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“107 yrs old huh? You don’t look a day past 29.”
He chuckled. “All part of being a fae.”
“You might be strong but you’re dead broke.”
“Haha, I could say the same for you, hero.”
“We are going to need more if we stand a chance in advancing in Mavriel and securing that shield.”
He raised an eyebrow at me. “Silas, our conversation thus far has been about finding the book.”
“Doesn’t change the fact that Alzera-Kar is our top priority.”
“This is true, but don’t you think we should find Jezz a—”
“No, she wouldn’t have wanted that. We help Thalian first.”
He paused for a second, looking at me with a disagreeing expression on his face. But then he sighed, the fae not having an argument in him. “Very well. You are the hero after all. Besides, with two shields in our possession, we would better our chances of securing the Grimoire.”
“What exactly is the Grimoire anyway?”
“Oh, a mere book of spells…” He shrugged with his hands fanning outward like it was no big deal.
“Bullshit,” I protested. “It’s got to be more than that if you’re willing to travel outside of Senterra, the fallen nation you are pretending to be human to hide in.”
He chuckled. “Why, you are observant, aren’t you?”
“We are building a bridge of trust, right? So I say my curiosity is justified.”
“Well, if you insist, it is the single most important piece of literature in all of Thalian. It is the craftsmanship of our ancestors, our alchemists, and our scholars. The guarded textbook of spells holds power, more than you can imagine, and it resides in Mavriel.”
I turned my head to him interested.
They are very protective of it, and rightfully so. The book contains spells that can alter the course of our future, and in the wrong hands, it can bring chaos and destruction to Thalian.”
“So this gatekeeper is max level I presume?”
“Why, the entire fae council guards the Grimoire. They are called the High Order, an assembly of ancients, and I do mean that quite literally. The oldest men to hold scripture to their names, which words are written in their own blood and bound by their ancestors. The Grimoire contains secrets that the rest of Thalians could only dream of.”
“Yeah about that, your sure-fire plan said nothing about where this book is.”
“It is moved periodically to thwart attempts of theft.”
“Which makes our job that much harder.” I sighed. “Of course.” I was getting more and more wary about this plan the more questions I asked. It seemed so straight forward and cut dry, but his calm temperament was deceptive.
But then something about the Grimoire made me ask a question, “Wait a minute, if that book is so powerful, then why haven’t they abused that power? Especially now that Alzera-Kar is damaged?”
“The High Order forbids tampering with the Grimoire to its extreme. They believe every action has a reversal effect.”
“Oh, just like the dungeon core believes in balance?”
“Correct. It is believed in her world, everything has a counter result, whether good or bad, and they fear that result may destroy Mavriel.”
“So you’re telling me no one in the High Order has even tried?”
“Oh, they have.” He snickered. “And many believe that cyber gear is the result of it.”
“But that’s Alzera-Kar’s doing.”
“We all have our own beliefs.”
“Are you saying you think that she didn’t? That tapping into the ultimate book of spells created a reversal effect of empowering humans with gears? That’s a widespread byproduct. I don’t think even they unleashed magic of that magnitude.”
“Try telling that to a bunch of superstitious and grumpy old men.”
“Sounds like you have your head on straight.”
“I like to think so!”
“So instead of emptying the whole lot, they take one piece at a time,” I said, strumming my chin. “Then tell me, as a pure-blooded fae I presume, what counterbalance have you witnessed?”
“We call them curses,” he clarified. “They come in many variations, but lately it has been the suppression in this war by the hands of those dragons. Which is why the High Order refuses to retaliate with the Grimoire. We are suffering enough as it is.”
“I don’t feel any type of sympathy for you.”
“And I am not asking for any, either. I know my people have caused great devastation. And to be honest, plenty of them deserve their fates. Early on in this war, desperation drew the council to fire back, and the book did its job. But then we paid the price, and an agreement was made to never use the Grimoire again. But of course, agreements are destined to be broken. There will come a time where we’d need the services of the Grimoire again, and temptation would be right around the corner. A temporary resolution with a high price tag. But then of course it depends on the magnitude of the spell.”
