Antithesis, Knowledge and Discovery
#10 of Antithesis
Chapter ten of the collab. Once again, I hope you enjoy it.
As always, comments are appreciated and requested.
Continued from 'Knowledge and Discovery...'
Shandi tied the laces of her satchel tight, mentally checking through everything she had placed inside it. It was everything she might need for the journey ahead, including her spell book and all the components that she could think of for working even the most complex spell. A week had passed since the nightmare and her knight's blood oath, and she had found the entire world becoming more and more ominous by the day. It was like a dark cloud on the horizon, always there, always threatening. And though no one in her family would admit to such a thing, she knew that they must have felt it too, all of them being powerful magic users. It was a feeling that was impossible to ignore, and something that had made her father, who had already been paranoid, almost insane. He had surrounded himself with a platoon of guards at all times, and the entire corps of guardsmen now patrolled the grounds and corridors of the Kit'ranth manor constantly, as if the house was under siege. The magi too had begun casting wards around the house on his orders, protecting from magical threats, though every one of them knew that no matter the precautions they took, it would never be enough for her father. And, despite the precautions they had already taken, the feeling was getting steadily worse. Of course, there hadn't been a lot that Shandi could do about discovering the source of the feeling yet. The one place she needed to go to finally do something about it was a place where one didn't just show up. Not even the king did that.
It had taken most of the last week to make the arrangements for her and her guardian to travel to the very special world, perhaps the most unique world in the whole of the kingdom. It was the one world that Shan'tar, the first king of her people, had declared to be forever neutral, not controlled by any one family. It was a world of peaceful study, the planet where all the orders of magic, as well as the priesthoods, had their headquarters. And it was there, maintained and cataloged by a special order of sages drawn from all the worlds controlled by the nobles, that a massive library of ancient books were kept. All the lore that had ever been known by any of the noble families, stretching back well into the Savage Era was remembered there, and Shandi knew that if the answers she needed were anywhere, it would be there. Looking up as the door to her chambers opened, she smiled.
Kael stood at the entry, waiting for her. He too carried a pack of supplies, and, though she wore her dancer's garb and only reluctantly carried her whip, he wore his armor and sword, as well as his shield and the black cloak bearing the Kit'ranth insignia. She did not expect danger where they were going, but Kael seemed to go everywhere these days prepared for battle. Not that she blamed him.
Hefting her pack onto her shoulders, Shandi walked past the Knight and into the corridor. Her family would never miss her, she knew, they were too concerned with their own dealings to bother much with her. Even the servants the pair passed didn't seem to be paying them much mind. Her father had even stopped asking her to attend formal functions. It was as if she were becoming more and more of an afterthought in the house, her family seeming to forget her in the climate of fear that filled the house. As the pair passed a corridor junction, Shandi suddenly found that her handmaiden was walking beside her, looking at her with a somewhat hurt expression.
"Why can't I come with you, my lady?" Kaia asked, and Shandi smiled at her. "I cannot serve you unless you let me come."
"I need you here Kaia," Shandi replied, opening the door to the empty testing room where once her lifelong pursuit of magic had almost claimed her life. "I need you to watch things here, to keep an eye out for trouble. Please, don't argue with me. There is no one else I can trust with this."
"As you wish." The young servant sighed unhappily, stopping at the threshold of the chamber. Like most of the servants, she held Shandi and the other magi in awe for their powers. All the servants tended to keep their distance when they were working their magic, fearing the power they wielded.
"I knew I could count on you." Shandi said, laying a hand on her shoulder. "Now remember, if anyone asks, I am visiting my order's headquarters."
"I understand, my lady." Kaia dutifully intoned, curtseying almost sarcastically. Shandi grinned at her attitude, finally drawing a smile in return from her handmaiden. "Good luck, and be careful."
"I will be." Shandi replied, summoning a brilliant arc of magic between her hands as her handmaiden shut the door behind her. Focusing her mind on that far off world, Shandi formed the arc into a disc, then fed more power into it until it was taller than she was. After a few moments, the swirling vortex of magic stilled, becoming as perfectly flat as a reflection in a mirror, and another room became visible within it, a room decorated with tapestries bearing the insignia of the order of magi that Shandi was a part of. With a smile, Shandi stepped into the field of magic, her Knight following close behind her, leaving her world behind for the first time since becoming a Master...
***
Shaden drew in a breath of air heavy with the familiar musty scent of sex, a wide, satisfied grin spreading across his features, his body calming down in the aftermath of joining. Even the terrible feeling of foreboding that had been the entire family's companion for the last week couldn't stop him from enjoying this. Of course, he didn't let any of his foreboding thoughts show through to his exterior, the practiced skill of hiding his emotions coming naturally to him. He still didn't know where the odd feeling came from, or why he of all people was feeling it at all, but he had begun to speed up his plans anyway, double and triple checking every detail this time, leaving nothing to chance.
At the moment, the illusion spells that concealed his dark transformation were gone once more, but his current lover didn't care. In fact, it was the darkness in him that had drawn her to him in the first place. Once more, the dark leopard marveled at all the different people in the world, and how, despite their differences, they were all so easy to manipulate. Months ago, when he had begun to seduce her, he had sensed within his lover that she, like him, was drawn to power. But, as a servant, she had no means of attaining it, not like he had. So, he had promised to help her gain more power, a promise which had brought her to his bed the first time. At first, this dalliance had been like all the others, another easy manipulation, another disposable pleasure, marking time until he could get the one woman he felt was worthy of his desires. But lately, this relationship had proved much more valuable than simple pleasures of the flesh. And that was why this one had continued as long as it had, and why his lover still drew breath, even having seen what she had seen. He knew he could chance her seeing his secret, because while she desired him and desired the power he offered her, she also feared him, and rightly so. She wasn't as naïve as the others had been. She knew that he would have no problem killing her if she so much as hinted to his secret.
"Are you sure?" Shaden asked, trailing his fingers through her black spotted grey fur, making her shiver as she lay pressed against him.
"Yes, my lord." His lover whispered in ecstasy, panting with exertion, her labia still clenching rhythmically around his shaft, which was buried deep within her. Shaden's smile widened further at this. He had been asking her questions the whole time they had been having sex, and despite that, she had managed to not only answer the questions, but give an incredible, lusty performance at the same time. Truly, the girl had many talents. "I am absolutely sure."
"What are you looking for Shandi?" He asked quietly into the darkness, pulling out of his lover. He knew, regardless of what all the servants were saying, that the only reason Shandi would be going to the sage-world this time of year was to visit the library. A quick check with his own contacts among the sages had confirmed his guess. But still, the question remained. "Why go to so much trouble to hide a library visit?"
"I do not know, Lord Shaden." His lover replied, shifting backward from him for a quick breather. He grinned in reply. She had known that the question probably wasn't directed at her, but she had answered it anyway. He had to smile at her dual nature. Of all the servants he had ever met, she seemed to be the best at hiding what she truly thought, perceiving things that most missed. She came off as very sweet and kind to the rest of the world, but she was also very shrewd minded and intelligent, shrewd enough in fact to notice early on that young female servants tended to disappear when they got close to Shaden, something that no one, not even his father, had noticed. And, what was more, she didn't seem to care that it might happen to her as well.
"Well, it doesn't matter." He said, drawing the servant girl close once more, claws trailing across her flesh just barely soft enough to avoid drawing blood. "Now, you remember what you are to do when she returns?"
"Of course, my lord." She replied, clinging to him fiercely and passionately grinding her hips against his in response to his embrace, "I must keep her here until you tell me otherwise."
"Very good." Shaden replied, kissing the young woman roughly once more. "Now, shall we continue..?"
***
Shandi walked into the towering hall beyond the large wooden doors, nodding her thanks to the young novices that held the doors open for her. The great library was truly a marvel to behold. Built almost like a monastery, the single huge building sprawled across an entire plateau, rising from the grassy plains around it so that one could see for many leagues from its top. Unwilling to risk the danger of having torches so near to the books and scrolls that would be so carefully preserved in the building, the architects had designed the library with hundreds of mirrors and vast, open windows so that it would be lit by the sun, the moon and the stars, the starlight of even the darkest nights enough to fill the inside with light. The building was larger than any manor house, larger even than the king's palace, and every room with the single exception of the entry hall was filled with books, endless books. Even the quarters of the sages were filled with them. Whole rooms filled with histories, books of forgotten magic, tales of the countless bards that had lived and died for many millennia and much more, books and scrolls on every subject kept by the thousands within its walls. It was said that not even the sages themselves knew how many there were.
And, over the many centuries that the library had existed, the orders of magi and the priests of Unisus had established their headquarters on the plateaus that neighbored the library, just over the horizon, using it as a place to store their knowledge as well. Eventually, each plateau had been surrounded by what amounted to a small city as common folk had come to that world, seeking a safe haven, the inhabitants of each city supporting the large buildings atop the pinnacles of stone with crops and whatever other services were needed by those who lived there. And, aside from a few outcast wanderers living in the wild places, far from the plateau cities, the planet was uninhabited. But even here, in this place, far from the politics of the nobles, and the little conflicts fought on primitive worlds, a climate of unease was still to be felt in the normally peaceful air. The servants who supplied the sages with food and kept the stone halls of the library clean kept sneaking furtive glances around them, obviously sensing but not understanding the feeling that all felt. Only the magi could understand what the feeling portended.
As Shandi strode forward towards the tan robed sages who sat at the study desks at the other end of the hall from the entrance, the young magus reflected on what Karn, the Arch Magus of Light, her direct superior, had told her when she had stepped from the portal into the headquarters. He had told her that, some months ago, something had happened to change the balance of power that the great god Unisus maintained. Unisus was the representation of both the heights of good and the depths of evil, said to be both, and neither, at the same time, and for all the recorded history of their people, the powers of light and darkness had been in perfect balance, neither stronger than the other. And, with their world in balance, the people had flourished, raising the arts and magic to unprecedented levels of skill, pursuing knowledge and power to their heart's content. But when Shandi had described her nightmare to her master, he had worn a look of utmost concern. The words of that conversation still echoed within her mind.
"If your dream is, as you believe, a warning, then we are truly in greater danger than ever before." Karn had said, looking out the window of his room at the top of the highest tower in the headquarters, the endless rolling plain spread out below him. Shandi saw an almost imperceptible shiver run through her master before he continued. "What being could be so powerful that it could upset the balance? No magus in all the history of magic itself has had that kind of power, though some have doubtless sought it."
"I don't know." Shandi had replied, thinking back over the nightmare once again, though doing so made her supremely uncomfortable. When she shivered as well, the memory of the frigid darkness chilling her, Kael's hand had unobtrusively brushed her arm gently and she managed a smile, a far different memory banishing the cold even as she contemplated the shape she had seen in her nightmare. "I have told you all that I can remember of the creature's shape. I couldn't see it well, but it was horrible, so horrible that it made me feel afraid, more terrified than I have ever been before. I have only ever heard rumors of a creature like that before."
"As have I. Well, you have given the order many things to consider." Karn had concluded, turning back and giving her a smile that stopped before it reached his eyes. "I am keeping you from the library. Good luck in your search."
With that, Shandi and her knight had left, using her magic to reach the foot of the library's plateau quickly. But, as they had climbed the winding slope to the top, she had found herself unable to shake the look in her master's eyes. Karn was the most powerful magus in her order, so powerful that everyone, magus and common alike, could feel his strength if they passed nearby. He was old, having lived for nearly four hundred years, yet he still seemed youthful, his magic keeping age from him. But the look in his eyes as they had parted was something she had never seen before. It was fear. The most powerful magus she knew of was afraid. And that was a very bad sign indeed.
"May I help you, my lady?" Shandi shook herself out of her musings and found that one of the sages stood before her, his hands hidden within the billowy sleeves of his tan robe. He wore a simple broach of silver on his breast, marking him as a Mentor, one of the middle ranks of sages, those who were allowed to study some of the rarer works stored at the library. Clearing her throat to cover her lapse of attention, Shandi spoke once more.
"Yes, is Sage Fornun available?" Shandi asked.
"I believe he is unoccupied at the moment." The sage replied, giving a short bow. "If you will wait here, I will summon him."
"Thank you." Shandi replied as the sage turned to go, finding a seat on a nearby bench, her guardian settling in beside her.
Fornun was a rarity among the sages, being born to a noble family and therefore to a life of privilege. He was the third son of one of the families allied with house Kit'ranth, and instead of spending his youth in the service of his family, he had opted to join the sages, a choice that everyone was technically allowed by royal decree.
Intelligent and always hungry for new knowledge, he had risen within the ranks of the sages very quickly, studying sometimes for days without rest. It had been when Shandi was still an Adept when she had first met him on a trip to the library with her original master. They were almost the same age, and coming from similar backgrounds had allowed them to strike up a friendly relationship, though they were too different to truly become friends. He was always more devoted to his studies than anything else, and she was never at the library regularly enough for them to become close. Still, they had remained on friendly terms for most of their lives. Fornun also knew this library better than almost anyone, which would serve to speed up her search.
The pair sat in silence for a few minutes, watching the sages who sat studying nearby, both lost in their own thoughts, the peaceful scratching of quill pens and the rustle of parchment the only sound to be heard in the hall. Even with the uneasy feeling in the air, the sages went quietly on, seeking new knowledge, constantly taking notes on everything that they had read. There was always a deep feeling of peace in this place, as if no matter what happened out there among the many worlds discovered by the nobles, nothing could intrude on this sanctuary devoted solely to knowledge, and even the unsettling atmosphere didn't wholly banish it. Only the sages seemed unaffected by the shifting atmosphere, ignoring everything except the books that were their charge. Two pairs of quiet footsteps roused Shandi from her musings and she looked up, a smile creeping its way onto her lips. The silver marked sage that had greeted them was returning, a second sage following him.
The second sage was a wingless snow leopard with odd silver-grey eyes, wearing a broach of gold with opal tracery, inset with a perfectly clear red gemstone upon his right breast, marking him as a Master of the order. But unlike all the other masters at the library, he was young, and though he rarely did anything physical, he wasn't particularly scholarly looking, built more like a runner. And though he walked with the slow, measured gate of the sages, so as not to disturb the studies of his fellows, he was also smiling broadly, a most uncharacteristic gesture among the usually solumn scholars.
"Hello Fornun." Shandi said quietly, standing up to greet the sage as he approached.
"Lady Shalendrea, it is always a pleasure to see you." The master sage replied, giving a bow which Shandi returned. With a wave, he beckoned the two visitors on into the corridor he had just come from. "To what do I owe this visit?"
"I need some help locating some information on a creature I saw." Shandi stated. "The trouble is, I don't know exactly what I am looking for. It came to me in a vision, and I could not see it clearly. I think I have enough detail to find it though."
"Well, I am sure we can help you." The other sage interrupted, stopping before an archway into another chamber, but looking at Kael with something akin to disgust. Then, he looked at Shandi with an obviously forced smile. "But your dog stays here."
Even a war-hardened veteran soldier would have quailed under the look that Shandi shot him at this statement. The sage paled under his fur, for Shandi's gaze was as frigid as the coldest day in winter, and it was impossible to miss the magic beginning to gather in her hands. Fornun started to reach out towards her to stop her, but swiftly thought better of it when the fur on his paw stood on end before he got close to her. Backing quickly away, the Master sage tried to think of something to say to stop what he could sense was happening, but everything he came up with would not have done a thing. He didn't even know her well enough to know why she was angry. For whatever reason, his fellow sage's unwise insult of Shandi's strange companion had struck a nerve.
Shandi raised a hand toward the sage, magic sparking around her hand, the cold, almost emotionless look on her face frightening to behold, made even more so by the magic and the anger kindling fire in her eyes. Fornun frowned, already trying to think of some way to explain this to the leader of the sages. The truth was, there was no excuse for what the other sage had said, and he would pay for his bigotry with his life. Or, so Fornun assumed. Just as the magic spell that Shandi was going to cast was building in her hand, an aura of bright magic already surrounding it, the terrified sage it was directed at pressing himself up against the wall, trying to put as much distance between them as he could, a hand clad in shining armor gently touched the magus' upraised hand.
The gaze of both sages tracked up the arm clad in glittering armor, to its owner's face, both too amazed to speak. But something even more amazing happened in that moment. At the wolfish knight's gentle touch, Shandi's glowing gaze turned toward him, and Fornun saw the warrior give a small shake of his head, his face a mask of serenity; the look of one who has been gravely insulted but holds himself as above retaliation. For a brief instant, a look of tender warmth that Fornun had never seen on her before crossed the young magus' features and she lowered her hand, the magic fading in an instant. Sensing that he had only narrowly avoided death at the hands of this powerful magus, the lower ranked sage turned and ran pell-mell down the hallway, his robes snapping around him in his haste. For a moment, the three of them watched the fleeing sage and then Fornun turned towards the knight, bowing apologetically.
"He comes from a family that has no respect for other races." He explained, wondering just what was between the odd pair that would have made Shandi react that way. The knight nodded acceptance of Fornun's explanation and he straightened back up, holding a hand out towards the arch. "In this room is the index of the Great Library. I am sure we can find something that will guide you to the knowledge that you seek." The sage stood aside so that the pair could walk into the index room first, then followed after them, regarding them curiously. He noticed now that they studiously stood apart from one another, their distance maintained a little too perfectly. There was definitely something happening with them, something that Fornun would have loved to explore. But, as the pair stopped short inside the huge room, Fornun put his curiosity aside for the moment, playing tour guide once again.
"Welcome," he said, stepping so he stood before them and spreading his arms. "To the index." The roof of the chamber towered some eight stories above them, every wall space, even the thin spaces between the windows, covered with literature. This was one of the largest halls in the library, and with good reason. The index constantly grew, and a whole branch of the sages were devoted to cataloging the library's works and seeing that new ones got where they needed to go. And besides the walls, towering bookshelves had been constructed of stone and wood, each reaching almost to the ceiling. The shelves looked so fragile that it was a small wonder that few outsiders ever saw this place. "Unfortunately, knowledge of the kind you are seeking is spread throughout the library. It may take some time to find it."
"Not if I use my magic." Shandi replied, closing her eyes and letting her magic take over. After a few moments, she opened her eyes again and nodded. "You are right Fornun. It is in many places, however, I think I know where to look in here at least. Do you mind?"
"Of course not." He replied, bowing. Shandi nodded and began walking between the shelves, her magic guiding her towards the works she sought. She began taking books off the shelves and flicking through them quickly before setting them back into their places. As she searched, Fornun and Shandi's silent companion followed her at a respectful distance. After a few moments, Fornun's curiosity got the better of him and he spoke again, whispering. "You are Antarian, correct?"
"Yes I am." Kael replied quietly, giving the sage a sidelong look. "Why do you ask?"
"I have never met an Antarian before. All sages crave new experiences." He said, easily deflecting attention from his real goal. "Tell me, why have you journeyed from your world?"
"I was ordered to go to House Kit'ranth by my king to formalize our alliance." The knight replied. "When I arrived, I was assigned to protect my lady by her father." Fornun smiled, noticing that he explained his duties without a hint of either joy or bitterness, keeping his emotions carefully submerged. The knight said nothing further and the sage frowned inwardly, knowing instinctually that the warrior wouldn't say much more.
"What do you think of our library so far?" Fornun asked, trying a different tack. "To a warrior such as yourself, it is likely not as an impressive sight as some you have seen, but still..."
"On the contrary." Kael replied, watching as Shandi walked towards the wall once more, looking upward, scanning the books that towered up above them all the way to the ceiling. Spying something that interested her, the magus spread her snow-white wings and flew upward, completely bypassing the walkways and ladders that the sages used to reach the heights. "Even on a world of warriors such as mine, knowledge is considered one of our greatest treasures."
"Thank you for your kind words." Fornun said, watching the knight carefully, phrasing his next comment with great care. "But even we sages know that there are greater treasures even than knowledge in the world."
"Yes, there are." Kael replied, his eyes watching Shandi's every movement as she plucked a book from a high shelf, hovering in place to read it. Unnoticed by the knight or his lady, Fornun smiled a knowing smile at the warrior's unwavering gaze...
***
Corith walked slowly through the underbrush, his bow in hand, an arrow nocked to the string. It hadn't been a good year for the outcast, no matter what the others might say. The hunting had been sparse, the great herds of elk and deer becoming increasingly illusive, though none of the hunters could tell why. Corith paused, kneeling to check his trail. Deer had definitely walked here recently. Smiling grimly, the hunter moved on, pondering once more the circumstances that had led him here. Long years ago, his father had foolishly stood up to one of the twelve noble families when they had taken their world, refusing to give the tribute in furs that the family had required in return for the right to hunt. Corith had cautioned his father against such an action, and he had been proven right when his father didn't listen. The lion soldiers of that cursed family had come, and in a night that the hunter still relived in his nightmares, they had slaughtered his kin.
Only Corith, the most woodcrafty member of the family, escaped from House Kirinus. Knowing it was only a matter of time until they put a reward on his head for his family's defiance, the young hunter had bartered his skills in hunting and woodlore to a mage in return for the spell that had taken him here. That had been many, many years ago, years that had been both good and bad, years that had aged him beyond his time, until his features were craggy like rock and his fur was tipped with grey. At least on this world, he had no need to pay anyone to hunt for his food. Cresting a rise, he looked back, spying the towering structure on the distant plateau. As a child he had often heard of the Great Library, but he had never had reason to go here. The only things he or any member of his family had known how to read were the tracks of animals and the patterns of clouds that told of the coming rain and storms. At times, when the years were lean, he had contemplated going there anyway and joining the ranks of the sages, but he loved the open sky and the boundless wilderness too much to spend his days shut up in a building of stone.
Turning his back on the ancient storehouse of knowledge, he walked on into the woods, tracking his prey. The woods he hunted in were the only ones anywhere near to the plateau cities, which stretched over the vast plains to the south. Corith and his fellow outcasts usually camped far to the north, but lately, he had had to walk this far to find what he sought. And then, the young hunter forgot all about his own troubles, for the deer trail had been obliterated. Crouching down once more in sudden apprehension, Corith looked in shock at what he saw before him. Crossing the deer trail was a wide beaten track, the grass and underbrush beaten down by countless pairs of feet shod in heavy boots and armor. Only one thing made such a track, and it was something that should not, indeed, could not exist here. Such a track could only be made by a marching army, and on this world, no army was permitted to exist, royal decree forbidding it.
Curious as to who had the audacity to disobey the king, the hunter turned, slowly following the track. It took him little less than an hour to find who had churned the swath of earth into a rich loam. Spread out before him was indeed an army, camping beneath the trees as if hiding from anyone that might observe them. But as he saw the banner above the camp, Corith felt his blood begin to boil. He knew those symbols, symbols that he hated more than anything in the world, symbols that danced in the darkness of his nightmares along with the screams of his murdered family. The lion soldiers, under their scarlet and violet banners, were the reason that he was an outcast. Snarling quietly, Corith crept nearer, training his ears to the talk of the camp, listening closely to what the soldiers said, confident that only their fellows could hear them. It had been a long time since he had heard this tongue, but he heard enough to understand what they were doing here, and why. But, after a few moments, the hunter became aware of something else, much more disturbing than the soldier's idle talk.
There was something else in the camp besides the soldiers he hated, a shadow within shadows at the heart of the camp, the shape sending a frigid thrill through his heart, something far worse than his hatreds. Creeping slowly away from the camp, the hunter hurried back to the south, his hunt forgotten. Setting his sights on the distant Library, the hunter started to run, intending to foil his old enemy once and for all. But, even as he crested the ridge once more, heading downhill as fast as was prudent, he suddenly felt a chill as deep as ice creep into his heart, a deeper feeling than before. Slowing, Corith looked around warily, seeking the source of the feeling.
And then, even as he walked in the sunlight, the world darkened around him, as if he was going suddenly blind. With deft motions, the hunter drew back the arrow on its string, seeking the foul mage that had darkened his sight, for it could be nothing else. And then, suddenly, he sensed something behind him, something that hadn't been there even a moment ago. Turning quickly, the hunter sighted on the shape, but his hand did not loose the arrow. Though all his mind screamed for him to run, and all his instincts urged him to fire, his fingers remained frozen to the bow string, his arm quivering with the tension of holding the shot back. What he saw before him unnerved him, a shape as dark and horrible as a living nightmare, taller than anyone in his world. Trembling with a nameless terror, the hunter tried to command his hands to release the arrow, to do anything at all, but they would not. And then, the creature reached out towards him, the darkness extending its reach to terrifying dimensions, and Corith screamed a scream that died inches from his lips, swallowed by the choking darkness...