Jason woke from a dreamless sleep, sitting up from the blanket that Lance had insisted that he use. He yawned, eyes scanning his surroundings. Everything in the cavern was as he had left it, his armor still in pieces beside the incline. Lance however, shocked him, as she was sitting before Lithia, clad in the gray blanket he had given her. He stood quickly, approaching them both.
"What's going on?" Jason asked, coming to stand beside Lance.
Lithia put a leathery finger to her lips, "Silence boy, she needs to concentrate or you'll ruin her progress."
Lance sighed, "I can't find the Flame."
"That is because you aren't really trying, woman!" Lithia shouted, "Just imagine the fire, Jason here learned that on the first try."
Lance scowled, "Jason is half Dragon." She pointed out, "I am a mere mortal."
Lithia paused, "I suppose that is fair enough. Progress with you will take more time."
"That's actually quite patient of you." Lance pointed out.
Lithia frowned, "And I am not patient?"
Nolvi sighed, "She didn't say that, Grandmother."
"Pah!" Lithia waved a hand, "Patient or not, it will take time for you to grasp Foundation properly, I must remember that your kind are not as adept as the gifted." She nodded to herself, "And you, little Lance, certainly are not gifted."
"Don't talk to her that way." Jason pointed at the corpse, irritated, "She's more useful than a lump of jerky like you."
"I ought to turn your skin inside out for that comment alone." Lithia scowled.
"Why haven't you?" Jason asked, genuinely curious.
"Because you're much nicer to look at this way, you hussy." Lithia told him, eyeing him up and down, "As soon as I return to form I fully intend to make you mine."
"Nothing would sicken me more." Jason glared.
"Just wait and see, little Dragon." Lithia cackled, "I won't force you, it will be as simple as you laying your eyes on my supple form. You could not possibly resist me at that point."
Nolvi winced, "Grandmother please." She whined.
"I have needs!" Lithia shouted indignantly.
"Need someone else." Jason told her, irritation growing, "I'm not interested, I don't care how 'supple' you become."
"Maybe if I was some dark-haired faekin you would change your tune." Lithia muttered.
Lance stiffened at those words, but Jason could care less about the useless ramblings of a promiscuous corpse.
"Back to your learning, little Lance," Lithia told her, "You aren't gifted, as I said before, but I am the most adept magic teacher in the world, second only to Draoi himself… I'm sure that I can get you to at least feel Foundation by the end of the day, but only if you listen to my precise instruction."
Lance nodded, "I'm willing."
"That's good, now it's time to be able." Lithia told her, "Now shut those peepers sweety, imagine the Flame."
"I need to get my armor on." Jason said, crossing his arms, "I was wondering if I could have some assistance, I also need to know where Michael and Cat are being held captive and if the Long Lords have fallen asleep yet. I need that intel, Lithia."
The corpse grinned, "Why should I? You've been so horribly rude to me, insulting my suppleness and all. Nothing in this world is free, little Dragon, if you want this favor done, I will want something in return."
Jason sneered, "I'm not sleeping with you."
"Be patient, that can wait until I'm supple again, remember?" Lithia cackled, "And it is nothing as crass as that, have a little decency."
He suppressed the urge to roll his eyes, "What is it then?"
"Simply to accomplish what you originally came here for, I want Kazon dead, and my amulet returned to me. Swear to me that you will accomplish this, and I will show you where your friends are being held. You must also swear that you will not give Theopalu my amulet, and that you will allow little Nolvi to wear it."
Nolvi blinked, "Why do you want me to do that?" She asked, "Couldn't you just summon it back?"
Lithia shook her head, "Were it so easy, don't you think I would have done that by now were it possible?" She asked, "The amulet is leagues away from here, inside Castle Blackgaze, I cannot summon it from so far away, and even if I could, Kazon would immediately counter the spell… He's gotten quite powerful." She admitted grudgingly, "He may have also cast a failsafe onto it in the event that I could summon it back from him. It may destroy me if I'm so careless, but if you put it on Nolvi, I would be able to pull you back here and dispel whatever he may have done to it safely."
Nolvi nodded, "I understand, I can do this, Grandmother." She smiled warmly.
Jason hesitated. If he accepted this deal, that would mean putting Lance in danger, going against Kazon may be just as dangerous as fighting one of the Long Lords. Yet he needed this intel, it was vital that he know exactly where to go. It was going to be a smash and grab operation, he had no intention of remaining there for too long. Hopefully Wurmdring wouldn't be present, but Jason knew better. Something in his gut told him that another confrontation with the vampire was inevitable.
"Fine." Jason agreed, "I also need to know where the vampire Wurmdring is as well."
"Come before me." Lithia urged him forth.
Jason came upon the throne, stopping just before the seat.
"Kneel. No arguments now, I am going to bind you to this agreement. If you don't kneel, no deal." Lithia told him.
"Jason, are you sure?" Lance asked him, "I have a bad feeling about this."
He turned to her and smiled, "It'll be okay." He said, "I'll keep you safe, no matter what."
Jason then kneeled in front of Lithia, the irritating corpse giving an irritated smirk before raising a single finger, "You must swear to me that you will accomplish that which I have bidden you. Retrieve my amulet, let Nolvi wear it, and do not under any circumstance allow Theopalu to come into possession of it." A mote of Golden Flame then appeared from the tip of her finger, the edge of the fire a deep purple, "Breaking this oath will result in you becoming my slave for all eternity, do you accept my conditions?"
"No, I don't want to suffer those consequences in case the operation goes wrong." Jason told her, glaring.
The last thing he wanted was to be Lithia's pawn for the rest of his life. She had made it very clear what she'd want him for, Jason had no intention of reducing himself to a mere toy for her pleasure.
"Then I cannot help you, go find them on your own." Lithia sneered.
"Grandmother," Nolvi pleaded, "Please reconsider, what you ask of him is dangerous, stacking on a condition like that and it is no wonder he refuses."
Lithia stared at Nolvi for a moment before looking back to Jason, "Think of it this way, Jason." She sighed, "There are only two outcomes here, one is that you retrieve my amulet, or you die to Kazon. The only way you would suffer to be my slave is if you go back on your word. If you were to keep the amulet for yourself or flee the Fiendwood, or give it to Theopalu, those would be the conditions you would need to meet in order to become a slave. So just don't betray the oath, that is all."
Agreeing meant that he'd get the intel he needed to save his fellow Ternans, but it also meant a guaranteed fight against Kazon, a dangerous individual whose power Jason didn't quite know the limits of yet. He needed more intel before he could make a final decision.
"How strong is Kazon?" He asked, meeting Lithia's spiralling gaze.
"About as powerful as one of the Long Lords I would say, but only because he bears my amulet. Remove it from his possession and he's nothing more than a simple mortal mage, a powerful one, but not overwhelmingly so."
So if he could remove it from Kazon, he'd be killable. If he could rendezvous with the Pillar-Born, their chances of success would sky-rocket. They wanted him dead too, there was no reason not to work with them again… assuming Lance wouldn't panic that is.
Jason hesitated before answering, "Affirmative."
Lithia then pressed her finger right into his neck, a searing pain settling into his flesh, "Then I invoke my mark on you, now I must fulfill my end of this deal." She told him, raising her other hand before grabbing him by the temple.
His eyes widened as he felt himself being torn away from his body, floating up to see his own body, along with Lance, Lithia and Nolvi. Jason, for a brief instant, panicked as he saw his body go limp, seeing Lance run over to him. She began shaking his back in an attempt to wake him, but Jason was still free-floating, he could not even feel her touching him. Lithia shook her head, keeping her spiral eyes shut.
"He is fine, girl." Lithia told her, "Now stop panicking, I am allowing him to go see for himself what he wishes. His spirit is afloat now, but I need to concentrate to maintain the spell, be silent and practice seeing the flame, as I told you. He will be back soon."
Lance hesitated a moment, "His spirit isn't in his body?"
"That's right, in fact he's dawdling right now, staring at us from above instead of doing what we agreed on. Get lost Jason!" Lithia shouted, clearly irritated.
Jason scrambled, but found he couldn't move where he wanted to. He saw that his body twitched in response to his attempt at movement, and he realized then that he wasn't going about this right. He willed himself toward his body, and his spirit moved, allowing him to see a small black spiral on his neck, right where Lithia had touched. Not the Spiral Curse, but it still wasn't pleasant seeing that symbol on his own flesh.
If Jason had lips, he would have frowned at seeing his own face. He was bald again, on his face and scalp, a result of him going Wendigo, no doubt. He must have suffered severe damage if there was hardly any hair left on him after the fact. His bionics must have gotten damaged as well, but the fleet of nano-machines living in his bloodstream had clearly repaired them. He willed himself away from the body, moving through the open doorway before heading up the incline.
He willed himself to move faster, the world passing by quickly, and before he knew it, he was where he'd made his new tunnel. He quickly found out that he was able to phase through matter, for he passed straight through the shelf instead of maneuvering around it. Then came the long process of mapping out all of New Romai. He had time, after all, and the more he understood of the complex, the better.
The further he went, the more he was awed, there seemed to be no end of the massive chambers, long hallways, bedchambers, dirt filled purring-maggot farms, and countless different industries and workshops. Massive factories had been built here in this city, mass producing weapons, ammunition, and armor at an astonishing rate. Conveyor belts ran up and down these factories like veins, dozens of dwarves working to assemble weaponry. It didn't take long until he realized that the guns that were being made were more reproductions of his own weaponry, with the ammo to match. He had inadvertently jumped these dwarves ahead by a dozen tech levels… once his business in the Fiendwood was done, he'd need to warn the elves and Fiendwallers about a possible invasion, though he had no idea how the Harkhall could possibly mount a defense against The Romai if they did decide to attack the Faewood.
Jason would help them if it came to that, but hopefully these dwarves wouldn't come out of their holes for a long while, there was still an army of Fiends topside that would slow them down, not to mention the hostile environment they would have to pass through.
Aside from these factories, there were dozens of dwarves constantly engraving new images onto the walls, the floor, the ceiling, everywhere there was space. They stood upon scaffolding and ladders or sat on their knees as they worked, chiseling away at the concrete with grim determination.
And the dwarves were not done expanding, not by a long shot. Mining crews were constantly digging new halls, crews of dwarves smoothing the stone behind them as they dug further into the unknown. Any ores these crews found were excavated completely, put on carts before being lugged to one of the dozens of factories. Sparkling gems were also tossed into bright red baskets, woven from some unknown material. These were taken to individual workshops, where they cut and set the gems into various crafts. Everything from dishes to arms and armor were subject to gem setting.
The halls he moved through weren't all uniform either, some were massive Sparrow-sized hallways with gigantic pillars supporting vaulted ceilings, while others were only wide enough to accommodate one dwarf at a time. The giant halls were filled with thousands of dwarves going about their business, working personal forges or setting up stalls to sell other wares, making these places into underground markets. Jason had quite literally only scratched the surface of New Romai in his physical form, he had no idea it was this vast. There were even aqueducts that transported water throughout the city like veins, likely sourced from an aquifer if his guess was correct. These aqueducts inevitably led into the walls, feeding into countless copper pipes. He decided to make his way to the workshop, to see if it had been properly cleaned and if Wurmdring were present.
Jason may just make a quick stop to retrieve Lance's gear once and for all if that were the case, along with checking if Michael and Cat's were there as well. He could not allow the dwarves to reverse engineer Cat's jet systems particularly. Flying vampire dwarves was not something he wanted to deal with, though in truth the dwarves were likely far too heavy for a Diver's jet systems. That, and they had no way of reproducing the intricate power source within. Better safe than sorry though. Once he finally reached the workshop, he was shocked to see that it was completely empty. Not of objects, of dwarves. There was a retinue of Fanged Guard standing watch just outside the shop, but none were present within.
He remembered the sanitation dwarf earlier, the one that had insisted that the workshop had been cursed. It could very well be that no dwarf wanted to step foot in there ever again, not after all the casualties they had suffered within it. The sea of blood was gone now, but pieces of stray gore and spots of blood still remained. The cleaning crew must have been swapping shifts if none were currently present, but more importantly than that, Wurmdring wasn't here either. He phased through the shop until he found what he was looking for, in steel crates under metal tables, were the tungsteel armor for Michael, the jets for Cat, along with their weaponry, and Lance's cloak, along with her other items. He'd be retrieving this gear just before saving Michael and Cat, with that in mind, he phased back out of the workshop and into the halls once more.
Jason passed by thousands of dwarves as he continued on, quickly coming to realize that New Romai must have had a population of at least around one million. Lance had mentioned that to him before, but Jason could hardly bring himself to believe it, at least not until he'd seen it first hand. Hundreds of patrols maneuvered through the halls as well, each one having at least one vampire within it. He stopped by his old rat-hole, seeing that the Romai had set up a heavy machine gun nest aiming right at the hole. Every dwarf watching it was a vampire, and a dozen other Fanged Guards stood outside, ready to pounce on whatever came through that hole.
Jason left that place, right before passing through separate bedchambers, beelining for where he thought the throne room was. Dwarven bedchambers were large, engraved with dozens of images as everything else was. These apartments were mostly uniform, with only small variations here and there to accommodate the occupying dwarf's needs. Usually each chamber was just one room, much like a civilian studio apartment, fitted with a kitchen, toilet, shower, and stocked with plenty of stone-built furniture. He was almost surprised to see refrigerators, electric ovens, and other modernities installed in the apartments. He had to remind himself that these dwarves were ahead of the rest of Ahkoolis technologically. He'd seen relatively advanced tech present in their factories and other places, perhaps it was just surprising that they had the resources to give such pleasantries to their citizens.
There were other chambers that were different, with multiple rooms for large families. He passed by dwarven children at play in their rooms, hearing their parents tell them that it wasn't safe for them to step out into the halls yet. Surprisingly, these children were all beardless, he had expected the young males to at least have some facial hair, but perhaps that was due to his reading of that book back in his youth. What shocked him the most was seeing that the Fanged Guard also occupied some of these larger apartments, as well as the smaller ones. Their rooms had a steel coffin instead of a bed, but it was shocking to see no segregation between mortal and vampire citizens.
In fact, he saw a child playing with one such vampire in a living room, the child fiddling with the vampire's beard while humming a tune. The creature bore a suffering expression but allowed the child to fiddle, up until a dwarven woman shouted for the child to 'leave grandfather's beard alone'. It baffled him to see such a thing, were they not in danger from the vampires? What would happen once they grew hungry? That answer revealed itself soon as he came upon a lone vampire opening a fridge, clad in nothing but undergarments as he grabbed a sealed mug. The creature then unscrewed the lid atop it, revealing a red fluid within, right before it guzzled it all down in one go. Donations for sure then, perhaps this was the reason New Romai's population was so massive. He had thought that the vampires had been killing the citizens with each feeding, but that was clearly not the case.
Eventually, he found himself back at the Long Lord's throne room, seeing that none were present there except dozens of Fanged Guards, these ones heavily armored compared to the ones on patrol. Hopefully this meant that the Long Lords were asleep, but he wouldn't know until he found their sleeping quarters. He noticed that, behind each of the three thrones was a wide door, made from solid engraved steel. His spirit easily passed through these barriers, despite them being closed. The door to the right had been engraved with the symbol of an armored dwarf grasping a huge gavel, holding it high over his head as the image of a city lay beneath his feet. What lay within must have been the personal chambers of the Long Lord Lagoma.
The room on the other side of his door was spartan in appearance, little decoration aside from the engravings. A large desk made of stone was sat right in the middle of the chamber, with dozens of steel cabinets sitting both atop it, and beside it. One sat open partially, revealing dozens of documents within, all categorized alphabetically. If Jason had physical form, he would have been able to sift through their contents to see if anything useful lay within. He'd just need to be satisfied with learning the layouts of the Long Lord's chambers for now.
The room had another door, this one made of solid dwarf-made steel, also engraved with the image of a cloaked dwarf ruling over other, smaller bearded figures as they labored. Jason phased through this door, seeing a massive circular stone chamber on the other side. The vaulted ceiling held a chandelier of various gleaming gemstones in its center, which reflected the dimly glowing orange light bulbs in its core. Aside from that though, there was no decoration, no furniture, save for a solid steel coffin at the center, sat atop a large pedestal.
It was sealed, but Jason knew that Lagoma must have been in there right now. He phased into it to check, seeing the Long Lord slumbering as he'd expected. The massive beard clearly had to be folded in on itself to make it possible to fit the vampire, making it look as if he were wearing a blanket made of hair. Jason was surprised he could even see that much, considering the near total lack of light in the chamber. He couldn't even make out Lagoma's features, but at least he knew that the vampire was asleep. Jason would have seen the glow of his crimson eyes otherwise.
He phased out of the engraved stone chamber, phasing out before moving in to inspect the next one, this one likely belonging to Telegad. Unlike the previous room, which was spartan and bare of decoration, this chamber was filled with racks of armor, weapons, with engravings depicting scenes of war. Images of dwarves shackling taller humanoid figures were common, but not so much as the engravings showing massive battles between organized dwarven armies fighting against scrawny, disorganized knife-eared armies. Notably, the figure present at the front of most of these battles was a heavily armored dwarf, wielding a massive blade that matched the length of his beard.
Was that engraving of Telegad? Given the engravings and the dozens of armor and weapons on display, it was safe to say that he was the 'warrior' of the three Long Lords, with Lagoma being a sort of steward that maintained New Romai, ensuring that everything was in working order. As he moved toward the steel door on the other side of the room, he noticed that the armor and weapon racks were built from gem-encrusted gold. The gaudy sight would have appalled and confused him before, but Jason knew now that such indulgences would be common for a ruling class dwarf. Well, except for Lagoma apparently.
The door to Telegad's chamber bore a massive grim face, the beard stylized to look almost like metal, aided by the material of the door. An ornate helmet shrouded the frowning face's eyes from view, but Jason didn't need to see them to tell that the depicted face must have been Telegad. He phased through it, coming through on the other side to see that it was almost a mirror image of Lagoma's, circular, vaulted ceiling, engravings, except the walls in this room were filled to the brim with weaponry.
They hung from gold racks attached to the walls, covering almost every inch of it and hiding the engravings beneath. On further inspection, Jason could see that each weapon had a plaque just beneath it, each one bearing a name, date, and description. One was a mace, far too large for a dwarf's hands. The name read 'Elf King Taylen/Sixth Age Two-Thousand and Sixteen: Marash Fifteenth/ Fell to my blade'. The other racks were much the same, all dated back to the Sixth Age and detailing how the previous owner's had fallen. Clearly these were war trophies that Telegad collected from slain opponents. The dates went back to triple digits, all the way up to the three-thousandth year of the Sixth Age.
This could very well mean that Telegad was the most dangerous of the trio, but Jason did not want to test that theory quite yet. He briefly considered attempting to assassinate the Long Lord's while they slept, but doing so might trigger them to awaken and kill him. He had no illusions that he'd be able to stand up to any of the three, not as he was right now. He phased into Telegad's coffin, saw that he was asleep, then left.
The final rooms, by process of elimination, must have belonged to Megad. A large library of leather-bound tomes made up the antechamber before Megad's coffin-room. There were loads of potentially useful intel here, with books labeled about different races, biology, culture, and different ways to utilize Foundation, among countless other things. Aside from the library, there were dozens of engravings, these ones made from silver and gold, rather than just carved into the rock, depicting what looked like the outside world. A long-bearded dwarf was depicted exploring these environments, a stark contrast to what Telegad's stories depicted.
Glass frames also lined the walls here, with ancient-looking scraps of paper hanging within. The text was worn to the point where it was difficult to read any of them, what drew his attention more was a table set into the wall. It looked as if it were made from wood, but upon further inspection Jason could see that it was actually carved from a dark stone, made to resemble wood. A smaller bookshelf sat next to this false-wood table, with dozens of books filling this one as well, these ones specific to the history of New Romai. One particular title stood out to him, 'The First Vampire', but again with his current form there would be no way to peruse its contents.
Another thing to note was the solid gold table in the center of all the bookshelves, surrounded by four gem encrusted silver chairs, but other than that there was nothing special about it. The extra chairs must have been for when Megad had company. What was of more interest to Jason was the fact that another door was present, aside from the one leading to Megad's personal chamber. This one bore no decoration, and was made from thick steel, ten Fanged guards stood before it, arms crossed and faces grim.
Jason decided to check on Megad's chamber first, just to ensure that the Long Lord was asleep as well. Again the chamber was circular with a steel coffin on a center pedestal, but this one was garish, covered in several rocks colored and carved to look similar to plants. Particularly, plants that could be found on the surface, such as flowers, grass, bushes and trees, among other things. Once he ensured Megad was unconscious, he returned to the antechamber, floating toward the door he'd seen earlier.
He phased through it, coming to see exactly what he'd been looking for. Jason saw Michael through the screen of a large monitor, curled up on himself beside what looked to be the shaved corpse of a dwarf. The concrete chamber only had two doors, the entrance Jason had just passed through, and a riveted steel door that no doubt led to Michael's cell. A dwarf with a golden pin on his shoulder seemed to be questioning him over a microphone, sitting before the camera. Jason quickly realized that he had seen this same exact dwarf before, back in the workshop before he'd escaped captivity. His name was Dundale Stoutfoot, if he was remembering right.
Beside him stood Wurmdring, arms crossed over a new suit of armor, nigh identical to the last one he'd fought in. He looked no worse for wear after their last battle, but there was a detail that shook Jason. Wurmdring's eyes had shifted from a deep red to a brilliant gold, matching Jason's own. He stared at Wurmdring a long while until finally, the vampire tapped Dundale on the shoulder.
"I do not think he will be responsive, Stoutfoot." Wurmdring told him, "That was his first feeding, he will need time to come to terms with what he's done, and what he's become. I've seen newbloods go through this before, it happens on occasion."
Dundale sighed, "I suppose you're right. I was hoping to glean more details about the Outworld from him, but he won't say anything, even with the threat of Megad's authority."
Wurmdring shook his head, "He may not even be able to hear you right now, give him time, there is no need to torture the woman, not when it won't give us results."
"True, perhaps we should shift our attention to her instead, she is just as Outworlder as he is, after all." Dundale pointed out, leaning away from the microphone.
"She is still asleep as of right now." Wurmdring said, "Let her rest, then we will question her when she is at the peak of her lucidity. If you desire it, you may return to your chambers for a time. I will remain on guard here, in case Hoplite returns. Worry not, I will send for you when either of the Outworlders begin to stir."
"Will Heavyhouse raise qualms with this?" Dundale asked, "He has been appointed overseer, if we offend him we could receive harsh consequences."
Wurmdring then bared his fangs, "Heavyhouse can rot, he cannot punish you so long as you bear that pin, and likewise I am only subject to you and the Long Lord's authority, he wouldn't dare go against Long Lord Megad, even he would not be so foolish."
"One would hope." Dundale yawned, "Excuse me."
"Worry not, if Heavyhouse seeks to defy Long Lord Megad, then I will crush him, Overseer or not, he is no match for me." Wurmdring told him firmly, "Now go rest, a few of the guards will escort you home."
Jason would need to get here quickly. He still needed to find Cat though, she didn't seem to be present here. He passed through the door to Michael's cell, but still saw no sign of her. She needed to be nearby, at hand even, if they had her at the ready to be tortured for Michael's cooperation. She must have been hidden somewhere in this very room, just in case Michael tried to mount an escape to save her.
In that case, it was simple to figure out what had been done. Jason had done the same thing himself making his rat-holes. He phased through each wall until he found a new hallway, one that had been cloaked to match the rest of the concrete. There were three other cells here, identical to that of Michael's, but all were empty save one. He phased through the doors, until finally he found Cat, laying curled up on a cot surrounded by blankets.
It seemed that they took better care of captives here than in the dungeons where Lance had been being kept. Was that solely due to them being Outworlders or was that standard procedure for Megad's private dungeon? No matter, he'd be taking them out of here soon enough. She seemed no worse for wear thankfully, but that was no reason to not hurry. He'd prepare for a conflict with Wurmding and the other Fanged Guards present… The question was how he should go about the mission.
He mulled on this as he left the prison. He couldn't cloak his suit yet, but he would need to take it with him, else risk facing Wurmdring naked again. He'd come far too close to death fighting the vampire naked, leaving the armor wasn't an option. Perhaps he could mount a full-scale assault, to hell with stealth? That idea didn't please him either, New Romai was on high alert and waiting for him to appear again. There were potentially thousands of vampires he'd end up facing, along with whole battalions of dwarves armed with miniaturized versions of his own weapons, not to mention Wurmdring. That, and what if the Long Lords could wake up? If just one of them did, the mission would be doomed. He needed to bring his suit and remain cloaked, the only solution he could think of was having Lithia maintain the cloaking for him, but she might want some other deal if he asked that.
She might want something Jason simply wasn't willing to give away. What if she wanted to make him her personal pet, or worse? Who knew what else she was willing to ask for if she knew that Jason needed her help? Digging through to Megad's prison wasn't an option either, it was too far away from the Spiral Cavern, it wasn't attached to it anywhere. Then an idea struck him, he didn't need to ask Lithia to cloak him…
All Jason had to do was cloak the armor, not himself. It would be the same exact trick he used with the barrel of food, he'd leave himself technically visible while maintaining the invisibility for the exterior. Unless… unless each section of the armor counted as its own individual piece that needed to be cloaked. If that were the case then he'd have no choice but to ask for Lithia's help-
Wait a moment, when he had cloaked the barrel, that had required just one spell, it didn't account for the separate planks or the steel bandings, it had all been cloaked once it was connected. Meaning that, as long as the suit was in one piece, there shouldn't be an issue, right? Well, the only way to find out for sure was to get back and try to cast the spell. It might be more difficult, due to the size and weight of the Phalanx suit.
That wasn't right either, he himself weighed twice as much as the suit did, it hadn't been any harder to cloak himself than anything else. The only limits were how many cloaks he could maintain at once, size and individual pieces didn't matter. Learning to cloak one item had been relatively easy, the second one had been a good bit harder, but trying to learn to maintain a third cloaking felt nearly impossible. The Flame would flounder well before it could pass through the House of Kyria.
Lithia had insisted that he was a natural with Foundation, but that roadblock frustrated him to no end. He felt like a total idiot with every attempt to maintain a third spell of the same type. It wasn't like illusion magic at all, those spells maintained themselves once cast. Invisibility required active concentration, just like Sound Suppression and Maintain Body, yet it was the only spell in his repertoire that he needed to cast multiple times.
If only he could make himself, Cat, and Michael invisible. Maybe if Jason found a big enough box, he could stuff them inside it, allowing him to work within his current magical limits. That could work, not only that but he'd be able to bring more of his weapons with him-
Wait, what if, once the guns were magnetized to the suit, they also counted as one item? He'd need to test this out once he returned to his body. It took him a while to get back to the cavern, but once he did, he hovered over his body, not sure as to how he was supposed to get back in it. Lance was still cross-legged before Lithia's throne, brows knitted in concentration.
"I'm not certain, but I think I can feel… something." She said to Lithia as Hoplite attempted to float into his own body.
It didn't seem to work.
"Perfect, now visualize the Golden Flame!" Lithia urged excitedly.
Jason decided to wait until Lance was finished with her practice, he didn't want to disrupt her current progress. If she could learn Maintain Body after grasping the Flame, travel through the Fiendwood would be far less dangerous for her. Then again, it may take her too much time to learn-
Hmm, the only real rush at this point in time would be saving Michael and Cat, after that perhaps taking the time to learn the spell would be an option. Only time would tell. Lithia then looked directly at Jason's spirit, putting a finger to her lips right before he felt himself being pulled back into his body.
He suppressed the urge to gasp as he came back to himself, not wanting to shock Lance out of her concentration. She drew her lips to a line as he sat up, turning to face her. He internally cheered her on, until finally, her green eyes shot open.
"I felt it!" She screamed excitedly, noticing that Jason was sitting up, "How long have you been back?" She asked, the excitement still clear in her tone.
"Just now, but I'm happy for you." Jason nodded, "I know where they are now, I just need to come up with a more concrete plan to break them free."
"That's great," She smiled, "The sooner we can all leave this place, the better. I must warn the Harkhall of these dwarves once our journey here is concluded."
Jason nodded again, "Sounds like a plan. I'm going to go retrieve everyone's equipment now, after I test out a theory of mine."
"I trust that the Long Lords are asleep, yes?" Lithia asked, "I know their schedules decently but it is not always exact."
Jason nodded, "They are, which is why I have to commence operations as soon as possible."
"Very well, I don't suppose you want me to come with you?" Lance asked.
He shook his head, "There are hundreds of vampires out there, I don't want you getting hurt."
"I wish I could say that I could hold my own." Lance sighed, "But I understand."
He had been half expecting her to insist that she go with him, but he should have known better. Lance knew just how dangerous the vampires were. He stood, approaching his disassembled armor.
"Would you mind giving me a hand with this?" He asked her.
Lance nodded, "Of course, but how will you sneak by all those vampires with that on? Can you cloak the whole thing?"
"That's the theory I wanted to test." Jason replied.