Tristin stepped onto the platform, sweeping his long black hair back over his shoulder. “It appears that when the Ardak king died, so did half the Ardaks, and even some of the cyborgs, merpeople, humans, and elves. Every attack stopped at once—the Ardaks that were left alive simply quit fighting.”
“Yes, but why?” Tordan rubbed his forehead.
“I can only tell you what I think.” Tristin’s purple eyes took in the gruesome scene. “I think that the shockwave killed every being within the planetary shield whose vibration wasn’t high enough.”
“What does that mean?”
“Basically, it killed everyone with evil in their hearts. Evil lowers a being’s vibration.” Kirelle shivered, and Tristin put his arm around her.
Tordan raised a brow. “So the only beings left on Aurora are those with a high vibration—beings with no evil in their hearts?”
“It would appear that way. The energy shield the device created goes all the way around the planet, and I think that to exist inside it, you must match its vibration.”
Tordan’s gaze went back to his brother. “Then why did Zordan and Lielle die?”
“Zordan was already dead,” Mordjan said gently. “He was killed by the Ardak king. As for Lielle . . . it’s possible that her physical body couldn’t withstand the amount of energy that went through it when the Ardak king died and it all abruptly transferred to her.”
Movement behind them drew his eye, and Tordan turned to see an Ardak kneeling beside the king, his fangs bared in an expression of grief. He placed one paw in the center of the king’s chest. Tordan stared in shock at the blinking light at the back of the Ardak’s neck.
“Who are you?” Tordan asked him.
The Ardak slowly rose to his feet. “I am Prince Leofeles,” he said with a sweeping bow. “King Roufeles’s son. I think the energy you spoke of freed me from his control.”
“He was controlling you?” Tristin asked.
“Yes.” Prince Leofeles nodded. “As well as several others in high positions.”
“I can’t believe he would make a cyborg of his own son,” Tordan stated.
The Ardak stepped closer to them and the expression in his eyes did not hold the hatred Tordan had seen from many of the Ardaks. “My father was angry. Perhaps rightfully so. The elves stole the crystals from our planet, killing billions of species. But there has been a growing division in the Ardaks. We’ve waged war on hundreds of planets, over almost a thousand years. Many of us were tired of it. We just wanted peace. My father knew that if I was free, eventually, I would have rebelled.”
Tordan took the proclamation in. “It does make sense,” he said to Tristin over the frequency. “An Ardak named Ouirer helped Aria a while back by giving her a device and freeing her memories.”
“Yes, and IceBlade helped Kirelle and me escape the high king’s ship,” Tristin answered.
“Are you the king now?”
The prince shrugged, looking over the Ardaks still standing. “I guess. If there are still enough of us to warrant one.” He paused, his slitted eyes scanning the cavern. “So many lost. By our count only a third of us are left.”
“What are your plans now?” Tordan asked.
“We’ll return to Baihu and try to rebuild it as best we can. It’s been a thousand years since the crystals were stolen and our crust shifted, and nature was slowly reviving.” He shook his head. “Although I’m not sure exactly how. Without our crystals, the planet rotates so slowly that night lasts for days and one hemisphere bakes while the other freezes. The only things that survived well were those damned flowers.” He paused. “I thought my father was searching for the crystals to rebuild our planet, but when he burned all the white flowers, destroying large sections of our land again, I knew he wasn’t. He wanted vengeance, no matter what the cost. And he was never satisfied. So I began to speak out, and one day, I went to sleep, and woke up like this.” He gestured to the back of his neck.
Tordan was silent for a long moment. In his heart, he knew the right thing to do, but doing it was difficult. Could he let his hatred of the Ardaks die with the elder king? Could he trust the son to return to Baihu and stop waging war across the universe?
Prince Leofeles glanced once more at the devastation around them. “I hope to help rebuild the worlds we’ve destroyed. Try to make a better legacy for ourselves and our people.”
Tordan’s eyes went to the crystal, powering the device that would keep Aurora safe long into the future. “How would you like to have your crystals back?”
Elation lit the younger Ardak’s face, comingling with his grief. His muzzle trembled and his slitted eyes welled with emotion. The expression of longing was so strong that it tugged at Tordan’s heart.
“I . . . I would not know how to thank you. Our planet would spin again, and I think . . .” Prince Leofeles met the eyes of several other Ardaks. They had dropped their swords and come up to the edge of the dais. “I think my people would finally be at peace.”
“Then we will escort them to your planet and return them to the center of it,” Tordan said. “We will do so in exchange for your vow of peace with the universe.”
Tordan replied both out loud and over the frequency. At this proclamation, murmurs began in the cavern, growing into shouts of joy from those who were left alive on both sides.
Chapter Fifty
Zordan
Zordan opened his eyes to a place so bright that he immediately closed them again. Hesitantly, he shielded his eyes from the illumination with one hand before attempting to open his eyelids again. As his eyes adjusted to the light, he witnessed the shimmering of the air around him.
It reminded him of Lielle.
He reached out to touch one of the sparkles, but it dissipated before his finger reached it.
Then he noticed an elf standing before him, her dress glittering like a million diamonds in the golden light. He didn’t need to see the throne behind her to know who she was.
The elven queen of the higher elven realm.
Her lips were turned upward at the corners, and when she laughed, he knew it was directed at him. Chuckles also echoed from the sides of the chamber, and he realized there was a large audience to witness his humiliation.
Chagrined, he put his hand down at his side and squared his shoulders. Then he attempted an elegant bow but stumbled forward. His body was light, almost weightless, and it took him several moments to recover. He clenched his jaw. “High Queen of the Elves.”
“Emperor Zordjin,” she nodded in return, her eyes sparkling.
“Just Zordan, Your Majesty,” he corrected.
Her slender brows rose. “This is what you would choose? To be a nobody, a cyborg rather than the leader of the empire you built?”
He raised his chin. “I choose to be a Siirtian of the Mountain Realm. Though I never lived there, I saw its people conduct themselves with virtue and fight bravely against the Ardaks for the preservation of their planet. I count myself lucky to be one of them.”
Her eyes narrowed. “It has come to my attention that your brethren have acquired a fondness for the elves on Aurora.”
“If you mean they have loved them, protected them, and sacrificed for them, Your Majesty, you would be correct.”
Her brows rose even higher. “And you? Have you taken to any of the elves, Zordan?”
He knew where this line of questioning would take him. He was to be punished for daring to be with Lielle—for corrupting one so innocent, so pure. He bowed his head. “Yes, my lady, though I knew it was wrong. But heaven forgive me, I love her. And I will accept whatever punishment you mean to give me.”
The elven queen glided closer. “You’ve put me in something of a quandary, Zordan. I would dearly love to punish you. But your sacrifice, and hers, have made that difficult.”
“Her sacrifice?” Pain shot through his chest, and he dared to look at the elven queen again. “She also died?”
The queen nodded, her eyes never leaving his f
ace. “The power from the crystal was too much for her mortal form to take. And upon her death, she had but one request. Do you know what that was, Zordan?”
Hope rose within his chest as his eyes darted from side to side, searching for Lielle among the crowd of elves that stood there.
She raised her voice and continued, “I’ll tell you what it was not. It was not to come back to the higher elven realm. It was not to be rewarded for her valor. And it was not even to be promoted to the next level of spirit-seers.” Her golden eyes flashed at him. “She wished for you, Zordan. But not just for you. She asked—no, she demanded—that, in return for your sacrifice, all Siirtians who fall in love with elves to be accepted into our realm as one of us.”
She came to stand directly in front of him, lowering her voice to a whisper, “Can you guess my reply, Zordan?”
He wisely remained silent, head bowed, allowing the moment to extend. Then out of the corner of his eye he saw movement, caught a flash of golden eyes peeking at him from behind two male elves.
The queen drew a breath. “I told her that if those starry Aurorans want to sully our higher elven realm with Siirtians . . . then that is exactly what they will get.”
At the proclamation, Lielle darted out from behind the elves and into his arms. He staggered backward, unused to his weightlessness. Then he spun her in a circle, seeing no eyes but hers. “Thank you, High Queen,” he said between the kisses he landed on Lielle’s face. “Thank you.”
To his embarrassment, his vision blurred with tears as he set Lielle back on her feet.
“No, Zordan—” the queen placed a hand on his arm, sending a strange feeling of shimmering through him “—thank you. Your actions have helped save our realm and restore the balance of the universe. For that, I think we can deal with a few Siirtians.” She winked. “Now, be off. Both of you. There is much work to do since the balance of the universe has been restored.”
With a wave, Lielle created a portal. Then she took his hand and led him into a shimmering room of light. Her golden eyes glowed as she surveyed the room. “I never thought I’d see this place again.” Her eyes came back to him earnestly. “But there came a point where I didn’t want to. I just wanted to be with you. I love you, Zordan.”
“I love you, too, Lielle.” He dropped to one knee, words failing him for the moment. He was humbled and grateful. “I know I’m not the male you deserve. I don’t deserve your love or this afterlife, but I vow that I will spend the rest of my afterlife trying to be worthy of both.”
Her eyes gleamed and she drew closer to put her arms around his neck. “I’ll take that vow, Zordan. But I must warn you, forever is a very long time. And I’m sure the high queen will think of a job for you soon enough.”
“Speaking of jobs, could you use a crystal to see what’s happening on Aurora?”
Her eyes gleamed. “You want to see whether they all survived?”
He nodded.
Lielle went to a shimmering chest and pulled out a crystal, coming to sit on the bed beside him. “Look closely,” she whispered, peering into the crystal with him.
Tordan sat in the throne room at Renwyn, which had been fitted out for a feast. A count of the table showed sixteen chairs. Everyone was present, Tordan and Aielle at the center, Roihan and Aria, Simban and Irielle, Valdjan and Ithyll, Mordjan and Fayelle, Durstin and Kiersten, and Tristin and Kirelle, Nirjhar and Merryth.
As they watched, Tordan rose and raised his glass. “This table and this room represent what is possible. Elves, cyborgs, humans, merpeople, an Andalian prince, and Resistance fighters from other planets – fought together for Aurora. And now we have peace with the Ardaks. I salute every single one of you. I thank every single one of you. Now, let’s have a moment of silence for everyone we’ve lost. Especially Zordan and Lielle, whose sacrifices allowed the creation of the shield which now guards this planet.”
All heads bowed, and as his eyes passed over them he recognized others, Aefin, Stephan, Chihon, Lohein and Kidric. There were even several Ardaks in attendance.
Long moments passed, then Tordan spoke again, his voice light. “We won! And I hope that this will usher in a new era of peace and prosperity. And I tell you now—friends, allies—that if any of you should need us in the future, we will be there.”
He raised his glass and drank deeply, and the other joined him. Then there was a resounding cheer, and lively music heralded the beginning of the feast.
The vision faded, but Zordan’s heart was warm, and by the brightness of Lielle’s eyes, he knew she felt the same.
Then she bent to kiss him and all thoughts fled his mind save those of Lielle.
The higher elven realm, the universe, the rest of it could wait. They’d defeated the Ardaks, saved Aurora, and, sooner or later, he’d see Tordan and all the rest of the cyborgs again.
Zordan was there with Lielle in his arms, and now that he had eternity, he was going to take his damn time.
The End
Author’s Note
Dear Reader,
As promised, here is the Author’s Note. It’s 12:30 a.m., and I’ve just written Zordan’s last words in the afterlife. I really hope you enjoyed reading Zordan as much as I enjoyed writing it. I also hope you consider it a fitting end to the series.
I suppose I’ll take some heat for kind of killing off both main characters—I mean, who does that?! So I wanted to offer you an explanation.
The idea of the higher elven realm has been in my mind since writing Valdjan. It bothered me that the elves very clearly had a higher realm, but the cyborgs did not. How could they really be together forever? I flirted with the idea of giving the cyborgs their own realm—and I believe the Siirtians do have one out there somewhere. But that will be a story for another time.
The more I thought about it, the more I realized that the only way I would be happy with a resolution would be to have the cyborgs accepted into the elven higher realm, or at least be allowed to choose between them.
I began to think of the conditions under which it could happen. I believed it could only be done if one of the Siirtians were to truly sacrifice himself for the greater good. It would have to be a sacrifice where he had absolutely nothing to gain, and everything to lose. But if he did that, his elven partner would also have to sacrifice herself, or he would be in the afterlife and she would be stuck on Aurora. . .
Thus my ideas for Zordan and Lielle were born. She would be from the afterlife, bringing with her the knowledge that the afterlife was a real place, a place Zordan and the other cyborgs could not go. Zordan would know he couldn’t go there, yet still sacrifice himself for her, knowing he was destined to never see her again. Their love and their sacrifices would allow all the Siirtians to be accepted by the elves.
Now we just have to worry about the merpeople. . . but you know King Nirjhar is going to find a way in somehow. ;)
Looking ahead, I have two more series planned – the next one takes place in Tristin’s galaxy, a place of technology, legacy, and hidden magic. In the last series, we’ll find the elven homeworld and a magic that has evolved in the last thousand years since the portals closed.
There is nothing better for an author than to get comments from readers, so please feel free to drop me a line at [email protected].
All the best to you and yours, and I hope we’ll meet again soon,
Immortal Angel
Zordan Page 19