“You didn’t stop them joining Dahli?” Tamtee injected.
Baluka shook his head. “Reports of the disappearances came after those of increased traffic, and it all came about the time we learned Qall had joined Dahli.”
“What if this Qall has willingly joined the most loyal?” Ambaru asked. “What if he wants to become the Raen?”
“I doubt he wants his mind replaced by another’s,” Rielle replied.
Ambaru shrugged. “That depends on his state of mind. For some, death is a welcome release.”
“Qall is not suicidal,” Rielle told him.
“Perhaps he wants to be the Successor and sees this as a short cut?”
“He’s never shown that sort of ambition,” Lejihk said.
Rielle nodded in agreement. “If he wanted to be the Successor, he doesn’t have to become the Raen. He’s already powerful enough.”
“But he’s inexperienced,” Tamtee added. “He knows he’ll need support. Maybe he sought that from Dahli.”
“Then why is Dahli threatening to kill the Travellers?” Hapre pointed out. “Wouldn’t it be better to find true supporters, rather than seek out the man who wants to replace his mind with the Raen’s?”
“He’d find support among the Restorers,” Baluka added.
“Stop this!” Ankari cried. She looked at her son. “All of you. There does not need to be a Successor. Don’t be so eager to lay that burden on a person. Especially someone so young!”
Baluka lowered his gaze. “I do not want to, but if Qall joins us and claims the title of Successor, we could more easily create peace in the worlds.”
Ankari opened her mouth to say more, then closed it and shook her head. In her mind her anger simmered, yet she understood why Baluka might welcome the idea of making Qall a leader, whether on his own or of the Restorers. It will allow him to step down from his own position and responsibilities. Still, that does not justify forcing them onto a fragile young man like Qall.
A short silence followed into which Ulma cleared her throat. “Let’s return to discussing the strength of Dahli’s forces.”
The gathered generals and sorcerers exchanged glances, many nodding and a few smiling ruefully.
Baluka drew a deep breath. “I was going to conclude that while we can’t know exactly how strong Dahli’s forces are, his defence strategy choices appear to be straightforward. His forces will probably engage us in the dead worlds. If we arrive as one group, they will send out messages to the others to join them. If we spread our attack over all five worlds, they’ll engage each of our forces separately, stopping any from reaching the base world. If we overcome them, the survivors will retreat to the base world and unite. By then the base world will contain little magic, so we must be careful to retain enough magic to transport ourselves away whether we win or lose, or we risk becoming trapped.”
Rielle opened her mouth to reassure him that she could restore the magic in Dahli’s world if needed, but paused as she realised that everyone here would then know she was no longer ageless. Though she knew that the two former allies of Valhan fully supported the fight to prevent his return, she would not reveal her vulnerabilities unless she had no choice. She could now suffocate between worlds, and couldn’t heal her own injuries. She closed her mouth. The movement had caught Baluka’s gaze and, as he raised his eyebrows, she shook her head.
When should I reveal I am a Maker again? The most obvious reason to was to prevent the fighters abandoning the fight because they needed to retain enough magic to escape the base world. She would not want to lose Qall because she was reluctant to reveal her new ability to quickly generate magic. But there are dangers in telling them too. They might use all their magic only to be trapped if I am killed.
As the discussion dragged on, with the more experienced fighters debating attack strategies, she made up her mind to tell Baluka … but in private. The former allies might read it from his mind later, but it was worth the risk.
An all too familiar name brought her attention back to the conversation.
“… will use insectoids?”
“I doubt it,” Baluka replied. “War machines are not as effective against sorcerers as they are against ordinary people, except perhaps to force us to use more magic.”
“But he may have invented a way to make them more effective,” Ambaru pointed out.
Baluka shook his head. “Tyen has never been happy that his invention has been twisted for use in warfare. The last time we spoke, he was working on a way to destroy them all.”
“You only have his word to go by,” Hapre muttered.
“I believe him,” Baluka said, turning to meet her stare. Her lips pressed into a thin line, but she nodded and looked away. “In any case, they aren’t a threat to sorcerers.”
“It would be a shame if they were all destroyed,” Tamtee murmured. “They can be beneficial too. I’ve seen them used as an alarm against intruders or thieves, or for protection. Or to carry messages. Or simply as delightful toys.”
“Should we use them?” Pather asked. All turned to the old Restorer, some with a scowl, others with eyebrows raised in consideration.
“No,” Baluka replied. “For the same reason I gave before: war machines are less of a threat to sorcerers than to ordinary people. I doubt we’d have time to construct them anyway. But if anyone can suggest a way they might be used to our advantage, I am willing to consider it.” He looked around. Nobody spoke, and many shook their heads. Baluka nodded. “Shall we move on?”
As the discussion shifted to discussing how to find out more about Dahli’s base, Rielle wondered how Tyen would feel about his invention being dismissed so easily. He’d be relieved, she thought. She frowned at the certainty she felt. Is Baluka’s belief that Tyen is not a violent man having an effect on me? He might be right, but that doesn’t mean Tyen isn’t a deceiver and a spy. He’s still sided with those who want to kill me and replace Qall’s mind with Valhan’s.
Anger stirred but she held it back and forced her attention back to the meeting. When it ended a long while later, the generals rose and automatically formed four groups: Tamtee and Ambaru joining a handful of other former allies, the Restorers and Travellers seeking their own kind, and the spokesmen and leaders of worlds who had answered the call to arms gathering together. Rielle returned to Ulma’s side, and when Baluka suggested they and his parents retreat to his private rooms until he could join them, she readily agreed on their behalf.
By the time the three Travellers had settled into the chairs in Baluka’s room, they were in the midst of a heated discussion about how being considered the Successor would cause no end of trouble for Qall. Ankari was particularly angry, saying he would never get the chance to have a proper life at this rate—if he survived Dahli’s plots. They didn’t stop until Baluka entered the room some time later, when they politely changed the subject.
“I have to say it again: thank you for coming,” Baluka said, looking from one face to the other. “I know it’s mostly for Qall’s sake—and the family’s—but—”
“More than Qall’s,” Lejihk interrupted. “I meant what I said before. Now that the Raen is dead, the Travellers are no longer forbidden to alter a world’s affairs. Not that we will meddle without a great deal of caution. In matters like this, which affect all worlds, we are willing to involve ourselves again.”
Baluka gazed at his father. “So much has changed since I left you.”
Indeed it has, Rielle thought. Her belief that it was better not to meddle with worlds was based in part on the Travellers’ philosophy of non-interference. Valhan’s admission that he could not always predict outcomes strengthened that belief. Tyen and my disastrous attempt to negotiate peace between Doum and Murai convinced me it was right. Maybe it depends on the world, and the kind of interference. She thought of the world of the factory workers. The drawing she had left them with was meant to encourage the workers to rebel. I guess I can’t help interfering. I can only hope I haven’t made th
ings worse there, and that the ultimate result will be a fairer society.
The Travellers had fallen silent. Now was as good a time as ever to tell Baluka her secret. She shifted her weight to the front of her chair. “Baluka …” she began, then the doubts crowded in and she could not continue.
His gaze shifted to her. “Rielle … you looked like you wanted to say something earlier.”
“Yes.” She bit her lip, then pressed on. “Something else has changed. You won’t have to worry about having enough magic to leave after the battle. I … I am a Maker again.”
Three sets of eyebrows rose, but Ulma’s dropped into a frown.
Baluka nodded slowly. “It would still take some time for you to—”
“It won’t,” she told him. “I can make a great deal of magic now. Perhaps more than any Maker ever has been able to. When I was chasing Qall, I caught up with him. He took all the magic from the world we were in and left me stranded. After a few days, I decided to use the magic I had left to pattern-shift myself back to being a Maker. It worked, and better than I intended. Watch this …”
She cast about and found the sheets of paper Baluka had brought to write ideas and reminders on and the reed-wrapped blackstick he used to write with. Taking a blank page, she began to draw.
It was awkward at first. She was all too conscious of the others watching her. Taking a deep breath, she pushed all thoughts of them away and concentrated, refining the outline of the Traveller wagon that she’d been trying to draw from memory. When it was roughly outlined, she paused and concentrated on the world’s magic. Sure enough, all around her was rich with power.
Looking up, she found four people staring at her in astonishment, and one in horror.
“Oh no,” Ulma whispered.
Baluka, Ankari and Lejihk turned to her. “What is it?” Ankari asked.
“Some call it Maker’s Curse, others Maker’s Ruin,” the ancient Traveller said. “It’s a prophecy much older than Millennium’s Rule. It predicts that if ever a Maker became ageless, a disaster will befall the worlds. In some versions, it says the worlds will all be destroyed. When Rielle lost her Maker ability after becoming ageless, I assumed it meant that nobody could be both.”
“But we Travellers don’t believe in prophecies,” Lejihk reminded her.
“No … but there is always a grain of truth in them,” Ulma told him. “A warning.” She looked up at Rielle. “I guess we’ll find out what that is soon enough.”
Rielle smiled. “No, you won’t. I am no longer ageless. When I restored my Maker ability, it changed the part of my mind that understood pattern shifting.”
Ulma’s eyebrows rose, and she let out a long sigh. Now it was the others’ turn to frown.
“Could you become ageless again?” Baluka asked.
“I don’t see why not.” Rielle shrugged. “And at least I can fill a world with enough magic to do it, rather than turn one into a dead world.”
“Would it take as long?” Ulma wondered aloud. “Now that you know what you did. Did the memory of learning pattern shifting disappear too?”
Rielle shook her head. She hadn’t considered that becoming ageless again might be faster the second time. “But if I do it, I lose the ability to generate magic. If I stay a Maker I could restore all the dead worlds.”
“That’s quite a sacrifice,” Lejihk observed.
“Heal yourself or heal worlds.” Ulma pursed her lips. “Mortality or magic. Though I guess you could wait until you’d lived a full lifetime, then become ageless again. Could you switch back and forth as needed?”
“I guess so.”
“Or work out how to retain both abilities?” Baluka spread his hands as Ulma frowned at him. “Prophecies aren’t real, right? Can you see how being ageless and a Maker could destroy the worlds?”
Ulma shook her head. “People considered it seriously enough when I was a young girl that laws existed in many worlds forbidding Makers attempting to become ageless. I never learned why, but perhaps that information has survived somewhere.”
“If we survive this battle, we should look into it. In the meantime—” Baluka turned to Rielle and smiled. “—as I have discovered, if you have plenty of ageless friends willing to heal you, you can live as long as they do.”
Lejihk turned to Ulma, his eyes narrowing in thought. The ageless Traveller’s gaze met his, then flitted away. “So when does the meeting resume?” she asked.
Baluka straightened. “Probably about now.”
Ulma stood. “Then let’s go before we get too caught up in this. I would like to know how we plan to coordinate our efforts during the actual battle.”
PART NINE
TYEN
CHAPTER 21
The place between worlds was full of shadows. All kept their distance, but their constant presence put Tyen on edge as he approached Dahli’s base. The shadows were most likely Dahli’s followers keeping watch for sorcerers approaching, but Tyen couldn’t help worrying that the Restorers had attacked while he was absent, won the day and he would arrive to find them waiting for him. Just in case, he’d gathered power in every world he stopped in.
When he finally approached one of the dead worlds surrounding the base, he sensed a shadow following. At once he turned and raced back towards it. The tracker came to a halt but did not flee.
“Tyen?”
Tyen knew the voice. He approached the shadow, and it resolved to become a familiar young inventor.
“Zeke? What are you doing following me?”
Zeke’s mouth remained closed, his mental voice sounding as clear in Tyen’s mind as speech. “I want to talk to you, before you join Dahli.”
Tyen took Zeke’s arm and pulled him back to the previous world. As they arrived, Zeke sucked in air, panting as he tried to catch his breath enough to talk.
“You,” Zeke gasped. “You can … read Dahli’s mind … I want … to know … why is he … so set on … bringing … Valhan back? It’s … more than … loyalty.”
Tyen’s heart sank a little. “I think you know.”
“I suspect. I guess.” Zeke sighed. “I’m done with suspecting and guessing. I want to know for sure. Were they …? Did they …?”
Tyen weighed the possible consequences of confirming the truth, and found none that would change anything greatly. At least, not for Qall. “No, but Dahli wishes it was otherwise. He has been in love with the Raen for hundreds of cycles.”
“And the Raen?”
“Did not reciprocate. At least, I can only assume he felt nothing for Dahli based on Dahli’s belief that he didn’t. Except for the appreciation and affection for a good and loyal servant.”
Zeke nodded. “Ah. Dahli seems like a good person, or he wouldn’t be so concerned for the worlds, and he has firm ideas about right and wrong, but when I question some of the things the Raen did he gets angry. He admits some of what the Raen did was wrong. He says he did many terrible things for the Raen. Things he didn’t want to.” Zeke sighed. “Dahli doesn’t want pity, but I can’t understand why he did them. Or why he stayed when he wasn’t loved in return.”
“He had nowhere else to go,” Tyen explained. “During the Raen’s rule, if you were a powerful sorcerer you either hid, served the Raen or you were killed.”
“Then why bring him back?”
“Other than love and grief?” Tyen sighed. “Loyalty. He made a promise.”
The inventor’s frown deepened. Tyen could see what the young man was too afraid to voice. If he can’t bring the Raen back, Dahli can no longer defer responsibility for all the terrible things he’s done, Zeke thought. This determination to resurrect the man is as much about fear as grief. But I’d rather help him face that than lose him completely. He shook his head. “What a mess. Either we lose and die, or we win and Dahli becomes the Raen’s most loyal friend again and everyone else dies.”
“Everyone?” Tyen raised his eyebrows.
Zeke’s shoulder’s rose. “Well, I suppose you and I wil
l keep breathing if Valhan finds us useful. But Qall isn’t going to survive, is he?”
As Tyen shook his head he watched Zeke closely. Could he and Zeke both pressure Dahli to let Qall live? The young inventor’s shoulders dropped.
“It’s hard enough liking Dahli when I know a little bit of what he’s done in the past. I don’t think I could continue to if he harms that young man.” He met Tyen’s gaze, searching for any hint that Tyen might agree. “Would you?”
“Liking Dahli has never been necessary,” Tyen admitted.
“Then why are you working with him?”
“We … made a deal.” Tyen could not tell Zeke that he had intended to keep Dahli from looking for Rielle and Qall, or that he now simply hoped he could help Qall in some way. “And as you say, if Valhan returns it is wiser to be an ally than an enemy.”
“So you don’t care what happens to Qall?”
“I do,” Tyen assured him. “I tried to find another way to bring the Raen back, so Qall need not be harmed.”
“Then Qall turned up.” Zeke grimaced. “Why do you stay by his side and not join Dahli’s followers preparing for battle?”
“Dahli hasn’t asked me to. Qall wants me close, and Dahli thinks me being friendly with Qall keeps Qall cooperative. Why do you stay?”
“I thought I could help Dahli.” Zeke bowed his head. “I’m beginning to think I’m a fool for thinking I could.” He shrugged. “But we keep trying, don’t we? Thank you for answering my questions, Tyen.”
“Don’t give up, Zeke. Perhaps between us we can persuade Dahli not to harm Qall. I doubt we can talk him out of resurrecting the Raen though.”
Zeke shook his head. “No. I don’t dare suggest it, but I will try to persuade him to let you resume your experiments.”