The Prisoner

 Warriors of Transcendence,Part 56
 
…Ulu envisioned himself standing at the top of a silver staircase, facing a golden arched gate that was set into a black rock. He was no more than thirteen years of age, although his knowledge and training were way beyond that of the other children of the village. The gate was adorned with delicate silver and gold carvings, and at its top were two golden birds with outstretched wings. A glorious tree was etched upon the front of the gate, its roots were thin, and its trunk wide and its branches reached up like outstretched arms. Silver letters joined together to create a single word above the arched gate, upon the blackened stone: ‘Royalty.’
 
The gate had opened, and the young Ulu had walked like a dreamer into an illuminated Chamber full of the sound of birds, their voices as clear as a bell. Opposite him, on a carved chair, sat the Master of Transcendence. His eyes invaded Ulu and supplied him with waves of comfort and hope, as he had never felt before…
 
Where did this Memory Shield come from, and why now? He did not know. But its intensity caused him to feel so good, that even the White Emperor and his threats seemed ridiculous to him, for the moment. Ignoring the fact that his son was one of them, he arranged his players upon the squares in the green valley beneath the purple skies. There was no need to physically move them. All he had to do was think about their designated spot, and the seemingly artificial players would move to their designated squares. The White Emperor, too, arranged his players, and the game began.
 
The purple skies darkened, but the playing field remained illuminated, in a way incomprehensible to Ulu. In a complex, creative move Ulu managed to pose a threat to the ‘head’ player, the Emperor’s serpent, with his soldiers and allowed himself to smile slightly. But then something occurred that Ulu did not expect: The Emperor stopped playing and approached Ulu.
 
“Have no fear, Warrior of Transcendence,” he said as he got closer, startling Ulu even more. “I only want to show you the source of the light. Look,” he said, as he pointed to the playing field.
 
The sky was almost completely dark now, but a strange, reddish, light emerged from the checkered board and spread over the entire valley, coloring the clothing of the obliterated players in odd colors. Ulu concentrated his gaze upon the checkered board and became breathless: The ground upon which they played lost its opaqueness and became transparent. Under the checkered field, beneath the ground, appeared a parallel field.
 
Today, the true battle is being run on three planes, Ulu recalled the words of his captors.
 
What a fatal mistake he had made, allowing them to take him captive and not escaping from them.
 
Three planes, thought Ulu again, and then his eyes looked up towards the illuminated space above the playing field. An additional impressive structure appeared in front of his eyes, composed of thin rays of light. Between the light margins lay illuminated squares, upon which appeared players. The Emperor did not leave Ulu time to think. “Well, Warrior of Transcendence, this is the ‘Game of
 
Thoughts.’ The ‘Game of Forces’ is child’s play in relation to this. Thanks to your friend, Tzalaii, we have obtained the map of the Tunnels of Time, etched upon the King’s Cloak, and as you can see, the soldiers of the ‘Game of Thoughts’ are already making their way there.”
 
Black creatures moved though the Tunnels of Time, which twisted and turned in amazing clarity in the bottom plane of the game.
 
“Sihara!” cried Ulu bitterly.
 
He recalled the first time he saw her on Green Isle, after Tzalaii had fallen captive. He did not know where she was heading in the Tunnels of Time, but it was clear to him that she was continuing her mission in the name of the Chamber.
 
“Yes, Sihara,” agreed the White Emperor, “Sihara who shall soon be called the ‘Mistress of the Deathliners.”
 
He neared Ulu and grabbed hold of his arm.
 
“And did you really think that we would leave the mountain core open to this naive girl?” Ulu could see Sihara kneeling down and gazing into a pool of water. Every cell in his body became enraged! He searched for a Memory Shield to hold onto, but this new information flooded him and prevented him from thinking of anything else.
 
The Emperor continued speaking, without mercy: “As you can see, the game is three-dimensional. It is based on the ancient rules of the ‘Game of Forces’, although in essence, it varies drastically. Here, there is no point in striking the ‘head’ of the opponent, because there are essentially more heads than one.”
 
The Emperor burst into a crazed fit of laughter, which rolled through the dark valley like the growl of a large beast crouching over its prey. Ulu was petrified. His entire being was shocked by the suddenness in which the Emperor rid himself of his human disguise.
 
“If you want him,” he said as he pointed towards the frozen image of Sage, “you must defeat me.”
 
The boy appeared as a motionless yellow, wax doll. Upon his cape, which looked like a transparent drawing upon his body, was the image of a fox.
 
“Victory means creating corresponding uniform structures on all three planes, located precisely one atop the other. For your information, the Octopus is the one capable of copying a structure from one plane to another. The Extrappers can dig craters which will force the player to move, against his will, to a lower plane. The Inviewers can see from one end of the world to the other, and have the ability to neutralize all structures on all planes. And now, Warrior of Transcendence,” he uttered disdainfully, “can you identify any of the players on the field?”
 
The faces of the players began to change, transforming into Tzalaii, and then into Mahn. These images were not really Tzalaii and Mahn, it was clear, although the fact that the Emperor was so familiar with their appearances, locations, and deeds, to the point that he was capable of disguising his Obliterators into their form, caused another layer of Memory Shields to peel away from Ulu’s soul. He felt more vulnerable than ever before, as though all of his heart’s secrets were exposed before this creature of many disguises and schemes.

“I shall help you arrange them,” said the Emperor. “As I see it, your friends are currently located on the middle plane. You are welcome to place them in their proper places.” 
 
With the power of thought, the Emperor placed his players upon various squares on the middle plane. Without waiting for Ulu’s response, they began to move, and built an Extrapper formation. With great effort, Ulu managed to move his soldiers as well and neutralize the Extrapper formation, but then the Emperor’s players were swallowed into the bottom plane.
 
Can they harm Sihara? wondered Ulu in terror. What is reality and what is imaginary?
 
“Good depth in exchange for evil depth,” whispered an inner voice.
 
With great difficulty, Ulu was able to convey his thoughts. He gathered his strength and continued playing, this time demoting a fox structure from the upper plane to the lower plane, and instructing his soldiers to plant obstacles, thereby preventing the Emperor’s soldiers from touching Sihara. The Extrappers from the mountain-core stopped moving. The crater that appeared opposite them delayed their moves, although they regrouped and created a precise crescent formation and waited for a similar structure to be built above them, on the middle plane. The corresponding structures of the Extrappers, on all three planes, glowed red. Ulu noticed that the light emerged from shiny red horses, which were scattered throughout the upper plane. He moved one of his players, who was pushed into the Extrapper’s formation, and attempted to physically stop their advancement with his body. Their strength was greater than his, and he was flung forward like a driven leaf.
 
“Complete the move of the flame!” screeched the Emperor, his eyes almost coming out of their sockets. The hall, the structures, the Emperor- all melted and dissipated, and Ulu found himself standing beside Sage, in a dark and silent valley. Around him, in the same exact places where they were located in the game field, stood a handful of Warriors of Transcendence, surrounded by Extrapper formations in all directions. They were all prisoners, on all three planes. Ulu sat down on the ground, bewildered.                  
 
To be continued.
 

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