A Game of Chi Book III: A Sword of Dust

Chapter 16: Eris II

ERIS

What was that? Eris wondered. I saw a tree with multiple gorillas sitting and meditating, and then a whole bunch of other things. What happened to me? As Eris had hoped, Fluminox I's voice responded. "Well, it wasn't my doing," he answered. "But the fact that you saw gorillas... I remember that they had found a way to tap into the Forever Sun. At a very superficial level, of course, but still. It's possible that somehow, a gorilla connected to it at the same time you did, so there was a bit of overlap." Eris shook her head, not that Fluminox could see it, since he was only in her mind. It wasn't a gorilla, she insisted. It was a lion. The lion with hair like fire, from my vision in the Scorpion Den. Who is he? There was a pause. "I could tell you," Fluminox admitted, "but that could ruin the future. Remember, I haven't revealed anything about the future to you yet. Your visions have been the result of your powers alone, not mine." I thought you said that the only way firedreams work is through what you can see! Fluminox chuckled. "An oversimplification on my part. Let me rephrase how I said it: all the pasts, presents and futures coexist, like a river. Now, you can try to navigate the river by yourself, but you risk being overwhelmed, as you were just now, or when you had your vision after teaching Flinx about Cavora. Alternatively, you can get into a boat, controlled by me and the other farseers, and let us steer you through the turbulent waters. We will steer you away from dark futures, but for the most part, we let you decide." Eris hesitated. Did he lie to me? With the knowledge that she could communicate with Fluminox while she was awake, Eris had practiced layering her thoughts. The first layer, her most evident and obvious thoughts, were how she communicated with him, while the second one was everything else; now, she was employing it to keep her doubts about the long-dead phoenix to herself. "Eris?" he asked. "Is that clearer?" Yes, Eris replied. Thanks.

Eris decided to put off trying to understand what she had just seen and look at the scenery outside instead. The Stinger was nearly completely out of sight, and the endless expanse of Dracon's Desert was assaulting her senses. The sand being kicked up by the Speedorz was thankfully being blown behind them, but the merciless heat of the desert was bearing down on her, even through the cover on her cart. It took me and Panthar a day and a night to get across, she recalled. Tormak and the others are a bit slower since they need to transport me and our supplies, so it should take a little longer. But the end of this desert isn't even in sight yet! Eris' thoughts drifted back to Panthar, who she knew was clinging to the last vestiges of his life in the Scorpion Den. "Tell him he'll survive," Fluminox had urged her. "Do you want him to die sad? Sometimes, false hope is all you need." Unable to argue or even speak to Fluminox without Li'ella and the others discovering her secret, Eris had heeded the phoenix' advice, giving their final moments with Panthar a twinge of hope, at least for him. I need to understand what happened just then, Eris thought, and Fluminox will be of no help. So think, Eris. Think for yourself, just like when you deduced that Blista blew up his own church. Think!

Eris recalled her four cryptic visions that had knocked her out of commission after she had told Flinx the story of the Cavoran legend. A lion with hair like fire, she remembered. That's who I was seeing. Somehow, even though I didn't see his face, it's the lion with hair like fire. I know it. But he's meditating with the Gorilla Tribe? No red-maned lions came to Eris' mind, so she turned her attention to the other three visions. A crocodile with an eye like ice. What could that even mean? Same for the wolf with a golden heart. How can you have a golden heart? How can you have an eye like ice? The lion I can understand, but how about those two? Eris scrunched her beak, trying to tease out any physical characteristics of the crocodile and the wolf aside from their unclear descriptors, but none jumped out at her. The wolf should be in the north, since he was falling from the Barrier. The lion should be north too, right? I saw him in a snowstorm. So maybe the lion and the wolf join forces? But the wolves are neutral! Eris sighed in frustration and closed her eyes, somewhat obscuring the obnoxious brightness of the desert sun. There was one vision that I can't misinterpret, Eris remembered. The Great Library is going to be destroyed. It'll be burned, or blown up. I remember that. She could almost see the glass top of the Great Library shattering into a million shards, and the treasure trove of books burning to ash. Just the thought of it made Eris nauseous. Okay. Let's take a break from the doom and gloom. But despite her words, Eris' visions remained at the forefront of her mind.