Spear of Destiny by James Baldwin (little bear else holmelund minarik .TXT) 📕

the generals of the armies required to defeat the Drachan. It is the only part of the Triad which is replaceable in any given cycle, as any of the Warsingers and their pilots may fulfil this role. In any case, their fate is battle, to spill blood in the fight against annihilation. There are doors within the Dragon Gates that can only be unlocked with the blood of a pilot, someone who is either genetically attuned to one of the Warsingers, or who has become attuned by successfully activating or controlling one.”

Karalti scratched her head. “But there’s only one person in the Warsinger Triad part.”

“There are two.” Sanayam looked down. “Each Warsinger possesses a soul of exceptional power, bound to a crystal at its core. It is this core which holds the magic of the machine together. Without it, it would tear apart under its own weight.”

Suri sucked in a short breath. “That’s why Withering Rose was scattered all over the bloody place. When Ororgael took the Heartstone, she broke up.”

“How do we fix it?” Rin asked eagerly.

The Avatar shook his head, looking down. “The details of how the Warsingers were accomplished are... technical.”

“Do you have schematics? Records? Anything that can tell us how they were made?” She laced her hands and gripped them together.

The Avatar’s gaze slid to Rin. “A great deal has been lost over five thousand years. However, we know where some records may lie. If there are any left, they are almost certainly entombed in the Chorus Vault of Perilous Symphony.”

Rin let out a squeak of excitement. “Then I was right! The plans are here! We need to repair Withering Rose, the last of the Warsingers. And if we had those schematics...”

“We do not know if there is anything left for you to find.” The Avatar turned his cup in his hands, which was now half empty. “If you know where the Chorus Vault is, then you also know that it has sunk off the coast of this island.”

“We have to try.” I fixed a determined glare on him. “And if we step through that portal and get crushed, so be it. I’ll do it.”

“You will not!” Rin scolded me.

“Spoken like a true Paragon.” Sanayam reached into his sleeve, and withdrew a perfectly round, clear orange stone. As he held it on his hand, I felt the Spear begin to hum and vibrate where I had laid it on the floor beside me.

“This is the Clinohumite of Loving Embrace,” he said, rolling it off his palm and into the air in front of him, where it hovered under the impetus of his will. “The Keystone to the Tomb of Devana, the Solonkratsu goddess of Earth, Eggs, and the Sun. I believe you already know where to find her Dragon Gate. There is a portal there, constructed during the Fourth Cycle by Pathfinder, an accomplished mage, Queensrider, and the bearer of the Spear in that age. Like the first Paragon, Siva Nandini, she was one of my people. Please, present the Spear.”

I lifted my weapon up, and the keystone drifted over and securely locked itself into its slot. The Spear seemed to struggle in my hand, vibrating intensely against my fingers as a new description appeared:

  The Spear of Creation

Soul-bound Light/Dark/Fire/Earth Elemental Weapon

Slot: Two-handed

Item Class: Relic

Item Quality: Mastercrafted

Damage: 604—717 Slashing or Piercing

Durability: 25%

Weight: 1lb

Special: Soulbound, Elemental Quadrat (see description). +400 Damage to Undead, +800 HP, +12 Strength, +25 Will, +10 Wisdom. +25% Evasion, 3% chance to instantly kill an enemy, +15% Stamina Regeneration, +100 Adrenaline Points, Mark of Justice (see description), Mother’s Grace. Special Abilities

Elemental Triad: At will, you can change the elemental polarity of the Spear of Creation between Light, Dark, Earth and Fire damage, potentially dealing bonus damage to susceptible enemies.

Maker’s Blessing: Learn crafting skills 8% faster.

Nightfather’s Blessing: 9% of inflicted weapon damage heals the wielder.

Mark of Justice: During combat, you may designate one opponent as a marked target. Your attacks against that target increase in priority and deal 10% more base damage for 5 minutes. This damage stacks with ability damage and combos.

Mother’s Grace: If you fall below 10% health, you immediately regenerate 50% of your total Stamina and Adrenaline points.

The energy in the Spear equalized and settled—but as I looked down at it, I had an eerie sense of it somehow staring back at me. The addition of the fourth stone had made it feel lighter and heavier at the same time.

“Take that stone to the portal, and you will be able to activate it.” Sanayam withdrew his hands into his robes. “That may well be all you needed from me, but if you have other questions, I will do my best to answer them.”

I tipped my head to one side. “I’m curious about something. It’s almost like you were expecting us.”

He bowed his head. “We—myself and the Avatars before me—have been noting the decline of the Greater Shield for at least a century. The timing correlates with the planned obsolesce of the Shield Cycle, and thus I expected that I would meet the Triad of the Sixth Age within my lifetime.”

Set the Spear down and scratched my jaw. “Planned obsolesce? The Caul of Souls was meant to fail?”

“Yes. Magic is not water-tight, Paragon. As time moves, mana decays, and endlessly repeated words of power begin to fade.” Sanayam gestured to the ceiling. “The magic of the shields can last slightly over a millennium before it must be repaired. The Prime Geas, created when the dragon gods willingly sacrificed themselves for their host planet, perpetuates the Greater Shield Cycle. This geas rules that a Triad will appear approximately a century before the Caul of Souls risks failing from lack of maintenance. I believe that you are that Triad, which means the continuation of the Caul