Niashin stepped aside, allowing Ardrin to pass him in the sickly green hallway. Feeling entirely unnerved at the latest lack of communication between him and Kalia, Ardrin was rushing to complete his part of the plan before Nexis emerged from the dome.
I can hardly believe we're nearing the upper limit of the estimation I gave Kalia. It's been well over ninety cycles since they entered the dome to train, and yet they haven't emerged or sent any messages regarding their status, he thought, sifting through a myriad of ingredients to prepare one final tincture.
I have to be ready. I can't let the little time we have left slip away without doing anything for myself. Certainly not with the potential of the Gwynnleaf and the other ingredients I have here, he continued, pouring the last of the Gwynnleaf extract into a large glass container.
Grabbing another handful of ingredients, he carefully measured each one before gingerly putting it into the container.
"Any word from Lady Kalia?" he asked over his shoulder as he heard Niashin close the door behind him. "None yet, my lord, but I'm sure there will be, soon," the hegraphene answered cautiously. "Damn it. We need to be ready before he comes back out. She's cutting it a little too closely for my liking," he growled.
"My lord, it will still take at least three cycles for her to get here through the mountain pass. Should I let the others know that they should move prematurely?" Niashin asked. "No, we have to trust that she will be here. She damn well knows what's at stake; she can't afford to screw this up now," Ardrin replied, gently swirling the last of the augmentation tincture. "As you wish, my lord. We will wait for her return, but I'll send her a message to let her know that time is running short," Niashin bowed.
Feeling the anxiety creep in with the hegraphenes words, Adrin waved him off to focus on his task. The process he needed to complete was slightly different than the usual augmentation tincture, and he knew that whatever he did, he had to proceed with caution.
He poured the contents of the container through a straining device, allowing the liquid on the other side of the strainer to gently flow down the side of another, smaller vial. The result yielded a taciturn violet liquid with tendrils of gold swimming throughout. There were still a few steps to ensure completion, but he was satisfied with the initial result.
Good, that worked. Time for the final step, he thought, looking over to the distilling equipment on the far side of the table.
He gingerly lifted the container, ensuring its contents weren't sloshing around. He gently ran the contents of the vial in his hand down into the large, glass orb that he used to begin the distillation process. Lighting the mana flame burner beneath the orb, he observed how the liquid boiled, then allowed the evaporated liquid to rise and condense into one of the glass tubes, slowly trickling down into another at the far end of it.
The distilled liquid was much less taciturn than the original, flowing clearly as the golden streaks of mana flowed more freely throughout the clear violet solution.
That's the last of the Gwynnleaf I had, I just hope that this will be enough to counter what's coming, he thought as he gently swirled the distilled solution within the glass beaker.
Without another word, he grabbed three small vials and evenly distributed the solution between them and tightening the metallic caps to seal them shut. There was still a little bit left within the beaker, which was just enough for one more vial.
I'm no stranger to self-experimentation, but will this be enough for me? I suppose it's better than not having any defense against it, but let's see how this holds up, he thought, putting the beaker to his lips.
As the last drop of the tincture left the beaker, he felt a sudden surge of power like the mana within it wrapped around his core, solidifying like a protective shell. "Ugh, that fucking hurts," he gritted his teeth. Mentally reaching for his core, he could feel the violet cage of mana swirling with the golden tendrils.
It worked, though I don't know how effective it will be against one of them, he thought with a satisfied yet worried grin.
After cleaning up the evidence of what he'd done, he quickly left the laboratory to find Niashin in the training area that lay in the depths of Pyrdredd. He used dark mana to make himself float down the core of the sickly green stairwell that was built like a corkscrew.
Reaching the base where the green light became increasingly brighter, he opened the thick iron doors that led to the training area. There were roughly fifty augmented hegraphenes sparring within the inactive dome with spears, swords, staffs, or bows all formed from their inherent kataki.
Thankfully, no one noticed his presence.
He found Niashin standing with his arms crossed as he observed two of the newest additions to the fold in their sparring match. "Pivot your foot," Niashin called out to the one wielding a long halberd-like spear. "Use his momentum against him. Do you really think those creatures will give you any quarter?" he barked the question. "N-no, kerre," the hegraphene replied shakily. "Then why are you hesitating?" Niashin asked plainly.
"Niashin," Ardrin spoke once the two young hegraphenes returned to their sparring session. "What is it, my lord?" he asked over his shoulder, still observing the battle to not draw attention to Ardrin. "I need you to deliver these to our friends in the mountains," he whispered, handing the hegraphene a small leather satchel which clinked as the armored hand took it.
"Do you think they'll need it?" Niashin asked, his eyes widening as he realized what it was. "I know they will. There wasn't enough for the other two, but make sure that Ladies Kalia and Ysevel, as well as my nephew, get this as soon as they arrive," he continued gravely. "It will be done, my lord. Buruz!" Niashin shouted after Ardrin had quietly slipped out of the training area.
Buruz quickly disengaged from his sparring match and rushed over to his commander. "Kerre," he kneeled as he received the same instructions Ardrin had given Niashin. "But, kerre, why can't you take them yourself?" Buruz asked quietly. "If I leave and don't make it back in time, he will be sure to notice. He doesn't know your name, so it's better if you go. You're the only one I can fully trust to get this done discreetly," Niashin replied, putting a hand on his subordinate's shoulder.
Buruz nodded with determination, looping the small satchel over his neck and letting it hang down near the top of his hip. "Go, quickly," Niashin nodded. Buruz quickly darted out of the training area with discretion and made his way out of the citadel as quietly as he could.
He reached the high wall that surrounded the entirety of the citadel and used the predetermined path to scale it with agile precision. Leaping from one purposefully bent spike to another, he quickly reached the top of the wall with little effort.
That is much higher than I thought it would be, Buruz thought with a mental whistle. I know Lady Kalia will be alright to get over this wall, but I have to admit I'm worried about the others, he leaped to another bent spike to begin his descent on the other side. I just hope that whatever is in this satchel will be worth the risk this will put us in if Nexis emerges from his dome earlier than they arrive, he thought, feeling his stomach churn a little.
After descending the wall, he followed the path leading into a small patch of forest for the next three cycles. The dead trees and their fallen branches made it difficult for him to follow the path closely, but he already knew the direction he needed to go.
When he was forced to leap over a fallen log, his leg was caught in a snare that lifted him feet first nearly four meters off the ground just after it. There was an overwhelming daemonic scent, but Buruz instinctively knew that only one kind of creature would do this.