The Unfinished World (The Armor of God Book 2) (24 page)

More than once he heard the same remark from different people, including Jena: “You two are starting to look alike—he’s ways bigger, but you could be brothers!”

Garros laughed at these, and though Ezra knew he should be flattered, the concept of losing all of his hair still made him anxious, despite having lost it in what some would call a heroic act; he blamed his stupid vanity and tried to fight it.

After at least eight hours of sleep, they dressed in borrowed robes—a traditional attire in Clairvert that made him feel comfortable for the first time in weeks—and finally met with William Heath for a late debriefing.

The man had been suspiciously reluctant of meeting them at the entrance of the city, and it was clear to Ezra that it was because of Lazarus. William was afraid of the monstrous version of Milos Ravana, as though he could easily recognize it as a force of evil. He saw in it something he didn’t see in any of the other Creuxen.

It was hard to blame him; Lazarus was horrifying, even by the standards of giant robotic monsters.

“To be perfectly frank, soldiers, I was worried,” he had said when they met him in the privacy of the chapel behind William’s office. “You took longer than I anticipated, and when that thing showed up outside with blood on its hands, I was sure something had gone wrong.”

“Something did go wrong,” Garros said and looked at Akiva, who ignored the comment.

Erin didn’t. She pulled at his clothes and whispered: “Let it go.”

“You told us we wouldn’t run into trouble,” said Garros. “Why were there so many Flecks in there, and why were they so pissed?”

“I’m sorry things went sour. I can’t imagine what happened to you,” he said, and looked directly as Ezra; it wasn’t the lack of hair that alarmed William, but the red spots of tender flesh left where Milos’ power had brushed him. “I imagined that if there were any of those things still roaming the tunnels, they would be either too weak or too scared to attack you.”

“They were scared, but they were not weak,” Erin said. “And they were smart, unusually so. They knew where to go; they were the ones who shut off the repeater, not a rockslide. They did that consciously.”

“That’s not hard to believe; I saw them plan and execute a strategy when Kerek fell,” William said. “They’ve been acting very strange since the Shift. It just tells me that something else is coming—I know it just like I knew Kerek was in danger back before it fell.”

“Clairvert might no longer be safe for you,” said Jena, and looked at Erin. “I wanted to talk to you since yesterday, about this. William was right about the tremors. I felt more than one since you left, and they say they’re growing stronger. These caves are all connected, and if there really are angry Flecks—angry
Carriers
—near here, it might be a good idea to consider relocating.”

“Relocating? You mean moving everyone away from here?” asked William, almost laughing. “That’s impossible.”

“That’s exactly what I mean and I don’t think it’s impossible,” Jena argued. “There are safe islands in the wasteland not far from here. You and the people of this city will be safer out there, away from the Flecks and away from the Asili. There’s nature there, and plants and even some animals. It’s closer to the planet that existed before, and the Flecks don’t go into them.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about, girl,” he said. “We can’t leave this place.”

“Of course we can.”

“No, we can’t. I won’t allow it.”

“Somehow I feel your brother said the same thing when you proposed moving away from Kerek,” Jena said, and the comment made William clench his jaw.

“Jena, stop,” Akiva said.

Ignoring him, she turned to Erin. “This place isn’t as safe as we think. Maybe it was, but that was before Lys—before the Shift. That thing is growing stronger, and it’s just beyond these walls. I’ve been thinking about it ever since we were locked in the cells, and hearing what you guys fought back there only makes it more vital. People are being locked up or exiled just because they
live
here. How is that living? It’s not even
surviving
.”

“How do you intend to move hundreds of people hundreds of miles? The Laani are disappearing, but the wasteland isn’t safe yet,” asked Erin.

“We have four—I mean, five—Creux. Including Milos Ravana. Erin, I can get this done, if you let me make a plan, and offer to do your part.”

Erin looked at Jena, reluctant. “This isn’t why we came, Jena. We’re supposed to protect Roue.”

“No, we’re supposed to protect
people
,” Ezra said, and Jena smiled at him. “Jena is right. I know it’s what my mother would’ve done. I’ll help.”

“Fair enough,” said Erin. “Okay. If you can think of a way to do it without interfering with our main objective, which I really don’t want you to forget, then be my guest. If you figure out a plan that makes sense, I’ll listen to you. If you convince me, I’ll play my part. You have the lead on this.”

William’s face had turned red, his brow furrowed in silent rage, most of it focused on Jena. “Who do you think you are?”

“I’m no one,” Jena said. It wasn’t defiant, but her confidence masked the words as such.

“Mr. Heath, relocating your people isn’t why we are here,” Erin said. “We’re on a mission, and we’re on your side. The repeater is on, so communication with Roue should be up. We did our part and I would appreciate if you’d do yours.”

It took William a few moments to cool down and give a reluctant nod. “We’ll talk about this later, you can be sure. As far as our deal, I promised two things, and I intend to keep both promises. Parks and Perry, if you’re ready, then come with me. You can meet with the others in the city proper after we’re done.”

“What are you talking about?” asked Ezra, noticing Garros’ smile.

“We’ll talk to you later,” said Erin.

“When we’re done, I’ll take you to the Asili,” he said and pointed towards a red curtain draped at the far end of the chamber, a veil covering the way to Lys. “If you think you can handle it.”

“Wait, where are you going?” Ezra said, and noticed that both Jena and Akiva were as confused as he was. “I thought we were all going back there.”

“We are,” said Erin. “But there’s something we have to do first. It’ll only take a few hours, and then we’ll meet again. Jena, use this time to plan a strategy, if you can.”

Ezra had grown used to knowing, for once, what was happening around him, so he didn’t appreciate being kept in the dark. He was angry at Erin and Garros; after all they had been through, they should trust him enough to keep him in their plans—he was now a part of them, whether they liked it or not.

Not even the fact that both Jena and Akiva were also uninvolved made him feel better.

He knew he should have stayed with Jena and helped her begin planning the exodus to which William was suspiciously opposed, but he only wanted to be alone, so he left her with Akiva; they could fill him in later.

When he emerged from the hallway to Clairvert proper, he noticed there was more movement in the city than he had seen in the previous days. People were setting up torches around the dais at the heart of the city, and the massive pillar reflected the fire beautifully. Seeing the sunlight bleed through the thick clouds outside was a rare blessing, and it was particularly beautiful at this hour, when the light crept through small gaps in the stone of the atrium; it almost seemed to charge the blue stone walls with light.

Ezra noticed Malachi struggling to carry long boards made of some hard material similar to the artificial wood he knew from Roue, so he offered his help.

“Thanks,” said the guard, immediately accepting Ezra’s support. “I just need to take them over here. Yes, this is good, thank you.”

“What’s going on?”

“I thought you knew,” he said, walking back across the dais to grab another board, fully expecting Ezra’s help again. “There’s a celebration tonight. For your friends. You, I suppose. We don’t get many reasons to celebrate here so we don’t miss a chance. It helps forget about the end of the world, you know?” Malachi laughed.

“I didn’t know,” he said, grabbing another board and walking back to the dais. He noticed the boards were actually tables, and were being set up by other volunteers. “I thought we were in some kind of hurry here. Guess I was wrong.”

Though he’d love to forget about Lys and—as Malachi put it—the end of the world, as well the possibility of its repetition, Ezra was surprised that Garros and Erin had forgotten about the urgency of their mission. This was no time to celebrate; a destructive god was waiting to rise, and could do so at any moment.

Once more, he suspected there was something he wasn’t being told. He rubbed his bald head, still entirely new to the feeling.

“You look like you could use some time to relax,” said Malachi, setting down the board. “No offense.”

“None taken, but it doesn’t matter what I could use; our mission is bigger than any of that.”

Malachi smiled. “Thank you for your help. My father is at his post but if you want to go back to my home to get some rest, or some food, please do—you don’t have to stay here. I understand you did some important work this morning, that you even got hurt, and I want to offer my sincere gratitude.”

The armored man bowed to him; it made Ezra uncomfortable, so he took that chance to leave. He had no interest in a celebration, even if it was in their honor.

After leaving, he realized that he had nowhere to go; killing time wasn’t something he ever enjoyed doing, especially after having found an actual sense of purpose—something very few people left on the world could claim.

His boredom took him to explore the city a little bit more, but he quickly found that there was not much more to Clairvert than he had already seen; the vast majority of the city was housed within the one hall, and his only space of exploration involved getting lost among the many clusters of houses and huts, scattered in many different levels of height.

It didn’t take him long to see almost all that there was to see, but he had to admit that what he found was uniquely beautiful. If Roue was a city built to emulate the old world, Clairvert was one out of a whole other one. Everything, from the odd architecture of the inner city, the strange patterns and markings on the floors, and even the way the people dressed and talked, was entirely alien.

Maybe Clairvert was also displaced from space, not only from time.

Eventually, Ezra found himself in the atrium, looking at Clairvert from its entrance: how the streets and buildings rose up from the ground to great heights, almost touching the distant ceiling, was an amazing testimony to William Heath’s patience and leadership. Kerek may have fallen, millions might have died with it, but
something
was left in its wake.

“Why aren’t you back there?” Farren said, suddenly standing next to Ezra. He had been leading a small troop of other guards, all of whom kept walking when the captain peeled away from the group.

“I don’t know. I wanted to be alone for a while.”

“I’m sorry about what happened back there,” he said, and motioned at his own head. “The leader of your group, the big guy, he told me about it.”

“Garros isn’t the leader—Erin is, if anyone. And I’m fine. It’s just hair, and burns. I’m
fine
.”

“All right,” he said, looking away. “You said you wanted to be alone so I’ll let you get right to it. Thank you again, for your service.”

Farren walked away, cape swaying behind him.

With a sigh, Ezra looked back at the maze leading outside, and took the first entryway he saw, easily slipping among the folding stones to meet the wasteland. The sun was setting, and Lazarus was still vigilant, standing tall and surrounded by four other Creuxen, all of which were down on one knee.

Don’t believe the lies. The lies are inside.

Ezra was startled when he saw Elena standing by the entrance of the tunnel leading to her refuge.

“What are you doing here; they’re going to see you!” Ezra looked back at the atrium, hoping not to see Farren standing there. The shape of the huge wall led his eyes up to the watchman’s post, where Solis would be keeping guard. “They’ll throw you into that damn prison, or farther out into the wasteland.”

“So what if they do?” she said, looking up at her with the beautiful eyes that caught the last sunlight and made it dance.

“So you won’t last very long.” Ezra grabbed her by the arm and pulled her towards the hidden tunnel to her refuge. Elena chuckled when she grabbed him by the hand instead. It was cold.

“Ezra, I like that you want to take care of me, but I know when I’m being seen,” she said when they were inside the tunnel. “Is it something you usually do? Take care of others?”

“No—well, maybe,” he said, leading the way deeper into the passageway. “Not until recently, I suppose. Before that I didn’t really do anything with my life. I was okay with letting the Laani win.”

They came to the small, dark chamber at the end of the tunnel and she sat down on the floor. Small patches of grass had grown next to the walls; he hadn’t noticed them the first time he was there.

“What changed?” she asked, and invited him to sit next to her.