The Book of Fire by Marjorie B. Kellogg

Author:Marjorie B. Kellogg [Kellogg, Marjorie B.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: DAW
Published: 2000-06-30T16:00:00+00:00

Several hours later, she is still reading. Her back aches and her eyes smart from the unaccustomed close concentration. But her mind is entranced. She is in another world. A far-off time ruled by unseen forces, perilous and mysterious but open to manipulation in the hands of a skilled adept. Not ruled by science, as her world had been until the coming of the God, nor yet damaged by the excesses of technology. A time when people believed in dragons, and the very existence of the God, or any god at all, made a lot more sense.

Once Paia would have dismissed such tales as fantastical nonsense. But if the God exists now, which he undeniably does, could not all this have existed then? Or, looked at another way, if the God exists, could all this exist now? Is magic the reality and science the myth? What about dragons who come and go at will? Or sacred pools that remain deep and icy in the heart of the drought? Or paintings that morph on their own between viewings? Paia allows herself the excuse of having been just a child, but it astounds her to realize how quickly and willingly she and every other inhabitant of the Citadel put away rational inquiry the moment the Winged God appeared, wreathed in thunder and gouts of gehennical fire. As if magic was easier to believe in than science, which required thought and could be counted upon to turn on you when you least expected it. But so could magic, if the lore in this book is to be believed. So are they separate or the same?

Paia glances back at the words on the screen: “A True Recipe for Raising Dragons.” The alchemists clearly thought they were the same. She puts her face in her palms and rubs her eyes. She is hopelessly confused, but elated just the same, as if she is on the brink of some sort of new understanding. The God, she recalls, rarely uses the term “science,” but he certainly knows how to turn it to his advantage when he wants to.

“Paia.” The computer’s voice is so soft and directionless that, in her daze, Paia thinks she’s hearing it from inside her own ears. Right now, nothing would surprise her. “Paia, the search is becoming desperate.”

“The search? Oh . . . for me?”

“Perhaps you had better show yourself before they alert you-know-who.”

“He’s off on one of his trips.”

“They’ll call him back if they’re frightened enough.”

“Call him back? How?” She looks up into the darkness beyond the low-hung lamp. “They can’t do that.”

“Luco can. The dragon has made sure that he will always be kept informed.”

“Luco?” The priest must be in better favor than she’d realized.

“But Luco needs a device. You do not.”

After what she’s been reading, Paia finds this statement as provocative as House no doubt intended. “I can’t call him. How would I call him?”

“Have you ever tried?”

“Of course not.” The idea of summoning the God like he was some sort of servant seems preposterous to her.

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