The Forbidden Library
Page 36
“Oh yeah?” Lu Bei said pompously. “Do your math again. It’s more than half.”
Everyone laughed until tears came from their eyes. It was more from the relief of having survived than Lu Bei’s antics. Laughing as well, Lu Bei stuck his tongue out at Iniru and settled into Enashoma’s lap.
“Lu Bei,” Turesobei said, “how did you help Hannya back there? The spell didn’t work until you joined in.”
“I just added another voice, master, and gave what little power I could, which wasn’t much.” He tapped his forehead. “I’ve got perfect memory, so I learned the words easy enough after she went through the first time, though I’m not sure what I was saying.”
“You sure that was all?” Turesobei asked. “You do keep secrets sometimes.”
“The fetch speaks true,” Hannya said out loud through the blade. “And he did help, not with his power but with his voice. I am not certain why that helped, though. Magic is finicky that way. Guess a chorus was needed.” She took on human form and knelt before Turesobei. “Will you honor our bargain now?”
“It shall be honored,” Turesobei replied.
“Are you sure that’s wise, master?” Lu Bei asked.
“I’m with the fetch this time,” Iniru said. “I mean no offense, Lady Hannya, but how do we know we can trust you?”
“We can’t know,” Turesobei answered. “But she got us this far and I made a deal with her. I will keep my word. I know Lady Hannya well from our experience together in the Lower Stacks. I trust her.”
With Hannya standing nearby, Turesobei carefully grabbed the black-steel sword by its blade and lifted it, placing the Mark of the Storm Dragon on the hilt against the larger matching mark on his cheek. He focused a trickle of energy onto the hilt and spoke the common version of the command of unbinding. He thought it might work since Naruwakiru had cast her command simply, using brute force instead of intricacy. With a flash, the mark on Fangthorn’s hilt disappeared. With that done, he closed his eyes and pictured Tepebono trying to break the bindings on the sword. Matching the memory, he recited Tepebono’s commands. The runes on the blade disappeared one-by-one until the last which unleashed a wave of earth, fire, and kenja energy.
“Lady Hannya, you are hereby free to live as you once did. I, Chonda Turesobei, possessor of the Storm Dragon’s power, claim no authority or control over you.”
Hannya shuddered with delight and took in a deep breath. She twirled on her tiptoes with her arms outstretched. “You have no idea how good this feels after so many millennia being trapped in that sword.” She kissed Turesobei on the forehead. “Bless you, Chonda Turesobei, you brave fool. Now, follow me. You can leave your packs here. There is something I must show you now. All of you.”
With Motekeru carrying Kurine cradled in one arm and dragging Awasa along with the other, they followed Hannya through the trapdoor and down a staircase that led to the empty courtyard with its barren soil and dry ponds and fountains. Hannya shoved open a door on one edge of the encircling temple complex and they entered a long, lavishly-built hallway of cedar and stone that ended with a set of elaborate rune-carved doors. Hannya breathed in deeply and pushed them open.
At the end of this rectangular chamber a steep staircase led up to a high dais and a throne carved out of pure jade. Turesobei’s breath caught, his heart raced. He wanted to run but couldn’t bring himself to move.
On the throne slumped a Kaiaru with sea-dark hair and skin the pale color of fog. He wore a simple gray robe like that of a monk. It hid all of his kavaru, save the one on his forehead and the ones on each hand. His eyes were closed, but his chest heaved up and down with breath.
Hannya knelt at the foot of the steps. “Blood King of the Nine Realms, I beseech you, awake and rise again!”
“No!” Turesobei shouted.
Eyes alight with blue-white flame opened. As their color turned to flickering vermillion and then deep green with specks of gold, a deep sinister laugh rumbled free from parched lips.
Afterword
Thank you for purchasing this book and braving the Haydenverse once more. If you enjoyed this tale, please leave a review at your favorite online retailer or Goodreads. All it takes is a sentence or two. Positive feedback leads to more books like this one.
Want to get an email when my next book is released?
Sign up here: tinyletter.com/dahayden.
You can follow me at twitter.com/dahayden, or you can like my page at facebook.com/haydenverse. I love chatting with my readers, so don’t be shy.
For a full list of all my books available, or to learn more about me, please visit dahayden.com or typingcatpress.com.