by Clayton Wood
“I can't remember.”
“What happened next?” Darius asked. Kyle caught Kalibar frowning, and knew the Grand Weaver was annoyed that Darius had switched topics so quickly. Kyle gave Kalibar a reassuring smile, hoping that the old man would trust the bodyguard enough not to interrupt. His hopes were realized; Kalibar pursed his lips, but remained silent.
“He said you'd died,” Ariana answered, her eyes widening. “He said someone opened me up, and carved runes into my bones.” She retracted her leg, grabbing it with her hands and staring at it intently. Then she looked up at Darius. “He said we should remember the past,” she added. “Then something about...eyes...and...” She shook her head in frustration. “Why can't I remember?”
“Give it time,” Darius murmured. “You're doing fine.”
Ariana paused for a long moment, then sighed.
“I think he said something about me not understanding,” she continued. Then she frowned, her eyes narrowing. “No, he said I wouldn't live long enough to understand.” Then her eyes widened, and she grabbed her left wrist, staring at it. “He cut me!” she exclaimed, running her fingernail down her forearm. Despite her proclamation, the skin was perfectly intact. She frowned, looking at her other forearm, which was also intact.
“Darius,” Kalibar warned, but Ariana stood up without warning, clutching Darius's armored biceps in her hands. The golden metal buckled under her grasp, her fingertips sinking into the metal itself. Ariana stared down at the crumpled metal, then let go, stepping backward.
“What's wrong with me?” she asked, gazing at her fingertips in disbelief.
“Ariana, sweetheart,” Kalibar interjected, stepping toward her. But Darius barred his path with one arm, his eyes locked on Ariana.
“You died.”
Ariana stared mutely at Darius for a long moment. Kyle stepped well clear of her, not wanting to risk her fury; if she could mangle Darius's armor, there was no telling what she could do to him.
“What?” she blurted out.
“You died,” Darius repeated. His tone was almost cruel in its finality. Ariana shook her head.
“But I'm alive!” she retorted, looking down at herself. She stared back up at Kalibar, her eyes pleading. Kalibar sighed.
“It's true, honey.”
“But I'm alive,” Ariana insisted. Darius stepped up to her, grabbing her right hand and pressing it against her chest, pressing her back into the wall in the process. Ariana resisted at first, then relaxed.
“Feel your heartbeat,” Darius commanded.
Ariana frowned, pausing for a long moment, her head lowered. Then her eyes widened.
“I can't,” she whispered.
“I brought you back,” Darius explained, letting go of Ariana's hand and stepping back from her.
“But how?” Ariana pressed, shaking her head. “That's impossible!”
“It isn't,” Darius countered. He raised his hand up then, pressing two bare fingers against Ariana's forehead. He kept them there for a moment, then dropped his hand to his side. Ariana stared at him for a long moment, then brought her own hand up to her forehead, running her fingers across the smooth, pale skin there.
“I'm sorry,” Darius murmured.
“What?” Ariana blurted out, her eyes narrowing. “What did you do to me?”
“It was the only way,” Darius explained, his tone gentle.
“What did you do to me?” Ariana repeated. Kalibar grabbed Darius's shoulder.
“I don't have any magic,” he warned, glancing at Ariana. Darius ignored the Grand Runic, his eyes locked on Ariana.
“I used the Dead Man's crystal,” Darius replied. “It's inside you now.”
Ariana stared at Darius for a long moment, her eyes as wide as saucers, her jaw slack. Then she stumbled backward until her back was against the wall, her mouth opening, then closing.
Then she screamed.
The sound was horrendous, the sheer agony and terror wrenching Kyle's heart. He backpedaled away from her, covering his ears with his palms, goosebumps rising on his arms. Kalibar backed away as well, with only Darius remaining where he was. Ariana took a deep breath in, then screamed again, clutching at her forehead with her hands, curling her fingers into claws. She went wild, raking her forehead, digging her fingernails into her own flesh. Darius lunged forward, grabbing her arms and pinning them to her sides, pressing her up against the wall.
“Calm down,” he ordered.
But Ariana resisted, clenching her fists and pulling them upward. Her eyes were wild, her face twisted in rage. Darius didn't budge, his grip holding fast. Ariana pressed against the wall with her back, tiny cracks forming in the stone behind her.
“Ariana, yield!” Darius shouted. His voice slammed into Kyle's mind, shocking in the sheer power of it, and Kyle found himself backing away, and glanced at Kalibar, who had taken a step back as well.
Ariana froze, staring at Darius, her eyes still wide. But the madness slowly faded from them, and she unclenched her fists, lowering her gaze. She nodded mutely, and Darius released her, taking a step backward. She stood there for a long moment, then slumped slowly to the ground, propped up against the stone wall.
And then she cried.
Her pale, slender shoulders shook with each sob, and Kalibar immediately knelt beside her, putting his hand on one of them. Kyle hesitated, then moved toward her, putting a hand on her opposite shoulder. Darius took her chin in one hand, raising it up until her eyes met his. Despite her weeping, no tears fell from her eyes.
“We couldn't lose you,” he stated. “Your family loves you.”
Ariana continued to sob, holding a hand up to her forehead, the skin unblemished from her violence toward it earlier.
“He's inside of me,” she moaned, squeezing her eyes shut and shaking her head. “I can't do this.”
“He's dead,” Darius countered. “His crystal is just a tool, Ariana. You're not the Dead Man, and you never will be.”
“But it's inside of me,” Ariana insisted. “I'm like him now!”
“It doesn't matter,” Kalibar interjected. “We love you, Ariana.”
“We all do,” Kyle added, squeezing her shoulder. It was disturbingly cold, and the horrible truth was that it reminded him of the Dead Man. But he hid his momentary disgust, smiling at her. Ariana turned to face him, the barest hint of a smile appearing on her lips.
“I can't believe you're alive,” she murmured, reached up and squeezing Kyle's hand. He howled, dropping to the floor, yanking his arm away. Her grip had nearly broken his hand! Ariana looked startled. “Oh Kyle, I'm so sorry...!”
“It's okay,” Kyle mumbled, shaking his throbbing hand and bringing it to his lips. “Wow, you're strong,” he added with a rueful grin. Ariana paused, then smiled faintly.
“Sorry,” she repeated. “I'll be more gentle next time,” she promised, slowly raising her hand up and patting Kyle on the cheek. Kyle tried not to cringe in anticipation of a bone-crushing slap to the face, but her touch was indeed gentle this time. He forced himself to relax under her icy touch. She turned to Kalibar.
“What now?” she asked.
“You're amazing,” Kalibar replied, shaking his head in wonder. “How can you adjust so quickly?”
“I can't,” she countered, lowering her hand from Kyle's face. She rose to her feet then, straightening out her pajamas. “I just need to get my mind off of it.”
“I need to get downstairs,” Kalibar stated. “Erasmus is handling our defenses, but he'll need my help.”
“Wait, what's going on?” Ariana asked.
“The Tower is under attack,” Kalibar explained, his tone grim. “And if we don't do something soon, we're going to lose.”
Chapter 21
Kyle walked out of Ariana's bedroom, trailing behind Darius and Kalibar. Ariana walked at his side, her eyes on the floor. She looked terribly pale, her skin almost translucent. Her big brown eyes were startling against that whiteness, and lovelier than ever. Caught by a su
dden, overwhelming fondness for her, he grabbed her hand in his own, and gave it a squeeze.
Ariana flinched, surprised out of her reverie, and glanced at Kyle. He smiled silently at her, giving her hand another squeeze as they followed Kalibar and Darius across the suite. She smiled back weakly, and squeezed his hand back – gently, thank goodness. She was clearly still shell-shocked by what had happened to her; Kyle couldn't imagine what it would feel like to know he had died, and that the Dead Man's crystal had been placed inside his brain. All things considered, Ariana was handling it pretty well.
“We need to get back to the lobby,” Kalibar stated, leading them across the suite toward the front door. “Erasmus will need my help to organize our defenses.”
“What's the situation?” Darius asked.
“I'm not sure,” Kalibar answered. He opened the door, ushering Kyle and Ariana out into the hallway, then followed behind with Darius. “I woke to find guards in my hallway...I never saw who was attacking us, but they rolled out that...thing, that white sphere.” He shook his head, his expression grim. “I've heard of crystals that can suck magic, but I've never seen anything like that sphere.” Kyle glanced at Darius; the white sphere seemed awfully similar to the Void crystals the Dead Man had shown him earlier.
“Void spheres,” he mumbled. Kalibar frowned, turning to him.
“What?”
“Void spheres,” Kyle stated, louder this time. “The Dead Man had a whole room filled with white crystals, he called it the Void. It sucked magic from me each time I went in to it. The white spheres are the same thing.”
“Interesting,” Kalibar murmured. “Void spheres,” he muttered. “It's a good enough name.” Kyle turned down the hallway toward the riser, then frowned...it wasn't there. The customary shield blocking the way to the riser shaft was missing too. He glanced at Kalibar, who shook his head.
“That one's out of commission,” he stated grimly. “We'll use another one...there are four main risers that come to this level.” They turned about, striding down the hallway in the other direction. Then Kyle stopped, pointing down the hallway.
“Uh, guys?” he stated. “Is that one out too?” For the riser at this end of the hallway was similarly missing. Darius stopped in his tracks, and Kalibar glanced at the bodyguard.
“It's probably my Battle-Weavers,” he stated. But he stopped as well, standing beside Darius. Kyle felt a vibration in the air, saw the faint blue of a gravity shield appearing around Ariana. He began to weave his own shield. Then he felt himself fly backward, slamming into the ground, the impact knocking the wind out of him. He slid backward on the floor, then came to a stop, his ears ringing loudly. He gasped for breath, trying to get back on his feet, but his legs felt like jelly.
Then he heard a thump, and saw Kalibar landing on the ground beside him, grunting as he struck the floor. The Grand Weaver groaned, clutching his side.
Kyle looked down the hallway, and saw the riser lowering itself to their level, carrying three men in elite guard uniforms. The riser stopped, and the three men stepped out toward them, unsheathing their swords.
“Kyle,” he heard Kalibar gasp. He turned, and saw Kalibar still clutching his side, gritting his teeth in pain. “...stream magic to me!”
Kyle complied, shooting a stream of magic toward Kalibar's forehead, realizing that he could see the faintest blue line where the stream flowed. Then he heard a shout, and broke off the stream, twisting his head to look down the hallway.
There Darius stood, his golden armor shimmering in the light of the magic lanterns on the walls, facing the three elite guards, his own sword still sheathed at his side. The guards stopped before him.
“Well, if it ain't Grand Weaver Kalibar,” one of them stated, adjusting his grip on his sword. Darius said nothing, staring at the guards. The guard licked his lips. “As I remember it, you had me locked up what, 'bout ten years ago?” He shook his head disapprovingly. “Now, you shouldn't've done that,” he scolded. Then he cocked his head to the side. “Looks like you met the magic-sucker,” he observed. “This is gonna be too easy.”
Darius shook his head, standing before the three guards, slowly unsheathing his huge sword. He smirked at the guards, lowering his sword to his side.
“For me,” he growled. The guard who'd spoken earlier sneered at Darius.
“Step aside, little man,” he drawled. “Before you get hurt.”
Darius burst into action, moving almost too quickly for Kyle's eyes to follow. One second, he was standing before the mouthy guard, the next, he was crouching on one knee, his sword held to one side, the silver metal flashing in the light above.
Bright red liquid streamed down the edge of the blade, dripping onto the floor.
The guard tumbled to the ground, his head separating from his shoulders, his body falling forward and thumping on the granite below.
One of the other two guards lunged for Darius, swinging his sword at the bodyguard's head. Darius swung his sword upward with such force that it knocked the sword right out of the guard's hands, then spun in a full circle, swinging his sword in a tight arc over his right shoulder, chopping downward at the man's neck.
Darius's sword bounced away violently, throwing the bodyguard backward. He regained his balance rapidly, backpedaling a few steps.
A shimmering blue gravity shield surrounded the guard.
“Surprise,” the man growled. “Time to die, fool.”
“Kyle,” Kalibar whispered harshly, grabbing Kyle's shoulder. “Magic, now!”
Kyle pushed magic toward Kalibar, struggling against the immense resistance of his skull, having been so recently depleted of magic by the Void. He poured as much magic as he could at the Grand Weaver, his head pounding with the effort. Kalibar closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them, turning to face Darius.
“Darius, now!” he shouted.
The guard's shields vanished.
Darius lunged forward, chopping downward with his sword, the blade slicing through the guard's left shoulder. The bodyguard continued forward, grabbing the man's left arm with one hand, yanking it hard. In one fluid motion, he ripped the arm from its socket, flinging it down the hallway toward Kyle, at the same time shoving his sword through the guard's back. The arm spun through the air, then landed between Kyle and Kalibar. Kyle scrambled away from the severed limb.
“Arm yourself,” Darius shouted.
Kalibar grabbed the arm, twisting it around so that the exposed bone at the upper arm was facing his forehead. He brought his forehead within inches of the bones, and closed his eyes. Kyle could see faint traces of blue light streaming from the pearly white bone to Kalibar's head.
“Stop right there!” a voice shouted.
Everyone turned, and saw the last guard standing there, clutching Ariana in his arms, a wicked-looking knife at her throat.
“Don't move, or I'll slice her throat,” the guard threatened, gripping the handle of his knife so hard his knuckles turned white. Ariana's eyes were wide, her body rigid. Kyle felt his heart leap into his throat.
“Don't!” he cried.
Darius stood there watching the guard for a moment, then slowly sheathed his sword. When he was done, he shrugged.
“Go ahead,” he stated casually. “We never liked her anyway.”
“What?” Ariana blurted out, glaring at the bodyguard. “Gee, thanks a lot,” she grumbled.
Darius turned away from the guard and Ariana, and strolled down the hallway, stopping before Kalibar and pulling the old man to his feet.
“Stop it!” the guard yelled after them. “I swear I'll do it!”
“Good luck,” Darius muttered, not bothering to turn around.
The guard tightened his grip on Ariana, his arm wrapped around her upper chest. She brought her hands up, wrapping her fingers around his arm.
And squeezed.
A loud snapping sound echoed off of the walls, and the guard howled, dropping like a rag doll. Ariana yanked on his arm – hard – and he flew
forward through the air...right at Darius. The bodyguard stepped aside casually, watching as the guard slammed into the floor, his head bouncing off of the hard granite. The man slid to a stop, his arm twisted at an impossible angle, a large dent in his forehead. His eyes were open, but saw nothing.
Kyle stared at the dead guard, then at Ariana, feeling queasy.
“Never liked me, huh?” Ariana quipped, striding menacingly toward Darius. The bodyguard glanced at the fallen guard, then back at Ariana.
“You're growing on me,” he admitted. Ariana shot him a look, then glanced down at the guard she'd killed. She stared at him for a long moment, looking suddenly shaken.
“I've never killed anyone before,” she stated.
“You did what you had to do,” Kalibar replied, putting a hand on her slender shoulder. She shook her head, her eyes never leaving the dead guard's face.
“It was too easy.”
Kalibar said nothing, dropping his hand from her shoulder, then turning to Kyle, who was still on the floor. He walked up to Kyle, offering one hand.
“Come on, let's go,” Kalibar urged, grasping Kyle's arm and pulling him to his feet. “Thanks for the help,” he added, patting Kyle on the back.
“I didn't have much magic left,” Kyle apologized.
“I didn't have any,” Kalibar countered. Then he strode forward, toward the riser ahead. “Come on,” he added, gesturing for all to follow. Gravity shields appeared around all four of them. “Now that we have magic, we might have a chance.” He stopped suddenly, turning back to the three guards on the floor. “We should bring them with us,” he stated, nodding at Darius. “We'll need to search them and identify them.” He glanced down the hallway. “And we'll need more magic...I'll grab a few crystals from the safe in my room.”
Kalibar left, leaving Kyle and Darius standing there in the hallway. Darius stared at the dead guards for a moment, then glanced at Ariana. She met his gaze, then nodded, stepping well clear of the man she'd just killed, and stopping before one of the other two. She paused for a long moment, then knelt, grabbing the man by the shoulder. She grimaced, hauling the man with unnerving ease onto her shoulder, and strode to the riser, setting him down there. Darius grabbed another guard, dragging him unceremoniously to the riser, and motioned for Ariana to retrieve the last guard...the one she'd killed.