Again, Sofia took a deep breath and raised her arm, and the energy began moving inside Henning.
Nenetl didn’t see them. She looked down at Jill, who was crawling towards Efia. She looked up at her and they exchanged a few words. Then Efia stepped forward so that her dress covered Jill on the floor.
Green light shimmered at Efia’s fingertips.
‘They’re combining their powers,’ Henning said, and pulled Sofia along in an attempt to reach Efia and join together.
But as Nenetl saw them, she swiped the air in a massive arc, sending a shockwave against them. It hit Henning and Sofia like a wall, pushing them back against the floor.
Henning’s shoulder flared up with pain as he recoiled. Beside him on the floor, Sofia gave him a glance that told him she was shaken but all right. Meanwhile, Efia had grabbed Nenetl by the wrist, and green light and smoke was curling from her arm and coalescing on Nenetl’s hand. The Shade grimaced and tried to pull herself free from Efia’s grasp, but she held on tight.
With a loud crack, the colourful stones on Nenetl’s fingers shattered, with glittering pieces falling to the floor like sparkling dust.
Evie, Berossus, Naido and Belinda appeared around Nenetl. Efia had freed them. But Gus wasn’t there.
Nenetl shook in Efia’s grasp, as more and more green magic flowed into her. Then Nenetl’s eyes became focused and with her free hand she waved a blow against Efia.
Efia lost her grip and staggered backwards. Jill was left on the floor, one arm extended towards Efia, who had drawn more energy through her, but now their connection was broken.
‘Good effort,’ Nenetl said, ‘but you can't win.’
Nenetl turned into purple mist before them, spiralled upwards, and as she reached the ceiling, dived down so close to Henning that his hair blew in the cold current. Nenetl flew out of the room through the wall.
‘Follow me,’ Efia said, and started towards the door. After a few steps she, too, turned into spiralling green mist.
Jill stood up. ‘She needs us—let’s go!’
Henning took one more glance at where Nenetl had just stood, wondering why Gus hadn’t reappeared. Sofia looked at him with dreamy eyes and fell limp in his arms.
Chapter Forty-Nine
Jill’s head hurt as she let go of Efia. She wondered how long she would stay in this state, if Tommy was keeping her awake from Nenetl’s spell, or if Nenetl’s absence had released her.
She raised her head, and when she first saw her, she didn’t believe her eyes.
Belinda knelt by her side. ‘Are you all right?’
‘Yeah,’ Jill said. ‘You?’
‘It was a peculiar experience.’ She was still wearing the same uniform with the zipper open just a little as she had been when Nenetl had captured her. ‘Not a torment, but like a reverie.’
‘I’m happy to hear that,’ Jill said, as a feeling of relief washed over her. Losing Belinda had hurt more than she had imagined. ‘I just want you to know that I never wanted any of this to happen.’
‘It’s me who should say that.’ Belinda took Jill’s hand, and helped her up.
Jill stared into her eyes. After being under Nenetl’s spell herself, she now understood Belinda better than ever before.
Behind Belinda, Evie stood with Naido and Berossus, eying at her suspiciously.
‘That was just so kooky,’ Evie said, and Berossus nodded.
‘Agreed,’ said Belinda.
Behind Jill, Henning held Sofia in his arms.
‘What happened to her?’ asked Jill.
‘She’s just fainted,’ Henning said. ‘From drawing on E.’
‘Sofia uses E?’
‘I thought you knew,’ Henning said, then glanced at Belinda.
‘It was highly classified, up to level nine. But you’re right, she was our best experiment.’
‘Was?’
‘There won’t be any more experiments like that. Not by me at least.’
‘No?’ Jill said. ‘But wasn’t it your dream to—’
‘I’ve found my dream,’ Belinda said, and took Jill’s hands in hers. ‘And I don’t want anything to take that away from me.’
Her eyes were like jewels that adorned her beautiful face. Jill understood what she meant. There was no question in her mind anymore, and she let herself fall deep into those eyes. ‘I share the same dream.’
Belinda smiled and squeezed her hands.
’I hate to interrupt,’ Evie said, ‘but we have to stop her, we have to help Efia.’
‘Where’d they go?’ Jill asked.
‘Not far. There’s something happening in the garage.’ Naido pointed at one of the screens that showed live feed from the Shuttler-shop garage. Between the rows of ships, Efia and Nenetl faced each other some ten metres apart, and seemed to be arguing.
Jill hurried with the others to the garage, where Efia and Nenetl were in a standoff.
‘You cannot stop me. Try, and you’ll find yourself back here.’ Nenetl tapped one of her colourless rings. ‘Then I will be gone, and every one of your puny people will be crushed in the collision of Grangar against this little moon. And then, some unsuspecting soul will release the data back to my portal, and override this played-out mockery of a universe.’
Behind them, a ship flew into the garage through the force field.
‘You say I can't stop you,’ said Efia, ‘and you might be right… You've grown stronger since the five of us were united.’
‘If you look at it from a neutral perspective, there’s no reason for us to fight. I have nothing against you personally, Efia. Quite the contrary, I wish you’d join me in shaping the future world.’
The ship landed behind them, far enough away for them to ignore it. It was a neat civilian craft: small, but by the looks of it, capable of space travel.
‘I share your sentiment,’ Efia said.
Jill held her breath. If Efia went along with Nenetl, what chance would they have?
Nenetl smiled. ‘I knew you would understand.’
‘I share your sentiment in that I don’t have anything against you, and I would like us to be united again.’
There was a flicker of eagerness in Nenetl’s expression. ‘So, would you join me?’
‘No, I won't,’ Efia said. ‘You have it wrong. Do you remember where we came from? In Esse we were new-born gods in a decadent world. We shared ideals and a dream of a better world. You and I shared them. And so did Warrigal, Shinzaburo, and Aalto.’
‘This is not our ideal world!’
‘No, it’s not. But it could be.’
‘Not a chance, sis. This universe is way beyond its due date, surpassing Esse, and the entropy is breaking it apart—we see it everywhere.’
‘For thousands of years, we have been divided. We have neglected to nurture what we have. Everything is malleable. Together, the five of us could make this universe our dream, the dream we abandoned when we let our petty bickering tear us apart. We, the Shades, must be better than that.’
‘Just like you said of Esse, this world is decadent beyond repair. If you don’t have the guts to take the next logical step, I will destroy you.’
Efia shook her head. She seemed so calm, while Jill was shaking in anticipation.
Suddenly, she thrust her hands forth and a green gush of energy burst against Nenetl.
Nenetl took the hit to her chest, and recoiled, staggering backwards. A purple aura appeared around her, protecting her from Efia’s blast. ‘So, you want it this way? Fine.’ She straightened her arms and sent a blast of purple to strike back against Efia’s green stream.
Beside Jill, Sofia opened her eyes. ‘What’s going on?’
‘We have to help Efia,’ said Jill.
‘She’s too weak,’ said Henning.
‘No, I’m not,’ Sofia insisted. She took a step forward. ‘Take my hands.’
‘Are you sure about this?’ Henning asked.
‘Just grab my hands!’
Jill took Sofia’
s hand, and so did Henning. Together they stepped forward towards Nenetl and Efia. Sofia was pulling her E, a stinging flow of it coursing through her body, and from Sofia’s outstretched fingers flowed a blue surge of sparkle that hit Nenetl from the side.
Evie’s voice rang from behind them. ‘Focus on the rings!’
The surge caught Nenetl off guard, and she almost let Efia’s stream hit her, barely keeping up her shield. But she didn’t seem fazed—instead she lifted one knee and grinned.
Nenetl stomped down hard on the floor.
A sudden black shockwave was emitted, and when it hit Jill’s feet, every one of her muscles became limp and she fell.
Jill opened her eyes. Nenetl’s shockwave had dropped everyone on the floor, recoiling and gasping for air. When Jill staggered up, Efia was already standing, brushing her hair back, facing Nenetl.
Nenetl laughed in the background. ‘You think you can defeat me?’
‘One more go, all right?’ someone shouted from further away. The voice was familiar, but Jill couldn’t place it. She lifted her head.
A spaceship had just landed—and not just any spaceship. Jill recognised it immediately as Rutger. Tredd Bounty and Eddie Parkes were stepping down the platform, grinning. Tredd shouted out, ‘What? You think we’d miss this?’
Jill was glad to see him there; she was glad he was alive, that what Nenetl had shown wasn’t real, but now it was all about defeating Nenetl. And with two more people with E, it might just be possible.
‘We have to help Efia!’
‘Tell us what to do,’ Eddie said.
Jill beckoned them around her. ‘Together, we have massive power. Take my hands.’
Henning and Sofia stepped closer. Jill took Tredd’s and Henning’s hands, and they linked up with Eddie and Sofia, forming an arc of five powerful users of E.
‘Focus on the rings,’ said Jill. ‘We want to break the rings.’
Everyone ready, she let out an outpouring of energy, now drawing E from Henning and Tredd, who drew from Sofia, and Eddie. Efia was fast to react, and joined them by blasting a green stream of power at Nenetl’s hand.
Their combined cascade of flashing green light took Nenetl by surprise and hit her ringed hand.
Nenetl screamed, and a loud series of chinks sounded. She turned into purple mist and rose in the air, twirling as she went. Everyone stopped their bursts of E, and as the mist cleared in the middle, three forms stood where Nenetl had been.
Jill gasped. They had done it—they had broken her rings. In Nenetl’s place stood Warrigal, wearing nothing but a loincloth over his tan and muscular body; Shinzaburo, a faceless man under a dark hooded cape, holding a sword; and Aalto, the eldest of them all, in a white robe, fully opaque and looking younger than the last time Jill had seen him. With Efia in her green dress, they comprised four of the five Shade gods.
Everyone stood in quiet awe. Just seeing them all at once was a spiritual experience.
But there was someone else there too. On the floor, by their feet, lay a grey old man.
Henning recognised the fallen man instantly. Jilius had lost his disguise as Gus and returned from Nenetl’s ring in his real form. He looked older than Henning remembered, but then again, it had been decades. He rushed to his side.
Close up, Jilius seemed frail and small, his skin like paper over his bones, but he was his father all right. Eyes closed, he seemed calm, as if sleeping. While his father had always been doing something, now Henning only recalled images of his father taking a nap on the hammock, the porch, the couch… Seeing him, even like this, after all those years, brought a tear to his eye.
‘Father…?’
For a moment, nothing happened. The Shades stood silent around them. Then a small twitch, and his eyes opened. He strained to speak. ‘Henning, I’m sorry I couldn’t stay in Avalon with you and your family.’
‘We need to get you to a hospital.’
‘There’s no hospital that can cure me,’ he whispered. ‘Nenetl only peeled off the surface; the magic has taken its toll on me over the years.’
The four Shades wore silent stone faces, and Aalto shook his head slowly.
‘I’m beyond repair,’ Jilius muttered.
Henning didn’t listen to him. He had been reunited with his father and he wasn’t going to let go now. He took his frail hand into his and pushed his healing power through. He expected to feel warmth, but nothing happened.
‘You have grown from an insecure young lad into a strong leader. Take care of Avalon.’
‘I will,’ said Henning, and a tear formed in his eye as he watched his father’s wretched form and compared it to the remarkable man he remembered.
Evie knelt beside Henning. ‘No!’
With a seemingly strenuous motion, Jilius turned to her, and said softly, ‘You are the master hacker now.’
‘No, no, no… You’re going to be all right.’
‘Take what I’ve taught you and enter the secret door. It’s yours to open.’
‘Hang in there,’ Evie said. ‘They’re coming for you.’
‘You are—’ Jilius gasped and his head drooped. He remained on the floor, motionless.
‘Gus!’ Evie said, and grabbed hold of him, tears running down her cheeks. ‘Wake up! Wake up! Wake up…’
Tears welling in his eyes, Henning took her hand, and said, ‘He’s gone for good.’
Evie threw herself on him and cried against his shoulder. She had lost a mentor, and he had lost a father; memories surfaced of the first time it happened, and he couldn’t stop the tears. This time it was final. No one spoke a word as they wept together.
After a few moments, Aalto broke the silence. ‘Jilius Dal was a great man. We will honour his life, but now we must stop Grangar before it breaks this moon.’
Jill heard Tommy’s voice inside her head. I can’t hold it much longer… she’s too strong.
Her head didn’t hurt anymore, and she could only wonder how she had fallen for Nenetl. ‘What can we do?’
Grangar has a weakness, Tommy said, the volume of his voice going so low it was difficult for Jill to hear him.
She pressed her fingers into her ears to block the noise, and said, ‘What is it?’
Gravity—
‘I can’t hear you!’
Someone laid a hand on her shoulder. ‘Are you all right?’ It was Belinda.
Jill turned to her. ‘He’s inside Grangar. Tommy Huckey. He said Grangar’s weakness is to do with gravity, but I lost the connection. Maybe Nenetl got to him.’
Aalto had appeared beside them. ‘That might mean we could utilise the moon’s gravity, or the planet, Heeg.’ His face lit up. ‘Yes, you, dear, are onto something. I know what we must do.’
Before she had a chance to say anything, Aalto glided towards the other Shades.
Jill couldn’t help but smile at the sight of Belinda beside her. She was safe, and they were both free of Nenetl, hopefully forever. Now it was clear why everything had been so frustrating. The tension between them had been strong since the day they met, and now, with Nenetl’s spell lifted, Belinda wasn’t the monster Jill had made her out to be. Instead, she was a vulnerable and beautiful person who cared for her. She opened her arms and they came together in a warm embrace.
‘It was like a dream where I lost you,’ Belinda whispered. ‘I never want to lose you again.’
‘I’m here for you,’ said Jill.
Someone coughed. It was Tredd, and Eddie was with him. Jill let go of Belinda and faced the men. Aalto and the four Shades were talking with Berossus and the others.
‘I was so happy to see you both,’ said Jill.
Eddie waved, and Tredd issued a playful smile. ‘Couldn’t miss it for anything,’ he said, and his face turned earnest. ‘Hey, I’m sorry about everything.’
Jill leaned forward and said, ‘Me too. Perhaps living down in Nanira just wasn’t for us.’
‘Yeah,’ Tredd said, and chuckled. ‘And I see that being off-planet has clear
ly been good for you… Look at you, you look ten years younger!’
It was nice of him to notice, even though it was because of the Re-Stem treatment. ‘A lot has happened since I left Nanira.’
‘You know, I was hoping we could, perhaps, try again. I mean, no rush, take it slow.’
Jill nodded slowly. Then she turned to meet Belinda’s eyes, which replied yes to her unspoken question. ‘It might be difficult,’ Jill said, and put her hand around Belinda’s waist.
‘Are you— wait, what?’ Tredd stammered.
Jill swapped glances between Tredd and Belinda and smiled. ‘I love you both, but with Belinda it’s different… I can’t put it into words.’
‘No need for words,’ Belinda said, and pressed her warm lips against hers.
‘I love you,’ Jill whispered, and turned to Tredd. ‘These past few weeks have been intense, in so many ways. I’m sorry. Let’s talk once we get this done.’
Tredd’s mouth was open as if he wanted to say something, but no words came out. Then he said, ‘Yes. Let’s do that.’
Eddie tapped him on the shoulder.
Jill took Belinda’s hand. This was right for her. Belinda was the one to complete her.
Berossus gaped at the sight of the four Shades left after Nenetl’s escape, but even so, seeing Oberen in the Shuttler-shop garage surprised him the most. He went to his father.
‘You should be resting!’
‘I’m all right, son. Got pumped with some good juice in the hospital.’ The side of his face was fixed fast with a synthetic skin and looked unnaturally smooth. Berossus was about to say something when Aalto came over.
‘We will go after Nenetl,’ he said, referring to Efia, Shinzaburo and Warrigal, who stood behind him. ‘She will do anything to get her way, including setting Grangar on this moon. And we could use your help.’
Berossus wanted to make his father proud. ‘What can I do?’
‘You have the Thaqaran inside you. Maybe it could—’
‘It’s gone now. Nenetl separated us.’
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