The Xenoworld Saga Box Set

by Kyle West

  Suddenly, a giant light shot out of the fog on the horizon, a single, piercing beam going straight up into the sky. It made us all jump, but it made not a sound. The fog quivered, rippling outward from the center until, over the next half-minute, it became eerily still.

  “What is it?” Isa asked.

  Isaru came forward a few steps, staring intently into the fog. “It likely has something to do with the reversion. Beyond that...I cannot say.”

  All of us watched, transfixed, as the beam’s intensity weakened and then became completely faded.

  “The fog is going down,” Shara said.

  Indeed, it was now receding at an alarming rate. Over the next hour, we watched as more and more of the dark ridgeline became revealed. The Crater went far deeper than I had ever thought it would – deeper than even the Grand Canyon, although the slope itself was passable rather than sheer. Whatever the case, the path down was now open.

  It was hard not to feel as if the fog was guarding this crater, and something had decided to let us enter.

  Still, we remained on top, watching carefully. It was almost too dark to see anything, but by the time the fog was completely gone, the Crater bottom was visible as a teeming mass of pink-tinted forest, with sharply contrasting shades of orange, purple, green, red, and every other color, growing so thickly that it seemed just like the Selvan. If the path didn’t lead through that, there was no way we were getting through. I peered as far as I could, but there was no sign of anything that even resembled a city.

  We decided to follow the path while there was still light left, and if the fog returned, the person on watch could let us know we needed to move. If anything, the path was broader and clearer here than outside the Crater. At times, paving stones were visible, poking through xen or earth, but other than that, there was no sign that any sort of civilization had been here. I wouldn’t have been surprised if that thick forest had completely swallowed everything.

  No...I had seen the visions. The city was large. Unless it was completely leveled, there would be some sign of it. More than a sign. It would be obvious.

  Still, the Crater was large, but as long as we followed the road, it would probably lead us straight to where we needed to go.

  The sun had long dipped below the Crater's rim, making the space below much darker than it would have been otherwise. We made camp about one-third of the way down. There was actually wood to start a fire, but even its light seemed subdued in the dimness of the Crater.

  When full darkness came, however, the entire forest came to life. The trees glowed, and dancing lights swirled above. We all watched it, Shara included.

  “It’s beautiful,” Isa said.

  It was, in an eerie way. Even the edges of the cliffs seemed to glow with the growth of xen. At the far edges of my sight, a large lake glowed pink in the night. A lake of raw ichor. Perhaps one of the seven of Hyperborea’s fabled lakes.

  The view was something none of us had been expecting. I had expected a wasted land, completely inhospitable, like the Plains of Decay or the Waste. It was hard to believe this place was the source of the reversion. If anything, it looked untouched. As night came on, the clouds finally cleared, revealing countless stars interplaying with the thick, multicolored auroras.

  “I can see why they built a city here,” Shara said, after it had been quiet for a while. “It’s paradise.”

  That was what confused me most of all. It was as if we had entered an enchanted land, but that made me uneasy. This place was supposed to be dark and dangerous.

  “What if the fog comes back?” Isa asked. “You saw how quickly it left. Perhaps it can return just as quickly.”

  And suddenly, I realized why no one ever returned from here. Perhaps they even made it as far as here, finding the Crater empty. But by the time they were too far in, the fog would come and kill them.

  “The fog is a defense,” I said. “This place is protecting itself.”

  “Why would it let us in, then?” Shara asked.

  That was a good question. A question for which I didn’t have a clear answer.

  “Maybe we’re expected. Or maybe it’s waiting until we’re too far in.”

  “All the same,” Isaru said. “We’re here. We have to try.”

  He was right about that.

  CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT

  WHEN I AWOKE THE NEXT morning, it was to find the day clear and bright. The clouds remained absent, leaving the Crater basked with golden, morning light streaming from above, catching the pink treetops and casting them in a fiery hue. The thick forest set in the deep bowl of the Crater was truly a sight to behold, and the glittering of the distant lake made it look like a sea of fire.

  We watched it as we ate breakfast, and then continued the rest of our way down, snaking back and forth. The road was surprisingly clear, given how long it had been since anyone had used it, though at points it was overgrown with xen or covered by fallen rocks.

  At last, the road flattened and headed into the trees. From above, the forest had appeared impenetrable, but here, there was enough space between the trees for it to not seem claustrophobic. The path wasn’t overgrown, in any case, and walking was easy enough. I tried to keep my guard up, because it seemed far too easy. Just because this place was beautiful didn’t mean it wasn’t dangerous. In fact, many beautiful things in nature tended to be dangerous.

  There was one thing that was strange about the forest, though, and it was something I had noticed ever since the Red Mountains. There were no animals. Surely, that fog would kill animals as surely as it would kill a human, but that would mean the plants had to be impervious to it.

  As we walked, the forest felt familiar. Even if it had been a hundred and fifty years, this place wasn’t much different than when Mia had lived.

  Little by little, as we continued walking, the land lowered while the air warmed. With the change in elevation, the forest became more untamed. The trees grew thicker and the forest floor grew darker from the thickness of the treetops.

  Even as the forest thickened, the trail remained completely clear of overgrowth, which I thought was strange. After all, people were needed for trails to maintain themselves. It reminded me too much of the Forest of Mazes.

  When it became too dark to continue, we set up camp in a nearby glade. I was beset with a feeling of emptiness. At first, I thought it was just the early darkness, but I soon realized it went beyond that. Feeling it once was enough, and it wasn’t so much of a feeling as a lack of one.

  I looked at Isaru and Isa, both of whom were staring at the ground. It was affecting them, too. Shara, however, was already gathering wood for a fire.

  Which made sense; being non-Elekai, she wouldn’t know a reversion just from intuition.

  “The city is close,” I said.

  Isaru and Isa looked up from the ground toward me.

  “I knew I felt something,” Isaru said.

  “Felt what?” Shara asked, dropping the wood she had just gathered into a pile.

  “The Xenofold is weak here,” I explained. “I suspect tomorrow, our sensation of it will be gone completely.”

  “Ah,” Shara said. “And without the Xenofold, you are weak.”

  I nodded. The Xenofold fueled the Elekai’s Gifts. Most Elekai couldn’t even use their Gifts unless they were in the Red Wild. Outside the Red Wild, an Elekai’s power was limited, unless their connection was especially strong.

  A reversion, however, was a complete hole in the Xenofold. Even now, trying to find Silence was like trying to grab something just out of reach.

  We ate the remainder of our food for dinner. No one really mentioned it was the last of it; there was no need for the reminder. If we didn’t find the city tomorrow, and the Prophecy, soon, we might not live long enough to make it back out of the Crater.

  I HAD FIRST WATCH. There wasn’t much to see in the darkness of the forest, but I could still listen. There was nothing save the sound of the fire, crackling low.

  It was ea
sy to nod off, and the only thing that kept that from happening were mental exercises I’d learned during my short time at the Sanctum.

  I closed my eyes, just for a moment, only for a sudden brightness to shock me to awareness. As with last night, the beam of light shot directly into the sky, visible even through the thick treetops.

  And then, the darkness of the night almost appeared blurry. I put my hand on the hilt of my blade. The same blurriness swirled around my feet, eddying like liquid.

  “The fog,” I realized.

  I turned toward the fire, where everyone was still sleeping peacefully.

  “Wake up!”

  But no one moved. The fog grew thicker, almost completely obscuring their sleeping forms. Sleeping, or dead?

  I realized then that there was no escape, already the fog was crawling up my sides. Tendrils of it seemed to consciously reach for my face. A scream came to my throat, but never made it past my lips.

  My legs weakened and I fell to the ground.

  WHEN I AWOKE, IT WASN’T day and it wasn’t night...it was something else entirely that I had no word for. All was black save the outlines of the ground and surrounding trees. It was the same spot as before, only I was alone, and ebbs of light followed the lines, streaking toward the sky. The sky was filled with thousands of stars...far more stars than there should have been. The only sound was a low hum, so subtle that I wasn’t even sure it was there.

  “We meet at last,” came a deep, slow voice, “or perhaps I should say...we meet again.”

  I spun around to see a man, whose appearance was ghostly and ethereal. He had shining blue eyes, a vaporous beard, and a hard countenance. Despite his appearance, he seemed familiar to me.

  “Who are you?” I asked.

  I drew out my sword, and gasped to see that it was bright, shining light in the darkness. The dark figure chuckled deeply.

  “You know me,” he said, with a strange, yet familiar accent that was almost musical. “You have seen me in your dreams. Don’t think I didn’t know you then, Anna. You watched from behind her eyes. She didn’t know it, and I didn’t at the time. It was here, in this place, that I have realized many things that once were hidden.”

  “I’m not...” My grip tightened on the blade. “How do you know about that?”

  He chuckled again. “You really don’t remember? Well. It is no matter.”

  I couldn’t get past the feeling of familiarity. My memory eluded, and I wanted desperately to know what it was I was supposed to remember.

  “What is this place?” I asked. “Did you bring me here? Am I...?”

  “Dead? No. Not quite. But you’re not quite asleep, either. You are here because we have things to discuss.”

  “I want you to let me out,” I said. “Let me out, or...”

  I trailed off, not really sure where I was going with that. I didn’t know what I was doing here. He was in control, not me.

  “Put that blade away,” the man said. “It will avail you little in this place. We have things to discuss.”

  “What things?” I asked.

  “Hyperborea. The Prophecy of Annara. Your Prophecy, Anna. Or have you forgotten that as well?”

  His voice was mocking, as if he knew that I had indeed forgotten it.

  “Get to the point. You said we had things to discuss. So, discuss them.”

  “Of course. I have an offer for you. The fog kills, as I’m sure you’ve figured out by now. But I can hold it back and keep it from fulfilling its purpose.” The man’s eyes were baleful, and I didn't know if the upward curve of his thin lips could be called a smile. “All I ask is for you to hear me out.”

  “I saw you in a dream,” I said. “Is that what this is? A dream?”

  “It is like a dream, but not,” he said, his voice echoing into the darkness. “It is a place where I hold great power. Power over nature. Power over time. Even power over death.”

  I was getting more confused by the minute. “What are you talking about?”

  “I have moved to a place beyond death, into immortality. It was my work that made this possible, even though the city I helped remake is now dead.” He paused. “You need my help, Anna.”

  “Don’t call me that. Why do I need your help?”

  “Only I can help you pass the fog.”

  “You mean the fog will kill me unless I agree to do what you want.”

  “All who have sought the city of Hyperborea have died for it. But I need you as much as you need me. Perhaps even more.” He watched me, those blue eyes calculating. Where had I seen him before? “In the waking world, your body is slowly being poisoned. Within the fog is a toxin, the work of which is slow, but effective.”

  “You sent the fog, didn’t you?” I said.

  The man shook his head. “No. The Xenofold here is...twisted. A complicated matter. It kills any who it perceives as a threat. There are almost two Xenofolds now, like a split personality. One half embraces humanity. The other wishes to prune it as it would a rotten branch. Here, in Ragnarok, it perceives all who enter the Crater as a threat. However...I can save you from that.”

  “And what about my friends?”

  “Your friends will be safe, too. Of course.”

  “What do you want? I don’t even know who you are.”

  “Still, you do not recognize me? Well, that shall now be remedied.” The man gave a small smile. “They called me Rakhim Shal.”

  As soon as he said that name, recognition dawned on me. It was the same face I’d seen in the throne room of the Cloud Palace, the man Mia had hated so much. He was a bit different, here. He seemed more powerful and commanding, and the beard had thrown me off.

  “You’re evil,” I said. “Why would I trust you?”

  “Well, I would contend that vile word. But the truth is, without my help, you will never find the Prophecy. The city of Hyperborea will be closed to you. And you will remain asleep where you are...and never awake.”

  “What happens then? I stay...here?”

  The man nodded. “You will be like me. Here, I have passed beyond death’s reach. But that state might not be as amenable to you...or your friends. Or those others who might depend on you.”

  Unbidden, the thought of my parents came to mind. I pushed it away. Who knew what this man could do in this place? If he was as powerful as he claimed, he might be able to read my thoughts.

  “But you are dead,” I said. Even as I said it, I wasn’t quite sure of that. “You lived one hundred and fifty years ago.”

  “My body passed from this world long ago, true,” Rakhim said. “But my consciousness endures. Mine...and others.”

  “How is that possible? How can anyone live beyond death?”

  “A complicated question. One which I sought the answer to all my days. I succeeded, in the end.” He gave a smile, somewhat bitter. “If this could be called success.”

  “Just tell me what it is you want. And the location of the Prophecy, if you know it.”

  Rakhim’s stare intensified; it was as if his gaze was seeing right into my thoughts. “What I want is simple. Hyperborea...what is left of it...lies not far from here. North of the city, there is a tower, called long ago the Tower of Shal. A...creation of mine. At its very top, you will find an Orb – it sits on a pedestal, glowing pink, and remains untouched, even to this day. I...have seen it. I dream of the waking world, and in my dreams it remains as it was when the city finally fell. You will take this Orb, and it will send you to the Hyperfold.”

  “That’s what this place is, isn’t it?”

  “This is not the Hyperfold proper; more like a dream that exists within it. The Hyperfold is a complex entity. But yes, this is one of its many manifestations. The Orb is a transdimensional object. It exists both in the real world, and here. One can travel from the real world to here just by touching it.” He looked at me seriously. “And one can return, provided they have a body to return to.”

  “Which is why you can’t leave,” I said. “Why do you wan
t me to do this? It sounds dangerous.”

  “It will not be for you, Anna. Who you are gives you an advantage. Your blood is of perfect Elekai purity, not seen in the waking world since the life of Mia Farl. Her brother, Isandru, might have been strong enough. Anyone else, however, would have great difficulty transitioning back without losing a part of themselves along the way.”

  “What do you mean, losing a part of themselves? What might happen to me?”

  “I will say again; there is no danger to you, Anna. But none of your friends should attempt the same journey. Here, I can give you the Prophecy. Here, I can help you remember that which you have forgotten. The Orb will allow me to reach the Prophecy for you. Your presence here will forge a link between this place...the Hyperfold...and the Xenofold itself. With that link, I can give you the Prophecy.”

  “What will this link do?”

  Rakhim paused; whether to gather his thoughts, or for effect, I couldn’t say. “You are the only one to whom I’ve told this. I...made a grave error.” Rakhim’s eyes became sorrowful. “I want out.”

  “What do you mean? You want to be reborn?”

  “No. That...is not possible. I had...hoped for that, in the beginning. But it was a foolish delusion of a living man. I have moved beyond that, and now I desire only freedom. The Hyperfold is a prison for me. With the Orb...with you...I can gain absolution. I can return to the Xenofold using the link. I, and others. With no one here in the Hyperfold, it will cease to exist. When it is switched off...I will be free. And it will stop using the ichor of the Sea of Creation, allowing it to regenerate. For it is the Hyperfold that is keeping it from coming back. This place has a consciousness of its own...and it demands satiation.”

  “Wait,” I said. “You’re saying the Hyperfold is what’s causing the Sea to remain empty? If it’s gone...then the Sea will return?”

  Despite myself, I felt excited. This could have been what we were looking for, the solution to almost everything. If the Hyperfold could be turned off, like Rakhim said, the Sea would return. With the Sea, it might be enough to stop the reversions, preventing a second Mindless War before it even started.