"I told you, I find gardening boring. It is entirely irrelevant to me if you remake the world."
"Are you our mysterious benefactor? If so, your help was less than satisfactory. A little power to manipulate two students and sneak beneath the battle? Disappointing."
"Oh, I'm not with them, quite the opposite. But it was kind of you to bring up the subject. How exactly did you contact them and what kind of agreement did you strike?"
"You're here for information then. There is little to learn. They gave us a trivial amount of power, thinking they could use us to pursue their own ends." Rsiln caressed the trunk of the Yggdrasil, his fingers lingering on the base. "Nothing they gain from our alliance will be enough to prevent us from obtaining what we want."
"Logic would dictate that, yes." Laxir grinned viciously.
"They mentioned something about preventing the corruption of the university - your corruption, I presume. What is your interest in this trivial schoolgirl?"
"I'm a voyeur."
"Your jest fails because it is entirely believable."
"You wound me." Laxir sat back and gestured toward the Yggdrasil. "Leaders have been keeping these bonsai for thousands of years, thinking themselves part of a venerated tradition. It is arrogant, of course, to think of controlling reality, but arrogance is a necessary skill for leaders."
In a swift movement he snapped off a small branch. Rsiln shifted in anger but remained silent as Laxir continued. "Axis University is no more than this twig in my plans. Go tell your masters the girl is irrelevant."
"If she is irrelevant, then why are you involved?"
"To mix our metaphors, she is an unimportant thread in the tapestry, yet one that inexplicably winds through much. Almost certainly it is unnecessary for the tapestry, but who can tell? I do not like uncontrolled elements, and so I keep watch over all of them. Especially now that she has crossed an unpleasant thread, and ran parallel along a new one altogether."
"Do you veil your reasons in metaphor because you are desperate to appear sophisticated?"
Laxir responded with an unpleasant smile. "You have a thousand times more respect for me than I do for you."
"I have none for those who believe the future can be foreseen."
"Not foreseen, simply predicted. Predicted with a degree of accuracy that will increase substantially."
"I believe you are done here." Rsiln got to his feet and gathered his power. He was not sure if he could defeat this stranger, but it had been years since he had relied upon brute strength. Authority would be enough.
"Very well, though I wish to offer you some encouragement. You may have failed to control the Omphalos this time, but you may be more successful next year."
"Next year? Foolishness. Even if they do not change the timing of their realm's phases, a repeated attack will be obvious."
With a shrugging motion, Laxir pulled himself to his feet. "In one year, the battle between Light and Darkness will have changed everything."
Rsiln snorted. "I didn't think anyone on either side of the humans' prophecy sincerely believed a word of it."
"Have you ever thought about what prophecy really is? It seems everyone is content to believe it is a vision or map for the future, entirely missing the point. It's funny, but in the end, our enemies want the same thing we do." As he moved away, Laxir gestured at the tree over his shoulder. "Manipulate the world's growth as you please. One way or another, there will be no need for it soon."
He vanished in a surge of magic. Deftly done, and powerful, but such things were common enough in Rsiln's world. Another youth who believed he was superior to his elders. Some of what he had said might be useful, but he was ultimately of no consequence.
When he returned to his work, Rsiln froze. The Yggdrasil still seemed alive, perfectly trimmed except for the fallen branch. But all of it had fossilized, as dead and hard as stone. So Laxir had tried one last cheap trick. All it had done was destroy a model of reality. Even attempting such a symbolic gesture was an indication that he should be ignored.
As he left the room, he caught himself looking back and shivered.
Wizardry on Caffeine
The story continues in Wizardry on Caffeine, the next book in The Dying War series. The book is written and should be edited and available by April 2012.
Aki, Blake, and Keisha face their final exams and vacation in the fey realms. The fey have history and civilization entirely separate from humans... and they're not happy about a barbaric human prophecy interrupting everything. Tensions rise at Axis University, triggered by the arrival of a new student who happens to be fey royalty. Can they survive?!?
Well, yeah. You know the main characters aren't going to die in the second book. But there are worse things than dying...
Other Work by Ian Isaro
If you liked this book, you might enjoy my short stories. "The Bloody Veil" is a fantasy romance (with killing). "Into the Oven" is a twisted take on a classic fairy tale. "How the Apocalypse Can Make You Lose Your Job" is the heartbreaking story of the life of a spatula.
The Bloody Veil: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00953BADY
About the Author
Ian Isaro has worked in computer education, search engine optimization, and development in Tanzania. The usual next step in this career path is writing urban fantasy ebooks.
Connect Online
Blog: https://ianisaro.blogspot.com
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