The voice grew closer, and more forceful.
And more exasperated.
“Guineve! Guineve!” It was Stell's voice.
And Guineve wasn't answering her.
“Are you-” I began, but was cut off.
“Hush,” The stately woman replied with a grin. “Wait for it.”
Stell's voice grew closer.
“Guineve! Answer your mental link! Guineve!”
Now I could hear someone stomping through the grass. A few moments later, Stell stepped into the meadow.
She was still dark, with a faint Latino tint to her skin. Her hair was still in tight, tiny braids. She wore what looked like a plain brown shirt that said I'm not crazy, I just listen to bands that don't exist yet, and jeans that were thankfully not as distracting as the ones she wore last time.
Also, unlike last time, she was very, very ticked.
“Guineve!” The darker, shorter woman was still shouting, despite being only yards away. “There you are!”
She stopped in a huff about five feet from us. “I have,” she began, taking a deep breath, and holding her hand out to where she could count on it, “the signs forming for one Chaos-type Trial in the Woadlands. Hints of one Famine-type Trial sweeping across the oasis of the Golden Sands. One Disaster-based Tumult possibly forming on the Sun-jeweled Sea, don't ask how, I've been yelling for you to come help me figure it out. Another Conflict-based Trial forming in the Spirit Kingdoms, this one might form before all the others, and would go on for centuries, and Earth centuries at that. Finally, there are apocalyptic warnings emerging of both Behemoth and Subjugation-based Tumults forming in three worlds: the Sun-jeweled Seas, which makes three Tumults on one world, Pangea, and the Lightborn Lands. That's only two each for the last two realms. But that's still Tumults, and not trials, both strong enough to upheave two of the most powerful civilizations of our Expanse. So when I send you a mental link asking you to come look at something, I expect you to realize that it just might be important enough to help me with!”
Now that she was finished yelling, the dark-skinned shoulders slumped, and she began huffing for breath again.
“I do apologize Stell,” the raven-haired woman answered calmly. “But the mana-knots were unraveling in Avalon's Southern forests, and I became absorbed in trying to figure out why.”
Stell stopped huffing, and just glared at Guineve, her left eye twitching slightly as she did so.
“Mana-knots,” she repeated in disbelief. “You actually said mana-knots?”
“That can happen?” I asked (probably stupidly). “I didn't cause that, did I?”
I really hope I hadn't unraveled anything. I still had no idea how this place worked, magic mist and glowing rocks and all.
“No,” Stell said after a moment, eye still twitching while Guineve just stood there with a smile on her face. “It was not your fault, because there are no such thing as mana-knots. Guineve just made that term up and she knew I'd know it. Just like she knows I know there are no Southern forests, that the South is the only part of Avalon without trees of any kind. She just gave me the worst excuse she could think of, on purpose.”
Stell's fingers were starting to twitch with in sync with her eyes, and I began to grow worried. But then her eye stopped twitching as both of her dark brown orbs locked on me.
“Oh, Wes,” she said suddenly. “You're here again. On you own, somehow. Again. Hello. How are you?”
“Um, I'm okay,” I turned to Guineve. “So, you didn't let her know I was here again, did you?”
“Oops,” Guineve said sweetly. Stell began to huff again.
“Can you not do that anymore?” I asked carefully, but as firmly as I dared. “I know you know Stell better than me, since you're her clone, or daughter or something,” I was still hung up on that, especially since Stell looked like she was my age, or a year older, tops. “But it makes me uncomfortable seeing her so uncomfortable. And stressed. She's got a lot on her plate and I know her training me is adding to it. Shouldn't we both be making her life easier?”
Stell suddenly looked back at me, letting go of the angry breath she had been holding. And Guineve nodded at me.
“You are absolutely right, Challenger Wes. It's my job to support Stell, who enabled me to exist, in any way possible. Thank you for having the courage to say that. Stell, I have been pulling your chain too hard these past months and I apologize. I've actually been using the mists to monitor the same warning signs you were looking at, and am as confused as you are. But fortunately, I have the time right now to study this matter for you, and this young Challenger looks more than ready to start helping you deal with our problems as well. I will tell you what I find out after you finish your time with him. And I know for a fact,” she added. “That based on the memories that you gave me, that there is no other who could have currently handled this nearly as well as you have.”
“Thank you, Guineve,” Stell said slowly, working through her from anger to relief. “I've been wanting to hear that for months. And... thanks Wes. Can you come with me for a bit?”
“Sure,” I said, glad everyone was happy again and committed (hopefully) to playing nice. I turned to wave goodbye to Guineve.
“Make sure you keep taking good care of my little star,” Guineve said to me cheerfully. “She's precious to all of us.”
I nodded, not sure how to take the mist-clad woman's motherly devotion to another woman that had to be older than her. Then I followed the darker-skinned woman out of the clearing.
“So,” I said, then realized I didn't have anything in my head to finish the sentence. “Hi.”
I know. Genius, right?
“Hi,” Stell said back, almost shyly. “It's good to see you again.” She hesitated. “Um, I'm sorry about how last time turned out.”
“Don't worry about it,” I shrugged. “It wasn't anything I haven't heard before.”
“Yeah, and that's kind of heartbreaking,” Stell replied bitterly. “I still can't wrap my head around how people are treating you back on Earth. Any other world, and people would feel ashamed for not recognizing you as a Challenger, much less treating you with contempt.” She shook her head as she spoke. “And contempt for such nonsense. I just can't believe it. Earth sounds like it's become horrible.”
“I wouldn't know what Earth was like before,” I admitted, then smiled. “But I'm glad you feel the way you do, Stell. And you were right by the way. I found out who the second girl was.”
“Really?” Stell said, turning her head at him.
“She was at another party just a few days ago, almost right before I came here last time. She thinks something I said saved her.”
“Didn't you save the last girl with just your words also?” Stell said critically.
“I guess so,” I admitted. “But I wasn't even at this party. I just warned her about the guy a couple weeks ago.”
“Did anyone else warn her about him?” Stell asked calmly, effortlessly avoiding a tree root that I almost stumbled into myself.
“They should have. But probably not,” I finally admitted to myself. Davelon probably hadn't gone to parties since he quit the football team, and he wasn't quite as familiar with Chris' dark side as I was.
“Well, it sounds like proper credit to me, and Avalon recognized the Deed as well. So, as usual, you're outnumbered at least three to one here,” Stell said, looking at me and giving a grin.
“I'm outnumbered back home too,” I replied. “But at least here people like me more.” All two or three of them.
“Then it's settled,” she said firmly. “You should keep coming here.”
“I guess I will,” I grinned back. “So… when am I supposed to get on top of all those tumults or whatever they're called?”
“You're already feeling okay about that?” Stell asked, tilted her head. “I thought you were still worried you were going crazy?”
“Well yeah,” I replied with more conviction than I felt. “But if I'm going crazy, the
re's not a whole lot I can do about but take a whole bunch of really dangerous pills. Which I shouldn't even bother with if this doesn't start affecting my personal life back home. And if I'm not crazy, then I'd better wise up and pay attention then, right?”
Stell chuckled at that. She had a nice laugh. Not rich in the same way Guineve's was, but with its own, softer charm.
“That's a proper Challenger attitude. Though this place is going to change you, even when you return.”
I stumbled as she spoke.
“Wha?” I asked.
“Remember what I said before? You're going to grow more and more powerful as you overcome more obstacles. Slaying monsters, mastering magic, solving dangerous situations. It will all make you stronger, and some of that strength will follow you home. You won't be able to fly or lift houses or anything, but you should notice some change for the better. Would that count as proof for you?”
“Just how much would I change, exactly?” I asked with trepidation. The questions I had been afraid to ask earlier jumped to the front of my mind. Would I be able to walk again? Would my memory get better?
Could I function again as a normal person?
“I honestly don't know” Stell admitted. “I've never had this many Trials and Tumults appear so closely. Most Challengers help me with one, with a rare few handling two or even three at once, but no more than that. And we've never had this much time to train a Challenger either. And my information about the previous Challenger's time on Earth is sparse after they leave for good. But they all seemed a little stronger, a little smarter... they all get a little better at something they needed to be good at back on Earth. But that's how it's supposed to work, anyway. Saving others is supposed to benefit the rescuer as well. That's how the first Challengers were created, according to my people's legends.”
But I was only half-listening to her talking about legends.
“Stell, if you had stressed that part before,” I started to say, then shook my head. “You have successfully moved me from cautious worry about my sanity to hopeful excitement about my future. Please tell me how to begin, and as soon as possible.”
She grinned at me, as if she was feeding off my excitement, and led me to another clearing.
Chapter 13: Conditioning
“Got a question for you,” I said as I stood in the middle of some more glowing rocks.
“Fire away,” Stell said as she stood over a particularly tall outcropping of the same rocks, tapping the glowing lines on them like they were part of a keyboard on a computer.
“What do you call these stones you use to do your work? I've just been calling them magical glowing rocks, and I feel stupider, er, more stupid, I mean, sillier. Let’s go with sillier. I feel sillier every time I call them that in my head.”
“My people call them know-stones,” the dark-skinned woman said as she pushed another rune.
“Know-stones? Really?” I asked. “That sounds... kind of dumb.”
She looked up at me and grinned.
“Then go back to calling them magical glowing rocks. See which name makes you feel smarter.”
I sighed.
“Do you really call them know-stones? I thought your race had its own, unpronounceable language that I can't speak?”
“We do,” she said with another smirk. “And you can't speak it. So we call them know-stones for your benefit. They store information, or spells that perform certain rituals. They know whatever I tell them to know, so... know-stones.”
“Ugh,” I said. “Honestly? Not one of your best jobs at naming things.”
She just stuck her tongue out at me, and I laughed.
“Why are you so easy to talk to?” I asked, changing the subject. “You sound just like you're my age. But you get Challengers sporadically, so it's unlikely you would already know our jargon. How does that work?”
“The last Challenger wasn't that many Earth-years ago, so some of what I learned from him is still recent. And I can scry your planet occasionally, and learn snippets of news. But since your world has so many languages anyway, I use my translation magic to help me talk to your people. As soon as you start talking, it takes into account your mannerisms and figures of speech. It really helps with detailed conversations, and with all the dangerous material you'll be learning it should prevent deadly miscommunications.”
“Huh,” I said in reply. “That sounds really neat. Cool, even.”
“Cool. That last one I learned years ago,” she said proudly. “Part of it could also be that you're the first Challenger I've had that's closest to my actual age.”
“What do you mean?” I said. “I thought your race had a much longer lifespan than mine.”
“Exactly,” she nodded. “My stage of growth would be on the cusp of adulthood. Just like you.”
I chose not to bring up anything Guineve had told me about giving away memories. Or the fact that Guineve looked so much older. I suspected there was more to it than the original reason Stell gave me on my first visit.
“Actually,” I said instead. “I won't legally be considered an adult in my country for another four years. I'm only eighteen.”
“Wow, really? Four more Earth years? That's insane,” She said with a snort. “I thought people in your country became adults when they were eighteen?”
“You’re thinking a century ago,” I replied. “The new law says I’ll get all of my rights at age 22.”
Dad said a century ago people my age were considered adults at the age of eighteen, but recently the government believed that put too much pressure on developing teens, so the right to vote and everything else was pushed back to 22, and require special permission from their parents or the state to work, go to college or enlist in the military. But the government passed a law after that saying it reserved the right to conscript into the armed forces or to legally try as an adult anyone sixteen years old or older. Both laws were hailed as landmark accomplishments that would decrease the pressure and delinquency of late teens. But the media and government both frowned upon asking for proof on that matter.
“They must baby you guys these days,” Stell replied. “I've heard of Earthlings fighting and winning battles, designing inventions, even ruling countries that were younger than you. At any rate, the know-stones have finished loading their scanning spell. This next part will really help you going forward. You'll actually be able access on your own mind-screen every time you come here from Earth.”
“Access what?” I started to ask, but then a deep voice boomed from the mist again.
“The Challenger's Basic Abilities have been calculated. Imprinting the ability to measure oneself onto the Challenger directly.”
The mist began to swirl violently around my feet. Suddenly my feet, and then my legs, and then the rest of my body was glowing blue. A screen appeared directly in front of my eyes. It matched the larger screen that hovered in the air in front of both me and Stell.
Initial Ability Record for Wes Malcolm
Race: Human. Origin: Earth (Challenger).
Growth level: Unrisen
Strength: 10
Dexterity: 10
Constitution: 10
Intelligence: 14
Wisdom: 22
Charisma: 12
Wow. Basic tabletop gaming stats... okay…
I'm in one of my sister's Pathwalker campaigns. Yep. Not going crazy at all. No siree. And I even have unbalanced stats to boot. Hurray.
“So,” Stell said carefully. “Since you're probably not used to seeing yourself represented this way,” (Ha-ha) “I should probably explain what each characteristic means...”
“Why do I even have these?” I asked numbly. “Why am I able at all to now look at myself in a way that will fit on a spreadsheet?”
“Because everyone else can,” Stell said simply. “On every other world, people can visualize the ways that they grow. Your world is the only one where people have such a hard time tracking their own growth.”
“So everywhere
else people can look at these six specific traits, and figure if they exercise and read enough?”
Stell shrugged. “They can track changes to themselves in different ways. But from what I've found, these six seem to work the best for helping Earth-born Challengers track their own growth, at least in the beginning. If you're ready, I'll go ahead and give you a basic explanation of what they mean...”
“Before you do that,” I interrupted and raised my hand. “Why don't I tell you what I think they mean, so that you can clear out any misconceptions first?”
“Well, okay,” Stell said slowly. “But I'm not sure you'd even be familiar with most of them to have a lot of misconceptions...”
Downfall And Rise (Challenger's Call Book 1) Page 16