Published at 21st of February 2026 8:36 pm

Chapter 139 Deeper

This chapter is updated by JustRead.pl

The two greater labyrinthine horrors waited in the antimagic room. The three heavies leaned their war hammers near the doors threshold, and the soldiers stood ready with their spears. Grimald led the charge, quickly establishing the front of the shield wall, followed by the two other heavies. Mirian used The Dance of the Dusk Waves to quickly cut apart the tendrils as the soldiers came in, adding another two spears to hold the horrors at bay.

Mirian switched to the Spear That Cuts Water stance, flowing away from the horrors as they tried to impale her with their legs. While the spears restricted their movement, she cut at each leg that lashed out. When the two horrors charged together, they snapped two of the spears, and sent Gromaer flying backward.

Retreat! Mirian snapped.

The two other heavies kept their shields raised as they walked backwards until they were through the doorway.

Mirian healed a nasty gash on Gromaers shoulder and the bruises hed gathered. Anyone else hurt? Grimald, let me see that arm. There. Two minute breather, then we go back in.

Gromaers shield was lying on the ground near the door, but theyd probably be able to push the horrors back enough to retrieve it.

Back in, lets go. Ready? Advance! Mirian called out. With Eclipse and the spears harrying the greater horrors, they pushed into the room again. This time, they stayed closer to the door. The fighting dragged on for minutes on end, until Mirian could see the endurance of her allies was waning.

Retreat. Three minutes, then back in.

They passed around water skins and caught their breath.

Advance!

Four more times they repeated this. It was an absolute slog. Finally, shed cut up the front legs and torsos enough that the horrors began to make that weird hissing sound.

Theres the merge! Grab the hammers! Hit it now!

They dropped the shields, and while the two soldiers kept a spear embedded in each horror, Mirian came at the center, carving hunks of the tough flesh apart. She assumed Lone Pine so that she could keep her attacks relentless. Unlike dueling, which involved a lot of stabbing, puncture wounds were insufficient. She had to cut them apart. Rapiers were usually terrible at that, but Eclipse wasnt some normal sword, and the unnaturally sharp blade didnt dull as it cut into the creature again and again.

Then the heavies joined the fray with their war hammers, with Grimald targeting the legs on the left one while the other two smashed apart the legs on the right target. There was the sickening sound of carapace crunching and flesh splorching as they lent all their strength to the blows.

As the two maws opened, Mirian stuck Eclipse right down the center of the left one, raking the inside as she withdrew her blade. She focused on carving a path down the center of the creatures, reasoning that if they couldnt complete the merger, theyd be crippled. And its working! she elated.

With the crack! of steel on carapaced flesh, Aeliuss frontliners finished smashing apart the legs of the right greater horror. It crumpled to the ground, letting out a gurgling scream as ichor poured onto the ground.

As it fell, Mirian targeted the strange head-like protrusion on the top of the torso. She slashed at it once, then twice, then sent her blade right through the center. The creature let out an earsplitting scream again, then collapsed onto the ground, twitching.

Mirian embraced Dusk Waves and came at the left side of the horror, cutting apart its mouth-torso. One of the soldiers managed to pin his spear inside the horrors maw as it opened, the crossguard lodging in its mouth as the thick speartip pierced out the other end. Mirian vaulted on top of the creature as it thrashed, then embraced Lone Pine. She dug Eclipse deep into its back and dragged Eclipse across the spine with both hands. The back of the creature split open like a rotting melon. Even after the bodies had stilled, Mirian continued to cut the thing apart. No way was she risking it regenerating on them.

Wow, Cediri said. You actually did it.

Third trys the charm, Mirian said.

Gromaer gave her a funny look. Whats that supposed to mean?

Dont worry about it. Mirian let out a big breath and wiped some of the sweat off her brow. Whew. Now lets see if we can get this door open.

She approached the far end of the room, where minuscule glyphs were carved directly into the wall by the doorframe. She hadnt been able to analyze them before, so she had no idea what to expect.

Sections of the glyphs on the wall were tribonded glyphs, the kind she still hadnt been able to replicate because they required simultaneous scribing. Shed also have to do more analysis of what those sequences did, which would require delicate divination equipment in Torrian Tower at the very least.

The Vaults were clearly designed with puzzles and trials in mind, though. Four sections of markings that were far simpler than stood out. They were clustered into four insets of stone, engraved with both glyphs and runes.

Cediri and Aelius joined her, while the others watched their backs. This doesnt make sense, Cediri said. That sequence its used to pull inanimate objects at short ranges. Theres nothing for it to pull. And Ive never seen these other glyphs.

Mirian read the sequence. Pull object at these coordinates from spell, trigger arcane energy burst if detectsand then the sequence transitioned to celestial runesdifferent tissues? I think thats what that is. But the runes are different in each one. Referring to body parts, but in strange places. A human wouldnt have

And then she got it.

We need parts from the greater horrors. That one needs one of the tendrils. That one needs that weird cartilage they have. That one needs something from a leg. Either the muscle sinews or the carapace, Im not familiar with that glyph. And that one needs part of the torso-mouth, Mirian said, pointing at each recessed section.

Aelius raised an eyebrow. That was fast.

Ive studied a lot of glyphs. That was true enough.

They cut up a chunk of the horror, then placed the tissue samples in the slot. As soon as the correct sample was there, it levitated in its spot. The third slot rejected the carapace from the leg, but accepted the sinewy muscle from the inner part.

Silently, the stone door slid open, revealing a short hallway that led to another door.

It worked, Mirian said, about as surprised as everyone else.

One of the soldiers cleared his throat. Ah, technically, the threat to the town has been eliminated. So

Oh come on, Cediri said. You know you want to see whats down here.

The two soldiers looked at each other. Alright, yeah, one said, and the other didnt protest.

The group grabbed their packs and supplies from the previous room, then piled the tower shields and extra spears on the other side of the door theyd just opened. Mercifully, the antimagic suppression field ended there. Then they continued down the corridor. This door required no special puzzles, it just opened when touched.

Beyond was a room unlike any other shed seen in the Labyrinth.

Dozens of different crystals poked out from different rock formations. It looked like parts of a cave had burst up from the floor, though Mirian knew by now the Labyrinth wouldnt let those formations be there unless it wanted them there. There were dark stone pedestals scattered throughout the room, and a green stone table with a glass sphere and several strange looking brass implements neatly organized on top of it. In other parts of the room, there were things that looked a bit like sarcophagi, only they were too small to fit a person, and there was nothing inside them.

There were two doors, each with glyph sequences written in a circle in their center.

The othr arcanists joined them. Aelius looked at Beatrice. Ever seen anything like this?

Not like this one. Mirian?

Mirian was already deep in thought. She approached the door. As she did, she felt an antimagic field again, as soon as she crossed a few feet past the entrance. Damnit, another suppression field. She stepped back. But it only affects part of the room.

Anything dangerous? Grimald asked.

Seems clear. Post two by the door to keep watch. Scrappy still could show up. Were pinned in if it does.

I can handle Scrappy, Mirian said. Probably. Her focus was mostly on the room, and the glyphs on the doors.

Whats with the rock outcroppings? the Ennecus sorcerer asked.

Normal rock formations dont look like this, the mage said.

Theyre all crystals that would be useful in conduits, Mirian said. Shed thought that was too obvious to be stated. These doors need specific types and amounts of energy to hit them. Which means spells, but I dont know how were supposed to cast spells and hit the door through the antimagic suppression field.

Cediri tapped his chin thoughtfully. Perhaps theres a way to disable the field without needing to drill into the walls.

If we drill into the walls, we definitely attract Scrappy, Aelius said. And despite our proto-archmage here, Id rather not test her claims if we can avoid it. Weve never been able to disable an antimagic field we found in the Vaults through brute force. Outside the Vault, we only managed it once, and we lost two people to a horde. So. We play the Labyrinths little game, yeah?

Agreed, Beatrice said, giving Cediri a look.

Cediri rolled his eyes, heading over to the table. The workbench here is outside of the antimagic field. These tools are strange, though. They hmm they seem familiar. Whats this orb do?

While he pondered that, Mirian looked around more. The pedestals and sarcophagi-looking things were all at odd angles. The rock formations seemed scattered haphazardly, but it meant they were blocking her ability to see all the pedestals at once. She kept having to peer around them.

Why do these stone containers have holes in them? Beatrice asked, circling one.

She was right, Mirian realized. Each of the sarcophagi-adjacent stones had two holes eachexcept for one of them at the far end of the room, and a second one in the middle of the room that had three holes. On a whim, she stuck her hand inside to feel for any hidden switches, thinking of how the Underground worked. To her surprise, she could feel her auric mana swirling around her hand inside the stone container.

The suppression field isnt inside the containers, she told the group.

Interesting. Anyone here a contortionist? Cediri asked without turning around. He had the orb in his hand, and he was moving it around, peering through it. This is a beautiful crystal sphere. Very smoowhoops!

The sphere slipped out of his hand, but as he bent down to catch it where he expected to fall, something funny happened: it didnt fall. It just stayed in the air, unmoving. Cediri looked around, then carefully reached up and grabbed the orb again. Experimentally, he moved it over the floor, then let go. Again, it stayed in the air, not even hovering, just simply not moving. Its anchored in the fourth spatial dimension, Mirian realized.

Try putting it on a pedestal, Grimald said.

I was just about to do that, he said.

No you werent.

Cediri scoffed dramatically, then brought it over to a pedestal. Peering through it he said, Oh! Glyphs. The big ones in the center are rosh and aitliu. Moving his head around to get a better view. Theres a set of longer sequences along the outside. Ah divination? He looked expectantly at Mirian.

She walked over. Divination, for detecting specific arcane frequencies. Rosh and aitliu, obviously. Mirian looked over by the door. Its the same basic detection the circle of glyphs by the door is using. Presumably, this is similar to the magichemical puzzles. Its looking for specific arcane energy frequencies to hit each pedestal and then the door.

The arcanists not guarding their rear went around looking at the pedestals as Cediri held the orb over each one. The frequencies are different on every pedestal, Aelius said. And different on the door.

Obviously, Mirian thought. Curious, she peered at the stone containers from over by the pedestal. The holes in the containers line up with each other, and pass over the pedestals. But hmmm Mirian held up her hand in the space between the pedestal and hole. There was a small flare of aura that came from each side of her hand. The antimagic field doesnt cover a very small cylinder. Whatever we need to do, it involves directing beams of arcane energy along a path. Her mind raced as she connected the dots. And each stone sarcophagus-looking thing just needs to transform the energy then redirect it. Lookweve been given dozens of conduit crystals for a reason. So we built the glyph sequences that will transform each beam so that it matches the glyph energies the puzzle is looking for.

What she didnt expect was the looks of despair that followed. Building something like that would take days! Cediri moaned.

How many of you are trained in artifice? Beatrice asked.

Ive done a bit, said Aelius.

This is incredibly simple stuff, Mirian said, amazed that anyone would be despairing at the simple constructs they needed to make. Each device simply needed to change the angle of a beam and contain two energy transformations. Thats nothing!

The Ennecus arcanist said, But wed need artificing supplies. Hell, wed need mining supplies. These crystals

One, I always carry artificing supplies with me. Two, even if I didnt, theyre over there on the table.

The arcanist looked over, then looked a bit embarrassed.

Mirian headed over to the table and got to work. The Labyrinth tools were strange, but familiar. Mirian didnt seem to actually need her scribes pen. The device they found was ingenious; she discovered if she channeled a glyph she wanted into the pen, the Elder pen created the magichemical ink she needed to scribe that glyph.

Cediri, of course, had the idea of taking the artifice tools with them. However, trying to pull the orb out of the room proved impossible. When the orb got to the threshold, it simply stopped, no matter how much Cediri yanked or pulled. Grimald tried to push it with his whole body weight, leaning forward as he pushed, but failed to get it to move.

Its like trying to move a stone wall, he complained.

The scribe pen and other tools proved to have a similar protection. They too floated in the air when released. Theyre four dimensional objects, Mirian said. Theyre probably much larger than you think they are. I mean, this ink is coming from reservoirs somewhere. Or theyre chained to something we cant see. I dont even think I could remove them with relicarium and the time loop. Thered be no way for me to coat the entire object, just the three dimensional part I can see.

It cant be chain, because I can take it over here on the other side of this rock formation, Cediri said.

Mirian blinked at him. Do you know any four dimensional geometry? she asked.

That shut him up at least.

Aelius figured out how to use one of the tools to extract conduit crystals safely. The tool used some sort of energysound energy? Invisible light?to disintegrate the stone matrix directly around each crystal, letting them get the whole thing with no risk of shattering it.

Two hours into her artificing, one of the stone formations began to glow with apparent heat, though none of the heat seemed to spread around the room. They watched, fascinated, as the stone and crystals reconstructed themselves.

Infinite conduit crystals, Aelius whispered.

But not free, Mirian said.

Alius looked through the hallway back at the two dead greater horrors. I suppose theyre likely to return too, arent they?

Probably, Cediri said. Everything in the Labyrinth has a price.

Aint that the truth, Gromaer grumbled.

Hmm. Theres an issue, Mirian realized, as she worked on her fourth device. Theres a mismatch in the flux glyphs needed. I cant complete a split transformation.

Can someone translate? Grimald asked.

We can only open one door, Aelius said. Anyone have a preference?

No one did.

After two more hours, everyone was getting restless, but at last Mirian was done. She got to positioning her devices. It didnt take long. Beatrice had been busy using shape stone to make little holders for the crystals at the angles she needed. There were a few issues of misalignment. Two of the conduits needed slight adjustments, and one of the glyphs needed to be reworked.

Dont we need a spell engine? Cediri asked.

No, Mirian said, standing at the edge of the antimagic field. I can channel enough auric mana. Alright, lets see if this works.

She channeled, straining with the control and power the device needed. Then, bright symbols around the door theyd chosen lit up and it slid open.

Giddy with anticipation, Mirian went to the door.

Cediri said it before she could. Another puzzle?

Looks like it, she said. There were dozens of complex geometric forms carved into the floor. She could see no pattern to any of it.

Grimald looked at Beatrice, who nodded. Look, I have to say we call it here. Weve been down here for an entire day. Scrappy doesnt full close this place up in one night. We need to rest and return tomorrow.

Mirian looked around, but she could see the exhaustion in everyones faces. She ground her teeth. It shouldnt shift until the 20th. Unless it reacts to us making it this far. Scrappy will close a few doors, but we can just open them again.

Alright. Back up, rest, then down tomorrow. We are getting to the end of this.

Agreed, Aelius said.

Mirian glanced back as they headed back up. So close, she thought. She just had to be patient.

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