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Guardian of thoughts

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His steps echoed in the empty corridors as he made his way to the containment room. It was early and the sunrise could not even be imagined. His favorite time of the day. No tasks piled up on his desk, just the morning routine before the chaos broke out. Before he left, he'd checked his key ring. Even when he was asleep, it was attached to his wrist with a silket thread. Since his appointment as Guardian, the keys had not left his side. They had become so much a part of him that he couldn't feel their weight anymore.

He turned the corner and his eyes fell on his assistant Selna, who was already waiting for him in front of the door. Of all the contenders, she had always been the most promising. He liked the way she tried to impress him with little things like this.

"Good morning Master Maldren."

He returned her greeting while unlocking the door at the same time.

"Let's see what work we can do today," he said.

"I will get the mail straight away."

Maldren paused. Even if that was her job, he felt that today was a special day. A day for a different task.

"The post office can wait. Come on, help me with the mind pool."

​

She looked at him in surprise, but she was careful not to say a word in return. The excitement turned her cheeks a bright red.

"Did you do your morning ritual?"

"Yes Master, I have purified my energy and refreshed my protective spell."

"Very good, that will be important today."

Meldren went over to a huge bowl in the center of the room. Around the pedestal there were lines of drains through the stone, which ended at a basin that was let into the floor. Next to this there was a lever that opened the bottom of the basin. As he stepped to the basin, he was greeted by the familiar yellowish glow of thoughts that were floating in a bottle-green liquid. To his surprise there were far fewer than usual, but that only suited him. It wouldn't take much longer than, if he explained the intricacies to Selna in detail. His student approached the pool slowly and in awe. He used one of his keys to unlock the glass dome over the basin and then lifted it.

"It's the first time I've seen it this close," Selna mumbled reverently.

"Get used to the sight. It will be your work for the rest of your life."

Maldren looked at his desk. He focused his notepad and moved his hand in a dragging motion. The block flew towards him in the next second and landed in his grasp.

"As you can see, there are only a few. You have seen my notes and you know that there are more otherwise."

"Does that mean something?"

Maldren shook her head.

"There are such and such times. It just means that people are satisfied. And satisfied people don't think too much. And certainly not critically."

"I still don't understand how one can even doubt the divine prophet."

"That's not really anything to think about, but let me tell you one thing from experience: Most people think they know what is right and what is wrong. And when they don't understand something, they think that their opinion is the only right one. The Prophet knows so much more than we do, we will never fully understand his decisions. But we know that. Others do not have this awareness. "

"I think I understand. They think they are right, like the Telgan witches, and they are unaware that they cannot understand the will of our prophet at all. So they cannot form an opinion about whether it is right or is wrong. "

Meldran nodded in confirmation while he touched the glowing spheres with his pen.

"And to believe in others, they are too self-absorbed," he added.

"I am glad that we can keep the peace with our work," said Selna, "I cannot understand at all why not everyone can see how well our people are doing since the divine prophet set us free."

"No one will ever fully understand living beings. Take note, Alynja Gertra."

He handed her the pad and she immediately began to write. He dictated a few more names before Meldren indicated that she should come closer.

"That was all. A few days ago you asked me how I know the names of the people who would doubt our prophet."

Selna nodded in confirmation. He could see the curiosity in her eyes as she leaned forward to get a better look. Presumably he looked exactly like this when he did his apprenticeship here.

"Do you remember what they taught you about mind reading in magic school?"

Another affirmative nod.

“It's the same principle, but by having the pure thought in front of you, you can manipulate it. You can let it say its name itself. The stronger the conviction, the brighter the light shines and the easier it is figuring out a name. It's practice at first, but at some point you won't even think about it. Try it."

While Selna tried hard to elicit a name from the lights, Meldren stood patiently next to her. Not much longer and she was able to relieve him of a lot of work. It would be nice to be able to turn more to his studies in his old age. To be a guardian was a chore for life. And he would fulfill it until his death.

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