Valdy, Lilianes voice called through the workshops door. Valdy, are you inside?
Valdemar stared at the ceiling while laying on his mattress. The bed sheet covered his grandfathers portrait in a corner of the room, hiding it from view.
He is Hermann muttered. But I I dont think now is the ti
Nonsense! Liliane replied. Valdy, I made a cake. With vanilla mushrooms. Right out of the oven. Co out before it becos cold!
Lilianes words sounded like whispers to his ears, distant and nearly unintelligible. Valdemars pots of blood-paints, the unused leftovers of the Silent King project, shook in a corner. Bubbles rose to the surface as if an invisible fire boiled the substance.
Valdy, talk to . You can tell everything, you know that? I swear I wont judge. It will make you feel better.
The paint burst out of the pots and climbed on the nearest wall like aggressive moss. Its color changed from red to green and black and yellow, a twisted chaos echoing Valdemars own emotion.
He he needs ti, Hermann whispered, so low Valdemar barely heard him. To think. He is wounded...
Thats exactly why we cant leave him alone, Hermann.
Sotis The only cure for woe is ti, Liliane. He needs ti in his lair to lick his wounds. To figure it out. Only then will he let us in. When he cos out we will be here.
A short silence followed.
I Liliane cleared her throat. We will co back later, Valdy. Please dont do anything stupid, alright? Be safe.
Friend? It was Iren this ti. Youre still in your room?
Valdemar turned on and stared at the left wall. The paint covered it entirely now, like an infectious growth taking over the room centiter by centiter. The chaotic colors had assembled into a stable form; that of a twisted, ghastly tree with eyes for leaves and flesh for bark. His magic had gone wild, letting his subconscious guide the design.
You know I could unlock this door if I wanted, right? Soone will if you dont give us a sign. Liliane is worried youre going to hang yourself or sothing.
What would that change? Considering Valdemars regeneration, it probably wouldnt stick.
Iren sighed, too loudly for it to be natural. Hermann didnt give all the details, but enough to figure it out on my own. He thinks you need to be alone for a while to digest what you learned and that we should respect your privacy. I would be tempted to agree, but sohow I think your mood will only get worse the longer you stay alone.
Valdemar doubted that. He had already hit the wells bottom, when depression had filled the void anger had left in his heart. He didnt even struggle to escape in his dreams either.
Iren waited a mont for an answer. Valdemar sensed himherlooking around beyond the door, checking if anyone listened. I know what youre going through, Iren said. More than you know.
No, he didnt.
I dont need telepathy to know what youre thinking, friend. Another pause. Hesitation. You know, when mothers dont want an unwanted child, they usually go to a biomancer. One spell and theyre purged. So sorcerers though dont take money as paynt. Especially when one of the parents isnt human at all.
The flesh tree spasd, the painted yellow eyes looking in all directions. Black pignts gathered on the bloody bark, like the bud of a dreadful flower.
I was born in a lab, Valdemar, Iren confessed. A biomancer extracted my stillborn, half-ford fetus and perfected it into a viable specin. Once he had learned everything of value about shapeshifting by the ti I reached maturity, he thanked for my contribution to science and forgot I existed.
The black paint turned into an armless hand with a yellow eye for a palm. The clawed fingers fidgeted on the wall, as if trying to tear through the invisible barrier between its two-dinsional reality and its creator.
The reason Im saying this Iren struggled to find his words. Look, whatever you were born for, it doesnt matter. Ive been so many people over the years, I forgot my original appearance. Boy, girl, old, young, I dont keep a face for long. If being Valdemar Verney is too painful or sorrowful just beco soone else. Soone who feels better.
The black hand slowly erged from the wall, its fingers dragging it across the floor.
Ive said my piece, Iren said with a sigh. You dont owe your gramps anything, friend. Not even your na.
The living hand collapsed into a puddle of black paint, and the flesh tree bore another fruit.
By now, the paint covered the ceiling and half the walls. The tree of flesh shared the room with a pitch-black sky full of colorful stars orbiting around a pure blue sphere. The Mask of the Nightwalker faced the ghastly picture on the right wall, like the Whitemoon glaring at the surface of the world. Painted creatures crawled all around the workshop, from shapeless green blobs no larger than a clenched fist to pale white moths with eyes on their wings.
Soone knocked on the door, and Friggas voice ca through. My dear Valdemar, I cannot help but notice you are missing our modeling etings, she said with a chuckle. Unless you expect to complete my portrait myself?
The painted creatures lived short lives, but each new generation lasted longer than the previous one. One survived for half an hour before collapsing into lifeless pignts.
Fine, if you wont do the courtesy of answering, I shant be polite either. The dark elf dropped her mask of playfulness. I dont like you. You have a certain talent for painting and sorcery, but frankly, I dont find you particularly interesting. Youre bland and forgettable.
A moth landed on the painted Earth, tainting its blue waters with thick black blood.
However, your petulant behavior saddens my dear Liliane. She worries for you more than everyone else in this Institute combined, and I believe her pity is wasted on you. I am truly tempted to enter your dreams and put back so positivity in that empty skull of yours.
It would cost her if she tried. All Valdemar dread of last night was of the well and the hungry maw waiting at the bottom. When the nightmares ca, he hadnt fought them back.
Your new defenses wont stop if I try to get in, she said. Dont think I havent noticed what youre doing in your sleep. I dont know what you intend to do with that trap of yours, but it wont ensnare .
Good. It wasnt ant for her anyway.
In any case, get out of that room before I drag you off from it. Your petty nightmares will look like childish fantasies compared to what I shall show you.
The paint had claid every inch of the room, except the right wall.
The Mask of the Nightwalker exercised a counterforce and channeled a power that rivaled Valdemars own. Painted landscapes of alien worlds, magical glyphs, and chaotic maelstroms stopped at a circle of nothingness around the Stranger artifact, unable to cross the invisible barrier. Even the moth swarm flying around the room couldnt touch the mask.
Valdemar sensed a connection forming through the Blood between the stone floor beneath the paint and the world outside. A surge of magic, powerful and yet nearly imperceptible, created a bridge between the workshop and another place. Valdemar couldnt sense the point of origin, but he did detect the undead sorcerer traveling through it.
His painted field waited for the last mont and then pushed back.
Valdemar expected Lord Och to force his way through the magical cocoon, but he instead redirected his spell through the right wall, teleporting right in front of the Mask of the Nightwalker. The switch took less than a second, so swiftly that the Dark Lords apprentice was convinced he had planned it from the start.
Nice try, Lord Och said with satisfaction. If I were a few centuries younger, I might have fallen for it. Still, what kind of unruly student attempts to prank their teacher?
You intended to teleport behind without warning, Lord Och, Valdemar said as he rose from his mattress to salute the Dark Lord. I strongly suspect that you enjoy startling people.
And you would be correct. The lich glanced at the painted landscapes all around the room, and the artificial moths flying in the air. He raised his hand, with one of the insects landing on his index finger. And here I thought you were wallowing in self-pity, doing nothing all day.
I work or paint when I feel down, Valdemar admitted. It distracts .
A productive way to deal with loss, albeit not the healthiest one, Lord Och said, the painted moth dissipating into colored smoke. What a curious innovation, this room...
His reaction surprised Valdemar. You have never seen anything like this?
I have my suspicions about what you did, but I admit I never saw pictomancy used this way. Lord Och smirked, baleful light shining through his skeletal eyeholes. You attempted to emulate the Nahemoths by creating your own demiplane.
Valdemar nodded. Truthfully, he was pleased with the lichs response. Considering his age, surprising him was a victory in itself. When I saw Hermann create painted creatures during our fight with the derros, I imdiately thought of the Nahemoths.
These creatures gave birth to lesser Qlippoths by shaping their essence through their demiplane. Since Valdemar had mixed his own blood with the pignts used to create the Painted Door, he had quickly realized that he could use them to turn an area of space into an extension of himself. He had let his subconscious direct the growth of this painted field inch by inch.
The more space he had claid, the easier it had been to manifest magical constructs from the paint. They were extensions of his subconscious, paint and sorcery granted a simulacrum of physical form; they werent ant to exist in the physical reality, making them fragile. Rather than force reality to accept these constructs, Valdemar had turned a small corner of the world into an extension of himself, making his creations more real inside it.
The re fact that Hermann hadnt needed this infrastructure to generate a tide of painted snakes spoke volus about his talent.
Valdemar also hoped that this Painted Field could serve as an external dreamscape since oneiromancy didnt co easily to him. Since he failed to create one in his dreams, he would build one in the physical world instead. Frigga could boast as much as she wanted, her reaction had shown Valdemar that he was on the right track.
Valdemar once thought the nightmares plaguing him were re repressed mories. The Silent Kings visions had shown him that sothing far more sinister was at work, and he needed to improve his defenses.
Were his nightmares even his own?
Lord Och sounded very pleased with his apprentices progress. I knew introducing you to Hermann would yield excellent results. And of course, since the Painted Door could open rifts between two dinsions, I suppose you intended to experint with summoning next? Maybe open a path to Earth?
Valdemar glared at his ntor. You knew, he spat.
Of course I did.
Then why am I still alive? Valdemar asked with a frown. Why didnt you sacrifice , like my own grandfather wanted to?
Lord Och gave him a curious look. You believed the Strangers words?
I didnt want to, but... I had to check. And when he confronted his grandfathers portrait, the echo inside entered another cognitive loop. Maybe it had forgotten the original mories, or the truth was too difficult to bear. I created this room to understand myself, to try to figure out if the Painted Door would have worked if my blood hadnt been used as fuel. But now its all around , I can notice the Orgone in the air. Only summoned creatures produce such an amount, and I belong to two worlds through my mother.
Partly, Lord Och said before glancing at the blackened Earth painted on the ceiling. Your lineage does bind our two planes together, but other factors are at play in your peculiar abilities.
ABOMINATION.
The Silent Kings condemnation flared inside Valdemars mind alongside the vision that ca with it. The summoner glanced at his veins, and the red blood flowing through them.
He had always suspected his paternal grandfathers cult had experinted on him. He had mistaken his regeneration for a re body enhancent, instead of the symptom of sothing far more sinister.
Had this obliviousness just been re navet? Valdemar had always brushed off questions about his past, even his own. Maybe he had known the truth all along, but refused to accept it. It had taken a Strangers ntal assault to finally make him reexamine his life.
Or perhaps his thoughts werent fully his own. Maybe his two grandfathers had set instructions in his mind while he was in the womb, to ensure he would fulfill their ultimate goal when the ti ca.
Thick black blood poured out of his veins, while eyes and mouths tore out his skin to reveal the inhuman face underneath.
Whatever that goal was.
Lord Och, he asked feebly, am I a monster?
Do you rember what I told you, apprentice, when you asked who you were?
Valdemars jaw clenched. That I was the only one who could tell who I was.
Young Iren spoke with wisdom, the lich said, blatantly admitting to spying on his apprentice from afar. Whether you are a monster is up to you, young man. You are who you choose to be.
A man or an Earthmouth then, Valdemar thought grimly. He had asked the Silent King how he could lead mankind to Earth, and the Stranger had answered his question literally. The summoner should have also added that he wanted to survive the experience and see that world for himself.
If you want to sacrifice yourself, I will not stop you, Lord Och said. Though it will be a waste and many will weep. Your grandfather didnt use an Earthmouth to enter our world, so why should we need one to reach his own?
Because that thod would work for certain. Valdemar had been bred for this purpose since the mont he was born.
Why would I sacrifice you, when I know we shall eventually succeed with another thod that wont cost you your life? Lord Och asked mirthfully. If I still needed to eat, I would say that I intend to have my cake and eat it too. The long-term benefits of your survival will outweigh the short-term gains of an interdinsional Earthmouth.
Valdemar shivered at his cold, brutal logic but sohow he couldnt help but feel relieved. It might have sounded selfish, but he wanted to see Earth with his own eyes too.
His grandfather Pierre had brainwashed him since his childhood with stories about his howorld, the way a farr fattened a snail for the slaughter. He had sown the seeds of Valdemars devotion, hoping to reap it in the form of a sacrifice for his own rotten selfishness.
But even if the drear wasnt a good person, did that invalidate the dream?
Mankind needed to see the light again. To gaze at the stars and the sun as Valdemar did in the Silent Kings realm. The universe was a strange and dangerous place; but also beautiful beyond words. His people, his friends, deserved better than a stone ceiling.
Valdemar glanced with sha at his workshops door, rembering the individuals who knocked on it. In truth, while he was thankful for their support... he didnt know how to deal with it.
In his childhood, Valdemar usually ran back to his grandfather for protection whenever he felt sad. Now the re mory soured his mood, and he had long grown used to isolation anyway. What was he supposed to do, share his dark thoughts and foul mood with others? Spread the pain around? Rant about how his grandfather, the person he dedicated his entire life to fulfilling the dream of returning to Earth, had raised him as a re tool?
Above all things, Valdemar hated being pitied.
What he needed was ti to process everything, to strengthen his mind. Sorrow and anger could only affect him if he let them be.
I suggest that you embrace undeath, Lord Och happily suggested. It did wonders for my good mood, and it will certainly improve your looks.
Valdemar ignored his ntors jab. You could clone , he suggested. Biomancers often used that procedure for rich patrons, to cultivate fresh organs and replace the originals aging parts. Create a soulless sacrifice.
It will not work.
How do you know?
Because I already tried the day we t. Lord Och chuckled as his apprentice gave him an offended glare. My apprentice, you leave your genetic material everywhere, what did you expect? Between us, I always like to have a spare apprentice or two.
Valdemar shuddered, as he rembered the Dark Lords attempts to duplicate the Pleromians. Why didnt it work then?
Two reasons. The lich joined his hands. First, Earthmouths need the soul of a willing martyr to function. This is why it is such an honor and we do not use, say, prisoners and political enemies for it. The creation ritual does not function if the sacrifice does not consent to it, whether out of despair or altruism.
Valdemar thought about the vision he had, and the dead look in his illusory doubles eyes. Despair, he thought, born of betrayal.
Second, your peculiar biology makes cloning you a hazardous prospect, as testing can attest. When I tried to duplicate you, your clones regeneration went Lord Och hesitated. Haywire.
ABOMINATION.
It mutated? Valdemar asked, although he wasnt sure if he even wanted to know.
All I will say is, if you ever lose a body part, I strongly suggest that you reattach it as quickly as you can. Or throw it at your nearest foe. Lord Och chuckled to himself. Co to think of it, we should explore this idea in the future.
Valdemar crossed his arms. Speaking of the future, where do we go from now Lord Och? You asked to help Hermann with the Painted Door project and we completed it.
And the experience proved highly pertinent for all parties involved, Lord Och mused. You are a Scholar of Pleroma, Young Valdemar. You are free to take your research wherever you want, and I suspect you already know your next destination.
Yes, he did. The Silent King had shown him the path.
In my visions, I saw a derro with a crown building a portal, Valdemar admitted. Probably King Otto Blutang. From what we gathered so far, its highly probable that the derros summoned my grandfathers unit to Underland with their technology.
Do you intend to ask the derro king to share his discoveries with us? Lord Och asked mirthfully. Considering the troubles in Astaphanos, Im sure the empress would agree to a diplomatic mission.
In all likelihood, it would end with Valdemars brain in a jar and his skin used as a disguise by so mad dwarf infiltrator. Maybe the English parts of the diary hold information about the tunnels where my grandfather landed, said the summoner. You could examine them. Maybe the derros left hints.
The Dark Lord scoffed. I could examine them? Are you offloading your duties to , apprentice? Or have you given up on fulfilling your dream?
Was that dream even his own?
Valdemar still thought mankind deserved a world with an open sky, but he wasnt certain if he was the best person to find it anymore.
His familys cult had worked for a bloodthirsty Stranger. If they wanted to reach Earth so desperately and created Valdemar to achieve their goal, then it served their patrons goals sohow. Maybe the Stranger wanted to access Earth for its foul purposes.
Valdemar was afraid. Afraid not to be in control, or worse, to accidentally poison the perfect world he had dread of. Lord Och, is my mind compromised? Do I want to reach Earth because I want it, or because an instinct embedded in my blood is pushing to?
The lich remained eerily silent.
Valdemar sighed. Im the only one who can answer that question, is that it?
Keep building that Painted Dreamscape, the Dark Lord replied without really answering. It will help you figure out the truth.
A pointer was better than nothing.
Locating the site where your grandsire appeared is a good idea, the Dark Lord said. But as I warned you before, the tunnels in question are dangerous. Even more so now that your familys cult is active once more and that the derros are on the offensive again. Thankfully, the combat-magic teacher I had in mind has agreed to take you under his wing.
Which Master will it be? Valdemar asked, banishing his darker thoughts from his mind. Edwin and Loctis appeared to be the most talented battle mages in the Institute from what he had seen.
My chosen instructor does not serve , or anyone else for that matter, Lord Och replied. You will have to travel to the Domain of Sabaoth to et with him.
Sabaoth? It made sense. This Domain was the Empires bulwark against derro invasions and monsters wandering out of the unexplored depths of Underland, a fortress of stone, steel, and magma pits.
However
Wasnt I supposed to stay at the Institute until the wererat was apprehended or slain? Valdemar asked with a frown.
Lord Och brushed off his worries. You will travel to the safest place in the Empire under good escort. Young Marianne is making her way back to us as we speak, albeit short a retainer. I believe a stay in Sabaoth will also help her sharpen her blade.
Marianne is returning? Valdemar was eager to see her. She had investigated the Verney family far enough to detect a hidden cultist, so maybe she had found sothing interesting. I need to know the truth, Valdemar thought. The full truth. About who I am, and my purpose. Who is this instructor?
The lichs ghastly smile sent shivers down his spine.
It is ti, the Dark Lord said, that I introduce you to my previous apprentice.
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