The Lantern Keeper
In the darkest dungeon of Almas, at the lowest point of the castle proper, a door opened. Chandra pushed hard, striding into the room as if she owned the place. As the stand-in ruler of the Swords of Absalom, it was more or less true.
The chamber was lined by shelves on both sides, one every two or three feet, stretching up to a ceiling ten feet above. They were full of lanterns of varying styles, ages, and designs, lit with flames both mundane and magical. It was a collection unlike any she'd ever seen, but it was not the target of her gaze. It lay at the end of the chamber, where a large oak desk took up the opposite wall, covered with neat stacks of paper and a final, head-sized lantern, lit by a black flame.
An old man sat at the desk, his face turned away from her, his hands pouring over a tome of spells. Chandra waited for him to respond to her presence, but when he did not, she took a step forward. The wizard raised his hand in caution, and Chandra slowed.
???: "Dangerous... To walk so confidently into a wizard's secret chambers is a deadly mistake."
Chandra: "I'm looking for Elijah Verdon. I was told I could find him here." The man nodded, still scrolling his spellbook, tapping one of his shoes on the stone floor. Elijah: "You have. How can I help you, Chandra?" Chandra growled under her breath. As the standing general, the Royal Wizard of Almas owed her fealty. He should have been welcoming her in a gilded ballroom, not ignoring her in some dungeon. But her instincts told her to walk quietly, and so she did. As she spoke, she made a slow path past the shelves, keeping a careful eye for traps and living flames. Chandra: "Kesil is gone..."
Elijah: "I know."
Chandra: "I've been reading some things of his. Old notes and documents. Things he thought were hidden." The wizard stirred at that, his hands pausing for a second, but still didn't turn around. Elijah: "And? What did you find?"
Chandra: "Oh, many things. But it seemed that the Wizard King held you in high regard, Elijah. Which was news to me, his right hand... You, who I've never met."
Elijah: "Not true. You were at the funeral for Trevor and Ramonda. When my regency began."
Chandra: "Don't dodge the question."
Elijah: "You haven't asked me a question." Chandra resisted the urge to grind her teeth. She was so close now... She could reach out and touch him, before his hands would ever leave that book. The beast inside her rumbled, but she kept her peace, and waited. Chandra: "What's in these lanterns?" Elijah nodded, removing his hands from the desk, and swiveled in his chair. His face was lined with wrinkles, his gray hair a wild frame around his icicle eyes. Elijah: "Fire. Elementals. Souls."
Chandra: "He's in here, isn't he?"
Elijah: "He is."
Chandra: "Whatever contingency plan he kept hidden... Is it that black lantern? Is that him?" Elijah looked back at the lantern, his eyes lost in that black flame. This close, Chandra could see the flecks of rainbow light that lined the edges, and the cracks that spiderwebbed across the glass. The wizard shook his head. Elijah: "No... It's a part of him. Something he couldn't let go." Chandra's stomach flipped. She had lived a thousand years, but she would never forget the day that Rovagug left, and Kesil screamed forgiveness. The days that followed, when he drank until he couldn't stand, holding a bundle to his chest like it would fall apart. When he wept in her arms, and said that he'd done the right thing. That he'd doomed Golarion to burn. The lantern would be about the right size... Chandra: "Who are you?" Elijah smiled, raising his hand to touch the lantern, letting his fingertips drag on the glass. When he finally turned back his icicle eyes were gone, replaced by a magnetic yellow, with pupils slit like a dragon. No... Like a serpent. Chandra bowed her head. Chandra: "What's our play?" Kesil chuckled, letting the transmutation spell fade, and stood from the desk. When Chandra looked up again, the lantern was gone. All of the lanterns were gone. Kesil: "I hope you packed something warm."
Chandra: "I'm looking for Elijah Verdon. I was told I could find him here." The man nodded, still scrolling his spellbook, tapping one of his shoes on the stone floor. Elijah: "You have. How can I help you, Chandra?" Chandra growled under her breath. As the standing general, the Royal Wizard of Almas owed her fealty. He should have been welcoming her in a gilded ballroom, not ignoring her in some dungeon. But her instincts told her to walk quietly, and so she did. As she spoke, she made a slow path past the shelves, keeping a careful eye for traps and living flames. Chandra: "Kesil is gone..."
Elijah: "I know."
Chandra: "I've been reading some things of his. Old notes and documents. Things he thought were hidden." The wizard stirred at that, his hands pausing for a second, but still didn't turn around. Elijah: "And? What did you find?"
Chandra: "Oh, many things. But it seemed that the Wizard King held you in high regard, Elijah. Which was news to me, his right hand... You, who I've never met."
Elijah: "Not true. You were at the funeral for Trevor and Ramonda. When my regency began."
Chandra: "Don't dodge the question."
Elijah: "You haven't asked me a question." Chandra resisted the urge to grind her teeth. She was so close now... She could reach out and touch him, before his hands would ever leave that book. The beast inside her rumbled, but she kept her peace, and waited. Chandra: "What's in these lanterns?" Elijah nodded, removing his hands from the desk, and swiveled in his chair. His face was lined with wrinkles, his gray hair a wild frame around his icicle eyes. Elijah: "Fire. Elementals. Souls."
Chandra: "He's in here, isn't he?"
Elijah: "He is."
Chandra: "Whatever contingency plan he kept hidden... Is it that black lantern? Is that him?" Elijah looked back at the lantern, his eyes lost in that black flame. This close, Chandra could see the flecks of rainbow light that lined the edges, and the cracks that spiderwebbed across the glass. The wizard shook his head. Elijah: "No... It's a part of him. Something he couldn't let go." Chandra's stomach flipped. She had lived a thousand years, but she would never forget the day that Rovagug left, and Kesil screamed forgiveness. The days that followed, when he drank until he couldn't stand, holding a bundle to his chest like it would fall apart. When he wept in her arms, and said that he'd done the right thing. That he'd doomed Golarion to burn. The lantern would be about the right size... Chandra: "Who are you?" Elijah smiled, raising his hand to touch the lantern, letting his fingertips drag on the glass. When he finally turned back his icicle eyes were gone, replaced by a magnetic yellow, with pupils slit like a dragon. No... Like a serpent. Chandra bowed her head. Chandra: "What's our play?" Kesil chuckled, letting the transmutation spell fade, and stood from the desk. When Chandra looked up again, the lantern was gone. All of the lanterns were gone. Kesil: "I hope you packed something warm."
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