The climb from the Fire Platform to the Earth Platform looked a lot shorter on the map. Merrick had been unconscious and swept away by the water when he descended so he had no recollection of how far it was away. It felt like it took an hour of circling the giant spiral stair several times before he reached the next stop on his journey.
Merrick was unsure of what to expect on the Earth Platform. When he had found himself at the Water Platform, the Elemental in the crystal had tried to push him away. When he had arrived at the Fire Platform, the Elemental was on the verge of exploding and taking the whole prison down with it. So with half of his mind ready for a fight and the other half ready for a time trial, Merrick arrived at the Earth Platform and was a little underwhelmed.
Unlike the other two platforms he had visited, the Earth Platform gave off no considerable energy. There was only a faint pulse of magical energy coming from what remained of the Crystal Coffin. Even the platform felt unsteady as Merrick walked onto it.
More so than the faint energy it gave off, the Crystal Coffin did not seem whole. Rather than a proud column like the other platforms had, this one held a spindly shard of crystal that rose from the ground like a vine that had lost its guide post. As Merrick approached, he cast a glance back to the Vassal of Fire.
Unlike Crudle, this Mephit could talk, and it had made it clear very quickly that it would assist Merrick in any task required but it had no intention of conversing with him. Since making that declaration, the Vassal of Fire had followed a few steps behind him patiently waiting for an order.
Merrick turned back to the remnants of the Crystal Coffin and was greeted by a strong earthen voice. However, the voice was as sundered as the crystal itself: GREETINGS ***** ADVENT- ***** NAME IS ***** MUST ASK ***** RECOVER ***** THREE FRAGMENTS ***** FIRST ***** FAR BELOW.
Merrick took a deep breath once the Elemental within the Crystal Coffin stopped and shook his head softly. He could tell enough about what the Elemental was asking of him even through the broken speech. Merrick placed his hand against what remained of the crystal, "Your brother, Fire, asked me to restore you. I wish he would've known about the fragment down below. I'll go find it and bring it back."
YOU ********* GRATITUDE.
Merrick simply nodded.
Before he turned to leave, the Vassal of Fire hovered closer and spoke directly into Merrick's mind: If I may… as a Mage, you should be able to attune to the crystal's energy and track it down that way. Surely you were not thinking about just heading back down and hoping to find it.
Nearly as soon as the Vassal of Fire spoke the words, Merrick saw a thin line appear in the air. It was like a thread of stardust leading from the remnant of the Crystal Coffin back toward the stairs he had taken to get here. Whether it was a new feature of his class or if it was a specific quest-related skill, Merrick could not be sure.
While following the floating path, reminiscent of older games, Merrick cast a glance upward. It was clear that he would need to solve the Earth Platform before progressing. The stairs upward were destroyed. Several sections were missing and the sections that remained would not support trying to launch himself further upward. It was similar to the broken path he had seen above the Water Platform when he first entered the dungeon.
He paused for a second and looked back at the Crystal Coffin. The first part is far below. Merrick was sure that was what the Elemental had been trying to say. From what he had learned from playing the game so far, it was unlikely that the thread-like path he was about to follow was something as simple as a quest-line like in Fable. If the Vassal of Fire said that it was something a Mage should be able to do…
Merrick reached out and wrapped his fingers around the stardust thread that hovered in the air. With a deep breath, he felt the arcane energy running against his palm. Focusing, Merrick tightened his grip on the thread and felt it respond. The Crystal Coffin vibrated, the Vassal of Fire seemed to approve of the action, and a moment later two more stardust threads appeared.
One shot outward from the Crystal Coffin, parallel to the platform and then into a hole that had been drilled into the wall. The other floated lazily directly upward. Merrick nodded, three pieces. Hopefully as Merrick returned each portion, the Elemental would regain some strength.
Three pieces… The number held in Merrick's mind for a moment. He had noticed it earlier, somewhere… After a moment, he opened up his Knowledge Archive and checked the entry for the Earth Elemental. Fortunately, the Knowledge Archive was kinder than Merrick assumed. He knew that you had to physically read something to commit it to the archive, but now he learned that if he read something before unlocking the Archive Entry, the game would hold onto that knowledge for him.
There was an archive entry now for Pure Elemental (Earth). At the top of the entry was a quote from the book of spirits he had found the Spark Sprite Seal tucked in.
Strength, Growth, Creation. These are the pure facets of an Earth Elemental. More than just power, they can grant strength. More than just health, they can support growth. More than just forming shapes, they hold the power of creation.|
Three facets and three pieces, Merrick nodded and closed the Knowledge Archive. Then he let go of the thread he had still been holding with one hand. The other two stardust threads diminished slightly but he could still see them if he focused. He would need to return the Elemental's strength first, the first piece. Just like the game that it was, Merrick assumed once he had done that a new path would open to allow him access to the second path. The second piece would probably be enough for Merrick to unlock the path upward, at least far enough to get the last piece.
First things first, Merrick knew he had to find the first piece. The stardust thread led him downward, past the Fire Platform and back to the place where he woke up. Classic dungeon, send him back to the beginning after letting him feel like he had made some progress. If this was the kind of game that let him repeat dungeons, he'd need to remember to grab that first piece before heading up to the Fire Platform.
Merrick stood on the edge of the Drain Center looking down at the end of the path. It disappeared into the middle of the drain, through the grate that kept Merrick from being washed even further away.
Sliding down the algae-covered side of the drain, Merrick felt a sickening sensation rising from the ground. He was sure it had not felt like this before, looking back to the Vassal of Fire, Merrick noticed that even the Mephit seemed sick to its stomach.
"Do you know what's going on?"
The Vassal of Fire nodded: Do you know what the first piece of a Pure Elemental is?
"Their strength."
--Yes. Strength. Or Magic.--
Merrick let out a sigh, "Like throwing a car battery into the ocean."
--I don't understand.--
Merrick shook his head, "That magic is leaking out into the ground, since its Earth-aspected energy is essentially being conducted."
--Yes. It has corrupted the ground itself.--
Merrick remembered one of the books he grabbed from the Library and referenced it. The book was titled Regarding the construction of a Prison Tower. On one of the later pages, Merrick found the information that he was fearing. His face grew solemn as he put the book away.
He'd soon be facing his least favorite type of enemy to see in a VR game.
The Vassal of Fire hovered near and seemed concerned: --What did you read?--
"Nothing I did not expect… Below this grate is a sluice that goes to the lowest level of the Prison."
The Vassal of Fire remained silent, so Merrick continued to explain, "The lowest level of the Prison is where they bury the prisoners."
Corrupted earth... Prisoner's graves… Merrick cracked his knuckles and pulled the grate to the side. Abandon hope all ye who enter, he said to himself as he prepared to face off against undead-type monsters.