“He's just looking out for himself,” Robert grunted. He appeared dishevelled, but also surprisingly relaxed. “If you're killed, so is he.”
“Perhaps,” Aiden said. He touched the circlet on his head thoughtfully. “I would dearly love an extended chat with Salinder but I have no idea how to do it.”
“Give it a few more weeks and you'll just have to look in the mirror,” Robert remarked gruffly. Aiden failed to find this amusing. He was about to respond when Terinus punched the console out of frustration.
“What is it?” Aiden asked, concerned at another show of emotion from the increasingly undisciplined wizard.
“We have indeed been discovered,” Terinus rasped quietly, staring down at the console with barely concealed anger. “When I deemed us ready to act, we were to proceed through the portal into the lair of my former masters. This route has now been blocked. I cannot access their portal from here, and thus we have lost our opportunity to act.”
His leaden words fell heavily upon the assembled group, leaving a thunderous silence. Nellise left Aiden's side and drifted towards the console, staring at it with a blank expression.
“How did they know?” Aiden asked of Terinus, disbelievingly. “How could they find out? I thought we had more time.”
“It appears the distorted energies surrounding the area of Fairloch have subsided sooner than I anticipated,” Terinus explained in a measured voice. “They were most likely able to deduce the demise of Veronique at Lanfall, and undoubtedly followed the evidence back to me. They could not pierce my disciplined mind and chose another nearby vessel for their dire intentions.” He looked up at Aiden and locked eyes.
“They didn't learn anything from me,” Aiden protested.
“Oh, but they did,” Terinus accused, whirling on Aiden and slowly closing in as he spoke. “You allowed them to probe the minds of everyone in this room. Their deepest fears, their vulnerabilities, the very nature of their being is now known to our foe. Our remaining time on this world is now counted in minutes.”
“Wait, you said if they found out, we'd all be destroyed in a pillar of fire,” Pacian reminded him. “Why are we still alive?”
“I do not know,” Terinus admitted. “It is not in the nature of my former masters to hesitate when their existence is revealed.”
“Then we still have time,” Robert declared.
“Time for what, Commander? We have no way to access their fortress in the sky, even if we had the equipment necessary to defeat them.”
“It takes more than good gear to beat an enemy,” Robert pointed out. “I'm willing to bet we could search worlds through that bloody portal of yours for a year, covering ourselves in shiny things and still fail to match them. We have to draw the line somewhere, so we should focus on finding another way to gain access to their fortress.”
“And how do you propose we do that?” Terinus spat.
“I don't know!” Robert shouted back. “Sayana can probably fly us there, or maybe we can teleport? I'm not the expert on bloody magic here, one of you geniuses think of something.”
What were the results of your examination of the relics I found? Sayana asked Aiden. Was there anything that could help us?
“Not with finding a way to get there,” Aiden sighed, touching the circlet on his head for a moment. “I think they were all made by the same person, with a very precise objective. This one is protecting my mind from assault at the moment, so you'll excuse me if I don't remove it.”
“What about the rest of us?” Robert protested. “I don't want my brain fried either, why should you be the one to wear it?”
“What makes you think there's anything in there to fry?” Pacian snarked.
“Oh, and you don't want to wear that thing I suppose? What if they tried to get inside your head and stab you to death from the inside?”
“I would welcome it, for it would be the last mistake they would ever make,” Pacian responded darkly. “The things in my head would flay the sanity from their minds.”
“Yet you're still sane?” Robert pointed out.
“Am I?” Pacian suggested with an unflinching stare.
“Question withdrawn.”
Anything else? Sayana prompted Aiden impatiently.
“Those armoured bracers have runes of time on them but they won't make anyone fly or teleport. There were some tools which were probably used to make all of these things, and finally the sword. I'm not entirely sure what enchantments are laid upon it but just looking at it scares me. I think some of the language inscribed on the blade is from Placidus, so I want Jenovia to look at it before the escardi leave.”
“And leave they must,” Terinus advised. “Although we have not yet felt the retribution of my former masters, it is inevitable. The remaining escardi should leave the tower and move as far away as possible.”
I have already been translating this conversation to them, Sayana explained, but they could use some help moving the wounded.
“I'll go while the rest of you figure something out,” Pacian offered, hurrying out the door.
“Figure out indeed,” Robert muttered while Aiden pondered the strange imagery in his dream.
“Something has just occurred to me,” he said to Sayana quietly. “My ongoing transformation isn't simply the use of sorcery. It's being pushed by the living spirit of Salinder. He's effectively trying to take over my body.”
The thought had occurred to me, Sayana hedged, prompting Aiden to narrow his eyes.
“You know more about this than you're letting on,” he suggested.
Nothing I haven't already mentioned in the past.
“I suspect you're referring to my 'death' at Akora,” Aiden said in a flat voice. “You think I never truly returned, and what you see before you is an amalgam of two dying entities.”
That's one way of putting it.
“If this is true, and it certainly appears to be, then everything I've said and done since that day has been coloured by the thoughts and drives of another creature's mind. I can't even trust that anything I've done in the past two years has been of my own free will.” He paused to think about this for a moment while the others watched, unsure what to say.
A dragon's craving for power is absolute, Sayana remarked. This has certainly coloured your choices in recent memory.
“Power corrupts,” Aiden said without feeling. “If I rise within the ranks of society, marry Criosa and become Duke of Fairloch, there is every chance I would unconsciously abuse my position and become just another tyrant.”
“Well now you know, don't do it,” Robert grunted as the escardi began to file past towards the exit.
“I shall prepare the door for their departure,” Terinus said. “When I return, we will discuss our next move. We may need to consider evacuating nearby cities to save as many as we can.” Aiden nodded thoughtfully, feeling the weight of their apparent failure upon his shoulders.
“Hey, it's not over yet,” Robert said, apparently reading his expression. “We'll figure something out.”
Aiden gave him a weak smile, still distracted by the very nature of his being. He desperately needed to speak with Salinder, who was evidently still alive within him, but had no idea how to do so. The spirit had been unable to communicate thus far, and its weakness within his psychic nightmare suggested it wasn't going to be of much help in the near future. Aiden snapped out of his reverie when he noticed Jenovia poke her head around the corner.
“I wish to offer you my thanks one more time,” she said by way of Sayana's telepathic translation. “We go now to take shelter in the mountains to the south, which the black-robed one informs us will be safe and will support our small community well.”
“Just before you go,” Aiden prompted, “could I get you to read this? The inscription on this blade has piqued my interest.” The Marshal followed Aiden to the bench where the other items lay.
“It is a zashi blade,” she explained upon spotting the weapon. “We have seen a few from amongst
the ruins, mostly broken and bent. We believe it was a common weapon on Placidus before our time.” She reached for the hilt of the sword, but her hand stopped mere inches from it and hovered while her eyes widened in astonishment.
“This weapon carries the spirits of the dead within,” Jenovia uttered through Sayana. “They are angry, no, furious at the destruction of their home world. Their voices... the magnitude of their rage, it is staggering. What kind of magic is this?” Aiden peered at the swirling black gemstone in the pommel with an expert eye, understanding now what he was looking at.
“Crystals such as these focus and magnify energy,” he explained. “The weapon was crafted in the heart of the fallen city, which Sayana explained as full of shadowy spirits and a strange, caustic energy coming from the ancient generators. It seems to have absorbed these energies during the long decades where it sat amongst it all. Can you read the writing along the blade?”
“'This is the last testament to the greatness of our lost civilisation,'” Jenovia began as she peered at the tiny inscription. “'Whoever wields this blade carries the vengeance of my people. Do unto our enemies as they have done to us. Bring them low with blackened skies, burning rain.'” Aiden exhaled slowly as he examined the weapon, understanding now its full potential.
“I'm willing to bet it was crafted by a master of the art, their last act of defiance against the enemies they could not face,” he said. Before anyone could say another word, he reached out and grasped the hilt. His earlier caution against the possibly cursed nature of the sword vanished when he realised the weapon was supposed to look and feel as it did. He swept it through the air, leaving a trail of shadows in its wake, and right at the edge of hearing the whispered words of the vengeful spirits within could be heard.
“If you choose to wield it,” Jenovia stated, “understand that it was made for one purpose only. If you face these 'sa'quaarin' you spoke of and somehow manage to defeat them, destroy the blade afterwards. Vengeance is never sated, and it could twist whoever wields it to its purpose.”
“I'll be sure to do that,” Aiden assured her, sheathing the weapon and setting it back down on the bench. “Good luck to you and your people, Jenovia. I hope you like your new home. We're all rather proud of it.”
“A world where food is plentiful and the seasons turn will be strange for us at first, but we are eager to explore more of this place,” Jenovia replied. “Good fortune to you and your comrades in your fight. Were it not for my responsibilities, I would gladly join you. Farewell.” Robert likewise shook her oversized hand as she left the room, leaving them to ponder their predicament once more.
“A nice little sword,” Robert remarked, taking a cigar out of a small case. “Not unlike a sabre, really. It'd be even nicer if we could get close enough to the sa'quaarin to use it.” Sayana extended one finger and a tiny flame appeared, which the mercenary used to light up. Aiden recalled the image of Robert from his nightmare, his chest a mass of porous sores oozing a thick tar as he breathed out a cloud of smoke.
“You should probably think about giving those up,” Aiden suggested as he watched Robert puff away. “They can't be doing your lungs any good.”
“I tell you what,” Robert replied through a puff of smoke. “If we survive the next day, that's exactly what I'll do.” Terinus and Pacian entered the lab, having seen their guests into the world. The wizard was about to address them when he noticed Nellise at the controls of the portal. They had forgotten all about her during the course of their conversation and only now noticed she was attempting to operate the console.
“Don't touch that,” Terinus rasped in alarm as she continued tracing glyphs upon the shining surface. She ignored his request and continued working as if in a trance. The wizard stormed past the others and headed straight for the console just as the portal hummed to life. White light shone from the curtain of light, enveloping the lab in a soft radiance.
Terinus pushed Nellise away from the controls and examined the console, while Pacian went to her side and tried to snap her out of the trance.
“Nel, wake up,” he said urgently, grasping her shoulders and giving her a gentle shake. Her golden eyes blinked slowly and appeared to be looking straight through him.
“What have you done?” Terinus exclaimed, turning to look at Nellise, who seemed oblivious to her surroundings. Aiden rushed to his side and examined the obscure glyphs upon the console's surface. He had seen the language used when the portal was successfully linked to another world, and what he was reading suggested this was indeed what had just happened.
“I don't see the problem,” Aiden said, “although I'm not sure how Nellise would have known how to do this.”
She didn't, Sayana interjected. I can sense an otherworldly connection influencing her.
“She's been compromised,” Robert shouted, spitting out his cigar and making a move for Nellise.
Wait, I do not believe it is sa'quaarin influence, Sayana clarified. Something else is going on.
“These coordinates are impossible,” Terinus rasped. “The portal is directly linked to another dimension with no anchor point. It could lead into the abyss for all I know.”
“Or somewhere better,” Pacian suggested, still staring into the cleric's eyes in an effort to understand. He then broke away from her and walked straight into the portal before anyone could stop him.
“The damned fool,” Terinus spat as Pacian vanished. “He could end up anywhere!”
The energy is beautiful, Sayana sighed, drifting towards the curtain of light.
“It could still be a trap,” Robert warned. “Moths to a flame, remember?”
I don't think that's what this is, Sayana replied softly, hovering before the portal for a moment before taking the plunge. Robert cursed loudly but didn't follow her through.
“Can you shut it down?” he asked of Terinus.
“Of course, but if I do that I won't be able to reconnect. I'm not even certain how Nellise managed to make this happen in the first place.”
“Fine, nobody else go through,” Robert growled. “Maybe Sy can figure it all out and get back here. Pace can stay if he wants though, I'm fine with that.”
“Have a little faith,” Nellise said quietly, still gazing at the portal's soft light as she began to walk towards it.
“Stop right there, lady,” Robert barked in his most authoritative voice. “Nobody else is going through until Terinus figures this out.”
“I'm not certain I can,” the wizard rasped as he worked at the controls. Only Robert's calloused hand prevented Nellise from entering the portal, and Aiden felt torn between prudent caution and allowing her to go.
“Given her connection to a higher power, can you really believe she might have been led astray?” he asked of the other two men.
“Are you suggesting God opened the door?” Robert scoffed.
“Maybe,” Aiden hedged. “I'm not an expert on faith, but she is. Give her the benefit of the doubt.”
“Walking towards the light has a degree of finality to it mate, I've made it my business to head in the other direction where possible.”
“You don't have to, just let her go if that's what she wants,” Aiden suggested. Robert held Nellise in place, but looked her in the eye. She still seemed to be in a trance of some sort, but looked back at him with a warm smile. There was no sign of stress or hardship on her features, as if the events of the last few years had never happened.
“I've seen that smile before,” Robert said quietly. “If I let her go, she may never come back.”
“Ultimately, it's her choice,” Aiden counselled. The mercenary hesitated for a moment longer, weighing up the decision before finally relenting and stepping aside. Nellise nodded thankfully and slowly walked through the curtain, leaving the three men behind to ponder the fate of their friends.
Chapter Fourteen
For Sayana, stepping through the curtain of light was like being immersed in an ocean of pure energy. The dense blue markings cove
ring almost all of her skin glowed vividly and her wild red hair danced and flowed around her. She hovered in place, breathing in the sensation of near unlimited power before opening her eyes.
Light seemed to come from every direction in this formless place. Faint clouds obscured vision beyond a hundred yards, creating a serene ambience. There was no portal here — only the curtain of light hovering in the mist.
Presently, a dark silhouette of ground rose beneath her feet, though she felt no sense of movement. Trees of incredible size became visible through the clouds as Sayana alighted on a patch of soft grass. Staring up at their immense height was disorienting, for the mind was barely able to comprehend the proportions involved.
In her more immediate surroundings were flowers, shrubs and other small plants, all thriving in the abundant light. With her enhanced vision, Sayana could see this was no illusion, despite the nature of her surroundings. There was a flow of energy streaming around them. A river of light barely visible to the unaided eye was coming from somewhere off in the distance.
Sitting on the grass near a copse of trees up ahead was Pacian, who appeared to be as overcome with the serenity of this place as she. He sat in quiet contemplation and did not react when Sayana drifted towards him. It seemed wrong to break the quiet beauty of this place with speech, so she simply enjoyed the moment. After the excitement of their recent endeavours, it was strange to be so content, an unfamiliar feeling to the young woman whose life had been anything but peaceful.
A misty figure strolling through the garden resolved into the familiar form of Nellise, similarly rapt with her surroundings. Her golden eyes spotted Sayana and Pacian amongst the greenery, and a broad smile spread across her face.
“Is it not magnificent?” she asked rhetorically. “There is something familiar and welcoming about this place. I feel like I've returned home after a long absence.”
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