Free The Game of Fates by Joel Babbitt Page B

seemed to
breathe peace into his heart and mind.
    “I
am with you, son of Kobold.  Be not afraid,” the voice whispered on the edge of
his consciousness.
    “But
I am scared, mother,” his mind whispered back, telling the presence what he
could tell no one else, what he could not even admit to himself.
    “My
son, I am with you, and I will stand with you in your times of greatest need. 
Know that I will watch over and guide you.  Your days shall not be less than
those appointed to you.”
    Durik’s
heart was open, and with it his awareness was caught away into a high
mountain.  Upon the top of it sat a mighty citadel, its granite walls ancient,
yet as mighty as the day they were formed.  Many figures stood watch upon the
walls, though the vision was too clouded to make out who they were.  In a
moment Durik found himself in a great chamber, floating as it were,
weightlessly over the marbled floors, veins of gold and silver standing out in
bright relief against the black of the stone through which they ran.
    Standing
in front of him was a being that radiated a power that was almost overwhelming
in its intensity and purity, and yet—she felt somehow deeply familiar.  Indeed,
as the dross of his immaturity and flaws began to melt away in the presence of
this utterly pure being, Durik began to feel the ennobling effect her power had
upon him.  His mind was alive and many things he had not understood before
began to make themselves clear.  With this greater understanding all the doubts
of years past began to resolve themselves.  Gradually his life to this point
became utterly clear, as if all these years he had been struggling in the cold
darkness, and now he had broken through into the brilliant light of day and,
looking back, the ties that had held him in the darkness were laid bare for his
inspection.
    Standing
now confidently before the presence of this being, Durik’s heart was on fire
within him and his face shone with a brilliant luster.  With eyes now purified,
Durik looked at the being in front of him.  She was tall, nearly twice Durik’s
height, slender of stature, and light of skin.  Her face was flat with but a
small nose and ears that were small and rounded.  Though the aura of strength
that emanated from her was overwhelming, the appearance of her was one of
gentle grace and loving kindness.
    She
appeared to be a human, to the best of Durik’s knowledge, though he knew
instinctively that this was only one of her forms.
    “Durik,”
her consciousness swept across his like the tendrils of a wafting breeze.  “Son
of Kobold, will you serve me?”
    Durik’s
heart burned within him still, and his desire to please her was intense.  “I
will do whatever you ask of me, my lady.”
    “That
is well,” she gave him to feel, and his heart was gladdened at her
pronouncement.  “The stone of your brothers of the Kale Gen must be returned to
them.  When the time comes, you will know to whom it is to be given.”
    Though
there was no negative reaction from Durik, he did wonder about Lady Karaba’s
pronouncement that he was the Oracle of the Kale Gen.
    “You
are not to be the oracle of your brother’s gen for long, my dear one,” her
presence tenderly assuaged his heart.  “As it was in times of old, so shall it
be in times to come.  You are my paladin.  It is I who guide you, and through
you I will save my children.”
    His
heart absolutely willing, and his soul yearning to obey, Durik looked up into
her eyes.  “What may I call you, my lady?” he voiced, his words seeming so
clumsy in his own ears.
    All
of a sudden Durik began to feel himself being lifted away from her presence. 
As he went, he could feel the strength of her presence diminishing, though the
utter clarity of her care for him and of her power Durik felt could never
diminish in him.  Seeing nothing but blackness now, Durik could feel power
coursing through him and knew that some portion of that power would remain with
him