THE ELOORA MACHINE
"What does the Crown of Eloora do?" Queen Mistral asked.
"The Crown of Eloora is a key that can unlock the source of the ancient magic in this land or lock it. Noble families used this magic source to improve and develop their magic through a magic process called the Baptism of Magic. That is the reason the cities would not openly betray the king no matter what we offer them for fear of losing their Baptism of Magic", Prince Geoffraie explained.
"The crown is gone now, and their magic lost. The families can surrender to us now", I told them.
"It is not that the families will not surrender to you. They just want you to regain the Crown of Eloora back, so that promising knights of the Noble families could take turns traveling to the Temple of Magic to obtain the blessings of the Baptism of Magic again, as a condition for their surrender and allegiance", Prince Geoffraie told me.
"Yes, even the remnants from the Hermaios, Gamanos and Diabolese family whom we sanctioned are willing to surrender to us, provided we can obtain the Crown of Eloora and reinstate the Baptism of Magic for them", Raven told us.
"Damn, how do we get the bloody Crown of Eloora?" I asked.
"You'll have to enter the Temple of Eloora and pass their trial", Prince Geoffraie told me.
"That'll be easy", I replied.
"There is a catch. To participate in the Trial of the Temple of Eloora, you must be a member of the Royal family of Drachia. You must have royal blood to enter the gates of the temple", Prince Geoffraie told me.
"If that is the case, we would not be able to regain the Crown of Eloora", Queen Mistral told us disappointedly.
"Damn, we'll have to cheat the system again", I replied to him.
"How do you 'cheat' to obtain royal blood?" Prince Geoffraie asked.
"Never ask a conman about his methods", I replied to him.
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The Temple of Eloora lay hidden in the subterranean depths beneath the palace in Eloora city. Revered as the holiest site in the city, it was also the origin of the royal family's mystical source of power.
When we descended into the vast underground chamber, the sight that greeted us was nothing short of bewildering.
This didn't resemble a temple at all—it looked more like some kind of industrial workshop.
An immense machine dominated the cavern, its intricate network of pipes and hoses snaking across the floor, enshrouding the strange apparatus at the chamber's center. Flickers of electricity danced along the tangled wires, casting eerie shadows.
In the heart of the cavern stood several enormous tanks, each linked by tubes and cables to the mysterious machinery that filled the space.
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"Welcome to the Temple of Eloora, my name is Kabagail, the chief elder of this temple", someone said to us dressed like a cross between a priest and a scientist, addressed us.
"The Drach family has abdicated their throne to us, and we came to claim their crown", I told Kabagail.
Kabagail knew we were the new owners of the city, but he didn't seem to carry much enmity against us nor lingering loyalty for his old king, or for usurping their city's throne. It seemed like it was business as usual for the scientists of the temple.
"Yes, I am informed about that", Kabigail told us.
"You don't seem perturbed that we took over from your former masters", Ratatouille asked Kabigail honestly.
"We are usually not concerned about the politics of the land. Our time is spent here with these magic machines and with research", Kabigail told us.
"What is this Machine?" I asked Kabigail.
"Yes, you may not be familiar with our machines of magic. It is the source of our knight's magic and growth", Kabigail told us as he pointed to the tanks in the cavern.
"What are those tanks for?" Asterix asked him.
"Those are incubation tanks for the Baptism of Magic. Templar knights who incubate inside the tanks will improve their magic enormously. This is the secret to the fast development and enormous strength of the knights in this country", Kabigail replied to her.
"Knight's magic can be improved inside these tanks?" I asked with curiosity.
"Yes, but the machine is not working now", Kabigail told us sadly.
Asterix scrutinized and studied the tanks in the temple by scanning them.
"The devices in the tanks are designed to improve the magic of the individual who incubates inside. This magic technology is very advanced. We might not be able to replicate it", Asterix told us.
"Precisely, but they are not working anymore", Kabigail added again.
"I never imagined the families in Drachia would have this kind of magic technology", I commented.
"This technology does not belong to us. We obtained it from the Mages of Prolis. We only know how to operate it", Kabigail told us before he explained, "Many years ago, the founder of the Drachia kingdom, King Drach discovered a magic source in this cavern. He sought the assistance of the Mages of Prolis to obtain this magic for the benefit of the families. The Mages of Prolis built this machine for us".
"Mages of Prolis? Aren't they the most advanced magic practitioners in the known world?" I asked.
"Yes, they are. This incubation machine is one of their technologies that made them powerful", Kabigail told me.
The King of Drach once found a magic source in this cavern and commissioned the Mages of Prolis to build the enormous machine here that could farm magic for their use.
The Mages of Prolis from the world of Prolis were considered the most powerful magic user known. They created sophisticated and advanced machinery in the Temple of Eloora to harvest the magic from the magic source found by King Drach.
Kabigail's ancestral scientists were trained by the Mages of Prolis to operate the machine and they passed their knowledge down to the magic scientists in the temple who maintained the machines up till now.