“Do you remember what we said about compromise, the last time we were here?”
Kaido looked chastened. “Well… if you must stay, I will not be cast out from my room. My best specimens are in there, and they cannot be uprooted for your benefit.”
“Don’t worry, we’ll find space in the lounge and the kitchen. A few of us might even stay on the ship, if that would make you more comfortable.”
“It certainly would… if that does not contradict your terms of compromise? It is not something I am overly familiar with.”
I smiled at him. “I think that would be just fine, Kaido.”
Fifteen minutes later, everyone was safely inside the house, sitting around the kitchen table. Kaido had done nothing but stare at his father for the past five minutes, clearly bemused by his presence here. To my dismay, Jareth hadn’t even acknowledged Kaido, the older coldblood keeping his discussions focused on Navan and Bashrik.
“I thought you were married to Aurelius?” Kaido blurted out, his gaze shifting to Seraphina.
“I am,” she replied kindly.
“Has he rejected you as a mate?”
Seraphina chuckled. “It is more that I have rejected him.”
“Is the baby yours?” He pointed to Nova, who was happily ensconced in Ronad’s arms.
“This one will be,” she replied, stroking her bump, “but that darling creature belongs to Riley and Navan.”
He nodded in understanding. “Then, I must congratulate you both on your successful copulation. I know, from your last visit here, that you were most vigorous in the physical pursuit of a child.”
I almost choked. “She wasn’t exactly planned, Kaido, though we’re thrilled to have her in our lives.”
“Is that not the primary purpose of copulation, to produce a child?”
“Wow, Bash, your brother is even more of a romantic than you are,” Angie teased.
“It is one reason for… copulation, but it is not the only one,” I replied, seeing his distress. This seemed to appease him.
“Indeed, it is most interesting to discover that your genetics are compatible in this manner, for I believed them to be so after studying your brain chemistry. There were many similarities. In some cases, your reactions were exactly the opposite to those of a Vysanthean mind, if you recall?”
“I do.”
“That must be why you were able to conceive a hybrid,” he concluded. “An excellent feat of chance and circumstance, to procreate successfully.”
Jareth seemed to notice his other son for the first time. “She is remarkable, isn’t she?”
“In terms of genetic uniqueness, and the improbability of her being a viable fetus, I would be inclined to agree.”
Jareth turned away, returning his attention to Navan. “Now, looking around this place, we could certainly use some of these canisters and pieces of equipment to conjure up a makeshift alchemy lab, if you will,” he said, to Kaido’s evident despair. “I thought I might take one of the upper rooms to myself, so I can work and sleep in some comfort. Many of these plants will have to be moved. They will only get in the way of our progress.”
“But… my plants… they require optimum conditions,” Kaido said quietly.
“What did you say?” Jareth fired him a warning look.
“I said… my plants require optimum conditions. They need space and light, or they will die.”
“And we require your equipment and this space more. Is that going to be a problem?”
Kaido shook his head, crestfallen. “No, Father.”
“Actually, I’m going to need some of Kaido’s lab, too,” I chimed in, feeling sorry for him. “Although, I’m also going to need Kaido’s guidance. So, if we could keep things more or less as they are, that might be better for all of us. If we need to use anything, we can just ask Kaido where it is, and he can help us all out.” After all, I needed him and his lab to help me fulfil my portion of Orfaio’s advice. Already, the vial of stardust was burning a hole in my pocket.
Jareth sighed. “Very well. Though, if it begins to interfere with my work, I shall have to insist.”
“That sounds fair.”
Kaido offered me a grateful look, though I could see the prospect still troubled him. In this situation, it was the best I could do.
“We also need to seek out new allies,” Bashrik said unexpectedly, a nervous expression crossing his features. I guessed it had something to do with the Stargazers, too. “All this time, we’ve been looking to ally ourselves with other species, but what if we looked closer to home? I mean, there are coldbloods here who want a united Vysanthe more than anything. Perhaps we could find some of those people and get them to help us in the fight against the rebels.”
Navan perked up suddenly. “We could go to Nisha, from the fighting pits. She knows a whole lot of people. If we wanted to raise an army from within Vysanthe, she’d be the one to go to.”
I remembered the fearsome woman Navan had introduced me to at the fighting pits, the one who’d taken us through the mountain tunnel to the North. It was a long time ago now, or at least it felt like it, but I recalled her saying that she wanted Vysanthe to have a government that was “for the people, by the people.” She didn’t want to be ruled by a monarchy who didn’t represent her, and she had made it clear that she wasn’t the only one who thought that way.
“Do you think she might still be there, at the fighting pits?” I wondered.
Navan shrugged. “I’m not sure, given the state the border was in the last time we were there. But, if we can find her, we might be able to use her connections to form some kind of citizen task force. They can be the ones to administer the anti-elixir, when the time comes.”
So, this had to be what Orfaio had told Bashrik. Maybe Seraphina was the woman who would take charge, being of the people, and working for the people, just as they wanted. One by one, each member of our group was using their gifted knowledge in pursuit of some larger prophecy, and the pieces were slowly starting to come together.
I glanced at Kaido. Soon, it would be my time.
Chapter Twenty-Four
After everyone had dispersed—Stone and Lauren taking a walk outside, Angie and Bashrik discussing where they were going to sleep, Navan and Jareth going over Kaido’s equipment to see what they could use, Ronad returning to the ship to lock it down, while Seraphina wandered through the kitchen rocking Nova gently—I went in search of Kaido. He’d crept upstairs to tend to his plants, no doubt wondering how he could keep them safe from Jareth’s influence. He was moving a few glass cases up onto higher shelves when I entered.
“I was just checking on them,” he said guiltily.
“You do what you have to, to keep your plants safe,” I encouraged him. I knew what they meant to him.
“Were you intending to find me, or were you looking for Sarrask? If it is the latter, this is not the correct room.”
I smiled. “Actually, I was looking for you. It’s because of you that we’ve come here.”
“What do you mean? You have no business with me that I can recall, unless you want some more of that strength serum I concocted. I should have the notes on it around here somewhere, though everyone seems intent on moving my things around.”
“It’s not about the strength serum.” I wasn’t sure where to begin, so I took out the stardust vial and handed it to him.
“What is this?”
“It’s a gift I received from the Stargazers,” I replied. “They gave each of us a piece of information or, in my case, a vial of stardust. I was told to go back to the place where my visions began, which has led us back to you. I think you might be the key to my part of the puzzle.”
He stared at me as though I were a madwoman. “The Stargazers?”
I nodded.
“But they are fictional, aren’t they? I used to sit by the door to my sister’s room and hear my mother tell her tales of them. She would never read the stories to me, but there was some enjoyment to be found in list
ening to them.”
A pang of sympathy bristled through me. He had missed out on so much. “Funnily enough, they’re as real as you or me.”
“That is not possible.”
“It is, I promise you. They live on an astral plane alongside our universe,” I explained. “They’re not exactly the all-powerful creatures depicted in the storybooks, but they do exist. They see and know everything, but that’s about the extent of what they can do to help us lesser beings. They can offer suggestions, which is what they’ve done for us.”
“Their power is knowledge?”
I nodded.
“The most powerful thing in this universe, indeed,” he mused, a wistful smile on his face. “And they gave you this?” He turned the vial over in his hands, inspecting the substance closely.
“They did,” I replied. “It’s hard to know what they wanted me to do with it, but I think it involves you doing more experiments on me. I’m pretty sure I need to find a way to connect with my visions again, and the only way I can do that is if you help me.”
“That is why you told my father you required my laboratory equipment,” he said, understanding. “I was not sure whether you were trying to be kind. You have shown me kindness before.”
I smiled. “It was a little bit of both.”
“Well, I shall require some time to analyze this sample and prepare the appropriate experiments from my findings,” he said abruptly, clearly terrified I was about to go in for another hug. “I trust you do not mind if I keep hold of this? It shall be extremely difficult to analyze if I can’t have it at hand.”
“Of course, do whatever you need to do with it and let me know when you’re ready with your experiments.” I felt a tug of reluctance at giving the vial away, but Kaido was one of the most trustworthy people I knew.
“I look forward to discovering its properties.” He looked pleased.
I lingered for a moment, watching him. “I know you’re busy with your plants, and now the stardust, but would it be okay if you took me to Sarrask?”
“I suppose it would not disrupt him too much to have you visit him,” Kaido replied after a moment’s pause. “However, I was not exaggerating when I said he is not the way you might remember him. His injury has left him with some difficulties—physical and mental. It might be better if we keep my father away from him, too. My father is not fond of… difficulties.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
Kaido led the way out of his plant room, moving across the landing toward the room at the opposite end. He didn’t bother to knock, striding straight in. I followed him, hovering on the threshold as I peered into the space beyond. Sarrask sat on his bed, surrounded by rocks of all shapes and sizes, his nose firmly stuck in a book.
“Hello, Sarrask,” I said.
He looked up in surprise. “Riley?”
“Back again.” I laughed, wanting to dispel any tension that might still exist between the two of us.
“Well, this is an unexpected pleasure. I thought you’d vanished from Vysanthe for good.”
“Not quite. I just couldn’t stay away.” I nodded to the book in his hands. “What are you reading?”
“A book on geology. It is extremely interesting, though not everyone agrees that geology is a true science. Isn’t that right, Kaido?”
Kaido nodded. “Geology is more of a hobby than a true science. Staring at rocks is no substitute for the study of living organisms.”
“Anyway, my ‘hobby’ aside, how are you, wanderer?”
“I’m okay. How are you?” I narrowed my eyes, scrutinizing him closely. There didn’t seem to be anything wrong with him. He was a little more invested in his rocks than normal, but he seemed to be just fine. The weirdest thing was the close bond that seemed to have developed between the two brothers. It definitely hadn’t been as amicable the last time I was here. Sarrask had still been struggling to deal with Kaido’s peculiarities, breaking the habit of a lifetime.
“Rask, you gave me a fright,” Sarrask said, starting suddenly. “Is it really you, Riley?”
“Don’t tell me—you think I’m a shifter masquerading as Riley?” I teased.
He frowned. “Are you?”
“No, of course I’m not. Kaido has already done the proper checks. Haven’t you, Kaido?”
Kaido nodded. “I ensured she was not a shifter, though we cannot truly know if she is a clone with transferred memories. I remain unconvinced.”
“Well, this is a pleasant surprise,” Sarrask said, looking at me as though he was seeing me for the first time. “What brings you back here, Riley? I thought you had vanished from Vysanthe for good.”
“You’ve already said that.” I laughed, shrugging off the unsettled feeling inside me. I was starting to understand what Kaido had been talking about.
He shrugged. “Oh, have I? Well, it is a pleasant surprise. I wasn’t sure we’d ever see you again.”
“And how are you feeling? Are you okay?”
“I’m feeling good, thank you,” he replied, turning back to his book. When his eyes lifted again, I knew what he was going to say before he even said it. “Rask, you scared me! Have you been standing there long?”
I shook my head sadly. “No, not long.”
“Well, this is a pleasant surprise. What brings you back here? I thought you’d vanished from this place for good.”
“I have some things to sort out,” I murmured, turning to Kaido. “What’s the matter with him?”
Kaido sighed, coming to stand beside me. “Sarrask suffered a grave injury to the head while fighting on the front line. A bomb exploded near to where he was walking, and a piece of shrapnel lodged itself in his skull. I managed to rescue him and bring him back here, where I could fix him, and he would be safe. But ever since, he has been suffering from short-term memory loss, though I cannot discover the root cause of the disruption,” he explained. “The wound itself has healed well, and there were no remaining pieces of shrapnel. I got all of them. I have injected several botanical elixirs into his system, to try and highlight the problem, but they show no definite cause.”
Sarrask lifted his head. “I have short-term memory loss? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I have done so on countless occasions, Sarrask. You just don’t remember. Indeed, it is most perplexing.”
“When did you tell me? I don’t remember you saying a word about it.”
Kaido sighed. “That is precisely the problem. You do not remember anything in the short term. That is the very definition of short-term memory loss.”
He frowned. “Who has short-term memory loss? What are you talking about, Kaido?” His gaze flitted to me. “Riley? Well, this is a pleasant surprise! What brings you back here? I thought you had vanished from Vysanthe for good.”
I stared at him, not knowing what to say. The situation would have been comical had it not been so deeply sad. To sit there each day, not knowing that he had said something a thousand times already—it was tragic. I wondered how many times he’d read the same line in his geology book, over and over. What made it worse was the strange confusion in Sarrask’s eyes, as though he were vaguely aware that something was amiss but couldn’t quite put his finger on it.
“How much can he remember?” I asked.
“He can remember everything before I brought him here, but after that… he can’t retain anything else for longer than a minute, or thereabouts. Unfortunately, it is not an exact science.” He glanced at his brother. “I have tried several serums that have extended the length of his memory by a few more minutes, but, as yet, I can’t reinstall his retention.”
“So, he can remember the war? He knows there’s one going on?”
Kaido nodded. “He knows about the one between Queen Gianne and Queen Brisha, but he doesn’t know there is another one taking place. He thinks it is the same one.”
“He doesn’t know about the rebels?”
“He does not.”
I approached Sarrask. “What can you te
ll me about the war?”
A sadness drifted across his face. “The war? It is more of a massacre than a war.”
“I want to know about it… if you feel up to talking about it?”
“We attacked Brisha, but she was ready for us. Her forces were diminished, but it only served to fuel their fire,” he explained, staring into the middle distance. “There were boobytraps everywhere we walked. I watched my comrades get blown to pieces right in front of my eyes, their ashes floating on the breeze around me. I was covered in them by the end of it—flesh, blood, flakes of gray.
“On cold nights, we gathered in our tents and wondered what we were doing this for. We stared into the eyes of our enemies and saw that they were the same as us. They wanted the same thing as us… peace. But everything is a mess now. I don’t think this planet will ever have peace again, not with the queens locked in constant battle with one another.” He paused, taking a solemn breath. “There were rumors that Brisha had died, but the fighting didn’t stop. Explosives had been set on the approach to Nessun. We were part of the raiding party, ordered to lead a strike on the city. Kaido was there when the bomb went off in my face. He dragged me away, though friends of mine fell. I survived, but they didn’t.”
One enemy had merely been exchanged for another, the war continuing in an endless cycle. Sarrask could have been talking about the war with the rebels, or any war for that matter. It was all the same destruction and chaos and bloodshed. More than anything, I wanted this war to end—I wanted Vysanthe’s fighting to stop, regardless of who stood on what side. I mean, even though Brisha and her army had sought refuge with Gianne, the civilians of the North were under the control of the rebels now. They weren’t free, and they definitely weren’t part of a peaceful nation. They’d likely been enticed to join the rebellion, been forced to do the rebels’ bidding, or died trying to stand up to them. It painted a devastating picture.
“I’m sorry you had to go through that,” I murmured.
Stargazers Page 23