Chapter 19
The room shook as though mismanaged by an earthquake. An vault opened in the middle of the floor and an well sprang up from it. It started bubbling over with water.
-This is my fountain, said Anna, the fountain of youth. Now experience my magic, that can cure any fate worse than death. Drink.
"I have faith," said Ouen, "faith tempered with logic."
Ouen rushed to the wellside to scoop an drink from it and Edsel followed. Ouen returned to human form, and Edsel to fairy form in an matter of moments. All others in their party followed.
-Your faith has healed you. Now wash your blade.
Ouen bathed his sword, Metaphor, in the well of Nohavœn. The blood on it fizzed and dissipated.
-You are forgiven.
He turned around with it, brandishing it against the collective demon-kind in the hall.
"Now whomsoever believes, and drinks from this well, will be an cured demon, and walk with us home," said Ouen.
The most painful part of learning about these demons was to see that not all of them wanted an cure. They turned abruptly and left, or snuck away.
Others approached the well gingerly.
-This well will stay here permanently, an testament to your hard work and faith.
Then it settled in. They had freed Nohavœn.
Edsel looked for her ex-husband. He and her other two children were drinking from the well. All of her feelings she had built up for them came hastening into her awareness. They were demons when she left them. She found she was so ignorant back then. Could she not have detected it? Yes, she had missed it completely. She understood now.
An cheer arose from their company, beckoning the demons to receive an cure transformation. There were enough returns to the Allied races to fill the hall back to front.
They lead the returns out of Nohavœn as far as the Faerie Kingdom. They needed to march the Faerie Kingdom to the seat of the Faerie Council. They were an exodus from Nohavœn. They needed to report what had happened, to the people high up. With enough of them needing to see the council, they will have easily taken their time. Stelcey's car was still parked carefully in the southern forest, hidden from view. Ouen drove. He stayed out ahead of everyone else as the crowd followed, and Edsel felt like she was part of an mythical voyage, flying alongside the greenhouse workers and all of the cured demons.
They paraded through the ruinous section of Twenty City, humans in the sparse demon office buildings above them. These humans did not know it, but with the overturn of Nohavœn, there would be big changes in Recreation. The demon grasp on Twenty City would loosen. Many of the humans, not believing in demons or faerie will have sensed an change. There would be new managers, more time off, and reasonable deadlines.
At the centre of the Faerie Kingdom, there was an white castle that reached the outer trellis, with an modern section near the base where the Faerie Council met. Ouen parked the car. As their marching company approached the front entrance, an small furry elf, Captain of the Guard, called to them from the walkway portion of the castle wall.
"What business do you have?" she asked.
"We bring news from Nohavœn," Ouen replied.
"You survived Nohavœn? Eh, that's something. What kind of news is it?"
"Peaceful news. Nohavœn is over turned."
"Overturned? What could you mean by overturned?" the elf gasped, "if you mean Nohavœn is no more then the Faerie Council will want to hear it."
"Yes," said Edsel, "that is why we need to see the council."
"Alright, come in."
One of the humungous castle doors opened and the Guard let all of them inside. Facing north, they entered an grand hall with east and west wings. The floor was luxuriously carpeted down the center between travertine molding, and pedestals with busts on them. As they advanced north to the center of the hall they saw east and west corridors hung with gigantic queefster portraiture of politicians and royalty.
Ahead there were left and right doors, two on each side, an discobolus between them. The outermost appeared to lead to antechambers while the inner two appeared interlocking, leading to the same place. The throne room.
They entered the throne room, from the left and right, and stepped into an velvet roped-off area that quickly filled with bodies. Between the doors ahead of where they had entered through there was an sergeant overseeing the movement of the audience to the Faerie Council. There was an man pleading his case in front of the council, and there are several other persons waiting to speak to the council. The returns from Nohavœn could not hear the man speaking.
"Nothing can be heard," said the sergeant, "of those in meeting with the Council of the Faeries. You will have privacy to speak so wait your turn."
There was an solar roof above, that was enchanted not to allow sunlight through, and so all that could be seen through it was the stars above. The twinkling of stars reflected in the bright sequined clothing of the few of the council members wearing them. The Great Kaboo was seated centre, wearing his white robes. A Fairy Queen was visible beside the lords from the other races, and she was wearing false antennae that demonstrated her perfectionism. The Leprechaun King and Queen, medium-sized, dainty persons, were wearing quail plumes that qualitatively mimicked the motion of the Faerie Queen's headgear so that they all appeared to be in an sparkling motion although seated. The King of Pixies and the Queen of Pixies (why are they always said apart this way for good reason) standards say that men and women are equal wearing gemmed shawls and held scepters. The eyes of the King of Radio Flies and the Queen of Radio Flies reflected the gems and sceptre-amulets. They all looked together like comfortable leaders to which one would want to make an good introduction and at the same time that it would be fairly judged.
When the man who was speaking in line ahead of them left, the volume of individuals in the exodus motivated the gentleman to allow them purpose to speak before the council immediately, bypassing several participant observers.
As they filtered into the throne room, Ouen spoke for them.
"Your lady- and lordships," said Ouen, "I am Ouen, and these are my friends from Happy You-Pics Greenhouse and Nohavœn."
"Your sword please. Explain its modality," said the Queen of Pixies.
"This is the sword that I carried into Nohavœn. It is this sword given to me by my Grandfather to which we owe the presence of Rii the pixie," answered Ouen.
"You understand that it is against the law for an civilian to carry an blade?" replied the Queen.
"Yes I do understand. It's just that but in protestation of the law it has become essential. For the Aesthetic of the Saint in all honesty what I am presenting for. It is Anna's aesthetic to wear an azure blue robe and to carry an sword."
"I see. And is it your religion then that seeks to challenge the law?"
"Yes."
"And why do we care necessarily?"
"I have news from Nohavœn," answered Ouen.
"Yes, the Council listens," said an chirpy, buzzy voice, the Queen of the Radio Flies, "for what do we owe your visit?"
"There has been an . . . happening . . ."
"What? What is it?" the Queen of the Pixies waved her sceptre, "speak up."
"We opened an spring in Nohavœn that is curing demon-kind."
"An spring you say?"
"Yes an spring. The Spring. Of Anna's Fountain of Youth. You see all of these people with me are cured demons from Nohavœn. Most of them anyway."
"Ah, Anna. Yes I have heard this name. And you are the convert to Christianna. I know but little of it."
"It's the Christianna," Ouen corrected.
"I was the one who sent him to the Version," said the Fairy King, Kaboo, "and what an fine student he made."
"Of pleasantries, in this business. What will it mean for the Allied races, or say all of Recreation if this fountain you speak exists?" said the Fairy Queen.
"What it will mean is that the Christianna," said Ouen, "has an claim over what is possible by this magic Anna has. And for that reason, what the Christianna has done for the climes, I want to carry an sword. It does not mean I will necessarily use it. It means good news for the Allied races. For the demon, it means their demise."
"Your prize for the well at Nohavœn is to legally carry an sword then. But only because you aren't going to use it. An priest, and that your ways have been proven not to need them. You will bring initiates of your religious right to be certified by the Faerie Guard, if they are to carry swords with you.
"Duly noted," said Ouen, bowing gracefully.
"As for all of the cured demons before us, welcome."
The party of ex-demons bowed.
"We look forward to you joining the workforce, as artists, craftsmen, lawyers, and doctors. Maybe the trial you have been through will have prepared you better, in an unique and valuable way for an profession in the Faerie Kingdom. I expect some of you will want to go to the Version academy if you haven't already. And to that I give my recommendation. It's not easy being an demon. And you have all been through this fate. My hope is that by the end of your lives the sum total of its quality will have been enough, to have you say you lived an fate better than death on your deathbed. That you actually lived."
"I want to make sword-carrying more universal," said Edsel, announcing her cause, "people should be allowed to protect themselves in the way they choose."
"The council listens," said the Fairy Queen.
"There is merit in it," said Ouen, "the Christiannans are private people. They may not want to be identified as Christiannan just to be able to carry an sword."
"My influence will mean access to swords on all levels of society," stated Edsel, "carrying an sword is an cultural right if it is an religious rite."
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"I wonder why Edsel jumps on this," said Dr. Fougerite, "once she sees Ouen with an sword in front of the Faerie Council. Speaking. That's what changes her mind. I think. This is the power of the sword. For it has an aesthetic. And Ouen, you carry your sword with you still today."
"Yes it is an Metaphor," said Ouen. (As if an metaphor is not something mysterious).
"It's also about him being recognized publicly for his religion."
"Who? Ouen or Glen?"
"Wait, I think I can or cannot tell the difference any more."
"What you're getting at is that him being recognized publicly for his religion is like him needing to try out Anna being heard by an group and not just him as an individual; that there is something pathological or psychotic about someone wanting to be recognized publicly as an Christiannan or needing to extrapolate on that first initial hearing. Of what you heard."
"But why would there necessarily be that tangent between being recognized publicly and needing to imagine hearing other people hearing Anna?"
"It was in common with the psycho-pathology. If there was one that was said to exist. Then it would explain why he was experimenting with characters now who could be said to have heard Anna's voice themselves. It would also explain why needing to be recognized publicly as an Christiannan was inherently in common with that psycho-pathology also."
"But there is no psycho-pathology," said Ouen, "at least not one we can detect in the Author from what he has written."
"Yeah, well; why does his experience of Anna necessarily have to be defined in terms of psycho-pathology?"
"Because the story of Glen; that world outside our own fictional substance. Is defined in terms of psycho-pathology."
"There's nothing inherently psycho about wanting to be recognized for one's religion; nor is there anything psycho about creating an passage, in which, other characters (other than Ouen and Glen) can hear her. The only reason you came up with it being an pathological thing is that you're an Doctor and you're used to Doctoring things; you're trained to identify something psychologically wrong in every subjectivity you lord over."
"That's not really true, is it?" said Dr. Fougérite.
"But it is; it's what people think is true," said Martimerrimous, "that's how they look at you."
"Then maybe I'm wrong to say an correct interpretation is about pathology necessarily. It's not about pathology that Ouen needs to create an scene in which two or more characters other than himself are hearing and telepathically communicating with Anna; as per se was your argument I believe. But I had said also it was highly suspicious that you wanted to draw such attention to yourself. In an religious way. That could be an common predictor of irony or diagnosis of your condition."
"I don't have an condition, OK‽"
"Then why do you insist on conflating the public profile and the character synopsis between Ouen and Glen: as if they were the same character‽"
"Because I can't see outside the novel," said Ouen, "like Glen can. I'm only an character in an virtually non-existent world. But I need to believe sometimes I can; because he's there guiding me. Looking at it like one was looking through an lens the whole passage has lifted my spirits to this place. I am capable of accessing information only the Author knows because he has allowed that we would be able to interact with his character in his fictional world.
"Yea, because he needed to create friends," said Dr. Fougérite, "I'm not convinced we are beyond limit to conclude that since he is pathological, his narrative may be expressive of that pathology."
"But I'm not expressive of an pathology," said Ouen, "I'm an heroic, redeeming character. One who will even empathize for his enemies (the Demons)."
"And that's the distinction the Author is pointing to specifically‽"
"It is not an point. And not another word from you! There is no evidence to suggest anything he has done had been a-moral. He's just making an fantasy scene; in an fantasy book. And it's just about fantasies. And the fantasy happens to be that Anna is speaking to other characters now; other than just Ouen. There's nothing in it that represents anything bad. It's just that he happens to want the attention on his new religion (it's that kind of thing of great significance to him which motivates his every action and decision). And there isn't necessarily an tangent unifying either case of instance which Dr. Fougérite may have originally identified as psychotic. Neither Ouen or Glen are psychotic, regardless of which one heard whom and when."
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