Chapter 976: Warm Welcome

Noah jumped back as people tumbled from the hissing white gateway. They fell one after the other to the stone platform, sending up a rolling cloud of gray dust that swept over the edges of the platform and drifted gently into the seemingly infinite void below.

A number of complaints and groans rose up from the somewhat disgruntled pile of bodies. The portal twisted shut behind them, letting out a faint pop as it vanished entirely. Noah didn’t waste time with a single word. He let his domain sweep over everyone, trawling through their presence for any traces of the Beyond clinging to their souls.

The Devourer had promised him that this method was completely safe for those traveling through it. This had been one of the old passages that had become defunct in the later years of the Citadel — one of the few that wasn’t meant to operate through the Beyond whatsoever.

But things like this weren’t the type to leave to chance.

Noah didn’t relax until his search came back entirely empty. The only lingering presence of the Beyond here was that of his own soul. The others were all clear. He blew out a sigh of relief that was entirely drowned out by the grumbles of the body-pile.

“Do you really not have a slightly more optimal way to go about this?” Emily’s voice came from somewhere within the writhing mass of people trying to extract themselves from each other. “It’s undignified.”

“It is warm, though,” James said from beside her. “I wouldn’t mind taking a nap.”

“Get your foot out of my ass,” Todd growled — though it wasn’t clear who it was he was speaking to.

“Ow! Lee, no! Stop! No nibbling!”

Some variation of that particular complaint was uttered more than a few times as everyone untangled and dragged themselves to their feet, looking around the room with looks containing varying degrees of awe and brushing the dust from their clothes.

“Whoa,” Jalen said. “Now this is a lair. You had something like this the whole time?”

“No,” Noah replied. “I’ve had it for a few months. I kind of got myself stuck here. It’s a pretty long story. I’ll—”

“Where’s this go?” Lee asked, poking her head over the side of the platform and looking down into the darkness. “It looks deep.”

“It is,” Noah said. “Don’t find out. This is one of the Citadel’s access points. A very, very defunct one.”

That much was definitely true. The room had just been a bit dusty when he’d arrived here a few minutes ago. The lines of runes that had woven through the walls across the pit surrounding the platform they stood on had been disconnected, but at least some degree of the Citadel’s former framework had been there.

That was gone. All that remained now was smoldering cracks in the stone and chunks of cracked rubble one small push from tumbling away from the walls and plummeting into the darkness below. Activating the gate had sent a wave of power through the room, completely shredding just about every single magical component within it.

Noah’s gaze flicked up to the gate in question. It had been a circular structure on the ceiling, imbued with a series of impossibly complex runes that he hadn’t even tried to figure out.

He grimaced.

All that remained were a few chunks of rock. The rest had joined a great deal of the rest of the room in plummeting into the void around them. This place was well and truly—

“Wow. This place is fucked,” Todd said, crouching at the edge of the platform and running his hand over a few remnants of rune-work. His eyes flicked up to Noah. Awe and desire shimmered within his gaze. “But these runes… they were ridiculously complex. Even these scraps are incredible. It looks like some idiot tried to shove way too much power through a pattern that wasn’t meant to hold it. Would would anyone destroy a treasure like this?”

“The idiot would be me,” Noah said dryly. “And I did it because I needed to get a gate opened over to you guys. It turns out that moving the target of a locked passage isn’t very easy. Especially when the passage in question hasn’t been active or properly powered in only the gods know how many years.”

Todd paused for a moment. Then he frowned. “You ruined a treasure like this just to take us here?”

Isabel smacked him on the back of the head. “Show a little appreciation, you brat.”

A sheepish grin crossed Todd’s lips. “Sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Noah said, rolling his eyes. “I hope the trip over wasn’t nearly as bad as the one we took a moment ago?”

“Not even close,” Fist said with a shudder. Then she looked around. “But what is this place? It feels… old. Like a crypt or something. I’ve got the vague sense that I don’t belong here. That none of us do.”

“It’s definitely old,” Noah agreed. “But I wouldn’t worry too much about belonging or not. This is known as the Lost Citadel. Well, I found it. So I guess it’s just the Citadel now. I found it a few months ago when I first got to Obsidia. It’s safe. Just don’t go anywhere I haven’t checked, and don’t touch anything that I haven’t touched.”

“That doesn’t sound all that safe at all,” Silvertide said.

Noah waggled a hand in the air. “I’m working on it. It’s certainly safer than sitting around in Aqua Terra waiting for the Faction Heads to try to recruit you. Because I’ve been there and done that, and they really don’t seem to take ‘no’ as an answer.”

“People in positions of power becoming arrogant asses,” Jalen said through a snort. “Who would have thought?”

Everyone from Arbalest turned to look at Jalen.

He paused.

“What?” Jalen asked. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“More importantly, is the whole place like this?” Moxie asked through a small frown. “Is it stable?”

“It smells bad in here,” Lee informed everyone. A flicker of concern passed through her features. “Like death. A lot of it. Really old death.”

“Don’t worry. It’s stable enough,” Noah said. He paused for a moment. Then he cleared his throat. “Well, this particular area isn’t. I might have slightly blown it up while modifying where the gate went. We should definitely get out of here. The Citadel is slightly in shambles. The majority of it isn’t functional right now. But there are still a few good places that are.”

“You’re really not selling this very well,” Vireth said. She sneezed, and her furry ears twitched in annoyance. “We have to avoid touching anything, entering any areas, and the majority of it is destroyed.”

“Don’t be disrespectful,” Aylin said. “It is a place outside the domain of Obsidia that Lord Spider has shared with us. The fact that it even exists is incredible. We’re safe from Rank 8s here. Right?”

“We’re safe,” Noah confirmed.

From most of them.

“Is there anything else we should be aware of?” Moxie asked curiously.

“A lot,” Noah replied. “We have a lot of catch-up to do. I want to hear how things have been for you all as well. But for the time being, suffice to say that the Citadel is an ancient research facility that was working on some pretty dangerous shit. Most of that is dealt with now. The rest is either dangerous, incredibly useful, or both.”

“Is that so?” Interest shimmered in Moxie’s eyes. “Is there a library?”

“Better,” Noah said. “There’s a central nervous system that has all the information recorded within the Citadel. Libraries too. But a lot of the records are disconnected right now. The damage needs to be repaired before they can be safely accessed.”

“There are runes? More of them?” Todd asked, rising to his feet. “Like the ones in this room?”

“A lot,” Noah said. “To be honest, I was hoping to enlist you to try and figure out how to repair some of them. It’s beyond me.”

Todd’s eyes went wide. He started nodding before Noah had even finished his sentence. “Yes! I’ll help!”

“Thank you,” Noah said with a grin. “I do want to do a proper introduction and make sure you’re all aware of where things stand, but we really should get moving. We can do it in a safer area.”

“We all mostly know each other,” Brayden said. His eyes narrowed slightly in suspicion. “An introduction implies the existence of someone we don’t know. Is this place empty?”

Noah cleared his throat. “Well. Not exactly. We have a bit of company.”

“What does that mean?” Fuyin asked. The former Inquisitor’s stance lowered as her eyes darted around the room. “Are there enemies present? Should be ready to fight?”

“No, no. Nothing like that.” Noah waved his hand. “And please don’t fight anyone here. Not outside of the designated areas. We just aren’t entirely alone. There’s also—”

A rumble rolled through the suspended stone platform they stood on. Everyone staggered, and a number of them spun in search of the source.

Hundreds of loud clicks echoed through the darkness, coming from every direction and growing into a thunderous roar. The shadows in the pit twisted as something rushed through it. Murmurs of unease rolled through the group as everyone reached for their magic.

“There’s something down there,” Todd warned.

“You think?” Alexandra asked. “What is that? It’s huge!”

“I’ve seen bigger,” Jalen said.

And then, before Noah could say anything, the Devourer arose from the darkness. The monster’s pitch black scales had let it nearly blend completely into the pit. Its many legs twitched at its sides as it rose up to loom over them all, the crimson red eyes lodged in its great, wretched face boring down in a curious gaze.

Several people cursed. Silvertide’s eyes went wide in horror, while Jalen’s immediately lit up in delight. Ulya dove behind the puppet she’d brought with her and Tim let out a murmured prayer, though Noah couldn’t have said who it was he was praying to.

“Nobody attack!” Noah barked. “This is not an enemy!”

Jalen’s shoulders slumped.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” he said. “Does that mean I can’t kill it?”

“I’m with him,” Brayden muttered. “Seriously? This isn’t an enemy?”

“Yes,” Noah said. He sent a flat look at the Devourer. Its mandibles twitched. The monster was definitely enjoying the small amount of terror it had inflicted. He let out a sigh. “This is the Devourer.”

“The Devourer,” Violet repeated. She glanced at Noah nervously. “That doesn’t sound like an ally.”

“I didn’t say it was,” Noah said. “It’s simply not an enemy. We have an agreement.”

“As expected,” Aylin breathed in awe. “Lord Spider has tamed even a beast as great as this.”

Damn it. I’m never going to get him to treat me like a normal person, am I?

“How big is this thing?” Moxie whispered. She looked from Noah to the Devourer. “And are you really certain that it’s not an enemy?”

“It looks enemy shaped,” Lee said. She drummed her fingers on her axe. “And smells like it too.”

“Quite certain,” Noah said. “Because it knows exactly what will happen if it decides to go for an easy snack. Isn’t that right?”

He sent a sharp look to the massive centipede monster.

“None of you have anything to fear from me,” the Devourer hissed. “I was simply coming to observe who I am not permitted to consume.”

“Gods,” Alexandra said, flinching. “It can speak.”

“That seems a bit mean,” Sticky said. “You shouldn’t be so surprised when someone speaks.”

“Sorry,” Alexandra said.

“Thank you, the Devourer said. It lowered, its molten eyes sweeping over them once more. “It is a pleasure to make all of your acquaintances.”

Everyone stared at it.

Then, as one, their gazes turned to Noah.

“Anything else we should know?” Moxie asked.

“Oh, almost certainly.” Noah grinned. Relief finally managed to set in as the weight on his shoulders lifted. They’d all made it. Alive. Safe from the Rank 8s and the rest of Obsidia — at least, for the time being. And that was enough. He extended his arms out to his sides. “But, for now… allow me to officially welcome you all to the Lost Citadel.”