Convergence (The Dragon Within Saga Book 1)

by Roberto Vecchi

He thinks he knows something about you and what you did. But he does not. He cannot.

  "How was I able to do what I did?"

  Through me. When you surrendered to me and allowed me to lead you to where you wanted to go, but did not know which path to follow.

  "What do you mean, ‘which path to follow’?"

  We have only a few moments before he will come in to talk to you. I want you to say everything I tell you to say. There are things he needs to hear from you that I cannot yet tell him. Can you do this? I know you have many questions little one, and I promise to answer them, but this must come first. Can you do this for me?

  "Yes, I can do this for you. You have already done so much for me," answered Jesolin.

  Do not worry little precious one, there is much more you will be able to do for me. But for now, this is all I require.

  Just as the voice faded from his mind, he heard the outer door to his holding cell creek open slowly. "...find out what I need to know," he heard Captain Vulin end his statement.

  Entering through the door was a short to medium height man wearing a long, deep green robe. His robe caught Jesolin's eye immediately because while it appeared to be a single garment, it was clearly made of many shades of a predominating dark green color on the sleeves and hood. The colors faded together in the center of his chest to form a circular shape of lighter green with an almost yellow hue to it. His robes gave the impression that it was funneling something toward his chest which held the central aspect of his persona. He stood in the doorway for a few moments before approaching the inner barred doors separating him and Jesolin. He wore around his waist a very dark green leather belt that was set with a ring clasp. Hanging from his belt were several pouches of various sizes. Some appeared full while others appeared empty. But the object Jesolin found pulling the majority of his attention was a long, slender wooden staff that was slung across the man's back. It radiated something, almost as if it had a life and awareness of its own. He could feel it slowly pulse, not in an attempt to release something housed within, but a pulse of life that remained contained within.

  "I see you are interested in my staff. How peculiar," said the man with a rolling deep voice that contrasted his size. He was short in height, but the deep resonance of his voice was below that of even The Beast's and should have been produced by a giant in stature. Yet somehow, in spite of his below average height, this man was a giant in stature. Perhaps not in physicality, but he certainly possessed a deeper sense of depth radiating from somewhere within his character. Much the same as Jesolin could tell he carried no common wooden walking stick, the man standing before him now was no common man. "But before we continue," he said as he slowly approached the cell door, "let me introduce myself," he paused to unlock its tumblers. "My name is Intellos Saa'ik Saa'ir." He walked slowly over to where Jesolin was sitting, squatted down next to him, and produced a dagger from a hidden pocket in his robes. "Now, let me see if we can make things a little better by cutting those bindings. Would you like that?"

  Jesolin nodded his affirmation and remained silent while the man named Intellos saw to removing the ropes initially meant for everyone's protection. Cutting effortlessly through the thick twine, Intellos made easy work of freeing Jesolin from his bindings. Once done, the man stood up, replaced the dagger into the secret pocket, of which Jesolin could still not see, and turned to walk toward the cell door from whence he came. "I will be back momentarily. If we are going to talk to one and other, I would prefer to be sitting with rather than standing over you. I have arranged for some food. You are hungry, no?"

  Jesolin nodded again. "Very well young one, I will return as soon as I have a suitable place to rest my weary legs. It was a very long walk." And with that, he exited the cell, curiously leaving the barred door unlocked and open.

  Moments later, after Intellos disappeared though the outer door, a young woman entered the cell carrying a tray of food. She set it down on the floor, walked over to the corner of the cell and picked up a small wooden frame. She walked over to stand in front of Jesolin and in one smooth motion, manipulated the frame and turned it into a small table. She set it down, picked up the tray of food, and placed it on the top. Before she left, she made a small smile of reassurance, paused to meet Jesolin's eyes, and turned to smoothly leave. Jesolin watched her exit and wondered who she was.

  Though his attention was briefly fixed on the young woman, it was quickly given to his empty stomach, and subsequently the food in front of him. It had been a very long time before he had a meal like the one on the plate. In fact, he had never had a meal like the one he was about to eat. He dove into it with a voraciousness that even surprised himself. The food was quickly dismantled and consumed. Upon its completion, he sat back into his chair and realized just how tired he had become. As the minutes passed, his eyes grew more and more heavy and he felt his will slowly giving in to the call of slumber.

  Just as Jesolin had begun the peaceful submission to The Sands, a familiar deep voice broke the silence, "Well now, I was correct in my assumption that you would be hungry, but I did not expect you to finish the whole plate! That was enough to feed a man twice your size! Very Good!" Intellos entered and took his seat on the chair he had brought with him. "Now, let us begin. The good Captain Vulin has asked me to find out what you know. But I am not convinced you know what he is seeking. So let us start at the beginning. What do you remember about the day?"

  "I do not remember much of anything. I remember waking up that morning, tripping over my dog, I mean not my dog, but my dog. And then I remember sitting in this chair. And that is really all I remember," lied Jesolin. He was going to protect the voice at any and all costs regardless of the trouble he placed himself in.

  It is ok my little precious one. You need not protect me against him. He can offer me no trouble. I will need you to answer all of his questions.

  "Are you sure that is all you remember?" asked Intellos once more.

  "Well, maybe not everything," Jesolin responded as he was still tentative about how much of the voice he should share with this stranger.

  "You know, I remember one time, back when I was still studying under Ugaric, the Chief Ogre Shaman," Intellos replied only to be interrupted by a suddenly enthusiastic Jesolin.

  "You know the Ogres! I thought they ate people! How did you escape?"

  "Did you not hear me," he said through a slight chuckle with no disdain in his voice. "I said I was studying with them, not having myself for lunch with them."

  "Oh, but they did not try to eat you?"

  "Certainly not! They only eat people occasionally and only if they are exceptionally hungry. Lucky for me they all happened to be well fed that year by an unusually healthy and numerous gathering of wild boar in their lands," he replied as he winked at the conclusion of his statement. "But as I was saying, that year I remember working with a very young shaman. He had not yet grasped the fullness of his power; I should say he was very well behind the rest of his class. And then one day, out of seemingly nowhere, he was able to do things well beyond his level of knowledge," he paused and looked straight at Jesolin. But Jesolin remained silent, looking away by shifting his eyes slightly to the right. "Both Ugaric and I were perplexed as we could find no explanation of how this less than adequate student was now able to perform what he was unable to perform only the day before. We talked to him for a while after one of our studies. He was reluctant to tell us what happened because he feared he would be in some kind of trouble. When we assured him he would not be, after much convincing I might add, he finally told us the source of his new found power." Again Intellos paused to look at Jesolin with the same effect as the first time. "He told us he had found an ancient tome and within it, an ancient spell of awakening he called it. In that day, I was unfamiliar with that type of spell. Ugaric later informed me it was a spell that used to be cast upon all Ogre Shaman of the ancient days. Its purpose was to awaken the Great Spirit of Ogressin within, and for those who alr
eady had the spirit awoken, it was said to increase its power tenfold." Again Intellos paused, but this time Jesolin held his gaze. The great wizard tilted his head and audibly said, "Interesting. So, since you are neither Ogre, nor possess the spirit of Ogressin inside of you, at least to our knowledge you do not, how is it you were able to feel my Spell of Revealing?"

  Answer him truthfully my little young one.

  "I really do not know how I could feel it. I just did. I mean, it felt like a small headache, but not the kind I used to get after being hit in the head, or falling and bumping my head. Those were more," he paused while searching for the correct word, "shallow I guess."

  Sensing there was more description, Intellos offered a comforting and encouraging statement, "Go on. There is no trouble waiting for you at the end of your statement. I am interested in the description of what you felt." Seeing the apprehension begin to fade, he was quite sure that the second spell he used, a gentle inception spell focused on instilling a vague feeling of trust, was beginning to work.

  Jesolin followed his elder's bidding and continued with his description, "There was definitely part of it that felt just like a head ache, but there was also something that made me think it was searching for something; like it was expecting to find something more inside my head. And when it could not find what it was looking for, it pushed a little harder," again Jesolin paused searching for the proper description, "Like it was searching for the water in a well. It seemed to know something was there, but just needed to keep looking deeper. I do not know if that answers your question, but that is the best description I have."

  "Interesting," Intellos said and paused for a long, and uncomfortable period of time causing Jesolin to look away several times all the while Intellos kept focus on his eyes.

  You are doing well little one who is learning to trust in me. He is going to ask you more questions. Some will be about me, some will not. I will give to you the words you need to speak. Can you do this for the one who has given you so much and will keep giving you more?

  "Interesting indeed," Intellos said breaking the silence. "I have a few more questions to ask you, if you are willing to answer them?" When Jesolin nodded, the elder wizard continued, "How long have you been at the Orphanage?"

  "Since I can remember really. I know I was not born there because I have always had a faint memory of being somewhere else before, but I cannot remember where," answered Jesolin as he glance behind Intellos trying to see if anyone else was listening.

  "What did you feel yesterday?"

  Intellos could tell the question brought many things to the surface that had been pushed beyond Jesolin's conscious awareness, and when caused to surface, would produce an emotional reaction that was both expected and needed. Jesolin had become hardened in the orphanage, yet when the hardened heart's outer shell cracks and the soft, interior substance is allowed to flow again, tears often were the result. And it was no different with Jesolin. Although he could not explain the power Jesolin held, which was sufficient enough to block his Spell of Revealing, Jesolin was still a boy of young years, perhaps just now beginning his adolescence. Sure, he could have applied more power to his spell, which was cast only as a deception for his true intent, to easily get past the young boy's defenses, but the fact that the boy, who much like the ogre child possessed no power one day only to display an unexplainable increase in power the next, was able to erect any amount of mental defense was cause for both concern and intrigue. But there was more to his concern than simply the display of power from a boy who was previously void of it. There were stories, similar to the ogre child's, where an extreme emotional event can trigger the awakening of magic, but there still had to be knowledge of that magic. In all of his studies, magic was dependent upon knowledge regardless of the talent possessed. If there was no knowledge to unlock the reservoir of magical potential, it would remain behind the dam of ignorance, unable to be tangibly manifest into the visible spells. For knowledge was the key to all. So, understanding what little he was able to reveal inside the boy, he was unable to explain how Jesolin was able to display the power needed to blast a much larger man right through a solid wood wall landing him twenty feet beyond. He needed more information so he continued with his questioning, but redirected it toward things of emotion.

  "Well, what did you feel yesterday?" repeated the Wizard after a brief moment of silence.

  Little one, it is ok to tell him. Just speak the words I am giving you to say.

  Although he was yet still reluctant to divulge any more information about the voice, he was even more reluctant to do something that would displease it and remove its favor and possible blessing. He yielded to the voice and felt his answer seep up to his mind from the subtle, ever-present connection with the dark fountain, "Peace, revenge, trust, hope."

  At hearing his words, Intellos could not deny there was now a different tone and confidence to them. Each word was drawn out as if there was enjoyment in their speaking. With the last word, Jesolin met the wizard’s gaze showing a deeper confidence than a young boy who spent years upon years living in an orphanage should be able to display.

  The wizard sent out a small probing spell cast silently and instantaneously as a function of his mind aimed toward the subconscious of this young boy. To allow it to work, it must first find an anchor in the conscious which normally took a short amount of time. Once anchored, it would continue to imperceptibly work its way through the conscious layers of emotions, delving more deeply with each passing moment, until it landed upon the shores of all things unaware, but were still firmly part of who this boy had become. And that is what Intellos needed to see.

  He knew there was something very different about this boy. He could feel it from the very first moment his initial spell took hold. But what he was briefly able to sense during this beginning discourse worried him. Intellos was ages old and had seen and battled a multitude of evils throughout the years. From the First Engaged Wars, to the Unseen Wars, and back to the most recent War of the Third Goblin King, he had personally witnessed the destruction evil was capable of yielding; however, in all of these encounters, he had the strange feeling that the evil he vanquished was secondary to a void.

  He understood the accountability for actions and the power of choice, but every living thing responsible for the acts of evil he had thwarted did so out of a motivation not to propagate evil for evil's sake, but to fill a void that had become so pervasive, it threatened total consumption. And though his magic was great, perhaps the greatest Avendia had ever seen and most certainly the greatest it had witnessed during his years of life, he had been unsuccessful in his attempts to obtain the necessary knowledge that would allow him to create or cast a spell designed to fill such voids. But now, after sensing the infinitesimally small evil inside this boy, he was presented with yet another opportunity to study the void within. And perhaps, just perhaps, find a cure for the evil acts of the land. This was his motivation to seek audience with the boy.

  He was expecting to find such a void in Jesolin. But he did not. What he found instead was a basin that was slowly being filled by something he had not encountered before. The basin was endlessly large and resembled the magical reservoir in those with the talent, but was clearly something very separate. Jesolin possessed no talent for magic. No matter how much he might have studied and with whom he might have studied with, all Jesolin would ever be capable of was the simple sleight of hand techniques employed by the various entertainers who made their living by mesmerizing their audiences with their illusive tricks. So when he was summoned to the scene of an obvious display of tremendous power, a power he was unable to sense himself, he had to investigate. And this investigation was becoming more and more complex.

  What was filling the basin within the boy, and more importantly, how was it being filled? Or better yet, what was the source of the power manifesting as magic when neither knowledge nor the required talent was possessed by the individual performing the magical mani
festations? And greatest of all, who was responsible for doing it? All of these questions needed to be answered, but do to so would take a little more time. So he continued with his interrogation, though because of the change he had just witnessed, he progressed more cautiously than before. There was certainly more to this boy than his young years and upbringing would suggest.

  "What do you mean trust?" asked Intellos.

  "There is always trust, Wizard," there was a hint of contempt hiding within the last word, "The question you have asked is not 'What do you mean, trust', but ‘In what were you trusting.’ I was trusting that things would never change unless I changed them. I was trusting in the power of people to remain the same. I was trusting that I was going to die at the hands of The Beast sooner or later. And I was trusting in the answer."

  Anchor. Whereas moments before Intellos suspected a deeper influence within the boy, he was now sure of it. His spell had found its anchor within the consciousness of his subject. Just as it did, allowing it to delve into all of the boy’s subconscious identity, he felt something anchor within himself as well. Something was now gathering information on his consciousness. His alarm was surpassed by only his curiosity. He sensed no magical spell from Jesolin or anywhere else, yet he clearly perceived an attachment to his conscious identity. Because he had clearly encountered something of great and unknown ability, he decided to leave his anchor and connection in place, for the moment. His offensive power had gained him a warranted reputation that overshadowed his defensive abilities; however, in all honesty, his defensive reserves were perhaps as formidable has his ability to attack. As such, while he was still very much alarmed, there was no transition into fear.

  At this very same moment, Jesolin looked squarely at the Wizard's eyes and spoke, though no audible sound left his throat. The air grew thick with power, both from the Wizard, and from the boy. Everything grew silent and faded from the conscious world except for the two emissaries of power. Even time seemed to hang suspended in this very moment.