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Crypts, just like relics, are a mark on a specific point in history. While relics are mostly untraceable, crypts take us back to moments of history. With history before the Age of Restoration muddy and inconsistent, Crypts are seen as gateways to a time before The Blight.
Crypts are categorized into two. Those that are created as a tether to the other planes of existence, i.e., the Spirit World. And those that are created to be an inheritance trove by Legendary beings. In terms of strengths, naturally occurring crypts grow in power as time goes by; meanwhile, Inheritance crypts are tied to the strength of their Creator as they were being made.
The Aegium Order regulates and controls crypts within the Imperium by licensing and auctioning rights to Guilds and Nobles. This promise of power makes the exploration of the Crypts enticing for all.
Excerpt drawn from 'What are Crypts?' by Scholar Quinta.
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Cleitus found me lying within the garden. He hid the slight tremble in his hands rather badly. He did not speak.
"Is it done?" I asked.
"Yes, Dominus,"
"Thanks. You can wait for the others now."
Cleitus retracted slowly. Cleitus was the only one who did not attempt to approach me. When I went to his dorm, he admitted his inability to attack or confront me and requested I exempt him from the assignment altogether. For his punishment, he was to shadow me everywhere I went. Seeing what I missed and only stopping once I was in my dorm room. It was harsh but necessary. His paranoia pushed me to thoughts that he was even more likely to betray me and the collective faster than Nona, which is a problem.
Three days had elapsed since smithing with Solmir. We had yet to treat the swords, but the plan was to do it before I went to Black Hollow in another three days' time. Memories of previous Winter balls at Black Hollow resurfaced. The hordes of nobles exchanged lies as much as they did pleasantries. It was time to catch up with Northern politics.
However, the letter coming from the eldest, not from father, sent a different message. I did not know what to prepare, but I was definitely not ready for a confrontation with Gauis. It planted seeds of uncertainty, so I had to try prepare something.
The other shadows came within minutes of each other, with Panos arriving last. His swagger vanished once our eyes met. He and Theo attacked me together two days after my lessons with Solmir. Too tired to fight them, I gave them the win. They still need assessment, and that's why they were converged in the garden.
Nona wore a smile that lacked her allure, yet it felt dangerous. We had met twice since our time together. Each time she shared her hidden cards, each more beguiling than the last. The dossier in her hand seemed to be another card. I was already getting worked up.
She strode towards me. She handed it over. I took a look. I could not help but smile. It was the final piece I needed to fix to ensure no future problems during the dorm wars.
"See it through, then we can handle your problem," I told her. I handed the dossier to Quintus, who had been by my side since his arrival. He nodded once he had read it.
Nona smiled once more. This time, her smile carried her distracting charm.
*----*
Quintus's aether bloomed, rippling into the garden. His virtue seemingly triggered, the ground shook as a long slab of the earth was raised into a platform, brown and three feet tall. Quintus raised a small slab where Theo put a set of weapons. The weapon rack only housed swords and short blades.
I walked onto the platform, then turned to face the shadows. Nona stole glances at Panos. Hate simmered in her eyes.
"As agreed, we will have our small tournament today," I took out a paper from my pocket and read it out," Theo will fight Nona, and Panos will fight Quintus. Cleitus is exempted from the exercise. Rewards will be handed out eventually. Good luck, some of you will need it."
*----*
The air scattered. Jolts of aether spiked as Theo and Nona stepped onto the platform. Nona had changed into a tight black combat fatigue; she had her hair in a bun. She did not wield a weapon. Silent fury was shaped into a sharp focus; she settled into a wide horse stance, seemingly ready.
Theo's hood flustered off as the wind pushed against his body amidst his spontaneous lunge towards Nona. The hair on my hands stood, the rush of excitement building up quickly. The dagger in Theo's hand glinted as it tore through the space between him and Nona's neck. Nona stepped backwards, dodging the thrust, her aether condensed into her body, signalling activation of her virtue.
The subsequent thrust from Theo met Nona's backhand. On contact, flesh and steel collided with a loud tang of metal; it was as if metal met metal, rather than flesh. Theo's next barrage of attacks met a similar fate to the first two; they were either dodged or deflected by Nona using her bare hands to do so.
Theo overstepped to attack Nona's blind side, a gap at her left ribs. Nona smiled, watching the attack as it came into play. Her aether spiked and subsequently got sucked back into her body. The dagger grated against Nona's reinforced ribs. Nona had balled up her fist and flew towards Theo's head. Theo scowled. He twisted his body unnaturally, rotating 180 degrees to miss the blow. The gap between the two had been restored.
I turned to Quintus, my makeshift vine chair creaking in the process.
The onslaught continued.
"Why is her aether fluctuating?" I asked.
"It's a way of channelling. Instead of continuous channelling through the body, she is using it in controlled bursts, pushing aether in and out. The catch is that a lot of aether is lost in the process."
"Then she must have large aether reserves," I concluded.
Nona's aether spiked once more. I turned back to watch her pelt towards the alert Theo. Theo's hood exposed his guant face. Thick layers of adipocere layered over his mundane features, giving them a much-needed shine. His virtue was nullified by the flooded bright garden lights, denying him his greatest friend, darkness. His face showed nothing; it was akin to staring at a corpse, but that was expected of a member of the Path of Pale Rememberance.
The fight had stretched both fighters thin. They heaved more than they fought. Both were prepared for a last dance. The aether in the air was pulled taut as they began, Theo's daggers hunted for blood harder and faster than before. The aggression had forced Nona to expend more aether than she desired, and her frown was a telltale for that.
Nona moved closer to Theo, ignoring all forms of defence. Her fist sought after Theo's exposed ribs after she had bobbed her head away from a desperate thrust. Her fist landed, followed by another blow to Theo's side temple, then another. The attacks began to mould into an endless barrage that rocked Theo harder than a violent storm did to a ship.
I did not see Quintus use his virtue to separate the onslaught. Vines sprang in between them, pulling them apart. Theo was torn and bloody. Nona bore cuts; most had torn through her fatigues, but few had bit into flesh. The winner was clear.
Nona turned to face me. She struggled to measure her breath, all while trying to paste a smug on her prideful sneer. Quintus had returned to my side. He leaned in.
"We will have to move on as planned," He said. I handed him the dossiers Nona brought.
"She has proven her worth."
"If Panos is guilty as she claims," Quintus said as he shook the dossiers in his hand.
"How about we find out?"
I stepped away from Quintus and walked to the platform. Nona had rejoined her peers as they had lined up before me.
"There have some new developments. Panos," I called out.
"Yes, Dominus,"
"Nona claims you are working for Brutus. Is that true?" I asked.
Subtlety out of the way, angst slipped, washing over those unaware of the ploy. Tension whistled a pithy tune; it forced Panos to take a step back. His Adam's apple rippled as he swallowed a bold of saliva. He was shook and firmly in the palm of my hand.
He tried to stutter words, but only incoherent words came out.
"You have a chance to earn back your life. Nona feels she is deserving of a chance to put you down. However, I'm a magnanimous leader. I will give you a chance at redemption. Kill Nona, and you have your life back."
I turned to Nona.
"Rested enough?"
"Yes, Dominus."
"Well then, to the stage," I said.
Panos's desire for noble recognition pushed him to be a pawn. A sacrifice for a not-so-noble cause. Even if he were to win, he would become my pawn instead, a double agent. A dog that serves two masters. If he were to win, he would take his place as my noble hound, and if he were to lose, Death would still take Panos as He would take a dog.
Panos had his weapon in hand. Unlike Theo, Panos's virtue could be useful in open combat. Nona did not wait; she flew towards Panos. She held a slender rapier in her hand. Its blade flexed as it met Panos's blade. The metal clashed once more, and Panos was still forced to deflect Nona's homing thrusts. He wielded his aether as Quintus did his, concise and flowing.
His eyes glowed golden as if touched by the sun; his virtue was activated. Panos put more strength into his parry, pushing Nona's rapier away from him. His aether tweaked; now the edge of his sword shone golden. He swung his blade down, reinforced it bit into the rapier's thin blade, forcing it to shatter on impact. His aether tweaked one more. Panos had planted his foot, and a punch had been lined up.
The golden hue shifted and now pulsed on his left fist; he punched at Nona. Nona had already released the broken rapier, her hands coming together into a crossguard to protect her chest. It was too late to draw her aether to lessen the blow. So it rattled her forearms as she flew. Sliding over the platform before stopping right at the edge.
I clapped. I was very pleased with the exchange, but it seemed to stir something between them. Their eyes burned with mutual loathing, rage and overwhelming desire to kill the other.
Nona drew out more aether in one huge burst, then let it flow crisply throughout her body, slowly amping her virtue. Panos followed. He upped his amount of aether, and his whole body glowed yellow; then the light dawned on his sword. He fell into a defensive stance, and Nona did not hestitate she attacked.
Her fists hammered into Panos's sword, the weight of them forcing Panos into gentle parries that left no chance for a riposte. Nona baited Panos into a thrust; she parried it with the back of her left arm, opening up his guard and leaving his body open for easy pickings. She jabbed his face, reeling it back. She ducked his wild swing, now stepping outside, Panos's right body became open. She threw a punch to his ribs, then a low kick at his thighs. His right side crumbled into a one-legged kneel. She threw a kick at his unguarded head, sending him to the ground.
Panos donkey-rolled to safety. Anxious and unsure whether another attack was coming. Nona let him escape. She was still in stance, a broad smile on her. Panos spat out a phlegm of blood. He swung his blade around, unwinding his nerves. The wave of yellow light blanketed over him, and the blade once more. This time, he attacked.
They met halfway through the platform any semblance of defence was abandoned by both; they let their unyielding will push them over the line. I was at the edge of my seat. Panos's blade provided the necessary distance he needed; he dreaded a close combat situation with Nona, and Nona seemed only to target Panos's sword, eager to snap the metal, then his neck.
Panos threw a tight thrust one that I thought was insurmountable even for me, but Nona precisely nudged her head away to dodge it by millimetres. She stepped inside, caught Panos by the cuff of his shirt, then pounded him with a heavy headbutt. The nasty blow broke Panos's nose. She then took Panos's sword blade, slapped the sword out of his hand, and began raining punches on Panos. She let his dead legs lop his body onto the ground.
Nona grabbed a handful of Panos's hair and dragged him towards me. Once by the edge, she threw him down and proceeded to jump down and continue dragging him towards me. She threw him at my feet. I stood, stepped over Panos and approached Nona. Her fatigues were torn apart, and her skin had red streaks. I knew her virtue made her a formidable fighter, but not to the extent she had displayed. Even exhausted, her body seemed not to yield to the whims of the pain and exhaustion she felt, and the focus in her eyes suggested the same.
She fell to one knee and bowed her head in servitude.
"Have I proven my worth?" She asked.
"You have," I placed my hand on her shoulder, she stood," Now claim your price."
I did not see her smile; she strode forward with practised precision. She clamped one hand on Panos's head and the other at the back of his neck. She pulled, and with little resistance, Panos's head tore from his body. Blood gushed in all directions, mostly painting Nona red. She raised his head, and along with the blood all over her, she looked like a war goddess.
It was enough. I now had four retainers, not enough, but necessary if I were to do more than survive.