At the heart of the Empiryan Capital of Keisern.
Deep below the Earth, hidden from the gaze of the whole world, pulses of pure mana shook the great hall.
" Cell fusion is at 100%!" exclaimed a masked, Brownhaired man with short and pudgy stature, staring at the floating screen before him.
" Start stabilizing the 'object', we're too close!" ordered the blond man wearing a plague mask.
" Where is Praetor Andreas, we need him for the melding!" yelled yet another masked man, this time having blue hair and a raspy voice
"lord brother is on his way, so I'd suggest acting like professionals," said a woman wearing a jeweled Crown.
"Your Highness!" exclaimed the two masked men scrambling to get to their knees.
"my lady," said the plague mask-wearing man with a bow.
Herr Highness, lady Elain Xenia eyed the 3 men with scrutiny and said " I understand and share your excitement after all our failed attempts. I would however still advise you to act accordingly to your ranks as Chief Alchemists!"
Elain was a mature, fair-skinned woman who loked no older then 30, but in truth was more than double that age. Upon her black waist length hair laid the Golden Diadem, signifying her as the second most powerful existence in all of Empirya.
"Altos what's the status of the 'objekt'?"
the first masked Alchemist, Altos stuttered " The Cells of t-th-the Earth Tyrant have been successfully merged with those of Sla-" he gulps nervously " Slag maw an-and those of the Chrome drake" trying and failing to hide his fear and nervousness.
Elain could not fault him tho. Hearing those dreaded names never ceases to make even her shudder.
The Common folk doesn't even dare utter their names, the old Nobels still have nightmares of them, and the royals forever curse their Ancestors for settling and the same Continent as those dreaded things!
Yet here they were, so far was their backs against the wall of this dead end, that her beloved would go as far as risk destroying the whole realm than face surrender. All of it comes down to this, this forsaken project. ( damm you Andreas, where the hell are y-) Her train of thought was quickly interrupted by a deafening sound.
*Pang*
They all turned toward the heavy adamantine doors which were nearly ripped from their hinges by the newcomer bolting into the hall.
"Change the tank liquid from stabilizer into the Phosphor fangs acid. Status on the Materials, any missing ingredients I'll transmute from your fucking cor-"
"Andreas! By the nine where have you been?!"
" Apologies your 'Higness', but crossing the whole dammed Kingdom without attracting the Council gaze is nigh impossible!"
" Save your excuses, dear brother. Just make you do not fail this time!"
"*tch* who do you take me for women? those second rate idiots, Altos and Benko?! speaking of which, both of you get your asses in position! Darion start the crucible!"
Benko, the second masked man and 4th ranked Alchemist nearly tripped over himself as he and Altos all but ran toward the Circle at the center of the hall.
They knew that Praetor Andreas was not one to be tested. The Pale, black haired man who was in his late 30s was after all the most powerful Alchemist on the whole dammed Continent.
With Andreas moving towards 'it', they quickly got into their respective positions.
The Crucible, as the Praetor called it, was a truly a beautiful masterpiece, as much as it was the most dreadfull and unholy sigil of the sin they were about to commit.
it was a masive gray, red, purple and concave circle carved out of the highest Mana crystals in the Empires Treasurie, straight into the ground. its 20 Meter diameter was divided into 6 quadrants each holding a cylinder filled with different ores and minerals. With one Circle at its center, 3 more surrounding the central one.
At its center, laid the Container holding the 'objekt', the accumulation of all their hopes, fears,
blood and sweat.
"ather stone 10 kg, Schater Rocks 10 kg, Titanhide ore 30 kg, Caronit ore at 5kg, Erubtanium ore at 20kg and Tectonic Shards at 25 kg! all materials are acounted for. Crucible at 100% output. ready for the melding sir!" listed darion, the Plauge mask wearing chief Alchemist before taking his position in the Crucible.
Taking one last look, checking everything, Andreas ordered "Start the construction of the core!"
At once all 4 of the started channeling their mana into the 4 inner circles, after which the six Containers holding the difrrent materials shook and started to liquify. They merged with the Pale blue, crystalline atherstones and the cracked, gray Shaterrocks at their core before starting levitating towards the center.
Andreas grunted "Proced with the fusion!" with blood trickling from the corners of his mouth.
Before Andreas, the amalgamated core startet to seep into the Central tank before merging with the "thing" wich resembels a lizard in the Center of it all.