Kingdoms of Light

by Alan Dean Foster

  Taking up a mystified stance alongside the much smaller man, Samm and his own far larger, custom-made kwavin blocked not only their owner but also everything that fell within their oversize shadow from the sun's rays. As artfully adjusted by Oskar, this shadow fell over and neatly eclipsed the struggling Cezer and Mamakitty. Swallowed by a shadow shape greater in extent than their own, the two insurgent individual shades found themselves instantly washed out of existence.

  With the dark arm that had been wrapped so savagely around his neck expunged, a gasping Cezer was finally able to sit up. Head turning, eyes darting, he searched in vain for his assailant. Next to him, Mamakitty had risen to her feet and was brushing dirt and grass from her pants. Careful to keep her own kwavin properly positioned, Cocoa handed Mamakitty the one she had just tossed aside.

  Hissing an ancient and venerable cat curse, Cezer accepted Taj's offer of a hand up. Vertical once more, slowly rubbing his neck with one hand, he gazed in confusion at the ground where he had been lying.

  "What was that thing—some kind of local spirit?"

  "Not a spirit, and not local." Stepping past him, Oskar reached out to grab the other man by the arm. "Don't move!"

  The swordsman frowned at his friend, but without malice. He was too shaken by the recent attack to protest vigorously. "Why—what's wrong?" He looked around wildly. "It's not coming back, is it?"

  "Not unless you step out of Samm's shadow," Oskar informed him seriously.

  "Out of—?" Cezer hesitated, glanced at the hulking form of the giant standing nearby, his oversize kwavin resting against his broad shoulder, and then turned back to Oskar. "Why? What's Samm's shadow got to do with it?"

  "It's a bigger shadow than your own. Big enough to swamp yours."

  "Mine—?" For the second time in a very short while, the cat-man's eyes widened. "Are you saying that it was my own shadow that attacked me?"

  "No," Oskar replied grimly, "I'm saying that it was your own shadow that tried to kill you. And would have, if we hadn't been able to put an even larger shadow in the right position in the nick of time." He nodded to his left. "When Mamakitty tried to help you, she put her own kwavin down. Freed, her shadow immediately went after her. I think it's safe to say that if any of us set our kwavins aside, the same thing will happen to each of us." As he finished, Cocoa self-consciously checked the deportment of her own woven shield.

  "But this is such a charming realm," Cezer protested. "It doesn't make any sense."

  "Who are we to say what makes sense in kingdoms each lit by a single color?" Sounding uncommonly authoritative, Taj freely but carefully twirled his kwavin on its supporting pole. "Myself, I like this place as much as anyone."

  "You would," Cezer muttered. "Your original color fits right in, and high-flying birds cast no shadows. You could live here."

  "Not in this form. Just because a country seems benign doesn't mean it is." The songster slowly eased his kwavin off his shoulder. "There, see!" He pointed sharply.

  Sure enough, a hand could be seen emerging from the otherwise smooth, curving edge of the kwavin's shadow where it no longer shaded Taj's free hand. The clutching fingers vanished as soon as he readjusted the kwavin's position against his back.

  "This is a land of bright yellow sunshine. Except on the occasional cloudy day, such light makes for shadows that are long and strong. Strong enough to want to exist on their own, it seems, free of their original masters. Haven't you ever looked at your shadow and wondered if it had thoughts of its own, or a desire to jump about independent of your movements?"

  Cezer kicked irritably at the warm ground, wishing for something to scratch on. "I'm a cat. Of course I've had those thoughts about my shadow. They were just for play, though, as all shadows are."

  "Not the shadows here." Chancing a quick peek around the edge of his own kwavin, Oskar saw that while the sun's position in the sky was dropping, it still had a ways to go before it would be safely set. No sun meant no homicidal, independent-minded shadows, he felt. Or would a fuller moon than the one that had illuminated the night sky the previous night also present a problem? If it did, it was one they would not have to worry about for several days, at least. That nocturnal orb was still far from full, and presumably its feebler light would present less of a danger. Shadows cast by moonlight might not even be strong enough to make a break for freedom from those who cast them.

  Trying to plan for such a defiance of the natural order of things made his eyes water. Better to concentrate on the problems at hand.

  "Perhaps the great wall and gate through which we entered into this land were built to keep strangers, and their shadows, out of the Kingdom of Yellow," Mamakitty theorized. "Perhaps once they have slain their creators, or otherwise liberated themselves, shadows in this country can go wherever they wish, causing havoc and devastation."

  "We saw no sign of that at the Slevish village," Cocoa reminded her.

  Mamakitty chewed her lower lip. "Obviously, the little folk have learned how to cope with their shadows. I wish we had asked more questions of them."

  "Remember how the princess told us that the dangers out here would come from within ourselves?" Taj was watching his own oval, kwavin-shaped shadow spread harmlessly across the ground as the sun continued to set. "She was being entirely truthful."

  "But not very informative." Oskar took a deep breath. "It would seem that when we stand or walk within kwavin-caused shadows, or maybe any shadow larger than ourselves, such as that cast by a tree or the inside of a building, that we are in no danger from the hazy executioners we bear within us. Until we are safely out of this kingdom, no one must stand in bright sunlight without such protection." Multiple nods of assent greeted his straightforward warning.

  "What about the danger that lurks in this Great Rift?" Samm wondered aloud.

  Oskar considered. "A deep canyon or cleft could be home to many unattached shadows. If I were an unattached shadow, it sounds like the sort of place I would try to hide. We will decide when we get there how best to make our way across. If the information provided by the princess's advisers is correct, we still have a fair distance to travel before we arrive." Finding a likely spot, he promptly settled himself on the ground and began to slip free of his small pack, careful first to plant his kwavin in the soft earth in front of him, between himself and the setting sun.

  "What about me?" Cezer made no apology for his stubbornness. He didn't have to. It was plain to hear in his voice. "I don't have one of those kwaikdin—one of those woven shades." He murmured a sad sound that was almost a meow. "I—threw mine away."

  Sipping from his water bottle, Oskar looked over at the now concerned cat-man. "Well, we're not going back for it. At least until dark, it looks like you're going to have to share the shadow of Samm's kwavin."

  TWELVE

  They advanced with caution after the attack, everyone careful to always keep their kwavin between themselves and the setting sun. Only after it was well down and the splinter of moon not yet visible on the star-flecked horizon did they at last feel safe in stopping and setting their woven shields aside.

  "No wonder the Slevish make sure to always carry their kwavin with them." Mamakitty had planted her own shade in the dirt, jamming the pole firmly into the soil. It would not be sufficient to protect her, she knew, if shadows cast by the moon were as capable of insurgency as their daytime relations. If that proved to be the case, they would have to post a guard whose task it would be to rotate everyone's individual kwavin in tandem with the movements of that nighttime orb. For the time being, however, that thin curl of silver light seemed to pose little threat.

  "This is ridiculous." Sitting by himself, Cezer was distinctly unhappy. "I can't cross the rest of this lemon-colored kingdom hugging that upright serpent's side. What if I forget and fall back a few paces, or he trips and stumbles?"

  Oskar pondered his friend's concern. "A good point. We're all going to have to watch our step. You can be sure our shadows are just waiting, biding their tim
e, for us to make a mistake and let them loose."

  It was a disquieting thought, this notion that each of them might be hosting a patient, ephemeral assassin. Trying to keep watch over one's shadow was not so very different from monitoring a rebellious right hand, he mused. He broke from his thoughts as he moved to stop Cocoa from gathering firewood.

  "No fire tonight." He gently placed a restraining hand on her arm. "No fires until we're out of this kingdom and safely into the next—assuming shadows in the Kingdom of Green do as they're told and don't go off and act on their own."

  She dropped the several sticks she had already accumulated. "That means a cold dinner."

  "Better a cold dinner than a cold corpse," he replied. "Think a moment, Cocoa: fires throw heat, and smoke—and shadows."

  "They wouldn't be stable." Taj was considering the possible ramifications. "Any shadows cast by a campfire would flicker unevenly, waxing and waning and dancing like the flames themselves."

  The dog-man regarded the speculative songster. "You want to take that chance?"

  Taj shrugged amiably. "Doesn't matter to me. I've always preferred my food cold anyway."

  "We'll take no chances." Mamakitty's tone brooked no argument. Not that there was a surge of support for a fire anyway. Cocoa had wanted it more for light than heat. Like the days, nights in the Kingdom of Yellow were balmy and comfortable.

  Walking over to where the disconsolate Cezer was seated, Taj clapped the other man on the shoulder. "I was always pretty good at manipulating things with my feet and beak, my friend. Now that I have hands, I should be able to do even better. There's plenty of raw material lying about. I'll take it upon myself to fashion you a kwavin before this night is done. That way you won't be dependent on Samm, or anyone else, for protection from your shadow."

  A surprised Cezer looked up appreciatively. "That's right good of you, Taj. Tell me how I can help."

  While the others rested, the two men gathered fronds and leaves, coils of vine, and strips of bark. By the time they were preparing to eat a late supper, Taj's quick hands had completed the task. A tired Oskar was still awake enough to be impressed: the songster's fingers had been a blur above his materials.

  While undoubtedly functional, the result was less than artistic. Taj had worked quickly and efficiently, but he did not have the experience or the traditional weaving skills of the Slevish. What mattered was that like the rest of them, Cezer would now have a protective shade to shield himself from the sun and keep his own murderous shadow at bay. But he would not win any prizes for artistry.

  Rising, the swordsman frowned at the makeshift shade. The cinching vines held everything together, but barely. "Pretty flimsy," he remarked. "Where's the carrying pole?"

  "There is no pole." Taj looked apologetic—but not, Oskar thought, eyeing him shrewdly, too apologetic. "I couldn't figure out how to tie the shade to a stick. I'm no Slevish weaver. You don't carry it: you have to wear it. It's a hat."

  Cezer stared in disbelief at the bulge in the center of the huge shade, at the loose fronds that dangled from the edges. "I'm not putting this ridiculous thing on my head. It doesn't go with my fu—with my chosen attire."

  "Then you can hold it," Mamakitty advised him, "and hope we don't have to take shelter from any sudden hailstorms."

  "Or wave it at your shadow every time you take a step toward the sun," a grinning Cocoa suggested.

  "You're all so very amusing." Walking with his head tilted toward the moon so that the absurd chapeau would shade his entire body, he managed to find a safe place to sit. The shade from the oversize bonnet did not block out his continuous grumbling, however.

  "This kingdom could be a real paradise." A seated Oskar was gnawing on a strip of dried fish from their stores, as nutritious as it was uninviting. At least, it was uninviting to him: the cats and Samm loved the stuff. "But one wrong step into the sunshine, and you could be tripped up and killed by your own shadow. From the time you're born here, your very own executioner travels with you."

  "Do children's shadows murder children? I wonder." Mamakitty, too, was meditating around her meal.

  "If you think this is difficult for you, imagine how I feel." Samm was a looming human hillock shutting out the stars as he chewed reflectively on his own dinner. "I'm far less used to dealing with a shadow than any of you."

  They talked a while longer before exhaustion caught up with minds as well as legs. Posted to first watch, Cocoa noted that the scrawny strip of moon continued to cast no shadows upon the ground, whereupon she felt confident enough to indulge in some sleep of her own. Her decision was validated when everyone awoke before dawn feeling refreshed and as eager to be on their way as they were to be out of this kingdom.

  The next several days saw them making good time and new discoveries. It was revealed that safe bathing unencumbered by awkward kwavins was possible at any time no matter the position of the sun so long as the bather was careful to keep to running water and stay mostly submerged. Shadows that tried to congeal in a fast-flowing stream shattered helplessly with each ripple and twist of the surface. An impalpable hand might grasp at an arm or leg, only to waver and break apart. A dusky foot attempting to trip its originator would break apart and slip away in pieces in the undulating underwater light. When a more substantial shadow did threaten to form, a quick splash was sufficient to fracture it into gobbets of harmless gloom.

  It was also possible to relax unshaded and enjoy a quick lunch at high noon. With the sun directly overhead, no shadows could form. During this brief but welcome window of freedom, cares and kwavins could safely be set aside.

  When they finally reached the Great Rift, however, the confidence they had gained over the previous several days evaporated as swiftly as a shadow in the face of the setting sun.

  The fissure in the earth was not impossibly wide, but it was both deep and forbiddingly dark. Gaunt trees, fragile bushes, and several varieties of determined grass clung to both rims, spilling over their respective sides and growing as far down into the depths as sunlight would permit. It was easy to see how such an abyss might appear to the diminutive Slevish to constitute an impassable barrier.

  Master Evyndd's transformed minions, however, were in no wise ordinary travelers.

  "Doesn't look too bad," Cezer ventured as he peered discreetly over the edge. "Plenty of places to rest, and lots of handholds."

  "Easy for a cat to say." Oskar viewed the forthcoming transit with undisguised trepidation. "And Taj can take his usual quick, graceful, no-fear-of-heights hops, while despite his exaggerated size I suspect Samm retains all of the ground-hugging abilities of his kind." He glanced in the giant's direction. "Even though he now has to deal with feet. I'm the only one here who doesn't come from a line of good climbers."

  "You'll manage," Mamakitty assured him. "We'll help you. It's not your fault dogs aren't as nimble as cats."

  The giant was gazing into the unfathomable depths of the crevice. "Master Evyndd could never have made it across. Ordinary humans just aren't very agile. Not like snakes. Or cats or birds," he added after the briefest of pauses.

  "We're not across yet, either," Mamakitty reminded them all. "We still have to cope with whatever dangers lie below."

  Oskar squinted into the darkness, searching for activity or movement and finding none. "If this place is some kind of refuge for unfettered shadows, they're not being obvious about it."

  "Maybe they're waiting for when we try to cross," Cocoa suggested. This was not a prospect that sat well with any of them.

  "What about trying it at night?" Samm proposed. "Without the sun to cast shadows, maybe they have to sleep, or rest, or do whatever it is shadows do when they're not being shadows."

  "I don't know…" Mamakitty's always cautious voice trailed away as she contemplated the chasm before them. "If they're able to move around down there in the darkness during the day, what's to prevent them from doing the same at night? And despite the abilities some of us have to see almost as well af
ter sunset as at noontime, traveling at night would still make for a dangerous descent and subsequent climb."

  After scouting along the rim of the gorge and settling on what appeared to be the most likely location for a crossing, they decided to attempt the transit just before noon on the following day. If they could move fast enough, and encountered no unexpected obstacles, they might make it across the place Oskar had named "The Narrows" before the shifting sun could spark shadows long and strong enough to threaten them.

  It was determined that Taj, who cast the least shadow of any of them, should lead the way. The others would follow, with Samm bringing up the rear. Of course, the overriding hope was that their kwavins would protect them, and they would encounter no trouble at all. Their principal fear was that, while they were familiar with and had learned how to subdue and monitor their own shadows, they knew nothing of those that might lie in wait, unattached and unencumbered by absent owners, in the chasm below.

  Smiling affably both to encourage his companions and to mask his own fears, Taj stepped off the side of the rift and started down, feet held closely together as he hopped from rock to ledge, from inclined surface to flat ground. Several times he and the cat-folk had to slow down and wait for Samm and Oskar to catch up.

  The presence in the cleft of so much vegetation helped. Where the rocks were slippery or loose, sturdy trees and well-rooted bushes offered welcome handholds. Making steady progress, they soon found themselves enveloped in the chasm's darkened depths, seeing the sun but rarely. The rocks over which they were clambering emitted an agreeable coolness.

  As planned, they reached the bottom when the sun was at its zenith. Directly overhead, it provided plenty of light to illuminate the way, but cast no threatening shadows. Hurrying across the meandering floor of the canyon, they encountered the skeletons and forsaken weapons of less fortunate travelers who had come before. A chill that did not come from the cool air at the bottom of the chasm ran down Oskar's spine. Here was proof that the danger of this place was real, and did not exist only in the minds of the apprehensive Slevish. Something in this place killed people. No one spoke as they picked up the pace, their progress followed by empty eye sockets and twisted skulls.