"Is a weakling like that the source of the fluctuation?" Lisicka ask as she peered into the scrying pool. She brushed a strand of her long blonde hair from her face and studied the gnome. For a magical threat strong enough to set off all the wards her master had placed, he seemed rather pathetic.
Archmage Yiject, Lord of the Dread Isles, Ultimate Arcane Might Embodied, Punisher of the Crimson Host, First Speaker of the Chaos Magiorm, stroked his jet black goatee and glared at the figure depicted in the pool. His spells were infallible. Or, rather, they were supposed to be and a swift death removed any underling who implied otherwise. He had spent an hour, crafting this divination, shaping it into the essence of subtly. He doubted Cyric, the Prince of Lies himself, could have covered his movements so adeptly. The problem was, when looking at this worm of a gnome, his magical sight saw...
Nothing. His wards shouldn't have triggered. There was no power here. He had expected an arcane surge would signify a master practitioner, maybe an object of power or one of the gods in disguise. But there was nothing, just the faint whiff of innate gnommish trickery. The boy didn't even have the mage spark.
But his spells pointed here. After the first, subtle spell, he had tried faster, rougher spells. The boy hadn't noticed and each had returned the same target. If the real source was shunting his search, it was not only the fastest and smoothest redirect, it also had it in for this kid. Most baffles worked by either moving to a random target or just disappearing entirely.
"He's too weak to be the source, but he should be investigated before we discount him completely. Go. Take a few of those human warriors who seem so fond of you and check him out. Either he's concealing his power in some unnatural manner, or he is as he seems. Nevertheless! I want to know why he registers as the source of the disturbance. Go, apprentice, uncover the truth!
"Yes, master, as you will it, so am I commanded." She curtsied low and turned. The marilith shield maidens on guard lowered their spears in respect as Lisicka, First Disciple of their master swept out of the Hall of Divination.
