***
Too old, he thought underneath the sense of urgency.
Bernard was getting far too old for this kind of danger. The years had long ago caught up to him, and his bones were weary with age. He needed to get to the containment chamber in the lowest levels of the keep. Why did it have to be all the way downstairs?
Another seal on the jewel around his neck fractured. Kubathu was relentless in trying to free himself, every moment of every day, and just moved one step closer to success. He could feel the power coming from it, the straining. Most of all, he could feel the evil. Every moment of fighting tired him, but he didn’t have the luxury of being tired. The Magicus Celesti needed him, maybe now more than any other time in his long life. Despite his age, he was the most suited for the task. The gift manifested strongly in him, it came to him as simply as breathing did; communing with the spirits was his second sight.
I can sleep when I’m dead, which will be one day soon enough, he reminded himself. There were so many stairs. Why did there have to be so many? If only his body was as strong as his mind had become, old age would have been a blessing.
Two more of his Order approached from behind, each wordlessly taking him under an arm, their worry evident in their haste. It was Fordham and Leopold, two honorable servants of the Celesti if he ever knew one. They helped hustle him to the caverns underground, and called out to the spirits alongside him, lending him as much of their strength as they could.
“Antok told us everything, he brought us in to help,” Fordham said. The two of them were young and enthusiastic, if inexperienced. They would be battle-worn soon enough, coming into this.
Bernard felt the crushing power of Kubathu, battering at the next guardian within the necklace he bore. His force grew considerably after obliterating the second seal; ten intact stones remained on the chain, along with the ruby glowing warm against his skin. Tiny black chasms snaked through the two already destroyed.
“Once downstairs one of you will need to take the vacant stand. Work in shifts, once one of you begins to tire allow the other to take over. Two more will relieve you tonight,” Bernard instructed.
“It’s been explained to us,” Leopold assured him.
“Will you be able to handle it?” Bernard asked.
“For us long as we need to.” Fordham nodded to Leopold, agreeing.
Bernard hoped their confidence would hold over time. That was the problem with their strategy; it was a losing war of attrition, with no room for error. They were human. Eventually, another mistake would be made like the one last night. How many of the diamonds had to break before they could no longer contain Him?
They finished their descent into the massive chambers below, “This way,” Bernard told them, pointing towards a tunnel in the eastern corner.
“Sounds like someone is coming down after us,” Fordham commented.
“Don’t worry about it, we need to hurry along,” Bernard answered. He wasn’t overly concerned, Antok probably instructed additional magi to follow along as a precaution.
They made it through the tunnel quickly, with the two young pupils practically carrying him along under the arms. “To the right,” Bernard instructed them, guiding along one of the five open passages.
The sound of hurried footsteps from behind echoed ever closer. Bernard could feel who it was, and it made no sense to him. Something was horribly wrong. However, his desire to stop and investigate was overruled by the severity of the task at hand.
“Go, go!” he spurred his escort.
Once inside, eleven podiums ran in a circle, each occupied by a wizard concentrating desperately on an incorporeal figure in the center. The twelfth podium was empty. Fordham and Leopold stopped to gape openly.
“One of you get up there!” Bernard directed, shoving the closest one forward.
In the middle of the circle was Kubathu’s form. It undulated through varying levels of transparency every few seconds, suspended in the air while the wizards worked to keep him at bay. His struggle was evident, face contorted and the corded muscles of his arm and neck flexing with effort.
Bernard felt a sharp stab, grabbing at his chest. The pressure grew unbearable – somehow Kubathu was attacking him. He could feel the life forces humming within the room, waves of energy storming and colliding from over a dozen directions. He tried to segregate the attack against him, deciphering it amongst the chaos around him. It was coming from behind.
At last Fordham took his place atop the empty pedestal. The straining form in the center stopped suddenly, unable to fight against the combined effort of the full battalion of magi. The necklace went cold against Bernard’s neck.
A bloodcurdling scream came from the tunnel, not twenty paces away. A soft thud followed after it.
“Oh, no, no no,” Bernard uttered. Sevra had been the one following them, he knew her life force as much as his own. He made a point of knowing all of his students as best he could. Now that his responsibility in securing Kubathu had been addressed, he ran as fast as he could back towards her, using his hand against the stone wall for support.
The young girl was lying on her side, collapsed and unmoving. Desperately he reached his hands out towards her neck. She was cold and did not stir. He closed his eyes, concentrating. There. He could feel her pulse, it was weak but still there.
“I need some help!” he yelled. This girl was Yulan’s adoptive daughter, and Yulan was as a son to him. He had been strict with Sevra over the last two years, but only because he knew her potential. She would one day be greater than all of them. Her safety was his responsibility, and he nearly got her killed. He would never forgive himself if she didn’t recover.
Uncharted Territory
Four days passed, as far as Sevra could tell, before she regained consciousness in the infirmary. The first two she completely lost, and had to piece together conversations she could overhear on the third day to begin to understand what happened. Bernard had been sitting with her for over a day now, and probably the first two as well. Even Antok the Venerable came in, not so much to see her but to discuss matters with Bernard she didn’t quite understand.
“Where’s my girl?” She heard, and her heart felt light and warm for the first time in months. It had been about that long since his last visit.
“Uncle Yuley! I’m over here!” she tried to say, even thought she said it until realizing no sound came out.
He rushed into the room, over to her bed. She wasn’t sure if he even saw Bernard near her. He gently placed his hand on her cheek, and lowered his head next to hers. She wasn’t able to return the embrace.
“What in the spirits happened?” he cursed, “You told me everything was under control!”
She had never heard Uncle Yuley so angry before. “I’m okay,” she insisted, but still no sound came out.
“Come sit,” Bernard asked of Yuley, “I’ll tell you everything I can.”
“You will tell me everything, period!” Yulan argued.
“I’ll tell you what I can,” Master Bernard reiterated, “which is much more than what I’m permitted to.”
Uncle Yuley sat, and Sevra could no longer see him from the corner of her eye. She could feel his impatience though.
She listened intently, wanting to know what happened to her as well and why she couldn’t move. They probably didn’t realize she could hear them, making what they had to say even more interesting to her.
Bernard lowered his voice only slightly, “There was another breach on Kubathu’s imprisonment, a second diamond was shattered.”
A tense silence ensued while Sevra eagerly awaited to hear more.
Bernard continued when it appeared Yulan had nothing yet to say, “The containment has been restored, but there was a problem before we realized the breach. It seems that once he breaks through enough he can touch upon our world, to a lesser degree. He slips his vile tendrils through to do his bidding.”
Another few moments passed in silence. Sevra felt as though she were going to be sick. She recognized Kubathu’s name from the ‘Tale of the Broken King.’ She didn’t know the Broken King was still alive. It seemed impossible.
“Why Sevra of all people, that doesn’t make any sense.” Yulan finally said.
Bernard sighed heavily, and Sevra heard a small jingle. Yulan gasped.
“You!” Yulan shouted. The legs of the bed he was sitting on made a scraping sound against the floor. Sevra wished she could turn her head to be able to see what was going on.
“How could you take her in, so close to you under your study? Knowing the danger here? You looked me in the eye and told me you would keep her safe!” he yelled, “You are the furthest thing from safe in the whole world right now!”
“She is safer with me than anywhere else in this entire keep,” Master Bernard answered, his voice quiet but just as intense.
Hurried footsteps approached their area, followed by one of the nurse’s voice, “You can’t argue in here, take it somewhere else!”
“Leave us for a while,” Yulan said, dismissing Bernard.
No, Sevra thought, she wanted to hear more of what was going on. What did she have to do with whatever they were talking about?
“See me before you leave, there is more you should be aware of,” Bernard said, followed by his feet quietly shuffling away.
“Oh Sparklebug,” Uncle Yulan said, “what happened to you?”
He sat with her for many hours. Sevra felt comforted despite not being able to move or talk, and finally closed her eyes to rest.
Destiny's Gem Page 9