Now, imagine in the very center Minvaco was a great tower, on top of it was a giant pale orb covered half in metal, what wasn’t covered glowed brightly. Slowly the clockwork insides of the orb shifted and turned, causing the orb to change phases like the moon. Along the orb were numerous markings to help those far away make out what phase the orb was in. This is how we tell time whilst deep under Fiahn’s surface, the time between each phase is about an hour. After twelve phases the glowing part of the orb would darken to a dimmer glow, signifying it was now time to rest. After 12 more phases, the orb would glow brightly again.
After half a phase, me and my father arrived at the House of Fate itself, a grand manor that was practically a castle. We came strode through the doubled front door into the main hall of the mansion, a grand floor with two pearl stairways leading up to the next floor, between these stairways lied another great double doorway engraved with various runes relating to fate and time.
“Dad! Twist!” yelled a joyful voice.
My father turned to one of the stairways and saw one of my sisters come down the stairs, running at full speed. Her fur was as white as mine and she had a distinct black ring of fur around one of her eyes. The clothes she wore were much brighter than mine though, a combination of reds, yellows, and greens that were a bit gaudy I must admit.
“Whoa there Vivace!” My father said, hurriedly coming to the female noctav to grab her in case she fell down and bumped her head again, “I understand you are as filled with energy as ever, but you really need to be more careful”
“I know that dad” Vivace laughed “It’s just been so long since I last saw you guys!”
“Lemme go!” I squeaked angrily as my older sister hugged me with the grip of a boa constrictor.
“I can’t help it; you are just so cute!” Vivace laughed, giving me a kiss on my forehead, “Helping the House of Alchemy has been great, but it doesn’t top seeing my family!”
“Speaking of, how has Kouros been?”
“Oh, my dear husband has been fine, a bit flustered since he reached a dead end last week though” Vivace said, a tad sadly, “What he thought was part of the recipe for the Philosopher’s Stone was really just an ingredient for an anti-balding tonic”
My father shook his head “Poor noctav… Those elvish runes are so cumbersome to read”
“Is that why they got rid learning about elvish runes in the academy?” I asked.
“Yup!” replied Vivace “I don’t know why the elves thought it was a good idea to make their runes for f and b look soooo much alike, then mention deer so much… There are still instances of the wrong rune being written down in the classroom!”
“By the students?”
“Nope, the teachers”
(Tenacia snickered)
“Please don’t talk about that sordid event… We are doing our best at the academy you know,” said a deep tired voice.
We turned to see the great middle doors had opened and an especially tall and thin noctav male with purple eyes walked down to meet us. This was one of my older brothers.
My father tipped his hat “Hello Duolo, how have you been, my boy?”
“Not bad all things considering” Duolo answered, he probably had the deepest voice in the family, it like a perpetual growl, “But many of the teachers at the academy are wondering why we even have a class in learning about sports when it is among the least valuable information around…”
“I meant how are things in your life here?” my father clarified patiently.
“Oh… Not too bad father, I can’t really complain. Research is coming along well. Yet mother has been truly stressed recently.”
“I take it this is what the reunion is all about?” Vivace asked in concern.
Duolo nodded and gestured for all of us to follow.
Like with surface races the noctav have familial reunions to catch up with each other, but whereas it is normally casual for other races, for us noctav it far more professional. It is a time to share the information we’ve gathered, discuss current progress, and make plans for the future of our House.
We entered the meeting hall of the House of Fate. This room had a lit fireplace and next to it was a great ornate chair, in which an older female noctav with long grey fur sat in. Her dress was indigo and a silver ring on one of her hands.
“Matron Ostinatia, your husband Master Cadenza and your son-“ Duolo began, before he was shoved aside by me rushing to Ostinatia.
“Mom!” I cried out, I rushed to the noctav and hugged her legs. Ostintatia looked down at me happily with her grey eyes.
“My dear Twist, it is wonderful to see you again”
“Mom! I need to tell you what I have been researching in the Mushroom caverns”
“That will have to wait now Twist” Ostinatia said calmly, “Me and your father need to talk first, it is very important to our House”
My energy left me all at once.
“Right mother” I murmured distantly.
I felt a hand on my shoulder.
“Don’t you worry Twist, go to the kitchen and help Largo. She really needs the help and I’m sure she is looking forward to seeing you!” my father told me.
“Okay, already got a red flag here” Tenacia growled, “What mom doesn’t focus on her child first and foremost? I get it is important business, but the Gehenna?”
Twist gave Tenacia a sad smile.
“She was always business first.”
“What did your father think of that?”
“Funny you should mention that…”
I nodded and walked off. I went into the kitchen, but I paused so I could hear over what was being said in the meeting room. I admit, I always had a habit of trying to listen in on conversations, especially when it was my family.
“Dear” I heard my father greet curtly.
Ostintatia sighed “Please don’t give me that look dear… You know it is important for us to discuss what our House must do now.”
“You realize it has been more than a week since Twist has seen you, correct?” My father coldly retorted “A son needs to see his mother.”
“I know… But this still takes precedence. There will always be time to talk later. Twist will understand”
“Forgive me for not laughing, but I’ve heard this joke before”
“Now now! Lets not get so mad at each other!” I heard Vivace nervously interject “We need to talk about something important right mother?”
“Yes we do” Ostintatia said “You are all aware of our present path of for the House correct?”
“But of course, mother” Duolo said “We were researching into how we can look into the future using the recently discovered Seeing Stones. Flat crystals of unknown origin some Free Explorers found”
Free explorers are houseless noctav who make a living finding random valuable information and giving it to a Minor or Major House who can supply them with the most necessities, sometimes even going to the surface or into the Underworld to get what they want.
“It cost us a fair bit to pay for the crystals, but each member of the House has experimented with them” Duolo continued “You even gave one to Twist in hopes he would find something whilst doing his monster research”
“And data indicates they can see far indeed!” Vivace praised, “They work as well as something called binoculars on the surface!”
Ostinatia nodded “Indeed, the abilities of these Seeing Stones will please the city… But from my own experiments they won’t help us with the House’s future”
A gloom fell upon the room.
“Divination experiments have proved fruitless?” My father asked.
Ostinatia sighed deeply “Indeed; I have used all our known incantations, tried flowing temporal energy through the stones, engraved small runes of time on them, I even asked help from the House Of Gears to make a machine of some kind, but all experiments were utter failures”
“A dead end then” Duolo remarked despondently.
The gloom of the room grew more intense. Even Vivace seemed worried.
“We have plan B right?” Vivace asked, wringing her hands.
“Indeed, we do” Ostinatia said, not brightening up.
“That is what we are most worried about” Cadenza sighed, “Its…”
Suddenly a stern arm grabbed my shoulder and dragged me into the kitchen.
“Now now Twist, you know spying is rude!” said a gruff voice. I nervously looked up at my oldest sister Largo. She had grey fur like my moms, was wearing a dark red dress, and had a wry smile on her face. She placed me in front of a counter with various cave pears on it ready to be cut… Cave pears are basically the same as surface pears but are purple instead of yellow, by the way.
Largo handed me a knife.
“Now get to getting young noctav” she said, getting out her own knife and already beginning to cut the cave pears.
“Do I really have to?” I grumbled.
“Hey, I may be a strong noctav but its hard getting everything done with this additional weight here” Largo laughed, rubbing her heavily pregnant stomach. She could barely reach the counter.
I shook my head and got to work. I had been working with Largo in the kitchen for a long time at that point. As much as I whined though, it was nice to be able to put my hands to use. Cathartic you could say! I was also getting good with cutting stuff too.
“Well done Twist! You are a natural with the knife” my sister would said, pleased.
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
She could tell I was sad, though probably anyone could from the big frown I had.
Largo gave a deep warm guffaw.
“Why the long face there little brother? Mom being her usual all business self?”
I could only nod.
“Don’t let it get you down, just let these colph berres have it!” Largo said as she dumped a bunch of speckled berries on my counter “Imagine they are the necks of those thugs that come to take our food”
“The eurynomos you mean? Since when do they come down to where we are?”
“About a month or so ago” Largo said grimly, grabbing an especially big colph berry and slicing into it with gusto “Those feathery devils have been getting braver as of late. They aren’t too bad now since its only little scouts and thieves, easy to take care of with a well placed fireball… But I suspect soon they’ll be sending more thieves and perhaps even soldiers.”
“Why?” I asked, both frightened and fascinated.
“Not sure yet, but probably food is getting scarcer in their neck of the caverns”
“There have been more monsters migrating from the higher layers of the Underworld” I commented, “Like those drekavacs”
Largo shook her head “What is this world coming to that even those fiends in the Underworld leave their homes? Something even worse than them move in and drove them out?”
“I’m gonna find out” I said determinedly.
Largo gave her great guffaw “I’m sure you will! Feeling better?”
I turned and smiled to her.
“Thanks Largo, you always know monsters and mysteries cheer me up”
Largo returned the smile “Don’t mention it little brother, if mom can’t mother you I’m sure can”
I sighed “Does she not love me? She always makes time with Duolo and Vivace”
“Oh it doesn’t have anything to do with love Twist, they are just two of her oldest children. So she is always talking with them about our House’s future”
“But you are her first kid, why doesn’t she talk with you about that?”
“Oh because I am a deadbeat!” Largo laughed “I never was interested in finding more about the future or reading up on much of anything… ‘Cept cooking of course. Honestly the only reason she keeps me around here is because I am one of the best cooks in the whole city”
I looked aghast “You mean she only loves us based on how much we are useful?”
“No Twist-“
“What if I’m not useful, will she hate me? Will you all hate me?” I began to stammer.
This was a concern I had had for a while, I confess. Even as a child, a lot of pressure was pushed upon me to learn and figure out what I was going to be. I was a mature child, I can say that much, but still a child.
Largo turned to me and stared, her violet eyes glowing.
“Don’t you ever say that again Twist!”
I was taken aback.
“No one is useless, you are just still figuring out what you want to do and be! Mom is a taciturn old crone, but she most assuredly loves you. And if she doesn’t, I know we all do and will!”
I looked down “I’m sorry Largo… Thank you”
Largo softened up.
“Your welcome, I had a hunch that is something you needed to hear”
“I’m sorry if I seem like a whiner sometimes” I groaned.
“Oh don’t worry about it, you can whine all you want around me”
Twist paused in his storytelling when he heard some sniffling.
“Tenacia, are you okay?” he asked, looking at Tenacia in concern.
“Yeah I’m fine, I just have somethin’ in my eye” she muttered, rubbing her eyes.
“I think I have a better understanding of you Twist, but let’s fast forward a bit eh?” Delphine said, looking at Twist with hardly any glare at all.
“Oh dear, I think I shared too much didn’t I?” Twist lamented.
“No Twist, it is okay” Tenacia said with a smile, her eyes still a bit watery, “I’m okay! I’m more worried about you honestly, how are you?”
Twist paused, he felt… Good. Sharing all of that made it feel like a burden had been lifted.
He was also astonished how easily he had shared such personal details so casually. Not since Largo could he do something like this. He looked at Tenacia again, with a deep respect.
“I am perfectly well Tenacia, thank you very much… Heh, and sure thing Delphine, I’ll get more to the point!”
We had a good enough meal that day, though there was a great sense of stress and dread as we all ate. For the rest of the day discussions went on, most of which I missed due having to do some homework.
Finally, I found out what the plan was the next day. That morning, I got out of bed as Vivace told me to come down.
I went down and say Ostinatia making a large circle on the ground of the room with white chalk. Everyone but Largo was here, she had gone off to take a walk.
“What is this?”, I asked in wonder.
“The answer to all our problems my son” Ostinatia answered, finishing up the large chalk circle. She then began to make a second smaller circle which was big enough to hold one person.
“Allegedly at least, though likely” Duolo said, clutching his hands anxiously, “This is a special ritual mother learned during her research a few weeks back. She had attained a special tome on portalcrafting from a wandering scholar and it included how to make doors to other worlds.”
“Isn’t that space magic though? I know time and space are connected, but how is a portal going to help us?” I asked.
“Remember Twist, amongst the many dimensions out there are the Elemental Realms,” Vivace explained “Whole worlds that embody the very elements that make up both our world and our magic!”
“There is one for each of the twelve elements” Ostinatia said, nodding as she began writing various symbols in the space between the outer circle and inner circle “And one of them is Ayvum the Halls Of Time. A place where all time goes through and rests, a whole dimension dedicated to the past, present… And future!” She made sure to make a dramatic pause before saying future.
“The ritual is very dangerous though” my father commented, “This is why we hadn’t tried it yet, but it seems we no longer have much of a choice”
“Why is it dangerous?” I asked, getting more excited. I had heard of Ayvum only in passing.
“The Elemental Realms are far away from our world, especially Ayvum” Ostinatia clarified “We can’t just open a portal there and expect it to stay open, the huge amount of spatial energy will just close it as soon as we finish the spell.” she then clapped her hands together to get the chalk dust off “This is what this circle is for, it will get us to Ayvum and keep the portal open! Though we’ll need two of us to accomplish the task ahead”
Ostinatia walked to me and gently guided me to the center of the circle.
“I’m going to help?” I asked enthusiastically, whilst I had helped in research I had never helped with a big important spell like this.
“Of course! You are a natural at magic my son, you will be opening the portal and keeping it open” Ostinatia said proudly as she handed me a small staff made of stone and wood.
“And exploring Ayvum?” I asked in wonder, clutching my first staff to my chest.
“Oh no! That would be far too dangerous for you!” she said loudly in concern, then calmed down, “Besides, the amount of focus needed to keep the poral open ensures you can’t do much else. Even then, the spell needs you to stay in the center of this circle to keep all the space magic stable”
“Oh okay, who is going in then?”
“I will be going in, my boy” my father said, striding forward and smiling at me, “I will explore Ayvum and search for wherever the events of the future are, when they called it the Halls Of Time they weren’t figurative! After finding that right Hall, I’ll write down what I see”
“And there is no doubt information from the very incarnation of time itself will be accurate” Duolo remarked, nodding sagely.
I nodded energetically “Ok so… I open the door to Ayvum, dad goes in, gets info, he comes out, and I close door?”
“Exactly, just stay focused my son and everything will be fine!” Ostinatia replied “There aren’t even any magic words to say; just look at those runes, impart your magic into them, and imagine a door right in front of your father”
My energy was steadily deflating and nervousness took over. This was my first time helping with a big spell, it was already a daunting task. The encouraging smiles around me though, even from the normally dour Duolo, helped inspire me, so I looked down at each of the runes around me. Each was the rune for time in different old languages; elvish, fomorian, noctav, dragon, and so on. I gathered the magical energy in me and put it into each rune… It is a difficult sensation to describe, try imagining assembling your own emotions and senses together into a part of your body then pushing it out of you. As I did this each rune glowed, once each was glowing the outer circle that surrounded them began to glow as well. I then turned to my father and imagined a regular door at his side. I pointed my staff where I visualized the door, out popped a small spark from the tip of the staff. It lied on the floor for a second, as I continued to imagine the door it began to trace an outline of the door I had in my mind. Half a minute later the little spark had formed the whole outline of a door out of some glowing substance, suddenly the light vanished and in its place was a true door.
“You are doing well Twist!” my father said, he reached for the doorknob I had put on the door. I kept my focus and the door stayed corporeal.
Then something happened.
“Who are you?”
Suddenly I heard someone speak in my head, loud and clear, as if the source was right on top of me. The voice was supremely unusual… It was distorted and echoed; it was almost as if five people with slightly different voices were speaking at once.
“Who you? What are you doing?” the voice continued, it sounded angry.
I was scared, but I tried to ignore the voice and keep my focus.
“This is not something you should do. This place is not for mortal eyes!” the voice said, growing louder and angrier. I was starting to get a headache, so I continued to tune the voice out.
For a while there was silence, I had hoped the voice was done. Then it spoke again, but this time in a tone of concern.
“I now know who you are. You must listen to me child, you must stop this. If your father steps foot into Ayvum, terrible catastrophe will follow”
I kept my concentration on the runes and the door, but that sentence drew my attention.
“You must stop! Listen to me! No living thing may enter the Halls Of Time and come back out! Whether it be the past or future, its information is only for those who already dwell within its many passageways”
My mind ran around madly. Could this be a trick? I was aware of wily spirits in other realms that would lie and make people think something was dangerous when it was perfectly safe. But then what if this voice was truthful? The concern in its voice was so sincere.
What if… What if this was a supernal? A celestial spirit that helped guard and run essentially parts of reality? I tried to turn towards my mother to ask what to do.
“Don’t stop now!” she shouted before I got even a word out, “If you waver for even a second the door will quickly vanish! We can’t afford to lose any time!”
I quickly put my focus back into the runes, though doubt continued to cloud my mind.
“Child, you must listen! You are the only one who can hear my voice! I have see the many destinies Chaelum has laid out for you and your kin!” the voice messaged loudly, it sounded downright desperate, “Please believe me! The moment your father enters the door, your future will be filled with strife! A destiny of tragedy!”
I tried to think hard about this, I’m not sure whether it was because I really believed the voice or just the stress of the situation making me want to back out, but I eventually lowered my staff. The door began to flicker in and out of existence.
“Son! What are you doing?!” Ostinatia yelled as she ran forward, firmly making me raise my staff again, being careful not to step on the glowing runes.
“Dear, I don’t think this is going to work! We should back off and rethink this!” my father said, looking at his wife and child in concern.
“No! This is our House’s last chance! You must go in there!” Ostinatia replied, she turned to me with desperation in her eyes, “Twist please! You must focus!”
It was then I made my decision: I focused on the door again.
"Child no! You must stop!"
I ignored the voice as the shining door became solid again. Cadenza looked at me in concern for a moment, then turned back. He opened the door and walked through.
“Alright, father is now within the Halls of Time” Duolo exhaled in relief, he turned to his hourglass and flipped it, “In a minute, he will come back out with his journal on what he has seen”
I continued to focus on the ritual, after fifteen seconds I finally calmed down and had full focus on the ritual. The ritual was a success, and I was relieved…
SLAM!
The door suddenly and sharply shut on its own accord.
We all gasped. Then the voice returned in my head. It spoke lowly in a sad and disappointed tone.
“I am sorry child, but your father is forever lost”
Those awful words cut through my mind and heart like cold knife. Panic filled my mind, I ran from the circle to the door.
“Twist! What you doing?!” Ostintatia screamed.
“A voice was telling me… Warning me that if anyone goes into the Halls of Time they can’t come out!” A cried, tears going down my face. I was trying to open it while simultaneously keeping it corporeal.
“Don’t worry Twist, father will come back through that door once a minute passes!” Vivace tried to assure me as calmly as she could.
“But what if the passage of time is different in there?” I asked in a panic, I was able to keep the door visualized but it was already starting to flicker “There is so much uncertainty! We can’t do this! Does no one else hear the voice?”
Ostinatia quickly ran to the magic circle, taking my place and channeling it, though she was already losing control over it. As strong a magician she was, the ritual was too much for someone who was not the seventh child of a seventh child.
Against the protests of siblings, I opened the door and was about to shout to my father, but I didn’t see him within. In fact, I wasn’t sure what I saw, it seemed to indeed be a hallway, but it was thoroughly… Strange.
It went on in multiple directions at once whilst still being one hallway. There were windows strewn across the walls, ceilings, and floors. Each window had a completely different scene playing out beyond it: I saw the creation of great monuments, ferocious battles between kingdoms, people living their everyday lives, and whole worlds falling apart! I looked from one window to another, unable to control my gaze. Soon all of these scenes played out at once and I was utterly overwhelmed with all the sights, sounds, smells, and even feelings that came to me from the windows! I felt the embrace of family members reuiniting, explorers starving in the middle of a desert, a king eating a casual meal as he spoke with butler, and thousands of people being burned alive by a dragon.
I tried to look around the halls for my father but was only met with more and more events being forced into my brain. It was then I realized one hallway was different from the others, it was so dimly and almost nothing could be seen in it.
“Twist, stop!”
I heard my father’s voice loud and clear, I quickly turned to him… He was being wrapped in chains by the most bizarre things I had ever seen; they looked like great nautiluses, but their tentacles were not only much longer but ended in hands! My father looked at me, eyes wide in worry. I tried to reach to him, ready to leap through the door.
“Look away! You can’t see the Hall Of Future or they will take you away too! Look away!” Cadenza screamed with all his might.
“He is right! My servants will take you too if you dare see the future!” said the voice from before “The fate in store for you is already terrible, child, you don't want it get worse! You must go NOW!”
That last NOW I felt someone place a hand on my shoulder and try to push me away. Clarity returned to my mind, I quickly backed away and slammed the door shut.
“Twist, what have you done?!” Ostinatia shrieked. She kept her focus on the ritual with all her might, but already the runes were dimming. Ostinatia looked in horror at the door.
It had completely vanished.