Knight of a Trillion Stars (35 page)

She would never know if she could have done it.

At that moment, she heard Lorgin’s groan of pain. Afraid for him, she opened her eyes, seeing an arc of lightning sear around him. Her attention was broken, and Theardar captured her like a viper does its prey. She could not look away from his crazed eyes no matter how hard she tried.

“Give me the necklace.”

Yaniff spoke quickly to Rejar. “Try to break his hold!”

Rejar immediately approached Theardar from his left, seeking to bewilder him. If he could but shift Theardar’s focus for one moment, his brother might break free and overpower him.

Theardar did not even glance his way. “Call your Familiar back, Yaniff, or he will be sorry.”

{Perhaps we will be sorry together.}

Rejar’s flip reply cost him dearly. He instantly fell to his knees, clutching his head, his acute senses flooded by powerful sensations. All of them agonizing.

“Rejar!”

Traed ran to him, unable to help the younger man with the pain he was in.
Pain.
It was what his father knew best how to inflict. Traed’s thoughts turned bitter within him; wherever Theardar went, pain and destruction followed. His brother of the line, Rejar, lay on the ground writhing in agony; another brother fought for his life and his love. A beautiful love that Theardar would sooner see destroyed…

It must end!
It must.

“Father, stop this!” Traed pleaded with him from the bottom of his heart.

Theardar completely ignored his son’s impassioned entreaty.

“Wait, Theardar,” Yaniff called out. “The necklace cannot be removed by anyone but her. I have seen to it. If you attempt it, you both die. Give this up now.”

Theardar stopped and turned to stare down at the old mystic. “Now, that is really annoying of you, old one.” He shrugged fatalistically. “A pity for her, for if she cannot sing to the stones, then they pose no threat to me.”

Lorgin realized at once what was about to occur. He thrashed against the power bonds.
“Break his hold on me, Yaniff!”

His shout echoed in the night.

“I cannot, Lorgin. The resultant forces would tear you apart.”

“I care not!”

But Yaniff would not sacrifice one to save another. Theardar was going to kill her. Adeeann!
And his child…

He struggled frantically against the invisible ropes, yelling, “Release me, Yaniff! Do you hear? Release me!”

She was going to die.

Deana looked to Lorgin, seeing the helpless expression of agony on his face. Their eyes met and held.

Then everything seemed to happen in slow motion to her.

Theardar throwing back his hands in preparation to deliver the killer bolt he intended to aim at her—

Traed’s strong arm suddenly coming up, a look of final resolve crossing his face as he pushed her behind him to shield her with his body—

Lorgin’s raw yell of “Tr-a-e-d!” carrying every drop of anguish and despair contained within him. And sure knowledge that a spiritual brother was about to die for protecting his wife—

The bolt arcing toward them—

And then suddenly Theardar’s eyes clearing for a moment, seeing the bolt he had released hurling in a deadly arc toward his son.

His son.

He was about to kill his own son!

“Traed?” Theardar rasped, his eyes focused in horror. Without hesitation, he called the bolt back onto himself.

Such power once released could not be controlled.

Theardar was killed instantly.

Traed sank to his knees, consumed by emotions he had no name for. His father was dead. Vaporized. And in that last moment before he had called the bolt back to himself, Traed had seen love in his father’s eyes.
Love for him.

Had his very existence killed both his parents?

Traed bowed his head, his hair falling forward to obscure his face. “Destroyed by love, Father,” he whispered.

He felt Yaniff’s hand on his shoulder. “No, Traed. Theardar destroyed love, then was destroyed by it. It is natural law.”

Yaniff bent over and pulled Theardar’s Cearix from the ground where he had cast it. “I believe the Theardar I once knew would have wanted you to have this, Traed.”

Traed shook his head. “You keep it, Yaniff. I cannot consider having it now.”

“Very well. But a son needs a heritage; here—I give you mine. Should you decide someday to carry Theardar’s, I will understand.”

Traed took the blade, staring at the intricately carved handle of the ancient knife. “I am moved, Yaniff,” he whispered. “Know that I will carry it with honor.”

Yaniff patted his shoulder. “Of course you will.”

Lorgin, released from his bonds, ran to Deana, clutching her to him in a crushing embrace.

“Are you all right? Are you all right?” he kept repeating, hugging her to him, kissing her all over her face, her hair, the top of her head.

“Yes, yes!” she sobbed against him, holding him just as tightly, shaking now that the danger was past.

Rejar shook his head, slowly rising. The pain that had invaded his senses was gone, but he had a horrible headache. He sank gratefully down on a boulder, his head in his hands.

“Are you all right, Rejar?”

He felt Lorgin’s hand on his shoulder, shaking him slightly.

{Yes; I am fine. Do not concern yourself.}

Yaniff and Traed walked over to them.

“Traed and I will go on ahead,” Yaniff said and turned to leave.

“Wait.” Lorgin stopped Traed. There were questions he wanted answers to. “I think we need to talk.”

“Later, Lorgin.” Traed seemed drained.

“Very well. Know this, though; I will not forget that you stood for what was mine. Ever.”

Traed contemplated Lorgin with absolutely no expression on his face.

Watching him, so contained and removed, Deana wondered if it had all been too much for him. Would he once again become the way he’d been when they had first found him at the keep—controlled and emotionless? She prayed not; he had saved her life, and she hoped with all her heart he could put this behind him and find some measure of happiness in his life.

Yaniff said to her in a very low tone, “He is fine, Adeeann. He needs time.”

Lorgin, seeing Traed’s condition, decided to say no more on the subject. Instead, he turned to Yaniff. “I would speak to you as well, Yaniff. I am not at all sure I can condone what you have done. I fear you have played us all like pieces in a board game. I do not know if I can forgive you for this manipulation. You placed all of my family in grave danger.”

Yaniff nodded, as if in agreement with Lorgin’s words. “I did not expect otherwise from you, Lorgin. But you will think on it and in time realize that what was done was a true course. When you are ready, I will still be your teacher. Nothing will change that, my friend.”

Lorgin would not respond. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he suspected that Yaniff had the right of it, but he was not ready yet, his emotions being too raw, his potential loss still too fresh in his thoughts, to concede the point.

The old wizard turned to his promising Familiar. “When next I see you, Rejar, your life will be greatly altered.”

Yaniff and Traed left them then, heading toward the tunnel point. Bojo, wings flapping, flew beside them.

As they crested the rise, the old wizard discreetly looked over his shoulder to make sure Adeeann was not watching
him. He did not think the Earth woman would appreciate the intricacies of guiding reality.

Seeing that her attention was elsewhere, he reached into his robes, removing a blue cloth article from some hidden pocket. The strange object had a mysterious large red symbol sewn into the front of it.

“What is that?” Traed asked.

“Here, my young son; a gift.” Yaniff plopped the object on Traed’s head.

Traed’s green gaze questioned him from under the brim. “What do you put on my head?”

“It is called a cap.”

“But where does it come from?”

The tunnel opened up in front of them. Yaniff placed his arm around Traed’s shoulders as he led him into the maw.

“Let me tell you, my son, of a wondrous game of sport played on a faraway planet. It is called baseball…”

It was Rejar who noticed the discrepancy.

{Where is the phasing stone?}

Lorgin stopped caressing his wife’s waist, turning with concern at Rejar’s words. Releasing her, he began scouring the ground with his brother.

Deana was confused. “Wouldn’t it have…disintegrated with Theardar?”

“No.” Lorgin paced the area. “The stones are indestructible.”

{Perhaps Yaniff took it?}

“I do not know, but it is not here; that much is obvious.”

{What should we do?}

“There is nothing to do for now. Yaniff will have to be consulted, of course.” Lorgin winced. Was this another clever ploy of the wizard’s to embroil them yet again in one of his schemes?

Deana interrupted his unpleasant thoughts.

“Lorgin, do you think Traed will be all right? Despite what Yaniff said, the pain on his face when he…”

He sighed. “Time will tell,
zira.
He performed a completely selfless act—it took more than courage to do what he did. A man will sacrifice his life for a just cause, but Traed knew that in placing himself before you he was condemning his father.” Lorgin hesitated. “I do not know if I could have done it. It was a terrible decision to be forced to make.”

{I wonder what made Theardar call back the bolt…a moment of sheer insanity?}

“No,” Lorgin responded. “A moment of sheer clarity.” He turned back to Adeeann, his eyes falling to the Shimalee around her neck.

His heart sank.

He would have to get rid of it, that he knew for a certainty. It was too dangerous for everyone concerned to have the necklace accessible.

There was only one way he knew to be rid of it.

He would have to enter the tunnels with it, flinging it in any direction it would go. Such action was sure to cause violent upheaval within the matrix. Who knew if he would survive? And if he did, where would he end up? Far from home, with perhaps no internal guidance to return.

There was, unfortunately, no help for it.

Taking a deep breath, he asked Deana to remove the Shimalee from around her neck.

She readily complied, having no idea what he wanted with it, but happy to be rid of the damn thing just the same.

Rejar, however, knew.

{Give the Shimalee to me, Lorgin.}

Lorgin silently met his brother’s eyes.

{I will enter the tunnels with it. I will make sure it is forever lost in the corridors of time.}

Lorgin was more than hesitant. As the eldest, he had an obligation to his brother, but, in truth, he did not want to leave his wife. He should not let his heart rule here. He had been trained to make decisions based on what was best for all concerned.

Nonetheless, when he asked his brother, “But what of you?” he knew that for the first time in his life, he
was
going to let his heart rule. Rejar wanted them to be together. His brother knew what he was doing.

{I always land on my feet.}
Rejar gave Lorgin his famous feral grin.

Lorgin gave him the Shimalee and embraced him. “Thank you, brother.”

“You’ll be okay won’t you, Rejar?”

The Familiar turned to Deana, giving her a swift hug. “Of course.” He spoke low in her ear. “The restlessness—I think, mayhap, this is a part of it.”

She nodded against him to let him know she understood.

Lorgin called the tunnel forth.

Rejar entered without looking back.

He took the necklace in his hand and, spinning around, hurled it into the miasma. And waited.

He did not have to wait long.

A rumble started from all directions as the matrix attempted to absorb the Shimalee.

Tremors escalated into vast light waves of churning disturbance.

Caught in the riotous cosmic storm, Rejar was flung down the corridors of space/time.

“Do you think he’s all right?”

Deana turned a worried face to Lorgin. They had felt some back rumbling of the disturbances after the tunnel had sealed.

“We can only hope. It was a noble deed.”

“Yes. I just hope he doesn’t suffer too much for it.”

Lorgin smiled faintly. “Knowing my brother, suffering could be a relative term.”

Deana also smiled, wishing Rejar well.

Lorgin regarded her through half-lowered lids. Suddenly he held out his hand to her. “Come, Adeeann, we go back to Aviara now—
back home.”

He was waiting for her to take his hand.

He was waiting for a hell of a lot more.

It was over. The quest was over. Was she the diviner Yaniff claimed she was? She would never know for sure.

But did it matter?

She could leave Lorgin now. Once they got back to Aviara, Yaniff would send her back at her request. And she could go.

Leave Lorgin.

Say good-bye. Never see his smiling, handsome face again. Never laugh with him over things only the two of them knew. Never make sweet love with him again.

He was waiting for her to take his hand.

He knew.

Somehow she wasn’t surprised. Lorgin had been one step ahead of her since she had met him. Always in control. Always devastating.

Leave Lorgin?

She could no more leave this man than stop breathing. But if she took his hand, she was saying farewell forever to her past life. Could she do that?

Deana had an unwanted revelation. She
was
the woman in the prophecy! It had to be her, for hadn’t he told her how much he loved her? Just let some other woman show up to claim him!

Lorgin belonged to her. He had told her so just last night. Repeatedly.

Yes, she could say good-bye to everything she had known, because all that mattered to her was standing right here in front of her. Yaniff was right;
her quest
was at its end. She was complete.

Eyes filled with tears, she stepped forward, slowly, placing her hand softly in his. As his hand closed around hers, his amethyst eyes sparkled down at her.

“I love you,” she said.

He brought her hand to his chest and placed it against his heart, covering it with his own.

“Of this,
Dee-ann-ah,
I had no doubt.”

Then Lorgin ta’al Krue, knight of the Charl, holder of the fourth power, first in the line of Krue, brought his Adeeann home.

For a warrior was always true to his word.