by Cara Violet
Nerves coursed through him. Desrix swung his blade right toward Nake, but the brute, lifting his fist into a ball underneath him, sent an uppercut straight into Desrix’s chin. Tiny sprays of blood flew as Desrix went up and then back down again, nosediving face first into the soil. It took a few seconds for the twang of pain to subside and when he raised his head, his eyes shot to the Miry trees at the bottom of the mountain ahead.
“Ryar,” he called to the young Giliou who was getting up off the ground, cleaning his jawline of blood with his sleeve. Desrix pointed to the trees, “get Jahzara to safety.”
“Yes, sir,” the younger Shielder said, swishing in his pale blue aura and ‘porting out.
If Xandou thought that the shock of Metrix and her obscurities would wear off after the first time he’d seen her change, he was sorely mistaken. Not only had her beauty deserted her further, the Giliou Shielder had a crazy, animal-hunting look about her as she shadowed toward him.
“Are you going to kill me?” he said sarcastically, halting.
“You’re blind, Xandou …” her voice trailed off into something sinister, and he had a minor feeling develop within him—she may actually be planning on killing him.
“You won’t kill me, will you?” Xandou had playful concern loitering in his voice.
“Why is it you accept everything they force upon us?” she said disapprovingly, pacing sidelong. “Why do you choose to follow this system the Felrin have created? Who are they to you?” Xandou didn’t know who the Felrin were to him, but they were the ones in charge, yet after he found out Ferak Jarryd was after Kaianan, an uncertainty about what exactly they were going to do with her pressed him. “You should work it out before you get caught in the chasm of selfless governance,” Metrix’s top lip had curled and her teeth snarled in anger.
“Metrix—” Xandou began but her illumination already encapsulated her and the ominous woman ‘ported out. Xandou watched her reappear and whisk Nake away with her, up into the levitating cruiser. “Damn her.”
What shocked him more, was further along, Desrix stood, puffing blood. Yasminx and Desrix had both come to his aid. Xandou swore under his breath at their unwavering allegiance.
Chapter Thirty-Two: Accepting Death
Despite the sky turning to darkness, and the paralysis destabilising the Daem-Raal around her, Kaianan stood, only just, in her Gorgon form before the Defeated King. She took a moment with her imagination to make sure she wasn’t dreaming this time or making any of this up. That this was happening. When the glowing red, huge half-human, half-dragon creature cocked his yellow eyes round, taking Croone in, the back of her neck went up in prickles. Not only was this a reality—her reality, but by the looks of him, being a free-man came with an overload of fury. How long had it been since he had graced the Siliou? What was he thinking? What was he capable of doing? How could she stop him? Could she?
She watched as his mouth yawned open, stretching wider and wider … what’s he doing? Suddenly, a ball of orange light swelled and glowed inside his chest, then with one big huff out, flames funnelled out of his mouth like a blowtorch, pummelling towards Adrel and—and Arlise who were on the ground.
“What the—No!” Kaianan gripped her Rapier tighter as she slithered closer, waving her hands about, in an attempt to distract him away from them. For all but a second he glanced in her direction. Then he turned back to the Felrin and began walking in their direction. “You. Defeated King!”
He did not flinch at her words; he carried on, step by step, toward the immobile Felrin.
“Listen to me,” she said.
Kaianan slivered through the tortured Daem-Raal after him.
Wait—what was that? She came to a halt. Who was that?
Her heart felt like it was going to explode out of her chest. Her eyesight betrayed her. Was this her? Lying there, in preform? Next to Dersji Brikin?
There was blood under and over preform Kaianan’s tunic and chestplate. Her brown hair completely soaked with it. The shock semi-paralysed Gorgon Kaianan. Her throat stuck. Her serpents were screeching at the sight. Could it really be? Was she dying?
Press on, Kaianan. Form a strategy. The voice inside her head ordered.
She shook her head, unstuck herself, and advanced away from her perform body—she didn’t have time for this.
She looked down at the blade snug in her light green fingers and gold nails, and exhaled. Was it really up to her to form a strategy? Who was she kidding, the best she could do was dive in head first and hope for the best. Yet someone had to save the ill-fated Felrin, with it falling to her, they most likely would all end up dead –
“Ow.” Pain restricted her tail.
“Get off Miss!” Cuki came out of nowhere, arms thrashing, shoving his fellow Daem-Raal off her and finally collapsed, paralysed.
By now, the half-man, half-dragon had nearly reached Arlise on the platform. Gorgon Kaianan’s glowing green eyes widened.
“Why won’t you look at me? Fight me,” Kaianan snarled, spinning her aura through her fingers in a burst of gleaming green sparks. “Come on, fight me!” Instinctively, she released an aura beam at him.
It took a millisecond for the green beam to shoot through the air and – zap – sting his ribcage.
He spasmed and growled, collapsing sideways to his knees. He titled his dragon head, almost entertained and pounded his hand on his torso.
“I’m HERE!” she screamed, standing, and firing another aura beam at him. He ignored her, allowed the beam to deflect off his forearm armour and kept walking away from her.
What could she do? He had more control of the Siliou, he could withstand her attacks, and he was a lot faster than her even though they were both huge man-beasts. How was she going to stop him if he wouldn’t fight her and he wanted to kill the Felrin?
Irritation consumed her—she needed him to pay attention to her. She inhaled and lifting on her tail, and roaring, she charged him.
It took the Defeated King another second to sense her proximity and with a turn of his body and a spin of his arm, he backhanded her metres across the rock face.
Agony shot through her. She had fallen backward, spitting blood. Was this no use? Was she not capable of duelling with him? Her skills were laughable. In her grogginess, the night of her transformation spontaneously came to her. She had been praying for a maiden to take her to bed that night, to feel the warm bedsheets and die comfortably before Prince Addi executed her. Could she ask that now? Because after all that screaming of wanting the Defeated King to pay her attention, he was suddenly touching her.
Her body became rigid; her breath heavy. Then she realised it was his scaly grey fingers touching her shoulder, not his blade.
Shock riddled further through her when he lowered his dragon face down to her. The force of his breath blew her limp serpents back off her face, because like her, they were immobile. All she could do was stare. Face to face, she regarded his flaming yellow eyes in line with hers –
Deep in those yellow pupils, the full effect of the many thin red and intertwining orange webs graced her, but they were not what she was expecting. There was no malice in them. Instead, they were—full of worry? Her spine prickled and a wave of nerves flooded through her muscles; she couldn’t even let out a murmur to plead for her life.
Her heart kept pounding. If this was it, if her life was over, she would have to give resignation to the sequence of unfortunate events which lead her to an eventual demise: the ambush at her transformation, the trap waiting for her on Earth, the deception of Metrix, losing Chituma, being double-crossed by Caidus, Morphs trying to eat her alive, the Underworld leaders holding her execution, Julius betraying her, her parents dying, Xandou’s duplicity, Elli Nermordis nearly killing her…
It had only been the tenth time she had been in this position since transforming and didn’t flashbacks happen right before the end? Maybe she should face the facts: resistance was becoming pointless. Common knowledge would suggest, like the past c
ircumstances did, as the Rivalex Mark her death was imminent –
Yet when his hands left her body and the shock and anxious emotion inside her departed, she had to question what had just happened? Where did he go? She couldn’t turn to see him, instead, she heard a loud roar and felt rising heat press against her body.
Was this what dying would feel like? Holom was hot. Moist. Despite that, she let out a gasp for fresh air, forcing her lungs to work in the conditions—it did not matter, one groggy blink after another, her eyes gradually sealed shut.
Chapter Thirty-Three: Black Smoke, Missing Mirrors
Liege Jarryd felt Maya’s peach dress brush beside him as they ventured out past the rear of the Forsda Palace doors onto the long stretch of grass just before the trees to the mountain. His eyesight burned him; Xandou was staring at Metrix and Nake dillydallying about in the cruiser cockpit, Desrix looked worse for wear lifting his body up off the ground and at last instant a young Giliou had seized and ‘ported out with Jahzara.
“Well this is a debacle,” Maya ushered out.
Ferak was tempted to burn his aura through her.
“You have a concrete fortress out the front,” Ferak said in bewilderment to her. “Why is it you don’t have any walls or guards up behind the Palace? It’s like you’re asking for trouble.”
“We are a believer of Giliou the Wise, Ferak.” The Queen said as they all finally came to a halt. “This is nature protecting us; besides, the mountain stops those wanting to invade us from the north.”
Ferak ignored her, again scanning around, black strands of hair flickering in his eyes as his aura swirled, trying with due diligence to keep his mind from Yasminx.
“We need to get them out of that cruiser,” Maya interrupted.
“It’s about time we seize Xandou and shut down his leadership and locate Jahzara to close off oncoming Vectors.” He told Maya without taking his eyes to her. So much of his mission was far from on track, and if anything, right now, Ferak felt the urge to just go home to Felrin. His Menial had lost the Rivalex Mark, he had to make a plea to Prudence to go after her himself. Question was, why was he still here? Protecting these dim-witted lesser fools? He should have departed long ago.
“You’re always faking it, aren’t you, Ferak?”
Dersji’s young voice hit him like a sharp knife.
“Get Xandou and find Jahzara!” Maya ordered as a rush of Shielders emerged from the Palace.
Shaking off the daydream, Ferak had already left her side, racing forward to capture Xandou, who was advancing toward the Cruiser. When Ferak looked up, the Giliou had taken flight in mid-air, coming to land right onto some type of developing smoky black abyss –
Jolting backward, Liege Jarryd felt a rush of ice ripple through his body. The sky above him began turning black. Ferak swore at the smoke now stinging his pupils and throat, stripping him of aura. Clenching his fists, he summoned his aura to return. Nothing. He tried again. Nothing.
It was too late; through one wave of open air, Xandou’s feet were already on the small ‘port-up pad, and swirling in another invisible mist, this one owned by the transport itself, the Giliou Shielder disappeared up into the cruiser.
“Damn it!” the Liege cursed. Fury laced his snarling face. “FIND JAHZARA!” he barked so loudly, Giliou Shielders from metres away began searching the woods.
Xandou coughed out thick smoke he’d nearly chocked on before zapping up into the Felrin cruiser. He had no idea where the holom it had come from but his free time movement had been uncladed. Rolling sideways on his spine, his brain registered tiny stabbings of pain attacking his muscles.
“What do we have here?” a voice said above him. “Nake, fix our guest up.”
Xandou forced his eyes wider to his surroundings and remembered the Felrin cruiser he was in when he interrogated Dersji Brikin. It looked the same. He was in the main part of the ship right now though. There was a cockpit in front of him, full of bright and blaring controls, and standing alongside the two pilot’s chairs, were Metrix and, closer with a blade out, Nake’s mutilated face.
“Xandou,” Metrix said, “are you joining us?”
His eyes shot to Nake who was forcing the edge of his dagger nearer the Giliou’s neck. “It seems.”
“Well,” Metrix hummed, “Croone is where you want to be, I’m sure.”
Xandou felt his chest tighten. Kaianan.
“Euclidean Vector charged … ready for departure … Euclidean Vector charged … ready for departure.” The system computer sounded out.
“Ah, excellent.” Metrix unsheathed her blade. “Nake, leave the unconscious fool and get the Vector fired up.” Nake retreated to strap himself into one of the pilot’s chairs –
Then nothing. Nothing but deadly silence.
The brute was unexpectedly grunting and waving his hands about.
“What the holom—” Metrix turned back to castigate him but stopped.
What were they doing? His view of Metrix from the floor was of her carelessly staggering back, eyes on something.
Then he saw it too.
Outside, billowing black smoke had nearly cancelled out the sunlight shining through the wide cruiser’s screen, inch by inch, leaving them in complete darkness. Suddenly the smoke had taken over.
Xandou didn’t waste any time, he got to his feet. But from then on, it was all indistinct and sporadic images as the smoke started attacking them, seeping into the cracks of the ship and filling the entire cockpit and deck. In the first second, he saw Desrix ‘port in, shouting Xandou’s name and then in the next he had disappeared into the mist. And after Metrix had stumbled in and out of the black smoke, Xandou’s eyesight was completely engrossed by blackness.
He steadied his hands out forward, only to feel his stomach clench and his feet lose their place on the floor. The cruiser had started slowly spinning.
Burning with the absent fury of sharp attacking flames, still as a snake about to strike, Liege Jarryd scrutinised the black fog encapsulating the entire Cruiser, spinning it about above him. Hundreds of Giliou Shielders stood back simply watching. He had no control of his Kan’Ging aura. Irritation flowed through him, his muscles pulsated and his upper lip growled in a snarl. “Where is that gatekeeper?”
Ryar gulped at the gigantic ball of black smoke after gently placing Jahzara down against a Miry tree minutes before. “What in Holom’s—”
“Ryar,” Jahzara said trancelike. “Get Xandou off the Cruiser, now.”
“I had orders to keep you safe.”
He looked at her against the tree and took a step back in surprise. Her arm was lengthened and from her curled fingers she gyrated black energy out and around the cruiser. It was her doing this?
Ryar hadn’t even realised her face had changed—it had gone white; her hair was pitch black and her white pupils were dilated and glowing. A wraith? She was a wraith? Or was she a witch?
“I SAID GET HIM NOW!” The transformed Conductor screamed, and caught up in extreme anxiety, with no sense of bearing, Ryar vanished in a whip of a blue tornado as instructed.
Chapter Thirty-Four: When Two Becomes One
Bleeding on the ground, preform Kaianan regarded her Gorgon body that had just passed out, and heard Dersji mumble her name to the left of her. She really had no idea who this man was, but she was about to die beside him. If that wasn’t a connection, Kaianan didn’t know what was.
“I’m dying, Dersji,” she admitted to him, stuck in a trance.
“It’s not your time,” was all he said, his eyes on the Defeated King spreading fire to Arlise and Adrel, who were helplessly rolling around on the ground.
“How do you know?” Her hand pressed against her own chest to stop the blood dripping. “Look at me. I’m practically bleeding to death. This is what was written. My death. I’ve accepted it. Don’t you see, I can’t change that.”
“Yes, you can,” he said through gritted teeth. “Remember what Boku Jove told you? Remember it is the choice of who
you will now become. I need you to close your eyes and make that decision.”
“No,” she said spitefully, “Who are you to tell me what to do? I won’t lose myself to one race or the other.”
“Choose your path then, Kaianan; visualise who you want to become and make that happen.”
“Now?” she said incredulously.
“Is there any other time more important than now?”
“No.”
“Then?”
Kaianan fastened her eyelids, jamming her brain with a magnitude of thoughts, searching for the visual on who she was—growing up a renegade, rebuking the Layos command, debating with her sister, swordplay with Xandou, Darayan and Archibel, defying her parents, surviving persecution, her reluctant obligations as Queen, Layos’ allegiance to the Felrin democracy, the Necromancer invasion, her ability to use the Kan’Ging… the list was endless. But this wasn’t who she was … was it?
She wasn’t any or all of those things. No, she wasn’t.
Her mind swirled blank. Nothing came to her, all she could see was a faraway place where everyone was equal, where there was no persecution, no leaders … all she could see was freedom.
With that single thought, she immediately felt her physical form changing. Her preform body lifted, floating and revolving in the atmosphere. Parts of her began slowly deteriorating, disappearing into thin air—her clothes, her skin, then her bones—and finally her preform figure was gone.
She found herself looking out through the eyes of her Gorgon form—flat on her spine, considering the two Silver Rapiers in her grasp and the huge body that she was now in. When this body began shaking, and inch by inch, she was launched into the air, all she could think was: this was it.
Her green body and serpents twirled a few times before eventually exploding in white light.
