The Fenimeldiyaan: Stolen Time - Chapter 12

Gremeldah shook David off, returning to her corner with a muttered complaint. Regina still clung to her father’s hand, and the others had to wonder if she would ever let go. Joseph and Ilise huddled together in another corner, whispering to each other. Merlin hadn’t come out of the room with Lana yet, and Olivia sat with Apollo’s spark still on her shoulder.

A thud from outside made them all look up. Andreas went to the door, and Apollo flitted to his shoulder. However, the spark recoiled when he saw the corpse outside the door.

It was River’s body, delivered by Set to Andreas’s door step. When Andreas knelt beside her, he saw a piece of paper clutched in her fist and gently pulled it free. It was from Set. “To Andreas Cesario: Give me the Lightshield children or the same fate will await each of my prisoners. The next to die will be Morgan Shadowbinder. You have been warned.”

Someone shoved Andreas aside, and Olivia collapsed on top of River’s body, sobbing. It didn’t seem to matter to her that her mother was a teenager. All she cared was that, for the second time, she had found her mother dead once more.

Ilise had her head buried in Joseph’s shoulder, her brother reading the note over Andreas’s. When the King spoke, it was with a soft and trembling voice. “Maybe I should just go,” he whispered. “It’s my fault that she’s dead. And if I don’t go, then he’ll kill more.”

“It’s not your fault, Joseph.” David pulled him back into the building, and Ilise followed. Regina stared down at her feet. “It’s that dratted Set! He may not have killed my daughter, but he’s murdered one too many people. I won’t rest until he’s gone.”

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Anwyn forced back the tears which threatened to fall.  Holding her head up high as if she were addressing the assembled Inner Circle families, she spoke to her fellow prisoners.  “Tis time to take a stand.  I ain’t expecting ye to put yerselves at risk to help me.  In fact, I don’t want ye to.  That way, if Set finds out what I be doing, the rest of ye can truthfully proclaim yer innocence.  Understood?”

Parsivaal, Gerald, Morgan and Fitz nodded.  The others simply stared at her.

She extended a finger and drew a rectangle in the air in front of her.  Glowing symbols and scrolling lines of code appeared inside it.  “This be the temporal interface where the equations controlling our prison can be accessed.  I ain’t no expert on these matters, but I’ve watched me husband and me granddaughter Mazia doing this sort of thing a few times.  I doubt I’ll be able to break us out, but I think I can manage a little sabotage at least”.

She plunged her hands into the temporal interface and began manipulating the lines of code.  For a few minutes, the other prisoners watched her but when nothing appeared to be happening, they soon lost interest.

Parsivaal grinned.  “I too have an idea.  Twill keep us entertained at the very least”.  He rummaged around inside his patchwork robe and brought out another globe-shaped glass jar, a little larger than the one which he had previously used.  “This whisper jar will become a very special receptacle indeed.  Twill contain the life-story of Set, once I’ve recorded it for posterity”.

“What’s the point of telling a story that no-one will hear?” Morgan asked.  “Apart from us, I mean”.

“Never underestimate the work of the humble archivist”.  Parsivaal gave a sly wink.  “In my younger years, I served as a Silent Guardian in one of the vast repositories of the Geheimsvaak.  I can program this jar to return to the archive from where I took it.  The underground repositories existed long before people started using the written word as a means of keeping records and telling stories.  The jars be made from a special crystalline mixture and cannot be broken or even scratched.  Set’s story will always be available to anyone who knows how to access the repositories”.

“Why would anyone want to hear the life-story of a repugnant being such as Set?” Angel enquired.

“Tis a cautionary tale” Parsivaal explained, holding the jar in front of him at eye level.  “To remind us of what not to become”.

Angel nodded in acknowledgment, noticing a tiny speck of darkness inside the jar which had not been there a moment ago.

Parsivaal winked again and touched the lid of the jar.  He whispered a phrase in an unfamiliar language before beginning his story.

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“No” Gremeldah stood and spoke in a strident tone, unlike her usual manner of speaking.  “All the blame falls on me.  If I hadn’t taught Set the secrets of Chronomancy, ye’d all be living better, happier lives.  I betrayed all of ye”.

“Not necessarily, me dear”.  Andreas took her in his arms again.  “Ye only looked at six hundred time-streams.  If ye hadn’t come to Vordelle, Set would’ve found another way to seize power.  He be addicted to power and that will be the cause of his eventual downfall.  As ye know, addicts be controlled by their addictions.  They ain’t in charge of their lives, no matter how much they try to convince themselves or others”.

“That doesn’t change what’s happened in this time-stream” Gremeldah protested, looking at the little Spy Master through watery eyes.  “Everything I used to believe in has become a lie.  I don’t even trust meself anymore.  Tis probably why I be letting a Carpathian comfort me”.

Andreas gave her a warm smile and sent out reassuring emanations.  “Trust be a strange and twisty concept.  Ye can trust certain people to behave in certain ways.  Doesn’t mean ye should put yer trust in them though.  D’ye understand?”

She nodded.  “Aye, I think so.  Anyways, I have to fix this.  I need to fix this.  Let me have a look at that Goddess jar again”.

Andreas took the whisper jar from his jacket pocket and handed it over.

When she touched the lid, the message played out exactly as it had before.  The Goddess’s words remained the same but something clicked into place in her mind.  “Look inside me to discover the truth”. 

Her eyes lit up in excitement.  “This jar contains some of the material from the temporal prison which I helped Set construct.  That means I can manipulate the equations from here and mayhap even unmake the prison”.

“I had a similar thought”.  Another voice spoke.  Gremeldah turned around and saw Merlin.  No-one had noticed him entering the room.  “Perhaps we could combine our skills and strength”.

“Tis worth a try” Gremeldah agreed, letting Merlin examine the jar.

Andreas left them to discuss the matter and went over to Olivia.  “Not all things be lost, me dear.  There be a way to bring yer mother back.  Ye may not know this, but she saved me life on a mission.  I love her like a daughter and I be determined to restore her to ye.  Meantime, I need to borrow Apollo”.

He touched the spark and it flew from her shoulder to his.  “Apollo, me friend, merge with me.  I’ll lend ye me powers.  We have a young woman to heal”.

The spark glowed brighter for a moment, then it shot upwards to Andreas’s forehead and allowed itself to become absorbed into the Spy Master’s mind.

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Merlin looked over the jar, his young face scrunched up in a frown. Gremeldah watched him, seeing how his hand trembled, the redness around his eyes. “Merlin—” she began.

“The temporal prison is a little weaker than it should be,” he said. “There’s tampering from the inside. Possibly Caratacuus, or Parsivaal, or even one of the heroes of Colnia. I doubt Morgan Shadowbinder would have the power to fiddle with something like a temporal prison …”

“Merlin!” Gremeldah’s voice was sharp.

He still didn’t answer. But he did give her a look that very clearly told her to leave him alone. He continued looking over the jar before nodding. “With the piece of the temporal prison, we should be able to bring the cube itself here and you can unmake it. It won’t prevent Set from making another one, but it will rescue the prisoners he’s currently possessing and hopefully prevent anyone else from meeting Queen River’s fate.”

“D’ye think ye can do it?” Gremeldah asked.

“Theoretically, with the addition of the energy signature of the temporal prison, I should be able to manipulate the energy to bring the prison here. That would leave the rest in your hands, I believe.” Merlin laid the jar down gently, closing his eyes. The same strange, wispy-white smoke rose from the glass, wrapping around Merlin’s outstretched hand. He turned it, palm-up, and his fingers tensed as if they were clutching something.

Without warning, the fog hardened into the temporal prison, the black cube held in Merlin’s grasp. However, he cried out in pain, his eyes squeezed shut. “Hurry,” he panted. “Unmake it … he’s trying to take it back … undo my spell … hurry!”

Gremeldah immediately started manipulating the equations, grimacing. She could see black tendrils on the interface, trying to pull the prison back to the castle, but she was grimly determined to not let Set have it back. It was a great struggle, punctuated by Merlin’s hisses of pain as the prison fought against him.

Without warning, the temporal prison broke. Merlin jerked back as white energy exploded out of it, and the store suddenly seemed a lot more crowded. In the confusion, Merlin gently patted Gremeldah’s arm. “Excellent work,” he said, cradling his burned hand.

“W-whoa, where are we?” Morgan’s voice overpowered the chaos, and silence fell. “What’s going on?”

It took them all a while to get everyone sorted and under control. However, Morgan was difficult to allay when he discovered that Apollo — the non-spark version — had not been rescued. Neither had the younger David. However, Parsivaal, Anwyn, Fitz, Morgan, Lorelei, and Angel had been brought to the shop. “But where is Apollo?” Morgan asked, near-panic for his cousin. “You don’t mean to tell me Set’s still got him?”

Joseph rested a tentative hand on the mage’s shoulder. “We’ll get him back,” he began.

Morgan shrugged him off. “I don’t even know who the devil you are!” he said. “Where’s Andreas? And Elsa?”

Andreas, who had been preparing to go into the other room for Lana, went to him, transmitting swiftly everything had happened — aside from the fact that Morgan’s future self had been killed. Still, Morgan was utterly confused and sat down heavily as Andreas went into the other room. “You’re Elaine’s son?” he said, looking at Joseph.

“I am.”

While Joseph and Ilise started filling most of the former prisoners in on what had happened, David grabbed Angel and Lorelei’s hands, pulling them from the group. He gave them both hugs, much to the young women’s confusion. “I never thought I’d see either of you again,” he said through the embrace.

Angel glanced at Lorelei, who shrugged. “Do we …?” Angel let her voice trail off.

“It’s me. David,” he said with a hint of desperation. “You don’t recognise me?”

Angel looked at him closely before grabbing his arm. Etched into his wrists in a tiny brand were the words “loyalty”, “courage”, and “strength”. “It is you,” she said, her eyes widening. “But what happened?”

“It doesn’t matter,” he said. “All that matters is that I got to see you two again. May I introduce you to my daughter?”

While the Colnians gathered in another room to talk, Terra made his way over to Olivia. Despite Andreas’s assurances, she still had her head buried in her arms. He knelt beside her, laying a hand on her shoulder. “I’m sorry,” he said.

To his shock, the girl flung her arms around his neck and sobbed into his shoulder. Breathy gasps were the only sounds she made, yet he held her all the same, feeling tears slide down his own cheeks. She never should have felt like this.

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Fitz slipped upstairs, going into the room Andreas had put Elsa in. The red-haired thief was fast asleep, and Fitz could only marvel at her similarities to Leanora. He sat down beside her, gently touching her forehead. She stirred but didn’t wake.

“Mother …” Fitz wanted to say something, anything. But no words would come to him. It was more than enough to sit beside his mother, to see her safe, and alive. To feel her fingers in his own, the warmth, the tender touch he remembered so well.

It made all of their troubles almost seem worth it. If only Leanora had been there …

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Andreas laid his hand over Lana’s injury. The girl was breathing shallowly, her heartbeat slow and hardly there. “Ye ready?” he asked Apollo.

From in his mind, he received the telepathic equivalent of a nod. “Yes.”

Together, they enacted the spell. It was the first time Apollo had ever shared his magic with Andreas, and even in his weakened spirit form, it was still astounding what he possessed. The light magic illuminated the entire room, fuelled by Andreas’s power, and Lana sat up suddenly, gasping for breath that didn’t come for a moment. Then she wheezed, finding air, and clutched her stomach, her wide eyes on Andreas. “You … you … who are you?” she asked.

Andreas bowed to her. He could feel that Apollo’s energy had been completely spent inside of him, and the healer’s spirit was sleeping. Let him rest; he had done his work and Andreas felt a surge of pride for his friends. “I be Lord Andreas Cesario. Be ye well, Lady Dale?”

Lana gave herself a pat-down before nodding. “Yes … thank you … Uncle Emrys!” She jumped out of the bed, skidding into the other room.

Merlin was in the process of binding the still-unconscious Jezebel when Lana rammed into him like a human battering ram. “Uncle Emrys, you’re alright! You’re alright!” she cried triumphantly.

“I … I don’t …” Merlin was utterly confused, but he held her tight. “Lana, are you well?”

“Yes! I’m perfectly fine.”

Merlin turned to Andreas, releasing her just long enough to bow to Andreas. Tears shone in his eyes. “I owe you very dearly, Andreas,” he said, his voice choked. “I can’t thank you enough for what you’ve done for me.”

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Daren Lightshield hit the floor painfully, wheezing, stiff, and sore. The room he was in was pitch-black, and around him, he heard others making noises. “Who’s there?” he demanded, his voice hoarse.

“D-Daren? Is that you?”

Hastily, Daren went to the bed he could now make out and embraced his wife, Elaine. “Elaine! What’s going on? Where are we?”

The young Queen could only shake her head and bury her face in his shoulder.

“We’re imprisoned in the future.” Still holding his wife, Daren turned and face the blond elf who was dusting himself off. He vaguely recognized him as one of the Colnian delegates — Herb? No, Basil. “King Daren.”

Without waiting for a response, Basil went to Leanora, kneeling beside the girl. Judging from her injuries, she’d had several ribs broken and a split in her spine. Tenderly, he laid his hands on her, singing softly in the ancient elven language. He felt the broken bones mend, but the girl was still utterly unconscious.

Apollo staggered over to Elaine and Daren, grimacing. “Apollo!” Daren was greatly relieved. “Are you alright? Where are the others?”

Apollo shrugged. He sat down, looking exhausted.

Meanwhile, the last two prisoners, David and Lizzy, were side-by-side. David was trying to release Lizzy from her bindings with little success. “C’mon,” he muttered under his breath, tearing the skin from his fingers as he ripped at the ropes.

The door slammed open and Set entered. Elaine squeaked in horror when she saw the half of his face that had been burned to a crisp by Cora Lightshield years before. “WHICH ONE OF YOU HAS IT?!” he bellowed. “Which one has my power?!”

David raised his chin rebelliously. “You’re looking in the wrong spot,” he said. “We don’t have it.”

Set strode forward in two steps and grabbed David’s forehead. Both gasped in pain and reeled back, but Set had what he wanted. “Parsivaal,” he growled. “They’ll have to come here if they want to save you pathetic creatures.”

“The only one who is pathetic is the hunter with his back to the wall,” Basil said calmly. “You’ve been outfoxed, Set. Carpathians really are as impressive as they say.”

In one blow, Set had slammed his forearm into Basil’s face and sent the elf crashing to the floor, unconscious. “You have two hours of life remaining,” he sneered. “Enjoy them.” Then he marched from the room.

“Daren,” Elaine whimpered, clinging to him.

“Carpathians,” Daren said. “It must be the Cesarios. Chin up, Elaine, we’ll be saved. Don’t worry. They’ll rescue us, I know they will.”

“I can only hope,” David mumbled, and returned to his work on the ropes binding Lizzy.

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Gremeldah stared at the new arrivals, feeling a mixture of relief and trepidation.  While she had helped rescue them from Set, the fact remained that she had previously helped him and they might still harbour feelings of resentment towards her.  Her eyes rested on the naked dreadlocked woman who stood apart from the others, evidently lost in private thoughts.

She took off her outer robe and handed it to the naked woman.  “Here, take this.  The climate here on Vordelle be far colder than the deserts of Sartoria.  Ye be Andreas’s wife, right?”

The woman donned the robe and inclined her head in gratitude.  “Aye, Lady Anwyn Lyandra Menehari-Cesario at yer service.  Thank ye for helping Andreas with the Chronomancy.  I be no good at that sort of thing”.

“Ye be thanking me?” Gremeldah spluttered.  “I were the one responsible for helping Set and stranding yer husband here.  Or were it Carpathian sarcasm and ye be intending to kill me?”

Anwyn laughed and slapped Gremeldah on the arm, leaving a smear of sparkling sand behind.  “No sarcasm and no killing.  I meant what I said.  I know what be in yer heart, Gremeldah Dowd.  Andreas were merged with ye, remember?”

Gremeldah’s face reddened in embarrassment.  “How could I forget?”  She sighed and swiped her hand over her face.  “I be sorry.  I were wrong about him.  I thought the worst of him without giving him a chance”.

“Don’t worry about it”.  Anwyn waved her hand in a dismissive gesture.  “Everyone thinks the worst of us Carpathians.  We be used to it”.

“Ye be talking about me, eh?” Andreas slid his arm around Anwyn’s waist and gave a sly grin.  “Tis good to see the two of ye getting on so well.  There be hope for all of us yet”.

“About that …” Gremeldah sounded hesitant.  “Whatever ye be planning, I want to be a part of it.  Like I were saying to yer wife, I misjudged ye.  Besides, I’ve got an idea about what we can do to Set”.

“Then we should discuss our plans” Andreas stated.  “Parsivaal has drained some of Set’s power and captured it in one of his whisper jars.  Set be in a weakened state but we shouldn’t underestimate him.  He could still kill the remaining captives afore we can get to them, so we need to act with great caution”.

“Ye’d probably think me idea too reckless then”.  Gremeldah’s awkwardness returned and she looked down at her feet.

“Reckless can be fun”.  Andreas chuckled.  “Let’s hear it anyways.  Yer idea about the whisper jar worked”.  He gestured towards Parsivaal, Fitz, Morgan, Lorelei and Angel.

“Alright”.  Gremeldah took a deep breath, noticing that Merlin and Parsivaal had come over to listen to her plan.  “I had this mad stupid idea of trapping Set in a temporal prison.  And afore any of ye say it, I know that someone would have to act as bait.  Since the plan be mine, tis only fair that I take the risk.  I’ll go to him and offer to give meself up in exchange for the release of the other prisoners.  He’ll refuse and then I’ll trap him”.

“That means you’ll have to already be inside the prison in order to lure him in” Merlin observed.  “You’ll trap yourself as well as him and he’ll still be able to harm you”.

“Aye, I know” Gremeldah acknowledged.  “Told ye twas a reckless plan.  But ye can rescue the others after I’ve trapped him”.

Andreas stroked his moustache.  “Yer plan has merit, especially since Set will be expecting meself and Anni to attempt the rescue.  He certainly won’t be expecting ye to surrender yerself.  But we need to come up with an exit strategy.  We can’t leave ye in the temporal prison with Set”.

“What about if I shapeshift into something small, like a scarf or a piece of jewellery?” Anwyn suggested.  “Gremeldah can wear me and after she’s trapped Set, both of us can kill him and Gremeldah can unmake the temporal prison”.

“Set would notice another presence” Gremeldah pointed out.  “I have to do this on me own”.

Parsivaal took Set’s whisper jar from inside his robes and held it up.  “What if we were to give you a helping hand?  If you absorb Set’s power, you can direct it back at him inside the temporal prison”.

“Will it turn me evil though?” Gremeldah questioned.

“Power be a tool like any other” the elderly mage reminded her.  “Tis the intent behind it which determines whether it be good or evil.  The act of killing one sorcerer to save many lives and return the Meldin Galaxy to its proper time justifies the use of such power”.

“I’ll do it” Gremeldah affirmed, taking the jar from him and touching the lid.

Parsivaal’s voice began relating the life story of the dark sorcerer named Set.  At the same time, Gremeldah extracted the power stored in the jar and merged it with her own.

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Gremeldah materialised inside the castle, having used Set’s powers to get around the sorcery wards.  She could feel his brooding presence without the need for using her crystal senses to track him.

She strode into the throne room and marched up to the throne which he had appropriated as his own.

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There appeared to be no-one in the throne room, but Gremeldah could feel an ominous presence lurking around her. The magic from Set inside of her seemed to churn uncomfortably, spinning around her and trying to confuse her. She stood where she was defiantly, waiting.

The shadows melded into one and formed into Set, leaning against the throne. “Gremeldah Dowd,” he said. “I never expected to see you here. Given your history, I would have thought that you’d have turned tail and run off by now. Of course, I know your entire history … tell me, did you enjoy the little gift I sent Andreas Cesario? She was really quite pathetic. She didn’t even fight back. As for the others … their time has come. They are going to be killed as we speak. And do you know — every single life lost is your fault? None of this would have been possible without you, my dear. I suppose I should be grateful to you.”

He gave a mocking bow. “So thank you, Lady Chronomage. I’m indebted to you.”

Making a supreme effort to contain the rage which welled inside her, Gremeldah faced Set, looking him straight in the eyes.  “Aye, I be aware of me accomplishments.  Mayhap ye’d be willing to show gratitude in a more practical way?”

“Really?” Set rolled his eyes.  “What did you have in mind?  Money?  Jewellery?  One of those ridiculous crystal-powered chariots that the Carpathians enjoy riding around in?  I never took you for the materialistic type, my dear”.

“Then ye’d be right” she affirmed.  “I be more of the person-centred type.  Ye were complaining that Queen River Meer never put up any resistance.  She were broken long afore ye got to her.  Same with the others.  But ye’ll get far more entertainment value from breaking me.  Let those spineless rejects go and take me instead.  What d’ye say?”

Set smirked, the shadows tightening around him. “Why would I release them … when I can have all of you?” The shadows shot forward, seeking to grab Gremeldah.