Across Eternity: Book 7
Copyright© 2026 by Sage of the Forlorn Path
Chapter 8: True Nature
Fantasy Sex Story: Chapter 8: True Nature - Noah and his friends head to the nation of the dwarves to continue their fight against the Profane.
Caution: This Fantasy Sex Story contains strong sexual content, including Ma/Fa Fa/ft Consensual Drunk/Drugged NonConsensual Reluctant Romantic Slavery Lesbian BiSexual Heterosexual Fiction High Fantasy Science Fiction Magic Vampires Demons Light Bond Group Sex Interracial Black Female White Male White Female Oriental Female Anal Sex Analingus Cream Pie First Fisting Oral Sex Squirting Big Breasts Violence
Over the next few days, Noah and his group helped prepare the dwarves to go to war with the Profane. Noah assembled a lab like he had built in Welindar and busied himself with creating poisons that would work on the unholy spawn. Shannon joined him, happy to take on the role of his lab assistant once more. Sophia got involved as well, partially out of her love of alchemy and chemistry, and also because she couldn’t turn down a chance to work alongside Noah again. Cyrilo also joined in, adding her years of expertise.
While they worked on developing chemical agents, Seraph helped the dwarves improve their steel. Weapons imbued with elemental enchantments only properly worked when wielded by mages of that element, but that wasn’t to say they were useless in the hands of the magically challenged. Regardless of who wielded it, a holy sword would inflict greater harm to a Profane, leaving wounds that were both more severe and took longer to heal. The dwarves worshipped Terranora almost exclusively, but there were still a handful of paladins and Lumendori priests to assist him in enchanting arms and armor, imbuing them with holy energy.
At the same time, Valia, Alexis, Roc, and Foley were instructing soldiers on how to fight the Profane. The dwarves of Vandheim had centuries of experience in fighting beastmen, mages, and all manner of foes that happened to be bigger than them, but tussling with fiends and ghouls was a whole different level of difficulty. Much of the training involved telling the stories of their battles and providing details on the strengths and weaknesses of their foes. The destruction of Welindar and Colbrand was also hammered into the dwarves’ minds, so that they’d understand just how easily Duravound could fall.
When he wasn’t in the lab, Noah acted as a middleman for Elisandra, Tarnas, and Geord to facilitate their collaboration for their counterattack against the Profane. He’d bounce his consciousness back and forth between the three nations through his harkonen network, relaying the leaders’ messages to each other while offering his own wisdom. If anyone began arguing or wasting his time with useless back-and-forth banter, he’d shut it down. He refused to let the conversation be anything less than civil, informational, and useful to the war effort.
Finally, the day of the full moon arrived, and on that morning, Noah paid a visit to Elisandra. She was already waiting for him with one of the Nadoku and two soldiers.
“Is everything ready?” he asked.
“It is. Tonight, the Moon Tears will fall and the mirror will reach its zenith. Noah, meet Liasai, one of our most devoted Night Singers. I’ve charged her with carrying the orb to the Lunar Temple. As much as I wish I could do it myself, it’s simply not feasible at this time. You will be accompanied by Tonran and Xerod, two of my best warriors. We’ve done all we can to keep the Profane out of the Anorvan Forest, but I still would not dare send Liasai on such a crucial mission without protection.”
“Thank you. I greatly appreciate this,” Noah said to all four of them. Liasai and the two soldiers promptly took a knee.
“It is our greatest honor to serve you, Aegasviel. We will get you to the Lunar Temple no matter the cost!” Tonran exclaimed. Noah looked at Elisandra, who just smiled.
“Thank you. But keep in mind that you’re only carrying this orb, through which I project my consciousness. It’s simply a delivery mission.”
“Any assignment given to us by the king and queen of Sylphtoria is precious beyond all measure,” said Liasai.
“King? I thought we agreed I would just be the royal consort?” Noah asked Elisandra.
“And you think the people who bask in the light of your star would be satisfied with that?” she giggled.
“If that is your wish, then let it be so. Anyway, I’d appreciate it if the three of you could relax. Your dedication is noble, but without stoicism and temperance, it’s just zealotry. I have to return to Duravound to continue my work, but I’ll check back in at sunset. Please be at the Lunar Temple by then.”
“Yes, Lord Noah,” the three said in unison.
Noah released the spell and pulled his mind back into his body. When he opened his eyes, he was back in his room at the inn, and Cynatas was standing in front of him.
“What are you doing here?” he asked.
“Just checking in. I find it fascinating how you’re able to reach out to other countries like that. By the way, do you know where Roc is?”
“I believe he said he was going to fly to one of the martial arts temples to deliver a message for the king about the Profane. He should be back by midday.”
“Good. Whenever I can’t find him, part of me worries that he’s done something to get himself in trouble again.”
“Well, he does have a bit of a knack for it. You really care about him, don’t you?”
“You say that like you’re surprised.”
“Not surprised, just curious. I can tell he thinks the world of you, but words of love spoken through prison bars can change when the bars are removed.”
“Have you so little faith in love?”
“No, just in people. I’m not saying I expect things between you to fail, but rather that I hope you succeed, despite what I’ve seen and experienced in my long life. Honestly, I don’t know Roc as well as the others, but I do know he has a decent amount of anger in him. A lot of it, he was simply born with, and he’s come to rely on it as a source of strength and purpose. Yet when I see him with you, that anger is gone, and that’s important. A true warrior is one who can embrace peace, not just in life, but in themselves.
The power one derives from anger is seductive in its ease and abundance, and there are moments when feelings like spite are useful in overcoming obstacles, but that same power can become a crutch that ultimately weakens us. Everyone, be they warrior or pacifist, needs to learn to reject the shortcut of anger, to be able to live without it, and call upon it only when it is necessary. Roc fights with fiery tenacity, but he needs to be able to live with the calm clarity of still waters, and that is something learned through love.”
Cynatas smiled and stared off into space. “You may not know him well, but he has a great deal of respect for you. He told me stories about his time in Colbrand, both the academy and the tournament. At first, he thought you were just a deceitful weasel and a scoundrel.”
“That sounds about right.”
“But your strength and wisdom earned his admiration. He also said that, according to your subordinate Shannon, you’ve been recognized by the spirits? Any beastman would gladly follow someone so esteemed. You even earned the name Ralacad, correct? You’ve developed an impressive reputation. He is your friend, through and through.”
“But what you two have is certainly more than just friendship. I can tell how much he cares about you. I’m curious; how did the two of you meet?”
“The same way you and I met: you both caused trouble, which made me curious. After Roc shouted that the Profane were coming and getting the city all riled up, I had to speak to him. When I went to his cell, I found someone in this city worth talking to: a beastman warrior of the Ashok Mountains, trying to save dwarves, of all people, and fighting harder with one arm than most warriors with two. He was driven and focused, but lacked the stone-headedness of dwarves. He saw my elvish side and didn’t recoil from it, instead calling me a flower that had been forced to bloom in darkness with the mushrooms.
Lupin was a good man, undoubtedly, but he was simply the prince of another nation, chained to me in an arranged marriage. He was a man stuck on the ground, sealed within castle walls and royal constraints, something which I was certainly sympathetic to, but already had more than enough of in my own life. Marrying him would get me out of here, but I would not be truly free. That is what Roc symbolizes to me: freedom. He’s free from the earth, free from fear, free from the restraint of his injury, free from any nation. I want to live that free life with him, and when old age should take him, he will go with my love and gratitude for all the years of happiness he’ll have given me.”
Noah chuckled. “My future wife told me something similar. Queen Elisandra of Sylphtoria is pregnant with my child and wants us to get married when this mess is over. Though my soul is eternal, my body is still human, but she’s made peace with that, and is ready to cherish what little time we’ll have.”
“You and the queen of the elves? Well, well, you really are interesting. So, what does that make Valia Zodiac? Your concubine?”
“Don’t let her catch you saying that.” The two of them shared a chuckle. “I suppose we won’t know the final details until we find her brother. Until then, we’re all just taking it one day at a time.”
Noah then went on with his usual work, helping the dwarves prepare for war. However, he always minded the time, relying heavily on his internal clock as anticipation ate away at him. How long had it been since he felt this kind of excitement? Finally, evening came, and after a quick dinner, he retired to his room, instructing everyone not to disturb him until he gave the word. He assumed a meditative position on the floor with a harkonen orb in his lap and his mirror at his side, and stretched his consciousness over the horizon. When he opened his eyes, he was standing at the base of the Lunar Temple with the three elves, who all bowed as he appeared.
“Lord Noah, we have brought you to the Lunar Temple as you instructed!” Xerod announced.
“Thank you, well done, and with perfect timing, too. I’d like the two of you to wait down here. Liasai, shall we?”
“Of course, sire.”
The sun had set, and the moon was starting to rise, dyed a vibrant yellow like a drop of honey. Liasai carried the orb up to the steps and to the top of the pyramid, exactly as it was the last time Noah visited. He had only been here for one night, but Noah had some excellent memories of this place. Since they weren’t here to contact the spirits, Liasai did not perform any of the ritual steps, such as using the cleansing pool or ringing the ceremonial bowl.
“So, this is where you ahem blessed the queen with an heir?” Liasai asked while blushing.
“I thoroughly blessed her.”
“And I suppose there’s no chance I could...”
“Ignoring the fact that I am in a purely ethereal state, you’d have to ask Elisandra for permission, but don’t expect her to say yes. Now, please set the orb down right here and remove the greenery covering the mirror.”
Liasai followed his instructions and exposed the mirror, as beautiful and pristine as the first time Noah saw it. Even when covered with vines and moss, it remained immaculate, as if it had already been polished. Both Noah and Liasai sat down beside the mirror, her on the other side, and the two waited. As the moon shed its yellow hue and hung like a luminous pearl, the flowers growing around the surrounding pillars began to open.
From their blue petals, silvery nectar dripped like tears, befitting their name perfectly. The nectar flowed through channels in the floor and into the mirror. As the moon’s light shone upon it, it began to glow. Even while just an apparition, Noah could feel the mana in the air swirling like a powerful vortex, far superior to the mirror he crafted.
Everything was ready, so Noah took a deep breath and leaned over, looking at his reflection. He could see the rune and magic circle in his eyes, and though it was clearer than before, it remained unreadable. However, Noah had been expecting this. Since he was only there in ethereal form, it made sense he wouldn’t be able to clearly see it.
That was why he had his mirror with him in Duravound. He had been practicing for this, and with no small amount of effort, he gently brought some of his consciousness back to his real body, essentially splitting his mind in two. It was exceptionally difficult and inflicted a vast amount of mental strain, but while one eye saw the Lunar Temple, his other eye saw his room in Vandheim.
He only had control of one arm in this state, but he activated his invisibility magic and then picked up the mirror and stared into it, seeing his reflection through both the original and his replica. The two reflections overlapped in his mind’s eye, two different views of the rune, neither able to show him the true image, but when joined, the picture was crystal clear. There it was, the central rune of his magic.
At that moment, it was like a bullet had just pierced his forehead and drilled straight through his brain, with the image of the rune spreading through his mind like wildfire. Noah unintentionally gagged in pain and fell on his back, feeling like his mind was being ripped apart. He could not tell where he was, whether he was in his real body or at the Lunar Temple. No matter what thought he conjured, the symbol obscured it like a giant stamp, blocking everything out. He didn’t understand what this intensity was and why he was experiencing it. It was just a rune, the foundation of his magic, something every spell user had, but they didn’t suffer like this, so why was his so unique?
The sensations rushing through him began to change, no longer feeling like pain, but something else. He felt like his mana was a massive network of gears and cogs, discombobulated and out of order, but now they were all snapping into place and finally working together as they were meant to. What he experienced as pain was the sensation of his magical system being remade from the ground up, as if his body was undergoing a hundred growth spurts at once. His magic altered the perceptions of others, but could not properly work until he correctly perceived it himself.
The rune was one he had never seen before, never heard its name, but he understood its meaning with perfect clarity. He opened his eyes back at the Lunar Temple, staring at the sky overhead, and whispered the name, only to hear it spoken by Liasai.
“False.”
He sat up and looked at her, finding her shaking with her eyes rolled back into her head.
“False,” she said again. She raised her arm, trembling beyond her control, and pointed at him. “False! False!” she exclaimed. Something was wrong with her. Noah looked at the mirror and realized they were surrounded by spirits, swirling and churning. Just from the way they moved, he knew they were extremely agitated, and Noah realized that they were possessing Liasai to voice their rage. “False! False! False!” They weren’t just naming the rune; they were accusing him. Like him, they were only now discovering the true nature of his magic, and they did not like it.
“False,” Noah muttered.
It made perfect sense, as he now truly understood his magic and himself. For thousands of years, he had lived one disguise after another, manipulating everyone around him for the sake of survival, prosperity, and entertainment. He had lied to his family, friends, lovers, and the public and continued to lie to them in his world. The worst details of his past he kept hidden, such as his relationship with Duska and Bella, his deception at Duravound, and countless other lies and half-truths he had used since his arrival.
They were just steps in an endlessly repeating pattern stretching across the multiverse. That facet of his existence was so ingrained into him that upon reaching this world, it became a magic power he could wield. With his left eye, he could conceal the truth, and with his right eye, he could project lies. His guises and illusory weapons were the result of his magic piggybacking on his curse and being imprinted with his memories and experiences.
“False! False!” Liasai continued to moan while pointing the finger of condemnation.
Noah could only partially guess why the spirits found this magic so repugnant, but it didn’t matter. All that mattered was that he had his answer. He got to his feet and stepped over to Liasai, resting his phantasmal hand on her head. He sent a pulse of mana into her mind, born from the new level of power he had achieved, and she was wrenched free from the spirits’ control. She fell back, gasping for air.
“What just happened?”
“Do you remember anything?” he asked.
“I remember seeing you suddenly shout and collapse, and then ... this.”
“The spirits knocked you out. They appeared and told me about my magic, and I guess they decided to remove you from the conversation. It’s the rune of...”
Noah trailed off, realizing he was about to lie again to conceal his magic with a lesser title. It was his first instinct, and if the spirits of nature were any indication, the true nature of his magic would not be well-received by others. Regardless, he wanted to be honest and bear whatever consequences he suffered for it.
“You can tell Elisandra it’s the Rune of False. My magic has the power to deceive my enemies with illusions and phantasms. Come on, we should go back down.”
Liasai carried the orb down the temple steps with Noah walking alongside her. His astral form felt much more vivid than it did before. He could properly feel the hardness of the steps, the kiss of the wind, and the smell of the forest. He was still immaterial, but it almost felt as if he were walking with his real body. They reached the bottom of the steps, where Xerod and Tonran were waiting.
“My Lord, happened up there?” Xerod asked. “We thought we heard someone shouting, but it was muffled. There was so much energy in the air, it was like trying to hear through a wall of wind.”
“Everything is fine, but Liasai had a ‘spiritual awakening,’ as you might say, and just needs some sleep. The three of you should make camp and return to Sylphtoria tomorrow. I got the information that I needed, and everything worked out just fine. Thank you for all you’ve done. You’ve helped me more than you can possibly imagine and changed the tide of this war.”
Noah then returned to his true body and opened his eyes, finding himself not on the floor of his room, but on the bed, surrounded by his concerned friends.
“Noah, are you all right?” Valia asked, placing her hand on his cheek as though checking for a fever. “We suddenly heard you shout, and when we came in, you wouldn’t wake up.”
“I’m fine. I figured it out.” He got out of bed and walked past everyone to the nearby desk, where he had set up his stationery. Everyone watched him as he started scribbling runes, acting like they weren’t there.
“My Lord, what happened?”
“I figured out my rune. Relax, I’m fine. I just have a bunch of stuff in my head that I need to write down. You can all go, I’m completely all right. Just leave me to sort this stuff out.”
They slowly shuffled out, one by one, leaving behind just Valia and Shannon sitting on the bed, waiting and watching him work. After several minutes of rapid scratching on parchment, he finally stopped and sighed. Valia got up and approached.
“So ... what? What happened? What’s your rune?”
“False. Thousands of years of lying to conceal my identity and blend in have given me the Rune of False. I conceal what is and project what isn’t.” He showed her the parchment, where he had written four spell formulas. “These two spells here are the first I unlocked: invisibility and cloning. My phantom weapons, my old faces, my soundproofing ability, and my spell mimicry all originate from these two spells.”
“And what about the other two?”
Noah smiled. “They are what my spells have evolved into; the fully realized version of my magic. I can either use them at the original level as I have until now, or I can cast them as they are truly meant to be. So, would the two of you like to help me with a little experimentation?”
The next night, after Noah and everyone else had fallen asleep, a stranger entered the city through a ventilation shaft. He kept to the shadows, avoiding the still-crowded streets. Since the Duravound dwarves lived underground and experienced little sunlight, their concept of day and night was different from those outside the city. This dwarf, garbed in black, navigated the city with honed stealth. He arrived at the Platinum Inn and secured himself in an empty house nearby where he could work undiscovered. Now alone, he pressed his hands together as if in prayer. Several dark shapes rose from his back and separated from him, becoming a group of fellow Profane dwarves, all identically garbed.
“Do it,” he said to one of them.
The ghoul in question pulled back his hood, revealing his gray skin and stark red eye, while the other was covered with an eyepatch. He removed the patch, revealing his eye to be unnaturally large, with the lids enclosing it looking like fanged jaws. His eye then quivered and pushed itself out of his socket, attached to the body of a large black worm. It slithered down onto the ground and set off, with the dwarf controlling its movements and seeing everything he saw. Not only could he determine shapes and colors with sharp contrast, but he could also see life signs and mana signatures, like heat on an infrared camera.
He directed the worm to the inn while avoiding the detection of anyone passing by, and it slipped into the building unnoticed through a crack in the exterior. The worm continued on through the walls, hidden from view by a thin layer of paint and plaster as it traveled ever higher. Its ascension led it to a rat’s nest, forcing the mother to defend her young. She could sense the wicked power in the worm and was rightfully afraid, but had to stand firm. She hissed and moved from side to side, trying to make herself appear bigger as she gathered the courage to attack.
The worm stared at the rat as it brought up the end of its tail, from which a hollow stinger extended. It stabbed the rat like a scorpion, injecting its venom. The rat collapsed, spasming as its body melted from the inside out. What was flesh, bones, and muscle became an organic puddle, and the worm used its stinger to suck up the remains for digestion. After doing the same to the younglings, it continued. It reached the corridor on the top floor, with the ghoul in control scanning for Noah’s mana signature. It spotted him through the wall and approached the door, but paused.
He could see that the door had been boobytrapped with a magic circle applied on the back that would activate if the doorknob was turned. Though the worm couldn’t turn the knob itself, the ghoul was still given pause by this defensive measure. Still, it continued on, having the worm slither through the door. The worm flattened its body to pass through the narrow opening, but once it was on the other side, it once more paused. The floor of Noah’s room was rigged with more magical traps, scattered like pitfalls.
The ghoul led his familiar through the magical minefield and into Noah’s bedroom, where he was sound asleep between Valia and Shannon. However, the bed itself was in the center of a magical barrier, and if the worm crossed the border, it would be electrocuted. The worm slithered up the wall, leaving a faint slime trail but creating no noise. It circled another trap and reached the ceiling. There was enough give in the magic barrier for the worm to get by and hang over the bed. It lowered its tail, carefully lining up its stringer to drop poison onto Noah’s lips. A single green tear fell from its stinger, but before it could reach Noah, it was disintegrated by a holy spell with a flash and a crackle.
Awoken by the alarm, Valia’s eyes bolted open, and even in the darkness, she saw the worm attached to the ceiling. She launched herself up, nearly cracking the bedframe with her dismount, and grabbed the worm’s tail. “Got you.”
Noah reacted just a moment slower and moved on instinct, grabbing Shannon and rolling with her off the bed, as though trying to avoid yet another burst of late-night gunfire that ruined numerous mattresses in past lifetimes. “What’s going on?” he asked as he tried to shake his brain free from the last confines of sleep’s embrace. Meanwhile, Shannon was even more bewildered, acting like a cat that had been splashed with water.
“Someone is trying to kill you,” said Valia, holding the writhing worm. She was about to smack it against the wall to kill it, but Noah stopped her. “Wait!” He took a moment to rub the grogginess from his eyes and stared at the worm. “It’s being controlled. I can see the magical leash, just like between Galvin and Ziradith. It’s going—” He pointed at the nearby wall. “—that way, between forty and fifty meters away.”
“I’ll go on ahead. You catch up.” There was no time to get dressed, so Valia simply threw on Noah’s coat and then jumped out the window. “Zodiac: Avagath!” she cast as she fell. She landed in the street with elven grace and sprinted in the direction Noah gave, soon sensing the presence of the Profane. “Assassins! Eight of them!” she shouted back to Noah.
“We’re routed!” the one-eyed dwarf exclaimed.
“Plan B!” the leader ordered, causing the other ghouls to scatter out of the building, barely a second before Valia kicked open the door and rushed in. She chased after the slowest ghoul, the one who had dispatched the worm, but was surprised by his speed. With rapid acceleration and quick turning, each assassin was moving through Duravound in a zigzag pattern. Valia activated her speed enhancement and caught up to her prey, delivering a perfect slice to the back of the neck.
The Profane dwarf’s head was sent flying, but from the stump of his neck, several centipedes lunged out towards Valia with venomous pincers made of segments of his spinal column. She sliced them into pieces as they were in the air, only to be followed by more chitinous vermin. Worms made of intestines, beetles wrapped in carapaces of dwarven bone, and flying pests with wings made of thin muscle tissue were fleeing the body like rats escaping a sinking ship. The shape beneath the ghoul’s black robes was deflating as his body lost more and more of its mass.
Many of these creatures were going after Valia like the centipedes, but most were trying to escape. She couldn’t let the assassins get away, but nor could she allow this pestilence to spread and find victims to sink their fangs and stingers into. For all she knew, they could carry diseases and toxins that would contaminate the ground or water. She sliced up the leaping familiars and then went to work crushing the others before they could get away.
She then paused to look up as an enchanted arrow flew over her head, passing by numerous buildings before striking another assassin and ripping him to shreds. It was launched by Alexis, standing on the roof of the Platinum Inn. She was still in her nightgown, but this wasn’t the first time she’d had to strike foes down in such a state. Sophia was with her, casting a blessing to augment her eyesight.
She loaded another arrow and spotted the next assassin. Her magic eye laid out his path before he could make it, and she released the arrow with pinpoint aim. Whether it was luck or instinct, the assassin turned at the last moment, causing the arrow to strike his shoulder and rob him of his arm. A debilitating wound, but for the Profane, it was far from fatal, and it only galvanized him to move faster. Alexis clicked her tongue in annoyance, and again as he ducked out of her line of sight.
As he moved, he pulled glass bottles out of his robe with his remaining arm and smashed them against surrounding buildings. The bottles shattered against wood and stone, spraying their liquid payload. The fluid ignited upon contact with the air, and soon, a trail of flames was winding its way through the city. Most of Duravound was constructed using bricks and concrete, but there were still plenty of flammable materials that could ignite and cause panic. Soon, the public was racing to put out the flames or escape their wrath, causing pandemonium in the streets.
The one-armed assassin, having used up all of his incendiaries and emerging from the smoke, was pulverized by a dive bomb by Roc. His eyes were like those of an eagle, helping him track the assassin through the smokescreen and close in on him. However, his eyes were also watering, as said smoke was also filling up the upper portions of the cavern, and making flying difficult. He took to the air once more, trying to stay as low to the buildings as he could while he searched for the next assassin. More flames were appearing throughout Duravound in this coordinated attack. However, Roc couldn’t help but wonder if the Profane were doing this to inflict collateral damage or if they were simply creating a distraction.
In the distance, he spotted a flash of light, courtesy of Seraph, chasing down another arsonist. When he heard Valia’s voice announce their presence, his combat instincts pulled him out of bed and sent him running with barely an idea of where he was going, even forgetting his hammer. However, the building screams and ruckus helped get him up to speed, and he knew there was a foe to be chasing. The cloaked dwarves caught his eye, and the way they moved with supernatural strength and agility through the crowds painted them as Profane. The problem was that he couldn’t blast them without hitting bystanders.
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