Masters of Fate

by A. K. DuBoff

  “What are you thinking, Toran?” Kaiden asked. “Does this have something to do with our artifacts being on different planes?”

  “Perhaps.”

  “Well, where does this leave us?” I looked between the faces of my friends. Since it seemed like Toran’s inspection of my sword had hit a dead end, we were still trapped and directionless.

  “I guess we should—” Kaiden cut off as a strange cry sounded, almost like a neigh. “Wait, did anyone else just hear a horse?”

  “That can’t be right,” I replied, despite having heard it myself. Strange cloud monsters were the kind of oddity I’d expect to find in a higher dimension, but a horse?

  “I think it came from over here,” Maris said, her tone determined and excited. She ran to the left. “Come on, we have to find it!”

  9

  We followed Maris through the twisting corridors of endless windows.

  “I think I now understand why they built that labyrinth,” I said. “Maybe someone glimpsed this place and it was a symbolic tribute.”

  “Could be.” Kaiden nodded.

  “Are you sure that sound was a call to us?” Toran asked.

  “Yes,” Maris replied emphatically. “It was so clear. I keep catching glimpses of it through the windows, too.”

  I wasn’t as certain, but I had heard something, even though I’d yet to see any visual confirmation. Frankly, I wasn’t keen on the idea of following the sound, since the last creatures we had encountered was far from friendly, but Maris was insistent. If this plan didn’t work out, at least it wouldn’t be on me.

  While I recognized that I shouldn’t look at things in those terms, I was still feeling drained and overwhelmed. The realization that my weapon was likely a higher dimensional object and our key to unlocking higher planes for our minds to access was throwing me in ways I hadn’t expected. I’d barely gotten used to the idea of aliens, but this dimensional element was proving to be even more difficult to wrap my head around.

  “I think I saw it again,” Maris said, pulling my attention back to the present. She took a sharp right and paused, looking around. “I know I did.”

  Another soft neigh and a snuffle sounded in my mind. “Where is that coming from?”

  “I don’t hear it,” Toran maintained.

  “I think it’s… in this one?” Maris examined one of the nearby windows, searching.

  Toran seemed to be having a difficult time keeping his exasperation in check. “Why would there be a horse here?”

  “Didn’t say there was a horse, just that it sounded like one,” Kaiden pointed out.

  I sighed. “Fine, then—”

  “Shh!” Maris cut in. “You’re scaring it.”

  I froze and fell silent, trying to spot what she’d seen.

  Maris approached a window to my right. “Hey, it’s okay. We heard you. Do you need help?”

  From my vantage, she was talking to herself. The sound was distinctive, though, so I gave her the benefit of the doubt.

  “Why are you hiding?” Maris asked. “You can trust us.”

  Another soft snuffle filled my mind.

  “What are you talking to?” I asked, coming toward Maris.

  “Stop! You’ll—” She drooped. “You’ll scare it away.”

  Nothing was behind the window except a dim, indistinct landscape.

  “What kind of thing is it?” I asked.

  Maris shook her head. “Maybe he’ll show you. Be nice.” She held out her hands in front of her, palms up and cupped. “It’s okay, they’re my friends.”

  We remained motionless for nearly a minute. Then, a white nose and snout came into view through the infinite planes fanning out inside the window. The tapered head led to an arched, muscular neck and long body atop four slender legs ending in crystal hooves. Its entire body was covered in tiny, scalloped scales that appeared as thin and light as feathers. A golden mane flowed from the crest of its neck and matching tail flowed almost to the ground. Though mostly solid in appearance, I could make out the faint outline of the backdrop behind it, and it shimmered with a soft, golden glow. Its most striking features, however, were its luminescent golden eyes and a spiraling, crystal horn at the center of its forehead.

  “No frickin’ way!” I exclaimed louder than I’d intended.

  The creature bucked and quickly retreated into the shadows within in the window.

  “Hey, it’s okay! Come back,” Maris soothed.

  “What was it?” Kaiden asked, having been at the wrong angle to see.

  “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you. Come here.” I motioned Kaiden to me and pointed toward where I’d seen it.

  Several seconds later, after more gentle coaxing, the creature came close enough to Maris for it to enter our sightline.

  Kaiden sucked in a shocked breath. “Is that a… unicorn?”

  I’d been hesitant to call it that, myself, but the description was too close to lore to not call it like I saw it. “Yes, I believe it is.”

  To my eye, the unique coat gave it a touch of griffon or maybe dragon, but the overall impression was decidedly equine. I would have been more shocked by the discovery if I hadn’t previously encountered decidedly dragon-y dragons on the Valor world, but the realization that there was truth behind the existence of legendary animals thrilled me.

  “He’s so beautiful,” Maris murmured.

  “How do you know it’s a ‘he’?” I asked, not seeing any distinguishing physical traits either way.

  “He told me,” she replied.

  I’d heard some whinnying, but that was about the extent of my interaction with the unicorn. “Like, telepathically?” I clarified.

  “I think so,” she responded, a fond smile brightening her face. “I think he likes me.”

  Toran slowly came up behind Kaiden and me. “What are you looking at?”

  I swiveled my neck. “You don’t see it?”

  His brow drew together. “There’s a… unicorn?”

  I nodded. “Yes, all white and golden and ethereal—inside the plane within that window.”

  “Maybe you need to ‘believe’,” Kaiden jested in a clear play on childhood fairytales. I knew he was joking, but I couldn’t help wondering if there might be a measure of truth to the statement.

  Toran shook his head. “It’s just like before. I can’t seem to perceive things on the same planes you can.”

  “You’ll just have to take our words for it, I guess,” I told him, trying not to sound patronizing.

  “Has the unicorn told you anything else?” Kaiden asked Maris.

  She was silent for several seconds. “He’s… trapped.”

  “What? How?” I questioned.

  Maris’ brow furrowed. “I’m trying to piece it together. It’s not words, more like a jumble of images. I think he… got lost somehow, separated from his kind. They used to take shortcuts through this plane using special routes connected to the plane below this one, where he’s from. Except, when the Overlords came, their normal routes closed.”

  “Overlords?” Kaiden raised an eyebrow.

  “The aliens behind the Darkness, maybe?” Maris shrugged. “Anyway, he got left behind and the rest of his herd were forced to go on without him or else also become trapped.”

  “Can he get back?” I asked, empathizing with the unicorn as I thought about how I was separated from my own family.

  Maris hung her head. “Oh.”

  “What is it?” Kaiden pressed.

  “He wasn’t talking about the recent invasion of our spacetime. I think he’s been trapped since whatever went down that killed this planet.”

  “Stars!” I couldn’t fathom being trapped alone, with nowhere to turn, no one to hear my cries. It must have been terrifying.

  “What can we do to help?” Kaiden asked.

  “We need to try to get him out. He can enter this plane if we can open the doorway.” She shook her head. “Tha
t’s the best I can explain it. I don’t know exactly what he means.”

  “I wish I could see what you’re talking about.” Toran grunted.

  “You still might be able to help,” Maris said. “Your gauntlets—you’ve been able to shatter other things. Maybe you can break one of the windows?”

  “This isn’t normal spacetime,” he replied.

  “Still, it might do something. Can you try?” she asked.

  Toran sighed. “Very well. You said it was this one?”

  “Yes, hold on.” Maris leaned in close to the window. “We’re going to try to get you out. Back up, but don’t go far.”

  The unicorn pawed one of his crystal hooves and then backed up until he was only visible at the edge of the window.

  “Okay, go ahead.” Maris stood aside.

  Toran stepped up to the window and raised his fists. He pounded them into the surface in three rapid blows. The surface shuddered but didn’t appear close to breaking.

  Kaiden frowned at it. “Well, that doesn’t seem to work. I’d suggest throwing some magic at it, but I’m afraid it would bounce back.”

  “No offense, but I don’t think your magic is particularly effective here,” I said. “It barely did anything to those nimbuses.”

  “Yeah, that’s true.” He stepped back. “Do your thing with your sword.”

  I smiled. “I swear I’m not trying to show off.”

  “You got the coolest artifact, we get it.” Maris smiled back, clearly happier now that she had a special item of her own. Honestly, there were times when I’d rather have her new shield.

  I unsheathed my sword, debating whether I should try bashing the window or take a more surgical approach. In the end, I decided to start with finesse, as I could always work my way up from there. I gripped the hilt in both hands and placed the tip on the center of the window.

  The surface began to shimmer and flicker, fracturing the view through the window. As I pressed my blade deeper, each facet vibrated with increasing intensity until it was shuddering so fast that the view through the window once again became a single image. At the moment it coalesced, the pane dissolved.

  I gasped, drawing back my blade from what was now an opening. The area beyond defied my expectations for a reality, with islands of solid-looking matter seemingly floating in a void. The unicorn was standing on one of these islands connected to the others by narrow bridges made from translucent filaments. “What is this place?”

  “Another layer of reality above our own,” Maris said. “He doesn’t know how long he’s been here—time is fluid above the fourth dimension. But he said this isn’t how it used to be—it should be filled with light. This pocket got cut off when the Overlords came, and it’s been dark ever since.”

  “I’m so sorry he was trapped here. That must have been awful,” I said.

  “He thanks you,” Maris interpreted. She stepped to the edge of the opening through the former window. “You’re free now. Come with us.”

  The unicorn didn’t move.

  “He’s scared. He’s not sure he can trust us.” Maris frowned.

  “We want to fight the Overlords,” I told him directly. “Can you help us learn about them?”

  The unicorn snuffled, sounding in my mind. Slowly, he picked his way down the narrow path from the island toward the door.

  Maris motioned us backward as the unicorn reached the opening. He sniffed cautiously toward where the window used to be and extended his nose toward it. When it freely passed through, he made an excited hop and leaped through the opening into the corridor.

  As soon as he was through, I noticed tiny crystals forming around the edges of where the window used to be, joining together to form a single, smooth plane as they spread inward.

  The unicorn backed away from us as he got his bearings, glancing between Maris and the rest of us as he danced on his four crystal hooves.

  “You’re free now,” Maris said.

  He met each of our gazes with his spectacular golden eyes. “Thank you,” I heard in my mind, though the words were a construct of my own imagination. I was wrapped in a warm mental embrace of sunshine, filled with joy and the thrill of freedom. The intensity of the emotion almost brought tears to my eyes.

  “You’re welcome,” I told him. “Is there anything else we can do to help you get back to your family?”

  The unicorn shook his head with another huff, which I took to be a ‘no’ as a dark cloud filled my mind. They were long since separated, and there was no going back now. However, new images and sensations of warmth embrace me.

  Maris brightened. “He wants to help us!”

  “We’ll take all the help we can get,” I told him. “What should we call you?”

  A powerful, ancient presence filled my mind once more. Though it still didn’t convey spoken words, I automatically translated into my native tongue. “I am known as Huefneril among my kind.”

  I winced. “Okay, fair warning, I sense a nickname coming on.”

  Maris crossed her arms. “Yeah, that won’t do.” She looked the unicorn up and down. “I’m gonna call you ‘Hoofy’.”

  10

  I rolled my eyes. “Really, Maris, you’re going to call this majestic being ‘Hoofy’?”

  “Only as a delightful term of endearment. You don’t mind, do you?” Maris asked the unicorn.

  He snuffled. “You have freed me. You may call me whatever you wish in your tongue.”

  Maris spread her arms. “Matter settled.”

  Kaiden pursed his lips. “Feels a little on-point to me.”

  Toran pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head.

  Exasperating nickname or not, I’d take it over ‘Huefneril’; at least it captured the right spirit. “So, Hoofy, tell us about yourself.”

  “First, I am curious about you,” he said in his telepathic language of images and emotion. “How did you come here? Your kind are not ascended.”

  “It’s… kind of a long story,” I replied. “When the Darkness came, our worlds were lost. We were able to escape to these new bodies.” I held memories in my mind to augment my words, and I could tell that Hoofy was absorbing their meaning, feeling them as I did.

  “They never stop trying.” I sensed the fear in Hoofy’s statement.

  “You know who’s behind the Darkness?” Kaiden asked.

  “They call themselves the Overlords. They seek to control, to dominate.”

  “Are they the ones who trapped you?” I asked.

  “Yes, but not intentionally. It was a side effect of their alterations to the crystalline network. I was young and inexperienced. I hesitated, and I was left behind.” Hoofy shared his sadness and frustration.

  “These beings… where are they? What are they?” I questioned.

  “I have hidden from them so they cannot find me.”

  Maris softened. “I would, too. But we’re friends. You don’t need to hide from us.”

  Toran took in a sharp breath of surprise. “I can see him.”

  “Thank you,” Maris said with an affectionate smile toward the unicorn. “How did you make him see?”

  “I have hidden above them,” Hoofy explained. “They reside on a plane above time and thought, below this one. For years they have tried to ascend, but that is a place that cannot be reached by force.”

  “Okay, so they’re on a dimensional plane below yours and above our spacetime?” I clarified, trying to get back to my previous question.

  “Yes, the plane beneath us. Once we used to commune with them on their level, but now we hide. Their ill intentions have corrupted the crystalline network.”

  I frowned. “Yeah, we’ve been seeing a lot of that.”

  “That’s why I shied away at first—I could smell them on you. You were… changed.”

  I’d tried to forget how we’d come by our present forms—that we had been touched by the Darkness, and then our consciousnesses extracted and dow
nloaded into modified bodies. I hated to think that any of the aliens or the Darkness was a part of me.

  “We’re not like them,” Maris assured Hoofy.

  “No, you have pure spirits. And you are more than them. Your kind is not ascended, but parts of you are. You can see what others cannot.”

  Toran brightened. “This is actually quite helpful—we can start narrowing down which dimension we’re now perceiving. Can you help us understand?” he asked Hoofy.

  The unicorn pawed a crystal hoof. “There is time, and there is thought, then above that they dwell. We roam around them unseen, except when we pass through this place, over the bridges. They used to use them, too, but they started trying to change them and the bridges collapsed.”

  These interpreted words on their own raised more questions than answers, but I probed the images and emotions that filled my mind, searching for the nuance of his messages. My perception expanded, and I saw what I knew as my reality flowing through time. Beyond that was an amorphous layer flooded by an infinite number of flashing thoughts; I realize this was the dimension through which Hoofy was communicating. Then, there was the dark plane where the Overlords, as Hoofy called them, resided. They manipulated matters of mind and time.

  I recoiled. “That’s how they were telepathically influencing me.”

  Kaiden pressed a hand to his temple. “Ugh, this is a lot to take in at once.”

  Toran grimaced. “It’d be really handy if we could transition between planes at will.”

  “Yeah.” I paused. “I get it now—like, on a deeper level—what you were saying before about us having not actually gone anywhere. We’re not stuck in a different place… our perception is just locked at a higher plane than what we’re used to experiencing.”

  “Yes, but there is a spacetime component,” Toran said. “Once we ran away from the entry point, our position in spacetime likely changed. Now I really don’t know where we are.”

  “But, we can figure out which plane,” Kaiden said. “Since time is 4D, that weird thought dimension must be 5D, making the Overlords on 6D, Hoofy and the other unicorns at 7D, and us presently at 8D, I guess?”