Chapter 20

A few hours have passed and there is still no sign of Walburga.

Lisa has said nothing, she refuses to make eye contact, but is also belligerent in her desire to ensure that I do not fall asleep. She does this by clapping her delicate hands together whenever she notices me drifting off. I’m sure that this would be considered a form of torture in some parts of the world...

“Lisa, come on, let me sleep, I can feel my vitality fading the longer I keep my eyes open...”

“...”

“I read in a book that sleep deprivation is one of the main causes of erectile dysfunction in a large number of men.”

“W-what does that have to do with anything!?”

“Aha! I got you to say something, now that I have your attention oh silver haired Bane of mine, could you please just let me rest?”

“S-since when did I belong to you? Ugh, you’re so annoying! If you fall asleep, I will have to return to the void. You need to be able to get accustomed to my presence, you feel tired because the Lich Essence that binds us is continuously being utilised to maintain my manifestation in this realm.”

“ZzzzZZzzz…”

“H-hey!”

“Hahaha, fooled ya, OK, I get it, you could have just told me from the start, if that’s the case, let’s have a rummage around the cottage and the surrounding area while Walburga is awol.”

“E-eh?”

Before Vasilisa could respond, I leapt to my feet and stretched. The fireplace crackled as my muscles forcibly dissipated fatigue and built up lactic acid. I walked over to the emerald door that we used to travel to the Twilight Tower and gave it the once over. I could feel a strong energy from behind the door and was mesmerised by the door’s allure.

“An MPA. I have to hand it to the old crone, she has some interesting artifacts in this damp shack.”

“A what?”

Vasilisa elegantly made her way toward me and stood a few paces away. From the corner of my eye I could spot her golden pupils as they traversed the circumference of Walburga’s modest abode. They sparkled in the dimly lit room, our eyes met momentarily but the moment itself was fleeting.

“MPA, Multi Purpose Archway. It can take you to a number of predetermined locations. From the technicoloured wheel to the side, I can tell that it can take us to the Twilight Tower, The Library of Abramelin and...two other locations that I cannot discern.”

“Whoa you sure know your stuff Lisa.”

Vasilisa faced turned purple for a split second but soon returned to its moonlit blue, did she just blush?”

“S-shut up, it’s only natural for me to know these things. But for the old crone to have access to the Library of Abramelin, I guess I underestimated her.”

“Abramelin?”

“*Sigh* Abramelin was one of the greatest sorcerers in history. Some say that he still dwells within the hallowed halls of his endless library and grants wisdom to Witches and Warlocks that he finds to be worthy enough to inherit his knowledge.”

“Ahhh, wow, so this endless library must have a lot of books on Warlocks, I’d love to go there and read them.”

“Idiot, not everyone can enter the Dwelling of Abramelin, only those that are found to be worthy. I suppose that is why Mistress Cassandra sent you to this place, she wants you to get access to the library.”

Vasilisa placed her finger on her chin and became lost in thought. Her hair glittered and I could feel the beating of her heart and hear her rhythmic breathing.

“Say Vasilisa, why is Caliban doing all this anyways? Is there a specific reason that he is attempting to raise an army to invade the Verdant Continent?”

“Eh? Oh, well, there are a number of reasons but I suppose it’s probably because he wants the resource rich Verdant Continent under his direct control.”

“A war over resources huh? Typical…”

“Like I said, there are many reasons, personally I couldn’t care less, I just want to release my grandfather, it just so happens that the only way to do that would be to stop him, what about you? In fact, how can you be the son of the Great Cassandra and not be familiar with sorcery?”

Lisa turned to me with a look full of curiosity. The circumstances surrounding our eventual union were still unclear to her. I took a deep breath and explained everything that had happened till this point, I left out any information relating to Astoria, there was no reason that Lisa needed to know about that.

“I see. So you decided to dive head first into a whole new world because you wish to help your long lost mother.”

“Ah, no, not really.”

“...”

“Ahaha, well I suppose that’s part of it, but if I want to go back to my farm and live out the rest of my life in peace, then I will need to learn how to control the Lich’s Touch. Also there’s a certain someone that I need to bring back safely...I also need to help you too now Lisa and the only way to do all of those things, is to put a stop to Caliban’s plans.”

Lisa’s went purple for a split second and then her expression distorted to one of confusion, I laughed nervously and smiled in her direction.

“We hardly know each other, why would you help me?”

“Let’s just say that you remind me of a certain someone, and whichever way you look at it, our fates are now linked. Also I have experienced the horrors of conflict first hand, I’d rather that my small patch of land and the people that surround it, are spared from it. Normal folk are the ones that suffer the most when someone sitting in front of chessboard moves a piece for his/her own benefit.”

Lisa stood wide eyed at my revelation and then facepalmed.

“*sigh* You sound just like my grandfather, why am I fated to be surrounded by men who drown in their own self righteous idealism…”

“Hahaha, I’m sure he is a good man, but you misinterpret my desire to protect what’s mine for blind humanitarianism.”

Lisa scoffed at this and turned her attention back toward Walburga’s cottage.

“Hm, you say a lot of complicated things for a simple farm boy.”

“Hah, I’ll take that as a compliment.”

I turned away from Lisa and began making my way to the front door. The aged wooden frame creaked as my footsteps edged closer. Just when I was about to twist the knob to open it, the door swung open to reveal a disheveled looking Walburga.

“Where do you think you’re going boy?”

“I-I was just gonna step out for some fresh air?”

“No time for that.”

Walburga barged her way in and made her way to her armchair, she sat down and lit her pipe.

“*exhale* now then.”

Walburga reached into her cloak and took out the thickest book that I had ever seen. The binding was leather and the book itself had seen better days. The pages appeared yellowed and there were ink stains splattered everywhere.

“Can you read and write boy?”

“Eh? Aye, I can.”

“Good, this is a handwritten tome that lists every symbol in the Walphabet, i went to a lot of trouble to find one that was translated into the language of the Verdant Continent. Learn it. I can’t teach you anything until you memorise this reference book.”

“W-what? That is going to take him a very long time, we do not have the luxury of following a curiculum here.”

“Quiet wench! I do not do anything half assed.”

“W-what was that you old bag!?”

“Haha, now now, it shouldn't take to long. If there’s one thing I excel at, its memorising text.”

I grabbed the book from Walburga and sat down near the fire. The book itself was a lot heavier than I thought. It was handwritten and the author of the book was someone with the initials “A.S.”

I unclasped the dusty tome and began to read.