The Labyrinth of Destiny (23 page)

The Shimat army reunited with quiet
efficiency, melding into one large group—more than ten thousand strong. The sun
was beginning to set when they arrived, and so the Shimat leaders seemed
content to wait until morning to begin fighting.

Adesina knew that a force of ten
thousand soldiers was small compared to the armies of other nations, but it was
daunting to face such an army with barely half that number on her side.

She would have had even less—due to
the number of those that had been seriously injured or killed—but Than’os had
arrived that very day with the last group of soldiers that he had been training
at the refugee camp. That was the last of the reinforcements they were likely
to receive, unless E’nes was successful in bringing help from Charan.

In the pre-dawn light, Adesina stood
on top of the rise that faced the battlefield. Unlike the L’avan, the Shimat
did not seem concerned with having some distance between the battlefield and
their camp. Perhaps they did not think it likely that their enemies could break
through their forces and reach the lines of tents.

It did seem odd, due to the
secretive nature of the Shimat order, that they did not choose to camp
someplace more secure and secluded. Adesina was able to freely study their camp
through her spyglass from where she was standing.

She had spotted Breyen early on,
riding through the camp as if he were some sort of demi-god. Seeing her former
teacher had brought up ghosts of emotions that she hadn’t felt in a long time.
His disdain for the mercenaries was clear on his face, and Adesina wondered how
the hired soldiers felt about serving under a man who clearly thought little of
them.

The only time Breyen’s superior
expression seemed shaken was when she saw him exiting a black tent with blood
red banners. He looked decidedly pale and unnerved when he walked away.

“That must be where Cha-sak is
hiding,” commented Adesina to Ravi, who stood at her side.

Their Joining made it possible for
him to see what she saw, so he knew exactly what she meant.

“It seems likely,” he agreed. “I do
wonder why we have not seen Basha. Is she not Cha-sak’s chosen servant? Yet, it
appears that Breyen is the leader of the army.”

Adesina nodded thoughtfully. “Yes,
that is strange. The Basha I knew would not pass up the opportunity to flaunt
her power.”

The Shimat soldiers were organizing
themselves, and the various Shimat leaders could be seen barking orders.

Adesina lowered her spyglass and
took a deep breath.

It wouldn’t be long now.

She could hear the approach of her
own forces coming up behind her. The L’avan and Seharan soldiers moved into
position on the rise, preparing to rush down the hill into battle when the time
came.

Me’shan dismounted his horse and
walked over to stand at Adesina’s side. Adesina knew he placed importance on
the appearance of a leader, and he would not want her to seem in need of
strength or comfort. So instead of reaching out to take his daughter’s hand, he
stood close enough that their arms touched.

She smiled up at him. “Good
morning, father.”

He chuckled at her casual tone, as
if they were meeting on the street in Yavar rather than standing on the edge of
battle. “Good morning, Ma’eve.”

Me’shan and Ravi—and E’rian, in the
world of Dreams—were the only people that Adesina allowed to call her by that
name. Ravi had always called her Ma’eve, and it seemed to bring comfort to
Me’shan to do the same. After all, it was the name that his beloved wife had
chosen for their daughter.

To Adesina, the name was deeply
personal—too personal for regular use. L’iam had suggested that she adopt the
name, but it did not seem right to her. She had always been called Adesina, and
it was a part of her. Ma’eve was the name of what might have been, and it
seemed right that it only be used by her parents and her guardian.

“How is L’iam?” she asked her father.

Me’shan gave her a knowing glance,
and she knew the answer before he said it. “He is angry.”

She had slipped out of their tent
while L’iam was sleeping and had left word that she had gone on to the
battlefield. There had been an argument the previous night about which of them
would lead this first battle against the full Shimat force, and they had
decided to discuss it again in the morning.

Adesina had taken the decision into
her own hands, and her departure forced L’iam to stay in the camp to oversee the
deployment of the soldiers.

She had known he would be furious,
but it was better than watching him ride into danger while she stayed behind.

But how do you think he feels to
be the one in that position?
asked Ravi through their Joining.

I know it is selfish
, she
admitted,
but I am willing to be selfish in order to protect the man I love.

A hint of a growl stirred in Ravi’s
feline throat, and Adesina could feel waves of his disapproval directed from
his mind to hers. Even so, Adesina was unrepentant. She would give her life a
thousand times over in order to save L’iam’s life.

“Marriage is always difficult,”
ventured Me’shan carefully, “but it is even more difficult if there is no
communication. Important decisions should always be made together, even if there
is disagreement.”

Adesina knew her father was right,
and she also knew that he did not give unsolicited advice unless it was vital.
She felt guilty knowing that she had been unfair to L’iam.

“It is too late to go back now,”
she muttered, discontent.

“Focus on the task ahead,” said
Ravi, “then give a proper apology when you return to camp.”

“Maybe grovel a bit,” added Me’shan
with a grin.

Adesina laughed and nodded. “I may
do just that.”

“The sun is rising,” came a
slightly sibilant voice from behind the trio.

The L’avan queen turned to see
Ruon, Sitara, and Riel approaching. Adesina’s eyebrows shot up in surprise.

“I was not expecting to see you
here,” she said to them.

Sitara gestured to Ruon, indicating
that he was the one responsible. The Laithur seemed unusually serene as he
surveyed the battlefield.

“You are going to need us today.”

Adesina felt her skin prickle in
apprehension. “Why? What is going to happen?”

He fixed his black eyes on her.
“Death.”

Adesina’s uneasiness blossomed into
dread. “Whose death?”

“I See thousands of human faces,
frozen by death. No one shall remain untouched by this day.”

“What makes today so different from
the others?” asked Me’shan. “Is it because of their superior numbers?”

Ruon shook his head and pointed to
the sky. “They are not alone.”

As if on cue, a patch of black
appeared overhead. Tendrils of the impossible darkness spread outward like a
disease until it blocked out any hint of light.

“Cha-sak,” Sitara said in a low
voice.

Many of the soldiers cried out in
fear, and Adesina suspected that not all of the crying voices were part of the
Seharan or L’avan armies.

She frowned, and her voice was
strong with determination. “We are not alone either.”

She called forth her
vyala
,
letting it fill every corner of her being. She anchored her mind to Ravi and
let the power swirl around her like a tempest. She raised her hand toward the
sky and a ball of light shot out of it. It was a much larger version of what
she used when she needed to light her way, and it hovered in the sky like an
artificial sun.

The soldiers took heart and raised
a cheer.

“Adesina! Adesina!”

Ruon pointed to a spot in the air.
“There,” he said to Sitara.

The Serraf sent out a beam of her
vyala
,
and just as Adesina was about to ask the purpose behind her actions, the
vyala
collided with something invisible and caused a powerful explosion.

“What was that?” Adesina gasped.

“The blackened sky covers Cha-sak’s
attacks,” explained Ruon. “Your light source will enable the soldiers to fight,
but it will not reveal demonic attacks.”

“Ruon is able to See the
explosions, and then he shows me where to stop them from happening,” Sitara
added.

“There,” Ruon pointed again.

Sitara sent another beam of
vyala
where he pointed and the Light and Dark powers clashed with blinding force.

Breyen seemed to realize that
Cha-sak could not destroy their enemies as easily as predicted, and he ordered
the army of mercenaries and Shimat forward.

As soon as the enemy army began to
move, Me’shan began shouting orders.

“L’avan, ready! Red One forward!”

The orders which were passed
quickly through the ranks. A line of L’avan soldiers stepped forward and each
called upon their
vyala
. Adesina could see their eyes glowing with
power, and the waves of their magic shot forward toward the advancing force.

Under normal circumstances, the
enemy would have been met with illusions that would have sent the soldiers into
disarray. However, the darkness that Cha-sak had spread over the sky seemed to
be impairing the illusions, which relied on the bending of light. The
mercenaries continued to move forward, unbothered by the attempts of the Red
L’avan.

“Red One back,” ordered Me’shan.
“Red Two, Gold, and Orange forward.”

Three groups moved forward to
replace the first, and a new wave of magical attacks began.

The Gold group only consisted of
half a dozen soldiers. The gold L’avan ability had to do with energy, which
usually meant either depleting an enemy’s energy and making them collapse or
adding to the energy of allies. L’iam had this ability, but something had
happened to him during his capture the year before. When he had fought Adesina
just after Faryl’s rescue, he had used his powers to call down lightning from
the sky—something he had never attempted before. The latent ability had not
disappeared after L’iam was freed from Basha’s control, and he had begun to
develop it. Other L’avan with gold in their eyes were tested to see if they
could learn to wield their powers in a similar manner, and the small Gold group
were the only ones who proved apt. A large number of children seemed to have
potential, but it appeared that most of the adult L’avan were too limited by
what they believed was—or was not—possible for their
vyala
to
accomplish.

The six Gold L’avan now stood at
the front of the army, closing their eyes in intense concentration. Their hands
were joined as they stood there, linking their powers into a single well from
which they could all draw. This made their task an easier one.

While they were preparing their
lightning strikes, the Red Two and Orange groups were busy sending out streams
of
vyala
to hinder and hurt the Shimat force. Enemy arrows were thrown
back to their source, the ground warped and cracked under the feet of the
advancing soldiers, in some places the earth erupted and sent mercenaries
flying.

As the enemy soldiers stumbled and
fell, the lightning began to rain down on their heads.

It was a concentrated attack from
the Gold group. Dozens of bolts fell from the sky in quick succession, killing
and wounding the Shimat forces in large groups. The deafening roar of thunder
washed over the field, causing almost every soldier to flinch. The frenzy
lasted only a few seconds, but the damage was considerable.

When the last of the lightning
strikes fell, the Gold group collapsed in one motion. They had exhausted their
vyala
and were immediately unconscious.

“Have them carried back to the
camp,” commanded Adesina.

Me’shan didn’t wait for the Shimat
to recover from the barrage of magical attacks. He called for the next
wave—this time a group of Seharan soldiers.

“Archers,” he ordered.

The archers mainly consisted of
Seharan hunters, but they were all skilled with the bow. They had been
positioned along the eastern side of the hills that overlooked the battlefield,
not far from the river that ran all through the valley. The height of the hill
gave them greater range than the archers in the Shimat army, which was a
much-needed advantage.

The simple Seharans had only been
soldiers for a month or two, but they took their orders with pride. Each archer
raised his or her bow and took careful aim.

Adesina took her cue from her
father and issued instructions of her own. “Cavalry and Rashad at the ready!”

While horses were common in Sehar,
few of them had been trained for battle, and even fewer felt comfortable in the
presence of Rashad. The cavalry consisted mostly of L’avan horses and riders,
and there were less than three hundred of them. Fortunately, the large majority
of the Shimat’s mercenaries were without horses.

Adesina rode at the head of the
cavalry, prepared to lead them into battle, and Ravi was joined by Riel to lead
the Rashad. The L’avan queen raised her Blood Sword and let her
vyala
flow through it, causing it to shine like a beacon.

“Be safe, my daughter,” whispered
Me’shan in a voice that only she could hear.

Adesina gave her father a tender
smile before turning back toward her enemies. “Forward,” she shouted.

The sleek forms of the Rashad and
the horses sprang forward in a unified motion. The thunder of the hoofbeats
pounded in Adesina’s blood, and her mind became completely focused on the
battle ahead. Every sense in her body seemed amplified.

She could smell the freshly churned
earth and the lingering scent of ozone from the lightning. The wind whipped
across her face and her tightly pinned hair tried to break free of its bonds.
The dirty faces of the Shimat mercenaries became more distinct as Torith
galloped closer.