by Pedro Urvi
The Erudite bent his head and glanced at his Lord, who nodded. “The main disadvantage of this technology is that it requires vast quantities of charcoal to create the alloy in which to freeze the subjects. We have tried to do it with regular coal, of which we have great reserves in the mines where the slaves work, but the results are not as satisfactory. So we are forced to burn the great forests to obtain charcoal.”
“I do not see the problem,” said Gar. “My House could help you with the fire.”
“Deforesting great territories has very adverse effects on nature,” said the High King of Ether. “It would mean killing flora and fauna and irreversibly changing a region’s ecosystem.”
“A small cost in order to reach immortality,” said Lur.
“I totally agree,” said Gar.
“I think we can establish that the House of Water and the House of Earth are competing to reach the same goal with two very similar technologies,” said Kaitze, Lord of Air.
The Five High Kings discussed the pros and cons of the technology. In the end the Houses of Fire, Air and Earth supported it and the Houses of Water and Ether rejected it. This was duly noted.
“Let the Erudite of the House of Aurez, House of Air, present the achievements of the House of the Third Ring,” said the Master of Ceremonies.
The Erudite addressed the Five High Kings: “The advance I wish to show you is one which will significantly help Erenal, our wonderful Eternal City. Our control of the element of Air and everything related to it has advanced so much that we are now able to control its most negative manifestations in nature.”
“What do you mean, Erudite?” asked High King Gar with interest.
“I mean storms, cyclones, hurricanes. They will no longer be a problem for us, for our city.”
“Interesting…” commented High King Lur. “Go on.”
“The House of Air has acquired the technology to control these adverse phenomena,” the Erudite said, while the whole chamber stared at him with great interest. Adamis knew that for all of them, one of the greatest problems had always been the sea and its storms. Living in a city on the ocean had that disadvantage. To protect themselves against the whims of Mother Nature, the Golden had designed two defenses. The first was the great wall in the shape of a waterfall that surrounded the city and protected them from less serious storms and rough seas. The second, in case of cyclones or tsunamis, was a giant sphere which rose in the case of imminent danger to envelop the entire city. It was generated by the Great Monolith. The problem was that raising that giant protective sphere required a massive amount of Power. At the same time, the barrier in the form of a waterfall consumed a great deal of Power in its turn. A cost which all the Houses had to pay by providing Power: the Power of thousands of Golden which went to keep up those protections.
The Erudite turned to his entourage. “The disc, please.” One of his helpers brought it to him, and the Erudite placed it on the floor. “Very well. Watch, my Lords.”
The image the disc projected was that of a great storm forming in a sky which was turning blacker every moment, above empty fields. Several Erudites were manipulating a white monolith. But that monolith was not a source of knowledge, it was something more. The storm began to grow in force, and strong winds began to lash the Erudites. The sky turned completely black, and the clouds burst. The winds reached hurricane force, and a tornado started to form above their heads. Adamis feared for the Erudites. If they did not leave, the tornado would bear them away.
“Pay attention now,” the Erudite commented.
The Erudites who were manipulating the monolith moved away. The artifact gave forth a series of white flashes, as if charging itself with Power. Suddenly there came a great discharge, and a beam of energy shot out of the monolith into the heart of the storm. The beam remained for a moment, as if gathering power, then there came an explosion of energy which spread throughout the black clouds and dissolved them. The storm died out. Murmurs of approval filled the chamber.
High King Kaitze, Lord of Air, twined his fingers together. “We can kill storms, and soon we will be able to control the weather. We are no longer at the mercy of nature and her changes of mood. Our fear of storms, hurricanes and tsunamis is no more. We will control them and decide upon the weather we want to enjoy. More than that, on a day not too far off we will be able to decide when and where it will rain. We will be able to make good weather favor our crops, our fishing, cause everything to flourish at our convenience. We will be the lords of the climate.”
“But that is not yet a reality,” said Lur.
The Erudite intervened. “No, your Majesty, not yet. But we are not so far from achieving it. We will not need to raise the protective sphere which costs us all so much in Power.”
“That would be a marvelous thing,” Lur said.
Gar’s eyes were half-closed as he traced the advantages he might gain from this. “To bend nature to our will seems to me an achievement from which we can all benefit substantially,”
“And would it not be dangerous?” asked Edan, Lord of Water. “Manipulating the weather in that way does not seem very prudent to me,”
“Dangerous? In what sense, my Lord?”
“When my Erudites try freezing vast areas to obtain energy during the process of thawing them out, all nature dies. Plants, vegetation, animals, everything. It seems to me that destabilizing the climate in the interests of our convenience might have similar, and very adverse, effects.”
“And unpredictable ones too,” added Laino, Lord of Ether.
The Erudite meditated his answer. “It might be so, of course. We must not alter the existing climate in excess, as it could have unpredictable effects. True. Dangerous. We must be prudent and use this advance only in exceptional cases.”
“Nonsense!” exclaimed Gar, Lord of Fire. “We must use it whenever we wish!”
There followed a debate among the Five High Kings, who argued about the pros and cons of using such an advance. Finally they reached a division of opinion, with a majority in favor: the High Kings of Air, Fire and Earth for it, those of Water and Ether against. The Eyes noted down the result. This worried Adamis. The yes side had won, so that the technology would be used and the repercussions could be terrible if it were used badly, or too much. What he was witnessing was worrying him more and more, and he was beginning to understand why Ariadne had told him more than once that they were being led toward a cataclysm.
“Let the First Erudite of the House of Aureb, House of Fire, present the achievements of the illustrious House of the Second Ring,” the Master of Ceremonies announced.
The Erudite in question bowed and came to stand in the center of the chamber.
“The advance I will proudly show you here today will change the future of our civilization. It is an achievement like no other, and it marks a before and after in the treatment of Power by the Golden. Let me show you.” He bent forward and placed a crystalline disc on the floor, then activated it and moved back. The disc projected a scene in the center of the chamber: a strong ship with the emblem of the House of the Second Ring, sailing on an icy sea.
“It is the North Sea, the icy sea,” the Erudite explained. The image moved on in time, and they saw the ship in front of an enormous iceberg. The ship came to a standstill, and several Golden crossed to the frozen surface in a small boat. They climbed to the top of the massive iceberg. The image followed them. The gigantic ice formation had broken off from a nearby glacier. The frozen beauty of the place and its extraordinary raw whiteness left Adamis open-mouthed with wonder. The Golden of the expedition drove a series of more than a hundred metallic rods deep into the frozen surface. The image flew over the surface of the iceberg, and they could now see that the rods formed a pentagon. Above each rod they placed a red metallic sphere the size of a head. To finish, they placed a crystalline sphere of considerable size in the center of the figure. They then left and went back to the ship.
Adamis was watching intently. What are
they seeking to do? I do not understand.
“This was an experiment that was carried out with the intention of showing it here today, before your Majesties. What you are about to witness is the most spectacular advance ever achieved in the acquisition of Power.” He pointed to the image. The rods stuck in the iceberg began to heat, and a few moments later began to grow red hot, burning and melting the ice around them. Adamis realized they were being manipulated from the ship. The Erudites of the House of Fire were making them burn by using their power. The rods went on driving deeper into the iceberg until they reached its core. At that moment the Erudites caused the spheres at the end of each rod to explode simultaneously. There followed a devastating blast, with the power of an erupting volcano. A gigantic burst of flame rose to the sky in a fiery column which seemed to reach the sky itself. The iceberg evaporated, consumed by the intensity of the explosion.
Adamis shut his eyes tightly several times. He could not believe what had just happened. The iceberg had vanished in the great burst of flame. Where there had previously been a huge mass of ice was now only a crystal sphere, hovering above the sea with a golden radiance. They have destroyed the whole iceberg, but why? What for?
Edan, Lord of Water, was plainly upset by this show of military might. “We all know the destructive power of the House of Fire. That does not represent any advancement for our civilization.”
Gar smiled sarcastically. “One should not jump to hasty conclusions. You might be wrong, my dear friend.”
“In what way am I wrong?”
The Erudite of the House of Fire went on with his commentary. “The experiment is not a warlike one, my Lords. The key is in that sphere which is hovering above the sea.” He indicated the image, which was now centered on the sphere. “Bring it over here,” he told his helpers, and deactivated the image. The sphere was placed before the Five High Kings, who were staring at it with a mixture of confusion and interest.
“If you will be so good, your High Majesty of the House of Ether, could you feel the Power stored in the sphere? Your House finds it easier to perceive the Power than the others.”
Laino did so. “This sphere contains a very significant amount of Power.”
“How many discs, roughly, could be filled with the Power stored in it?”
“More than a thousand.”
Amazed cries filled the chamber. The High Kings themselves were unable to hold back.
“A thousand discs?” cried Lur, “That is quite extraordinary!”
Gar rose proudly. “My Erudites have managed to make Fire turn the ice into water, and in the process of transformation pick up the energy liberated and make it into Power: a Power which can be stored in discs for our use and enjoyment. And the Power we use externally does not consume us, does not age us. This is indeed a key discovery, as it will change our way of life and allow us to age more slowly, because instead of having to use our own Power we will use that which we obtain from melting the ice of the northern seas. And that frozen world is gigantic, an endless continent. We can extract Power from it for thousands of years.” The Lord of Fire was beside himself with pride.
Murmurs of approval filled the chamber.
“It will have effects on nature,” Laino said thoughtfully. “Negative effects.”
“And what does that matter to us?” Gar countered. “Nature is weak, we are strong, we will dominate it. We almost do so now. Or have you not witnessed what the Houses of Earth and Air are capable of doing? They can bend Nature to their will, and soon, with all the Power we are going to obtain from melting the frozen northern continent, we will manipulate Nature at our whim and nothing will stop us. We will be true Gods!”
“That is precisely what worries me… the consequences of melting the ice continent,” Laino said. But his concern was buried beneath the cheers of everyone else. The cries took a long time to die down. The High Kings of Earth and Air gave their approval. The only one who did not was Laino. The Master of Ceremonies nodded, and the Eyes noted down the result.
“Let the First Erudite of the House of Eret, the House of Ether, present the achievements obtained by the illustrious House of the First Ring.”
Notaplo went up to the center of the chamber. Adamis looked closely at him. He seemed to be well; he looked just as he had when he himself had last seen him in person. What advances will my good Erudite and friend present before the Five High Kings? he wondered, with great interest.
The ancient Erudite greeted the High Kings respectfully, then turned to his entourage.
“Marcus, come forward, please.”
The slave stepped forward, leaving the anonymity that the entourage offered him. When he saw all eyes fixed on him, he hesitated. Adamis too fixed his eyes on the slave, and fear came up his throat with a sour taste. No, Notaplo, do not show them, they will not understand! he thought, and wanted to warn him against his mistake. But he saw his father Laino attentive to everything that was going on and knew that if he sent a mental warning to the Erudite, his father would pick it up and he, Adamis, would be discovered.
“Do not be afraid, come closer,” Notaplo told Marcus in a soothing voice.
The slave came forward with his head bent, gazing at the floor and almost trembling, until he was standing beside the Erudite.
“Your Majesties, this slave you see here with me has the key to immortality for our revered civilization.”
The announcement left everybody puzzled. The High Kings snorted in disbelief, and among the different delegations complete incredulity made itself manifest in loud cries.
“This slave is more than three hundred years old, so he ought to have died several times by now. Yet he is still alive and will live for another century. He has never been frozen, nor carbonized, nor has he been treated with any technology.”
High King Lur was not at all convinced. “Then how can he be alive? Slaves grow old and die quickly. If it were not for the fact that they breed like rabbits, they would not be much use to us,”
“This particular specimen is not a normal man, he is a hybrid.”
“Why do you embarrass us by showing us that?” said Kaitze. “The weaknesses and depraved tastes of some ought not to be shown in public.”
Murmurs and protests filled the hall again. Notaplo nodded several times, ignoring the protests until they gradually died out. Adamis knew what he was about to explain, and he was becoming more and more nervous on the good scholar’s behalf. The High Kings would never accept it.
“This hybrid is not just long-lived in himself, he has one special characteristic which is crucially important for us.” He turned to Marcus and put a hand on his shoulder. “Go ahead. Show them what you can do.”
Marcus cupped his hands, then closed his eyes. Concentrating, he created a small ball of fire which floated above his hands.
There were cries of surprise, which instantly turned to horror.
“What is this?” cried Gar.
“It cannot be!” thundered Lur.
“Who is that slave?” Edan demanded angrily.
Notaplo intervened at once to calm the general mood. ”The slave is an extraordinary anomaly. Marcus is a hybrid with Power.”
“What is this outrage?” yelled Gar. “How dare you bring this monster into our presence?”
“It is an abomination!” cried Lur. “It ought not to exist!”
“It must die!” Kaitze shouted. “It must be destroyed!”
Laino rose to his feet. “No one is to shed blood in this chamber! No one is to touch my Erudite or his specimen!” As he stood up, a black mist rose threateningly behind his body, like a formidable ghost ready to devour the soul of anyone who dared confront him.
Notaplo went on energetically, his voice full of conviction. “Your Majesties, I can assure you this is the only way to immortality. We do not need to remain frozen or carbonized, as the Houses of the Fourth and Fifth rings propose. Hybrids with Power are the key which will allow us to take a giant step forward. They possess the key c
omponent, which once it has been found and transferred to the Golden will make us truly immortal. In Marcus, the passage of time has been substantially delayed. But what is really crucial in him is that he possesses Power, as you have witnessed. This validates my theory: natural delaying of the ageing process can coexist with the Power. They are compatible, even though it does not happen among the Golden.”
“Enough of this! I will not listen to another word about this abomination,” Gar roared. A burst of flame issued from his body.
“Wait!” said Edan, “I want to know whether the Erudite has achieved what he says. That key you mention: have you managed to find it in your specimen?”
Notaplo shook his head slowly. “No, I have not found it yet. That is why I present my discoveries here today, in the hope that the other Erudites will take on this study and that between us we can find the key. I am convinced that if the Five Houses work together, we will be able to succeed.”
“In that case it is no more than a theory,” said Lur. “My House will not support this madness.”
“Nor mine,” Kaitze said. “It is no more than an aberration,”
“We ought to kill both of them, Erudite and specimen alike, for such an outrage,” said Gar.
“Leave, Erudite, for your own good,” Edan told Notaplo. “You should not have presented such nonsense.”
The reproaches turned into shouts. The chamber filled with savage criticisms, turning harsher with every moment. Notaplo was booed and forced to endure wounding comments with his head bowed. The insults began, and Adamis wanted to leap to his friend’s defense. He made a gesture to do so, but Ariadne held him tightly by the arm. He turned to her, and she shook her head.
High King Laino intervened. “My Erudite has clearly explained his proposal to you. It is his vision for our future, and in my opinion it is correct. If you do not wish to take part in the study, that is your prerogative. Notaplo, you may leave.”
Adamis understood his father’s words: he believed in Notaplo, but could do nothing to help him. The other Houses would never accept it. Notaplo left amid base insults and humiliations. Adamis had the feeling, as in a dark premonition, that the Erudite had just signed his death sentence. He felt an acute stab of pain in his chest. He took a deep breath, trying to let it pass, but it did not disappear.