Evolution: A Warlock’s Rise To Power

Lucan and Silent entered the fortress and were surprised to see Lilith, Raze's daughter, standing there.

"What do you want?" Silent asked in a not so polite tone.

"I came to speak to Lucan; it doesn't concern you."

"Do you have what you owe me?" Lucan asked.

"Umm, I haven't gotten my father's research yet."

"Then it doesn't concern me either." Lucan said, walking past the girl.

"Do you really think that you stand a chance against the Plague Baron?" She called out.

Lucan stopped. "Why wouldn't I?"

"He has been a Hand for a long time. He will have many tricks up his sleeves. Out of all my father's subordinates, you are capable of doing the least amount of damage."

Lucan frowned. "You don't know what I am capable of. I will not be defeated."

"Hmpf, I am offering you an opportunity to acquire the damage you lack. I don't want to have to steal from my father and I want to see you succeed. I can give you a chance to acquire some damage dealing spells if you call off our previous arrangement."

Lucan thought to himself. He had made a large improvement in his understanding of ethereal energy after he visited the ethereal realm and became a champion. Raze's research may not be able to provide him any additional insight.

"Alright, speak. If it is worth it, I will cancel our previous deal."

"I happen to know the location of a wizards tower. The wizard who owns it practices the destruction branch of magic. If you defeat him, there is a good chance you might find a destruction spell book or two."

"Hmm… How strong is this wizard?" Lucan asked.

"He is just a little stronger than you."

"What do you think?" He asked Silent.

"It may be worth checking out."

"Alright, if I get a spell that does damage, I will call our deal off. Does that work for you?"

"Deal."

"Okay, give me the location."

"What do you mean, I am coming with you."

"Like hell you are." Silent said.

"Just give us the location. It will be easier this way." Lucan said.

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"When I found the wizards tower, I was cursed to never speak of its location, but I can show you."

"You are lying." Lucan said.

"Psh, you can't prove it."

"We don't want you coming with us. We are fine on our own. Just give us the location." Silent said.

"I can, but… it will cost you extra."

"What do you want?" Lucan asked.

"You have to sit down and have a meal alone with me."

"Absolutely not. Over my dead body." Silent interjected.

"Fine, fine, how about a strand of your hair."

Silent looked to Lucan and shrugged.

"Alright." The warlock said, plucking a strand of his hair and handing it over.

"Good, good, good. Here is the location…."

***

Lucan and Silent stepped out of the teleporter. They had to fly for almost an hour till they came to the edge of a canyon.

Lucan used his new visual ability to confirm that the wizard's tower was in this location. It was.

"Get ready. I am sure the wizard is not going to be happy with us breaking in."

Silent nodded.

Lucan prepared to use his third racial ability.

[Planer Portal]

[Champion is able to use ethereal energy to temporarily create an opening between two realms. The number and size of portals are only limited by the amount of ethereal energy the champion has under his control.]

Lucan opened a portal to the land of fey. The birthplace of elves. If the shadow realm was seen as a negative representation of the material plane, then the land of fey was a positive version. The sun shined brightly, plants were abundant, and a calming breeze rustled the nearby leaves.

Lucan was not fooled by the gentle and serene atmosphere. Fey creatures were known to be cunning, devious, and ruthless. They may look cute, adorable, or beautiful, but they were true monsters.

Lucan led Silent through the portal.

On the edge of the canyon stood a fiery red wizard's tower. They both held their breath, but it seemed as if they weren't going to be attacked right away.

They walked around the tower only to find that there wasn't a door. Leaning against the wall they found that they couldn't use ethereal step to bypass the tower's defense. The tower was protected from planer travel, so as to not let visitors just pop up inside.

"What should we do?"

"I am not sure." Lucan said shrugging.

There wasn't a single window on the tower. As much as they looked, it seemed there was no way in. With the eye of Mentas, Lucan was sure that an illusion was not hiding the entrance.

"She said he was a destruction wizard. Maybe he just blasts a hole every time he goes in and repairs it."

"I don't know, that seems like a dumb thing for a wizard to do. Aren't wizard towers supposed to be all about traps and puzzles and what not." Lucan replied.

"Maybe, but in my mind, destructions wizards are the jocks of the wizarding community. It seems worth a try. Do it for me and I will give you a big kiss if I am wrong. You can let your hands wander and I won't stop you." Silent pleaded.

"Okay, you don't have to convince me. I will give it a try even though it won't work. Then get your lips ready, we can go behind those trees and have some fun while we think of other ways in."

Lucan didn't have very many destructive abilities. He used Soulfire on the side of the building. After a minute of channeling he ended the spell and a small green orb of concentrated soulfire appeared on the end of his scepter. With a wave he sent it towards the wall.

*Bang*

Lucan didn't watch the results, but he saw the smile spread across Silent's face.

"Quick, it's regenerating." She said, grabbing his hand and leaping through the opening in the wall that was slowly closing. The shattered bricks were forming back together, sealing them inside.

They took a quick look around. The room was barely filled. There was a coat rack and some bad weather clothes laying around along with a set of muddy boots. They headed to the stairs and went to the second level.

They found a bed, a desk, a wardrobe, and a few other amenities. It looked as if this was where the wizard normally rested.

"I am not really seeing anything of value." Silent said.

"Me either, let's keep looking higher."

"Wait a second. Where did the desk go?"

"What do you mean, its right over the-." Lucan's words stopped in their tracks. He was pointing to where the desk had been previously located, but now the space was empty.

He looked around the room, something dropped behind Silent.

"Watch out." He said pushing her to the side.

*Whap*

A leg of the desk acted like an arm and tossed Lucan aside. He tumbled backwards and took a closer look.

The desk was standing on two of its four legs and using its other legs as arms. The desk was alive, it was some sort of wood golem.

Silent quickly fired an arrow towards the wooden desk. It held up its chair as a shield. The arrow plunged into the backrest of the seat and didn't do any damage to the desk.

A drawer on the desk opened and one of its legs reached in. With a quick throwing motion, three pens flew through the air towards Silent.

She rolled out of the way and each pen lodged itself into the wall.

Lucan conjured the Sword of Corruption and charged towards the desk. As he drew near, the desk used the chair to deflect his first strike. A second drawer suddenly opened and hundreds of sheets of paper shot out into the room to block their vision.

*Bang*

The desk had returned to all fours and charged into Lucan like a bull, running him over and stomping on him until ten shadow arrows struck deep into the desktop sending splinters flying off.

"Die you stupid desk." Lucan shouted while using his sword to hack and slash at the piece of furniture. He only stopped when he cut the desk in half.

He went to wipe the sweat off his brow when he was tackled from behind. The two pieces of the desk were still alive and attacking him.

"Damn it. Adrestia!" Lucan shouted.

The shadow drake dove from the ethereal realm to appear by his side. Lucan used ethereal step to protect himself while purple hellfire spread across the wood.

A few moments later, only ash was left.