by Bob Blink
Jeen hadn’t considered that, but now that the idea had been raised, she had to admit it had merit. No one had been able to explain what had been ailing the elder scholar.
“I’ll see to it,” Jeen said, feeling responsible for what had happened.
Rigo objected. “I’ll deal with it. I believe we might have discovered the source of the corruption that affected Daria’s Doorway. That thing was in the cave when she tried to open her portal back to the Orphanage.”
“Both of you go,” Daim ordered. “I don’t want anyone to be around that thing alone. Get it out of here, and no experimenting with it for now. Understand?”
Rigo nodded slowly. He knew just the place to take it. It was far from here, and would be in a place where no one would bother it.
Daim was about to go inside and check on Ash’urn when one of the medical wizards appeared at the door. “He wants to see you,” she said.
Shara stood, interpreting the request to mean herself.
“He wanted to see all of you,” the wizard explained.
Jeen, Rigo, and Nycoh exchanged a quick glance. That didn’t sound good at all. It sounded like a request from someone who wanted to see his closest friends before he passed.
“I told him he was weak and needed to rest, and that he should constrain his visit to one or two, but he was adamant. He said if I wouldn’t fetch you, he’d get up and come looking himself. He is a stubborn old man.”
Rigo couldn’t help but smile at the woman’s frustration and the apt description of his friend.
“What are his chances?” Rigo asked softly.
“If he’ll follow orders, he’ll live through this,” the woman replied. “He won’t be pretty and he won’t be the same. He has lost the eye, and for some reason nothing we do seems to help the damage to his face. We repaired the damage to his body. His arm has new flesh, although it is soft and will take time to fully regenerate. That arm will be of little use for a time. He will need to take it easy until he fully recuperates.”
Shara gasped at the description. She hadn’t seen Ash’urn after the accident, and didn’t know what she was facing. Jeen looked at Nycoh. They knew they would have to support her.
Daim considered overruling the group, and insisting that only one of them go in, then thought better of it. He knew Ash’urn well enough to know that would only complicate matters. Instead, he withdrew himself, tasking Rigo with reporting the scholar’s status to him after the visit.
The group followed the medical wizard into the sickroom, Shara leading the way, and Jeen bringing up the rear with Rigo. They were led to a room in the back, where three medical wizards still hovered around the bed where Ash’urn lay. Both arms were out from under the white covers that hid the rest of his body. The left looked pale and soft, akin to the skin of a newborn. The right looked wrinkled and worn and more familiar.
“Only a short time,” they were cautioned. “He needs to rest.”
As the medical wizards withdrew, Rigo had his first chance to see his old friend. He suddenly understood what the doctor had been telling him. The left side of Ash’urn’s face appeared shrunken, almost skeletal. His left eye had a patch over it, covering the pale cloudy orb that Jeen had warned Rigo about earlier. Shara hurried to his side, a gasp escaping involuntarily as she saw the damage to his face. “Ash,” she whispered.
“Not pretty, I’ll bet,” the figure on the bed managed to croak. His voice wasn’t entirely normal either. His uncovered eye moved between the figures spread before him. They could see that he was still in some amount of pain. The magic could only block so much without preventing healing.
“It’s going to take a little time for this to heal,” Rigo warned him softly.
Ash’urn’s eye found him and held him fixed. “My eye?” he asked pointedly.
Rigo considered lying given his old friend’s condition, but then decided against it. Ash’urn would want the truth and would probably sense the evasion.
“They say there is nothing they can do about it,” he said softly. “You’re going to have to make do with just the one from now on.”
Shara gasped and looked at Rigo angrily, but Ash’urn smiled weakly. “I wondered if you’d be truthful,” he said. “Maybe I can trust whatever else you tell me.”
“You knew?” Jeen asked.
“Of course I knew. I can tell what has been done to me, even if I can’t see it. That cursed rod had been killing me slowly for some time I’d guess.”
“You’re going to be alright,” Shara insisted.
“Is that what they tell you?” Ash’urn asked. “I guess I’ll survive this after all, but I won’t be what I was.”
No one knew what to say, and while they sought words that might be of some comfort, one of the medical wizards returned and ordered them out. Their time was up, so it seemed.
“Is there anything you need?” Rigo asked as he grasped the right hand of the scholar. He felt the need to touch his friend, if only to reassure himself that he was still there.
Ash’urn scanned him with his remaining eye, and smiled weakly. “I’d like my staff,” he said. Ash’urn was truly a Caster these days. He felt lost without his staff, something that Rigo could relate to. In the early years he’d taken great comfort from the staff that had linked to him, and of late he’d started to feel the same about the special staff that Nycoh had created for him.
“He doesn’t need a staff while he’s in here,” objected the medical wizard. “We don’t allow them.”
“I’ll get it for you,” Nycoh said, fixing the doctor with a glare. Nycoh was the most powerful wizard in the Three Kingdoms, and no one would stand up to her if she chose a path. The staff would be given to Ash’urn, and woe to any that raised an objection.
“Get some rest,” Shara said, planting a soft kiss on Ash’urn’s forehead. “I’ll be back when they allow it.”
Silently the group allowed themselves to be escorted out of the infirmary and back out into the waiting area. Nycoh went in search of the staff, while Rigo and Jeen went in search of Daim. Shara refused to leave the waiting area, just in case Ash’urn needed someone.
Chapter 37
“Are you certain this is a good idea?” Jeen asked as Rigo prepared to trigger a Bypass.
They were back at the cave where Daria had created the unusual Bypass some days before. Rigo had brought the rod Daria had found back here, placing it in the back of the cave near where it must have been when she had triggered her own Doorway magic. Daim had already expressed his disapproval of Rigo’s plan, indicating the rod had shown itself to be dangerous. Rigo argued that the single rod hadn’t even reacted in a dangerous way, and hadn’t triggered any destructive magic when Daria had stood next to it.
Jeen had come as had Mitty and Suline. Mitty was unhappy about Rigo’s plan, but had no visions by which she could raise an objection, and she understood how obsessed he was by the drawing that Jeen had brought to Sedfair. Jeen felt she had no choice but to be on hand, both in case something went wrong, and because she felt she was the one who had triggered many of the events surrounding the strange rod. Suline had come at Rigo’s request, in case a Caster was required instead of a wizard to trigger the strange Doorway.
“How do you plan on doing this?” Jeen asked, as they all stood in the cave, a short distance from the entrance.
“Torusk said the boxes were over there,” Rigo said, pointing, “and that Daria was about here. I suggest everyone else go outside as a precaution. I’ll stand as close to the entrance as possible, and see what happens.”
“Rigo, are you certain this is important?” Mitty asked uncertainly.
“I’ve got to know,” he replied. “It’ll be okay. The other rod is far from here.”
“Suline and I will use magic to pull you out of there if anything goes wrong,” Jeen reminded him. They had also tied a rope around him so they could manually extract him if needed.
Rigo nodded, and watched as they filed out into the sunlight. Once he
was alone, he took a cautious breath. He was more nervous about this than he’d let on. Visions of Ash’urn’s ravaged face were in the back of his mind as he focused on the small hillside just behind the Orphanage. That had been where Daria had been attempting to create the Doorway, and he wanted the same beginning and end points. It might not matter, but the closer he could duplicate what she had done, the more likely he would be successful.
Heart hammering in his chest, he called upon his magic. Not certain whether his efforts would be greeted with a flash of burning fire, he was surprised to see the arch form a short distance in front of him. Almost immediately he knew that something unusual had happened. The edge of the arch was oddly colored, and the area under the arch was cloudy as if it was filled with a mist. At the moment he could see nothing but the pale, gray-white mist, but that wasn’t how any Bypass he’d ever seen looked. It was also very different than the Ghost Doorway that Suline could create.
It took him a moment to realize he was being called from outside.
“Rigo,” Jeen hollered. “What happened? I could sense you drew magic. Are you okay?”
Rigo forced his attention away from the apparition in front of him and walked toward the entrance. He stepped out into the sunlight so they could see him. “I think it worked,” he said simply.
The others came forward anxiously, and followed him back into the cave. Jeen gasped a little as she saw the strange Doorway. Suline looked at it carefully, sensing that it was very different from her own.
“Have you seen anything in the mists?” Suline asked.
“Nothing,” Rigo admitted. The disappointment was clear in his voice.
“Give it time,” Mitty said encouragingly. “It might take a while before anything gets near the other end.”
They waited more than a glass, their eyes straining to make out something, anything, in the pale light under the arch.
“What do you think?” Jeen said finally, reluctant to question the usefulness of their waiting.
“I think we need to make camp,” Rigo said. “I don’t want to risk closing it just yet. It might not work a second time. I’ll give it until tomorrow at least.”
They finally agreed to camp for the night. Jeen and Suline went for supplies, while Rigo and Mitty sat close together watching the strange arch, hoping to see something like Daria had witnessed. They were having their evening meal when Mitty hissed and pointed.
“There,” she said, pointing off to a corner of the arch.
The others looked up immediately, but it took several moments for his eyes to distinguish a slight change of darkness where Mitty had pointed. The longer he looked, he was certain she was right. Something was moving in the background. Jeen and Suline had seen it as well, and they all watched transfixed, their meal forgotten, and the darkened patch took shape, and gradually came closer.
By now it was readily apparent that the figure was humanoid, although no details could yet be made out. It appeared that it was searching, and seeking something. Rigo couldn’t help but wonder if the Bypass itself was somehow drawing the individual. That would be odd, since a Bypass was normally invisible from the far end. But then, this was an unusual Bypass. He had to keep in mind that whatever, whoever, was on the far side, didn’t have to be Koess.
They watched in awe as the figure moved as if drawn. Before long features started to show, and Rigo felt a chill. Great Risos! It did look a lot like he remembered Koess.
“Rigo?” Mitty asked softly. “Is it him?”
Neither Mitty nor Suline had ever seen Koess. Mitty had seen the drawing, so would be able to see a certain resemblance. Jeen, of course, would recall him from the days at the Outpost.
“It certainly looks like him,” Rigo said softly. He knew that his voice couldn’t be heard on the far side of the Bypass, but he couldn’t help but speak softly.
Rigo was at a loss of how to proceed. The apparition seemed to be studying the far side as if seeking the exit point of the Bypass. Once again, Rigo wondered what could be sensed on the far side, and where it was. He doubted it was anywhere near the hillside overlooking the Orphanage. The image reached out, its hands passing off to one side of the opening. Twice he watched as Koess, Rigo was now certain it was him, reached out and walked carefully toward them. Both times the figure passed out of view, as if he had missed the exit point. Both times Rigo expected the figure to simply disappear. After the second miss, he shouted out encouragement, but it seemed he couldn’t be heard. He feared the opportunity was past, but after long moments of nothing, the figure worked its way back into view. This time the figure moved more carefully, shuffling forward slowly, reaching out ahead of itself as it moved. Rigo gasped as it seemed to come straight for the arch.
Suddenly, even though they should have expected it, they were surprised when a disheveled, confused, and surprisingly healthy looking young man stepped out of the Bypass and into the cave where they waited. Rigo was stunned. He had never heard of anyone being able to come back through a Bypass other than the special one that Suline created. But to be able to locate one created by someone else and come through it was unexpected, although he admitted that was what he had been hoping might happen.
Rigo was shocked. Koess could not have aged a day. It had been far more than a decade since he had disappeared, and yet here he was, looking almost exactly like the day he disappeared. Even his clothes appeared the same.
The cave was clearly confusing Koess. He was looking around trying to figure out where he was. It was unfamiliar. He wasn’t where he had been the day he’d become trapped in the beyond, yet it clearly wasn’t the same as he’d been for so long. Part of his mind assumed it was a new place he’d hadn’t seen in his prison. His eyes found the foursome. None of the women were familiar to him, and his eyes passed over them after the briefest of glances. They came to rest on the man.
“Rigo?” he asked, recognizing the powerful leader of the expedition into the Ruins. “How did you get here?” The words came slowly as if he hadn’t spoken for a long time and the process was foreign to him.
“Koess,” Rigo replied, his own voice hoarse from guilt and uncertainty. “You’re free now. You are finally back from wherever you went.”
Koess looked at him uncertainly, and then around the cave. “This isn’t the great chasm,” he finally managed to force out. Then his eyes rolled up into his head and he collapsed at their feet.
Chapter 38
Word that Koess, who was known to have been lost through a corrupted Bypass many years ago, was now in the Outpost infirmary, spread nearly as fast as had word of Ash’urn’s horrible incident with the magical rods. Many of the residents of the Outpost had known Koess personally, and a number had been close friends with the young wizard. Disbelief and wonder, in equal measure, were openly displayed by those who sought out Rigo to learn more about the recovery of the lost wizard.
“I don’t know how he can be alive and as young as he was when he disappeared,” Rigo said to the small group that had cornered him on his way back to the infirmary. This was the fourth group he’d had to stop and talk with.
“Are you certain it’s him?” asked one of his questioners.
“It’s Koess all right,” Rigo responded positively.
He was certain that the young man was indeed the Koess who had traveled with him through the Ruins on the ill-fated initial venture in search of answers to the Hoplani. He knew that Daim wasn’t as sure. Of course Daim, at least this Daim, hadn’t existed at that time, and had never met Koess. Daim was suspicious of the timing and impossibility of Koess suddenly reappearing. He was concerned it was some trick designed to plant someone inside their circle. Rigo was positive that wasn’t the case. It was too much to believe the enemy could have not only the capability, but the knowledge to accomplish such a task. Even so, Daim had demanded that Koess be banded with the Outpost’s version of the bracelets that would block any access to magic for the time being.
When Koess collapsed, he and his small g
roup had carried him outside the small cave, where Jeen had already opened a Bypass back to the Outpost. They took him directly to the infirmary. He was starting to wake when Daim arrived, and he had ordered the young man held unconscious, something one of the medical techs could accomplish effortlessly, until they were more certain what they were dealing with.
A complete physical was performed. He was healthy, and apparently not a day older than the day he had disappeared. Several former friends identified him, including one who was able to describe a birthmark that few knew about. The mark was found where it was supposed to be. Rigo could see no way an enemy could know such details, nor why they would engineer such a complex deceit. Rigo was now on his way back because they were going to allow the patient to awaken, and he intended to be there. Koess’ former girlfriend was there as well. There were questions she could ask that none but the two of them would know the answers to.
Daim was already there, as was Nycoh. Nycoh and Shara had been taking turns watching Ash’urn, who was also being held sedated as he mended. Nycoh had informed Rigo earlier that he was doing better than expected, and was out of immediate danger. Next to Daim stood a woman who Rigo knew only casually. Kendil was nearly Rigo’s age, and had once been the girlfriend of Koess.
“Wake him up,” Daim ordered, once Rigo was in the room. “Let’s see what he can tell us.”
The blanket of soft light rippled across the form, and only a couple of moments passed before the eyes fluttered and slowly opened. The eyes fell first upon Daim, and showed confusion and uncertainty from a lack of recognition. They shifted to Nycoh, and clearly didn’t make the connection to the young girl who had been a prodigy in those days. Then they found Rigo, and the tenseness slipped away somewhat.
“Rigo,” he said in the soft hoarse voice that he’d used in the cave. Rigo thought he could hear the old Koess buried in the voice, but he couldn’t be sure.
