Prophecy's Quest

by A. S. Hamilton

  'Andarin, move to the intermediate plane and strike from there,' Brynn instructed. 'Change planes every five, ten, and fifteen heartbeats.'

  Brynn felt four of his barriers fall before Nisari's attack, prompting him to shift to a may-en-ghi plane. Andarin and Akileena followed. Brynn knew from the may-en-ghi that Nisari and Colnba had never been tutored by them and would not know how to access these planes. Nor would they know for certain where the rebel mages were going.

  Brynn shifted again, leaving the Debanikay brothers. This plane was one the may-en-ghi only revealed to a select few and Brynn often used it to access other planes undetected. He came down through Colnba's planes of the past. The mage was quick though and diverted Brynn's attack. Still, he would spend more than a few moments trying to figure out how Brynn had breached his shields. The move distracted Colnba's rahn long enough for Brynn to reinforce his own shields.

  Sershja was almost back on the valley floor, a stream of soldiers close behind. 'Andarin, I am going to need that spiked ditch.'

  'It is already in place, keep going straight, I will form a bridge for you to cross it.'

  Brynn gave Sershja another talented boost as the horse made great leaps down the slope. They did not look back to see Malithorn's soldiers fall into the concealed pit.

  To Brynn's dismay, Abbarane soldiers had made it into the eastern gully. Now, a few hundred riders were bearing down on the beleaguered group from the east. Riqu started to form a shield between the oncoming riders and Brynn, as the Saviour would not reach the group in time. His shield was cast aside before it could form. Hastily, Riqu gathered his energies, this time trying from a different plane. At the same time Andarin started to form a ditch in front of the attacking riders.

  'Do you not recognise seeca when you feel them, old raven?'

  Riqu laughed with sheer relief. 'Is that you, blade-master?'

  'You bet Fate it is,' Keysjhon confirmed. 'We are here to break the line and get you to safety.'

  At the same time that Keysjhon's riders arrived, those pursuing Brynn hesitated, trying to gauge what was happening. The hesitation was long enough for Brynn to send out a wave of force throwing those behind him to the ground.

  Sershja neighed in greeting. 'It is Del-era.'

  'I know, I know,' Brynn sent, trying to keep the tension from his tone. It was actually going to be harder to get over three hundred out. He had hoped to convince the Abbarane mages they intended to escape westwards, where he had weakened the formation. Once he returned to the group, he had planned to use a series of brief but forceful attacks on the western flank to reinforce this belief, before creating an illusion of the group heading for the western slope while they escaped eastwards.

  Brynn had asked Keysjhon to meet them in the eastern gully, for some reason his father had decided not to wait. And not just the fifty he said he would bring accompanied him, either, but Daniel's entire company. Keysjhon's group reached the stranded rebels and deployed themselves in a defensive position about the refugees. As they did, a psychic attack sheered part-way through Riqu's front shield. It was not the first one the mage had absorbed, and his strength was waning. The children screamed as terror washed through them. Brynn turned it aside and sent an enveloping comfort over those affected. He needed to do some swift recalculating before Riqu succumbed to exhaustion.

  Storm clouds had gathered above shadowing the valley, lightning flashed and thunder boomed. Andarin was manipulating the elements to aim lightning at Abbarane soldiers, the ground exploding each time the colossal force struck. In a matter of moments, he had undone all the work the Abbarane mages had put in re-establishing their ranks. Brynn only hoped Andarin could keep the element in check as lightning was one of the hardest energies to control.

  Brynn's attention snapped to the planes: it was Her. A sharp stab of despair had rocked through him, something She had been trying to keep within Herself because as much as She did not want it, She knew that to let it out would be a deadly distraction for Brynn. When he fought in his first battle, he had not known what it was. There was this feeling of depthless despair that came from nowhere, it seemed. It overwhelmed him, causing him to shudder uncontrollably and then collapse. Eventually, thanks to his training, he worked it out — She held the stronger empath talent and, untrained, She just filled and filled with the emotions of those on the battlefield until She could absorb it no more and it flooded into his ghanri.

  Technically, he brought Her here. She could be anywhere, but because of their connection, he brought Her into the battle with him. Brynn steeled himself, for it was the hardest thing he had learned — how to take it from Her and send it back out to those on the battlefield. As he sent it out, they felt it, leaving Her to absorb it again; a cycle of terror for Her, an exercise in survival for him.

  More lightning streaked overhead first striking the front of the Abbarane line and then hitting the shield over Brynn's group. Brynn cursed. The Ko-renti mage, Ko-rayen, had managed to rob Andarin of control over the lightning, and now, he seemed willing to kill both sides as he attempted to strike at the rebels.

  The rival mage sent another bolt of lightning at the rebel group, smacking into Riqu's shields, which barely held against the titanic force. Brynn wished deeply for more mages, the ones he had were over-extended, and he was not sure the shields could withstand another strike. He gave Sershja and Treya another talented boost in order to speed their way across the short span of plain between them and the rebel group. Of course, Abbarane's mages were doing their best to draw out the confrontation. The longer the rebels lingered, the harder retreat would become and the more likely their mages would burn out.

  Day 20 – Dawn

  Sal-Cirus

  Colnba shifted to the astral plane to watch for a moment while he considered his options. The cursed Saviour kept moving between planes, it made it difficult to catch him in one long enough to attack with any effectiveness. There were two alternatives: he could attack the Saviour physically, where there were no planes to hide on. Or, he could attack those the Saviour was trying to protect — they could not move through the planes as he did.

  'If we can stop him from re-joining his group, he will be easier to target,' Nisari pointed out.

  'You take the main force, then—'

  At that moment, the Saviour struck from a hidden plane, sending a wave of terror over the entire force. Each soldier found themselves overwhelmed, many of them falling to their knees and screaming. Nisari flew into action, dissipating the fear and then replacing it with a sense of confidence and courage. Next, she set about re-establishing the scattered lines. Ko-rayen was gathering in another lightning strike, but an impatient and furious Colnba took it from him, amplified it, and then slammed the strike at the elvan riding the grey and white charger.

  Day 20 – Dawn

  Serenvale Plains

  'No!' Belon gasped as the ground around Brynn exploded, raising a cloud of dirt and dust. The energy quaked through the earth, sending horses and children into hysterics. One moment Brynn was heading towards her and then the world flashed and her ears were ringing.

  'Riqu, stay with those shields,' Keysjhon sent tensely, aware the rebel leader was distracted by the attack. At the same time, he put a comforting hand on Belon's shoulder. His heart had just about stopped, but he would not let himself think it — Brynn had shields, strong shields, there was a good likelihood the strike had not been fatal.

  As the glare and dust cleared, Keysjhon felt his stomach hollow out, Sershja was on his side, Brynn a couple of meters from the horse... unmoving. There was another rider and horse down behind him. Soldiers on foot and horse were bearing down on the prone forms.

  'First division!' Keysjhon roared, while also sending. 'RALLY TO ME!'

  Keysjhon's group had divided into eight divisions, deploying themselves evenly about the refugees.

  At his word, the entire front line prepared for a charge.

  Chapter 10

  Day 20 – Morning


  Serenvale Plains

  A silver flash engulfed Brynn's vision and the world seemed to stop. He was on the ground on his side, Eirra-ghi lay several meters away. He could smell the earth first, then the tang of lightning. He turned his head to the side and looked up, a break in the clouds revealed the sun, but it looked silver...

  Pushing to his feet, he felt like he was moving through water, much like when he slowed time through the use of talent. But he had not done this.

  He saw Sershja was on his side and the sight of his downed friend filled him with pain. Even though the massive chest was heaving air in and out, the horse was dying. He felt it.

  All around him, soldiers and rebels alike seemed frozen mid-stride, mid-breath, mid-thought.

  But, of course, in actuality, they were just moving so slowly they appeared to be still. It reminded Brynn of Little Shepherd, the game he and Sariah had reminisced about. In it, the sheep would freeze as a shepherd turned in a circle looking for a may-en-ghi. The may-en-ghi player would attempt to 'catch' a sheep while the shepherd was not looking. The soldiers reminded him of the sheep, frozen, hoping the may-en-ghi would not get them, and Brynn was convinced that if he turned away the soldiers would move closer.

  Pain flared through his body, but he pushed it aside, allowing his talent to take over. He had to retrieve his sword. Not because he valued it the most, but because it was so dangerous. As he bent for the hilt, another hand grasped it. It was no hidden 'may-en-ghi' after sheep though…

  Her fingers were delicate and long. She was elegantly tall. Straight, silver hair draped over her shoulders. Her eyes were a silver as deep and solid in colour as his own blue eyes. She looked young, but she had a confident bearing that told him she was older than him — much older.

  He took in all her details like they were something he had always known, because he knew, instinctively, this was Her, the other he was connected to across the planes. Her midnight-blue dress floated like sunlight. Drifting in and out of the fabrics, he could see the smooth, pale skin of her arms, and a glimpse of a knee. Adorning the sculptured lines of her throat was a sparkle of gems in a constellation that represented Andarea's position in the sky. The same arrangement enclosed each wrist, but a dragon was wound protectively within them. The detail was so fine, he was almost certain the little creatures were sleeping. She wore the elaborate head-dress of the Torahn of Andarea. The design was based on the crest of House of Brynn-a-kai. Swirls of blue and silver turned into two dragons meeting across her forehead, their tails holding a sunlight gemstone where they met at the bridge of her nose. Two may-en-ghi could be discerned on either side, as if climbing through her hair.

  Brynn gazed into the silver pools of her eyes, he could feel it, a strong, intoxicating pull... Shaen-duura.

  Silver eyelashes dropped to feather pale cheeks. 'Finally, I have found you,' she said. 'It is a shame we are out of time.'

  She meant not that there was not enough time, but that she was from another time. Not a vision, then, for you did not converse in visions. So, this was what Toormeena had experienced, he thought.

  'This will not be the form you will find me in. Forgive the subterfuge, but we are not alone.'

  Brynn tilted his head and gave her a charming smile. 'So, no name then, I gather.'

  She pursed her lips. 'That cursed smile gets me into more trouble than I could ever estimate.'

  'Do not worry, I'll take all the blame and any punishment,' he quipped.

  Her smile broadened. 'You are, at your core, selfless and kind. I admire that when we first meet. And, you will find me, fear not. But you must not, when the time comes, fear to let me go again. Our souls have been distorted. Long ago a future was glimpsed and one of those who witnessed it became determined to change it. But another, who would not have their machinations thwarted intervened, leading all into darkness. It led to the imbalances between us, our connection to the planes was…'

  'Altered.'

  She nodded. 'Yes, much like what happened to your once-blind friend and her hawk companion. The mage was trying to hide us while not breaking our link.'

  'And in doing so trapped one and skewed the balance between us. We need to find that mage,' Brynn sent thoughtfully.

  'We need to reassert balance,' she clarified, 'before we kill each other... There have already been several near-death incidents for both of us,' she paused meaningfully.

  'But the mage is a starting point,' Brynn persisted.

  Her eyes sparkled in amusement. 'Yes, the mage will have answers,' she conceded. 'But without balance we will continue to harm one another. Eventually it will weaken one of us irrevocably. Consider what happened with Colnba and Nisari, which is another crucial lesson, so do your history.'

  She stepped forward to place the sword gently in the ground point-first, leaning the hilt towards him, but taking care not to touch him.

  'So you are the power. I am the control. And once I find you, I am to let you go…'

  She reached out to stroke his cheek but stopped mid-movement and just smiled affectionately. 'It seems confusing now, but a highly-accomplished mage once advised me not to worry if it does not immediately make sense. It rarely does.' Then she nodded towards the soldiers who were still moving infinitesimally closer. 'You have a battle to fight. The timing of visions is not always precise.' Gesturing to Sershja, she said, 'I will leave enough lag for you to save our friend.'

  As she turned to leave, Brynn saw a tall, elvan male appear in the distance. He was as silver as she was, but shrouded himself in grey shadows. She started to wind her way through the chaos of men and horses towards the shadowed figure, but Brynn called out, 'Wait!'

  She half turned, looking at him over her shoulder.

  'Thank you... for Sershja.'

  This brought another smile to her lips. 'His charm is more irresistible than yours.'

  Day 20 – Morning

  Sal-Cirus

  Colnba was already alertly watching the Saviour, waiting to see just how much damage he sustained from the strike. Then, for the first time, and only due to turns of observation, he saw the Saviour shift planes. For some reason the young mage was slower than usual, but for Colnba it presented a long-awaited opportunity to follow him.

  The plane was unfamiliar to him. He did not think it was human, and it definitely was not elvan. There was an awareness here. Not a single entity but many. Like sleeping ghosts that hovered just beyond his senses. Intuition told him that to be anything but neutral here would rouse these ghosts.

  The plane was utterly foreign and every talented sense shivered within him. He could see the battlefield, just as if he were on the astral plane, but this was not an astral plane, it was like a vision plane, but… not quite. Could this be what journey-walkers spoke of — a plane from which a vision could be sent. Only planes-walkers could access such a plane. It was a very unsettling thought, for if it was true, then the Saviour was far more than even The Prophecy described. But then, he did not know the full vision, only the scraps clawed from House of Toorian's reticent grasp.

  Through the soldiers, Colnba could see the Saviour.

  He lay on his side.

  His charger was also down. Behind them, also on the ground, was another horse, and the warrior, Sariah, whose hawk had been the means to this confrontation. As he cautiously moved closer, using the soldiers as cover, the sun struck a gem that brought Colnba's attention to a sword. It must be the Saviour's.

  What…

  What was that?

  The mage felt a strong, influencing pull from the sword, as if it were an old friend calling to him. Before he could investigate further, though, his spirit-gaze was drawn to an elvan female. Colnba felt his breath catch at her striking beauty. Silver-haired, not silver with shades of grey or gold or anything, just silver. Was it manufactured or was that how she really looked? Her eyes were silver, too. There was something about her face that tugged at his memory.

  Colnba watched her pick up the sword. She was talking to the Saviou
r, but he could not hear her. Or the Saviour. Yet to be here at all was more than Colnba had expected and, thus, he satisfied himself with taking in every detail open to him.

  They occupied a plane where time was an instant in the physical realm, hours could be passing, but the physical realm would not see a full second pass. He realised, even with such a small opening, that the Saviour was quite vulnerable now. If he could time it, if he could make a fatal strike in that infinitesimal window, he might, just might, put an end to the Saviour.

  He weighed the action against the chances that the strike would fail and also against the information he might otherwise gather if he managed to stay on the plane. Another thought occurred to him, he could attempt to follow the elvan female. That might lead to discovering her identity. Neither would expect it, they were in the midst of battle, and would assume Colnba was focused on the physical realm, thus, their guards would be down. And what was so important that she must come to the Saviour now, mid-battle? If he followed her, mayhap, he might discover clues to her purpose and identity.

  Day 20 – Morning

  Serenvale Plains

  Brynn felt the plane shift as she withdrew her influence, and he realised Eirra-ghi was now in his hand. She had said she would leave him enough lag to save Sershja, so he immediately concentrated on Sershja, sending him to a plane where he could heal him safely. Another placed Sariah and Treya behind Riqu's shields. They had been several meters behind him, and thus, neither horse or rider had been badly hurt, just stunned. A third glance was directed at the line of soldiers bearing down on him, sending them flying back like leaves tossed by a strong gust of wind. He could feel Her on the planes, but this version of her, in this time, was terrified and so Brynn used her terror like a weapon as he took it from her, amplified it, and then placed it in the Ko-renti mage's mind. Another command of will halted Keysjhon's line from their charge and instead compelled them to shift, with the rest of their group, into a double wedge formation. As more soldiers on foot closed in, he spun Eirra-ghi in a tight circle. No matter whether they dodged, parried or blocked, the sword's momentum did not slow. Brynn's graceful movements were a stark contradiction to the dreadful ruin left in the wake of his sword.