Chapter Seven: The Sanctuary
Both having finished their trials at the same time the group ended back in the royal family crypt where Connor and Seth both looked at the state, they were both in.
In unison, they both said, "What the bloody hell happened to you?!"
"What is covering your cheeks?! Wait are you wearing contacts?" Seth asked squinting his eyes at Connor's new eye color.
"What happened to you?! Your bleeding!" Connor yelled pointing at Seth's bleeding shoulder.
"You both finished your trials, Connor has awakened his powers while Seth earned his ancestor's blessings and received his Guild Seal," Gabriel spoke catching Seth off guard and looking down at his seal.
"Did that come out of the seals?!" Seth asked amazed at the ancient technology.
"Yeah, these things are handy, we could ditch our phones if we wanted," Connor chuckled looking around the room, "guess we're still trapped here."
"It could be worse," Ginjer spoke climbing back onto Sparrow's sarcophagus.
"How so?" Connor replied knowing he was going to regret asking.
"You could look like your troll of a mother!" Ginjer laughed.
"At least I don't have your fuggly face!" Connor shot back rolling his eyes.
"Where did you two end up anyway?" Seth asked noticing Roscoe's eyes had changed color or perhaps they had always been blue.
"Heroes Guild under Bower Lake," Connor replied looking around the room then spotted the stone guild seal on the floor that reminded him of the Cullis Gate, "there's our exit!"
"What do you mean?" Seth asked watching Connor step on the odd plate on the floor.
"Watch, we picked up some 'tricks' in that old guild," Roscoe spoke watching Connor concentrate and form the Inferno spell in his hand and close his fist around it.
"INFERNO!" Connor yelled slamming his fist down on the circle sending flames circling him and sending Seth falling backward on his butt and knocking Ginjer over in surprise when the two sarcophaguses began to spread apart.
With his magic, the floor between the king and queen opened to reveal a secret staircase that Seth quickly moved away from peeking down the stairs with Roscoe and Connor.
"What the bloody hell was that?! Did you just use magic?!" Seth asked watching Connor grin.
"I did! I used real magic! Seth, it's all real, the fables, the legends, this is the path we need to take to save Albion, to be the heroes Albion needs," Connor spoke attaching his Guild Seal to his belt as Seth did the same.
"Well then, I'm with you my friend, let's go before the Guard breaks that door open!" Seth spoke picking up Ginjer and setting her on his shoulder before descending the stairs.
Once the group reached the bottom and began to walk down the tunnel carved from the rocks, they heard the secret passage close behind them allowing them to make their escape.
"Where do you suppose, this is going to lead?" Connor asked hearing his voice echo.
"Far away from the city I hope, we need to regroup and plan, hey old man, what the plan?" Seth asked knowing that Gabriel was listening.
"I'll meet you both at the end of the cave, that is where Connor will find his ancestor's gift to him," Gabriel explained.
"Oi mutt! Have your eyes always been blue?" Ginjer asked seeing Roscoe look up in annoyance at the gnome.
"So, tempting to use magic right now," Roscoe muttered.
"Funny story, when we both reached the Heroes Guild a light awakened the magic inside me and Roscoe! He a Will user too!" Connor grinned getting Seth to raise a brow and look down at the canine.
"For real? Alright, that brilliant, magic-wielding dog, that will be interesting to see in combat," Seth spoke as they reached the end of a tunnel and reached a massive cavern.
"Whoa, I don't think anyone has been down here in centuries! Would have made a great place to attack the palace," Connor spoke walking down the path.
Making their way through the large cavern the group fought through bats till a foul stench began to grow stronger.
"Ugh! What is that foul stench?!" Roscoe growled having a stronger sense of smell than the others.
"Eh! Yup I know that smell, we're somewhere underneath the Industrial District, definitely under the Sewage Plant," Connor groaned plugging his nose.
"Oi! Where are we going you bat smackers?" Ginjer asked as they entered through a broken swear wall.
"Hopefully to wherever Gabriel leading us," Seth spoke as they turned the corner into another large cavern only this time it appeared to be a dead end, "a dead end, well that's great!"
"Wait no! Look, Seth!" Connor pointed to the unactivated Cullis Gate.
"Huh, the same symbol as the switch used to open the secret staircase, looks like magic will turn that thing on, well mate, be my guest," Seth spoke taking a step back while Connor stepped onto the gate.
"Alright, Inferno!" Connor yelled slamming his palm on the floor sending a wave of flames around him and activating the gate that glowed and transported the group.
Ending up in a large room covered in cobwebs and dust with a checkered floor Connor and Seth both groan feeling their stomachs turn from the magical travel from the gate.
"Ugh! That felt unpleasant!" Seth groaned looking around, "what is this place?"
"Look there a map table," Connor spoke approaching the large map of the world blinking when he thought he saw the clouds moving on the mini map.
"Welcome heroes," Gabriel spoke appearing in a beam of light, and approached the table where he picked up the book of heroes from the map brushing off the dust.
"Gabriel, what is this place?" Connor asked watching Roscoe walk around the roof sniffing while Ginjer jumped off Seth's shoulder and took a seat on the edge of the map table.
"Welcome to the Sanctuary, built by the great Hero King Sparrow and handed down to his sons, this safe space was used by your ancestor and has waited a very long time for its next of kin to claim it and use its facilities again," Gabriel explained while Connor looked around.
"So, all this is mine?" Connor asked watching Gabriel push open the doors into a room where they followed him into the armory where they stared in awe at all the weapons that Sparrow, Adam, and Logan filled.
"Bloody hell! Look at these weapons!" Seth spoke staring in awe at a heavy-looking axe.
"Let us start with the first gift your ancestor left," Gabriel spoke waving his hand and making all the weapons disappear, and before Connor stood a mannequin wearing two very strange gauntlets.
"Oh wow some old gloves," Seth spoke sarcastically.
"They're gauntlets," Gabriel corrected watching Connor slip the gauntlets off the mannequin before putting them on.
"Okay, what's the difference?" Seth asked looking to Gabriel who pointed at his gauntlets.
"Gauntlets have extended cuffs, gloves do not. Do they fit okay Connor?" Gabriel asked turning to Connor who was inspecting the gauntlets on his arms closely.
"What exactly are they supposed to do?" Connor asked seeing Gabriel approach and take Connor's hands, "Uhhhh what are you doing?"
"Tweaking the gauntlet" Gabriel smiled but before Connor could ask another question he winced when he felt a pain in his hands.
"GAHH! AHHH! WHAT THE HELL?!" Connor yelled stumbling back feeling the gauntlets burning his skin and watching them transform and turn into a similar style, like the ones Gabriel wore with two glowing gems forming on the back of his hands.
"What did you do?!" Seth yelled pointing a gun at Gabriel.
"A precaution," Gabriel spoke turning to Connor, "I shared with you special spells only I was able to use, until now, you now have the power to summon the spells, Shard, Counter, Light, Heal, and Whip."
"Geeze Gabriel you could have bloody warned me! That really hurt you know!" Connor growled about to take them off then realized he couldn't, "what did you do?!"
"The Gauntlets are now a part of you, they can not be removed, this was a painful yet necessary sacrifice you and I had to make," Gabriel explained.
"So I can never take these off?! Well, this sucks!" Connor growled relieved his fingers weren't covered so he could at least still wear rings.
"That isn't the only gift I gave you, since I modified the old gauntlets left to you, you can now fuse all the spells at your disposal," Gabriel smiled seeing Connor raise a brow then from Inferno in one hand and Shock in the other.
"Ok, not gonna lie, that's really brilliant, still pissed about you tricking me!" Connor growled glaring at the seer.
"Join the club," Gabriel spoke recalling how he was tricked and approached Seth placing his hand over his injured shoulder.
"What are you doing?" Seth asked feeling his shoulder tingle then looked down to see a green magic light slowly healing his injury.
"So, are we ready to start this journey yet?" Connor asked seeing the room change to the weapons he was looking at before.
"No, now is the time for you to upgrade your weapons, look around, and pick what calls to you both," Gabriel spoke watching Seth draw and admire his family cutlass.
"I'm sticking with this, but I do need a new firearm," Seth spoke walking over to the collection of pistols, "hello my beauties!"
Feeling something Connor turned his head to a mannequin that held out a strange-looking sword that had blue will markings like the ones on his body that seemed to call to him.
"Ah the Hero Sword, King Adam used this sword on many quests before leading an army to battle, as you can see it's reached its full potential and seems to yearn for the fight again," Gabriel smiled watching Connor take the sword in his hand and hold it up feeling its magic flow into him.
"It's beautiful," Connor spoke removing his old cutlass and placing it in the mannequin's hand then approached the firearms watching Seth pick up and admire the Desert Fury.
Feeling another call Connor looked over and approached a Pistol that was in the same odd style as the sword.
"Hero Pistol, if you are to trust any firearm here this pistol won't let you down, sends bullets fast into your enemies with a powerful burst of magic," Gabriel explained watching Connor pick up and admire the pistol and set his old one in place.
"Are you two girls done window shopping yet?! I'm getting bored!" Ginjer yelled from a chair she sat in.
"Almost there, I say if you are going to be the hero I think it's time we talk about that...outfit," Gabriel spoke looking at the old rags Connor wore.
Exiting the armory Gabriel led them to the Wardrobe where they saw many mannequins covered in different outfits some of which made Connor and Seth have to do a double take, like a chicken costume.
"What on earth did he need a chicken costume for? Actually, I don't wanna know," Connor spoke following Gabriel who led him to a mannequin with an outfit that made him raise a brow.
"This one I picked out; I'd say this will fit for the hero of a new age don't you think?" Gabriel asked.
"He's not wrong, it does look good," Seth spoke watching Connor approach the mannequin and remove it's clothes.
Later at the map table Gabriel and Seth looked up when Connor's new brown boots stepped out of the closet, attaching the Guild seal to the belts that held up the red sash in place Connor pulled down his grey hood to his new outfit holding out his arms expecting a reaction.
"Not bad at all," Seth nodded his approval watching Roscoe exit behind Connor now proudly wearing a collar and having a doggy backpack attached to his back.
"Looking good Roscoe, but it's missing something," Gabriel smiled kneeling and attaching a Guild Seal to Roscoe's pack, "there, now you are ready."
"Alright! So, what's up with this map?" Seth asked approaching the table with Connor with Roscoe peeking from the side.
"This is an enchanted map table, with your seals you can use this map to take you anywhere you see," Gabriel explained see the two adults give him a look, "what?"
"Really? So, if I touch this map for Samarkand over there it's gonna transport me there?" Seth asked in disbelief.
"Yup it sure will, and your seals will allow you to safely travel back here," Gabriel explained.
"I would call bullshit but seeing as this day has been nothing but surprise after bloody surprise, I think a magic map table may be believable at this point," Connor spoke leaning over the map, "so where do we start?"
"Let's see where they go," Gabriel spoke snapping his fingers and making the fate cards Connor and Seth had fly out of their pockets and towards the map.
Pulling out a deck Gabriel let more cards fly and began to hover over parts of the map while their cards appeared to be floating together near the mountain of Albion.
"Looks like the Hero of Strength, the Champion, has taken occupation in Westcliffe, the city there is a perfect place to begin this journey," Gabriel explained as Seth and Connor looked to the Champion card over Westcliff.
"Something tells me getting this hero to join us will be harder than we hope," Seth spoke noticing mini Guild Symbols popping up over the map, "what are those?"
"Quests, as you can see a lot of people all across Albion need your aid, some of it will seem rubbish others will truly put you to the challenge but this is how you will gain renown, by helping the people you will spread the word of the return of real heroes, go to Westcliffe, see what you can find," Gabriel spoke seeing Ginjer hope off the map table.
"I'm more intel and explosive! You two have fun out there, I'll stay here," Ginjer spoke hopping into a chair.
"Good then you can help Gabriel clean up this place," Seth glared before looking at the map and then to his friend, "ready?"
"Yeah, let's go be heroes," Connor smiled touching the map and teleporting out of the room with Roscoe and Seth.
A.N. If you're curious what Connor, Roscoe, and Seth's updated looks look like head over to my Newgrounds page, same user name I use over here :P