Everything taken care of that could be at the moment, Kinsoriel circled in place and lay down. Settling in was no problem at all compared to last night. It was nothing but problem after problem running through his mind. Now though? Everything was making sense again.
Well, everything except for one. Why were there so many deathbounds here? He could understand seeing some of the best and brightest among them, but this seemed like too much. Wex had to know that this many would cause strife amongst the other dragons. It wasn’t ideal for him either. He’d defended them in the moment, but he had to know why Wex wanted them if this was going to work. And, if all of them had been invited, why wasn’t his gifted pupil?
Fortunately for him, he didn’t need to worry himself over these questions. As his champion, Kinsoriel would be able to converse with the god in his dreams if he chose. Reciting the prayer he’d been given, he closed his eyes and prepared to commune.
The next time he opened them, he was in that white landscape that spanned as far as the eye could see. Gairemeer no longer hung in the sky nor were there stars. It was entirely blank, as though waiting for something to fill the space.
“Greetings Kinsoriel,” came the disembodied voice from all around, “I take it you are enjoying your new role?”
Giving a bow, the dragon nodded. “Of course Lord Wex. If anyone were to know that, it would be you.”
A wind appeared from nowhere and gathered some of the white dust. It swirled and swirled before a shape began to emerge in front of Kinsoriel. One large circle with three other circles formed Wex’s chosen avatar within dreams. Even though Kinsoriel knew none of this was real now, seeing a dust cloud blink was still an eerie sight for him.
“Speak now what you wish to speak my child. Time is limited. Others are making their moves as we converse.”
Hmm? Wasn’t this place free from the constraint of time? It was a dreamscape after all, and nothing else was bound by the rules of reality.
“Apologies, but what do you mean? Who are these others, and why is time limited.”
The shape of the wind became mildly erratic for a moment. “It would appear we didn’t get around to that part last time. I’ll let this slide then, that failure lies with me.”
“Nonsense my lord,” Kinsoriel interjected in his defense, “you don’t make mistakes!”
Though they didn’t have a solid form to them, the three eyes of the cloud pierced through the dragon. “Do not believe such things, my child. Everyone makes mistakes, even the gods. Especially the gods.” The harshness caused Kinsoriel to audibly gulp. Wex’s gaze relaxed. “But, they have their purpose. True wisdom is learning from them.”
“I’ll keep that in mind. Again, what do you mean?”
The dust cloud making up Wex gathered in size, particles growing into pebbles and rocks. It split up into separate shapes, all a different color from the others. Once done, they appeared to become drawings made in a single stroke instead of rocky amalgamations.
“I am not the only one to make my return. All the gods wish to apply their vision to the whole of the world, and I am no different.” Figures representing the gods lit up around a crude Gairemeer. “They marshal their devout and pious and will seek to subjugate all other faiths. This can come about in many ways, from warfare to vassalization.”
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Realization dawned on Kinsoriel’s face. He hadn’t just been ordained, he’d been enlisted into the war of the gods. “How are we to compete with them?”
The figures darkened and Wex’s representation went over the world, along with many dotted lights. “I alone can whisper to all my faithful at once, all through their dreams. Many more will come to you, and through the culmination of knowledge, you shall be unstoppable.” The figure representing Wex faded. “But to speak with you like this, I must devote most of my attention to you. The more you call upon me, the less I’ll be able to do in the dreams of others.”
“Oh. In that case, I am sorry to be doing so right now Lord Wex. I didn’t know.”
What felt like a chuckle reverberated in Kinsoriel’s head. “You don’t need to be sorry. Now you know that going forward and are that much wiser. What matter requires my guidance?
Having been told all of that, the issues seemed far more trivial now. It was a waste of both his and Wex’s time. But, it wasn’t something he could change now, so he might as well get an answer.
“Lord, there is a large divide between dragons and deathbounds. We have far greater stores of knowledge between us than they could ever have. I fear having so many of them around will only alienate the other dragons and could cause problems in the near future. Wouldn’t it be best if I send all but the highest quality among them away?”
A massive unseen weight felt like it was bearing down on Kinsoriel as Wex stared back. Such sudden pressure forced a gasp out of his mouth.
“What fool would willingly toss away their most vital resources? Those whom I have brought to you will be as important to the nation as those dragons. You should be stamping out any notions of superiority now. Any who would disregard ideas over their origin poison the waters that nourish free thinking.”
“But Wex,” the champion almost whined, “they won’t just let it be.”
“Then make an example of them,” Wex said as the white rocks gradually darkened, “show them what they can expect out of such behaviors. All the mana you need to do so is at your disposal, you simply need to shape it.”
Kinsoriel’s stomach lurched. He didn’t want to raise claws over mortals. He’d only done so with Benjamin because of personal investment.
“Can’t I just turn a blind eye?”
At this, the entirety of the land had turned a deep red, like that of blood. A primal fear unlike any other he’d experienced welled up within him.
“You dare suggest you would squander their minds to soothe petty resentments? In my presence?!” The god’s voice was furious, scraping against the inside of Kinsoriel’s head like a trapped animal looking for an escape.
Prostrating himself and holding his hands over his head, he pleaded, “Please! I didn’t mean to offend you all-knowing divine!”
“I understand,” Wex said with an inappropriately calm tone. Raising his head, the dragon could see that everything was still red, though it had been dulled. “Mistakes happen, and past experiences can tint your actions in the present. That said,” he added as the landscape flared brightly, “you still need to learn from them.”
With a blink of the eyes, Kinsoriel was no longer in the middle of a crimson horizon, but was instead in freefall from the sky! He tried to stop himself by flapping his wings. When he felt nothing happening, he craned his neck backward. He nearly wept upon seeing his bare back, absent of his majestic wings. Air rushed over his scales with a force he’d never felt while flying, threatening to rip them from his flesh. Looking down, he saw that he was hurtling straight towards the open mouth of a volcano! Red hot magma was visible from far up and could be felt from as far. He flailed his limbs in an attempt to angle himself away from it but only succeeded in flipping position to a tail dive. Just as he made contact with the molten ground and felt himself burning alive, he was in the sky again.
“I need to attend to other matters now,” he heard Wex speaking into his mind as the decent repeated. “Reflect on this punishment when you question the sanctity of others' knowledge.”
The god’s presence left Kinsoriel, but he was left falling once again. It would restart every time he crashed, changing location. Impaling himself on jagged spires, splattering against the ground, and getting dropped into pools of sulfur were among the most harrowing cycles. He’d begun falling up and towards the sun when he felt his eyes jolt open.
“You alright there?” Benjamin asked while standing over his snout.