by Rain Oxford
“Don’t do this, Brother,” he said, hopelessly. It sounded like Luca’s voice and it broke my heart. “We’re all each other has. I’m here for you and I always will be.”
“I know.”
“I’ll be Luca for you.”
“It wouldn’t last. You are too addicted to power. It’s not your fault. I wish we could go back and erase this day completely.”
“You can’t do this.”
“I can. I know your name.”
“How?”
“You saw some of my life in your dreams, and I’ve seen some of yours. When our mother gave us our names, I’d seen that as well, I just never knew what it was until you told me what happened.”
“I can take away your memory of today and give you back Luca,” he said.
“It’s too late.”
“You can’t betray me.”
“I’m not betraying you; I’m saving you from yourself, as well as me. Someday, when I can control your murderous nature, I’ll free you.”
A man was trapped in a book. He could create and destroy worlds as he chose, but only in the book. Nothing he did affected the outside world. He could not touch any form of writing or painting utensil, and if he even thought of painting, his hands would shake violently.
In this book, he could live whatever life he wanted with a fictional version of his brother and his mother. There, no person could betray him. He could live his life exactly as he chose.
This man’s name was…
I wrote the name hesitantly and watched the misery in my brother’s eyes before he slowly faded out of my existence.
Chapter 21
I didn’t expect things to get better overnight, and they didn’t. I stayed at the temple, honing my skills and researching the gods, because I couldn’t face my empty apartment. At least once a day, I would ask Luca something only to remember he wasn’t there.
As soon as he had disappeared, I started getting my real memories back. I remembered being alone. With all my strength, I held onto the memories of Luca. Maybe I wanted to be lied to, but I couldn’t stand the idea of Luca being forgotten.
I was determined that no matter what, I would get him back. I wouldn’t let the Painter hurt anyone. If that meant forcing him to become Luca and destroying everything that was the Painter, so be it. I didn’t even want to punish him for killing my parents; I would make him a different person altogether.
I told the apprentices and remaining priests that Isis sent Luca home and the apprentices all wished him well. It turned out that Luca had been working on an agreement with a blacksmith outside the temple to help the boys build doors to the common room and their bathroom, as well as separations. In honor of my brother, I did it for them using my Writer power. It was good practice, although it wore me out.
When the sand people attacked the kingdom wall again, I was waiting for them. I opened the gate instead of letting them damage the wall, and gave them as much food and water as I could conjure. They politely said it wasn’t very good and I explained I was still learning. Lastly, I told them to head north and provided them some weapons that would help them survive the trek. I wished I had a way for them to call me for help.
Unfortunately, these weren’t the only people in need and it was the world itself that had to be fixed. Instead of trying to make it rain or grow trees, I decided to research terraforming devices, thinking that would solve the problem instead of masking the symptoms. However, I needed to discuss it with the gods because I couldn’t predict all of the consequences.
When my staff was ready, I went to Roman’s shop to pick it up. Somehow, I wasn’t surprised at all to see the Ibis head on it. It wasn’t the most intimidating staff, but I liked that. Whenever I started to feel out of control or wanted to hurt someone, I could look at my staff and it would remind me that I chose the path of wisdom.
Isis tried to visit me a couple of times, and I told her to leave me alone. The third time, she refused. “I have to know what you are going to do with the Book of Names,” she said. I was sitting at the desk in my room at the temple.
“Burn it, probably,” I said, not bothering to look at her.
“I created that book for a reason. You cannot burn it.”
“There are other ways to destroy a book.” I put my pen down and turned to her. “Why didn’t you tell me? You saw me with Luca and you didn’t tell me he was the Painter.”
“Someone had taught him to disguise himself so well that we could not tell who he was. I honestly thought he was a powerless mortal.”
“Why didn’t you tell me that the Painter was my brother? You had to have known we were twins.”
“I did. I simply thought that was something you had to discover for yourself.”
“Well, I’m not going to pass your book around, so leave me alone.”
“You are half mortal, half god, so there are things you can do that we are not able to. There are other gods, mortals, and ancient beings who would like to take the Book of Names from you and use it against us.”
“What’s your point?”
“You could help us and we could help you.”
“Can you make my brother back into Luca?”
“Not without his true name. We can teach you to, however.”
“If I do your bidding.”
“Yes.”
At that point, Thoth appeared in his vessel. “Leave him alone,” the god said to Isis. “Can you not see that he is in mourning?”
“He is not a mortal,” Isis said, as if the idea of me mourning the loss of my brother was preposterous. “He should at least hear what we---”
“I don’t fault my brother for turning out the way he is,” I interrupted. “Everyone tried to use him without giving anything back. Now I have to figure out how to undo the damage. Until I do, he is my top priority. You’re not going to use me the way my father used him.”
Thoth’s expression was stoic, but in his eyes, I thought I saw sympathy. “We will give you the time you need and you can use the power I gave you any way you choose. You can overcome all limits with time and practice. Keep in mind that should you decide to do any tasks for us, it will require powerful magic, which will help you to develop your skills.”
“I will consider that. Right now, however, I need to come to terms with what has happened.”
“I understand,” Thoth said. “Everyone has been telling you how terrifying and powerful your brother is and you have seen it yourself, but you also know why. You feel like you need to make the world safe for him before you can even begin to fix him. Despite that, you have not forgiven him for what he did to you.”
That made me sound a little crazy, but it was also true, so I nodded.
“Being half mortal, half god is a double-edged sword,” he continued. “You can do things we cannot, like live in both realms. At the same time, you have weaknesses we do not. We cannot love or empathize with mortals like you can, yet we do not feel hatred or betrayal, either.”
“Emotions are not weaknesses.”
“They are when you have the powers we do. You will come to realize this with time.” With that, both Thoth and Isis vanished.
I got back to work. Since gaining my Writer power, I stopped getting lost in my books and writing scenes I couldn’t use. I still found writing relaxing and I still wanted to write crime fiction, but I had to be extremely careful not to let my magic bring my stories to life. For the first time, I was actually able to finish my first draft of a novel without getting sidetracked. I planned to submit it to publishers after extensive editing and revising. For some reason, my pen name seemed much more important than before.
A few minutes later, the door creaked open and I smiled. Isis wasn’t the only goddess who visited me. “Hey, beautiful,” I said, petting Bast’s ears as she sat beside me and studied my work. The goddess stayed with me most nights, but unlike the other gods, she understood that I didn’t want advice. She always stayed in jaguar form unless I asked her to change. I enjoyed her pre
sence and never felt pressured to talk.
With my brother gone, I wasn’t afraid of her getting hurt. My curse had been broken.
“I’m going to finish this and then I’ll come to bed, so…” Before I could finish the sentence, she took the book in her mouth and walked away. I rolled my eyes and stood. “You know I can’t sleep until I finish my work.” I didn’t sleep much at all.
Bast ignored me and set the book out in the hallway, then pushed the door shut and shifted into her person form… naked. “You work too much,” she said. “I’ll help you sleep.”
I didn’t argue as she pressed herself against me and wrapped her arms around my neck. I put my hands on her waist and sighed dramatically. “You expect me to sleep when I have someone so lovely in my arms?”
She smiled. “Eventually. After I wear you out.”
I scoffed. “You haven’t yet and it’s been three weeks.”
“I’m just getting warmed up.”
“I bet you are.”
* * *
A month and a half after trapping my brother, I had read everything the priests had to read, so I left Syndrial and returned home. I had to put myself back together, and that meant getting away from the casters and gods. Of course, that didn’t include Bast. She came with me to make sure my apartment wasn’t too lonely.
Part of me felt wrong for trusting the goddess after what happened to my brother, but a smaller, deeper part of me thought my brother wouldn’t want me to be alone. I predicted many problems between them when I released Luca, but I would jump off that bridge when I came to it.
I was able to return to my apartment the morning after Luca and I had gone to Syndrial. Time was weird that way. There, I found a book sitting on my kitchen table. It looked like my Writer book, except when I opened it, it contained stories. My brother was living life the way he wanted to, with no consequences or betrayal. For the first time since I trapped him, I felt like I hadn’t made a terrible mistake.
Table of Terms
Syndrial – World
Kradga – World of fire
Voska – Dirty; the derogatory name for people who live outside the kingdoms
Domatago – Lower magic
Getatago – Higher magic
Djehoka sita megat – Levitate the rock
Djehoka sita kegro – Levitate the stick
Tradje – Levitate (self) up
Kredje – Levitate (self) down
Kitmas mortoa – Light the flames
Kerar mortoa – Extinguish the flames
Tekriyar – Reflect (this reflects someone’s attack on themselves)
Sekha – Reveal
Hestvakh – Break seal
Sjokve – Come
Otsakah – Revert/Return home
Ketmeek – Unlock
Tremsa – Freeze
Ikem – Protect/shield
Khatva taha – Wind tunnel
Megyar – Pain
About the Author
Rain Oxford is a teacher who has been writing for more than half of her life. She does most of her writing in a secluded cabin in the woods with a four-pound Maltese as a companion. When she’s not teaching or creating worlds, she usually enjoys cooking, playing the piano, or photographing exotic wildlife.
Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/rainoxfordauthor
Website: rainoxford.wordpress.com
Amazon Page: amazon.com/author/rainoxford
This book was made with 100% recycled electrons. If you enjoyed this book, please leave a review. Thanks for reading!
Books by Rain Oxford
Casters of Syndrial 1: Book of Names
The Sorcerer’s Saga Book 1: The Sorcerer’s Quest
The Sorcerer’s Saga Book 2: The Wizard’s Secret
The Sorcerer’s Saga Book 3: The Raven’s Curse
The Sorcerer’s Saga Book 4: The Dragon’s Price
The Sorcerer’s Saga Book 5: The Hero’s Peril
The Guardian Book 1: The Guardian’s Grimoire
The Guardian Book 2: The Dragon’s Eyes
The Guardian Book 3: God of the Abyss
The Guardian Book 4: The Demon’s Game
The Guardian Book 5: The Wizard’s War
Elemental Book 1: Dark Waters
Elemental Book 2: Hungry Earth
Elemental Book 3: Furious Flames
Elemental Book 4: Insidious Winds
Elemental Book 5: Soul Guard
Abyss of Shadows Book 1: Hunting Shadows