Pyrus (11 page)

Chapter 17: The History

My experience with the viewer's table is something I will never forget as long as I live. It was the most terrifying and yet totally awesome memory I will ever have. When Gron touched the center of the viewer's table, it gave off a giant red glow as if angered because of the touch. Not even a second later, the record house was gone, and I was standing in the middle of a wasteland similar to the one created by Ivan and Lyra.

“Pyrus used to be a volcanic land.” Gron spoke as we walked through the wasteland. “The ground was heated soil, and the two suns in the sky contributed to the constant heat. Lava slides were constant.” As if in response to his voice, volcanoes formed, and lava flowed all around us. I wasn't just being told the history; I was viewing it with my own eyes.
This is so cool!
I thought as we walked.

“The first people who settled here got burned frequently by either the sun or by the lava. Eventually, their skin turned crimson, although they weren't necessarily burned.” People appeared all around us. Some had red skin, some had orange.

“When the Kreydurs were first formed, they were not chosen by their Kreysors; they either volunteered or had to pass many tests of knowledge, strength, and cunning.” The next images were of people competing in what looked like a wrestling match, a footrace, and, surprisingly, a game that looked like chess.

“The Pyrians, however, were all raised equally.” Gron spoke with disdain in his voice. “They eventually ended up fighting amongst themselves for the power that the Kreysors offered.” Images of blood and war appeared in front of my eyes. Men and women ran through me like I didn't exist, to battle their opponents on the other side.

“The king at the time, Vol, was devastated by his ruined country. He decided that the Kreysors should pick the Kreydurs for Pyrus. The other countries followed shortly after, fearing that the civil war in Pyrus would spread throughout Tereer.” He paused for a moment, letting everything he said sink in.
This is heavy stuff,
I thought to myself.
I never knew how valuable these creatures are—that people are ready to kill one another to achieve their power.

“The first Kreydurs were actually twins, though their names were not mentioned.” Gron had resumed his lesson and was actually walking a bit faster. “They wielded two Kreysors, one transformed into a bow and the other into a sword.” My ears instantly perked up. This could be my Kreysor! The twins appeared before me, one with a flaming lion, the other with … Centurion?
No, it's just not possible!
My mind screamed in denial.

“Gron?” I addressed him nervously, “you aren't … by any chance … one of the twins are you?” He laughed before he answered me.

“I wish I was! They were the most powerful Kreydurs at that time! You are right, though, that
is
Centurion. Kreysors do not age like humans; it takes them millennia before they finally pass away.”

“But I thought they were beings made of pure magii?” I countered. Gron's eyes widened in horror after I responded.

“Who told you that?” he asked me sharply. “Whoever did knows more than they should about the Kreysors.”

“Oh, and I suppose it is alright for you to be all-knowing then?” I retorted, defending Kris. No way was I going to let this man dis my friend. He glared at me for a moment then fixed his gaze upon the twins.

“Moving on.” Gron continued. “As I said before, the twins were the most powerful Kreydurs, but only because there were two of them. They had twice the amount of influence when the Kreydurs voted on decisions. This created unrest throughout the other countries.” An image flashed of the twins smiling smugly while they faced what I assumed to be the council of Kreydurs.

“Eventually, something that had never happened before occurred: a secret alliance was formed between Irone, the country of metal, and Tundar, the country of ice. Their goal was to assassinate the twins in order to balance out the Kreydurs. It was a noble plan and was quickly carried out.” An image of the twins' bodies lay before me. Two slash marks across the chest on each body.

“Although the deed was considered noble by many, the Pyrians hated both Tundar and Irone for what they did. The relationship between Pyrus and the outside world gradually diminished until they stopped communicating completely.” There were no images this time, but I was quite sure I understood what Gron was talking about.

“Tundar and Irone now had the exact power they sought to destroy: more influence over decisions. Their power became absolute, and they began bending, and even breaking, rules when necessary.” There were now images, but my mind pictured police officers back home letting loose Fred even though he killed me … or did he? I didn't even know anymore.

“In response to Pyrus losing contact with the rest of Tereer, the other countries decided to shape the landscape to their own will. The previous king defied them, however, and would not grant them passage to the true Pyrus. He was a skilled magician, and with his court, he managed to bind the volcanic landscape and replace it with forests, lakes, and wildlife.”

“Wasn't that what he was trying to prevent?” I asked, puzzled at the king's contradicting actions.

“In a sense, yes.” Gron paused, thinking about his wording probably. “But at the same time, Pyrus is protected from Tundar. When the king bound the landscape, he lowered all of the volcanoes, the magma, even the true palace of Pyrus, where the enemy would need to go in order to seize absolute control.” As he spoke, I saw the land begin to shift. I saw the forests emerge and the lakes rise out of the magma. It would have been pretty cool if the situation weren't so serious.

“So the palace that is above ground …” I began. In response, the palace appeared before us. The thing was massive, with a jade roof and stone walls. It looked to be as tall as the pyramids. The only difference was that this palace looked like its construction had just been finished—there were no signs of moss or decay anywhere..

“Exactly!” Gron said. “The palace you see is where King Sol resides, but if an enemy captures it, the country still has free will!” All of the images faded into a black room. Gron snapped his fingers, and a wooden door began to carve itself out of the shadows, not even a foot away from where we were standing.

Once we walked through the door, we reappeared back inside the cozy sitting room. The table was now emitting a deep blue glow and looked as though it was aging, just like humans do when we pass our natural magii limit.
It must need to recharge!
I thought to myself. It occurred to me how valuable the trip had been, given that the viewer's table went through so much stress to show it. However, I was still confused about one thing.

“What does all of this have to do with me?” I said. Gron looked at me the way my Kreysor did in my mental realm. When I looked into his eyes, I began to feel woozy. Gron told me I fainted on Pyrus, but that was only half the truth; only one person could answer the question I asked, and he lived inside my mind.

“Come out, come out, wherever you are!” I called out to my friend. The walls of flame were restored in my mental realm, so I knew he was here somewhere. I just needed to find him. My mind was a pretty big space, so I began to jog around, hoping I would find him. I discovered him sitting on what appeared to be the edge of my mind—if that was even possible. I saw that he still portrayed himself as an older version of me, but he seemed younger than before, more like he was directly mimicking me.

“You can show me your true form, you know!” I called out to him. I must have surprised him for once, because he jumped, turned around, and waved in greeting. I waved back, and he beckoned me to sit down with him. So, humoring him, I did.

“This is the beginning of my realm, and the end of yours.” He spoke so quietly that I had to lean in to hear him. His eyes glanced out at the black space, as if looking for something.

“I reached the record house, and I now know the history of Pyrus.” I talked quickly and to the point—there was no need to bother him with details. “I also met your companion, Centurion.” At the mention of his friend's name, he looked at me, his eyes no longer mine but another's.

“You still haven't figured out my name yet, have you?” His voice was no longer kind, but irritated and impatient. “How many times have I told you that you can't use my power unless …”

“I challenge you to a duel in your true form. If I win, then you have to tell me your name,” I interrupted. He considered my offer and then spoke.

“And if you lose?”

“Then I leave Pyrus, seeing as I would be unfit to be your Kreydur,” I replied evenly. He smiled at me. I was placing my bet—the question was: would he call it?

“I accept your challenge, Jack. But before I begin, I hope you do not get burned easily.”
What an odd statement
, I thought. As I was about to reply to it, he dropped onto all fours and burst into flame. The transformation took not even a second, and before I knew it, I was gazing into the face of the flaming lion. He was about as tall as my chest and his body was covered and flames. He roared at me, daring me to make the first move, but I knew better than that. Noticing my hesitation, he charged at me so quickly that I was hit and airborne before I knew what was happening.

Before I even landed, he was already charging at me, his claws ready to tear me apart. He was going to fight me without holding back, so there was no need for me to do otherwise. What I needed was time to get my chambers ready.
Wait a minute!
I thought.
I can just do to him what I did to Glace!
Focusing my thoughts on a clock, I began to slow down time. It worked just as I planned until he slashed the right side of my stomach.

“That was a clever plan,” he called out from behind me. “But your tricks will not work here. We are in between both of our realms now.” Okay, time for plan B: charge up as much magii as I can while taking his abuse..

Once again, I was knocked into the air, and I could feel the flames burning the skin on my back. I braced myself for another attack from below when he appeared before me and dug a claw into my abdomen. He knocked the wind out of me, and that only increased the speed of my fall. The claw stayed in even after I collided with the ground, my body making a crater.

I coughed up some blood as the claw finally left. Everything was fine until the flames began cauterizing the gash they had made. I nearly screamed in pain, but I held my tongue. He didn't need to see my pain.

“You are finished,” he said to me. “It looks like you lost your gamble, Jack.” There was no way he was going to get the last word. I wasn't done yet. Whispering “Fuhrhealminok,” I slowly repaired my damaged organs. When the spell was finished, I didn't get up.
Not yet, just a little bit longer.
I coaxed myself to be patient. The lion did just what I thought he would do: check to see if he knocked me unconscious or killed me. He was a little early though; if he realized my plan, he would really finish me off. Thankfully, Lady Luck was on my side. The moment he looked at my body, my chambers had reached their peak, and I punched him right in the face.

He was sent flying by the pure force of the magii coursing through my palms. Actually, magii was coursing through all of my chambers. Once again I was putting it all on the line. If I ran out of magii before I won, I was finished.
No!
My mind wouldn't accept negativity; there was going to be no jinxing my victory.

I finally saw the Kreysor crash to the ground. Not making the same mistake he did, I rushed toward the impact site. As I rushed, a claw slashed at my back, causing me to fall onto my face. I stood up but got slashed across my chest, destroying my shirt.

“Come on! Why destroy my shirt?” I yelled at him, hoping to pinpoint his location. The only reply was a slash across the cheek. My brain began to assess the situation.
Okay, so I can't see him now, but there may be a way. As Gron said, not everything is seen through human eyes.

“Trublind!” I shouted out. I immediately felt the magii drain from my head chamber, but my eyes adjusted quickly. He left prints of magii wherever he stepped before he pounced, so I just had to duck so he would miss me. I still couldn't see him; he was most likely going to attack me from behind. Unless I concentrated extremely hard on the sounds he made before he attacked, I was done for.

None of this would have been possible to parry without my head magii chamber. My hearing became more acute, and the tiny sound caused by his arm preparing for a strike was all I needed to locate him. Instead of ducking like I had planned, I jumped and did a backflip just for bragging rights. He passed right under me, his swipe missing by a fraction of an inch. I followed my backflip with a double leg kick to the lion's back, and I sent him flying!

“You know, maybe unleashing all of my magii wasn't the best idea I've had,” I muttered to myself. I didn't have much time left in this form, and I was just wasting it chasing after him. I sent him flying because I couldn't control my power! He recovered faster than I had anticipated.

“How long has he been unconscious for?” Centurion asked as he walked in. Gron looked at him surprised, mostly because Centurion had a rare impatient tone in his voice.

“Ten minutes so far,” Gron replied unemotionally. Nodding stiffly, Centurion backed away from the body and proceeded down the hall. A few seconds later, Gron heard the screeches of the door as it opened and closed. Knowing that Centurion was now gone, Gron stared at Jack's body.

The battle raged on between the lion and me, and we were matching each other blow for blow. Fist met claw, and we both stumbled back from the recoil. His deafening roar met my scream as we both charged at each other once again, hoping that the other would give in. The lion went on the offensive first, clawing at me with raw power. I tried to block every strike, but whatever I couldn't block, I dodged. As his power began to decrease, I saw my chance and went on the offensive. I threw as many punches as I could, my speed unbelievably fast and constant. I was about to break through his guard when the aura around my palms began to flicker.