Defying Destiny

by Andrew Rowe

  Kyestri hesitated. “I’m afraid that won’t be possible. I could ask them to speak to you, perhaps...? Or offer you another shield. Did you want a shield in general, or was this more of a gift for your old mentor?”

  “The latter. I’ve never been much for shields myself, truth be told.”

  Kyestri waved his hand toward the Sae’kes. “With a sword like that, I’m not surprised to hear it. I don’t suppose that’s up for trade...?”

  Taelien shook his head. “Apologies, but no.”

  “Of course. I had to ask. Well, could I interest you in some other gifts? I have a few other items from the same battle.”

  “That would be excellent, thank you.” Taelien nodded.

  Kyestri turned toward Wrynn. “I suppose you’ll probably have a few things you’re interested in trading for as well?”

  “The Lady’s Hour,” Wrynn replied. “If you still have it, of course.”

  “Ah, the time saver. Of course. How appropriate for you. I’ll have to give that some extra consideration just because of how poetic it might be.” He nodded. “Very well, then. Follow me to the gallery.”

  ***

  Lord Kyestri led the pair down a series of hallways to another portion of the manor, pausing on occasion to point at a particular statue and relate a story about its origins. Taelien tuned most of them out, having never had much interest in history, but he did appreciate the attention to detail in the craftsmanship.

  At the end of a hall, Kyestri knocked on a wall. It slid down into the floor, revealing a hidden passageway. “A minor precaution, you understand, and one of many. I don’t show the gallery to just anyone, but Lady Jaden is a colleague, and I am most interested in hearing what the wielder of the Sae’kes is interested in as well.”

  The secret passage led down another similar looking hallway to a door that looked largely ordinary, save for a huge and intricate lock around the handle. It had no less than six keyholes, as well as three runes near the center.

  Kyestri pressed a thumb against each of the runes, then reached into a pocket in his coat and retrieved just one key. He placed the key in the leftmost of the six holes, turned it, and pressed a thumb against the rightmost rune.

  After that, he retrieved the key, slipped it in his pocket, and opened the door.

  “This way.” Beyond the doorway was a stairway. They headed down it, then at the bottom, Kyestri repeated his arcane process at yet another door.

  Beyond that door was another path, no longer wrought from wood, but rather made from rough and uneven stone, like the interior of a cave. As the path led downward, Taelien realized they were heading underground.

  Could this be the entrance to yet another Xixian Vault?

  It wasn’t as unlikely as it sounded. The Xixian Empire had controlled this entire area of the region only a few hundred years before, and the capitol — Xixis itself — had supposedly been not far from their current location.

  If there was a vault, however, Taelien didn’t see one. Instead, the rough path opened into a massive underground chamber.

  When he’d been told about a “gallery”, he’d pictured something like a museum.

  Instead, this area was a damp underground lair — and “lair” was the only word Taelien could think to properly describe an area housing so many monsters.

  The chamber was hundreds of feet across, but the majority of it was dominated by cages. Within those cages were the largest variety of monsters Taelien had seen in a single location. Dire animals of colossal size, essence devourers, flamebirds, and even some foreign monsters he couldn’t recognize. The monsters didn’t seem happy to see them, either. Most of them hurled themselves against the bars of their cages the moment the visitors arrived, snapping their jaws and thrashing around.

  Taelien’s hand didn’t drift to his sword like it usually would when he sensed danger. His response wasn’t to feel threatened, but a sense of pity.

  “Ah, forgive me for the ruckus. The beasts haven’t yet been fed today.” Kyestri smiled. “Do any of them catch your eye, or are you more interested in the items?”

  “The items.” Taelien said hastily, not trusting himself to say anything else. His instinct was to free the caged creatures immediately, but he knew that would be disastrous.

  Remember the esharen. You can’t just rush in and free everything you see.

  The argument felt unconvincing, but he checked himself, at least for the moment.

  “Of course. This way, please.”

  Kyestri led them to the far right side of the chamber, on the opposite side from the caged monsters. In doing so, they passed through a circular marked area in the center of the room.

  A fighting ring, most likely. Probably for pitting the monsters against one another, or against human opponents.

  Taelien wrinkled his nose in disgust. He was no stranger to violence, but keeping creatures in cages to fight for the amusement of others was something he couldn’t condone.

  Did Aayara send me here with the knowledge that I’d be bothered, in hopes I’d do something about it? Either to get me into trouble with Kyestri, or possibly to remove him as an obstacle to her?

  Considering the motivations of his enemies — and grudging temporary allies — wasn’t something that came as naturally to him as it seemed to for Lydia and Jonan, but he was working on it. He had to; the world would never stop using him as a game piece if he didn’t stop himself from being played.

  I need to focus on my completing my objective, even if Aayara expects me to deviate from it. I can alert someone to the problems here, or handle them personally, after I’ve provided Lydia with the identity of the Shrouded One.

  The section of the “gallery” dedicated to displaying items was closer to what he’d been expecting. Small crystalline cases on pedestals held small individual objects, each of which had a plaque describing the contents.

  Two larger crystal sections held full exhibits of themed items. One of them held full suits of armor and the other held a broad variety of weapons.

  Taelien drifted to the weapon case. Not because it was what he was there for, but because it was expected that he’d be interested in weapons, and he hoped to deliver on that expectation. If he showed too much immediate interest on what he was actually there to see, he knew that would drive up the owner’s perception of its value.

  And besides that, he did actually want to see the weapons. He liked swords.

  There was a distinct lack of swords, sadly, at least by Taelien’s estimation. There were only four in the case, and only one of them had the kind of reach he preferred.

  The first sword was a rapier with a thin enough blade that it looked to be built for dueling or display rather than actual combat. Taelien inspected the plaque below it.

  Sliver of Iron Rain

  A relic of the Talisian order, enchanted with protection spells to assist in the wielder’s role of defending the queen of Fallowden.

  Created Est. 2464VF

  The current year was 3123VF, and thus, that made the sword over six hundred years old. Protection enchantments might have been useful for most, but they’d never worked quite properly on him. And he’d never had much reason to be interested in the Talisian Order, so he wasn’t particularly interested in it just for collector’s purposes.

  “May I?” Taelien asked, gesturing toward the sword.

  “With that one, yes.” Kyestri nodded, then moved to open the case. He reached inside, retrieving the sword, and handing it to Taelien.

  Taelien lifted the sword, flicking it in the air and giving an appreciative look. “Very light.”

  “Is that something you look for in a sword?”

  Taelien shrugged. “The Sae’kes is light, but no, not typically. I actually tend to enjoy heavier weapons more, for the most part.”

  “Ah, the next one is perfect, then. Although I can’t allow you to hold that, sadly.”

  Taelien had to admit, Kyestri was right. The next one was perfect for him.

 
He concentrated for a moment, closing his eyes, then handed the Sliver of Iron Rain back to Kyestri and turned to the next sword in the case.

  It was a crimson-bladed greatsword that was almost six feet in length, close to Taelien’s full height. The crossguard curved upward on both sides, and the top of it was sharpened to be used as an additional cutting surface.

  Impractical, given the length, Taelien considered, but I do like the aesthetic of it.

  Given that and the weapon’s size, Taelien expected it was designed to be used by someone with great enough strength to wield it as a crushing implement against armored foes, rather than just as a traditional slashing and cutting sword.

  The most interesting part was the pommel, which contained a large red crystal, not dissimilar from the blue one in Taelien’s own weapon. Gems like that were often the power sources for ancient sorcerous weapons, but he’d rarely encountered ones other than his own.

  World Cutter

  A dominion marked greatsword once used by Vanden Kaye, one of the supposed “gods” of the continent of Tyrenia. According to legend, it was forged with the heart of a star from metal in the depths of the elemental planes. It is considered the most successful attempt to replicate the Dominion Breaker, the sword crafted by the worldmakers to protect our world from outside threats.

  Like the Dominion Breaker, the World Cutter has abilities designed to combat divine opponents, though they function differently. While the Dominion Breaker utilizes a single unknown dominion to detonate mana, the World Cutter channels the power of dozens of different dominions simultaneously. This unique mixing of energies causes it to shimmer like a rainbow and allows it to exploit the vulnerabilities of nearly any opponent. Unfortunately, it is so heavy that no ordinary human or rethri can even lift it.

  Creation Date Unknown

  Taelien tilted his head to the side.

  I bet I could pick that up. And it it’s built for fighting divine enemies...

  He shook his head at himself. Dominion marked swords were, unfortunately, not what he was actually there for, as much as he might have been interested in them.

  “I can see you like that one, and with good cause. It’s one of the three most valuable items in my entire collection. Sadly, due to the risks, I can’t allow you to pick it up. It’s quite volatile and powerful, not unlike your own sword, from what I’m given to understand.”

  That makes it even more interesting. Still, I don’t really need another sword that’s difficult to wield.

  Taelien gave Kyestri a nod, then turned to the next sword. It was a gold-hilted saber, with the blade visibly glowing with matching golden light.

  The Descent of Twilight

  A weapon said to have been once wielded by Vaelien himself, long before his acquisition of his more famous greatsword. The Descent of Twilight is enchanted with both light and shadow, possessing capabilities related to both. With light, it can strike at distant foes with blinding speed. With shadow, it can conceal the wearer, or ebb the strength of enemies.

  Creation Date Unknown

  Kyestri reached into the case and removed it, allowing Taelien to test it in the air.

  Once again, Taelien felt the weight of the weapon, giving it a considerate nod. “Not bad. I somehow doubt Vaelien would approve of a paladin carrying it, though.”

  “I won’t tell him if you don’t,” Kyestri said with a wink.

  Taelien laughed. He concentrated on the sword for another moment, then handed it back to Kyestri.

  He moved on to the last sword, which had a broad and curved blade. More interestingly, the blade was black, with such an intensity that he couldn’t tell if that was a property of the material or some sort of sorcerous effect.

  Void Branch

  The sword of a Xixian princess, recovered after her defeat in the siege of Velthryn in 2730VF. After being retrieved by a Thornguard captain who helped force the princess into retreat, the Void Branch was passed down through his family for several generations, before eventually being sold to cover the family’s gambling debts. From there, it passed into the hands of a master thief, who was not masterful enough to steal from Lord Kyestri’s vault. The weapon nullifies all nearby sorcery and cleaves through both sorcerous and physical defenses with ease.

  Creation Date Unknown

  That was an intriguing weapon, potentially even more useful than the World Cutter. While the World Cutter sounded more impressive, the functions and legends of the weapon had likely been greatly exaggerated. In the case of the Void Branch, however, the visible aura of sorcery around the weapon was enough confirmation that it had at least some of the functions described.

  Void sorcery was extraordinarily rare and difficult to use, and from the sound of it, it also had some sort of secondary enchantments for cutting through armor. Ruin sorcery, perhaps, or maybe even metal sorcery like his own. While he didn’t think he’d enjoy wielding the weapon in its present form, perhaps he could reshape it...

  “See something you like?” Lord Kyestri asked.

  Taelien pointed at Void Branch. “I always appreciate enchanted weapons, and this one looks fascinating. May I test it?”

  “Not that one. My sincerest apologies. Ah, I should have expected you to gravitate straight to the swords. Of course. I do have a few more that aren’t on display, if that’s what you’re here for...?”

  That’s sorely tempting.

  Taelien turned to Kyestri. “I haven’t made up my mind about anything specific, but swords are always of interest to me. I’d be thrilled to see any other weapons of note in your collection, but we’ll have to see if I have anything left to trade you after I’ve perused what you already have on display.”

  Kyestri smiled. “Of course. Forgive me for interrupting. Take your time and look around.”

  “Thank you.”

  Taelien turned back to the weapon display, focusing on the next best thing after swords — polearms and spears.

  The first was a broad-bladed halberd.

  Valerian Legion Halberd

  A halberd used by Lieutenant Commander Kori Wolfe of the Fourth Valerian Legion during the final battles outside the capitol of Xixis. The weapon has been preserved in the condition in which it was found.

  Forged Est. 3055VF

  “That one’s not dominion marked,” Kyestri explained. “But perhaps something of sentimental value to many. Perhaps a good replacement for your old friend’s shield?”

  Taelien nodded at the logic. “Definitely worth considering. I’d like to bring him back something if I can, but my priority is on enchanted goods.”

  “Of course. I would expect nothing less.”

  After that, Taelien examined a massive two-handed hammer with a head that was constructed entirely out of glimmering white crystal.

  En-Vamir, the Hammer that Broke the Spine of the World

  This weapon requires little introduction, for it is well known in myth and legend. En-Vamir was the weapon wielded by Koranir, the God of Strength and Stone, as a mortal man. The weapon’s title comes from his use of the hammer to collapse an entire mountain range, preventing the escape of the Buried from their prison deep underground. The shaft was broken in the process of this great feat, and the current shaft is a replacement. The hammerhead, however, is the original.

  Upon ascending to godhood, Koranir gifted the weapon to his high priest. It was passed down throughout the priesthood until the final battle against Xixis, at which point the weapon was lost in the siege.

  Taelien’s eyes widened at the description, and for a moment, his gaze shifting to the intricate golden pommel in the shape of a lion’s head, then moving upward to examine the four glowing runes on each side of the hammer. It certainly met the description of Koranir’s legendary weapon, but of course, he knew it was more likely to be a replica.

  ...Is this how everyone feels when they see the Sae’kes? The same skepticism, mixed with awe?

  “Something of a personal favorite, that one,” Kyestri explained. “One of th
e few that can be very directly traced to being used by a member of the Tae’os Pantheon, much like your own weapon. Normally, I wouldn’t consider parting with it, but I was hoping that perhaps you’d be interested in trading a sword for a hammer...”

  Taelien shook his head. “While I appreciate the offer, my sword has a bit too much sentimental value.”

  “A pity.” Kyestri shook his head. “Ah, well. There are plenty of other things to look at.”

  The next item looked something like a spear or glaive, but with something more like a pointed crossguard near the bladed portion at the top of the shaft. The two additional points on the guard made it almost resemble a trident, but they weren’t quite long enough to call it that.

  The Three-Thorned Rose

  A spirit-imbued glaive from Artinia Dyer Tal. In spite of our best efforts, the exact functions have not been able to be identified. According to the traveling merchant who sold it, the weapon is a relic of House Diamond, once used in many battles in their legendary tournaments.

  Forging Date Unknown

  Wrynn looked at that weapon with interest. “That’s not a glaive. It’s a yari.”

  “Ah, I’d forgotten. You spent a bit of time in Artinia, did you not?” Kyestri smiled. “Perhaps you could help me discern the function? I confess, it’s proven all but impervious to conventional identification spells.”

  Wrynn narrowed her eyes at the object. “You don’t want anything to do with that weapon. And it’s not a House Diamond relic. It’s of the Buried.”

  “The Buried?” Kyestri frowned. “You’re certain of that?”

  Wrynn stared at the item for another moment, then gave a soft nod. “I’d get rid of it as quickly as possible. Honestly, you might wish to have Taelien here destroy it for you.”

  Taelien turned to Wrynn. “Wait, are the Buried still a threat? I thought the gods handled that thousands of years ago.”