She nodded. Since their link had been re-forged, she now knew everything that he did about the operas.
In this one, the Duke had been poisoned by a traitorous servant, and while he lay dying, the Duchess was forced to rally the city troops to fight off a horde of invaders from a rival city.
“You’ve got to do it,” he said. “There’s a good chance that cannon is still operational. And Bryttington … The town has to be saved. This meeting of worlds can’t start with death.”
She looked down at the rapier which he still clasped tightly in his hand.
“Take it,” he said.
He opened his hand and she grasped it, feeling the cold steel of the textured grip in her palm.
Then, Ralley was humming again. The tune spread onto her own lips, and the music lifted her to her feet.
She stood and looked towards the far door just in time to see a small figure flying through the air, only to disappear over the edge of the walkway.
Jarlus! Lanaya had thrown him, tossed him aside …
There was another flash of energy and more screams from below.
Was Jarlus gone? Was she the only one left now who could act, was it all up to her?
The song on her lips became a howling chant as she jogged forward, her rapier held ready.
She sprinted down the walkway and through the far door, skidding to a halt on the transparent floor of the chamber.
Lanaya had turned away, and was running her hands over a console at the very front of the chamber.
Two other technicians took this opportunity to bolt, pushing past Taxamia and heading for the door.
They said her men would die for her, but in the end so many run.
Only Telnon remained, standing sweaty and trembling at his console on the left side of the room.
He’s still afraid to defy her, she thought. He’ll die in terror …
Silently, Telnon looked to Taxamia with wide eyes, then turned back to his console.
Taxamia felt the floor under her feet suddenly slant forward as the nose of the great ship tilted down.
She looked out of the clear front of the ship and there below them was Bryttington town, with its neat cobbled streets and red brick houses … and Lanaya was preparing to fire on it. She could feel the vibrations of the cannon, the low shuffling and the building whistling scream.
“NO!” Taxamia said aloud, voicing it as a command.
Lanaya turned to look back at her, her crimson eyes laughing.
“Look away, child, if you must,” she sneered.
“No,” Taxamia said again—and charged forward, the rapier held high.
“You attack me?” Lanaya exclaimed, eyes going wide.
Taxamia swept the blade down.
Lanaya slid smoothly aside to avoid the blow …
And Taxamia turned, striking at one of the consoles on the right side of the bridge, smashing the steel blade down on the crystal array.
There was a bright shower of white sparks and the floor heaved under her feet as the great ship tilted swiftly upwards.
Good, she thought. A lucky guess. She’d hit the controls that she’d hoped to disrupt …
Taxamia felt her feet sliding back as the ship continued to tilt at a sharp angle. There was a throbbing she could feel through the transparent floor, a whistling and a low rumble that built and built.
The compressed ambia reserve had been tapped, she knew. The cannon was primed and ready to fire one last time.
And then, the chamber filled with blinding light as the cannon discharged.
-45-
Jinny stood in the main street of Bryttington town with Leftenant Sarde and a small crowd of people as the great dark flying thing approached the town overhead.
It turned down towards them, as if its mouth-hole were about to spit some evil venom their way. Inside the “mouth,” Jinny saw a glow of white light like a pale flame.
Going to burn us, she thought. I know it. Too late to run …
And then, suddenly, the thing’s nose cantered upwards.
There was a whistling whoosh that pierced her eardrums, and a blinding fiery beam shot from the mouth of the thing, stretching out over the town … but at too high of angle to hit anything on the ground.
The great white fire flashed over the spires of the cathedral in the north and continued on, shooting up and out to sea.
In a moment, it had flickered out, and the whistling, shuffling din was gone.
The great blue-black shiny thing continued to pass over the town, leaving the onlookers in its shadows.
There were flashes of white flame across the bottom of it now, like little explosions, and it seemed to shudder in the air.
“Maybe that was its last gasp,” Sarde said. “Just purged its guts, and now it looks like it’s dying.”
But as the ship cleared the town and headed north, out to sea, it tilted downward again, righting itself.
Was it recovering? Would it come back and burn them in the end?
“Dying …” Jinny said. “You really think it is?”
Sarde nodded. “Miss, I know a dead snake when I see it—and that one’s just hissed its last breath.”
#
On the bridge of the flying fortress, surrounded by the whistling light of the great cannon, Lanaya fought to bring the nose of the great ship down.
“Telnon!” she shouted. “Can you override … we need to re-align! We’ll lose the holy fire!”
But it was too late. The beam flickered out just as the ship began to tilt back towards a horizontal position.
Suddenly, there was an explosive shriek and a flash of white from the capacitor room outside.
“Conduits overloading!” Telnon shouted. “No hope, got to—“
There was a sharp cracking noise, and several of the crystals on his console imploded. The whole of the console pulsed with white fury—
And then, the energy exploded and the ambia burst out.
She heard Telnon scream as it engulfed his body. A sheet of the white fire spread up the clear wall of the bridge on the left side of the room, flickering and hissing.
And then there was another explosion. The wall on the left side shattered outward with a whoosh of air, taking part of the bridge floor with it.
Lanaya grabbed her console for support as wind howled all around …
The ship slowly settled back to a horizontal position … but now, half of the bridge was gone. A barely visible jagged crack ran across the gap, showing where the transparent floor had been broken off.
But there was something else.
Delicate brown hands clinging to the edge of the crack, someone dangling there, suspended over the landscape hundreds of feet below.
Her damn sister!
Taxamia was hanging from the edge of the broken floor, looking up at her with brilliant green eyes—green eyes?—and humming some song?
Lanaya stared down at her hated sibling, uncomprehending.
Taxamia laughed. “In opera,” she said, “there’s always a grand, tragic climax. This would make an excellent finale. I’m hearing the diva in my head …”
Was she mad? No matter. “I’ve wasted too many chances to kill you,” Lanaya hissed. “At least I’ll enjoy watching you fall.”
She raised her foot and prepared to bring it down on one of her sister’s manicured hands …
#
Taxamia looked up at the rough sole of Lanaya’s boot, knowing that this was her end.
But at least they’d saved the town.
She could see that the red brick dwellings of Bryttington were still clustered peacefully down below.
There might be no more da’ta se, but there could still be an alliance of nations and worlds, a chance for Oberkion’s dream.
But Ralley, Jarlus, poor Telnon—and how many others?—had paid dearly for that chance …
She drew in a breath and prepared herself for the inevitable fall.
My Ralley, she thought, love … May we be joi
ned in the next life as well.
Yao tuaed ka tuaed, yao obed ka obed.
Suddenly, there was a flash of ambia.
A thin beam of white energy, like that shot by a hand-gun, impacted Lanaya’s midsection.
Lanaya’s mouth stretched wide in a silent scream. The pupils of her red eyes swelled to become tunnels into blackness.
Her ceremonial leather armor offered no protection from the deadly energy, and it washed over her chest and torso, enveloping them.
Then, Lanaya was falling down past Taxamia …
Or rather, the Pai General’s head and arms were plunging down. Her legs followed a moment later, spinning into the airy void above the island.
Taxamia looked down and watched as her sister’s partial remains, still clutching and spasming, shrunk in her sight as they plunged towards the ground.
But who had shot her?
Jarlus, came the thought, and she could hear Ralley’s voice in her head.
Love, it was Jarlus.
Using all of the strength that the fiery state could offer, Taxamia boosted herself up, over the edge of the cracked floor. She slid forward, then was on her feet, running down the walkway.
The sunken area under the walkway was now an inferno of white fire. She ran forward and saw two shapes on the walkway itself.
Ralley was where she’d left him, near the far door, and closer was another form … Jarlus.
He was prone in the middle of the walkway, near one of the ramps leading down to the now seething pit. He held himself up with one hand, while the other rested on the barrel of the ambia rifle he’d previously snatched from a fallen guard.
But one of his legs was … Oh, gods.
He looked up at Taxamia as she approached, and smiled. “It’s finally … over,” he choked. “Damn my pride! I should have just shot her … in the first place.”
The music was humming in her mind again, that echoing aria, and the tune was now in Ralley’s voice.
The da’ta se had survived. They had to try to get out. Perhaps there was still some small hope?
“Leave me and go,” Jarlus said. “Find a flyer and go.”
“NO,” she said, wanting him to know from her tone that there would be no argument. “Come.” She bent down and helped him up.
The Xai Ashaon was small enough that she was able to slip her arm around his waist to drag him forward.
They came to where Ralley was still lying on his back. Still holding Jarlus, she squatted down and grabbed his arm, dragging him beside her. It was an awkward burden, but with her fiery strength, she could manage both.
Jarlus had said that there was a flyer bay in the rear of the ship. Was there a chance that any of those craft were still intact?
There was an explosion behind them, and the entire ship shuddered.
Taxamia felt as if she could feel the flying fortress descending, losing the support of its lofting devices. There was a wall of white shrieking in the doorway through which they’d just come; the capacitor room was a holocaust of ambia now.
She continued forward, pulling both Jarlus and Ralley, thinking about nothing but moving on.
Soon, she saw a large gap in the outer corridor wall where a conduit had blown.
When she looked out, she saw several dark crystal Baek Tayon flyers hovering outside, seeming to ease backward as the dying great ship passed them.
As she watched, a white Dameryan craft blasted one with ambia, blowing it out of the air. The Dameryan flyer turned and blasted another unmoving enemy …
They’ve stopped fighting.
As if they knew that their Pai Lanaya was dead. Or perhaps it was the sight of the great ship sinking in the air that had done it …
But their spirit was gone.
One Dameryan flyer soared closer. It was larger than the others, heavily armored, with a ram’s head ornament on its front.
Master Gaelti?
The flyer flew closer, matching their course and speed. A hatch on the top rear lifted, and Orcus Gaelti was there, staring at her through his wooden eye-shield.
“Pilot!” she heard him yell. “Careful … We need to keep the same vector … gentle!”
The next few minutes went by like a hazy dream. She handed Jarlus and Ralley over to Gaelti’s crew, then threw herself into their flyer.
They closed the hatch and sped away …
While Gaelti and his aid, Horion, tended to Ralley and Jarlus with silver aon healing implements, she looked out and saw that the great ship was continuing on.
It had cleared the island and was over the ocean now, drifting low and casting a wavering shadow on the surface of the waves.
Sparks of ambia flared down the length of the hull. Suddenly, the great vessel tilted down again. It seemed to tremble in the air …
And then the front of it exploded. There was a blinding flash and a whistling scream, and a thousand fragments showered down to splash into the water.
The remaining mass of the ship tilted down to touch the waves, still crackling with energy. It plowed down into the sea and a great spout of white water gushed up around it. The water boiled and seethed, illuminated by flashes from below as the submerged part of the hull continued to explode from within.
Slowly, the water swallowed the rest of the dark bulk until it was completely submerged, a long silhouette like a dying leviathan, highlighted by a few stray flickers of white light.
It was over.
Taxamia turned and saw that Ralley was sitting up. They’d removed the blade from his chest and were bandaging the wound.
“I’m not sure if you should get up,” Horion said.
Ralley shook his head. “The synergy created by the close proximity of our linked aona should more than compensate for any mental or muscular fatigue. And … ” he added, “our fire will burn the poison away.”
“She’s dead,” Taxamia told him.
Ralley smiled at her and raised a shaking arm to touch her cheek. “You did it, love.”
She shook her head. “No. We did it. The Xai Ashaon and the the da’ta se.”
Jarlus was still groaning, but they’d bandaged his leg. She was startled to see that Gaelti was tending to him personally, scrutinizing his injuries.
“I am not an expert healer,” the aon Master said, “but I believe that he will recover. These ancient healing tools work wonders—even if they weren’t originally intended for our species. If we can get him to an Order healer, he should …”
Gaelti froze suddenly, studying Taxamia’s face, looking her in the eyes—and then turned to Ralley and did the same
After a moment, he shook his head as if to clear it.
“I have many pressing questions I wish to ask you, da’ta se,” he said. “But for now, as we are unfamiliar with this place … can you point out a safe place to land?”
-46-
Order of Kion Master Orcus Gaelti stood on a pier on the northern end of the Isle of Briars, staring out to sea.
He held a bronze scroll case in one hand, tapping the end of it against his palm as he studied the expanse of the blue-green water and thought about the future.
The water stretched to the horizon, and beyond it was a new world that Gaelti had never known.
The remnants of Lanaya’s vast flying fortress were out there, not too far from shore, hidden under the gentle waves. Gaelti hoped he’d have the opportunity to study the wreckage.
Then, also, the locals had recovered the traitorous General’s own remains … or what was left of them. What would they make of the red eyes?
So much was at stake, and history was at a crucial point. Two days ago, just after the battle, the Garataynians had dispatched a messenger to the mainland …
Soon, a ship would appear on that watery horizon, sailing towards the island. The Lord Protector, ruler of this nation, would be on board. Presumably, they would ask him, Gaelti, for permission to summon the Phaedon from Damerya, to begin negotiations.
Oberkion’s plan was finally comi
ng to fruition after five hundred years. But if it was to succeed—if the future of humanity on both worlds was to be prosperous and secure—Gaelti would soon have to reveal the full truth. That time was swiftly approaching, and he needed advocates.
“You wanted to see us, Master Gaelti?” a voice asked.
When he heard Ralley Quenn’s words, Gaelti let out a sigh and turned. “You’re looking well,” he said.
Indeed, the youth showed no sign of his recent injuries …
“Yes,” Gaelti told him, “I do need to discuss something.”
The da’ta se stood there watching him. Their eyes had changed, and now their link was stronger than ever. That unblinking dual stare was chilling, even for Gaelti, who refused to be intimidated by anyone.
There were still two people, two bodies … but they now gave the impression of having one shared mind.
“I do not think we need to worry about privacy, do we?” Taxamia said. “These ones do not speak Dameryan.” She nodded to indicate one of the tall uniformed Grenadiers who had accompanied them to the docks north of Bryttington.
They each had been assigned a man to follow them around, and Gaelti’s own escort stood nearby.
“It is no matter,” he said. “I suppose we must deal with such nuisances until this Lord Protector arrives and Phaedon is allowed to cross over and open negotiations. I am used to dealing with suspicion, anyway.”
“Will you tell us what you promised, Master?” Ralley asked. The red-haired youth and the Princess alternated their questions, but Gaelti knew that whichever mouth did the asking, it was voicing the thoughts of their shared minds. “Back before we left for the southern jungle, I mean?”
Gaelti nodded. “I brought this scroll with me when I last left the Order’s temple. I thought that it should survive, were anything to happen to Laer and the temple.”
“This is Oberkion’s complete testament. The version the Order previously presented to Phaedon was … edited. I claimed that it had been damaged, because I did not want certain sections to be read. All that was missing is now here.” He handed the scroll to Ralley, who took it silently.
“You hid the real text?” Taxamia said. “Why?”
Battle Across Worlds Page 33
