11-12-2023, 06:56 PM
"Why the hell do I keep getting sucked into these messed up backward worlds?" he muttered, more to himself than to the beings before him.
“Because you are knotai’veren.”
The word was lost on him, but he quipped anyway. “I always knew I was special.” He smirked, but when there was no reaction, he rolled his eyes. “And what exactly does that mean?”
Even high above him, Jaxen could feel the white eyes of the fox-creature studying him as though able to dissect his entire history in a glance. “It means you will devastate the pattern and ruin the lace of your age.”
Jaxen blinked, unsure if he was offended or not. Regardless, it was obvious these creatures wanted something from him or else they would have kept drinking their savory Jaxen-wine until the bottle was empty. Time he figured out what that was.
“What do you want from me?” he finally asked, a sense of resignation seeping into his tone.
“You bargain with us,” the scaled ruler proposed, “and we will bargain with you,” the other ruler finished.
Jaxen sighed, “…Okay.”
"The doorway is open once more. A treaty between our people is to be signed," the rulers announced.
Jaxen groaned, his patience fraying. "Then you have the wrong person. I don’t sign treaties. You want Ascendancy."
“You, knotai’veren, are the treatymaker.” The ruler’s insistence left no room for argument.
A treaty was carried out, but it was unlike anything Jaxen had seen before. It was neither paper nor parchment, and the script was a series of indecipherable glyphs and symbols.
"I can’t read this," Jaxen stated, his frustration mounting.
The red-haired creature appeared beside him seeming to have manifested out of a swirl of white smoke. It pointed to the words as he translated.
"The portal shall be fixed into a doorway, permanent, but may be crossed only once. Humans shall bring no instrument of music, fire, iron or light, and the wrong will be righted.”
Jaxen scanned the room once more, as if there was something to all this hidden from his senses. He trusted these creatures no more than they should trust him, but he still felt like he was being played to their tune. Yet the desire to leave this world and its convoluted politics grew stronger with each passing moment. He glanced up at the rulers, then to the strange writing instrument that the creature at his side offered, but before he grasped it, he had terms of his own.
“Fine,” Jaxen said tersely. “I’ll sign your treaty. But I want something in return.”
The rulers nodded as if they already knew that was how he was going to react. The fox-like creature responded while the snake-like ruler at his side watched.
“In return for your cooperation, we will grant you three wishes.”
Jaxen paused, taken aback by the offer. Three wishes was interesting. Something out of a fairy tale, definitely, but here, in this bizarre world, he suspected they were telling the truth. He eyed the creatures, knowing he needed to choose his words—and his wishes—carefully.
But then they added, "For a price."
And suspicious grew into understanding.
"And what price is that?"
The two rulers exchanged glances, their pointed teeth bared as each smiled one to the other.
“Because you are knotai’veren.”
The word was lost on him, but he quipped anyway. “I always knew I was special.” He smirked, but when there was no reaction, he rolled his eyes. “And what exactly does that mean?”
Even high above him, Jaxen could feel the white eyes of the fox-creature studying him as though able to dissect his entire history in a glance. “It means you will devastate the pattern and ruin the lace of your age.”
Jaxen blinked, unsure if he was offended or not. Regardless, it was obvious these creatures wanted something from him or else they would have kept drinking their savory Jaxen-wine until the bottle was empty. Time he figured out what that was.
“What do you want from me?” he finally asked, a sense of resignation seeping into his tone.
“You bargain with us,” the scaled ruler proposed, “and we will bargain with you,” the other ruler finished.
Jaxen sighed, “…Okay.”
"The doorway is open once more. A treaty between our people is to be signed," the rulers announced.
Jaxen groaned, his patience fraying. "Then you have the wrong person. I don’t sign treaties. You want Ascendancy."
“You, knotai’veren, are the treatymaker.” The ruler’s insistence left no room for argument.
A treaty was carried out, but it was unlike anything Jaxen had seen before. It was neither paper nor parchment, and the script was a series of indecipherable glyphs and symbols.
"I can’t read this," Jaxen stated, his frustration mounting.
The red-haired creature appeared beside him seeming to have manifested out of a swirl of white smoke. It pointed to the words as he translated.
"The portal shall be fixed into a doorway, permanent, but may be crossed only once. Humans shall bring no instrument of music, fire, iron or light, and the wrong will be righted.”
Jaxen scanned the room once more, as if there was something to all this hidden from his senses. He trusted these creatures no more than they should trust him, but he still felt like he was being played to their tune. Yet the desire to leave this world and its convoluted politics grew stronger with each passing moment. He glanced up at the rulers, then to the strange writing instrument that the creature at his side offered, but before he grasped it, he had terms of his own.
“Fine,” Jaxen said tersely. “I’ll sign your treaty. But I want something in return.”
The rulers nodded as if they already knew that was how he was going to react. The fox-like creature responded while the snake-like ruler at his side watched.
“In return for your cooperation, we will grant you three wishes.”
Jaxen paused, taken aback by the offer. Three wishes was interesting. Something out of a fairy tale, definitely, but here, in this bizarre world, he suspected they were telling the truth. He eyed the creatures, knowing he needed to choose his words—and his wishes—carefully.
But then they added, "For a price."
And suspicious grew into understanding.
"And what price is that?"
The two rulers exchanged glances, their pointed teeth bared as each smiled one to the other.