by Dan Zangari
Fenia screamed, touching her hands to her face. The hair on her fingers shed, then more fell from the back of her hands and her arms. Her neck shed as well, and then her disproportionate extremities shrank.
Kaescis wasn’t going to spare anything this time. Fenia would no longer be a Wildman when he was done with her.
Fenia collapsed, shaking from the transformation. The cranial feature completely flattened, and her face looked… human. She remained on the floor, shaking.
Gevistra knelt beside her, stroking her back. “You restored,” he said calmly. “You whole.”
Fenia sobbed, feeling at her face.
Kaescis turned from the siblings and studied the high chieftain. Bhrane was in utter shock. He looked terrified by the entire occurrence.
“As you can see, your people have been deprived of their true natures. Atrocious acts were committed against your ancestors, and I intend to see them righted.”
Bhrane didn’t reply.
Gevistra helped Fenia to her feet. Fenia had an exquisite face. She would draw the eyes of many Mindolarnians, especially if she were properly dressed. Fenia’s figure had slimmed from that thick Wildman build to that of a petite woman.
Many of the Wildmen in the room gasped, muttering dismayed phrases.
Fenia eyed her brother, taking comfort in his gaze. They embraced, and Kaescis focused on the high chieftain.
“Well, High Chieftain Bhrane? What do you have to say concerning my offer?”
Bhrane leaned back in his throne, apprehensive. He blurted a perplexed statement, using the word fareenar.
You think I made her a foreigner, Kaescis mused. What a primitive fool. He doesn’t understand. Well, there was a way to fix that…
Kaescis uttered the sharp incantation again, extending his hand to the high chieftain.
Bhrane froze as the arpran magic shot from Kaescis’s palm. The green light surged across Bhrane’s body, and he fell from his throne.
The Wildman gasped but didn’t dare approach Kaescis. He was wielding Words of Power, as they put it. Besides, Gevistra had deified him.
Bhrane screamed as his body transformed; his hair shed and his limbs shrank. He was soon like Fenia, a man. The high chieftain pushed himself up, staggering to his feet.
Laeyit burst into laughter. She sounded diabolical. It was good to hear her that way.
“That’s one way to ensure the bargain,” Bratan said, sounding amused.
“Wha… what you do to me?” Bhrane asked, his eyes widened upon hearing his own voice. “My voice! It different…”
“Now you know what I can do firsthand,” Kaescis said. “Do we have a deal?”
Bhrane looked at his audience. The Wildmen gazed at their leader with disbelief. The high chieftain moved his fingers, looking surprised. They obviously had greater dexterity to them. Bhrane took several steps, his face beaming with intrigue.
“I move better!” Bhrane exclaimed. He danced about, acting out various movements that were part of some rehearsed combat exercise. “I fast!”
The high chieftain furrowed his brow, looking off into the distance. “I think better… idea come fast!” His eyes darted back and forth, as if recalling thoughts.
“What say you, High Chieftain Bhrane?” Kaescis asked.
The high chieftain considered Kaescis’s proposal for several minutes. What Kaescis had done could be detrimental to Bhrane. His people could riot against him. They might not consider him a Wildman since he looked like a foreigner. But the high chieftain had proclaimed the benefits of the transformation. Bhrane couldn’t ignore that. These were the proper motivations Kaescis wanted to instill in the man. Bhrane had to agree.
“You change all my people?” Bhrane asked. “Make better?”
“In due time,” Kaescis said. “I would that our peoples, the Mindolarn Empire and the Wildmen of Klindala, become allies. Our world will soon change, and I will see that your people prosper.”
That piqued Bhrane’s interests.
“Do we have a deal?”
Bhrane stepped away from his throne, approaching Kaescis. The high chieftain eyed him before bowing. “By word of my father, I agree.”
Gevistra whooped triumphantly. The others in the room muttered about the implications of the deal between Kaescis and Bhrane. They sounded worried. No matter. Kaescis would ensure that any dissension be dealt with privily. He could have Laeyit see to that. She would relish such a task.
“The rulers of the world shall be humbled before him.”
- Prophecy of Soron Thahan
Waking beside a beautiful woman was something Iltar wasn’t accustomed to doing. He shielded his eyes against the sunlight pouring into the bedroom from the same window where he had spotted Alanya. How late had they slept? It had been quite late when he returned from the Hilinard.
Worried that he might be in Vabenack, Iltar sat up and gazed out the window. The sky was blue. Good, he sighed, settling back on his pillow. So this really did happen.
Iltar turned to Alanya, who stirred within the sheets, exposing her bare back to him. Her olive skin was darker than most Sorothian women, and looked tanned, though she lacked any tan lines. Iltar found that oddly attractive. He couldn’t help but stroke her back. Her skin was so smooth. That had surprised him when he first touched her. She was only a few years younger than he was—in her late forties—and Iltar expected to find a less than youthful feel. But that wasn’t the case.
Alanya shifted at his touch, groaning. Iltar pulled away and took a deep breath, watching as she awoke. Alanya yawned and stretched her arms, noticing him. “You’re awake,” she said, glancing over her shoulder. “How late is it?”
“I don’t know,” Iltar replied, admiring her beauty.
She turned toward him, becoming entangled in the sheets. “You should stay here today. You can ransack my private collection.” She playfully touched his nose. Was that supposed to be some odd innuendo? If so, he didn’t understand it. Iltar looked at her blankly.
Alanya rolled her eyes. “My library… where I keep my books. Perhaps you’ll find something else you hadn’t come across. There are a lot of books in there that are unique.”
Iltar had been so wrapped up with searching the Hilinard that he hadn’t thought to ask if she had her own library. He should have figured Alanya owned an extensive collection, as this mansion wouldn’t be complete without one.
“All right,” Iltar nodded. “How big is it?”
“The library? Umm, it is three stories, and a little bigger than this room.”
His eyes widened. That could take some time to search.
“I’m hungry,” she said, kissing his cheek. “We should eat. I’ll have Hazais send for your acolytes. You can focus your research here. And when you get tired, we can sneak back here for our own research.”
Now that was an innuendo…
With that, Alanya rolled back across the bed and crawled out of it.
* * * * *
“You sly, sly, man.” Elsia grinned at Iltar, playfully nudging him with her elbow. “I can’t believe it. And here I thought you were totally incapable of romance.” Elsia laughed, cupping her hand to her mouth. The countess seemed awfully amused.
Iltar just looked at her blankly as they walked the halls of Alanya’s mansion. They turned a corner and came to the entrance of the private library.
The library’s double doors were open, revealing a space as grand as the rest of the mansion. As Alanya had said, the library was three stories tall. Dark-brown bookshelves lined the walls, all filled with books. Two rows of bookshelves, rising to the ceiling, divided the room into thirds. Wrought-iron balconies lined the second and third floors of the library; they were accessed by a tight spiral staircase to the left of the doors. A floor-to-ceiling window aligned with the library’s double doors drew Iltar’s eye.
Elsia continued teasing him, but Iltar ignored her, passing between the bookshelves. That towering window provided a grand view of the city. Iltar moved arou
nd a large desk and stood before the window. The Mindolarn Palace rose above the city’s skyline to his left. The red-brown structure looked imposing upon that hill.
“You like to ignore me, don’t you?” Elsia said, poking his shoulder.
“Only when you don’t have something important to say,” Iltar said aloofly, still gazing at the magnificent view. The countess grumbled and thumbed through a book on the desk.
Footfalls echoed into the library, and Iltar turned to see his acolytes approaching. Bilda and some of the younger boys gawked at the library. They had probably never seen a library like this in a home. But then again, this wasn’t a typical residence.
Pagus strode at their head, holding a small stack of pages. “Here’s what I found on the Unspoken One,” he said, handing the pages to Iltar.
“Thank you,” Iltar said, taking the pages but not looking at them. “We’re going to suspend our research at the Hilinard until we’ve found all we can here. You’re still assigned to the same subjects. Get to work.”
The acolytes broke up and dispersed throughout the library. Pagus, however, remained.
“Yes, Pagus?” Iltar asked.
“Aren’t you going to read it?” He gestured to the pages.
“I will,” Iltar said, glancing at the first sheet.
“Well, talk to me when you get to page four,” Pagus said, then walked off.
Page four, huh? Iltar flipped through the pages. Page four was filled with several quoted passages and references to the books from which they were taken.
“He shall be able to travel to Cheserith’s Realm, seeking divine guidance whenever he chooses. He shall be like the Chosen, able to walk between worlds.”
Iltar shook his head and his eyes widened, then looked at Pagus’s speculation. “I think ‘Cheserith’s Realm’ is the dream realm Iltar has mentioned. If that’s true, then this Unspoken One can access that place at will.”
Iltar read the other passages, which cited more connections between Vabenack and the Unspoken One. One passage said he could manipulate that place, making it manifest whatever he wished. Those passages referenced another book, something called Dreamwalker. He flipped through the other pages, looking for references from Dreamwalker but didn’t see any.
Iltar hurried over to Pagus, who was perusing the shelves along the wall. “That was fast,” Pagus said, sounding snarky.
“I just skipped to page four,” Iltar said. “What did you want to say to me?”
Pagus pulled a book from the shelf and looked at his master. “I couldn’t find Dreamwalker anywhere in the Hilinard. I asked some of the attendants about it, and they couldn’t find any record of a book called Dreamwalker.” The youth opened the book he had pulled from the shelf and continued talking. “I did, however, find out about a secret section of the Hilinard that only Mindolarn Royals can access. I made an illusion of Aunty Elsia and, uh… persuaded a few attendants for information.”
Iltar raised an eyebrow at Pagus, not amused at what he had done.
“Nothing to say?” Pagus asked. “Not a ‘good job, Pagus,’ or ‘I’m impressed at your skill, Pagus’?”
“Well, what did you find out?”
Pagus sighed. “Unlisted texts are kept in there, things that the emperor has declared sacred knowledge. Dreamwalker must be a pretty important text if it’s locked away.”
More footsteps approached the library. Iltar turned, watching Alanya enter. She wore a frilly peach-colored gown. Her hair was done up in a braid held together by a spike with a pale-green gem inlaid at one end.
“So, shall I go get it?” Pagus asked.
“You’re not a Mindolarn Royal,” Iltar said, then turned back to Alanya. She stopped at the desk and removed a few books from a drawer.
“Uh, yeah…” Pagus said, sounding sly. “But I can get around restrictions like that.” The thought of Pagus stealing from one of the most powerful nations on Kalda bothered Iltar. What kind of wrath would that unleash upon him and his acolytes? There would be no escaping punishment for such an act. Perhaps there was another way…
“Well, do you want me to steal it or not?” Pagus asked.
Iltar held out a finger to silence the boy and then walked away. He approached Alanya, who greeted him with a smile.
“You look especially determined,” she grinned, a flare of passion in her gaze.
“Are you considered a Mindolarn Royal?” Iltar asked.
“No…” Alanya shook her head and pouted, looking confused. “To be considered a Royal, one must be a descendant of Mindolarn or one of his brothers, or married into the Royal Family.”
It was worth a shot, Iltar thought, turning away and rubbing his goatee. What to do now? He didn’t dare risk Pagus stealing the book.
“Why do you ask?” Alanya prodded him.
“Pagus found a book I was interested in reading,” Iltar turned back to the high duchess. “But it’s inside some forbidden part of the Hilinard.”
Alanya cocked her head at him. She obviously didn’t know about that place deemed sacred by the emperor.
“What is the book?” Alanya asked.
“Dreamwalker.”
“I know that book,” Alanya said. “Scovis mentioned it in his last journal entry. He had been reading it to prepare for the Feast of Sorrows.” She turned back to the desk and opened a drawer, removing a dark-blue tome. “It’s right here.”
* * * * *
Iltar spent most of the day reading Dreamwalker. It wasn’t long, only a little over two hundred pages. Alanya’s late husband had been studying the book, according to his journal. The high duke was seeking a way to further prove himself to his deity. Somehow he had learned about Vabenack and yearned to walk upon its “Translucent Fields.”
Partway through the book, Iltar dismissed his acolytes from their research. Elsia stayed in the study, conducting further research while Iltar, Alanya, and the boys retired to the gardens outside the mansion. Iltar gave his acolytes a training exercise to perform and sat with Alanya.
Most of the book explained the nature of Vabenack, which to mortals appeared to be a dream world. This was because men were only able to enter Vabenack while sleeping. Cheserith created it to mirror reality, and provided a place of security for Him and his followers, the Chosen. The book claimed Cheserith and the Chosen could access the realm at will.
“Vabenack is not like other worlds, like the realms where the gods were exiled,” Iltar read from Dreamwalker. He found that line confusing. Other worlds? Like what was mentioned in The Myth of Morgrid? But that tale was fictional.
“It has a literal tie to Kalda. One exists both on Kalda and Vabenack, and not in a non-physical sense. When one appears in Vabenack, they receive a new body. Their mind and soul are transported from Kalda into their body on Vabenack. If one were observing you on Kalda it would appear that you were sleeping. And there is a connection between both of your bodies.
“To put it simply, if you are injured in Vabenack, it is reflected on your body on Kalda, and vice versa. But your body in Vabenack has no lasting substance. It disappears once you return to Kalda, becoming renewed upon your next visit. This was wisdom on our God’s part, as leaving your body in Vabenack would be a devastating vulnerability.”
Iltar looked up from the book, watching as Tigan dodged a blow from one of Alanya’s guards. Tigan threw himself sideways, rolling away.
The boys’ training exercise for the day involved them attacking the guard with acidic bolts until his barsion shattered. Pagus protected the guard, using a simple barsion barrier. It was common for mages to learn a basic protection spell. Most disciplines had their own versions, such as the Acidic Barsion for necromancers and the Flaming Barsion for elemental wizards.
Iltar intended the exercise to help the boys understand how to deal with close-range foes who couldn’t be subdued by the other methods he had taught them. One couldn’t trap a man shielded with barsion, as he had the boys ensnare Delrin and Jalim. The enemy’s barsion would ha
ve to be shattered before any subjugating measure would take hold. Iltar couldn’t count the number of times he had encountered foes shielded by barsion while adventuring.
Tigan stumbled to his feet and threw one of his acidic bolts. It surged across the man’s barsion, causing it to flicker.
“A few more hits,” Iltar shouted.
That didn’t bode well for the boy. Tigan only had one bolt left. He would have to muster more magic.
Iltar turned from the bout and resumed reading.
The sun was setting when Iltar arrived at the last chapter of Dreamwalker: “Accessing the Realm of the Gods.” That piqued Iltar’s interest, as this and other texts claimed only the Chosen could enter Vabenack.
“I said earlier that accessing Vabenack was for God and his Chosen. That is in part true. They can access it at will. But I have walked the Translucent Fields myself and beheld the wonders of that realm. I have taught others my discoveries, and they have joined me in that supernal world. Here, in this final chapter, I will show you what you must do.”
* * * * *
Alanya leaned over Iltar’s shoulder, watching as he closed Dreamwalker. “So, what did you find?” she asked.
Iltar took in a deep breath, watching as the last of his acolytes broke the guard’s barsion. The boy swiftly uttered an incantation and mustered an ensnaring spell to stop the guard.
“Well, it says I need to concoct an elixir to prepare my mind,” Iltar said, shaking his head. Was this all just some psychedelic hoax? The author of Dreamwalker claimed it wasn’t. He spent several pages using refuting language to counter the reader’s skepticism about the matter, but that didn’t stop Iltar from questioning its authenticity.
“There’s an ingredient list here”—he tapped the book—“as well as instructions.”
Alanya fell silent, looking lost in thought. Was she as skeptical as he? Iltar had heard of potions used to expand one’s mind. Each turned out to be a farce, used by its peddlers to entrap addicts.
“What is on the list?” Alanya asked.
“Some basic things,” Iltar said. “A few herbs: halisym, ganiard, wevid, and colisry. It also calls for freshly juiced brandleberries, sugar, and water. The last ingredient was probably the oddest: powdered rogulin.” None of those ingredients on their own would cause a psychedelic experience. But Iltar didn’t know what they would do when combined, especially the powdered rogulin. Was rogulin even edible?
