by T. Z. Leigh
"I'm fine, Zachery. Check him, first," Sven urged.
"I have. The bones in his hands are shattered."
Zachery gulped, dreading the thought. He healed them slowly, not at all surprised when Qayto screamed out in pain. Although the bones weren't big, the agony he must have been in made Zachery shudder as the tiny flecks of bone tried to find the adjoining pieces to come together fully.
Once Qayto's hands were healed, Zachery chanced a look at the crater up close. It had finished forming. The only movements outside now were the tiny rocks and dust that still fell to the earth: such a violent scene, yet breath-taking. The dust suddenly fell more sparingly, just a yellow mist hovering in the air, and Zachery spotted something in the distance out the corner of his eye. Under a cluster of trees lay a body, hardly moving, her familiar blonde hair now drenched in red.
"Cover me!" he cried, rushing out of the tunnel. He ran at full speed and knelt beside her. "Katrine?"
She had long gashes running from her neck to her hips, her clothes covered in blood. She was staring drowsily into space, eyelids closing and opening little by little, until she registered his voice and turned to look at him, confused.
"Zachery? What are you doing here?" she asked weakly. "I thought you would be at the prison by now."
"Don't worry about that; what happened?"
"The dirataygon."
"Why haven't you healed yourself?"
She smiled a little. "I keep forgetting that you're new here," she said, staring at him gravely. "Unless they're a Master, Dolats can't heal themselves, Zachery."
Her mouth turned down, her lips trembled, and she closed her eyes. Tears trickled down her cheeks through closed eyelids.
"I'm here now," he said, lifting her slightly, so he could put a hand on her back.
"It's too late," she murmured.
"Don't say that."
Fear is an odd thing. We all have it, inborn hatred or anxiety for certain things or situations. Sometimes, it's summoned when we're faced with distressing or frightening incidents. At other times, we can conjure it unnecessarily, visualising horrific things that aren't even there. But now and then, a third kind rears its ugly head. One that's filled with uselessness and despair. The kind that gnawed its way into Zachery, threatening to consume him. The image of the stagnant, black liquid that occupied Katrine's body was a haunting vision that would be forever engraved in his memory.
"I told you," she said, her eyes full of anguish, "it's too late."
"I'm so sorry," he whispered, full of guilt.
"Don't be sorry," she whispered and held his hand, her words slower and quieter. "Zachery, just promise me one thing. Promise me…that you'll win, that you'll destroy them for me."
"We will," he replied, his voice solemn and assuring. "I promise."
Her eyes stared into his, hoping to communicate the importance of what she was about to request of him, then she squeezed his hand with the little strength she had left, her gaze unwavering.
"And just before Jedsen's life ends, you tell him. You tell him that it's what he deserves; he deserves it for what he did to my father. His name was…" Her eyes closed again as she whispered, "…his name was…Martino Swayle."
After a moment, her hand fell limply to the ground. He didn't move, just continued looking at her soft face, still wet with tears, his own dripping down his cheek.
"I promise."
He finally stood but couldn't take his eyes off her; the helpless, guilty feeling still clawed at his organs. He barely registered the hand that lightly touched his back before everything went black.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Jamie had kiroskoed to Zachery but stopped short when realising that Katrine was gone. Jamie dragged her feet, the hurt of losing someone else making her feel heavy and drained of energy. She looked at those waiting anxiously in the tunnel, and her heart pounded in her ribcage when seeing three Shadateen soldiers were nearing them.
"Look out!" Jamie yelled, raising her hand, but it was too late.
The three Shadateen soldiers had already bound Qayto's, Teselda's and Sven's hands together with chains, too quickly for them to have stopped it. Knowing Zachery was far away from the threat, she kiroskoed towards Sam and April, punching one of the soldiers before he could reach them. The soldier fell to the ground as another punched her face, colours exploding around the edges of her eyes as she fell.
Jamie heard Sam's grunt followed by one of the Shadateen's screams as he flew out of the tunnel. She looked to see Qayto holding the one she had punched in a tight grip, his moans echoing off the walls as he struggled in Qayto's arms. Before she could stand, chains were placed on her wrists by the third, then on Sam and April before they could even blink.
"Run!" Teselda shouted, and they did. Qayto threw the skryt against the wall, knocking him out. Sam gave the last soldier a roundhouse kick to the head and helped Jamie up from the floor.
Five seconds after leaving the tunnel, a group of soldiers surrounded them, a smirk spreading across some of their faces while others glared. In the distance, Jamie saw Zachery stand just as a Dolat snuck up behind him.
"Zachery!" she screamed.
"He can't hear you," said a nearby soldier, her smirk becoming a wide smile as she spoke.
Jamie smacked the soldier's jaw with her chained hands hard enough to draw blood and was about to scream to Zachery again, before something struck her hard on the head, plunging her into darkness.
"Resistance is futile," a soldier told them.
"Irisena's existence is futile, you pathetic cowards," Sam barked.
Thumps behind her made April turn around to see Sven, Teselda and Qayto fall to the floor in front of three Dolats who had rendered them unconscious. Sam ran to them, then cried out as he dropped to the ground, writhing in pain from the illusion a Solkateen was casting on him.
April saw a Dolat swiftly approach Sam with an outstretched hand and rushed towards him in a panic, but she wasn't fast enough; he was now unconscious along with everyone else. Inevitably accepting that resisting at that moment in time truly was futile, April put her hands up and surrendered.
◆◆◆
The journey to the prison wasn't a long one, though disheartening. April watched the others lying helpless on the floor of the cart Irisena used to transport them. Feeling alone and pathetic, she wondered why she didn't try to perform a massive illusion on multiple skryts before her loved ones were knocked out and taken hostage.
'There can be no hesitation or skryts will pay with their lives, do you understand?'…I didn't understand then, Hamal, but I do now…and I won't make that mistake again.
The prison was a circular fortress made purely of solid stone, inside and out, except the small barred windows that appeared sparingly along the top level. At a guess, April assumed it was bedrock like all the other buildings in Mezatica. It didn't make sense for it to be made from any other material that Mezat prisoners would be able to break through.
The cart was pushed into the prison via a raised, tall gate built from a series of stone bars that glowed an evil red in warning. Once through, the gate slammed shut behind them, and April jerked in fear as their chances of an escape decreased by the second.
On entering, one skryt asked another, "Where shall we put them, Chief?"
"We have orders to separate them; the royals in their own cells, the others together in the interrogation cell. The bosses wish to speak with them," the latter replied.
"Wait! What are you going to do to them?" April shouted once the cart had been pulled up the spiral path to the upper floor, and the elders were being taken away.
"If I were you, I would be more concerned with your own safety," the Chief told her, then walked through another doorway.
She was pushed inside a large room with enough force that she stumbled to the floor. Her shoulder throbbed from the fall, but she was too distracted to notice. They were all shackled to the walls as a couple of Dolats woke the others up. They were all disori
entated as they came around, except Sven.
"You can't do this!" Sven cried, attempting to break free, struggling against the chains until his wrists turned red.
"Shut up!" one replied as the soldiers all left, locking the door behind them.
They heard a loud voice followed by laughter coming from the corridor.
"Some Royal Guardian he is."
◆◆◆
"What do we do now, Sven?" Sam asked after they had been waiting over half an hour for something to happen.
There was no response Sven could give, just a pained facial expression revealing that there was nothing to do. Nothing that could be done. The additional enchantments murmured by the Irisena soldiers as they were being chained to the walls ensured there would be no chance of an escape. Although Sven knew they would not be killed, his stomach was turning over at the thought of them receiving various horrific illusions daily until the Summer Solstice. Then what? Murdered at the hands of the enemy they had fought for so long? Everything suddenly seemed like such a waste - a waste of time, waste of effort, waste of life.
"We're gonna find a way for us all to get out of here," Zachery said firmly. "We didn't go through everything and come all this way for nothing."
Sven admired his resolve, but the strengthened chains restraining them begged to differ, jutting out from the stone walls in addition to the ones that bound their hands. They couldn't use their abilities and definitely weren't going anywhere.
A key turned in the lock of the cell door and it opened. Voklav's face appeared along with one the teenagers hadn't seen before. Humzal's.
"Well, isn't this a wonderful sight!" Voklav roared, his grin so wide it spread from one side of his face to the other.
"Spare us the pleasantries, you piece of slime," Jamie spat. "Let us out and maybe we won't hurt you."
The two men laughed in utter amusement.
"Fulgar told me about this one, but I didn't quite believe him," Humzal said, smiling.
"She never could keep her mouth shut; she was lucky we needed her, or I would have killed her back in the Sewasphere."
"Don't worry, I would've gotten rid of you too if I knew what a low life you are!"
"Jamie, shut up," Zachery scolded her.
"You always were the sensible one, Zachery," Voklav said. "Maybe she'll learn something from you."
"Where are our grandparents?" Sam asked through gritted teeth.
"They are being kept elsewhere," Humzal offered, "not that you'll ever see them again."
"Enough of this!" Voklav snapped. Then addressing the prisoners, "It's time you all knew the truth."
"Are they certain they want to be announced so soon?" Humzal asked Voklav, his voice full of hesitation.
"Yes. I spoke with them before coming here."
"You spoke with who?" April asked, eyebrows furrowed.
"The skryt who has been helping us throughout the years…who has given Irisena the leverage they need to win this war. Without them, things would have been far more difficult to manage in the Sewasphere."
A moment of silent anticipation passed before another man strolled into the room casually, his gaze skimming the prisoners sitting around on the cell floor, before speaking directly to Humzal.
"Fulgar's been detained. He won't be joining us until tomorrow."
"Jedsen? How has he been able to help you in the Sewasphere?" Sven asked.
"Not him, you fool," Humzal retorted.
Sam almost burst into flames on hearing Jedsen's name. "You. You turned Eva into a tesrar. I'll kill you!"
Sam clenched his fists so tight he thought his knuckles would break. Not that he cared.
"Calm down, boy," Jedsen warned, his voice lowering an octave. "Don't forget I can cause you great pain without it resulting in your death. So shut your mouth."
After a minute of satisfyingly watching Sam's tense muscles and gritted teeth slowly relax in submission, Jedsen smirked.
"Humzal," Voklav said, falsely polite, "go and fetch Ms Leyton, would you?"
Sven let out a loud groan. He sank into the wall, appearing to be in immense pain, shaking his head as if trying to plead with himself that what Voklav just revealed wasn't true.
"Don't be so shocked, Sven," Jedsen said.
"Who's Ms Leyton?" Sam asked Sven, his anger replaced with an eagerness to find out who caused him this much distress.
"That was her name..." he replied weakly, nearly whispering so they only just heard him.
"Whose?" Jamie probed.
The door opened and a lady, beautiful and graceful, entered followed by Humzal. She wore a long, flowing red dress and her long, blonde hair was plaited over her shoulder, ending when it reached her stomach. She approached Jedsen and he kissed her on the cheek, both of them smiling at each other before she focused solely on Sven, crossing her arms in front of her.
"It's a pleasure to meet you in person after so many years."
The voice that followed was faint, dubious, bewildered.
"Mum?"
"Hello, Zachery."
Lost in Deception: The Skrytosphere Book 2
coming soon
Zachery awoke to hear someone humming. A soft, sweet sound that was somehow unknown yet familiar to him. On opening his eyes, he saw Jenna staring at him, sitting on a chair opposite the sofa he was currently lying on, her dress flowing to the floor. When she continued to stare, he sat up quickly, anger travelling from his head to his toes, and he suddenly felt pain prickling on one side of his skull.
“What do you want?”
She didn’t speak for a moment, but a smile tugged at one corner of her mouth, her eyes unreadable. “I wanted to meet with you privately to discuss some things and answer any questions you may have.”
“How nice of you. Perhaps start with answering the question I already asked.”
“Why did I leave you?”
“Yes, that one, if you’d be so kind,” he said with disdain.
“Because I had to.”
“Is that your answer?”
“Because your grandparents were incompetent liars who preferred to remain ignorant instead of helping those truly in need.”
“And who is that?” he asked impatiently.
“Did your supposed allies tell you that the Skrytosphere and the Sewasphere are not the only dimensions in existence?”
Her last words sent a ripple of electricity through him. No one thought to mention that there were more than two worlds? But then again, it’s not like he could even trust that what she was saying was actually true. Although, what if it was? If it was true, how could Sven keep that from them? Zachery could see the gleam in her eyes, as if she were all too happy to cause some conflict between Sven and him, so he kept his expression bland.
“No. We weren’t told that.”
“I thought as much. There are four in total. The other two, the Hegasphere and the Petosphere, are worlds inhabited by allegedly lower life forms to be used by skryts against their will.”
“That’s a lie. Why would skryts do that?”
“I’m being honest with you. Something you deserve after all the lies you’ve been told.”
“You’re so full of crap.”
“So, there are four keys that will unlock two gates in the Year of Xaybor?” Jenna mused, raising an eyebrow. “You’ll be interested to know that the Petosphere is a world of flyers with transforming abilities. Does anyone you know fit that description?”
He didn’t answer, although Sven’s face popped into his mind.
“It’s no secret. You’re free to ask him of his origins. He will not disagree with me. And sadly, the petors are forced into submission when needed by the skryts in power.”
“So skryts are a tyrannical race who enslave other species?”
“Yes. Did you not think it was strange that Sven has been a Royal Guardian for all these years, charged with protecting our rulers unquestionably?”
“He always made it sound like it was an honourable position
.”
“Petors are conditioned to think that way. To them, there is nothing more honourable; serving a higher purpose, guarding others with their lives. But most don’t know the truth about what kind of despicable, discriminative species they serve. There are, however, some that are striving for freedom. With our help.”
“So, you’re basically telling me that everything we’ve been told is a lie.”
“What have you been told? Apart from Irisena wants to open the gates and free killer monsters, that is?” When he didn’t answer, Jenna gave a smug nod. “Not much, it seems.”
“If Irisena are so noble, why do they attack and kill everyone who gets in their way?”
“When those in power abuse it, action must be taken. Sometimes violence is the only way to achieve success.”
“You think you’re so clever. These lines may work on whatever dumb new recruits you decide to drag under your wing, but not on me. I know you’re trying to manipulate the situation. If you wanted people to know the truth, why only speak to me? Why not tell all of us?”
“Because, Zachery, before anything else, you were my son. I do not care whatsoever for the others, but I wanted you to know the truth, so you can decide for yourself who is in the right or in the wrong. And more importantly, who are the innocent and the guilty.”
“Nice try, but you’re a calculating bitch who only cares about herself, so I don’t need your truth. Can I go now?”
“You know, I never expected to hear vulgar language from you. Your father was most against it.”
“That’s funny. He seems to do it pretty often with the woman he decided to hole up with. The woman who he told me was my mother.” When she attempted to speak, Zachery interrupted her, “The wonderful couple who spent all their time arguing and fighting and left me to look after myself.”
She sighed heavily. “I hoped you would see reason, but you are too trusting of your allies and friends to see past your own ignorance.”
“My friends care more about me than you ever did. Or could.”
“Undoubtedly. Lysan!” she called out.
