know what is in it. It would take me a little while, but I could probably penetrate the protective spell.”
“No! No, please don’t. This is a very special bottle, the only one of its kind in existence and one of my most prized possessions. Inside this bottle is an actual world—the world of Kronton, created and populated by myself, with a little help. I have gathered all the beings of Kronton and put them in this bottle without them knowing it. The most powerful here may know something is not right, but most think nothing has changed. The world in the bottle is the mirror of the actual world. The actual world of Kronton still exists in its natural state and will be repopulated by its inhabitants, but when they return, possibly a millennium later, the actual time on the real world will be one blink of an eyelash. Even the best of us are not all good, but it was to serve the greater good. Please sit with me.”
Two chairs form beside the mound, and the two men sit. “Robert, in your studies, or should I say absorption of knowledge, you have heard of Blethstole.”
“Of course, Blethstole, the great black dragon of the Mirrimya Mountains in the Darnsack Realm. Blethstole the bringer of death to all. My books say that a millennium ago Blethstole disappeared, just vanished without a trace. It’s said that the white mare Gwithen, the female white dragon, still mourns and will sleep until the return of Blethstole. You gotta love the way love transcends even the greatest of beasts and draws enemies to become lovers.”
“Blethstole is in this bottle.”
Robert laughs. “Blethstole’s toenail would not fit in this bottle.”
“What else do you know of Blethstole?”
“Well, the black dragons are immune to all charm, and it is said that anyone who can pluck a scale from Blethstole and affix it to their clothing also becomes immune to all charms.”
“Correct. You must pluck a scale from Blethstole.”
Robert laughs. “Pluck a scale from Blethstole? I’m not crazy. I don’t want to be decayed in seconds by his Breath of Decadence.”
“No, this is why you need the Staff of Barrier Breath.”
“Wow, this is intense, Logantrance. The Staff of Barrier Breath is held by the warlock Xanorax, and he has been unheard from for over seven hundred years. He has probably been pulled to the depths of hell by Satan himself. He surely will rise someday.”
“He is in this bottle.”
“Logantrance, if you have put Xanorax and Blethstole in this bottle, plus whole landscapes of different realms, or better yet a whole world, there is no way I am nearly as powerful as you. I have no idea how you could’ve done this.”
“I have worked on this bottle for six thousand years now. I spent over three thousand years learning the magic it took to make this happen, and you have learned most of this magic in a few short months. You will quickly know all I know plus more.”
“So what else is in this bottle?”
“Alluradaloni.”
“Alluradaloni, the witch of seduction? Any man that looks upon her sees the woman of all his desire and is seduced by her of course, then she steals the man’s life, giving her eternal life. My books say no man has ever evaded her seduction or escaped her trance once eyes have been laid upon her. There were over two books of all the treasure and abilities she has stolen from men and women. She only gets stronger. That’s one witch I am just fine leaving alone.”
“Well, Robert, the over two books of magical items and abilities she possesses, just imagine if they were yours.”
“I think I see where this is going. I need the Staff of Barrier Breath from Xanorax in order to pluck a scale from Blethstole so I can steal all the magical items from Alluradaloni?”
“Well, yes, you need the staff to get the dragon scale so you can face Alluradaloni. Of all the magical items she possesses, you really need the Cloak of Concealment. Without this, you will not be able to travel because very soon