Valdemar's route

II: THE HIGH PRIESTESS

I've seen many strange things in my time as a magician's apprentice....but the events of this night were the strangest yet. Needing a moment's rest, I go upstairs and lay down, slipping away lost in a dream. The sky is no more than a slim, green line along the endless horizon. Asra sits beside me, on the back of a strange beast.

Mc: "Master, where are we?"

Dark clouds bear down all around the landscape, a shifting sea of rust-colored sand. Ahead is a road of perfect black stone.

Asra: "Far enough from hime, I think."

Mc: "Far enough....for what?"

Asra: "For answers. For clarity. And i need them soon." "A storm is coming..."

He looks out into the distance, his voice dimming to a wistful whisper. I strain to see where the path leads, but it keeps changing.

Asra: "Soon there will be a crossroads."

Mc: "How soon?" "Where do they lead?"

Asra: "Depends which one you take."

His hands reach for mine, but he stops just short. The sands rise all around us in a chilly wind, blotting out the sky.

Asra: "For now,mc...rest."

I fall into a dreamless slumber. When i wake, dawn light is flickering through the dusy windows. I spent the early hours preparing my things, casting wild shadows on the walls. I am to meet the countess at the palace, for some unknown purpose. I throw on a traveling cloak and hurry outside, dragging the heavy door shut behind me. After last night's intrusion....I turn the first lock and then second and third. Almost satisfied, I press my right hand to the door and whisper a cross-me not smell. White whorls grow deep within the door, slowly fading into the grain. I'm about to leave when the hair at the nape of my neck rise in alarm. Someone is... right behind me, a dark shape looming in the alley. The form is definitely human, though enormous in size. Their flesh is scored with scars, clean and jagged, shallow and deep. Shrouded in a pall of weatherbeaten furs, it's hard to make out a face....but they are definitely watching me. They stand between me and the road to the palace. I take a step forward, watching the figure cautiously. Stormy green eyes follow my movements as I enter the ally, but the stranger makes no move. A voice like distant thunder rumbles from beneath their robes,

?????: "You are in grave danger."

The earthy scent of myrrh washes over me, and I stop in my tracks.

?????: "He will return, uninvited," "He will offer a gift, when you need it the most..." "Turn it away. Or you will fall into his hand...." "Just like the rest of us."

I blink, trying to process what I just heard. There is a shuffling behind me, the dragging if rough cloth and chains. And then, silence. I look up and down the foggy alley. I left the shop, then... wasn't someone else here just now? I shake off the fading thought. I don't have time to dawdle; the Countess is expecting me. Exhaling deeply, I continue toward the narrow, mossy steps to the marketplace. It's early yet, and the marketplace is already wide awake. All around me are sounds of bartering, laughter, vendors hawing their wares. A voice I know well calls out to me over the sea of noise.

Baker: "mc!" "Have you eaten?" "I've got that pumpkin loaf you like in the oven. Won't be long now." "Come, sit down, talk for a while!"

I sniff the air, and my stomach twists in hunger. Then again, I should be careful of the time... The baker's sun-speckled face lights up with a broad smile. He leads me into the booth, and a warm, spicy scent surrounds me. As I settle against the back wall, he offers me a steaming tin cup.