An Excerpt from
Paradox of The Last God

Prologue I.

The trees of the Laughing Woods above her head shaded her from the afternoon sun, and the soft breeze brought the scent of the Laughing River and the smells of fragrant summer flowers - and yet, despite the beauty of the quiet wooded spot she knelt in, Amani could find no peace in her heart. All her thoughts were dominated by the nexus of probability that hung over this spot, this moment in time - a nexus critical to the future happiness of all the races of Oerth.

Amani trembled to hear the quiet approach of a heavy hoof, though she had felt her visitor's presence three leagues away as he made his way through the forest. The musties, of course, knew he was here. None could pass through the Laughing Wood without their knowledge. But, she had asked them to leave him be, and so they did. The musties did not completely understand, of course. They only saw the immediate need, as their non-empathic carnivore's minds could hardly see the nexii of probabilities that would arise from fulfilling that need. Even now, those who had seen her visitor's passage whispered among themselves, some sadly, others with happiness and hope that Amani's immediate problem would be solved. They did not truly understand - nor was it something that could be simply explained to them.

Amani's visitor quietly strode from between the trees, then knelt before her, sitting on his heels even as she was.

*Good afternoon, Amani.*

Amani slowly lifted her eyes at the silent mind-voice, and looked her visitor over. The tall bay stallion gazed back at her quietly.

A thousand thoughts raced through Amani's mind, and she trembled.

*Good afternoon, Tashou.*

Tashou sent a soft mind-hug. *You are nervous.*

Amani nodded. *Very.*

Tashou could feel the conflicting emotions in her mind, and his heart ached for the most powerful seer his clan had produced, perhaps the most powerful seer ever born, who sat before him. He could see in her mind that she was contemplating her vision... And she feared it. *You do not have to do this, you know. Your vision could be wrong. Things might turn out alright without this.*

Amani shook her head, feeling his own sympathy for her. *No, sweet Tashou,* she replied, and smiled weakly. *The primary nexi remain the same, of course - but the secondary nexi have changed, and changed dramatically. Something has happened, out in the stars... Something has changed... Something I do not understand. Yes, I could do nothing, of course. If I do nothing, the war that will come eight generations from now will not end my vision for our people. So long as we continue to follow my vision, we will go with the mus on their journey to the stars, and spread our seed among the heavens with them and their allies. Yet, the war will cause the deaths of countless innocents who otherwise would have lived full lives, and change the nexii which follow it... The world that will follow eight generations from now would be darker, my friend. And, in the end, when the war in the stars is finally over, two races of people will have died - one here on Oerth in the near future, and one in the stars eight generations from now.* Amani lifted her head, gazing off into the forest. *Far to the east, across the Great Water... In seventeen summers, there must be a seer there, to right what will go wrong, and to help right what went wrong long before she was born. And that seer cannot be me, for my destiny remains here.*

*Another could go,* Tashou offered. *There are a few others whose power and skill approaches your own. Perhaps they could go in your stead.*

Amani shook her head again. *No. Our paths are set - we are needed here. Of all the seers of all our people, three are slowly approaching my power, their strength, like mine, built through constant screaming at the carnivores to get them to hear us; Omoi of the Crimson Cloud clan, Haba of the Green River clan, and Naien of the Dark Flame clan - thanks also to my training her, and teaching her the skills her people had lost. Yet, I have conferred with each of them, and they all agree - it cannot be them, either. It must be Yochimu of the Blue Wind Clan. That, my vision shows clearly.*

Tashou smiled wryly. *A person who does not exist.*

Amani nodded silently.

*Does your mate know? Does he understand? I mean... He is not one of us.*

Amani nodded. *We are heart-linked, and as such, even though he is still a carnivore, I can share my deepest visions with him. He understands. His mind is in turmoil, however. At times, he is happy, and looks forward to stroking my belly as it swells. At other times, he is sad that the child will not be of his blood.*

Tashou gazed at Amani quietly, and felt a deep surge of pity. For a long moment, he was profoundly glad he was not born female, and a seer. He was not sure he could possibly have the strength to make the decisions a seer had to make, or have the courage to see the unseen, and know the unknown. He sent Amani a warming mind-hug of sympathy, and Amani smiled slightly.

Tashou calmed himself, clearing his mind, and casting aside his doubts. Before him was a seer - perhaps the greatest to ever live. It was not his place to question her decisions. He should, rather, simply be happy she had selected him for this moment. He closed his eyes and extended his forehooves, and in a moment, he felt Amani's forehooves touch his.

Tashou had been a slave of the cats all his life, his freedom only coming two years ago, with the rest of his people. As such, he had been put to stud by the cats several times. There was no option, then, no ability to refuse - the cats did not understand the horses, and thought they were little more than mute beasts who could be trained to understand their words. If a stallion refused to couple, he was deemed unsuitable, and gelded. Thus, each time Tashou had been put to stud, he and his partner shared memories and warm thoughts of their heart-mates, coming together with the understanding that each truly wished to be with another, but could not. With tenderness, they would share a quiet moment, feeling the other's mind, soothing each other's sorrow, and sharing warm thoughts of their mates with their partner of the moment. Tashou never thought that he would have to call upon the skills he had learned then ever again in his life - but now, he was truly glad that he could. Quietly, he reached into his heart, calling forth memories of his true love.

*Her name was Anrui,* he began, his eyes closed.

*Was?* Amani asked, startled.

*Yes. She died in foaling, six months before our people were freed from their slavery,* Tashou replied, opening his eyes to look at Amani.

Amani bowed her head. *Forgive me. Do go on.*

Tashou smiled slightly. *Her eyes were lovely, much like yours. Her mind's voice was gentle, and soft. Once, we even touched, briefly. Our master was moving some of his slaves prior to selling them, and left us in adjoining paddocks for an hour. There was a broken board between us. We touched noses when none were looking. It was...* Tashou said, and sighed. *It was the most wonderful moment of my life.*

Amani sat quietly, silent tears welling in her eyes. She could read the story from his mind, of course, but she waited for him to finish it in his own time.

*She was sold to a new master after that, who was seeking brood mares. She was bred several times, and died in her fourth foaling. She knew she was dying - she could feel it. The foal was out, but the blood flowed still, and she felt her life ebbing. So I sang to her across the leagues, until she finally slipped away,* Tashou said, and sighed. *She was Anrui, of the Crimson Cloud clan.*

Amani sent a strong mind-hug to Tashou as she gazed at him, the tears flowing freely down her muzzle. Finally, calming herself with the practiced mind of a seer, she closed her eyes. *His name is Ayori, of the Musties of the Laughing Wood. When I first met him, he horrified me. I still had our people's prejudices against carnivores, and even though I could see in his mind he was a sweet and gentle soul, to me, he was a horrid little thing, a creature of death and darkness, who survived by tearing the life from another being and consuming their flesh. As I grew to know him, I finally realized I was wrong - but not before I had hurt him badly, simply by telling him I did not love him. Oh, how wrong I was - and I knew I was wrong.*

*You knew?* Tashou asked, opening an eye in surprise.

Amani smiled. *I am a seer, yes - but that does not mean I am perfect, Tashou.*

Tashou smiled and closed his eyes again. *Sorry - do go on.*

*Finally, he helped me to learn how to speak with the carnivores - and in that moment, I opened my heart, and allowed myself to care for him. And, as time passed, I grew to love him as much as he loved me. Yet, he did not stop there. He taught me to understand his people, and the mus, and indeed even the cats far better than I or any other horse ever had before. He helped me realize my vision. He even taught me to speak his name - I am the first horse to learn to speak any word at all, thanks to him. It-*

Tashou's eyes flew open. *You can speak?! Like a carnivore or a mouse?!*

Amani smiled. *Yes. Listen,* she replied, then opened her mouth. "Ah-yoh-ree," she said, her mouth carefully shaping the word, then she smiled again.

Tashou stared, profoundly astonished. *You spoke! You spoke a word!*

Amani nodded. *Such is the power of my mate,* she replied, and smiled again. *It is still meaningless sound, to my ear, but as my mate often points out, meaning does not have to lie within the mind of the speaker, but of the listener. And more, it is a beginning. Our destiny lies with the mus, the mustelids and the mice of the Eastern Alliance - but of the three, only the mice can hear our mind-voices easily. The healers of the mice and the mus say we lack something in our brains... A 'speech center', they call it. They say that instead, the Last God who made us all gave our people the ability to speak mind to mind, exchanging thoughts and meanings without words - a dream of the Ancient Ones, brought to life. Still, I have learned to speak my mate's name, thanks to him. It is my hope that someday, our people will learn to do even more than that,* Amani finished, then sighed deeply. *I love him deeply, and dearly. I love him with all my heart and soul. His tribe has accepted me as one of them, and I am proud to call myself one of their number. Yet... For all his wonder and skill and power... He cannot give me his child. I am not a mustelid, I am still a horse.*

Tashou smiled, then leaned forward, nuzzling Amani softly. *No. I know of you, Amani of the Blue Wind Clan. The mustelids say you are one of them, and that you fought bravely in the Southern Jungles against a dangerous foe. Perhaps not with your body, but with your mind and spirit. They call you a warrior, and the mus have treated you as a warrior ever since you were mated to a mustelid. Now, I see that you are a warrior. The path of the seer, so strange to me, is the path of a warrior. You fight to preserve our future. No, you are one of them, in spirit, if not in body. You are a mustie of the Laughing Wood - if a very large one,* he said, and sent her a warming mind-hug.

Amani smiled broadly, then shook her head, nickering with amusement. *This is hardly how I expected this event to transpire. I had hoped that we might call upon the same ways we had used when we were slaves of the cats, share our love of our heart-bonded mates, and couple briefly to produce the child. Yet...*

Tashou nodded. *It is not the same, and never will be again - thanks to you,* he said, and smiled. *Your actions changed the future of our people, and freed us all.*

Amani bowed her head in the horse equivalent of a blush.

*Let us approach this differently, Amani of the Blue Wind clan.*

Amani looked up, curious, sensing Tashou's thoughts. *Yes?*

*You do not truly realize the feelings our people have for you - particularly the stallions. Allow me instead to share those feelings with you.*

Amani nodded silently, her forehooves still touching Tashou's.

*We lived in fear - but fear no longer. Our loves were far, untouchable - but now are near, and we hold them close. The strength of a mare is in her mind, and the minds of seers the strongest of all. But, the strength of a stallion is only in his body, and in his song. Then, the songs of all stallions were songs of sadness. Now, our songs are ones of joy. Let me sing to you our song of joy, Amani of the Blue Wind Clan. Let me sing of our gratitude to you, the one who freed us all.*

And with that, Tashou began to sing.

It was not a song of words or sound, as the songs of the other races were, but a song of the heart and soul, the power of his own mind manifesting in images, sensations... Feelings. His love for his dead mate. His sadness at her death. His life as a slave. His inestimable joy at discovering he was free. The profound awe and gratitude he felt when he first met Amani, the one who had freed them all. The even deeper awe he felt when he sensed her mind, a shining crystal beacon of power.

The carnivores could not sense Amani's mind, of course - to them, Amani looked much like any other mare - beautiful, perhaps, but little more than the sensations their eyes, noses and ears gave them. To a horse, however, Amani could be sensed easily at a great distance, the radiant power of her mind a shimmering, glowing, beautiful thing that sent trembles down one's spine. And to a stallion, Amani was, perhaps, the most beautiful and awe-inspiring creature in all of Oerth.

Such was Tashou's song - and, like the songs of all stallions, it was something only the mind of a stallion could do.

Finally, Tashou's song faded, and he sat there in silence, gazing at Amani. Amani nodded, her eyes to the ground. Gently, Tashou took her into his arms.

And in a small mustie-house two leagues away, Ayori sat, staring at the fire in the fireplace, and sighed.

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