The Crystal Mountain by Thomas M. Reid Read Free Book Online Page A

through the middle of the chamber.
    “So many,” the angel breathed, gawking. “Never have I seen so many.”
    “And they shall be yours to peruse as you desire,” Oshiga said, taking Eirwyn’s hand and gently pulling her along. “But first, you must meet with the Seer. He has much to discuss with you.”
    A shiver of delight went down the angel’s spine as she turned to follow the archon toward another set of double doors. Even as an immortal, she thought, I could never finish reading all of these.
    The two of them passed through the portal and into an inner sanctum. Eirwyn followed Oshiga past more stacks of books and toward what she could only think of as a very sumptuous den. Several divans framed an open area with a large table in the middle. Smaller tables with faint glowing orbs set like lamps rested between the couches, providing rich, comfortable reading light. An assortment of books, many open, lay scattered across the central table. Others teetered in rickety stacks, ribboned bookmarks spilling free of the pages.
    A figure stood with its back to the two visitors, bent over, studying something Eirwyn could not make out. She could tell that her host stood considerably taller than either her or her guide. Lustrous golden hair cascaded down the figure’s back, draped upon rich blue robes adorned with finely wrought silver thread and hundreds upon hundreds of pearls. A pair of white feathery wings sprouted from the middle of the figure’s back, folded tightly against the robes.
    At the sound of Eirwyn and Oshiga’s approaching footsteps, the figure straightened, turned, and faced them. The wise and serene face that regarded them was human, faintly male in attributes, and pearly white.
    He smiled warmly and gestured for Eirwyn to come closer. “Welcome, deva,” he said, and his voice resonated throughout the chamber like the deep echoes of a whalehorn. “I am so pleased you decided to visit me.”
    Eirwyn blushed despite her years. She curtsied once and smiled back. “Thank you for inviting me, my lord Seer,” she said, “and for sparing me the fate of loneliness and inactivity that had been thrust upon me.”
    “Please,” the figure across from her said, “address me as Erathaol. And it is I who must thank you, Eirwyn, for choosing to accept my hospitality.”
    Eirwyn nodded again, but she frowned. “I am grateful, but I am puzzled too. I cannot fathom why you would possibly need my services. Your powers of divination are vast compared to my own.”
    The archon pursed his lips and nodded. “Indeed, my insight is great. But even one such as I cannot foretell every possible bit of the future. There are things that remain hidden from me, or that are simply beyond my scope to research and discover. Time is my enemy in many ways, Eirwyn.”
    She nodded.
    “However, I did not ask you here because I need your help, strictly speaking.”
    Eirwyn cocked her head to one side. “Oh?” She cast a sideways glance at Oshiga. “Your messenger claimed otherwise.”
    The trumpet archon looked confused and a bit uncomfortable.
    Erathaol smiled. “Yes,” he said. “Because I did not choose to reveal my true intentions to him. I hope the deception does not sour your enthusiasm for your visit.”
    Eirwyn raised her eyebrows. “That depends on the real
    reason you asked me here.” She felt uncomfortable speaking to a paragon archon in such a manner, but at the same time, she did not care for being deceived.
    “Truthfully, I cannot explain it all to you,” the Seer admitted. “For I do not know all, myself. I only understand that you have locked within you a great secret, a glimpse into the future that must be revealed, lest dire happenings come to pass.”
    “Inside me?”
    “Indeed,” Erathaol said. “Something you yourself cannot yet see. Something quite dark and dangerous.”
    Eirwyn’s thoughts turned to her dreams, forgotten each morning when she awoke.
    “Yes,” the Seer said, “you struggle