The one who reads stars

Week has passed and I had to endure hellish training. It is really hard to try and impress someone who might earn a title demigod.

When I was done with my training, I decided to go where Aktor is. But this time I would actually travel there physically. Bell is an excellent ransu if I do say so myself. Though the boat ride is something that I can't improve. It took me ten days to get to the northern islands and from the port it took a couple of days to get to another town.

During my trip I heard many things about the culture here. It is said that the crater far up in the north was made by Cantio when she was experimenting with magic. The northern islands seem to be mostly clan based. There is an official ruler of the northern islands, but he has to make sure he respects the clans around the islands.

Then there are the points. Apparently they all represent something. Northern point represents a wolf meaning unity, Eastern point represents a deer meaning trade, Southern point represents a fox meaning knowledge, and Western point represents a bear meaning strength. I'm personally surprised that the deer means trade since Jane didn't seem like she knew a lot about trade. And apparently there is a center island that doesn't belong to any other islands and it is completely neutral territory. The center island is represented as a two headed snake meaning healing.

I heard during my travels that Northern point is someone who can read stars to depict what will happen in the future. Apparently that doesn't have to do with him being a Northern point but his own individual talent. I heard his name was Revon.

I also heard a rumor that there was a sleeping demigod somewhere in Ihm. It is said that it once guided mankind to the other continents and destroyed everything on its path. Whether it is true or not remains a mystery.

There are most likely frost dragons in the mountains and up north. Sea dragons also exist in these seas, but they usually let ships go by. But there are times when dragons attack ships and villages. Here dragons are considered something to fear and avoid. In Arutos however, the dragons are venerated as guardians. It might be because the dragons on Ihm are more aggressive in nature, but I don't know for certain.

There are 4 great clans in the northern island and there are 7 additional smaller clans. The 4 great clans are something that the ruler cannot overlook. Each clan has their own way of living and are all unique from each other. While they believe in the five gods, they do not call them the same names and they have different stories regarding them. Aeon is Aik, Vita is El, Mors is Kul, Cantio is Lau and Iter is Il.

I finally reached the shore of the main island of the northern islands. There I asked around if people have seen someone that looked like Aktor. I heard that he was off to the capital of northern islands Raukia. And then summoned my Bell and we started heading in that direction.

During my ride I noticed that there were many bounties in the villages I crossed. I took one job to get rid of a wyvern nesting near a village. It was a tough fight but I managed to deal with it. I got some lux out of it too.

Then I got to the capital. There I went to the travelers guild, as it was the only place I think Aktor would go, if you don't take in the pubs or taverns. Then as the luck would have it, I saw Aktor looking at the job listings.

- Hey Aktor!

- Oh. It's you Nor. Didn't expect to see you this soon.

- Yeah, my Bell sure is fast. What were you looking for? A job?

- I was only looking if there were any fetch guests that would lead me to the clan Ergnot.

- Ergnot? Why would you go there? Is the Northern point there?

- No, just out of interest. Revon is probably hunting magical beasts as we speak.

- Isn't it also our job to do that kind of thing?

- Our job is to go from place to place to find jobs that don't bind us to a location for very long. And if we do get bound to a location, then we can't call ourselves travelers anymore.

- I see, do you have any idea how to find Revon?

- Don't worry. He will find us when the time is right. He always does.

- So that is the star reading I heard about. So why are you interested in the clan Ergnot?

- They will host a festival this time of the year and the outsiders are welcome.

- What are they celebrating?

- For the anniversary of their demigods' fall.

- Oh, so that's why I heard about the demigod. But why are they celebrating his fall? Wouldn't a birthday be more appropriate?

- His birthday is unknown. And his fall is thought to be the most epic of tales. Apparently he fought one of the dragon lords there and got buried by a pile of large rocks. During the battle with the dragon lord, he managed to get their eyes. If I remember correctly, the dragon lord was Stoor but I could be mistaken.

- In any case that sounds like it was an epic battle. Let's go there.

- Hold on a minute. I'm still looking for something to do while we go there.

A while passes.

- Got it. Now that I've accepted this job, we can go to the place. Though the festival might not even be started when we get there.

- Then what do we do in the meantime?

- We should get some better equipment. It's starting to get colder the norther we go and it is also the cold months.

So we spend the rest of the day buying stuff that we need. The next day we go to the stables to get a horse for Aktor and I summon my Bell. So our week-long ride began.

- It sure got cold very fast.

- We are going up north, what else can you expect?

During our ride Aktor told me stuff about Ergnot and its customs. Apparently men of the clan must hunt at least one prey by themselves in their life or they can't go to their afterlife. Men also are able to have multiple wives. Women of the clan are usually expected to take care of the children with exception of if they dedicate their lives to magic. While only men can be rulers of the clan, women are usually advisors to the head of the family. The clan Ergnot worships the fallen demigod as their guardian deity, as do most of the other clans.

There is also a tradition when deciding the next clan head. There are duels of strength and wit respectively. Duels of strength are straightforward fights, though killing is forbidden in the duel. Duels of wit can be many things like a game of chess or cards or any other type of game. The referee of the duels decides what game of wit is played. If the duels end up in a draw, which they do many times, the victor will be decided by voting. Both men and women can vote and the age when they can vote is 14 years old.

The Ergnot clans territory is located near the biggest lake in northern islands. Ergnot clan is the second largest clan in northern islands, with clan Arua being the largest far north. Arua has been mostly integrated into society than the other clans, but still having its clan ways. Arua is mostly invested in horsemanship. Third is clan Yrum which is mostly invested in fighting humanoid beings meaning they are a militaristic clan. Unfortunately, Yrum clan is quite ksenofobic. Fourth is clan Ves which is the clan that is heavily invested in fishing and costal things in the eastern side of the northern islands. Ergnot is mostly in control of the coastal areas in the west side of the northern islands.

We finally reached the place where the festival was about to begin. Unfortunately, we came a bit too early so they are still preparing the festivities. Aktor went to deliver a letter to the clan head and I in the meantime went looking around the place. Then I saw a familiar face.

- Tur.

- How's it going, young lad?

- What are you doing here?

- I have to find out about most of the things by witnessing them. There will be my other selves as well to witness what's going to happen so pay me no mind.

- Oh yeah, I got a message from your brother.

- A message? From my brother? Now you grabbed my attention. Do tell.

- He said "The god of time has grown bored, the god of life has begun to fade, the god of death has made a blunder, the god of magic has forgotten her duties and the god of mind has started to walk away".

- Hhm... He said that. I wonder what he is after.

- You know what he means by that?

- He may be a liar and a trickster, but sometimes he will tell something of value. But by what he meant, I have some theories but not concrete answers.

- So can you tell me your theory or do I need to make a payment of some kind?

- Since it's only a theory of mine and the fact that you brought me this info, I shall tell you. Since you know of the original powers this should be easy for you to understand. The destruction is about to return to Norbul.

- Destruction will return? What happened to him?

- I'm in a good mood, so I will tell you. When the original power of soul ceased to exist, the original power of destruction tried many things to make her come back. During his attempts he caused so much damage to the world around him that the original powers of magic and creation sealed him away.

- Something like that happened. Do you know where the seal is?

- You are trying my patience. But... wait. You came all this way and did not know? fascinating.

- You mean to say that he is sealed here?

- I think I spoke too much. Now see you later.

He whispers.

- If you live to see me again that is.

- What?

Then he disappears. Is it true that the original power of destruction is the demigod of the tales.

- Hey, whats wrong?

I heard a familiar voice. It was Aktor.

- You look pale. Did something happen?

- Why did we come here? No. Why did you want to come here?

- I already told you that I only want to go enjoy the festivities. Why are you so unsure all of a sudden?

- I just... I heard that the original power of destruction might be sealed away here.

- What? How'd you get to that conclusion?

- I saw Tur a second ago.

- So she told you that. If it was her that told you that he is sealed away somewhere near, then we should probably take it seriously.

- She didn't tell me exactly that. But she told me that I came all this way without knowing anything.

- In either case we should stay vigilant.

- Right.

We went to the tavern and we spent the rest of the night there. The next day we looked around and even asked Lex to monitor anything happening here just in case. Even with our efforts we only managed to locate the resting place of the demigod. Lex confirmed that he got readings of something buried deep beneath the shoreline with large stones marking its grave. Lex told us that while it looked like there was power emanating far below, there was no indication that it would rise up again. In fact, the power was slowly dwindling, as it has for a long time.

Then the next day came and the festival began. There were a lot of food stalls, vendors and games of many kinds. There were also limited time shops that had costumes and special items. I personally bought a mask that covers my eyes and Aktor bought a cape and repair tools. We also went to eat in many places. And before we knew it, the day became dark again.

Then we saw a stall with a fortune teller. We decided to go in. The fortune teller had a cape and a weird mask on him, so I couldn't see his face.

- Do you wonder if you have enough money with you?

- 100 lux right. Here.

- 100 lux a person.

- Oh, here.

- Thank you for your patronage. Now sit down.

We sat. There is a crystal ball in the center of the table. The room suddenly became as dark as you can get. And then we started seeing stars forming around us like it was the night sky. The fortune teller kept his hands on the crystal ball and started talking.

- You, spear carrying gentleman, are very old as a human. You have seen many fall by your own hands. You are a reaper of souls that can never be sated. You will see in the future the ghosts of your past haunt you and condemn you. But you have a saving grace with you. A saving grace that you only may use if you let go of your past and focus on the future.

Aktor looks like he isn't taking this seriously.

- Then you young one, who is barely 5 years old, walks the path which may change the fate of others. You're an outsider to the game of the gods. And as such, your fate is an open book. Your name once carried weight in the palms of the ones who made use of you. But now your name is long forgotten. You stand now with your reaper and will one day choose to either save him or to let him rot. Thus is your fate dimly read by me.

- I'm an outsider to the game of gods. I may choose to save Aktor or let him rot.

- That is what I read, yes.

- Well, thank you for the experience.

We leave the tent and Aktor says.

- We will meet you at the tavern tonight.

- Why did you say that?

- Because that was Revon.

- What?

And so we went to the tavern and we waited. Then suddenly someone sat at our table.

- Thanks for the lux, Nor. You were one of the more interesting customers.

- Revon, I take.

- You are correct. Perhaps you should try to practice fortune telling. You may have a talent.

- I pass, thanks.

- Your loss. Now Aktor, about the thing.

Aktor hands Revon something wrapped in leather. Revon opens it. It's a bright bluish and transparent dagger. Like it was made from glass.

- Nice, I didn't think they would actually sell me one.

- What is that?

- This, my friend, is an old ceremonial dagger that was made by the Quetzalcoatl himself. Its purpose is to sacrifice a worthy prey that would satisfy the dragon lord.

- I see, then why do you need one?

- I need to offer something that has the power of a dragon lord so that I can quell an evil spirit haunting the woods nearby. The evil spirit was someone who used to worship dragons and is now breaking havoc in the surrounding area.

- Do you need any help with that?

- You don't know, do you? The points are somewhat powerful existences that will protect the people of Ihm from magical creatures. And since I'm a north point, I have a bit more of a fighting power than other points.

- Why is that?

- We train so that we may gain the powers of our predecessors. The North point has existed the longest of the points, so the powers have accumulated a bit more. That and the island Ikujää gives its habitants a bit more to work with.

- Ikujää? What is that?

- It is an island that is covered by cold weather that will not allow any organic life to exist by itself. Meaning that you have to warm yourself with either external heat source or a magic that will keep you warm enough. The people there cover their bodies with enchantments to fight the cold. The animals and magical creatures there are something that can't be compared to other places.

- Did humans do that by themselves?

- While the majority there is human, the means to live there was founded together with other races like elves and dwarfs. The engineering there is on another level compared to other places.

- Why do you want to be there at all?

- There is an abundance of materials that can be found there. There is also a metal that is only mined there.

- That explains it. Then what does that have to do with the northpoint being the strongest?

- The technology of making the points was found there and the enchantments that they make there increase your body's potential.

- I should visit the place someday.

- Good luck with that. They are highly ksenofobic, so getting there is hard. Even if you are human.

- But aren't there other races there as well?

- Yes, but the people of Ikujää are afraid of their technology being used in wrong ways like war and such. People there aren't racist, they just fear outsiders. Well, the rest of Yrum might be racist, but the people of Ikujää aren't. Even though the people of Ikujää belong to clan Yrum, that is only by name.

- Maybe with your recommendation they would let me go there.

- I might be from there myself, but my name doesn't carry much weight. I'm just another of their contributions to the rest of the northern islands.

Revon stands up.

- Now then, it's about time for this fellow to go hunt an evil spirit.

Aktor says.

- Good luck with that.

Then Revon leaves and we are left with his tab.