Heir To The Nova (Book 3)

by T. Michael Ford

  My mother patted me on the cheek and smiled. “That’s because Ryliss has a wild magic variant.”

  “Huh?” Lin blurted out and immediately covered her mouth in embarrassment, looking over at the stunned Ryliss, who looked positively stricken.

  “Ryliss has a strong power in animal forms, tree empathy and some healing abilities, as well. Basically, the entire druid field of disciplines that involve life, but she has almost no strengths with earth control or weather. Of course, she’s completely untrained at the moment; but with a little work, she would make an excellent forest guardian or questing druid.”

  “Majesty,” Ryliss stepped shakily away from the table and approached my mother. She folded into a formal bow, keeping her head hung low. “Majesty, I have heard you have the ability to remove a curse such as this. If I could beg a boon from you, I would swear to repay it in whatever manner you see fit.”

  “A curse?” I said in disbelief. “Ryliss, this isn’t a curse.”

  Ryliss shifted her gaze to me nervously. “Ah, Sir Alex, but it is! If my people ever found out I was a druid, my life would be over. You saw the way they treated Jules and Lin. If they could have found a way to keep them at the capital forever, they would have. I would be counted as a treasure of my people and stuck talking to trees the rest of my life!”

  “But you would be treated with reverence, like royalty.”

  “Yeah, that worked out so well for Maya, didn’t it,” Ryliss whispered bitterly.

  By this time, my mother had walked over to Ryliss and drew her into a warm embrace that obviously startled the young dark elf. “Alex, is right my dear; you have been given a gift, not a curse. However, I can see how it might seem that way for you. I will not remove your power, that would be a shameful waste, and I can sense great things from you in the future.” She paused and turned the scholar’s shoulders around so she met her eyes fully. “What I will do is disguise your power so that no one can read your magic, not another wizard, not even Rosa with one of her magic orbs. No one will suspect you of being a wizard unless you openly display your abilities in front of them or you reveal it yourself. Will that satisfy you?”

  Ryliss looked a little uncomfortable, but nodded stiffly and bowed again. “You have my thanks, your Majesty,” she said and quickly retreated back to her chair. I used my mage sight on her and this time I could see nothing.

  My mother gave me a glance as if chiding me for doubting her. “Good. Well, if that’s all settled, I’m sure everyone is hungry.”

  Dinner was over far too soon, and everyone seemed to be happy as they left, with the exception of my father. As we were walking out, he intercepted me and said in a low voice, “Alex, we need to talk.”

  Maya, picking up on the tone, looked at me, and after touching my arm in concern, whispered, “I promised Ryliss I would check in on her, and I want to do a quick review of the guards’ readiness.”

  I nodded and watched her leave, vaguely concerned about her walking around the fortress dressed like that, but I told myself she had Winya. My father led me into a small antechamber just off the throne room. There were two large chairs inside and not much else, but it was quiet and dimly lit with a glow orb.

  Sitting down heavily, my father ran his hand through his hair absently, gathering his thoughts. “Listen, son, I haven’t been entirely truthful with either you or your mother. The keystone does do what I told you; it will release the magic locked away from this world. But it does much more than that, too. The key can also be used to create new Nova, as well as destroy old ones. The simple act of touching it when it is in place would flood your body with power and transform you into a full Nova.

  “So I would be like you and mom, then?”

  “I honestly don’t know what will happen. You might become a full Nova like the solitary males we told you about. You would have unimaginable power and you would never die.”

  “But it would be immortality at the cost of my friends. I take it I would outlive them entirely?” my voice dropping to almost a whisper in the stone-walled room.

  Father nodded. “You would outlive the ultimate fiery death of this world and many others after it before your time was finished.

  “How do you live like that?” I asked. “Knowing that you will see the death of every person you meet, and they will become one of millions that you will pass by in the lifetime of a single planet?”

  “I asked myself that many times when I was younger, and to this day I don’t know how the others stand it. But for me, I have the woman I love to share the burden of it with me, and that makes it somewhat bearable.”

  “Then I am forced to give up Maya?”

  He was quiet for a long time. “Your mother does not know this, nor will you tell her. I am the only one of our kind who was permitted to touch a keystone more than once. Any other Nova would lose their powers and become mortal. Your mother believes that I split my powers freely and gave them to her, but the truth is that it was the key stone that did it, not me.”

  “What are you saying? That the keystone is sentient?”

  “Son, believe me, there are far stranger concepts in this universe than sentient keystones. But getting back to our conversation and my confession; we are all part of a grand experiment–you, me, your mother, Maya, this fortress, even this planet.”

  “An experiment? By whom? I thought the Nova built the universe?” I asked, shocked.

  “Son, you have no concept of the scale of time or the vastness of the universes. Yes, I said universes, as in plural. There are more universes than you can see stars in the sky on a clear night. Even we Nova are subject to rules, oversight, and manipulation. Let me just say there are forces at work here that even the Nova must respect. So if I sound evasive on what I am about to tell you, it’s because I really don’t know the answer you seek.”

  He took a deep breath and continued, “Basically, you have a choice to make; you may join your mother and me in the stars, which is the course of action your mother wishes because she doesn’t want to lose you. Or you may take Maya’s hand when you touch the stone. I wish I could tell you what will happen if you attempt to share your power with her. It may not work at all; or frankly, the more likely result is that you both will die.”

  “But if it does work?”

  “I still don’t know what will happen; however, I am reasonably certain that there is not enough power to make you both full Novas. The likely result would be some sort of hybridization, leaving you mortal, but changed somehow; no longer human-like or elf, or even remotely like either.”

  “What would happen if someone else pushed the keystone in?” I said, pressing for more information.

  “Nothing good, they would be instantly vaporized and the magic would still not flow. The keystone can be removed by mortal hands, but not restored. Only you can rekindle the flow of magic to this world. Now I’ve already said more than I should.” He got up to leave, suddenly looking older and frailer than I had ever seen him.

  “Father, wait! If I become a Nova, will I be able to stay on this world?”

  “No, you would be mostly limited to these halls like we are.”

  “And I wouldn’t be able to fight directly either?”

  “That’s correct.”

  “Then this world…”

  His expression was one of pain and regret. “…and all life on it would fall, that is correct.” Without another word, he left the room.

  For several long minutes I thought about what he had said, and I liked none of it, but I realized it was not entirely my decision to make.

  “Winya, where is Maya?”

  “On her way back to the keep, Alex.”

  “Please have her meet me in the throne room.”

  “Yes, Sir.”

  A few minutes later, the big doors opened and a very concerned Maya slipped into the room, her eyes watching me steadily. “Alex, Winya said I needed to come right away; your thoughts are scaring her.”

  I took both her hands in min
e, marveling at how beautiful she was in that small black dress. “Maya, we need to talk about tomorrow.”

  “Ok,” she said nervously.

  “No, I mean really talk…no Winya, no cat, and no Rosa.”

  Maya, without hesitation and without moving her eyes from mine, removed Winya’s bracelet form and set it aside on one of the thrones; her face reflecting total trust and confidence in me.

  “Rosa, please do not listen in on my thoughts until I contact you.”

  “You have my word, Alex,” Rosa shot back, but I could sense the worry in her thoughts. I’m pretty sure she had sensed my distress and had been monitoring my conversation with my father.

  Gently, I took my dark elf’s hands as we sat down on the steps leading up to the thrones. “Maya, tomorrow when the keystone is put back in place, it will restore the flow of magic to the planet. But there is another side effect that will impact both of us.” She nodded patiently, indicating I should continue. “Bluntly, if I touch the keystone alone, it will most likely turn me into a Nova and I will live forever, but I will lose you and the planet will fall to the Lifebane. If I don’t trigger the keystone, the magic will not be restored; and the entire group of magic creatures like Nia and Dawn and Dusk will die out. Again, ultimately the planet will fall.”

  “I see,” she said, looking down, her throat working to remain calm. “Is there a third option?”

  “Yes, the third option involves you and me together…I hold your hand while we trigger the keystone.”

  “Ok, what happens then?”

  “Father isn’t sure. There isn’t enough power to turn us both into Nova, so the most likely scenario is that we both die or end up remaining mortal but ‘changed’ somehow.”

  “Meaning what?”

  “No one apparently knows, but the chances are we would no longer be mostly human or elf, like we are now,” I said grimly.

  “And what do you want to do, Alex?” she asked, her big eyes locked onto mine.

  “Option three is the only scenario where the planet has a fighting chance. I have to think that we’ve gotten this far on that crazy prophecy, maybe we just need to play out the hand.”

  My dark elf looked at me with a startled expression. “You would give up immortality to be chained here? To fight and die here? The chance to live like a god, have any woman you desire, visit untold worlds, never age or grow feeble?”

  “Yes. I would. None of that matters to me, and I think you know why.”

  Maya searched my face for any doubt. Finding none, she licked her dark lips and swallowed hard. “Alright then, Magic Boy, option three it is.”

  “Are you sure, Maya? You could just as easily die tomorrow. I need you to think this over carefully before you decide.”

  She reached up and placed a finger on my lips, silencing me. “Alex, for me this is an easy decision. My soul is bound to yours, I go where you go, even if that means we die side-by-side on the floor of that chamber tomorrow. I am a soldier, I can accept that. Death holds no fear for me as long as we’re together.”

  I sighed. “Ok, but what if we end up as sea slugs on the bottom of the ocean?”

  She smiled uneasily as a few tears began to run down her cheeks. “I’m not a big fan of the water, so I wouldn’t like that much. But I’d like to think I would still make a good sea slug wife to a certain clueless enchanter sea slug.”

  By this time I was crying too, as we just scooted closer and held each other for a long time. Finally, we pulled apart and she put her cool hands on the sides of my face, her eyes softly, trustingly, gazing into mine.

  “Alex, I do have one request.”

  “What’s that?”

  “If my choices tomorrow are death or sea slug, I want my last night as a woman to be spent as a woman. Are you catching my drift, Magic Boy?”

  “But what about…?”

  She silenced me with a long delving kiss and then whispered, “This is a limited time offer. Are you going to take me upstairs or not?”

  Breathlessly, I scooped her up off the steps, carrying her easily in my arms. We paused briefly to dip down so she could grab Winya off the throne then I ran up the stairs two at a time. When we got to our room, I reached down and opened the door while she clung to me with her lovely green eyes closed.

  “Maya, sweetheart, are you sure?”

  “Alex, you can touch my ears now,” she whispered huskily, as I closed and locked the door behind us.

  Chapter 7

  We woke up to a polite tapping at our door and Dusk’s voice, “Mistress, everyone is assembled in the Crystal Room when you are ready.”

  I looked down at my dark elf lover, her head rising and falling where it rested on my chest, her hands clutched around my arm. I knew she was awake and heard the dragon at the door, but she was just enjoying being lazy in bed for a few moments longer.

  I nudged her softly. “Maya, we need to get up; it is show time, I guess.”

  She stretched and opened her deep emerald eyes languidly and smiled a contented cat’s smile. “And here I thought last night was show time, Magic Boy.”

  I kissed her long and hard, trying to imprint the memory firmly in my brain. Finally, reluctantly, I broke it off and threw my feet out from under the covers and onto the floor. “I think we have time for a quick bath.”

  “Oooh, that could be fun!” She giggled.

  “Yeah, well, we don’t have that much time; the others are already waiting for us.”

  Her lovely face twisted into a pout, but she slid off the bed and swaggered to the bath chamber, looking over her shoulder to make sure I watched her leave. And I did, a big foolish smile plastered on my face. Grabbing a robe, I opened the door and fled across the hall and cleaned up there.

  Thirty minutes later, we met out in the hallway. I had dressed in a fresh enchanter’s robe, and Maya was wearing the white sparring outfit she had received from my father when we first came to Sky Raven.

  I must have raised my eyebrows, because she responded firmly, “This is who I am, Alex, a fighter. I will not go on to the next life dressed in a ball gown or some other frivolous outfit. I see you are in your enchanter’s robes; for the same reason, I suspect?”

  I nodded and took her arm as we started down the hall. “Maya, I…”

  “Hush, Alex,” she interrupted, stopping and running a hand along my face. “Everything that needed saying was said last night, and I will treasure it forever. But unless we put on our brave front right now, we’re going to show up looking like a pair of blubbering idiots downstairs, and we don’t want to be remembered that way. I do have a question for you, however. What was the first thing that came to your mind when you saw me this morning?”

  “I think I growled a little ‘Mine! Only mine!’” I responded without thinking. But thinking about it now, it did seem like a pretty primal response on my part. I knew without a shadow of a doubt that she was my mate, and I would defend her against all challengers; even if it meant my own death.

  “That is exactly the right answer,” she sighed gratefully and smiled. When I tilted my head in confusion, she explained, “It shows our mating bond is complete, our soul strands fused, and even death will not sever our bond. I have no fear of what awaits us downstairs, my love.”

  It didn’t take very long to get down to the Crystal Room. The doors opened up quite easily and everyone was there waiting for us. It wasn’t a large room and it was almost filled with my parents, Rosa, Dawn, Dusk, and of course, Nia; but she doesn’t take up much space.

  Mother was there smiling excitedly as she handed me a now completed three-part key stone. My father was still looking rather gloomy.

  “Alright, everyone.” My mother clapped her hands animatedly. “You all need to take as many steps back as you can. Alex, dear, all you need to do is place the stone in the slot.”

  Father continued for her, “It won’t go all the way in, so you will have to give it a good push to lock it in place. If you were going to do something, that would
be the time.”

  I nodded and placed the stone carefully in the slot. And as Father said, it stopped a few inches out.

  “Hurry up and push it in,” my mother commanded breathlessly. I shook my head and offered my hand to Maya. She took it, along with a deep cleansing breath, and joined me in front of the crystal.

  “Alex? What are you doing?” My mother’s fear was all I could hear in her voice. “Alex, if you do that, you will die!” She tried to reach out for me but Father wrapped an arm around her and held her back with a hug.

  “No, Oreale. Do what you need to do, Alex,” he said as tears started to run down his own face.

  I looked at Rosa and she, too, was crying. She knew what I was about to do and was sending me thoughts of comfort and support. Nia was sitting on Rosa’s shoulder and big pixie tears were falling like rain. Finally, I could take no more, and I fixed my sight on the most beautiful thing in my world–Maya’s deep green eyes.

  “Ready?” I asked quietly. She gave me a single head bob of agreement and placed her hand on top of mine on the stone surface, her other hand gripped me fiercely, and we intertwined them together as if to never let go.

  “I love you,” our voices harmonized as we pushed the stone in place with a flash of light.

  Chapter 8

  I don’t really have the words for what happened, but it wasn’t pleasant. It felt like my soul was being ripped out of my body with blacksmith’s tongs. When I opened my eyes, all I could see was gray–gray floor–gray walls–gray ceiling. The problem is that this was a familiar gray. I recognized it as the place I collected Winya from!

  “Damn,” I gasped shakily, “and I was so looking forward to being a sea slug.” I heard Maya utter a few words of elvish dismay and then she rolled toward me, her eyes still clamped shut in deep pain. With a lot of effort, I finally got up off of what passed for a floor in the afterlife. Reaching down, I lifted my shaken dark elf girl to her feet. Finally clearing her head, she looked around curiously.