But there were guards throughout the castle, and it was obvious that it would not be possible simply to walk away. Darius disliked the notion of sneaking out at night, and wasn’t sure that would work either. So he would have to use magic. That would mean making figurines of all of them, so that he could conjure them to another place. Assuming that the despots had no way to stop his particular type of magic.
He sent a mental message to Provos: I need solid, liquid, and gas of yours.
Yes, I gave you those this evening, the woman returned.
That left the horse. How could he get the necessary essences there? If he sought to visit Seqiro, the despots might be suspicious. He wasn’t sure how much of his magic Queen Glomerula understood. He had shown her the figurine of Colene, and used it to conjure Colene to him. Conjuration did not seem to be a type of magic these folk used, but he couldn’t be sure.
Well, he might conjure himself or Colene to the horse tonight, to get the essences. Then he would be able to complete the icon.
The day passed pleasantly enough. The despots were reasonably gracious hosts, until such time as they came to their decision. Communication was getting easier as a basic vocabulary grew. Queen Glomerula, evidently hoping that Darius might like to conclude the business they had only started the prior night, was attentive. Colene was studiously neutral, as befitted the place of a woman of the animus.
They went to Darius’ chamber together in the evening, to the queen’s disappointment. Colene chatted about this and that and did an impromptu striptease dance, not for Darius’ sole benefit; she was doing it to distract those who were surely watching via their magic. That gave Darius the chance to make three more icons without, they hoped, being observed.
After a reasonable time, they settled down to sleep, Darius showing his seeming contempt for his woman by not bothering to use her for sex.
In due course Seqiro notified them that no one was watching them any more; they promised no further entertainment, either in what they might do with each other or in what the queen might do with Darius if he conjured his woman to her own chamber. The castle slept.
Now we can go to Seqiro, Colene thought.
I will conjure myself there. You may remain here and pretend to be both of us.
Like hell I will! How will I know you’re not conjuring yourself to the queen?
For a moment he was irritated. Then she laughed, mentally, and he realized that she had been joking. But she also wanted to come with him, even if the conjuration made her sick again.
Darius didn’t argue. He set up for his conjuration. First he used his finger to sketch a square between the two of them, on the bed. We are here. This is my chamber, our starting point. Then he sketched another square below it. Seqiro is here. It is his stall.
Urn, should we go direct? Colene’s thought came. They might be alert to contact between any of us and Seqiro.
That was a good point. Not everybody in the castle was asleep; some night-shift guards remained alert. He erased the stall square, physically and mentally, deactivating it. Then he made another: This is the chamber where we donned Oria clothing. That was reasonably close to the stalls; they could walk across the court to reach Seqiro.
He took the figurine of Colene. Colene, he thought firmly, activating it. Then without moving it, he addressed his own: Darius.
Now they were ready. We are here, he thought. Colene is stepping there. He moved her icon from the first square to the second—and she disappeared. I am stepping there. He moved his own, and the wrenching took him, and he was there beside her. Both of them lying on the floor in their nightclothes.
He deactivated the icons and they got to their feet. Colene did not vomit this time; she had been prepared and exerted her will to keep her stomach in line. He gave her a silent squeeze of approval around the shoulders.
He could make a light magically, but decided not to; it was better to use the starlight, which was so bright that it shone in through the doorway. Their eyes were already adjusted to the night.
They stepped out—and stopped, amazed.
There was light in the sky, all right, but it wasn’t exactly starlight. It was a series of connected patterns, as if each star had several glowing moons, which in turn had a number of moonlets, which in turn—there seemed to be no end to it. Furthermore, these stars seemed close, because beyond them they saw the larger glow of Luna. Yet this great moon was not exactly the same. For one thing, it wasn’t round. It was crudely shell-shaped. For another, it was surrounded by curlicue patterns of stars, some of which passed behind it and some in front of it. One pattern seemed to dance its way directly toward this planet, before getting lost in the patterns of closer shell patterns.
The Mandelbrot set! she thought, remembering her revelation of the prior day. It really is true! We’re in a fractal universe!
Like the one they showed in their image? he inquired. With all the planets and stars connected together? He was as amazed as she.
Yes! I recognize it now. The shells and seahorse tails, all linked in intricate patterns. This is it!
They looked down at the dark surface of the planet Oria—and the patterns extended all the way to the ground. In fact, there were tiny whorls of light right at their feet, rising from tiny irregularities on the ground. The stars weren’t just in the sky, they were everywhere, and they weren’t distant and large, they were close and tiny. They were like cobwebs, except that their feet passed through them without effect.
Illusion, Darius decided.
I don’t think so, Colene responded. I think they’re real, but phased out, so we can’t interfere with them.
But they couldn’t remain indefinitely to stare at the effects. They had a horse to rescue. They resumed their walk, guided by Seqiro’s thoughts.
They reached the stalls without interference, and Darius obtained a hair from the horse’s mane, a drop of saliva, and the breath on the icon. It was complete.
One thing, the horse thought. I have discovered that my power is limited in this reality. I did not realize this at first because I had no reason to reach minds beyond this region. But I can communicate completely only at close range. Because I came to know Nona, and her mind is open to me, I can reach her at the village, but it is a strain. I can reach no other person there, and fear I would not be able to reach even you, Colene, at farther range.
Colene looked at Darius. They both knew that this was a serious limit. But it aligned with Darius’ own ability to do sympathetic magic and not emotional magic. The reality was hostile to mind-magic, and perhaps only the horse’s great power enabled him to retain even a limited proficiency.
Then Colene patted Seqiro’s shoulder. We won’t let you get out of range, she thought reassuringly. We haven’t been paying you much attention recently, but that’s because we don’t want to give away your importance to us. I love you, horseface.
Don’t fight with me! Seqiro thought, alarmed.
Darius had to chomp on his tongue to stop from laughing out loud. But Colene took it with good grace. I can love without fighting, she thought, burying her face in the horse’s mane. You never oppose your will to mine.