Chapter 17 Part B: Rivertears Brew

Olice was a bit confused at first at finding herself in an underground tunnel, however finding Gander present and her mousecat amulet still on her neck, she settled down.

“Are we safe now?” She asked Gander.

Gander nodded.

Then Olice noticed Ka.

“Oh, hello again red shadower” Olice greeted.

Ka waved an edge of its body enthusiastically.

“Itsss name iss Ka, it followed usss sssince the sssoul food ssshack” Gander said.

-It saved us, I saw it waving from the entrance of this tunnel- Susasov told her.

“Thank you Ka” Olice began “I’m… you already know who I am don’t you?”

Ka nodded its shadowy hood.

“I don’t suppose you’d know of a way out of this realm” Olice asked Ka.

Ka shook its hood.

Olice sighed, she supposed that it would have been too convenient.

“…oracle…” Ka whispered.

“What does he mean Gander?” Olice asked.

“Thisss… it claimss to know of an oracle in thiss realm”

-An oracle could tell us where we need to for you to escape Mistress- Susasov mused.

-No, you don’t ssssay, I never would have known an oracle could do that, elder your font of ancient knowledge astoundsss me!- Gander mocked Susasov in thought.

Susasov silently took Gander’s mocking, still not wanting to get into something as pointless as trading words with him.

“Would you be willing to guide us to this oracle?” Olice asked.

Then she wondered if that might be a bit much to ask a spirit that barely knew her.

“I could give you a magic artefact” Olice added, thinking of some of the things Toro had given her.

Ka again shook its head, and Olice felt her heart drop.

“…rest first…”

Olice’s face visibly lit up.

Just as she was about to follow Ka, Gander swooshed in front of her.

“A moment my Missstressss, sssure enough thisss ssspirit ssshared a meal with you, and it did help usss esscape from the kitir, but do you know anything about it? What kind of person it is? What if it hasss ssome foul plot in mind?”

Olice thought about it for a moment.

“Well, keep an eye on things Gander, Ka is only a shadower, even if it is a variant” Olice reasoned.

Gander gave a forced smile and began to vanish, starting with his tail tip, until only that dissatisfied mouth remained, then that too vanished.

Olice trotted after Ka, who began to gently move deeper down the tunnel.

As they moved through the tunnel, passing by all kinds of twists turns and forks, it became clear to Olice that this underground was not like the rest of the Red Crystal Realm. It was incredibly damp, and the light of the crystals was completely gone, instead there was glittering from puddles of water and the dampness of the tunnel.

Most astonishing of all was there were plants growing. Plants that were not composed of crystal! It had to be admitted they were still red, but they weren’t crystal, but the leafiness and fibre of plants. Even more comforting was that some of these plants had clear flowers, like droplets of water, or tears. Olice picked a few, just because it gave her such good to see something that wasn’t red. A few of the flowers would turn silvery at her touch.

She had Gander harvest a bunch, though she was only a child and not that fond of studying, her natural curiosity and the curiosity a mage needs had been combined together and awakened for some time. She wanted to study the followers when she escaped, she wanted to study them with Ira, her mistress.

“How is that plants grow here?” Olice asked, not really expecting anyone to know.

“…Rivertears…” Ka explained.

Susasov gasped.

-What is it?- Olice asked.

-Before this place became the Red Crystal Realm there was a legend of a being living beneath the ground, Pros-Iangiang, Rivertears. Some worshipped it, and not me. That didn’t bother me, because it was never going to acknowledge anyone. but it could not be denied that its presence made the lands around exceedingly fertile. It was far older than me, than everyone… in…-

Susasov was silent for a moment, it wasn’t just that he couldn’t remember what the lands he had lived in were called, but they had changed so radically, that the name was in part stolen from him. If he still had his former power, he could have recalled it.

-…in what this place once was, everyone knew of it, since my earliest days, nobody knew a time that Pros-Iangiang was not grieving, if you put your ear to the ground, you could even hear the sobbing. I only know Rivertears’ name because a digger once went down to speak to the griever.

The digger was never the same again, and all he told us was that Rivertears name was Pros-Iangiang, not long afterwards, he walked away into the ocean, never to be seen again. I am not surprised a being as powerful as Rivertears is still weeping even while this place has changed.- Susasov said.

Olice hoped that one day Rivertears would stop grieving, but still she was curious, so she carefully put her ear to the floor of the tunnel. She heard nothing at first, but then she could hear the muffled sound of gentle sobbing.

They came to what was Ka’s destination, a small cubbyhole, not much room in it all all, but it had a carved worktop, on this was bowl-shaped indentation, within that was a lump of crystal that glowed a hot and angry red. There was a number of kettles carved from red crystal hanging from the ceiling, right where there was dripping water, a few were even so full that water was dribbling from them. Also hanging from the ceiling were a few cups.

Ka carefully took down four cups and a kettle setting them down on the worktop. Ka then opened a little crude box that was also on the worktop, within this was dried leaves and other plant matter. Ka carefully took out a few leaves and put them into one of the cups.

Ka put the kettle onto the furious crystal.

“Ah… so…?” Olice began.

Ka shushed her.

They waited in silence for the kettle to boil, then when it did, whistling coming from it, Ka took it from the hot crystal and dumped the leaves it had taken out earlier, a wistful smell arose from the kettle, and taking a crystal spoon from within its body, it stirred the kettle a bit, making the wistful smell increase in intensity.

Ka filled the four cups and beckoned Olice.

“…drink…rest…”

Gander came out and sniffed the brew with some suspicion.

“I can’t find anything wrong with thisss sssstuff” he said.

-Neither can I- Susasov said.

So they drank even Susasov did, accepting Ka’s hospitality. The brew made Olice feel a bit sad, but also comforted, it left a kind of lingering taste on her tongue, a tiny hint of saltiness.

“…sleep…talk…wake…”

Olice didn’t know what Ka meant, but she was quite tired.

“It meanssss to sssay that it will talk when you’ve ssslept, my Missstresss”

Keeping an eye on Ka, Gander formed a loop with his body, a kind of bed.

Olice laid down yawning.

“I guess Ka has the right idea” she said.

Ka looked at her for a few moments, before pouring itself out another cup and moving to the entrance of the cubbyhole.

Olice almost fell asleep as soon as her head hit Gander’s body.