Chapter IX: The Reliquary

AN:

Hey there, Fan-fic-folks!

Sorry this is late. Had some internet issues the last couple of days. Just managed to stay logged on long enough to actually upload something. Only this though, I didn't have time to get The Island done too. On that note, there may not be an upload next week. I've got a bunch of deadlines coming up in the next month or so and I've gotta get working. Uploading depends on if I get the work done. Also sorry if this makes no sense, it's about 3 am here at time of upload and I'm absolutely fucking exhausted.

Also, any RPG-DMs out there are perfectly welcome to steal any of the puzzles. I took most of them from games I've been in over the years, so feel free to do the same. ?

Just as a final thing, I need to music-fangirl for a moment. These two bands are awesome. I've basically had these dudes on a rotating playlist for about a week now.

watch?v=yOf7LTGN6AY

(Spirit Cold - Tall Heights)

watch?v=t-YW3sycdec

(Darlingside - Blow the House Down)

Thanks for reading and, as always, please review.

After grabbing some supplies from Ebenezar's cottage, we head out on the road. The old man stays in front, leading the little convoy to wherever this mysterious 'reliquary' place of his is.

After the first mile, I'm... breathing a bit heavier than everyone else. Walking that far is... way more than I'm used to. Every shitstorm Dresden got us into was either short-range or we had The Blue Beetle to ride in. That car may have been old and crappy, but it could really haul ass when the Boss needed it to. So could I. Dwarves were natural sprinters, after all. Very dangerous over short distances. The same was true of my short-ass self.

Anyway, the walking kinda wore me the fuck out and I lost my control a couple times on the journey, letting the cold through to bite at my toes. I bitched about it a hella lot, so it probably balanced out.

Ellis grinned at me the first time it happened. "Tundras a bey-atch." He drawled,

I glare up at him and growl. He laughs and keeps going as Caoimhe scoops me off the floor with one hand, plonking me on my fight. "Now, c'mon there, no feckin' time ta be sittin' down right now."

I growl and keep going.

It's another two, maybe three miles of walking until we reach the small cave opening and Ebenezar stops. "We're here."

"Here?" I pant, ever so slightly. What? You try walking four miles while keeping your mind on stopping you from freezing to death. It's harder than it fucking looks, okay?

He nods and, with a faint shrug, we all follow him into the caves.

A few hundred yards inside, we find a door. Well, I think it's a door. It's kinda like a big vertical-circular alcove. The doorframe is a huge circle, but where there should be a door, there's just wall. It's divided into concentric circles of runes that I don't recognise.

Ebenezar runs his hands over it, stopping over the runes. They glow blue for a quick second, then he starts to read.

"I am what you seek,
To the door I hold the key,
I may be hidden from view,

Or may be plain to see."

I sigh. "Shit, fucking riddles?"

Luccio eyes me with amusement. I shrug. "I hate riddles."

Ebenezar laughs. "Well, we have to solve this 'un before we can get in there." He waves at the door.

I groan and wave a hand. "I'm gonna be totally useless here. You guys can take care of it, right sir?"

Caoimhe laughs. "Well, they could certainly try."

Ebenezar eyes Caoimhe, then Luccio and the Wardens with mild amusement as Caoimhe just chortles away and the Wardens all bristle at her. I have to stop myself from laughing too. Their faces are kind of hilarious. All scrunched up and offended. Heh. "Aye, I think we can. Lets see if that fancy Warden education put anythin' in those thick skulls of theirs."

Caoimhe plonks herself down by the door with a grin. "Alrighty then. This is gonna be some good craic an' no mistake."

I wander over and sit next to her, closing my eyes. Slowing my heartbeat, I drop into a meditative state for a while. I can hear the others still, but it's just... distant and far away. I spend the next few minutes carefully building up my heat-shield again.

Ellis suddenly clicks his fingers, pulling me back to reality. "The Answer!"

Everyone eyes him. "Yeah, we need to work out what the feckin' answer is, ye thick gabhdan." Caoimhe grumbles, probably pissed she hadn't guessed it already. Fae are supposed to be awesome at riddles.

Ellis rolls his eyes. "No, no. The Answer IS the Answer." He counts off on his fingers with each 'check'. "We seek it, it holds the key to the door and it's hidden from view, until we work it out, then it's plain to see." He looks up at us. "See?"

Ebenezar shrugs. "Good work, boy. As good as an answer as any. Let me see if I can find the runes fer that." He runs his hands over the door again, pausing every so often at certain symbols. As his hands moved over them, they glowed a bright, vibrant blue, kinda like Chloe's hair.

The symbols all flashed again, then flashed in a sequence of layers going up from the bottom. As the top-most ones faded, the huge stone M engraved above the door glowed that same blue as the rune-covered back of the door suddenly rolls off to the side, rumbling and crashing about like a damn thunderstorm.

Ebenezar and I share a grin. He turns to the others, gesturing at the open darkness beyond the door. "So. Shall we?"

There's a longish, plain cut-stone corridor, maybe thirty feet long. We all follow it along until we hit a small wooden door set into the end of it. With a shrug, we push it open and go inside.

"Woah."

The middle of the room is filled with a huge red-veined rock dragon statue sitting back on it's haunches and holding a rune-covered stone circle with a red gem-button in the centre. It's about twice Chloe's height and broader than all three Wardens stood next to each other. We all sort of pause and look up at it for a few seconds.

At the other end of the room, there's a closed portcullis with a smaller version of the dragon statue above it, this time holding an hourglass in place of the gem-circle thingy. The minute we step into the room, the door behind us closes and the sand starts to drop. Ebenezar and Luccio curse and launch forward to the Dragon. Ebenezar reads the runes quickly, then slams his hand down on the gem button. The sand reverses flow, then once the bottom is empty, starts to fall once again.

"I'll translate here and push the button when we need to. Everyone, check the room, see if ye can work out what we're supposed to be doing here."

After a couple of minutes of trying the gem-circle, Ebenezar pulls out a little book and starts reading. We've all split up and are combing the room. I find nothing in my corner and shout out to the others. "Found anything?"

Ellis snorts. "We ain't found shit!"

I sigh. "Damn it. Well, I don't know, we've got to do something. Merlin, nobody would put in a puzzle like this you couldn't get out of."

I turn and look for somewhere to check next. Everyone is split up, which is good. Too many eyes on one point is kinda pointless, right?

Ellis is stood still staring at the hourglass-dragon, watching the sand go down. His head is slightly tilted and I'm pretty sure he's counting under his breath. Well, ok. I leave him to it and check on the others.

Luccio and Anna are stood over by the entry door, talking in low tones about 'ancient lore' or something. I lose interest pretty quickly. History was never really my thing. Why bother dealing with the past when the future was so much more interesting? I move on.

Ebenezar is murmuring over the runes on the gem-circle, checking the book. It's just a constant stream alternating between 'eureka' moments and random curses. "Maybe a... no, damnit, that'll never work. Blasted myothermic principle, or maybe a, no, not that bloody either."

I laugh to myself and wander over. "Sir?"

He jumps and I resist the urge to grin. He glares at me, every inch the crotchety old man every apprentice feared. "What?"

"Just seeing if theres anything I can do to help, sir."

He eyes me. "Did you do that last task the boy set ye?"

I frowned. "You mean the book? I made it about halfway through. Why?" My frown deepened. "Is that helpful for this?"

He grins, his big bushy eyebrows wiggling like caterpillars with Parkinson's. "Prob'ly not. Just curious."

I roll my eyes. "So..?"

He shrugs. "I'm just tryin'ta work out if there's something we hafta do with this other'n push it." He throws the circle a glare. "The symbols ain't anythin' I know, so I'm tryin'ta see if there's any energy flowin' somewhere."

I... had no idea how to do that, and I told him as much.

He shrugs again. "Then, no. Nothin you can do to help, Max. Sorry."

I wave him off. "That's okay, just keep pressing that button, sir."

He snorts. "Yes ma'am."

I laugh. "What's the book?"

"My master's journal." He says it almost reverentially. Like a Priest talking about the Bible his family has passed down for generations or something.

"Your Master?" I raise an eyebrow.

He snorts. "Didn't used to be a dirty word, Max. Used to mean something. A teacher, guide, protector. My master wrote about this place towards the end of his life. That's what brought me to Russia in the first damn place. You think I'd be here if I didn't need ta be? It's too damn cold for my taste."

I laugh. "So, does it say anything about this test?"

He shakes his head. "Nothin' specific. Just a few vague hints. Something about time running out, and patience. I haven't a clue what it's trying to get at."

I shrug. "It's a mystery, sir. I'm sure you'll work it out. I wander off to see what everyone else is up to. Short answer, nothing interesting.

I lean back against the wall and... something cracks. I launch myself forward, twisting in mid-air to land on my back. "Shit!"

Everyone looks or bolts over. I get a half dozen variations on "What happened?".

I shrug, still on the floor. "No idea, I was just standing there and..." I pause. "Sir?"

Ebenezar is kneeling at my side, hand on my shoulder. "What?"

"You're not at the button."

We all turn and look up at the hourglass just as the last bit of sand pours through and...

The fucking portcullis opens.

We all stare at it for a moment, before breaking down in collective laughter. "Are ye feckin' serious? All we had to do?!"

I snort. Fucking typical. When we've all recovered, we head through into another long corridor, leading to another door to another room.

We push open the huge wooden door and walk in.

One wall of the room was dominated by the largest fucking mirror I've ever seen. It literally covered the entire wall, end to end. Goddamn, it had to be twenty feet long and half that high. It was fucking huge. Whatever Wizard built this place must've been seriously narcissistic. He even had a bunch of his shit on display tables scattered over the room.

And the stuff was seriously tacky, too. Looked like he'd found it all in a Vegas yard sale or something. There was a bright and bejeweled lamp, a couple of those stone fish rich people always have on top of their fountains. About a dozen little tables, all with one weird thing sat on them.

Ebenezar leant on his staff and looked over it all. "Well. This ain't what I was expectin' at all."

Luccio strides past him into the room, still trailed by her two Wardens. Caoimhe just saunters up and leans in the doorframe next to us. "Y'know, we should probly'a checked fer traps, first."

Luccio makes it to the centre of the room. "Or maybe not." Caoimhe grins and follows her in, Ebenezar and I taking the rear.

"So. Another damn puzzle then."

Luccio nods. "So it seems, Elder." She and the Wardens start looking over the objects.

He rolls his eyes, turns to me. "Still baffles me who thought callin' the senior council old all the damn time is showin' respect."

I start to laugh, until Dresden's voice pops in my head. "Wizards don't giggle. Bad for the image."

Something must've shown on my face, 'cause Ebenezar looks at me with that weird understanding thing he does.

I quickly walk past him into the room, ignoring the shit outta his face. "So, what's with the mirror?"

Luccio moves to stand next to me. "I have no idea. Maybe a portal of some kind?" She turns to Ebenezar. "Did your masters' journal mention anything about this test?"

Ebenezar thinks for a second.

"Though eyes I have, they have no sight,

I can't be seen in blackest night,

If I move left, then you move right,

I can blind you with the bright dawn light.

I take all the things you see,

And show them as they should be."

We all stand for a puzzled moment, running over the riddle. Caoimhe speaks first. "Well, wasn't that just spectacularly unhelpful."

Ebenezar glares. "Hey, those're the words of a Senior Council Member and honoured wizard. Show some respect."

Caoimhe throws him a grin. "He mighta been 'honoured', but he had a shitty taste in poetry."

I snort and wander over to one of the tables, running my hand over the little lamp on it. The others were all doing similar stuff, poking around and trying to work out what the hell this puzzle was supposed to be.

Something to do with the objects and the mirror...

I frowned, then looked at the mirror. There's something... Do you ever get that thing where the answer is just itching in the back of your head, but you just can't quite get a hold of it? I had that right now. I SO had that right now.

Wait a second... As they should be...

The mirror! It's the fucking mirror! I check the items on the tables in the room, then in the mirror. Yes! Eu-fucking-reka! "They don't match!"

Everyone turns to me. "What doesn't match?"

I point. "The stuff in the mirror. Look, the light out here is a fluffy dice!" Definitely Vegas... We took a closer look and a couple of the other objects didn't match either.

The others quickly swapped the items around, making sure they matched the mirror.

The moment we did, the mirror just... vanished to reveal another stone door in the wall. I grinned. I love magic.

Ebenezar went over and put his hand on the door. He grinned, then reached into his coat and pulled out a book. He smooshed the book up against the door and the symbols began to glow. Ebenezar read as they glowed. "The test of a magi, body, mind and spirit aligned. Whoever you are, you are worthy of what lies beyond. Use it sparingly, for..." He frowned. "For great danger can come from its misuse."

Caoimhe shrugged. "You heard the man. Feckin' get in there!"

Ebenezar snorted. "Not a damn chance. Me and Max'll take this one. Luccio, watch the door." He stares impassively at Caoimhe, who simply quirks a shit-eating grin back at him. "And her."

He turns to me. "Come on, Max."

The door rumbles open and we head in.

"Huh, okay. So... not what I was expecting."

The room we go into is straight from a 40s film noir movie, right down to the shitty furniture and kinda depressing atmosphere to the entire room. It was a small room, definitely well-used. Everything had that wear only a long time occupant could give.

There's a man sitting at the desk, reading a paper. He's got a pair of little wire glasses perched on the end of his nose. His long grey beard and hair were very well maintained. He was wearing a simple blue robe. We walked over and stood in front of the desk. I coughed.

He shuffles through the loose papers on his desk for a few seconds as we both stand around awkwardly looking at him. After a while, he looks up at us and smiles. "My apologies. I've been meaning to get this tidied for a while now." He gives a self-deprecating smile. "As you can see, it hasn't quite happened yet."

He clicks his fingers and "Ah yes, the drawer." He leans down and opens one up, rifling through it. Ebenezar is standing, jaw slack and staring at him in total shock. "Aha! Found you." The man pulls a small folder out of the drawer and plonks it in the middle of the desk. I steal a look at the cover, but I don't recognise the language.

He looks up at us. "So, welcome. You and your group have impressed me. It's not often that people make it through my little dungeon." He gives a sad nod. "I was sorry to hear about the boy. Dresden was a tragic loss. My condolences."

What? How does this guy know about the Boss? Who the fuck is he? I look over at Ebenezar. He seems kinda broken. He's just stood, mouthing "Mer... mer... you're... mer..."

Wait... Beard, robe, hair, knows more than he should... My jaw drops. "Are you... Merlin?"

He gives a small smile and a shrug. "That's what they call me these days, yes. But you can call me Myrddin."

I shake my head. "Uh, hi, I guess. Um..." I look at Ebenezar again. He still hasn't moved, just staring in shock at the man behind the desk. I look back to Merlin. "I really wasn't expecting this."

He laughs, faintly. "Not at all. Take as long as you need. Time is completely halted outside this room. Well," He amends. "This space. The 'room' is whatever will make you most comfortable."

That's when I notice it. We're in Dresden's office. We're in DRESDEN'S FUCKING OFFICE! "How..." My eyes drift around the room and settle back on Merlin. "How..?"

He shrugs. "Just part of the magic, kid."

I stop and just look at him for a second, kinda blanking out. "Wait, people don't make it through those tests? But they were fucking easy!"

He smiles. "It's all in the magic of this place. It reconfigures itself for different people. Can't have just anyone having access to my relics. Your group, however, interests me. You made it through the tests, and now you get a relic."

He slams both palms down on the desk. They land with a thunk and three chests suddenly appear on the table. They're all identical, except for a gem set into the lid. One is red, one is blue and one is green. "Take your choice. You only get one though, so be sure."

I frown. "How am I supposed to pick without seeing what's in the boxes?"

He smiles. "You are a wizard, aren't you? Use your sight."

I... ok. I'm still freaking out a tiny bit that frakkin' Merlin is sat in front of me, but I pull my shit together and focus my sight. It takes a couple of minutes, then the familiar ethereal glow settles over everything. The Sight is a cool wizard-trick we all apparently innately possess. In basic terms, it lets us see things as they truly are, no illusion or protection over it. In practice, it's a risky poke into the dark and obscured corners of reality. Some things really, really don't like being looked at. Others can drive you insane just by being. Human brains are cool, but we really don't handle the Elder stuff very well.

The first box (The green one.) has a little wire-gauntlet thing. "Ah, the Kinaipetus, strength of titans. This gauntlet is a powerful kinetomantic charm that stores significant energy from your movements, enabling you to utilise it later."

I move on to the next one. Merlin is still sat there, following my eye. The next box is blue and contains a weird tiara? "Satusnavus, the guiding light. It allows you to find your way to any destination you wish."

And the last box (that's the red one, in case you're not keeping track)... "Apeiron, the sword of... well, the translation varies. Some say it's the sword of warriors, others the sword of justice." I look up at him. He grins. "I'm a wizard, not a damn linguist."

I snort. Oh my god, Merlin is a fucking trekkie. TOS, too. He's got good taste. Seeing my face, he gives me a dismissive shrug. "I have to watch something to pass the time, and Mr Nimoy was a true legend."

I smirk and make a sudden decision, tapping the blue box. Merlin grins. "Oh, an excellent choice indeed, Max. Please, take it, with my compliments."

I open the box and fish out the little silver circlet. Now I've gotten a closer look, it's actually quite pretty. A circle of shining silver metal, with a bright green gem set into an elegant little loop on the front. "Thank you." I look up at Merlin. "Seriously, thanks."

He waves m. "Don't mention it. You earned that. Now, shouldn't you be getting along? You have six more council members to find, no?"

I nod. "Good point." An idea hits me. "Do you..?"

"Have any advice?" He smiles, an amused little twinkle dancing in his eyes. "Now where's the fun in that? You'll have to work it out for yourself, I'm afraid."

Damnit. I nod. "Thought so." I throw him a grin. "Worth a try though." I take a bow. "It was... nice to meet you, Myrrdin."

He returns my bow with a nod of his head. "And you, Max Caulfield. I've a feeling you'll be providing me great entertainment in the coming weeks."

We turn and start to head out when Myrrdin chimes up again "I will give you this warning though. There will come times when you feel the greatest of temptations, to give up. You cannot do so." He pauses. "Whatever happens, you must see this through."

I... I nod. "I will. I promise."

His craggy face splits into a wide grin. "Excellent. Then you'll be fine. Now, off you go. I really should be getting back to work."

I turn to leave, then notice Ebenezar is still frozen in place, staring at Merlin. I amble over and politely elbow him in the side, taking his arm and trying to drag him out.

It's not as easy as I expected. Fucking hell, the old man is built like a goddamn brick shithouse. I elbow him again. "Sir?"

He finally snaps out of it and looks down at me. "What?"

"We've got to go now." He nods, numbly and lets me lead him out of the office back to the ruined mirror chamber.

The Wardens look up as we walk out of the door. They've all sat down, Caoimhe included, and appear to be playing Bullshit. Surprisingly, Luccio is winning.

Ellis grins. "So, what was in there? You find anything cool?"

Ebenezar and I share a look. "Uh... yeah. Pretty fucking cool."