“What about Elena?” asked Astlin.
Teg turned to face her. “Elena’s a good kid, but she’d be the first to say she doesn’t want the job. She just wants to be left alone. We need gods who actually care. We need more like you.”
Astlin’s mouth hung open. “I’m not a god!”
“You could be,” Teg said like a mechanic diagnosing engine trouble. “Elena, Vaun, and Zadok aren’t real gods anyway. They just go along with people treating them like they are. Maybe what we need are gods who know what it’s like to be human.”
“Shaiel used to be human,” Astlin said.
“But he’s always been a prick,” said Teg. “The point is, people are going to follow you whether you like it or not, so you’d better lead them someplace worth going.”
Teg waved his arm over the soldiers gathered below. “You want to save everybody from the Nexus? Most of those men down there could be dead in a few hours. You could pass up your only chance to tell them how to escape this flytrap world, but I can’t imagine you hating them that much.”
Nakvin and Elena strode across the circular lawn, their white garments rippling in the cool breeze. Though one had night black hair and the other light brown, Astlin couldn’t help noticing how closely they resembled each other.
“It’s almost time,” Nakvin said. She nodded to Teg. “You don’t have to go through with this.”
Teg opened his brown jacket. He checked the mirrored white pistols in their shoulder holsters and the protective aura generator clipped to his belt before fastening the jacket closed again.
“I’m all dressed for the ball,” he said. “Might as well dance. Besides, my date will be pissed if I stand her up.” He winked at Astlin.
I hope Celwen comes through for him, she thought.
“When everyone is in position, Mother will synchronize the local flow of time with the Middle Stratum,” Elena said. “We’ll open the gate, and I’ll instantly transport Teg to Cadrys.”
“You know the insertion point?” Teg asked.
Elena nodded.
“Vaun should send Xander through at almost the same time,” said Nakvin.
Butterflies swarmed in Astlin’s stomach. “What do you think he’ll do?”
“Unless godhood has mellowed Vaun out,” said Nakvin, “I expect a lot of blustering, threats, and arrogant demands. But the fact is, we really don’t know what he has planned. That’s why I wore myself out stretching time. Speaking of which, Anris, how’s your star pupil?”
Anris’ huge hand patted Astlin’s back. She stepped forward to keep from falling down.
“She is formidable,” Anris said. “I almost pity any foe foolish enough to invade your kingdom, Majesty.”
Astlin could feel herself blushing. “I’ll do my best.”
“Good,” Nakvin told her. “You’re up here with Elena and me. As for Anris, I think you have an army to lead.”
The malakh bowed deeply to his queen. “As Your Majesty commands.”
To Astlin’s amazement, Anris leapt into the air. It was the first time she’d seen him spread his wings. The cloudy sky gave their white feathers a silver sheen as he spun in midair and glided down to the field below.
“That’s my cue,” said Teg. He started toward the edge of the platform.
“Okay,” Nakvin told the other two women. “Let’s line up on the walk leading to the platform. Vaun might not send a ship, but if he does, opening the gate here should coax him into landing instead of opening fire. And if he gets cute, we can take the ship down without collateral damage.”
Teg’s words, which Astlin had been grappling with, finally moved her to make a decision.
“Wait,” said Astlin. “I need to say something—something I should’ve said months ago.”
Nakvin smiled. “It’s not like Anris gave you much time to make speeches. Go ahead. What’s on your mind?”
“I need to tell everyone,” Astlin said.
Nakvin’s brow furrowed. “Define everyone.”
“All of the people who might die today,” said Astlin.
“Yeah, that’s everyone,” Nakvin said. “Go for it. But remember, we’re short on time.”
Astlin faced the parapet and the broad field below. She closed her eyes, feeling the wind tousle her hair and her long silk skirt, and concentrated. She sensed Nakvin and Teg’s minds and Elena’s towering soul. Her awareness expanded, touching an unseen presence nearby, and casting itself over the palace, city, and hill of Seele before spreading over the plains.
In telepathic contact with every soul for miles, Astlin’s words deserted her. She nearly faltered, but a feeling of calm reassurance radiated from Teg.
Just show them, he urged her.
As if she and Avalon’s people were joined in a dream, Astlin showed them the stark glory of the Nexus—the countless silver cords streaking through the ether; tethering each man, woman, and child to Zadok’s soul.
With every mind enrapt in wonder, Astlin gave them a vision she’d shared with only Xander. She took the teeming crowds through the black walls, past world-sized crystal planes in every known color and many colors none of them had seen, to the heart of the Nexus. The inability of Gen and human minds to know Zadok as he truly was left all of them in total, silent, darkness.
Unease flowed back to Astlin through the telepathic bond, threatening the onset of panic. But she didn’t fear the dark and couldn’t fear what came after.
A light appeared beyond the darkness. It looked small, but it shone as if no man, Gen, or malakh had seen light shining or felt the sun’s warmth before; as if the White Well was a cool distant star preceding the sunrise on the day of a wedding feast.
The growing splendor contained everything—every light, every sound; all life and all joys—without mixture or confusion. The light of all welcomed all souls to take part in its boundless life; not by losing themselves, but by letting it make them what they truly were.
Astlin showed the others the irrevocable choice she’d made—accepting the light’s invitation to live in it; for and of herself. Every mind in Seele delved into the captivating radiance until it became as darkness, revealing the awful shroud of unknowing in Zadok’s heart as a pale imitation.
The perfect serene darkness wouldn’t let her look beyond it unless she passed back through herself, so Astlin ended the vision with a final plea.
The Nexus will try to take some of you soon. Remember the way through, and you can keep yourselves!
Utter silence seemed to have spilled out of Astlin’s vision and into the world. She turned to see Teg and Nakvin—along with Ydahl, who’d been the unknown presence lurking nearby—giving her unsettling stares. Elena looked troubled.
Teg’s eyes moved from Astlin to Elena. “I’m pretty sure you’re not God.”
“Not even close,” Astlin agreed.
Ydahl staggered onto the grass, knelt down before Astlin, and fell on her face.
“I don’t think Ydahl’s convinced,” said Nakvin.
Astlin bent down. “Ydahl honey, please get up. There’s nothing to be scared of.”
When she raised her head, Ydahl’s eyes held no fear; just yearning. “What you showed us,” she said as Astlin helped her up, “Was it true?”
Astlin brushed the grass from Ydahl’s green dress. “You saw my memories.”
The girl opened her mouth, but bit her finger as if afraid to speak.
“What is it, Ydahl?” asked Astlin.
Ydahl’s face fell. Suddenly she didn’t look like a girl anymore, but something unspeakably old and weary in a child’s skin.
“Is it really like I saw?” asked Ydahl. “No more being lonely and afraid? Do they really not care about the bad things I did?”
Astlin cupped Ydahl’s face in her hand. “We’re a lot alike. I lost my family, and did bad things, too. After leaving the Nexus I found out I was just a shadow. To the light, I hadn’t done anything at all. But the light made me real, and anything I do from now on could mean
staying in the light forever or being cast out of it forever. Do you understand?”
“Does everyone who gets out come back here?” Ydahl asked.
“No,” said Astlin. “Just me and Xander so far, and only because we had something important to come back for.”
Ydahl sniffled and cleared her throat. “Will…will you send me there?”
“No—” Nakvin started to object as she stepped forward, but Elena held her back with an outstretched arm.
“Are you sure?” Astlin asked Ydahl. “The light will give you a second chance. But if you don’t change, you could end up far worse off than you’ve got it here.”
The life seemed to leave Ydahl’s eyes. “I don’t want to be here anymore.”
“Remember what I showed you,” said Astlin. “Follow the memory.” She cradled the girl’s face in both hands.
“Good luck, kid,” said Teg.
Ydahl glanced at Nakvin. “Thank you.”
Nakvin covered her mouth.
Astlin searched Ydahl’s soul. The dead girl didn’t have a silver cord. Instead, her body was a simple container for her shard of the Nexus. The artificial ties that bound Ydahl’s soul within her body yielded to Astlin’s will. Without a spirit to give it form, the girl’s body crumbled to ash that blew away in a black stream over the hill and the field below.
Teg was the first to ask the question on everyone’s mind. “Did she make it?”
Astlin had followed the tiny soul’s flight through the ether. For one terrible moment it had begun sinking into the jaws of the Void, but a sudden burst of prana had sent Ydahl’s fragment soaring toward the Nexus—another cosmic beast seeking to devour the child.
Ydahl’s soul passed through the onyx walls of the Nexus; sped toward its black heart…
Astlin fought for breath like a pearl diver surfacing for air. Her emotions ran wild, making her body tremble.
“She made it,” Astlin said in a voice halfway between laughter and weeping.
A sharp exhale passed Teg’s lips. Nakvin did shed tears, but she quickly composed herself.
“We’re one down Astlin,” Nakvin said. “You’d better make up for it.”
Astlin couldn’t hold back a relieved laugh as she nodded.
But where did that burst of prana come from? Astlin looked at Elena, who stood quietly beside her mother.
“I hate to kill the mood,” Teg called from the platform’s edge, “but if I don’t raid Cadrys soon, it won’t get done.”
Nakvin motioned to Astlin, who joined her and Elena on the walkway leading to the landing pad.
“We’re about to open the gate, but first things first.” Nakvin turned to her daughter. “Elena?”
The goddess of the Well pointed at Teg. “Done,” she said.
Teg rubbed the back of his neck. “Do you have wasps around here?” I think something stung me.”
“I attached a prana thread,” said Elena. “You’re now a pseudo facet of my nexus.”
“I guess Vaun isn’t the only one who can hand out extra life cords,” said Teg. “Can you give me a dozen as insurance?”
“It doesn’t work that way,” Nakvin said. “Elena will be keeping an eye on you through the cord. When you’ve got Smith and his toys, or if you need to be pulled out before that, just think it, and she’ll reel you in.”
“Beats riding the bus,” said Teg.
“Everyone ready?” asked Nakvin.
“I’d ask all of you to pray for me,” Teg said, “but why add an extra step?” He looked to Elena. “Don’t let me die.”
Nakvin pressed her hands to her temples. Nothing seemed to change. “Alright. Local time is back in synch with the Middle Stratum. Let’s get this over with.”
“Teg!” Astlin called out. “Good luck.”
The only other living Kethan gave Astlin a casual salute and vanished.
“Did he get to Cadrys in one piece?” Nakvin asked Elena.
Astlin never heard the answer. A bone-shaking hum split the air and set Astlin’s teeth on edge. Waves of nexic force pulsed through the sky before a black, three-pointed shape appeared.
The Kerioth!
The nexus-runner overshadowed the landing pad like a storm cloud. The deafening hum ceased. And suddenly, for the first time in months, Astlin felt a familiar presence.
“Xander is on that ship,” Astlin said.
“He’s not alone,” said Elena.
32
Celwen was in the Aqrab-class ship’s engine room rechecking the propulsion systems when she realized she wasn’t alone.
It wasn’t just the sound of soft footsteps on the deck grating that made her turn from the engine with a gasp. It was the failure of all the ship’s alarms and her own nexic senses to warn of the intrusion.
Celwen’s racing heart nearly stopped when she saw a masked, robed figure standing in the dim emerald light behind her. But she breathed a relieved laugh when she saw it was Gien.
“I’m here,” the Magist said. “I got your message and I came.”
Celwen closed the engine access panel; reducing, the compound odor of an infirmary and a brewery.
“You took your time about it,” she said. “I had given up waiting.”
Gien held up his right hand, fingers splayed, and the index finger of his left hand. The tips of all were crusted with scabs.
“Your message said we had to meet within six days. This is day six.”
Celwen shook her head. “How did you get in here, anyway? None of the sensors were tripped, and I would have felt nexic translation.”
“I used velocitation; not translation,” Gien said with a crooked grin.
Impressive, Celwen thought. Unlike translation, which shot a subject through space as a prana stream, velocitation reduced the distance between two points. Power was only expended at the starting point, which explained why Celwen had failed to sense Gien.
“There is little time left,” Celwen said. “We may already be too late, so I will speak quickly.”
Gien looked at her attentively while chewing on the tip of his left thumb.
“Today,” Celwen said, “possibly at this moment, my friend is attempting to infiltrate the House of Law on Cadrys. He plans to recover certain items and prevent Shaiel’s conquest of the universe. I need your help to distract the Lawbringers and the Cadrys Navy.”
Looking up and to the right at something invisible, Gien licked his bloodied lips. “You’re special. I should be you.”
The compliment—if it could be called one—took Celwen aback. “Thank you?”
Gien turned and shuffled out of the engine room into the dim corridor beyond.
“Are you going to help me?’ asked Celwen, following after him.
“Sure!” said Gien. “I always help myself.”
Xander, Astlin projected at the Kerioth as its black trefoil hull landed at the center of the white stone circle. If you’re hearing this, please answer me!
The lack of a response dismayed Astlin, but it didn’t surprise her. The ship’s nexic shields were up, making it impossible to reach the mind of anyone aboard.
But Astlin had senses beyond nexism, and they told her that Xander was aboard the Kerioth. Feeling his presence gave her comfort. Elena’s warning that he wasn’t alone instilled equal fear.
Astlin’s anxious hope lingered as she stood at Nakvin’s left facing the landing pad. The birds in the trees behind them remained silent. The soldiers on the field below had stopped their chanting. Even Elena, who studied the ship from her place at Nakvin’s right, held her peace.
I should just go in there and find him myself, Astlin thought. She knew the Kerioth’s interior well, and nexic shields couldn’t keep her out.
Astlin formed a mental picture of the nexus-runner’s bridge, but before she could will herself aboard, Xander appeared.
He stood on the landing pad under the ship’s dagger-sharp bow, dressed in a short robe of umber-colored wool over light grey arm and leg wrappings. The awful white
mask still covered the face below his shaved scalp. But Astlin noticed a change.
The ruby’s gone!
Elena was right. Shaiel had removed the Souldancer’s vas from the mask and left it on Cadrys. Which meant that Teg’s mission had a chance.
Nakvin stepped forward with a slight shiver. “You came to deliver a message,” she said to Xander. “So talk.”
Dark eyes regarded Nakvin from behind the mask. Astlin stifled a cry when she saw they weren’t Xander’s. Instead of a lively light grey, these were the dead color of frosted flint.
The voice that spoke likewise resembled yet corrupted Xander’s. “Your hospitality is noted, my dear harpy. I note also that you exhausted nearly all of my forbearance before opening your gate.”
“I don’t rush decisions,” Nakvin said.
Elena surprised Astlin by speaking up. “Your host is still inside the ship’s nexism-occluding shield. What are you hiding?”
“A question better addressed to you from your harpy of a mother,” Shaiel said through Xander. “Temil was a toothsome foretaste of my final victory in our game. Now, thanks to your sentimentality toward Peregrine’s swordarm, I claim the rest of the spoils.”
Nakvin rounded on her daughter. “What does he mean your game? How is Teg involved?”
For a moment, Elena looked less like a goddess and more like a teenage girl caught in a lie.
“Teg was going to burn up over Keth,” Elena said. “Shaiel was the only one in a position to help.”
Nakvin’s silver eyes blazed. “So you made some kind of deal with him?”
“I arranged for Teg to reunite with Astlin, and for both of them to remove the Shadow Caste.”
“You handed a whole sphere over to Vaun?”
Elena stood her ground. “He and his Blade did most of the work. There was also a Night Gen spy. I saw her through the eyes of a crab cake vendor.”
“Give yourself due credit,” said Xander’s stolen voice. “If not for you sister, my Blade would not have recovered my mask; nor acquired this most useful host. And had those events not transpired, I would not be standing where I most desired to plant my banner.”
Astlin couldn’t hold back her growing frustration. “You’re not standing here,” she said. “Xander is! Why do you keep possessing my family members?”
The Secret Kings Page 28
