That One Time I Went on a Quest

Heralds of Fire

Once more, down on this path of willow trees swaying in the lurid breeze. In the distance, a log cabin with a little red door. I can taste the scent of chrysanthemum in the air – so familiar, soothing too.

Walking. Walking.

Wait.

Is that...?

There's a rocking chair on the front porch, rocking on its own. An open book is set upon it face down, slipping. With each sway it slips a little further to the edge. When it falls the person reading it will lose his place.

His? Why did I assume –

The book falls. The flipping pages appear to be blank.

I reach out but it's too far away. Oh well. I can pick it up when I get there. The book has the patient to wait.

A hand catches it.

Her hair is so long, almost reaching her waist despite the cascade of curls. She puts the book back where it was, face down again. That...that won't work. The chair is still rocking and sooner or later it'll fall a second time and it'll be the same thing all over again. Better tell her that.

A tremor. The whole cabin rattles. A tile falls from the roof and shatters on the porch.

She turns to me. 'He has sensed Kaishen's presence,' her voice is younger, throatier. 'It was warding off the cold, and that was enough.'

As she speaks, the book slips to the ground. She makes no move to catch it.

'He is coming,' she says. 'We have but a brief moment. When I say so, I want you to turn around and let this place go. Whatever happens, remember that I am here. Kaishen is here. You are not alone.'

A violent gust hammers into my back. The willows bow away from it, as if trying to flee from the very earth. Gone is the pleasant smell of earth and flowers, replaced by the smoky tang of burnt firewood.

She turns towards me but her face is blurred, out of focus.

'"Let it go,"' her voice is fading in the searing gale. 'That's what I kept telling myself. But this refuge is not here because I want it to be. It is Kaishen's gift – to me, and now to you: a small reprieve from all who dare invade the sanctity of your mind.'

Boom. Boom. Footsteps behind me, massive ones. I think I know whom they belong to; in lucid dreams such as these, there are no surprises. I must have fallen unconscious as it crept into my head. This is nothing fancy or unexpected – just the same old trick as last time.

Her voice is almost gone, her figure blurred beyond recognition. 'I don't know what it'll do, I don't know how long this will last, but I am by your side, always. Kaishen is here, holding your hand –'

Explosion. The willows are on fire. The path of stone turns into a stream of bubbling lava, and like the wick of a candle it sets the log cabin alight. Whoosh. The little red door shatters. Inside there is...there is...

'– so take a deep breath, dear Kastor –'

...inside there is a silhouette, kneeling before the fireplace. A...man. In a fancy cloak. He's holding forth a blade of starlight, as if giving it away –

'– and let us face the enemy together!'

I turn around.