‘It’s a possibility.Perhaps when we talk to the High Wizard he can expand on that. Oneof my associates back in Panmagica told me about a bard there whowas making discrete enquiries about you and Aquitain a few daysago. He called himself Thistlewillow. Is there anyone here by thatname?’
Zephira asked whetherGranddad had a description of the bard, and after hearing it toldhim that it sounded like Featherdown’s brother, Chantalot. Then shespilled out the story that she had been taken in by him but that,to his credit, he did tell her about his visit to Panmagica and hadtipped them off about the High Druid’s letter to Panmagica abouthim being here, and that was why Aquitain and Miranda had left.
‘By the Powers, it’sgetting tangled. It’s hard to know whom to trust. I’m beginning toappreciate that druid woman Miranda. It seems she doesn’t know whoto trust either, so she’s decided to tell no one about where theyare or what they are doing. Presumably they’ll search for AlinAmber,’ said Granddad.
Hearing Alin Amber’sname stimulated Zephira to tell Granddad about the incident in theinn with Featherdown, and the prophesy about chaos.
‘Yes, I know aboutthat. It seemed as if he was trying to bring on the finalstruggle,’ said Granddad. ‘There is a theory that if enough peoplebelieve in a prophecy it will happen.’
‘What’s the finalstruggle, Granddad?’ Zephira asked suspiciously.
‘Perhaps the beginningof a better world, Zephira. It seems that there has been a strugglegoing on between two factions of deities for thousands of years. Ihave a friend who has spent almost his entire life researchingprophecies. He found one that seems to be a secret held by most ofthe faiths and religions in all the worlds he’s visited, and thatis many dozens. It translates something like this:
‘After the greatcataclysm the founts of knowledge and wisdom will disappear, thebalance will change and the struggle will commence. In the finalstruggle Chaos will fight Order throughout the universe until thebalance is restored and the founts are free to give answers.’
‘Aquitain’s father toldme about the founts not long after I met him. They were great sagesthat travelled the worlds observing and learning from all what wasreally happening, and twice a year they made themselves availableto answer any question from any person, high or low. The rulers andthe priests disliked them, as they would answer questions which therulers and priests didn’t want people to know the answers to. A fewhundred years ago they all suddenly disappeared, and since then therulers and priests have made sure that all knowledge about them hasbeen kept secret or destroyed.
‘I thought it was a lotof rubbish and dismissed it as such. Later, Aquitain’s father toldme that Mudrun was the world where the cataclysm happened, and hehad a clue as to where the founts had gone. I didn’t believe himuntil I thoroughly researched it myself. I now believe he wascorrect. The Great Storm was the great cataclysm, and this is wherethe founts lived or gathered. Where they went I don’t know, but Isuspect that his father intends to somehow involve Aquitain in aplot to find their location.’
‘Now I’m starting tounderstand,’ Zephira said softly, as many things seemed to begrowing clearer. ‘The founts had great power didn’t they? They hada divinity seed, one of those fragments of divine knowledge. Youand Aquitain’s father have planned this all along. You want to findthem so you can gain more power. That’s why you’ve isolated andprotected him and given him secret knowledge. It’s all so that youcan use him like a pawn in some stupid power game. What about him?What if he doesn’t want to play? What if he doesn’t want morepower?’
‘It’s not about powergirl, it’s about knowledge and wisdom and restoring the balance tothe universe. If people could ask the right questions of the fountsthey could know whether their leaders and priests were telling themthe truth. In having truthful leaders and priests, then the peoplewould be better off. We could eliminate corruption and oppressioneverywhere.
‘Do you really thinkthat the Unity of Wisdom would like a sage telling the people whatreally happens within the religions and cults in Panmagica? Ofcourse not! They would have to stop their corrupt practices andactually do some good for their followers instead of exploitingthem. That’s why they don’t want the founts found and released.That’s why they keep the knowledge about them secret.
‘Aquitain’s father isvery powerful. He’ll protect Aquitain. Just imagine - by findingthe founts we could make Panmagica and a whole lot of other placesdecent again. What could be more noble that that?’
‘Have you told Aquitainhe’s a pawn in a game?’ asked Zephira. ‘Have you told him he’s gotto risk his life so that you and his father can save theworlds?’
‘Curiously, the less heknows the better he’s likely to do. However, this is getting usnowhere, Zephira. What we’ve done is no longer important. What’sabout to happen is monumental. It seems the final struggle isimminent. What we need to do, is to try and limit the chaos. That’swhy I’m here. That bloody mask he found is very dangerous and islikely to cause a lot of trouble unless it’s destroyed. It mightcall itself the Jacintra’s Image, but I know all about it. It’sknown by several names and one of them is the Mask of Chaos.
‘It was an experimentthat went wrong. It is not only sentient, but contains the spiritof a powerful and mad mind wizard who has a grudge against theworld. He will cause absolute havoc given half a chance. I know howto destroy it and I want you to find Aquitain and give him theknowledge. However, this knowledge is so dangerous that I cannotallow you to know it, so with your agreement
