by Jeff Inlo
As if to reward them for their courage, the dimensional portal shimmered into sight. A rift opened a bare arm's length away from their position just as hook hawks began their attacking descent.
Ryson dodged low and then pulled both Sy and Holli through the gateway with all of his strength and speed. They made it back to the badlands of Uton with one bound.
"Fire into that portal!" Sy commanded to the troops who stood watch for their arrival.
Each guard fired without hesitation. It was a pathetic volley but enough to catch a handful of goblins moving toward the opening on the other side.
"Hold them off," Holli yelled as she positioned herself in front of the portal and began concentrating.
Ryson and Sy stood at her side, slightly in front with weapons still drawn. The guards reloaded their crossbows and took angled positions with clear lines of fire. They could all see into the dark realm. They witnessed the massive horde fall upon the rift, but then suddenly stop. Not one creature ventured across.
"They're not coming through," Ryson announced.
"Stand ready," Sy growled, not willing to accept any kind of fortune.
Yet the creatures across the void made no move into the rift. They appeared disgusted with their own inaction. Many fought among themselves. The chaos grew as more beast closed upon the opening, but none ventured forward. They watched and waited, but they did not cross, as if something held them back, even to their disdain.
Long moments passed as all but Holli joined in a frozen war of brinkmanship, menacingly staring at each other through the portal. Ryson, Sy and the guards, though ridiculously outnumbered, held their ground, and the monsters across the dimensional passage made no further advance.
The air around Holli began to glow with an emerald hue and a large green octagon formed around her entire body. She opened her eyes and focused on the edges of the rift. The bright green shape floated away from her body, guided by a force of will. It encased the entire portal and then began to shrink. As the octagon of energy closed in upon itself, it pulled at the rim of the dimensional doorway. The rift tightened into a small break in reality until the magical energy completely folded into itself and both the magic and portal disappeared with an air shuddering crash.
The gateway was closed.
Those on the light side of the portal stood quiet. The guards waited for news from the three that had entered, but none appeared ready to speak, until Sy asked for confirmation of their situation.
"Will it stay closed?"
"That portal no longer exists, but that does not mean another one cannot be opened. Gateways can be created from either dimension as long as there is magic on both sides to feed and anchor the spell."
"So if someone over there has the power, they could just reopen another one right now."
"I do not think that will happen. I cannot claim full comprehension, but they already chose to stay within their own lands. If they wanted to come through, they would have before I closed the portal. We could not have stopped them."
Sy nodded, "I know. I'm just trying to figure out what's going on. What happened with Lief?"
"Ryson destroyed the vessel, but Lief absorbed all the energy."
Sy could not miss Holli's tone or her expression. "That doesn't sound like a good thing."
"It is confusing," Holli replied. "It might explain why the beasts refused to cross, it might not. We have to return to Enin and inform him of what happened. He may be able to sense something within the magic."
Ryson agreed that was the best course of action, but not for all of them.
"You all go ahead," the delver stated. "There's something I need to do first."
"We should go together," Holli suggested. "Enin will want to see you. Your senses might help unravel this puzzle."
"I'm as confused as you are," Ryson admitted, and then offered his best consolation. "I'll meet you back at Connel. I'll get there as fast as I can, but I have to go out into the desert."
"Why?" Sy asked.
"Because I have to. I got something from the sword before Lief pulled it away from me. I'm not sure what I saw, but something has me confused. I need to check this before I see Enin. I can't explain it better than that."
That was good enough for the captain of Burbon's guard. He had learned to trust Ryson's instincts. They saved many and on more than one occasion.
"Then hold on to those blades. You might need them out there. And be careful."
"I won't be long," Ryson managed. "I might even beat you back to Connel."
Holli didn't think so as she watched the delver dash off to the west.
Chapter 10
As implausible as the sight was before him, Ryson was not surprised—not really. If anything, he almost expected to see what waited for him. Despite the absurdity of his discovery, events made more sense, his lingering fears dissolved. He might doubt his sanity, but he no longer had to question his loyalty or his faith in a friend. He believed that was the point of the last message from the Sword of Decree, but he couldn't be certain. He had to confirm it, and he hoped he would be able to do so by returning to the place that Lief Woodson had died.
The ground he stood upon was the site of their battle with Tabris, the sorceress who had joined forces with Sazar. Because of her treachery, two of Ryson's closest friends had died in the wasteland.
For a brief moment in time, that small portion of the desert had been an oasis, life coaxed from the desolation by Tabris' magical power over the wind and storms. With Tabris destroyed, nothing could keep the desert from reclaiming the land. Plants had withered and died, the pond was now a dry bed. All that was left were rocks and sand.
Still, Ryson could find the spot where Reader Matthew died after forcing Tabris' spell to explode within her, and he noticed signs of the crater created by the lightning blast that killed Lief. The blast site was the delver's true destination—a pinpoint in all of existence that called to him.
The apparition stood in the center of the crater and smiled warmly upon the delver as Ryson approached.
"I knew you would come," the spirit revealed.
Ryson looked on the face of Lief Woodson—not a face of flesh and blood, but a spiritual countenance, a shimmering outline of soulful grace. In many ways, it looked the same as the ghostly form that first met the delver outside the portal, but Ryson now also saw the difference. He knew instantly that the spirit Heteera raised was an imposter. The true spirit of Lief Woodson stood before him now.
"I'm very happy to see you, Lief!"
And it was true, seeing his friend at this moment brought Ryson a great sense of relief, almost peace, but then he felt something else. It was as if a great sadness fell upon his delver senses. The overwhelming feeling of remorse tempered the joyous reunion.
"You don't want to be here, do you?" the delver asked of the spirit.
"What I want is now complicated," the spirit replied, "and not the true issue. I no longer belong in this world and it reminds me of what I had become—angry and violent. I am here because I have to be here, not because I wish to be."
"Why do you have to be here?"
"It is very simple. I'm being given a chance—an opportunity to rectify what I had become. I suppose I could have resisted this chance, simply accepted oblivion, but that would not be the right thing to do. You should understand that."
Understand?
There was little to understand. Ryson wanted to be joyous at the sight of a friend, to know Lief had not become unbalanced with hate and anger. A spirit should be above such conditions, and yet, Lief was now speaking of doing what was right. That consideration now plagued the delver in a different way.
What was right?
Did he even know anymore? Even if he did, did it matter?
The delver remembered his last encounters with Lief when the elf walked among the living. They argued over what was right. Ryson recalled the tension that had grown between the two of them during Lief's last days. Lief had become obsessed with
cleansing the land of dark creatures, but Ryson had seen it as senseless killings, nothing more. They argued over the point, but the elf became rigid in his desire to kill all things he judged evil and that included every monster from the dark realm.
That's what Heteera had seen when she recalled the images of the past, and that's why she called upon Lief's spirit to help her in her task.
"A woman named Heteera cast a spell to recall you," Ryson declared. "Is that the chance you're talking about?"
Lief shook his head.
"No mortal can forcefully recall the soul of another that has passed on, no matter how powerful the caster. I am here because a far greater power has granted me an opportunity for redemption, a redemption I did not seek in life, a chance I wasted. Thankfully, there are several chances, and though I do not wish to be here, it is an opportunity I am grateful for. Still, you must understand that I am here because I choose to be here, not because I was recalled."
"That almost sounds like you're punishing yourself."
Lief did not respond and the delver's curiosity expanded.
"Are you?" Ryson pressed.
"We all punish ourselves in some way when we come to a mortal life, but we are also given a chance to learn. I failed to see what I should have seen. I blamed others, including you."
Once more, Ryson recalled their arguments. If Lief blamed him, then it was quite possible that the elf believed the reverse as well.
"We saw things differently. I didn't hold it against you."
"But you were not the only one I blamed. I found fault with all the elves of my camp, even the elder, Standish Loftber, and he did not deserve my rage." Lief paused, but only for a moment. It almost seemed to cause him pain to recall the actions of his past life. "I blamed him because he banished me, but he was right. He made the wisest of decisions and he put others before himself. He found the only path that would bring stability for everyone. After forcing me to leave, he exiled himself. It was a very brave thing he did. He did what he thought was best for my camp. He learned his lesson, but as I said, I did not learn mine."
"So you came back to learn a new lesson? It sounds like you've already learned it. What's there to come back for?"
"You would not understand it all, not yet anyway. The Reader Matthew understood. He renewed his faith at the very end, and he has found the way. There is no need for him to return. He found his path and it seems as if I now have to find mine. I am, however, thankfully getting guidance, though I am not certain I deserve it."
"I have to admit, I'm confused by more than that," Ryson admitted. "I don't know if I understand any of it. You said you couldn't be recalled by a spell, but Holli sensed that you were summoned when she met Heteera, and Enin never questioned the sorceress' story."
"Holli sensed the echo of the spell," Lief explained, "but she lacks the insight to realize that such a spell would be useless. As for the wizard, Enin should know better. I am surprised he even accepted this story."
"You mean Heteera's lying?"
"I am not graced with the insight into Heteera's true intentions. I do know that Enin's awareness has grown. Though he cannot truly enter the afterlife, he has been gifted with a power that allows him to see beyond this life, beyond physical existence. He should have sensed the deception."
And once more, Ryson recalled the imposter, a spirit who claimed to be Lief Woodson, but clearly was not.
"Who is it that's in the dark realm? Who's pretending to be you? It's not Ingar again, is it?"
"No, it is Baannat."
That revelation turned the delver's blood to ice. Ingar was hungry for power, deranged by the sphere of his own making, but Baannat was pure evil.
"But I killed him."
"And Tabris killed me. I stand before you. There are other powers involved in this struggle. Just as I have been allowed to return through the veil of death, so may others."
"So Baannat is a spirit like you?"
"In truth, no. He is different. I cannot explain how, but Baannat was able to return to this plane of existence through deception of his own volition."
"What does he want?"
"What every evil creature wants... to cause pain and suffering, to gain power and control, to destroy and decimate. He also wants revenge, revenge against all those who defeated him."
"Will he succeed?"
"I have no idea, but I know that not all things are controlled by destiny. There is a struggle to come, and those in this world will have to make choices. It is these choices that will define them and ultimately determine the outcome of the struggle."
A struggle.
Not words Ryson wanted to hear. Words, in fact, he had grown tired of hearing. It seemed as if life was becoming a constant struggle. Time and time again he was faced with hardships.
Yes, he had overcome those hardships—him and his friends. He had succeeded in every conflict, but at what cost? The loss of friends, even a loss of himself. He couldn't deny it. Maybe he was losing patience, or maybe just losing faith, but he was certainly growing tired of the struggles.
Ryson looked across the desolate lands of the Lacobian Desert. At that moment, he welcomed the apparent emptiness all around him. The desert had washed away the oasis, burned through the water, decimated life. But it was quiet, almost peaceful.
He had faced so many conflicts, would there ever be a time of rest? Maybe magic was not supposed to be in this world. He had doubts about the magic before, doubts about his part in destroying Ingar's sphere, but now those doubts seemed to double, then double again.
As a delver, he did the only thing he could. He started searching for answers.
"So... why are you here then? What is it that you can accomplish that will lead you down the path you need to travel, lead you to redemption?"
Lief could sense the desperation in his friend, and in that, he took his own hope.
"You came here because you knew I would be here," the elf stated. "For that to be true, you had to believe that I was not back in that cave where you destroyed the newly created vessel of damnation. You could not accept that I was the apparition bent on causing so much pain and destruction. Both in life and after my death, all you wanted was to help me see that my anger was misguided. You believed in me, Ryson Acumen."
"I still believe in you."
"I know, and I am here to tell you that you were right. All along, you were right. I no longer wish to argue with you for I have no argument with you. You, above any other I have met in life, capture the essence of what we should all strive to be. Do you understand what that means?"
The delver said nothing for he did not know how to respond.
The elf answered for him.
"All along, and even to my death, I have believed in you. It may not have seemed that way, but it is true. That is why I'm here. Much has been asked of you and you have given much. Your deeds have not gone unnoticed or unappreciated. Never doubt that. You are a force for good, remain so."
"And so that's why you've come back?" Ryson finally asked. "Well, why are you out here in the desert? Why didn't you come to me?"
"Unfortunately, I lack the strength of spirit to move from this spot. I do not understand it, but perhaps I was meant not to. Not everything is left up to choice, nor is it left to design. There is always some middle ground between the two. You still have many paths before you and perhaps it was up to you to seek me. I can only guess."
"So what happens now?"
"What always happens, the struggle continues. Opportunities arise to make choices, to be strong."
"And for me?"
"You already know the answer to that. Return to Enin. Tell him what you have seen here in the desert. From that point on, follow the path you have always traveled. Do what you believe is right."
Chapter 11
"It's not Lief." Ryson stated as he leapt before Enin.
The delver had raced nonstop to reach Connel. He did not beat Sy and Holli to the wizard, but he was not far behind. He reached them
just as Holli had finished explaining what had occurred in the dark realm.
Everyone looked at Ryson with pure bewilderment, and he was not surprised. He also knew there would be little joy in the news he brought.
"Of course, it's Lief!" Heteera objected before Ryson could say anymore. She knew the spell she cast. Only Lief had ever truly echoed her concerns. No one else even came close. "I focused on him specifically."
Holli did not hesitate in pointing out the sorceress' known deficiencies, but she also cast doubt on the delver's announcement.
"I know she has no control over the magic, but I sensed the spell in her."
"I think you sensed what she wanted to do, not what she actually did," Ryson offered.
That was possible. Holli never examined the true outcome of the spell, only its casters' intentions. Still, other considerations contradicted the delver's claim.
"But you and Linda spoke with Lief, and later, we both saw him in the cave. It was him."
The delver made his revelation with grave certainty.
"No, it wasn't. It was Baannat."
A silence fell on them all.
Ryson looked to Enin, but the wizard's expression revealed little. He had hoped for clarification from Enin, an immediate understanding, but the wizard only stared off into the distance as if pondering some complicated equation.
Ryson didn't wish to say anything more until Enin questioned him, but it was Sy who demanded further explanation.
"How do you know this? How can you be so sure the ghost in the cave wasn't Lief?"
"Because I just talked to Lief... his spirit, out in the desert... out where he was killed. That was the real Lief Woodson. The spirit in the cave—the one that created the vessel we destroyed—that was an imposter."
"You saw another ghost?"
It almost sounded funny, but Ryson failed to find any humor. He was not chasing ghosts or investigating haunting spirits. They were all being pulled into a larger conflict, another struggle .
"Not just a ghost, but the spirit of Lief Woodson."
Sy placed the pieces together, but found an immediate conflict.