Foolishness. You are not in your world anymore. Wishing for things to be different is foolishness. If you want to go back, you must seek the power to do so.
"Wait. You can talk now?" Triss asked.
Foolish and stupid. Do not ask foolish questions again.
"Excuse me? Look dude, you never talked before. It surprised me." Triss replied. She waited for a response, but nothing came. "Fine. Whatever. You can talk. Why now?"
My strength has increased.
"Uhuh. I wonder how." She replied sarcastically. "I'm not too impressed with you trying to trick me like that. You obviously were trying to take over."
We must return to the tower.
"So you can take over completely? Despite what you think, I'm not actually stupid"
I wish to remain.
"So now you don't want to go to the tower?"
I wish to remain here. I do not wish for you to die.
"Well, If you don't want me to die then I should stay here. If I go to the tower I could get caught by Percy and he'd kill me."
The spell components remain.
Triss's stomach sank as she realized what the voice meant. She hadn't been able to put things back. If Percy found things like that then he might figure out she was still around and come looking for her. She liked Reginald, but she didn't want to count on him to cover for her. She didn't know him well enough for that. There really was only one thing she could do.
She cursed. "Ok. Fine. But if that smoke stuff is floating around at all then I'm leaving the castle. I'd rather take my chances out there than have more of you in my head."
This is acceptable.
Triss made her way out into the corridor. The orbs glowed their pale greetings.
Turn them off.
“Turn what off?”
The lights. They tell of your coming.
"Ok…how? Is there a switch?" She looked around for any kind of button or control panel, but found nothing.
Desire. Focus your desires like this.
She sensed the spirit showing her a way to use her mind that she hadn't before. It was a strange blend of intention, desire, and calm. She copied the feeling the bet she could, focusing on the orb. It winked out, plunging the hallway into complete darkness.
"Woah. Am I a Jedi now?"
I hate that I understand that.
Despite the situation, Triss laughed. She might have a voice in her head, but he was just as stuck as she was. "I really wish I'd read more babysitter club books when I was younger. Just to annoy you." The voice didn't answer, but a glowing line appeared in the dark hallway. She took that to mean she'd successfully annoyed the voice.
She started down the hallway, following the line. She had to keep one hand on the wall and walk slowly to keep from falling. The glowing line was only visible to her so it provided absolutely no illumination. "This is ridiculous." She muttered. "Walking in the absolute pitch black with nothing but an imaginary line to follow. I should turn the lights on until I’m closer.
You must not.
“Yeah? Why not?”
We must cross two areas of intersection that the lizard would be likely to travel, and one that the old fool may take. There are few areas where light would not be noticed while travelling.
“Absolutely wonderful. Pitch black it is.” Her voice seemed to be swallowed up by the dark, the tiny echos drowning in a midnight sea. She muttered quietly to herself as she made her way slowly along, the sounds helping her cope with the impossible darkness.
She walked for what seemed like forever before coming to a door. She opened it and stepped through, immediately smashing her shin into the bottom step. She cursed, grabbing at the injured leg. She waited for the throbbing pain to die down, then began to crawl up the stairs on her hands and feet, taking each step slowly and carefully. She managed to find the door at the top and manoeuvre herself into the next hallway. The first corner was easy, as the line turned ninety degrees in front of her. She made it a good way down the corridor, her gaze intent on the line, when she realized there was light ahead.
She looked up to see the next corner far ahead. There were two orbs just before the corner that were giving off light. She watched, horrified, as one more orb lit, closer than the others. Someone was coming. She turned around to flee, and realized the entire hallway behind her was completely dark, and there was no glowing line to follow. She ran anyways, her arms stretched out in front of her. The previous corner was closer than she thought, and she ran straight into it. She fell back, crashing to the floor.
The lights were getting closer. She sat up and backed into the corner of the hallway. The light was almost on her now. She looked to see who was coming, but her eyes weren't adjusted to the light yet. The light over her head snapped on, and she blinked at the relative brightness. Her eyes finally acclimated to the light, and she looked around.
She was all alone in the hallway.
Triss didn't move. Didn't breathe. Were the lights malfunctioning? She waited there, frozen. The light just past her lit. Then the next. The ones down the hall were shutting off. After a moment, the light over her head dimmed and died. The string of illumination continued down the hallway until they disappeared around another corner, and darkness consumed the corridor once more.
"Ok. So either the lights are malfunctioning, or a ghost just walked down the hallway." She said to herself.
My lights do not malfunction. A ghost would not turn them on either.
“Ok. Cool. Great. Just casually drop that ghosts are a real thing while we’re stuck in the dark in a creepy old castle!” She hissed the last bit angrily. “I really really hope we’re close.”
We are nearly there.
Triss didn’t respond to the spirit. She got to her feet, her body aching all over from the night’s activities. She limped wordlessly down the hallway, too tired to fear what might be hiding in the dark. It took far longer than she had hoped, but at last the spirit indicated a door. She put a hand on it and gently pushed. It seemed to be latched. She put her ear to the door, listening for sounds, and heard nothing. Safe. She thought to herself. She gently lifted the latch and stepped into the room.
Instantly, all the orbs in the tower switched on, and all the orbs behind her began to glow, more brilliantly than ever before it seemed. Triss threw up a hand to block the sudden barrage of light assaulting her eyes.
“Looking for something in particular tonight? Perhaps a spell you SHOULD KNOW BETTER THAN TO TOUCH!”
Triss took a deep breath, and slowly lowered her arm. Her eyes adjusted to the brightness and she looked him right in the eyes.
“Hello Reginald.”
“Hello nothing! I came back here to make sure you had had a chance to escape, and instead I find you’ve been playing with Percival’s supplies?” The lizard was seething with rage. “Do you have any idea how expensive some of these things are? How difficult to acquire? How dangerous any of it is?”
The dam inside her that held back the flow of rage, fear, and pain she’d experienced finally burst. “How in the world would I know what any of this cost! I have been here literally one day! And its the worst day of my life!” She yelled.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
Reginald stood straighter, surprise evident on his face for a moment before he schooled his expression. “Fine. If that is how you feel.” He said icily. He strode out the door, then stopped to look at Triss. “Coming?”
“Coming where?” She snapped.
“It’s obvious you want to die, based on your actions tonight. I don’t plan on killing you myself, and Percival is busy at the moment. I will pack you some clothes, give you some money and send you on your way. You can go get yourself killed somewhere else.” He said. “And you won’t be able to blame me once you find yourself lost in the world with nowhere to go.”
He strode away. Triss nearly didn’t follow. She sighed heavily and turned to follow the lizard. She didn’t want to die, no matter what he thought.
Reginald strode swiftly through the halls. The orbs turned on for him, but not for Triss. She limped along as quickly as she could, though her various injuries from earlier made it difficult. She considered briefly asking him to slow down so she could catch up, but the thought of asking for anything right now made her rage rise even more. Reginald stopped and opened a staircase door, and for the first time since leaving the tower room actually looked back at Triss. If he noticed her limp, it seemed like he didn’t care. He left the door open behind himself as he went down the staircase.
When Triss finally reached the bottom of the stairs she was only slightly surprised to find Reginald waiting for her. As soon as she was out of the way, he shut the door to the stairs and took off down the hall again. He seemed to be walking slightly slower this time though.
They soon arrived at the door to Triss’s room. Triss only knew it was her room once Reginald opened the door and ushered her into the small entrance room, since every other door and hallway looked identical in the castle. “Your clothes are dirty. I would strongly suggest you put on something clean. Your…footwear should be dry by now. I will go fetch them, as well as some food, extra clothes and a pack for you. You should have enough time to bathe before I return. I would suggest you do so, as you are unlikely to find a warm bath again soon.” Reginald turned and strode from the room. The light went with him, leaving Triss alone in the dark.
Triss felt her way over to the curtain separating the two rooms, then felt along the wall until she found the nearest corner. She sat heavily on the floor, her body protesting the move. The reality of what was to come was overwhelming. How was she going to make it in a strange world, full of strange people? Strange creatures and magical spells and who knew what else?
She was still there when Reginald returned, holding a silver serving tray. A large leather pack was slung over his back. He glared at her. “I guess I shouldn’t be surprised you didn’t do as I suggested.” He indicated the tray. “Shall I place this in the room for you to eat? Or would you rather I just throw it out a window?”
He strode into the room without waiting, placing the tray on the small stand near the bed. Triss managed to stand, and wander into the room after him. She knew she should eat something. Reginald was already by the wardrobe, folding tunics and trousers and dresses and packing them neatly in the pack.
Triss took the cover off the tray, and found a steaming bowl of soup, a large slice of buttered bread, and two of the strawberry banana fruits sliced up on a plate. She picked up a slice of fruit and put it in her mouth. She forced herself to chew and swallow it, though it tasted like cardboard.
“Not going to eat either? You really are going all in on this ‘kill yourself’ thing. Trying to starve yourself to death?” Reginald said bitterly when he stood and noticed her not eating.
“Just stop.” Triss whispered.
“What was that? Can’t even be bothered to speak now?” Reginald snapped.
“I said just stop!” Triss yelled, spinning on the lizard. “I didn’t ask you to help me! I didn’t even ask to be here!” She took a furious step towards him. “My life was fine before you two dragged me here! And you’re mad because I played with Percy’s toys? I’m just trying to survive, even if you don’t believe me!”
“You ‘played’ with his ‘toys’?” Reginald yelled back. “You mixed together dangerous reagents and magical compounds with absolutely no idea what they did! Are you actually stupid? Do you not understand that could be dangerous?”
“Of course I know they could be dangerous! EVERYTHING here is dangerous to me! I’ve been in danger every second I’ve been here!” She screamed. “You even put me in danger by taking me back to that stupid tower. How DARE you accuse me of trying to kill myself! You’re the one who put me in danger in the first place!”
“You were never in real danger! I set warning wards! I hid you when Percival showed up! Everything was fine until you decided to play with things beyond your understanding!
“FINE? You call stuffing me up in the rafters so a dangerous psychopathic wizard doesn’t kill me fine?” She took a few steps closer to him. “Nothing about that was fine!”
“You’re in one piece still, aren’t you?” He took a few furious steps closer to her. “I kept you safe!”
“I wouldn’t need you to keep me safe if you hadn’t brought me to Percy’s tower!” they were standing nearly nose to nose now, Triss bending slightly to scream directly in the lizard’s face. “If you’re so concerned with my ‘safety’ then why did you even take me there!” Reginald didn’t answer. “WHY DID YOU-“ she started to scream.
“BECAUSE I’M TIRED OF BEING ALONE!”
The statement rang through the room, echoing around until the sound faded. Triss and Reginald just stood there, a look of shock on both their faces.
"Then why are you trying to get rid of me?" Triss tried to be angry, but the heat had gone out if her words.
"I told you. I'm not going to be responsible for your death." Reginald said sadly. He sighed. "I am sorry if I actually frightened you. I've been stuck with just Percival here for company. You're the first other person to come to the castle in....in a very long time. I originally planned to prepare you and send you off into the world. But I enjoyed your company. I just didn't expect you to do something so foolish and dangerous."
"What was I supposed to do? I'm in a strange world, I have no idea what's going on, except that my life is in danger. You're the only person I know here, and I don't know anything about you. I don't even know what species you are! I've been here a day, and so far my life has been in danger a half dozen times, and I've had spells cast on me and spirits possessing me and I've gotten lost and I've been scared the entire time."
"You didn't seem scared."
"I can't act scared around you! I don't know you! I have to act fun and play along. I didn't know how you would react if I was scared around you."
Reginald nodded. "I suppose I didn't really think about your situation. I'm not used to dealing with people, with one exception of course." He thought for a moment. "That doesn't explain why you were playing around in the tower."
"It does if you think about it from my perspective."
He shook his head slowly. "Not really. It was dangerous. You're already in danger. I can't see how it could possibly make sense."
"I'm trapped in a castle, in danger, completely dependent on someone I don't know at all to keep me safe. I have no control over my situation. But if I had magic powers I could at least defend myself. Either here or out in the world."
"And you thought you could teach yourself?"
"It seemed like a good idea at the time."
Reginald said nothing. After a moment Triss broke the silence. "Well. I appreciate your help." She walked over to the wardrobe and grabbed the pack, slinging it over her shoulder. "I'll leave before I cause any more problems."
She made it as far as the entryway curtain before Reginald spoke. "You could stay." He said quietly.
Triss paused, one hand on the curtain. "I could teach you some magic." He continued. She turned to face him. He was looking down at the floor. "Not anything too advanced, but enough that you would be able to defend yourself when eventually you do leave." He brought his head up to look at her. His eyes were glistening. "If you're not too frightened."
Triss thought about it for a moment. She desperately wanted to learn magic, but she was frightened of staying in the castle.
Learn. Stay. The voice said. Become powerful.
She didn't care about being powerful. She cared about surviving and making it home. Magic was definitely the best way to do that. The only way to make it home.
"Ok."
Reginald smiled a little. "You'll have to do what I say. Magic is far more dangerous than you can possibly know. I promise though, if you follow instructions I will keep you safe."
"Only if you keep me informed. No more scary trips to the tower. No more trying to frighten me. Oh, and no more floating me in the air!" There was a bit of heat in her voice again.
Reginald chuckled. "You mean to ruin all my fun?" He said. His tone was almost playful, but a current of sadness floated in his words. "I'm sorry for scaring you. I was just having a bit of fun. Like I said before, I enjoy having you around."
“You’re not too bad yourself?” Triss said. She was still a little uncomfortable with her situation and her dependence on one person to keep her alive for who knew how long.
Reginald smiled wryly. “Well then. You should eat something. You’ve barely touched your food. I shall pack the clothing back in the wardrobe for you.”
“I can put my own clothes away Reginald.”
“Miss Triss, I really have very little to do most days. This is the type of work I was trained to do. While I certainly appreciate your desire to help, I do enjoy this work and would like to continue doing it. However, if you are…uncomfortable with this I can stop.”
“Um, I guess you can do it.” She wasn’t really that comfortable with letting him do everything for her, but she figured she could deal with it if he was going to actually teach her magic.
She only planned on eating a little bit of the food to appease Reginald, but she found herself to be suddenly ravenous. Apparently I needed to let out a little stress. She thought. The food was gone before she knew it.
She sat on the edge of the bed, watching Reginald studiously folding and hanging clothes. Out of all the weird things in this world, having a lizard butler was definitely the weirdest. He finished packing the clothes back into the wardrobe. He stood there for a moment, obviously thinking, before he opened the wardrobe again and placed the pack on the bottom of the shelf. “Just in case.” He said. Triss smiled.
He came over and picked up the tray. “Well, Miss Triss. I must see to my other duties before I retire for the evening.” He looked at the glowing orbs on the wall. “I believe you already know how to turn out the lights?” She nodded. “Well then. I shall take my leave.” He turned and strode from the room. The lights winked out seconds after he left.
Triss flopped back on the bed with a sigh. She hadn’t turned the lights back on, so of course they turned off. She found it both interesting and annoying that the lights followed the person and not the room. She was just about to try turning the lights back on when she realized the room wasn’t completely dark.
She sat up to see a sharp beam of light piercing the window curtain. “What the heck?” She stepped over to the window and pulled open the curtain.
A huge lavender moon hung low in the sky, casting ripples of light across the deep dark waters below. It was easily four times the size of earth’s moon, and even from here she could clearly see mountains, valleys, and craters marring its surface.
Stars covered the sky in color beyond imagining. Green emeralds, red rubies, blue sapphires and white diamonds shone in a dizzying array. Occasionally discordant, though often in swathes of like colors, as though an artist painted with a brush of gems.
It was a strange and beautiful new world.
Triss closed the curtains, crawled into bed, and cried herself to sleep