Hejira: Crystalline Hall

By Mantrid Brizon

Episode 22: Crystalline Hall

The party of six move to the north end of the village, walking along the bottom of a steep cliffside. Kahlera leads them, passing by the trail that winds up to the temple, where Gareth transformed. They approach another path that appears to be carved out of the very rock of the mountain.

“This is it…” Kahlera says anxiously.

“Are you alright?” Naomi asks her.

“It’s just that no one has ever walked this path, not that anyone can recall. It’s forbidden.” Kahlera answers.

“Forbidden is good. You learn a lot of secrets in forbidden places.” Faye grins.

“When we find the statue of liberty half buried, I’ll let you do the dramatic screaming.” Gareth jokes.

With considerable vigor, Faye rushes along the path. She takes long strides, hopping over large rocks that block her way, while the others struggle to keep up. She seems almost possessed by her desire to reach the end of the trail. Marching behind her, Gareth looks to his mate. He notes the expression on her face; a sad brow with hazy eyes, and the corners of her lips curled down in a soft frown. Leaning closer to her, he brushes the back of her hand with his own.

“Are you alright?” He asks her softly.

“I am. It’s just unnerving to come through this pass. As a child, I was always told not to.” She says.

Sarvah walks closely behind the couple and leans in, her eyes locked on Faye who stays a few meters ahead.

“Don’t you think that you should be leading?” Sarvah asks Kahlera.

“She already knows this path as well as I do. I don’t believe it matters who walks ahead.” Kahlera replies.

They march along the thin, winding trail. Broken rocks and patches of snow-covered grass both litter and border the pass. It is clear to all that they are the first to set foot there in as many centuries. The path turns sharply, leading up a steep incline. It levels off and turns again, slithering up the side of the mountain like a serpent. They navigate the treacherous pass, dodging the occasional falling rock, and hopping over small fissures. After several hours of hiking, the air gradually becomes thinner.

Following Gareth and Faye’s lead, everyone takes deep breaths as they step, but after a short time, Naomi becomes light headed. Her concern for her sister outweighs her desire to reach the end of the pass; Faye stops the adventurers to rest. She checks the map while sitting with her sister, an arm draped over her shoulders. Kelly sits with Gareth, who himself is flanked by Kahlera and Sarvah. They eat a light snack of deer jerky and dried fruit, taking small sips from their canteens and water bottles.

“I don’t really like jerky.” Kelly comments as he takes a bite.

“I didn’t think you were a foodist.” Gareth quips.

“All foods are created equal, but some foods are more equal than others.” Kelly retorts.

“How long do you think we have until we reach the top?” Sarvah asks.

“It’s hard to say.” Kahlera looks up at the crest of the mountain. “We are barely a third of the way to the peak, but the trail may end long before that.”

“Maybe we can ask Faye to show us the map?” Kelly poses.

“I thought you had it.” Gareth interjects.

“I did, but she took it.” Kelly replies.

“So, ask for it back.” Sarvah chuckles.

“Fuck that. I like being alive. There’s still too many foods I haven’t eaten.” Kelly laughs.

“Alright you clowns…” Faye says as she stands up. “Let’s keep moving.”

She rolls the old cloth map, slipping it back into her musette bag before placing it over her shoulders. Taking Naomi by the hand, Faye keeps her close as she hikes up the pass at a marginally slower pace. She coaches her sister on how to breathe in the thin mountain air, taking a breath with one step and exhaling with the other. They march, climb and jump, as they navigate ever higher. The pass slowly becomes more narrow, until it abruptly stops. They have reached the end, but there is nothing in sight.

Faye yanks out the map in frustration and unrolls it. Following the simple instructions on the map, she finds a large boulder in the shape of a half-buried arrowhead and counts her steps. She turns suddenly at a lonely tree, surrounded only by grass and a few small stones. She counts her steps again. Approaching a small cliffside that curves into a crescent, small valleys line either side. Faye then takes the left valley and counts her steps.

“I feel like we’re hunting for buried treasure.” Kelly jokes.

“What are you going to do with your share?” Gareth asks.

“A lifetime supply of nacho cheese Doritos, Seven-Up and permanent PlayStation live membership. You?” He replies.

“A big screen HD TV and a new copy of Skyrim. I’ll have to pick a different race though. Maybe something exotic, like a human.” Gareth laughs.

After two more turns, they are looking down a valley shrouded in mist and shadows. The cliffs on either side seem to have been crudely carved by thousands of hands, and stand well over eighty meters tall. The valley leads straight through and begins to rise, a structure visible in the distance. Faye runs through the valley and towards the object, nearly pulling Naomi’s arm from the socket. She recites Psalms twenty-three as she races ahead.

The others rush to catch up to Faye who quickly leads them, nearly tripping her own sister several times as she drags her up the carved steps of the valley. Faye quickly approaches the distant object and stops, underwhelmed by the discovery. Her imagination and the reality of the discovery leaves her aghast; she was expecting something more profound. The hall is not a hall at all; it is simply a half sphere cut out of the rock, about ten meters in diameter.

The carved sphere is lined with smooth translucent crystals that are blue in color. In the center of the half sphere is a pedestal, carved out of the same rock as the mountainside. The pedestal has a figurine carved onto it, being one solid piece of rock. Is this statue a depiction of Sahvath? The small statue is in the form of an androgynous creature, who looks almost cliché in its appearance.

It is bipedal, tall, thin, with spindly arms and legs, and a large head with bulbous eyes, reminiscent of a Preying Mantis. The head is crowned with evenly space tendrils or dreadlocks, that hang just past the shoulders. It has no nose, but four thin diagonal slits. It has a very small mouth and rounded chin, that tapers like a dagger. The shoulders are broad, with a triangular chest that narrows to an emaciated stomach and narrow hips. The feet have three evenly spaced toes, but they are digitigrade, like the Sahvorai. On its back are angelic wings.

The being holds its hands above its head, pressed together at the wrists. In its hands, surrounded by disturbingly long fingers, is a dark blue crystal ball, only a little smaller than a tennis ball. It is perfectly spherical and has no visible tool marks or imperfections of any kind; it is utterly flawless. A faint light seems to glow in the center of the perfectly formed crystal, like a star in the night. The others stare in amazement at the find, looking over the figurine, and the crystal ball that it holds in its hands.

Gareth, Kahlera, Sarvah, and Naomi do not want to touch the crystal ball. Though curious, Kelly hesitates. They stand around the object for a moment as Faye suddenly reaches out. Kelly stops her, reaching out and grabbing her wrist.

“What?!” Faye snaps.

“Are you sure this is a good idea? What if this isn’t the hall? What if it sucks all of us through to earth or something? If it did, who knows where it would spit us out... We could all wake up in Saudi Arabia or the bottom of the ocean for all we know.” He warns.

“Or maybe it opens the gates to Emerald City.” Gareth quips.

Gareth, Sarvah and Kahlera immediately back away, moving towards the steps.

“I guess we won’t know until we try!” Faye grins.

She yanks her arm away from Kelly and grabs the crystal, trying to take it from the statues grasp. The fingers hold the crystal tightly, and though she fails to remove it, it glows brightly immediately upon her touching it. Like the skull that opened the portal to bring them here, touch has activated the device. Naomi and Kelly back away, while Faye stands only feet from the artifact. Naomi moves toward her Sahvorai companions, who slowly retreat down the steps. A blinding flash of light suddenly surrounds Faye, and then she is gone.

The flash then claims Kelly while he backs away from the device, pressing his back against the curved wall of the carved sphere. Although they believe that they are out of range, the remaining four are covered in a blinding light. Their eyes struggle to adjust as all six of them stand in a dark room. They have been transported to what appears to be an underground facility grown out of crystals.

“Wow… This is like something out of StarGate!” Gareth says in astonishment. “These walls look a bit like the Tok’Ra tunnels, and that beam was like an Asgard teleporter.” He gushes as he feels the cold, crystalline walls.

“Now this is what I was expecting.” Faye says with a wide smile.

Looking around the room, which is illuminated by vibrant white lights, that also appear to be made out of crystals, they find a single walkway. The room has no doors. They walk out and enter a long hall, that seems to be dedicated only to traveling to the previous room. They walk slowly and carefully down the hall, where they see another walkway. As they enter, they stand in a large room, spherical in shape but with a flat floor and easily one-hundred meters in diameter. In the center of the room is a pedestal with steps before it. At the top of the staircase is a throne; a being sits there, watching them with its’ black eyes.

“You look just like the statue…” Gareth comments as he places his foot on the bottom step.

“Yes, former human… I am Sahvath.” The being speaks in a deep and sepulchral voice.

Kahlera and Sarvah immediately bow before the being.

“No! Do not worship me!” Sahvath demands.

The two immediately rise from the ground, but keep their heads bowed in reverence. Sahvath stands, walking down the long flight of steps toward the adventurers. Gareth looks over the being. Sahvath stands eight feet tall, with off-grey flesh and large black eyes. The eyelids blink from the sides. The tendrils on its’ head are light grey. Sahvath doesn’t have wings, as depicted on the statue. Sahvath is genderless, and though their voice is deep, it could easily be male or female. It wears a black body suit, with grey bands around the wrists, ankles, and collar. It is made from some unknown material that behaves like spandex, but shines like metal.

“I do not wish to be worshipped…” Sahvath begins. “It is one of many mistakes that I have made.”

“So, you created the-”

“Yes…” Sahvath interrupts Faye. “I already know every question you wish to ask, so please listen… I created this world as my own. That was my second mistake. My first was failing my own Creator, The One. He who made the universe, and all of my kind, was betrayed by a third of His own army, of which I took part. I was misled by a great deceiver, as many of my kin were. We were punished for our rebellion, and our Master formed a new being to replace us… Humans. Many of my kin hate the humans, seeking to defile them; they know their final judgement comes, but I could not bear it. This world was my escape. It is where I hide from Him.”

“This story sounds awfully familiar…” Gareth thinks quietly aloud.

Sahvath walks slowly down the flight of stairs, their voice solemn and its’ expression melancholy, even lonesome. Sahvath sits near the base of the steps, looking at the adventurers. It takes a deep breath and closes its eyes as it slowly sighs.

“He has damned us for our betrayal, but only He knows when it will occur. I desired repentance, but my kind cannot achieve it, for we know Him. The creation of mankind gave me the idea to build this world. I formed a new dimension. Though I am not the strongest of my kin, I am certainly among them.” Sahvath continues.

“If you are only here to hide from damnation, where did everyone come from? Why make the Sahvorai?” Faye asks.

Sahvath slowly opens his eyes, seemingly annoyed.

“I told you to listen… After millennia of solitude, I grew lonely. I began creating new creatures, as He had done. The Fallen were my first attempt, but they were a failure. I wanted sentience; I wanted to create a soul, but I am not even one-millionth as strong as He. Several more failures taught me my error. Only He can make souls. Instead, I made a temporary portal to return to your realm. I placed the skulls and quickly returned. Almost immediately, humans began to arrive in my world. I waited until six-thousand had come, then I gathered them all, revealing the nature of this world, and myself.” Sahvath speaks slowly.

Sahvath stops and lowers its’ head. The tendrils fall forward, and it places its hands through them, resting its’ face on their palms. Sahvath appears horribly depressed.

“The humans who would not stay near me I ignored, while the remaining four-thousand became my family. As a sign of gratitude, I gave them a gift of their choosing. They asked for the powers of the beasts, so I created a device which turned them into the Sahvorai. I do not know where they created the name. It really is not a remarkable feat; all Sahvorai are merely modified humans. The Sahvorai only live longer because of a genetic defect in their creation, which I could not resolve. They are not even my own beasts. I reformed them with animals that He had made and left on Earth for man to oversee.”

Sahvath chuckles as it crosses their arms over their spindly legs.

“It is ironic that one third of mankind rejected me, is it not? Regardless, the Sahvorai are my first success, and also my greatest regret. Although they are over ninety-five percent genetically human, and are compatible with humans, the difference between them caused a war. They slaughtered each other until nary a human was left, so I sent them to different halves of the continent to live separately, and left the skulls in place. I realized that every time I interfered, I only made things worse, so I created the Crystalline Hall as a hideaway within a hideaway. I made it forbidden, so that none would dare to seek me out, and ask me to intervene again.”

Sahvath’s eyes water as they reminisce. Kahlera and Sarvah look to each other in shock. This is nothing like the legends that they had been told since birth. Kelly and Faye both step up to Sahvath, who looks between them. Faye opens her mouth, but Sahvath raises a hand, stopping her before she can speak.

“I know, but unfortunately I never created a way back to your realm. My kin can travel between realms freely, and many of my kind might have come here, had I not hidden it so well. Mortals, however, cannot travel without aid, and I cannot aid you myself. You must remain here for the rest of your lives.”

Sahvath turns their head to Kelly and continues speaking.

“I know that you are curious about the aura. This is actually the spirit of every human; Sahvorai have it because they have human souls. Not every soul is powerful enough to use the aura. No one with an aura was chosen for any given reason. It is simply a side effect of living in this realm, which does not obey the same laws as your own. As for your second question, humans and Sahvorai can breed, though the child will be the same species as the mother. That, too, is an interesting effect that I could not fully resolve.”

Kelly looks at the others as his face flushes from embarrassment. Sahvath turns their head to Gareth and continues speaking.

“You too have questions. You would like to know how this realm works… You would be incapable of understanding fully until after your death, but simply put, this realm is in another plane of existence. It is a world between His realm, and your own. As a result, beings here live longer. He is the creator of time and space, and the closer to Him you are, the longer your lifespan; when you reach Him, you exist for eternity. Here, humans cannot exceed four-hundred and ninety years, while Sahvorai cannot exceed seven-hundred and seventy-seven years. In this realm, a full month is only a minute for Him, but a year for your realm…”

Faye’s eyes widen in shock as she stares at Sahvath. It slowly turns to look at her and nods.

“Yes… In the months that you have been here, over two years have passed in your realm. I am sure that you have all been declared dead a long time ago.”

“So much for my job...” Kelly sighs.

“I hope Steve’s enjoyed my car.” Gareth murmurs.

Faye begins to tremble as she sits down on the floor. Bringing her knees to her chest, she rocks back and forth slowly.

“This is not happening. This is not happening. Wake up.” She mumbles repeatedly to herself.

“The mortal mind… So adaptable, and yet so fragile.” Sahvath chuckles.

Sahvath stands and leaves the steps, walking around the group as it stares at Gareth.

“The skulls are in many places around your world, and time functions differently here. As a result, there are humans who are alive in my realm, who thousands of years ago were also alive in yours. You are correct to believe that Casius was truly a Roman Legionnaire. The oldest humans in this realm would have seen wonderous things; The pyramids in pristine condition, or the Great Wall of China being built. As for the language barrier, that was His work, to keep mankind spread throughout your world. My only other successful work here was creating the microbes that allow you to read and speak in tongues, granting universal understanding. Casius heard you in Latin, while you heard him in English. This is, perhaps, my greatest achievement, for what little that is worth.”

It turns its’ head to Naomi and looks at her, narrowing its eyes.

“Your questions are quite possibly my favorite…” Sahvath continues. “The device is not magical, but scientific. I invented it to splice the genetic code of humans with that of animals. The codes of over one-hundred animal species are within the device. To decide what animal to splice with the host body, it reads both the subconscious mind, and the physical makeup. The animal chosen is a near perfect compromise between the human’s personality, and their inherently dominant physical traits. A large and aggressive man is more likely to reform into a bear, and a smaller, subservient woman may be spliced with a mouse. Coloration is based on their personality and aura. The device is powered by the planet’s core.”

Sahvath takes a deep, slow breath.

“It is true that only my Master can create souls, yet children are born in my realm… The answer is simple… He is here as well, and I have failed to hide from Him. Everything exists to His will, including the world that I created. When it is time for my judgement, He will simply appear, and take me. All I can do now is sit here, repent, and prevent myself from further corruption. I cannot, and will not, interfere for any reason.”

Sahvath walks back towards the steps, looking over the group. It walks toward Faye and slowly kneels before her. She gazes up with tear filled eyes, hot streams flowing down her cheeks. Sahvath tilts its head to the side as it reaches out, placing their hands on her face. Her eyes widen as Sahvath’s fingers wrap around and behind her head, and it closes its eyes. The others look curiously as Sahvath holds Faye’s head. It releases her and slowly stands. As it turns back towards the steps, Faye begins to cry uncontrollably, shivering like a leaf in a fall breeze.

“What did-” Kelly begins.

Sahvath raises a hand, and his words become caught in his throat.

“I gave her understanding. She will no longer question the reality of this world; she now knows where she is.” Sahvath says as it turns back to the others. “She must now come to terms with her actions, as I must…”

Sahvath points a finger at Faye and she rises from the ground as though in a trance. It moves its hand and sends her down the hall, back to the room where they first appeared. Sahvath does the same to Kahlera, making them all leave, one by one. It turns to Sarvah and smiles.

“Do not worry. Patience will bring you peace.” Sahvath says to her.

It points, waving her down the hall. It turns to Kelly, but Sahvath’s expression is much more solemn.

“Do not grow attached. Focus on the greater good.” It urges him.

It points, waving him down the hall. It turns to Gareth.

“Do not turn your back to the pink rain. It will be your undoing.” It warns.

It points, waving him down the hall. Finally, it turns to Naomi. Sahvath steps before her, also with a solemn expression. It looks down at her and brushes her cheeks gently with the backs of its’ fingers.

“Be wary; your red eyes will see the path, but your heart will know the truth. Trust your heart instead.”

Sahvath steps away from Naomi and waves her down the hall. They walk through the long hall and towards the room as though zombified. They gather around each other in a circle, in the center of the room. A blinding light washes over them. They awaken fully aware of what had just happened, standing in the half sphere and looking at the figurine. The blue crystal ball is missing from the statues grasp, but everything is otherwise as they had left it.

Having learned the truth of this world, and hearing the answers to all of their questions, they silently turn and walk the path. The group remains silent as they march back to the Blue Feet village, all of them deep in thought. Naomi walks beside Faye, brushing against her older sister. Faye drapes an arm over her shoulders as they walk. Gareth hikes beside Kahlera. He reaches out and takes her hand in his. She smiles at her lover, who smiles back at her; they know the truth, but it changes nothing. This is their home now, and they have much to do.