Aglanthol 3 - The Castle of Saelethiel (The Law Cannot Be Shaken) - 15. Chapter 15

Ogol sat silently for a while, looking into nowhere. He was pondering. Finally, he took the orb out of his pocket. But instead of activating it, he looked at it for a considerable amount of time. He turned the orb in his hands. An idea had occurred to him. Ogol sensed the energy field that the guardians of the castle had built up. The energy radiated from the castle in all directions.

"The castle is the centre," Ogol said, turning the orb in his hand. "It radiates from the centre in all directions and it forms a gigantic energy orb."

Ogol raised the hand with the orb. He imagined beams of light radiating from its centre. Ogol saw a three-dimensional web of energy. He saw the lines with his inner eye. The energy threads emerged from the centre of the orb. Close to the centre, the threads were close to each other. The distance between the threads was bigger, the farther away from the centre the lines were. Ogol turned the orb in his hand.

"They changed the energy field again," he mused. "Exactly where the man and I stood, an energy thread shifted its position. This change produced an effect. Our wards did not work any longer. Last night they changed the energy field, too. This had an effect on the ground in front of the rock where I spent the night. The dusty ground turned into a lawn. However..."

Ogol straightened.

"The change did not have an effect on the total of the world. The surroundings only changed along the streaks of energy," he mused. "However, the energy doesn’t cover the world like a blanket. In fact, the energy field is rather built up like a three-dimensional web. The distance between the threads is bigger, the farther away they are from the centre. This means that far from the centre the discrepancies in the material world are only few."

Ogol took the orb with both hands and raised it in front of his eyes.

"There should be many discrepancies close to the centre as the threads there are close to each other. They form an almost ring there."

Ogol put the orb on the ground and leaned back against the rock.

"The Castle of Saelethiel is the centre of the radiating energy. I must be far from it. The energy field has already changed twice, but I have not witnessed many material discrepancies. If I want to find the castle, I need to follow a thread to the centre. I know I’m close when more discrepancies occur. This should not stop me. On the contrary, I must go where things are upside down most."

Ogol looked ahead for a while, thinking.

"The threads form a ring close to the centre. The energy is high there and, most likely, it is difficult to pass," he mused.

Another thought occurred to him. A smile played on his lips.

"Now I see clearly. The inner ring is the usual ward that the brethren put up in order to hide the castle. A strong energy that is almost impassable, at least for those who have no clue of how to pass it."

Ogol narrowed his eyes. His mind was working.

"The castle reveals itself only to those who are worthy. However, I’m sure there are ways to bypass the ward. I doubt the material world inside the castle changes every time the guardians change the energy field. No, an energy change does not influence the castle itself. The castle itself is stable."

Ogol took up the orb again. He looked at it intently.

"I must move closer to the centre. I must seek for more discrepancies in the material world. They show me the direction I’m headed for."

He put down the orb and looked into the distance. His eyes were narrowed.

"Then I must bypass the castle’s ward. I was once taught about this ward. Every spell can be broken and also every ward. I need to find its flaws."

A content smile played on Ogol’s lips.

"Once in the castle, the brethren’s energy field cannot affect me any longer. Once inside, they won’t be able to stop me, for then I have broken their most powerful ward," he said.

A shiver ran through Ogol’s body at his own words. He straightened. It hit him like a bolt from the blue.

"Good Lord," he said. "The energy field! You are demonstrating the use of your mightiest tool and the most powerful magic that the castle guards. The palace is the castle itself. It is just another term for the Castle of Saelethiel."

Ogol gave a laugh that sounded almost hysterical.

"Indeed, this magic would make me the most powerful wizard and it would make the Khalindash clan invincible. Just imagine an Aglanthol army trapped in a reality that constantly changes. We could effortlessly destroy them whenever we wanted."

Ogol leaned back and looked up at the sky. Nothing indicated a change. The sky was blue and the day was peaceful. However, this was not the natural world. And appearances were deceiving.

Ogol rose to his feet. He had come to a conclusion

"I need to find the hidden castle. I must provoke another energy shift," he said in a determined voice.

~~**~~

Ogol walked down the path. He returned to his observation point and looked down at his follower’s camp. The place looked deserted. Nothing indicated that the man was around. But Ogol suspected that the man’s ward worked again. If he was lucky, then the man was still down there in his camp.

Ogol concentrated and focused his mind. He formed an image with his inner eye and then transported it to the outside. The image of a fly hovered in the air.

‘It works,’ Ogol thought with satisfaction.

Ogol dissolved the image. He made a step back and then looked at the ground. He focused his mind and concentrated. Another image formed above the ground. The image grew larger and more three-dimensional. Ogol’s piercing eyes were fixed on it. His mind was clear, sharp, and perfectly focused. A huge, black spider formed on the ground. It was perfectly three-dimensional. Every detail was formed realistically.

Ogol looked at the image for a while. He regretted that he was not able to materialize it. This would have been far more amusing. Ogol fed the hologram with more energy. The spider started to move over the ground. The image looked realistic, only a trained eye would realize that the spider was only a hologram.

Ogol made the spider move to the edge of the rock. He followed it and looked down at the man’s camp. Then he made the spider crawl down the slope. If the man was down there, he would soon catch sight of it. Ogol smiled with excitement.

~~**~~

Qildor spotted the spider first.

"Goodness," he called out, jumping to his feet and his hand moving to the knife on his belt.

Neldor and Magath looked up and jumped to their feet as well. The three of them gazed at the huge spider that was crawling down to their camp.

Neldor stepped forward and made a sign with his hand.

"Quiet," he hissed. "It’s just a hologram. He wants to provoke a reaction."

Neldor made a sign to Magath. Magath hurried towards him.

"I must not react. Else I reveal myself. But this is a chance to track down the man. I can trace him and identify his energy pattern," Neldor said.

"What do you want me to do?" Magath asked in confusion.

"The longer he keeps up his image, the more time I have to trace him. Produce an image, Magath. This will distract him. He will play with his hologram in order to show you that he is superior to you. Make your image rough, have it hovering. Don’t make it perfect at all. And hurry to the path and work from there," Neldor said urgently.

The wizard hurried to Qildor. Magath looked after him.

"As if I were able to produce a perfect image," he said drily.

He looked at the huge spider. Fear overwhelmed him. He had exercised only one afternoon. Would he be able to form an image? Magath looked aside. He saw Qildor running to their horses. Qildor led them to the path. Magath remembered Neldor’s words and followed Qildor quickly. Then he turned around and looked out for the wizard. Neldor hurried towards the spider. The wizard disappeared into the hologram. Qildor stood a short distance away from Magath. Magath looked at him. Qildor made a sign with his hand.

"Stay where you are," he said urgently. "The spider might provoke another energy shift. That’s what Neldor said. That’s why we left the place."

"Neldor disappeared into the hologram," Magath said.

"He knows what to do," Qildor said shortly. "Magath, do start now," he said urgently.

Magath remembered the wizard’s instructions. Fear overwhelmed him again. Qildor’s urgent look, however, shook his fear off. Magath concentrated and focused his mind like the wizard had taught him.

The image of a spider appeared in the air. It was barely three-dimensional. The image was rough and the edges were fringed. The image hovered heavily in the air.

Ogol gave a loud laugh at the sight of Magath’s image. He focused on his own image and made his spider move quickly in the direction of Magath’s hologram. Magath concentrated more. He managed to move his image on the ground. However, the spider looked more like a cockroach.

Qildor watched Magath and the holograms. Then he tried to make out Neldor. The wizard hurried up the slope. Despite his age, the man moved quickly.

Ogol’s spider was approaching. It was huge and black. The hairy legs moved quickly. The claws were big and sharp. Qildor shuddered at the sight. If he had not seen Neldor enter the hologram, he would have turned and run.

Magath stood, focusing his mind. He remembered the wizard’s words. ‘Keep up the image as long as you can.’

Neldor had meanwhile reached the top of the slope. Unseen by Ogol, he approached the man. The hologram and the man were connected by an energy thread that Neldor had identified and had followed. He stood right behind the invisible man and scanned his energy pattern. Ogol was distracted by the images. He had made his spider attack Magath’s miserable hologram. The man was a fumbler who was barely able to keep up his image. However, the man did not give in. He continued feeding his image with energy. This amused Ogol greatly. The man would not be able to stand a chance against him, but it was fun to play with him and fool him around. Ogol stood with his arms crossed in front of his chest and looked down the slope. He was chuckling.

Ogol made a step back. He felt a strange shiver that distracted him for the split of a second. Neldor had immediately stepped back at Ogol’s movement. However, for the briefest of a moment, the two invisible men had touched each other. Neldor retreated. He had learned all he had wanted. He hastened to the path that led down the mountain. He hurried down and made a sign to Qildor as he passed the man. Then the wizard joined Magath who stood motionless with his eyes narrowed and his hands clenched. He bit his lip. Sweat covered his forehead and blood dropped from his lip, but Magath did not realize it.

Neldor reached out his hand and touched Magath’s elbow lightly. A jolt of energy rushed through Magath’s body. Magath’s eyes widened. Neldor took over and dissolved the image. He then withdrew his hand from Magath’s elbow. Magath stumbled and almost fell to the ground. Qildor hurried towards him.

"Take him out of here," Neldor said. "Take the horses and walk down the path to the place where you found the wool thread. I’ll find you there. I must wait and see what is going to happen now."

Qildor gave a brief nod. He led Magath away. The two men moved down the path.

Neldor stood with his arms crossed in front of his chest. He looked at their former camp grimly. Ogol’s spider was still in the place. However, it had stopped moving. The man was apparently waiting if his opponent reformed his image. Neldor looked up the slope to where the man stood. Although he did not see his physical body, Neldor now was able to locate him. Each energy pattern was unique. Neldor now knew how to trace the man. With his sixth sense and despite the brethren’s strong energy field, Neldor was able to locate the man’s energy pattern.

Ogol stood and looked down. He felt disappointed. The man had given up. And no other energy shift had occurred. The surroundings were unchanged. The material world was unaltered. Ogol flew into a rage. He kicked a stone down the slope and fed his hologram with the energy of his rage.

Neldor watched the stone rolling down the slope. He raised an eyebrow and turned his eyes to the spider. It happened exactly what he had expected. The man had flown into a rage and channelled the destructive energy into the hologram. The spider grew bigger and turned into a monstrosity. The hologram filled the whole place of the camp. Neldor retreated in order to escape the sphere of influence of the destructive energy.

~~**~~

The brethren sat silently and did not react. The energy field remained unchanged and with it the material world. Silence lay upon the castle and the web hung unchanged.

~~**~~

Neldor waited until the hologram had disappeared. He focused his sixth sense on the man’s energy pattern. The man had left. He was not around anymore. Neldor entered the place and scanned it carefully. He found the surroundings unaltered. No changes had occurred. Neldor nodded thoughtfully. He went back to the path and walked it down. He joined Magath and Qildor who were waiting for him.

"His plan failed miserably," Neldor said. "I suspect he wanted to provoke a reaction. But nothing happened. The brethren did not react. I, however, due to his imprudence, was able to identify his personal energy pattern. I’m now able to locate him. I just need to concentrate and focus. And I now know his name."

Qildor and Magath hung on his lips.

"His name is Ogol," Neldor said. "A man’s name is inscribed in his personal energy pattern. I read his name. However, I have never heard of the man. I suspect that he was trained in the castle many years after I had been there. He must have been hiding, preparing his plans. The brethren, however, should know the man."

~~**~~

Ogol returned to his place farther up the path. He was enraged. He was barely able to breathe. He kicked a stone aside and hit his hand several times against the rock that sheltered the place. Ogol hissed and cursed. He glared at the mountains and he spat on the floor. But finally, he calmed down. He leaned against the rock and took a deep breath. Then he closed his eyes for some time until his rage had gone.

"It was too obvious a plan," he admitted grudgingly. "No surprise the brethren did not react. I must act more subtly in the future. It was a mistake, nonetheless. I challenged the brethren and they know I did."

Ogol looked grimly into the distance. He felt like an idiot, a mere beginner who had devised a flawed plan and then had failed miserably. Ogol gnashed his teeth. The insight enraged him again. He made a few steps ahead, kicking more stones aside.

"This novice, at least, now knows he cannot compete with me. Perhaps the man flees. And if not so, well then, I’ll finish him with ease," he said in a defiant voice.

He refused to think deeper and more thoroughly. He refused to give in or alter his plan. Ogol crossed his arms in front of his chest. He stood and frowned at the mountains. He pretended to ponder and he convinced himself that he did. However, he did not see that he was pouting.

~~**~~