Empire of Visions
By Micah Wilger
Chapter 1
The car's tires bounced along the dirt road. I sighed. This trip was going to be the most boring week of my life. My family and I were going to visit some distant cousin I didn't even know, who was marrying some girl I hadn't even met, who was from some small European country I'd never even heard of. Still, I tried to be optimistic and hope that maybe there would be food.
As we made a bend in the dirt road, we came to an interstate.
“Civilization at last!” my dad exclaimed.
“If you call coughing, spluttering, noisy vehicles and hot asphalt civil!” My mom shot back.
I suppressed a laugh. Mom had always been an environmentalist to the core, while dad thought that Green activists should get off their haute cheval and go back to hugging trees. I was divided on the subject. I felt that the earth needed care, but just ragging endlessly about it wasn't going to help much. I was interrupted from these thoughts when we suddenly swerved.
“Dear, what are you doing?”
“We've missed our turn!”
“Mom, you're about to....”
“Hang on, Kyle! I can't talk right....”
Something slammed into our vehicle. My head went flying into the back of the window. Glass cracked. Everything became blurry, then suddenly went black.
Chapter 2
My eyes opened slowly. Still sore from the crash, I looked up. Blue sky.
That's odd, I thought. Wasn't it rainy earlier? I lifted my head up the smallest fraction and saw flowers. I was in a grassy field.
“How??” I said out loud to no one in particular.
As if in answer, I heard footsteps. A moment later, a face was leaning over me. It looked relatively human, but it was nebulous and misty, as if made of nothing more than vapor and wind. It had a beard, or at least something that resembled one. When it spoke, its voice was like a rainstorm.
“I was hoping you would awaken some time during the next century!” it exclaimed
I looked up in wonder at this strange being.
“Have I been asleep long?” I asked, a million other questions entering my mind when I asked it.
“A week,” the creature replied.
“A week?! Wait...is this...heaven?”
“Not at all, although some optimists would say it's close. You have entered the universe of Oneiran.”
“Then I'm not dead?” I asked.
“No, although in your own world, you are in a coma. Come with me. What is your name?”
“Kyle.”
“Come with me, Kyle. There is much to talk about.”
Chapter 3
I followed the strange mist being until we reached a stone bench.
“Sit down. There is much I must tell you.”
“Could you hold up a second? I'll listen, but I need to know more about all this first.”
“Very well. Let us make a deal. You may ask me ten questions, and in exchange you will listen to me tell you about what I must tell,” the mist being said with a zen like smile.
“I agree,” I said.
“Fire away, Kyle!”
“Okay. First, where am I? Second, who are you? Third, what are you? Fourth, how did I get here? Fifth, why am I here? Sixth, where am I in the real world? Seventh, what is my family thinking right now? Eighth, how is this place different from the real world? Ninth, why are you carrying a staff and tenth, what is this thing I'm wearing??”
“Well as it turns out, what I was going to tell you answers all those questions, so I shall begin.”
The creature tapped his staff to a stone carving on the floor, and suddenly a glowing light appeared.
“The universe of Oneiran was created an hour after your own, by whoever it was who created reality. It was originally a standard space and star universe like yours, but a great cataclysm has shaped it to be what it is today.”
The light had formed a sphere and now showed a star scape of what I presumed was Oneiran.
“a few years after its creation, a comet formed in your universe. This comet traveled through space, until it landed directly in the middle of a shifting of the layers of our universes. When this occurred, the comet passed your universe and entered ours. Its course took it straight to the core of our universe. You are fortunate. Your universe being a spherical one, any damage to any point simply spirals out and distributes itself equally. The universe I inhabit, however, is pyramidal in shape. When the comet exploded in the core star of our universe, shockwaves raged across the cosmos. The force of the impact became so great, it turned Oneiran upside down.
“After this universe became flipped in this manner, it collided with yours, the “point” of Oneiran skewering the “sphere” of your universe. When this occurred, the two universes became irreversibly merged. This is how and why the dreams and visions of your world have entered ours. They shaped it and made it into what it now has become. Oneiran is the land of dreams,” he finished. The light seemed to disappear from the carving. I rested my head on my hand and thought about this. I had expected to be shocked, or at the very least nervous. In all honesty, though, I was beginning to get used to odd things, so I was unfazed.
“I must say, you're taking this very well,” he laughed.
“You haven't answered all my questions yet,” I responded with a smile.
“Just giving you a moment to take things in. Anyway, Once all of this had occurred, Civilizations began to form on the various planets. Unfortunately, there was constant war between societies. To make matters worse, every inhabitant of Oneiran has a power to control certain dreams and visions. This led to all out war between nations, each with their own powerful 'Dream Mages'. Finally, several rulers agreed that Oneiran should have set rulers. After much debate and some bloodshed, it was decided that seven Dream Lords would be elected. Their duty would be to keep peace and order in Oneiran. After a great battle challenge, the seven that were chosen were Miragon, Ndoto, Droom, Sakkaku, Illitharen, Ombiriz and Morpheus.”
“Morpheus? The god of dreams?” I asked.
“Your mythology tends to exaggerate greatly. He is no god, nor has he ever claimed to be. However, his power is the greatest among the Dream Lords. He is their leader. In days of old, he was very wise, and could always solve any problem or dispute. In recent ages, however, he has grown...cold and uncaring. He chases after invisible enemies, and he has left Oneiran to suffer in conflict. Several of the other Dream Lords have joined him. However....but I'm getting ahead of myself. For many millenia, the Dream Lords reigned in wisdom. A century ago, however, they were threatened by a new foe. An army of monsters and nightmares suddenly appeared and began marching on the worlds of Oneiran. After reports reached further out that it was an unbeatable army with an unknown leader, Morpheus and the other Dream Lords went to assist.
Well, 5 of them did. Sakkaku and Droom heard reports from their spies that the army had been revealed as an illusion. They tried to warn the other 5 , but in their stubbornness the other Dream Lords would not listen. In the meantime, a dark sorcerer came to a planet at the tip of Oneiran. Working while the majority of the Dream Lords were away, he slowly spread his influence. His empire currently stretches across one fourth of Oneiran. And the five Dream Lords have still not returned. Fortunately, Sakkaku and Droom did not remain idle. They brought many to their banner, to fight against the sorcerer whom we call Kheth. Many new beings were created by the two Dream Lords, among them being the Vaporil, the race to which I belong. We are...what you would call elementals, imbued with the power of fire, water and wind. Our natural form, however, is that of a misty silhouette, as you see me now. Anyhow, the two Dream Lords and their followers have formed the only resistance.”
He fell silent once more. I took this in. I had left one trouble to enter a universe that was steadily gaining them. It was ironic. One unanswered question remained in my mind, however, that I decided to voice.
“You've forgotten one thing. Why am I here?”
“Because that's how our universes work. You come close to death in your own world, you enter this one. Depending on how close you are, you either whip back to your own world and die, or you enter a coma and remain in this world until you regain consciousness. Some poor people never awaken from such a state, trapping them here forever. Of course, I wouldn't say Oneiran is a bad place to live, all things considered, but it is growing worse, and it is not your home,” he finished.
“You mean I haven't been brought here for any greater purpose?” I asked, partly relieved and partly disappointed.
“I wish you were. The war against Kheth needs more supporters. But the truth is that you appeared here by chance. You may choose to help us, but we have no idea how long you will remain in a coma in your own world. Either you will die and leave, or awaken and leave. So its up to you to decide whether you feel willing,” he said.
“Well, what can I do in this battle...by the way, what's your name?”
“I am called Tantir. As for how you can help, I am unsure. To answer that, we would have to ask for an audience with Droom. He would know.”
“Why not Sakkaku?”
“Sakkaku is...not able to receive anyone. He is fighting Kheth on his own ground, in the realm of nightmares. This puts him beyond our reach,”
I shivered.
“Take me to Droom, then. I can't think of anything else I could do while I'm here.”
“You do have a choice, actually. I was waiting for you to adjust to all the new information before I told you. There is a method for sending...dreamers...back to your own universe. I know it.”
“Really? What is it?”
“It involves a kind of splitting. A spell is cast which places half of the individual in his or her own universe, and the other half in Oneiran. The pull of the half in your own universe will be stronger, as it is more real to you. Therefore you will be teleported back. However, you must know its extremely dangerous. It can kill the individual, or worse, literally rip their mind apart, causing them to go insane.
Also, there is one more caveat,”
I turned slightly green.
“I'm sorry, Kyle. I...am used to being extremely grim. Such are the times. I am a skilled Dream Mage, and most likely I would be able to send you back. At the very least, I promise to do everything in my power to make sure you are unharmed. With one caveat. The target of the spell, due to half of them being in the other universe, will always feel a longing for the other universe. You will always wish to be in Oneiran, and the burden will often grow heavy. I can send you back, or we can go to Droom and see what he may be able to do. You may be asked to help us, or Droom may even know a method that is not so risky.”
I thought for awhile. Neither option seemed to appeal to me. But I felt a growing fondness, both for Oneiran and for the brave group that was fighting its dark enemy. Finally, I said,
“Take me to Droom. And don't ask him to send me back. I want to help fight Kheth.”
Tantir nodded with a smile. He motioned for me to remain still and began to murmur strange phrases in a tongue I could barely comprehend. He then walked over to me. A shaft of purple light shot out of the earth, and I joined with it. In that moment, I was light.
Chapter 4
I was light. Brilliant, blinding light. As I flew through the purple beam that had become my entire surroundings, I detected a presence beside me. Tantir had manifested as a silver light, glowing with a moonlike radiance. We soared over vast landscapes, each one passing us in a flash, too quick to be seen. Slowly, the purple glow died down. I felt myself growing heavier and heavier, until finally I rematerialized into myself. The surrounding landscape was grassy. The sky was heavy with grey clouds. In spite of this, I smiled.
“That was amazing! Is that how you get everywhere, Tantir?”
“Not everywhere. It takes quite a bit of energy, but I agree with you. It is one of the most enjoyable ways to travel.”
“I'll say! I felt like I was flying!”
“You were, in a way. Now, look to the north.”
After thinking for a few minutes about compass directions, I followed Tantir's instructions. I saw a castle that seemed to be made of blue mist, somewhat like the mist that made up Tantir, but more solid still. At each tower was a glowing orb of golden light.
“It's beautiful,”
“Indeed it is. That is Droom's palace.”
I was silent in awe. I followed Tantir in a dream within a dream. As we passed through the halls of the palace, I couldn't even remember all the strange and wonderful things I saw. The next thing I knew, We were in a blue and gold carpeted throne room. Upon the throne was a humanlike being. His skin, however, was a deep purple, and his six eyes (two on his face, one on each hand, and one on his chest, which was closed) were golden irised. He wore a furry robe of a brownish color. Upon seeing us, he smiled.
“Who have you brought before me, Tantir of the Western Gale?” he said in a deep voice that dispersed the misty walls around him.
“This is Kyle. He has been transported here from the universe bound to ours. He has asked to help us in the war against Kheth,” Tantir replied.
“Kyle, may I ask, if you know the answer to this question, how did you get here?”
“My lord, he was...”
“I have asked Kyle the question, Tantir. Why don't you go and practice your new elemental spells? I wish to converse with Kyle alone,” he said in a voice that was friendly, but stern.
“Of course, Lord Droom,” Tantir bowed, then left.
“To answer your question, sir, i'm not entirely sure. Tantir tells me I am in a coma in my own universe. I think I vaguely remember a car crash. Yes, that was it. I hit the back window, and blacked out. When I awoke, I was in a field of flowers, where Tantir found me.”
“Indeed? I see. And you wish to help us?”
I nodded.
“Very well. Hmm...” Droom closed his eyes. He seemed deep in thought. I waited, slightly impatiently, but knowing it would do no good to interrupt him. Suddenly a bell rang.
“Enter!” Droom boomed. The expression he bore when he opened his eyes was deeply troubled. A brightly feather blue and red bird flew in and perched on Droom's shoulder. It whispered into his ear. His expression became even more worried.
“What is it?” I asked.
“Ill tidings. Many of them. First, I must explain something to you. The eye on my chest is absolutely useless for seeing what is in front of me. However, it has the power to see visions and things far away. I have seen Sakkaku. He is dying. Dying from his wounds. From dark magic. From too long spent in Kheth's domain,”
Against my better judgement, my curiosity made me interrupt.
“Surely, Lord Droom, Kheth's Empire cannot be that dangerous. If no one can but a Dream Lord can stay there long, how do you fight Kheth?”
“You misunderstand. Sakkaku is not fighting Kheth in his empire. He is fighting Kheth in the dimension of Oneiran he controls. The dimension that he came from. There, he is all powerful. His form here is limited. But if we are to defeat Kheth, we must kill all of him, not merely his visible form. Anyhow, the bird has also brought me ill news. Kheth is preparing a plan that could destroy all of Oneiran.”
“What is it?”
“He has read ancient books. Books written by dark sorcerers. Within one of them is a spell called the Rending of the Cosmos. It is a spell capable of destroying a universe. However, it has one crucial ingredient to operate.”
“Ingredient?”
“the sacrifice of a human being.”
“Are you telling me that this spell operates on the old cliché of a sacrificed virgin? Because that seems ridiculous!”
“No, there are no requirements, save one. The human must have some tie to Oneiran. They must have visited once before. We are unsure if such a human can be found in Oneiran, but if one can, then we are in grave danger.”
“Droom, do you think...I mean...I...”
“It it possible. I do not know if you have seen Oneiran before, but be very careful. In the meantime, I have thought of a task that you and Tantir could complete that would be sorely needed. In addition, it will keep you far away from Kheth.”
“Yes?”
“You must bring back the other Dream Lords.”
Chapter 5
“Bring back the Dream Lords? But Lord Droom, they don't even know me! Why would they listen to me?”
“Because I have evidence that the imaginary war they are fighting is a creation of Kheth's, made to distract them from his conquest. This scroll was intercepted by our spies. It contains orders from Kheth to one of his “generals”, that is, a commander of this illusion army. This will convince them, I am certain,” Droom replied.
“Very well. I shall go. But I have no method of defending myself. I need some protection, don't I?” I asked.
“Yes, you do. And I will give it to you in two forms. Tantir will accompany you. He is a powerful magician. Also, I give you this.”
He took a parcel out from behind his throne and unwrapped it from its fur covering. It was a book, unlike any I had ever seen. Its cover was iridescent and purple, with flashing colors. It had a glass orb in its center that changed to show various pictures.
“This is my spell book. Anyone in Oneiran can learn to cast a spell. Magic is an integral part of this universe, but your skill, faith in your abilities, and training will determine how many and how powerful your magical spells are. Use it well, and it will not fail you.”
I bowed to Droom. He smiled and gestured that I could leave. I complied with his request, and went to go find Tantir.
Chapter 6
I found him in a room down the hall. As I entered, Tantir shot off a brilliant rainbow fireball that nearly blinded me.
“Can you teach me how to do that?” I asked.
“Perhaps. What did Droom say?” he replied.
“He wants us to bring back the other five Dream Lords. Some task,” I said rather grimly.
“It is indeed a formidable one, but it would bring our cause great aid. Let's go,” he said.
“Tantir, I...this wasn't exactly what I had in mind when I said I wanted to help. I mean, I'm no hero! What if I just get myself killed?”
“What did you have in mind, Kyle? I hate to be so blunt, but this is war.”
“Well, I don't know. Help teach some soldiers. Find some artifact. Maybe fight one or two of Kheth's men, but to battle our way to the Dream Lords, whom Kheth no doubt has obscured the way to...”
Tantir interrupted.
“What do you mean? Kheth had nothing to do with the Dream Lords' war.”
“If Droom is correct, it was Kheth who was responsible for creating this army that they are fighting.”
Tantir was speechless for a moment. Then he nodded and said,
“That explains everything. If Kheth is behind this, then we have no time. We must go.”
“But Tantir...”
“Kyle. We have to go. Kheth could do nearly anything to the Dream Lords at this point. There's no time to be afraid.”
“I can't...”
“You have me, and that spell book that I see Droom gave you. Let's go.”
I sighed and was silent. I finally decided that I would do this. I had always wanted to be a hero. Now was my chance.
“All right. Let's go.”
Chapter 7
We left Droom's palace. It was night. Strangely, though, the night wasn't nearly as dark as any night back on Earth. Oneiran seemed to glow with a soft radiance, that made the sky ever so slightly blue. It was almost as if night was only a twilight, when the sun has almost gone down but is not completely gone. It was beautiful. We kept walking until we reached a clearing in the nearby forest.
“Now. I have an idea of where we should begin to look, but in all honesty, the area the Dream Lords could be in is vast. Continuing with the basic fact that Oneiran is shaped like a pyramid, the Dream Lords are somewhere in the southwestern corner of the pyramid,” Tantir explained.
“Where are we, then?”
“We are roughly in the center. Which, unfortunately, is a rather bad place to be. We're halfway between Kheth and the Dream Lords. Any number of his minions could potentially reach us.”
“Couldn't we ask Droom to narrow down the possibilities for us, using his clairvoyant eye?”
“I don't think so. Droom's eye only works when it chooses to, it can't be commanded. Even he only sees visions when it chooses to show him them. Also, Kheth has doubtless clouded as many vision seeing devices as he can, so it may be hard even if Droom could control it. We can, however, do our best to narrow the search.”
“How?”
“I borrowed these,” he said as he pulled out some scrolls, “spy reports from Droom's network. They have information regarding the last known positions of Kheth's army of illusions. The army moves, but with the Dream Lords and their men on the army's tail, they are somewhat pinned. They can't leave a certain set of star systems.”
“Couldn't we use a seeing spell and check for sure?”
“No good. Kheth will have spells jammed for sure. Besides, to see that far would take an immense amount of magical energy in a spell. However, we can limit our search to these three planet systems.”
“Which ones?”
“Hold still,” Tantir instructed. I obeyed. He touched his hand to my forehead. Suddenly, I saw three clear images, each one of a different star system and their relative position in Oneiran. The images were so real, I almost thought Tantir had teleported us at first.
“How did you do that?”
“Thought transfer. A simple spell. Now. We have to get there. I'm a little tired from my practice. Do you think you could cast a teleportation spell?”
“To that part of the universe? Do you know how far that is?!”
“You have to learn sometime.”
“I don't have the energy, Tantir!”
“Kyle, trust me. Magic works partly on faith. If you believe it is possible and can be done, that you can do it, you can overcome quite a lot of fatigue and loss of energy. Try.”
I sighed. I tried to believe in myself as much as Tantir believed in me. It was not easy.
You can do this. Magic can happen here. This is not your everyday reality. You can be a wizard,I thought to myself. Then I flipped through Droom's book. My faint hope that there wouldn't be an applicable teleportation spell was quickly dashed, as on the third page a long distance transport spell was listed. I looked at the words for a moment and then shut the book.
“What system first?” I asked Tantir.
“Julenia,” he answered.
“Portum Portala Rapidium Vitos Vitos Apparansens Julenia!” I chanted, willing the spell to work. At first nothing happened. Then suddenly, a white vortex appeared beneath us and sucked us in. Stars and planets flashed by us. Unlike the purple light spell, though, I did not like this way of travel. The constant fall made me sick. Fortunately, however, it didn't last long. A few seconds later, the vortex popped out of existence and we appeared on the top of a mountain.
Chapter 8
“I thought I knew all of Julenia's planets, but I don't recognize this one!” Tantir exclaimed.
“I believe this is Aslypto IV. As for whether we have found our target, I'm not sure. This mountain range is somewhat in the middle of nowhere, so we'll have to get down,” I said.
“I'm impressed with your sense of direction!”
“I don't have one. The back page of Droom's spell book tells you where you are, if you look.”
“That's a very handy tome!” Tantir remarked.
“Indeed it is,”
“Well, let's get down from this mountain,” said Tantir
“Can you see any trails? I'm hopeless at navigating,” I said sheepishly.
“I'm not exactly Akhmed Rajastha either,” Tantir laughed.
“Who?”
“A famous explorer from Oneiran. This very planet, I believe. Anyway, that looks like a slightly worn path over there, although it heads through thick forest.”
I followed Tantir to what looked like a roughly made trail. It was slightly worn from use, but many plants still grew on it, and it looked as if things had been chopped away to clear it. I shrugged. It was as good a path as any. We started down it. I tripped a couple of times, but gradually got steadier. Tantir seemed to have the weird ability to hover slightly above the ground while moving, thus avoiding anything that he could trip on. I slightly envied this, but overall we both made good progress.
We were about halfway down the mountain when we reached a clearing. We stopped for a moment to rest. Before long, however, Tantir said,
“Let's move. I don't like this clearing. Something's not right.”
Upon looking around and thinking, I felt the same way. Everything was...out of place somehow. We began to move on. Suddenly, out of nowhere, several goblin like beings appeared. They were as tall as men, and their faces were exceedingly beautiful, but their skin was scaled and ranged from green to purple. Suddenly, they took out some instruments, and began to play.
“No!” Tantir exclaimed, but when their music started, I forgot all about him.
It was a haunting melody, that seemed to have the qualities of being sad, eerie and yet beautiful at the same time. It seemed to speak to me a story, though exactly what I could not tell.
Before long, the music began to take a shape. It appeared as an orb of white light, which changed color and swirled in the air. I felt the urge to move closer to the players. I followed the light until I reached the one who was playing a flutelike instrument. In a flash, he revealed shimmering white fangs and bit into my neck. I staggered, life force ebbing out of me, until I fell to the ground.
Devoid of life. Dead.
Chapter 9
Well, almost. After the musician bit me, my vision went blurry and then went dark. I was out for a long while, until I saw a green glow and felt a warmth spreading through my body. I opened my eyes. Tantir had one hand on my chest and the other in the air, blasting bolts of golden lightning. I looked up to see several black leathery wings flying off.
“And keep away, abominations!!” Tantir exclaimed. I presumed the flying things were our adversaries.
“Tantir, I'm...I'm sorry,” I said weakly, “I was stupid.”
He fired off a final golden bolt, then looked down at me.
“It's all right. I am not entirely a creature of flesh and blood, so I alone was immune to their song. You possibly could have resisted, but if those were what I thought they were, it would have been very difficult without sealing one's ears. Still, we must both be more careful in the future,” he said quietly.
“What were those things?” I asked.
“They are called Krintsu. Servants of Kheth. They feed on living flesh. They draw their prey in with their beautiful music.”
“Creepy.”
“I agree. I fought them off. The venom should be gone now, as I cast a healing spell on you.”
“Thanks. Well, I suppose we had better get going.”
“Let's continue our search, then.”
Suddenly there was a blinding flash of light from the other side of the mountain. A tremendous roar shook the earth beneath us.
“A turquoise flare! That's Illitharen's signal! They're on the other side!” Tantir exclaimed.
“Let's move, then.”
“Can we teleport there?”
“I can try. Hold on,”
I looked into the book again. The spell almost opened of its own accord.
“ Portum Portala Rapidium Vitos Vitos Apparansens Nordum Deca Montan!”
The vortex sucked us in. Minutes passed in the whirlwind of light. By the time half an hour had passed, I knew something was wrong. I shouted to Tantir,
“What's going on?! I thought I cast it right!”
“You did! Something's interfering with the spell!”
“Can you tell what it is?”
Tantir was silent for a long while, in thought. Then he replied,
“There seems to be a strong magical residue at our destination. Probably from the battle. Its interfering with your amateur spell!”
“Can we fix it?”
“Look in Droom's book. I'll try to guide the portal, but you'll have to figure out how to get it to stop once we get there.”
I nodded. Frantically flipping through Droom's spell book, I passed many different spells. Fireballs. Clairvoyance spells. Shapeshifting. Spells involving energy blasts. Finally, I found a second section in the book that detailed the finer points of spell craft. It was prefaced with a warning:
“Do not attempt any of the spell enhancements in this section without training and assistance”.
That got me. If the book was warning not to try anything without either of those things that I didn't have, I was doomed.
“Tantir! All of these spells that might help us are too powerful for me to try!”
“We'll have to chance it! Remember, faith is a large part of it! Believe in your own ability!”
“Tantir, I can't!”
“We're almost there! You have to try!”
“It could get both of us killed! I can't take the risk!”
“Confound it, Kyle! Toss me the book, then!!”
I complied. Tantir found the spell I had been examining.
“Negatum Nil Antiranex!” he screamed.
Suddenly, all was still. Completely still.
Chapter 10
“Good timing,” was all I had the breath to say.
“Thanks, but that was supposed to be your job,” Tantir said with a slightly bemused smile.
“Tantir, I'm sorry. I just have never had to handle this sort of thing before.”
“You're forgiven, but you must believe! You are more powerful than you think. And in truth, I have bad news to tell you.”
“Oh?”
“You will soon have to face this journey alone. I'm fading.”
“Fading?”
“Beings of my race only last for a certain period of time, unless a renewal spell is cast. Before your quest is over, I will be....for lack of a better word....dead.”
“Dead?! But...Tantir....I can't do this without you! Can't you cast the spell?”
“It must be cast by someone else. I cannot do it. And unfortunately it is a spell that is really and truly above your capability. Only Dream Lords and some of the highest Magi can cast it.”
“Why did you come, then??”
“Because I knew you would need my help, and I was willing to make the sacrifice. We have awhile before I fade completely. But you must take up the torch and learn to succeed on your own, while I'm still around to help you if you fail.”
“That's not easy,”
“No one said it would be. But it is your task. Fulfill it.”
We were both silent. I had no idea what Tantir was thinking, but I was thinking of the responsibility that would soon be mine. After weighing my thoughts, I felt that whatever chance I had of returning home before this was over should be turned down. I couldn't back down now. I said,
“I will. Let's go,”
Tantir smiled at me. We ran up towards the battle ahead.
Chapter 11
As we reached the mountaintop, I ducked as a green orb of light flew past my head. When we stopped, however, I saw nothing.
“Where's the battle?”
“The Dream Lords do not fight on solid ground. The army they fight exists in another realm. The battle switches from reality to...fantasy.”
As if to prove this, 5 warriors materialized in front of us. Each was several hundred feet tall. I swallowed. They turned towards us and then something strange happened. They began to shrink. Slowly the warriors grew smaller and smaller, until finally they were the same height as Tantir. Each was different. The first was shimmering and silvery, more a vision than a tangible body. His bright green eyes, however, projected a fierceness which grounded his presence firmly in reality.
The second was human, at least in looks. He wore a white robe, which complemented his hair and leaned on a golden staff. The only thing that betrayed something out of the ordinary was the fact that his skin gave off a faint ice blue glow.
The third warrior was perhaps the strangest. He had no form, at least no discernible one. He wore a robe, but within he appeared as a black shape, a shifting shadow. He held a darkly colored sword in the air beside him.
The fourth was also relatively human, although he bore the head of a leopard. He was cloaked in very dark grey, and mist surrounded him.
The fifth, however, was at once the most splendid and the most terrifying. He glowed silver, and he bore the form of an enormous wolf. His fangs stretched to the ground like a Saber toothed tiger. His eyes were a crimson red. He stood, however, like a man and his hands were humanlike. He carried a massive staff tipped with a crescent moon.
“The Dream Lords,” Tantir whispered in awe. I said nothing. Silence reigned for a long time. Finally, the wolf warrior spoke.
“Who are you, and why do you intrude upon our battle?” His voice boomed like thunder.
Tantir nudged me as if to say, This is your quest.
Gathering courage, I asked,
“Are you Morpheus?”
The figure nodded.
“We have been sent by your fellow leader, Droom. He begs you to return to your homes. While you have fought this war, an evil wizard named Kheth has begun to conquer Oneiran. Droom and Sakkaku are left to fight this great enemy alone. Will you return and help?”
Morpheus was silent. Something looked different about him. Then he shook his head.
“We have no desire to help those traitors. They have abandoned us to die in this distant war!”
The others agreed. All except one.
The leopard warrior stepped forth.
“I am Ndoto. Rumors have passed to me about this Kheth of whom you speak. I have not forgotten my brethren. I will help you.”
“Ndoto! You have betrayed us!” The silvery apparition exclaimed. “Our master will see you dead!”
I expected Morpheus to answer to this, as their “master”, but he only said,
“Yes. Indeed he shall. If I cannot kill you first!”
He snapped his fingers. Several shadow like wraiths appeared. They carried scythes.
“Kill them. But leave Ndoto to me! I must bring him to Kheth.”
My jaw dropped. The Dream Lords were in Kheth's service! I whispered to Tantir,
“We must tell Droom about this. It is extremely bad.”
“I agree.”
Ndoto heard us.
“Go. Tell Droom about what has happened. I will deal with these creatures. If I can, I shall meet you at Droom's Palace. Depart!” he commanded.
We complied.
Chapter 12
I cast the teleport spell, careful to ask Tantir if there was any magical influence that might affect my spell. Shortly after, we arrived at Droom's palace, leaving a magical message for Ndoto as to our current location. Unlike last time, Droom himself came out to meet us.
“Have you completed the task I have given you? I must say, you are quite prompt,” he remarked
“Alas, no,” Tantir replied.
“Bad news. Your fellow Dream Lords are now in the service of Kheth,” I said.
“WHAT?!”
“I am afraid so. However, we had some success in our mission,” I said quickly.
“Then tell me. I must hear what little good news you do have,” Droom said urgently.
“We were able to convince Ndoto to join us. He was busy fighting Kheth's shadows so we could escape, but if all goes well, he will be coming shortly,”
“Excellent! I can't say that I'm thrilled, but that will be a blessing. Thank you both,” he said. “If you wish, you may rest tonight at my palace. We will speak again in the morning.”
Tantir and I went to separate rooms. To my surprise, despite all the strange and fascinating things that had happened that day (or perhaps because of them), I was extremely tired. Before long, I fell asleep.
Chapter 13
I awoke in a strange land. Smoke blew everywhere, noxious black smoke. A red sun loomed above me, burning with a harsh light. I could only see about a foot in front of me, everything else was covered in smoke and a greenish mist. I shivered. If this wasn't hell, I didn't know what was. Suddenly, the smoke and mist blew clear to the heavens, and I could see what lay in front of me.
It was a giant chess board.
At least, it had the rough appearance of a chess board, though it looked vastly different. The squares were black and white, but instead of straight lines, the squares twisted into a spiral and constantly shifted positions. The ground on the board rose into hills and fell into valleys, and a black river ran through one corner.
What kind of madness could create this? I wondered. Suddenly, I looked up and was filled with terror.
A dark and strange being stood on the other end of the strange and twisted board. He looked like little more than a silhouette, but his eyes were of a piercing orange, which spoke of ravaging fires and the dark nights after them. His face, what little I could make of it, was strangely ordinary, but it was pale as death. There was an air about him that suggested this already terrifying form was but a small facet of the horrendous evil that he was. Then, he spoke.
“You and your pitiful allies are powerless against my infinite dark might!” he exclaimed in an apathetically cruel voice.
I was silent. I couldn't tell whether some spell held my speech, or if I was simply too afraid to speak. He continued.
“Still, as an experiment, let us say that you could. Let us assume, against any possibility that you had the potential to defeat me. Now, we must ask the question. Would you?” he finished. He laughed.
“Very well. I will give you a chance to try. Understand this will not affect reality, but it will answer the burning question that has no doubt lurked in your mind: Could you defeat me?”
I finally found the courage to speak.
“Are...Are you...Kheth?”
he nodded with a wicked smile.
I shivered.
“Let us begin,” he said.
Chapter 14
Kheth waved his hand. Suddenly, six chess pieces appeared on his side and five on mine. I looked and saw that they were sculpted in the shape of my allies and enemies. Kheth's pieces were Morpheus, Illitharen, Miragon, Ombiriz and two other beings who I assumed were probably some of his top servants. I had a rather pitiful looking set consisting of Droom, Sakkaku (Who looked humanoid and wore a set of armored robes. The only thing different about him was that his skin was gold and he bore a pair of grey wings), Tantir, Ndoto and another being whom I did not recognize.
“BEGIN!” Kheth exclaimed. He waved his hand, and his pieces multiplied until an army rose behind his main pieces. I stood rooted to the spot. Finally, I thought of Tantir. Tantir, who believed in me. Tantir, whose sacrifice would be in vain if I did not defeat Kheth. I shook myself, then tentatively waved a hand. My pieces moved to a nearby hill.
Droom has more warriors than just us. He must, I thought. I imagined them into existence behind my generals. Ndoto sent two giant orbs of lightning from his hands, directly at Morpheus. Morpheus blocked them and sent a cage of red lightning back. Ndoto teleported out of the way. I ordered my troops to charge at Kheth. All obeyed, except for Sakkaku. His piece didn't move. I frantically directed it to do so, but it would not obey my command. My army was strong, but Kheth's army, led by 4 Dream Lords, made short work of them. The last of Droom's soldiers died. Then Kheth's army grew. They continued to grow until they were the same height as Kheth. Then they charged. Directly towards me.
Chapter 15
Closer they drew. Closer and closer. I was too terrified to even run. Then I saw Kheth, a confident smile on his face.
I will prove him wrong. We can win this battle, even if it's just me now.
I changed to a battle stance. Readying my fists, I prepared in immense foolishness and bravery to fight Kheth's army.
Suddenly, Sakkaku's chess piece exploded in a shower of sparks. The sparks flew through the air, circling faster and faster. Finally, they materialized into Sakkaku himself.
“Sakkaku?” I said, amazed.
“Run,” he said in a voice that sounded old and tired.
“Where?”
“As far as you can. Everything depends on it,” he exclaimed. “Go!”
I obeyed. Sakkaku began firing bolts of light at the army. Kheth suddenly saw me.
“No!” he exclaimed. He fired a green fireball at me. It hit the ground in front of me. Suddenly, the earth began to dissolve into sand. I fell through, into blackness. Total blackness.
Chapter 16
I bolted up. There were stars. And trees. Looking around, I realized I must have been dreaming. Looking around, I saw Tantir. Droom was with him, as was a figure whom I realized was Sakkaku. Upon seeing me, they rushed over.
“Are you all right?” Droom asked.
“I think so,” I said, looking around. “Where am I?”
“In grave danger. More specifically, on the forest planet Dermillithrin, which is about 30 miles outside Kheth's farthest reach,” Tantir replied.
“Why am I in danger?” I asked. “And how did I get here?”
“Kheth sent a summoning dream. Most dreams are merely imaginings, but due to the nature of Oneiran, properly formed dreams can be used to literally transport a being to the caster. Kheth attempted to bring you into his reach. Luckily, you awoke before you made it all the way. Still, this is ill news. If he tried to summon you, then he must be nearly ready to cast the Cosmic Rending,” Tantir said.
I was stunned.
“Don't judge the situation yet. There is more I must tell you,” he continued. Then he stepped out of the clearing.
At first, he seemed normal, but then I realized he was much fainter than before. Only his eyes still retained their former strength.
“I am fading. I have been since this adventure began, but now you can see it.”
“Oh, no! How much time do you have left?”
“I can't give an exact estimate, and even if I could, I wouldn't. Let it suffice to say that I'm not done yet!” he said with a brave smile.
I stood up and paced around the clearing. Finally, I said, after discovering no answers myself,
“So what do we do?”
It was Sakkaku who answered.
“The outermost planet of Kheth's empire is a small desert world called Andunis. Several of the people who have not been under Kheth's direct influence, that is to say, are not brainwashed into following Kheth, are meeting there. Ndoto, from what I have felt of his presence, has gone there to rally them together. If we can come up with something of an army, Droom, Tantir and I can attack him from an unexpected angle and perhaps stall the preparations of the Cosmic Rending.”
“I think that is an excellent plan. Dangerous, but excellent,” Droom said.
“But what about me?” I asked.
“It would be too dangerous. If Kheth plans to use you as the sacrifice, he could ignore all of us and just kill you. You'll have to stay here.”
“This is my quest. I must see it to its end, terrified though I may become by it,” I said, rather surprising myself with both my bravery and rhetoric.
Sakkaku looked at Droom helplessly. They both looked at Tantir.
“Kyle knows the risk. And without him, Ndoto would still be under Kheth's control. It won't be long before we can liberate the others. With all 7 Dream Lords in the battle, Kheth won't last long.”
“Bold words from one who is nearing death,” Droom said with a scowl.
“Droom! Silence! Tantir is right. Whether we think it a good idea or not, we must bring him with us. It is his quest,” Sakkaku said with a look that was probably the most optimistic I had seen him yet.
“Very well. Let us go to Andunis,” Droom said.
Sakkaku waved his staff in the air and cast the spell that Tantir had used when I first arrived. Before long, we reached Andunis. Dry, dusty winds blew across the landscape. Far in the distance, I could barely make out a town that I assumed was where Ndoto was waiting.
“Let's go,” I said.
Chapter 17
We began the long trek across the desert.
“Why can't we teleport?” I asked.
“Kheth would feel the presence of a strong wizard in his own domain. We need to stay as low key as possible. A teleport spell would be akin to sending out a flare showing our enemy where we are,” Tantir replied.
Somehow, we managed to walk all through the long and sweltering day. Suddenly, just as the moon was beginning to rise, Sakkaku stopped.
“Something's off. I sense...a malign presence of some sort.”
“I...feel it too,” I realized. A silhouette appeared near us. Sakkaku held his staff at the ready. As the silhouette drew closer, it revealed itself to be an old man. He leaned upon an ebony cane, and looked very tired.
Suddenly, Sakkaku sent a blast of white fire at him.
“What are you doing? What has he done?” Droom exclaimed.
The old man's form wavered. For a brief moment, I caught the sight of a being whose flaming orange eyes were all too familiar.
“Begone, o master of shadows!” Sakkaku exclaimed.
Kheth waved his hand and a red glowing circle surrounded us. It began to glow brighter and brighter.
“Step out of the circle! Now!” Sakkaku commanded.
I jumped out of it. Sakkaku followed. Tantir and Droom, however, disappeared with Kheth. The red circle vanished.
Chapter 18
Everything disappeared into blackness. Mist and smoke clouded my vision. I looked around and managed, barely, to find Droom. We moved closer to each other. Droom held out his hands and pierced through the mist with golden light that emanated from the eyes on his hands. I looked ahead of me, and saw a dark outline who I assumed was Kheth.
“No more games. Ndoto and those pitiful fools who defied me will be destroyed. You shall suffer the same fate.”
“You will not kill a Dream Lord so easily!” Droom exclaimed.
“Why ever not? If Sakkaku hadn't escaped, he would be dead by now. For here, I am unstoppable. Here, I am a god!”
He laughed with a booming resonance. Then he began to grow. He grew larger and larger. Droom looked at me with determination.
“What is that expression that they use in Kyle's universe? You know, about that city in....Italy?” he asked.
“'When in Rome, do as the Romans?'”
“Yes, that one,” he said with a smile. Then he grew until he saw eye to eye with Kheth. The two drew weapons and the battle began.
I tried to help. I sent fireballs, bolts of lightning and vortexes of wind. Kheth suddenly knocked me aside.
Let's hope for the best.
Chapter 19
The moment the circle disappeared, Sakkaku pulled me back.
“We have to bring them out of Kheth's realm!” he exclaimed.
Sakkaku slammed his staff into the ground, then muttered a single word which I could not make out. An orb of blue light appeared in the air. He waved his hands in strange formations. The light twisted and warped, shaping itself into a strange symbol. The symbol glowed brighter and brighter, then disappeared with a flash and a bang. When the dust cleared, Tantir and Droom were back.
“Thank you, Sakkaku. Now run, everyone! Run as fast as you can!” Tantir exclaimed.
We complied. Before long, I grew tired and hot, but after thinking about what lay behind me, I ran ahead with new strength.
After several hours, we reached a town.
“There!” Droom exclaimed. We kept running until we reached the main square.
“Does anyone know where we can find Ndoto?” I asked.
A couple of villagers paused from their work and pointed to a building on the left. I walked up to the door and knocked. A villager opened it. Ndoto was inside.
“Welcome! I'm glad you got here. We must plan.”
Chapter 20
“I'm very glad you all got here,” Ndoto began.
“As are we, but unfortunately danger is upon our heels. We ran into Kheth,” Tantir said.
“Kheth himself? Something must be important to him here if he's not just sending minions after us. Anyway, I'm glad you made it safely. I have a plan. Kheth is preparing the Cosmic Rending on the planet of Tatarskith, a volcanic world. It is only 3 miles away from his home world. Unfortunately, our spies report that he is nearing completion of the spell, about halfway through. He has at least 20 of his magicians casting day and night. Our job is to work in two places at once. We will send our army in a general formation through teleport spells, and then at the last second, we will split. Half of us will go to meet Kheth's army and start a battle. This battle will mainly act as a diversion while the other half of our force will go to sabotage the preparations for Kheth's spell.” Ndoto explained.
“It won't be easy to fight off 20 sorcerers,” Droom said
“No, but the other half of my men will have the harder job,” said Ndoto.
“I think it's a sound plan. The only question is with regards to Kyle. I know he wishes to help, and I don't wish to deny that request, but he would be hard to take back if Kheth captures him,” Sakkaku said.
“He could go with the other half. The three of us and Tantir could go to handle the sorcerers,” Droom suggested.
“No. Both sides will need at least one Dream Lord to act as general,” Ndoto said.
We all thought on the plan. Suddenly, a scream was heard outside.
“Apparently, our hand has been forced. Let's see what's going on,” Sakkaku said.
Chapter 21
The scream came from one of the villagers. Several of them were hiding in an alley, while a few had taken up weapons and charged towards the outskirts of the town. I followed them with my gaze, then looked up. My eyes grew wide.
It bore the form of a cephalopod, but far more terrifying than any squid. The monster that the villagers were now hopelessly attempting to fight was dark blue, with tentacles that blazed with electrical energy. It had one lidless eye, that turned and searched, like a spotlight. Whenever is gaze fixed on a being, it shot a beam of black energy at them, and they vaporized into nothingness. Tantir looked worried. Sakkaku bore his usual grim expression. Droom had all eyes closed except his chest eye, which looked intent and gazing upon something. Suddenly, his eyes opened.
“We must destroy this beast. I have seen a vision. This is a crucial point in time. If we fail, things will greatly deteriorate,” Droom said gravely.
“Very well. Let's move,” Sakkaku said.
Sakkaku grew until he was equal to the height of the beast, while Droom began to prepare powerful attack spells. He finished the first. A purple arrow of smoking mist flew at the squid creature, piercing it in the eye. It howled in pain. The sound waves ripped buildings from their foundations, but the creature seemed only angered. Sakkaku began to slash at it with his sword. I wanted to help, but was unsure how good my spells would be against this monstrosity.
Suddenly, the creature whipped out six of its uncountable tentacles and pinned Ndoto to the ground, focusing its eye on him, I decided to try and help. Flipping through the spell book Droom had given me, I cast a fireball. It fizzled. I tried a lightning bolt. It smoked but then disappeared. Finally, I found a spell for a storm. It looked to be far more difficult than the others, but I tried it anyway. As I finished the incantation, water rushed from one of my hands, wind from the other.
Several feet above the beast, the two merged into a dark grey cloud. Just as the monster was about to vaporize another of Ndoto's soldiers, it was blasted with waves of water and immense bolts of blinding white lightning. For as far as the eye could see, the sky turned grey.
The beast continued to be bombarded by gale strength winds, tidal waves and arcs of electricity. Finally, it gave a great heave, shook the heavens with a thunderous roar and fell limp with a crash.
Chapter 22
There was silence. Dead silence. Then suddenly, a great cheer broke out. The villagers gathered around the corpse of the strange creature. One man climbed on top of the tentacled mass and raised his sword above its eye.
“Don't do it, you fool!” Droom exclaimed.
The warrior ignored him and stabbed it in the eye.
“I should have expected this,” Droom said in a vexed tone.
The creature twitched, it shook. Then it rose up and opened its eye. I expected it to begin its normal pattern of attack again, but instead it stretched its tentacles to the sky. Blinding golden light clouded my vision. The creature began to shift and waver, until finally, in an explosion of light, it metamorphosed into an immense dragon.
The villagers dropped their weapons.
“This is bad,” Sakkaku said. This, I feared, was an understatement.
“How do we beat this thing?” I asked, preparing to try another storm.
“We can't,” Droom said. “Not at this time, anyhow. This is where things start to go wrong,” he sighed hopelessly.
“You're Dream Lords! We have to do something!” The dragon had already begun to pick off the closest warriors and was quickly obliterating the entire force.
“One cannot defeat fate,” Droom said resignedly.
I stared at the dragon. I trusted Droom's prophetic abilities, but fate was a concept that had always seemed silly to me. If fate really controlled our destinies, why would we be given any free will at all? I clenched my fist. I would not let this stand.
“Do what you will. I am going to try,” I said with determination. “Let 'fate' or whatever it is destroy your cause, or fight for it with your dying breath! Who's with me?” I exclaimed.
There was silence. I flipped through the spell book while I waited for my allies' response.
“Let's go. I don't intend to sit here and watch Kheth's servants murder this last bastion of hope,” Ndoto said, walking up beside me.
“That dragon is not from Kheth,” Droom said, not looking at me.
“What?” I said, confused.
“I have seen this. There will be a third power, with a third agenda. It will join with Kheth, and they shall extinguish the candle of the universe,”
“Ndoto. Let's move. The prophet can prophesy,”
Ndoto had a slightly pained expression. He said nothing, but just nodded and ran out into the nearly empty battlefield. I followed. Near the back of the book, I found a powerful spell. It looked complex, but I remembered Tantir's words that faith was half the power of magic. Determined to stop this new power from surfacing and save the town, I called to Ndoto.
“Do you have a piece of chalk?” I asked.
“What for?” he replied.
“A spell circle,” I answered.
He tossed me a blue stick of moderate length. I drew a circle large enough to enclose me. Closing my eyes, I began to cast the spell. At the end of 10 minutes, I made a final hand symbol. The circle began to glow brighter and brighter. It formed into a solid platform of light and lifted me higher and higher into the air. 3 golden orbs formed around me. They began to spin faster and faster until they formed an immense sword which sliced into the dragon. It roared and fell to the ground, split into two pieces.
“Well done!” Ndoto exclaimed. “Well done!”
Chapter 23
All was silent. The townspeople were half afraid to cheer. I expected they were waiting to see if a new threat presented itself. I found I shared their apprehension.
“That seemed too easy. Either this new power is hardly worth dealing with, or they're only showing part of their power,” I said warily.
“I hate to rain on your victory, but you're absolutely correct,” Droom remarked grimly.
The ground began to shake violently. At first, it seemed to just be a rumble, but gradually I realized it was really a high pitched sonic scream. Suddenly, the ground around the dead body of the dragon burst open, and smoke began to flood the plain. I coughed. The scream continued, chilling me to the bone.
“Is that it?” I asked nervously.
“I'm afraid not,” Droom said.
The smoke burst into green flame. At first, the flames were small. Gradually, however, they grew taller and taller until they seemed to touch the sky. Then they suddenly flared out and exploded, setting several buildings on fire. The smoke cleared. The creature that apparently caused the fire was similar to the dragon we had just defeated, except it was much larger, as it blotted out the sun. Its eyes blazed with a rage that seemed touched with insanity. Its claws dug into the earth, digging holes the depth of a grave.
It flapped its immense wings, and the crumbling buildings collapsed from its wind. Ndoto readied his staff. I flipped open Droom's spell book Droom himself prepared for battle. Sakkaku hovered about 3 feet off the ground, ready to attack the monstrosity from the air.
Before any of us could react, however, a purple bolt of jagged energy pinned us all to the ground. It writhed and crawled, until it acted like a set of ropes tying us all to the earth. Droom blasted spells at it, but it only tightened its grip. Wherever it touched my skin, a painful shock coursed through me. Sakkaku tried to slice at it, but his sword only acted as a conductor, zapping him hard.
What power could overpower that of a Dream Lord? I thought.
Chapter 24
I soon learned the answer. The creature, ready to fight, suddenly tensed, shuddered and relaxed. A figure stepped off its hard, armored back. Stepping toward us, he suddenly came into view. From his form, one would think he would appear friendly, but his features only inspired terror. He was human, mainly, but his face seemed halfway between man and animal, specifically that of a deer. He bore a pair of ivory white horns that were tipped with blood. He had a strange black symbol on his forehead that I had never seen before. His teeth were sharp as knives. However, it was his eyes that were the most terrifying. They were of the deepest yellow, a yellow that spoke of illness, deceit and malice.
His voice, when he spoke, was of a timbre that was rough and growling, yet with a strange silky smoothness.
“Ah. The rebels. Kheth has told me of you,”
His head suddenly whipped out, his horns slicing into Sakkaku's side. He was silent, but the Dream Lord's expression showed excruciating physical pain.
“I must take you to him, but first... a fitting just judgement for those...” he looked at the Dream Lords, particularly Ndoto, “Who have violated their pact!”
“I made no pact with Kheth, you vile sorcerer!! I was forced against my will!” Ndoto exclaimed with a snarl. The deer man ignored him. Lifting us all up into the air by the bonding lightning, he threw us against the wall of a building, where we remained attached. Making a hand symbol above his horns, they turned a sickly green. He then charged each of us head on, leaving puncture wounds.
“You will not die. Not yet. But the more you move, the more unbearable the pain will become. Casting magic will make it worse, thus you will be unable to help yourselves or save this town from destruction! You will watch it crumble, and see the last resistance to Kheth's total conquest fall!! I assure you, from this day forth, you shall never forget the name of Ranalak!”
Ranalak backflipped onto his dragon, which rose high into the sky. The dragon began to blast the remains of the buildings with mighty fire.
“And this is where things all go downhill,” Droom remarked painfully.
Chapter 25
I watched in horror. Buildings crumbled, collapsing on the warriors who fought for us. The town fell into dust. Then suddenly, the dragon's scales changed color from dark navy to bright green. The dragon blasted the town with its breath, which had changed from green flame to green smoke.
“Don't breathe it in!” Droom exclaimed.
I had no intention of doing such, but the spectacle that followed drove this intention further into my mind. Wherever the green smoke touched, plants withered, grass yellowed and died and people began to choke and heave.
“We have to get the survivors out of here! Ranalak has not seen the last of us!” I exclaimed with anger.
“I agree,” Ndoto said.
“As do I,” Sakkaku added.
Tantir gave me a look that also showed his deep agreement. We all looked at Droom.
“You are right. Many years of being unchecked in my authority have left me unwilling to hear truth when it contradicts my own ideas. I am truly sorry. Perhaps if I had joined you, Ranalak could have been defeated.”
“You are forgiven, but there's no time for remorse! We have to move!” I exclaimed.
“How are we supposed to get out of this?” Sakkaku mused.
I carefully pulled out and flipped through Droom's spell book, wincing from the pain of movement. Surprisingly, I had been able to hide it from Ranalak. I flipped to the second section on spell craft, until I found a section on disarming spells. After reading through it, I looked to Tantir.
“I need your help,” I said.
Tantir winced, but then he smiled bravely.
“We shall triumph,” he said with a quiet strength that filled me with both respect and courage.
I began to chant in a low tone. Tantir joined me. Slowly, as we chanted, a spear of golden liquid began to form. We finished the chant.
Now for the hard part, I thought.
I began to make hand symbols that would move the spear in the right formations to cut our bonds. With each motion, Ranalak's antler wound cut deeper into my chest. It became near excruciating, but I forced myself to continue. Finally, I finished and relaxed a little. The liquid spear quivered and shook, then it darted around us and began to slice off threads of the lightning.
“Keep still,” I instructed the others.
They complied. Within five minutes, the purple lightning spell suddenly burst into purple flame, which then disappeared without a trace of its former existence. Our wounds vanished with the spell.
“Excellent work, Kyle!” Tantir exclaimed. “Now we must form a plan.”
Chapter 26
We discussed for as short a period of time as we could. We came up with a brief plan.
“Sakkaku. You will take to the air and see if you can take down Ranalak. I will set up a large protective spell circle and try to deal with that dragon. Ndoto, Kyle and Tantir, you must rescue any survivors and bring them into the circle. Let's move!” Droom commanded.
We did. Unfortunately, by the time we had split up to carry out this plan, the townspeople were cornered into one remaining building. Ndoto uttered a magic word, then was boosted into the air by a strange green flame. He flipped, then landed on the roof. He began to shoot flames of various colors at the dragon, then he concentrated, and the dragon was suddenly frozen in a 6 inch deep coating of ice.
“How did you...” I trailed off.
“Couldn't have done it with Ranalak. Only works on dumb beasts, not smart ones,” he replied. I laughed at his joke. We ran into the building.
“The dragon is frozen, for the moment. He will not remain so for very long. We have safe shelter. Move!” Ndoto exclaimed.
The villagers refused to move. They shook with fear, clearly not believing Ndoto that the dragon was completely subdued.
“Your Dream Lord commands you!” he exclaimed. That got some of them moving, but the majority stayed where they were. We heard a cracking noise outside.
The ice must be breaking! I thought.
I dropped down to my knees.
“You have to come! The town can't be saved, but if we don't escape now, Kheth will control everything. We are Oneiran's last hope! We are the one light in Kheth's darkness. With the new power of this monster Ranalak, that light is now more important than ever. So who's with me?!” I exclaimed.
Still somewhat fearful, but looking braver than before, there was a cheer, and we ran out of the building, just as the dragon was freed of his ice prison.
Before long, we reached the protective circle. Everyone entered.
“Now what?” I asked Droom, who was giving the dragon as much trouble as possible.
“Still thinking, I'm afraid. Sakkaku's wounded,” he said.
“What?!”
“Ranalak sliced one of his wings off,” Droom replied grimly.
“Can we heal it?” Ndoto asked.
“Possibly, but it looks bad,” Droom said. “He's over there,”
We rushed over to him.
“Are you ok?” I asked nervously.
“Far from it,” he replied. He winced. I looked near his back. Where one of his majestic storm grey wings had been, there was nothing but a stump.
We were all silent. Finally, I voiced the unspoken question.
“Will you live?”
“I don't know. It seems unlikely. But I'm not dead yet,” Sakkaku said quietly.
“Can you move at all?” Tantir asked.
“Not really,” he said with a dejected sigh.
I sat down near him. Unfortunately, Sakkaku would have to wait, as Droom called,
“The dragon is weakening. Everyone, send everything we've got at this thing!!”
I flipped through the spell book and started shooting bolts of multicolored light. Rainbow fireballs followed, and elemental storms of fire, water and wind. Finally, with a great roar that was so low pitched that the bass vibrations rumbled in my chest, the dragon died. There was a great cheer. It was suddenly silenced as Ranalak came walking towards us. I felt a shiver run through me.
“I would have thought you rebels had learned your lesson. No matter. I will repeat it, if necessary,” he said with a sickening smile. He looked down at our protective circle.
“I could dispel this. But its not necessary. You've apparently already left a door for me. How careless and kind of you,” he laughed. To my horror, I saw that there was a slight nick in the chalk of the circle. Probably made in the rush to get it ready. Ranalak erased a large section with his boot.
“Your home is destroyed. Half your people are dead. For now, anyway, this should be lesson enough for you. However, you,” he pointed at Sakkaku, “deserve far greater education!!” Ranalak spat on the ground, touched a horn to the puddle of moisture and it began to turn bright yellow. Then he sucked up the potion into his hand and shot it as a bolt of yellow energy. The bolt seemed to ignore us and head directly for Sakkaku. Suddenly, a misty form ran and jumped in front of Sakkaku. Tantir!
“No!”
But Tantir stood firm as the bolt dispersed, electrocuting him. His misty form began to swirl and thin.
“Kyle. The day that you must lead has come. I can no longer help you. I hope you have learned from my guidance,” Tantir said in a voice as weak as the whispering wind.
“I have, Tantir! Bravery, loyalty, perseverance! All these I have learned from you, just don't go!”
“I have no choice. This is your quest now. You must be a....leader....” he said. Then his particles were dispersed by the winds.
Droom dove in front of me and sent a white blast at the direction of Tantir's disappearing body. Suddenly the particles gathered, morphed and changed, until he became a star and flew up to the heavens.
“Thank you, Droom. It's some consolation that he'll light the way for others,” I said, on the verge of tears.
“I agree, and this way Kheth cannot distort his remains into a new enemy. He may rest truly in peace and light,” Droom said, head bowed.
Ranalak was seething. Foam began to drip from his fangs.
“Sacrifice. Bah! Such a pitiful thing. I will kill you now, winged one!!!” he exclaimed, suddenly holding his hands in a casting formation. Time seemed to slow down. I saw Droom, too far away to intervene. Ndoto, standing protectively around the survivors. Sakkaku, the wounded victim. And Ranalak, the mad and twisted new foe who in many ways seemed worse than Kheth himself. None of my allies could help Sakkaku. I alone was close enough. Bringing a spell to mind almost from memory, guided by the gentle voice of Tantir, I screamed at the top of my lungs,
“Directel Portum Portala Rapidium Vitos Vitos Apparansens Tatarskith!”
A vortex appeared behind Ranalak. He looked around, realizing what was happening.
“This isn't over yet, rebels!! Kheth and I shall triumph! And you shall be crushed like flies! I will...”
He didn't get to finish, because the vortex sucked him in and disappeared, sending him falling to Tatarskith.
Chapter 27
Silence reigned. A few minutes passed, but the silence seemed at once eternal and deafening. I knew I should be trying to cheer people up, or at least find some glimmer of hope in this situation, but I couldn't think of anything. The headquarters of what could have been a powerful resistance was destroyed. The ruins had fallen to the point where I could not recognize what was what. Kheth was dormant, it seemed, but he no doubt was active in carrying out his new plan. We had discovered a new and terrifying enemy in Ranalak. To sum it up, there didn't seem to be much to celebrate.
Ndoto voiced my thoughts.
“Things are...not exactly in good shape. But we can't give up now,”
“Ndoto is right. In my opinion, what we need is both a stronghold and a better plan,” Droom added.
“Yes, but how much time do we have? The Cosmic Rending progresses as we speak, and who knows what else Kheth or Ranalak might try? There's too much uncertainty,” I said grimly.
“From uncertainty with courage springs strong foundations,” Sakkaku said quietly.
“Who first said that quote?” Droom asked.
“Akhmed Rajastha,” Sakkaku replied with a roll of his eyes, as if it didn't really matter.
“Nevertheless, he makes an excellent point. We have to try. Now where can we go?”
“Curses! If only my fellow brothers were not in the service of that vile Kheth! Morpheus' palace would be the perfect stronghold to operate from.”
“Perhaps that is what we must do, then,” Sakkaku mused.
“Do what?” I asked.
“Free the others from Kheth's influence. After all, he couldn't stand up to all seven of us as easily as he holds power over us now,”
“You're right. We have to free them. At least a few of them. But how? We don't know how Kheth controlled them, or how to fix it,” I said with frustration.
“You're our leader. At least for now,”
“Stop it, Ndoto! I'm no leader, now nor ever!” I snapped. Then I sighed and took a deep breath, then looked at Ndoto. He seemed unfazed, although he had a slight air of contempt now.
“I'm sorry. It's just....I'm nothing like Tantir was, and he, all of you, expect me to be as good a leader as he was. It's just...more pressure than I'm used to. I won't back down. I have promised to do my best, but bear with me,” I finished.
Droom and Sakkaku looked at each other, Droom quizzically, Sakkaku knowingly. I didn't know what they were saying to each other, but their eyes spoke a deep conversation. Realizing they were Dream Lords, I wondered if they could communicate by thought. Finally, they both looked at Ndoto. He shrugged helplessly. Sakkaku jerked his head to one side. Droom finally nodded.
“Kyle, have you ever wondered why exactly Tantir placed so much upon your shoulders?” Droom asked.
“Many times. But I thought little of it. I always thought he was just trying to shape me into a stronger person and a better hero, two things I have never been until now,” I said, waiting for Droom to elaborate.
“For your sake, I wish that were case. However, so much more depends upon you than you know.”
“What do you mean?”
“Sakkaku. It is time to explain to him,” Droom said.
“Very well. The truth involves prophesies, which probably will not surprise you, as prophesies are much like dreams, therefore just as integral in the fabric of our universe. There is an ancient prophesy, almost as old as Oneiran itself. It tells of a dark and nameless evil that will ravage the very bonds that hold this universe together, destroying all. It also says, however, that at the right moment, before this evil completely destroys Oneiran, a hero of another dimension will come and not only defeat the great evil, but begin The Great Awakening,” Sakkaku said.
“The Great Awakening? What's that?” I asked.
“No one is entirely sure. Some believe it refers to the finding of a lost treasure, or a religious movement. Others insist it is a new government or a battle. Regardless, you came from another universe, and that gives many of us the belief that you may be the hero,”
“So wait. You're saying that you think I'm the cosmic Chosen One, your Messiah? I can't fulfill a role that great! I'm just a kid!”
“This is true, but that's not all that worries us. In the first place, this prophecy is the Oneirani equivalent of your book of Revelation, or Ragnarök, which means that if you are the hero, Oneiran is headed for its apocalypse. The other thing that we worry about is that there is another prophecy, written by a visionary who was the servant of an ancient dark lord. It is worded similarly, except it says that the darkness shall rid the universe of the light that has blinded it, and all shall be plunged into an endless night. All of this shall begin through the death of the one hero who would seek to keep the light shining. His blood will seal the darkness eternally. So it goes.”
“You mean...me??”
“I hope not, but that is the problem. You are caught between two prophecies. Your victory will secure the light. Your death will secure the darkness. And either way, if it is truly an apocalypse, we lose,” Sakkaku finished, his eyes heavy as stone.
“Why wasn't I told this?!”
“Do you really think you could have even endured hearing it when you first came here?” Ndoto asked.
“I...suppose not. Wow. If Tantir knew this, what was he training me for?”
“To be honest, we don't really know. Tantir was in Droom's service, but it would seem he had plans of his own.”
“Whatever it was, he must have only had good in mind! I won't stand for any accusations against him!” I said fiercely.
“None of us are accusing him. We agree with you. The truth is just that he never told any of the Dream Lords what he was planning. If only we knew that, perhaps we would be better prepared.”
Suddenly, a giant boar stomped into view. Atop its back was a birdlike creature that I recognized as one of Kheth's generals from the chess game. He turned towards us.
“Get the villagers out! Run!” Ndoto exclaimed.
Chapter 28
One 'Portum Portala' later, we all stood outside the forbidding facade of Morpheus' castle. It greatly resembled a pagoda, but its roofs were covered with frightening creatures. The doors were a deep black, with gold handles. I walked up tentatively, expecting the many terrifying faces to leap at me at any second.
You are a hero, I told myself. You are brave.
Feeling a little bolder, I knocked. The door opened of its own accord. I walked in, expecting more dark and eerie architecture. To my surprise, the moment the door was fully opened, a brilliant white light blazed from the center of the room beyond.
“ENTER!” a booming and yet rough voice exclaimed.
We did. The light had dimmed slightly, but I still had to squint to see anything. Gradually, I realized the light was coming from Morpheus himself. I stood silent in awe.
“Ah. My traitorous brothers. What makes you think I would welcome such as you?” The wolf figure said, spitting on the ground.
“Morpheus. Please. Kheth will not give you whatever he has promised you. He is a dark destroyer. You know this to be true. Come and join us, and we shall take back Oneiran! There will be peace again, and you will reign once more in wisdom with the rest of us!” Ndoto pleaded.
Morpheus sighed with a remorseful expression. I figured he and Ndoto must be closest among those who were here. Then he scowled, and smiled bitterly.
“Kheth? I do not serve Kheth! He only believes he has me in his power. In truth, I am planning a rebellion of my own.”
“A rebellion?” Ndoto said incredulously. “Against what? We are the ones who stand against Kheth! What more is there to fight? Are you completely sane, Morpheus?”
“I am perfectly sound! I...I don't know why I should trust you. Nevertheless, we were friends once, so I may as well. You know, of course, of the prophecies?”
Ndoto, Droom and Sakkaku nodded. I made no indication. Part of me was trying to forget I had ever heard the prophecies. The other part was still wary of Morpheus, and whose side he was really on.
“Well, my records reveal that there is a third prophecy.”
“A third?!” Droom exclaimed. “I'm inclined to agree with Ndoto! Are you all right?”
“Silence, infidel! Let me speak! The third prophecy warns of both a false enemy and a false hero. These are the ones believed to be the true evil and the true good in the other two prophecies. The true savior of this universe, shall be one who is both old and wise and whose power is unmatched. I cannot be certain, but this may indeed be myself. My intent is to fulfill this prophecy by killing Kheth?”
“Killing Kheth?!!” Sakkaku finally spoke. “How do you propose to do that?!”
“A spell. Thanator Mortis. One of the ancient Death Magics!”
“We have sworn never to use those!”
“I shall do what is necessary! I grant you permission to remain here for the night, to show you that I am both sane and uncorrupted, but then I really must ask you to leave me to my plans.”
Chapter 29
“Morpheus has gone utterly mad! This is the darkest insanity! A Dream Lord dropping to the level of using Death Magic!” Sakkaku growled.
“What is Death Magic?” I asked
“A set of spells. They can instantly kill anyone, and they transfer both the life force and the power of the victim to the caster. Unfortunately, they also transfer the personalities. In other words, Morpheus will be half Kheth.”
“How could he have fallen so far?!” Ndoto raged.
Droom had been silent.
“I believe I know something that may have been the cause. Have you forgotten Ranalak?”
“You think he drove Morpheus mad?” Ndoto asked with a shiver.
“Its entirely possible. His powers seem to be of that sort of caliber.”
“The cursed infidel! I would be more than happy to rip his heart out for his actions against Morpheus!!” Ndoto said, eyes turning pure, burning white.
“Calm down, everyone!!” I exclaimed, nearly on the verge of exploding myself. “Listen. I'll admit I don't know Morpheus. Don't know how he was before this. But this is exactly what Kheth would want. All of us divided, unable to focus on him. I hate Ranalak as much as you do. But we need a plan.”
“Kyle's right. We are acting like children! Let us form a plan,” Sakkaku agreed.
The others calmed down, and we began to think of strategy.
Chapter 30
“So, information first. Any reports on how far Kheth is into the Cosmic Rending?” I asked. It was strange. A week into this strange adventure, and I was already beginning to try to think like a general.
“Well, naturally, spy reports have been difficult to receive. But before Ranalak came, the last report to Andunis said that 3 quarters of the preparations were complete,” Ndoto answered.
“Then we have to move fast! How can we stop the Rending?”
“I would caution that we should perhaps take the prophecies into account. Though they may not refer to you, Kheth does not appear to be taking chances, and perhaps they can help us,” Sakkaku suggested.
“Maybe. What are you suggesting?”
“Sakkaku, with all due respect, now hardly seems the time to consider prophecy and prose. We need a solid plan for battle!” Ndoto exclaimed.
“Nevertheless, he's right. If these prophecies have anything to do with Kyle, we would be utter fools to ignore them,” Droom remarked.
“I don't want to destroy Oneiran! Whose idea was it that I have to fulfill some prophecy anyway? I'm here by a painful accident! Oneiran. The universe of dreams, huh? Who's to say this isn't a dream. You're all about as real to my life as a pink unicorn, and just as important! Just leave me alone!!” I snarled. I stormed out of the room, hopelessness and uncertainty over my head.
“Nice going, flyboy,” I heard Ndoto say to Sakkaku.
“Ndoto!” Droom chided.
Chapter 31
I sat down on the bed Morpheus had provided for me. This wasn't fair. Three mighty and powerful wizards, and they thought I was the solution to all their problems, not to mention the end all be all of their universe! I was just a kid. Surprisingly, I felt my eyelids growing heavy. I fell asleep.
When I awoke, I was sitting on a cloud. I looked down. The cloud was floating towards a patio of white marble. I rubbed my eyes, then stopped myself, knowing that would do no good in a universe of dreams. The cloud dissipated a foot off the ground, And I landed with a light thump. I looked around. The entire landscape was robed in beautiful dawn, the most gorgeous sunrise I had ever seen. The reds were those of the deepest roses, the purples of a king's robe. The blues and golds bespoke treasure, royalty and light. And the oranges were of a soft and creamy color, that almost looked good enough to eat. I sighed with elation. Then a voice spoke behind me.
“It's wonderful, isn't it?”
I spun around. I saw a noble figure, who looked to be wearing a golden robe.
“This isn't one of Kheth's summoning dreams, is it?” I asked suspiciously.
“Oh, no. Far from it. This is no dream. Well it is, but far more real. This is the Sunrise Kingdom.”
“The Sunrise Kingdom?”
“Yes. You see, the most well known magic of Oneiran lies in dreams and visions. This is why prophecies and fore tellings are held to be so important there. But many forget that the other half of Oneiran's power comes from hope. And upon hope, this kingdom is built. This land shows not what people see, but what they wish to see. Not what they imagine, but what they wish to be true.”
“A land of figments?”
“Hardly. The Sunrise Kingdom is the one part of Oneiran where no hope is impossible, and no faith goes unrewarded.”
“Heaven, then?
“Many would say so. In truth, it depends on one's perspective. Still, you have been brought here to prepare your soul for what lies ahead,” the noble finished.
“How can you do that?” I asked, somewhat dejectedly.
“Simply. We shall show you that you can rise to this challenge, we shall prove to you that you are indeed a hero, and we shall relieve you of the burden of other's expectations, and help you to trust your own.”
“Bold promises. Can they be fulfilled?”
“Some of that is up to you. Walk across the water until you reach that grassy meadow. There is an apple tree full of the reddest, ripest, juiciest apples that you will ever eat. Have as many as you like, illness is impossible here. You will know what to do then.”
I was confused, as this seemed to be a pointless, if pleasant diversion. Still, I obeyed. Looking down at the water, I was a little afraid to try and walk on it. But with the beautiful sunrise reflected on it, it looked strong as steel. I took a tentative step, believing as hard as I could that it could be done. The water held. I laughed with relief and continued to walk across it. Finally, I reached the meadow. I picked an apple and bit into it. True to the noble's promise, I had never tasted a better apple, indeed a better fruit, in my entire life. After making short work of that one, I picked more. To my surprise, as my guide had said, after eating ten apples, I felt no illness from an overfull stomach. I sat down in the shade and waited. Before long, I saw a familiar misty silhouette.
“Tantir?!”
“That was once my name. Alas, I cannot bear a name any longer. But I am he. And I am here,” Tantir said in a warm voice. I tried to embrace him, but being made of mist, I passed through him.
“I appreciate the gesture anyway, Kyle. We have much to talk about,” he said quietly.
“Tantir, things are terrible. They told me about what you knew about the prophecies, and the pressure on me was just...”
“Prophecies?! Well bless my soul, if that isn't just like them! They're right in one way, but quite wrong in another,” Tantir said with a booming laugh.
“You mean, I'm not supposed to fulfill those prophecies?”
“Well, I'm afraid some of this burden is on you, but you are not expected to defeat this evil as a lone hero. The true prophecy is much more complicated, and it involves the constant work of many. You see, for thousands of years, since Oneiran began, an evil born of man's nightmares has plagued the universe. It has taken many forms, and corrupted many to its banner. The prophecy does not say that all evil will be vanquished by one hero. You do not have to bring about a second beginning. However, the prophecy does say this: “The lights shall join as one, from many. Together, they will shine as stars in the sky, and the lord of darkness and his torturous servant shall be vanquished, thus pushing back the infinite darkness which will someday be destroyed.” In other words, you will defeat Kheth and Ranalak, but you do not have to conquer all evil on your own,” he finished.
I sighed.
“Thank you. That takes a lot off my chest,” I said simply.
“You're welcome. Alas, I can't stay here long. Fly up to the highest cloud and land on the brightest star, and you shall be guided further. I just wish to say that you have made me very proud.”
I smiled. Tantir smiled his brave smile that had given me such courage when he lived. Then he bowed and disappeared.
I sighed. Walking on water. A difficult task, but not impossible. Flight though? This seemed more challenging. Then I remembered the spell Tantir had used when I first entered Oneiran. I instinctively reached for my spell book Droom's spell book I had come to think of it as my own. I was surprised to find that I didn't have it. Then I realized it must have disappeared when I came here. I was disappointed. Then a thought came to mind. If the Sunrise Kingdom was based on hopes, surely I could hope or wish hard enough to fly that way. I began to think.
Fly. I wish to fly. Up! Up!.
Nothing happened. I remained grounded. I thought about what the strange being I had met earlier had said.
“'Not what people imagine, but what they wish to be true. No faith goes unrewarded,'” I mused. “Hmmm....”
Then it came to me. Wishes were all well and good, but I wasn't really hoping to fly, just for the sake of flying. I had another force driving it. I began to think other thoughts.
I hope to defeat Kheth. I hope to defeat Ranalak. I hope to save Morpheus. I hope for the universe. I hope for its future.
My eyes were closed, but as I opened them, I saw that the ground was many miles below. I smiled in triumph. Raising my arms, I soared higher and higher, past the birds, above the clouds, higher than the moon. I finally reached a star that was brighter than all the others, and shone so radiantly that I couldn't look at it. Closing my eyes, and following the aura of its light, I landed on top of the brilliant star. I looked around, squinting to see anything.
Finally, a figure began to approach. It was tall and gaunt, and I felt a shiver run down my spine. As it drew nearer and nearer, I realized it was Kheth! I held a finger, prepared to cast spells until I collapsed, but then Kheth removed his hood. I could see his face. It was thin, with sad and downcast eyes, that, while still of the same shade of orange, now seemed to suggest sunsets, autumn leaves and soft firelight. A tear rolled down the figure's face.
“You are Kheth??” I asked incredulously.
The being closed his eyes, then opened them again.
“I am what Kheth once was. What he should be. What I should be.”
“What do you mean?”
“Many years in darkness will cloak my heart. I am Kheth before the shadow of evil consumed him.”
“Really?” I asked.
He nodded.
“If you are, or were Kheth, then please tell me. What was...or is....his story...your story?”
Kheth was silent for awhile. Then he spoke.
“I was a young sorcerer. Well...sorcerer is perhaps the wrong word. I wandered from place to place, using the magic I had learned, which was small, to try and help people with their grievances, their troubles, their tragedies, which were immense. In retrospect, perhaps I was harsh on myself. The magic I knew was minor. Healing spells of the lowest caliber. I had learned the art of making wishes become true, but my teacher was mainly a fraud. He knew illusions, and how to make people think they had something, but he could never truly give it to them.
Thus was my power, and I expected to work miracles with it. My frustrations with my inability often grew to a sharp point, and I frequently lost many a sleepless night worrying my failures. An uncured illness. An unhealed heart. An unsaved life,” Kheth shook his head, forcing back tears. Then he cleared his throat and continued.
“All of these were my troubles, but it was one day that my life was shifted from tumultuous to tempestuous. I had entered a village and healed a few broken limbs, working over the course of a few months, little by little. But then, a new sorcerer entered into the village. He called himself the White Stag, but you know him as Ranalak.”
“Ranalak! You mean, he has done this to you.”
“You misunderstand. He was certainly a large factor, but his deception was but a part of my folly. He healed many. He saved an ailing man from dying. He brought a cripple back on her feet again. He became a hero of the village. They idolized him. I ignored him for the first month of his stay, and continued my endless work, until one night.
I was cleaning the wound of a soldier, when there was an explosion of light from the house nearby. I gave the soldier my supplies to continue what I had started, and ran to see what had happened. I backed away when I saw it was Ranalak. He...rather intimidated me. I also see now, that with my hardworking weak magic, I became jealous of him. Anyhow, I watched from the window, hidden from view. A young woman stood by a table, near Ranalak. On the table was a stillborn infant, frozen in an expression of pain. Ranalak growled and cursed.
“I will accomplish this! He will not remain dead! This tragedy shall not befall you!” He screamed.
Though his words seemed comforting, his tone spoke unquenchable flaming malice. I watched in horror as the baby was blasted once again by white light. Finally, I heard a cry of the baby. Though scared, I smiled with joy that the mother was reunited with her child. My joy, however, soon turned to terror. The baby continued to cry, and suddenly began to convulse and shake, and spit green liquid. Ranalak at first looked horrified, but then he smiled a wicked smile.
“At last! Begone, o shadow! I control you!” he laughed.
My rage at that moment was unparalleled. Not knowing where my power came from, I flung my hand in front of the window, and orange brilliance flowed from it. Taking the shape of a sword, the light speared the infant through the chest. He gave one last cry, then suddenly smiled. A look of wonderful peace and happiness spread across his face. Then his eyes closed.
The woman cried, tears of both sadness for her son's death, joy for the end of his suffering, and anger for Ranalak's possessive spell that nearly destroyed him.
“You monstrosity!” the woman screamed, shoving Ranalak against a wall.
“Do not question the all consuming authority of the White Stag!” he snarled.
I could watch this despair no longer. I burst through the door.
“Begone, White Stag! Bah! White Stag indeed! Your robe may be white, but your soul is black as the abyss!” I yelled, blasting him with brilliant orange lightning.
Ranalak held me off for awhile, placing a sickly green shield around himself and the baby he held, but my rage prevailed, beams of orange light skewering the protective bubble. I pounded him into unconsciousness. The mother looked at me in both fear and admiration.
“I am sorry for your son, but I hope you would rather him dead than alive in such a state!” I said.
“Yes. I never wanted this. The White Stag insisted he could save my baby. Revive him. Restore him. I said no. It was what it was, and I would accept it. But he ignored me. If you hadn't come, I don't know what I would have done.”
“I'm only glad I arrived when I did.”
“But tell me, Journeyman Kheth, is he...”she trailed off.
“Dead? No. that is too good for him. I wish him to feel the punishments for his crimes.”
I walked out, returned to my tent and raged at the sky.
Chapter 32
“I awoke the next morning, intent on telling the village chief all that had happened. But as I walked to the town square, Ranalak was there, orating before the village.
“And as I had succeeded in reuniting this poor, miserable woman with her one pride and joy, this Journeyman came and struck with an inhuman and unrelenting rage. He killed her son, piercing his heart with a deathly orange beam, then he electrocuted me within an inch of my life. It was only thanks to my far superior wizardry that I survived, with burns that shall never heal! This monster must be cast out, killed, if that is your desire!!”
Everyone stared at me. The looks of pure hate pierced my very core, though I knew my innocence. Finally, the mother spoke in my defense.
“He did not kill my son! The White Stag insisted upon bringing my baby back to life, against my blessing, for I wished my son to go peacefully to the other side. But The White Stag tried anyway, and in doing so, he awakened some nameless evil! Journeyman Kheth saved my son from a fate worse than death, and me from no doubt the same fate! He is not our enemy!” she proclaimed.
“Such is the extent of Kheth's deception! She even believes that he is a savior, instead of a demon! This poor creature has been deeply misled by his malice and lies! Let us kill him! For this woman! For her son, whom I did not even touch, much less affect in such a way! For this town!”
The village chief called everyone to order.
“While I hate this vile villain as much as you do, it is against the sacred laws of our temple to kill an outsider for crimes. Therefore, he shall suffer a fate far worse! He shall be exiled, and word of his treachery will be spread! No town shall welcome him, no city house him! He shall be a hated wanderer for the rest of his days!!”
The townspeople began to charge at me. Ranalak smiled malevolently. I ran until I reached the edge of the town. They returned home, and I collapsed into tears. Somehow, Ranalak appeared behind me.
“So justice is served. The wrong are cast out by the right, and the innocent are separated from the guilty. But allow me to ease your pain,” Ranalak said viciously.
He leaned close to my ear and whispered.
“You were not wrong. Had you not interfered, that child would have been a vessel, a flesh and blood container for my servant, a shadow far greater than any evil man has committed. But none shall believe you. And unless your accuser forgives you, your reputation, and my atrocity will haunt you for the rest of your life!”
I rose to my feet and charged at him, my fists glowing with energy. I mercilessly attacked him with my fists, but too late I realized he had put up his shield again, a malevolent smile on his face. I continued to pound the energy field anyway, my hands growing raw and bloody. When my energy and rage were spent, I collapsed to the ground, beaten and broken. Then the shield dissolved and Ranalak came close to me.
“But I can forgive you. I can save you from this fate. Become my servant. I will give you great status. We shall work miracles, and when the time is right, we will cast our plague and all will weep! By then, you and I shall be gods! Gods!!” he laughed at the sky.
I knew he was mad, far beyond madness. But for forgiveness and power, I joined him. Kheth joined him. Ever since, he and I have ruled with hate and malice,” Kheth finished, not even trying to stop himself from weeping.
A million emotions boiled in me. I was sympathetic. Such atrocity was monstrous. I was sad. Kheth had once been a force seeking to do good, yet rage and desire for approval drove him to harm. I was angry. Ranalak was the most heartless and horrible being I had met. I was afraid. If Ranalak had driven Kheth to become what he was in the rest of Oneiran, what evil could he work upon us? Upon our weak army? Upon Morpheus!
These feelings continued to boil, until finally, one remained. Determination.
“What must I do to inflict proper justice upon Ranalak?” I asked, anger in my voice.
“I have no desire for vengeance. I only wish I could undo my foolishness and self hatred. I am dead. Kheth has no desire to turn from shadow. Desire of revenge will only weaken you and your allies to be deceived by Ranalak and destroyed by Kheth.”
“I will defeat him then, do whatever it takes to see to it that he cannot harm anyone else. I will bring you back to life, or try. And then I shall let it pass by. Ranalak will be vanquished, and you shall return to life.”
“Neutralize Ranalak, but do not bring me back. Here I am lonely, but I am free from the taint of who I now have become. The scar remains, but its wound has healed.”
“But Kheth, surely you are not beyond light!” I exclaimed, on the verge of tears myself now.
“Only time will tell. Do as you think right, but know that if you fail, I remain here, so you have not failed.”
I wept. Kheth put a hand on my shoulder.
“Thank you for hearing. Climb the great pine tree, covered in snow, and you shall receive your last guidance.”
He bowed, replaced his hood and disappeared in a cloud of golden rain.
Chapter 33
I flew back down to earth, or the equivalent. I looked around.
Pine tree, pine tree, pine tree, I thought. Suddenly, I saw a forest to the east, covered in bright white snow. I smiled at the beauty of it, and began to fly towards it. I finally reached a tree which was without any doubt the tallest in the forest. I began to climb its branches. As I reached the halfway point, I accidentally glanced down at the ground. Fear rushed through me.
“Faith,” Tantir's voice echoed in my head. I took a deep breath, steeled myself for the climb and continued. An hour had passed by the time I had reached the top. The branches had been woven into a sort of basket like house, well more like a room, as it was too small to be an entire house. At first, the room seemed vacant, but then in the corner I saw a familiar face.
“Morpheus?”
“It is I. Well, you know now, I trust, how the laws of the Sunrise Kingdom function? This is myself, as I would wish to be. Just as the Kheth you met was Kheth uncorrupted by evil, as in the farthest reaches of his mind he wishes to be, so too the Morpheus you see before you is the one untainted by Ranalak's madness.”
“It's great to see you as yourself, Morpheus, but what have I come for? What are you going to tell me?”
“From Tantir, you received encouragement. From Kheth, you received guidance, now from me you shall receive strategy. You are prepared to lead this fight. Now I shall help you find what you need to win it.”
“Excellent! How do we start?”
Morpheus pulled out a scroll of paper that he unrolled on the table. It was a large map of several planets. He took out a few chess pieces and placed them at various locations. Then he murmured a magical charm, and the pieces glowed.
“Kheth's magicians are still on Tatarskith, here,” Morpheus explained, pointing to a red planet with several chess pieces on it. “However, the preparations for the Cosmic Rending will be completed tomorrow. Which is why we must act quickly. Once the preparations are complete, all he will need is his sacrifice, which I assume is you, although Tantir seems to think otherwise. We shall see. For now, however, let us assume you are the target. Droom and Ndoto have amassed a small army on the water world of Oraniotha,” he waved his hand, and several chess pieces moved to a blue sphere several inches away from Tatarskith.
“Sakkaku is in the process of trying to convince the other Dream Lords to join us. It will be difficult. My brothers are stubborn. However, Sakkaku has the gift of leadership. Were it not my destined duty to be a leader, I would give Sakkaku my position. They are in council on Kinthari, a forest world nearby.”
More chess pieces moved around on the map.
“So what's the plan?” I asked.
“Here it is. Droom's spies have received word that Ranalak is moving the enemy army to Tatarskith, which seems a little suspicious, although it is entirely possible that Ranalak simply thinks he is unconquerable. No one has defeated him yet. Still, keeping caution, we have sent out an advance scout force.”
“And?”
“You'll have to find out their report when you return to the Dominion of Dreams. The Sunrise Kingdom runs in reverse of the rest of Oneiran, so I can do nothing here except offer you advice. Anyway, assuming Ranalak doesn't have some treacherous trap in mind, we will send half of our army to attack them head on. The other half shall teleport secretly to the other side of the planet and make their way to the back of the enemy. In this way, we shall surround them. Droom, Ndoto, Sakkaku and the other Dream Lords, including myself if I come to my senses when you return to Oneiran proper, will be hidden beyond the army and will cast spells against them.”
“I am impressed. I can see why you were chosen as the leader of the Dream Lords,” I said in awe.
“Perhaps, but I wish I could exist in the Dominion of Dreams as I do here, I would be a wiser and kinder leader by far.”
“Perhaps I can bring your other self to your senses,” I said.
“I certainly hope so. With the possible exception of Ranalak, this entire war could be won by reason and diplomacy, if you can use the knowledge you have learned of me and of Kheth to return us to what we once were, what we should be.”
“That's a hard task,” I said.
“But you are capable,” Morpheus said with a mysterious smile.
“Thank you, Morpheus. I greatly value your counsel,” I said.
“You are welcome.”
Chapter 34
Suddenly, there was a mighty wind that swept me away. Morpheus disappeared in the distance. I was terrified that I would be dropped, but the wind gradually became more gentle. It carried me back to the terrace I had come from and deposited me there softly. The being of light appeared once more.
“I trust you have learned what you need to triumph?”
I nodded.
“Excellent. While I know you would perhaps wish to stay here, you must now go. Alakethtar!” he intoned.
The world around me began to dissolve into mist. I suddenly bolted up in my bed. I realized that I was still in Morpheus' pagoda, and no time had passed from my passage. I got up and got dressed. I had to find the others.
I finally found them in the throne room, speaking to Morpheus.
“I must vanquish Kheth! If you intend to try and interfere, I shall keep you here until you are suitably neutralized! The prophecy must be fulfilled! The hero must claim his kingdom! The lord must come into glory!!” Morpheus rambled.
I sighed, knowing how wise and strong he had been in my visit to the Sunrise Kingdom. Ndoto saw me.
“Kyle! Glad you're up! Morpheus is getting worse! We've tried to reason with him, but...”
I held up a hand to indicate he should be silent.
“A few minutes have solved all our problems. Don't worry, Ndoto. Everything will work out. I've seen it,” I said, with more confidence than I'd felt in a long time.
I marched up to the throne and looked at Morpheus.
“Morpheus, listen. Let us not speak of prophecies and riddles. Rather let's speak of light, and the defeat of evil,” I began.
“Silence! Who are you to know the nature of truth and light? You are an ignorant fool!”
“You are the greatest leader Oneiran has had! Ranalak has not extinguished your fire completely. You have only been dimmed. Return to brilliance once more!” I exclaimed.
“I...Kyle...NDOTO! N...no. Perhaps I have not the light I pretend to have, but nevertheless, I and I alone shall save the universe, and then I shall take it! It SHALL BE MINE! IT SHALL BELONG TO ME!!”
“That is the madness of Ranalak. You are not an oppressor, you are a caregiver, a shepherd. Morpheus, reign in wisdom once more! Begone, o shadow of evil! Let the light shine once more!!” I exclaimed, directing a faint spell of healing at Morpheus.
He shook his head, then began to pant. He shook himself all over, then finally resumed his expression of calm, which was quickly replaced with a face of pure relief and happiness.
“Thank you, Kyle! I have been restored. You have brought me from the Sunrise Kingdom! I can now be as I truly wish to be!!”
“Sunrise Kingdom? You went to the Sunrise Kingdom?” Sakkaku exclaimed with surprise.
“I'll explain briefly. In short, yes. The individuals I spoke to have given us all we need to win this war. Now come. We must plan,” I said in the commanding tones of a newly appointed general.
Chapter 35
I explained the plan that Morpheus gave me.
“I said that? Wow. I had not expected that I was capable of such strategy,” Morpheus laughed.
“It sounds like a reasonable plan to me,” Droom said.
“I agree,” Ndoto answered.
“As do I,” said Sakkaku. “I shall go to Kinthari and do my best to convince the other Dream Lords to join us. I do believe, however that there is one detail you have left out,”
“What's that?” I asked.
“How are we to deal with Kheth and Ranalak?”
“Leave Kheth to me. I have a plan,” I said with determination.
“You want to take on Kheth alone?! That would be suicide!” Ndoto exclaimed.
“Trust me. My visit to the Sunrise Kingdom had revealed what I need to defeat Kheth. It will not be as difficult as you think. Still, I may need a weapon,” I said.
“Take my sword,” Sakkaku offered. “It will serve you well, and I will not be on the front lines of battle anyway, so it shall be of far greater use to you,”
“Thank you, Sakkaku. Any other questions?”
“Ranalak,” Ndoto reminded.
“Yes. Ranalak. After...what I've seen, I believe he will be a much more challenging and persistent enemy than we originally believed. He is in fact responsible for the creation of Kheth the Dark Lord. He caused Kheth's downfall.”
“You cannot be serious! Really?!” Droom exclaimed.
I nodded.
Droom and the others were silent in thought for awhile.
“I think Ranalak may be the Hartian Demon,” Droom said gravely.
“The HARTIAN DEMON? Droom, for my sake, for your sake, for all our sakes, I sincerely hope you're joking!” Ndoto exclaimed.
“I wish I were. But it fits. It is said that he causes each great evil, and that some greater darkness controls him. He takes a new name each time he reappears.”
“But if he is, then what do we do? You can't kill a Dream Destroyer!”
“Many have said the same of us Dream Lords, yet it has nearly been done. We have to try,” Droom remarked grimly.
“Then we shall need all the help we can get. Kyle,” Sakkaku beckoned.
“Yes?”
“When you have defeated Kheth, one way or another,” Sakkaku looked at me knowingly. “Make your way through the battlefield and get to our spell circle,” he finished.
“I will,” I replied. “But who is the Hartian Demon?” I asked.
“The Hartian Demon is one of the 7 Dream Destroyers, dark evils who seek nothing less than the destruction and ruin of Oneiran.”
“How long have they been in existence?”
“Oh, they are far older than the Dream Lords. Indeed, they were part of the reason we were created!” Ndoto exclaimed.
“Is it really true that you can't kill one?” I asked.
“We have never tried. We have only succeeded in imprisoning them and banishing them, but we shall have to see. One never knows. Miracles can happen.”
“Which reminds me, Kyle. If we win this battle, Oneiran will be restored to its former light. There will be peace and prosperity once more. And you will no longer be needed as a warrior and mage. So you have a choice. We could do our best to send you home alive. With at least 4 Dream Lords casting the spell, it would work properly. What happens to you and what condition of health you are in when you awaken is beyond our control. Or, you could stay here. You would stay in a coma for the rest of your life in your own world, but by the time your actual body “dies”, your ties to your own universe would be so weak that you would go on living here in Oneiran. The choice is up to you,” Morpheus offered.
I was silent. Helping the Dream Lords and winning this war had become so important to me that I had forgotten about what I would do when it was all over. I debated and deliberated with myself endlessly.
I said simply, “Let's win this war first!” Then I smiled with determination. The others smiled as well. We left to prepare ourselves.
Chapter 36
I would go to Kinthari, as Kyle's vision had predicted. But I did not relish the task ahead. So far, the majority of us Dream Lords were on the side of the light, but the remaining 3 were some of the most stubborn and unreasonable of all of us. I teleported to Kinthari and sent out a magical message of truce. Eventually, they appeared. Miragon, Illitharen and Ombiriz.
“It wasss brave of you to come here alone, Ssssakkaku!” Ombiriz intoned.
“Indeed. Perhaps too brave. Kheth will relish your head as a trophy,” Miragon laughed.
Illitharen was silent for awhile, but then he said,
“I am sorry, brother. But they are right. What's done is done. And even if we did return to our old titles, would the people ever forgive us?” he challenged.
“They would be happy enough, in the moment of victory, that they will forgive all that is past and done. Listen to me, all of you. Kheth may have used you, but it is Ranalak, the mad sorcerer, who is truly behind what has transpired.”
“Lies! Ranalak is but a servant of Kheth! He does not control us!”
“That is not true, but even if he didn't, do you really wish to be working side by side with the Hartian Demon?” I asked.
That was a blow to their confidence, as I knew it would be. Ranalak could fool them into believing he was but a servant. Kheth could act benevolent. But no Dream Lord would ever serve a Dream Destroyer knowingly and willingly.
“You have no proof of that!” Miragon snarled. His shimmering colors had begun to darken.
I was prepared for this as well.
“I do. Have none of you seen the mark upon Ranalak's forehead?! It is the mark of the Dream Destroyers, it is their ancient, dark glyph! You cannot deny it!”
“Then we are fallen. And too far to risssse again,” Ombiriz lamented monotonously.
“You have not fallen so far as you believe, o brothers! The final battle is coming. Whoever you served before now will be unimportant. The world, the universe will remember you for who you serve and served in this last great war. You can receive a second chance!” I exclaimed.
Illitharen made a magical symbol in the air. It dissolved, and a black ink like substance oozed out of his skin. It hit the earth and disappeared in a golden glow.
“I will return,” he said, summoning his staff to his side which was now golden once again.
Ombiriz finally did the same thing.
“As will I,”
Miragon alone stood against us.
“Never. My years were wasted amongst you! Now I have power! Form! And might!” he exclaimed with a laugh.
The others looked at me. I nodded. Working as one, we sent a mighty beam of white and gold light. It pinned Miragon to the ground. The black substance began to melt off him, but it quickly reformed, thick as lacquer. We pressed our focus, and it began to dissolve again, only to reform with the strength of wood. A third time it returned with the strength of stone. I finally ceased. Miragon was weak, and this was clearly failing to exorcise him from the dark influence placed by Kheth.
“There is one more thing to try,” Illitharen suggested. “The healing waters,”
“Try, but it may kill him, I'm afraid. The poison has gone too deep. Still, knowing that you are the greatest practitioner of that spell who has yet lived, let us try it, “ I said cautiously.
Illitharen began to chant. Droplets of mist formed in the air. As they slowly condensed to a single giant drop of water, the water cycled through the rainbow, changing from red, through the other colors, to purple. Finally it settled on a deep, sapphire blue. Illitharen finished his chant, and pointed one finger at Miragon. The water reached him, and slowly began to spread through him. He groaned in pain, but said nothing. Thick black liquid began to dissolve off him, the pool around him growing wider and wider. Finally, there was a brilliant flash, and it was gone. Miragon wheezed heavily,
“Thank you.”
Then he died with a look of peace. I bowed my head for the passing of a noble comrade.
“Let us win this battle!” I exclaimed.
Chapter 37
Rilyn had never been a general before. She had fought in several battles for the Dream Lords, but all as a minor soldier. Now tasked with commanding both armies from afar, she was at something of a loss for how best to prepare her soldiers for the task ahead. Still, she had told them everything about this battle that was to come, and they were to be equipped with the best of weapons, forged by the great Earthsmith, Ignis Georikan.
Speaking of which, I should see if his task is complete.
She called one of the army's transport birds and flew to the Grey Mountaintop. She found the smith there, finishing the last of the swords.
“Well done, Master Georikan! I am impressed.”
Gradually, however, as half an hour passed, The sword was not finished, and Rilyn could see that something was wrong.
“What is it?” she asked.
“This is the last battle against Kheth. For the purpose of equipping them for their war against the great army of mirages and to fight against Kheth, the Dream Lords created me. As I finish this last sword, I shall crumble into dust, and be no more. Oh, how I wish I could live, live in this beautiful world, not worry about fulfilling my task and consigning myself to oblivion!” he exclaimed.
“I shall ask Morpheus if he will send your essence to the Sunrise Kingdom,” Rilyn said, thinking of a solution.
“Do you mean it?!”
“As surely as I am his adopted daughter,” she replied.
“Rilyn, you are truly one of the kindest of all people! Thank you! Thank you!” Ignis exclaimed. He worked with new resolve, finishing the sword in a few minutes. As he began to dissolve and crumble, Rilyn said to him,
“Courage. I will remember my promise! You will survive!”
“I know, Rilyn. I know.”
Chapter 38
I sent my last general to the battlefield. As I surveyed the rocky and lifeless plains of Tatarskith, I looked upon my sorcerers with a proud gaze. By nightfall, their task would be complete. I would use our sacrifice, Oneiran would die and Ranalak and I would bring about a new universe, formed to our will. His will. His will? I...arrgh! I ran to the table where Ranalak was planning.
“He is returning. I am losing control.”
“That man is dead, Kheth. He is but a memory of your past, torn to shreds, incinerated in the fires of progress and scattered to the winds of the forgotten,” Ranalak said harshly. He placed a hand on my shoulder.
“Soon, our dream will be complete. For none shall see you as a monster. None who ever saw you such shall even exist! For they do not deserve to torment the earth with their lies and deceit. We shall form a new beginning, and all will know that we are not savages, but saints!”
I smiled. His words renewed me to my cause, although in the back of my mind, I knew he had doubly spoken, using a spell under his breath that wove authority and slavery into each word. And I hated it.
I knew, if ever I was to escape Ranalak, I would have to die, for though I might escape his power, he would still chase me until he found me once again. And then he would take me back into his dominion. Or he would kill me. Painfully, slowly, making me regret my betrayal at every...no. What betrayal? He spoke truth, and he has forgiven me of what the world had believed was my malice. As I readied for battle, I reflected on what would soon be a new beginning.
Chapter 39
Sakkaku came to Morpheus' castle with two other Dream Lords, Ombiriz, the shadowy one, and Illitharen, the mage who glowed blue.
“Where's the other?” I asked.
“Alas, until such a time as another can be chosen, there are now but 6 Dream Lords left,” Sakkaku said heavily.
“Oh, no! What happened?”
“Miragon refused to relinquish the darkness that covered him. We exorcised him, but it was in too deep. He died in the process,” Sakkaku explained.
“I'm sorry for your loss. Let us hope that neither his death, nor any death in this last month, will be in vain! We shall triumph TODAY!”
“Very well. Let's go,” Sakkaku said. He uttered a spell, and two different teleport tunnels opened, one for me and one for the other Dream Lords. Suddenly I was afraid.
“But Sakkaku, I'm not the one who should be trusted with this. I can't kill Kheth!”
“Then solve the problem the other way,” he said.
“But that's even harder!” I exclaimed.
“The right thing is always harder to do than the wrong one.”
“But surely a Dream Lord would be better equipped to handle this than I,” I pleaded.
“You know him best out of all of us,” Sakkaku said with a wink.
I had no idea as to how he could know that. I had told no one of the details of my visit to the Sunrise Kingdom. Still, I knew he was right. Of all of us, I was the only one who had a chance of redeeming Kheth. I gave a nod to Sakkaku. We jumped through the teleport tunnels and began the long fall to Tatarskith.
Chapter 40
The tunnel finally spit us out on a high hill, about a half mile from the battle. Droom was there, as was Ndoto and Morpheus. I gave them a nod. No words were spoken. No words were needed. We communicated volumes merely by our glances. Such are the ways of my fellow Dream Lords. We began to draw a giant magic circle, careful to be more scrutiny of its construction, to avoid giving anyone or anything access in.
When it was complete, we stepped in and activated it. It began to glow a soft blue.
“Begin?” Droom asked.
Morpheus nodded. We began a low, soft chant. This would warm up the spell glyphs within the circle for the quick casting of spells.
“Atum, Atum, Merenel, Lothirinias, Activura, Petarum, Atum, Atum...”
And so on. After about an hour, the circle had changed from blue to white, and then from white to a bright gold.
“Now. We shall take this universe back. From Kheth. From Ranalak. For the Dream Lords!” Morpheus exclaimed.
We raised our arms into the air.
Chapter 41
Rilyn swallowed. Tatarskith was at once darker and hotter than she had expected it to be. Still, she acted brave while ordering her troops to prepare their weapons. Rilyn was to be the commander of the head army, the army that would distract Kheth and his troops while the tail army moved in from behind. She hoped that her father and the other Dream Lords were preparing the spell circle now. Their power would be greatly needed in the battle ahead.
I must remember to ask my father if he will grant Ignis' request, she thought to herself.
Rilyn's lieutenant came bearing a message.
“What is this?”
“It is from Ranalak,” the mist formed lieutenant answered.
She opened the scroll. It read simply,
“Greetings. While we would be more than happy to obliterate the last traces of your hateful and intolerant empire from existence, I realize that if we were to do that, we would be unable to watch your terrified and pained expressions as we destroy all that is important to you. Therefore, we shall give you a choice: Surrender and save your lives, but not your kingdom, or try to save your kingdom, but lose your lives and eventually your kingdom as well. Ranalak.”
“Can we send a message back?!” Rilyn asked, seething with contempt.
“Yes, my lady,” the lieutenant answered.
“Good. Tell that slimy Ranalak that we would rather die than be treated in such a matter! Go!”
“Of course. Very good. Right away!” the lieutenant ran back.
Suddenly, something exploded a few feet from Rilyn. It looked to be enemy fire. Deciding the battle could wait no longer, she called her troops together.
“This is not a battle. This is a war, condensed into a battle. We can win this war. If we fail, all shall be lost, and we are doomed.”
The soldiers looked ready to do their duty, yet grave with the weight of their responsibility.
“But if we win, peace shall reign in Oneiran for centuries, possibly even millenia to come! So let us bring peace to Oneiran! Let us bring back light, truth and justice!! Who's with me?!” Rilyn exclaimed.
There was a great cheer which rose up from the soldiers.
“Charge!” Rilyn exclaimed. They began to run towards the enemy, crying,
“Light! Truth! Justice!”
Chapter 42
Ranalak had attempted to catch the enemy off guard by sending an advance artillery to catapult enchanted flaming boulders. Surprisingly, however, the enemy was quick. They had begun to charge before the squad had fired their second boulder. I was shocked.
“No matter. I shall lead this army into battle. Go to the sorcerers and ready yourself, for your sacrifice is on his way,”
“This Kyle? From the other universe?”
“Yes. Though he knows it not, he has visited here once before, by my magic. He fills all the requirements.”
I winced.
“Perhaps, but Ranalak...”
“Silence! You will complete this task. Remember, the world has not forgotten you yet, and before this day ends, I can make a spectacle of your hideous crime,” he said fiercely.
I sighed.
“Of course,” I said with pained voice.
“Don't worry. All will be well. I shan't deny the fact that we have done evil to get here. But with this destruction, we can do good forever after, as our enemies are gone, and we shall not be forced to do evil. Let that be a comfort.”
“True, Ranalak. Very true. Thank you.”
I went to the courtyard of our citadel to prepare for Kyle's arrival.
I don't know how you know the truth about me, Kyle. But it has been destroyed. I am a dark lord, and thus I shall ever be.
Chapter 43
The teleport disappeared, much faster than I expected. I appeared in a courtyard littered with strange and terrifying topiaries. One seemed to be a dragon, another of seven malevolent figures carrying weapons. In the corner of the courtyard, I could see a large phalanx of about twenty sorcerers chanting. They suddenly finished, and slammed their staffs into the ground. The circle in which they stood began to glow a sickly green.
Curses! They must have finished the casting of the Cosmic Rending. If I'm the sacrifice, now's a bad time to come. I have to get out of here. I began to try and find an exit. Then I remembered Kheth as I once saw him, kind and good, yet saddened by the evil he had been drawn into. I couldn't leave him to be further poisoned by Ranalak. I had to save him. I hid from the sorcerers, when I suddenly saw a figure in a robe of deathly smoke grey. I recognized it as Kheth.
I want to help Kheth, but I can't help him if I'm dead. I need a place that will buy me some time to try and convince him. But where?
Suddenly, inspiration struck. I saw a balcony that overlooked the courtyard. Using Droom's book, I turned invisible, then flew up to the balcony. Revealing myself, I closed and locked the doors back into the citadel, so that the sorcerers would take longer to reach me.
“Hail and well met, Kheth!” I exclaimed.
“Ah. Kyle. So kind of you to bring yourself to me,” Kheth said in his usual sinister tone.
“I hope it will be, Kheth. I hope it will be. Where is Ranalak?” I asked, trying to begin innocently. If I was to make him realize his folly, I would have to work slowly, considering he was already hostile towards me.
“What difference does it make to you? Still, he has led the troops to battle against you and the Dream Lords. Now. You must provide your blood to further our conquest.”
“Upon whose command? Ranalak's? You know as well as I do that he is mad. How can he know what the universe needs for its own good?”
“He is not insane! He alone is the one who sees the true vision!”
“So he has told you. But do you believe it?”
“I....I...I do...” he said, struggling to voice the words.
I was impressed with myself. I had made progress. Already, Kheth was faltering in his firm and unfailing belief in his master.
“Really? Truly?”
“Well, of course. He has forgiven me,” Kheth said, reaffirming his commitment.
“Forgiven you? For doing a kind act? For saving a woman's son from a fate far worse than death?”
“How do you know of my past?!” Kheth snarled angrily.
“You yourself have told me,” I remarked with a smile.
“I did no such thing! Unless, unless....” he thought. “No. The Sunrise Kingdom has no meaning left for me. I...I...I...cannot be...who I am there. Even if I wanted to. Which I don't,” he finished.
The last part I knew was a lie. I had awoken a desire to change within him, to be Journeyman Kheth once again. Still, I had to change his belief that he could not change.
“That is not true, Kheth! Come away now! Ranalak is in battle. By the time he returns to the citadel, all of us would be protecting you. Now is your chance!”
“No. Ranalak is my master, my savior.”
“A savior who has made you feel hated for doing good, and loved for doing ill?” I asked challengingly.
“I regret to say it, but you do...speak truth....he is no savior, but if I do not pretend allegiance, how can I fool him long enough to defeat him?”
“That is exactly what he wants. The longer you believe you are fooling him, the longer he fools you by bringing you further into darkness! He nearly drove Morpheus to insanity! Miragon has died because of his malice. Andunis' capital will never be truly healed. We can stop his crimes, but we need your help. You can fulfill your desire. Save people. Far more than you were once able to do. You will be a hero!”
Kheth shook. I could tell I was having effect.
“Kyle. Help me! He will come back soon! I...Begone, o liar! Sorcerers. Kill him. As long as his blood touches the circle, it matters not where he dies! Now!”
“Kheth, please! Come with me. Ranalak shall finally be paid back for the terrible thing he did to the woman's son.”
Kheth scowled.
“My son.”
I blinked.
“What?”
“He was my son.”
I was slack jawed. This changed everything.
“What?!”
“It is the truth. I had married the woman, and the baby was my son. Such was the true reason for my rage, though my altruism doubtless was a part of it as well.”
“Then does Ranalak's treachery not strike closer to heart?” I asked.
“Far more than you could ever know,” he said with an angry tear.
“Then forget anger. Ranalak shall receive justice. But you must return. Return to the light! Besides, your returning to the side of light would be the greatest revenge against Ranalak. It would prove that he cannot break anyone! That he is powerless!”
Kheth's eyes flashed. He shook. Then he screamed a terrifying deep scream. Then his eyes softened. The shade of orange changed. I could see it once again spoke of sunsets and autumn leaves.
“Thank you, Kyle,” Kheth said, tears of gratitude. “Never did I believe I could return from the threshold, but you have brought me back.”
“You are welcome. Let us defeat the demon Ranalak!” I exclaimed.
Chapter 44
Rilyn was impressed. While the fact of the matter was that they were slowly losing, Ranalak's army being much bigger and better trained, her men were putting up an excellent fight. By the time Ranalak had crossed half of the valley of the citadel, about a fourth of his men were dead.
“Well done, fellow warriors!” She said out loud, then she sent a thought message through a spell
The Dream Lords' spells will soon be reaching the battlefield and the tail army has nearly reached us. Help is on its way. Stay strong!
This lifted their spirits greatly. With renewed hope, they pressed against the enemy lines.
Rilyn suddenly had an idea.
“General Talambor!”
“Yes, my lady?”
“Fall back behind the others. Get an earth wall started. Work quickly. Use whatever you can to enforce it. If we can get a wall to hold back the foe, we might be able to defeat them more easily.”
“Excellent plan. I'll do my best!”
“I know you will,” Rilyn replied with a brave smile.
That's all well and good, but where are the Dream Lords' spells? And where's the tail army?
Talambor and a few of his scouts finished the wall and begun to reinforce it with old stones and broken weapons.
Suddenly, Rilyn's questions were answered.
Chapter 45
I was redeemed. Suddenly, I began to notice the smallest little things. The magically created grass that grew in the courtyard, the bright reds and oranges of Tatarskith and the cool grey of the stone. Tears rolled down my face in gratitude. How Kyle had managed this, I knew not. Nor did I really care.
Still, I knew my emotions would have to wait, as 20 sorcerers were still attempting to act on my orders to finish what they began. I summoned my staff into my hand and blasted orange lightning at 2 of them, knocking them out. Kyle suddenly sent a rainbow fireball.
“Who taught you that?” I asked with a smile
“Tantir. Well, sort of,” Kyle answered.
We continued to send spell after spell at my sorcerers. All but 2 eventually collapsed on the ground, unconscious. The last 2 seemed immune to our spells. Strangely, a moment later, they seized up, began to choke, and suddenly died.
“What happened?” Kyle wondered.
“Run. Now.”
“But what is it? Why?”
“We'll find out on the battlefield, now go! Morpheus needs you,” I urged him.
We ran. Only now, when I could think with full clarity and objectivity about my former enslaver did I realize that Ranalak was the Hartian Demon. Of course! How had I been so blind as to not see it that fateful day? However, if that was true, then I was sure he had managed to release 2 more Dream Destroyers into the bodies of these wizards. He had failed with my son, but that didn't stop him from eventually carrying out his plan. As I briefly looked back behind me, I could see the beginning of a hideous butterfly wing emerging from one of the bodies. I shuddered and looked away, hoping against hope that we could defeat them all.
Chapter 46
Once we hit the battlefield, Kheth and I split up. He went behind the citadel to wait for the army that would attack Ranalak's troops from behind, so as to avoid being immediately seen. I ran to the high hill where the circle was being charged. I waved to Morpheus. He gave me a look as if to say “hang on a second”.
When they finished their spell, a golden fireball was sent flying towards the battle. I followed it in awe. Morpheus struck out a tiny piece of the circle with his staff, then let me in and closed and reactivated it again.
“You made it!” Ndoto exclaimed.
“And what of Kheth?” Morpheus asked.
“Kheth has returned to the light, in which I hope he shall stay,” I said
There was a cheer within the circle.
“But I've got bad news,” I countered.
“What issss it?” the shadowy Ombiriz asked.
“Two more Dream Destroyers have been released.”
“What?!” everyone exclaimed in unison.
“I'm afraid it's true. Ranalak found some way to release them. I don't know which ones, but aided by two of his own, he will be nearly unstoppable.”
“Then we must act quickly. After searching through our collective memories, we managed to come up with a certain spell. Extremely draining, but extremely powerful.”
“Death Magic?” I asked fearfully.
“Oh, no. No. I have come beyond that folly. It is in fact a great spell of light, and only affects those who are completely evil to the core,” Morpheus finished.
“How can you be certain?” I asked
“The Dream Destroyers are literally demons. They were created for evil. It is impossible for them to have light in their souls, just as it is impossible for daylight to exist at midnight,” Morpheus explained.
I wasn't entirely sure whether that could be believed, but seeing the evils Ranalak had committed, I believed it.
As if reading my mind, Illitharen said,
“Oh, believe you me, the others are much worse. Ranalak is surprisingly full of restraint, for a Dream Destroyer.”
I swallowed. That did not sound good.
“No matter. Let us begin,” Illitharen said.
The Dream Lords closed their eyes in unison. Being a novice at this type of spell casting, I was silent for awhile. The chant began in the lower range.
“Illumen, Lumos, Lumos, Cathelir, Lumos, Lumos, Illumen...”
and continued to repeat in that pattern. After the chant had grown louder, I joined in, adding my voice to the mixture. I opened one eye, then immediately closed it as a white light blinded me. Illitharen whispered to me,
“I would avoid looking at it until it goes on its way. We are almost finished.”
With a final cry of “Illumen!” the light shifted into a sword, that was sent flying on feathered, glowing wings to the battlefield.
“Now what?” I asked, half to myself.
“Now we wait. And hope. Especially hope,” Ndoto answered.
Chapter 47
Rilyn's hopes were renewed as silver lightning rained down on the battlefield, eliminating enemies left and right. Just as the onslaught of spells began, the tail army completed the circle, surrounding Ranalak's fast decreasing army.
“Well done, everyone! Let us finish this battle. For the light!”
There was a cheer as everyone closed in on the enemy.
“Make a circle. See to it that I'm in the center!” Ranalak exclaimed.
Rilyn smiled. Evil and powerful though he may be, he was not a great strategist. This formation would only make it easier for Rilyn's army to succeed.
Unfortunately, Rilyn's optimism was quickly dashed, when two figures stepped out onto the battlefield. One bore the form of a strange winged insect, similar to a butterfly, although its eyes, which were on its wings, were cold and calculating.
The other was more terrifying still. Its looks were more similar to Ranalak's, but it bore a head that was partly human and partly that of a dark colored lion.
We're doomed.
Chapter 48
I stood near the back of the tail army, ready to begin casting spells at the speed of lightning, but as Ranalak's men were finally surrounded, two new warriors appeared on the battlefield, whom I recognized as the Papillian Demon and the Leonin Demon. My outlook became grave. With great effort, we had managed to surround Ranalak. To attempt to defeat his brethren among the Dream Destroyers would be suicide.
Despite this, however, I was determined not to give up. I was determined to show Ranalak that his power over me had been broken. I slammed my staff into the ground and yelled a magic incantation. A wave of water as high as the citadel appeared and was sucked into the air. Sending cloud vapor and rushing winds into the air with it, the storm expanded.
“Take shelter, all of you! I'm sending a hurricane!” I exclaimed.
Everyone began to rush for cover. Gale force winds began to blow. Lightning flashed orange. Rain poured down on the foe, gradually increasing into a flood. Before an hour had passed, all of Ranalak's army were swept away. All that remained were The Hartian Demon, The Papillian Demon, The Leonin Demon, also known as Ranalak, Thilkrush and Andaliarus. They were few. But they were strong.
“Fall back. Make any kind of fortifications you can. We have to resort to artillery now, and hope the Dream Lords know what is going on!”
Ranalak spoke.
“So, my apprentice, you have betrayed me! Is this the thanks I receive for restoring you to fame and authority? For saving you from eternal hatred?!” he snarled.
“You have saved me from nothing, vile demon! I am blinded by your darkness no longer! The light within shines once more!” I exclaimed.
“You shall regret your treachery!”
“Indeed! For soon you shall be utterly obliterated,” Thilkrush exclaimed.
“Prepare to meet your doom,” Andaliarus roared.
The three of them placed their hands together, and as they did, black energy began to blaze from them. It combined with a dripping red liquid that I would have thought to be blood, had I not known that Dream Destroyers do not bleed. Slowly it took the form of a hideous serpent, horned and with eyes of fire. Its features were dark and faded, but it terrified all who looked upon it. Before anyone could react, it breathed a black flame that reduced all in firing range into powdered bone. I stood silent with terror, before finally gaining the courage to say,
“Fight back with all we have! Wizards, now is your moment!!”
Chapter 49
As I looked to the battle far away, I suddenly saw a terrifying serpent appear above the enemy.
“Where did that come from?!!” I exclaimed.
“A creation of the Dream Destroyers. If my chest eye is correct, they are all who remain of our enemies, but now there are three of them,” Droom replied.
“THREE?! I hadn't expected Ranalak's summonings to actually work!”
“Yes. Let us hope our spell succeeds.”
We waited silently, hoping, maybe even praying that it would be enough to vanquish these utter monstrosities, these evil blights upon the universe.
The sword, which could be seen as a point of light in the distance, suddenly disappeared. My heart plummeted.
“Wait,” Morpheus said. “It's not over yet.”
As if in response, the battlefield exploded, and my vision was flooded with light. When I looked again, the three figures in the distance had vanished and in their place were three small hills that to my amazement began to grow with grass.
“YES! We did it!”
The Dream Lords cheered. I could hear more jubilation in the distance, coming from the remains of our army.
Chapter 50
Rilyn was relieved. No, beyond relieved. Ecstatic! It had been her first battle, and though she had not brought about the victory, it was a victory nonetheless. The army gathered in a circle around the three green hills that were once their dark and demonic foes. There was great joy. She could feel it.
Suddenly, A purple wave swept over everyone, each soldier becoming a beam of light.
We're going home. Victory! Rilyn thought.
Chapter 51
I was surprised to appear not in the place where I entered Oneiran, but in the Sunrise Kingdom. At first, there was chaos. Joyous, jubilant chaos, but chaos nonetheless. Everyone cheered and sang, running through the great plains and forests. Suddenly, there was a strange sound that resembled the call of a wolf.
Slowly, everyone came to attention. I realized it was Morpheus.
“I am sure all of us have much to say. However, I wish there to be silence for awhile, as my brethren and I have several important decisions to make. There are many wonders here in the Sunrise Kingdom. I would encourage you to run far and wide and discover them, while we deliberate,” he finished.
Everyone dispersed. Morpheus called to me.
“Kyle. I think you and Kheth should talk.”
“About what?” I asked.
“Just go,” he replied enigmatically.
“Very well,” I answered. I went and found him.
“Kyle! I never had the chance to thank you in full. I...I don't know how much longer I would have lived....”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“I was truly ready to die. In the first years, it was all right. There were nights, of course, when I regretted joining Ranalak, but they were few and far between. By the beginning of this war, however, I was longing to leave Ranalak's power. Unfortunately, both fear and a twisted devotion kept me from simply leaving. I had become convinced that the only way I could escape him would be to kill myself, which for the universe would have been no great loss, but for me it would have been much greater. You helped me to see my potential for light. I thank you from the deepest part of my heart,” he said with a quiet joy.
“You're welcome,” I said, unsure of what to say to such praise. “I only hoped that I could see you as what you showed me you once were. And I have,”
“Let us see if Morpheus and the others have finished their discussion.”
We walked back to the others. Morpheus beckoned to us.
“Good. You are here. There are things we must say to to you and Kheth, without these others.”
They looked at each other knowingly. Sakkaku stepped forward.
“First, there is knowledge, which, regrettably, we have been keeping from both of you. Allow me to tell you a story. In a remote village, a son was born to an ordinary woman and a young wizard.”
Kheth looked at him with curiosity.
“Unfortunately, the Hartian Demon, masquerading as a wandering miracle worker known as the White Stag, murdered this innocent child and sought to use him to free one of his fellow Dream Destroyers. Fortunately, the boy's father, Kheth, intervened and nearly defeated the Hartian Demon, but unfortunately, the dark one saw an opportunity, and turned Kheth to his cause. Realizing Ranalak wasn't done with Kheth's child yet, and planned to cast the Cosmic Rending, Morpheus sent him far away, to the other universe, giving him new life, where he was adopted by an ordinary Terran family.
Recently, he was returned to Oneiran, in hopes that he could both thwart Ranalak's dark plan, and save his father from eternal darkness. And so it passed. And so he did,” Sakkaku finished with a sly smile, the first time I had ever seen him smile.
I blinked. Thinking through the story, I realized what they meant.
“Somehow, I briefly suspected, when I first met you here in the Sunrise Kingdom,”
“As did I,” Kheth said with a glint in his eye.
“Father!”
“Son!”
We embraced, a strange gesture, but one that truly made sense in the moment.
Morpheus interrupted.
“And now, there is one more thing we wish to ask you. With Miragon's untimely death, we are in need of a seventh Dream Lord. We wish to know...would you like the job?”
I smiled.
“Would I like the job?! Of course!” I exclaimed, completely unsure why, yet feeling completely certain of my decision.
“But what of my earth family?” I asked.
“We have thought of that as well. You see, for many years now, we have been thinking to merge Oneiran with your universe. It would benefit both groups, in my opinion, as Oneiran would gain stability and your home would gain protection and a bit more wonder. But for many, especially those who have come here and will come here as children and youth, such as yourself, this change will be confusing and probably frightening. Which is why you could be of great help. You have not known this, but each Dream Lord has a charge that they watch over. I am the Lord of Guidance, Sakkaku is the Lord of Light, Droom is the Lord of Vision, Ombiriz is the Lord of Shadows (for shadows must be watched equally carefully) and Illitharen is the Lord of Enchantment. We wish you to watch over those newcomers of your own age and younger who are lost.
You shall be the Lord of the Found,” Morpheus said.
I was silent. Dead silent. I was glad I could both better get to know my real father, while still spending time with my known family, but the responsibility of taking care of that many people as a Dream Lord seemed a great responsibility. Still, it solved all of my problems.
“I accept,” I said resolutely.
Morpheus nodded. He and the other Dream Lords cast a long spell that seemed to take forever, then there was a mighty shake and a great howl and two worlds collided.
I smiled and took the empty seat in the circle of thrones. As I did, I saw all was well. My earth parents came to me and we talked. Rilyn's request for the being who had made our army's weapons was granted. All was well. All was light.
