Chapter 279: Defensive Planning
Dave
“We can’t leave Alexandria unguarded, that’s just a non-starter. At the very least, Timon has to stay here,” I said.
After the realization of what we may be facing and just how many people we’d need for it, Pryte and I had met up with Karlinovo for a deeper discussion on our defenses. The idea of so many of us being away at one time had me deeply terrified. If anything like the jester invasion happened again, we had to have a way to stop it.
“The defensive towers are much more functional than they were before, and this time I won’t be trapped in the Antarctic dungeon. I’m not sure this is as dangerous as you think it is,” Karlinovo replied.
“Are you sure you and Timon would be enough to handle running them?” Pryte asked, giving Karlinovo a discerning look.
“Sure? Of course not. At the rate we keep making enemies, who the hell knows what might attack? But I’m no longer quite so behind on the developments of the Spiral in my absence,” he replied, with a strangely knowing smile.
“I assume that means your meeting with Henjen went well, then?” Pryte asked.
“Yes, but you will understand if I won’t voice exactly what we discussed. I don’t fully trust even my precautions quite yet for that,” he answered.
I looked at Pryte, who gave me a nod of understanding, and pulled up the soul chat.
| Dave: What did you discuss with Henjen? And I kind of would have liked to meet him. Karlinovo: You were busy recovering from your soul battles. Eventually, we will need to find a way to rescue the old fool. He’s off to do something insane. Maud: Henjen? Is that the guy from all the books on magic? Elody: He is, and I briefly met him when he was here as well. Why would we need to rescue him? He seemed fine when I met him. Karlinovo: He was fine. That’s just the problem. He has gotten it in his head that just because I’ve returned it means he’s safe to pursue other incredibly unlikely and dangerous things. Elody: Such as? Karlinovo: The idiot thinks it’s the perfect time for an expedition to the Old Spiral in search of Thykle. Elody: I have no idea who that is. Rabyn: The archmage? Karlinovo: Interesting. I would not have thought any of you had any idea who he was. He was barely part of Spiral politics by the time of my death. He was ancient when he taught Henjen. Rabyn: I don’t really know much beyond the name. There was a book in my family’s private collection that mentioned some of his strange chaos magic. Karlinovo: Add that to the list of things I want to find then. I assume you have no copies of Thykle’s work in the archives, Elody? Elody: Not that I am aware of. It is, of course, possible he is referred to somewhere, especially if he was Henjen’s teacher, but I personally can’t recall ever seeing a note on an archmage named Thykle. Dave: Wait, there’s something here beyond just the Old Spiral talk, isn’t there? If Thykle is an archmage, and especially if he’s Henjen’s teacher, how is he missing from the archives? I’ve read at least a dozen books by Henjen, and I can’t recall a single mention of the man. Karlinovo: Yes, the suppression of his name and work was already well alive before my untimely death. I’m not at all surprised it continued. Connie: Gramps has one of his books. I saw the name once. Karlinovo: Does he? Now that is news. So that potentially leaves two books out there that aren’t yet in my possession. Connie: I don’t remember what the title was, but yeah, it’s in his office. Karlinovo: Connie, one day we will have to visit him. At least locating that book should be easier than Rabyn’s lost copy. Dave: While I entirely agree, back to the other point. Are you sure Henjen is heading for the Old Spiral? And if so, how is he getting in? I was under the impression that it wasn’t possible. Karlinovo: Impossible and extremely difficult are two very different things. There have been claims before of people finding their way through. I’m not sure how many I’d consider believable, considering they returned alive, but there is something to them. The big mystery of what happened to the Old Spiral and what is actually known at the top levels in the current one is something that has tantalized people as long as I’ve been around. Rabyn: I would caution against assuming anything is impossible, either. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on NovelFire. Karlinovo: Yes, I agree. But I believe we have moved far away from the initial question Dave wanted to know. Dave: I’m not complaining, the new information is interesting, but yes. What exactly did Henjen want to discuss? Karlinovo: Some of it, I think, was to verify I really was me, but most of it was to give me what Thykle had left for me. I haven’t had time to go through all of it yet, but there are some very interesting breakdowns on mana orb creation and fusion that I’ve never seen discussed elsewhere. I can already see why some of this information would be suppressed. We will have to see how it applies to my experiment with Dave. I already suspect Thykle had some ideas here. Dave: Let me know what you find. I’d be glad to understand more about myself. Corey: As would I. But I believe my existence in this experiment has pushed it well past any bounds or expectations you had initially, Karlinovo. Karlinovo: Just a bit, yes.
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