The Quest for the Heart Orb (45 page)

Bredon heard Kapia’s scream and leapt to his feet, his leg already healed.  He saw Kapia running toward him, her eyes wide with anguish, then caught movement out of the corner of his eye.  He leapt in front of Kapia again, just in time to take the strike of the snake at the end of Marene’s tail on his shoulder. 

“Fool!” Marene screamed as Bredon’s vision blurred and he fell to his knees.  He toppled over backward, his breath already coming in harsh shallow gasps.

“Will he die?” Kapia demanded as she fell to her knees beside him.

“No, but he will suffer for his interference,” Marene replied. “That poison is of my own making Bredon.  It will not wear off soon, not even for you.”

Karma watched Kapia run to Bredon’s side, relieved that Marene seemed inclined to let Kapia live for the moment.  Her strength was slowly returning, but so far she could barely raise the Ti-Ank from her lap.  She felt Zakiel struggling beside her, and knew that neither of them had enough strength left to save themselves.

Then Marene turned her attention to them.  She raised Zatroa, and Karma turned her head to look at Zakiel, wanting her last sight to be of the man she loved.  When she saw his eyes widen, she turned back to see Nikura running across the rooftop toward them, growing larger and larger with every step.  His mouth opened and he roared loud enough that the stone beneath them shook with it.  Nikura stopped halfway between Marene, and Karma and Zakiel, but this was a Nikura that Karma had never seen nor imagined. 

He was even bigger than Marene, his face still flat, his eyes still blue and round, his ears still pointed, but his blue gray and silver fur now appeared to be made of metal.  A row of long, thin, shining metallic spikes ran from the top of his head to the tip of his tail, and even his claws were long, silver scimitars that flashed in the sun. 

“Nikura?” she asked doubtfully.

“Lady Techu,” he said.  “It appears that, once again, you’ve done more than your share.  Do you mind if I have a bit of fun, too?”

“Not at all,” Karma replied tiredly. 

“If I destroy this abomination of darkness, it will cost Sir Bredon his life,” Nikura said, not even flinching when Marene shot something out of Zatroa at him.  The metallic fur on his body instantly flattened into a shining metallic surface, reflecting whatever spell Marene had used straight back at her.  Karma was surprised and impressed to see Marene stumble backward a step with the force of it.

“Destroy her body if you can, Nikura,” Bredon said, just loud enough to be heard.  Karma frowned, wondering how Bredon had known what Nikura said, then realized at almost the same moment that Nikura was speaking out loud.  She was hearing him for the first time with her ears, and everyone else could hear him too.

“This animal hasn’t the power to harm me,” Marene scoffed.  Karma smiled tiredly. 
That
had been a mistake. 

Nikura’s eyes narrowed, and Marene smirked as she waited to hear what he would say.  For once, Nikura didn’t pause to argue.  Instead, he attacked the
Myrkur
, moving so fast that he was no more than the bright, silvery blur that had come to Karma’s rescue so many times, if a bit larger.  But Marene was just as fast.  Everyone moved back out of the way as the two giant creatures slammed into each other, then began rolling around in a slashing, screeching ball of blurring teeth and claws.  After several heart-stopping moments they broke apart, backed away from each other, and then leapt at each other again.  The next time they broke apart they circled warily, each looking for an opening.

“Nikura, love, isn’t it my turn yet?”
Ankiru asked as she sauntered across the roof, weaving through the watching Hunters.

“Are you trying to take away my fun, Anki?” Nikura asked, and every eye turned to the small cream and chocolate Sphin that, until Nikura spoke, no one but Karma had noticed since only she could hear her.  Karma struggled to gather a little energy which she sent into the Ti-Ank, then out to Ankiru so everyone could hear her.

Ankiru strolled right up to Nikura, the top of her head barely reaching as high as his knee.  She rubbed her cheek against his leg, then turned her back to him.  She sat down facing Marene, curling her long tail around her paws as though she hadn’t a care in the world.  It was such an odd thing to do, given how tiny she was in comparison to the combatants, that even Marene stopped to frown down at her.

“I know Lady Techu said you could have some fun, Niku, and I’m sure you deserve it, but I want some too,”
she said. 
“Will you deny me?”

“By no means,” Nikura said with a chuckle.  Then he sat down behind his mate and wrapped his tail around his paws just as Ankiru had.

Marene’s yellow eyes flashed red with fury, then she smiled and raised Zatroa again, this time aiming it at Ankiru.  She started to laugh as she stared straight into the diminutive Sphin’s soft chocolate eyes and, just that fast, she was trapped. 

She could not pull her eyes away from Ankiru’s no matter how hard she tried.  She called on her own power, but it did not respond.  She reached for the power of Zatroa, but it was like slamming her hand into stone.  She was so stunned at being cut off from her magic that it took her a few moments to realize that she couldn’t do anything at all. 

She couldn’t move.  She couldn’t speak.  She couldn’t scream or growl.  She couldn’t even breathe.  She tried to shift back into her human form, tried to force the serpents on her head to spray their venom at the Sphin, tried to make her wings flap so they could carry her away from this place until she came up with an appropriate punishment for those who were witnessing this moment of weakness.  But absolutely nothing worked.  She was forced to watch helplessly as the Sphin’s eyes slowly changed.  They went from rich chocolate to tan, to beige, to white, and then to silver.  Instead of eyes, they were now twin mirrors that reflected the
Myrkur’s
image back to her in absolute, exquisite detail.

“Cover your eyes, everyone,” Nikura warned as Ankiru’s eyes began to grow brighter and brighter.  Within moments everyone on the rooftop was forced to not just close their eyes, but cover them with their arms or hands as well.  Even then, everyone saw the blinding flash of light to some degree or another although, luckily, no one saw what Marene saw.

When Karma was able to open her eyes again she could only gape at the sight before her.  Where moments before Marene had stood in her green scaled
Myrkur
form, now sat what appeared to be a statue carved from some sort of dirty gray and pitted stone.  It was complete in every detail down to the Djinn scepter still grasped in one clawed hand, and a string of venomous saliva hanging from her open mouth. 

“Well done, Anki,”
Nikura said, resuming his normal appearance.

“Is she dead?” Tiari asked.

“That is a good question,”
Ankiru said.

“What do you mean?” Karma asked after extending the thread of energy to Nikura so all could hear him too.

“One might reasonably expect that a being turned to stone would be irrefutably dead,”
she replied. 
“There is no blood, no heart, no flesh.  How could such a thing live?”

“And yet?” Karma asked.

“And yet, I feel her,”
Ankiru said.
  “Trapped within the stone, yes, but not dead.  She is…suspended.  For a time.
”

“She cannot die,” Bredon gasped weakly.  “But she can be banished forever to the darkness.”

Ankiru cocked her head sideways as she gazed at Bredon where he still laid, Kapia kneeling beside him. 
“Ah,”
she said. 
“Myrkur means
darkness
.  I hadn’t put that together.  I suppose my head is still a bit muddled.”

“It’s to be expected after a thousand years, Anki,”
Nikura said.

Ankiru purred as she rubbed her cheek on his shoulder.  Under other circumstances, Karma thought she would have laughed at the oh-so-serious Sphin.  But not now.

“He is her fudaso?
” Ankiru asked.

“Yes,” Karma answered. 

Ankiru sighed, but said no more as she turned to rub her head against Nikura’s shoulder once more.  Karma and Zakiel struggled to their feet and went to Bredon where they knelt again.  Kapia sobbed at the sight of blood running from Bredon’s mouth.  “You were getting better a moment ago,” Kapia said.  “Why are you bleeding now?”

“Marene’s magic was healing the damage caused by the poison almost as fast as it occurred,” he said weakly.  “But her magic is silenced for the moment.”

“What did you mean about her being banished?” Karma asked.

“I am her
fudaso
,” Bredon said.  “Her anchor in the light.  She is
Myrkur
, a creature of utter darkness.”

“I don’t understand, Bredon,” Zakiel said. 

“He who chooses to become
cin sahib
is evil, but it is, in some ways, a safe path.  He binds his soul to the Djinn, and invites it into his body in exchange for the temporary strength and power he will enjoy while he lives.  When his
fudaso
dies, or if his own body dies, whichever is first, his soul will return to Skiatos with his Djinn master where it remains forever. 

“The
cin-sahib
has limited power and little control in life, and will be forever slave to the Djinn in death.  As you might easily guess, becoming
cin-sahib
held no appeal for Marene.”

“Bredon, enough,” Kapia said.  “You’re using too much of your strength.  This can wait.”  She looked around, spotting Ren not too far away.  “Ren, please, come and use your spines on Bredon!”

“No,
surna
, she can’t,” Bredon said on a gasp. 

“Why not?” Kapia demanded, still waving at Ren to come over.

“Listen to me,” Bredon said.  He waited until Kapia nodded reluctantly.  “Unlike
cin-sahib
, the
Myrkur
is under no one’s control.  But, while the
Myrkur’s
freedom and power are much greater than a
cin sahib
could ever hope to enjoy, so are the risks.  Without a
fudaso
, the
Myrkur
will no longer have an anchor in the light.  Nor will she have an anchor on Skiatos as
cin sahib
do.  The black filth that is her soul will be claimed by the darkest and coldest of all possible hells, and there it will remain for all eternity.”  Bredon gasped, then panted for a few moments.  His voice was growing weak, but his green eyes shifted from Kapia to Zakiel and held steadily.  “This is an absolute.  There is no bargaining.  No second chances.  No escape.  This was a choice she made of her own free will, knowing all the possible consequences of her decision.  She was not tricked or lied to.”

“How long have you known this?” Kapia asked.

“Some of it just today, but most of it since yesterday,” Bredon said, his voice a whisper.  “I should have figured it out sooner.  It was right in front of me, in front of us all, but I didn’t think of it until Marene told a lie, and I heard the truth.  Only if I die will Marene be forced from the light, freeing Rathira from her forever.”

“With her spirit trapped in the stone, you needn’t die,” Kapia said.  “Ren can heal you.”

“Anki?”
Karma asked silently.

“She will break free,”
Ankiru said sadly. 
“In fact, I think she may do so rather soon.”

Karma looked at Bredon, but he was already shaking his head. 

“She will escape, Kapia.”

“You don’t know that,” she said.

“I do know it,” Bredon said.  “Each second I live gives her another second to grow stronger.  She will escape, and when she does, this chance to be rid of her will be lost forever.  She will take me somewhere out of your reach.  I will suffer for all eternity, and never, ever be allowed to die.  You must never imagine for a moment that there is a way around this, because I promise you, there isn’t.”

“I understand, Bredon,” Zakiel said.  Bredon relaxed a little, but his eyes remained on Kapia.  It was she, more than anyone, who needed to understand and accept this.  Finally, she lifted her chin and nodded once. 

“You honor the Blood of your fathers, Sir Bredon of the House of Bauron,” she said.  “And I, Kapia, Princess of Isiben, shall forever honor your Blood.”  Her voice shook, and the tears continued to fall, but Bredon relaxed in the knowledge that she understood.  She would not harbor regrets, would not second guess this decision and most of all, she would not hate him for doing what he had to do.

“What can we do to help you?” Zakiel asked.

“A moment with Kapia, please,” Bredon gasped. 

Kapia watched Karma lean down and kiss Bredon on the forehead, then climb to her feet and walk away.  Before Zakiel could follow her, she caught his arm and shook her head. 

“What is it?” he asked.

“Marry us, Brother,” she said.  “Right here, right now.”

“What?” Zakiel asked, startled. 

“Do it,” she insisted, then looked down into Bredon’s eyes.  “Know that you will live on in our child, Bredon.”

His eyes suddenly filled with a hope that sent a new flood of tears coursing down her cheeks, but she would not break down now.  She would be strong for him.  “You are certain?”

“Yes, Tiari saw the light within me this morning,” she said, squeezing his hand.  Then she looked up at Zakiel who nodded reluctantly. 

He’d read of this in ancient texts, from times of war and blood, so he knew what words to say.  But this wouldn’t be the same as a regular wedding ceremony.  This was short, quick, and cut straight to the heart of what a true marriage was meant to be, without benefit of years of companionship to nurture it along.  He glanced over his shoulder at Karma, and then back to Bredon, putting himself in his friend’s place.  Then he looked at Kapia, at the expression in her eyes as she watched the love of her life dying in front of her, even though a cure for the poison in his veins stood nearby.  She honored their Blood, as she had so many times during their long and difficult journey.  The time had come for him to honor
her
Blood.