Bloodlines of the Ancient Pantheons

Chapter 445: CDXLV. The Mind-blowing News

After inviting the other two of them to take their seats around the modest study table, Kranus moved the tomes on it and rolled several scrolls. 

Dag knew immediately that one of them, in particular, was written by him, looking at the inkwell next to it, with a crow feather nestled inside.

"Kranus is a well of knowledge. I have to try to make the most of his intelligence, it will certainly be useful to have such an ally!" he thought, waiting for the mage to begin the explanation.

"So, Dag. As I've already explained, the Crystal of Fire is the most powerful relic on this planet. But its only power is not just to hurt the Frostsinners, even if it was created specifically for that." 

"And what else then? Does it have anything to do with fire? Why is it called that?" Dag asked naively.

"No, the fire has nothing to do with it. It's called that for two reasons... because of its color, reminiscent of the flame, and the fact that it enhances all kinds of magical sources that use that element, that's why your axe is such a strong weapon. Not only for the excellent materials from which it was built but also for the gem, which quadruples its intrinsic power, making it a legendary weapon" Kranus explained, marveling at Dag, who every minute he spent listening to him, learned something new.

"And what is its other power then?" 

"You come from Earth, right? And you arrived here through the Vortex, the machine that the Frostsinners designed to allow us, humans, to make incredibly long journeys in a very short time."

"Yes, that's right. I don't understand what has that to do with the Crystal embedded in the Giantbane..." 

"Patience, boy... I'm getting to that. Even though you were only a kid when this happened, I'm sure you remember how that machine works, using the traveler's genetic code to teleport him only to his target planet, right?" 

"Yes... I remember the Xis Guard forcing me into the Vortex by making a little cut on my wrist or something... then he used my blood to activate the capsule, which in a few minutes teleported me to this planet, causing me to lose consciousness. I remember the first person I saw before my eyes was Hallr, that I never saw again after that day" Dag smiled, looking at Egill and knowing that even though he had known him in different circumstances, he knew and estimated the Guardian of the Vortex.

"Well. Apparently, the Crystal of Fire can bypass this passage, allowing you to activate the Vortex without the involvement of your genetic material" Kranus continued, who did not speak like a normal Viking, having studied a lot about the Frostsinners and their technologies, on some book that could only be found by him.

"Eh?! What? How do you know that? In a nutshell... are you telling me that... through the red gem of the Giantbane, I can..." 

"Trigger the Vortex and choose your destination, without being tracked by alien technology, yes."

Dag retreated to his chair, crawling its wooden legs on the floor, unable to believe those words.

His companions also had difficulty understanding that speech, especially Reidar, who didn't even know how it worked or what a Vortex was, having been born on Skjold, like most Viking warriors he had known.

"This... this could change everything... how do you know that?! How is that even possible that you know all these things?! Where did you get all this detailed information?!" Dag asked, quickly standing up and resting his hands on the table, slinging his shoulders forward, toward the ice mage.

"In reality, they're anything but detailed and you are the first people I've told. This means that this secret, given its importance, should not come out of this room. Wait, I'll show you with your own eyes, so you'll believe what I say" Kranus replied, rising from his throne of bones and turning to the bookshelf, beginning to touch all the ancient books on his shelves one by one.

Meanwhile, Dag's gaze was lost in thin air, between the table and the floor, and a thousand thoughts crowded his mind, after hearing the news that would change his life forever.

Egill put a hand on his shoulder and the two crossed their eyes: "Stay focused, Dag. This news has shocked me too, but it's not yet time to get distracted. Look at that" the Master Of Healing said, pointing his head in the direction of the leader of the Ice Giants leader, who finally pulled the book he was looking for from one of the shelves.

"Here it is" he said, lifting a heavy book with the black leather cover and slamming it on the table because of its weight.

The dust accumulated on the frontal part of the cover and on the pages of the upper part of the book, fluttered in the air, disappearing and Kranus immediately opened the first pages, beginning to flip through them relentlessly.

Dag and the others stood still, trying to look and understand what he was doing, while the magician continued to search for a specific page that would bring to their attention.

Although Kranus was very quick in his movements, Dag still managed to catch a glimpse of something on a page, discovering that even that book, which looked ancient, was not written in elder futhark, but in some other language that probably only a native Krypstorm inhabitant could understand.

At one point, suddenly, the magician stopped and when he found the right page, he turned the book toward his guests, allowing them to look.

The left page was completely written and therefore indecipherable, but on the right one, there was a single big image, clearly hand-drawn and slightly blurred due to time.

In the image, a large crystal of pseudo spherical shape was painted in the center of the page and below it, smaller, there were 6 planets.

"What?... I don't understand..." Dag whispered, reflecting aloud and trying to interpret the full meaning of the image, in which there were also several words written in the ancient language.