Alek Dimavski's room at the nursing home was small, there were only two of them inside, but Rafael still had the impression of being cramped. Yet there was little furniture, the shaman had not been able to take much with him when he had left Russia.
There was a long silence after Alek's revelation about the ancient spirits. Rafael squirmed in his chair, feeling uncomfortable. As for Alek, he was devouring his energy bars one after the other with obvious pleasure. He didn't seem to have any worries.
His world has already collapsed, thought Rafael. He's the last of his tribe.
He wasn't sure where to start, but finally, he asked, "Mr. Dimavski, what exactly is shamanism?"
The shaman wiped his mouth with his sleeve. "If we're going to go down that road together, you better call me Alek, kid."
Rafael nodded without answering, he was waiting for the next part.
Satisfied with his seriousness, Alek continued, "Shamanism is simply trading with spirits. A shaman is someone who comes into direct contact with a spirit to establish a relationship with it, or to obtain something from it. It used to take a whole village to temporarily break through the barrier between worlds, get the attention of an ancient spirit, and obtain its blessing. Now, if one is careful enough, he can do that alone. It is also possible to create a direct and lasting connection with a spirit, that changes everything!"
"Is that what you did with that skull?" inquired Rafael.
Alek nodded. "A spirit of death, that's what keeps me alive."
Hundreds of questions swirled in Rafael's head. Most of them were too intrusive to be asked aloud. Did his uncle know about the spirit of death? What else did Alek plan to use it for? Was it revenge that motivated him to hold on to life like that?
"How does one bond with a spirit?" he finally asked.
"Before I answer that question I must warn you," Alek said gravely. "This practice is not without danger, one must have a strong and stable mind to endure the connection with a spirit. If a person with a weak will connects with a spirit, their personality may change without them noticing. They may even fall into madness or, worse, have their soul completely annihilated and their body used as a vehicle by the spirit."
Rafael hung on Alek's every word. He didn't dare speak for fear of missing any details.
"It depends, of course, on the nature of the spirit and its lifespan," the shaman added. "Bonding with a newborn local spirit is relatively safe, but trying to establish a permanent bond with an ancient spirit from the other world is suicidal."
Alek grabbed another piece of dried meat and made it join the others in his stomach, the pile dwindling by the minute. Rafael wondered how he could eat so fast with so few teeth.
"The first step is to get the attention of a spirit. This can be done by chanting, dancing, specific actions related to the nature of the spirit, by consuming certain potions, or by using magical items... you are a very lucky kid. The mirror pendant I gave to your uncle is a consecrated artifact. Spirits are naturally drawn to it."
Rafael raised his hand and grasped the pendant through his clothes. A treasure, it's a true treasure.
"Once the spirit's interest is aroused, you can have it make a connection with an object, this is called getting its blessing, or you can make the connection with your body and link directly to the spirit. It's more difficult and more dangerous, but the magic obtained will be more powerful."
Alek rose from his chair to mark the solemnity of what he was about to say next. "One must use special gestures to create a connection with a spirit. It was the shamans of the past who discovered these runic signs and developed their use. There are different types of runes depending on the blessing you want to obtain and the nature of the spirit involved, but to get started you can use the basic rune."
With the index finger of his left hand held up, Alek quickly made a series of movements in the air. Rafael's eyes widened, but he couldn't retain any of the rapid movements. Learning these runic signs seemed exceedingly difficult, he hoped the shaman would be patient enough to teach him.
"And after?" asked Rafael impatiently.
"After?" the shaman repeated. "If your will and your affinity with the spirit are strong enough, then the link will be created. The spirit will now have two anchor points and you will be able to use its powers."
"I don't understand," said Rafael, "What is an anchor point?"
"Perhaps I should have started there," the shaman conceded, shaking his head. "A spirit's existence is intimately tied to an anchor point. By instance, my death spirit's anchor point is the nursing home. It is this place that gives the spirit its nature and sustains its very existence, it is also where it gets its powers from. If the anchor of a spirit is destroyed or corrupted it will die little by little. It is truly their source of life! When you bind your body or an object to a spirit it becomes a secondary anchor point for it. It can manifest itself in any of these two places at will."
Rafael's eyes shone, all of this was incredible. Letting his curiosity speak he said, "What happens if a bound spirit's anchor point is destroyed, can it survive with only its secondary anchor?"
Alek gave him an irritated look. "I don't know brat! I told you that the rules have changed. This couldn't happen before as the spirits' main anchor were in another dimension."
The shaman's answer came as a cold shower to Rafael. It was true that Alek had said from the beginning that things had changed, he couldn't assume he had all the answers… "And how many anchor points can a spirit have?" he asked regardless. "Is there a limit?"
Alek replied with a sigh. "I'm not sure, I think a spirit can only bind to one person, but multiple objects should be possible."
There was a long silence. The shaman had stopped eating. Wrappers littered the floor and only a handful of energy bars remained on the corner cabinet. Rafael understood better why Alek had asked him for one bag a day.
After a moment, Rafael decided to jump in, "Can you teach me this basic rune, sir?"
"It appears there is some respect in you after all," remarked Alek. "Okay kid, I'll teach you."
***
Rafael emerged from the nursing home exhausted and hungry. Learning a runic gesture seemed straightforward at first glance but it required him a great deal of concentration. He should have put aside some chocolate bars before Alek grabbed the bag! He was in a hurry to get home to eat. On his way, he reviewed several times in his head his long discussion with the shaman. He regretted not having brought a notebook to take notes, to be sure not to forget anything.
Rafael was so lost in his thoughts that the trip seemed to last only a few minutes. When he arrived at the house, he parked his motorcycle and went straight to the kitchen. He had missed lunch by a lot. Fortunately, his mother had kept some leftovers in the fridge. Rafael warmed them up and took advantage of the wait to write down everything he remembered about the spirits.
He already imagined himself linked to a spirit and manipulating supernatural powers. To be honest, he wasn't sure what one could do with shamanic powers, but that didn't stop him from being excited about the prospect. He devoured his meal in no time, still focused on his notes. As soon as he finished, he began practicing the basic rune again. That plant spirit that looked like a dryad, surely he could bond with...
"What are you doing?" asked Tiffany, who had just come down from her room.
Rafael flinched guiltily, he hadn't heard her coming.
"Do you have something in your hand?" she asked again. "Why are you hiding it behind your back?"
"No, I don't have anything," said Rafael, bringing his arm back in front of him. He hadn't even noticed that he hid his hand, he must have been tenser than he thought.
Tiffany examined him with a questioning look before finally deciding to drop the subject. "Are you okay? Your mother was worried about not seeing you at lunch. And we haven't been able to talk much after yesterday's events."
Rafael reassured his cousin, "I'm fine, just a little worried about Leonard. I can't figure out what happened to him."
Tiffany shook her head sympathetically. "No one understands, it's really strange... What did the police say?"
"What you'd expect," Rafael lamented, "They took note of our report and said they'd call us if they learned anything... but I didn't get the impression they were going to do much."
Neither of them said anything else for a moment, then Tiffany carried on, "I talked to Ilona yesterday, she'd like to see you."
"To say what?" snapped Rafael, "It's too late to talk! She should have thought about it before she left me overnight."
The image of Paulina calling her uncle an idiot came to his mind. Stooges, both of us! She had been more worried about his uncle not responding to her messages than about his disappearance. She was like a parasite.
Tiffany had taken refuge in a reproachful silence after his outburst. He felt a little bad for yelling at her, it wasn't his cousin's fault. "Sorry Tiffany,” said Rafael. “Listen, I'd rather not talk to her okay?"
"But..." her cousin wanted to say.
"I said no," Rafael insisted. "Tell me how it went with Jay instead. You know that he couldn't stop talking about how delicious your gingerbread were?"
This sudden change of subject put Tiffany on the back foot and she began to blush. "No, uh, it's not like that," she said shyly. "I can't be with a man anyway."
Rafael raised his eyebrows. "You can't? Why is that?"
"I just can't," his cousin answered stubbornly. "I would make him unhappy."
"Oh Tiffany!" exclaimed Rafael, coming to take her in his arms. "You're not your mother you know." He felt so sorry for her and all that she had to go through.
"It's nothing," minimized Tiffany, her head pressed against Rafael's chest. "Don't worry."
Rafael didn't answer anything, but he could see the tears running down her cheeks. He held her even tighter.
After a moment she pulled away from his embrace.
"Thank you," Tiffany said. "I, I think I need some time alone."
Rafael nodded with an understanding look on his face. "I'm here if you need me."
"Thanks," she repeated.
Tiffany wiped away her tears and silently left in the direction of her room. Rafael felt helpless. He wished he could have done more for her… He didn't brood for long however, doing so had never worked for him. He practiced the basic rune a dozen more times and then grabbed his phone.
His discussion with Tiffany had reawakened his doubts about Paulina. He looked up the organizational chart of his uncle's university on the Internet and found the number of one of Leonard's colleagues he had previously heard about. Rafael dialed it without delay. He needed to clarify his doubts, he would blame himself too much if he did nothing and that Leonard's disappearance was indeed related to his work.
The phone rang several times before a deep voice answered, "Hello?"
"Hello, Dr. Boas. I'm Rafael, Leonard's nephew. Can I speak to you for a moment?"
The voice suddenly became more friendly, "Of course, Rafael, what can I do for you?"
Rafael took a deep breath then get started: "I don't know if you heard about it, but my uncle has been missing for several days..."
"I didn't know," said Dr. Boas.
"We've notified the police but no one knows where he might be. I was wondering if there was a lot of jealousy toward him at the university. You know, concerning his latest discoveries and the thesis he's going to publish about them."
"His thesis?" asked Dr. Boas, who didn't seem to understand.
"On shamanism," Rafael clarified.
"Ah, yes, of course," Dr Boas replied. "I don't know how to tell you this Rafael, but... nobody envies your uncle here. They think he's a lunatic with all his theories."
"Really?" asked Rafael.
"Yes, contrary to what you might think ethnology is a very rigorous discipline. Your uncle has made a fool of himself by giving credence to New Age concepts claiming that there is real magic in shamanic rituals."
"I see," Rafael replied simply. What he saw was their stupidity! With all he had experienced lately he now had a keen awareness of the nature and power of shamanism.
They couldn't possibly understand.
But how could he blame them? Just a few days ago he was no different. Even if it seemed like an eternity now...
"Thank you for your help, Dr. Boas," he said finally. "I hope the police would find other leads."
"Me too Rafael," responded his interlocutor. "Just because we don't agree with his theories doesn't mean we don't appreciate your uncle you know."
"Of course," said Rafael, "Have a nice day, Dr. Boas."
Okay, he suspected that it was not that anyway, he should have known better. Paulina had shown nothing but contempt for Alek the day before. That wouldn't have been the case if she had been aware of the potential of shamanism. He found himself back at the starting point. No clues. Rafael racked his brains, what else could he do, maybe he could go back to his uncle's apartment tomorrow? He had only had time to do a cursory search the first time.
Rafael resumed his training with the runic sign. He wanted to be ready. He was eager to use it to try to bond with this plant spirit.. He wanted to go there right away! But no, Rafael suppressed these thoughts in him. That won't do. He didn't even know if the plant spirit was likely to show up during the day. He had only met him at dawn so far...
He had to do things in order, first make sure he had mastered the runic sign, then go to the park at a time he wouldn't be disturbed. Rushing would only get him into trouble, he had to be prepared. It wouldn't hurt him to read a bit more of Leonard's thesis as well.
Until today, ethnologists have considered shamanic spirits only from the perspective of the studied tribal culture. This is an ethnocentric approach. If, as I have suggested, shamanism is based on objective knowledge, it is then possible and advisable to categorize these spirits universally according to their respective nature.
The following list is an attempt to classify spirits using different tribal traditions. It is intended to provide a framework that will facilitate the observation of differences or similarities in shamanic rituals, depending on the group to which the invoked spirit belong.
- Elemental Spirits
This term covers the spirits of water, fire, air, and earth. It should be noted that these spirits can take on different states. The spirit of water can be in the form of ice or liquid, the spirit of the earth can be metallic or not, etc. These are the most difficult spirits to invoke because their anchorage is spread out in a large area.
- Spirits of Natural Disasters
These spirits are often a particular variation of the elemental spirits. They are rare, difficult to control, but also very powerful. They include the spirits of lightning, storms, floods, volcanoes, land movements, etc.
- Spirits of the Living
These are plant and animal spirits. Note that if a plant spirit offer a connection to the entire plant kingdom, an animal spirit would be limited to its own species. There is the chicken spirit, the wolf spirit, etc. Traditional shamans mostly deal with these kind of spirits.
- Conceptual Spirits
This last category is the most difficult to conceive. It contains all the spirits that symbolize a characteristic. Thus we will find the spirits of strength, luck, life, death... some of them are perhaps still to be discovered, such as a spirit of gravity.
