Luminaries & Lies

by Jeremy Dwyer

  “Do you seriously believe in the value of his proposition? If a poorly structured loan is approved, you still receive your commission, but I am penalized and receive the negative of mine. You may have been led to believe the fanciful ideals he presented. I’m not convinced,” Counselor Becca said.

  Counselor Adrian then said: “You are a murderer – nothing less! This institution was built on principles of growing nations, but your greed will end them. End them all!”

  “Calm down, please! You’re not being rational. I said that we would be willing to loan a portion – if his plans are reasonable, the benefit will be made clear soon enough. Then, a new loan can be extended, when reasonable results are produced. I never refused to help – I simply don’t want us to overinvest in the unproven,” Counselor Becca said.

  Counselor Adrian then said: “You would rather see the world die than lose a single coin of your commission!”

  Counselor Becca then said: “You’re being overdramatic! I don’t want to see anyone die! Don’t you understand what would happen if the bank became insolvent? That would lead to catastrophe – then people would die. I’m not going to wager the bank’s solvency on this fantasy city of his.”

  Counselor Adrian then said: “You already made your wager! You’re the thief who robbed both your father and your mother. Your father went bankrupt because you sold his fleet of ships and gambled away the money! He killed himself because of the ruin you brought to him! That makes you a murderer!”

  Counselor Becca then asked: “What? How did you ever get such a horrid idea?” She really wondered how Adrian knew – because it was true, and she had worked to hide the fact. Becca was now in a panic and struggled to conceal her emotions.

  Counselor Adrian then said: “It doesn’t stop there, does it? You stole your mother’s jewelry and gambled that away, too!”

  Counselor Becca then asked: “You’re creating horrible stories about me! What did I ever do to offend you? Why would you try to ruin me?”

  Counselor Adrian then said: “It goes on, doesn’t it? You’ve been charging excess interest and higher lending fees and taking it for yourself! I’m going to testify against you to the governors of the central bank!”

  Counselor Becca then said: “This is all lies! I charge what’s fair and just according to the level of risk! Higher risk loans need to have higher interest rates in the event of default, and the fees are high to handle the complexity and time of research and administration. There’s nothing wrong with that! Don’t you understand banking?”

  Counselor Adrian then said: “We will all testify against you!” He had seen none of what he said, but Sebastian placed the thought in his mind, and convinced him to believe it.

  “No one is going to believe this! This is outrageous! I would never steal from anyone – not my family, and not the bank!” Counselor Becca said.

  Torli was an employee of the central bank, and directly responsible to the central bank. While still hidden under the cover of darkness, she carefully read Counselor Becca’s mind and learned that what Counselor Adrian had said was, in fact, true. She did not know how Counselor Adrian learned of these things, but the truth was what mattered.

  From the cloak of darkness, Torli then said: “I’ve heard enough! It is time to act!”

  Jostli then eased the powers of darkness and he and Torli became visible again.

  Torli then said: “This case must be taken to the governors of the central bank for their investigation. They will determine if you have acted inappropriately in your office, Counselor Becca, and what actions will be taken.”

  Counselor Becca was then filled with fright, as the testimony of Torli, who was a competent telepath, would carry great weight with the governors of the central bank.

  Counselor Adrian just waited there, certain of what he had learned, though he had never witnessed any of it.

  ~~~

  Sebastian and his guards – Persephone, Viveka and Espen – then traveled on board his luxurious airship, by which they returned to his estate. He planned on visiting the central bank again, a short while later, when he would influence them even further.

  In a private room in the grand mansion built on his estate, Persephone approached Sebastian and read this thoughts and emotions, hoping to find the one that mattered.

  Sebastian gently placed his hands on her shoulders and asked “How far along are you?”

  “Two (2) months,” Persephone said. She found what she was looking for – love. She knew that Sebastian regarded her as his closest companion and lover. He looked forward to their child, especially after having lost Tatiana so close to the due date.

  CHAPTER 29: Hatred of the Keeper of Dark Secrets

  When Hesperos arrived in the City of Emeth, he immediately drank anew of the waters of the Elanatin Ocean from his vial. He was thus energized and began to read the minds of many around him, seeking out signs of knowledge of the lost luminaries.

  Hesperos had found nothing of immediate use, and searched the city far and wide, day after day. He was confident that, given all the recorded information that was found there, and all the scholars who studied it, someone had some clue buried somewhere in their mind regarding at least one (1) of these luminaries – or of an onyx that was, in fact, a luminary.

  As an Explorer of the Quiet Sea, Hesperos held the same ideals as Pandaros, and nearly the same understanding of how to achieve them. The ideal was the Quiet, which was to be sought so as to achieve peace and understanding. Pandaros made it clear that he believed that the darkness brought on by the luminaries would usher in the Quiet. Hesperos, being a master telepath, would be at an advantage over others in the darkness. He could read minds and discover their secrets, so he could even navigate a dark world by detecting the thoughts and feelings of those around him. If a source of light was found, he could discover even more, and he knew which among them had the light, either from drinking the waters of the Lujladia Ocean or if they possessed another source.

  Hesperos knew that the librarians of Emeth were responsible for much of the arrangement of information. No one alive possessed all the information from all of the halls, Hesperos assumed, as that would have defied the human capacity for recollection. However, there were systems of organizing information so as to make it more accessible, and the librarians were experts in this. He traveled through the halls, scanning the thoughts of those present who appeared to be working in that capacity. He did not trouble himself to read the thoughts of Chroniclers of the Oath, as their minds were shielded by some power and he would not have been able to extract information.

  Chroniclers were readily recognized by certain mannerisms – primarily, their mostly quiet observation while recording into their books – a behavior which Hesperos actually greatly admired. Their great ages – some of them were known to be over ten thousand (10000) years old and still actively traveling the world and recording historical and mundane events – made them great storehouses of knowledge from all over. They were living treasure chests of information, some of which was held in confidence. Hesperos greatly desired the ability to read their minds, but every attempt he had ever made produced emptiness. He couldn’t even learn their names or ages, but those facts were readily discernible as Chroniclers were obliged to truthfully state them. If he was to discover anything while here in Emeth, he would have to expend his energies on other sources.

  Each of the halls of Emeth was an enormous building spanning miles of area and hundreds of millennia of recorded history. However, in the entry way to each hall, there were clear identifying markers of the information in the hall written into stone. Hesperos, in his tour, saw that the Eleventh Hall was concerned with architecture, crystals and stone. As the luminaries were made of onyx, and the onyx was a crystal, this seemed to him to be the most probable location for valuable knowledge. He wandered its corridors and scanned the thoughts of the people he found therein.

  Hesperos learned of many secrets in this way – wealth stolen from kings; inherita
nce by less than honorable children who arranged their parents’ deaths; attempts to alchemically brew potions of mixed ocean water to be able to drink more than one (1) of the ocean waters at once – and wondered if they were perhaps useful targets for extortion.

  He was confident, however, that there was nearly zero (0) chance of success with mixing ocean waters into a safely drinkable potion that would confer multiple powers. That was the prize of the world, but no one was known to have ever achieved it. If they did, the secret was well kept. Admittedly, it was a prize that even the Explorers of the Quiet Sea would have sought, but Pandaros himself assured Hesperos that it was simply not attainable. Pandaros said that he had spoken to great spirits while seeking just that and they had insisted that it was an impossibility to combine the powers of the waters within a single person by drinking more than one (1) of them. For anyone who tried, crixalethicis was assured and was incurably and quickly fatal.

  Having the powers of multiple waters, he knew, would allow immensely long life – via the Ursegan Ocean waters – and great knowledge – via the waters of the Elanatin, Zovvin and Medathero Oceans. The memories of people held much knowledge, the spirits held much knowledge – if one could pry it out of them without losing their soul in the process – and the powers of logic could derive new knowledge from these things. The combination of all twelve (12) of the ocean waters – assuming that it was true that the Dead Waters Ocean gave nothing, so they didn’t count as a thirteenth option – was the ideal. Every power there was, over all of the elements, would then be under a single person’s command. It was a greater ideal, in fact, than the Quiet, because it could help to attain the knowledge that the Quiet was meant to facilitate, as well as so much more.

  However, Hesperos knew that his current directive was to obtain knowledge of the luminaries, and that had to be his focus. Focusing on what was known to be out of reach wasn’t advancing his purpose. Thus, Hesperos ceased his musings on the crossing of ocean waters and he turned his mind once again to the thoughts of those around him.

  A young and somewhat attractive – if thin and somber-looking – woman who was thirty-three (33) years of age came to his attention. Her name was Portia and she was, at least in title, a librarian. She was despised by many – Chroniclers, Verifiers and the general public – for her twisted words that were chosen to mislead, and she had no qualms about irritating anyone. Portia, in fact, hoped that they would leave more confused than when they arrived. She had not a drop of love within her, except a love of secrecy. She was a drinker of the Medathero Ocean waters and incredibly clever. She was both brilliant and calm.

  Hesperos looked for dishonesty within her mind and learned that Portia never lied – she simply told the truth in the least useful way that she possibly could. Portia could not be seduced – although Hesperos rarely used that method of extracting knowledge – as she feared that having children or a lover might compromise what she knew. Thus, she developed an insolent way about her so as to discourage romantic advances, and spent each morning and night reiterating to herself how much she truly hated everyone, and how friends were worthless, and being bitten by a venomous serpent is a lesser suffering than having the toxic burden of a friend. All desire that might be within her was quelled by reiterating her contempt.

  Beneath it all, however, Hesperos believed that Portia was hiding something of great value. No one, in his experience, was this twisted or hateful without actually having been wronged. Portia’s life was easy and she was never abused by anyone. There was no cruel boyfriend or ex-husband or broken engagement to embitter her. She had never had children – not even stillborn ones or lost pregnancies – as she never had intimacy of any kind. She starved herself to look gaunt, and the hope was to become so weak that she forgot many things – but she could not bring herself to the point of actually dying from emaciation.

  Portia had even tried doing mathematics to fill her thoughts – and she still did – but it came so easily to her that it didn’t serve to distract her sufficiently. She wanted to forget something.

  Hesperos was now determined to know what that something was. It had to be worth quite a lot for Portia to go this far. He concentrated and probed deeper into Portia’s mind.

  Portia carried pages of Chroniclers’ books in a stack and she was organizing them and placing them into sections of the hall according to the classification of information. Later, their contents would be inscribed into the multi-tiered stone walls. She noticed a man staring at her, so she put on her most condescending smile that was meant to discourage anyone who was seeking knowledge – or a date with her – from pursuing the point. Portia then asked him: “What is it you seek?”

  “An answer to a riddle,” Hesperos said, which was not untrue. He continued to probe Portia’s mind for information. What he learned was that she wanted him to drop dead, then and there. There was no reason – she simply stewed in hatred for a wrong that he had never done to her, and she had no recollection of suffering.

  “What makes you think that the answer can be found in this hall?” Portia asked.

  “No hall is better than any other, is it?” Hesperos asked. He hoped to waste her time so as to probe her mind further. He found Portia to be more emotionally toxic than just about anyone whom he had ever met. She was difficult to read, and that was impressive to him. In fact, it was a little uncomfortable. She was imagining – savoring the thought even – of him suddenly having a stroke and being unable to ask his question or understand its meaning.

  “That depends entirely on the sort of information you seek. If you came to Emeth to learn any random thing, then any random hall should suit you just fine,” Portia said.

  Hesperos saw that she was enjoying speaking empty truths and hoping that he would just go, now.

  “This is the hall of architecture, crystals and stone,” Hesperos said. He was gauging her mental state more than her response.

  “You know where you are, but not what you want. Perhaps you are suffering memory loss, or a small stroke. There’s likely nothing here to help your condition. If your condition is not fatal, then perhaps you should look to another hall. I am not a doctor,” Portia said.

  Hesperos realized that Portia knew he wasn’t suffering any malady – she was merely wishing one on him.

  “I am not ill. Only confused,” Hesperos said.

  “That can be the onset of illness. Or a sign of low intelligence. We have knowledge, for the mind fit enough to understand it,” Portia said.

  Hesperos could see that the latest remark was definitely an insult. He didn’t take it personally, however, as he knew that this was an act. However, Portia was now thinking about vases, which made no sense.

  “My question is of diamonds, and other stones, and where they can be found,” Hesperos said.

  “Diamonds are found by those capable of mining the ground for them. You didn’t know this?” Portia said.

  Hesperos now saw in Portia’s mind that she did not wish to talk about diamonds or any other crystals. She knew something about the subject.

  “A diamond can be measured by its cut, its clarity and its color and its weight,” Hesperos said.

  “You know all this, yet you ask me questions. You need only to look within yourself for answers, or to dig in the ground,” Portia said.

  Hesperos was digging deeper into her mind and it kept racing away from the crystals.

  “Some are rare, some are common, and many examples are known to be kept here. Yet, where are they to be found in this hall?” Hesperos asked.

  “Look to the different rooms of the hall. Some diamonds are on display for your study,” Portia said. Hesperos read her mind again and saw that she was hoping he would steal a diamond, as theft from the archives was tantamount to lying, and carried a punishment of death. The thought of watching him be dismembered was one she savored.

  Hesperos was not offended, as this was clearly an act. Yet, it was a waste of time, especially since she almost certainly had a secret worth ke
eping. He was hoping it wasn’t something foolish, like a crime she had committed and was hiding from, because that wasn’t ultimately very valuable unless she could then be extorted for something else. She didn’t have a great deal of money working as a librarian, so the effort wouldn’t have been worth it. It was time to move quickly – he had to pierce this emotional armor.

  “You are nearly useless. Yet, you are here, in Emeth,” Hesperos said.

  “I am a librarian, as you can see. I have work to do, as you can also see,” Portia said, holding up the stack of pages she carried. She then turned her back to him and continued to arrange them.

  “Why were you even born? A thing such as you – filled with so much hate and disrespect, unwilling to love, wanting to die every day – has no place here. You add nothing to this world that we can’t do without you. Your answers are empty, and you are paid far more than you are worth, even if you were paid nothing,” Hesperos said.

  ~~~

  The Jenaldej Scholar, Romana, had resumed her studies in Emeth under direction from Prince Emerond. The Jenaldej Empire concerned itself with order and structure and resource management, employing many mathematical equations and models. Their allocation strategies were cautious and were credited with preventing shortages. Poverty was unheard of in the imperial home continent of Revod for over a hundred (100) millennia. When difficulties such as war or natural disaster arose, their surplus was made available to contend with the challenges, such as rebuilding structures or providing food to those in need. When times were good, however, the surplus grew…and grew.

  Under the direction of the resource coordinators, the Jenaldej Empire developed a reputation for extreme conservatism – or, as some called it, stingy hoarding. The resource coordinators put their faith in their mathematical models, which they were responsible for maintaining by updating the coefficients of the equations with data on their harvests and yields from the crystal mines. Almost every single resource coordinator was a drinker of the waters of the Medathero Ocean; the few who were not were drinkers of the waters of the Kazofen Ocean, as it gave them an understanding of crystal manipulation, including its structure, the knowledge of which seemed to enhance understanding of geometry and some equations.