No Return

by Zachary Jernigan

  After three days of resting, reflecting upon the past, Adrash opened his eyes. The light of realization spilled forth.

  The cratered surface of the moon sped by beneath him, bright as sunbleached bone. Adrash smiled within the divine armor’s embrace, and turned to regard Jeroun.

  Four voices rose in concert from its surface with a clarity that made his bones shiver.

  How he had not heard them before was a great mystery. That such souls had been hidden from him seemed nearly impossible, especially considering his first encounter with Pol. Alone, the elderman had moved one of the spheres. The act should have aroused Adrash’s curiosity, yet he had written it off as an unusually powerful spell, similar to the one the elderwoman had used to bewitch him. Certainly, the outbound mages had progressed a great deal.

  As, apparently, had the voice.

  Voices, Adrash corrected himself. Perhaps there had always been more than one, and his ears were simply too unrefined to notice.

  Regardless of the number, whatever produced the phenomenon had evolved beyond his capacity to recognize. While he waited for a sign from below—or merely for his indulgence of mankind to end—his enigmatic opponent had altered itself to fool him.

  Of course, the strategy had worked. His deafness had left him vulnerable to the elderman’s second attack.

  Yes, the new god had stolen things from Adrash’s mind, had taken them as easily as a man takes a toy from a child. Pol now knew the secret of the Clouded Continent, the location of the nameless valley that contained thousands of elder corpses, and something of the nature of Adrash himself. He knew with sufficient power any man might be a god. Perhaps he had even discovered the other voices, well before Adrash.

  Adrash’s cock stirred at the memory of the encounter. Such a beautiful creature, Pol Tanz et Som, composed of nothing but muscle and bone and anger. Such a vicious, self-serving mind, the fire of it leaking out of his left eye like smoke from a fumarole, the searing heat of it focusing like a spear point from his right. He would gather power to him and use it, turn good and evil to his own devices. But he was not yet ready, and so his voice roared in frustration from Jeroun’s surface. Clearly, his allegiance had shifted. He meant to unseat Adrash.

  What he intended beyond this, Adrash did not know.

  Turning his attention elsewhere, Adrash closed his eyes again, listening.

  The second voice:

  Brassy thunder, the ringing of a hundred bells, the rolling of a thousand metal spheres. The sound gained strength slowly, inexorably, like a mountain shuddering into the sea. Adrash plucked memories from Berun’s labyrinthine mind, marveling at the course of the creature’s development. Solidification had changed the constructed man, making him frailer physically but stronger mentally. How handily he had defeated the mage Omali! Adrash could not piece together how this was accomplished, which only added to his fascination. He felt an odd kinship with Berun, whose mind could be cold and uncaring to so many, warm and sympathetic to but a few. A mass of contradictions, not unlike Adrash himself.

  One thing was clear: Berun would stand behind his friends.

  The third and fourth:

  Churli Casta Jons. Vedas Tezul. Looking upon them now, he experienced the tug of shared pleasure, the slip and tangle of two souls entwining. He let the harmony of their voices fill him until he felt on the edge of some great precipice, as if his own personality might be overcome, and then backed away. He did not revel in the sensations of their lovemaking, though he easily could have. To do so seemed almost sacrilegious.

  Despite their physical weakness in comparison to Pol and Berun, Adrash sensed these two posed the biggest threat to his existence.

  For all the secrets that lay buried within her, Churls saw the world with startling clarity. She considered Adrashi and Anadrashi to be the same useless creature. Experience had shown her that worship blinded men to the truths: Adrash is no redeemer. Adrash will destroy the world. As she thought of the faithful, her true voice rang like steel against steel. She would not flinch from the war her lover proposed. She would look straight ahead, because only ghosts stood at her back.

  Vedas, on the other hand, had only recently found his conviction. He had not yet discovered the strength of his own will. He loved Churls. Oh, yes, he loved her, as strongly as he hated the hand that had molded the world—a place where young boys were defiled and then turned into killers. Even as he and Churls embraced, he thought of killing. He rehearsed the words he would say to the people of Jeroun. Words meant to incite deicide.

  The man possessed abilities he had never dreamed of. He would become a leader of men, inspiring them to take up arms against Adrash. His words would thunder across the skies, waking the elders from their slumber.

  As a result, there would be a war.

  Adrash considered the prospect of his own death.

  He knew he could extinguish this possibility, here and now. He could send his weapons down. It was what the elders wanted, certainly. They longed to see dust covering the earth, cleansing the world of man, assured that they alone would wake from the cataclysm. Even the Baleshuuk could not survive without the sun.

  The elders’ entreaty was faint but never-ending, and Adrash had long ago pushed it out of his mind. He knew he could not choose the long-limbed folk over his own people—at least not yet. If he chose to blanket the world in dust, it would not be due to any outside pressure. It would not be his blessing upon the elders, but a result of mankind’s choices.

  How much time would it take for the war to reach him? It might be a great while before the four voices rallied enough support to truly challenge him.

  Months, maybe years of anticipation.

  He wondered if he could wait that long.

  A GLOSSARY OF TERMS

  Academy of Applied Magics—The Kingdom of Stol’s most well-respected academy for the study of magic, and also the only known center for the study of outbound magics.

  Adrash—The god of Jeroun, wearer of the divine armor. Thirty thousand years ago, beyond the memory of man, he cracked mankind from iron eggs and helped them populate Jeroun. He is rumored by some to have once been a man. The divine armor—an artifact of unknown origin, superficially similar in some ways to elder skin/elder-cloth artifacts—affords him powers beyond any man or elderman, to the point that he can survive in the void and create the planetoid-sized spheres of the Needle from the raw substance of the moon.

  Adrashi—One who believes in Adrash’s benevolence and his intention to redeem the people of Jeroun. In general, Adrashi are more organized than Anadrashi. In Nos Ulom and the Kingdom of Stol, Adrashism is the state religion.

  Alchemical (Solution)—A broad term for all solutions composed of materials harvested from elder corpses. Alchemical solutions are the base for every spell. Alchemical ink is a particularly regulated—and highly expensive— form, as it is quite dangerous to the uninitiated mage.

  Anadrashi—One who believes in Adrash’s malevolence and his intention to destroy Jeroun. Anadrashi also believe in mankind’s fitness to rule Jeroun on its own. In general, Anadrashi are less organized than Adrashi. In Toma, Anadrashism is the state religion.

  Baleshuuk—The highly secretive corpse miners of Nos Ulom. A dwarfish race of men, Baleshuuk have for thousands of years used their magics to extract elder corpses from the ground. Primarily stationed in Knos Min and Stol, where the largest mines exist, their existence even in these places is largely unknown to the general populace.

  Bash—A goddess, whose worshippers form a very small minority in Dareth Hlum, Casta, Stol, and Knos Min. Bashest sects worship her as the mother of Adrash. They believe that she will ultimately convince Adrash not to destroy Jeroun.

  Black Suits—A martial order of Anadrashi found in all nations of Knoori except Nos Ulom. Marked by their black elder-cloth suits and the distinctive horns they cause to form on the hoods of these suits, their primary goal as an institution is to fight White Suits and win converts to the Anadrashi faith. By doing s
o, Black Suits believe they strike a blow against Adrash, keeping him from attacking Jeroun. Black Suits orders are relatively uncommon and secretive outside Dareth Hlum and Knos Min.

  Bonedust / “Dust”—Pulverized elder bone used for various purposes, including currency. Rubbed on almost any surface, it acts as a protective, shielding the material from damage as well as extremes of temperature. It is also a base material for many alchemical solutions. When ingested, it hydrates the body. In many areas, bonedust is contaminated—sometimes purposefully cut—with other substances. Like every other elder artifact, bonedust is subject to periodic inflation due to supply issues.

  Casta—Newest of Knoori’s nations, a democracy having no official state religion. The capitol of Onsa, located on the northern coast, is its second largest city after Denn. Unless locally enacted, in Casta there are no laws prohibiting gambling, prostitution, or drug usage, but there are strict laws prohibiting sectarian violence. Castans of the north are generally light skinned, often freckled, while those of the interior and south are generally darker, shading into slate colors in the badlands. Geographically, Casta is split between the fertile rolling hills of the north and the semi-desert and desert badlands of the south.

  The Cataclysm—The decade-long winter caused by Adrash sending the two smallest spheres of the Needle into the ocean to the east and west of Knoori approximately one thousand years ago.

  Construct—A magically created intelligence, housed in a variety of different body types. The body and mind are typically composed of bonedust, metal, and a collection of more esoteric materials, the exact “formula” of which is the construct-maker’s closely guarded secret. Casta and Toma are the sole nations that do not regulate the creation of constructs. They are most common in Knos Min.

  Dalan Fele—Dareth Hlum’s five-hundred-mile-long defensive wall, which forms the nation’s western border with Casta. Seventeen gates allow access to and from the interior of Dareth Hlum.

  Danoor—The oldest inhabited city on Jeroun, and the third largest by population in Knos Min. It is situated on the plains just east of the Usveet Mesa, and has for hundreds of generations hosted the Tournament of Danoor.

  Dareth Hlum—One of Knoori’s nations, a democracy having no official state religion. The capitol of Golna, located on the eastern coast, is its largest city. Generally, Dareth Hlum allows public, organized fights between Adrashi and Anadrashi sects as long as no onlookers are harmed. Citizens vary widely in appearance, but skin hues are generally darker than the people of northern Casta, Nos Ulom, or Stol. The most geographically diverse region of Knoori, the various mountain chains that cross the nation contribute to many different types of climate and terrain.

  Elders—The extinct race that preceded man’s birth on Jeroun, whose artifacts and landworks are of a scale beyond the means of mankind’s magic to reproduce. Little is known of their culture, but many uses have been found for their buried corpses. Primarily, they are used to create alchemical substances. Their eggs and sperm—next to skin the most prized of all elder substances—can be used to inseminate any living animal and produce a hybrid creature. Extrapolating from the nature of hybrids and manufactured elder artifacts, scholars note that elders must have been extremely long-lived and hardy, as well as photosynthetic. Due to their continual harvesting for thousands of years and the increasing depth which miners are forced to go to acquire them, elder corpses are ever more expensive. Some fear the supply will soon run out.

  Elder-cloth—Any material containing thread made from the skin of an elder. Far stronger than normal fabrics, over time elder-cloth binds itself to the wearer, assisting in limited biological functions. If close-fitting and of a high grade, elder-cloth makes the wearer stronger, faster, and less subject to physical harm. Like all elder artifacts, cloth of this kind must be exposed to sunlight often in order to continue functioning. Elder-cloth can be dyed any color.

  Elder Skin—Skin harvested from elder corpses. The second most prized and thus expensive of all elder materials, elder skin is used almost exclusively for the production of clothing, being used as thread to make elder-cloth and as a leather item itself. When worn as leather, it grants its wearer increased strength, speed, and protection from injury. Though not as malleable in nature as elder-cloth, leather of this kind forms a bond with its wearer to such a degree that it can be commanded to move remotely. Because of the damage it causes to the brain, ingestion of elder skin is illegal throughout Knoori.

  Elderman / Elderwoman—A hybrid of man and elder. Exhibiting great intelligence, physical stamina, and speed, without age-nullifying spells their average lifespan is somewhat less than forty years. On average, their magical talent far outstrips that of humans.

  Hasde Fall—The wooded hills west of Ynon in Knos Min. Rumors say that the Knosi government possesses magical facilities and training grounds underneath the earth in these hills.

  High Pontiff of Dolin—A man or woman elected by his or her peers to head the Orthodox Church of Nos Ulom. In many ways the most powerful of Knoori’s religious heads, his or her position is neither hereditary nor guaranteed for any length of time; he or she may be elected out of office at any moment. Due to the nature of conservative Adrashism and its role as the official state religion, the Pontiff exerts a great deal of secular control in Nos Ulom.

  Hybrid—The product of an insemination of elder sperm or egg and another animal’s sperm or egg through artificial means. The resulting creature generally exhibits greater intelligence and physical stamina than its non-elder parent, but also diminished lifespan and deformities. A large percentage are stillborn.

  Iswee—Home of the hibernating elders, located on the other side of Jeroun. Hypothesized about by the outbound mages of Stol who have seen the constant cloud cover, its existence is unknown to others.

  Jeroun—The home of man and elder, a highly habitable planet with one moon.

  Knoori—The largest continent of Jeroun and the sole home of man, composed of the nations of Dareth Hlum, Casta, Nos Ulom, the Kingdom of Stol, the Kingdom of Toma, and the Republic of Knos Ulom. Though several large islands lay off of its coast, none are currently inhabited.

  Knos Min—Knoori’s oldest nation, a republic having no official state religion. The capitol of Grass Min, located on the northern coast, is the third largest city next to Levas. A haven for intellectuals and expatriate professionals, Knos Min is the most magically advanced nation of Knoori, possessing roughly half the continent’s elder corpse reserves. Long rumored to have a corps of outbound mages and other martial mages, the strength of the nation’s military is rivaled only by the Kingdom of Stol’s. Knosi are only marginally less uniform in appearance than the Ulomi, displaying dark brown skin tones and wiry black hair. Generally flat and arid, the nation nonetheless possesses several great mesa ranges, atop which the ground is quite fertile. Old-growth forests grow in the southeastern lake region.

  Lake Ten—Knoori’s largest lake, from whose fresh waters Knos Min, Toma, Stol, and Nos Ulom take a great deal of their sustenance. Officially, its waters are not the property of any one nation. Its shorelines are, however. Its sources are the Thril Rivers, which begin in the Aspa Mountains in Nos Ulom. Its sole outlet is the Unnamed River of Toma.

  Locborder Wall—A defensive wall that extends three hundred and fifty miles along the western shore of Lake Ten, from the foothills of the Aspa Mountains in Nos Ulom to the screwcrab warrens of Toma. Its length defines the greatest border along Lake Ten that Knos Min ever achieved. The vast majority of its length still belongs to Knos Min.

  Lore—The combined skills, practices, and traditions of a particular mage or mage group.

  Mage—A human or elderman whose education grants them a great deal of knowledge about spell creation and casting. Mages are both self-taught and formally trained, though certain nations and regions discourage the independent practice of magic. The most specialized of all mages—the outbound mages—can perform feats of almost incalculable power, lifting themselves fro
m the surface of Jeroun and surviving in the void of space.

  Magics—The creation and casting of spells. The word is nearly synonymous with Lore.

  Medicines—The branch of magics that deals with the physical form of the body. Often considered the least demanding of all magics due to the great efficacy of elder alchemicals on the body, medicines is one of the most common and necessary of all magical disciplines.

  The Needle—Twenty-seven iron spheres Adrash created from the material of the moon, held in orbit as a visible threat to the people on Jeroun. Though they have maintained a stable arrangement for a thousand years, for the first five hundred years of their existence the spheres were arranged in a number of ways.

  Nos Ulom—One of Knoori’s nations, an oligarchy having Adrashism as its official state religion. The capitol of Dolin, located in the central valleys just north of the Aspa Mountain chain, is a relatively small city of less than fifty thousand souls. Of all the nations of Knoori, Nos Ulom is the most repressive, its government the most autocratic. Ulomi are the continent’s most uniform people in appearance, displaying unblemished, cream-colored skin and generally curly, straw-colored hair. Geographically, the nation is mountainous in the south and composed of high, fertile tableland and pine forest in the north.