The Order of the Crystal Shield: Tow-Quin

By D. T. Sanders

The door slammed open and two men, carrying a third, struggled to get through it. The men walking wore the same clothes, even though they were of different size. On each issue tunic was a bell, book and candle superimposed on a red pentagram. One was a largish fellow with dirt blond hair, and poor personal hygiene. The other was a darker complexioned fellow, dark hair, average size, sharp uniform and clean. They were both rough men with rough ways. The man they carried was over two meters tall, well built, blond hair, blue eyes, and would have been very handsome, but, his clothes and person were a shambles. His shirt hung from his chest like a blood covered silk rag. A large, poorly treated cut ran from right collar bone to his left hip. His blond hair was matted with drying blood and sweat. Parts of his face were starting to swell and turn color. The guards managed to run him into the doorway twice as he feebly struggled before getting him through.

"I told ya, we should've bopped him anoth’r un before coming up the stairs," whined Harkel, the larger of the two. "Maybe he wouldn't 've kicked Franks over the rail that way."

"His Lordship, the Teacher, wouldn't stand for that," stated Sturnock. “Journeyman Tomax, here, been beat bad enough the way it is.”

"Didn't help Franks out nun. Land'n on the slate stones like that. I could hear his bones breaking from up on da stairs." Harkel was puffing heavily as they started through the room. "Any ways, the Teacher never need know. If'n you didn't tell him."

"Franks will be just fine..." Sturnock was cut off by Harkel's end slipping.

"Let's drop 'im right 'ere. I can't keep my grip."

Sturnock shifted his grip to compensate for Harkel's sagging end. "Ho there, lift on your end."

"I tell ya Sturnock, his lordship weighs a ton. Let's put him down afore I drop him."

Sturnock looked shocked, "I wouldn't drop him if I were you. His lordship is known to be a little heavy handed when he's wronged."

"Tomax, ‘er ad never know. After the beaten he took, I don't think e'll be feeling anythin' before long anyway."

"Just the same. Don't drop him."

"I wouldn't do it by choice, but I'm a lose'n ma grip." Harkel smiled a toothy grin.

Sturnock looked around hastily. "Over there on the divan." They shuffled over to the divan, barely making it in time. Sturnock bent to quickly check Tomax's pulse and respiration.

Harkel took a leisurely tour around the Journeyman's apartment. "My, my, my," he mumbled to himself. He looked behind the curtains and out the window. "He's got his self a real window here," Opening the door into the bedroom, he commented, "Look at that bed and all the fancy wood trappin’s.” He continued to move around the room lighting the lamps and marveling at the finery. “Just the bric-a-brac is worth a fortune,” he said to Sturnock as he came over to stand behind him. "His lordship has a mighty fine place here. Better than I'd ever see.” He paused to look at Tomax.

Tomax was not doing well. His face had taken on a blueish tinge, he was gurgling and gasping for air. A foamy sweat had broken out upon his face. The muscles of his neck were constricted into solid cords.

Harkel smiled faintly and sounded unconcerned, "His lordship don't look sa good."

Sturnock replied angrily, "He’s not doing good, you idiot. Something is seriously wrong here. Quick, run and get a healer."

Without another word Harkel dashed out of the room and down the passageway. About twenty feet away he stopped, scanned the hallway and silently moved back towards the open doorway to Tomax's room. Sturnock was speaking softly and tracing a fiery pattern in the air that disappeared as he completed it. Tomax's breathing became more regular and the tension eased in his neck. Harkel backed away from the door soundlessly and moved down the corridor several yards. Then he opened a pouch and removed a ring and medallion. While putting them on, he noisily walked back towards the room. Just before stepping into the room, he hid the medallion under his shirt. "The healers is on their way. I got ta thinking though. Couldn't this be some part of that there Tow-Quin thing that his lordship is suppose to be going through?"

Sturnock's head snapped around, "Where did you hear of the Tow-Quin?"

Harkel smiled again, "The barracks is a buzz with the talk. The word is on the morrow the Journeymen will undergo this here big test and get great powers or some’n."

Sturnock relaxed and turned his attention back to Tomax. "No, I don't think this is part of the Tow-Quin. It’s more like he’s been poisoned."

Harkel eased the door shut and silently slid the bolt into place as he asked, "How's it you know so much about that Tow-Quin thing?"

Sturnock frowned as he continued to check Tomax's respiration and dress some of his bleeding wounds. "I had a friend once that was an Operative for the Order and he told me some things."

Sturnock had Harkel's full attention. "What kind a things?"

Preoccupied with Tomax, Sturnock answered, "Well, it's a kind of test for a student of the Power. Whenever the Teacher determines that a enough of the Journeymen and students are ready, he and another member of the Council do the test. It’s different for each student."

"So the test is a product of the Power and each student is wrapped into the fabric of it. Submerged and charged with the full force of the Power?" Sturnock's head snapped around with the change in Harkel’s speech. Harkel was like a different man. Gone was the slovenly, stooped shoulder happy-go-lucky idiot. There was a hard edge and a new passion to Harkel's carriage. He looked like a model soldier. “Well, did I get it right?”

Sturnock slowly rose to his feet. Hearing the change in Harkel's voice and seeing the change in his demeanor, several things fell into place for Sturnock; the way Harkel had surveyed the room, his attitude toward Tomax, his quick return from the healers, and his curiosity about the Tow-Quin. Sturnock cursed silently. Harkel had to be an agent or an assassin.

Tomax convulsed. His eyes snapped open. An unseen force slammed into Sturnock and threw him across the room. He scrambled to his feet to see Tomax rigid upon the divan, back arched, teeth clinched, and neck muscles straining. Tomax's eyes were shining like silver beacons. A blueish gold glow pulsed around his body. "What the ......." Sturnock's question abruptly ended when he looked over to see Harkel's face, black with rage and revulsion. He had been transformed again. Now he looked like a wild eyed fanatic facing what he hated or feared the most.

"...A thing of evil beyond recount. A beast of hate beyond all reason. A creature of corruption beyond all redemption." Harkel was reciting to himself as his hand moved to draw his sword. In his other hand he held a medallion away from his chest. It pulsed with an eerie green glow.

"What are you talking about? The man is just sick. We need to get some help here." Sturnock was trying to buy time as he moved to get between the Journeyman and Harkel. He wasn't sure what was wrong with Tomax but he knew how to fight Harkel. He needed more time and to separate Harkel from his blade and the medallion. He didn’t like the looks of the medallion. "You don't need that. He's sick, not possessed." He wasn't going to make it between them in time.

Harkel's eyes were filled with manic reason as he looked at Sturnock then quickly back to Tomax. "Yes, he's sick. He's poisoned." Harkel showed Sturnock his toothy smile once more. "I slipped him Duotoxin mixed with diquintine extract during the banquet." Harkel glanced over to see Sturnock’s reaction as he realized the implications of the Duotoxin. Harkel barked out a strained insane laugh, "That's right he's a Duoian. A member of a race that had us enslaved for a thousand years. Now, do you understand! He's evil incarnate. The Duoians used their arcane arts to enslave the multiverse for their own pleasure until the Order of the Crystal Shield stopped them. Now, through the Order's own stupidity, they have trained this one in all their secret ways. THE FOOLS have one in their midst and don't even know it!" He cackled briefly at the irony.

Sturnock shrunk back as if the corruption would leap from the Journeyman or Harkel to him. Harkel was a nut case. Sturnock's mind was in turmoil. If Tomax was a Duoian then he should be killed but Sturnock had been ordered to guard Tomax's life. This was coming at him too fast. He stuttered out, "There...There...There has to be a trial. We must have proof. You can't just kill him."

"PROOF!" Harkel lost control of himself momentarily and a black rage showed on his face and spittle dripped down his chin. "The proof lies in the reaction he's had to the drugs." An insane grin slowly appeared. "It will prove to be fatal and it only effects a Duoian." Harkel paused as a new thought occurred to him. It looked to Sturnock like it may have hurt too, the way his face shifted. Harkel was intent on Tomax, "However, it does not kill fast enough. Others could come that would not understand. They would interfere, buying him more time and clouding the issue.” Harkel’s eyes kept darting back and forth between Sturnock and Tomax. “Will you act to protect the Order from this creation of theirs?"

Sturnock was frozen by indecision. The Order was founded to protect the multiverse from the Duoian menace. He was a member of the Order, so shouldn't he act in concert with the dictates of his Order? But Harkel was obviously a fanatic, a nut and an agent for someone perhaps even outside the Order. Harkel was an assassin sent to kill Tomax. The only proof Sturnock had of Tomax's being a Duoian was Harkel's statement. That was enough for Sturnock to make his decision. Tomax might or might not be a Duoian, but Sturnock would not act on an assassin's word against the man the assassin was sent to kill.

Harkel had given Sturnock too much time to think. He studied Sturnock for a moment longer, "I take your lack of an answer as an indication that you are not with me on this. So be it. I will act to protect your Order even if you will not." Harkel started to move forward raising his sword for a single thrust. "Stand clear and do not interfere or your fate will be the same as his. He must die now."

Sturnock's hand moved through a geometric pattern leaving a glowing pattern in the air. He spoke a few words and made a slight pushing motion toward Harkel. There was a flash and booming report, as a bolt of lightning shot out and washed over Harkel. It didn't hurt him in the slightest. Sturnock wasn’t surprised. It was as he feared, that medallion. His equation of lightning should have blown Harkel off his feet. Harkel wasn’t shocked either, he drew and threw a dagger with his left hand. Quick, precise, the blade pierced Sturnock's left shoulder sending him to the floor. It cut through his armor as if it were cloth. “Damn,” Sturnock thought, “special steel. This guy has all the trappings. I was suckered good.”

Gone was the fanatic. He had transformed again. Despite his pain, Sturnock had to admire Harkel’s acting skill. Everything he’d done had been believable. Harkel's toothy grin appeared again, "So, you are an Operative.” He began conversationally, “I suspected as much. Know this, I wear a Null ring and amulet, Warlock. Your spells are useless against me." He shrugged and chuckled softly. "I was hoping to make you an accomplice." Harkel lowered his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. "Instead, I shall put the blame on you. It's no matter to me whether or not he is a Duoian. This is not my Order." A mischievous glint came to his eye, "But, just so you know, he is one. That's how I knew the drug would work.” Harkel gestured to Tomax’s gurgling form, “His Lordship is a mighty dangerous fighter.” The way he said it wasn’t a complement. “This way he's hay before the scythe." He slowly moved toward Sturnock. "However, you die first. He's not going anywhere."

"Hold," a low voice cut through the room. They had not heard the door open or the man step in. Quick as a cat, Harkel leaped aside while pulling another dagger. Sturnock marveled at his amazing reflexes. Then Harkel made the mistake of meeting the newcomer’s eyes. The shock of it froze him in place. This newcomer was not a huge man, like Tomax, but he was big and powerfully built. He wore dull black clothes, calf high black boots, and a dark cloak pulled back to free the short sword still at his side. His hair was dark and his eyes were black, solid black like a black pit to nothing. The kind of pit one would fall into and never crawl out. Harkel tittered on the edge. The newcomer’s soft voice cut through the room like the cold arctic winds of the North, "What is this talk of a drug?"

Sturnock spoke from the floor as he worked the dagger out and stuffed part of his cloak into the wound to slow the bleeding, "Duotoxin mixed with diquintine administered during the banquet!" Harkel set his jaw and visible struggled to regain control of himself.

The dark eyes engulfed Harkel, as their owner moved closer, his voice like the creeping death of a mist. "If you speak now it will save you a lot of pain."

Harkel was starting to sweat. Sturnock had heard of the death eyes, but he had thought them a myth, until now. Harkel trembled as if something had brushed his very soul. "Yo ... you … you can not interfere. It is my right! I am the Chosen One!" His whole body convulsed as the medallion he wore pulsed brighter, exerting some kind of protection or control over him. Harkel tore his eyes away. "I will say nothing to you, servant of Chaos,” he spat out between clenched teeth as he tried to dive at Tomax.

Sturnock gestured, activating a preconfigured equation. A wall of unseen solid air solidified between Harkel and Tomax. It was not needed. Harkel jerked as if brought to heal on a leash and the medallion he wore shattered, sending shards of metal into his chest. He froze in place. The soft voice gave verbal substance to the death giving eyes. "No, I am not a servant of Chaos. You have mistaken me for another. I am a giver of death. If I serve anyone it must surely be he." Harkel shuttered, screamed a mournful howl, then crumpled to the floor.

Sturnock watched with morbid fascination as the man he knew to be the First Instructor, Tee, slowly moved over to Harkel and very professionally and quickly searched him. Usually, Tee was not a menacing man. Big, gruff, tough, demanding, precise, a god gifted swordsman, but still a man. He was seen carousing, wenching, and drinking like any other guard. As First Instructor, he was also Lord General of the guards of Del’Timar. The noble leader of a veritable army of ex-students and professional soldiers collected here to keep the place safe. Del’Timar was the only place of its kind in the Order, jealously guarded.

Tee turned from searching Harkel's body and gazed upon Sturnock with those black bottomless eyes. This was a side of First Instructor that Sturnock had never seen. Tee now had that something about him that said "watch out! I'm deadly". Sturnock hoped to the gods that he was not showing outside what he felt inside. He was scared to death. Sturnock now understood Harkel’s trembling. It did feel like some thing has brushed his soul, reminding him he could die. Tee’s soft voice cut through Sturnock's terror, "What can you tell me?"

"I am a faithful servant of the Order of the Crystal Shield and I am bleeding badly from this dagger wound." Sturnock smiled weakly. "If I don't get attention soon, I shall bleed to death."

Tee frowned slightly and Sturnock felt a shiver run through him. Tee spoke and Sturnock felt pinpricks on his skin, "Interesting. Perhaps we can conclude our business in time for you to get that attention. Now what else can you tell me?"

"I can tell you what happened."

"That's a start."

"Journeyman Tomax became very drunk at the party. He got wild, started shouting offensive things which started a fight, got beat up pretty bad, and passed out." He accidentally met the gaze of those soul rending eyes and momentarily forgot what he was going to say next. "Ah..ah.. I was called along with three other guards to carry him to his room. On the way, he woke up and kicked one of the guards off the stairway. So the other guard had to take the injured one back to the barracks. Harkel and I brought His Lordship the rest of the way up here." He recounted the events just passed, leaving nothing out. He even told of his failure to interpret the signs of Harkel's true profession and his inner conflict about helping Tomax. He had been watching Tee's face as he told his tale, but not meeting his eyes. When he reached the part about Tomax being a Duoian, he saw Tee clinch his jaw and glance at the convulsing form of Tomax.

Sturnock found his tongue after only a moment, "I agree with you. To cast such charges upon the first Journeyman and impugn his reputation like that is a crime. Luckily, I was the only one to hear, so we need not fear that word will be carried beyond here of this grave insult." Sturnock was talking fast. He figured that the longer he talked the better chance he had of coming out of this one alive.

Tee smiled. It was not the prettiest sight Sturnock had ever seen. It made his blood run cold, but, at the moment, it was most welcome after the life stealing gaze he had been receiving. "Indeed, an injustice has been done. I thought you were here to do some sort of mischief to the First Journeyman, instead you protected him. You are an Operative." It was a statement not a question. "Heal yourself." Tee watched as Sturnock clumsily wove the equation of Healing for himself. With the bleeding stopped and most of the internal damage healed, Sturnock breathed easier. Tee turned his back on him to effortlessly walk through the wall of air erected by Sturnock then lift Tomax off the divan as anyone else would lift a child. "Open that door." Tee motioned with Tomax's legs. Sturnock leaped to obey.

After unceremoniously dumping Tomax onto his bed, Tee turned once again to Sturnock. The smile played about his lips, "We won't mention this incident to anyone, will we?"

"Ah...ah... No, my Lord."

"If anyone should ask, say that Harkel has gone to other duties. If they ask about Tomax, tell them he is resting comfortably and then come and tell me who was asking."

"Aye, my Lord." Tee didn't have to say what would happen if Sturnock said or did anything else. His smile said enough. Sturnock tried to make himself believe that he did not run out of Tee's presence but it didn't quite work. All he had to do was think of those eyes and his knees would start shaking. Sturnock knew he had been a party to something spectacular. He had the feeling it wasn’t over yet and somehow his life was now linked to it. So after traveling a ways in the Training center, he returned to listen at the door to Tomax's room.

**** ***** ***** ***** *****

The Teacher stepped into the bedroom just as Tee finished checking Tomax's pulse. Tee stood unmoving at the side of bed near the wall, and facing the door. The Teacher and Tee were opposites in appearance. Where Tee was dark, the Teacher was light. They had the same build and general features. The Teacher had silverish blond hair and a light complexion. His eyes were a deep blue. He was garbed in well worn, expensively cut, bluish robes with silver trim. No weapons were visible, but then the Teacher didn't need them. Instead he carried with him an aura of bridled power. When he entered a room generally conversation would stop and, more often then not, all would stand. The Teacher was the foundation of knowledge and power upon which Del'timar was built. He had built it. Del’Timar was his place, his vision brought to life.

Even if he hadn’t seen him, Tee would’ve felt his aura. Tee's persona visibly changed. Gone was the cold, professional death bringer and in his place stood the gruff, foulmouthed First Instructor. Tee growled, "What in all the hells took you so long?"

"There was no need to rush," the Teacher's soft, pleasant voice filled the room.

Tee was nonplused and angry, "No need! God's balls man, open your eyes. A moron could see..... " Tee turned, in mid-sentence, to looked the Teacher up and down. "Shit! This is your own unique way of saying that there is nothing we can do." The Teacher nodded slowly. "You know," Tee added, "I get real tired of having to figure you out all the time. Why can't you just talk like everyone else, instead of speaking in riddles like some cheap whorehouse bard? Crap!" Tee sat heavily on the edge of the bed. He knew Tomax wouldn't mind. Tomax was beyond caring at the moment.

Tee was filled with a restless energy. He wanted to kill something else. "You do realize that shit head there,” he gestured at Harkel’s body lying in the other room, “poisoned him. We were expecting a poison from him, so we search his things and nullified what we found. I don’t know where he got this stuff from. Tomax could be dying right now," he waved his hand at Tomax. "Look at him! His eyes bugging out and glowing silver, that weird glow around him. This is not the normal reaction to being poisoned. The gurgling and problems breathing are a normal reaction. Foaming at the mouth is normal. Look at him,” Tee gestured at Tomax, “he’s glowing, his skin is moving, and normal eyes are not suppose to be like that. This is the same way we lost that guy about fifty years ago. One of these Duoian scares started and a people got poisoned. I don’t know what it is about Duotoxin, but it’s a strange poison."

The Teacher slowly nodded his head. At the same time his hand moved through a quick series of gestures creating a silver pattern of threads that appeared and then disappeared leaving an after image on the back of the eye. "The room is now safe from the prying ears and eyes of the Power. I want no one else on the Council to observe this." The Teacher moved a step closer, a broad smile breaking across his face. Tee had only seen him smile like that a few times. "Now comes the time we have been waiting for all these years. He," the Teacher pointed at Tomax, "will be the hub around which the next Avatar of the Order will rotate."

Tee turned to look at the still, blueish gold tinged form of Tomax gurgling, convulsing, and struggling to breath. "Not if he dies." Tee exploded off the bed and paced to the door. "Numb nuts," he pointed through the open bedroom door at Harkel's body," thinks he," Tee waved his hand in the direction of Tomax, "is a Duoian. So numb nuts there, somehow, spiked Tomax's drink or injected him with Duotoxin mixed with diquintine. By the God's balls, diquintine would kill a horny elephant. He didn't need to mix it with Duotoxin. Duotoxin would make anyone sick but were not exactly sure what it does. It seems to react differently on everyone...." A slight movement of the Teacher's head stopped Tee in mid rant.

Tee froze momentarily. Then he turned and slowly slumped into a chair, staring alternately at Tomax and the Teacher. The Teacher, Tee knew, was a master of plots and planning. His thinking was meticulous, cold and calculating. Even in a normal conversation, Tee found that with the Teacher, he had to listen very carefully to what the Teacher said or didn’t say so he could understand what the Teacher was actually telling. Tee began reviewing all the plotting and planning he and the Teacher had done over the years. After a few minutes he remembered a conversation in which they had started to develop a painless way to change the direction of the Order. Tee started laughing. "Oh that's rich. That is rich! I can't believe you actually implemented our plan. How long have you been working on this one?"

The Teacher made an open hand gesture. "Since we discussed it. I refined it a little, but essentially it's the same. I will review it later with you, if you wish."

Tee chuckled, "No, that's not necessary. I know the basics. I can't wait to see their faces when they finally figure it out."

"That's the point, my friend, we can not let them know the full scope of our plan until the time is right," the Teacher sat down on the bed facing Tee. "This moment is a critical point in the Order of the Crystal Shield. There are many Council members that are dissatisfied with the present policy and direction that the Order is taking. They are forming splinter groups, trying to force a change. However, they are at odds with each other and some are even in direct conflict. You have watched as the recent Council sessions have degenerated into yelling matches. If it were not for the strength of your office, and the power of Merlinious, there would have been bloodshed at the last meeting. So all we need do is distract them with enough depth, and we will be able to get Tomax admitted to the highest circles of the Order before they learn the scope of our deception. Then the plan will bear fruit even with the Council's direct opposition."

Tee smiled as he spoke, "I think that for the first time since I've known you, you're actually excited about something." Tee chuckled at the Teacher's scowl, then turned serious. "Why him?”

“If I did not know better, I would say that you are fond of him. Is not he just another of your potential jobs?”

Tee turned cold, became the killer again, “Yeah, but then so are you.” He let the threat hang for a moment then became the First Instructor once more, “I’ve kind of enjoyed corrupting him. It’s been fun teaching this high society, sophisticated snob nobleman about real life. He’s so stiff, it’s funny.” Tee smiled remembering the past.

Tee paused in thought for a moment, then got back to business, “Is he good enough? That's the big question. No. The big question is will he survive this drugging? If he is Duoian, then this will surely kill him. That’s what Duotoxin is for."

Now it was the Teacher's turn to smile, "Oh, he is Duoian. He has denied his heritage and covered his scent, shall we say, for over twenty years. He has all the natural cunning of that race." The Teacher chuckled, "As a matter of fact, Tomax is a member of the royal family, the heir apparent to the entire Duoian Empire, or at least all that remains. His blood is as blue as it comes, but he will survive. Duotoxin is a myth. It will make them sick and may even kill a few, but that is not its function. I hardly think this dosing will prove fatal to our burly Tomax." The Teacher turned contemplative and in a serious, somewhat sinister tone added, "However, it will begin a metamorphosis within him of which even I can not predict the outcome. But, no matter, what has been set in motion cannot be changed at this late date. We can not back out. Our very lives are now intertwined with his fate. We must take every precaution and make every effort to see him through this alive."

"By the Goddess's swinging Tits! You are playing this one close." Tee was up, pacing the room. "If the Council found out that you... No, that WE were sponsoring this..." he waved his hands in a circle, then finally said, "They would have our heads on a silver platter. Hell, one of them already knows. Who sent Harkel?"

Tee began to pace and think. He was just starting to realize the enormous implications of this endeavor and review all his past planning. He had known Tomax for the better part of thirty years and never suspected anything like this. Suddenly, he stopped his pacing and turned to the Teacher. "How many others know of this? Don't count him." He made a motion with his head toward the outer room where Harkel's body lay. "His soul is mine. Not even Merlinious could bring him back for questioning. And don't count the mystery man behind Harkel."

Without pausing the Teacher answered, "You and I are the only ones who know the complete scope. Only two others know or suspect anything about Tomax’s secret."

Tee nodded, "That is exactly two too many."

The Teacher smiled, "One of them is Kol. He suspects but isn't sure."

Tee's wry smile returned, "I should've known. He has to handle the other side of the Tow-Quin. Who's the last?"

"Sturnock, the other guard that brought Tomax up here. I suspect he has puzzled out a great deal by now. He does have talent."

"He’s yours. He’s pretty good. He played a good guard, but he was just a little too cool when I turned the gaze on him."

"He is a good operative, but I'm afraid that he's learned too much this time. He will have to be mind wiped, imprisoned, or terminated."

"I vote for the termination. Mind wiping isn't complete enough and if he were imprisoned someone could always get to him."

The Teacher nodded his head. "Yes, I'm afraid you are right. He poses too much of a threat. He was a valuable resource, but this is a time for conservative action. Later on, we will be far too busy to deal with something of this nature."

Tee leaned against the doorjamb, "I'll deal with Sturnock tonight. Okay, you've satisfied my first question about Tomax’s survival. I can see his color returning from here. But what about my other question? Is he good enough?"

The Teacher's smile faded as he pondered. "I'm not sure exactly how 'good', as you say, he is. But I know that he is the best I have trained since the Gray Wanderer and Elda." He looked up to see Tee's questioning glare. "You want to know how he compares to the others here?" Tee nodded slowly. The Teacher huffed in disgust, "He is as far beyond them as I am above the majority of the Council, and he has an edge that I don't have." The Teacher became thoughtful and stared off into space, "Don't get me wrong," he mused, "he has much to learn, but the raw power, the untapped resource..." His voice faded to silence as he became lost in thought.

Tee waited for perhaps ten minutes before pressing, "Well, what's this edge he's got?"

The Teacher laughed, "I don't know what it is yet." He laughed louder at the incredulous look from Tee. "I tell you in truth, my friend, I do not know what it is. It has something to do with being of the royal Duoian bloodline and is related to psionics. Duotoxin is a mutagenic. It was developed to cause a metamorphosis in Duoians. With Tomax’s royal background and genetic latencies, it will cause some kind of release of his true genetic potential. I can only guess at the magnitude of power that he will gain." He watched as Tee's face brightened, then added, "If, mind you, if he can learn to control it. This new power will not be within the structure of the mathematics, metaphysics, or equations we teach here. I feel it will be along the same lines as the Death Gaze you possess. However, I know an expert in the field who can be trusted. So when Tomax begins to manifest his new abilities, I will contact this expert and ask for his help."

Their conversation was interrupted by a loud gurgling moan from the bed. At a motion from the Teacher, they both moved to put Tomax's apartment back in order. Once the room was in order the Teacher asked, "Shall we move this discussion to my study?"

Tee grunted, then asked, "What about the one that sent Harkel? Have you a plan for that?"

The Teacher smiled, "I know you'll come up with something. After all, you are the best." Tee swore loudly as he followed the Teacher out of the rooms carrying Harkel slung over his shoulder.

Sturnock had listened at the door throughout their discussion. He had heard more then was healthy. He realized that if he remained in Del'timar for even an hour after this meeting, he would meet his death at the hands of the First Instructor, or whatever he really was. So at the sound of them putting the room in order, Sturnock moved off soundlessly to gather his essentials and leave Del’Timar before death caught him.

Back to Title Page