ULTRAMagic Interlude

Chapter 10

"Um, seeking out Rose and Thora like I said I would?"

This took Deimos a second to process. "Oh, oh yeah. So how's it going so far?"

Rose audibly cleared her throat. "Quite well I'd imagine..."

This caused Deimos to finally get his bearings. "Oh! Okay then. Well, congratulations, Blood."

"Thanks, uncle... so what is all of this?"

Since so many people had made it to his domain, Deimos was more than happy to elaborate. Prior to becoming The Lich of Old, Deimos had discovered another layer of The Unlight, past The Deep Unlight. When the treacherous landscape he had been exploring gave way to a surreal space beyond his imagination, he knew he had stumbled on something great. The Magician's Labyrinth was built as a research station and an archive. It sat on the border of this new realm that he dubbed "The Trench Unlight."

Deimos often compared The Unlight to an ocean. The deeper one went, the more bizarre and dangerous things became. While the normal Unlight was risky in its own right, it was still easy to explore. The Deep Unlight was a bit more perilous. The landscape was unconventional and prone to changing without a moment's notice. Thankfully with the appropriate knowledge, one could still venture into it. The Trench Unlight was on a whole other level, however.

This layer was like islands in an infinitely expanding sea. These "islands" were tangible realms, but the space inbetween required technology and/or magic to traverse. It could not be walked through like the standard Unlight could. And even if one could, there were all sorts of dangers lurking in that void. Deimos had realized that he needed a crew of brave mages to map out as much as they could. This led to the creation of the ship known as The Unmariner. Sadly just as the vessel set out, Deimos had lost his mind in a bout of paranoia.

"As if I didn't already have the guilt of my past actions weighing down on me, I left Captain Dusan and his crew completely in the dark."

"Don't beat yourself up over this, Eus... Deimos," Captain Dusan replied. "We all make mistakes. Hell, some of our mistakes led us to discovering parts of the trench we had no idea even existed in the first place."

"I must firmly agree with the captain," Rose added. "We are not perfect, nor will we ever be perfect. Our only recourse is to respond to the consequences appropriately."

Valentina was looking through some of the tomes documenting research and discoveries. "Interesting. I figured there was something more complex to this place. Mind if I ask what these notes are in regards to an Abyssal Unlight?"

"That's what we've been waiting on Deimos for," Captain Dusan answered. "Deimos, we found the border of the Trench. It's unfathomably deep, but we're not sure if we should go further or return to the labyrinth and prepare."

"By the gods... hmm, ah... no, no. Dusan, return to the labyrinth, stat."

"Roger that, we're on our way. Good call too, because some of our crew had kids while we waited, haha. It's probably best that they don't grow up isolated in the abyss with us. We'll keep you posted and transmit our signal until we get back. Dusan, over and out." The communication ceased, with a beeping icon appearing on the computer screen.

"Well, I'd dare say I'm going to need to restructure the crew then..."

"Gee, you think?" Brenna cut it. "Aye yai yai... you know? If you're looking for some able bodied men, some of our people would be itching to go on an expedition like that."

"Really?"

Rose liked the sound of this. "Certainly. The Descendants are dedicated to their tasks. This would also be a great honor, to embark on such a momentous adventure."