Cave of Sleepers: Luther

Written by Cass Buscher
 

** Rose Universe 42 **
 
 

Time passed slowly or quickly depending on which way you would look at it.
Bleys the Elder was a harder taskmaster than the Bleys I remembered.  No day
was allowed for rest.  He had little concern for the matters that I had
always be interested in.  Instead he drilled and trained me.  He wanted to
make sure I could lead men as well as myself.

He had learned a few more tricks over the centuries.  One of which was even
more amazing control over Trump.  I tried once unsuccessfully to test the
barriers.  Worried about Penelope I wanted to see if she was still alive or
dead.  His barriers and guards were vicious and subtle.  Creating many false
images, I learned quickly that to try to long one would lose their mind.  I
suppose such defenses were important if you were warring against the likes
of Fiona and Merlin.

Every night I went to bed tired and sore.  And I began to wonder that if
Bleys was this good how good could Benedict be?  My head ached with the
thought, for the first time in my life I had the time to think about that I
had bitten off more than I could chew.  During that time I lost track of
time, keeping track of the days seemed pointless in this cavernous world
where even the simplest of creatures measured their life spans in centuries.

One night after Bleys had finished critiquing the days exercise of my
storming his castle with a vastly inferior force he switched topics
abruptly.

“I expected that your pattern would work differently.  But there is
something else about you.  Something that I have been studying for some time
and can not make heads or tails of.”

I was massaging my sore shoulder thoughtful.  I smiled think finally
something that has mystified Bleys.  “What is that?”  I had slowly been able
to get my pattern functioning again, although still it worked in odd fits
and starts.

“You have a touch of Logrus about you.  Not enough to be an iniate, but
enough…”

I wondered what I should tell him.  I wondered how he would react.

“Perhaps we could capitalize on that.  Find someone to start teaching me
shape shifting.  I think the Logrus scent has something to do with how I got
to your universe.”

Technically not a lie since the resulting waves created when the Eye was
used to create a balancing Logrus in Purple I was thrown here.

“Yes I suppose once we have finished the combat training we could move on to
that.”

I snorted my disgust, “Bleys we all know it will take years to train me to
even be a threat as a general or solider.  Baldwin were he alive could still
run circles around me.  And how long did he hold out?”

“Longer than any of us expected.  But your point is well taken.  I will
consider it.”

With that he left me.  I am not sure I appreciate being his slave student.
But as it seems there is no way out of his land there is little I can do for
the moment.  I now begin to wonder if Bleys has been preparing for so long
he has lost sight of his actual goal.
 

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