Victor of Tucson

After Ranish Dar spoke, the room grew quiet as everyone looked at Victor for a reaction. When he stood there for several seconds, clearly deep in thought, Lam broke the spell and asked, “How many levels will she lose?”

“Unknown.” Ranish peered past Victor at Edeya for several seconds, then said, “She’s just barely into the iron ranks. Just touching tier three, yes?”

“That’s right.”

“With so little to draw upon, she might find herself back in the stages of a neophyte, Classless and ready for the crucible.” Victor heard him; part of his mind was listening to their conversation, but most of his concentration was dealing with his many half-formed reactions to Dar’s demand. He’d hoped to have Edeya healed and to be done with obligations for a while. He’d hoped for some freedom to explore and live his life, enjoying some real, quality time with Valla. What kinds of demands would Dar make of his “protégé?” Would Victor’s entire life be co-opted? Could he refuse and risk Edeya’s life in the hopes that he’d find another solution?

While he struggled with his concerns, another part of him began to weigh the demand in the light of an opportunity. He’d seen firsthand how badly some “iron-rankers” desired the guidance of a man like Ranish Dar. Erd Van had spent a fortune and decades of his life to acquire the dreaming egg, and all it had gotten him was five lessons with Dar. Should Victor pass up the opportunity for regular tutelage from the master? As his brain spun through the implications, he felt Valla move beside him, entwining her fingers with his.

“So far to fall . . .” Lam said, her expression drooping into something like despair.

“It is far,” Dar said, chuckling, “to you. To me, those first few dozen levels in the iron ranks are a blink of an eye, a drop in the ocean of my journey to this stage of my life. There’s more I can tell you that might give you comfort. Would you believe that there are iron-rankers who pay tremendous sums to spirit casters like myself to put them through such a process intentionally? It’s not without risk, either, as you well know. Still, there are those who would give anything to make another gamble with Class selections, to focus their advancement differently. No, your friend will suffer some loss, but she’s likely to come back stronger than ever. It’s not as though she’ll forget what she learned in her young life. Well, she shouldn’t. Some memory loss is one of the many risks, however.”

Lam nodded, and in the corner of his eye, Victor saw her put her arm around Edeya, pulling her close to her side. “Still, we cannot ask this of you, Victor.”

“You’re not asking. Edeya’s not asking.” Victor glared at Ranish Dar and asked, “What sort of service will you require of me?”

Dar’s smoldering, fiery eyes flared, and Victor swore he felt some heat waft over the desk into his face. “Don’t be too confident, young titan. I’m impressed by you, but I’ll not be disrespected in my own study. I’ll have your commitment, and then, after I’ve helped your friend, we’ll discuss the details. I’ll not say more on this matter, so either accept or take your broken friend and depart.”

For the first time in the huge stone man’s presence, Victor felt the pressure of his rage-attuned Energy seeping into his pathways. He felt his pride begin to bristle, but with a tremendous effort of will, he pushed it back and calmed his angry expression. He focused on Valla’s cool fingers, lightly gripping his palm, and took a slow, even breath. “All right. I accept.”

#

Darren closed the book and looked up, frowning, as his giant babysitter repeated the demand, “Explain to me again why you were not given a Core at this city’s nursery.” Darren sighed and closed the book, Avera’s Treatise on the Mind and its Elusive Affinity, and looked into Lesh’s green and yellow reptilian eyes.

“Well, they don’t exactly give a person a Core there. They guide you in the process of creating one.” Darren thought about lying. So far, all he’d said was that he didn’t get the help he needed at the Genesis Center and that he’d found some books to figure things out on his own. Still, a lie was something he felt would be easy for Lesh to pick out; he was far shrewder than he looked. Instead, Darren decided to give him part of the truth. “They said my stronger affinities were too dangerous and offered to teach me to build a Core that didn’t utilize them.”

“So you took the initiative to find books on the subject and to teach yourself?” Lesh nodded. “I, too, would have balked at the idea of settling for a weaker Core than my potential would allow. Tell me, then, what are these affinities you are pursuing?”

Again, Darren knew better than to lie, “My strongest one is chaos, and I have a lesser affinity for mind-attuned Energy.”

“Ah.” Lesh sat on the hard marble floor opposite Darren, his back to the window behind him. “Both are rare in my home world, but a strong mind caster is someone to fear. I can see why a soft place like this would discourage it. I’ve never met a chaos caster, but I can imagine what might come of such an affinity. So, this world found the prospect too daunting. Again, I cannot feign surprise. You had no other affinities that interested you?”

“I have a strong affinity for lightning, but it’s hard to find a Core that will accommodate that and mind-attuned Energy. Chaos seems more malleable, able to be worked in with many different types of Energy.”

Lesh grunted. “Lightning is a strong battle attunement. You’re so set on mind-attuned Energy?”

“I just feel it will help me to achieve the goals I’m most interested in.”

“There are many worlds where the rule of might is the only law of the land. There are other places, like this one, where many laws keep people civil. I visited several worlds on my way to find Victor, and some of them had strictly enforced laws regarding certain affinities; they were either seen as abhorrent and banned from existence, or they were tightly controlled by the powers that be. Mind casters are often in that category.”

When he didn’t say anything more, Darren prompted him, “And, Elder?”

“And you should know that.” He shrugged. “It’s your choice.”

“You’re not going to try to talk me out of it? You won’t forbid me to study it?”

“Why would I? Do you think I fear any affinity? If you try to toy with my mind, Belagog will mash you into a paste. I’d say Victor would likewise be willing to correct you. Knowing that, and also knowing that there are beings here who could just as easily smash me, I hope you will understand that caution and good judgment are more important than any affinity.”

Darren was surprised and strangely grateful. For once, he wasn’t being judged by his past or for what he might do. Before he could think about it, he said as much to Lesh, “Thank you, Elder. I’m glad to know that you don’t assume I will do something terrible. I’ve made mistakes in my life, but it’s nice to know you aren’t judging me for them.”

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“You’ve yet to give me a reason to doubt you, fosterling. In my book, you’ve barely a page written. Let us see that you inspire tales of praise rather than condemnation.” Lesh pointed to the book Darren was reading and asked, “Well? What sorts of Cores are you considering?”

Darren nodded. “Of the Core types I’ve found for mind affinities, only one meets the criteria I need. First, it has to be compatible with chaos-attuned Energy. Second, it must be something I could hope to create. Several require certain bloodlines—things I’ve never heard of.” Darren flipped the pages so he could read aloud. “For instance, ‘Tovekian Arkashi’ or ‘Sevenii Ash Progenitor.’ Some require rare artifacts like a ‘pearl of introspection.’ Still others require a ‘cadre’ of Mind Casters to help focus the Energy into a specific aspect. The only one I think I can create is fairly generic sounding—Chaotic Mind Core. Still, the book describes it as ‘robust with wide Energy pathways suitable for any caster whose primary sensory organ is visual.’ What do you think?”

“Do you sense things with your eyes more than your nose or ears?”

“Yes. I believe so. Humans have evolved with sight as our predominant sense.”

“Then I think you are a grown man with no Core, and you should quit dawdling and create something.”

“This is a momentous decision, Elder. If I steer myself wrong, God knows what it’ll take to correct my course.”

Lesh scoffed and waved his hand, leaning back into the window, basking in the warm sunlight. As he closed his eyes and folded his arms over his prodigious chest, he rumbled, “Speak to me when you’ve decided on a course of action.”

Darren sighed and looked back down at the book in his lap. He’d spent the last couple of days reading nearly nonstop, pausing only to use the bathroom, eat a quick meal, and, when exhaustion truly set it, sleep a few hours. While Lesh and the others had been gone, Lam had hardly bothered him. He doubted she’d have even looked in on him if not for some obligation to Lesh. All in all, he’d been happy to be left alone. He’d spent most of his savings acquiring three books. The one in his lap, another about chaos Energy, and a third about air affinities—the closest he could find to a book relating to his lightning affinity.

He'd found a Core that would allow him to cultivate lighting and chaos Energy but set it aside because of his strange fascination with his mind affinity. After speaking to Lesh, though, he was beginning to wonder if he’d been acting out of some compulsion to defy rules or the expectations of people he didn’t respect, namely those damn living lights at the Genesys Center, Y-seven and K-eight. Mind was a minor affinity for him, after all; shouldn’t he focus on the lightning and chaos? Darren reached over and picked up the book about air affinities.

It was called Borton’s Electric Life and was an autobiography of sorts, following the career and adventures of Borton as he rose in power from a novice to a master Wind Elementalist. It was only partially applicable to Darren—lightning was, as Y-seven had so smugly reported, a more specialized form of the elemental affinity. Still, in the small section at the beginning of the book, Borton mentioned some Core options he didn’t pursue, and one was called a ‘Wildarc’ Core, which Darren also found mentioned in his chaos-focused text. He read the small paragraph he’d annotated again:

On the subject of Cores, Maester Fulavius suggested a Wildarc, but Daenistra doesn’t think I have the necessary minor affinities to make it worth the effort and slow cultivation. Fulavius, of course, argued. He was of the opinion that the slower cultivation meant greater gains in the long run, but I tend to side with Daenistra. My air affinity so outstrips my minors that the need to weave in something else would surely slow me down, and let’s not forget that slow growth with high potential sounds wonderful, but quick growth might mean the difference between life and death in the Reekvah Trials, which I’m due to start in two short years.

Darren set the book aside and picked up the chaos tome, cryptically titled Seeds of Infinity. The first hundred pages or so were dedicated to the creation of a chaos-focused Core, and he had to flip through more than a dozen before he came to the section boldly titled “Wildarc – The Surge Lord Core.” He’d only glanced at it before, being obsessed with mind-affinity-focused Cores, but now he gave it a careful read, pleased to see that each step of the process was explained and that he had everything he needed—affinities for lightning and chaos and an undeveloped Core. Suddenly, Darren was excited by the prospect, and he had to set the book down and take a hard look at himself.

Had he really been about to embrace a minor affinity out of spite? Had he wanted to build a Core around mind-attuned Energy because he wanted to influence people’s minds or because of how taboo Y-seven had made it sound? What was that? Some sort of defiance? Some self-destructive need to rebuke authority? It would be one thing if the mind affinity were the best thing for him, but he didn’t think it was. If he were honest, he could see how it might lead him into one troubling situation after another. When would he ever use it for good? He supposed that if he could influence people’s minds, he could try to find bad people and get them to change their behavior, but that was a slippery slope, and Darren wasn’t good at slippery slopes.

Once again, he felt grateful to Lesh. If he hadn’t come over and asked about his studies, if he hadn’t given him the benefit of the doubt, Darren might not have been introspective enough to see what a foolish decision he’d been about to make. “Elder Lesh, I’ve made a decision. I’m going to create something called a Wildarc Core, and it will allow me to cultivate and use lightning and chaos-attuned Energies.”

“Good, Darren,” Lesh mumbled, clearly dozing.

Darren nodded, for some reason feeling like he’d shed a heavy weight. He sat up straighter and propped the book against the other two, tilting its open pages to make it easy to read. As illustrated in the book, he assumed a lotus position and squinted, reading the first instruction softly to himself: “Turn your inner eye toward your accumulated Energy and, while studying it, contemplate the chaotic nature of the many branches in a bolt of lightning.”

#

Ranish Dar led the party out of his study and up one of the other stairways just outside. Despite his stone-like black flesh, his bare feet were silent on the steps, and he moved with the grace of a cat. He’d asked Lam and Edeya to follow him, and, of course, Victor and Valla accompanied them—he hadn’t said they couldn’t. They walked through high, vaulted corridors brightly lit by an invisible source, past stained-glass windows, a dozen closed doors, and, eventually, into a large room with floor-to-ceiling cabinets lining every wall. The only other furnishings were two long tables lined with stools. Everything was made for a person of Dar’s size, so it was a little amusing to see Edeya standing beside one of the tables, the top an inch higher than her head.

“Victor, place your companion here,” Dar said as he shifted one of the stools from the side to the head of the table. “Place her head here.” He gently tapped the smooth wooden surface in front of him. “I will conduct a spirit walk. Are you familiar, Victor?”

“Yes.”

“Yes, I’m sure you are.” Dar looked at Victor, then let his eyes drift to Lam and Valla. “Perhaps you think I’ll be helpless while spirit walking, but please be aware that my Spirit Walk is at the legendary tier and that a fragment of my spirit will be standing guard over my physical form. I do not suspect you of duplicity, but for your safety, do not make any threatening actions toward me.”

Victor lifted Edeya in his arms, disturbed by how light she was, and gently laid her on the table. Dar continued speaking, “I will need to channel a great amount of Energy, and, depending on the distance between this world and the one where this young woman’s spirit lies, I may need to refresh my stores.” He held out his hand, and a softly glowing, silvery-white potion appeared in his palm. He held it out to Victor.

Victor took the little bottle, amazed by the depths of Energy he felt within it. “What do I do with it?”

“Watch me with your inner eye. You’ll see my spirit fragment standing guard. If it begins to fade, pour this into my mouth. Hopefully, I won’t need it, for it was costly and time-consuming to produce.” He looked at Victor and tsked, shaking his head. “A pity we don’t have more time to prepare; I believe I could make use of that inspiration-attuned Energy in your Core. It’s close to one of mine. You’ll feel it.” With that, he nodded and rested his fingertips on either side of Edeya’s head. “One more thing before I begin. What is this woman’s name?”

“Edeya,” Lam said, breathless with anxiety.

“Fear not. Your loved one will be whole again soon.” Ranish Dar closed his eyes and, with a soul-sucking vortex of Energy, he slipped into the spirit plane. Victor stumbled forward and caught himself on the table. Lam fell to her knees, and Valla slowly sank to the ground, gripping Victor’s wrist to slow her descent. Victor shook his head, forcing himself to focus, and turned his gaze inward. When he saw his Core, he quickly traced his pathways out and looked at the room with his inner eye. Just as Dar had promised, Victor saw his spirit-self standing there, a great, hulking shadow wielding a dark spear that bled waves of darkness like smoke from a torch. It regarded him with eyes like singularities, and Victor felt his blood grow cold.

If that thing was only a splinter of Ranish Dar, something like one of Victor’s coyotes, then it only confirmed what he’d already known: He didn’t want to make an enemy of that man. It also made him wonder what Dar had meant when he’d said Victor would feel his Energy, something close to his inspiration. That shadowy fragment felt a lot more like his fear affinity.

Just as the thought crossed his mind, though, he felt a surge of Energy erupt from the master Spirit Caster, so potent and brilliant that, once again, Victor had to fight for balance, gripping the edge of the table to the point where the wood creaked and groaned from the pressure of his fingers. He knew Lam and Valla were still down; they’d just begun to gather themselves when this new wave of power wracked the room.

As the initial shock of the Energy surge passed, Victor realized he was feeling something deep in his heart, something that sang to his spirit and made the Energy in his Core roil and churn. He felt endless possibilities and saw the shadowy gloom haunting the periphery of his thoughts fall away, only the brightest paths shining brightly before him. Everything would be all right, of that, he was sure. Edeya would recover, he’d find a way to work with Ranish Dar that would still allow for some freedom, and the specters of distant enemies wouldn’t find their way to him, not before he was ready. “Hah,” Victor said as realization dawned on him. “It’s hope. He’s using hope-attuned Energy to pull Edeya home.”

He glanced down to see both Lam and Valla openly weeping, great, wracking sobs of relief and joy, and he knew the Energy was overwhelming them. He turned to the gloomy watcher, noting that despite the warm, wonderful hope in the air, the specter was still dark, still balefully watching, his dark spear still held ready. It didn’t look like it was fading, but Victor held the potion ready; he wouldn’t fail in his task. He never had to prove it, though—with a suddenness that left him gasping, the flow of hopeful Energy suddenly cut off, and Dar opened his blazing eyes, announcing, “Her spirit is whole.”

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