Curselock

Chapter 248: Script

Leland read his newest contracts aloud.

Cursed contract of the Lord of Vitality:

Use: For the duration of the contract, access to the spell, Imbue life, is granted. Only usable once per hour.

Return: Nothing.

Imbue Life:

Type: Spell (Mist)

Rank: Equivalent to Harbinger Halo’s rank

Imbue life.

Cursed contract of the Lord of Mending Flame:

Return: Attempt to persuade those you meet in outlying villages and towns to not blow out their birthday candles.

Cursed contract of the Lord of the Sanguine Surgeon:

Use: For the duration of the contract, access to the spell, Prepare Body, is granted. Only usable once per hour.

Return: A selection of wine from the new worlds.

Prepare Body:

Type: Spell (Blood)

Rank: Equivalent to Harbinger Halo’s rank

Call upon the Lord of the Sanguine Surgeon to control the target’s blood. Controlled blood lasts 1 day and eases the body to accept healing magic of any kind.

Cursed contract of the Lord of Mystics:

Use: For the duration of the contract, access to the spell, Arcane Transfusion, is granted. Only usable once per hour.

Return: An offering of lifeforce-infused mana.

Arcane Transfusion:

Type: Spell (Arcane)

Rank: Equivalent to Harbinger Halo’s rank

Call upon the Lord of Mystics to command all nearby mana. Mana rushes into the target, filling their mana-pool. As a bonus effect, if the target’s mana-pool is above 50% after the transfusion, heal the target for 50% of their mana-pool.

Cursed contract of the Lord of the Celestial:

Use: For the duration of the contract, access to the spell, Moon Bones and Sun Skin, is granted. Only usable once per hour.

Return: Observe the patterns of the stars within the new worlds and report these back to the Lord of the Celestial.

Moon Bones and Sun Skin:

Type: Spell (Celestial)

Rank: Equivalent to Harbinger Halo’s rank

Call upon the Lord of the Celestial to transcribe the moon or the sun.

Day: You heal the target with the power of the sun. The brighter the sun, the more healing power.

Night: You protect the target with the power of the moon. The fuller the moon, the larger the protection. New moons apply the bare minimum protections.

50% reduced effectiveness at sunrise, sunset, and overcast days or nights.

50% increased effectiveness during eclipses.

“So that’s it,” Leland said. “Imbue Life, as I understand it, is the heavy hitter. The others add utility or help take the load.”

“But that’s five contracts,” Glenny said.

“Correct. The Lord of Mending Flame’s is not a spell or ability.” He pointed to his forehead. “She put a Heartgem into my forehead. It’s concentrated –heart elemental.”

“How does that work?”

“She refused to tell me. Only that this,” he emphasized his pointing finger, “is important.”

Gelo was staring at the gem, her sky blue eyes shining. “What does it do?”

There were two ways Leland knew he could explain it. First was the boring, educational way. So of course he went with the second.

“The Lord of Mending Flame had her gem in the exact same place as mine. Her skin grew over it, so it looked like her normal forehead. But, when she peeled back her skin—”

“Gross,” Jude muttered, snacking on some roast.

“—I felt compelled by it. I literally climbed over the table to get to it.”

He was embellishing the truth slightly, but that made for better storytelling. He continued, “She explained this Heartgem was her own recipe. ‘Flameheart mixed with Healingheart and a drop or two of Lifeheart, Happinessheart, and Vitalityheart,’ and how just having it nearby will increase the effects of all healing.”

Somehow, Gelo’s wide-opened eyes went wider. “So if I make an ice Heartgem, then my ice magic will be stronger!?”

Leland leaned back. “That is how I understood it.”

She gasped. “Okay! How do I do that!?”

Now he leaned forward. “That,” he pointed at the little cub, “is a great question.”

“You don’t know?”

“I do not.”

“But you have one in your forehead even if I can hardly see it!”

Subconsciously, Leland rubbed the grain of sand embedded in his skin. “So? I didn’t make it. If it helps, all she did was gather an insane amount of magic onto the tip of her finger. So much that the mana crystalized. It’s a common occurrence in nature, mana-mines are a thing after all. And a few studies were published about the practicality of making crystallized mana in a controlled setting. The consensus was that it was too expensive and too specialized to warrant doing.”

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

“So,” Jude began, “what you are saying is that if you learn this crystallization process, then you’d be rich?”

Leland thought about the question before turning serious. He stared into his friends’ eyes and whispered, “Jude. If I could make Heartgems at will for sale, then I’d be the richest person in the world. But not because I would sell them, but because every kingdom, country, and empire would kneel to me because I’d be the most powerful mortal alive.”

Pondering the answer, Jude ate another bite of roast. Then he said, “Maybe there are other powerful mortals like that, but they live secretly.”

“Shadow government,” Glenny muttered.

“Exactly. Maybe they—”

“Jude you’re an idiot,” Leland huffed. “If someone that powerful was around and not a Lord, then they would be known to the world. Think about someone a few times stronger than Gelo’s mom before she became a Lord. That’s the level I’m talking about.”

The berserker simply shrugged.

Glenny asked, “What about the other spells?”

“Well, Imbue Life is from possibly the strongest being I’ve ever met. Far stronger than Gelo’s mom, most likely even the Lord of Curses. The… the Lord of Vitality was something else. Like a never-ending hole of power.”

“Did you ask him to tell you how you could achieve that?”

“I did, and he said ‘no.’”

“A shame.”

“No, no, Glenny. I don’t think you understand. The Lord of Vitality was not just a Lord, but vitality itself. Lords command their elements like no other, but there’s a phase beyond that. I’m surprised I got anything at all. Me having Imbue Life surprised every Lord I talked to. Because people don’t just talk to a Lord of his power.”

“What’d he look like,” Jude asked.

“Old man in rags. Ripped, but thin.”

“Ah. Not something cool.”

“Jude. This man was the most powerful being I’ve ever met. He could look like a fish and he’d still be the coolest person in existence!”

“All I’m hearing is that you want to be a fish.”

Leland cursed the open air. “I’m moving on from this conversation. Moon Bones and Sun Skin is an interesting spell. It is both reactive and proactive. The Celestial Lord and I talked about it for nearly an hour.”

“What did the Celestial Lord look like?”

“Giant glowing ball of light.”

“See! That’s cooler than an old man in rags.”

Taking a breath, Leland centered himself before he took Jude’s soul. “Arcane Transfusion may be my favorite spell right now. Mana replenishment and healing? It’s perfect for me. I’m almost always above fifty percent mana since I have split spell costs with lifeforce. So, in theory, I will be massively healed when I cast it. Not to mention if I cast it on others. I could keep Gelo’s mana topped off if the need ever arose.”

“That’s powerful,” the cub supplied.

“Thank you, I thought so as well. And the best part was that I only had to offer mana for it. The Mystic Lord wanted to study my mana since I use lifeforce as well. The contract was completed before I left.”

“Sounds like the Lord of Water,” Glenny added.

“True. I wonder whatever happened with that. Somewhere someone is making a killing selling lifeforce-infused bottles of wate— G’OW!”

The night went still as all eyes fell on Jude. The young berserker held a blooded pocket knife. “What?” he asked. “You’ve got to test the spells somehow.”

“By stabbing me in the arm!?”

“I was getting bored. Show me some magic peasant!” He even clapped his hands like a noble summoning a steward.

With a growl, Leland stared at his friend all the while pressing his palm into his grimoire. Instantly, a violet halo sprung into existence just above his head. It glowed radiantly like the beacon atop a lighthouse during a thunderstorm. The darkness fell away to a hue of curses, magic that didn’t just kill, but also maimed, mauled, and exploited.

In the half a second between Leland activating his contracts and touching his gushing arm, the camp went still. Eerie authority wafted from the warlock as magic and mana came to his aid.

If Jude wanted a show, it was a show he’d get.

Starting in the order Leland thought was best, first Prepare Body zipped into being. He felt his blood run cold, then hot, then back to cold. He tensed, then relaxed, then tensed again. The bump of his heartbeat sounded in his throat and chest, quaking and yet slowing.

Bubump bubump bubump.

Next came Moon Bones and Sun Skin. With the sun fully set and the moon out in force, a silver-white glow set in around Leland like the shell of an egg. It formed quickly and silently, glistening with the twinkle of the starry night and the shade of the dark side of the moon before fading into his skin and bones. He felt his bones stiffen, strengthen at the same time his skin became oily.

To the others, Leland darkened, his whole body covered in an inky off-gray purple liquid. It beat and pulsed with his movements, stretching and constricting. Despite being liquid, the shell was as hard as stone and as absorbent as a sponge.

They dared not test the resilience of the shield, however.

Third came Arcane Transfusion. It started with a faint buzzing, a gentle hum against the cold night air. Slowly the hum picked up volume, rapidly transforming into a white metallic shimmer. It coiled around Leland’s hand, a snake befitting of being called pure mana. He directed it into his wound, felt his skin tighten and muscles smooth.

What little mana he had lost while casting these spells was instantly removed, as well as a significant boost to his heath. Cherishing the feeling, he felt his toes go numb and his sore feet soften. An itch formed, one so brutal Leland almost tore off his boots right then and there. But like a thick scab ready to fall off, the sensation died down until only elation remained.

Warmth superseded the cold night as the Lord of Mending Flame’s Heartgem activated, only amplifying the effects.

He knew he could have stopped there. With the healing from Arcane Transfusion, he was in as prime of health as possible. Perfectly healed, as if he had exited a clinic.

But he didn’t stop. Not with the thought of the Lord of Vitality on the mind and Imbue Life on his fingertips.

The spell formed with a gust of mist. A smudge of cloud among the violet color his halo produced. It hung there, waiting until Leland tapped himself. He didn’t need healing, but in that moment, he realized Imbue Life didn’t heal.

It fixed.

A crack sounded from his shoulder. Then a pop from his knee. The sky flickered with streaks of gray, tethering webs of mist forming among the stars. They split and connected, transforming the area above the campsite into a spider’s den. He let out a grunt as his spine realigned from years of poor posture.

The web grew and grew, consuming Jude, Glenny, and Gelo. Their aches and pains were glazed over in an instant, their bodies accepting the changes like a fire to dry straw.

Warmth flooded them all, the power of five different Lords filling the air. Jude had gotten his show, no one had any doubts about that. But Leland couldn’t resist. He had gazed upon the truth of this world he lived in. He had seen the unbounded power of what laid beyond mortals and the power that laid beyond that.

The Heartgem in his forehead felt like an ember against his skin. His first instinct was to cower from the pain. But as if he was viewing a sunset from the other side, he understood that the pain wasn’t pain at all.

Kindred spirits. Power beyond explanation. True elements. A reflection of a puddle infinitely stretching into the distance. Words of power. Symbols of command. A simple idea. Perseverance, a will to achieve, a mind to wait.

A soul ready to transcend.

It was a really simple idea.

It was all real. Magic, mana. It was out there, ripe for the picking. The idea was so simple Leland almost kicked himself. There were catalysts, like the Heartgem, but they didn’t matter. Not truly. Would they help? Yes, of course. But they didn’t matter. Nothing did, at least not to the universe. No… to matter to the universe, one had to steal from it.

Theft of power. A grasp at the universe’s true reality. What lay beyond the world? The Void? What lay beyond that?

What made up the air he breathed, the soil he stood on? How did mana and magic come into play? Did they change the air and soil, or did the air and soil change them?

It was right there. The power of the universe. The fundamental exchanges of one force against another. It was right there, just out of reach, but never moving. Invisible, but already seen.

He saw the struggle he’d face. He understood it would take time.

But it was right there.

And he was going to take it.