by Kyle West
“Tell us about the dream,” Deanna said.
So, I told her, about the dark place I was before entering the Hyperfold, the place that lay between the Hyperfold and the real world, and how I’d heard Odium’s voice emanating from the darkness. That dream had been three months ago, though it felt like just a few days.
“He is the ultimate enemy beyond even Rakhim Shal,” I finished. “And if he is to be believed, then Haris is his puppet. I’ve met several others like him. In the Ruins, there was a priest named Mithras, who I believe was communing with the Radaskim as well. There was a former prophet named Kachar, who was an advisor to the monarchs of Atlantea. And, last of all, there was Rakhim Shal, who is behind everything. And finally . . .”
“. . . Isaru,” Isa finished.
There was a moment of silence as everyone contemplated everything that was discussed. Aela was the first one to break the silence.
“I can’t imagine Isaru going over to the . . . Radaskim,” she said, struggling with saying the word. “He was different, yes, but not in a bad way.”
It was going to be hard to explain that. What I’d told them about tethering probably didn’t make a lot of sense, especially if it was the first time they had heard of it. I didn’t want to use Shara as an example, either, since a similar thing had happened to her. The Hunters had a way of using Aether, a way that likely channeled the power of the Hyperfold, albeit unknowingly. Or perhaps they knew full well what they were doing. Shara at that time had latent Elekai abilities, only awoken using Aether, which allowed her to be placed under Hunter Valance’s firm grip. Only leaving and entering the Hyperfold had erased that addiction, and her tether.
But when Isaru entered the Hyperfold, leaving it made him carry its mark with him, something that hadn’t become apparent until he fled the Hollow to join with the Mindless dragons.
They wanted to know the rest of my story, the stuff I never really told them. So, I tried to explain everything else as best as I could . . . how I’d learned I was Anna in the first reversion, to the reason why I left the Sanctum in the first place to rescue my parents, and how that journey had led me to Hyperborea to seek the prophecy that Anna had written in the past, all while receiving mysterious dreams of Mia and Isandru from the distant past.
As the hours passed, I got to the part where Shara, Isaru, and I were leaving the Hyperfold during our first journey to Hyperborea, what seemed ages ago.
“When Isaru came out, we thought he was dead,” I said. “At first. We flew him to the Hollow on the dragons Elder Tellor and Elder Isandru brought.” My voice grew thick as I talked about Elder Isandru, but I pushed on. “Anyway, he was only unconscious. The dragons promised to care for him, because we had to leave. While we were gone, he woke up and all seemed to be well. But unknown to us all, even the Elder Dragons, Isaru was possessed by something outside himself. It was only later that we learned that something was a someone, in the person of Rakhim Shal. Shal is trying to attack our world using Isaru, to weaken it before the Radaskim arrive.” I looked at Aela. “That is the long answer to your concern, Aela. It isn’t Isaru’s fault. He was never supposed to be in the Hyperfold in the first place, and was never supposed to fall under Rakhim’s control. And yet that’s what happened.” I paused to think. “Now, we’re trying to find a way to reverse it. Only we don’t know how, yet.”
The only sound for the next minute was the crackle of flames, and the wind blowing outside, rattling the shutters.
“We were fighting against Shal in the Hyperfold,” I continued, “a battle which lasted three months. Time works differently inside it. What was just a few minutes in there was actually several months on the outside. The first time we were in there, it was the opposite . . . Shara and Isaru were in there for weeks when only a few minutes passed on the outside by the time I followed them in.”
“How is that possible?” Aela asked.
“It’s beyond comprehension, I know,” I said. “But that’s how it works. The Hyperfold is Shal’s world, his reality. He controls it utterly, and that means anyone who is connected to or uses the Hyperfold can be used by him.”
I stopped to collect myself. As my throat thickened, I didn’t know if I would be able to continue. I motioned for Fiona to finish the rest, though her voice was thick, too, as tears flowed down her cheeks.
“We tried to avenge Mia after Isaru killed her,” she said, “but we escaped the Hyperfold too late. Isaru killed her, and as we fought against him, Isandru went back into the Hyperfold, just as her body was absorbed by the light. It was our mission to destroy the Hyperfold, and that’s what we believe he’s going to do or die trying.”
“So, this Shal must be killed,” Amalia said. “Then why are we sitting here? You have a flying ship, do you not? Why don’t we go fight him and end it once and for all?”
“That’s what we just tried,” I said. “Besides, dragons guard the entrance to the Hyperfold, when there were none before. Getting in will be impossible unless they move. We had our one chance, and we failed. Isandru right now is our best hope.”
Amalia grit her teeth while making a fist, but offered nothing else. To a Champion, nothing was worse than having an enemy but not being able to fight him.
“There has to be a way,” Aela said, finally. “You said this place came to you in your dreams. Might it not continue to do so? Isandru, if he’s in there, could be trying to communicate with you.”
“We’ve thought of that already,” I said. “So far, my sleep has been dreamless. What sleep I’ve managed to have, anyway.”
“Perhaps you can try focusing on it before you sleep,” Aela said. “Isandru is in there alone. He needs help.
“I promise, I’ll try,” I said. “I owe him that much.”
“Me, too,” Fiona said.
“There’s more I need to know from you guys,” I said. “We’ve learned a bit from Pallos, who helps us with the ship, but I would hear more from you.”
“An alliance between the Sanctum and Haven is likely,” Deanna said. “It will be difficult to focus on Shal when our existence is threatened in the real world.”
“Isaru has made no moves yet,” Amalia said. “He is wisely consolidating his hold on his father’s domain, making sure all his lords give him the proper oath of fealty. Almost all have by this point, and those who haven’t intend on taking the oath soon. The only exceptions are you, of course – technically, you are supposed to owe fealty to the rightful King of Haven.”
“Just as the King of Haven owes rightful fealty to Anna, the first of his line,” Isa said.
“Absolutely,” Amalia said. “There are some other lords who have yet to give an answer, but their lands border the Makai. Such lords have a history of flirting with one side or the other, which is good for us, since they are our neighbors, and perhaps may be won over. All the same . . . Isaru is gathering a mighty host at the southern rim of the Grand Canyon, and another, smaller host is being gathered in the Xenoplain, a little over a hundred miles from here. It’s to be commanded by Lord Harrow, who recently won fame in putting down the insurrection in these lands in the time of King Taris. No doubt, Isaru intends to send him here to besiege Kalear.”
“Where did you learn all this?” Isa asked.
“I asked questions of the right people,” Amalia answered. “A Champion is as much a fighter as a saboteur.”
“We need help from the Makai,” Fiona said. “That much is certain.”
Amalia continued to share her intel. “The Makai have not spoken for Isaru in one way or the other, but have condemned him for the attacks on Atlantea and Savannah in the east. King Arius has not openly said Isaru has committed patricide, but his lack of support and his refusal to attend Taris’ funeral in Haven speaks volumes.”
“Since Isaru killed King Taris, wouldn’t Arius inherit Haven if Isaru were disqualified?” I asked.
“That question is difficult,” Fiona said. “Arius is of the line of Annajen, but finds himself ruling over the Makai
people. He and Taris are brothers, after all, but Arius was only proclaimed king when Queen Sylva VI Makai passed away. In truth, he is a king-regent with no trueborn heir, but was voted all the titles appropriate to a king by the Makai War Council, and that decision was approved by Elder Arminius. As for matters of inheritance, King Arius has produced no heir and has taken no wife since Sylva’s death, and unless he produces an heir, the crown passes to Queen Sylva’s most senior heir, her niece named Laurelyn, who is twelve years old, and as far as Haven, the next in line for the throne is a contentious question that I won’t even get into.”
“This is very confusing,” I said.
“It shouldn’t matter in the end,” Fiona said. “King Arius is in his forties, strong, and healthy. I only wanted to clear up the confusion. In any case, Sylva isn’t far, and we should open a dialogue with my uncle.”
“If they openly support us, Isaru will use it as a pretext for war,” Amalia said.
“War is coming, whether we want it or not,” Fiona said. “The Makai are the most famed warriors in the Red Wild, and we would do well to get them on our side before Isaru does.” Everyone looked at her, seeming to be unsure of how that might work. “So far, King Arius has not heard from you . . . and within the week, it will come to light that you are here. The longer you go without speaking to him, the more he might suspect you have something to hide. Beat Isaru to the punch, and Isaru will be forced to think twice before calling his men and dragons on Kalear. It becomes more important, because Lord Harrow’s men are but a week’s hard march from here.”
I couldn’t argue with any of that. “It buys us time, yes. It might be worth going to the cities of Highgrove and Mongar, too. They control key mountain passes, and having them on our side will hem in Isaru’s territories.”
“A Makai alliance is more important to secure first,” Fiona said. “With them comes access to their dragonriders.”
“Not enough to challenge Isaru,” Amalia said. “The Makai have something like fifty dragonriders, while it’s said Isaru’s host numbers two hundred Mindless dragons, not even including the Annajen’s riders.”
“It’s a start,” Fiona said. “No one knows what Isaru will do first, but he is assailed on three sides. All his enemies are weaker than him, but none will stand with him. Colonia will not, most of the Eastern Kingdoms will not, and the Samalites certainly will not, many of whom have been attacked and harried by dragons while fleeing south. The minute he moves his army away from Haven, the others will go marching toward it, if they are wise.”
“Dragons will allow him to be in many places at once,” I said. “The others may do nothing out of fear.”
“The Makai are an obvious ally,” Deanna said. “Mongar and Highgrove might help . . . but none of us have considered the obvious answer. The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Isaru plans to attack Colonia, and if Colonia does not know already, then they will find out soon. Why not join forces in the meantime, as a precaution?”
An alliance with Colonia, the same people who jailed my parents? That was not something I had expected, and my gut said it was unthinkable. Would it even be possible to work with them, when everything about their society hated the Elekai?
“They would want nothing more than for us to wipe each other out,” I said, finally. “An alliance, even a temporary one, would be impossible.”
“Perhaps not,” Fiona said. “After all, it is said that Anna was supposed to liberate Colonia as a sign of her identity. Isaru has claimed that the original prophecy was in error, and that due to a mistranslation, he is the one who was promised. If he takes over Colonia, and quickly, then it might give him the legitimacy he seeks. Colonia was the first city of the Elekai, long ago. While it might be wiser to strike us, while we’re still weak, my gut tells me it’s Colonia he’ll attack first.”
“He thinks Lord Harrow’s men is enough to keep us pinned here,” Shara said. “That’s what I’m thinking.”
Colonia had a large army and its own host of dragon riders – probably well over a hundred, even if the numbers were lessened by the recent Novan War.
If the Makai and Colonia both joined with us, our number of dragons would be at least half of theirs, which would be better than a quarter if only the Makai agreed to an alliance.
Slowly, I was beginning to see that having Colonia on our side was the only way. But would they ever go for it?
CHAPTER TEN
A KNOCK CAME AT THE door, causing the conversation to stop. The door opened, revealing my mother.
“Can I come in?”
“Of course,” I said. “I was just getting them up to speed.”
The three Seekers stood, and I made the introductions.
“We’ve just been talking about next steps,” I said.
After I explained what the Seekers shared with us, everyone was on the same page.
“An alliance with Colonia seems like madness,” my mother said.
“The only other option is defending ourselves with the Makai,” I said. “Nabea and his forces are too far to help. For all the evil the Covenant does, they have dragons. If we can’t match Isaru’s forces with our own, where does that put us?”
My mother shook her head. “I don’t know, Shanti. I just know the Covenant is not to be trusted. They betrayed us; they took you and intended to kill you, and they used your father and me to make you go to Hyperborea.”
I knew all that, but if Isaru was left unchallenged, everyone would end up being conquered by him.
“Perhaps the point isn’t to defeat him,” Shara said. “We merely need to survive long enough for Elder Isandru to finish what we started.”
“That could be months,” I said. The next bit was harder to say. “If ever. I know nothing about war. There hasn’t been a major war in the Red Wild since the Mindless Wars, and that was generations ago. Even the oldest of the old don’t remember those times.”
“There have been wars,” Isa said. “Small ones. Nothing like the Covenant and Nova, however, or like the Mindless Wars or what the Eastern Kingdoms go through.”
“The Makai and the Covenant hate each other more than the Annajen and the Covenant do,” Shara said. “While the Annajen are content to be at peace, the Makai live to raid the Covenant’s holdings. How could they ever be made to see eye to eye?”
“Necessity,” Shara said. “Only when Isaru is at their walls with an army of dragons and Annajen halberds will they consent to be helped by Elekai.”
“Do you think that’s what Isaru will do first?” I asked.
Shara nodded. “Perhaps. He wants to show himself as the fulfillment of Anna’s prophecy.”
But that begged the question . . . shouldn’t I be focused on the same goal? It was what I had written, after all, or at least, what I was purported to have written. If I just let Isaru and Rakhim get it, would it ruin all the credibility I had?
For some reason, I felt as if that was what Isaru was hoping for. I knew the Colonians would never let me have their city . . . and even if the conquest of the city wasn’t truly in the prophecy, many Elekai believed it was, and even looked forward to its liberation.
There were too many impossible things to do.
“I need some time alone to think this through,” I said.
“We’ve discussed enough for one night,” Deanna said. “We are weary and would like to rest.”
“Of course,” I said. “You’re welcome here as long as you want to stay.”
“We are not merely staying,” Amalia said. “I pledge myself formally to you, to do as you wish and follow your lead.”
“Me, too,” Aela said.
“And the same for me,” Deanna said. “You have proven yourself to us beyond a doubt, and those we’ve brought with us are yours to command.”
“I . . .” Words failed me. “Thank you. I’ll do my best.”
“You have our help, always,” Amalia said. “Only name the task, and if it’s in my power, it will be done.”
“The only ta
sk I have for you three is getting some rest,” I said. “We’ll talk more tomorrow.”
“As you wish,” Amalia said.
Everyone filed out the door, Isa last of all. She looked back for a moment, as if to say something, but in the end, shut the door behind her. Only my mother remained.
“Are you all right?” she asked.
I sat back in my chair. “Who knows?”
“You can talk to me. I am always here to listen, Shanti.” My mother came to sit next to me, placing a hand on my arm. “I know it’s overwhelming, your responsibilities. But you need to take care of yourself first. Let me sing you to sleep, just like I used to do.”
“I’m not a child anymore.”
“You’re my child. That’ll never change, Shanti.”
I looked within the fire’s glowing embers. I thought about all the nights Isaru and I had sat around a fire like this, trying to keep warm in the cold. I missed him terribly.
Isaru, once my best friend, now my unchosen enemy. As much as I loved my mother, how could she ever help me make sense of that?
I stood and went for the window while she just watched. I opened the shutters and looked down at the yard. I gazed above the Stronghold’s western wall, to get a view of the Red Mountains, their lower slopes glowing with xen and forest. A single shout emanated from down below, dying in the night. I heard the whicker of horses from the nearby stable, and the laugher of a child.
I looked at the night sky, feeling numb and powerless. I wanted answers, but there were none.
This war was impossible. It was sheer madness, and I knew it.
“I don’t know how much longer I can go on pretending, Mom,” I finally said. “This was supposed to be Anna’s body, not mine. This was supposed to be her brain, not mine, filled with her knowledge and her memories. I hear her voice sometimes, you know. I thought it was just me going crazy, but she’s there, inside of me, getting stronger all the time.” I wasn’t sure if I wanted to share the next part. But she was my mother. “I’m afraid that someday, I’ll wake up and no longer be myself. I’ll wake up as her, and I’ll be the one trapped inside my own head.”