by Blink, Bob
He had covered almost half the distance to the newcomers when he realized who one of the visitors had to be. It was the hairstyle that gave him the needed clue. His brother Nyll! None of the three were wearing the familiar robes that members of the order always wore, but there was no doubt it was his brother. As far as Kaler knew, Nyll hadn’t left the monastery since he’d gone there many years ago. Something important must have happened to cause him to leave his sanctuary. It had to be something very unusual for him to entrust his travels to a magical Bypass, given that the order refused to accept the reality of magic and the benefits it brought.
Nyll appeared considerably older. Ten years Kaler’s senior, they no longer looked much like brothers. They’d both had blond hair, but the little hair that Nyll retained was more gray than blond. He was still more than a little overweight, having been cursed with the bloodline from his mother’s side of the family rather than his father’s. That and a life of contemplation rather than activity. Kaler, on the other hand, retained the same sleek profile he’d been blessed with from birth. He still worked out daily, both alone with a heavy two handed sword, and against one of the employees who was a fair swordsman. Kaler’s hair had thinned only marginally, and not receded at all. It was still blond, and worn shorter these days.
“Kaler,” Nyll said as he approached.
Kaler embraced his brother while his eyes scanned the remaining two in an attempt to place them. Neither was familiar. It was a simple matter to decide which was a fellow to his brother and which had to be the wizard. With the ritual ponytail, the second priest was quickly identified. Also, like his brother, he also led a horse, while the third man had come without a mount. Kaler tried to place the priest, but if he’d seen him during the days at Ald-del, the memories had faded enough that he failed.
“I am more than a little surprised to see you,” Kaler admitted after they separated. “You never indicated in your letters that you might visit.”
“I had no intention of doing so,” Nyll admitted. “Something has come up and the Archimandrite at the monastery ordered us to seek you out.”
“I cannot imagine what I would know that would be of value to the monastery,” Kaler replied. “Come, let us go inside. You can greet Daria, and we can talk in the shade. Who are your companions, by the way?”
Nyll flushed. “I forget myself. It is not often we are among others. This is Brother Yori. And this is Atel. He resides in a village a few day’s ride from the monastery.”
Brother Yori. The name tickled a memory, but Kaler still couldn’t place the face.
Atel smiled and asked. “Do you have any idea when you would wish to return? I came through with you to assure I had brought you to the proper location, but I must return now. I can come for you in a couple of glass if that would be acceptable?”
Nyll looked confused. “I don’t know how long we will be.” He looked from Atel toward Kaler.
“There is another with the gift visiting at the moment,” Kaler informed Atel. “She can see to getting Nyll and Yori back to the monastery when the time comes. Thank you for bringing them.”
Atel nodded, and then turned and opened a Bypass back to his village. After he had disappeared, Kaler pointed toward the large house a hundred paces away.
“Come,” he said, and led the way.
Daria had seen Kaler talking to the men in the field, and when they headed toward the house, she knew that something important was happening. Daria checked her appearance in the mirror, something she wouldn’t have even thought about in years past, but the KalaBhoot was a distant memory, and she had settled into a different kind of life. Her hair was long now, rich with curls and flowing to the small of her back. Otherwise she looked much as she had when she and Kaler had met. She still carried the scars from her days as an assassin. More than one of the wizards had offered to use magic to remove all trace of the scars, but Daria had rejected the idea. She had personal experience with what healing magic could do when Burke had removed all traces of the damage inflicted upon her body by the poison Lord Cordale’s men had infected her with. That had cured her and restored her ability to function normally, but cosmetic magic indeed! She had come by the marks as the result of honorable deeds, and there was no way she would see them removed. She and Kaler had never had children, something that even the wizards couldn’t cure had prevented her from conceiving. Not that it mattered. The extended family they had here more than made up for that.
“Daria, we have visitors,” Kaler yelled as they approached the door. “It’s my brother and his fellow priest from the monastery.”
Daria had met even fewer of the priests during the stay there than Kaler had. Being a woman, she had been restricted from entering the main portion of the sanctuary, and therefore had only interacted with a few of the Brothers there.
Once Kaler and the visitors had been introduced and they all sat at the large table, Kaler looked at his brother expectantly. “Whatever brought you here in this manner must be urgent. Please explain.”
Nyll looked from Kaler to brother Yori and then back again. “When you visited Ald-del, you traveled with a young wizard. His name was Rigo, I believe.”
Kaler nodded and waited, but his heart beat suddenly faster.
“Have you seen him lately?” Nyll asked. “Do you know where he is or what he might be doing?”
“It is strange that you should ask,” Kaler said softly. “Just the other day a close friend visited to tell us that Rigo has disappeared. He was exploring deep in the Ruins, trying to find an answer to the Hoplani threat. He failed to return, and for reasons relating to the magic that affects the Ruins, they cannot search for him. Why do you ask?”
Nyll glanced at Brother Yori who nodded that he should continue.
“The monastery has many old artifacts as well as an extensive library that scholars travel long distances to examine. One of these artifacts was discovered to be active a few days ago. Brother Yori who oversees the vault where these items are stored discovered it. Most likely it has been active for years, but no one was aware of the fact. It is difficult to explain, but the artifact produces images. Images of a kind nobody has seen before. The images appear to be real, and we believe they truly represent activity that is taking place somewhere.”
“What does that have to do with Rigo?” Daria asked impatiently.
“One of the individuals in the images looks very much like the wizard who visited the monastery when you were there. I provided him with maps and information, and I am certain this is the same person.”
“Is anyone with him?” Daria asked.
“There are three others we can see. A small dark-skinned woman, another male of about the same age, and an older man with a bushy white beard. None of these people are familiar to us.”
“Ash’urn!” Daria whispered and looked at Kaler. Jeen had told him that Rigo had been traveling with the elder scholar as well as two other wizards. They hadn’t known either of the wizards, but the description of Ash’urn sounded right.
“Where does this device say they are?” Kaler asked.
“We cannot tell,” Brother Yori said. “The views are inside a large structure. They appear to be locked in a cell. Nothing outside shows, but the one time we saw other people, they were dressed in an unfamiliar style of clothing. That might be consistent with your understanding they are traveling in an unknown area.”
“Locked in a cell?” Kaler asked. “That does not make sense. What could keep Rigo contained? He would simply use his magic and knock it down.”
“I have no answers. They have no weapons, nor supplies. I am certain by what I have observed that they are being detained.”
“Why didn’t you bring this artifact with you?” Daria demanded.
“The Archimandrite forbade moving the device at all,” Brother Yori explained. “He is concerned that disturbing it might cause the images to be lost.” Brother Yori didn’t explain that the Archimandrite was somewhat afraid of the magical artifact now t
hat it was activated.
“Jeen must be informed,” Kaler said, standing suddenly and pacing. “This is too coincidental. Rigo goes missing and now some strange device shows him imprisoned.”
“You and he have always had a penchant for being thrown into cells,” Daria noted. She knew that Kaler and Rigo had first met while being imprisoned in the dungeon of a former Duke. A man that Daria had personally sent to the grave.
“Are you willing to go with us to Sulen?” Kaler asked. “Our friend Jeen is there. She is a powerful wizard and one of those closest to Rigo’s disappearance.”
“Hopefully this won’t be a long journey,” Nyll said. “We have found that days on horseback are not to our liking. Did I hear that you have someone here capable of making one of those marvelous passageways? They are truly a remarkable means of getting around.”
“We do indeed. Veena is a regular fixture here at the institution. She can bring us to Sulen where Jeen lives.”
“We must go there,” Jeen insisted after they had relayed the story to her. “I want to see this object. I have never heard of anything at all like what Brother Nyll and Brother Yori are describing.”
“It is late,” Daria warned her. “How about we go in the morning?”
They could tell that Jeen would have preferred to go immediately, but then she reconsidered. “I’ll send you back home, and then I’ll go and report to Nycoh what you have told me. It is best she know before we chase off. In the morning I’ll come by the orphanage and we’ll all travel together back to the monastery.”
The sun was barely clearing the hills behind Ald-del when the six individuals stepped out of thin air a short distance in front of the gates of the ancient monastery. Jeen had tactfully brought them to a point outside the monastery using Nyll’s memories of the place, rather than inside. She had been warned by Daria about the restrictions placed on women here, and had brought along Burke just in case, but she had already decided that she had no intentions of being held off. She would personally see this device if she had to bring the walls of this place down to do so.
“Come,” encouraged Brother Yori. “We must report to the Archimandrite immediately. He will be anxious to know what is to be done.”
Kaler and Daria looked at the stout walls of the sanctuary where they had spent a number of days so long ago. It looked unchanged, and they had truthfully hoped never to return to the restrictive environment of the monastery. This time, however, they were allowed inside the gates without delay, as the guards recognized Brother Nyll and Brother Yori, and had sent for Subprior Taent as they approached.
Subprior Taent recognized Kaler and Daria as the two individuals who had traveled with the young wizard all those years ago.
“Welcome back to Ald-del,” he said formally. “I see that two among your party are female. I believe you know of our rules here. You will have to wait in the outer courtyard.”
“Not this time,” Jeen spoke forcefully. “I am in charge here, and your leader sent for us. If you wish to have this matter resolved, we will all meet with him.”
The Subprior was uncertain how to proceed. “That would be most irregular,” he finally stammered.
“Perhaps you should check with the Archimandrite,” Brother Yori suggested politely. “Given the unusual nature of the problem, he might be willing to grant special permission.”
It took some time, and Jeen would have relented had it become necessary. She would have allowed the others, with Burke in charge, to go and see this artifact. She also had made arrangements with Burke to bring her to the dungeon by Bypass so she could see the object herself, if that situation developed. Brother Yori had made it clear the leader would never make his way down into the storage area. He wouldn’t have to know that she was there.
“This way,” Subprior Taent said later, and led the group a back way into the ornate building where the senior members of the monastery kept their offices. Soon they were gathered together with the Archimandrite, both the Prior and Subprior, as well as the monastery Sacrist. The leader of the monastery looked upon them with displeasure.
“Your pagan arts have placed this institution in an awkward position,” he said. “I would like to know what you know of this device and what it is displaying.”
“We have yet to see the object that has been described. We have no prior experience with an artifact such as the one described to us, but there is an undeniable link to what is being shown and events unfolding elsewhere in the lands. The wizard you have dealt with before is currently missing. He was lost while exploring the Ruins in an attempt to find an answer to the Hoplani threat to the Three Kingdoms.”
Even those locked away in this sanctuary were aware of that problem. While they might pretend otherwise, they had reason to be as concerned as everyone else.
“How do you suggest we proceed?” the Archimandrite asked unhappily.
“First, we must examine the artifact. You can bring it up here, or we can go down where it is being kept to have a look. After seeing it firsthand, we will be better prepared to evaluate the situation.”
Jeen wanted to go down and have a look where it was being stored. She was certain that was what the Archimandrite would decide based on Brother Yori’s revelations about how nervous the magical object made him. She only suggested that it be brought up to the meeting area to appear it didn’t matter. In truth, she wished to have a look at what else might be down there. From Brother Yori’s descriptions, there could be items that would be of great value to the Outpost locked away.
“Brother Yori can take you down to see the object,” the man said without hesitation.
Jeen smothered a grin, and said softly. “Perhaps we should have a look and meet again in a glass?”
“It’s Rigo,” Kaler exclaimed within moments of looking at the images displayed on the face of the artifact.
The others agreed. There was no doubt it was Rigo and Ash’urn, and Jeen and Burke both recognized the other two wizards who had been traveling with him.
“They appear to be well,” Jeen said with a hint of relief.
“But where are they?” Burke asked. “They don’t appear to be in the cells that Brother Yori described.”
“They have been moved,” Brother Yori said from behind them. It was crowded here with more people in the small area than had probably ever been the case in the past. “I have not seen this place before. It must have happened while Brother Nyll and I were traveling.”
The four missing travelers were now together in a single large room. Like the cell room before, there were no windows to the outside, so there was nothing shown that would help identify where they were being detained. The walls were some kind of brownish stone, undecorated except for a series of large symbols carved into the walls. It appeared that the same symbols were repeated on each wall, as well as the floor and ceiling.
“Have you ever seen symbols like those?” Jeen asked Burke.
He shook his head. “Never. It’s too bad those locator bracelets Rigo makes don’t work once one gets very far into the Ruins,” Burke lamented. “Then we would have some idea where he is.”
“They don’t have their staffs,” Jeen noted. “That means even if they get out of that room, they have no way back here.”
“Why would they need their staffs?” Kaler asked. “They aren’t in the Ruins anymore.”
“I think it’s reasonable to assume they found someplace out in the Ruins and that’s where they are now. I can think of no place in the Three Kingdoms they might be, or where their magic could be contained. Somehow they have been rendered impotent. That’s the only explanation why they have been held the way they have for so long. No, they are very far away and I don’t know if there is any way to reach them.”
“We need to bring that artifact back to the Outpost,” Burke said.
“The Archimandrite is concerned with its being moved,” Brother Yori explained.
“I do not believe there is a concern,” Jeen said. “What does he fe
ar?”
“The unknown,” Brother Yori said with a grin.
“Is it heavy?” Jeen asked.
“Not very,” Brother Yori replied. “I moved it myself when I first discovered the light being emitted from it. It was stored face down on the shelf over there.” He pointed across the room.
Jeen reached up and lifted the object. It was large and awkward, but Brother Yori had been correct. It was light enough she could carry it with ease. It was thin enough she could easily wrap her hands around it. The sides were smooth and made of some kind of metal. The back was also made of the same material, but as she rotated it around to have a look, she saw the aft face was busily engraved with more symbols, dozens of them. Some looked similar to those on the walls of the room where Rigo was being held.
“What do you think?” she asked Burke, showing him the intricate symbols.
“Could be the same. It’s not something I’m very good with. That’s the kind of thing Ash’urn excels at. Nycoh might be able to tell something. What do you think they are for? Writing to explain how it works?”
Jeen shook her head. She had no idea. But there was no doubt this thing was coming back to the Outpost with her. Maybe over time it would provide clues as to where Rigo was. Could these be the people who had created the Hoplani Farms and were hoping to destroy the three kingdoms. The fact they had blocked three wizards was suggestive of that. Closer to home, there were other items down here that should go as well. She’d only had a chance to glance briefly at the shelves as they’d descended into the dungeon, but there were other objects that needed to be looked at by someone with the gift back at the Outpost. She’d also noted the shelves of ancient scrolls. She had no idea how Ald-del had come to obtain them, but they might contain material that could help them. She would have to make the Archimandrite understand that. If he didn’t, well, she already saw where she could make a Bypass opening to come down here covertly. It’d be a little hard on the back wall if she had to do it that way, but one way or another all of this stuff was going to be moved to the Outpost.
