Ethan Wright and the Curse of Silence

by Kimbro West

  Ethan sat up and started taking a more detailed account of his surroundings. There were many devices on the shelves, none of which were taken apart, all of which seemed to be complete and new-looking. Another thing that caught his attention was that, for some reason, the sun was now up.

  “Ahh, correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t we just fight a werewolf? And wasn’t it nighttime? Where did Auren run off to? And didn’t you just dump pepper in my eyes?” accused Ethan.

  “Oh my, he is not still doing the pepper bit, is he?” asked Wegnel. “No, I don’t recall fighting any werewolves with you and it has been daytime here for quite some time already.”

  Ethan grew more confused and rubbed his eyes. Realizing he was no longer strapped to the chair, he stood up quickly. “Loki!” exclaimed Ethan. He looked around for his cat, but the feline was nowhere to be found. Where there had been a table with green goop, there was now, in fact, no table at all.

  “Loki …?” asked the old man.

  “Yeah, uh … my cat,” replied Ethan.

  “Ahh, indeed he is,” stated Wegnel. “I assure you he will be safe.”

  “But he was poisoned and I’m not sure …”

  “Poisoned?” Wegnel cut him off. “Ah, then you have something for me.”

  Ethan realized the pouch was still attached to his waist. He untied it and handed it to the alchemist. Wegnel opened the pouch and removed the contents. He seemed very pleased. In fact, this meeting with Wegnel was nothing like Ethan’s previous engagements with the man. Wegnel normally acted like a headcase, yet now, he was pleasant to speak with and seemed quite sane.

  “Wegnel, can you tell me what exactly is going on?” asked Ethan.

  “Yes, of course I can, but if you’d rather see for yourself, just step outside, and if you don’t mind, please call me MacArthur,” replied the the old man.

  At this point Ethan did not care what the alchemist wanted his name to be; he just wanted to get out of there. He stood up, walked toward the door and pushed it open to peer outside. There were buildings lining the streets and high stone walls surrounding the city. Throngs of people were going about their business, smells of fresh fish and meat filled the air, and uniformed guards were stationed at different posts throughout the market.

  Hesitently, Ethan stepped down the rickety staircase of the hut and onto the street. Cobblestone formed a near-perfect pattern and was very pleasant to walk on.

  Ethan looked directly across the street and saw an enormous shop. A huge sign hung over the entrance that read ‘Lippy’s.’ Another sign in the window read ‘Home of the Lippy’s Lickable Lightning Lemon Lollipops.’ Both sides of the hut were crowded with food vendors. Some proprietors harassed passersby, while others had lines of impatient people.

  In the distance, Ethan could see a lofty spire on the other side of a gate that led to the main part of the city. There was a small window near the top of the spire that would have a good view of the entire city.

  He breathed in deep as smells of freshly cooked meat and spices filled his nose. Sweet desserts and freshly baked breads caught his eye. Pumpkin spice cakes with cream and fig, tart apple turnovers, and egg-whipped custard pudding were being sold from a booth right next to him.

  Ethan was so intrigued by the delicious food in front of him that he didn’t notice many of the people had stopped to stare at him. And then it happened.

  “Isaac…?” A guard left his post and approached from across the street. “Yeah, you look just like Isaac,” he said, louder and more sure of himself.

  Ethan felt a surge of excitement and he forgot all the questions that had been torturing him about where he was.

  “Isaac, you know Isaac?” asked Ethan frantically.

  The guard scratched his head. “Well, you’re not him — you look rather young to be Isaac Wright. You his little brother or somethin’?”

  “So you’re saying you know Isaac Wright?”

  “Of course I know him. Who hasn’t heard of Isaac Wright?”

  Ethan looked confused, but remained hopeful. “I’m his twin brother, Ethan. I have been searching for him — you know where I can find him?”

  “Haven’t seen him in ages … maybe ten years….” answered the guard.

  Ethan was bewildered. For three years he had waited to hear news of his missing brother. Now, a man recognizes Ethan and says he hasn’t seen Isaac for ten years. Ethan thought the guard must be either crazy or mistaken.

  “Um … thanks then,” mumbled Ethan disappointedly.

  Ethan turned and climbed the stairs that led back into the hut. He was both angry and confused, feeling he had been tricked somehow. Having a look around had not cleared things up at all. Not only did he have no idea what was going on, he had no idea where he was or how he had gotten there.

  “WHAT IS THIS ALL ABOUT?” demanded Ethan. He caught his breath momentarily and then quietly asked, “where am I?”

  “You are in the spectacular stone city of Tirguard.”

  “Tirguard,” Ethan whispered to himself. He knew he had heard that name somewhere before.

  “Well, you had better have a seat and I will explain everything,” said MacArthur calmly as he filled his mouth with cake that Ethan recognized from one of the street vendors. “Pumpkin spice cake?” he offered.

  Ethan shook his head.

  “Do you mind if I?” asked MacArthur as he piled the rest of the cake in his mouth.

  Ethan ignored the question and had a seat in a comfy-looking chair. MacArthur poured Ethan some tea and then walked over to a large wooden chest with metal workings on the front. It was quite a beautiful piece of furniture. He pulled from it a silk bag that he set down on the table with the utmost delicacy. MacArthur opened the bag and pulled out a scaly snake-like creature. It was rather an odd-looking creature with a dragon-like head, no arms and no legs. The creature was blue and scaly with a black belly that had a peculiar design all the way to its chin. It was in a circle and remained so, because its tail was wedged firmly inside its mouth. The creature’s fangs were inserted into its own body.

  Ethan sat up in his chair and marveled at the odd-looking reptile. “What is that?” he asked curiously.

  He was quickly answered. “He’s an Oroborus, Ethan — very rare creature indeed. In fact, he is one of only two that I know of. And, I have not heard anything of this one’s brother for a few years now. But then again, I don’t get out of the hut much,” smiled the alchemist.

  He set the Oroborus down on top of the silk bag and sat down across from Ethan. They sipped their tea. The creature slid back its nearly invisible eyelids, revealing black eyes that appeared infinite. It was staring right at Ethan, and for a moment, Ethan felt he could not look away.

  “You see, Ethan, this is how you got here. The place in which you come from has a Wegnel, correct? This place also has a Wegnel, which is why I would have you call me by my surname, MacArthur,” explained MacArthur.

  Ethan nodded.

  “The other Wegnel has been known to give a distraction because some people fear getting bitten by a creature such as this,” said MacArthur calmly.

  “THAT THING BIT ME?” asked Ethan in a panic.

  “Yes, he certainly did. Right there on your forearm,” replied MacArthur.

  Ethan looked down and grabbed his forearm, which did not look like it had been bitten at all. “But there is no mark …”

  “No, and there wouldn’t be,” interrupted MacArthur. “You see, the Oroborus is said to be the first creature in existence. He is so perfect that he does not need to eat food, breathe air, or have any senses at all. However, he has been known to get rather curious from time to time.”

  MacArthur looked over to the Oroborus, who now had closed eyelids.

  “How does it survive without food?” asked Ethan.

  “Well as you can see he devours his own tail, but is constantly growing at the same time. He is self-sufficient,” replied MacArthur. “And there is something else that is very special about
Dimon …”

  “Dimon?”

  “Well, he’s got to have a name, doesn’t he?” chuckled MacArthur. “As I was saying, Dimon can send someone from one world to the next — a parallel universe, another dimension, whatever you wish to call it. But the history of these creatures reveals that there are seven different worlds in the galaxy that are meant for men to explore. They are called Athani, Alfhemir, Enterom, Esurio, Inhalo, Prodigo, and Contabesco — you’re in Alfhemir and came from Enterom … god forbid you ever have to go to Contabesco….”

  “Ah, ahh …” stuttered Ethan. “I think there’s been some kind of mistake here — first off, I haven’t heard of any of those places. Secondly, you’ve got a giant snake in your kitchen … what I mean to say … is … well I’m not entirely sure what I want to say. I haven’t been sure about anything since the moment I met you … both times.”

  “I understand,” said MacArthur calmly. “That’s why I drugged your tea.”

  “YOU WHAT?”

  “Hold on now,” soothed MacArthur.

  “WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?” exclaimed Ethan.

  “In my defense, I could tell that you were going to panic. You will have about five minutes before you pass out. So you can either pass out in this hut, or out on the street in a strange world. Either way I will get you back in this chair,” said MacArthur as he held the back of the chair that Ethan had been strapped to earlier.

  Ethan considered for a moment and then caught his breath. “So what now?” he muttered.

  “Well, you can take advantage of the next five minutes and find out more about where you are and why you are here … or … you can panic.”

  Ethan thought for a moment, folded his arms in front of him, and then unfolded them.

  “Can I get back?” he asked.

  “Of course you can. Most of the people here use the Oroborus to move between these two planes of existence. But you must be very careful. Spend many years here — go back, and just a few weeks may have passed. Time and space work much differently between all places,” explained MacArthur.

  “So who is Wegnel at my home, in Enterom?” asked Ethan, who was now pretending to play along.

  “He is me. I have spent many years training in alchemy, and have bonded with the Oroborus. Only an alchemist could survive such a feat. If any other tried they may succeed for a short time — but a lifetime here in Alfhemir is only a few years in Enterom. And when one of us dies, we both will die. That is what the ingredients in the pouch you brought me are for. With these, I can create an elixir that extends my life so Wegnel and I can act as a gateway between the two worlds. You see, I am nearly seven hundred years old, but I don’t think I look a day older than sixty-five. Not too shabby I think — not too bad at all,” said MacArthur, looking rather pleased with himself.

  Ethan thought for a second that he might be going crazy. Maybe he had been drugged long before he drank MacArthur’s tea. Or he could have been knocked out and dragged into the woods of Strahlung by the crazy old man, and this was all just a dream. But then he remembered Auren — and knew his friend would have prevented anything from happening. He reluctantly accepted the alchemist’s explanation for now.

  MacArthur unpacked the pouch of poisonous spikes and herbs. He grabbed some other ingredients from a shelf. He placed all the items on the table next to a device that looked similar to a clock. It had funny-looking silver hands that moved horizontally. Other symbols lined up when the hands were in proper position. Ethan had never seen a clock quite like it. He watched MacArthur as he opened a door on the back of the clock and stuffed the ingredients inside.

  “What are you doing?” asked Ethan as he leaned forward to see the back of the clock.

  “Well, I am placing the items in the clock so they do not age,” answered MacArthur precisely.

  Ethan was hopelessly confused. “What exactly do you mean?” he asked.

  “It’s an old alchemy wives’ tale, Ethan.” MacArthur sat up a bit taller as he began to recite, ‘“in the clock will save you from time, the ageless items you will store, and age will bother you no more.”‘ And with that, MacArthur latched the back of the clock closed and smiled at Ethan. “If you ask me it’s a bunch of nonsense, but storing an anti-aging elixer in a clock has a bit of poetry to it, I suppose,” he added.

  “So let me get this straight …” said Ethan. “I was in a place called —”

  MacArthur immediately filled in the blank. “Enterom….”

  “Yeah, in Enterom — an alchemist named Wegnel, which is you, threw pepper in my eyes — then I was bit by a snake thing, that is an Oroborus named Dimon, which sent me to another world named Alfhemir, in a city called Tirguard, where I find you … who is Wegnel, but wants to be called MacArthur and offer me pumpkin spice cake?” spouted Ethan, who then stopped to take a breath.

  “And?” challenged MacArthur.

  “And what?”

  MacArthur stood up and moved his now-empty mug onto the table and looked at Ethan. “And now we should probably get you back,” he said. “We don’t want anyone getting worried about you.”

  “Worried about me? People should be worried … I’ve been drugged!” exclaimed Ethan.

  “No you weren’t, Ethan. I just said that so you’d hear me out. Most people panic and run out to the streets before listening to the whole explanation. Then I have to go and track them down, and by that time …”

  “Wait, so you haven’t drugged me?”

  “Wegnel has his tricks and I have mine. It’s been over five minutes … do you feel like you’re going to pass out?”

  Ethan thought for a moment and then shook his head.

  MacArthur motioned him over to the chair. Ethan sat down once again. Dimon was brought over to Ethan, and the Oroborus slowly removed its fangs from its tail. Ethan was expecting to see a chewed-up nub, but instead was presented with an array of colors on a plume-shaped tail. Dimon quickly sank his teeth into Ethan’s arm; he didn’t have time to resist or flinch.

  “Waking, sleeping, dreaming …” he heard MacArthur whisper. “I will see you again soon … Ethan Wright.”

  Ethan winced from the sting and entered into darkness again. Time took him. He felt as if he was falling again. Much like last time, as soon as he could not bear it anymore, he awoke.

  Ethan once again felt groggy. He glanced around and realized he was in the old hut with the devices that were half taken apart. He looked to the window and it was nighttime again. He saw Loki on the table, licking his wound. Auren was sitting in the comfy chair starting to doze off. Realizing that Ethan had returned, he jumped with a snort.

  “Ethan! You’re back — you ok? That was so wild, if you didn’t show up I was gonna have ol’ Wegnel’s neck!”

  “Yeah, I’m ok … I’m just a bit tired actually; we must have been out almost all night,” replied Ethan.

  Auren looked at him, confused. “Ah … you’ve only been gone for maybe … five minutes — you sure you’re ok?”

  “Yeah, I feel ok, where’s Wegnel?” asked Ethan.

  Just then, Wegnel came in with his tattered clothing on and his tufts of hair all about. He looked much different than his other self, indeed. Wegnel spotted Ethan and smiled.

  “So you delivered the satchel then, and how did I look? Well I presume, I always hear that I look in much better shape than myself, and I always say that it is because I take such good care of myself and if it were not for me we would both be dead. I always say if he doesn’t stop being so loony all the time he’s going to find himself decapitated. Where do you think that would leave me? I’ll tell you where that would leave me, losing all my marbles that’s where,” babbled Wegnel in his normal long-winded conversation with himself.

  “It went fine … Wegnel,” replied Ethan.

  “I knew it would, Ethan,” smiled Wegnel.

  Auren looked up quickly and said, “Don’t you mean Wegnel the Alchemist?”

  Ethan looked at him and shook his head, letting Auren know
he should drop the subject. For some unknown reason, Wegnel ignored Auren’s comment. He continued rambling about how much better-looking he was than his other self.

  “Well, you boys better get going then. Ethan, I will keep Loki here tonight and bring him over tomorrow morning — best if he rests up for now. Fighting lycanthrope is not an easy business you know — having slain many before, Ivy likes to rest afterwards for a day or so,” rambled Wegnel.

  “Maybe after she ate a lycanthrope …” muttered Auren.

  Wegnel shot Auren a dirty look, and the boys took this as their sign to leave. Ethan gave Loki some affection before exiting. Loki nodded his head letting Ethan know he would be fine. The two boys left the hut and headed home.

  Chapter 8

  Green Goop

  That night Ethan lay awake in bed thinking about his experience at Wegnel’s hut. Unable to sleep, he lit the lantern and noticed the old map rolled up on his nightstand. He unrolled it and began to study it carefully. He realized that it had no burn or scorch marks, yet he recognized it as the original and not the copy that Odin had hastily made. As he moved his eyes down the map, he spotted a familiar name.

  “Tirguard,” he said to himself quietly. “MacArthur was telling the truth … but this doesn’t make any sense.”

  He continued his perusal. There was a large ‘M’ on the map, with a depiction of an Oroborus forming a circle around the ‘M’, and arrows pointing up and down. The top arrow had a large ‘N’, and the bottom had a much smaller ‘n’. Ethan thought this must be a mistake, as the bottom should read ‘south.’ Tirguard was near the center of the map. To the north was a city named Losalfar, and to the northeast was a city called Gilfangir.

  There were several other cities on the map, but Ethan was too tired to investigate further. The flicker of the lantern sent shadows of Ethan’s messy hair onto the map. He brushed back his hair and got comfy. He missed the grey and white cat at his feet, and there was still no brother in the bed across from his own. While in Tirguard, Ethan had felt closer to his brother than he had in a long time, though Isaac was still nowhere to be seen. Ethan yawned. His eyes grew heavy and he drifted to sleep with the map clenched in his hands.