Tiara & Tempest

by Jeremy Dwyer

Desmond then looked at the seventh ring of statues, inside the sixth, and counted them, saying: “The seventh ring has three (3) statues, sitting, looking forward.”

  Jaguar then looked at the innermost statue, inside the seventh ring, and said: “Only this one is standing. And its face looks up, and carries a curved blade on a long handle.”

  “That blade is a scythe, and it’s not made of stone, even though the statue is,” Desmond said after looking at it.

  Desmond looked closely at the floor and noticed that, around the three (3) statues that made up the seventh ring, there were long rectangular stone tiles in a floor made of mostly square stone tiles. He saw an inscription written across them.

  “There is another inscription. This one is written on the floor,” Desmond said.

  Jaguar walked over to look at it and said: “I cannot read these symbols, either.” He had a primitive written language and had a weak grasp of most symbols.

  “It reads: ‘Higher than the nine (9) kings was the rule of three (3). Brighter than all things they shall always be. Violet hot, by their light the day depended. Only one (1) was ever greater, by which the day will be ended’,” Desmond said.

  Desmond was puzzled by what he saw and began to form hypotheses about it all.

  “Sun-worshippers consider the nine (9) blue suns to be the rulers among all of the suns – the sky’s nine (9) kings. Yet, this inscription says that the three (3) are higher. It seems to identify them as violet – the color of amethyst,” Desmond said, thinking out loud.

  “I have never seen a sun the color of amethyst,” Jaguar said.

  “Nor have I seen them, or read of them in the halls of Emeth. Interesting, even, that it is the Ninth Hall in Emeth where the knowledge of the suns and star charts is recorded, and the highest suns are considered to be the nine (9) blue ones. That may be coincidence, or some ancient superstition manifest even in the ancient city of knowledge itself,” Desmond said.

  “What else did you learn in that city?” Jaguar asked.

  “Many things. Not all of which are relevant here. However, I did notice that, when we counted, the outermost ring had thirty-seven (37) statues, the third ring had twenty-four (24) statues and the fifth ring had nine (9) statues. Those are numbers of the suns,” Desmond said.

  “What of the other numbers?” Jaguar asked.

  “That is the great mystery. I believe that, what is being suggested here, is that other suns previously existed. Three (3) of them were violet, and hotter than the nine (9) blue ones. The relative levels of subservience – sitting, kneeling and lying with their heads variously positioned – of the statues indicates the stature of the suns themselves. The statues are not representing the human worshippers, but the suns worshipping other suns, hotter than themselves,” Desmond said, impressed with his own theory.

  “Suns worshipping suns is strange indeed. Yet, less powerful spirits may kneel before more powerful ones. What you say might be true,” Jaguar said.

  “Then, the statue in the center, standing and holding the scythe, must represent the greatest of these suns. Even the three (3), said to be brighter than all things, sit down and look at it. It looks upward,” Desmond said.

  “Why, then, does it hold a blade?” Jaguar asked.

  “It may represent a supreme power of all the suns,” Desmond said.

  “Yet, it looks upward, as if looking at an even higher power,” Jaguar said.

  “Yes. The standing statue may not represent the supreme power of all existence. It may only be the highest among the suns, looking to a higher power,” Desmond said.

  “What is the power that is higher than the suns?” Jaguar asked.

  “The waters, of course. Water-worshippers consider the suns to be inferior. This temple may in fact have been built, or modified, by water-worshippers, to affirm the superiority of the waters,” Desmond said.

  “That is a battle between the gods! We must not be in the middle of it, or we will be destroyed!” Jaguar said.

  “I don’t want to be in the middle of the battle. I just want to understand it, including that last part of the inscription: ‘Only one (1) was ever greater, by which the day will be ended’. The statue in the middle, standing and holding a blade, is that one (1), I believe – the greatest among all the suns, who also ends the day,” Desmond said.

  “If it ends the day, it must be the night. That means it must be death,” Jaguar said.

  “That is a possible interpretation, and I think it is the most likely,” Desmond said.

  CHAPTER 37: Burned by the Fire of Stars

  A portal opened and the Tidal Sovereign appeared on the waters of the Atrejan Ocean. Victoria looked out onto the waters and saw many ships around her.

  ~~~

  On Nivi Peta Island in the Atrejan Ocean, there was an outpost of Redfire Sentinels, watching the suns and the skies and guiding ships at sea. Some of the Redfire Sentinels were drinkers of the waters of the Atrejan Ocean, using the powers of the suns to communicate with other members of the Order around the world. Others were drinkers of the waters of the Lujladia Ocean, using the powers of light to see at a distance and light the way for ships when there was darkness. Some few were drinkers of the waters of the Pirovalen Ocean, using the powers of music to guide sailors when the light was not enough.

  One of those drinkers of the Lujladia Ocean waters was a thirty-seven (37) year old dark-skinned man named Inlanokus. He had grown up in the Order to parents who trained him from a young age to be the guiding light for others. He took his waterbinding by the age of nine (9) and had perfected his far sight skills – using the powers of the Lujladia waters – to such a degree that he could find his way using light through the most complex of mazes and darkest of storms, over great distances and around many corners, including the horizon. His technique was nearly flawless and he spent time traveling to different outposts to train others in this advanced use of the power. After fifteen (15) years of these travels, he returned to Nivi Peta Island, where he was born, when he was thirty-one (31), and had remained there since.

  Inlanokus saw the appearance of the Tidal Sovereign while he watched from a hilltop on Nivi Peta Island. He said to those around him: “A ship has appeared from the emptiness. It is like the one we were warned of before. It may be the vessel of the Ahitan woman, who brings the tempest.” Like much of the rest of the world, the Redfire Sentinels everywhere had received the warning from the sages of Emeth, and had been waiting for Victoria.

  Among those who accompanied him was a forty-four (44) year old woman named Meriniala, who was a star reader. She had taken her binding to the Atrejan Ocean waters when she was twenty-three (23) years old and was subjected to the Jenaldej Empire waterbinding trials in Revod. She then spent the next eight (8) years as a navigator, proving herself and honing her skills, following the stars carefully and adjusting for visual distortions on the seas – especially the “maze waters” of the Lujladia and Ikkith Tar Oceans – more reliably than most other navigators. She worked for various shipping companies in the Jenaldej Empire, seeking out the most complex assignments, rather than the best paid ones, so as to develop her skills further.

  When Meriniala was thirty-one (31), her professional reputation for perfectionism and her elite skills caught the attention of many interests outside of the Jenaldej Empire – including navies of other kingdoms, transportation companies and even pirates and treasure hunters. She turned them down for fear of the work becoming too dangerous – she had no desire for warfare or smuggling operations, despite the profits.

  Meriniala was secretly approached by one of the Redfire Sentinels, who quietly invited her to join them when she was in port after a completed assignment. She was offered training in their higher knowledge so that she might know more of the power of the red suns, which were the most numerous and possessed far greater importance than many thought, despite their smaller size and lesser light and heat. Curious and intrigued, Meriniala accepted their offer and spent the next thirteen (13) yea
rs growing to understand the deep secrets of the red suns, and learning to communicate through them to others anywhere else in the world. Those others, of course, were other Redfire Sentinels.

  She was given one particularly urgent warning, repeatedly, during her training: “Never trust the yellow suns: their light is a lie, their heat will burn, and their pathways are those of deception.”

  “I will warn the others that Victoria has arrived in the Atrejan Ocean,” Meriniala said to Inlanokus, and then she drank anew of the waters of the Atrejan Ocean from her vial and was energized. Being stationed on an island in the middle of the same ocean whose waters she drank was a convenience – she never needed to wait for a shipment of that water to arrive; she only needed to wait for purification by an alchemist. Meriniala reached out to the red suns above her and sent her message to them. From there, the message spread to all the red suns all over the world. Other star readers among the Order of Redfire Sentinels received the message, wherever they might be.

  ~~~

  The tiara had been recently expended, so it needed to be renewed. Victoria also needed renewal, by rest.

  Victoria retired into her quarters and her light scouts and dark scouts stood guard outside. Victoria slept and dreamed.

  Her dream was of three (3) blue fires burning her and blades, both short and long, along with arrows, striking her. She awoke, screaming in agony.

  Her guards heard her and entered the room.

  Victoria then said to them: “I dreamt of blue fires burning me and swords and daggers and arrows striking at me.”

  One light scout looked out the cabin window and said: “I see no blue fires other than those of the blue suns in the sky, and no ships are approaching us. Nor do I see any hiding in the darkness.”

  One dark scout looked out the cabin window and around the cabin and said to her: “I see no one with sword or dagger or arrow or flame hiding in a false light.”

  Victoria then left her quarters and stood on the deck of the Tidal Sovereign.

  The voice of the demon, Matatirot, spoke to her, saying: “By the storm winds you will take them. By the stars you will misguide them. By the waters you will break them, set their courses and collide them.”

  Victoria then held out her arms and the blue diamonds of the tiara once again glowed bright.

  The still air turned to a breeze, and then to a strong wind and then to a dangerous gale. The calm waters began to ripple and then waves began to rise. The waves rose high and moved quickly toward distant shores.

  One light scout said: “To the east, the waters are striking at Javanda, and the bodies of the enemies are being carried out to sea. Over one million two hundred forty thousand (1240000) of them have been drowned in the tempest.”

  A second light scout said: “To the west, the waters have hit the Solkidian Trail and the corpses of over seventy thousand (70000) have been washed away.”

  A third light scout said: “To the south, the waters have battered Nataloridivu and the bodies of thirty-five thousand (35000) have been taken out to sea by the storm.”

  A fourth light scout said: “To the southeast, the waters have assaulted the Wandering of Shadows. The remains of forty-one thousand (41000) have been taken from the shores by the winds and waters of the tempest.”

  A fifth light scout said: “Around us, five hundred ten (510) ships have been sunk, and no less than one hundred fifty thousand (150000) of their crew have been drowned.”

  “The death delights me! Yet, it is not enough!” Victoria said.

  Then, she concentrated more intensely and the special powers of the Atrejan Ocean were channeled by the tiara. The blue suns and the red suns above her began to move in different ways and shine down powerful beams of light, becoming unusually hot and bright, bursting some ships at sea into flames and burning and killing people on the land. The ships were also set into chaos, as their navigators were led astray by the misdirected light of the suns. The yellow suns remained dimly lit, and did not contribute to any of this devastation, however. The area immediately around the Tidal Sovereign was unaffected, however, as the tiara was designed to exclude the area surrounding it.

  A sixth light scout said: “The burning suns have shone down. One thousand (1000) ships at sea around us have been set ablaze by their heat, and two thousand five hundred (2500) more have been misguided by their light and crashed into each other, sinking them and killing no less than one million fifty thousand (1050000) of their crew.”

  “The enemy is ending! The Ahitan Empire is at a new beginning!” Victoria said.

  A seventh light scout said: “Yet, ships remain!”

  ~~~

  On nearby Nivi Tak Island, the old light bender named Mordecai desperately tried to guide sailors from his lighthouse using the light powers of the Lujladia Ocean waters that he drank. Some were set on the right course this way, but his actions had a limited effect when the very stars of the sky were turned against those who sailed beneath them.

  ~~~

  On nearby Nivi Peta Island, the Redfire Sentinels, including Meriniala and Inlanokus, were alarmed and frightened by the power that made the blue suns and red suns shine down and burn and misdirect sailors at sea.

  “Looking out at a distance, I can see that millions have died, either by sunfire, by misdirection, or by the waves of water and the wind,” Inlanokus said.

  “The Ahitan woman commands more than the flow of the waters and wind. She rules over the very essence of the powers in the ocean, such that the blue suns and red suns hear her. I shall gather all my powers against this enemy, and call the red stars to hear me, and return to their proper order,” Meriniala said.

  Meriniala drank anew of the waters of the Atrejan Ocean in her vial and was energized. She called out to the red suns asking them to cool their fire and move to their proper places. She had no sway over the blue suns, however.

  “I shall try to guide them by light, that the suns may not deceive them,” Inlanokus said.

  Then, he drank anew of the waters of the Lujladia Ocean and was energized. He generated light of his own, and used it to guide those ships which had not yet been sunk. Many hundreds were saved from misdirection this way, due to his great skill.

  Another Redfire Sentinel was with them, however, and had a different power. Tosko’Lajin was a twenty-seven (27) year old man who had made his living as a wandering singer from the time he was thirteen (13) until the time he was nineteen (19). He was a drinker of the waters of the Pirovalen Ocean which greatly enhanced his voice and gave him powerful harmonies. He had earned a reputation as highly reliable, if not particularly creative, delivering high quality performances of classic songs. He had been credited, at times, as a musical healer, and this was true. When he was nineteen (19), he was approached by the Redfire Sentinels and asked to use his singing ability to call to ships lost at sea, so that they might have another way by which to find the proper course. He agreed, as the payment he would receive was to be better and more reliable than what he received on his travels, which did not always yield a sufficient salary.

  In this urgent time, with the tempest raging around them and even the suns burning down, Tosko’Lajin drank anew of the waters of the Pirovalen Ocean from his vial and was energized. He knew the proper words and music by which to guide the ships at sea, as he was taught several songs by the Redfire Sentinels. He began to prepare himself for the song he would need.

  ~~~

  The Persistent arrived at the northern coast of the continent of Nataloridivu and the crew looked down from the airship to see the tempest still raging.

  What they were not prepared for was the burning heat and distracting light of the red and blue suns.

  “Cover your eyes or look away,” Judith said, placing a crystal visor over her own eyes to keep out the dangerously bright lights from the suns. She also put the hood of her robes over her head to protect herself. Chroniclers were always required to be prepared, despite their protections by the Guardian Angels of the Oath –
not all of them believed in these protectors, and it was considered unwise to fail to take precautions. Ovid did the same to protect himself.

  The crew reached into their supplies and handed out protective cloaks for the passengers to wear, along with protective visors for their eyes.

  “The brightness of the suns is far out of the ordinary,” Rayner said.

  “Victoria is doing this – with the tiara,” Emerond said.

  “Making the suns brighter? I had no idea it was that powerful,” Brant said.

  “This is far too much. We have to kill her and take the tiara now,” Joshua said.

  “Now, that’s what I want to hear! Give me a second sword! I’ll swing them both twice and cut her head right off! Shut that thing down!” Brant said. He took a big swig of the waters of the Nabavodel Ocean he kept in his vial and was even more energized.

  Emerond looked to the crew and ordered: “You heard him. Get him another sword.”

  A crew member who was in charge of their supplies handed another long sword to Brant and he held it in the other hand.

  “You have to see her to hit her, Brant. And these suns are too bright! Light sees through dark – it can’t see through other light,” Zoe said.

  “Rayner, you hear the suns! Let them hear you this time. Have them shine somewhere else,” Brant said.

  “It doesn’t exactly work like that, big guy, but I’ll try,” Rayner said. He drank anew of the waters of the Atrejan Ocean and was energized. He reached out to the red and blue suns above, sensing their positions and movement, and tried to communicate to them the need to shine less brightly and in other directions.

  “Nothing’s happening,” Zoe said.

  Romana knelt down on her knees and started praying. Judith knelt down next to her and joined hands with her in prayer. Romana led by saying: “One True God, we pray to Thee. Let the suns in the sky hear us that they may return to their proper ways, shining only so brightly as to give the gifts of light and warmth – with power ultimately given by you – in proper measure according to Thy Providential Grace.”