CH554 Evil Gods and Eldritch Horrors Part Five

When the gods are searching for you, hiding isn’t some simple thing, even less so when you still have work to do. This thought was clear on the high elf Naloth’s mind as he surveyed his surroundings, looking at the group he had gathered.

Really, when it came to trying to escape the eyes of a force that constantly looked down on the world, was there ever really going to be a perfect place to do it? Being in a big city where churches would abound left the risk of being seen by any god who was taking notice of those who gave them faith, and a large group moving to a small town was sure to draw talk if he’d done that instead. There was of course the option of hiding out in the untamed lands, there were already rumours of some mysterious group connected to the now-dead forbidden gods who had been discovered doing exactly that, but if those rumours were true then it was even more likely that they’d be discovered if they tried that. If the gods had been made fools of once, they wouldn’t want to be quick in making the same mistake.

That led to the choice they’d ultimately made, with half of his group moving to a smaller city that only had a communal church, not any devoted to a single god, while the rest took up residence in the surrounding towns and villages, traveling out for their few pre-arranged meetings at the warehouse they’d purchased.

Now that time was drawing nearer though their meetings were becoming more frequent, with some taking up residence at the city’s different inns to make it seem like they were there for either work or to make time for distant friends and family before the next wave came, all because their project was bearing fruit. The ritual they were designing was almost complete.

He could see the people under him, the same ones who shared his vision, all practicing their parts. Not together for the risk that might come from accidentally activating it too soon, but in pairs or threes to make sure their timing was right. There was a reason ritual magic was considered a lost art after all, it was hard.

Of course, perhaps it would be better to call it a previously lost art given all of the literature coming out on it recently. He thought with a smile as he flipped through the report that had let him cross the final hurdle in bringing his vision to life.

The invention of an enchanter who wished to stay anonymous, even if Naloth already knew their identity, who had revolutionized gate construction not long ago, resulting in the network expanding out like never before with even more gates being built to wait for the inventor’s touch.

It was not only a blessing to the world, but one to him in particular with it coming to him at the perfect time. Despite the help he’d already gotten, he’d still been missing pieces needed to turn his vision into reality.

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