Haunt & Havoc

by Jeremy Dwyer

  Carter and Lavakara stood on the center of the southern shore, at the cusp where the continent’s southwestern peninsula met with its eastern extent. They faced the towering wall while standing on the narrow strip of sandy beach that was not enclosed.

  Standing nearby were Genevieve, Tomiko, Nina, Yared, Tristan, Claudia, Stephan, Nerine, Alistair and the Chronicler Ovid.

  Carter drank anew of the waters of the Zovvin Ocean from his vial and was energized with the powers of spirit. He listened to the spirits and felt their anger, but felt a power holding them back.

  “The spirits are ready to wage a war against Sebastian, but a wall stands against them,” Carter said.

  Lavakara drank anew of the waters of the Nabavodel Ocean from his ornate vial and was energized – both with the powers of speed and strength from those waters, as well as with the powers of spirit, as if he had drunk from the Zovvin Ocean waters.

  “Of course, you’re not speaking of this pathetic city wall made of crystal. It may keep out armies and navies, but it isn’t the reason the spirits can’t enter. Controllers of spirits, drinking the Zovvin Ocean waters, are working to defend him,” Lavakara said, as he could also detect the animus within the spirits.

  “What is all of this about, anyway? Anger is rarely without cause,” Tomiko asked.

  “It’s about how many people a single person can kill. Sebastian is responsible for the deaths of thousands…even tens of thousands. The spirits tell me that he promised them wealth and opportunities while they lived, if they would allow his company to start mining their lands. However, he used his telepathic powers to manipulate their minds and emotions to create false conflicts. Their villages and cities quickly fell into ruin, because he actually turned the people against each other, with clever deceptions and rumors, suggestions and threats. Instead of giving wealth and opportunity, he stole it during the turmoil he created. He would then use some of his ill-gotten gains, along with more of his telepathic powers, to bribe and manipulate governors and merchants in other provinces, and do it all over again,” Carter said.

  “That’s an old, but reliable strategy. What is intriguing is the sheer scale perpetrated by one (1) person. The spirits here number only fifty thousand (50000) or so, by a coarse estimate. Yet, more keep coming, and all of them want revenge against him. That they are being held at bay testifies to the power within these walls,” Lavakara said.

  “Yared, what do you sense? Not in spirit, but in emotion?” Tomiko asked.

  Yared drank anew of the waters of the Elanatin Ocean from his vial and was energized with the powers of empathy and telepathy. He reached out with his mind to sense what was going on behind the enormous city – actually, continental – wall. What he found was stunning: “Love. Passionate love,” Yared said.

  Claudia also drank anew of the waters of the Elanatin Ocean from her own vial and was likewise energized with the powers of empathy and telepathy. She reached out with her mind to sense the emotions and found love, mixed with despair, and the despair turned to hate.

  “No!” Claudia shouted as she dropped to the ground on her knees.

  “Too much love for you?” Nina asked.

  “It’s lies! It’s really fear and hatred! Don’t believe the lies!” Claudia said.

  “She’s serious. Yared, check again. Try a little less optimism this time,” Nina said.

  Yared reached out once again to detect the emotions of those within the walled land before them, and distrusted his first instinct. “This time, the love is greater, more powerful than everything I have ever felt,” Yared said.

  “This must be another difference between men and women. I may never understand you guys,” Nina said.

  “Claudia, tell us about the hate. Who hates, whom do they hate, and why?” Tomiko asked.

  “It’s a powerful man, and he hates the children and their fathers, because he lusts for the mothers, and their families stand in his way,” Claudia said.

  “Yared, tell us about the love. Who loves, whom do they love, and why?” Tomiko asked.

  “It’s him – Sebastian. He loves us all, it’s so powerful. He wants us to come be with him,” Yared said.

  “This is strange. He loves the women, but a telepathic male can feel the love. He hates the men, but a telepathic female feels the hate,” Genevieve said.

  “It’s because of a deception: the feelings of love may not be true, and they are meant to mislead; the feelings of hate are detectable if you can disbelieve the lies,” Tomiko said, merely analyzing the facts and reasoning about them, although he had no telepathic abilities of his own. The waters of the Medathero Ocean flowed through him, giving him calm and rational thought despite the danger around him.

  “I’ve been lied to before,” Nerine said, thinking of the song that the man tricked her into singing, which did not give her the knowledge she was promised.

  “So have I, for years, and I knew it,” Genevieve said, thinking of Count Perceval, and the infidelities he committed with his servants.

  “Understanding telepathy and empathy is different. You have to read deeper, and not trust your first impressions. It pays to be cynical,” Claudia said, breathing heavily and still on her knees on the beach, crushed by the intensity of what she felt.

  “Yeah! Cynical! Like I’ve always said. You’re a smart, girl, but you don’t look too well – almost as bad as me when I listened to the stars in the dark,” Nina said to Claudia.

  “Go ahead and listen to them now, for all the good it will do us,” Alistair said.

  “I might just – we can plot a course out of here,” Nina said.

  “No. I’m not leaving. I want to know what’s happening in there. None of the passengers on these ships are being allowed to enter, but they all came here expecting to be welcomed,” Tomiko said.

  “I told you: there’s hate and false love,” Claudia said.

  “No. I don’t mean the emotions. I mean what is actually happening?” Tomiko asked.

  “We can cut through the wall to find out, since the wall is sealed,” Tristan said.

  “Go ahead and try. I’ll time you,” Nina said.

  Tristan drank anew of the waters of the Kazofen Ocean from his vial and was energized. He stepped toward the towering wall and worked to transform its crystal into a liquid form, but it was difficult, and barely changed.

  “This is going to be so…not fast,” Nina said.

  “The crystals that make up this wall are dense. It will work, but I need time,” Tristan said.

  “You picked the wrong water to drink if you wanted time on your side. Choices. Choices,” Nina said.

  “Are you ever positive?” Yared asked.

  “You know the answer to that,” Nina said.

  “The spirits are growing angrier. Soon, they may turn on us, to release their rage,” Carter said.

  “It won’t do them much good. But that is true,” Lavakara said.

  “So it won’t do us much good, either. Although I am making a possibly invalid inference based on what Claudia and Yared have told us, I believe that whoever is still living within the city walls may be in enormous danger, and that the prosperity and safety they were promised was all a lie: they’re soon going to be killed – eliminated as obstacles by these spirits on the way to their true target,” Tomiko said.

  “We’re standing outside a warzone,” Tristan said.

  “No. We’re in the warzone…and standing on the very thin line where the armies are about to meet,” Tomiko said.

  “I thought that we wanted to avoid wars,” Tristan said.

  “We do,” Tomiko said.

  “Too bad the wars don’t want to avoid us,” Nina said.

  “Music can bring peace. It’s worked before, and it will work again,” Stephan said.

  “You just may be right,” Genevieve said. She drank anew of the waters of the Trerada Ocean from her vial. They protected her body from disease and helped to maintain her youthful appearance. Even better, however, she felt the tin
gle of the growing number of angry spirits around her begin to diminish, as the Trerada waters protected against even them. However, she was looking for something more. She then began writing notes into a book, searching for the proper words to express her ideas. The Trerada waters did not help with her intellect, however: they served only to keep her safe while her mind searched for answers.

  “Music can bring love, and save lives,” Nerine said.

  “We’re going to need both of you. Be ready,” Tomiko said.

  Nerine drank anew of the waters of the Pirovalen Ocean from her vial and was energized. She felt words and harmonies come to her, and began to shape them, but she was uncertain, because she did not know exactly what was happening.

  Stephan also drank anew of the waters of the Pirovalen Ocean from his own vial and was energized. He felt harmonies and melodies come to him, and they were powerful, but had no particular direction, so he continued to work with them before singing.

  “No ship can overfly this wall. I can measure its size by tracing the crystal structure’s connectivity. It’s two hundred forty (240) feet high, and they can’t climb but half that altitude safely. The wall is two hundred (200) feet thick, so any ship would be destroyed trying to collide with it,” Tristan said.

  “When you’re outnumbered, you have to know when to get out. We are, and the time is now,” Nina said.

  “No. They need our help. But we also need help,” Tomiko said.

  “Soon,” Carter said.

  “The war is coming. I can only hope to find a worthy adversary,” Lavakara said.

  “Peace is not your goal, is it?” Tomiko asked.

  “No, but neither is war. There must be a balance – we do not grow by toiling in endless wars or stagnating in everlasting peace – only by alternating between them,” Lavakara said.

  “You are sick and twisted,” Nerine said.

  “Yeah. He is. I kind of like his honesty, though,” Nina said.

  “Honestly sick and twisted,” Nerine said.

  “Don’t be so sure. These ships – they should be sent away. The people on board are waiting for an opportunity to live and work here. If they stay, they’re going to die here, in great numbers, when the spirits become too angry to contain themselves, or for some other reason we cannot yet know,” Lavakara said. Killing merchants, artisans and even peasants and their families formed no part of his goal. In fact, every few generations, he found among their offspring some of the greatest warriors, so it made no sense to jeopardize their future potential.

  “I agree with that much. These people on the waiting ships all need to go now,” Carter said.

  “I concur. They should all leave. Claudia, Yared: tell them,” Tomiko said.

  Claudia and Yared walked the shores and sent their own telepathic messages to the crews of the ships that waited nearby.

  Genevieve and Tomiko also took action and visited some of the other ships, walking up their boarding ramps and telling the crew that there was great danger.

  Soon, the ships began to depart, after their crew and passengers became convinced that this city was no longer welcoming to those seeking prosperity, even though Sebastian had promised it, and even though the Redfire Sentinels had led many to travel there in the darkness. The darkness was gone, anyway, so they sought better opportunities in other places.

  Ovid recorded all of this into his book, writing what people had said, and the fact that the ships began to leave. He measured what he could of the wall, using a scope that worked as a surveyor’s transit, giving him the ability to calculate its height. Because he could not feel the emotions, and the spirits had not chosen to reveal themselves, he could not write that these things were present, only that others claimed to have detected them. He was doubtful that they were lying, because he saw that the vials of water they were drinking from had the classical symbols to indicate which water they held. Ovid knew that, on occasion, vials had been mismarked, even intentionally, but that is not something he could test.

  ~~~

  The Sun Lynx was waiting in the docks of Emeth while Rayner stood at the fountains and refilled four (4) of his own vials with the Atrejan Ocean waters. He was as relieved as any navigator at the return of the suns, and he immediately drank anew from the waters to be energized, and then refilled the used vial from the fountain’s flow.

  Guillermo traveled with him, mostly to eavesdrop on the conversations around them.

  Rayner listened to the sounds of the suns just to reassure himself that they really were back, and that he really was not going to be floored – or killed – by the pain of the horrid sounds they previously gave off. By the clear sounds he now heard, he knew where the suns were going and where they had been – red, yellow and blue alike. He had nowhere in particular to go, but just wanted to know that he could go anywhere. He was back in business now, because he could navigate on his own.

  Rayner then returned to the docks and stood on the pier by the Sun Lynx, waiting around for his most recent customers to return from their studies in the halls. Guillermo followed Rayner and stood beside him, watching and listening as travelers and sailors passed by.

  “They’ve been studying here for days. If they don’t return soon, I’ll have to find new paying passengers and leave without them,” Rayner said.

  “A false accusation is difficult enough to overcome; that it was generations ago will only increase the difficulty of their search for evidence,” Guillermo said.

  “I don’t really know those guys, or if what they’re saying is true. It’s a lot of assumptions and problems from centuries ago. As long as I’m paid today, I’ll take them where they need to go and let them solve their little mystery,” Rayner said.

  “The search, as well as any solution, may have value of its own,” Guillermo said.

  “I’m glad you’re enjoying it. But I can’t spend ‘story’ or ‘mystery’ to pay my way through life. It’s all about business,” Rayner said.

  “Even money has a story: whether it’s earned or stolen; where it’s spent and why,” Guillermo said.

  “That’s the only thing you really care about, isn’t it?” Rayner asked.

  “Your life is not merely a profit to be measured with a number of coins. Life is an ongoing story. Are you not alive while waiting for your next customer? Are these moments of your life not important?” Guillermo asked.

  Rayner was annoyed, but couldn’t entirely disagree with the old man, either.

  ~~~

  Daven, Laurentius and Przemek searched through the enormous stone building that was the Twelfth Hall of Emeth, containing knowledge of songs and musical instruments through the millennia and from around the world.

  “Do you really believe there’s something here that could help? I think the challenge is in the crystal structures being too densely connected,” Przemek said.

  Daven drank anew of the waters of the Pirovalen Ocean from his vial and was energized. He considered different possibilities for lyrics and melodies that could produce the desired effect.

  “Songs need the proper melody and lyrics. The tempo has to be right, at all the right points throughout the melody. A lot of planning has to go into the structure to do something like this,” Daven said.

  “How long does it usually take to prepare a song?” Laurentius asked.

  “There is no usual. Some come quickly; some take hours or days. Everything depends on the moment and the purpose,” Daven said.

  “And the purity of the water,” Przemek said.

  “Of course. Always,” Daven said.

  ~~~

  A cluster of dozens of ships arrived in Emeth only two (2) days after departing from Baradaxa. The passengers and crew came ashore looking to refresh themselves at the fountains and to learn of where they should go next.

  Rayner listened to the talk among them. By this, he learned of where they had been, regarding the walled city in Baradaxa which was a land rich in opportunity for those who wanted to work and raise families. They had b
een invited there by Sebastian. Now, the city was unwelcoming – no one could enter and the wall was sealed. He also learned that a war was about to be waged, because a swarm of spirits were lying in wait, according to claims by those who remained.

  Guillermo also listened, very intently, asking many questions. He became fascinated with the warnings of danger.

  Rayner thought it to be both too fantastic to believe and too terrible not to believe. He drank anew of the waters of the Atrejan Ocean from his vial and was energized. Then, he listened to the sounds of the stars to hear their positions and to plot several safe courses away from the direction of Baradaxa, thinking that everyone wanted to be far away. He waited to see who might travel with him, at a reduced rate, to undercut his competition.

  “I can make a lot of profit getting people out of here, and sail to somewhere better. I’ll cut my price, and even let some travel for free in larger groups,” Rayner said.

  “You can also learn the truth of the danger within that walled city. Sebastian is well known for his powers of the mind – few can match him, if any. He is believed to be the richest among the telepaths, and many people trust him. Yet, these people bring tales of angry spirits gathered outside the wall. Is it true what we have heard – that he committed murders to acquire his wealth, and the ghosts of his victims seek vengeance? I must learn the truth of this,” Guillermo said.

  “You heard what they said. No one is being allowed into the walled city – the people who stayed think that’s about to be a warzone, and that people are being killed inside. Going there will get us killed. Being dead means no profit and no life: we both lose,” Rayner said.

  “Of course, we would need to prepare ourselves thoroughly, for many challenges, both known and unknown,” Guillermo said.

  ~~~

  In the Twelfth Hall of Emeth, Daven found numerous writings about different melody structures, although many used musical instruments in addition to, or instead of, voice. However, he was most skilled in vocals and decided to make the best use of his strongest asset, rather than depend on an area where he was weak. Laurentius and Przemek followed him around, awaiting an answer.