[Third Person's PoV]
A Few days later…
Thalia watched with wide eyes as Lucian stood in the center of a magical tempest, the crystal ball floating effortlessly beside him. The air around him shimmered with raw energy. It was a mystical, almost sacred sight—something so wondrous that it stole her breath away.
Lucian moved with deliberate precision, his fingers etching glowing symbols into the air. Each movement was smooth yet purposeful. The symbols glowed with a shifting palette of colors, mostly inky black and deep crimson, forming long strings of enchantments that seemed to pulse with energy. They twisted and curled like serpents in flight, swirling around him in a cyclone. The spiraling tendrils reached skyward, each rune and sigil feeding into the next like a living chain of command.
Beside him stood Annabeth, her own hands glowing faintly as she added her magic to the stream. Her enchantments sparkled with a pale silver hue that interwoven with Lucian's crimson symbols, creating a mesmerizing dance of contrasting colors. Together, their combined magic formed a brilliant lattice of red and silver energy that hovered in the air.
Time passed slowly as the spellwork continued. After what felt like an eternity, Annabeth's body gave out, her knees buckling slightly. Thalia, alert and swift, rushed to her side and caught her just before she collapsed completely.
"Why are you even pushing yourself so hard?" Thalia grumbled, her voice edged with concern as she glared down at Annabeth's pale, sweat-slicked face. The dark circles under her eyes were more pronounced now, her exhaustion clear.
"I just… I wanted to lighten his load," Annabeth murmured, her voice ragged and weak. "Even if it was only a little… I know I don't have the same reservoir of magic he does, but I'm confident in the strength of my wards."
She sagged against Thalia, her limbs trembling from fatigue, and her breath came in shallow gasps. Her magic now flickered before vanishing completely. She gave a weak chuckle and tried to stand straighter. "I'm fine. Really," she added, though her faltering tone betrayed the lie.
Lucian, meanwhile, didn't respond or even glance in their direction. His expression was stoic, his eyes locked on the swirling maelstrom of symbols above him. The patterns he traced in the air grew even more complex, glowing brighter with each stroke. They pulsed in sync with the ambient energy, arcs of red lightning crackling at the edges.
He raised his other hand, now using both to guide the enchantments. The strain on him was evident—his breathing heavier, his stance more rigid—but the results were immediate. The intensity of the spellwork doubled. "Thanks…" he muttered under his breath, clearly aware of Annabeth's support but unable to afford even a second of distraction.
The pillar of spell-strings soared higher, a towering monument. The crystal ball, once radiant, had begun to dim. Its core pulsed slower and slower until it turned a dull, lifeless gray. At the exact moment its last flicker of energy vanished, Thalia stepped forward and gently caught it before it could fall, cradling it in her hands.
Lucian's own magic reserves kicked in, the air tightening as he drew from his inner well of power. Annabeth, still recovering in Thalia's arms, managed a breathless laugh as she watched him work.
"He's like… He's writing a novel," she said with admiration. "Look at how much he's written already…"
For over thirty minutes, Lucian continued, weaving together strands of symbols and imbuing them with intent. Eventually, his movements slowed, his fingers drifting slightly as the magic began to take its final shape. With a deep inhale, Lucian lowered both palms, pressing the air downward as he closed his eyes.
Then, with his right palm upright before him and two fingers raised to the sky, he began the final sequence. The glowing strings of enchantments responded, shifting and coiling like silk threads. The symbols began to descend from above, cascade downward toward his waiting hand.
He directed the flow carefully, drawing the enchantments into his open palm, where he guided them with his two fingers. The arcane strings began to roll into a compact form, like thread being wound into a ball. He continued the motion, the glowing lines spiraling down into the growing orb of magic. It was mesmerizing—the curtain of glowing symbols ascending in unison, gradually forming a solid sphere.
Within moments, a perfect sphere, roughly the size of a basketball, hovered above his palm. It glowed with pulsating red and silver light, swirling with intricate runes and flowing sigils that moved like a living language.
"Alright… that is awesome," Thalia breathed, awe and wonder in her voice.
"It really is beautiful," Annabeth added softly, her strength slowly returning as she stood with Thalia's support.
Lucian, holding the orb of spells in one hand, turned to face the towering structure behind him. The black castle loomed like a relic, built from a dark, unknown material that gleamed dully under the enchantment's glow. Its towering spires reached skyward, and a staircase of shadowed stone led to an ominous crimson wooden door.
Lucian extended the spell orb forward. The glowing sphere burst into countless strands that surged ahead like serpents. The strands raced up the steps and across the castle's walls, embedding themselves into the structure. Runes and sigils wrapped around every surface, infusing each brick and stone with magic. The entire structure began to glow with a deep, shimmering red hue, accented by threads of silver magic.
Then, to Thalia amazement, the massive structure began to tremble. The earth beneath it shifted as it rose into the air, and slowly, impossibly, the castle began to compress. Like an accordion folding in on itself, the enormous building shrank in size, collapsing neatly and seamlessly into a miniature version of itself—small enough to fit in the palm of a hand.
"Lucian," Thalia called out, stunned. "What kind of enchantments did you just put on that thing?!"
Annabeth let out a delighted laugh, eyes gleaming. "I know some of them. I helped him create a few, and I was reading the layers as he built them. He didn't hold out it seems"
Lucian snapped his fingers, and in an instant, the miniature castle expanded, rapidly growing back to its full, towering form. However, instead of settling on the ground, it remained suspended in the air, floating effortlessly as if resting atop invisible winds.
Annabeth stepped closer, still catching her breath, but now grinning with excitement. "You want to explain some of the things you added? Some of the features are really cool," she said, eyes gleaming with curiosity.
Lucian crossed his arms proudly. "Basically, Castle Blackheart—"
"Absolutely not," Thalia interrupted flatly, arms folded and eyebrow raised.
Annabeth couldn't help but snicker.
Lucian looked between the two, visibly confused. "What? What's wrong with that?"
"Not everything has to be named Blackheart, you know," Thalia said, rolling her eyes.
"Did you build it?" Lucian asked, without missing a beat.
Thalia opened her mouth, caught off guard. "Wha—Well…no…"
"Then your opinion has zero value," Lucian replied with a small pout, turning back to admire his creation.
Thalia's response was silent but eloquent—she raised her middle finger with all the grace of a lady.
Lucian cleared his throat, brushing it off with faux professionalism. "Anyway... as I was saying, about Castle Blackheart of the Blackheart Coven—name still pending," he added in a mumble under his breath, though it was loud enough for both girls to hear.
"My favorite enchantment by far," he continued with a grin, "is the summoning mechanic. You can summon this place through any door."
Thalia tilted her head. "Wait, really? How?"
"I had to get some help from my mother for that part," Lucian admitted, "but if you're registered to the castle's wards, you can knock a specific sequence on any door, speak the activation phrase, and—boom. When you open the door, you're not walking into any old room anymore. You're stepping straight into the castle."
Both girls looked genuinely impressed, and Lucian wasn't done.
"The castle is semi-sentient," he said, pacing slightly as he explained. "It responds to verbal commands from recognized individuals. Say, for example, 'take me to the bathroom,' and the layout will shift. The next door you open? Bathroom. It reorganizes its entire structure to suit your needs in real-time."
"That's... honestly impressive" Thalia admitted.
"It gets better," Lucian said with a grin. "The interior space is virtually infinite. You could fit an entire city inside if you wanted. The place is practically a high-level artifact now."
"There's also a memory vault," he added, almost offhandedly. "A magical archive where you can store books, spells, maps—heck, even actual memories. Speak a keyword, and the Hall of Knowledge will project exactly what you're looking for, down to the last detail."
"I may have gone a little overboard," Lucian said, clearly pleased with himself.
Thalia let out a low whistle. "You really went all out, huh?"
"Oh, that's not even the half of it," Lucian replied smugly. "There's the castle's active defense systems. Let's just say it can transform into a colossal golem and defend itself if attacked—but that story's for another time."
Thalia narrowed her eyes playfully. "Is there anything else we should know?"
Lucian smirked. "If I started listing every enchantment, we'd be here until next week. It's more fun if you find them out for yourselves anyway. Gives the place a bit of mystery."
He stretched his arms over his head with a satisfied sigh, looking at the towering spires above. "Anyway, let's go get Medusa. I want to give her the grand tour of her new place—with everyone."
Annabeth leaned over and whispered to Thalia with a mischievous smile, "This place should just be called Lucian's Harem Palace."
Thalia stifled a laugh, her shoulders shaking as she let out a short chortle.
Lucian froze mid-step, shooting a flat, unimpressed look their way. He rolled his eyes dramatically. "I'll be back," he muttered, and without another word, he vanished into the shadows.
********************************************
+10 advance Chapters on: patreon.com/Shadow_D_Monarch3