Ghost Writer in the Sky

by Piers Anthony

  “I am glad I came through,” Mera said. “I don’t remember, as that was my later self.”

  Tara paused. “Can you be here, if she’s here?”

  “Yes. She is of what we call Reality Number Two, visiting Reality Number One, using a local host. The same way you and Tartan are visiting from Mundania. I am now here physically. I could not go physically to Reality Number Two, as I am physically already there. There is no conflict.”

  “That’s good,” Tara said, looking as if her understanding was incomplete. “Maybe you can meet your alternate self and compare notes.”

  “Perhaps,” Mera agreed. “It could be quite interesting.”

  “But why is Caprice Castle here?” Tartan asked. “It must somehow have known we would be here, and come for us.”

  “Princess Dawn must want to verify that we are safely back,” Tara said.

  “Wait,” Tartan said. “There is room physically for only one particular person at a time? That is, none of us could be in any Reality if we were already there as natives?”

  “Yes. Fortunately it’s not a problem in Reality Number One, because all of you are native or have native hosts. And you, returning there, are yourselves, with no conflict, unlike my situation in Reality Number Two.”

  “Okay, no problem,” Tartan said, relieved though he was not completely clear on the clarification.

  They walked the short distance to the castle main door, and Dolin knocked. After a generous moment it opened. An unfamiliar man stood there.

  “We may have a problem,” Tara murmured.

  “I doubt I know you,” the man said to Dolin. “But I think I like you.” He glanced beyond to the others. “And I really like the lovely ladies. Do come in.”

  “We thought to see Princess Dawn here,” Dolin said.

  “Who?”

  “The proprietress of Caprice Castle. Didn’t she bring the castle here to intercept us?”

  “There is no Princess Dawn here, nor has there ever been, worthy as she may be,” the man said. “I am Prince Drew, the proprietor of Caprice Castle.”

  The group exchanged a furtive look. “We really have a problem,” Tara said.

  “Oh, no,” Mera said. “We’re in another reality!”

  “Please,” the man said. “I see there is a confusion of some sort, and it must be that Caprice brought me here to help abate it. Come in and sit down, and there will be refreshments as we get to know each other. Perhaps the problem will turn out to be minor.”

  Tartan seriously doubted that, but didn’t argue. Neither did any of the others. They filed into the castle and settled in its main chamber. Punwheel cookies and boot rear drinks appeared by every place.

  “First, the introductions,” Dolin said. “I am Prince Dolin, son of Prince Dolph and Princess Taplin. My talent is doing the right thing, and it indicates that we were right to come here to Caprice Castle, though it was not our intent.”

  “I knew you looked somehow familiar,” Drew said. “I am the son of Prince Dolph and Princess Nada Naga. My talent is Sensate Focus. We must be half brothers. Though I admit my father never spoke of having relations with any woman other than my mother.”

  “Uh-oh,” Tara said.

  “I don’t like the sound of that,” Tartan said. “What is it?”

  “Monica is gone, or at least threatened. I don’t understand how, but there’s mischief.”

  “Your host can’t be gone. She’s still here.”

  “In a manner.”

  “She’s Nada Naga’s daughter!” Tartan said. “By Demon Prince Vore. Not by Prince Dolph.”

  “Yes. So now she’s a spirit too, like you.”

  “Yes. She’s severely shaken.”

  “Definitely a new reality,” Mera said. “After I tried so hard to avoid any such complication.”

  “A new reality?” Drew asked.

  “I am from a reality where Prince Dolph married the sleeping beauty Taplin,” Dolin said. “And the proprietress of this castle, in her reality, is Princess Dawn, daughter of Prince Dolph and the maiden Electra.”

  “Fascinating. How many realities are there?”

  “That’s indeterminate,” Mera said. “I am Princess Merara, daughter of the Magician Merlin and the Sorceress Tapis. My talent is to shift realities. I presume they already exist, and that I become aware of them when I engage a new one. I now know of three. We were trying to remain in what we call Reality Number One. Apparently I messed up, and we came here.”

  “This would be a dangerously potent talent,” Drew said. “I appreciate your frustration. If it is not unbecomingly personal, may I inquire as to how you think it might have happened?”

  “I don’t know,” Mera said, little coils of frustration hovering near her head. “I tried to be careful.”

  “Please, I am not blaming you, Princess. I am familiar with the manner the exercise of one’s talent can have unanticipated consequences, having run afoul of that myself on occasion. It is in my mind that I may indeed be able to help you, and that is why Caprice Castle brought me here to meet you. Suppose we complete the introductions, and then I will clarify my notion.”

  Drew certainly came across like a prince. Tartan introduced himself and his origin. Then Tara, Emerald, and Amara.

  “Woof!”

  “And Tata Dogfish,” Amara said with a smile.

  Drew looked closely at Tata. “This is a good deal more than a dog,” he said.

  “More?” Amara asked. “How so?”

  “I do not wish to bore you with the detail of my talent, but it is relevant in this instance. Sensate Focus is a talent of observation and projection. I can focus microscopically so as to perceive the finest detail of any object, or telescopically to study the farthest stars. I can detect and follow scents, or become immune to stench. I can hear a pin drop, or withstand deafening noise. I can develop an exquisite sense of balance, or be immune to motion sickness. I can see through the crevices in fabrics to a person’s flesh, but also can be immune to freakout by panties or nakedness. I can also project sensuality so that my mere touch on a woman’s wrist sends her into a daze. I realize you may find this hard to believe.”

  “I do find it hard to believe,” Mera said. “Touch my wrist.”

  “As you wish.” Drew reached out and touched her wrist.

  Mera went into a daze. A faint cloud of vapor surrounded her, making her outlines foggy. A generous moment later it dissipated, and she returned to full focus. “I believe you,” she said faintly.

  “When I look at Tata, I see not only his flesh, but his aura. He is host to a Sorceress, who has been observing and hearing anything he sees and hears. Similarly the way I see your auras, Tartan and Tara, and your dragon essence, Emerald, and the Goddess you host, Amara. And of course yours, Prince Dolin, centered on that magic ring.”

  “A Sorceress!” Dolin exclaimed. “We did not know of this.”

  “Perhaps she will identify herself and explain,” Drew said. He got up and fetched a magic mirror, holding it before him so that the others could all see it. “Sorceress, if you care to, you may animate this mirror so that you can show yourself and talk with us directly. We are curious as to your purpose here.”

  The mirror brightened. An image formed. It was a beautiful woman.

  “Princess Eve!” Dolin exclaimed. “My half sister.”

  “Yes, brother,” Eve replied from the mirror. “I am glad that you now understand more of yourself, so that I need no longer keep the secret.” She looked around. “I am Princess Eve, twin sister of Princess Dawn, married to the Demon Pluto, and the mistress of the realm of Hades. My talent is to know anything about any inanimate object I touch, just as Dawn’s is to know about any living thing she touches. Dawn and I were concerned for Prince Dolin, not wanting to lose him so soon after discovering him. So when I found opportunity I borrowed a
spell from a minion of Hades and joined the party, lending my talent to the dogfish when it was helpful to you. That way I knew that the group of you was safe.”

  “That’s why Tata was able to sniff out the correct paths!” Amara said. “And to know things we needed to know.”

  “That is why,” Eve agreed. “But I confess I am as mystified as you why you failed to return to the correct reality. Mera was careful not to use her talent again, so you should not have changed realities.”

  “That I hope to fathom and explain,” Drew said. “I have a certain facility with explanations, once I know the facts. Please, Princess Merara, detail your history with this group.”

  “Call me Mera, Prince.” She seemed to remain a trace dazed by his demonstration of his talent.

  “Please, Mera.”

  “Well, actually I can’t speak for my future self, because—” She broke off, a puzzled look crossing her face. “Oh, my!”

  “There is a spirit hovering near you,” Drew said.

  “It is—me,” Mera said, surprised. “The original me from the other reality. She was watching the group, but couldn’t track it into the past, but now that we’re back in the future, I mean the present, she just found me. Oh, this is amazing!”

  “Tell us,” Emerald said.

  “I will—I will let her speak directly. I will be her host.”

  “Hello Aunt Mera!” Dolin said.

  “Hello, nephew. I’m so glad you’re well. It was the ring I tracked. Its magic signals your location. Now let me see.” She considered a generous moment, then summarized for Drew how Dolin was killed by the Sea Hag and the ring imbued with his young soul.

  “The Sea Hag,” Drew said. “We know of her. We do not like her.”

  “No one does,” Amara said, grimacing. “For good reason.”

  “Then when the time seemed propitious,” Mera continued, “I took the ring to the Good Magician. He recognized me immediately, though I am not natural to that reality. He agreed that Dolin deserved to live. Of course he required a Service for his assistance, and I agreed to exercise my talent on his behalf at such time as he required it. That performance is on account, as it were. Then he arranged for one of his wives to take the ring and switch places with herself in the adjacent reality, thus transferring the ring to that reality. He also provided a host for my spirit to animate in that reality so that I could visit it without vacating Dolin’s reality. I needed to retain my physical presence there so I could later report to my sister Taplin on the success or failure of our mission. If I crossed over physically, I would lose that presence and might not be able to return without complicating the situation. As I was, I could simply revert my spirit to my body when the time came.” She paused to look around. “Is this relevant? Am I boring you?”

  “You’re not boring us,” Emerald said. “Your participation is more complicated than we knew.”

  “I believe it is relevant,” Drew said. “Please continue.”

  “The Good Magician also provided a host for Dolin,” Mera continued. “I used it to put on the Ring, animating my nephew, but also followed the group he joined with mirrors and my spirit, as I explained to the rest of you. Meanwhile the Good Magician had another visitor, the Magician of Time. He had not found what he wanted in his own reality, so wished to go to another in the hope of better fortune.”

  “What was he looking for?” Tara asked.

  Mera smiled. “Women. He wanted to find a Sorceress to marry, but the ones in that reality were taken. He was interested in me, but I demurred.”

  “And you traded your talent for his,” Drew said. “He gave you a time bomb in exchange for your putting him into another reality.”

  Mera looked sharply at him. “How do you know that?”

  “Because this is where he came to. He is now a guest in Caprice Castle. He told me all about how he got here.”

  “Oh, my,” Mera said.

  “And I think I have the answer,” Drew continued. “You said you tried to avoid using your talent, so as not to change realities, but you did use it: to help him change.”

  “I did,” she agreed. “But that was him, not me.”

  “Your talent affects you too, when you use it. Maybe not always directly. In this case it left you in the same reality, but when the party traveled to the past, via that Time Bomb your talent had traded for, and returned to the present, it came to the reality it had touched before. This one.”

  “Oh! It must have.”

  “So Prince Dolin and his party came here,” Drew concluded. “And your problem is how to return to the one your party started from.”

  “That’s it,” Dolin agreed.

  “And that is where I may be able to help. Not directly, but I do have contacts.”

  “Contacts?”

  “Princess Ida. She surely exists in your reality, because I think she exists in every reality.”

  “She does,” Amara said. “But her talent is the idea, not traveling between realities.”

  “Maybe not directly. But indirectly it may be possible.”

  “We do not understand,” Tartan said.

  “The world Ptero revolves around her head,” Drew said. “On it or its subsidiary moons exists every person who lives in Xanth, or ever did live, or ever might live. We can go consult with our alternates, in case any of them know the answer.”

  “Oh, that’s right,” Mera said. “I used it to go from Reality Number Two to Reality Number One. It can be used as a way station.”

  Tartan did not want to admit how confusing he found this, so he shut up.

  “That just might work,” Amara said. “But just as coming here from Ptero can be complicated, so going there may not be easy.”

  “Visits can be accomplished in spirit,” Drew said. “That should be easy for those of you who are already riding hosts in spirit form.” He drew a breath. “But first I believe you should meet Bernard.”

  “Who?” Tara asked.

  “The Magician of Time. He should be interested, since he was involved in this complication, however inadvertently.” He snapped his fingers. “Caprice, if you would be so kind, please notify Bernard that we have company he may find interesting.”

  There was a musical note. Then a man appeared. He was nondescript, but Tartan could tell immediately he was a Magician. There was something about him.

  “This is Bernard, the Magician of Time,” Drew said. “Bernard, you should remember Mera.”

  The man looked perplexed. “I do not see her here.”

  The form of Mera in Reality Number One manifested. “Here.”

  “I do recognize you now,” Bernard said, surprised. “But I’m a bit confused. Are you the original, or a duplicate in this reality?”

  “Both,” she said. “My spirit has joined the host body of my other self, who came physically here. This is her real appearance.” Mera reverted to herself, significantly lovelier than the other host. “It seems that when I exchanged favors with you, it affected the group I was trying to help. It’s complicated.”

  “I’m sure. I have to beware of paradox when I practice my art, and I don’t always see it coming.”

  “That’s it, inexactly,” she agreed.

  Other introductions followed, including Tata Dog, but there were no further references to Princess Eve or the Goddess Isis, both of whom preferred to retreat into the background for now. Then Drew said “We shall go to Castle Roogna to see the Princess Ida, and thence to the world of Ptero. Are you interested?”

  “Actually I am, because my life partner is surely there.” Bernard glanced around. “Unless one of you ladies—”

  “No,” Tara said quickly. “None of us want to remain here. We want to return to our own reality. Especially my host. Desperately.”

  “As I do not,” Bernard said. “So Ptero it is.”

  “Als
o, not all of us are princesses or Sorceresses,” Amara said.

  “Actually, I am reconsidering that,” Bernard said. “I am a Magician; I don’t need to have another of that caliber in the family. I would settle for the right girl, regardless of her station.”

  “Good choice,” Emerald said. “Princesses can have other qualities you might not appreciate.”

  Drew picked up the magic mirror. “Princess Ida,” he said.

  The glass flickered. Then the face of an older woman appeared. “Yes, Drew.”

  “We have an unusual situation. I am entertaining visitors from other realities, some of whom wish to return to their own. We feel that contact with some folk on Ptero may be beneficial.”

  Ida laughed. “Unusual? You severely understate the case, Drew, as usual.”

  “Guilty,” he said, smiling. “May I bring them to you?”

  “No.”

  “No?” he asked, surprised. “Is the occasion inconvenient?”

  “Not at all. It’s that Hilarion and I are traveling, returning to his kingdom for a while. So we will pause at Caprice, if the castle cares to pick us up.”

  “Immediately,” Drew said.

  Ida laughed. “Which is literal, of course. Caprice just appeared before our carriage.”

  “The door is open. Come in.”

  “So it is. Thank you.”

  “Ida married Prince Hilarion in this frame,” Drew explained to the others.

  “In ours too,” Amara said. “I suspect she is in all the realities, and maybe he is also.”

  “I believe I am,” Princess Ida said from the doorway. “Otherwise it would be difficult to relate to the myriad alternatives.”

  They all jumped to their feet, embarrassed. There stood the princess, with a tiny moon orbiting her head. There was no possible doubt of her identity. “We did not see you coming, Aunt Ida,” Dolin said apologetically.

  “Nor did you need to, Dolin,” she said.

  Drew was surprised. “You know him?”