"So my body is still back in the hut, sword raised above Morwen's head?" I asked.
"Your body is there, but your mind is with me," she said. "Don't worry, I won't let her hurt you, just yet."
"What do you want? Why did you bring me here?" I asked.
I longed to reach out, to touch Catherine's face, stroke her hair, hold her in my arms.
"To offer you a deal," she said.
"I refuse," I said, remembering the real Catherine's warning.
"But you haven't heard my offer," she said, walking past me. "I thought one with your background wouldn't be so rude. You should at least entertain my request before turning me down."
"Fair enough. Tell me your offer so I can refuse it," I said.
She blew a breath out her nose, like a bull readying for the charge.
"You must join me against Veles, or all creation will be at risk," she said.
"Join you against Veles? I thought you were his ally?" I asked.
She laughed again, clapping her hands together softly.
"Of course we are allies, but I do not wish for the multiverse to end. Nor he, it seems, but things seem to be conspiring against his wishes. I'd rather change history now than tempt its destruction," she said.
"How do you know he'll end the multiverse?" I asked.
"Veles doesn't want to end it, but the prophecies indicate such a thing will happen due to his involvement." She frowned at me. "Oh, surely you don't think you're the only one who can see the future? The Gamayun were only one set of seers. Others can see that end, too. Even myself from time to time, though I'm no Cassandra."
Her words were unsurprising. I knew some fatal end for the universe lurked within the prophecies. I'd seen it the night I'd stolen them from the Gamayun.
"You're lying," I said. "This is a trick. I was warned not to trust you. To turn down any deal."
"Of course it was a trick," she said, then her eyes changed, the murkiness disappeared. When she spoke again it was Catherine's voice: "Then refuse her, no matter the pain. No matter the price."
"That was you?" I asked.
"Do you think I would let her get away from me that easily to warn you? Especially when I knew you were coming. It was me at the shield as well," she said.
My heart sunk. "Is she no more?"
"She resides in me. I allow her some freedom when she has pleased me by cooperating. If you say yes, I will find many more reasons to let her taste life again," she said.
I shook my head. "You're lying. Why would you warn me away?"
"Because a strong will may change a prophecy. I knew that you had to be warned, that Catherine had to visit you twice before you could arrive, so I made sure it was me, rather than her, doing so," she said.
The words pressed against my skin, the truth burning like hot smoke.
The queen held her hand out to me—Catherine's hand. "Take it. At least let me show you what will happen if you join with me. You will know it as truth because it comes from you, from the prophecies in your head."
Reluctantly, I held out my hand. Her fingers were surprisingly cold.
"Open yourself," she said.
Tendrils of a presence brushed against my mind.
"You're resisting. I can't show you unless you let me," said the queen.
Was this so different than when Chloris helped me understand the prophecies? Knowing would help me make the right decision. I closed my eyes and relaxed my muscles.
"Open your eyes," she said.
When I did the view startled me. Sounds rushed in right after, the celebratory crowd in their military uniforms and court dresses saluting the pair on the dais. St. George's Hall was packed with nobles.
Catherine sat on the throne with a crown on her head. A second chair sat to her right. A version of me sat next to Catherine, holding her hand as an equal in front of the eyes of the nobility.
As soon as I saw it, I knew it for a secret desire. Part of what drove me away from Moscow time and time again was the secretness of our relationship. Had I been a man, she could have plucked me from the nobility to serve as her spouse. That I was a woman made it impossible in the eyes of Russia.
But this vision, which I knew to be true, showed me that it was possible. Through the queen's magic, or my own, I would be accepted.
The vision faded away to be replaced by a royal procession through the streets of Moscow. The onion domes glittered with inner light. The displays of wealth were overflowing. The city was bright and clean, the windows sparkling. Men, women, and children knelt as we passed in our open-air steam carriage. Others bent the knee amongst the crowd: hrevanti, Uthlaylaa, creatures as I had named as monsters before.
I knew what it meant. If I joined the queen, we would rule together, over a Russia Reborn. An empire without peer. I looked across the ocean and saw onion domes over Philadelphia, the styles copied around the globe.
It would be a Russia with the Enlightenment, laid out by my hand. Where the creatures of Otherland would live peacefully amongst humans.
The shadowy shroud of Veles would be no more. His influence banished back to his dying plane, the threat of multiverse annihilation absent.
Why wouldn't I choose to join my love, Catherine, and the Queen of Dreams to rule over this land? Why wouldn't I save the infinite realities from destruction? Why wouldn't I circumvent the prophecies?
As the queen had said, a strong will may bend a prophecy to their need. Rowan had told me that, too.
I stood in St. George's Hall. The queen studied me, her hands clasped in front.
"What say you?" she asked. "Join with me, and your beloved, to save your lands from Veles?"
"I..."
The words trickled from my lips. I wanted to say yes. I wanted to agree.
"You know you must. I saw what will happen to your friends if you go the other path. They all die in the snow. Maybe that's the catalyst that leads to Veles' rule. You can stop it now. End the destruction, end the war. Let your world be ruled by love, rather than shadow and fire," she said.
I searched my feelings. Everything in me wanted to agree, wanted to say yes, but I couldn't. Why?
As soon as I thought about her words, I knew the answer.
"Let your world be ruled..." I repeated.
When she'd shown me the vision, the people in the streets had been kneeling. That wasn't ruled by love. That was fear. That was the Russian Way. Maybe there would be a day of victory like that, but given time, fear rotted the hearts and minds of men and women.
"No," I said, realizing the other way would be much harder. "You lied to me. That was Catherine before. You can't fool me like that."
The queen's face turned into a sneer, not at all like my beloved Catherine. "But your friends in the snow?"
"You said it yourself, a strong will might change a prophecy. They're not dead yet. Not while I still breathe life," I said.
"I don't understand," she said, ugly wrinkles forming across her face like cracks. "I thought you would want to save your people. Everything I showed you was true. Why would you risk everything on Veles? That the multiverse might be destroyed? Are you a fool?"
A laugh escaped my lips. "I might be. I might be the biggest fool in the universe. But so many bad things have come from good intentions. You might rule with love at first, with good intentions, but what's to stop you from twisting things, from keeping Catherine away, banishing her to the corner of your mind in punishment? Too long have I relied on the ways of Russia. To rule rather than be ruled. The Enlightenment puts us all in charge, even the fools amongst us. But better to die free than to be a happy slave."
The Queen of Dreams shook her head, a scowl on her lips.
"A fool is right. You've doomed us all. I offered a way out. The best possible course for you. Now, you must suffer. By your own hand. You'll find out soon enough, I saw in your prophecy, right beyond the snow. Suffering beyond suffering," she said.
I tried to call the magic to silence her, but the world faded, qui
ckly replaced by the front room in the hut. Except I was no longer towering over Morwen with the Blade of Time in my hands.
Instead, the roles were reversed. She held the shifting black weapon above me. The vibration made me squint.
Morwen looked down on me, her yellow-brown eyes thick with hatred.
"Don't you see? Don't you see? It's all going to end soon. I've seen it. They've shown it to me. It doesn't matter anymore. It doesn't matter," screamed Morwen, spittle flying from her lips.
Then all hell broke loose.
Chapter Thirty-Two
A woman of fire and smoke burst into the room, grappling with a white haired lord who had a spear as long as two men. Nasrine and Santiago. They fought like badgers, clawing and scraping.
Morwen paused, her perplexed expression at odds with the towering blade above her head.
The yellow drained from her eyes until they were white again.
"Help me, Kat. I can fight it off. I just need your help," she said.
Before I could answer, the yellow flowed back in like ink. Her lip curled in a snarl.
I tried to bring my arm around, to throw my magic in her face, but she'd frozen me solid, all the way up to my neck.
She brought the Blade of Time down.
She was thrown to the side. The blade bounced across the floor. When it slid into the glass hookah pipe, rather than explode into shards, it disintegrated as the pieces were thrown through time.
Morwen fought with something invisible. I knew at once what it was. The guardian from the Tree of Life.
A spray of white mist came out the brass tube, condensing around the invisible form, making it easy to see.
It had the body of a small child.
When the frost had covered the lower half, Morwen picked it up and threw the creature into a wall.
It screeched, eyes and mouth bright with red mist. The same mist that had come with me from the anwar e'e toche in Inverness.
While Morwen went for the Blade of Time, I turned my magic inward, heating my skin from the inside. The frost turned to smoke, slowly freeing my limbs.
The gilded partition burst into flames when Nasrine tumbled through it. Santiago leapt upon her, bringing the spear down in a two-handed overhead chop. She narrowly rolled away.
To my left, the guardian burst from the white shell, throwing itself at Morwen, who had reached the fallen weapon. She spun around in time to catch the guardian in the midsection.
Its scream silenced our struggles. I'd never heard something so terrible—it was as if a million versions of it had let loose in every universe.
When the creature was gone, Morwen advanced on me. I hadn't melted away the frost.
Gunshots echoed through the room. Morwen flinched.
Ben and Brassy stood at the hallway, pistols firing.
Morwen kept coming. I didn't think the bullets were hitting her. The blade seemed to be absorbing them.
With no more time left, I tried to yank myself from the spot using my magic, but I couldn't move. I was drained of energy, nothing left to give.
Morwen approached with murderous yellow eyes.
"Stop, Morwen," said a voice.
Siobhan stood in a forward stance, her sleeveless robe clinging to her body. She looked like a jaguar ready to pounce.
Distracted by the appearance of her former master, Morwen turned towards Siobhan.
"You vile witch," said Morwen, her lips curling in a sneer. "I banished you."
I was conflicted. Though I did not want my immortal soul scattered throughout time, I'd seen how Neva's guardian had withstood immense pain to escape service to the witch. It was not an easy burden.
"You knew I wouldn't die that easily. I've suffered more than you can imagine to have this opportunity," said Siobhan.
Morwen waved the heavy blade around as if it were a rapier. "With this weapon, I'll finally be rid of you."
"Unlikely," said Siobhan. "But before I take that away from you, tell me why? You served me well and I rewarded you. Why did you betray me?"
Morwen's eyes were clear for the moment, the Yolgothi-induced madness at bay, but she was clearly in pain. Just looking at her former master brought anguish.
"You made me do such terrible things in the name of survival. After a time, I only wanted to die. To escape that life, but your bonds kept me your servant. Your slave. Don't think that losing the leash was a reward. It only reminded me that I didn't have my freedom," spat Morwen.
Siobhan's sharp features softened with repentance. "I know I did terrible things. But my time alone has been a proper punishment. I understand your pain, and I've experienced it in my own way."
"Terrible things? Though you're not the worst of your sisters, you certainly make it a close race. How many other versions of yourself did you kill or imprison in the name of claiming your own spot in the hierarchy? How many lives did you snuff out to keep power?" asked Morwen.
"It was kill or be killed," said Siobhan. "Mere survival."
Morwen sprinted towards her former master. Siobhan thrust out her hands. Light burst from everything. An explosion that seared through my closed eyes.
It was pain and darkness. Like falling through a starry sky.
I landed hard and struggled to catch my breath. The world was cold, cold, cold.
I opened my eyes to see the one thing I feared most.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Ice crystals clung to each other in the space one inch before my eyes. Each one tiny and delicate, a lattice of frozen ice, its tiny barbs hooked to others to form a blanket of white.
Except it all wasn't white.
Crimson blots stained the snow ahead.
I pulled my arms against my chest, trying to get warm. I lay on a vast, almost featureless tundra. The only mar was the rickety hut with its yellow claws dug into the hardpack.
I knew what was on the other side.
White mist formed around my face. The cold leeched through my thin clothing. I wasn't prepared for the frozen landscape of Siberia.
As I lay shivering, I realized a faint vibration was making me squint.
After struggling to my feet, I trudged towards the sound, finding the Blade of Time laying on the tundra.
I grasped the handle, and the high-pitched noised silenced itself. Then I moved to the other side reluctantly, my boots crunching in the snow.
Bodies were strewn in various poses as if they were dolls and had been thrown there by a willful child. The snow was pink around their bodies.
I had failed them.
A strong will could bend the prophecies, but I had failed.
Brassy's frozen stare mocked me. Her fierce blue eyes had been drained of life. I had promised myself I'd protect her.
A few steps further, Nasrine lay in a snowdrift, her body charred black except for the beaded belt around her waist, untouched by flame.
Ben Franklin's body lay at painful angles. The pistol was still in his hand. His blue lips were open in surprise.
How could I have seen him in the prophecies as the eternal warrior if he were dead in the snow? I didn't understand. Was I supposed to have joined with Catherine and the Queen of Dreams?
I failed them.
William's body had joined the others in the same state we'd left it. He'd been the first to die, and there'd been nothing I could do.
Of my mortal companions, Santiago was the last. The white hair from his dead body blended with the surroundings. The spear he'd wielded was broken across his chest.
Ahead lay two more bodies.
Two?
I had dreamt six in the snow. Who was the seventh?
When the first sat up, I guessed the identity of the other.
"Morwen," I said, the words hollow in my mouth. "You survived."
She glanced around, touching her face, her lips. She grasped the beetle necklace around her neck. Her eyes were clear of madness.
"I'm so sorry, Katerina," she said, her gaze remaining on the weapon in my hand. "We've m
ade it past the shield, but at a great price."
"You can do nothing for them?" I asked.
"I cannot. Now you know the truth. I'm just a guardian," said Morwen.
The final figure stirred, pulling herself up on hands and knees. The sleeveless robe was encrusted with snow.
"Quickly," said Morwen, nodding towards the weapon in my grip. "Destroy her before she can access her power. She's killed your friends, now she'll kill us."
Siobhan was groaning. A rage formed in my veins, banishing the cold. I would get revenge for what that witch did to my friends.
I took two steps towards Siobhan.
And stopped.
Morwen hissed. "Please. Before she kills us all."
Siobhan sat up on her heels, confusion wracking her face. I looked between the two of them, suddenly understanding, though I wasn't sure how it'd come about.
"What about you, Morwen? Are you well? Hasn't the Yolgothi madness taken hold? Do you need my help to banish it?" I asked, holding up the sword.
She held out her hands. "Oh, no. I'm cured. I was able to get rid of it in the last battle. The Yolgothi will haunt me no more."
"Thank you," I told her. "That helps me understand which one of you to kill."
Morwen tensed with understanding. Her arms came up right as the Blade of Time came down, striking her cleanly across the neck.
Her screams were shattered into a million pieces. A ghostly umbilical cord broke free from the form. A second, smaller one that connected Siobhan to the hut tugged her towards it. She turned spectral, like the etching of a person, or the photographic image of a ghost.
"I'm sorry, Morwen, or Siobhan, merde, I don't even know what to call you," I said.
"Call me Echo," she said, "because that's all I am now."
I dropped the weapon and rushed over to Echo and grasped her hands, trying to hold her in this reality. It felt like holding smoke.
It was strange looking at the woman who I thought had been Siobhan, but had really been the original Morwen trapped in that body. Here was the real guardian in her real body, and she was fading away.
"Is there anything I can do?"
The Queen of Dreams (The Dashkova Memoirs Book 6) Page 20