by Peter Hartz
“You gain almost as much enjoyment from training these dogs as you do our guard force, do you not?”
“In many ways, even more. Think about it. Dogs are not as intelligent as humans or elves, and have no ability to learn our language, other than Sadie there, thanks to Giltreas’ spell.” She smiled and shook her head as she remembered the permanent change the spell, cast as a joke, had made in the big dog.
“We take them from the only world they have ever known, their mother and their brothers and sisters, and at a very young age, sometimes just weeks old, expect them to learn dozens of new things from people who aren’t even of their species. I am constantly astonished at what dogs are capable of. Even more, I am humbled by how completely and unconditionally they love us, and want nothing more than for us to love them in return. Once you figure that out, you realize how truly special dogs are. You will do anything to ensure you are worthy of that unconditional, selfless love.”
The serious tone in her voice conveyed the strength of her convictions about her feelings for dogs, and he blinked as he realized he was impressed with what she was saying about dogs, as well.
Living as long as he had, he was used to introspection and self-assessment. And as he thought about it, he realized that maybe his opinion of humans needed some serious adjustment. Certainly in light of what he was learning about and from Allison, he thought that he needed to be more objective, and not let his past experience cloud his judgment. But he also knew himself, and realized that his automatic reactions were going to be more negative than humans deserved. He sighed internally, as he recognized the task ahead of him to be fairer with others around him in the future.
Allison seemed to sense the Seneschal’s emotions somewhat, and looked at him out of the corner of her eye while she worked with Max. The prickly personality she had first seen when they came here seemed to be mellowing, and she was not sure what to make of it. Someone had answered her question as to how old the elven noble was, and it had taken her breath away to realize the elven man next to her was well over two thousand years old, and possibly much more. She supposed that someone that old might get a little set in their ways, she thought with obvious understatement, but he seemed to have the ability to change his opinions and attitudes as he was presented with new perspectives. It was refreshing to see a millennia-old elf be able to do something that she didn’t often see even in senior humans from her own world, she thought to herself with an internal smile.
The Seneschal, for his own part, continued to work with Sadie while alongside Allison, learning what she could do and generally having a wonderful time interacting with the well-trained talking dog. Sadie even was able to provide verbal feedback, somewhat, when he didn’t do a command right or moved a hand signal the wrong way that she didn’t understand.
“Don’t know that one. What?”
He took it in good humor, though.
“She is almost training me, isn’t she?” He laughed.
“You know, I didn’t think of it that way, but it certainly seems like it. When you take a new dog to obedience classes for the first time, if you have a good trainer, you quickly realize that the trainer isn’t there to train your dog. He or she is there to teach you how to train your dog. I guess Sadie has really mastered everything I have tried to teach her, and now she is passing that on to you, as best she can,” Allison said with a laugh.
He joined in the laughter. “I guess I am in good hands, then, eh, Sadie? How am I doing so far?”
“You do good. And you are much happier now than when we first met. I like you much more now. Especially when you give me treats. More treats, please? What do I have to do to get more?”
They both laughed. “Sadie, you are a shameless moocher, you know that?” Allison reached over to caress Sadie’s head.
“That’s good, right?” was the response.
Chapter 36
Just over an hour later, the FBI agent had been sitting on the beach in one of the chairs from the interview room, wondering what was going to happen next and how he was going to get back to Minnesota, when he heard a voice behind him that startled him into standing up and reaching for his gun.
The gun flew out of his grip and towards Daniel before floating in the air some feet behind him and up in midair.
“We need to come to an understanding, or I will simply leave you here. I’m not the bad guy. I am hoping you don’t end up being one, or as much as I will regret needing to, I deal with you as I see fit.”
“What do you mean, deal with me? What the hell is going on? How are you able to do all this?”
Daniel sighed. “Let me tell you what is really happening. A very long time ago -“
“I don’t have time for fairy tales! Cut to the chase!”
Daniel cast another spell on himself then waved his hand at the annoying FBI agent. Before he could even blink, the senior agent of the entire Minneapolis office of the FBI found himself lifted up and thrown quite far out into the salty ocean water.
“Daniel! What are you doing? Don’t hurt him! Bring him back here!” Daniel’s mother yelled at him in surprise before she could stop herself, shocked at what her son was not only able to do, but willing to do. In her mind, she persisted in thinking of him as a teenager, and therefore a child, in spite of the very recent memory of her running up the beach of their deserted island in the form of a Bengal tiger, or what he had told her shortly thereafter. It was going to take some significant changes in her thinking before she would think anything else about her only son, and her only immediate family since his father, her husband, had walked out and divorced her when Daniel was only months old.
The agent surfaced, shocked at both being tossed so easily out into the ocean, and finding himself suddenly soaked to the skin in the very warm ocean water. Cursing, he started to swim back towards shore and the teenager that had so casually tossed him out here. But before a moment had gone on, he heard Daniel’s mother yelling at the boy, and suddenly he was lifted out of the water again, and his arms and legs seemed to windmill as he was pulled quickly through the air and held above the beach again in midair.
Daniel looked at the middle-aged man he was keeping in the air by the telekinesis spell, wondering what it would take to get through to him. Then he spoke up again.
“Are you going to interrupt me again? If you do, I will take my mother and return back to the police station without you. I assume that you would rather do anything else other than spend the rest of your life on this island wondering if I am going to come back for you?”
The agent finally found his good sense, and just nodded yes, not trusting himself to speak again. Then he found himself being lowered to the sandy beach. He started to shake the water out of his suit, but Daniel spoke a word and waved his hand, and he suddenly found his suit and clothing completely dry. Another word from Daniel and a wave of his hand, and his skin and hair was dry as well. The shocks just keep coming, he said silently to himself inside. Then he nodded his thanks at Daniel, still not trusting himself with speech just yet.
“Good. Thousands of years ago, the humans of this plane and their Gods had a disagreement. The humans told the Gods to stop meddling in their lives and generally treating the mortal humans under their care like pets or pieces on a chess board. Two of the Gods, Anubis of the Egyptian tribes, and Anaradelle the Goddess of Family, Children, and Nature, demanded that the humans build a tower to meet in to discuss humanity’s grievances. The Gods felt that if the humans were serious, they would show it by putting in the work to meet their demands. When the tower was built, the Gods and the humans met to discuss how the humans were being treated. After much debate and no agreement, the Gods decided that something needed to be done to show the humans how much they needed the Gods and that they should just submit to Their will, so they decided to leave the humans to their own devices.”
Both Agent Nelson now and Daniel’s mother Marie earlier were taken aback at the information that Daniel was presenting. The existence of mu
ltiple deities went against everything that they and everyone else they knew and had been taught since childhood. Marie was still trying to process everything Daniel told her earlier after their run about his training and abilities. Now, this new information was coming at her from her son, of all people. It was hard to believe it was happening, even as she lived the experience.
“The Gods then told the other intelligent races, the elves, dwarves, halflings, centaurs, minotaurs, among others, that the Gods were going to leave this plane to punish the humans. All the rest of the higher races left this plane, along with every magical creature and being. Then, just before the Gods left, they did two things. They changed every tribe’s language so that no one could speak with each other, and then they put up a wall to prevent anyone from using magic on this entire plane. Are you with me so far?”
The FBI agent nodded cautiously, more to acknowledge what was being said, than in agreement, Daniel noted, but that was ok with him. Then he continued.
“The Gods were split into two groups on this. Some of the Gods, such as Odin and his family, felt that it was best to change the languages and put up the wall blocking magic to prevent the different tribes from going to war with each other. The thought was that if they couldn’t communicate, they wouldn’t be able to have disagreements, which would progress to people killing each other. And they also felt that blocking magic would remove the most powerful tools that people could use in war between the tribes, as a way to limit the damage they could do to each other. So, if anything had to be done, this was for the best. It would keep the peace. Odin also, according to my teacher, didn’t agree with what Anubis was doing, but didn’t oppose him and those that agreed with him, because he had no other ideas on what should be done.”
This was much more than what Daniel had told his mother earlier, and she listened in rapt attention. The story Daniel was telling had such a ring of truth to it that it was almost an audible thing in the air.
“The other group of Gods wanted the humans punished. They felt that the humans deserved the isolation and being deprived of magic, the birthright of every higher race. But regardless of their lack of agreement on the why, the Gods were in agreement about what to do, if for very different reasons.”
“Wait, are you talking about the Tower of Babel?” The agent blurted out as realization came to him before he could stop himself.
“Yes, that is what it is called in the Bible. In the ancient Akkadian language, it was called Babel tower as well. Ancient Akkadian is the original human language, by the way. It hasn’t been spoken on this plane in several thousand years, since the last Akkadian was killed by a rival tribe. They were most likely targeted first because it was an Akkadian who started the entire rebellion that led to their loosing magic and having their languages changed.
“The Gods decided to have a few of their fellow Gods look in on the tribes of humanity four hundred years later, to see if they were ready to submit to the rule of the Gods once more. If the humans were contrite and more amenable to reason, they would take the wall down, and everything would be as it was before. The language issue would have to be fixed, but that would not be difficult for the Gods to undo. As a group, they fully expected the humans to be repentant and ready to serve the Gods again. Things didn’t work out the way.
“What they found was that several of the original tribal structures had been wiped out entirely. War was prevalent. One tribe or another would decide to go to war with a neighbor, and they would fight to the death, the loser’s side not just getting wiped out to the last man, woman and child, but also getting entirely erased from history. And as the Gods discovered in horror, the humans created their own false Gods and religions to worship those Gods. The population of this plane had dropped to less than half of what it had been before the Babel incident. Entire civilizations were gone. Very little that the Gods had known was untouched. And everyone and everything left was scarred by conflict.
“Based on what was happening, the Gods thought it was only a matter of time before the population died out. It was decided that the humans here would be left on their own forever. The Gods left, and didn’t look back. But there was a problem.”
Both the agent and Daniel’s mother could only listen in complete silence as Daniel’s narrative went on and on. A lot of they thought they knew about ancient human history was wrong, and the shock of how bad things were, and how far off course this world was from what it was supposed to be, was worse than anything they had ever known.
“This plane, which makes up what we like to believe to be the entire physical universe, is one of many that are joined together in a multiverse. There are an unknown number of multiverses that exist. Each multiverse is overseen by what some on other planes call a Greater God, the most powerful deity in that multiverse. This multiverse is the domain of a Greater God that calls himself Sekur, the God of the Wheel. This multiverse is here to teach balance. It is His role in this multiverse is to oversee everything here, in order to create an environment for the souls of mortals to learn and grow in.
“Souls did not come into being in this multiverse originally, but came here from a different multiverse. They ‘ascended’ to this multiverse from their previous ones. Here they will spend dozens of lives reincarnating in this multiverse, and each time they do, their souls will learn, grow, and evolve. Then when they have learned everything they can from this multiverse, they ascend to the next multiverse, and continue their journey there. This is called the Great Path of the Soul. No one knows where it begins or ends, although Sekur has said he thinks the Great Path is both timeless and endless.
“But back to that problem. When the wall preventing magic from being used was still up, souls couldn’t leave this plane and go to the other planes of this multiverse, let alone ascend to the next multiverse and continue their immortal journey. But somehow, souls still ascend to this multiverse, and reincarnate through their lives as they learn and grow. The Land of the Dead for this plane is overwhelmed with souls ready to ascend, who are stuck here until the argument between the Gods and the Humans of this plane is resolved.
“Which brings this back around to me. The wall has come down. Magic has returned. Many of the souls that had been ready to ascend to the next multiverse have continued on to the next part of their journey on the Great Path of the Soul.
“And everyone on this plane now has access to be able to cast spells and perform magic again. And I mean real magic, like I can do, not those sleight of hand tricks that you see on stages and television shows. There are many levels of magical ability that occur naturally in races that can perform magic.
“I am special, because I am able to do so much more than almost everyone else. I apparently have the ability to tap directly into the magic energy of the entire plane to cast spells. There are a few others out there who have, for one reason or another, discovered their abilities on their own. Sekur tells me this ability is exceedingly rare. He trained me endlessly every night while I was asleep for a month of real time. I think the training was the equivalent of around fourteen years or so of dedicated training, six hours a day, five days a week.
“I have sworn to Sekur to only do good things that help people with my abilities, an oath he was more than happy to accept, as it serves His Purpose. But in the process of doing that, it may look from time to time like what I do is evil. I will be called upon to fight others, to stop people who are trying to hurt others. And some of them may die. I will regret that, but I will do it without pause if it serves The Greater Good.
“So you are telling me you will be judge, jury, and executioner in the service of some being I have never met? I don’t like the sound of that. What if this... Sekur?” At Daniel’s confirming nod, the agent continued, “What if this Sekur isn’t what he seems to be? How do I know that he is good? Do I just take your word for it? That is a big leap of faith I am not willing to make right now. You’re just a sixteen year old kid. That is not acceptable.”
Daniel’s mother
nodded in somewhat agreement with the FBI agent. “I don’t want you doing this. You’re just a boy. You have a life ahead of you, and I don’t want to see you throw it away on something like this. It is almost more like a fantasy or a good story than anything else. How do you know this is really happening?”
Daniel sighed visibly. Then he spoke once more, but obviously not to either his mother or the FBI agent. “How do I convey this to them, my Teacher?”
There was a rush of sound, and suddenly a man was standing there some few feet away.
“Would it be easier if I explained it in person?”
“Definitely, Teacher.” Daniel bowed slightly to the newcomer, who walked up and hugged Daniel, a very fatherly gesture that wasn’t lost on either of the other two adults on the beach. Then he straightened up and stepped back.
“I am Sekur. Daniel has been truthful to you about everything he has said. William Morris Nelson, Daniel is my student. He serves The Good. His motives, and his actions, will not be questioned by mortals. He will answer only to me.”
Agent Nelson could only stare open-mouthed at the newcomer. The presence of the being was overwhelming, beating in on his senses and his mind like the implacable tide of the ocean. He found he could only look directly at the being for a brief time, before he had to look away. Even when the being was not in his sight at all, his entire being could sense exactly where he was in relation to Sekur. Then that presence was suddenly inside his mind, and voice he had been hearing out loud spoke to him silently.
“You are a good man. A bit arrogant, and willing to use your position to bull your way to a result, but that is understandable, and almost necessary, given your role amongst your fellow mortals. You must work hard to protect Daniel’s back from the good ones who will not understand him when his eyes are forward towards evil. He is my sword, and he will accomplish what he needs to do, no matter the cost. You will explain this to those others you work for, and you will be my shield, to protect his ability to do what needs to be done in the service of his oath to me.