by Lucia Ashta
“I’ll ask the spirits
if this Albacus is among them.
I’ll ask if he flies
throughout the halls
of this beautiful place.”
Find Albacus, Isa. Look with your heart, and find the man we seek.
Ah, good. My mind was clear with its guidance.
I looked upward again and saw no one I recognized as Albacus, though without knowing what the man actually looked like I didn’t understand how anyone expected me to spot him anyway.
Speak to the spirits. They’ll help you.
“Hello, everyone,” I called out happily.
The second I addressed them, every spirit within the space flew straight at me.
I covered my face with my hands and shrieked.
“What is it?” Nando asked, holding me up with one arm while he drew his sword. I heard the blade sliding past its sheath.
“The… the dead people. They’re coming at me.”
“Don’t be scared, Isa. You’re never scared. You’re brave.”
“What are you talking about?” I murmured from between my arms. “I’m scared all the time.”
The brave do not lack fear, they choose to act despite it.
“You’re wrong,” Nando said. “You’re brave all the time. And you can find courage now.”
“I can’t.”
If you believe you can’t, then you can’t. If you believe you can, you will.
What?
Never mind. Ask the spirits for Albacus.
I can’t.
You can. Believe only that, and you will.
“Isa, you can do this,” Nando was saying. “Believe in yourself.”
Well, at least my thoughts and my brother were in alignment. That was something.
“We’ve waited so long for someone to come along who could see us. Can you help us?” a spirit said.
I pressed back against Nando’s chest. He stumbled half a step then held. “There are too many of them, and they’re all speaking to me at once.”
Focus only on the voice that can help you find Albacus. You can help the others later.
I narrowed my features in concentration and searched for the one voice among them all that could help me find Albacus. I didn’t see how finding the dead wizard would get us out of here, but I could barely handle the one step laid out right in front of me.
“Is a wizard named Albacus here among you?”
“There’s an Albacus here,” a girl, who looked to be about my age, said. Her voice rang out clear as a bell, and I latched onto it, willing my focus in her direction.
There! That had to be her. I held onto her image as hard as I could.
I smiled at her.
“Hello. Will you help us find Albacus?”
She stared at me for so long that I thought something had gone wrong. I was about to repeat my question when she said, “I’ll help you.”
She floated, completely still and moving non-stop all at once, and I was riveted, unable to keep track of passing time.
Where is Albacus? The voice whispered through my mind, making me think it was strange for my thoughts to sound masculine.
“Where is Albacus please?”
“What is your name?” the girl asked instead of replying.
“Isadora. You may call me Isa.”
“Well, Isa, your friend Albacus is in this dungeon along with all the rest of us.”
“That’s great,” I said, even while my body tensed in complete opposition to my spoken relief.
“No, it’s not great at all. If we’re trapped in here forever, and you’re trapped until you die, then your friend is something even worse than that.”
I gulped. “What’s worse than that?”
“Your wizard friend is trapped in another world.”
“What?” I whispered so softly that surely the girl wouldn’t have heard me if she weren’t part of a world described in careful whispers.
“Albacus is half here, half there, not really anywhere.”
“What’re the spirits saying?” Nando asked, reacting to my worry.
“There’s a girl, and she’s telling me that Albacus is trapped in some other world.”
“What?” Sir Lancelot snapped.
“She says he’s half here, half there, and not really anywhere.”
“Well then that is truly the worst of news.”
The owl said it, not me, but I couldn’t have said it any better.
Chapter 5
“I don’t understand. How is something like this possible?”
Seeking the source of this new voice, I whirled around, bumping into my brother’s broad chest.
“Whose voice said ‘how is that possible’ or whatever?” I asked him.
“You mean Gertrude?” By the tone of Nando’s voice, it was clear he expected me to recognize her voice. “You know Gertrude.”
Did I? I was certain she hadn’t been there just moments before. “She wasn’t here with us before.”
“She was, only she was a cat.”
I blinked, ran what he said through my mind a second time, but still failed to make sense of it. I opened my mouth to ask how on earth she could have been a cat when I snapped it shut instead. Hardly anything made sense at the moment. What was one more thing?
“Lady Isa,” an educated voice said. “Perhaps it would be wise to follow up with the spirit and gather more information. What does the spirit mean when it says that Albacus is in another world, neither here nor there?”
Right. Albacus. The girl spirit. I’d already forgotten.
I peered out at the shining, flowing spirits until I found the girl again. “Will you please tell me more about this Albacus and where he is?”
Again the girl took a long while to respond. I suppose that when one is dead and trapped in the earthly plane, there isn’t much hurry.
“I don’t know exactly where he is or why. I only know that the Duke cursed him to make it so.”
“I see.”
“What do you see, Lady Isa? Please relay what the spirits say,” a small, somewhat squeaky voice asked.
“You don’t hear her?”
“We can’t hear or see any of them,” Nando said. Nando. I’d never forget my brother.
“She’s saying—wait. I don’t know her name.”
“It doesn’t matter. Just tell us.”
But it did matter to me, and it certainly mattered to the girl, whose face drew tight in offense that the living wouldn’t even care about who she’d been when she was a part of our world.
I ignored Nando for a moment and spoke to the girl. “What’s your name?”
She harrumphed, scowled at Nando for good measure, then said, “Ama.”
“Ama.” I smiled. “That’s a beautiful name.”
She straightened and scowled at Nando some more. “Thank you. It was my mother’s name.”
“Is your mother still living?”
Ama’s eyes flew to my face. “I don’t know. I’ve been trapped here since I died in the dungeons. I haven’t seen any of my family.”
“Oh, that’s so awful.” I brought a hand to my chest. The thought of dying trapped in this dungeon was frightful—and far too relevant for my taste. But the idea of never finding out what happened to the people I loved, well, that was somehow just as bad. “I’m so sorry. I’ll do what I can to help you, I promise.”
“I’d appreciate that very much. It’s been quite lonely here, despite all the others trapped with me.”
“Are you saying your spirits can’t leave the castle? You can’t move on?”
“The Duke has trapped every spirit of every single person who’s ever died while a prisoner. There’s no way for us to escape. We’re condemned to remain here for eternity. The Duke won’t free us before he dies, and then no one will even know we’re here.”
“That’s right,” another voice echoed.
“We need you to help us,” a third said.
“I’ll do all that I can.
”
“Thank you,” Ama said, every one of her features expressing her gratitude.
“I’ll get to work on the problem right away.” Which was a bit funny, really, because I had no idea what to do or where to start. But not knowing had never stopped me from trying before.
“Wait,” Nando said. “What problem are you about to get to work on? Freeing Albacus?”
“Who’s Albacus?”
My brother didn’t answer my question, however. The voice in my head wasn’t forthcoming with explanations either. Instead, Nando craned his neck to face behind us. “What do we do?”
“Who are you talking to?”
“Sir Lancelot and Gertrude.”
“Lady Isa, have you asked this Ama for more details about Albacus’ situation?”
“Are you Sir Lancelot?”
“Isa,” Nando snapped. “Maurisse’s spell is affecting you very seriously. We don’t have time for any more of your questions. We need answers and solutions.”
“Oh.” My face fell. “I don’t have any of those.”
“That much is obvious,” Gertrude muttered.
“It’s not her fault,” Nando snapped, then addressed me. “Let’s make this simple. You repeat what I say to Ama. Then you repeat what she says to us. Can you do that?”
“I think so.” But the truth was that I wasn’t entirely sure. I really just wanted to take a nap. Maybe when I woke up I’d feel better, more myself. “Nando, I’m sleepy. I want to rest.”
“You can’t. We don’t know what might happen if you do.” He sheathed his sword and held both my shoulders with strong hands. “Repeat after me.”
“All right.”
“Ama, will you please communicate with me through my brother?”
A few moments passed in silence while I stared at Ama, waiting for her answer.
“Isa,” Nando barked. “You’re supposed to say what I say.”
“Oh, sorry. ‘You’re supposed to say what I say’.”
“It’s hopeless,” Gertrude said.
“Nothing is hopeless,” Nando said. “Not where my sister is concerned.”
“I get that, really, I do. I’d do anything for Clara. But Nando, it’s like she has cotton for brains right now.”
“And that’s not her fault.”
“I never implied it was. What I am saying is that we don’t have time to mess around anymore. If she can’t hold onto a thought for more than a few seconds, we have to find another way.”
“Like what? Have the spirit answer my direct questions?”
“Yes, exactly like that.”
“Isa will still have to repeat her answers.”
“She will, but maybe she can do that if she repeats what Ama is saying immediately.”
Silence reigned for a few moments in which I admired the beauty of the spirits around me. How strange that they should be in such an unpleasant space.
Gertrude said, “It’s the only way. Elwin can help keep her on track, won’t you, Elwin?”
Who is Elwin?
That’s me.
The voice in my head is named Elwin? That’s odd.
But the voice in my head didn’t respond, which meant the voice in my head was odd, masculine, and rude. I frowned.
“Ama?” Gertrude said, moving to stand next to Nando and me. When I felt her, I startled, especially when I realized there was something moving on her shoulder... some kind of animal, I thought. I cringed and pulled back.
“Did she answer?” Gertrude said. “Isa, did Ama answer?”
“Oh, you’re talking to me? Who’s Ama?”
No one said a word, and I wondered why. The air around me grew tense, making me feel decidedly uncomfortable. I rubbed my hands across my arms.
“It’s all right,” Nando soothed. “Everything’s going to be all right.”
“No, it’s not,” Gertrude said. “Not unless she can get it together and keep it that way long enough for us to get some answers.”
“Isa,” Nando whispered. “All I need you to do is focus on my voice. Do you think you can do that?”
“Of course I can. I love your voice. Te quiero, hermano mío.”
“I love you too. Now, do you think you can find the spirit of the girl Ama you were speaking with a few moments ago?”
I opened my mouth with questions, but he stopped me. “Don’t worry about understanding things right now. Just follow my directions. Nothing else.” He paused. “We’re all counting on you to do this, and I know you can.”
Right. Whatever he wanted me to do, I was going to do it. No matter that I felt like my brain was mush, I wasn’t going to let down the brother who’d given up everything for me.
“I’ll do it,” I said.
“Good,” he said in an even voice. “Did you find Ama?”
Oops. I’d forgotten that I was supposed to find her. I looked with my heart, because it felt like that’s what I was supposed to do for some reason.
“She’s right in front of us.” I smiled. “She’s really beautiful.”
“I’m sure she is. I’m going to ask her a question. I need you to listen to her answer, then repeat it verbatim.”
I nodded, holding onto his instructions with every speck of mental strength I possessed.
“Ama, we’ll do whatever we can to help you and the other spirits trapped here with you. But our situation is dire. If we don’t find the way out of here, we won’t be able to help ourselves, let alone you. Will you please answer my questions and give us any information that might aid us right now?”
“I’ll help you, but I want you to promise just as Isa has that you’ll help us later. I can’t stay here any longer. I’ll... I don’t know what. I can’t take eternal imprisonment any longer.”
“What did she say?” Nando asked me.
Oh. “Um, ah, she said she’ll help us, but... that she wants you to promise to help her in return.” I finished triumphantly. I’d remembered!
“You have my promise that I’ll do everything within my power, and that our friends will do the same, to set you free.”
“That’s sufficient, thank you.”
“She says thank you,” I relayed, feeling proud of myself for managing it before being prompted.
“Good. Ama, what do you mean when you say Albacus is trapped half here, half in another world? Do you know how Maurisse cursed him to this fate?”
As soon as Ama answered, I repeated her response. “She says she didn’t hear Maurisse curse him, and all she knows is that Albacus flickers in and out of our world.”
“Is he going to the place where spirits go once they pass on from the earthly plane?” Nando asked.
“She doesn’t think so.”
“Why?”
“My brother asks ‘why,’” I relayed before I remembered I wasn’t supposed to do that part.
“Albacus hasn’t told me, but he’s told some of the other spirits that he’s going some other place. Some other, how did he put it?”
A man, who would have been completely ordinary except for the fact that he was dead and floating next to Ama, drew closer. “Albacus says he’s going to another star system and possibly another time. He says he doesn’t recognize the sky. There are two moons, and the sun is different too.”
I gulped.
“What did she say?” Nando prompted, and I was able to repeat the man’s entire reply.
“What?” Nando and Gertrude said at the same time the moment I finished, sounding entirely more alarmed than I felt, which immediately made me wonder what I was missing.
I said, “Albacus described the sky as different. There are two moons and a sun that looks nothing like ours.”
“Ah—” Nando stammered. “I don’t know what to say about that, actually.”
“Neither do I,” Gertrude said. “Mordecai is going to freak.”
This time, Nando also addressed the other kind spirit helping us. “Can you see Albacus when he’s, uh, here in this world?”
“We can see
him,” Ama said.
“They can,” I relayed.
“Is he trapped like you are then? Stuck in the castle?”
“Yes,” the male spirit said. “Albacus is cursed to remain in the castle forever, but the Duke placed him in his own special prison.”
“What’s this prison like?” Gertrude asked.
“Wow,” I said.
“Well?” Gertrude said. “What’d he say?”
“Oh, sorry again. He said Albacus’ prison has bars made of dark magic. His cell is woven into some kind of pattern that supports the spell. It’s magic the man’s never seen before.”
“So he’s a magician!” Sir Lancelot exclaimed from Gertrude’s shoulder.
I shrugged. Gertrude huffed and asked the blank air in front of us, “Are you a magician?”
“He is,” I repeated, omitting the was the man had used. To me, the spirits still seemed very much alive, except for the translucent, glowy bit. I wanted to show them that, even if the gesture was perhaps silly.
“Do you know what spell Maurisse cast to trap us in here? The curse that’s affecting my sister?” Nando asked.
The man nodded grimly. “I do.”
“He says he does.”
“That’s great!” Gertrude jumped in place, startling me with her sudden movement. “Knowing the spell is the first step to breaking it. With Mordecai and Giselle on our side, and my sister, we’ll figure it out for sure.” I could feel her grinning even though I still couldn’t make out her face. “Are you able to repeat the spell back to us?” she asked the space Ama occupied, although she was addressing the magician.
“Of course I can. I’ll never forget the curse that killed me.”
I swallowed audibly. “He says he remembers it. He also says the same curse that Maurisse cast on us killed him.”
“Oh,” Gertrude said, losing some of her enthusiasm. “Well, then, will you kindly follow us out of here? It won’t help us if you repeat the spell through Isa now. We need to go where the others are, the ones who’ll be able to break the curse.” She was getting excited again. “There isn’t a curse that Mordecai hasn’t been able to break with enough time, especially if he has Albacus to help him. From what Clara tells me, those two can do anything with enough focus and practice.”
Even I was aware that time for focus and practice was something we didn’t have.