by Jeremy Dwyer
“Denise, this is Tofa, a Chronicler of the Oath,” Mitchell said.
“I see. I’m sure this trustworthy Chronicler would like to know a great deal about our family, and our eleven (11) years of marriage, and even how we met. We have a nine (9) year old son, Emmett,” Denise said. Her voice was filled with something only a little less than venom, but her heart was filled with fear for losing her one (1) romantic love ever.
“Yes, Please, Denise. Tell me as much as you can. One of my favorite parts of recording history is the individual family. My own husband and children lived centuries ago, so I understand these things,” Tofa said.
~~~
While holding the cold and dark candle, Emmett heard a voice saying: “see not the false light, drink not the false water.”
Then another voice said: “your mother has a secret…ask her.”
A third voice said: “your mother lied about the darkness.”
A fourth voice said: “outside is even darker.”
A fifth voice said: “they’re coming to devour.”
A sixth voice said: “the dead water has life, the false water has death.”
A seventh, much deeper voice said: “you will die young.”
An eight voice said: “run and you will live.”
A ninth voice said: “look beneath you to find what’s wrong above you.”
Emmett was filled with fear and began running and screaming.
~~~
From the dining room, Mitchell, Denise and Tofa all heard the sound of the boy screaming and ran in to his small bedroom to meet him.
“Emmett! What is it?” Mitchell asked.
“I had another dream. There were other kids. I started running up a hill. When I got to the top, it was dark out, but it was daytime at the start. Everybody was gone. Something pushed me down the hill to go faster. At the bottom was a dark candle and it was burning and cold,” Emmett said.
Denise was suddenly filled with fear by her son’s description of the dream, almost replacing her fear about losing Mitchell.
“Burning like dry ice?” Mitchell asked.
“No. It was burning like fire, but it was dark,” Emmett said.
“That’s like the dark scouts, drinking the Ikkith Tar waters. They have powers to make darkness. You know that,” Mitchell said.
“There were voices. They told me not to see false light, or drink false water,” Emmett said.
“False water? You mean the dead waters? They don’t do anything for anyone, unless you’re thirsty. They have no power,” Mitchell said.
“I don’t know. I don’t think so. Another voice said that the dead water has life and the false water has death,” Emmett said.
Tofa began recording everything she saw and heard into her book. The boy’s dream intrigued her.
“Don’t be afraid of dreams. They don’t mean much – they’re just symbols for something else. I’ve got you,” Denise said, holding Emmett in her arms.
“Other voices were speaking. One said that I’ll die young. Another said that I’ll live if I run,” Emmett said.
“Were these faces to these voices?” Tofa asked.
Denise looked and scowled at Tofa, but then looked back at her son, with her hands on his shoulders. “Did you see people?” Denise asked.
“No. But more voices spoke. They said that it’s darker outside, and they’re coming to devour,” Emmett said.
“Who are they? Is there someone you’re afraid of when you’re awake?” Tofa asked.
“He’s my son. I’ll ask him,” Denise said.
“I have no idea. More voices spoke. They said my mother has a secret and I should ask her, and that she lied about the darkness,” Emmett said.
“I never lied to you! Don’t say that!” Denise said, suddenly bursting into tears.
“It’s just a dream! Let’s try to understand it. Maybe there’s something you’re afraid of, and we need to talk about it,” Mitchell said.
“Did you ever touch her? Was she your lover? I want to know!” Denise started screaming.
“No! We were never lovers! She’s a Chronicler! She had her own family,” Mitchell said.
“Go! I don’t care about your Oath! Please go! You’re interfering!” Denise screamed.
Tofa stepped back but did not leave.
“There were more voices. I remember now,” Emmett said.
“What did they say?” Mitchell asked.
“Look beneath you, to see what’s wrong above you,” Emmett said.
“Beneath you? What’s beneath you?” Mitchell asked.
“Don’t listen to these voices! Someone’s using powers of the mind against you. Or spirit powers. Don’t listen. I will protect you. I’ll die for you. I’ll die for my family,” Denise said.
Tofa looked at the boy’s bed and peered underneath it and saw a raised floorboard, and she moved it aside, revealing a box.
“What’s in the box underneath the bed?” Tofa asked.
“Those are books that I put together for my son. I studied in Emeth. I went there to help Mitchell, and to teach our son. I would do anything for them. Please don’t try to take everything I’ve ever had! Please! I know that I don’t count for much! Look at me! I know I’m hideous and you’re truly beautiful! You’ve had a husband and children and you can have more and more and more for thousands of years with your looks. I only get one (1) life, and they’re all I’ve got. I am begging you to leave! Please! I don’t want him to look at you and feel desire and forget me! I love him so much!” Denise pleaded.
Tofa wanted to cry and just put her arms around the woman. “I promise you, absolutely, that I am not here to take him from you. I promise! He is a kind man, and he belongs to you, not to me. Your lives are together, and I am not here to end that, but to record your story for all time. You are a family, and I would never destroy a family. My husband died thirteen (13) centuries ago, and I miss him greatly, but we had many years together and I cherish them. Please believe me that I am not here to change your story or to end it, but to keep it alive. You are a beautiful woman, and very intelligent. Mitchell told me all about you as we walked toward your home. I’m sorry that you feel so much pain,” Tofa said, practically crying herself. She felt guilty, and thought that she really should leave, and she would have left, except for the boy’s dreams. Those were important.
“I want to know what’s in the box. The voice in the dreams told me that’s what’s wrong,” Emmett said.
“Don’t believe it, Emmett!” Denise said.
“If it’s just books that you made for me, I want to see them,” Emmett said.
CHAPTER 30: Spread of the Darkness from the Spirit to the Sky
Pandaros and Seleukos arrived in a small village with number seven sixteen (716) in the western region of Revod.
Seleukos used his powers of light to assist in navigating in the ever-present darkness of the evening sky. He kept the powers energized by drinking anew from his vial of Lujladia waters as needed.
A few questions asked of the local villagers led them to a house of an alchemist named Mitchell. Before entering, Pandaros drank anew of the waters of the Zovvin Ocean from his vial and was energized. “We may purchase it from them, if they are willing to sell it, and don’t yet know too much,” he said.
Seleukos drank anew of the waters of the Lujladia Ocean from his own vial to be further energized. “There is no need to pay. I will burn them to death quickly, before they know it,” he said.
“No. Be careful not to kill these people unnecessarily,” Pandaros said.
“I thought you had a debt to pay in blood sacrifice to this spirit who guides you,” Seleukos said.
“We must eventually pay our entire blood debt to the spirit, but the sacrificial victims should be chosen carefully, and not leave clues nearby allowing our mission to be uncovered,” Pandaros said.
Pandaros then went to the front door of the house and opened it, and Seleukos followed, and they proceeded quietly. They entered the d
ining room and heard sounds of talking and crying coming from the next room.
~~~
Emmett went under his bed to take the box but Denise grabbed him and said: “Please! Believe me! I only want what’s best for you! You’ll get those books, when you’re older, after I can’t be here anymore.”
“Mom, I can’t wait. These dreams are horrible. I’m afraid, and I have to stop the dreams,” Emmett said.
“What’s in the box, Denise? He’s upset about it. If we show him what’s in the box, he can sleep better,” Mitchell said.
“No. Just trust me, will you, please? There’s nothing in that box that he needs to know about today,” Denise said.
“The voice said that I’ll die young unless I run. I’m going to run away, tonight. I can’t take it,” Emmett said.
“No! No! No! You’re not going to die young! You don’t have to run!” Denise said.
“Please. Denise. Open the box,” Mitchell said.
“You don’t know what you’re asking for,” Denise said.
“It’s just books, right? We can’t have this. I don’t want him so afraid that he’s going to run away. He doesn’t think we can protect him,” Mitchell said.
“Emmett, we can protect you,” Denise said.
“From what? The voice didn’t have a face. It talked out of the darkness: the darkness you told me about,” Emmett said.
“What darkness did you tell him about?” Mitchell asked, not having any understanding.
“Those are just stories,” Denise said.
“You said they were true. The darkness outside – that’s it. The voice said that under my bed is the answer to what’s wrong above,” Emmett said.
“Don’t believe your dreams. Believe me. I will always protect you,” Denise said.
“Then make the dreams go away,” Emmett said.
“I can’t do that. I can’t change your dreams, Emmett. They’re yours,” Denise said.
“I didn’t ask for them. You gave them to me,” Emmett said.
“Open the box or I will. We can’t have this,” Mitchell said.
“No. Don’t. Please. It’s not the right time,” Denise said.
Mitchell took the box from under the bed and found that it was locked. “It’s locked. If you don’t give me the key, I will make the key. Please, Denise, we can’t have him live in fear, or keep secrets under his bed,” Mitchell said.
“I lost the key. I really did. On purpose. One day, he can open it, when I’m gone. I left a note inside, it will tell him what to do,” Denise said.
“Don’t leave, mom. Just tell me the truth,” Emmett said.
Denise hugged Emmett and sobbed.
Mitchell drank anew of the waters of the Kazofen Ocean from his vial and was energized. He molded the crystal structure of the locking mechanism that sealed the metal box and opened it easily.
Tofa recorded this entire exchange, and went slightly outside her boundaries to put her arms around Denise and comfort her. She justified this as being the reverse of interference, to undo whatever interference she had already caused.
Inside the box, Mitchell found a book and a black crystal that was cold to the touch. A wick extended from it and he touched it to sense its crystal structure. Then he said: “What is this? It looks like a candle, and it’s cold to the touch. It’s made of black onyx.” The Kazofen waters enabled him to examine it in this way, and he probed within it, seeing that it was a deep dark and pure black. “It’s a perfectly pure black onyx, as dark as can be,” Mitchell then added.
“It’s horrible! Don’t let anyone get to it! I found it hidden on an island in the Medathero Ocean. Someone had to protect it – to keep it away from everyone else. That someone is me,” Denise said.
Mitchell then opened the book and started reading from the first page, saying out loud: “My dearest sweet boy, Emmett, if you are reading this, I am either already gone from this world, or on my deathbed. Inside, you will find something terribly dangerous, but, hopefully, you are grown now and past your waterbinding trials. This black candle, made of onyx, is one of the lost luminaries, and it must never be lit. Its flame will give off only darkness, and the suns of the sky will begin to fade. There are many more luminaries – but the number is a secret even to me, for good reason – and as each one is lit, the skies will grow darker and darker. Evil men and women – and there are some who are far beyond ordinary thieves and murderers, but are truly diabolical – will come looking for it.” There was more on the page, but he was struggling to process what he had just read.
Tofa was now afraid – for the first time in her life – and regretted having the box revealed. “I’m sorry, Denise. I’m sorry,” Tofa said. Yet, Tofa wrote all of this down in her book, as the Chronicler’s Oath required it.
“Don’t give the secret away! It endangers my son – and the whole world – each time a new luminary is lit. I learned about them in Emeth, by piecing together history and ancient languages, reading between the lines, solving equations. The answers were all there, but I was the one who found them first, and found this luminary,” Denise said.
Tofa looked at the first page of the book Mitchell held and saw that there was even more written. As she read and copied it, she was aghast.
Mitchell could not help himself and he read the rest aloud: “Yet, this is not the worst of it. Deep underground is the lost city, Thalkalana, which is, in truth, a horrid machine from the first age. The darkness candles, when all are gathered together and placed within the machine, give it the power to consume the stars of the sky. Their energy is drained by the machine’s inner workings until they become nothing and the new ocean expands even farther. Its luminous waters are false and must never be drunk, for they give everlasting death and darkness.”
Tofa was now more afraid – she had been in Thalkalana, and saw the ocean that surrounded it. This made her nearly certain that it was the new ocean with luminous waters referred to in the book that Mitchell was reading, because she later saw that those waters did, in fact, give off light.
“This is all so hard to believe – it’s preposterous – yet I feel compelled to believe it,” Mitchell said.
“For the first time, I am actually afraid,” Tofa said, unable to hold back that feeling.
“You should be. If anyone learns of this, it will get even worse,” Denise said.
“Why didn’t you tell me before?” Mitchell asked.
“It’s too terrible to think about, and someone could read your thoughts when you’re out in the village – too many people pass through there for you to keep it hidden. The pain of this secret is not one I wish upon Emmett, not while he’s still young. Keeping the secret to myself, in the house, was the safest way, until he was ready,” Denise said.
“I will consider all of this in confidence and allow the sages in Emeth to decide what to do with the knowledge,” Tofa said.
~~~
Pandaros and Seleukos had overheard all of this. Pandaros was immensely intrigued, and desired not just this luminary, but the answer to the question of the total number of them. The power to control, even to destroy, the suns – and to thereby expand an unknown and dangerous ocean – was his new quest. These strange darkness candles now had a definite purpose.
Seleukos found this new information alarming, but he said nothing. Everlasting death was not the path to knowledge, and he wasn’t particularly keen on having more of these luminaries, or activating that machine, if the explanation was true. Still, he was here to help Pandaros, and couldn’t risk having a disagreement with him at the present moment in this place. Also, the luminaries alone, without the star-consuming, ocean-making machine, did give him an advantage: since they produced darkness, and he had the Lujladia powers to make light, his services were at a premium, meaning a substantial opportunity for profit.
Pandaros then used his spirit powers and called upon three (3) spirits of sickness, for these were quickly and easily summoned and banished, and would be enough to distract the peopl
e in the next room. He knew that there was a Chronicler among them from hearing their conversations, and that sending an extra spirit against her would not be of use, since she was protected.
~~~
“I suddenly feel ill,” Mitchell said, and he sat down on the bed.
“So do I. Why would I get sick all of a sudden?” Emmett asked. He also sat down on the bed.
“I now feel ill. Something is wrong,” Denise said, but she remained standing and alert to the best of her ability.
Tofa recorded all of this in her book, but felt no illness.
“I need to rest, we all should,” Mitchell said.
“I need to sleep,” Emmett said.
Denise gestured for them to be quiet, and she listened carefully, because she was suspicious.
“I feel well, all of a sudden. The illness has passed,” Denise said, but she didn’t, and she was feeling quite sick. She put her hand on a dagger that she kept hidden in her belt.
~~~
Pandaros could hear them complaining of the illness, but was surprised that the one (1) woman was saying she felt better. More would have to be done, he concluded.
“Distract them with light,” Pandaros whispered to Seleukos.
~~~
Denise overheard a whisper, but she was ready, knowing that one day someone would come, and that now they had arrived. She had previously placed sound focusing crystals in the house – ones she had designed and Mitchell had crafter for her – and they could reflect sounds from some places to others, depending on where a person stood. It wasn’t entirely reliable, but it was good enough for this very moment.
Denise then closed her eyes to protect against the attack that she knew was coming. She gestured with a hand over her eyes and Emmett and Mitchell did the same.
Tofa saw this and understood, but did nothing.
~~~
Seleukos shone his powers of light and distracted the eyes of no one – not even Tofa. Pandaros then went into the bedroom of the boy and grabbed hold of the luminary from Mitchell.
He realized that they were all protecting their eyes, and must have overheard him: he was careless this time, and it might cost him, but he didn’t know how they heard.
