Might and Magic (Ch. 14)

Ongoing blog of Might and Magic: Secret of the Inner Sanctum

Chapter 14: Secret of the Inner Sanctum

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The last thing we remembered was the false Alamar beginning to reveal his true form. In the midst of blurs as the Eye of Goros dispelled his illusion, Corak's prisoner opened a small box.. the word "Soul Maze" lingering on our minds.


When next we came around, we were in a dimly lit area. Everything seemed dull and gray and lifeless and our eyes ached for want of color or contrast. There was no wind. No stars in the sky. No birdsong. Just the oppressive, gray mist.

An image of a strange alien being in a silver-colored suit etherealized nearby. It had deep green skin, dark hair, and dark red eyes with no visible iris or pupil..bulbous and slightly too large for its face. It looked like the statue of Corak the Mysterious that stood in Sorpigal, but this was not truly he. For his features and body were incorporeal. It spoke to us without focusing or acknowledging on us--and when I attempted to touch it, my hand passed through him altogether with a slight distortion. It was a kind of illusion. A memory left behind in this place.

"Greetings adventurers. I anticipated that one day you would be here. If you are here, than this means that you have exposed my prisoner and sent him fleeing from Varn--and he has trapped you in his Soul Maze. In order to escape, you must tell me your captor's name. Regrettably, I can not simply tell you. For his name to have power in this place, you must learn it yourselves and find it hidden within these walls..."

I strode up face-to-face with the apparition and spoke clearly, "Alamar."

The illusionary alien was unphased and simply began repeating it's message from the beginning.  "Greetings adventurers...."

Faulkner chastised me and reminded me that the alien prisoner obviously had a different name than Alamar--the man he was impersonating.

Finn stepped up and suggested "Corak", just to rule out this remote possibility. The illusion was also unresponsive to that name.

There was nothing for it then. We had to find the name of our captor, hidden within these walls.

There was no other way of escaping. Faulkner was quick to try a spell of Surfacing but to no effect. Not even a town portal could be opened. So we began to walk. And every step of the way, we were challenged by the will of the maze itself. Corridors would go on endlessly. We could travel for hours and see no end in sight. We tried to follow the walls and search each doorway, looking for an etching in the dull gray stone that would reveal the name of our nemesis.

Yet, nothing was ever found and we grew lost. 38 days in and we were running low on food and supplies. We feared the worst, and yet we continued.

Finally, Faulkner, who was trying to map our progress and getting increasingly frustrated due to the Maze's endless nature, suddenly reached an epiphany.

He pointed out that while the corridors were endless, it was the walls that showed a kind of pattern. Difficult to notice at first, because it repeated back on itself endlessly as the infinite nature of this place made finding a 'zero' point harder. So he decided to start right here, where we had camped--and then work our way outward, carefully...one pace at a time, as Faulkner carefully set ink to paper along his representation of the walls...and a pattern began to form.

Thus, it was my very own brother who pieced together the alien's clue. The solution we sought was not -on- the walls of this hellish place...it -was- the walls. Never had I been more proud of that which shared my own flesh and blood.

We sought out the illusionary alien again. The one we suspected had been left by Corak, and found him easy to find. And once more, it began repeating it's message....

We let Faulkner do the honors, as he walked up and announced the name of our captor to the illusion...the name of Corak's prisoner--the imposter of Alamar and the bane of all Varn, was Sheltem.

The illusion suddenly came to new life and spoke in numbers and phrases we did not understand. Yet through it, we could sense a feeling of accomplishment. The illusion seemed to be recording that the 'imposter' was now voided and that we should seek out the Inner Sanctum for a new assignment...

The gray mist the covered this place grew more and more dense...it covered the walls and began to fade away...

And when our vision cleared, it was the gates of Castle Alamar we beheld, and never before more thankful had we felt to be back on Varn from wherever that horrible maze existed.

King Alamar, restored to his rightful place on the throne, shined with a grateful vigor. There was no reward he could have given us that was suitable for what we had accomplished here. In our long adventure through Varn, we had earned more coin that we knew how to spend. Alamar could only implore us to not stop our quest here. There was still the Inner Sanctum to find, and we had no intention of letting it go undiscovered.



Alicia said that with a careful spell, she could teleport us to the interior of Varn's astral plane. However, Sam had a different idea. There was still one other puzzle we'd left unsolved. The Diamond Door by Alamar's castle also led to the astral plane and would be a safer passage for us. And although we had not the key for it, Sam said he had a feeling he knew who did.

Returning to the B2 sector, we were pleased to see that the land was slightly less dangerous than it was before. It would be a long time before Sheltem's corruption of our world was undone, but already it seemed as though the horrid beasts and monsters were lurking ever-so more carefully out of sight. But was it Sheltem's absence that they sensed, our our presence?

We returned to the Ice Queen, who welcomed us back to her frozen throne amicably. Sam asked about her riddle once more...the conqueror of worlds, maker of dreams, the greatest force of all--yet elusive it seems.

The last time we were faced with this riddle, it seemed like Sam and Alicia had a guess to make but were loathe to do so. But now, openly--Sam looked longingly at his sylvan friend and said unto the Ice Queen...

Love---the answer was Love.

And at this--the queen's frozen heart melted just enough. Just enough to smile at us with a happy warmth--and tell him that he was correct.

And his prize, passed from her cold fingertips into his palm, was our diamond key.

 And so, returning to that mysterious diamond door in the glades by Castle Alamar, we used our key and entered Varn's mysterious interior.

Even with spells of light, it was difficult to find our way in this strange place. Everything around us--the floors, the walls, the ceiling, were of a shimmering gray metal. In the distance, we could see pulses of electric light.

In the distance, we could occasionally see signs of construction of some sort. But navigating to them was much easier said than done.

Often, our progress was barred by invisible barriers that shimmered at the slightest touch. There was also spotty magical interference. Sometimes a surge of power would make casting spells as natural as on the overworld. At other times, it felt like a dampening effect was upon us and nothing worked.

We eventually found our way to one of the enclosed areas, where we found a strange machine inside that came to life at our presence. Lights blared out into the gray drab plane and the sound of grinding metal and stone sounded all around us as the ground shook. The nature of the plane was changing slightly--and we found ourselves teleported back to Sorpigal, no doubt for our own safety. But it was an easy thing to make our way back to the Diamond Door and pass through into the plane once more.

We found a second such 'projector', as the wording inscribed on them called it. And a third. As the Astral Plane shifted format, various long-entrapped monsters would occasionally find their way to us. Was Sheltem trying to force his way into the Inner Sanctum, too?

A fourth and fifth projector came next...and then finally, the chaotic nature of the Astral Plane steadied, we returned through the diamond door and found a path laid open for us.

At this locked door, a small slot was visible in the door. Alicia removed the small gray card we had received from the volcano god and pushed it into the receptable..the lock clicked and the door swung open to us. My heart raced as I took point with Sam and we entered cautiously...

The interior of this room was lit by glowing electrical machines that pulsed with a white glow. Long racks of humming, whirring machines lined every corner of the walls..it was like stepping into a life form unto itself. Cautiously, we made our way deeper...and deeper.

At the end of the room, a panel in the far wall slid open, revealing a humanoid in a white coat, attending the many whirring and humming machines. But at our approach, seeing the terror and confusion in our faces, he smiled warmly and welcomed us, bidding us step closer so that he could see us.

Once upon a time, you could print out your score and submit to New World Computing as proof that you beat the game. And in return they would sent you a sweet little certificate that you could mount on your wall or whatever, proclaiming you a true master of Might and Magic!

-Another- Varn? Vehicular...astro-what?

There, for the first time in the Inner Sanctum, the humanoid in the coat showed us things about the nature of our world that would take us a lifetime to adequetely understand. On a flat piece of glass, the man showed us for the first time our glimpse of our homeworld as it might look from another world...

 (Image shamefully stolen from some website that I forget the name of.)

The Vehicular Astropod Research Nacelle was a creation of the Ancients, he told us. One of many like it. Designed to nurture life and form new worlds. Our world, VARN-4, as he called it, was to join with other such nacelles as part of a greater design for a new world.

Sheltem's sudden escape brought him here, to our Varn, where he proceeded to set everything back by generations through his meddling and destruction. Yet now, he had fled. And Corak after him. Somewhere out there, there was another Varn, or cluster of Varns, that needed us. Corak was out there and needed our help. Through our questing, perseverence, and deposition of Sheltem from his usurped throne, we had proven ourselves as the Varnlings most capable for the task--most suited for the responsibility. To successfully undermine the dangerous alien and find our way here to the Inner Sanctum was all the proof and test we needed to qualify for this challenge ahead.... If we chose to take it.

We returned to Sorpigal. We had much to think about.