Salazar had paid dearly for the tome that he studied for hopefully the last time. He was unused to such discipline, but he was mostly sure that wards had been drawn correctly and the candles and other implements placed with due precision. Mostly.
The book itself was a massive thing; its cover nondescript yet still menacing in its lack of detail. Perhaps most telling were the black stains that adorned its pages which he assumed were all that remained of a previous owner. He had initially attempted to acquire the thing through a discreet query place with that absentminded researcher, Deri. But in the end he had turned to a more reliable source, the thieves of Sigil, who were more than up to the task of acquiring the libram.
As much as acquiring the tome of fiendish lore had not been easy, nor acquiring the materials for the ritual and finding a hidden location in the Outlands to perform it, these tasks had paled in comparison to the effort needed to acquire the name he needed. Even though it was not unusual to see baatezu walking the streets of Sigil, one did not simply walk up to them and ask for the name of a greater devil or duke who would be happy to chat with a mortal and perhaps perform a few favors. And he was equally reluctant to make his intentions widely known; not so much because of any concerns about repercussions from weak-willed berks but from a desire to remain unnoticed by those with power looking to remove any rivals before they became such.
Yet after several fortnights of fruitless searching his patience had worn thin and he had started making inquiries with those he felt could be trusted to be discreet. Somewhat uncharacteristically, Nastasia had not only been unhelpful but became distant during their whispered discussion; soon dismissing him with a practiced motion and vanishing without a word. HeÂ’d pursued several other dead ends until, in frustration, heÂ’d broached the subject with a warlock named Ostellius that he know little about, other than that heÂ’d lost his memories leading up to his arrival in Sigil. Oddly enough that was the conversation that had finally led him here.
He leafed through the pages a final time reviewing the details of the ritual, which in many ways was a simple affair; essentially a request for the extra-planar being to appear rather than any magically binding summoning. The length of the text was instead dedicated to methods to keep the invoker more or less safe in the face of a potentially hostile devil. What magic he did possess was sufficient to ward himself against the most typical forms of fiendish influence and charge the protective circle for a time.
No gain comes without sacrifice, he thought as he began to recite the words which streamed forth easily from page to ether, each rebounding in the chamber giving weight to those that followed. The tirade gained momentum and force, until he was practically shouting until it ended with a single word.
"Amduscias"
He waited. A candle flickered. The sound of a distant water stirred the silence. But nothing.
He licked his lips, wondering where he had made a mistake. As he reached again for the book a voice rang from the emptiness inside the circle.
"What little mortal calls me now in search of answers to his petty questions?"
Through a fold in space stepped a nine foot tall man with the head of a hawk wearing blood red robes.
"Fiend of Avernus, I wish to make a bargain."
A laugh echoed deeply from all around him.
"What boon would one like you seek from me?"
"Power over other men. Hidden knowledge." He paused for a moment. "Knowledge first. I wish to know who and what my father is."
Black within black eyes stared at Salazar with force of eternity.
"And what do you offer in return?"
"I will serve you for one year, or until the time of my death but not after."
Another mocking laugh. The form shifted and for a moment his visage seemed to shimmer and Salazar thought he saw the shape of a large wolf with the tail of a serpent for a moment before the flicking candle revealed the same aquiline features.
"So specific. And why should I accept your offer? I have legions of followers waiting to fulfill my demands. Mortals from every plane of existence who already owe me allegiance."
"I have talents not many other possess. And I have access to Sigil which is denied to you."
Again the devil paused, his stare weighing the mortal in front of him.
"For each task you perform, I will answer a single question or grant a single request. After the deed is done. Failure to perform the task will render our agreement void and your soul will be forfeit."
There was no turning back.
"Agreed."
Impossibly, the beaked face seemed to smile. In the core of his being Salazar felt a wrench as if he had been torn from reality for a moment, shaped and bound, and placed back into his old spot a reflection of himself.
"All for the answer to a question you largely know the answer to, even if you won't accept it."
The smiles stretched even wider.
"Your first task is simple. I wish you to bring me the soul of a meddlesome mortal residing in Sigil."
Salazar nodded in agreement.
"Bring me the soul of the being you know as Marius Darktale."
A search for answers
