The Warden

Chapter 23

Masis sat in darkness. No floating. No weightlessness. He just sat in a void. Maybe not sat, but supine. The complete lack of light made orienting himself difficult.

So, this is death, he thought. He had imagined there would be something. Anything. Grand palaces, perhaps, but it appeared that the naysayers were correct and nothing existed after the final sleep.

A frigid shiver went through him.

But if there wasn't anything after the bitter struggle, why was Masis still able to think and why was he so cold?

The shiver had awoken aches and pains, ranging from the dull throb of a deep bruise to the incessant bite of a damaged bone. His body didn't seem present in the pitch black but still aches and pangs riddled through him.

I thought there was no pain in the Grand Palaces, thought Masis, as another twinge grimaced through him. Unless he hadn't made it to the Palaces Beyond. Maybe he had arrived in the dungeons. They used to say that all Shadows would end up here.

For a few moments he simply lay in the dark, chattering with cold and wincing with every shake. Then he caught the unmistakable scent of dewy grass, fresh and crisp. A light began to appear, dim at first but steadily growing stronger. Unlike Wilo's persistent, strong light, this light had a warm, fleshy quality about it, rimmed in a sanguine red, a color that faded into pink and eventually neared white in brilliance.

This must be the gates into the Grand Palaces. Soon the pain would leave him. Soon he would see his family. Soon he would apologize to them all.

Something crunched nearby. Instinctively, his eyes flew open and then immediately squinted into slits as sunlight cut into them. Wilo had just crested the sea, rising barely above his watery birth.

"I thought you were awake," a soprano voice said behind him. "I see that you didn't die in the night despite your best efforts."

Trying to turn his head, Masis froze in place. The simple act had moved bones and activated muscles that blazed with ineffable pain. He kept still until the throbs eased slightly and then let his body plop back into its original position, propped against the soft leather of his pack. Again, he lay paralyzed both mentally and physically until the worst of it subsided.

"I wouldn't be trying to move too much just yet," the voice said. "I can't Work flesh like I used to. I repaired the bones as best I could, but you're going to have to let your body do most of the healing itself."

A crunch interrupted the woman's words. The sound of enthusiastic chewing followed. Forced to lay facing the ascending sun, Masis tried not to move. Any twitch he made exploded through him, shocking his breath into ragged gasps forced between clenched teeth. In front of him the ground ran for several paces before dropping off suddenly. Somehow, he lay back atop the cliff from which he had jumped. The ocean's constant, wavery voice finally reached his ear as the tide began to race back in.

"Who are you?" he asked, his voice croaking out.

Another crunch. More chewing. "I thought you would have guessed by now. When done with you I expect you to be able to throw yourself off cliffs just like this one, fight for at least three straight hours, no matter the condition you might be in, and no matter your fatigue or injury recognize the voice of any given person you may have met in the past few months."

The smell of recent butchery reached Masis' nose. More crunchy-chewing sounded out. It ended abruptly as something plopped to the ground behind Masis. Footsteps rustled in the short grass coming around his person, until the person stood directly in front of him blocking out Wilo's blinding rays.