:The Wilds are a random element. That is exciting, Lore disagreed.
:I’m with Huan, Yranna interjected. We agreed on certain rules from the beginning. If one side wins because of the Wilds it won’t be a proper contest.
A suspicion was dawning on Auraya. She resisted it. The possibility was too appalling.
:We can’t do anything about it now, Chaia said. Let’s just enjoy the battle.
Auraya’s heart froze.
Enjoy the battle.
If Chaia hadn’t tried to kill her, she would never have believed he could say something like that. But he had, and she had overheard him. He hadn’t realized she was close by and listening to him and his fellow gods. She could hear their argument continuing. The word “game” repeated over and over. Each time her resistance to the truth broke down a little more. She looked at the Voices and the White. White-clad men and women. Black-clad men and women. Game pieces. The board was the whole world.
All we are to them is pieces of a game.
She propelled herself downward, aiming for a place just above the Voices and the White and the gods that buzzed around them like carrion birds.
When Auraya had descended from the sky, blue cloth swirling about her, Mirar’s heart had stopped. For a moment he was full of doubt. She was going to join the White. She would betray the immortals.
Now they would face each other in battle. Unlike him, she was willing to kill.
Then she stopped and hovered above them. The White and the Voices stared up at her.
Someone gave him a small nudge. He turned to look at Second Voice Imenja. Her expression was grim.
“I guess our deal’s off,” she murmured. “Go, if you wish. I will ensure he doesn’t stop you.”
He looked around. All of the Voices and the White seemed transfixed by Auraya. Catching a movement beyond the White, Mirar saw that Emerahl was striding forward, followed by a puzzled Arleej. Looking to one side, he saw Tamun peering over the edge of the road. He glanced to the other side and saw Surim duck out of sight.
Everyone is in place but me.
He backed away from the Voices. Nekaun turned to glare at him, but Imenja stepped forward to stand between them. Mirar hurried away, then turned. He looked up at Auraya.
She met his gaze and nodded.
“Now!” she cried.
Mirar drew in magic faster than he had ever needed to before.
Reivan gasped as a glowing sphere of light surrounded the White and the Voices. It was blindingly bright, too painful to look upon.
“What’s going on?” someone shouted. She recognized the Elai king’s deep voice.
“They’re attacking each other!” a Servant exclaimed. “Attack the enemy!”
“How? We can’t see them!”
“And they can’t see us,” Reivan found herself saying. “All we can do is protect ourselves and wait.”
To her surprise, the men and women around her quietened. Heart pounding, she covered her eyes and mouthed a prayer to the gods that Imenja was alive and unhurt.
It surprised Emerahl how much magic she could draw and hold. There was a limit, however, and as she reached it she converted it to light. The others were doing the same, surrounding the Voices and the White with a great dazzling sphere.
Then, abruptly, the magic ran out and the glow vanished.
Emerahl found herself standing uncomfortably close to ten confused sorcerers. They were casting about, looking wary and uncertain. One of the Voices gave her a hard look.
Time to go, she told herself. But she didn’t move. We don’t know if it worked or not.
Then a glow began to form in the middle of the Isthmus. Emerahl felt her stomach sink to her knees as she recognized Chaia. He was not looking at her, but up at Auraya. Four more figures appeared.
Mouth dry and heart pounding, Emerahl took advantage of the distraction and walked to the edge of the road. Nobody moved to prevent her. They were all too stunned and confused. To her relief, Surim waited there in a narrow boat. She skidded down the steep side of the Isthmus and clambered aboard.
“Did it work?” he whispered.
She shook her head. “Chaia appeared. He’s still alive.”
“And trapped inside the void,” a new voice said quietly. She and Surim turned to see Tamun and The Gull emerge from a crack in the Isthmus wall, paddling in another narrow boat. “Remember, there is often magic left in the middle of a void. We have only created a shell of magicless space about them.”
“Trapped for all eternity,” Surim said. He shrugged, then smiled evilly. “Actually, I like that better.”
“I don’t,” Emerahl growled. “If they’re alive, there’s a chance they’ll last in there until the magic seeps back.”
“Then we’ll just have to sneak back and finish them off, when there are no White or Voices around to stop us,” Surim said, shrugging.
“They’ll expect that. They’ll make sure they’re well guarded.”
“By who? Without the gods enhancing their powers, the White and Voices won’t be as strong,” The Gull pointed out.
“They will be, inside the void,” Emerahl said.
“But the gods need that power to survive.”
“Where is Auraya?” The Gull peered up at the edge of the Isthmus wall.
Emerahl followed his gaze. “She was still floating over them when I left.”
“She has issues to resolve,” Tamun said. “And she can fly away when she’s done. We can’t. We should go.”
“What about Mirar?”
Tamun frowned up at the wall. “He’s probably stayed because Auraya did.”
They stared up at the wall in silence. Emerahl sighed.
“I’ll wait,” she offered. “You three get out of here.”
50
The glowing figure of Chaia looked from Auraya to Juran. His lips moved, but she could not hear him.
Of course, she thought. I can’t hear him because there is a void between myself and him. He can only speak into minds—and he hasn’t been able to speak into mine since I learned to shield it He must either possess another or…I let my mind shield fall.
Juran nodded and looked up.
“Chaia asks that you come down and talk to us,” he said. He frowned. “He wants to know why you have done…whatever it is you’ve done.”
Auraya considered, conscious of the White and the Voices watching her. Seeing Nekaun, she shuddered. She wanted to get as far away from him as possible.
But the White needed to be told the truth. Even if they didn’t believe it.
Can they, the Voices or the gods harm me? They could attack me, but only by using up the magic inside the void. The gods won’t want any of it used. They’re using up magic just to make themselves visible. Once it is gone they’ll cease to exist.
Taking a deep breath, she drew magic to feed her barrier so she wouldn’t fall as she passed through the void, and descended to the ground.
Chaia turned to regard her. She would still be unable to hear him, unless she let the shield around her mind fall. There was nothing left to hide from them that they didn’t already know. She looked at the White and Voices, and to her surprise she found she could read their minds. Which meant they no longer had the Gifts the god had given them. They could not read anyone’s mind.
Still, it took a conscious effort to lower the veil. As soon as she did, Chaia spoke.
:Once again, we have underestimated you, Auraya. You and your immortal friends have us well trapped. At least tell us why.
“Why?” she repeated. “You know why.” She felt a stab of anger. “I suppose you thought you were putting me out of my misery when you told me I could escape the Sanctuary by becoming a god.”
He frowned.
:I have never proposed that you become a god. I would not want to see you confined to this form. It would be a prison for you.
“Then why would you tell me how…” She felt a twinge of doubt. Had he actually suggested she do it? She had been
so sick that day. Surely she hadn’t dreamed it…“You said it was better that I become a god than die. That taking my soul isn’t the same.” She gave a bitter laugh. “Well, since Huan admitted you don’t take souls I guess you were right.”
Chaia looked at Huan. The other gods turned to regard the goddess, who straightened and stared back defiantly.
:You told her how to become a god? Yranna accused. You disguised yourself?
Chaia turned back to Auraya.
:Did I use our key word? Did I say “shadow”? he asked.
She frowned. Her memory was too hazy. “I can’t remember,” she admitted. “I was so sick. It was hard to think.”
Huan laughed.
:Yes, it wasn’t hard to fool you.
Looking up, Auraya shivered as she saw the goddess’s gleeful expression.
:So you admit it? Chaia asked Huan. The goddess glared at him and said nothing.
:Who else would it have been? Lore said bitterly. None of us broke the rules as often as Huan.
:Rules! The rules applied to the game, not to threats to our existence! Huan roared. If you’d listened to my warning about her, she pointed at Auraya, this wouldn’t have happened.
Chaia smiled grimly.
:We’ve all got into the habit of ignoring you whenever you spout foolish, paranoid nonsense. “Immortals might become gods! If they do, they’ll kill us all! Auraya is dangerous!”
:Huan was clearly right, Lore pointed out.
All fell silent. After a moment Juran made a strangled noise.
“I don’t understand. What has happened?”
:The Wilds have done to us what we did to our fellow gods many centuries ago, Lore explained. They have removed the magic from around us, trapping us in a small oasis in the center. We cannot leave.
:Not until the magic flows back in, Yranna added quietly. Which will take thousands of years.
Juran turned to stare at Auraya. “You helped them do this?”
She forced herself to return his gaze. “Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because they lied to us. They don’t take souls. They play games with us like—”
Brash laughter drowned out her words. All turned to look at Nekaun.
“You’ve imprisoned your own gods?” He shook his head. “What can I give you for doing me this service? Gold? Land? A place by my side?”
Auraya’s skin crawled. It would, at least, be satisfying to deliver the bad news to this one.
“The Circlian and Pentadrian gods are the same,” she told him. “They’ve been playing dual parts.” She looked at Chaia, then at each of the White and the Voices in turn. “You see, this is all a game to them. And you are the pieces. The deaths in this war and the one before were nothing more than points scored, one side against the other. Points, not real people, with families and friends. Not—”
“They are not the same,” Nekaun snarled, his face dark with anger. “My gods do not look the same. They do not even sound the same.”
:What Auraya says is true, Chaia said. His form shifted and suddenly he was Sheyr. The Voices stared at him in shock.
“Trickery!” Nekaun exclaimed.
Auraya turned to face him. “You will know the truth soon enough. Without them to supplement your magical Gifts, you will be weaker. You can no longer read minds. You certainly aren’t immortal.”
Nekaun’s glare changed to a stare of uncertainty. Turning away, Auraya saw the same expression on the faces of the White.
“I’m…sorry,” she found herself saying. “But with the gods constantly playing you and the Voices against each other, you weren’t going to survive long anyway. Of course, if you continue with this war there’s a good chance you still won’t.” She grimaced. “That’s your choice. I will not help or hinder you.”
Juran looked from Auraya to Chaia. “Is this true?”
:It is.
A wordless cry of rage broke from one of the White. All turned to look at the new White, Ellareen, who was staring at Auraya, her face white with fury.
“You,” she snarled. “You traitor! You don’t deserve to live!”
She made an abrupt gesture and a white pulse of light shot forward, scattering against Auraya’s barrier.
:NO! STOP! the gods cried, their voices united. Yranna moved to stand in front of Ella.
:We need the magic you use to attack her to survive, Ellareen. Would you kill us in order to avenge us?
Ellareen stared at the goddess wildly, then shook her head. She took a step away, then looked up at Auraya, her eyes narrowed in hate.
Then another attack battered Auraya’s barrier, followed by manic laughter. Shocked gasps and protests broke from both people and gods as they turned toward the source. Nekaun laughed again, then sent another blast at Juran.
“You fools,” he said. “You just told me how to kill your own gods!”
Chaia shifted into Sheyr’s form.
:STOP! he commanded. Nekaun laughed again.
“I’m not falling for that one again. I suppose it was you who stopped me having a bit of fun with Auraya. Well, I—”
Abruptly he staggered backward, his eyes wide with surprise. The chill that had begun to crawl down Auraya’s back at his words faded as she saw that the other Voices were dragging him away with their magic. He was resisting them, she saw, but with little effect. Then suddenly he jerked as if struck in the face, and dropped to the ground, unconscious.
As one, the Voices turned back to face the gods, all smiling with satisfaction. A short silence followed, then Juran turned to Chaia.
“If we are without your guidance, what will become of mortals? How are we to stop ourselves descending into lawless chaos?”
Auraya felt a pang of affection for him. “So long as there are good leaders like you, Juran, mortals will do well enough.”
Chaia smiled.
:She is right.
“And when I die?” Juran asked, his voice tight.
:The worthy replacement you choose will take your place.
:We choose, Huan corrected, coming forward to stare at Chaia. She turned to regard the White and the Voices. Your gods are not dead. We are alive! You will build a Temple here. You will come here to consult us on the governance of your lands.
Chaia shook his head.
:The trouble with war is that the most powerful, ruthless and least scrupulous survive. They don’t make for pleasant company.
Huan turned to sneer at him.
:You survived, too, she pointed out. She turned back to the White and the Voices. A new era of cooperation must begin. You will build a Temple here and appoint priests to serve us. You will leave your strongest sorcerers here as guards while…
Auraya stopped listening as Chaia turned to regard her.
:She is a fool, he said. If one of your friends doesn’t come back and finish us off, we will perish eventually anyway. It doesn’t take much magic to maintain our existence. We might even live long enough to escape this place, but we would not be sane. Most of the gods we isolated within voids went mad, Auraya. We need mortals to provide a link to the physical world.
She felt a pang of guilt. “I’m sorry I distrusted you. I should have realized it wasn’t you. But don’t give up hope. Mortals will come here. They will build this Temple Huan demands. They will keep you from going insane.”
He nodded.
:Yes. They will. Will you?
She hesitated, then nodded. “For you, I will.”
Chaia smiled.
:It is good to know that. If it weren’t for Huan, I’d make you promise me that. But we both know Huan will continue to seek your death, even from within the void. As for me, being a god with no physical body grew tiresome a thousand years ago. I would rather not exist at all than spend a thousand years trapped here in her company.
Auraya’s heart skipped. A terrible suspicion was growing. “Don’t talk as though you’re dying, Chaia. I’ll find a way to heal the void. There must be a way.”
Chaia reached out and touched her cheek, his touch strange and familiar.
:Do that, Auraya. It would be a good thing. And don’t ever use the knowledge Huan gave you. Being a god is not as glorious as we like mortals to think it is. I’ve done some terrible things, but I don’t regret protecting and nurturing you. Goodbye, Auraya.
He stepped back from her. Confused, she focused on the magic around them, expecting to find it was dwindling to nothing. But what remained was plentiful enough to sustain Chaia, and the others.
Then she felt it all rush toward Chaia.
And finally she comprehended what he was doing.
“Chaia! Don’t!”
Bright light blinded her. Though unable to see, she could still sense the gods. She sensed them vanish one after another, Huan in mid-sentence. Chaia vanished last, but not before she heard three final words.
:Don’t forget me.
51
Reivan had felt awe and then fear when the glowing figures appeared among the White, the Voices and Auraya. That they were gods she had no doubt, but which gods were they?
Mirar had moved to the edge of the road as if preparing to throw himself off it into the sea, but then he paused, listening. Reivan could not hear the conversation. Curious, she had edged forward, but before she could draw close enough Auraya shouted and there was a second flash of light.
Dazzled, it took a long moment before Reivan could see again. The White and the Voices were all looking at Auraya. The gods had vanished.
“They’re gone!” Auraya exclaimed. “Chaia killed them and himself!”
Though Reivan could not hear what was said, it was clear the White and the Voices were protesting and questioning what she claimed. Auraya’s expression was terrible. Horror and grief twisted her features. She pressed her hands to her face, then shook her head and turned away.
As she began to walk off, the leader of the Circlians started after her. Reivan jumped as Mirar spoke.
“Leave her be,” he said, striding forward. They turned to stare at him as he moved through them to Auraya’s side and placed a hand around her shoulders. She leaned against him.
[Age of the Five 03] - Voice of the Gods Page 53