The tower stood miles east of Excelsior's walls, a structure of grey stone that rose seven stories. Unlike the pristine white architecture of the city, this building showed character: It had weathered stone and moss growing in patches with windows placed at irregular intervals.
I liked it immediately.
A brass plaque near the entrance read: "Master Aldric's Academy of Theoretical Magic. Serious inquiries only. No solicitors, no adventurers seeking quick power, no love potions, no fools."
I knocked on the heavy wooden door. After a moment, it swung open to reveal a human man who appeared to be in his mid to late sixties, his grey beard neatly trimmed, his robes covered in ink stains and what appeared to be scorch marks. Work robes for wizards ha! I found some amusement from that thought.
"I don't take students under the fifth circle," he said without preamble. "If you're looking for basic instruction, try the city libraries." I had clocked my divinity so his sense where probably not working otherwise...
"I apologise , I am not looking for instruction," I said. "I'm looking for specifc arcane knowledge. I'm a craftsman trying to understand how magic operates in the Outlands Plane specifically, and I'm willing to pay for your time."
His expression shifted from dismissive to interested. "Hmmm, payment you say, I could always use more funding hmm," He stepped aside. "Come in then, lets see what you have. I'm Aldric Thornweave, though you probably guessed that from the sign."
The tower's interior was exactly what I'd expected from a working mage: It was organized chaos and books covered every available surface. Magical diagrams covered the walls and instruments I didn't immediately identify cluttered several tables. The air smelled like parchment, ink, and ozone.
"What kind of crafting do you do?" Aldric asked, leading me to a sitting area that had been cleared of debris. Mostly cleared, anyway.
"I do enchantment, primarily and Item creation. I've been trying to work with the local magical framework, but where I'm from, power operates differently." I chose my words carefully. "I want to understand the fundamental principles so I don't accidentally create something unstable."
"Haha, thats good, Half the explosions I hear about come from artificers who thought they could apply their Planes rules to our cosmology without understanding the differences." He gestured for me to sit. "What specifically do you want to know?"
"How magic functions here and the underlying structure, the limitations, why certain things work and others don't." I paused. "And why I'm not experiencing any magical suppression despite being at the outer edge of the Outlands."
Aldric's eyebrows rose. "You're aware of the Spire's suppression effect, it's not something thats spoken about casually?"
"I've read about it and that distance from the Spire determines magical power and the closer you get, the higher the spell levels that fail to function. At the base of the Spire itself, even cantrips don't work."
"that is correct. So why do you think you're not experiencing suppression?"
I considered how much to reveal. "My power doesn't come from the same source as local magic. Where I'm from, power flows through divine will rather than connection to external sources."
"Ah." Aldric leaned back, studying me with new interest. "You're a divine caster. That explains it. The Spire suppresses connection to most external magical sources, but most divine power is, although external , stored internally . It comes from your nature, your belief, your connection to whatever grants you power. The Spire can't fully suppress that because it's not drawing from the plane itself although if you get closer to the spire you might be affected but this far away divine spell are still good, you should still feel some suppression though…"
That made sense with what I'd observed. My godhood was intrinsic, part of my being born an olympian. The Spire could suppress ambient magical energy, could block connections to external sources, but it couldn't suppress what I fundamentally was but something was still strange, from Michaels memories gods were still suppressed should they go to the outlands and eventually the closer they got to the spire the more mortal they became but I felt no suppression at all.
"What about arcane casters?" I asked. "How do they function here?"
"With a lot of difficulty," Aldric admitted. "In some realities, there's a magical network. Mystra's Weave, for example, in the the planet Toril. Here, there's no such convenience. We connect directly to raw magical energy, pulling it from the planes themselves. It's harder, less reliable, and prone to interference. A lot of fighting closer to the spire is tool use. That's why artificers are so respected here."
"Hence why most wizards stay at the outer edge of the Outlands."
"Precisely, and here at the border, we can still cast up to twelfth-level spells if you have the power unlike in toril were it is restricted, though it requires more effort than it would in, say, in Sigil or on one of the outer planes. Move closer to the Spire, and those spell levels simply stop working unless you are inside Sigil itself. The raw magical energy becomes too suppressed to shape properly. The lady also does not allow those above certain power".
I pulled out my notes, sketching diagrams as he talked. "What about spell structure? How are spells categorized?"
Aldric's expression turned professorial. "Spells are ranked in nine tiers, from first to ninth. Cantrips sit below first level, simple effects that require minimal power. As you ascend the tiers, the complexity and power increase. Ninth-level spells can reshape reality, stop time, wish things into existence. There are higher level spells but unfortunately I do not have access nor information other then rumors its goes to the Twelfth level. Anything beyond the 10th level Is just rumors at the moment."
Michael's memories supplied context. The D&D spell system was structured and mathematical and each spell level representing a significant increase in power and complexity.
"And anyone can learn this?" I asked. "Given sufficient study and talent?"
"In theory, yes. In practice, most people lack either the intellectual capacity or the discipline. Reaching ninth-level casting capability takes decades of dedicated study. Many wizards never progress beyond fifth or sixth circle, that's what we call in toril 11th level wizards with access to a 6th spell slot.."
We talked for another hour, Aldric explaining the intricacies of spell preparation, the mechanics of spell slots, the relationship between intelligence and magical power. It was different from divine magic in execution, though the underlying principles paralleled what I understood.
Eventually, I broached the subject of payment. "I'd like to purchase some of your spell knowledge. Specifically, written documentation of spells up to a certain level. To understand the spell framework I would be putting into the items."
"That's not a cheap request, but your an enchanter, I am pretty sure you have some goods," Aldric said. "Spell documentation represents years of research. What are you offering?"
I reached into my dimensional storage and pulled out a sword I'd forged in my younger years, back when I'd still cared about impressing the Olympians. The blade was celestial bronze, perfectly balanced, inscribed with runes that made it effective against creatures of darkness and evil. The craftsmanship was divine, literally, every fold of the metal precise beyond mortal capability.
Aldric's eyes widened in awe. "That's... where did you get that?"
"I was gifted it," I said. "It's not the best sword, but serviceable. Effective against fiends, demons, creatures of darkness. The enchantments are permanent, powered by the metal's own nature rather than external magic. It would be useful for you to research". I suspected he was here to get around Mystra's banning of magic above 10th tier.
He reached for it, then hesitated. "May I?"
"Go ahead."
He lifted the sword with both hands, testing its weight and balance. His fingers traced the runes, and I saw recognition flash across his face. "This is divine craftsmanship. These runes are... I've never seen patterns like this. The efficiency alone..." He looked up at me. "Where did you get this, really?"
"Does it matter where I got it? I am offering it to you now" I said. "The sword is payment for knowledge. What spell levels can you provide documentation for?"
Aldric set the sword down carefully, as if afraid it might vanish. "For this? I can give you copies of complete documentation up to seventh-level spells. I have eighth and ninth-level spell knowledge, but those are too rare and valuable. I only have my own spell book and I am not parting with it.."
"Seventh level is acceptable," I said. Getting documentation of the highest-tier spells would have been ideal, but I understood the reluctance. Knowledge at that level represented decades of research and was jealously guarded.
"Give me an hour to gather the materials," Aldric said, already moving toward one of his book-laden shelves. "And while I'm doing that, you can explain what metal this blade is made from."
We spent the rest of the afternoon in productive exchange. I explained the principles of celestial bronze, careful to frame it as techniques from my home reality rather than divine secrets. He pulled tome after tome from his shelves, selecting spell documentation and theoretical treatises.
By the time I left, I had seven heavy books stored in my dimensional ring, each one containing detailed information about spells ranging from simple utility magic to reality-warping power. Not that I couldn't cast similar th myself, but divine magic functioned differently from arcane, but understanding how this reality's magic worked would help me adapt my crafting.
"You're welcome to return if you have questions," Aldric said as I departed. "And if you find anything else of that quality, I'd be interested in seeing it. Perhaps we could arrange another exchange."
"I'll keep that in mind," I said.
The walk back to Excelsior gave me time to process everything I'd learned. The magical system here was structured, mathematical and worked in ways that divine power wasn't. That made it useful for crafting. If I could understand the spell structures, I could create items that worked with this reality's rules rather than fighting against them.
I still needed to speak with the trumpet archon about the devil attack and the leak in the caravan's security. And I wanted to examine the bound devil corpses I'd stored in my dimensional ring, understand the infernal energies that animated them.
Tomorrow, though. Tonight, I'd study what Aldric had given me and start mapping how arcane magic could complement my divine crafting.
I was starting to understand why Michael had been so obsessed with the multiverse.