The Consequences of Meeting a Dragon

"A completely different enchantment? Are you sure?" Mideis asked. "I was more focused on passing the information to Amisi than I was on trying to piece together what the enchantment's about. I did notice that some of the formations were unfamiliar...but is analyzing one hand really enough to tell?"

Ariom nodded. "The enchantment we were expecting has quite a distinctive structure—that's how I could recognize it from the fragments you showed me. This has some similar elements, including the same kind of explosive traps. But the overall structure is different."

"How so?"

"The power distribution structure and overflow relay are missing. The magic circuit enhancement can't function without those. And there is a layer of reinforcement, but it's for the physical body, not the magic circuit. Looks like some kind of longevity charm."

"A longevity charm?" Mideis frowned. "That's strange.... One of the reasons we picked this guy out as probably being part of the Order's experiment was because there were signs he'd recently gotten a lot of money from an unknown source. So you'd expect him to splurge on a few luxuries like that. But getting a longevity charm and explosive traps put on your body at the same time? Why bother?"

"Is it possible they didn't tell him about the traps?" Namyis suggested.

"It's possible," Ariom said slowly. "But the body reinforcement is part of the same matrix. It wasn't added separately. So I think it's more likely that it had another purpose."

Mideis looked confused. "What else would you use it for? I've read quite a lot about flesh enchantments for this project, and I don't remember seeing any other uses for longevity charms."

"Well, no. You wouldn't have seen them if you were only reading about flesh enchantments. You'd have to study other areas of necromancy." Ariom glanced at Humerus. "Spectral beasts, for example. Revenants that have formed familiar contracts typically have preservation and reinforcement charms placed on their vessels to protect them from damage and prevent decay. Longevity charms were actually adapted from enchantments like those. That's one reason they don't work particularly well. They were originally intended for preserving corpses, not living bodies."

"Are you saying this guy might be a revenant?" Namyis asked, looking curiously at the man lying on the table. "He looked like a normal person before I froze him. His body was warm, and he was breathing and everything."

Ariom shook his head. "That was just an example. It's not impossible that he's a revenant, but it's not likely. I need to see more of the enchantment matrix before I can tell exactly what's going on."

"So you want to keep going, then?"

"That's the only way to know for sure what we're dealing with here. It's a bit dangerous, though. I don't really know what to expect, so I'm more likely to trigger one of the traps by accident. And from the looks of it, the explosive formations might be even higher-powered than the ones we've practiced with."

Namyis looked up at him and smiled. "I'm okay with it if you are. I trust your judgment."

Ariom raised an eyebrow. Just where did that confidence come from...?

He sighed a little and turned back to Mideis. "What do you think?"

"Well, if you honestly think it's too dangerous, I won't blame you for quitting. But if you're willing, I'd prefer to keep going. The more information we have about what the Order's up to, the better."

Ariom hesitated for a moment, considering.

It was true there was some risk. But the worst traps would probably be in the torso area, where the main part of the enchantment matrix was. He and Namyis were working well together by now, so if they went slowly, just finishing the arm shouldn't be a problem, and that ought to give him enough information to know whether his hunch about this enchantment was accurate or not. They could decide how to proceed from there.

"All right," he said finally, nodding. "Let's do the rest of this arm and see how it looks. We'll go a little more slowly, just to be safe."

He bent over the frozen body again and reformed his small magic blade. Namyis also got back into position, following his lead as he began cautiously picking apart the inscriptions on the wrist.

Her weird antics aside, she really was good in a supporting role. She paid close attention and responded quickly, often predicting what he wanted before he asked. He might have actually enjoyed working with her if she didn't annoy him quite so much.

And if she weren't a battlemage, of course. It was hard to get past that part.

It took them about a half hour to finish the forearm and a bit longer than that for the upper arm, since there was a tricky section at the shoulder.

Finally, they reached a relatively good stopping point. Ariom signaled for another break and then leaned back in his chair with a sigh.

"I see what you mean about that reinforcement enchantment," Mideis said, his brow furrowed. "It does resemble a longevity charm, but it's a bit strange. Do you have an idea of what its purpose is by now?"

"Yeah, I do. I'm not sure about the details yet, but I understand basically what it is we have on our hands here. And I guess I'll have to take back what I said earlier."

Mideis blinked. "Which part?"

"Remember when I called this guy a walking corpse? He's not. You have to be dead to be a corpse, and this thing was never alive in the first place." Ariom gestured at the body with his chin. "This isn't a human body. It's a flesh golem."

"A flesh golem?" Thenio repeated. "You mean like the practice dummies we've been using?"

"No, not quite." Bero shook his head, staring down at the papers with magic formations drawn on them that he'd spread out over the table. "The term is a little confusing because it's used to refer to a few different things. The things we've been using for practicing are technically 'flesh dolls.' They're artificial cadavers, basically. Just a replica of a body, with no life or function. The wooden dolls Ariom makes are a simpler version of them. They're used a lot for research and education. I saw tons of them when I was studying healing magic."

Grandmaster Sephior nodded. "Yes, we use them for training at the Stability Center. There's a magic workshop here in Kamari that specializes in making them. I believe the Royal Academy gets theirs from the same place."

"True flesh golems are something different, though," Bero continued, tapping one of the papers thoughtfully. "They're actual golems, made with either an artificial body or a dead one. They can be programmed to do various things, just like any other golem. Not too many people use them nowadays, but they were quite common during the Great War. You've probably heard of the Guardian's White Army, haven't you? Those are bone golems, a type of flesh golem."

"Ah, right. I know about that," Thenio said, nodding. "That's why his other nickname is the Last True Necromancer, right? Because he's the only modern necromancer who can control a whole army like that?"

"Well, that's not the only reason. But it's a big part of it, yes."

Yohlom Idarin's White Army was legendary. It was said that his skeletons were a major factor in keeping the First Rift under control, since they weren't affected by the thick miasma surrounding it like humans were.

Grandmaster Sephior had been giving Thenio's hand and wrist a light treatment with healing magic to help keep them from getting sore, but now he stood up and went over to the table. "Let me take a look."

Bero moved to the side to let him see the papers more easily. The two of them stood and looked down at the scattered formations in silence.

Thenio turned to Amisi. "Are Ariom and Mideis still talking?"

The taua nodded. "They stepped out to tell the vice-captain what Ariom's learned so far and discuss what to do." She paused, looking at Bero and Grandmaster Sephior. "Since you two are both high-level necromancers, they'd like to hear your opinions once you're done looking over those drawings."

"I should probably go out and talk to them," Bero said. "Flesh golems aren't really your thing, are they? I'm no expert, but I've studied them a little. And I am an expert on revenants. Their vessels could be considered a type of flesh puppet."

Grandmaster Sephior nodded without taking his eyes off the table. "Yes, you have more experience. Especially since I think this actually is a flesh puppet, rather than a true golem."

"Oh? What makes you think so?"

"That." The doctor pointed to one of the magic formations. "That's a heat enchantment, presumably to simulate a human's body temperature. Doesn't that mean they wanted to impersonate a living human? That's very difficult to do with a golem."

"Hmm...that's a good point." Bero nodded slowly. "That would mean they have quite a skilled necromancer working for them. Flesh puppets aren't easy to control...not for humans, anyway." He paused and gave a rather grim smile. "I actually noticed the heat enchantment, but my interpretation of it was a bit different. I thought it was likely to be a trap."

Grandmaster Sephior raised an eyebrow. "A trap for the Royal Guard, you mean?"

"Yes. For the analysis team, specifically. People with skills like theirs aren't easy to find. If you could take them by surprise with a more dangerous explosive enchantment than they were expecting and injure or kill at least one, it would severely hinder the investigation."

"So you think there's a mole?"

"I think it's worth considering the possibility."

"Yes, I suppose it is." Grandmaster Sephior seemed to think for a moment, then he pulled a number of small bottles out of his space pocket and set them on the table in front of Bero. Three looked like the bottle of ambrosia that Ariom had given Thenio. The other six had a silvery white liquid in them. "Here. Give these to the others to keep on hand if they decide they want to go ahead with the analysis. Relisa and the unicorns made them, so I can guarantee the quality."

Bero's eyes widened a little as he picked up one of the white bottles and checked the label. "Moondust? That's some good stuff. You're sure you want to give away this much?"

Thenio's jaw dropped. Moondust was the common name for a top quality magic recovery medicine. It could restore a large amount of magic power in a few minutes with barely any side effects. Only a small number of high-level alchemists could make it, so it was difficult to come by.

And very expensive, obviously. Even more than ambrosia was.

Grandmaster Sephior chuckled a little when he saw the shocked look on Thenio's face. "It's fine. Medicine is worthless if you don't use it when you need it. And I can always get more. I live with a grandmaster alchemist and two unicorns, after all."

"Relisa keeps a low profile, so you might not be aware, but she's one of the best pharmaceutical alchemists on the continent," Bero explained to Thenio. "My son was very fortunate to be able to do his apprenticeship with her." He put the bottles into his own space pocket and gave Grandmaster Sephior a grateful nod. "Thank you. This will help me feel a little more at ease if they decide to be reckless and go ahead with analyzing the rest of that golem's enchantment...which they probably will, knowing Ariom...."

He sighed and shook his head. Then he left the room to go find Ariom and Mideis.

"Ariom is going to do something dangerous?" Iggy asked after Bero closed the door behind him.

The little dragon had been sitting on a corner of the table, alternating between playing quietly with Obby and looking at the magic formations that Bero was laying out. But now he came over and jumped onto the desk, looking concerned.

"It's a little dangerous, but I'm sure Ariom will be really careful," Thenio told him, reaching up to stroke his back. "He's wearing that combat suit to protect him, remember? And Namyis and Humerus are in there with him. They're both really strong, right? They won't let Ariom or Mideis get hurt. And Grandmaster Sephior was really nice just now and sent over some special medicine for them to use if they need it. So everyone will be fine. Okay?"

Thenio actually wasn't entirely sure about that last part. But he knew Ariom wouldn't take stupid risks, and there were a lot of precautions in place.

What good would it do to let Iggy worry, anyway?

"Mmm. Okay." Iggy seemed satisfied with those reassurances. His half-flattened ears relaxed, and his tail even waved a little.

Amisi probably wasn't fooled by Thenio's optimism, but she seemed to think it was better to play along. "They'll probably be talking for a little while longer," she said, standing up and stretching herself in an arch. "Do you want to play ball for a few minutes, Iggy?"

"Mmm!" Iggy jumped from the desk over to Amisi's bench. At the same time, he triggered Obby's float charm, so the plush chicken rose up off the table and drifted over to him. "Obby will play with us, too, okay? He can play as our ball!"

The two familiars started hitting the floating chicken back and forth through the air. Thenio watched them for a minute, then decided to follow Amisi's suggestion and move around a little. He stood up and stretched before going over to the refreshment table to pour himself a cup of water.

"Do you want anything?" he asked Grandmaster Sephior, who was still looking at the magic formations that were spread across the table.

The doctor glanced up and smiled appreciatively. "Some water for me, too, please."

Thenio poured another cup and carried it back over. "Uh...thank you," he said a bit awkwardly as he handed the water over. "For sharing that medicine with everyone. And for helping us with this job in general."

"You're very welcome, boy," Grandmaster Sephior said gently. He took a sip of the water and then looked at Thenio thoughtfully. "Though, if anything, I really ought to be thanking you for the opportunity. It's a chance to help out some old friends of mine and to observe some very interesting magic. Plus...well...I don't think you quite realize just how valuable your connection to Ki'shiu is. Plenty of people would jump at the chance to earn a bit of favor from someone like him, you know? I don't recommend that you deliberately try to take advantage of him, of course, but you should certainly view your relationship with him as a precious asset."

"That...I mean...I do value my relationship with him. And Eteon. They've helped me out a lot. But I guess I hadn't really thought about other people valuing it, too. Ariom and Mideis both seem to be kind of scared of them...."

Grandmaster Sephior gave a wry smile. "As they should be. Mythic beasts generally have a tolerant attitude toward humans, but it's rare for a mythic beast to treat a human as kindly as Ki'shiu treats you."

"Oh." Thenio wasn't quite sure what to say to that.

Eteon had said that they were helping him simply because they liked him. But the more he learned about mythic beasts from other people, the stranger that seemed.

He didn't think Eteon had lied to him, exactly...they did act like they liked him, after all.

But it couldn't be quite that simple. Not when Ki'shiu seemed to have been equally interested in all the other chaos morphs.

Thenio sat back down at the desk, sipping his water and puzzling over the strange situation.

A few minutes later, the door opened, and Bero reentered the room.

"Break time's over, everyone," he announced, giving the playing familiars an apologetic smile. "As expected, they decided to keep going, so it's time to get back to work." He turned to Thenio. "They know there's the possibility of some nasty traps being hidden inside that thing, so they're going to be as careful as possible. Which means going at a much slower pace than our practice sessions have been. If they successfully avoid setting off any traps that way...well, it will be a good thing, but it also might mean we're in for a very long day. Thenio, you should keep going as long as you can, but you shouldn't push yourself to the point of breaking. Mideis can take over if you need him to, so be sure to let us know if you start feeling uncomfortable, all right?"

"I understand." Thenio nodded and picked his pencil back up.

"Well, what did you decide?" Namyis asked when Ariom and Mideis returned to the analysis room.

"We're going to continue," Ariom said. "I'm not sure how far we can go without setting off a trap, but we'll do as much as we can." He looked at Mideis. "Can you give her a summary of the conversation just now? I need to talk to Humerus for a minute."

While Mideis started explaining to Namyis about everything they'd been discussing with the vice-captain and Uncle Bero, Ariom went over to where Humerus was still lying quietly on his cushion.

"Did Uncle Bero tell you everything?" Ariom asked, reaching out to stroke the revenant's back.

Humerus nodded.

"If he's right, and the guy we intended to bring in was swapped out for this golem to try to put us in a dangerous situation...well...are you going to be all right?"

"Of course I will," Humerus scoffed. "Who do you think I am? That ugly golem is no match for my greatness." He glanced toward the observation window. "And I told you I had a bad feeling about some of those people. That's why I've been trying not to let them see what I am."

"I know...that was smart. Now the Mighty Humerus can fly in out of nowhere and ruin all their plans." Ariom smiled wryly and patted the revenant's head. "Thanks, Humerus. I'm really glad you're here."

Humerus sniffed. "You'd better make me something nice later."

"I will. I promise." Ariom gave him another pat and then turned back toward the examination table. "All right. Let's see if we can uncover a few of the Order's secrets."