Many Escapes from Azhure’en

The Silvergrey Sea

Part Five: The Best Laid Plans

Many Escapes from Azhure’en

* * *

Abram stared at the pair of empty white squares, musing.

The Albedo was standing to his left. The Kokkinos was investigating the particulars of the escape.

In the hours the three conferred, they had caught each other up on what was happening. The biggest surprise to Abram was learning that Harry Tranker had gone to Oerth. He hadn’t realized the Silvergrey Sea touched that world again. Evidently, neither had the Elects.

They now knew of three beings who Abram’s superiors called Elements who were somehow involved in this mess. They had concluded the new players were working at cross-purposes with the Meraculus Mercurius. The latter seemed to be indulging in nothing more sinister than evoking the spirits of the Silvergrey and forcing them into bodies to extract information from them. What information there was to get from such beings Abram did not know. Neither did he know why this practice was forbidden. There were things to which only the Elects and the Mercurius were privy and it would not do to press them, even in circumstances such as these. Not that he intended to let the matter lie. More clandestine research was called for, and he would do it if the time permitted. Time spent in the boondocks of Noir with Harry had given him a taste for rebellion and forbidden knowledge. For now, he schooled himself to patience and concentrated on the task at hand.

After about twenty minutes of waiting, the Kokkinos returned. “Apologies for the delay, Brothers. I sought news of the Mercurius while I was away.”

White, “Did you uncover any?”

“Not directly, no. Thirty-three Hermetists have deserted their stations in the last hour, though. Intelligence on several of them put their likely destination as the Evanescents. It’s safe to assume, she’s on her way there, or already arrived.”

“As we guessed.”

A nod from Red.

“What about our escapees?”

“They just walked out.”

“How?”

“Excellent question. We really don’t know much about what happened to them. Drago is an old mystery, Rayne a new one. They are Elements. Their capabilities, beyond fragmentary records from the original Manifestation, are a matter of speculation.” Abram couldn’t hear or see any indication that the Red Elect was self-censoring because of his, Abram’s, presence. He remained sure that they knew something, though. “They haven’t left the Mother Lodge.”

“What of the dragons?”

Abram and the Kokkinos both turned to look at the White Elect. “What about them?” Abram.

The Kokkinos’s expression changed to one of horror.

The sound of wind, like a hurricane just outside, ended the conversation.

For years afterward, Abram wondered whether either of the Elects were merely playing for his benefit. He caught the slightest hint of satisfaction in the Albedo’s expression. What were they up to? Should he be trusting them? Considering how things ended up, he was sure at least some of what was to happen took them as much by surprise as it did everyone else. Some, but not all.

Some questions never would be answered.

* * *

The storm passed into the Mother Lodge. The floor began to tremble. Abram could feel the thunder in his chest. His ears began to go numb.

Gesturing, the Kokkinos began running. The others followed.

The storm was caused by the dragons. By the time the trio reached a nave, the rage was in full flight. Thousands of winged terrors passed overhead at tremendous speed. Even at a height of half a mile, the collective downdraft made standing difficult. Concussive waves of sound made Abram’s ears physically hurt. He worried about permanent hearing loss. The sight of so many drakes in furious motion was an inspiration of terror.

They descended closer to the floor. The downdrafts from the wings of the dragons buffeted them so severely that several times, they lost their footing. Sticking to the outermost of the aisles helped.

The Red Elect seemed to know where the drakes were heading. He led them through a door and down an elevator. Abram guessed their destination and fear once again took him. He became convinced the Elements were planning on trying to free the White God.

He was wrong, but the truth was hardly more comforting.

Finally, they came to an enormous five-sided room. It was plain, as plain as the blue stone of Azhure’en permitted, anyway, and had a huge circular hole in the center of the ceiling. The floor had an even bigger slope-sided one, giving the room an uncomfortable feeling that one could slide down into oblivion. The brilliant blue-white light of the Line speared both darknesses as it plunged into that abyss.

Dragons were coming from all five entrances and spiralling down into the abyss. The noise, already past the pain threshold, became excruciating. Abram joined the Elects in stopping up his ears.

The three crouched against a wall, hands over ears, while the flight continued. It went on for a long time. When it eventually ended, Abram’s ears roared at the relative silence. ‘Great,’ he thought, ‘I’ve gone deaf.’

“Where can they have gone from there?” he asked and was relieved to hear his own voice.

Red, “They shouldn’t have been able to go anywhere. If leaving Azhure’en were that simple, the White God would have escaped us long ago.” The Kokkinos’ voice sounded slightly muffled. Abram hoped that wouldn’t be a permanent defect.

“But they did. How? Who woke them?”

White, “I think it’s obvious who. ‘How’ is an interesting question. ‘Where are they going’ is a better one. ‘To what purpose’ is the question that burns the most.”

Red, “It must wait a while, Brothers. Finding our delinquent Mercurius and her rogue cabal is of greatest moment, I think.”

“To the Evanescents, then,” said Abram.

—Gideon Jagged
Innsmouth, September 2026

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