Light as a Cloud

Chapter 18

"Watch us, don't touch us."

Meroch woke up trembling once again. The past two weeks' nights had been hellish. Every night, the nightmares of what happened during the thunderstorm returned. The lack of sleep was crippling him. He'd spent his days sauntering, stumbling, and sometimes even crawling, desperate go get out of this evil area.

"Are you alright?" said a friendly voice from above his head.

Meroch rolled his eyes up. He saw just a thin stroke of a green, wrinkled forehead, probably belonging to an orc. "Been better, thank you," he mumbled, rolling to his side to stand up.

"You look like you've seen a ghost," the orc remarked. He walked to Meroch's side and offered his hand to help him up. "My name's Groshk, by the way."

"Meroch," Meroch uttered. "And about the ghost thing... It might as well have been."

Groshk laughed. "Nah, man." He gestured with his hand to support his denial. "Ghosts don't really exist. That's why people look the way they do when they think they've seen one."

"Then what have I seen in the Crystal Garden?" Meroch asked. "I mean, there were silhouettes... And the flashing colours..."

He took a deep breath, forcing himself to stay calm and repress the memories. The cold sweat was running down his back again just as he recalled the event.

"Oh, that's why you sleep on the path," Groshk said, and he had a short giggle. "I admit, visions are pretty scary if you don't understand what they are, but really, they're not dangerous. Quite the contrary, in fact."

He whistled, and an auburn unicorn with a pearly horn came out of the forest. There was a bag dangling from its black saddle. The unicorn stopped right before Groshk and neighed happily. Groshk replied whispering softly in a language Meroch didn't understand. He opened the bag and took out a black book that had colourful stars on the cover, but despite these, looked very sinister.

"Behold," Groshk said, and he held up the book. "All the information you'll ever need on the Crystal Garden. I spent ages figuring this all out, but if you read this, it'll be clear to you in a few hours."

Meroch took the book and opened it. The first page was filled with black runes. He let his finger run over the lines, his teeth clenched together in suppressed shame, but eventually he gave up.

"I can't read this," he confessed.

"I translated it to Elfish in the other half of the book," Groshk said, and he flipped the pages until the font changed to a more elegant one. "Should be easier to get for you than Orcish."

"I can't read that either," Meroch said softly, and he blushed in shame. "I can't read at all."

Groshk nodded. "I understand. It's okay. Why don't you travel with me? Then I'll explain it on the way."

Meroch smiled gratefully. "Gladly. I was planning to travel on today. I can't wait to get out of this wicked place."

"It's only a few more hours on my unicorn," Groshk said. He gestured to the saddle.

Meroch climbed into the saddle, and behind him came Groshk. He took the reins and gave a short command in Orcish, after which the unicorn started to run.

Meroch had never rode a unicorn before. He had once rode a horse, but this unicorn was a lot faster. The wind lifted his grown out hair like a shredded black flag. Meroch was reminded of being carried by a flying eminn.

"The visions that the Crystal Garden give you," Groshk started his explanation, "are very special. You see, they always show a literal event from the past, present or future. While it's possible to figure out which one it is, it's really too hard to even bother, especially in hindsight.
"These visions always occur during Grisian Bad Weather- you probably know what I mean. Lightning strikes in the Garden, and the light reflects in a magical way to form a screen of colours, in which a silhouette play forms. That's what you have seen. As I said, if you don't understand what it is, it's pretty scary.
"The thing about them is that the event they show is information vital to your survival or the survival of the one you love the most- or both. If you want to live long and prosperous, it's best to actually live here. That's how I've been able to survive here as an artist."

"You're an artist?" Meroch asked. "Strange profession for an orc."

"Nah," Groshk laughed. "Not for me. I've always been drawn to art, mainly the art of nature... There are many secrets slumbering in these magical lands. The more I understand them, the more beautiful they become..."