ICE

90. Disguise

"This is all very strange," Vyses murmured. He lifted a hand to his face, the pads of his fingers rubbing small circles against his temples. "I will admit. I do not like the way that the castle immediately seemed to fall apart either. Do you know how much time passed between his death and the tremors?"

Ravenna hesitated. "It was almost instant."

Vyses pursed his lips. "There is really only one explanation for that," he said. "This man's life force must have been tied to a spell that maintained its upkeep. The moment he died, the spell stopped working and the castle began to age."

"We might find more information in Tylat's study," Lyth said.

"That's a pretty good idea," Ravenna responded. A wizard's study was sure to be filled with all sorts of answers. Especially if said wizard were anything like Caelan had been about his magic. "We might even be able to locate a spell that will help us get through the forest as well."

Vyses nodded in agreement. Lyth stepped back out into the hallway. Ravenna immediately followed him but hesitated when she noticed that Vyses hadn't moved. She arched an eyebrow at him. "Are you coming?" she asked.

"In just a moment," Vyses said. He waved a glowing red hand out in front of him, his gaze focused on the corpse. "It isn't right to just leave his body like this."

Ravenna watched as a sphere of red magic swallowed the corpse whole. She didn't say anything as Vyses joined her. Both started after Lyth. They followed him down the hallway, toward the massive staircase.

"I believe it is this way," Lyth told them as he led them down the stairs.

They walked through the great hall. Lyth lead them down another hallway and then stopped in front of a set of massive doors. Each door had intricate filigree patterns carved into its wood.

Lyth pushed open the doors. As Ravenna stepped inside, her eyes widened. The room was larger than anything she'd even seen. Caelan's entire house could fit within it, easily. There was a small spiral staircase that lead to the second level. It was shoved into the corner of the room, almost hidden behind a pile of discarded jars and a collection of dead plants. Small bookshelves and tables were pushed against the walls, overflowing with random items and unlabeled jars of ingredients. Just opposite of the entrance sat a podium, pressed against the wall with shelves of various items surrounding it. An opened spell-book was positioned on top of the podium, along with a quill and a vial of ink. On the second level, Ravenna could see numerous shelves lining the walls, overflowing with an assortment of leather-bound books and loose scrolls. It gave her an overwhelming sense of nostalgia, as it reminded her of the bookkeeper's shop back from Caelan's village.

"This is amazing," she whispered, almost entranced by the room.

Vyses nodded absently and moved toward the other side of the room. He examined the podium and then some of the shelves nearby. Ravenna walked toward one of the tables, scanning over the various things situated atop it. There were a few unmarked vials, half-used candles, and a random assortment of herbs. A few globs of some unnamable substance were also present, and almost dried into the wooden table top. She reached out and hesitantly poked at it. Nothing happened.

"This looks almost like a failed spell," she said, poking at the glob again.

"This room is littered with them," Vyses remarked. He gestured toward the other various tables and bookshelves. Globs of dried magic seemed to be stuck to almost every surface in the room, only partially hidden by scrolls and random objects. There were even a few splatters on the walls and floor.

Vyses frowned and turned toward Ravenna. "This is quite strange," he remarked. "These seem to be all from the same spell as well. I don't see any variations in the dried residue."