"Hey, can you attack my mind as hard as you can?" I asked.
I was bored. Ellesmera was pretty enough, but I'm just not really the sight-seeing type. After Islanzadi dismissed us, Loshar and Rillon had decided to just randomly wander around the city and, with nothing else to do, Pigeon and I had followed.
At my question, both Rillon and Loshar turned.
"Why?" asked Loshar.
"Oh, I just need to test something. And, yeah, Rillon, could you do it? 'Cause I'm a bit scared of Loshar there."
Rillon nodded, and then I felt an overwhelming pressure slam into my mind.
I automatically threw up my normal defenses: You are stupid. You are stupid. Then I remembered what I had been wanting to test and switched shields.
Stupid elf, stupid elf, I sang to the tune of Jingle Bells, you're an idiot. And we all, hate your guts for no specific reason!
Rillon's attack weakened, as if he couldn't believe that I would ever use insults as a shield. Then he renewed the attack, stronger than before.
I grinned. Stupid elf, stupid elf, you're not worth my time. If you don't get past my shields, I'm gonna annoy you!
I repeated it a few more times, occasionally changing some of the words. Rillon retreated after the eleventh rendition, shaking his head in disbelief.
"So, which one was more annoying, the song or 'you are stupid'?" I said, smirking.
"Both were...unlike anything I am used to," he replied.
"What happened?" asked Pigeon anxiously. As usual, we all ignored him.
"Which one was worse?"
"The first one," the elf said.
"It is?" I asked. "Darn. I wanted to do something different."
"What happened?" Pigeon repeated pleadingly.
I turned to him. "Hi, liddle kiddie! Can ya shield your mind?"
"What?" he said, looking at me strangely.
I rolled my eyes. "Right, so, do you feel anything in your head?" I sent a little probe into his consciousness.
He just kept on staring at me. "What?"
"You can't feel anything?"
"No," said Pigeon.
I sighed. "You suck. Like, really badly. Is there anything you can do?"
"Yes," he said defensively.
"Like what?"
"Swordfighting."
I laughed. "You're joking, right?"
"I'm serious; I can use a sword."
"Right." I snickered, then ran to catch up with the two elves, who had wandered ahead while we were chatting. "Hey, who's Evan Corn Flakes?"
"Is that a nickname for something?" asked Loshar, without looking at me.
"No."
"I don't think anyone called Evan Corn Flakes exists in Alagaesia."
"You know, that guy Fritos killed?" The moment I said it, I knew it was touchy subject for Loshar.
Rillon seemed to realize the danger as well. "I will be at the faelnirv breoal." He ambled away in the direction of a really big tree.
Loshar stopped and turned to face me. "King Evandar."
"Oh, so he's your king? No wonder you hate Fritos so much," I said, nodding. "By the way, why'd Fritos kill him?"
The elf started walking again. "Only he knows."
"That's a stupid reason," I commented. Then I noticed Loshar's hand was curling slightly, as if he was trying to keep it from rolling into a fist. I could tell I was straying into dangerous territory, but I persisted. Or tried to, anyway. "And- Ooh, what're they doing?" I pointed at a group of elves marching around the place who were holding a bunch of rocks and turnips.
Loshar seemed to prefer the change of subject. "The Agaeti Blodhren will begin in a few months. They are preparing."
"The wha?"
"The Blood-oath Celebration," explained Loshar. "It is our most important event, and occurs only once every century. It celebrates the bonding of the elves and dragons after Du Fyrn Skulblaka. Elves from all over Du Weldenvarden will come to Ellesmera to participate."
"Why do they have turnips?" asked Pigeon suddenly. I jumped.
"Each participant must bring something of their own creation to the celebration. I am guessing that is what the plants are for," said Loshar.
I had a crazy idea right then. "Could you teach me magic?"
Loshar stared at me strangely. "You wish to learn magic?"
"Yeah," I said, nodding vigorously.
The elf muttered something that sounded suspiciously like a swear word, then said to Pigeon. "Do you want to learn as well?"
"Err, sure," he said, looking bewildered.
"I go against my better judgment," Loshar murmured. Then, in a slightly louder voice, he said, "Both of you, grab some soil."
Pigeon and I both dug some out of the ground. "Yeah, now what?" I asked.
"Say deloi reisa."
"Deloi reisa," we repeated.
"Now say it and concentrate on making the soil rise."
I stared at the pile of dirt in my hand and pictured it floating in the air. "Deloi reisa." Nothing happened. Pigeon didn't have any luck either.
Suddenly, something slammed into my mind with an immense amount of force. I gasped in surprise and automatically began throwing up walls. You are stupid, you are stupid...
The vast something hit my shields with the force of a hundred battering rams, and I was knocked aside. Before I could react, the alien consciousness had slipped into my mind.
Good, it murmured. Good.
Get the hell out of my mind right now, I snapped, before throwing together another barrier directly in front of the thing. It swept the hastily erected wall aside easily.
I am helping you, it said. The voice sounded vaguely feminine.
Like I'm falling for that. But I wasn't an idiot. I knew perfectly well that whatever this thing was, it was a lot stronger than I was, so I didn't waste time and energy trying to stop it.
The thing stopped in front of an orb in the back of my mind that I didn't remember ever noticing before. Inside it swirled black light, and occasionally the darkness would send out bright little flashes, as if it were trying to get out.
This, the thing said.
Do finish your sentence, I said, mentally yawning and rolling my eyes.
It didn't respond. Instead, it charged at the sphere, shattering it, and the black stuff poured out. "Deloi reisa," I said, with nothing better to do.
The dirt twitched, then slowly began rising until it was at eye level. I noticed that there was a rather bemused-looking worm wriggling around in the floating blob of soil.
Then I felt the black energy seep back into the sphere, which reformed around it, and the dirt and the worm both fell onto the ground.
Tell Rillon to look for J-taiuhgrkjgk, said the thing, and, when you are able to, head to Vroengard. It retreated from my mind, giving me my much-needed privacy.
"You managed it on your first try," said Loshar needlessly, forcing me back into reality.
Pigeon was staring at me in complete awe. "How did you do that?"
"Ah, little thing in my mind. Kinda attacked me, got past my barriers, and shattered this black magical orb thingie."
"How can something get into your mind?" asked Pigeon, confused.
"Easy. I'll do it right now." I dived into his unguarded mind and began sifting through his memories. It turned out that he, like me, had woken up one day with no knowledge of where or who he was. The only difference was that he had showed up in the desert. Then he had trekked across the desert for a few months and somehow managed to survive, all the while trying and failing to get his wings to work. He had also felt the pull to Uru'baen and had gone there, where he had gotten caught by the guards. Very boring, actually. And then I noticed something about the memory of Uru'baen. The kid was right, he could use a sword. He had managed to get one somehow and it had taken three spear-carrying soldiers to get him on the ground.
Loshar suddenly decided to intrude as well, but he did it to block me, even though I had already seen all of Pigeon's memories.
There are strict rules regarding entering someone's mind, he said.
And you say that conveniently after I've already seen all his memories! Great timing. But he still needs to learn to guard himself.
"I'm hearing voices in my head," said Pigeon.
We're your consciences, I said.
"My conscience is a girl?"
Yeah I am. Now shut up and let me argue with Loshar a bit more, 'kay? Yeah, so, where were we? Oh right, he still needs to learn to guard himself.
Loshar contemplated this for a moment, then said, Agreed. Otherwise anyone could find out Ellesmera's location from him.
Sweet. Now how do we do that? Mind games?
"My conscience sounds really like Dusk," Pigeon said.
"No it doesn't," I said.
"But it does!"
It's a voice in your head. Of course it doesn't sound like me. Oh, oops, I just gave that away, didn't I?
"How do you do that?"
By doing it. Right, Loshar, how do we teach him to guard his mind?
Concentrate on one thing, Pigeon.
Ah, right. And concentrate as hard you can. Probably isn't much.
A feeble little wall rose up in front of me. It was an iPod that wavered and flickered, and I easily threw it to the side. Again. And I suggest you concentrate on something really annoying, it'll throw off your opponent a bit more.
Dora the explorer slowly expanded into view. She was slightly more concrete than the iPod, but the wall was still rather weak. This time Loshar destroyed it before I could.
It doesn't have to be an image. Like, you can just keep on repeating a sentence in your head. I do You are stupid.
I like ice cream, I like ice cream, I like ice cream, thought Pigeon, setting up a decent wall.
I formed my consciousness into a grenade and blasted the shield to the side. Not bad. So, can you feel me in your mind?
Yes, came the reply. He sounded surprised.
"Yes, finally! So you should be able to do magic now!" I said, feigning ecstasy.
"What does telepathy have to do with magic?" asked Pigeon.
"Okay, so go to the back of your mind. See this little orb thing?" I asked.
"Yeah. It's got this red stuff inside it," he said, screwing up his face in concentration.
"Right, so, break it to pieces, and then say deloi reisa. Yeah? Yeah."
Pigeon suddenly looked surprised, and a red aura thing started swirling around the hand with the dirt in it. "Deloi reisa," he gasped, and the soil zoomed straight up, stopped about an inch above him for three seconds, and dropped directly onto the ground. Pigeon staggered back a few steps, as if someone had just punched him. "What- How-"
"Yeah, yeah, that was fun and all, but do you know where Rillon is? And what's Bone Guard?" I asked Loshar, cutting Pigeon off.
"I am not teaching you any more magic," Loshar muttered. Then, louder, he said, "Do you mean Vroengard?"
"What? Yeah, that thingie, Bone Guard or whatever it's called."
"Vroengard is an island to the west. And Rillon is over there." Loshar gestured at the tree Rillon had vanished into a while ago.
"Ah, right, thanks." I ran to the tree.