The Imperial System: Architect of an Empire

The Sanctum of the First Light.

The name sat strangely in Kael’s study.

Not because it sounded threatening.

Because Sir Darius Valen had gone still when Tavian Merrow said it.

Kael had known Darius long enough to recognize the difference between surprise and concern. Surprise passed quickly. Concern made the man quieter.

Kael leaned against the edge of his desk.

You know them.

Darius looked at Tavian before answering.

I know of them.

Tavian adjusted the crystal lenses resting across his nose.

That distinction is going to become important.

Kael pointed at him.

You speak after he does.

Tavian looked mildly offended but remained silent.

Darius crossed the room toward the large map hanging near the study window. Blackwood occupied only a small portion of it. Aurelia sat far to the east, marked by the Imperial Dragon. Beyond the Empire’s western frontier rose the Silvercrest Mountains, a jagged wall of stone separating Imperial territory from several independent states.

Darius touched a region beyond those mountains.

Solmara.

Kael approached.

A kingdom?

No.

A holy state.

Tavian finally spoke.

Independent territory governed by the Sanctum itself. No king. No Imperial governor. No noble houses in the way Aurelia recognizes them.

Kael looked at Darius.

And they are enemies of the Empire.

Darius’s mouth tightened.

That depends on who is writing the history.

That was not the answer Kael expected.

Grom Ironfang had taken one of the chairs near the hearth. The old goblin rested his spear against his shoulder.

Meaning humans have been arguing so long nobody remembers why.

Tavian looked at him.

Remarkably accurate.

Grom grunted.

I have lived seventy-four years. Humans are predictable.

Darius ignored him.

There has been no full war between Solmara and the Empire in my lifetime. But there are restrictions. Their armed orders cannot cross Imperial borders without authorization. Imperial military units are forbidden from entering Solmara except under treaty conditions. Their priests are tolerated in some frontier settlements and banned in others.

Kael studied the map.

Why?

Darius glanced toward Tavian.

The mage gave a small shrug.

Imperial records say the Sanctum attempted to interfere with the early Imperial succession and claimed authority over matters belonging to the Crown.

And Solmara?

Their surviving public texts claim Aurelia attempted to seize their sanctuaries and place their faith under Imperial control.

Kael looked between them.

Both sound believable.

Darius nodded.

That is usually the problem with old wars.

Kael’s eyes returned to Solmara.

How old?

The hostility?

Yes.

Older than most current kingdoms.

That caught Kael’s attention.

Older than the Empire?

Tavian hesitated.

The Sanctum claims portions of its order existed before Aurelia was founded.

Claims.

Yes.

Can they prove it?

Tavian smiled without humor.

Ask an Imperial archivist and they will say no. Ask a Sanctum historian and they will show you a locked door and inform you that you lack permission to see the proof.

Kael almost laughed.

So scholars get along with them as well as soldiers do.

Worse.

Darius turned from the map.

None of this explains why you mentioned Radiance.

Tavian’s humor disappeared.

No.

It does not.

He walked toward the table where Hugo Stone had left several sealed instruments earlier that evening. Tavian selected a small piece of chalk and drew two circles on an unused section of parchment.

Light magic first.

He tapped the first.

Mana-based. Rare, but not unknown. A mage with Light affinity can produce illumination, concentrated beams, barriers, sometimes restorative effects depending on talent and training.

Kael raised one hand.

A pale white-gold glow gathered over his palm.

Like mine.

Tavian looked at it.

Broadly.

Broadly?

Your magic has already done several things I would not expect from an ordinary Light mage.

Kael lowered his hand.

Such as?

Opening ruins that should not recognize you.

Fair.

Tavian tapped the second circle.

Radiance is different.

Darius spoke.

Sanctum power.

Yes.

How?

Tavian paused before answering.

That depends on who you ask.

Kael gave him a look.

Facts.

I remember.

Tavian leaned over the parchment.

Radiance does not behave like normal mana. At least not according to the surviving studies I read. Sanctum practitioners produce it through methods Imperial mages have never successfully replicated.

Hugo, who had been quiet beside the wall, spoke.

No mana?

Tavian looked at him.

Not exactly. Mana can be present. It simply does not appear to be the source in the same way.

Kael frowned.

Then what is?

The Sanctum says conviction, soul, sacred covenant, divine blessing—

Tavian waved one hand.

Pick whichever religious explanation you prefer.

Grom laughed.

You don’t believe them.

I believe unexplained power remains unexplained regardless of how beautifully someone decorates the answer.

Darius looked toward Kael.

What matters is what it can do.

Tavian nodded.

Healing. Barriers. Purification. Suppression of certain curses and unnatural influences.

Kael’s attention sharpened.

Like whatever came out of Senn.

Possibly.

There was that word again.

This time Kael let it pass.

Tavian continued.

Old reports describe Radiance forcing foreign spiritual influences out of living hosts.

Darius’s gaze changed.

Where did you read those reports?

Restricted College records.

Of course.

Tavian looked at him.

I was an excellent scholar before becoming an administrative inconvenience.

You were expelled.

Administrative inconvenience.

Hugo coughed.

Kael suspected it covered a laugh.

Darius continued.

Why would the Imperial College keep records on Sanctum techniques?

Because knowing how your enemies fight is generally considered useful.

Darius did not disagree.

Kael looked at the faint Light still lingering around his fingertips.

Then my Light and Radiance are not the same.

No.

Tavian answered immediately.

They may have similarities. Your Light caused a reaction in the western structure, suppressed the corrupted crystal temporarily, and forced the thing inside Senn to recoil.

But that does not make it Radiance.

Good.

Tavian raised an eyebrow.

Good?

I already have enough strange things happening to me without discovering I accidentally became a priest.

Grom barked a laugh.

Even Darius’s expression shifted.

Tavian shook his head.

I suspect the Sanctum would be equally disappointed by your attitude.

Kael looked at him.

Would they care that I have Light?

This time Tavian did not joke.

Yes.

The room quieted.

How much?

Enough that I would strongly advise against sending them a polite letter asking whether they can identify your magic.

Kael studied him.

Why?

Light affinity is rare.

That alone wasn’t enough.

Tavian knew it.

He sighed.

The Sanctum is possessive about anything resembling its own power.

They have spent centuries arguing that true purification belongs to their traditions. A prince of Aurelia displaying an unusual Light affinity would interest their theologians, their researchers, and probably several people carrying weapons.

Grom looked amused.

Religious researchers with swords.

They call some of them Dawn Knights.

Grom’s smile disappeared slightly.

That sounds less funny.

Darius returned to the table.

Kael does not contact them.

Kael looked at him.

I wasn’t planning to.

Good.

That sounded remarkably close to an order.

Darius met his eyes.

Then consider it excellent advice from a man who has spent too many years dealing with border politics.

Kael let it go.

For now.

He turned toward Tavian.

Can we test whether my Light affects the residue without using Senn’s entire body?

Tavian stared at him.

That is the first sensible experimental suggestion you’ve made.

Hugo spoke quietly.

You’ve known him less than a week.

Exactly.

Kael pointed toward the door.

Laboratory.

Now.

Tavian’s temporary laboratory had once been a storage chamber on the manor’s western side.

Lily regretted giving it to him within the first day.

Three tables had appeared.

Then six.

Glass tubes filled shelves that previously held winter blankets. Metal frames hung from the ceiling. Chalk covered one wall. Something inside a sealed clay vessel clicked periodically for reasons nobody had explained to Kael.

Lily had drawn a line at explosions.

Tavian had argued that controlled ruptures were not explosions.

Lily had informed him the distinction would not matter when she threw him out of the manor.

He had behaved since.

Mostly.

Senn’s corpse had been placed in an unused stone chamber outside the main residential wing. Marcus Wintermere stood at the door.

Leon Ashford had not returned to guard duty yet; Darius had ordered him to eat and sleep after the eastern mission.

Marcus bowed when Kael arrived.

My lord. Sir Darius.

Anything?

Nothing, my lord.

Did the body move?

Marcus’s expression became flat.

No.

Kael smiled faintly.

Just checking.

I checked fifteen times myself.

Darius glanced at him.

Good.

Marcus seemed unsure whether that was praise.

Darius made it clearer.

Stay alert.

Yes, Sir.

Inside, Tavian did not approach the body directly.

Hugo placed a silver tray on a separate table. Earlier, Tavian had collected a tiny amount of dark residue from Senn’s clothing where the foreign energy had condensed.

It looked unimpressive.

A black stain smaller than Kael’s fingernail.

Tavian pointed toward it.

That is all you get.

Kael looked at him.

I wasn’t going to touch it.

Darius folded his arms.

He was thinking about it.

Kael looked at him.

Whose side are you on?

Survival.

Hugo positioned a glass shield between them and the sample.

Tavian adjusted two crystals around the tray.

Do not flood it with magic.

How much?

Enough to produce visible Light. No more.

Kael held out one hand.

Light gathered.

The room brightened.

Tavian watched his instruments.

Closer.

Kael moved his palm several inches toward the tray.

The black residue shifted.

Hugo leaned forward.

It moved.

I saw.

Tavian’s voice had become quiet.

Closer.

Darius spoke.

Carefully.

Kael reduced the intensity before lowering his hand.

The residue pulled away from him.

Not physically across the silver.

It seemed to fold inward upon itself.

Tavian’s crystal needles trembled.

Hold there.

Kael did.

Something unexpected happened.

A thin golden edge appeared around the stain.

Hugo frowned.

That’s not coming from him.

Tavian checked Kael’s hand.

No.

The gold was forming around the corruption itself.

Kael felt a faint pressure behind his eyes.

Not pain.

More like resistance.

Something inside the stain pushed against his Light.

Then came a whisper.

Kael stiffened.

Darius saw it immediately.

What?

Kael did not answer.

The whisper came again.

Too faint for words.

His Light brightened instinctively.

The black stain convulsed.

Tavian snapped his fingers.

Stop.

Kael withdrew his hand.

The glow disappeared.

The residue became still.

Darius stepped between Kael and the tray.

What happened?

Kael stared at it.

I heard something.

Tavian froze.

A voice?

Maybe.

Words?

No.

Grom, standing near the doorway, adjusted his grip on his spear.

That is enough experimenting for tonight.

Kael looked at him.

You are agreeing with Darius?

I am old, not stupid.

Tavian ignored them both and examined the crystals.

No change in your mana structure.

Kael looked toward him.

Could it have been in my head?

Yes.

Darius’s jaw tightened.

Tavian immediately added.

Or a resonance effect. Or residual memory. Or an attempt at communication.

Grom frowned.

That was three possibilities.

Research is cruel.

Kael stared at the sample.

Did my Light damage it?

Tavian checked the silver tray.

A little.

The dark stain had shrunk.

Not much.

But enough to see.

Kael noticed.

Tavian did too.

Your Light can harm it.

Can it purge a host?

I do not know.

Kael breathed out.

The answer no longer frustrated him.

Not knowing was better than pretending.

Tavian removed the sample and sealed it inside a glass cylinder.

Do not try that alone.

Kael looked at him.

You are giving me orders now?

Yes.

Darius nodded.

Good order.

Grom nodded.

Very good.

Hugo quietly added.

Agreed, my lord.

Kael looked around the room.

Wonderful. I have assembled a council whose only purpose is preventing me from doing interesting things.

Darius looked at the sealed corruption.

Someone must.

The lumber worker woke shortly after midnight.

His name was Bren Talley.

Kael found him in a guest room above the unfinished guild hall because Galahad had refused to move an injured man farther than necessary.

Mara Fen sat near the wall.

Her boots were still muddy from the lumber camp.

Galahad stood beside the bed.

A local healer had cleaned Bren’s wounds.

Kael entered with Darius.

Bren tried to sit.

Lord Kael.

Stay down.

The man obeyed immediately.

Kael pulled a chair closer.

Tell me about the camp.

Bren looked toward Mara.

She already asked.

Now I’m asking.

Mara did not appear offended.

Bren swallowed.

We were cutting north of the ridge.

Which ridge?

Galahad unfolded a local map.

Bren pointed weakly.

There.

Kael studied the location.

Northwest of the central settlement.

Far from the eastern ruin.

That was important.

What happened?

Bren rubbed both hands together.

Started with noises.

What kind?

Knocking.

From the trees?

Below us.

Kael glanced at Darius.

Darius gave nothing away.

Bren continued.

Three nights.

First night everyone thought it was roots shifting.

Second night the horses wouldn’t sleep.

Third night Jory found a hole behind the old charcoal kiln.

Mara leaned forward.

You didn’t tell me there was a hole.

I couldn’t think straight before.

Galahad’s voice hardened.

How large?

Big enough for a man.

Did anyone enter?

Bren looked ashamed.

Jory did.

The missing worker.

Yes.

Alone?

I followed him.

Galahad closed his eyes.

Mara muttered something under her breath.

Kael held up one hand.

Continue.

There was stone down there.

Not a natural cave.

Smooth walls.

Jory wanted to keep going.

I told him we should come back with lanterns and rope.

Did he?

Bren shook his head.

We heard the knocking again.

Closer.

He looked at Kael.

Except it wasn’t from in front of us.

Where?

Inside the wall.

Silence settled over the room.

Bren continued more quietly.

Jory touched it.

The wall?

Yes, my lord.

Then he said someone was calling his name.

Kael felt Darius look at him.

What happened next?

Jory walked deeper.

I tried grabbing him.

He hit me.

Bren touched a bruise near his jaw.

Jory never hit anyone.

Not even drunk.

I ran.

Mara spoke.

And something attacked the camp?

Bren shook his head.

No.

That’s the strange part.

Nothing attacked.

Everyone ran because the horses broke their lines. Then someone shouted that Jory came back.

Kael frowned.

You said Jory was still underground.

He was.

Bren’s eyes filled with a fear that had survived the journey to Blackwood.

I saw him down there.

But men outside said they saw him near the tree line.

The same pattern again.

One person in two places.

Kael stood.

Darius spoke first.

Nobody returns to that camp tonight.

Galahad nodded.

Already ordered.

Mara frowned.

Jory could still be alive.

He could.

Darius did not soften the truth.

But sending exhausted adventurers into an unknown underground structure after midnight will not improve his chances.

Mara held his gaze.

Yes, Sir.

The answer carried reluctance, but not disrespect.

Galahad looked toward Kael.

Tomorrow?

Kael considered the people available.

Darius needed rest despite pretending otherwise.

Iris had spent most of the day tracking.

Victor and Elias had only recently returned.

Mara’s team was exhausted.

He looked at Galahad.

You lead the first inspection at daylight.

Galahad’s eyebrows rose.

Me personally?

Your guild has missing workers and an underground structure.

Yes.

You wanted genuine work.

Galahad smiled faintly.

I did.

Take Mara.

She straightened.

And two experienced guild candidates of your choice.

Galahad nodded.

Black Dragon support?

Kael looked at Darius.

This time Darius did not answer for him.

Kael thought.

Iris needs rest.

Agreed.

Elias too.

Agreed.

Kael considered the roster.

Osric could not be wasted underground while half the territory was being counted and supplied.

Hugo needed to remain with Tavian.

Damien was one of the strongest field-ready Black Dragon members, but Darius had been using him heavily.

Leon was steady and already endorsed for the Knight Examination.

Marcus needed real responsibility.

Kael decided.

Leon Ashford and Marcus Wintermere.

Darius looked at him.

Why those two?

Leon is steady.

Marcus needs experience making decisions when Aura isn’t the answer.

Darius considered.

Good.

Kael looked toward Mara.

You follow Galahad underground.

Not because he is Guild Master.

Because he has more experience than you.

Mara nodded.

Yes, my lord.

If he orders retreat?

I retreat.

Galahad looked pleasantly surprised.

She noticed.

Don’t look so proud.

He smiled.

I wasn’t.

Liar.

Kael liked her slightly more.

Morning arrived with rain.

Not a storm.

A steady gray curtain that turned roads soft and roofs loud.

Kael stood beneath the guild hall’s unfinished awning while Galahad’s party prepared to leave.

Mara checked her bow.

Leon Ashford tightened the straps of his shield.

Marcus Wintermere had wrapped his sword hilt against the rain.

Two guild candidates stood near a pack horse.

One was a former hunter.

The other had served as a caravan guard for twelve years.

Nobody looked heroic.

They looked wet.

That felt more appropriate.

Galahad approached Kael.

Any final instructions?

Come back.

Galahad gave him a tired look.

You and Darius truly are becoming alike.

Do not insult me before leaving on my mission.

Your mission?

Kael corrected himself.

The guild’s mission.

Better.

Leon approached.

My lord.

Kael looked at him.

Yes?

If we find Jory?

Alive, bring him back.

If he behaves like Senn?

Kael’s expression hardened.

Do not assume he is an enemy simply because something has happened to him.

Leon nodded.

If possible, restrain him.

If not possible?

Grom answered from behind Kael.

Then stay alive long enough to explain why.

Leon glanced toward the goblin.

Understood.

Marcus approached next.

He looked less comfortable.

My lord.

Kael waited.

Marcus lowered his voice.

Sir Darius says my Aura is too wasteful underground.

Kael glanced toward Darius, who stood several yards away inspecting the party.

Did he?

Yes.

Then listen.

Marcus frowned.

What if we fight?

Use enough.

Not everything you have.

Marcus looked at his sword.

That sounds simple.

It isn’t.

Kael thought of his own Magic Swordsman training.

Ice.

Light.

Aura.

Darius’s lesson returned.

Use what the moment required.

Nothing more.

Kael looked at Marcus.

You’re not trying to impress anyone down there.

Marcus glanced toward Leon.

Kael followed his gaze.

Ah.

That explained some of it.

Leon already had Darius’s Knight Examination endorsement.

Marcus did not.

Kael lowered his voice.

If you’re trying to earn Sir by competing with Leon, you’re already failing.

Marcus’s face tightened.

My lord—

I didn’t say you can’t become better than him.

Kael looked directly at him.

Become better than yesterday’s Marcus first.

The words sounded painfully similar to something Darius might say.

Kael realized it after speaking them.

Behind him, Grom chuckled.

Kael ignored him.

Marcus bowed.

Yes, my lord.

The party departed.

Kael did not follow.

He wanted to.

That was becoming familiar.

Instead he turned toward the settlement.

Rainwater ran along half-finished drainage trenches. Workers struggled beneath covered scaffolding. One of the wells remained closed. Four southern fields had been marked off. Orrin Belmore’s grain caravan was still days away.

Blackwood did not pause because people went underground.

Neither could Kael.

Darius fell into step beside him.

You chose well.

Kael glanced toward him.

Leon and Marcus?

Yes.

Kael waited.

That’s all?

Were you expecting applause?

Maybe.

You are becoming needy.

Kael laughed.

They crossed the muddy road.

A group of new settlers moved aside.

One elderly man bowed.

Lord Kael. Sir Darius.

Kael nodded to him.

Morning.

The man looked toward the closed well.

My lord, is the northern water safe?

Kael stopped.

Tavian tested it before dawn.

Safe.

The man’s shoulders relaxed.

Thank you, my lord.

He continued on.

Darius watched Kael.

There.

Kael frowned.

There what?

That is why you stayed.

Kael looked after the old man.

No monster.

No sword.

No ancient mystery.

Just water.

Darius continued walking.

Most rulers discover eventually that people remember clean water longer than victories.

Kael smiled faintly.

You won the Battle of Ashen Fields and you’re telling me wells matter more.

To generals, battles matter.

To the farmer whose children never see the battlefield, wells matter.

Kael considered that as they walked.

Then he looked toward Darius.

Did Ashen Fields really happen the way people say?

Darius’s face changed immediately.

No.

Kael blinked.

No?

The stories are terrible.

Kael laughed.

Ten thousand soldiers?

Accurate.

Three kingdoms?

Technically three armies serving three crowns.

Never lost a campaign?

Darius looked forward.

Accurate.

Kael stared at him.

You said the stories were terrible.

They make it sound like I stood alone in a field and frightened three kingdoms into surrendering.

Grom, still following them, spoke.

You should have.

Darius ignored him.

I had officers.

Scouts.

Engineers.

Supply wagons.

He looked toward the muddy road.

Men like Osric.

People remember the sword at the end of a campaign.

They forget the grain cart that got it there.

Kael thought about Blackwood’s fifty soldiers.

The Black Dragon Banner.

Damien.

Leon.

Marcus.

Victor.

Iris.

Hugo.

Osric.

Names.

People.

Not numbers.

Darius stopped before the manor steps.

Build that way and you may eventually have an army worth commanding.

Kael looked at him.

Eventually?

Darius headed inside.

You have fifty soldiers.

Stay humble.

Grom laughed loudly enough for everyone nearby to hear.

Kael considered throwing something at both of them.

Instead he followed.

There was work waiting.

And somewhere north of Blackwood, Galahad Charney was leading the Adventure Guild’s first serious underground rescue mission.

For once, Kael would have to learn what happened the same way every lord eventually did.

By waiting for his people to return.