Gentleman’s Guide to Fantastic Beasts 54

Gentleman’s Guide to Fantastic Beasts 54

…

Wordcount: 2500

Commissioned by Sivantic.

…

“It began with a parasite that we found in the depths. An expedition mounted by mages to find better materials for their equipment. In doing so, they found strange land far below.” Lassandra’s grandfather, the former king of this land, ate while informing me of the source of the parasite. He unsealed records from his time, aged parchment kept in tubes of stones and sealed with wax at both ends bearing the royal seal. “It was in the shape of an egg, and in it there was a strange world that was barely kin to our own.”

The record unfurled before me.

The former king had not embellished his words in the slightest.

I looked upon a map of a vast area with the forest kingdom’s metrics showed to be the size of a region. They described a world where water was constant from above. Strange trees grew upon pools of water alive with life. Bioluminescent algae cast everything in a blue glow, and in the waters and trees, an ecosystem thrived. In the massive, egg-shaped cavern, the creature that was the source of the current parasites came to be.

“They called it a parasitic mimic. A creature that engulfs the body of its prey and fills them with magic and signals to entrance them, so that they can consume the creature.” A similar creature to what I knew as the parasite was outlined. The original creature had small legs aligned all over its sides which were connected by a thin membrane. Rather than not having a mouth, it had a long tube that it inserted into its prey to drink them of their vitality.  It was not a parasite. It was a simple predator that fit into an evolutionary niche. “They took note of a simple fact: all the creatures in this realm rapidly advanced and changed with each generation.”

“They refined the creature to make use of it. They took the traits that they wanted and emphasized them.” It was simple evolution, but accelerated thanks to the oddities of this world. It was the same as choosing the sheep with the most wool over countless centuries, then finding oneself with sheep that will overheat and die, if they are ever without shearers. In the case,  they must have thought to rob the parasite of its ability to feed. “They took away its ability to consume blood, then they thought infesting monsters with them will result in monsters eating plants, starving themselves while feeding the creature.”

The plan was laid out on a piece of paper, and I interpreted it swiftly. The intentions of the scholars and mages were plain as can be. They espoused the creature as a way to control the population of monsters all over the kingdom. Kept sealed in dark containers, unable to reproduce, and only eating plants, they were to be weapons that would be unleashed on mighty monsters. Creatures that would sublimate and become part of terrifying monsters, and dispatch them and themselves through starvation.

An elegant solution that evolution laughed at.

The creature lost their ability to reproduce with time, and as well as their ability to eat, but in turn they learned how to split them into different creatures and to sup on the source of this world’s miracles. They learned to do this in a land sustained by and filled with arcane power.

The result was obvious.

“We lost control. They took over their whole realm and forced us out, and in that realm, they ruled supreme.” The next large sheet of the immense scroll showcased all manner of creatures reported in the deep land that the kingdom found. Numerous monsters with incredible bodies. Fish that could fly for minutes on end and spear through their foes with their bodies. Batlike creatures that shot out screams which could shatter eardrums. Alligators with better developed limbs, that allowed them to swim, climb, and swing from tree branches. They took these creatures and used them, before taking over mortal bodies. Bodies of learned mages and scholars capable of embarking on expeditions into the unknown. Not just bright minds, but healthy ones with the training and skills to survive. “When we sent a second expedition to scour the place, the survivors never reported, and we only caught them as they tried to attack us with their bodies instead of trying to infiltrate. It was decided that we would try again… and we found the tunnels and lands filled with the same darkness that now encompasses our whole nation. This power we could not repel was the masterwork of the Archmage that headed the expedition. A weapon developed by us to conquer neighboring nations.”

They weren’t just fooled, then.

They were absolutely overwhelmed and overcome by their new foes learning all that they could.

“After that expedition, it was decided that it would be needed to create the counter to the thesis put forward by the same archimage, in case it is used to its utmost potential. From that third expedition, we began our work to create this tree of light, as well as having more sons and daughters capable of carrying the burden.” Elric outlined the whole truth of the matter with a scowl on his face. He tapped the date of the final expedition. I counted back from the realm’s current date. This plan has been in place for three generations. Starting at the very end of his father’s reign and the start of his own. Two lines showcased the estimated time it would take for the tree of light to be completed and the great darkness that would engulf the country. Number of royal children, mages, and more were made milestones and become noted accomplishments with the passing of time, until the two lines become one. The moment when the eternal night came to be along with the tree of light. “We feared that all we would be able to do is endure this great spell until it fades, but now you’ve given us the chance to make it right. Those who have endured maintaining this spell for so long will return stronger. We will be able to train those who are no longer needed here. They will fight with their king against the great foe that we created.”

Unsaid was the simple statement that they made the parasite with the best of intentions, but sent themselves careening down into hell with their actions.

“You were fools. If you had a control, if you took greater care, or even simply acknowledged what was found and did not touch it… all would’ve been well.” Instead, they did what they wished, and undid the entirety of the realm. They took years of prosperity and forced their people into preparing for war instead. “Do you believe good intentions absolves your people of wrongdoing? That I would move to help you with all my heart because your intentions were to create a weapon, but simply lost control? No. It does not. Intent does not absolve wrongdoing. Not at all.”

They could’ve done nothing and more people would alive and happy now.

“It is true. All of it. Now, me and my son can only weather the outcome of my family’s decisions.” Elric bowed his head and reclined in his chair. Over the course of the last few days, he kept me company. Servants came by and provided him and myself with food and whatever else that we requested. “I am sure that in a century, after surviving this, we will be surrounded by other nations. We can only do what we can in order to not be destroyed by the vengeful remnants of our people.”

“Your lands are already secure. Your mountains are walls, and it is covered in armies. You’ve been preparing for this for far longer than you imply.” Elric paused before a small smile spread across his lips. It was a smile that completely lacked humor. “You do not deny it, then?”

“The walls were always there. The gates and armies always set. Aye, you’ve seen the truth of it. Our family’s greatest fear since we first brought low another nation. By treating them as foreign lands, placing trusted advisors over them, we have sealed our own fate. I was taught this only at my father’s deathbed. I never had a cunning mind.” Elric mused and shook his head. A sigh left him. “I only dreamt of being a warrior. I wished to leave ruling to my sister. Alas, she died by the hands of her own husband who believed that he would be placed as ruler.”

He shook his head and ran a hand through his beard.

“You have the right of many things, physician. The truth of our nation is plain to see. We sup upon the rest of the realm like a great tree, uncaring of others, and we jealously guard ourselves and our own.” He stood from his place across from me. He looked upon the Tree of Light that shed light all over the kingdom. Staring at it, supporting it so long, must have given him greater insight. “And, just like all trees that reach their end, we will rot and break under our own weight while continuing to drink where our roots reach.”

I wished for that course to take place.

The people that ruled over this land did so much harm to others. They conquered them and made them serfs in all but name. None from outside lands were permitted to truly rule. Only those that came from their homeland protected by the highest walls and finest warriors. To have it all crumble around them, for the people here to find their own nations, would be the finest result.

But the former king knelt and bowed his head.

Bowed so low that his forehead touched the floor, while I sat before him powering the tree of light that shed power upon the kingdom.

“I ask of you to take the youngest of my great-granddaughters with you. A babe no more than a few months old, along with her caretaker and nursemaid. Let her be free of this life.” He begged and pleaded without shame. A former king did this. I noticed that we were alone. That I could refuse his words, but also that he planned this very moment. “Teach her to be strong. Raise her well. She can be held hostage in your new realm. Then, when she comes of age, she can challenge whoever sits upon the throne and rule over this land as a true Empress.”

I see.

He thought that I wished to make someone else rule this land.

He was wrong.

“I refuse. I will not raise one of your family, so that she can become a killer of her kin, while becoming some sort of messiah. Nor will I force her to become a weapon and ruler.” The thought of what this man proposed disgusted me. I thought Elric had learned and grown wise. The truth was that he still tried to find a means for his family line to continue to rule. The only path he saw that did not end in their complete destruction, along with the continued rule of their line, was this farce. A child raised as a weapon and ruler to supplant all the others like an avenging hero. No doubt, he’d make it so that none of her potential foes would be capable of defeating her, and doing his utmost to support her from the shadows. It was so sickening that bile threatened to travel up my throat from my stomach. This man did not fall far from his lineage. “But I would be willing to care for a single child and become its guardian. I would be willing to train and teach her in my ways and methods… and tell her the truth about her family. That is all.”

Still, I could not ignore this disgusting man’s plea.

A single infant, the youngest of this family, who has done no wrong?

I could not refuse to try and save her.

“You will provide me with the materials to tutor her in. A nursemaid to keep her fed, and who will be returned when she can sup on regular food. After that period, she will be mine to raise.” Memories abounded in my mind. Many soldiers dying, but praying to live to see their children and families. Those were the fortunate ones who left progeny to carry their names and legacy onward. No matter how little. So many more young boys who died in the war didn’t have that. Only their friends, siblings, or their parents, would remember their passing. All of those boys would’ve been happy to know their child would carry their name and lineage forward, no matter what became of that child. That I was giving this despicable man such an opportunity should be enough when I couldn’t for so many innocent souls sent to die for such meagre gains. “This great-granddaughter of yours will retain the name of your household and receive the truth. Nothing more. She will decide who she wishes to be. Not you.”

I wished that I could give this gift to those drafted infantry slowly dying in my care as I couldn’t save them.

That I could promise them that someone will carry their blood onward, despite everything, and continue their family.

If this man refused my offer, if this child was only to be born to become a weapon and a new tyrant, then I will not accept his offer.

Elric raised his head at my words, and a grim smile settled on his face.

It was a smile of a dead man, but one who was sure of his decision with any doubt erased.

When he stood tall and breathed deep, as though a great weight fell from his shoulders, his words resounded in my head.

He had always simply wanted to be a warrior and to never wear the crown.

Would he not wish for a similar fate for one of his blood, if it were possible to give it to them?

They were contrary to his words and demands when he offered the infant, but those words could’ve easily been a test.

Or, perhaps, he wanted me to refuse to ensure that he could relay that was the only way to save this child?

Many questions ran in my mind after his words, but only one reached him as he moved to leave the chamber.

“Elric, could you not have run and refused to rule, if you wished to be a mere warrior?”

His answer was swift and simple.

“No. It was my father’s mistake and I’m the eldest. It’s only right that I moved to fix it.”
With those words, he departed and left me to my thoughts beneath the great Tree of Light.

Only two more days left of the bargain remained.