In the depths of the underground realm, a sense of purposeful hustle filled the air as Lassim and Sanvra prepared to embark on their next crucial step: creating protective arrays to stabilize the newly cleansed zones.
They were gathered in a secluded chamber, surrounded by the ancient artifact poles and the dim glow of gems that reflected off their faces, illuminating the stone walls. There was also some bioluminescent fungi in this room that added to the light the lamps gave off.
Sanvra’s aides arrived, their arms laden with dusty tomes and rolled parchments that contained the neglected wisdom of Drow engineering.
Among the items was a particularly worn book, its cover cracked and binding fragile, titled "[Sikulen: d’l’Ze’zhuanth Ilythiiri]" or which could be loosely translated to, "Defenses of the Drow"
They laid the materials on a large stone table, causing small clouds of dust to rise into the cool air.
As Lassim and Sanvra pored over the book, they traced the elegant, faded illustrations of barrier systems with their fingers, deciphering the old Drow script that described the mystical and mechanical workings of these ancient constructs.
Their study was interrupted by the arrival of an older Drow, his posture stooped but his steps sure. His left eye was milky white, blind from an old skirmish, and his expression bore the gruff marks of a life spent in labor. He carried a leather bag filled with tools that clinked softly with each step.
"[What’s this about, then?]" he grumbled as he approached, eyeing the array of artifacts and books spread before him. "[I was in the middle of a forge cooling for the spears of the hunting team, and one of your little maids told me to come here right away.]"
Sanvra offered a respectful nod, understanding the craftsman’s irritation. "[Thank you for coming, Master Tolen. We need your expertise for a project that could change the fate of our community.]" She gestured towards the artifacts and the schematics laid out before them.
Lassim stepped forward, his expression earnest as he explained, "[We’re trying to adapt these barrier technologies to help sustain the areas I’ve cleansed from corruption.]" He pointed to the schematics, outlining his plan to integrate the metallic rods with mana-absorbing stones to create a network of protective arrays.
Master Tolen, leaning closer to inspect the schematics with his good eye, let out a low hum. "[Hmm, integrating these old rods, eh? Tricky business, changing the old magic to something different.]" His fingers traced the lines of the diagrams, his touch gentle despite his gruff exterior.
After a moment of contemplation, he straightened up, a spark of interest lighting up his features. "[Alright, I see what you’re aiming for. It’s been ages since I worked on anything this interesting. I’ll need my special tools for this.]"
Mumbling to himself about the peculiarities of ancient craftsmanship, he turned and shuffled out of the room, his departure marked by the soft echo of his mumbling.
A short while later, Master Tolen returned, now equipped with an assortment of finely crafted tools hung from his neck, some looking like eye pieces or magnifying glasses, and a few curious devices that hummed with a subtle vibrational energy filled his arms.
Setting his tools down, he cracked his knuckles and looked at Lassim and Sanvra with renewed vigor. "[Let’s get to work then. Show me where you want these arrays, and let’s make some magic happen.]"
Lassim grinned, relieved and excited by the craftsman’s change of heart. "[Right this way, Master Tolen. Let’s start with the main sanctuary zones we’ve established, we’ll do the food storehouse and go from there.]"
Master Tolen adjusted his tool belt, his one good eye squinting as he examined the diagrams with one of the glassware hung around his neck.
He pointed at a section of the schematic that detailed the integration of the metal rods with mana power cells that absorbed energy from their surroundings, "[See here, these rods were forged with a blend of metals known to take in various elemental energies for their energy supply.
If we’re to adapt them for your purposes, we’ll need to consider the current flow of mana in the area with whatever it is you’ll be powering them with. How consistent is the mana quality in the areas you’ve cleansed? How much corruption is left over? It might not be stable if there’s too much corruption in the air; which is the initial reason why the barriers stopped being useful here.]"
Lassim leaned in, his interest piqued. "[It’s significantly purer and more vibrant than anywhere else here. It resonates differently, almost... alive. It shouldn’t have any corruption, and we want to keep it that way. I was also thinking, what if we could enhance the rods to not only channel this mana to prevent corruption but also possibly amplify my lightning’s effects?]"
Sanvra, who had been quietly observing their interaction, chimed in, her voice echoing softly in the chamber. "[Indeed. The mana flow in the cleansed zones is stable but not isolated. We need these arrays to maintain this stability.
Lassim’s idea could extend these zones, working constantly with just the mana gems to keep the corruption at bay and purify the surrounding corruption that is nearby while he’s not there or sleeping.]"
Master Tolen rubbed his chin thoughtfully, his fingers stained with years of forge work. "[Amplify, eh? That’s tricky but not impossible. We’d need to recalibrate the rods to resonate at the same frequency as your cleansed mana, and if we change a few of the barrier’s settings to release more energy instead of acting as a barrier… It might just be doable with the right adjustments.]"
He rummaged through his bag, pulling out a device that hummed with a gentle vibrational energy. "[This old resonator can tune the frequency of the rods. We’ll use it to align them with the mana’s current vibrational pattern.]"
Lassim watched, fascinated, as Tolen demonstrated the device, which emitted a soft, pulsing light as it neared one of the metallic rods. "[How does that work exactly?]" he asked, his curiosity about the magical technology.
"[It’s an ancient tool, lad. It detects and adjusts the magical frequencies of objects. See, every magical element has a vibration, a signature. This tool reads those signatures and manipulates them to match or repel each other, depending on what we need.]"
"[Originally this tool would be used to calibrate the barriers for blocking out all kinds of attacks. The barrier operator would be able to tailor and set the adjustments against physical attacks or specific elements as needed. Most operators know the codes of the elements from memory, but it’s been quite awhile since I’ve had to work on one of these.
At least a hundred thousand years, give or take a millennium or two.]"
"[For your project, we’ll set it to match and enhance the purified mana,]" explained Tolen, his voice taking on a lecturer’s tone as he warmed to the subject.
"[So, we’re essentially tuning these rods so they don’t just passively channel my mana but actively enhance its projection into the surroundings?]" Lassim mused, his mind racing with the possibilities.
"[Exactly,]" Tolen added, his non-blind eye alight with excitement. "[And once they’re tuned, we can place them strategically around the sanctuaries you’ve created. That should create the sustained barrier against the corruption that you’re looking for.]"
"[I like the sound of that. Is it alright if I keep asking you more about how it all works once you start making adjustments?]" Lassim said, a sense of awe in his voice.
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Master Tolen nodded, a gruff smile breaking through his stoicism. "[Sure thing, young’un. Well then, let’s get to work. First, show me where these sanctuaries are so we can get a reading of the mana in the air, and I’ll start setting up the first few rods. We’ll test the altered barrier’s effectiveness as we muck around.]"
As Lassim, Sanvra, and Master Tolen traversed the winding paths of the underground caverns, the echo of their footsteps mingled with the low hum of anticipation as they discussed more about the barrier’s mechanics..
Once they arrived at the food storehouse, Master Tolen, with a craftsman’s eye, assessed the structural integrity of the cavern walls and ceilings. "[For the rods to function optimally, they need to be placed in areas where mana naturally accumulates.
Look for natural confluences or mana wells,]" he instructed, pointing towards subtle indentations in the rock where the air felt tangibly thicker with magical energy.
Sanvra carried a detailed map, her finger tracing the veins of mana she had mapped out over her years of stewardship. "[According to my observations, there are several key nodes where the earth’s energy converges in our underground system. One of those nodes happens to be along the southern wall, over there. If we consider the overall underground, we can eventually have rods placed at these nodes.
That could eventually maximize their effectiveness and create a stable network once all areas have been cleansed.]" She unfolded the map on the flat stone surface of the ground, showing areas highlighted with luminescent ink that glowed softly under the wall’s lamplight.
Lassim, still new to the intricacies of Drow magical engineering, listened intently, absorbing every detail.
He knelt down at one of the marked spots, feeling the pulse of the earth. "[Can we test the flow here on that south wall then? I want to see how the mana behaves before and after we install a rod.]" His request was met with nods of approval.
Pulling out one of the metallic rods, Master Tolen handed it to Lassim. "[Here, place it gently into the ground. Then, use your lightning to activate it. We can charge it with the mana storage crystal later, but we need to see how well it resonates with the surrounding mana first to tell if this is even doable.]"
Lassim did as instructed, his hands steady as he placed the rod vertically into the soil. A moment later, he channeled a thin stream of lightning into the rod. The air vibrated with energy, a visible ripple spreading through the cavern.
The reaction was immediate and illuminating. The rod glowed, a soft blue light that pulsed in sync with the natural rhythms of the cave’s mana.