A crimson streak of power shot across the pit, crashing into the opposite wall as Brin signaled the start of the “attack.” Instantly, multi-colored flashes of dimsai began flying across and into the chasm. The Loremasters muted their power to keep from creating bright flashes of light that would cause the Grithor to retreat into the caverns to protect their weak eyesight. The only place the Loremasters would not attack was the wall directly above the entrance. This was where Vashni and the other Shanthi would be descending to enter the warren. Portals flickered into and out of existence all around the edge of the pit as the Loremasters began moving from here to there, throwing more power from each spot.
Answering maroon flares of power began shooting up from the floor of the pit as the Grithor retaliated. Reyga focused on a large boulder in the center of the chasm and sent a bolt of power into the depths. Then he stopped, stunned at what he had just seen. He created an orb of dimsai, looking with unbelieving eyes as it floated above his palm. This cannot be. He intensified his power, watching as the orb brightened to a small emerald sun. He barely noticed Carys’ warning as a blast of power from below crashed into the shield she created to protect him. He stared at the glowing globe. It was still there, no matter how much he tried not to see it. Weaving its way in and out of the emerald dimsai was a sinuous black shadow.
As he watched the dark streak twist and turn, oblivious to Carys’ questions, a wisp of memory crossed his mind. A single sentence, spoken in the voice of a midnight wind.
“You will be the instrument of Jason Bennett’s destruction.”
Lenai
“Your resistance is pointless, my dear. You cannot stop me.”
Lenai’s breath rasped harshly through her slack lips as Regor withdrew his power from her. The shackles holding her to the wall of the cavern cut into her wrists, leaving her forearms streaked with blood, but when Regor probed her mind, learning more about the Bond, they were the only things that held her up. She dredged up the remaining shreds of her strength and straightened, lifting her chin.
“You seek to use me to harm Jason Bennett,” she said. “I will fight you with every breath remaining to me.”
“How very touching. However, to fight against something implies that you believe you have a chance to win. You must know that is not possible here.”
She glared at him without answering. She might not be able to win, but as long as she still had the will to resist, she had not lost either.
“This bond is very interesting. In fifteen centuries, I have never seen anything quite like it. It is very strong.”
“You cannot break it.”
“Why would I want to?” he asked. “When it gives me such access to your…what do you call him? Ch’nai?”
She struggled against the shackles for a moment. The word sounded obscene coming from his mouth.
“But as for breaking it? That is simplicity itself. I need only kill you, and the bond is no more.”
“He will defeat you.”
His laughter echoed through the caverns. “Do not deceive yourself, my little Shanthi. Jason Bennett has as much chance of defeating me as you do of defeating a charnoth with your bare hands.”
“Nevertheless,” she said, “he will defeat you.”
“Well, that will be determined soon enough. For now, we have more work to do.” He sent tendrils of black power towards her once more, and then stopped as the sound of muffled explosions reached their ears.
The fiery eyes swept the ceiling. “What is that?” His gaze swung back to her. “We will resume after I see what’s happening outside.” He chuckled. “I trust you’ll wait for me?” Then he was gone.
She sagged back against the wall. With Regor gone, her strength, born of rage and indignation, faded, leaving her feeling empty and weak. With no sense of Jason, she felt more alone than she had at any time since Reyga had rescued her from the drunken mob years ago when she had been much younger and untrained. She thought she had felt something from Jason earlier, but it had been faint and unclear. After that, Regor’s invasions forced everything else away.
“Why do you resist him?” Kelsu moved away from the opposite wall where he had been standing while Regor probed her mind. “Do the humans control you so much?”
She raised her head and regarded him. “What I give to the humans I give willingly, with no onus,” she said. “They do not control me or any Shanthi. Can you say the same for your master?”
“The Shadow Lord gives us the freedom to live as we choose. We follow him with the assurance that he will reward us for our service once his rule is absolute.”
“Regor does not give, he takes. And if he promises you freedom, I challenge you to tell him you wish to leave his service. See if he is so willing to let you go as he is to use you for his own purposes.”
“Why would I wish to do such a thing?” Kelsu asked. “His victory over the humans is certain. It is only a matter of time. It would come sooner if your ch’nai would stop hiding like a frightened ketan cub and fight with honor, although I would hardly expect such a thing from any human.”
“I am beginning to think Jason knows more of honor than you do, brother. In my darkest hour, he restored what it was to be a Shanthi to me, while your master seeks to break me and subvert one of our most precious gifts to his own evil purposes. Whether between Jason and me or between two of our people, Chai na should be inviolate. Regor seeks to pervert it for his own gain while you stand idly by watching. Where is the honor in that?”
“The Shadow Lord only seeks to learn more of Chai na so he can free you from the hold Jason Bennett has over you.”
She laughed harshly. “You lie to yourself. You were here. The only freedom he promised me is death. He is not interested in learning how to break the Bond, merely how to use it.” She had a sudden thought. “Let me show you what Jason did for me.”
He shook his head. “I am not interested in seeing how my own blood was enslaved to a human.”
“Perhaps if you knew how it happened, you could determine how to break it.”
When he did not move, she laughed again. “Now who is acting like a frightened ketan cub?”
He scowled, but moved to stand before her. “Very well, but this will change nothing.”
She spread her hands and he pressed his palms to hers as she opened her mind to him…
In her thoughts, she relived her feelings of self-contempt and worthlessness at her failure to protect Jason from Bodann, one of Jason’s ancestors from his world, and her subsequent part in the death of Loremaster Seryn’s student, Elira. She remembered the shock and the overwhelming sense of violation she had felt when told of how she had been used by Bodann to attack those she had sworn to protect. Even now, the memories were still bitter to her soul. Her thoughts and emotions had spiraled downward, out of control. She had no defense for her failure. A true Shanthi would not, could not, have allowed such things to happen. She was weak, useless. She did not deserve to be one of the proud people of her race.
She replayed the days of feeling lost and empty, closed within her room, refusing to see anyone until Jason came to her door. She had meant only to apologize to him for her failure and then send him on his way. She had no use for him at the time, but what little remained of her honor demanded she acknowledge her failure to keep him safe. He had tried to anger her, to provoke any response other than silence. For a brief moment, he had succeeded in rousing the last vestiges of her Shanthi pride, but then even that small moment had faded.
Then, as he went on to describe his dilemma, she saw a way she might be able to, at least partially, redeem herself, either to the people of Lore’s Haven, or to Jason himself. He was confused, being pulled between the Circle and Bodann. At the time, he had not known who to believe, who to trust. She offered Sho tu Ishta, the Shanthi Ritual of Clarity. In it, both their souls would be bared to one another. She would know if he was planning to betray Lore’s Haven, and he would know her as no other, human or Shanthi, had ever known her.
If he had designs against the Circle, she would have killed him immediately, thereby abating part of her failure to them. If he was true, allowing him access to her innermost thoughts would, she hoped, alleviate part of her failure to him.
Then, the unexpected had happened. He had received the clarity he sought, but after he saw her as she saw herself, he forced her to see herself as others did. Forced her to accept the truth that her failure had been through no fault of her own. In essence, he had restored her s—
She gasped as a gout of darkness tore Kelsu away from her, shredding the connection between them.
“What are you doing?”
Regor stood between her and Kelsu, the shadows surrounding him roiling and writhing. Kelsu had landed on the cavern floor several paces away. He looked up at Regor.
“Master, I—”
“Stay away from her. Do not touch her again.”
Kelsu prostrated himself. “Forgive me, Master. It will not happen again.” His voice was firm, but the furtive glance he gave her was troubled.
Regor turned to her. “It would appear your friends think to rescue you. My first inclination was to destroy them for their insolence in leaving Lore’s Haven. But I have come up with more interesting plans for them.” His power reached toward her. “After all, it would be a shame for them to come all this way and not find you.”
*****
Vashni waited until the flow of Grithor abated. Then she signaled the others and they resumed their descent toward the opening. She had only brought two additional Shanthi with her this time, Banek and Denat. The fewer there were, the less likely they would be discovered. They reached the entrance, and after making sure no other Grithor were just inside the tunnel, they made their way into the caverns. Thanks to Loremaster Seryn’s ministrations, her injuries were but a shadow of what they had been initially, and did not impede her as she clung to the rock ceiling.
The confrontation with Regor refused to leave her thoughts, and she replayed his attack over and over in her mind. She had been standing watch as Lenai and the others opened the cell containing an injured Shanthi they thought might be Kelsu. Without warning, she found herself surrounded by black power, unable to speak or even move. When Regor had thrown them against the wall, she had been cushioned by the bodies of Sura and Naruk. Although still heavily injured, she had been able to stay awake long enough to see Kelsu’s betrayal. The thought of plunging her dagger into his chest ran though her mind again and again.
Even more than Kelsu, she imagined driving her blade into Regor’s dark heart. He, more than anyone, was responsible for what had taken place that day. Although the thought carried immense feelings of satisfaction with it, she knew it would never be more than wishful thinking. No Shanthi would ever be able to stand up to an Altered. But perhaps there was a way she could at least play her part in such an outcome, even if the killing blow did not come by her hand. Although she did not hate humans, she had little use for them, but if there was any chance the Circle and Jason Bennett could put an end to the Altered, she would do whatever was within her power to aid them. Before they did anything else, however, they had to rescue Lenai.
Since she knew where the holding area was this time, they moved much more quickly than when they were looking for Kelsu. The caverns were almost completely empty, and the constant rumble of explosions echoing through the tunnels reassured them that the Circle was keeping the Grithor distracted. The “battle” also helped to mask any slight sounds they might be making. Since almost all of the Grithor were outside, they dropped to the ground to move faster.
They rounded a corner, almost crashing into a pair of armed guards. Vashni dodged back just in time to feel the breeze of a sword flashing past her throat. The other two Shanthi vanished. She remained visible, holding the attention of the guards as she backed away. They sounded their barking alarm as they closed on her, but the pounding from outside overpowered their warning calls. The sound also covered the soft whisper of her companions dropping to the floor behind them. Moments later, the Grithor lay on the floor of the passage, their lifeblood soaking into the sandy dirt.
They shoved the bodies against the side of the tunnel and covered them with cloth changed to match the color of the rock. Then they kicked as much loose dirt as possible over the bloodstained ground. If another Grithor came by and noticed the smell of blood hanging in the air, hopefully the seeming lack of bodies would buy them some time.
Moving carefully, they made it to the holding cells without any further incidents. All of the cells were empty. The three gathered in the middle of the chamber.
“I do not know of any other cells,” she said to the others, keeping her voice low. “We will have to search the other tun—”
“Vashni? Is that you?” a voice whispered. “I am over here.”
They moved toward the voice. An outcropping of rock served to hide another cell that she had not seen the first time they had been here. As she turned the corner, she saw Lenai clinging to the bars. She looked haggard and dirty, but otherwise appeared to be unharmed. Vashni did not see a door to the cell, only metal bars reaching from floor to ceiling.
“Ware!” Lenai said. “The guard will be on his way back.”
Vashni and the others moved up the walls and became invisible. A few moments later, a gnarled Grithor appeared. It moved to the cell, grunting as it verified Lenai was still inside. Vashni drew her knife and dropped to the floor an instant after Banek appeared behind the guard.
This guard was more alert than the others. He spun toward the faint sound behind him, whipping out his short sword and burying it in Banek’s stomach. She wasted no time ramming her blade into the back of the muscular neck. The Grithor swung back around, pulling her off balance as she held onto her dagger. Her grip pulled the blade sideways through the guard’s neck, almost separating its head from its body. With what she could only assume was a look of surprise on its face, the Grithor sank to the ground.
She yanked her blade free and rushed to Banek, but he was clearly dead. Yet another one to lay at Regor’s feet, she thought bitterly. The Shadow Lord’s day of reckoning could not come soon enough for her. “Stand watch!” she snapped at Denat. She turned back to Lenai. “You will be free soon.”
With her free hand she reached into a pouch and pulled out a small rat. A few moments later, a portal appeared. Hands clasped tightly together, Loremaster Borin stepped into the chamber, followed by Brelt. As soon as Brelt was clear, the portal vanished. The Loremaster looked around, clearly nervous.
“Loremaster.” Borin jumped at Lenai’s whisper. “We do not have much time. You must hurry.”
“Of course. Of course,” Borin said, but his gaze still swept every part of the chamber. Finally, he seemed to be satisfied they were in no immediate danger and he turned to the bars imprisoning Lenai. He examined them closely, and then, half closing his eyes, ran his fingers along them.
“Yes, this should not be a problem,” he said, as he used his power to probe the metal. Focused on the bars, his nervousness seemed to fade. “This is a remarkable alloy,” he mused. “Truly ingenious. I would never have thought of—”
“Loremaster!” Lenai hissed.
He snatched his hands back as if the bars had bitten him. “Yes, yes. Forgive me. Of course, we must hurry.” He kneeled down and grasped one of the bars near the ground. “I believe this should work.”
Power blossomed around his hand and traveled up the bar. As they watched, the metal at the top began to melt and flow down the bar. It poured over his hand and formed a puddle on the stone, leaving a gap where the bar had been. He moved to the next bar and repeated the process. Then he stood and moved back, giving Lenai room to step through the opening.
“You are not harmed?” Vashni asked him.
“Hmm?” he said. “Oh!” He shook the remnants of the metal from his hand. “No, the metal does not affect the members of the Obsidian Order as it would anyone else. This is, after all, our specialty.” Then he seemed to remember
where they were. “We should leave before we are discovered.”
Brelt stepped forward. “Loremaster, if you wish to take Lenai back to the camp, I will signal the Circle that the rescue is complete.”
“Yes, an excellent suggestion,” Borin said.
Brelt opened a portal. Through it, Vashni could see the edge of the chasm, with flashes and explosions in every direction. Then he was gone.
“Come,” Borin said, opening another portal. A moment later, they left the chamber empty except for the Grithor’s corpse.
Mind Games
Jason’s thoughts were racing as he sat on the edge of the cot in the shelter Nyala had created for them. Once he was free of Regor’s grip, Seryn had been able to heal the wounds on his back, although she warned him that he would still be sore for a while. Tomorrow, after a night’s rest, they would confront Regor. Anticipation and trepidation churned inside of him when he thought about their upcoming showdown. He really wanted to give Regor some payback, but he wasn’t sure he was as strong as Nyala seemed to think he was. Tomorrow, he would have the answer to that question. He just hoped the answer was good.
Concern for his father also vied for his attention. He hadn’t heard anything from Crin yet. Okay, so it had only been a day and a half, but surely Crin could have covered the distance back to Lore’s Haven by now? Or at least far enough to be able to talk to Reyga. The thought that his dad might have been among those who had already fallen to the Altered was something he couldn’t face, but it refused to stop lurking around the edges of his mind no matter how much he tried to ignore it.
And he couldn’t think about his father without thinking about his mother too. He wondered what she was doing, what she thought had happened to him. He pictured himself going back. Then he imagined trying to explain to her why he was still a teenager, even though twenty years had passed in their world. Of course, that would be after she woke up. He was sure the sight of him, especially still just as young as the last time she’d seen him, would make her faint, if not worse.
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