Chapter 37 - Pit of Despair

788 I.C, March 14, Karashak: The Vortex, Evening

Talwin could feel the stares burning into his neck as he walked. As he turned to look they averted their gaze, yet every coyote he passed would turn to look with a judging glare. Fahry was the only one that behaved differently, she was light on her paws, her arms moved as if caressing the air, and her bushy tail had touched him more than once. Each time she glanced back their eyes would lock and a small but bright smile made her glimmer.

"Over here," Fahry whispered in the coyote tongue and eased back a pair of colorful drapes that covered an entrance.

Talwin stepped up as Fahry slipped through, and disappeared from sight. He then glanced back one final time, and to his surprise neither Avery nor Clyde were in sight. Instead the coyotes had gathered in the hallways like a thick throng blocking both sight and passage. Without warning every coyote in sight turned around, and fixated on him. Young and old, scrawny and sinewy, they all focused on him with an empty stare as if condemning him. It made his fur stand on end while he pulled back the drapes and followed in Fahry's wake.

A strange and surprisingly strong smell hit his nose upon entering. Oily, stinging like alcohol, mixed with herbs. The room itself was rather small and the floor was covered in colorful but worn mats. Several large crystals hanged from ropes attached to the ceiling and filled the room with an orange glow while a smoky haze drifted through the air.

Sitting in the very center of the room was a large cloaked figure. Fahry was standing next to the cloaked figure, and crouched as she placed one hand on the being, 'Vahry.'

Vahry? Precious... No... Blessed one? Elder? Father?

Damn this language... There's no meaning without context!

The figure moved as if it was a statue stirred to life. Slow, lumbering, wheezing as it shuffled under the heavy fabrics that cloaked it.

"Fahry," The big beast whispered.

Fahry motioned toward Talwin, "The Rethla, I've brought him."

Rethla? I don't know this word... What's going on here? And where are the others?

Talwin took a moment to focus on the aether, and to his relief he could sense Avery and Clyde's presence outside.

They're safe... Most likely blocked by the other coyotes... But why?

"Sit," The cloaked beast ordered with a raspy voice.

"Fahry, why are you keeping the others from joining us?" Talwin asked and focused on Fahry.

The cloaked beast spoke as if something foul had filled his mouth, "The others will have to wait, this meeting is for you, and you alone, Rethla. Now sit."

The others are safe and if I stir trouble it might devolve into violence...

Fahry moved to the side, eased herself down on the floor, and motioned to Talwin, "There's no need to be frightened, grandfather may seem scary but he's merely old and worn. Sit, we have things to discuss."

Talwin eased himself down on the floor, and looked at Fahry, "How would your grandfather prefer to be addressed?"

"You've forgotten?" Fahry asked and raised her brow.

"I... No, it's just..." Talwin murmured.

Fahry motioned toward Talwin, "If you are without a tribe, then all others stand above you. He is Vahry, chosen, honored, and you shall address him as such."

All others stand above me...

"Vahry," Talwin said and nodded toward the cloaked figure.

The elder moved a little but the heavy fabrics kept him well hidden as the raspy voice returned, "Why are you here, Rethla?"

Rethla... I guess it means the one at the bottom... Without a tribe... Outcast...

Talwin took a moment to gather his thoughts and spoke in the coyote tongue with the sensation of rekindling something ancient. It disturbed him, being forced to shift his mind to a time filled with bad memories. Worse, it made him feel small, as if his present life had been shoved aside.

"We are explorers. The vortex is intriguing and we came here to take a look," Talwin answered.

Vahry leaned forward and it made the heavy cloth on his head ease back a little. It revealed the presence of two auburn eyes that seemed to glimmer in the light cast by the hanging crystals, "It is where our god was slain. Do you remember the stories, Rethla? The reverence with which we hold this place?"

Reverence? My tribe struggled to feed themselves... There was no place for reverence...

"Bits and pieces," Talwin answered.

Vahry leaned back and his voice softened a little, "You were taken early from your tribe. Not much older than a whelp."

He makes it sound as if a statement of fact... Rather than a question...

"Yes," Talwin whispered.

Vahry's heavy frame shifted to focus on Fahry, "You smell like the plains of Agron... Did you know they helped murder many tribes? Taking the pups... Then used them for their own ends."

"Used them?" Talwin asked.

Vahry's heavy frame moved once more, and the gleam of his auburn eyes fixated on Talwin, "Yes. They taught them to infiltrate coyote tribes, used the bond of our race, and helped the feline filth wipe us out one tribe at a time. Others were simply used for information while others were held up as a symbol that they were saviors, not murderers bent on genocide."

Perhaps... Maybe... But that's far from the whole truth...

Fahry rose without warning, walked toward the entrance in the back of the room, stepped out, and disappeared from sight.

"You've had a good life. I can see it on you. Lush fur, fine clothes, fat," The elder asked.

Fat!? I... I'm not thin as a stick any longer but that doesn't make me fat!

Talwin stared in silence and focused on the aether. He could still feel Avery and Clyde waiting outside, while the rest of the aether felt calm, silent even. Vahry for all his pride was utterly powerless, and so were the other coyotes. Yet... There was doubt growing inside his mind.

What was it Avery said? That the truly dangerous mages were the ones that could hide in plain sight...

"Life has treated me well," Talwin answered.

Vahry's raspy voice chuckled, "Ah, that voice... You look upon us, and you feel shame. Shame of your heritage. Shame that your friends will look at you and think of us. In your mind you tell yourself you are nothing like us."

Talwin sat tall and felt his expression grow tense, "That's not true."

"Oh?" Vahry asked as the drapes in the back of the room opened and Fahry entered once more.

Fahry carried the tray to the center of the room, and set it down between Talwin and Vahry. She then eased onto the floor once more, and motioned to the tray, "Please, enjoy."

Talwin looked down, and to his surprise he found it full to the brim. Fresh bread, a large wad of butter in a bowl, finely sliced meat that still dripped with juices, and cups filled to the brim with steaming wine.

This kind of food... In this place!?

"Krobian wine, from your friends... Drink," Fahry whispered with a smile and motioned to the tray while picking a mug of her own.

Talwin... Did I tell her my name?

Talwin glanced at the cup, dismissed it, and looked up to focus on Vahry, "As I was saying... I'm still coyote, and I carry keepsakes of my past. Instruments of bone, and I can still remember the songs. My heritage has a place in my heart, but I've never been in a position to act. In any helpful way at least."

Vahry was silent for a moment, "Is that the truth, Rethla? Or just a comforting lie you tell yourself?"

"You're not my tribe, I'd recognize you and your scents if you were... Do you know me somehow?" Talwin asked and looked between the two of them.

Fahry sipped from her cup and motioned to the food and drink on the tray, "Drink. Do not insult our generosity and the elders before you."

"Do you know me?" Talwin asked once more and took a cup from the tray.

Vahry shifted a little and the heavy cloth eased back a bit more. From within the darkness of Vahry's hood the auburn eyes glimmered once more, while the end of a muzzle was revealed. Foul yellow teeth, dry twisted flesh, and a twisted grin flashed in the orange light cast by the crystals.

"Aye, we do... Talwin."

788 I.C, March 14, Karashak: The Vortex, Evening

Clyde felt his hackles bristling as the coyotes filed in behind him. They filled the corridors, and gathering in throngs that stared as if obsessed by something. Their smell permeated the air, strange herbs mixed with the desert's dry air, and the odors of a people that did not know the concept of bathing. It may not have had the nauseating quality of Everwinter, but it still made his skin crawl.

"I don't like this," Clyde said as he hastened his pace and leaned in next to Avery.

"Same here," Avery whispered and kept moving.

"What are we looking for?" Clyde asked and glanced back.

"There's something here, I need to find it," Avery murmured and kept marching.

The distinct reflections of auburn eyes could be seen at every corner and the rushed click of claws made it evident that the coyotes were still piling in.

"What about Talwin?" Clyde asked.

"He's safe for now... As for why he was that eager to meet the elder..."

Avery's voice trailed off and he stopped soon after. It made Clyde slow down and look at him, to his surprise Avery was staring at a wall covered in a few storage racks and a decorative drape.

"What?" Clyde whispered.

Avery raised his hand and pointed a claw toward the edge of the drape. Clyde looked, and it took a moment for him to see that the drape was fluttering, as if something was hidden behind it.

Clyde ran his hand along the utility belt, felt the pistol and sword, and then glanced back to check on the coyotes. A sudden chill trickled through him as he realized that the once packed corridors were now... empty. Their presence had unnerved him, but the sudden silence and that now filled the building made him scared to even breathe.

Avery glanced back, "They're gone?"

Clyde gulped, "Can you still sense them? In the aether?"

Avery's gaze drifted to the roof, "They're still here... But there's something meddling with the aether. It's almost as if..."

"What?" Clyde asked.

"Damn it," Avery hissed and reached toward the storage rack.

"Avery, something is seriously wrong here. We should fetch Talwin," Clyde said.

"If we can even find our way back, you mean..." Avery murmured.

"What do you mean, it's just-" Clyde looked back toward the hallway, blinked in surprise, and felt his shoulders slouch. The corridor had changed in the few moments that had passed. Cracks lined the walls, heaps of sand littered the floor, and the colorful drapes put up by the coyotes were in the process of disintegrating from old age.

The storage rack groaned as Avery eased it out-of-the-way.

"Look," Avery answered as he eased the drape to the side.

Clyde squinted, leaned closer, and tried to see into the darkness. Within a few moments his eyes adapted to the dim light and he caught the outline of something disturbing. Corpses, dozens of them, desiccated from the dry desert. Their hides still clung to their skeletons and from the clothes one could see the ceremonial garbs of coyotes, and the more common clothes found in civilized parts of the continent.

"They're... dead," Clyde whispered.

"The ones who lived in this outpost never left, nor did the ones who came to visit. They still have their weapons, equipment... This is a trap... A maze of death," Avery said.

"They didn't struggle by the look of it... But something had to move them here, right?" Clyde asked and leaned closer.

Silence...

Clyde looked back where he expected Avery to be, yet found nothing, "Avery?"

788 I.C, March 14, Karashak: The Vortex, Evening

Talwin found his eyes darting between Vahry and the tray in front of him. Something was moving in the food. It wriggled within the butter, skittered along the bread, and the meat was growing spots of... mold. Within seconds the butter gave way, and Talwin stared in horror as the head of a grub emerged like a writhing worm.

Vahry's form lifted one arm, and from within the heavy fabric a bony hand poked out. It was covered in a loose scattering of fur, baggy flesh, and one finger tipped with a black claw took to point at Talwin, "Rethla, you know what it means. Don't you? You remember..."

Talwin was about to leap from the floor and run as he glanced back toward the exit. To his shock the drapes had been pulled aside and a number of coyotes were staring at him. Their eyes glimmered with gold as if a fire burned within them and like before they stared, in silence, unmoving. Even as he stared something seemed to happen to them. The skin and fur around their eyes seemed to dry up, it pulled at their faces, and distorted them. The same was occurring to the rest of their bodies, their arms were losing mass, the ribs on their chests were growing more pronounced.

A voice boomed from Vahry and seemed to ripple from the staring coyotes as whispers, "A leprous desert rat, as degenerate as you are worthless. A living emptiness, a void preying on others with the puerile qualities of a leech. A vulgar little maggot, writhing in your deviant lusts before the grace of God. Forever condemned to live in shame... A traitor to race and kin... Rethla."

Talwin snapped back and felt his heart leap as he found himself face to face with the female coyote. She, like the others, stared with the same fire burning in her eyes, with a twisted expression of a desiccated corpse risen from the dead.

"Stay away, or I'll kill all of you!" Talwin snapped.

Bony hands snatched hold of his chest, and Talwin yelped in shock as he reached out to grab her.

"Talwin... Oh sweet Talwin," Fahry mused with the voice of a cat playing with its prey.

The horror in his heart only grew worse as he expected to feel warmth buffeted by a thick layer of fur. Instead he found himself gripping bone covered with a hide so worn that he could hear it rip.

Fahry stared with a grin that steadily grow more twisted as her lips kept desiccating, "Our people died by the thousands, while you had your fun in the alleys and spent your nights getting high. Why? Why forsake us like this?"

Talwin's heart pounded, fear gripped every strand of fur, and like flipping a switch he called out to the aether.

Yet... Nothing happened...

Second by second passed as he was forced to stare into the grin of a drying corpse, feeling as the scents of the room grew increasingly rancid.

Fahry's hands trailed Talwin's chest, and cupped his muzzle with the sensation of sandpaper, "Avery fights to save everyone. Clyde fights to save the wulfkins, and everyone else fights to save Agron. But you? You're weak and Tepid. You, Talwin... You only fight to keep that endless pit of despair from swallowing you whole. You are the one who claims to care for everyone, yet you're the most selfish of them all... A fat, bloated, parasite!"

"Shut up!" Talwin could feel the others leaning in from behind while he pushed back against Fahry.

To his disgust he could feel the flesh of her arms giving way. Fur loosened in tufts, flesh ripped, and the putrid innards began to soak his hands like mucus.

"What? Don't you like me no more?" Fahry hissed as her eyes sunk every deeper into her sockets.

Dark laughter emanated from Vahry's cloaked form while the light cast by the crystals began to flicker.

"Help!" Talwin screamed, pulled his leg back, and sent a kick into Fahry's hips.

A loud crack was heard, and Fahry faltered as her upper body sank forward and hit Talwin's chest. In panic he reached up, snatched hold of the top of her head, and watched as her ear promptly dislodged with a wet rip. A scream of fright filled the room as he let go, and fell back. Fahry's twisted body was upon him in a second, grinning and cackling as her hands moved over his body. An exasperated gasp of pleasure made her arch her back while Talwin felt her hands grip his belly like talons.

Talwin flailed in panic, grabbed both arms, and jerked her lose. In an instant she pushed back, leaned over, and pressed back as if suddenly surging with inhuman strength. His arms shuddered in the struggle, but inch by inch he started losing ground as she loomed over him. Fahry's legs settled over him, squeezed to the point his ribs ached, and pinned his arms to the ground. The crooked smile of a succubus marked Fahry's expression as one hand returned to feel Talwin's abdomen. Claws tore through the shirt, dug into the fur, and kneaded like one would a piece of pastry.

"It's one of your favorites, is it not? To feast... To satiate your belly... A testament that your past is long forgotten," Fahry hissed as she coiled herself over him.

Shadows poured from Vahry's form to coat the walls, and coyotes spilled into the room like skittering bugs. They grabbed hold of Talwin's legs and arms, and truly pinned him in place.

Like a seductress Fahry arched her body, reached for the tray, and picked up the bowl of grubs that now writhed in fat, "Open wide... pig."

Unknown

A moment of confusion. Thoughts wiped clean. I blinked and found myself wondering where I was and how I got here. For some reason the world seemed amiss and the sensation grew as I looked around.

The sun was bright in the sky, clouds drifted above, and golden struts arched above as if I was stuck in a hollow pyramid. The sound of pouring water came from nearby and wild vines clung to the surrounding structures.

The floor consisted of polished plates of gold and crystal that weaved outward as if part of a giant mosaic. The air smelled fresh and green, yet different from the pines in Everwinter and the forests of Agron. Sweet like flowers, yet crisp, and coupled with a gentle breeze that brushed my fur.

I looked into the distance but what I saw confused me. The horizon was blurred as if looking through a glass of water, yet from what little that could be seen it looked like a golden city overgrown with plants and flowers. A nagging sensation along my chest made me glance down, the Star was glowing, and I could feel it whisper in my mind. It beckoned me, and I reached down to clasp it in my hand. A jolt followed and my mind awoke with clarity. I remembered the outpost, Clyde, Avery, the coyotes, and the corpses left behind.

I looked up while clutching the star in my hand. Powerful magic was at work here, and I had fallen under its spell.

To my surprise there was another voice in the distance, "You resisted... A good sign."

I turned in full-circle, stared into the distance, but could see no source of the voice, "Who are you?"

No answer came and I walked up to one of the golden struts. It was overgrown with vines, and the surface beyond the edge shimmered like a pool of water. I reached out, touched the surface, and watched ripples form as I felt a hard surface.

"Who are you, and what is this place?" I asked out loud and turned around to face the rest of this strange world.

The voice spoke in amusement, "Ascend the stairs and join me."

What stairs? There are no-

As I blinked the world seemed to change once more. Where there had once been empty space overgrown with plants was now a raised structure with stairs leading to a platform that overlooked the hollow pyramid.

I frowned as I watched it, and focused on the aether to peer what lay beyond. Yet as I tried I found nothing, it was as if I was surrounded by mirrors that could not be pierced.

"You're within the vortex, common magic won't work here... Come, do not fear, me" The voice said.

"Where are my friends?" I asked out loud.

"They're fine... For now. But they won't be forever," The voice answered.

"If you hurt them, then-"

I was interrupted, "I'm not the one hurting them, but the vortex is. Do as I ask and I'll help you save them."

With little choice I walked upon the golden floor, stepped up to the stairs, and ascended. As I walked my senses seemed to play a trick on me, one moment I was almost near the top, in the next I was near the bottom once more. It made me clutch my head as the world itself didn't seem to make sense any longer.

"Just a bit further, focus," The voice whispered.

I stopped for a moment, reached out toward the railing, and raised my gaze to look upon the last set of steps. My focus hardened and I stared at it as I began to walk once more. This time it seemed to work, the top came closer, and as long as my gaze didn't waver, nor did the progress I made. Within moments I was at the top and lowered my gaze to look upon the platform I had reached.

In the center of the platform was a pedestal fitted with a console of some kind, it glowed with blue hue and upon it streamed rows of arcane symbols. Along its edge were smears of blood and on the ground was a puddle of blood. Laying on the golden mosaic of the floor was a dagger still covered in crimson.

"This place is stuck in time," The voice said.

I snapped to attention as I realized that I had missed something on the platform. There was a person standing next to the pedestal. It looked like a coyote, strangely similar to Talwin in appearance, who smiled as if welcoming an old friend. The coyote wore a big robe and stood with clasped hands while watching me carefully. The robe itself would have been impeccable if it wasn't for a tear in the chest and a big splotch of red blood.

"You see me now?" The coyote asked and tipped his head.

"I see you, and your wound," I said.

The coyote glanced down at his own chest, and poked at a wound that should have meant the death of him, "Yes. It has been hundreds of years, yet my fate does not change."

"What, and who are you?" I asked.

The coyote spread his arms and motioned to the golden structure we stood upon, "Isn't it obvious? I am Aeternus. Evil incarnate according to Antaloria, and a god to be worshiped according to the coyotes in this age. The truth of course, is a tad more complex."

For some reason his words felt slippery and it made me squeeze the Star in my hand, "Aeternus. You're the leader of the necromancers?"

Aeternus made a single chuckle and grinned, "History is written by the victors."

I inched closer, "So it would seem. Every history book I've read is muddled with myth and superstition."

Aeternus extended one hand and pointed at the Star in my hand, "Keep it close, it's the only thing that will keep you sane in this place. Even for a creature such as you."

"I've realized," I answered with a growl in my throat.

Aeternus smile grew wicked as he raised one brow, "Do not growl at me, beast."

"Beast?" I asked and felt myself smile.

Aeternus smiled and nodded, "Do you know what you are, beast? The origins of your species?"

"No," I said and focused on him.

"A crafted race, originally intended to be little more than semi-intelligent bodyguards, my bodyguards to be specific," Aeternus said and motioned to himself.

"You certainly have a wicked sense of humor," I said.

"Oh, how so?" Aeternus asked.

"Everything about wulfkins are messy, procreation, blood magic, the blessing, the anger. We don't make good bodyguards."

Aeternus sighed and shook his head, "Do not blame me for the Master's meddling. My version of the wulfkins was pure and simple. Take a warrior that has proved his worth, infect him, and watch him turn into an obedient slave."

"... Infect?" I asked.

Aeternus nodded and crossed his arms, "Your role as Rastlin's pupil should have shown you as much. You peered into others, watching as their essence changed. It is an infection that is magical nature, and the more you are exposed, the more you change."

"Exposed to what?" I asked.

Aeternus motioned to me with both hands, "You, of course. Wulfkins."

"I... don't get it," I whispered.

Aeternus sighed, "The Master used the Star to employ a field that siphoned magical energy from people on a large scale. Only the strongest of you could generate enough magic for the infection to take hold. That is why some people changed, and others didn't."

I blinked, "If what you're saying is true, then..."

Aeternus chuckled, "You and all other wulfkins corrupt anything near them. For most people it'll take decades for any changes to manifest, but for someone like Talwin, who is suffused in your magic on a daily basis, well... He's already started changing."

I gulped, "You're lying."

Aeternus tipped his head, "Oh? Did you think that his growing powers was a natural thing? His growing strength? The extra weight? The aggression brewing within him?"

"... Can this effect be halted?" I asked.

Aeternus nodded, "It can. Just like you augmented the spells that Rastlin wove into you, so can you halt the corrupting presence of your magic. But... That's far from your only problem."

I closed my eyes for a moment, "Do we have time to talk, or are my friends in danger?"

Aeternus drew a deep breath, "We have time to talk, in fact, it's imperative."

I opened my eyes once more, "All right, then lets start from the beginning. Who were the necromancers?"

Aeternus gaze dropped as a subtle smile grew on his muzzle, "The necromancers were the previous rulers of Karashak. To be specific, an empire of coyotes, blessed with magic coursing through their veins."

"Your empire fell 200 years ago, and the remaining coyotes are scattered as roving bands. You know that, right?" I asked.

Aeternus walked to the edge of the platform and motioned to the distorted horizon, "Do you see the imprint left here? A golden city... This is a small glimpse of what our empire looked like two centuries ago. Cities of gold, magic coursing under the streets, vibrant jungles. This is the world I was raised in, a privileged mage with servants bound to my will. A paradise... Well... A good attempt at a paradise."

Aeternus looked at me once more, "I am well aware of what has happened to the world since then. In fact, from this place I can freely peer at any spot on the continent."

"Peer, but not interact? You've been stuck here, for two hundred years?" I asked.

Aeternus clasped his hands and sighed, "Yes. I have been stuck in this wretched place for two centuries, condemned to watch the world move on, unable to interact with it but at the most seldom of times."

"You seem... oddly sane for someone who has been here for that long," I said.

Aeternus snickered and nodded, "I may have spent a few decades delirious from my own insanity. But after a while you learn to cope, and dream."

I motioned to the ground we stood on, "How did you get stuck here?"

Aeternus was silent for a moment, "There's no easy way to explain that, in fact I'm not sure of the details. But it all started with the Master."

I stepped closer, "What is the Master?"

Aeternus gaze dropped to stare at the Star in my hands, "The darkness within the Aether, the thing you ward yourself against when transporting, that is the Master."

"The Master is the aether?" I asked.

Aeternus shook his head, "No. More like a parasitic entity that lives within the aether. An entity I allowed into our world."

"How?" I asked.

Aeternus knit his hands, "My race, we could have a built a paradise for everyone. Instead we fell prey to the same greed that those before us fell for. We dominated others, and used them as slaves for our own amusement. Some would call it poetic justice that coyotes now face the same fate, but I only see a perpetual cycle of suffering."

"Your point?" I asked.

Aeternus focused on me, "Magic has always divided us in a way that other differences cannot. You either have it, or you don't. The ones that do rule over the ones that don't with ease. I saw that cycle, and I wished to break it."

"An end to the cycle, but how did you plan to accomplish this, by killing everyone?" I asked.

Aeternus shook his head, "Of course not. For most of my younger years I asked myself the same thing. Can you believe my joy when I thought I finally found an answer?"

I raised my brow, "You're supposed to be a good guy?"

The coyote's lips trembled for a moment and broke out in a sudden burst of laughter, "No... I may have believed that at first, but the things I did in the name of it... I can't be considered a good guy, no."

"What did you find?" I asked.

Aeternus held his hand up and held it in front of the shimmering surface, "It all started with an idea: What hides in the aether? We cannot survive there, and our methods of measuring it is quite limited."

"Yes?" I asked.

"I presume that you know that many forms of magic that you take for granted were not possible before the vortex formed?" Aeternus asked.

"I knew that transporters were a luxury, at least, but not entire forms of magic."

Aeternus drew a deep breath, "Well it was. We could use it to kill others with ease, yes. But more advanced forms were difficult to wield."

"I see. So what did you discover?" I said.

"I... or my team to be specific. Tried to bring the aether into our world. Not a rift, mind you, but to actually bring a portion of the aether into our world."

I thought for a moment, "How would you even begin to do that?"

Aeternus let his arms fall, "By gathering the life force of many slaves and mages condemned to death. We used it to tear a rift open, altered the fabric of our reality, and lured it here. At least, that's what we thought we did."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"The aether has no interest in our world, it's energy just seeps through like water through the ground. But the Master... He was there, and he emerged from within. Briefly, mind you, seconds at a time."

"In what form? Did he talk to you?" I asked.

Aeternus expression shifted as if I annoyed him, "Not that it matters, but no, he did not speak, for there was no need of it."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

Aeternus motioned to me, "Do not mistake the Master for a being you can hope to understand. It is without concepts such as emotion or even the idea of another sentient being. We are... We are nothing but the goals to an end. We did what he wanted on our own, and therefore was no need to speak."

"So you sacrificed people for this act, why?" I asked.

Aeternus withdrew his hand and drew a deep breath, "Because something strange happened when the Master entered our world and brought the aether with him. Suddenly the spells we worked so hard to weave, were as easy to manipulate as the way we move our hands. Even our thoughts started affecting the reality of our world. Magic itself, became more than it has ever been before."

"A way to break the cycle?" I asked.

Aeternus nodded, "If we could bring magic to everyone, or shift the balance of power in such a way that people were forced to reform, then maybe the cycle of suffering would end?"

"A noble goal, at a horrid price," I said.

Aeternus stepped back and eyed me as if wondering whether I mocked him, "It took years and many slaves to do it. But we figured out how to permanently open a small breach to the aether. It changed the way we could wield magic in a portion of the city, and others soon noticed."

"All the while you kept feeding this breach with slaves, forcing it to stay open?" I asked.

Aeternus crossed his arms, "Yes... We did. Without nourishment the breach grew unstable, and magic returned to normal as a result. So you see... We couldn't stop. The leaders of my nation saw it as the means to control this continent, and I saw it as a chance to usher in something new. So we kept working, slave after slave, forced into a room where this breach would literally strip them of their flesh and leave only husks behind. But..."

"But?" I asked.

"The effects of the breach was limited in range. Leave the city, and magic become slow and unwieldy once more. My superiors found it unacceptable, after all, what use is a new form of magic if it could only be wielded near the rift itself? Naturally I was chosen to find a solution."

"Naturally," I said.

A frown appeared in Aeternus fur as he stared back, "It is fortunate for you that the years have mellowed me."

"Apologies, go on?" I asked.

We tried to make the rift bigger, but our reality resisted. There was simply no way to gather the life energy needed, and so... we were stuck for a while."

"I take it something changed?" I asked.

Aeternus blinked and seemed lost in thought, "Yes. The Master studied us, he learned our language, and one day he spoke to me."

"Yes?" I asked.

Aeternus averted his gaze, "He offered a solution to our problem. The means to gather and unleash a vast amount of energy in an instant. To tear a whole in our reality that would be big enough to make magic available to everyone across the planet."

"You did as it asked?" I asked.

Aeternus leaned back and gazed upon the sun, "Our leaders had no interest in giving others access to such magic, and I told the Master such. He... of course, offered a solution that as well."

"What?" I asked.

"He shared with me the knowledge to alter life itself, and how to warp minds to my will. I couldn't risk others using it on me, so I struck first. The leaders of Karashak gathered in one spot, eagerly waiting to hear of my recent discovery, and in the next I ruled the entire empire. I even ordered a few to jump out of the windows, they were more than willing to do as I ask."

"And then?" I whispered.

Aeternus gaze dropped to focus on me once more, "Then I used them. I had an entire nation at my fingertips. I created plagues, new forms of life, wulfkins were one of them. I raised armies to invade other nations, and step by step I began to build the Master's machine and gathered the resources to power it."

"No one resisted?" I asked.

Aeternus huffed, "Of course they did. But the plagues devastated this continent and left them ripe for the picking. Leaders begged me to save them."

"Everyone just had to die to make way for your new paradise," I said.

Aeternus knit his fist, "Judge me if you will, I have suffered for my crimes and now I only seek to set things right."

"Uh huh," I said.

Aeternus pointed at the still bloody console at the center of the platform, "What you see here is the interface of the 'great machine', and below you is the world's biggest collection of aetheric crystals. It's held intact by magic provided by living furnaces, and its construction took enough raw material to build cities. It took two decades to finish it, and I was at the cusp of bringing my dream to fruition when I was betrayed."

"By Antalos?" I asked.

A dry sneer met my observation, "Antalos was just the slave that held the knife. The Master was the one who whispered in his ear, and struck me down."

"Why?" I asked.

"Why? Because the Master does not tolerate competitors. I was the only one with a grasp of magic so strong that I would have been able to keep him at bay. The Master knew this and took steps to stop me."

I tipped my head, "So was the machine activated? Was this the planned outcome?"

Aeternus gritted his teeth, "No, It was not. Aeternus stabbed me, but he missed my heart by millimeters. I knew that I had been betrayed, and I knew I wouldn't stay alive for long. So I clutched the interface and activated failsafe meant to destroy everything. Only, that's not exactly what happened."

"The vortex formed, the continent was wrecked, and you become stuck here?" I asked.

Aeterius nodded, "The vortex is an imperfect form of the breach we had planned. It's unstable, violent, and it wreaks havoc across the continent. But it does allow for a far wider use of magic. It also allowed the Master to enter our world."

"If it's unstable, then why hasn't it collapsed?" I asked.

Aeternus sighed, "Because the Master constantly feeds it energy through Everwinter. You assume that the Master uses all that energy for himself, but the reality is that he sends the majority of it into the vortex."

"Why?" I asked.

Aeternus stood tall, "Because the Master cannot exist without a breach into the aether. It's what allows him to exist in our reality."

So... It's not the Master that's starving... It's the vortex...

Aeternus turned around, raised his arms, and held them wide. Part of the horizon shifted in an instant and like peering through a window I could see the streets of Dracwyn.

"As I told you, from this place I can watch the continent. But my ability to interfere is quite limited."

"You've been watching me for a long time, haven't you?" I asked.

Aeternus turned around and nodded, "I watched over you long before you were born. Subtle manipulations here and there to make the fate of the world shift in a way that served me. I put Rastlin on his path, and I gave him the Stone of Fate that you used. Just as I placed the Stones that were used by Fletcher and Robert. I am the one that manipulated the transporter that was found in Aetherius. Everything needed to come together as one."

"What do you want, why do all this?" I asked.

Aeternus walked closer and was forced to look up as he sought my eyes. He stared for a moment, then whispered, "I wish for this to end. I no longer wish to be part of this world. Close the vortex, release me from my suffering, and the world will heal. I care not what happens after."

"You wish to die?" I asked.

"For centuries I have watched the world through this place. At first I screamed in rage at my inability to be part of it, but as the years passed I grew tired. I have seen it all, the heights of joy and the depths of depravity. I am... tired."

"How can I collapse the vortex?" I asked.

Aeternus clasped his hands and backed off, "As you know, the Master resides within Everwinter and his central tower is actually a giant construct made of obsidian. This construct channels energy into the vortex, thus keeping it open. Go to Everwinter, destroy the central tower, and the vortex will collapse. Without a connection to the aether the Master will cease to exist."

"You seriously expect me to head back to Everwinter? It'd be a suicide mission, not to mention the fortress he's sending toward Dracwyn," I said.

Aeternus smile returned, "You've learned much, but you still have no idea what you hold in your hand."

I glanced down at the Star in my hand, "What is this, the Star?"

Aeternus extended his arms, "It's this! A direct link to the vortex and the aether beyond it. It is the philosophers stone, capable of fully wielding the aether in a reality not made for it! An artifact created in the blast that tore the breach open."

"Care to explain that further?" I asked.

Aeternus lowered his arms but kept his smile, "The closer you get to the vortex the easier it is to wield the true power of the aether. But get close enough and the flux will kill you, any magical being in fact. By making his stronghold in Everwinter the Master found isolation and time to build his strength, but at the same time his control over the aether remains weak. The 'Star' as you call it bypasses that limitation, and gives you the power to do things as if you were next to the vortex. As you have used its power you have grown attuned to it, and it is only recently that you've gained the ability to exist in this place, the intersection between realities."

"Alright, but that doesn't explain how I'm supposed to get to Everwinter in one piece?" I said.

Aeternus reached into his pocket, fetched a small crystal, and threw it my way.

I caught it in one hand, and looked at it, "What is this?"

"Think of it as a magical disease. If you use it at the center of the Master's tower, then it will spread through the tower in seconds, and collapse it."

I turned it over in my hand and watched its blue surface shimmer, "All right, so I have the means to destroy the tower. How do I get to Everwinter?"

"You could use the same technique you used to get here, and this time I promise not to interfere."

I blinked, "Oh... I see. It was your doing that resulted in us being dropped near the outpost?"

Aeternus nodded, "They studied the vortex, but like others before them they failed to grasp what the vortex is Slowly but surely they succumbed to flux poisoning and were driven mad."

"I was there, there was no flux," I said.

Aeternus smirked, "When you're this close to the vortex I can affect your minds. You are resilient to it, and you've become immune by now. But the others are still locked in nightmares of their own making."

"You're killing them?" I asked.

"I'm playing a game with them, and if you behave then that's all it will be," Aeternus answered.

"How do I know you haven't messed with their minds?" I asked.

Aeternus sighed, "Because I've watched you, Avery. If I crush them or warp their minds then you'll let this world burn just to spite me."

I drew a deep breath and gritted my teeth, "Then tell me how to get to Everwinter, so that I can get the hell out of here."

A grinning smile marked the coyote's expression as he spoke, "In a few days the war machine built in Aetherius will reach Dracwyn. A fierce battle will take place and it's up to you to make sure that the city succeeds in its attempt to cripple it. Once the war machine is forced to land you'll transport across the battlefield using the techniques you recently discovered, and make your way to the core. The core is directly linked to the Master's inner sanctum, which also happens to serve as the control mechanism for regulating the vortex."

"Easier said than done. How am I supposed to cripple this war machine?" I said.

"Easy, and I'm sure you'd have figured it out if given more time to ponder. The blessing that the Master used binds all creatures in an aetheric web that he can pull and direct energy within. That link is one of his weaknesses and if you send a strong pulse through it, then you'll wreak havoc."

"How?" I asked.

Aeternus raised on hand and within moments a ball of energy formed that radiated with flux, "Flux. Gather a lot of it, and direct it into the heart of his crystal parasites with the power of the Star."

"I see," I said.

Aeternus raised one finger, "Disrupt the Master's energy web and the war machine loses its defenses. Dracwyn will take care of the rest. Keep in mind though, you only have one chance. If the Master learns of this then he'll disconnect from any minions you come near."

"If I can harm the Master by using one of his minions, why do I need to go to the war machine's core? Or why not use the crystal you gave me?"

Aeternus held his hands behind his back, "You're always so inquisitive. Opening a rift will take time, enough time for the Master to sever the link. But if you disrupt the energy web, then the Master will lose control for a while, and once the war machine recovers you'll stand at the ready, waiting for a moment to step through."

"This is one hell of a complicated plan," I hissed.

"Consider the alternative, beast. The Master will purge this continent in his hunt to retrieve the Star, and wherever you go, he will follow. You will become death incarnate, and the Master will be your shadow. You either do as I ask, and succeed, or the world perishes."

"It would seem that way," I said.

Aeternus was silent for a moment, "There is more."

"What?" I asked.

"Something you must know, lest the Master use it against you," Aeternus answered.

"Tell me?"

Aeternus stepped back, and seemed to hesitate for a moment, "Magic will return to normal once the vortex collapses. Transporters will be a thing of luxury, harvesting life will become nigh impossible, the Messenger stones will stop working. The world will change, but also heal."

"We'll adapt," I said.

Aeternus took another step back, "The others will, you will not."

"... What is that supposed to mean?"

Aeternus blinked and drew a deep breath before continuing, "Within you resides an entity similar to the Master. Tiny, shackled, barely sentient, and tamed to your will, yet... born of the aether. Your spark of life is unnatural and when the vortex fades, so will your life."

I stared back, and felt fear creeping along my back, as if wrapping a noose around my neck, "You're lying. Clyde and Raymond had almost lost their spark when I got to them, but I could breathe life into them once more. They recovered, they live..."

"Because they were born with and still had a spark of life originating from this reality. Yours was extinguished and replaced long ago by Rastlin. He implanted the Master's essence within the womb of your mother."

I knit my fists, "No."

"Deny it as much as you want, but the truth remains. You will either bring about the Master's end and sacrifice yourself, or the world as you know it will end."

I gritted my teeth and lashed out in anger, "Then find a way to destroy the Master without collapsing the vortex!"

Aeternus let his gaze drop and lowered his voice, "The moment you try he will simply slip away and begin his work elsewhere. It won't work."

"Then find a way to capture him! Lock him in a cage and seal it!" I snapped.

"Entertain your fantasies as you will, but in a few days time you will face a choice with only two outcomes," Aeternus said.

I lashed out with my arm and marched closer, "I have struggled for every moment since leaving Everwinter and I have finally found something other than hatred which makes life worth living! Now you want to take it away from me!? This is your mess! Your fault!"

Aeternus ears folded back to clamp against his head, "As I said, I'm not a good guy. But what is done, is done, and believe me. Death isn't that bad, at least not when you've been trapped in a place like this for a few lifetimes."

Something snapped, emotion and sheer defiance rocked my senses. I rushed forward with the intent of grabbing his neck, yet as I reached out he seemed to become like vapor and simply vanished from sight. Enraged I turned around only to hear him whisper by my ear.

"This place is one of imprints. Memories and impressions linger, you may stir it like dust on the floor, but it will always settle as it was."

The weight on my shoulders grew, my throat tightened, and for a moment the world felt too heavy to bear. My shoulders slouched as I felt the empty ache of emptiness.

"All things come to an end, beast. Such is the way of things," Aeternus whispered in the wind.

"Spare your tripe, you self absorbed waste of a being!" I snapped.

Aeternus form shaped near the console as he turned to look at me, "Your anger is understandable... But I'm sure you will make the right choice when it comes down to it."

"Fuck you!" I growled.

Aeternus sighed, "The Master will promise you all things. Life, revenge... Paradise. But all of it will be nothing but lies, because it, just like you, will fear its own end. Now... It is time for you to return."

I gritted my teeth, "I will find a way! One way or another you'll-"

With a blink the world grew dark and faded once more.