CHAPTER 24
“I’m sorry, but can you repeat that one more time? I seem to have lost my ability to hear,” Barog grumbled. He glowered at Samira, his disapproval plainly written across his face, his anger a storm cloud hanging overhead, ready to unleash its wrath.
Samira stared at him blankly, unamused by his biting words. What she was proposing did sound crazy, but so did leaving a stone unturned when it was right within their grasp. The answer was there, all they needed to do was reveal it. “There has to be at least one person willing to lose a finger to save the world. Just find me someone!”
“What if it ends up being more than a finger, Samira? Are you even listening to yourself? This is madness.”
“Oh, you’re going to make me go there.”
“Gods, Samira. What?”
“This could potentially save Trista.”
Barog scoffed, pacing away a few steps to put distance between him and Samira. His features were skewed, a perfect mask of livid disbelief. “That is low, even for you. Very, very low.”
“I wasn’t raised right, Barog.”
“You were born in Korinth! I could have told you that. Only us sea faring folk have any sense left in our heads.”
Samira smiled. She’d won. Victory was near and she reveled in it. “Find me someone and meet me down below.”
“You’re awful, Samira. Just give me a few minutes. This is going to take some convincing.”
“I know, old friend. I know.”
With a heavy-hearted sigh, Barog walked across the deck, eyes roaming over his crew. If something went wrong, she could very well be sacrificing one of his friends. It was a terrible thing to ask of him, to ask of anyone, but they needed to know the truth. If the corruption was targeting those without powers, things in Korinth and Val’shar would be far more dire than they’d been prepared to handle.
Kirheen and Tomias were already waiting for her below deck, sitting quietly, lost in their own thoughts. They looked far more relaxed than they had before, the strange tension between them having melted away. While things were calm now, there was the problem of Mirin to consider. Samira had seen the similarity between her and Kirheen. It was easy to understand where her outburst of emotions had come from, but that moment of weakness had almost cost them. The girl had lost control, and without knowing what the corruption could do, how could she risk having them on the same ship? She’d have to figure out a solution before they came to blows again.
Still, her outburst had provided them some valuable insight and paved the way towards an answer, even if it was one that terrified her. If her theory turned out to be correct, it would mean a nightmarish future for the world if they failed their mission.
“Well, what’s the plan?” Tomias asked as she approached, his voice unsteady. “Are we still making someone willingly touch the corruption?”
Samira took a seat at the table with them, leaning heavily on her elbows. “Yes. While I wouldn’t say he was willing, Barog did resign himself to doing as I asked. He’s going to see if anyone will volunteer for our experiment.”
Kirheen grimaced. “This could go terribly, terribly wrong.”
“Your outburst could have as well,” Samira shot back, words carefully aimed. Kirheen looked to the table, jaw clenched tight. “With the three of us, we’ll be able to contain it to just one area. Better to figure this out here in the middle of the ocean rather than in a city brimming with people.”
“Point taken.”
The door creaked open, and Barog stepped into the room, a member of his crew in tow. The man was old, weathered by hardships, the lines on his face etched deep. He nervously rubbed his hands together and nodded to each of them. “Well, I hear I’m needed to save the world,” he chuckled, his laughter a thin veil over his uncertainty.
Samira smiled at him kindly. “That’s the hope, sir.”
“Brennen,” he corrected. “Just call me Brennen. Ah, it feels strange getting wrapped up in something like this. It all seems so otherworldly, you know, but if you really think it might help…”
“I won’t make any promises, Brennen, but you could very well be giving us a fighting chance against this, as complicated and terrifying as it all sounds.”
“Then let’s get on with it before my nerves get the better of me.”
Samira rose from her chair and offered the seat to Brennen. Her eyes flicked to Barog. He stood in the doorway, frowning as his crew member eased himself onto the chair. “Keep everyone away from this room, even if Trista threatens to beat you within an inch of your life. Understood?”
“I know,” he groaned. “I know. Just be careful, damn it.”
She mouthed a thank you, feeling a stab of guilt as he turned his back in defeat and stepped out of the room, slamming the door as he went. Power came rushing forward at her call, flowing through her fingertips and into reality. She weaved that energy with care, knitting a physical barrier tightly over the door. She couldn’t risk it getting out to the rest of the ship.
“Let’s get started,” she said, turning back to her apprehensive test subject. “I’m going to form a barrier around your arm so we can isolate the area. It won’t be comfortable, but I’ll make it as bearable as I can for you. Just rest your arm on the table and spread out your fingers.”
Brennen paled. Taking a deep breath, he did as Samira asked. Weaving her hand above his, she shaped a barrier around his hand, knitting the threads tighter and tighter, pressing against his skin with as much force as she could without hurting him. She could feel him tense, her power constricting his movement. She isolated a single finger, leaving a pocket big enough for the Darkness to be slipped inside. “Tomias, just like I showed you.”
Power bubbled to life within Tomias, a gentle flow compared to the raging force of her own power, the scorching heat of Kirheen’s. His barrier sputtered to life and he fed it more power, leveling out the flickering light and shaping it ever so slowly around the barrier Samira had created. With both barriers in place, Samira looked to Kirheen.
“Ready?” Kirheen asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
Samira nodded. “Let’s get this over with.”
Kirheen stepped towards Brennen, her hand darting forward to slip through the gap in the barriers. It sealed around her hand, trapping her in the barrier with him. As Kirheen drew on her power, the air shifted, sending a shiver up Samira’s spine. A hole, smaller than a coin, formed in the center of Kirheen’s palm, growing larger by the second. A black, shimmering tendril squirmed out of the void in her palm, otherworldly in its beauty and strangeness.
“What in the hell…?” Brennen gasped, his eyes widening. Kirheen cut off the flow of corruption, the hole in her hand snapping shut. The corruption dropped, flattening as it hit the table. It rose up, forming a tiny wave, and then slammed forward, diving for Brennen’s exposed finger. He jerked back in fear and Samira clamped down tighter with the barrier, pinning his hand firmly in place.
“Please, stay calm,” she whispered, unable to peel her eyes away from the corruption. It coated his exposed finger, the Darkness inching up to the barrier. Brennen began to weep, great sobs wracking his body.
“I’m not worthy,” he sputtered. “Not worthy. Zekar, forgive me. Not worthy. I’m not worthy.”
The shape of his finger in the corruption disappeared and it flattened into a puddle on the table. There was nothing left; no wound, no blood, not a trace left of his finger. It had ceased to exist, replaced by writhing corruption where it had once been.
The Darkness squirmed against the barrier, seeking escape from its prison. Brennen continued to weep, sorrowful prayers mouthed by frantic lips. “Not worthy. No, no, no.”
It was deeply unsettling, and Samira looked to her companions, hoping the fear she felt couldn’t be read so easily in her gaze. “Kirheen, draw it back.”
Kirheen coaxed the corruption back into her trembling hand. When she was sure it was contained, she slipped her hand out of the barrier and wiped her p
alm on her dress in disgust. She stumbled back a few steps, eyes never leaving Brennen’s hand.
Tomias was pale, his mouth agape. “By the Allseer, what did we just see?”
“No. Not the Allseer. Zekar,” Samira corrected. “Just listen to him.” Samira released the barrier around Brennen, and he clutched his hand to his chest, still overcome by emotion, by fear, his mumbling growing in intensity. “The corruption is targeting them. It’s like it erased that part of him out of existence. There is a roomful of this corruption in Val’shar…”
“And it’s inside us,” Kirheen said, though she hardly needed the reminder. Now more than ever, Samira felt dangerous, a liability to those close to her. “What is wrong with him? What is he whispering about?”
Samira leaned closer to him. “It sounds like prayers. He keeps asking for Zekar’s forgiveness, but he didn’t strike me as a particular pious man. I’m going to take a look inside his mind and see what I can find.”
“Be careful,” Tomias warned. “Who knows what it’s done to him.”
Closing her eyes, Samira reached forward and into the unprotected expanse of Brennen’s mind. It always felt strange touching the mind of those without the gift, as if she were treading in a place she wasn’t meant to be. Their natural barriers were thin and weak. How easy it could be to twist their thoughts, their feelings. Manipulation would take only words, a small push. It was why those in Korinth relegated those without power to such lowly positions. It was far too easy for them to fall prey to the ambitions of others.
The natural barrier of his mind was easy to slip through, already having been damaged by the brief contact with the corruption. Dark thoughts swirled in the center of his mind, an overwhelming guilt pressing down on his consciousness. And she could feel it, thick and overwhelming, a dense fog telling him to feel ashamed, to feel worthless, to not exist at all.
It was not a thought naturally conjured by his mind. Those thoughts had been brutally placed there, stoked to life by a force she could feel but not understand. A voice echoed through the fog, a strange ethereal tone that made her shiver “Sa..mir..a.”
Startled, she drew upon her power, checking his mind for the source. Something was there, buried deep in the shadows. Some power waited in the dark, coiled and ready to strike. “Who’s there?”
“Weak. Hopeless. They are not meant to exist. You hold the answer. Eradicate. Destroy. Renew.”
“No!” Gathering her power, she pushed out, shoving against the darkness leaking into his every thought. As the dark energy cleared, she could see through to the heart of the problem. At the center of his mind, a densely packed ball of corruption slowly rotated, trailing dark smoke, an expanse of shimmering stars in the darkest of nights.
There was no way of knowing if destroying the orb would hurt Brennen, but left in his current state, it wouldn’t matter. It wouldn’t be long before he succumbed to the guilt that had been planted like some corrupt seed inside his head. Better to take the risk and try to save him then to leave him to such a fate. “Forgive me for this,” she whispered. Her power gathered, crackling and warm as it grew in strength. When she could hold it no more, she slammed the built-up energy against the orb.
With a sound like shattering glass, it broke apart, shards bursting into stars and smoke, drifting back out of his mind on an invisible breeze. She drifted with it, heart pounding as she opened her eyes. Angry words thundered inside her skull, reverberating against her barrier. “The wrath of the stars will purify, even if you will not.”
Kirheen hovered close by, lingering between her and Brennen. “Samira?”
Samira settled back into her own mind, focusing on her words, on the physical space that surrounded her. “I-I’m fine. What about Brennen?”
“He’s alive,” Tomias said. He stood beside Brennen, one hand on the old sailor’s shoulder. “He stopped crying and whispering right before you returned to your body. He fell asleep almost immediately, but he’s still breathing. Do you want me to try and wake him?”
“No, no. Let him rest. Gods, he earned it. I’ll check his mind again soon and make sure all is well.”
“What happened?” Kirheen asked. “I felt your power spike. You looked frightened.”
It felt so distant, a smoky dream disappearing upon waking. Had she really heard anything at all? “There was something in his mind, some sort of orb. It looked like the corruption. His mind was so dark, filled with thoughts of failure, of not having worth. And there was this vo – no. It sounds crazy.”
“Please tell us,” Kirheen pressed. “It could be important. We need to know.”
“There was a voice. It knew my name, but it didn’t sound like a person. It sounded powerful – godlike. It was talking about purifying something. The stars will purify… If this is only affecting those without powers, could it be this corruption is meant to destroy them?”
Tomias shook his head. “Darkness and stars, the very symbols of Zekar himself. Is this somehow connected to him? Is this the will of a deity? The thought of that being true is more than a little unsettling.”
“What I think is that we are very, very out of our league. We’re talking about a god. We’re talking about Zekar himself, supposed creator of everything we know, somehow having a hand in all of this.”
Kirheen found the nearest chair and sat down. “This is too much. Is this connected to what I’ve been hearing? Gods…”
Samira narrowed her eyes. “What have you been hearing?”
“I’m sorry,” Kirheen apologized, wincing as she met Samira’s gaze. “I wasn’t trying to hide it from either of you, I just honestly thought I was going crazy. Ever since my crystals appeared, I’ve been hearing a voice – no, voices – in my head. Nothing it says makes any sense and it’s overwhelming, like hundreds of people trying to talk to me all at once.”
“Have you been able to make out what it was saying?”
“Most of the time it’s a jumbled mess, but when Elfrind was trying to steal my powers, it was urging me to not let it happen, to keep it from him. Gods or not, something is going on here, and it’s all connected.”
Tomias leaned against the table, arms crossed over his chest, expression troubled. He glanced at Brennen and shuddered. “We at least know what this does, and that is important. This changes things though. People are in danger. Our friends are in danger. You’ve both been able to keep this contained, but what of Elfrind? If he gets more power, if we can’t stop him…”
“Then anyone without powers will cease to exist,” Samira said, feeling the meaning of the words vibrate down to her very core. Her body recoiled, sickened by the thought of such a massacre. “We’ve got to warn the others. For now, I think it might be best if we kept to ourselves and well away from the crew. I won’t risk anything happening to them. There’s no letting our guard down now. Elfrind is our priority, and we have to stop him.”
Kirheen nodded. “Samira, we’re with you. We’ll put an end to this.”
Samira looked to Tomias. “Can you discretely let Barog know what happened here? I’ll send Brennen out as soon as I can, but I want to make sure his mind is in order first.”
“Of course,” he said. “I’ll be back.”
Samira dropped the barrier over the door long enough to let him pass, then sealed the room back up after his departure. She took a step towards Brennen. His breathing was deep and steady, chin tucked against his chest. “Poor thing. If I’d known…”
“At least now we know something. What he did was important, and he knows that. I just hope he’s all right,” Kirheen said sadly, eyes wandering to the weathered hands folded in his lap, the empty space where his index finger used to be. “Be careful, Samira.”
“I will. Just be prepared for anything.”
Samira slipped into his mind. No smoke, no orb, no sea of stars threatening to engulf his mind in guilt. She lingered for a time, casually drifting through memories, through thoughts, looking for any hint of something she might have missed. There was
nothing there, not a trace left of the corruption she’d forced out of his mind.
Satisfied, she crept back out of his thoughts, unable to shake the feeling that something watched her as she left, the eyes of a deity burning with disappointment.
CHAPTER 25
Night fell over the desert, driving away the heat from the sand. Keha’ro did not dare make a fire, did not dare give away any sign of the cave he crouched in, huddling in the dark like some criminal. Fear had turned into a strange sort of bitterness, a bad taste that settled on his tongue, never leaving.
“What do you think they would do to me, Ril? Say I went back to Korinth. What would they do?”
His arm glowed faintly, the stone beneath his skin wakened by his words. “You wield great power, Keha’ro. Think what they might do with it. Your people have desired, more than anything, conquest. Expansion. To uplift those with power. There is another, an equal to you that has stopped this. Imagine if they could stand against her, if they could finally move forth in the world with you as the tip of the spear.”
“Is that really what’s best for the world, Ril? We’re a powerful people but we’re not without flaws. We’d strip the rest of the world of everything it is, of everything they are.” They’d make him a weapon, a tool. He refused to be used in such a manner. He’d heard of someone with immense power that had fled years before he was even born, that they whispered about still. Was she really like him? Had they tried to make her a weapon too? Perhaps it was why she’d left.
“That depends on who you ask. Everyone thinks they are right in their own minds.”
The Allseer Trilogy Page 81