by Jeremy Dwyer
“Where is this infant prince buried?” Pandaros asked.
“In a crypt below the treasury, to which the spiral stairway goes,” the voice said.
“It is time,” Pandaros said and he turned to Abrax.
Pandaros and Abrax then made their way to the edge of the forest and found the castle, whose location was well known.
“Under the cover of darkness, we shall enter,” Pandaros said.
Abrax drank anew of the waters of the Ikkith Tar Ocean from his vial and was energized. He then exercised his powers of darkness and extended them over Pandaros and himself. They were unseen and walked out of the forest and into the castle, following the guards who were on duty at the castle gates.
Once inside, Pandaros led Abrax from behind, pointing the way toward the most likely location of the treasury, based on the number of guards and how they were distributed.
The door to the treasury, however, was locked. The challenge was to find which guard held the key and to take it. Under the cover of darkness, as they were, Pandaros was able to drop one (1) of his own diamonds onto the floor, in plain sight, in front of one of the guards.
One of the other guards saw the diamond fall onto the floor.
“What is this? Theft from the royal treasury?” the second guard said.
“I will bring the captain of the guard. He will discover the truth of this,” a third guard said, and left.
The second guard held a sword up to the neck of the first. “If you have stolen from the king’s treasury, you will die today,” he said.
The captain of the guard came and heard the report.
“We will open the treasury and count its contents. For each property shown to be missing from the account, a limb shall be cut from you,” the captain of the guard said.
At this, the treasury was unlocked and Abrax and Pandaros rushed in, still protected by the cover of darkness. Abrax drank anew of the waters of the Ikkith Tar Ocean and was energized further. The darkness powers were stronger still, and he and Pandaros went down a spiral staircase which they found inside the treasury.
At the bottom, they found a small tomb with a glass covering. Underneath the glass was an embalmed infant holding a black stone. They carefully removed the glass casing and took the black stone. Pandaros held the black stone and felt that it was quite cold to the touch – and the cold was soothing. A small wick, like that of a candle, protruded from the stone.
Abrax made a motion to go back up, but Pandaros stopped him.
Pandaros then drank anew of the waters of the Zovvin Ocean from his vial and was energized. “Vannik, I call to thee,” he said.
The spirit of Vannik was thus summoned.
“I have summoned you to a better place, and in this castle, you shall find your new haunting grounds,” Pandaros said.
Then, Pandaros and Abrax went back up the spiral staircase and into the treasury.
Several guards were blocking the doorway out of the treasury, so Abrax and Pandaros, still cloaked in darkness, both drew forth daggers and struck the guards dead. They then made their way out of the castle. It was of no concern to them what palace intrigue their infiltration had just caused, for when the bodies of the guards were discovered, the castle was locked down in search of a murderer who was not to be found.
Pandaros and Abrax fled to the forest and then through it. They went back to the small port and purchased transport once again across the Nabavodel Ocean. They returned to the port on the western coast of the Crypt Trail. From there, they traveled through the swamps and returned to the mausoleum.
Pandaros then looked closely at the onyx they had acquired. “It is made of an immensely dark stone, even darker than the power you wield when you drink the water,” Pandaros said out loud while staring into it.
“What is it?” Abrax asked.
“Some legends and myths called it a ‘darkness candle’. It’s one of the ‘luminaries’ of the very ancient times,” Pandaros said.
“I’ve never heard of any of those legends or myths,” Abrax said.
“There are secrets buried in Emeth. And in the spirit world. You have to look for them. Like me, you are an Explorer of the Quiet Sea. Unlike me, you clearly don’t understand the meaning of exploring,” Pandaros said.
“Our world is quiet because we have no kings, and we shall suffer no kings,” Abrax said.
“You have only a partial understanding. You have to explore to discover many secrets. Quiet isn’t the goal – it’s the means of getting to the goal, which is to have total understanding, undisturbed by enemies who would seek to keep us unaware of certain knowledge,” Pandaros said.
“What else is there to understand?” Abrax asked.
“The world has many powers. The twelve (12) great oceans are the greatest of them. There are sixty-nine (69) suns now that one (1) has fallen. With all these powers, certainly some will give rise to kings and clamoring voices vying for power. How, then, can there be the Quiet that we need to explore?” Pandaros asked.
“We cannot stop the powers of the oceans,” Abrax said.
“Correct. Yet, we can quiet those who drink of them,” Pandaros said.
“How? The oceans give them their powers, and they will do as they please. We can only stop those who would be king,” Abrax said.
“We can stop all of them. In darkness,” Pandaros said.
“I can bring darkness, whenever you ask it of me,” Abrax said.
“To the whole world? All at once?” Pandaros asked.
“I am not that powerful,” Abrax said.
“These luminaries are,” Pandaros said, holding up the onyx that he had referred to variously as a ‘darkness candle’ and a ‘luminary.’
“What do you mean by ‘these’ luminaries?” Abrax asked.
Pandaros took a ceremonial candle off of a mount on the wall of the mausoleum and lit it. Then, he used this to light the wick of the onyx luminary, which began to blaze and give off a darkness, rather than a light. He placed the burning onyx luminary into one of the candle holders of a candelabra that had thirteen (13) holders. Then, he returned the ceremonial candle to the mount. He placed the candelabra into the center of another room which had an oculus, allowing light to enter, and to leave.
“Come outside with me,” Pandaros said.
Pandaros and Abrax went outside the mausoleum and looked around.
“Look up, at the suns of the sky,” Pandaros said.
“There’s a tiny sliver of darkness on each of them, like…” Abrax said. He was sensitive to both light and darkness, as he was a drinker of the waters of the Ikkith Tar Ocean. In order to properly exercise the powers of darkness that the waters gave him, it was necessary to have a finely tuned sense of both darkness and light. By this sense, he could clearly detect the slight darkness of the suns, in ways that an ordinary eye could not.
“Like an eclipse. You can see it, yet I cannot,” Pandaros said.
“You said ‘these’. How many luminaries are there?” Abrax asked.
“That is a secret that even I do not yet know,” Pandaros said.
~~~
In Emeth, some Atrejan drinkers started to notice.
“Something is wrong,” Rayner said. He had recently drunk of the Atrejan Ocean waters and sensed something amiss.
“What do you mean ‘wrong’? Haven’t we had enough wrong?” Daven asked.
“It’s in the stars,” Rayner said, and he looked up. “They’re not quite as bright as they should be,” Rayner then said.
“I don’t see anything different,” Daven said.
“It’s slight, but something’s different. Something is darker, just a bit,” Rayner said.
~~~
On Nivi Peta Island in the Atrejan Ocean, Meriniala of the Redfire Sentinels noticed something strange.
She kept consistently refreshed with the Atrejan Ocean waters and she sensed a slight darkness in the red suns. She knew this was most unlike them.
~~~
On Ixilon
otu Island in the Kazofen Ocean, Haltavna’Sytoris of the Redfire Sentinels also noticed something strange about the red suns.
She drank Atrejan Ocean waters regularly and had a good relationship with the red suns – they were alive to her. And now, it seemed that they were in pain. There was something terrible near them – an awful darkness. She looked up and could faintly see it. But from the cries of the red suns, she could now hear it.
~~~
On Cradana Island in the Pirovalen Ocean, En’Leva of the Redfire Sentinels noticed something dark and strange about the red suns. She drank the Atrejan Ocean waters and sensed that something was eclipsing their ordinarily bright light. It was a faint amount of reduction, but she was sensitive to it.
She could not imagine what it was, but it was clearly unusual. The red suns had not diminished in number or stature, but they were no longer alone. There was a negative presence among them.
~~~
On Pylakartus Island in the Dead Waters Ocean, Ve’Rokevas of the Redfire Sentinels observed a changed in the red suns. He was a drinker of the Atrejan Ocean waters and very sensitive to the red suns. He felt that a darkness was now added to their light. Darkness was not the absence of light, but its opposite. He could feel that the light they gave off was not as strong when it reached the ground, yet the red suns were as strong and numerous as ever. They were somehow being obscured by something else, but he was able to communicate directly with them, and knew that it was not a change in the red suns themselves.
~~~
In the highlands of Onoxorin Island in the Zovvin Ocean, Latras’Kala of the Redfire Sentinels observed a change in the skies. It was slight, but not without impact. The Atrejan Ocean waters she drank made her very sensitive and she felt that the red suns no longer emanated as they once did. It was a small reduction, but immediately recognizable. She wondered if anyone without Atrejan Ocean waters flowing through them would notice.
~~~
On board the Everlasting Pain, Farovaxen of the Redfire Sentinels noticed a slight change in the red suns. He was a drinker of the Atrejan Ocean waters, as well, and was acutely aware.
“You look as if you’ve seen a ghost,” Akantha said to the man after seeing the look on his face.
Her brother, Akylas, was also a drinker of the Atrejan Ocean waters. He felt something strange, as well.
“Did you see the same ghost?” Akantha asked of Akylas. She didn’t really think he sensed a ghost – by the Zovvin waters she drank, she would have sensed any spirit activities long before anyone else on board the ship would have. Rather, she only meant it as a figure of speech in reference to the expressions of fear on their faces.
“The sky is slightly darker. The red suns are not quite so bright as before,” Farovaxen said.
“I can feel it as well. It’s very slight, but it’s not just the red suns,” Akylas said.
“I think I sense it, too. Everything’s not quite as bright…in the way I usually sense brightness,” Torin said. He still drank the Atrejan waters, and he could sense the stars somewhat accurately through the powers those waters gave him. He could also sense the heat – or lack thereof – that they gave off. However, the only perceptible sense of darkening was through the power of the waters, as it was too slight to detect otherwise. His blindness prevented him from perceiving it visually.
“There could be residual effects from the use of the tiara. Keep watching it,” Pradrock said. He was neither optimistic nor pessimistic about the matter. He didn’t know what it meant, but wasn’t prepared to forget about it, either.
CHAPTER 3: Secrets of the Suns in the City of Myth
In Thalkalana, Anan, Desmond, Celio and Jaguar made their way up the staircase to the city’s ground level outside the octagonal tower.
“Lead the way,” Anan said toward Desmond.
Desmond led the group back toward the cylindrical stone temple that he and Jaguar previously visited.
“Take one of these,” Desmond said, gesturing toward the glowing citrine torches that were seated upon the obelisks that surrounded it.
“The obelisks are meant to symbolize rays of light from the suns. The citrine torches reinforce that,” Anan said as he took one.
Celio, Desmond and Jaguar each also took one of the citrine torches.
“We entered over here,” Desmond said and entered through the same door as before, and the others followed him.
“There is an interior chamber with an entrance around the other side,” Desmond said.
Jaguar drank anew of the Nabavodel Ocean waters in the vial he carried. He was energized. “There is still danger here. Our doom may be fast approaching for entering this place. The angry sun gods will use curses and traps to end us,” Jaguar said.
“Are you afraid of deities and curses? Those are primitive concepts that will only make you weak with fear,” Celio said.
“The traps are real. The rest is nonsense,” Desmond said.
The group walked around the circular corridor and found the doorway on the inner wall.
“Was that the snare that nearly finished you?” Anan asked, pointing down at the spikes in the pit in the doorway.
“Yes. That was too close,” Desmond said.
Anan leaped over the trap and landed safely in the interior room and saw the arrangement of statues. Celio, Desmond and Jaguar followed him.
Anan stopped for a moment and reached down to rub his ankles. “I’m getting too old for this part of it,” Anan said.
“This structure could have been a fine foundation for an observatory, if it were situated upon the surface,” Celio said while looking around.
“I’m sure it is an observatory. Rather than looking at the stars directly, it is for looking at their divine representations. The one in the middle, holding the scythe, represents a star of darkness. Some sun-worship mythology holds that as the greatest danger – a bringer of death and night,” Anan said.
“That’s based on a deep fear of the unknown. There is no reason to believe such a thing ever existed,” Desmond said. He was knowledgeable of many cultures, and their strange beliefs.
“Theoretically, it could. If a star were to exhaust its fuel, it may possibly collapse into a dark entity that absorbed light rather than emitting it,” Celio said. He was knowledgeable of theoretical models of the suns, though they were the only suns anyone could see, and the physics had never been observed – it was only modeled by equations that were possibly true.
“That is an interesting point; yet, unless you observe it, it is merely a theoretical curiosity,” Anan said.
“The notion of a ‘star of darkness’ could occur through exploring the mathematics of the situation, and letting some variables go to zero and taking limits,” Celio said.
“Some primitive cultures had vivid imaginations; few had sufficiently advanced mathematics with the notion of limits,” Anan said.
“This star of darkness – the numbers tell you it could be real?” Jaguar asked.
“If a star were to use up all the fuel inside of it, and burn out, it might fall inward on itself. The weight of it would pull light in, and make darkness around it,” Celio said.
“The danger is true, then. The statue with the blade is night and will bring death. I must leave,” Jaguar said and he began to make his way out of the temple. He was afraid of all terrible religious things, even if they were of a religious system that was not his own.
“Why did you have to scare him like that?” Desmond asked.
“The truth can be dangerous,” Celio said.
“It’s theoretical. You’ve never seen it occur, have you?” Desmond asked.
“Wait! If the danger is real, there is nowhere to run. It will find you,” Anan said, calling after Jaguar.
Jaguar looked back and said: “I must leave this city and return to the jungle. If the storm takes me, the everlasting night cannot.”
“This temple has been here for quite some time, along with these statues. Until the proper time, these th
ings won’t happen. You don’t have the power to make it happen, or stop it from happening. Fear, however, will lead you into a trap,” Anan said.
“I can go to a safe place, and seek Havatissa,” Jaguar said.
“There is no truly safe place. Only some that are more dangerous than others,” Anan said.
“Do you see the connection between here and the inscription on that tower?” Celio asked, wishing to change the subject to something potentially edifying.
Anan looked and counted the statues. “The numbers listed before are, indeed, a possible match. Even if they are a match, however, that doesn’t mean that anything can be done with the information. There is nothing obviously actionable,” Anan said.
“This temple is the work of a primitive sun-worshipping culture. The architecture is sound, but there is little more to be gained here,” Celio said.
“The structures in this city may be related. Their juxtaposition may tell us more,” Anan said.
“You see nothing more here, then?” Desmond asked.
“I suggest an exploration of the rest of the city, to determine what the composition of it all might mean,” Anan said. Then, he made his way toward the exit and Celio and Desmond followed him. They joined with Jaguar and they all left.
~~~
Zalaxadin the Eighth had traveled for twelve (12) hours downstream on the riverboat with tattered sails, all the while immersed in near total darkness. The boat alternated between slopes and plateaus but ultimately came to a stop at a cave entrance and he left the boat. He walked through the cave entrance and found himself on a rocky ledge inside of a large cavern that was perhaps five hundred (500) feet high. It was illuminated, but the source of light was not obvious. There was an enormous body of water in the cavern – possibly an ocean – that stretched as far as the eye could see.
He then saw that there was a larger boat which also had tattered sails. The entire trip, so far, was interesting to him – more interesting than a life of suffering in the spirit world to pay for the crimes that he committed while in the flesh. He had been a thief and a murderer – more than one (1) hapless wandering musician fell to his blade so that he could steal what little money they had. Musicians were generally easy targets, especially the young women. They rarely had any ability to fight back, they traveled alone or in small groups and they were plentiful. Those were easy pay days for him – a knife to the jugular vein and their profits were suddenly his profits, and their remains were suddenly a vulture’s meal. He never cared to hear them singing anyway – all the merriment seemed so fake to him. His own demise came about at the age of fifty-seven (57) – a blood vessel in his neck had broken and he died instantly in his sleep. Those who buried him said it was a fitting end for a cutthroat, and they spit on his corpse and chopped it up and threw the pieces one by one into a cesspool – that was his burial.