by SGD Singh
Jax paused, breathing deeply, and the three of them waited, not looking at each other.
“Everything went quiet then, and I thought, I thought it was over.” Jax was obviously crying again. “But then another snake burst out of the sand, and another, and… Then everything happened at once. Every Jodha rushed forward, and Dhevan tried, and he almost saved her, but there were just too many, too close to her, and it… it happened faster than I could even think. And now they're both… Aquila, they're dead.”
Aquila and Kelakha froze, then turned slowly to Ursala, whose dark skin paled more than Aquila imagined was possible. He blinked at the phone as if he didn't understand what she'd said.
Aquila didn't recognize Ursala's voice when he finally said, “Say that again, Jax. What?”
“Your parents are… gone, Ursala,” she said, crying again. “I'm so sorry.”
He shook his head, his blond-streaked hair covering his face. “The Cera-Naga?”
“Chakori, Kenda, and Kai killed them, but it was too late,” Jax said. “And Kai… he may not survive until morning. Chakori left. She said she would bring someone from the safe house, but…”
“And the rest of the civilians?” Ursala demanded.
“There are three left,” Jax said. “Uma and Dhevan saved five, but Chakori… she killed two of them, when…”
Jax's voice trailed off, and Kelakha hung his head, ashamed for his mother's temper. Aquila was glad he hadn't told Kelakha about the men Asha killed in Kolkata.
Aquila said, “Okay, listen to me, Jax. Chakori will bring help, if only to save Kai, so don't panic. Stay warm, try to keep him alive, and wait for sunrise.”
“Oh, Jesus…” Jax sobbed again. “Okay. I didn't know who to call, or what… if we're all gone by morning, then someone should know… I'm sorry. Ursala I'm so sorry. If I could've… if the Reavers hadn't—”
“This isn't your fault,” Ursala said, color returning to his face and strength to his voice. “The Underworlders are after our realm's leaders. This is what they do. It's nothing new.”
“Uma was…”
“My mother lived her life exactly the way she wanted to,” Ursala said, his eyes filling with tears, “and she died exactly the way she would have wanted to. Both of them did.”
Jax started sobbing again, and Aquila shoved the phone at Kelakha, and without a word, he took it and disappeared into the inner room of the suite.
Aquila stood and moved to the balcony's railing, watching the sunrise. He was vaguely aware that he, too, had tears on his cheeks. Uma and Dhevan were the closest people to parents he had ever known. They'd raised him, taught him, and scolded him for as long as he could remember. They had always been there for him, along with Chakori and Prabhnoor.
And Afzal.
Aquila didn't want to think of his adoptive father at a time like this. His death had not made Aquila forget his betrayal, or how he had dishonored everything The Guard believed in, everything they fought for.
Uma and Dhevan's deaths were the opposite of Afzal's cowardice in every way.
Still, they were all gone.
His family was dying.
He glanced back at Ursala, who lunged to his feet, and joined Aquila at the railing.
“This is bullshit,” he said, just as Kelakha rejoined them on the balcony. “It's starting. Everything The Prophecy warned us about, everything that psycho Witch ranted about, and here we sit. Fucking idle. We don't know if anyone made it to the safe house. Hell, we don't even know if Asha and Silas destroyed the portals, or if it killed them. In fact, we know fuck all except that people are dying! And why? Because we're stuck here making sure Nidhan doesn't die, all because of some fucking rodent's fortunetelling screw up!”
Aquila heard a noise and whirled.
Nidhan took up most of the doorway. He looked every inch the terrifying Sikh warrior as he looked at each of them with an expression Aquila had never seen, even when Lexi was in danger.
After three agonizing seconds, he said, “It seems I'm surrounded by liars.” His hands were fists. His eyes seemed to blaze. “Instead of brothers.”
Aquila took a step forward, trying to think of a way to explain, but Nidhan raised his hand.
“Asha is destroying the portals?” His voice was more of a growl. “Tell me the truth. If you even know the meaning of the word.”
Aquila nodded. “Yes, she is. Nidhan, we—”
Nidhan raised his other hand, and Aquila saw he held the device Zaiden gave him.
The one that could paralyze them.
It was too late.
Before even Kelakha could jump off the balcony, Aquila felt everything but his eyes go numb—more than numb, it was as if his physical body had vanished.
“You think I'm a coward.” Nidhan looked at them as if they were strangers to him. “You think I would save myself while others die?” Aquila wasn't sure if there were tears in his eyes when Nidhan added, “I would rather you just stabbed me in the heart. It would hurt less than this.”
Chapter 21
Zaiden couldn't taste the food.
He ate anyway, just like he did everything else anyway. He sat with his father while the king solved problems, like where to plant what and who needed more space for which crop. He joined conversations with visiting royalty from across the realm.
But the truth was, Zaiden felt nothing.
He tried to smile, to be his old self. Mostly, he avoided Satish and Dinesh's pitying kindness.
Sashi, of course, noticed the change in him. She'd tried to heal him, only to discover there was nothing physically wrong.
She told him he needed something to do, to be useful, and so Zaiden volunteered to train the new Yodhaka warriors. He soon found that even pushing himself beyond the limits of his physical capabilities didn't make him feel anything other than tired enough to sleep.
That was at least something.
He tried to tell himself that each day was a little better than the last, but after more than seven sunrises Zaiden had to admit the only thing getting better was his ability to lie to himself.
And so he sat and ate, keeping his distance from the trainees and their awed respect, and tasted nothing.
To choose another's happiness over our own. Isn't that what love is?
This misery is not love.
Zaiden shook his head, as if to force his thoughts to leave him once and for all.
A trainee stood in front of him, his skin already beginning to turn golden with the realm-travel capsules he took. He held a plate of food and looked as if he expected an answer. Zaiden hadn't heard him approach, much less speak.
“Your Majesty? Would you like the dessert now?”
“Yes, thank you, uh…?”
“Farkas, Your Majesty.” The trainee smiled and traded Zaiden's empty plate for the dessert. “Can I ask, is it true they have chocolate desserts in Satya? I once tasted some chocolate my grandfather brought back and, well, is it true they use it to make many different desserts?”
“It is true,” Zaiden told him, and the trainee's face lit up. “It is also true that these desserts rot your teeth and cause disease.”
His face fell, and he mumbled, “Oh.”
“But they are absolutely delicious,” Zaiden added, smiling for the first time in days, and the boy laughed.
Zaiden considered telling him about the desserts he'd enjoyed on the island before Asha's wedding. The caramel-pecan chocolate brownie with whipped cream, the chocolate covered fruit, and the strawberry mousse pie with chocolate crust were all worth remembering.
But that was when it happened.
Nidhan called him.
Okay, Nidhan might just have paralyzed someone, but Zaiden was pretty sure the Tvastar was calling him. At the very least, he was in enough trouble that he used a weapon that he knew would alert Zaiden.
Zaiden stood, tracking Nidhan, and readying himself for realm leap.
He could see that Nidhan leaned against a door, looking into a wide ha
llway of dark wood and colorful silk tapestries. His expression was a look of such intense anger that it rendered him almost unrecognizable.
Zaiden concentrated on location, and knew where he was in an instant.
Bhutan.
He barely had time to notice the surprise on Farkas's face as he vanished.
† † †
Nidhan stepped toward Zaiden the moment he made himself visible. “Good,” the Tvastar said. “You're here. We need to get to Central Headquarters right away. Let's go.”
“Hold on.” Zaiden looked past him through the doorway. “Is that Aquila? Wha—you used the device on your own brother-in-law?”
“Zaiden.” Nidhan looked dangerous. “Asha and Silas are about to destroy the portals between worlds. For good. As in, you would have never been able to come back here. You would've never seen her again. Ever.” He pointed toward Aquila lying halfway inside an elaborate suite and halfway on a balcony. “And they said nothing.”
Zaiden sucked in a breath and took a step back. He had planned to never return, hadn't he? He meant it when he pro-mised Lexi he would leave and never be the cause of her pain again. But the finality of having her realm closed off to him for good hit Zaiden like a kick to the gut and he realized some unknown, hidden part of his mind had still hoped, in spite of everything.
“And it's not just that,” Nidhan was saying. “Things are going south with Silas' plans. The Underworlders are determined to do whatever it takes to make sure we fail. We need to get moving, now.”
Zaiden shook himself back to the present.
“I'm not leaving them like that, Nidhan. What is wrong with you? Why… wait, if things are going south, what are you guys doing in Bhutan?”
Zaiden moved past Nidhan as he talked and entered the large room. He noticed three cots set up in a row, dwarfed by a huge four-poster bed. Zaiden unfroze Aquila as he approached and passed him to go onto the balcony, where he found Kelakha and Ursala slumped against dark furniture and colorful cushions, the remains of their dinner still on the plates.
Soon all three Jodha were back to normal, though Zaiden noticed that they weren't meeting Nidhan's angry gaze. Instead, they all looked at the floor in what appeared to be remorse.
“Is anyone going to tell me what the hell's going on?”
“There's no time,” Nidhan said. “We need to make sure Lexi is all right.”
“Uh, about that…” Lexi had clearly not told Nidhan about Zaiden's decision to leave.
“What? Why are you hesitating?”
“It'll be faster if I check out the situation while you guys wait here,” Zaiden said. There was a reason they were in Bhutan, even if no one would tell him what it was. “I can go in undetected, and if they're in danger, I'll come back for you, and then leave for Tapas to bring reinforcements.”
“I like that plan,” said Aquila, and Zaiden saw Nidhan shoot him a glare that could melt stone.
Zaiden pointed at Nidhan. “Do not freeze them again. We will need their minds clear if… just don't freeze anyone, okay? I'll be back in no more than five minutes.”
Nidhan crossed his massive arms, and Zaiden got the impression his restraint would take a great effort. They didn't move to get out of his range either. In fact, they only continued to look miserable. But whatever drama he had missed was something that could wait for later.
“Wait,” Aquila said. “If you get reinforcements and Silas' plan works, they'll never be able to go home again.”
“That will be a choice they will make for themselves.”
Nidhan made a strange snort-hiss-growl. “Revolutionary idea to you, right?”
Zaiden looked at the four of them again, then shook his head. “Just, give me five minutes,” he told them. “Don't kill each other.”
He waited for each of them to nod in agreement, then Zaiden set the coordinates for Central Headquarters and vanished.
He found himself on a dark battlefield strewn with the bodies of fallen Jodha.
Before he could think, Zaiden was reaching for Lexi with the part of his mind that ran on instinct, devoid of all logic and forgetful of all noble, self-sacrificing promises.
Lexi! Oh, God, please… be okay.
Zaiden! Where—are you here?
Relief flooded every cell, and Zaiden almost fell to his knees before the shame of his selfishness in the face of all these corpses brought him back to his senses.
I'm here. What do you want me to do? Everyone outside is… gone.
This time Zaiden did fall to his knees as Lexi's crushing grief washed over him and he gasped, struggling to separate his own feelings from hers, to breathe through her anger.
We're boxed in. They were waiting for Asha and Silas to start. They fucking knew.
Lexi was close to panic, but more than that, Zaiden felt her blood lust. Her craving to destroy whatever came after them. She would not be easy to kill.
Can you hold them off for ten minutes? I can bring reinforcements from Tapas. I know I can, okay? But it will take convincing for them to leave their home for the rest of their lives…
Lexi refused to feel guilty about almost destroying the portals without Zaiden's knowledge, but even still he felt her reluctant joy at his presence. And he knew that she had felt as miserable in his absence as he had felt in hers, even if she would never admit it, even to herself.
We're holding them off so Asha and Silas can do their ‘Chosen Ones’ thing. And Ranya, too. She's here, actually helping us. But the Asura, they're making progress. They're everywhere, Zaiden. You need to snap out of your soulmate stupor and hurry.
I'll be back in eight minutes. Zaiden spread his wings and was on his feet. Nidhan and the others will be here sooner.
He hit the return coordinate to take him back to Bhutan just as Lexi's panic flared in his chest, and her voice rang in his mind.
Nidhan? Wait! Zaiden, don't—
Chapter 22
Lexi charged up the stairs three at a time, with Ariella close behind.
How the fuck did Underworlders even find this place? Can they track Silas? But then why didn't they attack days ago, when we arrived? Lexi shook the questions away. None of it made sense, and she couldn't afford to think about how screwed up everything had become. We have our plans, and they have theirs, and that's all there is to it. Figuring it out doesn't change the fact that we're in the shit up to our necks now.
She and Ariella fired holy water rounds into Asura swarming down the narrow stairwell toward them, swirling in and out of the forms of their fears in what Lexi hoped was the Underworlders' final attempt to reach the portal. There couldn't be too many more of these things, right?
“What I'd really like to know,” Ariella gasped over the deafening shrieks, while throwing a holy water grenade into the mass of Asura that looked like their friends in various stages of hideous injury, and who's shrieks were deafening in the confined space, “is how the hell Silas didn't foresee this cluster fuck?”
Ranya could've helped more, Lexi thought, for the five hundredth time. But for weeks the Witch had pretty much refused to speak to anyone except Silas, and rarely even to him. She mostly skulked in the dark corners of the portal room, like some creepy black-haired Shōjō. She even started wearing all white, to complete the look, Lexi was sure.
Whenever anyone got up the nerve to ask about Underworld-ers, she fell into fits of hysterical laughter, so they all stopped asking pretty fast. Asha insisted the Witch wasn't to be pestered, which basically meant looked at or spoken to, and stood in as Ranya's personal bodyguard on the rare occasion Silas needed to do anything other than stay at her side, like bathe or use the bathroom.
It was irritating.
“Silas Sees the end result.” Lexi leapt forward to behead an Asura and jumped back. “Which, I gotta say, I'd be happy to see happen right about now. Preferably before our untimely deaths.”
“So…” Ariella spun, decapitating three more Asura with her trishula. “What you're saying is, w
e win eventually, but that doesn't mean we win.”
It wasn't the best time to tell her that everyone posted outside was either dead or injured. “Kelakha is on his way with Aquila and Ursala, so things are looking up.”
When the time had come for the three Prophecy-Chosen to make their way down to the deepest and most sacred part of Headquarters to close the portals—to hold magical hands and sing, or whatever the hell they had to do to sever the ties between realms—Lexi had to admit Ranya showed a stoic determination to risk her life along with Silas and Asha. She had refused any acknowledgment of thanks, and simply marched down the stairs in her proud, yet extremely creepy way.
Speaking of stairs, a wave of Underworlders was surging down toward her, and Lexi shouted, letting rage fill her as she launched her last two holy water grenades into the roiling mass of black smoke.
A bat flew over the Underworlders' writhing forms, and Javin landed next to Lexi.
“Kelakha's here,” she said, her dark eyes flashing as she threw more grenades to Lexi and Ariella. “He says Upperworlder reinforcements will arrive within minutes.”
As if in protest to this news, the Asura shrieked with renewed volume, then faded into merciful silence, and a moment later Aquila stood in front of Lexi. Ignoring Ursala behind him, and the dying Underworlders at his feet, Aquila grabbed Lexi's arm, his eyes wild with panic.
“Where is she?” he yelled.
Lexi started to tell him that Asha gave orders not to be disturbed, but one look at his crazed expression had her pointing down the stairs instead. Aquila dashed past her. “Follow the sound of water,” Lexi shouted at his retreating form as it transformed to a sparrow hawk. She turned back to the battle, throwing one of the grenades. “Jeez, over protective much? I mean, it's not as if Asha's the single most capable-of-taking-care-of-herself person ever or anything.”
