by Brandon Mull
“His echo,” Cole clarified. “We worked with him in the echolands.”
“Not much can be hidden from Dandalus,” Lorenzo said.
“This cave doesn’t look . . . natural,” Twitch said.
“It isn’t,” Lorenzo said. “I removed the rock myself.”
“With wayminding?” Violet asked, astonished.
“A form of wayminding like the world walkers used,” Lorenzo said. “Transporting inanimate matter through spatial manipulation.”
“This place doesn’t connect to the outside,” Jace said.
“Exactly,” Lorenzo replied. “I ventilate and regulate the temperature with tiny wayports. This hideaway is heavily shielded against snoopy Wayminders. The best of the best would have a tough time finding it.”
“How did Dandalus think we would find you?” Cole asked.
Lorenzo shrugged. “If he somehow knew I was here, he may have assumed I keep an eye on the surface. I do. He may have figured a group of kids out of place would attract my attention. It would have. And it did. Tell me about Ramarro.”
“He was imprisoned in the echolands,” Cole said. “He recently got loose, but an impression of Dandalus in the Founding Stone helped me redirect Ramarro to a prison in Creon—a vault called the Void.”
“You’re speaking about legends,” Lorenzo said. “Dandalus, Ramarro, and the Void.”
“We have to find the Void,” Cole said. “Dandalus feels sure it won’t hold Ramarro for long. We have to either keep Ramarro in prison, invent a better prison, or figure out a way to defeat a torivor.”
Lorenzo sighed. “This is grim. We’re probably all going to die.”
“We all die anyhow if Ramarro gets free,” Cole said. “I’ve been to the echolands. Death isn’t so bad. And whatever lies beyond the echolands feels appealing.”
“Fair assessment,” Lorenzo said. “Is the torivor as bad as the legends maintain?”
“Seems like it,” Cole said. “Dandalus agreed.”
“We don’t want to face it head-on,” Lorenzo said. “But how do you imprison something that can escape the echolands and the Void?”
“Trillian is still bound,” Mira said.
“Trillian was mostly defeated when they imprisoned him,” Lorenzo said. “If we could defeat Ramarro, it might open up options. But I’m not sure that is possible. And I don’t know the specifics of how Trillian was contained. I’m hundreds of years old, but the torivors preceded me by a significant margin.”
“Can we find Kendo Rattan?” Jace asked.
“Wouldn’t that be nice?” Lorenzo said. “Shouldn’t he be long gone?”
“Shouldn’t you?” Jace countered.
“Valid observation,” Lorenzo said. “But Kendo Rattan predates me by centuries. He helped create the five kingdoms.”
“Dandalus told us he might be around,” Cole said. “I guess most of the Grand Shapers of Creon gained power over death.”
Lorenzo took a slow breath. “You have been told our deepest mysteries, secrets we have killed to protect. In some ways I’m glad. It confirms the gravity of your errand.”
“So we can find Kendo Rattan?” Violet asked.
“I cannot be sure of his present location,” Lorenzo said. “He has appeared to most, if not all, of the Grand Shapers of Creon after they retire. Never while they remain in office.”
“When did you last see him?” Cole asked.
“It has been some time,” Lorenzo said. “Kendo could be dead. Wherever he is today, he is beyond our reach unless he wants to be found. But . . . this is an emergency, so we are not necessarily limited to finding him today.”
“You mean time travel,” Violet gushed.
“I do,” Lorenzo said.
“Can you just send us back to one of your previous meetings with Kendo?” Twitch asked.
“Unfortunately, by Kendo’s design, all of those meetings occurred in shielded locations,” Lorenzo said. “I can’t get you to any of those conferences. I don’t know where they happened. But I know my history, and there are a few places where you may be able to interact with Kendo Rattan after he created the Void.”
“Why not before he created the Void?” Cole asked. “We could warn him to make it stronger.”
Lorenzo smiled sadly. “You are powerful. And so young. You have not traveled through time before?”
Cole shook his head.
“And you know little of Creon?”
Cole nodded.
“You need some fundamentals,” Lorenzo said. “First, the past is fixed. You cannot go back in time and change the past. If you do, you will only discover that you become part of the past as it already happened.”
“What if I went back in time and killed you when you were a baby?” Jace asked.
Everyone stared at him.
“Not that I would,” Jace clarified hastily. “For the sake of argument. I mean, how could you stop me if you were just a little baby?”
“I wouldn’t have to stop you,” Lorenzo said. “I’m here. I didn’t die as a baby. It didn’t happen. The past is fixed. You would somehow fail. You could make mistakes. Someone might intervene. You might change your mind. You might even inadvertently save my life. In the end any attempt you made to alter the past would become part of the past as it already transpired.”
“But if I went to the past, wouldn’t I be a new addition to what happened?” Cole asked. “Couldn’t I change the outcome from whatever happened before I went there? I’m just thinking out loud. I want to understand.”
“If you visit the past, there is no other past without your visit,” Lorenzo said. “The past you visited would be new to you, but it already happened with you in it. You’d just be the last to know. All that already occurred is inevitable. You can’t avoid it.”
“There’s no way around it?” Cole asked.
“People have tried,” Lorenzo said. “The theory is sound, but hundreds of attempts have been made to disprove the concept and alter the past. They always fail.”
“What if I read in a history book that I died in the past, so I never go?” Jace asked.
“Then either the history was wrong, or you will change your mind and go, or you will somehow get sent to the past,” Lorenzo said. “Those of us who journey to the past are few, and we try to do so unobtrusively. We sometimes get caught up in events, but we are there to learn, never to change anything.”
“Because you can’t,” Twitch said.
“No more than I could break any other fundamental law,” Lorenzo said.
“Laws get broken all the time in the Outskirts,” Cole objected. “You can travel back in time. That seems like breaking a fundamental law.”
“You must remember that the Outskirts was constructed in an eternal realm,” Lorenzo said. “Many of the laws here are not natural—they were shaped. Certain aspects of those laws are vulnerable to tampering. Some are not. Once you establish sequence, the past is the past.”
“It seems like if you can go to the past, you can change it,” Cole said.
“It seems that way because you don’t understand life in four dimensions,” Lorenzo said. “You are imagining multiple pasts. A past with you and a past without you. The past is singular. I already told you, if you go to the past, you were part of it. It’s hard to help you see the concept more clearly. It’s like trying to explain life in three dimensions to somebody living in two.”
“Could shapecrafters warp the fundamental rules and change history?” Jace asked.
Lorenzo shook his head. “If they could, they would have not only surpassed my capabilities, but they would have exceeded what my wildest imaginings consider possible.”
“Why go back in time if we can’t change history?” Jace asked.
“Like he told us,” Violet said. “To learn.”
“Yes,” Lorenzo agreed. “You could meet with Kendo Rattan and possibly acquire information that you could later use in the present.”
“Like where to find the Void,” Cole said.
> “Or how to strengthen it,” Mira added.
“Who knows what you might discover?” Lorenzo said. “Considering the desperate need, I believe it is worth a try.”
“Won’t it be hard to find him?” Violet asked.
Lorenzo gave a nod. “At least one of you is familiar with Creon.”
“Why is it hard?” Cole asked.
“Lots of people would like to meet Kendo Rattan,” Violet said. “Or Lorenzo Debray,” she quickly added. “Any of the former Grand Shapers, really. So they keep a low profile. They were hard to find when they were alive, and their specific appearances are not recorded in any histories I know about. Their deeds and accomplishments, sure, but not specific dates synced with places.”
“The Grand Shapers of Creon are experts at not being found,” Lorenzo said. “That includes by time travelers. But I happen to know a place and time visited by Kendo Rattan.”
“When?” Violet asked.
“The dedication of the Halbrook School of Wayminding,” Lorenzo said. “It was the first school of wayminding in the region, founded by the Grand Shaper Kili Felks, one of Kendo’s favorite apprentices. He did not reveal himself to her. But he was in the crowd. After her retirement he told her about it. And he mentioned it to me.”
“Can we find Kendo in a crowd?” Cole asked.
“Not if he chooses to avoid you,” Lorenzo said. “Kendo is extremely in tune with his surroundings. He can disappear in a blink. He will be aware that you are from another time. He will be intrigued that you are young. And if we can introduce the problem of Ramarro somehow, he will almost surely engage you. He once told me that the two torivors are the biggest threat to the security of the five kingdoms. And Kendo Rattan dedicated his life to protecting the five kingdoms.”
“How do we alert him about Ramarro?” Jace asked. “Would he overhear if we spoke about him? Should we wear signs?”
“Whatever you do needs to work,” Lorenzo said. “You can’t inhabit the same time in Creon more than once.”
“Do you know other times when Kendo Rattan appeared?” Mira asked.
“I could make some educated guesses,” Lorenzo said. “The Halbrook School dedication is our best chance. If you fail there, you may never make contact with him.”
“Could you come with us?” Cole asked.
“I was already alive then,” Lorenzo said. “I was not yet a Grand Shaper. Just a young Wayminder developing my abilities. I cannot return to a time I inhabited. I want to know more about you five. How did you become our defense against a torivor? I understand that Cole has unusual power. It’s strange that you are all so young.”
“I’m Jace. I used to be a slave owned by the Sky Raiders in Sambria, just like Twitch, Cole, and Mira. I’m free now.” He held up his freemark. “The Grand Shaper of Sambria took care of that for me. I’ve traveled with these guys ever since.”
“I’m Miracle Pemberton.”
“As in one of the lost princesses?” Lorenzo asked, surprised.
“My father drove me into exile when he took my shaping powers. My friends helped me get them back, and we learned about Owandell and the shapecrafters. We have restored the powers to all of my sisters except Elegance.”
“How are your shaping powers?” Lorenzo asked.
“Strengthening,” Mira said. “I haven’t had much chance to test them.”
“As I understand it, Cole could help you try them,” Lorenzo said. “Even here.”
“True,” Mira said.
Lorenzo looked at Twitch.
“I’m Twitch. Ruben, really. I’m one of the grinaldi in Elloweer. I’m basically here by mistake.”
“You escaped from the Sky Raiders with Jace, Mira, and Cole?” Lorenzo asked.
“Yes,” Twitch said.
“Twitch has saved my life,” Cole said. “He’s a lot more clever than he admits.”
“Not admitting your cleverness is much cleverer than the alternative,” Lorenzo said. He turned to Violet. “And what about you?”
“I’m the newest addition to the group,” Violet said. “They needed to go to Creon, so a Wayminder was required. Queen Harmony partnered me with them.”
“You’re young to be a Wayminder,” Lorenzo said.
“I passed the trials six weeks after my thirteenth birthday,” Violet said.
“Extraordinary,” Lorenzo said. “That is younger than I was when I passed them. How old are you now?”
“Nearly fifteen,” Violet said.
“So in one sense you are the eldest,” Lorenzo said, his eyes straying to Mira.
“Except I have been eleven for decades,” Mira said.
“I know the feeling of suspending your age,” Lorenzo said. “You are aging normally now.”
“Ever since my powers were restored,” Mira said.
“And you serve the queen, Violet?”
“I do,” Violet said. “I’m worried about her. She was taken, along with the king, and Honor and Destiny Pemberton as well.”
“Taken?” Lorenzo asked.
“They disappeared earlier today,” Mira said. “Some want to blame us because they know we were working with Violet. But we suspect Owandell used Wayminders willing to break the rules.”
Lorenzo nodded. “His Enforcers have grown bolder over the last several years. And recently they seem willing to cross any boundaries.”
“They think they’re about to take over the world,” Jace said.
“They’re partly right,” Cole said. “Ramarro will conquer the world if he gets free. But the shapecrafters will be his slaves just like everyone else will be.”
“Favored slaves, perhaps,” Lorenzo said. “I expect a clean death would be much more pleasant. What about you, Cole? What is your story?”
“I came here from Outside,” Cole said. “Arizona.”
“Phoenix area?” Lorenzo asked.
“Mesa,” Cole said. “You know it?”
“Well, after my retirement, I took command of the world walkers for a time,” Lorenzo said. “Expanded the operation. I take a great interest in your world.”
“So do some slavers,” Cole said. “A bunch of kids in my neighborhood were forced to come here. I followed to try to rescue them.”
“You came to the Outskirts deliberately,” Lorenzo said.
“Yes,” Cole said. “Accidentally, but deliberately. And I’ve been waiting to find a Grand Shaper from Creon.”
“You want to get home and stay there,” Lorenzo said.
Cole took a deep breath. “Is it possible?”
Lorenzo stroked his mouth. “This world is not designed to allow it. But there are rumors of a way.”
“Really?” Violet asked.
“Even Grand Shapers speak of it in whispers,” Lorenzo said. “Many with skepticism. We call it the Pilgrim Path. A true way back to temporal reality from an eternal realm. There is no knowledge of it ever working . . . but such knowledge would be difficult to obtain. Any who walk the Pilgrim Path can never return.”
“Do you think anyone has walked it?” Cole asked.
“A few Grand Shapers of Creon have died,” Lorenzo said. “The rest are in hiding, and most hide extremely well. There are at least two who seem to have vanished. Either they passed away quietly, they hid perfectly, or perhaps they walked the Pilgrim Path.”
“Could you do it?” Cole asked.
“I aspire to try someday,” Lorenzo said. “I don’t have the ability yet. I may never have it. Fortunately, you are trying to find the best man to ask in the history of the Outskirts. Kendo Rattan knows better than anyone if it can be done.”
“Should we get going?” Jace asked. “Time is against us.”
“Won’t it pause time if we go back?” Cole asked.
“A common misconception,” Lorenzo said. “You inevitably remain synced to your native timestream. If you go back a hundred years, spend a day there, and return, a day will have passed here. None have found a way around it.”
“And if we leave C
reon?” Cole asked.
“When you leave Creon, you immediately return to your present point in the timestream,” Lorenzo said. “If you go back in time, spend three hours there, and then leave Creon, you will inescapably return to the present to find that three hours have elapsed.”
“All the more reason to hurry,” Jace said.
“I will do my best,” Lorenzo said. “Traveling back in time requires preparation. The longer you want to remain back in time, the more preparation I need.”
“How long to be ready?” Cole asked.
“Several days to prepare, minimum,” Lorenzo said.
“Too long,” Cole said.
“What if you send only one of us?” Jace asked.
“That would help a little,” Lorenzo said. “The problem isn’t so much the number of travelers. You will all use the same wayport. Opening a way to the past requires an enormous amount of energy. And keeping you there takes additional effort. To be safe, I should send you back for at least six hours. If you want to risk it, I could try sending you for only an hour. But you’ll only get one chance within whatever time window we choose.”
“We can’t return to the same time more than once,” Cole remembered.
“Correct,” Lorenzo agreed.
“Once our time runs out, we get drawn back to the present?” Mira asked.
“Inevitably, yes,” Lorenzo said. “Just like you would get pulled back here if you spent too much time in Cole’s home world. Remaining out of sync from where you belong can only be maintained for a limited period.”
“Can we get back early?” Jace asked.
“If you were with a Wayminder who knew how to speed up the return,” Lorenzo said.
“Could I learn?” Violet asked.
“Have you time shifted?” Lorenzo asked.
“A little,” Violet said.
“Then it is possible,” Lorenzo said.
“You’ve gone back in time?” Jace asked, impressed.
“No,” Violet said. “Time shifting temporarily alters the flow of time for a person or an object. You can barely tell it has been done unless you’re a time-sensitive Wayminder. It’s a way to diagnose potential in young Wayminders.”
“Our big problem is we don’t have several days to wait,” Cole said. “We need to get back in time quickly. Lorenzo, what if I help you?”