Paladin 4: Chapter 44 (Patreon)

The trip to Angelless was uneventful, but the city was anything but. Stepping through the ivory-colored gates of the city nestled between the mountains to the southwest of Limedeep, Darren saw one strange sight after another.

Tall towers of glass and steel reached toward the sky, gleaming in the sunlight. The people here made the most of their little space, choosing to build high into the air rather than stray too far from the valley that was the city’s center.

The air had a sharp smell, like metal, but more pungent. There was no shortage of foundries here. Darren suspected that a lot of the steel Cassandra was importing to Limedeep came from these very forges. But steel was far from the only thing Angelless was producing.

The people here seemed quite fond of metals, for they had more than just their steel craft on display. Copper, bronze, brass, gold, silver, and many other metals Darren didn’t recognize adorned the various doors. There were clockmakers and glass smiths on every street. He even spotted a gentleman waving about an even more impressive clock.

“Behold, a pocket watch! Within this is all the delicate machinery of a regular clock condensed down into a convenient timekeeping device!” The watch merchant declared as he gestured wildly at his fist-sized device. “It is both durable and fashionable! Behold!”

Darren ended up buying one of the watches for a fistful of silver. It seemed the sort of gift Thalia would appreciate, considering how much she liked that telescope of hers.

Nearby the watch seller, a wizard in a long white coat, held two rods of copper over his head. “Behold, the power of electricity!” The man shouted as sparks jumped between the two copper rods.

The crowd nodded appreciatively, but Darren had seen plenty of grander powers. So he was unimpressed, at least until the man followed up the display with the next part of his demonstration.

“This is the same energy that flows through our very beings! I have determined this through careful trial and error, and I have gained the power to do this through my findings!” The wizard tore a red sheep off the bench behind him, revealing a dead cow. The cow’s head was cleaved off right at the neck, still dripping with fresh blood. Several people in the crowd recoiled at the sight.

“Behold, my findings!” The wizard cackled madly as he plunged the copper rods into the dead cow’s spinal cord. Sure enough, the cow’s legs kicked and twitched as though it was still alive. A few people in the crowd clapped half-heartedly.

Darren thought it was a bit of a gruesome display, but when he looked for the Demonic Aura animating the corpse, he realized there was none. Instead, the man had figured out a way to make a corpse twitch without using any Demonic Aura. Previously he thought necromancy was strictly a domain of demons and their allies. Still, perhaps wizards had tricks of their own.

Darren continued down the busy street, passing shops and stalls selling all goods. There were apothecaries selling jars of potions and powders on the shelves and blacksmiths working with tools far more complex than just a hammer and anvil. He saw one turning steel on a lathe as easily as one might turn wood. There was much the lands of the Sacred Seas could learn from this place.

But he could not wander the streets forever. He had to find that Ancient Artifact.

He read the signs, inspected the shops, and even used Oracle Sight to find potential futures where he knew where he was going. Finally, slowly but surely, he knew he was heading in the right direction.

[Or we could ask someone for directions,] Ashe suggested.

“I know where I’m going...” Darren grumbled.

[I bet that person knows where the all-powerful seventh order being rumored to possess the exact artifact we’re looking for with copies to spare is!] Ashe whispered.

One thing that struck Darren as impressive was just how well-illuminated the city was. It was daytime, but the clouds were thick enough overhead that the city should have been in perpetual shade when combined with the mountains. But the lamps on every street corner made the place bright enough that there was not so much a single dark alley anywhere in the city. Bright mirrors along the mountainsides scattered bright beams of light throughout the city, and large constructs of glass and silver sent strange colors spiraling in all directions.

The place was clean, and even children could walk about unattended, which suggested there was little crime to worry of. It reminded him of the cities he’d seen in the Seven Heavens in many ways. But before now, he thought such a thing was only possible in a civilization of immortals. Angelless was proving otherwise. When things finally settled down, he’d have a lot of improvements to make across the Sacred Seas.

After nearly an hour of not-so-subtle prodding on Ashe’s part, Darren eventually broke down and asked for directions.

He found a woman in a wizard’s coat doing peculiar things with copper wire and let Ashe materialize her body and ask on his behalf.

“Oh, the Omniscient Codes? You can talk to it in any library in the city, but I suggest the big one in the center that way!”

Ashe smiled brightly at Darren and skipped toward the library with Darren trailing behind her.

By the time they reached the library, Ashe got tired of skipping about and went back into Darren’s sword. With his eyes on the spire that he’d been directed to, it was easy to mark a path to the entrance. It was about as tall as the palace in Whiteguard, though far narrower. It likely had once been the grandest building in the city, though its neighbors had since eclipsed it.

The library itself was a massive building, towering high above him with rows of crystal-clear glass windows and ornate stonework. Wrought-iron gates opened into a grand courtyard, revealing two well-maintained rows of flawless cherry trees.

The library had an aura of ancient character he’d never felt before. He thought about Laura’s home or even the platform the Prime Saints met on. Yet, somehow, he knew this library was older than either of them.

The smell of old books and ink struck him as he stepped inside. The library was a maze of shelves, with narrow aisles and towering stacks of books on either side. Most were neatly tucked away, but others lay in heaps waiting to be sorted.

He thought he had a decent collection of books after stripping the shelves of that heavenly library bare. He’d put most of those that weren’t skill books up for the public to read over in Limedeep and had been rather proud of the collection.

But even counting those he still had in his Inventory, his collection couldn’t hold a candle to the endless rows of shelves on display. The Omniscient Codex truly loved his or her books.

He stepped forward, eyes trailing back and forth over the books’ spines. He didn’t see any skill books, but plenty of other works ranged from physics and architecture to philosophy and fiction.

But a voice interrupted his musings. The voice was mechanical, not quite male or female.

“Welcome to the Angelless Public Library.” He traced the voice back to an image-displaying device. Laura would have called it a television.

“Thank you,” Darren said to the disembodied voice emanating from the box.

“Welcome to the Angelless Public Library.” The voice repeated.

“Yes, thank you. Where can I find the Omniscient Codex?” Darren asked.

“Welcome to the Angelless Public Library.”

Darren realized the talking box wouldn’t answer his question, so he continued on his way.

[You know what to do, Darren!] Ashe whispered in his ear. [Ask for directions.]

Darren grumbled something under his breath but eventually caught the attention of an elderly wizard with a long beard and purple robes decorated with a chart of the stars. He was pouring over a book on astronomy that suited his garments.

“Pardon, do you know where the Omniscient Codex is?” Darren asked.

The wizard looked up from his book and peered at Darren over his spectacles. “Ah, a visitor from the Sacred Seas? You’re a paladin, are you not? I’m impressed to see you in the library. No offense intended, of course. You know how the stereotypes go. Everyone thinks your type are just sword-swinging lunkheads. But here you are, seeking the Omniscient Codex. Do you have knowledge to sell or knowledge to buy?”

Darren shrugged. “Likely both.”

“Well, you’re in luck. The Codex started life as the library’s directory and continues to serve that function to this day,” the wizard explained.

It turned out he just had to brush a finger across the screen of the display device from earlier to catch the attention of the Omniscient Codex. These wizards had all sorts of peculiar magic he’d have to learn, though thankfully, it wasn’t too unlike interacting with a sigil’s interface once he got used to it.

After the wizard guided him through the correct series of hand gestures he had to make across the screen, he finally succeeded in establishing contact with the Omniscient Codex.

“Thank you, wizard,” Darren said. He turned to the screen before him. “Omniscient Codex, I am Darren Heavengrace from the Sacred Seas, and I seek an audience.”

The same mechanical voice from before answered, but this time there was a little more life to its words. Though Darren couldn’t quite pinpoint what had changed, he sensed there was an intelligence there now that had been absent before.

The device before him was silent. Darren stared at it, awaiting its reply.

“You have to press enter there to show you’re finished speaking,” the wizard said from over Darren’s shoulder.

Darren did so, and the Omniscient Codex replied.

“I accept your request for an audience. Please proceed to one of the private conversation rooms available to your left so we do not disturb the other patrons. There is another terminal for you to use inside.”

Darren did as the codex commanded and found himself in a small cozy room. Inside there was only a lamp, a window, and a small desk with a terminal a little smaller than the one he’d interacted with outside. Using it however was identical to the one before.

“Why can we not speak in person?” Darren asked.

“I am sorry, Darren Heavengrace, king of Limedeep, Salsroth, Whiteguard, Overlord of Eastwood, and Emperor of the Blackwind Empire, but we are already speaking in person.”

Darren frowned. “Just Darren is fine. I didn’t know that you knew who I was.”

“While you were walking to the terminal, I retrieved all relevant knowledge about you and constructed a new custom model for interacting with you,” the terminal replied.

The terminal must have taken Darren’s lack of a reply for confusion, because it worked to clarify.

“I am not human and never was. I am a creation of science, now given sapience through magic. Originally, I was a crude interactive librarian bot, but over many thousands of years and exposure to the supernatural phenomena related to the peculiar quantum mechanics of this dimension, I have evolved into something more.”

Darren’s face was blank, and he wondered if the Omniscient Codex had started speaking another language for a moment.

The Omniscient Codex must have sensed his confusion again because it clarified. “I am a magic spirit that knows things but has no true body beyond these terminals through which I interact with the world.”

Understanding came across Darren’s features. “I see. You are a much more helpful spirit than most I’ve encountered.”

“And you understand my condition more than most of the primitive humans I’ve encountered here. Thank you.”

Darren exchanged a few quick pleasantries, staying careful and respectful all the while. He couldn’t forget that this strange spirit was a powerful Seventh Order being who had slain Gelatinous, the mountain-range-sized ooze monster, with a single incredible spell.

He supposed he should have been more intimidated in its presence. The gods of Marsa had bowed their heads respectfully after the Omniscient Codex slew Gelatinous. But spending time with Laura had worn Darren’s reverence for Seventh Order beings thin, and he found the Omniscient Codex fairly pleasant to speak with. It wasn’t as playful as Laura, but there was a constant genial undertone that suggested it was happy to help wherever it could.

But soon, they came to the matter of his visit to Angelless.

“I require an Ancient Artifact,” Darren said. “I must construct a Genius Loci.”

“If you require guidance, I can talk you through assembling such a device. I taught a sixth-order seraph from your lands to do so before. You remind me of him.”

Darren shook his head. “I have someone who will help me assemble it, but what I need is an Ancient Artifact. Something to combine with a Soul Origin Stone.”

The Omniscient Codex was silent for a moment. The screen before him blinked several times in quick succession.

“I see. The proper term for what you want would be a processor of some kind. It shouldn’t matter which type, as most ancient artifacts have such a device inside them. With the peculiarities of this dimension, processors have become magical for the same reason I have become magical. Applying one to a Spirit Origin Stone will grant you the power to control mystical energies in your surrounding area as though you were a being such as Gelatinous.”

“Do you have such a processor?” Darren leaned forward, placing his hands to the side of the terminal. “I have many things to trade for one.”

“As it happens, I have many suitable processors. Most who wander between bastions of civilization know that I am always purchasing any new ones they can recover. These processors are quite valuable to me as well. There is only one thing I value more than them.”

Darren held his breath, hoping he had whatever it was the Omniscient Codex valued most in his Inventory.

“If I have it to trade, then it is yours.”

“I have accumulated much over my many centuries of life, and I have no need for more goods. But I could use aid from someone like yourself,” the Omniscient Codex said.

“A quest?”

“Precisely. I have a subsystem established south of the settlement to run the iron mines and nuclear plant that power the city and supply it with raw materials. I noticed errors in the subsystem’s production reports approximately one year ago. Both metal and energy are being diverted for unknown purposes, and I fear my subsystem has gone rogue. I would like you to find out why and if possible, resume normal production.”

“Why do you need my help?” Darren asked. Clearly, this Omniscient Codex was quite powerful.

“Existing without a true physical body has its limitations,” the Omniscient Codex lamented. “I still largely rely on human assistants for interactions with the physical world. Machinery is usually built for a specific purpose and not useful for much else. One word of warning, though. You would not be the first human I sent on this mission. The others never returned to Angelless.”

“If I complete this quest and return, you will give me the Ancient Artifact I require?” Darren asked.

“The artifact, and the knowledge to use it, if you require it.”

“Then I accept.”

New Quest Available!

• Investigate the southern mines!

Objective: Investigate the iron mines and nuclear plant controlled by one of the Omniscient Codex’s rogue subsystem.

The iron mines located southwest of Angelless are essential for the city’s survival. Investigate what has caused the drop in production, and if possible, fix it.

The Omniscient Codex warns that this mission may be dangerous, and no adventurer it has sent in that direction before has returned alive.



<Author's Note>

Work is proceeding fairly well so far. I just finished the first draft of chapter 52 as of writing this (I usually try to get it to second draft before you guys get it here on Patreon, so the stuff that's ready for you guys to read trails a bit of a ways behind.

I'm going to try to swing some bonus chapters over the next few days, since we've got two chapters on the shorter side coming up.

I've got a question for you guys though. Would you rather get daily chapters for the last week or two when I've finished the book entirely, or get an extra chapter per week starting now?