Jeff Inlo - Chain of Bargains

The mountains grew in scope, tried to block off the invader. They were constructed to seal off the magic from Heteera's deficiencies, but they also served a greater purpose of division. The original spell was cast to completely engulf the energy, but it also acted as a defense mechanism. It could block out almost any attempt to circumvent it, but it could not match Enin's depth of control. The barrier eventually relented and the mountains retracted to their original state.

Once Enin's awareness conquered the obstacle, the imagery around him changed drastically. His essence remained focused within Heteera's mind, but he had pushed past her conscious thought just as he passed beyond the rock mound. The wall of rock waited behind him, and it no longer formed a ring around an empty plain. It simply stood as a long column that extended beyond the edges of infinity.

Standing in the current of thought that had once formed Heteera's true intellect, personality and identity, Enin searched for a way to reconstruct the sorceress' mind. The space around him, however, defied logic and reason. He never expected her awareness to take on a purely coherent representation of space and time, but it lacked any rational cohesion whatsoever. The flow of thought moved in slants and curves, broken angles and segmented lines. It was beyond delirium, beyond madness. Enin felt almost suffocated by total and complete turmoil.

Ignoring the smothering sensation of chaos and disruption, the wizard reached out to each shred of thought and each stray memory that twisted and turned within that tortured section of Heteera's mind. He attempted to follow them all in hopes that one might lead to a foundation. He only needed one building block, one point of true structure no matter how small. If there existed one remnant of Heteera's identity that could be salvaged, he could use that as the anchor to rebuild her consciousness, but he could never find a single impulse that held to any true substance of being.

Refusing to relinquish, Enin followed the convoluted paths that formed Heteera's labored perceptions. He ignored the frustrations of the confused trails. He moved his awareness through ever widening circles and collapsing spirals. He met each dead end with steadfast resolution to start again. He covered the seeming eternity of emptiness simply to break though into crowded confusion.

He kept calling out to the sorceress, trying to capture the barest whisper of recognition. Silence was the usual reply, until he yelled with enough ferocity that a contingent of Heteera's deepest fears decided he was no longer welcome.

The confusion of the sorceress' mind amplified the assault. It was not magical energy that struck out at the wizard's perception. It was unconscious motivation, like the driving force of a brutal nightmare. Mental energy derived a power of its own. Within the depths of the sorceress, Enin faced a barrage. The attack pressed upon the wizard like a terrifying dream that brought panic to a sleeping individual and caused physical distress-cold sweats, heavy breathing, taught muscles, strained screams.

The breadth of fears that wished to obliterate the wizard took on near physical form. A thick wave of muck, like the heavy gray sludge that forms at the bottom of decaying garbage, fell upon Enin's consciousness. It blocked everything else out, encased the wizard's awareness in totality. It threatened to crush his perception, drive his awareness into a black abyss that was Heteera's shredded existence.

Enin had suffered through similar attacks on previous journeys into Heteera's mind. A few times, he tried to pick through the sludge, hoping to find something of use, for even fears can lead back to a pivotal memory. The anguish, however, was empty of identity. It was hollow and corrupt, totally void of any useful substance. He wasted little time in pressing the slush of baseless horrors aside.

There was never victory in avoiding the assault. If anything, it marked the end of the incursion. Once the sorceress' fears had been stoked into an assault, further exploration became pointless. Every stray thought would elude him, resist him. Fighting through became futile.

The wizard withdrew his consciousness. His perception returned to that of his normal existence. He was back in Connel, standing in a quiet study. He was not alone. Heteera was there as was the wizard Jure. Enin stepped back from Heteera and examined her face.

She looked back at him with a blank expression of complete detachment. She didn't seem to recognize him and showed no emotional response to the probing that was now complete.

"Are you alright?" Enin asked.

"I'm fine," Heteera responded.

She wasn't, but she simply didn't know it.

"Are you tired? Do you need to rest?"

"I'm fine," she repeated.

She stared back at the wizard with total and complete indifference, an apathy that went beyond any normal human with basic emotions.

"Very well."

Enin then turned to Jure.

"I want to check the magic," he requested in a somber tone.

It was a process that Enin had always followed. Once the wizard pulled back from the recesses of Heteera's mind, he wanted to ensure the integrity of the barrier. He could not, however, do it safely by himself.

When Jure cast the spell that separated the magic from Heteera's consciousness, he included a siphon that would allow him and Holli Brances to connect to the energy. He also placed a safeguard upon that conduit, ensuring that limits were placed upon its use.

Despite Enin's vast ability, the barrier would not simply bend to the powerful wizard's will. He had no such direct access to Heteera's magic, but he could utilize his connection with his elf guard. He and Holli shared a magical link that was powerful in its own right. Grasping that link, and with the help of Jure, Enin could probe the magical flow within the sorceress.

Bypassing Heteera's consciousness, the wizard slipped his perception directly into the stream of magic that flowed within the barrier spell. He did not absorb any. He simply analyzed it. He looked for taint and malady, any sign that the magic was being influenced, either by some outside source or even by Heteera's unconscious will.

"It appears very stable," Enin remarked. "The barrier remains strong and the magic itself remains pure."

"How's her mind?" Jure asked.

"Same as before. A disorganized jumble of despair," Enin replied.

"She's been like that for so long now. Is there any good news?"

"In all honesty, I do not believe it can get any worse for her. I believe she's reached the bottom of the pit."

"That's supposed to be good?"

"Yes. It means she's stabilized. It may be a very bad condition, but it doesn't seem to be degrading further. We have both been worried about how long she has been in this condition, but it seems time is no longer a factor. We will either find a way to save her or we won't. It's no longer possible for us to be too late, and I find that to be encouraging."

"I suppose you're right."

Enin then contradicted himself.

"Not completely. We may not have to worry about time in regard to repairing her mental condition, but there are other considerations. So much power is within her. At what point do we deem her not to be safe?"

Jure looked over at Heteera who continued to stare off into space. She showed not the slightest reaction to being called a possible hazard. Jure then questioned Enin regarding the validity of such a concern.

"But you said the barrier is strong. What's the danger?"

"Danger?" Enin repeated, as if it was a concept just introduced to him. He began to consider so many different possibilities. He started to pace about the room as his thoughts covered an array of scenarios. "Will another magic caster sense the magic within her and try to utilize it for his own gain? Your spell was extremely efficient in limiting access, but that doesn't mean someone won't try to bypass it. A clumsy attempt by a foolish spell caster might be disastrous. And what if something happens to her? An accident. If she dies suddenly, what happens to all that power? A simple slip down a stairway and Godson knows what might happen."