Illusie:

Back in the beginning, when things were not as they are now, the Lord of Fools was alone. He lived in his castle surrounded by shimmering sand and planned how he would play tricks on other Lords and Mortals alike.

However, because of his governance over the domain of fools and tricksters, resulting in trick-playing, fool-making, and generally devious and embarrassing techniques employed against others, he was not welcomed or liked by the other Lords that lived in the Land of Lords.

He was not invited to tea, even though he liked drinking tea and eating cookies a lot. He was turned away by the other Lords who did not seem to enjoy the extra spice of humour and punch he added to his homemade cookies. (NOTE: there should be naughty cookies too…; others have cayenne pepper in them, or an actual punching mitt… don’t ask how)

He was not able to play the game of Go. He had no one to play against him. It wasn’t so much that he cheated, but that the Go stones would randomly change colour as they played, mattering on whose side they cheered for.

He was not able to make up stories. He was the only one to listen to them and the only one to know if they were true or not. (NOTE: … there once was a man who got his hand bitten off by a book… needs work). Everyone else just assumed that he was lying.

While for the most part, Fool kept himself entertained with his planning and inventing of tricks, traps, and jokes. He started to notice that he was a little lonely. He found himself jealously glaring at other Lords who had friends.

One day when he was putting the final touches on his newest trick, he was interrupted by the arrival of the Lord whose house Fool was pranking. Hiding very quickly behind some potted plants, he barely escaped being noticed.

This Lord was being visited by another Lord, and they had clearly been drinking something other than tea. The Lord of Fools prayed they didn’t stay long, as the plant was tickling his ear.

“Did you h…(hic!) hear?” Hiccupped the Lord of Drink to his companion. “There’s a new Lord in the land.” His companion, the Lord of Time, looked up drowsily and shook his head. “Did’it knowzzzhat… whatzzze like?” slurred Time.
“A (hic!) pain, just like the Fool” replied Drink, while Fool perked up at the mention of his name.

“How zzzo?” asked Time.
“Well… (hic!) he makes things that seem real, but aren’t. (Hic hic!) And things that seem fake, but are real. It’s a (hic!)…headache,” said Drink as he tossed himself and Time down on the couch.
“I zzeee”, mumbled Time as he closed his eyes.
“That’s just it. (hic!) Seeing use to mean believing, but not anymore” groaned Drink.
“Whatzzze…(yawn)…hizz name?” yawned Time as he started to drift off.
“Illusion. (hic!) Lord of Illusions” answered Drink who also closed his eyes.
“Zzzzz…” snored Time.
“Stupid… Zzzz… Waste of… (hic!)… prankster... Zzz” mumbled Drink as he too drifted to sleep.

Fool waited a few minutes listening to the sounds of snoring. When certain that the two Lords were sound asleep, he sneaked up to his trap, added one last thing and then left, knowing the sleeping Lords would get a surprise later on.

“That will teach them” said the Fool to himself as he strolled down the road away from the Lord of Drinks home. He pondered as he walked. He considered what the two had said. This Lord of Illusions seemed an odd one. He didn’t seem to get along with the other Lords either. Maybe he was like Fool in ways, a playful person, who liked tea and cookies, games and tricks, stories and things not real. The more Fool thought the more he came to believe that this new Lord could be a friend, a real friend. Smiling he prepared in his mind the cookies to bring during his visit the next day.

The following day, cookies and tea packed, Fool headed towards where he believe the Lord of Illusions lived. He walked into the desert heading towards the west. From his quick research during breakfast he had found out that Illusion lived on the other side of the desert. A quick walk through the desert should get him at his destination in no time.

So he walked.

And walked.

And walked some more. He didn’t know this desert was so big. He got thirsty from the sun blaring down on him. So he drank the tea.

He kept on walking. The sun started to dip towards the west. Fool got hungry as he walked, so he eat the cookies too. (Note: Should have a black eye from the cookies).

Dragging his feet as he walked he looked towards the horizon. Something shimmered in the distance. He squinted at it. Water? “Water!” his dried lips cried. He ran towards the water.

And ran.

And ran some more. But the water didn’t seem any closer. Panting, he stopped and glared at the water on the horizon. “Water…” he moaned, then fell unconscious onto the sand.

Time passed and Fool felt the sun glaring down on him again. He was so tired. He was so thirsty. He wanted to be at home working on his jokes and tricks. Why did he come out here? He strained to remember. Right! He wanted to have a friend, a friend to play games and tricks with. Lonely and exhausted he fell unconscious again whispering the word, “friend…”

When next he woke up, he found himself resting under a shady tree. Can’t be, he thought to himself. It can’t be real.

He touched the tree. It felt real.

He looked around and found himself still surrounded by desert. “Can’t be real” croaked Fool’s cracked lips. But it was so nice and cool under the tree’s branches, so he rested for a while. He wondered where he was. His tracks has blown away and he could still see water flowing on the horizon. “So close, but so far away”, he mumbled. “Water…”

“Not really”, said a voice behind him.
Spooked the Fool turned to look over his shoulder. “Not far away?” he strained to ask.
“Not water”, said the strange man with short spiky hair. “It’s called a mirage”. He took a deep inhale from his long pipe and let out a breath of smoke which danced on the wind and across the desert. The water on the horizon disappeared. “It’s an illusion caused by light being affected by differing temperatures of air. Looks like water, very frustrating for travelers. It’s great fun for me”.

“For you?” asked Fool.
“Yup, of course, for I’m the Lord of Illusions”, he replied while peering under the blanket in Fool’s basket.
“Sorry”, sighed Fool. “I drank the tea and eat the cookies already”
“That’s a shame. I rather like tea and cookies”.
“You do?”
“Definitely”, said Illusion with a big smile. “So who are you anyways? You’re not one of the nasty Lords here to tell me to bugger off, are you?”
Fool smiled at that. “Actually, they say the same of me. I’m the Lord of Fools”.

Illusions’ eyes went wide. “I tricked the Lord of Fools? That doesn’t happen every day.”
Fool gave a small laugh despite his sore throat. “They used to try… but nobody does it anymore. I kind of miss the attempts”.
Illusion’s eyes twinkled from laughter. “Haha! You should come visit me more, next time I won’t let you wonder lost in the desert”. He sucked on his pipe again and breathed out a long smoky cloud which settled around him. From its silvery depths a pebble lined road appeared stretching over the desert.

Fool looked to the east and could just barely make out his castle. He looked to the west and saw a grove of trees, one of which was very large and had a winding stairway looping around its truck that disappeared into lower branches.
“My home”, said Illusion while helping Fool to his feet. “If I’d known you were coming with cookies, I would have dropped my illusion that surrounds and protects my home”.
“Can you teach me how to do that?” asked Fool
“Hmm… Maybe”, replied Illusion. “Perhaps a trade of sort. I hear you’re good with stories”.
“A little”.

“Marvellous! You tell me stories and I’ll see want I can do for you in the illusion department”, Illusion said while helping Fool walk towards the grove. “How about some iced tea?”
“Illusion, that sounds wonderful”, responded Fool.
“Call me Illusie, It’s what my friends call me”.
“Illusie”, said Fool testing out the name.
“Yes?” asked Illusie while still walking.
“Ahmm… You ever heard of a Zaratan?” said Fool
“Nope. Tell me about them”, answered Illusie
“Well…” started Fool and he proceeded to tell the tale of the Zaratan while leaning on the shoulder of his friend.

The End.