Kaius simply grunted, his arm thrown around Kenva's shoulder as he awkwardly hopped forwards. Kenva bore his weight without complaint. At their levels she was more than strong enough to do it, although he knew that with their height difference it must have been an awkward endeavour.
Supposedly the Head Researcher’s quarters were just ahead, down a winding hall that jutted off the side of a residential unit that the Castellan had led them to. The automaton had left them as soon as they were there, professing that it had received word the drones who were sent to retrieve a prosthetic frame had run into issues they could not manage without a thinking mind's oversight.
It had asked him for leave to assist them. An automaton nearly three hundred levels higher than his own had asked him. Ridiculous. He’d simply waved the castellan off; being around the thing made his mind hurt. The second it had left, he felt like he could breathe deeply once more.
Making their way to the simplistic steel door, none of them spoke, a sudden exhaustion of their ruined exploration and its abrupt end catching up with all of them.
“Thanks, Kenva,” he said, taking another awkward hopping step — though he’d have been even more off-balance leaning on Porkchop or Ianmus for help. Both the bastards were far too tall.
“Don't mention it, idiot. You'd do the same for me.”
She was right, and if he was being honest, it didn't bother him being forced to rely on his friends. His leg would regrow, and something like this was small in comparison to the sacrifices they made regularly for each other in battle.
A lack of shame didn’t mean he wasn't embarrassed, though.
There was no doubt in his mind the second he was able-bodied once more his team would tease him relentlessly for losing a body part. Again.
When they finally entered the quarters, Kaius let out a low whistle of surprise.
The air had the crisp and oddly sterile quality of a place that had been under a stasis ward for an extended period of time. He could taste the lingering magic, the stillness on his tongue that clung to the back of his throat.
A circular metal table covered in some kind of lacquer shone with a white that he'd only ever seen in chalk. Rows of padded benches, once again with metal frames, encircled a low table at the centre of the room. A moulded stone floor was covered with a rich brown rug. There was no art, nor any finery — simply creature comforts and evidence the designers bent towards utility.
Even the cabinets in the kitchen that lined one wall were made of more metal. Where was the wood? Even shaped stone would have made more sense compared to the extravagance that was using wrought metal to make bloody tables and chairs. Stone, that at least, would have been abundant and easy to shape with magic.
Yet the alien nature of his surroundings only held his attention for the briefest of moments. He’d had one too many mind-bending revelations for one day. The plain evidence of the Empire’s achievements of industry just didn’t leave much of an impact.
Rushing ahead, Ianmus pulled out a chair for him.
Kaius gave the mage a smile as he sank down, his team taking their places around.
“Well, my lord, quite the quagmire we seem to have dived headfirst into, eh?” Kenva shot him a teasing grin.
“Don’t you bloody dare,” he muttered, burying his face in his hands.
He'd known it was coming, of course. There was no way they would let him get away with the fact that he was apparently a Duke of all things.
Kenva only laughed, joined by Ianmus. Hells, even Porkchop let out a little chuff.
“You have to admit it's quite the revelation,” Ianmus said, giving him a pointed look. “Even for you, this has been quite a revealing day. How are you feeling?”
Kaius let out a slow breath. Rotten roots, where did he even start?
“I'm excited, of course. I'd known that my lineage was old, and I'd always thought that it was impossible for my name to have not carried some sort of prestige, considering the simple generational power of my legacy. The lack of records of our name… I thought it might have been because we were foreign. I guess in a sense that is true, but being connected to the Empire also explains the loss of history.”
Ianmus grimaced, no doubt remembering the wealth of records they had just destroyed.
“At the very least we know why now. To think they stored their books on inscribed crystal instead of paper. No wonder traditional writings are so rare. No doubt time has ruined most of it. I'd bet ignorant delvers were enough to do in the rest, just like we did.”
“At least we know what to look for now,” Kenva replied. “Even if we lack the knowledge and expertise to access any archives, we can at least pass them on to the Guilds and such structures to be preserved.”
That was true. For all Kaius knew, there were surviving examples sitting in the collections of wealthy merchants and nobles who didn't know the true wealth of what they might have, accessing that information. The Castellan had confirmed it would be almost impossible to access that information without the assistance of one of his own kind. They were unfortunately rare, the thinking automata only present in the most critical and delicate institutions. Too much runic infrastructure was required to even access Imperial records, let alone the fact much of their formations had likely degraded and fragmented the data, as the Castellan had said.
That was the other frustration. Without access to such things, the quest he had been given by his ancestor would be inordinately difficult.
“I must admit I am suspicious,” Porkchop said. “While I doubt that shattering those mainframe spires like eggshells would have helped at all, it all smells a little too straightforward to me.”
“Oh? Do you not trust the Castellan?” Kaius replied.
He didn't see why. It could have killed them as easily as blinking an eye. Only whatever directives his ancestors had built into the automaton had saved them. He suppressed a shudder, remembering the all-encompassing speed and strength with which the titan of bronze had moved. He’d been helpless before it, like prey before a lion.
Porkchop grunted and bumped him in the leg to shake him from his thoughts.
“It's not that. You must have noticed, right? There's something off about the Castellan. Holes in what it knows. Hells, it had plenty to say about the generalities of the Empire, but any specifics — where cities were, the names of leaders. Ianmus must've asked dozens of questions on our walk here, yet it barely had any answers.”
Kaius frowned. He had to admit he hadn't exactly been the most focused in the last few hours, but on second thought, the Castellan had been a little brief. Not to mention the fact that it was seemingly only half aware of the recording that had been buried within it.
“Do you think it is sabotage?” Kenva said.
“It would make sense, wouldn’t it,” Porkchop replied. “Think about it. The Empire seemingly collapses overnight, we have some level of rebellion intent on tearing it to the ground, countless knowledgeable researchers and Imperial installations destroyed and killed by the very automata that should have served them. It sounds like whatever this protocol was... damn near sounds like it succeeded in leveling the Empire.”
“That is a fair point,” Ianmus said. “If the goal of Kaius’s ancestor was to raze the Empire to the ground, targeting infrastructure and critical pieces of artifice would be the most devastating. It would explain how so many advances were lost and why no successor states arose.”
Kaius nodded slowly. Some influential figures must have survived. Even with a coalition of powers and an army of automata that struck against completely undefended targets, they would have been well positioned to seize control of a city, or something.
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Yet as far as he was aware, nothing followed the Shattering — just disparate people picking through the ashes.
If the totality of the Empire's accumulated knowledge had been broken as thoroughly, literally, as the centres of politics, industry, and war, then no wonder the continent had collapsed into a dark age.
“The question is why,” Kenva said. “Why do any of this? Why go to such lengths and such extremes? We are talking about a slaughter on an almost incomprehensible scale. In the recording of your ancestor, he didn't seem mad, nor wracked by guilt. The only thing I got from him was exhaustion and determination to do what he thought had to be done.”
“Let us just hope that enough has survived for us — my ancestor’s oath and estate — and maybe we’ll find out,” Kaius muttered.
They lapsed into silence for a moment, listening to the far-off whir of artifice.
“The question is, what do we do now? Do we destroy this place? It sounded like the Castellan would let you if you asked,” Porkchop said.
Kaius shook his head vehemently. They couldn't. Not only did an active and safe Imperial ruin present the greatest opportunity to further modern understanding of the Empire than anything he had ever heard of, it was simply too valuable.
It was a defensible bunker filled with high-level automata that he, and he alone, had control over. Even if he currently had no use for such a thing, he would have to be a fool to throw it away — especially when the Castellan had confirmed that his order would be enough for it and the worker drones to begin active repairs. And he could seal this place to all others. No curious souls to get injured poking their noses where they didn't belong.
He would have to be a fool to do that.
“I think we have to admit that leaving this place functional, even if sealed, represents a risk, Kaius. Certainly we would have to be extremely careful of who we told,” Ianmus said.
He nodded. “You're right about that. The attention something like this would bring — it's almost unfathomable. We'd have a whole lot of parties breathing down our necks, asking how such a thing was possible.”
He was surprised when the mage shook his head.
“It's not just that. Think of your enemies. There is a chance that they too are the descendants of an ancient house. If they discover that a newly risen silver is somehow involved in the re-emergence of an active and non-hostile Imperial ruin, do you not think it would be all too easy for them to piece together that you have survived?”
One day he would be strong enough that no level of attention from his enemies would worry him, but today was not that day. He’d need to play this cautiously.
“Rieker and Ro will know what to do. Regardless, we have some forced downtime while I wait for this bloody thing to regrow.”
He slapped his truncated thigh.
“So we'll have a few months to plan. Perhaps there's some way you can get the Castellan to hide the automata and power down the facility. If, at a glance, the place is seen as dangerous enough to leave sealed and not valuable enough to send scores of silvers exploring through it, it might be enough for it to be left well enough alone — especially with support from Rieker.”
“We'll figure something out,” Kaius replied. “We don't need to hide the existence of this place — that would be impossible at this point. We just need to hide my link to the Empire and prevent it from being destroyed more than we've already managed.”
“Easy enough. It's not like it's directly under the bloody city or something,” Kenva said, giving him a pointed look.
He just gave the ranger a shrug.
“I'm going to check my status. The mana in the mainframe chamber was enough to push Rapid Adaptation up a tier.”
Focusing inwards, Kaius pulled up the skill, followed by his full status.
Rapid Adaption:
General Skill - Tier II
Affinity: Life, Chaos
Type: Resistance, Survival, Defence
Level 206
Heroic
Danger lurks in every corner. Adapt or die.
Tier I:
This skill develops resistance to any and all affinities and afflictions after sufficient exposure. This resistance reduces the impact and duration of afflictions, including deleterious effects of ambient exposure, with only a slight effect on direct damage sources.
Tier II:
Direct damage negation granted by resistance is slightly improved.
Esoteric resistances are easier to acquire.
Each level slightly increases resistances to dangers you have adapted to.
Each level minutely reduces the exposure required to develop new resistances.
Resistances: Pain; Fear; Poison; Disease; Fire; Water; Earth; Air; Void; Aether; Corruption; Bone; Paralysis; Ice; Magma; Wood; Light; Crystal; Electric; Smog; Iron; Dream; Flesh; Blood; Ooze; Storm; Ocean; Arcane
Merged From: Pain Resistance, Fear Resistance, Poison Resistance, Disease Resistance, Fire Resistance, Water Resistance, Earth Resistance, Air Resistance, Void Resistance, Aether Resistance
Kaius cocked an eye at the description. It was a good result — greater, even. The skill’s lacking damage negation had always been its largest problem; having it now would drastically improve his survivability, especially against magical attacks.
He was, however, a little disappointed to see no mention of physical resistances. He had hoped that such things would come in the second tier. So far the skill still seemed focused on aspected energy rather than the bite of an axe. No matter — he was certain it would change eventually. Father had made mention of it, and that simple fact alone confirmed that Father must have reached the third tier at least. It seemed that not all of his family’s ancient might had failed to make it to the modern day.
Somehow, knowing that made him feel the bite of his loss all the keener.
Suppressing his desire to frown, Kaius moved on, pulling up his full status.
Status:
Name: Kaius
Dynasty: Unterstern
Age: 20
Race: Human (Dynastic, Greater Beastblooded) - +1 Con, Str, Wil, and free stats per level
Layer Reached: 29
Class: Runeblade Helion - +6 Int; +4 Con, Str, Wil; +2 Vit, Dex per level
Level: 216
Resources:
Health - 7,529/14,340 (87.3/min)
Stamina - 13,865/14,170 (100.9/min)
Mana - 7,970/17,850 (123.5/min)
Free Mana - 1,322/17,850
Reserved Mana - 6,648
Stats:
Constitution - 1434 (710 + 134 + 70%)
Vitality - 873 (380 + 134 + 70%)
Strength - 1417 (700 + 134 + 70%)
Dexterity - 1009 (460 + 134 + 70%)
Intelligence - 1785 (796 + 164 + 86%)
Willpower: - 1235 (500 + 164 + 86%)
Stat Points: 0
Aspects:
Pillar Corporus: The Struggler’s Madness
- Reinforcement: Titan’s Marrow
- Seed: Forged in Endless Strife
Pillar Mentis: The Veteran’s Edge
- Reinforcement: Glass Mind
- Seed: Campaigner’s Reason
Pillar Animus: The Ceaseless Warrior
- Reinforcement: Purity of Self
- Seed: Hardened by Life
Refinement:
N/A
Class Skills (10/10):
Infused Glyph of Drakthar (Heroic) - 214
Initiate’s Glyphic Bladerite (Unique) - 200
Latent Glyph of Aelina (Heroic) - 200
Mystic’s Rend (Heroic) - 200
Latent Glyph of Vyrthane (Heroic) - 192
Sigil of Vesryn’s Pact (Unique) - 189
Latent Glyph of Eirnith (Heroic) - 189
Mercurial Reversal (Unique) - 158
Runeblade Hymnfocus (Heroic) - 126
Latent Glyph of Muthryn, Throat of VOS (Heroic) - 112
General Skills (10/10):
Rapid Adaptation (Heroic) - 206
Liturgical Bladeform: Primus Ordo (Heroic) - 213
Sergeant’s Insight (Unique) - 211
Tempered by Dissonance (Heroic) - 204
Truesight (Unique) - 215
Tonal Weaving (Unique) - 209
Spellblade’s Harmonic Control (Heroic) - 212
Greater Regeneration (Heroic) - 212
Moment of Flow (Heroic) - 208
Brotherhood of Ichor and Animus (Heroic) - 200
Hymnbook:
Glyph of Drakthar -
- Stormlash (Tier I - 120 mana)
- Hateful Nail (Tier I - 100 mana)
- Starfall (Tier II - 2000 mana)
Glyph of Aelina -
- Yellia’s Slip Step (Tier I - 80 mana)
- Trusant’s Expedient Shunt (Tier I - 100 mana)
Glyph of Vyrthane -
- Warhaven (Tier I - 1000 mana)
- Bound Maelstrom (Tier I - 200)
Glyph of Eirnith -
- Zone of Discombobulation (Tier I - 300 mana)
- Compel Obsession (Tier I - 350)
Glyph of Muthryn -
- Redoubt of the Speaker (Tier I - Variable)
Formationbook:
Sigil of Vesryn’s Pact -
- Unbroken Through Suffering (Tier I)
Honours:
Born for Slaughter (Bonus)
Sublime Prodigy - Glyph Binding (Bonus)
Birds of a Blood Soaked Feather (Bonus)
Persistent Survivor (Minor) (Bonus)
Kingslayer (Major) (Bonus)
Ruthless Underdog (Bonus)
Ruthless Underdog II
Trailblazer II (Bonus)
Hordebreaker
Ruthless Underdog III (Bonus)
Persistent Survivor IV (Minor) (Bonus)
Paragon (Major) (Bonus)
Daring Challenger (Minor)
Triarch (Bonus)
The Wheel Turns
The Paver Of Ways (Bonus)
Hordebreaker II
Massacre II
When Killers Meet
The Mighty Stand Alone
Spellchain II (Bonus)
Bound Artefacts:
A Father’s Gift - Growth Longsword (Epic, T1)
Continue Tempering for Growth Conditions!
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