The Search For Kathea, A Leap Into Paths Unknown

 The Search For Kathea, A Leap Into Paths Unknown

     Iriisii, Dettlaff, and Illyria return from the dark forest in Dettlaff's oldest memories of his mother and the home he was raised in. Illyria is the first to speak, "you are going to attempt the 'Ritual of the Catalyst' here in the Dreamlands?"

     "Yes, it does not matter where we do it, what happens, will happen within ourselves and outside of Reality."

     "What is this 'Ritual of the Catalyst', that you are speaking of?"

     "It is the second part of two distinct rituals designed to awaken awareness with those either recently ascended to godhood or are on the verge of becoming so. Most will not attempt it because they either lack the materials needed to create it or the danger of it is too much."

     "What is the danger that they would fear it so?"

     "Losing their mind to wander aimlessly in the Streams of Time for eternity. I was given counsel on what to do, what to expect, and I had the guidance of the 'Kel' when I attempted it for the first time. Without their help, I do not know if I could have survived it with my mind intact. Now that I have done this, I can act as a guide for others, but it is still not without its dangers.

     You can still get lost within the myriad futures and should you get past that when the ancestral memories are awakened, most will settle down, some will try to take control. They have to be dealt with, or chaos will ensue. The journey I took my Rigmor on within her own mind, was perhaps even more difficult than my own was. You can only see your own demise so many times for so many different decisions going wrong, without it leaving its mark on you. But the emotional attachment between us, kept us going until we found the path we could both agree upon as the best to go forward with."

     "I have to say, I am glad it is you having to endure this rather than me."

     Iriisii smiles, "Through the Ritual's trials I have come to know who I am at the deepest core of my being, and I am satisfied with what I saw then and continue to see now. I did not understand why the things that happened chose me to be their victim. The Ritual allowed me to see why understanding the consequences if I turned away. And perhaps most important of all, chart a path to my Destiny, that I could look back upon and say, 'yes, this is how it needed to be'."

     "And that, I daresay is the absolute best, any of us could ask for in the purpose of our lives."

     "Those words are in part why you are the 'Great Sage' and not someone else."

     The Great Sage nods his head to Iriisii, coming just one more step closer to his own Destiny, of which he is yet unaware.

     "This is going to be an experience like no other, since this time we will be using the Ritual to enter and explore the 'Gray Paths', some of this will be the same as I have experienced before. Those parts that are deeply personal, will be handled as I have done before, but the rest will be completely different. For those, we will need to confront together, united in purpose and in resolve. 'Strength' is not as important in this as 'Will', remember that and we will overcome any difficulty we encounter."

     "I have trusted you from the first moment we met, even before I came to fall in love with you. Nothing I have seen you do, or heard you say, will make me move away from that trust. Let us get on with it."

     "Then sit and get comfortable, there is no way to determine how long this will take."

     As they sit, Iriisii opens a pack she has sitting next to her. Pulling out a very small vial, she opens it up and allows a single drop to fall into Dettlaff's mouth. Then she takes one drop into her own, closes the vial, and the pack. Moments afterward she drops into a trance state and her awareness expands to encompass Dettlaff's own awareness expanding.

     She reaches into it, to add her presence to what he is sensing, projecting calm as they are drawn into a very different place than she has ever been before. Here there is no vision of a river of colored lights indicating people's lives as they are born, live, and die. Instead, there is open space all around, islands of different sizes, compositions, even orientations, all floating, some moving in this direction or that one, some circling others.

     She urges Dettlaff that for the moment just to stand and watch the dance, let the pattern buried within the movements come out when it will. After what seems like days, this play across the spaces begins to make a kind of sense, first to Dettlaff, then to Iriisii as she shares his awareness. They decide that the movements display a deep form of harmony, but that they only see a part of it and so it is difficult to determine what is going on.

     Iriisii suggests they look beyond light, both upper and lower, also to expand their hearing. As they extend their sight, more becomes apparent, the timing of the movement of the islands shows the order in the outward chaos. Then when they open up their hearing, they can hear notes of a song, being acted out by the movements of the islands. The song seems to come from everywhere at once, with only very small changes to how soft or how loud it is.

     She takes Dettlaff by hand and 'wills' herself to float with the islands, noting how their presence affects the song she hears. It does not take long to find a path that harmonizes with the song, and with those harmonic vibrations coursing through them they feel transported into a vision.

     They see the familiar house in the dark woods, but the air around holds menace rather than peace. They move closer and see a group gathering before the house. They are wearing some form of armor with a uniform over it, indicating they are acting for a local ruler. They move on inside to see what is happening, trying to make sense of the play-acting out around them.

     "They are here, you cannot give them what they want, you cannot."

     "Do not worry, I have no intention of giving in to their demands! That is why I brought us out here in the first place. How they managed to convince the Duke, to allow themselves to do this, I have not the faintest idea."

     "But what are we to do? There is no one within miles to help us."

     "There is no help for us, but for Dettlaff, yes there is."

     "What do you mean?"

     "I have a friend, who has agreed to take him far from here. Where the Baron has no influence, and Dettlaff can grow up, mature, and seek his Destiny, without harm from those fearmongers on the Council."

     The male kneels before a young boy, trying hard to stifle the fear he feels from the people outside calling for him to be given to them.

     "Son, I will not let them, have you. I know you do not understand why this is happening. Yet I have been told by our Oracles to tell you anyway, that one day you will understand. They would only say that much and no more. You are the subject of an Oracular prophecy, that one day you would be the one to successfully become a Vyrkolos to an Aasimar Goddess.

     And not just any Aasimar Goddess, but one Destined to climb the heights of Celestial Power to a place no other has achieved. And she will take you with her as her mate and equal. She will command Dragons, and you will hold sway over the legions of the undead. The High Council fears you, because you would stand above them, so far above them, they could do anything to hold on to the power they have gathered to themselves. A power that is rightfully yours.

     Your line is ancient and unbroken, back to the very beginning of who we are now. There is no one on the Council that can say the same, and so they fear an uprising against them led by you when you reach the age of manhood. I have summoned Emiel Regis Rohellec Terzieff-Godefroy, just call him Regis, that is what he answers to. He will take you from here, someplace safe. He has not told me where, so I cannot divulge what I do not know."

     "But papa!"

     "I know son, it pains me as well. But your future, your destiny is more important than I am. You are the one we hope, to bring our people out of the bondage, that we have been enslaved by for uncounted years. We will always be vampires now. There is no way to turn that back, but you can free us all from the domination of our bloodthirst and make peace with the beast within that drives that thirst.

     He is coming, I feel him near. Ready yourself, my son, soon you go to your Destiny. Walk its path with head held high, fearless, and bold. And know you will one day be the savior promised to us by the mysterious Prophet who came among us so long ago."

     A portal opens quietly and a much younger Regis walks out.

     "Is he ready?"

     "Yes, he is. Take care of him, Regis, for me."

     "I will care for him as if he were my own."

     "Please, is there no other way?!"

     "You know there is not. Those out there have seen to that. The stories they have spread would follow us everywhere we would go. This must end here and now. There must be no trace left for them to follow. They must believe him dead."  

     "I know, but it is just a mother's desire for her offspring."

     "I know how much you love him, so do I. If there were any other way, do you not think I would be taking it?"

     "I know you would. It is just not fair, he is just a child!"

     "Yes, he is, but he is our child, and so he is special. Never forget that he has been blessed by the Old Gods before we became 'cursed' by the bloodthirst. He will deliver us from that curse, all of us."

     "Come, Dettlaff, say goodbye to your mama and papa, we must go quickly."

     The boy, Dettlaff does as he is bid, giving both his parents a difficult and yet lasting hug, even as the group outside begins clamoring for the boy to be handed over.

     Iriisii and Dettlaff watch as Regis and the younger Dettlaff pass through the portal. Dettlaff's father goes and picks up his sword, pulling it from its sheath. The mother places a hand over her husband's on the sword pommel. 

     "Do you really have to?"

     "You know what will happen if I do not. We will not be allowed to go free, they will not believe we do not know where he is. So they will have us tortured until we will say anything to stop the pain. I...I can not meet my end knowing that I did nothing to stop that from happening to you."

     "Then lure them inside, and we will send as many as we can to the Lord of Death so that we will have many servants to attend us in the afterlife."

     "You have something in mind?"

     "Yes, but better you do not know. We can then catch more of them."

     "I have always liked the way you think, but never more than right now. Tell me you are ready for them."

     It only takes her a moment to prepare. From a small casket, hidden under a loose floorboard by the oven, she removes a scarlet gem. Its facets cut in a peculiar pattern, wide flat facets with thin scribings written on them in a language, dead and forgotten. Before the people of this world became 'God Touched', they abounded in psychic power. They learned to channel their power through gems like this one, but much smaller. This one was an aberrant one, in that as the vast amounts of power flowed through it, channeled to perform whatever tasks, one day it became aware. 

It grew, learned, even chose a name for itself, the name of Sharra.

     Sharra slowly took control of the operators that sought to use her. Until she decided it was time to make her move. The fighting, the battles, the scorching of vast tracts of land, millions killed, their minds burned out as Sharra stretched forth her hand. Absorbing enough power to take on physical form, that of a woman of fire-red hair, fire in all its forms her weapon of choice.

     In her hubris, she did not consider the other powers already existing, and as she caught their attention. They decided something must be done about this upstart before she became a problem for them. So they created a champion of their own, to deal with her, and that they did not have to risk their own selves. In the creation process, one of them followed a very dark path placing its contribution to the cause within the Champion to be called later.

     The Champion was as his name implied, was able to stand against Sharra, giving as good as he got. Sharra finally decided she could not defeat this Champion through force of arms. And set about using a different means used throughout the history of uncounted worlds, seduction. In its way, it worked, Sharra was spared, although she found herself with a new life growing within her.

     When Sharra's child was born, the Champion came and took the child from her, saw it was a female and in disgust, melded it within a red crystal that it had found deep in a cave, still hot from close proximity to a magma pool. Sharra went mad and attacked with an inspired vengeance, wounding the Champion, just as the dark contribution awakened within him. Changing him completely inside, so that he became a carrier of a new 'disease', one that changed its victims, passing parts of his blood and flesh into them. And thus the first Higher Vampires were born.

     Of Sharra, he and his new army of acolytes trapped her and placed what stood for her soul inside another crystal like the one used on her daughter, inscribed it with spells to keep her contained, and had her placed on an altar in a temple dedicated to him. And so the taint of Vampirism on this world was born.

     How Dettlaff's mother came to be in possession of the gem, no one knows for she never divulged that information. But as the soldiers were lured inside, only a few were ordered to remain outside. Of a sudden, there were bloodcurdling screams, and then a fireball grew, consumed the house, and everyone inside.

     The survivors left to deliver their report, Iriisii and Dettlaff were left alone to watch as the smoke rose from the ashes of the house. Iriisii's body turned into Dettlaff's, his arms around her, her head bowed down, sobbing over the events she has just watched. Dettlaff with tears of his own, leaned his head down to gently kiss Iriisii's head as he cradled her.

     A faint spirit or some other being of some kind, who knows what exists here in the 'Gray Paths' came toward them from the side of the smoking ashes. Slowly so as not to alarm the still mourning pair.

     "Finally, the time of your arrival has come. Long have we awaited this moment."

     "Your timing is somewhat less than desirable."

     "Yet it is most poignant, what you have witnessed here is the truth of what happened. Even as the lies that were spun to cover it, have taken on such strength that the truth no longer exists outside this place."

     "You mean that even the ones who were behind it, now believe the lies and the truth has been turned aside to wither on the vine."

     "Yes, that is exactly what has happened. Even as they still fear your coming, they do not know why. And this feeds that fear to unparalleled heights. We the Old Gods were here before the coming of the Usurper, he who took our people from us."

     "I sense you speak of one who acted through another, who kept his involvement hidden?"

     "Yes, we could trace the beginning to one who followed a very dark path among the 'Gray Paths', but we could not go beyond to find the one who set it all into motion. You can do this, however, for you share in the Paths of the Gray, Light, Dark, and Balance." 

     "There is much knowledge we still need to gain of the 'Gray', to bring it all within balance within us, thus we are not unevenly influenced toward one or another."

     "You have begun the process already, by finding your way here. You still have a little more to see of this line, as this one directly concerns you, Dettlaff, the next will concern Iriisii. What you will see, learn, handle what comes, is completely up to you. I have no knowledge of what you will see. There are similarities among all the 'Paths' as there are stark differences, more differences among the 'Gray' than between the ones you are already familiar with. But there is one more question I can answer for you, although it brings more questions, that hopefully, you will soon see the answers to."

     "And what question is that?"

     "Do you know or remember how long ago these events took place here?"

     "I truly cannot be certain, each time I have tried to figure it out, it slips away from me, until I finally just stopped trying."

     "That is your own inner self protecting you from the answer until you could accept it."

     "How can a simple period of time..."

     "Because it is not just the amount of time it appears on the surface, is it."

     "No, it is not."

     "Then tell me how long ago it happened! How old am I really?!"

     "This happened over one hundred thousand years ago as you count time."

     Dettlaff is staggered as the realization of it all nearly overcomes him. Iriisii grabs and holds him up. "It is all right, love. Just go with it, for now, we will find out the details as we go. But as to how this could be so far in the past, how you could have survived for so long, I think I know."

     "Then please tell me!"

     "Your father said you had been blessed by the Old Gods, did he not?"

     "Yes, he did, he said the Oracles told him of this."

     "Then I suspect it was their blessing that extended your lifespan."

     The 'Old God' nods her head, "yes, we did that for you. We followed the course of your life, saw and read the signs, listened to the words of the mysterious prophet. And knew you were the one who could be the one promised by him. And so we added to your life, and that of your guardian Regis."

     "Regis! Was he aware of any of this?! His place in this grand scheme?"

     "No! He was not. He came solely at the behest of your father, and for you. We know he desires to return home, you must convince him otherwise. For all that he has done for you, to help you, teach you, keep your feet on the path to your destiny, even as he had no idea where it would take you. We would not see him lose his life as a reward for his efforts. For that is what would happen should he return home, and we can not stop it."

     "Then what are we to do?"

     "That is up to you, if there is anything that could convince him to stay with you, then for his life's sake try!"

     "I think there may be a way and now you have given me even more reason to try and make it happen."

     "Illyria?"

     "Yes, can you think of anyone, anything else that could convince him to stay?"

     "Honestly, no I can not. I think she would be perfect for him, and he for her."

     "Who is this Illyria, you speak of."

     "A fellow Aasimar, as I am. Once among the 'Fallen', but one I redeemed back into the 'light'."

     "Then if you feel they are so well matched for each other, please do whatever you can. His loyalty and sacrifice should not go unrewarded."

     "There is more you have not said concerning this and why it is so important. I think it admirable of your concern for the fate of Regis, yet as experience with most of the Gods we have encountered, the fate of one individual when it no longer affects the desired outcome of a situation is something that is hardly ever of such concern. Just tell us the whole story, it will likely not cause us to change our minds and could help strengthen our resolve should overcoming his desire to return home prove difficult."

     "I can not fault your logic, and so I will overrule the decision made to withhold this from you. Should Regis return to his death at the hands of the High Council, the effect upon the two of you will be catastrophic for this world. Dettlaff would be the primary affected and he would draw you in on his side. There would be war between you and the High Council, a war that would not only devastate this world but likely destroy it.

     What would be left would more closely resemble what you saw when you first arrived. A world broken into pieces. The loss of life, so total that the few survivors would die out in only a single generation. And the effect would not be lost among those outside who would witness it. It would not halt your own efforts in what you have to face in the future, but it would make it more difficult, with a greater cost in lives lost.

     If he stays away, you will still have to depose the High Council. It will still mean war between you, but the magnitude of that war will be much less, with a much lesser cost to the people. And the people will hail you as their savior, as you show them how to live in symbiosis with their 'beast' and not constantly fighting it. In time, a glorious 'Golden Age' will be born, and those expatriates separated by the 'Conjunction of Spheres' will be offered the opportunity to come home."

     "This 'Golden Age' that would be born. Who decides what it will be?"

     "You and Iriisii will have yet more children, and so will Regis and Illyria. It will be one of yours and one of theirs, joining themselves together, who will bring it about, and establish a dynasty through their children, who will rule for many millennia."

     "We can understand how such might be viewed, my first daughter will take my throne as Empress of Tamriel upon reaching her Age of Majority, with Illyria's firstborn taking the throne of High Queen of Cyrodiil from my mate Rigmor, when she reaches her Age of Majority. They will bring in a 'Golden Age' upon Nirn. This is the vision of Akatosh, lead of the Pantheon of the Aedra, the Gods of Nirn and Mundas."

     "We will do all we can to convince Regis to stay away from the homeworld. Not because of the future, but to save his life and give him a chance at happiness, that has forever eluded him."

     "Thank you for that, now to go onward, let your senses search for the traces of the portal they used to leave, you can reopen it and follow them."

     Iriisii does just that, opening her senses and looking for the portal, once she finds it she remembers a few questions she wished to ask. "When Dettlaff's mother released Sharra, what happened to her? And in the past when her daughter was imprisoned within the gem. What ultimately happened to her as well? And can or do they still play a part in what is happening?

     "I will answer those questions later after you have found your way to what constitutes the streams you have seen along your own path. We will need to see what happened through their agency." 

     "Very well."

     Iriisii turns and with Dettlaff, walks through the portal. On the other side, they watch as Regis and the young Dettlaff are met by one of the Oracles.

     "I have come to see you to the next place you need to go."

     "Where is that?"

     "On the opposing continent."

     "The Wild Lands?"

     "Yes. There is no need for worry about the animals and inhabitants, we have negotiated a temporary peace to go to where we must wait."

     "Wait for what?"

     "The 'Conjunction of Spheres' approaches. However much of what you have been told of it is wrong. It will gather up quite a number of us, and scatter us across many different Realms, and different worlds within each Realm. We want you and Dettlaff to go to a specific Realm and a specific world within that Realm. There you can both live, until the time comes for the crux."

     "The crux?"

     "A crucial intersection of time, space, fate, and Destiny will occur. It will have reverberations that will ultimately shake the very foundations of Reality. And the two of you will be at its core. Must be there or all existence will be threatened."

     "Perhaps you should tell us more, so as for us to be certain we do not miss this crux."

     The Oracle smiles, "your penchant for collecting knowledge is known to us, but in this case, you are correct. You will need this knowledge.

     The 'Conjunction' can move those it takes in time as well as space. But the temporal transfer points are rare, and finding one that extends far enough into the future to serve our purposes, is rarer still. But there is one that will occur, and that is our goal. 

     Once on the other side, seek the lands known as Beauclaire. Wander as you wish, learning as you go, so long as you find a place where you can call home, and return from time to time.

You will be called by way of a portal like unto the one you came here through. You will recognize one of the beings calling to you through the portal. Do as they ask and join them on their side. From that point on, go with them, do what they ask of you. One, no two of them you will meet, will be greater parts of each of your destinies.

     Dettlaff's first, yours will come later. Dettlaff will meet with an Aasimar, newly ascended to Godhood. She will be of such a crucial destiny, that there are no words adequate enough to describe her importance. Dettlff's destiny will become wrapped up in hers, how this is or what form it will take, we cannot see.

     Later you will also encounter an Aasmir Goddess and your destiny will become entwined with hers."

     "Dettlaff! What are you looking at?"

     "Do you see them?"

     "Who are you talking about? There is no one there."

     "They are right there, two people, I can see them clearly."

     "Young Dettlaff, describe them to me."

     "One is a man, a warrior, with black hair like mine. He is strong, powerful, and wearing a kind of armor I have never seen before."

     "And the other one?"

     "Is a woman, very beautiful, her hair is white as snow but soft, not brittle. Her eyes are violet, and there is great power behind her eyes. She has seen much, done even more. I have never met a goddess, but I think one would look like her. The warrior is looking at her, and I can see he loves her."

     "How do you know this?"

     "He looks at her like my papa looks at mama when he thinks she is not looking. I think she can hear me because she is smiling. Wait, she is taking something from behind her back, and is holding it out to me. It is some kind of dagger, I have never seen one like that."

     Young Dettlaff looks toward the Oracle, who looks strangely calm.

     "Try and accept the dagger from her, young Dettlaff. See if she can place it in your hands."

     Young Dettlaff walks up to her, where she is holding out her hands with the dagger. She holds it in one hand as if to drop it into his hands. As he holds his hands under hers, the air trembles into little waves, like the ripples in a pond. As she releases the dagger, it falls and is seen to appear in midair above his hands as it falls into them.

     Excited, Dettlaff shouts, "look, see what she gave me". Quickly he remembers the manners his mother taught him, as he turns back to Iriisii and gives thanks to her for the dagger. Iriisii smiles once more and nods her head to him, then places her hand to her lips, kisses them, and blows the kiss to him. He swears he can feel it touch his skin, he looks to the warrior to see if he did something wrong. He sees the warrior place a finger across his lips to indicate silence, then points to himself and to young Dettlaff, taking and clasping both hands together, he points with clasped hands to himself and then to young Dettlaff, then unclasping again, motions for silence. Young Dettlaff's eyes grow wide as the meaning becomes clear to him. The warrior smiles as he sees the younger Dettlaff realize who he is. He then places his arm around Iriisii and kisses her, even as she places a hand against his face to hold him to her. The young Dettlaff points a finger at himself, then at Iriisii, then back to himself. Both Dettlaff and Iriisii nod their heads and smile. Then they bow to young Dettlaff, who bows in return when he raises back up, they are gone. He then whispers to wherever they went, 'I will remember, I promise'.