by Solea Razvan
BALADA: When my eyes are weighed with sleep I quench the evening candle’s glow
by Solea Razvan
Copyright 2015 Solea Razvan
Source of the cover art:
In the Center of the Trifid Nebula
Image Credit: Subaru Telescope (NAOJ), Hubble Space Telescope, Martin Pugh; Processing: Robert Gendler
https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap130128.html
Special Thanks to:
My sister Şolea Sabina for helping me with writer’s block and to my parents Tania Carmen and Florin for supporting me.
ISBN: 978-973-0-18
Prologue.
‘Nothing is impossible, just improbable.’
That’s the concept that defines reality in any place and at any time.
This one starts in a realm that is beyond time and space, between existence and nothingness, far removed from heaven and hell, but at the same time it’s as closest to those realms as such a thing is possible.
This place is not on any map, nor is there any way to make one, yet it is not a hidden realm.
It cannot be found if you look for it, but you enter and leave as often as once a day and traversing it is impossible with effort but comes natural with rest, and sometimes you remember it and sometimes you don’t, but you where there, especially when you weren’t.
This plane of existence has countless names, which have all been heard in an infinite number of languages, across innumerable galaxies and boundless universes.
This land is both beauty and ugliness combined, both salvation and damnation, but its description alone cannot be comprehended thoroughly in mere words, so let us stop here and let us name this place “the realm”.
Here in ‘the realm’, its only inhabitants for this particular time and in this particular version are the ‘Amurg’ , ancient creatures whose place of origin has long been lost to the sands of time.
Amongst a gathering of various different ‘Amurg’, beings of all shapes, colors and sizes, who were gathered in a circle and playing a game of cards, a new one approached the group.
“Do any of you know where Deux is?” the Amurg asked the group.
“Oh, it’s you! Ye Just got here didn’t you?” one of the players turned from the game and looked at the newcomer…The first new Amurg in a long, long time to arrive at this realm. Initially his coming had caused a small stir in a realm that was usually ruled by monotony since its inhabitants were all immortal, but that soon died out and new question about the appearance of a new Amurg, or what were the consequences of his appearance were quickly forgotten so they could focus on more important matters.
Namely gambling.
“Why do you want to find Deux? The guy’s a little weird, why don’t you join the game, come here and relax.” another one said and gestured for the newcomer to join the collective with what could be considered a friendly smile, at least to higher beings it was a friendly smile.
“Gamble, waste time, that’s all you do all day! How can you do that and not go insane from boredom is beyond my comprehension and since I have access to unlimited knowledge and wisdom that says a lot!” The Amurg thought to himself angrily as he glared at the others.
“I could tell you all what a disgrace you’re actions are, how you waste your great potential, I could rant, rave or give calm compelling arguments, but………Would you learn from them? Would you listen to them, would you understand my words……..Would you even acknowledge them? No…..Because you don’t care, nobody does, so in the end it doesn’t matter.” he added to his train of thoughts and once that was over he took a small breath of air to calm himself down.
“I just want to ask him a question, so does anyone know where he is?”
“He’s sometimes west of here in the sandfields of a thousand nights, today’s the day after the thousandth one, so you should be able find him there right about now.” One of them replied.
The Amurg then turned to leave but was stopped by one last question.
“After you finish that, do you want to join the game?” Another one said to him with a degree enthusiasm that was mirrored by the other players.
“Does it matter if I join in?” he replied without turning back.
“Of course it does! The game changes in so many ways!” Another one answered and went on to describe in great detail the many ways in which the game would change.
The new comer then turned his head slightly back at the game, just enough so he could gaze at the players, at these creatures of immeasurable power and infinite potential who’s most important activity and greatest desire was a card game. Words failed him as he once more felt anger at this waste of infinite potential, so the Amurg just tuned his head back in the direction he was going, leaving behind the confused all-powerful beings, who quickly got over it and continued with their game.
He walked towards the area where they said Deux would be with as much rigor as he could muster, spurred on by a subconscient defense mechanism that told him to leave the group as soon as possible, lest he too be infected by this ‘disease’ of laziness and the sheer lunacy of having the universe at your fingertips and only using those fingers to draw from a deck.
After a while he finally arrived at the sandfields and started looking around for his quarry.
“Trough the warp and from the shadows and barren desert fields.
Does a whisper come to be heard!”
“Of a tail of one hundred billion light years.
And a million galaxies’ words!”
The Amurg heard someone singing and looked around for the source.
“Hear the tale of invincible strength that is born from a decade’s long brew.”
“And a thousand admirals who faced that force, but can never seem to break trough!”
“Hear the tales of the great kings, queens and a hundred princes, who have the universe at their beck and call.”
“But the one thing that their hearts desires, they will never have it at all!”
“Of ancient stories! Everlasting ballads!”
“Who change every time,
“ Every verse; every rhyme,”
“When the story is told one more time!”
He looked to where the ‘moonlight’ of this realm shinned and from there he saw a shape that was flying down towards him, it was a floating two horse carriage that was filled with merchandise and it was its driver was the one that was singing.
“So come with me now, to the place beyond mirrors and light!”
“Where hidden secrets are in plain view for the worthy to find;”
“To where? I do not know, so come and see the things hidden in plain sight!”
“To long forgotten realms, that appears when you open your mind!”
“See a place which is more uncanny than what you imagined could be;”
“From the deep dreamland, to the heaven’s endless sky!”
“As what’s real is stranger than any fiction I you could see.”
“As the truth is more unbelievable than a lie!”
The carriage finally descended before him and its driver looked at the Amurg with glee in its eyes.
“Are you Deux?” he asked the figure made out of black mist and white flesh, with eyes that did not blink who was sitting in the driver’s seat, his shape and form was forever changing, with the only thing that remained constant was his three pairs of eyes and his strange hands that had claws which seemed like they were not made to tear flesh.
“Oh it’s you, you came much earlier than I expected!” Deux said to him with an eerily cheerful voice as he gazed at the new Amurg which had a humanoid appearance, was dressed in what appeared to be a long flowing robe, with a square cap on his head with a piece of cloth streaming down one side, but the most distinct thing about him was the fact that when you looked at his face, not matter how hard you tried you could not see any distinguishable facial features, he could have been anybody and yet he appeared to be nobody.
“What do you mean by that?”
“You don’t remember do you?” Deux asked him.
“Remember what?”
“What you were before you became an Amurg of course!”
“Of course I don’t! You’ve been here longer than me and you haven’t even learned that by now!?” the new comer replied.
Upon hearing the second half of the sentence a great smile appeared on his faces.
“Sorry, just asking, so why are you here?”
“I’m here to ask if you are Deux.”
“And if I am what of it?”
“I heard that Deux was bored of this realm and went on a journey to visit the other realms, I want to do the same, but since there are so many I want to hear your story, so that I may know which one is the most fun of them all, after spending who knows how much time in this cesspool of boredom I need that! So will you tell me about your journey?” The Amurg replied.
“So you want me to tell you my story, ey? Why I have lots of stories! For example the story of this great blade! Why this is the blade of the one who faced a billion foes and fought a thousand battles and won all of them! Well one of his many weapons actually.”
“That looks like a field plow and a cheap one made from different scraps cobbled together!”
“I know sir! You want only the best and I the greatest merchant of all have it! For example this is the secret weapon of the greatest spy that has ever lived!” Deux said and handed him the aforementioned object to examine.
“Twenty two gardenias from Halina’s flower emporium, one dinner reservation with at the Rotzwenen, one new camera.’ this looks like some secretaries to do book! What possible use could a spymaster have for this as a tool for espionage warfare? Reschedule them to death!?”
“I know sir! And as such I feel obliged to hand you our greatest item yet! Why, within this jar is the means with which half a universe was united and the other half conquered!”
“That, my friend is a jar filled with sand!” the Amurg paused to let that statement sink in.
“Are you actually trying to sell me sand, here in a desert!” the statement was so ‘unique’ that the one who said it had trouble believing that he actually said such words.
“I see your right again sir, enough with the cheap stuff! Let’s get to the high caliber merchandise! As such I have-“
“Forget this! If you’re not going to tell me of your journey them I’m goin-“
“-the journal in which I wrote down my travels.” Deux said and the Amurg paused mid turn and returned his gaze to Deux.
“Why didn’t you say that in the first place?!”
“Well, I got to make a living don’t I?”
“You’re an immortal creature who doesn’t need to eat and can make anything from nothing by merely thinking about it! What possible need would you have for an income?!”
“About the same reason another immortal creature would seek out a traveler’s stories, when he could just use his powers to see the ‘spoilers’ himself.” Deux said with a wide grin as the other Amurg remained silent for a moment.
“How do I know it’s not another piece of junk, like what you showed me before?”
“Why don’t I read it to you and if you like it you can buy it, after all a good story is worth reading over and over again wouldn’t you agree?”
“All right, let’s get started.” the Amurg said trying to sound bored and annoyed, but you could detect eagerness in his voice and to that Deux grinned even more, since it was obvious he had hooked a customer.
“Though I must warn you it is a long story, and it will take a while for me to tell all of it.”
“We’re immortals you idiot!” the Amurg shouted towards Deux in a fit of frustration.
“Alright, aright! Yeeesh, you think with everlasting life you wouldn’t be in such a rush!” Deux said to him as he exited the carriage and sat down, he then brought out his journal and reading glasses, took from behind his back a picnic basket and set it down between himself and the Amurg.
He then held the book at an angle that did not allow the Amurg to see the writing on the pages; Deux cleared his voice for a few moments before opening the book.
“What do you need all of this stuff for?” The Amurg asked him.
“Atmosphere of course, if I’m going to tell a story I must look the part, let me read you from my own writings. Now where to begin? ” he thought for a while before deciding on one particular story that he enjoyed and started reading it with a smile.
“In one of the many realms of existence, long ago in a galaxy that was once far away but now is close, that although similar to others, it still differed from them greatly!”
“For in this particular galaxy sentient beings had conquered the stars, but instead of using technology as their main tool another one was chosen. Here what powered their space fleets, orbiting stations and gave them strength was magic!”
“This is the story of the end of an era and the beginning of a new one, of those who lived it, those who died during it and those who brought about this new age, of those who did great things, some good, some evil, but great things nonetheless!” Deux read towards the Amurg who for the first time since arriving in this realm he felt happy and if he could he would have smiled.
“Finally something that matters!” he thought to himself as the story started.
595th chapter, 891st volume, 13th library of the 50th city of knowledge, 7th universe, 974.593 cycle of eternity.
When my eyes are weighed with sleep I quench the evening candle’s glow
*Excerpt, from the works of Grand Scholar, and The Great War Expert Djanus Todomari from the Imperium Archives*
On Caliupus 27th, Imperial year 1898, Federal year 3941, and Republican year 953 on the small home world of the Tolstoy sector, a Federal fleet clashed for less than 3 hours with an Imperial one. This small battle which was the first shot in The Great War was situated above a place called Graperust Manor, owned by a Novo Albetan lawyer called William Murasaki Kuckluck.
After the Battle of Graperust, mister Murasaki said that he had enough of the whole affair and decided to move his family 560.000 light-years to a town called New Hope within the Tremera system, to a house called Woodgrom Courthouse with the intention of avoiding the war in its entirety.
Years later the commanders of the belligerent forces came to that very same courthouse to sign the ending of all hostilities. So when it was over Mr Murasaki could boast that the war began on his front lawn porch and ended in his backyard gazebo.
The Great War raged across millions of star systems, billions of planets and trillions of light years, within it farm workers from Nova Bronze City of the Towar System, clashed with fisherman from Seshrim 9, lawyers and schoolteachers from the Brumbaki Plains of Bulla 8 with doctors and accountants from The Tjigu asteroid cluster.
Whole nations and ways of life would disappear only to be replaced by new ones and within this age of chaos great heroes and villains would emerge, several sentients would join the war, each from the three superpowers, they would be at the most crucial and most bloody of the battles and somehow survive them all, and give testimony of just how unrealistic reality could become.
A smuggler would save a country , a shadow warrior would emerge from the darkness, a rebel would reshape the galaxy, a sentient would change the way things were forever, and a potions brewer who did not go a single day to military school would become the greatest commander the known universe had ever
seen or perhaps would ever see. So the sands of time flowed and with their passing the universe changed forevermore.
Grand Scholar and Great War Expert Djanus Todomari
Imperium Archives
Caliupus 8th Imperial year 1894, Federal year 3937, Republican year 949
Within the warp.
9:52 Imperial Fleet Time
A great train traversed the thin plane of hyperspace, it was a massive construct composed of at least 2.000 individual wagons, each one of them was over a hundred meters in diameter and stretched for at least five times that, but despite the titanic nature of this interstellar vehicle by the standards of its kind it was the runt of the litter.
These wagons where forged out of fine tempered steel with a smooth surface and each wagon’s front and back ended with a conic shape head and tail.
Seven great horizontal sheets of metal extended across their bodies, starting at the front and ending at the rear of each wagon, runes which glowed bright with energy where embedded on these stripes and from them magical energy was released for the purpose of moving and guiding the train towards its destination.
These bursts of energy started as a single line, that at certain points of its length bent upwards, downwards, left and right, and at each bent smaller lines formed from them, which they themselves bent and made new ones emerge, giving the magic the shape of a great tree branch that looked like it sprouted from lighting itself.
But it was only the shape of a plant and nothing more, for the purpose of this train was not the production of breathable air or that of fruits or flowers.
