What was the meaning of power in a System world? Was what grandpa Alexzandros did to the Hag the limit or just a flex by an old wizard? These and many other questions ran through Shada's mind in the aftermath of the Hag hunt.

  No one involved in that fiasco had expected to encounter an Ancient Hag living in the city of Westlin. It just wasn't something that should have been possible. The Purge, following the Corruption's emergence from the Dungeon, should have uncovered the Hag. The fact, that it hadn't, had the local authorities in a bit of an uproar.

  Holy Inquisitors and Guard Inspectors were pouring over the area trying to figure out how Hay Gabby had defied detection. Even Vanestra was called in for her specialized Scrying and Divination abilities.

  High Inquisitor Zeckas had come to fetch Shada for a meeting in the Trunk. Rather than the Dungeon Fortress on the South side of the Trunk their destination was the palace-life northern fortress. The northern palace was the government seat for the city of Westlin and the surrounding area. The architects had tried to incorporate the natural organic style of the Wylderfolk and the more angular Imperial styles into one harmonious whole.

  It worked surprisingly well. It was here in the more opulent surroundings that Shada saw stained glass windows for the first time on Sierrallas. The wards for keeping rain and pests out were so easy and common that they eliminated the need for glass windows in most structures. This made glass a rare luxury good.

  From what Shada had learned Sierrallas lacked complex manufacturing techniques or more accurately they were simply underdeveloped. When you can carve simple enchantments into bronze to keep it sharp or Shape stone like clay, steel and ceramics become somewhat unnecessary. Why use fragile glass windows when you can carve rain and pest wards into the window frame for a fraction of the price?

  Magic was common on Sierrallas. Mother's taught daughters like they were sharing family recipes. Basic wards, enchantments, spells were taught in schools alongside reading, writing, and mathematics. When added to Path, Class, and Professional Skills magic was as ubiquitous as technology was on Earth.

  The meeting room Shada and Zeckas were led to was not that different from a conference room on Earth. The architecture and furniture differed, but otherwise it was laid out in a similar manner. The leadership of the city was gathered here today to discuss the Hag incident.

  The number of High people in the room amused a juvenile part of Shada. Even his mother, High Healer Aseralis, was present alongside High Inquisitor Zeckas, High Prelate Vellas, High Keeper Saznek, High Magistrate Daronius, City Lord Alfonsious, and several others with lesser titles.

  “Welcome one and all, I called today’s meeting to discuss the incident in the Shelves.” City Lord Alfonsious began the meeting. “High Magistrate Daronius if you would please summarize the facts,” Alfonsious continued.

  “Certainly City Lord Alfonsious, a woman, one Ms. Isabella, visited one of the Root Clinics run by High Healer Aseralis,” Daronius said with a nod to Shinobin. “The High Healer with the assistance of the Blessed Spirit Shada and Acolyte Vreen of the Temple of Sierra, were able to diagnose the woman’s ailment. Ms. Esabela was under an age-transference Hex. This indicated the presence of a Hag in the city.” Daronius paused to acknowledge the ghostly gold and white spirit cat on Zeckas's shoulder.

  “How did a Blessed Spirit become involved in this incident?” Alfonsious asked.

  “Ah, yes, it appears that the Blessed Spirit revealed himself during the first Purge to assist with the Creeping Abyssal Corruption. He has been assisting at the Root Clinic ever since,” Daronius explained.

  City Lord Alfonsious tapped his chin. “Ah, I remember that from one of my reports. I had forgotten that the Blessed Spirit remained after the Purge. Please continue Daronius,” said Alfonsious.

  “Of course, my Lord.” Daronius said before continuing his summary. “The Temple was notified of the possible Hag and a group of Inquisitors led by Inquisitor Jeris arrived swiftly. A guard patrol was gathered to assist and the group was led by the Blessed Spirit to an Apothecary in the Merchant Quarter where the Hag was paired.” Daronius reported.

  “Excuse me, how a Hag was tracked from the Roots all the way to Shelves? If I am to understand things correctly this was a particularly well hidden Ancient Hag. How did a Blessed, but low level Spirit, track her?” City Lord Alfonsious asked during a pause in Daronius’s report while looking at High Inquisitor Zeckas.

  Zeckas looked at Shada who decided to speak for himself.

  “Greetings City Lord Alfonsious, I am as you know Shada. I have a powerful Essence Perception Skill. I could sense the thread of Essence connecting Esabela to the Hag. It was a simple matter to follow it to the source,” Shada said.

  A few people that didn't know that Shada could speak showed genuine surprise at his response. One of the attending servants actually gasped in surprise. Even the City Lord’s eyes widened slightly beneath his professional facade.

  “Well met, Blessed Spirit Shada, I was not told you were fully cognizant and capable of speech. Be welcome in my humble city,” the City Lord said.

  “Thank you City Lord Alfonsious,” Shada said simply.

  “Please continue with your report Daronius. I will try to interrupt less.” Alfonsious said.

  “It is quite alright my Lord.” Daronius acknowledged with a polite nod. “As I was saying the group was led to an Apothecary in the Merchant Quarter of the Shelves. With the help of the Blessed Spirit Inquisitor Jeris assessed the situation and called for backup,” Daronius said.

  “I do apologize, but can you explain why Inquisitor Jeris called for backup High Inquisitor?” Lord Alfonsious asked.

  “Yes, of course, my Lord. The Blessed Spirit Shada was able to share his sensorium with Inquisitor Jeris. Upon experiencing the extent of the corrupted and tainted Essence the Inquisitor decided, rightly so, that they had stumbled across something far more insidious than a simple Hag,” High Inquisitor Zeckas explained.

  “I see,” Alfonsious said while looking at Shada accessingly. “Daronius?” He prompted the High Magistrate to continue.

  “It was at this point that the High Prelate and High Inquisitor became involved…” High Magistrate Daronius explained the assault, the confrontation with Hag Gabby, and the subsequent intervention by Archmage Alezandros Aseralis.

  “Now that we are all on the same page. Can anyone explain how we missed an Ancient Hag living in Westlin for years? Why was she not uncovered during the Purge?” City Lord Alfonsious asked after Daronius finished.

  There was a lot of discussion, some accusations, and even some finger pointing, but in the end no one had a good explanation. An Ancient Hag was simply a power beyond the local Force's ability to handle.

  “Let us move on then.” Alfonsious said while looking at the other city leaders. “How is the clean up going? High Healer Aseralis, I understand that you have been leading the Cleansing and Purification efforts due to your unique skill set,” Alfonsious prompted.

  “Yes, City Lord Alfonsious, the Inquisitors and Guard Inspectors have been going over the area like ants at a picnic, but I have been working to ensure no contaminated material leaves the site. The entire area remains quarantined. The Blessed Spirit Shada has been helping us avoid a breach. It is a slow process. Hag's corpse is massive. Once the investigation is complete I highly recommend that we banish the entire block via group ritual.” Shinobin said while grimacing in disgust.

  “The entire block!? That would take a monumental ritual. The cost would be staggering,” a merchant representative exclaimed.

  “I understand and recognize the immensity of the task, but it is necessary. The Hag’s corpse, the lair, and surrounding buildings are so heavily contaminated that random corrupted monsters have already begun spawning. While the area could be Cleansed the depth of the corruption is such that Banishing everything is actually cheaper,” Shinobin went on to explain her reasoning and provided estimates on the required rituals.

  City Lord Alfonsious carefully read over the estimates before speaking. “I don't see a cost estimate for hiring a Materialist from the Capital to help target the ritual,” the City Lord said in a questioning tone.

  Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  “I can explain that,” Zeckas said.

  “Oh? Do tell,” the City Lord said.

  “The Goddess's wisdom is ever flowing. The Blessed Spirit Shada has Material Mastery and can act as targeting focus for the ritual's Zeckas said proudly.

  All eyes in the room turned to Shada who was trying his best to look nonplussed by the attention and reveal of his Skill. He has been careless, but he had the backing of the Temple and an Archmage. There was little anyone sane could do to exploit him at this time.

  “Blessed Spirit Shada, is this true you have Material Mastery?” The City Lord said in awe.

  Shada ‘hopped’ onto the table. He glided languidly to the center, where he sat regally as only a cat could. Above his head a sphere of water, stone, fire, and swirling air appeared. They rotated in a circle as each changed shape. Spheres became squares that became pyramids and then each one popped out of existence. The conference room was silent.

  “Marvelous! What exceptional control! Well done” One of the High Mages exclaimed into the silence.

  Conversation broke out across the room before the City Lord called everyone to order.

  “Blessed Spirit Shada, that was quite impressive. Would you be willing to target the ritual?” Alfonsious asked. Shada simply nodded in response. “High Healer Aseralis I presume you will lead it and will you be ok working with the Blessed Spirit?”

  “I would be happy to help City Lord Alfonsious. That mess is a disaster waiting to happen. The sooner we deal with it the better.” Shinobin responded.

  “Excellent…” Alfonsious said before continuing the meeting.

  The rest of the meeting involved discussion of logistics, finances, and other government minutiae. Shada zoned out while considering how he ended up involved in all this. His attempts to stay under the radar were not going as planned.

  There was another thing plaguing his thoughts. His Guide had given him unexpected news after Alexzandros smote Hag Gabby like an angry god.

  [Hidden Quest Discovered!

  Quest: Find the Hidden Hag…Part 1

  An Ancient Hag lies hidden within the city of Westlin. Find her and help defeat her.

  Rewards based on contribution and determined upon completion.]

  [Congratulations!

  For significant contributions to the uncovering and defeat of a major regional threat you have been awarded 5 Free Attribute Points to distribute as you see fit.

  Quest Reward: Find the Hidden Hag…Part 1]

  Shada was shocked that the System recognized and rewarded him. He hadn't received anything similar before, but his real concern was something else.

  [New Quest: Find the Hidden Hag…Part 2

  Despite her obvious defeat the Ancient Hag, Gabby, lives on. She has used foul magic to survive a mortal blow. Find and help eliminate the greatly weakened Hidden Hag.

  Quest may be shared with up to 4 others.

  Rewards based on contribution and determined upon completion.]

  Shada didn't know how he was supposed to find Hag Gabby without any new leads. He would have to discuss things with his family and gather a team. This played into his plans to join a Delving team a little too well.

  —

  It took days to assemble the necessary materials for the massive Banishing Ritual that would rid the city of the corpse of Hag Gabby and the tainted land.

  An entire warehouse, near the tainted land, had been razed and cleared for the massive ritual circle. Ritualists and Clergy worked carefully under Shinobin's direction. Even Alexzandros popped in to add his expertise. Banishing Rituals weren't complex, but the targeting and safeguards needed precision.

  Parts of the ritual would amplify and enhance Shada's Material Mastery Skill, which he would use to target everything in the designated area. Without him they would have to target each distinct Essence and Material individually. General Banishment was not possible without Material Mastery or extremely complex Spells.

  Another benefit of the ritual was its distribution of the effort required to channel and use the immense amount of Essence required to banish an entire city block. What was impossible for an individual could be done through the effort of the group.

  While the ritual was prepared Shada got lessons in group casting and Rituals from his family and Raelis. He picked it up quickly with multiple teachers, but it was hardly an easy task.

  —

  Shada drifted around the ritual site. The ritual would replicate what Shada had done to the Hag’s door, but on a grand scale. It would banish everything in the designated area. There was a whole section of the ritual whose whole purpose was defining the area to be affected.

  With his crash in ritualism Shada now knew that circle defined the bounds of the components to be used in the ritual. Each line and circle helped channel and focus the Essence. The script written inside the circle was a carefully chosen set of instructions and an appeal to higher powers. All magic touched on high powers be it the System, gods, spirits, or the living Essence itself, but rituals were so much more potent. Samples taken from the tainted area would be placed at various points as a reference. Essence Crystals and certain potent magical catalysts would be consumed to add additional power.

  Dozens of mages would add their own Personal Essence to mix from the outside. Finally those inside would guide the various forces activating and enhancing each part in sequence.

  Shinobin would be the conductor, those within the circle the primary performers, and those on the outside like a chorus. Timing was key. Everyone involved had Skills that functioned in concert with the ritual. Properly conducting a ritual was more and Skill and Skill than raw power or Shada would have no place in such a working.

  Shada's Material Mastery Skill was a key component of the ritual. Without it the ritual's complexity would increase greatly. There would be mages with the more common Skills like Stone and Wood Mastery helping him target the materials to be banished.

  The number of mages, ritualists, clergy, and crafters involved was quite the sight. The expense of this work had to be staggering, but the tainted area was like a cancerous growth that had to be excised for the good of the city.

  Shada had actually been practicing on banishing smaller collections of mixed materials. It was a strain tuning his Skill to multiple things at once. He lacked the power to affect large areas, but he had successfully banished handfuls of mixed debris multiple times now.

  —

  It took days, but the ritual site had been finished. Shada floated in the center. Shinobin stood at the northern point of the central pentagram’s central star. She would not only be conducting the ritual, but also contributing her specialized banishment Skills, Cleanse and Purge, to the ritual. The other 4 points of the star were filled by an Earth, Stone, Wood, and Metal Mage. The central pentagram was itself in the center of a hexagram. Six Mages of various specialities filled out the points of the hexagram.

  Outside the ritual circle stood over 100 mages and a host of curious spectators. Those involved in the ritual were solemn and purposeful. The spectators were having an impromptu festival complete with street vendors selling food and trinkets. City Lord Alfonsious had even prepared and given a speech.

  At precisely noon, the Ritual of Banishment for the tainted section of the Merchant Quarter of the Shelves, would commence. Shada felt nervous, or as nervous as a Spirit could, which was more like mild anticipation than true anxiety.

  “Everyone to your places. Remember to follow my lead. We have practiced this. Everyone knows their parts. We must be perfect. If the ritual failed it could be a disaster both for the city and each of us. We have everything we need. The ritual and our Skills will do the heavy lifting. May the gods shine on us with favor!” Shinobin said to the ritual team.

  A Silencing Spell was cast over the ritual to prevent distractions. Everyone was in place. Shinobin began to chant. Each participant inside the circle chanting their own parts. Over one hundred mages poured Essence into the circle. As the circle filled with power and potential the catalysts and samples rose into the air.

  Shada felt the moment the ritual connected to his Skills. His awareness expanded. The world seemed to increase in detail and his viewpoint shifted. A transparent spherical barrier spread from the bottom edge of the ritual. It rapidly expanded to encompass the tainted area.

  Once the barrier appeared it gradually shifted from translucent, to opaque, to a light swallowing black. The sphere was over a hundred yards wide. The noon sunlight appeared to become muted throughout the Shelves.

  Shada could feel everyone in the circle with him. Their Skills joined together seamlessly. Their perception of matter and Essence blended together. Their minds focused like a single entity. The other mages shook and shivered when Shada's Essence Perception, Essence Mastery, and Material Mastery Skills joined the mix. Essence Perception was a Skill beyond normal mortal limits. The other mages were getting a mere taste of the Skill. It nearly caused the entire ritual to collapse, but Shada took control of what was being shared, before the others succumbed to sensory overload.

  As the focal point of the ritual Shada got his first taste of what it must feel like to be an all seeing God or at least one confined to a hundred yard sphere.

  The sphere contracted slowly. Within matter, energy, and even Essence was banished from the Physical Plane and shunted into the Etheric. Those watching the spectacle could see the giant crater, with its glass smooth walls, emerge from beneath the levitated black sphere of destruction.

  For the common folk it was a rarely seen display of magical might. It was also terrifying. An entire city block was being erased from reality before their very eyes. Many would later have nightmares of being swallowed by black spheres.

  Shada felt his Skills stretching and growing as he carefully targeted what the others missed. Without the links created by the ritual what they were doing would seem impossible. Air rushed into the area vacated by the sphere creating an artificial wind. The black hole in the world had shrunk to a point, before finally, without fanfare, it vanished.

  With the light swallowing black sphere gone the noonday sunlight reasserted itself like the passing of a cloud. The Mages all collapsed unconscious like puppets with their strings cut. Even Shada was affected. Spirit Walking deactivated and Shada experienced his first bout of unconsciousness since arriving on Sierrallas.

  Healers and attendants rushed to assist the fallen mages. They would be moved to the Shelves Temple of Sierra for treatment for Essence Exhaustion. The crowd was oblivious to the plight of the ritual participants. They stared in awe and fear at the, 100 yards wide and 50 yard, bowl shaped crater that had been a city block earlier that day. Nothing remained. The crater was completely empty. Erased from physical reality as if it had never been.

  —

  In a far off nursery, among the Roots of Westlin, a small young boy's form shifted. His brown hair straightened and bleached white, his brown eyes became a bright sky blue, his brown skin and Wylderfolk spots turned white and blue. A soft glow surrounded his body. His ears elongated and became pointed.

  Luca turned to his startled nursemaid, Mina, and said in his sweet and innocent voice, “Sha sha is very very tired and is taking a little nap,” he then smiled radiantly as his toys began to float.

  Mina gulped slightly.

  —