Darklight 6: Darkbirth

by Forrest, Bella

  "We swear," I told her, tasting the empty promise to not squirm out of the deal like a sour bite in my mouth. Debt Keeper stared at all of us, I was sure, with a suspicious edge. She left after another moment. I shivered, unsettled by her warning. I hoped she couldn't read our intentions.

  As soon as Debt Keeper left, Ruk immediately set to work again. He worked himself into a frenzy while Dorian and I caught a quick nap, exhausted from the latest series of events and wanting to prepare for the training that was to come. When we went downstairs, Ruk was hunched over intricate plans written in a language I couldn't make sense of. He splayed his fingers over the table. His hands were covered in chalk, the white powder seeping into the red creases of his skin.

  "I have a regimen," he breathed. "And I think it'll work. I'm going to teach you everything."

  Dorian raised an eyebrow. "That sounds as if you're going to hand over the keys to the universe."

  Ruk stared at us from his place at the table. In some ways, even in this dire hour, he seemed more like his younger self than the Ruk we'd met in the desert. He was desperate, but there was life in those bright purple eyes of his. They no longer looked flat to me.

  "I spent so many years in the lower planes learning from every single creature I could find to learn from," Ruk explained. "I've thought long and hard, pulled and siphoned every bit of information that every creature taught me. I used to think my grand purpose was to learn all there was to know about the lower planes, but now… I think my destiny in all this might be to tell you everything I know. My peers look down on lower beings, and thus they lack the ingenious knowledge that has arisen from natural evolution. There are ideas beyond their grasp, like deep-sunken roots in a garden.”

  Determination settled in my gut. I wanted to win. Not just for the sake of my own life, but for the sake of all beings. Dorian and I had unknowingly been preparing for this for our entire lives; the way we had been raised and lived our lives had just become a strategy to ensure our survival. I sent him a fixed look. When our gazes met, the air sparked with readiness.

  Ruk recreated the dome for us, but this time we trained slightly differently, focusing more on the psychological aspects rather than the physical. Ruk magicked us another fully immersive experience like he had when he showed us his memories. Around us, I saw flashes of creatures—vampires, wildlings, rulers, humans, and arbiters. Some scenes showed combat with wildlings, more primitive looking and clearly from long ago, as they learned to wrangle wild beasts in the Immortal Plane. I saw my own human ancestors developing fighting techniques in a variety of cultures, the invention of innumerable weapons, and military strategy from many different wars.

  "This is our true training," Ruk announced. "The training of the mind is crucial before we apply it anew to physical training. I will train you with every trick I know—ones I learned from thousands and thousands of years of observation."

  Once we’d gathered a bunch of new theories, we revisited the physical drills from the last time along with some new skills. We practiced teleporting and controlling the weather, both abilities that Dorian and I handled easily, but we also began to try summoning physical objects: staffs, swords, shields, ropes, anything that might help us. There was no rule against it as far as we knew. This skill we struggled with more, neither of us managing to coalesce an item for longer than a few seconds before it melted into mist once more. Despite this setback, Ruk seemed generally satisfied with how fluid and capable we were with the teleportation and the weather control, his face pinched but his lips tugged into a pleased smile. Jia volunteered to help again, offering himself as a target for practice, not complaining once.

  In addition to the drills, Dorian and I learned fundamental ways of dealing with different animal shapes, something Ruk hoped would aid us with Un's spider-dog. Ruk informed us it was all in the legs or eyes with most beasts… even mortals. Aurora had taught him a trick that might come in handy with the spider-dog proxy. Her aquatic city rested beside a cave similar to the one that used to contain the Hive. They’d once dealt with an infestation of territorial arachnids, which they bested by taking out their copious number of legs. For the other proxies, he suggested doing anything we could to throw them off balance. The difficulty with Un's proxy was that he could easily crawl upside down. The thought of lassoing that annoying beast's legs together and chucking him into a silver puddle made me quite happy. Ruk taught me how to form my determination, one of my strongest positive emotions, into a working rope. If I visualized hard enough, I could imagine my motivation as a thick cord of blue energy and make it into a circle. It was like a line of wind, cemented together in a constant flow. It was hard to keep it stable, but I managed to snap it around Jia several times, like a rubber band cinching perfectly around a bundle.

  Even after my mind was exhausted, my body kept pushing until the stasis was the only thing keeping us going. Dorian huffed beside me as we sparred with each other, with Jia, and with constructs that Ruk produced. When Ruk noticed the fatigue on both our faces, he let us collapse onto our makeshift bed pallet while he went back to the chalkboard he’d brought to the dome. Occasionally, I woke in a daze and stumbled down to the laboratory to see Ruk bent over the table, muttering hurriedly to himself.

  He really wanted us to win.

  Sometimes, I thought it was more for us and Aurora than his own sake. He was different somehow, but my mind was too tired to fully contemplate all the ways he had changed. It was small and yet immense… I lapsed into sleep before I could find it.

  We woke up and repeated our training, the cycle continuing as we waited for Un to tell us that the course was ready. It was all we could do.

  * * *

  I collapsed beside Dorian on the floor of the training dome.

  "That's it," I said with a groan. My mind pulsed with strain. “I’ve reached my limit of… everything.” My muscles, though not in pain, refused to go on. Dorian laid a comforting hand on my hair. He still had the strength to sit up, at least. Lucky guy.

  Ruk loomed over us with Jia by his side. Jia looked like a giant when I gazed up at him from this perspective. The proxy had become fonder of staying close to Ruk. It was frankly heartwarming to see Ruk not swatting him away but inviting the proxy to help him with more and more things.

  "We're done," Ruk said. "You've done well, and now you need to rest to make sure you’re ready for the real thing."

  I could tell from his voice that he meant it. His eyes closed solemnly. Suddenly, the white dome ceiling was gone. Dorian helped me up with an encouraging half-smile, and I squeezed his hand as we headed back to the final remains of Ruk’s estate. There was now just the laboratory sitting alone like a small shed, plus one floor of the tower where Dorian and I slept. As the four of us moved into the laboratory, I eyed the doorway to the tower. My brain was greedy for the facsimile of sleep that we had now, but then I saw the walls. Scrolls, papers, drawings of all kinds filled them, including schematics of Un's spider-dog, carefully drawn out, which I vowed to study… after a good rest. Just as I was about to make for our bed, the sound of Dorian clearing his throat to catch Ruk’s attention made me pause.

  "I'm curious about something, Ruk." It was rare that Dorian used his name. Both Ruk and I eyed him seriously. "There were images you showed us from your memories. In one of them, I think I saw my parents. I don’t know for sure. It’s just a sensation I got when seeing the two figures together. I told myself not to get excited and pushed it from my mind, since I’d long buried hope that they were possibly still living."

  My heart seized for a moment with shock. Was that why Dorian had tensed for a second during that display? I vividly remembered the vampire couple around the fire. There was something striking about their barely lit profiles, shrouded by the darkness and their cloaks.

  "I just want to know whether they're alive or not," Dorian said. His hands curled into fists at his sides as he sucked in a sharp breath, steeling himself for Ruk's answer. "I need certainty. The fall of Vanim wa
s chaotic. I don't know for certain whether they survived, and… if there's a possibility I'll die either in the Games or after, I want to know now. It's the only thing I want to see."

  My mind flashed back to those strange glimpses of our friends. "The universe gave us a glimpse of the lower planes while we were out near the tear… but it wasn’t nearly as detailed or as strong as yours. I wonder if there's a chance you can help us see our friends? Can you do that at all?" I cast pleading eyes at Ruk, who sighed slowly.

  "I can allocate some energy to this, but not much," he warned. "Let's see what we can do. You want confirmation of life for all these people?"

  Dorian and I shared a look. It was half desperate and full of dread at the thought that we might be about to confirm some of our worst fears.

  "Yes." I swallowed hard. "I want to see."

  "Picture them in your mind. We'll have to work fast." Ruk rubbed the side of his cheek, which looked a bit sunken. He was trying to conserve his energy, but our training in the dome had clearly taken something out of him. He swept his hands up. Jia took a step back. Not that I could blame poor Jia after we aimed so many lightning strikes at him.

  "Let us begin."

  Gray mist swirled onto the lab wall, covering it completely. The first image was hazy for a minute, but I gasped when it came into focus. It was Zach. I could only see his profile as he looked out at a sunset. The lines beneath his eyes were deeper, as if he'd aged fast or we'd been gone longer than I thought. Someone called out to him, and he glanced over his shoulder with that infectious grin of his. He locked eyes with Gina, who smiled back. Alive. I breathed out, not realizing I'd been holding my breath.

  "This is happening down there right now?" I asked Ruk.

  He nodded. "Yes. They're alive." The image changed, hopping to the next person: Bravi. She was concentrating on a sheet of paper. She was indoors somewhere with a gray interior. Her fingers went up to pinch the bridge of her nose, and she sighed, clearly mulling something over. Dorian relaxed, a small smile playing on his lips. Bravi, someone as capable as she was bitingly charming, was still alive. Good.

  The image rippled like a disturbed puddle, coalescing again into Laini's heart-shaped face. She was sitting in the dark, saying something to someone with a small smile on her face. Still, the corners of her eyes remained serious.

  Again, and again, I chanted to myself. Alive. They're alive.

  "I can’t hold this connection for much longer," Ruk managed as Laini's face vanished. The gray faded a bit. "Your parents. They're—"

  Before he finished his thought, an image containing two figures huddled together bloomed onto the screen. They stood next to an azure pond. Distinct, electric orange flowers lined the water’s edge with their bright, full blooms. The larger one of the duo, Dorian's father, had wrapped an arm around his wife's shoulders. Their skin tones were a shade darker than Dorian’s, but it could’ve been the light. The hood slipped back on his mother to reveal eyes like hardened amber gold, eyes that reminded me instantly of Lanzon. My heart rate spiked. Alive. I glanced at Dorian and saw a tear leak from the corner of his eye. His breath hitched. Dorian’s father leaned toward his mother, but then the whole thing disappeared in a faint mist.

  Ruk groaned. "Sorry. I couldn't maintain it any longer." He sagged against the table before sinking into a chair.

  "It was enough," Dorian assured him, astonished. His beautiful glacial eyes wandered to me. So much must have been going through his head.

  I stepped away from Dorian, giving him a second to process, and before he could stop me, I gave Ruk a quick hug. He tensed for a moment, startled, but had a look of genuine vulnerability and appreciation in his eyes when I pulled back.

  “Thank you,” I said. “You have no idea how much this means to both of us.”

  He dipped his head in wordless acknowledgement of my thanks, quickly looking away to fuss with some chalk dust on the table.

  Leaving our friend to his thoughts, I hurried to throw my arms around Dorian, and he wrapped his arms around my back, the two of us just holding one another for a minute while Ruk recovered. Pulling away and taking him by the hand, I pulled Dorian over to join me in the corner for a private chat.

  "Are you okay?" I asked, my voice gentle.

  He gave a shaky nod and steeled himself back into calm composure. "It's just… I’d convinced myself that they were dead, and now… I have hope again. There’s been a lot of bad about being here in the Higher Plane, but it keeps showing us things that we would never have learned otherwise."

  It was true. My brother's face flashed in my mind. Was it merely the difficulty of his recent journeys that had made him look older? Stress changed people; combat aged soldiers like raisins. I wondered how much time had passed in the Mortal Plane.

  "Lyra." Something about the way Dorian said my name made my tired brain perk up. When I looked up to meet his serious gaze, it pinned my feet to the floor. "I'd like to spend some time alone with you…"

  I smiled. "Well, we might as well, before we get whisked away to our biggest battle yet. I was about to suggest the same thing, you know." I was teasing him, walking a tightrope of pure exhaustion, dread, and relief that we were in this adventure together.

  Dorian awkwardly glanced at Jia, who was currently watching Ruk sketch more intricate drawings on his chalkboard table. As though feeling that we were looking at him, the proxy gave us a blank stare.

  "We're going to sleep," I called softly. “I’d prefer it if you stayed here.”

  “As long as I know that you are in the tower, I am still able to fulfill my purpose of safeguarding you.” He turned back to watching Ruk, who was once again busy with his work and didn’t care about where we were going. He knew we were far too exhausted to do any more training. I almost blushed, wondering if Jia thought we were off to create some… positive energy. It's hard to get privacy in a crumbling tower with our lives soon on the line.

  I shut the door to the tower behind us, following Dorian. The open gray sky loomed above us, although it had a distinctly blue tinge. Was that Ruk's concentration? Our collective worry? I let out a sigh as I turned around, leaning against the door to look at Dorian. A grin sprang to my face.

  "What?" he asked.

  "Just appreciating how handsome you look, even after grueling training." And he did. I went to throw my arms around him again, but he stepped back. I raised an eyebrow, surprised and almost offended. "What's up?"

  He shifted slightly, awkwardly moving from foot to foot, his movements stiff. My stomach clenched with dread. He’d never acted this way with me before, not even when I was in the depths of my darkness.

  "You're freaking me out," I said, laughing nervously.

  "I'm not trying to," he said defensively. He scratched the back of his neck and added, "I just want to make sure I say everything I want to."

  That… sounded bad.

  I crossed to our makeshift bed and sat down on it while Dorian stood in front of me. I waited expectantly, my mind racing in an attempt to anticipate what he would say. Had I done something wrong?

  "Lyra, I want to talk about us. No, I want to talk about you." He stared down at me, the corners of his eyes lifting gently as he smiled.

  My stomach flipped excitedly as I suddenly understood. I had seen this look in the eyes of men… of course, it had always been on screen. I’d watched enough romantic movies in my spare time to recognize this particular tilt in a guy’s chin. Everything inside me sped up, as suddenly I was nothing more than a bundle of particles threatening to explode. I wove my fingers together to keep them from trembling.

  "You are everything to me," he said, his voice raw with emotion. "I want you to know that. I appreciate the love, the support, and the trust you've given me during everything we've been through together. For two people from such different walks of life, it should have been too much, but I guess we're not most people." He gave me a winning smile, and I couldn't hold back my own any longer. The air around us was already tinged pink
with golden flecks. He took both my hands in his. Could he feel the quickness of my pulse?

  "We are warriors. We were made to fight, and we fight better together. We might lose everything in this game, but I want to see this like any other battle. We've always run the risk of dying, no matter what we've done. This time is different, though. I know that." He took a sharp breath. "Knowing the stakes that we’re facing has made a difference for me. It's forced me to consider things, things that I eventually wanted to get to… but unlike the arbiters, we don't have the luxury of infinite time."

  My breath caught in my throat from the excitement and anticipation. He squeezed my hands.

  "There are traditions in my culture. If I wanted to ask you to be with me forever—" His words left him for a moment. "There are so many things I wish I could do for you. I would court you. I would declare my intentions to the public. I would make sure that everyone knew that you were the only one for me. We would forge rings made from the stone of the mountains that protect our childhood cities. For me, it was Vanim. In some ways, Lanzon helped me by allowing me to give you something like that, but I wished I could've made it more special for you. I wish I could do this the way you deserve."

  I finally found enough oxygen to say, "Dorian." It was the only thought in my mind.

  His eyes softened. "Lyra." He dropped down before me—not to one knee, but to both of them—completely vulnerable. His hands were still holding mine. "Vampires believe that when people are in love, their souls are tied together. I believe that this is true for us."

  Silence stretched between us. My heart slammed against my chest so hard I couldn't believe it wasn’t shaking the walls. I stared into Dorian's beautiful cerulean eyes.

  "Lyra Sloane, will you marry me?" His voice quivered slightly, and his eyes shone with tears. They didn’t fall, but they threatened to.

  Above us, the pink mist had turned neon, floating as thick as cotton candy around our heads and above the tower. Above us, golden clouds converged and sparkled with dazzling amber lights that rained down on us like confetti, but when they reached the ground, they were no longer amber.