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writetomyheart2019-05-05 01:21 pm
yrindor) wrote in writetomyheart2019-05-05 01:21 pm
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[Team Sonic] Of Magic and Metal
Why did I decide to try crossing over the magic systems of Mistborn and the Old Kingdom? We may never know (but I hope Vin and Lirael get along as well as I'd like them to). First words from The Start of the End
"I'm sorry to call you so early," it continues, barely there, a slight wobble in its tone. "There's been an accident."
"What happened?" Vin asks no one in particular.
"I'm at the Library," the Sending continues in Lirael's voice. "Something escaped...or got in."
It's still dark, the only light coming from the soft glow of the Charter marks woven into the Sending's robes. It's light enough to Vin's tin-enhanced vision though as she scrambles out of bed and into the first set of clothes she sees. She didn't know the Abhorsen was in town again, but if Lirael is calling for help, it must be serious.
She touches a finger to the Charter mark on the Sending's forehead and records a brief reply. "I may reach you before this, but if not, I'm on my way," she says, then speaks the final Charter marks to end the spell and send the messenger back on its way. The words still feel foreign on her tongue, humming with power, yet so detached from the metals she knows. She came to the Old Kingdom seeking answer about the mists in the Great Library of the Clayr, but in the process, she's learned some of their magic as well. The Charter may be foreign, but it's not entirely separate from allomancy. She hasn't found the connection yet, but she's sure it's there somewhere.
It's a question she plans to leave for Sazed later. RIght now, there are more pressing issues. She buckles on her weapons and her bandolier--a match for the Abhorsen's except holding small vials instead of bells. She downs one of the vials now and leaps from her window, burning pewter to propel her from roof to roof toward her destination. Fog has settled into the valley overnight, and it swirls around her cloak as she moves, reminding her of the mists of home.
She arrives at the Library just as the Sending finishes delivering her message. Lirael steps back as she drops down, one hand going to her bells before she recognizes Vin.
"What happened?" Vin asks.
"Something is moving deep down the main spiral of the Library," Lirael says. "They've lost three Librarians so far this year; even traveling in groups, they aren't safe. If the Librarians tried to call for help, they weren't heard. If they tried to release their mice, they never made it back to the Reading Room to sound the alarm. The Clayr have tried to See into the Library, but something is blocking their visions. Yesterday, a First Librarian disappeared while retrieving a book from the stacks not far from the Reading Room. Neither of the Librarians with her saw anything. The Clayr called me then, and I came from the palace by the fastest paperwing. They showed me where she disappeared. The traces of Free Magic are unmistakable, but under it, I feel the presence of a necromancer."
"What do they want?"
"I don't know, but they can't be allowed to continue. The powers of the Clayr in the hands of a necromancer could be a disaster, and there's too much knowledge in the depths of the Library that can't be allowed to fall into the wrong hands."
"So we're hunting?"
"Yes. If the necromancer's aim was to bring me here, then it could be a trap. If not, I'll come as a surprise, but even I would rather not walk in Death while Free Magic creatures are nearby. Are you ready?"
Vin double checks her weapons before she nods. "Let's go."
The Library is dark at this hour, with only a few Sendings and a skeleton crew of Librarians handling reshelving and sorting and late-night requests from the Watch. Lirael leads Vin through the cavernous Reading Room and out into the wide, spiraling corridor that winds down into the depth of Library. Even to Vin's eyes, the spiral vanishes into a point long before it reaches its end.
Lirael points to a door not far down the hall. "That's where the Librarians were headed."
Vin burns bronze. The traces of Free Magic are still sharp and acrid on the spot, but once she tunes them out, she feels a second pulse coming from the far down the spiral. Free Magic doesn't have the same, steady drumbeat of allomancy. It's a fainter, hollower sound, but also sharper, like the shards of a broken mirror. "It's still down there," she says.
They venture deeper and deeper into the spiral. The air around them grows cooler, and the walls begin to pick up a layer of old Charter marks, some the remnants of long-forgotten spells lost to old age, others marks of binding corroded by Free Magic. Vin can only hope those have been replaced by new, stronger bindings.
Long after the top of the spiral has disappeared from view, Vin find the source of the echo she has been tracking behind a stone door. Powerful Charter marks hang shattered around its edges, remnants of the spells that once kept it closed. The door itself is a dull black, cracked through the middle and covered in what smells like blood.
Lirael stiffens and steps back.
"What?" Vin asks.
"It as a Charter stone," Lirael whispers. "They sealed the door with a chain of Master Marks, then bound it directly to the Charter to add strength. There's traces of other spells there too--spells to bind power and freeze movement. Whatever's behind the door broke the seal, but rather than break the rest of the spells individually, it broke their source. We aren't going to find the missing Librarians."
She pauses, looking at the shattered stone. "I didn't know there was a Charter stone down here," she says. "I'm not sure anyone knew."
"Whatever we're looking for, it's behind the door," Vin says.
Lirael draws her sword and a large bell and reaches for the door. She stops before she touches it, turning even paler than usual.
Vin steps forward. She's not bound to the Charter in the same way. The broken stone is a sickening echo in the corner of her mind, but she can touch it.
The door swings open, and they step into the darkness beyond.
"I'm sorry to call you so early," it continues, barely there, a slight wobble in its tone. "There's been an accident."
"What happened?" Vin asks no one in particular.
"I'm at the Library," the Sending continues in Lirael's voice. "Something escaped...or got in."
It's still dark, the only light coming from the soft glow of the Charter marks woven into the Sending's robes. It's light enough to Vin's tin-enhanced vision though as she scrambles out of bed and into the first set of clothes she sees. She didn't know the Abhorsen was in town again, but if Lirael is calling for help, it must be serious.
She touches a finger to the Charter mark on the Sending's forehead and records a brief reply. "I may reach you before this, but if not, I'm on my way," she says, then speaks the final Charter marks to end the spell and send the messenger back on its way. The words still feel foreign on her tongue, humming with power, yet so detached from the metals she knows. She came to the Old Kingdom seeking answer about the mists in the Great Library of the Clayr, but in the process, she's learned some of their magic as well. The Charter may be foreign, but it's not entirely separate from allomancy. She hasn't found the connection yet, but she's sure it's there somewhere.
It's a question she plans to leave for Sazed later. RIght now, there are more pressing issues. She buckles on her weapons and her bandolier--a match for the Abhorsen's except holding small vials instead of bells. She downs one of the vials now and leaps from her window, burning pewter to propel her from roof to roof toward her destination. Fog has settled into the valley overnight, and it swirls around her cloak as she moves, reminding her of the mists of home.
She arrives at the Library just as the Sending finishes delivering her message. Lirael steps back as she drops down, one hand going to her bells before she recognizes Vin.
"What happened?" Vin asks.
"Something is moving deep down the main spiral of the Library," Lirael says. "They've lost three Librarians so far this year; even traveling in groups, they aren't safe. If the Librarians tried to call for help, they weren't heard. If they tried to release their mice, they never made it back to the Reading Room to sound the alarm. The Clayr have tried to See into the Library, but something is blocking their visions. Yesterday, a First Librarian disappeared while retrieving a book from the stacks not far from the Reading Room. Neither of the Librarians with her saw anything. The Clayr called me then, and I came from the palace by the fastest paperwing. They showed me where she disappeared. The traces of Free Magic are unmistakable, but under it, I feel the presence of a necromancer."
"What do they want?"
"I don't know, but they can't be allowed to continue. The powers of the Clayr in the hands of a necromancer could be a disaster, and there's too much knowledge in the depths of the Library that can't be allowed to fall into the wrong hands."
"So we're hunting?"
"Yes. If the necromancer's aim was to bring me here, then it could be a trap. If not, I'll come as a surprise, but even I would rather not walk in Death while Free Magic creatures are nearby. Are you ready?"
Vin double checks her weapons before she nods. "Let's go."
The Library is dark at this hour, with only a few Sendings and a skeleton crew of Librarians handling reshelving and sorting and late-night requests from the Watch. Lirael leads Vin through the cavernous Reading Room and out into the wide, spiraling corridor that winds down into the depth of Library. Even to Vin's eyes, the spiral vanishes into a point long before it reaches its end.
Lirael points to a door not far down the hall. "That's where the Librarians were headed."
Vin burns bronze. The traces of Free Magic are still sharp and acrid on the spot, but once she tunes them out, she feels a second pulse coming from the far down the spiral. Free Magic doesn't have the same, steady drumbeat of allomancy. It's a fainter, hollower sound, but also sharper, like the shards of a broken mirror. "It's still down there," she says.
They venture deeper and deeper into the spiral. The air around them grows cooler, and the walls begin to pick up a layer of old Charter marks, some the remnants of long-forgotten spells lost to old age, others marks of binding corroded by Free Magic. Vin can only hope those have been replaced by new, stronger bindings.
Long after the top of the spiral has disappeared from view, Vin find the source of the echo she has been tracking behind a stone door. Powerful Charter marks hang shattered around its edges, remnants of the spells that once kept it closed. The door itself is a dull black, cracked through the middle and covered in what smells like blood.
Lirael stiffens and steps back.
"What?" Vin asks.
"It as a Charter stone," Lirael whispers. "They sealed the door with a chain of Master Marks, then bound it directly to the Charter to add strength. There's traces of other spells there too--spells to bind power and freeze movement. Whatever's behind the door broke the seal, but rather than break the rest of the spells individually, it broke their source. We aren't going to find the missing Librarians."
She pauses, looking at the shattered stone. "I didn't know there was a Charter stone down here," she says. "I'm not sure anyone knew."
"Whatever we're looking for, it's behind the door," Vin says.
Lirael draws her sword and a large bell and reaches for the door. She stops before she touches it, turning even paler than usual.
Vin steps forward. She's not bound to the Charter in the same way. The broken stone is a sickening echo in the corner of her mind, but she can touch it.
The door swings open, and they step into the darkness beyond.