Shards of Old

-Sure. You want me to start here or from a smaller cell?

-Doesn’t matter. Both of them have mostly the same security.

I just shrugged.

-Well, for starters let’s start with the obvious.

-Usc fi geksu.

I summoned a fire orb and proceeded to walk towards the door. But as soon as the flames materialized and started floating in front of me I saw both of their faces turn from laughter and confidence to straight up disbelief and almost panic.

-HOW? - they both exclaimed, unison.

Without answer I just moved to the hinges of the door and increased firepower, started slowly melting the metal. Exactly as in the other cell, the metal was pretty weak and soon started bending and distorting.

-From what I understand you have a bunch of fire mages here, I don’t know why in the hell would you not think that someone wouldn’t try this.

-But… you shouldn’t be able to do that! - For started protesting. - The crystals…

-Well, he was able to cast spells on me. So why wouldn’t I be able to?

-He is different! He’s...

-Yeah sure, whatever - I dismissed her. - Apparently your “protection” is pretty crap. And if he’s different, why one of your prisoners can’t be as well?

-It does not work that way! Who are you?! - the man was almost yelling at this point. - That does not make any sense!

-Well, I don’t know exactly what would prevent me from casting - I said, moving to the other hinge - but it obviously doesn’t work on me. Wouldn’t be the first time. And for the other problems… well the lack of any guards, or supervision is one. At least if someone would try escaping you’d have some sort of a backup plan.

-And how do you know we don’t have one? - she still tried to remain professional and collected. - For all you know they are observing ri…

-Don’t make me laugh. Of course no one is paying attention. If they would, I am pretty sure this discussion wouldn’t ever take place. Or your “guards” are so shit at their job that they don’t care that someone is openly casting magic where they shouldn’t…

She didn’t reply, so I continued.

-There is also another problem with those doors. I don’t know who made them, or enchanted them, but I am pretty sure they just scammed you.

-How so? - this time the man asked the question, For was still processing my earlier complaints. - They are soundproof and… well besides not being fireproof they definitely proved their usefulness until now…

-Well, this one here - I gestured towards, now partially melted and distorted door - seems like they are, but I honestly doubt it. All those doors have the same properties, right? I mean in this dungeon.

The man looked at the woman, seemingly looking for approval, she just nodded, defeated.

-Yeah - he finally answered. - Enchanted with the same spell, by the same man.

-Well, I’d recommend looking for him. My cell was definitely not soundproof at all. Or rather, It was, but only one way. I did scream a bunch of times, not to mention I did cast several spells, no one cared, but I could hear everyone on the other side. Everything went silent only when someone closed the other door, for example when someone went to visit my, ehm “friend” as you called him, or left the dungeon over all. On the other hand, here, I couldn’t even hear her shoes, even while she was right next to the room. Just a guess, maybe the enchantment faded with age or something, hard to tell without inspecting all of them properly first, but…

My sentence was interrupted by a loud noise. The last hinge, it finally gave up and the whole door fell outside, to the corridor, where it crashed on the floor, crushing some crystals that were wedged into it to dust, making a horrible sound. The noise snapped awake For from her weird trance.

-Okay, okay, it's enough! I give up!

As she spoke, the paper, the deal, which she was still clutching, suddenly lit up. The ink turned pure white and started getting brighter and brighter, to the point where it was painful just to look at it. The letters got bigger and bigger, and started moving. I sort of looked like someone took and zoomed into the paper with a massive magnifying glass and focused on both of our names, finally making the whole paper just be completely white after which it promptly caught on fire. White fire. The sudden event made For flinch and pull away from it, but it still remained exactly where it was, hovering between us, burning. It took a few seconds to burn completely, not even ashes remaining.

-Ehm, I assume that means the deal is complete? Didn’t expect you could just… say that and complete it like this… - I gestured towards For. - What about my part of the deal though? Don’t feel like you fulfilled that one…

She sat back down in the chair and sighed heavily.

-I am not sure… it just disappeared like this… - she sounded defeated and, over all, tired. - But don’t worry, you are free to go. Not like I am able to keep anyone here, as demonstrated.

-You are both wrong - interjected the man - The deal is not completed. It only got sealed.

Both of us looked at him, questioningly.

-Don’t tell me you both have no idea?- he looked surprised and slightly worried.

-Idea about what? - apparently the woman was as confused as I was.

-How the magical contracts work… please tell me you did not make me write one without knowing the consequences?

-What's the difference? - the woman rolled her eyes. - I just have to let him out of the place and it’s done, what’s the big deal?

-Well, I guess that's sort of true…

-Can you explain anyway? - I asked. - I kinda want to know for the future, since it apparently is a big deal…

-He can if he feels like it but first, can we get moving? - she said impatiently. - I don’t want to look at you for any much longer…

-Oh come on… - I rolled my eyes. - Rude. That’s the thanks you give for someone that willingly pointed out holes in your dungeon?

-Pointed out? More like made more…

-I wouldn’t if I didn’t have to. You basically kidnapped me and dumped who-knows-where.

-Tsch. Why did all this have to happen today?!

But even with the complaints, she stood up and we all left the room, walking around the fallen door and the shards of crystal embedded in it.

As we approached the main door to the dungeon, I noticed there was no keyhole. Instead, the woman placed her hand on one of the crystals, which promptly started glowing, and the door opened by themself, with a slight creaking.

-Interesting… - I muttered to myself. - Some kind of bio-binding…

-What, you found more holes? - she asked, almost barking at me.

-No, but I probably would if I had time and resources. Not like I need them, you can just break through the door just fine without that.

-Fucker.

Man, she was angry. I kinda felt bad for her, but she did agree to this. All this was just one big misunderstanding after all.

-In any case - the man interrupted - we should move. Where exactly do you want to go?

-What do you mean? Outside, obviously. Don’t want to annoy you any longer that it’s needed.

-Sure - suddenly the woman smiled - Outside you say? To the bottom entrance then.

-But that’s not… - started the man.

-I said - she looked at him devilishly - to the bottom entrance.

-Oh man… Of course.

I just squinted, looking at them both. That look on her face made me suspicious. Even though everyone seemed to have complete faith in those “deals” and that stupid triple law or whatever, I still, even after that flashy show, couldn’t completely get behind idea of it.

The man apparently had similar thoughts, because wanted to say something.

-If you think to…

-Shut up and walk - he didn’t even get to finish his sentence.

-Okay, I am also here, and I also would like to be enlightened in the situation - I announced, now slightly annoyed.

-This is not your business - she scoffed at me.

-It is very much my business I feel like, our deals and crap, remember?

-Hmph.

That woman started getting on my nerves. I get it, I am an annoyance and an uninvited guest. Can we get on with it and just go instead barking at each other like a bunch of angry dogs?

For once I feel like she read my mind, because she just turned around and exclaimed:

-Let’s move. We have nothing to talk about, let’s just get on with this.

Once more I was led through the weird corridors of that… castle, I guess? As we emerged from the dungeons, we went in quite the opposite direction than I arrived from. I admit, it was pretty hard to keep track of where we were going. A few times I even was pretty sure that we were walking in circles, but I kept my mouth shut. It was most likely just my imagination, since every single corridor looked the exact same. Metal doors, weird stone walls, another metal door, this time with crystal shrapnel inside of it, then some more stone walls, and just for a change of scenery, even more stone walls. We walked for a good couple of minutes until we finally arrived at some different door. I know, impossible, isn’t it? It was a bit larger, and even slightly decorated, what looked like it was a rarity at this place. Without even a pause, For opened the door and we all finally walked outside, what seemed like the first time in years.

The view was not quite what I expected. We were standing on a small, paved plateau, with one singular tree in the middle. But what was more interesting was what was surrounding us. Instead of some kind of railing or something, the place was surrounded by a set of massive, spiky rocks, angled outside, tall and thick, forming some sort of defensive barrier. And outside of that, was nothing but vast and open sea, as far as the eye could see. But, what was more important, no way to leave, besides swimming of course. Not like it would be a good idea. Without looking down I could already feel that we were pretty high up.

Even though the water looked eerily calm, I could hear the unmistakable sound of the water crashing somewhere down below us. Considering this, spikes and a large clifface below, it would be a suicide.

-Okay, I am glad that you showed me your… balcony? But can we get a move on? I thought you can’t bear to see me?

-I fulfilled my end of the bargain. You are outside now. Now, goodbye.

And she started to walk away.

-Excuse me?

I was gonna go and chase her, but the man stopped me.

-It’s no use. She’s just like that.

-I don’t care, that is not the deal we agreed on! I would’ve had the proof, but it CONVENIENTLY just went up in flames!

-Well, to be honest, both you and her are not wrong.

We heard a loud bang. It was the door, closing behind For.

He sighed.

-I guess I will have to deal with this… My name is Jacob, and it looks like I will be taking care of you until our leader stops being immature.

The last part was definitely said with a hint of irritation, but not towards me.

-I’m Mor, but you know my name by now. Now care to elaborate? I guess it is my fault for not creating a thousand anti-loophole mechanisms in the contract. Kinda ironic, after pointing out your failures I succumb to my own.

-It actually is not that bad. For you that is. Depends on the interpretation.

-Oh? A loophole in a loophole?

-Not exactly. You were supposed to be granted “the free and safe pass from and through the Red Edge” right?

-Yeah, you wrote it yourself.

-Yes - he nodded. - And was there any time or deadline mentioned?

-No.

-And if one was to get stuck at said place. What would that kind of contract force us to do?

-Oh. I get where you're coming from…

-Yes. I don’t think For realized that yet, but she just granted you an infinite “guest pass” of some sort to our fort, sealed in blood to boot.

-In blood? I didn’t…

Then I remembered what exactly happened in the cell.

-Ah. The dagger. Almost forgot.

And it was also most likely how they managed to cast the spell on me without noticing.

-And by the way, you did not “lose” the written proof, quite the opposite. I didn’t expect to have to explain it to you, since you asked for it yourself, but now you will always have it on hand.

-Can’t you be more specific?

-No, I literally mean your hand. Look at your palm.

-Wha…

Having a bad feeling I inspected my hand. In the middle of my palm, on the inside of my hand there was now a small, white… I want to say scar? It sort of looked like a burn mark, but it did not hurt. I touched it and it indeed had a texture like a small wound.

-It is a symbol of your pact. Try directing a little bit of mana to it.

As instructed, I concentrated a bit of energy in my palm, and the mark suddenly came to life, emitting white light, then suddenly a small bright flame appeared. The exact same kind our deal disappeared in. It did not burn, or even was hot for that matter. It grew to the size of my full palm, and from it emerged the contract, unscathed and just floated in front of us.

-Now you will always have it with you.

As he was saying that we heard a scream somewhere from inside the castle.

-Ah right. Don’t worry about that. Just touch it with the white fire and it will disappear.

I did as instructed and the paper immediately lit up, burning up in white flame once more. The flame lingered for a few seconds more, but then started disappearing.

-We are under attack! Quick!

It was the woman. She looked scared shitless and was grabbing her neck, like someone was just trying to choke her.

-And why do you think that?

His tone did not even betray a hint of surprise.

-Some fire mages! It had to be you! - she pointed her finger at me. - Who did you…

-For, please calm down. Let me guess, you suddenly got lit aflame while walking back through the castle.

-How do you even know?!

He sighed.

-I really hoped you knew what you were getting into at least. Mr. Mor - he turned to me. - Can you do that again?

For a second I did not catch what he was about, but it finally clicked and I couldn’t help but laugh.

-Sure.

As before, I activated my mark.

Multiple things happened at once.

First, as before, my hand was set on fire and the contract started appearing out of thin air before me.

Second, there was a scream.

For suddenly jumped back and grabbed her neck again. From between her fingers I could see the exact same white dancing flames that were just on my hand.

Jacob sighed and approached her, trying to grab her by the arm.

-Calm down. This fire can’t burn you. It’s just the contract magic sho…

-What did you do to me! Traitor! I knew it all along!

-SILENCE.

His voice was different and very, very loud. I swear, if there were any windows nearby, they would most likely be shattered from the sheer volume and power of his voice. I couldn’t help but jump, startled from this sudden change of atmosphere. He looked absolutely furious. The woman on the other hand was now straight up scared and, I swear, almost in tears. She looked like a small girl that had just been yelled at by her father. To be honest, the situation was very similar to that.

-This is not a place or time for one of your tantrums! Behave like a woman of your stature should!

As he turned to me, his face was once again calm and collected, his voice back to regular tone.

-Excuse for this lack of composure. In any case, as I was explaining, thanks to the generosity of your host, you are now in possession of a free pass to and from the Red Edge

-Free pass? But I didn’t agree to…

-Agree to what? - he interrupted her immediately and shoved the contract that was still floating between us right in front of her face. - I think that is your own signature, isn’t it?

This time he did not yell, but I could hear the faint sound of anger in his voice.

-You do realize how blood contract magic works? Or you want to tell me that all the lessons your father and I were trying to stick into that empty head of yours were just null and void?

She did not answer. She slowly moved the hands from her neck, towards the necklace and grabbed tightly the gem embedded within it.

-I thought it was just a legend…- she said meekly.

-Gods damn it… - he sighed heavily - you are impossible… Let’s start from the beginning. Why are we here?

She looked confused and instead of answering she gazed towards me.

-Yes, I am aware, he is here. That does not matter - he said, noticing her look.

-We… I am upholding my part of the deal - she stated defiantly. - Escorting him outside the walls of our castle. As far as I am concerned I fulfilled my part.

Before I even managed to start protesting, Jacob raised his hand, gesturing to keep silent.

-Yes. A very clever idea. While that is technically correct, what do you think happens now?

-And why would I care? - she shrugged. - That was not part of the arrangement. I fulfilled my part so I don’t understand why this… - she waved towards her neck and the floating piece of paper - is still here.

-A very good question. Well, as I just explained to Mr. Mor, that’s not how things work. Basically, you just have granted this man unlimited access to the Red Edge.. PERMANENT access to the WHOLE Red Edge.

For a good minute she was just looking at him dumbfounded. Then looked at me, and back at him, until what he was saying finally sunk in, her face expressing now sheer terror.

-I see you understand.

-Why didn’t you stop me! I thought…

-Thought what? I am not your father.

That last one had to sting, because she immediately stopped. She looked at me with, what I can only describe as complete defeat.

-What am I supposed to do now?

-Okay, I hate to interrupt this wonderful discussion and all, but I would like to remind you that we still have some unfinished business - I finally decided to speak up.

-She wanted to say - Jacob cut in - that we know, but there is a slight problem.

-And that is?

-That is, this is the furthest we can escort you outside the castle. As you can see, we are on the island.

-Yea I am not blind, but what does that have to do with anything…

-Gods, not another one… - he sighed - We are on the Red Edge, the tallest and the most remote island on the known seas. It was created hundreds of years ago by our great founder, along with the castle from the depths of the sea to host the most secure school of magic in this part of the world. That is why there are no ships here and getting here or leaving is basically impossible thanks to the geography…

-Yeah, yeah, thanks for the history lesson - I interrupted him. - Can’t you just teleport me out? That’s how I got here anyway.

-That is the main problem. I can not.

-That is because…?

-Are you aware how teleport magic works?

-Not exactly.

I did know how those worked back in Mire, but by now I knew that here things are not that easy.

-It is quite easy to understand. To create a portal you need, besides the incantation of course, you need an anchor. Anchor is an item imbued with magic, I will skip on the detailed process of its creation if you allow me, which is then broken into two pieces. First part serves as a destination, and the second is the needed component for the creation of the portal itself, both consumed in the process.

Sounded about right. I did not know all the details, but it seemed quite similar to the portals I have been used to.

-I still can’t see the problem though. If you say you ran out of anchors…

-No, no, of course not - he dismissed me instantly. - But the portal creation process is quite tasking one, and today I have been using my magic quite often. I am spent.

I guess that's true. He did create the contract, portals… bah, that stupid excuse of a spell in the water was most likely his doing as well.

-Ah. Well then. Don’t you have anyone else that can teleport me, do you?

-While we are a prestigious organization - the woman chimed in - he is the only one here that can do that. I am not the King with his infinite resources.

I was pretty sure that if it came to that, I would be able to do that myself, but I kept my mouth shut.

-So how much time do you need?

-Few days. A week at most.

-What the fuck, man? Even if you had just awakened from coma that amount of time would be enough to recuperate and then some.

-Under the normal circumstances, of course. But the magic I used left me a lot more drained than I am used to. I am afraid that it can’t be avoided and you will have to stay here for a while.

That was obviously bullshit. That is not how mana works. Even if he was completely drained, the mana in his body would be, if not restored completely, at least back to the acceptable levels. If that was not enough, I am pretty sure they had at least some of the mana fruit and just used that, since they are so “prestigious”.

They want to keep me here for some reason? Nah, I already proved to them that they can not contain me and that woman would rather kill me than let me just stay here… From their behavior it was quite obvious that they had, if not secrets, then at least something sensitive, that they did not want to show to the outsider and a stranger to boot, be it a Red Mage or not.

-I will take care of this, For. While my mana is spent, I can still manage that and I think you had enough excitement for today - he added, looking her over.

-Thank you - the woman muttered, still visibly stressed. - Ekhm, and you - she turned to me - can you… - she gestured toward the flame and the contract.

-Ah. Yeah. - I dismissed the contract and the flames on both of us vanished.

-Ahhh… this is better - she scratched her neck, where the flames used to be and started to walk towards the castle.

-And before you go - I said as she was already turning away - while you still probably not gonna believe me, your… organization. I never intended to harm nor to use to… all this is just one big stupid coincidence. I was always willing to cooperate, but… well, things happened.

-What is that supposed to mean?

-It means we just started on the wrong foot. Since I am to stay here for… a week or so - I gazed briefly towards Jacob - I do not want to make enemies. I feel like this - I raised my hand - is not the best introduction. I will try to not stick my nose in your business any more.

-Hmph. We will see about this.

And with that she left us two on the courtyard.

-Please come with me then. I will arrange the quarters for your stay at once.

I nodded and he led me back inside the castle. As we were walking through the plain corridors once more, he started talking again.

-We will be stationing you in one of the higher towers well above the main floors of the castle. Those are one of our guest chambers and should provide sufficient for any of your needs.

-Don’t worry that much about me, I am not that picky. A standard room is more than enough.

-I respectfully disagree. This is my decision and I think it is the least I can do, considering what you’ve been through lately. We did imprison you after all.

-I guess…

Although I probably was feeling a bit guilty for using their name without their consent, I was not gonna argue.

-Say… who exactly is that woman? - I asked after a brief pause.

- She is the leader of the Red Mages and an owner of this place. Her word is a law around here.

-It certainly did not feel that way just now… - I muttered to myself.

-Hah - he chuckled. - I don’t blame you for that first impression. She is quite young and inexperienced. But she is also a good leader. You don’t have to be popular to properly guide and manage a guild.

-I would disagree, but that is not what I meant. I don’t want to intrude on personal subjects so I better stop while I am ahead - I smiled at him, not like he could see me anyway, walking in front of me.

-Oh? No please, speak your mind, I am open to clear any doubts you have about our leader.

-Well… - I hesitated for a second. - It’s not about her. It is about you. To be blunt, you look more like a leader than her. Especially after the latest conversation…

-Ah. Well I guess you are right about this being a personal subject.

-Sorry, didn’t mean to intrude - I definitely did not want to get on his bad side.

-No, no. I asked for it. Eh… - he sighed. - All I can say is that she indeed is my guild master and leader, but that is it. Nothing more. Considering the guild that is. Private matters are our own to deal with, even if they tend to sometimes directly oppose formal ones.

I did not want to pry and had already a good guess what was going on, so I just nodded and kept on walking.

It took us a long while and quite a lot of stairs to get to those so-called “guest chambers”. He was being quite literal when he said that it was on top of one of the towers. The last set of stairs was a long winding spiral that started not so far from the portal-library place. It was hard to judge how high we went since there were no windows on the staircase, only a couple of doors on the inner side that most likely lead to the other guest rooms.

-Your room will be on the third to the last floor - he announced as we were climbing the tower. - Above you are my quarters, so if you need anything do not hesitate and ask. The top floor belongs to For.

-I will try and not disturbing.

-As stated in the contract, you are free to walk as you please, but I am sure she would appreciate that.

He stopped by the next door and touched one of the crystals embedded in it. It lit up with a dim glow and the door opened.

The room was definitely the best one I’ve seen so far, and was the most… normal one. It was circular with a wooden divider splitting it in half. By the entrance there were a bunch of cabinets made of nice and sturdy-looking dark wood, with some fancy engravings. Walls, although still made of that strange ore, were mostly covered with paintings in what looked like golden plated frames. All of them were of different landscapes, although most included an unhealthy amount of trees. In the center of the room, on this side of the divider, there was a comfy looking armchair along with a small table with a singular drawer. I could not see most of the other side of the room, and as I entered I was stopped before I could take a peek. For some reason, the whole room had a reddish tint to it.

-I know you are very tired after today's events, but please bear with me for a second before you leave to rest.

He pointed towards the crystal shards embedded in the door.

Now while inside I could see that, similarly to those in cells, those were pierced all the way through the metal, but unlike those downstairs, here it looked like they had some sort of pattern to it, not just were randomly shoved in.

-Please, place your hand on the crystal and send a little bit of mana towards it. I will bind you to the locking mechanism so you are free to come and go as you please.

-Ah, bio-binding. Sure - I placed my hand on the crystal.

-Not quite. Whenever you want to lock or unlock the door, place your hand on the crystal like this and activate it with your mana.

He placed his hand on mine and I felt a sudden rush of mana flowing from him. The crystal lit a little bit brighter for a second and then went back to how it was before.

-Strange…

-What?

-Can you try closing it? I need to check something.

He gestured for me to try.

I put my hand on the locking mechanism and, as instructed, sent my mana towards it.

The crystals lit up brighter this time, but the door closed without any issue.

-Ah. I guess it’s just my imagination - he said, checking the door, confirming that it was indeed closed. - The link was so weak, I didn’t think it worked. I am probably just tired.

He focused and opened the door again, but as he pulled back, he suddenly staggered and had to catch himself on a door frame to not fall.

-You weren’t kidding about being mana starved… - I gazed at him while he was trying to stand straight.

-Yeah… it was a long day… - he said, almost hugging the wall. - I will go and rest now.

-Can you even make it upstairs? You look like you can barely walk.

-Please, I am not that weak - he replied, straightening up. - If you excuse me…

I nodded, watching him leave, closing the door behind him. I swear I heard him moan with pain as soon as they closed, but I decided to not be pushy and keep it to myself.

I took a few steps around my new room and I had to stop myself from yelling in surprise. I did not see that before, but behind the divider, besides the large, queen-sized bed, and the small desk, the whole other side of the wall was occupied by one large window. It was taller than me and at least two meters wide. Only thanks to that I finally could realize the location I found myself in.

I could see a large part of the castle with an abundance of towers. Well, I use the term “castle” very liberally. Not a single tower looked normal to me. Each of them were too slender - it almost made my head hurt, trying to wrap my head around how they are even supporting themselves, and how they are just more than a decoration. And they were, because I could see countless windows dotting them everywhere. The main “building”, or rather a large chunk of rock, without any real proper shape, or even signs of architecture, laid in the center, right in front of me. I was indeed in the tallest part of this weird place.

It all was apparently made of that weird, crimson red ore, which in natural light had a nice, crystalline look. It was honestly hard to call it a castle, it was more like a large mountain, just appropriated by someone and slightly remade to suit their needs. Speaking of the red ore, I also found the source of the reddish tint of the room. The window was made of the exact same thing, although a very, very thin layer instead of the glass, which gave the view and the light pouring into the room an unusual color.

And if all this was not enough for this place, it was the environment that was my main concern - the sea. I mean, I knew already, I got a glimpse of it while we were arguing downstairs, on the plateau, but thanks to the height of this place I could really see the sheer scale of this - and the main issue that I had with the sight that was in front of me.

When you see the sea this vast , you expect to see a nice view, maybe some land masses somewhere far, or a boat or something. Besides the complete and utter lack of any signs of life anywhere, the horizon was what made my stomach churn.

It was definitely too close. Very close. And besides that, I could see something white, right at the edge, like a fog, or mist.

-A waterfall… - I said to the empty room. - The horizon is a waterfall…

It made no sense. I rubbed my eyes and looked again. It didn’t help, the waterfall was still there. Then it struck me - the sound of the, what I thought were the waves hitting the base of this “island” - It was the roar of the waterfall on the horizon. The lack of boats. The name of the place.

There was no mistaking it.

We just had to be on top of the world’s tallest and most bizarre waterfall.