Saving The Dark Side: Book 1: The Devotion

by Joseph Paradis

  The three orrix stood, stalking with deadly determination towards the three naked Aenerians.

  “Well there you have it.” Chiron clapped his hands together. “Valen, when your unit is ready, take them back to The Sill. Do not delay however. The area is safe for now but our borders are tenuous at best. Wait for me at the necropolis.”

  “Yes, Master Chiron,” Valen said with a solemn nod.

  The group gathered their things and made for the sun lily leaves. As they flew from the beach, Cole looked over his shoulder to see the three orrix circling around the naked Aenerians. Morbid curiosity held his gaze as he watched. One of the women made for the water. Cole had to look away as one of the creatures caught her with its horns, making quick work of her bare flesh with its claws. Cole winced, shutting his eyes as her screams tore into silence.

  Giving into exhaustion, Cole fell asleep for the majority of the trip back to The Sill. Woken by a turbulent shudder, he inched closer to Storn. “Where do you think Chiron went?” Cole asked as their leaf skimmed over the treetops of The Sill.

  “He flew out over the reef where we were. I’d say he went to get more gratia stones,” Storn called over the wind, putting a protective arm around Cole.

  “We’re meeting him at the necropolis, you dumb animal!” Sitra called from her leaf, gliding up beside them. “He’s gone to get Deekus’s body.”

  “That was my next guess,” Storn said, shooting an angry glare at Sitra.

  “But that’s dangerous,” Cole yelled over the tearing wind. “Chiron might get sucked into the coral just like Deekus did. He shouldn’t have gone alone.”

  Storn shook his head dismissively. “Nah, it’s Chiron. He’ll be fine.”

  The shock of battle began to fade, leaving Cole drained like a wrung-out rag. He felt numb, yet deeply disturbed. He spent the rest of the trip trying to empty his mind, but thoughts of his last moments with Deekus kept swimming to the fore of his mind. A burning question kindled within him as well. What was that odd power he almost loosed on Chiron?

  The sun lily leaves slid to a halt in a grove that lay in one of the farthest corners of The Sill. The spot was the highest point within the towering walls, though a pond somehow rested at its center. The Necropolis didn’t look like any graveyard Cole had ever seen. The shallow pond glowed a vibrant cerulean, seemingly from the water itself. Lavender flowers blanketed the surface in island clusters, swirling around in little eddies. Bearded moss hung from the arms of willow trees that dotted the pond, glowing with the same cool hue as the water below.

  Following Storn, Cole stepped off the leaf and hopped into the water. The lavender flowers swam away as they sloshed through the chilly pond. As they approached the center, two figures appeared from behind curtains of glowing moss.

  “Greetings, Masters Roth and Alvani,” Valen said, pushing his way towards the fore of their group. “I assume you heard of our loss?”

  Roth scanned the unit, counting them with his eyes. “Chiron just said one of you had been hurt, and told us to meet here. I knew one of you must have gone for the omnistones. Which one was it?”

  “Deekus. The Underkin claims to have seen his demise.” Valen sighed, interlocking his fingers behind his back.

  “Deekus huh? Thought he was one of the smart ones of your group. Damned fool,” Roth growled.

  Valen nodded in agreement. “He was confident, perhaps too much so in this case. He was also our best healer. Our unit is diminished without him.” Cole couldn’t help but sense that Valen was more concerned with the efficacy of their group than the loss of his friend.

  Roth crossed his thick arms. “You’ll adapt. I’ve seen units take a hit before. Someone else will pull up the slack, they always do. You all should be proficient with Passion anyway. That’s the whole point of what we do at The Sill. You’re supposed to do what we couldn’t during the last war. Isn’t that right, Master Alvani?”

  Alvani cut past Roth without responding. She continued through the rest of the unit to a spot several yards behind them, where Eliza sulked in quiet tears. White robes billowing in the water, Alvani wrapped her arms around Eliza in a motherly embrace. Up until this moment Eliza had appeared to be holding it together, but as Alvani embraced her she came apart at the seams, sobs taking and shaking her whole body. Alvani dropped into the water with her and whispered something into her ear.

  Roth, who appeared entirely unaffected by the display, kicked at a flower that got too close. “At least the girl wasn’t bonded to him. She’d have a scar like Chiron’s. That’s if she even survived the ordeal. Speaking of, where is the Wise One?”

  “We believe he is retrieving Deekus’s body,” Valen said, frowning with a question. “Master Roth, are you aware that there are Domina not far from The Sill? Our unit encountered three of them not an hour ago, each with two thralls.”

  Roth erupted with savage laughter, flecks of blood dropping from his bladed hair into the water below. “I am intimately aware. The unit I was training out by the barrens happened upon a pack of Domina that were triple-thralled. I tried to give the whelps a fair crack at them, but their Fear swallowed their Rage. I had to step in after one of them lost an eye. Felt good though. Hadn’t killed a real enemy in far too long. Almost thought I’d forgotten how to, but the motions came back soon enough.” Roth examined his munisica, seemingly admiring how the light glinted off the shiny surface. “Turns out, with enough force anything made of flesh comes right apart.” His thundering laugh hammered their ears. “How did your unit fare? You better have felled at least one of them, seeing as they were only double-thralled.”

  Valen swallowed, raising his chin a little higher and looking past Roth. “We fought with munisica and magic, but in the end we were outmatched. Deekus’s absence was painfully apparent after a few minutes. Chiron saved all our lives, then stripped the Domina of their thralls.”

  Roth bent down, washing his munisica in the water. “Sounds like you did better than the whelps I had. What did Chiron do with the Aenerians and their thralls? I suppose he held a fancy dinner and told them all to play nice from now on?”

  “Master Chiron stripped the Aenerians of their magic. The thralls were then left to do as they pleased with their former masters.” Valen gave Roth a grim look, implying the fate of their foes.

  “Now that’s the Chiron I remember!” Roth growled. “He wasn’t always so diplomatic. It sets a hearty fire in my blood to see he still remembers the finer points of well-placed violence. Still, I would have killed the whole lot, thralls and all. Weakens the herd you know, to release those animals back into the wild. If they were stupid enough to fall for Grotton’s filth then they’ll do it again.”

  “Of course, Master Roth,” Valen said, bowing his head in agreement.

  Roth approached Valen, bending down so that their eyes were almost touching. Valen shrank back, averting his eyes. Roth’s lips twitched to a toothy smile before he stepped forward, pushing Valen aside with his bulk. He then interviewed each member of the unit, asking questions regarding tactics and techniques used during their skirmish. He awarded little praise and his criticisms cut to the core. He passed over Eliza, who was now staring glassy-eyed at the sky as Alvani cradled her, singing softly. Roth stopped in front of Cole, who looked up into the giant’s face.

  “Your dagger.” Roth held out a claw.

  Cole drew his dagger and placed it handle first into Roth’s black hand. The hilt clinked as it struck.

  “Still unused,” Roth said, smelling the blade. “We’ll find you something to stick it in soon enough.”

  “Thank you, Master Roth,” Cole said, though he had no desire to do any such thing.

  Roth’s face softened almost imperceptibly. “You saw Deekus at the end?”

  “Yes,” Cole replied, bringing his head to the side.

  “First time you’ve seen someone take their last?” Roth asked.

  Cole paused, anchoring his mind away from the cobblestone alley. “No.”

  R
oth splashed to a knee and dropped his voice to a rough whisper: “I’d like to tell you it gets easier, but it doesn’t. We’re at war. Deekus won’t be the only friend you see take his last. My advice? Stop making friends.” Roth stood and walked away from the group, eyes to Oberon.

  Cole swayed. He was exhausted in more ways than he knew. He felt a hand on his shoulder. Lileth held out a water skin. He accepted, thankful that the container was made for someone much larger than him, as he was able to drink his fill without draining it. The liquid wasn’t water, but it was refreshing. When he filled his stomach to bursting, the bag still had plenty and his limbs no longer shook. She gave him a comforting squeeze on his arm, nodding towards the sky behind them.

  The unmistakable silhouette of Chiron appeared in front of Oberon, clear cape flowing like liquid glass. In his arms was a body, which could only be Deekus. The glow of the pond illuminated them as they descended past the bearded willows. Deekus was fully clothed and looked as if he were merely sleeping. Eliza stood abruptly, no longer crying. She donned a look of calm acceptance as she left Alvani’s embrace and made for Chiron. The floating lavenders swirled about the Wisdom Walker, following him like eager sailboats. The petals flowed up his cape, giving him the appearance of wearing a garden on his back. He stopped, offering Deekus to Eliza.

  “Thank you, Master Chiron,” she breathed.

  Chiron deposited Deekus’s body into her arms, placing his own arms around her shoulders. He kissed her twice upon the brow before she waded out into a spot devoid of trees. Cole followed the group as they circled around her. Eliza knelt and dipped Deekus gently into the water. She gripped his shirt to hold him afloat, fist trembling as fresh tears fell to his chest. Breath shaking, she steadied herself before letting him go. Eliza retreated, careful not to disturb the floating lavenders. The group circled close as the lavenders sailed in between their legs. Eager to reach Deekus, they bustled over him, blanketing his body from his serene face to his bare toes.

  Cole expected someone to say something, but the only eulogy was from the distant song birds whooping in the eternal night. Unsure of what to do, Cole watched the flowery heap before him. It seemed appropriate, so he perused his memories of Deekus, which didn’t take long since he’d barely known him. What little memories he had were good ones though. From the first moment they’d met he had shown him nothing but kindness, and thanks to him Cole had a better understanding of Wisdom. He made a silent promise to Deekus that he would heat up some rocks all on his own.

  “What is that? In the sky, something’s wrong.” Valen pointed his hand up towards the stars. Pulsing orbs of every color dropped from the stars, pouring down in shoals through the bearded willows. They appeared to dance and chase each other, but there was no doubt they were headed towards their group.

  “Nothing is wrong, my dear Valen.” Chiron said, his face lit with adoration at the approaching orbs.

  “Then what is it?” Valen asked, unconvinced.

  Alvani responded, a smile audible through her words, “Something that has not occurred for an age.”

  Even from a distance Cole knew what they were. He had seen them in his dreams back on Earth. He had led them through the river, upwards and onwards to Aeneria. Seeing them now was almost like seeing old friends.

  Alvani turned to Cole, giving him a knowing smile before addressing the group. “Open your eyes and your hearts. You are all in for a quite the treat. The soul flies have returned.”

  The flowers covering Deekus had begun to flap slowly, giving them the appearance of a carpet made of butterflies. Everyone peered through the branches, craning their necks to get a better look. Roth, Alvani, and Chiron sat themselves in the water. A single ball of light tinkled down the nearest tree, bouncing off every branch as if on purpose. It rapidly flashed through several colors, seemingly unable to make up its mind. Plopping atop the water, it rolled towards Deekus’s mound of flowers. The petals quickened their pace as the soul fly hovered itself inches above the mound, settling on a royal blue and shrinking slightly. Without warning the orb shot straight up, disappearing in the river of lights that had collected in the sky above. Eliza let out a disappointed sigh, then drew a sharp breath as teeming hundreds of soul flies rained down around them. They were all the same shade of royal blue.

  Most swam with the flowers, rolling and weaving under tree roots and over the water. Others floated about Cole and the others, coalescing around them as if they were inside a freshly shaken snow globe.

  One of the flies stopped before Cole, presenting itself before his eyes. Cole felt profound grief rise up from deep within him, grief he had been actively suppressing nearly every moment since his arrival. The pain was crushing, his breath coming thin and weak. It was too much. All at once he felt the weight of his sorrow from losing Joshy, as well as how much he missed his mother and Nana Beth. He mourned too for Lexy, and his heart ached for Habbad and everything the Underkin had been through. He didn’t realize until now how much Deekus really had meant to him. The sorrow stacked up and threatened to break him under its weight. Cole wished for a release. Even death must be better than such infinite sadness.

  As if in response, the soul fly nudged Cole’s nose. He rested his forehead against the orb, which hummed softly, soothing him as it pulled his sadness from him. Where each puddle of grief stood in his mind, warm comfort quickly replaced it. Cole felt guilty for giving the soul fly so much misery and tried to pull it back, but the soul fly beamed a deeper shade of blue and willingly took the rest. Cole wiped his tears on his sleeve before reaching out and caressing the orb, conveying every ounce of his gratitude through the touch. The soul fly bobbed away from him, joining the others that swam over Deekus’s body. Cole looked around. The rest of his group appeared to be having a similar experience.

  Eliza interacted with her own soul fly. She leaned forward, kissing the azure ball as a tear rolled off her cheek, smacking into the water. The soul fly bumped her on the chin before scooting down towards Deekus, who was now accompanied by dozens of the rolling orbs.

  The petals danced faster, as if they longed to take flight. The soul flies swirled around, touching each flower and soaking them with a dab of liquid blue light. When each flower had been saturated, the orbs rolled off, forming a circle around the unit. The lavender flowers ceased their flapping and started flickering, each a slightly different shade of blue. Thin, wiry roots spread from their bellies, wrapping and crawling over Deekus. One by one the group backed away from their friend, giving the flowers more space as they continued their work. The flowers rose above the water, pushed by their roots, which were now forming a solid trunk. Deekus was no longer visible as a tree took shape above his body. The tree grew until it was larger than any in the pond. Soul flies jumped up its branches, chasing each other as they abandoned their sad blues and adopted happier colors.

  Alvani’s voice broke the silence: “Storn, would you be so kind as to hand me that gratia stone in your bag?”

  Broken from his trance, Storn shook his head. “Yes, of course Master Alvani.” He handed her the stone with a solemn bow.

  Alvani took the clear stone in her hands. “Master Chiron, I think Deekus’s tree a fine place for this stone, don’t you?”

  “I couldn’t agree more, Master Alvani,” Chiron replied, smiling through the grief that tugged at his features.

  Alvani approached the tree, stroking the base of the trunk as a gap appeared in the bark. She placed the stone inside, the bark closing around it, leaving a portion exposed. She then touched the gratia stone with her fingertips, depositing pink Passion into it. She stepped aside as Chiron gifted his own golden Passion, mixing it with the pink. Roth approached next, thudding an un-bladed fist against the gratia stone. His white Passion swirled with the gold and pink.

  Each of the unit took a turn giving Deekus their final gifts. The tree acquired new growth with each deposit. Branches thickened, roots crawled, and newborn lavender flowers fell to the water, chased by the soul flies. C
ole approached the tree last. He wasn’t eager to revisit the cobblestone alley, but for Deekus he would. It was the least he could do. Cole knew he couldn’t reach the stone, but Lileth was there in an instant.

  “Be careful,” she said, lifting Cole from the water.

  He placed both hands flat against the warm stone. He searched his mind, stepping into the cobblestone alley. It was easy to put himself there, as all he really had to do was stop actively suppressing the memories. This time was different, however. He no longer felt the crushing agony of loss, or the twisting guilt. He only felt his love for Joshy. He immersed himself in it, bathing in its fraternal glow. The love he felt for his brother was not exclusive, this was the same part of him that loved his mother and Nana Beth. He measured his relationship with Deekus and found that he could give this part to his friend as well. He focused his love, his Passion, willing it into the stone.

  “Not so much, Cole. You’ll overload the stone,” Lileth whispered into his ear. She set him back down into the water. “I think the soul flies like you.”

  Cole backed away, eyes squinting at the sight before him. Every soul fly in the necropolis was upon Deekus’s tree, which now stood head and shoulders above any other. Hundreds of soul flies rested in the branches, or floated after the falling lavender petals.

  “Masters, what do you make of all this?” Storn asked, directing the question to all three elders. “The soul flies returned, the barrier gone, The Three crossing over to our side. These are big changes.”