Jorl took deep breaths, using Invigoration to purge his body from the numbing poison of the alcohol and regain clarity of mind.
"Enough wallowing in our misery. Tell the real reason you are here."
"I'm done being a victim." Orpal put the bottle of Red Dragon away. "I have a plan to take back my honor and life but to do that, I need your help. Teach how to use Life Maelstrom and I'll pay you handsoly
"You an in booze?" Jorl nodded at the empty bottles.
"No." Orpal shook his head. "I an-
"Hold that thought!" Jorl rushed behind one of the mountain crests.
Soon the sound of a gurgling river and the pungent sll of ammonia filled the air.
"Much better." Jorl returned after a few minutes. "Continue."
"I an I'm willing to teach you the secret of the violet core." ln conjured a pulse of darkness magic to purge the humid stench that now wafted throughout the valley. "Isn't that what you want?"
"More than anything." Jorl sighed. "But to what end? Even with a violet core, I would still be banished from the Kingdom, I would get nothing but a death sentence if our affiliation were to be exposed."
"All more the reason you should accept my offer, then." ln nodded. "If you have nothing to lose then you have no reason to refuse to take my blood as well."
"Your blood?" The Storm Griffon echoed in confusion.
Orpal explained Jorl how he could infuse his bloodline abilities inside his followers, turning them into Upyrs just like Lith created Demons.
"As long as my essence flows into your veins, you'll be one of my own. A unique being free from the chains of the Griffon bloodline. Once you beco a Upyr, you can return to the Griffon Kingdom unnoticed and reclaim your possessions.
"It will be my final gift to you."
"Are you sure?" Jorl pondered the offer.
"Of course." Orpal lied through his teeth. "How do you think I'm still alive? Salaark and Leegaain want dead but they can't find . My Dragon and Phoenix blood are eclipsed by the power of the Vurdalak."
ln was far from being important enough for the Guardians to care about him. He assud his blood would mask Jorl's bloodline but it was just a hunch.
"Then we have a deal." The Storm Griffon extended his hand and Orpal shook it. "Fulfil your end of the bargain and, if you are telling the truth, I might even join your cause."
"Are you sure?" The offer excited and worried ln in equal asure.
A Griffon would be a powerful ally but if becoming an Upyr wasn't enough to cloak Tyris' senses, Jorl was bound to betray Orpal in exchange for rcy.
"I'm sure." The Storm Griffon nodded. "I'd rather die infamous as a criminal than be rembered solely for my failures. Even if it ans taking one of your gods-damned prisms."
Trawn Woods, Outskirts of Lutia, the following day.
Feela called Lith and reported the events of the previous night, but there was nothing he could do about it. The Beast Council had comb-searched the area surrounding Golden Crown Mountain and found no leads to follow.
"Thanks, Feela. Please, keep posted. Lith out." He stored his communication amulet away before saying: "Well, this is good news."
"Are you drunk?" Solus furrowed her brows.
"Think about it." Lith replied. "We knew it was only a matter of ti before ln fused the crystals and reached the violet. There's no surprise there. The good news is that now we are sure he is back on Garlen and has no idea how to use Dusk's powers.
"It's the perfect mont to lay a trap he can't resist."
"Finish your lesson first, young man." Ripha said. "If Poopic doesn't take the bait and you have to face him, Creation Magic will be the hidden arrow in your quiver."
"Fair enough." Lith sighed and went back to work.
Under nadion's supervision, he and Solus had dismantled and modified several artifacts of increasing complexity over the past few days. They were about to attempt modifying a Davross armor when Feela had contacted Lith.
With its power core, several complex rune patterns, and seven white crystals, it was the final test for their skill.
Lith and Solus proceeded to remove the crystals and partially detached the runes from the armor before working on the power core. It was impossible to extract the energy mass while wrapped inside the mana circulatory system.
It not only made the power core harder to perceive but the multiple layers of energy also made it impossible for the Creation Magic spells to reach the power core without inflicting permanent damage to the mana circulatory system.
Lith and Solus had learned it the hard way just like they had learned the proper order of things. First, the crystals had to be removed since their energy signature differed from both the runes and the power core.
Then, the runes had to be brought away enough to dispel the protective energy cage surrounding the power core. Only at that point could Lith and Solus take it out and
rewrite its enchantnts.
Once they were done with the power core, they could rewrite the rune patterns as well. The crystal bonding process ca last so that when forming their side of the mana circulatory system, the crystals could adapt to the new configuration of the power core and optimize their performance.
The artifact provided them by nadion was relatively simple but they had yet to succeed once. Working on Davross alone was hard and each additional rune pattern and mana crystal made it even harder.
Runes had to be kept from returning to the tal or they would sever the connection between the armor and the core. Crystals, instead, had to have their circulatory system removed and resetted without leaving any trace.
Otherwise, upon restoring the bond, the crystals would find their old pathways and hinder the new enchantnts.
It took Lith and Solus several tries and hours to succeed and even longer to do it ten tis out of ten. By the ti they were done, the sun was about to set. "Does this an we have learned tier five Creation Magic?" Solus panted.
"No. Only that you have reached a level of understanding deep enough to develop your tier five spells." Ripha shook her head. "Start reviewing your old Creation Magic spells. Fixing your mistakes will be a good exercise and help you understand how off the mark
you were."
"She's right, Solus." Lith tried and failed to stand up, needing more ti to catch his breath. "We worked so hard yet this thing is a toy compared to the artifacts we usually craft, let alone my Ragnarök and your Fury"
"Still, this was amazing. Solus said with a dazzling smile. "Thank you, Mom." "Don't ntion it, sweetie." nadion ruffled Solus' hair and imdiately regretted it, finding them damp with sweat. "I've learned a lot by watching you. I think I've gotten most of the runes I need to work on the modern version of my Creation Magic." "That's great. Lith panted. "You go ho first, Solus. There's sothing I need to ask
Ripha."
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