"What is this," Vect asked warily. Seeing the circle made him strangely uneasy.
"This is a summoning circle...of sorts. Please step inside the center," Izorna beckoned him forward.
Vect glanced nervously at Duinir for some kind of guidance.
"Go on. I would trust Izorna with my life, and I have," he added.
'Go on little one, I do not feel any threat from this one,' Erress assured Vect.
Still feeling uneasy, Vect nevertheless began to enter the circle, only to be suddenly stopped buy Izorna.
"Before you enter, there is a matter of payment for this."
"Name your price and it can be payed," Duinir exclaimed.
"Ah, but for this I require something special. A certain item you have recently received. I sense the magic surrounding you."
Vect thought for a moment about what it could be she was wanting. He then reached into one of his belt pouches and retrieved a fragment of the sword given to him by Ebron the dwarf that worked the forges at the wilderness camp. "Do you mean this? I'm sorry, but it's broken."
"Oh no, not that," she waved away the fragment. "I mean the lamp you were given by that merchant."
Taken aback that she knew about it put Vect on edge. "How do you know about that? If you're hoping for a genie to pop out, I've already tried that," he shrugged, "besides I left it back on the ship."
"Oh did you," Izorna smiled, "try the back pouch."
Vect reached behind him and opened the back pouch and felt inside. There was Erress's spirit vessel as always, but his fingers brushed against something metal. He grabbed it and held in front of him the same sapphire and ruby encrusted lamp.
"B-but h-how did you do that?"
Izorna held out her hand and took the lamp, hiding it away from view inside the folds of her robes. "When one is as versed in the magical arts such as I, all things are possible. Now step inside and we can begin."
Once again he stepped forward and entered the circle. Upon reaching the center, all the candles flared to life and the incense burned, their scent filling the room. Izorna began to chant softly, her hands waving in an intricate, but rhythmatic pattern. The smoke from both the candles and incense began to grow thicker and seemed to cling to Vect, until he was almost fully engulfed. All the while Vect felt his heart racing, a small fear of being suffocated by the smoke digging at his composure. He didn't dare speak for he knew to break the concentration of a mage during a spell can be disastrous.
Suddenly the smoke seemed to absorb into him and Vect was left standing confused in the center of the circle for a few moments before he was compelled to open his mouth and by doing so a cloud of the smoke came billowing out and moved with a mind of it's own next to him. As everyone watched the smoke grew and took form, first a silhouette, then details, and finally colors and features. Standing inside the circle to Vect's right was the elven form Erress took.
"Little one, what is happening," she asked almost panicked.
"I-I don't kn-," Vect began before he was forced to keep his mouth open again. A second cloud of smoke drifted to Vect's left and quickly formed into another being.
"Well, well, well, isn't this an intriguing turn of events," Amnael held up his hand and examined it. Satisfied with his examination, he turned to the onlookers. "It seems I will not be needing the lordling after all, I bid you farewell and advise you to keep out of my way," he said cheerily before he began towards the circle edge.
However once he neared the boundary, his body began to lose shape and he pulled away from the edge and whirled towards Izorna.
"Explain this witch," he yelled furiously. "Why do you tourture me, you damned elves?!"
"You are merely a shadow in this world, still bound to your host," Izorna explained.
"My prison," Amnael corrected.
Izorna raised her hands as though to try and ease the angry being. "And we shall begin out inquiry there. Firstly, who are you?"
"I was once known as Amnael the Wise," his eyes widened as the words came spilling out against his will. "What is the meaning of this? I did not wish to answer!"
"I see the circle is working exactly as it should. I get so tired of summoned creatures lying to me, so I perfected this spell to force the answer out. You can either answer on your own, or I will pull it out by force."
"Very well, ask your questions," Amnael sneered.
"What are you?"
"I once was a dragon. It was after I defeated and absorbed a particularly powerful demon that my nature became questionable. In short, I don't know how to define myself."
"How did you become spirit bound to Vect," Duinir questioned.
"I was betrayed by people I once called friend," Amnael's voice sounded almost sorrowful.
"But why me?" Everyone turned to Vect as though they'd forgotten he was present as well. "Am I not allowed to ask?"
Amnael, much to everyone's surprise, laughed. "Don't flatter yourself, it's not all about you. You just happened to be the latest candidate in a long line of potential hosts. It is your family's bloodline that holds me."
"My bloodline? How?" Vect felt his heart quicken with the possible implications of Amnael's statement.
"My afore mentioned betrayer couldn't defeat me by conventional means so he took to using an unknown spell against me. I felt my body weaken and crumble around me," Amnael stared intently at his hand as though reliving the event. He narrowed his eyes and looked at the surrounding elves with an intense hatred. "I became a prisoner, a being bound to the dreamscape of my host, my jailers. I watched as mellenia passed by, only able to watch as my legacy was twisted by liars! Now my one and only goal is to be free and reap my vengeance upon your empire."
The surrounding elves stood silent as they considered the being's words. Finally Vect broke the heavy silence.
"Could you use anyone from my family to free yourself," Vect asked, fearful for some of his extended family that shared his bloodline.
"No, you are the best host I have seen in centuries. And if you are at all curious as to why that is, you simply need to look to your right," Amnael said smugly.
"I would never cause this one harm!" Vect was actually surprised at just how outraged Erress was.
"Oh no, not intentionally at least," Amnael's smile widened, "but surely you sensed a presence when you two had your little sessions together."
Erress shifted uncomfortably. "I know I should have listened to my instincts, but I thought it was just our own thoughts."
"And understandable. You are a young and naive dragon," Amnael stepped closer to Erress and brushed a few strands of hair aside. "But I thank you for it, for once you two had your impromptu joining at the colosseum, your dragonic magic gave Vect just enough of a boost to become a host for my spirit to take hold."
"You lindworm bastard," Erress spat.
"Call me whatever insult you wish, it does not change the current situation," Amnael turned away from the seething dragon and looked down at Vect. "I do feel compelled to explain that I hold no real hatred towards you. You simply got caught up in the sins of the past."
"How do we get rid of you?"
Amnael chuckled and fixed Izorna with a penetrating stare. "You end the bloodline."
"That's not going to happen," Duinir said slowly.
"Of course not. That would defeat the purpose of getting rid of me."
"You mentioned past hosts, obviously they found a way to keep you from possessing them. How did they do that?"
"They died before I could possess them. This is why I offered my aid to this one," he gestured to Vect.
"What did he offer you," Duinir asked, an edge to his voice.
"He offered to teach me magic," Vect was shocked to have the words forced from his mouth, "the idea was tempting, but I don't trust this thing. I guess the circle affects everyone in it, not just summoned individuals."
"Interesting...Amnael was your offer legitimate," Faral, of all people, asked.
Edran grabbed his twin's arm and forced her to look at him. "What in the nine are thinking? You of all people can't possibly be considering this!"
Faral removed Edran's hand before locking eyes with him. "I am doing what I can to ensure our lord's survival. Just about everyone in our lands knows Vectivus is one of those that can't use magic. Having people underestimate him will make them not see him as a threat. As long as he is stuck with this...thing, he should at least gain some benefit from it."
"I can still hear you, you know. I'm incorporeal, not deaf."
"Just trust me as I have you. Isn't that what family is supposed to do," Faral pleaded.
After a few moments of consideration, Edran relented and let his sister proceed.
"My question still stands parasite."
"It was a sincere offer."
"I'll have your word that you will not put my lord in any harm."
"Why would I put my future in danger," this seemed to amuse the being.
"How can you suggest this? What if he uses this as a chance to free himself," Duinir suggested.
"Ah, but you see I cannot simply possess this one. It is not that simple a task."
"Please enlighten us," Izorna seemed more curious about the inner workings of the spell than anything else.
"In order to free myself," Amnael began, clearly not wanting to reveal how he could free himself, "I must slowly wear down the barriers separating our two sprits, this is a slow, but precise process."
"Then explain the colosseum," Vect yelled. "Nothing about that was slow."
"Again, I owe it all to you," Amnael bowed mockingly. "Your joining ritual is not so different from how I can get free. Your actions not only made you a viable host for me, but also gave me a chance to slip through and gain a temporary foothold. If it wasn't for your friends, we wouldn't be having this conversation, and the high elves would be on their way to a well earned extinction."
Everyone remained silent, trying to find a way to follow a statement like that. Finally it was Duinir who gathered his composure first.
"I think we are done here. Vect I trust your judgement with how to use him. Izorna get rid of him," Duinir waved towards Amnael. He then downed the potion Izorna gave him, grimacing at the taste. "The sooner we leave, the faster we can find some answers."
"I look forward to our first lesson," Amnael smiled before both him and Erress dissipated into smoke as Izorna dismissed the spell.
"Thank you for the assistance, Izorna. Let us get back to the ship," Duinir threw open the shop door and strode out.
"Come visit again," Izorna said cheerily as the rest followed behind Duinir.