The Axiomyte

Twelfth day of Solae, 1485
 
Last night was the most restful night I have had in years… since the forests of Alcarin, if I am being completely honest. I am not used to partaking in the sleep of humans, but it can be nice… the slow awakening to the morning light, wrapped in strong arms… well, it would have been nicer, had Meriwald not decided to ruin it by screaming in Grimaldus’ ear.
 
I don’t know what has gotten into him… after all, Meriwald is the one who encouraged me to come east in the first place. Apparently now though, there is some tension between him and Grimaldus… which doesn’t make sense, considering that Meriwald teasingly told me back in Crassard, and again in Runestone, that he knew what was going to happen; even when I was merely considering the possibility. Is it some weird, misplaced jealousy? Does he miss being the only one (aside from Ravlor and Filandrel) who I would confide in? I don’t understand it… I will have to speak with him later, when I get the chance… I cannot have him growing to resent me, and I don’t want to see him resent Grimaldus… or any of the others, for that matter. Although, it seems to be strictly between him and Grimaldus. I don’t know. I hope it blows over. Meriwald can be such a moody little shit sometimes, but I do love him dearly.
 
Whatever the case may be, I was struck by the sheer beauty of the vista that greeted me out the window. The morning sunlight sparkled off the sea, and the city stretched out to meet it. The only thing marring the entire picture was the sandstorm off in the distance, and the floating castle… wait… yes, I suppose I should mention, the foppish gnome, Hogar, is here, along with his floating castle. Just when I was starting to relax, to feel a bit of a reprieve from the stressors that have plagued my life for the past year… Hogar. Fuck.
 
I dressed, relieved to find that none of my things had been ruined by the unexpected tumble into the bath last night. Grimaldus donned a long tunic, some eastern design that I find rather pleasing. For humans, these easterners certainly know how to clothe a man aesthetically. As we prepared to depart the room, Grimaldus warned me that this city is far bigger than Runestone, and that there will be many more eyes watching our every move here. I thought he was warning me, which I suppose he was, but then he said. “What I want to know is why, when I have passed by thousands of eyes, I have only ever been lost in yours.” Wow.
 
We joined the others in the main room of Hasim’s suite. Inira was cooking. I don’t know why she didn’t just have one of the servants bring food… but then again… I was completely unaware of the fact that she can apparently cook. One would have thought that she would have cooked at some point along our travels together, but no… for some reason she decided to wait until now, when we are in an establishment that has people employed for their cooking skills. I don’t understand, but then again, I didn’t put much thought into it. Hasim handed Grimaldus a cup of coffee - that dark, sludgy liquid. I asked for a cup, I admit that I was rather curious, and everyone else seemed to enjoy it well enough.
 
I took a sip. It has a bitter, earthy flavor, not unpleasant, but wholly not something that I am likely to seek out in the future. Grimaldus must have noticed my expression, for he handed me a date and said that the bitterness of the coffee should be accompanied by something sweet. As I ate the fruit, I noticed the others looking at us strangely. Inira’s eyes held a gleam of something… triumph? Curiosity? Satisfaction? I don’t know. Nor do I particularly care at the moment. Secilia was the only person who seemed nonchalant… she was reading a book and using a mage hand spell to bring her food to her mouth, so as not to have to take her hands from her book. I must say… that is the most Elvish thing I have seen her do to date… and I felt a pang in my chest, a slight homesickness that I quickly suppressed.
 
We ate breakfast, Inira’s eggs were surprisingly not bad… Grimaldus seemed rather annoyed that she hasn’t offered to cook for us before this, but I think he just complains about his dried meat rations. If he would have tried some of the ones I offered, he might feel differently about trail rations… but then again, I too am a little taken aback by Inira keeping this skill a secret all this time. But, there are far more important things to worry about.
 
Dekar asked Grimaldus to cut his arm off and then magically restore it. What the fuck?! I don’t know what his problem is. I know that his crippled arm has been causing him issues and he doesn’t feel as though he is up to his full potential, but cutting it off? And then preserving it? What the fuck? Dekar says that he is going to cast Gentle Repose on his arm, until he can take it to the axiomyte, as he wants to use his own flesh and bone to create magical artifacts, having the blood of a dragon and all… I don’t think he understands that magic doesn’t work like that. But, there wasn’t anything I was able to do to dissuade any of the men (for Hasim and Grimaldus both considered it somewhat of a lark).
 
Hasim promptly hacked Dekar’s arm off with the crystal glaive, and Grimaldus cauterized the wound with his mace that he’d been sitting in the fire. A short while later, Dekar’s arm regrew, and he opened his eye. He’s been blind in the one eye for so long, and apparently Grimaldus’ spell extended the regenerative properties to his eye. Dekar flexed his arm, and as much as I give them a hard time for their rash action… I have to admit, he is much better off like this. It makes me almost wish that I’d been there with Ravlor when his eyes were first restored to him… to see the look upon his face when he could see and move about without pain again…
 
After Dekar’s restoration, we headed across the city to meet with the axiomyte. His tower was actually in the ocean, with no bridge connecting to the shore. The tower was a sheer face, much like the one that Vlatrossi Melkinov uses, although this one was more aesthetic. About a hundred feet up, a small platform extended out, the single protrusion marring the smooth exterior. The subtlety of what the axiomyte had done was not lost on me… he arranged his tower so as to be unapproachable to almost anyone without the use of magic. Clever.
 
Dimension door makes such situations simply solved… except for Dekar. I don’t know why, but he decided to climb the smooth surface rather than be transported up by Inira. Once on the platform, we were met by a handleless door, and an inscription that read “speak knock to enter”. So… I spoke the words of a knock spell, and the door swung open.
 
A wisp met us and introduced himself as Peck. He conversed with the party, I honestly wasn’t paying that much attention to exactly what was said… Hasim wanted to sell some magical items, and a couple of the others wanted to buy magical items. Me, personally? I wanted to meet the axiomyte for my own reasons… I greatly desired to speak with him, and hoped that he would be able to tell me more of the history of our people, history that I hoped wouldn’t be colored by Filandrel’s personal agenda. If what they say is true, one such as this axiomyte has removed themselves from Elven society and no longer cares for the particulars of politics and such. If what they say is true, all he cares about is the driving force of his craft… I hope that is true, but I also hope that it isn’t so much so the case that he won’t speak to me and answer my questions…
 
“Peck” led us down the spiraling tower into its depths. I could hear the sound of hammering getting louder with each step we took. Numerous automatons moved around, organizing the myriad of magical artifacts and cleaning everything in sight. A couple of the others inquired about some of the magical artifacts, and Peck informed us that the master prefers to showcase his artifacts personally. Yes. I would finally get to meet this ancient elf.
 
After a time, wisps swirled in our mists, materializing into an elf. I don’t know what I was expecting, exactly… maybe someone akin to Filandrel? But definitely not who appeared before us. This is obviously an elf who is accustomed to working over a forge. . Glowing tattoos ring his muscled arms, and he wears his black, shoulder length hair tied back away from his face. Sweat was beading his brow as he cleaned soot off his hands. “I have never met you before. Names?” He said by way of greeting. Sweat was beading his brow as he cleaned soot off his hands. “I have never met you before. Names?” He said by way of greeting.
 
Everyone had their own questions for him… he explained the properties of his different magical artifacts for sale. Then Dekar asked him about using his arm to create a magical weapon. The axiomyte gave a far better explanation as to why that will not work than I can… he explained that when the body parts of dragons are used, they take a bit of the creature’s soul with them. Because Dekar had his arm restored, his severed arm is merely that, a severed arm. No magical properties or components to it, any more than the severed arm of a person without dragon blood…
 
He looked at several of the magical artifacts that we carried with us. He explained to Inira that her clockwork heart (why does she have a clockwork heart?) will allow her to commune with the pale shades of Loec. I hope this doesn’t mean that she will want us to go to Loec… I, for one, am not going to take anyone to Loec. I’m not going to set foot in that cursed land unless there is no choice and it is the last place on earth…
 
Hasim’s questions prompted him to go on about how our people’s ostracization of the drow led to the creation of the drow… he said that there could have been a compromise, and that it could have all been prevented. I asked what he meant and he said that he lived through the schism of the drow. It was a tragedy. When I was surprised, he said that he trusts I am a student of Egig Ero Fa, and they would say that he speaks madness.
 
Then he started talking about how it was odd that I wasn’t at the academy, and if I was in need of funding, I would have gone there… he wanted to know what I am studying that I wouldn’t be seeking their support. He said that I am in the wrong place for a vacation, when Dekar told him such.
 
I asked him then if he has a solution to the Queen of Air and Darkness. He didn’t really have an answer, beyond telling me that there is a war in the First World, with the riders of Baba Yaga trying to vie for revenge for the queen. He didn’t really have an answer, but I felt as though there was so much more he knew… I desperately wanted to ask him some more questions, but I wasn’t inclined to do so with the others there… I decided that I will return alone and speak with him later…
 
Rowan asked him to look at the gem that she carries around her neck. Apparently, it holds the soul of her friend, and she is trying to figure out a way to be able to reincarnate him into a new body. I know it is some esoteric druid magic, but still… the notion unsettles me. Perhaps it is because it cannot be understood fully by those who are not members of a circle.
 
We stayed in the tower for some time, as he altered the magic on Rowan’s stone enough for her to be able to release the spirit of her friend for the ritual. The others had some more magical artifact questions for him. I will return and speak with him later…
 
Back in the city proper, our little group split up to go our separate ways. Inira, Secilia and myself headed towards a place called the Circle of Power… apparently it is a magical tournament series that gains much prestige and prizes to the winner. When we approached the area, we discovered that in two days time, there will be a team event… a reenactment of the Battle of the Lion and the Eagle. It is the qualifier for the main Circle of Power event. The man we spoke with explained that it was not solely a test of magical skill, but also a show. Whoever was the crowd favorite had a far better chance of winning that someone who wasn’t charismatic. Apparently, a few tournaments ago, the winner was a woman who competed in the whole tournament barechested.
 
I hope that my horror wasn’t written all over my face. What kind of a tournament is this? I was ready to turn around and walk away, but then I saw a banner with a picture of the winnings. A pile of gold and gems seemed to attract the eyes of Inira and Secilia… but my gaze was drawn to a very familiar set of robes hanging above the gold… I know those robes, I spent most of my younger years looking at them and they still provoke a sense of calm familiarity, if not accompanied by a sharp pang of hurt… they are an exact match of Filandrel’s robes… Robes of the Archmagi. That is a prize worth competing for…
 
We talked a bit on the way back, Inira and Secilia both seem very confident about their chances in the tournament… I find that I am not feeling the same, at least in terms of the Circle of Power… I told them that I would not duel either of them to the death, if that ends up being a requirement, I will refuse and bow out. If I even decide to compete… honestly, if it is a contest of who is the crowd favorite, they both have a better chance at it than I… if it were strictly skill with magic, I am confident that I could take most competitors, my friends included. But with the showmanship aspect?
 
My magic is not flashy. I am not going to play to a crowd, not even for robes that will make my inevitable confrontation with Filandrel considerably less treacherous… but then again, what am I even thinking? I will probably not see him again for at least a century, and even then, maybe he will have calmed down a bit… come to see the error of his plans? No, that is the wishful thinking of a girl who still doesn’t want to admit that her master, mentor and friend would ever be anything less than what I spent so much of my life viewing him as… I need to stop, lest I go down this rabbithole again, and right now… I am supposed to be on a sabbatical vacation… I came out here to escape Alcarin politics for a time, and here I am, still dwelling on them.
 
Grimaldus is asleep… that man takes more naps than a babe when he gets the chance. The others just returned… I’m going to finish researching this Battle of the Lion and Eagle, and then I’m going to go see the axiomyte again. Alone.
 
I have questions that need answering, and I feel like he is going to be the best source for honest answers…