Chapter 25
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
We consumed an array of vegan curries and tandoor vegetables while I caught everyone up to speed on Ranth’s unusual arrival and the demons hunting us. When I got to the Harold part, I was at a loss.
“Harold wasn’t what we expected,” I explained. The whole other planar constructed place didn’t make sense in my head, so I was sure describing it wasn’t going to add to the discussion.
Rose rested a hand on my shoulder. “Honey, from what I hear, Harold’s not what anyone expects.”
Ranth turned to her. “Harold has power I’ve never encountered. What do you know about him?”
“Just what I told you. He’s new in town, and people talk about him reverently—that he helps those he is willing to, and the rest can’t find him.
But I’ve heard stories where he’s turned things around for people.
Really amazing things. Problems that couldn’t be fixed by charms or spells.
Honestly, I can’t think of a specific example. Maybe they didn’t tell me.”
“How about death? Or planes walking?” Ranth asked.
Rose shook her head. “Not that I know of. Weird stuff, though. Like dream worlds.”
“Our experience was weirder than any dream you’ve ever had. Maybe I’d better try to explain.” I sucked in a breath and closed my eyes, trying to pull my thoughts together.
“I’ll do it,” Ranth said.
I opened my eyes, but before I could shush him, he began to tell the story. By the time he finished, I had to shut my gaping mouth. I learned stuff he’d seen from his perspective that I didn’t even understand. “You knew Harold could walk in planes, and you didn’t tell me?”
“You told me to be quiet, remember?”
“Right. Chestnut.” I sighed.
“Okay, now that everyone is on the same page, let’s get to the new stuff,” Ori said, pulling a folder out of her messenger.
Inside were maybe a dozen photographs of illustrations.
She handed them around. “I’m not supposed to have these, and I deleted the photos from my phone.
They’re from a text in the restricted section. ”
I moved closer to get a better view. Ranth was studying one from deeper in the pile. “What language is this?” I asked.
“Indus Valley,” Ranth replied.
Ori straightened up. “Wait, you can read this? It’s supposed to be a lost language.”
“In my time, only scholars could speak it, but I can read it. Where did you say this book was?” His thick brows pulled together as he studied the illustrations. “And why did you choose these from the book if you couldn’t read them?”
“Because they all have this symbol that you drew,” Ori answered, flipping over her sketchbook to show Ranth’s two sketches of the scroll case and the amulet.
“It has more meaning than the symbol that is used in this text. The printed words under the illustration directs the user to put the Ghr near the Tree. But the words here in the illustration clearly says the Ghr was part of the Tree,” Ranth said, peering at the photos.
“What’s a Ghr?” I asked.
“It’s a rare green stone which came to earth from one of the larger sky stones. Because of its special resonance, it allows openings. It’s always used in more important ceremonies, but in the text, it means connection,” Ranth replied.
“Can you read this whole thing to us?” Ori asked, her left eye twitching like it always did when she was excited.
“Sure, but the rest are instructions to make a goat herd fertile.” He chuckled.
“Where are you from?” Juke asked.
“We figure about 330, around Egypt,” Ori replied.
“Wait, what? He’s from ancient time? You said old, but that’s really old,” Freddie replied.
I rubbed my neck. Things had moved fast. “Argh. Sorry, forgot to mention that. Needless, everything you hear stays in this room. You too, Freddie. I’ll fry you alive if you leak. Got me?”
He nodded. He’d be good for it. Freddie only sold out people he figured deserved it.
Otherwise, he introduced people who needed to get together.
Rose, Ori, Freddie, and Juke actually worked pretty well as a team.
We’d done an escape room before Yule, and it had really shown us that our strengths had to be utilized.
After that, we’d started a biweekly game day, alternating online games with tabletop pencil-and-paper games.
I had to admit, Freddie was an awesome rogue-assassin, but his game charisma was way better than his real life one.
Gaming honed our skills and made it easier for us to work as a team.
Ori stopped tapping on her tablet and squealed out, “Oooooo! I think I found a pic of the amulet at the Egyptian Museum.” Ori turned the screen to Ranth.
He glanced at it. “It should have more markings on the back. How do you see the other side?” he asked, looking at the back side of the tablet.
“Maybe I can get Vivian to send us photos of the reverse,” Ori said, opening her laptop.
Ranth studied the tablet screen. “This amulet is a piece from Thebes. The stone is inscribed to the Pharaoh to assist him in the otherworld he will travel to.”
“The inscription says it’s from the Book of the Dead,” Ori replied.
Ranth shook his head. “That’s not what it says. This last symbol is not west, which would mean the afterlife. Here it means this plane, or this world.”
“You can read hieroglyphics?” Ori raised her voice excitedly, her eye twitching again.
Ranth would be incredibly valuable to the history field, but didn’t the rule of no time travel apply? If I let him explain, then wouldn’t it change the future? Was that my responsibility? Maybe letting Ori grill him was not a good idea.
Ranth replied before I could redirect. “It’s important to mages to study texts, and we have to know the old ways, as well as the new ones.”
His comment was pointed at me. I picked at the leftover flatbread, shrugging off the annoyance. He was right, but his delivery was lacking. Still, it had changed the subject.
Ori held up his drawing. “Is this scroll case Egyptian too?”
“No, Sumerian.”
“I get you all are working on a plan for something, but what exactly are we here for? I thought the big issue was the wizard stuck to your wrist problem? Am I missing something?” Rose asked, gesturing at Juke and breaking my train of thought.
“We have another problem, a bigger problem,” I replied. “Unless Ranth gets back to the Garden, we might end up, well, ended.”
“Wait, what? Apocalypse kind of thing?” Juke pulled out her other earbud.
“Yeah, it’s not a good result which is why we need a plan.”
Rose turned to Ranth. “Let me get this framed. There’s some snake somewhere that, if it gets loose, eats worlds?”
Ranth tucked hair behind an ear. “The Serpent is not a snake, but you might see it as one. Yes, if the Serpent is allowed to leave the Garden, then it would most likely destroy this world while it seeks out another Serpent.”
I rubbed my forehead. “You didn’t say that before.”
“I didn’t think it was important.” Ranth smoothed a finger across the scar on his nose.
Freddie crouched down, putting fingers on the floor as if drawing out what was in his head. “But there’s no guarantee this Serpent snake thing will leave the garden? So, we’re looking at worst case, right?”
Ranth locked eyes with him again. “Yes, and it has never happened, so there’s no finite outcome known.”
Freddie nodded. “Okay, so saving the world sounds like it’s more important than the curse thing between you?”
I smoothed loose hairs in my braid. “Sort of. The curse on Ranth means now, if either he dies or I die, we both die.”
Juke’s eyes were dinner plates. “That’s not good.”
I laughed because, honestly, what else can you do when it’s that dire. “It’s worse. If Ranth dies, then there’s a hole in the garden that would allow someone to enter it.”
“What’s the big deal about that? Other than the dying part, which would not be good.” Freddie swept his long coat back as he stood up.
Ranth turned to him. “If I die, the balance of the garden is broken, and anyone can get in to access the Trees. All knowledge could be lost, or stolen, or misused. The Trees are to be protected. The Serpent does that, and we protect the Serpent and the Trees by keeping the plane locked. I am the key.”
Rose rubbed fingertips into her scalp like it would make her brain activate. “I’m losing track. Can you make this simple, please? Obviously, we don’t want you to die, Sorrel, and we don’t want the world to end. But I’m not hearing a solution here?”
“That’s because we don’t have one yet. Ranth needs to get back to the garden and not die before we get him there. To get to the garden, a ritual has to be performed, and in that ritual, there has to be two more pieces of gold. The same gold Ranth wears and the demons are hunting,” I replied.
“Why aren’t the demons hunting the other pieces of gold?” Freddie asked, toying with a button on his coat.
Ranth replied, “Because the gold can’t be targeted on this plane unless there’s a connection to the other worlds.”
Ori continued to type on her laptop. “Oh, I get it. Your gold is like a beacon because you aren’t supposed to be here. Don’t worry, I’m taking notes.” She grinned as Juke breathed out relief.
Juke fiddled with the ribbon in her braid. “And why exactly are you here? I mean, what’s the curse about? Who cursed you?”
Ranth repositioned beside me. “We don’t know, but it may have been around the time the Ahknim temple disappeared.”
Rose tracked him. “That’s hundreds of years ago, right? Why are they hunting you now?”
Ranth shook his head. “They’ve been hunting the gold all along. The bearers of the bracelet or anklet have died by demon touch. But now it is different. I am more visible, and they are hunting both of us because—” Ranth laid a hand on my arm. “Sorrel is unique.”
Shivers crossed my shoulders like spiderwebs.
Rose replied, “No arguments there.”
“Why do they want the gold?” Freddie asked. “The demons, I mean. I assume that is who is after it?”