Sorcery Most Foul
In a damp cave in the Basque-influenced regions of France, a smiling man oversees a ritual.
Three men in dark robes chant, arrayed around a stone pedestal, on which sits a glass vial. The cave, chosen for its mystical energies, resonates with their words as they begin to work their will - or rather, their employer's will - on the contents.
At last, they fall silent - their energies exhausted. "It is done," says one of the men. "The magic is replenished, precisely as you directed. The recent shift in the balance of magic has made the process more fatiguing than anticipated, but easier in other ways."
The man's chuckle is a low rumble that reverberates through the cave. "Then you shall have your promised payment." He pulls form his pocket three medallions of a peculiar metal. "The Atlantean amulets you requested. And as we agreed, I expect you all to vanish from the material plane for a few months - I cannot allow this to be traced to me until my goal is achieved."
The Hermetic mystical trio nods as one, taking hold of one amulet each, and fading from sight thereafter.
He chuckles again as he moves to take up the vial - a chuckle which expands in its volume and intensity, until the cave is filled with maniacal laughter.
Three men in dark robes chant, arrayed around a stone pedestal, on which sits a glass vial. The cave, chosen for its mystical energies, resonates with their words as they begin to work their will - or rather, their employer's will - on the contents.
At last, they fall silent - their energies exhausted. "It is done," says one of the men. "The magic is replenished, precisely as you directed. The recent shift in the balance of magic has made the process more fatiguing than anticipated, but easier in other ways."
The man's chuckle is a low rumble that reverberates through the cave. "Then you shall have your promised payment." He pulls form his pocket three medallions of a peculiar metal. "The Atlantean amulets you requested. And as we agreed, I expect you all to vanish from the material plane for a few months - I cannot allow this to be traced to me until my goal is achieved."
The Hermetic mystical trio nods as one, taking hold of one amulet each, and fading from sight thereafter.
He chuckles again as he moves to take up the vial - a chuckle which expands in its volume and intensity, until the cave is filled with maniacal laughter.