Luminaries & Lies Read online

  “Was it a voice you recognized?” Alyona asked.

  Emerond thought about this and said: “Yes. I’ve heard a voice like that before.”

  “Whose voice did it sound like?” Alyona asked.

  “A young woman who sang another song to me, but I don’t know who she was. I just know it was the same voice,” Emerond said.

  “Thank you, Imperial Prince Emerond. Please remain in this room for further testimony. I now call Lady Onora Elettra to give her testimony on this matter,” Alyona said.

  Lady Onora was also in attendance and she approached the podium as Emerond stepped away.

  “Would you please tell us what you know about the song Sail to Me?” Alyona asked.

  “I was on Riquivindi Island with Captain Guillermo. We heard the song and it filled the air. Ships filled the skies, apparently in response to it. They sailed into the storm and were destroyed. The song was overwhelming in its power. The men known as the Torches of Majesty then appeared and they, too, began to be drawn by it,” Lady Onora said.

  “Men, then, were lured by the song. Not you?” Alyona asked.

  “That is correct. These men used their fire and – by its light – I was able to see a distance away. There was a young woman there I knew – a former student of mine named Taesa. She was the one singing the song. My heart sank, as I could not believe that she would sing and lure ships into the storm,” Lady Onora said.

  “She is your former student? Did you not know what her powers were? Or her character?” Alyona asked.

  “I knew she was powerful. I did not know what she longed for in her heart – that she would have done such a thing, or have been an ally to one like Victoria who would hate so many. I began to pray and then sang another song to counter it,” Lady Onora said.

  “What song did you sing?” Alyona asked.

  “I sang Symphony of Lies that the world would know that her song – Sail to Me – was a deadly deception. And they began turning back,” Lady Onora said.

  “Do you believe that Taesa holds evil intentions? That she would wish to kill so many?” Alyona asked.

  “I didn’t believe it. I still wonder how it could be. She may have been deceived, but I do not know how. It was said that Victoria had the power to control others – to place them into a trance with her eyes. The Chronicler Judith has mentioned it, and she is trustworthy, yet I have never seen it,” Lady Onora said.

  “Imperial Prince Emerond, please return for further testimony,” Alyona said.

  Emerond returned to the podium and Lady Onora stepped away.

  “Do you have a further account of your battles with Victoria?” Alyona asked of Emerond.

  “The Spirit Sword led us to the Dead Waters Ocean. There, we did not expect her to have any powers. If the tiara draws its power from the waters, it should have had no power at all besides the storms. We were mistaken. She seemed to have every power. She called forth dark and cold, sea serpents and every other power the waters give. We were being crushed – pelted by hailstones. I used the power of crystal bending to turn the ice crystals into a shelter above us, and then we were able to get the advantage. Zoe fired off a few arrows and took her down. The Hidden Paladins showed up and shattered the tiara and the Torches of Majesty burned her ship,” Emerond said.

  “Do you have anything to add?” Alyona asked of Emerond.

  “That’s all that matters. That’s all that I’m sure of and can remember,” Emerond said.

  “Thank you, Imperial Prince Emerond,” Alyona said and she gestured for Emerond to step down.

  “Lady Onora Elettra, please return for further testimony,” Alyona said.

  Lady Onora returned to the podium and Emerond stepped away.

  “Do you have any further testimony to add?” Alyona asked of Lady Onora.

  “It was the power of prayer that brought Victoria down. She was protected by powers of the highest evil. Prayer – to the One True God – brought us deliverance. When she lost her wicked protections, she fell to the arrows, but not without prayer first making it possible,” Lady Onora said.

  “Thank you, Lady Onora Elettra,” Alyona said and she gestured for Lady Onora to step down.

  Over the next hours and days, all the others who sailed on board the Persistent, except for the Chroniclers Ovid and Judith, were called to give their own account while many listened. Judith and Ovid gave testimony through their books of chronicled events. This process was a means for other key witnesses and participants to tell their account.

  In the audience, Guillermo listened attentively to the many different accounts of the story from different perspectives and found it to be the most satisfying time in his life. He now had so many tales to tell and so many ways to tell them, and would be able to captivate listeners for years to come as he retold what he had seen and heard, both as first-hand reality and testimony, all of which were destined to be legend as far as he could imagine.

  This testimony went on for three (3) days and then everyone returned to the docks to make their plans to return home.

  ~~~

  At the edge of the city, near the docks, two (2) young men in their thirties stood dressed in fine crimson robes and were shouting various proclamations. A crowd had gathered around them. One of the men – a herald – said: “Great Injustices have befallen this world. War has ravaged the land. Yet, the King will give you peace!”

  The second herald said: “A world with great power needs a ruler with greater power. A wise ruler, like the King, will guide you to prosperity. None shall want war.”

  The first herald said: “No more will there be a girl who can sing lies and lure millions to their deaths. There will only be songs of triumph, and rejoicing at the riches brought by the King.”

  Emerond overheard all of this and listened. Lady Onora also listened carefully. Nearby, Zoe and Brant stood to hear what was being said. Rayner and Daven did as well. Guillermo was also in the crowd, only to watch and see if yet another interesting tale was about to unfold before his eyes.

  Zoe noticed that the finely-dressed men were both wearing medallions around their necks. Each medallion was five (5) inches across and of a ten (10)-sided shape which had a small gold coin on each of the corners and a carving of a key in the center.

  “What do those medallions mean – with the coins and the key?” Zoe asked, pointing at one of them, hoping to catch them in a lie or a ridiculous claim.

  “They signify the keys to prosperity, which will increase ten (10) times under the King,” the second herald said.

  “We don’t need kings. We had enough of the garbage of dukes and counts and barons robbing and killing. They were no better than the bandits – they were the bandits,” Zoe said. Her tone of voice was bitter.

  “Breaking their necks was what we did. Kings are thieves. Don’t you people listen to this trash talk,” Brant said. His voice was angry and bitter.

  Rayner looked at both Zoe and Brant and realized that all of this had struck a nerve. They were tough, he knew, but he had never seen them this angry.

  “Kingdoms in the traditional sense rarely stand without the consent of their people. No one can promise peace, because that has to be within each and every soul. Even in a nation with a good king, evil within one (1) spirit may strike and fell the innocent,” Lady Onora said.

  “The King will bring peace, because evil will fear the King,” the first herald said.

  “He who rules by fear will bring hatred, and hatred breeds war, rather than peace,” Emerond said, knowing that even the Jenaldej Empire disavowed such heavy tactics and long ago accepted logical discipline, rather than fear, as the best approach to rule. And no ruling hierarchy was perfect, and kings were the worst, because they had too much power.

  “A foolish king is no king and will fail as you have said. Yet our King is wise. He is the Unfailing King,” the second herald said.

  In the crowd was another man named Abrax. He was thirty-one (31) years old, dressed in a black cloak and he concea
led many daggers. He had the powers of darkness by the waters of the ocean of Ikkith Tar which he drank. He was one of the Explorers of the Quiet Sea, and they hated kings and those who spoke well of them – they believed in only one (1) cause, and no king would be tolerated who might stand in the way. Abrax quickly drank of the waters from the vial he wore on a chain around his neck. He was then energized and exercised his powers of darkness to conceal himself. He prepared daggers in his hands and lunged through the air toward the first herald and cut his jugular vein, sending him to the ground. He spun in the darkness and took the second dagger and did the same to the second herald.

  Zoe watched in detail what the assassin was doing – as her powers of light by the Lujladia Ocean waters she drank allowed her to peer into the darkness. She had the speed and could have stopped it. Instead, she took satisfaction in it. She would have no kings, and seeing these two (2) heralds go down to the grave before they could preach more tyranny was fitting.

  CHAPTER 2: Questing for Wealth in Ancient Castles

  Under the cover of darkness, Abrax left Emeth and boarded a ship sailing across the Medathero Ocean, heading northeast. The ship took him to the southwestern tip of the continent of Baradaxa. From there, he traveled both on foot and by riverboat down the Crypt Trail land bridge for two (2) days, passing through swamps and cemeteries. Many dead were buried here, from old battles and sacrificial rituals that had been committed. The blood of the young was particularly precious and could be used to call to certain hungry spirits in return for dangerous favors. This was the way of old, and he knew some of it. However, Abrax was not the expert in these matters that Pandaros was. It was he who decided their meeting place should be here, as he understood its powers better than most.

  In the middle of one swamp, Abrax entered a small stone building which was a mausoleum. There were skeletal remains of many people lying about on the floor, including smaller skeletons of the youth who had been slaughtered. He felt a certain fear when entering, as if they were watching him. He felt no remorse, however, as he had assisted in many of the killings. Yet, it was Pandaros who arranged the dealings with the spirits and collected the knowledge that they gave. It was all written into the books which Pandaros guarded carefully. On occasion, under the cover of darkness, Abrax had covertly peered into the books, but he could not understand what was written, as it was in some sort of secret code. He dared not ask Pandaros, as that certainly would have disclosed his espionage.

  Abrax entered a back room and saw Pandaros standing, wearing black ceremonial robes and facing the back wall and holding up what looked like a leg bone in one of his hands and a skull in the other. There was fresh blood on the floor and what looked like the remains of a young man who had been dismembered only moments ago. A bloody machete was hanging off of a strap the side of Pandaros’ robes. While holding up the bones, Pandaros proceeded to call out: “Accept this, Havatissa, that you may know again the taste of the blood of the young! Accept this that you may grant me favor! Bring to me the knowledge from beyond!”

  Pandaros then put down the bones and drank deeply of the waters of the Zovvin Ocean from a pointed vial that doubled as one of his daggers. He was thus energized with the powers of spirits and could reach into the spirit world. At the age of forty-seven (47), he was an expert in these matters, having taken his waterbinding at the age of fourteen (14) and been dedicated to the study and discovery of all manner of spiritual secrets, however twisted or cruel that others might find his actions to be.

  The room grew darker and Pandaros – as well as Abrax – could hear the hissing sound of a large serpent. The sound was frightening, yet there was no serpent in the room in any physical sense.

  “The ssscribe of Bazzzavador hasss what you ssseeek. Asssk hisss ssspirit, and you ssshall find,” the serpent voice said.

  “What shall I ask him?” Pandaros asked.

  “For the blackessst ssstone. The onyxsss,” the voice said.

  “Is there a name that I shall know him by?” Pandaros asked.

  “Call him Vannik. He will anssswer,” the voice said.

  Pandaros turned his head part way and saw Abrax behind him.

  “Do you bring something of use to me, Abrax?” Pandaros asked.

  “Victoria has been defeated,” Abrax said.

  “Yes. I know,” Pandaros said.

  “The heralds of The Unfailing King are about. They were preaching his message of peace, even in Emeth,” Abrax said.

  “Troubling,” Pandaros said, distantly.

  “I killed them both,” Abrax said.

  “In front of the crowds, no doubt. Yet, to what end?” Pandaros asked.

  “That they may no longer spread his message to win converts,” Abrax said.

  “Win them no sympathy by your actions. The world has compassion for some. Let it not be them, or your actions will serve their cause. And then I will have to sacrifice you,” Pandaros said.

  “What would you have me do?” Abrax asked.

  “Follow me,” Pandaros said.

  At this, Pandaros changed out of the ceremonial robes and replaced his attire with that of a wilderness explorer, holding several daggers and carrying a satchel which held many vials of the Zovvin Ocean waters. He wore a backpack filled with maps, scrolls and books. Pandaros then took the machete that was attached to his ceremonial robes and strapped it onto his belt.

  Abrax and Pandaros left the mausoleum and walked out of the swamp. They made their way on foot to a small port at the western coast of the Crypt Trail and purchased transport across the Nabavodel Ocean, sailing southwest toward the Bazavadoran Isthmus. After they arrived at a small port, they entered the forests and walked about, weaving from east to west and north to south.

  Pandaros drank deep of the waters of the Zovvin Ocean from one of his many vials in his satchel. He then reached into the spirit world and felt the ghosts roaming around him – ghosts of those who had died centuries or even millennia ago. These were troubled spirits, which is why they lingered. Yet, their troubles were to be his gains. He called to them and said out loud: “Vannik, Vannik, I call to thee.”

  Followed by Abrax, Pandaros walked the forest for hours and hours, periodically renewing his energies by drinking again. Each of the vials from which he drank had a pointed tip, and each had been used to commit murders of his enemies, or those who would prove more useful to him dead than alive. More than once he had backstabbed friends to send them into the spirit world and then communicated with them to discover what they saw. By this method, Pandaros had acquired knowledge of hidden wealth when these spirits entered chambers that they could not enter while in the flesh. In this way, he would know who was rich and where to go in the night to rob them of their riches. He had amassed a small fortune – over four million seven hundred twenty thousand (4720000) platinum coins and diamonds – over the years, and used these to purchase favors of various sorts along with highly purified Zovvin Ocean waters.

  Days came and went, and Abrax and Pandaros would spend the nights in a hollowed out tree. One of the spiritual secrets Pandaros had learned was that trees, in fact, have spirits, which are not easily frightened away. However, he knew how to startle them and kill them. Once this was done, it was easy to hollow out the tree and enter into it and use it as a shelter. They would repose for the night and then return to the quest in the morning.

  After eleven (11) days of this search, Pandaros received an answer in the form of a voice speaking to him in the middle of the day in the lonely forest. The voice said: “Who calls to Vannik, that I may know who to haunt?”

  Pandaros drank anew of the waters of the Zovvin Ocean from one of his vials, to be sure that his spiritual strength was more than a match for this ghost. “Are you the Vannik who served under the king?” Pandaros asked.

  “I served under a king. Who are you?” the voice asked.

  “It was King Bazavador the Twenty-Seventh, was it not?” Pandaros asked.

  “Perhaps. Yet, who are you?” the voice ask
ed.

  “I am the one who asks,” Pandaros said.

  “Do you have a name?” the voice asked.

  “I have forgotten my name, so that my mind has a place only for new knowledge,” Pandaros said.

  “What type of man forgets his own name?” the voice asked.

  “The type who wants greater things than he had in the past,” Pandaros said.

  “I will haunt you for troubling me,” the voice said.

  “I am the first living one who has contacted you in thousands of years. You should rejoice that you are no longer alone,” Pandaros said.

  “I have not been alone,” the voice said.

  “Then there are those who speak to you? Are they the living or the dead?” Pandaros asked.

  “It is no concern of yours,” the voice said.

  “Then you are alone. Yet, in life, you were not alone. You walked the halls of the castle, always by the king’s side, where you worked as his scribe,” Pandaros said.

  “I was his scribe, this is true,” the voice said.

  “Then you know many things,” Pandaros said.

  “If I know a thing that was true, it is of no use now. Even the king is long dead,” the voice said.

  “The knowledge may still be of use,” Pandaros said.

  “Then what will you give me for it?” the voice asked.

  “I will free you from this place,” Pandaros said.

  “How will you do such a thing?” the voice asked.

  “I can summon you to anywhere, even to a better place. Tell me where you wish to go, and I will summon you there,” Pandaros said.

  “What is it you want to know?” the voice asked.

  “I seek the knowledge of the king’s wealth. He is dead, thus it is of no use to him,” Pandaros said.

  “What of the wealth? He had a great deal, true enough,” the voice said.

  “There was a black stone. An onyx, was there not?” Pandaros asked.

  “There may have been,” the voice said.

  “Where would he have kept it?” Pandaros asked.

  “The onyx was dark, and it troubled the king. He buried it with the infant prince who did not live a year,” the voice said.