Grayson laughed. “Just for a few months. We’ll be back before you know it. Turkey is the place we’re going to. Here, I’ll show you.” Taking the boy to the antique globe resting on its stand on the other side of the room, Grayson pointed to where they would be traveling. “We have to dig in the ground to find an old city.”
Big gray eyes looked up sadly. “You be back soon?”
“Definitely,” Grayson said.
“Ok.” Then, remembering the present, the boy grabbed for it. “Thackyu, Uckle Grayman,” he said as he tore into the wrapping, and then quickly removed the box lid. Inside the box was a small statue of a man seated with his legs crossed and his hands resting in his lap. Grayson wrapped one of his hands around Sam’s tiny hands and with the other rubbed the statue’s head.
“Rub his head for good luck and any time you feel sad. It will make your sadness go away and make you happy.” Sam, eyes wide with wonder, put his tiny fingers on the statute’s head and rubbed it.
Sam felt as if the whole world had just exploded. Grayson? Uncle Grayson, a man he barely remembered. The memories came flooding back. How was this possible? Skitter, Sam sent, was that you? Did you do that?
Yes, Skitter sent back. I was surprised I could speak to him, mind to mind, like I can with you. The memories I pulled up were lost somewhere in there. I think he had forgotten them.
“Sam?” the Gray Man said, weakly, almost pitifully. “Sam, is that you?”
“Yes, Uncle Grayson, it’s me. I can’t believe you’re still alive, after all this time.”
The Gray Man chuckled softly, though there seemed to be no humor in it. “Alive? Is that what I am? There is little left of Grayson Wepp in me now. I have been corrupted, changed. The torture has made me into a monster, though I did not know that until just now. I have done horrible things, Sam, unspeakable things.”
“But things will be all right now. Now that you know who you are, we can make things better.”
“No! There is no redemption from this. It is too late for that. Besides, I cannot live with the pain, with the guilt. Your father, my best friend, is dead. The love of my life, Stephanie, is dead. The other members of our expedition, they’re all dead. The only way I kept the insanity from taking hold was to be someone else. I can’t live with it, Sam. I won’t live with it.”
Sam felt like his heart had stopped beating and dropped into his legs. After finding his uncle, whom he loved but hadn’t remembered until just now, he was facing having to lose him again. “Please, Uncle Grayson, there is always hope. Please, come back to us. Mom would love to see you.”
Head in his hands, the Gray Man chuckled mirthlessly again. “I’m sorry Sam. I’m sorry to leave you again, but I can’t live with the things I did, with the things I failed to do. I’m so tired. I need rest.”
“No, please,” Sam begged. “I have just found you again. Please don’t leave.”
Ignoring his pleas, Grayson Wepp, tears in his red rimmed eyes, looked into Sam’s gray eyes, ones that looked so much like his used to look. “Tell your mother I love her and that I am so sorry that I was responsible for her losing Mark. Anything in the fortress you would like is yours, Sam, to do with as you will. The fortress itself is yours. Try to do some good with it.”
“And Sam, the trick to getting back home is simple. You are already attuned to our world…” he paused for a moment. “Yes, our world.” A small, sad smile appeared on his face. “All you have to do is let go. Find someone to help you, someone that you trust, and let all your defenses down. Surrender. You will see what I mean. The book open on the pedestal here in front of me will be of interest to you as well.
“I love you Sam. I’m sorry things couldn’t have turned out better. Try to think well of me in the end.”
Sam’s eyes were locked on Grayson’s red rimmed dark eyes. For a moment, the red flared and the eyes widened, and then they closed as his body slumped forward. Sam’s prison disintegrated at the same moment.
Sam rushed forward to catch his uncle’s lifeless form before it hit the ground. Checking for a pulse, Sam found none. The Gray Man, no, Grayson Wepp, Uncle Grayson, was dead.
I’m sorry I couldn’t do anything, Sam, Skitter sent. It was so quick. He thought of causing his heart to burst and then he made it happen. He could have done that to any of us at any time.
Sam stood, holding the body of his uncle. I know, Skitter. We couldn’t have stopped him. You saved us all with what you did to bring out his memories. Most of all, I think, you saved him. In the end, he was my uncle again.
Chapter 56
When Nalia finally burst into the room, she found Sam cradling the body of the Gray Man, tears streaming down his face, and Skitter crouching close by. Her father was moving, softly moaning in pain.
She rushed to her father first, propping him up and removing the sword that was protruding from his back. Thankfully, it had not damaged any organs, but simply went through muscle and skin. Binding his wound, she started to dress his other cuts when he put a hand on her arm.
“Go and release Dr. Walt from his constraints. See how badly he is injured.” She did so immediately.
After all of their wounds were cleaned and dressed, the party sat around the large table and Sam told them what happened. Through his tears, he explained the memories that Skitter had extracted from the Gray Man and projected into Sam’s mind. After stopping briefly several times when the emotions overwhelmed him, he finally repeated the things Grayson had told him about how to get home and that he should look at the open book on the pedestal. He off-handedly repeated Grayson’s permission to take anything in the fortress, including the fortress itself.
Dr. Walt, lucid after drinking and eating a little, hobbled to the book and started reading. He began to mumble to himself, “Hmmm, yes, ok, I see.” Suddenly, he exclaimed, “Sam, you will want to look at this. It’s in old Kasmali, but you are good enough by now to get the gist of it.”
Sam unfolded himself from Nalia’s arms, where he had found comfort from his pain. He kissed her hands, one at a time, forced a smile that he didn’t quite feel, then went to look at the book.
After reading, some parts with difficulty, he looked up to Dr. Walt. “Is this what I think it is?” he asked. “Does this explain how to teleport using vibrational energy?”
Dr. Walt nodded. “I believe it is. If we study it, perhaps we can learn how to do it. It seems to be geared toward using groups of energy wielders to accomplish it, but it will give us a start. We may be able to adapt it. That would be remarkable.”
The next few weeks consisted of exploring the fortress and studying some of the information in the book the Gray Man—no, Grayson—had left for Sam. The few remaining soldiers had fled the fortress when they realized their master was dead, leaving only a handful of servants. These did not care who they served, so they stayed and continued in their work. Dr. Walt carefully interviewed each of them and assured them they could remain if they so chose.
The dungeons in the depths of the Gray Fortress held fifteen prisoners. They were in varying stages of neglect, torture, and illness. In the weeks following the Gray Man’s defeat, all of them but one died regardless of the efforts by Dr. Walt and the others to bring them back to health.
The one prisoner who lived was named Lahim Chode. He was so close to death that though he slowly and gradually got better with the care Dr. Walt was giving him, he was still unable to speak about why he was interned or who he was.
The fortress was massive and it would take months just to make a cursory visit to all of it, but there were some surprising things found almost immediately. Besides the excellent libraries, the most extensive of which was near the current master’s rooms and the room the fateful battle had occurred, there were storerooms with ancient artifacts and devices that defied explanation and begged for study.
One day, behind a relatively nondescript door, Sam found more wealth than he had ever thought possible. Gold and gems, some worked into jewelry or items an
d some just stored as ingots or raw uncut gems were stacked and scattered everywhere. The room was at least thirty feet on either side and aside from the narrow walkways there was no part of the floor that did not have treasure piled up or neatly arranged on shelves or in boxes.
Sam asked Dr. Walt about it, bringing the older man to the room to show him. “Such things don’t have much value on Gythe. They may have at one time, though I can’t find records stating as much. Gold is soft and of little value since the apocalypse and gems are only useful for reflecting light. In a world where weapons and violence are the main currency, these things mean little.”
“If they’re worthless, then why are they here? Why are they all together like this?” Sam asked.
Thinking for a moment, Dr. Walt said, “The Gray Man…sorry, Grayson…was from our world. His plans were to take control of both worlds. He would need money to do so on Telani. What better way than to accumulate worthless items here that are valuable there?”
Sam smiled inwardly at the doctor’s correction. He had asked that his friends remember the Gray Man not as the villain, but as the man he was before having his humanity torn from him. Dr. Walt and Rindu tried to be sympathetic and comply, but Nalia was still unable to do so. The pain of her mother’s murder was still too raw, even after all this time. She tried not to speak disparagingly of the man in Sam’s hearing, but she could not assign him humanity just yet either. Perhaps she never would be able to do so.
“I see your point. Do you think it would be ok to take some of this? When I finally figure out how to do as he directed me and get back to my own world, this would be helpful in paying my mother’s house off and making sure she never had to worry about money again.”
“Sam, your uncle, with his dying breath, gave you the entire fortress and all that is in it. Everything here is yours, including all the treasure in this room. If it will help, you can and should take as much as you’d like.”
In addition to exploring, Sam, Rindu, and Dr. Walt worked on two things: enabling Sam to get back home and learning to apply the techniques referred to in the book for teleporting. They tackled the latter skill first.
“The key seems to be the unique vibratory signature of a place. Do you remember how I taught you to recognize a place by its vibrations, by the proximity of the ley lines nearby?” Sam nodded. “That is the key thing to remember. The other thing is sheer power.”
“What do you mean, Master Rindu?”
“The Arzbedim, having possession of ancient writings, which they copied in the book we are studying, were able to teleport, but only by using rituals to increase their power, and only in groups. No one was strong enough in ability to teleport on their own. They had certain artifacts that helped, too, I believe.”
Sam looked puzzled. “But what about that assassin, Ix? She not only teleported, but she could teleport other people with her.”
“Yes, but she is not a conventional user of rohw. I think her teleporting ability is something inherent. She was most likely born with the ability. In other ways, she is no more a rohw user than Skitter.”
What about me? The hapaki sent Sam.
Nothing, nothing at all. He just mentioned you. As you were. Sam and Skitter were closer than ever after their ordeal with the Gray Man, and the teasing had intensified in a satisfactory and entertaining way.
“But you, surely, are powerful enough to do it, right Master Rindu?”
“I am afraid not. I know of no one, historical or now alive, who could manage such a feat. That is, I knew of no one. I believe Grayson could have done so. And I believe you are capable of doing so as well.”
“What?” Sam asked, turning fully to look the Zouy in the eyes. “You are much more powerful than me. Nalia is much more powerful than me, too.”
“Yes, and no. Nalia and I have the benefit of training and experience. We have been using rohw for many years. However, you have the potential to be the strongest vibrational energy master ever seen on Gythe. It is something, perhaps, inherent in your family, since your uncle was very powerful as well. It is likely the same trait that made it possible for both of you to come to this world, him against his will and you accidentally of your own accord. With training, I believe you to be capable of doing this.”
Sam shook his head silently.
“Let us try. We have studied the technique and I believe I can guide you and aid you through it. Would you like to try?”
Sam agreed. First, the Zouy mage had Sam attain the khulim so that he could read and recognize the room in which he had been staying. When he felt that he knew the place, after several days of practice, Rindu took him to another room, an audience chamber fifteen minute’s walk from Sam’s room.
Sitting on the floor, legs crossed, knees almost touching Rindu’s knees as he sat facing him, both entered the khulim. Rindu’s voice was a soft echo through the buffer of Sam’s almost-trance. “Now, Sam, recognize the vibratory signature of this place.”
Sam did so and after several long minutes, when he felt it, he nodded.
“Think, now, upon the signature of your room. Seek it, feel it, hold it, but do nothing else.”
Sam brought the feeling of his room up into his mind. He could almost feel the vibrational signature of the place going through him. He sat motionless, barely breathing, and held the feel of the place. Almost forgetting to do so, he nodded slightly.
“Now, share the feeling of our destination with me. Feel the resonance and project it toward me so that I can recognize it.”
Sam projected the vibration toward the Zouy.
“Good, we are connected vibrationally. Using your memory, match our vibrations with that of your room, of the destination. Match it exactly, magnitude, frequency, and direction. Begin slowly and adjust in increments until you and I and our destination are one.”
Sam focused on the vibratory signature he had learned. Slowly, he used his rohw to change his internal vibration, along with that of Rindu and the air between them, so that it more closely matched that of his destination. Slowly, over the course of several minutes, he adjusted the vibrations. Finally, he made one more small adjustment and knew he matched the vibrations he had learned exactly.
He felt a shift, as if he was sitting on a slick surface and had just slid several feet on a tilting floor. The shock of it made his eyes snap open. Rindu sat in front of him, his eyes opening slowly. A small smile crept onto the Zouy’s face. “Good.”
Sam looked around. He was in his room, more than a little embarrassed that he had not made the bed that morning and that he had clothes and a used towel thrown haphazardly about.
“It worked!” he shouted. “We actually moved, even if just a little.”
“Indeed,” the mage said, emotionless as ever. “It could just have easily been across the world, though. Distance plays no part in the difficulty or the power necessary to successfully teleport. The important thing is to know the vibratory signature of a place.”
“So, I provided the knowledge of the signature of our destination and you used that to teleport us here?” Sam asked.
“No. I did very little. All I did was to lightly nudge you. The power and the direction were yours, Sam. With practice, you will become more proficient at it. I would say that with just a few more times with us teleporting together, you will be able to do it yourself. You will get faster, too, but never so fast as the assassin, I think. What she does is instinctive. You will need time to think, to recognize a signature, and to match your vibrations. I believe it is possible to successfully do it in a handful of seconds, but not fast enough to use it in battle.”
As Rindu guessed, Sam was teleporting by himself within a week. At times, he took someone else along with him. He did become more proficient and comfortable with the technique, enough so that he thought he could return to his house, hidden in the forest far to the south. Because of the many hours spent in meditation there, he believed he could recognize its signature and teleport directly there.
During
this time, he and his friends worked out how he could go back to his world, to Telani. As Grayson said, it was a simple matter, though surrendering was hard for Sam. Before, he had wondered why the Gray Man had not gone back and forth between worlds. The answer was now clear. The Gray Man would never allow himself to surrender to anyone else. Not with his experiences and his promise to himself he would never again be under anyone else’s power. That was why he was seeking out Dr. Walt. He was trying to find another way back home, one that did not involve relying on someone else.
Chapter 57
The day finally arrived when Sam would attempt to go back home. It would need to be done at his house, since crossing over into his own world would put him in exactly the same place, but on a different vibratory plane. After all the months he spent in Gythe, he was almost sad to go back home.
“Take care, my boy,” Dr. Walt said as he patted Sam’s shoulder. “I have much work to do still on Gythe. Now more than ever, this place needs scholars and historians. I will stay and help set up some sort of government, with Rindu’s help. Even now, the news is spreading that the Gray Man is dead and soon the void from his passing will need to be filled. In a good way. There is no longer anything on Telani for me. Here is where I belong.”
“I will miss you Sam,” Rindu told him. “I will miss training you. You are the best student I ever had.”
“He is the only student you ever had, besides me,” Nalia deadpanned.
“As I said,” Rindu winked, “my best student. I thank you for all you have done Sam. I hope to see you again.” The Zouy hugged Sam. Stiffly. Well, he isn’t a hugger.
Sam turned to Nalia. He had been dreading this moment. He didn’t want to say goodbye to her. He knew now that he loved her desperately and he couldn’t think of life without her.
She was not wearing her mask. In fact, she hadn’t worn it since the final battle. He drank in her features. She was simply perfect. Breathtakingly beautiful, competent, smart, kind. She was everything he had ever wanted in a woman. Locking eyes with her, still marveling how her greenish tinged blue eyes made his heart dance in his chest, he ached to think that he had to say goodbye.
Harmonic Magic Series Boxed Set Page 38