Twilight Circle

[Rhaine]

We asmodean priests tend to use our intuition quite a bit. It's a prerequisite for becoming a priest of Asmodeus, and a damn useful tool. When all else fails, it's the best idea to use. And now my intuition was pulling me to Twilight Isle.

Errtu was there already, pulling on the energy of the wards. Topaz came up at approximately the same second as myself. Great. My reflexes of an asmodean Knight were faster than my thoughts. With a quiet "b-zanng" the standard set of shield went up, including the precious gift of my Lord - antimagic shell. The Isle is domain of Topaz and of this quasi-Keeper, I'm at disadvantage here... but do I have a choice?

Errtu didn't go around without guards. The sensors of my shields screamed to me, as a hulking mass leapt from the trees, with its four arms, black fur, and an outline that hurt human eyes. Girrash. Guess he either feared Errtu more than myself, or has forgotten the lessons from our previous encounters. I disabled him precisely the way I dealt with him previously. Rather hard to deal with a biomage, who can short circuit your nervous system and paralyze your muscles, isn't it? Now I could pay some attention to Errtu.

Topaz didn't waste a single moment and gave the shadowmage a good shower of pixie dust which was supposed to be his allergy. Not a sneeze.
"See, I kind of exaggerated that allergy," he laughed, as Topaz worked with her spell. "You think I need this body now? Puh-lease. This is a rental. My new body is already made....and waiting occupation."

As a response, Errtu unleashed a wave of negative energy at Topaz. I expanded antimagic shell to cover the fairy. The umbran started gathering darkness around himself. Psh. How vulgar. For a while, I was thinking in terms of classic magical duel, enjoyed in the sparring rooms of Temple of Asmodeus. I replied in a basic non-darkness based spell - soundblast. An inhuman screech came from the billowing darkness as the waves went into it, and a duplicate of Artemus appeared. Now that was getting odd. Topaz sent some command to the magic she used. I could see a net around the dark fog. Someone had to distract him while Topaz casts.

And I unleashed a spell of my kin-and-colleagues, distortion.
(to be continued)

[Rhaine]

Surprisingly, Errtu had little problem with distortion. Aimed at rippling through magical compound of magic-active creatures, it seemed to give him a pain in the rear, but didn't produce half of effect I've counted on. Meanwhile Topaz's magic was doing its careful work. A second group of magic bits was directed into the cloud, to do as they saw fit to disrupt it.

"Did you happen to bring the book?" the fairy kept her eyes on Errtu, but I knew she was talking to me (and who else would bring the book here?).
"Naturally," I replied, and used my amulet of asmodean priest to summon the book and a piece of warding that kept it safe. Call me a security freak - I won't let my own carelessness to ruin our efforts.

The umbramancer sounded slightly insane, growling when the book appeared. Not that I bothered to check if it's driving him mad. Topaz summoned Kitty to complete the circle. This seemed to alarm Errtu enough to summon some insectoid living objects.

How could I forget that Errtu knows what I am... I felt dizzy from these thousands of color spots.

"No Lucien to save you now, Topaz. He's asleep," there was ill-hidden joy in his voice. I closed my eyes, trying to activate filtering.
"Keep thinking that," I heard Topaz speak calmly, as thunder rolled while dark clouds gathered above.

Magic similar to Foul Fog spell spread in the air, and the fog smelled of meat. Lightning flashed - short, precise flares. I felt a tugging at the bindrune, embedded into my skin. My own spell-like ability that I used for feeding, absorbed the insectoids' lives, turning them into heaps of dust.

"I've had enough playing around," the voice of Errtu came together with the feeling of invocation to elemental Earth condensed power. He's using the key! While Topaz pulled Kitty onto the Isle, the quasi-Keeper drew on the key's energy.

(to be continued)

[Rhaine]

The spell filled the air with energy. Meteors showered from the sky, and stalagmites blasted up through the ground. Topaz was annihilating those directed at her with precise lightning strikes. Yet this was something a Bound can have no access to. A stone slammed in my shoulder, cracking the bone, a spike pierced my leg... Instead of blood, the wound fumed with thick mist. So it's THAT bad. Pain sobered me.

"How long can you keep that up Topaz?" Errtu almost laughed. This very moment the circle was locked. Topaz signalled that she was ready. The umbran muttered something about the book being a gift to his unborn self, about something else.... It was insignificant. Errtu blasted us with something reminding of ice-raze of Clandestine. Too late. Shards directed at me, were absorbed by the wound, sucking all energy possible just to heal.

Disguise was no longer among my concerns. As Topaz commanded the magic, I kept the book sealed within the warding, and patiently forced my energy to flow into the circle. Do it, Topaz. Just do. Kitty seemed to have some psionic shield. He was in our hands now... or was he?

"Well then, guess there's only one thing to do...night ladies," tipping an imaginary hat, he turned. And vanished from visible. I disabled filtering, and spread haze thin. Now if he moves, we will see him... Anything moving on physical or shadow plane would have distorted the complex pattern of my trap.

Some silicoid life form seemed to be coming up. Silicoids. I remembered how Artemus and myself worked at the golems in the Tower. Destruction is so much easier than Creation... A few precious seconds wasted - and they turned into sand.

All the while the umbran kept fighting off the summons of the spell. He was resisting with all of his being, and I could understand him. Despaired, he threw at us every single spell or power he had handy. Scarabs, arctic blasts, wraiths. Too late.

Black in mind... When there's no point in making it...

Obsidian dagger slid from my sleeve. Like a tiny snake, a reminder of what I am. Ritual dagger that has seen so many initiations and promotions... A reminder that beside being a Bound, I am a priest of Asmodeus.

I took it. It was clear now what I had to do. Fending off Errtu's spells was distracting me. But a wound in my artifical body would try to heal, and take energy from the outside world. I set myself to absorb damaging spells, taking pain designated for Topaz and Kitty. At the same time I plunged the dagger under my collarbone, dangerously close to one of nerve knots. Now my body would absorb every bit of energy to heal. It's like riding a bicycle... stability of motion, you stop - you drop.

All hell was breaking loose around us. The key of Earth still belonged to Errtu. Scarabs he summoned, fell into tiny heaps of dust, golems turned into sand, but he kept shaking the ground. It felt like a bumblebee, trapped in a spider's web, angrily shaking it. Would Topaz have a chance to finish the spell?

Would I have a chance to see Artemus again?

Black in mind... When there's no hope for love, I'm so black in mind...

Boulders, lightning, ice, fire. He called an it all to crush our circle, all the while the ground continued to shift.
This had to stop. Kitty is deep in the circle. Topaz commands the magic. What can I do? No... what would I risk?

Power of Asmodeus, power of Baator? But what would it do against a shadowmage? Do I want to experiment? Highly likely it would strengthen him.
Life magic? Hardly, it's not as destructive as I wish it would have been. And he's hardly a life form.
What else do I have against him?
Myself.
The energy of binding, pure and untainted. Binding. Magic, untouched by mundane strife of light and darkness, by standard solutions, intrigue and backstab. Binding - reason to live and change. Pure as plasma.

I took a deep breath, pulling a globule of condensed energy from the link. It was like pulling out a piece of your own flesh, like pulling out a nerve or a vein... Hurling it at Errtu, I noticed how the air shivered around from magic. Either this works, or...

It hit the target.