by Julia Gray
It's not me. It's Aylen. It'll kill him if I go any closer.
Terrel glanced across at his still unconscious friend, and knew he couldn't ask Aylen's step-mother to be the cause of his death.
All right, he said, looking down and gulping with terror at the thought that had just occurred to him. Let me fall from here.
What? Ysatel exclaimed. We 're too high. You can *t—
If the elemental accepts me, it'll break my fall, Terrel explained. If it doesn't, I may as well be dead anyway. You have to believe in me this time, Ysy.
Are you sure? she asked.
Yes! he replied, giving himself no time to reconsider. Quickly. We don't have much time.
The glowing network of cracks had now spread almost all around the dome.
All right.
The caroc's talons opened slowly, and Terrel forced himself not to cling to one of the huge claws. He let go and plummeted towards the ground, the wind whistling in his ears, his eyes tight shut. For a brief moment he blacked out, his terror overcoming his resolve, and it was only when Alyssa's voice sounded sharply in his head that he roused himself again - just in time to see the ground rushing up to meet him.
His screams were cut off as he was swallowed whole by the darkness. After a few moments of helpless, tumbling disorientation, Terrel realized that he was no longer falling, but was floating, weightless, within the swirling shadows.
His return to the surface of Nydus had been cushioned, as if he had landed on the softest, deepest mattress on the planet, but he had no time to be thankful
- for the second time that day - that he was alive. The fall had not killed him, and neither had the
elemental, which meant that at least it was treating him differently from other humans. However, the Ancient was shifting convulsively, pulling him this way and that, and Terrel knew that this was an outward manifestation of its inner turmoil. Its long captivity, the tortures it had endured, and the ultimate, vengeful release of its pent-up fury had left it deranged and close to total madness. Even the creature in Betancuria, when it had learnt that the mines were about to be flooded, had not been as demented as this.
The boy realized very quickly that his presence had distracted the elemental, and that the boundless flow of destructive energy it was feeding into the earthquake had reduced a little, but it was not nearly enough of a change to prevent disaster. He had to try to calm its fears, to stop it from going completely insane. Terrel saw the spiral glowing brightly in the palm of his left hand and took courage from its presence, its fragile but potent beauty.
Your enemies are defeated, he began. You don't need to do any more or punish anyone else. You're safe now. Please let the earthquake stop.
He sensed that the Ancient was listening to him, evaluating his thoughts as well as his words, but the level of violence did not change. Its madness was not to be overcome so easily.
If the tremors spread outside the circle of bright air, Terrel said desperately, they'll destroy everything. The water -the magic — around you will come even closer. If you stop now, I promise we'll empty the moat and drain all the magic from the caves beneath you. You'll be able to return underground. Please stop.
On this occasion, the response was a brief moment of peace, which gave Terrel an equally brief surge of hope
- but then the Ancient began to vent its rage again with renewed vigour.
Please. I made a bargain with your . . . brother. He did not know what other word to use. With another of your kind. It accepted me as its friend. Won't you do the same?
This time Terrel was aware of an intense curiosity, and the scale of the violence fell once more. And then the elemental's reaction came in the form of a simple, overwhelming command.
Show me.
How do I do that? Terrel wondered. His uncertainty registered with the Ancient and, fearing a return of its ferocious assault, Terrel began to talk again.
It's true, he insisted. Your brother trusted me, and he's safe now. You can read my mind, can't you? Go ahead, look. You'll see it's true.
Show me.
Ironically, inspiration came to Terrel from the most unlikely source. You'll have to go to sleep sometime, Jax had said. I'll be waiting. Terrel wasn't able to sleep now, but there was another way to let Jax in.
Summoning the glamour, the boy turned his eyes blue, and then - fearing that this might not be enough
- he turned his hair purple and the skin of his hands green. He sensed the elemental's incomprehension, but it was another voice he was listening for now.
So you've finally gone completely crazy, Jax remarked. Moons! That's quite a show! Where are you? I'm inside another elemental. The prince laughed.
Are you just unlucky, or do you have a death wish?
Where are you? Terrel asked.
Makhaya. Why?
Do you remember being in Betancuria?
How could I forget?
Think about it. Please. Terrel was aware that the Ancient was following the conversation closely, and hoped it would be able to see into Jax's mind and find confirmation there of what he'd been saying.
Why should I? the prince said, but the mere mention of the episode had brought his memories to the fore, and Terrel knew that that would be enough.
So you can be a hero again, he replied. Even if no one will know about it this time.
What's the point of that? Jax asked.
Terrel ignored the question, because he had felt something extraordinary happening. The link he'd established to his estranged brother, all the way to Vadanis, had somehow enabled the elemental in Talazoria to reach out to its brother in Betancuria. The nature of their communication was quite beyond his understanding, but he knew it was happening. Between them, the two alien beings were weighing up his sincerity and exchanging information. Terrel sensed the panic and anger recede. Even as his own link with Jax was broken, the elemental in Talazoria overcame its immediate fears - of water, of men, of its entire environment.
Whether it was new, or just an extension of the first, another bargain had been made.
The terrified citizens of Macul's capital began to hope that the worst was over. The monstrous bird that had
flown over their heads had finally gone, and the calamity that had befallen the king's palace seemed to be finished now. Inside the dome that had appeared from nowhere, the dust was finally beginning to settle.
Chapter Fifty-Two
That night saw the city in ferment, but by dawn the next day it was obvious to all but the most wilfully blind that the world turned on a new axis. All that was left of the royal palace was a vast pile of multi-coloured sand, and the dome that had once surrounded it had vanished back into thin air. Ekuban and his entire court were dead, along with a huge number of Talazoria's most important citizens and the majority of its high-ranking army officers. In a single day Macul had lost all its leaders, and that -together with the unbelievable manner in which they had met their end - should have been a recipe for chaos.
Indeed, the few soldiers who tried to keep order soon found that they lacked the necessary authority to do so. Many of them were overpowered by people who were no longer prepared to obey them. Others simply discarded their uniforms and became civilians again. Many underlings were now free, and a good number of those whose masters had survived were refusing to take orders from them any more, and were revelling in a heady new sense of freedom. To make matters worse, almost all the prisoners in the square had escaped, and there were even reports that people from the stews were forcing their way into the city. Rebellion was in the air, and in many places lawlessness was rife.
The one thing that kept the entire city from degenerating into anarchy was a series of events that took place at the old fort. When the boy with a limp and strange eyes had appeared on the ruined battlements, he had been the first person ever to emerge unscathed from an encounter with the demon. Not only that, but there were some who swore they'd seen him fall from the sky after being dropped by a huge red
bird - the same bird that had later landed in the square and deposited another man on the ground. Most people who had not witnessed these amazing events found the stories difficult to believe, and even those who had found it hard to trust their own eyes. But the tales persisted, and a new legend was born.
However, no one could deny that the boy - some said he was the same one who'd summoned the sharakan earlier - was inside the moat and still very much alive.
The few people who had been there to see him clamber over the walls were soon joined by many more, and he spoke to them all in a voice that was hoarse and weary -but which carried both an emotional appeal and a natural authority quite out of keeping with his slight frame and ill-matched limbs.
He told them that it was the demon who had destroyed the palace, and that it would tear their city to pieces unless they honoured the promise he had made and drained the moats that imprisoned it. Some of the onlookers decided that the boy was quite mad, and argued that the last thing they should do was set the monster free. But the majority were convinced by the stranger's evident passion, and all objections were set aside.
The work went on through the night, in the light of hundreds of lamps and torches. Artisans who had kept the city functioning for the benefit of others saw in this project a chance to stake their own claim in the future, and many other underlings - and even some citizens -threw themselves into the task until the work force grew to be several hundred strong. The undertaking provided a focus for the whole city, and its inhabitants embraced it, finding a sense of purpose amid all the mayhem.
Not everything went smoothly. There were some accidents and injuries, and in their haste, mistakes were made about where the water should go. There was so much of it, after all, and there was only a certain amount that could be absorbed by the city's canals and reservoirs. Some newly-dug ditches overflowed, flooding streets and cellars, but none of this was allowed to halt the progress of their enterprise. As morning came, the level in the moat had already gone down several paces, and every hour brought a further fall.
By then the boy was no longer alone. A small boat had been found from somewhere, and another man had rowed across to join him.
'You know what they're calling you?' Aylen said, after he and Terrel had greeted each other with a joyful hug.
'What?'
'The demon-master,' Aylen replied, grinning.
'Not exactly accurate,' Terrel commented, 'but I'm not going to argue. Are you all right?'
'I'm fine. I just can't believe I passed out and missed all the fun. I remember the bird picking us up, but then the next thing I knew I was lying in the square with a lot of people staring at me. Was that really Ysy?'
'Yes.'
'Is she still here?'
'No. She had to go.' Both the caroc and Alyssa's magpie were gone, but Terrel had the feeling he had not seen the last of them.
'So, what did I miss?' Aylen asked.
Terrel gave him a brief version of everything that had happened, even as he continued to keep a watchful eye on the work that was going on around them.
'That's incredible,' his friend breathed when the boy had finished.
'If I hadn't been so stupid, I could have avoided a lot of this mess,' Terrel muttered.
'Are you insane?' Aylen exclaimed. 'If it hadn't been for you, all of Macul would've been destroyed by now.'
'Whereas now it's just going to be in complete chaos.'
'There are difficult times ahead,' Aylen conceded, 'but it's also a great opportunity for us. With Ekuban and all his cronies out of the picture, we've got the chance to start afresh. We can install a new system of government, one that's fairer to everybody. There are plenty of good men and women out there, waiting to build the future. I'm sure of it.'
Terrel could not help but admire his friend's idealism. It made him feel old and cynical.
'And you can be in charge of the whole thing,' Aylen went on. 'You can—'
'No,' Terrel cut in. 'This isn't my country, Chute.'
'But you're a hero!' Aylen protested. 'Look what you've achieved already,' he added, waving a hand at the people toiling below them.
'I have to leave.'
'You can't just walk away. Your influence could be vital. People will listen to you.?
'Everything I've done here has been because I've had no choice,' Terrel said calmly. 'But now I do. I'm not a leader. I'm fifteen years old, and I want to go home.'
Aylen was silent for a long time, but eventually he nodded.
'I can't say I'm not disappointed,' he said, 'but I understand.'
By midday the moat was all but dry, and Terrel and Aylen turned their attention to the flooded dungeons. Several artisans had been brave enough to join them. They were obviously still afraid of the now docile elemental, but nonetheless seemed eager to help. Terrel was about to discuss what they should do when the problem was taken out of their hands. Without warning, the water gushed from several outlets all over the castle, in defiance of the laws of nature. From there it flowed into the moat by a number of apparently impossible routes, and thence away to other parts of the city. Only Terrel knew that the Ancient, having learnt from its counterpart in Betancuria, was responsible for its own deliverance this time. He also knew that their efforts in draining the moat had cemented the trust between him and the creature.
'The demon will leave soon,' Terrel told his companions once the flow of water had stopped.
'Then our work is done?' one of them asked.
'Almost,' the boy replied. 'There's just one more thing I need to do. Aylen, will you come with me?'
'Me?' The young man looked understandably nervous.
'Come on,' Terrel said, and turned to walk towards the elemental without waiting to see if his friend was following.
'What are we doing?' Aylen whispered as soon as he caught up.
'The creature won't hurt you,' Terrel replied confidently, 'but if they see you come inside it—'
'Inside it?' Aylen exclaimed in disbelief.
'You'll become the new demon-master,' the boy continued calmly. 'When I've gone, that will mean the people will listen to what you have to say.'
'But—'
'There are good men out there,' Terrel said, overriding his friend's objection. 'And you're one of them. Take advantage of this.'
'All right,' Aylen agreed after a slight hesitation. 'As long as I don't die of fright first.'
'You won't.'
'What do I have to do?'
'Nothing. I'll do all the talking.'
The swirling darkness reached out to gather them in.
An hour or so later, the men who had watched the demon swallow the pair - and who had begun to wonder if they would ever see them again — witnessed their re-emergence. Aylen looked bewildered, and he was trying not to stumble as his legs got used to being back in the world he understood. Glancing round, he saw that
Terrel was not only unsteady on his feet but was weeping too.
'What is it?' he asked in dismay. 'What's the matter? What happened in there?'
Although Aylen knew he had been measured in some way during his time inside the creature, he had not been aware of what had passed between Terrel and their host. Now it seemed that his friend was in some distress.
'It's too complicated to explain,' Terrel replied, trying to smile through his tears. Conflicting emotions played upon his face.
'At least tell me if you're crying for sadness or joy.'
'A bit of both,' the boy answered, wiping his face with his sleeve. 'Come on, Chute. The elemental will be leaving soon, and we don't want to be this close when it does.'
News of the last show that would ever take place in the old fort spread through the city. When the time came, the towers were crowded once more, and some of the braver spectators had even climbed onto the tumbled stones of the castle walls.
The ground shivered as the demon began to edge its way into a crevice, pushing rock aside as it tunnelled beyond the dungeons and into the earth bel
ow. The tremor was felt all the way to the city walls, but it did little damage.
Talazoria had withstood much worse.
It was all over in a short time, and even though there had been no deaths -
and not much spectacle - the audience went away satisfied.
A few hours later, another visitor left the city for the last time. Terrel was a wanderer once more. The Ancient had
granted him his final wish, but there had been a heavy price to pay.
He walked through the night, following the unknown road again, but he was not heading towards the coast. Instead he was travelling north, and when midwinter's day dawned - even though the weather was mild enough - Terrel's heart felt as though it was frozen.
He could not go home, at least not yet. It had taken him a long time to accept this fact, and it had only been the elemental's intransigence that had overcome the boy's incredulous and distraught resistance. But in the end Terrel had bowed to the inevitable. He had to go on, not back. It seemed that his bargain of friendship had no end.
Epilogue
Esera sat with her baby nestled in her arms. She was waiting in the place where she had watched the lake with Terrel, but this time she was there for a specific reason. She often returned to the floating hospice, more out of habit than necessity now that the curse had been lifted. She had felt it go on midwinter's eve, more than a month ago, and her intuition had been echoed by the dreams of many others that night. Since then, as if to prove the point, three women had become pregnant.
The little girl wriggled in her mother's arms, and Esera pulled out the infant's most prized possession and held it in front of her. The baby's eyes lit up with delight and she gurgled, reaching a tiny hand towards the wondrous plaything.
Esera had never seen a bird, so she did not know what a feather was, but from the moment she'd seen it she had recognized the fact that it must have come from the great flying creature she had seen in her dreams. It was bright red, except around the edges where it was tinged with bronze. The delicate patterns of its construction made the feather seem almost translucent, and it changed colour as it moved. It was as long as Esera's forearm, but so light that it almost floated in the air, and the baby loved it, especially when her mother tickled her nose with its tip.