee, what is it this week? Is he the god emperor of man this time? Some random god… what was it again? The Tyrant God?” Gummi mocked.
“He was considering the former at one point” Gratiana pointed out.
“Real quickly: Barna is such a great person. I would’ve loved for him to be my father.”
“Agreed… Huh, now that I think about it, he is quite the man…”
Gummi led his mother upstairs where things were a lot cleaner. There were two bedrooms and a study down a long hall. The study was lined with books and devices, all looking like they were collected for a purpose. While Gummi straightened up his mess, Gratiana went over to his desk. Several books regarding medicine and biology were there. On top of one was a letter signed by Claudius Leonardo Adriano Alfieri. This confirmed her suspicions about his plans.
The conversation the two had had no rhyme or reason. Aside from Andelin’s plans, Gratiana and Gummi just talked. it legitimately made them feel like a mother and son. After some jokes at the cult’s expense, Gratiana decided to clue Gummi in on her plans. He was all for them. Stabbing Milosh in the back was music to his ears and the idea of wanting to start over made him truly happy. Of course all of that was easier said than done, but Gummi had some ideas and the determination to see them through. He promised they would both leave Shadowland in one piece and end Milosh (one way or another).
Next: Chapter 15
ULTRAMagic Alternate © 2022 William Ford II (ChaoticTempleKnight)
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