by Jack Heckel
“Well, wherever we are, and wherever we decide to go, we should start moving,” suggested Valdara. “I’m not happy being anywhere that has a direct connection back to that damned ship.”
There was general agreement on this point.
“Avery, can you get us out of here?” Sam asked.
“Possibly.” I reached out to find a source of power. It was there, and powerful, but concentrated in strange pockets underground that seemed to shift. If I could find one of those pockets, there was probably enough energy to form a portal.
“I’m pretty sure I could,” I said uncertainly. I decided not to mention how odd the magic was in this world, because I thought the group was not in the mood to hear that they would need to go on a long hike over burning deserts to make it happen. “I’m just not sure where we should go next.”
“Why not back to that New York place?” asked Drake.
I shook my head, but it was Rook who answered. “That’d be as good as suicide. Although we all might wish he was dead, it’s probably best to assume Moregoth is still alive, and still huntin’ us. He had plenty of time to escape the ship, and he seems to have the luck of the bloody devil. That means wherever we go, we’ll have him watchin’ for us. The Administration is also bound to have wards of warnin’ set on all the entrances to Mysterium by this point, which means we can’t go back there or to any of the innerworlds.”
We were all quiet for a time and then Vivian stood. “I’ve been meditating on the question of where to go, and I’ve seen several versions of the future. Seeing is uncertain even in the best of times, and this isn’t that, but I can tell you that there is great uncertainty any course we take.”
“Please tell me that we don’t die of thirst and starvation in this desert,” Sam pleaded.
Vivian shook her head. “No, Sam, in none of my visions do we die on this world, but there will be a cost no matter where we go. If we go back to Mysterium, then there will be a great battle and most of us will die. If we disappear into the distant subworld, we might live out our lives in peace, but the Mysterium’s influence will continue to grow and Trelari will eventually fall.” She took a deep breath. “There is one option, though, that puts the fewest in danger.” Her beautiful eyes met mine, and I knew what the third option would be from the sadness they held. “If we split up, Avery and I can lead Moregoth on a merry hunt through the multiverse, while the rest of you return to Trelari. In that case we may all survive . . .”
“You’re suggesting that we leave you behind?” Valdara summarized calmly.
“I’m not saying what you should do, only what the visions show,” Vivian said with equal frankness.
“Never!” Sam shouted. “We are the Company of the Fellowship.”
Unlike on the Discovery, this time the cry did not rally the group. We all remained silently locked in our own thoughts. Valdara and I shared a look, and I said, “No, Sam, we aren’t. Not anymore. Nor would I want us to be. That company was a product of a pattern that you all risked your lives to destroy. Now, you are free. You have futures entirely your own, and that is something you should fight to preserve.”
I rose and looked back across the horizon, trying to feel for the source of energy again. It seemed to be moving closer. “Avery?” Vivian touched my arm.
“Sorry.” I shook my head to clear my mind. “I was checking for power sources. What I should do is make a gate to Trelari. You all can go through, and the two of us can stay behind to throw Moregoth off the trail should he come along. If he doesn’t, we’ll make our way back to the innerworlds by Zelaznian reality shifting so we don’t have to create detectable portals.”
“Reality shiftin’?” Rook snorted. “Shiftin’ your way from here to even the furthest innerworlds would take years.”
“Should be fun,” Vivian said. “I’ve always wanted to take a grand tour of the subworlds. Maybe go back home.”
I slipped my hand into hers. “I have been meaning to take a vacation for months now.”
“It’s a lousy idea,” Drake grumbled. “I say we hold out for a better one.”
Sam and Ariella both nodded their agreement, but Valdara remained silent. She was staring at something in the far distance. I saw a lightning storm on the horizon. I wondered if the storm was the source. That might get messy. I was running through what I knew about tapping dynamic sources of mystical power, which was not much, when Valdara said, “There is another way.”
“See,” Drake said. “I knew someone would have a better idea.”
“I need to consult with Avery.” She nodded for me to join her.
We walked up the next dune and stood watching the lightning storm. “Mysterium mages are forbidden from entering Trelari,” she said without preamble.
“Yes,” I agreed. “And thank the gods for that. At least your people are safe from Moregoth.”
Out of curiosity, I reached a little tendril of pattern out and touched the storm. It was still far away, but the instant tingle I felt confirmed that it was a source of power in this world. Curious.
Valdara shifted her weight. “If that wasn’t true, you and Vivian could join us.”
I stopped studying the magical storm in an instant. Even the thought that she might be considering removing the blockade from Trelari shook me to the core. “Yes, but you can’t do that, Valdara. You would be putting your entire world in danger, and for what?”
“For a friend.”
“No one is worth endangering Trelari. Certainly not me.”
She studied me with a level gaze, and when she responded her tone was so carefully balanced I could not be sure which way she was leaning, or if she was leaning at all. “I’ve learned a lot on this voyage through the worlds. I’ve learned that you can hide yourself away and cut yourself off from the rest of creation. The Mysterians did, and it kept them safe for a time. But I have also been reminded that a dedicated enemy is like a wolf. It will circle, looking for an opening. The only way to survive them is to keep them in front of you. To always confront. To never turn away. To never show your back or try to flee. I do not want Trelari to turn its back on Mysterium. Not for a second.”
The entire idea horrified me. “But you will condemn your people to a constant state of war. I don’t really know how the barrier was empowered, and I’m not sure we could reestablish it.”
“If I keep the rest of the world at arm’s length, then I condemn my people to a life behind walls. I will be teaching them that they are children, not capable of reaching beyond what they know.” Her eyes hardened and I was reminded that she was not just a ruler but also a warrior, and that her worldview had been marked by constant struggle. “I think in the end that may be even more irresponsible.”
“Valdara, you can’t,” I said so urgently that my voice dropped to a whisper.
Her gaze never wavered. “It’s not your decision, Avery. It’s ours. Please tell Sam, Ariella, and Drake to come to me. We need to talk.” She went back to watching the storm. I had been dismissed.
I wandered back to the others in a daze. I told them Valdara had requested their presence, but didn’t say why. They joined their queen and the conference that would determine the fate of a world began.
Rook leaned in and asked me, “What was that all about?”
I started to tell him, but stopped. “It’s not for me to say.” A sudden weight lifted off my shoulders as I realized that not only was it true, it was true about many things.
While we waited for the Trelarians to finish their conference, Vivian came and sat down beside me. Grains of sand raced over the dunes, and small rocks dug furrows as they slid down the sides of the larger hills. She touched my hand. “We’ll figure it out. The two of us, together. Maybe that’s the only thing that matters in the end, that we will not be alone.” She tilted her head to regard the Trelarians, who were walking back to us. “They look quite grim.”
Vivian was right. They looked like a jury coming to the read the verdict. “All rise,” I whispered.
“We’ve made the decision to go back to Trelari,” Valdara announced.
“Wise choice, lass,” Rook said. “Very wise choice.”
“You are invited to join us, Rook.”
Rook made a little flourished bow. “Thank you, Your Grace, but I’ll be stayin’ with Avery and Vivian to see they don’t get into too much trouble.”
“We are also extending the invitation to them.”
“What?” Rook shouted. “That’s madness!” He glowered at me. “Did you have something to do with this, Avery?”
I shook my head. “Valdara told me she was considering the option, and I counseled against it. Something I will do again.” I opened my arms to my friends from Trelari. “This is an incredible gift you are offering, but it is not one I think you should be giving. Not yet. Mysterium wants Trelari destroyed. Even if you win a grudging peace, opening your world to the university right now, when the curiosity of the students and mages is at its highest, could lead to you being overrun by Mysterium mages of the worst sort.”
“He’s right,” Rook said with steel in his tone. “Because you are a society that’s open to magic, none of the rules concernin’ castin’ secrecy will apply. You’ll have hucksters, carpetbaggers, and grant writers descendin’ on you like locusts. Academics will fill your days with requests for spell licensin’ options and cooperative research agreements.” He shivered. “Horrors.”
Sam raised his hand. “What’s a cooperative research agreement?”
Valdara patted Sam on the back, but ignored his question. “We appreciate the warning, but we have decided to take the chance. The question is, who will join us?”
Before anyone could commit to a decision, a thunderclap echoed in the air. The storm was upon us, and it had borne Moregoth on its winds. His all-too-familiar specter started to form on the top of the nearest dune, and on either side stood row upon row of Sealers.
“Damn!” cursed Rook, although I am pretty sure the word he used was not damn. His ax was in his hand in a twinkling, but this time a blue energy flickered from his hands and around the blade. I could tell from the rage in his eyes that there was no talking him down. Either he or Moregoth was going to die today.
With a roar he charged across the dune. I admired the dwarf’s fighting spirit, but alone he didn’t stand a chance. Still, all we needed to do was buy enough time for the others to escape. “Valdara, you and Drake stay back here. Get Vivian to make a gateway to Trelari and get out!” I shouted over the sound of the rolling thunder. “Rook and I will join you as soon as we can.”
I found myself caught in Valdara’s steel grip. “No! You will stop Rook and bring him back. We are all going to Trelari. Now. I have been patient. I have been humble and trusted you and Rook through this odyssey, but I have power of my own, and the time has come to use it.”
As I stumbled after the dwarf, she raised her right arm to the heavens and opened her hand. She shouted, “Justice Cleaver, to me!”
Her voice seemed to echo through eternity. In answer, a brilliant searing light rent the lightning-streaked sky, as if it had been cut by a sharp blade, or in this case, cut by a glowing magical twin-bladed battle-ax. Justice Cleaver came flying through the air like a comet, complete with a blazing trail of magic, twisting so it came hilt-first into Valdara’s open hand.
“Forces of evil, flee for your lives!” announced Justice Cleaver. “Enemies of truth and light, your defeat is assured. You now face the multiverse’s most powerful weapon, the greatest battle-ax ever forged, the icon of icons, the artifact of artifacts, Justice Cleaver!” I swear there was a kind of heavy metal music that accompanied this pronouncement and a reverb sound when Justice Cleaver said his own name.
Moregoth and his army was fully materialized now. They encircled our position. For once he did not monologue. The dunes around us simply went white as they sucked the reality out of the world. A wall of brilliant death bloomed and came streaking toward us. I had only a second to dive on top of Rook before it hit. As the dwarf struggled beneath me, I tensed, waiting for the end. When nothing happened, I turned over on my back and saw the sky around our little group had turned an unearthly mercurial silver. Valdara held Justice Cleaver above her head, and a domed shield of shimmering energy radiated from the battle-ax. Moregoth’s attacks impacted and faded, like moths striking a flame.
I could not see him through the glowing protection spell and the brilliant aura of Justice Cleaver, but somehow Moregoth’s voice carried, rasp and all. “Again, you hide, Dark Lord. It will not matter. There is truly no escape for you this time. Your shield cannot last forever, and I hold the high ground.”
“No, the shield will not hold forever,” said Valdara. “But it will last long enough to spare you.”
Moregoth coughed. “What is this? Threats from a shadow? If you think to stand against me, then you have been badly advised—I suspect by your friend and former overlord, Avery Stewart. If you would to hear my counsel, it would be to run. Run, subworlder. Run to the safety of your backward home. There, if you are courteous, you may be allowed to live and serve. But if you defy our will, we will teach you your proper place.”
Valdara’s eyes flashed with anger, and her voice boomed across the dunes. “I have heard your counsel, Moregoth. Now hear mine. Run. Run back to your masters with this message: Trelari rises. Today, we send word to all the peoples across creation: anyone willing to take up arms against Mysterium is welcome in Trelari. Today, we bring down the walls that have separated us from the rest of the multiverse, and declare our independence.”
The only answer that came was Moregoth’s hollow, hacking laughter. “Pretty speech, but an empty promise. You and I both know you will never bring down your protections willingly, because if you do, you will be destroyed.”
We had all been drawn to Valdara’s side. She regarded us. Her gaze rested for a moment on Sam and then Ariella and then Drake. To each she inclined her head, and each in turn nodded back. I felt a surge of wonder at their courage, because I knew what was about to happen, what they were giving up. At the same time, my heart fell, because I knew the pain that they would suffer.
Valdara pointed Justice Cleaver at a patch of gloom that held Moregoth. “You may call me a shadow, but remember, shadows only arise in the presence of light, and that is what we are bringing, a light to shine on the black heart of Mysterium.” She raised the battle-ax to the heavens, and called out, “Justice Cleaver, undo that which has been done. Unmake that which has been made. Open wide the gates of Trelari!”
Valdara spun Justice Cleaver in her hands and ripped a portal through the multiverse. I saw Moregoth clearly now, standing, mouth agape, his face a white mask of astonishment. “You fool! You have doomed your world. Now there is nowhere for you to hide. We are coming, High Queen! We are coming!”
As we all stepped through the portal, Valdara gave Moregoth a smile as sharp as an executioner’s blade. “We will be waiting.”
Epilogue
The night after we arrived in Trelari, I could not sleep. After lying in bed for a while staring up at the heavy canopy and listening to Vivian breathing softly beside me, I rose and wandered out to the balcony. Our room was in a high tower in Valdara’s castle citadel. From here I had a commanding view of the city below and the surrounding hills beyond. The moon was full and painted everything in silvery blues and deep purples. I grasped the cold stone battlements and peered into the night sky. Despite the beauty something was bothering me. I had a feeling that something was out there, waiting for me.
I was staring into the vague shadows of the night, wondering what it might be and why I seemed to know it, when Vivian came up beside me. At her touch I nodded toward the distant hills. “Can you feel it?”
She studied the outline of the dark hills. Worry creased her f
orehead. “I can. It feels familiar. What is it?”
I pointed to a strangely shaped rock rising from one of the heights. “Look!” As we watched, something unfurled enormous batlike wings and shot into the sky. My heart caught in my chest. The silhouette belonged to Loshlaith, the viper dragon, the most powerful of all the Dark Lord’s minions. I knew without a doubt that he had been waiting for me to regard him.
The dragon made a few looping passes over the city. When it was above the castle, it roared, and as it did, my head was filled with visions of rage demons and blood orcs, the undead hordes and lowly gibberlings. Out there, beyond the hills, they were waking from deep slumbers and crawling from the dungeons and the dark places of the world, answering a silent call. I felt the touch of the viper dragon once more in my mind. The moment I’d been both waiting for and dreading as it reaffirmed its allegiance.
I bow to thee, the dragon thought.
I almost answered back, but stopped as Vivian stiffened beside me. With horror, I realized she also was feeling the dragon’s call. She grabbed my hand, and we stared at each other. Long after Loshlaith disappeared into the night sky, the names it gave us still echoed in our heads.
My liege, the Dark Lord, and my lady, the Dark Queen.
We held each other until the sky lightened with the dawn and the shadow of the dragon’s thoughts faded from our minds.
“What do we do?” Vivian asked.
She was shaking, and I wrapped an arm around her. “We do what all leaders do when the clouds of war appear,” I said distantly. “We gather our army.”
“What army?” she asked. “Not . . . not those creatures?”
“Perhaps,” I said, pulling her closer. “This world appears determined to make me its Dark Lord and you its Dark Queen.”