Chapter 3444 Trust but Failsafe (Part 1) "Our creations are going to be improved by the First Ruler of the Flames?" More than one Awakened said. "What an honor!" "Can you really do that, Ruler Menadion?" Cyrra's eyes softened with hope. "More importantly, would you do that?" "Yes, and yes, but there are conditions." Ripha raised her hand with the palm out, asking the Forgemasters for silence. "First, I need the schematics of everything I have to modify. This place is massive and I don't have the time to study every single rune. "Second, I can't entrust my work and secrets to you without adding a few failsafes" "What kind of failsafes?" The Dawn King's eyes narrowed. "For starters, I'm going to make sure my work can't be used against Lith. My existence is bound to his and I'm not going to help you banishing me. Also, I would feel more confident in this alliance if I shared control of the arrays and constructs with you!" "This is not an easy decision to make. It requires discussion and the ruling of the three Undead Courts must be unanimous." Bahz said and Cyrra nodded. "Take all the time you want." Menadion shrugged. "And just to be clear, I'm going to embed the failsafes so that it will be impossible to tamper with them without unraveling the entire defensive system. "When I'm done with it, you and anybody else won't be able to understand which rune does what." Bhaz gritted his teeth in fury, and when he turned to look at the Awakened Forgemasters for advice, he almost dislocated his jaw. They were all nodding and smiling like Menadion wasn't talking about stealing their secrets and make them her own. "My only advice is to make up your mind quickly." Lith added. "Once Poopie returns I'll be busy chasing him and Menadion with me. Also, if he attacks you first, there would be no point in making any change to the fortress after you've been wiped out." "What are you waiting for?" Pharo the Redcap said. "It's an excellent deal. Do you know how many people begged Menadion for a single piece of her work? Are you really going to turn down the help of the greater Forgemaster of all times just because you're scared? "Magus Verhen is a man of his word. If you are sincere in forging this alliance, you have nothing to fear." "Shut up!" Bahz angrily replied. "You talk like that only because it's not your life on the line and you want to witness Menadion's Creation Magic. You bastards couldn't care less about me or the survival of the Undead Courts. "You've already been paid handsomely and would lose nothing since we had to buy the power cores' schematics from you in order to make you work together. You are being generous with our lives and spells to gain more for yourselves!" The Awakened Forgemasters averted their gazes and cleared their throats in embarrassment. Everything the Blood Warlock had said was true. After sharing the Fortress' spells with the undead for maintenance's sake, the Forgemasters considered them lost. Sharing their work with Menadion, seeing how she would improve it, and receiving the second best thing to Creation Magic's lessons from her for no free was a dream come true. "Yet these idiots are also right." Cyrra grunted. "Turning down Menadion's help would be foolish and her requests are reasonable. We built the Stonewall Fortress to deal with threats like the Incontinent King, not Verhen. "For this to become a true alliance, we need trust. Can we trust you won't turn on us the moment your mad brother is dealt with, Magus Verhen?" "I don't remember a single instance of me harassing the Undead Courts." Lith replied. "Only of you messing with me and getting your due. Also, as long as you are holed up in here, why should I care about you? "This place is going to become useless once Poopie is dead. You'll return to your home cities and resume your business. Only then might conflict between us arise and only because of what you'll do. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞 "Aside from the Golems, there's nothing you can take away from here and once you split the constructs between the three Courts, their numbers wouldn't be a threat to me anyway" "Point taken." She nodded. "Bhaz, let's contact the Dusk Court and be done with this." The Blood Warlock and the Banshee left the room, leaving Menadion surrounded by a flock of adoring Forgemasters. "How did you preserve the Fury to this day?" Barham asked. "Do you have any clue what happened to your tower?" Adria followed. "Is Creation Magic hard to learn or is there a trick to it?" Pharo stared at her equipment like it could talk to him and reveal its secrets at any second. "I didn't. After seven hundred years with no master, the Fury must be reduced to a piece of junk somewhere." Menadion hid behind Lith as she lied through her teeth. She wasn't used to being among people, let alone to being worshipped. "My tower was stolen by Kolga and never retrieved. My soul followed my daughter to the Desert so I have no way to know what happened to my tower after that. As for Creation Magic, yes, it's damn hard to learn and there are no tricks to it. "I figured it out just a few years before my death." The questions became weirder and more personal by the second. Soon the Awakened asked her things like what her favorite food was and if she was planning to date again. "We agree with your terms, Ruler Menadion," Bhaz returned just a few minutes after leaving, saving Menadion from the barrage of questions. "First, however, we need your word that such knowledge won't be used against us until Meln is dead and his ashes scattered to the wind." "Unless I'm provoked." Lith pointed out. "I'm not going to stand still if any of you turns against me." "It's only fair." The Dawn King nodded. "Do we have a deal?" "Deal." Lith shook the Blood Warlock's hand. "Ripha?" "First, back off. I need space." She shooed the Forgemasters like a bunch of overexcited puppies and they whined as such. "Second, the blueprints and the control crystal of the defensive system." 'Can you really do that? Lith asked via the black chains. This must be state-of-the-art magic and you are rusty. 'Of course I can.' Menadion replied. 'Between the magic lessons from Yaga and Lochra, the Eyes, and Soluspedia, I have everything I need. Besides, I can always ask you and Epphy for help. Bhaz handed her the blueprints of the Fortress and the Golems' enchantments. Menadion recorded everything in the Eyes and took her time pondering the best solution. "What weaknesses can we expect from a Vurdalak?" She asked. "If he's similar to a Vampire, he's vulnerable to darkness magic and his heart is his weak point. He should not be able to recover from any serious damage he takes to it." Bhaz replied. While humans and Awakened with a punctured heart could still be saved with Invigoration or spells, a Vampire turned into ashes instantly. "I see. I'm going to replace water magic with air to give darkness speed and alter the Golems to increase the piercing power of their limbs and weapons. Is that okay?" Menadion asked.