Wings of Arian (36 page)

“What is his ultimate goal?”

He snorted in disgust, his eyes focusing back in again on Kiora, “He tells his followers that he is fighting for a better world. Dralazar insists that he is trying to create a Utopia. A world where all are provided for, leading to a better life.”

“But how…” Kiora started to ask

“By making sure that everyone does exactly what he says. Without choices there will be no mistakes,” he said bitterly.

“You no longer believe him?”

“No, last time marked the first time that our people chose to leave a battle before it was finished.”

Kiora drew in a quick breath. “Dralazar must have been very angry.”

“I am sure he would have been had he realized. Shapeshifters are much harder to take inventory of than others. That, and the causalities were so high he had stopped counting.” Kiora flinched.

“Why did you leave?” Emane asked.

“I had become suspicious of Dralazar. I began to make a point of being wherever he was. Sometimes as something I was not if we were in large groups, sometimes bubbled. I learned quickly that Dralazar was anything but what he had claimed to be. His wish is for power and glory and it matters not who dies in the process. He wishes for nothing but pain and misery and fear. He feeds off of fear, revels in it.” Drustan spat on the ground. “I have watched him torture his own followers. He wishes to be crowned supreme ruler and when he is, he will rule with a terror unsurpassed.”

“The others believed what you had seen?”

“They had already witnessed some of it themselves and there were whispers of more. When I confirmed what they had already suspected, we made the decision to withdraw from the battle.”

“Did you join Arian and Eleana?” Kiora asked.

“To my discredit, no. Had we done that, Dralazar would have known what we had done. We could not risk making ourselves a target. Our numbers had diminished greatly during the war. It was a matter of self preservation.” He bowed his head. “I am not proud of it.”

“How closely did you work with Dralazar?” Emane asked.

“Very close, I was one of his top advisors.”

Emane’s eyebrows furrowed in suspicion. “And he didn’t notice you were gone?”

“I told him that I was headed to the northern most borders to check on the troops we had stationed there. It was near the end of the war and we never came back. I had hoped that he assumed we were dead. But when he summoned us with his smoke signal, my hopes were proven to be false.”

Leaning forward Emane asked, “You have had strategic meetings with Dralazar?”

“Of course.”

He dropped back, his wheels turning, running through the possibilities. “That could prove to be very valuable.”

Kiora stifled a laugh.

“What?” Emane asked.

“I believe that’s what he was trying to tell you.”

Later that night, Kiora waited until the others were asleep before she stood and tiptoed past them.

“Do you mind if I join you?” Emane whispered.

Kiora almost shot out of her skin, “Emane!” she hissed, trying not to wake Drustan. “I thought you were asleep.”

“Obviously.” Emane sat up and grinned at her. “May I join you?”

That grin softened her heart. “Sure.”

As they went to walk through the weeping branches they heard Drustan. “You two be careful.”

Kiora threw her arms up, “Oh, good grief!”

Emane laughed, “You know Kiora, for being so perceptive you are a terrible judge of when people are sleeping.”

She heard Drustan chuckle as Emane followed her, still laughing, out into the perfect night.

The silver trees were glittering in the moonlight, even more breathtaking now, than when they had arrived.

“How could we not know that all of this existed?” she asked, looking out at the glittering landscape. “Our world is so small and within it another world has been hiding for a thousand years.”

“I don’t know. It just never seemed important before, did it?”

“None of us were ever given the option to decide whether or not it was important before, were we?” she said, and then felt bad for it as she saw him flinch with guilt out of the corner of her eye.

Clearing his throat he asked, “Where are we going?”

“Anywhere. I couldn’t sleep, too much on my mind.”

Emane reached out and grabbed her hand. “You know you can talk to me, right?”

“I know,” she drooped. “But, you will never truly understand.” Her voice betrayed the sadness she felt.

Emane stood quietly, looking down at her hand, his thumb running up and over hers in the moonlight. “I might understand better if you tried to explain it to me.”

Kiora was flooded with Emane’s feelings again. She didn’t deserve to be loved this much by someone.

Emane looked up hesitantly, in time to see Kiora’s eyes drop. “You felt it again didn’t you?”

“Come on,” she said, pulling his hand to come with her. They walked in silence through the quiet night listening to the waves distantly working the seashore.

Emane glanced over periodically. “You are not going to give me a chance?” he finally prodded.

She sighed shaking her head, “If I try to explain, I am just going to hurt your feelings.”

“I am willing to take that risk.”

Kiora bit her lip and finally glanced back at him. Dropping her hand, he held out both of his arms with a goofy grin that said, ‘lay it on me.’

She broke, unraveling before him like a giant ball of yarn. “Everything hurts Emane, every feeling of evil or pain or hurt. It kills me!” she said, clenching her fist at her chest. “The feelings that you are feeling, the ones I feel, are strong. But my feelings are stronger, so much more intense, about everything. Love, pain, joy.” She was trying desperately to make him understand. “The pain I felt when the Fallen Ones died today was stronger than anything you have ever felt.”

Emane jerked backwards. “What?” He looked like she had slapped him in the face. “How could you possibly know that?”

“I know,” she sighed, “that’s what’s wrong.” She wanted him to understand so badly. “You wanted to know what is bothering me? Malena calls it my perceptiveness. Joy is so wonderful and pain is so horrible. I feel everything to an extreme that you will never understand.”

“Do you think it was wrong, killing the ones we did? Is that why it hurts so badly?”

“No, we had no choice and it was for the greater good. Malena helped me to understand that, and that has made it… bearable. But it hasn’t taken the pain away.” Kiora looked into Emane’s eyes, hoping, wishing, that he would see, even a glimpse of what she was feeling.

He held her gaze for a while before sighing, “You’re right Kiora, I don’t understand.” His eyes dropped. “I wish I did. Are you like this with everything? All your feelings?”

Kiora nodded. Emane processed that and then slowly a smile began to spread over his face until it could go no further.

“What?” she asked.

“Nothing, just thinking.”

“You can’t do that!”

“Of course I can, and I will. I am not telling you what I was thinking,” he grabbed her hand again still grinning, “I can’t keep my feelings from you, I should at least be entitled to my thoughts.”

She couldn’t argue with that. It really wasn’t fair that she had known his feelings before he was ready to tell her.

“Alright, fine.” They started walking again. “Malena said you are supposed to balance me.”

“That sounds familiar. Aleric told me that we balanced each other.”

“Kiiiioooooorraaa.” Her name came whispering through the trees as if it were riding on the mist.

She stopped dead in her tracks. “Did you hear that?” Kiora asked.

“Hear what?”

“Kiiooooooorraaaa.””That!”

“No, I didn’t hear anything.”

“Just listen!” Emane and Kiora stood, listening. But what came next was different, it sounded like rattling. Almost like the toy her mother had made her as a child, a gourd filled with rice.

“Is that what you heard?” Emane asked, his heard jerking around looking for the source.

“No, Someone was calling my name before.”

“I didn’t hear that, but I can certainly hear this. It’s getting closer.”

The sound grew louder and closer. Emane’s hand inched backwards to the hilt of his sword.

Kiora grabbed his arm. “No.”

“Kiora!””No Emane, it’s ok.”

“How can you know it’s ok when you don’t know what it is?” he snapped. He shifted back from one foot to the other, eyes darting in search of the sound.

“I don’t know. It’s just what I feel.”

Out of the mist, a sea of black moved across land. They squinted trying to make it out. As it moved closer, the sea of black revealed itself as a mass of beetles scuttling across the grass towards them. They seemed jet black until the moonlight hit them— then they shimmered a royal blue and emerald green, changing back and forth between the two colors as they scurried towards them. They had large eyes and two exceptionally long antennas, which preceded their arrival.

“Kiora, I don’t like this,” Emane whispered.

Kiora’s heart was pounding, she never had liked bugs and these were the size of walnuts, some larger. Despite the fear, there was an underlying sense of peace that Kiora knew was not coming from her.

“I know— I don’t like it either. But, it’s going to be ok.”

“I’m not going to have watch as one of them eats you am I?” he said, placing his body between her and the onslaught of beetles.

She stepped out from behind him, placing her hand reassuringly on his shoulder. “I have no idea.”

“Kiora,” he hissed keeping his eyes on the beetles. “What are you doing?”

“It’s ok Emane, stay here,” she said, her hand trailing off his shoulder as she walked closer.

Once she had separated herself from Emane, the beetles scuttled forward, surrounding her. Emane was struggling to keep his feet planted where they were.

One of the larger beetles left the group and hurried over to Emane. Emane took a step back and went for his sword again.

“Emane stop! It’s ok, let him do what he is going to do.”

“Going to do! What is he going to…?” Emane abruptly stopped talking as the beetle scurried up his leg and onto his shirt, “Kiora, what is he doing?” Emane said through clenched teeth, trying to remain still.

“Emane, I really don’t know, everything is so guarded. I am only sensing what they want me to. Please just trust me and hold still.”

The beetle zipped inside the open neck of his shirt and Emane turned stiff as a board. Camouflaged, it was now just a buggy shaped bump moving across his shoulder. It moved rapidly, winding itself down and around his armband, pausing once, before moving its way back up. Having inspected what it came for, it emerged and scurried back down his leg. Emane remained stiff, watching it warily, as the invading bug hurried back to its comrades.

Once the beetle had rejoined the others, the entire group was still for a moment. Kiora and Emane watched silently, their eyes flitting from the beetles, to each other, and back again. Suddenly in one cohesive effort, all of the beetles closed in on Kiora. She clenched her fists tight at her side, screwing her eyes shut. But even with closed eyes, she could still feel the tiny legs grabbing at her mangled dress and pulling themselves up. They clicked and ticked as if they were talking to each other, a crescendo of sound as they climbed. Panic closed in as the weight of her dress increased exponentially, and the scratch of insect feet raked over her skin where her dress had ripped. Taking a deep breath, she tried to focus only on the calm feeling that had accompanied these beetles upon their arrival, which was difficult to find at the moment. She was also being overrun with waves of concern from Emane.

The little feet with their underlying chatter had reached her bodice.
Of course
, she thought to herself, through deep breaths trying not to panic.
Emane gets one, and I get them all.

She was worried that they were about to climb up and onto her head, encasing her completely when all movement stopped. Breathing heavily she hesitantly opened one eye, and then the other, finding herself staring at the largest beetle perched upon her shoulder.

Startled, she saw something in those gigantic eyes that she was not expecting. An awareness, an intelligence. A whirlwind of impressions overtook her mind. It was so different from talking to Arturo, there were no words but she knew what they were trying to tell her.

Tell no one, it will help. Time is not now, but later, secrets and trust.

They trusted her and they had a secret. She was to remember that for a later date and was to tell no one. That specific impression waved over her again and again,
tell no one.

Eleana? She whispered to the beetle.

The impression came harder and clearer.
No one!

“When?” She whispered back. She didn’t understand how long she was to keep this secret for, and for what purpose.

Another impression came,
You will know when it is time. Do not forget us.

The beetles, having delivered their message, turned at once and scurried back down the way they had come. Moving in unison they once again became a sea of black, dissipating into the mist. But as they left the impressions continued to wave back over her,
do not forget, tell no one, a great secret, do not forget.

Kiora watched their retreat, into the mist long after she couldn’t see them anymore.

Emane finally managed to unfreeze himself. “Kiora!” He ran over to her, running his hands over her arms, looking for injuries. “Kiora, are you ok?”

“I’m fine,” she said, her eyes unmoving from where the last beetle had disappeared.

“What just happened?” he asked slowly.

“I am not sure,” she said, finally turning to look at him. “All I know is that we can’t tell anyone what just happened.”

“Anyone?””Not anyone, I even asked about Eleana.”

“Those things were speaking to you?” he asked incredulously.

“Not in words, but yes. Emane promise me— we tell no one, ever.”

She was looking at him with the same amount of intensity that she had in the cave right before Drustan ate her as a multi-headed monster. “I promise, I will tell no one.”