Chapter 34
“What next?” Dola Ray asked, lying in the water of the well of inexhaustible mana.
Many of the monks of Mos had gathered around the well, all eager to see the human incarnation of a Dragon.
Sol and Anka were also there as Archer spoke with the woman in the white robe.
“Kronveld is in custody,” Archer said.
“We’ll transport him to the Four Crowns.
“That should prevent the Dreurg prophecy from coming true, although we’ll need to confirm that by speaking with the Dreurgs personally.
“After that, we need to end Arkonia’s conflict with Trinity and its conflict with the forest elves.
“We’ll have to speak with King Akbert and tell him that Kronveld has been neutralized and no longer poses a threat.
“We’ll also return his daughter Vidya to him.
“Speaking of which, how is Vidya?”
Archer turned toward Farvin, who was standing nearby.
“Dumo and a group of our brothers and sisters are working to heal her emotional trauma,” the old man replied.
“It will take several days, but the girl will be all right afterward.
“We will veil her memories of her imprisonment.
“We have experience with this craft.
“You may rely on us.”
“Several days,” Archer repeated.
“All right.
“We’ll tell Trinity that the conflict with Arkonia is nearing its end.
“We’ll explain that King Akbert was being manipulated into waging war against the Lilians.
“And we’ll tell them that a Dragon was behind all of it.”
“I’d rather you didn’t,” Dola Ray said.
“I’m quite comfortable living in human form.
“If everyone learns that I’m a Dragon, people will treat me differently.
“They’ll become wary of me.
“Afraid of me.
“They’ll behave differently around me.
“I would rather not be perceived as a Dragon.”
“All right,” Archer said.
“Then we’ll tell Akbert and Trinity that Kronveld was behind everything.
“But what did Kronveld want for himself?” Archer asked Dola Ray.
“What did he expect to gain from all these schemes?”
“I promised him a place at my side,” Dola Ray replied.
“He believed I was a deity from the ancient scriptures.
“He was happy to serve me.”
“He thought Dola Ray was the incarnation of a deity?” Archer asked.
“No.
“He thought Dola Ray was merely human,” the woman-Dragon replied.
“I never revealed my identity to anyone.
“I didn’t want people treating Dola Ray differently.”
“Then how did you communicate with him?” Archer asked.
“How did you influence him?
“Because I saw you in the spirit realm in the form of a Dragon.”
“Yes.
“And it cost you your sight,” Dola Ray said.
“I exist in three forms simultaneously.
“My powerful spirit resides in the spirit realm.
“My Dragon form exists in its own separate dimension of complete darkness.
“And I, as Dola Ray, exist here in the physical world.
“All three are sufficiently separate from one another, yet at the same time we are a single whole.
“All three share one will, though each has interests of its own.”
“About my sight...” Archer said.
“Yes,” Dola Ray replied immediately.
“I removed the curse of blindness from you as soon as you saw my Dragon form.
“Your sight will return.
“But not immediately.
“I recommend taking a year off from adventuring.”
“I was going to suggest the same thing,” Anka said.
“Stop for a while.
“Just enjoy being alive.”
“Why not?” Archer replied.
“We’ll finish our business on Planet and then take a vacation.”
“So, what’s next?” Dola Ray asked again.
“We’ll start with the archmage,” Archer said.
“We’ll turn Kronveld over to the Four Crowns to stand trial.
“We’ll inform Trinity that the conflict with Arkonia is over.
“Then we’ll visit the Dreurgs and get confirmation regarding their prophecy.
“By then, several days should have passed, and the king’s daughter should have recovered from her trauma.
“We’ll send her back to Akbert with Dola Ray.
“Dola, you’ll need to tell the king that Kronveld has been neutralized.
“Akbert must withdraw his troops and his mages and call off the hunt for the three of us.”
“When do we begin?” the woman-Dragon asked.
“We can start now,” Archer said.
Dola Ray climbed out of the well.
Water streamed from her white robe, which clung to her body and outlined her figure.
“Want to dry off first?” Archer asked.
“Yes,” Dola Ray replied.
Instantly, her body began radiating an almost incomprehensible amount of heat.
Thick steam filled the entire chamber containing the well of inexhaustible mana.
In less than a minute, the woman’s white robe was completely dry.
“I’m ready,” she said.
“Can the monks keep quiet about what I really am?”
“We will not reveal your secret,” Farvin promised.
Outside the Monastery of Mos, Archer used the magic brush to open a temporary portal to the continent of Frinian, in the city of Markonia, where the portal to Ankarian was located.
The street surrounding the Ankarian portal was swarming with Trinity military forces.
Archer, Anka, Sol, Dola Ray, and five monks from Mos stepped through the temporary portal.
Two of the monks carried Kronveld’s body, while the other three continuously maintained the enchanted sleep spell over the archmage.
A Trinity military officer stopped the group of ten travelers and demanded an explanation for their arrival.
Archer, Sol, and Anka were identified as citizens of Trinity—and as its founders.
Archer explained that they had neutralized the dangerous mage responsible for the conflicts involving Arkonia and were transporting him to the Four Crowns to stand trial.
Archer emphasized that the archmage either had to leave Planet or be killed in order to prevent the Dreurg invasion.
The officer allowed all ten of them through the portal into Trinity.
They made a brief stop at their skyscraper in Trinity.
Dola Ray was given the fourth apartment, previously occupied by Marv Galsius.
Sol repaired his robotic body.
He had a head again.
Dola Ray put on a suit of space armor and a neural interface.
And now she looked no different from the other three members of their group of interdimensional adventurers.
Sol sent a message to the Four Crowns informing them that they were transporting a dangerous criminal to Ramman.
He also ordered a larger cargo transport.
The four companions, Kronveld, and the monks boarded the transport and departed for the Four Crowns.
On the other side of the portal, in Ramman, law enforcement officers were waiting for them.
They escorted the group to a skyscraper that served as both a prison and a courthouse.
The prisoner was carried into a courtroom, where the three monks finally stopped maintaining the enchanted sleep spell.
Kronveld woke.
He came to his senses and realized that he had been captured and immobilized.
His mouth was bound.
His mana reserves were empty.
He struggled against his restraints, but nothing happened.
Eventually, he gave up and began paying attention to his surroundings.
“Sim Kronveld, citizen of Arkonia, resident of the world known as Planet,” the judge said.
“You are standing trial in the city of Ramman, in the world of the Four Crowns.
“You are charged with causing the death of Marv Galsius, a citizen of the Four Crowns.
“For our safety, a number of precautions have been taken to restrain you.
“We apologize for the inconvenience.
“A device known as a neural interface will now be placed against the back of your head.
“It will allow you to communicate with the court, and it will also allow us to examine your memories relating to the incident in question.”
A neural interface was placed on Kronveld.
His protests immediately became audible.
“How dare you?
“Do you know who I am?
“Release me at once!
“You have no right!
“I am Kronveld!
“I am a servant of King Akbert!
“Release me!”
The judge muted the defendant.
“Using the neural interface, our consciousness technicians will now enter your memories and extract the information relevant to this court.
“We apologize for any cognitive discomfort caused by the procedure.
“And please, do not be concerned.
“The court has access only to memories directly related to the charge.”
Kronveld’s eyes immediately closed, and he fell into a sleep-like state.
He returned to the past.
He saw his memories.
Specifically, he saw the memories involving Archer, Sol, Anka, and Galsius.
He saw their conversation in the mages’ tower.
He saw Archer create a powerful magical artifact and remembered his own astonishment.
Then he saw them enter the dimension of magic.
He saw himself shout:
“Back!”
And then he saw himself attack the four visitors from another world with the Melting Ray.
His memories clearly revealed the aftermath.
Two bodies lay motionless on the floor of the magical dimension.
Sol.
And Marv Galsius.
Both were dead.
Neither showed any sign of life.
Then Kronveld’s memories and thoughts turned toward his motive.
It was as though he were being forced to remember why he had done it.
And the answer was simple:
They were interfering with my plans.
The examination ended.
Kronveld opened his eyes.
He immediately began struggling wildly against his restraints again, desperately trying to break free.
“Sim Kronveld,” the judge said.
“Your guilt has been established through cognitoscopy.
“Do you admit your guilt?”
“Go to hell!” Kronveld screamed through his thoughts.
“I am Kronveld!
“I am Kronveld!
“No court has the right to judge me!
“I do not recognize the authority of this court!
“I am Kronveld!”
The judge muted the defendant again.
“Sim Kronveld,” the judge said.
“I sentence you to life imprisonment under maximum security.
“The mana-draining pendant will be permanently bound to your body so that you cannot use magic.
“Your legs, hands, and mouth will be unbound.
“You will be granted all the freedoms to which a prisoner is entitled.
“Should you achieve complete rehabilitation, your sentence may be reduced and you may one day regain your freedom.
“Such is the judgment of this court.”
“Is it safe to leave him like that?” Archer asked Dola Ray.
“Yes,” the woman replied.
“As far as I can tell, mana does not regenerate through rest or sleep in the Four Crowns.
“So he won’t be able to cast a single spell.
“And the pendant is bound to him.
“Even if he somehow manages to recover some mana, the pendant will immediately drain it away.
“Without mana, he has no spells.
“And without his spells, he is nothing.”
Archer, Anka, Sol, Dola Ray, and the five monks returned to Ankarian.
From there, they returned to Planet and teleported to Mos.
They spent several days at the monastery, waiting for Vidya to recover.
“What is our group called?” Dola Ray asked Archer, Anka, and Sol.
“It isn’t called anything,” Anka replied.
“We’ve never needed a name before,” Archer said.
“But your country is called Trinity,” Dola Ray said.
“Yes,” Archer replied.
“At some point, we all sat down together and came up with a name for the city, the country, and the world.
“I think Sol was the one who suggested that we give ourselves a name.”
“I propose we give our group a name,” Dola Ray said.
“What do you suggest?” Archer asked.
“Essentially, we travel between worlds and solve those worlds’ problems, correct?” Dola Ray asked.
“Essentially, yes,” Archer replied.
“We could call ourselves the Solution,” the woman-Dragon said.
“That would create a great deal of confusion,” Sol said.
“‘Hello, we’re the Solution,’ sounds a little strange,” Anka added.
“Then let’s call ourselves the Ray,” Dola Ray said.
“In honor of Archer, the founder of the group.”
“Hello, we’re the Ray,” Anka said, trying the phrase out.
“The word ray has a good meaning,” Sol said.
“As though we are a ray of light in a world full of darkness.
“Especially after our investigation into the problems on Planet.
“You could say that we shine light wherever there is darkness—and that because of this Ray, what was hidden is brought into the light.”
“I think it fits,” Anka agreed.
“Yes.
“I like it too,” Archer said.
“Then from now on, we are the Ray,” Dola Ray said.
“We are the Rays.”
“We are the Rays,” Anka repeated with a smile.
Several days passed, and Vidya recovered from her trauma.
Archer opened a temporary portal to Pogrimar, and Dola Ray and Vidya stepped through.
The other three waited for Dola Ray to signal that it was safe for them to enter Arkonia.
Only a day later, old Farvin informed them that the powerful spirit of the Dragon had arrived and was waiting outside the monastery gates.
As soon as Archer stepped outside, the Dragon’s spirit enveloped him and delivered a message directly into his mind:
Arkonia is safe.
Archer, Sol, and Anka mounted their flying motorcycles.
Archer opened a temporary portal to Pogrimar, and after passing through, they flew toward the castle.
Flying mages came out to meet them.
Thousands of them.
But instead of attacking the trio, the mages formed two rows in the sky, creating an aerial honor guard leading straight to the castle.
The three companions flew between them.
Dola Ray was waiting in the air outside the castle on a flying stone disk.
She escorted them to the castle’s main courtyard, where they landed their motorcycles.
The king came out personally to greet his honored guests.
He was carrying Vidya in his arms.
“My friends!” King Akbert exclaimed.
“My friends, welcome!
“How happy I am to greet the heroes of Arkonia!
“The heroes of all Planet!”
The king lowered Vidya onto the stone courtyard and approached each of the arriving heroes in turn, embracing them.
“Dola Ray has told me everything you have done for our country,” Akbert said.
“You defeated Kronveld—that scoundrel and deceiver.
“And you rescued Vidya from his captivity.
“I am infinitely grateful to you!
“How can I repay you?
“Ask anything of me, and if it is within my power, it shall be done.”
“Your Majesty,” Archer said, “we ask only for what is just.
“End the persecution of the forest elves.
“Restore the forests of Arkonia.
“Allow the Lilians to live in peace.”
“Yes, of course,” Akbert replied.
“Dola Ray told me that the Lilian attack on Pogrimar four years ago was orchestrated by our enemies, and that Kronveld was working with them.
“I should have realized.
“I was blind.
“Literally.”
The king laughed.
“But you are right.
“The persecution of the Lilians will end immediately.
“I have already ordered our armies and magical forces to withdraw.
“But surely there is something more I can do for you?”
“Become a friend to our country—to Trinity,” Sol said.
“Restore diplomatic relations.”
“Of course,” the blind king replied.
“And release Dola Ray from royal service,” Archer said.
“She has decided to join the Ray.”
“Yes,” the king replied.
“She already told me that she was joining you—joining your Ray.
“Although I don’t entirely understand what a professional diplomat can contribute to your group.”
“Perhaps she has hidden talents,” Archer said.
“All right,” the king replied.
“She is free to go with you, and you have my gratitude.
“Now, please—come inside!
“Come to the table.
“We’ll hold a proper feast in your honor!”
“Let the feast wait, Your Majesty,” Archer said.
“First, we want to meet with the Dreurgs and make sure their plans to invade Arkonia are no longer in effect.”
“As you wish,” the king agreed.
“Dad, can I ask them something?” Vidya asked.
“Yes, of course,” he replied to his adopted daughter.
“Vidya wanted to ask you for something.”
“Can you take me for a ride on one of your motorcycles?” the girl asked with a smile.
“Of course,” Archer replied.
“Who do you want to ride with?
“Me?
“Anka?
“Sol?”
“Anka,” the girl said.
“Anka, want to take her for a ride?” Archer asked.
“With the greatest pleasure,” Anka replied.
“Come on.”
Anka took the girl by the hand, and they walked toward the motorcycles.
She seated Vidya in front of her, lifted the flying motorcycle into the air, and sped away into the distance.
“May I ask,” the king said, “does Trinity intend to do anything about the Dreurg presence on Holika?”
“We can’t speak for Trinity,” Archer replied.
“But I think it’s reasonable to assume that if the local population welcomes Trinity’s involvement in the affairs of their continent, then yes.
“Holika could be liberated from the Dreurgs, and authority returned to the surviving peoples of the continent.”
“I can make a reasonably informed assessment of Trinity’s intentions,” Sol said.
“Several days ago, while we were traveling through Ankarian on our way to the Four Crowns, I received a political briefing from Trinity.
“The people of Ankarian are well informed about Planet, and public sentiment currently favors providing assistance.
“Trinity’s citizens are particularly concerned about the Lilians and the peoples of Holika.
“However, many virtual forums are debating what right Trinity has to interfere in the lives and affairs of other worlds.”
King Akbert seemed troubled by Sol’s words.
Anka returned on the flying motorcycle with Vidya, who was squealing with delight.
They landed and climbed off.
Vidya threw her arms around Anka and thanked her for the ride.
“Well?” Anka asked.
“Are we going to see the Dreurgs?”
“Yes,” Archer replied.
“King Akbert, thank you for your hospitality.
“We’ll see you again soon.”
“Yes.
“Until we meet again,” the blind king said.
The four companions traveled through a temporary portal to the continent of Holika.
Once again, Sol alone descended to meet the Dreurgs on the ground, while the others were forced to remain high in the sky on their flying motorcycles so as not to provoke them.
The Ray had returned to the mountain-ringed plain where they had previously witnessed the Dreurgs’ strange circular ritual procession.
Now the plain was almost completely deserted.
The hundred thousand Dreurgs who had once gathered there had disappeared.
Only a few small groups of the black creatures remained.
Sol removed his helmet to reveal his inhuman face, descended toward one of the groups, and addressed them.
“Dreurgs,” Sol said.
“I have come from the southern continents.
“The inhabitants of this world and another wish to know whether you still intend to sail south and destroy humanity.”
This time, the Dreurgs didn’t even bother getting up.
They simply continued whatever they were doing.
Sol pulled the rifle from his back and fired into the ground beside one of them.
The Dreurg stood, looked at Sol, and asked:
“What do you want?”
“I want to know what has happened to your prophecy.”
“You are not worthy to know the affairs of the Dreurgs,” the Dreurg said.
“I fought your people before,” Sol replied.
“I defeated two of them, and I was told that I was worthy.
“So answer my question, Dreurg.
“What has happened to your prophecy?”
The Dreurg studied Sol for a moment.
Then he answered.
“The prophecy has passed.
“We are returning home to Dalektis to continue our war against the Erians.
“Our purpose now is to restore nature to Dalektis.
“The lesser peoples no longer concern us.”
“He’s telling the truth,” Dola Ray said.
“How do you know?” Archer asked.
“I can detect lies easily,” she replied.
“Besides, my spirit in the spirit realm has sensed how the spirit of the land has changed since Kronveld disappeared.
“The spirit of the land now sings an entirely different song.
“Calm.
“Peaceful.
“Serene.
“The prophecy truly has passed.”
“Sol, ask the Dreurg what they intend to do with all the lands and peoples they conquered,” Archer said.
Sol asked.
The Dreurg replied:
“We are releasing our prisoners and abandoning the conquered lands.
“We have no use for them now.”
“That settles it,” Archer said.
“Let’s go back to Akbert.”
King Akbert held a magnificent feast, complete with musicians, an abundance of food and drink, jesters, poets, and all manner of entertainment.
A public holiday was declared throughout Pogrimar.
In the streets, residents were given mugs of beer and pieces of bread and told to drink to the health of Archer, Anka, and Sol.
Members of Trinity’s newly restored diplomatic mission to Arkonia attended the feast and raised a toast to renewed relations between the two worlds.
But Archer’s thoughts were somewhere else entirely.
“You want to open a portal to another world, don’t you?” Sol asked.
“Am I really that predictable?” Archer said with a grin.
“No.
“You’re still transmitting your neural activity to me,” Sol replied.
“I can literally read your thoughts.”
“Yes,” Archer admitted.
“I want to open a portal to another world.
“My intuition tells me our work here is finished.
“And I can almost feel other worlds calling to us.
“Literally calling.
“Meanwhile, we’re sitting here wasting time when we could be exploring something new.
“Something unknown.”
“I suggest we take a year off,” Anka said.
“Let your sight recover.
“Let diplomatic relations between Trinity and Planet develop.
“Let the wounds of the Lilians and the people of Holika begin to heal.
“There’s still a lot of work to be done here, Archer.”
“Yes, but that work isn’t ours anymore,” he replied.
“Let Trinity handle it.
“We can do so much more.”
“Archer,” Anka said, “while you’re blind, you could make mistakes that cost a lot of lives.
“What if, at some critical moment, you simply fail to notice something important?
“Besides, your greatest contribution comes from the brush.
“You’re a magical painter.
“What good is a blind Painter?”
Dola Ray laughed.
“One year, Archer,” Anka continued.
“Just wait one year.
“Travel around Planet.
“Learn some new spells at Mos.
“Meet elves, dwarves, halflings, and all the other creatures of this strange world.
“Yes, the crisis is over.
“But try to enjoy the victory.
“Get to know the world we saved.
“See what our victory actually means for the people who live here.
“Besides, you’re not alone in the Ray anymore.
“There are four of us.
“You can’t expect all of us to keep running after you without ever taking a break.”
“I thought that was one of our strengths,” Archer said.
“None of us actually needs rest.”
“Physically, no,” Anka replied.
“But that doesn’t mean we have to spend our lives running from one fire to the next without ever stopping.
“I think we need to know how to pause sometimes and simply watch life happening around us.”
“I agree with Anka,” Dola Ray said.
“If, as she puts it, you spend your existence running from one fire to another and never see anything else, eventually you may become a cynical, pessimistic realist who no longer sees any point in helping others.
“So if your goal is to help other worlds, learn to stop and enjoy the moment.
“Otherwise, you’ll simply burn out.
“Trust me.
“I speak from considerable experience.”
“Sol?” Archer asked.
“What do you think?”
“I agree with Anka and Dola,” the advisor replied.
“I would rather not see you burn out and lose your idealism.”
“All right,” Archer said.
“So be it.
“We’ll take a year off.”
Amid the music and drunken celebration around the royal table, Archer sat quietly and observed the world through his four remaining senses.
He remembered fragments of the journey that had brought him here.
He remembered the infinite white space.
He thought about the magic brush and the extraordinary gift he had been given.
He still had no answers to the simplest questions about himself or his past.
But he had a purpose.
He had found his calling.
He had learned how to bring his ideas into reality.
And he knew what he wanted to devote that gift to:
helping entire worlds.
The beginning had been made.
A civilization had been built.
A team had been assembled.
All that remained was to pick up the brush...
and paint the next portal.