by Des Pensable
‘Okay you have a deal. Take me there.’
Glammer smiled and they appeared in a cave about ten paces across and high somewhere on Moonmist lit by the light given off from hundreds of crystals protruding from the walls and ceiling of the cave. He stood amazed. He hummed and the crystals hummed back. They were singing crystals like those used in translators and other magical items. It was a crystal singers dream to find this many raw singing crystals in one place. Collectively if sold on the market they would make anyone extremely wealthy.
Then he had a feeling of almost being crushed by the weight of minds here.
‘Congratulations and welcome Warden, you have the distinction of being only the second living sentient creature to stand here in a thousand years. We are the Moonmist Collective. We are the collective mind of all those that have perished on Moonmist and been unable to pass beyond.’
‘We know much of what is happening on Moonmist. You seek a young woman by the name of Miranda. She is the daughter of the nymph Queen known as Snowbelle. She is currently alive and well. Normally we just watch the folly of the living and don’t interfere. However, we have become aware of two problems that are likely to occur in the near future that could be catastrophic. One involves us directly and one which involves all living creatures on this world.’
‘The problem involving us is that we are fixed in a remote part of a cave system that extends some several thousand of your paces down to the edge of a frozen sea. These crystals allow us to communicate with each other and hence have become our home. Without these crystals we would mentally deteriorate, our identities and the knowledge of a thousand years would be lost and we would be nothing but mindless spirit sacks blowing in the cold wind.’
‘Further down the cave are many large feral Llanlleans and further down again are a species of sentient aquatic reptilian people who live in the cave at the sea end. They have been fighting each other for many years. Unfortunately the lizards have discovered patches of crystals like those here and began trading them to others on this world. They are also using the crystals as weapons. They are slowly but surely exploring the caves, killing the Llanlleans and working their way towards us.’
‘At their current rate they could be here within a year. We want you to set up wards to keep them away.’
‘That might be possible.’ replied Aquitain using mindspeak.
‘What about the second problem involving all the living creatures?’
‘We cannot help you with that as it may be one of the reasons why you are here. To help you would jeopardize our existence. It is sufficient that you are aware that there is a problem.’ replied the Collective.
‘So you are afraid of upsetting some Power that may have a vested interest in causing a catastrophe here. This gets so frustrating at times. Everybody tells me a small part of the whole and I have to blunder along triggering events that can be lethal. Okay I’ll set up some wards for you but you better know where Miranda is and I would also like to find Alpha my memcrystal and Zephira my cousin. They are supposed to be on this world somewhere.’
‘My, my! It does have an attitude. That is not wise in a warden.’ said one voice. ‘Yes it is.’ said another. ‘It shows character.’
Soon a multitude of voices began to sound around the cave discussing the attitude of their new Warden.
‘Now you’ve caused a division amongst them. Sometimes they argue for weeks and cause me lots of problems.’ said Glammer.
‘Do you work for them?’ asked Aquitain.
‘No not really but sometimes we have a common interest.’ she replied.
‘Like me?’ he asked.
She chuckled then tried to levitate him off the ground but the magic absorbed into his body instead.
‘Why did you absorb my magic?’ she asked.
‘My body absorbs magic. What are you trying to do?’ he asked.
‘Your legs are too small to move around in the caves. You need to fly. I was going to levitate you and show you around.’ She replied.
‘Oh. You’re quite right. I’m not used to being so small and I can’t fly or levitate but there are lots of broken crystal bits around. What if I sit on one and you levitate it.’
‘That should work.’ she agreed.
Aquitain created bright yellow light on himself and searched around the floor of the cave until he found a piece of crystal about the size of a carrot that he could straddle like a horse. He then collected several smaller pieces that looked useful. The whole cave lit up with light reflected from the crystals and the voices stopped.
‘What are you doing?’ asked a member of the Collective Mind.
‘You might alert them that we are here with that light.’
‘Possibly but I need crystals to imbue with magic to make the wards. It’s difficult to find them in the dark.’ he replied.
‘I suppose that you’re right.’ replied the mind a little uncertain.
‘Of course he’s right.’ said another. Then they started discussing whether he was right or wrong doing what he did.
‘You’ve done it again!’ said Glammer sounding rather exasperated.
‘I can hear them. I suppose that it’s unavoidable with so many minds. How long do they take to reach agreement?’ he asked with a chuckle.
‘They rarely reach an agreement. If I’m involved then usually I decide.’ she replied.
‘Don’t they each have a vote?’ he asked.
‘No they discussed that one time and couldn’t agree on how to do it.’ she replied.
‘Maybe I can help.’ said Aquitain.
He dispelled the light on his body and looked up at the crystals above twinkling like little stars. The light coming from each crystal indicated that someone was using it for talking with another. He moved to the centre of the room.
‘May I make a suggestion?’ He broadcast using mindspeak.
‘From where I am standing in the centre of this cave I can see each crystal emit a small bit of light when it is being used for communication. If the area were divided in half and people used the crystals on my left if they agreed with a proposal and on my right if they disagreed then the side of the room emitting the most light would indicate whether most of you agreed or disagreed.’
There was stunning silence in the room for a couple of minutes, then a voice said.
‘I don’t like that idea. It means that the uncouth uneducated amongst us will have equal say to their superiors. That is not how we do things here.’
‘It seems to me that none of you have the material wealth, station or power that you had in life. You are all in the same predicament. You all rely on this place remaining hidden and on communicating with each other to remain sane. If you vote in the way I suggest then you can reach an agreement quickly which may be necessary sometime to ensure your collective safety.’
There was a lot of muttering and whispering.
‘Do you agree or disagree with me. Those that agree that voting might be useful go to crystals on my right side of the area and those that don’t like the idea of voting go to the crystals on my left side, then communicate with the crystals.’
Aquitain and Glammer waited and watched for about five minutes. Slowly but surely the light emanating from the crystals on Aquitain’s right shone brightly while those on his left were dim.
‘Okay time is up. Glammer you judge. Is there more light from my right or my left?’
‘The right has the most light.’ replied Glammer. ‘That means most agree that voting might be useful.’
‘Well it seems that you all just learnt how to vote. The majority of you may not always be right but you will know how the others are thinking and that may be important if you have to make a quick decision sometime.’
‘Now I’ll get on with the wards.’ he said.
‘Tell me what you intend to do?’ asked someone.
‘Were you a magic user?’ asked Aquitain.
‘A master!’ replied the spirit. ‘Although without practice I ha
ve forgotten a lot over the years.’
‘Okay. Your problem is being physically detected rather than being scried. So I thought I would set up both passive and active wards. The passive ward would consist of an illusionary wall or two blocking off the entrance to this area. The active ward would consist of a zone of fear leading to a fearful visual image. If we can also place some treasure behind the fearful image then most explorers will think that the image was just there to protect the treasure and not look much further.’
‘What about a construct or magical creature?’ suggested the old master.
‘Well the current thought on that in Panmagica is the more powerful the guardian the greater the treasure. A fearful illusion should indicate a minor treasure. If the illusion is dispelled or disturbed it can also act as a warning that someone is near and you could take further action like calling me or someone else to help.’
‘Of course there is also the time and cost consideration. A construct would take perhaps six weeks to create after we had the materials, which might take several months to get. I’m not sure what magical beasts we could get here on Moonmist but they would require constant maintenance.’
‘You sound like a bloody merchant not a warden.’ shouted someone sarcastically.
‘I like it.’ said the master. ‘It’s simple, elegant and maintenance free. This young lad knows what he’s doing. What do you intend to use as a fearful illusion?’
‘Well as I understand the situation you have Llanlleans between us and the reptiles. The Llanlleans are slowly being pressed back and once eliminated then the reptiles will be free to explore at will. If I use a monstrous Llanllean image and they find it they would consider it a gift of the gods and safe haven at their backs rather than a threat. They could use it as a defence against the reptiles. While the Llanlleans remain between you and the reptiles seeking your crystals you are safe.’
‘Give us some time to discuss this proposal.’ replied the master and by the number of crystals flashing there was considerable discussion.
‘You’ve done it now. Too much detail.’ said Glammer. ‘They will take a week or two now to consider what you said.’
‘You have to remember that they’re dead.’ she whispered. ‘They have plenty of time and don’t think very well.’
‘We’ll see.’ said Aquitain as he went into autohypnosis to unlock some memory to find out how to create convincing illusions. To his surprise there wasn’t much locked away.
‘This could be embarrassing.’ he suddenly thought.
Five minutes later.
‘Okay.’ said the master ‘All in favour of the Warden’s proposal go to his right and indicate their agreement and all against go to his left.
Two minutes later there was a strong glow of light coming from the crystals to his right and almost none from the left. Glammer was lost for words.
‘It seems we are in agreement with the proposal. You may proceed with the plan warden.’ said the master.
‘I am both pleased and excited that the Collective approves my proposal. I would be most honoured if the masters would assist in creation of our frightful image. I will freely admit I am a novice in design of illusions compared to those such as yourselves.’
Glammer frowned at him and whispered. ‘That is not fair. You are manipulating them.’ She sounded quite annoyed.
‘I am a mind wizard what do you expect?’ he whispered back. ‘Besides they were great magic users. They deserve respect.’
‘The image should be as realistic as possible.’ said one.
‘It should move in a realistic manner.’ added another.
‘It should be substantial so that it is hard to discern from reality.’ said another.
‘It should a distinctive sound and odour.’ Said yet another.
‘Thank you all.’ replied Aquitain. ‘Perhaps I will create a small image and you can advise me on the details then he created an image of himself as he used to be a few days ago.
‘That’s quite a reasonable start.’ said someone. ‘However if you do this, it adds realism.’
The creation of the final image took over two hours but in that time he gained a lifetime of knowledge and wisdom on illusions from several powerful deceased wizards, all eager to impress with their skill.
The final product was extraordinary. It was moving giant sized Llanllean that had a complex sequence of movements accompanied by suitable sounds and a distinctive smell that was very Llanllean.
At the end he displayed the illusion to a packed audience of spirits and they applauded.
‘GROWWWL.There is nothing I don’t know about FEAR!’ said a voice and Aquitain was terrified. He quickly created a pure heart and Glammer vanished.
‘Ha ha. Warden you flatter me!’ said the voice.
‘It’s not flattery I can assure you.’ replied Aquitain.
‘Ah. It is fine to know I still have it.’
‘I was Illmarin, the High Shaman and Right Claw of K’wala, the Spirit Bear before he was destroyed. He promised me a place at his side. I have nowhere to go. I am trapped here amongst these … spirits. I know of fear. K’wala was a great teacher. No one could put fear into people like K’wala. When K’wala growled even the Gods took notice. If you want a zone of fear then I will help.’ He stated.
‘I will gratefully accept your help, Illmarin. Teach me to growl like K’wala and you will have a zone of fear like no other.’
Aquitain spent the next hour learning what fear was and how to use it. In the end he was terrified hearing his own voice and had to do it in a pure heart. He had no doubt only the most courageous or fool hardly would ever pass their zone of fear.
Near the end he asked how K’wala had died.
‘It was disgusting. It took a minor god to overcome him such was his strength and courage. I tried to help but was overcome and made to watch then I was sent here to this dead world to rot amongst these other has-beens.’
‘Keep quiet!’ said someone.
‘Keep quiet yourself! I am Illmarin, Right Claw of K’wala. I feared no one except K’wala himself. I fear no one here’
Glammer returned.
‘Are you finished?’ she asked quite rudely.
‘Yes I am ready. Let’s do it.’ he replied.
They spent about 4 hours finding the right location in the cave about 800 paces away and another 3 hours perfecting the effects. In the end it was a minor masterpiece. A giant scarred vile Llanllean with deranged red glowing eyes that periodically roamed around the area. A zone of fear so horrific that Glammer wouldn’t go near it and it chilled Aquitain to the bone and he had created it. Anyone game enough to enter that area was a true hero of outstanding courage.
He also created two illusionary walls at suitable places so that there was a passive protected buffer between the illusion and the collective. Both Illusory walls send silent signals to the collective to warn them of impending discovery.
It felt like a productive day’s work when he finally fronted up to the Collective for the information about the location of Miranda that was part of the deal.
‘Um … the person that you are seeking did arrive on Moonmist more than a week ago and then … er … vanished. We are unsure about her current whereabouts but we are sure she isn’t dead.’
‘What!’ yelled Aquitain. ‘You have deceived me!’
Glammer vanished.
‘Where then are my memcrystal Alpha and my cousin Zephira?’ shouted Aquitain hoping to get some useful leads.
‘Um … they were in this world but within the last few hours they have passed through a gateway to some unknown destination.’
‘What! So while I was helping you they were being moved. His anger rose like a storm. Why shouldn’t I destroy all your precious crystal homes.’ he roared emitting a K’wala-like growl of intense ferocity.
‘That’s it!’ exclaimed Illmarin. ‘You have mastered it! That IS the sound of K’wala!’
Aquitain began singing a mantra of calming. How co
uld a crystal statue get so emotional? How can I get such intense feelings while in a crystal body? It shocked him. It was irrational. He didn’t like the thought of it. It recalled something in the back of his mind. He had felt feelings as a Logicon, which were supposed to feel nothing. His emotions were transcending the limitation of the body. Is this what it was like to be a true shape shifter?
‘Now I see what you mean about attitude.’ said someone. ‘It is fitting for our Warden.’ said another. ‘Remarkable!’ replied someone else.
Moments later he was teleported to the crypt room near the prison bottle. He felt like screaming but it wouldn’t sound right from a green crystal man. He mentally chanted the mantra of calming a few times and then noticed Llalorax approaching holding a bag.
Chapter 28 Missed Reunion
‘Great to see you back!’ said Llalorax. ‘I hope that you had a productive time thinking about things.’
‘Yes I had an interesting time.’ replied Aquitain.
‘Have you searched the place for magical items and the like?’
Llalorax smiled and said ‘Of course and I’ve found quite a lot of goodies some of which contains a most unusual type of magic.’
‘They could be mine.’ stated Aquitain.
‘The Queen took a lot of stuff off me and I bet she gave it to the spirit as payment to keep me locked up.’
‘We’ll see.’ replied Llalorax a little disappointed, as he had hoped to have first choice of it all, but since Aquitain had saved his life it would be discourteous to take his personal property.
They teleported into the bottle and proceeded through the cellblock to the hut. Aquitain saw an ugly looking Newman girl with a fuzzy green glow about her lying asleep with Yllandril sitting beside her. The green glow around her was trying to make her look insect-like with weird compound eyes and scaly skin.
‘Who’s that Yllandril?’ he asked using mindspeak.
‘Her name is Dragonfly. She was dominated by that malign spirit and left in the cage in the crypt while it attacked us. She was exhausted and is extremely troubled by her recent ordeal and unwilling yet to say much. I will tend to her.’
