by Reiter
“You could have just said ‘yes’, you know,” BJ said before turning to walk away. He pointed at a door to Dungias’ left. “You go out that way and you’re back at the aperture. We’re done here. I’ve told you all that I care to. As for the relationship, the Traveler who showed us this planetoid happens to be the Second Generation of the craft. Your Nugar is the one hundred and thirty-fifth generation, but only the fourth in that very long line to know of this place. Had it not been for you, he probably would’ve missed it too.”
“Thank–”
“You want to thank me, blue-skin,” BJ interrupted as he reached the door opposite the one he designated for Dungias to use. He looked back at the Malgovi and his eyes squinted. He looked to be anything but young. He was old and tired, but the love he maintained for his creators and his belief in their aims was ageless. “… free your people. That’s the only way you can thank me!” He opened the door and walked through. “Don’t forget your purse.” The door closed and then shifted into a wall shortly thereafter.
Dungias nodded as he swung his feet over the side of the bed and stood up. The bed quickly faded the moment he was away from it. Looking around the room, Dungias smiled as he leveled his hand at one of the blank walls and focused his thoughts.
“Door to the dojo,” he said, opening his eyes to see a pair of sliding doors made of simple wood and pressed wood pulp. He could already hear Nexeous exercising on the far side. Dungias took one step toward it before his brow furrowed. He put his hand to his chin and considered the possibilities. Surely the one they called the Red Dragonne had been responsible for the creation of Pax’Dulah. To learn from the Beta Form would exceed what Guyn had taught him. But there was another regard and Dungias resumed his stance, lifting his arm once more.
“Door that I need most to go through next,” he said. Even before he opened his eyes, he could hear the sounds of the dojo slipping away. He opened his eyes to see he was facing a blank wall. The door that BJ had pointed out was glowing. Dungias lowered his hand back to his side and nodded. “Now that was expected,” he said softly as he turned and walked over to the doorway, grabbing his satchel en route. He opened the door and was temporarily blinded by the white light. Quickly recovering from the illumination, he could see the gray ripples inside the light, facing him. He was looking at the aperture and allowed himself a chuckle. Dungias thought about looking back, but he had seen several rooms in The Campus and if he were meant to see more, it would be upon his next visitation. Bending at the knee, he leaned forward and threw his body into the aperture.
Posterity makes the judgments. There are going to be a lot of surprises in store for everybody.
Irwin Shaw
(IV)
The board was still set and some of his pieces were still forming. The King-side Bishop was shimmering, rattling back and forth inside of its square. The will to emerge was clear, but Freund could not be sure of the direction that growth would take.
“I would say something along the lines of, ‘you know staring at it won’t do you any good’, but we both know you don’t stare.” Isse came into the room and he marked every nuance of her presence. He could smell his grandson and the salt from his tears as they dried on the right shoulder of her dress.
“Congratulations,” Freund said with a smile. “I know that Zerrell has been very anxious about his performance at the games.”
“He won all five matches,” Isse shared, putting her hands on her hips. “He came away with a final scoring of twenty-five to one.”
“Someone managed to score a point against him?” Freund asked.
“No,” Isse replied, chuckling as she approached her father. “The Main Official awarded a point to his opponent when Zerrell jumped off the path.”
“My word! Someone made that boy give ground?”
“It was a fireball that split into thirty smaller guided fireballs,” Isse explained. “Isn’t that type of spell-crafting against the rules?”
“Of course it is!” Freund said with an air of pride. “But to have that levied against you and still win the match is saying quite a bit. Zerrell jumped out of the combat area.”
“If it makes any difference, he levitated himself so he would not land out of bounds,” Isse added. “He thought that fact should have been taken into consideration.” Her father laughed out loud as he slapped his leg.
“You agreed with that point, I’m sure,” Freund said as he tried to recover from his cackling.
“I did more than agree,” Isse said, kissing her father on the cheek. “The contest was suspended until the official could see again.”
“And you weren’t removed from the premises?!”
“Let’s just say it was considered a viable option until someone actually tried to make me leave,” Isse said, sitting on the edge of the gaming table. “Still no trace of her?”
“Neve? Not the slightest, I’m afraid,” Freund replied, still smiling. “She has definitely gone to ground.”
“You don’t seem to be waiting for her to resurface,” Isse said, looking at the development of the pieces. “Are you sure you want to involve the Ardrians in this?” Isse posed the question in passing as she started for the part of the room where she could sit and contact her husband. The lack of a verbal response made her stop in mid-trek. She looked back to see a very concerned Freund hovering over the game board. “Father?”
“I am sure of so very little at this moment, my child,” Freund finally replied. “I fear–”
“We’ve got guests,” Isse said as she turned toward the balcony doors. The darkness of space was quickly driven away as a minuscule point of light appeared over the balcony. “And from the feel of things, I’m not sure this will go well.”
“Then you have become more than my eyes,” Freund said as he got up from his chair and the game table was teleported to his chambers. “And that is a very good thing, because I feel as if I will require the services of my daughter more than those of Zeu Rex’s wife.” Isse immediately understood the implication of her father’s word choice and let her head drop to where her eyes were cast upon the floor. With her left hand cupped inside her right, she slowly walked to stand behind her father as he faced the balcony doors. “And I love you too!” Freund said as he made a gesture with his left hand toward the doors. With deliberate pacing, the balcony doors slowly opened as the point of light flared brightly, only to diminish into nothing in the next instant. Three bodies stood on the balcony in the wake of the fading light. Two of the forms bowed toward Freund as the doors completed the opening process. The third, standing in-between the bowing women, strode forward with authority. His foot had not yet crossed the threshold when his body shuddered and he struggled to remain standing. The female attendants moved to assist their superior, but they soon suffered from the same onslaught of overwhelming power.
“Give them a moment,” Freund commanded. “It is difficult to learn any lesson when wracked with blinding pain.” The onslaught ceased almost immediately.
“Do you not know who I am, blind one?!” the authoritative male cried out as he took hold of the door frame to keep from falling. “How dare you attack me?!”
Freund gave a soft smile as his head tilted to the left for a moment. He nodded before he spoke. “Let me assure you, High Priest, if I were to attack you, the difference would be easily marked in your mind. What you suffer from is my household’s confusion. You see, this castle is under the impression that one asks to enter the abode of another. If this is a shortcoming in my training, I do hereby humbly apologize. Have manners been recently eliminated from the dealings of man?”
“Damned entities,” the man said before grabbing his head with both hands and falling to his knees. He screamed in a surprisingly high pitch.
“You see the difference?” Freund said as a soft light shone from his empty eye sockets. One of the priest’s attendants reached to her side, but her hand was soon grabbed by the other attendant who quickly dropped to her knee.
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�Noble and rightful lord of this honored abode, please forgive our ignorance,” she said, lowering her head to look at the floor. “Though our need is great and pressing, it does not give us the right to levy the insult received by you and your home.” The light faded from Freund’s eyes and the High Priest fell forward on his hands, three drops of blood escaping from his nose. Another gesture from Freund’s left hand restored the attendants and brought the High Priest to his feet.
“Gracious attendant,” Freund said, taking a few steps toward the balcony doors. “… might I have the pleasure of your name as I welcome you into my home?”
“Shuronne Jassity,” the dark woman replied. “A Chevalierra, my lord.
“Oh really,” Freund replied, lifting up off his heels for a moment. “.. and of what Temple?”
“I am a Northerner,” Shuronne advised. “I am sworn to guard and keep the High Priest.”
“A most pressing task, from the signs received up to this point,” Freund ribbed at the expense of the High Priest. “But it appears as if you are indeed engaged to your task. What say you, Priest?”
“I would prefer to proceed without further incident,” the white-haired man said sharply.
“Then do not assume you will ever be my elder, High Priest,” Freund shot back without any of his normal charm. “This is not your realm!” Taking a breath, Freund softened and appeared to be mulling over an issue. “Of course, in my perspective of the truth, it is not mine either. But this is hardly a time for that discussion. Suffice to say that this is my home and I will guard it with all the power I have at my disposal. Any further insult from you or your party and I will make you forget you even have a deity! That would make praying for healing slightly difficult, don’t you think?”
“It would at that, my lord,” the High Priest replied with a slight nod of his head.
“Fry his brain anyway,” Isse sent to her father telepathically. Freund snorted before coughing and clearing his throat.
“You and your party are permitted entry, Priest,” Freund declared. “But make certain when you mark this record for the annals of your church, some sort of commendation to your attendant Chevalierra should be noted. She is most excellent, and in this case, a means of deliverance.”
“As you request it, my lord,” the High Priest said as he entered the castle. Isse wanted to shake her head in disgust, looking at the way the aged man moved, even after his disciplining. He was still so full of himself, and somehow supported by a power that had not defended him before and certainly could not now. However, her father had spoken already with regards to her capacity in this encounter, and so she kept her head down, moving quickly and quietly to a chair at the large round table.
“He calls me his eyes,” she thought. “But I missed him changing the entire room. Of course, that would either mean he wants the game to remain a very private matter… or he feels there is some relation between the game and this unannounced visitation.”
“If we may take a moment of your time,” the High Priest spoke as he sat down. Shuronne very lightly touched Isse’s arm and thanked her for her gesture. “… there is a pressing matter we must engage with you almost immediately.”
“Pressing, you say,” Freund said as he navigated his way to a seat without cane or probing hand. The chair moved without being touched to where Freund could sit down. “Thank you, my dear,” he said to Isse, taking his seat. “Now would you be so kind as to fetch refreshment for our guests, impromptu as they may be.”
“It would be my delight, Father,” Isse replied softly before bowing to the High Priest and taking her leave.
“I doubt we will remain long enough to enjoy whatever beverages she is going to prepare, Lord Freund,” High Priest Gregoran Killington said as he leaned back in his high-back chair.
“Make no mistake, good Priest, I sent her away for your benefit, just not the benefit of your thirst.”
“For one who speaks so quickly about courtesy and respect,” the younger attendant snapped. “… you seem incapable of demonstrating any to the High Priest of Xaythra!”
“Speak once more out of place and it will not be his lordship’s definition of respect that you will have to deal with!” Shuronne said in a soft tone, though her sentiment could not be misunderstood. Once she had her junior’s eyes for the necessary confirmation of intent, she turned to face Freund. “She is young, good master, and heart-strong. You have my most sincere apologies.”
“Think nothing of it, gracious Chevalierra,” Freund quickly returned. “I would never trust an indifferent soul in service to any church; goes too far against the grain for my tastes. And her name, if I may ask?”
“Shanvah Qirlee, my lord.”
“Strong name,” Freund returned, lifting his fist. “It fits the woman perfectly! But what is this matter, High Priest Gregoran?”
“Allow me to pay you a compliment of direct discourse,” Gregoran started.
“Oh, this can’t be good,” Freund replied, rubbing his chin. “Payment coming from the church?! Simply outlandish!” Gregoran continued, trying his best to ignore the ancient entity.
“It has come to our attention that you have issued a challenge to an entity by the name of Neve, Lord Freund. Do you refute this?”
“This is beginning to sound more like an examination at a trial,” Freund remarked. “Do I have the option of throwing myself on the mercy of the court? Or is that too old a custom?”
“I can see you penchant for flippancy has not changed,” Gregoran said as he rose up from his seat. “I cannot and will not continue under these circumstances. This conversation is therefore terminated.”
Freund leaned back in his chair with a bright smile on his face. He shivered in his seat as he spoke. “I simply love the way you declare things, Greg. It is a most moving thing to behold.
“But you did not come here to talk,” Freund said as he slowly rose from his seat. “You came here to infiltrate!”
Shanvah was already standing and Shuronne was too slow in getting her hand on her fellow attendant. The youthful Chevalierra bound up on to the table and was running across it when Freund tapped the edge of the furniture with the middle finger of his left hand. Shanvah gasped as the sturdy wood gave and she splashed down into the table. Brown water mixed with her hair as she tried to recover from the shock of what had just happened. She also found her armour and cloak to be cumbersome in the sudden sea of wood.
“This is one of the things I miss most,” Freund said as he lifted his left hand and snapped his fingers. The liquid wood creaked as it quickly hardened, locking Shanvah in place near the center. Her body was in no position to try and lift the table or separate the wood that held her. “How I wish I could see the look on her face!”
“Gentlemen, there is no reason for this,” Shuronne said, putting her right hand to the left side of her waist. The pommel of her weapon was in her grasp, but she did not want to draw it.
“It has suddenly become apparent to me that not everyone knows what you’re up to here, Greg,” Freund said, making a gesture that catapulted the table, with Shanvah still held inside of it, to the other side of the room.
“And it is equally apparent you are without a weapon!” Gregoran roared as he threw back his arms to remove his robes.
“Master, no,” Shuronne pleaded.
Bringing his hands together, a claymore of KaA formed within Gregoran’s grip and it was already leveled at Freund. The gigantic fiery sword was made entirely of the energy of the Priest’s faith and showered the room in brilliant blue-gray light. A lunging stride carried the Priest across the room as he thrust the tip of the weapon for the chest of the blind man. Shuronne shouted her protest as the blade sank deep into Freund’s chest. The ancient entity wailed as his body burst into blue flames and fell around the blade into a burning heap of flesh and blood.
“What have you done?!” Shuronne shouted.
“What I was called upon to do,” Gregoran replied, speaking at just above a whisper.
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br /> “That man has been a tireless defender of humanity for countless ages!” Shuronne argued as she looked for a response to the attack. She knew little of Freund, but it had been well covered that his daughter was an entity worth fearing in her own right. “Have you lost your senses?!”
“My goddess beckoned unto me and I have answered.” The High Priest released his hold on his weapon and staggered back. Summoning the weapon was not normally so draining, but his body was nearly without any strength and he was panting to get air into his body.
“Then I hope you are prepared for the fate your goddess has led us to,” Shuronne quickly replied. “For the man’s castle is silent and his daughter, who is an entity in her own right, has initiated no reprisal. Something is wrong! Your goddess has beckoned you, and the rest of us, to our doom!”
“So this was for your goddess, eh?” Freund said, walking into the room through the wall opposite of the balcony doors. He held a large vial in his right hand. Inside the corked container were three small, familiar-looking black masses moving about, trying to escape. They merged and separated without warning, but no configuration gave them the ability to be free of the glass. Isse came from the kitchen with a tray holding one glass. As she passed by her father, Freund deposited the vial on the tray. Isse kept walking toward Shuronne who was confused at what she was seeing, but did not think she had to defend herself against the approaching woman. “I find that to be very interesting!”
“Im-im-impossible!” Gregoran said as he fell to his knees.
“More declarations!” a voice, sounding much like Gregoran’s, retorted to the High Priest. All eyes were drawn to the burning heap of flesh that was suddenly beginning to take form. “Haven’t you learned yet that you don’t know everything… not even the depths of ability of the one you came to distract and hopefully destroy?” A naked Gregoran stood where the burning Freund had fallen. He looked upon the body that had been the blueprint for his creation, and cut an evil glare over to Freund.