Chapter 72: 46 – Restricted Travel

Arrive safely on Teyrin?

As she realized the possibility of what was happening, Amara wasted no time. She immediately activated Farsight and chased the trails of the arriving prayers. Before she could reach the source, Amara could feel the flow of divine power fading as the prayers were ending. 

Dammit! I need to- Divine Sight!

As she was staring into the dark as her sight was moving through the dimensions, the golden trails from the prayers suddenly lit up the darkness. Following the fading trails, Amara could speed up her chase for the source and arrived in time before the final prayers ended.

As she arrived at the world, she was blinded by golden light. 

Is all of that divine power? It’s everywhere. 

Amara cancelled Divine Sight, and took in the sight of a large forest as the light faded. Just before her vision were the branches of what seemed to be a giant bristlecone pine tree. 

That's...a big tree.

They have to be nearby.

Amara dove beneath the large branches, and after searching around the base of the tree she found a large crowd. Most of them had four legs with a lower body that looked like either a moose or a deer, while the upper part seemed human. 

Centaurs? 

Mixed in between the centaurs were something she first thought were humans, but upon a closer look she realized they weren’t.

Elves too, huh. 

The crowd was moving, making space in the middle for a trio of elves. As she was about to take in their appearances, the tallest of the elves moved his arm and a large magic circle appeared under their feet.

Confused at first, Amara wondered what the elf was doing before she recalled the prayers that brought them to her attention.

They’re trying to get to Teyrin!

Are they making a portal? Or are they teleporting?

Amara held her breath as she waited to see what was going to happen. After several seconds, the magic circle flashed as it activated.  The trio remained in place, however.

It failed?

Amara let out the breath she had been holding in and continued watching. She considered for a moment to go look for the spell that was used in the books, but didn’t want to miss what was going on. 

I can always take a look later.

Amara heard how the crowd began to murmur.

[“What happened…”]

[“Why didn’t it work?”]

[“Maybe he really has a muddled mind?”]

[“But I was told that he’s done it before?”]

While the crowd was murmuring, a blonde elf stepped forward and began whispering with the magician. The two soon came to an agreement, and the blonde elf turned to the crowd and announced loudly. [“We have some matters to discuss, and will reconvene later. You’ll find out more soon.” (?)]

The four elves left and walked through the crowd. Amara followed them with Farsight, until the group arrived at the large tree and climbed one of the roots to enter a cavity in the stem. They entered a chamber before the elf leading them turned to the magician. 

[“Now then, what did you mean by it has never happened before?” (?)]

[“I don’t know, Feynhil. The spell activated as usual, but we remained where we were as you saw.” (Vandelor)]

[“But what do you believe could be the cause? Was your mental image lacking?“ (Feynhil)]

Vandelor shook his head. [“No, that wasn’t the reason. Whenever I’ve used it in the past with a sloppy mental image, it would still teleport me. Having a weak mental image only decreases the accuracy, putting you further away from your intended destination, or elsewhere if another destination is more accurate to the mental image.” (Vandelor)]

[“Then what could it be?” (Feynhil)]

[“I’m...not sure. It’s possible that there’s something I don’t know regarding how the spell works, in the case when you try to teleport to another world. But if that’s not the case, then the only thing I can think of would be...that the spell was blocked.” (Vandelor)]

A silence ensued as the elves furrowed their brows. 

[“Blocked? Is that possible?” (Feynhil)]

[“I don’t know. But it’s the only other option I can think of. I’ll need to try again to be sure.” (Vandelor)]

[“How long until you can use the teleportation ritual again?” (Feynhil)]

[“I could use it once more right now, but in the event of an emergency upon arrival I’d lack mana to be of much help. I should have full mana in...half a day or so.” (Vandelor)]

Another silence descended upon the conversation before the female elf wielding a staff drew a breath to speak. [“If the spell was blocked....how would it be possible? Who would be able to block it? The demons? Or could it have been Amara?” (?)]

Vandelor closed his eyes as he considered before he answered. [“You said before that our souls are owned by a being that created the gods, and that even if we were to leave, our souls will return here when we die, based on what Zenon told you?” (Vandelor)]

[“Yes?” (?)]

[“Then maybe teleportation was indeed blocked as a result of the armistice. The announcement mentioned ‘the fate of all souls currently residing or born hereafter’, didn’t it? Maybe it’s to prevent any future souls from being taken somewhere else, out of the armistice’s influence.” (Vandelor)]

The shock and despair became evident on the faces of the other elves upon the implications.

[“But doesn’t that mean that we’re trapped?! If we’re not allowed to leave, we won’t be able to play our part in determining our fate!” (?)]

[“...That is possibly the case. (Vandelor)]

Amara could feel how more than one of the elves were close to an emotional breakdown. Vandelor seemed to be the most composed, as after an extended pause he continued.

[“But if that’s the case, then it shouldn’t matter if we move to another world that is also affected by the armistice. The only thing that would prevent us from leaving completely, is if the armistice forbids us from providing Teyrin with reinforcements.” (Vandelor)]

[“...How will we know?” (Feynhil)]

[“I suppose we can only try again. As I don’t know for certain where the destination for the teleportation ritual would have been, it’s possible that it wouldn’t have been on Teyrin. Perhaps it was outside of the contested worlds. Unless someone tells us the circumstances, we won’t know for sure.” (Vandelor)]

The mood of the elves had improved somewhat, even if they were still visibly dejected. Feynhil sighed.

[“Seeing repeated failures would likely cause unrest, so any future attempts we’ll probably conduct out of the view of the public. They can always find out afterwards. I’ll gather the councillors and discuss what we should announce to the people. Let me know when you’re back at full mana.” (Feynhil)]

Feynhil left the room, while the rest remained. A new conversation didn’t begin, as they were in deep contemplation with their brows furrowed.  

Realizing that nothing interesting was likely to happen, Amara cancelled Farsight and rested with her elbows on her knees as she digested what she had heard and seen.

They were trying to get to Teyrin. To provide reinforcements?

But the teleportation spell failed. Why?

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Amara didn’t try to think of it for long.

Make A Call: Ezme.

[Amara?] (Ezme)

[Ezme, are the people in my domain forbidden from traveling to other worlds?] (Amara)

[Well...depends where. They are confined to the contested worlds, in order to keep the future souls affected by the armistice there. And you’re not allowed to be given aid by our forces, which includes the mortals in our domains. If the mortals in your domain were allowed to interact with ours, we could give you unauthorized guidance through them. Not even our Father would be able to keep track of the source of all information given to you by the mortals in your domain. This way, the overseer only has to police the information you’re provided directly by us. Did you forget?] (Ezme)

Amara frowned as she answered. [I think a lot of that are things you never told me. Nor was it in the pamphlet you gave me.]

[It wasn’t? ...Maybe I forgot to give you the full version.] (Ezme) 

Amara raised an eyebrow. [Kind of important, wouldn’t you say?]

[It’s not like any of the finer details were interesting. And you should’ve been able to conclude that on your own even without them. Tsk. Mortals.] Ezme replied in a tone that Amara was sure that the angel was pouting. She would’ve thought Ezme was cute, if it wasn’t for that Amara felt a bit irritated.

What else could I have missed?

[Maybe I’d agree, if it wasn’t for the mortals on one of the worlds in my domain who were trying to get to Teyrin just a short while ago.] (Amara)

[What? Really?] (Ezme)

[Yeah, but they failed. They’re worried about the reason behind why it was blocked.] (Amara)

[That’s...it’s not like you can tell them even if you know.] (Ezme)

[True. But how can I know what’s possible within the rules, if I don’t know them?] (Amara)

[You never asked about them further. So I thought you knew the rules.] (Ezme)

[I-] Amara stopped herself from saying something she realized she'd regret. [Sorry, I shouldn’t have taken it out on you.]

[You should be. You’re the one who chose me as your adviser, even though I said there are others that are better suited. So you can only blame yourself if the help you receive is lacking.] (Ezme)

Dammit.

[...I didn't mean that.] (Amara)

[Ahuh.] (Ezme)

[I’m sorry. I’m very happy to have you advising me, and I don’t find you lacking. And even if you were, I stand by what I said before. I’d choose you over anyone else.] (Amara)

[I…] Ezme paused for a while before continuing. [I’m sorry too. I didn’t expect the mortals to take the initiative to travel between worlds. I’ll go through the full details of the armistice with you when I return, if you want.]

Amara sighed in relief. [Alright. Thank you.]

An awkward silence ensued for a while, before Amara changed the conversation.

[When will you be back? I miss you, Fluffles.] (Amara)

[Insufferable! Stop calling me that!] (Ezme)

 

 

 

_______________

 

 

 

I guess I can just wait and see. Hopefully they succeed. I can’t really help them in any way, even if I was to choose a mouthpiece, the person has to be on Teyrin.

...Were there any other restrictions for the mouthpiece? If I remember correctly, then I’m not allowed to affect the worlds in my domain in any way other than with the mouthpiece. Does it mean that the mouthpiece is allowed to do anything with the divine power I provide?

Maybe even use Realm Gate?

I have to ask Ezme about this later.  

Amara recalled the conversation she overheard before she called Ezme. 

So, the mortals are allowed to travel between the contested worlds. 

And they can do so with the teleportation ritual that archmages can use.

If they can do that, then...I could have a larger army for the battle when the time arrives. 

But the teleportation ritual is unreliable, as it relies on a mental image. And it requires archmages. They seem to be quite few…so the number of people that could be moved may not be very large. 

They could do it over time, but then Teyrin would risk overpopulation...it’s not like poverty is nonexistent there already.

Amara thought for a moment as an idea crossed her mind.

If teleportation could be done reliably, on demand, things would be different.

So what about enchanting? Wouldn’t it be possible to make items that could achieve teleportation?

It requires knowing the spell, which means I’d need to know the class skill...or do I?

After all, I was able to cast spells before I learned Magic Circle from the magician class. Maybe it would be possible to somehow... 

Or maybe I could make my own spell, made from scratch? 

Could I make a portal like Realm Gate?

A smile grew on Amara’s face. It’d be cool to have teleportation gates, like in certain fantasy stories, that are connected to one another. Maybe it’s just wishful thinking, but if it’s possible, then it would remove all the disadvantages. The only problem would be how efficient it is to use.

Amara sighed and thought about her increased list of things to research.

It’s good that I have plenty of time.

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