A Gleaming Path

by Jeffrey Pawlak

  “I’m not going to let you do that on your own,” he said, his voice so firm that it brought Raissa’s advance to a halt.

  She looked back at him, her eyes questioning. “What do you mean?”

  “I know why you’re worried about this,” Alamor said. “You’re concerned that after projecting your Serenity for so long to guide me across the desert, that your magical reserves won’t be able to withstand the burden of the spell that will bring us into the Hallowed Plane.”

  “My Serenity won’t fail me,” Raissa declared. “I have no doubt that I’ll be able to open the portal.”

  “Neither do I,” Alamor said. “But you know even better than I do just how tremendous the strain is in summoning the Serenity necessary for that, and if you try to do it with depleted energy, it could have serious consequences on your life force.”

  Alamor deliberately avoided saying what was the most probable of those serious consequences. It appeared that he still got his message across, though, as evidenced by the silence that joined Raissa’s stoic stare.

  She eventually nodded in concession. “I’m sorry that I did not tell you. I did not want you to fear for me or for our mission. Even though there is danger in it, I’ve always intended to carry out the spell, regardless.”

  “Well, don’t worry. I’m not afraid. I’m going to help you with it.”

  “Your Serenity is not capable of that,” Raissa said matter-of-factly. “You’ve developed remarkable control over your Serenity since you first harnessed it, but your abilities do not allow you to command the kind of spell that will take us to the Hallowed Plane.”

  “Just let me try.”

  Alamor’s gaze was unflinching, a confident stare that eventually forced Raissa to relent. The Princess of Tordale turned away without so much as a nod, and she once again started toward the altar. Alamor followed behind her.

  She stopped just a few feet from the pedestal that rose in the middle of the wide platform. For several minutes, Raissa stood completely still. She did not make a sound. It was like she had become a statue as she prepared to cast the spell that would transport her and Alamor to the Hallowed Plane.

  She gave no warning or indication to Alamor when she would begin, and with her back to him, Alamor could not tell where or what she may have set her sights on while she concentrated. Still, he understood that the spell she readied was among the most powerful known to Spiritcasters, and that she required total focus in order to achieve it, leaving Alamor with no choice but to simply stand behind her and wait.

  His patience was eventually rewarded when he felt a flicker of Raissa’s Serenity. It began to expand, gradually rising in strength and stretching beyond her physical being. Her Serenity reached out to the sacred magic that swirled about in the huge rotunda, gently melding together and becoming one.

  After nearly a minute passed by, Raissa’s body became enshrouded in a golden light. She lifted her arms out to her sides, and all at once, she called forth every measure of her Serenity.

  Alamor felt Raissa’s magic soar from her being and into the unseen portal that connected their world to the Hallowed Plane. At the same time that her Serenity linked to the sacred realm and began to carry them into it, her soul, her life force, was struck by the incredible burden of casting such an awesome spell. It fell upon her without mercy, threatening to crush and overwhelm her as she relentlessly upheld the spell.

  Even though he did not know exactly what to do, or if he would succeed, Alamor understood that this was the time where he needed to lend his own ability. Acting by instinct, or perhaps by faith, he reached out and set his hand on Raissa’s shoulder, calling forth his own Serenity to support her.

  Raissa’s magic acted like a wall that protected her from much of the burden. It kept her from submitting to the intangible duress, and once Alamor’s Serenity managed to reach it, they joined together as one barrier. Immediately, Alamor felt some of the burden test his own soul. It was as though he and Raissa stood in the middle of a hurricane, or against waves from the ocean’s most violent storm. The spell’s strain seemed intent to batter their souls and consume them.

  But no matter how fiercely it attacked, Alamor and Raissa’s Serenity continued to ensure that they withstood the mystical onslaught without faltering, the two of them sharing in the burden and empowering one another as they met the great challenge.

  In time, the strain began to yield to their indomitable wills. Alamor felt it slowly retreat with each passing second, and as he looked about, he saw the rotunda change. Golden light flew from Raissa’s body and engulfed the shadows that once flooded the rounded chamber, turning all matter around them into a white glow. The air itself became the white glow, running on in all directions for what seemed like an infinite distance. Only the altar, torches, and pedestal remained as the rest of the Sandstone Mausoleum faded from view.

  The gold flames leapt from their torches and coalesced with the endless screen of immaculate radiance. They streamed over the holy realm in long rays of glistening energy, like when the sun would begin to climb from the horizon. The rays of gold energy pulsated. Every time they swelled, they were joined by a distant, humming sound that echoed quietly across the space. Alamor sensed that they were the utterings of virtuous souls who dwelled within this corner of the Hallowed Plane, a kind of chorus by the long-dead heroes of Tordale to honor their place in such a blessed dimension.

  When the strain had dissipated, Alamor knew that Raissa’s efforts in bringing them to the Hallowed Plane were successful yet again. She ceased casting forth her Serenity, letting her arms fall to her sides as the golden light faded from her body. Alamor also halted his Serenity, and lifted his hand from her shoulder.

  They both collapsed, their physical and spiritual beings exhausted.

  * * * * *

  A grin crept throughout Baldaron’s beard as he brought his advance to a halt. He scanned the hills that lay before him, spying several courtyards and open-air catwalks that had been carved into the ridge long ago. In all of the years that he spent living in the Arid Reaches, he never stepped foot upon this ridge until now, but he knew the significance of what stood within the sandstone formations, and who tread inside of them at that very moment. He had been able to sense Princess Raissa’s Serenity for a few days now, using it as a guide to cross the desert and eventually arrive at the Sandstone Mausoleum, the resting place of the Spirit Shrine that led to Ralu’s Radia.

  “Can you still sense them?” Golric asked as he joined Baldaron at his side.

  “Not any longer,” Baldaron answered. “But I am certain that they have not fled. I felt a tremendous outpouring of their Serenity only a few minutes ago, until it vanished altogether.”

  Golric appeared to deduce what had happened. “Then they must have traveled into the Hallowed Plane to find the Radia of Hope.”

  Baldaron nodded. “That is what I assume. I do not feel the Radia of Hope’s power moving any further from us.”

  “We should move out at once, then,” Golric advised. “We’ll be able to trap them before they even have the chance to escape.”

  Baldaron smirked. “We will do just that,” he said, as he turned away from the Sandstone Mausoleum. He faced his hordes of Wraithlings, looking directly at Captain Ironbone. “Take a third of our force and make for the eastern end of the resting grounds. I will move in upon the center, while my uncle will advance from the western end with the remainder of the troops.”

  Ironbone’s chipped teeth curled into a smile that dripped with malice. He reached to his side and pulled free his jagged sword, his red eyes slithering along its rusted edges. “In that case, leave that whelp who’s been protecting the Princess to me. He and I have matters that we need to finish.”

  “Be sure that you leave no doubt about them this time,” Baldaron said.

  Ironbone’s eyes flickered with ghoulish delight. “I promise you, my Lord, I will see to it that he endures far worse than a long fall this time.”

  23


  Raissa’s vision slowly steadied. When her senses finally returned, the first thing that she did was look behind her. Alamor knelt on the Hallowed Plane’s floor no more than an arm’s length away. Labored breaths escaped him as his head dangled near his chest.

  “Are you okay?” Raissa asked, wanting to move closer to him, but unable to find the strength to do so.

  It took a few moments before she got a response. “I’m more concerned if you are.”

  Raissa managed a smile even amid reclaiming her own breath. “I’ll be just fine. At least I’m able to look up.”

  She could see the grin crawl across Alamor’s face even as he continued to stare at the floor. When he finally did lift his gaze, he chuckled softly. “This is exactly why I need you around if this whole plan is ever going to work.”

  He was clearly still weary from withstanding the strain of Raissa’s monumental spell, but Alamor got himself on one foot and forced himself off the floor. When he found his balance, he offered Raissa his hand and helped her to her feet.

  Raissa’s vision swayed. It steadied after a few moments, and she began to gently move her extremities, gradually bringing life back to her fatigued form. Alamor did the same, and after a few minutes, they were able to start walking without difficulty.

  “What are we supposed to do this time?” Alamor asked, obviously referring to how they would find the Radia of Hope.

  Raissa scanned their surroundings. She followed the many rays of gold light that pulsated in cadence with the echoes of the souls who dwelled within this divine space.

  There was one particular presence that stood out to her.

  “I believe that we’re going to know very soon,” she said, waiting for the presence to make itself known.

  Footsteps echoed across the Hallowed Plane somewhere behind them. They turned to find a woman standing just a few yards away. She once hailed from the Arid Reaches, Raissa assumed, judging by her rich, brown complexion. Her black hair fell straight, flowing far past her shoulders. She bore a wooden staff that was longer than she was tall, its surface painted with a bright orange dye.

  A white cloak wrapped about most of her slender frame. She wore brown garments underneath the cloak—tight fitting pants, and a tunic with billowing sleeves. An orange symbol lay on the front of her tunic. It was an orb, with several droplets that looked like grains of sand falling within its contours.

  Her dark eyes were naturally sharp. She did not glare at Alamor and Raissa, but there was innate austerity in her demeanor—a signal to the ardor she possessed for her duty.

  In their first journey to the Hallowed Plane, Alamor and Raissa met with Ilios and Iras. Now, they knew that they met with the other Sage of Loyalty—Amanyra.

  “I expected that you both would one day join me in this corner of the Hallowed Plane,” Amanyra said. Her tone was decidedly more welcoming than that of Ilios and Iras. “From this place where I have stood guard, I watched your meeting with my brothers. The two Echoes of Light who stood in the Hallowed Plane that day are a distant memory to the two who stand here now.”

  As strange as that sounded—to refer to an event from weeks ago as distant—it was an accurate assessment. Amanyra seemed to verbalize the perception which Raissa had for her and Alamor’s dramatic maturation in recent days.

  “Lady Amanyra,” Raissa addressed her. “We hope that we are worthy to join you in this sacred realm.”

  “You are,” Amanyra confirmed. “You have been strengthened by the ordeals that you have overcome both individually, and together. You have grown into heroes who are more capable of protecting your world from the darkness that threatens to overtake it. You have come this time in the hopes of obtaining Ralu’s Radia, is that not correct?”

  Alamor stepped forward and met Amanyra with a fearless, determined stare—a vastly different countenance from what he showed Ilios and Iras. “That is correct, Lady Amanyra; we have come to claim the Radia of Hope,” he declared, his voice unwavering.

  Raissa felt great pride in Alamor as she watched him draw his sword and shield. She waited with bated breath, her body tense as a drawn bowstring as they both prepared for Amanyra’s response. Some kind of test surely awaited, a challenge that would prove they were worthy of returning to their world with the Radia of Hope. She took a step forward and joined Alamor by his side.

  Amanyra may not have had a second companion to assist her, as Ilios and Iras each had, but she was a mighty Champion of Light in her time on earth. Surely, she was still a mighty Champion of Light in the Hallowed Plane. Even by herself, she would provide a tremendous challenge to those who confronted her.

  Raissa would not let Alamor face this task alone. They would face it together.

  “Then I shall grant you the Serenity which you seek.”

  Before Raissa could comprehend what Amanyra had said, she saw a wondrous light out of the corner of her eye. She and Alamor both turned and saw that light emerged from the surface of the pedestal nearby. No longer empty, the pedestal’s flat top now held a spherical stone. It was milky gold in color, its reflective surface perfectly smooth and bereft of any abrasions or other marks. Golden light poured from its rounded form, but its rays did not blind Alamor or Raissa. They were able to look upon its incredible radiance with ease. The light was warm and soothing, like an aura that cast away all fear and worry as it protected whatever stood within its reach.

  Even without laying her own hands upon it, Raissa could feel the power that lay inside the Radia of Hope—all of Ralu’s unequaled love and compassion.

  She eventually looked back at Amanyra, baffled by how readily the Sage of Loyalty offered up the Radia to them. “Lady Amanyra, do you have no test for us?” she asked

  “None as great as what you have already completed,” Amanyra answered.

  Alamor, too, looked away from the Radia of Hope and faced Amanyra. “But aren’t we supposed to prove that we are worthy before we possess one of the Radia?”

  “You both have already done so,” Amanyra said.

  “I do not understand,” Raissa replied.

  Amanyra took a step forward and began to approach them.

  “When Ralu and Xogun left your world and created the Radia, they appointed my brothers and I to guard over the vessels of their unequaled Serenity in this blessed sanctuary. In doing so, they also appointed us to judge whether those who may come to claim it would be worthy, or unworthy of wielding their power. To possess the Radia of Gallantry—the Radia that houses all of Xogun’s strength, courage, will, and vigor—one must possess all of those abilities, as well.”

  Amanyra stopped just a few feet from them. Her eyes fell toward Alamor.

  “With your Serenity, you proved that you possessed those qualities, young Champion of Light. You conquered your doubts and matched my brothers in combat, all to protect someone very dear to you.”

  Raissa looked to the Radia of Hope once again. “Then, does someone have to prove that they harbor the same love that Ralu had, if they wish to use the Radia of Hope?”

  “More than that,” Amanyra answered. “One must also possess the same faith, compassion, hope, and understanding to be worthy.”

  Raissa remained confused as to why Amanyra was granting them Ralu’s Radia. “Then, how have we proven ourselves worthy of it? You said before that no test of your own was as great as what we’ve completed. What have we done to show that same faith or understanding as Ralu?”

  Amanyra’s answer was immediate. “You have come together even when fate has attempted to keep you apart. I have watched over your journey since you first came to the Hallowed Plane and obtained the Radia of Gallantry. I have seen the many hardships that you two have overcome together. Like any two mortals, neither of you are free of fault. Anger, misunderstanding, and regret challenged your devotion to one another, separating you a far greater distance than that storm and Baldaron’s monsters ever did. But no matter the divide, you both continued to believe in one another, and desired more than anything t
o reunite. Through your Serenity, and your faith in one another, that desire was eventually fulfilled. You followed a Gleaming Path to reunite.”

  The Sage’s words were powerful, perhaps the most profound that Raissa had heard throughout their quest for the Radia. Indeed, she and Alamor had been tested over the last few weeks—physically, mentally, and above all, emotionally. No matter the threats or dangers that she ever encountered, the foremost thing on her mind was reuniting with Alamor and witnessing his emergence as a hero of Tordale, one of the Echoes of Light.

  She looked over at him, and when their gazes met, they both smiled.

  Amanyra spoke again. “Thus, you are capable of wielding the Serenity stored inside the Radia of Hope. Whichever of you wishes, it is yours to claim.”

  Alamor glanced at the brilliant orb for a few moments before he turned his eyes to Raissa. “You should be the one for that,” he said, still smiling.

  Raissa’s smile faded, but out of respect—and perhaps a measure of uncertainty—for the unparalleled responsibility that she was granted. She stepped toward the pedestal, her body bathed by the Radia of Hope’s gentle light. She stared into its gleaming surface for a few moments, looking at the reflection of her stoic expression that joined the sacred radiance.

  She reached out and took the Radia in her hands. At once, its magic washed over her fingers and coated her skin. Raissa felt the boundless Serenity flow into her being, capturing her in its benevolent touch. Ralu’s most righteous virtues came to Raissa in their grandest forms—compassion, truth, hope, and above all, love. They joined into a source of power that could stand firm against the most wicked of evils and cast all darkness away. Raissa immediately understood how this vessel could heal all pain, doubt, and worry that may afflict any living being, or even their eternal soul.

  Alongside that beautiful power was Ralu’s desire for good and peace to reign in the world—a desire that Raissa so strongly shared.