When he was younger, he would have never considered doing those things in the middle of the day, in a brightly lit room.
As much as he loved Kronuria, he had realised that his people were missing out on something. On quite a bit.
“I’m going to the Tomb,” he replied.
“Without me?” she sat up.
“I’m meeting the Warchief.”
“I wouldn’t mind joining in. Mayam famsá, iláz vílve,” she said with a glint in her eye.
“He’s a what?”
“A very attractive, strong man.”
“I’m going there to talk to him. Only to talk,” he assured her, as he put on his bathing costume.
He knew that everybody would laugh at his attire, but he couldn’t adopt the Sarean attitude towards nakedness. Sure enough, he heard Texe sniggering.
A few minutes later, he entered the bath hall and spotted the Warchief soaking in one of the pools. To Louis’ relief, he wasn’t being entertained by any enthusiastic Areshadian girls.
‘Please Hermit, let him wear a loin cloth,’ he thought to himself as he approached the South Sarean. Readbeard must have had an amusing thought, as he broke out in a hearty laughter. Thankfully, he wasn’t naked.
“Join me and tell me what’s on your mind, Maister Cole.”
He slid into the pool, and positioned himself so that he couldn’t see any of the busy couples or groups.
“Well, I think I’m as ready as I’ll ever be for tomorrow, but I wanted to ask for any last pieces of advice, before we leave for the Temple of Bones.
Just to make sure I don’t ask the wrong question of the Úlmá.”
“Aaaah, wonderful. My whole nation fears me, yet here I’m the cuddly, approachable one,” Redbeard’s booming laughter echoed through the hall.
“I meant no offence, Chobfisíl,” Coleman-Bitter stuttered, in his embarrassment addressing the Warchief in Areshadian.
“No need to apologise, Maister. She’s quite something. You are right, it’s best not to antagonise her.
Though, I’m sure that deep inside she’s like a little kitten, but don’t you ever mention to her that I said that,” he pressed his index finger to his lips and winked at him.
“Now, let’s see. All our allied three tribes have selected their best fighters.
A thousand each. They are all equipped with the newest Kronurian weapons, and have been well trained by your esteemed countrymen.
We have discussed taking some of my troops, as well as some Kronurians, but the Matriarch was quite certain that they wouldn’t let them enter sacred Areshadian grounds. A few of us foreigners will be able to enter. We should be fine.”
“Should?” Louis asked.
“It’s sacred ground. They won’t start a fight there,” Readbeard rubbed his face.
Not that he had any doubts, but if the new leader of the five tribes, the Patriarch, had changed the rules, and the five-thousand shamans of the Temple turned on them, he imagined that they would be in quite some trouble.
Then again, they could fight. Properly. Like South Sareans do.
The thought cheered him up.
“We will do what we need to do, and we will leave unharmed,” he finally said.
“What do I need to know about the Temple of Bones? Have you ever been there?” Louis asked.
His knowledge about the most sacred place of the Areshadians was rather incomplete. Apparently, since the Matriarch had refused to let any of her tribe go there in the last twenty years, she had forbidden everybody to talk about it. He was sure that this rule didn’t apply to the Warchief.
“O Xamkkingran. Naturally, us Southerners have known about it for centuries.
We do mix on a regular basis with the Areshadians – in every way possible -, so we have quite a lot of information about each other.
I haven’t been there personally, but one of my sister’s consorts is a Northerner, who has regaled me with some stories of the Temple.
It had been built aeons ago in the very centre of Areshadia; the area around it is called O Xamkkingran Värbyi. It can never be occupied by any tribe.”
“So what exactly is the purpose of the Temple, apart from hosting the Gathering?”
“You are familiar with the ancient Areshadian calendar, right?” Redbeard asked.
“Certainly. It consists of nine months, forty days each.
Each of the eight tribes has their own month. The last one of the year is the Month of the Gathering, O Yúríz Chofo, during which the shamans are preparing for the big event.
Finally, there are five or six days – depending on the year, – when the Gathering takes place. They call it O Yúríz Mogyoe.
All that I know.
But what on Earth are they doing in the remaining three-hundred-and-twenty days?” Louis wondered.
“What do you think? They’re Areshadians after all,” the Warchief chuckled.
He took a deep breath and disappeared under the water. A few moments later, he emerged and shook his wet hair. He saw the puzzled expression on Coleman-Bitter’s face, and the different ideas racing each other in his mind.
“During the month that is assigned to a tribe, the Temple is open to that tribe’s members. The adult members go on a pilgrimage to the Temple to receive the blessing of the Lady of the Underworld and the Warrior.
Or rather, to relive their union, during which they are all shown the Little Death by the male or female shamans of the Temple.”
“Little Death as in orgasm?”
Redbeard nodded. Louis seemed even more puzzled.
“I’m sorry, but don’t all Areshadians experience that on a daily basis? They don’t seem to be doing anything else. It must be their national sport.”
“And if there was ever a World Championship, I’m certain they would win every time. Based both on frequency, and inventiveness,” Redbeard grinned.
“I’m sure Roditeeans would hate to hear that. Anyway… It seems like a rather pointless pilgrimage.”
“Well, apparently it’s not. The reason that the Matriarch had forbidden the mention of the Temple is that people were rather mutinous, because they were deprived of their beloved religious experience.
According to my sister’s consort, it’s very special, because the shamans do elevate the experience to something transcendental.”
“How?”
“It’s rather hard to explain,” Redbeard scratched his head. How to make it clear to a Nonapt?
“Shamans are special; not everyone can become one. Maybe one in a thousand… and before you ask; the criteria are determined by Matriarchs and the High Shaman.
Anyway, once a Matriarch discovers someone with the abilities a shaman is required to have, they offer them to the Temple of Bones,” the Warchief said, quite satisfied with his diplomatic explanation.
“They trade them?” Louis asked with distaste.
“In a way. You know how it used to be around here; the Matriarch who offered the most sacrifices, became the ruler of the whole country for a year. Offering a new shaman to the Temple equalled a lot of sacrifices.
It almost guaranteed that she would win that year.
So, as I was told, those shamans do something to you while you unite with them,” Redbeard said.
He suddenly remembered what he felt when Vipra had channelled her Apts at him.
He could definitely imagine why the pilgrimages were the highpoint of the year. It was an experience he hoped to have some day. He sploshed some water on his face.
“Doesn’t it all end in a multitude of pregnancies?”
“Nah. Apparently they make the female shamans drink a draught that stops their monthly bleeding. For the males there is an ancient technique; - a well-placed snip - that allows them to perform, but prevents them from impregnating women,” Redbeard said. The two men winced simultaneously.
Louis saw Texe stepping into the bath hall.
“Thank you, Warchief. You have been most helpfu
l. I will see you at dawn, ready and armed,” he said and hastily got out of the pool.
He was determined to intercept Texe, before he was forced into a threesome with a man who he had intended to be able to look in the face in the future.
The Academy, Realm’s Heart Island
It was the last day of the Autumn Break. Nessa got dressed slowly. She found that her hands were shaking. Nevertheless, she was determined.
She descended the stairs to the ground floor of the Academy, and softly knocked on the ‘Door of Doom’.
After a few seconds Sister Undine stuck her head out. She took one look at Nessa and then smiled at her.
“Come in, Mistress Summerwind. I will have Sister Nocturnia fetched for you.”
Nessa entered the room. She immediately looked at the Archway. She couldn’t tear her gaze away from it.
Nocturnia appeared within a few minutes, and kissed her on the cheek.
“I want to do it,” Nessa declared. Nocturnia frowned.
“Nessa, I know you mean well, but I think it’s too soon. Come with me to the Library, I’ll let you have access to the Apts-only section. There are a great number of books about our kind on the other continents. And next summer we could travel together so you can see for yourself where you could go,” she suggested.
Nessa shook her head.
“No. I want this. I want to go through now. I have thought it through, and I really feel passionate about it.”
“No offence, but it might be the Unpleasantness,” Nocturnia remarked.
“It almost sounds as if you didn’t want me to join,” Nessa said in a hurt voice.
Nocturnia hugged her.
“Oh, by the Gods, Nessa. I would love nothing more than you joining us, but I don’t want you to have any regrets.”
“I’ve done nothing else in the last days but think about it. The one thing that stuck mostly in my mind was what you said about being an Equimancer.
Or rather the way you said it. Did you ever regret having gone through?” Nessa looked at her cousin earnestly.
“No, but you shouldn’t take me as an example. I think…”
“Please Noc, enough. If you won’t accompany me, I will go by myself.
Now, look into my mind and decide whether I’m being serious about this,” Nessa concluded their discussion.
Nocturnia did as she was told. She went to the Archway.
“After you,” she smiled at Nessa encouragingly.
Nessa stepped through the gate, and her jaw dropped. She stood in what must have been the centre of the Structure.
It was an immense cylinder that looked like it was hewn from glass.
Gods’ Glass.
She found herself standing on a semi-circular platform that led up to four sets of moving stairs. Two sets moving away from them, two towards them.
Stairs almost invisible. Stairs made of Gods’ Glass.
“How do those move?” she turned to Nocturnia.
“We have our theories… but to tell you the truth, we have no idea. It’s the Structure,” she offered the only explanation she knew.
Nessa looked up.
“What’s up there?”
“It’s the House of Houses.”
“And down there?”
“You’ll find out in a few minutes.”
“Why is nobody using these stairs?”
“Some do. Occasionally. We have other ways to move around.”
They stepped from the platform onto the stairs that moved downwards. They moved smoothly and steadily.
When they reached the bottom and stepped off them, Nessa found herself in the middle of a bustling square. It was the most beautiful place she’d ever been to.
She looked up.
“Are those the Canals?” she asked incredulously, admiring the light of Realm’s Heart illuminating the square through the City’s main waterways.
“Yes, and below us are the Fire Rings,” Nocturnia nodded. Nessa noticed the faint reddish light on the floor.
Gradually, a feeling of joy spread through her whole body. It intensified to an extent that she thought she would burst with happiness.
“That’s what the Structure does to us,” Nocturnia smiled, remembering the first time she had experienced it.
“What is this place?” Nessa asked, walking around, trying to take in the sights, sounds and smells of the Hidden City.
“By the looks of it, it’s your new home,” Nocturnia replied.
The Main Square was surrounded by majestic buildings that were similar to the Island’s Academy. For a good reason; they were the Hidden City’s Academy buildings. The ground floors of each house were occupied by inns and cafés. Nocturnia steered Nessa to a table at one of the establishments.
They sat down, and she ordered chilled mage-weed juice from the Elated who decided to work at the café that day.
Once they got their drinks, she told her cousin everything she needed to know about the Hidden City and the Equimancers that she didn’t yet know.
Nessa was both stunned and excited. She had a thousand questions.
“So, everybody here, at all times, will know what I think? And I will know what they think? Nobody ever lies here?”
Nocturnia laughed.
“They could try. It does take some time to get used to it. I remember I was crying for weeks when I moved here. You have to get used to a lot more criticism than topside.”
“I guess I’ll have to learn to control my thoughts then… Damn, that will be difficult.”
“Yes, learning how not to be judgemental is one of the lessons you’ll have to master.”
“Doesn’t it drive you crazy to hear all the thoughts all the time?” Nessa asked.
“You will learn how to shut them all out after a while. Then you’ll only hear the thoughts that are directed at you.
Or you hear the thoughts if you read somebody’s mind, which is very impolite down here by the way, as it suggests that you don’t trust the person you’re talking to. There’s no general rule really, it’s different for everybody; some Equimancers are more perceptive than others… but don’t worry, you’ll figure it out soon enough.”
Nessa sipped her drink and thought for a while.
“So, can I live here now? Or do I have to?”
“Yes, you can, but you don’t have to. You might find that you will want to, though. Being away from the Hidden City for a longer period of time does cause severe homesickness. You can choose to stay in your Academy quarters until you graduate, and come down here whenever you want to.
Or you can have one of the apartments in the residential Academy buildings here. Once you come of age, you can pick a house in the Hidden City.”
“How much does that cost? I will have to ask my mother about that.” Nocturnia chuckled.
“There’s no need for that. Everything here is free.”
“How is that possible?”
“Everything you see here, is either provided by the Structure, or created by us. Besides, we don’t take payment for our work; all salaries go into our treasury, as well as the money the Academy receives.”
“What if I decide I want more things than others have, or really expensive clothes?”
“Then you shall have them.”
Nessa didn’t understand.
“Once you come of age, you will become an Equimancer.
You will be encouraged to do and buy whatever you want. For years.
You will have as much funds at your disposal as you want.
If you so wish, you can drink yourself into oblivion every single day, spend as much money as you want on clothing and luxuries.
You can become romantically involved with as many men or women as you want. Nobody will judge you, and everybody here will understand.”
“Why? Or rather, why not?”
“Because we need you to become a dedicated member of our community. Someone who doesn’t feel they had to miss out on anything. You need to get it
all out of your system.”
“So I take it, you don’t have to be celibate? You and Octarian… I mean when it happened you didn’t actually break any rules?”
Nocturnia snorted, causing her drink go up her nose. She was laughing and coughing at the same time.
“I take that’s a no then,” Nessa said.
Nocturnia shook her head.
“Ummm. So now that I’m here, I can’t get pregnant?”
“No. That’s the price we all have to pay for becoming Equimancers. It seems that the Structure gives you a gift, but takes your fertility.”
“It seems a bit cruel,” Nessa remarked.
“It might seem so, but it’s for your and our protection. We are the defenders of the Structure and of the Balance. If it comes down to it, we have to sacrifice everything.
Can you imagine how vulnerable we would be if we had children? If you had to make a choice between the cause you’re willing to die for and your child?”
“What are we fighting for or against anyway? Everybody’s at peace.”
“You don’t need a war to have things that you have to fight for or against.
Things like ignorance, prejudices, poverty and sickness. We are lucky to be living in a harmonious time, but you never know when something happens; we have to be ready. There are always some who want to change the existing system. The Balance is always the first thing that gets attacked.”
“Is that what happened at the last war as well?”
“Yes. If someone wants to start a war or rebellion, the Balance is the first thing they have to invade to incite discontent and mutiny.”
“So we are basically like an army?”
“That’s exactly what we are,” Nocturnia replied.
“An army of robed Professors,” Nessa remarked.
“You only say that because you haven’t met the Academy’s Elite Squad of Paladins yet.”
Nessa’s eyes widened.
“They still exist? Paladins in shining plate armour, wielding great-swords infused with holy light?”
“Well, that was about three-hundred years ago. By now they have swapped the armour for uniforms and the swords for guns. And it’s not so much holy light that they infuse their weapons with, but Double-Fire that they channel onto themselves. Apart from that, they are exactly like you described them,” Nocturnia smiled.
“Where are they? Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve seen a single purely red Crown,” Nessa said pensively.