“I see…”
“It’s the truth!”
“Whatever you say, Sehn. Anyway, what’re you doing up here?”
Sehn waited a moment for his heart to stop courageously beating the war drum that was his fearlessness. Once his heroic nerves had settled down, relieving him of his unbearable desire for death and destruction, he exhaled and pointed to the temple. “I saw something up there,” he explained. “I wanted to see what it was.”
Cah’lia shrugged. “I guess we could search the place. It doesn’t seem like the sort of spot someone would hide the children, but we haven’t checked it yet and we don’t have any better ideas.”
Sehn reached for the elven blade at his hip, wrapping his fingers around the hilt. He felt more secure with it close by. With a nod to Cah’lia, he led the way up the remainder of the hill, pausing as he came to the large, oval-shaped doors of the temple.
The doors, as it turned out, were made of a green-colored glass; the windows were a dark shade of red. Up close, Sehn got the impression that, lit up, the temple may have once been something wonderful to behold. He decided to ask Patrick about it later. For now, he crept closer to the door and placed his fingers on the handle. With just a gentle pull, it opened with ease.
Sehn felt Cah’lia brush past him as she stepped inside. “It’s dark in here,” she said. “I can’t see a thing. Can you make some light?”
“I didn’t bring any torches.”
“No, I mean do that thing you do with your sword.”
Sehn grinned. He’d forgotten all about that. “Gladly, Cah’lia,” he said. “But that will require the light-creation fee. Ah, but you are in luck this day, for the Great Sehn just happens to be running a very special, limited-time promotion on the creation of—”
“Just do it!”
Sehn grumbled to himself. He would never get used to Cah’lia pushing him around like this. Still, he’d made her a promise and signed it on an official Sehn Seal, which meant he had no choice but to honor it. Worse, the standard Sehn Seal was a lasting contract that was good for up to seven Sehnbillion years, which was the number “1” with lots and lots of zeroes. Sehn couldn’t recall how many.
Drawing his sword, he raised the blade over his head. “
Remmos Salas
!
” he shouted. Immediately, the dark temple filled with light as his elven Blade burst into flames, illuminating the area around him.
Now that he could see inside, it became evident that this place was old—very old. There were rows of long benches, and all were covered in thick layers of dust and cobwebs. An elevated platform at the front, where Sehn assumed a priest of some kind would conduct his prayers, had become a breeding ground for rats, which scurried across the wooden flooring as if frightened by the sudden brightness.
In the front and center of the temple, a statue of a God towered over the room. Its body was normal sized but its head extended nearly to the ceiling. Sehn did not recognize it. And as much as he disliked the Gods and Goddesses, he was fairly certain he knew them all—but not this one. This, he had never seen before.
The God statue took the form of a human, one with the body of a muscular adult and the face of a child. It was the only object in the temple that did not appear neglected or damaged; everything else was going through various states of decay.
“What God is this?” Cah’lia asked. “I’ve never seen this before.”
Sehn raised his sword in the direction of the statue, shining more light on the bronze construction. “Well, it’s definitely not
me
, that’s for sure. Gah! The sight of it turns my heart black with rage. Come, Cah’lia, let us destroy it!”
Cah’lia sighed. “Sehn, please, give it a rest. Do you really need to get angry every time you see a God or Goddess statue?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Sehn turned his head away from Cah’lia. Though he held his tongue and stopped himself from insulting her, he refused to answer such a ridiculous question. Besides, he owed her no such explanation. Promise or no promise, he would not reduce himself to that level of subservience.
Changing the subject, he asked, “Do you see anything?”
“No, I don’t think so. Tell me what it was you saw in the windows so I have an idea of what to look for.”
Sehn briefly told her of the two sightings he’d had of a fast-moving shadow inside the temple. When he finished his explanation, Cah’lia spun around in a circle as if giving the place one final look over. Sehn searched the place as well. There wasn’t much to it: the benches, the altar, the statue, and a few tiny closet-sized rooms in the back, which weren’t worth the trouble of searching through.
“You say you saw a shadow? Hmm…you know, it probably
was
just a shadow. There’s no one here. Or maybe it was just the rats.”
“I suppose so,” Sehn agreed. “Probably just the rats.”
“
Rats
?”
whispered a soft voice from behind them
.
“
I’m not a rat
.”
Both Cah’lia and Sehn turned around at the sound of the voice. Cah’lia inhaled sharply. Sehn darted his eyes to the right. Someone was sitting in the middle of the front-most bench. It was a small person—of a child’s height—wearing a dusty brown robe, which covered the entirety of the stranger’s body and concealed his facial features—assuming it was even a “him.” It was difficult to say for sure.
Sehn extended his sword-arm to shine light in the direction of the robed figure. He was sure that the place had been empty when they’d entered. Was it possible that this person had been sitting here all along? It didn’t seem likely, but if so, then how had they missed him? And if not, then why hadn’t they heard him enter?
Sehn thought on these things while Cah’lia grabbed his left side and moved behind his back, as if trying to hide herself from the sight of this new stranger. For some reason, Sehn could feel her shaking. Was something frightening her?
“Who are you?” Cah’lia asked from behind Sehn. There was fear in her voice.
“I’m just a boy,” the robed stranger said. “A boy in the middle of his evening prayers.”
He slowly stood up from the bench, turned around, and faced the two of them. Sliding both of his hands to the hood of his robe, he pulled it back and revealed his face. He was pale—paler than any human Sehn had ever seen. His face was unmistakably that of a young boy: small nose, tiny lips, and not even so much as a hint of stubble on his chin. Yet something about the boy gave Sehn the impression that he was far older than his appearance seemed to indicate. Perhaps it was his reddish brown eyes, which seemed all-too knowing for someone his age.
Cah’lia began to shake even more fiercely. “You weren’t in here when we came in. I’m sure of it.”
“Oh?” the boy said. “That can’t be right.” He took a step closer, and Sehn grew annoyed as Cah’lia squeezed his left shoulder hard enough to cause pain. It reminded him of how strong she could be without even realizing it. Sehn pried Cah’lia’s fingers away then gave her a stern look. What in the name of the Gods was she so afraid of? This puny little child?
“You there,” Sehn said, addressing the boy. “What is your name?”
“My name? Ah, what
is
my name?”
“I don’t know, fool. That’s why I’m asking you.”
“That’s why…you’re asking me?”
“Fool! Are you mocking me?” Sehn shouted. He pointed his sword at the boy, who did not narrow his eyes despite the intense glow coming from the tip of the blade. “I am the Great Sehn! You shall answer my questions at once or face punishment.”
The boy smiled, his deathly white lips revealing an even whiter set of teeth. “I told you. I’m just a boy engaged in his evening worship.”
Sehn felt Cah’lia stir behind him. She took a step forward, held still a moment, and then, as if finding her courage, took another cautious step towards the boy, which placed her in front of Sehn. She locked eyes with the mysterious child. It was as if the two were feeling each other out.
“When did you come in here?” she asked. There was still terror in her voice, though it had lessened somewhat.
“Come in here?” the boy repeated. “I’ve always been here.”
Color drained from Cah’lia’s face at the response. “What do you mean by that? We didn’t see you when we entered."
“Is that so?” the boy asked, looking almost disinterested. “Perhaps it’s because you weren’t looking.”
“Who are you?”
“I thought we’ve been over this. I’m just a boy engaged in his evening prayers.”
Cah’lia took another step towards the odd boy. She was clearly frightened of him for some reason, and it looked like it was a struggle for her to come any closer than she was already standing.
“Where are your parents?”
“I don’t have any parents.”
“Are you going to hurt us?”
“No.”
“Do you think we’re going to hurt
you
?”
“No.”
“But you are more than what you seem. Am I correct?”
The boy smiled. “Perhaps.”
Cah’lia paused a moment, licked her lips, then asked, “Why are you here? What God does this temple worship?”
Once again, the boy smiled. “Now
those
are good questions. And you’ve come to the right place for good answers.” This time, it was the boy who inched a step closer to Cah’lia. “A good question deserves a good answer: a good answer to a good question! It’s only when one asks the right question that a right answer is deserved. And as for the question, it is the answer that—”
“Okay, that’s it!” Sehn shouted. “I’ve heard enough.” He was unwilling to listen to another second of this bullshit. “Look, Cah’lia, clearly this boy is busy doing whatever nonsense he’s come here to do. Now, let’s be on our way and leave him to it, because honestly, the two of you are boring the piss out of me, and if I have to stand here for
one more second
and listen to this foolish nonsense, then
both
of you will be leaving this place through the fucking window!”
Sehn spun around and headed for the exit. He didn’t have time for this ridiculousness. Honestly, was Cah’lia insane? Did she seriously expect Sehn to stand by while she engaged in a two-hour debate about whether or not someone had a name or what question was the right question? The nerve of her! Sehn was out of here. Even if he wasn’t in such a rush to save Nero and Rina, he still wouldn’t subject himself to the agony of listening to those two talk about such pointless rubbish.
Within three steps, the glass-door entrance slammed shut with a powerful bang, as if a gust of wind had blown it closed. Surprisingly, the glass did not shatter—it did not even crack. And just like that, he was sealed inside.
Sehn didn’t need to be a student of Magia to know that someone had just cast a spell. Slowly, he turned back around, his anger rising to dangerous levels. Someone was asking for trouble. And by the Gods, they were going to get it.
“That was not very nice of you, elf,” the boy said.
He was now standing before Sehn with a hand extended towards the entrance. There was genuine shock on his face, and for a moment, Sehn thought he spotted a tear roll down one of the boy’s eyes. Did the boy think that his tears would spare him the Great Sehn’s righteous wrath? Oh, it was on now. Sehn opened his mouth and was only a moment from saying something harsh when Cah’lia chimed in.
“I can’t believe you, Sehn. Only you…Only you…”
Cahlia’s words drew Sehn’s attention off the boy. He looked over to her. He knew things wouldn’t be good when he spotted the snarl on her face. No, this definitely wouldn’t be good. When Cah’lia glowered like that, it meant she was boiling on the inside.
“Only me?” Sehn asked her. “What are you on about now?”
“Only you, Sehn! Only you could be in a situation like this and get bored!” Cah’lia pointed to the robed boy. “We’re standing here in front of a boy who appeared out of thin air and is
clearly
something much, much more than he seems. Gods! He might not even be a real human! And you just go marching out of here like it’s any other day. What’s wrong with you?”
Sehn felt something inside him snap. Cah’lia had just crossed a line. His contract with her only said he had to respect her and treat her like an equal. Now that he recalled it, it said nothing about treating her like a princess.
“I’ve had enough of this,” he growled. “Tell me, Cah’lia. Why
is it
that nothing I do is ever good enough to please you? I’ve been going out of my way to treat you better than I’ve ever treated anyone, and it’s still not good enough for you.”
“Who said it’s not good enough?” Cah’lia asked. “I’m just making a comment. Sometimes I worry about you, Sehn. Sometimes you act in ways that are just so…not right.”
“What! What do you mean, not right?” Sehn yelled at her, control of his temper slipping rapidly. “Excuse me for not giving a shit about what some mystery boy has to say.”
“Can’t you see that this isn’t normal? You should be scared out of your mind! I mean, what happened to how afraid you were on the way up to this place?”
“Afraid? For the record, I was not ‘afraid,’ Cah’lia. And even if I was, it was only because I thought there might be a giant shadow monster in here. Clearly, there isn’t one.”