The Secret of the Golden Gods Omnibus Edition

by Pedro Urvi

  “The People of the Trees will come to your call.”

  Albana gathered them both into an embrace.

  “My mission here is finished.”

  “You’re leaving?”

  She nodded. “It’s time to leave. My friends need me.”

  “Good luck,” Ilia said.

  “Can I go with you?” Pilap asked.

  Albana shook her head. “It’s too dangerous. Help your sister.”

  He nodded. “All right.”

  “Farwell, my friends.”

  “Farewell, Foreigner, May the spirit of the forest protect you.”

  Chapter 12

  When Adamís entered the central chamber of the temple under the lake he found Aruma sitting on one of the massive roots of the giant oak that grew inside the underground temple. With her back against the thick trunk she was combing her long white hair with a golden comb, her gaze distant, humming a sweet melody. At that moment, to his eyes, the Wise Old Woman seemed some mythical creature out of a legend. She was singing to the great tree which inexplicably rose amid the underground chambers like some imperishable guardian of that strange realm, swaying to its queen and lady, who was dedicating a loving lullaby to it. Surrounding them, and spreading out across ground, walls and ceiling, grew lush vegetation like that of some forest with magical qualities. It smelt of forest, of damp earth, of eucalyptus, all of which left Adamis entranced.

  Concealing the pain he felt when he walked, and trying to move as firmly as he could without giving way to the punishment, he crossed the chamber and greeted his hostess.

  Aruma came back from her thoughts, and her eyes lingered on him for a moment. Then she put her comb away in one of the pockets of her brownish-green robe and smiled at him.

  “How do you feel today, young Prince of Ether?” she asked. She half-closed her eyes, as though trying to deduce it for herself.

  “Rather better than yesterday and rather worse than tomorrow,” Adamis replied with an ironic smile.

  Amused by his answer, she bowed her head. “I see we’re in a good mood today.”

  “As good as can be expected of anybody condemned to death with a shriveled body which tortures him endlessly.”

  “That’s a very good answer. It seems that little by little my excellent sense of humor is rubbing off on you.”

  He smiled and raised his arms. “Let us hope so, or else I shall lose my mind too,”

  Both of them laughed like good friends. For Adamis’s spirit laughter was a comforting balm, the only thing he had at hand to alleviate his suffering. He sat down beside Aruma, careful not to make any sudden movement. He gazed into her eyes, searching for the best way to tell her the decision he had reached.

  “Has the time come?” she asked him all of a sudden.

  He threw his head back in surprise. “How do you know? Can you read thoughts?”

  “This crazy old woman can read you like an open book.”

  “Are my thoughts that transparent? My intentions that obvious?”

  She smiled sympathetically. “As far as the rest of the world is concerned, no. You can rest assured of that. But here in my house” ‒ she spread her arms wide ‒ “in the shadow of my child” ‒ she gently stroked the bark of the great tree ‒ “you have no secrets from me.”

  “It may be that we spend too much time together.”

  “That too, if you find it easier to accept that way.”

  “I do. I do not understand your Power, and your mystical relationship with Nature and her children.”

  “Ah! But we are all children of Mother Nature, and we owe ourselves to her. My Power is not so different from yours.”

  “I would say it is.”

  “It is simply more in harmony with Nature. There is a direct link between my power and the natural world around us. A symbiosis. That’s why I can perceive feelings, emotions, that you, my dear child, cannot.”

  “I would like to…”

  “For that you would have to spend a long time studying with me. It isn’t an easy task. I don’t think it’s the right moment. Am I mistaken?”

  “No, you are not mistaken. But perhaps someday.”

  “You will find me here if things don’t change too much. Although I have the feeling that is what they are going to do.”

  “You have the feeling, or the information?”

  Aruma burst out laughing. “I see you know me well.”

  Adamis put his hand to his chin. “The Children of Arutan listen in the shadows, they know what is going on in Alantres, in the Eternal City, what is coming, and as one of their leaders you will have been told.”

  She patted him affectionately. “A good piece of deduction,”

  “The time has come for me to go back to Alantres and help Men.”

  “Hmmm… that’s a decision I was expecting. But do you really believe, young prince, that you’re in a fit state to undertake a mission of that kind?”

  Adamis stretched his neck and tried to appear as whole as possible.

  “I am indeed. I have been recovering for a long time and I think I am ready. I owe it to you, to your care, your patience. I shall never be able to repay all that you have done for me. I owe you my life and my present health.”

  Aruma waved her arms, making light of this. “Nonsense!”

  “I owe you everything, and you know it. Let me at least thank you for it.”

  “I’m an old Healer, nothing more than that. I’ve been learning for over a thousand years from Mother Nature and using my power together with the knowledge I’ve acquired. I’ve studied Nature, poisons and toxins, the blood, the Power of the Golden itself, and that is why I’ve managed to gain some more time for you. But I’m only a Healer, and my powers and knowledge have limits. I cannot save you from the death that flows through your body and one day will kill you, I can only delay it. And the price to be paid is a high one: the body pays it and the mind suffers it.”

  “I will bear with it. Thank you for giving me this time stolen from death.”

  Aruma smiled, but a moment later her face clouded over.

  “I must confess that this old witch hasn’t done it out of the goodness of her heart.”

  “I had guessed as much,” Adamis replied even-temperedly.

  “I asked Ikai to bring you here for a reason, a very important one. And for that same reason I saved your life, and for the same reason I’ve helped you recover some semblance of your past health and strength, as far as I could.”

  “What is that reason? You have never told me.”

  “There are things better explained when the time is right.”

  “Is that time now?”

  “No. The moment has not yet come. But this I will say: one of these days, not too far in the future, I shall need you to return the favor, and I trust you to honor your word.”

  “What will you ask of me?”

  “Something that you’ll find very hard to do. As hard as anything can be.”

  “And if I cannot do what you ask?”

  “Will you deny me anything after what I’ve done for you?” she said. There was a touch of annoyance in her voice.

  Adamis sighed. He knew he could not refuse her anything. But what if she asked him something that went against his honor? Something so horrible that his conscience would not let him do it? Unfortunately he had the feeling that it would be something just like that.

  “I shall refuse you nothing, unless it goes against my honor.”

  Aruma stared at him so hard, and her face took on such a stern look, that he knew that was precisely what she would ask, and also that she would not take no for an answer.

  “You know I’m not one to forgive, nor do I have pity on those who betray me or deceive me. Nature is wise, but she’s also merciless. I follow her principles and her teachings.”

  Adamis weighed up the situation. He could refuse, but then Aruma would turn her back on him. In addition he needed her help to reach Alantres. He was trapped. He had no option but to accept
.

  “Very well. When the time comes I shall do whatever you ask me to.”

  Aruma’s face softened. Looking at the great tree as if it were a witness to the moment, she said:

  “The deal is closed.”

  “Will you help me, then?”

  She stood up, and her white hair cascaded down to the ground.

  “Let’s see whether you’ve regained all your power.”

  “Is it necessary?”

  “Yes,” she said in a voice that left no room for refusal. “You won’t survive unless your Power at least, if not your body, is completely restored. We must find out.”

  Adamis sighed. For the three years and more he had been there, every change of season, Aruma had made him pass the same test. A test to measure his Power, to see how much of it he had been able to regain. A test to see whether it was recovering from the effects of the toxin that was coursing through his body. And every season he failed the test. Again and again, without exception. He had never let it dampen his spirits, he knew that the battle to regain the full use of his body was lost, he would never go back to being what he had once been, but his Power at least he could regenerate and win back, and it was that thought, that certainty, which drove him to keep trying. However difficult it might be, however hard he might find it. Often he wondered whether she might have imposed the test on him solely to motivate him. Seeing the triumphant smile on her face at that moment he was more than sure that it was so. But he had never given up, and after each failure – and there had been many of them – he had gone on working with greater driving force and determination.

  “Or is it just that the fine high-born Prince doesn’t wish to fail once again and make a fool of himself?” She gave a mocking giggle. “I told you, nobody will give you anything for nothing here. Here you must earn everything through effort and suffering. That’s Mother Nature’s law. That’s how you learn to value what you have in your life. Here, in my realm, Princes are mere Golden with neither privileges nor silver spoons. I warned you that very first day: the days when everything was done for you, when every wish you had was granted simply because you had been born in a Powerful House, are over. Here there are no slaves or servants who will give you everything. Here your wishes aren’t granted to you because of who you are. Nature is queen here, and she teaches us that without struggle, there’s no life.”

  “I ceased to be a vain Prince a long time ago. Now I am only Adamis, a cripple. But that will not prevent me from helping my own people.”

  Aruma giggled. “Very well said. Then, my dear cripple, let’s see whether you can pass this test.”

  Adamis did not allow himself to be manipulated by Aruma’s words. He knew she said them to unsettle him and make him fail, but this time it would be different, this time he was intent on passing the test. He would manage to stop her. Today he would manage it.

  Aruma went to stand in the center of the chamber. She summoned her Power and rose, hovering in midair. She glanced at him and bowed lightly, then spread her arms wide and began to spin. She laughed, and her laugh was both defiant and mocking. Her strange behavior at certain moments, as if she had lost her mind, puzzled him. But this time he did not let himself be taken in by her role as a crazy old witch. It is a performance, it is not real. She is a Wise woman, an ancient leader of the Children of Arutan. Do not allow yourself to be fooled by her. Focus.

  While she spun round and laughed, Aruma’s face shone with joy. She seemed to be enjoying herself as much as a little girl playing in the middle of the forest. Adamis concentrated on capturing her aura, something truly difficult, because she managed to hide it so well that during those first few years he had failed the test every time. But now his Power was greater, far greater, and calling upon it, he tried to find her.

  Aruma became aware of this and stopped laughing. Now it was she who was concentrating and using her Power to hide her aura from him. He was using his own Power based on Ether to try to capture the wise woman’s spirit. She, on the other hand, was using the Power of Nature to hide her essence, blending it with that of the great tree and the vegetation in the chamber. The battle of wills between the two began to grow more determined. Adamis used more and more of his Power, and at last succeeded in making out a trace of Aruma’s aura. At once she countered by using her own and making it disappear again.

  Adamis did not let himself give way to frustration. He was very aware that it would be extremely difficult; he had to defeat his hostess at her own game, in her own realm. But something began to be clear to him: his Power seemed to be completely restored. He could see it within himself. What had previously been a putrid, almost empty well, was now a deep lake filled with energy. And it was brim-full. The joy which came over him was so great that he smiled.

  “Having fun, young princeling?” she said in an attempt to distract him.

  But he did not flinch. At last, after all that time of pain, he had managed to regain his Power, and nothing would spoil that victory which had been achieved through effort and determination. Now I have to defeat her, or else I will not be able to help Kyra, and she needs me. He concentrated with his whole being and made use of his Power. And this time he saw her aura with total clarity. There it is, it is mine. He focused on it and was about to block it. I have you! But at that moment his leg was seized by cramp and the intense pain made him lose his concentration, and with it the aura.

  “The body betrays us?” Aruma said, seeing him writhing in agony.

  With a grimace Adamis straightened, bit his lip and bore the pain. He said nothing. He did not take the bait. He let the pain pass and tried again, with even more determination. And this time he succeeded. Aruma noticed and tried to give him the slip by blending into the vegetation like a chameleon. But Adamis was now pure focus. A terrible stab in his stomach was tormenting him, but he did not lose his concentration. He blocked the aura and prepared himself.

  Aruma realized that he had her now. She used her Power to speed up her spinning. He used his own and began to slow down the movement. Two beings of extraordinary power struggled like titans, one rotating, the other trying to stop the rotation. Adamis threw all his power, his body and his soul into the effort. A spasm of pain consumed him, but he was not prepared to give in now that he was so close to winning. Two opposing forces of enormous strength fought until one of them was exhausted and forced to concede defeat.

  At last the rotation stopped. Aruma remained suspended in midair, her face contorted with effort, and finally came down gently. A moment later Adamis collapsed on the floor, writhing in pain.

  “You did it, Lord of Ether.”

  Adamis could not speak, the pain was too intense.

  “You’ve managed to defeat me. You’ve passed the test. Something truly remarkable. I didn’t think you’d be ready. There’s a lot of pride and determination in you, more than I thought. I’m deeply glad that you proved me wrong.”

  “Will… you… help me…?” he stammered.

  “Of course. A deal is a deal. I may be a crazy old woman, but my word is sacred.”

  She came over to him and placed her hands on his stomach and back, then concentrated and used her healing Power. A feeling of wellbeing enveloped him; he felt as though a restorative breeze was caressing his face, and a scent of eucalyptus reached his lungs. The pain gradually began to recede.

  “How… do you… do that?”

  “Mother Nature teaches us to look after the body, to ease pain.”

  “Will you… teach me… someday?”

  Aruma laughed affectionately. “It’s taken me half a lifetime to learn. I don’t think you’d want to stay with this crazy old woman for as long as that.”

  Adamis stood up, very slowly, careful not to drain his strength.

  “It is always an honor and a pleasure to be in your company.”

  “So I see.” She laughed again. “Maybe someday. Now you have a great deal to do.”

  Adamis nodded. “I must go back to the Eternal City.”


  “You do know that the moment you set foot in Alantres you’ll be captured, don’t you? And this time nothing will save you. The High Kings will cut off your head.”

  “I know…”

  “What have you come up with? I know you have a plan. You might be a princeling, but you have a good head.” She winked.

  “I have a way of avoiding discovery. I have been practicing a lot.”

  “Show me.”

  Adamis closed his eyes, spread his arms wide and summoned his Power. Out of his chest came a white mist which enveloped him completely. For a long moment nothing happened. Then his body flashed several times, with a crystalline light, and after a moment, before Aruma’s keen eyes, the Prince of Ether began to fade little by little until he had become one with the mist. A moment later the mist vanished and Aruma’s eyes were unable to see him. But he had not gone anywhere; he was still there, motionless.

  “The Power of Ether is significant,” she said. “You’ve turned yourself into Ether itself, into spirit. Truly extraordinary. I don’t think there’s any of our own people who’d be capable of anything like that.”

  “My father can,” Adamis said. “He taught me.”

  “I hear you, but I can’t see you. Not even with my power am I able to see you.”

  “That is because mine counteracts yours.”

  “But there’s something I must tell you. Although I can’t see you, my young friend, I can feel your presence.”

  “I was afraid of that.”

  “It might be only me, or those who are akin to Mother Nature, like me.”

  “I do not think so. If someone uses their power to detect my presence, my own power, they will find me. I will have to take the risk.” He came out of his Ether state and became visible again, gradually taking on essence, turning solid before her.

  “Hmm. Perhaps we might reduce that risk.”

  “What do you mean by that?”

  “The chameleon.”

  Adamis stared at her, at a loss.

  “I’ll help you hide your essence, as the chameleon does, by blending in with its surroundings.”

  “Will you be able to?”