The ley line just acted as a power source so even if someone figured out how to draw power from the ley line it would be useless without the structure above it.
It was an amazing accomplishment for any nation. No wonder other nations kept trying to steal their secrets.
Looking at the plans once more it was obvious that the knights would have to upgrade their castle if they wanted to link it to the land; it might not even be possible to link it to the land. But wait... what if they didn't link it to the land but to something else.
"What if we don't link it to an element in the land? What if we linked it to something else instead?" Chronos asked.
They both looked at him not understanding what he meant.
Continuing Chronos said, "There are a thousand werewolves coming this way and some of us can handle the element of space. If we work together, we can link the castle to another layer of space and gather spirit from the ley lines' constant movement to activate the spell."
Magnus and old Tobias glanced at each other.
"We've never created a castle that interacts with space before. Can we do it?" Magnus asked.
Gathering spirit from the surrounding land wouldn't be hard. All they would have to do is layer spirit gathering circles into the bore hole in the center of the power core room. The bigger question was whether or not they could link to another layer of space.
Old Tobias looked at the plans again then took his stylus and started sketching out designs on a spare paper. After nearly an hour he looked up from his work.
"I believe we can, but I don't know enough about space to do it. If we're doing this Chronos is going to have to take the lead. Can you do it kid?" He handed the design to Chronos.
Looking at the designs Chronos gained some inspiration and nodded, "I believe I can but we're going to need to add a material to the power core and expand the castle beyond the original plan."
"Hang on, we can't go messing with the power core without good reason. If something goes wrong in there the whole castle might be destroyed." Magnus interjected.
"I know but the current designs can't handle spatial magic. Even if we expand the castle, it still won't be enough to affect space. We need a material that can transform the spirit so it can affect space, without that the castle won't become enchanted." Chronos argued back.
"Do you have a material in mind?" Old Tobias asked.
"Hm, we would need to enchant a black pearl the size of my fist and build a triangle pyramid shape around it to view other layers of space. Once we have those it won't be hard to connect the castle to a sub-layer." Chronos started getting lost in his thoughts as he considered the possibilities.
"Back up, explain layers and sub-layers to me." Old Tobias demanded.
"Well, there are seven main layers that support the world's existence and interact with it. Each layer has three or more sub-layers connected to it that govern aspects of the main layers. Trying to connect to a main layer is very dangerous because of the power and complexity of those layers but we can connect to a sub-layer safely.
Depending on which sub-layer we connect to we could create some very powerful spells. For instance, if we connect to the nature sub-layer of the physical layer, we could create storms, tornadoes or other effects using its power.
It took me a while to realize it, but I did manage to enter the thought sub-layer before, that's where the mental space exists. If we connected to that layer, we could turn thoughts into a reality such as having a dragon materialize to defend the castle.
With a triangle pyramid structure, we can take in spirit from the world through the bottom and connect the three sides to three different sub-layers for the effect. Depending on which one you use you'll have a different spell you can cast." Chronos started planning which layers he would connect it to, leaving Old Tobias and Magnus behind.
"Draw up a blueprint first. I need to confirm this will actually work."
Old Tobias realized that he couldn't stop Chronos anymore and decided to act as a safeguard instead.
"Alright, first we need to decide which three sub-layers the pyramid will connect to. Right now, I can connect to nature, instinct, vitality, aura, and thought sub-layers. Personally, I'm in favor of nature, instinct, and aura." Chronos said.
"You told us about nature and thought earlier, but what can the other layers do?" Magnus asked.
"Instinct can grant enhanced perception, and coordination amongst your own troops happens without any orders being given while suppressing the fear they might feel. At the same time, it causes any enemy in range to perceive your troops as a powerful predator enhancing any fear that they feel.
Vitality grants a reserve of life force that can heal the soldiers when they are injured and enhances any healing spell cast. Aura is similar to Vitality but enhances and creates a reserve of aura within every soldier.
Which layers do you two favor?"
Chronos might be new to layers, but he could tell what the basic effects of the layers were and how to use them just by coming into contact with them.
They were like a full library of knowledge related to whatever concept the layer supported. Learning from them would just take time to decipher all of the information a sub-layer could provide.
"I think we should change aura for thought." Old Tobias said.
Suggesting nature, instinct, and thought matched old Tobias's enchanting methods and he probably wanted to learn something from them in the process, but Magnus had different ideas.
"No, it won't be us commanding the castle, so we need to make it easier for the one taking charge to use. We should make it nature, vitality, and aura. Aura is still questionable but being able to throw bad weather at the enemy and heal your own troops is definitely needed."
"So, nature is certain and vitality is needed but I don't think we should use aura for the third. Combining vitality and aura could cause detrimental effects when exposed to both. It would make the soldier feel like they're invincible leading to bad judgements in combat or other effects." Chronos countered.
"Then let's replace aura with thought. It might not be used often but if the castle is about to fall it could be used as a final counter measure allowing the troops to retreat safely." Old Tobias offered his opinion.
"That's a good point. Then let's go with nature, vitality, and thought. Are there any other changes that need to be made?" Magnus decided.
"Yes, even with the changes in the power core room the castle won't be able to maximize that power unless we change the external structure. We need to build walls 5 kilometers from the plateau in the shape of a six-pointed star and block off the triangle sections of each wall.
Opposing triangles will be connected to the same sub-layer allowing us to extend the effects of the spell in both directions from the walls and it's easy to switch which section is connected to which sub-layer in a short period. We may also need to build military structures in each triangle to maintain control of the power as it moves beyond the walls." Chronos explained.
"Are you planning to build a whole city around this castle?" Magnus asked.
"No, but I don't doubt that a city will form on its own. The people of the wastelands will come here once the castle is built. The reason we need to build castle walls such a great distance from the plateau is because of how difficult it is to interact with space.
By affecting a large area, it becomes easier for us to link the castle to a sub-layer as the walls will slightly weaken space within their range." Chronos stated.
"If we want to extend the spell, we need to change the inner walls structure as well. The inner walls will also be a six-pointed star with walls blocking off each triangle and the plateau will have the same shape." Old Tobias started changing the plans as they talked.
The end result was a castle that looked like a miniature mountain with six towers built in a similar manner at its base. The six towers channeled spirit from the power core room to the six points of the inner wall.
The towers on the inner wall had thunderlance ballistae on them and a connecting tower that sent spirit to the outer walls six points.
The outer wall could form a domed shield from the outer wall to the central keep protecting it from aerial assault and siege engines. The outer wall would also have multiple catapults and arbalests on it to deter monsters and brigands from attacking.