Book of Venoms - 11. Sands of Time

“To whomever may read this book after I am no longer among the living, the following passages may be the greatest gift. In them, I shall describe in full detail my most important work, the mission I have dedicated a better part of my life to - creating a universal antidote, a cure for all toxins known to men.

After years, even decades of experimenting and mixing various toxins in my laboratories, one single combination has yielded the best results so far. Thus, I have concluded that the key ingredients for this would be the venoms of the following animals: Assassin Wasp, Fireborn Scorpion and Scarlet-tailed Serpent.

When combined in the proper way and in the right quantities, the properties of these three venoms change in such a way to create an extraordinarily powerful antidote. The entire procedure is as follows…”

--

Ercil came to his senses and rubbed his eyes, stretching out on the sheets he lay on. He was awakened by groans coming from nearby. As he raised his head and looked around, he realized it was Magana, lying on her stomach. Her back was exposed and covered in whip marks from the cruel punishment she had to endure the day before. All because of him and his foolish idea to overthrow his father.

The young woman was clearly in pain, as he moaned and tried to find the most comfortable position to lie in. Of course, there was no comfort when the skin on your entire back was ripped to shreds. She couldn’t wear anything to cover the upper part of her body until her wounds healed, and whatever ointment Vaunga used on her was clearly losing its effect.

“My love,” Ercil whispered and got up, moving closer to his beloved. “I hate to see you in pain.”

“I’ll live,” Magana replied. She was much tougher than she looked. Just like him, she was trained to be a warrior from an early age. “I’m sorry I woke you up.”

“What? Don’t apologize for anything! It is I who should be crawling before you, begging for forgiveness. I should’ve taken those hits, not you,” the young man shook his head sadly. He would never forgive his father for this.

“What’s done is done. I don’t blame you and I wouldn’t change things, you know that.”

Ercil caressed the girl’s long, raven hair and kissed her gently.

“Can I do anything for you? Do you need water, food…?”

“Please, go to the shaman and see if she has any more of that ointment of hers. It numbs the pain just enough and lasts for hours,” Magana replied.

“I’ll go at once,” Ercil nodded. Without hesitation, he put on his trousers, grabbed his sabre and opened their tent, stepping out into the light. The sun was already out. However, in the shady oasis, with palm trees and water in abundance, the desert heat was much easier to bear.

People were milling about - locals, merchants and members of the Mataki tribe. Somehow, they had gotten accustomed to each other and stayed out of each other’s way.

Ercil made his way through the scattered tents, finally reaching the one occupied by the tribe shaman, Vaunga. However, as he was about to enter it, he heard soft voices coming from the inside. Instead of making his presence known, he stopped to listen. One of the voices was clearly Vaunga’s, but the other was male. Was it… No, it couldn’t be - General Dakon!

“Of course not. My powers are no match against his,” Ercil could hear Vaunga whisper. “The important thing is that Kotho believes they are.”

“Then all we have to do is wait until we reach Macarius’ Citadel, and that blasted sorcerer will take care of everything for us,” Dakon said. “Who knew he’d turn out to be so useful.”

As quietly as he could, Ercil returned to his own the tent, completely forgetting why he went to visit Vaunga in the first place. It wasn’t until he entered his tent and saw Magana that he remembered.

“What happened, my love?” the young woman asked. “Did you not bring the remedy?”

“I’m sorry, I… I got distracted,” Ercil stated, proceeding to tell Magana everything he overheard a minute ago.

The girl grabbed his hand and squeezed it, looking concerned.

“Then she plans to betray us all?”

“It would seem so. Father has been counting on Vaunga’s shaman magic to help us against Macarius’ spells, but if she is indeed powerless, we are as good as dead. We cannot face that sorcerer and live!”

“Your father would never believe us now if we told him.”

“I know,” Ercil nodded, looking pensively into the distance. “He would think it was just another of our plots against him. There’s no telling what he would do then. I cannot risk it, I can’t have him hurting you again.”

The girl groaned in pain and Ercil knelt down next to her, giving her a cup of fresh water to quench her thirst. He couldn’t do more at the moment and it was killing him having to watch his loved one suffer because of him.

“I’ll go to the shaman for the remedy again, when it’s safer. Just hold on a bit longer, my love.”

~~

When Castor woke up that morning, it took him a few moments to realize where he was. He had just had the best night in a long time, sleeping in the arms of his boyfriend after they had made love. What the young shifter didn’t even realize was that he spent much of that night in snake form, coiled next to Sawyer. Since he suppressed his animal form and almost never shifted consciously, this side of him would often come out at night, when he was asleep. But unlike all of the previous times, this time Sawyer didn’t panic and take off. No, he let the scaly reptile sleep peacefully next to him, as if it was the most normal thing in the world.

As he opened his eyes, Castor saw the fabric of the tent above him and remembered - they set up camp in the desert yesterday afternoon to get some rest. One thing led to another, and they spent the most beautiful night together. But now, he was alone. Sawyer must be outside, tending to the horses, Castor realized.

The boy untangled himself from the blankets they slept in and found his clothes. He giggled to himself as he got dressed, feeling a bit sore. He recalled the fun times they had last night. Sawyer was always gentle with him, but also fiery and passionate when he wanted to be. They were a perfect fit, though both of them got carried away last night. They had not had sex in months, ever since Sawyer went to Alduin at the start of that summer to attend Esthor’s sorcery classes. Now, Castor was able to say they were truly back together.

After he put on his pants and tunic, the shifter opened the tent and stepped out, gasping in shock at the sight before him. They were no longer in the desert they came to yesterday! Now, they were in some kind of a forest, with tall trees stretching all around him, as far as he could see!

Still, there was something odd about the whole scene, like there was something missing. Castor looked around for a bit and then it clicked - there were no animals anywhere. No birds in the trees, no insects buzzing around, nothing. It was way too quiet for a forest.

“Sawyer!” the shifter called out, looking around for his boyfriend. “Where are you?”

Their two horses were still nearby, tied to one of the trees.

“Cas, I’m here,” the familiar voice called out, and after a few moments Sawyer appeared, coming from behind a tree.

He didn’t look worried, though, Castor noticed. Why didn’t he look worried? Why was he smiling?

“Where the hell are we?” Castor asked in confusion. The shade and cooler air were a welcome change after the scorching heat of the desert, but the shifter couldn’t help being concerned. His first thought was that Macarius somehow found them and teleported them somewhere.

“Hey, sweetie. I’m sorry I wasn’t there when you woke up,” Sawyer took his hand and gave him a kiss on the lips. “But calm down, we’re still at the same place as yesterday. Do you like it?” he asked with a cheerful look, his smile beaming.

“What- what do you mean?” Castor frowned. “Do I like what exactly?”

“Well, I did this!” Sawyer exclaimed happily, swirling around with his arms outstretched. He didn’t even notice the blank look on his boyfriend’s face. “I woke up early and wanted to practice my new powers some more. So I started creating more trees and maybe I got a bit too excited! I think it’s awesome, we don’t have to go through the desert anymore!”

Castor froze for a second at the realization of what had actually happened.

“Uh, baby I- I think it’s great, you did a great job, but are you sure you can do this type of stuff?” he asked. He was getting increasingly more worried for Sawyer ever since they left Sephare’s house. If Goddess Nammis had indeed blessed him with magical powers, could Sawyer even handle them? Would there be a price to pay? The worst part of it was that Sawyer was not concerned about any of this, not even the tiniest bit. He was having too much fun and enjoying his newfound skills - and who could blame him? They were like toys and he was like a big baby.

“What do you mean, of course I can! See it for yourself,” Sawyer reassured him. “And it was really easy to do, you know! I’m getting faster and better at it! When we find Macarius, maybe I can turn him into a tree?!”

“No, I mean, are you allowed to change nature like this? We can’t go around creating forests and mountains and what not, don’t you think? Besides, didn’t Sephare tell us this was a sacred place, the supposed residence of the God of Time? What if- what if he gets mad at us or something and doesn’t let us pass?” Castor asked, trying to reason with him. He knew what his boyfriend was like and didn’t want to make him angry, but he had to try and get him to come to his senses somehow.

“I- I didn’t think about that, I’m sorry,” the sorcerer replied as the smile from his face disappeared, though only briefly. He took his boyfriend’s hands again and entwined their fingers together. “But don’t worry, I’m sure he won’t mind. He’s a God, right? His powers must be super huge, he can probably revert all of this to how it was in a blink of an eye!”

Sawyer did not seem too concerned. He believed Eteon would be benevolent and that his own powers would get them out of any predicament they get into.

Thus, the two boys packed their stuff into their bags, untied their horses and mounted them, ready to continue on their journey. Now that both of them, as well as their animals were sated, well-rested and didn’t have to endure the strong sun blazing down on them, they travelled much more comfortably and significantly faster than before. Even though Castor’s concerns hadn’t completely vanished, Sawyer managed to get him in a better mood as they rode through the newly-created forest. That was one of his best traits - his optimism always managed to help Castor whenever he was feeling down. They were opposites in many ways, but maybe that’s exactly why they were so good together.

“So how are you going to name it?” Castor asked, and Sawyer turned to look at him.

“Name what?”

“This forest. You created it, so you should get to name it, right?”

“Oh, yes, I didn’t even think about that!” the sorcerer grinned like a child that has just received a new pet. “How about I name it after you - Castor’s Forest!”

“I admit, I kinda like the sound of that,” the shifter nodded. “Thank you, babe.”

“Aww, you’re welcome,” Sawyer treated him with a look full of affection.

It wasn’t long before the trees in front of them started to get more sparse and the boys finally reached the end of the newly-named ‘Castor’s Forest’. The grass and trees were once again replaced by dirt, sand and rocks, with the occasional bush as the only vegetation.

“Well, this is it, I guess,” Sawyer sighed as they moved on from nice, soft grass to a beaten dirt path. “We have to keep going, though.”

“I know. Let’s hope Macarius’ citadel is-” Castor started to talk, but went silent as their horses suddenly started neighing, propping themselves up on their hind legs. Something had clearly upset the poor animals, as they refused to go any further.

“Hey, what’s going on?” Sawyer asked, tenderly stroking his horse’s neck. “Calm down, boy.”

“Sawyer, look!” the shifter pointed in front of them, where a pile of sand was rising from the ground, quickly forming into the shape of a giant turtle.

“HALT!” the sand animal spoke, as large as a rhinoceros. Its booming voice chilled the boys to the bone, leaving them speechless. “Which of you dared to defile my home with this jungle?!”

“Umm, it- it was me,” Sawyer spoke quietly.

The turtle slowly moved its head in his direction.

“Are- are you Eteon then? The God of Time?” Castor asked.

“Correct.”

“He’s a turtle?” Sawyer whispered under his breath, thinking only his boyfriend would be able to hear him.

At once, the sand turtle before them started disintegrating, as the sand whirled around and formed into the shape of a tall man dressed in a long robe. He looked strong and imposing, with long hair and a large scepter in his right hand.

“My form is ever-changing and shifting, as is time itself, but perhaps this image is what you’re more accustomed to,” the sandman spoke, though his lips did not move.

“I- I didn’t…”

“Who are you and what is your purpose here? Explain yourselves,” Eteon ordered.

“I’m Castor and this is Sawyer. We’re looking for my brother. A sorcerer named Macarius took him and we heard he lives somewhere in this desert,” Castor blurted out, hoping the God would not smite them down for trespassing.

“I know who you speak of. He indeed lives further into the desert. However, if you wish to pass, you must first prove you are worthy. YOU, who desecrated my land,” Eteon spoke, pointing the scepter at Sawyer, “shall not enter.”

Castor yelled in panic as he saw Sawyer falling from his horse and hitting the ground with a thud, his eyes closed and his body unmoving.

“NO! What have you done with him?!” the shifter quickly dismounted his own horse and ran toward his boyfriend. He knelt down beside him and caressed his face and blond hair. His lovely boyfriend who always managed to make him smile - he was dead! It’s all my fault, Castor thought, as his eyes filled up with tears.

“He is not dead,” the God of Time spoke. “But he shall remain this way for what he did to my land, unless you pass the tests.”

“I- I’ll do anything,” Castor wept, still holding onto Sawyer’s lifeless body. “But please, don’t hurt him. What he did… He doesn’t know what he’s doing. Goddess Nammis, she gave him some powers, but I don’t think he can control them.”

“So I see. The old hag is still trying it. Nevertheless, you must prove your worth if you wish to proceed.”

“What would you have me do?” the shifter asked, looking up at the sand figure towering over him.

“You shall enter my palace. Inside it, there are three rooms you must pass. The first one will show you your past, the second - your future,” Eteon said, pointing behind Castor.

As the shifter turned around, his garnet eyes went wide as he saw a magnificent white palace standing tall behind him, where nothing but sand stood merely minutes ago. It seemed to be made of white marble, with a row of pillars connected with arches in its front. Its roof was made of solid gold, glistening in the sun. A wide, winding path of white bricks led from where Castor knelt on the ground to the palace entrance.

The boy wasn’t sure if the building was even real or only a mirage. He remembered Sephare’s words, as she warned them that everyone who ever entered this area experienced different hallucinations. No two persons saw the same thing. Who could say then what was real and what was not? He wasn’t sure of anything anymore, but in the end, that didn’t matter. All he knew was that he must proceed and do his best now that both his brother and Sawyer depended on him. He couldn’t fail them.

“And- and the third room?” he asked quietly, turning back toward the God, but Eteon was gone.

Castor looked around in surprise, but there was no one there except him and Sawyer. He caressed the blond boy’s cheek and kissed him gently on the forehead.

“I’ll come back for you, I promise,” he whispered before he got up and headed toward the palace.

Thank you all for reading, I hope this chapter was entertaining.  In the next chapter, we'll see Castor embarking on his quest.