Sinner by Sara Douglass. Book One of The Wayfarer Redemption

“Ah, he, ah…” In the first shocking aftermath of the explosion Caelum had not thought to determine Zared’s position, and in the past two or three days he had been so plagued by his nightmares it seemed that whenever he blinked he saw the point of the sword screaming down towards his heart.

Gods, why hadn’t he acted quicker? How was it that Drago could so destroy his mind from whatever hole he’d secreted himself in?

“You have sent farflight scouts to search him out, Caelum… haven’t you?”

Caelum licked his lips, then wished he hadn’t. “I left half of the Strike Force in Sigholt, the other half in Severin.”

“Severin?”

“I thought it best that, at the least, Zared could lose his seat of power for his treachery in seizing Kastaleon.”

Axis only just managed to stop himself from swearing. “You have started a civil war, Caelum!”

“It was not ,’ who started it!”

Axis stared at his son, fighting back the words. A parley, open discussions about whatever grievances Zared had, and restitution to Askam for the seizure of Kastaleon would have solved the entire problem. But, no. Caelum had felt the need for dramatic action. Had he not taught his son better?

And he had just marched his entire force into enemy territory without scouting first?

Axis turned away, pretending a careful study of the ruins. How could he revile his son for the actions he’d taken? Caelum had no experience of war, and little of diplomacy. The now-dead Duke of Aldeni, Roland, had warned Axis many years ago that peace did not breed good kings or war leaders. Well, Axis hoped that Caelum would learn from this experience.

Stars knew he was going to need it.

“Caelum,” he said quietly, facing his son again, “Zared is not the only problem you and Tencendor must face.”

Briefly he told his son what WolfStar knew about the Sacred Lakes and the TimeKeeper Demons. He did not tell him that WolfStar claimed Caelum was the only one who could battle against the Demons. That Caelum did not need to hear right now.

What Caelum had heard was bad enough. He stared at his father. “Tell me the implications of the TimeKeepers’ approach!”

“They will destroy our power, Caelum. Already they blot out the Star Dance from a tiny portion of the universe. If they get close enough to the Star Gate then they will cut out the music of the Star Dance completely.”

“But that will mean… that will mean that all Enchanters in this land will lose their powers! Every… every…” Caelum stared at his father, not able to say it.

“And every Star God, Caelum. Every Star God,”

Caelum shook his head, trying to comprehend this torrent of bad news. No wonder the problems he’d been experiencing with his own powers. And it would only get worse? He tried to imagine life without the ability to hear or use the Star Dance, and found he could not do so. “Why do they approach so fast? Why now?”

And even as he asked the question, he knew. Drago. Drago had taken the Rainbow Sceptre through the Star Gate to these Demons!

Yes, Axis answered in his mind. “He leads them,” he continued in his speaking voice, “no doubt in some plan to finally wrest control of Tencendor from you. Stars knows he was ever ambitious!”

“Father,” Caelum whispered, “have you dreamed of the hunt recently?”

“No. Why?”

Caelum told his father about his dreams, about being hunted through forest and plain alike by the horseman dressed in his enveloping dark armour.

“It is DragonStar,” Caelum said, “and always he hunts me down, and always he impales me on his sword.”

His eyes were haunted, terrified. “Now Drago leads Demons to destroy us. Drago’s infant pact with Gorgrael was the least of his horrors, wasn’t it, Father? He will never rest, never, until he can kill me.”

“Caelum, listen to me.” Axis took his son’s shoulders and forced him to meet his stare. “We will prevail. We have time to prepare. The Demons are far off yet.”

Axis could feel Caelum trembling beneath his hands, and his power could detect the memories rushing through his mind. Stars! He had not realised Drago exerted such a hold over Caelum.

“Caelum? We will deal with this.”

“Yes. Yes, you are right.” Caelum straightened and subdued his doubts. “But first I must deal with Zared.”

“Yes.” It will give you experience, Axis thought. Experience and confidence.

“Do whatever you think best, Caelum.”

“I’ll battle it out, then,” Caelum said. “Zared has lost the right to parley.”

Axis frowned, then nodded. “If your judgment tells you that is the right course, then take it.”

Then he caught himself. What was he thinking? Was he about to sacrifice his brother in order to hone his son’s skills? But Caelum had been right to say that it was Zared who’d started this. Zared had drawn the first blood.

Was Tencendor worth a brother? Axis had to stop a grim smile. He’d killed two brothers already to accomplish his dream. The death of another to preserve it was no great sacrifice.

Was it?

“If you need advice, Caelum, never hesitate to ask.”

Whatever doubts Caelum had exhibited earlier had now apparently vanished. “I will deal with Zared on my own, Father. Zared is my problem. But,” his mouth quirked, “Drago is something I may need a little help with. With him, and with these Demons, I do invoke your aid.”

Axis smiled, and put his arm about Caelum’s shoulders. “Go deal with Zared, and then we shall scheme to put Drago away for an eternity.”

The Shadow-Lands At first Zenith moved easily through the shadow-lands. Every night Faraday came to her, took her hand, and encouraged her further south. The journey was painless through shadow-Skarabost. They left the forest quickly – for the shadow-Minstrelsea was an unnerving place to remain – and travelled the great grain plains of Skarabost. Insubstantial men and women tilled the fields and the vegetable patches, their every movement slow and deliberate, their eyes always turned away from the two women who moved among them.

Once they reached southern Skarabost, Zenith found her steps increasingly painful. It was Niah’s unconscious mind, Faraday explained, throwing up defences against Zenith’s approach.

“It will become ever more painful,” Faraday said, and Zenith turned her head aside. Painful or not, she was determined to recover her body and her life.

Their journey slowed. Each night they covered less ground, even though Faraday bent every art and skill and encouragement she could. Night by night, step by step, the pain increased.

“What are these shadow-lands?” Zenith asked one night to keep her mind occupied with something other than the pain.

“The world of dream is as real as the world of waking, Zenith. But few know of its existence. Even when they dream, they barely skirt about its edges.”

“How did you know of it?”

Faraday was silent a long while before she answered. “You do not know how I was transformed back into human form, and I do not think I am able to explain it all to you. But a force such as I have never known seized me, changed me, and enriched me. Over the past two months I have explored my new power, and one of the avenues it opened for me was into the shadow-lands. Zenith, that is not much of an explanation, but it is the best I can do.”

Zenith nodded and accepted it.

Despite the questions she asked to keep her mind from the pain, by the time they neared the shadow-Carlon, Zenith had bitten her lip red with the effort of not crying out.

But what the two women found at the site of Carlon and the Grail Lake drove the pain from Zenith’s mind.

They stood and gaped.

“What is it?” Zenith asked, leaning on Faraday’s arm.

Faraday stared ahead. “It is a maze,” she said, and some part of her knew that it was somehow connected to Noah.

They stood on a small rise from where they should have been able to see Grail Lake and Carlon rising in splendour on its shore. But a gigantic maze had replaced both lake and city. Where once had been water were now twisting stone-walled avenues and alleys, blind cul-de-sacs and trick doorways. It was massive, easily a league from side to side and perhaps two long. At its most western aspect the Maze rose as if it climbed a small hill – and there rose Carlon, as it would have risen beside the lake.

But it was not quite the same Carlon. Its streets had twisted into a maze-like tangle as well, its buildings and spaces merely an extension of the maze below.

“Look,” Zenith whispered, and pointed.

“Yes,” Faraday said. “I see them.”

Tens of thousands of people scurried in the Maze that filled the site of the lake and overwhelmed Carlon. Most of the activity was in the section of the Maze that had once been Carlon, but many hundreds had somehow found their way into the lower Maze. But whatever section they were in, the people ran this way and that, frantic even in the dreamlike shadow-lands. Many carried bundled belongings, or children. Some ran headlong into stone walls and fell senseless to the ground. Others lent each other aid to climb the walls of the Maze, only to tumble into a section of labyrinth more frustrating than the last. Others looked over their shoulders as if they were being pursued, others still checked the position of the sun, almost lost in a haze, as if their lives depended on it.