Tales of Eleutheros

Daniel’s eyes blinked slowly as he stared at the pale ceiling above him. Since the duel in the Glade, he had struggled to comprehend what the incidents had brought. Blood in the streets, warriors training, and the rumble of power they did not understand. Night had come again, and though his afforded accommodations were comfortable, he still lay on his back, unable to sleep. There was a draw of constant intrigue in every aspect of this new world, but having spent a decent amount of time in it, Daniel began to see that it was an adaptable place. I wonder how Henry and Angelo are doing, he thought. His mind wandered to the words spoken of the other human who was killed. Daniel was startled by a light knock on his door. He grunted as he stood and opened it cautiously. There was a young Dae servant who stood wearing a smile on her face.

“I am sorry to bother you so late in the evening, my Lord, but Kryo Oros would like to speak with you. I’m afraid it’s rather urgent.”

Daniel nodded his head and turned to put on his boots and don his green cloak. She led him to a luxurious room lit by the same style of floating balls of flame. Daniel saw that his meeting with Oros would not be a private one. Seated before the Kryo was his younger brother, Boros; beside him sat Katrina and Robert, each with a golden bowl of wine in their hands. Across from Katrina, somewhat displaced but still a part of the conversation, was Avria and two warriors he recognized as Eslan and Vikko.

“Welcome, my friend!” Oros exclaimed, standing to greet Daniel. “I do apologize for the late summoning, but there is something your companions brought to my attention that needs to be discussed.”

“And it couldn’t wait until morning?” Avria said sarcastically.

Oros didn’t look at her, just responded while gripping Daniel’s forearm. “Well, I suppose it could have, but you know Royalty, we have no damned patience.”

Daniel sat next to Robert and was offered a bowl of wine by the servants that stood around in attendance.

“My dear?” Oros said, gesturing to Katrina to begin.

“Well…” Katrina started. “We have been here in this world of yours for…” She took a moment.

“Seventeen days,” Boros said with a smile.

“Yes, thank you, Boros. We have been here for seventeen days, and though we don’t know how we got here or if there is any hope of returning to our world, I’m sure I speak for all three of us when I say that we should try to find a way to live here.”

Robert sat uncharacteristically silent, merely looking into his bowl of wine.

Daniel looked at her and then to Oros. “Well, I can’t say that I don’t agree with her. There is no certainty either way. We can sit here in your castle day in and day out and wear out our welcome, or find a way to make something of this. I, for one, would like to see if there are any other humans out there… they could be in trouble.”

“Yes,” Katrina continued. “I have spent my last days going to your practice fields. I see so many warriors there, many of them women. And I’ve decided that I want to learn how to fight.”

Robert’s head finally shot up to look at her. “You left that part out of our conversation, Kat.”

“I know,” she said. “Because I knew you wouldn’t like it. But Oros, I’ve gone over this with your brother, and he seems to think that it is at least possible to permit.”

Oros pondered for a moment, then turned his head when he heard Avria let out a sigh.

“I’m sorry, girl,” she said. “It just isn’t possible. First, you would have to consider the fact that our traditions require more than just a few sparring matches in the Glade. Second, let’s talk about the fact that you creatures don’t even possess the Dunamis, an essential part of our life. Frankly, the fact that you don’t have this ability brings further proof that the Espi-Dae are correct in their theory that you don’t have a soul.”

“We don’t know that for sure,” Boros said. “We all watched as these humans, who by the way were unable to speak our language, yet learned it somehow after coming in contact with spirits. I think that we should wait and see. And if they are able to? Then we allow them to take part.”

Oros again said nothing, only nodding in his consideration.

“We aren’t evil,” Katrina said, putting her bowl of wine on her lap, clearly emboldened by the alcoholic beverage. “We didn’t come here by choice either. Trust me, I would much rather be at my apartment doing my damn taxes than waking up in a strange forest or fighting for my life.”

“But learning how to fight?” Robert asked her. “There are plenty of other things we can do with our time. I mean…” Robert looked to Daniel. “Daniel… come on, man.”

Daniel inhaled deeply and shook his head. “I agree with her. More so in the fact that we will be here for who knows how long. Like I said, though, my first concern is finding other humans.”

“What of your people?” Boros asked Daniel. “Surely, you will be able to show us some of what humans are capable of?”

Daniel was caught off guard by the question. “Well, there isn’t much I would be able to show you. Our technology is very different from yours.”

“We have seen you fight; unrefined, but your ferocity is not lacking,” Boros said. “How is your technology different from our own? Aside from not possessing the Dunamis.”

“We have to create things in order to do what you might be able to do on your own,” Daniel continued. “Creating fire, for example. You are able to use your magic… or Dunamis to create it. We have to manipulate heat in order to get the same result, like rubbing sticks together until it gets hot enough to ignite. Or…” Daniel pulled his lighter from his pocket. “Using a combination of chemicals and heat to create it.” Daniel flicked the lighter on, and a small but bright flame appeared. The Dae didn’t seem terribly shocked by the flame that came but more intrigued by the lighter itself.

“That is quite an interesting piece of equipment, my friend,” Oros said finally, breaking his silence. “There is much we may be able to learn from each other, but without the Dunamis, there is not much I can do to convince my father that you should enter our training sessions. It would be too dangerous.”

Oros sighed and glanced at his younger brother.

“Thank you for seeing reason, my Lord,” Avria said, standing to leave. “Perhaps there are some other ways they may spend their time.”

Again, Oros chose not to directly acknowledge Avria, only turning to Katrina. “I’m sorry, but this is my final decision.”

Katrina lowered her eyes and nodded slightly. She had clearly been thinking of this for some time, but as Daniel watched the young woman, he could see that she was not yet finished with this.

~

Katrina woke the next morning to a throbbing headache. It seemed the Dae wine that she indulged in after the disappointing news had taken its toll on her. She stretched her arms and rubbed the sleep from her eyes. As her mind recovered from slumber, she again came to the conclusion that she repeated every morning.

“I’m still here,” she murmured, looking up to the ceiling. After bathing in the strange Dae fashion, something that she still found difficult to adjust to, she went to the dining hall to meet with the rest of her party. As she arrived, she was greeted by several guards that beckoned her inside. There she found Boros and his sister Illya enjoying a rather delicious-looking breakfast of fine meat and strong-smelling drink.

“Good morning, my Lady,” Boros said, with a charming smile on his face. His sister mirrored his smile. “Please sit with us.”

Katrina sat and began to fill her plate with the assorted food that was on the table.

“Katrina,” Boros said. “I wanted to apologize for last night. It is unfortunate that my brother and Avria do not share our enthusiasm.” He gestured to his sister, who sat across from him.

“Don’t worry about it,” she said casually and began eating her food.

“Well, we have been going over it this morning and, if our theory is correct, then you might need only a bit of direction to find your Dunamis. All creatures have it; all who walk in Pelemont share this in one way or another, even the Yorga you are eating.” He pointed to the meat on their table. “So I am going to take you to the shrines of the great spirits today, and we will see what happens.”

“Great spirits?” Katrina asked.

“Yes, the guardians of the elements and the creators of our world.” “But these shrines are also places of great spiritual energy. It takes time for our children to fully develop their power, but there is always something there, and even if it is just a bit, there is always something noticeable.”

“What he means is,” Illya said, “everything in our world is connected to spiritual energy. All things have a unique connection, including our language. The fact that you were unable to speak our language, but gained this knowledge so suddenly, shows us that you have at least been introduced to this energy; it might be similar for the Dunamis. You only became attuned to this spiritual energy after you came in direct contact with a spirit.”

Katrina stared blankly at the two Dae. “Uh...huh.” Katrina was certainly not used to talk of magic and spirits but did her best to wrap her head around it. “So, what you’re saying is, your language has… power? What about other cultures? What about people who may speak a different language? Are there any other languages?”

The barrage of questions made Boros laugh. “No, there aren’t any other languages. There is only one, and it has always been. There are words for all that we see, brought to us by the spirits. These words are known to all who share a connection with this energy.”

“Even the Yak or whatever the hell this is that I’m eating?” Katrina pointed again to the meat at their table.

Boros again laughed heartily. “By the spirits, this is harder than I thought. No, I’m afraid creatures like this don’t have the intelligence to speak, but there are some who can understand our words to a degree.”

“Like dogs?” Katrina asked innocently.

“I’m not sure what those are, but I’m confident you are correct in your comparison.”

It was then that the large wooden doors to the dining hall opened again, and Daniel was escorted through by the same guards as before. The man had his green cloak on and looked as though he was prepared for a day in the village. Boros, Illya, and Katrina then took a few minutes to explain the theory they had to him, and he looked more surprised than she expected.

“You think it’s possible?” Daniel said.

Again, the large doors opened, and Robert entered. Illya groaned.

“Why does it matter?” Robert asked the group, after they explained again. “I don’t know about you guys, but my goal is to get the hell out of here. I don’t want to be involved in their magic or anything else. You all saw how dangerous that stuff is. I mean, we’ve almost been killed twice here! And that’s without looking for trouble; why would you want to go on inviting this? Because you’re bored?”

A pit of anger grew in Katrina’s chest. “So what? You expect us to just sit here in this castle and not make any effort to learn about where we are? I didn’t ask for this shit either, Robert, but Goddammit, we need to do something. We are all changing!” Her words brought an eerie silence to the room. “You both know it, don’t pretend like you don’t. I have lost weight and gained muscle where, believe me, there was none before.” She slapped her abdomen to further her point. “But it isn’t just my body that’s changing. I feel like I’ve gotten quicker mentally; my sight is better too.” She looked at Robert again, pointing at him accusingly. “And don’t think I haven’t seen you admiring your arms, I have, and those muscles weren’t there before. I would know.”

Robert looked at the ground. “I just don’t see the reasoning behind your wanting to learn to fight. Back at home, you were against violence; we both were. Why the sudden change?”

“Because things change, Robert.” She gestured at their surroundings. “I never thought in a million years I’d be whisked away into another fucking world. I had a pretty easy-going comfort zone at home, but here I’m vulnerable. And I don’t want that.”

There were several moments of silence as the two huffed in unspoken anger.

“Well,” Boros said, “I will… wait for you at the front gate. I’m sure you will need some time to get ready.” Boros stood and bowed to leave.

“Wait,” Daniel said. “I’m ready, Boros. I’ll go with you.” He stood, not having touched any food on the table. Boros nodded, and the two left the dining hall.

Katrina still fumed at Robert, but he wouldn’t meet her gaze. She scoffed at his unwillingness to confront her and stood as well. She fought the urge to leave and again looked at him. He was a gentle person she now saw, not hard and unreadable like so many faces here. Not a stranger in a strange world, but a familiar presence. How many times had she cried on his shoulder or laughed with him through the nights? Her face softened at the thought. Here was a man she had known for several years, who had been a modicum of strength for her in life. Now though, he seemed a ghost of what he once was to her. She hardened her mind and started toward the door. “Illya, you’re coming with us, right?”

The Dae Krya had remained and seemed less uncomfortable than her brother.

“Oh, darling, I will be here when you return.” She looked at Robert, who still sat unmoving. “I would like to speak to Robert, however.” Illya smiled at Katrina and looked at her expectantly as if politely asking for her to leave.

Katrina exhaled deeply and turned to stride out of the door past the guards who held them open, to join Boros and Daniel.