The woolen carpet pulls at my robes as I move. ”My man heard you speak with your servant when I sent him to fetch you.“ I do not believe her, especially while I sit in this spring garden, green like none other in Procampur. The fact that she knows this, though, only suggests further the extent of her power. Prudently, I do not challenge her lie. ”Koja of Khazari, there are some who think the world needs learning, but there are far too few who will seek it. If you give up, the world has one less seeker. Soon there would be no true scholars left, just men like Duke Piniago.“ The memory of a charm slips into a corner of my mind, a way to see things as they truly are. I remember the verses and the ritual, but I need something to activate the sutra. ”I have come,“ my hostess continues, ”to make you an offer. I am willing to be your patron, see your book printed-for a service. I, too, have an interest in knowledge.“ Her lips part to show the hint of white teeth as she waits for my reaction. Kumiss, I note silently. I could trigger it with a sprinkle of kumiss. ”What service would you require of me, great sorceress?“ I try the tide to gauge her reaction. She laughs again, icicles breaking into a frozen brook. ”You honor me with your titles, lama. I am just a lady.“ She slides effortlessly across the carpets to sit by me once more. ”An oath, binding and unbreakable. Will you do that?“ Her eyes are fired with eagerness. ”An oath?“ I dally with the kumiss bowl before me, surreptitiously dipping my finger in the white fluid. 'There is no sin in this oath?” “Sworn of itself, it causes no ill to you or any other. Beyond that, your fate is your own.” I am ready. Almost fearful at what I will see, I flick a few drops of kumiss toward the woman and utter the Sunlight After Storm sutra, the words which clear the mind from illusion. My hostess recoils slightly in surprise. Then, as I watch too startled to move, her golden hair grows dark black, banded by a golden circlet. Her body ripples and her face changes as the mask of femininity falls away A white glare, like a furnace that gives no heat, blinds me temporarily. When my eyes adjust, a man stands at the heart of the light, stocky and straight,
Microsoft Word - Realms of Valor.rtf
in a tunic and cloak of purest white. “By the great and mighty Furo!” I gasp, quickly looking away. This is no sorceress or even a spirit, but a power greater than any mortal, living or dead. “Koja of Khazari, you have seen what I am.” The voice is symphonic, strong chords resound within the words. “Know that I will not harm you. I am Denier, Lord of Glyphs and servant of Oghma, the patron god of bards. I am Denier, in whose temple you have toiled. Now, lama, will you swear my oath'” The voice from the fire is powerful yet soothing, so that even in the god's mighty presence I feel no fear. Shielding my eyes from the corona that encases him, I am able to look on the spirit once more. “Immortal radiance, what do you demand of me, an unworthy scholar?” Denier, demipower of words, waves his hands toward the still-dark walls of Procampur. “Write for the outlanders so that they will be encouraged to learn. Stay in the West and become a muse for them. Do this and you need never despair.” I stop at the scope of this oath. “Then I could not go home.” “Not until you are ready to die, lama. I have given you the taste of home you longed for. Would your homecoming now be as sweet as you imagined?” I look at the food before me, spilled over the carpets and awash in his radiance. With Yamun dead, the Tuigan have no reason to welcome me back into their lands. And what kind of return could I expect in Khazari, a land Yamun conquered while I rode at his side? Sadly I admit what I have always known-my memories have become illusions, ephemeral dreams of places I can no longer call home. “I accept.” “Then it is done.” There is a flare of light, and I am blinded. I stumble forward, my senses fleeing into the dark and cold. My eyes burn, my skull throbs with pain. The soft cushion of the carpet vanishes beneath me, and suddenly