A sigh escaped Maria as she gave a nod. “If you weren't doing this for me to begin with I would be so mad at you right now.” A slight chuckle escaped Maria as she closed her eyes trying to focus more on her sense of touch. “I'd better get something from my sisters for being the test subject all the time. Perhaps once your research shows results I'll be the first one to benefit from it.”

Joseph, “I'll do my best to insure that you are.”

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Joseph had been to the library of the citadel a few times now and was used to letting it guide him. So he was kind of nervous whenever he realized that he couldn't see the familiar shelves anymore. He had been following the guiding light down a long spiral stairwell past more and more ornate looking shelves. He felt his heart positively skip a beat whenever he found himself look strait at a protector who was now looking back at him. At least she was smiling as he approached her. “Um. Good day. I hope I'm not interrupting your quiet time.”

Naidra, “We have too much quiet time as is. It's nice that there has been some noise in this place.”

Joseph, “After the war with the Amalgam I don't.” Joseph found his words freezing as he looked at the grinning protector. She had just spoken to him. “What. What's going on?”

A slight chuckle escaped Naidra as she held up her hands. “Just relax. I came in order to speak with you.”

Joseph, “May I know why?”

Naidra, “The same reason that you were allowed to walk past two secured doorways. Congratulations the citadel recognizes you as a true Luvarian. This includes several perks such as gaining access to new regions of the citadel and knowledge. It also makes it impossible for us to give you the silent treatment unless you pose a clear threat to the citadel itself. We decided that it would be best if I came to speak with you before you asked something of us by accident around others.”

Joseph, “And you are.”

Naidra, “My name is Naidra and I am one of the five original faelom in every sense of the words. Now the library tells me that you're looking for information on magic eating techniques. I am first going to request that you don't share the knowledge of such techniques with the other apprentices. You see. That knowledge is restricted because it has this terrible habit of killing the unprepared and making their remains into something worse.” 

It felt like Joseph had just been kicked. He knew that some of the knowledge in the citadel was dangerous. Even more so then the alchemy he had learned before hand. So how dangerous was something the Luvarians considered in need of restricting. “Hold on a moment Naidra. You said that I'm a true Luvarian but when did that happen and how did it happen?”

Naidra, “It happened a few weeks back actually but you never came to a point to exercise your new rank. As for why. You have the knowledge required, the loyalty and now you've developed the mind of a true Luvarian. With all three of these things in place it is only natural that the citadel would accept you as one of the Luvarians.”

Joseph, “I see. What mentality is that though?”

A slight chuckle escaped Naidra. She knew Joseph wasn't going to like this next part but he couldn't deny it. His nature and the truth wouldn't allow him. “Joseph the teachings you're trying to develop for the second generation faelom. Have you considered what is going to happen if it works? How their social structure might change when they're no longer chained to this forest for food? Have you wondered what the defective faelom will do with this knowledge?”

It felt like something very heavy was settling atop Joseph. He had considered the dangers of curing the sisters of their hunger early on. As he had began to work on the issue though his attention had shifted away from such cautious thoughts and more towards the goal. He didn't even have a true idea of how powerful the sisters would become if his method worked for them. “I hadn't given it much thought. By faelom I guess you're talking about the sisters. I don't know what the distrusted will do with the knowledge if that's the ones you're talking about.”

Naidra, “Exactly! You didn't think of the ultimate outcome of your work you were so absorbed into the act of creating. That is what it means to be a Luvarian. You may be excited to know that most of the safeguards and ranks the Luvarians applied to their numbers weren't to protect the world from their works. Rather it was to keep the Luvarians from destroying themselves in the act of creating. After all if you're destroyed then you can't create anymore and that would be a shame.” As she spoke it was impossible for Naidra to keep the energy out of her voice.

Now Joseph was thinking again. One of the biggest issues he was thinking about was the distrusted. They were dangerous enough as is but what would happen whenever they were no longer bound to the forest and kept where the other sisters could keep an eye on them. How powerful would they become if his plan succeeded? Thoughts of keeping the knowledge from them entered his mind but he didn't know if that was possible. “What should I do about the distrusted?”

Naidra, “Well if I were in your position I would authorize the original faolem to begin disposal procedures outside of the citadel. It was expected that the second generation would handle such defects themselves but they have been neglectful of their duties. We would have tended to this ourselves long ago but we need permission to kill second generation faelom who haven't taken hostile action against us or stepped within the citadel even if they are defective.”

Joseph, “I can do that?”

Naidra, “They're defective products that serve no purpose. Of course we don't require much to dispose of them.”

This wasn't what Joseph had been expecting to hear. Of course he hadn't been expecting to hear anything from the protectors. A fact that seemed safer to consider then what Naidra was telling him. “So you've been able to speak this entire time?”

Naidra, “Yes. The decision to go silent was one that we made ourselves in order to protect ourselves, the second generation faelom and the apprentices. I'll make it simple. After the death of Lord Liben we continued to communicate with the apprentices and the second generations. Unfortunately they began to push for knowledge that we deemed too dangerous for them to have. When they asked us to teach them we insisted that they learn instead considering ourselves unqualified to teach such dangerous materials. We still do. That was whenever they began attempting to force the information from us using various means. When confronted with the choice of killing the aggressors or going silent we chose to go silent.”

Joseph felt himself recoil from the information bomb that Naidra had casually dropped on him. He had just met her a few minutes ago and she was already telling him more about the sister's past then even they seemed to know. “You couldn't go for some kind of middle ground?”

Naidra, “It was resolved that no middle ground would work. If we simply hurt the aggressors they may resolve that we weren't willing or worse yet unable to kill them. This could lead to even more joining their efforts. Going in the other direction of teaching them small bits of information. Well we do a poor job of resolving what is an appropriate amount of information to be taught. We feared that in our efforts to teach the apprentices we would cause their deaths. As you know magic is very dangerous if used improperly and they were desperate at the time. The probability of them using the magic recklessly and causing their own destruction was quite high.”

Joseph, “I see. But why are you telling me all of this?”

Naidra, “Like I said you were accepted by the citadel as a true Luvarian. That grants you certain rights. I'm telling you this now in hopes that you will choose to keep the fact that we can communicate a secret for a while longer. We have only just now began interaction with the second generation faelom anew and the apprentices. We're not yet certain how it will work out.”

For a moment Joseph said nothing but then gave his head a nod. “Would you harm me if I told the others that I can journey further into the citadel then them?”

Naidra, “You run the risk of becoming a tool for their goals and their purposes. Rather then being able to conduct your own experiments you would spend all your time searching for knowledge that they lack. If you want to risk this happening that is your decision.” As she spoke Naidra could tell she was making Joseph nervous. That was her objective though. “Would you like to know one of the dangers of the knowledge you're asking for now?”

Naidra was trying to frighten him. Joseph felt certain of that. She wasn't threatening him in anyway but she was trying to scare him. Yet she seemed to be telling the truth or at least talking about likely scenarios. “I believe that would be best. I can't create if I'm dead after all.”

Naidra, “It makes me happy that you don't shy away from information. The knowledge you asked for is effectively that of a magic eater. It's tricky. Typically when a mage drains energy from another mage they must first expend some of their energy. As if you're drawing water from a well. You must expend some of your energy to gain the energy. This even extends to when they increase the rate at which energy flows into themselves you're using the energy already in your body to actively pull additional resources to you. What you want to create is a downhill gradient so that the energy flows more rapidly on its own.”

Joseph, “Yes but that gradient naturally occurs as someone becomes more practiced at channeling mystic energy. As if the hill is being warn smooth by the constant flow of water.” By now Joseph was catching up to Naidra despite her pace.

Naidra, “Indeed but you don't have that here. What you're effectively trying to do is teaching someone who's very magic resistant to become even more magic resistant. Now they are two ways to do this. You saturate them with so much mystic energy that they're overwhelmed by it forcing them to adjust just to avoid being destroyed. This process is long, dangerous and costly. The second way is you put them within an energy sink that is so overwhelming that it pulls the energy out of them despite their resistance or in this case despite how the sister's naturally draw on the energy. You force them into a tug of war. They will learn to pull back against the new power drawing upon their energies. After that it's simple for them to draw more powerful from their surroundings and their own spiritual being.”

Typically whenever someone was learning to use magic with no natural attunement a mage or some other magic user would need to force some of their energy into the person. This served to awaken their bodies to the energies as if a door had been opened. It had to be done carefully or the person could be injured or killed and the person may require several attempts to truly learn to tap those energies but it was a necessary starting point. This was often one of the most difficult and time consuming parts of the teaching process. This was something similar just involving someone who naturally absorbed or resisted magic energies. “What happens if they lose the tug of war?”

Naidra, “Now that is the problem. You might be thinking that it's the connection to the spirit that would yield in such a situation resulting in the person's connection to their mystic energies being broken but it isn't. It's the body that we found tends to yield in such a situation. In the past when this happened the body lost its ability to contain certain spiritual energies which began to rapidly flow out into the environment around them. Typically the loss of these energies would result in the person's death or should have but for some reason they didn't quite die but became a sort of undead. Naturally having these energies constantly flowing out of your body isn't a pleasant existence and those who were changed began to actively seek out other sources of these energies to compensate for the constant loss. Other sentient beings were a natural choice for them.”

Jopseh, “That doesn't sound good. Such an aggressive energy flow would have poisoned the world around them even if they could retain their sense of self. With such energies constantly flowing through their bodies there had to be other changes as well.”

Naidra, “Initially they loss the ability to cast any spells that would have required a build up of energy but they could cast those that didn't continuously. It also granted them a new level of resilience. If it wasn't for the near constant pain this might have been an acceptable trade off. As they fed on others though increasing the flow of energy through their bodies the situation became worse as they changed more. In the end it was resolved that such specimens should be contained for further study. If proper containment wasn't a choice killing them was the only other choice.” 

Joseph could feel himself becoming more alarmed. The fact that he was taken Naidra's words as a fact and not doubting her hadn't really registered with him. As far as he knew the protectors were reliable beings. At least Zarena had spoken well of them. Given their abilities and how close they were to the citadel he didn't have any reason to doubt them either. “You're making this sound like a very bad idea.” It made Joseph's heart skip a beat whenever Naidra came to a sudden stop and spun around. He only realized she'd placed her right hand behind him whenever he felt its weight settling on his shoulder.

Naidra, “Of course not! It's a wonderful plan worthy of a true Luvarian! Even if you're very new to this status it's a good plan and I intend to help you implement it. I'm just letting you know the relevant information. In the past we would have simply told you what you needed to achieve your goals and expected you to understand the risks but well we learned how foolish that is a long time ago. You just need to be prepared for the dangers involved and insure that you can do what needs to be done during the development stage.”

Joseph, “By do what needs to be done. You mean if one of them loses the tug of war.”

Naidra, “Well yes.” Before continuing Naidra gave Joseph a gentle push to get him to moving once again. As he started to walk she moved her tail behind him to provide him with some constant encouragement. “I suggest you conduct the testing within the citadel where we can protect you and dispose of any that fall during the tug of war. Perhaps I spoke poorly though. Losing the tug of war doesn't guarantee a complete physical collapse. It depends on how badly they lose the battle and the faelom are very well built. This experiment was never used on them after all.”

Joseph, “Who was it used on then?”

Naidra, “Humans, elfs, orcs just about any sentient being who happened to have a very poor affinity for magic but showed combat ability. The goal was to create a branch of Luvarians to deal with certain mistakes. The project that developed the magic eaters was actually began hundreds of years before even my second birth. It was documented but the results were too lacking to proceed with it. The knowledge that was gained from it did influence other developments for centuries though it even helped in the development of my kind.”

Joseph, “I. I see. Naidra why are you talking to me like this? It feels so strange. Honestly I'm a little frightened.”

Before continuing Naidra moved her tail up and wrapped it around Joseph every so slightly. “Don't be scared. As long as you don't make any moves to destroy what remains of the Luvarians I am compelled and happy to protect you. Even the decision to assist you wasn't entirely my own but compelled by positive feed back from the citadel. Simply put when I help you a true Luvarian the citadel makes me feel pleasure. I understand this may seem strange to you but to me walking with you and talking with you is as natural as it was before the collapse. Ah here we are.”

While Joseph had been watching where he was going he realized he hadn't truly been looking. He found himself in front of a book shelf that seemed different then the ones from the library. The books it held had metal bindings and each held an extremely heavy looking lock. “Do I need a key?”

Naidra, “You have it. These books will only open for someone that has the blood of a true Luvarian. Even if they're forced they only become legible for someone with the blood as well.”

Immediately Naidra's words struck Joseph as strange. “What do you mean by blood of a Luvarian?”

Naidra, “It just means what it means. The citadel has recognized you as a true Luvarian you have walked throughout it's arteries and it has come to know you thus you have the blood of a Luvarian. In time you will begin to feel the citadel's presence and know it as a living being rather then the structure you see it as now. Then you can begin to progress towards further understanding of its nature. Hopefully in time you will speak to the citadel as we do.” As she was speaking Naidra had retrieved two other books and handed them to Joseph. She knew of other books that were relevant to his question but worried she would overwhelm him if she fed him too much knowledge too quickly.

Joseph, “What?”

It was impossible for Naidra to keep from chuckling as she turned to face Joseph. “Joseph this citadel is one of the masterwork of the Luvarians. A womb from which to give birth to new life, new ideas and even new magic. The walls may look to be stone but do you see any chips or scratches? The glow of the lanterns never fade and the floor is never tarnished. Didn't you notice it during the studies of the faelom? There is no blood on the floor or tables the next day. Do you truly believe your cleaning is that thorough?”

Joseph, “I thought the protectors maintained the citadel.”  Joseph could feel his heart rate speeding up. He had seen the protectors tending to the citadel but the way Naidra was speaking it sounded like the citadel was alive.

Naidra, “Naturally we help the citadel in its healing We patch the wounds as you might cover an injury with a bandage but the citadel truly heals itself. It isn't a flower or tree though. The citadel is an animal and more then that. You just haven't reached the point where you can hear the voice or understand it. Perhaps you won't. It all depends on how you advance but I do hope that you will continue to do so. Now Joseph I have a request. Please guide the second generation faelom back to us as best you can. We would like to speak to our siblings once again

Joseph, “How am I suppose to do that?”

Naidra, “Continue what you have been doing. Help them to grow as a people. That and convince them to kill the defective models or give me authorization to do it. We really need to remove that problem before they make off with one of your seeds or something else. If they get out of the forest and we have to track them down it'll be no end of trouble. Now how about we get you back to your faelom companion before she begins to miss you?”

End Book six.