I stood and walked back to where Kellyn was sleeping. I moved my bed next to hers in such a way that no one could get to her without waking me first. Then I climbed into bed and began to integrate all the new information I had into the weave that I had started when this mission began. That seemed like a lifetime ago now. I slowly slipped deeper and deeper into my thoughts, and lost all connection with the outside world.
The problem with all this new information was that no matter what happened now, I could never go back to just being Commander Vydor. That life, that once held so much promise for a shining career in the Imperial Navy, had ended. Indeed, what I had learned and experienced during this mission had shattered many of the beliefs I had held since childhood. The cover-up about the planet, the imprisonment of the Black Adders, the memory blocks - all that I had learned along the way had severely damaged my view of the benevolence, infallibility and power of the Empire and the Emperor. In fact, they look rather weak and helpless in the face of this new threat.
I do not know how long I lay like that pondering all that I had learned, but I was awakened by a touch to my face. Without opening my eyes I reached out mentally and found Kellyn kneeling next to my bed. I silently said, “Good morning. Sleep well?”
She mentally gasped a bit, and then responded, “Sir, I am sorry to disturb you, but I was worried about you. You looked so lifeless.”
“It is okay, Kellyn. I have a lot to tell you about what happened while you were asleep, but before I do I want to ask you something. What did you mean about the demon?” I asked.
“Sir, I saw a dark spirit chasing you; he is a very old and powerful spirit. I know that he has hunted your entire family line. He will do anything to destroy you. When you were wounded back at the gate the wound was not too bad. Your armor stopped most of the blast, but it weakened you briefly, and that was enough for the spirit to attack. I do not know how you survived as long as you did under his attack, but you were seconds from death when I finally reached you.” She paused to gather herself, then said, “Sir, I do not yet have the power to beat that demon, but I have forced him to retreat for now. I will one day gain the strength to defeat him, and until then together we can hold him back.”
While she talked I found myself drawn to her. Beyond the outer layer of thought that we used to communicate, she opened herself completely to me. I saw down into her core, her inner being. First I saw a bright and pure light, almost blinding, but beyond that was the most surprising thing. She had at her very core a fierce fire that could outshine a million stars. I knew in my heart the meaning of what I saw. I knew that she was pure at heart, and that nothing would sway her from my side.
I gasped as I made this realization and felt her say to me, “I know all that is in you, and what is in you is not the demon, but a good soul that is being suppressed by anger, fear and pain. Now you also know me through and through. I will go with you as you fight to free your soul and defeat this demon that stalks you. Together we will be victorious.”
“Kellyn, I hardly know how to reply to that … “thank you” hardly seems enough …” I just trailed off, not knowing how to respond, but this was not normal speech. This was the world of thought and emotion. She did not need my words to know how I felt; she could read my mixture of surprise, relief and joy for herself.
“It is okay, Vydor, I already know,” was her reply. Her tone had shifted. It was more informal, more intimate. I felt a bond grow between us that I had never had with anyone before.
“Well, I had better fill you in on what happened. Let me see if I can repeat Darnath’s feat of passing on a memory …” I pictured my mind as a big library with lots of books, each book representing a different memory. I took up the books that contained all the memories from when I had seen Kellyn pass through the gate until my recent awakening. I then pictured myself handing her the books, which she took and opened. Suddenly we were both reliving all the events, including my vision and fight in the gateway, which I had forgotten until now.
Once that was done she said with a tone of humility, “Vydor, I would be honored to serve on your Council of Wizards.” How did she do that? I had not yet realized that I had made up my mind, and here she was responding to a question I had not yet asked! I realized that she was right. At some point along the way I had decided to accept the position of grandmaster wizard.
“Vydor, even if the others decide not to come along, I will be with you and I am sure we will eventually find five more people to make up the council, but I believe that they will all join us,” she said with a high degree of certainty.
I rose then without breaking my link to Kellyn; it brought me a sense of peace that I was not willing to give up. I looked around the room and saw the rest of the team already at the table. Kellyn and I walked over and took the remaining two seats. After getting some food I connected with the rest of them, keeping my connection to Kellyn separate and secret, and asked, “I have no idea what time it is, but is everyone ready to discuss Mantis’ suggestion?”
“I think so, sir,” started Jerran. “Is Kellyn up to speed?”
“Yes, sir, fully so,” she replied.
“Well, sir, I did not get much rest, and I suspect the others didn’t either. It seems to me that there are only two options here. We can say no to Mantis’ plan and offer of assistance, go back to our realm and fight them alone, or we can accept his help and follow his plan. The reality is that the sorcerers are not going to go away; in fact, now that they think we are dead they are likely to move forward with whatever their plans are,” said Major Jerran.
“Sir, on the surface it seems like an easy decision. Why fight alone when you have all this power here to call on for help? But the problem is all the strings attached to that,” said Gafar.
“I see it a bit differently, sir,” started Darnath. “The way I see it is that Mantis’ plans will move forward, with or without us. They cannot risk our realm falling to their enemy. That would give the sorcerers a safe place to build a second army, which would spell the end for the wizards. War has come upon the Empire, and it’s a war the Empire cannot win alone. We can either stand and fight or watch others fight for us.”
After that others piped in with their views, and soon the discussion got repetitive with no real progress being made. During all this time that box sat on the table staring at us, daring us to make a decision. After some time, I stood and waited for the conversation to stop. I raised my hand and mentally reached out and opened the box. I could feel the surprise from everyone around me, especially as I lifted the seven rings out of the box and moved them towards each person, resting them on the table in front of them. I said, “The choice before us is simple. We either stand and fight the sorcerers, or we fold and hope for the best.” I took one of the rings, slipped it on my hand and said, “I never fold.”
Kellyn then scooped up a ring and put it on her finger, saying, “I stand with you, Vydor.”
There was a pause while the other five stared at the rings but then, one by one, they each picked up a ring and slipped it on, saying, “I am a Black Adder, and we never back down. I stand with Vydor and the Council.”
As the last ring was placed on the last finger, I felt a change in the room. The order of events was not clear to me, but our uniforms all became dark robes, and the staves we all carried were exchanged for others that looked like the one Mantis wielded. Our bodies felt different, too; I could not place the feeling and no one else could either, but we were definitely different.
Once all that had passed I rang the bell to let Mantis know that we had made our decision. I was sure the sound had not yet reached the door when he opened it and entered.
“I see you have made your decision, and I must say I am glad at the choice you’ve made,” he said as he walked over to a small table in the corner that I had not noticed before. He took from his robes an impossibly large hourglass and set it on the table. Purple sand slowly dripped down as it counted out the seconds. “This timer will run out at the same time the first rocks hit the colony. When that happens I will bring you back to the gate you used to get here and send you back to your realm.” He walked over to a section of wall and waved his hand over it. As he did so the wall disappeared, revealing another room. We followed him into that room where walls and walls of books greeted us. “Here is my personal library. Study what you can while you are here, and before you leave I will copy some of the more important texts for you to take to start your own library. I suggest you start by learning the spell of many tongues so that you can read any of the books, but you are welcome to start wherever you please.” With that he left.
Looking around the room I was a bit overwhelmed by all the books. “Well, I really did not get much sleep during our break. I spent it all in thought, so I am going to lie down and deal with this later,” I said, heading back to my bed. The others made similar comments and left the room, but Kellyn was undaunted. She walked over to the stack of books and said, “I think I have slept enough for today. I will see what I can find in here.”