by RF Hurteau
“In return,” said Pike, “you will develop a way to transport large numbers of our people quickly away from the Gate and out of the inhospitable Arctic region, to a place where we may stage our next moves safely.”
“We’re already working toward that end!” assured Bohai confidently. He scooted his chair closer to Pike, who recoiled slightly, and spoke in a conspiratorial tone. “We’ve begun working with technology which allows us to melt the ice, burrowing through it as easily as a mouse through dirt. Um, do you have mice here?” He looked around, wondering if his reference would be lost on them, but he continued with a shrug. “Regardless. We tested the technology in order to reach the Gate for this very meeting. And here I am!” He stood and slammed his hands on the table, and several of the Council members jumped, startled. “Safe and sound and among new friends!” He reached out and patted Pike on the shoulder. “Of course, it will need a bit of doing in order to be made ready to carry large numbers of Therans at once, but we are working tirelessly to accomplish just that! Ah, here we are.” He sat again as the Elven server handed him his glass, now half full of the opaque beverage. “Very good. Thank you, my dear.” He grasped her hand and gave it a quick kiss before she pulled away, looking rather thunderstruck as she retreated back to her place by the door.
Bohai picked up his glass, holding it high, and the whole Council mimicked him, some faking enthusiasm more convincingly than others. Felix, who had zero desire to taste the Nouritas again, grimaced slightly. Nero was openly scowling. Winsled had tipped his glass sideways, and his face registered alarm as the liquid held its shape for several seconds before beginning to slide down the side of the goblet.
“To a long and prosperous friendship!” said Bohai, beaming. He tipped his glass to his lips, allowing the drink to pour slowly into his waiting mouth. Felix watched Pike follow suit, and, with sheer force of will, began to bring his own glass to his mouth when a gentle squeeze of his knee stopped him. He looked to his left, where Onyx sat, staring toward Pike, holding her own glass close to her lips without drinking. She gave an almost imperceptible shake of her head.
Bohai sat back down, his glass empty, a look of oblivious satisfaction on his face. Felix noticed that Nero had not drunk, still scowling at his glass. Many of the other Council members had looks of disbelief and disgust on their faces, their lips pursed in silent disapproval. Emmerus had a hand over his mouth, his cheeks puffed out slightly as he struggled to force the Nouritas down, his eyes full of what Felix could only describe as abject horror.
“So, now that we’ve observed the formalities, should we get something in writing?” inquired Bohai.
But Nero didn’t answer. He was looking at Pike, who had gone rather rigid. His eyes scanned the room, looking at each Council member in turn. Felix looked around also, and noticed with a start that almost all of the Council members looked strange. “What is this?” Felix said, standing up. “What’s going on?”
Pike’s body began to convulse, and he fell backward, chair and all. All around the table, violent tremors wracked the bodies of the Council members, some of whom slumped forward onto the table. Others had slid down to the ground. Felix watched, transfixed, as Pike’s mouth opened as if to speak, and a mass of pink tinged foam oozed out, puddling on the floor beneath his quivering face.
Nero’s eyes narrowed, but he made no move to offer assistance. He simply stood there, fists clenched on the surface of the table, face red with rage.
“Get a doctor!” Felix barked at the serving girl, who had backed against the wall, terrified.
“But…but Lord Emmerus is a doctor,” she stammered.
“He’s having a seizure, you fool. We need a different doctor!” She nodded quickly, and disappeared into the corridor. No matter who these people were or what their intentions, Felix’s instinct was to help. He made a move toward Emmerus, but Onyx held him back.
“Don’t,” she warned. “Laevus wouldn’t.”
Felix was torn. Nero, Bohai, Felix, and Onyx were the only ones still standing. Bohai was staring around, his face bewildered, eyes wide with fright.
“It’s poisoned!” Onyx said loudly. “He’s poisoned the wine! He tried to kill us all!”
Bohai backed up, knocking over his chair. “What? No, no, I would never—”
Several Evicti had entered the room, weapons drawn. Nero whirled on the Ambassador. “What treachery is this?” he shouted.
“No, please, you must believe me, surely—” Realization washed over Bohai’s face, and he pointed a quivering finger at Onyx. Felix’s insides twisted. “It was her! She took the crate from me. She must have done something to the wine. She must have—” his words were cut off as Nero grabbed him by the neck and slammed him against the wall.
“You will pay for this,” he growled. “How dare you blame a Theran for your disgusting Human schemes. No Theran would harm another. When we get to Earth, your precious monarchy will be the first to fall. I promise you that.” He threw Bohai to the ground. “Lock him up,” he said, addressing the closest Evictus. "I’ll deal with him later.”
Felix felt his stomach lurch again as Nero approached the table once more. His mind was racing, his heart pounding. It took every ounce of will he had to force himself back into character. One false move, and they were done for. He looked at Nero and inclined his head slightly toward the prone form of Lord Talmet. “It appears that the seat of the Most High Elder is unexpectedly available,” he said dismissively. “Congratulations on your promotion, Lord Nero.” He offered a curt bow.
Nero’s chest was heaving as he stared down at the bodies of the dead Council members, now quite still. “Get them out of here.” He commanded the Evictus. Then he locked eyes with Felix. “You may be a Halfsie,” he said in an icy tone, “but I would expect you to be a little less flippant about such an atrocious loss of life.”
Felix shrugged. “Pike was boring,” he said simply. “The whole Council was a little boring, frankly. It could do with a little…rearranging.”
Nero snarled. “You don’t make it easy to ignore your Human ancestry. Just as bloodthirsty as any of them. Get out of my sight,” he snapped. “I need to think.”
Felix bowed again, and he and Onyx left the room. They walked silently down the corridor and out into the glaring sun once more. Neither of them spoke as they walked to Gavin and the waiting Floater. Neither of them spoke as Gavin drove them out of the city. Felix’s breaths came in shuddering gasps as the horrors of the morning began to truly sink in. Tobias looked as if he wanted to say something, but he thought better of it.
Only when they had left Imradia behind did Felix finally round on Onyx, furious. “What did you do?” he spat. “What did you do?”
Onyx’s eyes flashed triumphantly, and Felix could see that she was barely suppressing a victorious smile. “What needed to be done,” she replied confidently.
“Stop the Floater,” Felix said to Gavin, who complied without comment. Felix hopped out, not waiting for the stairs to descend, and started to pace back and forth, his footfalls muffled by the soft earth.
“Would anyone like to fill us in on what is going on?” demanded Tobias as he watched Onyx rise to follow Felix.
“Most of the Elder Council members are dead,” Felix said flatly.
Gavin’s face revealed no shock; his next words were calm and serious. “I don’t think it’s wise to stay here. We should get back to your ship.”
“Dead?” squeaked Penelope. “What do you mean? What happened?”
“She happened,” Felix said, pointing at his mother, his voice deathly cold. “She poisoned the wine, and she let that poor, gullible idiot take the fall for it, too.”
“I only did what needed to be done,” Onyx insisted again. “You needed the talks sabotaged, and they have been. There will be no alliance now.”
Felix gaped at her, disbelieving. “Do you even hear yourself? Do you really, truly believe you did this for me? To accomplish my mission?” He advanced on her, shaking hi
s head. “You did this for you. You saw an opportunity to take out Pike, and you took it. Consequences be damned.” Onyx continued to stare at him, defiantly, but he saw her expression waver just slightly.
Tobias’ voice was meek. “What are we going to do now?” he whispered.
“I just need to think!” Felix snapped, squeezing his eyes shut, trying to block them all out. Onyx approached him, hesitantly, and reached out, but he recoiled.
“Felix,” she said softly, her voice pained.
“Don’t touch me!” he shouted at her, backing away. “You could have gotten us all killed back there. You know that, don’t you? You don’t care about me, or Gavin, or my friends. All you cared about was getting revenge. Well, you have it,” he scoffed. “I hope it’s everything you imagined.”
“I didn’t mean to hurt you, Felix. I would never try to hurt you. Don’t you see? Don’t you understand what they did to me? To our family?” She reached out again, then stopped, letting her hand drop to her side. “The Council doesn’t speak for all of Thera. They haven’t for a long time. They’re like a festering wound. They needed to be cleansed.”
“Well, you missed one,” said Felix, scowling. “And now the only Council member left is Nero, who hates Humans more than any Elf alive! It’s possible that some of the other Council members could have been reasoned with. But not Nero, never Nero.” He ran his fingers through his hair, thinking. “Whatever they had planned for Earth, it’s going to be a hundred times worse with him in control.”
“Everything is going to be okay,” Onyx said, her voice soothing. “We’ve stopped the talks. We’ll get you back to Earth. You can be with your family again. You have to trust me.”
He looked at her. He felt tired, drained. “Just like you trusted me enough to tell me your real intentions?” He shook his head sadly. “I can’t trust you, Mother. I can’t trust anything you say. You just murdered a room full of people. You used me to do it. You used Bohai.”
“Bohai was here on behalf of a people that would see the rest of the Earth enslaved!” she protested defensively.
“You had no right!” Felix shouted at her.
Her face became cold again, eyes narrow and brow furrowed. “I had every right.” she seethed. “They took everything from me. Now the debt is paid.”
Felix couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Great,” he said mockingly. “Go back and tell Laevus. I’m sure he’ll be the son you always wished he’d be, now that you’ve settled things with Pike.” He put a finger to his lips, tapping, as he frowned slightly, as if an idea had just come to him. “Oh, wait, that’s not how life works, is it?”
He climbed back into the Floater where Penelope and Tobias shrank back in their seats a bit, afraid to get involved. He sat down heavily, and Onyx followed a few moments later, sitting down in silence.
When they reached Pluto, they found Ambrose outside waiting for them. His face flooded with relief as they entered the clearing, and Penelope ran forward to hug him.
“Where’s Laevus?” demanded Felix, and Ambrose gestured at the ship. “He said he was cold,” Ambrose replied. “So, I took him in there to keep an eye on him while I was working.”
Felix stormed into Pluto’s hold, still fuming. “So…” said Laevus, undaunted. “How did it go?”
“Pike’s dead,” he replied. “They’re all dead, except Nero.”
Laevus’ expression looked almost approving. “Pike was boring,” he said, and Felix felt bile rise in his throat at the memory of having said exactly the same thing. I’m not like him, he told himself. I’m not like him.
“I imagine the meeting must have been terribly exciting though. Oh dear, does this mean Nero is in charge now? That doesn’t bode well for your little Human friends, I’m afraid.”
Felix squatted down so that he was level with Laevus, and spoke in hushed tones. “What’s CEDAR?”
“A type of tree, I believe,” said Laevus dismissively. “Although it could also be a shrub. Flora never was my strength, you see.”
Felix grabbed him by the nape of the neck and pulled his face close. “Don’t play games with me. Pike mentioned CEDAR before we met the Ambassador, and my mother seemed scared.”
“Our mother, dear brother,” corrected Laevus. “And if you have questions, perhaps you should ask her.” Laevus searched Felix’s face, gauging his response. “Oh my, are you two fighting already? Tut, tut. Perhaps if you’d taken the time to get to know her, you might have been more…prepared.”
It took Felix a moment to grasp what Laevus was saying. He rocked backward on his heels, letting go of Laevus. “You—you expected this? You knew she would try something.” He stood. “That’s why you insisted it be her. You wanted Pike out of the way, but you couldn’t do it yourself. You hoped that she would take care of it for you.”
Laevus smiled. “I did hope that she would take care of Pike, yes. But the rest of the Council? Well, that exceeds my wildest expectations. She’s just full of surprises, isn’t she? If only she’d taken out Nero, too. Ah, well. We can’t have everything.”
Felix was reeling. He stood, backing away from Laevus, then stepped outside, making a beeline for Tobias who was attempting to light a fire.
Tobias saw him coming and started. “Oh, Felix. Um, listen, I know you’re upset, but—”
“Not now,” Felix said. “I just need to know if Ambrose has been able to fix the ship.”
Tobias frowned. “No. From what he’s told us, things aren’t looking too good. If we had more time, and spare parts, maybe. But we’re in the middle of the forest in an alien world.” He looked around in the darkness. “Not a whole lot we can do without materials.”
“Well, figure something out,” said Felix sullenly. “We’re going to need a way out of here—and soon.”
“What’s the plan?”
“It’s late. Forget the fire. Let’s all get a little rest, and I’ll explain in the morning.”
eleven
Old Friends
Felix slept fitfully, his nightmares coming in waves, mixing together and breaking against his mind’s eye. He saw Ripley, covered in ugly red burns, glaring at him accusingly. His friend tried to speak, but when he opened his mouth, all that came out was blood-tinged foam. “You did this,” said a voice behind him. Bohai. “You did this to us.”
Felix turned and saw, not Bohai, but Thoris Wilks. His dapper waistcoat was soaked in black, sticky blood, oozing from the hole in his stomach. He held a goblet to the wound, and it began to fill, looking exactly like squid ink wine. “Try some,” said Thoris Wilks, holding it out toward Felix. “Your friend liked it.” Felix turned again and saw Ripley on the ground, an empty goblet clutched in his tremoring hand. Onyx was standing over him, looking down with resolve. “You did what had to be done,” she said. “It had to be done.”
“No!” Felix shot up, soaked in a cold sweat. He was breathing hard, and around him, his friends sat up at the sudden cry. Penelope and Tobias looked groggy, but Onyx was alert.
“Where are Gavin and Ambrose?” he asked suddenly, looking around.
“They’re outside with Laevus,” said Onyx calmly.
Felix untangled himself from the blanket and stood, trying to shake off the horrible feelings that the dream had stirred up inside him. “Everyone outside,” said Felix in a commanding tone. He didn’t wait for them but instead marched out into the early morning light. Ambrose and Gavin had a fire going, and a pot suspended above it, a thick pottage bubbling merrily away. Felix felt his stomach churn, reminded again of his dream.
“I’m going back,” he announced, once everyone was outside. “I’m going to get Bohai out of there, and we’re going to get the hell out of this wretched place.”
Everyone started speaking at once.
“Do you really think that’s a good idea?” Tobias inquired nervously.
“I haven’t fixed the ship yet; we haven’t got a way to get back,” came Ambrose’s protest.
“There’s a light on th
e HUD that won’t light on one side,” Laevus said, in a sing-song tone.
“What if they figure out you’re not Laevus, and capture you?”
“You won’t get him out,” said Onyx, her voice rising above the rest, as she surveyed him with sad eyes. “And you shouldn’t feel like you have to. He was planning to ally himself with the Therans. He isn’t worth saving.”
Felix regarded her coolly. “I wasn’t asking your opinion,” he said at last. “I am telling you the plan.”
Ambrose stood up, brushing the dirt from his knees. “If you free the Ambassador—which I’m not saying is wrong, mind you—the gig is up. They might not know who you are, but they’ll come looking for us. Pluto’s a good ship, but she’s not magic. I don’t have any way to get us out of here.”
“Yet,” said Felix reassuringly. “I’m sure you’ll figure it out.”
Ambrose didn’t appear nearly so confident, but he nodded all the same.
Felix looked around the group, at Gavin’s solemn face, and Penelope’s scared one. He looked past them to Laevus. “We’re going to take him back to Pravacordia with us,” he decided. “I imagine there’s a lot he can tell us.”
Gavin gave a derisive snort. “He won’t tell you anything,” he said. “He’ll run you in circles until you lose your mind trying to wring a straight answer out of him.”
“Well, we can’t let him go,” said Felix, “and we can’t kill him. So, there’s nothing for it. He’s coming with us.”
“Then I’m coming, too,” said Onyx quickly. She looked frightened for the first time since Felix had arrived. “There’s nothing left for me here.”