Date: Sat, 3 May 2008 03:23:52 +0000
From: Draiodoir Draiodoir <darkdraiodoir666@hotmail.com>
Subject: Gay Male- Sci Fi/ The Gatekeeper: Stigmatized/ Chapter 5

	All rights reserved. This story is property of Fritz Ilagan. No one
must copy, reprint or repost this story without any consent to the author,
whole or in part, except for permitted by this site or the laws. All
characters and situations in this story is completely fictional except for
those with historical and social tendencies (you'll see in chapter 13).

	This story involves gay love but it might take awhile before you
figure it's there. I didn't intend this to be a "jack off" story so no sex
scene would be found in any part of this series. For comments, drop me a
note in darkdraiodoir666@hotmail.com. I try my best to answer all emails.

	Guys, here's another chapter of my story The Gatekeeper:
Stigmatized. Hope you like it!

Chapter Five: The Mansion

	"This is the Vestibule, the entrance hall of the Mansion."

	Osiris continued his ogling. The hall was as large as a cathedral
with a forest of pristine white columns supporting the golden
ceiling. Hundreds of mysterious balls of light floated here and there
illuminating the whole chamber. Also, at least two hundred robed men and
women walked around carrying various objects like books, scrolls and weird
things that Osiris had never seen before; he thought he saw a girl talking
to a plant with purple flowers. Everyone appeared to be very busy, coming
in and out of the doors that lined the octagonal walls of the huge
room. There were also an array of animals among the crowd and some were
beasts like lions and bears that Os only saw in zoos concluding that they
were spirit guardians like Luna.

	Caleb led Osiris, walking towards the three women in the center of
the room. The lady in the middle was the most beautiful woman Os has ever
seen in his life. She appeared to be in here mid-twenties, with a perfectly
curved body dressed in shiny silver robe. The two girls in each of her side
appeared to be much younger than Osiris. They were wearing turquoise robes
that reached their ankles and looking pleased to see the two young
lads. The lady smiled as Os and Caleb came nearer.

	"Osiris Rites, son of Raphael, I welcome you," said the lady at the
middle.

	Caleb bowed to her then said, "Os, this is Verdandi Britestone, the
High-priestess of the Mordigan Witches."

	Osiris bowed to her then said, "Thank you for letting me stay and
protecting me from the Hand, ma'am."

	"It is our pleasure to help those who are in need and stopping the
Hand is our main goal. These are Delphi Quartz and Ruby Berry," Verdandi
pointed to the two girls in either side of her. They smiled and bowed to
Osiris. "They will guide you to your room and explain to you anything that
you want to inquire. Caleb I would like to have a short word with you in my
office."

	Caleb nodded then followed the High-priestess. He gave Os a wink
before disappearing to the crowd.

	"Mr. Rites, this way please," said the one named Delphi.

	Osiris felt as though he was in a five star hotel. "Just call me
Os. Mr. Rites was my father."

	Both the girls smiled. The three of them walked towards the three
doors facing them. The crowd bustled around them, occasionally greeting
Delphi and Ruby and giving a smile to Osiris. When Ruby opened the door in
the middle, Os saw a wide corridor, with walls made of marble adorned by
veins of gold in unsuspecting patterns here and there, sparkling by the
glow of more orbs of light hovering above. But the gold decoration didn't
much surprise Osiris as he suspected nothing less. He was rather taken
aback by the floor of the corridor or rather... the lack of it.

	They walked onto a platform just beyond the door but there were no
more marble to step upon. Os looked down and he saw instead a stream of
flowing dark blue water instead of the ground. A few silver eels glided
below the water and Osiris creased his brow then looked to both
girls. Delphi and Ruby knew he will be surprised so before he opened his
mouth, Delphi said, "Do not worry Os. It's safe."

	"Where's the floor?" asked Osiris. "Or do we need a boat?"

	"No, we won't need a boat. Look there Os," said Ruby pointing a
finger.

	Just then, two witches conversing energetically flowed in front of
Osiris, Delphi and Ruby. They were standing on top of the water, noticeably
without support underneath their feet. They moved with the stream while Os
stared, as they passed, his mouth forming a perfect circle.

	"This is the floor," said Ruby, giggling a little. "It was a way to
travel the Mansion so that we won't tire easily. We can step on the water,
let it move us about and we can travel by only standing on it."

	"You won't sink?" asked Osiris apprehensively eyeing the stream
which looked extremely ordinary.

	"No, it's enchanted," said Delphi. "It works like the escalators at
the malls. It was devised by a genius Creator in the Middle Ages because
the Mansion is just too vast and the Elders will be too exhausted if they
walk around all day. Come on."

	The two Mordigans jumped to the water and Osiris half expected them
to sink but the water appeared solid on their feet. Tentatively, he stepped
on it. It supported his weight and it felt cool even through his shoes. The
three of them started to move.

	"We call it River Corridor. It flows widdershins at one area and
deosil at another. This line here marks the sides," said Delphi. Osiris
looked down and he saw a silver line at the center of the hall, visible
above the water, slithering like a snake with the current.

	"Deosil and widdershins?" he inquired.

	"They're Old English for clockwise and counter clockwise," said
Ruby.

	"Clockwise? What are you saying, this hall is circular?" asked
Osiris looking around and saw hundreds of doors lined the walls.

	"Yes."

	Os stared around. "How come I can't see any curves?"

	"It's too huge that's why our eyes can't discern its shape but the
blueprint that can be found at the Archives shows that the greater part of
the Mansion beyond the Vestibule is a great dome," said Delphi.

	The things that he was learning about witchcraft and his identity
were overwhelming to Osiris's mind but it served to be good
distractions. At least now he's not bothered by the danger of the outside
world. They continued to move on top of the stream and as they past by
doors, he noticed that they were of different colors. Small signages were
seen here and there pointing to rooms of the Mansion.

	"Oh, that?" said Ruby. "Well, as I told you the Mansion is so vast
that even we get lost in it, even after years of living here. The doors are
color coded and numbered to stop us from barging in the wrong room. The
doors on the side of the Vestibule, lead to the workshops where we work on
our tasks."

	"Wooden doors direct you to the dormitories which have numbers on
them for easy recollection," supplied Delphi. "Doors that are color white
are restricted. They are entrance to the Elders' Quarters. There are other
doors that can lead you to special rooms in the Mansion but we think it'll
be more enjoyable if you discover them yourself."

	Getting to Osiris's dorm took some time but it was not wasted as
Ruby and Delphi seemed to enjoy telling him things. He found out that
Delphi was an Oracle, a kind of Mordigan Witch with an ability to see the
future. Ruby, on the other hand, was a Creator, someone who was assigned in
inventing spells and potions for the coven. Osiris was quite buoyant, as
the two girls didn't sound weird unlike what he expected a witch would
sound.

	Then suddenly, a chill surged to his body like electricity. It was
when they passed a golden door and its sight gave Osiris a feeling he could
not explain... as though it tried to get his attention.

	Giving it a long stare after they got passed it, Osiris absorbed
the alchemic designs of symbols framing the twisting trunk of a tree, its
leaves seemed to move like being blown by the wind as lights from hovering
orbs made it flicker while the viewer floated by the River Corridor.

	Ruby noticed Osiris shivering again. "What's the matter?"

	"That door we just passed by. The gold one... where does it lead
to?" asked Osiris, feeling rather freaked out by the sensation.

	"Well, no one knows," said Delphi.

	He raised an eyebrow. "Huh?"

	"It's locked and no one has been able to open it. Not even the
High-priestess. Some thinks that it needs a password of some kind. Many
tried to unlock it with potions and spells but nothing worked."

	"Oh." Osiris thought it was kind of odd that with so much magic in
this place they can't even unlock one door. It seems magic still has its
limitations.

	"Well, here we are," said Ruby, as she and Delphi step over the
silver line and hopped to the doorstep platform and Os followed. They stood
in front of a wooden door with a copper number sixty-seven nailed at it.

	"Your room is the fifth door at the right," said Ruby handing
Osiris a silver key. "You will find everything that you need. There are
robes at the cabinet, food at the pantry and books at the shelves. There's
also a laptop at the desk which is connected to the internet."

	"A laptop?" Osiris repeated checking whether he heard that right.

	"You know, a small computer that opens like a book," said Delphi.

	"No, I know what a laptop is. I just didn't expect a magical place
will be equipped with technology," said Osiris smilingly.  Delphi and Ruby
grinned to him.

	"Well, High-priestess Verdandi introduced it," said Delphi, "and we
believe it was a great idea because it made searching books at the Archives
much easier."

	"We're witches Os, not cavemen. You will see other appliances by
the kitchen," Ruby said rather pointedly.

	"Okay then, we need to go back to our tasks. See you later," said
both girls in unison then Delphi and Ruby waved goodbye as the stream of
the River Corridor carried them away. Osiris opened the door and was
greeted with a very long empty passageway lined with at least a hundred
wooden doors, illuminated by orbs hovering by the ceiling. He took a deep
breath and unlocked his room.

					* * *

	"Would you like something to drink Caleb?"  Caleb smiled and knew
very well that the polite thing to do is to accept. "A cup of tea would be
good, thank you Verdandi."  Verdandi waved a hand and a cup of chamomile
tea materialized in front of Caleb while a glass of wine appeared in front
of the High-priestess.

	"I want to talk to you about Osiris's escape," said Verdandi as she
swirled the scarlet contents of her glass. "It seems rather odd for the
Hand to let any of their victims get away and be rescued by us."

	"Probably they got threatened by Osiris's gifts. By the way he
related what happened, his mind is a cornucopia of power that might have
scared Lilith off a pursuit," replied Caleb with a smile. But it was
obvious that the High-priestess didn't share his view.

	"But it would be the first time that they have done this and if
Osiris is a source of power, they would have never let him get away."

	"What bothers you High-priestess?"

	"The Hand has rather become more conspicuous lately. The attack at
the school would have attracted the non-magical community and it seems that
the Hand didn't care as long as they get Osiris and I fear that because of
this, the Advocatus had grown much more aggressive," Verdandi stated. "You
know his ultimate goal Caleb and I fear that he might use Osiris to achieve
it."

	Caleb appeared confused. "What can Osiris do? He is ignorant of his
heritage, his powers. And he is confined in here where the Hand can't
influence him. And I believe this child is good, ma'am, he will not be
swayed to the other side."

	"There is no other side Caleb. Good and evil is interconnected,
with only a fine line that separates one from the other. And I know how the
leader of the Hand thinks; he will not stop until he gets what he wants."

	Verdandi gave a low sigh then took a drink of her wine. "I would
like you to look after Os, teach him our ways and maybe he will join us in
the future."

	"You think if Osiris becomes a Mordigan, he will be protected from
the Hand's advances? That the coven's magic will bind Os to our code?"

	Verdandi looked sorrowed as she said, "No magic is perfect
Caleb. Not even the binding powers of a coven family."

					* * *

	Osiris entered his designated room and found a spacious apartment
that was half-bedroom half-kitchen, with a small circular chandelier of
candles. A king-size bed stood at the far end of the square room with
fluffy pillows and a large comforter. Beside it was a cabinet that appears
to be made of oak. A desk was on the other side of the bed where a laptop
was boot up. Rushing to it excitedly, he fingered the fine silver gadget,
noticing that it was the newest model that he just recently saw at the mall
a few days ago. Taking his eyes off the computer for a second, Osiris saw
that the bookshelves that lined the walls were packed with books of magic
and sorcery. Something inside him was tingling insight of these.

	Walking around the apartment, he got to the kitchen where Osiris
found all kinds of appliances for cooking. There were two doors next to the
fridge and further investigating made him discover that one led to the
pantry while the other to a bathroom with a large tub. 'Nice.'

	Going back to the desk, Osiris decided to send a quick email to
Jaypee whose probably worried sick of him. He was just getting started to
type when the door opened and a short boy, a year or two younger than
Osiris, entered.

	Carrying a handful of small bottles, the boy look up and jumped in
surprise when he saw Osiris by the computer; one bottle containing purple
liquid slipped from the boy's grasped and shattered to the floor. Purple
smoke came from the spilled potion which covered the boy and after a while,
the smoke diminished, and what he saw next made Osiris gave a howl of
fright.

	The boy's head was gone.

	Os got off his chair and cautiously stared at the decapitated body
of the boy when a voice from somewhere under the bed called out to him.

	"Excuse me? Can you assist me please?"

	Stunned, Osiris pulled up the covers of the bed then peered
underneath and saw the boy's head that had apparently rolled its way
there. It was still alive and Os wasn't sure whether to be thankful or
frightened.

	"What the--" gasped Osiris. "What happened to you?"

	The boy gave him a sheepish smile. "It was my Decapitation
potion. Can you help me?"

	"How?"

	"Just put my head by my feet then take the red potion from my hand
and drop it in front of me," said the boy's head as though it was only
talking about the weather.

	Carefully, Os picked up the boy's pate and put it by the boy's
feet. His body was immobile as a statue.

	"Is your body alright?" asked Osiris as he took the red potion from
the handful of bottles.

	"I'm okay. I won't be able to move though because my brain's not
attached to my spine. Throw the red potion now."

	"Okay, here goes." Osiris let the red potion drop in front of the
boy. Greenish smoke emerged and covered the scene. Coughing followed and
Osiris saw that the boy was reunited with his head, waving smoke away from
him.

	"I'm sorry about that," said the boy. "I just got surprised when I
saw you here. I thought this was my room. I'm Roland Draft, a Mordigan
Creator." The boy put some of the bottle on his pocket and extended his
hand and Osiris shook it.

	"I'm Osiris Rites, I'm... um..."

	"Don't worry. I know why you're here. The Hand's after you right?"

	"Yeah. Wait... you're Roland? Caleb mentioned you once."  Roland
smiled. "Well, Caleb was my mentor when I was still starting. Welcome to
the Mansion, Os. You're in the safest place on earth."

	"Caleb did mention that," smiled Osiris, who decided to come back
to the computer. He reread his letter:

EMAIL:
	Hi Jaypee... Osiris here. Can't really talk right now but I want to
tell you that I'm alright. Mr. Brine is helping me and he took me to this
place but I can't really tell where it is because I don't know. It's like a
witness protection safe house kind of places but only classier. I just want
to tell you that I'm safe and that you shouldn't be worried of me. I miss
you bro. Hope to see you once everything gets sorted out. Be safe.

	Osiris noticed that Roland seemed interested with what he was doing
by the way the boy craned his neck to stare at the screen. Glancing back to
him, Osiris asked, "Yes?"

	"Um... sorry," mumbled Roland, "It's just, I wonder if you
can... you know... teach me in using a... um..."

	"Laptop," Osiris provided automatically.

	"Yes, laptop," the boy blushed. "I haven't really mastered this
kind of thing and you make it look so easy..."

	"Oh, alright then. I'll teach you," said Osiris.

	Roland beamed. "Great. Can I just go to my room and put these
potions in storage? Be right back." He dashed out and after a minute came
back to Osiris's room.

	"Um... I would have asked you to sit but there's... only one
chair," said Osiris frowning to the grandeur of the room that appeared to
be rather under furnished.

	"Oh, no problem," said Roland who waved his hand and a fluffy chair
materialized beside Osiris. Roland sat on it staring at the screen.

	"So you're telling me you can conjure stuff but can't use a
computer?" asked Osiris, finishing his typing.

	"Well, no one could be good in everything and it was only recently
that the High-priestess suggested using computers and not many Mordigans
had gotten the hang of it yet which includes me."

	"How come? Can't you get tutorials or something?"

	"Well, not all Mordigans are allowed to get outside and the manuals
on the Archives doesn't really do justice. What if the laptop just
blow-up," said Roland watching Osiris's fingers hit the keys on the
keyboard. "And with the threat of the Hand, it is very dangerous to be a
Mordigan outside the Mansion. Only Heralds and Trackers are allowed to
leave."

	"That sucks," said Os. "And how long have you been a witch?"

	"Well, technically all my life. I came from a long line of witch
ancestry so we have always known that we have powers. My aunt was a
Mordigan and when she saw that I excelled more than my cousins, she trained
me and I got initiated when I was seven."

	"Initiated? It sounds as though you joined a fraternity or
something," said Osiris now hitting the enter key and finally sent the
email.

	"Initiation is a ritual that you need to perform when you wish to
join a coven and a coven is a group of witches bound in perfect love and
perfect trust. Some even say that covens are much closer than family,"
Roland explained. "You sound as though you haven't got a clue about
witchcraft."

	Osiris shrugged his shoulder. "I only knew that I'm a witch this
morning."

	"What?" asked Roland befuddled, "you mean you survived the Hand
without your powers?"

	"How come so many of you know about my encounter with the Hand?"

	"It's big news really," said Roland eagerly. "The attack at your
school was the most noticeable act the Hand did for over thirteen years. It
was like they didn't care about exposing their powers to the normal
people. How did you survive them anyway?"

	"Well, I used my powers but at that time I didn't know I have
them. I just shouted and the room exploded," Osiris said, shrugging his
shoulders a bit.

	"Whoa," said Roland in awe but then grinned. "Cool. Hey how about
you teach me how to computer and I'll teach you everything I know about
witchcraft. What do you say?"

	"That would be great!" said Osiris. "So what do you want to learn?"

	Roland appeared sheepish. "Everything? Maybe we can begin on how to
turn it on?"

	The other guy fought to stifle his laughter. "You don't even know
how to turn it on? Okay then, I'll shut it down first so I can show you."
Os then clicked the device and showed Roland the switch, explained to him
terms like `startup,' `operating system' and `internet.' Being a nerd at
heart, Osiris talked about this and that without realizing Roland's
perplexed expression.

	"--so you know, the network at that research facility was the
founding idea of today's World Wide Web--what?" Osiris asked.

	"Do I really need to know about the history of the internet?"
Roland asked timidly.

	"No, sorry, I just got carried away. You won't need to know that
except if you want to be a hacker or something," chuckled Os but Roland
creased his brow wondering what was funny.

	"So here," Osiris continued to cover up his lame joke, "these
little pictures are called icons that you click or double click to start a
program using this cursor, the little arrow that moves when you touch the
pad in here. Tap once for a click and twice for a double click.

	"This is a program that launches the internet," Os pointed the
cursor to a small globe-like icon, "and when I click it, it will show you
your homepage, it serves as a starting point in a hypertext system--"

	"Hypertext?" asked Roland sounding anxious.

	"Hypertext are text linked together in a complex, non-sequential
web of associations in which the user can browse thro--" rattled Osiris
then caught himself just in time. He grinned to Roland and said, "Forget
that. I always rumble when I'm lecturing someone."

	Roland smiled at him. "Don't worry me too."

	Then Osiris showed Roland websites and explained to him what search
engines were.

	"Wow," said Roland, "I never thought it would be this easy to get
information by typing and clicking. The knowledge that we can acquire..."

	Osiris got impressed on how good of a student Roland could be. He
was already a fast typist only after three hours in front of the
laptop. After feeling his stomach grunting though, Os decided to have a
break and went to the kitchen while Roland reluctantly shut down the
computer.

	The pantry was packed with all sorts of food imaginable and as
though food had been packed inside just to squeeze it all in just to fit
even if the small closet refused to hold anymore. After taking in the
sight, Osiris started extracting from the piles of packet and cans of food
some bread, peanut butter, jelly and milk then looked back to Roland and
said, "Care to eat with me?"

	"Okay," said Roland who went to the kitchen then stared at Osiris's
selection for dinner. "Don't tell me you're on a diet?"

	"No, why?"

	"Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches doesn't really pack as a meal
in here," said Roland as he walked pass Osiris then rummaged in the pantry
and took some carrots, potatoes, bell peppers and tomato sauce. "When you
spend your day casting spells and brewing potions, it gets rather draining
so you should be well nourished." He placed these at the kitchen counter
then got a whole chicken from the freezer which he defrosted by wave of a
hand.

	Roland began to chop the chicken while Osiris watch and said,
"Don't tell me they teach culinary arts in the Mordigan Mansion?"

	Roland smiled. "Well, they do teach us potion making so I guess
it's the same principle."

	Acting horrified, Osiris scooted away from Roland. "That dish won't
take my head off, will it?" Both of them laughed. Os continued to make
sandwiches just so he won't feel useless while Roland simmered the
casserole. Above the pile of sandwich, Osiris gave Roland an amused stare
as the guy didn't act like his age... maybe that could happen after getting
cooped up inside a Mansion for so long, he thought.

	"So, how did you learn to cook?" asked Os.

	"Living here teaches you many things Os. At first I only know how
to make sandwiches too but as years past by, you grow sick with the same
old stuff so you try something new. I found a cookbook at the Archives and
tried to do the recipes and it did pay off. One thing that I learned here
is that if you want to learn something, you've got to teach yourself."

	"It seems rather harsh not to let you guys out even once in a
while."

	"We really haven't been like this in the past," said Roland and Os
saw a hint of sadness in his new found friend, "only when the Hand started
murdering any Mordigan that crosses their path. Once, we were free to get
out and visit our families but when the Hand started an all out war against
us, we didn't have a choice but to hide here. I was nine the last time I
saw my family."

	"That's tough," said Osiris who didn't notice that he already made
two dozen sandwiches.

	"But it's not really that bad," said Roland, "I mean, we have to
sacrifice one thing or another if we really wanted to make a difference."

	"What do you do in here really?" Osiris asked as he stopped making
sandwiches after finally getting aware of the large pile of bread, peanut
butter and jelly overflowing the plate in front of him. Roland placed a
large bowl of steaming casserole on the table. It smelled delicious.

	"As a whole, the Mordigan Witches' main aim is to promote peace in
the world. We become mediator between magical and non-magical people. We
tend to remind witches not to use their magic to harm others so that the
world will not come back to that time when owning a black cat was
punishable by being burned at the stake.

	"Also, we try to discover new kinds of magic and research ancient
ones that have been forgotten. Knowledge is important here that's why we
have the biggest library there is and we pride that all knowledge should be
shared but as you know some people tend to abuse the power of
knowledge. Also, we protect magical beings that are in danger of extinction
because of the changes humanity has done to the world, you know,
deforestation, pollution and industrialization."

	"Magical beings?" Osiris said while he gulped down the chicken
casserole which tasted exquisite.

	"You know, tree fairies, leprechauns, Alvens and other nature
sprites. We try to console lost souls too to find their way to the other
side and try to negotiate with poltergeists so that they will no longer
hunt people," explained Roland, taking a sandwich from the pile. "And we
also help witches that are hunted by the Hand, which is why you're here."

	"How come the Hand's seemed so angry with the world, besides the
fact that they are evil?"  Roland chewed thoughtfully then said, "The Hand
is not angry with the world, contrary to that, they say they want to save
it."

	Osiris's face looked as though he just found a dead rat in his
casserole. "Save the world? How the hell can they save the world if they
keep killing people all the time?"

	"The head of the Hand believes the world has grown so evil that it
is his duty to atone it. He uses magic to kidnap criminals then uses them
as sacrifices in rituals."

	"But I'm not a criminal," said Os. "Why did they want kill me?"

	"Well," Roland continued even though he appeared to be
uncomfortable. "Some rituals need special people as sacrifices, I guess."

	"Caleb said the Hand has partnered with criminals? How does that
work if they kill them for rituals?" Osiris frowned.

	"I don't really know that but I know that the majority of the
Hand's victims are people that had done something wrong and that's why we,
Mordigans, opposes them because even though how evil a person is he doesn't
deserve to be killed on an altar or get dissected for potions."

	Talking about killing and dissecting can put off anyone's appetite
so both guys decided to clean up the table, though Os thought they made a
sizable dent to the casserole and pile of sandwiches. Osiris started to
wash the dishes while Roland kept the leftovers to the fridge. When
finished, Os found Roland grinning at him.

	"What?"

	"I told you I'll coach you on witchcraft as payment for computer
lessons. So let's begin," said Roland who appeared excited.
	"Let's start with your active power. What is it?"

	"Caleb told me I'm a telepath and a psychokinetic," said Os.

	"You have two powers... already?" asked Roland looking surprised
again.

	"I think so. Is that bad?"

	"No, not at all. I'm a Transformer. I can change object's forms
without spells," said Roland as the two of them sat at the floor in front
of the bed. "It's just that, you seemed well gifted even though you have
just discovered you were a witch."

	"Don't you mean a warlock?" asked Osiris. "I mean, that's the
proper male version of a witch right?"

	"Warlock is proper but witch can be use for either male or
female. So how come you have so much power?" Osiris shrugged in reply then
a low male voice answered by the door way.

	"That's because his powers got stored in him and now they are
struggling to catch up." Both boys looked up and saw Caleb Brine standing
there while Luna, the ocelot sat by the floor.

	"Caleb!" Os exclaimed. "You missed dinner. You're right. Roland
here is an excellent cook."

	"I know, he cooked for me when I was his mentor," said Caleb
entering the room. "I hope you liked your room."

	"It's great. We were just about to practice my power. Roland's
teaching me magic in exchange for me teaching him how to use the computer."

	"Well, that's quite a bargain. But remember that knowledge is power
on its own already." Caleb sat by Osiris's bed and looked down at the two
boys by the floor. "Okay then, let's see my student become a teacher."

To be continued...