“Come on—answer me, dammit,” I yell, standing up and pushing the chair out from beneath me. “If you’re gonna hide in there, the least you can do is be useful.”
“Who are you talking to?”
I spin around to find Runa’s brother, Ammon—at least I think that’s his name—entering the Archives. I’ve gathered snippets here and there during my time being trapped, but at least I caught that much.
Tears stream down his face, and his face is darkened with ash and snow.
“Nothing—never mind,” I say.
But I warn you, you better find a way to get your damn messages clear, or get the hell outta my head. You’re not welcome here.
“Ammon, what’s happened to you? Where’s Runa?” I say, dropping to my knees and grabbing onto his arms.
His little body releases, and he crumples into a ball on the floor.
“He has her—the man with no face,” he says, his little ten year old body quivering.
“Dammit. Are you hurt? How’d you get away?” I say, my mind racing.
Was the intruder telling the truth? Trying to warn me of what Videus was doing?
“Runa—she promised to give him whatever he wanted. But he had to let me go,” Ammon sobs, his shoulders sagging. “Why? Why would she do that? She has to know he can’t be trusted. He’ll play the part—be whoever works so he can get close enough to break her. I should know.”
My eyes widen.
“What do you mean, Ammon? Play the part? Can he take on different faces?”
“I don’t know, maybe. I just know one minute he’s calm and understanding. The next minute, he’s hitting your face so you can’t see. He’s insane.”
“When he had you, what information did he try to get from you?” I ask.
“It was all about blood and siblings. I didn’t even know I had a sister until—well, until recently. Oh, god—I can’t lose her now, too. I just found her,” he sobs.
Taking him in my arms, I hold him close. I can’t imagine the kind of psychological pressure this would put on an adult, let alone a child.
“Ammon, it’s okay. We won’t lose her. We have to find a way to get her outta there. I have a plan, but I need your help,” I say.
“Runa already has a plan,” Ammon says simply, pushing back and wiping his face.
“She does? Why didn’t you say that sooner? What—what’s her plan?”
Ammon’s face goes stone cold. He wipes the tears from his face and he places his calculating eyes on me.
“I—I don’t know if I can trust you,” he finally says.
I sigh, knowing he has no real reason to. Hell, I don’t even know if he should.
I nod.
“You’re right. I don’t know if you can either,” I say honestly.
Surprised, Ammon twists around, looking deep into my eyes.
“Do you know? Is it the real you again?” he asks.
I hold my breath. He knows.
“Yeah, for now,” I nod, “but I don’t know for how long. Dammit, maybe it’s best to trust Runa’s plan and don’t involve me in it. I have a plan of my own, but I can follow through alone.”
In all honesty, who knows how long I’ll have control of myself. For now though, I feel better than I have in ages—since well before Runa and I went to the Helix. But if Videus could hack my brain once, I wouldn’t put it past him to do it again. Especially when he realizes his crony isn’t responding to him.
Ammon nods quickly.
“Okay, that’s okay,” he mutters.
Suddenly, from the pile of books on the table, bright white light radiates out, filling the room. Ammon gasps, walking away from me and toward the source. Grabbing the book with the tree on the cover, he clutches it to his chest. His eyebrows drag downward, as do his lips.
“What is it?” I say, walking toward him, and shielding my eyes.
Backing away from me, the light streams out of the large tome like a beacon.
“I—I was supposed to check on this and take it someplace safe. But I don’t know now,” he says.
I step toward him, and he takes another step back.
I hold my hands up, trying to will to him that I’m not going to attempt anything.
“What is this book? Why does it matter where it is?” I ask.
“Runa needs this,” Ammon says. “It’s important.”
“How do you know?” I ask, confused.
The book is hers? Where did she get it? How is it important?
“I need to go back,” Ammon says, stiffening. “I need to get this to her.”
His little body begins to quiver again, but he doesn’t move, and he doesn’t set the book down.
“Look kid, you’re very brave. You really are. But this isn’t your burden to carry. I’m on my way to the Helix to help bust her out. If it’s as important as you say, let me take it to her,” I say.
Ammon shakes his head, his eyes wide.
“Walk me through this. If you go—you take the book to her, right? How do you plan on getting it to her? What’s your strategy?” I say, trying to reason with him.
He blinks rapidly, searching his mind for a remedy to this issue.
“I—I’d have to go back in. Use the same door as before,” he mutters.
“And then what? How did you get past the checkpoints?” I say, trying to draw out the conclusions for him.
He sighs, “Runa.”
“Have you ever been in the Helix before? It’s pretty easy to get turned around in that place,” I say.
Ammon slowly shakes his head, and bites his lip, “Just the once.”
“I spent most of my childhood there. I know my way around. Let me help. I’ll get it to her, I promise,” I say.
I’ll get it to her, or die trying. Either way, I’m good.
Ammon takes a deep breath, his eyes cast to the floor. Slowly, he extends his arms, holding the book out for me.
I take the book, running my hand over its cover.
“The Caudex is sorta her compass. It gives her important information now that her connection to—I don’t know who—her guide I guess, has been severed. If it’s glowing, it means there’s something new she has to be aware of,” Ammon says, eyeing me closely.
“Would it be safer to open it and relay the information to her directly?” I ask.
“So you can steal the secrets of the book?” Ammon says, skepticism and distain edging into his voice.
“No, look, it makes more sense is all. What’s more conspicuous? A large, glowing book? Or information stored in some guy’s head?”
“What does conspicuous mean?” Ammon says.
I laugh. I almost forgot he’s just a kid.
“What would call more attention? That’s what it means,” I say.
Ammon’s face flickers and he rolls his eyes.
“Well, obviously, the book would be more conspicuous,” he says, “but there’s one problem.”
“And what’s that?” I ask.
“The Caudex can’t be opened without the key. And I don’t have it—Runa does,” Ammon says.
“The key?” I say.
Of course.
I look down at the large book. The leather binding, the burned tree into its cover.
“This is the Tree of Burden’s latest incarnation, isn’t it?” I say with wide eyes. “Her stone—it’s what opens it. Am I right?”
Ammon’s eyes widen, but he nods once.
“Okay, I guess there’s only one way forward then. I’ll have to find a way to hide the book from view—or camouflage it. I might have to get it close to the Helix, then hide it,” I say, my brain going off on various courses of action trying to come to the best conclusion.
“No—no hiding it. If you’re taking it, you bring it straight to her,” Ammon says, his eyebrows pulled in and his lips tight.
“Alright, kid. Straight to her,” I nod.
“Maybe I should come along—” he says, concern hidden in his tone.
“Believe me
kid, this isn’t my first time breaking into the Helix. Probably won’t be my last. If the hardest thing I have to do is smuggle in a glowing book, I think I’ll be alright,” I say.
Somewhere in the back of my mind, the intruder is flailing about—frantically trying to get my attention. Everything’s so damn important with him. Too bad he can’t just spit it out and communicate properly. I ignore him for now, not wanting to call any more attention to my compromised mind.
Ammon eyes me closely, but nods.
“I’m going to pack up the rest of the supplies I need and I’ll get going. Are you going to be okay? What’s your game plan?” I ask.
“Need to know, remember?” Ammon says. “And you don’t need to know. Runa and me worked out our own plan. I know what to do from here on out.”
“Alright then, let’s get to work,” I say, nodding back to him.
I gotta hand it to the little guy, he’s tougher than he looks.
I set the Caudex down, the light still shining brightly from its edges. Digging into my pack to make room, there’s no chance in hell of fitting it in there. The pack is too damn small.
Carrying it is my only option, but I’ll need to figure out what to do with it before I head inside. I can’t risk bringing it into the Helix. I know the kid wants it to go straight to her, but I gotta make an executive decision and nix that one right now. It’ll be way too noticeable and I have a pretty good chance of getting caught—
“Be careful with the Caudex, Trae. It’s very special to Runa. She protected it wherever she went,” Ammon says. “She didn’t want the man to get it.”
“I will, kid,” I promise. “I’ll do my best to make sure nothing goes wrong, and Runa’s able to get whatever she needs from her book.”
“Okay, good,” Ammon says. “I’m gonna head out now. There’s more I need to do. Good luck, okay?”
Walking over to him, I place my hands on his tiny shoulders. They fit easily into the palms of my hands, but they’re sturdy and sure of themselves—even with the extra weight of both my hands, and his new task.
“You’re a good kid, Ammon. Runa’s lucky not only to have you on her team, but as a brother. You need to know that,” I say.
Tears threaten to well up in his eyes, as they glass over. He puffs up his chest and nods.
“Now, get outta here and get that next phase initiated,” I say, turning him around and walking him toward the Archives door.
When we reach the entry to the hallway, Ammon stops and turns back to me.
“You be careful, too,” Ammon says. “Runa—she doesn’t quite know how to say it, but she loves you.”
I inhale quickly, my heart tripping over a beat.
“Why would you say that?” I say.
“We—she’s been through a lot. But her trials, and everything she’s gone through—you were a big part of them. She worries a lot about you. She didn’t say so, but I know it’s why we went into the Helix so soon. She wants to cure you, or find a way to fix whatever was going on. But she knew she couldn’t do it from in here,” he says. “Don’t you dare let her down.”
My eyes widen with surprise, and I lick my lower lip.
“I won’t,” I say.
“Good,” he says, walking out, and entering the long tunnel to the surface. “Then, I’ll catch ya soon.”
He holds up his right hand and waves without turning back.
The corner of my mouth quirks upward. He reminds me so much of Fenton when we were younger, it’s uncanny.
“Bye, kid,” I mutter under my breath.
Turning around, I head back to my pack, and the insanely bright glowing book.
“What in the hell am I going to do with you?” I say.
A grin slowly spreads across my face. I know exactly what I need to do, and its genius. Well, as long as I can hold onto my body, anyway. If I can’t—well, things could go sideways in the worst way. But it’s a risk I’m willing to take to get to Runa and give her the tools she needs to defeat Videus once and for all.
I look around for anything I could use to wrap the Caudex in.
~Do not bring the sacred Caudex anywhere near the Helix. It would be the worst mistake of your life.
The intruder’s voice rings out in my head as if he’s standing right beside me. Or as if an eLink connection opened up and I wasn’t aware I gave my permission.
My footing falters for a split second, but I regain my balance. I pat my chest—so far, still me. Too bad my heart’s outside my body now.
“Why would bringing the Caudex be such a bad gig?” I ask. “If it helps Runa, I need to get it to her.”
~Throughout the centuries, Videus has been searching for the secrets held in the sacred text. He has tortured and enslaved many of us, desperate for the details buried in there. If you walk in with it, you will be handing those secrets directly into his hands.
“Aren’t you here because of him? What difference is it to you? Isn’t this what you both want, then?” I ask, playing devils advocate.
~Nothing could be further from the truth. Being inside of your mind—the longer I was away, the more control over myself I found I could exert. I do his bidding, but not of my own volition.
“Oh, come on. You’re trying to sell to me that you’re the victim here? Kani—we—I—she’s gone now because of us. You were here to bring Runa down. To spy on her intentions, and find a way to break her—use her—or deliver her to Videus. I was in there. I could hear what you two planned from time to time.”
~For many centuries, my kind has been enslaved to do his bidding. The control he has, it extends far and should not be overlooked. It is very unfortunate I was consumed in such a way. As hard as you try to fight him, eventually, you succumb.
I walk to the nearest set of shelves holding garments, bags, and other objects possibly capable of carrying a big, glowing book.
“Let’s say I believe you. Sure, why the hell not? Why are you willing to break ranks now?” I say, scratching the back of my neck. “And don’t tell me you had a change of heart.”
~As I said, the longer I was inside your mind, the more capable I have been at taking back my own volition. It was not until I realized where we are, than I knew what I must do.
“Where we are? We’ve been in and out of the Archives multiple times since you took me over—what’s different this time?” I say.
My head’s spinning. I honestly don’t know what the hell to believe. Then, the memories of my intruder’s final moments in control of me start to filter in. As if they bleed together, I’m aware of not only the juxtaposition of my body and mind’s position, but also his mind—but more than that. I actually experience his memories, as well.
They flood in backward order from the moment before he gave me back control—then extending as far back as we have time for. Centuries, maybe.
I know exactly who I’m dealing with now.
“Whoa,” I say. “Shit—this, this changes things.”
Wetting my lips I realize just how far this goes. How far everything with Runa, the planet, the birds—Videus. It’s ingrained in the entire fabric of reality. We’re all pawns in the game Videus has been playing to get what he wants—but only he knows what that is.
This place, the Archives, is a beacon of hope for the planet. It’s not even meant to be underground.
“Alright—if you’re serious about keeping this information from Videus, we’ll need to work together. Because, like it or not, I have to get it into the Helix to help Runa. I owe her that much,” I say.
Hell, I owe her so much more.
~But the sacred Caudex—
“Don’t get your trousers in a bunch. We’ll keep it safe somehow. We have to.
~And if we fail?
“Then it won’t overly matter one way or the other, will it?” I say.
~I suppose it would not.
This place—I knew it was unique, and held so much of the treasures of Earth. But I had no idea it was here before humans colonized. That some
thing else built it with such magnificence. I look around at the artwork and craftsmanship with new eyes.
“This place is part of the prophecy?” I say. “Are you sure?”
~I have never been more certain. In the battle to come, it must be preserved so it may rise again.
“Battle? Who said anything of a battle?” I say, walking back to the pack I plan on still taking with me.
~It has been foretold. Long before your kind came here, a prophet of the Four Pillars described the impending darkness. Unfortunately, his teachings went largely unnoticed. We lived in utopia, it was a hard seed to swallow.
I grab the Caudex and place it inside a small child’s blanket. Folding it around the book, the light dims, but still glows faintly.
“Dammit,” I mutter, grabbing a second blanket to wrap it in.
“Four Pillars? What are those?” I ask.
~We were—are the guardians of Pendomus. Without us, the planet cannot revolve the way it should. The world will find no seasons of change. No peace in growth. No leaves, no grass, no Everblossoms.
“How did Videus take control of you? Why would you follow him?”
~It is in our nature to help. We were a peaceful planet. No hate, no evil. We had not experienced these emotions before. It was not even a consideration.
“So you got duped?” I say, tying the dimmed Caudex to the outside of my pack.
~Yes, I suppose you could say so.
I nod. It’s how it always happens. You trust someone you shouldn’t have given a second thought about and—bam! You’re in shit. Seen it a hundred times before.
“How’s he controlling you?” I say, trying to find a way to help Runa on her path, but protecting us both on this mission.
~His mind control is beyond anything I have ever dealt with. The creatures of Pendomus have always communicated telepathically. Somehow, he found the path of our connections, and used them to control our will—we could hear his voice, and no longer each other’s. As our connection faded, we also began to lose our own voice, our own volition. I do not know how he does it, only that he does.
“Alright, I have a plan, and I’ll need you on board. So buckle up.We’re gonna phug up his plans,” I say, grabbing my pack and walking out the door.
The Complete Pendomus Chronicles Trilogy: Books 1-3 of the Pendomus Chronicles Dystopian Scifi Boxed Set Series Page 53