by C. J. Strong
Moldur fell to his knees, gently setting the cub down next to him before throwing up his breakfast. “I give, I give,” he said as Gallagher stood proudly over him. Valden’s bear awoke to the commotion as Moldur held his stomach in pain. He waddled over to Moldur who attempted to push him away, “Get back.” The cub then bit him in the fingers before sniffing the puke in front of him and started to lick it up.
“Eww! Get away from that Babah,” Valden called.
“I think that means he likes you,” Gallagher said as he laughed and walked away.
“Good work today you two,” Valdar said proudly as he pat his son on the head. Gallagher could hardly believe his ears, did Valdar just compliment him? Or was he referring to Babah? Regardless, Gallagher took it as one and grinned.
“Come on, let’s go home,” Valden said once more calling his bear cub. All three left the courtyard as Moldur remained in a puddle of his own puke. Gallagher had yet again won another battle in his eyes, and was beginning to enjoy the adventures this new world has to offer.
The day had quickly come to an end, and on their way back to the tents Gallagher asked, “Hey Valdar, when do I get a pet of my own?”
“It doesn’t work like that Gallagher the White. Only Tilturians have the power to tame wild beasts,” Valdar explained.
“Well that’s no fair. Hey how come that dip-shit earlier was able to actually turn into an animal?” Gallagher asked in utter disappointment as they approached Valdar’s tent.
“Once we come of age our animal and us become one, spirit and all,” Valdar said.
“Huh… So is that why you guys wear only animal pelts all the time?” Gally asked.
“Exactly. Once we kill them and skin them they are a part of us, and because of that we can transform into them at will,” Valdar said.
“Brutal! So that means one day…” Gallagher began as he watched Valden and his pet walk up ahead.
“Of course. Not only is it tradition, but it is what gives us strength!” Valdar said.
“Well what about that kid earlier, where is his pet then?” Gallagher said as Valden and Babah entered their tent in exhaustion.
“Moldur the Porky has a pet pig, which was why what you said earlier was so funny.”
“Oh, that makes sense then. Goodnight Valden! Good job today,” Gallagher yelled. “So where exactly was his pet when we fought then?”
“His pig doesn’t always follow him around because it is too lazy. Besides he probably thought that he could beat you without him today.”
“Rule number 5,” Gallagher said as he walked towards his new home.
“Exactly my boy. Exactly,” Valdar said as he entered the same tent as Valden and Babah and they retired for the night.
Chapter 11
After Yuralia had jumped off the ledge, Andrum sat down looking through the clouds trying to see her.
“I can’t believe she jumped…” Andrum said.
“Me neither,” Uriella said as she put her head down.
“Do you think she’s—“
“I don’t know Andrum. But we must continue on without her, she made her choice child.”
“How can you say that?!”
“If we don’t reach the top, then everyone’s sacrifices would have been for nothing.”
“First Ashurd and now Yuralia…” Andrum said before Uriella slapped him across the face.
“I didn’t follow you this far for you to quit now. If we are successful, and we truly can bring back the magik powers of conjuring to our people then you will go down as one of the greatest Heads of all time.”
“You really think so?”
“Of course. Who else have you heard of that has travelled to the Eternal Lands not once but twice in order to save their people? No one. Now come on let’s go,” Uriella said as she inched towards the top with newfound energy. Andrum was glad that Uriella had regained some of her strength, and her positivity fueled him to continue on.
“You’re right!” Andrum said as he raced past her.
The two of them began once more, walking with even more purpose than before. Within moments the two of them could see the top.
“Come on, we’re almost there,” Andrum said with excitement.
“I’m coming, I’m coming. This old body of mine can only walk so fast,” she said as they reached the peak of the pyramid. Yuralia must have been right, she was preventing them from getting to the top. Regardless, Andrum would almost rather not complete his journey and still have her by his side, but he knew that was selfish.
A large tan door with strange symbols etched into it magically appeared as Andrum approached. It was truly magnificent, a perfect display of ancient craftsmanship. The design of the door was flawless, and magik seemed to radiate from it as if calling Andrum to it.
“Careful Andrum. If this is indeed Xurion’s Pyramid then I suspect his soul still remains inside,” Uriella explained as Andrum stepped closer to the door. Andrum wasn’t much of a history buff, but even he knew of how powerful Xurion once was.
“So this is where the soul of the last king of Ulteria resides,” Andrum said before touching the face of the door. Just as he did, the etchings in the door lit a crystal blue and the temple began to shake. Sand and dust flew all about as the heavy door slowly raised open. “It’s working!”
“Wait for me,” Uriella said as Andrum crouched down and crawled through opening of the raising door.
“Andrum!” she shouted as the door dropped back down and slammed shut behind him. She rushed over and banged on it but alas it was too late, the two were separated.
Andrum entered the temple and lights lit up all around him. Turning back to notice he was trapped, he panicked for a split second before realizing that he had finally made it. Andrum felt that it was better that he and Uriella were separated, this way in case anything happened inside the temple, he was the only one in danger.
It took him a moment to take it all in. Everything that he and his friends had been through all lead up to this. If this magik pyramid really did hold the secret to restoring the Nifflarians’ conjuring powers, then he was going to find it. He began exploring, walking down one hall that led to another. He travelled in circles and circles before finally realizing he was back where he first entered. “There’s got to be something I am missing,” he said before looking around. At first he felt the walls around him, looking for perhaps a secret button. After careful consideration, he made a trip around once more, paying close attention to every little detail. As he walked by, he noticed that two of the torches that lit the way swayed back and forth in the opposite direction of the others. “All the others are still being effected by the draft coming from where I came in … But these. They’re waving back and forth from something else.” Andrum said as he approached them. He placed his hand on the wall in between them, similarly to how he did at the first door and the wall began to light up. Sand fell from the walls above as another door shook open. This time however, Andrum waited until the door completely opened.
Andrum entered the next room cautiously. Torches lit all around him to reveal that he was now in the great chamber of the pyramid. Tall pillars stretched down the room, each nearly 50 feet high. Andrum walked in from the side entrance as sunlight shined down from above, revealing an ancient book perfectly placed on a tomb. As he approached the center of the chamber, echoes of a voice began.
“I’ve been waiting a long while for you to come,” it said.
“You’ve been expecting me?” Andrum asked the voice.
“Of course… I’ve always kept a watchful eye on what goes on in my city.”
“Your city? Then you must be the spirit of Xurion,” Andrum said.
“Indeed I am,” the voice answered.
“Rumor has it that you can grant me any wish?”
“To the point already, I like it. Keep in mind that you are in fact in the Eternal Lands, where spirits rule supreme.”
“What are you talking about? All I want is to mak
e a wish,” Andrum said as he crept closer to the tomb.
“Speak your mind, and let it be so.”
“I wish for an infinite amount of wishes!” Andrum said with a smug look on his face.
“I can sense that that is not the true reason you came here, and therefore I will not grant your wish.”
“What do you mean?! You said any wish I wanted. You will not or can not grant it?” Andrum said as he kicked sand up from the ground.
“Will not! Ask what your heart brought you here to ask,” the voice persisted.
“Okay, fine. I wish… err,” Andrum paused. “I wish for my friends to be okay!”
“An admirable wish. But I sense that they are both,” the voice stated before pausing. “Alive.”
“You mean they are alright?!” Andrum said as he jumped up and down.
“For the time being, yes.”
“But how did Yuralia survive the fall?”
“The living cannot die in the Eternal Lands, however there are fates worse than death.”
“What do you mean?”
“The Eternal Lands is a place meant for only the souls of the dead. Eventually your friend will wonder and wonder until her life force burns away.”
“That’s horrible! I have to save her,” Andrum said as he looked for a way out.
“You have come here to serve a greater purpose Andrum of Ulteria, and you must do so.”
“No, I’m not about to abandon my friends. As soon as I get my powers back I’m not only going to rescue her, but Ashurd as well!”
“Step into the light Andrum, and place your hand upon the book and your problems will be solved.”
“Why should I believe you? You were once the worst tyrant my people have ever seen! And you still haven’t granted me my wish.”
“Step forward!” the voice said as the Pyramid began to shake.
“Okay… okay,” Andrum said before reluctantly entering the light that shined in the center of the room. With his hands shaking, Andrum placed his hand on the book in front of him. At first nothing happened, and Andrum was a bit taken back by the moment, “Uhh hello? I did what you asked—“
Just then, a vibrant power shined through him and entered his body. Back and forth Andrum shook violently and uncontrollably as if his insides were fighting back. Eventually the battle subsided and he fell to his knees in front of the tomb.
“Our souls are now bound together,” a voice from within his head said.
“What! You… You’re inside of me?” Andrum said gripping the sand from the ground in his hands.
In an instant crystal blue lasers shot from his eyes burning everything around him. Andrum’s body began to change shape and it felt as if his life force was being completely drained away. His mind, body, and soul were burning away and the only thing he could do was scream out in agony. He had never felt such a terrible feeling before, being ripped apart bit by bit. Eventually he became numb to the pain. He had either gone insane, or the pain receptors in his brain had finally had enough. When it seemed like it was all over, it had only just begun. An eruption of pain surged through him once more, but this time he liked it. The pain felt good, as if it was somehow beneficial to him. It was like he had just died, and now he was being reborn anew. He regained feeling in random parts of his body as his senses started to tingle. His hair grew longer with tints of white sprouting out and his once overweight figure had molded into muscle. The process took several minutes and was by no means painless, but Andrum had evolved into the hero that he had always wanted to be.
Opening his eyes once more, he slowly stood and looked at his hands in front of him. “I… I feel different,” he said.
“You are different,” a voice from inside his head said. “We, are different.”
What does all of this mean exactly? Andrum thought.
“I, Xurion, have bounded my soul with yours. I’m sorry but it was the only way. I have sensed for a long time that a great evil is taking shape. I fear that my brother Zorm has somehow escaped from his prison here in the Eternal Lands and I am the only one who can stop him,” Xurion said from within Andrum’s head.
Andrum couldn’t believe what he was hearing, or rather what the other side of him was telling him. He could feel Xurion’s emotions as he figured Xurion could feel his, and they were overwhelming. To actually have a divine being inside of him, and a Nifflarian king no less, was quite unsettling. It was going to take some getting used to, but Andrum continued to communicate with Xurion nonetheless.
“I have blessed you with my limitless power. As promised, I will grant your one true wish,” Xurion told Andrum.
“To allow the Nifflarian race to conjure once more, and to save my people…” Andrum said.
“Precisely. Now, go and pick up that book,” the voice commanded once more.
“Alright… will it give me my powers back?”
“Not exactly. You and the remaining Magniffs sacrificed your gifts using a similar magik to my own. That cannot be undone. However, the book you will now wield was once mine, and contains infinite wisdom.”
“Interesting…” Andrum said as he walked over and started to dust it off. “Ta e f Gra d r?” he read.
“Open it, and behold my power. Anything that ever is, was, and ever will be is written inside,” Xurion told Andrum as he opened the book. Pure gold radiated from it as thousands of pages started to turn.
“…and I can conjure with this?” Andrum asked.
“Something much more powerful than to conjure, it has the ability to erase time itself. Which is why it must never fall into my brothers hands.”
“But if we just keep it here, wouldn’t he never be able to get ahold of it?”
“Both mine and his powers are nearly infinite in the Eternal Lands. The Ancients blessed us both in that regard, but Zorm seeks to spread his evil across all of hEtar, and I cannot stay idly by while that happens. If I were to leave it here unguarded, he would surely possess it before long, which is why the book must come with us.”
“But can’t you rewrite time with it? You could erase Zorm and stop him from ever even being created,” Andrum said.
“If I were to do that, the entire universe may crumble in on itself. Good cannot exist without evil, and although I regretted some things that I did as a mortal, the afterlife has been quite different for me. The Ancients not only created the Eternal Lands, but blessed my brother and I with the ability to create magik. Because of this, our souls have been intertwined with divinity, and our souls purified. Whenever a soul manages to make it to the Eternal Lands, they are purified of all evil. Zorm however, wants to possess all living beings and taint their souls in order to prevent them from ever entering the Eternal Lands. If he succeeds, not only will I lose my divine powers, but without a continuous supply of souls, the Eternal Lands will cease to exist and every single soul inside will disappear.”
Andrum was a bit taken back from this information overload, and took some time to process it all. He felt obligated to save his people and was glad he could finally do so, but he had no idea that by doing so he was signing up for the ultimate battle of good versus evil. After careful consideration, Andrum decided that he was ready to discuss things further. “As I’m sure you already know, I’m a bit overwhelmed by all of this.”
“That is understandable. But I chose you for a reason. Ever since you first tried entering the Eternal Lands in search of the Sacred Scroll, I knew you were the right person that could help me stop my brother.”
“Wait a second, you mean you were the reason why I was able to retrieve the Sacred Scroll all those years ago?” Andrum yelled to himself in the empty pyramid hall.
“Of course. Why do you think no one else has ever returned from the Eternal Lands? I hold the ultimate control here, which is exactly why Zorm wishes to rule the outside world.”
“Well then we had better get started if we want to save all of hEtar. No pressure right?” Andrum asked before looking for a way out.
�
�Hold the book up high, and the exit shall be revealed,” Xurion said. “But be warned, once you leave my sacred chambers, I will no longer be able to offer you advice.”
“That’s somewhat comforting then. At least I won’t go completely insane by listening to the voice in my head,” Andrum said as he held up the book and another door raised up.
“Once you return to Ulteria, you may bestow the magik gift of conjuring to your people, but use the book for nothing more. I will always be with you in spirit and I trust you will do the right thing…” Xurion said before Andrum quickly ran over and stepped through the door.
As he exited, he appeared 20 feet above the original opening where Uriella was and slid down the top of the pyramid as the door closed behind him. He screamed as Uriella looked up and just nearly avoided Andrum as he slid down and fell to the ground.
“Ah-Andrum?!” she asked as her eyes grew wide.
“That’s right, how long was I gone for?” he asked as he stood up.
Uriella rubbed her eyes thrice before realizing it was him. “How can this be? You were only gone a few hours but you look so much older, and… more attractive.”
“No time to explain, we need to find Yuralia and get out of here. I can save our people!” he said as he grabbed her hand.
“You mean she’s alive?”
“Yes, but the longer we stay here the more it drains our souls,” Andrum said before leaping off the pyramid, flying through the clouds just as Yuralia did. “Come on! It’s the only way down.”
Uriella took a few steps towards the edge and then looked down. “I don’t know about this,” she said as she backed up and then took a running jump.
The two of them soured through the air for a number of seconds until passing through the clouds and into the deep fog. Crashing ever so gracefully to the ground, Andrum made a crater as he touched down. Uriella was not so lucky, spinning out of control until eventually landing on her head.
“Good thing we can’t die here,” Andrum said.
“It doesn’t make things hurt any less,” Uriella said as she rolled over and then stood to her feet, pulling her head back and forth stretching it out.
