Magic Discovered

Chapter 27

James and his friends, called in by the Queens, sat back on their seats and grabbed some dinner while they listened to the story. The room was completely empty of any other Ikirian; it had almost a solemn air.

"As we told you earlier," the Queens began. "Dorian-5 has a very old history. It was captured by the Void during the Origin War and was host to many of their experiments, and armies it now appears. That influence lingered long past the defeat of the Infinite Wolf, affecting many of the species that lived on the planet and even going so far as to spawn the Ikirian, a unique blend of Void and Reality. Our earliest ancestors recognized the importance and danger of the temples and rifts still remaining, and so vowed to protect them from anything that might seek to unleash their power once again. This was, and still is, the first and most important doctrine of the Ikirian. We eventually came into contact with the greater universe when we were visited by Master Dioul, who had sensed the leaking Void energy emanating from the planet. Initially, he had no idea how to talk with us. We both understood that the temples were a danger, and needed to communicate, but due to our origin, the translation spell did not work. It was lucky, then, that Lord Alcyrion had created a magical artifact in the past to deal with the cryptic Void language."

"Wait, so Lord Alcyrion created the Ulnth?"

"Yes. And, that is why it can translate the Void runes in the temples as well. It was designed to deal with the Void, and so it was used to finally allow our two sides to talk. With this barrier broken, Master Dioul saw that the Ikirian were ready to defend the temples should the need arise and decided that the safest place for Dorian-5 would be in obscurity, unknown to the rest of the mages. We agreed, as it only helped our cause, and he gifted us the Ulnth, as we were the ones best suited for its use. When he left, the ancestors then created the second decree: that the Ikirian would have no contact with mages in order to preserve the secret of the temples. We would live in isolation, separate from the rest of creation."

James put down his fruit and raised a finger. "But then why," he said, mouth still full. "is there a school of MAGES on the planet?"

The Queens sighed. "It began with something that was out of our control. The rifts underneath the temples had slowly begun to open as the years had passed and had spread Void energy across the jungle. It was much less violent and much, much slower than the situation right now, but it was still a primary issue that we were unable to deal with. We accepted the throne at this time and began to put our attention to finding a solution when two unexpected visitors arrived. A pair of a Mythical mage and a Celestial mage had sensed the Void energy and discovered Dorian-5, just like Master Dioul had before. Initially, the Ikirian were only able to observe their actions on the planet. The decree of the ancestors forbid contact with mages, and they were not attempting to use the temples' power, so we could not intervene. However, while listening to the friends arguing over how to deal with the Void energy, it came to light that they were only apprentices. Understanding the severity of the situation, we found a loophole in the decree. Nu and Phanes were not full mages yet, and the decree did not consider that apprentices would arrive in our world. Using this flaw, we made contact and explained the calamity that had befallen the rifts. Nu and Phanes spent many days working with us and managed to force the rifts shit using our magic and their knowledge of the spacial fabric. In thanks, we offered them anything they needed."

"Not the smartest idea," Lydia noted. "Didn't you give them any restrictions?"

"We did not think it necessary. Although they both had many flaws, an evil heart was not one of them. And in truth, their request reflected that. At the time, Nu and Phanes were both apprentices on a journey to expand their horizons and discover the unknown. In keeping with their mission, they asked for access to the Void temples. Their reasoning was twofold: first, they could look into the Void's secrets and prevent further calamities, which would help with our mission as well. The second was far simpler. In their mind, the Void was an unexplored frontier, a place of danger and mystery. They wanted nothing more than a chance to explore."