Chapter 49: The Gloomy Castle
"Isn't it early?" The mistress of the mansion asked, interrupting her amulet training. - It's eight hours before the parade of planets begins.
"Just right, from the teleportation point about ten kilometers will have to pass, and it is better to do it slowly and with all precautions, besides your students still have to stealthily penetrate into the castle.
"Damn," the illusionist bit her lip, "maybe we should think of something else?
"Zatanna, you realize you have no choice. Neither you nor I would last a minute under the antimagic barrier, and it would take almost fifteen minutes to remove it.
The barrier is still active, and the ten amulets are completely useless while the barrier is active. Fortunately, according to John, the fanatics, who received minor powers from their patron, imagine themselves true rulers of magic, so they do not use the benefits of technological progress, including alarms and weapons. They may be able to do some tricks, but without connection with Melholm they are unlikely to be able to cast something dangerous, plus the disruption of connection will have a good effect on the general well-being of the strongest adepts.
"All right, - the sighing sorceress agreed with the arguments of her fellow mystic, - I'll try to finish here quickly and come to your aid.
"Huh, forget it, if the altar is destroyed, I'll be fine on my own. - The mage replied with a smile.
"I wish... You're responsible for them. - The brunette said seriously, and after a slight nod from the wizard, she headed for the door of the training room. - After you change, follow the light. - From her palm separated a small glowing pink ball, which hovered at the entrance. - I'll go prepare the ground.
"Change of clothes?" The mage asked incredulously.
"She's not the one for you. - I unzipped the bag against the wall, and pulled out the seylor-fuku, tossing it over to Harley, who immediately started pulling off her top.
"Ah... I see...
"Why don't you get out of here?" I've got my back to my beloved, who's changing.
"Ahem, yes, I'll meet you at the teleporter. - The man hurried after his friend.
"No shame, no conscience. - I shook my head, staring at his retreating back.
***
"What's this..." John whispered with one lip when he saw me with the girl. The cigarette he was about to smoke fell out of his mouth in surprise.
"Ha ha ha! Those are our hero images. - I replied with a wide grin as I watched the warlock's face stretch. - You can call me Knight of Moonlight, and her Sailormoon. - A nod to the companion in the adorable outfit. - Our small yet very cool tandem stands for boundless goodness, justice, and peace!" My spiritualized and enlightened (literally) face could be envied by any monk, but my performance was appreciated only by Harley, looking with eyes full of happiness and adoration. The rest of the audience was clearly skeptical, and some of them looked like they were about to sink into the depths of despair.
"Yeah... The Earth seems to be fucked. - The mage shook his head dejectedly.
Looking at his agony, Zatanna suddenly grinned:
"Surprisingly they aren't too bad and for the upcoming case they are perfect.
"One hell of a choice... Wait, where are the guns?
"Here. - After activating the cane, there was a small sparking discharge at the end of it. - There's also a harpoon function, but I don't want to mess up the walls.
My favorite with a smile demonstrated a similar functionality on the striking part of a baseball bat painted a pretty pink color, heck, it looks even more cool than mine.
"Ahem... That's it?" The mage asked diplomatically, trying to hold back a nervous tic and a burst of profane words.
"Of course not! There are a couple of grenades, explosives to destroy the altar, metal cards. - I opened my cloak like an exhibitionist and showed off my gadgets.
"Yeah, grenades are good. You didn't happen to bring any assault rifles, did you?
"Why?" I looked at myself perplexed, the machine gun didn't fit my image, and it would get in the way.
"You will face at least a hundred fanatics in the castle and a firearm would come in handy.
"I have a gun. - A second and Sailor, like a cowboy, deftly twirled the seventeenth Glock she'd pulled out from under her skirt. - What?" she asked in response to my surprised and bewildered look. - I always carry it just in case.
"That's something. All right, it's up to you. - The wizard gave up, picking up the fallen cigarette, after a careful examination he put it in his pocket. - I'll go help with the portal.
John walked over to the enchantress drawing signs in the air, helping her with the activation, and I looked at my companion.
"Hmm. - My hand touches her ass.
"A knight?
My palm slid lower, bumping into a spare magazine, then another. Just when I thought her skirt was bunching up weirdly. Oh, and those appear to be throwing knives. Damn, I'm surprised I didn't notice all this while she was changing clothes, it was like magic.
"Mr. J... A little lower..." the blonde whispered hotly, clutching at my shoulder.
"Oops, got carried away. - It didn't take long for my impromptu inspection to turn into something more intimate, and Harley didn't need much, her legs twitching.
And yet both mages are quite engrossed in creating the portal and not looking in our direction.
"Ah...
Pressing my lover against the wall, clamping her mouth shut and feeling her begin to caress my palm with her tongue while my free hand begins to stroke the girl's expiring pussy.
"Mpf!" It was only a minute and Harley cummed, clenching her thighs and collapsing on top of me.
"You're fucking crazy!!!" Zatanna's outraged cry behind me brought me back to reality. - We're setting up the portal, and they're making out.
Huh, so she didn't understand a damn thing, or we would have gotten a sudden cold shower for sure.
"It's okay, I was just helping her strap on her throwing knife harness.
"Uh-huh. - I was being scrutinized with a suspicious look.
"Zee, do you really want to hear the truth in detail?" I asked ironically, holding the blonde by the waist.
"I'll be fine. - The illusionist shook herself, not correcting me; she seemed to realize the futility of this exercise. - Now listen to the brief instruction on how to use the portals.
Wow, I hadn't noticed the elephant. Behind the sorceress's back, a three-meter pancake shimmered with all the colors of the rainbow. Its edges touched a stone ring made of blocks with a bunch of engraved glowing symbols. It looked like the Stargate from the TV series of the same name, only it was less technologically advanced and lacked a control panel.
It was a so-called "Stable Portal": both points are rigidly fixed in space. This configuration is mostly used for traveling long distances or to other worlds. Since the transition is stable, there is no need to visualize the final point of the route, unlike normal teleportation. The process of moving can not boast of convenience and comfort, according to the sorceress, it can be compared to a roller coaster, only it is desirable not to stick out your hands beyond the barrier: to tear off - will not tear off, but it will be little pleasant, well, and at the end of partially preserved inertia, so you need to have good dexterity and coordination to stay on your feet.
Eh, the Justice League station clearly used better technology.
The three of us stand by the shimmering circle, still the thing looks a little suspicious, even Harley looks at it incredulously, though she is attracted to bright and unusual things, like a moth's light.
Noticing our nervousness, John said with a sigh:
"Okay, I'll go first and pick you up on the way out so you don't get killed. - Two steps forward, and he disappears behind the rainbow film.
I stared at the multicolored pancake, waiting for a signal, since it was better to move one at a time.
"He didn't do anything to calm me down.
"Don't be afraid. - She smiled reassuringly, standing at the side of the stone platform. - It's perfectly safe, and you'll be welcomed.
"It was still kind of creepy. - Sailor poked the foil with her weapon, a blink, and it burst out of her hand, disappearing into the portal. - My bat!" Harley fish-dived after her.
"Shit! I'm coming after you.
"The witch, who was suddenly left alone, thoughtfully stretched out. - Maybe we should go to the neighboring dimension after all?
***
It really felt like a roller coaster ride, though I'd compare it to a water slide... Only without the water and with a cool visual accompaniment: behind the translucent barrier, there were blurry multi-colored blobs of the conjugate dimension used for movement. Huh, that's pretty cool. I relaxed, watching the scenery outside. Two minutes later, the blurs became less frequent, and the exit appeared ahead.
"Ha ha!
I fly out of the pipe, and not keeping my balance, I go into a roll, in time to notice that I found myself in some abandoned warehouse.
"Sailor, are you okay?" The first thing I asked was to get up off the floor and look around. A small five-by-five meter area had been cleared for the portal, while the rest of the space was filled with dusty boxes of junk. A few fluorescent lights flickered under the ceiling, illuminating all this splendor. In the center of the installation lay my beloved on a pile of tarps, clutching a pink baseball bat.
"It's great, Mr. J. I fell on something soft. - She jumped up immediately, running over to me with eager eyes. - This is cooler than a roller coaster! Let's do it again!
"I don't think it's going to work. - I turned around, seeing the fading sparks where the portal had been. - Where's John?
"Oh... My head... - The pile of tarp that had cushioned the blonde's landing moved and the missing warlock came into view, holding his buzzing head. - What happened...
"Uh... Nothing. - The girl hid her weapon behind her back, retreating behind me.
"Shit, I guess some nasty thing must have gotten through the pipe again. - The man conjured a piece of ice, which he applied to the lump on his forehead. - I told Zatanna not to spare energy to strengthen the barrier, but now I've got to catch this shit. I'll deal with it later, I have more important things to do right now. Come on, we don't have much time.
In a couple of minutes we were walking through the streets of a night town with a funny name, Valya-Visheului, though the one who called it a town obviously had a very strange perception. There were barely two and a half thousand inhabitants, and the only attractions were a church, a grocery store, and a railroad station.
The wizard's rented warehouse, which seemed to be the only one in the village, was on the very outskirts, so we easily made our way to the broken road that led to the mountains to the north.
***
"Break. - Ten kilometers later, the mage threw off his backpack, settling down on the trunk of a fallen tree by the roadside. A couple of manipulations and three translucent silver silhouettes resembling foxes separated from him, which trotted in different directions. - Guardian spirits. - He explained his actions. A few more gestures and a dome unfolded above us, followed by several bright lights, illuminating the space. A slap on the trunk and it expands into a table and a bench.
"John, you're not a hereditary mage, how did you get so much mana?" I asked impressed by the small demonstration. The Zatara family are hereditary wizards and mages, plus a dragon dweller to help sway the reserve, but John didn't have any of that in the comics.
"I'm connected to the magical dimension. - For some reason, he answered grudgingly, pulling a few gems out of his backpack and placing them in a triangle on the raised table.
"Uh, how does Zee feel about that?
"How should she feel about it? She's also connected to a similar measurement.
"Wait, aren't occultists and dark magicians doing the same thing?
"Of course not. They sell their souls to sentient beings, and we keep ours. - Said the man with a sad grin. - If you want to know why all wizards don't do that, it's a matter of character, the original coloring of magic, work and luck. So, all questions later, let's deal with the cult first.
A hologram of a beautiful ancient castle was woven over the gemstones, and I'm sure the HUD was definitely not involved. Our task was to penetrate the dungeon located under the throne room. Luckily for us, all the adepts preferred to wear closed black hooded hooded robes, so nothing would prevent us from mingling with the crowd. The plan was interactive, allowing us to scrutinize all the approaches and map out retreat routes. After that, it was time to split up: the warlock had an aura that was too powerful for even undertrainees to detect.
Dawn was about to break, so the last five kilometers had to be covered by running through the forest under the chameleon spell John had kindly cast on us. It was just enough to reach the rocky foot.
In contrast to the hologram, the building looked more impressive: many towers reaching upwards, arched passages, narrow windows, the castle looked as if it had come straight from a fairy tale. The only thing that spoiled the impression was the asphalt road: it looked too modern and alien.
Why the hell did we go through the woods when there's such a convenient approach? Okay, I'm just grumbling. It's clear that obvious routes should be protected somehow.
"There's no one upstairs. - Harley whispered after a five-minute pause.
"That's great. - My heart fluttered with anticipation. Ha ha, let's blow the fanatics away!
~Wshuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu~
~Zwiak~
The harpoon is successfully hooked at the very edge of the wall. I put my arm around my beloved's waist, pressed the button, and we began our leisurely ascent. At the top, we immediately went to the bedrooms to get the local uniforms.
Unlike the facade of the castle, the interior was more in keeping with the abode of cultists worshipping a cruel demon: ornate tapestries depicting some bloody scenes and rituals, real torches hanging on the walls, slightly dispersing the surrounding darkness, atmospheric.
As it turned out, there were still guards in the form of two sentries roaming the corridors and outer walls, but we were in no hurry to attack them and take away their clothes. It was more than two hours before the parade started, and the guards' disappearance would definitely be noticed.
"No, Brother Virgil, not on this auspicious day, for they will be looking for us. - As I passed one of the corridors, I heard some fussing and an embarrassed and exasperated voice.
"Angelica, don't break down. Everything is taken into account and no one will notice our absence.
"But the sentries...
"They're not going to pass ~smack~ here.
Harley and I looked at each other. It was perfect.
"Should we let them finish?" The blonde whispered, listening to the sounds of commotion in the back of the room.
I had to nod. Forty-three seconds. Not exactly a record.
Harley and Harley look at each other, and both targets are sent into dreamland. They didn't even have time to squeak, and the man received a sharp blow to the head with a baseball bat.
"I should have taken them out right away, so as not to upset the poor girl. - My lover scratched her blond head in embarrassment and began to undress the girl.
I got Brother Virgil. Damn, he's a little short, I concluded as I tried it on. Hmm, Sailor's goal was a little taller.
"Why don't we swap?
"Nah, it won't work. - The girl patted herself on the shoulder. - Your patch is red with three stars in the center, and mine is blue with one. If those things are for gender, we could get into an awkward situation.
"Eh. - I sighed sadly, hunching over a little and pulling back my hood. - I sighed sadly, hunched over a little and pulled on my hood.
After binding both targets tightly and giving them an extra pounding on their cauldrons, we headed further down the corridor.
Weekly Power Status
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