"I don't really care about having the powers of a god. I am a man, and I refuse to play the role of a god. I did not ask for that curse and I do not ask mankind to worship me."
"Young Tirinius, I see the virtue in your words. I do not consider your resistance blasphemous, I assure you. However, you must understand the greater implications. While you may not have asked for this responsibility, it is no less yours. It is your duty to uphold the balance of the gods."
"Balance is your duty, Terinopus, not mine."
"Young Tirinius, you must understand that all worlds are at stake. Your role as a god is far too important to simply be cast aside. If you fail to meet this duty, you will not only lose your life, but the world you know may cease to exist. The people you know and love will be lost; their positions in the afterlife unknown at best, eliminated at worst. You must step forward and at least attempt to save the realms."
"What realms? My world and yours?"
"Your connection is grander than that. But for now, I speak of your world, my world, and the void. Nothing else is relevant. I am not asking that you do anything more than survive. Attacks are certainly coming, and it is my wish that you have the protections required to resist them. That is all."
"Well I have no desire to die. I can't protect my people if I am dead. But we are already searching for ways to get my powers back. My companions Vohl and Alana are already searching for the book that should tell us how."
"No, you are mistaken. The book you speak of does not hold the key to restoring your power. There is only one way to do so, and it is a secret no mortal could have ever written because no mortal could ever know it."
Rommus ran a hand through his hair. "Then what must I do to regain my powers? Can you grant them to me?"
"No, I cannot. Not even Oderion could do such a thing. You see, your powers are not lost, they have been misplaced. More exactly, the part of your soul that holds your powers is gone. It was that stone, that vile gem called Etheotis that captured that part of your soul and locked it away. Even the power of all gods combined cannot return that sliver of soul to you. You must retrieve it yourself, for it is yours and yours alone to retrieve."
Again, something from the waking world beyond his dream called him closer to consciousness. "Where? Where is it? How can I get there?"
"You must go find the oldest of beings still residing in your world; the soul under the mountain. He is the keeper of the gate, and the guardian of the void. His name is Demeos."
"And he can grant me these powers?"
"No, he cannot and would not even if he were able. He can only grant you entrance into the underworld known as the void."
"How do I know he will even allow me in? How do I get back out? Where is this sliver of my soul inside the void?"
"I do not know the answers to those questions, young Tirinius. I can only assist you in getting to the gateway."
"Where is it then? How do I find this Demeos?"
"I do not know the location, as it has been kept secret from the gods of light. Of the gods, only Inshae knows the location. But there is a man who is a stranger to the gods who can tell you the location."
"Who is this stranger? Where can I find him?"
A crashing sound woke Rommus before the god could answer.
Chapter 25
It took a moment to figure out what had happened. A haze still filled his mind and made it difficult to gather information from his surroundings. He had apparently been in a very deep sleep, which was not very common for him. Usually the slightest noise would wake him—unless the sound was thunder. For some reason he could usually sleep through storms.
But the noise he heard wasn't thunder. The moon was not blocked by even a single wispy cloud, and cool blue moonlight fell across the floor. A rock and shards of glass lay on the wooden floorboards, and a cold wind howled and whistled through the new and unwanted hole in the window.
His first instinct was to run to the window and get a look at whoever had thrown the rock, but he stopped himself. He first slid his bare feet into the boots next to his bed before stomping through the sharp bits of glass.
When he got to the window, he could see small clusters of people running and throwing things. The buildings hid most of them from the light of the moon, so it was difficult to see how many there were or what they were doing. Obviously they were out vandalizing the streets of Brinn, but such things were extremely uncommon in Medora. Generally people-even very young people—were respectful enough not to damage the property of others.
The vandals scampered down the street and out of sight as candles started to light in the houses of the victims. They would never be able to see the culprits in time, and lighting a candle would do nothing but blind them to the goings-on out in the streets. Rommus shook his head.
He looked down to the rock and noticed something odd. The moonlight revealed some markings that were carved onto the surface. It was crudely drawn, but it appeared to be a circle with the Medoran seal; a four pointed star surrounded by olive branches. The symbol had been crossed out with a large X, and beneath that was the word "equality". Rommus thought that the circle and the seal were meant to represent a gold Medoran coin, but given the crude nature of the depiction, he was unsure.
But no matter what the symbol was meant to say, it made no sense for these hoodlums to be throwing rocks through windows in the middle of the night. Surely whatever the message they were trying to send would be lost in a sea of anger flowing from the property owners they vandalized. For a moment he thought that the Vindyri or the Bhoors from Taburdum had ventured into Brinn to cause trouble, but he soon abandoned that thought. Soldiers would not draw attention to themselves with such trivial nuisances. Instead of rocks they would bring swords and spears, and put them through torsos—not windows.
No, these people were out in the streets of Brinn causing trouble while the soldiers of Medora were out protecting them from harm. The freedom these hooligans enjoyed every day was tossed aside as a given, and not given the respect it deserved. There was a real threat coming to Medora, and these brats were frolicking lawlessly in the streets making vague, effete political statements.
Rommus put the rock down on a table and lit a candle. He found a shirt and balled it up, sticking it into the hole in the window in hopes of keeping out the cold until it could be properly repaired. He then searched the table for paper and a quill, intending to write down what he remembered from his dream before the memories escaped him.
After scrawling out all he could remember onto the paper, a gentle knock came at his door. "Master Rommus, are you awake?"
"Yes, Vohl. Come in and have a seat."
"Thank you," he said as he sat. "I would not normally bother you this late but I assumed all the screaming and breaking windows woke you."
"Screaming? I didn't hear that. Who was screaming?"
Vohl cocked his head and lowered his eyebrows. "The people in the streets. You must be exhausted if you slept through what was going on."
"Well, I woke up when one of them threw a rock through the window. Before that, I was dreaming. Unless I'm crazy, Terinopus was speaking to me through my dreams."
"Ah. Well, I suppose when a god is addressing one in one's dreams, it is advised not to wake. Are you certain that it was the god of life speaking to you, and not just a simple dream?"
"No, I'm not sure of that, but I don't think it was only a dream. He said some strange things. If I can verify any of it, I guess I can assume it's true. I wrote down everything I could remember. I think one part may refer to you."
Vohl straightened. "Me? What about me?"
"Well, he says the book you were searching for does not tell us how to get my powers back. He said it was something no mortal man could write in the book, because no mortal man knew the secret. But he said a man would know where to find the keeper of the void. He called this gatekeeper 'the soul under the mountain'. Since you're the only immortal I know, I assumed he meant you."
"I am
sorry, Master Rommus, but I know nothing about any souls under mountains. And the only things I have heard about the guardian of the void are myths and legends; meaningless fluff to incite fear into the malleable masses."
Rommus rubbed the back of his head and fought a yawn. "Demeos. He said the guardian's name was Demeos. Does that sound familiar?"
"I am sorry Master Rommus, but no. I will see if I can find anything in the books we have collected."
Rommus finally gave in and yawned. "Okay. Sounds like a plan. What is going on in the streets? Do you know?"
"I do not know much, as this is something of a new phenomenon. Over the last few nights, some of our men have reported young miscreants causing trouble in the streets. Most of the mayhem takes place after dark, but they do not even attempt to hide while the sun is in the sky. There is a growing group of younger Medorans banding together and protesting what they see as inequality in Medora. They protest the wealthy by disrupting trade in the marketplace or blocking off streets. They demand that the rich pay their fair share—I assume into their pockets. Have you not seen them in the streets over the last few days?"
Rommus snorted a laugh. "I've been busy trying to figure out how to save this nation. I don't have time to watch little whiny brats demand that they are given what others have earned. Put a few dozen soldiers in the streets wherever they are. If they aren't harming anyone or anyone's property, let them be. But as soon as they break any laws, eliminate the threat. Understood?"
Vohl cleared his throat. "Yes, Master Rommus, I think so."
"Why hasn't Uritus put a stop to this already? We can't handle the war and guarding the streets."
"Well, we assume that the Emperor is sympathetic to the cause. The protestors are, in fact, echoing the ideals of their Emperor."
"By vandalizing their own city and disrupting trade? Where do these reprobates think their food comes from? Or their clothing? Or any of their possessions?"
"I do not know, Master Rommus. I think they are misinformed children who have been taught to hate prosperity. And now that the propagators of these teachings are ruling the nation and running it into the ground, they engage in mindless rebellion. There is no clear enemy for them to lay blame upon, and so they do as animals do; they desire what the other animals have and then try to take it."
"Well, some of us animals bite. Anyway, what did you come here for, Vohl?"
"Well, if your dream is correct, then it is of little consequence now. Song had a fight with Uritus, and in the process he completely destroyed The Book of Eternal Wisdom."
"A fight!" Rommus exclaimed. "What do you mean? Is he alright?"
"Song is fine. He somehow overpowered Uritus and was able to escape. If he is telling the truth, then he was able to somehow conjure up some sort of magic. That magic happened to destroy the book as well."
"Interesting. And what happened to Uritus?"
"At first Song thought that he had killed him, however I have received reports that he was only badly injured. Song was able to topple a statue and crush Uritus, but he has survived. One of his arms has been damaged badly enough that it may need to be amputated."
"I guess he wasn't wearing the robes of Inshae then."
"No, apparently he was wearing them. It seems that the sleeve on the arm that was injured was just not in proper position at the time of impact."
Rommus brought a hand to his chin. "That could prove to be valuable information. I know that's not the case with the armor of Arius. Even where there is no armor protecting my skin in places, the armor still protects me somehow. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I am supposed to be some kind of god."
"Perhaps. Anyway, While Song searched the labyrinth for the book, Alana and I served as a distraction. After she killed a few Mages, she discovered something of interest. Something of great value."
"What's that?" Rommus asked.
"The book."
"Huh? What book? You said it was destroyed."
"It was destroyed, but if you remember, the Mages valued it greatly and began copying it. It is far from complete, and I do not know if it is exactly the same word-for-word, however it is enough to be of great value to us. It seems that even though Song destroyed the very book he would go on to write, fate righted itself and provided us with a copy."
"But it's incomplete," Rommus said. "There's so much information that is lost forever."
Vohl let out a short laugh. "Master Rommus, the information is not lost at all. Song just has not written it yet. We arrogantly assume that the book was meant to be discovered by us and that it is meant to serve us. But in reality, the book belongs to Song—or really, to Erratus Ridoria. Song will grow into the man he needs to be to become the great leader of Medora. His book will serve him throughout his lifetime, and perhaps, if we are lucky, it may serve us some as well."
"Well let's hope that there's something useful in the few words that are written in this copy. We don't have all of history to wait to read the whole thing."
"Perhaps not, Master Rommus. But there is value in simply keeping the information out of the hands of the Mages. As long as the book is safe with us, Uritus cannot use it to harm the world."
Rommus read over the nearly forgotten words he wrote on the paper. "I guess you're right about that. But we have more problems than that right now."
"You mean the war, Master Rommus?"
"No, new problems. If that really was Terinopus in my dream, then the gods of darkness are coming after me. If they can kill me, then they can overpower the gods of light. Terinopus seems to think that such a thing would destroy reality as we know it."
"Well, that does indeed sound serious. If you should fall, then who would lead our army to victory?"
"I'm not really concerned with this war."
Vohl tilted his head. "How could you not be concerned with this war, Mater Rommus? Our enemy is here in this land ready to snatch their victory."
"They will always come, Vohl. This battle between freedom and oppression will never end. It doesn't matter how many men we kill, more men will always be out to destroy us. Their attacks may subside for months or years or even decades, but they will never stop. This war is just a single chapter in the biography of a free nation. I don't know how this chapter will go—but the book never ends."
"Master Rommus you confuse me. It seems that you have become indifferent to our plight. Such thoughts are unexpected and trouble me greatly."
Rommus put a hand to his forehead and shook his head. "It's not indifference, Vohl. It's just an assessment of our situation. Before all this happened in my life, I had no hope for the future. It's depressing to think that you may never amount to anything. I had pretty much given up on life in general. I didn't want to die or anything, but I didn't care about living.
"But now, after being cursed with becoming some kind of god, everything got elevated to a whole new level. Suddenly people are depending on me, and even gods themselves visit my dreams to ask for favors. The problem is; everything still feels the same. The picture is much bigger, but it's all the same colors.
"I don't mean to say that I have given up on anything. The war is important and I know that. What I am trying to say is that even if we win, it will just happen over and over again. I am just having trouble in seeing the point in fighting."
Vohl cleared his throat. "Well, Master Rommus, I can see the point you are trying to make. But overcoming such a thing is the hallmark of a leader. You lose the option to dismiss your own importance the moment you assume any role of leadership. The people of Medora are finally seeing the man you truly are, and they admire you. You may not have chosen this role, but you are chosen nonetheless."
"By who? The gods? You have seen them. They are the truly indifferent. They care less about humans than I ever imagined."
"Not the gods, Master Rommus. Fate. Destiny. You have lived your entire life becoming the man you needed to be. You are here now, leading an entire Legion of men who follow you because of who you
are. And before your time on the earth is over, I see you leading this nation."
Rommus chuckled and rolled his eyes. "Seriously Vohl, I am not qualified for that at all."
"Is Song, Master Rommus? He is a brash, impetuous, unfledged child, and yet he goes on to found this great nation."
Rommus nodded as he stared at a wall. "I suppose that's true."
"Master Rommus, Even though I am many centuries older than you, I have learned a great many things from you. You have shown me the importance of the individual; that there is value and greatness in all men and women who search for it. You ardently search others' souls for that greatness; now it is time you search your own and accept yours."
Chapter 26
The Zidaoz rolled the fabric in his fingers as he examined it. It was a deep purple color, and much softer than what he was used to. The stitches were even and perfect, creating perfectly straight lines wherever the pieces of cloth met. He sneered and threw the beautiful robes across his tent where they landed on the soil floor.
He would never say it out loud, but he was jealous of such craftsmanship. His own robes were the finest that could be found in all of Bhoor-Rahn, but they were paltry shadows of the clothing that his men had found in Medora. It was simply disgusting to him that there were items out there in the world that were better than his own.
He had discovered a dusty book several months before, and he was struck by some of the words. Part of the book suggested ways to conquer different cultures, and one way was to learn that culture well and then exploit the weaknesses in that system. He had given several of his soldiers money and sent them into the city of Brinn to make purchases so that he could study their culture. Everything that was brought back was of fine quality, confirming that the Medorans were obsessed with wealth and greed. There was simply no need for the grandeur and opulence, and the prices of these items were excessive and unfair to those who could not afford them.
But to his surprise, the vendors where the items were purchased did not turn the Bhoors away despite their different appearance. They welcomed them into their shops and treated them just as they treated anyone else. Even with an army of Bhoors waiting to attack their cities, the Medorans were kind to the Bhoors who came peacefully to their shops to make purchases. At first, the Zidaoz was confused by this, but later determined that the Medorans were so incredibly driven by greed that they were willing to take gold from anyone—even an enemy. They obviously wished to taint the Bhoors with their evil. The thought disgusted him.
Soul Under the Mountain (Legend of Reason Series) Page 15
