Soon he saw his destination. As he reached the opposite side he tied off the boat and walked up another series of short steps.
Like the preceding chamber, this one was square in shape and built from rough-hewn stone blocks. More wall brackets held burning torches. As Gracchus mounted from the landing, a startled rat squeaked and scurried off into the gloom.
Finally alone, Gracchus walked to the far wall. A casual observer would have seen nothing unusual about its many rough-hewn stones. After choosing one unremarkable block from among thousands, Gracchus summoned the craft.
At once the stone glowed bright azure. Gracchus then caused a small incision to form in his right wrist. As he liberated one drop of his endowed blood, it hovered before him and twisted itself into his unique blood signature. He calmly watched the incision close and the resulting scar disappear. He then sent the blood signature flat against the glowing stone.
The enchanted stone quickly recognized the cleric’s blood. Soon a bright azure line formed down the center of the wall and the two halves parted, allowing Gracchus access to the chamber beyond. He hurriedly entered, and the walls scratched closed behind him. The subsequent chamber was as pristine as the preceding one was dank.
As Gracchus walked into the room he was comforted to see that nothing had changed. And why would it? he asked himself. I have been the only visitor to this place for thousands of years. The being I imprison here will never reclaim her freedom, despite the immense power she once commanded.
The chamber was large and well lit. Its four walls and ceiling were built from finely hewn alabaster blocks. The floor was solid onyx, polished to a magnificent sheen. Solid gold wall brackets held engraved oil globes, their flames combining to cast a soft glow over the room, and the air was warm and odorless. But the chamber’s beauty meant little, he knew. The real reason for this secret place stood across the room.
The entire far wall glowed with a soft azure hue. Its depths seemed limitless. Curved shards of swirling white light continually wheeled and streaked amid the azure aura that imprisoned them. The strange masterpiece of the craft emitted a soft roar and a crackling sound, much like a blazing fire.
As he regarded the mesmerizing sight, Gracchus was reminded of how long it had taken him and his fellowPon Q’tar clerics to create it. Fifty years, to be exact-ten years of ceaseless toil to refine the formulas, then forty more to construct this chamber, the two landings, the lake, and the secret tunnel that led here from aboveground. The skeens who had been forced to do the construction were long dead and had taken this place’s secrets with them to the Afterlife.
The lead cleric raised his hands and called the craft. At once the glimmering wall started to slide closer. As it neared, a transparent roof and equally glassy sidewalls formed, ensuring that the azure light remained imprisoned. The amazing construct slowed, then stopped about three meters from where he stood.
The result was a glistening cube that measured eight meters square, the entire space within it filled with azure light and darting white shards. Despite how many times Gracchus visited here, he always found the cube a wondrous thing to behold.
The lead cleric stepped closer. “Show yourself,” he ordered.
From the foggy depths a woman emerged. Her eyes and wrinkled skin were so old that they were nearly dust. Her long, brittle hair was the purest white and flew about wildly. Her dark eyes darted about the room, then stared straight at him, boring their way into his own. The tattered gray gown she wore had once been pure white. Like her hair, its tattered ends swirled in the azure mist. Wrinkled arms and hands lay quietly by her side while her bare feet dangled just below the hem of her tattered gown. As she hung weightless in the cube, she said nothing.
“You touched my mind,” Gracchus said calmly. “What have you seen on the other side?”
“The Orb of the Vigor has shown me much, lead cleric,” she said. Her ancient voice was tremulous, hollow. “Two more important manifestations of the craft have occurred east of the Tolenkas. You are fortunate-I had barely enough energy remaining to witness each. You will be pleased to learn of one. The other will doubtless cause you great distress.”
Gracchus eagerly stepped forward. “Tell me,” he ordered.
A short smile crossed the Oraculum’s lips. Gracchus guessed that she would deliver the distressing news first, because she would enjoy it. He and the woman had been enemies for aeons. Even so, in a perverse way they needed each other.
“The Conclave has discovered subtle matter,” she said. “Although theJin’Sai ’s mystics cannot yet employ it, it seems only a matter of time until they learn. It might become a potent weapon for them.”
Gracchus was stunned. “How did this happen?” he breathed. “Their knowledge of the craft is not sophisticated enough to have done this on their own!”
“It was revealed to them through a secret spell incorporated by the Shashidans into the Tome and the Scroll of the Vigors aeons ago,” the Oraculum answered, her gown and hair floating about her as she hovered in the azure light. “Even I did not know of its existence. When Faegan placed the three relics side by side for safekeeping, the subtle matter was released.”
“Subtle matter is never released without need,” Gracchus mused. “What purpose did it serve?”
Reveling in his discomfort, the Oraculum smiled again. “You’re right,” she said. “The ancient spell that was enacted did far more.” She went silent again, purposely allowing the tension to build.
“Tell me, you half-dead bitch!” Gracchus raged. “Or I will kill you here and now!”
“No, Gracchus,” she answered. “We both know you won’t do that. You might torture me. But you can’t afford to kill me-especially not now, when there is so much left for you to learn.”
Seething with rage, Gracchus shook his fist at her. “Tell me!” he screamed, “or Iwill torture you! And I’ll enjoy it!”
“Very well,” she said. “The subtle matter has told theJin’Sai that he must traverse the Azure Sea to reach Shashida. As yet, he and his Conclave do not know how that is to be accomplished. But theJin’Sai ’s wizards are clever. If they learn enough about subtle matter, they might devise a way to cross the sea. The Tolenka Mountains on which you have so long relied to keep theJin’Sai and theJin’Saiou trapped on the other side of the world might no longer be the obstacle that they once were.”
“But how can that be?” Gracchus breathed. “Its expanse is too vast and its dangers too great! Even our strongest spells cannot overcome its many obstacles!”
“I can only guess that the subtle matter will somehow lead the way,” the Oraculum explained. “If theJin’Sai finds it, I do not know what might follow. Nor does theJin’Sai know. But there is more to it. The subtle matter also supplied the Conclave with a detailed map of the territories west of the mountains. My guess is that the map is aeons old and might well be flawed, given the shifting changes in the boundaries that you say have taken place over time. Even so, it should be of great help to them should they somehow cross the sea.”
For several moments all Gracchus could do was to stare blankly down at the onyx floor, his mind a whirl of misgivings. He could not have imagined worse news. He finally collected himself and looked the Oraculum in the eyes.
“And because all my Vagaries allies in the east have been defeated, there is no way for me to stop theJin’Sai from trying,” he whispered, half to himself.
At first the Oraculum did not answer as she floated silently before him, imprisoned in the mist. “That is not entirely true,” she finally replied.
Her heart broke as she said the momentous words. Even so, she had no choice but to tell him. Gracchus could easily torture the information from her, and he had often done so by magically altering the environment of her bizarre prison. Many centuries ago when she was younger and stronger, she had tried lying to him about what she saw on the other side of the world. But he had always found out and the torture started. Now she was too feeble to survive it. To stay alive, her only course of action was to tell the truth-no matter how much it grieved her to do so.
“You’re referring to your second sighting, aren’t you?” Gracchus demanded. “Tell me of it!”
The Oraculum sadly closed her eyes. “Youdo possess a new Vagaries ally on the other side,” she said. “If the legend is true he has the ability to commune with you, for Failee’s last attempt to find the needed forestallment formula was successful. To order him to do your bidding, you need only to reach out and touch his mind.”
Sensing a glimmer of hope, Gracchus took another step closer. “Who is he?” he demanded.
