Spellheart 9: Chapter 13

“The end of a golden age?” I asked, my heart clenching tight in my chest.

“Yep.” Dean chuckled grimly. “We’re in some deep shit. This wasn’t supposed to happen for at least a hundred more years.”

“Dean and I have only lived through one of these, but a few of the elves have endured several. It’s a tough time for every elf on the World of Sanctuary and Serenity,” Sam began. “You see, when the Planetary Defense Array is in its dormant state, it is just a series of defenses that repel invaders. But when it’s in its active state? That brings disaster.”

“Isn’t the Planetary Defense Array protecting the planet?” I asked. “Why would that be such a bad thing?”

“All those defenses you saw shooting up? They don’t make themselves. The Planetary Defense Array needs to harvest a lot of raw materials to build all that stuff. Crucially, things like the golems, defense platforms, and the annihilation blossoms especially.” He pointed to the giant flying lotuses. “The Planetary Defense Array doesn’t know how to mine and refine raw materials. So it just strips them from every civilization it comes across. We think the elves of the Elven Star Dominion just kept the right stuff on hand, so their infrastructure never suffered damage, but we aren’t so lucky. We barely even know what the thing needs. But worst of all is the core material for all the defenses. You’ll notice it favors things like golems, defense platforms, flying ships, that sort of thing. All things that act with some sort of networked intelligence.”

“Is there some sort of AI hidden deep within the planet?” I asked. Perhaps I could find it and get Mac to talk some sense into the thing. If we could take control of the Planetary Defense Array, I’d feel a lot more comfortable.

“No. The Elven Star Dominion never invented artificial intelligence the way we understand it. They simply utilized natural intelligence.” Sam cast me a grim stare.

I frowned. “I don’t follow.”

“Brains!” Dean said. “The dumb thing is going to run around harvesting the bodies of powerful elves to rebuild its fleet of defensive weapons. Between that and all the infrastructure those golems destroy searching for raw materials, it’s pretty much the end of elven civilization whenever it happens. Everyone who is anyone is hiding for dear life lest they be harvested. The ancient texts say the Elven Star Dominion sacrificed slaves from conquered enemies to power their Planetary Defense Array, but we aren’t so lucky. It means powerful people like us are targets. We’re only in the earliest stages of the process, but once the stupid robot runs out of raw materials from its last harvesting session, it’s going to start coming for people like us.”

“It hunts humans too?” I asked.

Sam shrugged. “We don’t actually know that. The last time a golden age ended me, Dean, and all the cult guys were just mage acolytes. Maybe the golems didn’t come for us because we were too weak, and it had already satisfied its mage acolyte soul quota. Maybe they don’t care for humans. The point is we don’t know, and it isn’t exactly the sort of thing any of us are willing to test.”

I went silent for a long moment, weighing what this meant. Yet another attack was coming for the Hearthwood, and worse, they didn’t think this was the kind of attack we could withstand, even working together.

“What do the big clans normally do?” I asked. “I can’t imagine the demigod factions just letting themselves get wiped out.”

“The easiest solution is to get your entire clan off world for a few years,” Sam gestured to the sky. “The orcs and dwarves are always willing to take elves in, and there’s always an empty planet somewhere to camp out on if you’re willing to rough it in the wilderness. But with how suddenly the activation happened this time, we didn’t have time to catch the signs and leave. See the barrier in the sky? It keeps things in just as easily as it keeps things out. Wizards, sorcerers, and demigods take shelter in the Primordial World, and that’s what we plan to do this time. Pretty much everybody who’s anybody does that if they can manage it.”

“They abandon their families?” I frowned in concern. I couldn’t see myself running off to the Primordial World and leaving all my kids in jeopardy.

“Staying too close makes your family a target,” Dean interjected. “After all, it’s your brain they want, not those of a bunch of heatwielders and mage acolytes. Though they need to harvest a huge number of low-leveled people, there’s enough of those to go around that those requirements are met pretty quickly. It’s the hunt for wizards and above that makes this process last years. Maybe decades.”

“What you need to do, and what all the other clans will do, is find a place to stash everyone you care about. Someplace harder to find than anybody else’s hiding spot. That way, your family will still be around when the dust settles,” Sam explained. “I’m going to spend some time upgrading the time-distortion effect on my Pocket World so that it can hold the Fateweaver Society and hopefully a good chunk of the capital as well.”

“And I’m going to build a really big bunker,” Dean said. “We’ll shove all the kiddos in a hole with some books and some TV and check back in on them in a few years.”

I clutched my temple between my brows. This was a major headache I really didn’t need.

“So, how much longer do we have?” I asked.

Sam shrugged. “Normally, we get a full year. But the dragon attack forced the Planetary Defense Platform out of its dormant state early. Maybe it will take extra time to get ready. Or maybe it will start operations sooner than usual. You have time to spend, but not to waste.”

I nodded. “Agreed. Well then, gentlemen, it seems I have preparations to make.”

***

I regrouped with my children and followers, expecting to find things much as I left them. I would have thought they’d be ranging far and wide looking for dead drakes to take home or failing that, pillaging the ruins of destroyed civilizations all around us in search of ancient, powerful cultivation techniques lost at the end of the last golden age.

But I was wrong. When I appeared, I saw Tivana and Amisra busy recalling all of her forces. Nearby, Yorik and Assyrus were doing the same for those from the Hearthwood. Everyone was racing back as quickly as they could, though some were certainly quicker than others.

“What’s going on?” I asked, appearing between Yorik and Assyrus.

Assyrus turned and answered. “Those giant golem things? Yeah, turns out they’re not friendly after all. They attacked Eltiana. At first, we thought it was because she was trying to steal something from it, which was true, but then they attacked Melise as well.”

“I just got word from Sam and Dean. This is within expectations. Tell everyone to retreat. We’re returning to the Hearthwood with what we have. It’s too dangerous to stay on this continent much longer.”

“Many locals want to join us,” Yorik added.

I nodded. “Considering most of the villages and tribes around here are in ruins, I’m not surprised they want to come. Tell them to convince one of our soldiers to take them under their wing and teach them our laws and customs if they can. That’ll make adapting to life in the much more complicated society of the Hearthwood a lot easier for them.”

Elven relationships between two women often featured a bit of an unequal partnership, where the lesser partner served a role that was a combination of apprentice and cuddle companion. It worked, and it seemed instinctual enough to elves that it had served us well integrating other large groups before, so we’d take advantage of it again here.

Most of our people were through quickly, and Assyrus ducked through to the other side. Yorik stayed with me, as did Tivana and Amisra. The royal family made it through our passage, but the other clans of Deania were slower to return home, and even though Tivana wasn’t acting as the ruling princess anymore, she still felt responsible for sheltering her vassal clans, especially considering what was to come.

“You spoke to the ancestor?” Tivana asked.

I nodded. “Yes, both Sam and Dean. I’m not sure if you know what the end of a Golden Age means, but that’s where we are.”

Tivana bit her lip. “The last time one of these rolled around, it was just him and the founding matriarchs. And none of Deania’s vassal clans were around. Truthfully, I doubt many of them will make it unless we invite their people to stay in the royal family’s shelter. But if we’re doing that, it would be unfair for the common folk if we did not invite them in as well. And if we include them, we’ll make our own people a far larger target. It will be a difficult balancing act, deciding who can stay with us and who cannot.”

“You don’t expect the survival rate for this to be very high, I take it?” The furrow between my brows deepened.

“The power vacuum that opened up when the old civilizations of the Groveguard Continent were wiped out was what allowed the ancestor and Sam the Fateweaver to find their respective organizations,” Tivana explained. “The old kingdoms from the last golden age didn’t make it. The Moonbow Clan traces their lineage back to a kingdom that existed prior to the end of the sixth golden age, but they never recovered. And considering their tattered state of them now, they might not make it through this one at all. The same goes for all the other clans.”

We stared out over our surroundings, fretting and worrying. I would have liked to offer my assistance, but I had a lot of kids and even more vassals. I had a lot to do, just saving the people who were my responsibility. Could I take on others? And if I did, would I be placing my own children in danger for doing so?

“I’ll check in on them, but that’s all I can promise for now. At least until all my people are taken care of.” I gave her a kiss on the cheek. I reached out with my other hand and gave Amisra a pinch. The two women blushed, though neither were all that shy now that the two of them had seen one another in the throes of passion every night for the past week. “I’m looking after the kids first, though. Amisra, yours are staying with me.”

Amisra nodded, cheeks red as she nuzzled up against my side.

The last of Deania’s people were through, and Amisra and Tivana followed them to the Hearthwood. The sheer number of people would make keeping order hard, made worse because so many people were hauling around giant dragon corpses. There probably wasn’t even room to stand back home.

I forwarded my plan to offer to process them to Mac, and he’d relayed my terms to every clan or tribe who didn’t have the capability to do so themselves. We actually ran out of Queensmarks after buying the dragons from all the people who wanted to sell them directly, and pretty soon, people had to take the plastic Macmarks that Mac and I printed up as the Hearthwood’s local currency. We ended up opening up part of the clan libraries for outsiders with enough coin to spend. The sad truth of the matter was that most of these elves would not make it through what was coming, so I wasn’t shy about giving away clan techniques. Besides, at my current level, I could spend a few months brainstorming and fill the library with a bunch of new techniques at true mage and below.

I briefed Mac on what I knew, and at his suggestion, we started reorganizing most of the dragon meat for long-term storage. We’d still turn most of them into alchemy ingredients, but I wanted supplies that would last decades. If my kids had to stay cooped up in The Wanderer for years with nothing but Mac and the simulation chamber for company, I wanted to give them everything they needed to emerge as true powerhouses once the dust settled. The Hearthwood Clan was late to the party during this era of the Groveguard Continent, but we’d be off to a much stronger start this time.

***

The next few weeks in the Hearthwood were quite hectic. It took a while for the streets to empty out to anything regarding normalcy, and even then, it soon became apparent that a few minor tribes planned to take up residency permanently. I ended up widening the roads again and reorganizing the buildings and trees to accommodate the larger population. It was a lot easier to rearrange the city at my current level of power.

Having already done it once, I thought everyone would be used to it. But the newcomers hadn’t seen my last display of power, and I was greeted by a lot more groveling on the streets for a solid week.

Sava and the other alchemists were brewing up a storm, and the scent of alchemy filled the air around the settlement with no sign of stopping. The newly cleared fields around the Hearthwood had been planted, and the major factions were buying up grain and other foodstuffs in tremendous volumes. Rumors were traveling through the streets, but the common elf was clueless as to what had just happened. They’d all seen the light show in the sky during the battle with the dragons, but none of them guessed it was just the beginning.

As for me, I was debating whether the others would be mad if I spilled the beans. It seemed a bit unfair that the major clans were able to prepare ahead of everyone else. I held myself back because Tivana warned me that news of the coming apocalypse would cause mass chaos and unrest if it spread. Dean and her family records had information from the last golden age. The looting and pillaging that followed spreading the truth was unconducive to recruiting large labor forces to dig secret bunkers for the wealthy elven elite, so everyone who was anyone tried to keep a lid on things.

The major clans were in a bit of a tizzy, all of them hustling around as rapidly as they could figure out a way to save themselves on short notice. A few high-ranking wizards had disappeared. Whether they’d gone to save themselves in the Primordial World or whether they were off digging secret bunkers for their descendants, I couldn’t say.

I waited a while longer, if only to keep things organized. I would gather as many resources as I could. While I wasn’t about to risk my kid’s by letting strangers into The Wanderer where they’d be staying, it might not be too hard to build a couple spare bunkers for other people to stay in. I had a bunch of vassal clans who probably wouldn’t survive on their own. Once all those under my care were secure, I’d extend a hand to those in need and start spreading the word of what was really happening.

I had a lot of points from the fighting with the dragons. We’d killed so many that I’d taken to ignoring the notifications. With the battle won and the Hearthwood grown another notch, it was up to me to grow The Wanderer’s capabilities. It, above everything else I had at my disposal, was probably more secure than any fortress anyone on this world could build, so it was definitely worth upgrading as much as possible.

Assets of The Wanderer

Training Facilities

• Cultivation      Chamber: Level 6. Cost to upgrade: 10,000 points.Allows the       user to instantaneously learn spells and allows any of the user’s       companions to maintain a steady, focused mental state indefinitely. It       can also alter the flow of time within the chamber, giving them days to       work in only hours. 10x Time dilation.
  
• Training      Grounds: Level 4. Cost to upgrade: 7000 points.All practice       done on the training grounds yields results far faster than elsewhere.       Current level allows each day of practice to the equivalent of two weeks       of practice without it.
  
• Simulation      Chamber: Level 2. Cost to upgrade: 2000 points.This chamber       allows the user to run various entertainment and practice programs,       usable by anyone The Wanderer’s owner permits. Currently, this chamber is       set to simulate arena-type survival battles where combatants must survive       waves of illusory enemies.
  
• Weight Training      Chamber Level 4. Cost to upgrade: 10,000 points.Body       Cultivators require unique conditions and items to strengthen their       physical bodies. This chamber provides weights and equipment with       sufficient strength to allow even the strongest body cultivators to       continue their physical exercises.
  
• Chamber of      Tranquility Level 2. Cost to upgrade: 20,000 points.This room       soothes the minds of those afflicted by terrible thoughts and ideas. Spending       time here slowly improves mental state.
  
• Waters of      Clarity Level 2. Cost to upgrade: 20,000 points.This small       pool allows those who are not followers or the owner of The Wanderer to       benefit from the effects of the Pool of Reflection by consuming some of       the water that accumulates in the pool.
  

Settlement Buildings

• Medical Bay:      Level 7. Cost to upgrade: 12,000 points.This medical       bay is posses everything needed to utilize fully automated medicine.
  
• Enchantment      Core Level 2. Cost to upgrade: 10,000 points.This chamber       was enabled upon examining the Ancient Statue of Alasir, the Scripter. It       enables the controller to create their own custom language for       structuring enchantments. Enchanted objects will function so long as they       are within range of The Wanderer or its owner.
  
• Pocket World      Level 3. Cost to upgrade: 16,000 points.This small       pocket world is connected to the Dimensional Storage. It can be used to       store items or entities in a time-locked environment or to provide a       bridge between an external location and The Wanderer. Level 2 allows the       opening of two distinct entrances simultaneously. Further levels will       increase the size of the pocket world and the number of entrances that       can be open at once.
  

Personal Estate

• Personal      Chambers. Level 4 Cost to upgrade: 800 points. This chamber contains a bed that       allows the user to feel fully rested and refreshed after a brief stay       within it. It also has a shower and running water, both sterile and well       stocked despite any conditions outside.
  Currently       containing the Cult of the Unblinking Eye Archreaver known as Tim.
  
• Throne Room:      Level 5. Cost to upgrade: 3500 pointsThis item       allows the user to accept new followers with access to The Wanderer,       secondary only to the owner and the human interface unit.
  

Nursery

• Follower      Reincarnation Chamber: level 5 Cost to upgrade: 10,000 pointsThe tree       within this chamber can reincarnate the wisps of the fallen at rates far       faster than natural, and the expenditure of blood crystals gathered from       fallen enemies allows the user to reincarnate them without loss of memory       or the sense of self.
  
• Egg Incubation      Chamber: level 5 Cost to upgrade: 4000 points.This chamber       raises eggs in ideal conditions, ensuring maximum survivability rates.
  
• Wisp Maturation      Chamber: level 5 Cost to upgrade: 4000 points.This chamber       feeds wisps zeal from sources provided by The Wanderer and within the       chamber, dramatically increasing the maturation rate and increasing       successful manifestation rates.
  

Utility Rooms

• Scanner: level      17 Cost to upgrade: 8000 points.Allows the       human interface unit to scan the surrounding area and increase the range       of communication between the user and the unit. Increasing the level of       the scanner will increase both of these functions.
  
• Universal      Analyzer level 4 Cost to upgrade: 6000 points.Allows the       user to identify any item or object in their presence. Points will be       expended based on the difficulty of identifying the item.
  
• Teleportation      Array: Level 6 Cost to upgrade: 8000 points.This array       allows the user and any they permit use of an energy-efficient long-range       teleportation array. This is compatible with local teleportation arrays.       Increasing the level will increase the number of individuals who can be       transported and increase the efficiency of each transport.
  
• Dimensional      Storage: Level 8 Cost to upgrade: 10,000 points.The       Dimensional Storage allows for the storage of items in an extra-dimensional       space accessible both by The Wanderer’s owner and by permitted       individuals with access to the ship.
  

Resource Production

• Hydroponic      Farm: Level 9. Cost to upgrade: 8000 pointsGrows       expensive edible pants capable of increasing the powers of all those who       consume it.
  
• Mana Generator:      Level 6. Cost to upgrade: 8000 pointsMaintains all       the power requirements of nearby rooms and provides a small trickle of       points passively. Local magical items can also be sacrificed to the mana       generator to create points.
  

Craft and Construction

• Alchemist’s      Laboratory: Level 6. Cost to upgrade: 6000 pointsThis       laboratory can be used to easily create four-star potions and below. A       very skilled alchemist can use the tools here to make a five-star potion.
  
• Substance      AnalyzerCan identify       the components of a pill or magical item and assist in generating new       recipes.
  
• Substance      ReplicatorCan generate       any raw ingredient, though ingredient generation will always be more       expensive than obtaining or producing them the hard way.
  
• Drafter’s      Study: Level 5. Cost to upgrade: 4000 pointsThis room       allows for the creation of enchantments and enchanted items.
  
• Smith’s      Workshop: Level 6. Cost to upgrade: 7000 pointsThis workshop       allows for the production of powerful metals and items made from them.
  

Monster and Dungeon Rooms

• 13 Monster Dens      Cost: 250 points eachTwo in use by       the Claw Tamer Tribe
  
• One empty,      previously containing the Blightstone ElementalOne Containing       an Axe-Beaked Salamander
  One containing       four Stone Watcher Basilisks
  
• 8 Containing      assets of the Claw Tamer Clan.

Intelligence Assets

• Trans-Reality      Oculus Level 2. Cost to upgrade: 12,000 points.This       observation post allows the user to identify locations ordinarily outside       of traditional time and space and peer in on them.
  
• Celestial Map      Level 2. Cost to Upgrade: 12,000 pointsThis       three-dimensional map charts the movements of the Ten Thousand Worlds,       allowing users to view the locations of planets in both the past and       future.
  

Security Buildings

Defenses: Level 3. Cost to upgrade: 600

• The defenses      upgrade allows for the integration and creation of advanced active and      passive weapons meant to defend The Wanderer or any encampment around it.

City Walls: Cost to upgrade: 1000 points.

• Integrated      walls created by local builders and the human interface unit’s Dungeon      Core abilities. Now integrated with The Wanderer’s systems for easy repair      and maintenance.

7 Sturdy Sentry Towers: Cost to upgrade: 175 points

• These Sentry      Towers are capable of housing several elves behind fortified defenses.

6 Level Reducing Sentry Towers Cost to upgrade: 500 points

• These towers      are controlled by the human interface unit and are capable of reducing the      cultivation level of anyone struck by them.

3 Obstacle Rooms in Dungeon Cost to upgrade: 400 points

• These obstacle      rooms exist in the human interface unit’s dungeon and must be circumvented      by any intruders hoping to gain access to the lower levels of the city      without permission.

Ship Camouflage: Level 2 Cost to upgrade: 600

• This ability      allows the user to conceal The Wanderer by modifying its color, shape,      size, and structural materials as viewed from outside.

I looked over the list. My recent fights had given me quite a bit of points to work with, and when combined with the passive point generation I was getting from the mana generator, I had room for a few upgrades.

Cultivation Chamber now upgrading to level 8.

Training Grounds now upgrading to level 5.

Chamber of Tranquility now upgrading to level 3.

Waters of Clarity now upgrading to level 2.

Medical Bay now upgrading to level 8.

Enchantment Core now upgrading to level 3.

Pocket World now upgrading to level 4.

Personal Chambers now upgrading to level 5.

Throne Room now upgrading to level 6.

Follwer Reincarnation Chamber now upgrading to level 6.

Egg Incubation Chamber now upgrading to level 6.

Wisp Maturation Chamber now upgrading to level 6.

Scanner now upgrading to level 18.

Universal Analyzer now upgrading to level4.

Teleportation Array now upgrading to level 7.

Dimensional Storage now upgrading to level 9.

Hydroponic Farm now upgrading to level 9.

Mana Generator now upgrading to level 7.

Alchemist's Laboratory now upgrading to level 7.

Drafter's Study now upgrading to level 6.

Smith's Workshop now upgrading to level 7.

Defenses upgrading to level 4.

City Walls upgrading to City Bastion.

You have purchased 13 additional Sturdy Sentry Towers. Now under construction.

You have purchased 14 additional Level Reducing Sentry Towers.

You have purchased 7 additional Obstacle rooms.

Ship Camouflage now upgrading to level 3.

For once, I had more than enough points to do buy everything I wanted, and probably a little more on the side. After my adventures in the Primordial World I'd accumulated quite a few of them, and now I had even more from fighting the dragons. I wasn't sure what would help best with the threats the Hearthwood would soon face, so I decided to just make everything better across the board.

That settled, I kicked back to administrate. My role was primarily managerial since, even with my tremendous powers, I couldn’t compete with what a massive organization like the Hearthwood Clan could do. At first, I thought I’d be at use digging holes, but Mac had already taken control of most of the dungeon beneath the Hearthwood, so that wasn’t needed. I offered to hunt monsters, but truthfully our stores were already overflowing with dragon parts, so I couldn’t do anything more on that front.

There was one thing I could do, however. And it was something that kept me busy every night. I wanted all my companions to be as strong as possible, which meant I was spending an ever-increasing quantity of time in the bedroom. The dual cultivation technique of Tivana’s family had spread far and wide through my harem, and by now, every one of them could eke out at least a little in the way of benefits from it. I was pretty much constantly confined to the bedroom, with Mac’s reports my only tie to the real world.

I’d set the Hearthwood up well enough that short of disaster, it could manage itself, so things ran fine without me once I gave out some general directions. Things were progressing smoothly, and despite the trouble heading our way, I was paradoxically feeling more and more at ease. We were ready for this, and we’d finish our preparations with time to spare. There was nothing that could possibly go wrong.

<Note>

So, I have no idea how many points Theo has. I kinda stopped tracking them midway through the last book, and I need to go back, add them all up, and then figure out where he starts this book at. The upgrade list may change accordingly when I finally get around to that (probably when either Paladin 4 or AA1 is done, at which point Spellheart 9 will get more of my attention.)