“Interesting,” said Justin. He appeared to be thinking very hard about something.
“So, you choose to travel with us,” stated Lucy. “Why?”
“You intrigued me. I knew you would not use me against my will. Corealanna suggested it.”
“Corealanna? Why?” asked Lucy.
“I do not know,” said Ora. “I do not know the whys of things. The reasons behind things are hidden from me.”
“Could you tell me how I’m going to die?” asked Gavin.
“I could, but that is a very long answer. Are you sure you want it?”
“Yes,” replied Gavin.
“There are many options for your demise, all depending on your choices, and in some cases, your companions. There is a surprising amount of variety in your various death scenarios. Had we not interfered, the Lorelei would have had you. If you choose to leave us and travel over the Karrenna mountains on your own, the Shillocks will find you and suck out all your blood.”
“Why would I do that?”
“I do not know whys,” repeated Ora.
“I’m sorry. I forgot. That doesn’t sound like something I would do. Please go on.”
“It does not bother you?” asked Ora.
“On the contrary, I find it very interesting.”
Ora shrugged but continued. “Beware a woman named Kelly. She will kill you if you marry her.”
“Fascinating,” said Gavin.
“There is a possibility you will die in the Garden Gnome Apocalypse.”
“You’re kidding!” laughed Gavin.
“I do not kid about death. I don’t find it funny,” Ora tilted her head and looked at him sadly.
“Oh, I know. We’ve met a funny garden Gnome chap twice who’s warned us of an apocalypse. I have a hard time taking him seriously. You’re telling me it’s real?”
“No, I’m telling you it is a real possibility. There is a difference.”
“So, you are saying a Garden Gnome Apocalypse is possible,” interrupted Taran. “Is it probable?”
“Not very,” replied Ora with a small smile. “Their organization and directional skills leave something to be desired.”
“I’m not going to put it on the top of my list of things to worry about,” said Gavin. “Carry on with my multiple death scenarios, if you please.”
Ora nodded and continued. “If you become a pirate on the ship Nevenge, you will drown in a storm at sea. If you turn left here, you will sink into a bog. There are quite a number of battle death options. While storming a castle I’m not familiar with, you will die from burning oil. In another battle, you are pierced by sixteen arrows. In yet another, a troll knocks your horse out from under you and your neck breaks. In one possible future, you are hanged. There are many options.”
“Wow. Do I ever get buried alive?” asked Gavin.
“No, that does not seem to be a possibility.”
“Good, that’s the option that really worried me. Do I ever die happily in bed of old age?”
“I do not see that option either,” replied Ora with a sad shake of her head.
“That is amazing,” said Gavin.
“Thank you, I think. That’s not how most people respond to possible death prediction information. Many rulers get paranoid and try to avoid every scenario.”
“Does that work?” asked Taran.
“Ever heard the phrase, ‘One often meets their fate on the road they take to avoid it’?”
Everyone nodded. They were quiet with their thoughts for some time. Lucy was very curious about the many things Ora could foresee. What do you ask the person with all the answers? What did she, or didn’t she, want to know? The possibilities were overwhelming. Lucy did not think she wanted to know how she might die. That seemed like a very morbid conversation. She was surprised by Gavin’s interest in it. Usually he preferred to deal with the now and the physical. Esoteric surmising didn’t hold his attention.
“Ora, is there an army ahead of us?” asked Justin, his thoughts leading him to a course of questions.
“No.”
“Will we find one as we travel?”
“Not if we continue north.”
“If we turn west?”
“Perhaps. That possible discovery relies on more choices,” said Ora.
“Corealanna told us not to go farther west,” reminded Taran.
“I think we should trust Corealanna,” warned Lucy.
“Then, how do we find out what we need to know!” exclaimed Justin, exasperated.
“Ora, can you help?” asked Lucy.
“Yes and no. It is difficult,” she explained defensively at Justin’s look of irritation.
“Explain,” said Justin.
“There is more to your journey than finding what you seek. Like Chester. Lucy had to meet Chester. That was more important than anything else you will do here, in the mists, at this time. It was not what you looked for, but it was what you found. You cannot underestimate the significance of small things simply because they are unexpected. I do not know the whys. Sometimes, I know what must happen if other things are to happen. If Lucy was to survive, she had to meet Chester.”
It took them some time to digest this information. It appeared Ora was right. It was complicated. Finally Justin spoke.
“I’m sorry.”
“Your frustration is understandable. Reactions and emotions like those are also some of the many reasons I hide in the mists,” said Ora.
“Is there anything helpful you can tell us?” asked Justin.
“There is another must that must happen before you change course. If we keep traveling north, it will occur. Then, we can discuss and make other decisions. The thing we find might make your decisions easier. If we turn west now, right now, we will be captured in two days by creatures you never want to meet. We will be taken to a dungeon, tortured, and killed.”
“Wow,” said Taran with a low whistle. “Let’s not turn west.”
“That’s one of the reasons I’m here. I’m trying to keep you alive. I know what you want to find, but I must keep you on your current course a little longer.”
“Thank you,” said Lucy.
Ora nodded towards Lucy and added, “After we find what we must find, I may be able to share more information. Sometimes learning how to find the information yourself is more important than being given the answers. Trust me for a few more days.”
They continued north.
Chapter 13
That night, Lucy dreamed of Ishalla. They were sitting on couches in an airy room. The windows let in fresh air on a light breeze and copious amounts of brilliant sunlight. After so many days in the mists, the sun felt wonderful to Lucy. She gratefully breathed in the dry air. Lucy lay on a couch with her eyes closed enjoying the warmth of the sun on her body and the way the light breeze ruffled her hair. She could hear the wind shaking leaves on nearby trees. Birds cheerfully chirped. Nothing was moist or muffled. Ishalla’s piercing gray eyes studied Lucy enjoying such seemingly simple pleasures and wondered what was going on in her life.
“How are you coming along with achieving balance?” Ishalla finally asked.
“I feel good,” replied Lucy, not bothering to open her eyes. “We met Chester. He did this blue-glowy-bell-ringing-thing to me and everything feels great.”
“Who is Chester? What did he do to you?” asked Ishalla intently.
“I don’t know exactly. Justin called Chester a Krythonian. He seemed really gentle. He explained how he brings balance to people and places. I didn’t understand all of it. Then, he touched me. It was like I could see a flash of blue light inside of me and I heard a clear bell tone in my head. He declared me balanced and told me to return to this state of being if I got imbalanced. He never really explained how I was to do that,” mused Lucy.
“A Krythonian. Yes, that makes sense. It is encouraging you met him. He has set you on a good path to follow.”
“Ora said it was necessary to meet him. Oh, we met Corealanna,
too.”
“Who is Ora? Corealanna? Why is there a gray sheen to you? Lucy, where are you?”
“We’re in the mists.”
“The mists! What are you doing there? There is no need for you to go there!”
Lucy was surprised to see so much emotion from someone who seemed calm and unaffected on their previous meetings. Quickly, she explained everything occurring in her busy, action filled life since their last meeting. She watched as Ishalla’s regal eyebrows rose higher and higher during her story.
“I understand why you might want more information, but why are you in the mists?”
“How else are we supposed to find out what is going on?” asked Lucy.
“You’re a magic user,” said Ishalla with a large amount of exasperation. “A strong one. Not everyone is able to turn my archways into rubble. Do you consider that fact before you make some of these crazy decisions?”
“I don’t understand.”
“I suppose you don’t,” said Ishalla, with a sigh. “So much of your training has been need based. Before running off on a crazy adventure, sit in a room for one day and consider the magical alternatives you might be capable of. You, like Justin, have the ability to turn into animals.”
“We do?” asked Lucy with delighted surprise. Justin had not mentioned he possessed that skill. What else could Justin do that she didn’t know about? Apparently, they needed to have a chat when she woke up.
“You do. It might take some time to learn, but you can do it. You could have turned into birds and scouted out the area and any possible approaching army.”
“Wow! That sounds like fun!”
“It can be. It is a lot of work. You need to hold on strongly to your sense of self or you can get lost in the animal you become. Don’t try it alone unless you have great need. Practice with Justin; he can help you.”
“Thanks,” said Lucy, sincerely. She fully intended to try turning into another animal as soon as possible. Maybe an otter. She always liked otters.
“You have other abilities at your disposal as well. You seem to find out you can do something and leave it at that. Develop your skills. Use them. You can talk to Justin mind to mind. You can talk to animals mind to mind. Find out what the animals know. You could have sent a bird to find out the information you wanted to know, if one was willing. You could probably touch the mind of a bird flying near and see from its perspective. Again, it is difficult and takes practice, but you can do it. You might be able to find and scan other minds as well. You may not feel comfortable literally reading minds, but you can find them and count them. Knowing that there are thousands of male minds gathered together in one place could imply an army. Then, read one of their minds. See what they know.”
“I can do that?” wondered Lucy.
“You should be able to. You are powerful enough. The most obvious way to seek information is to scry or farsee it,” said Ishalla.
“What does that involve?”
“Scrying, commonly involves a map. You can draw one if you need to. You take a stone that you feel an affinity to, tie it to a string, or if you are going to scry often make it into a necklace. Then, place it over a map and concentrate on what you want to find. It should direct you to a location.”
“That makes sense,” said Lucy nodding.
“It is a simple skill, but takes concentration and practice.”
“I will work on it. What is farseeing?”
“It is another way of seeing things that are far away or hidden. You need a reflective surface. A mirror or a window will work. I think water works best. I would experiment with each if I were you, but I think water will work best for you, too. It is fluid and connected. It makes finding things easier. Come with me,” said Ishalla as she rose.
Lucy got up off the comfy couch and followed Ishalla. She was taller than Lucy remembered. As they left the room and walked down an open sided hallway, Lucy noticed her clothes were warm and dry. She was also barefoot. It felt so much better than the dampness of the mists. Lucy was enjoying her reprieve from the damp. Lucy listened to the songs of the birds as they walked. Soon, Lucy heard the waterfall she remembered from her previous visits. It seemed louder than she recollected. Instead of being near the top of it as usual, they were at the bottom level where it fell into a pool. Ishalla led her along the edge of the pool to where it was quieter and the water was smooth.
“It helps if the water is smooth, but again, practice will determine how easy anything is. You concentrate on either what you want to find or a location. It sometimes helps to have a map with you as well. It can take practice to make all the necessary correlations. I will concentrate on finding your group.”
Ishalla stared intently at the water. She made a waving motion with her arm, the water swirled and slowly an image appeared in the water. It was fuzzy at first but gained clarity the longer Ishalla held the spell. Lucy could make out Gavin, Taran, Justin, and Ora.
“Where am I?” asked Lucy.
“Here with me.”
“I thought I was dreaming.”
“So literal, you humans,” Ishalla laughed. “Don’t worry about things like that. Worry about learning. Now, it is hard to see because it is dark. You will always get better results farseeing in the daytime. I can move the vision out of your tent. I can look around your campsite. I can travel from your campsite. However, I do not know where you are. I do not know what land you are in.”
“I think that makes sense,” said Lucy.
“I don’t care if it makes sense or not, I care whether or not you can do it.”
Lucy laughed. It felt good to laugh.
“If I know a specific location on a map, let’s say, south and west of Lerramorre but east of the Karrenna mountains. I can look there,” Ishalla motioned again, the water swirled, and Taran’s cabin appeared. She adjusted the picture to move into Taran’s cabin. Lucy could see Philip asleep in front of the fireplace, a book falling off his lap.
“So, I can look for a person, or a place, but I might not know the correlation?” asked Lucy.
“Exactly. Once you become familiar enough with an area, people and places will start to coincide. I know I’m repeating myself but I’ll say it again: this is a skill that takes practice.”
“Okay. I will practice,” promised Lucy.
“Good. Begin now,” said Ishalla.
“Now?”
“Yes. I’m not letting you leave until I know you can do something with this. That way, hopefully, you will think and be more creative rather than packing up and walking into a dangerous situation with limited provocation. I want you out of those mists in the next few days. Who is the girl?” Ishalla asked suddenly.
“The girl? Oh, that’s Ora.”
“Who is Ora?”
“She’s an Oracle,” said Lucy as though that explained everything.
“You are traveling with an Oracle? That can be useful, risky, and confusing.”
“Yes,” agreed Lucy, glad Ishalla seemed to understand.
“Be careful. Now, show me you can farsee.”
Lucy took a deep breath. Ishalla had a way of simplifying things that weren’t necessarily simple. First, she had to decide what or who to look for. It was night, so something that she would recognize in the dark. She thought. Finally, she had an idea. She stared at the water and made a motion with her arm. She waited. Nothing happened.
“The magic is in the intent, not the motion of the arm. Feel the water. Release magic into the water as you move your arm,” instructed Ishalla.
Lucy took a deep breath and tried again. She focused, tried to feel the water, and moved her arm with intent. This time the water swirled but nothing appeared. Lucy closed her eyes, took another deep breath, and tried again. Nut, I want to find Nut. This time she tried to transmit to the water her sense of need as well. She might not be able to feel the water, which was an obscure concept like meditation, however she could easily believe the water could feel her. She motioned again. The water swirled. Slow
ly, dimly at first, Nut began to appear. He was perched in an oak tree, staring intently at something on the ground. Suddenly, his focus changed and he stared straight at Lucy. He blinked at her and tilted his head. Lucy was so surprised, she lost the picture.
“Could he see me?” asked Lucy. “Is that something I have to worry about? How do I know if someone is farseeing me? Can I shield myself?”
“So many questions. I was sure you would have some once you started. This is why I wanted you to try it with me. That was Nut?” Lucy nodded and Ishalla continued. “Yes, I think he could sense you. Talking animals are more sensitive to magic than common animals are. Sense you, but not see you. The vision only works one way. Or always has for me. I suppose a more powerful entity could, perhaps, sense it was being observed and find the source. I’ve never tried it or seen it done.”
“You’d never seen the archway crumble either,” pointed out Lucy.
Ishalla shrugged and continued. “If you are farseeing someone magical, like Justin, he might sense he was being observed. He would not know it was you unless he backtracked the source. I do not think that is something you need to worry about normally, but if you intend to farsee into the mists, it could be a problem. You should always have your shields up when you farsee, just in case. It can’t do any harm and should help. Normal shields don’t help against farseeing. You noticed I could find your group. You know Justin always keeps his shields up when he sleeps and so do you. Again, it could be because I am more powerful. There could be things I take for granted. You will have to learn your limits through practice. There is a special shield you can use to block others from farseeing you. I can teach you.”
“Would you be able to find me if I am using it?” asked Lucy.
“Hoping to hide from me?” asked Ishalla, raising a delicate eyebrow.
“Quite the opposite. I find our meetings helpful and educational. I’d hate for you to be unable to find me. It seems like this meeting was necessary to get us out of the mists. I’d hate to miss something necessary or miss out on learning a useful skill.”
Ravs Are Rarely Wrong: The Kinowenn Chronicles Vol III Page 9
