Song of a Dead Star

by Zamil Akhtar

  “Water, water,” Mezzin croaked.

  “No, you don’t deserve any relief.”

  “Wat-er. Nur. Nur.”

  “Let him have some.” Saina’s voice, behind him.

  How long had she been standing there? A dead fountain near the elevator still had water, the TEX Triple Triangle jetting out. She cupped some in her hands.

  “Don’t help him,” Kav said. “You’ve no idea how wicked he is.”

  “I do, actually. But I’ve seen enough of death.”

  He didn’t stop Saina. She put her hands to Mezzin’s lips, emptied the water in his mouth.

  “Mam.” Mezzin sobbed. “She’s gonna have a fit when I don’t come home. Who’s gonna make sure the servants take care of her right?”

  “Leave her to Nur, Mezzy.” Kav looked away. “Listen, I’ve hated you all this time. I can’t turn back.”

  Kav covered his eyes and sliced his brother’s neck. Saina screamed.

  “To Nur we belong and to Him we return. Sleep well, bosom bro.”

  CHAPTER 15

  THE DROWNED SUN

  Kav plodded down the stairs. He’d inhaled so much smoke, so much death, his lungs felt muddy. Saina bolted down a few levels, then stopped for him, like an energetic child waiting on a grandparent.

  Firebulbs lit the stairwell, glass panels revealed the world’s darkness. Kav tried to go faster, but his legs strained and buckled, making him slower.

  What if it wasn’t her?

  Was this the two-hundredth stairwell? Saina watched him struggle down the steps. Her eyes said something. That she was scared and uncertain. She’s terrified. Of what I’ve done, and may do.

  “You ought to just leave,” Kav said. “Every step I take gets me closer to hell. Don’t come with.”

  She continued to coast down, then wait for him. She still said something with her eyes. I know you. You’re not like that. You’re hurt inside.

  Kav stopped and sat on a stair step.

  “He didn’t make a lick of sense.” He looked up, hoping to see little bro following him down. “But he was sincere. He wasn’t lying.”

  Kav wanted to cry, but tears wouldn’t flow. “The Magus was right, I don’t know what’s real. I was always so sure of myself, so I hated him. I hated him so I wouldn’t have to hate myself.”

  Kav pushed his head into his knees and wished he could fall, the rest of the way down, to relieve what was inside. “I killed him so he could be a sacrifice for everything I’ve done.”

  If only he could cry. But he was a dry ocean, where nothing lived, on a world that had ended.

  Saina walked up to him. “I don’t know much about you, Kav. You’re still a mystery to me. But I do know that you helped me. You protected me, and you didn’t have to. No one made you responsible for me. And for that, I’ll always pray for you, for the rest of my life.”

  “That doesn’t outweigh the evil I’ve done.”

  “You’re the only one I know left in the world. I don’t want you to suffer. And we probably don’t have much time left. If there’s something you want off your chest, you can tell me.”

  Listen to her. That was not his thought. Get yourself together, Kav. Despite your mercurial decision making, worlds have aligned in your favor. Only one task remains for you and Layla to be together forever.

  Kav opened his eyes, got up, and treaded down the stairs. Anything to avoid the whispers.

  I can burn these words onto your brain. You saw her with your eyes. If you don’t trust them, ask the red-eyed girl. Go get Layla! That’s all you have to do! Literally, you’re there!

  He jogged side by side with Saina. “So, what’s your favorite food?”

  “Favorite food?” Saina ruffled her nose. “Isn’t there something you want to tell me?”

  “First, tell me your favorite food.”

  “Umm...I like mangos. The kind that grow in the villages near the mountains in the south of Almaria.”

  To get Layla back, you will need strength. Enough to protect her. The same power that freed this country can be yours. Plug in the Key.

  He could feel Layla’s bond in his pocket, warming his thigh, demanding to go inside him. It dripped honey and her sweat on his skin, enough to drive him mad.

  “Mangos? So you guys like mangos too?” Kav ran faster. “People are crazy about them here. Especially mango flavored drinks and even mango curries.”

  Without it, without my help, you will not win. This, I promise you.

  Words were all Zauri had left. Lacan’s injection took all feeling below the neck. Her body was now a puppet being attached to wires. She thought of the boy in the garden. Was he the same boy? Didn’t he shout “Layla?” Did it matter?

  Merv held her thighs and carefully rested her on the seat.

  “You’re...” What’s the point...

  She would be seated like this for days, weeks, or maybe months.

  “Say it.” Merv glared at her. “Whatever you think, I want to hear it.”

  He waited. She said nothing, so he continued plugging her in. The tubes coiling out the ceiling would be wired to her spine.

  Zauri couldn’t take it. “You’re shameless.”

  “It’s not my intention to touch your naked body.” Merv screwed a wire to an aperture on her upper back.

  “You know that’s not what I mean! You don’t feel bad about what you’re doing.”

  He stopped, said in monotone, “I do. I want to tell you, Zauri, that I wish I didn’t have to.”

  “Why do you have to?”

  “There are things that matter more than you or me.” Merv touched her scalp, brushed it. “If you or I have to suffer for our people, for Elkaria, then it’s worth it.”

  He moved to her front. “I need to shift you so I can access the slots on your lower back.” Touching her shoulders, he tilted her forward. He was the puppet master; she had no will of her own.

  “I met someone the other day,” Zauri said. “A girl from the city you made me burn. She spoke our language, looked like any of us. So why...why did you make me do that?”

  Lacan walked in. He rotated prayer beads in his hand. Three a second. Tk-tk-tk.

  “You need to hurry it up,” he said. “I want to get out of here within the hour.”

  Merv screwed in another wire. “We’re almost done. But she’ll need time to get acquainted with this ship. Even though you used some Maymanah parts, it’s still a radically different vessel.”

  Lacan inspected the wires, then turned to Zauri. “You know where we’re going?”

  Zauri ignored him. “Merv, when you die, you’re going to hell. And so am I. Because my mother, and your mother, weren’t Elkarian, weren’t of Nur. Doesn’t matter what we do.”

  Merv began rechecking each wire.

  “She’s awful fond of you,” Lacan said. “Why don’t you explain to her our mission?” The man walked out the door. Tk-tk-tk-tking his prayer beads.

  Merv did the remaining work in silence, as if he didn’t want to face her. But she wanted to face him, so he could know how much she hated him.

  “When we’re both in hell, when we’re both floating in a river of fire,” Zauri said, “I’ll climb on top of you, my flesh on yours. So that the fire in me burns you too.”

  Zauri was now fully connected. Merv pushed her back in the seat, gently resettled her arms, and slid the fabric mask over her face. Sight was lost, so she closed her eyes, like she’d done hundreds of times.

  “We’re going across the sea, into Haemian territory,” Merv said. “Lacan says that we’re going to bring an end to this war, that with you, we can destroy the Throne of Angra Mainyu, and then the Haemians will all just leave us alone. And once we finally have peace, we’ll go home, back to Reborn Elkaria — as heroes, as Elkarians. I hope the idea of going home gives you some comfort.”

  “You told me that this was our home.”

  “I was wrong. This place, this Eden, is even darker than the belly of Haem from which we came.”
<
br />   Soon, the wires sucking her light would extend her being. Her soul would fill the walls and floor and fly through the sky.

  “When we were on the other side, you would tell me stories of how peaceful this place was, how Eden was where we belonged. And now because you want to go back, you say the opposite.” Zauri felt herself metalize, expand. “You’re just using me, like always, like everyone I’ve ever met in my entire life.”

  To go home, to Eden, they crossed over the Wall — the Barrier of Iskander. She’d seen it with her eyes: a red hurricane, eternally part of the scenery, whirling atop the mountains north of Reborn Elkaria.

  A cold fire, an impenetrable sight.

  That day, a few weeks ago, it raged against her metal body. Its anger almost cut her wings, nearly shredded her walls. It tossed her side to side, wrestled her down, spun her around. As if all the violence of Nur was poured on her. Then they passed the storm, and the air was ice.

  We got through! You did it! Merv messaged. Everyone is cheering and singing. We’re home! You’ve done the impossible!

  Did we really? It hurts...

  Stay connected, you’ll be alright. Where does it hurt?

  I feel full of holes — everywhere. I can’t see. I can’t feel. I’m going to bleed out.

  Switching to collective control! Hang on!

  She blacked out. Merv must’ve thought she was dying. He told her later that he demanded the Marshal disconnect her and order a full checkup. He got his way.

  She awoke on a table, surrounded by an array of doctors. She felt tiny in her human body, feeble, as they tested her nervous system and sensory reactions. With every prod and poke, her skin felt more foreign, and looking at the smooth metal walls, she felt like a parasite. A parasite within herself.

  She became the Maymanah again, waking up in a world where the sky was her bed and the clouds her blanket. Looking up at her was a planet alive, reaching out to her with mountains, inviting her down to lush forests and tundras teeming with creatures. This world, they called Eden.

  Zauri, I always wanted to ask you, how does it feel?

  She wanted to tell Merv, but words were too small.

  I feel like I’m fully myself. Like I was born for this.

  You were. You’re amazing...but you must be tired of hearing me say that. Anyway, I’ve got our next assignment. The whole crew is standing by for this operation. Now, you’ll really get to show everyone what you can do.

  Merv told her that thousands of miles in the distance, there was a tower. The Shirmians had built it in order to hear “secrets from heaven,” and it was her job to stop them before they discover “terrible truths” which would “destroy themselves and everyone.”

  Fill yourself with sun, and find that tower. It’s far in the north, and it sticks out, protrudes from the earth. There are no mountains around it, only a city, forests, and plains.

  Instinctively, she knew what to do. By willing to see far, everything close blurred. Her sight traveled to the edge of Eden and she saw the tower. At first, it seemed like a strand of white hair on the hide of a black animal. As she concentrated, it became clearer and realer.

  Now it seemed like a dagger stabbing the earth, making it wail and bleed. Foreign, unnatural. A parasite.

  Do you see it?

  I do. So clearly.

  My mind is blown. You’re so amazing!

  It’s ugly.

  It was also the only thing as high as her. She felt like if she were to fly near, it would swat her out the air, and she would bite back, and the battle would end with one of them broken upon the earth.

  Release your light, right at the tower. Bring it back to the ground.

  She inhaled more sun. Her mind itched for this. It felt like a game, like target practice.

  Unleash.

  Straight at it, she shot her blue death. But the beam curved and hit somewhere in the sea. The tower still stood.

  I missed.

  Then, it spoke to her. Hello? You shot at me! Who are you?

  Zauri didn’t understand.

  Hello? It repeated.

  How could it talk to her?

  How could she talk back?

  She stared at it, horrified that such a thing was alive. Just like her.

  Hello? My name is Majnoon, what’s your name?

  And then, from the sky, a light cut the tower like a sword slices metal. And it burned and smoked and crumbled.

  Zauri, according to our spectrum reading, the tower just fell. You hit!

  Did someone just die?

  No, no I didn’t. That wasn’t me. I swear it wasn’t me.

  What do you mean?

  Something else, something from the sky fired at it and killed it — not me!

  Calm down, you must be miss-seeing things.

  I don’t just miss-see things! I swear, I didn’t do it!

  I didn’t kill anyone. Please say hello again.

  Now on the first floor, sweat drenched the neckline of Saina’s thug shirt. She looked like a Son who’d spent the day hustling on a corner. Sitting against the stairwell wall, she pressed her thighs to her chest and rested her head.

  For Kav, it was his mind that tired; whispers had bothered him the whole way down.

  Don’t stop here, Kav. Go a few more floors down. Into the cave.

  Whenever he blinked, he saw Layla as a clear blue crystal. He could leave, or go to her.

  You’re not really thinking of leaving? I promised you I would bring you to her. I did my part, you must do the rest.

  For all I know, it’s another trick in your endless bag.

  If you don’t believe your own eyes, ask the red-eyed girl.

  “Saina, did you see anyone up there? A girl?”

  She was still panting. “You mean that hairless girl with blue eyes?”

  “That’s her!” Kav knelt, put his hand on Saina’s shoulder. “You definitely saw her? You’re sure?”

  “Yeah. Actually, I ran into her earlier.”

  “Really, did you talk to her?”

  “Only a little bit, why? And was that Sheikh Lacan?”

  “Never mind about Sheikh Lacan,” Kav said. “Did the girl...tell you her name?”

  “Zauri...’the devil’s name’, or so she said. Why would Sheikh Lacan be here?”

  “Who knows?” Kav stood. “That girl...looks exactly like my wife.”

  Saina paused and puffed her breath out. “That’s, uhh, what? How? Really?”

  “If only there were time to explain.” Kav walked to the edge of the stairway down. “But you saw her, and that means she was there. And so, I need to know.”

  The grime on Saina’s cheek sparkled. Her gaze traced the floor in random patterns.

  “Get out of here, Saina. Go back to the boat, get the hell away from the islands. It’s your only chance.”

  “No! I’ll go with you.” She scratched her forehead, played with her thug hat. “Don’t refuse. I’ve got no other place to go. Don’t. I’m not going out into the dark alone!”

  “Saina—”

  “She only speaks Kalamic. You won’t even be able to communicate with her. So you’d better take me along!”

  “Only speaks Kalamic?”

  Don’t bring her, Kav. She’ll become jealous and kill Layla.

  “She couldn’t utter a word of Shirmian,” Saina said. “And you think I’ll make it out there? Alone? In the middle of a war? With Haemians on the way? I’d rather take my chances with you.”

  “Saina, I can’t protect you.”

  “I don’t care! I’m coming with you!” She stood like a readied soldier.

  “Listen,” Kav said, “if anything happens, you run. Okay? Don’t let me be the cause of your downfall.”

  You’d carry all that extra baggage, just to spite me? I’m on your side.

  “One thing I’m good at,” she smiled, like it was the end of the world, “running fast.”

  You’re making a mistake.

  Kav stepped down a single step. “L
et’s go.”

  The blue pearl glistened seven stories below. They took it slow, Saina behind, blade in front. Nothing but stairs until spectrum showed them level, and they walked out the stairwell into a corridor.

  Each step closer, Kav’s heart beat faster. Concrete gave way to stone. Black stalagmite walls flanked a gravel path. Her warmth was close.

  They arrived at a hollowed cavern. You could fit Ekrah Academy in here. A pool of seawater lay beneath — mossy green, smelling of fungus. A pier was stitched across the water, off which a metal platform floated: the head of a levship, its body underwater.

  “She’s inside.” Kav noticed a square door with a handle. “Let’s see if that hatch is open.”

  Half the head was gunmetal black, the rest raw grey. Bits of gunmetal trailed onto the grey — an unfinished paint job.

  The ceiling firebulbs revealed a shadow on the floor, coming from behind a stack of crates. The outline of a person.

  Kav readied his weapon. “The light’s given you away! Might as well come out!”

  A lion of a man emerged. Tall, muscular, Shirmian. Mint leaf between his lips.

  “You must be Shar’s man.” He picked the mint leaf out of his mouth. “I’m on your side, relax.”

  “Who’re you?” Kav remained vigilant.

  “Name’s Aasad. You might have heard of me before, cadet. After all, I am the head of the Yanisari.”

  Of course. This was the guy who gave that lecture at the academy about everyone being “children of Nur” and how Eden should be united.

  “You’re not going to salute me?” the man continued. “I guess it can’t be helped. What’s rank at a time like this? Or maybe you’re in shock, wondering why someone so important is here in this dank cave.”

  “Your rank doesn’t matter to me,” Kav said. “Why are you here?”

  “I was going to do what you’re planning to, but changed my mind, since it’s suicide to go in there.”

  “Suicide?”

  “Suicide.” Aasad scratched his blond beard. “The sun’s gone. You and I, we’re helpless without it. Can’t conduct, can’t communicate. But the Magus in there, he’s not at all diminished, because he has access to an unseen source of energy.”