The Accidental Archmage: Book Eight (Where Titans Walk)
Page 9
Despite his efforts to control himself, Tyler’s legs started to buckle. Uncontrollable fear rose. The mage found it hard to breathe, his heart started beating so fast the mage could feel his pulse, and his hands grew clammy. Then the malaise of terror suddenly stopped. Yet after the short time he suffered, weariness struck him and was also just as abruptly removed.
Thanks, guys, he told his guides.
Only their intervention could have resulted in the quick relief. Ordinary deities – even heads of pantheons -didn’t have the same effects on the mage. But the mere presence of an avatar of Chaos, one of the primordial elements of the universe, nearly reduced him to a mewing mess. Yet he couldn’t blame the entity. Its mere aura, arising from its nature, was what it should be, a part of creation maybe, but one couldn’t change it. Tyler wondered how Hades was able to withstand such massive, frightful, and tumultuous emanations. For mortals such as the mage, it was physically debilitating and mentally damaging.
He gathered himself, finding new strength in his limbs and mind. Then the mage looked into the creature’s eyes. They were endless depths, and swirling coils of dark mist danced aimlessly around its edges. Tyler found himself being instantly drawn into them, only to be held back from the brink by his guides.
“Sire, focus. Look at the area between the eyes, never into them,” whispered X urgently.
Tyler found himself mechanically nodding in agreement. Once again, his guides had pulled him from the fire. Getting drawn mentally into the mind of the terrible being would have been worse than an eternity in Tartarus. Tyler refused to think about what would have happened to his physical body if ever that happened.
“Hail, Great One,” greeted the mage, trying to sound confident. Unfortunately, his voice came out a bit too high-pitched for his liking. To make matters worse, Tyler didn’t know the proper way of addressing the entity before him. He knew how particular deities were about titles and honorifics. Yet how does one greet an avatar of Chaos? The mage doubted if the usual titles would suffice.
“Great One. That’s a strange greeting, mortal,” said the being, interrupting the mage’s effort to introduce himself. “Call me Khaos. Those long titles confuse me. Now, why are you here? Alive. Clearly, you didn’t use the Gates. I would have noticed. Make sure your story’s interesting. And not another Greek heroic quest. That’s boring, and I had my fill of those half-truths.”
“I am rescuing my wife,” blurted Tyler. At least, the being’s disregard of the usual protocol was reassuring, ensuring he didn’t commit a divine faux pas at the beginning of the meeting.
“That again? Another Persephoneia story?” exclaimed Khaos. “That’s a Hades story. Not a Tartarus one. Kore must be mortified by everyone knowing the bare details.”
Persephone and Hades? thought the mage. At least I know that tale.
“Not exactly. These Titans abducted Eira, my wife, to keep me from interfering from their plans,” explained Tyler quickly. Then something clicked on his mind. “Though I have to agree that almost all heroic stories do involve Hades, not Tartarus.”
Suddenly, the mage felt Khaos withdraw his attention from Tyler. If he wasn’t wrong, he’d say the entity was thinking. The young man didn’t know whether a thinking Khaos was good or bad. But the reply was all he could think of at the moment. The presence of Khaos was unsettling, to say the least. Tyler knew he had to be careful with such an incredibly powerful being, especially one with a child’s maturity. He could only follow and discuss what Khaos initiated. Anything else was an invitation to a terrible unknown.
“I do believe you’re right. There are more stories about my uncle’s domain than this realm,” remarked Khaos finally. “I haven’t even figured on any of them. It’s not fair!”
The reaction of Khaos abruptly set into motion a rapidly swirling miasma of wind inside the dark sphere. Yet the speed of the wind and something in the air made it quite impossible to breathe. Tyler began to choke and grabbed his throat. The temperamental outburst caught him by surprise. Suddenly, the stifling condition vanished.
“My apologies, mortal. It’s really unfair, though. All those stories and sagas, and I am not in them. Only what was created out of my essence. Your name?” asked the deity.
“Havard the Archmage, Lord Khaos,” replied Tyler hoarsely, still trying to catch his breath.
“Now, Havard the Archmage. I am inclined to forgive your audacious – though I’d really say impertinent – intrusion into my domain. But call me forgiving on that matter,” said Khaos, whose tone suddenly changed to a menacing one, “provided you can tell me why is my elder sister’s essence is with your company? Is this a scheme to take over Tartarus? Magic is gone from her world. Why did she come here?”
Ah, shit, thought the mage. When it rains, it pours.
***
Tyler concluded in hindsight that it was foolish to assume that he won’t call the attention of Khaos by his use of the dimension’s energy – which was actually part of the being. That hopeless expectation included the assumption that Khaos won’t be able to sense Gaia’s presence. Since the elder deity was quiescent – except for that one strange instance – Tyler had hoped Thyma’s magical aura would conceal it. He apparently misjudged how powerful these elder deities were, even when inactive.
“Thyma’s her daughter, your niece. Gaia tried to save her daughter by keeping her essence within Thyma’s body,” replied Tyler immediately, not giving Khaos more time to think about other imagined schemes and plans.
The cover story was a stretch, but he prayed that his indirect appeal to familial ties would hopefully accomplish what the mage wanted. Despite their infamous squabbles, deities of the Greek pantheon were noted for their close relationships, at least among those of the same rank. Persephone’s abduction by Hades, with the active participation of her father, Zeus, was illustrative of how their minds worked. The mage expected that meeting a close relative would work wonders on the mind of such a powerful child. He doubted if Khaos had met many of his relatives. Tyler even suspected the entity had only known Hades and a few more. For some reason, the deity of the Grecian underworld had found it best to have Khaos asleep. But having felt a tiny portion of the power of Khaos, Tyler couldn’t blame Hades for wanting Khaos in a dormant state.
“You won’t wake my sister here?” asked Khaos in a surprisingly timid voice.
“Of course not,” replied Tyler immediately. “It’s your world. Even the lands above us – Hades and Adar – have their own overseers. She’ll have to find her own domain to rule.”
He instinctively knew he had to assuage the fear of Khaos about his playground being taken away. But even without such a consideration, the mage knew he’d be crazy to get the siblings together in such circumstances. Brother and sister, they may be, but suspicions about a grab for more power would always be there, especially now that Gaia was in dire straits.
“Good. Don’t wake her and I’ll hold you personally to that guarantee. But I am happy that my niece is here. I get so few family visitors,” replied Khaos happily.
He really has the mind of a child, or at least a juvenile. A weird, twisted, and unpredictable brat, sighed Tyler resignedly. How the fuck am I going to handle this?
But Khaos resolved the issue for him. What the entity said startled him greatly, though he had to admit it showed that the childlike being was a quick thinker in its own way.
“How about I join your quest? It’s a story worth telling, right? But I can’t really directly participate in it. We can’t. Elders don’t have that ability. Rules of the game. Even my siblings can only act through their chosen heroes,” offered Khaos suddenly.
“What do you mean by join?” asked the astounded Tyler.
“Join. As in be a part of the quest, but as I mentioned, no direct involvement, though I wish it was otherwise. What a bother. I’ll watch. Yes! That’s right. A watcher! I’ll be in the middle of a game! Not merely watching from the sidelines! What fun!” said the excited elder deity.
Exactly, came Hal’s confirmation.
“You’re sure about this, Lord Khaos?” asked Tyler, still unable to believe what he heard.
“Of course. Tartarus needs a heroic story and you were able to wield my power. A tiny bit of it, anyway. But still! That makes you my avatar, my hero, on this plane,” replied Khaos eagerly. Then he noticed the mage’s stunned expression and mistook it for the possibility of a refusal.
“Refuse, and I’ll reduce all of your mortal bodies, including that of the dragoness and the rock deity, into dust. Finely ground dust. I can’t kill my sister, of course. But I’ll free her on the Second World, and leave it at that,” said the entity casually, though somehow, it managed to flavor its tone with a tinge of deadly malice.
And the ongoing war would look like a mere barroom brawl compared to the resulting conflict between two primordial deities slugging it out to decide who gets to rule Adar, shuddered Tyler, cataclysmic images flashing through his imagination.
Chapter Eight
Weird Little Company
The mage didn’t doubt the threat made by Khaos. The elder deity might be prohibited from acting directly, but the company was within its domain. A simple shift in the terrain and everyone would surely be ground down to dust, notwithstanding the lamp of Thanatos. Tyler also recognized he had to resolve the situation quickly. There was no telling what his companions would do when they deemed more than enough time had passed. The Oracle would make an effort to dissuade them from any rash action, but nothing prevented them from acting to save the mage. Unfortunately, there was no telling what Khaos’s reaction would be, that is, if he noticed any attack at all.
“So, how do we do this, Lord Khaos? You can’t appear as a mage or a warrior. The company would expect you to shoulder part of the burden of fighting,” said Tyler. His mind was already scrambling for a reasonable explanation for the sudden presence of yet another member of the company.
“What do you suggest, Archmage?” came the retort as Khaos returned the problem to the young man.
“A moment, if you please,” requested Tyler. After everything he had been through, thinking on his feet was already second nature. He asked for suggestions from his guides.
“A lost soul. Preferably around nine to ten years of age, armed with some knowledge of the fortress,” suggested X promptly.
Tyler immediately took the advice and suggested it. But he warned that Khaos would be expected to share knowledge about the stronghold of the Titans. As a juvenile, the elder deity won’t be expected to take part in any battle, and his presence could be explained as a lost soul. It would also grant Khaos sufficient latitude to act as he saw fit within his realm. He could disappear, refuse to enter certain places, or even decide to suddenly leave.
“Excellent idea. But make it the lost spirit of a deity who has not yet been consumed by the ether. That way, I could meet my niece,” said Khaos readily.
The smoky mist surrounding the mage started to withdraw into a humanoid shape, and with it, the aura of terror and confusion. Tyler was extremely relieved at the suppression of such emanations. A company hampered by feelings of incredible horror and constant bewilderment was an invitation to disaster.
“But as I prepare myself, do explain the presence of the entities within you,” asked the elder deity casually.
It was another mind-blowing statement. Never had Tyler imagined that a deity would be able to quickly discern the presence of his guides. But it now appeared that elder gods were in a class of their own. At least, the tone of Khaos was conversational and didn’t carry with it an ominous quality. The elder deity evidently didn’t think what it sensed posed any danger and merely wanted to assuage its curiosity.
“Lost souls too, Lord Khaos. Though of a kind and religion different from that of the Greek pantheon,” Tyler replied. In a sense, what he said was true. Until the pair of AIs find their physical forms, they were indeed lost beings.
“Helpful?” asked the young form in front of Tyler.
“Very.”
The young Khaos merely nodded. Suddenly, they were back on the surface, or what passed for the ground of Tartarus. Around them were the companions, each with an unsheathed and magically-primed weapon. The mage immediately raised his hands as a sign for the company to lower their guard. As he did so, the mage quickly scrutinized the group’s faces for their reaction to the sudden presence of Khaos. Everyone had involuntarily stepped back several steps. The mortals among them had blatantly fearful expressions.
Thyma’s face was pale as she stared at the boy. The dragoness was still in an attack stance despite Tyler’s instructions. Asag looked on with interest while the Valkyrie and the ranger retreated the farthest. The mage could see Kobu desperately trying to control himself and remain where he was. Of all the companions, only the exile remained nearest the mage. The boy looked around and smiled eagerly, keeping his eyes longer on the Oracle. Tyler saw the glad expression grew wider as soon as Khaos saw Thyma. The problem was the mage hadn’t thought of a name for the new persona of the elder deity. Fortunately, it appeared Khaos had already thought of one.
“Khaire, everybody. I am Kapnos. A lost spirit in this realm. You could describe me as a former minor god that the ether has yet to claim. And I am so glad to see you!” exclaimed the boy, who swiftly ran to Thyma with open arms. The mage was surprised and impressed by the elder deity’s choice of name. Kapnos meant smoke. A word not too far from one of the characteristics of the boy’s real nature – swirling unpredictability. Now the mage prayed that nobody would start asking about the bona fides of Kapnos. There were innumerable minor deities, spirits, and similar beings in Grecian myth, and only Thyma could possibly ferret out the truth behind Kapnos’s claim. Tyler hoped that the boy’s actions would keep her quiet.
“Hello, sister!” The boy cried out and hugged the Oracle tightly. Thyma’s face was a mixture of hesitancy, bewilderment, and more than a tinge of fear. The mage assumed some of the aurae of terror must have seeped out, and the proximity to Kapnos exacerbated what the woman felt at the beginning. But the Oracle finally got the courage to embrace the boy.
“I am afraid I don’t remember you,” said Thyma slowly.
“But I remember you! It’s great seeing family after such a long time!” said Kapnos, still hugging the Oracle. The Archmage wondered about the statement for a moment and realized that Kapnos was actually referring to the essence of Gaia.
The woman looked at Tyler in her confusion. The mage nodded and smiled in reassurance. He hoped she would take things at face value and not delve too deep into the nature of Kapnos. Tyler couldn’t tell if Thyma could handle being in the presence of an elder deity, other than her mother. Though if the Oracle had some doubts, her issues with her memory would go some way in relaxing her guard. The fact that Tyler vouched for the boy was already of significant importance.
“Kapnos knows the area and has some idea about the stronghold. He may be a lost spirit, but at least he’s willing to help,” announced Tyler firmly, hoping his tone would remove any doubts.
The company stared at the mage. What Tyler said was logical enough, but they all knew something was off, and the mage knew more than what he was saying. He saw Gullin and Astrid already moving towards him. From what the mage could observe, armed with questions Tyler couldn’t or didn’t want to answer. He realized he had to do something. The young man held up his hands again.
“I know you have questions, but set them aside for the moment. What’s important is Kapnos is here to help. Just don’t expect the boy to be active if and when we have a battle on our hands,” declared the mage.
Members of the company nodded their assent, but the mage observed that most of them kept their distance from Kapnos. Only the hapless Thyma, with an arm held tightly by the boy, was unable to move away. From the quick and numerous questions Kapnos was asking, it looked as if the boy was a
sking about the fates of and stories about the deities of the Greek pantheon. Hades must have been stingy about such information.
Those stories alone would keep Kapnos busy for a long time. A lot had happened since the Great Migration, and some of the tales Khaos would hear would be sad ones, thought Tyler. But it’s information he deserved to know. Family is family, after all.
Tyndur approached the mage with his usual query on whether the company should take a break. Tyler nodded and added that there’s no need to post a guard, emphasizing that everybody needed the break.
And with the lord of this realm here with us, nobody and nothing would disturb us, mused Tyler. He glanced at the Oracle again. Thyma appeared to be more at ease now with her rapt listener. The pair had sat down on one side of a large boulder and continued to talk.
One would think it’s either an aunt and her nephew talking, or a brother and his sister, observed an amused Tyler.