by Sam Ferguson
Erik tilted his head to the side. “You can’t kill a world,” he said incredulously.
Jaleal nodded emphatically. “Yes you can,” he insisted. “You most certainly can.”
“How is that even possible?”
“There are several ways, actually. Some are slower than others, but it is possible.”
“What are they?” Erik asked.
Jaleal shook his head. “I know them,” he said, “but I am not allowed to discuss them with others who are not part of the Natural Races. Please, don’t ask me again.”
“Sorry,” Erik said quickly. “I didn’t mean to…”
“I know,” Jaleal interrupted. “No offense taken, just making sure you understand. It is my duty to guard those secrets.” Jaleal wrinkled his nose and scratched his forehead. “I will tell you, however, that you did catch a glimpse of a possible future danger that could destroy this world, and everything in it.”
Erik knitted his brow, but it only took a second to realize what Jaleal spoke of. “You mean the four fireballs I saw when Tu’luh showed me the future?”
Jaleal nodded. “I dare not say more about them, myself, even with other gnomes we do not like to talk of them, but they are very real.”
“And they are coming here?” Erik asked.
Jaleal shrugged. “I do not know, but if they are, then there will be nothing we can do to stop them.” The gnome shivered then and rubbed his shoulders as if a blizzard had just blown past. He shook it off and went to the nearest tree. “I’ll go on ahead,” he said.
Something about his tone of voice unnerved Erik. “Wait,” he said.
Jaleal stopped and turned back to Erik.
“Tu’luh said that without Nagar’s Secret, the four fireballs would come. Is that true.”
Jaleal shrugged. “It’s possible,” he said. “I can’t say for sure.”
“Well, can’t you tell me how to figure it out?” Erik asked.
Jaleal shook his head. “Like I said, they scare us gnomes. We don’t keep books on them, we don’t study them. They are just something we talk about in the darkest corners of our most secure halls deep within the ground. I agree it is worth researching, but I will not be opening that secret with you. Try Tatev.”
Erik watched Jaleal disappear into the tree only to hear leaves above rustling as the gnome used his magic to travel along the roots and branches from tree to tree faster than a galloping horse could sprint down an even road.
“I heard my name,” Tatev said happily as he came up behind Erik and placed a hand on his shoulder. “Have a question?”
Great. Erik sighed and nodded. “Do you know about the four fireballs?” he asked.
“The four fireballs? Hmmm…” Tatev rubbed his chin for a moment and then flipped his spectacles up to scratch his right eye. “You mean the four fireballs you saw when you were with Tu’luh?” Tatev asked suddenly.
Erik nodded.
Tatev rolled his eyes and clapped his hands together. “I don’t know if Lepkin would want me to tell you about them,” he said.
Erik’s eyes went wide. He could hardly believe Tatev wasn’t foaming at the mouth to spill all of his knowledge. “I don’t see how it can be much different from learning about Tu’luh and Nagar’s Secret,” Erik pressed.
“Oh, it’s different,” Tatev corrected. “A lot different,” he added. He shook his head and pressed on. “Come on, we are falling behind.”
Erik snorted in discontent. Lepkin was treating him differently now, but given the totality of their history together, he doubted his master would want to discuss the issue if Tatev was not even willing to mention what the four fireballs were.
At least his feet had stopped tingling and he could feel his backside again. He walked at the back of the group, winding over the dirt road through the green forest. The smell of pine filled the hot, dry air, and occasionally a rabbit or squirrel would skitter through the underbrush nearby. The sun peeked through the trees above with its warm, golden light. Despite the lack of any breeze, it was a pleasant journey, just long.
It was near nightfall when they finally emerged from the forest to see a large settlement. This city lacked any walls or gates. A couple of towers strategically placed around the outside was all the defense the place appeared to have. A thin, red banner flew atop each tower, catching even the slightest of winds. The towers themselves were made of wood, held up by five heavy timbers and culminating in a platform encircled by a waist-high wall of flat pine boards that had long ago warped and cracked in the sun. A single wooden ladder stretched down from the platform to the ground some thirty feet below.
As they passed by the first tower, Erik noted there were three archers on the platform. None of them said anything, but they all kept an eye on the group. Erik wasn’t sure whether he liked their silence. It almost seemed less welcoming than a slew of guards barraging them with questions before allowing them to pass through a gate. Something about the way they watched the group sent a chill down his spine. He could feel their eyes upon his back long after he put their tower behind him.
The buildings of the town itself were all squat, wooden buildings. Every now and again a house would have one or two walls made of stone, but even then they were heavily augmented with timber. Farther in the town great log piles stood stacked high near a river. Several lumber mills worked with men running up and down carrying logs to the giant saws that separated the logs in twain.
“Axestone is the premier lumber producing settlement in the Middle Kingdom,” Tatev said admiringly.
Now he wants to talk. Erik just nodded and turned his face away from Tatev, trying to drop a hint that he didn’t care. If Tatev saw the gesture, he obviously didn’t care. He went on for the next several minutes about the founder of Axestone, how he could fell a tree in less than three swings of his mighty axe which is now enshrined in the mayor’s hall. Then he talked about how Axestone provided lumber for the great siege engines that finally helped the humans overtake Oskarion. There were other stories too, but Erik ignored the rest.
He was only too happy when Lepkin pulled the two of them apart and Tatev decided to go for a stroll by himself.
*****
Tatev wound through the streets as comfortably as if he had been in Axestone all his life. In reality, he had never set foot in the city. He had, however, read several books about it and even kept two maps of the city in his room near the archives of Valtuu Temple. His face soured then and he rubbed the bridge of his nose. He hated thinking about all the knowledge that had been lost. He had saved what he could, but it wasn’t enough.
He shuffled over the dirt road, craning his neck up at the two story row of buildings on his right. He passed the apothecary, a carpenter guild house, and Titan’s Savings and Loan, before he found what he was looking for.
“There you are,” he said. His blue eyes twinkled and his mouth turned up at the corners in a great smile. “Calphar’s Reading Room.” He started for the old wooden stairs that led up to the shop when all of a sudden a hand butted up against his chest and stopped him in his tracks. Tatev startled and stepped back from the large man. He hadn’t even noticed the man’s approach.
“Didn’t mean to frighten ya,” the man said through yellow and brown teeth. “Just wanted to ask fer a coin.”
“Absolutely not,” Tatev said as he lifted his left forearm over his nose to shield himself from the thick stench of alcohol on the man’s breath. “I haven’t any extra money, and if I had, you would only waste it on liquor. Now be gone.”
“Hey, no need to be like that, mate,” the man growled.
Tatev shook his head and deftly walked around the staggering man. He quickstepped up the stairs and burst through the door, paying no heed to the shouting drunkard below. A bell above the door announced his arrival with a loud, brass jingle. An old woman emerged from around a bookshelf with a smile.
“Welcome to Calphar’s Reading Room,” she said with a crackle in her voice. “Anything in particular you
are looking for?”
Tatev closed the door, again setting off the bell, and then pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose before flipping the lenses up.
“Ah, you must be from Valtuu Temple,” the woman said as she shook a finger at him. “And you are wearing the Eyes of Dowr, are you not?”
“I am,” Tatev replied with a smile. “I have long wanted to come here, but have never had the chance before now.”
The old woman grinned and pulled her purple shawl tighter around her shoulders. “What can I help you find, dear?” she asked.
“I have quite a list, actually,” he said. “I need the second edition of Vishel’s Arcaneum, the complete set of Andor’s Guide to Herbs, the fourth volume of Grelek’s Curse, the Encyclopedia Magicka, by Herber Granovoir, a copy of Green is the Forest, as well as…” Tatev let his sentence hang unfinished when he saw the old woman shaking her head and holding up a bony hand.
“I am not as young as I once was,” she said with a shrug. “I will have to write this all down.”
“Don’t bother,” Tatev insisted. “I can find them myself and pile them on your desk.” He bolted to the shelf nearest him and twisted his neck to the left so he could read the titles and author. “Are your books organized by the Veron system, or by Larcher’s grouping?”
“Neither,” the old woman said somewhat tersely.
Tatev spun around on her, squinting and peering down his nose while his mouth hung open dumbly. “What system do you use?” he asked.
“I use Alberot’s method,” she said. “We group them by category, then by author’s last name. You will find the category written on the shelf in the middle. The letter on the left of the shelf denotes the –”
Tatev cut her off. “Yes, I know,” he said quickly. He tore through the shelves faster than a dog retrieving game. Mumbling to himself as he piled books into his waiting left hand until he had at least five at a time before rushing back to the counter to stack them all. Within a matter of minutes he had seven neat stacks of five.
“Young man,” the woman called out from behind the pile of books. “How do you plan on paying for these?”
“With coin, of course,” Tatev said. “Do you have anything else?” he asked.
“Anything else?” she scoffed. “Did your library at the temple burn down or something?”
Tatev’s smile fell from his face and he drew his brow together, blinking away the sting. “Actually, yes, yes it did.”
The woman put a hand to her mouth. “Oh dear, I am so sorry, I didn’t realize.”
“It’s alright,” Tatev said. “Can we have these books delivered?” he asked.
“Delivered?”
Tatev nodded. “I want to send these to Fort Drake. I can pay for the service, of course.”
The woman looked at him for a few moments and then shook her head. “I have a grandson here who owes me a few days of honest work yet. I will have him take the books up without extra charge. Glad to help the temple rebuild its library.”
“Thank you, that is very kind of you,” Tatev said.
“There is one book that may interest you,” she said in a half whisper. “It is something I have had for a while, but never put on any of the shelves. Guess I thought I would read it myself someday.”
“What is it?” Tatev asked.
“The Infinium,” she replied. “I never actually had the courage to read it.”
“The Infinium, where in the world did you get that?” Tatev asked.
“I wasn’t always an old woman,” she scolded. “I used to travel quite a bit, in search of rare books and a good tale to tell my own friends and family.”
Tatev grinned.
The old woman pulled her shawl in close again and nodded her head as her eyes focused on a distant point. “I once traveled with a man named Asusa. We called ourselves dungeon divers. We probably went on a hundred different adventures, risking death at every corner, slaying foul beasts and seeking our fortune. We spent a lot of time in the wilds, and a lot of time across the sea too.” She reached up to a sapphire necklace and stroked the gem with her thumb. “Thought he and I would get married, grow old together.” She huffed and shook her head. “The gods had other plans, I guess.” She held a finger up in the air. “Wait here.” The woman disappeared around the corner and Tatev heard an old door creak open. A few moments later she returned and placed a large, blue leather book on the counter in front of him. A golden infinity symbol was emblazoned on the front.
“The Infinium,” Tatev said.
“Asusa gave me this book one night after we had completed a particularly successful adventure.”
“Do you know what this is?” Tatev asked excitedly.
“I do,” she replied evenly. “That’s exactly why I never mustered the courage to read it.” She grinned and tapped her necklace. “Never could bring myself to sell it either, since it was the last thing Asusa gave me.”
“I don’t even know how much this is worth,” Tatev replied honestly. “I have three hundred gold with me, but even if I wasn’t buying the other books, I don’t think that would cover the cost of this one.”
The woman smiled. “Well, give me a moment.” She took out a piece of parchment and wrote up the order, including all of the other books. She listed the price next to each title. Some were three gold, some cost seven, but only a handful of the books Tatev chose cost more than ten gold coins. Then she turned to The Infinium and sighed. “So far the total for the other books is one hundred and twenty seven coins.”
Tatev nodded. “I have that.” He reached up and pulled a small leather purse up from under his shirt, over his neck, and placed it on the table as he pulled the opening apart. He reached in and pulled out six coins. “Here you are.”
“I have not seen the likes of these for many years,” the woman said as she snatched up one of the coins. She turned it over in her hand, admiring the work.
“Each one is worth exactly twenty-five gold coins,” Tatev assured her.
“Oh I know what the old republic coins are worth,” she replied. “I am just surprised to see so many in one location.” She held it up to the light. One side had a pair of crossed swords and the other side showed a dragon in flight. “Haven’t seen more than a handful of these since starting my shop.” She looked down to The Infinium and smiled. “Tell you what. Hand me four more of these and we will call it an even trade.”
Tatev nodded happily. “Done.” He plopped four more of the large coins out onto the table and then scooped up The Infinium. “I’ll take this one with me, the rest can be delivered to Fort Drake.”
“As you wish,” the lady replied.
Tatev walked back to the door and then stopped abruptly. “Whatever happened to Asusa?”
“I don’t know,” the woman replied. “I never saw him again. I thought about him often, of course, even after I married and settled down. You never do forget your first, I suppose,” she said longingly. Then she smiled. “But, I have had a good life. I have a family, and that never would have been possible with him.” Then she waved and disappeared around the corner again.
Tatev silently wished her farewell and went down the stairs. He had already forgotten about the vagabond from before. His eyes traced the symbol on the book’s cover and he could barely hold his excitement in.
“No money eh?” the drunkard growled. The man stood blocking the stairs. Tatev looked around. He was too high up to jump comfortably, and the man was too close to escape back up the stairs. The drunk pulled a knife. “Hand over your coin, or I’ll gut you like a fish, book lover!”
Tatev did the only thing he could think to do. He cocked back with the thick book and swung hard, connecting with the man’s face and knocking him back down the stairs. The knife fell from the drunk’s hands as he tumbled down to land on the ground with a thawuump! The drunk groaned, but made no move to get up.
“Knowledge is power, brother,” Tatev said with a shrug.
*****
Erik help
ed Lepkin move the pack mules onto the large, hefty barge. Neither one of the animals wanted to get onto the boats, so Erik pulled on the guide rope while Lepkin pushed from behind. In the end it took a small spark of lighting to each mule’s rump from Lady Dimwater to get them onto the boat.
“You have to know how to convince them,” she told Erik with a wink.
Erik rubbed his hands together, trying to stifle the stinging in his palms from the coarse guide ropes. He moved aside so Lepkin and Dimwater could board the barge. He smiled when he saw the two of them interlock their fingers and walk hand in hand.
“Even amidst all the darkness of the raging storm, there is light and beauty in life,” Marlin said as he walked up and placed a hand on Erik’s shoulder. “You have done very well to make it this far,” the prelate said. “Very well indeed.”
“There is still a lot to do,” Erik said modestly.
Marlin nodded. “That there is, but look at them,” he said as he gestured to the pair. Erik saw them whispering to each other and even from behind could catch glimpses of their wide smiles. “This is why we fight. Not for glory, or honor, or some vain hope of having our adventures written down and immortalized by some worshipping bard, but for love.”
Erik nodded and put a hand to his father’s ring that hung on his chest from the leather thong. “And for family,” Erik added.
“Family is love,” Marlin said. “A different name, but the same concept.” He stepped forward, dragging Erik along with him as he snaked his arm across Erik’s shoulders. “One day you shall see for yourself, and it will become all the more clear for you.”
Erik turned his head up to look at Marlin. “Have you ever been in love?” he asked.
“Once, a long time ago,” he said.
“What happened?” Erik asked.
“She moved away,” Marlin replied. “We were only fifteen at the time. Her father uprooted their family in search for better work, and I never saw her again.”
