08 Blood War-Blood Destiny

by Suttle, Connie

  "Tell me these deaths won't affect your daughter," Amara frowned at Griffin.

  "I can't say that, Amara. I can't lie, so don't ask me."

  "You just answered my question, Brenten. Whether you intended to or not. How many deaths will come?"

  "Many," Griffin muttered before folding away.

  Chapter 14

  "Any legitimate religion should welcome an investigation into their background." I'd stood when my turn came to speak. "Not only should the world in question have approval, but that approval should also come from the Alliance itself. The Charter Members look carefully into each world before it is admitted to the Alliance; why can't each religion bear the same scrutiny?"

  "Many religions have bloody beginnings, but are now widely accepted and serve the people," someone else across the room stood up to have his say. He was right about that—the Inquisition came to mind, among other things.

  "Then put a time limit on that," I countered. "If they've changed and haven't engaged in unlawful practices for the past two hundred years, then the older stuff can be ignored. I don't see Solar Red giving up their torture and sacrifice anytime soon, do you? Red Hand is right behind them on that front, and Black Mist, if they decide to declare themselves a religion—well, let's hope we're all spared that."

  "You think Black Mist will go that far?" Someone else stood and asked.

  "How far do you think they've gone already?" I demanded. "They move about freely outside the Alliance worlds and would love to gain a legitimate foothold on the Alliance itself. Believe me when I say that there's something else there besides a group of bloodthirsty assassins who'd happily kill you, along with the one you'd paid them to kill." I looked about me. My argument was falling on deaf ears; the Ra'Ak had seen to that. I felt compelled to make the argument anyway—to get my objections on record, at least.

  "Therefore," I went on, "you have to ask yourselves what it is that these religions want. Is it control? Do they wish to take your worlds from you by treachery and assassination? If so, what comes after that? What will happen when they have those worlds and only their own live upon them? Will they then war among themselves? I see no end to it. The time to stop Black Mist, Solar Red and Red Hand is now. While we have the opportunity and they only have a slight presence in the Alliance. If we wait, then we fall."

  "You only say that because Black Mist has a price on your head." Tamaritha of Twylec stood to give her two cents.

  "So, you know for certain that it's Black Mist that has a price on my head? Until now, that has only been a rumor," I shot back. "I'd like to know how you came by that information. What would you do, if Black Mist had placed the price on your head? I haven't heard you speak up before, Queen Tamaritha, even though you have what you think to be Solar Red sycophants following you around like lapdogs. If you knew what they truly are, you'd run screaming from this hall instead of standing there, defending a caste of assassins in front of the entire Alliance."

  I know—I shouldn't have let that last part slip past my lips, but just as I was always taught—words, once said, are impossible to take back. Looks like I hadn't learned that lesson yet. And when all three Ra'Ak changed inside the meeting hall and were immediately joined by their two remaining brothers, all hell broke loose. Alliance members were shouting and backing away, and some began screaming when the lengthy, coppery serpents gulped down Tamaritha of Twylec and her six guards and assistants with barely any effort.

  Alliance guards began shooting at the monsters while Alliance Heads of State fled the meeting hall amid screaming, shouting and chaos. Only a few members stayed—some were shapeshifters and had gone to their animal shapes. They may have thought to help combat the Ra'Ak. I sent mindspeech, telling them to stay back—these had been full Dark Elemaiya before their turn to Ra'Ak, and all had le'meruh. We didn't need anybody else under the influence of these Ra'Ak.

  "Lissa, more are coming, and they plan to destroy Nemizan," Thurlow whispered next to me. Garde, Erland and Reemagar were all for getting us off the planet, but stayed because I did. Six more Ra'Ak dropped in and went after anyone else left inside the meeting hall. As a second wave of Alliance guards and soldiers were killed and/or eaten by the Ra'Ak, I decided it was time to do something about them.

  * * *

  "Yes, I see them." Prylvis was on his communicator, watching the events on Nemizan through tiny cameras placed in one of his Ra'Ak servant's eyes. They all had them—Ringolar had seen to it. Viregruz hadn't wanted to call in a few of Prylvis' Ra'Ak, but had them on standby anyway. They'd left Prylvis' side quickly, when the call came from Ringolar.

  "Yours will provide the distraction while mine handle the destruction," Viregruz replied. "The Alliance is within our grasp, Tetsurna."

  * * *

  The first five disappeared while I was busy causing the last six to explode by misting inside their brains. That was certainly different—I didn't expect them to run like that. Coming back to corporeality, I looked about me, wondering if the five were planning to return and attack me. Thurlow was beside me, as were Erland, Garde, Rigo and Reemagar. Erland sent Grant and Heathe outside the building with the others, after asking them to help the wounded if they could. Now we had five missing Ra'Ak and no idea whether they were going to return with backup.

  "I cannot interfere, unless it is to save your life," Reemagar informed me softly, as more Alliance guards came forward to examine chunks of Ra'Ak dust. These chunks were bigger than their fists and someone in my group—either Erland or Reemagar—had shielded anyone left inside the meeting hall when the last two I'd killed had dusted. The chunks were nudged with laser rifles or boots as Alliance troops stared at them and then at me. I just shrugged at them, stalling for time.

  "What do you think they're going to do now?" I asked quietly.

  "I do not know, avilepha, but I think we should leave," Garde whispered back. "I do not think we are safe, although it is quiet, now." He hadn't turned Thifilathi—the Alliance cameras were still recording and we didn't need to see images of a High Demon on the rampage scattered across the Alliance—that was trouble waiting to be exploited.

  "Yeah, I get that idea, too," I muttered. My skin was itching like crazy and I had no idea what to do.

  Who knew that together—five of them—would have that much power? Had any of them ever pooled their energy before, to cause that much harm? I had the briefest moment to think about asking Kifirin if this was what he'd intended when he'd created them, but there wasn't any time to pursue that train of thought. When Thurlow said they'd intended to destroy the planet, I'd thought it would be a direct attack. It wasn't. Three inhabited worlds revolved around Nemizan's sun, all belonging to the Alliance. I knew what they planned the moment everything went dark.

  The Ra'Ak meant to destroy everything in that sun's orbit, by destroying the sun itself. Planets, moons, lives, everything. I had a shield around Nemizan, but not around anything else and certainly not its sun. Even if my shield remained in place around Nemizan, without sunlight, the planet would freeze and die. It might take a week for the whole thing to freeze up, but it would.

  I also had only a few minutes to do something—it would take little more than eight minutes for the blast caused by the Ra'Ak to hit Nemizan and its sister planets. Eight minutes to save billions of lives. No pressure.

  Connegar and I will place shields around the other two planets, Reemagar sent to me. We dare not interfere beyond that. You must find a way past this or come with us and leave the others here to their fate.

  What was I supposed to do? Five powerful Ra'Ak, who'd combined their power and destroyed a sun with it, had one major objective in mind—killing me. In order to accomplish that, they were about to kill billions. In doing so, they still wouldn't get what they wanted—I could fold away with my small party and live comfortably on my own world. And then wallow in depression and misery afterward, knowing that I'd caused billions—including children—to die. Could I live with that?

  The short answer
was no. I didn't have much time to fix things, either. What do you do when you're faced with three orphaned planets and the billions of lives that exist upon them?

  I'll help, he offered. Well, why wasn't I expecting him to show up?

  What are they supposed to do? I grumped mentally. File a change of address at the post office?

  We don't have much time, he warned. Look for a suitable sun. The placement of these worlds is critical and we have to move them before the blast from their destroyed sun hits them.

  He was right. The placement was critical if we expected to maintain climate, polar positions and a multitude of other things.

  * * *

  "Where did she go?" Erland shouted as Lissa's body went limp and dropped to the floor.

  "She has gone to energy, Warlock," Reemagar replied. "That is not the least of our worries, however. Nemizan's sun is now dead and the blast from its destruction is coming our way. And we have these." He nodded toward fifty Ra'Ak who'd appeared from nothing. "I will protect her body," Reemagar went on. "But be prepared when we," he was unable to finish his sentence; the planet lurched beneath their feet.

  "What the fuck?" Erland shouted as the grinding noise began. Wood and marble floors buckled and split beneath their feet, windows cracked and shattered in the walls around them.

  "High Demon, the cameras are no longer recording," Connegar folded in. "Reemagar and I are protecting Nemizan's sister planets. Might you slow down these Ra'Ak? They think to destroy Lissa, then feed and fold away at the last moment."

  "I'll most certainly slow them down," Garde muttered and went Full Thifilathi. His roar caused more glass to fall from shattered windows and the wind created when he flapped huge, leathery black wings caused Alliance guards to lose their footing. Roaring again, Garde launched his black-scaled Thifilathi toward waiting Ra'Ak.

  "I can help with this," Erland strode forward as the planet lurched again. It barely slowed the spell Erland hurled against the first of many charging Ra'Ak. Gardevik Rath had already twisted heads from three coppery bodies and was now chasing after others. His deafening roar created new cracks in the ceiling overhead.

  "They're running outside," Heathe shouted as he slid to a spot beside Erland. "They're eating people out there."

  "I won't mind if it's only politicians," Erland snarled and leveled another blast at fleeing Ra'Ak. He was thankful that Gardevik's Thifilathi negated a Ra'Ak's considerable power—these were racing away from the High Demon in an effort to regain their folding ability. A High Demon in full Thifilathi could neutralize a Ra'Ak's power for a hundred yards, and these Ra'Ak were only beginning to discover that fact. They could either run to regain their ability or turn and fight with the strength in their scaled bodies.

  "I'll help those outside," Rigo rushed toward the doors and the Ra'Ak who were killing in the courtyard. Rigo moved swiftly as he attacked the first two Ra'Ak he reached. They screamed in pain, too, from the deep slices dealt by his claws.

  "Oh, no," Heathe murmured as twenty-five Ra'Ak turned to attack Garde's Thifilathi.

  "No worries, young vampire," Erland said. "I've been saving this one." The blast that erupted beneath twenty-five huge, scaled serpents blew them upward and through the meeting hall ceiling.

  * * *

  We must hurry, he urged me on. I don't have the ability to change What Was. At this moment, only the Larentii Wise Ones hold that talent, and they may only use it to affect individuals or isolated incidents. For this, their power is terribly insufficient.

  I knew—in some way—what he meant by What Was. It didn't involve bending time or interference. It involved standing in the present and changing what had already happened. Somehow, those who wielded that ability had the talent for reversing any negative impact on the timeline. The Larentii Wise Ones were called that because they were wise enough to recognize when their talent was required and when it wasn't. They didn't use it often.

  Grace was alive because of the Larentii Wise Ones—she'd died when Graegar was born. Even as a newborn, Graegar held a great deal of power and he'd combined his talent with that of the others and brought his mother back. It was something I wasn't supposed to know, but I did. Connegar had told me.

  Here, I shouted.

  "Yes. This is good, he agreed. We'd found a suitable sun. Now, all we had to do was move three planets—in less than two minutes.

  Lissa, you must hurry—the blast is arriving, Connegar sent. Oh, lord. He sent images, too—the five Ra'Ak who'd pooled their power to destroy Nemizan's sun weren't finished; they were speeding up the blast, somehow. Fuck. We didn't have as much time as we thought. I turned to the one helping me. If I'd been corporeal, I would have wept.

  Think of the planets as tennis balls, he shouted inside my head, pulling me away from my mental dismay.

  * * *

  "Where the hell is Lissa? The fucking planet is breaking apart!" Erland shouted.

  "There are dead people all over the courtyard outside," Grant panted as he came to stand with Erland and Heathe. "Either poisoned or crushed by Ra'Ak. Rigo is doing what he can and some people got away, but Ra'Ak are chasing them, now. There's just too many of them."

  "They'd better fold away soon, before everything is blown to the void," Erland hissed, shooting another blasting spell toward a Ra'Ak threatening Gardevik's back. The Ra'Ak was thrown against a wall with a resounding boom, causing the wall to collapse in a pile of dust.

  "I think we should fold away soon, Warlock," Thurlow said as he coalesced beside Grant. "We will take Lissa's body. I have been energy outside the planet; things are not going well, my friend." The planet lurched again and they watched in horror as Garde's Thifilathi lost his footing and fell beneath a horde of attacking Ra'Ak.

  * * *

  Lissa, no! he shouted. What was I supposed to do—dally with three tennis balls until their equators fell at exactly the right spot? I wasn't about to do that while my High Demon mate was attacked by Ra'Ak. Three worlds were slapped haphazardly into place before I refocused on Nemizan, my mates and the Ra'Ak.

  I'm sorry to say that I ignored the shouting (and a little cursing) as he yelled for me to place three worlds in better spots. Garde would die if I didn't do something. Ra'Ak lives popped out of existence as I directed power into their brains. My High Demon's Thifilathi was slowly rising from a cracked and broken floor, his wings torn and black scales ruptured and broken in many places. He was alive and that's all I cared about.

  Then, ignoring pleas to go back and fix the rotations of three planets, I went looking for the five who'd done this to begin with. Did they think to hide from me? I laughed at their petty plans and small minds. I was powerful as energy, and the fragile tether that held me to the worlds and my corporeal existence was ignored as I searched them out. Did they truly think to hide from me? The tether loosened.

  * * *

  "I'm fine, stop fussing," Garde wanted to brush Karzac aside. That wouldn't do. The curmudgeonly physician would only return, with help from Jayd and three other High Demons, if necessary. Garde chose to ignore the healing and allowed his eyes to stray to Lissa's body instead. It lay on a table where Reemagar had placed it, appearing lifeless except for the random, occasional breath that lifted her chest. Garde turned away—it was difficult seeing her like that.

  Rigo received medical care as well—he'd been clawed by two Ra'Ak while trying to slow them down. Jeff, Shane and Franklin worked on the ancient vampire's wounds. He, too, often turned his gaze to Lissa's body.

  Erland had sailed through the fray without a scratch, although he now sat on the floor, breathing heavily from exhaustion. If the battle had lasted any longer, he would have drained every bit of his reserves.

  The meeting hall was roofless and crumbling with only three walls standing. The rest of Nemizan looked much the same. At least a sun's light was shining down—even if it wasn't the sun Nemizan recognized. "She should be back by now," Grant whispered. He'd come to stand next to Garde and blatantly stared at Lissa's body in f
ear. Garde blinked in alarm at Lissa's vampire assistant.

  * * *

  So many things went through my consciousness as I flew through the universe. All the things that troubled me in my corporeal form weren't so troubling while I was energy. In fact, they weren't troubling at all. All my cares and worries, left behind to trouble small lives on tiny planets. My body remained on a world the inhabitants named Nemizan. I barely gave it a thought as I flew free. I was of the Nameless Ones, after all.

  Yes, I knew our name, but it wasn't something any of us could repeat, except to one another. I felt good as energy. Better than I'd ever felt before. I had no pain. No price on my head or stolen child. No father who'd betrayed me, time and again. No loved ones dying or deserting me. No beatings, deaths or near-deaths. The universe was feeding me as I raced through it. I realized, then, that I didn't have to search them out. As energy, I could call them to me. The tether broke and five Ra'Ak died with barely a flick of my power.

  * * *

  "I was afraid of this." Kifirin reached out to touch Lissa's cheek, stroking it lightly. "She has discovered her true identity and is now flying unfettered through the universes, merely for the pleasure of it."

  "But she's still breathing," Erland growled softly. Reemagar held Lissa's body in his arms, and even the power of the Larentii, great as it was, couldn't bring Lissa's spirit back to it. They all stood inside the meeting hall as members of the Alliance stole back inside. Few realized how closely they'd come to annihilation. Many had died, but many more survived. Lissa had done that for them. Now, Lissa no longer inhabited her body.

  "She has a decision to make, now," Kifirin replied. "To return to her body or stay as she is. I warn you, if she does not come back to her body voluntarily within four weeks, I will allow this body to die. If she does not return within that time, she will not return. You may keep her body alive until then." Kifirin folded away.