High Artificer, Ch 25: Wind Wraiths

Sam shook his head as he looked at the trapped Wind Wraith and what he represented. 

It seemed that he’d walked into the start of a civil war. 

Now he needed to decide how to end it. 

He wouldn’t have cared that the Wind Wraiths were trying to leave the High Nine, except that the method they’d chosen was as destructive as possible. 

Abandoning their history with the other races and their mutual ties was one thing. Causing a civil war that might have deaths in the billions was another.

His instinct to come to Bright Sky had been the right one. It was good that he’d uncovered this now, since at least he could stop it before it grew any larger. 

He wasn’t going to let it play out the way the Wind Wraiths wanted.

It was only a question of how widespread their effort was. He would need to crush it before it could rise, like striking the head of a serpent as it peered out of its den.

He could do it quietly or he could do it as a Titan and shake the galaxy, but one way or another, he would settle this.

There were a few things he needed to confirm before he decided what to do, namely some of the long history of the council and the races involved, so he reached out to the best record keeping tool available, the Path of Stars.

Path, he thought, how many times has the High Nine been in danger of fracturing since the Titans left?

This will be the tenth, the Will of the Path replied immediately. It was everywhere in this half of the galaxy, making it extremely easy to keep in contact. I try to step in to stabilize a situation before it gets out of hand, but my ability to assist is limited.

Have the Wind Wraiths tried to leave before? Sam asked.

Eight times, the Will confirmed. As you suspect, the council is what restrained them, which angered them. I have many records of their official displeasure with the decisions. 

I do not monitor every word that all the beings in the galaxy speak, so I cannot absolutely confirm your guess that they are stirring up a war, but I agree with your analysis.

It is likely that they are behind this.

The Will provided a list of information that flowed into his mind, recording all of the various events and the history of the Wind Wraiths. It only took Sam a moment to flip through it, and when he was done, he was even more certain. 

“The Wind Wraiths have a history of this type of thing,” he told Teron, “but they’re going further than they have before. This is the first time they’ve targeted another one of the High Nine as a way of gaining leverage. They must have seen an opportunity with Yaivon. One that they didn’t see with you or the old councilor.”

He tapped his finger on the table as he leaned back and continued to speak, laying out the details for Teron.

“I don’t know if they are behind the death of your ancestor,” he added, “but the timing is suspicious. We can look into it.”

“What do they gain in a war like this?” Teron asked, shaking his head in disbelief. “The devastation will be incredible.”

“They know that in the normal course of things, there’s no chance of separating from the High Council,” Sam said, “but if they can break the High Nine itself, that might change. If they can get everyone else to fight, they must think they’ll be free to go their own way, or at least that it will be easier for them to break away.”

The High Nine was a highly interconnected thing, and each of the major races had a hundred others that followed them. As soon as one fell into chaos, the shockwave would spread, leading to widespread ramifications across the galaxy. 

There would be endless opportunities to cause trouble. 

“Even if they are not successful,” he said, “they might still benefit from the chaos. Your position on the High Nine is currently held by Yaivon, and once your people are weakened by a war, even if he changes his mind about working with them, he’ll have no choice but to rely on the Wind Wraiths to support him if he wants to keep power. It will play into their hands, and at the very least, they’ll have two votes on the Council. 

“Even if it doesn’t work out as well as they think, they would still have a chance to break free of their obligations, or at least to retreat for a while.”

“That would be just like them, the honorless cowards,” Teron cursed. “They have never cared what damage they did as long as it benefited them. I do not doubt you, but this claim is enormous. The weight of the consequences is grave. Are you certain?”

“He is the proof,” Sam said as he pointed at Arthane in the dimensional lock. “The fact that one of the High Nine was being used to suppress another is also a sign of deeper problems. He would never have revealed himself and tried to attack unless he thought we risked something greater than breaking you out of house arrest.

“We can interrogate him. All we need to do is ask a few questions. I doubt he’ll tell us anything, but his reaction will say enough.”

He could read Arthane’s aura and history and he was confident of what was there, but he wanted Teron to see it for himself. 

“Watch what he does,” he said as he raised his hand.

The silver bonds around the assassin changed, turning into streams of starlight as the dimensional shift around him reverted. 

Arthane hadn’t heard anything they’d said while he was confined, so as soon as he was present, he gave Sam a glare that was filled with killing intent. The same gaze turned to Alora, cold and distant, but then it returned to Sam.

He knew who his enemy was. 

He hadn’t succeeded in taking control of the situation and was clearly outclassed, but he wasn’t willing to give in. His gaze moved around the room as he looked for a way out, sharp and observant, and he tried to merge with the wind to escape.

The only outward sign was the faint crackle of lightning forming and disappearing across his body, very similar to how it would look leaping from cloud to cloud in the sky.

The astral binding around him didn’t move at all. 

“Nurim will be disappointed,” Sam told him, ignoring the struggle. “You have failed in your task. Your people will not escape their obligations. Your war will never take place.”

Nurim was the name of the Wind Wraith High Councilor, the leader of their people who had assisted Yaivon. Arthane flinched when he heard it, but he didn’t say anything. His glare only grew stronger.

He was trying to appear calm, but mana churned under his skin, hidden by his stormy appearance. 

“Assisting Yaivon in reaching the Sixth Evolution was one thing, and that I could have forgiven, but you crossed a line when you suppressed the Whitewings and tried to start a war. That, I will not forgive.”

The wraith’s attempts to escape were increasing as Sam spoke, becoming desperate enough that his mana turned self-destructive. His skin began to burn as lightning rippled across it and left charred trails in its wake.

“I’ll take you with me to see the council,” Sam said. “You will be evidence of your people’s plan. Nurim will not be able to deny it.”

Arthane’s struggles suddenly stopped as his gaze locked onto Sam. His expression cleared as the fury turned to resolve. Then his aura began to surge, its energy fueling the change as his vitality turned into lightning and the storm built.

This time it was different, spinning like the eye of a hurricane around his body. 

With each rotation, a powerful intensity built up, making the wind spinning away from him howl like a banshee. Sharp blades cut at the air as he stared directly at Sam.

Cracks split open along his skin, pulsing with a blue-white light.

Once he finished the change, the full force of mana in his nearly Sixth Evolution body would erupt. He was trying to kill himself and take all of them along. 

An explosion on that level would severely damage Bright Sky. 

It wouldn’t be enough to destroy the world, but the capital city around them would be wiped out, as well as a good number of the nearby mountain peaks. 

There were millions of people nearby.

“That’s enough,” Sam said calmly as he reached out and sealed the wraith inside the dimensional lock again, which instantly froze Arthane and the mana he was channeling.

He didn’t care if Arthane died, since after attacking Alora the wraith wouldn’t be leaving here anyway, but he wouldn’t allow him to explode like that. 

He had a better use for him.

At any rate, the man’s aura had already confirmed what he wanted to know. Every time Sam had spoken, he’d felt the resonance as Arthane reacted to it. 

The wraith was well aware of the plan for the civil war, of Nurim’s involvement, and of the assistance provided to Yaivon. 

“I suspect they’ll use Yaivon to command your subordinate races,” Sam said as he explained it to Teron. “They’ll need a big war to create a stir. With some effort, the disruption could spread across a quarter or more of the galaxy. After one race falls into civil war, they could find a reason to do the same to another, and then another, offering aid to whichever side they think will tip the balance in their favor. It would only take a mix of bribes, threats, and assassination. What was happening here was just the beginning.”

“I think you’re right, ” Teron said with a frown as he also looked at Arthane. “I never thought Yaivon would go so far as this, but the last decade has changed my mind. 

“If they offered him this deal, he would have taken it. I am confident in that. I was only missing this single piece to put it together. I should have seen it before, but it seems I didn’t want to accept reality.”

His voice was bitter, but it slowly shifted to anger and confidence.

“Yaivon is full of schemes, but a plot of this scale is beyond him. We were fledglings together. I have known him for centuries. He was always a smooth talker and a crafty diplomat, quick to shift sides when he saw the wind change or to strike a deal a moment before the price fell, but his sense of greater strategy was limited, just like his combat ability...until the Wind Wraiths appeared.

“The Wind Wraiths chose him well,” he added, “and then keeping me here secured his cooperation. Although he defeated me in the last duel, without their help, he never would have been able to hold my clan. 

“They must have bribed or intimidated the Skysurge and Brightfeather clans as well, to keep them from allying with me. Otherwise, our forces would have been enough to overturn him. This must have been their insurance to make sure he didn’t go back on his word. I didn’t see the full extent of things, but now I cannot deny it. ”

He shook his head.

“It seems I have been too naive...too trusting in my own people.”

His wings flared out sharply, the lines of his feathers fierce as he paced across the room.

“This places his crimes in a different light. He is not just the worst of us, but actively undermining our people and our position on the High Nine. His path will destroy us all. This cannot stand!”

Teron curled his hands into fists and then looked sharply at Sam.

“I must take care of this,” he declared. “Now that you have revealed the truth, I have no choice but to challenge Yaivon again, even if I might lose. What if his ability at the Sixth is actually weak, but somehow supported by the Wind Wraiths in secret? I must try!”

“I agree,” Sam said, his calm a sharp contrast to Teron’s mood, “but his rank at the Sixth Evolution is probably not a lie.”

His words brought Teron to a halt as the Winged Fury stared at him.

“Every race has their secrets and the Wind Wraiths have a long heritage,” Sam explained. “Both of you are Wind-aligned races, which is probably why they chose him. I suspect they gave him a natural Wind treasure, one that they usually save for themselves when they are in dire need. He assimilated it and it was enough for him to skip over the barrier of insight necessary for the Sixth Evolution.”

It was an educated guess, but he was confident in it. 

There was no other way someone of Yaivon’s meager talent could have managed the leap without the World Core or something like a natural treasure to help.

More than that, the Path of Stars knew about a natural treasure that the Wind Wraiths had access to.

“Have you heard of an elemental material called the Wind’s Heart?” he asked. “It’s a type of Wind-aligned essence that forms in the storms near the Wind Wraiths’ home, usually as a clear white crystal like a raindrop. It’s extremely rare, but one is found every few thousand years. 

“When it’s heated, it turns into a liquid that can be mixed with other high-level materials and formed into an elixir with an enormous Wind energy. Drinking it at the verge of the Sixth Evolution can grant insights into the Truth of the element that are potent enough to force Evolution and push someone past the flaws in their comprehension.”

Sam tilted his hand in the air.  

“At least two Wind Wraith patriarchs used it to advance to the Sixth Evolution in the past. It’s something that they hold in reserve in case they ever need it. The supply is incredibly limited.”

“What?” Teron was shocked as he stared at Sam. “I have never heard of such a thing!”

“It is a truly amazing item,” Sam agreed, “but it is not without flaws. Namely, that the Truth is always the same. It’s been described as Wind condenses life. 

“The Wind Wraiths believe that the Wind’s Heart is the origin of their people, and that the first of their kind sprang into being when a drop of it touched a mountain peak. Normally, it is one of their most sacred medicines and would never be given to a foreigner, but that depends on how much they want this.”

He paused for a moment as wrapped up the explanation.

“The simplest way to test whether or not Yaivon used it is to sense his Truth when you meet him in battle. That is easy enough to do, but you have to survive. It is a forced Evolution, but it is still an Evolution. He will have a domain that matches it. The winds will turn against you and fight like living things. Every breeze will be a soldier in his army. Their blades will cut you while they heal him.”

As a forced domain, Yaivon probably wouldn’t be able to use it too well since he hadn’t come to the insights through his own development, but compared to someone at the Fifth Evolution, there would still be a significant difference. 

Toren was silent as he considered Sam’s words. It looked like an internal struggle was going on in his mind, but it didn’t take him long to throw it off.

“Then I will test his domain,” he declared. “A duel will prove the truth. Even if I die, my people will know him for who he is. I will announce it before I die.”

“What if you win?” Sam asked with a slight smile. “Then what would you do?”

“I would lead my people onto a better path,” Teron said fiercely, “stomp out the plague of the Night Wings, exile those who cannot accept the greatness of who we are and persist in their crimes. We are one of the ancient races. We must rise as examples to all, not descend to barbarism!”

“Then I’ll leave Yaivon for you,” Sam said as he came to a decision. “I’ll deal with Nurim and anything else that comes up. But before you fight him, remember that there is no time limit.

“ Take your time to announce his crimes to your world and build support for your cause. Your people need to know what is at stake. Now that you are free from here, gather your allies and show the galaxy who the Winged Furies truly are.

“Sometime soon, challenge him to a duel, using all that you’ve seen as grounds, so that no one doubts your honor or the reasons for it. But set the date in the future, so that if he tries to attack you before then, he seems desperate.”

“I can do that,” Teron replied as he considered the idea, “but then if I lose the duel, all the momentum I’ve built will die with me. Defeat will sway the people’s minds and they will doubt what I’ve said.”

“That is not as much of a problem as you think,” Sam said. “Just reach the Sixth Evolution yourself before then.”

“What?!” Teron’s shock was palpable as he stared at Sam. He started to become angry, shaking his head. 

“I have tried for over a century to reach Level 599, but it is too difficult to even find the opponents here! And even then, how could I ascend quickly enough to Evolve on my own?”

He was glaring at Sam now, although he seemed angrier with himself than anyone else.

“Or do you have some natural treasure that you will offer me, like the Wind Wraiths did? Even so, I will not take it! I will not rely on false pretenses like Yaivon!”

His pride was on full display, his wings flared out grandly as he tried to stare him down.

“Nothing like that,” Sam replied with a laugh, not at all intimidated. “But then, I don’t need them.”

He liked Teron more the longer they spoke. He could just kill Yaivon himself, but this way was better for the Winged Furies, so he decided to help Teron out. 

“Tell me,” he asked, “do you know the heritage of Aster Fall, the reason it’s called the Garden of the Gods?”

Teron was silent as he studied Sam. His anger dissipated until only graveness was left behind, and then he nodded.

“You mean the World Core?” he asked. “The divine artifact of the gods and one of the greatest gifts the Titans left behind? The legends of it are still spoken among the High Nine...carried back by the few who have gone there. One of my ancestors went there once and the record remains in our private archive. 

“It’s said that its power is capable of folding the galaxy in half and assisting with the rise to the Sixth Evolution...perhaps even beyond. That is what you are referring to? But how could it help here?”

“Who said it had to be here?” Sam asked, feeling amused. 

He raised his hand and a silver portal sprang into existence in the room, its depths swirling like the interior of a star.

“What if you went there?” he asked as he pointed at it. “And then I brought you back? This will not be the slow route like your son. Technically, I would teleport you to my fortress just beyond Aster Fall, but it’s close enough. I’ll oversee your meeting with the World Core and then return you here. Time flows more slowly there, but it should only take you a few days.”

He studied Teron, who was looking dubiously at the portal.

“Or do you want your son to reach the Sixth Evolution before you?” he asked. “He’s already met with the World Core, and it helped him to establish a better Path. He won that assistance for helping me with the Vos’Rekan there. Now, I offer the same to you.”

The words echoed in the room as Sam studied Teron, waiting to see if he would accept his offer.