Between Darkness and Light Trilogy (42 page)

I break the surface at such a speed that I
actually fly completely out, and realize in that instant that for
the first time in my life, I really don't want to touch water. I
cast a shield beneath me before the water can reclaim me, and then
alter the nearby harmonies to stir up a wind to push me back toward
the very distant island prison. I'm quite dry by the time I reach
shore, but I still stink. I am not, however, getting back into the
water here - I use cleaning spell after cleaning spell upon myself,
and either finally succeed, or simply grow used to the stench.

~~~

Why do I end up naked when I'm imprisoned?
At least this time I should be able to clothe myself, but what to
use as the raw material? Growing plants are somewhat in my disfavor
at the moment, and sand wouldn't be practical at all. I
listen
to the land and
hear
wind in the leaves of
trees. My mind floods with the wonderful memory of the metaphysical
tree; I approach the tree that looks most like the great oak. But,
would it be wrong to take from such a majestic entity? Many plants
are meant to be eaten, but trees are especially sacred. Well, I
could ask. I gently touch the trunk and fill my mind with the
harmony
of the tree – every little aspect of its being. Now
I alter the
harmony
in my mind to reflect matter taken –
gently and carefully, of course – from the tree, and create another
harmony
, that of the clothing I would make from it. Then, I
try to surround myself with the
harmonies
of this place,
this land that does not care for change. How do those
harmonies
, and most especially the
harmony
of the
tree I hope to use, interact with my projected
harmonies
? I fear discord, but instead I hear…
expectation? Not only acceptance, but also encouragement? That must
be it, then, I have permission. Since I already have the new
harmonies
fully developed, I merely impose those
harmonies
upon both the tree and the space around me. It
seems to take a while – the concept is simple, but unfamiliar, and
I'm also making sure to maintain the encouraging
harmony
of
the land. I don't want to accidentally stray from what it has
accepted. Finally the
songs
seem stable, I open my eyes and
see both a slightly smaller tree and a very nice, extremely
practical jumpsuit of brown and green on me… and the ground,
quickly approaching.

~~~

I awake to the smell of… pancakes and
eggs?

“Ah, there you are – I thought the promise
of food might bring you around.”

I try to sit up, but fail. “Why am I
so…”

She helps me up and feeds me some pancake
with honey. “Depleted is the proper descriptive. Have you ever
heard the term 'Biting off more than you can chew'?” I don't bother
to answer, but eat everything she has provided. “Feeling
better?”

I nod, afraid that if I speak I may say
something to the effect of 'No thanks to you.' I must be awfully
transparent.

“Now, now, I did just provide you a fully
cooked meal. I'll even grant you answers to any questions you wish
to ask at this time.”

“Any question?”

“Within reason, of course, but the questions
I sense bubbling up within you are not unreasonable.”

I barely have to think, “Tell me more about
the crystal staircase!”

“There is a great deal to tell about it,
child, please be more specific in what you wish to know. And please
do not make a habit of referring to it as the crystal staircase.
The less outsiders know of the true nature of it, the better.
That's why we refer to it in so many different ways; the Path of
Enlightenment; Ascending the Path; or simply, The Path. The less
understood it is by anyone outside the family, the better.”

“I understand.” Then my blood turns cold,
“Cailli, I have known for quite some time that The Path was a
staircase, and have interacted with many Chaosians since then. What
if they have read my mind?”

“Relax, child. I have been quite aware of
your inability to protect your memories, and so I have always taken
care to shield sensitive information within your mind. Trust me, No
One would be able to read from you any details of our interactions,
or any other information that I do not wish them to access. The
primary danger lies in what you say aloud.”

“Oh – thank you!”

“I did not do it for you, but for our realm.
I have taken similar precautions with William, and in the past with
any and all who were not able to protect their own minds. Now,
shall we return to your questions?”

“Ah, yes.” I pause a moment to organize my
thoughts, “You said, before you took me up, that the state of one's
mind was important while ascending the… Path. How so?”

“It gives to the ascenders differently,
depending upon what they seek.”

“So, if one seeks knowledge, it gives
knowledge, and if one seeks power it gives power, and so on?”

“Oh no. It judges one by what is sought. If,
like young William, you approach it with wonder and a thirst for
knowledge that has no deeper, less pure motivation, it gives freely
to the ascender. If, as more commonly happens these days, one
approaches it with gaining power foremost in the mind, it does give
the illusion of having done so, but it does not give all that it
could; and to such a person it never will. What is truly important,
though, is that the first experience within it is burned into the
very being of the ascender. One who ascends with good intentions is
bound to always be good for the realm. If one initially seeks sheer
power, that person will always seek it, and will never truly be all
that they could have been if they’d had better motivations, no
matter what method of learning they pursue.”

“So, what happens if one approaches it as I
did?” My mind floods with feelings of love and amazement as I think
of the experience.

“Ah, it wouldn't be fair to tell you, you
should have the joy of learning that yourself.”

“But you intermixed our blood! What does
that mean, how did that effect my… ascension?”

“It affected both of us. You are now a small
part of me, and I of you. You would not have been able to ascend
without my blood, you were too damaged, and no one ascends to the
great forest without my assistance. Now it will always accept you,
to a greater extent than most, for the Tree of Life blessed you.
You belong to it now, child, much as I do.”

“What does that mean?”

“You will learn, in time. Do you have any
further questions?”

“Yes! Do many ascend to the forest?”

“No, very few. Of those currently among us,
only certain members of the Nebulaean line have done so; although
that will change some, in time.”

I almost recoil, “You mean, Novanus has done
so?”

“No, aside from the Seraphim and those past
Emperors who chose more active roles, that experience has been
limited to the women of your line, to those who have a specific
destiny to fulfill and need to know of it in order to do what must
be done. That too, will change.”

“You keep saying that things will change,
why do you say that?”

“That you will learn soon enough. Now that
you have finished eating, tell me, what have you learned in these
last few days?”

“Last few days?”

“Why do you think you were so exhausted?
After a full day of misadventures you chose to push quite hard to
make your new clothes. So what have you learned?”

“That you can be the most astoundingly
annoying individual I have ever met!”

She laughs, “Now that is called 'Biting the
hand that feeds you.' But yes, I have far more experience in that
area than anyone else in our realm.”

“Why have you been tormenting me so?”

“Because it occurred to me that you aren't a
researcher, you're a doer. You weren't going to figure out how to
practice your skills on your own – you needed crises to deal with.
I was only trying to help.” Her expression is serious, but I see a
glint about her eyes. “Once again I ask, and this time I would
appreciate a serious answer – what have you learned?”

“Well, I'm practically indestructible.”

Her expression turns slightly concerned,
“That isn't entirely true, but you are rather difficult to injure,
yes. And your condition can cause quite the case of indigestion!
Now get to the point, girl, what have you learned about
Harmony?”

“I seem able to reorganize things in far
more drastic ways than I have in the past.”

“YES! That is one of its uses – a most
important one. I believe you also learned something else?” She
looks expectantly at me; I can't quite discern the expression.

“One can ask questions with it. Ask if what
you want to do is… acceptable.”

“That's what you were doing!”

I don't understand her surprise, “Don't you
do that?”

“Me? Stars no! The Universe would be a much
less interesting place if I did. But, those were different times,
and I was far more knowledgeable than you when I started changing
things. I suppose, for you, it is a very good idea indeed. Perhaps
in the future, I might give it a try myself.” Her expression
changes from playful to serious. “Can I trust you to carry these
lessons forward in the outside world if I let you go? Can I count
on you to continue pushing yourself to learn new ways to accomplish
tasks?”

“YES! I promise, I'll use every opportunity
to advance my skills, just let me out of here!”

She looks at me critically, then her eyes
seem to deepen, as though she looks inside me. “Hmm… I don't know.
You seem overzealous – which you should know can lead to
trouble.”

RATS! “No, please, I'll be careful and
innovative, I swear!”

“Well… there is one more task for you to
complete, then, if you are good, I will let you go. Keep
practicing. And when you return home, try to not give evidence to
your enhanced skills; they would not understand, and therefore
would distrust you further.”

“I will…” I'm talking to no one, and all the
dishes are gone, it's as if she was never here. “But… what is it
that I have to do?”

The disembodied voice returns, “Try
asking
.”

~~~

Try
asking
, she says. The last time I
asked, I spent days at it. No, that isn't true, the asking was only
a small part of that task, it was the doing that taxed me. I should
be fine, but just in case, I think I'll eat more. In the orchard I
take some large leaves and using Harmony, make with them a bag to
carry food, just in case things don't go as planned… like usual.
Ask, she says, but how? Before I had a clear idea of what I wanted
to do, and merely needed to learn if it was acceptable, but now;
how do I ask what I should do? Perhaps it would be easier to figure
out what I should do if I first find where I should do it? I slowly
begin spinning as I
listen
to this place, thinking, 'Where
should I go?’ Around and around I turn, and everything
sounds
beautiful. Slowly one direction begins to
sound
better than the others. I open my eyes and feel
momentary relief – I am facing away from the ocean.

As I walk I continue
listening
,
occasionally stopping to spin and
ask
, just in case I've
missed something. I never have to make any corrections, though; the
harmonies
always lead me true. The question is, just how
long will I have to do this, it's been hours! Enough – I sit down
and use a ring tendril, riding it with my mind and
listening
, for once giving the tendril directions on where
to go depending on what I
hear
, instead of letting it seek
blindly. What is this island, a continent? I hadn't noticed such
expanse before; it would have taken me weeks to travel this far.
Finally, the seeking song reaches a most beautiful resolution, and
oddly, the tendril itself seems to not want to continue. How
strange.

Now what do I do? I wonder… my transport
crystal doesn't respond to me anymore, or have I simply not been
using it as I am supposed to here? If I provide it with enough
information, could it take me to a location of my choice? The ring
tendril almost jumps to life, providing me with an astounding level
of detail on the place it seems I should go, and my own mind
listens to every tiny
harmony
of the area – I know that
place, I've dreamed of it. I even recognize the shield that
surrounds the area. It is almost exactly like the shield around
this world, this has to be where I'm supposed to go!

Next question; how do I give all this
information to the jewel? I try adding the sum of the harmonies to
a facet of the jewel, and then, using Harmony, will myself through.
I feel strange, did I just commit a terrible error? My stomach
lurches; but my location changes!

I stand at the edge of a tremendous,
beautiful forest. Where the shield exists there is the largest wall
of rock I've ever seen. If I'd never seen Lumina, its scale would
be unbelievable, and near where I stand there is… a cave entrance?
There's a man standing in the cave! He's… perfect. Very tall,
beautifully muscled. His hair is nearly black and his eyes the most
vivid blue I have ever seen, like the sky on a perfect, cloudless
morning. He steps forward, breaking the spell his sight has on me,
but he stops just within: the barrier has him trapped. He places
his hands against the shield, his need for freedom clear to see in
his eyes. I slowly walk forward and place my hands just opposite
his, I have to reach up rather far, he is taller than I had
originally thought. How could anyone as small and insignificant as
me help such an amazing being? The look in his eyes tears at my
soul, I know I must try. I close my eyes and concentrate on the
harmonies
of the barrier – they are indeed much like the one
around this world. In my mind I dance within those
harmonies
, doing all I can to become one with them. I try to
bring down the barrier; but its creator has made it too well. I'm
not strong enough! It crackles angrily as I keep trying to break
it, but the thing seems self-repairing.