Jeremy

  Jeremy saw the four hidden passages beneath the mirrors as the final test, believing only one led to the Moonwarden. He wished he could split the team; each taking their own tunnel, but feared the wrong tunnel held dangers, and the right one might lead to facing the Moonwarden alone.

  He reflected on each wraith’s saying, linking them to memories steeped in guilt and resignation.…Jeremy snapped his fingers.

  “They are all negative except for one. I cried in all of them except one. Look.” He walked over to the first path. “This one. In this one, I broke my mom’s owl. I felt sad and guilty because…” Jeremy dragged out the ‘because’ for effect. “Because ‘This was NOT supposed to happen!’”

  He started to get animated and excited. He walked over to the third path. “This memory sucked. I relived the day my dad left. As a teenager, I clashed with my dad and watched my parents fight constantly, but the day he left us overwhelmed me with emotion. I blamed Mom, but honestly, I really blamed myself. I felt guilt and sadness because we didn’t stop him. We let him go.

  “This last memory really made me relive something I had suppressed. I hadn’t thought about it for years, and I never want to again. Guilt and sadness at losing a friend to a drug overdose filled my mind. I felt I could have maybe prevented it if we had stayed friends. I thought…‘If only I had helped’.

  “The second mirror dealt with Bart and his dad. I didn’t feel guilty. Bart’s dad kidnapped me, but it had to happen. Without it, I wouldn’t be here as an emissary.

  “I am pretty sure that is our door!”

  Karn smiled. “I couldn’t possibly begin to understand what you just said, but I will follow you, my toad friend.”

  Jeremy shook his head. “I’m pretty sure I’m a frog.”

  “Sure,” Karn patted him on the shoulder. “Lead the way.”

  The path lit up as they walked, like motion-sensor lights in a beer store. With no torches, bulbs, or openings, the glow had to be magical. No one questioned it, so they kept moving.

  They reached what barely resembled a door; an ancient wooden slab wrapped in leathery, cracked skin, stitched with coarse hair. It pulsed faintly, breathing, as green runes shimmered across its surface.

  Jeremy stared at it, uneasy. It reminded him of that monster textbook from the old wizard movies—except this one didn’t snap or snarl. It just breathed, pulsed, silently, like it was waiting for something deeper than touch.

  He found no mechanism to unlock it—no levers, no arcane seal. Instead, the door radiated a quiet demand: something had to be sacrificed.

  “Great,” Jeremy groaned. “It looks like another puzzle.”

  “The inscription above the rune says, ‘Speak Truth,’” Eli said. “And I believe the rune is similar to the Truth Rune of Nivalár.”

  “The rune at my trial? The one that could’ve killed me if I hadn’t told the truth?” Jeremy exclaimed.

  “I was not at your trial, but the Truth Rune has the potential to kill a liar.”

  “What does that mean for us?” Karn asked.

  [Jeremy,] Mel said. [You should tell the door a truth about yourself no one else knows.]

  “What makes you say that?” Jeremy asked.

  [It must be one of you who holds a secret. I have no secrets, and I only speak the truth, so it cannot be me. It has to be one of you.]

  “Mel thinks we need to reveal something about ourselves. Maybe just one of us, or maybe all? I really don’t know.”

  “It makes sense for anyone who wants to enter to speak the truth. I’ll go first.” Eli stood in front of the door and spoke, “I do all the cooking for my brother and me. I told him I enjoy the chore, but in truth he is a terrible cook, and I do not want to hurt his feelings.”

  Jeremy and Karn snickered a bit at the less than stellar reveal, but the door glowed and nothing else happened.

  “Did it work?” Karn asked.

  “You speak the next truth, and let’s see,” Jeremy said.

  Karn approached the door and stared at it for some time before finally speaking in a hushed tone. “I tell everyone that I have never loved anyone, for it is a wasted effort. This is untrue. I have loved and still love Seyra, the daughter of the mayor. She is married to my superior, Rovek Talin, and I’ve always hated him for stealing her from me. No one knows this truth.”

  The door glowed and dimmed.

  “Dang, bro,” Jeremy said. “That sucks. You couldn’t have just admitted to stealing candy from a baby or something?”

  “I have ne—”

  “Just kidding with you…just kidding.” Jeremy laughed.

  Karn smiled and pointed at him. “That is funny. I will have to repay your humor. Now, to your truth, my slimy green friend.”

  “Do you have to call me something different every time?”

  “Yes,” Karn said deadpan.

  Jeremy sighed. He stood in front of the door and thought about his deepest secrets. Most of the secrets he kept from one person, he had shared with someone else. What had I kept from everyone? What is something that only I know?

  He searched his memories and realized he’d never acted alone and or someone else knew his secret. He had no secrets that only he knew or hidden crushes. Nothing to hide. Except for that one time in high school.

  “Back in 10th grade, I pulled a prank on my teacher, Mrs. Keys. I remember her because of her sense of humor. Once, the class toilet-papered her house, and she laughed it off. She was genuinely cool.

  “I don’t remember where the idea came from, and I’d never done anything like it before, but I thought it’d be hilarious. I posted a Craigslist ad offering a free black rooster, warning it wasn’t good with kids. I used her phone number and email.

  “A few days later, I overheard her venting to another teacher before class. She sounded furious. She said she’d gotten hundreds of calls and emails asking for her ‘free black cock,’ and swore she’d report whoever did it to the police.

  “The prank worked a little too well. I never told a soul I did it. I was terrified I’d get in serious trouble.”

  The door glowed, and the rune disappeared.

  “I do not understand ‘prank’, but I believe the truth was enough to open the door,” Eli said.

  “It’s like a joke. I didn’t intend for it to be serious. It should’ve been harmless.” Jeremy tried to reason.

  “Sheesh,” Karn said as he shook his head, acting disgusted. “And I thought I was cruel.”

  “Oh stop! Was it that bad?”

  Karn laughed and opened the door to the Moonwarden’s domain.

  Cool air brushed across Jeremy’s body, causing him to shiver as if a large snowman had breathed on him.

  Mel cast Moonwake Glow on the team, washing them with calm.

  Jeremy felt confident, even without knowing what lay ahead. The quest clearly led to the Moonwarden, but he didn’t know when they would get there. Games often threw you through sprawling caverns and enemy gauntlets, so he wouldn’t be surprised if this quest did the same thing. But this wasn’t a game. Despite the puzzles, creatures, and leveling system, this was real.

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  The thoroughfare opened up as they proceeded, eventually widening into a vast, circular and unnaturally still space. Artisans had carved the walls to evoke a temple of Nivalár, shaping graceful arches and intricate motifs throughout. Black smears streaked across the wall, as if someone had dipped their hand in ashes and dragged it through the grime.

  Ash streaks defaced the murals lining the walls. At the far end stood the desecrated statue of Nivalár. Someone had chiseled Her face off, broken Her left arm, and smeared Her body with thick black slime. Black scorch marks at the statue’s base hinted at a failed attempt to burn it long ago. In her remaining hand, she held a single crystal glowing softly, the only clean thing in the room.

  Someone had broken the altars on the back side of the statue as if they had lost their temper and thrown the tables over. The Moonwarden hovered over the altars with his arms outstretched as if in silent prayer of confession.

  The Moonwarden loomed tall and thin, vaguely humanoid, forged from shadow and guilt. Ash and soot clung to his tattered robes. A smooth pane of glass replaced his face, etched with what looked like grief. A purple gemstone pendant pulsed around his neck, throbbing with mana like a heartbeat. Above his head, a crown of bone held a single diamond-shaped shard of glass.

  Jeremy examined the banner floating over the mythical creature.

  “Why hasn’t he attacked us?” Karn asked softly.

  “I don’t know,” Jeremy whispered. “We should be prepared for anything. Don’t let it touch you. It drains your health, magic and stamina. Eli, can your shield block something like that?”

  “I believe it could, but I already used it today,” he said apologetically. “I will take all the potions and help heal you when needed.”

  “Karn, can you try to knock its crown off and the pendant off?” Jeremy asked. “I have a feeling they are the source of some of his power.”

  Karn nodded.

  “Mel, keep an eye open for any clues on how to beat this thing.”

  [Sure!] Even in the middle of a dire situation, Mel still maintained his positivity.

  Jeremy led the way, hunched over, ready to strike with his divinity ability. He approached the statue of Nivalár. Karn attempted to get around to flank the Moonwarden. Eli stood next to Jeremy, ready to cast his healing. Jeremy reached up for the teardrop crystal.

  “You seek the Tear but have not yet suffered. What have you lost that makes you worthy?” the Moonwarden asked.

  Jeremy thought about it for a minute and used one memory from the mirrors. “I’ve lost my father.”

  “Your sorrow is shallow. Let me show you depth.” The Moonwarden cast his aura, bathing the entire space with a physical psychic force that pierced everyone in the room. Jeremy’s entire team fell to their knees, and Mel went to his belly. The aura completely drained Jeremy’s mana.

  “Nivalár!” Jeremy cried. “Help us!”

  “You DARE speak that name here!” The Moonwarden roared as he charged at Jeremy, arms outstretched. Karn brought up his shield and flew across the room, blocking the blow just before impact.

  “Eli! I need a mana potion,” Jeremy screamed. To the Moonwarden he said, “Hey! It is not our fault you are in this position! You exposed your hatred! You vowed vengeance! You deserved what you got!”

  “Nivalár turned her face away from me. She let my daughter die!” The Moonwarden charged Jeremy again. Jeremy jumped in the nick of time, avoiding the strike.

  “You let your daughter die! Take responsibility for what YOU did!” Jeremy accused.

  Jeremy noticed his mana had refilled. Thanks, Nivalár!

  He called divinity down on the Moonwarden. The light, impossibly bright, shone through the stone ceiling, striking the Moonwarden with immense force.

  His name is Maeril Vess, Jeremy heard the voice in his mind sounding like angels singing, bells ringing, and birds chirping melodically. His daughter was Drenna Vess. Say their names to invoke his wrath. The truth shall set him free. I have released you from your cooldown for divinity. Use it to destroy Maeril.

  “Nivalár would have honored Drenna’s sacrifice!” Jeremy shouted. “Maeril, you caused her death and didn’t allow her a proper burial! You are to blame for not watching her more closely. Drenna died because you couldn’t stop her from stepping on the rune! You failed to save her, Maeril Vess!”

  The entire chamber trembled as Jeremy spoke the names of the Moonwarden and his deceased daughter. The glass mask shattered, revealing the face of a withered old man. The crown spun above his head, and the pendant pulsed faster and brighter.

  “Noooooo!” Maeril moans. “Her name…it burns…it hurts!”

  Jeremy used his divinity spell again. The light pierced Maeril’s ethereal form, revealing his limbs. The gaunt old man’s skin stretched taut over bone and atrophied muscles.

  “AAAAaaaaaaggggg!” the Moonwarden cried. “You think I didn’t beg Nivalár to spare my daughter? To allow me to take her place?”

  Karn charged from the side and struck the now corporeal Moonwarden across the chest, dealing a critical strike, but he also got touched sending him crashing to the wall, grasping at the wound.

  The Moonwarden raised his hands and cast his aura again. Eli jumped in front of Jeremy, taking the full brunt of the attack, then he fell at Jeremy’s feet.

  Speak her name again, Jeremy. The musical voice chimed in Jeremy’s mind again.

  “You need to let Drenna go! You need to honor Drenna’s sacrifice! You need to let Drenna rest in peace!”

  As Jeremy yelled the phrases, he noticed the Tear shown at each mention of Drenna’s name, and the light pierced into the Moonwarden, dealing massive amounts of damage.

  “Mel! Get the tear and bring it to me! Quick!” Jeremy communicated telepathically to his companion.

  [Fantastic idea, Jeremy!] Mel teleported to the hand of the statue of Nivalár, grabbed the tear, and teleported back to Jeremy.

  “Nooooo!” Maeril shouted. “You cannot take the tear!”

  [But I just did, didn’t I?]

  “Honor Drenna’s memory! Drenna’s life was important! Her death needs to mean something. Let Drenna rest in peace!”

  While holding the tear, Jeremy called divinity again, almost draining his mana. The holy magic went into the crystal, condensed like the sun through a magnifying glass, and shot Maeril through the chest. The spell lasted longer than usual, gradually disintegrating the Moonwarden.

  In his last moments, Maeril reached out towards the Tear of Nivalár, “I failed, but I did not forget. I’m so sorry, Drenna. I’m so sorrrr—”

  The cloak fell to the ground, covering a pile of ancient ash.