The mountain shook and shivered under Lars as the mustard plants raged against the lavender in battle. This time it was the mustard that rushed over him to attack, but he just kept walking and pushed through. They weren't even aware of his presence, and he would like to not be aware of theirs. A shockwave came over the mountain, and the scent of milk hit him like a pillow to the face. It passed just as quickly as it had come, leaving the mustard and lavender reeling as the scent had overpowered them.

Lars took that opportunity to run out of their battleground unhindered. He had wandered from the markers the Haverdash had placed that made the road. He knew what direction Hathor was in, and thought he could get there faster than by following the markers. Only after he diverted did he realize they protected him from the Edezar’s ever shifting-nature. It was dream-like in many respects, and hallucinating in it was dangerous. He had only taken a small amount of wine this morning, just to keep things under control from his side.

The location he was in now was particularly strange, but didn’t seem dangerous. He’d figured out his general location and was heading towards his target exit from a different direction than he’d meant to, which just showed how quickly this world can go from sane to insane.

He spotted the Meadanim he was looking for and beelined towards it, but suddenly felt stretched. He dove to the right, escaping the stretching area. The expanding space shifted and converged over the Meadanim, then contracted to shrink the Meadanim down to a centimeter in diameter.

There was nothing he could do but wait for space to contract over it. Everything was living in the Edezar, even space. It wasn't malicious, and didn't seem to have any awareness of its contents, but it could easily kill those who aren't wary of it.

The Meadanim, which was how the creatures that appeared as houses in the other world often disguised themselves here, might live long enough for him to run through before the door closes after space expands to normal levels there. Otherwise he'd have to find another one nearby. There should be multiple, as he was in the area in the Edezar that correlated to Hathor in the other.

Space expanded again, and Lars rushed into the Meadanim. He didn't have time to find an opening, so he burst through the wall. He'd only had a tiny portion of wine that day, as hallucinations can easily get out of control in the Edezar, but it was enough for him to see the wall crumble in front of him. The furniture in the house was splintered, and the eye that once topped a candle was smeared over a crumbing desk. The wall boards sagged and heaved as the creature breathed its last breaths. Lars made it out the door before the creature totally died, running out into a cul de sac in Hathor.

A Haverdash saw the way he had run out and checked on the house, yelling complaints at Lars when he saw that it had reverted to a normal house after its death. Lars went off to find a main road so that he'd know exactly where he was in relation to the palace.

Hathor had changed completely in the last two years, and this was Lars's first time back. Covering the road and hanging several feet in the air was hallucinogenic gas, richer than what you could find outside of Hathor. It was designed with roots recently gathered from the Edezar to be weaker by default, so that work in Hathor would not be inhibited, but to behave reactively with wine so that the intense feelings wine brings and those that the air brings would be compounded upon each other, allowing for greater intensity of feeling overall, and so for higher quality worship.

Far above him towers of stone and iron had been built, greater than that which Hathor had before. They had channels built into them where vines were being grown from above and below that the gas would cling to and ascend to coat the side of the towers. There was no desire to see the sky, or have a view from tower windows. Windows were an opening that gas could infiltrate, that overwhelming feelings may be always available to those who can endure them.

The buildings were large and arcing, with awnings on most of them to create more shadows. They didn't hate light, but they did dislike uniformity. Total darkness was useful in many places for many rituals, such as underground, but outside of those neither total darkness nor total light were desirable. Darkness was good, as the mind was free to suggest things, and shadows were better. They could shift and writhe and the mind could mix the freedom it has to suggest things in dark corners with what is seen in the light.

Lars went around a trail of blood that led to a puddle in the street. There was more than typical, but blood in random places was to be expected. It correlated with the self harm they undertook to increase the intensity of sensations during a high.

He looked over to where the cathedral of Nishir once stood, curious about what they'd replaced it with. He saw a black pyramid with five points, a central point, and four that came from slightly smaller pyramids that were part of the structure but offset to where their points were halfway between the center and the four corners. Plants grew up various channels carved into it, and there was a separate array of channels that splayed from each point that shone reflectively.

A name change was up and coming as well. The most common suggestion for a new name was Trots, after the Glorious Haverdash who captured the city. That was inevitable, it would be the last step in changing the city into a Haverdash image.

A Haverdash mid-high became visible in the fog. He was walking on the tips of his toes with his arms outstretched, head shaking and wide eyes performing rapid eye movement as if asleep. It was dangerous to have Haverdash freely enter into highs in any space for sure, and accidents did happen, but the atmosphere of a location did a lot to keep things under control. Hathor was a Haverdash city now, valuable to them, even holy. The likelihood that they would see its destruction vs it shining brightly in glory was next to none.

Through the dark, blood, and insanity, he walked to the palace. He tried the door, but found it locked. It opened slightly, and a bitter looking Haverdash looked him up and down from inside. “What’s your business?”

“I need to see a map of the Edezar to direct me to Halac’s court in the Rivers region.”

“On whose orders?”

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“Nobody of rank; that’s not important, it needs doing.”

The Haverdash gave him an inquisitive look, then realized the answer to his question, “Mad man Moxey then! Hah, no orders at all. Wait here while I see what actually needs doing, and who should do it.”

Lars put his hand on the door to stop it from closing, “You’re not going to let me in?”

The Haverdash said more forcefully, “No, you think any random person can just come up to the palace, where the Council of Six is meeting, and be let inside?”

“Any random-?” Lars stopped restraining his mind from wandering, instantly seeing the world swirl around him. “I’m more powerful than you or anyone not glorious that you’ve ever met!” He hit the door to make it fly open; the colors of the world multiplied and blended together. The Haverdash in front of him changed colors to match those of the wall, so Lars grabbed him and pulled on him as he stepped through the doorway. The Haverdash went through the wall and passed out the other side, then Lars forced his mind to stop wandering again.

The Haverdash fell on his butt, dazed. Before Lars shut the door between them, he said, “When you first showed up I was weak, and I understand ignoring me then, but things have changed now. You’re going to have to start recognizing me.”

He walked past the banisters, guessing that the war room would be on the first floor. A Haverdash in a tight uniform with an emblem of stars on it exited one door and stopped, "You're the experimental human, Lars?"

"I'm Lars, at least. I'm looking for a map of the Edezar so that I can get to Halac's court. I was told there would be one in the palace."

The Haverdash gave a knowing nod, "So Moxey wants you to eliminate him then? That works well. I'm Mienferi, second seat on the Council of Six. I'm glad we met, I've always wondered about you."

Lars gave a quick bow, "I'm honored to meet a council member."

The Haverdash Lars had left outside knocked angrily at the door, and Mienferi glanced around curiously for the doorman to answer that. She didn't pay it any more mind though, asking Lars, "Have you not been drinking?"

Lars picked up his bottle and shook it, showing that it was mostly empty. "Of course I have, opened this one after I got to Hathor. Why?"

Mienferi was impressed, "You seem so comfortable. The pain, fear, anxiety, rage, and euphoria that are so abundant to most of us seem to have no discernible difference on the way you stand, as if the feelings are too weak."

Lars stood slightly straighter just to make that extra clear, and smiled. "That it is, only rarely are the feelings exceptional to me now. Perhaps I have too much willpower for my own good. It's not that surprising though, years ago Trots would have to bathe in wine for it to have an effect."

Mienferi laughed, "Comparing yourself to Trots? That is bold." She seemed to take a moment to think about the comparison, "Anyway, I must meet with the others. Business can be so frustrating, because we have to limit our intake so much to be able to have these conversations." She pointed across the room to another door, "That's where our map of the Edezar is drawn out. Enjoy your mission; they deserve what's coming to them. Goodbye for now."

Lars thanked her as she went to the second floor, and then went to where she'd pointed. The room was mostly dark, but it was illuminated by glowing markers placed on the floor, walls, and ceiling like stars that made it look like a planetarium.

There were molds of different shapes, like mountains and forests, attached at different points between the stars. There was a table in the center of the room, but it was otherwise empty aside from the two Haverdash leaning over it with stacks of paper. They had a pile of glowing markers and were consulting the papers to see where to place them in the room, sometimes labeling an area that needed a mold.

Lars leaned on the table, "If I may interrupt, I need directions to Halac's court."

One gave the other a glance, as if to tell him to handle the visitor. With a huff, the other one complied, "I suppose you are interrupting either way. Halac has been written off though, he's diverting from the proper faith and has to be killed."

"I know this, I'm the one who's going to kill him, and everyone loyal to him."

The Haverdash put down his papers, "That changes things then, do you know the first rules of traveling from place to place in the Edezar?"

"Keep your intake light, hallucinations can be impossible to control if you drink normally."

"That is a good rule, but also, don't stray from the path. Follow the markers and you'll find your way."

"I left Mavozshidog originally following markers to get here, but they diverted from what I knew to be the direct route. Admittedly it didn't work out splendidly for me, but explain to me, why follow the markers?"

The Haverdash spoke sternly, "It is important that you follow the markers! You may be powerful enough to survive, but the space around you could shift and spin and send you in senseless directions, and you may never find your way out again. The markers are like Trot's sword if you know-" his eyes wandered to Lars's sword, "Like your sword!" They're like your sword, which means they can't be manipulated by dreamish things like hallucinations or the shifting of that world. They also emit an aura, protecting the area around them from dreamish things. The side effect of the aura is that they will eventually expend themselves and need replaced, but it's the best system for now. If you follow the markers you can even increase your intake, but not quite to normal levels.

"The markers had to follow indirect paths because there are places that we can't make submit without a greater focus of resources than we currently can afford. You should not have wandered in a straight path, it could have been worse for you."

"Criticism noted. Alright, I'll keep to the path. What path do I take, and how do I know when I've reached Halac's court?"

The Haverdash pointed to a mold of a city, "This is Hathor, take the Meadanim by the east garden on the palace grounds, and head toward a red marker. Red means the path it leads you on is overall eastward. Look at the engravings on the red markers and find one that mentions Halac, then follow it. Every marker should be placed within 200 feet of each other, roughly representing one third of a mile in our world. You can recognize Meadanims from the other side?”

“Yes I can. Is that it?”

He looked Lars up and down, “That’s it. Since you came here alone from Mavoshidog, I take it you don’t need a guide. Don’t make it quick, the heathen should be humiliated.”

Lars smiled, “I’ll probably make it quick, I’m sure new orders are ready for me as soon as I’m done. The war and all.”

The Haverdash didn’t smile back, “Their heresy directly detracts from the glory of Haverdash. This is just as if not more important than the war, do it right.”

Lars gave a courteous nod, “Of course,” and left the room. He went first to a brewery to get more wine, then to the Meadanim by the east garden. Just before he grabbed the doorknob, he sighed. He definitely had drunk too much wine since getting to Hathor to enter the Edezar immediately. He sent his mind wandering, imagining the wine in his system being purged. He saw it spew out of his mouth as steam that bleached the walls of the Meadanim, then entered.