"Do you believe in the gods?" asked the king.
"I do not believe that the petty beings that we just saw are true gods," Tanya finally answered, "or if they are, they are not the type of gods that I would wish to worship."
"That is the same way that I feel," agreed the king. "To me, demons are evil and should be destroyed, while gods are good and should be cherished. I saw nothing in there that betters mankind in the least. They may be powerful magic beings, but I do not acknowledge them as gods. Can your magic match their power?"
"I really don't know," Tanya bit her lip. "I am wary of placing too much faith in my own skills. Master Khatama always stressed humility, and Alex always taught me not to underestimate my opponent. I cannot answer your question. What are you planning?"
"I am not sure," admitted King Arik. "Whatever we do next must be well planned before we attempt it. I hope to use words to achieve my goal, but it would be nice to know that your skills could save us if I make a wrong turn."
"You know that I will stand by you no matter what happens," smiled Tanya. "If my skills are not enough to save us, we shall die together."
"I would prefer a different arrangement," replied the king. "Let's talk for a while and review what we know about the gods. Maybe between us we can come up with some questions that will seem innocent enough and yet get us the information that we need."
"That sounds preferable to a magic duel with the gods," nodded Tanya.
Chapter 27
Amethyst of the Gods
King Arik stared at the circle of god statues and inhaled deeply as he prepared himself for the worst. He reached out and took Tanya's hand and held it firmly.
"Are you ready for this?" asked the king.
"As ready as one can be to face the gods," nodded Tanya. "I hope this plan works better than your last one."
"Me too," sighed the king as he led Tanya onto the green platform.
Almost immediately the room began to spin. Tanya and the king were better prepared for the spinning sensation than they were the last time, and it passed quickly. Once again the serene blue walls were replaced with the beautiful vista of the land of the gods.
"You have dared to return?" bellowed Char as a ring of fire erupted around the king and Tanya.
Arik and Tanya bowed low as the king said, "Greetings to the gods. I apologize for my behavior earlier. It was rude and despicable, but I am unaccustomed to speaking before the gods. I beg your forgiveness."
"That is more like it," Risa replied with smug approval as she extinguished Char's flames. "Respect is important to the gods. Why have you come here?"
"I am on a quest to save the peoples of the world from evil," declared the king. "Who better to seek help from than the gods who nurture and care for all that is good in the world?"
"You are trying to save the peoples of the world?" Thun asked unbelievingly. "You are but a human. What arrogance you have to take upon yourself the task of the gods?"
"You are correct about the foolishness of such a thought," the king nodded agreeingly, "but I have had little choice. Many thought the gods were dead because they did not come to our aid for so long a time, but I felt that it might be because they were being kept unaware of the danger the world is in. So now I stand before you to ask for your help."
"Dead?" questioned Dora. "Who could imagine that the gods are dead?"
"What trouble do you speak of?" inquired Abuud.
"I speak of the Dark One," replied the king, "the one who has destroyed the Universes and rules the world under the cover of the Darkness."
"Destroyed the Universes?" echoed Aara. "What nonsense do you speak of? Surely we would know about the destruction of the Universes?"
"One would suppose such knowledge would be given to the gods," the king shrugged sympathetically. "Who is responsible for keeping you informed?"
"There is no one person responsible for our knowledge," answered Mya. "We speak with all living things. How else could we know of all that happens?"
"And what would happen if nobody came to tell you of the happenings of the world?" questioned the king.
"Preposterous," Mya shook her head. "The world cannot function without the gods. It would destroy itself."
"Indeed it would," agreed the king, "which is why I am here. Do you remember the last person who came to speak to you?"
"Of course we do," answered Leda. "It was you and Tanya. You were quite rude."
"I mean before that," blushed King Arik.
"King Auric, of course," sighed Dora, "but we will not divulge what we discuss with others."
"King Auric has been dead for ages," frowned Arik. "Does it not bother you that none have come until me?"
"Ages?" questioned Aara. "Do not be foolish, mortal."
"There is some truth to what he says," Dora frowned as if she was trying to unravel some mystery. "I can feel that my soil has held King Auric safely for some time now. That is strange, is it not?"
"How can that be?" questioned Char. "Do the people no longer have respect for the gods? Perhaps they should be left to their devices if that is the case."
"The people still pray in your temples," King Arik interjected swiftly, "but they receive no answers to their prayers. It is not as if they have abandoned you."
"Do you suggest that we have abandoned them?" bristled Thun.
"I can see that you would never willingly do so," the king answered tactfully, "but there is another possibility for the lack of communications."
"And what would that be?" inquired Abuud.
"The demons that have guarded the entrance to this place," interjected Tanya. "Access to the gods has been cut off to allow evil to rule the world."
"Demons?" echoed Leda. "They would not dare."
"We had to kill four of them to reach you," shrugged Tanya. "I do not doubt that many people died trying to get this far to reach you."
"You?" laughed Thun. "You killed four demons? I think not. Demons, like the gods, are everlasting. You are mere humans."
"Search for the truth, Leda," requested Abuud. "We must know the heart of this matter."
The goddess Leda nodded solemnly and stared at Tanya. Tanya immediately felt a strange presence within her mind. She opened her mouth to object, but no words came forth. Tanya's eyes rolled up in fear as her body refused to obey her commands. The feeling lasted only a second and then it was gone.
"There is no deceit to what she says," Leda reported as she smiled at Tanya. "King Arik destroyed the demons with the Sword of Heavens."
"The Sword of Heavens?" echoed Thun as he stared at the hilt of the sword in the king's sheath. "With the Sword of Heavens and the Breastplate of Alcea, you are indeed endowed with favor by Razil."
"Razil?" echoed King Arik.
"Something must be done about this," blustered Char. "We have failed in our efforts."
"Then it is time for us to rectify the situation," growled Thun. "We cannot allow demons to gain the upper hand. We must summon our forces to wage war against them."
"We shall burn them to a crisp," Char nodded enthusiastically.
"And drown them under the weight of the oceans," added Risa.
"They shall be imprisoned in great rents in the land," assured Dora.
King Arik began to feel excited by the responses from the gods. He thought that perhaps this trip to the Mountain of Death would prove to be more significant than the entire quest to restore the Sword of Heavens. If the gods could be restored, how could evil possibly rule the land?
"I want to know more about this Dark One that you mentioned," stated Abuud. "Who is this mortal that claims free reign over the world? By what right does he rule over what is not his?"
"He is empowered by the great demon, Alutar," answered Tanya.
King Arik could actually feel the energy drain out of the gods. Their enthusiastic ranting died suddenly, and a pall of gloom fell over the magical garden.
"What?" the king asked worriedly. "Why has your enthusiasm for righting th
e wrongs of the world diminished so?"
"Alutar is beyond us," Aara said softly. "We cannot help you."
"But you are the gods," argued King Arik. "How can you say that you cannot help us?"
"We are but gods," Mya shook her head. "Alutar is the destroyer, the king of evil, the destructor of life. We are everlasting, but Alutar is immortal. We cannot help you."
"Cannot, or will not?" asked King Arik with an edge in his voice. "Will the gods bow before the demon and let the peoples of the world fend for themselves? If that is the case, perhaps it is no loss to have you sealed away for all time. What good are gods that cannot balance the evil in the world?"
Several of the gods grumbled loudly, and Tanya braced herself for a swift exit from the green platform, but Leda shook her head sadly.
"Let him speak," Leda said in a calming voice. "He speaks from his heart which is good and pure. We may not be able to battle Alutar, but are these humans wrong for having lost faith in us? The world is about balance, and we have failed to maintain it. We allowed demons to bottle us up and keep away our followers. In that we have surely failed. They have a right to be disillusioned and bitter in that regard."
"True," Abuud agreed sadly, "but they do not understand the nature of the gods. They expect too much of us. We are but teachers."
"Teachers?" echoed Tanya. "What do you mean? Aren't you immortal gods?"
"We are gods," replied Leda, "but we are not immortal any more than the demons you slew. We are everlasting, which means we will not die naturally, but we can be killed. That is hardly immortal. Your other question concerns the function of the gods. We have great powers, but we are not omnipotent. We serve Razil as the demons serve Alutar. Primarily we listen and teach."
"We hear the desires and complaints of the peoples," added Abuud. "We instruct the peoples on the ways to better themselves and their surroundings."
"We inspire and berate," explained Mya. "The peoples have free will. We do not control them. We teach them right from wrong and try to steer them towards goodness."
"And we try to counter the demons," added Aara, "although I need not say that we have done poorly in that arena lately."
"That does explain a lot of things to me," frowned Tanya, "but it does not help our situation any."
"So you see," shrugged Char, "there is little that we can do to help you."
"That is not quite true," smiled King Arik. "There is much that you can do to help."
"And what is that?" asked Dora with a hint of excitement in her voice.
"The world is in terrible shape," declared King Arik. "You have missed much while you slept, but there is much that you can do now that you have been awakened."
"Tell us how to help," asked Abuud.
"Great wars have been fought in your absence," explained the king. "Now there is a tremendous need for peace and harmony. I have gathered the peoples of the world under the banner of Alcea as had my great ancestor King Auric, the Conqueror. Spread your teachings, Abuud. Spread them all over the world. The people deserve a time of peace and prosperity."
Abuud smiled and nodded his agreement.
"Dora," the king continued, "heal the soils of the world that have been parched dry and lay barren. Risa, rejuvenate the oceans and the fish that live within. Aara, cleanse the skies and bring a freshness back that has been lost for too many years."
"What would you have me do?" asked Char.
"Burn off the underbrush that strangles our forests and fields," suggested the king. "Leda can restore the species that have suffered for so long. Make the game and the people multiply and be plentiful."
"And Mya can be made busy bestowing luck upon the people who have had none for so long," interjected Tanya. "Perhaps they are entitled to a special bounty of it for their recent lack?"
"That would be a pleasure," smiled Mya.
"And what of me?" inquired Thun. "By all accounts, you have won your wars and vanquished your foes. What amends can the god of war make now?"
"There is one more battle to be fought," declared the king. "We must defeat the Dark One in his mountain stronghold atop Mount Kalas. I need you to watch over the warriors during that battle. Bless them in their skills, and clarify their strategies and tactics. Give them strength to vanquish this evil foe."
"You plan to pit yourself against the chosen of Alutar?" questioned Thun.
"I must," King Arik nodded, "and for that I will need to ask a favor of the gods. I must ask you to give up something very precious to you."
"The Amethyst of the Gods," nodded Thun. "I knew you would come back to that eventually."
"But we cannot," objected Char. "Razil has tasked us to protect it. Failing in the balance is bad enough, but losing the Amethyst of the Gods would be a total failure. He would be within proper bounds to eliminate us all."
"Who is this Razil?" asked King Arik.
"Razil is the creator," answered Leda, "the highest of the high. He is the fountain of good, the bringer of life, the birth of righteousness, the father of the gods. He is the balance of Alutar."
"He is the Mage," added Tanya as the gods turned to stare at her. "He is Egam. He is Master Khatama, and it is he who gave us the Sword of Heavens and sent us in search of the Amethyst of the Gods."
"Her words are true," gasped Leda as she touched Tanya's mind once again, "and Razil has shown great favor to these two humans. We must provide the Amethyst of the Gods to them."
Leda's eyes gazed around the circle at the other gods. Each in turn acquiesced with a nod. Without warning, the room spun dizzyingly. When the spinning stopped, the room was solid white. Suspended in the air before King Arik was the Amethyst of the Gods.
"This has been our most prized possession," stated Aara. "It is the most powerful gem in all of the Universes. Use it wisely."
King Arik reached out and took the Amethyst of the Gods. Immediately the room spun again, and the splendid garden reappeared.
"There is still one major problem that we face," commented Tanya.
"And what is that?" asked Abuud.
"How do we get out of this mountain?" asked Tanya.
"Can you not leave the way you entered?" asked Char.
"No," Tanya shook her head. "That entrance has been sealed by the demons."
"You have the power within your hands, King Arik," smiled Dora.
The king's brow creased with puzzlement as he stared at the Amethyst of the Gods.
"Put it into the Sword of Heavens," prompted Aara.
"While we are inside this mountain?" questioned the king.
"It is only a mountain," Dora nodded with smile. "Do not doubt the power of the Amethyst of the Gods."
"Good luck to both of you," smiled the goddess Mya.
The room spun rapidly again and when it stopped, Tanya and the king saw the serene blue walls once more. The gods were nothing more than inanimate statues. Tanya took the king's hand and led him off the green platform.
"That went much better," Tanya sighed with relief. "You did very well in there."
"As did you," smiled the king. "How did you know that Boris was Razil?"
"He is the only entity that can battle Alutar," shrugged Tanya. "He has done it before and survived. You know, all of the time that I disavowed the gods because they did not have the qualities that I expected of them, it never occurred to me that Master Khatama had those very qualities that I was looking for."
"A god that did care what happened to the people," nodded King Arik.
"And one who was active in making the peoples' plight better," nodded Tanya.
"He guided us the whole way, didn't he?" posed the king.
"Probably more than we will ever know," smiled Tanya. "Each and every one of the Knights of Alcea has been touched by him in one way or another."
"He probably saved us from Sarac's forces over the years, too," added the king. "I wonder how many times he might have intervened on my behalf when I was growing up. I guess I will never know."
"And h
e nurtured the very skills I would need to help you," Tanya said with a hint of a tear in her eye. "Do you think we will ever see him again? I don't suppose we will based on what Fredrik has said."
"That gives me pause," frowned King Arik. "I have been defiant against him since Fredrik brought word that I should not restore the Amethyst of the Gods to the Sword of Heavens. Do you think I should restore it?"
"I do," Tanya nodded after a moment's hesitation. "I am not sure what the meaning of Fredrik's message was, but Master Khatama knows your heart as well as he knows mine. I would not be surprised to learn that it was Master Khatama who sealed us in this mountain."
"Why do you say that?" asked the king.
"Because it forces us to use the Amethyst of the Gods to escape," explained Tanya. "It could be his way of ensuring that we follow through with the Ancient Prophecy. Whatever Boris is doing with the six chosen mages, it has to do with Alutar. The Great Demon cannot be our responsibility. The gods understand that only Razil can stand up to Alutar, so we should not dwell upon that problem. Let us do what we have come to do."
"Very well," agreed the king as he drew the Sword of Heavens.
The king handed the Amethyst of the Gods to Tanya and held the Sword of Heavens before him. Tanya placed the gem into the Sword of Heavens, and the king swiftly stretched his arms over his head until the sword was pointing straight up.
A tremendous bolt of lightning flashed from the tip of the Sword of Heavens. The lightning streaked into the domed ceiling of the rotunda with an explosive force. Tanya and the king watched in fascination as the ceiling rocketed skyward. With a tremendous roar, the top of the mountain exploded upwards, tossing tons of rock into the sky.
As Tanya and the king watched with awe, a dark stream of Darkness started flowing down through the hole in the peak of the mountain, like a waterfall of black clouds. Tanya moved backwards, pulling the king with her, until her back was against the wall of the rotunda.
"What is happening?" the king asked nervously.
"I am not sure," swallowed Tanya. "I was concerned with debris falling back upon us, but this is different. This is the Darkness."
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