Gathering Storm (The Salvation of Tempestria Book 2) - Gary Stringer (read e book TXT) 📗

the essence of magic itself was dangerous. One world was mostly aquatic, while another was home to a sentient forest. But the one in which he spent most of his time was a world without magic called Earth. The latter was where he intended to take them so they could train for just under a month, before returning to complete their voyage.

“We don’t have time for that,” Cat pointed out. “We’d be late for our rendezvous with Michael.”

Daelen shook his head. “That’s the beauty of it. Time doesn’t work the same there,” he explained. “We can spend nearly a month on Earth, and that’s only about seven days here.”

“Why is their time so different?” Cat wanted to know.

Again, Daelen shook his head. “You don’t understand. Earth isn’t weird – Time there is just the same as everywhere else on the mortal plane, as far as I can tell," he clarified. "It’s Tempestria that’s different.”

“What?” his two guests demanded.

Daelen shrugged. “I’ve no idea why, but your world is out of sync with the rest of the universe.”

Before Mandalee and Cat had a chance to come to terms with Daelen’s revelation, he portalled them all to the Dolphin, which was now moored on StormClaw. The shadow warrior thought the combination of the unremarkable vessel and his perception filter was the best way to visit Calin’s Tower. Their cover may have been blown in terms of their voyage across the ocean, but that was no reason to cause a stir on Esca by turning up aboard the StormChaser.

Catriona rewarded his clear thinking with a hug. She was excited at the prospect of finally getting to see the place and thanked him for taking her with another kiss on the cheek, which prompted another round of teasing from Mandalee.

Chapter 15

Calin’s Tower, gentle reader, had been standing for more than a century and a half, by my mother’s time. It was situated then, as now, in Ellinsford, the capital city of Esca. While StormClaw was a tiny island, easy to hide without anyone missing it, Esca was the third largest island in the world and these days home to a united island nation, but it wasn’t always so.

The Tower itself was accessed by way of Red Street, which was neither red, nor a street. It was a narrow passageway, which forced the companions to walk in single file, Catriona taking the lead. My mother knew the history well and felt compelled to explain that the reference to the colour red came from the many bloody battles fought on this soil. In times past, there was a river running through Ellinsford which divided the city and island, both geographically and politically.

The river was called the Ellin – hence the name of the city – but according to myth, at the height of the conflict, it became known as the ‘Red River’ because it was stained permanently red due to all the blood.

In time, she explained, the climate changed, and the river dried up. With the river gone, the people extended the buildings on either side, so the street became a narrow passageway. Formerly, it was called ‘Red River Street,’ but over time it was truncated to ‘Red Street.’

No-one is sure precisely how the hostilities started, but they lasted, on and off for more than a century. What is certain is that it was perpetuated by ignorance. Both sides accused the other of committing atrocities, desecrating each other’s dead. Both sides vehemently denied the charges. It took a long time for the truth to come out and reveal the cultural misunderstanding at the heart of the conflict: Both cultures believed in a soul that escaped the body soon after death, flying out in the direction the deceased was facing when laid to rest. At this point, however, their belief systems diverged.

Those on the Eastern side of the river believed the body must be laid face up, allowing the soul to fly into space and explore the cosmos for eternity. If the body were laid face down, the soul would be trapped forever. Something that was viewed as sacrilege.

Those on the Western side believed the souls of their people were fragments of the soul of the world. From Tempestria they came and to Tempestria they must return, so the body must be laid face down to allow the soul of the deceased to become one with Tempestria once more. They believed that if the deceased were laid to rest face up, the disoriented soul would fly out of the body and become lost in space, doomed to wander for eternity, never to find its way home. To them, this was sacrilege.

During the war, then, each side in their ignorance, treated the enemy fallen according to their own customs, not realising how this would be viewed by the other side. Not until a third party got them to agree to talks.

Calin grew up in the latter stages of the conflict and when she chose this site for her Tower, dedicated to free access to knowledge, she decided to make Red Street the only approach to the main entrance. She encouraged people to learn the origin of the name of the street, recall the battles of old and realise the price of ignorance and misunderstanding. That suited her philosophy and indeed, the philosophy of the entire Order of Balance. Calin also thought it was appropriate since Red was the symbolic colour of the Balance as recognised by the Council. The red helped the Balance stand distinct and separate from both the Light and Dark orders, not merely a blend of the two. Their core philosophy being that power wielded in ignorance was dangerous, regardless of intent.

Calin’s interest wasn’t limited to magic. Her vast library was considered the finest in the world on any subject one might care to name. It was a researcher’s paradise. However, mages were her core group of patrons.

A law was passed to protect Calin and what she represented. To that end, she would always have