Giya's Betrayal: Book Three of the Firebird's Daughter series

by Kyrja

  * * * * * * * *

  All right, so I’m here, and Denit is here, Hadia told herself. And she hadn’t died in the process. Good. That’s good. Now what? How can I tell her what she needs to know? I’m not a god, so I can’t talk to her mind to mind…

  ::No, but I am,:: she heard Serat’s voice.

  But she won’t recognize your voice, Hadia responded, thinking fast. Can you use my voice to tell her?

  ::No,:: Serat replied. ::You will have to tell her using my voice. You know what to tell her, and I do not.::

  Use your voice? But how?

  ::My sister has used your eyes to see the world. I will use the same kind of magic. Are you ready?::

  Not really, she thought to herself, knowing it wouldn’t do any good to delay, but nervous just the same. She had given her whole life over to Siri Ventus, doing the impossible – even bearing a child for her. This one, small thing, couldn’t possibly be any worse than anything else she had ever done for her goddess. And when this was all over, they would have a new Sun Goddess. I hope …

  ::Just talk to her the same way you are talking to me. Now!::

  * * * * * * * *

  :: … ear me … it …:: Denit felt herself frown when she thought she heard someone speaking to her. There seemed to be some kind of strange sensation or … something … as if she was hearing someone’s voice from a distance. Or, as if she was in a cave and all she could hear was the sound of someone talking to her, but not the words.

  ::The crystal, Denit:: Now that voice belonged to Lumas, without any doubt. ::It must be shattered. You must return with Hadia to the planet so it can be shattered. It is the only thing that will stop Sov. You must hurry, or it will be too late!::

  She badly wanted to ask Lumas why she was helping to kill Sov if she had loved him so much.

  ::I promised him I would, when it was time,:: was the unexpected reply. ::He wasn’t always as he is now. Go! Quickly! Return to the temple in Nohoyo. Don’t wait for Hadia. Go!::

  * * * * * * * *

  Hadia watched as Denit seemed to nod at her, then flew past her, plummeting faster and faster towards the planet.

  Do you think she will get there in time? Hadia asked, her entire body quivering. Now that she had accomplished her objective, she realized just how exhausted she was, and wondered how she would possibly make it back to her own world herself.

  When she heard no reply, she looked around her, seeing nothing but Lumas on fire, and the battle between Sov and Amphedia raging. Serat? she asked. Surely he wouldn’t have left her here, all alone? Serat? Where are you? she asked again. But he was gone, and she was alone.

  * * * * * * * *

  “It was you, all along,” Serat said, knowing she would hear him. “I recognized your voice just now. And I finally understand the rest of the visions.” He paused, not wanting to ask, but knowing he would anyway, so there was no point in putting it off. “Is there any way to refuse?”

  ::This is why I created you,:: Lumas replied. ::You and your sister have been very, very clever, so you yet may find a way to find a different solution. But today is not that day. Unless Sov destroys the planet after all. Go:: she encouraged him. ::Say your good-byes::

  * * * * * * * *

  Oculis screamed out loud when Siri Ventus screamed, then began tumbling from the sky when he felt her withdraw completely from his mind. She was gone! Where did she go? Then he had no time to concern himself, as his body continued twisting as he fell to the earth. At the last moment, he was able to change himself back into a man, but still fell hard enough to break his arm when he slammed into the ground.

  Chapter Seventeen – The Tadashi Child

  He wasn’t sure what was wrong, but Afdal knew something was off. It was as if he couldn’t quite focus. Or, at least not as clearly as he usually did. He felt slightly detached, unable to plan ahead, because his mind kept skittering from one thought to the next. He knew that if he had ever needed to concentrate, this was the one time in his life when it was absolutely crucial to do so. Still, he couldn’t seem to keep his thoughts from swimming out of focus. That’s why he’d come here, to the fountain on the north side of the city, instead of within the city itself. He wanted to be certain he had his bearings before moving forward with his plan. Too, there were no buildings here, only trees. He hadn’t wanted to misread the grid lines badly enough to land them inside of a building, which was a man-made structure. If he had managed to follow the wrong line, landing them inside of a tree, the magic would have compensated automatically, because it was a natural object. Thankfully, he’d learned that particular lesson a very long time ago, and it wasn’t a mistake he was likely to repeat.

  “That was amazing!” he heard Tyran exclaim. He grimaced, wishing he could have done this without having to bring someone else into it, but since he needed her in order to pull this off, he would have to feign pleasantness. Vowing to make sure their association would be as brief as possible, he forced himself to smile before he turned towards her.

  “You’re all right?” he asked, already not caring, but forcing himself to interact with her just the same. Pay attention! he scolded himself, picturing the trek they would have to take to get to the city, and wondering where he should look first. There had been no doubt in his mind that this is where he would find the crystal. That was the one thing which was clear in his mind. The vision he’d seen when the sending had hit him may have shown a scene of children re-enacting a ritual long-abandoned – something he knew because of his father’s tutelage about archaic magical customs when he’d been very young – but the most-important piece of information in that vision had been the fact that it had taken place in Nohoyo. It was, of course, entirely possible that the crystal had been taken elsewhere for a myriad of reasons, but he knew it was here. There was something in the magic embedded within the vision that demanded this was the place where it must be. And while it could be anywhere within the vast lands of the hidden realm, nothing of importance in this backwards land happened anywhere except in the capital city.

  “Are you all right?” This was the second time she had asked the damned question. She should just leave him alone to think!

  “I’m thinking,” he replied, trying not to bark at her, but knowing he failed, he tried again. “I am trying to remember where things are,” he said in what he hoped was a calmer tone of voice. “It’s been a while since I was here, and it’s hard to remember.”

  “All right,” Tyran replied quietly. “I’ll just wait over there, by the fountain so you can think in peace.”

  “Hmmm?” he asked, frustrated that he couldn’t keep his thoughts from wandering away from him. “Yes. Yes. By the fountain. That would be perfect. Thank you,” he said, turning his back on her.

  * * * * * * * *

  “There’s definitely something wrong with him,” Tyran found herself saying out loud as she moved towards the fountain. And here I am, stuck in the middle of who-knows-where with him, she mused to herself.

  He had seemed so genuine and sincere when he’d first approached her; he had even seemed like he was somewhat shy. He’d also been excited, having seen the same scene she had. Of course he had, she reminded herself. How else would he have known to seek her out? He’d apologized for barging in on her so late at night, but said he couldn’t wait until the morning, because he knew it was important for them to get to the crystal as quickly as they could. He’d said the magic within the “sending” as he had called it, had awoken long-suppressed memories he’d never even known he’d had, urging him to take immediate action. It was only because she had seen the same thing he had that he had known he had no choice but to bring her with him, because she must play some vital role, or she wouldn’t have been touched by the magic too. It had all seemed so plausible last night. Of course, she reminded herself, she had been terribly desperate too, and had wanted to believe what he’d said. Now … she wasn’t so sure. Or maybe, she rolled her eyes, she was just too damned tired to have clear judgement right now. S
ighing, she sat down on the lip of the fountain, laying her bag near her feet on the ground, dipping her hand in the water.

  * * * * * * * *

  It had seemed so easy when he’d first conceived of his plan to bring the woman here, with him. But now he couldn’t seem to remember why he even wanted to bring her in the first place. It was because of that damned sending. That was something people used to do long ago, too. It was a precise kind of magic that was used to trigger memories which had been purposefully buried until they were needed, or even messages that the recipient had never heard before. More archaic magic lessons, thanks to his always-right-about-everything father. It had grown out of “fashion” he’d been taught because the person sending the magic was imposing their own will on the person who was receiving the “message” or being forced to relive a memory. Afdal could see how easily it might be used to trigger a terrifying false “memory” that had been implanted specifically designed to cause the recipient distress, or even death, and thought it might be an excellent tool to use against an enemy. All knowledge of that kind of magic had been wiped from existence, except as object lessons against what should never be done, according to his father. Knowledge of the actual magic employed no longer existed as far as he knew, so this sending must have been put in place a very long time ago, he decided.

  The problem, Afdal thought, was not the sending, in this case, but the fact that she – the woman – what was her name?! Terran? He sighed in aggravation. He would never be able to remember her damned name! She had already been bonded with someone else when the sending hit her, so she had been … leaking … for a lack of a better word, and he had been connected to her because of the sending. Because he had been so physically close to her, he heard her mention the Tadashi child as the last of the sending had faded. So now he had to pretend to be this person they needed to unlock the secrets of the crystal long enough to get his hands on it. Then he would disappear right before their very eyes, taking it with him. He would break the bond with the emperor first, and then he would become emperor. Yes. That was the plan. Easy. He breathed a little easier, now that he remembered what he was supposed to do. Now if only he could focus long enough to do it. Maybe, he considered, if he asked her not to talk, he would be able to remember it better.

  * * * * * * * *

  It was all Sina could do not to scream out loud in terror when two people suddenly appeared almost right in front of her as she was approaching the fountain. Unfair! she had wanted to scream, her heart beating furiously in her chest. She had just begun to feel the smallest bit relaxed and maybe even a tiny bit confident once she had reached the small grove of trees – trees she could easily name thanks to her mother – and was looking forward to a cool drink of water. She hadn’t seen or heard anyone since she’d left the city, which, in itself, was very different for her, given that she had always traveled with her mother and a large group of people everywhere they went. Having no idea what she was doing, where she was going, or what she would do once she got there, didn’t help either, she knew, but she was still doing it, and having made the choice to do something, had given her some small sense of power over her own destiny. Until those two had appeared out of absolutely nowhere! How would she ever be able to feel safe again, knowing such a thing was possible? Where could she go that others couldn’t follow? How did people live like this – always afraid of everything?

  As soon as they had appeared, Sina ghosted herself, without even waiting to see if she was going to jump out of her skin or not. Just NOT crying, or screaming out loud had been nearly all she could manage. She had even automatically thrown herself to the ground, hoping to stay hidden from them. More strangers! How many were there? And why were they all coming here? No, she told herself, it doesn’t matter. This is no longer my home. I’m leaving.

  On her hands and knees, with her face nearly buried in the ground, and her hair hiding her face, she waited, barely breathing. She watched through the strands of her hair as the woman came closer, wondering if she had some kind of power to be able to see her. Her ability to ghost was the only thing keeping her safe, she knew, and couldn’t begin to imagine what her life would be like right this minute if she was exposed. She felt a shiver of fear race through her, then almost burst into tears when she realized she had sniffled, trying to keep the snot from dripping out of her nose because of the way her head was tilted towards the ground. She froze when the woman quickly stood up, obviously looking for what had made the sound.

  “Who’s there?” she asked, taking a couple of quiet steps closer.

  Sina could see the woman’s bag from where she was, and one of her feet. If she came much closer, she might trip over her. Instead, she heard the woman exhale, then move back to the fountain where it seemed she had sat back down. Cautiously raising her head, and certainly not sniffling again, no matter that she could feel the snot starting to slide down from her nose to her lip, she stopped again once she was able to sit straight up, resting her buttocks on the backs of her feet. Watching the woman for any sign she knew she was there, Sina slowly ran her hand under her nose to stop the flow, then waited, wondering how she could get away without making any noise.

  She was proud of herself for only wincing and closing her eyes when the woman stood back up, instead of throwing herself back on the ground. When it seemed she was moving away from her, instead of closer, she opened her eyes, only to see the woman lift her skirt, then pull at something near her groin area. Did she have a knife or some other kind of weapon? No! It couldn’t be! The woman had a penis and was relieving herself! Yes! Oh yes! Knowing it made absolutely no sense at all, Sina felt herself relax. Her best friend, Nomani was a boy in a girl’s body, just like this woman must be a woman in a man’s body. Oh thank Sov! Despite the protests she could hear herself make, Sina stood up, prepared to unghost herself. This woman must be safe. She just had to be!

  “I remember where to go now,” the man called, as he walked into view. Sina watched as the woman quickly finished, smoothing her skirt back into place. Walking back to the fountain to retrieve her bag, the woman asked, “Is all of Bila like this, with trees everywhere?”

  “We are in Nohoyo,” he replied. “Bila is further south, beyond the … well, beyond the border, is what I was going to say, but the boundary is no longer in place, or we wouldn’t be standing here now.”

  “And what do you call the place where I come from?” the woman asked.

  “Kinji,” he replied, curtly, walking past her, obviously impatient to be on their way.

  “I’ve heard you have no gods in Bila,” the woman continued, either oblivious of the man’s discomfort, or uncaring. Then again, Sina considered, maybe she was purposefully prodding him.

  “None,” the man agreed.

  “And Sov is the only god allowed to be worshipped in Bila?”

  “Why are you asking me all these questions?” the man suddenly stopped in his tracks, turning around. Sina could see he was becoming angry and wondered what the woman would do about it.

  “Because I want to know,” the woman responded, drawing herself up, looking him squarely in the eye. “And you have the answers,” she finished, stopping where she was standing. The two of them were almost close enough for Sina to touch them, and she didn’t like it at all. She could feel herself quivering again, scared she would be discovered. She didn’t have any idea what they might do to her, but she was sure it would hurt.

  “You can ask someone else when we get there,” he responded, turning back towards the city. But the woman stood her ground.

  “I didn’t ask to come here,” she told him. “And I have no problem in going on without you. Or back to Midbar for that matter. I don’t appreciate the way you’re treating me, and I think you should just go on ahead by yourself.”

  Now the man stopped again, turning around, and Sina didn’t like the look on his face. He looked very angry, like he might hit the woman or something. But then he closed his eyes, taking a deep breath, and when he opened the
m again, he didn’t look as mad as he’d been. “I don’t like all the thoughts that have been planted in my head since the sending,” he told her. “It’s making me … angry and irritable, and I can’t seem to concentrate. When you ask me questions, it makes it worse. I’m sorry for being so …. “

  “Arrogant and mean-spirited?” the woman suggested, crossing her arms in front of her.

  “I was going to say “loud,” but I suppose you may be right,” he replied quietly.

  “I have never been to this part of the world, so I have a lot of questions,” the woman said. “I will try to be patient and wait for answers from someone else, but …” she stopped, looking overhead, “if we’re going to get this “crystal seed,” then we really need to hurry. It looks like the sun is falling apart.”

  “Yes, according to the song, Sov must die, but none of us wants him to wipe out the planet when he does it. I suppose that must be where I come in,” he tried a smile on for her. “I’m not sure what I’m supposed to do, but maybe we’ll figure it out when we get there.”

  “Fair enough,” the woman replied, picking up her bag once more, shouldering it. “Lead the way,” she invited him, thrusting one hand in front of her. “I’ll follow you.”

  Sina watched them go, afraid to move even when she could no longer see them. She had learned more about her world in the time she had watched these two strangers interact than she had learned most of her life. There were other parts of the world? There were other gods? She felt overwhelmed by everything she’d learned. Not to mention the fact that Sov was going to die? But what would happen to everyone if that happened? Did that mean she was going to die too? And what was this crystal seed they were talking about? What good would that do? Unghosting, she let out a sob, unable to stop herself. She had never felt so alone, confused, and scared in her life. She just wanted to go back home where she was safe.

  Sitting herself down on the lip of the fountain, she looked into the water there, watching the ripples of the fountain wash over her reflection. She was never going to be able to go home again, she suddenly realized. She had already known it when she left the city, but only in her mind, and not in her heart. By Sov, how she hated feeling so scared! She decided she was just too sad to go any further today. It would have to wait until tomorrow – if there even was a tomorrow. Taking a drink from the fountain, she washed her face, making sure to splash water on the back of her neck to keep cooled off. Another small thing her mother had taught her. If you were too hot, you used a cool cloth on the back of your neck to cool down. If you were too cold, you used a warm one. It was a small thing, but it made her miss her mother even more. After a few minutes, she slid down to the ground, bracing her back against the cool bricks of the fountain, resting. Thinking she would feel better after a short rest, she let herself drift off. It really was nice, here in the shade.