The Labyrinth of Destiny Read online

  Adesina waved a hand impatiently. “What does it matter if we are all on the same side?”

  Ruon inclined his oval head. “Exactly. Why would it matter if we elected one of our own to be a member of your party?”

  The rock-like creature rubbed his head thoughtfully with the grating sound of stone against stone. “Brother Ruon has a point. This is not merely a Serraf matter—it involves all of us. The Serraf alone should not bear the responsibility of stopping Cha-sak and his followers.”

  “Adesina needs my guidance,” insisted Sitara. “She is a newborn Serraf and does not know how to use her new abilities.”

  “Thou needst not stay behind,” assured Toraun, “but a truth hath been spoken.”

  “Send Brother Ruon,” squawked a creature with the head of a raven and the body of a woman.

  Ruon looked extremely smug at this nomination. Adesina silently wished for someone else—anyone else—to be elected to join their party.

  Other Council members nodded. Adesina assumed that they were also demons of various kinds, since the Children of Light seemed to be keeping their opinions to themselves.

  “Yes, Ruon is a good choice.”

  “I agree.”

  “We have no quarrel with the Laithur. I suppose he is as good a choice as any.”

  Adesina stifled a groan as Toraun raised a hand and said, “The decision hath been made, and all shall abide by it.”

  Sitara also seemed less than pleased. “Very well.”

  Riel, Sitara’s Rashad companion, spoke in her quiet and musical voice. “We must hurry to the Northern Threshold or we will miss our only opportunity to cross back over into the human world.”

  Toraun crossed all four of his hands on his chest in a form of salute. “May the blessings of the Ancients go with thee.”

  Adesina wasn’t sure what to say in return. “Thank you,” she said, feeling slightly foolish.

  “Do you need anything before we leave, Ruon?” asked Sitara, omitting the title of brother.

  The Laithur’s smile indicated that he noticed the omission. “No, Sitara,” he emphasized her name with a sarcastic tone. “I am prepared to leave whenever you are.”

  Riel took the initiative and began walking away from the gathering of Council members. Sitara followed closely behind, pointedly ignoring Ruon’s sneering smile. Adesina and Ravi exchanged glances before following, and Ruon brought up the rear at an unhurried pace.

  Adesina felt an enormous sense of relief knowing that they were on their way back to the world she knew. There was a driving feeling of urgency to stop Cha-sak before he could cause any lasting harm to humankind.

  So intent was the young woman with her inner worries that she almost didn’t notice the landscape around them. She would have been completely unaware had it not been for Ravi.

  What a strange world this is.

  Adesina looked up in surprise. “Is it?” she responded automatically.

  Then she took a moment to look around. She once again took note of the violet moss that covered the ground and the pink sky, but she didn’t observe anything that she hadn’t seen before.

  Ravi spoke aloud instead of through their Joining. “It is unnaturally silent here—even that small stream makes no sound. I can sense no life other than the few plants we see and the members of the Council. Are there no animals?”

  Sitara shook her head. “We chose this realm because it held no life other than the plants. That way we would not alter the natural order of this world.”

  Ruon snorted derisively. “You say that as if we did not affect the plants and rocks of this realm. Our presence changed this place, even if you choose not to notice it.”

  “Perhaps I do not have the same affinity to stone as you do,” admitted Sitara.

  “Are the…Laithur interested in rocks?” asked Adesina hesitantly. She didn’t feel entirely comfortable around a creature that she knew to be a demon.

  Ruon swiveled his oval head on his long and snakelike neck. He fixed his small eyes on Adesina, and she had the unnerving feeling that he could see right through her. “Know you nothing of the Immortals?” he asked with a hint of surprise.

  Adesina felt her face redden. “Not very much. Most humans believe that the Immortals are myths.”

  Ruon’s flat face took on a thoughtful expression. “The Laithur are creatures that are most comfortable in caves. The Seer dwelt in the Great Cavern, and so the Laithur lived there, too.”

  Even Ravi was confused by this explanation. “The Seer?”

  “Has all knowledge been lost in your world?” asked Ruon in irritation. He took a deep breath and started again. “Just as you Serraf and Rashad serve the Creator, we Laithur served the Seer.”

  “Who is the Seer?” asked Adesina.

  “One of the lesser Ancients,” explained Sitara.

  “Not lesser in any aspect that matters,” quipped Ruon.

  Sitara smiled at the demon as one might to a petulant child. “No Ancient is.”

  “And yet you continually make the distinction,” he snapped.

  Sitara gave the Laithur a level gaze. “Such loyal defense from one who has forsaken his duty.”

  Ruon appeared to have no answer as he turned away in disgust.

  Sitara took over the explanation in a low voice. “The Seer was an Ancient who could see all things—past, present, and future. He preferred to live underground because the dark and silence allowed him to see more clearly. The Laithur were the servants of the Seer…until they embraced the Darkness and became demons.”

  Adesina’s mind was filled with questions, and she could hardly decide which to ask first. “Who are these Ancients to which you keep referring?”

  “Goodness,” said Riel, smiling, “much knowledge has been lost.”

  Adesina and Ravi shared feelings of self-consciousness, but neither said anything.

  “The Ancients are the deities that rule the universe,” began Sitara, but she was interrupted by Ruon before she could continue.

  “We are here,” he said abruptly.

  Sitara had not exaggerated when she had said that the Threshold was not far from where the Council met. The walk had taken them less than half an hour.

  The Threshold itself was another low outcropping of rock amid the flat landscape. There was an entrance like the cave that led to the Threshold of Zonne, but this entrance was shallow enough that Adesina could easily see where it came to an end.

  She had been expecting something similar to the Threshold of Zonne—a platform or a doorway of some sort. Instead, there was nothing but the slight indentation in the rock.

  “Is this it?” asked Adesina in confusion.

  Legends say that the Thresholds come in many shapes and sizes. Ravi thought to her with a hint of uncertainty.

  “Yes,” affirmed Sitara, “this is it. The Northern Threshold. This is the only other point of connection between this world and your own. This is the only remaining way back…home.”

  Adesina looked at Sitara in surprise. She had never considered that the Immortals would view her world as their home, too. It must have been a long and lonesome wait for them during their imprisonment.

  They will not have to wait much longer, Ravi promised.

  Adesina smiled in agreement. No, they will not.

  “What do I need to do?” she asked aloud.

  “All Thresholds share the same power,” explained Sitara. “You were reborn upon a Threshold, so your vyala is tied to theirs. You alone have the ability to open a Threshold at your will.”

  Adesina stared at the outcropping, hoping to gain some sort of inspiration. “How?” she asked after a moment.

  “Connect to your vyala, little sister,” Sitara said kindly. “It will guide you.”

  Adesina closed her eyes and let her magic flow from the center of her being. It warmed her as it spread, filling her with life and light.

  This was her first time connecting with her vyala since becoming a Serraf, and Adesina immediately s
ensed a difference. It wasn’t just that her powers were stronger—which they were—but they seemed deeper and more profound. Her connection to the world around her was more than just a greater awareness. She had become one with the world. The rocks and the plants were a part of her.

  With this change in the forefront of her mind, Adesina turned her attention to the Northern Threshold.

  The rock itself was nothing extraordinary. It had nothing that set it apart from any other rock in any other world. But when Adesina looked beyond its physical form, she saw something that caught her breath.

  There was a tunnel of swirling magical light that led to worlds without measure. Adesina could not see the other end of the tunnel, but she could feel that the possibilities were infinite. All of space in every dimension—and even all of time—whirled within that vortex of power, and Adesina finally understood what it meant to stand on the threshold of eternity.

  “The Serraf did not create the Thresholds,” Adesina said softly.

  “No,” answered Sitara. “They were created by the Traveler, one of the Ancients.”

  Adesina didn’t need to be told that the Thresholds had been brought into existence by a much greater power. She could feel the pure vyala surging through the small opening that connected the Threshold to this world. The young woman traced that tenuous connection, and she saw that the small outcropping of rock served as an anchor for the power behind the Threshold. All she had to do was to part the invisible curtains that stood before the tunnel, and…

  A doorway of light appeared.

  Sitara gasped softly. “It took a full circle of Serraf sisters to pry the Zonne Threshold open, even for a brief period of time. Yet you open this one with a simple gesture of your hand.”

  Adesina felt her chest swell with pride at Sitara’s words.

  “You did say that Ma’eve was linked to the Thresholds,” reminded Ravi. “Did you not believe that she could do it?”

  Sitara gave a small smile. “Knowing something in your mind is not the same as witnessing it.”

  Even Ruon seemed grudgingly impressed. “This half-blood may be the one we have been waiting for after all.”

  Adesina felt her temper flare. “I have a name, you know.”

  Ruon chose to ignore her statement. He turned his full attention to the Threshold. “It is called the Northern Threshold because it is connected to the northernmost Threshold in the human world. We may not be far from the Zonne Threshold here, but we shall reappear in your world many leagues from Zonne.”

  Adesina could feel through their Joining that Ravi was very uneasy with this information. “Where is the Northern Threshold, exactly?” he asked.

  “Tsan,” Sitara answered shortly.

  Ravi’s uneasiness grew to alarm. “Tsan sank beneath the ocean centuries ago.”

  “Do not worry,” said Ruon in a strangely detached voice. “Help is on the way.”

  Adesina frowned. “How do you know that?”

  “I can See,” was his enigmatic reply.

  Sitara seemed to understand, but she gave no explanation. “Take a deep breath,” she instructed, “and swim for the surface as soon as you cross over.”

  “Why not use vyala to create a bubble of air around us?” inquired Adesina.

  “Can you maintain that level of concentration while hurtling between worlds?” challenged Ruon in a sharp tone.

  She felt a wave of doubt. “I…am not sure.”

  The Laithur’s flat face twisted in irritation. “I said that help is on the way. But we have to cross within the next thirty seconds.”

  “I will go first,” volunteered Sitara. She took a couple of slow, deep breaths before walking into the Threshold and disappearing.

  Riel followed immediately after her, and Ruon was close behind.

  Adesina’s heart raced with apprehension, and Ravi sent soothing thoughts through their Joining.

  She took one breath to slow her heart rate, and another to prepare her mind. Then, taking a breath that was deeper than the others, she walked into the light.

  Chapter Four: Returning

  The sensations of passing through the Threshold were not like it had been in Zonne. There was no feeling of compression, no gentle drifting.

  Instead, it was like walking through a violent windstorm. The raw magic whipped about Adesina, pulling at her clothing and hair. Only the intense training she had endured in order to become a member of the Shimat assassins saved her from releasing the breath of air that she held in her lungs.

  The experience was as brief as it was intense, over in an instant.

  Adesina found herself deep underneath water.

  Feelings of panic rushed over her as the salty water stung her eyes. She began swimming towards the surface with rapids strokes of her arms and legs, trying to calm her mind as she did so.

  She glanced back to locate Ravi, and her eyes rested on the Northern Threshold. Nothing remained, other than a crooked pile of ruined columns. It was difficult to see details in the dim light under water, but she could see at least that much. Adesina glimpsed signs of the remains of a great city beyond the columns—portions of buildings, statues, broken roads—all covered in algae and seaweed.

  Ravi swam past her, not distracted by the ruins of a city long dead. His powerful limbs propelled him upward with ease. Adesina followed his example and returned her focus to swimming.

  The water around her was growing lighter, and Adesina felt relief that she was nearing the surface. Her ability to hold her breath was not endless, no matter the training she had received.

  She thought of Ruon’s statement that there would be help waiting for them, and she swiveled her head in search of her companions.

  They were not far above her. Sitara and Riel were swimming much like her—paddling with arms and legs—but Ruon’s arms remained at his side, and his body undulated like a water snake.

  As Adesina watched, Ruon stopped swimming and turned to face back towards the ocean deep. He raised his arms in silent welcome, and Adesina turned her eyes downward to look.

  At first her eyes could detect only shadows, but then she saw that one of the shadows was moving.

  Very swiftly.

  The long, serpent-like body bore a ridge of spiny fins along the back, and a head shaped like an arrow tip was surrounded by another row of sharp fins that spread outward. Orange eyes almost seemed to glow in the dark ocean, and Adesina felt a crashing wave of terror grip her heart.

  It was an aekuor.

  Adesina started swimming as fast as she could, but she knew that she could not possibly outpace the enormous sea monster.

  None of her companions, other than Ravi, seemed to recognize the danger, and Adesina feared that they would be killed before they could defend themselves.

  Adesina connected to her vyala and felt the power surge through her with an urgency that she had never experienced before. She extended her left hand and a flare of light shot through the water and lashed the aekuor in the eye.

  Even under water its shriek of rage struck her to the core.

  She didn’t wait to see the effect her attack had on the creature, but swam onward to the surface, grabbing at her companions as she passed.

  They broke the surface of the water, and Sitara sputtered and gasped. “What have you done?”

  Adesina swallowed several breaths of air before she was able to speak. “We do not have time to discuss it. That monster will kill us if we do not get out of the water right now. Ruon, where is the help you promised?”

  The Laithur’s glittering eyes were furious. “The aekuor was the help.”

  Adesina didn’t have a chance to ask him what he meant. The sea monster rose up from the deep with crashing waves of water and an ear-splitting cry of wrath.

  The aekuor would have killed them in an instant, but it was suddenly distracted by a small explosion in the water on its opposite side.

  Adesina whipped her head around and her heart leapt in relief. Not far in the distance w
as a merchant sea vessel, lobbing small barrels packed with explosives into the ocean to draw the aekuor away.

  “Swim for that ship,” she commanded her companions.

  A joyful thought from Ravi entered Adesina’s mind. Look at the bow!

  Her eyes locked on the bright yellow words painted on the black stained wood.

  Zephyr.

  A laugh burst from Adesina’s lips, filled with disbelief and happiness. “Ravi,” she called as she pointed to the deck.

  He immediately understood her meaning, and he used his Rashad powers to transport himself aboard the vessel.

  Adesina and her companions continued swimming towards the ship, and before long there were ropes thrown in their direction. She made sure that Sitara and Ruon had firm holds on the ropes nearest to them, and all three of them were hauled aboard. Riel transported herself as soon as she saw that her mistress was safe.

  Adesina was hauled to her feet by a burly man with skin the color of rich earth. He locked her in a crushing embrace and said in a deep voice, “The Zephyr welcomes you, Mistress Adesina.”

  “Thank you, Captain Zulimar.”

  A proper reunion between Adesina and the friends she had met on her voyage to Zonne would have to wait. The captain hurried off to lead his crew in the desperate escape from the aekuor.

  A small man—no more than three and a half feet tall, with wild brown hair and sun-weathered skin—came running by. Satosh flashed a wicked smile at her as he passed. “It seems you bring danger in your wake, Adesina.”

  She smiled in return, but did not stop him with a reply. She knew that he was busy trying to save their lives, and her own mind was racing for some solution to this danger. After all, Ravi could not risk his life again to save them, as he had the last time they had faced an aekuor.

  It might be easier now that you are a Serraf.

  Adesina shook her head adamantly. I am not willing to take that chance.

  The young woman’s Immortal companions crowded around her.

  “What have you done?” hissed Ruon. “You attacked our ally!”

  Adesina’s brow furrowed in confusion. “What are you talking about? The aekuor would just as soon kill us as look at us!”