Jymoor staggered for a moment, trying to connect the upper body pieces onto the massive breastplate. Yeel reached out and dropped the helm over her head smoothly. Immediately a burst of energy flowed through Jymoor, straightening her spine. Her heart slowed and she took a few cautious steps forward.
“I feel it! Yeel, you’re right again!”
“Yes, you see, we’ll overcome these challenges. I suggest one problem at a time. Perhaps we should complete the armor by putting on greaves and gauntlets. Then we can tackle the issue of your first public appearance as the Crescent Knight. By isolating these challenges we can simplify the process of analyzing and addressing each step—”
“Divide and conquer?”
“Divide and conquer? Divide and conquer! My, what a typically human way of describing the stratagem! The succinct encapsulation of a concept that spans broad—”
“I understand, Yeel,” Jymoor said confidently. Under the helm, Jymoor bit her lip. Had she just left off Lord Yeel’s honorific? Perhaps the armor did change a man, and women too…Once again, Yeel had slipped and spoken as if he were not human. Jymoor knew he looked human, but seemed like something more.
“That’s the last of it,” Yeel said, handing Jymoor an intricately designed gauntlet. Jymoor donned the glove and moved her fingers in it, amazed at the craftsmanship that allowed each finger its own motion, albeit with a somewhat stiffened feeling.
“Very well, one task behind us,” Yeel said. “A great success thus far. You see the subproblem was easily conquered. On to the next. Now, just listen to me and I’ll tell you exactly what to say…”
***
Jymoor strode out purposefully, walking around a giant patch of thorny flowers and coming into view of the main camp. The refugees were walking about, shaking off the night’s cold and obviously waiting for direction.
She looked out over the people. Jymoor felt a wave of certainty engulf her soul. She needed to step up and take over if they were to be led back to civilization safely. Someone had to provide the leadership to keep everyone working together and traveling quickly so they could get back and help Yeel defeat the invaders. She didn’t understand why such a task would have daunted her before; now it all seemed straightforward. She was a scout and she could find the way back. She would do it.
Jymoor walked toward the center knot of people and motioned to them.
“We’ve lost enough time!” Jymoor announced, trying to speak in a deeper voice. “We have a long way ahead of us, and each day counts. We will linger here only a few minutes more! Everyone help share the load; if anyone has things they can’t carry assemble over here. We need the able ones to help out; the only way we can make it back in good time is by cooperating with each other.”
Jymoor began to oversee the distribution of what little supplies and equipment were available for the journey. She assigned a small group to check the trail ahead, then formed other groups to forage for food and set up camp each night. Yeel brought the hidden weapons out. Jymoor put them back into the hands of the soldiers who had threatened violence before. Everyone seemed more level headed this time, and they didn’t restart the previous arguments. Then Jymoor assembled everyone in a marching order.
“Time is of the essence. A great enemy threatens our homeland. We all need to get back and help. The mighty Yeel and I plan to meet the invaders who threaten to wipe out our nation and defeat them.”
“And you will have me at your side!” called a soldier. “I owe you that, at least!”
“I’ll stand with you as well!” said another.
A cheer rose among the crowd.
Jymoor motioned with one arm, waving the group forward. Yeel stayed at her side as they started walking to the east. The refugees fell in behind them in twos and threes.
The first day of travel passed slowly, as the group meandered along the course home. Several times they had to stop and regroup. Jymoor assigned a scribe (who had been sent to record the deeds of a great warrior now dead) to take an accounting of how many refugees traveled with them, so if anyone became lost it would be noticed. The scribe would also take stock of who everyone was and what they were capable of, in case Yeel should wish to call upon their skills.
Most of the travelers had some food with them that had been turned to stone when they had been attacked by the serpent. Still, when they stopped an hour before sunset Jymoor sent groups out to forage for what little they could find. She was directing the construction of the night’s camp when Yeel sought her out.
“If you would be so kind as to accompany me, Your Knightship,” Yeel indicated his roveport. “There are some matters which we must discuss. Perhaps if there is someone you could leave in charge, then we could begin—”
“Yes, we should talk,” Jymoor announced loudly. “Kirangadr will be in charge in my absence. I believe he can take care of it. Take heart, you have your freedom at last. Maristaple is still a mighty city as in times long past. It’s many leagues away, but we’ll make it.”
With that, Yeel deployed his roveportal and the two moved through it to return to Yeel’s palace. Peace and quiet dominated the great house, broken only by the soft murmur of the fountain.
“You did a marvelous job of projecting the confidence and direction that they needed. I don’t believe anyone noticed any oddity, my friend, as they are just happy to be free. They’re still rejoicing so they don’t seek out problems or mysteries to wonder over. By the time they do, you’ll be the knight they’ve known all along.”
“I do think I can do it. Thank you for giving me the chance.” Jymoor pulled the heavy helmet off her head and turned it upside down so it could hold the gauntlets she pulled off her hands.
Yeel walked over to the water and peered over the wall, looking down into the rippling flow.
Jymoor stared up at the vaulted ceiling and wondered at the magnificence of the house. Everything remained perfectly white, devoid of even dust or cobwebs.
“What are you thinking, Yeel?” Jymoor asked. She spoke to Yeel as an equal. She realized that before she had been foolish to grovel before the wizard; after all, it was clear that the man didn’t even notice Jymoor’s begging. More efficient to simply get to the point. She looked at the gloves and the helm in her hands. Their presence felt comforting.
“Memories. I’m recalling them as I gaze at my…ah, my wonderful…pets. In the pool.”
“There are living things in there? Can we not drink from the water?”
“The water is drinkable, yes. Simply be very careful not to disturb these creatures in the slightest. They are frail, and extremely valuable to me. Do you understand? They are worth more than these artifacts that surround you.”
Jymoor stood next to Yeel and stared at the water. She almost declared the absence of anything whatsoever, then a near-transparent entity caught her eye. It floated smoothly through the water, making slow, imperious progress against the gentle current of the fountain. Jymoor looked further and spotted other identical creatures.
“They are monstrous…yet beautiful,” she breathed.
“Monstrous…perhaps. You should learn, Jymoor…Your Knightship…that sometimes things appear monstrous, but they are not so. There are monsters like those we met in the stone garden, and then there are others. Good monsters.”
“Ah, I understand of what you speak. Your helper. The thing that scared me when first I came here for you.”
“Ehrm, yes. That is a good example.”
“Then I shall look forward to meeting it…him, again.”
“Good. But for now we have another task before us. Another piece of the puzzle that we’re to solve, the next subtask of—”
“Divide and conquer again, eh?”
Yeel looked discomfited. “Yes. Although that is a rude, brutal way of describing the Grand Paradigm of Incremental Solution. We must now travel to a far-off place so we can gain the help of others in this task.”
“But the people of the garden…we must guide them.”
&nbs
p; “We will not travel by foot. I have other places…spots we can travel to by more efficient means.” Yeel indicated the glowing gate that Jymoor had seen when she first entered the house.
“So let me get this straight…we’re to simply step through that gate, and go to this place I see through it, just as if we were stepping through the roveport back to where we were?”
“Exactly. Well, sort of. Not really. Very different actually. The roveportal works here within your world. This gate is of a different nature. There are further complications. We’ll have to set the temporal dilation carefully. We need as much time as we can get at our destination with a minimum of elapsed time here.”
“What?”
“Oh, it is a matter of time, my friend. The passage of events. We need as much time as possible. Things will pass here and things will pass there, and we want to pass a lot of things there and only a few things here; it is all a matter of the ratio of passings to passings.”
“My Lord Yeel, I know you are capable of a great many wondrous things, but you cannot stand there and tell me that you also control time itself…can you?”
“Oh, no, of course not,” Yeel said. Jymoor sighed with relief. “Control time itself? No…I can only arrange it such that it will slow down or speed up.”
“Oh…what?” yelped Jymoor. “Only speed it up or slow it down? Ah! Surely that isn’t possible…such power!”
“Well, there are a great number of constraints on the system. I haven’t the freedom to do whatever I want in this regard. It is simply a factor that I use to coordinate between our planes of reference. Now, please, I’m afraid I must concentrate. It wouldn’t do to make an error at this point…it’d be a little troubling if we were to run into ourselves.”
“What? Run into ourselves! Yeel! Are you absolutely certain we should be doing this?”
“Of course. It’s part of the plan I’ve already outlined. We are to meet people who can help in our cause, both in terms of training for you and military assistance for your kingdom. I have, in my time, come across many cultures and I’ve specifically remembered that I have a few favors to call in, here and there. If we’re successful, perhaps someday I shall call upon your people to help others in need elsewhere.”
“Yes, of course,” Jymoor said weakly. “I’m afraid I must…sit down for a moment, perhaps by the fountain?”
“Yes, by all means. By the fountain. Carefully, please. Could you possibly remember not to disturb any clear little creatures you see swimming in there? Remember, I said good monsters. Could you please commit this to memory?”
“I’ll remember, Great Yeel.”
“Thank you! I shall begin configuring the device. Now don’t worry. Almost every time I’ve encountered myself, I’ve proven to be a most hospitable fellow, at times almost magnanimous. And always quite stimulating. Of course I wouldn’t be foolhardy enough to try and remember such an event, I’m simply extrapolating from what I know of myself.”
Jymoor staggered over toward the fountain and sat.
“Only slow it down or speed it up…” she muttered.
Chapter 9: Under the Green Sky
When Jymoor emerged from the magical gate the first thing she noticed was the sky.
“Lord Yeel! What have you done to the sky? It’s green!”
She stared in wonder. White and gray clouds drifted lazily through the deep green heavens. She finally examined the ground, covered in gray rock with a few stubborn plants growing here and there in the niches. She couldn’t see far, as they were surrounded by large outcroppings of rough gray rock. A six-legged lizard darted for cover, startled by their movements.
“This is another world, Jymoor. I’ve done nothing special to it. The atmosphere here has different properties, which results in reflected radiation of different frequencies—”
“Is this where the teachers you spoke of live? Are they human?”
“Yes, I hope to get you the training you need here. That other question is more difficult to answer than you might imagine.”
“Well, what now?”
“Follow me, Your Knightship,” Yeel said. “I shall lead us through this strange world and deduce the location of those we seek.”
“Deduce? Oh no! You mean you didn’t remember this place?”
“I remember a great deal of it…the important parts, I assure you. There are a few particulars, however, which—”
“Lead on, Yeel,” directed Jymoor. She no longer feared addressing Yeel in this way. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she realized the moon armor had done this. Somehow it increased her perception of her stature…made her feel important, like a noble. Perhaps if she fulfilled her knightly duties well, Yeel might come to see her as an equal, or maybe even an intimate companion. Jymoor dared to hope she would become closer to the Great Yeel.
Yeel moved forward through the broken terrain. He seemed to be uncertain at first, but after a moment started to move down the slope. Their path twisted left and then right as they avoided the huge boulders that thrust up through the ground.
They walked around a rise of stone and Jymoor saw a green ocean ahead, a vast calm expanse of water that mirrored the color of the sky. Only a dim line in the distance marked where the sea met the horizon. An isthmus of land extended out into the sea, connecting to a massive rocky island with a grey stone fortress perched atop it. The place had tall, smooth walls which angled gently inward. The fortress culminated in four crenelated peaks. The landscape felt so surreal that at first she had a hard time establishing its size.
Jymoor peered at the fortress for a moment, trying to catch a glimpse of any natives. She did see forms moving about on the battlements, but from this distance she could hardly tell what they looked like. If they were humans, the fortress was large indeed, perhaps three or four hundred paces on its front side.
“Um, Lord Yeel? Is that the place we seek?”
“What? Hmm? What place do you speak of? Please, do tell me. Describe that which you have designated but for which I cannot determine the association. Perhaps then I will be able to answer your query.”
“That rocky fortress by the sea,” Jymoor said, pointing.
“Oh. That that. You can see it? That’s exactly the that where we need to go. Could you lead us there? By there I mean to that. I’m afraid my eyesight is not that good here. And that last that was not that that. It was a regular that.”
“Um. You can’t see the ocean? Or the fortress?”
“I’m sorry, but I can only remember the dwelling you speak of,” Yeel said, moving toward the ocean. “I realized there would be a greater chance of finding the water by moving downhill.”
Jymoor raised an eyebrow. Apparently, another unexpected weakness of the Great Yeel.
“I can see it clearly,” she reported. “I do have sharp eyes…that’s one of the reasons I became a scout. I think I see people on the walls; I hope they’re friendly.”
“Absolutely. Yes. Without a doubt, we will be received warmly. Don’t worry, Your Knightship. I’m sure it’s fine. Unless things have changed. In which case the danger could be extreme!”
Jymoor stepped up to Yeel and they continued side by side toward the cape. After a few minutes, they joined a broken road of ancient stones that meandered toward the fortress. Jymoor saw the plants had long runners of bluish green that wriggled over and around the stones, seeking the soil. She inhaled a deep lungful of the damp air. It had a different quality to it, something that she couldn’t identify.
“The air here is different, somehow.”
“Yes, the atmosphere’s composition is not like that of your world. It holds very interesting properties which I have studied for quite some time. You’ll find it hinders your movements yet provides more energy. It also creates the potential for…unique acoustical experiences. Perhaps its most remarkable feature is simply that you can breathe it at all. Given how different it really is from the air you’re used to inhaling, it wouldn’t be at all surprising if it had been deadly to
humans.”
“But of course it would not have affected you?”
“Oh. Well, my exchange rate is such that, I mean, well, it might well have affected me adversely as well. But it does not. Are we approaching that castle you spotted? We must find shelter here before the morning. It’s dangerous to be outside here, at certain times of the day.”
Jymoor looked at their destination again. She began to get a feel for how huge the fortress really was. The place grew larger with each step, until she began to think of the place as a city. They headed toward a massive stone bridge, apparently the only entrance to the island fortress.
Jymoor saw a lone person, or some kind of humanoid, awaiting them on the bridge. A male, she decided. He held a long spear in one graceful hand. The man wore a multifaceted outfit of copper-colored cloth. His skin looked slightly green in the distance, but she couldn’t tell if it was from the light.
They walked closer. The man before them looked human enough to Jymoor. She expected Yeel would introduce them at any moment. She wondered what their greeting would be. Would they raise their hands to each other? Would they clasp hands? Did the man even speak their language? Was it even a man?
Yeel stopped and turned to her.
“I know one here named Vot. I must go speak with him,” Yeel said. “Please speak with that man. Tell him you’re with me, and he’ll treat you kindly. Don’t worry. We’ll make progress on our goal while we’re here. These are kind folk, and no harm will come to you.”
Yeel moved away to one side, to the edge of the bridge. Jymoor wanted to ask Yeel more questions, but she let him leave. She could take care of herself, she decided. An instant later she wondered if the armor had decided for her.
The wizard descended a side ramp in an eerily smooth motion. His head did not bob in the manner of one taking steps. Jymoor blinked. Magic?
She turned to regard the harpoon-bearing man who waited patiently at the end of the bridge. He met her gaze calmly. She decided his skin was slightly green, but it suited his smooth, narrow face and curly hair. His weapon looked as if its sharp tip had been created from a plant spine or perhaps a water creature. The tip was translucent, perhaps hollow. She felt certain it wasn’t made of copper or iron.
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