Dissolution

by Kyle West

  “He started screaming,” one of the guards said. “We waited a moment, expecting some trick, but after a few seconds, we opened the door to see him writhing on the floor and foaming at the mouth. The screaming didn’t cease until he drew his last breath.”

  Even on Haris’s face, the etching of pain remained. It looked as if he had aged twenty years, even though I’d only spoken to him a quarter of an hour before.

  How could he have possibly died?

  “Poison?” one of the Seekers asked.

  “Maybe,” I said.

  Looking down at him, I felt bad for him. I didn’t want to question whether he ever would have joined with Odium had his life been a bit better. Such questions were pointless, because they couldn’t be answered.

  “What should be done with him, Anna?”

  “Bury him here at the Sanctum,” I said. “He was wrong, and he did wrong . . . but he was one of us. Once.”

  For the second time that day, we had a funeral. This one wasn’t nearly as attended as the first, and was over with far more quickly. I tried not to imagine Haris’s shriveled, pained expression lying in the coffin underground. At least he was buried far from Isandru, with the other Scholars.

  With that business done, it was time for me to meet with the Elders. I took everyone with me to that meeting, including Pallos, so he could fill them on any details I couldn’t relating to Shen.

  We stood in the center of the Elder Council’s chamber, four of the seven seats empty while the others looked on solemnly.

  “Tell us everything we need to know to help you,” Elder Arminius said.

  I did my best to oblige. It took a long time – many hours – but by the time we were through, there was a long silence. I left out some of the more personal details relating to me and Alex, but I did tell them that Elekim gave me his power to defeat Isaru, and that it was this power that allowed me to defeat Haris with relative ease.

  I looked at each of the Elders, noting their troubled expressions. There were only three: Judge Lian, Cleric Draeus, and Chief Elder Arminius. The new Elder Sage, Alan, appeared to also be missing.

  “We Elders are supposed to be wise,” Elder Arminius began. “I see now that we have only been fools.”

  Lian and Draeus turned to look at him, and neither seemed to disagree with this statement.

  “You never believed me, Elder Arminius?” I asked.

  “I . . . hoped. I was investigating the matter myself, and something about King Isaru’s account of how you killed his father didn’t sit right with me.”

  “That’s an outright lie,” I said. “Isaru was controlled by Rakhim Shal, who in turn was controlled by Odium. Isaru was possessed by Rakhim before but is now controlled by Odium directly. Until we figure out how to deal with Isaru, none of this can be set to rights.”

  “What do you suggest we do, then?” Elder Lian asked in his deep baritone.

  “We must depose him from Haven’s throne,” I said. “And drive Odium from his mind.”

  “Then it shall be war,” Judge Lian said.

  “It already is war,” I said. “The Novans are overrunning the lands of the Makai, providing a distraction while Isaru moves on Colonia.”

  “Without the aid of the Makai, there is no stopping the Annajen army,” Judge Lian said. “Isaru’s force of dragons alone would be enough to decimate us.”

  “It won’t just be us fighting,” I said. “My people in Kalear will fight. With luck, we’ll also have Nabea’s forces, too.”

  “They’re too far,” Elder Arminius said. “It would take many weeks for them to reposition themselves in the Red Wild. And they would likely not leave their homelands undefended.” Arminius looked at me questioningly. “And how many are willing to fight in your name?”

  “Not enough,” I admitted.

  “What are your numbers?” Judge Lian said.

  “Several hundred, at best.”

  “And I assume this includes those Seekers and students who defected from here,” Cleric Draeus said, a bit stiffly.

  I nodded my assent. “Yes. And there’s another group of . . . Seekers. There was a split in the order over a century ago, around the time of the fall of Hyperborea. They based themselves in the Ruins, north of Colonia and Haven. They’ve recognized me as Anna already.”

  It was hard to gauge the Elders’ reaction. Did they even know about the Sphere Priests or their connection to the Seekers?

  “I see,” Elder Arminius said. “We knew of such a group claiming to be the true heirs of Annara, and weren’t sure if it was only a rumor. These . . . priests . . . they were guardians of those Ruins, if I’m not mistaken.”

  “That’s right,” I said. “They aren’t as numerous as the Seekers, but it’s time for the two orders to be joined as one.”

  I was ready to argue and drive my point home, but to my surprise, none of the Elders raised any objections. Perhaps it was because they were too shocked to do so.

  “They have the same Gifts, and they have the same teachings,” I continued. “Whatever drove us apart all those years ago needs to be put to rest. In fact, none of us can even remember what it was that drove us apart.”

  “Perhaps I can speak to that,” Judge Lian said. “The order was split because they believed in you. The Seekers in those days had many different arenas and interests. It was these priests who believed the order had become too divided in its attentions, and had lost its original purpose.”

  “What do you mean?” I asked.

  Judge Lian continued. “The Priests, as you call them, are known among the learned here as the Marian Sect. Or, the Marian Heretics, as they came to be called during the Mindless Wars. Few know of their existence these days; indeed, they were almost written out of history. But they maintained the prophecies of their leader, Marius, that Anna would soon return and condemn Hyperborea for its sins.” He paused. “Of course, much of it seems mythological in nature. But there seems to be some truth to it.”

  “This sect still exists,” I said. “They’ve come to Kalear and have sworn to follow me. The same that I demand of the Seekers here.”

  This brought a silence, despite everything I had told them. Clearly, they were still uncomfortable with following me, even after everything I had shown them.

  “We will get to that in due time,” Elder Arminius finally said. “There are precepts, traditions. It’s not supposed to be this . . . sudden.”

  “We don’t have time for outdated traditions,” Shara said, stepping up and breaking her long silence. All eyes went to her. “Isaru is out there, and he’s going to lay siege to Colonia and take the city while we’re debating the finer details. Shanti is Anna. It was good enough for Elder Isandru and Elder Tellor. The Elder Prophet died for that truth. It takes a lot of pride to say that she isn’t good enough for you, either, especially after the way you saw her handle Haris.”

  The Elders were silent as they considered her words. The silence was broken by Elder Draeus.

  “I agree,” he said. “There is simply no alternative. She is who she says she is.”

  Elder Lian also nodded. It looked as if it took great effort to do that one, simple action. “I concur as well. Only that puts us at odds with Isaru. Isaru, who still expects our loyalty. We’ll have to pick a side publicly, and soon.”

  “We can stop Isaru if all of us band together,” I said. “If we believe his lies, then the Radaskim have already won. They are the true enemy. Isaru might still be saved if I can find a way to drive Odium from his mind.”

  “I wish we had the ability to independently verify everything you’ve told us,” Elder Arminius said, “but as Shara here has so bluntly put it, we don’t have the time. Elder Isandru’s judgment, and that of Elder Tellor, will have to be good enough for us as well. I do not like to blindly follow anyone, so I still have criticisms and doubts.” He looked at me, his brown eyes scrutinizing and his wrinkled face severe. “Any criticisms or doubts that I have are a result of my profession and my station. Eve
ry day that passes, I become more convinced of the truth of what you’re saying. Our world is on a collision course, and if nothing is done, it will spell doom for us all.”

  “I am most interested in the alignment of the Shen,” Judge Lian said. “You spoke briefly of your contact with them. Historically, they have been our enemies. What makes you think they would be our allies?”

  That wasn’t something even I wasn’t sure of. “The Radaskim bow to no one, so they are at odds with the Shen as well. As I said before, I’ve spoken with Shen directly. While I don’t think our goals align completely, the enemy of my enemy is my friend. We have much more to gain by working with them, at least in the short term.”

  “All that’s left is logistics,” Elder Arminius said. “Kalear is far from here, Shanti, and the Sanctum is well-positioned. We have already been stockpiling food and supplies. In theory, this place could last well over two years under siege.”

  “At the present rate,” Judge Lian said, drily, “the world will end before then.”

  “Nonetheless, the Sanctum guards the Pilgrimage Road running north from Haven to Northold,” Arminius said. “It is the linchpin that connects all the Annajen’s northern holdings to Haven. The Annajen’s northern domains are not as vital as their south and central holdings, but they are nonetheless important. Isaru could not ignore us if we make our alignment known.” Arminius faced me, standing and his right fist to his chest in a gesture of solidarity. “The Sanctum stands with Anna Reborn.”

  Following their example, Elders Lian and Draeus also stood, making the same gesture. I stared and tried not to gawk.

  It had finally happened. I had the loyalty that I had so longed desired.

  All I could think about was how much pain could have been avoided if only they’d believed me sooner.

  But I couldn’t focus on that. There was only tomorrow and a lot of work to do.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

  WE TALKED ABOUT A LOT of things after that. The plan for the moment was for the Seekers to hole up in the Sanctum and interrupt all the supplies flowing to the Annajen capital of Haven, and to fortify Nava Village. This meant setting up road blocks manned by Seekers and any able-bodied local men, who would form a militia armed by the Seekers’ vast store of weaponry. Of course, this meant coming out against Isaru without a formal declaration of war, but the hope was that the confusion this caused would delay Isaru from responding.

  Done in this way, most of the local territory would fall under the Seekers’ direct control.

  The Seekers, combined with the local population, was nowhere near enough to challenge Isaru’s army in full, but it would be enough that Isaru couldn’t ignore us. The flow of refugees fleeing from the north would also be put to a stop, and refugees bound for Haven would instead become an important source of manpower. Samalite men were well-drilled and would go a long way to creating an army to stand up to Isaru, if it ever came to a fight.

  In addition, the Seekers were the most skilled dragonriders in the Red Wild. Combined with the Makai forces, and the Elder Dragons who wished to fight, we could at least match Isaru’s Mindless swarm.

  Of course, I was hoping it would never come to a direct fight. If all went according to plan, Isaru would be turned back to our side and all the Elekai would band together to fight the true enemy: the Radaskim.

  The challenge would be getting this patchwork of disparate forces working together – the Makai, the Sanctum, Kalear, and Prince Nabea’s eastern army, should they ever reinforce us from the east.

  With the question of the Sanctum and Nava Village’s defense put to rest, we next focused our attention on the source of Isaru’s power and authority: the city of Haven. The road to the Annajen capital was less than a hundred miles southwest. According to the Elders, the city was lightly defended and could be taken easily, since his army was already on the march toward Colonia.

  Such questions wouldn’t be discussed here in the Elder Council chamber, however, but a general council of war held in the Seekers’ Dome.

  * * *

  When evening came, not only were the Elders present, but most of the Seekers. I stood in the center of the Dome floor with the Elders, facing out to a crowd of some hundred men, all wearing Seekers’ white and the stoles of their various Sects. On the second floor, many more apprentices and initiates were watching the proceedings.

  If there was any doubt about who was in charge, all the Elders looked to me to begin the council. All were silent as I began.

  “Challenging Isaru will not be easy,” I said, “but it is necessary. With the passing of the late Elder Haris, the Elders have unanimously agreed to instate me as the true head of the Sanctum.” That sentence seemed so brash as to not even be true, but it was true all the same. “The old days have passed. The Radaskim and Odium have influenced our world at the highest levels of authority. Isaru has taken over Haven, possessed by a Radaskim Xenomind known as Odium, whom I’ve seen in my dreams. This is the same Xenomind that’s coming to invade us . . . the same one Anna warned us about all those years ago. Odium even turned Elder Haris against us, who used his influence to keep the Seekers’ Sanctum from acting against Isaru.

  “The time for sitting back for the Seekers is over. We join with those already fighting: my personal forces in Kalear, the Makai who are under assault by Nova at this very moment, along with the Kingdom of Atlantea. Our forces are separated, but altogether, we are almost enough to challenge Isaru directly.”

  I surveyed the crowd, and was surprised to find that everyone was listening, and everyone was accepting my authority.

  “We can’t save the Makai from the Novans until Haven itself is taken,” I continued. “And now, while Isaru’s forces are on the march toward Colonia, we have a golden opportunity to strike.”

  Elder Arminius nodded to Judge Lian, who spread a vast map of the Red Wild on an old, wooden table. Many of the Seekers’ couldn’t see it clearly, but the geography of the Red Wild was well-known by all. Elder Arminius pointed to the Sanctum’s position in the center of the map. “We have a few weeks to gather what forces we can in the area and give nominal training. I’m afraid we have time for little else. At a forced march, we can be at Haven before the month is out. Our last report places Isaru’s armies in the Blasted Lands just north of Colonia. It’s rough terrain between there and Haven, so we can reach Haven before they can. We have the benefit of the road while Isaru would have to go through the Selvan to reach the city. Furthermore, Isaru will not turn back for the city until he’s heard a report of us marching south. By then, it will be too late.”

  Everyone murmured with each other about the plan, and were cut off when Elder Arminius continued. “With the seizure of Haven, it will cut the Annajen forces off entirely from their line of supply. Tons of cargo move up and down the Colorado beneath Haventree every day. Many of those barges will be floating downriver toward Isaru’s army. Isaru will be able to respond to us quickly with his dragons and whatever soldiers those dragons can carry, but he probably can’t respond with too many; after all, that would leave his ground forces open to attack by the Colonian dragonriders.”

  The plan seemed good. It depended mostly on speed. If Isaru turned back from Colonia, the flanks of his army would be exposed to the Colonians, so once committed to the siege, he couldn’t respond to the entirety of his force.

  “It isn’t as simple as that, unfortunately,” Champion Garin called out. I remembered all those months ago where Champion Garin had trained Isaru, Ret, Samal, and I as initiates. It seemed a lifetime ago. He had a new scar across this nose, but he still had the same ruggedly handsome face. “Isaru hasn’t called all of his lords to be in his levy, so we will be greeted by as many as one thousand men who will have time to garrison the city.”

  “One thousand,” Shara muttered. “That’s a lot.”

  “It is said that a Seeker can stand up to ten times the number that a normal soldier can, but we will be attacking a fortified position,” Garin continued. “M
y estimate is that we’ll take heavy losses in any direct assault.”

  “If we can make quick progress, they may surrender quickly,” Shara pointed out.

  “But only if we act quickly,” Fiona said. Everyone turned to listen to her. “We don’t have weeks to accomplish this, and we can’t count on Isaru taking that long to find out Haris is dead. If I had to guess, he’ll find out within days.”

  No one pointed out what that would mean; that there was someone here that was likely to get the message out. I saw that Fiona was right. We had to act very quickly or we would lose any advantage we had.

  She continued. “Here’s my proposal. We take what dragons we have and our best Champions. We take the Odin and rush for Haven and take it in the dead of night. There will be little but the city guard then, and even the garrison won’t have time to fortify the city or draw in reinforcements. Doing it in this way, there would be fewer needless deaths. Isaru will be forced to respond, and we’ll have weeks to fortify the capital before he returns.”

  Everyone considered her suggestion, and I could tell that the Elders seemed to like her idea better. I did, too. Anything that avoided more bloodshed was better in my book, and the plan seemed to be a lot more efficient.

  “I like it,” Champion Garin, who had remained standing. “We take the initiative, and it forces Isaru to make a decision. Return and take Haven in a bloody battle, where he loses time and men, or to push into Colonia before he is truly ready. Either way, his lack of supplies will force him back or push him forward.”

  “Could not Isaru resupply his army from the farms surrounding Colonia?” Shara said. “There’s certainly enough there to feed an army.”

  “Our agents in Colonia report that they are gathering what food can be harvested and are scorching the rest,” Elder Arminius said. “There may be some food to be had, but whatever is there won’t last long.”

  War had come to Colonia, and the burning of fields had been something I had never seen in my time living there. I didn’t like it one bit.