Wysper - The Sphinx's Gift

The people I have met here in Aegyptus tell me the city of Memphis is beautiful. However, I have seen none of it, so I do not know.

Time moves strangely in the Shadowlands. Even though we traveled for hundreds of leagues, following the sea at one point, which was as dry as the rivers, it felt like no time had passed at all. Ghostdog knew the way, and led us to the Temple of Osiris without any of the Shadow creatures trailing us attacking even once.

That almost changed when we surprised the guard keeping watch over the dead tree in one of the temple courtyards. He settled down once Ghostdog hailed him, Lord Osiris himself appearing scant minutes later, and settled us into this temple-complex so vast that, although we have been here a month, I need one of the servants to help me from getting totally lost if I venture out of our rooms.

Not that I have felt much like exploring. The morning after we arrived, Greywolf and I replenished Lord Osiris' mana. Then Lady Isis, their son Horus, cranky old Ptah and his wife, the Lion Lady Sekhmet, and their son Nefertem. All the other Celestials of Aegyptus have died. Yet their priesthoods live on, and everyone it seemed had a mana stone or device they needed replenishing, which we would dutifully take care of. Titan says we are building up favors for the future. However, he is not the one who feels cranky herself over being constantly fatigued.

Greywolf shakes his fatigue off quickly, which is a good thing as Titan is teaching him how to use weapons other than a katana. Right now, I am laying on a divan, a narrow couch with a back tall enough for me to sit almost upright, inside a balcony overlooking a large courtyard where Greywolf is fighting with a shield and blunted spear. He is in a line with three temple guards, Castor, and the Black Dragon warrior woman Khulan, squaring off against six other guards, while Titan observes and makes comments when someone strikes a mock-killing blow on another.

The clack of wooden spears and oaths from the guards and my friends fill the air, until a male voice behind me says, "Enjoying the spectacle of sweaty young men in armor?" Recognizing the voice of Lord Osiris, I begin to rise off the divan, carved to look like a crocodile. He waves me back down. "No need to get up. I will join you."

I sit upright on the edge of the divan, and he pulls a wooden chair towards me and sits down so we are facing each other. In appearance, he is similar, and yet vastly different, than Muzen, or any other Celestial I have met. His eyes are kind and filled with wisdom, while his smile is warm. I smooth the white linen dress I was given as I say, "My Lord Osiris, have you need of us again?"

The fingers of the hand, which brushes against my cheekbone, is gentle. "I have asked far too much of you already. Oh, yes I have," he says as I draw breath to protest. "Our need was great, even greater than we realized, yet I see the strain in your face, the shadows under your eyes. I am giving you time to rest before Ghostdog returns and takes you and the others to Britannia."

His voice becomes brisk as his dark eyes hold mine fast. "It is also time I hold up my end of the bargain. You need to learn how to become the queen of your people, yet there is not enough time to teach you. Nor are you in any state to learn, due to your exhaustion."

"My lord, I can-"

He holds up his hand to stop me. "It is not only a matter of time, but also of temperament. You were not raised to be a queen; you were raised to be a sacrificial victim, and while you will always have your people's love, earning their respect will be more difficult. Therefore, I am going to give you the opportunity to gain an adviser only you can see or hear."

I blink in surprise. "You mean like a ghost?"

Lord Osiris chuckles. "No, not a ghost, though it may appear that way to you. The Sphinx can grant you an adviser that possesses knowledge going back to the days before the Prince's war, along with thousands of years practice in reading people."

"Reading people... like they were books?"

"In a sense. Humans can be clever at hiding their true intentions, but the Adviser sees signs not even Celestials can, and will give you good advice about who to trust and how much."

I am beginning to wish Asena had taken myself and Greywolf away to go explore the world. "Lord Osiris, this is very kind... and yet, I have an adviser in Titan." I also have the spirit, Yasataar, who has begun to teach me dream-walking, but I am keeping that knowledge to myself.

Lord Osiris shakes his head. "Once the leaders of all the Brittani tribes realize what a war-leader they have in Titan, and their warriors see him in full battle-harness, they will make him their general whether he wants to be or not." He gently points a finger at my face. "Once Titan accepts the position and they have him on the field of battle, they will begin reducing you to figurehead status."

I rear back. "But... I am their queen. They never reduced my mother in status, so why would they attempt that with me?"

Lord Osiris sighs as his hand falls to his lap. "According to Ghostdog, your brother believes there is a traitor in your court who plotted to have the Gauls kill Queen Boudica, in exchange for being named the petty king over the Brittani once all resistance has been crushed." I gasp, and he reaches out to clasp my hands with his. "As for you... power resides where the nobles and the people believe it does. Your people will believe in you, and having you as a figurehead queen will keep the confederation of the Brittani tribes together." He squeezes my hands and lets go. "Again, according to Ghostdog, every clan leader has a son he will put forth to marry you, so you can make him High King."

My hand goes to my mouth. "High... but that will fracture the confederation. The Gauls will crush us and make us bow to their will."

He slowly shakes his head. "Not this time. According to Ghostdog, whose words were verified by another source, the Gauls mean to settle the lowlands of Britannia by slaughtering much of the populace and enslaving the rest."

"The traitor who believes he is to become my people's petty king is being deceived." Lord Osiris nods and I take a deep breath. "How do I acquire this ghostly adviser?"

Lord Osiris rises and beckons for me to do the same. "The Sphinx will explain all. Come, I will send you off to go see her."

I rise to my feet, giving him a puzzled look. "My lord, you told us the Sphinx is housed in a stone monument many leagues away."

"And so she is," he replies, a mysterious smile playing around his lips. "Now that you and Greywolf have restored us, certain devices that were painful to operate have become useful once more. Follow me."

Together, we enter the long corridor and turn right. All the walls of the temple-complex are covered in hieroglyphs and paintings of stylized people of Aegyptus performing different tasks, depending on the purpose of the room. In the hallways, the stylized people are always walking, and seem to follow us as we travel to the next building and down a flight of stone stairs.

I follow Lord Osiris into a chamber lit by witchlight lamps set into the walls. The room is empty, its floor bare stone except for a shiny, round disc of some whitish material, just large enough for a person to stand on. Painted on the walls are stylized figures of people interacting with the Sphinx. As we approach the disc, my eyes widen. "Is that ghost-glass?"

"It is," he replies as we stop beside it. "Ghost-glass can not only send images from one place on earth to another, but can also create a bridge from one spot to another, by traveling through the walls between the real world and the Shadowlands."

I stare up at him in amazement. "My lord, how is this possible?"

He chuckles. "Unless you want a lecture on inter-dimensional warping, we shall call it magic and leave it at that. The mana cost is high, so before you leave Memphis I will ask you and Greywolf to replenish me again. Yet I dearly want you to succeed and feel this is the only way." His dark eyes hold mine fast. "You do not have to accept this gift. The Sphinx will explain it, and truthfully answer all of your questions. Should you decide against the idea, you have merely to step upon the disc, and the Sphinx will transport you back here."

"And if I decide to accept this gift?"

Lord Osiris smiles. "You will be able to use the bridging disc yourself. If you are ready, step upon the disc."

Part of me wants nothing to do with any of this... and yet, Lord Osiris is right. The Brittani will regard Titan as a war god incarnate, and me as the sacrificial victim. Not a queen. Never a queen, unless I can prove to them that I am. I take another deep breath and step onto the ghost-glass disc.

He begins speaking in the tongue of Aegyptus as he traces symbols in the air with his forefinger, leaving glowing blue lines which continue to hang in the air as he finishes one and starts tracing another. Lord Osiris completes the seventh symbol and utters a single word.

The room vanishes as my senses reel. I stagger as total darkness surrounds me, my feet stumbling off the disc as the room spins. It steadies, and I straighten as my heart flutters within me. I call out, "Greetings?" My voice echoes, as if I now stand in a cavernous space. "Is anyone there?"

Witchlight lamps begin to glow all around me. Turning about in a circle, I am standing in an enormous chamber supported by columns of carved stone, the walls too dark and far away to make out. Then a female voice calls out, "Voice pattern matches human known as Wysper. Remain stationary and I will come to you." Unease coils itself around my insides at the strange manner in which the creature speaks, but I am Brittani, and I will face this creature. Lord Osiris would not deliberately put me in danger... would he?

A faint sound begins echoing off the walls, reminding me of a glass tapped against stone, and a few moments later something enters into the green tinged light. Large as an Ice-bear, it has the head of an Aegyptus woman on the body of a lion, a set of wings folded back behind it. The being also looks to be made out of ghost-glass. I swallow. "Are... are you the Sphinx?"

I thought ghost-glass to be hard as real glass, but the lion's body is moving as if it were real as it opens its mouth. "I am," the Sphinx replies. It does not move its mouth as it speaks. "Your signs of vitality indicate distress. I will offer you no harm."

I will stand my ground and not run away screaming. "Nor do I mean harm to you."

The Sphinx stops a horse-length away. "It is impossible for you to shatter ghost-glass. However. Positive response is regarded favorably."

I rub my palms against the front of my dress, as if smoothing it. "Gratitude. How may I address you?"

"Sphinx is acceptable. Osiris has explained the low probability of Brittani survival if adviser mode not installed."

I blink. "Beg pardon?"

"Apologies. Adviser mode is ghost-glass disc in narrow diamond shape. Disc is implanted into forehead. Connections are then made with user's brain. Disc allows access to-"

What? "Apologies, Sphinx, but what do you mean, connections? Are you telling me this disc will become part of my mind?"

"Yes. Direct connections to brain allow Adviser to show images to user's mind."

"The disc can take over my mind?"

"No. Adviser mode cannot control user. You will be able to speak with and hear Adviser. You will be able to use satellite moons to see anything in its range. You will-"

I suck in my breath. "Apologies for interrupting again, but are you telling me I could look down like an eagle and see where a Gaul army was being mustered?"

"Yes. Or magnify to see who the general is. Or use the heat sensing ability to see an army hiding in the forest. Adviser will give guidance depending on the situation."

My mind is reeling again, this time over the possibilities. It seems too good to be true. "Tell me about this Adviser. Does it talk in the... ah, the same way you do?"

"No. Adviser will choose the personality best suited to user and act like that person. Adviser will never lie to user."

"Will anyone else be able to see it?"

"Disc can project image of Adviser in front of user. Image will move if user rotates head."

Remembering the ghost-glass amulet the Daemo Fox used, the one Greywolf keeps with him in his travel bag, I nod. "Alright, what if I accept this disc, but later decide I do not want it. Can the disc be removed?"

"No. Implantation is permanent."

Fear stabs at me. "I see. Sphinx, can this disc harm me in any way, or affect my mind?"

"Yes. But only under certain circumstances."

Its mouth closes, so I ask, "Like what?"

The Sphinx opens its mouth again. "You may be killed if people believe you are a witch." I gasp, and it adds, "The probability of the Brittani people believing this is low. With Germanic people and Gauls the probability is greater."

I take a shaky breath. "Alright... anything else?"

"You will die if the disc is removed by force. You will die if the disc malfunctions." As I open my mouth to question the Sphinx, it adds, "The probability of malfunction is much less than a rock falling out of the sky and killing you. There is a higher probability of death if one of the satellite moon functions is used."

"Which one?"

"The satellite moon stores a great quantity of mana. All of that mana can be converted into a kinetic explosion capable of destroying a city or equivalent large area." My eyes go wide as wine cups as it says, "This great of a mana conversion will have a backlash. Moderate probability of death. Certain probability of maximal loss of higher brain power."

I shake my head in confusion. "I have no idea what you are talking about."

"Apologies. Death is possible. Permanently having the mind of a young child is all but certain."

"If I order the moon to destroy a city or something else large."

"Yes."

I let out my breath in a rush. "I do not see that ever happening. Nor do I believe my people will ever see me as a witch... though if I can get the Celestials on my side, things will go smoother. And if someone removes the disc by force, I'll likely be dead already." I close my eyes a few moments as I consider everything the Sphinx said. "If I decide against this, would I be able to hold my people together?"

"You would need to possess a superior will and a strategic mind. You will need to be utterly ruthless. Even with all this your chances would not be good."

"Agreement." Opening my eyes, I sigh. "Several days ago I listened to Titan talk about strategy to Greywolf and Khulan. He quoted a war-leader from Xian, who once wrote, 'Know yourself and know your enemy, and in a hundred battles you shall never lose'. I need to do this." The Sphinx's paws click as it starts towards me, and fear stabs at me again. "Will it hurt?"

The ghost-glass Sphinx stops an arms-length away and crouches down. "No. I will put you into a semi-conscious state. Then deaden your pain senses. Adviser will run you through a series of mental exercises once I am finished. Then you will know how to return using the portal. Are you ready?" I nod, and it says, "Then lay down with your head between my arms." I lay down on the cold, hard floor, and look up. Its eyes are now glowing blue. "Are you still willing?" I nod.

"Then I shall begin."