Gabriel’s wingmen had raised his tent far from the commotion of the battle, and two of them were guarding the entrance when they went in. Daniel wondered what had become of the Chieftain; he had not seen him since the battle had begun. He dared not think the worst; the wingmen had been hit the hardest and suffered the greatest loss since the attack began.
Turning to face his council, or rather those of it that were present, he now saw that Andres, Ari’s eldest son had come in his father’s place. Feeling a bit awkward, Daniel went to the man and hugged him.
‘I am sorry for your loss. My heart weeps for him, as if he was my own father.’
Andres bowed his head slightly and thanked him.
Daniel looked at the rest of them, with shame burning his cheeks. He could see it in their eyes that they were waiting for some explanation, hoping for some solution, but he had none. He knew that they had questions, but he needed his own answers first. He did not feel like facing them right now, so he decided he needed to buy himself some time.
The sand continued to run through the narrow opening between the bulbs in the hourglass, which was now sitting on a table behind him.
‘We have less than an hour; we need to organize a search for those wounded. Andres, will you please see to it that they are taken away from the battlefield and looked after? Damien, will you help him, please?’
Both of them obeyed, though this was not what they had expected to hear. Next, Daniel turned to the Sky-Prince.
‘Séraphin, we need to know if the battle still continues at the Northern Gate, and how the others are doing. Do you think you can send someone to find out?’
‘Right away, my lord,’ Séraphin answered, appearing to hesitate for the slightest moment, as if he wanted to say something. Thinking better of it, he followed Andres and Damien out of the tent.
Left alone with Diane and the oracle, Daniel turned to him now.
‘Alfie.’
The oracle was still lost in his thoughts and barely acknowledged him.
‘Forgive me, Daniel; I will need a few moments on my own, if I may.’
‘We’re running out of time, Alfie; and I don’t know what to do.’
‘I know,’ the oracle simply said and excused himself, disappearing out of the tent as well.
Suddenly feeling very tired and drained of any energy, Daniel turned to Diane, sighing.
‘I’m so sorry, mom; you must be so disappointed in me.’
For the first time since they had arrived before the ice walls, Diane put down her gold-finished weapons, which were now washed in blood and covered in dents and scratches. She approached and took her son in her arms, resting his head on her shoulder.
‘Disappointed? No sweetheart, far from it; I couldn’t be more proud of you, of the things you have done and the man you have become. Oh, Daniel, if only you could see yourself the way I see you, the way Damien sees you; he worships you. And if daddy could see you right now, he would be just as proud of you as we are.’
‘But, I failed you, mom; I failed them all. I’m not who you all thought I was.’
‘It’s not over yet, sweetheart; I still believe in you, and so do they. Look around you; no one is running away, they’re all here. We all knew this would be difficult; but you know what, it’s not the battle outside that worries me. The greatest battles are not fought and won out there in the battlefield, sweetheart, but in here.’ She caressed his head with both hands as she said this. ‘It seems to me as if you still have some fighting of your own to do. All you have to do is believe, my Danielito, and when you do, whatever you dream will come true. We will stand by you, no matter what. I love you!’
She kissed him on the cheek, then picked up her sword and shield and walked out of the tent, leaving him to his own thoughts.
Daniel slumped on a stool beside him, burying his face in his palms. He had hoped against hope that things would not end up here, but they had, and now he didn’t know what to do. He didn’t care about being caught by Winter’s men; he knew he would never give them whatever they wanted from him, so they would have to kill him eventually. He was okay with that. But he hated it that Winter had practically won and he was powerless to do anything about it. No matter what Winter said, life in Endërland would never be the same; even if by some miracle he did manage to restore the sun and moon into the sky; not that he himself would know how to do that.
The sound of feet approaching claimed his attention, and he looked up to see Hëna opening the curtains of the tent, and entering without waiting to be invited. For the shortest moment he had completely forgotten about her, but now that she stood before him, tall and beautiful as ever, his feelings stirred inside of him once again. She looked worn out from the battle, with scars all over her face, and her hair no longer in a neat single braid. Yet all Daniel could see, were her radiant eyes, which he had never been able to read.
‘Hëna,’ he got up, surprised. He felt like smiling, unable to hide the pleasure of seeing her there, but something in her eyes stopped him. She approached him in three short steps and stopped at arms’ length from him.
‘What are you going to do?’ she asked straight away, no courtesies. ‘Do you have a plan?’
There was a slight moment of disappointment, as Daniel realized she was not there to see him. Of course not, she was there to find out what would happen to her world and her people. Feeling slightly hurt, he lowered his eyes and answered.
‘No, not yet.’
‘So, it was all for nothing?’ she continued, not really asking. Daniel lifted his eyes to meet hers and almost wished he hadn’t. They were cold, foreign, unfriendly.
‘I’m sorry,’ he whispered. ‘I never wanted things to get to this point. I really thought I could help.’
‘You have to go,’ her words rang harsh in his ears, ‘back to where you came from, back to your own world. It’s the only way.’
He looked at her intently, hoping, praying for something in her eyes to tell him that she did not mean it. He did not find it.
‘If you stay, we all die, Daniel. But if you leave, we have at least a chance for some kind of life. Maybe it won’t be as bad as we fear. I don’t know why you’re even thinking about it.’
‘Don’t you?’ he asked, looking straight in her eyes now, for the first time unafraid of what she’d see behind his. She understood and looked elsewhere. ‘I stay because this is my home, too; I stay because I don’t want the White Lord to win this. I stay because of you.’
She returned her gaze at him, remaining cold and indifferent.
‘Well, you stay for nothing,’ she said, and this time she did not look away. ‘The White Lord has already won, and apparently there is nothing you can do about it. And this is no longer your home; nobody wants you here anymore, least of all I.’
‘You don’t mean that,’ Daniel said, unable to hide his hurt anymore.
‘Don’t I?’ Hëna continued, showing him no mercy. ‘Ever since you came here there’s been nothing but trouble. My father is a prisoner, my brother is dead; half of Endërland is lying on that field and all in your name. Do you really think I could even look at you after all this?’
So, she did blame him for Heli’s death. Something snapped inside of him, as he realized she would never return his love. Instinctively, as if protecting himself from her, he moved back one step. With a wounded voice and unable to look at her, he managed to say.
‘If this is what you really want, then I will leave.’
‘It is,’ she said coldly. ‘Go back to your world, Daniel, to your Sam. Forget about us.’
Caught by surprise, Daniel lifted his eyes to look at her, just as she turned her back on him and walked out of the tent. How did she know about Sam? He had never shared with anyone what had happened between the two of them. And why would she mention Sam at all? If he didn’t know any better, he would think that she was jealous; but of course, that would be ridiculous.
He had to force himself to stop this inner monologue and concentrate on what w
as actually important. The fate of Endërland rested in his hands, and he couldn’t be concerned with his feelings for Hëna right now. She was right, the only thing to do was to leave Endërland for good and never come back. He didn’t know how he would accomplish that; perhaps if he took the bracelet with him and wore it all the time, it might stop him from dreaming once again. Or perhaps he might get his hands on some of those drugs he had heard Freddie talk about.
But, he was fooling himself; he knew Winter’s men were in possession of his body, and if he went back there, he would fall right into his trap. Winter would finally get what he had been seeking all this time. He had no idea if Sam had managed to get out of the burning house and back to safety, but he could not count on her help either.
In the end, it all came down to what he was willing to sacrifice in order to save Endërland and the remaining people from total and complete annihilation. He knew that if there was even a small chance that his departure or even death would spare them, he had to try; he owed them that much.
He walked out of the tent and began looking for the oracle. He had to consult him one last time; after all, there was also the matter of Winter’s other request. He could not make that decision for Alfie, too.
In the battlefield, the entire army was engaged in searching and rescuing the wounded. He turned around to scan the horizon and finally saw him, sitting on a solitary rock, with his gaze lost somewhere ahead of him. Daniel walked up to him, following his footpath on the snow and sat beside him. The oracle smiled, acknowledging his presence there, but did not say anything. Unlike earlier, he now appeared calm, unfazed by the battle and all the recent happenings. ¬
‘I’ve got to go back, Alfie,’ Daniel said after a short while, looking in the same direction as the oracle. ‘I don’t trust Winter and I know his men are waiting for me to wake up, but I’ve got no other choice. We cannot win this war and I will have no more people dying today because of me.’
The oracle looked at him for a brief moment and then cast his gaze again on the horizon before them.
‘You know, when the Great Lord first arrived in this place, it all looked so much different than what you see today. It was all practically barren and shapeless, nothing really existed. He created everything the way he envisioned his perfect world to be, the way he thought his own world once was, before man ruined it. And do you know how he did that? He simply thought it up, willed it into existence. Everything appeared before him just the way he wanted it to be.
‘Afterwards, he wanted to make sure that this world would not go down the same path his old world did, but the only way to do that, was to purge himself from all evil that was inside of him, so that he would not contaminate it. So, he managed to somehow split himself from that evil and locked it away somewhere, where he thought it would stay hidden and trapped forever. The creature you encountered in the Shadow Forest is his evil personified, the General. Evil is darkness, and the only thing that kept it away was light. This is why in his design he assigned people to serve as the sun and moon, for it had to be them who would always keep evil at bay. But now that the sun is gone, that evil is free again, and boy is it mad.’
‘Why didn’t the Great Lord kill him in the first place?’ Daniel asked.
‘He didn’t know how that would have affected him; they were one person you see, and even after the separation, they were still connected to each other.’
‘But what does this have to do with us now?’ Daniel asked again, struggling to make the connection. ‘The shadows were destroyed once the golden light was released; the General is gone.’
‘I fear the General is not gone, Daniel. I believe it has somehow taken over the White Lord, and is using him to have his revenge on the Great Lord and this world he created and loved. The White Lord must have wandered into the Shadow Forrest at some point; that is the only explanation I can think of as to why or how he was corrupted. All the things he has done; Winter never had that kind of power, it was always the General.’
Daniel hung his head down in despair.
‘Then, we have indeed lost. If we had no chance of defeating Winter, then what hope is there in defeating this evil Great Lord himself? We’re doomed; these people are going to die, whether I leave this world or not.’
‘You’re right about one thing, Daniel; the General will destroy this world and everyone in it, whether you go back or not.’ The oracle looked at him now, with a smile of hope and encouragement. ‘But he’s not going to; you can defeat him, Daniel, you are stronger than him and he knows this. This is why he’s been trying to get his hands on you all this time. If he can force you to reveal the whereabouts of your portal, he can take possession of your body once and for all. Then, he would have indeed become the Great Lord over this world, and will be invincible.
‘But it’s not only Endërland that’s in danger, Daniel; if the General manages to cross over into the other side, we don’t know what he may be capable of. He will have a lot of power, and I don’t even want to think of what he will do with it. Your world as you know it, might be no more. No, Daniel, no matter what happens, you can never allow him to get to your portal and take over your body. The way things are now, we have the advantage; you are the Great Lord and you have power he does not possess.’
‘But I’m not the Great Lord, Alfie, you know that. I have no power. Don’t you think I would have known by now if I did? Do you think I want to let him destroy everything?’
‘My dear Daniel; you still reason and think as if you were in your own world. With all that you’ve seen and experienced here, you still forget that this world is not bound by any laws of nature or man as you know them. In here, everything is possible.
‘I’m gonna tell you a little secret, something that no one else in this kingdom is aware of. Before you ever set foot in Endërland, people and wingmen, but no mermaids inhabited this place. They did not exist; they only appeared after you came, just like all the seas they live in and surround our kingdom. The Great Lord had never known the sea in his human life, and when he created this place, there were waterfalls, rivers and lakes, but no more. You added that to this world, when you first came here. Life carried on as if everything had always been like this, but only I know the truth. I wasn’t sure at first, but after all the other signs that followed, after Lightning claimed you as his rider and leading you to his former master’s castle, I was convinced. These are your creations Daniel, and that is how I know that you are the Great Lord.’
Daniel looked at him, gobsmacked. What the oracle said sounded utterly and completely ridiculous. He couldn’t have created the seas and the mermaids when he first got here. How would that even be possible? They had been here since the beginning of time; the mermaids already had three queens and were about to crown their fourth one. He felt really confused just now.
‘Help me understand this, please. Someone else was the Great Lord before, and he created Endërland in the beginning. I only created part of it, when I first got here. Is that right?’
‘It was someone else who first created Endërland, yes, and I have already explained what happened to him. I thought that the kingdom would never see the Great Lord again, until you appeared and everything began to change.’
Daniel looked at him thoughtfully. Something he had never thought about until that moment, suddenly dawned on him.
‘It was you, wasn’t it? You were the one who first created this world; you are the Great Lord. That explains why Lightning knows you, why the White Lord hates you so much.’
The oracle looked at him and smiled again.
‘I was, yes. I haven’t been the Great Lord in a very long time, because the kingdom has had no need of him. I chose to simply be the oracle, his voice for whosoever wanted to hear from him. That is the reason why I no longer have any power and authority over anything or anyone anymore.
‘When evil began to show signs of moving and working in this world, I began to panic, because I did not know how to stop it. The only thing I
could do, was to lead other Visitors here, people like you, Sam and Damien, and many others who have descended from me through different bloodlines. I was desperately hoping that one of you would have the power to take over from me.
‘I have been waiting a very long time for you, Daniel, and I almost gave up hope when I realized Winter was kidnaping all Visitors. I tried to protect the rest of you by keeping you away. But your power proved much greater than mine, and you found your way in eventually. You clearly belong in this world, Daniel, and now that you’re here, it’s your turn to rule.’
Daniel was lost. This was more information than he felt able to digest in such a short time. If what the oracle said was true, it would explain a great many things which he didn’t understand until that moment. It would also mean that all Visitors were related to some extent, with the oracle being their common ancestor, including him and Sam. But what did that mean, and was it even important at this point?
The more he thought about all of it, the more he felt like scratching his head. Yet, somewhere in the back of his mind, some things began to make more sense. Of all the books he had read, the Greek myths involving mermaids and heroes were amongst his favorites; and this world seemed to be full of things he loved. Nemo was one of his favorite characters, and it only made sense that he would be part of a world Daniel would create for himself. As were many other things, like oversized cherries, friendly animals, the endless seas, the wonderful nature, a girl as beautiful as the moon and so on.
He was beginning to see what the oracle meant, and for the first time ever since he set foot in this place, he started to see everything in a new light, and allowed himself to believe that he might indeed be the Great Lord. If he had the power to create all of this, then he had the power to do a lot more, starting by saving this kingdom.
He finally got up and looked at the oracle with a newborn hope.
‘Come, Alfie, I think I know what I need to do.’
Wind of Change