The Hall of Doors

by Phillip Locey

  Jaiden was looking at him with a blank face. “I only understood about half the words you just said, though your Illanese is really quite good,” he added. “So, if I were to come with you, where are we going and what are we up against?”

  Thaelios and Dyphina shared a glance, and she gave a deferring shrug.

  “First, we need to return to Blackfeather Perch in Ifelian,” Thaelios began. He stood and started pacing as he imagined the logical steps toward the successful conclusion of their quest. “It would be prudent to locate Rinn-Rhulian and determine what magical precautions have been taken to keep the Spawn hidden. The Eladrin were involved, so of course there’s going to be some advanced sorcery.” He stopped and stared at Dyphina, who was already following him with her eyes.

  “There are a few obstacles and adversaries we need to be wary of: Annoxoria, the witch who threw us into her dungeons, anyone who might belong to The Name of the Beast, and quite possibly the Dread Lich, Hadrian No More.”

  Dyphina squinted and nodded, “Oooh, we really need to do something to get that bitch back!”

  “Weeell.” Jaiden drew out the word in a higher pitch as he also stood. “How did you two manage to gain so many enemies?”

  “Oh, come on,” Dyphina challenged. “If you knew the people on that list, you’d be sure we must be doing something right. In all seriousness, if the cult succeeds in their plans, thousands will die. And I can guarantee coming with us is going to be a lot more exciting that spending your afternoons sitting on some throne talking to nobles.”

  Jaiden twisted the shape of his mouth. “I hate to say it, but things have been fairly boring since the war ended.” He chewed lightly on the end of his thumb while he considered. “Ah, but I have to decide on this Duke issue.” Jaiden snapped his head sharply toward Thaelios. “Who would you chose?”

  Thaelios shrugged. “That’s easy – whoever offers you more.”

  Dyphina gasped in disbelief.

  “Oh!” Jaiden pointed at Thaelios and looked at Dyphina. “I think he’s on to something.” He offered his hand to the half-fey woman and helped her to her feet. “I’ll tell you what. I’ll have the chamberlain escort you to some vacant guest apartments in the palace, and I’ll sleep on your offer. Keep your things packed; if I decide to go with you, we’ll leave in the afternoon.”

  “Well, I hope to see you again tomorrow,” Dyphina mentioned. “Please let me know if there’s anything else I can do to help make up your mind …”

  She smiled, and Thaelios put his hands onto her shoulders to steer her out of the room. He wanted to get to their quarters and away from curiosity seekers as quickly as possible.

  As nice as it was to trance in the solitude of his private room, Thaelios felt like any rejuvenation he’d attained overnight had completely dissolved during their climb up the nearly endless stairs. He’d gotten used to Blackfeather perch, but this seemed much worse. For one thing, he had to take all the steps at the same time, and for another, there was no railing to keep him from falling a hundred feet to his death onto the stone floor of the palace.

  “Whew, almost there,” Dyphina said. She seemed to be in a good mood, but Thaelios wondered if that would change once she realized how much she was “glistening” from their hike up to the top tower. When she reached the landing, she peered over the edge, then immediately turned her head. “Don’t look down,” she warned.

  He disobeyed and instantly regretted it. The spiral of their ascent had tightened once they rose above the level of the vaulted ceiling and into the interior of the highest tower, but only open air awaited between his vantage and the impossibly distant marble below. The lack of spatial reference led to a loss of balance, and Thaelios started to teeter before Dyphina pulled him back and steadied him.

  “I just told you not to look!” Dyphina sighed, and they both straightened their posture and the fresh clothes the palace servants had laid out for them this morning. A single door with a sturdy knocker offered the only way to continue, and she wrapped upon it three times. The sound echoed over the chasm behind them until overpowered by Willem’s voice.

  “Ah, yes, come in. The door is unlocked.”

  Dyphina entered ahead of Thaelios, once again drawing attention while he got a chance to assess his new environment. Willem sat at a small, round table in the middle of a quaint apartment, bathed in light from the large tower window that curved along with the sloped wall to their left. On the far side of the room was a study, complete with a desk and bookshelves. A large, white and yellow bird sat on a perch in a gilded cage that hung from the ceiling, a little too close to the table supporting their morning meal.

  “Welcome to my little corner of the palace,” Willem said with a smile, not bothering to stand as he greeted them. He gestured with the napkin in his hand to the pair of empty chairs around the table, then promptly tucked the cloth inside the collar of his grey wool shirt.

  Thaelios and Dyphina took the offered seats. The plates at each setting were already stacked high with hot cakes and butter, fresh fruit, thin slices of pork, and a fried egg. Thaelios found the meal extravagant and well beyond what his hunger could accommodate. He was unsure of where to start.

  “I know it’s more than necessary,” Willem supplied upon seeing his hesitation, “but I was unsure what you might prefer and guessed that meals on the road may have been a bit sparse. I hope you don’t mind.” He was already stabbing a slice of melon on his plate, which he looked eager to consume.

  “It’s wonderful, Willem,” Dyphina responded, spreading butter over her hot cakes with a silver knife. “I’m starving.”

  Willem winked and passed a small crystal bowl full of powdered sugar. “So, where exactly have your travels taken you? You said that Cauzel fell in the deserts outside Zeblon, which is far enough from Ifelian but no closer to here. What caused need of such a journey?”

  Cauzel clearly had a relationship with this Shaper, but Thaelios was still hesitant to share their quest with just anyone who asked. “We came here to seek an audience with the Grandmaster,” he replied.

  “Ah, yes my boy, but why?”

  “I probably have fifty years on you, Sir. And we came to him asking for help.” Thaelios bit off a chunk of pork to chew on in order to keep from saying anything he would regret.

  Willem stared at him for a few heartbeats, then set down his knife and fork. “I apologize for being too familiar, Thaelios. I’m used to being older than everyone else, you know?”

  “We’re trying to stop the Name of the Beast,” Dyphina supplied, breaking up the awkwardness. “They’re a cult, led by demons. We think they’re trying to free the Spawn of Raug.”

  Thaelios shot her a hot look. Was she even capable of exercising discretion? “We don’t know precisely what they’re up to,” he mitigated, “but they seem to intend the Eladrin harm.”

  “Hmm, is that so?” Willem said before stuffing a forkful of egg in his mouth. “And is that how Cauzel fell? Fighting against this cult?”

  “He died fighting a rock troll. Well, a troll and a lieutenant of Hadrian No More,” Dyphina added.

  “My word! The Dread Lich is involved, too?”

  Dyphina shook her head as she concentrated on slicing her cakes into thin strips. “It’s a long story. But we went to Mount Celestia and saw the Aasimar, and then the Abyss, oh, and don’t forget Ishmere! Now we’re here, trying to get Jaiden’s help before we return to Ifelian. Do you suppose he’s going to aid us?”

  “Whoa, slow down a moment, my Lady.” Willem once again set down his utensils. “How on Elisahd did a pair of Cauzel’s apprentices travel to the Outer Planes? I’m near the end of my career and have never mastered extra-planar travel.”

  Thaelios shrugged. “The Hall of Doors.” If Dyphina was going to tell him everything anyway, he might as well set the facts straight. “I managed to retrieve a book written by Trigilas himself from his quarters in Ancient Tarmuth.”

  “The Father of Spells?”

  Thaelios pu
ffed up his chest a bit and nodded. Willem certainly sounded impressed. “It’s a treatise on roads to immortality, with a collection of powerful spells he created himself.”

  Willem placed his hand on his chin and his eyes lost focus. “Mount Celestia, you say? It is quite a path you’ve traveled already, friends. We actually hosted a flight of Aasimar here at the palace, during the war against Chelpa. They’ve all gone, now,” he added, wistfully. “I found that, despite their heavenly origins, they were as varied in purpose as any collection of humanity.”

  Dyphina shook her head slightly. “Palomar was brave, selfless. A true diplomat for his kind.”

  Thaelios’s head swam with memory. “But there was an Aasimar in the mines, don’t you remember? Obviously, we’d never seen one before at the time, but it put us to sleep when we tried to escape. It was working for … them.”

  “Palomar, you say?” Willem asked. “Oh, he was a fine one. You met him on Mount Celestia, then? Astounding! He perished in battle, here. Turned into a ball of ethereal light when he died, from what Jaiden told me.” Willem stood from his chair and shivered visibly before clasping his hands behind his back. “That Illicurus was another matter, though. Cold and calculating.”

  Willem walked toward the bright window, putting his back to the table. His pet bird gave a couple of screeching calls as he passed. The Shaper of Selamus stopped when his forehead was almost flush to the curved glass. “After I recognized his disposition, I began to worry what might happen if the Aasimar turned from allies to enemies. They are Shapers in their own right, you know,” he said, turning his chin toward his left shoulder. “They use Harmonic Manifestation, which led me to start experimenting.”

  Thaelios wasn’t sure how the conversation had turned toward magical theory, but he wasn’t disappointed it had. He finished chewing a piece of fruit and slid his chair back from the table to face the wrinkled Shaper.

  “I was looking for a way to combat their song, should the Aasimar eventually turn on us.”

  “And did you succeed?” Thaelios asked.

  Willem turned from the window to look at him, his eyes flashing with excitement. “You know, I think I did, after a fashion.” He crossed the room and bent behind his desk, opening a couple drawers and appearing to search through them. “Aha!” he cried, then rose to his full height. He walked back to the breakfast table, dangling a green, square pendant from a thin chain.

  “What is that?” Dyphina asked, reaching out her cupped hands to receive the trinket.

  Willem shrugged. “I’ve taken to calling it my Music Box, but more accurately, it is a talisman of discordant melodies.”

  Thaelios nudged closer to Dyphina to get a better look. “How does it work?”

  “Whenever someone in relative proximity begins to Shape through harmonics, my Music Box adds strains that mimic the singer, influencing the outcome of the spell. Usually, that means no coherent effect is created.”

  “Fascinating!” Thaelios replied, plucking the pendant from Dyphina’s hands by its chain. “You should try it, Dyphina. Sing something.”

  “Well …” A knock at the door interrupted Willem. “Come in,” he called.

  The door opened, and a young man in a white surcoat with the purple crescent of the Order poked his head in. “Sir, I apologize for the intrusion—”

  “You can enter, young man. I’m not going to turn you into a toad,” Willem said in a not-quite-comforting tone. Still, after a brief hesitation, the man crossed the threshold.

  “Grandmaster Luminere sent me to find his visitors, Sir,” he said, glancing at Thaelios but not maintaining eye contact. “He wishes them to meet him at the stables in an hour, prepared for travel.”

  Dyphina looked at Thaelios. “Does that mean he’s helping?” She started to smile.

  “Thank you, son,” Willem said. “I’ll make sure they get where they’re supposed to be.”

  The messenger nodded and disappeared, shutting the door behind him.

  “Well, it sounds like your journey is far from over,” Willem continued. “While I find your company endlessly interesting, I know you have preparations to make.”

  Dyphina stood. “Thank you for breakfast.” She leaned forward and gave Willem a hug.

  “Yes, thanks for your hospitality,” Thaelios added. “It is not entirely common.” He extended the pendant to return it, but Willem shooed him with his hands.

  “Keep it,” he said. “Cauzel was a dear friend, and it is the least I can do to repay him by helping his pupils in some small way.”

  “You are too kind,” Dyphina said softly, placing her hand over Willem’s.

  Thaelios bowed. “It is a worthy gift.”

  Willem shrugged. “If you ever feel like taking up Cauzel’s correspondence, I would be happy to write about any number of topics. I mostly enjoy the isolation of my tower, but it can get a bit lonely with only Lydia around.”

  The bird squawked at its name.

  Dyphina giggled. “Certainly.”

  “Good luck dealing with the cult,” Willem called out as Thaelios and Dyphina exited. “I am glad you have others to fight beside you.”

  Chapter 16

  Return to the Circle

  B e’naj had just enough time to wonder whether she’d truly ever see Cauzel’s apprentices again, before she appeared upon a smooth stone landing, looking up at a rocky cliff. Without seeing it, she felt the sun behind her and heard the undulating roar of waves battering the cliff, beneath her. The smelt of salt was thick upon the air, and humidity’s prickling caress danced over her skin.

  Saffron still held her hand beside her, and Be’naj knew that was sufficient to get her through anything. Rhazine stood on Saffron’s other side, her face painted with wonder as she stepped forward. She turned in a slow circle and Be’naj followed suit, their view opening up to a distant horizon with the sea far below. Be’naj shielded her eyes from a glaring sun, whose warmth was harsher than the glowing orb on Mount Celestia. Fierce wind rushed up the side of the cliff from the ocean, tousling her long hair and ruffling her wing’s feathers.

  “Ishu ete carabits fhellon Zeblon!” Rhazine exclaimed.

  Even with her eyes still on the sea, Be’naj sensed the joy in the young woman’s words.

  Saffron released Be’naj’s hand and turned to Rhazine. They held a conversation in Begnari, which further blunted Rhazine’s enthusiasm the longer it lasted, until she appeared to act like she didn’t care. After their exchange, Saffron addressed Be’naj in Illanese. “I brought us back to Zeblon. The path upward will take us to the Circle of Twelve’s mansion.”

  “You think they will help us? Didn’t they fail you before?”

  Saffron exhaled noisily and clapped the butt of her Celestial spear against the stone. “They did. But there are twelve of them, and we only need one with the knowledge to help us. These were the best odds I could think of.”

  Be’naj nodded. If Saffron thought this was the right way to proceed, then it probably was. “What did you say to Rhazine?” Glancing over Saffron’s shoulder, Be’naj saw that their companion’s head was bowed, her left hand clasped onto her right forearm.

  Saffron shook her head slightly. “Once she recognized where we were, she wanted to see her father. That’s impossible right now, but I told her we’d revisit the topic after our meeting with the Twelve.”

  As if summoned by her words, Ayez the Many-Colored approached from the path that led to a door in the hillside. “Spinning seasons of Nerris! I confess I didn’t think to see you again so soon, Lady Saffron. And, Be’naj, was it? You look different that when I last saw you. You succeeded in finding your friend, yes?”

  Be’naj nodded and was about to thank him for his previous help, but Saffron was first to form words.

  “Ayez, is the Circle of Twelve truly dedicated to thwarting the Dread Lich?”

  It was not the greeting Be’naj would have offered, but she took great interest in the response. Saffron clearly had more of a history with thi
s Shaper than she.

  Ayez squinted and took a few steps closer, using his orb-tipped staff to gain purchase up the path’s incline. “I can see we have things to discuss, Lady Saffron,” he said once close enough for his casual tone to be heard over the steady wind. “But shall we go inside to do so? The house is warded against scrying.”

  Saffron stared at Ayez for a moment, her grip on the spear tightening, then relaxing. “Lead the way,” she finally said, stepping aside to let the man pass.

  “Of course,” Ayez responded, though his glance passed to the glowing tip of Saffron’s spear before he started up the path. The winding trail, cut into the rock, was narrow enough that they were forced to walk single-file, but it was a short trip to the plateau above.

  The large house waiting for them there was familiar from Be’naj’s previous visit, though the gargoyles stationed along the lower portion of the roof still unnerved her. Ayez led them through a concealed door that matched the rest of the exterior, into a sunlit room dominated by a large table of polished wood. Be’naj recognized the sphere of swirling colors at its center that had created the map they used to locate Saffron in the desert.

  “Has Cauzel taken a female disguise, or is this a new companion?” Ayez asked, assessing Rhazine as she passed him to get further into the room.

  “This is Rhazine, the Wolfspider’s daughter,” Saffron said unapologetically as she claimed a chair at the table.

  Ayez appeared dumbstruck, and Be’naj suspected Saffron took some pleasure in his reaction. “Cauzel didn’t escape our struggles in the desert, I’m afraid,” Be’naj explained. She folded her wings tightly behind her back and pulled the chair next to Saffron far enough from the table to accommodate her.

  “I’m sorry to hear that,” Ayez managed, though he was paying closer attention to Rhazine.