High Artificer, Ch 20: Academy Board

In the Academy Board’s Chamber

A wave of silver light washed through the room. When it disappeared, the nine members of the board were left standing around their table.

Their expressions were grim.

Isaltra, the head of the board and a Lifeweaver, clenched her hands as she sat down in her chair and looked at the rest of the board.

For a moment, she couldn’t find the words to speak, but anger was boiling through her mana tattoos, tinted them a purple-red that cast her pale skin in stark contrast. 

She shared a glance with Yuvenis, the other Lifeweaver on the board. His tattoos were not as bright with anger as hers, but his expression was just as dark. 

“What were you thinking?!” she hissed as she turned to the rest of the board, her attention focusing on the four troublemakers who had caused this disaster. 

“You threatened him?! You thought you could get him to work for you for free with a few orders and snide letters?! You’ve dragged us all into your stupid game and threatened the stability of the academy!”

She hadn’t known about those letters until he teleported them all to that hall, and that was one of the things that made her the most furious.

Two Winged Furies, a Wind Wraith who didn’t want to be there and so usually voted with them, a Dragon Spirit, two Archali, and a Mountain Dwarf made up the other members of the board.

None of them were happy. 

They’d just spent the better part of an hour being taught exactly how little they were worth in the face of overwhelming force.

“We didn’t know he was that powerful,” one of the Winged Furies snapped sullenly. His name was Ultnar and his wings were half mantled as if he were trying to block a blow. “He’s just a high-level enchanter.”

“A high-level enchanter who’s stronger than any of the High Council that I’ve ever met!” Isaltra shouted as her tattoos flared. 

She slammed her hands onto the everwood table and the blast of mana from her tattoos made it shake, but thanks to its quality, it didn’t disintegrate under the force of the Level 530 mana strike. 

“Yuris told me he would cause trouble,” the other Winged Fury, a woman named Oakmar, muttered with irritation. “But that dirt lover left out his strength.”

Her mood was more subdued than Ultnar’s. She looked around the room as if she was looking for an escape route, her wings twitching as if she wanted to fly away, but at the same time, her fingers dug into the edge of the table.

“This is your problem,” Henton, the Mountain Dwarf said as he shook his head. He glared at the two Winged Furies, the Wind Wraith, and one of the Archali. 

Those were the ones who’d sent messages to the enchanter.

“The board acts together in the interest of the academy, but you’ve brought in private matters to threaten this High Artificer. You acted before we even knew his strength, and now we’ve all been smacked for it. I, for one, am grateful that he had some restraint.”

Henton pounded his fist on the table, his strength making it shake much more than Isaltra’s mana strike had.

“If you’d tried something like that on me and I’d been in his shoes, I’d have given you more than a few half-stern words and a forced meeting in reply. He showed us courtesy, though you are probably too dimwitted to understand it. That one is not a being to cross. This was a warning as clear as day. Do it again, and you will pay the price.”

Henton slammed his fist on the table again and then he turned around. He’d never bothered to sit back down after reappearing here.

“You’re on your own in fixing this. I need to go talk to a few people and see how far this has spread. If you’re lucky, this will be the end of it. You’d better prepare some gifts and soothe his temper. Don’t make it any worse.”

With that advice, Henton stomped out of the room. His anger was under control, but his Earth affinity made the stone shudder with his footsteps, showing that it was still there. 

“I agree,” Tures, one of the Archali said calmly as he looked around at the board. There was a notebook in his hand and he looked thoughtful

Although he was the one who had sent a rude message to Sam, his mood suggested nothing of the sort.

“Testing the enchanter was an interesting experiment, which is the only reason I went along with it, but it was half successful at best. His strength is higher than I estimated, which is critical data, but the range is still in question. We have failed to determine the parameters of his strength, but we can estimate he is stronger than the majority of the High Nine.

“This experiment was a success, but it came at the cost of his good will. Hopefully, it will be worth it.”

“It has proven that he is indeed a potential security risk,” Yelea, the other Archalis agreed. She had a thoughtful look as her violet eyes blazed. 

“But his temperance in how he handled this confrontation suggests he is not a direct danger to the academy. He should be classified as a Class 1 or 2 force, the same as one of the High Nine races or close to it, and dealt with as an ambassador of the same. We should quickly attempt to  make amends in order to preserve a working relationship.”

“You think that enchanter is as strong as an entire High Nine race?” Ultnar snapped, his wings shifting to a sharp and threatening angle behind his back. “You want to rank him as the same strength as my entire people? How dare you!”

“He has shown his strength,” Yelea said indifferently. “Whether or not you see what is in front of you is a different matter. Only a being of that strength could break the wards here and teleport us. 

“I am unable to determine how much that act strained him, but the speed suggests it was not significant. It might be his own strength or that of some artifact or backing he has. Either way, my assessment stands.”

“His strength is unquestionable,” Visner agreed. He was the only Dragon Spirit on the board, and in general he was one of the steadier members of his race, less inclined than most to challenge others to a duel. 

“As Yelea said, I do not know how strong he truly is, but it is clear that he is stronger than any of us. That is enough for now, and a warning not to challenge him again.”

“You think he’s stronger than you?” Oakmar frowned as she looked at Visner. “Really? I wasn’t able to get a clear read on him. His strength seemed to blend into the hall around him.”

“Yes, that was his domain,” Visner agreed. “It pervaded the space around us. That alone tells me that he is as strong as a Sixth Evolution member of the High Nine, which is why I think there is no need to challenge him. As interesting as it would be to test him more fully, we’ve all felt similar auras. His level of 577 might be an illusion.”

“Yes,” Yelea agreed as she pulled out a notebook of her own and began to write in it. “That his level is actually somewhere in the 600s is the best assumption to work under moving forward. It is too bad I can’t determine if it is earlier or later in that Evolution, but he is certainly stronger than any of us, even put together.

“If you weren’t able to notice, at no point in that meeting did he look the slightest bit concerned that we would attack him. His confidence was perfect. While that could be an act, it is unlikely, especially given the manner in which he teleported us and the situation of his hall.”

She looked around the room, studying the enchantments on the walls.

“The mana crystals here are completely fractured,” she said after a moment. “The rest of the wards are intact, but he destroyed their power source. That requires pinpoint control, as well as the ability to infiltrate the wards before reaching their core functions.”

“I have the feeling he did that as a demonstration of his strength,” Tures agreed as he looked at the walls. “Just like the hall where he brought us.”

He paused as he looked around the table, studying everyone’s expressions. 

“Does anyone doubt his words that we were in the Void halfway between the sun and Council?”

“It felt like the Void.” Isaltra frowned as she considered the question. The angry light in her tattoos began to dim, replaced by the calmer blue of thought. “Do you think it wasn’t?” 

“I see no reason to suggest he lied,” Yelea replied as she shook her head. “Nor did I detect any disparity in the space there. It felt like the Void, and the energies were similar to what I would expect for being halfway to the sun. 

“I was certainly cut off from my wards here, which could be explained by the distance. I suggest taking it as the accepted theory until new data can be gathered.”

The two Archali shared a look and Tures nodded in agreement. 

“He has added a significant amount of new data to my knowledge on him, but there are even more questions,” he said. “Another strange part is the nature of that dimensional realm. It seems to be in both places at once, the Void as well as a unique space to itself. That means it must overlap with the main dimension at least on one side. 

“I’ve never seen a dimensional space that could do that. Usually they have a strictly controlled opening, like a gate. If that’s true, his control over dimensional magic is extreme. His threat as a dimensional master may be much greater than his threat as an enchanter, although the two cannot be fully separated. It’s not clear if he uses dimensional energy directly or via enchantments. 

“The teleports and the realm could both be based on high-level enchantments, as could the destruction of our wards. He might also have an artifact that supports them.

“Either way, he does not appear to have direct plans to harm the operation of the academy,” Tures concluded as he looked up from his notebook. 

“His stated intention, if true, will support it. We could benefit greatly from his skills, especially if he teaches them to the students in full. That is sufficient for me to take a reserved approach to analyzing him as I collect more data.”

There was silence as the board considered his words.

“No more games,” Isaltra said at last. “Leave him alone to see if he keeps his word and just teaches. In the meantime, I’ll discuss security measures with my lady on the High Nine. She will be able to take more concrete steps to protect our interests. Perhaps she will be able to bring in some others of the council to do the same. It’s clear that we can’t manage this ourselves. Archaios Academy will not be overthrown by one high-level enchanter on my watch.”

“Impossible!” Ultnar snapped. “You’re just going to let him threaten you and then do whatever he pleases?! You don’t deserve your position as the head of the board! I will not stand for this! Archaios Academy will not be overthrown by one wingless human!”

“You talk too much,” Visner snorted as he folded his arms. “If you have the strength, then face him. Don’t try to come up with any more overly complicated schemes. I’m leaving for now. Henton had the right idea. I need to meet with a few people, including my clansmen in the academy. I should have spoken with Harsen before. If anyone knows more about this enchanter, he will.”

With that, Visner left the chamber. 

Isaltra watched him go with a slight shake of her head. She had never really understood the Dragon Spirits. Of all of them, he was the least upset. If anything, he seemed curious and possibly a bit impressed.

“Leave him alone,” she repeated as she looked at Ultnar and Oakmar, as well as Kaliss, the Wind Wraith who followed them around and rarely spoke. 

The only reason Kaliss was even on the board was due to his position as a high-level member of his race and the fact that getting any of the Wind Wraiths to agree to administration was nearly impossible. 

Ultnar was the one who had somehow convinced him.

Based on the letters the High Artificer mentioned, at least one had Kaliss’s name on it, but it was definitely Ultnar who had written it.

“I will update you when I have more assurances of support,” she said. “This is out of our hands. Your games have made it worse. You are not to go anywhere near him, nor to interfere with him in any way.”

“You don’t have the authority to command me,” Ultnar snapped at her. “You’re only sitting in that seat because you won a few more votes than I did. I will handle this my way. The academy can thank me later.”

With that, Ultnar motioned sharply to Oakmar and Kaliss, who shrugged silently. The three of them swept out of the chamber.

Isaltra let out a deep breath as she tried to control her tattoos, which were flaring red again. Ultnar was always making her furious. 

Today, his stupidity was just more dangerous than usual.

“I need to correlate some data and consider the best methods to determine this High Artificer’s full strength,” Tures said calmly as he tucked his notebook away. “I’ll update you when I have something concrete.”

He nodded at Yelea and a moment later, the two Archali were gone as well. 

Only she and Yuvenis were left in the chamber.

“We didn’t keep a good enough eye on them,” her sometimes partner said with a shake of his head. His hand touched hers and their mana tattoos flared with the familiar resonance. “They snuck those letters through under our noses.”

“We can’t control what messages they send,” Isaltra said with a sigh. “Unfortunately. But now I have to try to mitigate the damage. This High Artificer really could be a threat if he wanted to be.”

“Fortunately, he seems to be reasonable,” Yuvenis said with a nod. “He gave us a warning, but that was all. Perhaps you should approach him directly? Explain the differences we have on the board, as well as the broader picture? 

“This is not just about our board or one enchanter. It’s the Elitist faction trying to take control of the academy again. The Winged Furies are becoming ever more daring, and for whatever reason the Wind Wraiths continue to support them. 

“Ultnar is acting as if he’s the head of the board instead of you. How many other people has he gotten to work for him with similar methods? How much strength has he diverted from the academy to his own pockets?”

“Until now, I wasn’t even aware that he was pressuring faculty members!” Isaltra said with a flare  of temper. “If I could, I would throw him off the board immediately. But these positions aren’t that simple. We’re here in the name of our backers and his support on the council is just as strong as ours. 

“I’m failing at trying to stop him. I can’t attack him directly, and that’s all that might work.

“We’re here to keep full control of the academy and to ensure nothing embarrasses the High Nine, but even that is questionable now that Asperio has somehow found a backbone. I still don’t know what possessed him yesterday. His aura was stronger than I’ve ever seen and he showed no courtesy. His level grants him that privilege, but before he was always agreeable. He recognized the power of the council behind us. He’s changed.”

She tapped her finger on the table, letting ideas appear and disappear in the fluctuation of the tattoos on her hand.

“Something major has shifted. Asperio, now this High Artificer...it feels like the world is different today. It can’t be a coincidence that Asperio is the one who invited him here and got him that position, but we drastically underestimated his strength.”

“Whether we know what’s going on or not,” Yuvenis said, “we need to try to get a handle on it. And the council needs to know about this Artificer.”

“Yes,” she agreed. “We have to prepare for the worst. What if he has plans beyond the academy? The balance on the council is fragile. He’s a wild card that could disrupt it all.”

“The humans have been looking for a way to rise,” Yuvenis said thoughtfully. “Perhaps Asperio sees it in this professor and that’s the source of his confidence. They have the equivalent of two Sixth Evolution beings now. With how rare they are, that might be enough to change things. It could definitely influence the council.”

“The last race that tried to rise to power died in a war,” Isaltra said as she shook her head. “Then their records were buried so deeply that even I don’t know the specifics. But I do know the attempt would not be well received, even by our people. The High Nine has been stable for too long. None of us want to change it.”

Yuvenis was silent for a while as he looked up at the ceiling. When he spoke again, the words were grave.

“Perhaps none of us will have a choice.”