Heirs of Hyarch

Energy flew in currents around the chamber, waving beams of blue and purple light that were flickering in and out as they twisted in the air. It was as eerie a sight as Hamond had ever seen, but only served to draw his gaze to the raised pedestal in the center of the room. Atop it stood a worn but still distinctly feminine stone statue, posed with arms raised upward.

"Standing in the middle of the field was a woman, with her arms raised up in the air."

Hamond shook his head. Edeline's distant dream couldn't possibly have anything to do with this. Even if there was a spell to influence dreams, which admittedly there could be, who exactly would have cast it? The statue?

Still, as uneasy at it made him, the truth was there was a level of thaumaturgy at work here far beyond anything he had ever seen. Hamond had seen the spells the Spellking and his closest followers had woven, and even they paled in comparison. He didn't dare even try to use his spells to determine the specifics.

Even lacking his understanding, the other three were also in clear awe. They silently looked around the chamber, taking in a sight no one had probably seen since...since when? The age of this chamber, all of these abandoned passages, was still a mystery. There were no runes either, no writing on the walls that had seen that gave a hint.

"This is some crazy shit," Nela finally spoke, her quiet voice echoing in the stillness. Hamond could not argue her point. The purpose of all this was quite the mystery.

"Child of the betrayer's blood."

Another voice, both loud and soft at the same time, filled the room. This was not the same voice that apparently came from the gigant. While Hamond could not determine the source, the obvious conclusion was that it came from the statue before them.

Nela's theory about the Stormsage was looking more and more accurate by the moment.

"Who, me?" Nela asked out loud.

"Why would she be talking to you?" Edeline said.

"She said child, as in one," Nela pointed out, "Since Ronny and you are brother and sister, it can't be either of you."

Hamond had to disagree, since it was possible that the statue, if it was indeed that, was addressing just one of the two. In fact, given the account Edeline had found earlier, he was certain it had to refer to the line of Hallowscroft's lords. He couldn't see it being tied to any other factor.

"Wielder of my granted gift."

Well, if those words were anything to go by, then it had to be aimed at Edeline. It was fitting, he supposed, since they could not have possibly made it down here without her. But that meant...Nela was right about the dreams being relevant as well. He'd have to apologize to her later.

"You wanted to speak to me?" Edeline stepped up to the pedestal, focused entirely on the statue there. "Who are you?"

"With this task be entrusted."

The streams of magical energy suddenly started flowing faster, wildly flickering. Hamond winced at the blurred sight, unable to follow any strand for long before it merged into another.

"Break the seal."

The words were harsher than they had been before, sounding almost demanding. The energy danced faster, more frantically, as if they reflected the mood of the speaker.

"Undo the betrayal."

Hamond could not help but close his eyes, the glowing and dancing streams of energy too much to look at. He could still hear them though, a sound halfway between wind rushing and a roll of thunder. There was nothing he could do to protect them in the face of this.

"Set us free."

Almost instantly, the sound died away. Hamond opened his eyes to see the magical energies having returned to its regular movement, as much as randomly drifting could be called regular. Both Nela and Ronny were cowering...and so was he, now that he realized it.

Edeline, however, stood there looking at the statue, apparently unfazed. "Set you free?" she asked tentatively.

The voice offered no further answers, leaving them alone, together, with the statue and their thoughts.

"Well, that was...not informative." Myron approached Edeline. "What was that even asking?"

"She waited for me," Edeline said quietly, "Waited for me, all this time, for...me to free her."

"So we get a woman who was turned to stone, who may or may not be the Stormsage, and was trying to get you specifically to free her." Nela crossed her arms. "No one's going to believe us, even if we paid them."

"And if she is bound here by a spell, not knowing what spell it is means we can't do a thing," Hamond pointed out. With the sheer amount of free floating magic in the room, there was no telling what would happen if they just cast spells randomly.

"Why would simply removing the enchantment not work?" Edeline asked.

"Because..." Hamond let out a sigh, hating to admit it. "I don't understand any of how the spells here are set up. Rashly messing with it could have any number of effects. It could even bring the entire place down with us inside."

"Then look at them, genius," Nela said, "If you're not going to give us the details on what's there, then don't complain when we have to make choices without them. Shit, we've still got to go back up to deal with that elf. And who knows what he'd do once he got down here?"

It was obvious to Hamond he wasn't going to win this argument. To be fair, he didn't actually expect the roof to collapse as a result of anything they did. He'd just been taught to be careful when dealing with unknown magic. Perhaps he was being too cautious.

"Do you really think you can do it?" Myron spoke up, "Free her, I mean."

"I do have a few ideas I can attempt." Edeline said. "My last resort would be destroying the statue, but first, let me see about this." She turned and climbed up on the pedestal, standing there facing the statue. Taking a deep breath, she put her hand on the statue's head.

"Katharsis logos."

The magical energies floating around the room all came to a halt. After a short moment of utter stillness, they started to flow again, only this time rushing in towards the statue. The same odd sound as before echoed through the room, but louder and faster this time. The whole place, floor to walls, seemed to shake.

The currents of magic soaked into the statue itself, causing it to glow brighter and brighter. Hamond shielded his eyes with one hand, but kept his gaze focused on Edeline, who stood braced against the statue, hand still on it. As the last of the magic entered the now radiant statue, the voice sounded out. It was no longer harsh, but gentle, almost...relieved.

"Freedom at long last."

A pillar of light erupted from around the statue, pure magical energy shooting up to the ceiling uncontained. Hamond had to close his eyes and face away yet again. He'd already been surprised by Edeline's powerful thaumaturgy before, but that was just a candle compared to this raging bonfire of magic. If that was the Stormsage, just how powerful had she been when alive?

The roar of the surging magic faded, and Hamond looked over. The statue was gone, as if it had never been there. Edeline stood there, one arm outstretched, swaying slightly as if she were dazed. Given that magical energy, it was a surprise she remained relatively unharmed.

She turned to look at them, although it seemed as if she was staring past them instead. "What...what did I just see..." Edeline barely finished speaking when she fell forward.

Without thinking Hamond sprinted forward, catching her before she hit the floor. He looked down to see Edeline looking up at him, blinking.

"What happened? Are you alright?" Myron called out as he trotted over, Nela right behind him.

"I...I think I am fine." Edeline got her feet under her, but kept one arm on Hamond's should for stability. "I saw...visions. Strange visions. I think they were memories. Her memories."

It certainly was not the strangest thing Hamond had seen or heard today, and at this point he didn't know what to believe. Still, it seemed their gamble had paid off. The statue and the magical energies it had been containing were gone, beyond the reach of anyone now.

Still, there was one detail that bothered him. The given request had used the word us, clearly implying that there was more than one such statue. If that had been the Stormsage, just how many other thaumaturges were out there, similarly trapped in stone? The possibility, the potential scope of what Edeline had been asked to do, was sobering.

Dwelling on it down here underground was not appealing though. "Let's get out of here," he proposed.

"About time we did the smart thing," Nela said.

"Yes, we...should leave," Edeline spoke up, still sounding slightly out of it. "Besides...we ought to eat soon."

Well, she was definitely hungry, Hamond noted to himself with amusement. He really should have just found work as a cook. Of course, if he had hadn't chosen to be a healer, he wouldn't be here now. No point in regretting a decision that let him save lives.

Of course, that was the other problem he was going to have to face. Hamond had put it out of his mind, but the reality was that he would have to answer Nela's questioning eventually. She had every reason to doubt his skills as a healer. To be honest with himself, he was starting to question his own studies as well.

The four walked back past the gigant's remains, heading up the stairs for what he hoped would be the last time. Good riddance to this place, whatever it was supposed to be. Hamond supposed they would never truly know the purpose of all these passages, but that was just sometimes the way of things. There were more important questions to answer.