“Nur”

Nur squatted, watching. The new one was thin, lean, like they all are. Their tattered clothes held no color to speak of, and their limbs showed confusion in every movement. Nur watched, waited, until the new one wandered into the clearing deep enough that Nur could land without coming too close. Nur knew they would be startled and might attack.
And so they were and so they did. Nur easily evaded and blocked their feeble strikes, recalling what it had been like all those years ago. After twenty or so attempts, the new one stopped attacking, and Nur raised a single hand to wave.
The new one did the same. Nur smiled, but the new one couldn’t see that behind the mask.
Nur led them through the clearing to the broken stack of stones. It glowed within.
The new one examined it, then pulled something from its innards. Nur couldn’t see what it was; never could. It didn’t matter anyway. It wasn’t for Nur to know or possess.


2
In the forest, Nur found two, entwined together. The wind blew the trees and the water kept flowing in the creek. Nur gave a cocked expression, hidden beneath the mask. The two writhed and rubbed together as Nur watched. When it stopped, Nur stood. A falcon cried out, but Nur wasn’t sure from where. The eyes searched for it briefly; but, failing to find it, stopped; and then, the body walked again, carried on the way it had before.


3
Nur pushed up from the floor, feeling the familiar ache. Looking around, it was the same hall, that tall white hall with light seeping in through long slit windows high up. The wooden staircase spiraled down to the cracked marble floor. The door, still blocking the way, hung jammed and imposing. Nur gave it a swift kick and sent it flying.
Outside, the yard was beautiful and rolling, with sculpted tiers and once well-appointed shrubbery. It all fared much better than seemed possible, with the bushes still in shape and the ground respecting the working of it. True, in some place a brick was missing, or moss crept over the stone. But this was not natural, this scene of resplendent harmony between human hands and grass things.
Away from the sumptuous manor and along the cobblestone path, lay brigands in wait. Three of them, each masked and armed with sharp things. Nur sent one away immediately, a sidestep, then a snap of the neck. The other two proved more annoying. The first lurched and retreated in repetition, thick knife swiping near Nur with each pass, while the second swung a long staff with a rock on the end of it, trying to smash Nur’s skull.
Finally a palm strike landed on the first’s sternum, cracking it, and ruining the lungs' chance for breath. The second took a step back and pulled the stick high, in a dramatic posture, and stood still, like an executioner waiting.
Nur smiled and lunged forward, shoulder smashing into the gut. Then it went dark. All dark. Again.


4
Nur pushed up from the floor, feeling the familiar ache. Looking around, it was the same hall, that tall white hall with light seeping in through long slit windows high up. The wooden staircase spiraled down to the cracked marble floor. The door, still blocking the way, hung jammed and imposing. With a swift kick, Nur sent it flying, then walked outside.
The landscape tickled the mind, trying to be remembered. Nur felt an ache to walk through the manse and down to the cobblestone path. But something pinched the gut and called the other way.
Back behind the house proper, was a bright and shining pool. A person with tanned skin, no clothes on but a fox mask sat with one foot in the water.
Nur walked over and knelt beside them.
They did not speak but Nur knew their meaning.
Don’t go that way.
Why not? Nur wondered. Have I been that way before?
Many times. Many, many times. And you will keep going that way until you don’t.
Why won’t I?
They shrugged. How should I know?
Nur stood and kept walking in the same direction that had led here, that direction opposite the path.
Up the hill, the forest grew denser, more natural, less worked by hands. The pathways were made by animals moving in packs or alone, and some of them were humans. Nur followed one of these.
The sky first burnt, and then grew dark. Wolves and owls were out, but did not approach Nur.
Nur did not hunger, tire, or perspire. Upon notice, Nur found that odd. Not panic worthy, but deeply strange, the feeling of not getting hungry or tired.
Through days and nights of natural walking, Nur found momentary peace again and again. This persisted until they found the cave.
The cave, which was a network of caves, seemed unassuming from the outside. Small opening, large enough for a tall human or small bear to enter. Dark, but not ominous. No foul smell of signs of human tampering.
Since Nur was not tired, the instinct to rest there quickly blew away and curiosity carried the feet down into the depths.
The throat of the cave ran long, shallow and deep, until it gave way to an enormous underground cave, which had a solitary shaft of light shining down from a hole in the surface ground. The light made the small pool of water in the basin of the cave glisten.
When Nur reached it, there was no way to drink the water. No need either, true, but no way. The mask would not lift. It was either fused to the face or a bony protuberance of some kind. Nur squatted next to the water to look at it and feel it. It felt like stone, but could be bone, maybe. It was white, bleached from the sun and had a gritty texture on parts of the surface, like sand or salt. Nur’s eyes shone bright blue, nearly luminescent, from within. But there was no nose or mouth. No breath. But Nur breathed. Could feel it. This did, momentarily, bring some panic until Nur laughed at the foolishness of worrying about how one breathes when one is clearly breathing fine. Nur felt the stomach and lungs seeking reassurance, and was given it immediately, even if the mind still was baffled. With a giggle and shake of the head, Nur stood and carried on walking deeper into the ground.
The next cave was vast. Its gaping maw gave a purple show, with the formations like teeth up top and down below, biting into the expanse of darkness between them.
The ground looked nearly like ice, but Nur paid no special attention to it. A foot caught a slip, and Nur toppled head first into the darkness.


5
Nur pushed up from the floor, feeling the familiar ache. Looking around, it was the same hall, that tall white hall with light seeping in through long slit windows high up. The wooden staircase spiraled down to the cracked marble floor. The door, still blocking the way, hung jammed and imposing. With one good kick, Nur sent the door outside, then followed it.
The yard seemed nice. Worked well and not overgrown. Nur wondered how it stayed this way.
Several steps toward the cobblestone path, and Nur felt an ache in the stomach. Not like hunger. Nur knew that and then suddenly that hunger was not ever there anymore. How very odd, Nur thought. Something pulled the eyes behind, back the way of the house, and the feet walked that way, found a pool, bright and shining.
A person, tan and long, laid on a bathing chair by the pool. A small cone of incense burned in an ashtray on a table by the chair. The person was naked but for a mask, which Nur thought looked a bit like a fox, even though Nur couldn’t recall having seen a fox lately.
Back again? The person’s thoughts were like sounds in Nur’s ears, sound without sound.
Yes. I mean, I suppose so. Do I know you?
No. Not really.
I am Nur.
I am Eloy, from the Ivory Tower.
Nur looked back at the white manor house, then at Eloy. This is your house?
No. I’m  just visiting. Like you.
Oh.
The Ivory Tower is not my house. It is my town.
Oh. Are you lost?
No. But you sure are.
Nur rubbed the neck, had to agree. Yes. I certainly seem to be. Do you know why?
Eloy shrugged. How should I know?
That’s disappointing. I was hoping you might know.
Many get lost. It’s not that strange. Nothing to worry about. You’ll find your way again.
But … that feels wrong. I was a guide. I think. I think I was a guide, of some kind.
Hmm. Yeah, that’s weird then. But not really. Everyone gets losts. Even guides.
Could you guide me?
Me?
Yes. I could use some help, I think. I feel … it’s like it’s all too familiar.
Again, Eloy shrugged, then stood. Yeah. Okay, sure.
Nur followed Eloy into the house, where they put some clothes on: a tight black top with leather straps, somewhat loose-fitting charcoal pants, and black boots, also with leather straps. Then Eloy grabbed a long thin sword from above the fireplace in the enormous living room.
I’m ready now.
Nur looked at the sword. Do I need a weapon?
I don’t know. Do you?
I don’t think so?
Then let’s go. Can always find one on the way if we need to.
And with that Eloy led Nur south, south toward the Ivory Tower.


6
They passed a small, silver obelisk. Eloy stopped and examined it, pointed to the etchings along its body. Can you read this?
Nur looked. No. What does it say?
I don’t know. I can’t read them either. I was hoping you could.
Further down the forest path south, they found a woman laying flat in a patch of tall grass. The blades fanned out as though blown by a strong wind, Nur thought, and the woman seemed as though she’d fallen from the sky. Her mask was delicate and elaborate, with fine detailed etching and painting. Nur squinted at the marks to see if they resembled those on the obelisk. These markings didn’t appear to be language, just patterns or designs. Long blonde hair spilled out like honey from the top of her mask, dripping over the grass about a foot and a half. She was not naked, rather she wore simple traveling-style clothes: capri pants with pockets on the thighs, a belt with pouches, a snug but not tight tunic—all finely made garments, but durable looking, not too delicate, even though their patterns and colors suggested otherwise, recalling for Nur the sort of attire one might see at court.
How do I know this?
Know what? Eloy looked at Nur. Do you know this woman?
I don’t think so. Or if I do, I’ve forgotten. But I know something about her clothes. Or maybe not. Maybe it’s that they remind me of something I knew.
That’s not anything.
Nur sighed. I know. It’s frustrating.
Don’t think about it. It will come back, if it matters. If it doesn’t, it won’t.
Okay, Nur thought.
Eloy walked over to the woman and extended a hand. The woman clasped it and stood up with Eloy’s help. She gave a gesture of thanks, which Eloy reciprocated.
What is your name? Eloy asked.
I am Anjelika, from Strivetown.
Never heard of it.
It is a western town, far from here, so far you cannot see the tower at all.
Beyond Augerdeet?
Far beyond. Augerdeet is not even on our maps.
Huh. Okay. I’m Eloy, this is Nur.
Nur and Anjelika greeted each other with the same gestures. Nur wondered at the exchange, how this was known and what it meant.


7
The three carried on together, passing through copse and clearing, swamp and hills, until they came close to the village near the Ivory Tower.
Welcome to the Ivory Tower, Eloy thought. This is where I’m from and where I go back to.
Do you like it? Anjelika wondered.
It’s fine. It’s home, so there are things to like and lots to hate.
I see. I feel the same way about Strivetown.
What’s it like there?
Anjelika looked around. Nothing like this. There are beaches everywhere along the water. Further in, there’s desert and mountains. But no trees. No swamps. Our towns are not walled or tall like this one. They are small and flow like water, one into another. And no shop, home, or temple is much larger than this one. She gestured to a small thatched building that had a pass-through window opened.
Inside, there was a plain-faced, unmasked man, bearded and wrinkled. On the counter in front of him were items—trinkets, Nur surmised, and some food. None of it held interest.
Anjelika pulled from a pouch a very thin piece of obsidian. She touched it with her fingertip, and it lit up. Nur and Eloy watched as she stroked it, her fingers tracing lines along its surface. Images appeared on the flat rock, and soon it was as though they were looking around the town of Ivory Tower without moving.
Scrying? Eloy asked.
Yes. It is how I was able to come here. I found it in a nest near the Chaplet Estuary. I was staying near there with my mate.
Nur swallowed hard, didn’t know why. You’re mated?
I was. The plague took him, last month.
I’m sorry, Nur thought, relieved.
You traveled here in under a month? Eloy asked.
Yes. Four days.
How is that possible if your home is so far away? I’ve journeyed at least seven days west and still not made it to Augerdeet.
Anjelika held the scrying stone up, titled it.
Nur and Eloy both leaned closer to look and saw a single, small feather protruding from its side. Nur thought perhaps it had grown from the stone.
You can fly with this? Eloy asked.
I’m not sure. I know that as I searched the picture-places for an akeia to the plague, the stone would sometimes shudder.
Why? Nur asked.
I don’t know. But after much shuddering, it began to sprout feathers. I thought this must mean that it was not a spell-stone, but a living creature that was developing. So I cared for it like it were my young child. The feathers continued to sprout until it was covered on the back and edges, but its face where I can see the picture-places remained bald. When I found this place, she gestured to the Tower itself deep in the heart of the town that emanated from it, I felt a surge in my mask. Then, the stone shuddered continuously until I could no longer tell its rumbling from my own body’s rhythms. And I awoke as you found me.
And the four days? Eloy asked.
I spent them walking in the desert, caring for this stone. I believe it is only a stone. In whatever way it carried me here that has cost it its feathers, all but this one, I came to know it in some way, not like a mother knows her child but like a child knows its toys. This is not a living being, but a very sophisticated toy. Who could make such a thing, less why they would, is a mystery to me. But it has brought me here, to you, and you have brought me here to this tower. So there is hope for my home, which is as our traditions say it will be. Our currents intersect and we flow on.
Eloy shrugged. Whatever. She continued on down the tattered thoroughfare.
Nur and Anjelika followed a few steps behind.
Nur thought, That’s beautiful, your people’s way of life.
It is, truly. I miss them so, and it’s only been such a short while. When I took my oath-travel, I found it far less painful. But then I knew they were all safe and happy. Now they are sick and suffering and dying. It is painful in my heart and in my head and stomach.
Nur reached out to comfort her, but stopped when Eloy looked back at them.
Sorry, Nur thought, though none thought back.


8
The room is dark, but Nur’s mask provided sight, even in dimly lit environs. Across the room stood a huge beast of a being, mask made from a cow’s skull, shoulders clad in spiked metal armor (or maybe bone—the dark made it hard to tell), bare-chested, loin covered by skirt made from strips of leather or fabric, and strap-wrapped leather boots. The huge hands struck one piece of metal against another, making sparks fly.
Where am I? Nur thought.
There was nothing else in the room—only this monstrous figure slashing metal on metal and whatever Nur laid upon.
Nur tried to stand but found fasteners held the wrists, the ankles, the waist, and the neck. With some focus on the back, Nur felt stone beneath.
A guttural laugh came, though Nur could not tell from where.
What is funny? My struggle? This beast’s actions?
Nothing else was in the room.
Like a reflex, Nur felt a surge from a chakra rush along the nadis in the arms, and snapped the restraints binding the wrists.
The metal on metal making sparks stopped, and Nur saw the figure take start.
No, wait! Nur thought.
And then ...
Nur pushed up from the floor, feeling a familiar ache. It was the same hall, white and tall, with light seeping in through slit windows high up. The wooden spiral staircase connected the landing where Nur was to the cracked marble floor down below. The front door, it blocked the way, hanging jammed and imposing. Nur kicked it, almost absently, watched it soar into the yard, then walked outside.
The yard was nice, natural yet well-appointed. Nur didn’t know how it could stay this way with no one here attending to it.
Nur took several steps in the direction of the cobblestone path, then felt an ache in the stomach again. It wasn’t hunger. Nur knew that. Something pulled the eyes back behind, toward the way of the house, and then the feet walked that way. There trenched was a pool, bright and shining.
Eloy was there, looking  tan and long in black leathers and fox mask, sword in hand, looking impatient by the pool.
C’mon, dummy, Eloy thought.
Eloy? What happened? And why does it keep happening to me?
You keep getting killed. Like a dummy.
How is that possible?
How is that possible? That you’re such a dummy?
No, that I can die and die again?
I don’t understand the question, Nur. That’s life.
But … Nur wanted to wonder more, but there wasn’t anything else to wonder. Not then.
C’mon, they’ve got Anjelika.
Who?
Anjelika. You know, the girl with the scrying rock that’s like a bird.
Oh, yeah. I kind of remember her. She’s very pretty, right?
Eloy didn’t broadcast anything, just turned and began walking on the southern trail, toward the Ivory Tower.
Nur followed, and so Eloy began to run. Nur kept pace and did not tire.
They, the two of them, passed through copse and clearing, swamp and hills, then arrived at the village grown around the Ivory Tower.
Nur stopped. Wait. I remember something. I was in a room. A dark room, and this person or something that looked like a huge person was slashing two pieces of metal together. I was bound to a stone slab. I broke the bonds at my ankles, then … I think I woke up again at the mansion.
So?
Well, isn’t that significant in some way? Can’t it help us?
Just don’t be a dummy. It doesn’t matter how you die if you’re dead.
Okay. Nur still didn’t really understand, but carried on as though understanding weren’t really necessary for success, keeping pace with Eloy through the marketplace and then around the baths and to the temple at the foot of the Tower itself.
There, the two put on robes and anointed themselves at an altar, burned incense.
Nur knew how and what to do, though the mind rumbled with questions not formed, and made the eyes watch Eloy for confirmation that the hands were doing it all the right way.
Inside they went, finding lustrous walls, doming in places, careening in asymmetrical bends in others. The sight of these lines made the stomach feel queasy.
I don’t like it here, Eloy. I feel uncomfortable.
That’s because it is a den of evil, Nur. We know that now, remember?
No. No, I do not remember that. How did we learn that?
Nevermind. Just stay close to me. I think I know where she is.
Okay. But I’m scared.
Scared is fine. Dead is not.
But won’t I just live again?
Eloy didn’t react, rather led the way to a long, gilded staircase, corkscrewing from the floor to a higher ceiling so far up that Nur could not see it.
My goodness, that is tall.
Just don’t fall off. Eloy warned.
Have I before? Nur wondered.
Dozens of times.
Carefully, Nur followed Eloy’s lead, keeping a steady hand on the golden capped rail, while wanting to clutch Eloy’s belt, to grasp for the tender mercy of life. There was a familiar ache in the head and hip from this feeling, so Nur noticed that, stayed close but did not grab Eloy’s belt.
After many rotations, Nur began to feel dizziness in the head, unsteady in the feet.
I’m dizzy, Eloy.
Fine. We can stop for a minute.
So they did, stop and rest.
Eloy looked to Nur impatient and annoyed but resigned. Then Nur made the mistake of looking down. A surge of fear ruptured two chakras and flooded the nadis all over, filling the whole maya with pain and terror.
Oh, no! We’re too high! We’re going to die! Nur thought.
Eloy slapped Nur, causing pain first to the head, then to the hip as the weight shifted against the staircase.
Snap out of it. We’re barely halfway up to where we need to be.
This was, to Nur, horrible news. I can’t do it, Eloy. It’s too high, too far.
Thinking about doing it is hard, Nur. Doing it isn’t hard. Just keep your hand on the rail and follow me. Don’t think about it. Just do it.
The slap had broken the surge, and the chakras were somewhat sealed again, even if porous as well. Okay, Eloy. I will try.
The second leg of the climb, while more horrific for Nur, seemed to pass much faster than the first, perhaps because Nur followed Eloy’s advice of not thinking and just kept the hand on the rail, the feet mimicking Eloy’s steps. The mind was present but nearly asleep, floating on the cushion of anxious flow in the maya.
Eloy stopped, looked at Nur. Don’t zone out on me again.
What?
I can feel it, leaking out of you. Breathe. Focus.
But I don’t know what you mean …
Yes you do. Listen. Breathe.
Nur breathed in this strange way, where no breath passed into or out of the mask, yet somehow the body breathed.
Good. Now focus.
On what?
Focus first on the body, the weight of gravity pressing down on you.
This ruptured the chakras again, and Nur was filled with panic. It’s too much pressure because we’re too high! We’re going to fall!
Again, Eloy slapped Nur; and, again, the chakras closed some and Nur found some thought space available.
Start over. Breathe.
Nur did, as before, feel a faint calm return.
Good. Now focus on the weight of gravity, slower this time. Just feel it on your feet first, keeping you safe on the step. It’s the gravity that holds you to the step. Without it, we would fly off into space.
The feet felt the truth of this, and so Nur could make sense of it. Yes. Yes, I can feel that.
Good. Now, focus on the legs, feeling how they move the body through the air.
Okay. I can feel it.
Good. Now, focus on how the leg connects to the hip, the hip to the torso, the torso to the arm. Can you feel that?
Yes.
Good. Now, feel how the arm ends in the hand, which glides along the rail. Can you feel that?
Yes. It’s scary, but I feel it.
Good. Scary is fine. Now, feel these things together, at once. The steps, the feet, the legs, the hips, the torso, the arm, the hand, the rail. Can you feel that?
Yes. I can feel it, Eloy. It’s better. I feel better.
Good. Can you tell we are moving again?
At first Nur could not, but since Eloy had pointed it out, yes, the movement was known to the mind. And despite the segmenting of the awareness of each part and then stringing them together, Nur felt a unified maya again, perhaps even deeper unity than usual.
This is … odd. And amazing. How do you know this?
How do you not?
Nur didn’t know, and the two of them continued up until Eloy led them off at one of a hundred identical landings, polished marble with golden veins bleeding throughout.
This is it, Loy said. Stay close to me. Remember: don’t die.
I won’t, Nur thought, then immediately fell off the side of the landing, plummeting down to the floor below.


9
Nur pushed up from the floor, feeling a familiar ache. The same tall white hall, with light seeping in through slit windows high up. The wooden spiral staircase, the marble floor. The front door, blocking the way.
What … is happening? Nur wondered.
While still wondering, Nur hypnotically threw a sidekick and sent the door sailing into the yard. Nur walked outside, still puzzling over the situation.
The natural, well-appointed yard held no interest for Nur, only the riddle of what was happening.
Without thinking about the surroundings, Nur walked in the direction of the cobblestone path. The ache in the stomach was there again, but Nur hardly noticed and carried on ruminating and walking away from the manor and down the cobblestones.
Eloy, Nur recalled. Eloy and Anjelika. Anjelika, who is looking for a cure. A cure for what? And I know them somehow. And where are they? Have I been sleeping?
Three masked brigands, who had been lying in wait, approached Nur in a tightening semi-circle. Without much attention, Nur dispatched the first by taking a sidestep, then snapping the neck.
No, I wasn’t sleeping, wasn’t dreaming. I was walking and talking. No, not talking …
The next brigand lurched and retreated in repetition, thick knife swiping near Nur with each pass.
Nur paid the knife little mind, kept walking, then dropped into the body’s center and gave a swift palm strike to the sternum of the brigand, cracking it, and taking away the lungs’ ability to breathe.
Thinking thoughts, mentally, as I am now. But they could read them and I could read theirs and respond. This remembrance invigorated Nur, who was now becoming excited at the prospect of reuniting with Eloy and Anjelika, whoever they were.
The final brigand held high a long staff with a rock on the end of it, poised in a dramatic posture, standing still, like an executioner in waiting. Nur noticed, but only barely, carried on walking as though there were no threat. Then, realized: Wait. This isn’t the right way. I’ve been going the wrong way this whole time.
With an impassioned cry, the brigand gave a powerful stroke with their weapon.
Nur turned around to look back the way the body walked, taking just enough of a step in that direction for the brigand’s might blow to miss and clatter against the cobblestone.
There was a pool, Nur recalled.
With a smile and a knifehand, Nur struck the brigand’s windpipe. The brigand dropped the weapon and clutched at the throat, stumbling backward, then tripping over the body of one of the other brigands, and falling down, head cracking on the rocks.
And an Ivory Tower. Nur looked south. To the south.


10
The body carried Nur back to the Tower town swiftly. Nur observed that it was not a long or difficult trip.
Upon reaching the Tower proper, Nur saw two large people dressed in gray cloaks with irregular vertical striping. Their feet were clad in heavy boots; their faces covered with identical, golden masks without much definition, only the vague impression of a face. Each held across the waistline an axe the same height as the body, with a double-headed blade as wide as the body. Between them stood an altar with incense on it and two baskets of robes. The robes were similar to the ones the axe people wore, but without stripes. Instead, there was very faint speckling all over the robes.
Nur approached the altar with some caution, looking at each of the figures. Neither budged. They seemed to Nur like statues, though they were not statues. Nur knew that, somehow, just as Nur knew the way to light the incense properly, the gestures to make with the hands, how to bow the head, and the importance of not broadcasting thoughts whilst doing the ritual.
Once that was finished, Nur put on a robe, then passed into the Tower through the temple.
A spot on the temple floor caught the eye and filled Nur with a sense of tranquil dread, and a spot on the head felt funny.
Wonder what happened there? Nur thought, then walked the temple hall to the long, gilded corkscrew staircase and began to climb.
Though there was no apparent top, Nur could most certainly see its bottom, which got further and further away. Each rotation of steps brought with it a deeper sense of queasiness to the stomach and a bleeding rush of fear to the mind.
Breathe, Nur thought. Queasy is fine, afraid is fine. Dead is not. And though Nur didn’t really comprehend what that meant or how the mantra was there, Nur used it well enough to ascend and reach the level where the body needed to get off.
A few steps onto the landing made of polished marble with golden veins throughout, and the body was calm again, as though the climb had never happened. Nur noticed that change, thought only for an instant.
The landing spilled out to a long, arched hallway lined with similarly arched doorways. Each door the body passed was identical to the one next to it, made from some beautiful hardwood and reinforced with metal. Every door had a small door within the door, at eye level, Nur presumed so one could look within without having to open the door itself. It was curious to the mind that none of these held any interest. Nur thought surely one would, or that the idea itself would be compelling. But no, that was not the case, and the feet carried the body deeper and deeper into the hallway.
Nur could not see the hall’s end coming, but it did. Upon arrival, Nur examined the door at the hallway’s end: It was the same as the rest. Yet Nur did not feel the same way about this door as the rest.
The handle, seemingly made from the same metal as the door’s reinforcements, was long and curved, its shape implying it was meant to be gripped somewhat like a sword. Above it was a metal tongue-like lever that could easily be depressed by the thumb once the hand gripped the handle. The tongue lever gave a clicking sound when the thumb pushed it down. Nur expected the door to creak as it opened, but it did not.
On the other side of the door was another hallway, just like the one behind Nur. In fact, Nur looked back to ensure this, and confirmed that, yes, the two hallways appeared identical.
Nur went through the door, closed it, then immediately to the next door on the left. The hand gripped the handle, the thumb pushed down the tongue, and that door was opened. Behind it, another hallway.
How is this possible? Nur wondered.
The body took the mind through that door, the first on the left, and carried by the feet, walked down that next hallway.
At some point, the hand grabbed another door. Then another. And then another.
It did not take long for the mind to start to whip up panic.
We’re lost! the mind told Nur. Hopelessly lost!
But somehow Nur knew what to do.
Start over. Nur thought. Breathe.
Nur did, as before, and felt a faint vine of calm budding within.
Good. Now focus on the weight of gravity. Just feel it on your feet first, keeping you safe on the floor. It’s the gravity that holds you to the floor.
The feet felt the truth of this, and the vine of calm grew, slowly expanding like kudzu throughout the body. Yes. Yes, I can feel that.
Good. Now, focus on the legs, feeling how they move the body through the air.
Nur did that, and felt the ease with which the strong legs moved the body across the marble floor and through the air.
Good. Now, focus on why you’re here.
This task took a moment, for Nur truly could not recall what the body was doing there or why.
Breathe. Slower this time.
Nur did, and with the breath came a clearing of confusion.
I’m looking for Eloy and Anjelika. They’re here, and they’re in trouble.
With that knowledge, Nur went to the right door, opened it.
Within, Anjelika was manacled and shackled, mask cracked and blood dried on the hands and clothes. A long chain as thick as the arm connected the manacles to a metal plate on the wall.
Anjelika? Nur thought. Can you hear me?
Nur? Is that you?
Yes, it’s me.
Anjelika’s body retreated some, sliding feebly along the floor, trying to work with the weight of the heavy chain. How can I be sure? They’ve tricked me before.
They have?
Yes. More than once. At least twice? I’m not sure.
I don’t know. What should I do?
Come in and close the door.
Nur did, go inside and close the door.
The mechanism moved by the door clicked loudly.
The figure who looked like Anjelika laughed and stood, discarding the props. Even the heavy chain it tossed aside like a twig, the true body shredding its Anjelika disguise and revealing its massive self, a familiar shape Nur knew: a huge, beastly being, clad in a cow skull mask, shoulders drenched in long, hard spikes, bare chest glistening, strip-leather skirt billowing from the shedding of the Anjelika skin, massive strap-wrapped leather boots stopping on the remains of the disguise. The two huge hands each held a long piece of metal, each more or less identical to the other, neither a knife or a spoon but a bit of both.
We tried to warn you, it thought. You can’t say we didn’t.
Nur unleashed a flurry of strikes, each expertly executed; however, none made any meaningful difference against the enormous beast of a person. A centering breath allowed Nur to fill a fist with chi, then strike again. This punctured the being’s chakra, and it gave a loud cry, doubled-over and then fell on its side, clutching its solar plexus. dropping its implements as it did. They both clanged and clacked loudly on the floor, each sending sparks as they bounced back and forth.
The large chain was in truth very heavy, but with chi flowing through the arms, Nur could lift it and use it like a garrote for the beast.
Where is Anjelika? Where is Eloy? Nur demanded as the body tightened the chain.
We will never tell, it said, and you will never know.
With a violent jerk, it snapped its own neck against the chain, then went limp.
Nur let go of the chain and the chi dissipated. The body slumped against the wall, and the mind was cast into despair.


11
Hall after hall, each with dozens of doors, every one giving only more halls, more doors.
Nur had no idea for how long the body wandered because it did not tire or require rest or food or excretion. It did breathe, though, so after some time, Nur tried counting breaths as a means of tracking time. This proved fruitless, however, because inevitably the mind would lose count and then begin a search for the correct count, further distancing itself from the actual count.
It went on like that for so many breaths, so many steps, numerous attempts to count them, all ending in failure.
The eyes caught sight of a window once, recalling the one from the room where the hands had choked the beast, and compared the light levels. Indeed, the amount, color, and position of the light was different! This filled the body with renewed vigor and purpose, and Nur rushed through the halls and behind the doors, searching now only for windows. And windows the body found!
But, to the mind’s great dismay, a pattern emerged. The light levels were not changing within the windows. Each time Nur found one, the light level was different from the last, yes, but gradually cycling though, like day to night, then dawn to noon to dusk. And so on.
Crestfallen, the body stopped in a hallway, the back against the hall wall, and it went down on the butt, hands to the masked face.
This is hopeless. I am lost. I will never find them, or even a way out of here. All is lost.
The mind wallowed in this place, becoming quite stuck within it, and a sort of attachment to the dark, viscous energy formed, gumming up the chakras, and beginning to cocoon the mind. The body responded, trying to get up, to run down the hall, throw open a door, and carry on. But the black mind wrap held the body fast. It squirmed and wriggled in place, yet remained seated on the floor of the hallway, gradually becoming affixed to the wall.
It did not take long for the cocooning stuff to seep from the mind into the world. It came from the chakras, large and small, and oozed all over the body, creating a hardening, amber-like encasement that sealed the body completely, bonding it to the floor and to the wall of the hall.
Soon, the mind became faint, and Nur could no longer maintain contact with it.


12
Nur pushed up from the floor, feeling the familiar ache. Looking around, it was the exact same hall from before.
Before what? And distinct from which other hall? The mind knew which questions to ask, but lacked a frame of reference.
I don’t know, Nur thought.
But it was the tall white hall, the one with light seeping in through long slit windows up high. The one with the wooden staircase that spiraled down to a cracked marble floor.
The mind remembered something. Spiral staircase. Cracked marble floors. We’ve been here.
I don’t know, Nur thought.
The body descended the stairs and went to the door.
The door hung there in its jamb, blocking the way out.
With some hesitation, the mind got the fingers to feel the door.
It’s wood of some kind, the mind determined.
Then, like a reflex, Nur gave it a swift kick and sent it flying outside.
What did you do that for? the mind asked.
I don’t know, Nur thought.
Outside, the yard stretched out, beautiful and rolling. It had well-sculpted tiers and elegant shrubbery. Here and there, a brick was missing, and moss crept over some stone.
This … is not natural, the mind thought. The earth should have undone these things by now … right?
I don’t know, Nur thought.
The body carried the mind away from the lavish manor and along a cobblestone path that gently wound down the hilly pitch of the demesne and merged with a travel road, also made of cobblestone.
This … isn’t the way, the mind opined. We should not be doing this.
I don’t know, Nur thought.
The body carried on, the way it had before.
Just down the travel road, brigands lay in wait. Three brigands, each masked in sooty cloth and armed with sharp things.
Nur sent one away immediately by taking a sidestep when attacked, then the hands snapped the brigand’s neck.
We should not be doing this, the mind said to Nur.
I don’t know, Nur thought.
The next brigand lurched at Nur, then retreated, in repetition. The brigand held a thick knife of metal (or maybe bone) and swiped near Nur with each pass, whilst the third brigand wielded a long staff with a rock at the end of it, swinging it almost like a fishing rig, trying to smash Nur’s skull.
We have to get out of here, the mind said to Nur. Now.
But the body did not obey the mind. Instead, it made a palm strike against the knife brigand’s sternum. The strike cracked the bone, ruining the brigand’s lungs' chance for breath. The brigand dropped the knife, and it clicked and clacked against the cobblestone. Both hands clutched at the brigand’s neck, cinching the sooty mask that drooped there, trying somehow, feebly to restore air, then the body failed and went to the ground on its back.
What have you done? the mind asked.
I … don’t know, Nur thought.
The remaining brigand took a step back and pulled the staff high up, assuming a dramatic posture. The birgand stood still, like an executioner waiting for its next appointment.
Wait! the mind cried out.
But the body did not wait.
Nur lunged forward, ramming a shoulder into the gut of the brigand.
Then, all went dark. All dark. Again.


13
Nur pushed up from the floor, feeling the familiar ache. It was the same tall white hall, light seeping in through long slit windows high up, spilling down the wooden spiral staircase to the cracked marble floor.
Wait, Nur heard in the mind. Just … wait.
I can’t wait, Nur thought.
Why not?
Because I’m trapped. I’ve got to get out of here!
Nur hopped over the railing down to the floor below, landed well, then made a mighty kiai and launched a flying kick through the door, turning it into so many splinters.
The body was halfway down the cobblestone path before Nur heard something again, in the mind.
No. Not that way.
The head turned and looked in the opposite direction.
Yes. That way.
The shoulders shrugged, and the body carried on in that direction. Nur arrived at the pool behind the manor.
It shone radiantly, giving sparkles and light, looking impossible blue and inviting. No one else was around.
The body began disrobing.
No. Don’t get distracted.
But it was too late, and the body was nude (but for the mask) and launched itself into the resplendent water.
The thunder of impact swoll around the head, and the weightlessness buoyed the body. Time meant nothing to Nur, then, and the body floated in the cool blue water, not at all too cool, warmed by the sun, and the eyes stared up at the purple-laced sky.