Joint Intentions (Book 9) (24 page)

"Not when he was in Baannat's realm," Vraya confessed. "The time he went in there before, he was lost to me. I've never been sure what happened to him in there."

"I managed to survive," Ryson stated. "I was also capable of battling Baannat, even in near total nonexistence."

Holli turned to Jure.

"Is there a spell you could cast upon him which would allow us to keep track of him?"

"There's nothing I can think of. I'd have to anchor a spell to him, but his body is going to stay out here, or at least most of it will. I'm not even sure how this all works. It's like Vraya said, it's Ryson's unique magic that'll allow him to have some kind of physical presence in there, but Ryson's magic is colorless. I don't understand its qualities to mimic it, or follow it."

"Then you will have to go in alone," Holli relented as she turned back to the delver. "Time is an issue, and we do not fully understand the passage of time within Baannat's realm. What you sense beyond the rift may be different than what we experience out here. You must move quickly. Determine if he is present within his realm, but do not waste too much time questioning him. We will not be able to trust his answers. Simply scout the area surrounding the other side of the portal and return here."

"There may be one thing I can do," Vraya offered before Ryson could respond. "When he enters the portal, his consciousness won't necessarily change, but it will be separated from his body. It's not an actual transformation I can follow, but it is a division of sorts. If I place a shadow spell over his complete existence, part of it will remain here and part of it will go with his consciousness when he enters the portal."

"What will that allow you to do?"

"I won't be able to see him, but I can monitor the division of the spell. Like I said, it's not quite a transformation, but it is a change in aspect. That may give me a chance to make a connection to him once he goes through the rift. If I can connect the flow through the portal, we might be able to speak to each other through the magic."

"Seems reasonable," Jure acknowledged.

"Would Ryson be able to reply?"

"I really don't know, but a one way conversation is better than none."

"I'll probably be able to hear you through the portal," Ryson offered, "even without the spell."

"That's true, but this would be a stronger link," Vraya explained, "and it may allow us to relay messages to each other. If something happens out here, you'd have a better chance of knowing what's going on."

Holli considered the offer. She was not sure how far she trusted the sorceress, but she could rely on others to determine the safety of the incantation.

"If Ryson agrees, I will allow it, but I will also ask that you let Jure link his magical awareness to your spell."

"Still don't trust me?"

Holli did not hesitate in answering.

"Not completely. You remain unknown to me and I have already made several errors in judgment. I will not take unnecessary risks."

"I understand," Vraya replied. "You're an elf guard. I shouldn't be surprised. I'll work the spell so Jure can follow it just as I can."

"Ryson?" Holli asked. "Are you comfortable with this?"

"What's the spell going to do to me?" the delver asked before agreeing.

"It will shade you... all of you. What you see will appear slightly darker, what you feel will seem slightly more dreary. You may even experience a sense of sadness you can't describe because I have to place the shadow into your consciousness as well as over your body."

"Is this going to dull my senses?"

"Not completely, you'll still be able to rely on them. The best way to describe it would be if a storm cloud immediately appeared overhead and began to rain on you. Admittedly, it's more difficult to see and hear things in the rain, but that's the price we have to pay in order to maintain a connection under these conditions."

"I can live with that."

"Very well," Holli gave the final approval. "Cast the spell."

Vraya did as she was asked. As a circle of ebony magic appeared around her right hand, she held out her left for Jure to clasp.

The elder wizard was slightly surprised the sorceress requested physical contact, but he realized each spell caster worked differently with the magical energies. He placed his hand in hers and began to reach out with his own magic. A small ring of white power rolled off his finger and into the sorceress' palm.

With Jure's magic in her grasp, Vraya inserted it within her circle of ebony energy. She then cast the pure black ring towards Ryson.

The delver did not flinch. He watched the shadowed circle float toward him, and he allowed it to encase his head. The moment it touched his shoulders, everything around him turned slightly dark. As Vraya's magic seeped into his essence, he felt a growing sense of dread. It was not fear which aroused the sensation, but rather a billowing gloom.

The sounds coming up from the dark lands were suddenly muted. Ryson was actually thankful for that—the shrieks of agony always disturbed him—but the dimming did not end with his ears. It also affected what he could see. The faces of his companions appeared slightly gray, as if they stood within the shadows of a lonely corner.

Ryson took a deep breath as he forced himself to accept the sensation. His senses quickly adjusted to the effects of the spell, but it was more difficult to fight through the shroud of gloom pressing down on his soul. Once he steadied himself, he acknowledged the success of the spell.

"It's in me... your spell. I can feel it all the way through."

"So can I," Jure confessed.

"Then there is no reason to delay," Holli stated. "Go through the portal now. The moment you are through, attempt to establish communication with Vraya. If you do not hear from her after a few moments, return at once."

"But I should still scout..."

"Not with Vraya's spell dimming your senses," Holli insisted strongly. "If there is an advantage to the spell, then I will allow it to remain upon you in Baannat's realm. If it does not enable any method to communicate, then it must be removed as soon as possible. We will reassess the situation at that point."

"Alright. After I go through, I'll give it just a few moments. If I don't hear anything, I'll come right back. Okay?"

Holli nodded in agreement.

Ryson stepped up to the swirling gray portal. There was nothing to see on the other side, for that's what waited in Baannat's realm... nothing. He took one more deep breath and leapt into the portal.

The instant he touched the rift, his arms and legs went limp as if he had instantly lost consciousness in the middle of his jump. His body passed right through the portal without ever leaving the dark realm, at least most of it did. A small, almost insignificant portion of his substance was carried into Baannat's realm by the force of the delver's inherent magic.

To those standing on the stone tower plateau, it looked like Ryson jumped through a large, oblong circle of fog, but when his body came into clear space, the delver looked distorted, almost blurry. It was as if a haze formed around his body and stuck to him even as he hit the gray and dusty ground in a heap.

Holli disregarded Ryson's apparently lifeless body and gave immediate direction to both magic casters before her.

"Vraya, attempt to establish contact through your spell. Jure, try to follow the spell to Ryson's location."

The sorceress nodded and spoke into the rift. She was not trying to force her words through the portal. Instead, she attempted to reconnect her broken spell and allow the flow of magic to carry her voice directly into Ryson's essence.

"Ryson? Can you hear me?"

The delver actually heard the sorceress through the portal as well as deep within his consciousness. He felt the vibrations of her voice come through the spell which remained upon his awareness.

"Yes, I can," the delver replied. "Your voice is coming through the magic and the rift."

Vraya announced the good news to Holli.

Upon hearing the positive report, the elf guard called into the portal herself. Before Ryson moved too far from his current position, she wanted to ensure he could find his way back.

"Can you still see the portal on your side or is it hidden?" the elf asked.

"I can see it... barely. It's very dark, but there's just a hint of a crimson tint that I can make out. Give me a moment to get my bearings. Things are a bit different in here."

Ryson looked back through the rift. Normally when he looked into a portal, he could see the other side fairly clearly. Sometimes there was a faint mist or even a slightly heavier fog generated by the compression of time and space, but he could usually make out a certain amount of detail through most any gateway.

That, however, was not the case when dealing with a realm of nonexistence. Even though he was on Baannat's side of reality and looking toward a physical plane of existence, the immaterial aspects of his current location blurred the view of the spire peak. With great concentration, he believed he could see the shadows of his three companions, but they were dim silhouettes.

As he examined his surroundings, he also took a moment to consider his own condition.

He had substance and form, but only slightly. He was far more spirit than body, but it was a condition he had experienced before. He had previously entered Baannat's realm to save Linda. In that confrontation, he maintained enough physical presence to strike and hold the slink ghoul. He had forced the ghoul into submission and freed Enin and Linda.

As he recalled the incident, he remembered how he saw them both. His wife and his friend had no substance. It was their essence trapped in Baannat's realm... their spirit. During that encounter, he understood very little of such things.

At the time, he attributed Linda and Enin's condition to the aspects of Baannat's realm of nonexistence. He believed their consciousness had been separated from their body, but he did not search for a deeper understanding.

That encounter, however, occurred before he saw his own soul in its pure form. As he stood once more in emptiness—existing more in ghostly form than in physical substance—he thought of his spirit as a separate entity as opposed to simply a portion of his current state of being.

The questions which spurred his trip to Connel and the Church of Godson swirled through his mind once more. He considered them as he continued to inspect his nearly ethereal form. How, if at all, had seeing his soul altered his concept of existence? Should he allow that new perspective to change his outlook on life? If so, in what way? And how would his future decisions and actions in a physical world affect his spiritual being?

As a delver, he could not ignore the questions. He might be able to bury them for a while, press them aside while he considered more pressing matters, but he could never simply dismiss them, cast them aside as inconsequential. They would remain with him until they were suitably answered, and even then, he believed they would continue to encourage him to seek greater awareness.

Not wishing to take too much time pondering questions with no clear answers, Ryson refocused his energy on finding Baannat. He spoke into the shadow of Vraya's spell in order to give Holli the information he knew she deemed important.

"I can definitely see the edges of the portal, but it's not a clear gateway. I can't really see the top of the spire where you're standing, but I can make out certain shapes."

Holli could not hear the delver's response, but both Vraya and Jure could hear the delver's words through the link of the sorceress' spell.

"He can see the portal on his side," Jure stated, "and to some extent see into this existence. It's probably because of the way the portal was made and how it's being powered. It was created on this side, but my guess is that Baannat wanted to keep it open. The ghoul is feeding it with his magic, so it's connected on both sides."

"Very well," Holli consented. "We can communicate with him and he can find his way back to us. We can continue."

Before giving further direction, Holli formulated the safest strategy to move forward. She remained uncertain regarding the extent of Baannat's involvement. She was also concerned about Ryson's willingness to confront the slink ghoul. She hoped to obtain as much information as possible before any further conflict ensued. After a brief moment of silent contemplation, she conveyed her instructions into the rift.

"Ryson, do not stray from your current position until we know more of what you face. What do you sense?"

It was a simple question, which generated a very simple response.

"Nothing," the delver admitted. "There's nothing here at all. Other than the shadow of the portal, it's completely empty."

Jure relayed the message to the elf guard.

"Is it possible Baannat is hiding from you?" Holli asked.

"I don't think so," Ryson replied. "Where could he hide?"

"Baannat's realm is a paradox," Vraya offered. "It is a place without substance, a space of emptiness, and yet it maintains its position within the layers of other realms. It is a realm of nonexistence where Baannat can exist in his own confused state of limbo."