Maker of Fire

Sils'chk, Planting Season, 3rd rot., 4th day

Spot considered carefully how to address the Chem, who were small and preferred to walk and talk on all fours close to the ground. The two coyn were easier to deal with since he could at least see them if they were standing up within his normal vision range. He constantly worried about accidentally stepping on a Chem he didn't see in time. He had never been around smaller creatures like Chem and Coyn before, and their swift movements and size made him nervous.

After inspecting most potential venues, Spot decided to address the Chem and the Coyn visitors from a modest beach on the unbuilt side of the hill surrounding the Well of Vassu. It was empty of huts or prayer flags because the soil was too sandy, and the slope down to the beach was steep and covered with dune grass. The hillside above the beach formed a natural bowl, which would help project his already majestic and stentorian voice. The hillside would also enable everyone sitting in the bowl to see Spot, and for Spot to see them, despite Spot's much greater height, towering above both Chem and Coyn.

Waiting for his audience to arrive, Spot carefully inspected the ground, walking in a circle with his wings up so he could inspect all around. Confident it was safe, he slowly and carefully laid down with his head up. When the hillside was full, Spot began reciting the words that the Pale Horse had put in his head. He knew instinctively that he would repeat the exact words every time, no matter how often he was asked to recite the revelation.

"Greetings, my colleagues of Sussbesschem," Spot began, happy that even the Chem seated farthest away looked like they could hear him clearly. "I am Spot, a flying horse of the Great Mother Herd of Alkinosuk. The god you called Gertzpul chose me several tens of days ago as his revelator. His revelation to me has two different parts, one addressed to you, the Chem of Sussbesschem, and one addressed to the human races regarding better ways to build bridges and to move freight over land.

"Unless some hidden mekaners are hiding among you, I will assume that the Chem have little interest in the parts of the revelation meant for humans, so I will refrain from reciting it here. If any individuals wish to hear or read the human part, I will be reciting it to the Prophet Emily. She will write it down for me, so others can read and copy the words of the god as text. Someone visiting here from Foskos will soon carry a copy of the entire revelation back to the Hospitable Shrine of Gertzpul. From there, it will be distributed everywhere on Erdos.

"And so, now, I will begin." Spot's pleasant baritone suddenly sounded deeper, and everyone could hear his voice as if it were next to them. His listeners found their attention drawn to Spot as he began speaking Gertzpul's words as if they were being compelled to hear him.

"Heed now the words of Gertzpul, the god of journeys and of death. Gertzpul's words are for the Chem to teach them what death is, and that life can be the same as death, and that life can be worse than death; for the Chem have become confused as to who is dead and who is alive.

"Listen to me, Children of Vassu! For over three thousand turns of the sun, Cosm raiders have plagued these shores to carry off your ksh'g'lsht and your kl'drt. Because Vassu gifted you with water magic, the Cosm who enslaved the Beloved of Vassu blinded those they captured. Even with water magic, no blind Chem slave could ever return home. None could see the stars to find their way back.

"Vassu counseled you, saying that those captured were dead to you. They were as dead as those whose remains were consigned to the salty deeps because they were lost and would never return. Because they were dead to you, Vassu said to sweep away the uneaten remains of their nests and burn their huts and give away their goods as keepsakes to those who loved the ones who were lost.

"Vassu told you this so you could grieve and then move onward from your loss, for she believed this was best for you.

"Death is not simple. True death is the perishing of the ba, the self-aware existence formed by the intersection of the soul and its physical body. When the body dies, so too dies the ba, which is true death.

"A living person may become forever dead to someone else, no matter the cause, and this is the living death of loss. This is the living death of the enslaved Chem, for they are dead to their kin in Sussbesschem while still alive as slaves for the Cosm. Every day, Vassu grieved for the great suffering of the enslaved Chem, which has become a stain and a blight, and a sin for the ruling race of Cosm.

"The enslaved chem were blinded by the Cosm who captured them. Unable to see their way, they were trapped by their owners, at their mercy for shelter, food, and warmth in waters and lands colder than Sussbesschem. They have lived their days forever separated from friend or kin, without sight to read the stars homeward, dying in their time alone and in the dark. This is a living death that is worse than death, for in each Chem slave, hope has died too. Death without hope is the cruelest death of all.

"The gods have heard the grief of Vassu for her children, and so the gods will no longer tolerate slavery. The enslaved Chem must be freed, but that freedom must be gained by your hands, the hands of the Chem of Sussbesschem. By liberating the blind and enslaved Chem, you will bring them back to their nesting places and their loved ones. By bringing them home, you will be bringing them back to life.

"You will witness, just this once in the whole history of the world, the miracle of regaining the lives of Chem known to be lost forever to their kin back home; for any person who can return home is not one of the dead. They may have been dead to you, but by returning, they will show you they are still alive, and you must welcome them home.

"The rescue of the enslaved Chem is a geas that Vassu has placed on the Chem of Sussbesschem. Vassu has sent her Revelator, the Blessed Twee, a shaman of Shwook; and she has sent the Coyn, the Beloved Emily, the Prophet of the Great Breaking, emissary of the gods; and the Revered Tom, Beloved of Galt and a leader of soldiers picked by Erhonsay. Vassu has sent these three to teach you and lead you in the war you must wage.

"The rescue of the enslaved will require violence from the Chem of Sussbesschem, the most peaceful people on Erdos, but Erhonsay will permit you to wage war, for you will be freeing your kin from the living death that is worse than the ultimate death of the ba. The knowledge that the Chem will use to defeat the Cosm slave owners is the gift of Giltak and Galt. Mueb will wilt the crops of those who oppose the emancipation of the enslaved Chem and Surd will ruin their goods for sale. Sassoo will sink their boats and flood their fields and houses.

"New sight for the enslaved Chem is the gift of Mugash. The way to heal the blinded eyes of the enslaved Chem was taught to the spider mage Ud, who healed the blindness of the Blessed Twee. Ud taught the healing way to the Blessed Aylem, Revelator of Tiki, who taught it to the Blessed Lisaykos, Revelator of Mugash, who has commanded all healers under her rule to learn this healing way. Once the enslaved Chem are free, the Healing Shrine of Mugash in Foskos will heal their eyes and restore their sight. This has already been foretold to them through an avatar of Galt.

"Many, many turns ago, Uaysserex, an avatar of Galt, promised and warned the Cosm that a prophet and a Foskan Queen would break the magics that made slavery of other races possible. That prophet is Emily, and the Queen is the Cosm mage, Aylem Nonkin. After the birth of her twins, Aylem with Emily will break the Cosm magic of control that binds slave to owner for all time to come, until the end of the world. This is the will of Landa, the god of magic.

"Therefore, Chem of Sussbesschem, go and build the tools to free your enslaved kin, the blades and bombs to fight the Cosm, and the ships to speed you on your way over the waters. Heed the three Vassu sent to you. The Chem Navy will sail for Mattamesscontess before Growing Season Midday to begin the emancipation of those you thought forever lost to you. These are the words of Gertzpul for the Chem of Sussbesschem. Write them in the well of Vassu and engrave them upon your twstilt'tn."

Tom and Emily strolled back to their hut when Spot was done speaking. After deciding to fry red sandies for dinner instead of digging up clams to roast in the coals of the cook fire, they fell into a comfortable, companionable silence until reaching their hut.

"Whose turn is it to cook?" Emily asked.

"My turn to cook, your turn to do dishes," Tom said, digging in the loam for a worm, sticking it on the iron hook made just one day ago. He trotted down to the pool that Twalkt had found full of red sandies. He came back with a fat red sandy before Emily had the fire built up for cooking.

"Did you notice the timing?" Emily asked, feeding a branch to the small but growing fire.

"What timing?" Tom started filleting out the red sandy on a flat rock.

"We've been here at Sils'chk for what, twelve days?" Emily asked rhetorically. "So Twee being taken for dead is a problem twelve days old. Now look at when Spot received his revelation. That must have been around four rotations ago, as I count the days. So Gertzpul knew the Chem would consider Twee dead well before it actually happened."

Tom sighed and shook his head at Emily's nonchalance over all things divine, "You know, Emily, Gertzpul is a real deity, an actual god with godlike powers. Of course, he knew ahead of time. He's an omniscient and omnipotent being, and we're probably just like bugs to him."

"Even gods have rules," Emily frowned in thought. "They create realities that have set cosmologies with known spatial and temporal dimensions and different networks of forces, all of which obey discoverable laws. They create different species capable of intelligent thought and give those species varying amounts of direction. Then they kick back and watch to see if their created beings will live and behave in the ways they want. I don't know if we're just entertainment for them or if they have some deeper purpose for creating worlds where we can live."

Emily blew on the fire and added some thicker wood to the growing flames. "I suspect the reality building has some entertainment value for them. Surd told me as much, over Wienerschnitzel, no less. She said the committee of eleven gods has strands of free will and unpredictability built into Erdos by design to keep things interesting. They live forever, so designing realities where they have complete knowledge of all future events is boring for them. Because of that, they set up things so they stay entertained. No crappola, Tom. That's what the deity Surd told me."

Emily studied Tom's gobsmacked face, frowned, and then laughed at him. "I think if you had the chance to talk with the goofball gods of Erdos, you might agree with me. I don't find the gods that scary. Most of them are rather eccentric. Tiki's the class clown. Surd and Galt take me out to eat at all my old favorite spots on Earth as bribes to motivate me. Erhonsay drops by to get all philosophical on me. Sassoo likes opera and takes me to classic performances of the twentieth century, which shows that he has good taste in music. You've heard all this before, love. You shouldn't be surprised by now by the things I say."

"Sometimes, I feel like I don't understand you anymore," Tom said with some gravity, brows creased, the ends of his mouth downturned.

Emily got up and walked behind him, wrapping her arms around his back and sides. "Hey, mister short-order cook, I want my fish fried by a tall, good-looking guy with red hair and green eyes who will sing me love songs while I eat my dinner. I got news for you, Tom."

"And what's that?"

"You never understood me to begin with," she grinned at him, though he couldn't see it. "Why do you think you can understand me now?"

"You may have a point, there, my little mouse," Tom laughed at her overturning his bout of introspection. "However, my manly-man ego refuses to admit that. I am never wrong, and I comprehend everything, including you."

"I don't care what your delusions of manhood want to admit. All is forgiven as soon as you fry up that fish." She untangled herself from grabbing him from behind. "I wish I could get a message up to Foskos before they send their yearly messenger from the Shrouded Shrine of Vassu in Weirgos. I'd put in an order for some olive oil for our frying pan. Rendering the fat off those scrawny swamp grouse is such a tiresome chore, and setting up snares for them in all that boggy ground is a pain."

"I wouldn't mind some sweet butter, some eggs, fresh bread, and some decent peppers," Tom added.

"I'd settle for fresh vegetables," Emily sighed.

"Ha!" Tom barked. "I'd settle for any vegetables."

"The fruits are all fresh," Emily pointed out.

"I forbid you to climb any more date palms," Tom humphed. "And no more coconut picking, either. You'll fall out of one of those palm trees and kill yourself."

"Nag, nag nag," Emily stuck her tongue out, "I can't fall to my death when I'm wearing Ud's magic undershirt. Here, have a date," she stuffed one into his mouth to shut him up and smiled at her success.